KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN
by Kamen Rider Chrome
Summary: The sequel to "KAMEN RIDER SHOWA". Shinichi's adventurous life continues with his friends as he is joined by Alan Smith and Yuji Fudo to fight the forces of evil. They must face impossible odds, powerful supernatural forces, evil masterminds bent on world domination, annd evil geniuses obsessed with genocide. The fight between Good and Evil continues here.
1. Prologue: Blank Slate XIII

Topper sat comfortably in his chair. The room was dark and a spotlight shone upon him. In his hand was a thick book bound in leather. A pair of reading glasses rested upon his nose.

He spoke, "With every tale there is a beginning. No story is complete without a beginning. This story is no different. This is the story of pain and suffering, of trust and betrayal, of vengeance and betrayal. Most of all it is the story of a man trying to find a path towards light and to leave the darkness behind with each step. I ask you this; can someone whose past is horribly filled with blood and death find a bright future or are they fated to suffer a tragic end?" He paused to close his book and stare directly ahead of him. Fixing his glasses he finished, "Fate VS Free Will, which will win? I'll let you decide on that."

Fade to black…

* * *

**BLANK SLATE XIII**

**-1974-**

6 year old Shinji Banabara was waiting for his mom to pick him up from kindergarten. He waited and waited as all his classmates left with their parents. "Where's Kaa-chan?"

"Hello, young man," a blond gentleman asked. Shinji recognized him. He was the nice doctor his mother had taken him to see.

"Hello, doctor!" Shinji greeted cheerfully. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, your mother asked me to pick you up," said the doctor.

"Really?"

"Really."

Shinji's mom always told him to never talk to strangers, but the doctor wasn't a stranger. With a shrug, Shinji said, "OK!" before taking the doctor's hand.

* * *

He didn't know where he was. One moment he was just waiting for his mother and then the nice doctor came. Now, he was stripped naked and strapped to an operating table. There were also needles stuck to his body which were connected to some strange machines with wires. He was also wearing a headband with wires too.

"Begin genetic infusion and alteration," Dr. Gebok ordered. "And next begin mental reconfiguration," he added.

Shinji screamed as he felt a terrible pain run through his body. He called out loudly, "KAA-CHAN!"

* * *

**-1982-**

The American army base was suddenly attacked by a group of unknown hostiles. They had just suddenly appeared in the dead of night without warning. Tanks rolled out to fire at the bizarre centipede monster, only to be suddenly attacked by a barrage of needles and bombs that ripped apart metal to expose the vulnerable flesh of the soldiers within.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHA! THIS IS FUN!" #12 laughed insanely with #00 saying nothing as he did his work. They were high in the air, dropping their deadly weapons upon the army below. Soldiers writhed and screamed in agony as bodies were ripped apart in thunderous detonations and what remained was shredded by sharp, silvery hail.

"ARGH!" the soldiers shrieked in horror as they were covered in an army of roaches that they futilely began trying to shoot. #11 watched them shoot themselves and their comrades with amusement as she forced more and more of them to be trapped in their darkest nightmares, calmly walking forward to free them of their fear-spawned illusions, only for their last sight to be of her, their deaths.

"HALT!" four army men shouted, pointing their guns at #04, who just giggled as she walked forward. "I said halt!"

#04 just responded cutely, "Boys, you should've run." Suddenly her tendrils shot out and hit the four men. They screamed horribly, shockingly loud, but only for an instant. The screams swiftly dwindled into a gurgling, rasping sigh as they turned into shriveled husks, their faces still twisted in expressions of unmitigated horror. When she spoke again, her voice was crueler. "Warned you, stupid idiots."

"This is Sergeant Anderson, we're under fire here, unable to contact anyone, we need air cover, I repeat-" he never finished as a chainsaw ripped through his neck and sent his head bouncing away in a fountain of blood. The soldier began firing at the Termite-themed enemy, only for the bullets to ricochet off his armor. The horror before them used his chainsaw to slaughter the soldier's remaining comrades, then trapped the soldier himself in his unique glue. He would play with this one slowly…

* * *

#13 jumped onto one of the tanks and grabbed the cannon before bending it into a loop without effort, the metal screeching horribly as he did so. He then tore open the hatch and looked down at the terrified soldier inside. Reaching down, he grabbed the person driving the tank before hauling up his whimpering form and snapping his neck. He then jumped off from the tank and lifted it up before he tossed it into the air. The tank crashed on several soldiers, splintering their bones in a welter of gore as it crushed them to death. As a few tanks opened fire on him, he vanished from sight. In a matter of seconds the tanks all exploded before #13 reappeared. He nonchalantly brushed off the debris on his shoulder before he went to find another target.

From GIN-SHOCKER HQ, Gebok cackled. "Do you see? Do you see? That's the power of MY #13!"

"Tsk, he is most impressive, I must say, Gebok." Dr. Arihara said, snarling with impotent fury.

"Indeed, though he is a tad too flashy for my taste." Dr. Phobist muttered as he scratched the back of his head out of boredom.

* * *

"Retreat!" a soldier shouted, running away with his platoon. Unfortunately for them, they barely made a few steps before they were cut down violently by energy blades from #10. Blood splattered everywhere and entrails steamed as they were exposed to the air. What could be seen of the soldiers' mangled faces showed frozen expressions of shock and horror.

"Heh, worthless vermin," #10 murmured. When he heard a gun clicking behind him, he flipped behind the soldier that was going to shoot him and sliced him in half. He fell with the same frozen expression of astonishment on his face as his comrades.

"Hmm," #10 heard a transmission from HQ along with the other NUMBERS.

_"Well done NUMBERS. You have managed to kill all the soldiers in the base."_

"It was an honor, sir," an emotionless voice that must have belonged to #13 answered. #10 rolled his eyes in disdain.

#13's hyper-sensitive ears detected something and he immediately spotted a survivor crawling away. He strode towards the severely injured, yet alive, soldier and picked him up by the back of his shirt.

"Please...don't kill me!" the soldier begged. "I have a wife and kids!"

"Irrelevant," said #13, right before he twisted the man's neck with a grisly _crack_, and dropped his body like a sack of potatoes.

"Mission accomplished," #13 intoned, walking away from the newly dead soldier. "Returning to base." He and the other NUMBERS began walking away to head back to GIN-SHOCKER's base. The military would think it was a terrorist attack with the media saying it was as well; after all, GIN-SHOCKER had carefully removed any evidence of their involvement.

* * *

The NUMBERS, or the Neo-Ultimate Multiple Biologically Enhanced Rider Squad, were the newest series of Kaizo Ningen developed by GIN-SHOCKER. They were each given a different set of genetic and cybernetic enhancements that made them GIN-SHOCKER's most powerful weapons. They were designated only by number. They were also identified by the type of creature their suits were based on.

#00: Hornet

#01: Leech

#02: Termite

#03: Tick

#04: Mosquito

#05: Centipede

#06: Jewel Beetle

#07: Tarantula

#08: Cricket

#09: Pill Bug

#10: Dobsonfly

#11: Mantis

#12: Dragonfly

#13: Cicada

Not only were they different in terms of appearance, but they were also different in terms of abilities. That was what happened when each of them had a different scientist working on them. The scientists came from all walks of life and had been recruited by GIN-SHOCKER for their knowledge in the fields of genetics and cybernetics. They had to be persuaded while a minority had been forced to work for GIN-SHOCKER. Nevertheless, these scientists were able to produce the NUMBERS.

The NUMBERS also varied in personality, but under GIN-SHOCKER they were able to work together as a team.

* * *

Back at GIN-SHOCKER's base, #13 lay on a table as Gebok examined him. "Doctor, when that man begged me not to kill him, he mentioned 'wife and kids.' Why is that? Why would he mention others when he himself was dying?"

"Well from what I gather from my father is that for some, life can be difficult at times and at those times they may need a support system," Gebok explained as #13 listened. "The best support for those is an unconditional bond from a family created from 'love.'" He sneered before going on. "Personally, I never understood why people cared for one another. Families are just created to produce a legacy to leave behind when the parental units are gone. Don't be like him worrying about those things; one must only care for themselves #13. Things like love are for the weak."

"... Understood," #13 murmured. He didn't ask anymore question on the matter.

* * *

**-1983-**

The NUMBERS were put into a single empty room as a voice was heard, booming out of an unseen source, "NUMBERS, TODAY IS THE DAY YOU WILL BE GIVEN MORE POWER! YOU WILL GIVEN A HIGHER RANK! ALL YOU HAVE TO DO...IS ANNIHILATE EACH OTHER! THE LAST KAIZO NINGEN LEFT STANDING, WINS!"

"Ehh!" #09 shouted, shocked. Did that voice say what he thought it said?

* * *

"GEBOK, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Dr. Magi shouted angrily. He and the other scientists were in the observation room.

"Magi, you knew this day would come from the very start. The Great Leader only needs one ultimate weapon. Any more is just a risk of defection and destruction," Gebok sneered.

"Very true," Zestokij agreed. "Besides, I do miss a good old-fashioned guts and gore show."

"To weed out the weak and leave only the best. What a brilliant test the Great Leader has made," Dr. Arihara mused with the other scientists agreeing making Magi give disgusted look towards them.

"Why so glum, Magi? Don't have confidence in your own Kaizo Ningen?" Gebok asked as all eyes turned to the screen

* * *

"T-they can't be serious, right?" #11 fearfully asked #07 who shrugged as she tried to calm her friend down.

"Interesting..." #10 mused, wondering who would make the first killing move.

"Tsk, this is some sort of sick joke right, #00?" #05 asked but all he got was silence, making him confused. He turned around to ask again only to scream in shock making the other NUMBERS turn.

#00's head had been completely ripped off his body with said body still standing as if the one who'd done it had been too fast for #00 to react. With a certain, terrible slowness, the body crumpled with blood still spurting from its neck.

"W-wha-?" No.01 tried to say only for something to smash through his mouthguard, grab his tongue in an iron, vice-like grip, and rip it out by the roots. The maimed #01 fell back, a horrible, gurgling shriek of sheer agony bursting from his throat as he clawed at his mouth in a futile effort to stem the blood that poured from between his lips. Eyes rolling to the back of his head, he fell and did not return to his feet.

#13 stood but a short distance from both prone bodies, holding a familiar head in his right hand and a tongue in his left. He dropped them and focused his crimson eyes on the remaining NUMBERS.

"Order complied," said #13 in a mechanical voice as bright red target circles appeared on the other Kaizo Ningen in his cybernetic visual display."Terminate all targets." He vanished.

* * *

"Heh heh," Gebok grinned at how his creation easily killed two of the NUMBERS so quickly. "Two down, eleven to go."

* * *

"Oi, where did he go!" #04 shouted only to feel a hand smash through her torso as #13 reappeared and ripped her heart out.

"My... My heart..." #04 gasped as her last sight was of #13 crushing the pulsating organ in his fist before disappearing again.

"FUCK! HE'S GOING TO KILL US ALL!" #12 shouted in panic as he used his machineguns and began firing randomly in all directions in hopes of killing #13, forcing the other surviving NUMBERS to duck from the bullets

"OI! WATCH IT!" #09 shouted, but #12 just ignored him. All #12 had focused on his mind was survival. That sole, driving thought, was however, abruptly overridden by pain. He looked down to that not only were his machineguns destroyed, but his arms were bent backwards at an unnatural angle.

"ARGGH!" #12 screamed as he stumbled backwards in shock and fear, only for #13 to end his suffering by cutting him cleanly in half. Sparks flew as machines shorted out from the grisly remains and entrails boiled out from the still-standing lower torso, before that too toppled, leaving another bloody corpse.

"Heh, fool," #6 muttered knowing that if they panicked it'd be easier for #13 to wipe them out. As he slowly got up, he decided to use his ability to stop #13.

Slamming both hands to the ground, he created large crystals that shot from the earth and forced the others to jump or be impaled. "Once I take care of the big threat I'll easily kill all the others and gain that promotion," he muttered darkly as visions of glory and power filled his head.

It was those imaginings that led to his ultimate demise as a large bloody slash was made on his back

"Ack!" #06 grunted as he stumbled. He turned to see #13 bringing his gun out. #13 shot #06 at point blank range, going through his helmet, his brain and finally out the other side. The sheer force of the bullet quite literally scrambled #6's brain as it went through and grey matter dribbled from the newly made hole.

#13 saw the other NUMBERS bringing their individual weapons out. They weren't going down without a fight.

#03 tried to use his nano-ticks on #13 but the killer Kaizo Ningen summoned his sword to stab him through the throat before he could.

"URK!" An inarticulate choking noise was all that managed to emerge from #3's mouth as #13 twisted the hilt and cut forward, grating through skull and brain alike. Another Kaizo Ningen fell, as #13 he let go of his weapon.

"DIE FOOL!" #05 roared as he rushed at #13 with his Pata. #02 did the same with his chainsaws, charging from the opposite direction. However, #13 simply jumped over #05 and aimed his gun at #02's arms. With a single pull of the trigger he blasted #02's chainsaws right off and the Termite Cyborg gave a silent scream as his lethal appendages were so violently separated from him.

Landing on his feet, #13 grabbed one of the chainsaws before restoring it to working order. He rushed towards #02 with his newly acquired weapon, its hungry buzz filling the air as #02 attempted to jump away. #13 was faster though. The chainsaw cut into #02's legs thrice, chopping them down to mere stumps and causing #2 to crash to the floor, clutching what remained of those limbs in mind-blowing agony. He writhed, almost pitifully helpless on the floor, but #13 ignored his anguish and simply ended his suffering by grabbing him by the hair and twisting his neck into an unnatural angle. An audible _crack_ echoed through the room before #02 slumped to the ground, his gaze blank and lifeless.

"YOU TEME! DON'T FORGET I'M BEHIND YOU!" #05 roared as he lunged at #13 but was spared only an indifferent-looking glance. For a moment, it seemed as though #05 would land his lethal blow, but, using his time manipulating abilities, not only was #13 now behind #05, the latter was also missing both arms and had two chainsaws stuck through his body.

"GYAAHHH!" #05 howled in agony as he slowly died from blood loss. Turning away, #13 attention fixed itself upon the others. A quick head count revealed that #09 was missing.

"CANNONBALL!" #13 looked up when he heard the yell to see #09 hurtling down upon him. #13 jumped out of the way just in time as a large crater formed beneath #9's point of impact.

Both #11 and #07 jumped at #13 with their respective weapons raised, but #13 slowed down time until it seemed almost as if they drifted through the air at a snail's crawl. He then plunged his hands into their chests and ripped their lungs out. Curling his hands into fists, he bashed in their skulls for good measure. After that he restored the flow of time. Both bodies crumpled to the ground, indisputably dead.

"#11! #07!" #09 shouted, horrified.

"You shouldn't worry about the dead. You should be more worried about yourself," #13 stated with clinical detachment as he stood behind #09. #13 grabbed #09's back armor and ripped it off before grabbing his arms.

"Oi! What are you doing!" #09 screamed. #13's answer was a vicious kick in the back. "ARGH!" #09 screamed as he felt bone and cartilage separate while tendons snapped from the violent dislocation of his shoulders.

#13 then raised the Pill Bug Cyborg above his head, holding him by an arm and a leg and slowly, inexorably pulling on both until #09's spine gave a sickening crack. #13 dropped the lifeless corpse without any further ceremony and kicked it casually aside, so it wouldn't get in his way.

#08 stared at #13 in horror. #13 had killed most of the NUMBERS off without a second thought. He hadn't even hesitated. It was at that moment that #13 spotted #08 and charged at him. He attacked with a series of punches that the Cricket Rider was barely able to block with his weapon.

"#13, why are you doing this? We're your comrades! Stop! I don't want to fight you!" #08 screamed at #13 hoping to make him see reason.

"We have been ordered to kill each other in other to attain a higher rank. As weapons, we must obey GIN-SHOCKER's orders without question," #13's voice was utterly soulless and devoid of feeling as he used a kick to send #08's weapon flying into the air, before effortlessly leaping up to grab it.

Twirling the military fork around, #13 aimed his gaze at #08 "No stop!" #08 pleaded. "I'm your friend, #13! Remember!"

With a thrust, #13 stabbed the prongs right through #08's stomach, gutting him with ease as he twisted the weapon. #08 stared at him in shock and disbelief, coughing weakly as blood trickled from his lips.

"No, we were merely associates. To have friends is a weakness," #13 stated calmly as he watched #08 fall.

"I…trusted you…" uttered 08 as the blood pooled around him before he breathed his last.

Clapping resounded. #13 turned only to see #10 admiring the various cadavers "Most impressive, #13. The way you killed them like the vermin they were… Truly magnificent." Pulling out his swords, #10 grinned at the Cicada Cyborg darkly "But I'm afraid only one of us can gain the promotion." He dashed towards his opponent, who summoned his own sword while charging towards #10

SLASH!

Both stood facing in opposite directions. Blood spurted from #13's right shoulder, but #10 frowned underneath his helmet

"Tsk, I can't believe I'm going to die at the hands of this scum!" Suddenly, a huge gout of blood erupted from #10's body as his head, arms, legs and torso were separated. Earlier, #13 had used his time manipulating abilities to slow down time so he could slice through #10's body repeatedly without him realizing it.

#13 glanced at all the dead NUMBERS. He was the last Kaizo Ningen standing. He was the winner. He was…perfect.

"CONGRATULATION'S, #13!" said Gebok as his voice was heard. "YOU TRULY ARE THE PERFECT WEAPON!"

Now that BLACK 13 had won, he deserved a reward.

* * *

It didn't take long for the download to be completed. The Riders' battles were being downloaded into his mind and he learnt about all they could do and their abilities. Of course, something else was being downloaded into his brain. #13 felt that he was changing from within through everything he was seeing.

Once the procedure was complete, Gebok declared, "I now dub thee BLACK 13!" That was #13's new name and title. It was an appropriate one after what he'd done in order to receive this new power.

* * *

Several months later, BLACK 13 was brought into a cell where a girl sat. She was dressed in a simple green gown and had fair skin with chin length brown hair and green eyes.

She was GIN-SHOCKER's prisoner and someone Gebok had ordered him to meet. He had no choice but to obey. Sitting down next to her, she looked up and asked, "Did they take you too?"

BLACK 13 blinked. She thought he was a prisoner too? How strange. Then again, considering he was her age she did not suspect he was a member of GIN-SHOCKER.

"I'm Rina," she introduced herself. "What's your name?"

Did he have a name? He'd always been known as either #13 or 'Cicada'. He had recently gained the name BLACK 13. "Kuro…Juusan."

"Nice to meet you, Kuro-kun!" she smiled.

* * *

BLACK 13 spent his free time with Rina when he wasn't out on missions or training. Since he was GIN-SHOCKER's new ultimate weapon, his training regime had increased in difficulty. This was all for him to perfect his newly downloaded abilities while at the same time to provide entertainment for Gebok.

When with Rina, they would just talk. Actually, Rina talked. She told him about her family and friends back in her hometown. Sadly, he couldn't relate considering his home was GIN-SHOCKER and he had no friends. His only 'family' was Gebok. He just sat next to her and listened as they continued to share a cell together.

BLACK 13 also began to feel a certain fondness for Rina. He looked forward to their time together. She was the only person in GIN-SHOCKER who treated him like a human being, which was strange considering he was a Kaizo Ningen. He was not a human in the traditional sense but that didn't stop her at all.

Rina only saw him as another prisoner and she coped with her captivity by talking with someone in the same boat. She was unaware that he was a member of GIN-SHOCKER.

* * *

"What are you planning, Gebok?" Dr. Magi snarled at the other scientist.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Gebok said, feigning ignorance while inspecting his fingernails.

"Don't play dumb. Why are you letting BLACK 13 be around that girl?" Dr. Magi asked. Ever since he watched his own Kaizo Ningen/son #09 die at BLACK 13's hands, he'd harbored a deep and intense hatred for the head scientist.

"Oh that!" Gebok then smirk as he replied, "That's just a little experiment of mine. I want to see if there's even a trace of humanity left in my precious BLACK 13, but I'm already starting to grow weary of it. I think I'll end it soon."

"What do you mean by that, Gebok?" Magi demanded but Gebok just whistled as he walked away, leaving Dr. Magi's question hanging. "Gebok!"

* * *

Gebok's experiment was actually to compare BLACK 13's emotional states to his power levels. Originally, BLACK 13 had been an emotionally blank slate so while his power levels had been large, they hadn't fluctuated in either direction. Always even. Gebok felt that was boring. So, when he discovered that BLACK 13 was beginning to develop human emotions after the download, he decided to see if those emotions could be nurtured. He got some positive results. BLACK 13's combat capabilities had risen quite a bit, but Gebok had grown bored.

He needed a more spectacular set of results. He needed to make BLACK 13 feel an incredibly intense emotion, so intense that his power would increase exponentially.

With a grin, the evil scientist just realized what he had to do. It would be poetic and artistic in its irony and most of all the results of his studies would lead to a more satisfying conclusion.

He would just let this game play on for a little while longer before implementing it.

* * *

"Say, Kuro-kun. When's your birthday?" Rina asked.

"My birthday?" he repeated, confused

"Your birthday," she echoed. "I want to know when it is."

"Birthday..." BLACK 13 muttered. He'd been in GIN-SHOCKER for so long that he'd forgotten when that day was "I... forgot when that is."

"Ehh, you forgot!" Rina exclaimed, surprised. She seemed thoughtful for a moment before determination set in. "Very well. In that case I'll help you remember!"

"That's, alright, Rina-chan. I don't think that's necessary."

"It's the least I could do for helping me," she told him.

"Helping you...?" He stared at her in confusion.

"Yes, if I was left here all alone, I would probably go crazy since I'm being trapped here, surrounded by these monsters and away from my family. However, with you around, I don't feel so sad! So, thank you!" she beamed.

* * *

**-1984-**

After shooting it, BLACK 13 kicked the last of the training dummies down. This one felt a little odd, almost as if it were heavier. Perhaps it was made out of different materials. Shrugging, he was about to return to the starting point when he noticed it. A dark pool was growing from underneath the last training dummy. Curious and unheeding of Dr. Gebok's snickering, he pressed his hand against the head of the dummy. It felt odd. Finding a flap for the fabric which made up its head, BLACK 13 removed it…and felt his heart stop as the blood drained from his face. Then it restarted, galloping twice as fast as before as a roaring sound filled his ears and his heart hammered desperately against the cage of his ribs.

"RINA!" he cried out.

"Kuro…kun…" the girl was still alive! She gasped despite the ragged hole in her chest… Her breath sounded painfully laboured. There was an unpleasant, bubbling noise every time she fought to inhale… She was drowning in her own blood…

BLACK 13 knelt to pick her body up with trembling hands, cradling her with desperate tenderness. It was as though he hoped that somehow, if he only held her close to him, death would not be able to take her as it had taken so many others he had killed. "Rina…I'm sorry…Rina…"

Rina gave BLACK 13 a weak smile; full of innocence and all the love she had felt for him before finally dying in his arms.

"No…Rina…RINA!"

GIN-SHOCKER soldiers appeared in the room. They were there to clean up the place. When one of them approached BLACK 13 to take Rina's body, he died from a violent chop to the neck.

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!" BLACK 13 roared.

He was surrounded. They were all around him. Watching him. There were voices. Attack. Defence. Violence. Brutality was met with brutality. No. Not mere brutality. Brutality was met with atrocity. Overpowering rage… He could not allow them to win. New mission objective…_He _must be the winner. He bellowed with a fury born of madness and killed them all. They fell from his attacks like wheat before a scythe.

Blades of crimson energy emerged from his forearms and ankles. As the soldiers came at him he swung and kicked, slicing them into ribbons, cutting off layer after layer of flesh in long, curling streaks of tortured muscle and spouting blood that screamed in his consciousness. When more came, he took out his gun and fired. He did not aim. He simply fired. And fired. And fired. Everything before him would die. Everything would be destroyed. The entire misery of the place that had been his life, the place that had killed his life, would be brought crashing down till it was nothing but rubble and blood. Always blood. Horrible burbling, gurgling blood that rasped painfully across his brain in labored breaths…

Then there was a loud boom. Equally loud bangs. There was the scent of smoke in the air and the sensation of heat. The sight of dancing, flickering, deadly fire… A dim corner of his mind registered success… So he escaped. People attempted to stop him. He did not know them, but he did not like them either. He fought. There was screaming. It echoed through his brain and splashed his vision with red. He disliked the screaming. He continued to run and run as far away as he could get. Then there was light. The light was pretty. He went to the light and…

* * *

Thunder crashed in the sky, showering everything in the area with a heavy coat of water. The area was a rocky mountainous place where no one really went. It was the perfect place to hide a secret, and GIN-SHOCKER had many secrets to hide. Their base had been built there and their inhumane experiments carried out for the sake of world domination. However, this base was lost to them now.

For BLACK 13 had gone rogue and escaped.

The base itself was a burning wreck. Parts of it were blown out with flames spewing from them like hell had been devouring it from the inside out. All of the guards and scientists inside were dead or long gone. Not even the Cyborg Mutant series which was made for an attack force survived the carnage. The main doors had been blown off and muddy footprints could be seen exiting the place, heading down the hidden path away from the fortress.

Making his way far from the base which he had been forced to call home, BLACK 13 was clad in blood, and soot, and his own armour. His only friend's dead face, that innocent smile still upon it, replayed in a never-ending loop at the very forefront of his mind. He had killed her with his own hands while she was disguised as a training dummy, all because Dr. Gebok wanted to see what would happen. She was just the first to die in BLACK 13's rampage against his captors/creators.

"Unnn!" the armoured figure groaned, collapsing to his knees before dropping onto his hands, letting them sink into the mud. Even his increased stamina and endurance were at their limits after all the fighting and killing he had done this day.

"Rina-chan….I'm so sorry…I didn't know you were there…I'm sorry…" his voice sounded rusty and disused; choked with a grief so vast that it did not sound quite human. He sobbed, a dry, tearing sound, his heart and brain numb with shock at his friend's blood on his hands. "…please forgive me…I'M SORRY!"

Thunder crashed as the armoured figure roared to the heavens, begging for forgiveness he felt he didn't deserve. All he wanted was his friend back, but he knew that the dead never returned to the land of the living. Ever.

"Sounds like you're in need of my services," a new voice spoke up.

BLACK 13 snarled and turned to face the one who had spoken to him. The person came in the form of a man dressed like he came out of Alice in Wonderland. He wore a blue overcoat with pinstriped pants with an orange shirt and a yellow bowtie. Perched on top of his head was a tall top hat. In his hand was an umbrella which he used to shield himself from the rain. Strangely, the mud didn't seem to stick to his shoes as he walked towards the armoured young man.

"Relax my boy," the man smiled. "I'm not with GIN-SHOCKER. Never liked those fools that much anyway. They wanted to play god when they didn't have the closest idea what being god entails."

"What…do you want?" snarled BLACK 13.

"The question is, what do YOU want?" asked the man. "You see, I'm a businessman. I go where people need something. The more desperate they are, the quicker I come. You, my boy, hit the top of that list. I just had to come with the desperation you were giving off."

"…desperate?' asked BLACK 13. "Yeah…I am desperate. So what is your business?"

"I grant wishes," the man smiled. "Anything my clients want. All I expect in return is something of equal value."

"…I don't have…much," BLACK 13 argued.

"My boy, you have plenty to offer," the man rebutted. "Now, shall I grant you a wish today? I have many other clients."

"…yes," BLACK 13 nodded. "I…I want to…want to live…be free of BLACK 13….be happy…live happy…be loved…have the life some of the other projects said they had before being dragged here…but most of all…to be far, FAR away from this sick place."

"Oh, that's an easy one," the man smiled. "I know exactly the place to send you as well. However, there will be a price."

"I'll do anything. Name your price," BLACK 13 growled.

Topper grinned. This was starting out quite well. "And also for your wish to be granted, I would need to seal your memories away," the man continued, "Every memory you've made from the time of your birth up to now."

"Heh," BLACK 13 nodded. "I don't need them. They'd do more harm than good anyway."

"Ah, I do so love a cooperative customer," the man grinned. "Well then, don't move. Otherwise this will hurt."

And BLACK 13 was no more after that…

* * *

Gebok was the only survivor of the incident. As he walked away from the wreckage, he frowned grimly. He may have gotten the results he desired, but he never expected for BLACK 13 to go rogue and berserk. Even the remote he had prepared to control BLACK 13 had not worked. It just exploded in his hand, useless.

"The Great Leader won't like this…" he murmured. He had plans to make. "Back to the drawing board."

He intended to bring back BLACK 13, at any cost, and then GIN-SHOCKER would get its ultimate weapon again.

So swore Dr. Gebok X. Shinigami in the name of GIN-SHOCKER.

* * *

A spotlight shone on Topper again, this time he was reading from a parchment. "And so begins the tale of a warrior who seeks to pass judgment upon those who'd wronged him. Will he succeed? Well, if you wish to know then go and see for yourself. It isn't hard. Just start at the beginning, as did I." He folded the parchment and put it in his hat.

* * *

KR Chrome: And so we have a full back story for Shinichi. What do you think?


	2. Prologue: Fallen Lantern

"In another place and time, a story with an even more tragic beginning has also taken place. The light in this man's heart was snuffed out after a tragic loss and with the darkness within he sought to take his revenge, uncaring of whomever or whatever got in his way. All who opposed him were marked as enemies and he had no one to support him. He only realized his folly too late and would forever brand himself with the sin. How would he once again walk the path of light?" He paused to give a huge grin, "See for yourself!"

Fade to Black…

* * *

**FALLEN LANTERN**

"She's dead…" muttered a young man in front of a gravestone. He had short silver hair and violet eyes. He was dressed in a black suit.

"Alan…" said a soft voice behind him. Alan turned to see his older sister, Lucy. She was always there when he needed her. She was dressed in a black sundress with a black straw hat decorated by a red rose.

"I didn't realize doing this, being a hero, came with a price," admitted Alan. "I thought it was going to be great. But it costs…it cost me Jade."

"I'm sorry," Lucy spoke sincerely. "Stories of heroes aren't always about glory, Alan. People do get hurt and sacrificed. All a hero can do is to continue to live on for the honor of memory of those who've fallen." It was something her papa, Warren, had taught him about being a hero. It wasn't all about fame, glamour and glory. People die, and get hurt. A hero's path is a huge burden that only the truly strong in heart and spirit can shoulder.

"It's funny," he said, not laughing. "I've always wanted to be a hero but now I just want Jade to come back so we can live a happy and normal life."

"We can't always have what we want, Alan," Lucy said sympathetically. "It's how life works. It's not fair but we have to live with it."

"Easy for you to say. You still have Kouta!" he shot back.

"Alan…"

"I'm sorry…" he apologized. "I just…need to be alone."

Lucy strode forward and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Remember, we're here for you," she reminded. He didn't answer. She turned, sparing him a single glance, before leaving him to be alone as he'd requested.

As Alan's eyes were trained upon the gravestone, a fire burned within his eyes. He knew who'd done this and Jade could not rest in peace until she was avenged. "A life for a life," he quoted.

He knew what his next move would be.

"Jade, this is for you."

Alan felt a presence and turned to see a man in an overcoat, top hat and a devilish grin. "What is your desire?" he asked.

* * *

Topper opened his palm and seven orbs of colored light flew out, surrounding him. "Green is the color of Will and its intensity is the reflection of a person's inner strength. Then, we have the red color of Rage that is filled with hate. The indigo color of Compassion is filled with kindness and forgiveness. The blue color of Hope fills a person with the strength to see towards a brighter tomorrow. The orange color of Avarice feeds the greed within the hearts of man. The violet color of Love is unbridled and unrestrained, seeking nothing but love and nothing else, breaking down barriers to achieve it. Finally, the yellow color of Fear."

He continued, "We all feel it, even when we hide it. It's part of who we are, just like any other emotion. All beings feel emotion, even the tiniest bit, it's just that a few have learnt to restrain and subdue their emotions until there is nothing left. This holder of the Green Light of Will is about to get a taste of the Yellow Light of Fear. Why? It is simply because he wishes to master control over Fear in order to bring it upon those who've wronged him."

He finished, "Is there any other reason for him to betray all he knew?"

* * *

Alan stood triumphantly above Major Force. "Well, go ahead you little bastard. Kill me," taunted Major Force.

"I want to…more than anything else I want you dead…But Jade wouldn't want that. She wouldn't want me crossing that line."

"How fucking noble…" laughed Major Force. "You should've killed me when you had the chance. Cause now…I'm gonna take out you and everyone else in a fifty mile radius." And with that, Major Force tore open his protective shell. "I'll live, but you sure as hell won't!"

Alan sneered at Major Force. "I said I wouldn't kill you…" He then fired his Ring and a vortex opened up behind Major Force. "But that doesn't mean space won't. Tell me…have you ever seen the core of a star?" And with that, Alan kicked Major Force as hard as he could, knocking him into the vortex before it closed shut.

Alan watched as Major Force vanished from the face of the Earth.

* * *

Topper spoke again, "The young Green Lantern should've been satisfied with that after avenging his beloved. Yet, he felt discontent and that more needed to be done. Alas, he had already created his own dark path and could not stop walking its infinite road. It was only the beginning of a hero's fall where he became what he hated the most without even realizing it."

* * *

Alan spent the next month off Earth. He patrolled his sector without rest. A month later, he finally returned to Earth. He looked exhausted. He was using his Ring to keep himself going. He felt that if he stopped, the past would catch up with him and he wouldn't be able to deal with it.

"Alan-kun! You're back!" came a happy yell as Alan was glomped from behind. She had long black hair with pink streaks running through it. She was a couple of years older than Alan and was dressed in a sleeveless jumpsuit which was formfitting with pink knee-high boots and black cut-off gloves. She'd missed him and her name was Ryuko Hasuma.

"Yeah, I'm back," he responded warily. "Mind getting off me?"

Ryuko backed away. Like everyone she knew about what had happened to Jade and how it'd affected Alan. Still, she just wanted to help cheer him up. She didn't think Jade would've wanted for Alan to stay sorrowful and grieving. "So, what's new? How was outer space? Been to any interesting planet?" she inquired.

"Onee-sama, I suggest you allow Alan-kun to rest," chided her brother. He was her twin. His hair was the same color as hers, cut short, with red streaks. He wore a black jumpsuit with red boots and a red leather jacket over the suit. "I think he's exhausted." His name was Ryutaro Hasuma.

"Actually, there's some place I have to be," said Alan.

* * *

"Hey, Jade," said Alan as he knelt before the gravestone. He put down a bouquet of Jade's flowers on the grave. "It's been awhile. I've been doing well."

Ryuko and Ryutaro stood behind Alan, a good distance, while offering their own prayers.

"I'm still fighting the good fighting, putting away criminals where they belong," he continued. "I…really miss you, you know." He closed his eyes. "If only you were with me right now…"

Ryuko and Ryutaro could only watch solemnly. Suddenly, Alan's Power Ring blinked.

"Alan, your ring is flashing," Ryutaro informed him.

"Talk to me," Alan said to his ring.

"_Green Lantern Alan Smith, your presence is required on Aoran_," the voice from the ring ordered.

* * *

"A hero must face the possibility of failure. It doesn't mean they have to like it. Alan has faced failure once before when he could not protect his love. Now, he would face an even bigger failure," said Topper.

* * *

Alan was floating in the center of what used to be Aoran, clutching the remains of a doll.

When he'd been called to Aoran, he knew what he would be facing. Mongul and the Cyborg Superman. They were trying to take over Aoran, turning it into another Warworld.

Despite the odds against him, Alan battled both madmen. That was a rookie mistake. He should've waited for reinforcements but he foolishly decided to take them both on. He didn't even think ahead of the consequences.

Alan's act caused Cyborg Superman to abandon his plan, resulting in the destructing of Aoran. Both Mongul and Cyborg Superman had obliterated the planet with Alan watching helplessly as the world was ended by their hands. They then retreated, leaving Alan in shock at what had transpired.

* * *

"Some time ago, a man dropped from the stars. He was dying. His last act was to bequeath Alan Smith with a wondrous Ring. The power of the Ring knew few strictures. With such a Ring, you could do anything…If you wanted it badly enough," said Topper.

* * *

"No…it can't end like this…" growled Alan. "Not like Jade…" Tears fell from his eyes. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he screamed, raising his Green Lantern Power Ring in anguish. There was an explosion of immense light.

* * *

"Men should not attempt to play God," advised Topper, "But that never stopped anyone, did it? Our emotions overpower our rational mind, which can only lead to dire consequences."

* * *

Alan had used his Power Ring to recreate Aoran, reviving all the citizens who'd died. Not only that, he'd revived Jade. He could sense her. Of course, he knew that this would not last. His power had little energy. At least he could go see Jade.

As he was about to fly down to the planet's surface, his path was blocked. They were just holographic projections and he could easily go through them, but he still stopped.

The Guardians of the Universe were NOT pleased.

"_Green Lantern Alan Smith_," one of the Guardians spoke sternly, "_You are in violation of one of the principle rules of the Green Lantern Corps which forbids a Lantern to use their rings for personal gain._"

Alan's eyes narrowed in rage. How dare they get in his way! "Personal gain? THIS IS ABOUT LOSS! I gave my life to the Corps! Everything! I want it back! I want Jade back! I want more! I want _power_!" roared Alan. He slammed his fist into the projection and drained the power from it.

He cast a look towards Aoran. He didn't have any time to waste. "Time to go to Oa," he resolved. With the power of the Central Battery, Aoran's restoration would be permanent, along with the lives of its citizens and Jade. "This is for you, Jade."

* * *

The Guardians held a meeting. It was about Alan and they took a vote. Alan was on his way with the intent of stealing energy from the Central Battery, the source of the Green Lantern's power.

The vote was unanimous and all the off duty Green Lanterns were summoned and mobilized to stop Alan Smith.

"APPREHEND ALAN SMITH!" was the order the Green Lanterns received.

* * *

The Green Lanterns who'd been sent were close friends and acquaintances of Alan's. They all knew him since he first came to Oa for training. A cadre of Green Lanterns were gathered and placed in Alan's path to Oa, forcing him through a gauntlet of his brothers and sisters. The first he met were Ke'Haan of Varva and the woman of Jayd, Laira. Both were accomplished warriors of the Corps.

Ke'Haan was a large muscular man with dark red skin and long black hair. He normally had two pointed horns sticking out of the sides of his head, but one was now missing. Laira had light purple skin and long red hair that was tied into a ponytail.

"Save yourselves the grief and get the hell out of my way!" yelled Alan as he fired a beam of energy at Ke'Haan. "Nothing's going to keep me from reaching Oa. Not you, not the Guardia-" Alan was cut off as Laira held a green bar on his throat.

"I cannot allow you to pass, Alan Smith," stated Laira. "I have sworn allegiance to the Guardians, and my honor demands I obey their decrees."

"Then…then you…" gasped Alan as he tried to remove the bar. "ARE A FOOL!" shouted Alan as he blasted Laira. "They're using you, like they used me for so long." He then hit Ke'Haan and Laira with a massive energy blast.

"Why…Alan Smith…why do you…fight those…who made you what you are…?" questioned Laira.

"Because what they made me is a slave, and all I've got to show for it is a tombstone for someone who meant everything to me. I'm through being a servant," said Alan. "I've given enough. Now I want something back. If the Guardians won't give it to me…" Alan then removed the Rings off of Ke'Haan and Laira's hands, before placing them on his own. "I'll just have to take it. I'm coming for you Guardians! And whatever, or whoever you put in my way isn't going to stop me."

* * *

"Lantern 2814 proves more capable than we had planned," stated one of the Guardians.

"It is as I said…this should have been expected. He was always the most resourceful of our Green Lanterns," responded Ganthet.

"Ganthet, brothers…please," said another Guardian. "This squabbling is unseemly for such a trivial matter. You speak as if Lantern 2814 actually poses some threat. He is simply one of our servants gone awry. We have others who will stop him."

* * *

Alan was flying towards Oa. Hiding behind a meteorite was Tomar-Tu. Tomar-Tu had avian features, including a beak. He also had pointed ears, and a scalloped fin running laterally across his scalp. "Forgive me Alan," whispered Tomar-Tu. "It shames me to wait here in ambush, unseen by you, but I do as I must."

As Alan passed by, Tomar-Tu threw something at him. It looked like a large rock with tentacles and a large eye in its center. It wrapped up Alan, immobilizing him. "Tomar-Tu! What is this thing?"

"A common parasite on my world," explained Tomar-Tu. "But to you its grip is virtually unbreakable. You cannot free yourself Alan, so I beg you to listen to re-"

"You listen!" interrupted Alan. "Stay out of this! This is between me and the Guardians!"

"I am their servant, Alan. As you should be. Do not ask me to defy their orders," pled Tomar-Tu.

"All right, you had your warning," said Alan. He used the power from his Ring and those he'd taken from his fellow Lanterns to form a large blade and cut himself free. "I am stronger than you are, Tomar. My will is stronger. There's no way you can hold me. Much less defeat me." He then shot a massive energy burst at Tomar-Tu. "I am going to Oa. And I'll go through you if I have to." Tomar-Tu formed an energy shield but was quickly overcome. "I won't be stopped, Tomar! Not by you, not by any other Green Lantern."

"Please…Alan Smith…" gasped Tomar-Tu. "You are starting something that will consume you…utterly…"

"No. I'm ending it," countered Alan. "I'm ending the Guardians' hold on-"

Alan was interrupted when he was hit in the side by a fellow Lantern, Jack T. Chance. He had blue skin with shoulder length blue hair and red eyes. "OK, play time's over! I ain't wearing kid gloves like the rest of these feebs. You're done Smith. Jack T. Chance says so!" Chance then pulled out a gun and pointed it at Alan's head. "So, what's the story here? Easy way or the hard way?"

"You're going to use a gun on me? A gun?" chuckled Alan. "You haven't been a Green Lantern for very long, have you?" Chance met the same fate as the other Lanterns, a face full of green energy. "You obviously don't have the slightest idea how to handle your Ring, Chance, so I'll relieve you of the burden. Yours as well Tomar. The Guardians sending each of you against me only makes me stronger. They'll regret it."

"Alan, don't…" gasped Tomar. "Alan…"

* * *

"But of course Alan Smith couldn't hear him. He is too far away and too far gone," spoke Topper. "They all fall before him. Before his pain, his rage. The elite of the Corps laid low by one who had fought by their side. They fall. Kreon of Tebis, brilliant tactician, recruited to the Corps by Alan Smith…and defeated by him. Hannu of Ovacron Six, who held Alan Smith in awe…until his Power Ring is stolen by that same idol. Graf Toren of Karax, whose life Alan had saved in the border skirmishes of Sector 2321. With each victory Alan augments his power. With each victory, he draws nearer to Oa…and all that awaits him there. Alan must even confront those to him he is closest. Were he not nearly blinded by his obsession, would these acts wreak havoc with his conscience? I rather like to think so."

* * *

Alan now found himself in conflict with the Amazonian Green Lantern, Boodikka. She was a tall woman with light purple skin and dark, shoulder length purple hair. "You brought me into the Corps Alan! Don't force this!" shouted Boodikka.

"The Corps are a joke! The Guardians use us up and throw us away!" responded Alan as he shot her with a burst of emerald energy. "Have enough sense to back down Boodikka. I'm going to Oa, and I'm going with your Ring."

"I am a warrior! This Ring is my weapon! I earned it! It's as much a part of me as my hand!"

"Yeah…I kinda thought so," was all Alan said as he used his Ring to form a blade before chopping off Boodikka's hand. She screamed out. He then removed the Ring from the severed hand and made his way towards Oa.

* * *

"Betrayal is a crime that is difficult to forgive. It is when someone you trust does something unforgivable. You don't see it coming. Like a lighting bolt it strikes. Trust is a dangerous thing and when you break that trust it doesn't just affect you, but the people around you," commented Topper.

* * *

"He is victorious again…" spoke a Guardian. "And with each victory he becomes more brutal."

"We have not yet lost," added another Guardian.

"Yes, there remains one he must face. One who can defeat him," said a third.

"Oh, will he?" questioned Ganthet.

"Ganthet, we have discussed this…" began Guardian #1.

"Regale us with another fantasy," countered Ganthet.

"Your plan is unthinkable!" argued Guardian #2.

"My plan is the only chance we have of preserving ourselves…and you know it," responded Ganthet.

"I know nothing of the sort."

"Other suggestions then?" prompted Ganthet.

"I…" Guardian #1 was at a loss for words. "Very well, let us make ready."

* * *

Alan was nearing the Central Battery, leaving a trail fallen Green Lanterns in his wake. He finally reached it, only to have his way blocked by one more familiar face. "Those heartless…They even send you against me?" growled Alan.

"Especially me!" huffed Kilowog. "They wanted ya stopped Alan, no matter what. I don't wanna fight ya Poozer, but my first loyalty has gotta be to the Corps…to the Guardians."

"Too bad then," said Alan. He crossed his arms across his chest, his collective Power Rings glowing brightly. "You can't beat me, Kilowog. You can see how I'm armed."

"Didn't I teach ya nothing?" sighed Kilowog. "It's the _warrior_, not his weapons."

"We'll see."

* * *

"It can happen to anyone really…" began Topper. "Even to the best of us. It weighs upon you…The responsibility of wielding one of the most awesome weapons in the universe…Literally billions of lives dependent on you. And what do you get in return? Well…not much frankly. You have all this power, and at some point you wonder, "What good is it to me? What has it done for me?" And you don't like the answer. And you do something about it."

* * *

Alan blasted Kilowog with his Rings, knocking his former teacher back. He the grabbed the front of Kilowog's uniform. "It's over Kilowog," said Alan. "It has to be." He then slammed a fist of emerald energy into Kilowog's jaw. "You taught me how to be a warrior. I'm sorry…I never dreamed I'd be forced to use it against you. You're running out of fodder to send against me Guardians. It's coming down to just us. And I'm coming for you…Masters." Alan then flew forward towards the Central Power Battery.

Massive holograms of three of the Guardians appeared before Alan. "_Enough Green Lantern of Sector 2814,_" warned the Hologram. "_Continue your crimes no further. Surrender your Ring and your person while you can_."

"Surrender? You're kidding right?" asked Alan. "I've already faced your wind-up soldiers and they couldn't stop me! I'm here for your power! I'm here for the Central Battery! And you're not going to keep me from it!"

"_The power is ours. To give and take as we please._"

Alan smirked. "Oh…I'm just not so sure anymore."

"_Then you leave us no alternative_."

As he walked towards his goal, he was blown away by a burst of energy from the Central Battery.

"What?" Alan gawked as he saw a figure walk out of the light. "No way! You!"

"That's right, Smith," grinned Pol Dgibb. He was a renegade Green Lantern who'd been imprisoned in the Central Battery by the Guardians but now the Guardians had freed him as the last line of defense against Alan. "Give up, Smith," commanded Pol Dgibb. "You're no match for me. I taught you everything you know."

"It's all going to end here, isn't it? One way or the other…"

"Oh yes…I should imagine so. Almost amusing isn't it? You returning as the prodigal son and me held up as Oa's last hope? The irony is delicious, don't you-"

"Get out of my way, Dgibb! Or I'll kill you!" threatened Alan.

"Will you now?" taunted Pol Dgibb. "Somehow I find that…unlikely. Don't demean yourself by engaging in charades, Smith. Nothing ever changes. You're still a hero…one of the good guys."

"Not right now," said Alan as he shot at Pol Dgibb with his Rings, knocking him backwards.

"My, my, my…Aren't you a grim little fellow? Truthfully, I expected more from you, Smith. Coming here armed like that…not very sporting, is it? Makes my defeat a foregone conclusion. Would you rather overwhelm me…than finally find out if you could take me in an even contest? Perhaps so, perhaps you won't mind always wondering. But this way, you'll just never know, will you?" taunted the former Lantern.

"I could give a damn, Dgibb. I really could. But I don't want any doubt in your mind. I want you to know that I defeated you…" Alan removed his extra Rings. "With no crutches." Alan got into a fighting stance. "So, let's go!"

"By all means…Let's!" Alan and Dgibb fired beams of emerald energy at each other as the Guardians watched the two renegades battle to the death. "Do you know what it was like in the Battery, Smith? Reduced to less than a thought in that Limbo? It's like having a maddening itch you can never scratch, because there's nothing there. There's no you!" Dgibb sent four spinning blades at Alan. "That's what it was like, Smith, and it wasn't…very…PLEASANT!"

Alan formed a shield to block the blades before shooting an energy blast at Dgibb. "You deserve worse! The Guardians must be mad to have released you! What in God's name are they thinking?" The blast sent Dgibb flying and slamming into a wall.

"Well…who can say really? They're such enigmatic little devils. Perhaps…perhaps they thought I was the lesser of two evils," suggested Dgibb.

"You? What kind of logic is that?"

"Smith, I think it's time I told you a story," said Dgibb. The Guardians could only watch in anticipation to see if their gambit would pay off. "Years ago, when the Guardians brought you to me, they said, 'Pol Dgibb, you, of all our Green Lanterns, are the greatest. We need you to make the Corps stronger. We need you to share your skills. Please…' They actually said please… 'Take this new recruit and help him hone his skills. Make him even half of what you are and he will truly be magnificent.' And I thought to myself, 'Hmm, look at what they've given you Pol.' I thought, 'This sorry fool hasn't got what it takes. He'll never amount to anything." And you know what, Smith?' Pol Dgibb formed a massive cannon which he rested on his shoulder. "I WAS RIGHT!" He fired a massive blast of energy that Alan barely dodged. "It comes down to willpower, Smith. It always comes down to willpower, and I've got a lot more than you do."

Alan formed an arm cannon from his Ring's energy. "Maybe you did…once…but not anymore! Nothing lasts forever Dgibb!" shouted Alan as he fired a blast that slammed into Dgibb's side.

"Smith, you _have_ changed! All this rage! Almost a new man, aren't you? I, of course, am relatively the same. I'd gladly kill you, even if the Guardians weren't giving me my freedom for putting a stop to you."

"You're not killing anybody, ever again!"

Alan and Dgibb put all their energy into one final blast that sent both of them flying. They then charged at each other and began to brawl. Dgibb put Alan into a headlock. "Come on, Smith…at least put up a decent fight…before I kill you!"

Alan swung back and hit Dgibb in the face with his elbow. "No more! No more tricks, no more rings…Just you and me. For the last time!" Alan than began to pummel Dgibb, not giving his former teacher the chance to fight back. "We're not finished yet…"

"Oh, we're finished Smith…Both of us…finished…"

"What are you talking about! I finally beat you! I won!"

"Did you now?" smirked Pol Dgibb.

Alan then wrapped his hands around Pol Dgibb's throat. "I should have done this long ago…damn you."

"You know you probably should ha-"

KRACK!

"Damn you…" said Alan as he walked away from the dead Pol Dgibb and towards the Central Power Battery. The Guardian could only watch as the one who was once the greatest in their ranks had crippled them. "No one left to stop me. Power's mine for the taking. Mine…So I can get everything right. Make it…"

"NO!" roared a voice as Alan was punched hard, sending him flying.

"Who's it…wuh-what's…?" babbled Alan, disoriented from the hit.

"Can't let you do it, Alan…Can't let ya kill the Corps," said Kilowog. "Can't let ya kill anyone else."

"Kilowog! I didn't…didn't kill the Corps! Just took their Rings. Because…I needed their power. I left them enough to survive," said Alan.

"Fer now maybe," retorted Kilowog. "I know what yer thinkin' Alan. Yer lookin' to get into the Central Battery, so's ya can take all the power fer yerself. But what then? What happens to the Corps members out in space, or maybe in a scrap somewheres?"

"But…the power…I…" Alan shook his head. "I can't think about that now…I need to…to set everything right."

"Ain't gonna happen Alan. No matter how bad ya want it. I know what it's like to lose what means the most to ya, to lose the woman you love…But it ain't no excuse fer what yer doin'." Kilowog slammed his fist into Alan's gut. "The power ain't yours. Not for this…so it's gotta end! Pull it together Alan. Ya killed Dgibb, but ya ain't evil like him. Not yet. Ya can still stop…" He threw a fist at Alan, who caught the attack.

"No. I can't…" was all Alan could say as he released a massive burst of energy. Kilowog was incinerated, reduced to nothing but a scorched skeleton. Alan fell to his knees and removed his mask. "I've…I've crossed the line Kilowog…and I can't go back." Alan got up and went up the steps towards the Central Power Battery. "Now…" Alan removed his Ring and let it fall to the ground. "I don't deserve this anymore."

Alan looked around and saw that he was now surrounded by the Guardians themselves. "True, Green Lantern of Sector 2814, you do not," spoke Guardian #1. "You have committed heinous crimes and caused irreparable damage. You will be punished."

"By you? You haven't taken a personal interest in anything for so long, you've forgotten how. I finally see you for what you are. Impotent shams. I just wanted my life back. You could have given me the power to make everything right! But you self-righteous gnomes couldn't even do that much. All you were capable of doing was turning your back on me!"

"To tamper with what has been is the most grievous crime of all."

Alan grabbed the Guardian and hauled him up to his face. Tears were now running down Alan's cheeks. "Don't you think I know that…And haven't you realized I'm beyond caring? It's too late for that. Too late for me. Too late for you. There's no…turning back…now. What's going to happen is going to happen. It has to. You can't stop it…and neither can I."

He closed his eyes and entered, feeling the power enter him without resistance.

"All is lost," said one of the Guardians.

"No, it's not," said another. "There is still something we can do."

All eyes were on Ganthet.

"My brothers…" Ganthet uttered.

"Ganthet, all our hopes will live on with you," another Guardian said to him. "Take care."

And the Guardians all surrounded Ganthet, giving him all of their energy. Though this would result in their deaths, it was a noble sacrifice in order to protect the universe.

At the same time Alan emerged from the Central Battery, changed. His clothing now comprised of black and green torso armor worn over a black bodysuit. His forearms and hands were encased in green gauntlets and he also wore green knee-high armored boots on his legs. His armor sported broad shoulder pads with a high collar and a green cape with black lining hung from his shoulders. His eyes were concealed in a green-tinted black eye mask. His aura was a sickly mix of green and yellow. Raising his right fist towards the sky, he declared in a booming voice, "I…am…PARALLAX!"

* * *

"And so begins the scourge of Parallax," told Topper. "A man wracked with grief and guilt from his failure had fallen into a power-hungry madness, uncaring of the consequences or the lives he had taken…or will take."

* * *

The Orion System was home to three artificial planets. They were the Planet Trika of the Trikatrons, the Planet Death of the Deathtrons and Planet Sabre of the Sabretrons. For millions of years these three planets had been trapped in a conflict of war and struggle. It had only ended decades before. Still, the military might of the Sabretrons and Deathtrons had not faltered. They were still powerful factions.

News of the Green Lantern Corp's decimation had reached the ears of the Deathtron War Council. Members had assembled in the council conference chambers to discuss their next course of action. Sitting at the head of the table was none other than Ichiro Damien Amakusa, also known as General Devil Shadow. He was head of the War Council and was once one of Vaiolangaizer's direct subordinates until the tyrant's defeat many decades ago.

Also present was Director of the Deathtron Secret Police, Ichijyo Desmond Amakusa, also known as Shadowcobra. The members of the council sat silently, waiting for the meeting to commence.

"I've heard distressing news," said General Shadow Devil. "We all have heard of what happened on Oa."

"Indeed," stated the General of the Deathtron Air and Space Forces. "The Green Lantern Corps has fallen."

"Why should we care? They were on our backs for a long time," snorted the General of the Deathtron Ground Troops.

"We should care because my spies have confirmed that the one responsible was one of their own," said Director Shadowcobra.

There were murmurs from the council.

"Who?" inquired the Admiral of the Deathtron Naval Forces.

"Alan Smith," said Shadowcobra. He knew Alan well and he couldn't believe that the son of Warren Smith would do such a thing, but he had. His informants would never lie to him.

"And what of his goals?" inquired General Shadow Devil.

"He declared himself 'Parallax' and sought to create order," said Director Shadowcobra. "However, I doubt the 'order' he will benefit us."

"I see…" General Devil Shadow nodded. "Gentlemen, any suggestions?"

* * *

Deathtron forces were immediately mobilized to stop Parallax-Alan. Space fighters were deployed and also Deathtrons equipped with space-combat capabilities were also deployed. The artificial moons orbiting Planet Death, which were in reality huge space stations, were also battle ready in case Parallax-Alan came close to Planet Death.

The end result wasn't pretty as the moons were reduced to nothing but floating debris and the Deathtron Soldiers who'd been sent against Alan were completely vaporized.

* * *

Topper spoke, "Revenge is a never-ending cycle and actions done upon the name of vengeance often have horrible consequences. When you avenge someone, someone will come after you out of revenge, and so on and so forth. It never ends if you continue to act on revenge and a person who acts upon vengeance will _never_ know peace. They will be forever haunted by their crimes, in one shape or another."

* * *

Parallax-Alan was met with opposition by a dark avenger of angelic and demonic might. "Interesting place, the End of Time," spoke Parallax-Alan. "Entropy crushes all energy, all life. From here, you can look back on all that is and all that was, and change it. Easy to do…if you know how. The cosmos is in agony. And I'm the only one who knows how it should be. The countdown has begun…the countdown to…ZERO HOUR."

"You won't succeed, Alan Smith," sneered Ichijyo.

"Not Alan Smith, Ichijyo. Not anymore. I've taken the name Parallax. I've seen the universe from many different directions, and I know how to fix it…even if it means destroying it!"

The two clashed within the End of Time. Shadowcobra, garbed in black armor with fourteen demonic and angelic wings on his back, threw blasts of energy at Parallax-Alan who returned fire with his own bursts of energy, causing explosions to erupt all around them.

Parallax-Alan would've used his mental powers on Shadowcobra but the Vampangel was immune to them. Thus, there was nothing else for him to use other than brute force.

Shadowcobra conjured crescent blades of dark matter and sent them hurling towards Parallax-Alan. A few managed to penetrate his force field, cutting into his costume, but didn't leave any injuries. Scowling, Parallax-Alan fired two burst of energy from his fists. The yellow burst formed into an immense claw while the green burst formed into the shape of a huge snapping serpent.

Shadowcobra could too create constructs, but out of dark matter instead of the light that Parallax-Alan was sending towards him. With a wave of his hands he conjured a demonic hound with four heads and hundreds of eyes and sent it to crush Parallax-Alan. The two sets of constructs collided, resulting in an explosive flash of light and darkness.

"DON'T GET IN MY WAY!" Parallax-Alan roared as he flew towards Shadowcobra and hit him in the face with a punch. The force of the punch cracked Shadowcobra's helmet open but it repaired itself before Shadowcobra retaliated with a punch of his own.

"I will get in your way, Alan Smith," hissed Shadowcobra. "You destroyed the Deathtron home world, wiped out my fellow Deathtrons, and now you're about to destroy the universe as we know it."

"Creation cannot begin without destruction," Parallax-Alan snarled.

"I can't allow that," Shadowcobra retorted. "You will recreate it in your own image with your own selfish ideals. That is not the universe I want to live in."

"Then you have NO place in it!" Shadowcobra froze as a strange feeling washed over him. "If I am to instill order into the Multiverse, it must be redone. All I'm trying to do is fix everything. If you stand in my way…I'll erase you."

Shadowcobra froze as his armor shattered. He felt…lighter. Gazing upon his hands, he could see right through them. "What have you done, Alan Smith!" Shadowcobra demanded.

"I erased an obstacle," Parallax-Alan answered.

Shadowcobra hissed, "You'll pay for this…" as he began to fade from existence.

"I already am," Parallax-Alan said coldly. "I already am…"

* * *

Topper spoke, "Parallax's plan was to recreate a better universe for everyone now that he'd nearly destroyed everything. He'd developed his great powers by absorbing residual energies left over from the defeat of Vicious and Sauron. He journeyed to the End of Time, where he harnessed entropy and used it to weaken the link maintaining time's perpetual loop. Parallax began to recreate the universe, beginning by removing the destruction of Aoran. He also planned to resurrect the Green Lantern Corps, and he even considered setting up alternate Earths so that individual heroes could be happy on their own worlds. Before he could make any serious changes, the team from Titans Academy, as well as Alan's siblings, arrived."

* * *

Parallax-Alan glared at his siblings and his friends. They wanted to stop him. '_Fools_,' he thought bitterly. '_Such short-sighted fools'_. Even if they were his family, he would not allow them to stop him.

"Alan!" demanded his brother, Alex, "Stand down and give yourself up!" Alex didn't want to fight his younger brother, but he was given little choice. He had to stop him no matter what.

"Why should I?" retorted Parallax-Alan. "You people are so blind," he added, spitefully. "How I pity you. Can't you see what I'm doing? It's a noble cause. I'm trying to create a better place."

"You've killed billions of people," said Ryutaro who sported the Dragonfly Inzecter armor and had his gun aimed at his former friend, now enemy. "Forgive us if we don't see it as an act of nobility."

"Dad always said that heroes sacrifice themselves for the greater good, not sacrifice others," said Ryuko who sported her mother's Scarab Inzecter armor, brandishing her father's Perfect Inzecter Sword. "Alan, please…" She didn't want to fight someone she considered her younger brother.

"You were a hero, Alan," said Tessa, trying to reach her younger brother.

Parallax-Alan retorted, "I was never a hero. The Guardians of the Universe used me as an errand boy. It was a thankless job. I knew that. I had never asked for anything. The one time that I did, I was denied. It dawned on me then just how unfair the universe really was…how much in need of a makeover. But now it's gone. As are the Guardians. I say we need a new start. A fresh beginning. Done right. I tried this before, you know. But I was limiting myself when I tried to remake Aoran. Fixing one planet doesn't help when the universe…the whole universe is messed up. This is my blank page for creation. My chance to remake everything…the way it should be."

"You mean the way _you_ want it to be," countered Ryutaro.

"I'm sorry," Parallax-Alan said, sounding like he meant it, "But the ends justify the means."

"Well, then we have no choice then," said Tessa. "Everyone…"

"TAKE HIM DOWN!" Alex roared out the order.

They all attacked and Parallax-Alan fought back. Energy flew all over the place as they struck at him. He too struck back with his powers. They, however, didn't let up on their attacks and continued to fight, hoping to subdue him and later bring him in. If they couldn't subdue him, then they would have to kill him. It was something they had to do. Parallax-Alan was a threat now and threats had to be terminated, one way or another.

Parallax-Alan did not notice Alex coming at him from behind. When Alex lunged, Parallax-Alan turned and was shocked to receive a bayonet in the chest.

"A…Alex?" Parallax-Alan couldn't believe it. His brother had wounded him.

"Sorry, little bro, but you know this is what we have to do. I don't like it, but you have to…" Alex said. Before he could finish, there was an explosion of green and yellow light coming from Parallax-Alan. He screamed. The others cried out as they were blown away. When the light subsided, the spot where Parallax-Alan once stood had become a deep and wide crater.

"Woah…" murmured Ryuko. She looked around. Everyone was accounted for, except. "Guys, where's Ryutaro?"

* * *

Parallax-Alan along with Ryutaro had been flung from an error in the timestream during Zero Hour and were now continuing their fight on Oa, shortly after Parallax-Alan was injured by Alex.

Ryutaro continued to shoot at Parallax-Alan, moving at Clock Up speed to attack from all directions. Parallax-Alan was able to move within the same Clock Up space as well, deflecting the bullets. The Dragonfly Inzecter Gun wasn't his only weapon, though. He also had the Perfect Inzecter Sword with him, which he managed to snatch from his sister before the explosive light array.

Ryutaro rushed in and slashed at Parallax-Alan, who in retaliation punched at Ryutaro. The young Hasuma dodged and shot at Parallax-Alan repeatedly, trying to break through the energy field around his former friend's body.

Ryutaro was like his father, Ryuki, and had a strong sense of justice. However, he had a slightly flawed view of the world. Everything was black and white to him. Right was right and wrong was wrong. There was no in-between, no shades of grey. It was how he saw things and how he judged things and as of now Parallax-Alan was one of those things.

Despite having a bayonet wound in his chest, Parallax-Alan was able to replenish himself using energies from the Central Power Battery of Oa. He was still able to fight back against Ryutaro. However, what confused him was that he couldn't draw on more power than he already had. It was like it was it was being filtered.

No, actually, it was because he lacked a conduit and he finally realized it just as Ryutaro managed to break his force field with the Perfect Inzecter before using a series of kicks to send Parallax-Alan staggering. A sweep kick knocked him off his feet and onto his back where Ryutaro pinned him down with his foot. Both the Dragonfly Gun and Perfect Inzecter Sword were pointed at Alan's face.

"Any last words?" Ryutaro asked.

Parallax-Alan averted his eyes and then spotted Kilowog's skull. He recalled what he'd done and finally the gravity of the situation fell upon his shoulders. He realized finally the true cost of his actions. He thought he could play god, but then…but then…why did he kill all his friends? Why did he kill all those people? They were just trying to help him.

"I'm sorry, Jade…" he apologized. Ryutaro was taken aback when he heard those words.

"What?" Ryutaro asked.

"Ryutaro, if you want to finish me off now, then I won't stop you. Just…tell everyone how sorry I am," Parallax-Alan said, looking at Ryutaro's visor-covered eyes.

"Alan, you were my friend but then you betrayed us, betrayed all of us," said Ryutaro angrily, finger on the trigger, "and I should just kill you now, but…" Ryutaro stepped off Parallax-Alan, his arms hung at his sides. "I…can't kill someone who I watched grow up, and who I loved like a younger brother, no matter what the reason."

Parallax-Alan rose to his feet. The two faced each other, eyes locked. "I'm sorry," Parallax-Alan apologized, lamenting his past actions, before flying off back into space.

Ryutaro watched him go and let out a sigh. He then realized that he was on Oa. "Now, how am I supposed to get back home now?" He was going to have to make a few calls. He just hoped someone was listening.

* * *

Topper told, "When the dreaded warlord, Mongul, came and threatened Earth, Alan seemed to gain clarity, healing the heroes and restoring all the damage he had done as Parallax. However, he was too late to save Ryuko, who was violently killed by Mongul."

* * *

Mongul had snapped Ryuko's neck and let her limp body fall, her armor dematerializing as the Scarab Inzecter abandoned her when she hit the ground with a dull thud. "What a waste," Mongul frowned. "She would've made a fine concubine."

"RYUKO!" Ryuki shouted.

"Onee-sama!" Ryutaro screamed.

The father and son pair then began their attack on Mongul, filled with rage. Ryuki was armed with his Keyblade as he slashed at the man who'd murdered his daughter. Ryutaro backed his father up, shooting with the Dragonfly Inzecter. However, neither of their attacks worked. Mongul sent Ryuki flying with a brutal backhand, sending him tumbling and knocked him out in one fell swoop. Mongul then strode towards Ryutaro, the shots bouncing off his chest as Ryutaro stood his ground. Mongul slapped the Inzecter out of Ryutaro's hand before knocking him down with a punch. Ryutaro tried to get up but Mongul had the sole of his boot pressed down on his head.

Mongul ground his boot against Ryutaro's head. "Now boy…I'll kill you as well."

"No, Mongul…" said a voice. Mongul turned his head to see Parallax-Alan floating behind him. "You will not be harming anyone…ever again." Alan held out his hand. Mongul felt a strange sensation throughout his body before he screamed out in pain.

"DAMN YOU, SMITH!" roared Mongul before his body imploded on itself.

Parallax-Alan turned to gaze towards Ryutaro and spoke in a regretful tone, "I'm sorry I didn't come sooner." He then shot into the sky before hearing Ryutaro's answer.

* * *

Topper spoke, "Alan Smith would finally realize the gravity of his actions. He exiled himself from everyone and everything, as a way to atone for his crimes. Unfortunately, sins cannot be erased so easily. He can never forgive himself for what he's done, ever. Not an easy feat for him, not after what he'd done."

* * *

Friends, family and loved ones were present around the gravestone as Ryuko's coffin was lowered into the grave. Her family opted not to cremate her. Though lifeless, the daughter of Ryuki Hasuma was still beautiful. Jinx wept as she dried her tears, her husband's arm around her shoulder as a means to comfort her broken heart. Ryutaro looked down, solemn. The sister who he'd grown to respect was now gone. The priest performed the eulogy as he spoke in reverence for Ryuko's memory.

Alan stood far from the ceremony. He had no right to stand among them. With a heavy heart, he knew he had to atone for this, somehow…somehow...

* * *

"Soon after, Earth was attacked and threatened once again, this time by an entity known as a Sun Eater. As its name implied, this artificially created black hole would literally consume Earth's sun," explained Topper. "There were several attempts to stop it, but all met with failure. It appeared that the Earth was doomed…until help came from a very unexpected source."

* * *

Parallax-Alan floated in space, staring at the soulless black orb that had once been the sun. A creature known as the Sun Eater was devouring the heat and energy of the sun. Earth was now in permanent winter. "I don't…I don't know if I can do this," said Parallax-Alan. He then teleported to Earth. There were a few things he needed to do.

* * *

Alan stood before Ryuko's grave. He laid a bouquet of red roses at her tombstone. "Thank you, Ryuko…I'm sorry I couldn't be there to save you." He heard the snow behind him crunching. The Sun Eater had left Earth in a perpetual winter. Parallax-Alan knew who was behind him.

"Lucy…" began Alan as he faced his oldest sister. "Thank you. For trying to save me."

"What are you going to do Alan?" asked Lucy.

"What I always wanted to do, be a hero."

"I'm glad you're back otouto…"

"I'm not coming back Lucy. I'm just setting things right. That's all I ever wanted to do…" And in a flash of emerald light, he vanished.

"Alan…" Lucy let out a sad sigh. "This is your only chance to redeem yourself. Use it wisely."

* * *

Parallax-Alan floated in the center of the sun, his powers as Parallax-Alan keeping him from being absorbed by the Sun Eater. '_I took an Oath…A long time ago. And that oath taught me something none of them will ever understand. There are two ways to dispel the darkness…_' Parallax-Alan extended his arms and began to recite his former Oath.

In Brightest Day…

'_To shine a light…_' A glowing emerald light shone from his hand.

In Blackest Night…

'_Or to draw the darkness in!_' The Sun Eater was being absorbed into his other hand.

* * *

"There was no going back," said Topper. "There never was. Not since the first day he said those words. He's always done what he truly believed was right. At first, people called him a hero for it…and then a villain. As the memory of what he's done…and been…fades, he hopes he will be seen…In a different light."

* * *

"No evil shall escape my sight! Let those who worship evil's might…_BEWARE MY POWER…_" Parallax-Alan's words were cut off as a massive explosion of Green Energy occurred, reigniting the sun, sacrificing his own life in the process…

'_Jade…I'm coming…_'

* * *

The Hasuma Family all sat somberly as they offered their prayers and respects to the framed photograph of Ryuko Hasuma. Ryuki blamed himself for not being able to protect his daughter. His wife told him there was nothing he could've done but he still felt regret over what happened. He doubted he would be able to move on quite so easily. Even his son, Ryutaro, wasn't sure what to do with his life because his sister was gone.

Also present were Neko and Kenzaki Tsukuba. Kat and Rose made an appearance along with Cathy. Emiko, as head of the family, spoke in honor of Ryuko.

Ryuki went to answer the door. "Yes?" asked Ryuki before he froze.

"Hi, Daddy," smiled Ryuko.

"Ryuko!" Ryuki hugged his daughter. Could this be? Did some divine force bring his daughter back to life?

"Ryuko!" Jinx cried as she saw who her husband was hugging.

"Hi, Mommy!" Ryuko hugged her mother as well. "I'm back!"

"Onee-sama!" Ryutaro, unable to hold his composure, flung himself around his honorable older sister.

"Why do you always have to be so formal?" she said, rapping him gently on the head.

"How about 'Ane-ue'?" he suggested.

Ryuko rolled her eyes. Either way was fine by her. Very soon, the memory of her death would be forgotten. Only a select few would ever remember the dreaded events that transpired during the 'Parallax Incident'.

**

* * *

**

"With his last breath, Alan did what he had set out to do. He used his vast powers as Parallax to set everything right, repairing all the damage he'd caused. Ryuko, who he had loved like a sister, was returned to life. The three satellites of the Sabretrons, Trikatrons and Deathtrons were restored, as were their armies. Ichijyo, who he'd erased, was brought back as well. Even Aoran and its inhabitants were restored to life. And so, a hero who'd fallen into the darkness was able to rediscover his precious light and in a final act of redemption used that light and his very life in order to make a noble sacrifice," finished Topper. "Will he find the redemption he is looking for? Only time will tell."

* * *

Alan's body floated in the emptiness of space. His eyes no longer shone with light as he drifted among the space debris. Floating beside the body was an ominous figure. He had ghostly white skin and soulless black pit for eyes, the only light taking the form of two skulls. He wore a green hooded cloak that covered his body. He was The Spectre, the embodiment of God's Vengeance.

And next to the Spectre was an ethereal Alan Smith.

"_The time has come Alan Smith_," spoke the Spectre. "_I need help, Alan Smith. Your help. I need you to join with me on this holy mission. For we both require redemption._"

Alan chuckled. "Funny, I was just about to say the same thing. But first, there's one more thing we need to do."

The Spectre nodded as he and the spectral Alan Smith merged. There was only one being now. He physically looked like Alan Smith, but with the same ghostly white skin of the Spectre. He also wore the green cloak of the Spectre, with a burning Green Lantern symbol emblazoned on his chest.

**"_For redemption to be had, we must make sure this evil not be remembered, save only by a select few. Those who remember will have the power to stop it. So, let the memory of the monstrosity known as Parallax be wiped clean!_"**

Once again, a burst of green light swept through the Universe.

* * *

Kamen Rider Chrome: And this is the beginning to Alan's own story. What will happen next? Just stay tune to KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN for more as their stories intertwine.

Shadow Element 13: Alan Smith is my creation. For you hard core GL fans, you may notice that this is an adaption of the Emerald Twilight, Zero Hour and Final Night storylines. Hope you guys enjoy the future adventures of Alan Smith!


	3. The Rise of X Shocker Part 1

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER **

**Part 1: New Players**

The octagonal room within the Meta-World was being used to host a tea party. Among the attendees were Virgilia, Bernkastel, Lambdadelta, Topper, BG-Warren and Libra. The last game had ended with Shinichi's victory, meaning that good had triumphed over evil. Bernkastel wore the rarest of smiles as Lambdadelta continued to stuff herself with cookies, wearing a scowl on her face. She hated losing and swore that she would win in the next game.

Ronove, Beatrice's Head Furniture and loyal butler, spoke, "It seems that we have another guest arriving."

Topper interrupted, "Oh let me take it from here, Ronove!" BG-Warren and Libra stared at him as the Infernal Merchant cleared his throat. "And now to introduce the new Game Master! He is the Pillar of Balance, the one born from the Darkness and Light! Give it up for…" Topper was unable to finish as the seat he was pointing at two became bathed in darkness that started to take shape. It first took on a humanoid shape in a seated position with one leg over the other, a hand over one armrest and an elbow on the other. The palm of the figure rested against the chin of the figure. Before long, color started to fill in the inky blackness, but not by much. He was still clothed in black, comprised of black pants, a black coat, a black shirt and a black necktie. However, the lapels were trimmed in white and the gloves he sported were white in contrast to his dark garb. His skin was as pale and white as snow with crimson irises over black sclera for eyes. Upon his forehead was a third eye and his silver bangs, which contrasted against his ebony, shoulder-length, locks hid the secondary and tertiary pair of eyes he also possessed. Descended from his eyes were purple lines that looked like tears.

"The Arch Vampangel himself, Lord Ichijyo Desmond Amakusa-Akuma!" Topper finished.

"No need to be so dramatic," Lord Akuma chided. After 1000 years, it was getting old.

"Hey, it's who I am," responded Topper before taking his seat. The rest of the Observers looked towards the current Game Master. BG-Warren's eyes narrowed at Lord Akuma.

"So, what brings you here?" asked BG-Warren.

"I came to participate in a new game that Topper set up," said Lord Akuma, addressing the Infernal Merchant. "He invited me to be the new Game Master."

"Another game?" Lambdadelta piped up, interested.

"Why, yes!" grinned Topper. "Just because the last game has ended, doesn't mean we can't have another." He frowned, "Alas, I can no longer be the Game Master."

"Which is where I come in," continued Lord Akuma. "The Game Board has already been set up and the pieces have already been chosen. So, how about we have a game to pass the time?"

"Yes!" Lambdadelta cheered. She pointed at Bernkastel. "I won't lose this time, Bern!"

Bernkastel rolled her eyes.

"Now, let me explain the rules of this new game," said Topper.

* * *

Over a year (14 months to be exact) had passed since the final battle against the DHS and the Darkloids. For once, Shinichi could enjoy the peaceful life in Hinamizawa as he'd intended. No other evil organization reared its ugly head in his world and no monsters had appeared since. Even the Darklings and Darkloids were gone. Yes, everything was as it should be. The Kamen Riders were no longer needed. The world was at peace.

Shinichi had graduated from school along with Rena, Satoshi, Keiichi and the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS. Now, he was attending college in Shishibone City with his friends. Actually, Chiaki and Yokoshima didn't want to go to college. Chiaki decided to just live in the forest with Hanyuu visiting him. Speaking of Hanyuu, she was already 15 with Rika and Satoko and on the path of womanhood. As for Yokoshima, he decided to become a fireworks maker and found apprenticeship under one of the local fireworks makers in the village. Shogo went to college too, but only so he could look after Mion and Shion. Even though Mion had future responsibilities when she became clan head, she still wanted to further her education. Actually, she just wanted to be close to Keiichi.

It was the start of summer vacation, which meant an entire month of nothing to do. Right now, Shinichi was sitting in the living room with Rena. Again, Warren had him watch his kids. Alan, Harry and Sho were sitting in the playpen together as Rena cooed. She still liked cute things. Shinichi hoped that never changed.

Sho was Shinichi's new baby brother, born five months prior in March. He remembered how he was freaking out when his mother went into labour. It was ironic how he could face an army of monsters without fear but panicked when his mother was having a baby.

It just seemed so surreal. He could never fathom having a normal life in the past since he recovered his memories in GIN-SHOCKER. He was anything but normal. He was a cyborg with over 50 percent of his body converted through cybernetics. And yet here he was babysitting with his girlfriend.

It was all because of her. If she hadn't found him…he didn't know what he could've done. Because of her he had something to fight for. Because of her he had found his true purpose. Because of her he could escape from GIN-SHOCKER's grasp.

It wasn't just her. His friends had stuck by him even after they knew about the terrible things he'd done. They didn't reject him. They accepted him with open arms.

Then his mother came back into his life, filling up another void in his life. It also proved that he wasn't something that Gebok had genetically engineered. He was human, or used to be before Gebok remodelled.

He could safely say that life was perfect. He had a home, friends, family and a girlfriend. What more could be possibly need or want?

As he was musing, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," said Shinichi.

"OK, Shin-kun!" Rena said as she picked up Sho.

Shinichi reached for the door when he spied the green glow that was coming from the bottom of the door. Narrowing his eyes, he tensed up. He then opened the door and his eyes widened.

"It's been awhile, hasn't it?" GL-Alan said as he stood at the door, between Lala and Yami. They weren't alone, in fact. Along with them were some other girls that Shinichi didn't seem to recognise. "So, can we come in?"

"Yeah, sure," said Shinichi, letting the group inside.

"Kawaii~!" Lala gushed as she picked up Baby Alan and hugged him.

Yami smiled as Lala passed the baby to her. The black-clad and blonde girl said to Alan, "This is the only time you're not being ecchi."

Lala then saw Sho and asked, "Shinichi, is this baby yours?"

Shinichi and Rena blushed before the former yelled, "He's my little brother!"

Sho giggled. Lala picked him up and greeted. "Hi!" Sho seemed to be reached for something. "What is it?" Lala pulled him close and gasped.

"What's wrong?" GL-Alan asked.

"He squeezed my chest," said Lala, smiling slightly. She assumed that Sho was curious, though Shinichi knew better. Sho was then reaching for Yami who couldn't resist the baby's cuteness. Sho had short black hair and had a strand of it sticking out like an antenna. Yami put Baby Alan down and took Sho before she gasped and held him at arm's length.

"Ecchi…" Yami murmured.

"I should've warned you that Sho here can get a bit grabby with girls," said Shinichi. He asked, "So, Alan, who are the rest of these lovely ladies?"

Alan answered, "These are the rest of my girls. Bishie, Amora and Conda."

Bishie had creamy white skin, dark green eyes and short black hair. She was wearing a very large kimono that hid her figure from view, but still seemed uncomfortable. Amora was wearing a green top and short green skirt. She had long flowing blond hair and bright green eyes. Lastly, Conda was tall, slender woman with long black hair and dark blue eyes. She wore a very revealing red blouse that showed much of her chest and a loose sarong that exposed her long, slender legs. She also wore a pair of earrings that look like snakes and high-heeled shoes.

Bishie smiled. "Nice to meet you! I'm Bishie!"

Amora moved in close to Shinichi. Smiling sultrily, she spoke, "Hi there cutie, how bout you and me have some fun?"

Rena, seeing the predatory look on the girl's face, grabbed Shinichi and pulled him away. She snarled, "He's mine!"

Amora laughed. "I'm just teasing!"

Conda looked Shinichi up and down before snorting, "I don't see why Alan speaks so highly of you. You seem weak to me."

Shinichi deadpanned, "You obviously haven't seen the videos."

The doorbell rang again and Shinichi wondered who it was this time. Standing up, he left the living room so the girls could watch the babies. He then opened the door and was surprised.

"Mr. Samurai!" the new arrival hugged him.

"Shawna-chan!" Shinichi exclaimed as he saw the blonde princess of Genovia. She wasn't alone, however. With her was another girl with strawberry blonde hair that was in a neat bun. Her eyes were dark blue. She stood straight, wearing a short sleeved blouse and a long black skirt. She was Shawna's age. Holding the girl's hand was a little girl, aged 9, who also had the same coloured strawberry blonde hair and was wearing a white blouse too, with a red skirt and suspender straps.

"Mr. Samurai, it's been so long! I missed you!" the blonde princess beamed.

"Yeah, it's been awhile," he admitted. "How have you been?"

"Oh, I've been well," said Shawna as she removed herself from him. "Oh, you must be wondering who these are." She was referring to her two companions.

"Yea, I was."

The strawberry-blonde introduced herself, "I am Sylvia, and this is my little sister Marie."

"Greetings!" the little girl curtsied.

"They are my cousins," Shawna informed him.

"You don't say," Shinichi smiled. "Would you girls like to come in?"

Once all the guests were settled into the now crowded living room, attention was split between conversation and the cute babies. Sho seemed to giggle at all the female attention.

"So, Sylvia-chan," Shinichi said to Shawna's cousin. "What has Shawna-chan told you about me?"

"Please, do not refer to me with such familiarity," said Sylvia stiffly. "My name is Sylvia."

"Fine, Sylvia-san," he corrected. "What has your cousin told you about me?"

"Hmph, just some outlandish tales. She paints you as some sort of knight in shining armor who slays demons."

"I think the stories are amazing!" said Marie.

"You obviously didn't see the video," Shinichi remarked.

"I did, and it seemed like fancy special effects," retorted Sylvia. She's seen a lot of movies and it was likely, to her, that the video had simply been an action movie.

All of a sudden, the TV came to life. Displayed on screen was none other than the Head of DORA (Department Of Rider Affairs), Dr. Ryuki Hasuma.

"Hey, Dr. Hasuma!" Shinichi greeted, surprised.

"Hi, Uncle Ryuki!" GL-Alan waved. Dr. Hasuma looked to GL-Alan before he addressed Shinichi.

"_Shinichi, there's a situation in your world. An American naval base is being attacked by…_" Dr. Hasuma paused. "_I should just show you_."

The screen now displayed the base. Dead bodies were strewn all over the ground as smoke rose from their ships. Guns and bullet shells littered the ground as well. A few jeeps had been tipped over. Standing among the dead were white-armoured figures that were dreadfully familiar to Shinichi. His eyes widened as he touched his scar. "WHITE 14…" he murmured. All of them were WHITE 14. They looked like his Rider form, only in all-white armor with red eyes and XIV on their left shoulder. There wasn't just one. There was a whole army of them.

The screen showed Dr. Hasuma again, "_Shinichi, the other NEO-NUMBERS are already on their way to deal with this. I'm opening up a Dimensional Rift to transport you to the scene_."

The silvery curtain erected itself, surprising Sylvia and Marie.

"Need help?" GL-Alan offered but he was ignored as Shinichi ran into the Dimensional Rift seconds before it collapsed. "Hey!"

Sylvia stammered, "Wha-wha-what was that!"

"Mr. Samurai doing his job, like I told you!" Shawna answered. "And you thought I was exaggerating."

GL-Alan frowned. Whether Shinichi asked for his help or not, he would be receiving it nonetheless. "Girls, hold the fort. I have some business to attend to."

* * *

The WHITE 14 army had killed all the navy men with ease and causing as much destruction as possible. They stood unopposed, until of course the appearance of the NEO-NUMBERS.

"WRECKING BALL!" Armadillo shouted as he rolled over them. Carmen and Arachnea were working together, using their scythes as they hacked and slashed at the enemy forces. Chiaki was also cutting through their ranks with his chainsaws as Musician blew them away with a sonic blast. Zero attacked from the air, taking the WHITE 14's down with his needles.

A Dimensional Rift arose and Showa rode out of it on his Showa-Racer. He then leapt off his bike and executed a drop kick that knocked down several of the WHITE 14's.

"Glad you could make it," remarked Musician.

Showa GX didn't reply as he surveyed the enemy. "Let's Ride: Riderman!" His form changed and he called out, "Swing Arm!" The cybernetic gauntlet on his right arm shot out a rope with a spiked mace at the end. The flail smashed against the heads of the WHITE 14's as he swung wide, knocking them down. When one of the WHITE 14's rose to their feet, Showa saw that its helmet was broken to reveal a robotic face with beady red eyes, and a speaker-like mouth. "Androids…" he murmured. So, they weren't clones. "Let's erase them!" declared Showa. "Power Arm!" Riderman's Power Arm sported a crescent-shaped blade for a claw in place of a hand. As his strongest weapon, the Power Arm was ideal to hack away at all obstacles.

"Kinda reminds you of old times, doesn't it?" said Musician.

Showa's frown deepened as he pushed the dark memory away. "I'd rather not remember that time, #08," he remarked.

Suddenly, a giant green boxing glove knocked down several of the WHITE 14's. "How about you guys stop reminiscing and start dealing with these guys!" shouted GL-Alan.

"Stay out of this!" Showa snapped. "Let's Ride: X!" He transformed into Kamen Rider X. "Ridol Stick!" Twirling the staff around, he attacked the WHITE 14 droids savagely as he ran them through. "Ridol Sword!" He slashed with the sword. "Ridol Rope!" He tied a WHITE 14 droid up with the rope and with a swing he used the trapped droid like a flail and knocked the other WHITE 14 droids down. He then slammed the WHITE 14 he had trapped hard to the ground, breaking it. "Let's Ride: Stronger!" He instantly assumed the form of Kamen Rider Stronger. "Electro Fire!" He knelt down and slammed his palms down to the ground. Lightning lanced across the ground and into the unfortunate WHITE 14 droids, shutting them down for good.

"Hey, don't tell me to stay out of this!" GL-Alan shot back. Showa ignored him. "Shinichi!"

"Let's Ride: V3!" Showa became Kamen Rider V3. The W14 Droids attacked as they charged at Showa but he was ready with V3's 26 Secrets at his disposal.

"Come on!" Showa beckoned, ready for them. He launched himself into the air. Spinning in mid-air, the centrifugal force he was generating boosted up the power of his scissor kick. "V3 Centrifugal Kick!" he called out as he nailed two W14's and destroyed them. "Propeller Chop!" he beheaded a W14 Droid with the attack. He then leapt again into the air before dropping down on the W14's. "V3 Multi-Step Kick!" He slammed one in the head with a kick, bounding off to kick into another, and then bounding off to strike another, repeating the attack as he took them all down.

Showa then called out, "Red Bone Ring!" The long vertical plate in the centre of his chest detached and soared, becoming a rolling weapon that struck the W14's and destroyed them before returning to him.

W14's who'd hidden earlier jumped upon him, dog-piling him. "V3 Barrier!" Showa called out. 1,000,000 volts of electricity ran through his body and sent them all flying with a huge shock. "V3 Thunder!" the same 1,000,000 volts was then shot out from his antennae and fried the W14's. A few still remained, but not for long.

"Now…my ultimate move!" Showa's belt began to shine brightly.

Zero alerted the others, "Everyone, he's gonna use V3's…"

"REVERSE DOUBLE TYPHOON!" Showa's belt released the energy in the form of a swirling concussive blast. The tornado of energy tore the WHITE 14 droids in its path to shreds. The NEO-NUMBERS managed to get out of the way before the attack was executed.

The W14's were all defeated and Showa stood victorious. His form shimmered and he reverted back into Showa GX before he surveyed the damage. With a frown he looked at the dead bodies of the navy men.

"What now?" Arachnea asked.

"We bring them back," said Showa GX. He'd been practicing use of his time reversal powers. His crimson eyes glowed and he began to reverse time for the dead. No longer would he have to turn back the time of the entire earth to execute his Return to the Past power. He made sure not to target the WHITE 14 droids. The damage was slowly being repaired as Showa's power worked, reverting time to the point before the attack occurred. Fatal injuries were being mended as the navy men were being brought back to life. They would remain unconscious for a few hours. The naval base was fully repaired. It was like nothing had even happened.

Showa panted. Using his time reversal power to bring back the dead was exhausting. Like before, it only worked if they had only been dead for less than 24 hours. Showa picked up one of the WHITE 14 droids' heads before handing it to Zero. "Shogo, take this back to ARMOR and have the Science Department analyse it."

GL-Alan touched down and spoke, "So, mind telling me what happened? I've known you for a while Shinichi and I've never seen you act like that."

Showa answered coldly, "It's something personal, Alan. You should understand what it's like to hate someone with every fibre of your being, don't you?" With that said, Showa got on his bike and a Dimensional Rift erected itself before he rode into it.

* * *

**ARMOR's Science Dept**

"This is Gebok's handiwork alright," confirmed Dr. Magi as he examined the android's head.

"How can you tell?" asked Takada.

"He always leaves a signature," Dr. Magi answered. "Right here. See this chip? It has his face stamped on it." He held a magnifying glass over said chip, which was stamped with Gebok's grinning face.

"Talk about an ego."

"Yes, he's always been a narcissistic and egotistical sociopath with delusions of grandeur," Dr. Magi told Takada. "And that cackle of his _always_ left me in chills."

Takada examined the head as well. "Wow, when he makes an android he really knows how to make them," said Takada, impressed. "This is almost as advanced as the ones we use here in ARMOR."

"These androids were made from BLACK 13's combat data," Dr. Magi added. "They are as strong as BLACK 13 individually. In these numbers they can easily overpower a single Rider. Thankfully, the NEO-NUMBERS are able to work together to counter them."

Dr. Hasuma countered, "Actually, Shinichi managed to destroy most of them singlehandedly." He'd seen the footage, how Showa had savagely and obsessively taken the WHITE 14 droids down and out. "Then again, I can't really blame him. They're a reminder of Gebok." He was just like Shinichi when it concerned people like Asakura in the past.

Warren let out a sigh. "We need to do something about this. We can't just let him act so obsessively like he did today." Warren knew what would happen. Shinichi would act on his own again, just like a lone wolf. "He needs to get his emotions under control. We can't have him shooting off like some kind of loose cannon."

Shinichi was recruited by ARMOR because he was powerful. He was so powerful that he was dangerous. He was someone that couldn't remain unchecked due to his time manipulation powers. That was why Warren had him drafted into ARMOR, to control him.

Ryuki didn't like manipulating others, but he had to agree that Shinichi's powers were the kind that could cause a lot of disastrous damage in the wrong hands. It was just fortunate that Shinichi was on their side.

* * *

Shinichi was about to enter his house when he felt GL-Alan grab his shoulder. "Shinichi, do you mind telling me what happened out there?" He was referring to Shinichi's brutality while dealing with the W14's earlier.

"Gebok…" murmured Shinichi. "As long as he exists I can kiss a peaceful life goodbye. I have to stop him no matter what." The appearance of the WHITE 14 droids proved that Gebok was back and would disrupt the peaceful and happy life he wanted to build with his family. "I can't let him get away again."

GL-Alan recognised the hatred reflected in Shinichi's eyes. He was just like that a long time ago. "I see…"

"What are you gonna tell them?" Shinichi asked, referring to the girls inside the house.

"They see enough of my kinda world already," GL-Alan. "They don't need to know what's going on, at least not the full details."

Shinichi forced himself to calm down. Thinking about Gebok agitated him to no ends. He knew he had to track Gebok down somehow.

Shinichi could smell something cooking. He opened the door and went inside. "Tadaima," he greeted, putting on a smile.

"Welcome back, Mr. Samurai!" Shawna greeted. "Ms. Rena is cooking in the kitchen right now!"

GL-Alan asked nervously, "Um…is Lala helping her?"

"Yes," Yami confirmed. "She wanted to make something for you to eat."

"Hope she kept her clothes on under the apron this time," murmured GL-Alan. Shinichi heard him and imagined it. GL-Alan glared, warning, "Don't even think about it!"

'_Too late_,' thought Shinichi, but he was actually imagining Rena in nothing but an apron.

"Oh you're so cute!" gushed Amora. She held Baby Alan. "Alan, you were such an adorable little baby!"

"I can honestly say this is infinitely times worse than having baby pictures…" groaned GL-Alan.

"Yeah," agreed Shinichi. "The girls get to see what the real thing looks like." He recalled how embarrassing it'd been when his mother had shown Rena his baby pictures but then he also noted how sad she was because she didn't have any of his photos after Gebok kidnapped him. Shiori was unable to watch him grow up. Actually, that was for the best. Shiori didn't need to see the things GIN-SHOCKER put him through for an entire decade.

Shinichi added, "It's even more embarrassing if they start to give your baby self bathes or change his diapers."

GL-Alan grimaced, "Please…" He did not want that image in his mind.

* * *

In an undisclosed location, a light shone upon a wall. Mounted upon said wall was a seal that resembled a hawk with an 'X' in its chest. Sitting under the seal was a man clad in a black coat. It was Gebok! New look, but still the same psychotic madman with delusions of grandeur.

"BLACK 13, because of you GIN-SHOCKER fell and also because of you the DHS has fallen as well. Damn you, BLACK 13! You've stood in my way long enough! No more, BLACK 13! I'm not playing anymore! You will soon realise the true horror of Dr. X. My new X-SHOCKER will make…you…Pay!"

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome:** When new people move to a new place, the first and most important thing they need to take care of is a place to live. Of course, you have to know exactly what you're getting into when you're moving into a new place.

Next chapter: Living Arrangements.


	4. The Rise of X Shocker Part 2

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 2: Living Arrangements**

"X-SHOCKER?" Lambdadelta smirked, finding the entire thing interesting. "So, Gebok's up to his old tricks again." The man had been fun to play with in the last game. '_Good_. _Maybe I should pay him a visit_.'

"Indeed," agreed Bernkastel. "Like a cockroach, he just doesn't quit." She hated the way Gebok did things.

The Observers were in the Meta-World, discussing the beginning of Lord Akuma's game. So far, the story had an interesting start.

"So, what else will happen?" asked Virgilia, interested to see the path this new game will take.

"That, Lady Virgilia, will be up to the players," said Lord Akuma.

BG-Warren's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You're up to something."

"Aren't we all?" retorted the Arch Vampangel calmly. "Shall we continue?"

"Let's draw the curtain to the next act then!" announced Topper, clapping his hands together.

* * *

At ARMOR HQ, Dr. Ryuki Hasuma was just about to finish a report on his computer.

_As a doctor/physician/medic, I prefer to fight behind the scenes and help the agents of ARMOR by caring for their medical needs. After the 'Vicious Wars' I decided to 'hang my cape' but Warren gave me a better offer and so I joined without hesitation. Back then, I was studying to become a veterinarian, of course, but after that I decided to go into getting another degree as a full-fledged physician, treating humans and animals alike. Little Lucy (I know she's a teenager now, but that what I like to call her) likes to bring her dog Fenrir for checkups. I'm the only doctor she trusts. Guess that's why I'm Head Physician in ARMOR._

_Working in ARMOR all these years has been an interesting experience. I was convinced to not hang my cape up full time. I'm semi-retired, but that doesn't mean I won't fight or go on missions. As a Level 11 agent in ARMOR I get the most dangerous assignments but I'm usually relegated here in the Hospital Wing to save lives. I'm not alone, though. We have a team of physicians of various expertise. It's not a glamorous job but it is a noble one. Just the other day I had to save a patient by amputating his arms and legs. Fortunately, I had Prof. Takada there to help me with attaching the new cybernetic prosthetics. After a month of physical therapy that agent will be back on the field with his new arm and leg._

_NEO-NUMBERS Medical Report_

_BY: Dr. Ryuki Leonard Hasuma, Head Physician of ARMOR, Head of DORA_

**_Shinichi Banabara: _**_He was kidnapped by GIN-SHOCKER and was given genetic enhancements at a young age. Once he was old enough, they had him reconstructed into a cyborg. He's had 59 percent of his bodies converted through cybernetics. He has reinforced muscle tissue and endoskeleton. The type of alloy used to reinforce his muscle tissue and endoskeleton is an organic metal compound known as a Bio-Alloy, which is also present in the other NEO-NUMBERS. It can actually grow with them thus their physical growth won't be stunted. He also has a cybernetic heart, stomach, liver, intestines, kidneys and lungs. In addition he has wiring and circuitry interwoven into his nervous system and brain. Implants had also been included into his brain to increase all his five basic senses. Micro-hydraulics had also been installed into every single one of his joints, including his vertebra. He's unique as the belt he'd been given grants him a large range of powers and abilities. Takada was impressed but I was absolutely horrified at what GIN-SHOCKER did. I would only condone such serious modifications if they were necessary to save a person's life but GIN-SHOCKER only wanted a weapon. These modifications, coupled with the genetic enhancements, make Shinichi faster, stronger and smarter than any average boy his age._

**_Shogo Kuso: _**_He was adopted by the scientist in charge of his conversion into GIN-SHOCKER. Like the others he was also given genetic and cybernetic enhancements. He's also had 50 percent of his body converted through cybernetics. He too had his bones and muscle tissue reinforced but kept most of his organs. However, his lungs were cybernetic and instead of having his heart replaced it had a second bio-mechanical heart connected to it. Shogo also had compartments in his arms for his stingers. _

**_Chiaki Yukinojou_**_: His cybernetic and genetic enhancements gave him superior strength. Before he joined ARMOR he was rendered mute by the earlier experiments performed on him by GIN-SHOCKER's scientists. That was fixed by ARMOR's medical team. He too had some of his organs replaced by cybernetics, reinforced bone structure and muscle tissue. He also had chainsaw blades hidden in his arm. What was interesting was that he'd been given an implant that allowed him to produce a powerful adhesive. He's had 52 percent of his body converted._

**_Hana Nekozawa: _**_Aside from her cybernetic enhancements, Hana initially had a genetic mutation caused by her GIN-SHOCKER scientist that would cause an extra pair of arms to sprout out whenever she got emotional. That was fixed along with Chiaki's voice. Like the others she had similar cybernetic enhancements done to her body. She's had 53 percent of her body converted. She also possesses the glands that spiders have in order to produce venom and silk. She can also adhere to vertical surfaces and to the ceiling like a spider._

**_Daichi Takashima: _**_He's had 53 percent of his body reconstructed via cybernetics. The genetic enhancements give him the ability to manipulate sound while the cybernetic enhancements and implants serve to increase his strength, speed, reflexes and senses. Like the others, he has bone and muscle tissue reinforced and has had some organs replaced with cybernetic ones. His enhancements also allow him to unleash a sonic blast._

**_Yokoshima Magi: _**_He's had 53 percent of his body reconstructed. His genetic and cybernetic enhancements make him powerful too, but mostly because his skin is the most durable. It's like armor. This coupled with his already reinforced muscle tissue and endoskeleton make him nearly indestructible since he was to be a human wrecking ball in the literal sense of the word. The scientist who converted him, Dr. Magi, is also one of us and is in charge of Yokoshima's medical needs. Like Shogo, he also has a secondary heart but this one is completely mechanical and connected to Yokoshima's main heart. His lungs weren't replaced, merely modified as were his other organs._

**_Michiru Misami: _**_She's had 55 percent of her body reconstructed. Again we see her endoskeleton had been modified like the others to include micro-hydraulics and was reinforced along with her muscle tissue. Wiring and circuitry have been interwoven through her brain and nervous system. She's also had most of her organs replaced by cybernetic ones. What stunned me was that the reproductive organs that would allow her to conceive a child had been completely removed from her and replaced with energy generators that would give her a boost of speed and power. She has compartments for her scythe blades hidden in her arms. It still pains me to see a girl being stripped of her ability to reproduce._

Dr. Hasuma removed his glasses to rub his eyes. He'd been working nonstop for hours and needed a break. He heard a knock at his office door. "Come in," he answered.

When he saw GL-Alan enter, he smiled. He wasn't surprised, really. Even though Alan was just a baby right now, he was used to seeing time travelers. GL-Alan (or Mirai Alan) was just a teenage version of Alan from the future. GL-Alan wasn't alone, though. His girls were with him.

"Hi, Uncle Ryuki," greeted GL-Alan.

"I knew you'd take after your father, some day," commented Ryuki, looking at the girls with his 'nephew'.

"As Alex says, it's the Smith family charm," shrugged GL-Alan. "Anyway, these are Lala, Conda, Bishie, Amora, and Yami."

"Hi Ryuki-sensei! I'm Lala!" chirped the princess.

"Golden Darkness," muttered Yami, introducing herself.

"But you can just call her Yami-chan," smiled Lala.

"I'm Bishie! It's nice to see you again Ryuki-sensei," said the pokegirl.

"It's a pleasure, Mr. Hasuma," spoke Conda as she bowed.

"Were you ever not handsome?" flirted Amora.

"The future me has met them, right? This is going to complicate some memories. Well, anyway, nice to meet you girls, so, have you all come for a checkup?" asked Ryuki.

Amora continued her flirting. "You can give me a physical any time…"

"No, they just wanted to see ARMOR HQ. My Ring still allows me access," explained GL-Alan.

"I see. So, anything you wish to discuss with me or your father?" asked Dr. Hasuma.

"Actually, I want to ask if we can get a place to stay while in Shinichi's world," said GL-Alan.

"Well, then you'll have to ask Shinichi," Dr. Hasuma told him. "He does know the area well enough to help."

"Guess you're right," agreed GL-Alan. "Thanks."

"Are you sure you don't need that checkup?" Dr. Hasuma asked.

"I'm healthy," GL-Alan assured him, "But thanks for the offer."

* * *

Shinichi and Rena both lived in Shishibone City as they attended the local university there. Most students who couldn't afford to live on their own opted for the dormitories on campus. Of course, there were also some students who preferred living off campus in a home of their own design. Rena and Shinichi chose the latter rather than the former and instead of living in separate apartments, they shared one. They were roommates.

Their apartment was a two-bedroom. Nothing too fancy, even if Shinichi could afford one since he was employed in ARMOR. The two slept in the master bedroom together on a single queen-size bed. While Rena would've loved to cover the walls in cute-looking wallpaper of her choosing, she also knew Shinichi had his own preferences. So, the walls were bare, except for framed photographs being hung. The living room had a couch, a TV set, and a low table. The dining area had a table that could fit up to six people. They had a single bathroom with a tub and shower. Finally, the remaining bedroom was used by Rena to store her artwork. She took art as a minor and made sculptures out of garbage.

After they got accepted to Shishibone University, Shinichi was surprised that Rena's father agreed to allow them to live together. He always kept an eye on them when they were living under the same roof before Shiori's arrival and Shinichi remembered how Rena's father had tried to kill him for getting too intimate with his daughter. Why the sudden change then? Was it because Shiori was able to persuade Rena's father? Knowing her, she'd encourage Rena and Shinichi to have sex as much as they wanted as long as they gave her notes to be used as material for her next book.

The apartment's rent was being paid by Shinichi using his ARMOR paycheck. All Rena had to do was housekeeping. She'd do the laundry, keep the house clean, and prepare the meals. Of course, Shinichi would help out. Rena actually considered it a blessing for them to be living together. It was like they were married, despite not having received a license or a ceremony to make it official.

Shishibone City was actually very close to Hinamizawa. So on the weekends, if they weren't busy, or on long holidays they would go and visit their hometown. Rena just loved spending time with Shiori and also Sho who'd taken quite a liking to her. It was obvious since the 5 month old infant would grope her chest whenever she held him.

Right now, some actual breast groping was going on in Shinichi and Rena's bed. They were both lying under the covers, their clothes lying carelessly all over the floor. Rena moaned as Shinichi kissed her neck while his hands were on her chest, groping her gently.

"Shin…Shin-kun…" she moaned, which ceased as Shinichi kissed her deeply.

"I love you," he whispered as he licked her ear while at the same time grinding against her body. Her arms were around him as she held on for dear life. Her face was flushed and they were both covered in sweat. Rena panted with a need.

"Shin-kun…I'm going to…" Rena was unable to finish her sentence as her moans increased before she cried out. Shinichi grunted as his body became rigid.

"Cum?" he finished, smiling, amused as he brushed a lock of her hair out of her face.

"Again?" she desired.

Shinichi would've complied if their phone hadn't rung. Shinichi grumbled as he picked up the receiver, rolling off Rena as he did so. "Hello?"

* * *

GL-Alan was with his girls in the Angel Mort restaurant. Along with them were Shinichi, Rena, Rika and Hanyuu. They had ordered sweet treats, which were the restaurant's specialty. Right now, they were having an important discussion.

"OK, you can't all live at my place, and you can't live at Warren-san's apartment," concluded Shinichi after doing a head count. They were just too many people. "Are you sure you guys don't want to stay in ARMOR?"

"We just want a place nearby," concluded GL-Alan. "Makes things easier for us here."

"So, you guys have one of two choices. 1: you guys could sleep at our base."

"What's the second choice?" asked GL-Alan.

"Well, Mion owns this boarding house in Shishibone City. They have some vacancies," Shinichi answered. "If you want to negotiate rent, you gotta go to her." Shinichi then asked, "So, how exactly did you meet all your girls?"

"Well, Lala just kinda appeared. It was my first day at school and Lala warped into my room. Yami was hired to kill me by one of Lala's prospective fiancées. Bishie…well, let's just say that was Ryuko's fault. I kinda crash landed into Conda's home in the Amazon, and Amora was just looking for some fun and she ended up falling for me."

Shinichi blinked. Those were oddly specific and odd circumstances to lead towards having multiple girlfriends. Even Rika and Hanyuu were staring at the Green Lantern after he told his tale.

Suddenly, Shinichi's watch began to beep. It was like a police scanner and could pick up police radio transmissions. Flipped open the cover, text scrolled by which Shinichi read.

"Looks like we have a situation," murmured Shinichi as he stood up.

"Need help?" GL-Alan offered.

Shinichi shrugged. "Why not? Come on!"

* * *

The police were surrounding the museum. Inside, a man was stuffing items which he broke out of their display cases into a sack. The museum staff and visitors were all lying facedown on the ground with their hands behind their heads, as per the criminal's instructions. He was scruffy looking, bald, wearing blue jeans and a grey tank top with black gloves and brown shoes. He had a scar on his right cheek and a few on his chest which were hidden under his clothes.

"Nobody move!" he shouted at the hostages. Earlier, he'd shot a security guard in the knee, just to make a point. "If anyone tries to be a hero, then you're all going to get it!"

"How about us?" asked Kamen Rider Scada as he arrived via the use of a Dimensional Rift, which also swept over the hostages, picking them up and dropping them harmlessly outside of the museum.

Kamen Rider Scada was Shinichi second Rider form which he could assume using the Scada Buckle. It didn't have any of the impressive abilities displayed by Showa GX but it was still a powerful Rider system. He had camouflage colored armor over a black bodysuit and his helmet sported compound eyes and antennae like an insect.

GL-Alan, in uniform, floated next to Scada with a green layer of light surrounding his body. "Now, drop the stuff and come quietly. You're outmatched here," GL-Alan ordered.

The criminal, Sakiyama, grinned as he dropped his sack. He aimed his gun at them only for GL-Alan to shoot it out of his grip using his Power Ring.

"Try that again," GL-Alan dared.

"I will," said Sakiyama as he took off his gloves. GL-Alan's eyes widened as he saw that the man's hands were made of metal. "Eat slugs!" Sakiyama pointed the fingers and thumb of his right hand at the Rider and Lantern, revealing that his digits were gun barrels. He fired at the two. Scada cried out as he was hit before rolling out of the way. GL-Alan used his Power Ring to erect a shield.

Sakiyama then turned and ran, only for both GL-Alan and Scada to give chase. The man would periodically turn and shoot at them shattering display cases when he misfired. It did serve to distract the Rider and Lantern as they continued after the man.

Sakiyama reached the exit, only for a green energy barrier to block it.

"You're not getting away," said GL-Alan with a frown.

"Actually, I am." Sakiyama grinned as he aimed his left fist at GL-Alan. He suddenly opened it to reveal that in the centre of his palm was an energy blaster. He shouted and fired a ball of yellow concussive energy at GL-Alan. GL-Alan was able to dodge it, but then Sakiyama fired a volley of the energy balls. While a majority missed, GL-Alan still got slugged by a few and sent flying. He hit a display case with an armband called the Bracelet of Bazel in it. As he landed on the ground, the Bracelet of Bazel opened and latched onto GL-Alan's left forearm.

"Huh?" GL-Alan blinked. He saw Sakiyama trying to open the exit door but he was kicked in the side by Scada. Sakiyama aimed his fingers and hand at Scada but the Rider grabbed his wrists and pointed them upward as he fired. Part of the ceiling was blown apart and debris dropped on them. Scada jumped to the side with Sakiyama as large chunks of the ceiling fell.

Sakiyama wrenched his hands free and tried to fire on Scada again, only for a green boxing glove to hit him in the face, breaking his nose. Scada then kneed Sakiyama in the gut before grabbing his hands.

"Sorry, but you're not permitted to have _these_!" growled Scada as he crushed Sakiyama's cybernetic hands, causing the man to scream. Scada let go, satisfied to see the man's artificial hands sparking and useless.

Grabbing the man by his tank top and hauling him up to his face, Scada demanded, "Where did you get your hands?"

The man couldn't answer. All of a sudden his eyes rolled up into the back of his head, showing the whites of his eyes, as he began to spasm and foam in the mouth. Scada let go in shock and disgust.

"What happened?" GL-Alan asked.

"A dead lead," Scada frowned. He looked around and surveyed the damage. "Damn it, this is gonna need fixing." He snapped his fingers, beginning repairs to the museum via time reversal. GL-Alan watched as all the damage caused by Sakiyama was restored. Artifacts were returned to their respective display cases and area, all except for the one strapped to GL-Alan's arm. "Let's go," said Scada.

"Wait," said GL-Alan as he scanned Sakiyama's body with his Power Ring, particularly the hands. "This isn't anything your world is capable of making. It's alien tech."

"That's what Warren said the first time too," agreed Scada. "This stuff way too dangerous and advanced for these guys and someone's been giving it to criminals. Now, come on."

* * *

Outside the museum, Shinichi and GL-Alan watched as Sakiyama was being dragged out of the museum. Shinichi was taking pictures of this.

"So, how long have you been dealing with things like this?" GL-Alan asked as the now catatonic cyborg criminal was taken away by the police.

"For awhile now," said Shinichi. "They cause trouble, I go and beat them, but then as soon as I do they just end up like that. They turn into invalid vegetables."

"Guess the person who gave them those enhancements doesn't want to get caught," said GL-Alan. He was staring at the green and yellow armband now stuck to his left forearm, the red gem seemingly glaring at him.

Shinichi frowned. He had a suspicion of who was responsible for these cybernetically enhanced criminals, but without proof it was just a hunch. Still, it was highly likely that it was Dr. Gebok. Who else in this world had access to that kind of technology?

"Yeah, but it's nothing I can't handle," said Shinichi. "I mean, just last week last I had to fight a guy who could breathe fire and the week before that there was this guy with extendable metal arms and claws."

GL-Alan spoke to Shinichi seriously, "This isn't a joke, Shinichi. That kind of tech shouldn't be allowed in your world because it's Level 5 alien technology. Hell, it shouldn't even exist here."

"I know, so what are you gonna do about it?" Shinichi asked.

"I'm gonna put the First Law into effect," GL-Alan answered.

Shinichi didn't know what his friend meant by that, but by his expression it was a big deal. "I'm gonna go give Mion a call," said Shinichi. He pointed to the armband stuck to GL-Alan's left arm. "You better try and get that thing off, somehow. It's museum property."

"Alright," said GL-Alan, shrugging. Maybe someone at ARMOR could help. He could ask Lala, but knowing her something might go wrong. She was a lot like Prof. Takada when it came to inventions.

* * *

"So, these guys want to rent some rooms at the boarding house, huh?" Mion questioned. She was seated in her family's sitting room with Shinichi, both sitting on opposite sides of the table with a chessboard on it. They were playing chess as they discussed matters.

"Well, Alan's paying for their stay," Shinichi said. "So, is it doable?"

"Shin-chan, ever since I met you, I've seen some very weird things. One of my bodyguards (Shogo) hovers over the estate just watching over me," Mion said. She looked at the ceiling. She wouldn't be surprise if Zero was hovering over the estate right now, scanning the area for any possible threats.

"He's a dedicated guy," Shinichi agreed. Shogo was the type of guy to execute an order without question. He was loyal and faithful. He was like that back in GIN-SHOCKER and was also an asset on their side as well.

"And according to you, these girls with Alan can do a lot of damage." Shinichi had asked GL-Alan about what his 'harem' could do. Indeed, they were a dangerous bunch if things went out of control. "This is my investment. Are you sure they won't wreck anything?"

"Well…" Shinichi hesitated. Amora was a flirt, Conda was an Amazon, Lala was a princess/inventor/mad scientist, Bishie seemed normal enough, and

Yami was an assassin. "I think Alan can handle them…" He seemed to be able to control those girls. Then again, they were in love with him and Shinichi doubted they would do anything to purposely upset the Green Lantern.

"You don't sound too sure," said Mion seriously. She had a lot of faith in Shinichi, really. He had protected the village and saved the world a couple of times. Not to mention save their lives.

"I'll take full responsibility over them," said Shinichi with pure conviction.

Mion thought it over and agreed, "OK then, but remember that you're responsible for them, Shin-chan."

"Of course, Mion," Shinichi nodded. "Checkmate."

* * *

Alan was at ARMOR, trying to get rid of his new accessory but to no avail. GL-Alan glared at the armband. It just wouldn't come off! It was stuck on him, tight, and no matter what he did, it just wouldn't budge! "Damn it!" he cursed.

Lala asked, "Alan, what's wrong?"

"I can't get this blasted thing off!" he answered.

"Alan, we have to go," said Yami. "Shinichi just called. Mion's going to show us the boarding house."

Alan sighed, exasperated. He would figure out how to remove the armband, eventually.

* * *

The boarding house was a two-story building and looked like a small mansion. It was like a boarding house, only bigger. The rooms were also nice and cozy. Rates also varied, depending on the sort of lease. There were daily, weekly and monthly rates. Daily rates were for people who intended to stay only for a few days, weekly rates for those intending to stay only for a few weeks, and monthly for people who wished to stay for a long period of time.

"Each room has a small kitchen area and bathroom," Mion explained as she brought them in. "The rooms are cozy enough for a single person and the rent's affordable. So, what do you guys think?"

The girls looked slightly disappointed that they all wouldn't be able to stay with GL-Alan. "Seems perfect," said GL-Alan. He knew good and well the girls were gonna sneak into his room either way, so it didn't matter to him. It made little difference.

"So, how will you be paying?" Mion asked.

"Cash," answered GL-Alan. Being a Green Lantern paid incredibly well.

"This is the manager's office," said Mion. She then knocked on the door which opened. The person to come out was a woman in her mid-thirties with brown hair and dressed in a blue blouse and black slacks. She had a cigarette in her mouth and wore an apron over her clothes. She wore a hair-band and her long hair was braided. "This is Kasumi Sonozaki, one of my aunts. She's in charge of the place. If you have any complaints and inquiries, be sure to ask her."

"So, these are the new tenants, huh, Mion?" asked Kasumi as she gave them all a critical look. She saw GL-Alan, Lala, Yami, Conda and Amora. There was someone missing from GL-Alan's harem but she didn't know that. Bishie was actually in her Pokeball that was on GL-Alan's belt. Kasumi spoke up, "We have strict rules here and a '3 Strikes' policy. That means 3 Strikes and you're out!" She jabbed her thumb behind her.

She then explained the rules, "Now, the place locks up at 10 pm every night so you better have a house key if you want to come back in. You can have guests but no parties. I hate noise. Unmarried couples cannot stay in the same room and I do not tolerate any premarital sex. You also have to do chores around here. Rent is also due on the first of each month but you are given a week to pay. Failure to pay on the first of each month three-times will result in eviction. Breaking any of the rules and receiving 3 Strikes will get you evicted. Pissing me off will get you evicted." Kasumi exhaled some smoke. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal," responded GL-Alan.

"Good, and no bullshit either." Kasumi and GL-Alan shook hands. "Because if you bullshit me, expect payback."

"Duly noted."

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome:** During the summer, people have nothing but free time on their hands so they use this time to relax and have fun. The beach is the prime location for such activities. Of course, one must always be prepared and plan ahead because unpleasant surprises might ruin the fun.

Next chapter: Crushing Jaws.


	5. The Rise of X Shocker Part 3

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 3: Crushing Jaws**

Lord Akuma was having his teacup filled when he addressed, "I seem to recall a Lady Beatrice being part of the game before. What ever happened to her?"

Virgilia answered, "Oh, she set up a game on Rokkenjima for a young man named Battler Ushiromiya. Many, many things occurred and in the end they both broke free of the game." She smiled fondly, "They are now a very happy couple."

"Hm…I see," Lord Akuma nodded. From what he heard, the game on Rokkenjima involved repeated murders, taking place within a time loop, with different scenarios. It was like a video game where you reset it if you lost and wished to begin anew.

Lord Akuma wondered if he should add a reset button to this game. It would make things a little more interesting.

"Don't even think about it," warned BG-Warren.

"What ever do you mean?" Lord Akuma answered innocently.

"Look, I know you still carry a grudge over what happened to you-"

"He erased me from existence. I may have forgiven him but I haven't forgotten," Lord Akuma interrupted. "Besides, this isn't anything personal. It's just a game and if your precious little boy does die, I can simply have him revived. He's just a piece on the game board."

"He's _not_ a piece on the game board," countered BG-Warren. "He's a person and I won't have you messing with him."

"Then play the game, Balance Guardian," argued Lord Akuma. "Play, and make sure your son doesn't meet a Bad End."

BG-Warren swore, "I will, Akuma. I will."

* * *

"Dude, I'm in heaven…" said Shinichi as he sat next to GL-Alan under an umbrella.

"Just keep your eyes off my girls," GL-Alan warned but he too had a look of bliss on his face.

"No promises."

Summer vacation was a time for fun in the sun. So, the group was at the beach to have some summer fun. However, not all of Shinichi's friends could come since they had plans of their own, even Hanyuu and Rika. Only Rena was free to come along. Shawna and her cousins had also come. GL-Alan was dragged to the beach by his girls but the view made up for any negative emotions.

"Sweet…" Shinichi uttered as he watched Rena play beach volleyball with Shawna, Sylvia and Marie. He took a picture with his camera. "I am so glad I came!" There was a lot of bouncing going on.

"You really are a shameless pervert," GL-Alan remarked. That was a pretty obvious remark considering that he knew Shinichi well.

"Yeah, but who was it that hesitated when Bishie wanted to sunbathe naked, hm?" Shinichi pointed out.

"Hey, the question surprised me!" GL-Alan retorted defensively. He glanced at the Pokegirl in question.

"Your mouth went open and close like a fish out of water before you could say 'no'," Shinichi reminded. Speaking of Bishie, the Ivywhore Pokegirl was lying facedown on a blanket nearby, soaking some rays. Nobody noticed her strange appearance because she was wearing a device on her wrist that cast an illusion that made her look like a normal human being.

Bishie's bathing suit was a blue bikini, Lala wore a bikini the same color as her hair, Amora wore something that was technically a one-piece except it had a diamond-shape cut out in the stomach area and it was very low cut in the back, leaving everything above the small of her back exposed, Yami had on a black bikini with star patterns on the top and Conda…well Conda wore a string bikini that had to be illegal, but she did not care. She did not care that men were tripping over their feet gawking at her. The triangles of cloth that covered her breasts and nether regions didn't cover much at all. Heck, the bikini top only covered the nipples while the bottoms were a thong. Rena was wearing a red bikini that was tied in a knot in front of the top and the bottoms had knots tied at the sides. Sylvia wore a white strapless one-piece while Shawna wore something similar, but in blue with white stripes. Finally, Marie was wearing what looked like a school swimsuit.

"Just don't be a pervert," GL-Alan warned. "Yami hates perverts."

"Speaking from experience?" questioned Shinichi playfully.

"Just shut up!" GL-Alan snapped at Shinichi, his cheeks red. He recalled how early in their relationship when Yami attacked him for any sort of 'ecchi' situation.

"Hey, haven't you gotten that thing off yet?" Shinichi asked, pointing at the armband that was on GL-Alan's left forearm. Said armband was museum property. Fortunately, ARMOR was able to develop a perfect duplicate for the museum while GL-Alan was stuck with the real one.

"I've tried everything," GL-Alan answered, "But the damn thing won't come off!" He did. He first tried to use his Green Lantern ring to cut the thing off, conjuring a saw, a chainsaw, and an axe. He then went to ARMOR and asked for help to remove it and nothing could. Dr. Hasuma's Keyblade couldn't get it off, proving that it was locked by some sort of magic and Prof. Takada had tried to use a cutting laser. The beam had bounced off the armband and cut a table, and a few of his assistant androids, in half. Not even a magical incantation could get it off.

"What ever this thing is, it's been made with ancient magic," said GL-Alan. "It's supposed to be called the Bracelet of Bazel and supposedly originated from Atlantis."

"Atlantis, huh?" Shinichi nodded. "Maybe you should keep it on. Who knows, maybe it'll give you a power up."

"Now who's speaking from experience?" GL-Alan responded, referring to Shinichi's ability to use the Hinamizawan Clan Treasures to change into alternate combat forms and finally combining their powers to assume his strongest form. This was because Gebok gave Shinichi the ability to adapt foreign sources of energy to his own body and use it as his own.

"Shin-kun, Mirai Alan-kun! Come on and play!" Rena called.

"Yes, Mr. Samurai! Come play with us!" Shawna called.

"Looks like the girls are calling," said Shinichi as he stood up, setting his camera down. "How about you?"

GL-Alan spotted something out of the corner of his eye. Someone was trying to get clever with his girls. "Hold on. I'll be right there." He got up and dashed off.

Yami and Lala went to get ice cream but as they were heading back to the rest of the group, a pair of tanned young men blocked them.

"Say, babes," the tanned blond said as he looked Lala up and down with his shaded eyes said, "Wanna spend some time with us?"

"We'll make it worth your while," his equally tanned brunette friend said as he looked at Yami lustfully, something the alien assassin took offense too.

"Move aside," said Yami in the tone that promised intense pain.

"Ah, come on," said tanned-brunette as he was reaching out to Yami but he then grunted in pain as he felt GL-Alan squeezing his wrist.

"She told you to move aside," said GL-Alan in a threatening tone.

"Alan!" Lala chirped.

Yami blushed. She could take care of herself, but having GL-Alan come to protect her made her happy.

Tanned-brunette pulled his arm away. Tanned-blond spoke to GL-Alan, "Hey, what's the big deal?"

"These girls are with me," said GL-Alan, letting his killing intent out through his eyes. "Got it?"

Tanned-brunette and tanned-blond gulped before they began to sweat. They then turned and walked away, muttering obscenities.

"Here, I got an ice cream cone for you," said Lala as she held one up to GL-Alan.

"Thanks," said GL-Alan as he took it. "Now, let's go." He looked over to see Shinichi playing beach volleyball, somehow getting Conda to join. Conda then spiked the ball hard, causing it to bounce off Shinichi's head.

"Ow!" Shinichi cried out.

"Bow down to my volleyball skills!" Conda commanded, laughing as she pointed at Shinichi with her head thrown back.

"Fat chance!" Shinichi shouted as he served.

When the group got hungry and went to the beach café for a late lunch. Shawna loved the taste, thought Sylvia mentioned she had better. It tasted bland to her and the fried chicken was too greasy. Of course, considering this was a beach café, one should not expect high quality food. It was edible, at least. The food at the beach inn would be far better.

When evening came, the group returned to the beach inn. Right now, they were in the open air hot spring bath. The men and women's sides were both separated by a tall bamboo fence. GL-Alan and Shinichi sat at the men's side, with the latter's ear pressed against the fence.

"What are you doing?" GL-Alan asked, though he had an idea.

"Shh…" Shinichi shushed his friend. "I'm trying to listen." If he dared to peep on the girls they would kill him. They were all pretty dangerous.

GL-Alan rolled his eyes and stretched. "Your funeral," he replied. The warm hot spring water was really good for the knots on his body.

"Hey, Alan," spoke up Shinichi as he turned to look at the Green Lantern. "What's outer space like?"

GL-Alan answered, "Eh, it really depends on the planet. When I need a quiet place, it's good. But most of the planets are pretty good."

"Wish I could go to outer space," said Shinichi. He never got the chance too. He had the perfect Rider form for space exploration too, Kamen Rider Super-1.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Sylvia was speaking with 'Alan's Harem'. Even though in Genovia polygamy was legal, she couldn't fathom how so many girls could willingly share one man.

"What made you all fall for him in the first place?" Shawna's cousin asked.

"He said I was cute…" Yami answered quietly. "He was the first person who treated me like a human instead of a weapon."

Bishie smiled happily, "Master is always really kind! He takes really good care of me."

Conda answered, "As an Amazon, I am in need of a strong man. Alan is everything I could want in a man; powerful, caring, and strong."

Amora smirked, "I've bedded gods, little girl. But Alan's got a great body and the soul of a saint. I couldn't ask for someone better."

"He protected me," smiled Lala. "I was being chased and he came to my rescue."

"That was what made me fall for Mr. Samurai too," Shawna added. To her, Mr. Samurai was a true and noble hero. It was unfortunate for her that his heart belonged to Rena. She envied the Hinamizawan girl. If circumstances were different, maybe her Mr. Samurai would be all hers. "He was a hero and he did his best to protect everyone."

Rena had told Shawna how they'd met. Shinichi used to have amnesia when he first awoke in Hinamizawa. Shawna also learnt about what happened to Shinichi when he was just a young boy and was horrified that someone could be so cruel. Rena didn't tell her everything, however. She didn't tell Shawna about Rina or how Gebok forced Shinichi to kill the NUMBERS. That was not her story to tell.

"Shin-kun really is wonderful," Rena agreed.

"But not as wonderful as _my_ Alan," boasted Amora.

"He may be _your_ Alan, but tonight he's going to satisfy me until I pass out!" argued Conda.

"Alan's going to tame me!" Bishie retorted.

Marie didn't know what they were talking about so she asked her sister who answered, "I'll tell you when you're older." Marie just pouted.

Back on the men's side, Shinichi looked to GL-Alan with envy in his eyes. "Lucky bastard…"

"You say something?" a relaxing GL-Alan cracked an eye open at his Rider friend.

"No, nothing," Shinichi answered. "Anyway, Alan, I heard some of the locals talking about a sea monster or something. You want to check it out? It might be something."

"Maybe later," said GL-Alan. "Right now I just want to relax."

"Don't soak too long," cautioned Shinichi. "Too much of a good thing isn't always good."

"I'm just happy for a vacation from being a GL," said GL-Alan.

"A vacation?" blinked Shinichi.

"On my homeworld, we just went through what they're calling the Sinestro Corps War. With the war over, because of my actions, I've been given a few months of shore leave."

"Guess it must've been a huge deal," said Shinichi.

"Yeah, it was. I'm just glad I don't have to go through anything that huge again for a good long while."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the ocean, something was stalking the waters for its prey and it would lie and wait until said prey appeared. Then, it would feast and be satisfied. Its razor sharp teeth gleamed as it grinned in anticipation.

* * *

The following day, at breakfast, the gang chatted. That was when Amora spoke up, "I heard some rumors about some kind of sea monster hanging around the area."

"It might be nothing," remarked Sylvia. "Probably something the locals cooked up to bring in more tourists."

"Don't be too sure," countered Rena. "Shin-kun has fought a lot of monsters before. This might be real for all we know."

"We'll see," said Shinichi. "Right, Alan?"

Alan nodded.

After breakfast, they headed down to the beach for some more fun. Again, the girls sported their bathing suits and they looked just as fine as the previous day.

"Alright, here's something I like to call 'Melon Smashing'," said Shinichi. He was holding a baseball bat and under his right foot was a huge watermelon. "It's kind of like whacking a piñata for candy." He pointed the bat to the girls and GL-Alan. "Any takers? Oh, and if you miss once you have you pay the penalty."

"Penalty?" Marie asked.

"Penalty Game rules," Rena explained, "Back at school, our Gaming Club always had Penalty Games. It's just something to make things more interesting. Basically, you have to do what the winner says."

"Sounds fun," smirked Amora.

"Now, this is just for the girls," said Shinichi. "So, who's up first?" Shinichi then added, "Oh, Alan, you can guide your girls. I'll guide Shawna-chan, Rena-chan, Sylvia-chan and Marie-chan."

GL-Alan shrugged. "OK, if that was how you're going to play it." It was Team Shinichi VS Team Alan. The game was Melon Smashing.

Lala was blindfolded and headed to the watermelon with the baseball bat as her team shouted out instructions to her. The opposing team was also shouting fake instructions, confusing her. That was allowed in the game.

"Your left! Left!"

"No, your other left!"

"Straight ahead! Straight ahead!"

"No, you're going in the wrong direction!"

Lala brought the bat down, smashing the watermelon into bits. "I did it!" Lala cheered after removing her blindfold.

"Thank God she didn't try to improve the bat…" muttered GL-Alan. He suddenly gripped his head and groaned in pain.

Shinichi asked, worried, "You OK?"

"Yeah," said GL-Alan. "Just felt like someone was trying to stick a knife into my brain. Ring, locate any psionic activity in the area."

"Psionic activity?" blinked Shinichi.

"Someone's trying to get my attention. I wanna know who."

"_Source of psionic activity located. 2 miles off shore and closing_," spoke GL-Alan's Ring.

"2 miles off shore?" muttered GL-Alan. "Ring, show me the source."

A green holographic image appeared. The image looked like a humanoid shark. It had a shark-like head, gills and dorsal fin, but from the neck down, it looked human, save for its clawed and webbed hands and feet. The stripes on its back indicated that it had once been a tiger shark.

"Oh hell no…" said GL-Alan. "Shinichi, we gotta clear this beach now."

Shinichi knew that tone and didn't argue. There was something dangerous in the water. "OK, how are we supposed to do that?" He then got an idea as he looked at GL-Alan's ring. "Hey, Alan, you can make anything with that ring of yours, right?"

"Yes," GL-Alan answered.

"Ever seen Godzilla?"

"Original or American remake?" GL-Alan's ring shone.

"Which ever one is scarier."

The beachgoers were all set to have fun when all of a sudden a girl screamed. The amount of screams intensified as they all gawked at the giant, green glowing reptilian monster that suddenly appeared. It looked like a T-Rex with bull-like horns and spikes along its spine with a spiked ball at the end of its tail. That immediately cleared the beach as everyone fled for their lives. When everyone was gone, the creature vanished.

"That's one way to clear a crowd," said GL-Alan.

"Alan, what's going on?" Lala asked.

"You girls should head to the inn," GL-Alan instructed. "There's something in the water."

"A sea monster?" Shawna asked.

"Yes, and of the worst kind. Shinichi, you're with me."

Shinichi nodded as the girls headed to the inn. "GX Henshin," Shinichi called, summoning his armor as the aura versions of the Showa Era Riders converged onto him, overlapping his body, as his armor formed over him. The flashing of red eyes signified the complete transformation. The Cicada Pack unhooked its legs from Showa GX before taking off into the air, carried by its buzzing energy wings.

"What's that?" asked GL-Alan as his uniform appeared over his body.

"My recon unit. It'll give us a bird's eye view of things and send the data directly into my HUD," Showa explained. "Now, let's go bust us a sea monster. Let's Ride: X!" His armor changed, becoming a grey bodysuit with black gloves, boots, a red chestplate designed with an 'X' on the stomach, and a silver helmet with a strip of metal covering his mouth, round red eyes, V-shaped antennae and a black and yellow scarf. This was Kamen Rider X, also known as X-Rider**;** a Kamen Rider designed for undersea exploration and combat. "So, who is this guy that got you freaked?"

"Mutated tiger shark with a bottomless stomach. Super strong and durable enough to be hit at point plank range with a RPG and not get a scratch."

Showa now realized that this wasn't an enemy to be trifled with. "And you met this guy how exactly?" asked Showa.

GL-Alan answered with a frown as he recalled, "He targeted my school back when I first became a Green Lantern. Just don't let him get in your head."

"Guess we better get in the water," said Showa.

"No, he wants a hunt. We go in the water, we're as good as eaten," responded GL-Alan.

Showa seemed briefly affronted but then he reminded himself that GL-Alan knew this enemy better than he did. "So, we're going to have to get him on our turf," concluded Showa. "Got a plan? He's your villain, right? You should know how he thinks."

"Just keep your guard up, stay out of the water and don't let him get in your head," GL-Alan warned.

Showa's antennae then picked up something. "The Cicada Pack is picking up something coming at us from the water, fast!"

All of a sudden, a figure burst out of the water and lunged towards GL-Alan and Showa, knocking them both of their feet. Showa heard a snarl and dared to look up. "Yessh!" It was definitely one ugly monster. It stood 8 feet tall with humanoid body, a shark's head and a dorsal fin growing out of its back. It also had webbed clawed hands and was snarling at the two heroes, specifically GL-Alan.

"Shark, it's been awhile," said GL-Alan as he climbed back to his feet. "What the hell are you doing in this world?"

"Having a buffet," said Shark, licking his razor sharp teeth. "And it was tasty."

"So, you really are a sea monster," said Showa as he clenched the Ridol Stick in his hand.

"A _hungry_ sea monster!" Shark then dashed towards them. GL-Alan shot beams at him but Shark dodged them all before leaping up and dropping down to land a slash against GL-Alan, his claws striking against the force field that all Green Lanterns had surrounding them.

"Hyah!" Showa rushed in thrusting his Ridol Stick at Shark. All he was seeing was another Kaijin. Of course, this Kaijin seemed far more powerful and intelligent than anything he'd fought before, and dangerous too. Shark dodged the strikes fluidly before opening his jaw as he sidestepped. He then clamped his jaws shut around Showa's right arm.

"ARGH!" the Kamen Rider cried out. "Get off!"

**POW!**

The Cicada Pack suddenly smashed into Shark, sending him tumbling along the ground. Showa massaged his arm. "Kuso…" Showa cursed. "Ridol Sword!" He charged at Shark and began to swing at him. The humanoid shark dodged the swing and slashed at Showa with his claws, causing sparks to fly.

GL-Alan went to help when all of a sudden two pairs of arms shot out of the sand and grabbed his legs. "Huh?" He was immobilized. "What's this!"

"Take this! Ridol Rope!" His Ridol turned into a whip. Using it as a lasso, he bound Shark's arms together. "Gotcha!"

"No," Shark corrected, grinning and letting his pearly whites shine, "I got _you_!"

Shark dashed towards the sea, dragging Showa with him. He then jumped into the water and pulling Showa right in behind him.

"Shinichi!" GL-Alan shouted but all of a sudden the sand around him seemed to explode. He found himself surrounded by half a dozen humanoid figures. They were W14's. He then saw two dozen more dropped right out of the sky to land all around him. "Get out of my way!" His ring and eyes flared.

They attacked and he fired with his ring, ripping two apart into scrap metal with a beam of green energy. Conjuring an energy blade with his ring, he ducked when a W14 tried to strike him from behind before he spun and sliced off its legs from the knees down. He then launched himself into the air and fired at the W14's repeatedly with his ring. The ones that didn't dodge were completely obliterated. He saw the ones trying to escape and conjured a giant anvil to crush them.

The W14's leapt at him and grabbed hold. "GET OFF!" With a burst of green energy, he blasted them right off him. The red gem in the Bracelet of Bazel seemed to respond to his anger as it flashed red.

Meanwhile, deep underwater, Shark managed to bite through the Ridol Rope and escape. Showa, still in the form of Kamen Rider X, looked around for his enemy. "Where are you, you freak?"

'_I'd be careful about who I call a freak_,' Shark voice was heard in his mind. '_It's like the pot calling the kettle black. Takes a freak to know a freak, doesn't it?_'

"You don't know anything about me!" Showa shouted, fear creeping up within him. Shark then rushed and struck him in the side from behind, causing him to grunt. Showa tried to strike back but hit nothing.

'_Actually, while we were fighting, I learnt a lot from you, Rider. You're an open book. Your mother is a novelist, you have two adopted sisters, and a little half-brother_,' Shark 'spoke', beginning with Shinichi's family.

"Don't let him get into my head," Showa said to himself. He repeated, "Don't let him get in my head. Don't let him get in my head. Don't let him get in my head. Don't let him get in my head. Don't let him get in my head." Shark attacked again, slashing Showa repeatedly from behind. Showa spun around and hurled a punch but Shark once again swam to safety.

'_It's useless! You're too late! I'm already in your head. Let's see what else I can find. Ah, it seems that in the past you betrayed your comrades and slaughtered them, all because you were ordered to so you could get promoted. And people call me a monster_.'

"You _are_ a monster!"

'_There are different types of monsters, Rider. You're one of them. You're not even a person, just a weapon. You even killed the woman you loved-_'

"SHUT UP!" Showa roared. He didn't want to be reminded of that. The blood on his hands had yet to be washed off.

'_You betrayed your comrades, betrayed the woman you loved and betrayed the organization that made you,_' Shark listed. '_You're traitor through and through_. _It's in your very nature. You can't fight it._ _It's just a matter of time before you betray your friends and family now. Oh, looks like you already did. How did you like being High Commander, BLACK 13?_'

Showa trembled as his armor reverted back into GX Form. Shark was watching from the distance, stalking his prey. That was how he beat his enemies. He got into their heads, finding their fears, before exploiting them. Then, when that fear overwhelmed them he struck when they were most vulnerable.

Shark again attacked as he swam out of hiding, shooting towards Showa like a torpedo. He again slashed at Showa and then retreated before Showa could execute an appropriate counterattack.

Shark could taste Showa's guilt and fear. He was afraid of himself. He was afraid of the thing he'd become. A cyborg was a freak too, half-machine and half-human. There was nothing really human about Showa either.

'_Now, how many people did you kill since GIN-SHOCKER took you, or did you lose count after the first hundred?_' Shark spook mercilessly. He then swam fast towards Showa, jaws wide open. It was time to eat!

Showa suddenly spun around and with his hands grabbed Shark's top and bottom jaw. Shark's eyes widened. What was this!

"You really should shut up," said Showa as his tone turned darker.

Back on the beach, GL-Alan was dealing with the W14's with his ring. Already he'd wiped out the majority. For all their power, they weren't very smart. They did try to overwhelm him with their numbers, which proved ineffective.

All of a sudden, the water burst upwards and a screaming Shark was sent flying before landing on the sand with a dust, kicking up sand. His mouth was bleeding and a number of his teeth were gone.

GL-Alan looked towards the water to see a figure come up to the beach. "Hey, Shinichi, want to switch dance partners?"

Showa looked towards the W14's and silently nodded before dashing towards them, crescent energy blades sliding out of his forearms.

Shark's missing teeth were growing back as he spat out some blood. Glaring at GL-Alan, he lunged.

**CLANG!**

He was stopped when GL-Alan used his Power Ring to create a shield, which Shark met with his face, bashing against the surface hard.

"Guess my friend was too much for you," said GL-Alan as he watched Showa fight with extreme precision against the W14's targeting their heads and limbs as he sliced them off.

"Your friend is a monster…" growled Shark. "Guess both of you have that in common, don't you?"

GL-Alan didn't want to hear that from Shark of all people. "Shark, you are under arrest for-" He paused when he noticed the red gem on the Bracelet of Bazel flashing brightly. "Huh?"

Showa noticed the glow as well. All of a sudden, GL-Alan exploded in intense green light, forcing Showa and Shark to cover their eyes. When the light died down, GL-Alan had completely transformed and Showa gawked. "Alan…?"

GL-Alan was now donned in a black bodysuit with green armbands, ankle bracelets, and torso armor. The armor had a golden trim with a red gem situated in the centre of his chest, similar to the gem on the Bracelet of Bazel. Around his waist was a belt with the Green Lantern insignia on the buckle. His head was encased in a black helmet with a red V-shaped visor covering the eyes and sporting a pair of gold fins on top. His mouth was uncovered, which didn't last long as two halves of the faceplate slid out and came together to conceal his mouth completely.

He looked like a Kamen Rider.

"Huh?" GL-Alan stared at his body. "What is this?"

Shark sneered at GL-Alan. "So what if you've changed? This changes nothing!" He used his telekinesis, ripping up huge chunks out of the ground before tossing them at GL-Alan. They crashed against the armored Green Lantern, only to shatter harmlessly against him. "What!"

"Electro Fire!"

Lightning raced across the ground and straight towards Shark, electrocuting him. He screamed out from the shock. GL-Alan looked to see Showa had assumed the form of Kamen Rider Stronger and was down on one knee with his right hand on the sand. The same lightning lanced out in a spider web pattern, electrocuting the W14's as well.

Shark, smoking, was still standing. "Is that all you got?" he taunted.

"No, not really," said Showa as he reverted to his default form. "Alan, want to try a Double Rider Kick?"

"Thought you'd never ask," said GL-Alan.

The two rushed towards Shark and took turns beating him up. Shark tried to claw and bite at them, only for them to dodge his attempts. He received a kick from both of them in the gut, causing him to double over, before an uppercut snapped his head backwards. Finally, two fists were planted right into his chest, knocking him backwards with explosive force.

Shark splashed into the water, dazed and in pain. He then saw shadows looming over him and looked up at the sun and the two figures coming down at him.

"RIDER DOUBLE DROP KICK!" Showa called out as he and GL-Alan both executed a drop kick that slammed right down on Shark, knocking him unconscious. The two armored young men than returned to human form.

"Game Over," declared Shinichi.

Shark was dragged right out of the water by his feet which Shinichi and GL-Alan were holding. After letting them go, Shinichi turned to look at GL-Alan, whose armor had vanished after defeating Shark. "Alan that is not a normal armband."

"Tell me about it," agreed GL-Alan as he stared at the Bracelet of Bazel. "This isn't a normal artifact."

"What was your first clue?" the Bracelet of Bazel spoke, its gem flashing with each syllable.

GL-Alan and Shinichi stared.

"Did that thing just talk?" Shinichi asked.

"Didn't you hear me, or are you stupid?" the Bracelet of Bazel responded.

* * *

The Observers had been watching, and BG-Warren smiled. "Looks like my son just got himself an upgrade."

"An annoying one," countered Lord Akuma. "We'll see how he handles this latest development."

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: **Almost everything is for sale, and almost everything can be bought. Pain and Suffering are just opportunities for the cruel to make a profit as they sell their tools of destruction.

Next chapter: Painful Auction**.**


	6. The Rise of X Shocker Part 4

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 4: Painful Auction**

"The Bracelet of Bazel, a truly powerful yet obnoxious artifact," said Lord Akuma. "Many have chopped their own arm off just to be rid of it. I wonder how the young Lantern deals with his development."

"Not well," said Lambdadelta, grinning. She wondered how long before Green Lantern Alan Smith was driven mad. "It'll be fun to see him squirm."

"The human spirit is much stronger than that," Bernkastel reminded, "Or have you forgotten?" Lambdadelta pouted childishly.

"For now, let's watch the game's development," said Topper. "I hope everyone has made a wager on it."

* * *

"So, let me get this straight," said GL-Alan, staring at the Bracelet of Bazel. "You can _talk_?"

"No, you're just hearing voices in your head," the Bracelet of Bazel replied sarcastically before snapping, "OF COURSE I CAN TALK!"

"OK, if you could talk all this time then why didn't you-" GL-Alan paused when he realized what he was doing. "I'm arguing with a piece of jewelry. I must be losing it. No way. I'm not doing this."

"_What_? Am I not good enough for you to talk to?" remarked the Bracelet of Bazel. "Is that it? Are you the 'too good to talk to a bracelet' type of person, is that it? Huh?"

"Relax, Alan," said Shinichi. "It's not that strange." He was used to talking to Tsukumogami so it wasn't that strange. GL-Alan gave him a look. "Maybe we should check up on the girls," said Shinichi.

"Yeah, you're right," agreed GL-Alan. "I almost forgot about that." The two ran towards the inn.

"Hey, are these girls beauties by any chance? I can't wait to feast my eyes on them," said the armband.

"Shut up!" GL-Alan snapped at his arm-mounted annoyance.

"Make me!" the armband shot back.

Shinichi sighed.

As they reached the inn, they discovered the door had been broken open. Rushing inside, they saw damaged W14's lying in the corridor. When they reached the room the girls were in, they saw even more of the non-functioning automatons lying about.

"Hi, Alan!" Lala waved. She was holding a specially made gun. GL-Alan had bought it for her a while back for protection. Yami's hair had taken the form of sickle blades, which she'd used to take down their enemies. Conda too was tying her whip around her waist. Amora just leaned against the wall. Rena was putting away her hooked cleaver as Sylvia sheathed her rapier.

"Mr. Samurai, you're alright!" smiled Shawna.

"What happened here?" Shinichi asked.

"These…things tried to capture us, but we managed to take care of them," said Sylvia. Shinichi reminded himself to be on Shawna's cousin's good side. She seemed to be a capable swordswoman judging by the damage she managed to inflict on the W14's.

"Must I remind you that it was my magic that weakened these metal golems?" Amora boasted. She glided up to GL-Alan, hooking an arm around his, making sure to rub her voluptuous body against it. "You should've seen me. The spell I cast enabled everyone to beat them."

Conda snorted, "Hey, that's all you did. We did all the hard work."

"Yes, we did most of the fighting!" said Bishie, her Vine Whip still out.

"Girls, please, no arguing," GL-Alan scolded.

"Hey, let them fight! I wanna see them go at it!" the Bracelet of Bazel exclaimed. All eyes went towards the armband.

"Did that thing just talk?" Yami asked.

"Wow! It did!" Lala exclaimed, surprised.

"Greetings, ladies. You can call me Bazel," the armband introduced itself. "I'm pleased to meet you."

"Hm, those Atlanteans made quite an interesting object," said Amora as she appraised the Bracelet of Bazel. GL-Alan had told them that the Bracelet of Bazel was supposedly an artifact from Atlantis.

"The who?" Bazel said, confused.

"You know. The Atlanteans, as in the people who made you," GL-Alan said.

"I have no idea who you're talking about. What Atlanteans? I don't remember anything about that," said Bazel.

"He must have amnesia," suggested Shinichi.

"Shinichi, this thing is a piece of jewelry!" GL-Alan pointed out. "They don't get amnesia."

"Hey, I'm not just any piece of jewelry. I am Bazel! Remember that, boy!"

Shinichi activated his wrist communicator, "I better call Warren to clean this mess up." There were a lot of android parts lying around and the inn had seen better days.

* * *

Meanwhile, in X-SHOCKER's Headquarters, Dr. Gebok was watching the footage of the battle between Shark with GL-Alan and Showa on multiple screens that were mounted upon the wall. "Hm…interesting." He zoomed in on GL-Alan who'd changed. "He's become somewhat like a Kamen Rider. Further observation is needed."

"Do you need anything?" a figure spoke. He was clad all in black like a ninja and on his back were four mechanical arms.

"Patience, Spider Ninja," Gebok said to the 6-armed assassin. "You'll get your chance."

A girl with butterfly wings spoke, "Send me, Dr. Gebok! I want to see Kuro-kun again!"

"You'll get your chance too, Electric Butterfly," said Dr. Gebok. "For now, I need to go and see Million-sama."

* * *

"So, you're saying that armband is alive?" asked Warren. GL-Alan and Shinichi had come to ARMOR to report.

"That's right, Dad," said GL-Alan. "And it just won't shut up!"

"Don't call me an 'it'!" snapped Bazel. "I have a name. Use it!"

"See? And I've been trying to get this thing off!"

"And don't call me a thing!"

"I'll call you what ever I want!"

"As you can see, sir, that this might be a bit of a problem if Alan wants to maintain a low profile," Shinichi pointed out.

"Don't you have talking artifacts too?" Warren asked.

"Well, not exactly the artifacts, but the spirits within them do speak to me," said Shinichi, "But this is different. This Bracelet of Bazel's voice can be heard by everyone, not just Alan."

"And I want this armband to come off or at least shut up!" GL-Alan added.

"Neither is possible, boy!" Bazel shot back. "So, can you tell me about the world right now and what's happened? I think I've been asleep for so long that I missed a lot."

"Considering that you were made in Atlantis, I guess that it's been more than just a few centuries," commented Shinichi. Surprisingly, Shinichi and Bazel could get along.

"Why couldn't I have gotten you as a wearer?" Bazel asked.

"Luck," Shinichi shrugged.

"Of course you two get along," grumbled GL-Alan. "Perverts."

"Hey, I appreciate the female form," Bazel said defensively.

"You made inappropriate comments about Yami's breasts and I almost got attacked because of it!" GL-Alan hissed.

"So? The girl could add a some more fat in the chest area and-"

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP!"

"And calling me a pervert? I'm not the one with a harem of fine women who're craving to jump you in bed and letting you have your way with them!"

"ARGH!"

GL-Alan was going nuts.

"Dad, is there some way to get this thing off!" GL-Alan cried desperately.

"I'm sorry, son, but I'll find a way," Warren promised.

"It's not going to happen. The only ways I can be removed is if I let it, or if my wearer dies," said Bazel. "Or if you cut off your own arm, which I know you won't try."

"I'm tempted," growled GL-Alan.

"Hey, Alan, don't get crazy," Shinichi said cautiously and worriedly.

"You should relax," Warren advised, "But I doubt you'll have time to relax. You see, we've gotten reports about some illegal arms sales going on in Shinichi's world. The weapons being sold are illegal alien technology, Level 5 technology."

That got Shinichi and GL-Alan's attention.

* * *

The two had been given the location and were riding towards it. Shinichi was riding his newly upgraded Showa-Racer GX. It was the same as before, but with extra features. GL-Alan was riding upon a bike he created using his Power Ring, and the helmet too.

They were headed to Tokyo, the Shinjuku area actually. Not a very friendly neighborhood. Criminals, rich ones especially, would want to control the area and to do that they would need weapons, and weapons made with alien technology was definitely something they could not resist.

Shinichi had his own reasons for going on this mission. He might find a lead towards Gebok. This was personal. Warren worried about him losing control of his emotions, but this was Shinichi's world so he had a right to get involved.

The two parked their bikes in front of a bar. This was where the not-so-friendly inhabitants hung out. If they needed information of criminal activity, this was where they could find it.

When they opened the door, all eyes were on them. The stares they received were critical and unfriendly. Shinichi and GL-Alan were both dressed for a place like this. Shinichi was wearing a denim vest over a black t-shirt with blue jeans and black boots. Shinichi wore a green buttoned down shirt with blue jeans and green tennis shoes.

They both took seats at the bar counter and the bartender asked, "What would you like?" He eyed them both suspiciously, "You both don't look old enough to drink."

Shinichi slipped a 10,000 yen bill onto the table. "How about now?"

"Welcome! Welcome!" the bartender grinned as he slipped the money into his pocket. "What are you two having?"

"Information," said GL-Alan. "Word on the street is that there's going to be a sale of some really nice weaponry. We want in."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," denied the bartender.

"I think you do," Shinichi added.

GL-Alan felt a grip on his shoulder and turned to see a big guy. He was taller than he was with bigger muscles, and looked really intimidating.

"Your kind is not welcomed here," he said.

"You mean Americans?" GL-Alan asked.

"That's right, so go back to your own country, gaijin!" the man growled.

"Sorry, but I don't take orders from a guy who has to take steroids just to have those muscles," GL-Alan shot back.

"That's right, why don't you go back and let us real men drink here in peace!" Bazel added. GL-Alan glared at his armband before being hauled up by the front of his shirt.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY!" the insulted man shouted, a vein throbbing on the side of his head.

"Hey, are you as deaf as you're dumb?" Bazel continued.

Shinichi palmed his face but then he saw the man's gang get up. One of them said, "Hey, boss, let's try out those new upgrades the Doctor gave us."

Doctor…that was another name Gebok used. Shinichi's eyes narrowed. He watched as the man threw GL-Alan against the wall before his arms bulged. The skin exploded, revealing large mechanical arms. The man's gang also sported new arms as the skin exploded. Some sported guns mounted on their forearms and a few had energy whips or blades coming out of their wrists.

The man with the large mechanical arms charged towards GL-Alan, only for him to generate a green energy shield with his ring. "I blame you," GL-Alan said to Bazel.

"Like a fight wasn't inevitable with these people," Bazel snorted. "They want to beat you up simply because you weren't 'one of them'."

Shinichi saw the bartender hide behind his counter and also saw the waitresses running out along with some of the other patrons. Shinichi looked towards the man's gang. "Looks like it's time for action." Getting off his stool, he cracked his neck from side-to-side and cracked his knuckles before getting into a stance. "Game On!"

The man sporting menacing mechanical arms (who I will refer to as Metal Fists) began to pummel the energy barrier GL-Alan had erected around himself. He continued his assault, causing shockwaves with each hit. GL-Alan finally retaliated with an energy beam that sent him flying, before falling and crushing a table.

A gang member with energy blades swiped at Shinichi who dodged before planting his fist into him. He then used a chop to the back of his neck. Another came to slash Shinichi from behind but he ducked and used a sweep kick to knock him down. Shinichi leapt up as the energy-whip wielding members lashed out at him and as he came down he kicked out with his legs, hitting them in the face and into the wall.

GL-Alan had to deal with the ones who had guns equipped to their arms as they fired at him. Their bullets bounced off his shield. He then focused his energy, forming a green bull made of tangible energy. He sent the beast stampeding towards them, knocking them away and to unconsciousness.

"Really creative there," said Bazel.

"Thanks," said GL-Alan.

Metal Fists came up from behind GL-Alan only for Shinichi to shout, "Watch out!" and jump before nailing him with a flying kick that sent him crashing into the wall.

The rest of the gang members rose up to their feet again, surrounding Shinichi and GL-Alan. "Looks like we can't hold back on these guys," said Shinichi.

"Don't kill them, Shinichi," GL-Alan reminded.

"No promises," Shinichi replied coldly.

* * *

The Observers watched and Lambdadelta commented, "They work together so well, it seems. At least for now."

"Even so, conflict is still possible," said Bernkastel.

"They do have conflicting ideals," said Virgilia. "One refrains from killing, but the other destroys his enemies."

"Don't underestimate either of them," said BG-Warren.

"True, we're not, but one of them does have a vicious streak," grinned Lambdadelta.

* * *

The gang members were all sprawled all over the bar's floor. They were unconscious. Some even had damaged cybernetic arms after GL-Alan and Shinichi were through with them. Right now, Shinichi was interrogating one of them that were still conscious.

"Tell me where to find this doctor!" Shinichi demanded, holding the man up against the wall by his shirt. All of these people had weapons similar to what the NUMBERS had.

"I don't know, man! He just comes to us with the goods! I don't know where to find him!" the man responded, fearfully.

"I see…" Shinichi gaze turned dark and so did his tone, "Then I have no other use for you then." He placed a hand against the man's head and activated his powers. "Suffer and rot right here!"

Shinichi's power to manipulate time came from his connection to the Time Matrix. With it he could reverse, accelerate, decelerate and freeze time. Right now he was accelerating the man's time, causing him to age rapidly. The man screamed as he felt the years being drained from him as Shinichi continued to apply his powers. Suddenly, Shinichi was sent flying by a green beam of light.

GL-Alan had his fist aimed at Shinichi, the Green Lantern Power Ring glowing. He'd used it to shove Shinichi off the now much older man. "Stop it, Shinichi. You can't go around hurting people just to get what you want."

Shinichi spat, "Shut up!"

"Shinichi, listen to me," continued GL-Alan. "You hate Gebok for what he did to you, I get that, but you can't just hurt people to get to him. That's just what he wants. He wants to see your hate for him grow that you completely disregard other people." GL-Alan looked to the man who seemed to be recovering from the accelerated aging, turning back to his proper age. GL-Alan addressed him, "You should go before my friend decides to finish the job."

The man nodded before frantically fleeing.

"Get back here!" Shinichi shouted.

**POW!**

A single punch from GL-Alan slammed Shinichi into a table, breaking it in half.

"Listen to me, damn it!" GL-Alan shouted.

"Why should I!" Shinichi yelled back angrily.

"Because the Shinichi I knew and grew to respect is a true blue hero! Right now, of course, you're acting like a thug trying to get his own way and throwing his weight around. That's not what a hero does. That's not the hero Rena fell in love with."

Shinichi calmed down. GL-Alan was right. "God…what was I thinking?" Shinichi had nearly lost complete control. "What did I almost do?"

"You got emotional, way too emotional," said GL-Alan. "Now, come on. We better get out of here and find information elsewhere."

"Right," nodded Shinichi. He then left some money on the bar counter to pay for all the damages. As the two went out to their bikes, GL-Alan generating his again using his ring, Shinichi spoke, "So, how are we supposed to find where the sale is taking place?"

"Didn't you send your Cicada Pack out for recon? Maybe it can tell us," said GL-Alan.

"You're right," Shinichi realized. Earlier, he'd sent the Cicada Pack, which was in Camouflage Mode, out to collect information. Maybe it found something. Closing his eyes, he made a connection with his Cicada Pack unit. His eyes snapped open. "Got it. Come on."

* * *

The man, Swindler, stood before his audience as he introduced the next item to bid. He was dressed in a green business suit with a white shirt, purple tie and wore purple shades. His black hair was slicked back. The auction was being held in an abandoned recycling plant, which had gone bankrupt years ago. Graffiti stained the walls, and even though it was dirty, the place served its purpose as a venue for the auction.

Swindler was a Deathtron arms dealer and he simply loved his profession. He got paid well for the weapons he had, keeping only the best for himself. He was responsible for prolonging a civil war by selling weapons to both sides. So what if a lot of people died because of his weapons? He got a huge profit from it and that was all that mattered.

"And this baby here is called a Vaporizing Sniper Rifle. Just one shot and you can take out an entire building. Perfect if you want to clear the way for whatever projects you have," Swindler explained. "So, bidding starts at 3,000 US dollars."

"3,500!" one man bid.

"4,000!"

"I hear 4,000, do I hear 4,500?" Swindler asked, auctioning off the weapon.

**BOOM!**

The door was blasted right open and both Kamen Rider Showa and Green Lantern Alan Smith entered.

"How about a lifetime in a maximum security prison?" offered Showa.

"Freeze!" GL-Alan ordered.

"Che, it's the fuzz," frowned Swindler. "Everyone, if you wish for a demonstration, let me show you how this thing is used!" Swindler picked up the Vaporizing Sniper Rifle, looked through the scope and pulled the trigger.

"Watch out!" GL-Alan shouted as he pushed himself and Showa down. The beam sailed above them, hitting the wall. It didn't cause an explosion. Rather, the beam had vaporized the wall, leaving a huge gaping hole.

Swindler grinned as he hefted the rifle on his shoulder, "See? And that was on its _lowest_ setting. Imagine what you can do when you crank it up to its _maximum_ setting. Now, you all should have a break while I deal with these interlopers." Armor began to engulf his body. It was green with purple hands and feet and also a purple on his chest. On his left shoulder was the Deathtron symbol, a purple demonic skull with menacing teeth and horns. His head became enveloped a blocky black helmet with a purple visor. Mounted on his right forearm was a cannon.

His customers all fled the scene. GL-Alan and Showa ignored them. They had a bigger threat to deal with, namely the arms dealer.

"You're both working for ARMOR, I presume? That's the only way a Rider and a Lantern can be working together in these parts," said Swindler.

He aimed his Sniper Rifle at them and said, "Say cheese!" He was about to open fire but a blast from GL-Alan's ring caused him to topple backwards and drop the rifle. The rifle was then blasted to pieces by Showa's gun. "No!" Swindler wailed. "That was one of my best guns! Do you know how much it costs!"

"Let's get him!" Showa ordered as he dashed towards Swindler. Swindler took aim with his arm-mounted cannon and fired. The Rider leapt over the beam to dodge before coming down and landing a flying sidekick into Swindler's head, knocking him back. He then followed up with a few punches to Swindler's armored chest. Swindler stepped back and tossed a few grenades at Showa.

"Watch out!" GL-Alan used his ring to surround the grenades in a barrier and they detonated safely within.

"How much are you selling that ring for?" Swindler asked. "I can make you a great offer." He was always looking to make a deal and profit out of it.

"Sorry, but I don't make deals with criminals," sneered GL-Alan.

"A criminal? Moi? I'm just a businessman," said Swindler innocently.

"You're an arms dealer," corrected Showa, "There's nothing innocent about you, and you've been selling cybernetic upgrades to criminals." Swindler was just the salesman. There was someone higher up involved.

"Oh, I just did the sales pitch," said Swindler. "It's the Doctor that gives them what they want. I just get paid commission." A pair of shoulder mounted guns came out and fired at the two. GL-Alan was knocked back by surprise but Showa ducked a shot.

"Now, I think it's time I called security on you," said Swindler before he whistled. Out of the shadow, W14 droids appeared. "Show them the door, boys." He then turned and ran.

The W14's brandished energy swords and attacked the Green Lantern and Kamen Rider. Showa backhanded a couple to the ground and shouted to GL-Alan, "I'm going after that arms dealer! Take care of these things for me!"

"Shinichi, wait!" GL-Alan shouted but Showa ignored him as he chased after Swindler. He found himself dealing with the W14's himself. "He owes me for this."

"Hey, this won't take very long," said Bazel as he activated the armor to envelop GL-Alan. "Now, give them hell!"

"I intend to," said GL-Alan as he rushed at the W14's. Bazel might be annoying, but the armor he gave GL-Alan felt really good. He slammed a fist into a W14, sending it flying into its brothers before he jumped up and kicked a few more down.

Meanwhile, Showa managed to catch up to Swindler. The arms dealer spun and fired his arm-mounted cannon at Showa who rolled to the side to avoid the beam which clipped his right arm. He grunted, but he got back up and launched himself at Swindler, tackling him to the ground and pinning him down. Swindler activated his shoulder guns but Showa crushed them in his hands.

"Now, tell me where the Doctor is!" Showa demanded as he held Swindler down. "Where is Gebok!"

Swindler's eyes scanned him. "Hm…interesting. A cyborg in a power suit." He then slapped a device onto Showa's chest. It was a disk-like object with four spokes.

"Wha-ARGH!" Showa screamed as he felt like he was being electrocuted. The Showa Suit shut down and vanished as Shinichi froze. Swindler pushed the Kaizo Ningen off him. "What…did you do…to me…?"

"Miniature EMP Generator Disk," Swindler explained. "Used to shut down machinery, like your implants. If they don't work, you won't work." He aimed his arm-mounted cannon at Shinichi. "Bye-bye. Maybe I can sell what's left of you on the black market. Cybernetic parts like yours are in pretty high demand."

**BOOM!**

A green blast of energy sent the armored arms dealer flying, straight into a wall, leaving him stuck in an imprint of his own body.

"Took care of your security," said GL-Alan as he tossed a W14's head down and kicked it like a soccer ball. "Hey, you okay?" GL-Alan asked.

"Peachy," said Shinichi, grunting. "I just can't move." GL-Alan rolled him onto his back and removed the EMP Generator. "Thanks." Shinichi got back to his feet, his systems rebooting.

"A Green Lantern," said Swindler, interested as he got out of the wall. "Unusual to see one in this part of the Multiverse. Say, is that ring of yours for sale? I bet I can trade you for it."

"Sure," said GL-Alan. "Here's a free taste!" A green burst shot from his Ring, sending Swindler flying. "Now, first thing's first. Where are you getting Kryptonian tech?"

"Sorry, but a guy like me needs to keep his sources a secret," Swindler said, shrugging off GL-Alan's earlier blast. "Don't want the competition getting an edge over me, do I?"

"You're going out of business either way, so no skin off my nose. Now, there are only two people I know with the knowledge or the resources to create tech like this. One of them would never associate with the likes of you. The other should be dead. Now, are you going to tell me now…"

"_Lethal force has been enabled_," said GL-Alan's Ring.

"Or am I going to need to get messy?"

Swindler gulped and checked his wrist. "Oh, look at the time! I should be off now!" He pressed a button and instantly he vanished into a swirling portal underneath his feet which vanished in the blink of an eye.

"Looks like he got away," Shinichi frowned.

"We'll get him. Scum like that just doesn't quit so he'll be up to his tricks again," said GL-Alan confidently. "Come on, we better get you checked at ARMOR. Who knows how much of your cybernetics were damaged because of that device."

"Yeah…" murmured Shinichi.

* * *

GL-Alan entered his father's apartment. There was a reason for it. He knew one of his girls had been asked to baby sit and he spotted the head of blonde hair that was on the couch.

GL-Alan saw Yami asleep while sitting on the couch with his baby self in her lap, also asleep. She looked so cute like that. It would appear her maternal instincts were starting to show.

Sitting down, GL-Alan stroked her cheek before giving the dark-clad and golden-haired assassin a gentle kiss on the cheek. Golden Darkness opened her eyes and yawned before looking towards GL-Alan with a smile. "You're back."

"Yeah, I'm back," he said, returning the smile.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in ARMOR, Shinichi was getting the repairs that he needed after what Swindler did to him with the EMP generator.

Shinichi said, "I hate this." He was lying on a table, being examined by Prof. Takada and Dr. Magi.

Takada responded, "Being a cyborg? Trust me, I know the feeling." He was scanning Shinichi's body using his headset's visor.

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow. "You do?"

"The self-loathing part, not so much. The fact that I'm no longer a regular human, I get from time to time." Takada was a different type of cyborg. His body had been modified through nanobots he'd accidentally ingested years ago.

"How do you deal with it?" Shinichi asked.

"I stopped worrying about what I wasn't and focused on what I am. Sure, it was accidental, but I don't curse my existence." He actually liked the upgrade and the new powers he got because of the nanobots. Being able to generate tools with his body was a very useful ability.

Shinichi responded, "I was turned into a Kaizo Ningen against my will. I was separated from my family, turned into a weapon and then I was made to kill my comrades and the first woman I ever loved."

Takada sighed. "You know, Warren would tell you to stop whining. It's an annoying habit, he'd say. It won't do you much good either. Like it or not, you are what you are. You just need to feel a sense of satisfaction that you've paid GIN-SHOCKER back for what they did."

Shinichi retorted, "It's Gebok I'm after, the real Gebok, and I won't rest until I find him."

"Fine, just don't lose your cool," said Takada as he picked up a syringe he'd filled with nanobots. These nanobots were controlled by Takada and they would be used to perform the repairs on Shinichi's body. The Kaizo Ningen would not appreciate being cut open for the procedure so these surgical nanobots would do the job instead of a scalpel and other instruments. "Now, just relax."

"You sure your nanobots can do the job?" asked Dr. Magi as he monitored said nanobots using a computer. They had already entered through the bloodstream. It was displayed in the screen. There was also an image of Shinichi's insides on another screen, showing the extent of the damage. It was minor, but if that EMP generator had been on for any longer, than all of Shinichi's vitals would've shut down.

"They can, and they will," said Prof. Takada confidently. "If they can used to fix flesh and blood, then they can be used to fix flesh, blood and steel. Now, just relax and let me fix you."

Shinichi did as told, silently thinking about what to do when he faced Gebok again.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome:** Do you know what you're fighting for, and do you know if you're fighting for the right reasons? Make sure you do, because you cannot undo your actions when all is said and done.

Next chapter: Deceptive Tournament.


	7. The Rise of X Shocker Part 5

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 5: Deceptive Tournament**

"And with this card, your life points go down to zero," said Shinichi as he slapped the card down. "You lose."

"You know, you could take it easy on me," grumbled GL-Alan. "I'm new at this game."

"Sorry, Alan, but in the Gaming Club you gotta win in any way you can," said Shinichi, quoting Mion.

Shinichi and GL-Alan were playing the Magic and Wizard's card game at the toyshop Mion's uncle owned. Shinichi had apparently won in his duel against GL-Alan, who was new at this game.

"Winning isn't everything, Shinichi," argued GL-Alan.

"You're right," agreed Shinichi. "It's the _only_ thing that matters."

"Alan, play again!" encouraged Lala. "I know you can do it!"

"Thanks, Lala," GL-Alan smiled at the pink-haired girl as he picked up his cards and shuffled. Shinichi did the same. After they finished shuffling, they drew their hands.

"This is going to end like the last few duels we had," Shinichi said cockily.

"Statistically, I have a chance," said GL-Alan.

"A small chance," Shinichi snorted.

"Weren't you the guy that always said that a small chance is still a chance, even if it's only 1 percent?" GL-Alan reminded.

"Actually, I said if the chances are not absolute zero," Shinichi corrected. He learnt that from Hanyuu and Rika.

All of a sudden, the two vanished in a flash of white light.

* * *

Shinichi and GL-Alan found themselves in a large chamber with stone pillars that rose from the floor and up to the ceiling. Several steps led up to a high platform

The Kaizo Ningen and Green Lantern weren't alone. There were six others. One was an Asian teenage boy with spiky black hair that had a green tint. He wore a red jacket with blue jeans and sneakers. Another teenage boy had short blonde hair, bright green eyes and wore a matching green jacket with a '10' on the left side and blue jeans with green sneakers. There was also a lean man wearing a red and blue costume with a spider web pattern. Additionally, a teenage boy with pale skin, glowing green eyes, white hair and donned in a black bodysuit with white gloves and boots and a stylized D on his chest was also present. They were unfamiliar to Shinichi. The last two, however, were people that Shinichi knew well.

"Ranma!" Shinichi recognized the pigtailed martial artist who wore a red Chinese shirt with black pants and Chinese slippers.

"Oh, it's you, Shinichi!" Ranma Saotome, also known as Kamen Rider Decade, identified. His look-a-like, Kamen Rider Diend was standing close by. He looked like Ranma but was dressed in a black leather jacket over a white shirt with brown cargo pants and black shoes. He also wore a cap on his head with a bull's eye on it.

"Ah, it's Showa-kun," said Kaitoh, also known as Kamen Rider Diend. "Do you have any idea where we are?"

"No, sorry," Shinichi apologized. "Hey, I should introduce you to a friend of mine. Alan, over here!"

GL-Alan jogged over to the three. "Ranma, this is Alan Smith. He's the son of my boss and a Green Lantern."

"Green Lantern, huh?" Kaitoh's eyes were focused on GL-Alan's ring. "Hm…interesting…"

Suddenly, there was a loud shout coming from the platform, "WELCOME CHAMPIONS ONE AND ALL TO THE TOURNAMENT OF HEROES!" There stood an ape-like humanoid with white fur stood. He wore gold bands around his wrists and ankles and sported a loincloth that hung from his waist. Hanging from his neck was a red amulet.

"Hey, were you the one who brought us here?" the Asian in the red jacket demanded.

"Yes, indeed I am the one who've brought you here," the ape-man answered. "I am the Master of Games and on special occasions I bright champions from all over the Multiverse to compete here in my Tournament of Heroes. I have watched each of your exploits and I felt you were all deserving to be here."

He then began to list the competitors one by one.

"Jake Long, the American Dragon! Able to assume the form of the dragon with all the abilities. You can breathe intense flames and fly at incredible speeds. Your claws and teeth are nothing to be trifled with. You are also not a bad skateboarder," the Master of Games introduced.

"Hey, I don't like to brag," said Jake Long.

"Ben Tennyson, wielder of the Omnitrix. With this device you are able to assume the form of many alien life forms and use their powers as your own. You have not only defeated Vilgax, but an entire host of enemies and stood victorious as you saved your entire universe from the Highbreed!"

"Hey, it's what I do," said Ben Tennyson.

"The Spectacular Spider-Man! You are able to leap long distances, adhere to vertical surfaces, and shoot out webs from your wrists. You were taught that great power came with great responsibility, and thus used your gifts for the sake of justice!"

"Yup, that's me!" nodded Spider-Man.

"Danny Phantom. Once you were an infamous character and not many people trusted you. However, with your ghostly gifts you still tried to do the right thing, fighting off the ghosts that would threaten your home. Your acts of heroism are known all over the Ghost Zone after you defeated Pariah Dark and helped save your world from being destroyed by the Disasteroid!"

Danny Phantom seemed to smile at the acknowledgement.

"Kamen Rider Decade, also known as the Destroyer of Worlds. You journey all over the Multiverse to save it from disaster, using both your cards and martial arts abilities to defeat monsters of every kind. You've touched the hearts of your allies and also learned valuable lessons with each world you visit."

Ranma nodded.

"Kamen Rider Diend, the Treasure Hunter of Worlds. You journey all over the Multiverse only because you wish to collect the treasures of those worlds and you do not allow anything to stop you. Like Decade, you utilize your cards and with your gun you are able to call upon additional aid!"

"Don't spoil the surprise," said Kaitoh.

"Green Lantern Alan Smith! Your ring allows you to project tangible energy and you are also an intergalactic law enforcer. You fight for justice and have incredible willpower. This will power allows you to conquer all your challenges!"

"That sounds about right," agreed GL-Alan.

"And finally, Kamen Rider Showa! You are a Kaizo Ningen created by the GIN-SHOCKER organization to be used as their weapon. However, a series of events caused you to abandon them and become their worst enemy. You fought them and succeeded, finally getting your revenge!"

"Not exactly…" murmured Shinichi. There was still Gebok.

"So, if this is a tournament, what do we win?" asked Spider-Man.

"Oh, you will see, but rest assured that the winner of the tournament will receive a great prize in the end!" said the Master of Games.

"Sounds interesting," grinned Kaitoh.

"Now, let us begin the Tournament of Heroes!" The Master of Games snapped his fingers and in a flash of light the eight were transported to their fight locations.

* * *

**"SPIDER-MAN VS DIEND!"**

Kaitoh and Spider-Man found themselves in an underground parking garage.

* * *

**"JAKE LONG VS DECADE!"**

Jake and Ranma found themselves standing on the rooftop of a very tall building.

* * *

**"ALAN SMITH VE BEN 10!"**

GL-Alan and Ben found themselves at a beach.

* * *

**"DANNY PHANTOM VS SHOWA GX!"**

Danny and Shinichi found themselves in a church.

* * *

"BEGIN!" the Master of Games commanded.

* * *

Kaitoh slid a card into his gun and called out, "Henshin!" before pointing it up and squeezing the trigger.

"**Kamen Ride: Diend!**"

His symbol appeared above him as red, green and blue images zipped around him, surprising Spider-Man as they overlapped Kaitoh, forming his armor. The symbol in the air then turned into blue panels that came down and attached to his helmet, filling the monotone suit with his trademark blue color.

"I'll be winning that prize, thank you very much!" said Diend as he shot at Spider-Man. Spider-Man leapt out of the way and continued to jump, dodging all of Diend's shots.

"Hey, are you sure you know how to use that thing?" Spider-Man taunted. "Miss me! Miss me! Miss me!"

Diend glared angrily and stopped firing. He then ran at Spider-Man, accelerating with the help of his Tesla Bands and managed to hit Spider-Man across the face before he could dodge. Spider-Man's spider sense had warned him, but Diend was faster then he could react.

Spider-Man shot a web line at the ceiling and swung towards Diend with both legs stretched out for a kick, but the armored treasure hunter had something prepared.

"**Attack Ride: Barrier!**"

Diend fired a shield that blocked Spider-Man and sent the red and blue superhero tumbling along the ground.

"**Attack Ride: Blast!**"

Diend fired upwards and bolts of blue energy rained down on Spider-Man.

"A spider for a spider now," said Diend as he slotted a card into his gun.

"**Kamen Ride: Leangle!**"

He fired and out came a Rider clad in yellow armor over a green bodysuit. His eyes were purple and his box-like helmet had a spider-like faceplate with a white club symbol on his chest. He also wielded a staff tipped with a clover-like blade at the head of the shaft.

"Go and get him, Kamen Rider Leangle," said Diend as he watched his summoned Rider attack Spider-Man. Of course, Leangle was just a diversion. He was actually watching Spider-Man, calculating his moves. When he saw an opening, he would strike.

* * *

GL-Alan had called upon his uniform as Bazel spoke, "Don't underestimate this Ben Tennyson kid. He's more than meets the eye."

"Have you been watching Transformers again?" GL-Alan asked his armband.

"It's a great cartoon!" Bazel said defensively.

"OK, going hero!" said Ben as he did something to his watch, twisting the face to show 3D holograms of different alien life forms. "Let's go with…" He slammed his palm upon the watch. There was a green flash of light.

"RATH!" This announcement was accompanied by a roar as a new creature took Ben's place. It was a big humanoid tiger with large muscles, green eyes and a green hourglass emblem on his chest. He also had a claw on each hand.

"LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING, ALAN SMITH! NOBODY'S WINNING THIS TOURNAMENT BUT ME, YOU GOT THAT!" Rath roared. He slammed his fists together and charged at GL-Alan.

GL-Alan flew into the air, dodging the punch.

"GET BACK DOWN HERE!" Rath roared, unleashing a sonic blast that collided with GL-Alan, causing him to nearly lose his balance.

"That's some roar," said GL-Alan.

There was another flash of light.

"Jetray!" Ben had transformed into a creature with red skin and wings with a long tail. Jetray's eyes glowed and he fired a beam at GL-Alan. GL-Alan erected a shield around himself before returning fire with his ring. Beams lanced across the sky. A beam from GL-Alan hit Jetray, sending him crashing against the sand. This was followed by another flash of light.

"Swampfire!" Ben was now a green humanoid that looked like a plant with a black head that had a flame pattern. He shot flames at GL-Alan in the form of orbs.

"Have to end this soon!" said GL-Alan.

* * *

"Dragon Up!" Jake called as he was engulfed in flames. He was then replaced by a dragon with red scales, bat-like wings, shark claws and fangs, a yellow underbelly, but still sporting his hairdo. "The Am-Drag is the house!"

Ranma had seen weird things, so a teenager turning into a dragon didn't surprise him. He activated his Decadriver and slotted in the Decade card. "Henshin!"

"**Kamen Ride: Decade!**"

The emblems of the Heisei Nine surrounded him before they turned into ghostly images of his armor that overlapped him. The symbol projection from his Decadriver then turned into red panels that flew up to his helmet, filling the monotone suit with his signature red.

"Cool armor," said Jake. "Let's heat things up!" Jake blew a blast of flames at Decade, forcing him to roll out of the way.

"Let's see you handle this!" said Decade as he slotted in a new card.

"**Kamen Ride: Ryuki!**"

Two black and white images overlapped his body, turning his armor into that of Kamen Rider Ryuki. He then followed up with another card.

"**Attack Ride: Strike Vent!**"

There was a loud roar and a gauntlet shaped like a dragon's head appeared on D-Ryuki's right arm. He shot flames at Jake who fired flames back at D-Ryuki. Their flames collided, causing an explosion. D-Ryuki nearly rolled off the edge of the building but he managed to grab hold of the edge in time. Jake laughed. He could at least fly. "Sorry, but unless you got wings, you can't win!"

"Then I have to get wings!" said D-Ryuki as he slotted a card into the Decadriver.

"**Form Ride: Blade Jack!**"

Again his armor changed. First a huge rectangle of blue energy swept over him, changing him into Kamen Rider Blade. Then a golden eagle swept over him, turning him into the gold-plated Blade Jack Form. His wings spread out and he took off.

"What!" Jake gawked. This wasn't something he saw everyday.

"**Attack Ride: Thunder!**"

"Take this!" D-Blade shouted as he sent a bolt of electricity at Jake who dodged to the side.

* * *

"Look, I don't really want to hurt you," said Danny as he faced Shinichi. "So, you better quit."

"Sorry, but I can't do that," said Shinichi. He never quit a fight without a good reason.

"Well, then don't blame me if you get hurt," said Danny, his green eyes glowing intensely.

"I should be saying that to you. GX Henshin!" Shinichi's belt formed and the aura versions of the Showa Era Riders surrounded him before converging onto his body, forming his armor. He then summoned his sword. It was a sheathed katana. He drew it and tossed the scabbard away. "Let's do this," said Kamen Rider Showa GX.

Danny attacked first, firing green orbs of energy at Showa. Showa, however, dodged and when he got close to Danny, slashed. Danny did get cut but it healed quickly, but he wasn't quick enough when Showa kicked him hard in the gut, sending him sprawling.

Danny aimed his hand and fired an ice ray at Showa's feet. Danny then followed up with a kick aimed at Showa's head, but his attack wasn't able to connect.

"Bring down the thunder, Gokuaku!" commanded Showa as his sword changed into the Oni Kanabo. A tornado of fire, wind and electricity surrounded him and when it dispersed, Danny was blown away. Showa was now in his demonic Oni Form armor and the ice was gone. Danny gawked as Showa brought the Oni Kanabo down to the ground and lightning arched out towards Danny.

"Woah!" Danny rolled out of the way before the lightning struck him. Showa continued to attack, breathing flames at Danny, forcing him to dodge. Danny blasted at Showa who saw the beam coming and blocked it with the Oni Kanabo.

"Strike from the shadows, Zennin!" The kanabo changed into a huge black shuriken, the Dai-Shuriken, as he became the ninja-like Kage Form.

"Another one!" Danny didn't know his opponent could switch forms like that.

Showa tossed the Dai-Shuriken at Danny and it soared through the air. Danny was forced to become intangible to avoid getting sliced in half. He then turned invisible as the Dai-Shuriken returned to Showa.

Showa's green eyes flashed as he scanned the area for his invisible opponent. "Sing, Yabuki!" The Dai-Shuriken turned into the Higurashi no Yaiba as Showa assumed the samurai-like Higurashi Form. "Where are you?"

* * *

The Master of Games watched all the four matches with a grin. "Such incredible champions." He turned to his side. "Thank you for giving me that list."

"It's the least I could do, old friend," said Topper, tipping his hat. "Now, as for compensation…"

"You will get your payment once I get my prize, Infernal Merchant."

"Yes, of course…"

* * *

Diend decided to end the match with his usual finisher. Drawing a card which depicted his emblem in gold, he slotted it into his Diendriver and pushed the barrel forward, saying, "This is gonna hurt."

"**Final Attack Ride: Di-Di-Di-Diend!**"

Nine rings of cards appeared between him and his target, which was Spider-Man. The nine rings formed a spinning tunnel that sucked in air like a vacuum. Spider-Man's Spider Sense tingled and his eyes widened as he saw Diend's set up for his attack. Leangle grabbed him by the arms, holding him in place.

Diend squeezed the trigger and fired a burst of green and black energy from his Diendriver, striking Spider-Man out as he was hit by the blast. Spider-Man rolled along the ground, his body smoking.

"I win," said Diend. He made sure to set the attack down to non-life threatening levels. This was a tournament, after all.

**"WINNER: KAMEN RIDER DIEND!"**

* * *

Jake managed to knock D-Blade out of the sky with a fireball that exploded against the winged Rider, forcefully reverting him back to his default Decade Form as he plummeted to the ground. Jake landed on the rooftop, smiling. "Hey, I won!"

"**Attack Ride: Autovajin!**"

Jake was suddenly caught by surprise as bullets shot at him from behind. Whirling around, he saw a flying silver robot with a wheel-like shield shooting at him. Holding onto the robot's leg was Decade in Faiz's form.

"Don't count your baby dragons before they hatch!" said D-Faiz as he swung himself towards Jake. He punched the young dragon across the face. Dusting off his hands, he decided to finish the fight.

Jake picked himself up in time to watch as D-Faiz slotted a card into his Decadriver, activating it.

"**Final Attack Ride: Fa-Fa-Fa-Faiz!**"

Final Attack Ride cards allowed Decade to use his most powerful attacks. Depending on the Rider's form he assumed, he would be able to execute any of their signature finisher moves. Pixels surrounded D-Faiz's right fist, forming into the Faiz Shot knuckle duster as he rushed towards Jake and slammed his fist right into the dragon's chest, sending him flying. Jake collapsed and reverted back to human form, groaning.

**"WINNER: KAMEN RIDER DECADE!"**

* * *

In Higurashi Form, Showa also had a variation of the Cicada Pack, except it didn't have legs. He sent the Cicada Pack flying to scan the area for his opponent. His eyes flashed as he tried to find Danny, who still remained invisible.

Danny, on the other hand, remained invisible as he watched. He had to be cautious. He didn't know what Showa was capable of nor was he sure what that sword of his was capable of.

Showa heard something and responded quickly, thrusting his sword forward to release an arrow of light, shattering a bench into splinters. Danny gulped. '_Not good…_' He decided to end this quick and flew towards Showa, energy glowing in his hands.

Danny became visible again and he fired at Showa with dual Ghost Rays. Showa raised his sword before him and swung, deflecting the rays. He saw his opening and took advantage of it.

"Higurashi Zan!"

With a swing, he sent an arch of emerald energy, which was accompanied by the singing of cicadas, flying at Danny. The Higurashi Zan hit Danny, sending him crashing against the benches.

Danny pushed himself back up, groaning, and looked up to see Showa coming down to execute a drop kick. Danny was hit as Showa came down upon him violently, crashing feet first.

"**WINNER: KAMEN RIDER SHOWA GX!**"

* * *

"Humongosaur!" Ben had transformed in a humanoid saurian creature with orange skin. He was even bigger than Rath and growing bigger!

"Looks like you might want to go all out with this one," advised Bazel.

"No, the bigger they are, the harder they fall," quoted GL-Alan as he dodged a punch from Humongosaur but the extra-terrestrial saurian spun around and hit him with his tail, sending him sprawling against the sand. GL-Alan rolled out of the way as Humongosaur's fists came crashing down on him. "That thing on his chest seems to be the source of his power. Now, how do I shut it down," murmured GL-Alan.

He then got an idea. "Take a look in a mirror!" said GL-Alan as he used his ring to create a construct that was identical to Humongosaur, only in green. The Humongosaur construct roared and charged towards the real Humongosaur. They then grappled with each other. GL-Alan controlled his construct like he was playing a video game. His construct proved mightier as it tossed Humongosaur down before pinning him down with its own body like a wrestler.

"Hey, get off!" Humongosaur shouted as he struggled to free himself from under his enemy's construct but then he realized that he was running out of time.

GL-Alan watched in fascination as the emblem on Humongosaur's chest began to flash rapidly.

"Oh, no!" Humongosaur gulped. In a flash of green light Humongosaur turned back into Ben Tennyson. "Not again!" He tried to reactivate his Omnitrix. "Out of juice!" He slapped it. "Why me! Why now!"

"Looks like you lose," said GL-Alan smugly.

"**WINNER: GREEN LANTERN ALAN SMITH!**"

* * *

Kaitoh, Shinichi, Ranma and GL-Alan were all brought back before the Master of Games. The only ones missing were their defeated opponents.

"Hey, where did they go?" GL-Alan asked.

"Oh, the losers have been safely transported to where I plucked them from," said the Master of Games. "Don't worry about them. For now, rejoice upon your victory and have a feast." The Master of Games snapped his fingers and a table laden with food appeared within the chamber.

"This I like!" said Ranma.

"Dibs on the frog's legs!" said Kaitoh.

Shinichi and GL-Alan took seats and began to eat.

"After this you may rest for tomorrow is another day of battle and glory!" said the Master of Games to the four semi-finalists.

* * *

Later in the night, Kaitoh snuck out of his room. Something about this entire set up bugged him and the protégé of one of the greatest thieves in history never ignored his gut feeling. The Master of Games was up to something and he intended to find out.

He walked along the corridor towards the Master of Games' main chamber. He silently poked his head out and his eyes widened. "No way…"

* * *

Shinichi, Ranma and GL-Alan were in the Master of Games' chamber for the second day of the tournament. Ranma took note of someone being absent. "Hey, where's Diend?"

"The thief broke the rules, so I was forced to disqualify him," the Master of Games said nonchalantly.

"Guess he just had to cheat," said Shinichi, shaking his head.

"While I originally planned for today to be the semi-finals of the Tournament of Heroes, I decided that this will be the finals, a 3-way battle royale! Winner takes all!" the Master of Games informed them. "So, Kamen Rider Showa, Kamen Rider Decade, and Green Lantern Alan Smith! FIGHT!"

With that, the three of them vanished only to reappear in a graveyard.

"**DECADE VS SHOWA GX VS GREEN LANTERN: 3-WAY BATTLE ROYALE!**"

"Looks like I gotta take you both out," said Ranma, taking his Decade Kamen Ride card out.

"It won't be easy," said Shinichi, summoning his belt, the Spark Core glowing.

"Let's do this!" said GL-Alan.

"Yeah!" cheered Bazel.

Ranma and Shinichi transformed into Decade and Showa respectively before charging at each other. They both exchanged blows. Decade was an experienced and skilled martial artist but Showa also went through ten years of intense military combat training in GIN-SHOCKER. GL-Alan aimed his ring and fired, pushing Decade back but then he did the same to Showa, knocking him to the ground.

"Two on one," grunted Decade. "Not fair odds!" He slotted a card into his belt.

"**Attack Ride: Illusion!**"

He created a clone which then went after Showa as the original charged at GL-Alan. GL-Alan used his ring to make a sword as Decade slashed at him. Sparks flew as their weapons made contact. They then crossed swords.

"You're pretty good," acknowledged Decade.

"You are too," replied GL-Alan.

"Too bad there can only be one winner!" said Decade as he pushed GL-Alan back with a kick before slashing at him. The blade hit GL-Alan's force field, causing sparks to fly.

"**Kamen Ride: Caucasus!**"

Decade had just used the Caucasus Kamen Ride card to assume the form of the golden beetle-like Rider from the World of Caucasus. He followed up with a second card.

"**Attack Ride: Clock Up!**"

He blurred out of sight and began to attack GL-Alan from all directions. GL-Alan cried out before he fell to his knees and D-Caucasus reverted back to Decade.

Meanwhile, Showa was fighting against Decade's clone. Both ran in the same direction, facing each other with their guns and fired upon one another. Their shots missed, hitting gravestones instead, or collided. Showa then used an energy whip and lashed it out at the Decade clone, knocking his weapon out of his hand, before firing upon him with rapid shots from his Showa-Blaster.

Back with GL-Alan and Decade, the latter was about to finish the fight.

"This match is mine!" said Decade, activating his Final Attack Ride card.

"**Final Attack Ride: De-De-De-Decade!**" Decade then jumped into the air, the line of cards appearing between him as his target as he prepared to execute his Dimension Kick.

"BURST KICK!"

**BOOM!**

Showa had just destroyed Decade's clone using his Burst Kick when he saw GL-Alan in trouble. "Alan, watch out!" Showa shouted as he pushed GL-Alan out of the way. He was hit by Decade's Dimension Kick instead and sent flying, crashing into several gravestones before finally rolling to a stop.

"Shinichi!" shouted GL-Alan as he ran towards his friend whose transformation had come undone. "Shinichi!"

Shinichi coughed and groaned as he lay on the ground. "Looks like I forgot that winner takes all here."

"Why did you do that, you idiot!" GL-Alan asked as he knelt down and picked his friend up.

"Call it a lapse in judgment," said Shinichi.

"You moron…"

"Hey, you're my boss' son. Sides, I couldn't let my little brother get hurt now, could I?" In a flash of light, Shinichi was gone.

GL-Alan growled and turned to face Decade. "Now, just you and me, Green Lantern," said the Passing-Through Kamen Rider.

"Yeah, you're right," said GL-Alan as he focused all of his ring's power into his fist. He charged towards Decade whose own right fist was being enveloped by pixels of red energy.

The two roared and charged at each other before throwing their punches. Their fists collided with explosive force as crimson and emerald energy erupted all around them. Gravestones were vaporized by the immense energy release.

* * *

**"WINNER: KAMEN RIDER DECADE!"**

Ranma reappeared alone in the chamber with the Master of Games. He'd won.

"Looks like I win," said Ranma.

"Actually, you didn't win anything," corrected the Master of Games as he stood at full height. "It is I who've won! Your powers that is!"

Ranma chuckled. He should've guessed it. "So, this was your intention from the start, huh?"

"Yes," said the Master of Games, hand on his crimson amulet. "You see, the reason I brought you all here was to absorb you and claim your powers for myself. The tournament was simply a way for me to entertain myself and also weaken you so that I wouldn't have to fight. Kamen Rider Diend, of course, found that out the hard way."

* * *

_"**Attack Ride: Blast!**"_

_Diend fired at the Master of Games but his energy bullets passed right through the being._

_"Take this!" The Master of Games roared, unleashing Danny Ghostly Wail which hit Diend and slammed him against the wall. This also caused the thief's Diendriver to fall from his hand, undoing his transformation in the process._

_"Damn…" Kaitoh cursed as he reached towards his Diendriver, only for a red beam from the Master of Games' amulet to hit him, absorbing him along with his Diendriver._

* * *

"So, Diend caught you," concluded Ranma. "That's why he's gone."

"Yes, he just couldn't mind his own business," said the Master of Games. "But he's not gone. He's safe right inside my amulet here with all the others."

Ranma's eyes narrowed at the amulet.

"And now, Destroyer of Worlds Kamen Rider Decade, you will be my latest prize!" said the Master of Games as he aimed his red amulet stone at him. "Consider it an honor that your powers will be mine."

"Pass," declined Ranma as he took a stance. "Now, let them go!"

"Unfortunately, I can't do that," said the Master of Games as his appearance began to change. He had Ben's Omnitrix emblem on his chest, Jake's dragon wings on his back, Spider-Man's web pattern on his body, Danny Phantom's glowing green eyes, Showa's sword in one hand, the Diendriver in the other, and finally GL-Alan's Green Lantern Power Ring.

The empowered Master of Games lunged towards Ranma who called out, "Henshin!"

"**Kamen Ride: Decade!**"

"**KAMEN RIDER DECADE VS THE MASTER OF GAMES!**"

"Higurashi Zan!" the Master of Games called, slashing at the air and releasing an arch of energy at Decade, striking him. He crashed against the wall. The Master of Games then breathed out fire at Decade, forcing him to scramble away. A web line caught Decade by his feet, dragging him towards the Master of Games who then raised his Humongosaur-like foot to stomp on him.

"**Attack Ride: Blast!**"

Decade fired at him, causing the Master of Games to cry out.

"**Attack Ride: Slash!**"

Decade cut the web line, freeing himself. He then slashed at the Master of Games, who used Danny's intangibility so he went right through him. The Master of Games then fired at Decade with the Diendriver, sending him staggering.

"You can't win, I have the power of seven champions, and with Showa's Power I have the power of 13 more!" boasted the Master of Games. "You've lost, Decade!" The Master of Games was about to absorb Decade when all of a sudden he was struck from behind by a green blast of energy. He toppled over onto his front, smoke rising from his back. "What…?" he growled as he picked himself up. His eyes widened as he saw GL-Alan coming out from the corridor. "How can this be! I absorbed you!"

"I gotta thank Naruto for teaching me that Shadow Clone Jutsu of his," said GL-Alan, referring to his older ninja brother.

Decade added, "You see, Alan came to my room last night. He knew something was fishy about all this so we decided to play along."

"I sent a Shadow Clone in my place and waited until just the right moment to strike," said GL-Alan. He pointed out, "Oh, and that ring is a fake."

The Master of Games watched in horror as the Power Ring he had vanished into thin air.

"Sorry, but you lose," said Decade.

"DAMN!" the Master of Games roared. "I STILL HAVE ENOUGH POWER TO TAKE YOU BOTH DOWN!"

"No way!" said Decade as he aimed and fired at the amulet hanging from the Master of Games' neck. It cracked.

"NO!" the Master of Games howled as the amulet released a bright red flash. The heroes he'd absorbed reappeared, all eight standing before him.

"Listen here, Master of Games. People who cheat and steal the abilities of others for themselves are the real losers. We here are the winners. We use our abilities to do the right thing and in the end will always be victorious," spoke Decade.

"WHO IN THE MULTIVERSE ARE YOU!" demanded the Master of Games angrily.

Decade took out the K-Touch and replaced the Decadriver core with it, the core now resting on the right side of his belt, "Just a passing-through Kamen Rider! Remember that!"

"**Final Kamen Ride: Decade!**" Pixels engulfed him, turning him into Decade Complete Form with the Kamen Ride cards of the Heisei Nine across his chest.

"Henshin!" called Kaitoh, shooting his Diendriver.

"**Kamen Ride: Diend!**"

Ben activated his Omnitrix and in a green flash of light he transformed. "Chromastone!" He was a humanoid made of purple stone with pink spikes jutting from his back, a pink horn, and a single green cyclopean eye.

"Dragon Up!" called out Jake. Flames enveloped him, transforming him into the American Dragon.

"Going Ghost!" said Danny. White rings went up and down his body. What had originally been a teenager wearing a red and white t-shirt and blue jeans, was now a white-haired ghost boy with shining green eyes and donned in a black and white bodysuit.

"Yabuki! Gokuaku! Zennin!" called Showa. "Guardian Henshin!" In a flash of gold light he'd transformed into Kamen Rider Showa Hinamizawa Guardian Form.

"Let's go!" Bazel called out, donning GL-Alan in the Bazel Battle Armor.

Spider-Man was the first on the attack, jumping up and kicking the Master of Games square in the face. "That was for not giving us a bathroom break!"

Jake breathed flames at the Master of Games, scorching his fur as he cried out in pain. He was then sent flying into the wall by a Ghost Ray from Danny. He picked himself up and groaned but Showa was right upon him.

"EXPLOSIVE RYUUSEI PUNCH!" The energized fist connected with the Master of Games, sending him skidding across the floor.

"I…have to…get out of here…" the Master of Games said desperately as he attempted to escape, but Decade, Diend**,** Chromastone and GL-Alan were in his path.

"You're finished now," said Decade. He pressed the buttons on his K-Touch.

"**Caucasus****! Kamen Ride: Hyper!**"

Kamen Rider Caucasus Hyper Form appeared next to Decade, wielding the Perfect Zecter with all the additional Zecters attached. Decade then slotted a Final Attack Ride card into the Decadriver core.

"**Final Attack Ride: Ca-Ca-Ca-Caucasus!**"

Diend did the same.

"**Final Attack Ride: Di-Di-Di-Diend!**"

Decade and Caucasus fired dual Maximum Hyper Cyclone attacks at the Master of Games, alongside Diend's Dimension Shoot, Chromastone's multicolor blast and GL-Alan's ring burst. The Master of Games was hit violently sent soaring by the explosion. GL-Alan jumped and grabbed the Master of Games before pinning him down, hard.

"You are now under arrest!" said GL-Alan.

The Master of Games grunted before he vanished into thin air. What was left of him was the red amulet he had hanging from his neck.

After everyone reverted back to human form, except for Spider-Man who remained in costume, Kaitoh went and picked the Master of Games' amulet up, appraising it.

"It has a crack," he said, frowning. "It's worthless now."

"Forget that," said Jake. "How are we supposed to get home?"

Ranma snatched the amulet away from Kaitoh's hand before handing Kaitoh his Polaroid camera. "Let's take a picture first. Diend, do you mind?"

Kaitoh rolled his eyes and everyone stood together to pose for a picture. Kaitoh took multiple photos and when they slid out, Ranma took them and handed them out. The pictures weren't perfect, but they were unique. Standing in the background were their alternate forms. Kaitoh wasn't one to be photographed, unless it was by a beautiful lady.

"So, any ideas on how to get home?" asked Shinichi.

"This," said Ranma as he held up the Master of Games' amulet before smashing it to pieces on the floor. In a flash of white light, they were all gone.

Topper walked out of the shadows and knelt down, picking up the remains of the Master of Games' amulet. "You never learn, do you?"

* * *

When Shinichi and GL-Alan returned to the toyshop, nobody noticed they had even been gone. It was like they had been gone and back in the blink of an eye.

Later, GL-Alan met Shinichi at the junkyard. After exchanging greetings, GL-Alan suddenly punched Shinichi right in the face. "Never do anything that stupid again!"

"What are you talking about!" demanded Shinichi.

"During the tournament, you saved me from Decade's finisher," GL-Alan reminded. "I'm a Green Lantern. I don't need or want anyone dying to save me."

Shinichi shot back, "I don't care if you're a Green Lantern or not! You're my comrade. I'd rather take a hit then let a comrade I care about take it!"

Alan argued, "Well you should care! I've done horrible things in my life. I'm not worth saving!"

"You're worth saving to me," countered Shinichi. "I used to feel the same way too, a long time ago, and I even told my friends that I was dangerous and they shouldn't care about me. I even ran away just to protect them, but they went after me, just to bring me back." He recalled that day when Dr. Irie tried to help him to regain his memories, causing him to attack Keiichi on accident. "They didn't care what happened to them and still came for me because I was worth coming after. They know of my crimes and my horrible past, and yet they came for me because I was their friend, their comrade. No matter what bad things we may say about ourselves, our friends will always say we're worth saving." He then remembered when the NEO-NUMBERS were killed by the Darkloid Generals' Dark Oblivion attack. "And there's no way I'm going to let a comrade down, not again, not ever!"

"I'm not running away. If it's my time, then it's my time. I'll meet my death on my feet with my head held high and my fists clenched." He smirked. "Besides, I'm the son of the legendary Warren Smith. No way in hell am I gonna die so easily."

Shinichi agreed, "Of course not, but there's no way you're going to die alone."

Alan chuckled, "Yeah, if you let me die my girls would slaughter you."

"I know, and if the situation were reversed, you would've done the same for me and I'd be giving you that punch."

"Yeah, you're right."

"So, are we cool?" Shinichi asked, holding his fist up. Alan bumped his fist against Shinichi's.

"Yeah, we're cool."

"Oh, how beautiful!" Bazel cried.

"Way to ruin the moment," GL-Alan said to his armband.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome**: Stories are passed on from one person to another from mouth to ear and so on. How these stories are interpreted and delivered varies from person to person. Take heed that the lessons in these stories are learnt.

Next chapter: 100 Candles.


	8. The Rise of X Shocker Part 6

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 6: 100 Candles**

When Dr. Ryuki Hasuma/Kamen Rider Draco entered Warren's office, he looked like he'd been put through a blender. His uniform, which was a black jumpsuit, seemed to have patches of it missing, revealing the armored padding underneath. He was also missing his gloves, not to mention his goggles were cracked and his hair looked singed at the ends.

"Secured," said Dr. Hasuma, placing the containment jar upon Warren's desk. The jar was cylindrical in shape and see-through with a metal base and lid. The lid had the symbol for 'infinity' on it. Floating inside was a glowing crystal fragment, one of the Infinity Fragment, a piece of the triple-bladed Infinity Sword.

Warren looked his friend up and down and asked, "What the Hell happened to you?"

Dropping onto a chair with a dull thud, Dr. Hasuma answered, "I was eaten."

"Eaten? By what and how did you get out?" Warren asked. "Never mind, I don't need to know."

"You will, I'll have the report on your desk tomorrow," answered Dr. Hasuma. "I'm just going to need a detox shower and a new uniform, not to mention get this into Storeroom-X."

"Let me handle the Storeroom-X thing. I'm just glad this is one fragment safe with us and away from LEVIATHAN. You, my friend, need a bath. What ate you?"

"The same thing that had that Infinity Fragment inside it. That was why I let myself get eaten."

"I see." Dr. Hasuma always had his own way of doing things. He may work alone at times but he also knew how to work on a team. He didn't take unnecessary risks, though. He still held firm to his ideals which he'd harbored since childhood.

"Well, now I'm going for a bath," said Dr. Hasuma as he stood up. He gave Warren a salute before stepping out.

As Warren inspected the fragment, he sensed a familiar presence. "Ichijyo…"

Ichijyo Desmond Amakusa, an ally, and owner of all of Smart Brain's Asian branches, stepped out of the shadows. "Warren."

"Spying again?" Warren assumed.

"A little," said Ichijyo. "Just saw Ryuki come in. He must really enjoy being part of ARMOR."

"Yes, he does, and he gets to help a whole lot more people," Warren replied. "But, that's not what you want to talk about, is it?"

"I wish to talk about your son, Alan, the one from the future," said Ichijyo. "There's something about him, like he's hiding a huge secret from us. His eyes show regret and guilt, like Ryuga."

"I know, and we can't do a thing about it," said Warren. "History and the time stream need to be preserved."

"I see. Well, it's best to keep an eye on him then," Ichijyo cautioned before he sank into a shadow portal under his feet.

* * *

"It's great to have us all together like this, just hanging out, like old times," said Shinichi. Everyone was in the NEO-NUMBERS' secret base which was located under Dr. Irie's clinic. When I mean everyone, I meant everyone. The members of the NEO-NUMBERS, Hinamizawa Gaming Club and the Lantern Crew (Alan and his girls) were there. Even Shawna and her cousins made their presence known.

The lights had been turned off and they were all seated around a round table with lit candles before them. There was a reason for this, as everyone who didn't know was going to find out.

"Alright, let's get things started!" said Mion, absolute leader and founder of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club announced. "Welcome to the Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai, everyone!""Gathering of 100 Supernatural Tales?" Sylvia translated. "So, what are these candles before?""Patience, Sylvia-san," said Mion. "I'm getting to that." Mion explained, "OK, summer is always a good time to tell ghost stories, the scarier the better. Then there's the 'Test of Courage' thing but we'll get to that later." Mion cleared her throat. "I'm glad to see some old faces and new ones too. Welcome to the club!""I'm not a member," GL-Alan corrected. She ignored him."Now, on a traditional Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai there are 100 candles but since we couldn't get that many candles we had to make due with what we got and improvise." She thanked Michiru, "Thanks for the scented candles. They're really nice.""You're welcome," smiled Michiru. "I just wanted the place to smell nice as we told scary stories.""OK, so the rules are simple," continued Mion, "We each tell a story and then after we tell our tale we put out our candles. After the last candle is put out we'll vote on whose story is the scariest and whose story is the least scariest. Finally, there's-""The penalty game," concluded Shinichi. "Isn't that right, Mion?""Exactly, Shin-chan!" grinned Mion.Mion had planned this night for a while and many of them were worried about what she had planned for the penalty game and not how scary her story was going to be.

"So, let's get started!" Mion clapped her hands together.

"Looks like Onee is really pumped up," said Shion, smiling widely.

"Well, it's been awhile since we've all been together like this," Satoshi spoke up.

"Yeah, it's just no fun without everyone," said Satoko.

"Can we just start?" Daichi complained.

"OK, since you want to get started so much, why don't you start?" Mion said to Daichi.

"Tell a good one, Dai," said Yokoshima.

"Alright, but you guys better make sure you're ready for this," said Daichi, grinning. The glow of the candle cast an eerie shadow upon her face. Marie buried her face into her sister's arm.

Suddenly, there was a flash of lightning and a crack of thunder. A girlish scream was heard. All eyes went towards Yokoshima. "What!" he yelled.

"You scream like a girl," Rika pointed out.

"Oh, shut up!"

Daichi cleared his throat, "Now, as I was saying…This is the story of two brothers. The eldest was named Tsuyoshi while the youngest was named Gendo. Gendo has always been jealous of his brother as he was always stuck in his shadow while Tsuyoshi received all the praise…"

* * *

_Gendo watched as his brother and father were playing a game with together. His anger was at its peak, and his eyes were filled with loathing. 'It's always Tsuyoshi!' That was the thought that kept running through his head as he glared at his brother._

_Perfect Tsuyoshi! Saint Tsuyoshi! The favorite child! He got all the attention. He got all the fame from his sports and perfect grades. Even the teachers liked him! He had it too good. No one should have what Tsuyoshi had!_

_"I HATE HIM!" Gendo cursed, banging his fist on the wooden desk he now sat at. "HE DOESN'T DESERVE THEIR PRAISE! HE DOESN'T..." Gendo was cut off as he heard sharp tapping at the door._

_"Gendo Nagare, open this door!" his mother ordered._

_"It's open, Kaasan." Gendo answered through clenched teeth as his mother stepped in and glared at her son._

_"Are you trying to bring the house down, Gendo?" she asked._

_"No, Kaasan," Gendo sighed repressing his anger._

_"Well you need to quiet down," she said. "And remember that your father and I are going on our 2nd honeymoon tomorrow so we won't be back for awhile." She then turned and walked back downstairs, making Gendo suddenly grin. Since his parents wouldn't be around, there would not be any witnessed to any possible... accidents._

_"He'll not live much longer," Gendo promised. He was going to make Tsuyoshi pay for being the favorite child while he was stuck in the shadows, and he knew how to do it too._

* * *

_"So what did you want to show me?" Tsuyoshi said to his brother. It was nighttime and both their mother and father were out on their honeymoon._

_"Oh it's a surprise," Gendo said darkly he opened the door to the basement. "Down there."_

_"You put the surprise in the basement?" Tsuyoshi asked, confused, but he shrugged his shoulders as he stepped down the flight of stairs to see if he could spot the surprise his younger brother put there._

_Gendo grinned darkly as he raised his arms and pushed._

* * *

_Gendo stood over his brother's body, grinning. "You know, the police came earlier. The neighbors thought they heard a loud bang. I don't know how but whatever I did worked and now I'm free, free!" Gendo cheered gleefully._

_"I think not Gendo," a voice said making Gendo whirled around and gasping in shock. It was Tsuyoshi! "YOU! NO, I STILL WON! YOU MAY BE A GHOST, BUT YOU CAN'T AFFECT ME ANYMORE! I'M FREE FROM BEING STUCK IN YOUR SHADOW!" Gendo roared._

_Tsuyoshi shook his head sadly. "I'm afraid your mistaken brother." He pointed to the body. "I am not the ghost here."_

_Gendo looked confused but his eyes widened horrified when he saw himself lying on the floor of the basement with his neck twisted at an odd angle. "When you tried to push me, you missed and broke your neck," Tsuyoshi told him._

_"No..." Gendo thought he was free from being a shadow, but now he has condemned himself to an eternity of being trapped as a shadow forever. He began to scream, "NOOOOOOOOOO!"_

* * *

"And that's what jealousy can get you," finished Daichi as he blew out his candle. Leviathan had told him the story, claiming it was a true story.

"I wouldn't exactly call that scary," said Shinichi.

"Creepy, but not scary," criticized Shion.

"It made me shiver a little," admitted Shawna.

"Pretty good, Daichi," said Mion. "Now hold on to your hats as I tell my story."

* * *

_"Kaasan, can we please move to the city?" a girl with short brown hair said. She wore a white shirt and black skirt._

Her mother asked, surprised by her daughter's words, "Eh? Why would you want to move?"

"It's because this place is so boring!" Ritsu, the girl, said. "The countryside has so few things, but the city has lots of amazing things!"

"Ritsu." her mother sighed "We live in a very peaceful town and it's our home. The city may seem glamorous to you but I doubt you'll find anything interesting there. Now, it's getting late. I think you should go to bed."

"Ehh, but..."

"No buts. Now, go to bed young lady," her mother ordered.

Ritsu sighed as she headed to her room. She took one look in the mirror and muttered, "I wish I could get out of here," before heading to her room, not noticing a pair of eyes that suddenly appeared to be watching her.

Ritsu was on her bed trying to sleep, she was about to fall asleep when she heard a 'scritch-scritch' sound.

It was coming from the window. She looked and saw something coming through the window without even opening it. It just walked through the glass like it wasn't even there. The thing that had walked into her room was a little black imp, no taller than ten inches.

Ritsu could not make out any features because of the dim light, but she could plainly see the outline of two horns on its head and a grin made of sharp teeth.

"Hello, my dear," the imp said in a deep adult voice, something that wouldn't  
fit with such a miniscule body.

"W-who are you?" Ritsu was scared.

"Me, well, I guess you can call me something akin to a wish-granter. You may  
call me D," the imp, D, said.

"W-what do you mean by 'wish-granter'?" Ritsu asked, still terrified of D.

"I can make any of your wishes come true. I even help you move," D said

"Really? Wait…but why?" Ritsu asked suspiciously

"I have been suffering from a peculiar punishment. I need to grant a wish as it were so I can be free of it," D said

Ritsu seems hesitant but she grinned as she said, "Very well, I'll take your offer."

"Very well let's shake on it.," D said with a grin as it raised its hand. When Ritsu shook its hand she felt electricity course through her body. This caused her to blackout.

When Ritsu woke up, she was shocked to see her looking at herself. She thought it was the mirror at first but it wasn't. She wanted to cry out but she then realized she didn't have a voice.

"Surprise!" her doppelganger, said smiling. "I had my soul trapped in the mirror world for years, but because of your foolish wish I'm now free and you, well..." The doppelganger held up a hand mirror and Ritsu's eyes widened in horror as she saw herself as D.

"Heh, but look on the bright side. You wanted out of this town and now you have your wish, you can see all the sights in the mirror world!" D slammed the hand mirror facedown upon Ritsu like a fly swatter. When D lifted it up, Ritsu was now trapped in her body and trapped in the mirror. Ritsu pounded on the glass but no sound came. D grinned as she dropped the mirror into a drawer, locked it, and lived on in the body of the girl she'd conned.

* * *

"So, never, ever make a deal with an imp," warned Mion. "You might just get your body snatched if you do." She then blew out her candle.

"OK, that's one creepy story," admitted Keiichi.

"It was alright," Daichi shrugged.

"Looks like Shawna-hime is next," said Rena.

"Well, my story is one that one of my servants told me. She told it to me when I was little," Shawna said as she began her tale.

* * *

_It was around the era of the witch-hunts in Europe. There was a man dress as a judge with black hair and hawkish eyes, holding a book with a face on it. Standing behind him was a red haired woman wrapped in chains. She was being led to a pole covered in hay. Surrounding them was a mob holding torches and pitchforks._

_The Judge turned around and said, "Maria Roux, you have been charged for practicing witchcraft and performing satanic rituals on the men in this town." The Judge narrowed his eyes at the woman before him. "And the penalty shall be…death by fire! Any last words?"_

_Maria lifted her chin in defiance, as she smirked, "Why yes, dear Judge. My last words to you are this. Death will await your pathetic soul, you measly little maggot. He will crush your body and use your blood for wine," Maria said, struggling against her chains._

_"Oh, really? And how can your little vengeance be achieved without your little spell book?" the Judge countered, as he held the book out to taunt the witch._

_Maria remained still, her eyes locked upon the hand holding her book. Suddenly, she lunged forward and bit his hand, making the judge scream as he let go of the book. It open up to a page and Maria spat the judge's blood upon the pages. The rich crimson blood merged with the aged texts on the ancient grimoire._

_"Plasma Inferne!" Maria cursed using one of the spells in her grimoire._

_"YOU CRAZY WITCH! BURN HER!" the Judge cried out, angrily, quickly slamming the Grimoire shut as he picked it up._

_The mob gave a roar, chanting the words 'kill the witch!' The guards dragged Maria towards the pole and began tying her up. The Judge grinned darkly but stopped as he heard an unearthly noise, making everyone stop and wonder what was making the noise._

_The Judge spun around, trying to spot the noise, but stopped as he realized the noise was not only close to him but that it was coming from the book. Cautiously the man looked and paled at what he saw the book cover doing._

_It was crying. They were only seconds, but in space of those few seconds it was crying. Crying actual tears of blood. "Wh-what?" the Judge stammered scared, once more letting go of the book as Maria began to laugh. "Witch, what did you do?" the Judge roared but Maria just continued to laughed as one of the guards picked up a torch, throwing it onto the hay under the witch, creating the inferno that engulfed Maria. The Judge gulped at how the witch continued to laugh. When he looked to where the book was, it had disappeared._

* * *

_"Where did that book go?" muttered the Judge, who was flanked by his two guards. It'd been three days since Maria's end at the fire and so far the book had failed to reappear._

_"Hello judge," greeted a friendly voice. The Judge turned around and nearly screamed, it was the baker but his face…His face was a spitting image of the book. He was even crying tears of blood. "Is something wrong?" the baker asked, concerned. _

_The concern turned to shock as the Judge shouted, "Grabbed him!"_

_The guards grabbed his arms, making the baker scream, "What are you doing?"_

_"Don't try your petty tricks with me! It is obvious that you have sold yourself to the devil since the mark of that witch is with you," the Judge sneered. "Take him to jail. He will be burned in the morning."_

_"No, please have mercy!" the baker pled as they dragged him away._

_But it wouldn't be the last. The Judge would see more of the people whose 'faces' had been replaced by the one on the grimoire's cover. He sent many of these creatures to the fire, believing them to be the witch's book replacing the town people. He even ordered the guards to bring his own wife to the fire._

_The odd thing about it, only the Judge was able to see them. The townspeople had decided that the Judge had gone mad and that there was only one way to stop this…_

* * *

_The Judge was in his room, muttering angrily. His eyes were bloodshot with hints of dementia. "It's everywhere…no matter where I look it won't stop appearing. There must be a way to end it…"_

_"Sir!" the Judge turned to see one of the guards coming to him, he noted how his head remained the same._

_'But for how long?' he thought. "What is it?" the Judge snapped angrily._

_"Sir, there is an angry mob heading your way. They're out for blood."_

_"What?" the Judge said, walking out to the window. He peered down to see the mob, taking note that all had the bloodied Grimoire for faces, glaring at him, wanting to kill him. "So they come to do their master's will," the Judge muttered, knowing they'd come to steal his soul for the devil._

_"Sir what do we do?" the guard asked._

_"Leave me."_

_"But sir!"_

_"LEAVE!" the Judge snapped. The guard saluted as he walked out of the room. "Filthy servants of Satan, you'll never take my soul!" the Judge snarled, pulling a dagger out. "NEVER!"_

* * *

Shawna finished, "With that final act of defiance, the Judge slashed his throat. He fell to floor, blood seeping out of his throat as he died. But he grinned, knowing he cheated the witch of her vengeance. He was unaware that the witch had simply cast a measly illusion spell to drive the Judge mad and as for the book, it simply disappeared to follow its mistress to where her soul now resides." She blew out her candle.

"Wow," said Shinichi. "Shawna-chan, that was great!"

"Yeah, you gave me chills," agreed Mion.

Shawna beamed, "Thank you, but you should compliment my servant for telling me that tale."

"My turn! My turn!" Bishie waved her arm. "This is a story that Alan's dad told me once!" chirped Bishie. Despite the scary stories, Bishie's childish attitude never faltered.

* * *

_A few years ago, Alice was spending some time with friends exploring old, supposedly haunted, places. They were at the Edisto First Presbyterian Church, where a girl named Julia Legare was buried in her family mausoleum in 1852. _

_People reported hearing unearthly screams time and time again, but never investigating the cause of it. Fifteen years later, when they opened the door to the mausoleum to place the next family member who had died, they found her corpse huddled in the corner next to the door, arms outstretched as if still trying to find the exit. _

_Well, her friends thought it would be a funny idea to shut the giant stone door (which was originally open) behind her and pick her up in the morning. The bastards left her there… She tried and tried, using all of her strength, but she couldn't budge it. After all, it had taken four people to put it in place. In the dark, she resigned myself to the night ahead of her._

_Now, Alice didn't normally frighten easily, but sitting there in the relatively small place, surrounded by a looming pressure that she couldn't begin to explain, the darkness itself seemed to try to consume her. From all around it felt like weight was pressing against her skin, making even breathing hard. She sat in the dark for what must have been hours. _

_Then she heard the scratches. They were faint at first. She was sure it was her imagination, but soon they became more and more frantic as time passed. She huddled up in one of the corners farthest from the door and tried to cover her ears but nothing could stop the growing cacophony. This all may have lasted for a few minutes, but each second was an unbearable eternity._

_Then, a loud scream echoed through the darkness. It was a wail of unrestrained pain and fear. The scratching stopped. For the first time Alice could distinctly make out the sound of a girl sobbing to herself, the pitiful gasping of one without a shred of hope left. _

_She felt such sorrow at the moment, such pain, that, for a moment, she forgot how to be afraid. In Alice's heart all her suffering seemed to resonate. Inexplicably, she found herself apologizing aloud for everything that had happened to the girl. A part of her wanted to reach out and feel for a body to hug, but she couldn't bring herself to do it for fear that she truly would find one. _

_She didn't know whether or not the spirit heard her or was even aware of her presence. The sobbing continued and she could again hear fingers against the stone slab that was the tomb door._

_She fell asleep at some point, which she felt was a merciful gift from the fates. She was woken by a loud and powerful thud as the door slammed against the ground outside. She could tell from the light gray outside that daybreak was near._

_She stumbled outside and went to a small unlocked prayer house. She leaned against the door and waited nervously until her 'friends' arrived. She approached them as they clustered around the fallen door. Two of them were kneeling next to it with faces of shock. _

_There were bloody streaks covering the interior of the door, some with light scratches from fingernails and many without._

_At first, they looked to her, then checked her hands, then nervously glanced at one another. She was rightfully pissed with them and told them every detail of what she remembered, wanting them to know what she had been put through. _

_Finally, after she grudgingly got into the car and they started to head back, someone spoke up. Her friend said to her, "We were afraid to say anything, but look at your face."_

_She later found out that many times people had tried to permanently seal the entrance to the mausoleum, including enough heavy locks and chains that it would require heavy equipment to remove it, only to have it found torn open with the door lying on the ground once more. This was in the 1980s, the last attempt of many through the decades. It seemed like some force was ensuring that it was impossible to ever repeat the mistakes of the past._

_When she reached from the back seat and adjusted the rear-view mirror. She saw that there was blood caked on her face. Just like the streaks upon the stone slab, there were dark red lines on either side, as if someone had gently cradled her face with torn fingers as she slept that night, feeling the warmth of another for the first time in over a hundred years._

* * *

Bishie blew out her candle and asked, "How was it?"

"Not very scary," said Hana honestly. Bishie pouted.

"Kind of sweet, a gentle spirit," said Hanyuu.

Going in clockwise order, each of them told what they considered a scary story. The sudden rainstorm that was accompanied by thunder and lightning made the already creepy atmosphere even creepier. After each tale was told, the storyteller would blow out their candles.

Rika, when she told her story in her adult voice, caused chills to run everyone's spines. Her story had been a girl whose love had gone unrequited. Not only that, but her family had forbidden her for having any feelings for her object of affection. One day, her love had gone missing. She blamed her family yet she had no proof. As time went by, she began to go mad as she heard voices in her head, prompting her to commit horrible acts of murders. She killed all who stood in her way of her love, even her own family, until finally meeting her own end as she fell to her death. After telling her story, she blew out her candles.

"That's one scary story," Daichi whispered to Yokoshima who nodded in opinion.

"Gave me the chills," Yokoshima whispered back.

It went on until it was GL-Alan's turn. He was going to tell his story. With his ring, he would make the tale come alive.

"Oi, what about me!" Bazel said annoyed. He hadn't gotten a chance to tell a story

Before GL-Alan could retort, Shinichi said, "It's not because we don't want to hear your ghost story, but since you couldn't blow out your candle you would technically be disqualified."

"Hmm, touché. Alright, greenie. Tell your story, and make it good. The last one was a snooze fest." Bazel said

"Hey!" Keiichi said indignantly but everyone ignored him.

GL-Alan cleared his throat as he began his story. "This is a tale…A tale of a creature that uses her power to birth a new type of fear into the universe. Her name is Kryb…The story begins in Space Sector 55 with a fellow Lantern and good friend of mine, Jeryll."

* * *

_Jeryll was a human looking woman with flowing white hair and gray eyes. She was repairing a ship stranded in deep space, when she suddenly got an incoming transmission from her Ring. It was from her husband, Tywene. The message came in scattered and broken. "Jeryll! -Home-swiftly!" cried the transmission._

_"Tywene? Can you hear me?" pled Jeryll._

_"We-under attack! N-no! -Jeryll-!"_

_"Tywene? But what of our child?" _

_Jeryll's question was answered when a symbol appeared in her Ring's hologram, the symbol of the Sinestro Corps. Jeryll returned home as fast as she could. Jeryll was one of the few officers that had given birth to a child following her induction into the Green Lantern Corps._

_When she held her daughter Sarikyn in her arms, she became truly fearless. Jeryll thought about leaving the Corps to focus on raising her child. But eventually, her husband Tywene convinced her that she could have both worlds: a joyous motherhood and a position as their sector's Green Lantern._

_The first three months of the baby's life, Tywene slept most nights alone, comforted by the knowledge that although Jeryll was keeping order throughout the galaxy…She would **always** come home to them. That comforting knowledge, however, could not save his life._

_Upon arriving at her home, she ran to her room. She saw it torn to shreds, as well as what remained of her husband's corpse. "By the holy gods…" she gasped. She then heard a loud scream and used her ring to create a weapon. "Sarikyn!" She crept through the house, before coming face to face with the hideous creature._

_The hag was a light blue color. She had no lips, showing her sharp, sparse teeth. She had four arms that ended in wicked claws. A mob of hair that was only slightly darker than her flesh went to her shoulder. She was hunched over, showing the caged hump on her back._

_"Put her down!" ordered Jeryll. "As an officer of the Green Lantern Corps, I order you to-"_

_Jeryll was silenced when Kryb held up the infant daughter. "Cry for her…" croaked Kryb, squeezing down on the child's head, cutting into her cheek._

_"No!" cried Jeryll as she reached for her precious daughter._

_Jeryll boasted that, when her baby was in her arms she was truly fearless. Now her child was in the grip of a monster, and deep in her heart…she felt fear."_

_Kryb's ring lit up, engulfing and incinerating Jeryll in a sickening yellow light. "Shh. Shh…" hushed Kryb. "Don't cry. No need to cry. Now I've got you. Kryb won't let anything bad happen to you. Do you want to meet your brothers and sisters?" Her hump opened up like a cage. "All of them needed a new parent, too. Their mothers and fathers were just like yours. But I found them and I saved them. Yes, you'll have lots in common with your new brothers and sisters. After all…You're all orphans of the Green Lantern Corps!"_

* * *

"Even following the War, Kryb is still at large. Waiting for another child to be born…For another child to add to her ill-gotten family…" spoke GL-Alan ominously as he blew out his candle.

All eyes stared at GL-Alan.

"An alien witch that kidnaps children and kill their parents?" asked Yokoshima. "Freaky." He felt chills because the story was made real via holograms created by GL-Alan's ring.

"I gotta admit that was a scary story," admitted Mion.

"Indeed, and those poor children," said Shawna.

Satoko, Satoshi and Rika could emphasize because they'd lost their parents too.

Shinichi frowned. Clearly, this Kryb needed to be stopped.

Seeing as it was now his turn, Shinichi began his tale, "When we make wishes, we always assume that what we wish for will come true and often they will. However, sometimes wishes can be twisted unless you make them specific, word-for-word. This is the tale of the Monkey's Paw…"

* * *

_"A monkey's paw?" Ted asked his friend Sam who'd just come home from his trip overseas with a gift for him._

_"Yup, consider it a souvenir I bought just for you," said Sam, smiling. "The guy I bought it from said that it can grant wishes."_

_"So, why don't you use it?" questioned Ted._

_"Like I believe all that mumbo-jumbo crap!" laughed Sam. "Sides, my wife thought it was creepy and because I didn't want to throw it away, I decided to give it to you, buddy!"_

_"Geez…I feel honored."_

_Later, as Ted was headed home, he looked upon the Monkey's Paw in his hand. He was deeply in debt and needed a lot of money to pay said debts. "I must be crazy for thinking this," he murmured. "Well, what else do I got to lose?" He made his wish. "I wish for a lot of money."_

_When he got home, he expected to see his wife greeting him. However, there was no one. "Tommy, where's your mother?" Ted asked his six year old son._

_"Mom went to the market," Ted answered._

_And then there was a phone call._

_Days later, Ted attended his wife's funeral. She'd been involved in a traffic accident and got run over by a truck. When he was called to identify the body…it'd been horrible. Then, Ted got the money from his wife's life insurance and then realized what had happened and what he'd done._

_"The monkey's paw…" he whispered. He'd wished he had a lot of money and now he did, enough to pay the debts and with some to spare, but at the cost of his wife's life. All the money in the world couldn't make up for it. Now he had to raise his son all alone and his son wanted his mother back._

_"Tommy," Ted told his son. "Don't worry. Your mother will come back." Taking the monkey's paw out of the drawer, he made his wish, "I wish for Cammie to come back to us."_

_Nothing happened and Ted gave up._

_Later that night, there was rain storm and a knock at the door. He also heard his wife's voice coming from the door. Looking at the monkey's paw, he realized that his wish had come true. As he dashed towards the door, he froze in mid-step._

_Why did it take this long for Cammie to appear, unless…he paled. What was on the other side of the door was his wife's reanimated corpse! It must've dug itself out of its grave and knocking on their door. He'd seen the state her body had been in. _

_He saw Tommy reaching for the door to allow the zombie inside and shouted, "Don't open the door!"_

_Ted quickly made a wish, "Send it away! Send it away! I wish to send it away!"_

_The knocking stopped. Ted opened the door and saw no one, except for muddy food prints._

_Ted took the monkey's paw and buried it deep in his backyard. He would never use such a thing ever again. _

* * *

"So, be careful what you wish for," Shinichi warned. "You just might get it." He blew out his candle.

After the final candle was blown, the entire room was bathed in complete darkness. Suddenly, a crash was heard, followed by a loud and feminine shriek.

"Yokoshima, would you stop that!" Daichi snapped angrily.

"Wasn't me, Dai!" denied Yokoshima.

"That was me, my apologies." Shawna apologized.

"Shogo, get the lights," Shinichi ordered.

"Alright," obeyed Shogo as he used the remote to turn on the ceiling lights.

There, lying in a corner were two of Shinichi's friends who he hadn't seen for quite a while.

"Hitomi? Rui?" blinked Shinichi.

"Yo, Shinichi!" Hitomi greeted. "Whasup? Just came and dropped by."

"Get off me, you idiot!" Rui snapped. She was under Hitomi's body. "You're crushing my spine!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in X-SHOCKER's HQ, Dr. X was explaining his plan to his subordinates. It was one he wanted to be executed tonight.

"You want to do what?" Spider Ninja asked, confused.

"I want to perform a psychological attack," Dr. X summarized, grinning in his seat.

"Are you sure it will work?" Electric Butterfly asked.

"Oh come now. I admit that it takes years for a very effective psychological attack, but it gets easy once you trigger certain emotions." Dr. X said while getting off his seat and walking to them. "The easiest emotions you can use are these." He glared at Electric Butterfly, making her gulp

Dr. X petted Butterfly's head making her sigh in relief. He said, "Their happiness." He suddenly yanked Butterfly's hair sharply causing her to scream angrily because of the unexpected attack. He continued, "Their anger." Dr. X let go before turning to Spider Ninja who was snickering at Electric Butterfly's plight. Dr. X suddenly grabbed Spider Ninja's neck, shifting his other hand into a chainsaw, forcing Spider Ninja to stare in fear. Dr. X finished, "And of course my personal favorite, fear. Never underestimate the power of fear, my dears. It can be absolutely crippling." He then let loose an insane cackle.

* * *

Kamen Rider Chrome: The party isn't over. The Test of Courage is next. Horror stories are just an opening for this short mini-arc. I hope you enjoyed this update. Sorry if it took too long. Had to cut out the non-necessary stories but they will be posted on Previewz soon.


	9. The Rise of X Shocker Part 7

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 7: Doppelgangers**

"So, what were you guys doing?" asked Hitomi, who was wearing a bandage on the goose egg that had grown on his head, courtesy of Rui for using her as a cushion to break his fall.

Hitomi and Rui had been introduced to the others who hadn't met them. Opinions were mixed, but the most popular ones were that Hitomi was an idiot and Rui was a tomboyish barbarian.

The two of them had the ability to seek out Dimensional Rifts and use them to jump around the Multiverse. They never knew where they were going to land. Also, they were agents of ARMOR. Hitomi, despite his idiocy, was a strong fighter who wielded a massive war hammer. Rui, of course, had no need for weapons. Her head was a weapon, quite literally, as her favored method of attack was to head-butt her opponent.

"We were telling ghost stories and were done when you guys showed up," Shinichi answered. "But the night isn't over yet, right, Club Leader?"

"That's right, and next we got the Test of Courage!" declared Mion.

"What a test of courage?" asked Shawna, feeling excited.

"Shawna-hime, I'm glad you asked!" said Mion. She explained, "A test of courage is when people in groups of two go into a scary place together to see if they have guts! It can be a cemetery, an abandoned school building, an old abandoned house, or the forest. All this has to be done at night, though. The atmosphere is better."

"I'll be here to keep an eye on things," said Shogo, as he manned the surveillance system.

"OK, and you all got your maps and flashlights, right?" asked Mion. They all nodded. "OK, where there is an X-Mark, you will find flags. Grab one flag and bring it back so we know you completed the course!" Mion clapped her fingers together. "Let's get started!"

"First, each of you takes a marble from this bag," instructed Shogo. "If two of you get the same color, you're on the same team."

One by one, they all took a marble and afterwards they were paired up into teams.

The teams were as followed.

Shinichi & Rena

Satoshi & Shion

Keiichi & Mion

Hanyuu & Chiaki

Satoko & Daichi

Shawna & Sylvia

Rika & Yokoshima

Hana & Michiru

GL-Alan & Yami

Lala & Bishie

Conda & Amora

Hitomi & Rui

"Wanna trade?" Amora asked Yami. Yami shook her head stubbornly. "Why not?"

"Not switching," Mion told Amora sternly.

Marie whined, "Why can't I go?"

"It's dark," said Sylvia, "And don't worry. You can stay here and watch."

"I don't want to watch!" the little girl whined.

"Marie," said Sylvia sternly. "Ladies do not whine. Behave yourself." Marie pouted in response.

"Don't worry," said Shogo. "I'll take good care of her."

"Yosh!" declared Mion. "Let the Test of Courage begin!"

The group then exited the NEO-NUMBERS base to begin their Test of Courage. Shogo would remain back at the base, monitoring the Test of Courage. However, that was only half of his full role. He would actually be manipulating all the props using a control console that was connected to the surveillance system. Marie sat next to him, watching everyone through the screens.

"So, you're going to scare everyone?" Marie asked.

"Mion-sama's orders," answered Shogo. "Now, let's see if everything is in working order."

The equipment that would be used for the Test of Courage had been borrowed from ARMOR, basically some very realistic holographic technology and animatronics. Miniature speakers had also been scattered all over the forest so that eerie and creepy sounds could be broadcasted.

Shogo spoke into his microphone, "Everything is in working order, Mion-sama."

* * *

At the forest, Mion smiled as she received Shogo's message through her walkie-talkie. "OK, Shogo. Just make sure to monitor everything."

"_I will, Mion-sama. Shogo out_," replied Shogo.

Mion addressed the others, "OK, we will all take turns going in. use your maps to navigate and find your flags," Mion explained. "The first pair that comes back with their flags wins. Since I'm Club Leader, Kei-chan and I will go first." She took Keiichi's wrist. "Let's go, Kei-chan!" She then dragged him into the forest.

"Hmm…" Bazel mused.

"What's with you?" GL-Alan asked his arm-mounted partner. For some reason Bazel had been unusually quiet. While it was something he was grateful of, it seemed weird for the armband to not be so chatty.

"I don't know. It just feels like something bad is going to happen," Bazel replied.

"You're just being paranoid from listening to all those horror stories. Listen this is just going to be a normal night out with friends. Nothing is going to happen."

"I have a horrid suspicion that what you say will backfire horribly," Bazel retorted.

"Lister to him," advised Daichi. "Every time we try to do something fun, something _always_ happens. Like that time at the circus and that other time at the carnival."

"Way to spoil the fun," deadpanned GL-Alan.

"Doesn't hurt to be a little cautious, though," said Hana.

Two by two the pairs entered the forest, with their maps and flashlights.

* * *

"Michiru?" Hana looked at her girlfriend with concern. "Are you okay?" They were alone in the forest. They were looking for their designated flag.

"Yeah, just a little nervous is all," Michiru admitted.

"You're thinking about Alan's story?" Hana asked. That story must have struck to close to home for Michiru's comfort.

"Yeah..." Michiru said sadly. "Do, do you think she's in a better place?" When she was a little girl, her mother had been killed when GIN-SHOCKER took her.

"Michiru, I've never met your mother, but I believe so," Hana said, grasping her girlfriend's hand. "She'd also be proud of what you have become, a hero."

"Still…" Michiru leaned against a tree. "I mean we all have blood on our hands."

"I think Dr. Hasuma said it best that we should move forward," Hana quoted.

"Yeah, you're right." Michiru beamed. Feeling exhilarated, Michiru declared, "Alright, let's find that flag!"

* * *

"You know, I'm kind of glad that I got you for a partner," Daichi said to Satoko as he shone the way with his flashlight, the blonde girl reading the map as she led the way. "I mean I could've been stuck with Yokoshima, or…Shinichi."

"What's wrong with that?" asked Satoko. "OK, Yokoshima-san I can understand since he doesn't seem all that bright."

"He took too many hits to the head whenever he rolled around in Ball Mode," Daichi remarked. "Must've shaken something loose in there." Satoko giggled.

"But what about Shinichi?" Satoko asked. She considered Shinichi a good friend and a good partner to have on something like this. "Why wouldn't you want him?"

Daichi's frown deepened. "You know why."

"Oh." It would seem that Daichi still hadn't completely forgiven Shinichi for killing him in the past. Daichi could hold a grudge. They could work together well for a common goal but that incident would forever be etched in Daichi's mind. Satoko checked the map. "OK, we're getting warmer."

"Good," nodded Daichi. "By the way, when's the scary stuff gonna happen?"

* * *

Shion had Satoshi pushed against a tree as she started working on his pants, rubbing her hand against his crotch. "Shi…Shion!" Satoshi was flushed and panicked. "Shouldn't we be looking for the flag?"

"We will," smirked Shion, licking her lips, "But how about we have some nice adult fun?"

"But what if the others see us?" Satoshi asked, eyes darting around. "I mean, Mion did say that Shogo would be monitoring us, right?"

Shion frowned. Satoshi was right. Shogo would be watching them to keep them safe, as it was his job. Shion withdrew her hand from his pants and looped her arms around his neck. "Would've been thrilling, though."

"Thrilling?" Satoshi was confused.

"You know…" She circled a finger on his chest. "Being watched as we go down and dirty."

"Shogo has a child with him," Satoshi reminded in a deadpan tone.

Shion pouted. "You're no fun!"

"How about this?" Satoshi offered. "After all this, we'll go to your place." She kissed him.

"I love you!"

* * *

Shogo watched as all the pairs were close to finding their flags. He wasn't about to make it easy for them, however. No way. Where was the fun in that? He looked over his console and cracked his knuckles before flexing his fingers.

"Marie-chan, wanna have some fun?" Shogo offered. The little girl nodded enthusiastically.

* * *

"Oh, how exciting!" Shawna skipped behind Sylvia who had the map. "Isn't this thrilling, Sylvia?"

"Not really," Sylvia answered. "I thought something was supposed to scare us but so far we've seen nothing." She sighed. "Now, where is that flag."

Shawna looked around and then froze, her face pale as snow as she shakily raised a finger, pointing towards Sylvia. "Syl…Syl…Syl…"

"What?" Sylvia asked. Behind her, hovering, were miniature fireballs. That wasn't what was spooking Shawna. It was the thing accompanying the fireballs that was floating over Sylvia that was freaking Shawna out.

Sylvia felt a chill and finally looked up before screaming. She made a mad dash, grabbing Shawna, and running with her to safety.

* * *

Marie laughed and nearly fell off her seat as she watched her sister and older cousin running for their lives from the ghost, which was really just a holographic projection.

"Next victims…" Shogo scanned the screens. "Perfect."

* * *

"I knew I should've been the one to hold the map," said Rika in an exasperated tone as she held said map. Yokoshima had been navigating them before this, but had ended up causing them to go in circles. Rika decided to take charge.

"I thought we were doing a good job," said Yokoshima defensively. Rika rolled her eyes. Why couldn't she have been paired with Shinichi? He was more reliable compared to Yokoshima.

Yokoshima heard rustling and exclaimed, "What was that!"

"A small animal, perhaps," supplied Rika, not in the mood of being scared.

There was another rustle in the bushes near them. This time Rika heard them.

"Something is…coming…" Yokoshima shivered.

Two shadowy figures were coming for Rika and Yokoshima, prompting the younger girl to quickly shield herself behind Yokoshima. Their hearts were beating fast as they waited. What came forth were…

"Rika!" exclaimed Hanyuu as she came forth with Chiaki.

"Oh, thank god!" breathed out Rika, relieved. She hugged her friend.

"Fancy meeting you guys here," said Chiaki. "Have you found your flag?"

"No, and you can blame _him_," answered Rika, gesturing towards Yokoshima. "What about you?"

"We didn't find our flags yet," said Hanyuu, rubbing the back of her head. "But we're close, according to our map?"

"Whose idea was it for our flags to be put in different locations?" Rika asked. She already knew the answer to that. Mion was good at setting up games, and rigging them too.

They heard a growl.

Rika carefully asked, "Yokoshima, was that your stomach?"

"No," answered Yokoshima. "Chiaki?"

"Wasn't me," the Termite Rider answered.

A hand suddenly shot out and grabbed Hanyuu's leg, causing the horned girl to scream.

"Zombie!" Yokoshima shouted.

Rising from the ground, digging themselves out, were indeed zombies. They moaned as they staggered towards the foursome, eager to taste fresh meat.

"Let's go!" Chiaki grabbed Hanyuu, freeing her from the zombine hand. He also grabbed Rika, carrying both girls on his shoulders. "Yokoshima!"

"Right, gotcha!"

* * *

"I have to thank Takada-hakase for his robo-zombies," said Shogo as he watched the four flee from the zombies.

"They look almost real," said Marie.

"Relax, Marie," said Shogo. "Everyone's safe. It's just make-believe."

* * *

Yami was enjoying her stroll with GL-Alan. Her arm was looped around his as they went to look for the flag. The Green Lantern shone the path with his ring, pausing to check the map a few times.

"OK, the flag should be around here somewhere," said GL-Alan.

"Why don't I check the map?" asked Bazel. "Or better yet, why don't you just ditch this game and have fun with your blonde paramour here?"

Yami heard that and gave Bazel a cold glare but when she glanced at Alan, her expression softened and she wore a blush.

"Not until we win this. I don't want Shinichi making fun of me for losing," GL-Alan replied.

"Why does his opinion matter anyway?" Bazel asked. GL-Alan opened his mouth to answer but he was interrupted.

"Meooow!" a large guttural sound was heard everywhere making them freeze.

"... What was that?" Bazel questioned as Yami eyes narrowed. She scanned the area, trying to find the source of the sound before pointing.

"There!" the blonde assassin cried out.

GL-Alan used his ring's light to reveal a giant black cat was looking straight at them, its eyes shining sinisterly as it hissed at them. It looked hungry.

GL-Alan snorted. He'd seen scarier. Was this the best they could do? "One giant cat, that isn't..." GL-Alan paused as he saw four more giant felines with dark coats approaching with their fangs exposed and eyes shining with hunger. "Well…that certainly makes a difference."

"I say this calls for a tactical retreat," Bazel suggested.

Agreeing swiftly, they escaped from the monstrous cat without hesitation.

* * *

"You got to love these holographic projectors." Shogo chuckled.

"Let me try!" Marie insisted.

"OK, let me show you how everything works."

* * *

"Where the heck are we?" Hitomi asked as he and Rui wandered close to the Onigafuchi Swamp.

"It stinks!" This swamp was where the Original Darkloid was sealed before it was freed and resealed within a magic wishing mirror.

"Relax, you big dummy. I know where we're going," Rui said while rolling her eyes. She made a turn and bumped into someone.

"Ow!" Rui and Daichi shouted at they fell backwards and landed on their butts.

Satoko walked forward and said, "Fancy meeting you two here."

"Yeah. So you got lost too?" Hitomi asked.

"Nah, our flag is supposed to be close to this area," Satoko said as both Rui and Daichi got up.

Daichi snidely commented, "Watch where you're going."

Before Rui could retort she saw some people standing with their backs facing them.

"Oi, who are you?" Rui shouted as the others also looked towards the strangers. What were they doing out at this time of night?

"_Are you referring to us?_" one of the strangers asked. The strangers all turned around. They all looked perfectly normal, except for one small detail: none of them had faces!

The flag searchers gave horrified squawks as they nervously took a step back.

"_Oh my, what lovely faces you have_," one of the faceless ones (Nopperabo) said. "_Do you mind if we have them?_" All the Nopperabo raised their hands which revealed claws to peal of faces.

Hitomi, Rui, Satoko, and Daichi screamed as they ran for their lives, the Nopperabo all laughing eerily.

* * *

"Hehehe!" Marie laughed. She was starting to have fun watching as Shogo scared everyone.

"Now who's next?" Shogo said as he checked the screens for his next set of victims.

* * *

"It's not fair," Amora whined. She was holding the map but her attention was on other things. She hated being away from her precious Green Lantern.

"Oh will you suck it up!" Conda remarked in annoyance. "You have to learn to share him! We all did."

"But still!" Amora stated but stopped as she heard a woman coming near them. Both looked ahead to see a woman wearing an old fashion medical mask approaching them.

"Where did she come from?" Conda whispered. Amora shrugged in response but felt something prickling her mind, something important.

The woman stopped as she said the words "Watashi kirei?"

_'Am I pretty?_' Amora translated in her head before her blood ran cold as she remembered something. She'd read a bit on Japanese ghost stories and that was the line the Kuchisake-onna would ask its potential victims before… _'It's alright. All we have to say is 'your average' or 'so-so' and we can…_"

"Of course you are," Conda answered, causing Amora to give a shocked/horrified look, "But your beauty pales in comparison to mine."

Kuchisake-onna gave a dark glare as she ripped her mask off, revealing a slit mouth with very sharp teeth. She also pulled out a knife. "How about now!" the Kuchisake-onna shouted.

"OH FUCK!" Amora shouted as she teleported herself and Conda away just as Kuchisake-onna swung her knife.

* * *

Shogo mused, "Hm, maybe I overdid it with that one." He added, "Then again…Mion-sama did want to go all out."

"She takes all this really seriously, doesn't she?" Marie asked.

"I haven't known her for very long but I do know this: she likes to win and, even if it means scaring the life out of everybody."

* * *

Lala whistled as she went along the path, followed by a frightened Bishie. She knew she shouldn't be scared but she couldn't help it after what they'd been through. The two had seen ghosts and monsters pounce right out of the shadows but Lala knew a hologram when she saw one and also dismissed the solid ones as animatronics. Nothing she hadn't seen before in a haunted house at the amusement park.

"So, the ghosts were just holograms?" Bishie asked just to be sure.

Lala nodded.

"And the monsters were just robots?"

Lala nodded a second time.

"You sure?"

Lala nodded and gave a smile, "Yes!"

"Oh, just making sure." Bishie was relieved.

A monster suddenly jumped out in front of them and Bishie screamed before fainting.

"I told her they weren't real," said Lala.

* * *

"It's quiet," Shinichi said in confusion, regarding their surroundings. They didn't even hear the cicadas.

"Eh?" Rena replied.

"I mean what's the trick here? Knowing Mion, she must have some kind of plan up her sleeve. She doesn't do anything half-assed."

Before Shinichi could say anything else, a huge skeletal snake revealed itself and opened its jaws wide at the couple.

"HOLY SHIT!" Shinichi loudly cursed as he grabbed Rena and jumped backwards to make a safe distance between them and the monster. Suddenly, there was a green light that blasted forth but instead of striking the skeletal serpent, the beam just went right through it.

"So it was just an illusion," GL-Alan realized as he and Yami walked forward. "Dang, I knew I shouldn't have run from those cats."

"You did the right thing. You don't want PETA to breath down your neck for possible animal cruelty, do you?" Bazel remarked.

"An illusion?" Shinichi cautiously approached the snake. It just looked scary but then Shinichi just continued walking and went right through the creature. "Damn." He felt embarrassed for being so easily tricked. He should've noticed something.

* * *

"This is fun!" Marie said as Shogo nodded in agreement. He paused as he saw something on one of the monitor. He zoomed in to see it was a strange wasp-like android with missiles on various parts of its body. The creature was also dangerously to the clinic.

"Marie, you stay here," Shogo said as he got up. He had a bug to squash. He quickly made his way up the stairs and exited the clinic. He focused his cybernetically enhanced vision upon the sky and saw his target. "Definitely an enemy unit," Shogo confirmed confidently as he saw the wasp android prepared to fire. "Henshin!" Shogo cried out as he jumped high into the air, his armor enveloping him almost instantly. He rocketed towards the android.

Missile Wasp fired his missiles at the clinic, his designated target. Dr. X wanted the place destroyed because it was the NEO-NUMBERS' base on this world. It could even draw them out.

Zero aimed and fired a barrage of his needles at the missiles, causing them to spontaneously combust in midair. The cloud of smoke resulting from the explosion blinded the two but they met midway and began exchanging blows.

When they broke apart, they fired their projectiles. Missiles and needles soared through the air between the two of them, causing explosions to erupt all around them. It would've been mistaken for a fireworks display if it wasn't so destructive.

Zero gritted his teeth and analyzed his opponent. Missile Wasp seemed to have the same combat capabilities as he, except that the android used missiles instead of needles.

"Let's take it to the next level! Fighter Form! Engage!" Zero commanded and he transformed into his jet-like Fighter Form complete with the Fighter Drill on his arm. Missile Wasp fired homing missiles at Zero and he continued to fly as the missiles were in hot pursuit.

Zero was much faster in Fighter Form and the new form also came with some new tricks.

Meanwhile, Marie was watching Zero's fight on the monitor screens and he wasn't the only one in battle. The others were in similar situations or were about to be.

As for Zero, he was just about ready to finish his fight. He darted straight towards Missile Wasp, the missiles tailing him. Missile Wasp froze as Zero got right in front of him and then darted upwards. The missiles, instead of hitting Zero, hit their originator and there was an explosion as the android went out in a bang.

* * *

Chiaki please tell me that was some kind of warped prop for the test," Yokoshima, said scared "Because I don't think I have the money that could get me close enough to a country that's cold 24/7."

"I think so," Chiaki said as he put the two girls down.

"Sometimes I hate it when Mion goes all out," Rika muttered.

"You have to give her points for it, though."

Hanyuu nodded as she looked up. Her eyes widened as she shot her arm forward, creating a barrier before a glob hit. It slid down against the barrier before touching the ground. There was a hiss as the ground sizzled from the glob making contact with it, confirming it to be some sort of corrosive, like acid.

"What the-" Yokoshima started just as Hanyuu pointed her left arm at him and pushed him backwards before a boulder rolled over to the spot he'd been standing on seconds before.

The boulder unrolled itself to reveal an armadillo-like android. It was covered in thick brown armor that resembled Yokoshima's Rider form. Another android which resembled a termite also stepped out of the shadows. The termite android had a tank strapped to its back with tubes coming out of said tank that connected to its throat.

"Great… first zombies, now killer androids," Chiaki said with his eyes narrowed as Yokoshima got up ready to fight. Rika and Hanyuu ran for cover so they wouldn't get in the way.

"It's time to die, NEO-NUMBERS," said the armadillo android known as Boulder Armadillo.

Acid Termite, which was the designation of the termite android, spewed a stream of acid at Chiaki who rolled out of the way. "Henshin!" called Chiaki, his Spark Core glowing brightly.

Yokoshima rushed at his robotic counterpart and called out, "Henshin!" while rolling into a ball. His armor formed and he rolled towards Boulder Armadillo. Boulder Armadillo did the same and rolled straight towards Armadillo. The two balled up fighters smashed against each other and bounced backwards from the impact.

Slasher charged at Acid Termite who spewed another stream of acid at the Termite Rider. Slasher managed to dodge but some of the acid touched his arm, causing the armor to hiss as the corrosive substance made contact. Slasher ignored the pain and with a swing of his arm he summoned his chainsaw. The whirring blades slashed against Acid Termite's chest, followed by a shower of sparks. Acid Termite slammed a fist against Slasher's chest but the Rider retaliated with a punch of his own that sent the android staggering backwards.

Armadillo and Boulder Armadillo's battle mainly consisted of them rolling at each other like bowling balls and slamming together which resulted in them bouncing back and then returning to the same pattern. Hanyuu and Rika continued to watch the fights.

Slasher was in trouble as his chainsaws were melted by the acid. When he was about to receive a face full of it, a barrier rose up before him, shielding him from the deadly fluid.

"Kamen Rider Slasher," Hanyuu spoke sternly, her eyes red. "What are you waiting for? He is nothing, simply a copy, so just strike him down and be done with it."

Slasher nodded and just as Acid Termite prepared to spew more acid, Slasher instantly transformed into his Slayer Form. He wielded the Onigari no Ryuou and with a swing he severed one of the tubes which connected the acid tank to Acid Termite's throat. The acid began to spill out and onto Acid Termite, causing it to melt through. The tank was the only think reinforced to handle the acid, but his armor wasn't and the acid started to eat through.

Slasher took advantage of this and severed the second tube, causing more acid to leak and spill over Acid Termite. He didn't do anything else as Acid Termire was melted by the acid and became a hissing pool of liquefied metal.

Meanwhile, Armadillo decided to surprise his opponent. Once Boulder Armadillo got in close to bowl Armadillo over, the Rider sprung his trap. His heavy armor shot out in all directions, some of it hitting Boulder Armadillo as shrapnel. Didn't slow him down though but that wasn't Armadillo's plan at all.

The cannons on his shoulders swung forwards and he aimed at the ground under Boulder Armadillo before firing. Shouting, the armadillo android was flung straight into the air from the sudden explosion.

Armadillo's shoulder cannons swung backwards as he counted down, "3…2…1…" they aimed at the ground behind him. "BLAST OFF!"

**BOOM!**

The explosion sent him rocketing upwards as Boulder Armadillo made the mistake of unrolling itself and leaving himself unprotected. Armadillo's cannons them aimed straight at him. "You gotta go, armadillo!"

Twin bursts of explosive force were released and they hit Boulder Armadillo dead centre and blew him straight up. The recoil also sent Armadillo plummeting straight to the ground. He crash-landed hard, leaving a crater in the shape of his body on impact.

"Boo…yah…" Yokoshima groaned as Rika, Chiaki and Hanyuu slowly approached him. He looked up to them and made a 'V' sign at them before passing out.

* * *

After making sure to make a huge distance between them and the faceless ghosts, the foursome sat down to rest. That was when Daichi thought he heard something.

"Hmm?" Daichi murmured as he heard a noise.

"What is it?" Satoko said as she, Hitomi and Rui got up.

"I think I hear something," Daichi said.

"Right you are, Rider," a voice said as a powerful blast of noise shot at them. Daichi quickly changed into Musician and blocked it with a wall of sound.

"Heh, so Gebok decided to make copycats," Musician sneered as Radio Cricket jumped out of its hiding place. The android looked like a brown cricket with radio speakers in its chest and on its shoulders

With a hiss, Radio Cricket lunged and aimed a punch at Musician's head, but Hitomi rushed forward, caught its wrist and used his hammer to smash it right in the face, sending Radio Cricket flying into a tree.

"Hitomi, you stay here to protect them in case more show up. I'll take care of ugly," Musician instructed.

"Got it!" Hitomi said while saluting as Musician rushed forward at his opponent. He summoned his Musician Fork and thrust it at Radio Cricket who blocked the attack using a shield of sound waves. A blast of sound countered Musician's strike, sending him skidding backwards.

"You're mine!" Radio Cricket blasted at Musician but his sonic burst was canceled out by Musician's own. Musician then proceeded to dash towards Radio Cricket and with a swing prepared to behead the android only for Radio Cricket to bring out its own military fork from its back and parry Musician's blow.

"No, you're _mine_!" Radio Cricket retorted as he blasted Musician at point blank range, sending him flying backwards and smashing through several trees. "Nothing but junk."

**WHAM!**

A hammer slammed against Radio Cricket's back, knocking his head backwards. Like a boomerang, the hammer returned to Hitomi. Caught by surprise, Radio Cricket was unable to launch his attacks as Hitomi started wailing on him with his hammer, slamming the heavy weapon upon his body. Armor dented from the hits.

"Hitomi! Break the speakers!" Rui ordered.

"Gotcha!" Hitomi swung and destroyed the central speaker in Radio Cricket's chest. He then proceeded to swing down on one of Radio Cricket's shoulders, smashing in one of the speakers and also dismembering it as the arm the shoulder had been connected to fell right off. However, an error in timing caused Hitomi to trapped in the Radio Cricket's claws by the neck with a speaker aimed at his face.

At this range the sound blast from Radio Cricket's remaining speaker would cause Hitomi's entire head to explode.

"Say 'good night', human," Radio Cricket hissed.

"Good night."

Something flew straight at Radio Cricket from behind and immediately imbedded itself into its back where the arm connected to the body. Radio Cricket was forced to release Hitomi as Musician came out in his Rock-Metal Form.

"Take THIS!"

**WHAM!**

Musician's punch smashed straight into Radio Cricket's head, making a hole. He then withdrew and turned Radio Cricket around, withdrawing his Cricket Guitar from the android.

With several swings, Musician proceeded to slice Radio Cricket apart and the remains exploded in fiery glory. He hefted the guitar on his shoulder and turned his gaze towards Hitomi, Rui and Satoko.

* * *

Michiru and Hana both jumped backwards as a net dropped down to capture.

"A net?" Michiru asked. "Is that supposed to be part of the test?"

"Doubtful," frowned Hana. "Duck!"

Michiru did just in time before a sickle came dangerously close to decapitate her. She backed away from her assailant to see an android that resembled a green praying mantis coming out. Landing next to it was an android that resembled a tarantula. It must've been the one to drop the net. It had six arms that ended in claws, colored black and brown with six eyes on its head.

"Looks like Gebok wants to play," said Michiru, grinning. "Come on, Hana-chan. Let's show these knockoffs what we can really do."

"Right behind you," nodded Hana. The two female NEO-NUMBERS rushed at the androids, calling out, "Henshin!" simultaneously. The call summoned their Armorizer belts and the buckles split open to expose their flashing Spark Cores.

Carmen leapt at Sickle Mantis and formed her hands into scythe blades just as Arachnea pulled her 8-shafted and bladed Spider Kama from her back and swung. Net Tarantula ducked under the swing before he slammed into Arachnea with a tackle, sending them tumbling along the forest floor.

Carmen and Sickle Mantis were having a sickle fight as their blades connecting, causing sparks to fly as their edges made contact. She fired the petals from her shoulders and as they were about to hit Sickle Mantis, its sickles spun rapidly like fans, blowing the petals back towards Carmen. She cried out as she was hit.

Net Tarantula dodged another strike from Arachnea and his chest opened up to fire a metallic net at Arachnea. She ended up trapped in the net but that wasn't enough for the android. It then charged up the net, zapping Arachnea with thousands upon thousands of volts of electricity. She screamed out in agony, dropping her weapon as she tried to endure.

"Hana-chan!" Carmen screamed as she saw her beloved best friend in pain. Sickle Mantis got in her way and slashed her across the chest. She went staggering from the hit and then staggered further as repetitive attacks caused more sparks and screams to escape from her.

Carmen gritted her teeth and then she exploded in light, blinding Sickle Mantis. Then…

**SLICE!**

**SLICE!**

Two kusarigama sliced off Sickle Mantis' arms before they returned back to Carmen who was in her Mirage Form and did not look pleased. She summoned several solid clones and they all attacked at once, shredding the robotic insect into little pieces.

Meanwhile, Arachnea also summoned her hidden power and her armor too glowed. Net Tarantula was not frightened but then he heard hissing and realized his metallic net was actually melting.

Arachnea rose to full height in her poisonous Venom Form. She then flicked her wrists and darted at Net Tarantula who tried to trap her again with his nets but she countered with bursts of corrosive venom that hit it on points of his body, melting through the armor and nets and finally the eyes, blinding it.

She then kicked forward, the sharp heel of her boot piercing right through the now weakened armor. She then used her other leg to kick of the android which exploded as a result of her Venom Kick.

* * *

Shinichi, GL-Alan, Yami and Rena were having their own problems as they surrounded by W14 androids, all armed with swords and guns. The Kaizo Ningen's eyes narrowed. He hated party crashers, especially ones sent by Gebok.

"I think we're about to get more company…" muttered GL-Alan.

"What do you mean?" blinked Shinichi.

"He means me!" cackled a voice as GL-Alan rolled out of the way of a fireball.

"Effigy…" sneered GL-Alan.

"Hello Smith…Been awhile," snickered Effigy. Effigy was a man with ghost-pale skin, blazing red eyes, and flames for hair, clad in a red costume that looked like it had a flame-like pattern all over it.

"Not long enough candlestick."

"Friend of yours?" Shinichi asked.

"An old enemy," answered GL-Alan as he summoned his uniform.

"Need help?"

"Nah, I can handle this," GL-Alan answered confidently. "What about you?"

"I can scrap these guys myself," Shinichi answered with equal confidence.

"Sorry, but Yami is going to help you," GL-Alan retorted before shooting straight into the sky at Effigy. Effigy and GL-Alan traded blasts of flames and energy, respectively, as they began their mid-air dogfight.

Shinichi said to Yami, "Protect Rena," before he charged at the W14's, summoning his armor in an instant. As Showa GX, Shinichi would be able to finish this fight quickly. The energy blades slid out of his wrists and he slashed at the W14's. He then accelerated, moving so fast that he left a fading black and white trail behind him. The W14's fell to pieces as they fell apart from Showa's attacks.

Yami did as told, eyes narrowed as a few W14's came to attack her and Rena. She showed no emotion as her hands turned into sharp, jagged blades and the tips of her hair also became blades. When they came at her, she slashed at them, exposing wires and circuits. She made sure to aim for the most vital points, beheading them or bisecting them when they got to close. She wasn't really protecting Rena for Shinichi, really. She was only doing this for GL-Alan since Shinichi and Rena were precious to him.

The W14's, in pieces, littered the forest floor after Showa and Yami were done with them. "Fodder," scoffed Showa as he kicked one of the W14's heads, sending it rolling like a ball. The original WHITE 14 had been a threat but these mass-produced dolls were just weak cannon fodder. He turned towards Rena and approached her. "You okay?" Rena nodded.

"It's not over," said Yami cautiously, her hair and arms still in Weapon Mode. From the shadows they saw a pair of large red eyes that looked insect-like in appearance. The owner of those eyes walked out of the shadows and the light from Rena's flashlight revealed to them his appearance and she gasped.

Aside from the color, which was gunmetal grey, he looked identical to Kamen Rider Showa.

"Who are you?" Showa asked/demanded.

"Gunmetal Cicada, and Dr. X says hello," said the cicada-like android as insect wings burst from his back and he blurred out of sight.

"Watch out!" Showa cautioned before he too blurred out of sight.

Showa's time manipulation abilities connected to a source known as the Time Matrix. Direct connection to it could allow someone, theoretically, to manipulate time. Showa was proof of that with his 'Return to the Past' ability. He could not only manipulate time at a large scale like that, he could also do it at a small scale. An example would be when he repaired a broken glass and restored it to its state before it was broken.

This time manipulation ability also applied to combat. Showa could accelerate his own time, which would in turn accelerate his speed. Not only that he could also decelerate the time of his environment, slowing everything down to a snail crawl or to a total stop. Using time acceleration and deceleration simultaneously would make Showa invisible to the perception of others while in his perception his surroundings were frozen solid.

These powers, however, came with a price. Using them drained his lifespan and put a strain on both his body and mind. Overuse of his time manipulating abilities could lead towards death if he wasn't careful and there was no telling how many times he'd used these abilities up until now.

Presently, Showa was moving at hyper speed just like Gunmetal Cicada. Rena and Yami could not see them but they could see the effects of their fight as trees broke in half, branches broke off, rocks shattered, random spots on the ground exploded with dirt and grass flying, and also the two girls could hear metal striking against metal, which meant they were exchanging hard hitting blows against each other's armor.

Within the hyper speed space occupied by both Rider and android, Showa threw a punch at Gunmetal Cicada who dodged to the side and used his own punch that hit Showa in the stomach. Showa doubled over but recovered quickly to kick Gunmetal Cicada in the side against a rock which smashed to pieces. Showa then rushed at Gunmetal Cicada, unleashing his energy blades which he lashed out, extending the whip-blades at the android. Gunmetal Cicada aimed his fingers at Showa, revealing the tips to be gun barrels and he fired at Showa. They were armor-piercing lasers and went right through Showa's armor, causing him to cry out. The lasers hit a tree, cutting it in half.

"I was made to deal with you, personally, BLACK 13," said Gunmetal Cicada in the monotone that made Showa recall his days as one of GIN-SHOCKER's soldiers. "But the difference is that, compared to me, you are obsolete and about to become scrap."

"You're about to become scrap!" Showa retorted furiously as he recovered himself, using his own enhanced healing factors to deal with his injuries. He rushed towards Gunmetal Cicada with a roar.

"Pointless."

Gunmetal Cicada fired at Showa who dodged the lasers with jumps and leaps before he lashed out at the android doppelganger. Gunmetal Cicada changed tactics and unleashed his own energy blades. Their blades clashed with immense force, releasing energy feedback that crackled around the two.

"Give up, BLACK 13. You're no match for me. I possess all your combat date," Gunmetal Cicada stated. He had his orders. He was to bring BLACK 13 back, dead or alive but preferably dead.

"Heh, so Gebok thinks I'll break if I face some android with my battle data and power," Showa scoffed. "The guy's getting sloppy."

"Are you malfunctioning? Right now our forces have most likely eliminated your pathetic team, and Effigy should be done with that Green Lantern," Gunmetal Cicada said but Showa just chuckled in response.

"There are two things you should know. One: don't underestimate my friends. And two: don't underestimate _me_."

The two pushed but Showa proved to be the mightier one as he pushed harder and then went into a roundhouse kick aimed at Gunmetal Cicada's head.

"The original is always better than a copy!" Showa declared as he unleashed a barrage of sidekicks straight into Gunmetal Cicada, hitting him repeatedly in the head, chest and stomach. The rapid kicks blurred completely and what could be seen were multiple legs, blurring about, as the kicks struck at Gunmetal Cicada at blinding speed.

When Showa withdrew his leg, Gunmetal Cicada was revealed to be in bad shape as he sported deep dents on numerous points on his body.

Showa and Gunmetal Cicada decelerated and returned to normal time space. The android didn't look too good as its stance was off balance.

"I think I'll call that my 'Rider Gatling Kick'," Showa mused to himself. Sparks burst all over Gunmetal Cicada before he toppled over and exploded.

There was no denying it. Gebok was back and probably part of, or leading, a whole new organization. These androids were proof of that.

Showa felt fatigue as he stumbled towards Rena and Yami. Using his time acceleration AND deceleration ability took a lot out of him. He nearly fell over but Yami managed to catch him as his armor destabilized and shed off him in the form of jigsaw puzzle pieces. His face was red with exertion and he was sweating and panting with shortness of breath. His artificial heart thumped in his chest to provide more oxygenated blood into his body.

"You okay?" Yami asked.

"Just…a little winded. Never went that fast for that long before," he admitted, wiping some sweat off his brow.

* * *

GL-Alan was dodging fireballs as Effigy attacked him.

"Burn, Lantern! BURN! BURN!"

GL-Alan zipped through the air as he tried to evade from being fried to cinders. Using his ring, he fired at Effigy, who simply blocked the attack using a wall of flames. The flames then expanded to engulf GL-Alan but the Green Lantern Corpsman was able to create an energy barrier of his own in the shape of a sphere to keep the flames at bay. He could feel the heat rising and it felt like he was sitting in an oven and like a turkey he was going to be roasted.

* * *

"Alan's in trouble," said Shinichi as he shakily rose to his feet.

"No!" Rena protested. "You're weak and tired right now."

"But…"

"Alan won't need any assistance," Yami stated. "This Effigy will be defeated."

"But…"

"Do you doubt him?" Yami questioned. "He's a Green Lantern and nobody becomes one without a reason. He's powerful and he will defeat Effigy." Her eyes narrowed in conviction. "You will see."

* * *

"Boy, let's show him what WE can do!" cried out Bazel. "It's already getting way too hot in here!"

"Right! Suit me up!" GL-Alan ordered and Bazel was only happy enough to comply as his gem flashed a bright green. The light was so bright that it illuminated the night's sky in an emerald radiance, blinding Effigy and causing him to cease his assault forcibly.

What emerged from the fading flames was GL-Alan in his Bazel Armor. Eyes narrowed behind his visor, GL-Alan shot like a bullet straight at Effigy. Effigy blasted GL-Alan with his hottest flames but that proved to do nothing as GL-Alan continued on his flight path. An armored fist smashed straight into the side of Effigy's face, blasting him backwards with immense force. Effigy recovered, flipping through the air. He glared at GL-Alan with a bruised cheek and unleashed hell. Fireballs that numbed in the dozens shot straight towards GL-Alan but the armored Green Lantern put them all out as they came close, swinging his limbs so fast that they blurred.

"My turn," said GL-Alan and he fired twin beams of green light at Effigy which struck him. Not even the flame wall could stop them as they hit and Effigy shouted out in pain when they hit. Effigy growled and enflamed himself before rushing at GL-Alan, but the armored Green Lantern expected that. Using his ring, he conjured a fire extinguisher and aimed it at Effigy. Effigy was blasted by green foam that seemed to put him out, if only a little, and then GL-Alan whacked him upside the head with said fire extinguisher…

**POW!**

…Hard…

**WHAM! WHAM!**

…And harder.

Effigy was seeing stars and he recovered just in time to…

**BAM!**

Receive a black eye. GL-Alan withdrew his fist and then…

**WHAMMO!**

He slammed n uppercut, right into Effigy's chin, and sent him skyward. Effigy flipped through the air before righting himself. His teeth were gritted and with a roar he spewed out flames as the flames on his head intensified. His pale skin turned red hot as the flames which empowered him seemed to become one with him and his eyes gleamed with raging heat.

"DIE, SMITH!"

Effigy darted straight towards GL-Alan and like a comet left a flaming tail behind him. He began to speed up, allowing gravity to accelerate him.

"Hey, how good are you with a bow and arrow?" asked Bazel.

"I'd say pretty good. The Red Arrow was one of my teachers." GL-Alan got what Bazel meant and conjured a bow and arrow. Of course the bow resembled Kivat and the arrow, which had bat wings near the tip, was part of the bow. Taking hold of the grip handle, he pulled and the arrow's tip began to glow. He took aim at Effigy before he let loose. An energy arrow streaked across the sky and straight towards Effigy who saw it too late.

"FUCK!" Effigy cursed.

**BOOOOOOM!**

There was an explosion of emerald light and when GL-Alan spotted Effigy plummeting, he shot at the villain with his ring, creating a cage around him. The flames which had been so prominent on Effigy's head had been put out and now he was just a bald, weakened, injured and defeated villain.

"Nice finish," complimented Bazel.

* * *

In the end, it was Mion and Keiichi who'd won the game. They managed to get the flag and return without any obstacles. Considering that Shogo was put in charge of setting up the obstacles, some of the others didn't consider it fair that they won but according to Mion the club members would allow to do anything within reason to win a game. That was the decree she made when she founded the Gaming Club.

To celebrate, they had a late night barbeque party outside of the clinic. GL-Alan, after sending Effigy away to Oa, was leaning against a wall and watching everyone party but his thoughts were on other things.

"I don't like this," said GL-Alan.

"What?" Bazel questioned curiously.

"Things just aren't adding up. First there was Shark, and then Effigy. Two of my enemies, from my world...both here. And then there's a scumbag like Swindle somehow getting his hands on Kryptonian tech. The only two people with the knowledge to recreate Kryptonian technology are Superman and Henshaw, and that lunatic got blown to hell back in the war. No...it feels like I'm missing something. Something right in front of me, but I can't see it. And I don't like that. Not one bit."

Shinichi was taking pictures of everyone having fun, either pigging out on all the food or just playing with the sparklers. He spotted GL-Alan alone and went over to him. "Not gonna join the fun? It's pretty good since Mion didn't decide to have us all pay the penalty for losing." After what everyone went through, a penalty game would be in bad taste.

"Just thinking," said GL-Alan and he watched as Bishie ran screaming as Conda and Amora chased her with sparklers.

"You and I both know that getting attacked is something to be expected," replied Shinichi. "Trouble just seems to find people like us. All we can do now is fight and fight to protect the people we love." His gaze went towards Rena, Hanyuu and Rika and then he thought about his mother, step-father and little brother. His gaze went towards the rest of the Gaming Club. If it weren't for them he wouldn't have had the strength and courage to oppose evil in the first place. The last time he tried to run, they'd come looking for him in order to drag him back home.

"I know that. I'm thinking of something else. Something big is going on here, Shinichi."

"That bad, huh?" Shinichi knew to trust GL-Alan's intuition. The young man had been through a lot. "Well, whatever it is, we and ARMOR should be able to handle it."

"And you got me too!" added Bazel.

"Alan! Alan!" Lala came over to GL-Alan and took his hand. "Come on, let's play with some sparklers!"

"Go on," Shinichi encouraged.

GL-Alan smiled as he gently squeezed Lala's hand and went with her to join the rest of the party. Shinichi smiled at the sight but then his expression turned serious as he gazed upwards. "Gebok…" Yes, there was something huge going on in this world, not just Gebok, but Shinichi knew that Gebok had to be involved. Shinichi would stop the madman for good, this time.

"Shin-kun, come on!" Rena called. She was holding shish kebabs in her hands.

His expression changed to a smile. "Coming!" Shinichi went and took one of the shish kebabs before he began eating.

"Yosh! Let's have an eating contest!" Mion declared.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at X-SHOCKER's base, Dr. X was grinning wide as he watched all the battles which had taken place.

"What are you grinning about? Our side lost and even that Effigy guy failed," Spider Ninja spoke up.

"Indeed, but we learnt plenty," answered Dr. X as he analyzed the footage. The androids he'd sent out were created based on original combat data based on the NEO-NUMBERS. However, he did not have any combat data of the NEO-NUMBERS in their upgraded forms. The androids were expendable. They weren't created for beyond their original purpose. "And we can use what we learnt to our advantage." He had a special project in the works.

"You mean…" Electric Butterfly realized, "_That_?"

"Yes, that, and it will be my most powerful creation yet!" Dr. X cackled.

* * *

KR Chrome: Finally got this finished, but I had a lot of help in making this! Thanks to all my friends on the forum and hope you guys do well on ur own works as well.


	10. The Rise of X Shocker Part 8

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 8: Festival of Vengeance**

August was the time for summer festivals, which was something the village of Hinamizawa was preparing itself for. Preparations were already being made for the following night's festivities. Lanterns would be hung to provide illumination, and stands would be set up to provide food and entertainment.

"Alright, that should do it," said Chiaki as he admired his work. He would be selling his wood carvings at the festival. The stand he built would have them all displayed for anyone interested in purchasing them.

"Yes," Hanyuu agreed. She'd grown up to be a beautiful teenage girl and still in love with the Termite Rider. She also admired his artwork, her favorite being one of him in Rider form.

Michiru and Hana, like the festivals before, would be selling cotton candy and choco-banana. Daichi and Yokoshima were working together again and setting up a shooting gallery.

"Nice work, guys," complimented Shinichi.

"You know, you could set up a stand for once," grumbled Daichi. Shinichi had never set up a festival stand since he lived in Hinamizawa.

"Hey, I've been helping out," Shinichi countered. He really did help out with the odd jobs during festival preparations. He began to take pictures with his camera.

"So, where's the Lantern?" Hana asked.

"Shopping with his girls," Shinichi answered.

"May God have mercy on him," preyed Daichi. When men went along with women to go shopping, it could be torture. Those hours would be ones he would never be getting back.

"Hey, I don't know why you're complaining," Yokoshima remarked. "I like going shopping with Asmo-chan."

"That's because she takes you shopping to lingerie stores and poses for you," Daichi shot back. He glared at Shinichi, "And stop being a pervert!"

"Who? Me?" Shinichi replied innocently while he was wearing a grin due to his imagination. The Stake of Lust lacked shame so the type of lingerie she would choose would be very…exotic.

"Yo!" Mion greeted, arriving with Shion and their bodyguard Shogo. "How's everything going?"

"Everything's great!" Michiru grinned. "Tomorrow is gonna be a blast!" She always did love festivals, and spending them with Hana. Actually, she loved spending time with Hana, period.

"Just don't eat up all the merchandise," Hana chided. Michiru pouted and Shion laughed. Michiru had a notorious love for bananas and chocolate-covered bananas were her favorite.

"Hey, you guys all need a break once in a while to have fun too," said Shion. "After all, you've been busy with work." She was referring to their work as Riders and protecting the village, Okinomiya and Shishibone City, not to mention the entire world from threats that dared to endanger it.

The night they spent having their little ghost story telling contest and test of courage had been exciting in many ways. The props Mion had Shogo used were guaranteed to scare everyone and they did. Never underestimate ARMOR tech.

"Shion-sama is correct," Shogo agreed. "We do need downtime once in awhile." They never had breaks in GIN-SHOCKER. Only the executive members were allowed that privilege. Soldiers like them were kept on standby or put to training.

"Bet you can't wait to drag Satoshi into the bushes to have your way with him," teased Shinichi, his twin ahoge bobbing.

POW!

"Itai!" Shinichi yelped. He was nursing the goose egg growing atop his head as Shion held up a clenched fist, glaring at him angrily.

"Damn it, can't you ever stop being a pervert?" Shion spat.

Daichi deadpanned, "It's his nature. You can't stop it."

Mion sighed, "Sometimes it's hard for me to believe that this guy saved the world."

"Hey, he had help," said Chiaki defensively.

"Yeah, #13 didn't do all the work alone," added Daichi, once again referring to Shinichi by his number instead of his name.

"So, are Shawna-hime and her cousins coming?" Mion asked.

"Knowing how Shawna-chan wants to experience Japanese culture, I doubt she'd want to miss this," Shinichi answered.

"Funny how we're friends with a princess thanks to him," said Shion.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the department store in Shishibone City, GL-Alan was waiting for his girlfriends to finish trying out the yukatas they would wear to the summer festival. He was sitting alone, on a bench, with his only companion being Bazel.

"Women, always keeping men waiting," commented Bazel.

"You got that right," GL-Alan replied.

"Why can't they go without these yukatas?" Bazel asked.

"They just wanna soak up the culture, I guess," GL-Alan replied. Of course, he looked forward to seeing how they looked. Checking his watch, he tapped his foot impatiently on the floor.

"I was hoping one of your enemies would attack us, or something," Bazel stated. "At least we'd have something to do."

"Bite your tongue."

"I don't have a tongue."

"Then just shut up…"

* * *

Shawna was in the hotel room she shared with her cousins and trying out her newly bought yukata. Sylvia rolled her eyes as she watched her cousin childishly giggling. She wasn't oblivious. She knew that Shawna still had a crush on Shinichi despite letting him go. Sylvia could understand why. Shinichi, despite his perverted personality, was a hero. The swordswoman glanced at Marie who was trying out a cute little yukata. Maybe dressing up for tonight's festival wouldn't be so bad. However, where was she supposed to wear her sword?

* * *

"So, what's Keiichi gonna be doing?" Shinichi asked Mion.

"Oh, he's just gonna sell some stuff he found in his basement," said Mion.

"You mean he's gonna be selling junk?" Shinichi replied dryly.

"Not junk," Mion answered defensively. "Just stuff his family doesn't need anymore."

"Junk."

"He cleaned it up!"

"Whatever you say." Shinichi rolled his eyes. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Rena. "Excuse me." He called, dashing over, "Hey, Rena-chan!"

Rena was walking away from him so he was looking at her back. She was dressed in white sleeveless blouse and blue skirt that came down to her knees. "Hey, wait up!" he called. She turned and smiled at him. He froze.

Her eyes were green.

A man carrying some wooden planks walked between Shinichi and the Rena lookalike and in the blink of an eye, the girl was gone.

Shinichi shook his head. It couldn't be, could it? It just wasn't…

"Shin-kun!"

Shinichi gasped and spun around to see his girlfriend. She was dressed in a pink blouse with a ribbon around the collar and blue jeans. "Rena-chan, don't scare me!"

She stared at him and said, "You look spooked. Is something wrong?"

"No," he lied, glancing back at where he spotted the girl earlier. "Nothing's wrong, now that you're here." He offered her his hand. "Come on, let's get out of here. I'll get you something at Angel Mort."

She beamed, looping her arm around his before they walked off.

From afar, the Rena lookalike smiled as she watched them go. "Kuro-kun…" she whispered.

* * *

GL-Alan was stuck carrying the shopping bags as he headed home with the girls who were walking ahead of him, talking animatedly amongst themselves. "I have a better appreciation and understanding for what dad goes through." His father, Warren Smith, had a wife and a harem of many lovers. It seemed their situations mirrored each other greatly.

"Well, at least they just went for yukatas and not shoes," Bazel supplied.

That would've been boring beyond reason. Shoe shopping. Unless he had a foot fetish, shoe shopping would not be his most favorite activity.

He was just glad it was all over.

Meanwhile, from the shadows of an alley, a figure was watching GL-Alan. The eyes were filled with intense rage and hate, aimed towards the young Green Lantern.

GL-Alan paused and looked behind him. "What is it?" Bazel asked.

"I just thought I felt someone watching me," GL-Alan answered.

"Hey, Alan! Get a move on!" Conda called.

"Yes, we have to head back in time for dinner!" added Lala.

"Oh, OK!" GL-Alan answered, carrying the shopping bags.

"Smith…" snarled the figure hidden in the shadows.

* * *

Shinichi was staring at his chocolate milkshake, unfocused. His thoughts were troubled. Who had he seen at the pre-festival grounds that looked like Rena? Those green eyes were haunting. Only one person he knew had that face and those green eyes.

'_But it's impossible. She's…_' Shinichi thought. '_Maybe I was just seeing things. Maybe…_' It couldn't have been the Hinamizawa Syndrome, which was known to cause its victims to experience hallucinations. The Darklings and Darkloids were gone for good and even if they were still around, Shinichi was immune towards the effects of the syndrome.

"Shin-kun," Rena's words snapped him out of his thoughts. "You haven't touched your milkshake since you got it. Is something wrong?"

Rena was observant, and could tell if someone was lying. Of course, she'd need evidence to confirm if they were lying. Since seeing him at the pre-festival grounds, she noticed how troubled his expression was.

"I just…" he wanted to tell her everything was alright, but that was far from the truth. It was like seeing a ghost. "Rena-chan, have you ever had the experience to see someone you thought was dead walking around like they were still alive?"

"I can't say I have," she answered. "Why?"

"I might've seen someone I knew way back before when I was…" he trailed off. "You know."

"Oh." She understood. The subject of GIN-SHOCKER was always uncomfortable for Shinichi to speak about, even though it had been a long time since the Riders had crushed the terrorist organization.

Shinichi had told her, in near graphic detail, about what they did to him, or at least the details he remembered. It was horrific. For ten long years Shinichi had been experimented on, tortured, and forced to follow GIN-SHOCKER's commands. Shinichi, as BLACK 13, had killed many, many people. He wasn't sure of the amount but he knew it had to be a lot. Gebok would not pass any chance to test his abilities. Who would suspect a young child to be a heartless killing machine?

"I thought I saw Rina again," he added.

Rena's eyes widened. Rina was the girl that Gebok had captured and contained to be used for another one of his experiments. He wanted to see if human emotions could affect BLACK 13's power levels. BLACK 13's power levels had been high but always static, never fluctuating due to his lack of human emotions. That was because Gebok had long ago switched off his conscience and human emotions. He then switched them back on but after 10 years of having his conscience and emotions sealed away**;** BLACK 13 didn't know how to use them.

So, a girl named Rina was brought to GIN-SHOCKER to help BLACK 13 to stimulate and develop human emotions. Rina never suspected that BLACK 13 was a member of GIN-SHOCKER. She thought that, like her, he was a prisoner. Whenever BLACK 13 had free time, he would be put in the same cell as Rina. They would talk and he grew fond and attached to her.

Then Gebok did the unforgivable. He had Rina disguised as a training dummy and BLACK 13 shot her. She'd died on the spot and the result was BLACK 13 going berserk and escaping.

Then he showed up in Hinamizawa with none of his memories, until Gebok brought them all back.

Rina looked exactly like Rena, except with her hair a shade darker, her eyes being green instead of blue, and her skin being a tone lighter. Rena and Rina could've passed off as twins. That was why he'd formed an attachment with Rena. Her resemblance to Rina reawakened those emotions, ones he had for Rina.

"But that's impossible," said Rena. "She's…" She paused. She couldn't say how Shinichi had been made to kill Rina, even if it had been unintentionally. Her blood had been on his hands.

"She's dead, I killed her," he finished. "I know, so it might have been someone who looked like her." '_But the feeling…_' He took a sip of his milkshake.

Rena put her hand on his. "Don't worry," she said reassuringly. "Maybe it's nothing."

He would've agreed with her, but something told me it was anything but nothing.

* * *

GL-Alan lay on the tatami-matted floor of his room, staring up at the ceiling. He dug his hand into his pocket and dug out his wallet. He then slipped out a picture of Jade, the girl he loved but failed to protect.

He loved the girls, true, but none of them was Jade. She was something else. She was his childhood friend who grew to become something more, but then her life ended. He hadn't been able to protect her and her death was just the start of his fall from grace.

In her name he'd committed atrocities. He'd been forgiven, but he still couldn't completely forgive himself. There were just too many sins.

"Dead people are dead people," said Bazel. "They're gone and never coming back."

"I know that," GL-Alan retorted. "But…"

"Look, I may not have known this girl, but I doubt she'd want to see you kicking yourself."

"I don't deserve to be forgiven," said GL-Alan.

"Being forgiven is easier than forgiving yourself in comparison," Bazel quoted.

GL-Alan didn't offer a reply.

The door slowly creaked open and Amora crawled in on her hands and knees like a sultry feline. "Alan…" she purred.

"Oh, hey, Amora," he said, sitting up. She pounced, pinning him down. "Amora, but the rules-" She kissed him to cease his ranting.

Tracing circles on his chest, she said, "Oh, don't worry about our boarding house manager. I managed to _persuade_ her."

"What did you do?" he asked the sorceress suspiciously.

"Something to help us have some privacy," she told him. "So, wanna have some fun?"

"Do it!" Bazel encouraged.

"Let me wrap up Bazel and we can get down to business," he told her.

She grinned.

* * *

Dr. Gebok was in X-SHOCKER base, eyes on his screens as he watched the events unfold before him.

"Electric Butterfly, reporting for duty!" declared the pink-haired girl with butterfly wings.

"What have you to report?" asked Gebok, also known as Dr. Shinigami, now also known as Dr. X.

"Kuro Juusan appears to be very happy with his new life," reported Electric Butterfly unhappily.

"And you're feeling left out, am I right?" Spider Ninja asked mockingly. "Feeling sad cause he's happy without you?"

"It'll change soon enough," Electric Butterfly shot back, glaring at her compatriot. "He just thinks he's happy, but I know the sight of me shook his foundations a little."

"Good…" Dr. Gebok grinned widely. "Electric Butterfly, continue your observations and make sure you're seen only by him."

"Yes, sir," Electric Butterfly obeyed. '_Kuro-kun, you're going to be all mine. You owe me that much after what you did_.'

* * *

"He looks so cute!" Shiori squealed after putting the miniature yukata on her baby son. Sho was dressed in a blue yukata with stars on it. He looked adorable. She picked him up and held her son to her body. Sho giggled, nuzzling against her.

"So, you really are taking Sho to the festival," said Kasai.

"Of course!" Shiori confirmed. "Just because he's a baby, doesn't mean he can't enjoy his first summer festival." She rubbed noses with Sho, who giggled in response. "Oh, we're all going to have so much fun!"

Kasai smiled at his wife. He got to know her pretty well when she first showed up in Hinamizawa. Oryo disliked her the same way he disliked her eldest son, Shinichi. Shiori was the author to a series of successful adult romance novels (they were heavy with sex scenes) and received plenty of revenue for her work.

She'd been married before, to a man named Shotaro Banabara, and had a son named Shinji Banabara. Tragedy struck the family when 6 year old Shinji was kidnapped. For ten long years Shiori had to suffer without her son. Her first husband had died a few years after Shinji went missing because of a traffic accident. She'd been alone ever since until she heard news that Shinji was living in Hinamizawa.

Despite over a decade passing, she recognized her son instantly. Even though he'd changed his name to Shinichi, she still referred to him as Shinji. She was so happy to have him back, but she still wanted to know what had happened to him.

Shinichi had amnesia, but Kasai knew that by the time Shiori found him, Shinichi remembered the things that happened in GIN-SHOCKER. What he couldn't remember was what happened before Gebok took him.

Shiori didn't have any pictures of Shinichi beyond that day he'd been taken, but the album was now filled with new memories Shinichi had captured with his camera. It took a while for them to catch up, but mother and son were properly reunited. Shinichi didn't want to tell her about what had been done to him. Kasai knew that would just fill Shiori with guilt.

Then came the day Shinichi was forced to transform before Shiori to save the school. After Shinichi told her everything, about his powers and how he got them.

She didn't reject him, but she did ground Shinichi for keeping secrets.

She was proud of her son for being a hero, despite the odds being against him. She wouldn't have cared if he was a hero or not. She was just happy that she had her son again. Then, she got married to Kasai and had another child with him. She named her second son after her first husband, Sho.

And tomorrow would be little Sho's first summer festival.

"Oh, I almost forgot! The girls!" Shiori passed Sho over to Kasai. "They need yukatas too! Cute ones!"

Kasai laughed mirthfully. Shiori had also adopted the two Furude girls as foster daughters. As much as she loved having sons, she loved having daughters to spoil as well.

* * *

Speaking of daughters and sons, Rika and Shinichi were sitting in the Saiguden together. Shinichi still couldn't believe that statue was what the villagers imagined Oyashiro-sama to look like while the actual deity was walking amongst them in the form of a young girl. Sure, Hanyuu had horns but aside from Rika and the NEO-NUMBERS, nobody else in the village seemed to notice.

"So, you thought you saw your dead girlfriend," Rika summarized after listening to Shinichi's explanation.

"That's right, and I was hoping I was just seeing things, but she looked so real," Shinichi replied.

"The mind can play tricks on you, Shinichi." Rika recalled how hallucinations caused her friends to go mad in the past worlds. Wasn't a pleasant experience and it'd happened repeatedly. "You just have to be able to tell the difference between what is real and what isn't."

"I know Rina's dead, and not coming back," Shinichi said. "But…that girl…she…"

"Remember, you're with Rena," Rika reminded.

"Yeah, I do, but…"

"No buts!" objected Rika. Shinichi flinched. "Tomorrow is the summer festival. Just go with Rena and have fun. Go into the bushes and have your way with her if you want." Rika didn't want Rena to get hurt emotionally anymore.

Shinichi grinned when he heard Rika mention the bushes. "Wow…you do know what people do in the bushes, don't you?"

"Blame your mother for giving me and Hanyuu 'The Talk' with her books," Rika retorted, frowning and blushing.

Shinichi laughed.

* * *

Shinichi returned to his apartment. "Tadaima…"

"Okaeri nasai," Rena greeted. She was dressed in a yukata, the one she planned to wear tomorrow at the festival.

"So, you were trying out your yukata," he noted.

"Yes, and you can hardly tell I'm not wearing underwear," she said bluntly.

Shinichi's eyes bugged and he looked her up and down. '_No underwear?_'

"Wanna check?" she said teasingly. "Then come get me!" She dashed towards their bedroom.

Grinning, Shinichi gave chase. "That naughty little minx!" He entered and she lay on the bed with her obi sash undone. He crawled onto the bed.

"You're still dressed," she said, clutching the front of his green t-shirt which had the number 13 on the front. "Off with the shirt," she ordered.

He pulled it up over his head and tossed it aside carelessly. He opened up her yukata and his eyes widened in glee when he saw that she was indeed not wearing any underwear.

* * *

"You look happy," noted GL-Alan.

"And you look tired," countered Shinichi. "What happened? Girls didn't let you have any sleep?"

GL-Alan frowned, but he was also blushing. It wasn't possible to lie to Shinichi about this so he might as well come clean. "No, they didn't."

Both were down in the NEO-NUMBERS' base. Shinichi was checking the surveillance system. It was set to alert any of them towards any detected threats within the Shishibone City area, which included Hinamizawa and Okinomiya.

"So, was it an orgy, or did they take turns?" Shinichi inquired, his ahoge wiggling. He was eager for details.

"They took turns and I am not giving you details," GL-Alan told him with a glare.

"Don't bother, I'll just ask the girls," said Shinichi shrugging.

"Asking Yami would be like having a death wish," GL-Alan warned. "Or did you forget?"

"Then I'll ask one of the other girls. Amora and Bishie seem like the types to brag about your bedroom prowess."

"Hey, having so many girls in one night isn't as fun as it's made out to be. It's exhausting," GL-Alan said, yawning.

"And satisfying. _Very_ satisfying."

"So, why don't you get yourself a harem then?" GL-Alan glared.

"Two reasons." Shinichi held out his index and middle fingers "One: I'm a one-woman-man. And two: Rena would kill me for even thinking it."

"And yet she doesn't mind that you're a complete perv," GL-Alan deadpanned.

"Hey, I may have a girlfriend but I'm not blind, and even though I look at other girls, Rena knows she's the one who has my heart. I love her, and she loves me."

"That's good, I guess," GL-Alan said uncertainly. He gestured to the security equipment. "So, this thing will monitor the festival?"

"Yeah, it will, and it alerts us if there's any trouble," said Shinichi, "Although, the Okinomiya Police Department will be there to provide security."

"Least they're doing their job," said GL-Alan. He then saw Shinichi reviewing the tapes from the previous day. "What are you doing?"

"Just checking to see something I might've missed," Shinichi answered. '_Or saw_.' The hidden surveillance cameras covered the entire village so they might've captured something, like that Rena lookalike. '_Nothing…_'

"Well, I'm gonna head back to pick the girls up for the festival," spoke GL-Alan. "See you later."

"Later," replied Shinichi.

* * *

That night, the lanterns hanging above the festival grounds were lit, illuminating everything. The stands were open and vendors were busy selling whatever merchandise they had, be it souvenirs or snacks.

"Takoyaki! Get your takoyaki here!"

"Yakisoba! Get it while it's hot! Get it in a bun too!"

"Goldfish scooping! Bring home a new pet, if you can catch it!"

"You know, I never get tired of a good old summer festival!" said Mion.

"A chance to play games and have competitions, no doubt," said Keiichi.

Keiichi was manning his stand which sold various items from his home's basement (Shinichi called it junk). He wore a blue coat over his clothes and a twisted towel tied around his forehead. Slapping a paper fan in one hand, he called, "Come on down! I'll make you a deal you can't refuse! Anything you want from as low as 100 yen!"

The stand opposite was the one manned by Yokoshima and Daichi. Daichi jeered, "Hey, Maebara! You might as well pack up! We're going to be raking in the dough before the night is through!" He was strumming his guitar, attracting customers, while Yokoshima was preparing the guns for the shooting gallery.

"Be nice, Daichi!" chided Michiru as she was handing a choco-banana to a little girl. "We're all here to have fun."

Daichi just waved her off.

"Hey, mind if we take a crack of it?" a green-haired girl spoke as she stood at Daichi and Yokoshima's stand. Next to her was a girl with blonde hair worn in two straight ponytails. They wore matching blood red yukatas with black obi sashes around their waists. The yukatas sported stitching on the left sleeve which resembled one-winged eagles. The girlsalso had blood red irises in their eyes.

"Asmo-chan!" Yokoshima went and hugged his girlfriend. "You came!"

"And miss this?" she snorted. "No way!" She gave off a giggle as she rubbed her cheek against Yokoshima's.

"So, you girls came alone?" Daichi asked Leviathan. "Or did your other sisters come along?"

"Oh, they're around. Onee-sama went looking for Shogo. We lost Beelzebub when she wandered off somewhere. She's probably pigging out." She looked to Michiru and Hana's stand. "However, I suspect she'd show up here pretty soon to have some of the treats you got here."

"Don't forget that Satan-nee also went off looking for Shinichi," added Asmodeus. "She's got it bad for him."

"I do not!" Satan denied angrily as she suddenly appeared, causing Asmodeus to jump into Yokoshima's arms in fright.

"Oh, please," Leviathan rolled her eyes. She teased, "You dolled yourself up just you could show yourself off to him. Admit it; you still have that crush on him."

Satan grumbled a few curse words under her breath.

"So what about Mammon and Belphegor?" Daichi asked.

"Mammon's going from one game stand to the next, trying out all they have to offer. Only a matter of time until she gets here," Leviathan answered. "As for Belphegor, I think she's around, somewhere…"

Belphegor was trying to scoop goldfish, and failing. She scowled before trying again, only tearing up the scoop.

Shawna, Sylvia and Marie soon walked into the festival grounds. Shawna's eyes sparkled as she saw the numerous stands set up selling souvenirs, food stuffs and even toys. There were even games to play. She wanted to try everything!

"I wonder where Mr. Samurai is," Shawna said as she searched the crowd.

"I'm sure he's around," said Sylvia. "With Rena, no less."

At the same time, Shogo's eyes looked about, making sure there was no trouble. Suddenly, he felt a presence at his side and spun to face them. "Luci!"

"Hi!" Lucifer grinned before giving him a peck on the lips. "How are you doing this fine night, sir?" She looked him up and down. He was in a three-piece suit made up of a black jacket over a white shirt with black slacks and a tie. He was also wearing an armband with the word 'security' on it. "You look fine."

"You look fine as well," Shogo complimented her choice of clothing, which was a blood red yukata. He then spotted Shinichi coming with Rena. "Oh, good evening you two."

"You're taking this whole security gig seriously," said Shinichi, pointing to the armband Shogo was wearing. He was also in a suit.

"Ah, yes, indeed," said Shogo. "Just doing my duty." He asked, "And have you checked the surveillance system?"

"When there's trouble, it'll alert us," answered Shinichi, giving the 'OK' sign.

"Oh, look at that!" Rena said, pointing at Chiaki's stand. She dragged her boyfriend over to it. There were various wooden figurines that Chiaki had carved from hand.

"Welcome," said Chiaki. "Have you both seen Hanyuu-chan?"

"Hanyuu-chan's gonna be coming with my folks, Rika-chan and Sho," answered Shinichi. "They should be arriving soon."

"Ah…" Chiaki nodded.

The shelf behind Chiaki had a variety of figurines, neither two were alike. He spotted a few of the NEO-NUMBERS.

"I'll take that one!" said Rena, pointing to the wooden figurine of Kamen Rider Showa in Higurashi Form.

"That'll be 300 yen, please," Chiaki said as he picked the figurine off from the shelf, put it in a small paper bag, and handed it to Rena. Shinichi handed the Termite Rider the money.

As they walked away, Shinichi asked, "I almost thought you were going for the one that looked like a kitten."

"I like this one," she answered. "It looks like you."

Shinichi smiled.

From the distance, unnoticed by the couple, the Rena lookalike watched with narrowed eyes. She had to get Shinichi alone, somehow.

"Mr. Samurai!" beamed Shawna as she looped her arms around Shinichi from behind, bumping into him.

"Shawna-chan!" Shinichi gasped. "Oh, hey, Sylvia. Marie-chan."

"She was looking for you," Sylvia explained.

Shinichi nodded as he removed Shawna's arms from him. "Shawna-chan, why don't you have fun with your cousins?" He wrapped an arm around Rena's shoulders. "I promised to spend the festival with Rena."

Shawna pouted a little then nodded. "That's fine, then."

"How about a picture?" Shinichi offered, holding up his camera.

* * *

GL-Alan arrived on the festival grounds with the girls. They looked about and from the gleam in their eyes**;** he knew they wanted to try everything, from the food to the games. Yami tugged on GL-Alan's sleeve and pointed towards a goldfish scooping stand.

"You want to try that, huh?" he asked. Yami nodded. "Sure."

Fortunately, Yami didn't try to use her powers for the goldfish scooping. She did manage to win a pretty big looking fish and was carrying it around in a plastic bag filled with water.

"Alan! Alan!" Michiru called, holding out choco-bananas to him. "Want to buy a treat for the girls?"

GL-Alan shrugged. "Why not?" He then spotted Amora, Lala and Conda at Yokoshima and Daichi's shooting gallery. Bishie wasn't far either as she browsed Chiaki's goods. She looked really interested in getting one of the wooden figurines.

* * *

Shinichi and Rena walked far away from the festival grounds to the area which was full of trees and bushes. Smiling, the girl leaned backwards against a tree, smiling at her beau.

"Shin-kun~" she crooned his name. "I'm feeling very _hot_."

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow then grinned. He walked over to his girlfriend and placed his hands palm flat against the bark of the tree, her head between his hands as he leaned in close. "Hot, huh? Want me to cool you down?"

Her face was flushed and she smiled. As she reached up to the front of her yukata to loosen it up, Shinichi's eyes went wide as he grabbed her and tossed them both to the ground.

A bolt of lightning suddenly struck the tree, causing it to snap in half and fall down.

"What?" gasped Rena.

Shinichi growled. "Gebok…" He trained his eyes on the area, looking for the attacker. He focused and he spotted them in the distance where the lightning bolt had come from. "There!" He dashed towards the attacker who began to flee.

"Shin-kun, wait!" Rena called out to him, but he ignored her cries. "I have to call the others."

* * *

Showa had summoned his armor as he chased after the attacker until he reached an open clearing in the forest. When they stopped running, Showa finally got a good look at them. It was a girl, an unusual but cute girl.

The girl had long pink hair and shining emerald eyes. She was donned in a white-colored sleeveless skin tight dress with a short frilly skirt with blue trim. She wore thigh-high white boots and opera gloves. Around her neck she wore a blue bow ribbon. On her back were pink butterfly wings. On her head was a pair of antennae. Around her waist was a belt with a buckle shaped like a hawk with an X in the centre. From her apparel, she looked like some kind of magical girl.

"It's show time!" she declared, holding up a rod that was topped by a butterfly. Pointing at him and striking a pose, she introduced herself, "I am X-SHOCKER's Electric Butterfly. Please do me a favor and just die, OK?" She finished her introduction with a wink.

Showa blinked. "What?" Was this girl for real?

"I am called Electric Butterfly," the magical girl repeated. "I am your sworn enemy. That is all you need to know." She struck another pose with one hand behind her head and pointing at me with her butterfly rod.

"Hey, that's something I expected King to say to make himself sound superior," Showa muttered still deciding if she was really a kaijin or a magical girl before yelling, "Why do you call me your sworn enemy? What did I ever do to you?"

"Nothing, but I was made to fight against you by the great Dr. X. Now, die you cicada!" Electric Butterfly yelled as Showa was thrown off his feet by twin bolts of pink light that shot out of the butterfly girl's eyes. He twisted in midair and managed to land on his feet.

"First off: that's a lame excuse! Second: you have to try better than that if you want to kill me!" Showa said feeling a bit shaken. He didn't know why but he really didn't want to fight her.

She frowned sadly for a second as if she didn't want to kill him, causing Showa to blink but in an instant her face hardened as she said, "If that is what you wish." She used her wings to fly into the sky to fire lightning bolts. "Electric Shocker!" she called out her attack as lightning bolts rained down upon Showa.

Showa jumped backwards. '_Dr. X? X-SHOCKER? Must be a new alias for Gebok and his new organization,_' thought Showa suspiciously. He summoned his energy whip-blades and lashed them out at Electric Butterfly. However, just as he was about to strike, he suddenly pulled his arms back at the last second and retracted his weapons. '_She has answers and I need them. Can't kill her now_.' Of course there was something about this Electric Butterfly that bugged him. Something familiar…

* * *

GL-Alan didn't know what had happened. One moment he was having fun with his girls, and the next he got swallowed up by a black shadow and spat out somewhere. It was an underground parking garage. "What? Where the hell am I?"

"Your end," an ominous voice spoke as the owner revealed itself. "You're going to pay for what you did to my sister." He was covered from head to toe in black, sporting a cape and glowing white eyes. Despite his warped voice, GL-Alan recognized him.

"Sister?" GL-Alan identified him. "Todd?"

"It's OBSIDIAN!"

And the shadow-wielder went on the attack. Bursts of black energy shot out from his hands and mouth, flying straight towards GL-Alan. In an instantaneous flash of green, GL-Alan was donned in his Bazel Armor and generating an emerald energy shield with his ring.

"How did you piss this guy off this time?" Bazel asked.

"Let's talk AFTER we deal with this guy," the armored Green Lantern answered before dropping the shield and flying out of the range of Obsidian's blast. However, he could never outrun Obsidian. Obsidian's power was everywhere. A shadow closest to GL-Alan morphed into a fist and slammed into him from behind, straight into the jaws of a shark made of shadows that burst from the ground. Blasting with his ring, he obliterated the shadow shark and then aimed at Obsidian. The beam from his ring flew towards Obsidian but his shadow-manipulating foe would not be defeated so easily. His body morphed into shadow matter and he split at the waist, the beam flying harmlessly through the gap.

Arms of shadows which ended in clawed hands stretched out from all angles to grab GL-Alan, forcing him to fly about, simultaneously dodging and blasting at the appendages that were trying to grab him.

"Make a sword!" Bazel suggested loudly. GL-Alan nodded and with his ring and imagination created a sword of emerald energy. This sword in particular was the King Rouzer used by none other than Kamen Rider Blade in his King Form. With a swing, he severed the shadow arms as he flew straight towards Obsidian. When he closed the gap between them, the armored Green Lantern swung, only to hit a shield of shadow matter.

Obsidian too conjured a weapon, but it was naginata with a wicked looking curved blade that thirst for blood. He thrust the naginata forward, aiming for GL-Alan's heart, but their blades ended up locked when GL-Alan parried the blow.

"Todd, I'm sorry about what happened to…"

"SHUT UP! DON'T SAY HER NAME, YOU FILTH!" Obsidian roared, his white eyes blazing.

The shadows beneath them swirled like a whirlpool and then erupted into a cyclone which spun around them, enveloping them within its vortex. The two broke apart and continued to clash with their weapons, sparks flying as they connected but not upon their intended targets. Green mixed with the darkness of the cyclone as the two battled it out, their energies raging out along with their emotions.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the festival, GL-Alan's girls were panicking.

"Where did he go!" Amora shrieked. "He was right there!"

"OK, nobody panic!" yelled Bishie. GL-Alan had just suddenly disappeared on them and now they couldn't find him.

"Don't worry, girls!" announced Lala. "I have this!" She was holding a device that looked like the Green Lantern Corps emblem but it was a tracking device. The screen in the centre showed them GL-Alan's location. "My 'Alan-kun Finder' will show us where he is!"

"And how are we going to get to him?" Conda asked. "And don't tell me…"

"Pyon-Pyon Warp-kun! Activate!" Lala activated her wrist-mounted teleportation device. In a flash of light they were gone. Unfortunately, their yukatas got left behind and were sprawled all over the ground.

* * *

"This is bad**…**" stated Bazel.

"Story of my life," agreed GL-Alan as he was pinned against a wall by shadow arms. Obsidian had just used a cheap shot to attack GL-Alan before binding him.

WARP!

The girls suddenly appeared right in the middle of things. It was Amora who voiced out their situation quite well. "WHERE ARE OUR CLOTHES!" she cried out. None of them had a stitch of clothing on them after Lala's teleport using her 'Pyon-Pyon Warp-kun' as she called it.

"What?" Obsidian gaped at the sight. This caused his concentration to slip for a moment, which GL-Alan took advantage of. He unleashed a bright emerald blast that vaporized the shadow arms holding him and went for the kill.

He used his ring and this time made a replica of the Blade Blade. It was a sword which was as long as he was tall with a massive and broad double-edged blade. Attached to the basket hilt was a rectangular shield with a spade in the centre and fanned out around it were rectangular plates that resembled cards.

The blade of GL-Alan's massive sword crackled with electricity as he aimed his attention towards Obsidian who sent a ball of shadow energy flying at him. "Hyah!" GL-Alan cried as he swung down, cutting the ball straight down the middle, causing it to fade away.

If Shinichi was there, he'd make a comment about GL-Alan overcompensating with the Blade Blade, but now was not the time for jokes."I don't want to do this Todd. Please, don't make me do this…"

"What?" snarled Obsidian. "Think you can kill me like you did Jennie?"

"I didn't kill her!" shouted GL-Alan. "That bastard Major Force did it!"

"He was looking for you! If you were never around, she'd still be here!" He swung his shadow-naginata, sending an arc of shadow energy at GL-Alan.

'_Damn it…_' cursed GL-Alan as he swung the Blade Blade. A burst of emerald energy shot forward. It cut through the shadow energy before cutting through Obsidian, cleaving him clean in half.

"We're not done Smith…not by a long shot…" swore Obsidian as his Shadow form dispersed. "You're mine, Smith. I won't let them kill you. I'm the only one who gets to kill you…" And he was gone.

GL-Alan sighed as he released the Bazel Armor. "Hey, you okay, kid?" Before GL-Alan's could answer, someone spoke up.

"What the hell just happened?" demanded Conda. "Who was that freak!"

DOUBLE GLOMP!

"Alan!" Lala cried out. "You're okay!"

"We were so scared!" exclaimed Bishie.

His face was squeezed between their breasts and he was finding it hard to breathe.

"I think you need to remove yourself from him before he suffocates," Yami pointed out.

"I think any man would die happy to suffocate in those conditions," commented Amora.

The two girls removed themselves from GL-Alan. He still looked a little morose after his encounter with Obsidian. Should he tell the girls? They deserve to know, but was now the right time.

"You girls better get some clothes on first," GL-Alan advised. "You could catch cold."

"Hey!" Bazel yelled out. "They already look good! Why spoil it?"

* * *

"Electric Shocker!" Electric Butterfly called out as she fired several more bolts of lightning from her rod at Showa. Showa rolled to the side to dodge her attacks. "Electric Shocker!"

"Let's Ride: Stronger!" Showa called as he transformed into Kamen Rider Stronger, the Rider who could harness the power of electricity. The lightning bolts no longer harmed him as his body absorbed them.

"Tell me!" he demanded. "Tell me why you're so familiar?" He'd been getting that feeling since the beginning of the fight, which was why he couldn't launch a counterattack. It wasn't the disgusted feeling he usually got whenever Gebok was involved, but something else.

"I think you know the answer to that, Kuro Juusan-kun," she replied, giggling. "You remember, don't you? We had a very special relationship!"

'_Is she flirting with me?_' thought Showa. Seras had flirted with him too. That had been creepy. However, he couldn't help but feel flattered when Electric Butterfly flirted with him.

Without him realizing, her face was now inches away from his masked face. "How can you forget?"

"I've forgotten a lot of things," Showa remarked. '_Why can't I attack her? What's wrong with me?_'

"Hmph," Electric Butterfly scoffed. "You're no fun at all." She paused and nodded. "Next time, Kuro Juusan-kun." She then took off into the night's sky.

"Hey, wait!" But she was already gone. "Electric Butterfly…who are you?" His armor fell away and he heard people running towards him. Turning his head, he spotted the NEO-NUMBERS showing up.

"Rena came running to us for help when you suddenly ran off," said Hana. "What happened?"

"One of Gebok's minions," Shinichi answered. "Got away too."

"Got away?" Daichi cocked an eyebrow skeptically. "You never let them get away, ever."

"Look, it got away, OK!" Shinichi sounded annoyed. "Now, can you just drop it?"

"Rena's really upset," said Michiru, frowning. "You better go and apologize like there's no tomorrow."

Shinichi sighed. She was right. He had to apologize to Rena for running off like that. "Yeah, you're right." He asked Chiaki, "Chiaki, how fast can you carve something?"

"Pretty fast," Chiaki answered. "Why?"

"I need you to make something for me."

"Well, we better head to our stand before Beelzebub finds it," said Hana. "Come on, Michiru."

"OK, Hana-chan!" Michiru obeyed.

* * *

"Shawna-chan, do you know where Rena-chan is?" Shinichi asked Shawna. She was wearing a mask atop her head that looked like his helmet in Rider form. Marie and Sylvia were with her, the former playing with a water balloon yoyo.

Shawna licked her candied apple and answered, "I think I saw her heading towards the shrine."

"Thanks!" Shinichi then dashed off to find his girlfriend.

Shinichi found Rena sitting in front of Rika's family shrine alone. Rubbing the back of his head nervously, he tried to figure out what to say to her. He might as well apologize for abandoning her. He held in his hand a wooden carving that he had Chiaki made. He took in a deep breath and carefully approached her, sitting down next to her. She was eating takoyaki alone, ignoring him.

"So…that takoyaki is tasty, huh?" he asked. She didn't respond. "OK, I'm sorry about leaving you. It wasn't intentional…I just had to check it out. It was one of Gebok's goons but I took care of it."

Rena looked him in the eye and asked, "Why can't we ever have a normal night out? Answer me that." She was serious. "I mean we tried to have a few normal get-togethers with friends but then something just suddenly pops up and ruins them." She listed, "First the beach, then the night of courage, and now this." She sighed. "I thought that after you beat the DHS that we'd have some normal time for ourselves."

"It just isn't that simple, Rena-chan," he replied.

"Why can't it?" she demanded. "Why can't our lives be normal and simple?"

"Because of…what I am," he answered. He looked to the night's sky. "It's impossible for me to have a normal life. It's been like that since Gebok took me away from Kaa-chan and turned me into his own personal toy." He smiled at her, "But, you're right. It isn't fair for any of us. We do deserve to have normal lives, you especially. I mean you deserve to have a normal boyfriend, going out on normal dates, and having normal fun. You got me, instead."

"I don't regret it," Rena said to him. "I never did. When I first found you, you were just so cute I had to take you home, and then I found out you were keeping secrets from me."

"I didn't mean to, but I just…didn't want to scare you."

"You did scare me when you made us believe you joined GIN-SHOCKER. You had us all fooled, and it hurt."

"Sorry about that."

"I know you were on a mission and that you were just acting, but the things you said hurt."

"I did what I had to do and convince GIN-SHOCKER I'd joined them. If I hadn't had them take you into their headquarters, they would've targeted you anyway. I would've lost you then, just like how I lost…"

Rina. His biggest regret. His first friend, his first love, and the first death he'd ever regretted since being turned into a Kaizo Ningen. Her death caused him to defect and abandon GIN-SHOCKER and create a whole new personality. It opened a door to a whole new life for him.

"Oh, here's something I had Chiaki make in a hurry," said Shinichi as he handed Rena something. It was a wooden figurine of her in her dress and holding her favorite cleaver. "Had to pay double, but it's worth it."

Rena took the figurine into her hands and then looked under the base. There was a heart and inside the heart was S+R 4ever.

Shinichi spoke, "I know it's kinda cheesy, but I want you to know that you matter a lot to me. I really love you Rena-chan, so can you find it in your heart to forgive this fool?"

Rena began, "Shin-kun, I…"

WARP!

"And we're back!" declared Lala as she, the rest of GL-Alan's girls and the Green Lantern Corpsman himself appeared right in the middle of Rena's sentence.

"And naked…again…" sighed Amora. Rena reached up to cover Shinichi's eyes.

"I've kinda gotten used to it," muttered GL-Alan as he used his ring to create new clothes for himself and his girls. It was a temporary fix, but until they got new clothes that was all he could do.

* * *

"Hey, Alan, if you saw the ghost of the woman you loved, would you pursue her?" Shinichi asked. They were watching the fireworks display with their friends, family and loved ones.

"Why do you ask?" GL-Alan asked.

"I thought I saw someone that I knew," Shinichi answered. He tried to dismiss it, "Maybe it's just my eyes playing tricks on me."

"Shinichi, I'm like my dad. I don't believe in coincidences. Tonight for instance, my best friend tried to kill me," said GL-Alan.

"So, what did I see? Did I just see what I wanted to see, or…?" Shinichi trailed off.

"I'm not sure Shinichi, but I know one thing. In our business, the dead never stay that way for long…unless they truly meant something."

"Electric…Butterfly…" Shinichi murmured. Who was she? What did she want? Why did she seem so familiar? What did Gebok have planned?

* * *

ZK Chrome: And so new conflicts worm their way into the lives of our heroes. What will happen next?


	11. The Rise of X Shocker Part 9

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 9: Childhood Begins Anew**

"So, how come you ended up naked with the girls?" Shinichi asked curiously. He only recalled a glimpse of them in the buff before Rena closed his eyes but he had a good memory and could picture every detail like a photograph. He would definitely use what he saw as inspiration for his next book.

"Pyon-Pyon Warp-kun," answered GL-Alan with a sigh. He'd gotten used to stuff like that happening. Lala's inventions always backfired at one point or another. They still had their uses, though. "She still has a few bugs to fix with that one." GL-Alan noticed Shinichi scrutinizing him. "What?"

"There's something you're not telling me. Did you have a run in with some old enemy or something?" That was the pattern Rena had pointed out. Whenever they tried to have fun, something always happened to ruin it.

GL-Alan frowned grimly and answered, "Worse...my best friend. He blames me for..." He was hesitant to finish and Shinichi wasn't going to force him if he didn't want to.

"Look, if you want to tell me, you'll tell me. If you don't feel like talking, don't force yourself." Shinichi respected GL-Alan's privacy enough and not pry into his personal business.

"No, it's alright. It's just...really complicated. I was dating his sister and she died because I wasn't a good enough hero to protect her. That forced the both of us down a pretty dark path." GL-Alan remembered what he turned into, what he did, and how he tried to fix things, causing pain to the people closest to him.

"Guess you and me have that in common at least. We had the power, yet failed to protect the people we love most." Shinichi had been through that many times, like when his loved ones died over and over during the day dubbed as the 'Endless New Year's Eve'. The sight of Rena's dead body impaled on those spikes still haunted him as did the death of his mother and the rest of his friends. He kept using his 'Return to the Past' power to fix things but someone always ended up dying each time. Fortunately, Warren came in time before Shinichi had a complete mental breakdown.

The only one he couldn't save was Rina. He'd run after her death and never looked back but the guilt was still there. He wished he could go back to that day but he just couldn't.

GL-Alan replied, "Yeah, but the difference is, you got to say goodbye. Jade was murdered because of me." He too had his share of regrets.

"Even so, Rina still died at my hands." Shinichi remembered that day. He'd shot her and kicked her down before realizing that the practice dummy was not a dummy but Rina. He could still imagine the blood staining his hands.

"Major Force nearly turned over the whole island looking for me. That bastard Nero, to save his own damn skin, told him where to find me. But I was off world at the time. Jade wasn't. He found her, killed her, and then stuffed her body in the fridge. If I had been there…If only I was just a bit faster. I'm always haunted by one thought...the thought that, as she was being killed, her thoughts were "Alan...help..."."

Shinichi reminded, "But now you have Lala and the other girls. You can start over with them like I did with my friends here. I regret that day every single day, but then I look at my life here. I don't want anything to spoil it. However, you can never forget what happened. It always sticks as part of you forever."

"Trust me...I know. I've done horrible, awful things Shinichi. But Lala, she gave me a second chance."

"And my friends gave me a life here." Shinichi joked slightly, rapping his head with his knuckles, "However, I could've done without some of the memories I got back."

"At least for a time you forgot. I can never forget the horrible things I've done."

"Let's just enjoy the fireworks. Savor the here and now and not the there and then."

GL-Alan nodded, "Agreed." No sense getting depressed at such a happy occasion.

Yokoshima was one of the men in charge of the fireworks and he was enjoying every second of it as he shot them towards the sky, yelling, "WOO-HOO! YEAH!" every so often.

* * *

It was several weeks since the summer festival and thus it was now September, meaning that school was back in session. Shawna and her cousins had to return to their homeland since vacation was over but she promised that they'd meet again. She promised to write to them, especially to her 'Mr. Samurai'.

Speaking of 'Mr. Samurai', he was working. Contrary to what you may originally believe, Shinichi did have a part-time job as he worked in a pawn shop located in Shishibone City. The shop was called 'Topper's Pawn Shop: Buy, Sell and Trade'. It was written on the sign hanging over the door. Shinichi at the moment was manning the counter in the shop. The shop had been closed for the entire month of August but when September came it reopened and Shinichi was back to work. Right after his classes at Shishibone City and club meetings, he ended up right here, taking care of things.

The interior and exterior of the shop was interesting to say the least. Suits of armor flanked the main entrance like guards with spears in hand. There was also a steel gate and fence topped with spikes. The windows were made of stained glass. The building itself looked like a coffee shop, which was what it was originally functioned as until it closed and was bought over to become a pawn shop.

Inside, various items were on display in what could be called a showroom. If you had a keen eye, you could spot rare antiques among them. The most valuable items were in display cases. There were even paintings for sale and also what appeared to be a stack of records and a record player. The counter too had a glass display with watches and jewelry which had all been pawned for cash and would be resold for more cash for the shop owner's own use. Business was business.

The owner of the shop, Topper, was an eccentric man. He was a Caucasian with blonde hair and a long pointed nose. He seemed young but Shinichi knew from experience that appearances could be deceiving. He always seemed to be wearing an overcoat with a spotted bowtie and a top hat, hence his name. Topper Liquer was his full name but it was probably a pseudonym. Who would ever name their kid 'Topper'?

Shinichi actually came upon the shop by accident one day during his first semester of college. He was always doing odd jobs before in Hinamizawa so he might as well do some good and honest work that was in no way abnormal. He got enough of that in ARMOR.

Shinichi worked in the front but in the back Topper also did his business. The backroom, which was closed off by a curtain, was where the 'forbidden' items were kept. They were items with bad histories and also believed to be cursed. People came and sold these items to Topper and he happily took them. Shinichi wondered why the 'bad mojo' hadn't hit them. Maybe the items weren't cursed. Maybe…but Shinichi has had his experience with mystical items and sentient treasures.

Whenever a customer came into the shop looking for Topper, it was always Shinichi who ended up serving them with either coffee or tea. That was because Topper didn't have any other employees.

Little did Shinichi know, or even remember, he and Topper had met before. The first time they had met, Topper had granted him a wish, for a price of course. Then, the second time, Topper had come and taken Shinichi to the past which was the day he (Shinichi) had been taken by Gebok. Instead of stopping the event, Shinichi turned away to let the events happen. No sense of changing the past anymore since he was happy with his life now, despite all the tragedies.

Topper made sure Shinichi never remembered him.

The bell above the door chimed as it opened. "Welcome," Shinichi greeted, putting on a smile for the customers which just so happened to be GL-Alan and Bishie. "Oh, hey guys."

"So, this is where you work," GL-Alan commented as he looked around. "Nice…um…décor."

"Everything you see is for sale here," said Shinichi. "Or trade, whichever you want to do. Either way is fine."

"Wow, I can hear the enthusiasm coming from your voice," GL-Alan replied sarcastically.

"I'm paid to entertain customers," Shinichi answered.

"So, are you the only one here?" Bishie asked.

"The boss is in the back," Shinichi said as he pointed at the curtain that covered the entrance to the back room. "Up front, I do all the business."

"You sure you can do the job?" Bishie questioned.

"Show me what you got and I'll tell you how much I can give you for it," Shinichi boasted. "How do you think I landed this job?" Shinichi's eyes looked towards GL-Alan's Green Lantern ring. "You know, I could offer you a sweet deal for that ring. Just be sure to pay us back with interest if you want it back."

"Sorry, but the ring stays," GL-Alan said. "Though, I wouldn't mind parting with _this_." He raised the arm which had Bazel latched on. "I really want it off."

"You'll miss me!" Bazel exclaimed.

"When I want you back, I'll but you back," GL-Alan hissed. Bazel had been his usual annoying self. He was useful in battle, but other times he was just obnoxious.

"Hm, I could give you half a million yen for Bazel, if you can get him off," Shinichi said.

"Half a million!" Bazel sounded insulted. "I'm a powerful and ancient relic!"

"Sounds fine by me," GL-Alan accepted.

"Hey! I'm worth more than that!"

"I'll even leave him for you too."

"Grr!"

Bishie giggled. "So, what's in the back room?"

"Cursed stuff," Shinichi answered simply. "Or so I've been told."

GL-Alan gave Shinichi a look. "You actually sell cursed items?"

"Sell, buy and trade," Shinichi quoted the sign. "The boss is a collector but he has to make money somehow."

"Is that safe?" asked Bishie.

"Relax, I'm sure the boss is just messing with me when he tells me the stuff is cursed," said Shinichi calmly. "I mean we haven't had any complaints. If the stuff was really cursed we'd have heard about it. I mean, I got experience with stuff like that. I got three Tsukumogami occupying my head!"

"OK, enough of that," said Shinichi as he began to steer the conversation away from such an unpleasant subject. "What would you like? Paintings to brighten up the place? Records for some tunes? How about jewelry for your girls?"

* * *

"I'm home," announced Shinichi as he returned and entered his house. He was going to have dinner with his family while Rena was out with the girls.

"Welcome home, Shinji," Shiori greeted as she fed Sho. The little baby was in her arms and she was breastfeeding him. She stopped feeding her baby and put him down before buttoning up her shirt.

"Are Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan upstairs?" Shinichi asked.

"Yes," Shiori answered.

"And Otousan (Kasai)?"

"Oh, he'll be back shortly."

"I'm going to take a bath, kay?" Shinichi said as he went upstairs. He stripped down before he sat down on a stool and poured water all over himself with a basin. He then began to rub soup all over himself. His thoughts went towards Sho. A part of him envied his little baby brother. That kid would have a chance to grow up with a normal childhood, unlike him. Shinichi swore that he would not let what happened to him happen to Sho. His mother had been through enough when she lost him. She didn't need to suffer heartbreak like that again. It could kill her. After he rinsed himself, he went into the tub.

"Sure would be nice," he mused aloud, "To be a kid again…" He closed his eyes. He had no memories of his childhood before Gebok took him. Shiori only had photos but they still weren't enough to jog his memories. The only memories of a childhood he had were when Gebok took him and turned him into a Kaizo Ningen. He remembered all the operations, tests and experiments. He also remembered the things Gebok made him do. His entire childhood had been stolen from him. He didn't regret his life now but sometimes he wondered what it would be like to be a young boy again.

His Armorizer belt manifested around his waist before the belt buckle split open, exposing the shining Spark Core which released a bright flash of light. Startled, he let out a yell as the light seemed to explode outwards from the bathroom.

Rika and Hanyuu were in their room when they heard the shout and screamed themselves when an emerald light engulfed them. Downstairs, Shiori also cried out when the light came over her.

Kasai had just parked his car when he saw green light flashing from the windows. Acting immediately, he picked up his shotgun and ran to the door before kicking it open. His jaw dropped and his sunglasses nearly fell off from his face at what he saw…

* * *

"So, what happened?" Warren asked as he was seated in the living room with Shiori and her family. Kasai and Sho were left unchanged. However, Shiori, Rika, Hanyuu and Shinichi had changed drastically.

Shiori now looked like she was in her mid-twenties. Her wrinkles were gone but she still kept her busty figure. As for Rika, Hanyuu and Shinichi, they all looked like they were 6 years old.

"Some sort of light came over us and we ended up like this," answered Shiori. Fortunately, Shiori found extra clothes for her son and adopted daughters to fit their ages. Rika was dressed in a white blouse with a pink skirt while Hanyuu wore the same but with a purple skirt. Shinichi was in a blue shirt and blue shorts.

"Kaa-chan, who's this?" Shinichi asked as he pointed to Warren.

"Shinji, you mustn't point," Shiori chided. "He's your Uncle Warren."

"Uncle Warren?" Shinichi tilted his head to the side.

Shiori asked, "Hanyuu-chan, Rika-chan, do you mind taking your brother up to play?"

"OK, Mama," said Rika as she and Hanyuu took Shinichi by the hands and dragged him upstairs.

"Looks like his mind was affected too," Warren observed.

"We found him in the bath and…" Shiori began. "When I saw him it was like I saw a ghost." She was tearing up. "I have my little Shinji back!"

"So, his mind and body have regressed to the time before Gebok took him. What else?"

"He sees Tatsuyoshi-kun as his father and Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan as his sisters," Shiori explained.

"His present and past memories must've mixed up and so his mind adapted to the change and reorganized them."

"However, he still has his scar," Shiori pointed out.

"And he might still have his enhancements, despite de-aging himself, so he's still a Kaizo Ningen," Warren concluded. "Shiori, I think this is Shinichi's powers at worked. He must've activated his time reversal power and caused this."

"But why?" Shiori asked.

"Maybe he was thinking about the childhood he missed so he turned back the clock. However, it ended up affecting all of you, except for your husband and youngest son." Warren asked, "Have you called anyone else?"

"No, just you."

"You might wanna tell the others."

* * *

"He's so cute!" Rena gushed. After the initial shock of seeing Shinichi in his 6 year old form, she immediately went into her notorious 'take-it-home' mode and was crushing little Shinichi in a hug. If that wasn't enough, she had hugged both Rika and Hanyuu, twirling them around, before she tried to kidnap them.

Now she was about to run off with Shinichi but was stopped by GL-Alan.

"Rena, now's not the time," GL-Alan spoke. With him was Lala who was scanning the place with a gizmo of hers. "Well?"

"There are traces of temporal energy," reported Lala. "It's in huge amounts around Shinichi…"

"Shinji," Shiori corrected.

**(From this point on, Shinichi will be referred to as Shinji)**

"Right, Shinji-chan has huge amounts of temporal energy around him," said Lala. "Then again, considering his powers, that's not strange."

"Nee-chan, why is your hair pink?" Shinji asked.

Lala honestly couldn't resist how cute Shinji looked. Those big and innocent looking eyes were staring up at her and she immediately did as Rena had done and hugged him, rubbing her cheek against his. "Oh my goodness! You're adorable!"

"Shin-kun's mine!" Rena yelled furiously as she snatched Shinji away from Lala and hugged him. "Only Rena can hug him!"

"I think he's enjoying it," said Bazel. Shinji was smiling as Rena held onto him possessively.

Warren took the moment to scan Shinji's minds. All his memories were mixed up. Like Shiori said, he believed Kasai to his father and Rika and Hanyuu to be his sisters. Also, he did remember his friends but to Shinji as he was now they were like older siblings who would refer to as 'Nii-chan' or 'Nee-chan'. The only memories that weren't present were those involving Kamen Riders.

Shinji had no memory of being Showa or the NUMBERS. He had no memories of GIN-SHOCKER, DHS or even Gebok. He was no different from an innocent child, except for his cybernetic implants and genetic enhancements.

Shinji, while in Rena's arms, yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Oh, he's sleepy…" Rena realized.

"Give him to me," said Shiori and Rena did. Shiori carried her son in her arms. "I'll put him to bed." Shiori then went up the stairs to tuck Shinji away.

"Guess you two still have your memories," Warren addressed Rika and Hanyuu.

"Only our bodies were affected," said Rika, her adult voice coming out. It was even weird to hear such a mature tone coming from such a small child.

"The last time this happened we grew up," said Hanyuu. "Now we've shrunk."

"Well, it could be temporary," said GL-Alan. Rena was looking longingly up the stairs. "Rena…"

"I can't help it! Shin-kun is so kawaii!" Rena gushed.

"Yes, he is!" Lala agreed.

"Looks like he's stealing your thunder," mocked Bazel. GL-Alan ignored the comment.

* * *

Shinji slowly drifted to sleep as Shiori sang a lullaby. She smiled as she ran a hand through his hair. Her eyes narrowed at the XIII scar which remained unchanged. She hated that mark which that horrible man Gebok had branded her son with. It was a constant reminder of what her son had been through.

She remembered the day she'd lost him. She had a meeting and had been late to pick her son up from kindergarten. She had suffered emotionally and nearly went mad with grief. Fortunately, she had her husband by her side. She remembered taking anti-depressants but she never totally forgot her pain. Her mother-in-law (the old witch) had mocked her for losing her son. Their relationship had never been good and never will be.

It was only chance that brought her and her son back together after eleven long years but he'd changed so much. She missed watching him grow up but after she found out what had happened during those ten years in GIN-SHOCKER, her regret for losing him returned. If only she'd been early.

Now, she had a second chance. Sure, it might be temporary just like when Rika and Hanyuu had grown up that time but she was going to at least make up for lost time for as long as she could. She remembered promising to take Shinji to the park that day he'd been kidnapped, and then getting him ice cream and a new toy he'd wanted.

She kissed his forehead. "Welcome back, Shinji. I love you."

* * *

It didn't take long for the rest of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club and the NEO-NUMBERS to catch the news about their friends' and Shiori's condition. Some were skeptical until proof was given when Shinji was brought to the Irie Clinic for a checkup. The little boy who was formerly a Kamen Rider screamed when he saw the doctor. He thought he was going to get an injection.

Shinji recognized them all, but called them Nii-chan (for the boys) and Nee-chan (for the girls). He seemed to enjoy the treatment of the girls. He was just too adorable for words.

Daichi mumbled something about pint-sized perverts.

Shinji, in his current state and without any access to his powers, was vulnerable. Fortunately, his friends were ready to protect him. It was a good thing that this happened during the weekend too so Shinji wouldn't miss any classes at college.

* * *

**-NEO-NUMBERS' BASE-**

"I can't believe we have to play babysitter," grumbled Daichi.

"Dai, he's just a kid," Yokoshima said defensively.

"You only agreed because his mom offered you a sneak peek at her new novel," Daichi accused. "Troublesome."

"Do you want Gebok to get his hands on him again?" Hana asked sternly. "He may have the same implants that he had before but he can't use his powers anymore. He's a sitting duck."

"And he's our friend!" added Michiru.

"What about you?" Daichi asked Chiaki.

Chiaki had seen how cute Hanyuu looked as a little girl and actually drew a sketch of her after seeing her. He answered simply, "I will protect them," referring to Rika, Shinji and Hanyuu.

* * *

**-ANGEL MORT-**

"Sugoi!" Shinji's eyes sparkled at the large bowl of ice cream his mother had ordered for him. There were two scoops, chocolate and vanilla, with chocolate fudge all over, crushed nuts sprinkled on it and topped with a cherry. Hanyuu and Rika were having crème puffs.

"Now, be careful at how much you eat," said Shiori.

"OK, Kaa-chan!" Shinji picked up his spoon and dug in, making a mess as the chocolate fudge covered around his mouth. Shiori wiped his mouth clean with a napkin before he continued.

She was obviously spoiling him, but what else could she do? Right now, Kasai was staying at home with Sho and taking care of him as Shiori opted the spend the entire weekend with her eldest son who had become a little boy again.

Rika and Hanyuu could see what Shinji was like as a young boy. He was so innocent and carefree, but that was all forcefully stripped from him by a madman.

Occupying several tables was the Hinamizawa Gaming Club. Shion was working as a waitress in Angel Mort so she was busy taking orders and serving customers. Rena watched, getting starry-eyed as Shinji ate ice cream cutely. Her eyes were also on Rika and Hanyuu.

"Omochikaeri…" she purred.

"So, this is what he's like at that age," Mion observed. "Who knew?"

"Of course, he still likes pretty girls," said Keiichi as Shinji watched a waitress pass by.

"He's not the only one," Satoko teased. "Oh, I wanna prank him so much so I can see him cry." She was grinning evilly.

"Satoko-chan, that's mean," her brother, Satoshi, scolded.

"OK, gang," Mion spoke seriously, "Remember we're here to keep an eye on things. We don't want Gebok getting his grimy hands on Shin-chan again."

"Don't forget Hanyuu-chan," Keiichi reminded. They all knew about how Gebok wanted Hanyuu for her abilities.

"Right, her too."

* * *

Shiori later took the kids to the park. Shinji, Hanyuu and Rika went towards the playground. Sitting on a bench, Shiori watched them as they played. She smiled as she watched them laughing as playing. While Rika and Hanyuu's minds had remained unaltered, their now younger bodies were probably affecting them by now. They were small children now so they might as well act like small children. Shinji went down the slide before going up again to slide back down. Rika and Hanyuu went towards the swing set.

"Hey," Warren greeted as he sat down next to Shiori on the bench. "Good afternoon."

"Ah, Warren-san!" Shiori smiled. "What brings you here?"

"I just came to see how you and Shinichi are doing," said Warren. He looked to Shinji who was laughing as he went down the slide again. "He seems to be adjusting well."

"Yes, he is," Shiori agreed.

"You do know this is temporary, right? In a couple of days you'll all be back to normal," Warren informed her.

Shiori sighed. "Yes, I know, but is it wrong for me to wish that it could last a little longer? Is it wrong that I want my little boy to stay like that?"

"No, it isn't, but that's just being unrealistic, isn't it?"

Shiori let out another regretful sigh. "I just miss him so much."

"You got another chance with him when you found him, plus you got Sho, Hanyuu and Rika," Warren reminded her. He glanced at the kids, "But, I think you can be allowed to enjoy your son's second childhood, even if it is short."

"Thank you, Warren-san."

"Hey, I'm a parent too. There's no way I'm gonna miss seeing my kids grow up."

* * *

**-X-SHOCKER HQ-**

Electric Butterfly smiled as she watched the monitors. "Kuro-kun looks so cute like that! I just want to take him with me!"

Spider Ninja spoke mockingly from behind, "Then why don't you go and grab him?"

"Not a bad idea, then Dr. X can modify him all over again and he'll be all mine!" Electric Butterfly hugged herself, blushing, and looking forward to having BLACK 13 in her arms. "Ooh, yes!"

Spider Ninja snorted, "Ditzy magical girl."

* * *

**-ARMOR HQ-**

ARMOR Headquarters, located under the King's Terminal, was abuzz with activity as usual. In fact, in DORA (Department of Rider Affairs), Dr. Ryuki Leonard Hasuma was just packing away some highly sensitive items into a box. It was made of steel with a lock in front. The lid had ARMOR's emblem on it. The inside of the box was cushioned with circular slots that looked like they were meant for coins. One by one, the coins were put inside the box before Dr. Hasuma closed and locked it.

"Now, to show these to Director-san once he gets back," said Dr. Hasuma. He put the box into a safe and locked it. The number combination was only known to him.

As Dr. Hasuma left DORA and headed towards his office in the hospital wing, he contemplated on possible users for the new ARMOR Rider Systems. He himself had personally tested the suits. It'd been painful, but totally worth it despite the long stay in the hospital afterwards. He had to know the suits' limits and what could be improved. This was an important project because this new set of Rider Systems would be property of ARMOR.

Dr. Hasuma thought about looking at the files for possible operators. There were some exceptional agents in the organization. Then he thought about adding fresh faces into the organization; new recruits to use the Rider Systems. He would need to bring this up with Warren when he got back.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the playground, a kidnapping attempt was being stopped.

"Omochikaeri!"

"Rena-chan, could you please put my son down?" asked Shiori sternly. Rena had run into the playground, grabbed Shinji under her arm, and was about to run off but Shiori managed to stop her before she could get far.

Rena pouted but put down Shinji. "Shin-kun, don't you wanna go buy toys with me?" Rena asked cheerfully.

"Maybe later, Rena-neechan," Shinji answered. Rena blushed. He was just so adorable and hard to resist. She glanced at Rika and Hanyuu! OMG! She was surrounded by cuteness.

"Rena-chan, if you want to play with my son, please don't try to take him home with you," Shiori scolded.

"Sorry, Shiori-san, but I just wanted to have some innocent fun with Shin-kun."

"Since when is kidnapping innocent?" asked Satan who suddenly appeared.

"Sata-neechan!" Shinji identified.

When Satan heard the news from Asmodeus who heard it from Yokoshima, she immediately went to check it out. She was wearing her usual uniform but changed the bottom half into a proper skirt. It was still short, coming down to mid thigh, with a band of thigh flesh exposed between the stockings and skirt, but at least it wasn't as revealing as what she usually wore.

Satan didn't really like little kids. They were noisy and obnoxious. They were always begging and whining. Shinji, however, was a different matter. It was a good thing that he remembered her, albeit in a different way. He was calling her 'nee-chan'. It didn't hurt that he was as adorable as Rena said. His eyes were big and round and his twin ahoge bobbed every time he moved or talk.

Like her sisters, Satan also had a weakness for cute things and girlishly squealed before picking Shinji up and rubbing her cheek against his, hugging him. Rena scowled. '_Shin-kun's mine!_' the brunette thought possessively.

Warren joked as he saw this, "Seems the kid has a knack for attracting pretty girls." He sounded proud. "Just like his old man." He knew the identity of Shinji's biological father. He just wasn't telling since the young man had asked him not to.

Seeing that everything was alright with this family, Warren got up to return to ARMOR. Dr. Hasuma had something to tell him.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS were keeping a close watch on the house. Inside, Kasai was changing Sho's diaper but was having some difficulty as the mischievous tyke kicked its legs and giggled. Kasai sighed. No doubt this child would take after Shiori. She could be hard to handle at times too.

After he was done, he picked up Sho who smiled at him. Kasai smiled. This was his son, no doubt about it. He put Sho down in a playpen and watched the baby play with his toys. Kasai lay on the couch, exhausted. He had to feed, bathe and change Sho while Shiori was out with her de-aged eldest son and adopted daughters.

"That kid, I wonder what he'll grow up to become," said Yokoshima.

"Knowing who his mother and brother are, we might end up with another Shinichi," said Hana.

Daichi looked mortified. '_Another Shinichi? One is bad enough!_'

"Ooh, kawaii…!" Michiru squealed as she continued to watch Sho from all angles on the monitor. They had the house bugged with spying equipment from ARMOR.

Meanwhile, Shogo and Chiaki were in Okinomiya. The Termite Rider was watching the playground while Shogo, as Zero, was watching from above in the sky.

* * *

Rika and Hanyuu had both gone to play on the seesaw while Shinji busied himself in the sandbox, with Shiori watching them. Rena and Satan had left earlier. Something had come up for them. However, it was obvious they wanted to stay longer to watch Shinji play. Actually, Rena would be plotting to try and take Shinji home with her again.

It was rare for anybody to get a second childhood, so Shiori counted this as a blessing in disguise. The three children she had with her had all suffered while so young. Maybe getting a chance to experience sweet innocence was a good thing, even if it was short.

Another couple had arrived to the playground, bringing along a little girl. The girl had a kitten riding on her head, but the animal had ears as long as a rabbit's. The creature jumped off the girl's head before running over to Shinji. "Miyah!" cried the creature, rubbing its head against Shinji.

"Ryo-Ohki!" cried the little girl as she ran after the cabbit. She had long green hair with a black streak in it. Her eyes were also bright red. She was wearing a yellow shirt with a blue overall skirt.

"Hi!" greeted Shinji, waving at the little girl. The little girl blushed before running back to her father and hiding behind his leg.

"Ai-chan, that's not polite…" said the man. He had short black hair and black eyes. He was wearing a short sleeved gray shirt, a pair of black denim jeans, and black sneakers."Now, go say hi."

"OK, Papa," said the little girl, Ai. She got out from behind her father and cautiously approached Shinji. "H-Hi."

"Hi!" Shinji beamed and asked, "Wanna build a sandcastle with me?" he asked.

"OK!" Ai answered, smiling.

"Can we play?" Rika asked as she and Hanyuu stood outside the sandbox.

"Sure," Shinji smiled. "OK, girls, let's make a BIG sand castle!"

The man and the woman he was with approached Shiori in the friendly manner. The de-aged novelist got up and greeted them. "I'm Shiori Banabara."

"Call me Conner," the man introduced himself. He gestured to the lady by his side. "And this is my lovely wife, Ryoko." The woman had cat-like eyes with spiky green hair. She also wore a scowl. She wore a red turtleneck sweater with a gold necklace and tight white pants with black boots.

"I can introduce myself, you know," Ryoko reminded Conner.

"Sorry, but I was just being polite." Conner let out a sigh. Ryoko was always like this, but he had gotten used to it. Conner asked Shiori, "So, are those kids yours?"

Shiori answered, "Yes, although Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan are adopted, they're still my little girls. That little boy over there with them is my Shinji." She let out a sigh. "My pride and joy. I'm so proud of him."

"He doesn't seem like much," said Ryoko, scoffing.

"Ryoko, he's just a kid," Conner chided her. "And you really shouldn't judge by appearance alone. People can surprise you."

"Yes," Shiori agreed with his statement. Her son was full of surprises. If only those surprises hadn't come with a heap load of pain and suffering.

"There, finished!" declared Shinji as their masterpiece was completed. "Our sandcastle is finished!"

Then the sandcastle suddenly shook before it broke apart and crumbled down.

"Hey!" Hanyuu complained. "What happened?"

"Does anybody else feel the ground shake?" Rika asked.

That was when a loud bellow was heard and Shiori gasped as she saw something headed straight for them, kicking up dust behind it as it ran like a wild beast in the middle of a stampede. It was an android, and no doubt one sent by the evil Dr. X!

The android, which resembled a rhino with grey armor plating, roared as it charged straight towards them, its horn spinning like a drill. Ai screamed and ran straight for her parents as Rika and Hanyuu tried to get Shinji to run. However, he wouldn't budge. Shinji was frozen in terror. He couldn't get up to move. Conner sent a sideways glance towards Ryoko before the two nodded, Ryoko running off in one direction with Ai, while Conner went in a separate direction.

"Girls, run!" Shiori shouted as she dashed over to them. She then swept Shinji into her arms and turned her back to the rampaging android to shield her son.

"KAA-CHAN!" yelled Shinji.

"I won't let you get hurt," Shiori promised. "Never again," she whispered.

Drill Rhino was coming close. He would only kill the woman. His master just wanted the boy, alive, but Drill Rhino was never told in what condition. Alive could mean a number of things.

However, Drill Rhino was met with opposition as Chiaki leapt out of hiding and called out, "Henshin!" He then smashed an armored fist against the side of Drill Rhino's head, knocking the mechanical beast over in mid-charge.

Shiori looked and was glad to see Kamen Rider Slasher. Shinji's eyes were wide. "Sugoi…" he let out. He was seeing a superhero just like the ones he saw on TV.

Slasher's hands transformed into chainsaws and he immediately attacked with them, sparks flying as the blades connected with Drill Rhino. The rhino android retaliated and tried to spear Slasher with his drill horn but while the android was stronger, the Rider was faster.

"Go! Go, Chiaki!" Hanyuu cheered as she watched.

Rika rolled his eyes. Of course she would support Chiaki. She was in love with him.

Shiori was relieved but then something suddenly snatched Shinji right out of her arms and into the sky. "SHINJI!" she screamed up at the sky.

"KAA-CHAN!" Shinji shouted as he struggled to free himself from Electric Butterfly's hold. "Let me go! Let me go!"

"Oh, you're going to love X-SHOCKER, Kuro-kun…" Electric Butterfly purred with her eyes sparkling. Dr. X could fix BLACK 13's condition and make him better and stronger. A new body wouldn't be so bad either. He was struggling more. "Don't you like this pretty nee-chan?"

"You're not pretty!" he shouted at her.

Electric Butterfly frowned when she heard that but then a buzzing sound attracted her attention. She turned her head to see Zero pointing his stingers at her.

"Hand him over," Zero ordered.

"No," Electric Butterfly answered before firing twin lightning bolts at Zero with her antennae. He was hit and sparks exploded off his armor as the bolts struck him. He then plummeted and crashed. "Hah! Serves him right!" exclaimed Electric butterfly.

Meanwhile, back on the ground, Slasher had heard Shiori's scream and got distracted. Drill Rhino capitalized on this and struck, the drill hitting Slasher in the chest, he cried out as the drill began to penetrate the armor. Hanyuu cried out in horror. He needed help!

A bronze armored fist suddenly collided with the side of Drill Rhino's head, hard. This also caused the drill horn to break in half as it was less than a halfway buried through Slasher's armor. Fortunately, the chest armor was thick.

Slasher looked up and saw what could be a man in a suit of bronze armor. It had sharp shoulders that spiked up with claws at the fingertips. The helmet resembled a wolf's head with its sharp teeth clenched. The blood eyes of the helmet were those of a predator, shining with righteous fury. Strapped to his back was an ornate scabbard with a sword in it. The brown scabbard was decorated with mystic runes that let off a blood red glow. Reaching behind him, the Bronze Knight drew his sword. The guard resembled a pair of wolf paws that were stuck together back-to-back with the claws out. The blade of the sword was double-edged and jagged. The blade was colored bronze with a line of red in the centre.

"This will be over in ten seconds," the Bronze Knight said as Drill Rhino charged at him. He counted down, "10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5…" Drill Rhino came in range as he gripped his sword. He continued to count down, "…4, 3, 2, 1…" He held the sword to his hip with one hand over the blade as he finished his countdown, "…0."

With a single drawing motion, the Bronze Knight then used his sword to bisect Drill Rhino at the waist with a single clean swing and the blade sliced through. The android's top half toppled over before its lower half collapsed, both halves exploding in a fiery blaze.

The Bronze Knight, upon seeing his enemy's destruction, decided his job was done and exited the scene, dramatically sheathing his sword as he went his way.

Shogo, fortunately, survived his fall but his flying capabilities were out of commission. "Damn it…" he cursed as he watched helplessly as Electric Butterfly continued to take Shinji with her. He punched the ground. "Damn it!"

Electric Butterfly suddenly stopped as a flying blade cut into her cheek. She glared as she saw the Stake of Wrath assuming human form. Shinji gasped. "Sata-neechan!"

"Let him go," Satan ordered, activating her magical blade of light for battle. She was going to save Shinji from this evil magical girl. She had returned when she sensed something bad had happened and her intuition was right. Now, she was looking at Electric Butterfly with pure hate. How dare this magical girl wannabe try and kidnap Shinji.

"Back off bitch!" Electric Butterfly took out her Butterfly Rod and summoned lightning bolts that flew straight at Satan like arrows. The Stake of Wrath dodged them. She was used to speed attacks like that. Eyeing Electric Butterfly, she flew straight at her. Another lightning bolt came at her but she avoided through teleportation in a cloud of gold before reappearing behind the butterfly woman. Electric Butterfly spun around to strike Satan with her rod, which she blocked with her blade of light. Sparks flew as their weapons made contact.

"Sata-neechan! Save me!" Shinji cried.

"Don't worry," Satan assured. "I will."

Electric Butterfly smiled. "I don't think so. Electric Shocker!"

Satan had gotten careless. Electric Butterfly wanted her to get close. With her Butterfly Rod touching Satan's blade, the electricity surged through the white-haired girl and caused her to scream out in pain. Shinji screamed, "Nee-chan!"

Satan's body was smoking. She was hurt, but still able to fight. Her red eyes narrowed angrily at Electric Butterfly. She was the Stake of Wrath, so anger was her strength and to be humiliated like this really pissed her off.

Electric Butterfly made some distance and with a wave of her rod called, "Sparky Glitter."

Glittering dust started to fall around Satan. At first she paid them no mind as she charged at Electric Butterfly but then the evil magical girl grinned. "Gotcha!"

Satan screamed as the glittering particles stuck to her before releasing their charge. The glitter was hard to dodge and once it came in contact with something, Electric Butterfly would command them to release their energy.

Electric Butterfly then bashed her rod against Satan's head, knocking her out. She laughed, tightening her grip on Shinji as she flew straight back to X-SHOCKER HQ. Once there, she would give Shinji over to Dr. X and have him returned back to normal with some modifications done to his body and brain to make him into the perfect weapon and just the man for her!

However, she slammed face first right into a green wall of energy. She recoiled, and narrowed her eyes at the next obstacle who dared to stop her. She'd dealt with both Satan and Zero. This would not be any different. However, she was vastly overestimating herself.

Shinji looked right in front of him to see a man clad in a formfitting green bodysuit with black sleeves and black pants with a belt that had the Green Lantern symbol as the buckle. Adorning his arms up to his elbows were green gloves and he wore green boots that went up to his knees. Over the suit he wore an open black vest with the Green Lantern symbol of the left side and on the back. His eyes glowed green under a green mask. On his left forearm was a green and yellow armband with a red gem in it.

This was Green Lantern Alan Smith.

GL-Alan had his arms crossed and a stern look in his eyes. "Hand him over, or else," he warned.

Electric Butterfly sneered, "Or else what?" She knew what these hero types were like. They would not hurt her while she had a hostage at the risk of harming said hostage. Satan and Zero had held back because she was holding Shinji and this Green Lantern would also hold back since he would not hurt a hostage.

However, GL-Alan had other plans. "Well, you asked it." He aimed his ring at her and fired a beam. Electric Butterfly gaped and dodged to the side to avoid the beam. However, the beam then curved and struck her from behind, hitting her right between the wings. She cried out and dropped Shinji. The little boy screamed but then a green bubble formed around him, slowing his descent. Looking up, he saw that GL-Alan had used his ring to create the safety bubble and gently lowered him to the ground. GL-Alan landed before Shinji and smiled. "You okay, kiddo?"

"Who are you?" Shinji asked. GL-Alan got down on one knee and removed his mask. Shinji gaped. "Alan-niichan!"

"That's right," smiled GL-Alan. "Your Big Brother Alan is a superhero."

"Sugoi…"

"Now, I got a bad guy to catch," said GL-Alan as he put his mask back on. "Oh, and don't tell anyone, OK?"

"OK."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

GL-Alan held out a pinky. "Pinky promise?"

Shinji giggled and hooked his pinky around GL-Alan's "Pinky promise!" GL-Alan smiled and ruffled Shinji's hair.

Satisfied, GL-Alan stood straight up and shot into the air. No doubt Electric Butterfly had made her escape. Without a hostage, she had no leverage and was at a disadvantage.

"Shinji!" Shinji turned around when he heard his mother calling and running towards him. She scooped him up into her arms. "Thank goodness you're alright!"

"Yeah, and it's all thanks to that green Onii-chan!" answered Shinji.

* * *

**-X-SHOCKER HQ-**

"So, you failed," said Dr. X as Electric Butterfly knelt before him with her head down and cowering. "You couldn't even bring a child back here."

"I'm sorry!" she bowed. "It's just that he had guardians!"

"I knew I should've gone instead," scoffed Spider Ninja. "Never send a girl to do a man's job."

Electric Butterfly aimed a glare at Spider Ninja.

"You wasted valuable time and energy while you tried to kidnap #13 and came back empty handed. Even with Drill Rhino's held you failed, which is simply pathetic. However, you're still useful to me, Electric Butterfly." Dr. X's eyes narrowed behind his glasses. "Don't make me regret creating you."

Electric Butterfly nodded. She'd been so close but kept meeting obstacles, then that Green Lantern came and ruined things for her. She'd seen the look in the man's eyes. He would've killed her if she hadn't fled.

"So, what now, Dr. X?" Spider Ninja asked.

Dr. X yawned. "I'm feeling bored. Might as well see what's on TV." He turned towards the monitors and saw Shinji and his family taking a walk in town. His grin widened with sadistic glee. "What a heartwarming scene. Too bad it won't last." He gave the order, "Send the 'big one' over. I want to see it break stuff."

* * *

Shinji was smiling as he walked with his mother and sisters into town. So much had happened! He had actually seen real superheroes just like the ones on TV. Sure, he almost got kidnapped but it was lucky that his Alan-niichan came and saved him. He promised not to tell, though. Superheroes always had to keep their identities a secret so he and GL-Alan made a 'pinky promise'.

Shiori looked down at her son who was holding her hand. He was so small, so vulnerable, like on that day Gebok had taken him. She'd seen what Gebok had done to her son through the scans shown to her. How could someone do that to an innocent child? She realized that Gebok could only be a monster to do something like that.

Shiori was grateful to GL-Alan for rescuing her son. He had a guardian angel looking after him after all. Feeling safe, Shiori decided to continue their family outing. No sense in letting a kidnapping attempt to ruin their day. She had tomorrow planned already. It was a family trip to the amusement park. That would sure to cheer Shinji up.

Suddenly, the ground began to shake. At first it was a slight tremor but then grew in intensity, causing people to lose balance. Shinji was holding tight onto his mother's leg. Rika and Hanyuu were also holding each other close. Was it an earthquake?

Hanyuu could sense her surroundings. It was an earthquake, but not a natural one. Something unnatural was causing it. "Hanyuu, what is it?"

Hanyuu opened her mouth to answer when all of a sudden, from the distance, the ground erupted. Chunks of debris and dust went flying, causing a huge panic but the panic simply grew when something arose from the ground itself.

The creature was completely made of metal and looked like a giant bipedal dinosaur with razor sharp claws and teeth. It was massive and as tall as a skyscraper. It had large feet too and a tail that was long and thick. Spikes ran along its spine and upon its head were bull-like horns with a third one resting on the snout. It let loose a roar as it raised its head towards the heavens.

The appearance of the monster immediately caused the people to run in over to escape it. In the confusion, Shiori was separated from her son and adopted daughters. "Rika-chan!" she cried. "Hanyuu-chan! Shinji!"

"Mama!" Hanyuu and Rika heard the woman and ran to her, taking hold of her hands.

"Where's Shinji?" Hanyuu asked.

"I don't know," Shiori answered worriedly. "Shinji! Shinji!"

Rika spotted him and pointed. "There he is!"

Shinji's eyes were wide and his mouth was agape as he saw the gigantic monster loom over him. People were running past him but he was rooted to the spot, frozen in terror.

"Shinji!" Shiori called as she tried to reach for him but the running crowd kept pushing her back. "Shinji!"

The robotic monster stomped over and its giant foot was above Shinji before coming down on him, flattening him.

"SHINJI!" Shiori screamed, horrified. Rika and Hanyuu's eyes widened in horror.

All of a sudden, there was a green flash of light which rose up into a pillar that pushed the robotic monster backwards, knocking it off the spot it'd stepped on. From within the pillar of light, a figure could be seen. He was clad in a dark green armored bodysuit trimmed in light green with red eyes on its insectoid face along with antennae. It looked like a gigantic man in grasshopper-themed armor. Around the giant's waist was a metal belt with a round green stone in the buckle. On the straps of the belt were symbols.

Rika and Hanyuu cried out, "Shinichi!" Shiori was stunned. This giant was her son!

Shinji had transformed into Kamen Rider J in his Jumbo Formation. Kamen Rider J was the only Rider that could assume a gigantic form and because Shinji possessed the powers of the legendary Kamen Riders, he too had access to such a form.

"Ultraman!" someone cried out. It sounded like a little kid.

"No," Shiori said. She shouted out, "KAMEN RIDER!"

Kamen Rider Showa, in the form of Kamen Rider J, adopted a familiar stance as he faced down the robotic monster. It let loose a roar and charged at the gigantic Rider, but Showa was prepared. He drew a hand back as the monster came in range before throwing a fist. The punch hit the monster right between the eyes with incredible force, causing it to slide backwards because of the impact. Showa then ran towards the monster and raised a foot up to kick it in the chest. He then used a roundhouse that hit it in the head. Roaring, the Mecha-Kaiju spun its body and hit Showa with its tail, knocking him off his feet. He fell with a crash. He then rolled out of the way before the tail came down and hit him again.

The Mecha-Kaiju then started to use its claws on Showa, slashing away. Showa's chest exploded with sparks as he was struck. Shiori put her hands over her mouth, horrified at watching her son getting hurt. Rika and Hanyuu decided to do something and they did.

"Kamen Rider, don't lose!" shouted Rika.

"Beat that monster, Kamen Rider!" cheered Hanyuu. "You can do it!"

The cheers of the two girls got the crowd's attention and suddenly they also began to cheer the name 'Kamen Rider'.

Hearing those cheers not only encouraged Showa, but reminded him that there were still people around who could get hurt if he didn't finish this quick. He doubted he could last any longer at this rate. The robotic Kaiju then opened its jaws, showing off rows upon rows of sharp teeth. It leaned in quickly to take a bite out of Showa but the Rider grabbed the creature's jaws with his hands, pushing them apart and away from him. It struggled and pushed back, snarling as smoke spewed from its nostrils. The gigantic Rider looked down the Mecha-Kaiju's throat and his eyes went wide as he saw a faint glow which became brighter and brighter. He let go of the jaws and gave the creature an uppercut just as it fired a beam. It missed and streamed into the heavens with a roar.

Showa then wrapped his arms tightly around the Mecha-Kaiju's neck, throwing themselves down to the ground. He straddled the robotic monster and began to pummel it with punches. He then grabbed the Mecha-Kaiju by the horns and bashed its head upon the ground hard. The Mecha-Kaiju was able to throw the giant Rider off it and get back to its feet. It then aimed and fired upon Showa with a beam that crashed against his chest with explosive force. He collapsed backwards onto the ground, causing it to shake. His chest was smoking and scorched from the hit.

"Shinji…" Shiori uttered.

"Get up…" said Rika. "GET UP!"

"GET UP, KAMEN RIDER! GET UP!" Hanyuu cried out.

They were joined by the other people who called out to him. They did not want to see him lose. He was a hero, after all. The hero was NOT supposed to lose.

The Mecha-Kaiju's ears picked up the shouting and its eyes locked upon the cheering crowd. It growled and opened its mouth. The energy began to charge up in its throat before it fired. The crowd screamed as the beam flew towards them.

Suddenly, a huge shadow covered the crowd. They looked up and saw the red eyes of the gigantic Kamen Rider looking at them in concern. He was on one knee and had his arms spread, his back facing the Mecha-Kaiju as he used his own body as a shield. The beam crashed against his back with explosive force and continued to burn against him. Struggling, he stood his ground as he protected the people. His eyes scanned the crowd to see his mother and sisters looking at him, astonished.

The Mecha-Kaiju stopped its assault and began to charge at the injured Rider. Hearing the stomps, Showa quickly got up to his feet and turned, throwing a fist that slammed into the creature's head. The impact broke off one of its head horns. Showa then followed up with another punch that hit the Mecha-Kaiju in the chest, sending it staggering back.

He could already feel his energy draining so he opted to finish this fight quickly. He knew if he used a Rider Kick on it, the monster's explosion could destroy the city. There had to be a better way. The Mecha-Kaiju suddenly grabbed the Rider in a crushing bear hug. Showa grunted and looked the monster in the eye.

He then got an idea. '_Of course!_' He focused and he glowed blue before he shrank down, causing the Mecha-Kaiju to lose its grip, and flew straight at the Mecha-Kaiju before entering through one of its nostrils.

The spectators only saw Showa disappear and wonder what had happened. Did he run away? Rika, Hanyuu and Shiori knew better. Kamen Rider Showa always had a plan.

Inside the monster was Kamen Rider Showa, using the form of Biorider. "Now, time to gum up the works." He looked around where he was and with a grin summoned Bio Blade. He then started to wreck the Mecha-Kaiju's insides. Using his ability to assume liquid form, he moved fluidly through the Mecha-Kaiju's insides, damaging vital components to shut it down from within.

The crowd started to flee but then someone pointed out that the creature wasn't moving. What they saw were sparks flying out from its head and joints as it began to twitch on the spot. The gleam in its eyes dimmed to darkness as smoke began to spew out from its nostrils and mouth.

A glowing blue figure flew out from the creature's nostril and landed far from the crowd. At first it looked like Biorider but then it shrunk down to the form of a 6 year old boy.

"Huh?" Shinji blinked in confusion. "Kaa-chan? Rika-chan? Hanyuu-chan?" He then realized he was standing in a huge shadow and looked up to see the now stationary Mecha-Kaiju. He screamed, "KAA-CHAN!"

Shiori, Rika and Hanyuu quickly went to look for Shinji and found him crying while he was standing right under the monster's shadow. Shiori called out, "Shinji!"

"Kaa-chan!" Shinji ran into his mother's arms. "Run away! That monster's gonna eat us!"

"It's okay, Shinji. The monster can't hurt us anymore," Shiori comforted her son.

* * *

**-X-SHOCKER HQ-**

"How interesting," admitted Dr. X after watching the defeat of the Mecha-Kaiju. "Even in his current state he still has access to his ability to transform. Guess he isn't helpless after all."

* * *

**-ARMOR HQ-**

Dr. Hasuma was reviewing the footage. He'd heard about Shinji's condition and was surprised to see that in spite of it he still possessed his ability to transform and fight. "It's subconscious," he concluded. "Even though his memories are mixed up with chunks of them missing, deep down in his subconscious mind he still remembers." He would need to have Shinji brought to ARMOR for an examination. The question was if Shiori was willing to do it.

He knew about Shinji's history after reading the files. At age 6 he'd been kidnapped and taken to GIN-SHOCKER where Gebok turned him into a Kaizo Ningen. Bringing Shinji to ARMOR and examining him could violently reawaken those memories. He took a seat and sighed. According to the information he got from Lala, Shinji, Rika, Hanyuu and Shiori's condition was only temporary. Once the temporal energy affecting them completely faded away, they would be back to normal. That may be true for Shiori, Rika and Hanyuu, but what about Shinji?

As for the Mecha-Kaiju, it still stood in the middle of the town it'd attacked. Dr. Hasuma decided to have a recovery team with specialized vehicles carry the creature back to ARMOR for study and dismantling. It was a huge eyesore and the components gained could become useful to ARMOR in producing new weapons and equipment.

They needed to do everything in their power to stop LEVIATHAN and all evil connected to it. That was the reason ARMOR existed.

* * *

Kamen Rider Chrome: How was that? Did you like it? Hope you did.


	12. The Rise of X Shocker Part 10

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 10: Childhood's End**

"We're home!" announced Shinji and Shiori as they entered through the door with Rika and Hanyuu in tow.

"Welcome back," greeted Kasai.

"How's Sho?" Shiori asked. "I hope you didn't have any problems with him."

"Oh, Sho's asleep. He was a bit troublesome during his bath time, meal time, and when I tried to change him, but I got the hang of it," answered Kasai.

"My big strong man," Shiori flirted, hands on his chest. "How about you and me party?" Kasai's eyebrows shot up. "Come on, Tatsuyoshi-kun. My body is young now. I bet you'd like to know what it's like to be with a younger woman, right?"

"What are Kaa-chan and Otousan talking about?" Shinji asked his sisters.

"You'll find out when you're older," said Rika. "Now, come on. It's time we go took a bath!"

"OK, don't push!" Shinji said as Rika pushed him up towards the bathroom. Hanyuu followed too. They were going to bathe together. It was normal for siblings at this age to do that.

"So, what happened?" Kasai asked once the kids, specifically Shinji, were out of earshot.

"Shinji almost got kidnapped today," Shiori answered.

"I knew I should've come alone." He had his shotgun and could legally carry it around to defend his family.

"It's alright now, though. He got rescued by Alan," said Shiori, thankfully.

"OK, so would you mind explaining what happened in town? It's all over the news," inquired Kasai, He was referring to the battle between the gigantic Mecha-Kaiju and the equally huge Kamen Rider.

"Shinji activated his powers when that thing stepped on him," Shiori began to explain. She continued, "He transformed and beat it but when he changed back he doesn't remember."

"I see," Kasai nodded, understanding.

"I'm so glad he's alright," Shiori admitted. "When I saw that thing step on him, I thought that…I really thought that…" She was close to tears. Kasai pulled his wife into a hug. "I don't wanna lose him again."

* * *

"I don't see any damage," said Dr. Magi as he examined Chiaki in the Irie Clinic. Earlier, Shogo had also been examined. Fortunately, their armors had protected them. Still, a large enough charge could've rendered Shogo unable to transform for quite some time. He finished, "Right, you're alright."

"Thank you," said Chiaki gratefully. Hanyuu had cried and went to see if he was alright after Drill Rhino had been defeated. He wondered who that man in the bronze armor was. Warren might know. The Director of ARMOR seemed to have unlimited knowledge over things like this. The armor did seem mystical in nature.

Down in the NEO-NUMBERS' base, Lucifer was sitting in Shogo's lap. When she heard from Satan on how he got hurt, she immediately went to check up on the Wasp (or was it Hornet?) Rider.

"So, you sure you're okay?" Lucifer asked.

"Dr. Magi checked. My flight capabilities did take some damage but it'll be alright after some time," Shogo explained. "I'll be up in the air in no time."

"What a relief. I kinda like the sound you make when those wings of yours beat."

"Nothing is going to keep me grounded, Luci-chan," said Shogo, smiling at the eldest of the 7 Stakes.

"So, is it true that BLACK 13's been shrunk?" Lucifer inquired.

"Well, the actual story is that his time powers de-aged him along with his mother and adopted sisters," said Shogo.

"That guy (Shinichi) never ceases to amaze me."

"No kidding."

* * *

"I miss Shin-kun…" groaned Rena.

"Big Shin-kun or little Shin-kun?" Mion inquired.

"Both."

"Don't worry, Rena. Your boyfriend will be back to normal before you know it, and then you can squeeze and cuddle him as much as you want," said Shion reassuringly. Mion and Rena were at Shion's apartment, hanging out. They'd also heard the news about how Kamen Rider Showa (as Kamen Rider J) fought with a giant monster and defeated it. He was definitely making a name for himself with the 'Kamen Rider' title.

"Big surprises sure come in small packages, don't they?" Mion asked.

"Well, Shin-chan has always been full of them since he showed up," said Shion. She frowned, "Though, it would be nice if he wasn't such a perv."

"Shin-chan is Shin-chan," Mion remarked. "He is who he is. I prefer Shin-chan to BLACK 13."

Mention of that name made the twins shudder. That guy was cold and logical. Not exactly the most pleasant of company. Only Rena didn't mind him when he took over Shinichi that time when Gebok tried to use some sort of mind-wipe virus.

"I wonder what Shin-kun is doing right now," mused Rena aloud.

* * *

Shinji was drawing in the living room with his crayons. Interested, Shiori looked over his shoulder. "Who's that?"

"The onii-chan who saved me!" Shinji answered, smiling. He'd just drawn a picture of Green Lantern Alan Smith. He'd also drawn other pictures but what caught Shiori's attention was that they were pictures of the Kamen Riders whose forms he could assume. She thought back to the telephone conversation she had earlier. Dr. Hasuma had called and concluded that Shinji still possessed his powers in his now younger form but could only subconsciously call upon them while he was in absolute danger. His powers hadn't activated when Electric Butterfly tried to kidnap him because he'd been rescued but when the Mecha-Kaiju had stomped on him (Shiori cringed at the memory) his powers activated and transformed him into Kamen Rider J.

"He's cool, right?" Shinji asked.

"Yes, he is, and I really want to thank him for saving you," said Shiori gratefully.

* * *

Yami was carrying Baby Alan in her arms as she walked with GL-Alan towards Shinji's house. The little baby clings onto the front of Yami's shirt, looking up at her with his eyes.

"So, why did you want to come along?" GL-Alan asked.

"Lala had her turn," Yami answered. "This time, let me help you babysit."

"Oh, OK." That was a simple enough answer. As they continued their walk, they walked past an elderly couple.

"My, look at them," the old woman said. "Such a young and loving couple, and their baby is cute too."

Yami blushed when she heard this. She began to imagine what it would be like to be a mother and being married to GL-Alan. Of course her mind wandered towards forbidden territory as she imagined them MAKING the baby.

**WHAM!**

GL-Alan ended up kissing the dirt as Yami's hair had formed into a fist which she'd used to slug him. Rising to his feet, he demanded, "Hey, what was that for?" while rubbing his head.

"You were being ecchi," she answered. Baby Alan giggled. He tugged a bit on her hair as well. GL-Alan gave him a bewildered look. When exactly was he being ecchi?

* * *

"Kaa-chan, where are you going?" Shinji asked, his big indigo eyes staring up at his mother and father. They looked dressed up.

"Your father and I have a dinner reservation, honey," Shiori said as she knelt down to eye level with him. She didn't feel like abandoning her son, but this was something important. She really didn't feel comfortable about leaving the kids alone, but fortunately she'd called for a couple of babysitters.

The doorbell rang and Shiori opened the door to let them in. One was Yami, who was cradling Baby Alan in her arms and with her was GL-Alan. Shinji's eyes widened and he let out a huge smile as he saw GL-Alan. Even if he wasn't wearing his uniform, the little boy recognized him. GL-Alan was wearing a green jacket over a black t-shirt with blue jeans. Yami was wearing a sleeveless black sweater that had a silver cross on it with a matching miniskirt and black and white striped stockings.

Shiori's instructions were simply, "Protect them and make sure they get to bed early."

GL-Alan saluted, "Will do."

The couple exited the house before driving off, Shinji waving at them as they left. Yami went and put Baby Alan down in the playpen with Sho. Shiori's baby looked at Yami and raised his little hands to be picked up. She narrowed her eyes. Sho was a bit grabby when girls came and picked him up.

"Nii-chan!" Shinji showed GL-Alan the drawing he'd made. "I drew this!" It was a drawing of GL-Alan.

"Nice," GL-Alan complimented. "Come on in, Shinji," said GL-Alan. "Let's play some video games."

"Yay, video games!"

* * *

Both Shiori and Kasai arrived at the restaurant. It was a pretty fancy place with a 5 Star rating. It was also quite popular, which made reservations difficult and as such needed to be made months in advanced. When the couple arrived, they identified themselves to the maitre d' who then led them towards their table. Already seated were Warren Smith and his wife Rachel.

"Konbanwa, Warren-san," Shiori greeted politely. Kasai pulled the chair out for her like a gentleman before taking his own seat.

"Good evening to you too," greeted Warren.

"I hope we didn't keep you waiting," Shiori said.

"We just got here, actually." The waiter came with their menus.

This dinner double date was an important one. It was also a meeting concerning a certain shrunken Kaizo Ningen.

"How's Shinji doing?" Warren asked as he looked up from his menu.

"He's fine," Shiori answered honestly. "So full of life and energy."

"He has to be, considering he did defeat a giant monster all on his own." Warren caught her frown. "What's wrong?"

"It's just, today I was hoping for a normal day outside with my daughters and son when someone tried to kidnap him. Fortunately, your son, Alan, came to his rescue."

"That's his job."

"Then a giant monster showed up and nearly…" Shiori found it hard to say as it'd been horrible, even if things had turned out alright in the end. "It nearly flattened my little Shinji."

"Well, it's a good thing he still has his powers than," said Warren positively. The waiter came back to take their orders. They each ordered an appetizer, followed by a main dish and finally dessert. The conversation continued once the waiter left.

"Shiori's worried if there will be more attempts on Shinji," Kasai said. "Will they (X-SHOCKER) try and take him away?"

"Most definitely," Rachel confirmed. "Shinji has a lot of power in him and he's vulnerable. They'll try to get their hands on him and then turn him into a weapon like they did before."

"No…" Shiori uttered in despair. "Not again…" Kasai put his hand on Shiori's as a comforting gesture.

"It won't stop there either," Warren added. He hated being the bearer of bad news but this was reality. "Gebok might come after Hanyuu, Rika and Sho too." The look of horror on Shiori's face unmistakable. "However, you don't have to worry," Warren assured her. "Right now I have around the clock surveillance on your home. Plus, Alan is there. Nothing bad will happen."

* * *

Shinji laughed as he ran from GL-Alan, naked, with soap covering his nether regions. "Get back here you little nudist!" the Green Lantern shouted as he gave chase. Hanyuu and Rika watched him run around naked and just shrugged before returning their attention to Sho and Baby Alan who were playing with building blocks. Yami smiled as she gazed down at them.

* * *

"Thank you, Warren-san," Shiori said gratefully.

"You have questions," Rachel suspected.

"Yes, I do," Shiori answered. She asked, "How long until we all turn back to normal?"

"Well, according to out information, sometime tomorrow," Warren answered. Shiori looked disappointed. "You don't seem too happy."

"It's just that…it's silly, really…but I was hoping that it'd be longer," Shiori admitted. She really liked being young again, but most of all she could catch up and make up for lost time with Shinji now that he was like this."

"I understand," Warren nodded. He really did. He was a parent too and the thought of losing his children always crossed his mind because of his work. He did his best to not only protect them, but to spend as much time as he could with them. Time flew quickly and then they'd be all grown up. They were still kids so he wanted to be with them during their childhood.

"Can you…maybe…make it so he's this way a little bit longer?" Shiori asked. Kasai looked at her aghast.

"Shiori, listen to me!" Warren said with a stern look on his features. "Even though you want to keep this up, this won't be good for Shinichi. If he doesn't return to normal, not only will be probably be stuck like this, but if his memories return to him in his current mindset and in the wrong way then he'll be driven mad."

"B-but." Shiori stuttered. She felt a hand on her shoulder, making her turn to look at Kasai

"You know he's right, Shiori, we have to do this, for Shinji."

Some tears fell from her eyes but she slowly nodded and said, "You're right." She dried her tears with the napkin. "For now, I'll just have to make the most of it."

* * *

The appetizers came, followed by the main dishes and finally dessert. During their meal together, they talked of more pleasant things. They spoke of their work, what was new in life, current events, and their home lives. Indeed, while Shiori's concerns were still in her mind, she could forget about them for now with charming company.

Kasai made sure she didn't overindulge on the wine.

* * *

Sho was sleeping soundly in his crib. Shinji also got to bed right after dinner. Rika and Hanyuu had also gone to sleep, feeling exhausted after today. Down in the living room, an exhausted Green Lantern that went by the name of Alan Smith dropped down on the couch. Sitting next to him was Yami who was cradling his baby self within her arms. Baby Alan was sound asleep, a thumb in his mouth.

"I think I prefer Shinichi when he's his right age," GL-Alan admitted. Even though Shinichi was a pervert, he at least had a measure of self-control. Shinji, once he got too much sugar in his system, was a nightmare.

"You're just upset because you had to give him a bath," Yami remarked. Earlier, GL-Alan had gotten really wet when Shinji splashed him. It was funny to see him soaked. Good thing his ring dried him right up.

"It'll be good blackmail material," GL-Alan replied with a grin. He asked Yami, "So, having thoughts of being a mother?"

Yami blushed and then glared at him, whispering in a threatening voice, "Ecchi…" her hair in the form of knives. He backed away from her.

"Yami, don't get mad," he tried to placate her. The doorbell rang. "Saved by the bell." He jumped off the couch and went straight to the door.

Yami sighed. It wasn't that she didn't like it when she and GL-Alan got intimate, it was just that when embarrassed she often responded with violence. Speaking of violence, earlier some W14 units came. Unfortunately for them, Yami and GL-Alan were able to take them out without much trouble. Only a single group came but the two kept their eyes opened for trouble.

* * *

In a hotel room, Daichi was lying in bed with a green-haired girl. He had his arm around her as she snuggled against him. Both were also naked as their clothes laid strewn about the floor.

"So, did something get you pissed that you had to let it all out during sex?" Leviathan questioned as she looked up at him. Sex was great! Asmodeus really wasn't kidding about that.

Their sex was often rough, which resulted in grunting (from Daichi) and screaming (from Leviathan). She loved it when he pinned her down and had his way with her, hard and fast. Being a Kaizo Ningen had its advantages when it came to stamina. Even after several orgasms he was ready for more and she was too ready for him.

"Just this whole deal with being bodyguards to #13," Daichi told her. He looked annoyed.

"What's so bad about that? He is your friend, right?" Leviathan inquired curiously.

"Yeah, he's alright, but…seeing him so vulnerable like that is just so hard to believe." Where was the human weapon that he'd grown up with? Where was the human weapon that had killed him?

"What was it like growing up in GIN-SHOCKER?" Leviathan asked. He never really told her much of that time.

"We were all being groomed to be super soldiers for GIN-SHOCKER. Sometimes it was okay, and sometimes it was torture." He recalled the operations where he needed upgrades to suit his growing body. He also remembered the tests and experiments. "#13, however, was not a soldier. He was a weapon and a powerful one at that." He sighed. "I really thought I could trust him and then he just stabbed us all in the back as he killed us one by one. I couldn't forgive him after we were revived. I wanted to kill him. But then…"

"You couldn't go through with it after you saw his friends," she concluded.

"It was so unfair. We all died and he ends up in a village, making friends who had no idea what he'd done. When we came back, we were again slaves to GIN-SHOCKER."

"But, because of him, you're all free."

"Yeah," Daichi admitted begrudgingly. She then crawled over and straddled him. "Levi?"

"We have all night, right?" she asked as she rubbed against him. He moaned. "Yeah, that's right. Keep moaning." She gasped when she felt his hands gripping her hips. "Dai!"

He grinned as he lifted her up. He was already hard and rigid. He then pulled her down, plunging himself deep inside her. She let out a scream.

* * *

_"Please...let me go..." little Shinji begged as Gebok loomed over him with a red hot brand._

_"This won't hurt a bit," said Gebok as he pressed the hot brand over Shinji's eye. The little boy screamed. "It'll hurt lots!"_

_The brand was removed and it left a smoking XIII on Shinji. The little boy cried and whimpered, "Kaa-chan..."_

_"Now, let's begin the operation!"_

_With that being said, Gebok took out a syringe from his chest pocket and grabbed Shinji by the shoulders._

_"This won't hurt a bit, boy," Gebok said. He pierced a vein in Shinji's neck with the needle and ejected the contents into Shinji. Shinji immediately found himself going limp as the solution entered his body. His eyes widened and his pupils dilated as Shinji felt like all the blood in his body had turned into ice._

_"That's it, let yourself fall under the drug's effect," Gebok sneered as he made a motion with his left arm, making what look like machines holding different equipment to appear around him._

_Before Shinji lost consciousness he heard Gebok say, "You should feel honored. You're about to become my greatest creation!"_

_Gebok grinned__**;**__ the chemicals he injected into the little would not only knock him out but also rewrite his DNA structure. The genetic enhancements would increase the boy's physical performance but that was just the first step. Biological enhancements weren't enough. The boy needed some new parts._

"_First incision," said Gebok as he put the scalpel against Shinji's bare chest and began to cut._

* * *

Shiori was all smiles as she and Kasai returned home together. The door opened and GL-Alan greeted them. "How was your night?" he asked.

"Marvelous," Shiori told him. "How were the kids? I hope they weren't any trouble?" she asked.

GL-Alan lied, "No problem. Everything went al-"

Suddenly, they all heard an ear-piercing scream.

"SHINJI!" Shiori shouted as she removed herself from Kasai's side and then ran up the stairs. She threw the door to Shinji's door open and rushed inside. Shinji was wide awake, clutching his blanket. He was sweating and trembling in terror. "Shinji!"

"Kaa-chan!" he called. She instantly took him into her arms, holding him close. "Kaa-chan, it was horrible!"

"It's alright, Shinji," she said soothingly as she rubbed his back up and down. He was crying. "It was just a nightmare…"

"But, it was so real!" he told her. "I was tied up on this table and this man was about to cut me with a knife!" Shiori froze. She recalled Warren's words.

'_He's getting his memories back_,' she realized. Unfortunately, the memories he was getting back were not good ones. He looked absolutely terrified. Whatever the memory was, it had to have been horrible.

It was all Gebok's fault her son was like this.

"Kaa-chan, can I sleep with you and Otousan tonight?" Shinji asked hopefully.

"Of course, sweetie. Of course."

* * *

The previous night, Shinji had slept together with his parents in their bed. Even though his scream had been loud, Sho had not awakened. Rika and Hanyuu had been alarmed when they heard Shinji's scream but were relieved when Shiori was able to calm him down.

Now that it was morning, Shinji sat at breakfast with his family. Sho sat in a high chair, being fed baby food by Shiori. They rest were having pancakes with chocolate sauce.

Yummy.

Shinji didn't look terrified anymore. Guess being in his mother's embrace chased all the nightmares away. Shiori was glad. She really didn't like it when she saw her son looking so frightened and alone.

"Kaa-chan, what are we going to do today?" Shinji asked.

* * *

"So, they'll be back to normal in a few more hours?" Warren asked Dr. Magi.

"Exactly. From this data, it would appear the temporal energy surrounding them is already weakening. It may vary from one person to the next, but I predict that within 10 hours they'll be their proper ages," reported Dr. Magi.

"That's good to hear," said Warren, relieved. Maybe he should give Shiori a call.

* * *

The phone in the house was ringing. However, no one was there to pick it up.

* * *

"Amusement Park! Amusement Park!" Shinji jumped up and down as he and his family stood before the entrance. Sho was in a baby carriage. Shiori managed to score tickets for the whole family.

"He seems pretty excited," said Hanyuu.

"Yeah, but that's to be expected," Rika admitted.

Kasai knew Shiori was using this trip as an excuse to spend time with Shinji again. They would all turn back to normal at some point today, so Shiori was going to spend as much time as possible with Shinji before he turned back into Shinichi. He went along with it since there was nothing wrong with a mother trying to spend time with her children.

"Let's go on that one, Kaa-chan!" Shinji pointed at the roller coaster. "Can we? Can we?"

"Sorry, Shinji, but you're not old enough to ride," he told her son apologetically. He frowned.

"Then I wanna grow up so I can ride it!" he told her. Shiori frowned.

'_Your wish will come true soon_,' Shiori thought, sighing. Fortunately, Shinji didn't notice. "Come on. Let's go on the spinning teacups."

"OK!" Shinji beamed. He took hold of her hand and squeezed tight.

* * *

Dr. Hasuma was monitoring the family, arms crossed with a serious expression on his face. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see who it was. "Director-san."

"So, anything new?" Warren asked as he looked at DORA's surveillance monitors. "I see you're keeping an eye on things."

"It's my job," Dr. Hasuma told Warren seriously. "And you told me you needed me to watch him."

"Yes, I did," Warren remembered. "Even if he has powers, he's still pretty vulnerable. He's already been through that nightmare once. He doesn't have to go through it again."

"Indeed," Dr. Hasuma agreed. "To be turned into a weapon at a young age. He and the others lost their childhood when GIN-SHOCKER got their hands on them." He clenched his fists, guilt on his face. If only he'd stopped the Great Leader in his world from escaping then Shinji would've had a normal childhood and grown up with a normal life.

"It wasn't your fault."

"Doesn't mean I should feel guilty. At least I can watch over him now."

Warren patted him on the back. "That's the spirit!"

* * *

"So, they're right here, huh?" a grinning man said as he looked up at the amusement park entrance.

"Yeah. Remember the plan, OK?" his companion reminded.

"Yeah, yeah. I remember. Just don't get in my way or I'll kill ya."

* * *

Shiori watched as Rika, Hanyuu and Shinji played on the Merry-Go-Round. They'd just finished with the Spinning Teacups ride. She and Kasai were sitting on a bench. Sho was asleep in his baby carriage.

"Hey, fancy meeting you here," a familiar face greeted.

"Ah, Conner-san!" Shiori got up to greet him. "Konnichiwa." She gave a bow. He returned the gesture.

"And so this is your husband," Conner acknowledged. "Tatsuyoshi Kasai, right?"

Kasai stood up, his intimidating stature shadowing Conner. He then stuck a hand out in greeting. "That's right. My wife told me about you. She met you and your family in the playground the other day."

"Yeah, she did," replied Conner as he shook Kasai's hand.

"Papa!" Ai waved from atop one of the horses on the Merry-Go-Round. Conner waved back.

"So, where's your wife?" Shiori asked.

"Oh, Ryoko had something important to do, so it's just me and my little girl," Conner told her. "And so this is your baby, huh?" He was smiling as he looked at Sho.

"Yeah, that's him." The ride ended before Shinji, Rika and Hanyuu leapt off their horses and ran up to their mother. Even though Rika and Hanyuu still had their full memories, it was hard to resist their childish impulses in their current forms. She checked her watch. "Hm, it's lunch time. Come on kids, let's go and eat."

"Can I have a big bowl of ice cream and some candy?" Shinji asked hopefully.

"Later, when we get home," Shiori promised, ruffling his hair. Shinji smiled. "Come on, let's go and have lunch."

Conner watched the family leave. He felt Ai tugging on his arm. "Yes, honey?"

"I like him," Ai told him, pointing at Sho. She had pink on her cheeks and giggling.

* * *

The family was having lunch at the amusement park's restaurant. Shinji was having a hamburger steak which Shiori helped to cut. He had sauce all over his face, which she wiped. He was such a messy eater. Shiori didn't mind at all. She just loved taking care of her son. After cleaning him up, she fed Sho a bottle of milk. The others were having different food as well. Rika and Hanyuu went and ordered omurice (basically, it is rice wrapped in an omelet) while Kasai had ramen. Shiori had the same thing Shinji was having.

Suddenly, the door was kicked open and a gunshot was heard. The sudden noise caused Sho to start crying and the people to panic.

"Alright, people! This is a stickup, see?" The gunman had blond hair and wore a domino mask on his face. His costume was a black bodysuit with red gloves and boots. Over his costume he wore a red poncho with a black swastika. He wore a dagger in his belt. He shot into the ceiling again to show that he wasn't kidding and not some kind of amusement park mascot. "ON THE FLOOR, NOW!" he ordered. The customers and staff all did as ordered.

He was also accompanied by a man in black ninja garb with steel forearm guards. The ninja clothes had a purple spider web pattern and he had a scarf wrapped around the lower half of his face. Around his forehead was a headband with a steel plate in front that depicted X-SHOCKER's emblem. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of goggles with red lenses. His hair was spiked up and brown. What was the most shocking about his appearance were the four mechanical arms that were attached to his back. He was Spider Ninja,

The gunman, Kid Karnevil, grinned as he scanned the place. There were so many people to kill. He then spotted their target and strode over, gun in hand. Kasai stood up to defend his family, shotgun already in hand.

"Trying to be the hero, huh?" Kid Karnevil laughed. He sneered, "How brave."

Kasai silently cocked his shotgun as Shiori held her children protectively close to her. Suddenly, Spider Ninja appeared right behind Kasai and sent him flying with a punch. Kasai crashed through several tables and was promptly knocked out by the blow.

"Anata!" Shiori cried. She felt the barrel of the gun pressed against her temple.

Sho's crying annoyed Kid Karnevil. "Shut that kid up!" he ordered. Shiori carefully took Sho out of his carriage and whispered soothing words to him as she rocked him to calm him down. When the baby stopped crying, she put him back in the carriage.

"Now, gimme your big little boy," Kid Karnevil said in a gentle tone, referring to Shinji, but the insane look on his face told her all she needed to know. She was not going to hand her son to another psycho.

"No!" she denied him, spitting in his face. His grin turned into a frown as he wiped the spit away with a paper napkin.

"Time to die, bitch!" Kid Karnevil was ready to squeeze the trigger when all of a sudden he was knocked onto his back by Shinji.

"Leave Kaa-chan alone you big meanie!" Shinji began swinging at his face with punches. Normally, a 6 year old child's punches wouldn't hurt him, but this was no ordinary kid. He was a Kaizo Ningen and the blows from his tiny fists hurt a lot!

"Get off me!" Kid Karnevil threw him off him. He aimed his gun but then it was knocked out of his hand by a fork that Shinji had thrown. "Damn it!" Kid Karnevil cursed. "You little brat!" He then grabbed Rika and held the knife to her throat.

"Rika!" Hanyuu, Shinji and Shiori cried.

"Now, you brat. Come over here and I'll let your cute sister go," Kid Karnevil instructed. "And no funny business or she gets it!"

Hanyuu wished she could use her powers. However, in her current form she couldn't access them. She wished she could help but the situation was a dangerous one.

"Promise you won't hurt her?" Shinji asked.

"Sure, whatever. Just get over here!" Kid Karnevil ordered. Shinji walked over. Rika shook her head but Shinji ignored her. She was his sister, after all. When he got close, Kid Karnevil tossed Rika aside and grabbed Shinji by his hair. Shinji yelped.

"Let him go!" Shiori ordered. In her hand was the gun Kid Karnevil had dropped. She had it aimed at him.

"Ah, ah, ha," Kid Karnevil waved his knife tauntingly. "You don't wanna hurt this kid now, do you?" He pointed the knife at Shinji's eye. Shiori trembled. "Good. Now then, drop the gun and kick it over." He ordered when she hesitated, "Do it!" She did and kicked it over to him. He put his foot over it.

"Please, don't hurt him," Shiori pleaded.

Looking down on Shinji, he got an idea. "Actually, I think I will."

Kid Karnevil held the knife to Shinji's throat. "What are you doing you maniac!" shouted Spider Ninja. "We're supposed to bring the boy ba-" However, he was silenced when Kid Karevil's knife found its way into Spider Ninja's throat before he yanked it out. Being an android, this didn't kill him**;** however, his voice box was severed.

"Shut up! This is more fun!" laughed Kid Karnevil. He then brought the knife down, but was shocked when it stopped, embedded in the hand of a very enraged Green Lantern Alan Smith in uniform. "Oh..."

"Eat willpower psycho!" roared GL-Alan as he blasted Kid Karnevil out the window, shattering it, with a massive burst of emerald energy. GL-Alan then looked at his hand, which still had the knife in it. "Crap this hurts!"

Spider Ninja decided to make a run for it. He then saw Hanyuu and Shiori. Desperate, he fired webbing from his mechanical arms and captured them like fish in a net. He then tossed a flash bomb to the ground which blinded everyone with a flash of light before it released smoke to cover his escape.

"Kaa-chan! Hanyuu-chan!" Shinji shouted. He coughed. '_No…_' The smoke was thick but then his eyes glowed red as his body became enveloped in light. It was radiating through the smoke, which GL-Alan noticed right away.

The smoke cleared and standing tall was Kamen Rider Showa GX. His gaze went towards the door before he made a dash for it. "Shinichi!" GL-Alan called but the Rider simply ignored him. He then vanished from sight. "Damn it!" Sho was crying again, but his mother wasn't around to calm him down. Rika was at Kasai's side. The man managed to come to but now he had a splitting headache.

* * *

It didn't take long for Showa to catch up to Spider Ninja. Between the two of them, Showa was the faster one. When the Rider spotted Spider Ninja fleeing, he drew his sword and called out, "Strike from the Shadows…ZENNIN!"

With that command, the sword transformed into a massive four-pointed shuriken as Showa's armor morphed into the Kage Form configuration. He drew his arm back and then swung, sending the Dai-Shuriken flying straight at Spider Ninja's back. The 6-armed ninja android spun on his heels and jumped to avoid from being bisected by the spinning projectile. Like a boomerang, it returned to Showa's hands before he stuck it to his back.

"Where are they?" Showa demanded. Spider Ninja couldn't tell him even if he wanted to because Kid Karnevil had severed his voice box. Showa noticed this too. "So, you can't talk, huh? Guess I'll have to extract the information some other way." He cracked his knuckles.

Spider Ninja assumed a fighting stance as did Showa. They then charged at each other, exchanging blows. Spider Ninja had the upper hand due to his additional appendages. However, that did not last as Showa suddenly vanished from sight. Spider Ninja spun around when he sensed Showa's presence before receiving a palm strike right in the face. This causes his goggles' lenses to shatter. Showa then grabbed hold of Spider Ninja's scarf and yanked him close, kneeing him in the gut. The android doubled over.

Showa's hand began to glow and he placed it on Spider Ninja's head. "Let's see what you're hiding." His eyes flashed as he began to search through Spider Ninja's memory banks, looking for the information he needed. When he was done, he tossed Spider Ninja to the ground. "Kaa-chan, Hanyuu-chan, I'm coming. But first…" He formed a dark energy ball in his hand and aimed it at Spider Ninja. "Say goodnight." Just as he was about to fire his Shadow Ball, he felt a firm grip on his wrist. "Let go, Alan."

"You're wasting time here," the Green Lantern said. "Right now, we have to find your mother and Hanyuu."

Showa glanced at Spider Ninja and found that he'd disappeared. He growled under his breath before wrenching his arm free from GL-Alan's grasp. "Let's go. I know where they are."

* * *

Hanyuu was tied to a chair by steel chains. Shiori was also tied up but she was unconscious. Spider Ninja had knocked the two of them out but the little goddess had recovered much earlier and woke up. The madman responsible for their situation was Dr. X. Spider Ninja had brought them into the Haunted House which was closed for renovations. Right now they were in something that looked like a cemetery.

"You can never leave Shinichi alone, can you?" Hanyuu questioned angrily. She was wearing an inhibitor collar. Dr. X was careful. He didn't want her powers to destroy him. His plan was to lure Shinichi here and then use his loved ones as bargaining chips.

"Of course I can't," Dr. X answered. "I did create him but he betrayed me. What an ungrateful child."

"What does he have t be grateful for? You took him away from his family, turned him into a Kaizo Ningen against his will, and made him kill his comrades. You even tricked him into killing the girl he loved," said Hanyuu in an accusing tone.

"Call it 'tough love', my dear," Dr. X replied nonchalantly. "A parent has to be firm so their children can grow."

"And stop claiming to be his parent!" snapped Hanyuu. "Shiori-mama has done more for him, for us, than you ever did!"

"Which is why this is the perfect way to teach BLACK 13 a lesson," remarked Dr. X. "This isn't just about beating him. This is about making him suffer and the sight of his dear mother dying will cause his mind and heart to snap. Sure, he can reverse time and try to save her, but that just means I can try other ways to finish her off each time." He leaned over towards Hanyuu who grimaced in disgust. "As for you, my dear, I'm going to experiment on you and see what makes you tick." He added, "Don't bother using those powers of yours. That collar around your neck presents you from using them."

Hanyuu growled, "You have no idea who you're messing with." Her eyes seem to glow red which Dr. X didn't notice.

* * *

Showa and GL-Alan arrived at the Haunted House, which resembled an old-fashioned European mansion. There was a sign hung at the door which read 'Closed for Renovations'. "They're here," Show said certainly. He kicked the door open. "Let's go."

* * *

"You mean BLACK 13? I know all his tricks now and I've seen what he can do. I've seen what his friend Alan Smith can do too. Nothing surprises me," remarked Dr. X.

"I wasn't talking about them," said Hanyuu as she phased right through her bindings.

"What?" Dr. X gawked. "How?" The collar around her neck also fell off. He reached for his gun and aimed it at her, only for an invisible force to knock into him and send him flying straight into the wall with a hard thud. "Ugh!" he grunted.

Hanyuu's hair flailed about as she hovered a foot off the ground. Her eyes glowed red and the aura was radiating off her body. She approached Dr. X who found himself staring at the girl in terror. He wasn't looking at some girl with super powers. He was looking at the embodiment of the Hinamizawan deity, Oyashiro-sama.

"_**Let me tell you something and make sure every lowlife you know hears this as well. I want you to spread the message**_," she spoke in an eerie ethereal voice. "_**As of right now, our families and loved ones are OFF LIMITS! You come after our loved ones, threaten them, bump into them on the street or even THINK of hurting them, then what awaits you is a slow and painful END!**_" Dr. X screwed his eyes shut. "_**I'm talking to you. Look at me! I said LOOK AT ME!**_" He had no choice but to comply

Before Dr. X's eyes, Hanyuu seemed to grow 15 feet tall with a demonic visage. The aura around her intensified as well. "_**Remember what I said, Gebok. Don't you ever come after the people I love ever again, do you hear me? DON'T YOU EVEN DARE!**_"

He could do nothing but scream.

* * *

Another W14 android fell at Showa's hands. They littered the floor in pieces. GL-Alan had dealt with a few as well. "Come on," said Showa. Suddenly, they heard a scream. "What was that?"

"It came from over there!"

* * *

The Kamen Rider and Green Lantern found both Hanyuu and Shiori, safe and sound. Showa was relieved as he strode over to them, checking them. "Are you both okay?" he asked.

"We're fine," said Hanyuu calmly. "Right, Shiori-mama?"

"Shinji?" Shiori asked. Showa took her hand in his.

"Kaa-chan, let's go home," Showa said. His body glowed and then shrunk down. When the light died, the Kamen Rider had reverted into a sleeping Shinji.

"Oh, Shinji…" She put her son on her back and carried him.

"So, what happened?" GL-Alan asked. "We heard a scream."

"Oh, don't worry about it," said Hanyuu calmly, smiling. "It was probably the wind."

GL-Alan cocked an eyebrow. He didn't look too convinced.

* * *

Spider Ninja returned to X-SHOCKER Headquarters and got his voice box repaired. However, he wished he'd gotten his audio sensors shut off. Why? Electric Butterfly was taunting him.

"Wow? Even _you_ couldn't capture a small, defenseless, kid?" she mocked, laughing.

"Aw…shut up!" he spat. "Say, where's the doctor?"

Speaking of which, Dr. X was hiding out in his lab. He was in the corner, rocking back and forth in a fetal position. He mumbled, "Oyashiro's gonna get me, Oyashiro's gonna get me, Oyashiro's gonna get me…" repeatedly.

"Pathetic," a cloaked figure said as he entered Dr. X's laboratory. "You've been reduced to this by a little child."

"Million-sama!" gasped Dr. X. He crawled over and bowed his head at Million's feet, begging forgiveness. Million's body was concealed under a cloak and hood. The cloak was blood red and on the back was X-SHOCKER's emblem. "Please, forgive me!"

Million simply kicked Gebok in the chin, knocking him backwards and onto his back. "M-Million-sama!"

"Send one of your gigantic creations," Million ordered. "Hopefully, it will make up for the stupid mistake you made, X."

"Right away, Million-sama!"

* * *

"Thank you so much! Thank you! Thank you!" Shiori was hugging the stuffing out of GL-Alan right now. The young Corpsman was being suffocated since his face was in her breasts. He struggled, but couldn't get free. They now stood in front of the Haunted House. Dr. X (Gebok) had gotten away.

"Onii-chan, you saved us again!" Shinji exclaimed. After he woke up, he came to the conclusion that the Green Lantern had rescued them.

Shiori let GL-Alan go and he took in a deep breath of air. "It's no problem, Ma'am. Just doing my job." He added, "Let's get you back to the rest of the family."

Safe to say, the family outing was ruined. What else could go wrong?

Murphy's Law: What can go wrong, will and absolutely _will_ go wrong.

A massive shadow appeared over the group, causing GL-Alan to let out a groan. "I hate my luck. Seriously, it flat out sucks…" This statement was followed by an eruption of panicked screaming. People were running about, screaming, trying to flee from the massive monster. It was a mechanical monstrosity, with the body of a lizard that was supported by eight spider-like legs. It also had eight beady red eyes which circled around as it looked at its surroundings. Rearing its head back, it let loose a massive roar like a dinosaur.

"You all should get to safety with the rest of your family," GL-Alan instructed, his ring glowing. He looked to Shinji and gave him a salute. "Kid, take care of your family." He then shot into the air to confront the creature. The Green Lantern started blasting with his ring, catching the Big Spider Lizard's attention. Its eyes fired laser beams at him, which he dodged as he returned fire. His beams couldn't penetrate its metal hide. Gritting his teeth, he started to fire a barrage of beams.

"This looks like a tough one," said Bazel.

"Yeah, but I've dealt with tougher," GL-Alan replied.

* * *

Meanwhile, Hanyuu and Shiori were trying to flee. Unfortunately, Shinji wasn't moving from his spot. He just stared at the fight, eyes wide and mouth gaping.

"Come on, let's go!" Hanyuu said as she tugged on Shinji's arm, but he wasn't budging. "Come on!"

"Shinji!" Shiori exclaimed insistently. "It's dangerous here! We have to go, now!"

Shinji was rooted to the spot, watching the fight. Suddenly, he clutched his head in pain and fell to his knees in agony. "Shinji!" Shiori cried out as she saw her son in pain. His head was throbbing. In his mind's eye, a deluge of colors surrounded him. He watched as his surroundings shattered into a vortex of shards that swallowed him right up. The shards held images in them which flashed across his mind.

_**FLASH!**_

_"Begin genetic infusion and alteration," Dr. Gebok ordered. "And next begin mental reconfiguration," he added._

_Shinji screamed as he felt a terrible pain run through his body. He called out loudly, "KAA-CHAN!"_

_**FLASH!**_

_"Listen, Shinji Banabara, and listen well. We may have failed this once but know this, boy! Unlike GIN-SHOCKER, we will kill you and then the rest of humanity," Baron Yukanon said with a sneer._

_"Not if I can help it," Shinichi growled. He was not going to let another organization like GIN-SHOCKER continue with their plans._

_**FLASH!**_

_Ranma suddenly laughed, causing Shinichi to become surprised and Gebok to become outraged._

_"What's so funny!" demanded Gebok angrily._

_"This boy's past may be lost in the darkness, but he was still able to grasp happiness and companionship with his own power. He may not know where he is from, but that doesn't stop him from deciding his own path towards the future. Humans need bonds and these bonds create new memories," said Ranma._

_Shinichi, touched by Ranma's words, rose up to his feet._

_"You bastard, who the hell are you!" demanded the Gebok._

_"Just a Kamen Rider who's passing through. Remember that!" said Ranma. "Henshin!"_

_**FLASH!**_

_"And you?" Shinichi's eyes fell on the Green Lantern who smiled at him._

_"Can't you guess, Shinichi?" the boy asked._

_"Huh?" Shinichi blinked._

_"Take a good look. Don't I remind you of anyone?" the boy asked, pointing to his eyes and hair. "Think hard. I know you're a smart guy."_

_Shinichi narrowed his eyes and in ten seconds they widened like saucers. He looked at the Green Lantern and then at baby Alan before looking back at the Lantern, then the baby, then the Lantern again._

…

_"EH!"_

_"Got it now?" the Green Lantern smirked._

_**FLASH!**_

_He groaned as his eyes slowly fluttered open and he found himself looking at a girl with chin length brown hair, blue eyes, and a halo of light around her head. It was actually the light from the ceiling above her but it still looked radiant._

_"Am I in Heaven, coz I see an angel…" the boy uttered, causing the girl to blush._

* * *

Shinji's bangs shadowed his head as he looked down. A moment ago he'd been in pain. Shiori and Hanyuu were concerned. He muttered, "I can't believe I forgot all that." He then looked up at them with a fiery determination in his eyes as he stood up. He returned his gaze towards the giant monster and the Green Lantern who was fighting it. "Alright, it looks like it's time for me to grow up."

"Shinji…" Shiori uttered. Shinji looked at her.

"Kaa-chan, thanks for taking care of me," he told her gratefully. "Hanyuu-chan, get Kaa-chan out of here." His Armorizer Belt formed and the Spark Core within glowed. Running towards the monster, he called out, "GX HENSHIN!"

As Shinji ran, the spirits of the Legendary Kamen Riders ran alongside him before overlapping his body. They vanished in a bright flash of light and now only one Rider was running towards battle. "Sing…YABUKI!"

GL-Alan muttered a curse under his breath. This mechanical monstrosity was a tough one.

"Having trouble, Alan?" Showa asked as he joined the Green Lantern in the air. He was in his green samurai-like Higurashi Form with his wings keeping him aloft and holding the Higurashi no Yaiba.

"Good to see you back," GL-Alan smiled.

"OK, let's do this!" Bazel declared. The Green Lantern was enveloped in the Bazel Power Armor. "Ready, you two?"

"Always," smirked Showa. The Big Spider Lizard roared and fired at the two heroes who flew at it. They narrowly avoided the beams. They then started their counterattack.

"HIGURASHI ZAN!" Showa called and with a swing of his blade, sending a crescent-shaped blade of energy at the Big Spider Lizard. It exploded harmlessly against the mechanical monstrosity. "A tough one."

"Yeah," GL-Alan noted. He stared at his ring. Time to get creative. "OK, time to squash this bug!"

Showa stared as GL-Alan formed a massive anvil with his ring. "Seriously?" GL-Alan shrugged as he dropped the anvil atop the mechanical monster, crushing it. "Seemed a bit…anticlimactic." When GL-Alan made the anvil vanish, they saw a big hole where the Big Spider Lizard should be. "Not good."

It burst out of the ground behind them, sending debris and dust flying everywhere in an explosive move. Opening its mouth, it shot its head forward and clamped its jaws shut, eating up the two heroes. It looked like it was all over for them, however…

Inside the Big Spider Lizard's stomach, GL-Alan had formed a barrier to keep them safe from the sharp teeth which would've torn them to shreds and now from the knee-deep of acid they were in. The two looked to each other and grinned (you couldn't see Showa's grin because of the mask, but he was definitely grinning).

Big Spider Lizard had just made a HUGE mistake.

Outside, the Big Spider Lizard roared in satisfaction. It had done its master's bidding and…

**KA-BOOOOOOM!**

* * *

"_And in today's news, there was a hostage situation at the local amusement park in Shishibone City. Fortunately, the hero known as the Green Lantern was able to diffuse the situation and subdue the costumed gunman whose whereabouts and currently unknown. Then famous adult novelist and one of her adopted daughters were kidnapped but were also rescued by the Green Lantern. Also, another giant monster appeared at the same amusement park but it was destroyed by the Green Lantern and one of the Kamen Riders before it could do anymore damage. No loss of life has been reported during these incidents. Now in other news…_"

The family was seated in the living room, all the members who'd been changed back to their proper ages. They were watching the news.

"It's good to be back to normal," said Shinichi. Rena was leaning against him, glad that he was his right age. Sure, he wasn't as cute as when he was Shinji, he was still cute.

"I don't know," Shiori started. "I kinda liked being a young woman again."

"You're still beautiful, Shiori," complimented Kasai.

"Thanks, honey."

"Just one problem," spoke Rika. "What are we going to do about _this_?" She was referring to the baby now sleeping in her arms. It was GL-Alan. At the same time Shinichi, Rika, Hanyuu and Shiori had turned back to normal; GL-Alan had turned into a baby. The Power Ring and Bazel still fit him, though.

Kid Karnevil had gotten away. Probably realized he was outmatched after he got blasted out the window and decided to make a break for it before he got captured by a pissed off Green Lantern.

"It'll wear off, soon," said Shinichi as he looked at the babyfied GL-Alan.

"Plus, he's so cute!" Rena giggled.

The baby Green Lantern giggled at the attention he was receiving from Rena. He then pointed his tiny Ring at Shinichi, when it started glowing. "Uh oh…" gulped Shinichi before he has knocked over by a bolt of emerald energy. The baby began laughing again, randomly firing beams of green energy at Shinichi.

"Call Lala, now!" Shinichi exclaimed as he took cover.

* * *

Lala immediately went over along with Amora, Yami, Conda and Bishie. Shinichi told them something was wrong with GL-Alan, but hadn't told them what. "Kawaii!" screamed Lala as she hugged her baby love interest. GL-Alan was giggling, enjoying the attention he was getting from the Devlukian princess. Amora then grabbed GL-Alan from Lala, and was holding him in the air, smiling up at him.

"Oh! My darling Alan is so adorable!" screeched Amora. Golden hair then flew around Amora, before turning into a small cradle for the baby Lantern. Yami's hair brought the baby back to her.

"Mine…" muttered Yami as she held the baby close to her. However, a pair of vines then snatched GL-Alan from Yami.

"No! Master belongs to all of us!" cried Bishie as she hugged GL-Alan into her bust. Bishie was then pushed out of the way by Conda, who quickly grabbed GL-Alan. "Conda you meanie!" whined Bishie as she stuck her tongue out at the Amazon.

"Hmph, I am the only one who can properly raise him back to the man he once was," said Conda, her head thrown back.

"Enjoy, girls," Shinichi grinned. "Take care of him as long as you want until he turns back to normal. Oh, and take pictures to."

The girls nodded before taking GL-Alan home.

"But I wanted to take him home…" said Rena pitifully.

* * *

**KR Chrome: And so ends Shinichi's short childhood. Well, next time we'll have some more action.**


	13. The Rise of X Shocker Part 11

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 11: Bold and Beautiful**

-**Early April 1987**-

_Shinichi and Rena were looking at the bulletin boards, looking for clubs to join. It was after the freshman orientation. _

"_Hey, there's a good one," said Rena, pointing to a flyer for the Photography Club. "It looks right up your alley."_

"_Guess I could check it out," said Shinichi._

_**WHAP!**_

"_Itai!" Shinichi cried out as he stumbled forward. He turned around and grumbled, "Oi…"_

"_Ohayo!" Mion greeted, grinning from ear-to-ear. "Whasup, freshman?"_

"_May I remind you, Mion that you're a freshman too?" Shinichi spoke up. Mion had taken a year off before entering college after graduating from school. She wanted to enter college at the same time as Keiichi._

"_Even if we are in the same year, Shin-chan, I still outrank you!" Mion declared, pointing at him dramatically. "I will always be President of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club!"_

"_It's useless to argue with her, Shinichi. You know that," advised Keiichi._

"_Hey, I heard you two were shacking up together," said Mion. Rena and Shinichi blushed._

"_Mii-chan, that sounds so indecent!" Rena replied._

"_Doesn't make it any less true. Can't believe you were able to convince your parents to let you live together," Mion said, amazed. "OK, I understand Shiori-san since she'd like more material for her next book and all."_

_Shinichi rolled her eyes. Actually, his mother did have a hand in it. She was able to persuade Rena's father to let them live in an apartment together. It wasn't too far from campus. It was a two-bedroom apartment, but they were only going to be using one since they were sharing a bed. _

"_That just means our parents trust us, Mion," Shinichi retorted. Mion looked over his shoulder at the message board and scoffed. "What?"_

"_So, you're looking to join a club, huh?" Mion put a hand to her chest. "Well, don't look anywhere else! I'm going to start a new chapter of the Gaming Club right here!"_

_Shinichi shivered a bit. He really didn't want to end up paying another penalty for losing the game. Sure, the girls looked good and he had insane luck at games, but when he or the other boys lost, it just wasn't fun anymore._

"_You'll need to make it official first," Shinichi argued._

"_Just you wait. Right after summer, the Gaming Club will be an official organization right here in Shishibone University!"_

"_Can't wait to see that." Still, as humiliating as the penalties were, playing games with close friends was still very much enjoyable. It was the only time he really felt normal among his peers, plus it was relaxing._

"_Well, see ya!" Mion waved, grabbing Keiichi. "Kei-chan and I got class. See ya two lovebirds later!" She then dragged her boyfriend off._

"_You and Mii-chan seem very close," Rena observed. Truthfully, Shinichi and Mion were really good friends, best friends in fact._

"_That's because Mion's my Bro!" Shinichi told him. Rena blinked, confused._

"_Your 'Bro'?" _

"_Yeah, my Bro!"_

"_But she's a girl."_

"_No rules against girls being Bros."_

"_But then what about Keiichi-kun?" Rena asked. "Isn't he your Bro?"_

"_Keiichi's my Bro's Bro, which makes him a Bro in association but not my Bro, you know?"_

_Rena wasn't sure what to reply to that, so she just nodded._

"_As for Satoshi, well he's like my Bro, but not a close Bro like Mion," he continued his explanation. "Let's put him in the category of 'Sub-Bro'."_

"_Sub-Bro?"_

"_Yeah, because I've known Keiichi and Mion way longer, so Satoshi's a Sub-Bro."_

_Rena decided to just stop him there. "Shouldn't you go and see if the Photography Club wants new members?" she asked. "You don't want to be late, right?"_

"_Oh, right!" Shinichi kissed her on the cheek. "Love you!" He then dashed off._

"_A girl can be a Bro?" she asked herself. Rena then shrugged before heading off to class._

* * *

**-Present Day-**

Shinichi and GL-Alan were walking in the hallway. The Rider was dressed in a black leather double-breasted jacket with blue jeans and black boots. GL-Alan was dressed in a black t-shirt with a green jacket thrown over it, blue jeans and white tennis shoes.

The Green Lantern was glowering. "You know I have to kill you, right?" he said, glaring at Shinichi.

Shinichi replied, "Alan, it was an accident."

"Then I'll just _accidentally_ kill you."

"Still upset, huh?"

"You turned me into a baby! A freakin baby!" he hissed.

"Sorry," Shinichi sincerely apologized. "Don't know how that happened. But at least now you're back to normal."

GL-Alan didn't want to remember how he'd changed back just as Lala was putting a diaper on him. That had to be humiliating. They even had pictures.

"And on the plus side, at least you know your girls can raise a child when given the chance," Shinichi added.

"I just want to forget the whole thing," GL-Alan pleaded, shaking his head. There was little chance of that happening because little did GL-Alan know, Shinichi managed to get some pictures from Lala. They were really cute and could be embarrassing from the young Green Lantern Corpsman and if GL-Alan ever found out…Shinichi hoped he didn't find out.

"Well, here it is. The Photography Club," Shinichi pointed to the door which was labeled 'Photography Club'. "I'll have to warn you, they're an interesting bunch."

"How so?" GL Alan asked.

* * *

**-Early April 1987-**

"_Hello, sir. Are you thinking of joining the club?" a girl asked shyly. She had short dark blue hair with a beret on top of her head and light blue eyes. She wore a white sweater with a blue skirt that came down to just above her knees and wore black knee socks along with brown shoes.  
_

_"Yep, you guessed it," Shinichi said, smiling a bit "By the way, there's no need to call me 'sir'. The name's Shinji Banabara, but my friends call me Shinichi." He extended his hand in greeting._

_"Nice to meet you, Banabara-san. My name is Fujiko Yadorigi," Fujiko said, shaking his hand._

"_Just call me Shinichi. I mean, we're gonna be friends, right?" he said, smiling. She blushed a bit. He had such a charming smile._

_"Shinji Banabara," a voice spoke, making both Shinichi and Fujiko turn to see a beady-eyed guy with black hair looking leering at Shinji suspiciously. "You wouldn't be the same Shinji Banabara that disappeared years ago but was miraculously discovered in the village of Hinamizawa by any chance, would you?" This made Fujiko look at Shinichi with a surprised expression._

_Shinichi narrowed his eyes. "What if I am?"_

_"In case you are, I have but one question," the odd beady-eyed man said. He asked, "Was it aliens that had a hand in your disappearance or a secret government organization?"_

_"... Huh?" Shinichi blinked, confused. He suspected the guy to be some sort of spy, but that question just threw him out of the loop._

_A girl got behind the beady-eyed guy and thwacked him on the back of the head with a book, knocking him down. "You have to excuse Araki, he a paranoid conspiracy nut," the girl said. She had her long red hair tied up in a ponytail and her eyes were green. She had the accent of someone who came from Osaka. Her clothing comprised of a single-piece green dress with a skirt that came down to mid-thigh with short elbow-length sleeves. She also wore a sleeveless vest with boots. She reminded Shinichi of Mion, only with red hair._

_"Okay," Shinichi said, a bit disturbed as the girl extended her hand._

_"My name is Ootori Hisamaki, the President of this club and we welcome anybody who wants to be part of this club. We will also not pry into your past until we know you better" As she smiled, she shot a small glare to Araki as he slowly got up._

_"Sounds reasonable enough," Shinichi said with a smile as he shook her hand._

_"HEY PREZ!" a guy shouted as he rushed into the room holding some photos. He had short black hair in a slicked back pompadour style, wearing a blue jacket over an orange t-shirt and blue jeans. "I got some hot pics you got to see! They're front page stuff!"_

_"Keima, for the last time, we are the PHOTOGRAPHY Club, NOT the Newspaper Club," Ootori replied, annoyed._

_"Come on, Prez! I mean we could sell these to the Newspaper Club! They're a gold mine!"_

_Shinichi took a moment to glimpse at the photos Keima's hand. His eyes widened when he saw that they were pictures of him and the NEO-NUMBERS in Rider form. "How did you get these?" Shinichi asked._

"_Oh, I've been collecting them for awhile now," Keima admitted. "By the way, I'm Keima Shiraishi. So, you're the new member?"_

"_I'm gonna be, I hope. Oh, and the name's Shinichi Banabara."_

* * *

"You didn't realize he was taking pictures?" GL-Alan questioned, surprised.

"We were a little busy at the time," Shinichi replied defensively. "Anyway, I wouldn't be surprised if Keima had any pictures of you. He seems to have wicked luck with that."

Sure enough when they entered the room, Keima was grinning like a maniac holding some pictures. Most of them depicted GL-Alan's fight with the Big Spider Lizard. Though, one showed Showa in Higurashi form rushing to combat the giant threat as well.

"Hehehe! It was a good thing I was close to the amusement park to get these," Keima chuckled happily.

GL-Alan blinked in surprise as Shinichi just turn to him stating, "Told you so."

"Hey, Shin!" Ootori greeted. "What's up?"

"Oh, same old. Same old," Shinichi replied. "Just came to use the dark room to develop some new photos."

"Say, who's your friend?" the President of the Photography Club inquired.

"He's a friend of mine visiting from the US," Shinichi introduced. "Alan Smith."

"Nice to meet you," GL-Alan greeted back, shaking hands with Ootori. He then sensed a pair of eyes staring at him and turned to see Araki. "What?"

Araki just stared at him for several more seconds before turning his attention back towards a book he was reading on conspiracy theories. GL-Alan cocked an eyebrow.

"Don't mind him," excused Ootori. "Araki's always been weird. You should see his photos."

"I'll take your word for it." GL-Alan then noticed a poster on the wall advertising for the next Campus Beauty Contest. "Hey, what's that?"

"Oh, that's just the annual Shishibone University Campus Beauty Contest," Ootori answered. "It's actually open to the public, as long as you're at least 18 years old."

"To be honest, you could win, Prez," Keima complimented.

"Suck up!" she scoffed.

"No, he's right," Shinichi agreed. "You've got the right proportions, and so does Fujiko-chan!"

"M-m-me?" the shy girl stammered.

"Hey, you're a cute girl," Shinichi complimented her. "Ask anybody who knows." Fujiko just blushed further.

"Don't let Rena hear you say that," GL-Alan warned. "She might get jealous."

"Say, where is that cute girlfriend of yours?" asked Ootori, grinning. Shinichi grimaced when he saw that grin, recalling the first time Rena had come over to the Photography Club room

* * *

_It was one week after Shinichi joined the Photography Club. He managed to impress the members with his pictures. One of them was a picture of Hinamizawa during a sunset, taken from the overlook which allowed people to see the entire village._

_There was a knock at the door and Shinichi opened it up. "Oh, Rena."_

"_I brought your lunch over," she said, smiling. "You forgot to take it with you."_

"_Oh, thanks," said Shinichi as he took his lunch box. He then turned to see Ootori wearing a Cheshire Cat grin._

_"What a beautiful girl," Ootori said as she studied Rena's face. "You must be pretty lucky Shin. I'm surprised such a cute girl likes you enough to bring you lunch."_

_'What's that supposed to mean?' Shinichi thought in annoyance._

_"So tell me, do you and Shin live together?" Ootori innocently asked._

_Shinichi was making hand gestures and shaking his head in Rena, hoping she got the message to say 'no'. Unfortunately, Rena didn't see so she answered innocently, "Yes, I do."_

_"Ahh, that's so sweet," Ootori said as Shinichi slapped his forehead. He could already tell that she going to tease him about this for a long while._

* * *

"She's got class," Shinichi answered. "If you'll excuse me, I got some photos to develop. Alan, make yourself at home." He then entered the dark room.

GL-Alan once again felt eyes staring at the back of his head and turned to see Araki staring at him again. Was he going to keep doing that?

"Excuse me, Smith-san," spoke Fujiko. "How do you know Shinichi-san?"

"It's a long story," he answered.

"That armband you're wearing," Araki finally spoke, referring to Bazel. "It looks like the Bracelet of Bazel."

GL-Alan eyed him suspiciously, then he remembered what Shinichi had told him. Araki was some sort of conspiracy theorist. "Got it at the gift shop," GL-Alan answered simply, not wanting to get into deeper detail.

Araka spared GL-Alan another glance before returning to his book.

"If it makes you feel any better," spoke Keima. "He creeps us all out."

* * *

Dr. Hasuma reported, "It appears that Shinichi seems has discovered a new ability. After his mother and adopted sister were kidnapped by the android known as Spider Ninja, he was able to find their location by hacking into Spider Ninja's brain. All he did was place his hand upon Spider Ninja's head. I believe this is a sort of technopathic ability and if GL-Alan hadn't stopped him, he would've discovered more, such as the location of X-SHOCKER's headquarters."

"Technopathy, huh?" Warren nodded. "OK."

"I don't believe that this ability has anything to do with his cybernetic implants nor his genetic enhancements," Dr. Hasuma added. "They were simply performance enhancers meant to make him faster, stronger, smarter and more agile. His reflexes and senses were also enhanced by what happened to him. He doesn't have any genetic enhancements that would've given him abilities like technopathy. His time manipulation abilities weren't even given to him by Gebok but the cybernetics implants given to him allows him to control those abilities. I think that before Shinichi was taken and turned into a Kaizo Ningen, he was a meta-human."

"A sound theory. Go on."

"I believe that his abilities are hereditary and that he inherited from someone, possibly from one of his parents. It's possibly from the sperm donor since Shiori Banabara used artificial insemination."

"So, what will you do now?" asked Warren.

"Until I get more information, nothing yet. I'll simply observe until he manifests more abilities," Dr. Hasuma finished. He saluted, "Good day, Director-san." He turned to leave when Warren spoke again.

"You know, you should come over to visit this weekend. The kids miss you. They want to see their Uncle Ryuki."

Dr. Hasuma looked over his shoulder and answered, "I'll think about it, Director-san."

"Hey, this is an order, Ryuki."

Dr. Hasuma smiled, amused. "Hai, Kanchou."

* * *

All the girls were sitting with GL-Alan in their living room. Baby Alan was sitting on the table, being fussed over by Lala and Bishie, both of whom absolutely adored the baby version of their future lover. He was then left with his future self by his parents, who needed to take his adopted brother Harry to see Dr. Ryuki Hasuma for a checkup. Conda was simply sitting there and sipping tea, casting a glance towards the baby, who was laughing from all the attention he was getting. Yami and Amora were sitting on opposite sides of GL-Alan, sending sideways glares at each other. GL-Alan let out a sigh. He was used to it. Out of all the girls, Yami and Amora were the most antagonistic to each other. Both wanted the Green Lantern to themselves, and on occasion they would fight over him. This would lead to Bishie unleashing her Lust Dust attack, resulting in a very amazing, and exhausting, night for the young Smith.

"So, apparently Shinichi's college is having a beauty contest," said GL-Alan, hoping to break the tension between the two girls sitting next to him.

"Oh! I wanna do it!" chirped Bishie.

"Sorry Bishie, but only girls over 18 can enter…" A second after saying that, GL-Alan regretted it.

"Alright!" shouted Amora. "Yami! I challenge you to the beauty contest! Whoever wins get's Alan for a full 24 hours!"

"Don't I get a say in this?" asked GL-Alan, but Yami was already glaring at Amora.

"You're on," said Yami.

"Guess not…" moaned GL-Alan.

"Just give up," mocked Conda, head thrown back with a laugh. "You have no chance against yours truly!"

"We'll see about that, snake girl!" Amora shot back.

"Just don't cheat with magic." Conda added, addressing Yami, "That goes for you too, assassin girl."

Yami gave her a smile, accepting her challenge, "I doubt I would need to use my powers to win."

GL-Alan had a feeling that the beauty contest would be an interesting one.

* * *

Meanwhile, at his part-time job, Shinichi was receiving some surprising news from his boss, the owner of Topper's Pawnshop, Topper Liquer himself.

"Eh?" Shinichi was surprised as he was cleaning the display cases. "You're one of the sponsors for the contest, Boss?"

"That's right, Shinichi my boy," answered Topper. "I thought it would be good for business. I also have this feeling that this beauty contest will be _very_ interesting. Very interesting indeed."

Shinichi cocked his eyebrow then shrugged. "Well, if you say so, Boss. If you say so."

"Hm, I'm in the mood for a spot of tea, actually," said Topper. "Shinichi, would you mind?"

"Hai, Boss." Shinichi stopped cleaning and went to make some tea.

Topper went back to appraising their new goods. He smirked. The pawn shop business was indeed a lucrative one. People just simply couldn't wait to get rid of their junk and get something out of it. Topper also enjoyed how he could purchase, trade and sell items according to the customer's wishes. He was after all a merchant. It was in his nature.

He looked to the door. He wondered what else he would be giving or taking. Nothing came for free. There was always a price. Always.

* * *

The Observers were overseeing the events while drinking tea.

"Hm, a beauty contest, huh?" smirked Lambdadelta. "Ne, Bern, why don't you join?"

"It'd be unfair," said Bernkanstel reasonably.

"Ladies, remember why you're all here," Lord Amakusa spoke seriously. "The game?"

"Ah, yes. Let's see what BLACK 13 will do now," said Lambdadelta.

"Oh, and speaking of him, it would appear that our dear Doctor Hasuma is about to find out a secret," said Lord Amakusa, staring at Balance Guardian Warren.

* * *

Shinichi returned home, exhausted. With a yawn, he opened the door. Rena was waiting for him with dinner ready. "Ah, Rena-chan. Konbanwa. Sorry if I kept you waiting."

She smiled at him, "It's OK. I was waiting for you to come back. I wanted to have dinner with you."

Shinichi looked to the clock. It was 10 pm. He frowned. "Dinner must be cold, then."

"I'll warm it up," she told him. "Oh, this came in the mail for you." She handed an envelope to him. He opened it and took out the letter inside. "Well?"

Shinichi grinned, "Guess who's gonna be one of the judges for the beauty contest?"

* * *

Letters had already been sent out to the chosen judges while students and anyone interested registered. The contest was open to any female between the ages of 18 and 24. They didn't have to be students. The contest also had several events in it. The first event was mainly an introduction and greeting by the contestants, followed by a cosplay event, then the talent event and finally the swimsuit event. A lot of men, and some women, looked forward to the final event.

* * *

**The Next Day…**

"Eh, you're a judge too, Mion?" Shinichi asked, surprised. He'd been having lunch with Rena when Mion came over to snatch up some of the food from his bento. She could've just gone and bought lunch at the student café, but Rena's cooking was delicious.

"Yeah, I sure am!" Mion answered, popping a breaded friend shrimp which she'd purloined from Shinichi's bento into her mouth. "I just got the letter in the mail. Guess they picked people at random to add some spice into the contest with all the different judges. "Personally, I feel they chose me because I've got great judging skills."

Shinichi remarked, "They sure didn't pick you for your modesty." In a flash, his bento was snatched out of his hands. "Hey, that's my lunch!" Mion stuck her tongue out at him before dashing off. "Get back here!" He gave chase.

Rena giggled. Those two were such good friends.

"Gimme back my lunch, Mion!"

"You gotta catch me first, Shin-chan!"

* * *

Keiichi moaned in disappointment, "How come I didn't get picked?" When Mion got the letter, he was happy for her. He was at his locker. When he opened it, an envelope fell out. He went and picked it up and opened it up. Reading the contents, he smirked. "OK, I guess I can live with not being a judge!"

* * *

The judges had to keep their identities a secret until the day of the pageant. Girls registering needed to provide a picture along with their entry forms. After the closing date, all the collected forms would be looked over by the judges. There were three of them and they met in secret in the back room of Topper's Pawn Shop.

"So, all we have to do is to pick 30 girls out of all these?" Mion questioned. There was a mountain of entry forms on the table in front of them. The third judge was none other than Topper Liquer himself.

"Pretty much, Mion," said Shinichi. "Thanks Boss, for letting us use the shop for this."

"Think nothing of it, Shinichi," said Topper. He offered, "Coffee, anyone?"

"Considering that it's going to be a long night, lay it on me,' Mion accepted the offer. The top hat wearing man filled a cup for her and then a cup for Shinichi.

"Hey, do you think these girls wrote down their real measurements?" Shinichi questioned as he looked at each form, one by one.

"Do they ever?" Mion snorted. "Say, did Rena want to enter?"

"I managed to convince her not to enter," Shinichi told his female 'Bro'. "It would be unfair with two of us judging, not to mention that I do not want horny men drooling all over her."

"Yeah, she'd cause a lot of nosebleeds for being cute in a swimsuit," Mion commented.

"Did Shion want to enter?" Shinichi asked.

"What do you think?" Mion was holding up Shion's entry form and then she put it in a shredder. Shinichi gawked at her. "What?"

"You just shredded your sister's entry form," Shinichi pointed out.

"If I didn't, then boys would be having wet dreams about her. I mean, you'd put her on the stage just so you could take pictures," she stated.

Shinichi shrugged. He wouldn't deny it. Shion was beautiful and sexy, not to mention looked hot in a swimsuit. Mion had good reason not to let her twin sister enter.

"My, my, my, such lovely ladies," Topper admired. "I just can't decide."

"Well, we better. We have to tell the organizers who we've chosen so they can send out letters," said Mion.

Shinichi wordlessly agreed as he looked at all the entry forms. The girls didn't send in a small headshot. A few even sent pictures of themselves in swimsuits just to let the judges know how worthy they were. There was a picture of a girl with pink hair in a one piece swimsuit that was decorated by colorful butterflies. She looked oddly familiar to Shinichi, but he just couldn't remember where he'd seen her.

* * *

Shinichi finally made it home at around 2 am. When he opened the door, he saw Rena asleep on the couch. Again, she'd been waiting for him. Sighing, he took off his shoes and slipped on the house slippers before settling himself on the couch. She looked so cute while asleep. He just couldn't resist so he went and kissed her deeply on the lips.

Rena began to respond as she stirred in her sleep. He deepened the kiss, pushing his tongue between her lips and teeth. Rena's eyes shot open before relaxing as she recognized the sensation.

Shinichi pushed her over so she lay across the couch with him on top. "Didn't I tell you not to wait up?" he asked.

"Sorry," she apologized. "I couldn't help it." He nuzzled her neck and she sighed. "I prepared supper for you. It's a little cold, though."

"Actually, you've just served me supper and it's very _hot_," he growled, his indigo eyes staring at her blue ones. She blinked and then realized what he meant when he started to unbutton her blouse. "Shin…Shin-kun…"

"I just spent the last few hours looking at pictures of pretty girls, some in very little clothing. I'm turned on, I'm horny, and I want release. So, Rena-chan, do you mind…" He pulled her blouse open to reveal the blue lace bra she was wearing. Licking his lips, he started to rain kisses all over her face, neck and exposed body. She just lay there, relishing the feeling of him showering her with his love.

* * *

It was the day of the Beauty Contest and several days earlier, letters had been sent to notify the girls who'd qualified for it. The contest was taking place in the auditorium and qualifying 30 were all backstage with their numbered badges pinned onto them. They had prepared themselves for this.

The audience began to fill the seats. Up front between the spectator seats and the stage was the judges' table where Shinichi, Mion and Topper sat. The contest's MC was none other than the Magician of Words himself, Keiichi Maebara.

"Did you know about this?" Shinichi asked Mion. She simply shrugged while shaking her head. "Well, at least this makes up for when he wasn't able to become the judge."

"Ladies and gentleman!" Keiichi spoke into his microphone. "Thank you for attending the Shishibone University Beauty Contest 1987! I'm your host and master of ceremonies, Keiichi Maebara! I am also known by my friends as the Magician of Words due to my gift of gab!" He was wearing a suit for the role and he looked really smart in it. "Now, without further ado, let's get this show on the road!"

One by one the girls were introduced. Keiichi introduced them by name, their contestant number, age, height and measurements. The girls also made an impression as they smiled at the audience. This was mainly the appeal stage, as in how good they looked on stage. Among the contestants were Asmodeus, Amora, Conda and Yami. A pink-haired girl winked at the crowd and blew kisses, causing the men to erupt in loud cheers.

"I guess we made no mistake about our choices," said Shinichi, smiling.

"Alright, boys and girls. Now that you've been introduced to the girls, let me introduce our three judges!" Keiichi announced. "First we have Mion Sonozaki! Then we have our very own Shinichi Banabara! Finally we have Topper Liquer who just happens to be one of the sponsors for this contest!"

"Shin-kun!" Rena cheered loudly. Satoshi, Shion, Satoko, Hanyuu, Rika and Shiori came to watch the contest. GL-Alan and the rest of the girls were also in attendance. The only members of the NEO-NUMBERS who showed up were Shogo and Yokoshima. Asmodeus' sisters were also in the audience.

Michiru and Hana couldn't attend because they had classes at nursing school. Daichi just wasn't interested and he was apprenticing under Dr. Hasuma to be a veterinarian. Chiaki was also at ARMOR for some reason.

"Now then," Keiichi began again. "Even though these 30 girls made it to the qualifying round, we have another round set up that will cut the numbers down to one-third of what you see right now. That's right, ladies and gents! We have the Cosplay Round next! Our 30 beautiful contestants will put on costumes and the judges will then give them scores! The ten girls with the highest scores will move on to the next round! The Cosplay Round will start in half an hour, so please be patient!"

* * *

"I have a feeling I know what Amora, Conda and Yami are gonna wear," thought GL-Alan aloud.

* * *

"Why am I here?" Chiaki asked worriedly. He was strapped to a chair. "And why am I in these straps?"

"It's so you don't try to run off," answered Takada. "Now, let the experiment begin." He opened up a box which held the Orbs of Courage, Wisdom and Power inside.

"What are you doing with those?" Chiaki asked.

Takada picked up the Orb of Wisdom and explained, "After both Shinichi and Daichi swallowed the Orb of Courage and the Orb of Power respectively, they gained access to new forms and powers due to the orbs' energies. Now, I just want to see if it'll work on you."

Chiaki's eyes widened. Prof. Takada was going to make him swallow the Orb of Wisdom! "Do you have permission to do this?"

"I kinda asked Warren if I could borrow the Orbs for a study," Takada answered. "Now, open wide."

Chiaki clamped his mouth shut. Takada frowned but then broke into a grin. He pinched Chiaki's nose. "You gotta breathe sooner or later!"

That was when Dr. Hasuma and Daichi decided to come in. Dr. Hasuma had been giving Daichi some practical veterinary training at the King's Terminal Zoo. "Takada-hakase, cease and desist!" Dr. Hasuma ordered.

"Oh, Ryuki!" Takada looked up at the entrance of the lab, smiling. "You're just in time to see history in the making!"

Dr. Hasuma rolled his eyes and with a single gesture yanked the Orb of Wisdom out of their resident mad scientist's hands with his telekinesis. He did the same with the box and pulled it into his grasp, putting the Orb of Wisdom inside before closing it and locking it. Takada frowned.

"Director-san has warned you about experimenting on members of ARMOR without their consent," Dr. Hasuma reminded. "Daichi, please release Chiaki."

"OK, Doc. Hasuma!" Daichi obeyed. He went and helped his fellow Kaizo Ningen out of his bindings by undoing the buckles on the straps. "What are these things made of anyway?"

"Oh, it's an unbreakable strap I made for personal reasons," said Takada. Something told Dr. Hasuma that he didn't want to know the details considering his friend's nature.

"Daichi, take a break. Go to the cafeteria with Chiaki. I need to have a word with Prof. Takada," Dr. Hasuma ordered. Daichi nodded before he and Chiaki exited the lab.

Dr. Hasuma approached Takada with a serious expression on his face. Takada gulped. He never thought he'd ever be scared of Ryuki like he was now.

Dr. Hasuma stopped with his face several inches away from Takada's. He fixed his narrowed green eyes upon Takada's. Takada gulped.

"I need to borrow your computer," Dr. Hasuma requested. "You don't mind, do you?" Takada's eyes went wide and his skin paled as a dragon manifested around Dr. Hasuma. It glared at him and snarled with flames spewing out of its nostrils.

"Sure! No problem!" Takada replied. The dragon faded away as Dr. Hasuma smiled. "Can I ask why?"

"I just want to confirm something," said Dr. Hasuma as he sat down in front of the computer and began typing on the keyboard. Takada looked over his shoulder. "This is private, Takada-hakase." The dragon manifested once more.

"Gotcha!" Takada jumped back. '_Man, he must've been learning from Ichijyo_.' Takada then left the lab.

Dr. Hasuma began to access ARMOR's DNA records. The database and archives held a record of the DNA signature of every ARMOR member. He clicked on Shinichi's name and it showed next to his picture his DNA signature. He then typed in a command. He was requesting a match for Shinichi's DNA signature.

Shinichi was a meta-human before being converted into a Kaizo Ningen. Meta-human abilities were sometimes hereditary. Shiori was human as was her late husband, Shotaro Banabara. Dr. Hasuma knew that Shiori had used artificial insemination in order to conceive Shinichi. He was looking for the identity of Shinichi's biological father, the unnamed donor.

Dr. Hasuma wasn't 100 percent sure that Shinichi's biological father was even a member of ARMOR, but he had a hunch since they did have a lot of meta-humans as members. He was just following his gut instincts as a doctor.

Children would share some similarities in their DNA signatures with their parents so it was through this database that Dr. Hasuma would get some answers.

A name appeared and Dr. Hasuma's eyes widened. "So, that's it. Now it makes perfect sense."

* * *

The audience applauded one of the contestants who was dressed as Catwoman. After receiving her score, she exited the stage.

"OK, next we have the beautiful Asmo-chan!" announced Keiichi.

The lights went out and all of a sudden in a flash of gold Asmodeus appeared in her Stakes of Purgatory uniform with a flourish and bow. The spotlight shone on her. Smiling at the crowd, she spotted her boyfriend and blew him a kiss.

"YEAH!" Yokoshima cheered. "THAT'S MY GIRL!"

"What an entrance, ladies and gents!" spoke Keiichi. "Judges, your scores, if you please?" The three judges raised their score cards.

Shinichi: 10

Mion: 9

Topper: 9

Asmodeus giggled. That wasn't so bad. Giving another wink and blowing another kiss to the audience, she stepped off stage.

A few girls later, Keiichi announced. "Alright, and here we have the lovely Conda-chan!"

Conda strutted onto stage. She was dressed in a black cheongsam dress with slits so high that they revealed both her legs in all their glory. The dress was so tight that her curves were anything but hidden. There was a diamond cut out in front to reveal her cleavage. The cheongsam was decorated by a gold snake which wrapped around her like a constrictor.

"Is that a whip?" Keiichi asked himself as he saw said whip in her hand.

CRACK!

She put a hand to her hip with the whip now lying at her feet**;** the handle grasped tightly in her other hand.

"She sure knows how to make an entrance," stated GL-Alan honestly.

"Judges, your scores?" Keiichi asked.

Shinichi: 10

Mion: 9

Topper: 10

Conda glared at Mion as she fingered her whip and the green-haired girl gulped before hastily changing her score.

Mion: 10

Conda smiled and then strutted off stage.

"And next we have…" Keiichi continued.

* * *

The pink-haired girl was backstage, waiting her turn. She looked at her costume. It was a Brazilian Samba dancer costume, which meant it was very skimpy. It was a sparkling bikini with a feathered headdress and tail feathers attached to the bikini bottoms. It looked so sinfully illegal to be worn in public, but she wasn't about to lose to anyone.

* * *

"Hinagiku Katsura, show us your costume!" Keiichi called. She came on stage. The women all gasped and the men all whistled and howled while a few trying to hold in their nose bleeds. Even Shinichi gawked.

"Shin-chan, don't stare," Mion whispered. He was gaping. "Shin-chan!" She saw Keiichi staring at the girl's boobs. "Kei-chan!"

"Judges?" Keiichi asked.

Shinichi: 10

Topper: 10

Mion, not liking how Keiichi was just staring at the pinkette's body gave her honest (spiteful) score.

Mion: 5

The pink-haired girl glared at Mion and sparks flew as their eyes met. She then turned her eyes towards Shinichi and gave him a wink. He looked like he was about to melt. His face was all red and blood was dripping from his nostrils, which he immediately plugged up with tissue paper. Deciding her turn was done, Hinagiku exited the stage.

"OK, and next we have Ms. Amora!" Keiichi announced.

Amora's costume was a green tube top that went down to just above her naval. The top was tight and showed off her curves and plenty of cleavage. Her arms were decorated by elbow length black gloves with gold bracelets around the wrists. Around her waist was a gold belt with green fringes. She also wore tight black pants with thigh high green boots that had high heels and circular ring patterns on them. She wore a green M-shaped tiara on her head and hanging from her shoulders was a green cape that was pinned to the front by a golden brooch. She looked sexy and dangerous.

Keiichi could only stare at the blonde beauty while Mion scowled. As Shinichi and Topper gave their scores, Mion gave hers out of sheer spite and envy.

Shinichi: 10

Topper: 10

Mion: 5

Amora smiled when she saw the scores Topper and Shinichi gave her but frowned when she saw the score that Mion gave her. With a smirk and a wave of her hand, she magically pulled the chair right from under Mion, causing the green-haired girl to fall roughly on her rear.

"Mion!" Keiichi cried.

"I'm fine!" Mion insisted as Shinichi helped her up. She glared at Amora who returned it with a superior smirk.

"I should have a talk with her about this," murmured GL-Alan.

"And our final girl is none other than Yami-chan!" Keiichi called after Amora exited the stage.

In all her dark glory, the assassin known as Golden Darkness appeared in the garb that she was known for. She wore a short and tight black dress with a cross cut out of it, with a short skirt, detached sleeves, black leather straps around her waist and legs, and finally her black boots. She didn't pose. She just stood there.

"Judges, your scores, if you please?" Keiichi requested.

Shinichi: 9

Topper: 9

Mion: 9

Yami nodded, satisfied with the scores.

"And that's all 30 of our lovely ladies in costume!" said Keiichi. "If you all can add, as I know you can, you can already guess who our top ten are going to be! We'll be right back with you after this break!"

* * *

KR Chrome: And s begins the Shishibone University Beauty Contest. Cosplay girls are hot, aren't they? Well, stay tune when we get onto the talent round and the swimsuit round.


	14. The Rise of X Shocker Part 12

**RISE OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 12: Beauty is in the Eyes of the Beholder**

"Well, we've got our top ten," said Shinichi, looking at the list. "Hm, Amora and Katsura-san barely made it in." He eyed Mion. "I wonder why...?"

Mion and Shinichi were getting some drinks at a vending machine. The green-haired girl was grumbling with a scowl, "Stupid, blonde bimbo…"

"You kind of had it coming," Shinichi remarked. He knew better than to piss off a sorceress. "You and I both know she has a huge ego. Giving her a low score like that was just inviting trouble."

"Well, then she shouldn't have worn something so damn skimpy!" Mion shot back.

"If you call _that_ skimpy, wait until we get to the swimsuit round," Shinichi stated. He knew why Mion was so upset. Keiichi had been ogling Amora. Actually, Keiichi had been ogling every girl who'd been wearing a sexy costume during the cosplay round. Those girls ended up with low scores from Mion. Shinichi and Topper were more or less impartial about it. A number of the costumes had been creative but only a few had really been good to earn high scores. "Just be glad Amora didn't do worse, like turn you into a toad or something."

"If that happens, then I'll just have Kei-chan kiss me and turn me back!"

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "You have to be impartial, Mion. I mean, you're a judge. You can't give girls low scores simply because Keiichi checks out their cleavage."

"As opposed to you who give girls high scores because they do flash some cleavage."

"This is a beauty contest, Mion. I was looking at how nice they looked in costume." Checking his watch he said to Mion, "We better hurry. We only got like 5 minutes."

"You're right." She gulped down her drink and tossed the empty can into a nearby basket. "Three points!"

* * *

"Hello again, everybody!" Keiichi announced as he walked on stage. "You've just scene 30 of out lovely ladies in costume but sadly only ten of them will advance to the next round!" Swiftly, he took out an envelope from his jacket. "I hold here in my hand the names of the ten lucky ladies!"

In the audience, there were comments being made about Keiichi's hosting skills.

"You know, he's not half bad," Shion said to Rena who nodded in agreement.

"Keiichi-kun has always been good with words. It seems so natural," Rena replied.

"Don't let him hear you or it'll all go to his head," Shion warned.

Back on stage, Keiichi opened the envelope. He started, "Alright, when I call your name, will you ladies please come on stage?"

One by one, Keiichi called their names. Among the girls were none other than Asmodeus, Amora, Conda and Yami. The ten girls stood before the audience in their costumes like before. The crowd cheered**;** excited to see their favorites had made it through.

"Yay!" Lala applauded. She was clapping for everyone.

GL-Alan was more or less relieved. Frankly, the girls on stage would've turned the auditorium upside down in their fury.

The girls then exited the stage as Keiichi went on, "Now, these ten girls will take part in the talent portion of our little contest. They will each display a talent they possess. This round will determine the five who will go on towards the final round which is the swimsuit portion!" Male cheers were heard. They were definitely looking forward towards the swimsuit event.

"Damn, those are some horny cheers," quipped Mion.

"You've gotta love their enthusiasm though," Shinichi replied.

* * *

Thus began the talent portion of the Shishibone University Beauty Contest. The girls each displayed the talents they possessed. GL-Alan's girls also showed off what they could do and they definitely knew how to give a show.

Conda was on stage with a bowl of fruit in one hand and a whip in the other.

"Um…what's she going to do with all that?" Shion asked.

"I think I know," answered GL-Alan as Conda tossed the fruit into the air then with several lashes of her whip she cut the fruit up and then caught the falling chunks in the bowl. "Yup, whipped fruit salad." Conda gave a bow and received cheers and applause.

Shinichi: 10

Mion: 10

Topper: 10

The next act was Amora's and she was still in her costume as she performed magic for the crowd. She snapped her fingers and conjured orbs of fire which she then juggled. First she juggled two orbs, then three, then four, and the number of orbs increased until she was now juggling 7 orbs of fire.

"OK, I'm impressed," Shiori spoke up.

Then, for a finish, she flung all the orbs into the air and they exploded like fireworks.

"Sugoi!" Hanyuu gazed.

Shinichi: 10

Mion: 8

Topper: 9

Yami was next. She asked for Keiichi to help and all he needed to do was to stand perfectly still in front of a wooden board with his arms spread and an apple in each hand. She then put an apple on his head. The judges and audience watched as the mysterious blonde girl moved several feet back from Keiichi. She then reached behind her back, and produced a pair of knives. Keiichi's eyes widened and he began to sweat.

"Don't move and you'll be fine," Yami cautioned in her usual monotone. That alone should've made Keiichi feel relieved. Yami never missed her target. However, right now she was also blindfolded.

She tossed the first knife.

**THUNK!**

It went right through the apple in Keiichi's right hand, sticking it to the wooden board. She then threw the second knife.

**THUNK!**

The same happened with the apple in Keiichi's left hand. He let out a sigh of relief. Finally, she took out a third dagger and tossed it.

**THUNK!**

It safely stabbed into the apple atop Keiichi's head. His eyes were wide and he'd gone pale.

Yami removed her blindfold and bowed. The crowd cheered for her performance.

Shinichi: 9

Topper: 8

Mion: 9

Asmodeus' performance was a normal one, believe it or not. She decided to sing. With her cute looks and lovely singing voice, she definitely charmed the audience and the judges.

"ASMO-CHAN! ASMO-CHAN!" Yokoshima cheered loudly. Asmodeus waved at him and then blew him a kiss.

Shinichi: 9

Mion: 10

Topper: 8

* * *

"Now those are some talented girls," Topper stated.

"You could say that again, Boss," Shinichi agreed.

"Not bad," Mion stated honestly.

"But, I kind of expected Asmo to do something more exotic like pole dancing or even belly dancing," Shinichi said to Mion.

Mion gave her friend a look. "You really are a pervert, you know that?"

"Whatever. I'm just saying that Asmo's performance was tame compared to what I expected from her."

* * *

It was now Hinagiku Katsura's turn. As music played, she began her performance. She was dressed in a pink leotard decorated with butterflies and had her hair up in a ponytail. She held a ribbon in one hand as she performed a short rhythmic gymnastics routine. It was fluid and she showed off just how flexible she was.

Indeed, her performance deserved high scores.

Shinichi: 9

Mion: 8

Topper: 10

* * *

"And so ends the talent portion of the contest," Keiichi spoke. "It's now lunch time, so we'll be back later for the swimsuit portion of the contest!"

* * *

Shinichi stretched as he sat in the judges' room with Topper and Mion.

"Guess it's pretty obvious who's moving onto the swimsuit portion, huh?" Mion said.

"Katsura-san, Amora, Conda, Asmo and Yami," Shinichi counted off with his fingers. "That's our top five right there."

"They do clearly deserve being in the top 5," Topper said as he sipped his tea.

Meanwhile, Hinagiku was headed to the judges' room with a bathrobe over her body. Under it she wore her bathing suit. "Just give him a peek and the contest is mine."

She knocked on the door. Shinichi opened.

"Yes?" he responded.

"Hey, big boy," flirted Hinagiku as she undid the belt of her robe. "Check this out..." As she was about to open her robe to reveal the goods, suddenly…

"RENA KICK!"

Shinichi sweatdropped as he watched Hinagiku being sent flying into the wall by Rena's kick. His girlfriend wore a dark scowl on her face.

Shinichi thought, _'Well it could've been worse. She could've had her robe off and grabbed me when Rena showed up.'_ Shinichi shivered at the thought as the mental image of Rena pulling her cleaver out to dismember both the girl and possibly himself came up.

"I suggest you go back and prepare for the contest," Rena said menacingly to Hinagiku.

Hinagiku growled, but did as she was told. She picked herself up and limped towards the dressing room. "When I win this contest, I'm going to kill that girl, slowly!" Hinagiku swore under her breath.

When the pink-haired girl had gone, Rena turned around and smiled at Shinichi. "I've brought bento for you, Mii-chan and Topper-san!" she said as she presented the items in question. They were her homemade bentos. He could smell them.

"Thank you, Rena-chan," Shinichi said as he took them. She kissed him on the lips before she ran back towards the audience seats. Shinichi smiled and waved at his girlfriend before going back into the room, yelling, "Guys, we got grub!"

* * *

"And here are our five finalists now!" Keiichi called. "Amora-san, Asmo-san, Conda-san, Yami-san and Hinagiku-san! Give them a round of applause, everybody!"

The five girls stood on stage before their adoring public who applauded. Conda had her nose up high, Amora was blowing kisses at GL-Alan, Yami was waving shyly, Hinagiku had her hands to her hips and Asmodeus was waving excitedly at them.

Asmodeus' sisters and boyfriend were cheering her on.

"Get to the swimsuit round!" one impatient audience member shouted.

Keiichi laughed as he continued, "Well, these girls are definitely the most beautiful as decided by our judges. However, we can have only one winner." He raised his finger high above his head, "That's right, ladies and gents! It's what you've been waiting for! We'll be having our swimsuit round!"

The cheers were deafening.

* * *

Shiori giggled, "Never underestimate hormonal young men."

"You mean horny," Shion corrected with a cocked eyebrow.

"Same difference, Shion dear. Same difference."

"Keiichi's really a natural at hosting, isn't he?" Hanyuu asked.

Rika answered, "Yes, and he hasn't even made a fool of himself, yet."

* * *

"Now, let's give our finalists some time to change, shall we?" asked Keiichi. The five girls went backstage.

* * *

GL-Alan smiled, happy that Amora, Yami and Conda had made it this far. However, there could only be one clear winner.

"I still think I should've entered," frowned Bishie.

"Now, Bishie. We've talked about this," GL-Alan said to her. "You aren't old enough for it."

"I could've made her old enough," said Lala.

"Yes, I know you could, Lala. I know you could." GL-Alan knew Lala meant with one of her inventions.

* * *

"Now, Mion," began Shinichi as he advised Mion, "Don't you go and give low scores to the girls if you catch Keiichi looking down their cleavage, drooling or with a nosebleed."

"Fine," she mumbled a reply. "I'll be _fair_."

Shinichi smiled, satisfied with that.

* * *

"Now, the moment you've been waiting for!" Keiichi announced as he stood on stage. Guys, and maybe a few girls, cheered as it was finally time for it. "The swimsuit round! That's right, ladies and gents! You'll see our lovely finalists in sexy swimsuits!"

"WOO-HOO!" Yokoshima whooped. Several sets of eyes turned to stare at him. "Hey, it's Asmo-chan in a swimsuit. What do you expect?"

"True enough," Shion agreed.

"Alright, first we have Amora-san!" Keiichi called. When she heard her name, Amora came on stage. What she wore really got people staring and there were flashes from cameras in the audience. She was wearing a green bikini and she also had on her tiara. She blew the audience a kiss and several of the men just went gaga. Keiichi was caught staring by Mion who was at the judges' table and she did not look happy. She did a slashing motion with her hand across her neck. Gulping, Keiichi stopped staring and called on the next name.

"Next, we have Yami-san!" Keiichi called. Yami didn't need any other signal as she strode onto the stage. She wore a black one-piece swimsuit that looked like a school swimsuit and onto the front of it was a cross. It was low cut in the back and high on the hips. She joined Amora on stage, the blondes giving each other acknowledging nods. A few lolicons were drooling.

"Alright, and now let's have Asmo-san!" Keiichi called and the youngest of the Seven Sisters of Purgatory proudly showed herself on stage and she was definitely a sight to behold. She wore a red, halter style, one-piece swimsuit that was low cut in the front and back, revealing as much as a bikini would and with each step she took her breasts bounced.

More men were bleeding out of their noses as they gazed upon her. Yokoshima nearly fainted as well but managed to shout out, "ASMO-CHAN!"

"That girl has very little shame, huh?" Shion asked. Of course, considering what her sisters wore as work uniforms, that seemed to be very true.

Keiichi adjusted the collar of his collar as he avoided Mion's glare. He was trying not to look at Asmodeus' cleavage. "OK…" He started to wipe some sweat off his forehead. "Conda-san, please, come on stage."

Conda was tall, leggy, and had the curves and looks that any fashion model would kill for. When she appeared on stage in her bikini, which looked like it was made of snake skin, she must've caused a few of the men in the audience to have heart attacks. Her bikini top was just two small triangles that covered her breasts and she was also wearing a thong.

"The girls are really knocking them out, huh?" Shinichi snickered.

"Attractive women are on display with little clothing on them," said Topper. "I suspect they might be virgins who've never seen a real woman before.

GL-Alan saw Shiori scribbling something in a notebook. "What is that?" the Green Lantern asked.

"Inspiration," she answered, already thinking up a title.

"And now, our final finalist! Hinagiku-san!" Keiichi called.

"Hmph, finally!" Hinagiku decided to show these guys what she had going on. She gave Shinichi a wink but she was ignored when he didn't notice since he was talking to Mion. She did her homework and put on something. It was a yellow bikini, the same kind of bikini Rena had worn once, and it was decorated with butterfly on the top and bottoms.

Rena's eyes narrowed at the pink-haired girl on stage.

"I hope everyone can win!" said Lala.

"Lala, there can only be one winner," GL-Alan told her.

"But still…" Lala frowned. It didn't seem fair. Everyone had tried their hardest to win but there could only be one winner.

"Now, the judges won't be giving scores," said Keiichi, "They will, however, decide on our winner!"

"We've already decided," said Shinichi as he walked onto stage and handed Keiichi a sealed envelope. Hinagiku gave Shinichi a wink. Rena, who saw this from where she sat, gritted her teeth and was reaching into her bag for her favorite weapon. Shinichi returned to the judges' table, hoping to avoid his girlfriend's anger.

Keiichi opened the envelope, "OK, well it looks like the judges were unanimous in their decision. So, the winner of this year's Shishibone University's Beauty Contest is…" Everyone was at the edge of their seats. "The winner is Yami-san!"

There were gasps of surprise and Yami's eyes widened when she heard the news. Keiichi went over and put the sash over her and putting the tiara on her, crowning her the winner of the beauty contest. She was also given the trophy. It was quite unexpected. Conda, Amora and Asmodeus hugged and kissed the girl. While they were disappointed that they didn't win, they were happy that a friend had won.

"WHAT!" Hinagiku screamed. "YOU CROWNED THAT WALLFLOWER! ARE YOU JUDGES BLIND!" Electricity sparked around her hands and eyes, shocking everyone. She then shot a bolt lighting at Yami in her rage but it didn't reach her as a green energy shield took the blast.

"Sore losers aren't very attractive," said GL-Alan in his Green Lantern uniform as he hovered close to the stage.

"STAY OUT OF THIS!" Hinagiku roared as she assumed her true form of Electric Butterfly. She floated into the air. "THAT CROWN IS MINE! MINE!" In her rage, Electric Butterfly summoned forth her minion. It appeared right out of a portal at her command. It was gigantic robotic vulture with a drill in place of a beak and drills in place of its talons.

If Hinagiku's change hadn't freaked everyone out, the robotic bird sure did. Everyone started to panic and flee out of the auditorium.

"You girls should go," GL-Alan said to the swimsuit-clad girls. He said to Yami, "Congrats."

"No you don't!" Electric Butterfly was flying straight for Yami but the little assassin was prepared as her hair morphed into a fist that knocked Electric Butterfly out of the air, causing her to land on the stage floor. Shinichi was upon her in an instant, pinning her down. "Oh, being rough, Kuro-kun?"

"Who are you?" he demanded, eyes narrowed.

"Have you forgotten? Guess I've changed a lot." She then morphed her looks. "A long time ago, I looked like _this_." Rina's face was staring right back at him and he froze in shock. She then pushed him off with her foot before ordering Drill Vulture, "Take them out!" With a wink, she flew off.

Meanwhile, Keima was taking pictures as Fujiko tried to drag him away, but to no avail as he was rooted to the spot with his camera. "Keima-san, we have to run!"

"Just a few more pictures!" he told her. When he came to watch the beauty contest, he was just hoping to capture a bunch of babes on film but this was way better! A monster attack at his college! What were the chances?

**WHAM!**

A fist came crashing down on Keima's head, knocking him out. Fujiko gasped. Ootori then threw the unconscious photographer over her shoulder and carried him out of the warzone with a frantic Fujiko following.

Drill Vulture spread its wings and its chest opened up to reveal series of holes. Drills popped out of the holes and shot towards the group like missiles. Using his ring, GL-Alan conjured a barrier around everyone. The drills hit and exploded.

"Shinichi!" GL-Alan called to his friend to get his attention. "Shinichi!" He wasn't responding.

Zero and Armadillo were already attacking Drill Vulture. The Wasp Rider fired his stingers at the mechanical bird as Armadillo jumped and rolled himself into a ball to bash himself against the creature. The stingers pierced its metal hide as Armadillo made dents in its armor.

Shinichi was in shock but then his watch beeped. He became alert again as he pressed a button, "Yes?"

"_Shinichi, Shishibone City is in danger! Get there now!_" Dr. Hasuma ordered.

Shinichi nodded. He had things to figure out but that could wait. He had a city to save. "Hey, guys! Can you handle things here?"

"Just go!" Zero shouted at him.

"Once we're done here, I'll join you," said GL-Alan.

Shinichi ran out of the auditorium and went straight to the parking lot. He saw his friends and family there. "I have to go," he told them as he got on his bike. "You guys head home and stay there where it's safe." He started up his bike and raced towards the city.

Shiori, however, had other plans.

"Girls! In the car now!" Shiori called. "And don't forget the video camera! I am not going to miss another one of Shinji's fights!"

The others gawked at her. "Are you crazy?" Keiichi questioned. Shiori ignored him. Rika and Hanyuu, knowing there was no way they could take Shiori out of this, just joined her in resignation.

"You know, she really is serious about documenting Shinichi's battles," said Rika as she went to the backseat with Hanyuu, the former holding the video camera.

"She must want to make up for lost time," said Hanyuu. "Besides, home movies are always fun."

"Let Rena come too!" Rena insisted.

"OK, you can sit shotgun next to me, Rena-chan!" Shiori welcomed. "Now, get in and buckle up! It's gonna be a bumpy ride!" Shiori got into the car and then floored the gas pedal before the car dashed off.

"That woman is crazy," said Mion.

"That explains where Shin-chan gets it from," agreed Shion.

* * *

Meanwhile, inside the auditorium, The Seven Sisters of Purgatory were in their stake form and ricocheting dangerously all around. They pierced through Drill Vulture easily as they were too fast for it to avoid. They were also too small for it to counter.

Asmodeus, after turning back to human form, landed next to Armadillo. "Sweetie, do you mind finishing this off?" Asmodeus asked sweetly.

"For you, babe? Anything." Armadillo let his thick armor fly in all directions and had his Blitz Cannons aimed at Drill Vulture. He then let loose a volley several high-powered blasts at Drill Vulture. They exploded against the robot. No longer able to withstand the assault, Drill Vulture exploded.

"You guys clean up here!" GL-Alan ordered, "I'm gonna help Shinichi!" He then shot off.

"Yeah, leave us with the hard part!" Armadillo called back.

* * *

Shinichi stopped at his destination and gawked, "That's a lot of seafood." He was referring to the school of robotic piranhas that was eating the buildings and they weren't small either. They were easily five times bigger than regular piranha and they were meaner, hungrier, and could fly too as they spread all over the city. "I'm gonna need a bigger net." Looking up, he saw GL-Alan already dealing with the problem. He shot the piranha out of the sky. They then attacked the Green Lantern, swarming him, mouths filled with razor sharp teeth snapping at him. They could not penetrate his barrier but they were too much for him.

Dr. Hasuma had told him that these robotic piranhas were able to multiply by recycling the materials they consumed. That was how they were so many. Gebok must've only built one and sent it out. It was only a matter of time before a single became a thousand. All his Rider Forms weren't exactly equipped to deal with such a thing. Sure they could take out a small number but there would still be many more left. J could possibly pose a threat but then he'd just be a huge meal for them. Oni Form could definitely take out a majority of them but using that much power was draining. There was also Higurashi Form but its sword attacks could only wipe out a few at a time. He needed to take them all out. He thought about using his Guardian Form but decided against it. He might end up doing more harm than good with that sort of power. He still had to do something, though. If only he had an army and that was when an idea struck him. His Kage Form could make clones but he always limited himself to just a handful.

"Zennin, what is the limit of Kage Form's cloning ability?" Shinichi dared to ask.

"_In Kage Form, you should be able to create an infinite amount of duplicates to help you_," stated Zennin.

"'Should'?" Shinichi questioned.

"_The amount of duplicates, or Shadow Clones, you can create is limited to how much energy you possess. You're basically dividing and distributing your energy equally among the clones you create. Too many means you'll be weak and your clones will be weak as well_," Zennin explained.

Shinichi looked towards the school of robotic piranha which was devouring the city. They were multiplying at an alarming rate as well. GL-Alan could take out most of them with his ring and powers but even if one was left it could consume material to create another school. All of the piranhas needed to be taken down.

"So, got a plan?" GL-Alan asked as he landed next to Shinichi. He shook a piranha that was clamped tight to Bazel off and then stomped it under his foot, crushing it.

"I got one, but it's a long shot," said Shinichi.

Suddenly, a car flew over the Rider and Lantern before landing on its wheels, spinning several times and finally stopping. The driver's side door, the passenger side door and the doors to the backseat were thrown open as three swirly-eyed girls stumbled out, looking pale. As for Shiori, she already had the video camera out and shouting, "OK, Shinji! Now, action!"

Shinichi and GL-Alan sweat-dropped and exchanged looks.

"Is that your mother?" GL-Alan asked.

"Yes," Shinichi answered.

"Is she holding a video camera?"

"Yes."

"Is she insane?"

"That should be fairly obvious," commented Bazel.

Shinichi didn't answer. He didn't have to. His mother was insane. That much was obvious. Still, there was a job to do. He ordered Hanyuu, "Hanyuu-chan, protect Kaa-chan, Rena-chan and Rika-chan!"

Hanyuu, once she recovered from the effects of Shiori's driving, nodded and manifested an energy barrier around herself, Rena, her best friend/sister and adopted mother.

"Henshin!" Shinichi called out. "Zennin!"

His Kamen Rider Showa GX armor formed first and then it morphed into the black-clad and ninja-like Kage Form. "Now to get their attention," he said. With that he let loose a loud shout. He wanted to draw the piranha robots to him and his shout seemed to work as they stopped eating and aimed their sights on him. They then recalled that they had a mission besides eating and flew straight at the Rider.

Glaring at the piranha robots, he charged right back at them. He was going to break his limits. GL-Alan watched as Showa began to duplicate himself. In a matter of seconds an entire army of identical ninja-like Riders which could match the school of robotic piranhas were charging at the carnivorous mechanical fish. Some of them were armed with swords, others were armed with the Dai-Shuriken and the rest used their fists and feet. The piranhas were sliced apart, filleted, stomped on, kicked, or bashed by the army of ninja-like Riders. The piranhas did get a few bites in but their teeth were unable to penetrate the armor and the ones that did had simply bitten into clones which vanished in puffs of smoke. That didn't faze the real Showa much. The Piranha couldn't locate him within the army of clones.

Shiori was grinning from ear to ear as she recorded what she saw, "This is going to be one hell of a home movie!" Her son had just multiplied into an army of Kamen Riders. Definitely something memorable.

Rika wondered about Shiori's sanity right now. Then again, this was Shiori Banabara, the mother of Shinichi Banabara. He took after her so she had to be a little bit insane since he too had done some crazy things.

"Go, Shin-kun!" Rena cheered. Her sanity was also questionable, but considering she just wanted to support her boyfriend from the sidelines it was understandable.

GL-Alan helped too with his ring, basically backing Showa up as he blasted the robotic fish apart. The remaining piranhas, realizing the threat the Rider and Lantern posed, started to gather together forming into a gigantic piranha. The eyes of the construct glared at the Rider and Lantern before it fired a beam of thermal energy at them from its mouth. The beam struck the ground and exploded but when the smoke cleared it revealed GL-Alan had erected a barrier around himself, Showa, and the clones.

"Shadow Rider Kick," commanded Showa as he launched himself into the air along with his clones which followed. They all executed a series of flying sidekicks, flying straight into the gaping maw of the gigantic Piranha construct. Inside, they began to wreak havoc on the creature, destroying it from within, piece-by-piece.

**-BOOOOOM!-**

While an army of identical Riders had entered the belly of the beast, only one exited seconds before the explosion. Showa landed on one knee and both hands, panting for breath. Rising to his feet, he let his armor vanish. "I…did it…" he said tiredly. "But…changing back to one…wasn't…easy."

"You just have to get used to it," said GL-Alan. "You've never made that many clones before."

"And never again…for awhile." Shinichi looked at the damage around. " But, first we need to fix all this damage."

GL-Alan objected, "After you rest. Can't have you passing out from using your powers. Rena would kill me."

* * *

Later, the gang celebrated Yami's victory at Angel Mort. As usual, Yami was nibbling on taiyaki. It was her favorite food. This was because, when she first arrived on Earth, she met Alan, who offered her some. It'd been her favorite ever since.

"So, Shin-chan, care to tell me how Yami-chan won?" Shion asked. She was given a day off from work.

"It was a unanimous decision," Shinichi answered.

"Oh, and it was not because Onee threatened you?" Shion asked.

"Shion, do you really think I'd force my decision onto others?" Mion asked.

"Yes," nearly everyone in the table chorused. Mion scowled.

"Well, you can be a little bossy, Mii-chan," said Rena.

"A little?" Keiichi remarked. Mion punched his arm. "Ow! Mion…"

Mion stated, "It was a beauty contest and we chose who we thought was the most beautiful. That just happened to be Yami-chan."

"So, it had nothing to do with the fact that she was the only one not flashing her cleavage, Mion-sama?" Shogo remarked suspiciously. She didn't answer.

"At least you didn't vote for that horrible Electric Butterfly," stated Rena. Shinichi frowned. "Shin-kun?"

Had Electric Butterfly been playing a sick joke on him? He'd been wondering for a while now. Why had she morphed into Rina? Was she just trying to distract him?

"Excuse me, but I'd like to offer a toast to Golden Darkness!" declared Amora.

"I too would like to offer a toast!" declared Conda. The two young women gave each other glares.

"It was an honor competing with you, but the better and cuter woman won," said Amora.

"And while I did not win, I do not bear any ill will towards you," added Conda, smiling at Yami. Yami looked up and GL-Alan smiled at her. She blushed. She was still wearing the sash and tiara.

"Excuse me, but can you help take a picture of us?" Shinichi asked a waitress. She nodded and he handed her his camera. He then joined the others so they could take a picture together, with Yami in the centre sitting next to GL-Alan.

* * *

Meanwhile, at X-SHOCKER HQ, Spider Ninja laughed as Electric Butterfly returned from her humiliating defeat. "Looks like you aren't a beauty after all if you can lose to a loli! Hahahaha-ARGH!"

Angrily, she'd zapped him with electricity before leaving his twitching and smoldering body behind. "Baka gumo…" she muttered.

* * *

KR Chrome: Took time but we managed to get it done. Surprised on who won? Well, it was the obvious choice since she was so different. Now, in the next chap, the Rider and Lantern go undercover. BTW, this is the end of the RISE OF X-SHOCKER arc. The next arc will be called THE WITCH OF TERROR. Stay tune.


	15. The Witch of Terror Part 1

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 1: Going Undercover**

In DORA, Warren was watching the footage of Showa dealing with X-SHOCKER school of robotic piranha. He couldn't help but feel a little impressed as Showa used Kage Form's cloning ability to create a huge army of clones to deal with them. It was impressive as the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu.

"You must feel proud," said Dr. Hasuma as he recorded the data on his clipboard. He had a serious expression on his face.

"Well, of course I am," smiled Warren. "I was the one who recruited him. It would be embarrassing for me if he wasn't impressive."

"I'm sure." Dr. Hasuma asked, "So, when will you tell Shinichi the true identity of his father?"

Warren guessed, "You know, huh?"

"I looked it up and I was really surprised. Why haven't you told him?"

"When he asked me to confirm that his biological father wasn't Gebok, I asked if he wanted to know his father's true identity. He said no."

"And that was it? Because he told you 'no'?" Dr. Hasuma questioned. If he were in Shinichi's shoes, he'd want to know.

"Exactly, and I think he didn't want to compare himself to his father if he did know."

Dr. Hasuma's frown deepened. "He deserves to know the truth, Director-san."

"When he asks for it, I'll give him an honest answer."

The Director of DORA scrutinized the Director of ARMOR for several seconds before returning his attention towards the monitors. Dr. Hasuma, while watching the footage, remarked, "He works very well with Alan-kun."

"You're right. I guess it's time for me to assign them a mission."

* * *

Shinichi and GL-Alan were in ARMOR, heading to Warren's office after being called from Shinichi's world.

Shinichi looked to the Green Lantern, "Shouldn't you be in school?"

GL-Alan held up a finger, "Different universe. I can return to the day I left easily."

"Yeah, but what do you do all day here?"

He shrugged, "Hang out with the girls mostly. Patrol the world while you're in school. This world has nowhere near the amount of insane shit I have to deal with back home."

They reached Warren's office and opened the door to the sight of Warren playing Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 on a PS3. They sweat-dropped. Looks like the boss was slacking off again.

"Shouldn't you be doing your paperwork, Smith-kanchou?" Shinichi asked.

"Yeah, Dad, quit slackin' off, already," GL-Alan admonished.

Warren pouted, "For your information, I finished hours ago and I was bored out of my mind. Anyway, here is your new assignment, boys."

He handed the file folder to Shinichi and he opened it to read its contents.

Shinichi grinned, "Looks like you're going to school after all, Alan."

Alan looked over the folder and smiled.

"Looks like you're being kicked back to school too, Shinichi," the Green Lantern retorted.

"What? Really?" He grabbed the file again and scanned it before shrugging, "Oh, well, I could take a short break from college."

"Good, I'm glad you're both taking this so well. So, unless you have any hints on how I can get the "Feat of a Hundred Slashes" trophy on my game, I suggest you get yourself ready for the mission."

The Rider and Lantern nodded before they headed to the exit but stopped as Warren said, "And whatever you do, _do not_ attract attention to yourselves. This is an undercover mission, not a smash and grab."

"Relax, Dad. This is going to be easy mission," GL-Alan replied.

"Yeah, and I've already done this before. If I can pull something as bad as the 'High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER' off, this should be a piece of cake."

After the two left the office, Warren mused aloud, "I wonder if I should've told them that the school they were going to wasn't exactly normal." He shrugged. "Oh well, they'll figure it out soon enough." He then went back to playing his game.

* * *

Shinichi went to the boarding house where GL-Alan was staying with his girls. He couldn't help but be envious of his young friend for having a harem made up of a diversity of girls. He was also a source of inspiration for Shinichi's mothers since most of the girls were not too shy to tell her about what happened in bed. Shinichi also heard from his mother what she heard from the girls. Definitely, GL-Alan was living every man's fantasy. The girls fought over him, for sure, but that what happened in these types of situation.

Shinichi was on his bike with the sidecar attached. He was wearing the uniform of the school he and GL-Alan were supposed to investigate. The uniform was a white shirt with a brown blazer worn over it and black slacks. A red necktie also hung from his neck. The school's badge was on the left breast pocket of the blazer.

The name of the school was Kunpo Gakuen.

According to the file, there was some strange paranormal activity going on in that school. It may or may not involve X-SHOCKER and Gebok, but it didn't hurt to check it out. Shinichi waited and watched as GL-Alan walked out of the front door wearing the same uniform. The girls were seeing him off as well. On closer inspection, he saw that GL-Alan looked exhausted. He could guess why.

Passing his spare helmet to GL-Alan, he remarked, "So, had a fun night with the girls, huh?"

"Shut up," GL-Alan murmured, too tired to argue. He put on the helmet and then stared at the sidecar. "A sidecar? Seriously?"

Shinichi shook his head and told GL-Alan, "There is no way I am letting you wrap your arms around me, now get in the sidecar and buckle up."

GL-Alan was too tired to argue anyway so he put on his helmet and got into the sidecar.

"So, how many times?" Shinichi asked, grinning cheekily.

"Just drive!" GL-Alan ordered.

"OK, OK," Shinichi obeyed, revving up the engine. He still had that grin plastered on his face, though.

Warren made sure to send the paperwork regarding both Shinichi and GL-Alan's enrollment in the school. GL-Alan would be a freshmen while Shinichi would be a senior at the school. They were given a week to complete the mission and would be staying at a nearby students' dorm. They were roommates too. Their stuff would be sent over after school was done for the day.

It didn't take long before they arrived at the school with minutes to spare. Shinichi drove his bike through the front gate, earning a few stares as he casually rode a bike. GL-Alan sunk himself deep into the sidecar. Him, riding a sidecar, at his age was embarrassing. Shinichi parked his bike and the two heroes got off the vehicle and looked at the school building. It looked normal, just your typical and standard high school, but in their job looks could be deceiving.

"I'm gonna head over to my class," said Shinichi. "How about you?"

"I think I'll be able to find it," GL-Alan replied. "See you at lunch?"

"See you at lunch."

The two entered the building, finding their assigned shoe lockers, and switched their shoes for the indoor shoes. They then went their separate way. For Shinichi, this was going to be a new experience for him. He'd never gone to a real high school before. His schooling took place in Hinamizawa with all his friends, sharing a classroom with other students of all grade levels.

GL-Alan wasn't new to the high school scene, but his school was one that was for the gifted. By gifted, it meant that the school was for heroes-in-training with GL-Alan being one of them. His siblings all attended different superhero schools. He attended the North American branch while his older siblings had attended the Asian branch.

He found his classroom, which was 1-A (First Year, Freshman Class-A) He knocked on the door and the homeroom teacher slid it open. She was a tall woman, attractive too, with slanted glasses and violet hair up in a bun. She wore what looked like a black sweater with a dark violet blazer and pants. GL-Alan handed her a sheet of paper and she scanned over it quickly. "So, you're the new transfer, right? Mr. Alan Smith?"

"Yes, that's me," GL-Alan smiled.

She nodded and told him to enter. He learnt from her that her name was Airin Kizaki and she was the homeroom teacher who taught English. "Alright, class!" she spoke sternly, "We have a new transfer student joining us. His name is Alan Smith." She addressed GL-Alan, "You can take the empty seat behind Ezomori-san." GL-Alan looked to the empty seat which was behind a silver-haired girl. He recognized her instantly. It happened just the other day after he and Shinichi received their orders.

* * *

_GL-Alan rarely had time alone. Most of his time was occupied by his girlfriends/lovers and his work at ARMOR. After he'd received his orders, he and Shinichi went home their separate ways. GL-Alan decided to walk around town to think. As he looked ahead, he saw a silver-haired girl crossing the road. What really got his attention was the truck that was heading her way. The driver of the truck didn't see her in time._

_Instincts taking over, GL-Alan ran towards the girl. He pulled her back before the truck could hit her. The girl fell on top of him and stared at him. The truck driver stopped and got out of the truck, apologizing for not paying attention, "Sorry! Is anyone hurt?"_

"_No, we're fine," GL-Alan told the truck driver. "No harm done, just pay attention, OK?"_

_The truck driver nodded and got back to his truck, glad that nobody was harmed, and drove off. The girl GL-Alan had saved was still staring at him. She was fair-skinned and the silver hair made her quite attractive. She was cute too, kind of like Yami._

"_You can get off me now," he said. She didn't. She sniffed him first before getting off him. He looked away as he saw her panties since her skirt was rather short. She was wearing a yellow hooded jacket over a white shirt and denim skirt._

"_Thank you," she said to him before she ran off. GL-Alan shrugged. He possibly wouldn't ever see her again._

* * *

"Well, this is a small world." He then took his seat. The girl didn't seem to acknowledge her but she did glance at him as he walked past before he took his seat. She wore a small smile on her face.

* * *

Shinichi had found his class as well, which was 3-B (Year 3, Senior Class-B). The teacher was named Yukari Fujimura and she wore a sleeveless, spaghetti strap green dress over a black and yellow striped shirt. Her hair was wavy and chin-length. She was also holding a shinai in one hand and had it hefted over her shoulder.

"You the new kid?" she asked bluntly.

"Yeah," Shinichi answered. He was more used to the gentle Chie-sensei who taught in Hinamizawa. She was perfect, except for the obsession with curry.

Fujimura-sensei went to the front of the class and slammed the shinai against the blackboard to get everyone's attention. They all sat up straight, "Alright, kids! We got a new friend joining us!" She addressed Shinichi, pointing at him with her shinai, "OK, kid! Name!"

"I'm Shinji Sanban," he responded, using his birth name along with his old made up surname as his undercover name. His mother was famous, so he didn't want anyone to know he was her son lest his cover be blown.

"OK, take whatever empty seat you can find," ordered Fujimura-sensei. "Now, open your textbooks to page 54 and this is going to be on the next test."

The class groaned.

* * *

It was lunch time and Shinichi and GL-Alan were walking around the schoolyard. They were conversing about their mission when GL-Alan informed him of what he'd discovered.

"This school is filled with yokai (monsters) and aliens," said GL-Alan.

"How can you tell?" blinked Shinichi.

"My ring," explained GL-Alan. "It's detecting various alien life forms and thanks to my mom's powers I can feel the energy given off by the yokai."

"So, you think this is what your dad wanted us to investigate?"

"No, there's another kind of energy here. It's yellow."

"Yellow?"

"Yellow. The color of fear."

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow but then something caught his attention. He spotted a silver-haired girl sitting alone on a bench under a tree. What caught Shinichi's attention was the size of her lunch, which composed of mostly meat.

"That girl is really packing it in," said Shinichi.

"Yeah, I know her," said Alan.

"You do?" Shinichi asked.

"She was about to get hit by a truck but I pulled her out of the way," said Alan. "She's also in my class."

The girl seemed to hear them and looked up from her food. She'd been having spare ribs and now there was a pile of bones next to her after she'd finished eating. As she turned her gaze towards them, her eyes fell on Alan.

"Dude, she's checking you out," said Shinichi, nudging his friend with his elbow.

The girl got off from the bench and walked over to them. She sniffed Shinichi and then she turned her attention towards Alan. With a small smile, she wrapped her arms around him and confessed, "I love you."

Shinichi blinked. That was rather blunt.

Alan sighed before inwardly thinking, '_Here we go again..._'

"So, Alan, what's this cutie's name?" asked Shinichi.

"Nozomu Ezomori," the girl answered, still hugging GL-Alan. She sniffed Shinichi, "You smell like demon."

Shinichi was about to comment when his ears picked up screaming. "I'll leave you two alone," he told GL-Alan and the silver-haired girl before he dashed off towards the source of the scream. He saw a crowd at the entrance and forced his way through to the front. He saw what appeared to be a kidnapping as some guys were forcing a girl into the car. Nobody was doing anything and he scowled. This wasn't something he could ignore.

"Come on, boss! Drive so we can have fun with this bitch!" one of the boys in the back said as he held the girl roughly.

As the driver started the engine, he realized that the car would not move. "Huh?" He checked the gauges. The speedometer was moving and the gas tank was filled. Why wasn't it moving? He then looked ahead to see someone holding the car down.

Shinichi had his hand on the hood of the car as the wheels continued to spin, grinding against the asphalt.

"She said 'no', didn't she?" Shinichi said coldly, referring to the girl being held unwillingly in the back seat. He drew back his other hand back before plunging it through the hood. When he withdrew his hand from the hole he'd made, smoke came out as the engine had taken damage. Flicking his wrist, he then walked over to the backseat door on the right before he violently ripped it off its hinges. "Out," he ordered. The boy in the back wet his pants and the girl hastily got out.

Shinichi heard whispers and murmurs as well as stares. He took little notice of them. GL-Alan, who'd just arrived, just sighed, smiling, "Nice work there…"

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome:** I guess Shinichi forgot that he had to lay low and maintain a low profile. What he just did here is not maintaining a low profile. He just showed everyone what he could do in front of witnesses! Will this hinder the duo's investigation?

**Shadow Element 13: **Well, Shinichi never has been one for subtlety. Looks like Alan has a new addition to his harem. Wonder how his girls back home will react? Wonder how this will play out? Well, guess you'll just have to wait for the next chap to find out!


	16. The Witch of Terror Part 2

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 2: The Recruitment**

Up on the school roof, GL-Alan was confronting Shinichi over what had happened earlier. He didn't look all that happy as he crossed his arms and looked his comrade straight in the eye.

"You do remember that Dad told us to lay low and maintain a low profile, right?" GL-Alan asked. Shinichi nodded. "How was punching through the hood of a car and ripping one of its doors off its hinges laying low?"

"Maybe I overdid it a little," Shinichi responded.

"Gee, ya think?" GL-Alan remarked sarcastically. "How did you infiltrate GIN-SHOCKER anyway without getting caught?"

"It helped that I was a really good actor," Shinichi answered, "That, and they were too arrogant and actually thought I was one of them."

"Your enemies must be really stupid then. No wonder you can beat them."

Shinichi apologized, "Look, I'm sorry, but I couldn't really ignore something like that when it happens right in front of me."

"Yeah, I know, but you could've handled it in a way that didn't draw too much attention."

Shinichi waved off GL-Alan's concern. "Relax, Alan. They'll just think I work out a lot and take plenty of vitamins to make myself strong. It'll blow over. You'll see. So, you up for some lunch? I'm buying!"

* * *

In the cafeteria, Shinichi and GL-Alan sat at a table. Nozomu was seated close to GL-Alan, clinging to his arm. The stares and whispers did not go unnoticed for the two ARMOR members and Nozomu's keen hearing picked up on every word.

"They are talking about you," Nozomu said to Shinichi.

"Good things, I hope," he said positively. Nozomu didn't respond. "Um…Ezomori-san?"

"Blow over, huh?" GL-Alan remarked sarcastically.

"Well, maybe not today but someday…someday…"

* * *

In class, Shinichi's eyes were on his textbook and notebook as he took notes of the teacher's lecture. He continued to hear whispers from his classmates. He frowned. He cared little about what they had to say about him. The only people whose opinion really mattered were those of his comrades and loved ones.

Still, he felt like an outcast. After his performance earlier, he doubt anyone would come near him as they possibly feared him. His only friend in the school was GL-Alan.

GL-Alan did mention that the school had yokai and aliens in it. He looked about. Whoever they were, they were cleverly disguised. There were no signs of anybody being a yokai or an alien. Then, he recalled when Nozomu said. She said he smelled like a demon. What did she mean exactly?

As the day ended, he went to the shoe lockers. Along the way people gave him a wide berth. He shouldn't be surprised. After his display of superhuman strength they were obviously afraid of him. They were giving him fearful stares.

As he went to get his shoes, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned his head around to see a student, a foot taller with a muscular build and a scar over his nose.

"Hey, I saw what you did earlier. You wanna talk?" he asked in a gruff voice.

Shinichi shrugged. "Sure. I got nothing else to do."

* * *

"Nozomu, we should really be going," said GL-Alan as Nozomu was still hugging him. They were the only ones left in class since they were assigned cleaning duty. Now that they were done it was time to leave.

"I want to be here with you," she stated bluntly, rubbing her cheek against his.

The Green Lantern sighed before he caught a sight outside the window. "Shinichi?" It was Shinichi and he was walking with someone. "Who's that?"

"That's Kumada," Nozomu answered.

"Kumada? Is he a yokai too?" GL-Alan asked. Nozomu nodded to confirm. He frowned. "Not good…"

"Kumada only associates with other yokai. He must think your friend is one since he showed his strength earlier on that car," said Nozomu. "Alan, is your friend a yokai?"

Nozomu didn't know about the truth behind Shinichi's abilities. GL-Alan couldn't tell her. He could say this, "To some people, he can be one."

* * *

Kumada had led Shinichi to the back of the school. Shinichi had his hands in his pockets as he asked, "So, what do you want?" Without warning, Kumada threw a punch at Shinichi which he effortlessly caught in his palm. Shinichi then smacked the fist away. "So, you want to fight, is that it?"

Kumada laughed. "You really aren't human! That punch of mine would've broken your hand if you were!"

Shinichi concluded, "So, you're not a human too. A yokai then?"

Kumada smiled. "So, you know what I am, huh? Can you guess what kind?"

"Strong, like a bear. A Kuma (bear)," Shinichi said.

"You're pretty observant, newbie," said Kumada. "How would you like to join my gang?"

"Gang?"

"For people like us. Look, this school has some yokai studying here to blend in with humans but we don't like humans all that much and humans are naturally afraid of us. Unfortunately, we yokai are the minority here in this school so we need to stick together," Kumada explained. "Call it 'safety in numbers'. I mean they are already afraid of you. What's stopping them from ganging up on you?"

Shinichi answered, "I can take care of myself and I've taken on crowds larger and tougher than this school can muster." He added, "I don't need to join a gang to be safe in this school."

Kumada frowned. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, thanks for the offer, but it's not my style to hang with a huge crowd," responded Shinichi. Actually, he did like being with others but only the people he really cared for. Being with a bunch of strangers with a common goal was like GIN-SHOCKER.

"You know, I won't give you this offer again. Some people won't like someone with your abilities running around unchecked," warned Kumada.

"I already have people breathing down my neck. A few more won't make a difference."

"Just be sure you're making the right choice, Sanban," said Kumada.

Shinichi didn't reply. He just continued to walk away. He spotted GL-Alan at his bike, waiting for him. "Hey, ready to roll?"

"Yeah, sure," answered GL-Alan.

"So, where's your new girlfriend?" Shinichi teased as he mounted the vehicle and put on his helmet. GL-Alan boarded the sidecar.

"Just drive."

* * *

The dorm was half a mile from the school. According to their room assignments, Shinichi and GL-Alan were roommates. After parking the bike, the two went inside and spoke to the dorm manager who handed them their keys. Their room was on the second floor.

Shinichi opened the door and was impressed as he scanned the room, "Hm, looks like this place has all the bare essentials. We've got bunk beds and desks. There's also a kitchen area. No bathroom, though. Guess we have to use the dorm's bathroom. It's also got enough room for the both of us."

"And our stuff should be delivered within an hour," said GL-Alan.

"I call the top bunk!" Shinichi yelled. He then jumped up and landed on the top bunk, lying down to relax. "Ah…that's right."

"Hey, Shinichi, I think we should talk about what happened today," said GL-Alan. "I saw you talking to some big guy and Nozomu told me he was a yokai."

"That girl is really open with this stuff, isn't she?" Shinichi remarked. "Guess the 'Smith Charm' has its uses after all."

"It sure does," agreed Bazel. "I think any man would want that ability."

"It's more trouble than it's worth, guys," said GL-Alan. "Believe me."

"Yeah, because this morning you looked like you hadn't slept all night," teased Shinichi. "And were you limping?"

"Shinichi, can't you be serious for five minutes?" GL-Alan scolded sternly.

"OK, OK, chill out."

"Can you tell me what that guy told you?" GL-Alan asked.

"He was thinking of recruiting me into some gang. I told him no," answered Shinichi.

"Are you sure that was a good idea? By nature I follow my gut and my gut's telling me that guy was bad news."

"Why do you think I refused to join in the first place?" Shinichi responded.

"But, if he was a yokai, then maybe you should've joined. I mean having a guy on the inside might help," GL-Alan told him.

Shinichi blinked. "I…didn't think of that. Maybe I can find him and apologize, tell him I was in a bad mood."

"Well, you did manage to become an outcast in one fell swoop. That would piss anyone off," said GL-Alan as he cocked an eyebrow curiously "Are you feeling alright?"

"Why do you ask?"

"You're usually more focused on a mission, but today you lost it," GL-Alan informed him, referring to the incident earlier that day. "People have been looking at you, scared of you."

Shinichi sighed and said, "I guess I've been thinking about where Gebok could be hiding and what he's planning. Maybe he's involved in all this."

"We can't make rash assumptions. Anyway, try and get on Kumada's good side again. I hope he gave you a way to contact him," said GL-Alan.

"He gave me his phone number. That'll help. I'll give him a call after school tomorrow."

An hour later, their stuff came. They were mostly clothes and supplies. Shinichi hooked the kotatsu and fridge up almost immediately.

"We need food," said GL-Alan as he opened the empty fridge.

"I'll go shopping," Shinichi volunteered.

"No, _I'll_ go shopping," GL-Alan objected. "You stay here. Try to not to get into trouble again, OK?"

Shinichi rolled his eyes, "Yes, Mom."

GL-Alan left the room and headed out to go shopping. As he walked along the street towards the nearest convenience store, Bazel spoke, "Don't you think you're being a little harsh with your friend?"

"He almost jeopardised the mission with his stunt," GL-Alan replied.

"Don't tell me you wouldn't have done the same."

"I would, but not like that. I'd kick their asses and rescue the girl, but I wouldn't punch a hole through the hood or rip a door off its hinges."

"Yeah, right," Bazel snorted. "If that happened to any of your girls, you would be so mad that you'd do way more damage."

GL-Alan reluctantly agreed. Get him mad enough and he could be pretty destructive. He then stopped in mid-step.

"What's wrong?" Bazel asked.

"We're being followed," GL-Alan responded.

* * *

Back in the dorm room, Shinichi was reading a manga he'd brought along. However, his mind was elsewhere. He was thinking about Electric Butterfly.

"_A long time ago, I looked like this!"_

That was what she'd said right before she morphed to look like Rina. She'd freaked him out and caused him to release her and let her escape. Even after all this time, he hadn't gotten over what had happened to Rina. This Electric Butterfly knew, possibly from Gebok, and was using the fact to mess with his head. However, there was something about Electric Butterfly that seemed eerily familiar.

He shut the manga and let out a sigh. "I wish Rena-chan was here…" he murmured. High school just wasn't fun without all his friends from the Gaming Club, especially his girlfriend Rena. He put a hand on the Magatama he wore. She wore the other one. While the two Magatama no longer had any power, they were a symbol of their bond and love. It'd only been a day but he already missed her.

* * *

Meanwhile, GL-Alan was keeping his guard up. Someone was stalking him. He gripped his fist as his ring began to glow. He swung around, prepared to strike. He then saw a head of silver hair poke out from behind a telephone pole, a very familiar head of silver hair.

It was Nozomu. The glow on GL-Alan's ring died as he sighed. "Nozomu, have **you** been following me?" She stepped out of her hiding place, still dressed in the school uniform which was comprised of a white blouse with a blazer, a red bow tie and a brown skirt that came down to mid-thigh. She gave him a nod.

"Looks like you got a stalker," teased Bazel.

Ignoring the sentient armband, GL-Alan invited, "Hey, Nozomu, wanna go with me to do some shopping?" In a flash, she was at his side, holding his hand. "OK then."

* * *

Shinichi was absently shuffling a deck of cards. GL-Alan had yet to return and he was bored out of his mind. He'd just finished his homework. For someone with a cybernetic brain it was just child's play for him.

He wished there was someone he could play with. His wish was granted as, in a flash of gold, Satan appeared and bowed, "Stake of Wrath, Satan, is here!" She then sat down in front of Shinichi. "Hey, why so glum?"

"Just bored right now," answered Shinichi. "Say, you wanna play Strip Poker?"

* * *

GL-Alan and Nozomu were in a convenience store. GL-Alan needed to stock up on a week's supply of food. After the week was up, the mission would be over. GL-Alan didn't actually need to be on this mission, but there was something about the school that he didn't like. As he took a sizeable amount of pre-made bentos and placed them in his cart, he felt Nozomu nuzzle into his back.

"Uh, Nozomu…what are you doing?" asked GL-Alan.

"I like your scent," said Nozomu. She pressed herself against him further.

"Nozomu, why did you fall for me?"

She answered, smiling, "Because you're nice and you saved me."

"Heh," snickered Bazel, "If only she knew you weren't single and you had a harem."

"Harem?" blinked Nozomu.

"Err…I kinda attract a lot of…interesting women," responded GL-Alan.

"Interesting isn't even the half of it! He's got an alien princess, an assassin, an Asgardian, an Amazon, and a plant-girl," said Bazel.

GL-Alan glared at his armband. "I hate you…"

* * *

When GL-Alan returned, he came across Shinichi lying on the floor with cuts all over his body and shredded clothes. He also had red handprints on his cheeks.

"Word…of advice…" groaned Shinichi. "Never…ask a girl…who can turn into…a flying stake…to play Strip…Poker."

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: **Things are starting to get interesting. Alan gets a new girl and Shinichi gets some unwanted attention. Wonders what will happen next?

**Shadow Element 13: **Oh Shinichi, I could have told you that. At least you stayed out of trouble this time. Can't wait for what happens next!


	17. The Witch of Terror Part 3

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 3: The Joining**

Shinichi and GL-Alan were having dinner in their dorm room. They were having the pre-packed bentos GL-Alan had bought earlier.

"Hey, Alan?"

"Yes, Shinichi?"

"Is she going to be staying the night?" asked Shinichi. He was pointing at Nozomu who was clinging to GL-Alan. "Doesn't she have a home or something?"

"I wanna stay with Alan," said Nozomu. "You can leave. I'll stay."

Shinichi narrowed his eyes and addressed his roommate, "Alan, she's cute and I have to respect you for being able woo a new girl in less than a day, but she has got to go." He pointed at the door.

"I thought you liked the idea of having a girl spend the night," GL-Alan teased.

"_My_ girl," Shinichi clarified. "My girl, OK?"

"You stink at subtlety, you know that? I'll see you tomorrow Nozomu," said GL-Alan.

"OK," nodded Nozomu. She planted a quick kiss on his cheek and left, closing the door behind her.

"You can learn a lot about stealth from her. I mean she snuck in right under our own noses and we're supposed to be trained professionals," GL-Alan remarked.

Shinichi scowled. He asked, "By the way, is it really safe for her to be around us? She could blow our cover."

"_You_ almost blew our cover," GL-Alan argued.

"It'll blow over!" He calmed down. "Sorry, sorry."

"Shinichi, I trust Nozomu, and not because she's cute. I am a good judge of character. I mean, I hang out with you and you're a known perv."

"I'm not that bad. I do not go around stealing women's underwear."

"But you do keep a stash of porn…"

"_Research material_, Alan! Research material!" Shinichi paused. "You know, she's probably gonna be pissed when she finds out you have a harem," pointed out Shinichi.

"She already knows," said GL-Alan. He lifted up his arm and pointed at Bazel. "This worthless piece of jewelry blabbed."

"Hey!" shouted Bazel.

"And she was OK with it?"

"She said that she was fine being a mistress."

Shinichi blinked. He muttered about, "Lucky bastards," before he added aloud, "OK, starting tomorrow we'll split up. You can take care of the aliens in the school and I'll take care of the yokai."

"Remember, low profile," reminded GL-Alan. He didn't need Shinichi making more of a scene than he already had.

"Right, I'll try not to get on anyone's bad side until the end of our mission."

Even after hearing that, GL-Alan didn't feel too reassured.

"Maybe you could meet up with Kumada after school tomorrow?" GL-Alan suggested. "That is if you haven't gotten on his bad side."

"I guess you're right about that. So, how about you? What are you gonna do tomorrow?"

"I bet he'll get that girl alone and take her right on the floor!" Bazel stated.

"When I get you off I'm throwing you into a volcano!" GL-Alan threatened.

"Like you weren't thinking it! Don't forget I get a front row seat to the stuff you and your harem do at night!"

* * *

The next morning Shinichi was the first up. "Morning Alan!" greeted Shinichi. "I'll go make breakfast. Who likes bacon?"

A small hand shot up from beneath GL-Alan's covers. "I do," said an obviously feminine voice. The Kaizo Ningen grabbed the covers and tossed them off to reveal a naked Nozomu cuddling with GL-Alan. Shinichi palmed his face. She must've snuck in while they were asleep.

Exasperated, Shinichi sighed, "I'll set another plate."

* * *

The trio, dressed and ready for school (Nozomu had brought a duffle bag with her when she snuck in), was seated around the low table having breakfast. Shinichi had made bacon and eggs.

"So, what's the plan for today?" asked Shinichi.

"You need to lay low," said GL-Alan.

"Lay low," mimicked Nozomu.

Shinichi addressed, "Why were you in Alan's bed?"

Nozomu leaned against GL-Alan, "He's comfy."

* * *

The trio went to school, riding Shinichi's bike. This time GL-Alan was driving while Shinichi ended up in the sidecar. Nozomu rode behind GL-Alan, holding him close. When he parked the bike, a girl walked up to them. It was the girl Shinichi had rescued yesterday. She had violet hair in pigtails.

"Thank you, Sempai!" the girl said, bowing. "You really saved me yesterday!" She had a blush on her face.

"It's nothing, really. Just doing what anybody would've done," he told her.

"Oh no!" She shook her head. "Nobody did anything but you! Sempai, you're my hero!"

"Right, gotcha," Shinichi nodded awkwardly. "What's your name, kouhai?"

"It's Minako Sairenji!" she beamed. She reached into her bag and took out a lunch box which she held in front of her. "Please, accept this from me as a token of my thanks!" Shinichi awkwardly took the lunch box. She gave another bow and dashed off.

"Looks like somebody appreciated what you did, hero," said GL-Alan. Nozomu had her arm around GL-Alan's.

"Say, why don't you and your girlfriend head to class? I have to take care of something."

"Sure, but don't be late," GL-Alan reminded before he and Nozomu headed for class.

Shinichi reached into his bag and pulled out several sheets of paper. He checked, looking left and right, before he started to fold the paper. In a matter of seconds he'd made a dozen origami cranes.

Shinichi borrowed power from the Tsukumogami of the Three Treasures. Now he was going to use a power that Gokuaku had lent him. "Now, to breathe some life into them." He waved his hand over the paper cranes and they started to come to life as they flapped their little wings. "Come back and report to me when you see anything suspicious," Shinichi ordered. The paper cranes all flapped away to obey their order. He caught one by its tail. "Except for you. I need you to send a message to Rena-chan."

* * *

"Smith-san, why is Ezomori-san sitting in your lap?" their homeroom teacher, Ms. Kizaki, inquired.

"I honestly don't know…Nozomu, could you please take your seat?" asked GL-Alan. Nozomu nodded and took her seat as class resumed. GL-Alan set up his book to act as a barrier. "Ring, scan the room for any traces of Alien DNA." The ring glowed briefly. Luckily, it wasn't seen because of his makeshift barrier.

"_Alien Species: 15,_" responded the Ring.

'_Fifteen…that means out of the remaining class, there's 18 students who are either human or youkai, not counting Nozomu and I_,' thought GL-Alan. "Ring, scan the room for any non-human and non-alien DNA." Again, the Power Ring glowed.

"_Non-Human and Non-Alien Species: 14_," responded the Power Ring.

"29 people in this class are non-human…not counting myself, that means that only 5 people in this class room are human."

* * *

Rena woke up to a very lonely breakfast. Yesterday, Shinichi had gone on a mission which would take at least a week to complete. She sighed as she spread jam over her toast. She looked at the window. "Maybe some fresh air is all I need." She got up and opened the window. Then, something flew in. Rena's eyes shone as she saw a pink origami paper crane flapping in the air. "Kawaii…" The crane then unfolded itself and the paper flew into Rena's hands. She saw that there was writing. "It's from Shin-kun!"

* * *

At lunch, Shinichi and GL-Alan met at a vending machine. Once again, Nozomu was with them. "So, did you find out anything new?" Shinichi asked.

"Just that only five people in my class are human," answered GL-Alan. "What about you?"

"I received some very interesting notes in my shoe locker," informed Shinichi.

"Threatening ones?" GL-Alan asked.

"Some of them were challenge letters, actually," Shinichi answered. "Not sure about accepting them or not but this gives me an idea." An origami crane landed on his shoulder.

"What's that?" GL-Alan asked.

"Just something I made this morning," answered Shinichi. The crane unfolded into a sheet of paper and Shinichi read the contents. "I see…"

"What?" GL-Alan asked. Shinichi showed him the paper and he read it. "Whoa."

"Looks like I'm gonna have to join Kumada's gang," said Shinichi As he folded the paper up back into a crane. He ordered, "Go to Kumada and tell him this…"

* * *

It was after school and Shinichi was waiting at the playground near the dorm when he saw Kumada arriving. With him was another boy. He was shorter than Kumada, with spiked hair, noticeably pointed ears, narrowed eyes and a leaner build. He was another yokai, considering that Kumada wouldn't associate with human. Shinichi just wasn't sure what sort of Youkai the other person was.

"You called me here, Sanban," said Kumada. "What's up? I thought you said you weren't interested."

Shinichi rubbed the back of his head and answered, "I was…in a bad mood, Kumada-san. With the way people were staring at me, I was feeling annoyed. So, I wasn't thinking straight."

"You refused my offer. Why should I accept yours?" asked Kumada.

"Because of _this_," said Shinichi as he pointed to a nearby tree. Before either of them could blink it was sliced into several pieces. "See?"

The other boy with Kumada snorted, "Che, big deal. I can do that."

"And who are you? I thought I asked to have a private meeting with Kumada-san."

Kumada introduced, "Sanban, this is my right-hand man, Kiriyama. He's one of my best fighters, second only to me. I brought him here to test you."

"Test?" Shinichi responded. He then noticed cuts in his sleeves when two slices of wind cut through. His eyes narrowed.

"That's right, newbie. Consider yourself lucky. Nobody who refuses Boss' offer has ever survived," Kiriyama threatened as wind collected around his arms.

"Well then, you can call me the first," said Shinichi as he reached into his coat and pulled out a sheathed katana. The scabbard was green with an ornament resembling a cicada hanging from it. The katana had a rectangular cross-guard and a handle with wrapped black cloth around it that had four-pointed stars decorating the cloth.

"So, you came prepared," admired Kumada.

"Well, since I refused and you did threaten me, I thought to come with some extra protection," said Shinichi as he unsheathed the katana before tossing the scabbard away.

"As if a sword will stop me!" Kiriyama shouted as he glided across the ground and struck with a wind powered punch. Shinichi parried with the flat side of his blade but he was still being pushed back by the force of the blow. "Take that! And that! And that!" Kiriyama threw punch after punch at Shinichi but he parried them with ease. Kiriyama gritted his teeth and leapt into the air. "Here, take this!" He began throwing blades of compressed wind at Shinichi. Shinichi couldn't see them but he could hear the attacks coming as they sliced through the air. He deflected them with his sword, surprising Kumada and Kiriyama.

"This kid is something else," admitted Kumada. "Not many can see and counter Kiriyama's attacks so easily. Heck, even I have trouble against them."

Kiriyama landed across from Shinichi. "Hey, what are you?"

"Meaning?" Shinichi responded.

"When I sniffed you, you smelled human and of something else. Are you a hanyou (half-breed)?" Kiriyama asked. Hanyou referred to half-breeds, mainly children who are the product of human and yokai parents.

"Well, I admit I'm half human and half something else," Shinichi responded. That was true. He was part machine thanks to Gebok. He also had cicada DNA and really couldn't be considered human anymore. "Is that a problem?"

"Heh, no way! One of my closes friends is a hanyou!" responded Kiriyama. "Well, looks like it's time I went all out!" He then launched an entire series of vacuum blades at Shinichi, all at once. Shinichi had a hard time deflecting them as his clothes were being ripped up by them. Something striking his sword could be heard.

Kumada sighed. He really had high hopes for Shinichi, but in the end he would end up being cut to ribbons by Kiriyama…

"TIME TO BRING DOWN THE THUNDER! GOKUAKU!"

Kumada uttered, "Huh?" as he saw lightning crackling and energy bursting out of Shinichi's body before lancing straight towards Kiriyama. His right-hand man didn't even see it coming as he was struck with the electricity and was electrocuted on the spot. It lasted for several seconds before the lightning stopped and Kiriyama fell backwards, unconscious. Kumada's eyes went to look at Shinichi who was no longer holding a sword but a steel kanabo that was entirely black and covered in spikes. "An Oni?"

The kanabo reverted back into Shinichi's sword before he sheathed it. "So, am I in?"

"Yeah, you're in," said Kumada. "Welcome to the gang."

Shinichi gestured to a twitching Kiriyama with his thumb. "You should help that guy. He looks like he'll need it."

Meanwhile, flying above and in green was GL-Alan and he'd seen the entire thing. "You _really_ don't understand the concept of subtlety, do you?" sighed GL-Alan. At least Shinichi was now in the yokai group. GL-Alan now had to investigate the aliens and hopefully find something that would warrant his father sending them on this mission.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome:** Shinichi is now part of the gang, but what is it about? What exactly are Shinichi and Alan investigating? Why does the school have yokai, aliens and humans together? These questions will be answered soon so stay tune.

**Shadow Element 13: **Things are just warming up in the Witch of Terror Arc. But things are gonna get really bad, really fast.


	18. The Witch of Terror Part 4

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 4: Big Bad Brother Wolf**

A biker dressed in a leather jacket with blue jeans and boots was sitting on his motorbike. His helmet was resting on the gas tank as he waited for a certain someone to walk by. He had parked his bike near the entrance of the school and was checking his watch a few times as well. He then looked to his left to see them coming. "Right on time."

Shinichi, GL-Alan and Nozomu were heading to school together and this time without Shinichi's bike. They were walking and Nozomu was holding GL-Alan's hand. She and GL-Alan were having an animated conversation, all the while ignoring Shinichi's presence.

"Yo, Nozomu!" the biker called.

Nozomu looked at the biker and her eyes widened considerably.

"Nozomu, do you know him?" asked GL-Alan.

"Aniki..." she uttered.

Shinichi inspected the biker and there seemed to be a resemblance shared between him and Nozomu. They both had silver hair, for one thing and Shinichi could sense something inhuman, and dangerous, about this guy too.

GL-Alan placed his hand on Nozomu's arm and moved her behind him. "Stay behind me," said GL-Alan. He could sense the power on this guy, and while he had faced worse, he still didn't like it.

"Ooh…so, you're the guy dating my little sister?" smiled the man. He then vanished from sight and appeared next to GL-Alan. He raised his hand and went to strike GL-Alan, who quickly dodged, but not fast enough. A small cut appeared on GL-Alan's cheek, letting blood slide down the wound.

"You're fast," said GL-Alan.

"Not fast enough," smirked the man. "I meant to take off your head." He felt fingers press against the back of his neck.

"Please, don't try and kill my friends in front of me," threatened Shinichi coldly. Despite his calm appearance, there was a dangerous edge to his voice and his eyes shone maliciously. It was as if he was channeling BLACK 13 himself. Just one instant was needed for him to catapult this guy to his own physical future and make him into an old man. He vanished from sight and instantly Shinichi raised his book bag to block the strike that came at him. His bag was sliced open and the contents spilled at his feet. Then, a cut appeared on the back of his hand.

"Nozomu, you've met some pretty interesting people," said Saku as he sat on his bike. "My name's Saku, by the way." He addressed Alan, "Hey, kid, what about you?"

"Alan, Alan Smith," said the Green Lantern.

"Nice to meet you, I'll see you around…and watch your back," said Saku, a sly grin on his face. He then started up his bike and drove off.

"Nozomu, was he really your brother?" GL-Alan asked.

Nozomu nodded. "He's always looked out for me."

"The teme owes me a new bag," muttered Shinichi.

"Shinichi, you can fix it," GL-Alan reminded.

"Oh, right." He looked around, making sure nobody was watching. He already had enough negative attention from the last time he used his abnormal abilities. He really didn't need any more. "Cover me." Nozomu and GL-Alan moved to cover Shinichi from view. He focused and his bag was repaired, good as new. He put everything back into his restored bag and picked it up. "I so love having superpowers, don't you?"

"Come on, we're going to be late," said GL-Alan as Nozomu dragged him through the gate. Shinichi thought back to Saku. Nozomu's brother needed to be watched. He was dangerous.

* * *

During lunch break, GL-Alan and Nozomu were on the roof. They were in a tight embrace as they made out. Nozomu moaned as GL-Alan kissed her deeply, putting his tongue into her mouth as she did the same. She was starting to lose control and was almost ready to revert to her true form due to the pleasure.

The romantic moment, however, would be interrupted.

"Get your filthy hands and mouth of my sister," a voice snarled. GL-Alan's eyes narrowed as he reluctantly released Nozomu. She seemed to be a in a bit of a daze. GL-Alan was a really good kisser. Her knees felt weak and she was holding onto his arm for support.

"OK, what do you want?" GL-Alan asked. He was talking to Saku who'd come onto the scene and did not look happy, not even a bit. Of course, he'd just walked in on his sister making out with GL-Alan and as a brother it was his job that scumbags stayed away from his sister.

"I'll be honest with you, Smith. I don't like you around my sister," said Saku.

"She's the one who wants to be around me," GL-Alan shot back. He shrugged, "Not my fault if she likes me so much."

"Well, I'll have to change that, won't I?" Saku remarked before he blurred from sight and GL-Alan was suddenly knocked back by a blow to the chest that sent him to the ground.

"Alan!" Nozomu gasped.

GL-Alan coughed. He managed to put up a bit of resistance against the blow. He had been hit worse.

"That was a warning shot," Saku stated. "So, are you gonna stay away from my little sis?"

GL-Alan got back to his feet, massaging his chest. "Are you going to kill me if I refuse?"

Saku grinned in a feral way. The gaijin had balls, he could give him that, but having courage wasn't enough to impress the biker. Cracking his knuckles, Saku threw a fist at GL-Alan which was blocked by the Lantern's forearm before GL-Alan retaliated with a front snap kick. Saku leapt over the blow and used a drop kick that would've crushed GL-Alan's skull if he hadn't jumped backwards. Saku's heel connected with the floor, causing cracks to spread out from the point of impact.

"You're a pretty decent fighter, Saku complimented.

"I've had practice," GL-Alan responded, getting into a stance. "I've fought worse so if you value that pretty face of yours then you better get ready because I don't surrender. It's against my code."

"And it's against _my_ code to let anyone touch my little sis," Saku responded. "I've asked nicely but if you're just too stubborn and stupid to obey then I have no choice." He blurred out of sight and appeared behind GL-Alan. "Seal."

Two fingers touched the back of GL-Alan's neck and the Green Lantern screamed as he felt like he was being electrocuted from the inside out.

"ALAN!" Nozomu shouted. "ANIKI, NO!"

"This is for your own good, imouto!" Saku told her as he continued to torture GL-Alan until he blacked out.

* * *

GL-Alan awoke in the infirmary and saw Nozomu looking down at him. Shinichi was there too. "What…happened?" GL-Alan asked.

"Found you passed out on the roof," Shinichi answered. He should've been looking out for his friend but he had a meeting with Kumada during lunch. "Nozomu was crying. I carried you here."

"Nozomu…" GL-Alan sat up and reached for her but she backed away. "What?"

"Alan, don't touch me," she told him.

"What? What do you mean?" He reached for her again but as his fingers were an inch from her, he felt a jolt and quickly recoiled in surprise. "Ow!"

"Aniki did something to you," she started to explain.

"You got something on the back of your neck," Shinichi stated.

"A seal," Nozomu finished. "He put a seal on you that prevents you from touching me or getting too close to me."

"Overprotective much?" GL-Alan mumbled. Saku must really have it in for him to go to that far.

"I think I can understand," said Shinichi. "I don't approve but I can understand." He was an older brother himself since Hanyuu and Rika were his little sisters now after Shiori adopted them. "I mean he's just looking out for his little sister and big brothers are supposed to keep strange guys away from their little sisters."

GL-Alan snorted, "Yeah, take his side why don't you?"

"Be glad he didn't kill you," Shinichi scolded. "Now, we have to get rid of that seal."

"I thought it was troublesome whenever Nozomu slept with me?" GL-Alan said, smirking a little.

"I'm starting to like having her around during breakfast," Shinichi remarked. "Maybe you should call Amora about getting that seal removed. She knows magic. Maybe she has a spell that can get rid of it." He asked Nozomu, "Nozomu, do you know how to remove it?"

"I haven't learnt how to make or break seals yet," Nozomu answered, shaking her head. Even if she knew how to break the seal, that was the point? She couldn't touch GL-Alan without causing him pain and putting him in pain was the last thing she wanted to do.

"Then we need Amora," Shinichi concluded.

"And then I'm going to kick Saku's ass!" GL-Alan swore.

* * *

"Hm, what's this?" Amora asked as a paper crane landed on her shoulder. She'd been busying herself with her magical practice. The paper crane hopped off her shoulder and into her open palm before unfolding into a single sheet that displayed writing. She read the message and her eyes widened before she relaxed and gave a sigh. "Alan, will you ever stop causing trouble for yourself and others?"

* * *

Back in their shared dorm, GL-Alan and Shinichi were seated at the kotatsu. Nozomu kept her distance and sat in the corner. She looked sad. She really wanted to be close to GL-Alan but her brother's seal prevented her from getting too close to him. "Aniki…" she murmured.

"So, when will Amora show up?" asked Shinichi.

"You sent the letter, right?" GL-Alan inquired.

"Yeah, just now," Shinichi responded.

"5, 4, 3, 2, 1," GL-Alan counted down and in a flash of light Amora appeared in all her glory, dressed in a tight green sweater, tight blue jeans and a green hair band set in her golden locks.

"I am here, my beloved Alan~" cooed Amora as she planted herself in GL-Alan's lap, arms looped around his shoulders. Nozomu's eyes narrowed in envy.

"Hey, Amora. Glad to see you here," said GL-Alan, smiling softly. She pecked him on the lips.

"So, you got the message," Shinichi said.

"It was hard to ignore since it was a paper crane," Amora replied, shrugging. She got off GL-Alan and went behind him to inspect the seal. "Hm, interesting…" The seal looked like a yin-yang symbol but with a crack going down the middle.

"Can you lift it?" GL-Alan asked.

"Actually, I don't think I can," Amora admitted shamefully.

Shinichi gawked and remarked, "What? But you're a sorceress and a goddess!"

"I'm an _Asgardian_ goddess and sorceress," Amora clarified. "I am not well-versed in oriental magic."

"Then you're useless," muttered Shinichi. He felt Amora's penetrating glare on him and he gulped.

"I warn you to watch your mouth and hold your tongue lest I turn you into a toad, mortal," Amora warned. The blonde goddess then noticed the other presence in the room. "And who is this little one?"

"That's Nozomu," GL-Alan introduced.

"Alan's latest conquest!" Bazel blurted out.

"Shut up!" GL-Alan hissed at his armband.

"Conquest?" Amora cocked an eyebrow in interest.

"They've already slept in the same bed too!" Bazel added.

"Really?" Amora looked at GL-Alan.

"She snuck into my bed," GL-Alan began to explain. Amora sighed.

"Alan why do you pick up new girls? Are we not enough?" she asked. She wrapped her arms about him and started to rub herself against him. "Am I not woman enough for you?"

"Well…" GL-Alan began.

"Get off him," Nozomu growled.

Amora let go of GL-Alan and stood up, sizing Nozomu up. The wolf girl glared at the goddess who smirked condescendingly as she looked down at her.

"Catfight, catfight, catfight," Shinichi and Bazel chanted.

Amora raised one hand and then placed it on Nozomu's chest. She gave a squeeze and snorted. She gave GL-Alan a look. "Really, Alan? This little child? Even Yami's bigger than her."

"Hey, you know me," GL-Alan shrugged.

"He loves them big," Shinichi began.

"He loves them small," added Bazel.

"He loves them all," the Rider and armband finished together.

Amora looked to Shinichi. "Shinichi, can't you use your time reversal powers on the seal?" Amora asked.

Shinichi replied, "I'm not gonna risk it. I'm afraid I might turn Alan into a baby, _again_."

"Am I'm not too keen to have my diaper changed again, either," GL-Alan responded.

"You were cute, though," claimed Amora. She grabbed Nozomu's arm. "Alan, do you mind if I have a chat with this little cub?"

"Don't hurt her," GL-Alan stated firmly.

"Oh, I'm not going to hurt her. I'm going to welcome her into the group, that's all," Amora told him with a soft yet mischievous gaze. "And maybe, after all this is over and done with, we can have our own little get-together."

The two girls left the room and Shinichi spoke up to GL-Alan, "Dude, sometimes I just hate you."

"Hey, how do you think I feel?" Bazel said. "I am right there watching and I can't fo a god damn thing!"

"Shut up, the both of you, now," GL-Alan ordered.

"Are you kidding? This is the most fun I've had in awhile!" Bazel retorted.

"Yeah, we have to be allowed to rib on you sometimes," Shinichi agreed.

"You know, sometimes I wish Bazel was attached to _you_," GL-Alan said in a threatening tone. "You get along _so well_."

"It might be fun," Bazel agreed, "But I'm stuck."

"Yeah, and I don't know if I can stand having my wingman attached to me 24/7," Shinichi added. "And I've already got enough voices in my head."

"Selfish asshole," GL-Alan whispered.

"So, what are you gonna do about the seal?" asked Shinichi.

Amora and Nozomu came in and the silver-haired wolf girl's cheeks were pink while Amora had a huge smile on her face. "To remove the seal, you'll have to defeat my brother," Nozomu said.

"That was my second guess," Amora agreed. "To remove a seal, the absolute way is to defeat the one who put the seal in a battle to the death."

"I don't wanna kill Saku!" GL-Alan claimed. He looked to Nozomu. If he killed the guy, even if he was a jerk, Nozomu would hate him. "Just make him take the seal off."

"But it'll still involve fighting," Shinichi pointed out.

"Why not make a deal? Challenge him to a duel with wagers?" Amora suggested.

"Not a bad idea," Bazel agreed.

"Nozomu, can you call your brother?" GL-Alan asked.

"Alan…" Nozomu asked.

"Don't worry, Nozomu. I won't lose, I can't lose."

"Trust me, Cub. Alan rarely lies about these things," Amora told the girl.

* * *

Shinichi, GL-Alan, Amora and Nozomu arrived at the venue for the fight and saw Saku waiting for them. It was the local town shrine and he was waiting for them on the gate at the top of the steps leading to it.

"I'm surprised you came," said Saku who was perched on top of the Tori gate of the shrine.

"I want you to remove the seal you put on me," GL-Alan demanded.

"Seal? What seal?" Saku feigned innocence.

"The seal that prevents me from being close to Nozomu!"

"Oh, _that_ seal! Sorry, but I did warn you about getting too close to my little sister."

"Aniki, can you please take the seal off?" Nozomu requested. Saku looked to his sister.

"Sorry, imouto, but I can't do that. Not to question your judgment but you're still too young and this guy isn't good enough for you," Saku responded.

"Isn't that up to her to decide?" Shinichi asked.

"Don't you know yokai law?" Saku asked. "Nozomu is my little sister and ever since our parents died she's been under my protection. If you want her you have to go through me."

"OK, then I'll fight for her!" GL-Alan declared, pointing at Saku. "I'll prove I'm good enough!"

"Is that a challenge?" smirked Saku. He had to admit that GL-Alan had balls.

"That's right," GL-Alan confirmed. He wagered, "If I win, you remove the seal."

"Well, what happens if I win?" Saku asked.

"Then you get me," Amora stated. Saku eyed Amora up and down and licked his lips. She really was a fine female specimen.

"OK then! Then it's agreed!" Amused, Saku jumped off the Tori gate and landed on his feet, smirking. "So, you really wanna date my sister, huh?" the silver-haired Okami Yokai said as he assumed his true form. He still looked human but now he sported whiskers on his cheeks, wolf ears on his head and a wolf's tail behind him. He removed his gloves, revealing sharp claws. His teeth sharpened and his canines became fangs. "Alright, Alan Smith, let's do this!"

"Here," said Shinichi, offering GL-Alan the Scada Buckle.

"No," GL-Alan declined. "I'll do this on my own."

Shinichi shrugged. "Suit yourself." He joked, "If you die, can I have your ring?"

GL-Alan sarcastically remarked, "You're hilarious."

"Don't die, partner. I'd rather not be removed from you yet," said Bazel. "There's still so much I have yet to show you."

GL-Alan looked towards Saku. This was Nozomu's brother and he meant business. He was also a Okami Yokai and Yokai grew in power with age.

"Alan…" Nozomu said worriedly.

"Don't worry, Nozomu. I won't hurt him too bad," promised GL-Alan.

"You seem so sure that you'll win," Saku remarked.

"When there's something worth fighting for, I'll always win," swore GL-Alan. He punched his fist into his open palm.

"So, let us get this party started!" Amora cheered. Her clothes changed into a cheerleading outfit. It was a two piece outfit with a sleeveless green crop top that sported the Green Lantern emblem outlined in white on it, short skirt, knee socks, sneakers and pompoms. Her hair was also in pigtails. Nozomu found herself in the same outfit. Amora danced and cheered, "Give me an A, give me an L, give me another A and give me an N! What's that spell?"

"Alan! Alan!" Nozomu cheered alongside Amora.

"Wish I brought my camera," Shinichi murmured. He then hoped to get Rena into an outfit like that for sex.

Saku frowned as he made the first move, dashing at GL-Alan in a zigzag pattern. GL-Alan took a stance and went in. He dodged a claw swipe and went for a leg sweep, making Saku jump and deliver an axe kick. GL-Alan crossed his arms upward to absorb the impact as the power was transferred into the ground beneath GL-Alan's feet, making a small crater. Saku jumped back and the two opponents circled each other, waiting for the next move.

"Why don't you use your ring?" Bazel asked.

"Cuz I just wanna beat him," GL-Alan mumbled, "Not accidentally kill him."

Saku heard him and laughed, "You? Kill me? You can't even beat me!"

"Then come over here and prove it, biscuit breath, GL-Alan challenged.

Saku growled, "Fine!" He charged in and went for a claw swipe when Alan suddenly caught him by the wrist. "Nani…?" he gawked.

Alan swatted the hand away and spun from the left to give the Youkai a left back fist, catching Saku in the face as he backed away from the impact.

Saku gritted his teeth, '_Impossible…! He hit me!_'

Alan started walking to his opponent and grinned, "What's wrong, big man? Scared cuz I hit you?"

"SHUT UP!" Saku roared as he charged in and went for another swipe. Alan saw an opening and swatted Saku's claws away and caught him with a right hook to the ribs. He tried for a left kick and GL-Alan caught his ankle to punch him in the calf. Saku backed away in pain and clutched his leg as he felt the pain increase. "Dammit! Why can't I beat you? How are you beating me so easily?"

GL-Alan stopped and glared at the wolf as he replied, "Simple, asshole. You can't beat me because you rely only on your strength and because you're a selfish control freak. I, on the other hand, am kicking your ass because I know what I'm fighting for. I'm fighting to be with Nozomu, so you might as well give up or I really might end up killing you!"

Nozomu was amazed at how easily GL-Alan was fairing against her brother. On the contrary, this was a one-sided fight from the very beginning and Saku didn't even stand a ghost of a chance.

Her thought were disrupted when Shinichi screamed out, "Yeah, Alan! Kick his ass! Woohoo!" Shinichi had a headband with the Green Lantern symbol on while waving a huge flag with the Green Lantern symbol and wearing a black coat.

Amora had an amused smirk on her face and a cocked eyebrow aimed at Shinichi, "Really?"

Shinichi stopped waving the flag and shrugged, "I didn't wanna be left out." He started waving and cheering again, "Yeah, Alan! Kick his ass! Put that puppy in the pound!"

"Alan, Alan, he's our man, if he can't do it, no one can!" Amora cheered as she waved her pompoms around.

GL-Alan and Saku lunged at each other with fists drawn back. Roaring loudly, they threw their punches and it ended in a cross-counter with both of them receiving blows to the face. Saku and GL-Alan were thrown backwards and as Saku tumbled through the air and crashed to the ground, GL-Alan was caught by Shinichi.

"Thanks," GL-Alan told his friend.

Saku rose to his feet, wiping the blood from his lips and spitting the excess out of his mouth. "Saku, let's just end this now. I really don't wanna make Nozomu sad by accidentally hurting you, or worse."

"I can't do that. I'm her brother and my job is to protect her. I know guys like you. Once things get tough, you'll just toss her away and break her heart. I won't let that happen," snarled Saku.

"Then let me prove how much I really love your sister!" GL-Alan announced and without warning he wrapped his arms around Nozomu and hugged her close. The seal on the back of his neck activated and he let out a shout of pain before gritting his teeth, enduring the continuous jolts.

"Alan! No!" Nozomu screamed as she felt him trembling as the seal continued to torture him. Despite the pain the seal was causing him, GL-Alan continued to hold Nozomu. "Alan, let go!" she shouted.

"No…way!" he grunted, the pain increasing. "I won't ever let you go, Nozomu! I love you, a lot, and I'm not giving up on you! Nobody can make me!"

"Alan…" Nozomu was touched.

Saku gritted his teeth as he watched. "What's wrong with him…? Why hasn't he given up?"

"Blame his dad," stated Shinichi. "Being stubborn runs in the family."

"Indeed," Amora agreed. "Alan has a strong and big heart. Despite his past, he still possesses the capability to love and share that love with others."

"You want to save your little sister from suffering, right?" Shinichi asked Saku. "Do you think that by getting rid of Alan she won't suffer? She really loves him."

"She'll get over it," Saku grunted.

"What if she doesn't? What if she ends up hating you? Can you really live with that?"

Saku gritted his teeth. He saw Nozomu crying and all because GL-Alan was hurting himself for activating the seal. He clenched his fists. He hated seeing Nozomu cry and he had to admit that Nozomu did seem happier around GL-Alan from what he'd seen, though he might just deny it to save face. He just couldn't let go of his sister like that and give her away to someone else.

"Will he take care of her?" Saku asked.

"If he doesn't kill himself, then yes," Shinichi confirmed confidently. "You can trust Alan. He can be a bit uptight and a bit obnoxious for being by-the-book, but he's a decent guy."

Saku decided right then that his sister's happiness mattered more than what he thought was best for her. She was a grown Wolf Yokai like him too. He then rushed towards GL-Alan before pressing his fingers upon the seal. He then pulled his fingers back and the seal turned into energy that tore away from the back of GL-Alan's neck, ending the painful sensation. The Green Lantern slumped forward but Nozomu managed to support his weight.

"Thanks…" uttered GL-Alan.

"I didn't do it for you. I did it for Nozomu," Saku retorted. "Personally, I still don't think you're good enough for her, but she likes you and I have to respect that."

"Thanks anyway," GL-Alan smiled.

"Hmph," Saku snorted.

"Well, it looks like that all's well that ends well," Bazel commented.

All of a sudden, explosions erupted all around the group. Saku and GL-Alan shielded Nozomu while Shinichi and Amora jumped in surprise. When the smoke from the explosions cleared, they found themselves surrounded by W14 units and among them was a Beast Android that resembled a wolf but with chain guns mounted on his shoulders. His claws were blade-like and looked like they could cut through steel, not to mention his shining fangs were locked into a bloodthirsty grin.

"X-SHOCKER…" Shinichi growled. He thought they'd been quiet and wished they stayed quiet but that was just a pipe dream.

"BLACK 13, I am Gatling Wolf," the Beast Android declared, "Now, surrender or die."

"BLACK 13?" Saku blinked. "Who is he talking about?"

Shinichi growled, "Just when things were finally starting to look up…"

"…They get a whole lot worse," Bazel finished.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Finally, an update on this chap. Hope you like it, and I'd like to thank Kamen Rider Bushido for his assistance. Wonder what happens now? I'll tell you that the shrine may or may not survive this.**


	19. The Witch of Terror Part 5

_OK, so previously on KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN, Nozomu's older brother Saku pays her a visit and is not happy with her choice for a romantic partner who is a certain Alan Smith. He made his attentions clear and when he catches Alan and Nozomu making out, he places a seal on Alan to prevent them from being together. Shinichi, using a paper crane shikigami, contacts Amora to remove the seal which can only be removed by the one who placed it, as in Saku. Nozomu takes the gang to one of her brother's hangouts and a duel commences between Saku and Alan with the Lantern overpowering the Wolf Yokai. Alan then shows his devotion to Nozomu by purposely activating the seal and showing Saku that he would endure any pain to be with Nozomu. Saku finally admits defeat to Alan's resolve and removes the seal but just as things were starting to look up for them, X-SHOCKER appears to attack._

_Now, without further ado, let's being the next installment of the WITCH OF TERROR ARC._

_PS: I will no longer refer to Alan as GL-Alan starting now. He will thus be called 'Alan'. If he is in the same scene with baby Alan, the baby will be referred to as Alan (baby) and older Alan will be referred to as Alan (GL) in order to differentiate them both._

* * *

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 5: Initiation and Infiltration**

Saku swiped his claws through the gut of a W14, "So who are these guys?"

Alan punched a W14 and replied, "Ask him (Shinichi). He's the one they're after."

"They said they're after someone called 'BLACK 13'."

"Who do you think they're talking about?"

Saku looked to Shinichi, "You're BLACK 13? Why do they call you that?"

Shinichi kicked a W14 in the neck and frowned, "I don't want to talk about it." Shinichi whipped out shotgun and took aim at a nearby W14.

**BANG!**

Saku gaped, "You have a shotgun?"

Shinichi pumped the shotgun to discard the empty shell, "What's wrong with having a shotgun?

Saku turned to Alan, "Why does he have a shotgun?"

Alan shrugged, "Oh, his stepdad got it for him for his last birthday."

"We bond over guns," Shinichi elaborated.

Saku cocked an eyebrow, "Why would he give you a gun?"

Shinichi deadpanned, "Because I'm fucking awesome with it." He grinned as he aimed again, "Check this out. Headshot."

**BANG!**

Shinichi pumped the gun to discard the empty shell.

Shinichi grinned like a maniac, "That's one, motherfucker."

"Who in their right mind gives his own stepson a shotgun for his birthday?" asked Saku.

"You haven't met him so you wouldn't know," Shinichi responded.

Alan shook his head, "I often question the wisdom of someone who gives someone who has only two feet out of a mental ward a deadly weapon."

Shinichi scoffed as he pumped the gun again, "Look, just because I hear voices in my head does not make me crazy. I am completely 100 percent sane."

Alan looked to the Kaizo Ningen with a deadpanned look, "Really, because you're just one maniacal laughter away from being a super villain."

Shinichi shrugged, "You'll hear it. Join us for mahjong night sometime."

Saku looked to the two friends in disbelief, "Are you both _seriously_ having this conversation _now_?"

Meanwhile, Amora and Nozomu were dealing with the W14's as well. Nozomu was in her true form where she sported wolf ears and a tail. She also had sharp claws like the rest of her species.

"So, how is he is bed?" Amora asked.

"Cuddly," Nozomu answered.

Amora nodded, "Ah, so you haven't actually gotten into his pants."

Nozomu shook her head, "Too early."

The Asgardian shrugged, "It's only a matter of time. You'll both be naked between the sheets and doing the horizontal dance sooner or later. That's how irresistible he is."

Nozomu nodded in full understanding, "I know. He's a good kisser."

"Watch out," Amora alerted as she zapped a W14 behind Nozomu with a lightning bolt.

Nozomu then swiped the head off another W14 coming up behind Amora.

Nozomu looked to the Asgardian, "Arigato."

Amora smiled, "Thank you, and much obliged, Cub."

Gatling Wolf growled as he watched the W14 android foot soldiers being defeated by these people and decided to get in on the action. His chain guns activated and he fired the rounds at them.

Alan shouted, "Get down!" He activated his ring and erected a green barrier around them to save them from the hail of bullets

Shinichi looked to his comrades, "You guys handle the grunts!" He went into a henshin pose, "Fido is mine!"

"What are you supposed to do?" Saku retorted loudly. He looked to Alan, "And how did you do that?"

"It's the ring," Alan answered.

"You mean you had that and didn't use it against me?" Saku gaped.

"Didn't seem fair," Alan shrugged.

"Didn't seem fair? What do you…?" He paused. "Wait, do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Alan responded.

"Music," Nozomu responded.

"Music? What music?" Alan asked.

Shinichi was just about to transform when he heard it too. "Is that…polka?"

The music was getting louder and louder and then they heard a car engine before they spotted something speeding up the steps of the shrine. It was a pickup truck. The polka music was coming from the truck. The truck then went sailing and crashed down upon several W14 units, leaving Gatling Wolf and Saku gaping as the vehicle crushed the androids underneath it.

Shogo poked his head from out the passenger side and popped a W14 in the head with a shotgun. "Now that's what I call riding shotgun!" he said. Shogo was a bodyguard for the Sonozaki Clan and his sempai happened to be Shinichi's stepdad, Tatsuyoshi Kasai. Kasai was also his mentor and Shogo's love for shotguns had come from the man himself.

"Nice one-liner, #00," Daichi complimented from the gun turret.

"Thanks, Daichi," Shogo nodded. He ordered, "Now get to blasting!"

"Don't have to tell me twice!" Daichi took aim and fired rounds down on the W14 androids. "Yeah, suck it you white assholes! Take that, stupid crackers!"

Yokoshima cocked an eyebrow and looked up at Daichi, "'Cracker'? Since when were you racist?"

"I'm in the moment," Daichi replied, "Now shut up and drive, bitch!"

"Whatever," Yokoshima shrugged as he proceeded to run over the rest of the W14 androids. "Yeah, take that! You're street pizza now!"

Saku could only watch as the androids were being shot down like flies or being run over like road kill. He asked, "Who the hell are you people…?"

"Ore-tachi wa…" Shinichi began as he threw his right arm over his chest with his left fist pressed against his hip. He then brought his left fist up to eye level as his right arm was pulled down with the right fist at his hip. "GX Henshin!"

His Spark Core activated and in a brilliant flashed of light that bathed him, Shinichi began to transform. Surrounding him in a circle were the spirits of the Legendary Kamen Riders and they fused with him, forming into his suit.

"Kamen Riders!" Showa GX finished.

"Che, showoff," snorted Daichi.

"But you gotta admit he makes a really fancy entrance," said Yokoshima.

Showa rushed towards Gatling Wolf, zigzagging as he dodged the bullets that went zipping through the air. He then tackled into Gatling Wolf and the two went tumbling down the steps, grunting and screaming out curses.

Gatling Wolf howled, "Sonovabitch!"

Showa retorted, "You'd know that, wouldn't you?"

The rest stared and then the W14's looked at them before resuming their attack.

* * *

Down at the foot of the steps, Showa and Gatling Wolf were going at it. Showa's curved forearm blades were out as he slashed at the Beast Android who retaliated with his shoulder-mounted chain guns, only for Showa to dodge, deflect or cut the bullets down.

"Let's Ride: Amazon!" Showa called out and in a flash he transformed into Kamen Rider Amazon. He then lunged at Gatling Wolf, "Monkey Attack!" The tackle knocked Gatling Wolf to the ground. As the wolf-like Kaijin got back to its feet, Showa latched onto his back and shouted," Jaguar Shock!" before sinking his sharp teeth into his neck. Gatling Wolf howled as he thrashed as he tried to throw the feral Rider off him. Amazon leapt off and used a double kick attack on Gatling Wolf, throwing him forwards. He spun around and slashed at Showa who countered with his forearm blades. Sparks erupted as they clashed. Showa then snarled as he clawed at Gatling Wolf's chest with his claws. Gatling then Wolf howled and pushed Showa away before firing at him with his chain guns. Showa howled as he was being fired upon before Gatling Wolf struck him with its claws, sending him tumbling and forcing him back to his default form.

Showa called out, "Let's Ride: Riderman!"

"Not this time!" Gatling Wolf prepared to fire only to be pelted by a storm of bullets. Showa, as Riderman, was using the Machine Gun Arm to fire at his opponent. He then switched tactics.

"Let's Ride: Biorider!" In a flash he was in Kamen Rider BLACK RX's alternate form known as Biorider. As Gatling Wolf prepared to fire again, Showa turned himself into liquid that shot towards the shoulder-mounted guns and clogged up the barrels just as Gatling Wolf was about to fire. This resulted in the guns backfiring and exploding with Gatling Wolf howling in shock at his two ruined guns. The blue fluid then flowed out of the ruined guns before reforming into Showa. He switched from Biorider to Riderman again and used another tactic to immobilize Gatling Wolf.

"Net Arm!" His transformed arm fired a net that entrapped Gatling Wolf. The net was both fireproof and indestructible and it also weighed the Beast Android down, pinning him in place. "Had enough, Fido?"

"You think this will hold me?" laughed Gatling Wolf. "Dr. X will have you and nothing can stop him!"

"We'll see about that," said Showa as he returned to his GX form. He then leapt up and prepared to execute his finisher move. "Burst Kick!" However, just as his kick was about to collide with Gatling Wolf, the Beast Android suddenly exploded. Showa was taken aback and thrown backwards by the explosion before he landed on his rear.

"What the hell?" Showa gaped at the suddenness of the explosion. As he watched the remains and embers burn, he shrugged, "Guess he activated his self-destruct system. Oh well." He then went up to join the others.

In the distance, a pair of figures was lowering their weapons, which were archery bows. They were similarly dressed and had feminine figures.

"This is Siesta 410, target has been silenced," the first figure reported. In the light, she looked like a girl with short green hair, red eyes and dressed in an elaborate yet skimpy black, white and blue military uniform. What really made her stand out were the white bunny ears on top of her head. She had a huge manic grin on her face.

"T-t-this is Siesta 45, confirming report that target has been s-s-s-silenced," stammered the second figure that was dressed similarly to the first but in black, white and red. She was also a girl with red eyes and her pink hair in pigtails. She too sported bunny ears and still looked adorable, despite holding up a deadly weapon.

Then they vanished without a trace.

* * *

The shrine grounds were littered with the remains of the W14 combat androids. Daichi, Shogo and Yokoshima got out of the pickup truck with Daichi wearing a satisfied smirk as he kicked the head of one of the androids like a soccer ball.

"We should keep one as a souvenir," Yokoshima suggested. "Let's mount it on a wall."

"Nah, it'll be too ugly," Daichi denied. "How about you give it to your girlfriend?."

"No way, and she prefers _giving_ head thank you very much," Yokoshima remarked, unabashed.

Shogo saluted to Alan, "#00 (Shogo), #08 (Daichi) and #09 (Yokoshima) at your service!"

"Relax, soldier," Alan told Shogo.

"OK, just who the hell are you people and what is going on?" demanded Saku.

"Like Shinichi said, we're…" began Yokoshima and then he spotted Shinichi coming up. "Hey, there he is!"

Shinichi saw the mess and he remarked, "Guess I missed the end of the party." Daichi tossed him a severed W14 head. "What's this for?"

"A souvenir. Mount in on your wall or hollow it out to put your spare change in. I dunno and I don't care. Just do whatever," said Daichi.

"So, the turret is new," Shinichi said, regarding the gun turret on top of the pickup truck.

"Yeah, we just got it recently installed," answered Yokoshima.

Saku looked at the group and then to Alan and Nozomu. "I'm starting to have second thoughts about this…"

"Don't try to split them up," Amora warned. "The end result will be the same only the next time he won't hold back and use that ring on you."

"What is he? He doesn't seem like a normal human," Saku inquired.

"Normal? Hardly," Amora remarked.

"I'll tell you later, Aniki," said Nozomu.

"OK, but I expect a full explanation," Saku said.

"Hey, how about you hop on?" Yokoshima offered. "There's plenty of room in the back."

"We'll walk, thank you," Shinichi said.

"Well, we'll be going now," said Shogo.

"Shotgun," Daichi said.

**Click.**

Shogo had his shotgun aimed at Daichi's face.

"You were saying, Daichi?" Shogo asked. Daichi sweatdropped. Shogo then went into the passenger side as Daichi climbed onto the truck's bed.

"Seriously, Shogo's in love with that thing," Daichi said.

"Can you blame him?" asked Shinichi who was holding his own shotgun.

"Seriously, where do you get those things?" Daichi asked.

"Otou-san/Kasai-sempai," Shinichi and Shogo answered.

"Of course. No wonder." Daichi rolled his eyes. It was just too obvious.

"See ya guys later!" Yokoshima then pressed his foot down on the throttle and the truck drove down the steps it had come up on.

"He does know there's a path that goes down to the main road in the back of the shrine, right?" Saku asked.

"I don't think he checked," Shinichi said.

"Does he ever?" Alan asked.

"No, he just prefers shortcuts even if they are a bit unconventional."

"He drove up the steps. How much more unconventional can you get?"

Shinichi shrugged.

* * *

Nozomu, Shinichi, Alan and Amora all returned to the dorm room. They were celebrating over some (non-alcoholic) drinks and snacks.

"To Nozomu and Alan, who fought for their love!" Shinichi declared with a can of soda.

"Here, here!" cheered Amora.

Nozomu was leaning against Alan, hugging his arm. She was just happy that it was over. Her brother had accepted their relationship and approved of Alan. That was progress right there.

"So, you guys have any plans tonight?" Shinichi asked.

Amora beamed, "Let's have a threesome!"

"And I'm out of here," Shinichi stated as he made his way to the door.

Alan chuckled, "Really? I thought you'd be into live porn."

"You want me to watch?" the cyborg shot back.

Alan shook his head, "No way. I don't want you telling your mom about this so she can turn it into a book."

Shinichi nodded, "Good, because I won't. I don't wanna stare at your junk."

"Where are you going?" the Lantern asked.

"Kumada told me I had to meet him at school tonight. So, goodnight and see you all later," Shinichi answered as he closed the door behind him.

"Now that he's gone, let's party!" declared Amora as she started to strip down shamelessly.

"Yeah, take it off! Take it off!" Bazel cheered and then he exclaimed, "Hey, why is it so dark! Hey!"

Alan sighed. He'd just tied a cloth around Bazel's gem which was the armband's 'eye', perfectly blinding him. However, Alan still couldn't figure out how to make the damn thing mute or deaf.

Amora posed seductively in a strapless green bra and thong panties. She then proceeded to strip Nozomu naked. She was really flat-chested and wore panties with a camisole, both white. Still, despite not being as well-endowed as Amora, she still looked sexy and the blush on her pale cheeks made her cute too.

"Isn't this too early?" Alan asked, considering he just met Nozomu a few days ago.

"Love has nothing to do with time, but how much you feel for each other," said Amora wisely. "Now, c'mon, Alan, your turn. Take those clothes off or we'll do it for you."

"Fine…" Alan sighed as he started to remove his clothes.

"Don't take your eyes off him for a second, Cub," Amora whispered to Nozomu. "You'll like what you see. You know he's well-built under there since you cuddle with him a lot but now you'll be able to see it all."

Nozomu watched as Alan took off his jacket, followed by his shirt. This showed off his muscles and Nozomu started to get really warm and wet down there. He then started to remove his jeans, revealing him to be wearing green briefs.

* * *

Shinichi was on school grounds, waiting for Kumada when all of a sudden there was a flash of gold out of the corner of his eye.

Shinichi blinked out of surprise, "Satan-chan, what are you doing here?"

Satan frowned, "Shinichi, I know what destroyed that guy you were fighting."

Shinichi's eyes widened, "You do? I thought he self-destructed."

Satan shook her head, "No, he didn't. It was the Siestas."

Shinichi blinked, "The who?"

Satan looked away and grimaced, "I'll explain later! Someone's coming!" And she vanished in a gold flash. Shinichi looked over and saw Kumada approaching him. No wonder Satan had fled. She didn't want to be seen.

Kumada grinned, "Glad you came."

"This better be good," Shinichi frowned. He had better things to do right now, like sleep. Unfortunately, he couldn't go back to the dorm room. There was a threesome going on and he didn't feel like watching. He might've been a pervert but he drew the line when his friends were involved.

"Follow me," Kumada said as he led the way. Shinichi followed him to the back of the school building where a storage shed was. The larger student opened the door and then lifted up a hidden door on the floor.

"A secret door?" Shinichi asked. Kumada led Shinichi down an underground staircase and arrived at a large chamber with lanterns hanging overhead from the ceiling.

Shinichi looked around. He saw standing on the floor were people in black robes and wearing their hoods up. "OK, what is this? Why is everyone wearing robes? And what's that? Is that an altar?" There was an altar that was decorated with candles and above the altar was a symbol that Shinichi did not recognize.

The cult members spoke in unison, "Oh, Witch of Terror. Please, we are your humble servants and we bow before your elegance. Please, appear before us and give us the power to end the age of mankind."

Shinichi grimaced, "Holy fuck, it's a cult."

Kumada grinned, "That's right, and you are now our newest member. Here is your robe."

Shinichi decided to stall them out, "Um…do you have one of those robes in blue or green? Black isn't really my color."

Kumada gave him a serious look, "As a member, you must not speak of this to outsiders. If you do then you must pay the ultimate price and your blood will be offered to the Witch of Terror."

Shinichi sweatdropped, "How about I give you all the money I have instead of blood?"

Kumada called out to the other members, "Now, fellow cult members. We have a new member. Let us begin the rite of passage! Let us begin the initiation!"

The members all brought out paddles.

Shinichi deadpanned, "Why don't I like the looks of this?"

* * *

It was several hours later when Shinichi limped back into the room, groaning, "Ow…Ow…Ow…" His rump felt sore after the hazing he'd just endured.

Alan, who was reading a book while having some snacks at the kotatsu, cocked an eyebrow, "What's wrong with you?" Nozomu and Amora weren't with him and they managed to clean up before Shinichi got back.

Shinichi glared at the Smith as he rubbed his butt, "Don't…fucking…ask…Ow…"

Alan asked, "They used the paddle on you, didn't they?"

"Yes, they did. I need to lie down on my front if you don't mind," Shinichi answered as he climbed into his bunk on top. "Wish I had some ice…"

"I think we have some in the fridge. Want me to put some in a plastic bag for you?"

"Yes, thank you."

"So, did you learn anything new?" asked Alan as he opened the fridge and took out the ice tray before filling an empty plastic bag with ice.

"I'll tell you about it later," Shinichi told his friend. "How was the threesome?"

Alan closed up the bag with an elastic bag and handed it to Shinichi. "I am not telling _you_," Alan answered.

"Come on, I just got my butt spanked by strangers, and not the good kind of spanking!" Shinichi remarked, putting the ice bag on his sore rear. He let out a sigh of relief. "Oh…yeah…that's good."

Alan rolled his eyes, "If I told you, you'd just tell your mom."

Shinichi looked at him innocently, "Do you really think I'd do that?"

Alan shrugged, "Experience tells me you would and it also tells me your mom would never pass up the chance for this kind of story, especially a hot threesome. If I told you, it'd be out in stores in a couple of weeks."

Shinichi reminded, "You know I could just give her names and descriptions and she'll just make stuff up, right?"

Alan glared, "Just don't give her any ideas."

Shinichi sighed in defeat, "OK, fine…fine…"

Alan changed the subject, "So, what else did you learn tonight? What's going on?"

Shinichi frowned as he informed, "The yokai in the school are all part of a cult worshipping some chick called 'The Witch of Terror'."

Alan cocked an eyebrow, "The Witch of Terror? That doesn't sound good. What else?"

Shinichi bugged, "What else? The rest of the meeting involved my ass being intimate with several paddles!"

Alan blinked, "That's it? All they did was spank you?"

Shinichi nodded, "Yes, several times, for hours, and I _did not_ enjoy it. Oh, and Satan-chan showed up."

Alan blinked, "She did? What for?"

Shinichi shrugged, "Something about 'Siestas' or something. I dunno. She disappeared right before she could tell me because Kumada showed up."

"Don't you think you should call her and ask her to explain right now?"

Shinichi dismissed the suggestion, "I think it can wait. Right now I _really_ wanna get some sleep and I hope this pain goes away tomorrow."

Alan got up from his seat, "Well, goodnight."

Shinichi looked to the retreating Lantern "Alan?"

Alan looked back, "Yeah?"

Shinichi grinned, "So, was one girl riding you while you were eating out the other girl or what?"

Alan blushed and growled, "Shut up and go to sleep!"

Shinichi sighed, "Fine, if you won't tell me I'll just ask Bazel. He got a front row seat to the whole show."

"You can ask me anything," Bazel encouraged. "I'll spare no details."

"Don't you both dare," Alan threatened.

Shinichi and Bazel snickered. Alan groaned. He was surrounded by pervs and they were ganging up on him.

Alan shouted, "I mean it! Hey, are you listening to me? Hey!"

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: A nice chapter, don't you think? Also the lemon was brought to you by yours truly and Kamen Rider Bushido! Hope you enjoyed the chap!**


	20. The Witch of Terror Part 6

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 6: A Nice Day Out**

"So, tell us about the Siestas, Satan," Alan requested.

Satan explained, "Their full title is 'The Siesta Sisters Imperial Guard Corps'. They are bunny girls that can only be summoned by people with at least a substantial amount of summoning skill."

"Bunny girls?" Bazel questioned, "How dangerous can they be?"

Satan frowned, "Very, because they were the ones that made that wolf guy explode."

Shinichi nodded, "Yeah, you mentioned that. How did they do it, though?"

Satan then elaborated, "They fight using these bows and arrows of light that can fire beams of light which can supposedly kill on impact."

Shinichi and Alan paled.

Satan rolled her eyes, "Oh, relax. They may be deadly but they scare easily when facing someone more powerful than they are."

"Forgive us, but none of us feel comfortable about being sniped," Shinichi dead-panned.

Satan shrugged, "Who does? Just don't bring up Siesta 556 around them."

Shinichi blinked, "Why? What happened to her?"

Satan made a slitting throat motion with her finger across her neck and Shinichi got the message.

* * *

Shinichi sighed, "Why do I even bother locking up when I know she'll just sneak right in?"

It was Saturday morning and Nozomu, Shinichi and Alan were sitting down for breakfast. They were having toast, bacon, sausages and eggs.

"Well, why do you always set three places for each meal?" Alan retorted.

"Because I know she'll sneak right in!" He looked to their yokai guest, "Nozomu, why do you insist of joining us for breakfast?"

Nozomu chewed on a piece of toast, "Alan, and good food."

Shinichi nodded, "Ah, right. Of course."

It was several days after the fight at the shrine and after Shinichi's initiation to the cult. His ass was healed and no longer sore though he still freaked out whenever he saw a ping-pong paddle.

A few days ago, they had asked Satan about the Witch of Terror, mainly because Shinichi knew about witches.

* * *

_Alan cocked an eyebrow, "Golden Witch? Endless Witch?"_

_Shinichi nodded, "Yeah, she's Satan's boss. I think I should call Satan to ask her about this Witch of Terror."_

"_Then call her then," the Lantern urged._

_Shinichi nodded and looked around,"Satan, can you come over? We need to ask you something."_

_In a flash of gold, the Stake of Wrath appeared. She bowed respectively._

"_The Stake of Wrath, Satan, present," she announced with an air of grace._

_Alan looked to the Kaizo Ningen, "I've been wondering. Did you make a contract with her or something?"_

_Shinichi shrugged, "I don't think so."_

"_We did," Satan nodded._

_Shinichi blinked, "Huh?"_

_Satan blushed as she turned away from his face, "When you offered to hang out with me."_

_Shinichi was surprised, "That was a contract?"_

_She nodded, "Yes."_

"_Really?"_

"_Yes..." A vein popped from the Stake's forehead._

"_Seriously?"_

_Satan then blew up, "Goddammit, yes! Now, why did you call me? This better be good, Shinji Banabara!"_

_Shinichi then got serious, "Do you know anything about 'The Witch of Terror'?"_

_Satan paled and turned white as a ghost, trembling in place after hearing the title._

"_W-w-where did y-y-y-you h-h-hear about t-t-that?" she demanded as she shook like a leaf in the wind._

_Shinichi got worried and asked, "Satan-chan, what's wrong?"_

_Satan got in his face and grabbed him by his jacket, "Please, I beg of you! Do not try and confront her! The Witch of Terror is dangerous!"_

_Shinichi put his hands up, "Satan, calm down!"_

_Satan started to tear up as she shook her head, "Shinichi, promise me you won't try and confront her. Please! You're the first real friend I ever made! I don't wanna lose you too!"_

_Alan frowned, "This Witch of Terror must be bad news if she makes her freak out like this."_

"_No doubt," Bazel agreed, "And this girl is supposed to be frightening herself."_

_Shinichi held Satan by the shoulders and looked into her eyes, "I promise, Satan-chan. I won't try and confront her."_

_Satan sniffled, "Swear on it!"_

_Shinichi nodded rapidly, "I swear! Just, please relax, OK? I hate seeing my friends like this."_

* * *

Shinichi frowned, '_Well, this proves the Witch of Terror isn't just something they made up. She's the real deal. A witch and from how Satan-chan reacted, she's a really scary one. I should be careful around this cult.'_

"Hey, Shinichi," Alan called, "Are you okay? You spaced out there."

Shinichi snapped out his thoughts, "Oh, sorry. So, Alan, got any plans today?"

Alan smiled, "Actually, Nozomu and I are going to be going out today."

"You're not taking my bike," he denied.

Alan deadpanned, "Wasn't gonna ask. What about you?"

Shinichi shrugged, "Haven't thought about it."

Alan nodded as he and Nozomu stood up, "OK, then, have fun with whatever."

As the two left, Shinichi frowned at the dirty plates and utensils on the table. "Great…and leave me with the cleanup," he muttered. Even after complaining, he still washed the dishes and utensils and dried them. After that, he lay on the floor, with his hands behind his head and his legs crossed. "Now, what to do…?" he wondered aloud.

He took out a stack of books and started to read the one on top. It was a novel written by his mother. He read it, page after page, slowly getting to the hot and heavy stuff he enjoyed so much. His mother was really detailed with the romantic parts and the sexy parts as well. She really was a great writer, even if she mainly wrote erotica.

That was when Satan chose to appear in a flash of gold, "Good afternoon, Shin-WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU READING!"

"Hm?" Shinichi looked up at Satan. He had a potato chip between his teeth. He chewed on the chip and swallowed it before sitting up from his lying down position. "Oh, it's a novel my Kaa-chan wrote," he told her without shame. She saw the stacks of books and growled. "What's wrong?"

Satan sat down, still with the angry (but cute) glare on her face as she told him, "Don't you realize how dirty they are?"

"Dirty?" Shinichi responded, tilting his head to the side. "It's just erotica."

"That's the thing! It's _erotic_!" Satan exclaimed.

"So, people like this stuff, and there's romance too. It's just really graphic and hot and heavy in some scenes," Shinichi argued.

"Look, your mother is a great writer. I can admit that much, but can't she write anything more tasteful?" Satan asked.

"Sex sells," Shinichi stated.

She groaned. Satan wasn't actually bothered by the books, really, but back where she lived with her sisters, Asmodeus would annoy her by reading aloud all the sexy parts and making her flustered. Just last night Satan was kept awake by Asmodeus reading one of those blasted books. Honestly, Satan's face had gone as red as her eyes after just a single saucy paragraph. Then she couldn't get any sleep because of the dreams she was having about herself and a certain _someone_.

"Come on, you!" Satan grabbed his hand.

"Huh, what?" Shinichi dropped his book as he was pulled up to his feet.

"You and I are going out!" she ordered.

"But it's Saturday…" he whined. He just wanted to stay in the room and do nothing.

"No buts! We're going out!" she ordered.

"Shouldn't you change first?" Shinichi asked. He was referring to her uniform which was pretty skimpy. She wore a red blazer over a white blouse with a red vest and tie. Of course, she also wore what appeared to be a leotard with stockings connected to it by garters. The skirt really couldn't be called that since it was opened in front to reveal her legs. There was the flesh of her thighs exposed between the stockings and the leotard.

"Fine," Satan grumbled. She let go and spun in place, allowing golden butterflies to engulf her. Shinichi's eyes widened as her clothes changed. She now sported a red turtleneck sweater with a long black skirt that came down to her knees and black stockings. She also wore a white scarf around her neck. She bashfully looked away as she asked, "How is this?"

"Nice and cute!" Shinichi said, giving her two thumbs up. It really didn't match up to the angry girl image she fostered.

"OK, then let's go!" She grabbed his leather jacket and tossed it to him.

* * *

Shinichi and Satan decided to take his bike, the Stake of Wrath sat in the sidecar as Shinichi drove them out to town. It was a beautiful day and Satan smiled as she enjoyed the ride.

She knew she had no chance to be with Shinichi, even if she liked him more than just a friend. Her sisters teased her about it and she'd get mad at them for it before she became upset because she wished Shinichi liked her the same way. Unfortunately, she would just have to settle to having him as a friend.

Today, maybe she could pretend they were dating.

As Shinichi parked the bike, Shinichi wondered what Satan wanted to do. He hadn't gone out much in the past few days since beginning the mission except for going to the weird cult meetings. He knew they were worshipping the Witch of Terror, but he just wasn't sure why. He was a new member, after all. He would need to gather some more information but until then he would need to lay low.

"So, what do you wanna do first?" Shinichi asked.

"Let's go in there," Satan pointed to a department store. As Shinichi looked up at the building, Satan took out something she was hiding in her skirt pocket. It was a book about dating tips for girls. When Shinichi turned to look at her, she immediately hid the book and smiled at him. "Come on!" She looped her arm around his and the two entered.

In the women's clothing department, Shinichi waited outside of a changing room. Satan had grabbed several outfits and had gone into the changing room to try them out. Shinichi reached into his jacket to take out one of his mom's novels when he spotted a familiar face with a unique hairstyle.

Shinichi blinked, "Yuji?"

Yuji was checking some sweaters before he was called out. He wore a white jean jacket over a black shirt and white jeans with black elbow gloves and black shoes. On his belt were four red and white, spherical, devices.

Yuji looked up and saw his comrade, "Oh, Shin. It's you. What's up?"

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

Yuji walked over to Shinichi and dead-panned, "Shopping, duh."

"But this is the women's clothing department," he pointed out.

"Not for me, of course! There for the girls. Asura's running low on clothes that aren't fire-proof," Yuji explained.

Satan then threw the curtain in front of the changing room open and asked, "So, what do you think, Shinichi?" She then saw that Shinichi wasn't alone and Yuji whistled at what Satan was wearing. It was a spaghetti strap dress that came down to just above her knees. She also had on a hair band in her pale hair.

Shinichi decided to introduce, "Yuji, this is…"

"Sup, Satie?" Yuji waved.

Shinichi blinked, "You know who she is?"

Satan paled and blushed as the feeling of shock and embarrassment overcame her, "W-w-what are YOU doing here?"

Yuji grinned, "Aw, is that anyway to greet your favorite buddy?"

Shinichi got in between them, "Hold on a second. You two know each other?"

Yuji nodded, "This li'l angel of fury and I go way back, including her sisters." He then nudged the Kaizo Ningen on the arm, "So, enjoying a woman's company while Rena isn't around?"

"He's not cheating on her!" Satan fumed. As much as she liked Shinichi, she wasn't going to steal him away from the girl he loved.

Shinichi shrugged, "She's cute. I can't really lie about that." Satan blushed at being called cute by Shinichi.

Satan shook her fist at the Manakyte, "Argh, this was going perfectly until you showed up!"

Yuji gave her a mocked hurtful expression, "Satie, would I ever hurt you?"

"Stop calling me that!"

"So, how did you two meet?" Shinichi inquired. "I definitely wanna hear this story."

Satan shook her head rapidly, "No, you don't! No, you don't! You do NOT wanna hear this! Oh, dammit, this has to be a bad dream."

Yuji continued anyway, "Well, I was doing undercover work at a big hotel and I was on cleaning duty. Hehe, duty. Anyway, I was making my rounds when I came across a hall of rooms, so I went in each to clean up. Unfortunately, I walked in all the Stakes while they were either changing or undressing." He chuckled, "Asmo was the last one I walked in on and she was masturbating, and she said 'Like what you see?' As for the others, they all got scared when I walked in and all I said was 'Oops, my bad. I'll come back later.' After that, they found me in the lobby and tried to kill me for seeing them close to nakedness, except Asmo of course. As you would know, I kicked their asses and we all became friends after that, except for Satie, of course. She doesn't like me all that much."

Shinichi shrugged, "Well, now I can understand why she doesn't like you all that much."

"Still hurts though," Yuji sighed.

Satan groaned, "This can't be happening…"

Yuji then asked, "So, now that I told you how we met, how did you meet Satie?"

Shinichi explained, "Well, me and the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS got transported to this weird pocket dimension where we had to fight Satan-chan and her sisters. We each fought a sister and won. Then, I ended up fighting them all at once. I still won."

Yuji cocked an eyebrow, "So, how come you and Satie are friends?"

"Maybe it has something to do with me not walking in on her while she was changing," he pointed out.

Satan pouted, "He was just nice and he asked if we could hang out."

Shinichi then informed him, "Speaking of Asmo, did you know she's dating Yokoshima?"

Yuji replied, "She mentioned it when she called me a little while ago. She kept on screaming how she met the man of her dreams and I was more than happy for her. She kinda grew on me after we became friends and we get along the best out of everyone else. She's like a little sister to me."

Shinichi remarked, "Even when she's just as deadly as her sisters."

Satan went back into the changing room and closed the curtain. She felt that her day could be salvaged at least. All they needed to do was to ditch Yuji.

Yuji grinned, "So, why are you going out with Satie anyway? Where's Rena? You're not cheating on her or anything, are ya?"

Shinichi shook his head, "No, of course not. I'd never do that to her."

Yuji crossed his arms, "So, why are you here with Satie, besides the obvious?"

"Well, you see, Alan and I are sort of on an assignment," Shinichi explained.

Yuji blinked, "Really? Guess I didn't get the memo."

Shinichi looked to the fellow Rider, "So why are you in my world exactly? No offense, but I didn't think the fashion of the mid 1980's can match up to whatever you have back home."

"That's just it," Yuji grinned, "There's not much for me here, but I figured there'd be something that mom and the girls may like. So I decided to get stuff for them as tokens of my appreciation for them all."

Satan came out of the changing room with the clothes in her arm and back in the clothes she'd worn when entering the store. "We're leaving!" she ordered.

"But aren't you gonna try out the rest of those outfits?" Shinichi asked.

"Already, and they sucked. I'm gonna dump these somewhere."

"Really? But that dress looked nice on you," said Shinichi.

Satan blushed. "OK, I'll buy the dress but not the rest of these things!"

"Total tsundere," Yuji snickered.

"Shut up!" Satan huffed as she went off to pay for her lone purchase and give back the clothes she wasn't going to buy. She then went back to Shinichi and grabbed his arm before dragging him along.

* * *

Satan slammed several bills on the counter at the ticket booth and demanded, "Give us tickets to whatever is playing right now!"

The terrified clerk handed Satan a pair of tickets and the girl dragged Shinichi along with him to get some popcorn and soda. Once they got their refreshments, the two went inside the dark movie theatre and sat down.

Shinichi looked to her, "So, what are we watching?

"Who cares?" she huffed.

The film started and the two realized that it was a romance movie. It was about a boy and a girl who both hated each other but due to a series of events began to fall in love with each other. The couple on the screen argued a lot before they became an item and even so they still argued but everyone watching knew they still loved each other.

Satan looked at Shinichi and then down at Shinichi's hand which was on the armrest as he stuffed his mouth with popcorn.

Satan blushed, _'There's no harm, right? I'm just gonna hold his hand. It's not like we're kissing or anything. I mean it's perfectly innocent. Completely innocent. Sides, he has a girlfriend already. Dammit, why did I have to fall for a guy like him? He's a complete perv who reads dirty novels but he's so sweet sometimes. He's also very brave and selfless. He'd be like one of those white knights Asmo keeps babbling about and he would be too if he wasn't such a perv. OK, relax. Breathe. You're the Stake of Wrath, for goodness sakes! You can do this! Just put your hand on his and…'_

"Enjoy you time together," Yuji finished before slurping some soda.

Satan fumed, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE!"

Her outburst caused the viewers to turn towards her and shush her.

Shinichi gasped, but then whispered, "Yuji, what are you doing here?"

Satan whispered harshly, "Yeah, what are you doing here? Are you just here to annoy me?"

"You really want me to answer that?" he asked.

"Yes," she hissed out of frustration.

Yuji reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, rectangular, box and handed it to Satan, "Here."

Satan blinked, "What is it?"

"A wrapped box, genius. Just open it when you get a chance." He jumped high and landed on the walkway as he left the theatre.

"What do you think is inside?" Shinichi asked.

"Who knows?" Satan shrugged. "Let's just enjoy the rest of the movie."

After the movie ended, Satan quickly grabbed onto Shinichi and teleported them away. They ended on top of the roof of the department store. They brought some drinks from a vending machine and sat on a bench together. She looked around, hoping Yuji wasn't around watching them.

"Did we have to get out while the credits were rolling?" Shinichi asked as he took a sip of his coffee.

"I didn't want to take the chance that he'd be waiting outside," Satan replied.

"Wow, you must really hate Yuji," Shinichi remarked.

"Well, after what he did, wouldn't you?"

"Not really. Actually, I can understand but I don't think I could hate him for that."

"What if he walked in on your girlfriend or even your sisters?"

"OK, I'd be mad at him but I would forgive him…eventually. Plus, he's been really cool."

"_Cool_? He's a pompous jerk!"Satan replied incredulously.

Shinichi agreed, "Maybe, but he's a pompous jerk I can trust to have my back like Alan. We're Riders, so we have to stick together."

Satan scowled and crossed her arms as she grumbled, "Yeah, I guess you're right. It's just that he's so annoying sometimes."

Shinichi informed her, "He's just teasing you. Maybe he likes to see you mad because you look so cute when angry."

Satan scoffed, "Oh, shut up! I'm not cute. If any, Asmodeus and Beelzebub are the cute ones."

Shinichi insisted, "It's true, Satan. Heck, if I wasn't with Rena then maybe you and I could've had something."

Satan blushed at the confession.

He added, "If you just stopped being pissed off then maybe you could find a guy you like."

'_I already have and it's you, you baka!_' she thought sadly and angrily.

"How about a picture?" Shinichi offered as he held up his camera.

"Sure, why not?" Satan shrugged. She sat down on the bench and Shinichi took a few steps back.

"Now, gimme a smile," said Shinichi. She smiled and it was a beautiful one too. The camera flashed and the photo was taken. He stated, "One for the photo album."

"Hey, mind if I took a photo of you two?" Yuji asked as he came up from behind Shinichi, causing him to jump.

"Yuji!" Shinichi and Satan exclaimed.

Yuji snatched the camera out of Shinichi's hand and nudged the Kaizo Ningen forward. "Go and sit next to your date, Shin."

"It's not a date!" Satan snapped.

Shinichi hesitated a bit but sat down next to Satan nonetheless. Satan crossed her arms and scowled.

"Come on, Satie. Gimme a smile," Yuji said from behind the camera. Satan forced herself to smile and to make it as natural as possible. Yuji pressed down on the shutter button and took the picture before he smiled in satisfaction. He handed the camera back to Shinichi who thanked him. He then waved to the pair before walking away.

"Does he always make it a habit to pop up unannounced?" Satan asked.

"I guess. It lets him sneak up on enemies more affectively," said Shinichi.

"At least the day wasn't a total waste," the Stake of Wrath sighed.

Shinichi then decided to ask Satan a question that was nagging him, "Hey, Satan?"

She turned to him, "Hm?"

"What do you think of Yuji anyway?"

She facefaulted off the bench.

"You OK?" he asked, concerned.

She got up and growled, "Why are you asking me?"

Shinichi scratched his cheek a bit, "Well, the way he acted with you seemed to me like he really cares about you, as well as your sisters. I just wanna know how you feel about him is all."

Satan got back in her seat and blushed furiously. She knew that she couldn't exactly lie to her friend, but what could she exactly say?

She sighed, "Yuji… He's a hard guy to read. On the outside, he always looks so focused, serious, and calm. But when he talks, he so informal and he can turn around and act like such an asshole!" Her eyes then softened, "But, whenever we were alone, he always had a soft face and he'd be so…nice."

Shinichi smiled, "That just shows there's more to him than you think!"

She nodded, "Guess you're right." Satan stood up. "I should get back home. The others must be waiting for me."

Shinichi waved and she disappeared in a flash of golden butterflies.

* * *

Shinichi returned to the dorm room after his outing with Satan just in time to catch Nozomu and Alan making out on the floor. "Don't mind me," said Shinichi as he leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed. "Carry on."

"Shinichi!" Alan exclaimed as he got off Nozomu, or at least tried. She had her arms and legs around him and wasn't about to let him go.

"So, what did you two kids do?" the Rider asked the Lantern.

"Oh, you know. We went out, went shopping, had lunch, caught a movie, and then went to the park," Alan said.

"The park was fun, especially behind the bushes," said Nozomu.

"Nozomu, what did I tell you about being discrete?" Alan asked the female Okami Yokai.

"I forgot," she said apologetically before pulling Alan in for another kiss. She was stronger than she looked, after all, and would not be denied.

"So, what did you do?" Alan asked before Nozomu forced their lips together.

"Oh, I just went out with Satan," Shinichi answered. "Oh, and I ran into Yuji. Did you know he knows Satan and her sisters?"

"You don't say," Alan responded after managing to break the kiss but she rolled them over so she was on top and she kissed him again.

"It's a really small Multiverse, isn't it?" Shinichi remarked. He then left the room to give Alan and Nozomu some privacy.

* * *

As Satan flew through the air, she decided to open the box Yuji had given her. She at first wanted to chuck it away but decided to do that only after she opened it. She just hoped it wasn't some stupid prank or something like that. She cautiously opened the box and gasped at what she saw inside.

It was a silver necklace with a beautifully elaborate pendant hanging from it (the pendant resembles the artwork of the Monster Reincarnation spell card). There was also a note inside the box that went along with the necklace.

"_Though I probably know you'll throw the letter out, I just wanted to give you a little gift to show how I really feel. Your sisters will be getting similar gifts since I've come to see you all as part of the family. If you're wondering, I made the pendant myself. It's because I'm just that awesome. I hope you never lose that blazing spirit of yours that makes me laugh. Your loving brother, Fudo Yuji."_

Satan gritted her teeth as she tried to prevent the tears of joy that were about to fall from her eyes. "Idiot," she muttered. "Stupid Onii-san…"

* * *

Hanyuu didn't know why she was in Warren's office. All she knew that, right after school, Chiaki had come to pick her up. She was happy that the young man had gone to the trouble to pick him up but it wasn't because he volunteered. He'd been ordered to being her to ARMOR. Warren had personally ordered Chiaki to bring Hanyuu to the Terminal. This was why Hanyuu she was seated across from Warren with his desk between them. She fidgeted in her seat, tapping her fingers against her thighs. "Ano...excuse me? Why am I here?"

Warren spoke, "Hanyuu, you know that ARMOR employs people with special abilities in the fight between good and evil. I'll just be frank with you. Hanyuu, we want you to join ARMOR as a member." Hanyuu gasped. "Oh, don't be so surprised, Hanyuu. We've had our eye on you and let me tell you that you've got potential. Then again, you are a goddess so calling you amazing would be an understatement."

"But why now?" Hanyuu asked.

"I know you're much older than you appear, but you're powers are still growing. I want to help you train to control these increasing powers," he offered.

Hanyuu looked down, playing with the edges of her skirt. She asked, tentatively, "Will I be able to help the others?" While she was powerful, she was also in a mortal body. Her powers were rather limited now but once she got emotional they could come out in full form, like when Gebok had kidnapped her and Shiori.

Of course, she sometimes had trouble with her powers and only used them during extreme circumstances. Back when she was helping Rika to fight against fate and save both their lives and the village, she had the power to reverse time. However, she had not used that power ever since they managed to break through the accursed Endless June. She did still possess her other powers. She could still turn into spirit and it was in that form that her powers weren't so restrained. It seemed that as a physical being, her mortal body couldn't withstand the strain her powers put on her.

Warren nodded, "Of course you'll be able to help people. That's the entire point of ARMOR. You'll also learn to better control your abilities. You'll even be able to use more without the strain on your body."

How had he known that? Had he read her thoughts?

Hanyuu thought about it for a bit. Being a member of ARMOR did have its advantages and she did see how it helped the NEO-NUMBERS. They each received a very generous salary, enough to finance themselves. It was very tempting, and ARMOR wasn't far at all. Also, if Warren's offer was genuine then maybe she should join ARMOR. Still, she would need to ask permission. She may be older than she looked but she was still living under Shiori's roof. "Can I ask Shiori-mama about this first?"

"Of course. She's your mother. She has a right to know," he told her.

"Arigatou, Warren-san."

* * *

Meanwhile, in a room that had an altar in the centre, mysterious ghost-like figures were conversing with each other and they did not sound at all happy.

"I'm bored..." a male voice moaned

"Well what do you want me to do? The boss lady doesn't want us to do nothing at the moment," a 2nd male voice grumbled

"But its Saturday, and we're stuck in this stupid room! Seriously, who knew Saturdays could suck this much?" a third male voice asked.

"I gotta agree with him, I miss playing in Rokkenjima. It was so much fun killing people in a way that played on people's paranoia!" a female voice cackled.

"Well what do you want us to do, make a fucking time machine and head back there? Oh wait, we can't! The game is done and over with and we lost, terribly!" a fourth male voice shouted.

"Relax, my friends. Soon, our turn will start. I can feel it." The shadow of the speaker then morphed into what looked like a demonic dobsonfly.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Just something a little more lighthearted and this introduces Yuji into the story. He'll have a bigger role soon, trust me on that. Also, who are these guys at the end?**


	21. The Witch of Terror Part 7

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 7: Reunions and Resurrections**

"So, have you learnt anything new about the ET's in the school?" Shinichi asked. It was Sunday morning and they were having breakfast. Oddly enough, Nozomu hadn't shown up.

"As far as I can tell they just want to live peacefully on Earth, but it's still weird seeing so many aliens on _this_ Earth," spoke Alan.

"Really?" blinked Shinichi.

"Well, at least they're not causing any problems. I've come across a group of refugees from time to time, but never this many. As far as I can tell, all they want is a better life. You know, like how people immigrate to the USA to live the American dream."

"Well, even if Earth isn't as advanced as their society, it does have some sort of value if they're coming from all corners of the galaxy," remarked Shinichi.

"So anything new on that cult and its goals?" Alan asked.

"Zilch. They all just pray or sing songs praising the Witch of Terror. It just seems like some sort of Yokai fanclub," Shinichi remarked.

"Don't let your guard down, Shinichi. Cults are not something to take lightly," Alan warned.

"Guess you know a few things about cults."

"More than you know…"

The phone rang and Shinichi went to answer it. "Hello? Oh, Kumada-san. Tonight at the usual place, huh? OK, I'll be there." He put the receiver down.

"Cult meeting?" Alan asked.

"Yeah, and it's tonight but Kumada-san sounded off. He sounded pretty urgent," said Shinichi.

"Here, you should wear this," said Alan as he tossed something to the Rider. Shinichi caught it and peered down at it. "It's a wireless transceiver you can use to communicate with me through my ring. Lala made it for me. It's supposed to go in your ear."

"So, Amora delivered this to you, right?" asked Shinichi as he put the transceiver in his ear. He tapped on it. "OK, how is this supposed to work?"

"Put your finger on it," said Alan.

"OK, testing, testing. This is Shinichi," Shinichi spoke and his voice was coming out of Alan's ring. "Woah, cool."

"Yeah, now, be careful OK?" Alan cautioned.

"Relax, what's the worst that can happen?" asked Shinichi.

* * *

"Once the Witch of Terror appears, the days of humanity will end!" Kumada declared. A rousing cheer was heard from the rest of the cult members.

Shinichi grimaced as he stood among the attendees. '_So, this is what they're up to. They're trying to summon some powerful entity to wipe out humanity. I'm not surprised, though. Yokai are a minority and were the dominant species of Earth before humanity took over with their numbers_.'

It was Sunday night and Kumada had called Shinichi for a special cult meeting. Up until now, it had been hour-long prayer sessions where they worshipped the Witch of Terror. Basically, standard cult stuff. He'd even spoken to the few members whom he could not recognize due to their hoods which they kept up to hide their faces. He did recognize their voices though and knew who they were. Some were classmates of his.

While they were busy listening to Kumada, Shinichi managed to slip away from the rest. The chamber was really huge and there were pillars as well decorated with what appeared to be French words that had been written in honor of the Witch of Terror. Why French? Maybe that was where the original cult had started and this was simply a branch. Well, branch or not, they were attempting to summon a supernatural being, a witch and a powerful one at that and Shinichi had learnt from past experiences to never underestimate the power of witches. He may have faced demons but he had never faced a witch in a head on confrontation and even doubted his chances against real magic.

Shinichi tried to call his comrade on the wireless transceiver he had in his ear, "Alan, calling Alan. Hello, Alan? This is Shinichi. This is bad. The youkai in the school are trying to summon the Witch of Terror to wipe out all the humans in the city. This is some really some badass supernatural shit, and not the good kind. Come in, Alan." He felt someone grasp his shoulder and he froze. He craned his head around and saw Kumada staring at him. "Uh…Kumada-san…?" Shinichi sweatdropped. He saw the transceiver and took it from Shinichi before crushing it in his hand. "Oh, crap."

* * *

"Shinichi? Shinichi, are you there? Shinichi!" Alan cried into his ring. There was nothing but static on the other end. "Crap…" He'd lost the signal.

"Guess he got captured," said Bazel.

"Brilliant observation. Now I have to save his ass. How could I have grown up to admire _him_?"

"Well, he may be an idiot and a total pervert at times, but you have to admit that he's a decent guy," said Bazel. "He's brave, has a good sense of justice, selfless, and most importantly he's loyal," said Bazel.

"Guess you're right," Alan sighed.

"Not to mention he doesn't snap at me for my comments," murmured Bazel.

Alan ignored the comment and used his ring to track down Shinichi. As a Kaizo Ningen, Shinichi had a very unique energy signature. "I'm coming for you Shinichi and you are so going to owe me for this. Just don't die."

* * *

Shinichi sweat-dropped as he was strapped down on the altar, "OK, can't we talk about this? Please? You know you can just untie me, right? I won't tell anybody. I swear! Hello? Hello!"

Kumada had his hands up, "Witch of Terror, please accept this humble sacrifice. Let this traitor see the light."

Shinichi panicked, "I've already seen the light, thanks! This really isn't…"

**BOOM!**

The wall was blown up in a huge and green flash.

Alan aimed his ring at Kumada, "Knock-knock." He was in his uniform, complete with mask.

"INTRUDER!" roared Kumada as all the cult members saw the Green Lantern enter their secret chamber. He was glowing green, from his body and his eyes. He saw Shinichi tied up and sighed.

"Shinichi, how did you get into these messes?" Alan asked.

"Well, I couldn't just beat them up! They're innocent and brainwashed!" reasoned Shinichi. "Plus, I kinda like Kumada when he's not acting like a cult leader."

"OK, just hang tight," said Alan. He soared over the cult members who roared in outrage but just as he was about to reach his captive friend, a huge figure leapt up and grabbed him from midair in a bear-hug.

"It's been awhile, hasn't it, Lantern?" the figure asked and Alan's eyes widened as he saw his face.

"Mongul," Alan whispered. He grunted as Mongul started to crush him. Mongul was humanoid in appearance and pretty big. He was close to seven feet tall with an extremely muscular build. He was bald with yellow skin and orange-red eyes. He wore a purple bodysuit with silver bracelets, a silver belt, and purple boots trimmed in silver. He also wore a silver band that stretched from one ear, over the top of his head, and ended on his other ear.

He and Alan knew each other pretty well.

"What the hell are you doing here?" asked Alan as he struggled to break free.

"Oh, we can _talk_ about that but in private. However, first let us leave these fine people to their ceremony." Mongul's chuckle was dark and morbid as he started dashing off away from the cult members.

"Now that the interruption has been taken care of," said Kumada, "Let us begin our ritual." He stood over Shinichi and was holding a ceremonial dagger. "Let the blood of this traitor be offered to the Witch of Terror."

Shinichi sighed and with his strength he broke the bonds on his wrists and caught Kumada by surprise. He grabbed his wrist that was holding the dagger and squeezed, forcing the Kuma Yokai to release the weapon. "You know, this is the part I sometimes hate about my job." He then used a single punch to send Kumada flying. The cult members all scrambled away before Kumada fell on them. There was a loud crash as his huge body smashed into the ground.

Shinichi undid the bonds around his ankles and casually got off the altar, massaging his wrists. He looked at the cult members and narrowed his eyes. "Now, _who_ was going to be sacrificed?"

* * *

Mongul was holding Alan under one arm and smashing him through several pillars in his run, headfirst. Alan felt his skull colliding with the pillars, grunting with each hit. Mongul then carelessly tossed him aside and watched as he went rolling.

"Hmph, you're weaker than I remember. What happened?" Mongul asked.

Alan picked himself up and glared at the alien warlord angrily. "How the hell are you alive?"

"You can thank a certain mystical being," Mongul answered.

"The Witch of Terror," Alan guessed.

"Yes, indeed and she gave me an offer I couldn't possibly refuse. Revenge against you, Alan Smith."

"Don't I feel honored."

* * *

Shinichi had discarded the robe to reveal his normal clothing of a black jacket, jeans, boots and scarf. He looked to all the unconscious cult members. They were Yokai of various species but even they were easily dealt with. They weren't as strong as he, a modified human possessing vast time manipulating powers. "Guess Gebok didn't do a half-ass job when he made me," he murmured in thought as he stared at his hands. He saw Kumada and Kiriyama among the unconscious cult members he'd knocked out and apologized, "Sorry." He now had to help Alan with whoever he was fighting. As he was about to leave, he sensed something approaching and immediately leapt away before spikes made of crystal came flying down, stabbing into the spot he'd once stood.

"Crystal?" questioned Shinichi. He heard a click and ducked as shots flew over his head. They were rapid, like a machinegun. "Guns?" He heard a pair of small cymbals crashing together and spotted a clockwork monkey in front of him. He cried out as the monkey exploded, throwing him through the air. He was sent rolling along the floor, groaning. "Explosive…toys…?"

Crystal projectiles, gunfire and a bomb disguised as a toy. Those were the MO's of…

"It's impossible," Shinichi whispered.

"Oh, it's quite possible," an obnoxiously familiar voice spoke. Seven figures came out from the shadows. The torches, lanterns and candles providing ample lightning and Shinichi's eyes widened in recognition. There were seven of them and the men were clad in black coats that reached down to their knees with white shirts and black pants. They also wore black boots and gloves. Neckties hung from their necks with Roman numerals at the tips. The sole female of the group wore a black waist coat and had a short pleated skirt that came down to mid-thigh. She also wore stockings that came up to her thighs and connected to garters. She also had on a white with a tie that sported a Roman numeral. Up to her knees she wore boots with sharp high heels

Before Shinichi first awoke in Hinamizawa and long before his defection from GIN-SHOCKER, he'd been a member of an elite cyborg task force known as the NUMBERS. His designation was #13 and later BLACK 13. Daichi, Yokoshima, Michiru, Hana, Chiaki and Shogo had also been members of NUMBERS along with seven others. Their names were Todoriko Shiki, Koichi Sumira, Misato Kurushina, Goemon Jaga, Jin Majutsushi, Kamiyami Kako and finally Saisen Koremitsu.

Todoriko Shiki (I) was also known as Scanner and was a leech cyborg that could absorb energy and with that energy he could possess the powers of anyone he fed upon. He could also use his absorbing ability to possess the powers of his fellow NUMBERS.

Koichi Sumira (III) was also known as Parasite. His MO was to use toys disguised as bombs to cause massive explosions in heavily populated areas. His favorite victims were the children who took the toys he gave away and they would be the ones destroyed when ground zero happened. He also possessed miniature tick-like robots that he could sneak into a person's bloodstream in order to control them or to cause intense pain.

Misato Kurushina (IV) was also known as Seras and she was emotionally and psychologically imbalanced. She was insane as she was beautiful and she often could not decide whether to kill or kiss Shinichi. She even confessed she wanted to have him as a toy and play with him until he broke. Seras was also vampiric as she literally thirsted for blood.

Goemon Jaga (V) was also known as Dancer and as his name suggested he loved to dance, break dancing and hip-hop being his favorite. He was also a fan of wrestling and well.

Jin Majutsushi (VI) was also known as Petrifier and he possessed the ability to conjure crystal and use it as a weapon. He was also the team's resident kleptomaniac and fashioned himself a master thief. His arrogance was so great that he sent letters to inform his victims that he would rob them blind.

Kamiyami Kako (X) was also known as King and as his name suggested believed himself to be the greatest of them all. He was arrogant with a superiority complex with a disgust for humans whom he considered as garbage. His complex also made him hate people who were obviously better than him.

And finally Saisen Koremitsu (XII) was also known as Bomber and aptly named. He and Koichi had love for explosions but Saisen was also very trigger-happy as he loved guns and using them on people. A huge explosion was an orgasmic experience for him, especially if he was the one to cause it.

They all had one thing in common. Shinichi had killed them. However, now they were standing before him, perfectly alive. Just what was going on?

"Surprised, #13?" Kamiyami asked as he ran a hand through his hair. The air of arrogance was still there.

"Did you miss us?" Misato giggled, a crazed look in her eyes.

"It's been awhile," said Goemon, cracking his knuckles and rolling his neck.

Koichi asked, "How was my monkey? Did it put an impact on your life?"

"Those treasures of yours will be mine," stated Jin, glaring.

Todoriko licked his lips in anticipation.

Saisen asked, twirling the SMG's he had in his hand on his index fingers. "So, how have you been?" He sported an eyepatch now over his left eye. The eyepatch was marked with his Roman numeral, XII.

"How are you all still alive?" asked Shinichi.

"You can thank our new Mistress," answered Todoriko. "She was the one who revived us."

"Of course, in exchange, we must become her Furniture," spat Kamiyami. He considered himself a king, not some manservant.

"Furniture…" Shinichi whispered. He knew the term well. Satan and her sisters were the Furniture of the Endless Witch Beatrice.

"It seems that you still don't know when to keep your nose out of anything," accused Jin. "This was supposed to be our Mistress' special day and you just had to ruin it."

"Well, it looks like Lady Luck is smiling on us," said Saisen, grinning wide with his guns. "We got our chance for some payback."

The rest of them summoned their weapons, all except for Todoriko. He simply slipped his gloves off and let them drop to the floor. Misato was armed with a pair of blood red rapiers, Kamiyami was armed with a broadsword that had a blade as wide as the cross guard and as tall as he was, Goemon now had blades slide out of the top of his wrists and over his fists, Jin turned his forearms into crystal blades and finally Koichi was gripping a familiar pair of daggers. Shinichi saw Todoriko open his palms and showing them to him and nearly recoiled in disgust as he saw that he had a mouth in each palm. They were circular, with sharp teeth all around. He also licked his own teeth which were shark-like as well.

"Soldats de la Terreur," declared Kamiyami, "Let us punish this infidel in the name of our Mistress, the Witch of Terror, ANASTASIA-SAMA!"

Soldats de la Terreur was French for Soldiers of Terror. That was the name of the Witch of Terror's Furniture and with that single command they all attacked at once.

* * *

"Is that all you got, Mongul?" mocked Alan as he wiped the blood on his lip with the back of his fist.

"Oh no, Little Lantern," remarked Mongul as he cracked his knuckles eagerly, "This is only the beginning. I'm not going to finish you off, quickly. I am going to draw this out for hours and hours and enjoy myself."

"You've always been a sadistic asshole," snorted Alan.

"Thank you, I'll take that as a compliment." With a roar, Mongul dashed towards Alan with a haymaker that the silver-haired Green Lantern was barely able to dodge. There was an explosion of stone and dust as the warlord's fist met with the wall violently. Alan took aim with his ring and fired, conjuring a massive boxing glove on a spring which smashed Mongul in the face, sending him staggering back. He then used his ring to give himself massive boxing gloves with spikes on the knuckles.

"If it's a melee you want, that's what you get!" declared Alan before he started attacking Mongul with all his might. The punches were all aimed at Mongul's face and Alan watched happily as his foes' head was being knocked from one side to the other repeatedly with each punch. Mongul, however, grabbed one of Alan's fists and picked him up before elbowing him hard in the midsection. Alan's eyes widened before he was smashed against the floor, causing debris to be sent flying. Mongul then raised his foot to stomp on Alan only for him to roll out of the way. Getting on one knee, he took aim and fired a beam of green light from his ring at Mongul who countered with his own energy bolts, colored yellow, from his hands. The beam attacks collided, resulting in an explosion of green and yellow. Alan quickly spun around and kicked at Mongul who'd teleported behind him and hit him in the chest but the warlord grinned at the weak attack before he grabbed Alan by the throat and hauled him up.

"Now, time to snap your neck like a twig," sneered Mongul.

"Hey, dipshit!" Bazel shouted. Mongul looked down at the armband in surprise.

"Pardon?" Mongul inquired.

"That's right, I'm talking to you!" A blast from Bazel's gem knocked Mongul through the air and also forcing him to release Alan. "Leave my partner alone!"

"Thanks, Bazel," Alan said to his armband as he massaged his throat. As annoying as Bazel was, he was helpful.

"Hey, I like you, kid. You keep me entertained," said Bazel. "That's why I can't let you die just yet."

"I feel honored," replied Alan sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, and he's getting back up," said Bazel as Mongul picked himself up and rolled his shoulders and neck.

"That was quite unexpected, Lantern," said Mongul.

"The name's Alan Smith," Alan reminded, "Use it."

"I shall remember it when I carve it into your tombstone!"

* * *

"Shit, shit, shit, shit!" Shinichi cursed as he ran around the chamber, escaping the rounds being fired from Saisen's guns. The Soldats de la Terreur, as he'd discovered, were not the same as when they used to be the NUMBERS that was for certain. Now revived as a witch's group Furniture, they were no longer Kaizo Ningen. Now they were demons. He pretty much got that when he saw the mouths in Tororiko's palms and Misato's new fangs as she declared herself a vampire and that she wanted his blood. Todoriko had also declared that he wanted to suck Shinichi dry and that comment just disgusted him more than the extra mouths that the former leech cyborg sported on his palms.

"Come on, #13!" laughed Saisen as he gave chase along with the rest of the Soldats. They were flying through the air without the aid of wings or jetpacks. They were just gliding after him, like the Seven Stakes of Purgatory. So, Shinichi had to hazard a guess that they possessed the same standard abilities like flight and…

"Peek-a-Boo!" Misato called as she suddenly appeared right in front of him in a flash, black butterflies fluttering away after her sudden appearance. She stabbed with her rapiers and Shinichi ducked before hitting her with a double palm strike in the midsection.

…and teleportation. They didn't have the blades of light that the Seven Sisters were armed with but they didn't seem to need them. They had their own weapons and abilities.

A patch of crystal formed in his path and he slipped upon it, falling roughly on his rear. He heard laughter coming from Koichi and Jin. Those guys were just so damn annoying. Sensing danger, he rolled out of the way as streams of acid nearly hit him. The acid had been fired from the mouths on Todoriko's palms and he was grinning as he watched part of the floor bubble and melt due to said acid.

Shinichi got back to his feet and whirled around to face them. They all had a beef against him, doubled after the second time he'd killed them. They wanted revenge, they wanted his blood, and they wanted to make him suffer for the humiliation they had suffered a his hands.

"Not going to run anymore, #13?" questioned Kamiyami, smirking.

"Who's running?" asked Shinichi. "I just needed us to be as far away from those people so we could do this." He was referring to the cult members he'd knocked out. They were just innocents who'd been brainwashed by the Witch of Terror and Shinichi had been leading the Soldats de la Terreur away from them. "Now…" He went into his henshin pose, throwing his right arm over his chest and with his left fist at his hip before pulling his left fist up to eye level while pulling the right fist back to his other hip, legs spread and his Spark Core revealed. With a knowing smirk he said, "You guys aren't the only ones who've gotten upgrades. GX…HENSHIN!"

He was bathed in a bright flash of light, so bright that it forced the Soldats to shield their eyes. Within the light, the spirits of the Legendary Kamen Riders surrounded Shinichi before converging onto his body, forming his armor. That was when the flash of light died, revealing his form to them.

"Hey," Koichi spoke up to his comrades, "Does he look different to you?" They had not been aware of any changes Shinichi had gone through over the years so they did not know about.

"Kamen Rider…Showa…GX!" Showa declared as he went into his combat pose. He crossed his arms before throwing them to the sides, the curved energy blades coming out from his forearms. "On Stage and Start Game!"

* * *

Explosions erupted in the underground chamber as Mongul and Alan's conflict switched from hand-to-hand to using their respective energy blasts. Yellow and green met in a blitz of fury from both parties as they tried to overpower each with their powers. Alan's ring was firing a barrage of green beams at Mongul who fired his own yellow energy bolts. The blasts collided, exploding against each other, with the stray ones missing their targets but still doing damage to their surroundings.

'_Damn it_,' Alan cursed. '_I need a distraction_.'

Spotting a large piece of debris, Alan got an idea. He wasn't just someone armed with a powerful piece of jewellery and with impressive melee combat skills. He had powers of his own too. He inherited those powers from his mother, Rachel, who as a teen was known as Raven of the Teen Titans.

He concentrated and lifted the large piece of debris and sent it flying towards Mongul, aiming for his head. However, Mongul saw the debris and with one fist smashed it to pieces. He still kept firing upon Alan with his energy bolts, wanting to fry the little boy for past humiliations.

Suddenly, Mongul grunted as he felt himself being scratched in the back. Craning his head around, he spotted two heads of silver hair, one male and one female. "What…?"

**WHAM!**

**WHAM!**

Two kicks collided with his face, ceasing his assault on Alan forcefully as he was thrown straight into a wall with a crash. Alan saw them and gaped. "Saku? Nozomu?"

"Yo," Saku saluted, in his true form as he sported the claws, ears and tail of a wolf. Nozomu was also in her true Okami Yokai form. "So, what's up and who is this brute?"

"What the hell are you doing here!" demanded Alan.

"Nozomu said you needed help," said Saku. "She tracked you with her nose."

"Get away, now!" Alan screamed. Mongul was back on his feet, cracking his neck from side to side and he had his teeth clenched in a snarl.

"So, now you have pets," said Mongul. "How intriguing. However, even with numbers by your side you could not hope to defeat me."

* * *

The Soldats de la Terreur had made the mistake of underestimating Shinichi. The only knowledge they had of him was when they'd fought him last. Now, he was Showa GX. They had not seen this form of his before and they thought they knew all he was capable of.

Clearly, they were wrong.

They had been surprised by the energy blades he could conjure but then they found out the hard way that he also had energy whips in his wrists which he swung at them as he lashed out. The whips seem to extend to infinite lengths as they were hit from afar. Not only that, but Showa seemed to have gained some new accessories as well.

"Headshot!" Showa called as he fired at Saisen with his shotgun. The shotgun was a present from his stepfather Kasai and he had loaded it with a combination of armor-piercing slugs and shots. The ammo would be able to deal with the revived NUMBERS. They were demons now so that meant they were made of flesh and blood.

Saisen would've had his head blown off if he hadn't teleported away. The Soldats de la Terreur were faster than before when they had been cyborgs but Showa was able to keep up with them and fight back as well. This was troubling for them. Saisen had even been disarmed and Showa was not letting him get his guns back.

Showa quickly spun around, putting his shotgun back into his own personal hammer space before drawing out his katana, unsheathing it from its scabbard. With lightning quick swings, he blocked and deflected the barrage of sharp crystal projectiles that were flying at him. Spotting Jin, he took his shotgun out again and fired, shouting out, "Headshot!"

The reason Shinichi kept exclaiming the word 'headshot' was because that was his primary target and a sure way to kill someone. When he practiced at the firing range with Kasai, he always imagined that the targets were all Gebok's face and that he was blowing a hole through them.

"Shut up!" Kamiyami roared as he swung his massive sword at Showa who blocked it with his shotgun. A normal shotgun would've been sliced in half by the sword but Showa had made sure to have the gun modified for his use. It also had his insignia carved into it; the Roman numeral XIII which was the Romans way of writing the number 13.

Shinichi had been given the designation #13 by Gebok when he became part of NUMBERS and the numbers itself had symbolic roots. #13 was a number that was linked to misfortune, as in bad luck. It was a bad omen. That was what Shinichi had been made to be, a weapon of bad omen and upon his appearance people knew they were bound for some harsh misfortune in the form of a premature death at his hands. After killing the NUMBERS he'd been given the new designation BLACK 13. Black was also a color that was connected to death itself and so BLACK 13 was meant to be the bringer of death.

Showa smiled under his helmet as he pushed Kamiyami back and slashed with his sword. Their blades connected and while Showa's blade was slimmer and smaller than Kamiyami's, it was just as powerful if not more so. Their blades were locked as Showa held his sword in a single-handed grip while Kamiyami struggled with a tight two-handed grip.

Misato and Koichi were not standing idly by as Showa and Kamiyami were engaged. They had a plan. Showa was distracted so they could beat him now. There were seven of them after all and they were not the same as before either. They had just been taken by surprise by Showa's new appearance.

Goemon rushed towards Showa and revealed that he could stretch his arms like rubber as spikes grew along them. He had his own score to settle with Showa. "Hold him still, Kamiyami!" Goemon shouted as he swung his extended limbs at Showa to hit him with his blades and spikes.

"No, you fool!" shouted Kamiyami in outrage. Showa knew Goemon would attack while his back was turned and did something just as sneaky.

"Time Stop," whispered Showa and time froze at that very second. Goemon was frozen in mid-air and Showa disengaged from Kamiyami, putting his weapons away before he got behind the sword-wielder. He knew the Time Stop wouldn't last long so he decided to deal with these two first. He nudged Kamiyami forward and then waited as time resumed.

Kamiyami stumbled as Showa suddenly vanished and then cried out in pain as Goemon struck him with his arm spikes. Goemon exclaimed, "SHIT!"

"You…idiot…" growled Kamiyami.

"Guess you guys missed a lot," said Showa, chuckling. "I figured out how I killed you the first time so now it's time for this game to go into overdrive."

The Soldats de la Terreur surrounded him and Showa eyed them all. They looked angry and they wanted revenge. He could understand that feeling.

Saisen got his guns back and aimed to fire at Showa but Showa was the faster draw and with a single call of, "Headshot!" he fired. The slug flew straight for Saisen's head but he saw it coming and brought his arms up to defend himself but a thick wall of crystal sprung out from the floor and blocked the slug, said slug causing a spider web crack along the surface on impact.

Showa grimaced. '_Guess they learnt how to work as a team after all,_' he thought. They had a common goal and that was to take him down. That alone united them all. Of course they were after him for different reasons but still after him nonetheless. The thing they had in common was that he had killed them, twice.

Koichi came at him with daggers and ripped off his gauntlets when he blocked the blades, the edges cutting along the surface. Then, Todoriko jumped upon his back, wrapping his arms tight around Showa's neck in order to force him to submit. The acid from his palms' mouth was seeping out and harming Showa as it started to corrode his armor. As he tried to throw the disgusting leech of him, Jin and Misato attacked. Showa was slashed by them and he cried out as he was hit. Todoriko then leapt off Showa and kicked him forward. Marbles rolled along the floor and when Showa stepped on one he slipped and fell on the rest which exploded and caused a chain reaction as they detonated all around and under him. Koichi chuckled as his harmless-looking explosives did the trick.

That had been painful but then he spotted Saisen floating above him, upright and upside down, with his twin SMG's aimed at him. "Fuck!" Showa called. Alone, they could not kill him but working together they could very well end his life. He activated Time Stop just as the rounds were unleashed and rolled away before time resumed but then Kamiyami swiped at him and the sharp edge of the large blade nearly cut through his chestplate.

He watched as Misato licked the blade of her rapier. She may not have drawn blood but she grinned in anticipation of all the blood she would spill from Showa. Todoriko's mouths were grinning and Showa grimaced as he saw the tongues lick the teeth and lips. He looked at Kamiyami and used an uppercut at him that sent him flying and giving him a real nasty bruise.

Showa had to end this quick. Alan was in trouble. He looked at his opponents. It was time to show them more of what he could do. He took his sword out and gripped it tight in both hands. He decided to do this in order as he declared, "Sing, Yabuki!"

That call morphed the sword into the Higurashi no Yaiba and the transformation was accompanied by the singing of cicadas as Showa's body glowed with an emerald light. When the light faded, he was in his Higurashi Form. Kamiyami recognised the form and snarled before he dashed at Showa to behead him but the Rider was prepared for the assault as he performed a motion like he was sheathing his sword. As Kamiyami swung his massive sword downward, Showa struck and drew his sword out of its imaginary scabbard in a flash, slashing Kamiyami across the torso with a single swung. The arrogant demon cried out in anguish as black blood spilled from the wound and splattered the floor while at the same time staining his clothed. Showa then hit him in the back of the head with the sword's pommel, knocking him down to the floor.

Showa spotted Todoriko and Misato and changed again, "Strike from the shadows, Zennin!" After calling out the form, his armor changed and became dark-colored with a ninja-like appearance. His sword vanished but now he gained a massive four-pointed throwing star on his back which he gripped. He tossed the weapon and it sliced through the air at Todoriko and Misato. The bloodsucker threw Todoriko in the path of the weapon before darting off and Todoriko froze in fear before the Dai-Shuriken sliced his body in half. The Dai-Shuriken returned to Showa's hand and he saw Misato hovering above him. Todoriko was, however, still alive and he saw that dark energy was slowly connecting his two disconnected halves as.

He recalled something Satan told him once. A witch's Furniture cannot die unless the witch wills it and it allowed them to be revived over and over. It was like they were immortal. Showa hated dealing with immortals. They just would not give up.

Misato came at him with a shriek and swung at him with her twin rapiers, eager to shred blood. He parried with the Dai-Shuriken as she attacked swiftly, swinging, slashing and stabbing at him vigorously. She had a huge grin on her face and a crazed look to accompany it. Those fangs of hers really seemed to fit her. Of course, he would need to cut this one short. Jumping back, he gripped the handle in the centre of the shuriken and made the Dai Shuriken break into four separate blades that pointed their tips at Misato before shooting at her like harpoons. She gasped as the first three sliced through her clothes and shed her own black blood before the last stabbed into her torso. The blades returned and reconnected as the Dai-Shuriken.

"That was three down," counted Showa but Todoriko, Kamiyami and Misato would not be down for long. He heard gunfire and was nearly hit by Saisen's bullets before he brought his Dai Shuriken up to defend himself. He then realised he was rooted to the spot when he tried to move and saw that his legs were encased in thick crystal courtesy of Jin. Jin's crystal blades shone in the dim light as did Koichi's daggers. Goemon was dancing with each step he made as Saisen twirled his guns around his fingers. They were approaching him.

Showa's frown curled into a smile. He called out, "Bring down the thunder, Gokuaku!" The sudden windstorm blew them away and it whirled around Showa. Flames and lightning accompanied the whirling tornado before Showa forced it to disperse with a single swing of his arm. In his other hand he was holding the Oni Kanabo and with a swing he smashed the crystal holding his legs to pieces.

The three Sacred Treasures of Hinamizawa were weapons only Shinichi would wield and only because they had chosen him to be the Guardian of Hinamizawa, acting as the village's sword and shield to defend against enemies that would harm it. That was the responsibility he'd been given, which he extended to the entire world. Zennin, Yabuki and Gokuaku, the Tsukumogami of the treasures, recognised him as their wielder and he would not fail them.

Unfortunately, as powerful as the Treasures were when they gave Showa new enhancements and combat forms, they were also draining. That was why he would try to finish a fight as fast as he could before he burnt out. Using them in succession like this was also draining and against the Soldats of Terreur was trying itself. Kamiyami, Misato and Todoriko were already starting to recover. He needed to take them all at once and fast and knew just how to do it.

"HYAH!" with a roar he slammed the Oni Kanabo upon the floor and on impact a bolt of lightning ascended in a flash. The bolt then spread out into multiple bolts rained down upon the Soldats de la Terreur. Showa started panting.

Saisen noticed Showa panting and grinned. He taunted, "Getting tired, #13?"

"Kuso…" Showa cursed under his breath. His vision was starting to turn blurry as he felt himself growing more and more exhausted by the second.

"Let's get him!" Kamiyami ordered and he and the rest of the Soldats de la Terreur began to charge at Showa. He unleashed a breath of flames from his mouth which repelled them but not for long as they moved out of the way and resumed their charge.

**ZIP! STAB!**

A demonic looking stake stuck itself in the floor, between the charging Soldats de la Terreur and Showa. In a flash of gold the stake transformed into a girl with pale-hair, red eyes, and dressed in a red, white and black outfit that really showed off her legs in a sexy manner, not to mention it was eye candy for anyone with a school girl fetish.

"The Stake of Wrath, Satan, is here!" she declared.

"Satan!" gasped Showa.

"I came to help," Satan told him.

"Who is this bitch?" Goemon asked.

"She's like us, a witch's Furniture," said Misato, recognizing the signs.

"Yes, and I serve Beatrice-sama, the Golden Witch and the Endless Witch!" Satan declared proudly, her blade of light appearing on her arm.

"Just you, against us?" snorted Kamiyami. "Little girl, you should go and run along and not interfere or else I will cut you up," threatened Kamiyami.

Showa frowned. He didn't like his friends being threatened, no matter how capable they were. However, his frown was nothing compared to the angry scowl that Satan sported. It didn't look cute at all. She looked practically demonic now. "WHAT DID YOU CALL ME!" she exploded.

"Look, she's angry," mocked Jin, chuckling. "How cute." He looked her up and down. She did look nice and maybe even nice to have as a pet once tamed.

"Satan-chan, this is my fight," Showa told her.

"Hey, what are friends for?" Satan asked, smiling at him.

"Satan…" Showa was touched but still he couldn't let her get hurt. He and the NEO-NUMBERS had defeated her and her sisters and the Soldats de la Terreur could do the same to her.

"Don't worry, I'm not stupid," said Satan. "I brought backup."

"That's right, Shin. Satan-chan here isn't that stupid," said Yuji as he walked out from the shadows, a cocky smirk on his lips. "Shin, you should really stop holding back right now. You're wasting time here and its time you showed them what you're really made of.

"OK, who the fuck are you?" Saisen demanded, his guns aimed at him this time.

"Me?" Yuji pointed to himself. He took out his Liger Belt and wrapped it around his waist. "I'm just a Kamen Rider who decided to drop by for a visit. Henshin!" He swiped his Liger Pass across the buckle.

"**ZERO FORM!"**

Shards of energy encased his body as he was now clad in a black bodysuit with white plating on the sides of the sleeves and thighs. White gauntlets, with armored plating on the back of his hands with black gloves adorned his arms with a pair of gold claws that were folded back on his wrists. His legs were covered by white greaves, with black boots, and gold claws were folded back against his shins. He had white armor covering his torso and his white shoulder pads were blade-like and curved back. He wore a black helmet with a white, lion-themed, face plate with gold fangs and red eyes. Red nodes rested on the outside of his wrists, knees, elbows, and ankles. A black, cat-like tail swished back and forth behind him.

He was now Kamen Rider Liger Zero.

Liger Zero gave Showa the signal and the Rider nodded before he called upon the power of all three Treasures at once. His Spark Core unleashed a bright flash of gold light that enveloped Showa and the light blinded the Soldats de la Terreur as Liger smiled knowingly. When the light faded, Showa stood in his ultimate form, the form granted by him by all three Treasures and their occupying Tsukumogami.

"Showa…Hinamizawa Guardian!" Showa called.

"He has a new power up!" Goemon shouted.

"No way!" Saisen couldn't believe it.

Jin's eyes went wide as he saw Showa in his Guardian Form and he trembled on the spot. He himself had experienced the power of this form long before and he'd been vaporized from it. The memory still haunted him.

"I should tell you," said Showa as he felt himself revitalized by his friends' encouragement and the energy running through his body, "I was the one who killed the Great Leader of GIN-SHOCKER." That wasn't entirely accurate. He'd been involved but he had not done it alone.

That caused the Soldiers of Terror to look at Showa in a new light, both in awe and fear. They could feel the power radiating from Showa. It was bigger than BLACK 13 and that chilled them to the bone.

Kamiyami Kako, however, felt immense rage in place of fear. Showa's Hinamizawa Guardian Form was regal. 'That should be me in that armor, not him!' he thought in anger and jealousy. Showa's golden armor made Kamiyami look like he was wearing rags and he hated the Rider even more now. A dark aura started to surround him body and his comrades took notice of this.

"What are you doing, Kamiyami?" Saisen shouted.

"I'M PUTTING #13 BACK IN HIS PLACE!" Kamiyami roared as his body began to change.

"But we don't have permission from Anastasia-sama!" shouted Misato. Satan's eyes widened when she heard the name and growled. Shinichi had ignored her warning. She'd told him not to confront the Witch of Terror and now he was facing said witch's Furniture.

"FUCK PERMISSION! #13 DIES NOW!" Kamiyami didn't care whether he got permission or not as he transformed. His clothed vanished and he became covered in a brown organic substance like the exoskeleton of an insect. It was covering him from head to toe and his eyes turned red as his teeth became sharp. His nose vanished as it was being covered up by the brown substance and a pair of long and sharp horns jutted up from the top of his head that resembled the mandibles of a male dobsonfly. A circle of small horns surrounded his like a crown as insect-like wings hung from his back like a regal cape.

Kamiyami now looked like a demonic creature that resembled a dobsonfly, like the armor he'd donned when he was once a Kaizo Ningen. He was still armed with his massive broadsword and not the swords he'd used as King.

With a roar, the Dobsonfly Demon charged at Showa and swung his sword down to cleave him in two but Showa easily blocked the blow with his Higurashi no Yaiba. A shower of sparks erupted when the two weapons clashed.

Liger Zero eyed the other Soldats de la Terreur and asked Satan, "Wanna help?" Satan was watching Showa and the Dobsonfly Demon's fight. "Satie?"

"What?" Satan asked.

"Don't get distracted, Satie. We need to send these guys packing before we can help Shinichi," Liger told her.

Satan nodded and eyed her targets. Maybe she should've called for help on this.

Meanwhile, Showa and Kamiyami the Dobsonfly Demon clashed with their blades. As they locked weapons, Showa taunted his opponent, "So, any reason for the huge sword? Overcompensating maybe?"

"What?" the Dobsonfly Demon hissed in demand.

"I'm just saying that you have a pretty huge superiority complex. Maybe it's your way of compensating for your small dick," Showa elaborated.

With a roar and swing of fury, the Dobsonfly Demon pushed Showa backwards and he went skidding back, stopping only when he stabbed his sword into the floor. He then saw the Dobsonfly Demon coming down at him with a swing to cleave him in half but he took his Cho Dai-Shuriken off his back and used it as a shield, the blades clashing together. As Showa was holding off the Dobsonfly Demon, Saisen and Todoriko decided to attack Showa by striking him from behind.

Todoriko, once becoming one of the Witch of Terror's Furniture, had gained new abilities to augment his previous ones. The mouths on his palms were used to suck up energy and allowed him to mimic the abilities of his victims. Also, if the target was armored the acid he could secrete would be able to corrode the armor no matter what it was made of. He wanted Showa's power for himself that was for certain and was licking his lips in eager anticipation.

Saisen aimed and fired. Instead of bullets like before, he fired a barrage of energy bursts that hit Showa from behind. He was wide open and vulnerable as he was busy engaging Kamiyami in battle. Showa cried out as the energy bursts exploded, allowing the Dobsonfly Demon to slash him across the chest and send him spinning straight to Todoriko who pressed his hands onto Showa's chestplate, causing it to sizzle, bubble and melt under the acidic touch.

"Hey, he's mine!" declared the Dobsonfly Demon. Showa was his prey.

"We'll give you _all_ the credit then," said Saisen. "We just wanna kill him."

"And drain him dry!" finished Todoriko. However, Showa had not shown them all of his powers and decided that it was time to show them what he could do. He grabbed Todoriko by his collar and tossed him at Saisen, knocking them both down. He put a hand on his ruined chestplate and glowered. Pointing at Kamiyami, he gave him a thumbs-down gesture that the Dobsonfly Demon took at a challenge. Roaring, he rushed at Showa…as predicted.

"Let's Ride: Yabuki!" Showa called and the Tsukumogami of the Higurashi no Yaiba appeared next to Showa, donned in the Higurashi Form armor and armed with his own Higurashi no Yaiba. Spikes slid out from the edges of the swords and as the Dobsonfly Demon swung, he was stunned when both Showa and Yabuki slashed at him. The cuts were deep and sliced through his exoskeleton before black blood burst from the cross-shaped wound.

"**KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!**" both Showa and Yabuki called as one before slashing at Kamiyami again, this time with the blades glowing with a golden light. Crescent-shaped blades of golden energy followed and slashed at Kamiyami as they sent him flying before his entire body exploded with pain. His end was confirmed as he burst into black butterflies.

Yabuki and Showa nodded at each other before the former vanished and the Rider eyes both Todoriko and Saisen. He focused on Saisen first who was aiming with his guns again. Orbs of energy appeared in front of the barrels of the twin SMG's and were growing bigger. Showa called, "Let's Ride: Gokuaku!" the Tsukumogami of the Oni no Hone appeared clad in the Oni Form armor and armed with the Oni Kanabo. Fire, lightning and wind whirled around the Oni Kanabo in Gokuaku's grasp and the Higurashi no Yaiba in Showa's hand. Saisen fired twin beams of energy from his guns but they were soon countered by swirling blasts of elemental energy fired by Showa and his Tsukumogami partner. "**TRI-FORCE BURST!**" The blasts collided and Saisen's was smashed apart before the twin blasts of swirling elemental energy smashed into him, vaporizing him on the spot. What remained were black butterflies which fluttered away.

Todoriko was the only one left and he trembled, shaking like a leaf in the wind, as he saw the true power that Kamen Rider Showa possessed. Showa dismissed Gokuaku and called another ally, "Let's Ride: Zennin!" the ninja-like Tsukumogami of the Kage no Hoshi appeared clad in the Kage Form armor. Todoriko screamed and fled but he would not go far as the two warriors hurled their massive throwing stars at Todoriko. "**CHO DAI-SHURIKEN!**" The throwing stars spun as they sliced through the air before reaching their target and slicing the demonic Furniture to pieces and as a result he burst into black butterflies.

Showa was reminded of how he defeated the Seven Stakes of Purgatory. It would appear that defeating the Soldats de la Terreur was no different as they too burst into butterflies upon defeat.

"Game Over," Showa declared.

Showa nearly dropped onto his knees but he used his sword to support himself. He was exhausted from using the power but he had to keep strong. Alan needed his help now and he already wasted enough time on the Soldats de la Terreur.

* * *

"So, Satie, which one do you want?" Liger Zero asked his companion.

Satan knew of each of their powers and eyed the Soldats carefully. She pointed at Jin and said, "The idiot is mine!" She projected her energy blade and charged at Jin and he countered with his crystal blades, leaving Liger Zero with the scraps.

"Well, guess I get leftovers," he pondered as he eyes Misato and smirked. He was still wearing his ring and decided to use it. He dashed forward and palmed Misato in the stomach. He then used his magic and sent the energy into the walls as it began to morph and cuff Misato by the wrists and ankles.

"What the hell is this?" Misato demanded.

"Just a small spell," Liger Zero replied. "Don't worry, sweetie, I plan on saving you for last." He eyed Goemon and Koichi, "Now then, let's get wild!" He roared like a lion and charged at the two demons, feeding Goemon a right elbow to the face and a left side kick to Koichi's side.

Goemon stumbled and chuckled as he caught a beat in his head, "You think you can take us?" Curved blades slid out of the heels of his boots. He danced forward and lashed out with his blade kicks, but Liger Zero used his agility and evaded the swipes and blocked his punches, delivering a leg sweep that tripped Goemon and made him fall on his ass.

"I got him!" Koichi shouted as he tossed his monkey bombs. Liger Zero saw them coming and jumped, evading the explosion as he landed on all fours. The Liger system gave Yuji the agility and balance of a cat, giving him a low centre of gravity when necessary.

Liger Zero was on all fours and chuckled, "C'mon, boys, aren't ya gonna make me break a sweat?"

Goemon got up and growled, "I'll make you bleed!" He did a front flip and delivered an axe kick that was meant to stab Liger Zero in the back, but he jumped back and held his Liger Pass in hand before swiping it across the buckle.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Liger Zero got on all fours and charged forward as golden energy was emanating from the folded down claws that covered his hands and feet. He jumped and called out, **"Strike...Laser…Claw!"**

Goemon had no time to dodge and took the slash as he was cleaved in half by the energy-reinforced claw swipe. He shouted in pain as he collapsed onto the ground and was a bleeding mess as he was split in half from his shoulder down to his waist. "Fuck…! Why can't I heal?"

Liger stood upright and shrugged, "I dunno, maybe it's the energy in my claws."

"I'll fucking get you for this, you asshole!" Goemon shouted as he burst into black butterflies.

Misato and Koichi gawked as they saw the power Liger Zero possessed. Misato could see that he had more power than he let on and just imagining how strong he was and she licked her lips as she was getting wet down south.

Koichi growled, "You're gonna pay for that!" he deployed his microscopic ticks and grinned as he was going to send Liger Zero to a world of hurt.

Liger Zero scoffed, "Please." He snapped his fingers and the swarm of ticks were consumed in a sea of flames, making Koichi gasp in horror.

"What have you done to them?" demanded the dagger-wielding bomber.

"I vibrated their molecules so fast that they combusted," Liger Zero explained before reared his fist back and clocked Koichi in the face, knocking him out cold. That blow also vanquished him as he burst into black butterflies like Goemon did before.

Over with Satan and Jin, crystal blades clashed with an energy blade as the Stake of Wrath and Soldat de la Terreur glared at one another.

They locked blades and Jin licked his lips as he looked her in the eye lewdly, "You're gonna make a great pet once I break you in!"

Satan frowned and growled, "Wrong choice of words, ASSHOLE!"

She stomped on his foot, and Jin grunted in pain as Satan delivered a power head butt right in his nose. As he fell back, Satan grabbed the Soldat by the coat and kneed him in the nuts, making Jin squeak like a girl before he was pummelled by a barrage of kicks and punches.

'_Use your anger as fuel for your power. Focus your aggression into your fists and use them to express your soul,'_ Satan thought to herself as she pounded Jin like a piece of meat. When he wasn't busy, Yuji took time out to teach the Stakes some Martial Arts techniques. She may have thought less of Yuji compared to her sisters, Satan was now thankful for the training he taught them as she was using it to help her friend by teaching the Soldat before her a painful lesson.

"Take this!" She ducked down and ran her body up as she fed Jin a bone-crunching upper cut to his chin. She put her left hand under her elbow and pushed up even further as the technique transferred more energy into the punch. "HIYAAH!" she cried out in rage as she launched Jin through the ceiling, getting his head stuck in the ceiling as he went limp. In a flash, he burst into black butterflies.

Satan had her fists at her waist and took a breath before muttering, "Arigato, Onii-san…" She then turned to see that were gone and Misato remained stuck to the wall. Maybe she could carve the psychotic girl up while she was stuck there. However, Liger Zero snapped his fingers and Misato was freed from her bonds as she stumbled on the ground and glared at the Kamen Rider. Satan wondered what Yuji was up to.

"Why did you spare me until now?" Misato demanded.

"Your name's Misato, right?" Liger Zero inquired, "I heard a bit about you when I read your files from that NUMBERS project. So what, you're like a vampire now right?"

She looked at him oddly and nodded, "Yeah…?" What the hell was this guy getting at?

"I wanna make a bet with you," Liger Zero stated. "If I lose in a match against you, you can have me as your slave. No questions asked." Misato's eyes widened.

"WHAT?" Satan demanded. "Yuji, what the hell are you thinking? Do you even realize what's she's capable of?"

Liger Zero nodded, "I know and she's capable of a lot more, now that she's been revived. I just feel like gambling right now and I'm feeling lucky."

Misato cocked an eyebrow as she had her hands at her hips, "And what do you get if you win?"

Liger Zero smirked, "Maybe we can have some fun _later_ on?"

The gears in Misato's head started turning as she got an idea. If her theory was correct and this Yuji character was more powerful than he appeared, he'd be her slave and she would be unstoppable! She smirked and ran her hands up and down her body, "So, you think you can _handle_ me?"

He nodded, "Why don't you wait and find out?"

Satan blushed and stammered, "Y-Y-You can't be serious! You're thinking with your libido at a time like this!"

Liger Zero shrugged, "I always wanted to fuck a vampire. You think I'm gonna pass up this chance?"

Misato grinned and replied, "OK, I accept your bet on one condition: I get to taste your blood in return."

"Only if you make it as hot and sexy as inhumanly possible," Liger Zero negotiated.

Satan shook her head in disbelief and muttered, "You're unbelievable, Onii-san…"

Misato drew her blood rapiers and grinned maniacally, "Than shall we begin?"

Liger blinked as he saw the crimson blades, "Red rapiers?"

Misato smirked, "They've drank so much blood that they've turned red and they want a taste of your blood, almost as much as I do~!" She licked the blade of one of her rapiers for emphasis.

Liger Zero pressed the orange button on his belt and smirked, "Looks like it's time to put you on the chopping block!" He then swiped the Pass over his belt.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

Liger's Zero Form shattered and was replaced by his close-combat Schneider Form. The arm blades folded out and Liger Schneider went into a stance, "Shall we?"

"LET'S!" Misato charged ahead and trust forward with her rapier. Rapiers were French weapons designed for stabbing at critical points of the human body, like the eyes and throat, and disarming your opponent. However Liger Schneider wasn't exactly 'armed' as his hands were closed. Liger Schneider blocked the thrust attack by using his arm blade to direct the sharp point on the outside of his blade as sparks erupted between the sliding steel. They continued dancing around each other as their blades clashed with sparks flying everywhere.

Liger Schneider backed away and chuckled, "You're pretty good with those. I assume you like _jabbing_ things?"

"Well, I like being _jabbed_ with _hard_ things," Misato retorted, "I just hope your hard enough to do the jabbing if you get lucky enough and win."

"I only aim to please!" The fight continued and Liger Schneider swung forward with a chop, bringing his blade down on Misato. She sidestepped the strike and pointed the blade to the side of his head while he was on one knee.

"And this is what happens when you play too much, Onii-san," Satan muttered.

"Looks like you're my slave now, Liger," Misato stated, grinning wide.

"Are you sure?" Liger Schneider smirked.

The right back blade folded out and slashed the rapier out of Misato's hand. He then got up and put the Soldat on the defensive as he started swinging his arm blades. Despite her looks, Misato was a good fencer and her defense was pretty solid. Liger Schneider decided to kick it up a notch and activated the leg blades before he began kicking as well as slashing. Misato growled as she was being pushed back. This Rider's orange form was like a walking Swiss army knife. The blades then began to glow blue, signalling their vibrating cutting power. Schneider Form's blades were able to vibrate at ultrasonic frequencies, allowing Liger to cut though any material. Liger Schneider swung and chopped Misato's rapier, leaving it with out the blade. Misato jumped back and launched her veins, ready to pierce his armor and bleed him dry right there. Unfortunately, she was a few seconds too late as Liger Schneider swiped the Pass across the belt again.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

All the blades on his armor folded out and Liger Schneider charged forward as they sliced the blood-sucking veins to pieces.

"No way!" Misato gasped.

"**Buster…Slash!"** Liger Schneider connected with his attack and halted several feet behind Misato as she fell to her knees. The blades folded back into place and Liger Schneider walked over to the defeated Soldat. "Looks like it's done."

She nodded, "Yeah… You beat me, fair and square."

He chuckled, "Well, you win either way, so don't feel bad about it."

Satan gawked, "You mean you planned on giving yourself to her all this time! YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW HER!"

Liger Schneider chuckled, "Is my little sister being protective of her big brother?" She growled and he shrugged, "Well, maybe we can get to know each other better later on." He looked to Misato, "That sound good to you? Maybe you can meet the family too."

Misato smirked, "Prove to me how good you are in bed and I might consider it. Give me a call, Liger." She then burst into black butterflies. Liger undid his armor by removing his belt.

Satan scowled at Yuji but then remembered something. "Shinichi!" she gasped.

"I'm here," said Showa, still in Hinamizawa Guardian Form, as he made his way towards them. He was walking towards them, using his sword as a walking stick. While his helmet masked his face, he was obviously exhausted.

Yuji asked, "I suppose those guys you fought flew the coop."

"It was more like I sent them packing," Showa corrected. His breathing was labored and he looked like he was about to collapse if it wasn't for his sword supporting him.

"You should have a seat. You look like you could keel over at any second," Yuji advised. Showa shook his head in response.

"Can't…Alan…needs me…" His Hinamizawa Guardian Form armor vanished, leaving him not in his GX Form armor but his original Kamen Rider Showa armor. "Crap…" This was the result of him overusing his power. He would revert back to his original default. It was not BLACK 13, but the original armor he'd worn when he first assumed the identity of Kamen Rider Showa.

"And that what happens when people don't listen to me," Yuji said with a sigh. He used his ring on the stone floor and morphed it into a chair behind Showa. "Now, sit down and rest. You can't help Alan if you tire yourself out."

"But…" Showa began to protest but Satan pushed him down onto the chair.

"Rest and regain some of your strength," she advised, worriedly. She liked Shinichi because he was selfless and brave but even he needed to take it easy. "You're no good to anyone if you burn yourself out."

Showa sighed and deactivated his armor, allowing it to shatter off in the form of pieces from a jigsaw puzzle. "I sure hope Alan is alright…" Shinichi whispered. Alan was his partner on this mission, his nakama. He just couldn't relax but Alan was an experienced hero. He could handle it, right?

So, why did Shinichi feel like something REALLY bad was going down right now?

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Did you like the chapter? It was just a huge fight fest. Anyway, the next fight will be continued in the next chapter. Also, I'd like to thank Kamen Rider Bushido for his help on this chapter as well. BTW, how many were surprised to see the NUMBERS back in action? I bet none of you were expecting it, right?**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Absolute beat downs all around. OK, for those of you who are wondering, Yuji is a Merlinian sorcerer whose duty is to preserve life. He was trained by Merlin Leonidas Monroe and was given a ring that allows him to use his magic. It essentially allows him to manipulate substances, with Yuji using a form of telekinesis, on a molecular scale. Yuji and other sorcerers like him would be known as Merlinians. And all my Yuji(s) have the same ring. It's a silver ring, shaped like a dragon with a ruby in its mouth**


	22. The Witch of Terror Part 8

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 8: United Together as One**

Yuji's ears picked up something. "Did you guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" Shinichi's enhanced hearing also picked up something. He heard footsteps and it was being accompanied by heavy breathing. "What is that?"

"I'm going out on a limb here and say zombies," said Satan.

"What makes you say that, Satan-chan?" asked Shinichi and the Stake of Wrath pointed behind Shinichi. He got up from his chair and turned to see that the cult members he'd knocked out earlier were moving their way and they didn't look alright. They were moving like zombies but Shinichi could still hear breathing and heartbeats so they were still alive.

"I think we're in for another fight here," said Yuji.

"Don't hurt them," Shinichi told his friends. "They're just being controlled." If he had to hazard a guess, the Witch of Terror was controlling them somehow. That was true, actually. Hidden in their hair were Koichi's ticks and through them the Witch of Terror could control them like puppets.

"They're like puppets on strings," Satan summed up.

"So, let's cut some strings," concluded Yuji.

"Just don't hurt them," Shinichi reminded. "They're innocent in all this."

Satan sweat-dropped, "Then why do you still have _your_ gun out?" Shinichi was holding his shotgun.

"I can still use it as a club," he argued.

"I have a better idea," Yuji insisted before slinging his belt around his waist again. He pressed the blue button and swiped the Liger Pass across the buckle. "Henshin!"

"**JAGER FORM!"**

Shards of blue energy encased his body and Yuji was now in his speed-oriented armor.

Liger Jager dusted his hands and said, "Don't blink; you just might miss the show!" He roared as the thrusters on his back opened up and ignited as he flew through the crowd of controlled Yokai and knocked them all out in a matter of seconds, "And that's how you clean house!"

"Now _that_ was impressive," Shinichi admitted.

Satan huffed, "It wasn't that cool…" She was relieved, however, that her adopted brother took care of the problem quickly.

In a flash, black butterflies appeared and revealed that they had brought along company. They resembled men dressed as butlers but they had the heads of oxen's, like the Minotaur from Green mythology. Their horns were as sharp as their teeth and they stood at 6 feet tall with muscles that made the clothes look tight on them.

"Ox Butlers," Satan identified.

"Crap," Shinichi uttered.

"Leave these guys to us," said Liger Jäger as he brandished his claws. "You go and help Alan."

Apprehensively Shinichi looked to his fellow Rider with the Stake of Wrath. He asked, "Are you sure?"

"Relax, I've faced worse, way worse," Liger Jager told him. "Just help our little green friend."

"We're not some weaklings you need to rescue, Shinichi," Satan added, looking insulted that Shinichi would even imply that she was a weakling.

"Just be careful," Shinichi advised.

"We will," nodded Liger Jager.

"Now get moving!" Satan ordered.

Shinichi nodded in thanks before dashing off. One Ox Butler tried to get in his way but Satan stabbed it right between the eyes, causing the Ox Butler to howl and burst into black butlers. Shinichi then went on his way to find Alan.

"Don't die yet, Alan. I won't forgive you if you die," he whispered.

Liger Jäger and Satan stared down the Ox Butlers.

Satan looked to the Liger Rider, "What should we do now?"

Liger Jäger chuckled, "Don't worry, Satie. I got this."

His thrusters ignited and he sped through the horde of Minotaurs, ramming through each as they vanished in flurries of black butterflies. However, more popped up and Liger Jäger was getting annoyed. He decided to use his Merlinian ring and fire plasma bolts at the creatures. Again, as more were vanquished, another set arrived to take the places of the fallen.

Liger Jäger tapped his foot and growled in frustration, "OK, this seriously getting on my nerves. If I didn't seal my powers away I wouldn't be having this problem."

"Guess that's what you get for acting so cocky," Satan giggled.

"Shut up," Liger Jäger shot back.

The Stake of Wrath smirked, "Well, I suppose you should call for backup now?"

"Yeah, yeah," he waved off. "Seven Stakes of Purgatory, front and centre!"

Giggles and laughs could be heard through the room as six flashes of golden butterflies gave way to the remaining sisters of Satan.

"Rengoku no Nana Simai, koko ni," the seven sisters proclaimed before the newly-arrived six turned and glomped the Rider, "ONII-SAMA!"

"Hey girls," Liger Jäger sweatdropped, "How've you all been?"

Satan turned and snapped, "C'mon, you nitwits! We have to focus and get rid of these damn oxen!"

"Oh no," Asmodeus gushed, "Satan-neesama's angry face is so cute~!"

"Can't argue there," Liger Jäger chuckled. "Anyway, let's get this done right!"

"HAI~, ONII-SAMA!" the Stakes agreed before transforming, zipping through the ranks of the Ox Butlers and stabbing through them like paper. The Oxen, though strong, could not match their speed and the sisters were killing off more servants faster than they could replenish their ranks.

Liger Jäger spotted one more and swiped the Pass across his belt.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

Liger Jäger charged forward and jumped with his glowing claws. "**Strike…Laser…CLAW!**" He tore through the last butler and it vanished in a blaze of black butter flies. He turned to the sisters, "OK, I'm gonna look for Shin and Alan. You girls remain on standby until I give the signal."

"Will you promise us candy when we finish?" Beelzebub asked as she began to drool.

Liger Jäger nodded, "Definitely."

"Hai, Onii-sama!"

Liger Jäger nodded and made his way to the resounding battle in the distance. He could already hear numerous blows being exchanged. He just hoped that Shinichi and Alan weren't being beaten to a bloody pulp right now.

* * *

Nozomu was sent flying by a blow to the face and she crashed against the wall, hard, getting stuck there. "Nozomu!" Alan cried out. He saw Saku lunge at Mongul, snarling. "Saku, no!" Alan shouted. Mongul grabbed him by the arms and snapped them like twigs. Saku howled in pain before he was tossed aside. Mongul then felt himself being blasted by Alan but in his rage he missed and Mongul jumped at him with a haymaker. The fist connected and Alan was hit.

"ARGH!" Alan cried out as he was smashed through several pillars by Mongul's punch. He hit the final pillar and collapsed onto the floor, grunting in pain.

"Hmph, such a weak Green Lantern," the alien warlord scoffed. "I haven't even broken a sweat."

Alan recovered and spat out some blood. He mocked, "Was that a punch or a lovetap?"

Mongul growled and lunged at Alan before he started to beat him senseless. He tossed him around like a ragdoll, beating him to a bloody pulp. While Alan could stand up to Mongul thanks to his ring, Mongul completely dominated him in the strength department. He had the same level of strength that Superman had but did not hold back as he started bashing Alan about with brutal blows. Alan could endure, thanks to the protective energy field provided by the ring, but he felt the impacts nonetheless and the pain that followed with each blow.

As Alan laid beaten at Mongul's feet, the warlord grabbed him by the hair and lifted him up when a piece of debris hit him in the back of the head. He turned his head around to see who it was.

"Leave…him…alone…" Nozomu said weakly as she staggered towards them. Her entire body ached but she could still fight. She wasn't going to let this monster kill Alan. Her brother was still injured with both arms broken and couldn't fight but Nozomu could.

"Nozomu…" Alan uttered in a raspy voice as Mongul held him up by his hair. The warlord then carelessly dropped him and looked to Nozomu.

"So, this is your pet, Lantern?" asked Mongul. "Good. I'll make you watch as I crush her and grind her bones into dust."

"Don't…you…dare!" Alan grabbed onto Mongul's leg but he was quickly kicked away. Mongul walked towards Nozomu who stood defiantly before Mongul. She showed no fear. As much as Alan admired that, she had to run. She was going to die if she tried to stand up to this beast. "Nozomu…run…"

* * *

"Looks like he's down," Topper observed as he sipped his tea. He and the rest of the Observers were watching the game board.

"Against a beast like Mongul, he didn't really stand much of a chance, especially since Mongul himself had gained some enhancements," said Virgilia.

"Yeah, and even when he's beaten he's still fighting!" Lambdadelta laughed. "He's squirming and wiggling like a worm that's being crushed!"

"Don't underestimate the tenacity of a Green Lantern," spoke Akuma. "They do have a habit of fighting against all the odds stacked against them."

"They don't believe in a no-win situation and can easily turn a hopeless situation around," Bernkastel stated.

"He did beat Nero," Beatrice had to admit.

"Indeed, he did," agreed Akuma.

"Would you like more tea, Lord Akuma?" Ronove offered Akuma.

"Very much so and please bring some more cookies," Akuma answered.

Ronove bowed, "As you wish."

* * *

Alan was down. He couldn't move and his ring wasn't working. Mongul had beaten him and there were no reinforcements coming as far as he could tell. He told Nozomu to run and he hoped she listened, but his eyes had swollen shut, so he couldn't tell. Then, everything came crashing back to him when he heard it.

"Now, little girl, let's see those powers of yours save you from having your skull crushed…" laughed Mongul. Alan could almost feel the pressure on Mongul's latest victim. He then heard a scream.

"Nozomu…" muttered Alan. Alan could feel the power returning to his Ring. He then forced himself up and forced his eyes open. Unlike their normal violet color, they were bright red. A second set of eyes grew above his first. "GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF HER!" Alan then launched toward Mongul, ramming into him and forcing the tyrant release Nozomu.

"You little pest!" snarled Mongul. He hated how Alan never gave up. It was that annoying trait of his that, if he were any other person than himself, may admire. However, he simply found it irritating and frustrating since the Lantern did not know when to quit. He prepared to bash Alan's skull in when…

"**RIDER KICK!"**

All of a sudden pain exploded out of Mongul's shoulder. The alien roared out in pain as Showa suddenly appeared and attacked him with a Rider Kick. Alan looked Showa over. He was in black and white armor with a helmet that sported large green eyes and antennae in a V-shape with 13 stamped on his left shoulder. Alan knew of this form well. This was the original form of Kamen Rider Showa when Shinichi first declared himself a Kamen Rider.

"Hey, what's up Gigantor? Had a nice trip?" Showa taunted Mongul who he'd just struck. He turned his attention towards Alan as he helped him up. "Hey, are you okay, Alan?" the Rider asked the Green Lantern as he saw the bruises and blood. The second set of eyes had closed and vanished before Shinichi could see them.

"I've felt better," the Green Lantern answered, groaning in pain. "What kept you?"

"Just a reunion with some old friends," Showa answered. "Need help?"

"Yeah, a miracle," answered Alan.

"Rewind," Showa said as he used his power to reverse time on Alan. Energy projected over Alan in the shape of a clock going counter-clockwise. He was focusing it on Alan's wounds which slowly started to heal. Once all the wounds were gone, Alan no longer looked like he had been put through a meat grinder.

"As for a miracle, ask and you shall receive," said Bazel, and in a flash of light Alan was encased in the Bazel Combat Armor.

"Why didn't you do that earlier?" Alan asked the mystical armband.

"I wanted to see how tough you were without me," said Bazel. He reminded, "And you told me not to help."

"Next time, when you see me taking a pounding like that, just help," Alan ordered.

"OK, just let me know when the next time comes up."

"Gladly."

"So, who's the big guy?" Showa asked.

"Mongul," Alan answered simply, "And we go way back."

"He seems to hate you," Showa observed.

"Like you wouldn't believe," Alan replied.

"Did you kill him or something and he revived from the dead for his revenge?" Showa asked. Alan paused. That was what exactly had happened. "Coz, that kinda happened to me."

"What?" Alan asked. He shook his head. "Wait, never mind. We don't have time for this."

"No matter who helps you, Lantern," growled Mongul, "You will still fall and your allies will follow."

"We'll see, Mongul," Alan said. He told Shinichi, "Shinichi, go help Saku and Nozomu."

Showa nodded and ran towards them. He helped out Saku, healing his arms, and even healed Nozomu, the clocks going counter-clockwise as he reversed the damage on them. "I _really_ think you two should get out of here," the Rider told the Okami Yokai siblings. "Things are about to get really rough down here."

"Alright," said Saku. He was never one to run from a fight but this was an enemy beyond his level that neither he nor Nozomu could fight. Also, he had to prioritize and think about his sister's safety first. "Come on, Nozomu."

"Please, protect Alan," Nozomu requested of Showa. Showa nodded and the two Okami Yokai fled from the battlefield toward safer grounds.

"So, more insignificant help," Mongul snorted as he looked at Showa in disdain. "It doesn't matter. You'll die anyway."

Alan felt his rage grow as he looked at Mongul. This was the man, this monster who'd tried to hurt him by hurting Nozomu. Something inside him had awoken when he thought Nozomu would lose her life, something savage and demonic, something that was in his blood and made it boil. He'd felt it rise out of him and it would've burst out unrestrained if Shinichi hadn't arrived.

"If we die, we're dragging you down to Hell with us," swore Showa.

"Is that supposed to be a threat?" snorted Mongul.

"It's a promise, asshole!" Showa then rushed at Mongul and the warlord was only happy enough to respond with a punch. However, as the fist came within inches of Showa, it started to slow down. Showa took advantage of this by using a punch of his own on the monstrous alien.

The reason Mongul's strike had slowed down was because Shinichi was using another aspect of his time manipulation powers. He dubbed it 'Slow Motion'. What it did was make time slow down like a snail's crawl. The area affected would move so slow that even a snail could match its speed.

"Let's Ride: Ichigo!"

He transformed into Kamen Rider Ichigo, the original Kamen Rider, and executed one of his signature moves. "Rider Punch!" the punch dug into Mongul's stomach and shot him straight into a wall.

"Let's Ride: Nigo!"

Mongul pulled himself way from the wall, only to receive a Rider Kick across the face, courtesy of Showa as Kamen Rider Nigo, which sent him staggering.

"Let's Ride: V3!"

Mongul fired his energy bolts at Showa who countered with a move of V3's, "Red Lamp Power!" The energy was absorbed into Showa before it was launched back at Mongul at double the intensity, nearly knocking him off his feet.

"Let's Ride: Riderman!"

He transformed as he saw Mongul rising to his feet and charging at him. He pointed at Mongul with his right arm and commanded, "Blaster Arm!" His right arm transformed to a high-powered beam cannon. As Mongul came in range, he took aim and fired a beam of energy that slammed into Mongul's chest and pushed him backwards before once again knocking him off his feet. Smoke rose from the spot where the beam had hit.

"Let's Ride: X!"

Showa transformed into Kamen Rider X and summoned his weapon, "Ridol Stick!" He swung it down at Mongul who rolled out of the way and flipped back to his feet. Showa started thrusting and jabbing at Mongul with his Ridol Staff, only for his attacks to be blocked by Mongul's bracelets. Mongul then lashed out to grab Showa.

"Let's Ride: Amazon!"

Showa leapt up before he could get grabbed and flipped through the air before latching onto Mongul's back. "Jaguar Shock!" He opened up his mouth that was filled with sharp teeth and dug them into Mongul's neck as he bit down. This served to annoy Mongul as he tried to shake Showa loose. He managed to grab Amazon and toss him away.

"Let's Ride: Stronger!"

Showa landed on the floor and got down on one knee, slamming his palm down. "Electro Fire!" The energy speared along the floor and at Mongul, exploding under him and tossing him into the air.

"Let's Ride: Skyrider!"

Showa leapt up, flying through the air after Mongul, and executed his next attack, "Sky Kick!" The flying side kick slammed into Mongul, knocking him back to the ground with a crash.

"Let's Ride: Super-1!"

Showa changed again as Mongul got up and came at him with his fists. "Power Hands!" Super-1's fringed gloves turned red and Showa caught the fists at them came at him. He caught them in his hands as he grappled with Mongul, able to closely match the warlord's strength with the strength-enhancing power hands. He pushed Mongul away and then he called out, "Hot & Cold Hands!" The gloves turned green. He aimed his right glove at Mongul, unleashing a tongue of flame that did no harm to Mongul and then he switched to his left glove and fired a cryogenic spray that first froze Mongul's feet to the floor before the ice started to creep up his form. Finally, he was frozen in a block of ice. However, it would not last. The ice started to crack.

After Mongul freed himself from the ice as it exploded from his sheer power, he dashed towards Showa, completely enraged by the 'insect' that dared to oppose him. Showa then changed again.

"Let's Ride: ZX!"

He turned red and silver and grabbed the bombs attached to his knees before hurling them at Mongul's face. They exploded, causing him to cry out as he was momentarily blinded by the sudden blast.

"Let's Ride: BLACK!"

Changing forms again, Showa jumped and attacked with a karate chop. "Rider Chop!" The attack struck Mongul's neck and he cried out. He tried to grab Showa only to be blinded when he received a face full of red light. "King Stone Flash!" The flash from Showa's belt hit Mongul in the eyes, blinding him yet again.

"Let's Ride: BLACK RX!"

Changing into Kamen Rider BLACK RX, Showa drew the Revolcane and slashed at Mongul. Mongul caught the blade and then grabbed Showa by the neck, but it wouldn't be long before Showa escaped his grip.

"Let's Ride: Biorider!"

His body turned blue and into liquid which flowed though Mongul's fingertips and out of his grasp. When he reformed, he changed again.

"Let's Ride: Roborider!"

Now black with orange trim, Showa fired at Mongul with the Voltech Shooter. He was aiming at Mongul's face and the warlord grew annoyed with each shot. He threw a fist at Showa but he did not budge from the attack and retaliated with a punch of his own that sent Mongul reeling when he got hit in the face.

"Let's Ride: Showa!"

Showa resumed his default and then jumped high into the air to execute his finishing move.

"Showa Rider Kick!"

This was a technique he'd developed and perfected after many months of practice, trial and error. The Rider symbols on his belt strap would project out and enlarge themselves before lining up between him and his target. He would then fly through the symbol with a flying side kick to finish off the target. It was similar to Decade's own Enhanced Dimension Kick when he was in Complete Form and activated his Final Attack Ride card.

The symbols rose along with Showa's ascent, lining up at an angle and bridging the gap between the Rider and his target. As he performed his flying kick, he flew through the symbols of the Legendary Kamen Riders, picking up speed and power as he got closer and closer for his Rider Kick to connect.

Mongul shook his head and then heard a shout as Showa launched at him with a kick. He shattered the bridge of symbols with a swing of his arm and caught Showa around the ankle before he swung him to the floor violently. Showa grunted from both the force of the impact and the dismay that his attack had failed.

"What did you hope to accomplish?" Mongul asked as he looked down on the Rider.

"Well, I think I _accomplished_ in distracting you, dipshit," Showa responded, grinning under his helmet.

Before Mongul could demand any further answers, a barrage of green energy blasts suddenly crashed into him with explosive force. Debris went flying as Showa retreated to a safe distance after managing to free himself from Mongul's grasp, rolling away to stand next to Alan.

"Did you get him?" Showa asked the Green Lantern hopefully.

"If only it was that easy," said Alan as the smoke cleared and showed a slightly injured yet alive Mongul. "It's never that easy."

Mongul dusted himself off as he stated, "A valiant effort, but utterly futile." He then rushed at them, grabbing them by their helmets and slamming their heads together before smashing them both against the wall. He then started to bash them against the wall repeatedly, chunks of the wall coming loose from the repeated impacts. Their helmets were also starting to crack under the constant pressure of Mongul's fingers and impacts. He spun around to toss them along the floor and watched as they went tumbling. The warlord then jumped up and came down on them, stomping them to the floor. He then picked them up by their legs and spun around and around, making them nauseous and dizzy as he hurled them away. They bounced off the ceiling and crashed to the floor again, skidding several feet away from Mongul.

"Ow…" Showa groaned as he forced himself to sit up. His left antenna had broken off and the right eyepiece was shattered. His helmet was also pretty damaged with cracks spreading along its surface. His armor looked banged up too.

Alan's armor managed to protect him but he still felt those hits. His helmet disappeared as he got up, helping Showa up as well. The Rider also removed his ruined helmet and tossed it away.

Mongul came at them and the two allies gave each other nods before they struck. Mongul came in range but he slowed down at the last second due to Shinichi's Slow Motion and the cyborg dug his fist into his stomach as Alan kicked him in the face, sending him staggering back.

Shinichi removed his scarf and swiftly got behind Mongul to tie it around his head, covering his eyes like a blindfold. Mongul thrashed about as he tried to remove Showa and the blindfold. The Rider felt like he was riding a bucking bronco but he held firmly onto his scarf as Mongul continued to thrash around. Mongul might be strong, but if he couldn't see them he couldn't attack them. He blindly swung his fists around as he tried to locate Alan.

Alan conjured up a massive pair of green fists with spiked knuckles and smashed them against Mongul when he was sure he would not hit Shinichi by accident. He continued to pound Mongul, harder and harder. He wanted to pay him back for all the pain earlier. Mongul threw Shinichi off and he landed next to Alan. The two then took turns attacking Mongul with a barrage of punches that caused him to stagger with each blow.

Shinichi drew his katana and slashed at Mongul, satisfied when he managed to cut through the alien's bodysuit and even happier as he hoped he'd drawn blood. Alan did the same, creating a katana of his own with his ring before slashing at Mongul as well. The two continued to swing and slice at Mongul who got put on the defensive while using his bracelets to block the flurry of slashes, sparks ripping from contact.

Putting away their weapons, Alan and Shinichi jumped up and landed flying kicks into Mongul's chest, sending him skidding backwards. They then landed before him and hurled punches into his stomach, causing him to double over. Finally, their uppercuts sent Mongul soaring when their fists connected into his chin.

Mongul flipped through the air before landing on his feet. Messaging his neck and chin, the alien stated as he tore the blindfold away, "I almost felt that one."

"Kuso…" Shinichi groaned. "How are we supposed to beat this guy?"

"With a little help!" said Liger Jager as he ran up to the two.

"Yuji!" Shinichi shouted.

Alan asked, glad for the extra assist, "What kept you?"

"I was busy making mincemeat. Wow, you both look like crap," remarked Liger.

"Yeah, laugh it up," Alan said, rolling his eyes. "Are you gonna help or make jokes?"

"Sure, I'll help," Liger Jager grinned, cracking his knuckles. "Just point me in the right direction." He then removed his helmet and tossed it away.

"Why did you just take your helmet off?" asked Shinichi.

"I didn't want to be left out," shrugged Yuji.

"He's coming," warned Alan. He used his ring and conjured a green mallet with a long shaft and massive head. Gripping it, he slammed it down upon Mongul and the warlord stopped it from flattening him with his hands. Yuji and Showa then attacked, the cyborg and Manakyte punching him in the ribs. They then grabbed an arm each and started to drag Mongul along the floor before throwing him into the air. Shinichi reached behind his back and took out his trusty shotgun and started to empty its contents on the warlord. Mongul felt the bullets hit but they did nothing. He fired energy bolts at them and sent them flying. Shinichi flipped through the air and landed on the floor before he continued blasting.

"Hey, have a headshot motherfucker!" Shinichi shouted as he kept shooting at Mongul but his armor-piercing shots weren't working on the advancing warlord. With a charge, he rushed at Mongul to clock him upside the head with the butt of his gun only for it to be smacked out of his hand and then Mongul grabbed him by the neck.

"Dammit, I was about to give you a _headshot_!" shouted Shinichi.

"And yet you failed," said Mongul condescendingly.

"Yeah, a _headshot_ is what you deserve! I was gonna award you with a big _headshot_! A _headshot_! A _headshot_, dammit!"

Mongul cocked a ridge above his where an eyebrow should be and questioned curiously, "Why do you keep saying-?"

"**PANZER FORM!"**

Yuji, in Panzer Form, was standing at a distance with his cannons trained right on his target, Mongul, as he swiped his Pass across his belt.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

The Hyper Cannons were charging and Yuji grinned, "Fire in the hole, cockbite! **HYPER CANNON…FIRE!**" He fired his cannons and the dual energy blasts collided with Mongul, releasing his grip on Showa and launching Mongul into the distance before a bright explosion.

"I gave the signal! Why didn't you attack the moment I gave it?" asked Shinichi as he massaged his neck.

"How should I know _that_ was the signal when you keep saying _it_ _every 5 fucking seconds_?" Yuji countered.

"I don't say it _every _5 seconds! Only whenever I shoot!" Shinichi retorted.

"Yeah, next time pick another word you don't use every goddamn time!" Yuji shot back.

Mongul got up and charged at the two before grabbing them by the necks as he lifted them up. Alan grimaced. If he attacked now, he'd be risking their lives. He couldn't get a clear shot at Mongul with him holding his friends like shields.

Yuji glared at Mongul and only gave a smirk before he shouted, "Girls, now!"

Seven demonic stakes cut through the air and stabbed into Mongul from behind. The warlord shouted out in shock and pain as he released Shinichi and Yuji. The former hit him in the stomach with a kick as Yuji hit him in the chin with an uppercut, sending him staggering. The seven stakes then turned into seven teenage girls who dressed alike, with the same blood red eyes that marked them as sisters. They kicked Mongul forward, straight into the path of Alan's ring. He actually conjured up a grenade launcher and was launching high-powered energy grenades at Mongul with intent of blowing him up. Since it was a construct of his own mind, it had unlimited ammunition.

Shinichi saw the Seven Stakes of Purgatory, each named after a demon associated to the Seven Deadly Sins. "Thanks," Shinichi said.

Lucifer flipped her hair arrogantly, "No need. It was simply our pleasure."

"Yuji-niisama promised snacks!" giggled Beelzebub.

"Can we wrap this up quick?" Belphegor asked, yawning. "I want to get back to sleep." She'd been taking a nap before this.

"Don't be so lazy!" Satan scolded her sister.

"I wanna go back to Yoko-kun!" whined Asmodeus. She'd been hoping to go and see him before she got summoned.

"You can see your boyfriend after this!" Satan and Lucifer snapped.

Leviathan and Mammon simply rolled their eyes before focusing their gaze on Mongul and Alan. Mammon saw Alan and spotted the ring on his finger. "Hey, can I have his ring?" Mammon asked.

"Mammon, do you remember when you asked about _my_ ring?" Yuji asked.

"Yeah," Mammon nodded.

"And what did I say?"

"You said 'no'." Mammon slumped in defeat.

"There's your answer," Yuji nodded.

"A shame, really. That armor is nice. I like green," stated Leviathan.

"Everyone, please behave," commanded Lucifer.

"Hai, Onee-sama!" the other sisters chorused.

"OK girls, it time to do _that move_ we practiced," said Yuji. "Shinichi, you help out too."

"What do I have to do?" asked Shinichi.

"You can call up the Spirits of the Showa 13, right? Call them up. We're gonna need them for this."

Alan was forced to stop after spending too much of his ring's energy and attacked with debris using his telekinesis. They shot towards the alien warlord but Mongul broke through Alan's assault and grabbed him by the shoulder and head threatening to crush him as he dug his fingers in. He looked Alan in the face and said, "You fought bravely, but it looks like it's all over for you. Now I can finally have my revenge."

"HEY ASSHOLE!" Mongul looked to Yuji and Shinichi but they were not alone. Standing behind them were the Stakes of Purgatory and the spectral forms of Legendary Showa 13 (the Legendary Kamen Riders). It was Shinichi who'd shouted at him.

"Step away from the green guy!" Yuji shouted as well.

The Spirits of the Legendary Riders fused together with the Seven Stakes and transformed to become a massive cannon-like weapon but instead of a normal barrel, it had a spinning drill. Shinichi and Yuji were standing on either side of the newly conjured weapon which had gun handles and triggers that they grasped. Mongul could only gawk as Alan, who was still in his grasp, decided to use one last move to end it.

"In brightest day…in blackest night…no evil shall escape my sight…" Alan recited, "For those who worship evil's might…beware my power…"

'_This is for Nozomu_,' Alan swore, '_And everyone you have ever hurt._'

"…**GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!**" Alan roared and his ring fired an immense burst of emerald energy from it, crashing into Mongul at point blank and sending him sailing backwards, screaming.

"HAVE A TASTE, MOTHERFUCKER!" shouted Yuji. "KURAE (Eat This)!"

"ONE, BIG, HEADSHOT!" Shinichi shouted. "KIERU (Disappear)!"

They squeezed the triggers and the drill fired a concentrated burst of energy. The spinning energy blast combined with Alan's before hitting Mongul dead centre. He screamed as he was hit and the combined burst of energy kept growing stronger and stronger, spinning like a drill as it began to bore through him. There was an instant explosion of bright light which followed.

* * *

"I can't see anything!" complained Lambdadelta.

"Patience, Lambda," chided Bernkastel.

"Tsk," Lambdadelta let out.

The Observers had been watching from start to finish but one of them wore an annoyed scowl as she watched the entire scene play out. She was hoping that Mongul would finish off these heroes but alas she simply did not factor in several variables. It was time to pull out.

"What is wrong?" Akuma asked her.

"I've decided to withdraw one of my pieces from the board if that is alright with you," she answered.

"Considering the state it is in after what it's been through, I doubt it will last any longer. Proceed," Akuma allowed. In response, she snapped her fingers.

"I take it your last play did not work out as you hoped?" Virgilia questioned, sipping her tea.

Beatrice cackled as she held her pipe arrogantly, "I guess she underestimated my protégé when he stepped into the game! HAHAHAHAHA!

The pale-skinned and dark-haired Witch of Terror gritted her teeth as she dug her fingers into the armrests of the chair she was sitting in. How she wished to wrap those fingers of hers around Beatrice and squeeze the life out of her, watching with glee as her eyes popped out of her skull and her tongue hung out, dead as a doornail.

* * *

There was smoke everywhere and debris in big chunks was lying along the floor. The blast had blown a huge chunk out of the wall and pretty much blew a large hole in it.

"So, did we get him? Did we get him?" asked Asmodeus hopefully.

Alan's eyes narrowed as he peered into the smoke. He saw a dark figure rising. Shinichi and Yuji saw it too.

"Fuckberries," cursed Yuji.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," groaned Shinichi, slapping his forehead.

The smoke cleared and it revealed Mongul but he just wasn't the same. He had been grievously injured by the attack and now sported a huge hole that went right through his torso. How he was still standing was anyone's guess. The hole made it clear that any organs he had occupying the space had been vaporized, not to mention the section of his spine had also been vaporized as well.

As the fighters prepared to fight once more, Mongul suddenly burst into black butterflies that fluttered through the air, flying past them as they flapped their wings before they faded into the darkness.

"Uh…what just happened?" asked Shinichi.

"Oh, I forgot to mention this, but Mongul said he was resurrected by the Witch of Terror," said Alan. "Maybe I should've said that earlier."

"Yes, you should've," Shinichi deadpanned.

"Oh, _that_ explains it," nodded Yuji.

"Whaddya mean?" Bazel asked.

"Mongul was resurrected by a witch so his life is linked to the witch's will. He couldn't die as long as she willed it but since she decided he wasn't useful anymore, she simply banished him," Yuji reasoned.

"Or, she's just keeping him up on a shelf for future use," Satan argued.

"That too," agreed Yuji.

Shinichi said, relieved, "I'm just glad it's over. That guy was brutal."

"You should meet his son and daughter then," Alan mumbled.

"Well, it's been fun," said Lucifer, "But we'll be off now, Yuji-niisama."

"Aw, can't you girls stay longer?" asked Yuji.

"Sorry, but we have to go," said Belphegor. "We are on a schedule."

"Promise to bring sweets and snacks next time, Onii-sama!" Beelzebub requested.

"And make sure to call us again when you have something else going on," Leviathan requested before she and her sisters vanished in flashes of gold.

"Nice girls," Alan complimented, "Helpful too."

"Man, we really fucked this place up," said Shinichi as he saw the mess the chamber was in. "Alright, time to heal everyone with a Rewind!" Alan then took notice of something.

Alan pointed out, "Shinichi, your nose is bleeding."

"It is?" Shinichi wiped his nose with his fist and saw the blood. "Oh, it is…" Blood was also flowing from his eyes like tears. He was also starting to bleed from his ears too.

"Shinichi, are you okay?" Yuji asked worriedly, starting to panic a little.

"I don't feel so-BLARGH!" He vomited blood and it splattered all over the floor.

"Oh my God! Shinichi!" Yuji shouted in panic.

"I don't feel...so good…" he groaned before he collapsed as his armor shattered off his body in pieces.

"That's…not…good…" admitted Alan slowly before to his eyes rolled into his head as he also passed out.

"Partner! Oi, Kid! Alan!" Bazel cried out in panic.

Yuji looked at the unconscious heroes and sighed before picking them up and throwing them over each shoulder. He was stuck with carrying them back to ARMOR. They were going to need a doctor after what they had been through tonight.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: Wow, they won. Oh, and here's a bit of a back story of how the NUMBERS returned as the Soldats de la Terreur…**

The Witch of Terror Anastasia was in her room within her realm, holding a cylindrical device containing ashes. She was about to create her newest set of Furniture from them.

"As they say, third time's the charm." She smirked as she opened the cylinder and the ashes flew out, forming bodies, and when they finished there was a flash and in place of the ashes, there were each of the fallen NUMBERS in full armor.

Anastasia had been watching the battles of the Kamen Riders in Showa's World and when each of the NUMBERS perished she had their ashes collected, using magic to remain hidden. Now, the revived NUMBERS were her furniture to command as she saw fit. They were her possession and slaves.

"What the…? What happened?" Parasite asked, confused.

"I think the better question is why we are alive for the third time?" Petrifier added.

"I brought you back." They all turned to see Anastasia looking at them. "You are my new Furniture, Soldats de la Terreur."

"The what?" Scanner asked, confused.

Seras answered, "It means 'Soldiers of Terror', you dingbat."

"Wait. What do you mean by 'Furniture', Onna?" demanded Dancer.

"It means you're my servants, something even less than human in fact," Anastasia answered, smiling.

"Like hell it is! I refuse to be your servant!" King shouted angrily.

King lifted his sword and swung down, but the Witch of Terror's body broke apart like sand. "Nani!" King shouted as chuckling was heard. He was then hit with purple lightning that lifted him up and spun him around like some lifeless marionette. He was screaming in agonizing pain before he was dropped to the ground, rather painfully. Suddenly the Witch of Terror reappeared and landed with her feet stepping on King's back.

"Woah…" Bomber uttered with eyes wide.

"Anyone else wish to protest?" Anastasia asked, getting harsh head shakes of no from the rest of the new Soldiers of Terror. "Good. Now that we've established a status quo let's get down to business."

She was going to win this game hands down with her new Furniture, the Soldats de la Terreur.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: And that's how they were turned from cyborgs to demons. Next we have the aftermath of the fight under the school. Man, it was intense, wasn't it? I mean, I did the whole Rider Rush on Mongul. He kept switching forms and hitting Mongul with them. I didn't use ZO because there didn't seem to be enough nature for him to draw power from. I didn't use J either because at full strength that guy would be cramped and just a huge target for Mongul. Also, Showa demonstrates a new attack called the Showa Rider Kick, inspired from Kamen Rider Decade.**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: Like always, it was fun helping with this chap. Got nothing much to say but I hope you guys like the chap and keep reading. Mongul was annoying enemy, especially under a witch's influence who can't die unless she lets him die. That's some unfair shit in my book. Anyway, Yuji/Liger's got some more surprises in store for you readers so see ya'll next time**


	23. The Witch of Terror Part 9

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 9: Inner Demons**

Shinichi had just been put through a cycle in one of the Recovery & Healing Chambers and was now resting in bed. RH-Chambers were an invention by Yoshiyuki Takada back in the days when he used to be a member of the Teen Titans and one of his most useful inventions yet. The patient would wear a breathing mask to provide them oxygen while wires that ended in suction cups were attached to their body to monitor their vitals upon a nearby computer. The door would then be shut and a blue healing liquid would fill the chamber. The liquid was filled with nanobots that were programmed to repair internal and external damage before being flushed out after the cycle was completed. A single cycle inside the RH-Chamber was 30 minutes. It was also useful for decontamination. ARMOR had several RH-Chambers inside the Hospital Wing, a good dozen in fact. They were only used for emergency situations and utilised completely during war where their injured agents would be needed and require instant recovery from their injuries for them to continue fighting.

Dr. Hasuma, while he could use his Keyblade to heal injuries, could not repair damaged cybernetics. Dr. Magi had the skill and knowledge necessary for such a procedure but he did not dare to perform it due to Shinichi's fear of surgery. Thus, they put him in the Recovery & Healing Chamber. The nanobots had completely repaired Shinichi and he looked good as new without a scar, scratch or bruise on him.

"According to the report, Shinichi used his Treasure Forms, Hinamizawa Guardian Form, Rider Forms and time powers in succession within a short span of time," Dr. Hasuma reported, reading from the tablet computer he was holding in his hand. It showed data on Shinichi's vitals before and after the healing cycle. "That put considerable strain on his body, resulting in his present state."

Dr. Magi added, "Well, he was made to augment other compatible powers and abilities when necessary but even he has limits. He was pushing those limits just to win the fights he was in."

"We should contact his family," suggested Dr. Hasuma.

"Good idea," Dr. Magi agreed. "He'd be happy to see them again after what he's been through."

"I'm going to check on Alan now," said Dr. Hasuma.

* * *

Alan was in a separate bed in a separate room and he'd also spent a cycle in the RH-Chamber to help heal whatever wounds he might've accumulated and help him regain his strength and energy. That was another benefit to the RH-Chambers as they provided instant recuperation.

Nozomu and Saku had also been brought to ARMOR. While Shinichi's Rewind had healed them of their wounds, they needed to be checked out for any damage that might've been missed. While Shinichi could heal, Dr. Hasuma was a licensed doctor and understood Yokai physiology. They weren't as severe and only a simply tap of the Keyblade was necessary.

Alan's eyes slowly opened and he instantly shut them when he was assaulted by a bright light. Once his eyes adjusted, he found himself staring at a familiar white ceiling. As he tried sitting up, he felt a weight press down on his chest. Looking down, he saw that it was Nozomu sleeping soundly on top of him. He smiled as she snuggled him, under the blanket that was covering him.

The wolf girl felt some stirring and opened her eyes. This was followed by a cute yawn. She looked at Alan and smiled at him. "Hey, Nozomu."

"Alan," she uttered before nuzzling his cheek. He held her gently in his arms. It would appear that he was in a hospital room in ARMOR. He then spotted Yuji leaning against the doorframe, waving at him.

"Welcome back to the land of the living," said Yuji as he walked over to the bed after closing the door behind him. "She didn't want to leave."

"I noticed that," Alan acknowledged. "So, we won, right?"

"Yeah, we did," Yuji confirmed. "Seriously, what was that freak's deal?"

"It's a long story that I don't wanna get into right now. Maybe later?"

"OK."

Alan asked, "So, what happened after we passed out?"

* * *

_Yuji looked at the unconscious heroes and sighed before picking them up and throwing them over each shoulder. He was stuck with carrying them back to ARMOR. They were going to need a doctor after what they had been through tonight._

_His path was blocked when he was faced by three beautiful women. Their uniforms resemble a short white military-style jacket that only reached below their breasts and worn over black leotards with gold buttons going up off centre of the skin tight suit. Hanging from their hips were skirts that were open in the front. They also sported gloves and boots that came up to mid-thigh. On their rears they had fluffy cottontails. Finally, they wore a blue band with a red cross on their upper left arms. They all sported a pair of bunny ears. One had short green hair, one had pink hair in pig tails, and the other wore an eye patch and wore her golden hair straight._

_Yuji recognized the three bunny girls and grinned, "Hey ladies, missed me?"_

_They were the Siesta Sisters Imperial Guard Corps._

_Siesta 00 stood fast and glared, "We will be taking their lives!" Parts of her jacket were trimmed in black._

_Yuji chuckled, "Under whose orders?"_

_Siesta 410 snickered, "You don't need to know." Her jacket was trimmed in blue._

_Siesta 45 saluted and stammered, P-P-Please…s-s-surrender the targets…!" Her jacket was trimmed in red._

_Yuji cocked an eyebrow, "And if I say no?"_

_Siesta 00 glared, "Then we shall kill you as well, Yuji Fudo! After all, we owe you for the humiliation you handed us!"_

"_You mean this?"_

_Siesta 00 gasped as Yuji was right behind her, rubbing his hands up and down her sides, as he nuzzled her hair._

"_You smell great tonight, 00," Yuji sighed as he nuzzled her, "New shampoo?"_

_Siesta 00 couldn't answer as she was being fondled by Yuji, and was enjoying it. She scolded herself for leaving herself open after being humiliated like this before, but she only moaned as Yuji ran his fingers up her spine, making her shiver with pleasure and growing wet between her legs._

"_Damn you…" she whimpered as she tried to fight the pleasure that her body obviously craved._

_Yuji chuckled, "What's wrong? Getting a little weak at the knees? I guess that's what happens when you don't exactly get much free time."_

_Siesta 45 panicked, "Oh no, he's doing it again!"_

_Siesta 410 looked to her sibling, "Quick, let's take him out while he's distracted!"_

"_Who's distracted?"_

_They both gasped as Yuji was in between the two girls, both blushing as Yuji traced his fingers along 410's stomach and Yuji massaging 45's rear with a gentle touch, making the bunny girls whimper and moan as they were immediately immobilized._

"_Now, now," Yuji chided with a smirk on his face, "You know I have plenty of time for all of you." He sniffed their hair and grinned, "I guess you girls like bathing together. Maybe I should join you next time."_

"_Stop…please…" Siesta 45 begged as her blush grew in color._

_Yuji nuzzled her cheek, "Now, 45, you know you don't mean it." He looked to Siesta 410, "I bet you love this right now, 410." She didn't reply as she moaned louder as Yuji was trailing his hand down to her crotch, tickling her crotch that was covered by the tight fabric, caressing her southern lips with his feather-like touch as he took in the daze-out look on her face. He decided to end the petting session there and walked over to where Shinichi and Alan's bodies laid. "Well, if you girls wanna get more personal instead of trying to kill me all the time, give me a call. Ciao." He snapped his fingers and vanished in a blaze of blue flames along with his comrades._

_The three sisters collapsed to the floor and panted hard, finally relieved that Yuji was gone._

_Siesta 00 slammed her fist into the floor and growled, "Dammit! He got us again…"_

_Siesta 45 looked between her sisters, "What should we d-d-do?"_

_Siesta 410 panted as sweat trickled down her face, "He's one opponent…that we can't…defeat…"_

_Siesta 00 held her head down in shame, "Retreat for now…"_

_The other two sisters nodded and they all vanished._

* * *

"Not much," Yuji lied. "I just brought you and Shinichi back here."

"Where is Shinichi?" Alan asked. Yuji frowned. "That bad, huh?"

Yuji answered, "He's being treated right now as we speak and…"

The door was thrown open and several girls came barrelling in, calling out Alan's name, before jumping onto the bed, crushing Nozomu and Alan on it. There was Lala, Bishie, Amora, Conda and Yami. They all missed him.

"Looks like your harem awaits," Yuji joked. "Catch ya later."

* * *

Shinichi's room was big and spacious, allowing a large number of people to enter. However, the ones who came to visit were the ones closest to him. Standing around Shinichi's bed were Rena, Shiori, Rika and Hanyuu, along with the rest of the Gaming Club and the NEO-NUMBERS team. Even Shinichi's stepfather Kasai was present. Even though they were not blood-related, he considered Shinichi's his son. Yuji had also come to check on the other Rider.

"He looks so…vulnerable," said Shiori as she looked at the peaceful face of her sleeping son.

"Trust me, he's anything but," Yuji corrected.

"I know, but I don't see him at peace like this often."

Alan came into the room and asked, "So, what's up?"

"So, you managed to get yourself loose," remarked Yuji jokingly, referring to the visit from Alan's harem. "Where are they?"

"Bonding, and getting to know Nozomu," answered Alan.

Shinichi's eyes slowly opened.

"Shinji, you're awake," a tearful but happy Shiori said. As soon as his eyes locked upon her, they turned furious. With a shout he lunged for her, his fingers curled as he prepared to strangle her. An emerald burst of energy slammed him straight into a wall.

"Shin-kun!" Rena gasped.

"Stay back, something's wrong!" Yuji shouted.

Shinichi got back to his feet and looked at everyone with hate-filled eyes. They could literally feel his eyes pierce through their souls and backed away from him as he stood before them. Originally, they had been happy to see him awake after recovering from his injuries, but they were taken aback when he looked to them with eyes full of hate and rage.

Kasai instantly had his shotgun out and aimed at Shinichi. It was just a warning, but if Shinichi did try to assault Shiori again he would not hesitate to shoot. He'd done it before in the past and would do it again to protect the ones under his watch and that included his family.

"What's the matter with you!" Alan yelled at his friend, his Green Lantern ring gleaming and aimed at Shinichi for another shot if he acted hostile again.

"I was just going to punish that…that…_woman_ for abandoning me!" Shinichi spat.

"Shinji?" Shiori's mouth was agape. What was he talking about?

"Don't call me that! Don't you dare!" Shinichi shouted. "You have no right! No right at all! I hate you!"

Shiori felt her heart breaking at the harsh words. She could almost hear it shatter in her chest.

"Shin-kun, you can't talk to Shiori-san like that!" shouted Rena. "Not after all she-"

"Shut up! SHUT UP!" Shinichi roared. He glared at Shiori hatefully, "You left me to rot in that lab for 10 years! While I was being tortured and experimented on, you enjoyed a happy life as a famous author of smut! You abandoned me to suffer!" He then shouted at his friends, "And you people are no better!"

Rika's eyes narrowed at Shinichi's behavior. It was like he was suffering from the Hinamizawa Syndrome, the same way her friends had in the past worlds. The symptoms were there. He was suffering from paranoia and unstable emotions. However, that was impossible. Shinichi was meant to be immune to the syndrome. Dr. Irie had confirmed it himself.

Shinichi lunged forward to attack again, only to be bound by chains of green energy. "Let me go, Alan! They have to pay! THEY HAVE TO PAY!" He struggled.

"These are your friends and family!" Alan shouted at Shinichi, trying to snap him back to his senses.

Shinichi spat in response, disgusted, "_Friends_? _Family_? Don't make me laugh! My so-called _friends_ just keep me around because I can protect them! I am nothing but a tool for them! A guard dog! That woman is no different! She took me in just to make herself feel better because she let me get taken in the first place!"

"Shin-kun you're wrong!" Rena protested. "Shiori-san loves you and we don't care that you're a Kaizo Ningen…"

"LIES!" Shinichi shouted as he tried to break free of Alan's chains once more. Kasai had his gun aimed at him. "I know what you think of me! You all think I'm just some kind of freak!" He continued to struggle. He looked to Kasai and challenged, "Go ahead and shoot me."

"Don't make me do it, Shinichi," Kasai said, his hold trembling.

"It's not like you haven't done it before," Shinichi reminded.

"You were dangerous," Kasai argued, "I had to try and stop you."

"Well then, now's your chance," Shinichi retorted.

"Son, don't make me-"

"DON'T CALL ME 'SON'! YOU ARE NOT MY FATHER! STOP ACTING LIKE YOU ARE!" Shinichi roared as the struggling continued. Kasai was taken aback by the angry announcement. "You're all the same! You think I'm just a monster! A freak!"

"Then why did we chase after you?" Rena asked making him stop to look at her. "You ran away once when you thought you would only bring harm to us but we chased after you to bring you back."

Shinichi countered, "Yeah, and you said you hated me because you saw my Kaizo Ningen form..."

"DON'T LIE!" Rena shouted, with that scary glare of hers that was able to make him stop and gulp. "I was mad at you because you kept it a secret from us, from me. It was only after you confessed that you were afraid of us rejecting you that I forgave you. I never hated you" She added, smiling sadly, "Me, the club, and your mother could never hate you for being a Kaizo Ningen. We all saw past that to see the real you, Shin-kun."

"That's right, Shin-chan!" Mion agreed. "We don't care if you're part-machine or whatever! You're a member of our club, our friend, our nakama! Always have been, always will be!"

"Remember when you tried to sacrifice yourself to save the village?" Keiichi reminded. "We went to stop you from killing yourself! We didn't want to lose you!"

"Rena didn't want to lose you! Rena loves you so much!" Rena declared. "Rena loves you with all her heart, body and soul! Rena cries whenever Shin-kun gets hurt!"

"I…I.." Shinichi froze and stuttered, confused and in shock. He trembled, "N-No…lies…all lies…"

Shiori yelled out, "If you can't believe our words right now, then just think about what we've all been through! Remember all that happened since you woke up in Hinamizawa and since I found you again! Remember the good times! Does it all seem like a lie to you?"

"That's right," Rika continued with her voice mature and deep. She questioned, "Can you honestly say that it was all fake? Can you honestly say that the fun you had with your friends and the happiness you felt when Shiori-mama found you was all false?"

Shinichi's eyes widened. Had he been wrong about all this?

"Shinichi, please, just calm down. This isn't you, Au," pleaded Hanyuu.

Shinichi stopped struggling, to think, but then his thoughts were interrupted by a dark voice within.

He then heard a whisper in his ear, "_They're just lying to you again so they can get their guard dog back. That's all you are to them. How can they understand? You're part machine. None of them can fully understand what happened to you_."

Shinichi shouted hatefully at them, "I WON'T BELIEVE IT! YOU COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND WHAT I'VE BEEN THROUGH!"

"Get over yourself!" Chiaki snapped angrily. He'd heard enough of Shinichi snapping at his friends and mother. "You think you were the only one in that hell? Newsflash, Shinichi! You're not! You're actually pretty lucky to have a family again. Both my mother and father are dead and I would give anything to get them back."

"Stay out of this, Chiaki," Shinichi snarled.

"Why? Just to watch you attack your friends who care about you and value your friendship, a mother who's been trying her hardest to find you for eleven years, and the girl who loves you more than anything? They care about you, Shinichi, and I refuse to let you throw it all away."

"Yeah, #13!" Daichi shouted as well. "What right do you have to complain? Your own sister didn't sell you to GIN-SHOCKER!"

"And you didn't witness your own mother being killed before your eyes!" Michiru added.

"We've all suffered, like you," Shogo reminded, "We are all in the same boat as you."

"So, stop whining about how bad you've had it. You're not the only one who has suffered," Hana said.

Shinichi's eyes were erratic and so was his breathing. His heart rate had accelerated.

He was scared. He didn't understand what was going on. He didn't understand the feelings he was having. Why did he hate all of them all of a sudden?

"Shinichi, listen to what you're saying. Listen to what we're saying," Alan spoke. "We've all suffered and lost people. We've all suffered because of what happened to us and the sins we've committed. The people here, in this room, can all understand what you've been through." Alan had experienced it all, in fact. He'd experienced lost, confusion, anger and hatred. It'd been both empowering and terrifying and he'd tried to do the unthinkable and the unforgivable.

It was Yuji's turn to step up to the plate. He rolled his right sleeve back to reveal a crimson red tattoo of a winged dragon in an S-like position, "This mark is a symbol of God. Only on my world, we call him the Crimson Dragon. It revealed itself when I was just five years old, when my powers had awoken for the first time. I combusted a couple of punks who thought they could mess with me when my parents weren't looking. They tried to pick a fight with me and when I pushed one of them…" he made a 'phfft' gesture with his right hand, "I lit him up like a fucking birthday candle." Everyone in the room gasped or their eyes widened with shock.

Yuji went on, "I was so fucking terrified of what I did, what I was, that I ran. I ran as fast as I could and didn't look back, leaving my mom, dad, and sister behind. I didn't want people to see that they had a freak for a son, a kid that can torch you just by contact. It took them weeks to find me. Apparently, I'm good at stealth."

He finished up, "When they finally found me, my sister was the one who approached me. I told her to stay back, fearing that I might blow her up, and she just hugged me. She showed me that she had ice powers and was OK with it. So my mom and dad explained to me what we were. My mom told me that our special abilities aren't meant to be feared or ridiculed, but to embraced and perfected. And it only hurts the people you try to push away. You have to realize that you need your friends, your comrades, AND your mother!"

"Shinji, do you hate me all that much?" Shiori asked.

"I…" He wanted to answer her question but he couldn't. He started to sob.

"Shinji?"

"Where were you when I was alone? I was all alone in there and I wanted you to come and get me!" Tears began to fell from his eyes. "Why were you late, Kaa-chan?" She'd been only ten minutes late to pick him up and he'd lost ten years of his life as a tool for GIN-SHOCKER. Shinichi trembled.

Alan released the chains, allowing Shinichi to collapse to his knees, crying. He was then wrapped in Rena and Shiori's gentle embrace as he was held between them.

"I...I...I don't know what to do anymore...who to trust...I need...help...Kaa-chan…help me...I wanna go home..."

"It's okay, Shinji," Shiori said with tears in her eye, running a comforting hand through his hair. "Kaa-chan's here," cooed Shiori soothingly. "You don't need to be scared anymore." She kissed her son's forehead.

"Kaa-chan..." Shinichi murmured as tears began to fall from his eyes

"So will Rena, Shin-kun," said Rena. "Rena will never abandon you, Shin-kun. Never ever."

"Rena-chan…" Shinichi sobbed.

* * *

"What a twist," said Topper as he sipped his tea. The Observers had been watching the events of this round of the game from start to finish and while most were impressed by the actions of the 'pieces', one was furious. The furious one was a new face in the game but she was just as ancient and powerful as the rest of the Observers.

Like Beatrice, Bernkastel, Lambdadelta and Virgilia, she too was a witch wore a dark dress and had pale white skin with red eyes. Silver bracelets adorned her wrists and a silver anklet around her left ankle. She had her dark hair tied in an elaborate braid and she was beautiful. However, her beauty was marred by the evil look on her face which made her look ugly and monstrous.

She was known by the title of the Witch of Terror and her name was Anastasia. In an unladylike manner, she grabbed a handful of cookies from the plate set on the table next to her and shoved them into her mouth, crushing the delicious confectionaries with her teeth.

The cult that had worshipped her was meant to summon her and use her power to crush humanity but they couldn't even do that and she was looking forward to it too. For a past crime, she was not allowed to set foot on mortal soil and could only appear when summoned. She could, however, use Familiars and Furniture in the mortal realm to accomplish her goals.

She had revived the NUMBERS to serve as her group of Furniture and they were meant to be more powerful than Beatrice's Seven Stakes of Purgatory and yet they had been defeated by Kamen Riders even after the painstaking work she had to do in order to collect their remains. It was such a waste and Kamiyami had even disobeyed her and transformed without her permission. He would have to pay for that. She even had one of Koichi's tick Familiars infect Shinichi and watched as he lashed out at his friends, family and loved ones. She enjoyed watching the whole scene, listening to the harsh and hurtful words Shinichi spat out. Unfortunately, while they had no powers themselves, these pests were able to reach out to him and negate the fear-inducing effects of the tick which then died when it could no longer infect Shinichi.

Anastasia bit her thumb and thought of her next move. This was an interesting game indeed and while Amakusa was the Game Master, she was going to win this entire thing hands down.

But first, a little discipline for an arrogant dobsonfly.

* * *

Shinichi was sedated and put in bed once more. He wore a headband around his head that was connected to a machine to monitor his brainwaves. He was also restrained by straps that went across his body and around his wrists and ankles. They did not want to risk him waking up and going berserk again.

The brainwave monitor read normally, but every once in a while it would spike dangerously high and the frequency between each spike was growing. It would appear there was some abnormal brain activity and it did not seem natural.

Yuji narrowed his eyes, "Something's not right."

Shiori looked back to him, "What do you mean?"

"Shin's behaviour was erratic and his breathing was off when he went loco as he attacked. I felt a presence influencing his mind while we were trying to calm him down. Something dark is hiding in his mind…"

Rena was tearing, "Can't we do something…?"

Yuji shook his head, "Nothing from out here, but I have an idea. I can go inside his mind and discover the source of the problem, and destroy it."

"Can you do that?" Shiori pleaded, "Can you help my son?"

Yuji nodded, "I can and I will." He laid his hand on the boy's forehead, "I'll need some space for this." Everyone nodded and backed away as Yuji closed his eyes to concentrate. He then whispered, "I am Yuji Fudo, the Harbinger of Hope, and servant to the Crimson Dragon. Grant me passage into the mind of Shinichi Banabara and vanquish the darkness that plagues his realm." After that, his dragon mark, his ring, and his eyes began to glow in colours of red and blue, respectively, as his energy was being projected into Shinichi's mind.

Rena closed her eyes and whispered, "Please be alright, Shin-kun…"

* * *

Yuji was in a large white room and looked around, "Guess I'm at the starting point."

"Aniki!"

Yuji looked down and saw a young boy with short indigo hair and matching eyes, he was wearing a white t-shirt and blue overalls.

Yuji crouched down and smiled, "Hi. I'm guessing you know who I am?"

The boy nodded, "I'm Shinji. Aniki's here to help Shinichi, right?"

He nodded, "Shin's mind is presently under the influence of a dark force, and I am here to get rid of it."

Shinji smiled, "Then I'll walk you through here. You could get lost if you go on by yourself." Yuji nodded and took Shinji's hand as the boy opened the door and met a long hall way.

As the two walked down the hall, Yuji spotted two rooms with open doors. The door on his left had a rocket on the door and the inside was filled with toys, stuffed animals, games, and park. The door on his right was pitch black and had a gold XIII on it, with nothing inside and only darkness to keep you company.

Yuji shook his head, "This wasn't the darkness I detected. It was more mystical in terms of its properties."

Shinji looked in and looked to Yuji, "This is Kuro-chan's room. I guess he's in the theatre, since he's not in his room. You should be careful when you meet him. He can be mean to new people." Yuji nodded and Shinji closed Kuro's room as he dragged Yuji down the hall. They reached the end which was another door. Shinji opened the door and Yuji walked in to find a movie theatre, with a young man in one of the seats.

He looked like Shinichi, which was unsurprising since he was part of Shinichi. He was Kuro Juusan, the true aspect of BLACK 13. He was aggressive, cold and calculating. Basically, he was a machine in human form. He resembled Shinichi, only with darker hair, colder eyes, and missing the twin ahoge that was trademark to Shinichi's appearance. His choice of clothing was a black leather coat that reached down to his knees over a turtleneck with XIII inscribed in gold on the front, a belt with GIN-SHOCKER's emblem in the buckle, and black pants tucked into black boots that had straps and buckles on it. He also wore red shades with slim rectangular lenses over his eyes.

The instant he detected Yuji's presence, he said, "Why don't you sit down and watch the movie with me? I'd ask the little one, but he's too young for this."

Shinji and Yuji accepted the invite and sat down with Kuro. Then, Yuji snapped his fingers and a pair of black sunglasses appeared on Shinji's face. A pair of earplugs also locked into his ears.

"Hey, where'd everybody go?" the boy asked. "I can't hear anything either."

Yuji placed his hand on Shinji's and relaxed him. "You might wanna keep those on for a little bit," Yuji advised. Shinji nodded and Yuji looked to Kuro, "OK, he can't see or hear anything. Go ahead and play it."

Kuro shrugged and took a remote in hand and pressed a button, playing the movie and giving access to Shinichi's memories.

* * *

_**-1974-**_

_6 year old Shinji Banabara was waiting for his mom to pick him up from kindergarten. He waited and waited as all his classmates left with their parents. "Where's Kaa-chan?"_

_"Hello, young man," a blond gentleman asked. Shinji recognized him. He was the nice doctor his mother had taken him to see._

_"Hello, doctor!" Shinji greeted cheerfully. "What are you doing here?"_

_"Oh, your mother asked me to pick you up," said the doctor._

_"Really?"_

_"Really."_

_Shinji's mom always told him to never talk to strangers, but the doctor wasn't a stranger. With a shrug, Shinji said, "OK!" before taking the doctor's hand._

* * *

Yuji frowned. That must've been that Gebok cockbite he's been hearing about.

* * *

_"Please...let me go..." little Shinji begged as Gebok loomed over him with a red hot brand._

_"This won't hurt a bit," said Gebok as he pressed the hot brand over Shinji's eye. The little boy screamed. "It'll hurt lots!"_

_The brand was removed and it left a smoking XIII on Shinji. The little boy cried and whimpered, "Kaa-chan..."_

_"Now, let's begin the operation!"_

_With that being said, Gebok took out a syringe from his chest pocket and grabbed Shinji by the shoulders._

_"This won't hurt a bit, boy," Gebok said. He pierced a vein in Shinji's neck with the needle and ejected the contents into Shinji. Shinji immediately found himself going limp as the solution entered his body. His eyes widened and his pupils dilated as Shinji felt like all the blood in his body had turned into ice._

_"That's it, let yourself fall under the drug's effect," Gebok sneered as he made a motion with his left arm, making what look like machines holding different equipment to appear around him._

_Before Shinji lost consciousness he heard Gebok say, "You should feel honoured. You're about to become my greatest creation!"_

* * *

Yuji growled subtly as the footage continued.

"_Calm yourself, Yuji,"_ Bahamut placated. _"Remember, this all happened in the past."_

Yuji crossed his arms and muttered, "I know." He decided to keep his mouth shut and let the footage continue.

* * *

_Shinji looked across from him at his opponent with dead eyes. Denims covered the little flesh that remained on his legs, though they were mostly metal anyway. Its right arm had been replaced by a heavy duty drill, while its left hand was a machine gun with veins connecting to wires. Its lower jaw was replaced by a large metallic jaw. It looked like a human that been horribly tortured before getting these mechanical parts._

_The cyborg raised it machinegun arm but Shinji used his time-manipulating ability to move fast and dodge the bullets. He looked like a blur._

_Shinji dodged the drill as it hit the wall creating a large crater with cracks forming around it. Shinji kicked the cyborg in the gut making it stumble as it broke free. The cyborg began swinging his drill arm like a savage beast but Shinji weaved around the attacks, almost like he was dancing before getting close and grabbing the machine gun arm. He pulled with all his might and ripped it clean off. He jumped back as he aimed his new weapon and fired._

_The cyborg roared as the bullets hit his body but it ignored the damage being cause as it rushed forward ready to kill its target. Shinji threw the machinegun, hitting the cyborg and making it stumble. Shinji rushed forward and dodge the drill arm as he put the machinegun into the cyborg mouth._

_"Die," Shinji said as bullets tore through the cyborg head, creating a bloody splatter._

_The body fell down twitching a bit with blood and oil pouring on the floor. Shinji looked at the corpse with some confusion. Gebok had told him that every creature had the urge to survive, but during the final moments it looked... happy about its eminent demise._

_Shinji shrugged. This was not his concern. Gebok only ordered him to battle to prove to his superiors that his hand in the NUMBERS Project was moving smoothly and was progressing well._

* * *

_**-1982-**_

_The American army base was suddenly attacked by a group of unknown hostiles. They had just suddenly appeared in the dead of night without warning. Tanks rolled out to fire at the bizarre centipede monster, only to be suddenly attacked by a barrage of needles and bombs that ripped apart metal to expose the vulnerable flesh of the soldiers within._

_#13 jumped onto one of the tanks and grabbed the cannon before bending it into a loop without effort, the metal screeching horribly as he did so. He then tore open the hatch and looked down at the terrified soldier inside. Reaching down, he grabbed the person driving the tank before hauling up his whimpering form and snapping his neck. He then jumped off from the tank and lifted it up before he tossed it into the air. The tank crashed on several soldiers, splintering their bones in a welter of gore as it crushed them to death. As a few tanks opened fire on him, he vanished from sight. In a matter of seconds the tanks all exploded before #13 reappeared. He nonchalantly brushed off the debris on his shoulder before he went to find another target._

_"Well done NUMBERS. You have managed to kill all the soldiers in the base."_

_"It was an honour, sir," an emotionless voice that must have belonged to #13 answered._

_#13's hyper-sensitive ears detected something and he immediately spotted a survivor crawling away. He strode towards the severely injured, yet alive, soldier and picked him up by the back of his shirt._

_"Please...don't kill me!" the soldier begged. "I have a wife and kids!"_

_"Irrelevant," said #13, right before he twisted the man's neck with a grisly __crack__, and dropped his body like a sack of potatoes._

_"Mission accomplished," #13 intoned, walking away from the newly dead soldier. "Returning to base." He and the other NUMBERS began walking away to head back to GIN-SHOCKER's base. The military would think it was a terrorist attack with the media saying it was as well; after all, GIN-SHOCKER had carefully removed any evidence of their involvement._

* * *

_**-1983-**_

_The NUMBERS were put into a single empty room as a voice was heard, booming out of an unseen source, "NUMBERS, TODAY IS THE DAY YOU WILL BE GIVEN MORE POWER! YOU WILL GIVEN A HIGHER RANK! ALL YOU HAVE TO DO...IS ANNIHILATE EACH OTHER! THE LAST KAIZO NINGEN LEFT STANDING, WINS!"_

_"Ehh!" #09 shouted, shocked. Did that voice say what he thought it said?_

_"T-they can't be serious, right?" #11 fearfully asked #07 who shrugged as she tried to calm her friend down._

_"Interesting..." #10 mused, wondering who would make the first killing move._

_"Tsk, this is some sort of sick joke right, #00?" #05 asked but all he got was silence, making him confused. He turned around to ask again only to scream in shock making the other NUMBERS turn._

_#00's head had been completely ripped off his body with said body still standing as if the one who'd done it had been too fast for #00 to react. With a certain, terrible slowness, the body crumpled with blood still spurting from its neck._

_"W-wha-?" No.01 tried to say only for something to smash through his mouthguard, grab his tongue in an iron, vice-like grip, and rip it out by the roots. The maimed #01 fell back, a horrible, gurgling shriek of sheer agony bursting from his throat as he clawed at his mouth in a futile effort to stem the blood that poured from between his lips. Eyes rolling to the back of his head, he fell and did not return to his feet._

_#13 stood but a short distance from both prone bodies, holding a familiar head in his right hand and a tongue in his left. He dropped them and focused his crimson eyes on the remaining NUMBERS._

_"Order complied," said #13 in a mechanical voice as bright red target circles appeared on the other Kaizo Ningen in his cybernetic visual display."Terminate all targets." He vanished._

_"Oi, where did he go!__**?**__" #04 shouted only to feel a hand smash through her torso as #13 reappeared and ripped her heart out._

_"My... My heart..." #04 gasped as her last sight was of #13 crushing the pulsating organ in his fist before disappearing again._

_"FUCK! HE'S GOING TO KILL US ALL!" #12 shouted in panic as he used his machineguns and began firing randomly in all directions in hopes of killing #13, forcing the other surviving NUMBERS to duck from the bullets_

_"OI! WATCH IT!" #09 shouted, but #12 just ignored him. All #12 had focused on his mind was survival. That sole, driving thought, was however, abruptly overridden by pain. He looked down to that not only were his machineguns destroyed, but his arms were bent backwards at an unnatural angle._

_"ARGGH!" #12 screamed as he stumbled backwards in shock and fear, only for #13 to end his suffering by cutting him cleanly in half. Sparks flew as machines shorted out from the grisly remains and entrails boiled out from the still-standing lower torso, before that too toppled, leaving another bloody corpse._

_"Heh, fool," #6 muttered knowing that if they panicked it'd be easier for #13 to wipe them out. As he slowly got up, he decided to use his ability to stop #13._

_Slamming both hands to the ground, he created large crystals that shot from the earth and forced the others to jump or be impaled. "Once I take care of the big threat I'll easily kill all the others and gain that promotion," he muttered darkly as visions of glory and power filled his head._

_It was those imaginings that led to his ultimate demise as a large bloody slash was made on his back_

_"Ack!" #06 grunted as he stumbled. He turned to see #13 bringing his gun out. #13 shot #06 at point blank range, going through his helmet, his brain and finally out the other side. The sheer force of the bullet quite literally scrambled #6's brain as it went through and grey matter dribbled from the newly made hole._

_#13 saw the other NUMBERS bringing their individual weapons out. They weren't going down without a fight._

_#03 tried to use his nano-ticks on #13 but the killer Kaizo Ningen summoned his sword to stab him through the throat before he could._

_"URK!" An inarticulate choking noise was all that managed to emerge from #3's mouth as #13 twisted the hilt and cut forward, grating through skull and brain alike. Another Kaizo Ningen fell, as #13 he let go of his weapon._

_"DIE FOOL!" #05 roared as he rushed at #13 with his Pata. #02 did the same with his chainsaws, charging from the opposite direction. However, #13 simply jumped over #05 and aimed his gun at #02's arms. With a single pull of the trigger he blasted #02's chainsaws right off and the Termite Cyborg gave a silent scream as his lethal appendages were so violently separated from him._

_Landing on his feet, #13 grabbed one of the chainsaws before restoring it to working order. He rushed towards #02 with his newly acquired weapon, its hungry buzz filling the air as #02 attempted to jump away. #13 was faster though. The chainsaw cut into #02's legs thrice, chopping them down to mere stumps and causing #2 to crash to the floor, clutching what remained of those limbs in mind-blowing agony. He writhed, almost pitifully helpless on the floor, but #13 ignored his anguish and simply ended his suffering by grabbing him by the hair and twisting his neck into an unnatural angle. An audible __crack__ echoed through the room before #02 slumped to the ground, his gaze blank and lifeless._

_"YOU TEME! DON'T FORGET I'M BEHIND YOU!" #05 roared as he lunged at #13 but was spared only an indifferent-looking glance. For a moment, it seemed as though #05 would land his lethal blow, but, using his time manipulating abilities, not only was #13 now behind #05, the latter was also missing both arms and had two chainsaws stuck through his body._

_"GYAAHHH!" #05 howled in agony as he slowly died from blood loss. Turning away, #13 attention fixed itself upon the others. A quick head count revealed that #09 was missing._

_"CANNONBALL!" #13 looked up when he heard the yell to see #09 hurtling down upon him. #13 jumped out of the way just in time as a large crater formed beneath #9's point of impact._

_Both #11 and #07 jumped at #13 with their respective weapons raised, but #13 slowed down time until it seemed almost as if they drifted through the air at a snail's crawl. He then plunged his hands into their chests and ripped their lungs out. Curling his hands into fists, he bashed in their skulls for good measure. After that he restored the flow of time. Both bodies crumpled to the ground, indisputably dead._

_"#11! #07!" #09 shouted, horrified._

_"You shouldn't worry about the dead. You should be more worried about yourself," #13 stated with clinical detachment as he stood behind #09. #13 grabbed #09's back armor and ripped it off before grabbing his arms._

_"Oi! What are you doing!__**?**__" #09 screamed. #13's answer was a vicious kick in the back. "ARGH!" #09 screamed as he felt bone and cartilage separate while tendons snapped from the violent dislocation of his shoulder._

_#13 then raised the Pill Bug Cyborg above his head, holding him by an arm and a leg and slowly, inexorably pulling on both until #09's spine gave a sickening crack. #13 dropped the lifeless corpse without any further ceremony and kicked it casually aside, so it wouldn't get in his way._

_#08 stared at #13 in horror. #13 had killed most of the NUMBERS off without a second thought. He hadn't even hesitated. It was at that moment that #13 spotted #08 and charged at him. He attacked with a series of punches that the Cricket Rider was barely able to block with his weapon._

_"#13, why are you doing this? We're your comrades! Stop! I don't want to fight you!" #08 screamed at #13 hoping to make him see reason._

_"We have been ordered to kill each other in other to attain a higher rank. As weapons, we must obey GIN-SHOCKER's orders without question," #13's voice was utterly soulless and devoid of feeling as he used a kick to send #08's weapon flying into the air, before effortlessly leaping up to grab it._

_Twirling the military fork around, #13 aimed his gaze at #08 "No stop!" #08 pleaded. "I'm your friend, #13! Remember!"_

_With a thrust, #13 stabbed the prongs right through #08's stomach, gutting him with ease as he twisted the weapon. #08 stared at him in shock and disbelief, coughing weakly as blood trickled from his lips._

_"No, we were merely associates. To have friends is a weakness," #13 stated calmly as he watched #08 fall._

_"I…trusted you…" uttered 08 as the blood pooled around him before he breathed his last._

_Clapping resounded. #13 turned only to see #10 admiring the various cadavers "Most impressive, #13. The way you killed them like the vermin they were… Truly magnificent." Pulling out his swords, #10 grinned at the Cicada Cyborg darkly "But I'm afraid only one of us can gain the promotion." He dashed towards his opponent, who summoned his own sword while charging towards #10_

_SLASH!_

_Both stood facing in opposite directions. Blood spurted from #13's right shoulder, but #10 frowned underneath his helmet_

_"Tsk, I can't believe I'm going to die at the hands of this scum!" Suddenly, a huge gout of blood erupted from #10's body as his head, arms, legs and torso were separated. Earlier, #13 had used his time manipulating abilities to slow down time so he could slice through #10's body repeatedly without him realizing it._

_#13 glanced at all the dead NUMBERS. He was the last Kaizo Ningen standing. He was the winner. He was…perfect._

_"CONGRATULATION'S, #13!" said Gebok as his voice was heard. "YOU TRULY ARE THE PERFECT WEAPON!"_

* * *

Yuji's eyes narrowed, '_So that's how they all died… How Misato died…'_

Kuro saw the look in his eyes and pressed another button, skipping the footage.

* * *

_**-1984-**_

_After shooting it, BLACK 13 kicked the last of the training dummies down. This one felt a little odd, almost as if it were heavier. Perhaps it was made out of different materials. Shrugging, he was about to return to the starting point when he noticed it. A dark pool was growing from underneath the last training dummy. Curious and unheeding of Dr. Gebok's snickering, he pressed his hand against the head of the dummy. It felt odd. Finding a flap for the fabric which made up its head, BLACK 13 removed it…and felt his heart stop as the blood drained from his face. Then it restarted, galloping twice as fast as before as a roaring sound filled his ears and his heart hammered desperately against the cage of his ribs._

_"RINA!" he cried out._

_"Kuro…kun…" the girl was still alive! She gasped despite the ragged hole in her chest… Her breath sounded painfully laboured. There was an unpleasant, bubbling noise every time she fought to inhale… She was drowning in her own blood…_

_BLACK 13 knelt to pick her body up with trembling hands, cradling her with desperate tenderness. It was as though he hoped that somehow, if he only held her close to him, death would not be able to take her as it had taken so many others he had killed. "Rina…I'm sorry…Rina…"_

_Rina gave BLACK 13 a weak smile; full of innocence and all the love she had felt for him before finally dying in his arms._

_"No…Rina…RINA!"_

_GIN-SHOCKER soldiers appeared in the room. They were there to clean up the place. When one of them approached BLACK 13 to take Rina's body, he died from a violent chop to the neck._

_"STAY AWAY FROM HER!" BLACK 13 roared._

_He was surrounded. They were all around him. Watching him. There were voices. Attack. Defence. Violence. Brutality was met with brutality. No. Not mere brutality. Brutality was met with atrocity. Overpowering rage… He could not allow them to win. New mission objective…__He __must be the winner. He bellowed with a fury born of madness and killed them all. They fell from his attacks like wheat before a scythe._

_Blades of crimson energy emerged from his forearms and ankles. As the soldiers came at him he swung and kicked, slicing them into ribbons, cutting off layer after layer of flesh in long, curling streaks of tortured muscle and spouting blood that screamed in his consciousness. When more came, he took out his gun and fired. He did not aim. He simply fired. And fired. And fired. Everything before him would die. Everything would be destroyed. The entire misery of the place that had been his life, the place that had killed his life, would be brought crashing down till it was nothing but rubble and blood. Always blood. Horrible burbling, gurgling blood that rasped painfully across his brain in labored breaths…_

_Then there was a loud boom. Equally loud bangs. There was the scent of smoke in the air and the sensation of heat. The sight of dancing, flickering, deadly fire… A dim corner of his mind registered success… So he escaped. People attempted to stop him. He did not know them, but he did not like them either. He fought. There was screaming. It echoed through his brain and splashed his vision with red. He disliked the screaming. He continued to run and run as far away as he could get. Then there was light. The light was pretty. He went to the light and…_

* * *

"Alright, I've seen enough," Yuji said with disdain. He was briefly reminded of his own losses and of the women he loved and failed to protect.

Kuro nodded and pressed a button, stopping footage, "Now you know why Shinichi doesn't like discussing his memories with anyone."

Yuji snapped his fingers and Shinji's glasses and earplugs were gone, "Yeah, I get it. There's a dark presence in his mind right now, and I'm here to eradicate it."

Kuro nodded, "Yes, and this entity has prevented me from taking over. I am here simply because for the past several hours, Shinichi's dark memories have been playing in a loop."

Yuji gave a thoughtful look, "So they hacked into this room and took control of the feed. You think you can locate the source of the darkness?"

Kuro nodded and gestured to a door behind him, "I can lead you in the right direction. Whatever it is, it has taken hostage of the Tsukumogami and the Rider Spirits."

Yuji grinned, "OK then. I'm sure I have a good idea of who's behind this." He turned and crouched to Shinji's eye level, "Shinji, you have been an excellent guide for me and I am grateful. Kuro will be taking over and guide me to the others."

Shinji shot him a sad face and asked, "Will everyone be alright?"

Yuji nodded, "I swear to you, I will save Shinichi, the Spirits, and the Legendary Riders. I will destroy the darkness that tried to make Shinichi hurt his family and everything will be all better. I promise you, that I do."

Shinji smiled and gave Yuji a strong hug, which Yuji returned, and made his way back to his room as he closed the door to the theatre.

Yuji stood up and turned to Kuro, "OK, let's go."

Kuro nodded and the two made their way across the hall where another door stood. Kuro opened the door and they were met with another hallway which they walked down in.

"You're an interesting man, Yuji Fudo," Kuro admitted.

Yuji turned to his guide, "That's pretty random. May I ask what makes you think that?"

"I am an entity of logic, aggression, and calculation. There are not many emotions I can feel, but when I saw the light in Shinji's eyes when you gave him that promise, a feeling grew inside of me." He had a hand at his chest, "It made me feel that I can be ready for tomorrow." He turned to Yuji, "Who are you?"

Yuji kept his eyes on the approaching door as he answered, "I am a child of the Crimson Dragon. I am a Psychic Duelist and the son of Yusei Fudo and Aki Izayoi. I am a Merlinian sorcerer, trained by Merlin Leonidas Monroe. I am the heir to the Hiten Mitsurugi. I am the 13th King of Hearts. I am the apprentice of the Golden Witch, Beatrice. I am Yuji Fudo, the Harbinger of Hope!"

Kuro chuckled as they approached the door, "Unfortunately, this is as far as I can guide you. The darkness has locked this room off to me."

Yuji put his hand to the door but was blocked by a wall of black butterflies, "As I thought, this is _her_ doing."

Kuro glared, "Those butterflies… they are…"

Yuji grinned, "The same butterflies that are associated with those Ox Butlers, associated with the Soldats, and _that_ witch! Stand back, Kuro. The only way to get through this spell is with a countermeasure that blows spells away."

Kuro cocked an eyebrow, "And that is?"

Yuji stretched his left arm out and his metallic blue Duel Disk materialized onto the forearm. He drew a card from the top of the deck and slotted it into the Duel Disk, "I play the Spell Card, **Mystical Space Typhoon**!" The Spell Card materialized in front of Yuji and unleashed a powerful gust of wind that blew away the wall of black butterflies with ease. Yuji quickly opened the door and the two were now in a grassy meadow. However, the grass was no longer green. It was brown and dead. Not only that, the sky was dark without a single star in it. There, the Legendary Kamen Riders and the Tsukumogami were each bound and tied to large stakes. Two figures stood in front of the massive stakes and Kuro glared as he recognized one of them.

One was a male and was clad in a black coat that reached down to his knees with a white shirt and black pants. He also wore black boots and gloves. A necktie hung from his neck with the Roman numeral, III, at the tip.

The other was a female with pale skin and dark hair, her red eyes glaring with an inelegant scowl.

"Omae (You)," Kuro growled.

Yuji pointed forward and narrowed his eyes, "As I suspected, it'd be the two of you. Former member of the NUMBERS and Soldat de la Terreur, Koichi Sumira! And you as well, the Witch of Terror, Anastasia!"

Anastasia growled, "How did you know…?"

Yuji pointed to Koichi, "This idiot thought he could catch me with a swarm of ticks and I fried them like chicken. I suspected that he snuck one onto Shinichi during his battle before my arrival and you used it as a medium to channel your magic, since you can't set foot in the human realm." He grinned, "Am I getting warm, Ana-baka?"

Koichi growled, "You dare mock Anastasia-sama?"

Anastasia looked to Koichi and he calmed down, and then turned to Yuji, "You must be the protégé Beatrice mentioned. Who are you?"

Yuji had his right hand on his deck, "I am Yuji Fudo, the Harbinger who brings hope to all! Ore no turn! Draw!" He drew the top card and slotted into his disk, "I call on the magic of this Spell Card, **Gathering of the King's Court!**" The card materialized in front of Yuji and depicted four swords with the blades pointing toward the center, with a king's golden crown in the center of the card art. "This card allows me to Special Summon four Synchro Monsters from my Extra Deck. Now, show yourselves! **Medrinia, Keeper of Bahamut**! **Xathanon, Blade of Bahamut**! **Vanathor, Shield of Bahamut**! And last, but not least, **Falx, Armor of Bahamut!**"

Four pillars of water, fire, earth, and wind respectively emerged from the ground and formed into draconian figures. The first, Medrinia, was a blue-green aquatic dragon, with soft blue eyes. The second, Xathanon, was a dragon made of golden energy. The third dragon, Vanathor, was a large golden dragon with a swirl of rainbow colors on his chest. The final dragon, Falx, was a large, but elderly, silver dragon with a scruffy beard. They roared as they were summoned and Koichi backed away a little fearfully.

"What kind of power is this…?" Ichigo demanded.

Nigo shrugged, "I don't care, as long as we get down from here."

"That's some power that kid's got," Gokuaku admitted.

Yabuki nodded, "I have a feeling he isn't done." And he was right.

Yuji looked to his four dragons, "Initiate Contact Fusion!"

The dragons nodded and they took the sky as they turned into orbs of energy and merged to become a new force. What descended from above was a fair-skinned, and beautiful, woman with golden eyes and matching hair, donned in platinum blue armor and a flowing blue cape. Attached to her left forearm was an intricately designed shield and she held a claymore in her right hand.

"I am Alamedas, Dragon Knight of Bahamut!" the woman proclaimed. She raised her sword and slashed horizontally as she launched an arc of blue energy the cut the bindings of the Riders and the Tsukumogami, freeing them and joining Yuji and Kuro's side. She turned to Yuji and smiled as she turned into a ball of energy and returned to the Duel Disk.

"Danm you," Koichi hissed as he drew his daggers.

Yuji turned to Shinichi's occupants, "I'll take care of these two."

Anastasia laughed, "You, against the two of us?"

Yuji smirked and snapped his fingers as he produced a clone of himself, "Yes. The two of us are gonna eradicate your asses, cockbites."

The Yuji clone swung the Liger Belt across his waist and pressed the white button, "Henshin!"

"**ZERO FORM!"**

Kamen Rider Liger Zero roared as he charged forward and caught Koichi with a jump kick to the ribs. Koichi stumbled and tried to slash at Liger Zero, but the white Kamen Rider bobbed and weaved around the pitiful strikes and gave him a spin kick to his midsection, pushing the Soldat back as he turned to the ten Riders.

"Can you guys give me a hand?" Liger Zero asked.

The Kamen Riders nodded and surrounded Liger Zero and enclosed him in a circular formation. They shot energy from their belts and into Liger Zero's body as he swiped his Pass across his buckle.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"One more time," Liger Zero chided as he swiped his Pass again.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"And one more for the road."

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

The energy began to build up as his claws began to glow as bright as the golden sun as a heart with swords and a number 13 flashed on Liger Zero's right hand.

Liger Zero roared and charged on all fours as he chanted, "This hand of mine is burning red…"

Koichi panicked and turned tail, "Somebody save me!"

The Rider continued, "Its loud roar tells me to grasp victory!"

"Anastasia-sama!"

Liger Zero jumped and thrust his right claw forward as it blazed with a golden flame, **"BURNING…LEGEND…CLAW!"** Liger Zero connected with his target and Koichi cried out as he was torn in half and vanished in a cloud of black butterflies.

Yuji and Anastasia stood across from each other and the witch made the first move as she fired black bolts of energy. Yuji harnessed his ring's power to fire his own plasma bolts to counter the Witch of Terror's assault. She then called forth two pillars that arose high above her head and launched giant spears at Yuji. Yuji evaded the spears by jumping and hopping off them to gain altitude as he launched fire balls from his hands. Anastasia countered by putting up a shield that deflected the blasts away from her person.

'_Damn,'_ Yuji thought, _'If I hadn't sealed my powers for the sake of this game, I would've kicked her ass by now…'_ He then looked to Tsukumogami Spirits, '_I'm gonna need a little help for this one.'_ He landed and turned to the Tsukumogami, "Hey, mind giving me some help?"

Zennin looked to his comrades, "What should we do? This is Shinichi's mind after all."

Gokuaku crossed his arms, "That's true, but this is somewhat of an emergency."

Yabuki nodded, "Very well then, we shall lend him our power for this battle."

They nodded and turned into orbs of black, red, and green energy as they flew to Yuji and stuck onto Yuji's left hand.

Yuji grinned, "Time to armor up!" The red orb shone and Yuji was engulfed in a pillar of flames surrounded by lightning before he was decked in red skeletal armor and wore a headband with two spiral horns curved up. "Rock and Roar, Oni!" He dashed forward and fed Anastasia a flaming knuckle sandwich before he grabbed her by the dress and slammed her face in the ground. He then slammed the kanabo onto her back and called out, **"Thunder Force!"** The clouds turned black instantly and a blast of lightning struck the kanabo and Anastasia as she screamed in pain.

Yuji jumped back and the black orb shone as he was engulfed in black winds and was decked in ninja gear and a long black scarf with the ends stretching behind him like a pair of tails. "Divide and Destroy, Shinobi!" He then grabbed the Dai Shuriken and jumped in the air as he split himself into three beings. They launched the three giant shuriken and they split into hundreds of duplicates as they rained down on the demonic witch, **"Fuuma Dai Shuriken!"** Anastasia coughed blood as she was pelted by the falling stars and was soon made a pin cushion. She growled with hatred as her body was wracked with pain.

The Yuji clones returned to one as he landed and grinned, "Next up!" Cicadas swarmed Yuji's body as was decked in green samurai armor and a katana in his right hand. "Slash, Samurai!" He sheathed the katana and blurred out of sight and in front of Anastasia as her eyes widened. She produced her own straight sword and was ready to counter him. He drew the blade and struck horizontally into her right, but she blocked the hit and Yuji began to spin. However, before she could counter, Anastasia felt that her body was being drawn in by a powerful wind.

'_Impossible…'_ she cried in her mind, _'I'm being drawn to him!'_ She gasped as she saw the cold look in his eyes as he spun around with a roar and slammed his foot into the ground and caused a small crater. He swung again and she was unable to avoid being sliced in half.

"**Hiten Misturugi-ryu battou-jutsu! ****Ama Kakeru Ryu no Hirameki!**" Yuji roared as he jumped back and the three orbs shone and Yuji was engulfed in fire, lightning, and wind before he was decked in white samurai armor, layered with a blood-red skeletal frame, a black scarf, and a crown of horns as he carried a blade of lightning that was as tall as Yuji.

"Time to finish you, Ana-baka!" He lifted the lightning blade and slashed in front of him as he formed a triangle, **"Delta Dragon!"** The triangle was launched forward as a multi-colored dragon roared and devoured Anastasia, resulting in a huge explosion.

Yuji sighed as the armor glowed and diffused back into the three Tsukumogami. He said, "That takes care of that." He then watched as the entire area was restored into a wide open field of green grass and the sky turned clear and blue. This was Shinichi's mind, after all, and it was meant to be peaceful and clear, not broken and chaotic.

The Legendary Riders joined the group to give the Manakyte their thanks.

Amazon patted Yuji on the shoulder and nodded, "Yuji, friend."

Super-1 nodded, "You sure did a number on that witch!"

Yuji shook his head, "No, that was only a projection of Ana-baka."

Zennin slumped, "She wasn't real?"

Yabuki nodded, "Makes sense." A witch that powerful wouldn't have been defeated so easily.

Ichigo shook Yuji's hand, "We are in your debt, Yuji Fudo." The other Riders nodded and Kuro merely shrugged.

Yuji took out a knife and ran it across his arm as the blood slowly dripped onto the grassy floor. He crouched down and used his thumb to draw a stencil of the Crimson Dragon. "This seal will prevent Anastasia from trying to get into Shinichi's mind again." He stood up and saw a door, "Guess that's my exit. Later guys," Yuji waved as he walked to the door and opened it before he disappeared.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This isn't the last chapter of the WITCH OF TERROR arc, in case you're wondering. We've just introduced the new antagonist and she'll be playing a major role in chapters to come. Now, this chap was a bit of a tear-jerker as we see Shinichi's true fear is rejection and the Witch of Terror preyed on that. What a bitch.**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: The dragons are based from dragons from the game, "Dungeons and Dragons." Hope you guys love the badassness that occurred.**

**Shadow Element 13: Well, after having life kick my ass around a little bit, I was finally able to come back and help my good friend Chrome. Can't wait to get back to work and help continue this story further!**


	24. The Witch of Terror Part 10

**THE WITCH OF TERROR **

**Part 10: Tower of Terror**

Yuji, Shinichi, and Alan were at Angel Mort, just having a relaxing meal. Though the trio enjoyed the company of their respective girlfriends, it was nice just to have a calm, peaceful meeting between guys.

"I still can't believe I've been banned from using my Rider powers until further notice," sighed Shinichi. The Director of DORA, Dr. Ryuki Hasuma, had been quite clear with his order. After Shinichi had nearly killed himself by pushing his limits, Dr. Hasuma decided that it would be best for him to not transform into Kamen Rider Showa or use the powers he had associated to that form. He had, however, allowed Shinichi one thing.

"At least Uncle Ryuki didn't take you off the active agent roster or suspend you for your own good," Alan said. "And he didn't say you couldn't be a Rider. He just told you that you needed to do it differently."

Shinichi reached into his jacket and pulled out the Scada Buckle. Until further notice he would be using it to transform and assume the identity of Kamen Rider Scada, another one of his alter-egos. "Yeah, but aside from the standard enhancements, it's not all that special."

"Or maybe you haven't even tried to discover what other things Scada can do. You only ever use it when you're out of power or against minor threats. Maybe this time you can discover some hidden gimmicks. It did get recently looked at by Prof. Takada. Just give it a chance."

"OK, but I don't have to like it."

"So, how are you feeling right now?" Yuji asked Shinichi.

"Well, I don't have a splitting headache anymore," answered Shinichi. "Thanks, by the way."

"No problem. What are friends for?"

"It's just…" Shinichi rubbed the back of the neck. "I said some really harsh stuff to everyone and even though they've forgiven me, I can't forget the look on everyone's faces, especially Kaa-chan and Rena-chan's, when I said those things."

It'd been a week since the fight under the high school against the cult, Mongul, the Soldats de la Terreur and the confrontation Yuji had with the Witch of Terror in Shinichi's mind. After the ordeal, Shinichi had apologized to everyone for the things he'd said. His words had broken everyone's hearts and he promised he'd make up for hurting them like that. He never meant to.

Yuji, of course, didn't see it as Shinichi's fault. Anastasia was just toying with Shinichi's greatest fear, which was rejection. She then twisted Shinichi's mind and emotions and made him lash out at his loved ones as a way to avenge her loss. Clearly, she had not counted on Yuji coming to the rescue of the Kaizo Ningen Kamen Rider.

"They've forgiven you," Alan reminded. "And you never really meant the things you said. It was all some witch's twisted little game."

"It was still my voice and my words," Shinichi remarked, "But you're right. They have forgiven me. I just have to move on."

"That's the spirit!" Yuji cheered. "And I bet Rena was only happy to help you _recuperate_."

Shinichi wore a grin that ended from ear-to-ear. After being away from Rena for nearly a week, the young woman was happy to have her boyfriend back. She'd cooked him dinner and then after dinner he had _her_ for dessert. It had to be the best sundae he'd ever had.

"So, how are the girls handling school?" Shinichi asked Alan.

"They're doing pretty well, to be honest," answered Alan.

Soon after the end of the mission, Alan's other girlfriends decided that they couldn't part from Alan. Therefore, they had enrolled into the school that Alan and Shinichi had been sent to investigate. Lala, Bishie and Yami ended up in the same class as Alan while Conda and Amora enrolled as 2nd year students.

After the investigation, Shinichi had left to return to college while Alan opted to remain. He wanted to watch over the aliens in the school. His girlfriends and lovers thus decided to follow him and become students as well. They really turned heads, mostly from lustful boys and jealous girls. They were a group of beauties and Alan was the envy of every male student in the high school for having them around him hanging off his arm.

Just the other day Alan had received numerous death threats and challenges. Dozens of the threatening and challenge letters had been stuffed into his shoe locker and desk.

Alan wouldn't be surprised if each of his girlfriends ended up with fanclubs that worshipped the very ground they stood upon. Amora and Conda would sure enjoy the attention, Lala would just like making friends, Yami would ignore it and hang out in the library, and Bishie would just be herself. Nozomu was a welcomed new addition to her harem and she and Yami had become good friends due to their similar physical stature and personalities. Fortunately, Alan knew how to make them _very_ emotional.

Also, after the Witch of Terror cult had been busted, all the cult members woke up not remembering a single thing they had done involving the cult. Guess after the ritual to summon the Witch of Terror had been interrupted, she'd lost her hold on them and they resumed their normal lives. Shinichi was glad for it. The Yokai had been pawns the whole time and the Witch of Terror had just been manipulating them from the start.

"Bet you feel like a pimp with all of them beauties with you," Shinichi joked.

"Oh, shut up," Alan shot back.

Yuji was taking in the sights at Angel Mort and licked his lips hungrily, "Those outfits look absolutely delicious."

Alan shook his head, "Wow, I can't believe you're so horny just by checking out some uniforms."

"Actually, I'm imagining Asura and Lilith in those outfits," Yuji corrected, "Now THAT is hot!"

Shinichi chuckled, "Well, just don't ogle Mion or Shion. They're my friends and they do have boyfriends." He had to agree, though. The uniforms worn by Angel Mort's waitresses were very sexy. In fact, Rena once brought her uniform home so she and Shinichi could roleplay. He'd been the customer and she'd been the waitress who provided him with extra special _service_ for being such a loyal customer.

Yuji nodded, "I know, and I am not ogling them. I am merely admiring the artistic costumes and fantasizing about them."

Shinichi shrugged, "At least you're honest, unlike someone we know." Alan glared at Shinichi for the jab and Bazel laughed subtly.

"Papa," a female voice called.

Yuji's ears perked up and he turned to the front entrance.

Two more customers walked in, a woman and a little girl. The woman had long, pitch-black, hair braided with several rings at the end, dark blue eyes, and wore a white one-piece tunic with red ropes, acting as a belt, elbow-length gloves, and thigh-high boots.

The little girl that was holding her hand had shoulder-length auburn hair, with bright blue eyes and a left canine sticking out of her mouth. She wore a combination of black and white gothic Lolita clothes and held a small black purse. Strapped to her back was a lion plushie with a red scarf.

"Welcome to Angel Mort," Mion greeted with a smile, "Can I get you both a table?"

The woman smiled, "Actually, we're meeting up with some friends."

The little girl then smiled and ran to Yuji as she hugged him tightly, "Papa!"

"Hey there, Maria," Yuji smiled widely, "How did you find me?"

Maria smiled, "Asu-mama always knows where you're hiding, Papa!"

Asura walked over to their table and kissed Yuji before shooting him a smirk, "You can never hide from me, Yuji."

Alan chuckled and Shinichi coughed, "Whipped…!"

Yuji ignored the jokes and pulled Maria onto his lap, "Shin, Alan, I want you guys to meet my daughter, Maria Fudo."

"Hi," she greeted cutely, "UU~!"

Alan and Shinichi blinked and parroted, "Your daughter?"

Yuji nodded, "I adopted her a while ago when her parents passed away."

Shion and Mion came to the table and Shion gushed, "She's so adorable~! What can I get you, sweetie~!"

"Parfait," Maria requested with a smile.

Shion winked as she took the order, "I'll be right back!"

Asura turned to Mion and grinned, "Those outfits are adorable. Think you got any spares for me and a friend of mine?"

A cloud of purple smoke poofed beside Yuji and a girl emerged from the cloud. She had short, lilac, hair and blood–red eyes and wore a red jacket over a blue and lavender-striped top with matching socks and red shorts and shoes.

"Me too!" the girl cried as she hugged Yuji on his right, "I want an outfit too!"

"Lilith-mama," Maria smiled as she hugged the girl.

Shinichi waved, "Hey there, Lilz!"

Alan nodded, "Wassup?"

"The ceiling," Lilith replied dryly before she and Maria cracked a smile and laughed.

Mion smirked, "Well, if you want the outfits, you girls are gonna have to work for them."

Asura shrugged, "No problem there. Now I've got something to do instead of sitting home all day."

"That's because Asura's lazy," Lilith whispered to Maria, making the girl giggle.

"Try saying that to my face," the devil-in-disguise smirked.

Yuji whispered, "Thank you, Crimson Dragon. You have rewarded my faith a thousand fold."

Lilith then whispered into Yuji's ear, "Can't wait to see us in those outfits, baby?"

He nodded, "Like you wouldn't believe."

Mion grinned, "Looks like Yuji-san can't wait to be serviced soon!"

"Papa is perverted," Maria giggled.

Alan cocked an eyebrow, "Wait a sec… Does Maria know about your…relationships?"

"UU~!" Maria nodded, "Papa has a lot of girlfriends and he loves all of them."

"Wow," Shinichi blinked, "I'm amazed at how understanding she is."

Yuji smiled softly as he ruffled Maria's hair, "She may be 9 years old, but she's definitely a genius!" Maria giggled from the compliment.

"Papa, I'll be ten soon!" Maria told him.

"But you'll always be my adorable little angel," Yuji told her as they rubbed cheeks.

Shinichi thought back to a conversation between Lucy and Warren he'd eavesdropped on and heard Warren call Lucy his 'little girl'. He imagined Lucy as a little girl and then looked at Maria and wondered if Lucy had been cute like that as well. '_No way_,' Shinichi mentally denied. Lucy was attractive but no way in the past, present, or future could the horned Diclonius girl ever be considered cute. It just wasn't possible.

* * *

Lucy sneezed as she tossed her shuriken and she ended up missing the bullseye.

"What's wrong?" Anko asked.

Lucy rubbed her nose. "I think someone's talking about me behind my back."

* * *

So, after Lilith and Asura applied for part-time jobs at Angel Mort, the group decided to do some walking after the meal. Yuji was carrying Maria on his shoulders since she was so light. They were close to an apartment building when Shinichi noticed the fire trucks and police men surrounding the front entrance.

Alan cocked an eyebrow, "What's going on?"

Shinichi ran to one of the officers and asked, "Excuse me sir, but what's going on?"

"A girl is standing from the ledge of a 9th floor balcony and she says she's gonna jump," the officer told Shinichi.

Maria looked up and pointed, "Up there!"

The group looked up and saw a young woman with short dark hair, standing on the ledge of the apartment.

"I'm gonna jump, dammit!" she cried. "My boyfriend's dead and I can't live without him!"

"Huh, this is familiar," Yuji muttered to himself. He caught movement off the corner of his eye and grinned slightly.

And she actually jumped, giving no scream as she plummeted to her death, while the people below gasped. Shinichi was about to act when the girl was suddenly grabbed by a speedy blur. The girl blinked as she felt the wind blowing against her face. She opened her eyes to see that she was indeed flying, but not of her own volition.

She was being carried by a girl with long blue hair, slightly dark skin, and green eyes. She had blue cat ears and bird-like wings, as well as large cat paws and a long tail. She wore a blue halter top, jean shorts, and Egyptian jewelry.

"Don't worry," the bluenette smiled. "Dying is not the best thing in the world and you have to be able to live on, for your lover's sake. I'm sure he would want that."

"Who…are you?" the girl asked.

"You can call me Sora," Sora smiled as she returned to the ground, for the girl to be taken in by the firefighters and officers. Sora saw the group approaching and waved, "Sorry I'm late guys!"

Shinichi waved back, "Hey, Sora-san. It's been a while."

Yuji walked over and kissed Sora on the forehead, "Nice entrance." Sora merely smiled, showing off her pearly white teeth and fangs.

"Guys," said Alan as everyone was looking at them. "I think we should go." He saw news reporters coming through the crowd to interview Sora and possible even them for being close friends with the winged girl.

* * *

Young men stopped with what they were doing as they spotted the two young beauties walking down the street. They were sisters, with pink hair. One wore her hair short, chin-length, with a hair band while the other wore her hair in pigtails. The short-haired pinkette wore a black dress with a green bodice with black detached sleeves that came up to under her arms. The edges of her black skirt seemed to be in tatters revealing that she wore green pumpkin shorts underneath. She also wore black and green stripes stockings and black shoes. Around her neck was a collar with a bell hanging from it. She was also more endowed compared to her flat-chested sister. The pinkette with pigtails wore the same outfit, but it was black and red instead. The dress was red, with a black bodice, black pumpkin shorts and black and red striped stockings with the same detached sleeves covering her arms all the way to under her arms.

What really set them apart from other people were the spade-tipped tails they sported on them but people would assume that they were a part of the girls' outfits as accessories. The short-haired pinkette was also carrying a little girl, no bigger than a toddler, with long green hair and a flower atop her head. She was adorable and was wearing a red sweater with brown shoes and a pink skirt.

"Hey, Momo? You sure Aniue is here?" asked the pigtailed pinkette.

"Of course I'm sure, Nana," replied "Alan-niichama is in this area."

"Mau!" the little green-haired girl in Momo's arms responded to Alan's name.

"That's right, Celine-chan. We'll be seeing him soon," Momo said to the little one she was carrying.

Nana then noticed a commotion at a nearby apartment and got her sister's attention, "Hey, look over there. Something is going on." She could see a crowd surrounding the entrance of the building. There were even police officers and fire fighters present along with their vehicles. Also, there were news vans.

"Let's go check it out," said Momo

* * *

"Can you tell us your name?"

"Why did you save the girl?"

"Are you an angel?"

"Are those wings real?"

Sora was being bombarded with questions with microphones and tape recorders held up to her face. Saving the jumper and revealing herself in public had caused quite a stir. Cameras were flashing at her face.

"Well," Sora blushed, "The wings are real and saving the girl was just part of my job." She hooked an arm around Yuji's arm, "And Yuji-kun's the only one who gets to call me an angel."

"Shouldn't we get out of here?" Alan urged.

"I got it covered," Yuji nodded. He gasped loudly and pointed forward, "Look over there, it's Jackie Chan!"

"WHAT! WHERE!" the reporters cried as they turned to wherever Yuji was pointing. They slumped to find nothing and turned back to find that the group was gone, slumping further and giving heavy sighs as they left the area.

* * *

"OK, it looks like the coast is clear. We can come out now."

A door slowly creaked open as the group quietly exited the Sands of Time. The press, police, crowd and firefighters were gone.

Yuji kissed his Liger Pass and grinned, "I love this thing." All Kamen Riders possessing Rider Passes could access portals to the Sands of Time. It was a quick escape route for them when things got crazy like before.

"'Look, it's Jackie Chan'!" Shinichi repeated. "I can't believe that actually worked."

"You'd be surprised. Is everyone here and accounted for?" asked Yuji. He did a head count. "OK, everyone's here."

"I'm so glad we got away from those hounds," said Alan. He told Yuji and Sora, "You two might wanna be careful from now on. They don't know Sora's human form but they'll definitely recognize you, Yuji."

Yuji grinned, "Not if I do this!" He snapped his fingers and his red highlights shifted to gold and he gained a gold stencil running down the left side of his face.

Sora gasped, "You look like Yusei-san!"

Yuji grinned, "Awesome, right?" He also changed into Yusei's usual attire in an instant. Another set of 'horns' were added to his front hair.

"So, this is your dad," said Shinichi as he looked Yuji's disguise up and down. "Seriously, does everyone from your world have weird hairdos or is it just you?"

"Mau!" came a sudden sound as Alan was suddenly glomped by Celine. She covered his face completely and was giving his head a hug.

Alan yanked the little plant girl off his face, causing her to giggle and reach for him. "Celine?"

"Mau! Mau!" the little girl with a flower atop her head went on, giggling.

"Hey Alan, who's this?" Shinichi asked.

"She's my…" Alan began.

"His daughter!" a familiar voice to Alan declared.

"No way…" Alan uttered and he looked ahead to see Nana and Momo.

"Hi, Alan-niichama!" greeted Momo with a beaming smile, waving.

"Yo," greeted Nana, saluting.

"Nana? Momo?" Alan gaped as he saw them. "What are you doing here?"

"We came to visit you and Aneue," said Nana, crossing her arms. "What's wrong? Can't we drop by?"

"No, I'm just a little surprised," admitted Alan, still holding Celine.

"So, Alan," Yuji said to Alan, grinning. "Who are these cuties?"

"Oh, these are Nana and Momo and they are-"

"Lala's sisters," Shinichi finished.

"How'd you guess?" Alan asked.

"The pink hair and tails are a big giveaway," said Shinichi.

"You don't seem too surprised," observed Yuji.

"I've stopped being surprised with things involving Alan a long time ago," said Shinichi.

"You haven't seen or heard anything yet," Alan remarked.

"So, this is your daughter?" Shinichi asked, looking at Celine who was nuzzling Alan's chest.

"Kinda…it's a long story," said Alan.

"You got Bishie pregnant or something?" Shinichi asked.

"NO!" Alan shouted, blushing.

Momo giggled, "It's a bit more complicated and more interesting than _that_."

Yuji felt Maria tugging his sleeve and he responded, "What is it, Maria?"

"Where do babies come from?" the little girl asked innocently.

Yuji was speechless at Maria's question and tried to come up with an answer in his head. Actually, he knew where babies came from but he needed a way to answer Maria's question in a way that it was appropriate for someone her age and in a way she could understand.

Amused, Alan chuckled, "Good luck answering that one, Yuji!"

"Mau!" Celine continued to rub her face against Alan's chest happily.

"You missed me too, huh, Celine?" asked Alan.

"Mau~"

"Why else would we be here?" Nana remarked with arms crossed. "She keeps crying about wanting to see you, waving your picture around. We had to come or we'd never hear the end of it!"

"Oh, Nana," Momo smiled slyly, "You missed Onii-chama too."

Blushing, Nana denied, "Of course not! He's a filthy beast! Why the hell would I miss him?"

"Oh, and you looked like you were looking forward to the visit too," Momo teased.

"Because of Aniue!"

"Whatever you say…" Momo rolled her eyes.

Shinichi looked to Yuji expectantly. He wanted to see how he handled telling a little girl about the facts of life.

"Ha, I can explain it right now," Yuji accepted Alan's challenge as he crouched down to Maria's level and ruffled her hair, "Well, sweetie, babies are conceived soon after a special union between a man and a woman."

"U…" Maria awed, "Is it painful?"

Yuji nodded, "For the woman, unfortunately. Don't worry, you have a long way to go." He looked back to the Green Lantern, "Beat that!"

"You know, he really got you there," said Bazel. Maria, Nana and Momo gasped when they heard the armband talk.

"It talked!" exclaimed Momo.

"Aneue wasn't making it up," Nana realized.

"It's magic!" Maria admired Bazel. "Hi, I'm Maria."

"You can call me Bazel. Sorry I didn't introduce myself but I really can't talk around normal folk because my partner here forbade me," answered Bazel.

"Well if you did I'd have to explain why you can talk," Alan argued. "And that was something I was trying to avoid."

"You got me there," Bazel agreed, "Doesn't have to mean I gotta like it."

"You just love getting me into trouble."

* * *

Shinichi returned to his and Rena's apartment. "Honey, I'm home~" he called. Along the way he'd bought a bouquet of flowers for his darling live-in girlfriend. He also got a miniature teddy bear to go with the bouquet. When she didn't answer his call, he just thought with a shrug, "Maybe she went out." He then heard the shower running and grinned, "Or, maybe not…" He tiptoed towards the bathroom, wanting to ambush his lovely girlfriend and maybe have some fun in the shower with him.

As he approached the door, he turned the knob and pushed it open. He saw that the shower was on but no Rena. He blinked. Now that was weird. He turned off the shower and exited the bathroom, scratching his head.

He checked her workroom next. Their apartment was a two bedroom apartment but they'd converted one of the rooms into a workroom for Rena. She was an Arts Major and needed the space for her work. She made sculptures out of junk they recovered from the junkyard together. She'd even made a small statuette of Kamen Rider Showa just for him. It was a sweet gesture from her.

He then spotted something he'd missed. It was on the table that was set between the sofa and television in the living room. Looking over to investigate, he saw that it was a black envelope. He picked it up saw that it had their address on it written in blood. He turned it over and saw a blood red wax seal with a butterfly on it and in the centre of the butterfly's body was T with an eye in the centre.

A black butterfly fluttered past him as it exited through an open window.

* * *

"So, this is where you live?" asked Nana, not looking impressed by the humble boarding house that Alan and the girls had taken residence in after arriving in this world. "What a dump."

"It looks cozy to me," Momo said, always with an opinion that differed from her sister's.

"Well, it's home," said Alan. "Lala is going to be happy to see you all."

"Mau!" Celine said as she rode on Alan's shoulders.

"Yes, and Bishie will be happy to see you too, Celine."

As Alan opened the door, a black butterfly flew past him. Celine noticed and went to catch it but then it faded from view, causing the girl to stare at the empty air oddly. "Mau…" she let out.

"Girls, I'm home!" Alan announced. At the very least one of the girls was present in the boarding house. However, nobody answered. The only other resident aside from them was their house manager. Mion was the landlady and she came once in a while to check on them.

"Aneue!" Nana called.

"Onee-sama!" Momo called.

"Mau! Mau!" Celine called.

They all went upstairs where the rooms were. The place was empty and it felt a bit creepy. As they approached Alan's room, they spotted a black envelope lying outside his door. Celine jumped off Alan's shoulders and picked it up, holding it out to her parent. "Mau!" she cried, jumping up and down.

Alan took the envelope and looked it over. It'd been addressed to him.

"So, this is your room," said Nana. She opened the door and cried out, "WHAT THE FUCK!" in panic as black butterflies suddenly swarmed out of the room and went straight at her. She fell on her rear in shock and even Momo gasped.

"This can't be good," said Alan as he recognized the butterflies which vanished like ghosts as soon as they appeared.

"What the heck was that!" a frazzled Nana shouted, referring to the ghostly black butterflies.

* * *

Alan and Shinichi had gone straight to the King's Terminal with their letters. When they had opened the envelopes, black butterflies actually flew out before vanishing. The letters inside were written on black paper and in bright red ink. Also, the letters had been written in French.

The girls had gone missing and now both Alan and Shinichi had letters written to them in French.

French…like Anastasia…the Witch of Terror. The black butterflies were her trademark. That could only mean one thing.

Anastasia had taken them. The Witch of Terror had struck again and was targeting them once more. The duo then went straight to one other person who had experience with Anastasia, Yuji Fudo.

They actually found Yuji at the amusement park area with Maria and his girlfriends.

"YUJI!" Shinichi and Alan called.

* * *

"I see…" Yuji nodded after hearing the story. They were at a café in King's Terminal, both letters laid out in front of Yuji. "So, have you gone and told Smith-kanchou or Hasuma-kanchou about this?"

"Not yet," Shinichi admitted.

"We were more concerned with finding you," said Alan.

Yuji picked up one of the letters and examined it, "That Ana-baka… Says here she's taken Rena and the others, as well as cursing you guys out for screwing up her resurrection party."

Shinichi and Alan bugged, "WHAT?"

"Inside voices, please," Yuji urged as he cleaned his ears out and cleaned his hands with a napkin. "Like I said, she wants payback for before."

Maria frowned, "Anastasia is a mean witch!"

Shinichi blinked, "Hold on, you know her?"

Maria shook her head, "I've never seen her, but Papa told me what she did to you and how he saved you from the mean witch."

"I think we should help you guys out," Asura offered.

Lilith nodded, "Yeah, we'll help rescue your damsels!"

Yuji looked to Sora, "Sora, would you mind staying with Maria?"

Sora nodded, "Sure. I could use the down time."

Yuji nodded, "Then the five of us will go rescue the girls."

"We better tell Dad," said Alan. "He'd want to know about this."

* * *

"OK, I've heard enough. I approve this mission," said Warren.

"Wow, that was easy," said Shinichi. They were in Warren's office and had given their report about the letters, kidnapping and Anastasia's possible involvement.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go and rescue your girls! Pronto!" Warren ordered.

"Yes, sir!" Alan, Yuji and Shinichi saluted before leaving. After they left, Dr. Hasuma entered the office.

"What is it, Ryuki?" asked Warren. "More paperwork I need to sign?"

"No, not this time," Dr. Hasuma shook his head. "I just came to hand you another report when I saw those three walk out of here."

"They're on a rescue mission," Warren answered simply. Dr. Hasuma smiled nostalgically. "What?"

"I couldn't help but be reminded of myself and my own team when I was their age," answered Dr. Hasuma.

"Yeah, those three could be one of ARMOR's strongest teams," Warren confessed. "So, what do you have to report?"

* * *

"So, this is the Tokyo Tower Hotel," said Alan as they arrived at the destination.

The Tokyo Tower Hotel was built around the early 1970's. It was meant to be an upscale place where the richest could stay and enjoy the hotel's service and hospitality. Unfortunately, when it opened, weird things started happening. Unexplained noises were heard, and more often than not guests complained about their belongings being messed up when they left their rooms for only a second. Also, guests reported seeing apparitions. Even the staff started seeing and hearing things. It didn't seem bad at first and the weirdness actually drew in some clientele interested in the supernatural. However, activity escalated and became very violent. Guests reported being assaulted by unknown assailants which vanished right before their eyes. Lights would flicker on and off, furniture would move without anyone touching them, doors would open and close by themselves, and even someone committed suicide in one of the rooms. Actually, several people had committed suicide in the hotel itself.

The land had no prior history linked to it, or so it seemed. It would appear that something terrible had happened on the spot involving death, bloodshed, and atrocities during the turn of the century. All that must've been the cause of the activity.

Priests and exorcists were called to bless and purify the hotel but to no avail and eventually after only just five years the entire hotel went bankrupt and was condemned. It was also believed to be cursed and now stood tall in the city of Tokyo without anyone coming in close.

It was abandoned, with a fence around it and a Keep Out sign hanging on a chain in the gate's entrance. The outside looked rundown and you could see parts of the wood fixtures rotting while the bricks of the hotel were cracked. Graffiti riddled the walls with pictures of demons and names like "Gateway to Hell" or "Satan lives here". Two windows were above the entrance that made the building look like it had eyes and the entrance was the mouth.

This was also the address written on the letters and where Anastasia was likely holding the girls captive.

"I got chills just by looking at it," admitted Shinichi.

"The girls are at the top floor, according to those letters," said Yuji. "So, we better head inside."

"That's a waste of time! We should just head straight to the top!" Alan then shot towards the sky, leaving a green trail as he headed for the top floor of the hotel. He was going to rescue the girls. Suddenly, he hit an invisible barrier and then was sent crashing down to the ground where Shinichi and the others stood. Fortunately, he was unharmed. Thank god for his ring's protective energy barrier.

"Guess flying is out of the question," said Yuji as he looked down at Alan.

"Dammit…" groaned Alan. "What did I hit?"

"Hit? You just fell," said Shinichi.

"I hit something and then it pushed down on me, hard," Alan responded.

"Alan, did you really think Ana-baka would make it that easy?" asked Yuji.

"I was hoping," Alan confessed.

"Guess we're doing this the old-fashion way," said Shinichi, "And I don't mean take the elevator. We're going to have to go up the stairs."

Yuji nodded, "OK then, the five of us should stay together at all times." They all nodded and made their way inside.

There was no door covering the entrance and when they went inside Shinichi felt chills run up his spine. The place was dilapidated after years of being abandoned. When it first opened, it was no doubt a beautiful place, but now it was a shadow of its former self and a container of bad memories. The lobby was dark, and dust covered the windows with cobwebs hanging from the corners of the ceiling. A chandelier dangled haphazardly from the ceiling, its shine long gone. There were potted plants but they had long gone dry and died.

Graffiti, like what they had seen outside, were on the walls. As always, it was a creepy feeling. There were no lights and what light that could come through the windows were filtered by the dust and so it was a dim lobby.

"We should go find the stairs that will lead us straight up," suggested Yuji. Shinichi was taking photographs. "What are you doing?"

"It's a personal project," Shinichi answered. He then felt that he was getting lower and lower to the ground, "Guys, am I getting shorter or are you getting tall-HOLY CRAP!" He was sinking into the rug that was beneath his feet. "Guys! Help!"

Yuji rushed at him and grabbed Shinichi's hand, yanking him out with one tug as Shinichi landed on his ass.

"The floor tried to eat me!" Shinichi bugged.

Yuji looked to the rug, "The old Persian quick-rug trick. How cliché, Ana."

"Guess it's a good thing we decided to come together," said Alan.

Shinichi, compared to Alan and Yuji, was not very experienced with dealing with the paranormal. What experience he had was little compared to theirs. He was used to fighting monsters and androids but witches were another thing for him. Not to mention he was in a place that would make a great setting for a horror movie.

"Come on, let's keep moving," instructed Yuji. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a black butterfly flutter by. "Oh, fuckberries."

"What?" Asura asked and then all of a sudden darkness burst all around them before swarms of black butterflies went into the air, fading from view. What they left behind was anything but small.

"Minotaurs?" Alan asked as he saw the well-dressed and muscular ox-headed men surrounding them.

"Ana-baka's foot soldiers," Yuji clarified. The Ox Butlers all roared and charged at them. "Henshin!"

"**ZERO FORM!"**

Kamen Rider Liger roared as he charged into battle. Asura and Lilith gave each other a nod as they went into their own transformations, Asura being engulfed in flames while Lilith's red clothes turned into bats and surrounded her body.

The flames dispersed and Asura was donned in a white leotard and now sported six arms with rings for hands and flaming claws. Her hair was a flaming mix of red, oranges, and yellow hues. This was Asura in her true form: Majin Asura.

Lilith was now donned in a red leotard with light-blue leggings with bat prints and light-blue sleeves that were connected to the outfit by white feathery fingers draped over her shoulders. She had a par of red bat wings on the sides of her head and larger red wings on her back.

Alan's ring glowed and he was in his Green Lantern uniform.

Shinichi put on the Scada Buckle and the belt wrapped around his waist to secure the device. He took hold of the ripcord on the right side of the belt with his left hand and pulled it all the way so that his arm went across his chest. He called, "Henshin!" as he released the ripcord. The fan in the Scada Buckle spun and the transformation was initiated.

A black bodysuit first stretched over Shinichi's body, covering him in it from his neck all the way down to his toes. Then, green gloves and boots appeared. The gloves went up to his elbows as the boots went up to his knees, stopping at the green kneepads. Particles started to bond to his body and form camouflage-colored armor in black, brown and green. The first to form were the shoulder pads which were attached to the torso armor. The breast and back-plate were both connected together by straps that ran over Shinichi's shoulders and under his arms. Greaves formed on his shins along with armor plates on his feet. Braces also appeared on Shinichi's forearms with armor plates on the back of his hands.

Finally, a helmet formed in Shinichi's hands, with the same coloring as the armor and big blue insectoid eyes set firmly upon it with a metal strip that ran down between the eyes. A pair of antennae was also set upon the metal strip that ran down the centre of the helmet.

He put the helmet on and a metal chin strap secured it on before the faceplate slid over from the sides to cover his mouth. Finally, a white scarf appeared, tied around his neck, with the long ends hanging down his back and reaching the small of his back. They resembled insect wings.

The Kamen Rider went into action, jumping up and a hitting a pair of Ox Butlers with a scissor kick, knocking them down. An Ox Butler doubled over from a punch in the stomach before being knocked down to the floor with a karate chop. He then leapt and flipped over several of the oxen humanoids before turning around to knock them down with snap kicks. He then started to move his limbs around in a combination of punches and kicks to take them down.

Majin Asura was the first to strike as she blasted powerful flames at the Ox Butlers. Lilith danced around the demons and sliced the up with her Shining Blade and summoned a swarm of bats to attack others. Alan blasted his batch of demons with his ring before conjuring a giant boxing glove and slamming it into the face of another Ox Butler, sending it flying into the wall and bursting into black butterflies.

Scada, meanwhile, cocked his shotgun and blasted any and all Ox Butlers that were in his path with well-timed headshots. He took his gun by the barrel and slugged the approaching demons with his gun like a baseball bat. Putting away his gun, Scada then gave the ripcord of his Scada Buckle three tugs while ducking several Ox Butlers that came his way. The fan in the buckle spun rapidly as he felt power rise within him. He glared at the approaching Ox Butlers and bent his knees before he leapt high into the air and then fell upon them with a drop kick that caused them to burst into black butterflies that scattered through the air.

Scada should've been paying attention as one of the Ox Butlers grabbed him by his scarf and with a swing tossed him into the open elevator. "Hey!" Scada got up to exit but then the elevator door slammed shut and sealed him in. "Hey, lemme out! Lemme out!" He repeatedly pressed the button that would open up the door but when that wouldn't work he pounded on the door. The lights in the elevator flickered on and off as creepy music played while the elevator shook violently with the terrified Kamen Rider inside.

"Shinichi's not here!" Alan alerted when he saw him gone.

"Shit," Liger Zero grimaced. "Everyone, back to back!"

Majin Asura, Alan, and Lilith met their backs with Liger Zero's as he pulled out his witch-gun and pulled the trigger, blasting the demons in his way, while the others fired their own blasts at their targets, leaving the room vacant as black butterflies fluttered away and faded from view.

"We're gonna have to be more careful," Liger Zero cautioned.

Alan heard pounding coming from the elevator and ran over to it. "Shinichi, are you in there?" he asked.

"Get me the hell out of this thing!" Shinichi shouted. His tone then suddenly changed like he was panicking. "Oh fuck! What's going on!"

"Shinichi, what's wrong!" Alan questioned, concerned.

"Get the fuck away from me! Hey! Stop it! Let go!" Shinichi then let loose a scream which faded after several seconds, "AAAaaahhh…!"

"Shinichi! Shinichi, can you hear me? Shinichi!" Alan shouted as he pounded on the door but he received no answer and concluded that Shinichi must be unconscious or in shock. He ordered, "Help me get this thing open! He could still be inside!"

Liger Zero, Majin Asura, and Lilith were at his side as they forced the door open and only found Shinichis' camera on the floor. Realization dawned on them. They had just lost one of their own.

"Damn it," Alan cursed as he picked up the camera.

"He's gone," said Lilith.

"She's trying to pick us off one by one," Asura concluded.

Liger Zero nodded, "And since Ana's using her magic on the house, we're fair game for her."

"_HAHAHA_," Anastasia's voice cackled throughout the lobby, "_You got that right, boy! Now you've lost one of your friends, and all of you will soon be sucked into the darkness! HAHAHAHAHA!_"

Liger Zero shook his fist at the air, "Just so you know, Ana-baka, I'm gonna kick your ass when I find you!" He only received a wicked cackle in response as the laughter faded. "I hate it when they cackle..." he growled, being briefly reminded of his aunt's own annoying cackle.

Alan then heard some music playing and blinked, "Music?"

Lilith nodded, "I hear it too."

Asura pointed, "It's coming from over there!" The three opened a pair of doors and found a banquet hall with a swarm of ghosts waltzing together. "Reminds me of that ghost wagon," Asura muttered.

"It's a party," Lilith clapped.

"I so wish Dante was here to make a joke about this..." Liger Zero sweatdropped.

"We have to keep moving," said Alan. He felt Liger Zero's hand on his shoulder.

"We'll find him," Liger Zero reassured, "Him and the girls. Trust me."

Alan agreed. "Come on, the sooner we save them and get out of this place the better." The group left the banquet hall and found the door that led to the stairwell. Once inside, they started going up the stairs. As they continued to ascend, Lilith heard something before she looked over the banister and called everyone to attention.

"Guys, I think we should start running," Lilith said with a pale expression on her face.

"Why?" Asura asked, and considering the place they were in the answer could not be good.

"There's water rising!" she shouted. The others looked over the banister to see that the steps they had previously climbed were now submerged in black water which was rising up at an accelerated rate.

"Fuck! We have to move!" shouted Liger Zero.

"No need to tell me twice!" Alan shouted as he ran with them. He found a door but it was locked so he slammed it open with his shoulder. "Come on, move it!" They all ran out of the stairwell through the exit and Alan slammed the door shut, sealing it up with his ring so that the water couldn't get to them. It bulged from the water pressure pushing up against it before it became calm.

"That was close," said Lilith, relieved.

"I think it just got worse," said Liger Zero.

"Why?" Asura asked. Liger Zero pointed at the door and at the number hanging from it.

It was the number 4.

"We're on the fourth floor," said Liger Zero. "That's not good."

"Why?" Alan asked, not getting the significance.

"The number 4 is like the number 13," Liger Zero began to explain. "Have you ever noticed when you walk into an elevator of a building that has more than twelve floors that the button for the thirteenth floor has something like 12B or something? In Japan, the same applies to the number 4. The number 4 (yon) is also pronounced as 'shi' which means death. We're on the death floor."

As if on cue, blood starts to drip along the walls and then spell out a message, "GET OUT OR DIE!"

"Great," Liger Zero muttered, "It's the madness."

The doors that lined up the walls of the hallway also began to open and slam shut constantly as the noise rang through the level. The walls turned soft, like the consistency of flesh, and grew eyes that blinked and stared at the group.

Lilith cocked an eyebrow, "Isn't this taking the saying a little out of context?" She was referring to the old saying that 'the walls had eyes'.

Liger Zero looked around and shouted, "This all you got, Ana-baka!" The doors opened and then moaning could be heard. The group tensed and saw rotting corpses walking out of the rooms. They were zombies. The undead turned their heads towards the group and started to attack.

"I hate zombies," said Alan.

"Let's make sure they stay dead then!" said Liger Zero.

The four fighters rushed at the zombies and attacked, ripping them to pieces as they avoided being bitten or scratched by them.

"Did you have to provoke her?" Alan asked as he blasted a zombie with his ring.

"Yes, yes I did," Liger Zero replied as he pressed the orange button on his belt and swiped his pass.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

Liger Schneider readied his blades and ran through the horde of zombies as his glowing blades cut through their rotting flesh like butter.

Alan was in the middle of a fight with several of the undead when he was suddenly pulled by a rug that wrapped around him like a cocoon. He struggled in vain as he fell to the floor and the rug rolled him into a room, his screams muffled until he was gone as the door shut.

The fight was over as the undead horde vanished in bursts of black butterflies. Of course they weren't real zombies. It was all just an elaborate trick by the Witch of Terror to frighten them.

"ALAN!" Liger Schneider threw the door open and peered into the empty room. "Damn it…" Alan was gone. He knew that when there wasn't a green glow that usual came from Alan whenever he was in the dark while in Green Lantern mode.

Lilith frowned, "I think they got Alan…"

"This is just great," Majin Asura muttered as she changed back into her human form.

"This bitch is really pissing me off," Liger growled as he yanked his belt off.

* * *

In the Meta World, Beatrice and Anastasia sat across from each other. The Witch of Terror wore an arrogant and superior smirk as if she was looking down upon the Golden Witch.

Anastasia claimed, "He will die, Beatrice. He will die and I will have his soul."

Beatrice cracked a smile and laughed, "AHA HAHAHA! Don't be too sure, Witch of Terror! The boy is a lot more powerful than he lets you think! If he's lucky, he may just destroy you tonight. AHAHAHAHA!"

Anastasia scowled with an annoyed look, "He defeated me before, but only because I underestimated him. Not this time. This time I hold all the cards. I have his friends. I will make him suffer before I kill him, _slowly_

Beatrice nodded with an amused look, "Right, keep telling yourself that."

Beatrice disappeared in a flutter of golden butterflies and Anastasia growled, swearing, "After this, I am going to rip that annoying grin right off your face, Beatrice!"

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: Looks like Anastasia is picking them off one at a time. I was inspired from survival horror games and such for this chapter so you can understand why I decided to put all these scary details in and such.**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: This chap was also inspired by Universal Orlando's "Tower of Terror." Maria is from Umineko no Naka Koro Ni, in case anyone is wondering. Hope you guys like it. Shit's gonna get crazier next time!**


	25. The Witch of Terror Part 11

**WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 11: His Ideal World**

**HINAMIZAWA, JUNE 1984**

Shinji Banabara was sound asleep when all of a sudden his sleep was disturbed by a penetrating light through his window which hit him in the face. He squinted as he put one hand out in front of his face to block out the sunlight. "Ugh…" he groaned.

"Shinji," his mother, Shiori Banabara, said with a stern look on her face and fists to her hips. She wore a white blouse over a blue knee-length skirt and over her outfit she wore a pink apron. She looked like the typical housewife. "You better wake up young man or you'll be late for school."

"Tell everyone I'm sick," Shinji told her as he pulled the covers back over his face but they were yanked away by his mother. "Mou…Kaa-chan!" he cried out. He was wearing boxer shorts and a t-shirt as bed clothes.

"Now, young man. To the bathroom, pronto," she ordered, pointing at his door. Shinji slowly got out of bed and saluted.

"Hai, Kaa-chan," he obeyed. Shiori smiled and ruffled up his hair but he removed her hand from his head. "Kaa-chan, if I've told you once and I've told you 100 times already. I'm not a kid anymore."

"Aw~ but you'll always be my little boy." Shiori hugged him and kissed his forehead. "Good morning."

Rolling his eyes, Shinji returned the the token of affection and greeting, "Good morning to you too, Kaa-chan."

Shinji got to the bathroom and started brushing his teeth and looked himself in the mirror. He really did resemble his mother as they both had the same indigo hair, eyes and the twin ahoge that stuck out from the top of their heads. The only difference was that her hair was longer and he wore his short with a centre-parting. He spat and rinsed before stripping off his clothes to take a quick shower. After he was done bathing, he dried himself with his towel before he put on his school clothes which consisted of a white shirt with black slacks. He also added a black vest with pockets on the outside and inside. He then combed his hair. As he was combing, he saw something on in his reflection. He saw XIII just above his left eyebrow. He gasped, dropping his comb, and looked at his reflection to see the mark gone.

"Must be my imagination, or my eyes are playing tricks on me," he said to himself. He then went down to join his family for breakfast. At the dining table was his father, with a newspaper. Shotaro Banabara had raven-colored hair and wore his hair short in the same centre-parting style as Shinji. He also sported a pair of glasses over his eyes as he read the headlines.

Also sitting at the table were Rika and Hanyuu Furude. They were his foster sisters. His parents had taken them into their home because they didn't have any parents. Rika's parents had been friends of Shinji's parents and therefore, out of the kindness of their hearts, Shinji's parents had taken them in. Shinji concluded that his mother wanted to have little girls to spoil. Rika's hair was long and dark blue while Hanyuu's was also long and violet. They were dressed for school as well.

"Ohayo, minna," Shinji called as he came downstairs to join them for breakfast. It was eggs, toast and cereal. Shiori had just finished heating up the coffee before putting it on the table.

"Late again, huh, Shin-niisan?" asked Rika, smiling.

"I'm not late," he denied, "You're all are just too early." Rika stuck her tongue out at him and he stuck his tongue out at her in response.

"No tongue-sticking at the breakfast table," Shotaro warned. He folded up his newspaper and put it down on his lap. "Now, everyone. Let's dig in. Itadakimasu!"

"Itadakimasu!" the rest of the family joined in before eating their breakfast. Shinji glanced at everyone and smiled. He already had a feeling that this would be a great day.

There doorbell rang and Hanyuu said, "It must be Rena-san."

Shiori giggled, "Ah, always the devoted girlfriend."

"I'll get it," Shinji said with a blush as he got up to open the door. There stood Rena, his classmate and girlfriend. They'd been going out for a month since he first came to the village and she was a really cute girl. She was his age and dressed in the typical sailor uniform of female highschoolers. "Ohayo, Rena-chan."

"Ohayo, Shin-kun!" Rena returned the greeting before kissing his cheek. The sound of whistling came from the dining area and Shinji rolled his eyes in response. "It's time for school!"

"OK!" Shinji put his backpack on before putting his shoes on.

"Wait for us, Oniisan!" Hanyuu called as she and Rika also put on their backpacks before joining the two teens on the walk to school. Rena, seeing the two girls, instantly had stars shining in her eyes. Shinji knew that look. She was in Take-It-Home mode.

"Rena-chan, control yourself until after school, OK?" Shinji requested, "I'll even let you take me home."

"OK!" Rena chirped, back to her normally perky self. "Let's go to school!" They then went on their way. Shiori shook her head as her son once again forgot his lunch bento.

"It's fine," said Shotaro. "That Rena girl obviously made one extra just for him, as always."

"Yes," agreed Shiori. "She'd make a good wife for him, don't you think?"

The village of Hinamizawa was a small community with a population of roughly 2000 people. Because it was a small community, there was also only one school building with only one classroom where children of all grade levels sat. It was a difficult job for Chie-sensei, the only teacher around, but she loved children and teaching them new things, and was able to spend equal time with them to instruct them as best she could.

Shinji and his family had moved to Hinamizawa a month ago to escape the hustle and bustle of the noisy city and Shinji, a city boy, instantly fell in love with the place. Actually, he fell in love with Rena when he went out exploring on his own and found her junkyard. Their eyes had met right on the spot and Rena had been facing away from the setting sun that caused an orange halo to surround her.

His first words when he saw her were, "Are you an angel?" and she'd responded with a red blush. He'd also saved her. She'd been standing on a pile of junk which came loose under her weight and would've been impaled upon some rusted spikes if he hadn't caught her. After that, he was introduced to her friends.

"Yo, Shin-chan!" a green-haired tomboy called. That was Mion Sonozaki and she was the eldest in class, not to mention the class president who was the heiress of the Sonozaki Clan, one of the Three Great Houses of Hinamizawa. The Sonozakis were the actual rulers of the village with the Kimiyoshis acting as sort of a public figurehead with Chief Kimiyoshi as its head. The Furude Clan dealt with religious matters concerning Oyashiro-sama, the local deity of the village. Rika and Hanyuu were the only members of the great clan living in the village, in face.

"Whasup, Mion?" Shinji greeted with a salute of his own. He would tap his forehead with his fist to salute his friend. She was standing in the middle of the path that led to school, near the old watermill. With her was Keiichi Maebara who'd lived in Hinamizawa for a year. Shinji obviously saw sparks between the two and teased them about getting together, which they hadn't, yet. "Oh, and a good morning to you too, Keiichi."

"Hey, did you check out yesterday's episode?" Keiichi asked.

"Would I ever miss an episode?" Shinji retorted. Mion rolled her eyes as Rena giggled.

Shinji and Keiichi had something in common. They were total fans of the Kamen Rider Series. When Shinji had been small, he watched the Kamen Riders fight against the monster that belonged to megalomaniacal organizations in order to protect the world and he'd never grown out of that phase. Every Sunday morning, he would wake up and watch the latest episode. Every year, a new Kamen Rider series would begin, continuing the show with a new protagonist hero and even more battles. The current series was called 'Kamen Rider Showa' and its titular hero had the power to become any and all of the previous Kamen Riders.

As the gang walked to school, Keiichi and Shinji discussed the latest episode they had seen the day before.

"I really hate that Gebok guy," said Shinji. "He's always trying to mess with Showa's life."

"You never did like that mad scientist," Keiichi pointed out. "And it was really shocking that he was the one who made Showa in the first place. He's practically his dad."

"Gebok's still a bastard," Shinji affirmed.

"So true," agreed Keiichi.

"You do realize it's a show for kids, right?" Mion deadpanned.

"Don't diss Kamen Rider!" snapped Shinji. "It's the best TV show ever! You should check it out."

"I have better things to do on a Sunday morning than watch kiddy shows, thank you," said Mion as she flipped her ponytail.

"Like trying to get a date with Keiichi," Shinji mumbled but Mion heard him loud and clear.

"WHAT WAS THAT!" she shouted. Shinji grabbed Rena's hand.

"We have to run or we'll be late!" Shinji yelled before running with Rena to school. They left a trail of dust behind them as a result.

"GET BACK HERE, BANABARA!" Mion shouted as she gave chase, leading a trail of dust behind her as she dashed after the boy.

"Come on, we better go after them before Mion kills Shinji," Keiichi said to Rika and Hanyuu who both could not agree more.

The gang arrived at the Hinamizawa school house. Rena and Shinji exchanged smiles and didn't look tired at all. Mion had found them but she'd been enjoying the run so much that she forgot why she was mad at Shinji in the first place. Keiichi, Rika and Hanyuu reached them soon after before they entered the building.

As they reached the door to the classroom, Shinji was about to open the door when he remembered something important. He pulled his hand away from the doorknob and said, "After you, Keiichi."

"Why?" Keiichi asked, cocking an eyebrow in suspicion.

"It's just that you look like you need to take a seat after that run," Shinji responded.

Keiichi opened the door and all of a sudden a bucket tipped over and spilled something sticky all over Keiichi. "WHAT THE HELL!" he shrieked. Then, a nearby fan turned on and feathers were blown in his direction, sticking to his body due to the adhesive substance he now wore.

"The old tar and feather trick," said Shinji, "But without the tar. Good work, Satoko."

"Hohohoho!" Satoko Houjou laughed. The blonde imp just loved playing pranks. Of course, she claimed to be a Trap Master of the highest caliber. "Tricked again, Keiichi-san!" The rest of the class laughed at the victim of Satoko's latest prank.

"Dammit, Satoko!" Keiichi growled. Of course, with his new feather coat it just looked ridiculous. "What did you do!"

"Oh, I just mixed flour with some water and put it in a bucket then after that I blew feathers at you," she summarized.

"I…am…gonna…KILL…you!" Keiichi threatened but then a book hit him in the back of the head. He turned and glared at Shion. "Shion!"

"Don't bully Satoko-chan," Shion scolded. Shion was Mion's twin sister and they looked a lot alike. The only exception was that Shion wore her hair down as her sister wore her hair up in a ponytail. She also worked at a restaurant called Angel Mort and wore the sexiest uniform he'd ever seen. Clearly the place relied on using their waitresses' sex appeal to draw in customers.

"I'm not gonna bully her, Shion," Keiichi said through clenched teeth, "I am going to just teach her a lesson." Someone put his hand on his shoulder and Keiichi looked to see it was from his best friend, Satoshi Houjou.

"Come on, Keiichi. Let's get you cleaned up," the blond young man said. She was Satoko's older brother.

"Can't you control your kid sister?" Keiichi asked.

"It's all in good fun, Keiichi," Satoshi replied as he led Keiichi to the bathroom. "Hope you packed your gym clothes."

Shinji applauded, "As expected of our little Trap Master."

After Keiichi got himself cleaned up, Chie-sensei entered the classroom. She started taking attendance before starting the lesson. Since Satoshi, Shinji, Mion, Shion, Keiichi and Rena were the oldest in the class and in high school, they worked together on their lesson. Mion found it hard to focus.

Chie-sensei then went over to Shinji and asked, "Banabara-kun, when will your mother finish her next book?"

"It should be out in stores by the end of next week, sensei," Shinji replied. His mother was a popular author for a series of adult romance novels while his father helped her get her works published. Together, they were a team.

"Oh, good!" Chie-sensei beamed. She was a fan of his mother's works.

* * *

At lunch time, Shinji frowned when he realized he'd forgotten to bring his bento while Hanyuu and Rika had theirs. "Kuso…I must've forgotten it while I was rushing."

"That's OK, Shin-kun," said Rena as she put a bento in front of him. "I made an extra one just in case you forgot."

"Rena…" Shinji's eyes watered and he grasped her hands, "Arigato." The background seemed to sparkle as they gazed lovingly at each other.

"Oi, people are eating here," Mion told the couple. "Go and be romantic someplace else." Shinji stuck his tongue out at her in response.

"Don't be jealous, Onee," teased Shiom.

"Why would I be jealous?" scowled Mion.

"Because you might grow into a spinster," joked Shinji only to receive a kick under the table. "Ow!" Everyone laughed and Shinji sighed before he joined in. He glanced out the window and he saw something. It looked like a man garbed in ninja gear and wrapped up in bandages. When Shinji blinked, the man was gone.

"Hey, Shinji, what are you looking at?" Satoshi asked as he noticed Shinji looking out the window.

"I thought I…" Shinji shook his head. "Never mind."

* * *

It was final period and once Chie-sensei had told everyone they were free to do anything, Mion had called, "GAMING CLUB, ASSEMBLE!" with a whistle and everything. Shinji, along with the rest of the club, all posed together like a team of superheroes that had just been rallied by their leader.

Today's game would be 'Water Pistol War'. It was a free-for-all tournament where they were armed with water pistols and tried to take each other out. If one got wet, they were out of the game, no matter what. Shinji grinned happily, his ahoge twitching after Mion had declared today's game. Rena, Mion and Shion were wearing white t-shirt with bloomers and when white t-shirts got wet…Shinji wiped the drool off his lips at the thought.

Competition was fierce as water flew through the air, splashing everyone in the war. There were wet casualties. The young ones stood no chance. Hanyuu, not wanting to shoot anyone even with a water pistol, accidentally shot herself with her own pistol. Rika, of course, got taken out by Satoshi.

Satoko had decided to really go all out with the use of water balloons that she filled out while hiding away from the others. Unfortunately, she got taken out when she tried to throw one at Shinji and he ducked. The water balloon bounced off the tree behind him and back at her, breaking against her face and soaking her wet.

In the middle of the game, Keiichi, Mion and Shion had a Mexican standoff, holding two water pistols each as they aimed at each other while standing in a circle, daring anybody to make the first move. The twins, however, decided to take Keiichi out first. Blood was thicker than water, after all, but then they turned on each other, taking each other out in the process.

It was the end of the game and that left only two players remaining. There was Shinji and Rena left and the two looked at each other fiercely. Shinji looked her in the eye but then his eyes wandered, going down from his face, to her white shirt, and then her long legs which were shown off by her tight red bloomers. His pants started feeling tight as well but he shook off the feeling. In the Gaming Club the main doctrine was to win at any cost and as much as he loved Rena he was not going to lose to her.

Rena shot at him but he dodged, zigzagging to avoid the hits. He was going to wait until she ran out of ammo. These small water pistols could only carry so much water before going empty. Rena kept shooting until she could only manage short squirts from her guns. "Oh no!" she gasped.

"Oh, yeah!" Shinji grinned as he got to her face and aimed his water pistol at her. "You lose, Rena-chan." However, her eyes then turned green and he froze when he saw them looking at him. "What?" He was then shocked out of his frozen state when Rena turned the hose on him and drenched him to the bone.

Mion declared, "OK, Game Over! Rena is the winner!"

"Ah…man…" Shinji groaned. He was soaked.

* * *

After the end of school, the gang parted ways to go home. Shinji and Rena decided to head to the junkyard for another one of her treasure hunts. He didn't care much for treasure hunting. All he cared about was spending time with Rena. They walked, hand-in-hand, and then bumped into someone along the way.

"Takano-san, good evening," Rena greeted the blonde nurse that worked at the Irie Clinic. She saw us linking hands and smiled.

"Oh my, how nice to be young and in love," she said, a palm to her cheek. Shinji's brows furrowed. What was Miyo Takano doing in Hinamizawa? Shouldn't she be…shouldn't she be…where was she supposed to be, he wondered?

"Shin-kun and Rena are going to the junkyard together," Rena told the woman.

"Not exactly romantic," said Takano.

"It depends on a person's taste, I guess," Shinji responded, his voice slightly cold. He didn't like Takano all that much but he just couldn't fathom why.

"Well, I'm off to see Jirou-san," said Takano. "He says he has something special for me tonight. Later, you two. Ja ne." She then walked off. Shinji watched her leave. He just thought that turning his back on the nurse would be a bad idea.

Still, it felt weird. He didn't think Takano should be in Hinamizawa but he couldn't make sense of the feeling. Weird.

* * *

There wasn't much treasure hunting going on at the junkyard. However, Rena and Shinji were exploring. They were exploring each other.

The two were in Rena's minivan and the girl was flat on her back and clenching the mattress covered floor of the van as Shinji and she made out. The reason she was clenching the mattress so tightly was because Shinji was making her feel so good. His tongue was in her mouth, he had one hand up her shirt fondling her, and another one up her skirt rubbing her.

They had moved from simple kissing to fondling with Shinji doing most of the fondling. Rena moaned as Shinji continued to make her body feel so good. She was also sweating, her body hot, like she was on fire. His mouth left hers as he kissed her neck. She called his name, "Shin…Shin-kun…" She could feel something building.

That was when he saw a face staring right at them. It was green, with horns, and looked like a demon. Shinji cried out in shock as he saw the face and fell on his rear. Rena, surprised and panting, asked, "What's wrong?"

"I…I…" Shinji stammered. The demonic visage was gone. "I…I dunno…" What had he just seen? Whatever it was, it'd just spoiled the mood for them. "I think we better go home."

Rena pouted, upset that they couldn't go all the way today. She'd been looking forward to it too. They fixed up their clothes but Shinji decided to keep her bra as a souvenir. She called him a pervert and he did not deny it one bit. This was not the first time he'd kept something off hers, after all.

Still, it was a shame. She'd looked so good and so delicious. He wanted to eat her in the minivan and hear her scream his name. Maybe some other time. He just really felt like something was off about today.

* * *

Shinji returned home a little later than usual but his parents expected that. They weren't blind. They knew he went out with Rena after school. He recalled, with a shiver, how his parents gave him 'The Talk'. It was made even awkward when his mother used her books for references and visual aid. The trick he used to make Rena cum had been from one of her books. He knew more about pleasuring a girl than any other guy his age. Heck, Satoshi and Shion hadn't reached a step beyond kissing as far as he knew.

"Tadaima," he said as he came into the house.

"Okaeri nasai, Shinichi," his mother greeted.

Shinji blinked. "Wait, Kaa-chan what did you just call me?"

Shiori blinked, confused. She replied, "I called you by your name."

"No, you called me…never mind." Now his ears were playing tricks with him. "I'm going to take a bath." He went upstairs. A minute later twin feminine screams could be heard. The word 'HENTAI!' was loud and clear followed by two slaps.

"Maybe I should've told him Rika and Hanyuu were in there," Shiori mused aloud. Shotaro let out a snort of laughter. "I thought you were going to fix that lock, anata."

"Sorry, sorry," he apologized.

* * *

Shinji was in the bath, soaking in the tub, with red handprints on both his cheeks. As he relaxed in the water, he thought back to what he thought he'd heard. His mother had called him Shinichi and the only Shinichi he knew was the protagonist of his favorite TV show, Kamen Rider Showa whose civilian identity was named Shinichi Sanban.

After his bath and dressing himself, Shinji went down to join his family for dinner. Rika and Hanyuu still glared at him and he sighed. It would be awhile before they forgave him for walking in on them. He looked at Hanyuu and for a moment he imagined her with horns. '_OK, this day is just weird_,' he concluded. He was hearing and seeing things a lot and he wondered if he was slowly losing his grip on reality.

He also had a nagging feeling he should be somewhere else and he was supposed to be doing something important but he didn't know where he was supposed to be or what he was supposed to do. It gave him a headache just thinking about it and then the thought just vanished before returning again with another headache following it.

"Rika-chan, Hanyuu-chan, are you both ready for the Watanagashi Matsuri (Cotton Drifting Festival)?" Shiori asked her two foster daughters.

"We've been practicing for the sacred dance," said Rika. This would be the first time Rika would be performing the sacred with a partner. Hanyuu was working hard as well.

"Oh, I can't wait to see," said Shiori, smiling. "Shinji, make sure to take a lot of pictures."

Shinji nodded, "OK, Kaa-chan." He was always with his trusty camera. The Watanagashi Matsuri was a sacred festival in Hinamizawa that was celebrated in honor of Oyashiro-sama. After the sacred dance, all the villagers would each be given a ball of cotton representing their sins and then the villagers would take their balls of cotton to be sent adrift along the river. Thus, they'd be cleansed of all their sins. Of course, failure to do so would bring about Oyashiro-sama wrath and a horrible curse. The curse stated that one person would die and another would disappear. That was Oyashiro-sama's curse.

It sounded like a scary story meant to scare misbehaving children into being good but the villagers here believed it.

After dinner and doing his homework, Shinji went to bed. Of course, his rest would not be dreamless. He would be having dreams, intense dreams which would grow more and more vivid with each night he slept. In these dreams he saw himself doing incredible feats, possessing amazing powers, and basically defying the laws of physics itself.

In these dreams, he was a Kamen Rider Showa.

Shinji told his friends about his dreams which made them laugh. Mion told him he should stop watching Kamen Rider if it gave him weird dreams and Keiichi thought that being a Rider was awesome. Well, being the Rider was awesome but not how someone became a Rider. In the series, being a Rider was both a blessing and a curse and it was more the latter rather than the former. Being a Kamen Rider meant never to have a normal life ever again.

Shinji's weekdays followed the same routine and he enjoyed it. He would wake up, have breakfast with his family, go to school with his friends, play games with his friends after school, and show Rena how much he loved her when they were both at their private spot. They never went all the way though this week. Something kept interrupting.

On Saturday, he and his friends had a picnic at the Furude Shrine and Shinji swore he saw someone dressed in samurai armor standing at the shrine before vanishing from sight. Was he seeing spirits? He didn't tell his friends about this. He didn't want them to think he was crazy.

When he went to bed on Saturday, he had another dream. He and a group of other people were at a haunted hotel and fighting off well-dressed Minotaurs. He woke up with a start that night as well, drenched in cold sweat.

* * *

It was Sunday and the day of the Watanagashi Matsuri. He was going to hang out with his friends today and he had a feeling it would be a lot of fun. Festivals also meant games and the Gaming Club members all loved games.

As soon as they were together, Mion announced the activities' list and it said list were numerous contests with most of them being eating contests. They ate takoyaki, taiyaki, yakisoba and kimchi. To put it simply, they visited every booth that sold food and ate to their hearts contents. It was the most fun Shinji ever remembered.

Then they came upon a shooting gallery and Mion wanted a teddy bear. She, however, failed. Keiichi, however, didn't and he won the bear for her which she accepted with a blush. Shinji took a picture of the moment like he had so many times before.

Later that night, it was time for the sacred dance. Rika and Hanyuu, dressed as miko, took the sacred hoes and cut open the cotton mattress together. Shinji took a picture of the scene. This was his first time seeing something like this…but he had a nagging feeling he'd seen it many times before.

"_Shin…"_

"Huh?" Shinji blinked. Was someone calling his name.

"_Shin…"_

It was in the wind, a whisper.

"_Shin…ichi…"_

There it was again. What was it? Then, he realized something was amiss.

Everyone was frozen and not frozen in the sense that they were covered in ice but frozen like someone had hit 'Pause' in the middle of a video. Everyone was stationary, everyone but him.

"What…what's going on?" Shinji asked, looking around. He called his friends' names but they did not respond. He became confused and terrified. "What's going on!"

"Shinichi, you have to wake up," Shinji heard and he spun around. He gasped as he saw them. the bandaged ninja, the green demon and the samurai! They were real and they were talking to him!

"Who-who-who are you?" Shinji stammered, stepping back in fear.

The green Oni snorted, his muscular arms crossed, "You know who we are, Shinichi. We're your Tsukumogami."

"Tsuku…mogami?" Shinji repeated. They sighed.

"It would appear that witch has done it again," said the bandaged ninja.

"Indeed," the samurai agreed. The samurai identified himself, "I am Yabuki, spirit of the Higurashi no Yaiba."

"You can call me Zennin, spirit of the Kage no Hoshi."

"And I'm Gokuaku, spirit of the Oni no Hone."

"Yabuki…Zennin…Gokuaku…" Shinji repeated, the names sounding familiar. "Higurashi no Yaiba…Kage no Hoshi…Oni no Hone." His head hurt, throbbing, especially above his left eyebrow.

"Shinichi, you have to wake up," said Yabuki, "This is a dream."

"A dream?" Shinji asked.

"It's not real," Yabuki clarified. Shinii stared at him, speechless. "Shinichi?"

"No…" Shinji shook his head. He denied, "No, _this_ is real! _You're _the ones that are not real!"

"Shinichi, listen to us," said Yabuki desperately. "You have to wake up! You have to or else you and Alan will die!"

"A…Alan…" Shinji's head throb. "Who is…Alan…" That name made him think of the color green and a shining emerald light. "What…what's happening…?" Nothing was making sense.

"Shinji, this is all an illusion. This is the life you wanted and it is making it true but it is all a lie, everything," said Yabuki. "As much as you want to believe it's real, you can't live your life in a dream, not when there is so much at stake."

Shinji looked at his frozen friends and clenched his fists. Was it true? Was this all an illusion? He looked back at the Tsukumogami. They may have looked odd and out of place but they did not look dishonest.

"Make your decision, just make the right one and what you think is best," said Yabuki before he started to fade from view along with Gokuaku and Zennin.

"Wait!" Shinji called but they were gone. He murmured, "Make the right decision…"

"Shinji?" Rena asked. Shinji looked to her. Everyone was moving. Time had sped back up. "What's wrong?" she asked.

'_This…isn't real?_' Shinji asked himself.

After the sacred dance, the villagers lined up to receive their balls of cotton to send adrift on the river. It didn't take long until Shinji's group was next and as they each received their balls of cotton, he thought back to Yabuki's words.

He actually had a feeling that all this wasn't real. It was all too good to be true. The dreams he was having were his memories and this was a dream. That was what they meant. He wasn't dreaming that he was Kamen Rider Showa, he really was…

"Shin-kun, it's your turn," Rena said to him. He looked to her. "Shin-kun, what's the matter?" He put his hands on her cheeks. "Shin-kun, what are you doing?" she asked, confused. Everyone was watching as he gazed into her eyes tearfully.

He wanted this to be real, he really did, but the truth was this was just his ideal world, the world he wanted to live in, a dream he wanted to be real. It was a world without Kamen Riders and Kaijin, a world without heroes and villains. It was a peaceful world. It was a world where he'd never been taken by GIN-SHOCKER and made a cyborg. It was a world where his father Shotaro Banabara lived and his family was whole. It was a world where he didn't have to fight for every second of his life.

It was the world he'd always wanted and needed. However, it wasn't the **real** world. And right now, the real world needed **him**.

"I'm sorry, Rena-chan, but I have to go," he told her before kissing her deeply. "I'm sorry, but there's something important I have to do right now. Just remember that I love you." It was breaking his heart to leave, even if this was an illusion. It felt nice for things to follow a certain routine. It felt nice just to be normal with normal problems. It felt nice just to be who he always wanted to be. "Sayonara…"

But he wasn't Shinji Banabara, not anymore. His name was Shinichi Banabara and he was also known as…Kamen Rider…

"Hen…SHIN!" he called out into the heavens, a light blasting from his waist and bathing everything in its radiance.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: They say a true hero puts others before himself and have to make hard sacrifices for the greater good. Shinichi here had the chance to live in a world where everything was normal and peaceful and he was just a regular kid who was carefree. However, it was all just a realistic dream and he had to wake up. He could've been happy, but he gave it up because he had a mission. Well, next we'll take a glimpse at what Alan's ideal world would be like.**


	26. The Witch of Terror Part 12

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 12: What He's Lost**

There were so many ways Alan's could describe the way he was feeling. Elated, psyched, blissful, jovial, cheerful, joyful, glad, pleased and content were some of the words that could be used to describe his current mood. He was going home, and home meant that he'd be seeing a few beautiful women, his gorgeous baby girl among them.

He was returning from Oa. He was on a mission. A being known as Parallax had escaped the Central Power Battery and had possessed one of the rookies. Luckily, Alan and his fellow Lanterns managed to overcome fear and bring the villain to his knees. Parallax, unfortunately, had escaped to parts unknown but Alan was hopeful that they would find the being again in a new host and this time they'd be ready for it.

Alan touched down in front of a house in the suburbs and undid his uniform. He now sported a black t-shirt with a green jacket and blue jeans with black shoes on his feet. He ran a hand through his hair and then walked along the path towards the house. "Should've bought flowers," he mumbled to himself and then he rang the doorbell. He noticed a small bundle on the doorstep; a teddy bear and a small bouquet of flowers. With them was a note. Alan quietly read the note.

"I figured you'd forget the flowers again. Oh, and a gift for my goddaughter too."

It was signed by Pol Dgibb. Alan smiled. Pol had been his mentor since he first joined the Green Lantern Corps, and over time had become a member of the family. A small blonde girl in black opened the door. "You're late," said the girl. "Lulu has been crying."

Alan rubbed his head sheepishly. "Sorry Yami…Had to help with the reconstruction on Oa."

Yami seemed to nod a bit before asking, "And where's Jade?"

"Ah, she's part of the group that's putting the final details on it. She should be coming home tomorrow," Alan said, smiling. Sure, it was sort of annoying, but Jade assured him it wouldn't be long, and gave him a nice 'gift' before he left

He then noticed a beautiful pink haired girl walk over to him. She was carrying a baby girl, who had bright pink hair like her mother. "Welcome home," Lala said, smiling. She kissed him on the cheek, glad to see her husband home, safe and sound.

"Glad to be home," Alan smiled back as he gave his wife the flowers. The baby reached out for her father. "Hello there Lulu. You missed your daddy, didn't you?" He picked up the girl and gave her a kiss on the forehead before holding her gently.

Jade was his first love, true, but he had the Smith Charm and with it Alan Smith attracted a lot of female attention. The pink-haired girl, Lala, was his wife and she was also a princess. Her full name was Princess Lala Satalin Deviluke and she came from the Planet Deviluke which was also in an alliance with the Deathtron Army of Planet Death.

The Green Lantern Corps had a bit of a rivalry with the Deathtron Secret Police in regards to policing the galaxy. The DSP mostly went after criminals from their own world but the Green Lanterns often ran into those criminals when they wandered into their jurisdiction. Eventually, they reached an agreement. The Green Lanterns were allowed to pursue and capture them and the DSP were allowed to incarcerate them.

As to how he met Lala? A funny story, really. He was just taking a bath after a long day's work when she suddenly turned up inside his bathtub, naked as a newborn. She told him she was being pursued and as a member of the Green Lantern Corps, not to mention unable to resist a pretty face asking for help, he assisted her. Of course, she had not been entirely truthful as her pursuers were really her bodyguards come to take her home. He only found this out after he beat them up and piled them on top of each other. One thing led to another and he ended up accidentally engaged to Lala who accepted his 'proposal'. Actually, he said that he would go as far as sacrifice his own life for her, which was the equivalent to a marriage proposal on her world.

For Lala, it was love at first sight. For Alan, it was the beginning of his love troubles. Jade found out and she wasn't too happy at first. However, Lala was only happy enough to share Alan after she and Jade became friends. It turned out her planet was pretty big on polygamy and if she and Alan were to marry, he could have as many wives, mistresses or lovers that he wanted as Earth laws would no longer apply since he'd be king of Deviluke once they were wed, which they did and not only were they married but they also had a daughter. Lulu Smith Deviluke was the next heir to the Devilukian throne.

Some time before the wedding, Alan met Golden Darkness who was also known as Yami. Yami was a genetically engineered Deathtron assassin that had been sent to kill Alan Smith. Unfortunately, her stasis pod had crashed upon reentry and some of the memory files were corrupted. Those files had Alan's picture and without them Yami could not identify her target and ended up getting lost. Alan found her, hungry, and bought her taiyaki which to this day was her favorite food. Once she found out who he was she was about to attack him but she stopped after remembering his kindness and decided to stay on Earth and leave her life as an assassin behind.

Alan took several hours to explain to Jade about Yami as the blonde became part of their lives. Early in their relationship, whenever Alan did something that Yami deemed perverted, which was often unintentional, Yami would unleash her powers on him. Yami possessed the ability to morph her body parts into weapons and use them with deadly proficiency. She was a walking, talking, living, weapon in the form of a cute blonde girl.

"Oh, we also have guests," said Lala.

"Guests?" Alan asked.

"Yo, whasup, Alan-kun!" a cheery voice greeted and Alan cringed. Sitting in the living room with a cup of coffee in front of her was Ryuko Hasuma. Ryuko was the daughter of Ryuki and Jinx and one of Alan's closest friends. Ryuko also loved to tease Alan and after she found out about Alan getting hitched to Lala, she would tease him about it whenever the mood suited her. Also, she tried to _help_ Lala Earth cultured which often turned out to be something perverted which would often lead to Yami attacking him.

"Greetings, Alan-san," greeted a polite voice that calmed Alan down. This was Ryutaro Hasuma, Ryuko's twin brother. He was the calmer one of the two and was respectful to others. He was polite and soft-spoken but when angered he could turn into a raging storm. He disapproved of Alan's lifestyle but tolerated it nonetheless for the sake of their friendship. He was having tea and not the caffeine-laden beverage his sister was having.

"Hi, Ryutaro," Alan greeted the boy before turning to the girl, "What are you doing here, Ryuko?"

"Can't good friends visit each other?" Ryuko asked innocently.

"Whenever you visit, I end up in trouble," Alan reminded, "Or you need me to bail you out."

"It's nothing like that, honest," said Ryutaro. "Onee-sama really did want to visit you. She really misses you."

"Ryutaro, the last time she _missed_ me was when she _accidentally_ shot a homing rocket at me," Alan deadpanned.

"Again, not my fault. My finger slipped," Ryuko defended herself.

"Slipped on the trigger," Alan argued. "You just wanted to have a laugh and watch a rocket chase me halfway across the city."

"Hey, you're alive and I'm alive. Let's just be happy we're all alive."

"I'd be happy if you stopped trying to have fun at my expense," Alan retorted as he sat down. "By the way, how's Uncle Ryuki?"

"Oh, he and Mom are on a cruise," Ryuko told Alan. "They're on their 4th honeymoon."

"5th," Ryutaro corrected. "5th honeymoon."

"Seriously, they're too old for this romantic crap," Ryuko huffed.

"You're never too old to love," both Alan and Ryutaro countered.

"And your mom still looks good for a woman her age," said Alan.

"Yeah, everyone says she looks like she's still in her early thirties while she's actually in her forties," Ryuko rolled her eyes.

"That's not too hard to believe. Tsunade-san does look like a woman in her late twenties despite her true age," Ryutaro told her sister.

"Seriously, why is that all the older women that we know never look their age?" Ryuko questioned. "Seriously, why is that? I mean even Wonder Woman still looks hot."

"She's an immortal Amazon, Onee-sama."

"That was rhetorical, Ryuta."

Lulu fell asleep in Alan's arms, sucking on her thumb. He smiled down at his beautiful daughter. He would not trade this life for anything.

Alan went up and gently put Lulu in her crib with her brand new teddy bear. He looked down at the child. She was so beautiful, just like her mother. However, as she was the crown princess of Planet Deviluke, many undesirables may try to kidnap her in order to use her for leverage. The thought angered Alan. He would not allow anyone with bad intent to come near his daughter. He swore an oath to always protect his loved ones and would not break that oath even under threat of death.

When he and Lala first became engaged, there was a lot of opposition from many parties. Lala had many suitors. Many, many suitors. These suitors would often come and challenge Alan for Lala's hand in marriage. They stood no chance. Then there was Lala's father and godfather, the latter turning out to be Ichijyo Desmond Amakusa-Akuma himself who was one of the leading figures in the Deathtron military. It was funny to hear Lala call him 'Uncle Itchy' but he was not amused that his goddaughter had hooked up with a Green Lantern of all things. He didn't hate the Corps, but he really didn't like how some of the Corpsmen treated Deathtrons.

Deathtrons were still being treated with discrimination, suspicion and outright hatred. Considering their long history of warmongering and conquering planets through genocide, it would take a long time before the rest of the universe would trust anyone who wore the symbol. To the Deathtrons, it was a symbol of pride. To many others, it was a reminder of the atrocities that were committed during the Great Orion Wars that had gone on for a long, long, long time.

However, Lala pretty much insisted and fought for her right to be with Alan. She even went as far as threatening her father that she would renounce her family in order to be with him. Alan was touched. She was willing to give up her luxurious life of royalty to be with him. That act just made him fall deeper in love with her.

Eventually, they were married with the ceremony being broadcasted all over the universe. The Devilukian Empire was a large and incredibly well-known throughout the universe. In fact, the venue of the wedding was the Sky Palace which Ichijyo had provided for them. Unfortunately, their wedding day had nearly been ruined by the appearance of space pirates which were repelled by all the heroes in attendance. Despite the interruption, the wedding went on and both Lala and Alan became husband and wife.

Almost a year later, Lulu was born and again space pirates came to try and break up Alan and Lala's happy life together. They had kidnapped the infant and taken her hostage. Unfortunately, they had not counted on half the Green Lantern Corps and Deathtron Military Force to come after them. This was one of the rare moments where two rivaling factions actually worked together. It was one of the greatest moments in history.

With Alan representing the Green Lanterns and Ichijyo representing the Deathtrons, peace was made between them.

* * *

Alan was out on patrol in the city when he spotted something. There seemed to be a break-in at a grocery store and someone was fleeing the scene. He rolled his eyes. Despite the fact there was a Green Lantern present in the city criminal were still trying to commit crime right under his nose. He quickly dropped down in front of the thief, startling him as he crossed his arms.

"I suggest putting back whatever it is you took," Alan said to the thief who gulped before running away quickly in the opposite direction.

"Why do they always run?" Alan asked himself with a shake of his head before chasing the thief down. He was about to activate his ring when green bola suddenly wrapped around the thief's legs and tied them together, causing him to trip and fall. "What the…? I didn't do that."

"No, but I did," Jade said, smiling as she hovered down in front of Alan. "Hello, lover, nice to see you again."

"Nice to see you too, Jade," Alan smiled. "Lala and Yami missed you, you know."

"I know," Jade said smiling. Jade was Alan's first love and partner. She was also the daughter of the man Alan was named after, Alan Scott, the man who'd wielded the Star Heart and used the name Green Lantern. Jade was appropriately named due to her green skin and hair, both due to her father. She possessed the same abilities a Green Lantern would have with a power ring only that she didn't need to use hers. While she was a member of the Green Lantern Corps alongside Alan, she never really used her ring except to give her a boost in power. Her Green Lantern uniform was mostly white with green leggings and sleeves that ended in white boots and gloves, respectively. She sported the Corps' emblem on her chest but it was on top of the Star Heart symbol as well, combining them both into a single insignia. The uniform was skin tight and really showed off her sexy curves and well-toned body. Her green skin just made her very exotic.

At first she wasn't very happy about the Devilukian princess being in love with Alan and claiming him as her fiancé but Lala quickly became a good friend of hers, with Yami being a nice addition to their family. She pretty much gave Lala her blessings to have Alan as her husband. Yami was happy enough just being around Alan, and taiyaki.

"Ahem!" Both turned to see Obsidian looking at them, annoyed. He had the thief wrapped in shadows. "I suggest you guys be less lovey-dovey because this guy crawling away."

"Sorry, bro," Jade said scratching her head.

"Yeah yeah, I'll be handing this guy over to the police. You guys go and catch up," Obsidian muttered as he walked to the police station

"Thanks, and tell Damon I said hi," Alan said as she and Jade flew away. Both chuckled as they witnessed Obsidian stumble a bit before walking again.

* * *

When Jade and Alan reached home, both saw a strange device began juggling stuff around and grabbing various other things to juggle. Lulu was happily giggling as Yami was trying to take it down but with little effect as it always managed to avoid her death blows.

"Do I dare ask?" Alan asked Lala dryly.

"Well, I wanted to make a toy for Lulu-chan so I made Juggle-juggle-kun," she said, revealing the machine to be one of her inventions.

"And the reason Yami wants to destroys it?" Alan asked

"Well, I didn't finish his limiter on what not to juggle and long story short he sort of ripped Yami's door while she was changing," Lala explained, "But don't worry, I made sure he doesn't try to juggle people since that would be too dangerous."

Alan shook his head and activated his ring to stop the machine while Jade used hers to stop Yami.

"Next time Lala, you gotta remember to be more careful with your inventions," Alan said, but he smiled. So far today was a very good day for him. Nothing was going wrong for him.

* * *

"Lulu-chan is a healthy baby girl," Dr. Hasuma reported after finishing the checkup.

"Thanks again, Uncle Ryuki," said Alan as he held Lulu in her arms. She had cried after getting her immunization shot but being in her father's arms calmed her down.

"It's no problem Alan. I'm happy to do it," said Dr. Hasuma as he checked his schedule. "By the way, I think it's time for your own checkup and…" He turned and saw Alan had gone. "I hate it when they disappear like that."

Alan was already heading home with Lulu in his arms. He was holding his child while flying through the air. Lulu absolutely loved flying.

He landed in front of the door and changed his clothes to civilian form before entering as he declared, "I'm home!"

* * *

A week later, Alan and Jade were in space, on patrol when his and Jade's rings started to beep.

"Hmm, looks like there is some trouble on Aoran," Jade mentioned as she and Alan went on patrol.

"Aoran." Alan frowned in confusion, for some reason hearing that name brought bad emotion to the forefront

"Yeah, you know the planet we saved. They pretty much consider us gods, hell I think they were building us a golden statue in our honor, last I remember," Jade said

"Oh, right." Alan said smiling. How could he forget that? Still there was a tiny portion of his mind telling him something was wrong.

"We better check it out to see what's going on," suggested Jade. "Come on, last one there has to cook dinner!" She shot off towards Aoran.

"Hey, wait for me!" Alan called as he shot off after her. Jade laughed.

"Catch me if you can slowpoke!"

When they arrived at their destination, both Jade and Alan blinked at the strange being that was clad in green, gold-trimmed armor with a red orb in the chest. The being also wore a silver mask on its face with a red orb in the centre. It was pretty much carving what looked like an Anti-Green Lantern logo into the ground with beams of energy from his hands. It had carved the symbols everywhere, in fact. The symbols were on the ground and buildings.

"What are you doing?" Alan asked. The place they were in had no people. It was pretty much an uninhabited area of Aoran with nobody in sight for miles. All the buildings had been abandoned, in fact. They were now merely ruins.

"Well, it's about time you showed up. What took you so long?" the figure asked while looking at the two, more specifically Alan. "I tell you, you know how hard it is to find a place to get your attention? And then I have to find a way to bring you here, which wasn't easy mind you!"

"Who the heck are you?" Alan asked, confused.

"What? Oh right, you don't recognize me in this form, but you should still remember my name. It's me. It's Bazel."

"Ba…zel," Alan repeated slowly. He then clutched his head as an image of an armband appeared that oddly gave him a great flash of annoyance for some reason.

Bazel cried out as Jade blasted at him. "Hey!" Bazel shouted, "I'm talking here!"

"Sorry, but we heard reports of a strange being causing trouble and since you've been drawing graffiti all over the place, we think that's you," said Jade.

"Hey, ever heard of innocent before proven guilty?" Bazel argued. He ducked under another green beam. "Seriously! Are you the type to shoot first and ask questions never?" Bazel narrowly avoided being hit by another beam as he sidestepped the blast. "CAN YOU PLEASE STOP SHOOTING?"

"Jade, wait," said Alan. Bazel might've been annoying, but he deserved to be heard out. Jade didn't hear him as she continued shooting the dodging Bazel. "Jade!" Alan shouted, getting her attention. She stopped blasting and turned to look at her partner. "Maybe we should hear him out."

"Hear him out?" Jade repeated.

"Yeah, I don't know how to say this but I think…I think I know him," Alan responded.

"You think you know him?" Jade repeated.

"Are you going to repeat everything I say?" Alan questioned, annoyed.

"Yes, until you start making sense, Alan," Jade answered.

"OK, look, I see you have things to talk about, so I'll just leave," said Bazel as he started to float away, only for energy in the shape of a large shackle that was attached to a chain to bind him in place, wrapping around his torso as it pinned his arms to the sides, "OH, COME ON!"

"Sorry, but you're not going anywhere, vandal," said Jade who was holding the chain. "We're taking you in for questioning."

Bazel sighed. "OK, I hate to do this, but you leave me no choice." His body began to vibrate as a green aura started to seep out of his body. Jade and Alan's eyes widened.

"JADE, TAKE COVER!"

There was a bright flash of light and both Jade and Alan screamed.

* * *

"Ugh…" Alan groaned and when he woke up he realized that he was spread eagle with his arms and legs tied up against metal poles which had been set up at his sides to hold him. He also felt a draft and looked down to see that he'd been stripped of his uniform and was only in his white briefs. He blushed. He never wanted anyone to see this particular pair of underwear because they were printed with the Green Lantern Corps' emblem.

He heard groaning and craned his head to the side to see Jade. She too was strung up like him. While he still had his underwear, she was completely naked. Any other time he would've appreciated the view but not right now. He also saw that her ring was missing, much like his.

He looked around and found the place they were in to be a dense jungle. Weren't they just in a sort of wasteland or something just a minute ago? He also saw that they were surrounded by scantily clad women and they did not look friendly.

"So, you've awakened, green man," a condescending voice spoke and Alan looked only to gape at the beauty strutting towards him. She had an hourglass figure with a bust that could put any of his lovers' to shame and she wasn't afraid to flaunt it. Her raven hair was long and parted in the middle and she also wore snake-shaped earring. Her clothing consisted of a red belly shirt that had a low V-neckline that showed off her cleavage. Around her waist was a sarong that exposed one of her slender legs. She also wore bracelets around her wrists and ankles and hanging from her back was a leopard print cape. Actually, her cape looked to be made out of a leopard's skin.

For some reason, she seemed very familiar to him, even though they had not met before. At least, he didn't think they'd met before.

Talk about déjà vu.

"Hi," he greeted lamely, "Um…where are we and who are you?"

SLAP!

He received a slap from the woman for his remark.

"OK, I'm not sure if I deserved _that_," Alan mumbled.

The woman laughed and pointed at him, throwing her head back. This had the effect of pushing her bust forward and Alan licked his lips as his fingers started to twitch. He wanted to just squeeze those things that were staring back at him tauntingly.

"I am the ruler of the Amazons here! You may address me as Empress Conda Ana!" she declared.

"Right, Your Majesty," said Alan. "So, why are Jade and I tied up like this?"

"My sisters saw two green stars falling from the sky and found you both. We were not sure what to make of you. Since you both seemed unharmed, we brought you back. However, we also removed your rings." Alan saw that hanging from Conda's neck were his and Jade's rings. "When we removed them, you were without clothes."

'_Jade…when will you learn to never go commando?_' thought Alan. He felt a tender hand on his reddened cheek which Conda had slapped.

"You are a very handsome young man," said Conda, "Maybe I'll have you and once I'm bored with you my sisters will have you."

"Have me?" Alan repeated. "You mean…" Conda's leg was rubbing against his own seductively. "Oh…" Conda then forced her lips against his, forcing his mouth open and raping his mouth with her tongue.

Jade's eyes slowly opened and she looked to see Alan locking lips with another woman. "Alan, again?"

Conda broke the kiss, licking her lips, and leaving Alan dazed. He, however, did respond, "Not…my fault…" he said breathlessly.

"Right, your 'family curse'," Jade remarked, rolling her eyes. She found herself naked and tied up with her ring missing.

"So…" Conda said, rubbing his chest up and down with her hand. "How about you warm my bed for many months to come?"

"Well…" Alan began.

"Are you seriously thinking about it?" Jade asked, eyes narrowed.

"I have a problem resisting attractive women," Alan responded. Conda sauntered over to Jade.

"Is this green girl your lover?" Conda asked.

"Hey, my name's Jade!" Jade snapped. Suddenly, spears were held close to her throat. "Woah…easy there…" Jade began to sweat a little.

"Don't hurt her!" Alan shouted.

"Well, you know what to do then," said Conda.

"YES, HE'S COMING WITH ME!"

Magical blasts of energy rained down on the Amazons, throwing them through the air. Conda was stunned.

"Now what?" Alan asked. He watched as someone descended. Another woman that was also attractive. She was dressed in a green tube top with green gloves that went up to her elbows. She wore tight green pants with a green sash tied around her waist and the pants were tucked into green boots that had stiletto heels. She also wore a tiara that looked like horns. Her hair was also golden, cascading down her back in waves.

"Who are you, tramp?" Conda demanded.

"Tramp?" the blonde scoffed. "I expect you to know your betters, Amazon. I am the goddess Amora who is also known as the Enchantress, and I have had my eye on this one for quite some time now."

"Another stalker?" Alan and Jade asked.

Amora went up to Alan and smiled at him before snapping her fingers that broke his bindings. She then wrapped her arms about him and called him, "Lover."

"OK, that's it!" Jade used her own powers to break her bindings. She didn't really need her ring. She just used it to keep in contact with the Corps and fellow Corpsmen. "Stay away from Alan!"

"Jade, you're still naked," Alan reminded but she didn't seem to care.

Amora laughed, "Hohohoho! You wish to challenge me, child of the Star Heart?"

"Bring it on, bitch!" Jade shot back. She used her powers to reform her uniform.

"Don't forget about me!" Conda declared, drawing a sword. "The man is mine and he will be mine! You shall not stop me!"

Alan could only gawk as the three women started fighting over him. Of course, he had to go get some clothes on him.

"You know, I love a good catfight," a familiar voice said and Alan spun around to stand face-to-face with…

"Bazel!" Alan identified.

"Yeah, and this is yours, right?" Bazel asked as he opened his palm to reveal a pair of rings.

"How did you…?" Alan started to ask. Hadn't those rings been on Conda. He shook his head, deciding not to question his fortune. Alan took them before slipping one on. It restored his uniform in a flash of green light.

"You know, guys would love to be in your position. Having three hot girls fight over you is like every man's dream," said Bazel.

"More like a nightmare," Alan replied.

"Yeah, but you get used to it," Bazel shrugged. "Alan, I have a message for you: wake up."

"Wake up?" Alan questioned. He heard Jade shout and spun around to see her being pelted by magical blasts of energy from Amora. "Jade!" He turned back to Bazel and saw he'd gone. "Damn it…" he growled before shooting towards the air to help Jade.

* * *

Things were settled peacefully enough. Unfortunately, no matter how hard they tried or how much they argued, Conda and Amora would not give up their claim on Alan. Thus was the reason why the two women were now staying at Alan's.

"We're going to need a bigger house," said Alan as he looked at everyone who was seated for dinner. Lala, as usual, was happy for the new arrivals while Yami was pretty much indifferent. She didn't care as long as they did not get in the way of her 'Alan time'. Jade, of course, was trying to get used to their new housemates.

"I can help with that, Alan!" said Lala. "I can invent something that will make our house bigger!"

"Lala, whatever you do, don't accidentally turn the house into a black hole…again," Alan told her. Lala pouted and continued to feed Lulu.

"I can just use my magic to turn this place into a castle," Amora said.

"People will notice when a castle suddenly pops up in the suburbs," Jade protested. Amora scoffed at the remark.

Alan just sighed when he felt something nudge his foot from under the table. He looked under the table and smiled at the grey wolf staring back at him. "Hey, Nozomu. Are you hungry?"

Nozomu was a wolf he'd picked up one day. Actually, when he'd found her, she'd been injured. After Alan nursed her back to health she'd not wanted to leave his side. He had no choice but to bring her home with him. As usual, he was weak against cute females of any species.

Also, Nozomu was no normal wolf.

Nozomu then pounced on Alan, knocking him onto the floor with his chair. The wolf then transformed into a naked girl that was underdeveloped but still cute, sporting wolf ears and a tail. She was also naked.

Nozomu was actually an Okami Yokai and after Alan had helped her she'd fallen in love. Nozomu lay on his chest, nuzzling him.

"Nozomu, what did I say about pouncing Alan?" scolded Jade.

"It's fine, Jade," Alan said to his green girlfriend. "It's just fine." He ruffled Nozomu's hair.

* * *

"So, word on the street is that your harem's grown," said Ryuko as she and Alan walked along a hallway in ARMOR HQ.

"Where did you hear that?" Alan asked.

"I heard it from Tessa, who heard it from Alex, who heard it from Naruto, who heard it from Lucy, who then heard it from…" Ryuko listed the names within the network.

"Jade," Alan finished.

"No, it was Yami-chan," Ryuko corrected.

"Never pegged her to be the type to gossip," Alan blinked.

"Well, she and Lucy do have one thing in common, they love to kill," said Ryuko.

"Actually killing's just part of their job. I don't think they enjoy it," Alan argued.

Ryuko shrugged, "Whatever. All I know is that you got a harem." She nudged him with her elbow. "So, you want to beat your old man at who has the bigger harem, huh?"

"Shut up," Alan shot back. "It's not a competition." Ryuko pulled something out of her pocket and handed it to Alan. It was a small box with a bow on top. "What's this?"

"A late birthday present, for you," Ryuko said. "Take it."

Alan gave his friend a suspicious look before taking it.

"Don't open it until you get home," Ryuko reminded, grinning from ear-to-ear. "You are so going to love it."

That didn't reassure Alan one bit.

* * *

"Alan, look at what Lulu can do!" Lala pointed. Lulu was levitating and 'swimming' towards her daddy, reaching out to him.

"There's daddy's little angel," Alan laughed as he caught her.

"Hey, what do you have there?" Jade asked, referring to the box in Alan's hand.

"Oh, this? Ryuko gave it to me." Jade gave the box a wary look. "Look, Ryuko may like getting me into trouble for a laugh, sometimes, but I doubt she'd try to trick me with a present."

"Alan…" Jade said slowly.

"You're probably right." Alan handed Lulu back to Lala. "Stand back."

He opened the box and peered inside to see a small red and white orb. "No…way…" He picked up the orb and it enlarged with a push of a button. "You have got to be kidding me."

"What's that, Alan?" Lala asked.

"It's a Pokeball," Alan frowned. The Pokeball shook violently in Alan's hand. "Hey, what the hell!" He dropped it and it popped open. Light blasted from the open ball and took shape. "Oh…fuck it."

Appropriate choice of words, Alan Smith, and if this was what you thought it was then that would be exactly what you'd be doing with it.

It was Boobisaur, a plant-type Pokégirl. The Pokégirl stretched and then yawned before staring back at Alan. She then smiled widely before pouncing him.

"Good morning, Master," the Boobisaur chirped.

Jade slapped her forehead, "Great, another one…"

"She's so cute," Lala gushed as she hugged the Boobisaur, "So, what's your name?"

She shook her head, "I don't have one," before she turned to Alan and blushed, "May you give me name, Master?"

Alan shrugged, "Sure, why not?" He took a minute to think and blinked, "How about Bishie?"

Bishie smiled wide and glomped Alan, "I love it, Master!" And she smashed her lips against his.

* * *

"So, my daughter gave you a Pokegirl," Dr. Hasuma summarized.

"Yes, she did," Alan confirmed.

"She really does take after her aunt," Dr. Hasuma sighed.

"You mean she's borderline psychotic?" Alan asked. "I think I found that out as soon as I met her."

"No, I mean she's like her aunt in the way she's always been impulsive and doesn't think of the consequences of her actions," Dr. Hasuma answered. "So, do you want to return her?"

"Even if I wanted to, it's too late now," said Alan.

"You've Tamed her," Dr. Hasuma concluded.

"I Tamed _them_," Alan corrected.

"Them, but you only have one…Oh!" Dr. Hasuma blushed when he realized what Alan meant. "I-I-I see."

Alan grinned. His dad was right. Embarrassing Dr. Hasuma was fun.

* * *

Things just got even more interesting for Alan overtime. Lala's sisters, Nana and Momo paid them a visit and Momo had given him a plant for a present. It had been a multistory carnivorous alien plant but he still cared for it. He even named it Celine.

Then, one day it seemed that Celine had fallen sick before dying but Celine had left something behind. It looked like an egg and when it hatched…

"Mau!" It was Celine, only in human form, resembling a female infant with long green hair and a flower atop her head.

Alan sighed. "Guess Lulu's getting a new playmate."

"Oh, she's so cute!" Bishie lifted Celine up. "Hello, little one! I'm your mommy!"

"Mau!" Celine responded.

His family had grown again.

"Seriously, I think we need a bigger house," said Alan. It wasn't really a problem, though. Lala had used an invention to increase the space of some of the rooms, even adding new rooms for the girls. Celine slept in the nursery with Lulu in a separate crib and the two infants really hit it off.

* * *

Bazel watched the house from a distance and sighed. He knew this would hurt Alan but this was something he had to do. This was going to hurt Alan a lot and Bazel really didn't want to do this. Unfortunately, he had no other choice and no other way. There was only one way for Alan to wake up and it was to traumatize him.

He knew just one thing that could break this spell. It would be a horrible thing to do but in hindsight the ends justified the means.

"I sure hope you forgive me, partner."

* * *

It had happened so suddenly and without warning. One moment everyone was opening Christmas presents then all of a sudden there was an explosion. The entire neighborhood was leveled leaving a deep crater in place of everything that had once been built upon the land.

Alan woke up, horrified at the sight. "Jade? Lala? Amora? Nozomu? Conda? Yami? Bishie? Celine?" he called. He called their names over and over. Nobody answered and he didn't see anyone at all. They were gone and he knew that none of them had survived, including his daughters Lulu and Celine. He didn't want to think of it but he knew deep in his heart that they were all gone.

"No…" Alan sobbed. Why was this happening? Why now? When everything was doing so well for him, why did his happiness get suddenly torn away from him? In one fell swoop he'd just lost his entire family.

Then he saw the cause standing in the centre of the crater. It was Major Force and he was holding Jade by her skull. The madman looked at him with a grin before he increased the pressure on Jade's skull, crushing it.

Alan screamed as the sight, "JADE!"

Jade's lifeless body was dropped onto the ground before Major Force stomped on it. He then laughed. That mocking laughter was coming from someone who thought ending lives was just a huge joke. That was the laugh of a true monster.

"YOU MONSTER!" Alan roared, his eyes glowing red as an additional pair appeared above them. Green and dark energy flared from his body like flames. "YOU KILLED THEM! YOU KILL THEM ALL! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Alan then exploded in a burst of green and dark light with a demonic roar that reached the heavens and finally…nothing.

* * *

Alan looked around, "W-where am I?" One moment he'd been attacking Major Force and the next he was here, wherever here was. It looked like a cemetery.

Looking to the distance, he spotted himself kneeling in front of a grave, and felt fear as he slowly walked forward. Despite the trepidation in his bones he leaned down to see the name written upon the grave, and it made his blood run cold. The name written on it was…

"ARRGH!" Alan shouted as he clutched his head as he saw a vision of Jade's mutilated corpse and seeing himself kill Major Force by sending him to the void of space.

"Stop," Alan pleaded as he saw the death of Aoran and him viciously stealing Green Lantern rings and leaving their wearers to float in outer space. More and more memories began to play before his eyes.

* * *

_Alan wrapped his hands around Pol Dgibb's throat. "I should have done this long ago…damn you."_

_"You know you probably should ha-"_

_KRACK!_

* * *

"Please stop..." Alan begged as he saw himself as Parallax-Alan destroying the Deathtron home world, causing many atrocities. He also witnessed the fight between Shadowcobra and himself in the past.

"_You have to remember, Alan."_

* * *

_"I will get in your way, Alan Smith," hissed Shadowcobra. "You destroyed theDeathtron home world, wiped out my fellow Deathtrons, and now you're about to destroy the universe as we know it."_

_"Creation cannot begin without destruction," Parallax-Alan snarled._

_"I can't allow that," Shadowcobra retorted. "You will recreate it in your own image with your own selfish ideals. That is not the universe I want to livein."_

_"Then you have NO place in it!" Shadowcobra froze as a strange feeling washed over him. "If I am to instill order into the Multiverse, it must be redone. All I'm trying to do is fix everything. If you stand in my way…I'll erase you."_

_Shadowcobra froze as his armor shattered. He felt…lighter. Gazing upon his hands, he could see right through them. "What have you done, Alan Smith!" Shadowcobra demanded._

_"I erased an obstacle," Parallax-Alan answered._

_Shadowcobra hissed, "You'll be pay for this…" as he began to fade from existence._

_"I already am," Parallax-Alan said coldly. "I already am…"_

* * *

_Ryutaro continued to shoot at Parallax-Alan, moving at Clock Up speed to attack from all directions. Parallax-Alan was able to move within the same Clock Up space as well, deflecting the bullets. The Dragonfly Inzecter Gun wasn't his only weapon, though. He also had the Perfect Inzecter Sword with him, which he managed to snatch from his sister before the explosive light array._

_Ryutaro rushed in and slashed at Parallax-Alan, who in retaliation punched at Ryutaro. The young Hasuma dodged and shot at Parallax-Alan repeatedly, trying to break through the energy field around his former friend's body._

_Despite having a bayonet wound in his chest, Parallax-Alan was able to replenish himself using energies from the Central Power Battery of Oa. He was still able to fight back against Ryutaro. However, what confused him was that he couldn't draw on more power than he already had. It was like it was it was being filtered._

_No, actually, it was because he lacked a conduit and he finally realized it just as Ryutaro managed to break his force field with the Perfect Inzecter before using a series of kicks to send Parallax-Alan staggering. A sweep kick knocked him off his feet and onto his back where Ryutaro pinned him down with his foot. Both the Dragonfly Gun and Perfect Inzecter Sword were pointed at Alan's face._

_"Any last words?" Ryutaro asked._

_Parallax-Alan averted his eyes and then spotted Kilowog's skull. He recalled what he'd done and finally the gravity of the situation fell upon his shoulders. He realized finally the true cost of his actions. He thought he could play god, but then…but then…why did he kill all his friends? Why did he kill all those people? They were just trying to help him._

_"I'm sorry, Jade…" he apologized. Ryutaro was taken aback when he heard those words._

_"What?" Ryutaro asked._

_"Ryutaro, if you want to finish me off now, then I won't stop you. Just…tell everyone how sorry I am," Parallax-Alan said, looking at Ryutaro's visor-covered eyes._

_"Alan, you were my friend but then you betrayed us, betrayed all of us," said Ryutaro angrily, finger on the trigger, "and I should just kill you now, but…" Ryutaro stepped off Parallax-Alan, his arms hung at his sides."I…can't kill someone who I watched grow up, and who I loved like a youngerbrother, no matter what the reason."_

_Parallax-Alan rose to his feet. The two faced each other, eyes locked. "I'm sorry," Parallax-Alan apologized, lamenting his past actions, before flying off back into space._

* * *

Alan screamed feeling the hatred and sorrow as he relived these memories. Bazel grimaced as he watched his partner suffer but these were all Alan's memories. He would have to face them again, one way or another.

* * *

_Parallax-Alan floated in the center of the sun, his powers as Parallax's host keeping him from being absorbed by the Sun Eater. 'I took an Oath…A longtime ago. And that oath taught me something none of them will ever understand. There are two ways to dispel the darkness…' Parallax-Alan extended his arms and began to recite his former Oath._

_"In Brightest Day…"_

_'To shine a light…' A glowing emerald light shone from his hand._

_"In Blackest Night…"_

_'Or to draw the darkness in!' The Sun Eater was being absorbed into his other hand._

_"No evil shall escape my sight! Let those who worship evil's might…BEWARE MYPOWER…" Parallax-Alan's words were cut off as a massive explosion of green energy occurred, reigniting the sun, sacrificing his own life in the process…_

_'Jade…I'm coming…'_

* * *

Finally, he remembered using the last of his power to revive Ryuko. He slumped down on his knees with tears streaming down his face.

"I'm sorry Alan," Bazel apologized, his voice toned with sadness. He was once again in armband form and worn by Alan. "I know this is your perfect world, but it's still just a dream and the others need your help. And I can't leave Lala and everyone back home to worry about you."

"I don't blame you Bazel," Alan said as he felt his hatred build up. He was mad at Bazel for ruining his perfect dream world but he also understood why Bazel did what he did. Besides, he was madder at the memories than he was at Bazel. "But whoever did this will pay!" Alan unleashed a loud scream that caused the whole world to shatter like glass.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now THAT was emotionally draining. Seriously, this was just as painful, if not more so, than when I wrote Shinichi's dream world. Still it had to be done. So, now Alan has righteous fury and is going to take it out on someone, preferably Anastasia.**


	27. The Witch of Terror Part 13

**THE WITCH OF TERROR**

**Part 13: Extreme Force**

Shinichi's eyes snapped wide open and then he realized he was both tied up and hanging upside down from the ceiling with a chain. He also realized he was tied up against someone and craned his head around to see that it was Alan. "Alan! Alan, can you hear me?" He then looked down and saw on the floor was some kind of plant-like creature with writhing tentacles. The thorny tendrils were attached to a bunch of bulb-shaped flowers that resembled tulips with thin tongues. "WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!"

The creature lunged for Shinichi but was snatched out of the air by one of its tendrils and slammed to the floor. A boot then stomped on it and squashed it dead.

"Yeah, suck on that, bitch!" the boot-wearer said.

"Huh?" Shinichi blinked. "Yuji, what was that thing?"

"That thing was sucking on your chest and giving you a good dream," Yuji explained.

"So that's what it was," Shinichi realized. "I knew it was too good to be true," he muttered. He requested, "Hey, can you get me and Alan down?"

Yuji pointed his gun at the chain suspending the two and fired, breaking the chain and sending the two falling with a thud. "Ow…" Shinichi groaned.

"Sorry, my bad," Yuji apologized. He then proceeded to untie the two. Shinichi got up but Alan was still down and had the same plant that Yuji had squashed on his chest with its tendrils around him. Shinichi reached for it but Yuji stopped him. "No, don't touch it."

"But that thing might be killing him," Shinichi said.

"Alan has to break free on his own and these things make sure you don't wanna break free," Yuji explained.

"You seem to know a lot about what these things are," said Shinichi.

"I've had a similar experience a while back. It's called the Black Mercy," Yuji answered. "Learning about how it was sucking on my chest made my eye twitch for three days."

Shinichi frowned but then he saw the Black Mercy's grip loosening from Alan as he started to become lucid. His eyes then narrowed as he took hold of the Black Mercy's tendrils and then ripped it right off before tossing it away. The Black Mercy lunged for Alan but ended up fried by Alan's ring, burning it to a crisp.

"Woah…" Shinichi had felt the attack's intensity. Alan looked unhappy, really unhappy. He looked like he wanted to rip someone apart. "Alan, are you feeling okay?"

"I just experienced what it would be like to have what I once lost only to lose it again," Alan responded in monotone, "What the hell do you think?"

"Well, I think we should all get out of-" Yuji began only to be suddenly interrupted by a massive explosion beneath their feet.

* * *

"What…?" Shinichi uttered. He remembered a blast and then nothing. He now woke up, dazed and in shock. His bones felt sore and he was injured, possibly internally as well. He then saw something in the distance. It was blurry but his eyes managed to focus enough just to make out the details of this person.

The man was tall, well built with huge muscles like a body builder on steroids, and seemed to be painted from head to toe. From his head to his shoulders and chest he was blood red and then the rest of him was a gold color. His hair, which also happened to be colored red along with his head, was in a buzz cut and his eyes gleamed in an unnatural white color. On the left side of his chest was the letter F that was made out of several squares that were arranged together to make said shape.

As he got his wits together, he sat up and saw the red and gold man firing dark blasts of energy from his hands at the armored Green Lantern who retaliated with green blasts as well. What was his name again? Adam? Andy? That explosion must've shook Shinichi's memory about. Alan…Alan Smith. Yeah, Alan Smith was his name.

Shinichi checked his surroundings and found himself on a flat surface with a huge hole in the centre with cracks surrounding it. Now he remembered. They were at a hotel that had now turned into a battlefield with Alan going up against red and gold man.

"Hey, are you okay?" a familiar female voice asked and Shinichi looked to see Asura, Lilith and Yuji approaching. They were also keeping watch on Alan and his opponent.

"I…think so," Shinichi said as he got up on one knee, shaking his head. "Ugh, what happened? Last thing I remember was some kind of…"

"Explosion," Yuji finished. Shinichi nodded.

"It took us all by surprise and knocked us out pretty good," said Asura.

"When we woke up, we heard fighting and there Alan is," said Lilith, pointing to the Green Lantern who was still blasting away. The red and gold guy was also blasting away. Green blasts met dark blasts and exploded, followed with a shockwave that nearly blew everyone off their feet.

Shinichi got back to his feet and then looked at the two combatants. He knew just what to do and put on his Scada Buckle.

"Hey, are you sure you're up for this?" Yuji asked, concern written on his face. He saw Shinichi's expression. "Shinichi?"

"I just had to abandon a happy little dream because I have a job to do so I'm a bit angry right now," Shinichi answered, his eyes cold, "So, I need to take my anger out on something." He did and he had found his target. He took hold of the ripcord and pulled it all the way before calling out, "Henshin!" and releasing the cord in order to activate the Scada Buckle's fan and initiating the transformation.

Alan gritted his teeth as he continued to exchange energy blasts with this man. This was no man, in his opinion. This was the monster who'd taken the most precious thing in his life from him. The monster's name was once Clifford Zmeck but now his name was Major Force and he was one of the Green Lantern's most hated enemies. Zmeck was insane and powerful, which was a deadly combination. His only weakness was his low intelligence but his insane level of strength and power made up for that and he was showing Alan just why he was so feared.

Alan did not feel fear for this man. He felt hate. The same kind of hatred Shinichi felt for Dr. Gebok but intensified many times over. It was a hatred that had consumed Alan so much that caused him to commit so many atrocities in the past including betrayal and the destruction of many lives.

Alan had both his fists clenched and firing energy blasts from them. Bazel was assisting him in this battle, not only providing protection via the armor but a power boost so he could go toe-to-toe with Major Force in the physical strength department. If only he was close enough and Major Force would stop blasting him.

Major Force grinned wildly and then leapt up at Alan with a fist drawn back. However, an invisible force hit Zmeck in the side, sending him tumbling to the ground. Alan saw a shimmer and then spotted Scada when the shimmer faded.

"Shinichi?" Alan asked.

Scada flicked his right wrist. He finally realized that the man was not painted but in fact covered in some sort of metal that was colored in a way that Scada assumed that he was wearing body paint. On impact, he'd felt a trembling sensation run up his arm and caused every bone in his body to tingle. However, he was not deterred. He was still going to fight.

"Let's kick this dipshit's ass, Alan," Scada told him.

Alan answered, "Shinichi, this is _my_ fight."

"I know," Scada responded, understanding Alan completely, "But, we're friends and friends stick together no matter what and that means we stick together whether the situation is good or bad." He clenched his fists again. "So, let's send this asshole to hell!"

Alan nodded. Now Scada was talking _his_ language.

The two then proceeded to double-team on Major Force. Alan continued to attack at long-range, prompting Major Force to defend himself and return fire to counter Alan's attack. Scada, who was a short-ranged, melee-type, combatant got in close to strike at Major Force with several quick but powerful blows.

Major Force's attention was divided between the two as he tried to fight them both off. However, he would not be beaten. He pooled energy into his fists and then used one of Scada, hitting him across the face with a punch that had enough force in it to knock his head off his shoulders. Scada was blasted through the air and smashed through a wall. Major Force then moved so fast for Alan's eye to follow and got in front of him before he was hit on the shoulders and slammed to the floor before Major Force kicked him up and then kicked him all the way through the air. Scada got out of the hole he made in the wall in time to see Alan coming at him like a truck and the Green Lantern knocked the Rider off his feet. Major Force then hurled dark matter blasts at them which exploded and sent them flying through the air before they collapsed onto the floor.

Meanwhile, Yuji looked to Asura and Lilith, "Lilith, when I move I want you to take Asura and get outta here."

"Oh, no way, buster," Asura argued, "I am NOT leaving you alone with that guy and…" She was silenced with a quick kiss from her boyfriend as she stared at him. "Yuji…" she blanked.

Yuji gave her a serious look, "You already died once saving me, Asura. I'm not gonna take any chances and let it happen again. Tell Maria that I'll be home soon." He stood up and eyed Major Force warily as he smirked at his opponent. "Hey, cockbites, forgot about me?"

"Looking out for your comrade?" Major Force chuckled, "You'd probably make a good field commander. If I weren't gonna kill ya tonight that is…"

"Who said anything about you killing me, asshole?" Yuji grinned as he dashed at the super villain as he secured his belt. "Henshin!"

"**ZERO FORM!"**

Liger Zero roared as he tackled Major Force, giving Lilith and Asura the cue to make a quick exit.

The Kamen Rider and Major Force locked grips and the man grinned, "Perhaps I should pay those ladies a visit once I'm done with you…"

"Right, as if I'm letting you walk out of this hotel alive," Liger Zero retorted as he head-butted Major Force. He activated his claws and started slashing at his body, only for the Rider to discover that his attacks weren't even making any scratches. _'OK, this is obviously not working… Time to finish this quick.'_ Liger Zero jumped back for distance's sake as he swiped his Pass.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Liger Zero's claws began to glow with their golden light as he ran full speed at Major Force, leaping up for his finishing move.

"**Strike…Laser…Claw!" **Liger Zero swiped down…only to be caught by the wrist as Major Force. "Oh, fuckberries…"

Major Force grinned, "Too slow, kid," and pulled Liger Zero to him and gave him a left hook in the face, launching him into the wall.

"Yuji!" Alan and Shinichi called as their friend was tossed with ease.

"Ow…" Liger Zero groaned as he yanked himself out of the wall. "OK, asshole, you think I'm too slow?" he pushed the blue button on the buckle and swiped his Liger Pass.

"**JAGER FORM!"**

Liger Jäger dusted his hands, "Don't blink, asshole, you'll miss the show!" His thrusters ignited and Liger Jäger rocketed forward with incredible speed…and was matched as Major Force was right next to him. Liger Jäger growled, "Wanna race, huh? OK, let's race!"

They traded blows at blinding speeds as their hits can be heard as thunderous booms when their fists collided. However, Major Force was doing more damage as his punches carried more bite and was wrecking Jäger's armor, cracks riddling the blue armor. Major Force managed to get ahead and stuck his foot out, tripping Liger Jäger and grabbing his leg to slam him back and forth onto the floor. Major Force spun around a few times and launched Liger Jäger and followed up with a blast of dark energy that hit Liger Jäger in the chest, making Yuji shout in pain as he crashed through the wall.

"Heh," Major Force scoffed, "Guess he wasn't as tough as I was told." He turned to Scada and Alan but grunted in pain as he felt a slash down his back. Turning around, he was fed a kick to the face by Liger Schneider, who had his arm blades ready. He grinned, "Nice look, kid…"

Liger Schneider glared, "Time to put your ass on the chopping block!"

He slashed forward with his blades and his flexibility to twist his body at points that allowed him to strike Major Force with his leg and back blades as well. The blades began to glow and vibrate as they were definitely scratching Major Force's metallic skin, but they were feeling more like annoying bee stings to him as he grabbed Liger Schneider's arm and gave it hard chop. While Liger Schneider arm wasn't broken by the force of the blow, it served to painfully numb his arm as he was being punched continuously by Major Force. He kneed Liger Schneider in the gut and gave him an energy-fueled uppercut that sent Liger Schneider flying into the wall again, making another wall.

"So rude," Major Force sighed before returning his attention to the two behind him. Alan and Scada didn't look all that well after the beating they'd received. "Well, well, looks you two are just about done."

"Alan, who is this guy?" asked Scada. Major Force had just beaten Yuji who was one of their heavy hitters.

"His name is Zmeck and let's just say…"

"You and he go way back?" Scada guessed. Alan nodded which caused Scada to blanch. "Of course." Ever since the fight with Mongul, Scada would never underestimate any of Alan's enemies again.

Major Force grinned as he reared his fist back, "Say goodnight, Lantern…"

"You first, dipshit!"

Major Force turned and cocked an eyebrow, "What?"

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"**HYPER CANNON!" **Liger Panzer roared as he fired his two cannons of charged energy, colliding into Major Force's body and launching him through the wall. "I'm not done," Liger Panzer growled as he swiped his Pass again.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

All his arsenals opened up as Yuji was locked onto Major Force who flew through the wall, **"BURNING BIG BANG!"** Liger Panzer let loose his stockpile of missiles as they flew the hole Major Force made and erupted with explosive force. The very ground itself was shaking from the thunderous explosions.

Liger Panzer panted as his ammo was completely spent while his armor heating up to levels beyond that which even he couldn't remain calm. "Taste…that…you…fucktard," Liger Panzer panted.

Major Force immediately got in Liger Panzer's face and grinned, "Nice hit. Lemme show you mine!" He gave Liger Panzer a dark-powered uppercut that rocketed him through the ceiling and onto the roof as Major Force followed.

"We gotta follow them before he gets a chance to kill Yuji," Alan urged as they made their way to the hole and jumped through, reaching the roof. Alan saw Major Force holding the Manakyte by the throat, "Oh no you don't," and blasted his hand with his ring, freeing the Kamen Rider from the villain's grasp as he fell on his back, hopefully having a chance to recover.

"So, anything I should know about this guy?" asked Scada. "Powers, weaknesses, anything?"

"He's got superhuman strength, stamina, invulnerability, project dark matter blasts and…" Alan started to list when he noticed Major Force wasn't in their sight anymore. "Speed," he finished as he and Scada spun around to see Major Force towering over them with a feral grin. Alan aimed to fire at Major Force but the superhuman monster grabbed Scada by the scarf and held him up in front of him as a shield. Alan hesitated for a second and that was all Major Force needed to fire a dark matter blast straight at Alan's chest, knocking him back several feet. He then looked at Scada who he was holding by the scarf, choking him as he was being hung up by his neck accessory. He then tossed the Kamen Rider off the edge of the rooftop before returning his attention to Alan.

"Alan, are you okay?" asked Bazel.

"Yeah, and I almost felt that one," said Alan with a smile under his helmet.

"By the way, he just chucked Shinichi off the edge of the roof," Bazel reported.

Alan nodded as he received the information but he had no time to mourn his fallen comrade. Major Force was dashing towards him and he got into stance. Energy pooled around his right arm and then morphed into a huge green sword that had a blade which was as tall as he was. Major Force hurled a punch at Alan and he countered with the sword, a shockwave erupting as the two made contact but Alan managed to hold his ground. Energy pooled into his left hand and then his arm sported a massive fist that he slammed into Force, sending him staggering several feet. His sword arm then morphed to also sport a massive fist as well and Alan started to pummel Major Force with his fists.

"THIS IS FOR JADE!" Alan roared as he continued to unleash a barrage of punched upon Major Force before bringing his arms up and swinging the fists down, only for Major Force to stop them with his bare hands. He then unleashed dark matter blasts, shattering the energy constructs before he slammed a fist across Alan's face, cracking his helmet on impact and sending him soaring. Alan flipped through the air but managed to right himself in midair.

Meanwhile, Scada was holding onto a flagpole that he'd managed to grab as he fell over the edge. He grumbled. He was annoyed, pissed off, and wanted to take it out on someone and Major Force was the most convenient target and the asshole had just chucked him over the edge of the rooftop. Looking up, he saw beams of energy flying in random directions and explosions were heard.

Being a Kaizo Ningen meant he had physical capabilities beyond those of an average human. Even a well-trained human being's capabilities weren't at the same level. It wasn't arrogance. It was a fact.

"OK, time to rejoin the fight," Scada said. He started to pull himself up and then put his feet on the flagpole. He balanced himself and then he used the flagpole like a springboard before launching him upwards. He caught the edge of the rooftop and pulled himself up, climbing over the edge to see both Liger and Alan still going at it against Major Force."Round Two, asshole."

He could try and slow Major Force down but for some reason his time powers weren't working on him. Well, he would just have to change tactics and switch his target of focus then. With a flick of his wrist, he blurred from sight and ended up in front of Major Force. He focused Fast Forward on himself and unleashed a barrage of kicks that were targeted at Major Force's face, stomach and chest. He was hoping to make some dents in the armor.

The attack he was using was called 'Rider Gatling' where he unleashed a barrage of kicks in a short duration of time. Right now, with Fast Forward, he was unleashing 100 kicks a second and all of them were hitting Major Force at full force. After a whole minute of attacking Major Force, which equated to 6000 kicks at his person, he was stunned to see him still standing despite the dents that Scada had made in his body. "No way…" Scada gaped.

"That tickled," Major Force grinned as he rotated his neck, making crackling noises for some odd reason, while his metallic skin mended itself, ridding itself of the dents that riddled it. He looked at Scada, smirking, "I've heard of you, kid. You're called BLACK 13, ain'tcha?" Scada bristled at the title as Major Force continued, "You're just like me, an abomination of science."

Scada growled and slammed his foot into the floor, "I am NOTHING like you!" He did not like being compared to this monster. Not one bit.

Major Force pointed at the Kaizo Ningen, "You've got blood on your hands, kid. Just like me. Science made us like this. We're both monsters. The only difference is that you're in denial."

Scada growled, "I'm not in denial. I know who I am. I'm human, an agent of ARMOR, and…A Kamen Rider!" He then attacked using Fast Forward again, unleashing a barrage of punches at Major Force. It was slower than his previous kick barrage as he was only unleashing 50 punches a second in the span of 10 seconds. After the barrage of 500 punches, Major Force remained standing with only dents on his body which slowly mended itself. He then pulled his fist back to crush Scada only to be pushed backwards by a huge green fist that sent him skidding back.

"Don't forget about us," said Alan.

"Yeah, you really should remember that you're not just fighting one of us," said Liger as his armor fell away to reveal himself to Major Force.

"Then I'll just make mincemeat out of all three of you then," said Major Force.

"JUST TRY IT, YOU BASTARD!" the three young heroes shouted before they started to go on the attack.

"**ZERO FORM! FULL CHARGE!**"

"**Strike…Laser…Claw!**" Liger Zero swiped his claws across Major Force. "Shinichi!"

Scada jumped up to Major Force's face and unleashed another barrage upon him, this time alternating between punches and kicks. His limbs blurred, leaving after-images, as his blows connected. One strong hit to the chest sent Major Force skidding backwards. "Alan!"

Alan conjured up the Faiz Blaster and fired a beam of emerald energy straight at Major Force. There was an explosion but Major Force flew out of the smoke and lunged straight for them.

* * *

"Looks like Shinichi's in trouble," Daichi frowned. He and the NEO-NUMBERS were in their base under the Irie Clinic. They had been watching the monitors.

"Well, we better go help him and his friends out," Shogo suggested.

Chiaki nodded, "I agree, the faster the better."

"But I doubt we can get there fast enough," said Hana. They really didn't have any vehicles that could get them to Tokyo in time and the time trains were busy. The Dimensional Rift system had also been shut down for maintenance

Yokoshima grinned, "I think I know how we can get there fast. Come on, follow me." He went upstairs and exited the clinic with the others following. He then reached into his pocket and pulled a remote before pressing the button. The NEO-NUMBERS watched as something huge appeared before their eyes.

"How long has _that_ been here?" Daichi asked suspiciously.

"Dr. Magi got it from ARMOR," Yokoshima told his friend. "It's for us to use."

Michiru cocked an eyebrow as she questioned, "But who is going to drive that?" She looked around and asked, "Why is everyone looking at me?"

* * *

Back on the Tower Hotel's rooftop, there was thick cloud of dust and smoke that surrounded it, obscuring it from view. Within the cloud, things were not looking good for our heroes. Major Force had taken a pounding from them but he was still going. He cracked his knuckles and counted his latest victims. To him they were just lambs for the slaughter.

Yuji, Alan, and Scada panted as Major Force was stalking over to them.

"Dammit," Scada snapped, "What the hell is this guy made of?"

"His skin is made of a metallic alloy that acts as a shell that contains his energy," Alan explained.

Yuji cocked an eyebrow, "He's a walking battery then?" Alan nodded as Yuji chuckled darkly and rose to his feet, "Then do I have a surprise for him! I got this ass-tard now!" He pressed the black button on his belt and was about to swipe his Liger Pass, "Hen…"

Scada looked up and paled, "Um, guys? What...is that?"

In the sky was an ARMOR dropship and it was coming fast onto the hotel's roof. Inside the dropship were the NEO-NUMBERS.

"OK, Michiru. Land us right there," Shogo ordered.

Michiru sweat-dropped, "Right...land..."

"You do know how to land this vehicle, right?" Hana asked with hope in her eyes.

Michiru nodded, "Yeah, I just need to find the brakes first."

Shogo panicked, "Brace for impact!"

Daichi groaned, "Oh crap, this is gonna suck!"

"And I still haven't gotten any free peanuts!" Yokoshima complained.

"I suggest we all buckle up, now," said Hana, calm as ever as she remained seated. The rest screamed as they held on for their dear lives.

"Get Down!" Yuji shouted. Scada and Alan scrambled as the dropship came down upon the roof at full speed.

**CRASH!**

The NEO-NUMBERS continued screaming as the ship crashed upon the rooftop, falling on its side. It continued to skid along the surface before finally screeching to a halt near the edge.

Those inside that hadn't buckled up were pressed up against the cockpit's canopy as the ship stopped before falling to the floor, groaning.

"Is everyone OK?" Hana asked around.

"I think I saw my life flash before my eyes," replied Yokoshima.

"Was it all about your girlfriend?" Daichi inquired.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Yokoshima asked, amazed.

"Lucky guess," Daichi replied with a shrug.

"What…the hell…was _that_?" Scada said slowly as he gawked at the crashed dropship.

Yuji stared at the crashed dropship and remarked, "I'd say that was the cavalry, but I've never seen a line of horses crash onto the battle field before."

Scada looked to Yuji and asked, "Hey is it possible for a genetically and cybernetically enhanced super soldier, with extreme temporal powers, wearing a power suit, to piss his pants? Because I'm pretty sure I just did."

Yuji jerked his head to the ship, "Come on. We better check if any of them survived."

"They should be alright," Scada informed him. "They've been through worse."

The NEO-NUMBERS climbed out of the ship and stared at what had happened to it. "Can't believe we lived through that," said Yokoshima. He shook his head. "Dr. Magi won't be happy about this."

"I just can't believe we survived," said Chiaki.

"No thanks to our pilot," stated Daichi.

"Screw you, Daichi!" Michiru snapped.

"You already did, remember?" Daichi replied with a smirk.

Hana spoke up, "Michiru, you told me that you knew how to fly."

"Yeah, I learnt from the simulator," Michiru replied. "I know how to fly."

"What about landing?" Hana pressed on.

"The landing part was the trickiest. I kept crashing, a lot," Michiru answered. Hana sighed. That explained it.

"Look at what you did, Michiru," Shogo reprimanded, "You crashed our ship!"

"Fuck it, it's a rental," Michiru dismissed.

Shogo shrugged, "Right, fuck it." He kicked the ship and it fell over the edge of the rooftop before crashing down to the ground below.

Yuji cocked an eyebrow, "Wait a second. Michiru was piloting that thing?"

"Sorry!" Michiru apologized.

Yuji smiled, "Oh, well, that's OK then cuz she can interrupt my battles any day."

Michiru blushed, "Aw~, you're so sweet. Unlike my male teammates, though."

Hana cleared her throat, "Excuse me, but we need to check on the wounded." She and Michiru were the team's medics after all.

Meanwhile, Alan and Major Force were still trading blows. Each punch that connected cause a shockwave to erupt on impact that shook the very roof they were fighting upon. The Bazel Combat Armor, fortunately, allowed Alan to endure the blows as he retaliated with his own. The armor also gave him a boost of speed. He could be close to Major Force's strength, if not his match. However, Major Force lacked one thing that Alan had and that was a stable mind and Alan's intelligence.

Of course, Major Force knew Alan had a weakness as well and that was his temper so he decided to use it against him. "So, how did you like seeing your girlfriend stuffed in a fridge? Must've been a _nice_ surprise," Major Force taunted.

Alan's gaze turned furious and he swung his fist at Major Force, but the move had been sloppy and Major Force ducked before hitting Alan in the jaw with an uppercut before catching his leg and smashing him to the ground.

"Maybe after this I'll grind your other girls up and make them into hamburgers," taunted Major Force.

"You…stay…away…FROM THEM!" Alan fired a point blank blast at Major Force's chest with enough force to hurl him through the air. He then flew up and fired a rapid barrage of blasts from his hands. The blasts exploded against Major Force and covered him up in green-tinted flames and smoke as he was being enveloped by the rage-filled emerald bursts.

"Hey, are you okay?" Hana asked Scada who didn't look all too well.

"I'm fine," said Scada. "You all help Alan. He needs backup."

"Are you sure he needs it?" Yokoshima gulped as he saw the fight. Alan seemed to be dominating it.

"We're fellow ARMOR agents," said Chiaki, "We have to help."

"Well then it's settled," said Shogo. "Everyone…Henshin!"

"HENSHIN!" the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS called as they activated their Spark Cores.

Alan panted after he finished firing but then a red and gold blur flew out of the smoke and rammed into him. Alan was knocked back and sent rolling along the floor. Grinning, Major Force walked over to him and prepared to crush him when all of a sudden he was blasted from behind. He turned and saw the NEO-NUMBERS, in full armor, and in their strongest forms attacking him with everything they got.

Zero ordered, "CHARGE!" He unleashed his Hornet Missiles as they flew out of his back.

Musician added, "GET HIM!" He unleashed a sonic blast from his Cricket Axe.

Armadillo wailed, "WE'RE GOING TO FUCKING DIE!" He fired explosive energy balls from his Blitz Cannons.

The attacks hit Major Force but did no damage. They did, however, piss him off. Major Force growled and charged at the trio, only to be tackled in the side by Slasher and sent tumbling. He got up and fired at Slasher who was protected by an energy web which caught the blast before bouncing it back to Major Force and hitting him square in the chest.

Arachnea and Carmen started to attack, using their claws and scythes respectively as they slashed away at him. Slasher joined in with his Onigari no Ryuou sword. Sparks flew when their blades connected but they couldn't even scratch Major Force. He backhanded both female Riders and used a blast of dark matter to throw Slasher through the air.

Armadillo leapt onto Major Force's back and wrapped his arms around his neck from behind, shouting, "I got him! Shoot him! Shoot him now!" Musician and Zero couldn't. They were afraid they might hit Armadillo. The psychotic powerhouse grabbed Armadillo and pulled him off before throwing him away. Armadillo went flying and fell off the edge of the roof but he managed to grab hold of the edge. "Damn it!"

"Yokoshima!" Carmen ran over to him.

"Help me! I'm slipping!" shouted Armadillo. Carmen grabbed his hands and tried to pull him up but he slipped out of her fingers. Armadillo screamed.

"Yokoshima!" Carmen shrieked. She was pushed out of the way by Arachnea before a dark matter blast hit her from behind.

"We can't do anything for him now," Arachnea told her beloved friend.

"Yokoshima…" Carmen sobbed and then her eyes narrowed in fury as she gripped her Mantis Scythes and charged at Major Force.

Scada came at Major Force with a barrage of kicks but a single punch from Major Force hit him in the chest and shattered the armor there, as he was thrown across the roof. A web line caught him and pulled him back down for Arachnea to catch.

Alan recovered and saw the others fighting. They stood no chance, and they knew that. What they were doing was distracting the monster.

"Can you still fight?" Arachnea asked.

"I…I don't think I can," Scada admitted. The pain was too much that he couldn't even stand. "Here, take this to Yuji. He'll know what to do."

Zero's blasts were deflected by Major Force and he threw him backwards with a punch. Carmen clones dog-piled him but they ended up vaporized by black blasts of energy. Sparks flew as Musician tried to hit him with his Cricket Axe but his weapon was snapped in half before Major Force kicked him back. Slasher came at him with a sword slash but his sacred sword could not penetrate the armored hide of Major Force and a blow to the head knocked him off his feet.

"You kids are pathetic," Major Force chuckled. He cracked his knuckles and popped his neck to the sides, "I guess this where I stick a fork in each of ya, cuz yer all done."

"Too bad I'm not done with you!"

Major Force turned and saw Yuji getting up and grinning. He smirked, "I'm starting to like you, kid. And I love killing people I like!"

Yuji smirked as he slung his belt on again and pressed a black button, "Then you're gonna love this! Henshin!"

"**ENERGY FORM!"**

Shards of black energy encased Yuji's body and everyone gawked at his newest armored form. The black bodysuit's sleeves and thighs gained red plating His arms and legs were covered by black greaves and clawed gauntlets with the golden claws still remaining. His torso was protected by a black chest plate and a silver pack was attached to the back. His helmet was covered by a black face plate, themed after a lion with glowing yellow eyes, and a long, golden horn protruded from the forehead and a golden blade stretching to the back of the helmet. On his left shoulder was a set of two cannons and a Gatling gun was on his right shoulder. Presenting Kamen Rider Liger Energy!

"Amazing…" Arachnea awed.

"This is new," Musician admitted with a hint of envy. This guy seemed to pull new forms out of his ass every time.

"That is so cool," Carmen squealed.

Liger Energy roared as the Gatling gun moved down his shoulder and onto his forearm. He aimed at Major Force and open fired with bullets of glowing energy that hammered against the man with shocking power.

"What the hell? What kind of bullets are those?" he demanded.

Liger Energy smirked, "Electric bullets, asshole." His cannons then moved from his left shoulder to his forearm.

The cannons on his left arm locked onto Major Force and fired electrified cannon rounds as they collided against mad man with incredible pain. Yuji's hypothesis was right; the metal skin Force had was conductive. A lucky break he could take advantage of until the right moment, He stalked forward as he continued his barrage of Gatling and cannon fire as his ammo rained down on Major Force.

Major Force growled as he charged at Liger Energy, ready to tear him apart for the pain he was dealing and he wanted to dish the pain back to the brat a hundred fold. Major Force went for a punch but Liger Energy grabbed his fist in his palm and did the same for the other before their grips were interlocked.

"Can't use your weapons at this range, can ya?" Major Force challenged.

Liger Energy smirked, "We'll see about that. Energy Charger, activate!" The pack on Liger Energy's back roared like an engine as orange particles burst out and flared wildly, giving them the shape of wings. Major Force was taken aback and Yuji grinned. The gold horn on his forehead was charged with electricity and Liger Energy reared his head back and slammed the horn down on the Major's head. Major Force winced hard and held his head in pain and Liger Energy went back on the offensive, slamming his fists into Major Force with his own forceful punches and kicks.

Arachnea then called out to the Liger Rider, "Yuji!" She tossed him the Higurashi no Yaiba sword and he caught it. "It's from Shinichi," she said.

Yuji looked at the sword and nodded, "You're the best, Hana!"

"Hey," Carmen whined, "What about me?"

"You too, Michiru!" He then swiped the Pass.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Black energy arced into the Higurashi no Yaiba as Liger Energy went into a stance, giving Major Force the chance to charge in and finish this. Bad move on his part. Yuji was quick to the draw and slashed forward, met by Force blocking with his forearms, only to be chopped off by Yuji's first strike.

Yuji came around was readying a second strike and roared**, "HITEN MITSURUGI-RYU, BATTOU-JUTSU! AMA KAKERU RYU NO HIRAMEKI!"**

Major Force could do nothing as he was…

**SLASH!**

…Sliced in half from the vicious attack. The Ama Kakeru Ryu no Hirameki was a killing blow, right from the first strike. If the initial strike was somehow blocked, then the second would come back like a twisting dragon, ready to rip its prey apart with its menacing claws.

"Yatta!" Carmen cheered.

"Alright, he beat that sucker!" added Musician.

Alan slapped his forehead before shouting, "You idiot! You broke the seal and now he's gonna go up like a nuke!"

"Shit! What can we do?" Scada demanded.

Alan looked to him, "_We_ can't do anything... But _I_ can!"

He encased Major Force in a green bubble and shot up into the sky with him.

"Come on, Alan!" Scada cheered, "You can do it!"

"Go, Alan! Go!" Carmen cheered as well.

Alan flew higher and higher as he carried the energy-containing bubble as high as he could go. "C'mon...gotta get higher!" Alan looked back as the bubble he had made began to crack, Major Force's energy seeping out. "No..." He was hit with the sudden realization that he wouldn't make it far enough in time and everyone would die. "No...I'm a Green Lantern! I won't lose! I can't lose! I won't let anyone else die because I'm not good enough!" Alan's eyes glowed with a bright golden color. "I'LL SAVE EVERYONE!" Alan roared as the bubble exploded.

The sky of Tokyo was engulfed in a blinding light. The shockwave from the explosion caused a minor tremor, but there was no heat from the blast. When the light cleared, the heroes watched as Alan began to plummet towards the hotel.

"Oh man," Alan groaned to himself, "This is gonna hurt. I just know it."

Carmen spotted Alan and pointed, "I see him! He's coming back!"

Liger Energy's eyes widened, "Shit, he's coming down too fast!" His Energy Charger diverted power into the wings and his orange particle wings flared as he took off into the sky. '_Dammit, dammit, this is gonna fucking hurt, I just fucking know it!_' He was close and stopped as Alan collided into his gut, the two falling fast as the Liger Rider held his friend back, "Energy Charger, MAXIMUM BURN!" The Energy Charger went into overdrive as the wings blazed like fire with Yuji pushing against Alan's falling body as to lessen the impact.

"Here they come!" Slasher pointed.

"Everybody move!" Zero ordered.

"Hit the dirt!" Musician added.

The Kamen Riders dove out of the way as Yuji and Alan crashed onto the roof, leaving a small crater as the two passed out momentarily.

"SAFE!" Carmen declared over the crater like it was a game of baseball.

Arachnea sighed as she carried a medi-kit over to the two unconscious heroes. "I better look them over and make sure they haven't suffered any permanent damage."

"You do that," said Zero before everyone deactivated their suits.

* * *

The teacup in Anastasia's hands shattered while Beatrice laughed, shouting out, "Yes, they did it!" She pointed, "In your face, Ana-baka!"

"Shut up, Beato!" Anastasia snapped.

"I believe the score is 3-0 in my protégé's favor," smirked Beatrice smugly.

"Zip it!" It just didn't make sense. How could she lose? She had everything planned! Everything! When Major Force exploded at that distance he should've wiped everything in range instantly with the energy that he released. How come nobody died? How come? She wanted to pull her hair out in frustration. '_Damn them…damn them all!_' she swore internally.

"Well, you do realize what this means, don't you?" Beatrice asked, grinning. "Remember our bet?"

* * *

Back at the hotel's rooftop, even though they were victorious, there was a somber feeling hanging in the air. They had just lost one of their own. Michiru stared sadly at the edge where Yokoshima had fallen earlier in the fight. He was gone.

"I can't believe he's gone," Michiru sobbed.

Daichi sighed, "I know, but he died as he lived; flat on his belly and expecting someone else to do his work for him. He will be missed, until we find someone new to replace him."

"He could just be hanging from a flagpole or something," Hana pointed out, "That happens in the movies."

Daichi shook his head, "No, he's definitely dead."

"I could just check," Michiru persisted.

Daichi shrugged, "Seems like a waste of time."

"It won't take more than a second."

Daichi shook his head again and spoke, "Yokoshima wouldn't want us to get our hopes up. He'd want our expectation to be as low as possible. He'd also want us to move on and maybe get a nice lunch. I'm thinking a BLT sandwich."

"OH FOR GOD'S SAKE!" Yokoshima yelled, "JUST LOOK OVER THE DAMN EDGE! I CAN'T HOLD ON MUCH LONGER!"

Daichi, Michiru and Hana look over the edge of the roof to see Yokoshima dangling from a flagpole as Hana had suggested. Michiru was happy to see him alive. He seemed to be hanging in there and had been there since he fell.

Daichi shook his head disappointingly, "Dangling on the job again, huh, Yokoshima? I hate cliffhangers."

"Oh just pull me up already!" Yokoshima snapped.

Alan, who'd awoken while Hana was looking him over, glared at the NEO-NUMBERS, "You morons have no idea how fucking lucky you are. Yeah, stand and joke around while I almost get nuked saving you fucking retards. Real funny. Instead of me almost dying, I should have just let Force fry your dumb asses."

Daichi scoffed, "What's his problem?"

Shinichi frowned softly, "It's personal Daichi. You wouldn't understand."

"Let's just say he's had a pretty rough day," Yuji told him. "We all have."

"Come on, we should go find the girls," said Alan.

"There's no need for that," said Yuji. On his index finger was a golden butterfly, "Aunty B just sent me a message. The girls are safe. Apparently, Aunty B made a bet with Ana-baka with the girls' safety at stake. She bet that we could defeat Major Force and since Alan sent him to go supernova, the girls should be safe and sound and back home with no knowledge of what happened here."

"No knowledge?" Shinichi asked. "Were they put in some kind of suspended animation or trance?"

Yuji shrugged in response. That was when they felt the roof shake.

"What was that?" asked Yokoshima.

"I think we should get off this roof," Hana recommended as they saw cracks spreading all over right under their feet. "The house is coming down."

"Alright, let's get…out…of…" Alan's knees buckles as his eyelids started to feel heavy. His limbs soon followed and he had no strength at all before he fell backwards and passed out. Shinichi caught him before he hit the floor.

Yuji called, "Let's get the hell out of here!"

A portal appeared in the sky and Yuji's MysticLiner burst forth to pick them up. After they were picked up, the train flew away as the entire hotel collapsed and crumbled to pieces.

* * *

Later that night, Alan was sitting on a swing in a playground a few blocks from the boarding house. He needed to be alone, to think. Yuji had been right. After they had defeated Major Force the girls had returned with no memory of what had occurred. He was just relieved it was all over.

Shinichi smiled as he walked over to the Lantern, "There you are. I knew I'd find you here."

Alan closed his eyes, "Shinichi, now is not the time. Leave me alone."

Shinichi shook his head, "No, I won't."

Shinichi sat down on the neighboring swing. Seeing that he wouldn't e going anywhere, Alan decided to make conversation. "So, how's Rena?" Alan asked.

Shinichi replied, a note of relief in his tone, "It's like Yuji said. She's safe and doesn't remember what happened."

Alan nodded at the good news. "That's good."

After several moments of silence, Shinichi got serious as he spoke, "You know, Alan, that thing made me see something really good. I was just a normal kid, with a normal life, normal problems and normal friends. Of course, at the back of my head I knew something was missing. Of course, I wasn't very sure and it was a nice dream too."

"So, you dreamt about something you could never really have," Alan summarized.

Shinichi nodded, "Pretty much and it was hard to give that all up but I had a job to do, and responsibilities here. I couldn't just stay there. As nice as that was, this is my life. Maybe me being a Kaizo Ningen is a curse, but if it is then it's mine to bear."

Alan rolled his eyes, "I wish I could have your optimism."

Shinichi turned to the Lantern, "So, what did you see?"

Alan looked down at the ground, "It was a life where I never lost anything. There was someone there I cared for so much but I couldn't get to her on time. But, in that dream, she was there. We were together. It was what I always wanted."

"But it was a still a dream," Shinichi reminded.

Alan nodded, "Yes, a dream of a life with someone I could never get back, to hold in my arms, to show my love to. I just have to accept that. It gets hard sometimes but the other girls help me cope."

Shinichi knew something else was bother Alan but he wasn't sure what. So, he decided to just ask, "That's not the only thing that's bothering you, is it?"

"Tomorrow's the anniversary," responded Alan.

"Anniversary? Anniversary of what?"

"Of the day the woman I loved was killed."

Shinichi's eyes went wide and then his expression turned solemn. "I…see." Shinichi understood the type of pain Alan was going through. Shinichi himself had lost someone he loved. Rina was a girl who Gebok had kidnapped and used for his experiment to see whether or not emotions could have an affect on BLACK 13's power levels. BLACK 13 and Rina had spent a lot of time together and the Kaizo Ningen had become quite fond of her. The feelings he had were similar to love. Then Gebok decided to end the experiment and have Rina executed, by BLACK 13's hands because he wasn't getting enough data.

The result was what Gebok hypothesized. Unfortunately, BLACK 13 had lost control and broke out of the facility, killing everyone that got in his way.

Shinichi decided that he should try to help Alan, at least a little. He asked, "Say, what was she like?"

Alan answered, "She's a lot like Lala really. So vibrant and full of life. She was always quick to chastise me and we even broke up once because she thought I was too immature. But she kept me grounded. She taught me what it meant to really be a hero."

"Sounds a lot like Rena-chan," commented Shinichi. "If it weren't for her, I don't know what I'd do with myself. I wouldn't have a reason to fight if it weren't for her." He asked, "So, when are you leaving to visit her grave?"

"In about an hour," said Alan. "That's when the train is supposed to pick me up."

"I'll get Rena and some flowers," said Shinichi.

"You sure you wanna come?" Alan asked.

"Yes, yes I do," said Shinichi certainly. "There's no reason for you to do this alone."

"Thanks," smiled Alan.

"Hey, what are friends for?" Shinichi grinned.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Meta World, Anastasia was growling like a mad dog as she crushed the cookies she was holding in her hands as her plans had failed again, for the third time!

"You don't look all too pleased, Anastasia-sama," Ronove observed.

"Of course she isn't, Ronove," Beatrice smirked, "She just lost thrice in a row! AHAHAHAHA!"

"Bite me, Beatrice," Anastasia snapped, "I WILL have that boy's soul!"

"If you could beat him, but I highly doubt that will happen anytime soon," the Endless Witch snickered. She then vanished in a flurry of golden butterflies along with Ronove.

Anastasia was left alone with her thoughts, pondering on how to beat that Liger brat. Magic seemed useless against him directly, and he was skilled enough to work around the magic that she used on the hotel. Wait, she recalled him mentioning having a daughter. Her name was Maria.

Anastasia's face adopted a devilish grin as she started concocting another scheme.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now, this marks the end of the Witch of Terror Arc. We learn a few things about our characters. Yuji did not get infected by a Black Mercy, this time. Anastasia loses but she has another plan. This may be the end of her introduction arc but she'll be back. She is a witch and witches don't give up that easily.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: And Yuji debuts the Energy Form! That was some fight the boys and the NN went through. Looks like Ana-baka's cooking up yet another dastardly scheme! What could it be?**


	28. The Fall of X Shocker Part 1

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 1: The Black Ghost**

When Shinichi came to, he found himself strapped down and inside some sort of tube. "Huh…?"

"Glad to see you awake," said Daichi who was too strapped down and trapped inside another tube. The other NEO-NUMBERS were in similar states, in their civilian forms.

"I am too," said Gebok as he strode into the room. His lab coat was now black with a hawk on the back with an 'X' in the centre.

"GEBOK!" roared Shinichi as he tried to break free.

"Don't bother, BLACK 13," said Gebok as he grinned. He tapped the tube's surface. "Those straps are unbreakable and that tube you're in is too. Your powers are nullified. You can't even summon any energy to transform." He added, "Oh, and it's Dr. X now."

"Whatever your name is, you're still a madman," remarked Shinichi coldly.

"What do you want with us?" questioned Shogo.

"I need you, or more precise your energies," said Dr. X. The seven tubes the NEO-NUMBERS were inside were arranged in a circle. Wires connected all seven tubes to a tube that was in the centre of theirs. Dr. X declared proudly, "You've all become obsolete. This here will be X-SHOCKER's elite warrior! Black Ghost!"

The figure inside the eighth tube he wore a black armoured bodysuit with white gloves and boots. Around the figure's waist was a metal belt with a black orb in the centre of the buckle. The figure's head was concealed under a black helmet with a white faceplate and large yellow eyes.

"Another cyborg, like us?" questioned Yokoshima in shock.

"Oh not like _you_," denied Dr. X before he explained, "Better than you. Stronger, faster, smarter and with more tricks than all of you combined. Once he's been awakened, his first order will be to annihilate you all. The perfect revenge." He said to Shinichi, "You must feel awfully stupid now because you didn't join me, BLACK 13."

"I'd rather die, Gebok," retorted Shinichi.

Dr. X went over to the switch and said, "Time to shut that mouth of yours for good, BLACK 13!" He pulled the switch, activating the machine.

The NEO-NUMBERS' tubes glowed and they all screamed as their energy was being drained and fed into Black Ghost. "Yes! Yes!" Dr. X cried out in euphoric glee. "It's alive! Alive!"

BOOM!

An explosion suddenly blew Dr. X backwards. There was a hole in the wall and in said wall were…

Shinichi couldn't tell who it was as he lost consciousness.

* * *

"Ugh…" Shinichi groaned. He looked up and saw a white ceiling. "Again…?"

"Glad to see you awake," said Warren. "How are you feeling?"

"Drained," Shinichi answered. "How are the others?"

"They all got up already. You're the last to wake up," answered Warren.

"I let Gebok capture me. I got careless," frowned Shinichi.

"Glad we found you," said Warren. "Too bad Gebok bailed. We did, however, find someone else with all of you."

Warren gestured to another bed and lying on it was Black Ghost, only without his helmet on. He had messy and short red hair that was parted slightly to the right and spiky bangs that were combed over to the left.

Warren picked up 'Black Ghost's' chart and read, "His name is Battler Ushiromiya."

"He's Gebok's new cyborg," Shinichi added.

"I know and we already scanned him. Gebok hasn't brainwashed him yet but he's already been cybernetically altered," Warren answered with a frown.

"What else did you find?" Shinichi inquired. He wanted to know what Black Ghost's abilities were.

"Psychic, enhanced sight and hearing, fire-breathing, shape-shifting, super-strength, armoured skin, flight, mechanical lungs for aquatic combat, weaponized limbs, and finally hyper speed," Warren listed. "Gebok must've made this to counter all of you."

"Great…" grumbled Shinichi. "So, what are you gonna do with Black Ghost?"

"Don't you mean Battler Ushiromiya?" Warren corrected.

* * *

"Man, it looks like Gebok was trying to make something nigh unstoppable," said Takada as he put the scans of Battler's body on the whiteboard. It was Battler's schematics. Battler's brain and body had been altered through advanced cybernetics. "He's got all the standard implants and more."

Magi summarised, "Brain enhancements to give him psychic abilities and an increase in IQ, rocket boosters built into his legs to allow him to fly at speeds of up to Mach 5, enhanced vision and hearing that gives him X-Ray vision and allow him to notice things others cannot, machineguns in his right fingertips, a retractable blade in his left arm, heavily armoured skin, a module that allows him to breathe flames, cellular structure reshaping for shape-shifting, cybernetic organs, and finally an acceleration module for hyper speed."

"Gebok wasn't playing around this time. With this kind of fire power, Black Ghost would've been one tough cookie," said Takada.

"Yes, and this took a year to complete," said Magi. "I doubt young Battler Ushiromiya ever realized what was going on. Gebok must've had him sedated for a very long time in order to operate on him."

* * *

"Uggh..." Battler groaned as he slowly sat up from his bed. "Where am I?" he groaned as he took a look around. It looked like he was in a hospital of some kind.

"Looks like you're awake," Dr. Hasuma said as he entered.

"Who are you?" Battler asked, confused.

"Oh that's right. My name is Dr. Hasuma. It's okay Ushiromiya-san. You're in a hospital."

"Hospital? Was I in an accident?" Battler questioned. He couldn't remember why he could be in a hospital for. The last thing he remembered was buying a present for his girlfriend.

"Well..." Dr. Hasuma began, hesitating. He was not sure how to break the news to Battler. With a sigh, he opted for the harsh truth. "You may want to lie back down for what I'm about to tell you…"

* * *

Various doctor who were walking along the hallway suddenly froze when they heard, "ARE YOU LOCO!"

* * *

"Now, Ushiromiya-san, I understand that this may be hard to believe..." Dr. Hasuma started only to be interrupted.

"You're telling me that I was kidnapped and turned into a Kaizo Ningen by a mad-scientist. Oh, that's very believable!" Battler scoffed in a sarcastic tone.

"As unbelievable as it sounds what Ryuki just said is true," Warren stated as he entered the room with Dr. Magi and Takada following behind him.

"Ushiromiya-san, do you know what year it is?" Dr. Magi asked.

"1986," Battler answered without hesitation. Dr. Magi's frown deepened. "What?"

"Ushiromiya-san, it's 1987," Dr. Magi said.

Battler's eyes widened in shock.

* * *

"He doesn't believe us," said Dr. Hasuma as he and Warren stood outside the infirmary.

"I've dealt with more stubborn people than him. Give me twenty minutes with him to get him to believe me," said Warren.

"Be my guest," said Dr. Hasuma as he opened the door for his friends.

* * *

"I am not a cyborg!" Battler yelled at Warren whom had come in.

Warren just smiled and drew out his Zanpakutou. He also took out a small block of metal. Normally the block would be used to help sharpen butcher blades but Warren was using it to sharpen his sword's blade.

Battler watched nervously as Warren placed the block on a nearby table and began to make a show of sharpening the blade. "What...what are you doing?" the redhead asked.

"Nothing." Warren continued to sharpen his Zanpakutou. "It's just so sad you don't believe in the truth."

"I am no cyborg!" Battler denied.

Warren smiled and swung the blade Battler with intent of taking his head off. Battler screamed and on instinct he pointed his right hand at Warren. Bullets shot out of his fingertips. Warren reacted quickly and blocked the bullets. "Now do you believe me?" the Director of ARMOR questioned.

Battler took a few deep breathes, his gun hand smoking.

"I..." He looked at his hand. "I believe you." There was no denying it now.

"Good." Warren left the ward putting away his Zanpakutou.

* * *

20 minutes after Warren entered, gunshots could be heard. He then exited.

"He was in denial then he freaked out," Dr. Hasuma guessed.

"I have that affect on people," Warren shrugged.

"So, is that why he was shooting at you?" Dr. Hasuma asked.

"I have that affect on people too. I believe in firmly getting to the point."

"So, what are we supposed to do with him now? His changes are irreversible," said Dr. Hasuma sympathetically.

"Most changes we have to deal with are. But I think thing's will work out. Alan's gonna show him the ropes in the future."

Dr. Hasuma argued, "Yes, but he also has to come back to this era. I ran a search. He has family and people who are worried and still looking for him."

"Well, we better go meet his family then and explain what's going on. Better bring Shinichi and Shiori too, to give his folks a new perception of things," said Warren.

"Here's a file on his family," said Dr. Hasuma as he handed Warren the folder. Warren flipped through it, scanning the contents.

"Anything else I should know?" Warren asked.

"Try and be subtle but straight to the point," Dr. Hasuma advised.

* * *

"What now? Come to tell me that my girlfriend's dead too?" Battler asked, not bothering to turn around to see who'd come in. He was still reeling from the revelation of all that was happening to him. At first he didn't believe it, until bullets shot out from his fingers and a blade shot out of his arm.

"Nope," the owner of the voice said, making Battler turn since it wasn't Warren or those doctors from before.

"Who are you?" Battler asked.

"I'm Shinichi Banabara, and like you I am a Kaizo Ningen."

* * *

"Do you think this will work?" Dr. Magi asked concerned as he watched through a surveillance monitor.

"It should. After all the ones who can probably understand him best right now would be the ones who had gone through the same thing," Takada said.

"Yes, we have to help him mentally first. If we make a mistake we could end up breaking him," Dr. Hasuma said.

* * *

Battler asked, "You? You're a Kaizo Ningen?"

"That's right," Shinichi confirmed. "And like you I was also kidnapped and changed by the very man who turned you into a Kaizo Ningen."

"How do you deal with it, knowing what you've become? I got a blade that comes out of my left arm and I shoot bullets out of my right fingertips! When I sneezed, fire came out! I can also hear things and see through walls!" He held his head in despair.

Shinichi sighed. Acceptance wasn't easy. Even Shinichi had distanced himself from his friends when he discoverd what he really was. "You want to kill yourself, don't you?"

"What?" Battler gawked at him.

"You feel like you're a freak, that you shouldn't exist, is that right?" added Shinichi.

"I...I..."

"Battler Ushiromiya, I felt the same way too, until my friends told me otherwise. Humanity isn't something that can be stripped from us so easily. Humanity...it's what's in our soul that makes us human. Gebok can turn us into machines, but he can never strip us of our souls," said Shinichi.

"What can I do?" Battler asked.

"Fight," said Shinichi simply. "Fight against Gebok and his new X-SHOCKER organization with this new power. Rub it in his face that he created his own worst enemy." He took Battler's hand. "Ushiromiya-san, you possess in you the energies of my comrades and I. You are like us. You are more than a cyborg. You are a Kamen Rider."

"Kamen...Rider...?" Battler uttered.

"Now come with me. It's time you got acquainted with your powers more intimately."

* * *

Shinichi and Battler stood inside the training room. It was wide and empty with nobody else but them. Battler was now dressed in a black jumpsuit with gloves and boots. That was a standard issue ARMOR agent uniform since he didn't have his own clothes. They were more appropriate compared to the hospital gown he'd been wearing.

"OK, Battler, time to live up to your name," said Shinichi.

"OK, who am I fighting?" said the new Kaizo Ningen. He was told he'd be sparring with someone.

"You're looking at him," said Shinichi as his eyes flashed. "Henshin. Let's Ride: Showa!" Jigsaw puzzles bonded onto him as his suit materialized over his body and he was now Kamen Rider Showa.

"You!" Battler's eyes widened.

"Now, Henshin," Showa ordered.

"How am I supposed to do that?" Battler demanded.

"Just think it," Showa explained. "Here, let me motivate you!" He ran at Battler and threw a punch which the redhead dodged.

"Hey!" Battler shouted. He was knocked back by a painful kick to the midsection.

"Transform if you want to survive," said Showa.

"Alright then! Here I go!" Battler closed his eyes. First his belt formed and then it let out a flash before his armored bodysuit appeared over his body. Finally, his helmet formed over his head, the yellow eyes flashing.

Shinichi got a good look at him. Battler's armor was a black bodysuit with black torso armor and shoulder pads. The white gloves and boots also sported armored plating. Finally, his helmet was rounded, colored black, with a white faceplate and large yellow eyes. It kind of looked like a skull.

Showa said, "This is gonna be your first experience with fighting a foe of equal power. We were both made by Gebok. Let's see if you really are as strong as he claims you to be, Battler Ushiromiya, Black Ghost."

Showa charged forward and punched, forcing Black Ghost to dodge as Showa aimed with his Showa-Blaster. Black Ghost's eyes widened as he bent backward, avoiding being shot. Black Ghost pointed forward and activated his gun hand, letting out a spray of bullets that only seemed to go through Showa as he was now Biorider. He then shifted to Roborider and fired his blaster, forcing Black Ghost to block with his arms as sparks erupted from his armor but no scratches were seen due to his reinforced body. Showa then morphed to Super-1 and fired the Eleki Beam. Black Ghost acted fast and thrust his hands forward, putting up a psychic barrier and deflecting the beam. Showa then used the Hot/Cold Hands and unleashed a blast of flames, making Black Ghost roll out of the way of the flames.

'_Dammit,'_ Battler groaned, _'I gotta turn the board around or else I'm gonna end up smoked…!'_ His white mouth plate slid up and Battler spat, releasing an ember from his mouth. That gave him an idea as he took a deep breath and blew, spewing a blast of raging flames.

Showa acted fast shot forth his own flames and the two pyres roared against one another, pushing each other back to determine the dominant blaze. The flames died out and Showa shifted to Amazon. "Gii!" Amazon cried as he lunged forward and slashed Black Ghost across the chest, making him back away as he gawked at the now berserker Showa.

"Holy crap!" Black Ghost cringed, "How the hell am I supposed to fight that?" He blinked, "Maybe I can get a tiger and-WHOA!" he cried as he felt his body change and he turned into a tiger. The tiger snarled as it and Amazon charged forward, crashing into each other and slashing away at fur and skin. Even the tiger was as strong as steel.

Amazon calmed down and return to his default form, "OK, I think that's enough for now." His armor shattered into puzzle pieces and Shinichi returned to normal.

The tiger then became Black Ghost again and the armor disappeared. "What a rush," Battler commented.

"Don't worry, it'll get a little easier as you learn to control your powers," Shinichi advised as he outstretched a hand, "Welcome to ARMOR, Battler." Battler smiled and took the welcoming hand.

"So, that was my welcome, huh? I think a hazing would be less painful," commented Battler.

"Well, the whole 'hazing' thing depends on a lot of things. Well, since you're a Rider it's time you got yourselves registered," said Shinichi.

Battler blinked. "Registered? What do you mean?"

"As a Rider in ARMOR you have to be registered with DORA," Shinichi explained.

"Who's 'Dora'?" asked Battler as he followed Shinichi out. "Hey, wait up!"

* * *

"This is DORA, also known as the Department of Rider Affairs," said Shinichi. Battler saw cubicles full of workers who were dealing with the affairs of Kamen Riders. "Over there are the monitors that let us see the activity of all the Riders in the Multiverse."

"That is a lot of Riders," admitted Battler.

"Some of them aren't even part of ARMOR but DORA keeps tabs on them anyway. It's to see if they have what it takes to join ARMOR. I was chosen to join ARMOR the same way," explained Shinichi.

"So, they were spying on you?" Battler asked, not feeling comfortable about being watched.

"Only our fights," said Shinichi, shrugging. "So, it's time you met the Director of DORA."

They arrived at the door that was the Director's office and knocked. They heard a response, "Come in," and Shinichi turned the knob so they could enter. The office was huge and at the very back of the room was the Director's desk but the chair's back was facing them.

Battler looked at the walls and saw hanging from them pictures of various Kamen Riders. He recognized a few from when he sparred with Shinichi. "We call those guys the legendary. They are the ones that started the legacy of the Kamen Riders but the absolute first has to be Ichigo."

"Never thought there would be so many," admired Battler.

"It's a legacy," the Director of DORA said from his chair. He then spun around to face both of them. "Hello, Battler Ushiromiya and welcome to ARMOR."

"You're the Director?" Battler asked.

"He also runs the hospital wing," Shinichi added.

Dr. Hasuma stood up and said apologetically, "I am sorry for what happened to you, Ushiromiya-san. What happened to you shouldn't have happened at all."

"Hey, it's not all bad," said Battler. "Sure I'm not human anymore but these powers are badass."

"Maybe so, but there are individuals who consider being a Rider both a gift and a curse," Dr. Hasuma countered.

"Why a curse?" asked Battler.

"Because once you become a Rider, a normal life becomes out of reach," Dr. Hasuma told him. Battler paled at the possibility.

"That's what happens," agreed Shinichi.

"Of course, that doesn't mean you have to give it up entirely," Dr. Hasuma added reassuringly as he glanced at a photo of his family. His wife and kids were the reason why he worked so hard. "You can have a normal life, it just won't be the only life you have."

"You'll have to live a double-life," Shinichi elaborated. "I'm usually a college student but I'm also a Rider and an agent of ARMOR."

"This…is a lot to take in," said Battler.

"Why don't you grab a seat?" Dr. Hasuma suggested and Battler pulled up a chair and dropped down on it while massaging his temples. Shinichi took a seat as well.

"So, I'm a Rider for life?" Battler asked. "There's no way out for me?"

"Kaizo Ningen like yourself and Shinichi are forever cursed with this burden, unfortunately," said Dr. Hasuma regrettably. "And this doesn't just affect you but your family as well."

"My family…" Battler realized, "They must be worried sick about me."

"You did go missing for over a year," stated Shinichi.

"Mom…Dad…and Ange…" Battler whispered. There was someone else too, his girl. "Beato…"

"It's entirely up to you if you want to tell them or not but you'll need to explain where you've been for a year. Fortunately, we can come up with a cover story for you," said Dr. Hasuma, "That is if you want a cover story."

"I'll go with the cover story because I have no idea how I'm supposed to explain this to them!"

"You're telling me. It took months before I eventually told my own mother the truth," said Shinichi.

"How did she react?" Battler asked.

"She fainted, and then she grounded me for keeping such a big secret from her," Shinichi answered.

"She _grounded_ you?" Battler stared in disbelief.

"It was a first for me too."

"Why first?"

Shinichi frowned and looked away, mumbling, "I don't wanna talk about it." Battler wondered what he meant by that.

"So, I gotta be registered, right?" asked Battler. Dr. Hasuma handed him a form.

"Fill this up and hand it over to the registration counter. Your information will be processed in no time at all," said Dr. Hasuma confidently. "Then you'll have to have your photo and finger prints taken. Also, you'll need to take a standard medical exam."

"I can do that."

"Shinichi will show you where you need to go."

* * *

"OK, so now the medical exam, right?" asked Battler.

"Yeah, which means we need to head over to the hospital wing," said Shinichi. Battler followed Shinichi and they bumped into Warren. Battler recognized him. "Oh Warren-san."

"Showing our new recruit around, I see," Warren observed.

"Yes, I am, sir," said Shinichi.

"Well, keep up the good work, son," said Warren, patting Shinichi's shoulder, before walking past them.

"So, who was that guy?" Battler asked.

"Oh, he's the Director of ARMOR," Shinichi answered.

"THE DIRECTOR!" Battler exclaimed in disbelief.

"A lot of people get that same reaction," chuckled Shinichi. "Now, hurry up."

* * *

"You want me to take him to another world?" Alan asked.

"Yes," Warren confirmed. "He may have the abilities that make him a human Swiss Army knife, but he needs training and experience. Which is why I'm putting you in charge of that training."

"OK," Alan nodded.

"That was easy enough," Warren admitted.

"Yeah, the girls kinda miss home and we can use this as an excuse to go visit and with a time train it'd be like we never left at all," said Alan.

* * *

Battler was told to head to the King's Terminal platform with a ticket. He thought it was a ticket so he could get home but he just couldn't understand what the numbers on the ticket meant. Also, he was unsure of the train system so he hadn't boarded any of the trains.

A lot had happened in a short time. The last thing he remembered before waking up in this place was heading towards the docks to board the ferry that would take him to Rokkenjima. He was to meet his parents and little sister there for the Ushiromiya family conference. However, along the way, he must've been drugged and kidnapped.

Battler looked at his now gloved hands. He wasn't human anymore, that was for certain. Some whack-job had turned him into a fucking cyborg. Sure, the powers were awesome, but he felt like a freak. He wondered how his family would react when he returned. He would have to keep these new abilities a secret.

Despite being able to use his new powers, he had no idea how to properly control them. Shinichi had told him that he was welcome to practice in ARMOR but Battler really wanted to get a hold of his life again.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to see who it was. "Hey."

"You're Battler Ushiromiya, the new guy," Alan said.

"Uh…yeah. Who are you?"

"Alan Smith, a Green Lantern," Alan told him.

"A Green Lantern?"

"To put it simply, I'm like space police."

Battler cocked an eyebrow in disbelief, "A space police?" However, he couldn't doubt anything anymore after what he'd been through.

"Battler, I'm sorry to say but you can't go home yet," Alan said sadly.

"WHAT?" Battler gaped.

"I'm sorry, but you need more training," Alan explained.

"But, my family…" Battler began to argue.

"Battler," Alan spoke sternly, "Your body is now a weapon. What'll happen if you accidentally use your powers in public, or on your family? They could get hurt."

Battler shut his mouth. Alan was right about that. "So, now what?"

"For the next few months, you're coming with me," said Alan as he took out a similar ticket.

"Where?" Battler asked.

A bullet train stopped at the platform and opened its doors. "My home, Titans Academy."

Battler would spend months in Titans Academy, honing his abilities, but he would return at the exact same time he left. Ain't time travel grand?

* * *

Beato sat at her favorite table at her favorite teashop, just twirling the small spoon in her cup. She let out a sigh. The anniversary of her Battler's disappearance had been weeks ago. He'd been gone for over a year and there was still no sign of him. She'd cried when she heard the news but she never gave up hope. She knew her beloved Battler was still alive out there. His family didn't give up and little Ange prayed every day for his return.

She was a beautiful young woman dressed in a black blazer over a white blouse with a red neck-tie. Her short skirt came down to mid thigh with knee-socks and black shoes. Her strawberry-blonde hair was tied into a bun and decorated by an artificial rose. Her blue eyes gazed down at her drink. She had plenty of suitors too, but she only had eyes for Battler. She would rather die than to be wed to another man.

The bell above the teashop's door rang, signaling the arrival of a customer. Beato ignored it. She cared little for other people now that Battler was gone.

When a hand took one of the biscuits on the plate, Beato grabbed the offending hand and shouted, "Hey, who do you think you-" Her voice got caught in her throat.

"Still don't like to share, huh, Beato?" Battler teased. He was dressed in a denim jacket over a black t-shirt and blue jeans. His hair was still the same red and his eyes still shone with a bit of mischief.

"BATTLER-KUN!" the blonde launched herself at Battler, grabbing him in a hug that sent them falling to the floor and causing a scene. Beato didn't care. She had her Battler back. "YOU'RE BACK!"

Watching from outside were Shinichi and Alan, smiling. "Kohai, hope you preserve this life you have," said Shinichi.

Alan had taken Battler to his world for training in use of his powers. Battler had spent months in Alan's world and was now a master of his cyborg abilities. "Hope he can be what you expect him to be," said Alan.

"You had him for months, Alan," said Shinichi. "Your dad left him in good hands. I think Battler is going to be just fine."

* * *

Yuji was in the Meta World as he was enjoying one of Ronove's cookies.

He turned to the butler, "Ronove, why are your cookies so fucking awesome?"

Ronove bowed, I merely wish to please my guests, Yuji-sama."

"Fair enough bro," Yuji accepted as he munched another cookie. The look on his face suggested that he was a little kid or something. "So Aunty B, anything new with you?"

Beatrice was sitting across from him and smirked, "Well, I've discovered something rather interesting and my husband is intrigued as well."

Yuji nodded, "I see, you have a husband…" His eyes widened and he choked on the cookie he was just eating and he was forced to spit it out, "WAIT! WHAT?"

Beatrice blinked, "Oh, I guess I never told you. Battler, come and meet my nephew!"

A flash of golden butterflies gave way to reveal a young man with short, red, hair parted slightly to the right and spiky bangs that were combed over to the left and blue eyes. He wore a white suit with a black cloak with a high collar, trimmed in gold, and held together by a gold chain. He held a gold sword with a gold sheath.

He looked at Beatrice, "So, this is your protégé, Beato?"

Yuji tried to regain his composure as he shook hands with the man who seemed about as young as himself, "Yuji, Yuji Fudo."

The man smiled, "Battler Ushiromiya."

Yuji then asked, "So, is it true that you're Aunty B's husband?"

The man looked to Beatrice, "You never told him?"

Beatrice shrugged, "Never came up in conversation." She then glared at Yuji, "And what exactly do you mean by _that_, boy?"

Yuji pointed an angry finger at the Endless Witch, "It just never fucking occurred to me that you would take time to actually get a guy! I thought you just wasted your life playing games in Meta World! Then there's that look you always give me that suggests that you're gonna rape me in my sleep!"

Beatrice scoffed, "I'm a witch but I'm still a woman! Battler here is the only man who's ever matched wits with me.

Yuji pointed again, "Don't forget me! I beat you in a duel, remember?"

Battler grinned at his wife, "Really? Now that's impressive."

Beatrice scoffed, "I was at a disadvantage!"

Yuji continued, "You tried to replay the duel 3 times and I STILL kicked your ass!"

Battler laughed, "Beato, this kid really schooled you, huh?

Beatrice then glared at her spouse with murderous intent, "USHIROMIYA...BATTLER!"

He gulped, "Uh...oh crap."

Yuji whispered, "You might wanna run, dude."

Battler nodded and vanished in a flash of butterflies.

Beatrice regained her cool and sighed, "I'll get him later. So, I've been looking into Showa no Sekai. It seems an alternate version of myself has been reunited with her long lost love."

Yuji nodded, "Oh, well that's good to hear."

"And Showa has gained a new teammate called 'Black Ghost'."

"Black Ghost, huh? Sounds interesting. Maybe I should go down there and say hi."

Beatrice nodded, "Yes, and if you'll excuse me I have to have a chat with my beloved husband." She vanished in a flare of golden butterflies.

"Guess Uncle Battler's gonna be in trouble," Yuji concluded.

Ronove chuckled, "To think they were mortal enemies in the past."

"Well, better get going." Yuji snapped his fingers and vanished in a flare of blue butterflies.

* * *

Shinichi and Alan left Battler alone with Beato so they could get reacquainted. The cover story was that Battler had been lost at sea and ended up with amnesia on a deserted island. He'd only recently regained his memories. It was either that or he was in a coma for over a year. Battler went with the former cover story. It seemed more plausible in his opinion.

"Amnesia…on a deserted island…alone?" Beato summarised.

Unfortunately for Battler, his girlfriend was a little too smart to fall for such a farfetched story.

"Yes," Battler attempted to lie again. "All I lived off was fruit, fish and bugs."

"Ew, to the last part, and I don't buy it," Beato argued. "If you had somehow been rescued, there would be news. I mean you're a member of the Ushiromiya family. It'll be a media uproar. You can't just turn up out of the blue like that. So, what's the real story?"

"If I said I was in a coma for a year would you believe me?" he asked hopefully. She shook her head. He hung his head. "Guess not."

"So, what are you not telling me, Battler Ushiromiya?"

Battler hated that tone when she used his full name. It meant she was serious and wanted something from him and if he refused there would be trouble.

Battler then confessed about ARMOR, becoming turned into a Kaizo Ningen, and having superpowers as Beato listened. After he was done, she was gaping at him.

"I knew you wouldn't believe me," sighed Battler.

"Actually, I do," Beato replied.

"Don't patronize me," Battler grunted.

"No, Battler-kun, I _really_ believe you."

"Why?" Battler got his answer when Beato pointed behind him. "There's something standing behind me, isn't there?" He got up and turned around to see a dozen W14's staring at him. Leading them was an android that looked like a bulldozer that stood on two bulky legs, bulky arms and had wrecking balls for hands with a bull-like head. At the sight of them, all the other patrons had fled in a panic.

"I am Bulldozer Bull, and we are here for you, Black Ghost!" declared the lead Beast Android.

Battler sighed, "Now I understand how Shinichi feels." He turned to Beato, "Now, don't freak out, Beato."

"A little late for that!" she shouted.

"Don't freak out any _further_ then!" Battler summoned his Spark Core and called out, "Henshin!"

Battler assembled his Black Ghost armor and started off with his machine gun hand and opened fire on the W14's. They dashed and evaded the bullets as they went to punch Black Ghost, who countered by clothes-lining the two closest androids, taking their heads off in the process. He saw more coming and launched a blast of psychic power, launching a group of W14's through a wall. Bulldozer Bull charged ahead and rammed into Black Ghost, making him roll along the floor as he met another wave of W14's. His mouth plate slid up so he could spew flames at the androids and watch as they melted before him. He saw Bulldozer Bull coming back and he morphed into a giant anaconda, coiling up around the Kaijin's leg and wrapping it in his powerful coils.

"Let's see how long you can hold your breath," Black Ghost taunted.

Bulldozer Bull then jumped and body slammed itself, forcing Black Ghost to let go and morph back into his regular body. Bulldozer Bull shot its arms forward and fired its wrecking balls that were attached to chains, making Black Ghost dodge, as they smashed one the teashop's tables. Black Ghost then crouched down and launched a missile from his right leg, exploding against Bulldozer Bull as sparks erupted everywhere. He dashed to the Kaijin and let loose a barrage of punches, doing heavy damage due to Battler's reinforced strength.

Beato saw what was going on, but did not want to believe it. She saw Battler change into a suit of armor, shoot bullets out of his fingers, spew flames out of his mouth, change into a giant snake, and now he was fighting a bull monster. She saw a W14 approach and screamed before its head was blown off.

Battler turned when he heard Beato scream, "Beato!"

They both turned to the sound of a roaring engine and saw a man riding a futuristic white bike, modelled after a lion/tiger. The rider wore a sleek white helmet with a red visor and wore a white jacket and matching pants with black gloves and boots. He saw the other androids getting closer to the girl and he slapped a card onto his mounted Duel Disk.

"I Summon Blade Liger!" A blue portal opened next to the rider as a red, mechanical, feline emerged and roared as two golden blades extended from its sides and cut the androids in half. The rider stopped in front of Beato and removed his helmet to reveal blue eyes and a head of black, spiky, hair with red streaks. "You OK, Beato?" the rider asked.

Beato cocked an eyebrow and had her hands at her hips, "OK, who are you and how do you know my name? Are you another one of my suitors? Cuz I'm already taken."

The rider laughed, "No, no, I'm here to help." He looked to Black Ghost, "Battler, finish that beef stack already!"

Black Ghost nodded, "I don't know who you are, but thanks for saving my girlfriend! Now it's time to turn the chess board!" He returned to the battle and started slugging Bulldozer Bull with powerful punches and kicks. The Bulldozer Bull was stumbling from dizziness as a result.

"Dammit…" Bulldozer Bull grunted, "What the hell…are you?"

Battler grinned as he ran at Bulldozer Bull, "You can call me…Kamen Rider Meta!" He jumped and delivered a powerful axe kick atop of the Kaijin's head, slamming him face first into the floor before it exploded in flames.

Battler's armor vanished and walked to his girlfriend and the stranger, "Thanks, man. So, do you know Beato?"

The man chuckled, "I guess you can say that. That was a badass kick you pulled off, Battler. Definitely worthy of a Rider Kick. I'm Yuji, another Kamen Rider."

"I'm Battler Ushiromiya," Battler said as they shook hands. "Cool bike, by the way."

Yuji nodded, "Thanks, made her myself. By the way, I got a message from the boss. He's assigning you to someplace special." He grinned, "Looks like you're going home, dude."

Battler's eyes shone with joy as he and Beato shared laughs and hugs as they jumped up and down. Shinichi approached the three and he had a paper crane on his shoulder. He knew about everything that had happened because of the crane.

Shinichi smiled, "So, how was the reunion? Did you both go to a love hotel to satisfy all the pent up lust you've been saving after a whole year?"

Battler chuckled as he blushed, "That was the plan until we got attacked." Beato slapped his arm in embarrassment.

Shinichi described, "Robots in white armor and led by an animal-like robot with features from another object?"

Battler cocked an eyebrow, "This happens to you a lot, doesn't it?"

Shinichi nodded, "Comes with the territory. Battler, the guy who made you into a cyborg made me into a cyborg and he's crazy and stubborn. He sees us as weapons and his most powerful yet. He wants us back so he can reprogram us or reconstruct us into something more dangerous but equally mindless."

Battler cringed, "Not a pretty picture."

Shinichi shook his head, "It wasn't supposed to, but you did great on your first fight against X-SHOCKER. I can honestly say you've been officially welcomed to the team."

Battler blinked, "Team? What team? "

"The NEO-NUMBERS," Shinichi clarified, "Let me introduce you to the others."

* * *

Ange Ushiromiya was staring out her room window, waiting for her big brother to return. It's been over a year since he went missing but she always held firm to the belief that he was still alive. She turned to see her mother, Kryie, standing at her door.

"Don't worry, Ange," Kyrie smiled, "I'm sure Battler-kun will turn up soon."

Ange nodded, but she still felt sad as she continued praying for her brother's safe return.

Rudolph heard the doorbell ring and he went to answer, "Yes, who is…" He gawked as he saw his son standing there, with Beato, right in front of his eyes.

Battler grinned, "Hey there, dad!"

Rudolph lunged and captured his son in a hug and laughed, "Well, the devil be damned! It's great to see you, boy! Kyrie, Ange, call the news! Our son is back! Everyone should know! HAHAHA!"

Ange came running down the stairs and gaped as her eyes welled up with tears at the site of her brother in one piece as she ran to him. "ONII-CHAN!" she cried as she captured Battler in the strongest hug she could muster.

Kyrie was smiling and was brought to tears, seeing that her son was back, safe and sound.

Sitting outside a window was a lone paper crane. It watched the entire scene before flapping away to report to its master.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Meta-World, the Endless Sorcerer Battler had been stripped down to his boxers and was spread eagle on a four poster bed with his ankles and wrists bound to the bed posts on all four corners of the bed. He would've screamed for help if it were not for the gag that muffled his voice. It never occurred to him to even use magic to break free or he was just too scared of what his wife would do if he did.

Speaking of which, the Golden Witch known as Beatrice stood before him at the end if the bed and she was not in her usual gown. She was in a black corset that really strained against her big 'cow-boobs' as ES-Battler would call them. She also wore black panties with stockings that were clipped to a garter belt. Around her neck she wore a ribbon tied in a bow and her hair was down. She was also holding a riding crop.

She looked sexy and dangerous, a real femme fatale. Just looking at her made Battler aroused but he was scared by the grin on her face as she lightly smacked the riding crop upon her palm.

"Now dear husband it's time for your punishment." Beatrice called onto the bed and straddled him, making sure that their genitalia were touching through their undergarments. ES-Battler moaned against his gag. Beatrice's gaze softened. She loved him, for sure, but she just couldn't help but torture him for the sake of her own pleasure. Besides, he would enjoy this sort of punishment.

She held the riding crop against his neck and smiled, leaning down to lick his cheek before she sat up and started grinding herself against him. She felt him tremble under her as he struggled with his bonds. "You want to touch me, don't you?" she taunted. He averted his eyes but she used the riding crop to turn his head to face her. "You can, but only after I had my fun."

**WHACK!**

ES-Battler let out a muffled scream as she struck with the riding crop, leaving a mark on him.

"Trust me, my beloved husband. After tonight you will equate pain to pleasure." She then undid the strings of her corset and ES-Battler watched as it fell away to reveal herself to him. She continued to grind herself against him, whacking him with the riding crop every few seconds before letting loose a laugh. She was so going to enjoy tonight.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: Some more Umineko stuff mixed in here. This arc is gonna introduce some new characters. You may or may not recognise them and since this is ANYTHING GOES! So, please enjoy this composition and tune in for more KRxGL! Also, I gave Battler the powers of the Cyborg 009 team. The name Meta is actually from RvB but it's also the word 'Team' rearranged.**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: Some cool fights and hilarious scenes. Always a pleasure working with Chrome on these. Stick around for more badassness!**


	29. The Fall of X Shocker Part 2

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 2: Chaos**

Alan was sitting on a swing, thinking, when he felt a tug on the back of his jacket. He looked down and saw a cute little girl with long blonde hair and dressed in a nun's habit.

"Onii-chan, are you feeling sad?" she asked.

"Nah, I'm just thinking, that's all," he told her. He'd just visited the grave of his late girlfriend and each visit always made him feel this way. It was a reminder of the person he'd failed to protect. "Shouldn't you be with your parents?"

She asked, "Onii-chan, what's love?"

"Huh?" Alan blinked. "What's love?"

"Is this love?" The girl's appearance shimmered and was replaced by a familiar figure from Alan's past.

"Jade…" he uttered, stunned. His eyes then narrowed as he used his fist and punched 'Jade' across the face, sending her flying until she hit a tree. 'Jade' then turned back into the little girl.

The little girl rose back to her feet, unscathed from Alan's blow as she dusted off her outfit. "Wow, you're really strong Midoro-niichan. Papa did say you were strong." She gave him a smile, the kind a smile a doll would give you, which was cold and lifeless. "Is that love?" she asked again.

"OK, before I give you a spanking, tell me who you are," Alan demanded, a green wave sweeping over his body to replace his clothes with his uniform.

"Sorry, but I can't play with you right now, Midori-niichan. I have to go and find Juusan-niichan." She then vanished in a flash.

"Juusan?" Alan realized who she was after, "Shinichi!"

* * *

"I'm home~" Shinichi greeted as he returned with Sho and Rena. They had taken Sho to the park as Shiori had requested of them. The little baby boy was fast asleep in Rena's arms as she carried her in. Shinichi entered and then froze. Rena nearly bumped into his back.

"Shin-kun, what's wrong?" Rena asked. She looked over his shoulder and gasped. Shiori, Rika, Hanyuu and Kasai were all sprawled all over the floor, unconscious. She gasped. "What happened?"

Shinichi quickly went to check on his family. They were alive, fortunately, but he could not shake them awake. That was when he heard a voice in his head.

"_Come out and play, Juusan-niichan. Come out and play~" _It sounded innocent yet wicked at the same time. Like the call from a demonic child.

"Who is this?" Shinichi demanded.

"Shin-kun?" Rena asked worriedly.

"_Papa told me if I wanted you to play with me I had to do something like this. Did I do good? Would Papa be proud?"_

"TELL ME WHO YOU ARE!" he demanded loudly. Sho was awoken by his shout and Rena tried to rock him back to sleep. Shinichi concentrated and tried to track down the location of the voice. He then found it. "Rena, take care of Sho," he said as he turned and walked past her.

"Shin-kun?" she asked.

"GX Henshin!" Showa then shot into the air like a rocket, causing dust to go flying everywhere. The sudden gust even flipped up Rena's skirt.

* * *

The signal eventually led Showa towards an open field where he saw something. It was small, and human-looking, but definitely not harmless. He touched down and saw that it was a little girl dressed in a nun's habit. He scanned her.

"No biological components," he murmured, "Android."

"Juusan-niichan, you came!" she smiled wide. The look of something so innocent being directed at him was simply disturbing since he knew what she was. "Want to play?"

"Alright, let's play," he responded and he aimed his palm at her and fired a burst of crimson energy that engulfed her. There was an explosion and when the smoke cleared there was a deep crater where the little girl had once stood. He then turned to return to his family and friends when everything suddenly went dark. "Huh?" He then looked down and his eyes widened as he saw arms, hundreds of them, clawing out of the ground and grabbing onto his legs. "Hey, let me go!" He then froze, horrified, as faces appeared.

They were the faces of his past victims. He screamed and the little girl smiled widely as she watched Showa being confronted by the faces of his kills.

Chaos Doll was the little android girl's designation and she watched in glee and amusement as Shinichi screamed from seeing their faces. Her Papa would be so proud of her!

* * *

A green streak flew through the air like a comet, leaving an emerald trail behind. It was Alan and he was looking for Chaos Doll.

"Damn it," cursed Alan. How could he had lost something like Chaos Doll so easily? He'd almost been fooled by her illusion, but he had his fair share of experiences with illusionists, both good and bad. He knew for a fact that Jade was gone and was not coming back.

He knew Chaos Doll was an android and only one person could make an android look like something so harmless. He wrote of Gebok as a minor threat at best compared to his own rogues but that man could prove dangerous to other people who were either unprepared or if Gebok knew them well, weaknesses and all.

Alan knew Gebok was only fixated on one thing and one thing alone and that was Shinichi.

"Ring, locate Shinichi," Alan commanded.

"Hey, why do you need the ring when you got me?" asked Bazel, sounding offended. "I know where he is, and I can take you there faster."

"How?" asked Alan.

Instead of answering with words, Bazel answered with actions. In a flash of green light, the Green Lantern was gone.

* * *

"_You shouldn't have been born…"_

"_You're nothing but a monster…"_

"_You're worthless, absolutely worthless…"_

"_Killer…"_

"_Murderer…"_

"_Traitor…"_

"_Destroyer…"_

"No…" Shinichi begged as he fell to his knees, eyes clenched and his hands on his head. "No…stop it!" He saw their faces. His friends and family were sneering at him and among them were the faces of the people he'd killed.

"_You should just die…"_

Chaos Doll smiled. "What's the matter, Juusan-niichan? Why are you crying? Does it hurt?"

"Please…just make it stop…" Shinichi begged.

"OK, time for night-night," said Chaos Doll as she giggled. One of her blades lengthened and poised itself, pointed at Shinichi. "Say goodnight, Juusan-niichan."

"Goodnight."

**POW!**

**BOOM!**

A green fist slammed into Chaos Doll, sending her flying. Recovering, her violet eyes were locked upon a familiar green figure. "Oh, it's Midori-niichan."

Alan could see Shinichi trembling and scowled. "Who are you!" he demanded.

"Oh, I'm Papa's new daughter and Papa sent me to kill Juusan-niichan. Midori-niichan, please don't get in the way." She aimed a finger at Alan and shot a massive fireball at him. Alan put up a shield to defend himself. She continued to fire, this time shooting fireballs from the array of blades on her back. "Come on, Midori-niichan! Let's play!" She vanished from sight and reappeared behind him in a flash. Alan cried out as she slashed him with her blades.

Turning around, he blasted at her but once again she dodged, keeping her distance, before firing her dark fireballs upon him in a barrage, explosions shook the ground as Alan flew around to escape them. Chaos Doll chased after him, laughing as she continued to fire. "I love a game of tag! You're it!"

Childish she may seem but she was also malicious and ruthless. Clearly she saw all this as fun and games. She had no grasp of the different in right or wrong nor did she care. It was like Gebok had created a perfectly psychotic little sociopath in his own image. She looked cute, like a little girl, with blonde hair and dressed like a nun. Like an angel. However, her wings were hardly angel-like as they resembled a wicked array of organic blades.

The blades lengthened and then swung at Alan but he ducked before he got decapitated. He fired on the blades, breaking them, but they just regenerated in an instant.

Shinichi looked up and saw the explosions in the sky. "Chaos Doll…" he growled. Another one of Gebok's toys was loose in the village. That thing had put his entire family in a coma after her visit and then she tried to mentally scar him further. "No more…" he swore, his eyes glowing brightly.

Back to the fight between Alan and Chaos Doll, the Lantern had imprisoned her in a bubble. He thought she wouldn't be able to escape but he was wrong as her blades continued to expand and she broke free. Now her blade-like wingspan was many times bigger than it was before and at the tip of each blade was a fireball. "Catch!" she yelled out as the fireballs were thrown at Alan.

"_KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!_"

A massive blade of gold crescent energy cut through the air between Alan and the fireballs, putting them out. Alan then realized who'd just saved him. "Shinichi…" he whispered.

Showa was in his Hinamizawa Guardian Form and he was not happy. He glared at Chaos Doll with utmost loathing. "Alan, leave this to me. This little brat is mine." He took hold of the six-pointed shuriken on his back and pulled it off, holding it as a shield as he held it by the grip in the centre.

"Oh, Juusan-niichan wants to play again, does he?" giggled Chaos Doll. "OK!" Her wing blades came together around her, forming a cannon. In the centre of her cannon, another fireball was starting to form and it was being charged. She fired and the massive fireball shot towards both Alan and Kamen Rider Showa like a missile. Showa stood his ground and he waited for the blast to come at him. Suddenly, a giant green baseball bat appeared and slammed into the fireball, knocking it into the sky.

"Alan!" shouted Shinichi.

"Don't you dare leave me out of this one, Shinichi!" Alan told him.

Showa eyed Chaos Doll. In the blink of an eye he was gone from Alan's sight, only to reappear in front Chaos Doll's eyes. He grabbed her by the face and then he started to fly straight out of the airspace above the village.

"Shinichi!" Alan shouted as he gave chase.

"What are you doing, Juusan-niichan?" Chaos Doll asked.

"I know I can't destroy you," realized Showa. He'd scanned her and discovered her body was made out of an indestructible material, "But that doesn't mean I can't shut you down!"

Chaos Doll started to slash at Showa but he ignored the pain. He ignored the sparks as her blades slashed again his armor. He ignored the fact that she looked like a little girl.

To him she was a monster and monsters deserved to be put down for good.

"Juusan-niichan, can you tell me what love is?" she asked. "Papa said it was love that made you betray him? What's love? Tell me! What's love? What's love? What's love?"

It was an innocent question but coming out of her mouth it sounded like insane ranting. Showa knew telling her to shut up would do her no good. "You wanna know what love is?" he responded.

Still continuing on his flight path, Showa and Chaos Doll were over the ocean. Looking down, he scanned the area and then he dove straight into the water with Chaos Doll, creating a splash.

"LOVE IS SOMETHING YOU WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND!" he roared as he descended further and further, deeper and deeper, into the depths of the ocean. As he continued his descent, he pushed Chaos Doll down, tightening his grip so she would not speak. Her body was made of indestructible material, but it was also very dense. As a result, her body would be dead weight in the water, sinking deeper and deeper into the ocean floor. Also, the intense water pressure would incapacitate her for good.

He saw a deep abysmal chasm. "Now…say hello to your grave," he said emotionlessly as he released her, letting her body fall deep into the chasm. Her smile haunted him as she called out to him.

A huge green hand then grabbed onto Showa and pulled him out from the water.

Hovering over the surface of the ocean was Alan and he'd used his ring to grab Shinichi. The energy arm pulled Showa up, with the Rider in his fist. He released his friend who hovered in the air with him.

"What did you do?" Alan asked.

"Sent it to oblivion," Showa answered.

"Why?"

"Because Gebok built it." That was reason enough for Showa. He then flew off, leaving Alan to look down into the ocean.

* * *

Takada was wheeling in a gurney with a little girl on it. She was dressed in a soaked nun's habit and while her eyes were wide open, she looked dead. "It took a lot of work, but we managed to recover the Chaos Doll."

Present in the lab with Takada were Director Warren Smith, Dr. Ryuki Hasuma and Dr. Magi. Dr. Magi seemed a bit apprehensive as he looked upon his former colleague's latest creation. Takada was already hooking her up to a nearby computer.

"She looks so innocent," said Dr. Magi, "But she's anything but."

"It's just programming," said Takada, shrugging. "I just have to open her up and reprogram her, that's all."

Dr. Hasuma addressed Warren, "You do realize Shinichi won't be happy about this, don't you?"

"What we have here is an opportunity, Ryuki," Warren justified. "We can learn a lot from Chaos Doll, and maybe we can even reactivate her and reprogram her to work on our side."

"I doubt we could do that, considering how well Gebok shields the programming of his creations," said Dr. Magi. "The only reason #13—Shinichi—revolted was because he was still human."

"Humanity isn't exclusive to humans," Warren remarked. "I know, I've seen it and I've experienced it."

"OK, here we go," said Takada as he put her hands on Chaos Doll's head. His eyes began to glow as his internal nanobots went to work.

"Call Alan and Yami," Warren ordered Dr. Hasuma.

Knowing better to question Warren's orders, the Director of DORA obeyed and teleported out of the lab. Dr. Magi was looking over the data that was on the computer and asked, "Why do you need your son and one of his girlfriends?"

"This little doll is going to need someone to take care of her."

* * *

"OK, Dad. I'm here. What did you call me for?" asked Alan. His father had summoned him to ARMOR and he sounded urgent.

"Alan, I'd like you to meet Alice," answered Warren. On the examination table was a little girl in a white blouse and a blue overall dress with her hair up in pigtails tied by blue ribbons. Her eyes were closed. Alan recognized her instantly.

"Chaos Doll…" Alan identified.

"Former designation," Takada corrected. "She's not so different from those Steel Angels, except that she looks like a child."

"What do you want us to do?" Yami asked.

"I'd like for you and Alan to take care of her," Warren suggested sincerely.

Alan blinked, "You want us to be her mom and dad?" Yami blushed when Alan used those specific terms.

Warren nodded, "Shinichi may not like this, but she's just a little girl. She needs parents to raise and guide her. You and Yami seem like the best choice. Besides, this could be great practice for you two when you decide to have kids of your own."

Alan stared at the stationary Alice. Not too long ago she was a dangerous weapon. But looking at her peaceful expression, Alan saw that this was no longer that same girl.

He turned to Warren, "If you really think I can do this, Dad, then I'll do it." He turned to Yami, "I hope you're OK with this too, Yami."

Yami looked to the little girl and gave a small smile. Maybe raising this girl wouldn't be so bad after all. "OK," she nodded.

Warren smiled, "Great! I'm sure you two will make great parents."

"OK, I guess it's time to reactivate her," said Takada. "Alan, you do the honors."

"OK, what am I supposed to do?" asked Alan.

"Well, since she's similar to a Steel Angel, I suggest a kiss," explained Takada.

"A kiss?"

"It's so she can imprint on you. Now, come on!"

Alan looked to Yami who gave him a nod. He then approached Chaos Doll—Alice—and leaned down to give her a light kiss on the lips.

Takada looked to the monitors and exclaimed as Alice was activating, "She's alive! SHE'S ALIVE!"

Warren was amused as he watched Takada as Alice's eyes started to open. She sat up and turned her head to look at Alan. "Dad…dy?" she asked, her violet eyes shining in recognition.

"Yeah, Alice," Alan answered. He put an arm around Yami. "And this is your mommy." Yami blushed at being referring to that.

Alice jumped off the table and straight at Alan, wrapping her arms about him, "Mommy! Daddy!"

"It puts tears in your eyes, don't it?" Takada asked ARMOR's Director.

"Yes, it does." Warren saw a new family and they were happy.

* * *

Shinichi exited the hospital wing looked relieved. His family had been admitted into a ward to be treated for whatever had been done to them. Fortunately, the damage Chaos Doll had done to them was not life-threatening and they would recover in time. Dr. Hasuma had told them that Chaos Doll must've stunned them in order to provoke Shinichi into confronting her. Until they recovered, he and Rena would be taking care of Sho. He was just relieved that his family would be alright.

"I better grab a snack," said Shinichi as he headed down to the cafeteria. Once there, he spotted Alan, Yami, and a small girl with blonde hair and dressed in a habit.

Something clicked in Shinichi and all of a sudden he snapped. "YOU!" he roared as he dashed towards the table where Alan, Yami and Alice were eating, leaping over several tables like he would hurdles to close the distance, with his shotgun drawn and when Alan saw him he acted quickly as did Yami. They both put Alice behind them and activated their powers. The ends of Yami's hair turned into deadly blades as Alan activated his ring.

Shinichi had his gun cocked and aimed at Alice's direction, the child-like android trembling under his enraged gaze, and was about to pull the trigger when a massive green fist crashed into him, forcing him to the ground. "Shinichi, if you know what's good for you, you'll stay down and listen!" warned Alan.

"Like hell! That THING needs to be destroyed!" roared Shinichi.

"Do NOT call her a thing! I won't let you talk about my daughter like that!"

Shinichi's voice was caught in his throat as he tried to process what Alan just said, "Your…daughter…?"

Someone else spoke, "That's what he said, Shin. You should try listening for a change; it does wonders for your wisdom."

They all turned to see Yuji and Maria approaching, with Maria on her father's shoulders. He let her down and the girl approached Alice and Yami with a smile.

"Hi, I'm Maria," the brunette greeted, "What's your name?"

"A-Alice…" Alice cringed.

"Wanna be friends?"

Alice blinked for a second and gave a wide smile, "OK!"

"Yay! UU~!" Maria hugged Alice and the two girls laughed as Yami smiled a little.

Shinichi gaped at the scene, "You gotta be kidding me…" Then he got whacked on the head and recoiled, "Itai!" He turned to see a rolled up newspaper in Yuji's hand, "Did…Did you just hit me with a newspaper…?"

Yuji nodded, "Yes, yes I did. You need to learn how to rein that temper of yours, man. We're in a public place, for the Crimson Dragon's sake."

"Yuji, you don't know what it's capable of," Shinichi argued.

Yuji counted, "Alice Smith aka Chaos Doll, bio-android created by a certain someone, can cast illusions, has kick-ass bladed wings, can shoot black fire balls (that's always cool)… Am I getting warm?"

"How did…?"

"I'm an ARMOR agent too, remember? I checked out her file, as well as Black Ghost's. Battler's pretty badass." Yuji walked over to the girls and sat in front of Alice, with his legs folded, "Hi, I'm Yuji."

She blinked at how his weird hair looked like a set of horns, "I'm Alice…"

"Pretty name for a pretty girl, I guess." He reached into his pocket and took out a Jolly Rancher, "Want one?"

She took the candy and unwrapped it before popping it in her mouth as she squinted her eyes at the sudden sourness and relaxed as she tasted the sweetness, "Mm…" She then looked to him, "Can I touch your horns?"

Yuji chuckled, "Sure." He bent his head forward and Alice giggled at how soft the horns were. "That's my hair, by the way."

"Wow, how did you get it like this?" Alice asked innocently.

"Not really sure," Yuji replied honestly. "And don't worry, Alice, you can always rely on your Uncle Yuji if you anything."

Alice smiled and hugged Yuji, "Arigatou, Yuji-jichan!"

"UU! I wanna hug Papa too!" Maria complained before glomping the two and making them laugh.

Shinichi scowled at the scene. He just couldn't believe how friendly they were being with that thing. It was one of Gebok's creations. It was dangerous and had to be destroyed.

"Don't even think about it," Yuji whispered to Shinichi threateningly. "We're friends, but if I ever see you harm a child I won't hesitate to kick your ass."

"Yeah, just make sure that thing stays away from me," Shinichi retorted. He put his gun away and stomped off in anger. He was angry and needed an outlet. His next stop was the gym.

Yuji shook his head. Alice asked, "Who was that scary Onii-chan?"

"Well," Yuji spoke, "Shin isn't always like that. A really mean guy did some really bad stuff to him a long time ago. Unfortunately, he can't let go of the bad things that happened to him."

Alice frowned, "Onii-chan is sad?"

Yuji nodded, "You can say that. The guy has been getting in Shin's way ever since and just doesn't leave him alone."

"Can I do something for Onii-chan?"

He shook his head, "Not right now, sweetie. He needs some breathing room since he was in a fight not too long ago."

Alan ran a hand through his hair out of frustration. This was definitely going to be harder than he first thought.

* * *

Shinichi returned home, his mood slightly lightened after several hours in the gym with a punching bag that had Gebok's face taped to it. He just couldn't be in ARMOR while that thing was there acting like a small child. He knew what it was. It was a monster made by Gebok.

"Okaeri, Shin-kun," Rena greeted as she saw her live-in boyfriend return. In her arms was Sho who was drinking from a bottle of milk. "How's everyone?"

"They're resting but they'll be fine in no time," said Shinichi. He was forcing a smile on his face and Rena was sharp enough to notice.

"What's wrong, Shin-kun?" Rena asked.

Shinichi sighed. He couldn't hide this from Rena so he told her about Chaos Doll, what she'd done, what he'd done to her and what ARMOR had done. It really surprised Rena that ARMOR would revive one of Gebok's creations and also disgusted her that Gebok would create a monster in the form of a little child. However, when Rena looked at the pictures of Chaos Doll, she couldn't help but gush at how cute she looked and went into Take-It-Home mode instantly.

"Yeah, it looks cute but inside it's a monster," Shinichi informed her. "And the others are even defending her after what she did."

"You said that she's been reprogrammed. Maybe she's good now," Rena suggested.

"Rena, nothing good can come out of anything Gebok made," Shinichi argued. "I've made it a rule to destroy anything Gebok creates and that thing is one of them."

"Shin-kun, weren't you made by Gebok too?" asked Rena carefully.

"What are you saying?" Shinichi asked his girlfriend.

"Gebok made you a Kaizo Ningen and he also created Chaos Doll-chan," said Rena. Shinichi flinched when she used to '-chan' suffix for the android. "In a way, Chaos Doll-chan is like your little sister."

"TO HELL IT IS!" Shinichi snapped. His sudden raised voice scared Sho and caused him to cry loudly. Rena put down the bottle and rocked Shinichi's little brother in order to soothe him. Shinichi realized what he'd done and calmed down. "Sorry, I didn't mean it. I…"

"You really hate Gebok, I know that," Rena understood, "But you can't take it out on everything he creates."

"I can't help it, Rena. Anything Gebok touches has been corrupted by him," Shinichi explained.

"But you let the NEO-NUMBERS live," Rena pointed out.

"That's different. They're cyborgs like me. They still have their souls," Shinichi stated.

"But you did not hesitate to kill the others," she argued.

"They were dangerous," he justified.

"So were the NEO-NUMBERS, but you still gave them a chance."

"Because of you guys," Shinichi reminded. "If you guys hadn't stopped me then, I would've destroyed them without thinking twice.

"Shin-kun, do you honestly believe Alan-kun would allow Chaos Doll-chan to run amok?" Rena asked. "Do you honestly believe ARMOR is making a mistake?"

* * *

"Chaos Doll has been reactivated," Gebok concluded judging from the signal on the monitor. He recalled that Chaos Doll's signal had been lost at sea. Her body was too dense so it would've sunk and the high pressure of the deep ocean would've either crushed her or immobilized her, forcing her to deactivate. Now it would appear that she was back online.

"Spider Ninja, recover Chaos Doll," Dr. Gebok commanded. "Bring a squad of W14's as well and also Chainsaw Shark."

"As you command, Dr. X," obeyed Spider Ninja. He then slipped into the shadows.

Gebok then smiled as he sensed a presence, "Ah, the Witch of Terror. Still trapped in the Meta-World, I see. What did I do to deserve a visit from you?"

Anastasia was in her spectral form as she had come to 'the good doctor', "I _want you to capture a little girl for me_."

Gebok cocked an eyebrow, "A little girl? That's what I'm doing."

Anastasia frowned, "_Not your doll! A little girl named Maria_." She used her magic to make the image appear on Gebok's monitor.

Gebok smirked, "Hm, she's really cute."

"_Just capture her_," Anastasia huffed, "_My Furniture will do the rest_." She then faded away.

* * *

"Gebok's a dead man when we find him," Yuji scowled, "I swear to the Crimson Dragon."

Alan sighed, "Shinichi really seems to hate Alice."

"Only because she knocked out his family under Gebok's orders," Yuji reasoned, "Poor girl didn't know up from down."

The two were in Angel Mort, having some drinks. Even the sight of the tantalizing outfits weren't enough to quell the Manakyte's anger at the moment.

Alan frowned, "The moment he saw her, he just went crazy."

"No foolin'," Yuji nodded.

"If I hadn't been there, Shinichi would've killed her."

Yuji sighed, "Kid needs to realize that the girl was probably fucked over by Gebok like he was. That movie of him I saw in his head was no picnic, lemme tell ya..."

"Alice was created by Gebok to mess with Shinichi's mind. He told me this, 'Gebok makes it, I break it'." Alan stared into his coffee cup, "He doesn't see a little girl. He sees a weapon."

Yuji gave the Lantern a small smile, "Well, at least you'll be taking care of her, right?"

Alan nodded, "She's my daughter now and Yami loves her."

Yuji chuckled, "I'm sure she and Maria are gonna make great friends." He sighed dejectedly as he sipped his coffee, "This is almost as good as a Blue Eyes White Mountain." He then nudged Alan on the arm, "You and me, we got weird ways of making families, huh?"

Alan shrugged, "I got that from my father. Three of my oldest siblings are adopted."

Yuji laughed, "I hung out with Dante, Warren and Leon for so long that I can make a family without even trying." He holds up his cup, "To family."

Alan smiled and nodded, "To family." And then he receives a call on his ring, "What's up, Lala?"

"_ALAN! THERE ARE WHITE ROBOTS ATTACKING THE BOARDING HOUSE! THEY WANT ALICE AND MARIA!"_

Yuji and Alan bugged, "NANI!"

* * *

A paper crane landed on Shinichi's shoulder. That could only mean one thing. As he took the paper crane into his hand, it unfolded into a sheet of paper with a message on it. He frowned before getting up, crushing the paper in his hand.

"Shin-kun?" Rena asked.

"Rena-chan, I have to go." With that he ran out the door, grabbing his helmet along the way.

* * *

The W14 units were in front of the boarding house and in the lead were Spider Ninja and Chainsaw Shark. Chainsaw Shark was a shark android with a chainsaw equipped to its snout. It stood on two feet, with its tail hanging down behind him. The fin on his back looked like a blade. Chainsaw Shark was also holding a pair of swords with jagged edges.

Standing in front of the boarding house, defending it, were Yami, Amora, and Conda. Yami's hair had formed blades and her hands had also become wicked blades as well. Amora was using her magic. Finally, Conda was armed with her whip and her strength.

"Leave, or else I will punish you," said Amora haughtily.

"Please, like we're afraid of some girls," snorted Spider Ninja.

"That's right!" agreed Chainsaw Shark. "Now hand over those little girls!"

In a room on the second floor of the boarding house, Maria and Alice were watching from the window. With them were Lala, Bishie, Celine and Nozomu. The little plant girl was trembling in the plant Pokegirl's arms as she tried to soothe her.

"It'll be alright," Lala said calmly. "Alan-kun will come and save us."

"Alright, get them!" ordered Spider Ninja and the W14's leapt into action. Amora prepared her spells, Conda gripped her whip tight, and Yami prepared to strike. However, a blur suddenly rammed into the W14's and knocked them into the air. This was followed by gunshots and the W14's that had been sent skyward exploded.

The girls looked to see who it was and saw that it was Shinichi with his shotgun smoking at the barrel. He then pumped it, discarding the empty shells. "Headshots," he finished.

"What are you doing here?" Yami asked. She wasn't very happy with Shinichi after what'd happened earlier.

"Relax, I'm here to help," said Shinichi. He looked to the X-SHOCKER forces. "Really? Gebok wants little girls and he sent you?"

"That's right, BLACK 13! So scram!" Spider Ninja shouted.

"I knew Gebok was sick but I never thought the freak was a pedophile too," Shinichi snorted. "Now, let's do this! GX Henshin!"

"ATTACK!" Spider Ninja ordered.

Showa GX attacked the W14's with his trusty shotgun as he continued popping the heads of the weakling androids. A blast of green energy went through the head of a W14 and Showa turned to see Liger Zero and Alan approaching.

Liger was riding a bike that was different from the last one he saw. It was black with white armor that was reminiscent of his Zero Form. The bike had a sleek lion's head with red eyes and golden fangs.

"OK, White Blaze, time to get wild!" Liger Zero declared.

Liger Zero pressed a button on his D-Wheel and jumped as the bike began transform, taking the form of a large feline (a scaled down version of the Liger Zero Zoid). The mechanical liger, designated White Blaze, roared as it lunged at the W14's and began tearing through them like paper with it's powerful, golden, claws. Showa simply sweat-dropped at the sheer ferocity of the machine.

"Pretty impressive, huh?" Liger Zero grinned.

Showa GX looked to his fellow Rider, "How did you get a bike to transform like that?"

"I've been busy," Liger Zero shrugged, "And he's not just a bike. White Blaze's programming is based on a giant robot I found a while ago in my world and he has built-in DNA computers. Here boy!" White Blaze roared and trotted over to Liger Zero as he petted the mechanical cat, purring in the Rider's hand. "That's a good boy," Liger Zero cooed.

"Yay, Papa!" Maria cheered from the apartment window.

Liger Zero looked up and gave a thumbs up, "Sit tight, sweetheart, I'll come up and fetch ya when I'm done down here!" He faced the remaining W14's and Chainsaw Shark as he cracked his knuckles, "So, who's ready to die first?"

Chainsaw Shark readied his swords and growled, "You're mine!" He charged and swung forward as Liger Zero weaved and jumped around the android, dodging the jagged blades with surprising grace.

"Sugoi," Lala cheered, "Look at him go!"

"Wow, Yuji-jichan is amazing," Alice admired.

"He's good," Bishie nodded. Nozomu nodded.

"Time to bring back an oldie but goodie," Liger Zero muttered. He cupped his hands and shouted to the sky, "Descend, Suzaku!"

From the clouds above descended a large, mechanical, bird, with the appearance of a phoenix armed with guns in its wings. It cawed as it descended to the battlefield and rained a barrage of cannon fire on Chainsaw Shark.

"Been a while since I've seen him," Showa commented.

Liger Zero raised his right hand and snapped his fingers, "OK, Suzaku, time to Armor Link!" He jumped high into the sky as Suzaku cawed and came apart like pieces as it latched onto Liger Zero's armor, the wings attaching to his back, arms, legs, shoulders, and helmet as Liger now soared through sky as he announced, "Kamen Rider Liger Zero! Phoenix Mode!"

"What is this?" Chainsaw Shark demanded.

"This is called an ass-kicking!" Liger Zero claimed as he took to the skies and swiped his Liger Pass.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Liger Zero's claws glowed as he reared his arms back, "Diving…Laser…CLAW!" He swung down and released arcs of golden slashes as they rained down on Chainsaw Shark and cleaved him to bits, followed by an explosion. He landed and roared victoriously.

"Nice work," GL-Alan complimented.

Liger Zero nodded as Suzaku detached itself from Yuji's armor and reformed into the bird-like machine, "Thanks, Suzaku." Suzaku cawed and took to the air, waiting for its master's call. He ripped off his belt and his armor shattered away.

Suddenly, a pair of long arms smashed into the window and wrapped around Maria and Alice before dragging them out. "ALICE! MARIA!" Lala screamed. Bishie tried to grab the two little girls with her Vine Whip but she was too late as the two young ones were snatched away.

Showa heard the shout and looked up to see a long pair of arms had caught Alice and Maria. He timed it just right and unleashed his energy whip-blades and they cut through the arms. He heard a shout as Alice and Maria were released. Acting quickly, Showa jumped up and caught the two little girls in his arms before gently putting them to the ground.

"Yami, get them inside," Showa told the blonde assassin who nodded. Alice was staring up at him and for the first time Showa looked back and saw an innocent little girl. He knew she was an android and that Gebok had built her but the soulless insanity was gone from her eyes.

"Who are you?" Alice asked.

"I'm your Onii-chan," Showa answered. Rena had suggested that Alice/Chaos Doll was like him and thus like a sister to him. Therefore, he should treat her as such.

Appearing in a flash of black butterflies were Todoriko and Goemon. Todoriko was once known as #01 of the NUMBERS and Kamen Rider Scanner who could absorb energy to mimic powers and Goemon was once known as #05 of the NUMBERS and Kamen Rider Dancer.

"You cut my arms, bro," sneered Goemon. "Not cool."

"So is kidnapping little girls," Showa shot back.

"We got orders from Anastasia-sama," Todoriko shot back.

"Ana-baka," Yuji muttered as he heard this. He balled his fists and the temperature around him began to rise as his growls became audible enough for Alan took notice.

"Uh-oh," Alan muttered.

"Well, you can tell her to shove it up her ass," Showa retorted.

"That's it!" Goemon roared and assumed his demonic form as did Todoriko. Goemon's body morphed as his arms lengthened, growing spikes along them. Curved spikes also grew out of his shoulders as his body started to become covered in organic body armor that looked like an exoskeleton. His hands also transformed to resemble the heads of centipedes with crushing mandibles. As decoration, he had centipede belt, bracelet and anklets also a pair of centipedes wrapped crisscross along his torso. Finally, his head gained antennae with the same mandibles at the edges of his mouth.

Todoriko's transformation was disturbing as his entire body became black and slimy. Also, he had circular mouths covering every inch of his body and the mouths all looked sucker-like and lined with sharp teeth.

"Alright, you both had just turned beyond ugly," Showa pointed out. "I was thinking 'fugly' but that would be an insult to all the real fuglies out there."

"TAKE THIS!" Goemon the Centipede Demon roared as he lashed out with his centipede arm but Showa easily dodged it while the spot he'd stood out was crushed beneath the blow. The Leech Demon aided his partner and fired twin streams of acid from the mouths in his palms at Showa who leapt back to avoid. The acid was melting the ground, causing it to bubble, sizzle and corrode.

"That was gross," Showa said. He drew his sword and charged at them. He first knocked the Leech Demon away with a kick before engaging the Centipede Demon, punching him across the face before using several kicks to force him to stagger back. He ducked under a stream of acid and spun around to slash the Leech Demon across the body, only to do no damage. Its slimy body was protecting him.

"You can't harm us anymore, #13!" the Leech Demon taunted.

"Oh, really?" Showa remarked. "Bring down the Thunder! Gokuaku!" The two demon Furniture were pushed back by a tornado of fire, wind and lightning which then dispersed to become Showa Oni and armed with the Oni Claws. "Take this then!" He spewed forth a tongue of flames at the Leech Demon, causing him to scream out. "You like that?" He then grunted as Goemon struck him from behind with his whip-like Centipede Arms. He turned and glared at the Centipede Demon who whipped at him but he smacked it away with his arm before charging at him. He swiped at Goemon with his claws, causing sparks to spray out on contact, before adding another clawed slash to force him to stagger back. He then thrust both claws forward, stabbing at Goemon's exoskeleton armor, throwing him through the air.

"Let's finish this," concluded Showa as he made tornados of flames engulf his claws. He rushed at Goemon who was getting to his feet before he struck. The flaming claws pierced right through the Soldat before causing him to explode in a burst of black butterflies.

Todoriko, after he managed to stop, drop and roll to get rid of the flames, looked up as Showa loomed over him with his Oni Kanabo. "Oh shit," he squeaked before the Oni Kanabo smashed him to the ground, flattening his skull and crushing him. Like Goemon, he too became black butterflies.

"And stay vanquished," Showa growled. He knew, of course, they weren't really dead. They were Witch's Furniture and like the Stakes of Purgatory would revive and cause more trouble. He would be ready for them, though.

"Dammit," Spider Ninja hissed as he took out a remote with a single button and pressed it. The remains of the W14's began to move and soon combined into the Giga-14. It looked like a gigantic W14 that was made up of the remains of the W14 units. The Giga-14 roared as it looked down at the assembled people before them. It towered over them with red eyes set on their destruction. However, while it dwarfed them in terms of size, it sure did not dwarf any of them in terms of power.

"That is a big robot," Alan commented.

The two little girls cringed at the sight of Giga-14 but Yami looked down at them, "It'll be OK."

Yuji's eyes were shadowed by his hair as he walked forward, the air warping from the heat his body was giving off.

"Yuji, what's wrong?" GL-Alan asked.

"These guys are dead…" he muttered. He growled and roared out, "NOBODY MESSES WITH MY DAUGHTER! I'LL MAKE SURE THAT YOUR KIND NEVER WALKS THIS EARTH AGAIN!

He was engulfed in a pillar of flames until a pair of demonic-looking arms erupted forth. A pair of magma-like wings flapped the flames away to reveal a towering dragon, covered in rock-like skin with red glowing lines in-between the cracks. The dragon had glowing yellow eyes that blazed like flames, menacing teeth, and a multitude of horns that resembled Yuji's hair but were actual horns instead of simple hair. His shoulders had crater like structures as flames danced out of them like giant torches. A long tail swished from side to side as the dragon let out a challenging roar that could be heard for miles as it rang through the air. It stood at a towering 20 feet that surpassed the Giga-14 by a solid 5 feet. This was Yuji's Beast Form, Volcanic Dragon.

Showa gawked, "Holy…"

"Shit…" Alan finished.

Lala, as well as the other girls were dumbstruck at the creature that towered above them. "What is that…?"

"I have no idea…!" Conda shuttered, "I've never seen anything like it in my life!"

Maria stared at the dragon and recognized the assortment of horns on its head, "Papa…?"

"That's…Yuji-jichan?" Alice gaped.

Bishie closed her eyes in fear as she tried to avoid looking at the volcanic-like monster. Yami's voice was caught in her throat as she trembled at the sight of the dragon. She's traveled the galaxy and has not once encountered such a creature. Amora was awed at the amount of power that seemed to roll of the dragon's body in waves. She's seen dragons before but they were miniscule in comparison to this one. For something to be brought out from a human…it was clear to her that Yuji was no mere human. Alan remembered the last time he saw Yuji like this, but this was different. Back in the day, he witnessed Yuji fighting Sister Jill in his Transcended Form and he just outright demolished her. This must be Yuji's raw power, in every sense of the word.

The Giga-14 roared as it charged at the Volcanic Dragon and went for a punch that was easily caught. Volcanic Dragon snarled as he broke Giga-14's hand with relative ease as it clutched its hand in pain and cried out. Volcanic Dragon roared as he swung his rock-hard fists into the Giga-14's stomach. Volcanic Dragon slammed his palms into the sides of Giga-14's head, disorientating the giant android as Volcanic Dragon slammed his tail into Giga-14's legs, tripping him. Volcanic Dragon thrust his arms forward and four holes opened in his palms as he fired a barrage of magma-hot bullets. Alan used his ring to shield the boarding house. The flames were practically hotter than hell as Alan struggled against the intense heat. Volcanic Dragon slammed his foot into Giga-14 and jumped before slamming a fist into Giga-14, creating an exploding crater before Volcanic Dragon proceeded to rip Giga-14 apart piece by piece. Giga-14 howled in pain as it was being torn apart and tried fighting back, unleashing laser blasts from its eyes. The lasers didn't even scratch Volcanic Dragon's skin as he ripped open Giga-14's stomach. The giant android stood no chance as it was slowly disemboweled by its opponent before Volcanic Dragon opened its wings and took to the sky. He drooled magma before rearing his head back and spewed super-hot flames at Giga-14, hearing his opponent scream in agony as it was slowly melted, and touched down to watch the crater become a pool of lava. Volcanic Dragon roared victoriously as it had won the battle against his offender.

"YAY, PAPA!" Maria cheered, "UU!"

"YAY, YUJI-JICHAN!" Alice followed her friend as they praised Volcanic Dragon's victory.

Volcanic Dragon turned and was covered in flames as he shrunk and returned to Yuji Fudo, whose clothes were intact. He saw Alan and the others looking at him as he grinned, "Admit it. I'm awesome, aren't I?"

"What…in the name…of Oyashiro-sama…was THAT?" Shinichi asked. At the sight of him, Alice hid behind Alan.

"Before I can tell you that, I think you need to deal with this," said Yuji, referring to Alice.

Shinichi's gaze softened and he sighed. "Yeah, you're right." He turned to look at Alice and then at Alan who was shielding her. "Relax, I'm not here to hurt her."

"What changed your mind?" Alan asked.

"Well, Rena-chan talked some sense into me and I thought about it really hard." He rubbed the back of his head. "Look, I apologize of how I reacted. I was wrong. I took out my anger on the wrong person. Alice is as much as a victim as I am."

Alan accepted the apology, "Good to see that you've come to your senses, but I'm not the one you should be apologizing to."

Shinichi looked to Alice and got down on one knee. "Alice, I'm sorry about before. I really am. It's just that…I was angry and you reminded me of someone I really hate. I'm sorry I took it out on you. It wasn't right and it wasn't really your fault. I hope you can forgive me." Shinichi hung his head and then felt someone patting it. He looked up and saw that it was Alice with a soft and forgiving smile. He returned the smile.

"So, can I really call you 'Onii-chan'?" Alice asked.

"Yeah, you can." She then hugged him around the neck. He stiffened a little but relaxed after a moment. He had to remind himself that Alice was no longer the same android he'd sent to the bottom of the ocean. He then returned the hug.

"Isn't that just so heartwarming?" said Yuji. "So, are you gonna introduce your new little sis to the rest of your family?"

"Maybe after I explain things to them so they don't freak out. She did kinda attack them," said Shinichi.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: Gebok is really starting to make a mess of things, isn't he? And not just for everyone but for himself as well. Let's hope he learns to not piss off heroes who really care about their families. There was some conflict here between everyone but it was resolved here. Thank goodness for that.**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: Hope you guys like the badassery that occurred in this chap. You can bet that Yuji is gonna have a few words with Ana-baka, among other painful things.**


	30. The Fall of X Shocker Part 3

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 3: Zombie Invasions and Manhunter Hunts**

Dr. Hasuma was in the observation/control room and watching Shinichi inside the Danger Room while taking notes. The Kaizo Ningen blurred through the course, destroying any obstacles that came his way. The lethal implements inside the room were all useless against the time-manipulating youth.

As the Director of the Department of Rider Affairs (DORA) he was to be present to observe the Kamen Riders who were part of ARMOR in their training. Also, as Head Physician/Chief Medical Officer of the organization he would also be required to give medical assistance to them if they injured themselves.

What Dr. Hasuma was seeing was similar to the Clock Up System**;** only that Shinichi was executing it without the Masked Rider suits that had the Clock Up built-in. From his research, Shinichi's time powers were something Shinichi always had since his birth, which meant he'd been born a metahuman. The genetic and cybernetic enhancements forced upon him by Gebok merely helped him to focus and control those abilities. However, there were still limitations.

The Director of DORA watched as Shinichi's movements slowed down to normal speed and panted, bent over with his hands to his knees. He also saw a vein throbbing on the side of the youth's head. The only logical conclusion was that using his time-manipulating powers caused him strain and pain, both mentally and physically.

Dr. Hasuma had listed Shinichi's time-manipulation abilities as followed:

Return to the Past: This allowed Shinichi to reverse time for up to 24 hours. As a result, everything within that timeframe is restored.

Rewind: Small scale time reversal which allows Shinichi to repair damage.

Fast Forward: Time acceleration technique that Shinichi uses on himself.

Pause: The ability to freeze time.

Crawl: The ability to slow down time.

Warp: Shinichi is able to warp through time and space to arrive anywhere instantly without any time spent between warps.

Dr. Hasuma had discovered from a talk with Shinichi that the youth was struggling against an unstoppable force each time, which was time. Thus, the pain and strain caused by using his powers was a result of time pushing back against his manipulation. Also, there was more.

Shinichi, while performing a Return to the Past, could also decide what to Erase from existence. The only condition was that he'd have to kill the target before activating the Return to the Past.

The pain wasn't the only cost Shinichi paid. He also paid with his life. Nothing was truly free of charge and Shinichi paid with his own time to use the time powers. Thus, he had to limit their use.

Dr. Hasuma had seen what had happened when he'd used Return to the Past Repeatedly. The boy's mind had nearly been broken after having to reverse time to save his loved ones, only to fail one time after another. It was heartbreaking. Shinichi reminded Dr. Hasuma of himself at that age. When he was young, he was thrust into a destiny and role he knew nothing about. The difference was that Shinichi had been forced to become what he was and suffered for 10 years in GIN-SHOCKER.

Dr. Hasuma knew that GIN-SHOCKER came from his world. He, Kat, Takada and Ichijyo had been fighting them as the Saint Beast Riders but when Dr. Hasuma had gone to confront The Great Leader, he'd fled into another world.

If only he'd been faster. However, there was no time for regrets. He had to move on. Warren had told him so. It wasn't healthy to focus on such depressing thoughts. At least Shinichi managed to find his family again.

Speaking of family, Dr. Hasuma knew the truth about Shinichi's parentage, and so did Warren. They just weren't talking. Dr. Hasuma wasn't talking because Warren had told him not to and Warren hadn't told Shinichi because the Kaizo Ningen didn't want to know, at least for now.

Dr. Hasuma watched Shinichi drop to his hands and knees. "I should get down there," he concluded.

* * *

Kizaki-sensei stood at the front of the class and spoke, "Alright, since our original class president has moved away, we will need a new president to fill in her shoes. Are there any nominees?"

Lala raised her hand and smiled, "I nominate Alan-kun!"

Yami and Nozomu also raised their hands, "Seconded."

"I third it!" Bishie chirped.

Alan looked between the girls, "Wait, don't I get a say in this?"

Kizaki-sensei looked around, "Any objections?"

Nobody in the class objected

Kizaki-sensei continued, "All in favor?" Everyone but Alan raised their hands. He was still in shock.

Kizaki-sensei nodded, "Then Alan Smith-kun is the new class president."

Lala and Bishie cheered while Yami and Nozomu smiled.

Kizaki-sensei looked to Alan, "Now, as the new class president, you will need to give our new classmate a tour of the school."

The door slid open and the new student, a she, entered. She, like Alan, was Caucasian and had bright, chin-length, red hair and blue eyes. The boys instantly went gaga at the latest beauty to join their class.

"Hi, I'm Megan Morse and It's so nice to meet you all," Megan introduced herself, waving.

For a split second, Alan's ring responded to her presence but only for a split second.

"Well, Morse-san," began Kizaki-sensei, "Welcome to our class. You may take the empty seat next to Ezomori-san. If you have any problems you may ask our class president, Alan Smith-kun."

Alan and his girlfriend's seating arrangements were as followed. Alan was in the centre with Nozomu to his front, Bishie to his left, Lala to his right and Yami right behind him. The seat that Megan was taking had belonged to the previous class president.

Megan took her seat and looked back to address Alan, "So, you're the new class prez, right?"

"That's right," Alan confirmed.

"Hope you know how to give a tour," she said.

* * *

Shinichi was minding the cash register at the pawn shop, reading a magazine of sexy anime characters. He was bored since there were no customers. The bell rang and he looked up from his magazine to see Yuji walking in from the front door with a large duffle bag hanging from his shoulder.

"Oh hey," Shinichi greeted as he put the magazine down. "What brings you here?" This was the first time seeing him here.

Yuji walked to the counter and fished a photo out of his jacket and showed it to Shinichi. It depicted a large horn, carved with runic markings.

"I got a tip saying that this horn was in this world," Yuji explained.

Shinichi looked at the picture, "What is it exactly?"

"It's a calling horn, hollowed out and carved from a Manakyte horn," Yuji clarified, "You know, the kind of horns Vikings and other warriors use to announce their arrival. I'm looking for it so can get it and archive it along with other Manakyte artifacts I have back home."

Shinichi crossed his arms as he tried to think, "Well, if I had to guess, it would be in the back and the boss takes care of the special transactions."

Topper emerged from the back room and chuckled, "The question is: what are you willing to give for it, Yuji-boy?"

Yuji grinned at the Infernal Merchant as he unzipped the bag and pulled a large, reptilian, skull out of the bag and placed it on the counter.

Shinichi's eyes widened at the size of the skull as it was about the size of a coffee table, "What the hell is _that_?"

"The head of a giant anaconda I killed while training in the Amazon back home," Yuji replied, "The bastard tried to swallow me and he succeeded too before I cut his head off from the inside. I spent a week getting the stink of its saliva out of me hair."

Topper smiled as he dropped the Manakyte horn onto the counter, "It's yours, Yuji-boy!" The horn was about half the length of an adult arm.

Yuji took the horn and observed the markings, "Nordic runes… Very nice." He took a deep breath and blew the horn as the call resounded throughout the entire town.

Shinichi grinned, "Wow, that thing is powerful! Just what you would expect from a battle call!" He, Yuji, and Topper than heard rumbling, "What the…is that an earthquake?"

Topper smirked, "I don't think so."

Yuji and the two exited the shop and Yuji paled as he saw what was coming from down the street, "Oh, fuckberries…!"

A huge horde of women was running down the street like a stampede, with hearts in their eyes and drooling as they called, "YUJI-SAMA!"

Yuji's eyes widened and gaped, "HOLY SHIT!" He turned tail and ran down the street as the horde of women gave chase.

Shinichi saw Topper snickering and said, "I'm guessing that horn wasn't for battle calls."

Topper waved a finger, "It was actually used for _mating_ calls, but I guess Yuji-boy knows that now."

"Looks like his women troubles have grown," Shinichi chuckled. He decided to take notes and give them to his mother. She would love the inspiration. Plus, the horn was like a phallic symbol after all.

* * *

During lunch, Alan showed Megan around the school. He had only recently transferred into the school following his investigation and unlike Shinichi had stayed since the Kaizo Ningen had to go back to college to catch up on the week he'd missed. Alan knew the layout of the school pretty well and as he showed Megan around he noted several places of interest, giving her a short summary of the school's facilities and answering whatever questions she had.

As they stopped in front of the nurse's office, Alan told her, "This is where Mrs. Aino, the school nurse, works. She is just about the nicest person you can find here." He then continued to show her around. They stopped in front of the chemistry lab. "And over here is the chemistry lab." He then waited for a second before a loud boom could be heard from inside. "OK, let's move on."

Alan showed her the auditorium and then they stopped for lunch at the cafeteria. As they ate, Alan noted how easy it'd been to give the girl a tour. It wasn't as hard as he'd thought. 'That was oddly easy. Who knows, maybe today will actually be normal,' Alan thought pleasantly as he enjoyed his food, unaware that he probably had jinxed himself today.

"So, where are you from, Alan?" Megan asked.

"Oh, I come from California but before I came to this school I attended a private school there," said Alan. Titans Academy was a pretty exclusive school. The conditions for entry and acceptance were pretty strict. "What about you?" Alan asked.

She knew he was an alien. His ring pretty much told him so. She could be a Martian like the Megan Morse he knew but he would wait to see if that was true and not pry too much.

"Oh, I lived in the US with my uncle and we moved around, a lot," Megan told him. "We settled here after he got a job offer."

"I see."

* * *

People attempted to flee from the undead and while the zombies were slow moving they made up for their speed with their numbers instead. Zombies were like a virus and only followed their natural instincts. They never get tired, never get distracted, and always hungry. Not only that, but zombies could convert the living into their undead brethren through an infectious bite. To put it simply, zombies were like a life-size virus that only existed to feed and replicate.

The unlucky stragglers who were caught in the zombie's grasp were bitten and devoured and if enough of their bodies remained, they revived as zombies as well.

It truly was a scene straight out of a horror movie.

A little girl tripped while running with her mother and the mother quickly helped her up. However, a zombie grabbed her and was about to sink its teeth into her but…

**BLAMMO!**

Its head was suddenly, and explosively, blown off its shoulders. They heard a shotgun cock and looked ahead to see a helmeted and jacketed young man on a motorbike with a shotgun in hand. "What are you waiting for? Get out of here!" he ordered. The mother and daughter nodded before dashing off.

Shinichi could see the police trying to take down the zombies but they weren't doing it right. Their guns did nothing and the zombies attacked them, sinking their teeth into them.

From what he knew about zombies during the 'How to Deal with Zombies' seminar back in ARMOR there were two ways to deal with zombies: burn them to a crisp or blow their heads right off.

Shinichi preferred the latter, obviously.

As the zombies surrounded him, he quickly drew his sword and got off his bike and began swinging, slicing heads off. He also fired his shotgun, blowing heads off. He kept his distance. He was a cyborg with a powerful immunity system but he did not want to risk being bitten. He hooked his sword-wielding arm around his gun and pulled the gun back to cock it and dispose of the empty shell before the new ammo slid into the place. Taking aim at a zombie he fired, its head exploding into bits of bone and grey matter.

He took time to analyze the threat. The original zombies all wore black shirts and pants and on the front of their shirts was a gold hawk with an 'X' in their breasts.

"X-SHOCKER…" growled Shinichi. "I should've known." And if X-SHOCKER was involved then so was Gebok.

As the police fell or retreated from the zombies, Shinichi could hear a very distinctive and familiar tune playing in the air. It sounded like someone playing polka music on the accordion and smiled as he realized what it was. "So, the cavalry." He looked over his shoulder and gawked. In the lead was a jeep with N2 on the hood. The jeep was equipped with a chaingun turret that looked really lethal. Manning the turret was none other than Daichi and driving the jeep was Yokoshima with Shogo riding shotgun.

Of course, that was not what he was gawking at. Rolling behind the jeep was a TANK! The tank was equipped with a long and thin cannon barrel and flanked by semi-automatic guns. He couldn't see who was in the tank but he was pretty sure he could guess right away.

Inside the tank were Michiru, Hana and Chiaki. Chiaki was the driver with Michiru as the gunner. The top hatch opened and Hana poked out of it.

"You look like you need help," the Tarantula Kaizo Ningen said.

That was when Daichi started shouted, "EAT THIS, ZOMBIES! YOU LIKE THAT, YOU UNDEAD MUTHAFUCKERS! YEAH, SUCK IT YOU UNDEAD BITCHES!" while shooting a spray of bullets at the undead horde. Yokoshima kept running them over while Shogo shot at them with a new gun. It was not a shotgun and looked like a hi-tech pistol that shot needles at the zombies. The needles embedded into the zombie flesh before they exploded, causing blood and gore to go flying in all directions.

"OK, Chiaki! Let her rip!" Michiru smacked the strong and silent member of their team. He aimed the cannon of the tank at the zombies and fired a shell. The results were devastating as the zombies were torn apart while being thrown into the air by the explosion. "Oh yeah! Booyah!"

"Well, all we need is an assault chopper and…" Shinichi started and they he heard it. "Oh, you can't be serious." He looked up and there it was, an assault chopper, with black and grey camouflage colors. "Now who's flying that?"

Inside the chopper's cockpit was their newest member, Battler Ushiromiya. Originally codenamed Black Ghost, the rookie cyborg was manning the controls. Originally, he'd been afraid of moving vehicles but after his modifications and training those fears had all been erased.

He locked onto the targets and grinned. "Alright, fire in the hole!" Battler crowed and with a push of a button he let loose a missile. The missile hit the zombies and in a single blazing fireball of glory wiped them out in a single explosion.

"OK, I can handle the jeep, but the tank and chopper are really something I need to get used to," muttered Shinichi.

Hana got out of the tank to land next to him with a grenade launcher. She noted that there weren't many zombies left and decided to fire a grenade at them. It shot through the air, landed at their feet, and exploded, annihilating them in one go.

In the Zombie Seminar, there was also a section where using powerful military weapons was recommended. If you had a tank, don't be afraid to use it and better if you had a chopped armed to the teeth.

"Need a flamethrower?" Hana asked. "There's one in the tank."

"Nah, I'm good," said Shinichi, cocking his gun.

The jeep returned and Daichi cheered, "LET'S SEND THESE ASSHOLES BACK TO THE GRAVE!"

"YEAH, WHAT DAI SAID!" agreed Yokoshima loudly.

* * *

Both Megan and Alan were on the roof, just talking, when all of a sudden Alan's ring alerted him of danger. And it was absolutely right as he looked around and then up to see several humanoid figures descending. He recognized them, in fact. "Manhunters…" he murmured.

Alan moved Megan behind him as the robots descended. There were 10 robots, formed in a circle around the two. "What…what are these things?" asked Megan fearfully.

One of the machines spoke, "Target: M'gann M'orzz. Identified. Target: Alan Smith. Identified. No Man Escapes the Manhunters."

"Identify this!" roared Alan as his ring exploded with emerald energy. The Manhunter robot directly in front of him was completely destroyed from the waist up, leaving only the legs and sparking, disconnected circuits. Alan grabbed Megan's hand and started running. He flashed bright green before becoming clad in his Green Lantern uniform. "Hold on!" Alan warned as he and Megan took flight.

"You…you're a Green Lantern! But they were wiped out centuries ago!" shouted Megan. Alan gave Megan a shocked look.

"Green Lantern energy detected. Executing countermeasures," said the Manhunters as they gave chase through the air. Their faceplates opened up to reveal glowing green energy.

"Power Level at 90%...89%...88%," warned Alan's Ring as the Manhunters drained its energy.

"SHIT!" cursed Alan. It'd been a while since he faced Manhunters, and he wasn't expecting to see them on this world. However, this confirmed a suspicion of his.

"Hey, need a boost, partner?" asked Bazel.

"Would be appreciated!" shouted Alan as he held Megan close and dodged the energy blasts.

"OK, here we go!"

In a flash, Alan was donned with the Bazel Combat armor sans the helmet. He had asked Bazel before not to equip him with the helmet anymore.

"Power Level at 100%," the ring reported.

"Won't last long, but for now it's a big help," said Alan. The school was about to become a battlefield, it would seem. He and Megan landed on the ground and he told her, "Run, and get help! I'll hold try to hold them off!" With Bazel's armor, he might stand a chance.

"But…" Megan began to protest.

"GO!" Megan flinched before dashing off. The Manhunters spotted her and split up to pursue her. "Oh, no you don't!" He unleashed twin blasts of emerald energy from his palms and vaporized two of the Manhunters in an instant. "She's my classmate, and as the class president of 1-A it is my duty and responsibility to make sure she is safe!" Alan declared.

The Manhunters decided to address the situation at hand and deal with it appropriately. "Terminate Target," they spoke as one.

"TERMINATE THIS!" Alan roared and he lunged forward, smashing a fist across a Manhunter's face, throwing it back several feet. The Manhunters tried to dog-pile him but he landed on one palm and twisted his lower body around, spinning his legs to strike them down. It would appear all that martial arts training paid off.

The downed Manhunters got up and activated their arm blasters along with their comrades and started firing at Alan. The energy blasts were green, same as Alan's. Alan didn't let them strike him down and erected a barrier around himself. He could still feel his ring being drained but Bazel was providing the backup energy and continuously fueled his own energy into the ring and Alan's body.

Suddenly, blonde hair wrapped around one of the Manhunters before the hair changed into blades that sliced the unit apart. This was followed by another Manhunter being dragged backwards by a whip around his neck and the remaining being blasted into the air by a blast of magical energy.

Alan blinked and then looked to see that backup had arrived. He smiled. "You girls came."

"Of course," said Amora as she crushed a Manhunter's head in her hands and let the body fall.

"Megan-san called us!" answered Lala. She was holding a white and purple rocket launcher in her hand that had a rotating magazine. Nozomu was in her true Okami Yokai form. Also, Bishie's Vine Whips were out.

Amora smirked at Conda, "Amazoness, let's show these Manhunters what happens when they enrage a woman, shall we?"

Conda cracked her whip, "I couldn't agree with you more, Enchantress."

The Manhunters looked to the group of girls, "New threats identified."

Conda grinned as she charged ahead, "Oh, you got that right!" The girls all followed her lead, "Girls, charge!"

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, especially if you went after their man.

"Fire in the hole! Go Boom-Boom Rocket-kun!" Lala called as she fired. The white and violet rocket, which had a spiral pattern at the front, flew through the air. The Manhunter caught the rocket in hand and crushed it. Lala pouted but then grinned as she fired two more rockets at the Manhunter. She pressed another button on her launcher which caused the two rockets to break apart into six miniature ones each that struck the Manhunter. She gave a V for Victory sign at the explosion.

The Manhunters might have been strong, but so was Conda. She was grappling with one of them and giving him a huge grin. The Manhunter stared perplexed at her smug look, before she twisted his arms and broke them off. She then followed up with a kick in his chin that took the head right off. The Manhunter collapsed.

"Razor Leaf!" Bishie called as she unleashed her attack. Razor tipped leaves that spun like circular saw blades soared at the Manhunters but then they bounced off. The Manhunter fired at her, sending her flying with a shout. However, that was her plan from the start. She concentrated and absorbed solar energy via the flower on her back. The Manhunter flew up at her to finish her but she had been waiting for this. "SOLAR BEAM!" she called out and unleashed a burst of solar energy from her palms at the Manhunter at point blank range. She was tossed backwards but the robot was hit with the full brunt of the attack as well.

Snapping her fingers, Amora made lightning strike down from the heavens upon the Manhunter, completely frying their systems in an instant. "Hmph, pathetic toy soldiers." She flipped her hair.

There was just one left and after seeing what these girls could do decided to just take off. He shot into the air like a rocket, leaving the battlefield.

"Where's my fight?" Nozomu asked. Alan rubbed her head.

"You'll get yours next time," he told her. Now, he just had to find Megan. She knew something and what she'd said earlier troubled him. '_There were Green Lanterns in this universe, but she said they were wiped out. What exactly is going on here?_'

* * *

"OK, we managed to wipe out all the zombies," said Shogo. The remains of the undead **lay** at their feet, all torn apart after what they'd done.

"What a relief," said Battler. He'd never seen zombies before and he wished he never did again for a long time.

Hana was picking up tissue samples and putting them into a zip lock bag for later analysis at ARMOR.

Shinichi frowned in sympathy. Among the X-SHOCKER zombies were their victims who'd been infected and also ending up joining the undead horde. While he cared little for the zombies clad in X-SHOCKER garb, their victims which had been made into their undead kin had not deserved this fate. He would need to perform a Return to the Past to fix all the damage done here today.

Sure, it would cost him a portion of his lifespan as always but it was a fair price to pay considering it meant bringing these people back.

"Guess it's all in a day's work and-WOAH!" Shinichi suddenly tackled into Yuji and knocked him off his feet to fall on his rear. "Ow! Hey, what was that for?"

He then looked down at the spot where he'd stood and saw a scorched mark. He also realized everyone was looking at something and craned his head to see.

Hovering in the sky was a girl dressed like the typical Mahou Shoujo with long pink hair and the wings of a butterfly with a butterfly-tipped rod in hand. What was her name again…?

"Electric Butterfly…" murmured Shinichi. "Rina…"

"Kuro-kun, why did you do that?" pouted Electric Butterfly, "I almost got him."

"Electric Butterfly, you're Rina, aren't you?" Shinichi asked. He wanted to know. He needed to know.

"What do you think, Ku-ro-kun~?" Electric Butterfly said playfully, beaming wide while waving her rod around.

"Why are you working for Gebok?" Shinichi asked. "You know what he did."

"He offered me a deal," Electric Butterfly told him.

"What kind of deal? A deal worth your soul?" Shinichi shot back. She visibly flinched. She put on her smile again.

"That's a secret~" She looked at the zombies and frowned. "Hmph, and you made a mess here!"

"Hey, they were zombies!" said Yokoshima. Daichi was instantly at the jeep's turret, the chaingun aimed at her. Michiru was also aiming the tank's cannon at her.

"Well, there's more where that came from! Come on out!" Electric Butterfly waved her butterfly rod dramatically and a swirling pink portal formed in front of them and from the portal out came more black-clad undead, only this time they were sporting machete, clubs and sickles in hand. They also wore armor over their clothes. "Have fun~" Electric Butterfly sang.

"Great," murmured Shinichi. "Minna, Henshin!" he ordered. The rest activated their Spark Cores and were enveloped in their suits in the blink of an eye.

Yuji slung on his Liger Belt and called out, "Henshin!"

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

Liger Schneider roared and activated his blue vi-blades as he charged ahead and began cutting the zombies down, easily slicing through the armor like it was never there. He danced around the zombies, avoiding their bites as he severed their heads accurately.

The other NEO-NUMBERS were also battling the undead horde. Armadillo crushed them as he rolled over them and Zero shot them down with his needles, while Slasher, Arachnea, Carmen and Musician were cutting them down with their own respective weapons. Meta was shooting them with a spray of bullets and also sliced their heads off with his retractable blade.

Electric Butterfly blinked as she watched the lion-like Kamen Rider's movements, impressed by how skillfully he was taking care of the zombies.

"Never seen him before," she mused as she scratched her head with her wand. She pointed and blasted Liger Schneider with electricity, only to be deflected when he swiped the blast away. "Hm, not bad," she grinned.

Showa then flew up to look at her face-to-face. Back at the beauty pageant she'd shown him her true face, the face of Rina. Her face had haunted him for years and he never forgave himself for what'd happened. "Rina," he said, addressing her by name.

"Hello, Kuro-kun," smiled Electric Butterfly.

He frowned. Part of him was telling him that this was not Rina and simply something Gebok made to confuse him. However, another part of him wanted to believe that this was Rina so he could apologize for what'd happened. "Rina, I want to say…" She put her finger against his faceplate. He blinked.

"Sorry, but I'm on duty, nothing personal." She zapped him with lightning and he cried out as he was being electrocuted. A pained expression crossed her face for only a second but she continued her assault on Showa.

Liger swiped at her, ceasing her assault, but she dodged the blow. She almost got singed by a stream of flames from Meta who then attacked with a spray of bullets that she deflected with her rod.

"Guys!" Showa shouted. "Stop, don't hurt her!"

"Hurt her? She tried to kill you!" Meta shot back.

"You don't understand!"

"Of course I don't! She's the enemy, right?

Liger mentioned, "She's actually his ex."

Meta blinked, "Really?" Liger nodded. "Wow, must've been a bad breakup."

Showa grimaced as he recalled that moment.

Liger grinned, "Just sit back and watch! I know how to treat the ladies. OK, Chou-chan, let's get wild!" He pressed the blue button on his belt and swiped the Liger Pass.

"**JAGER FORM!"**

Liger switched to his speed form and roared as his thrusters ignited and he sped through the swarm of zombies, cutting through them with his golden claws. He spotted a ramp and jumped onto it and launched himself to Electric Butterfly

She gasped, "He's fast!"

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

His claws began to charge with golden energy as he was ready to finish it, **"Strike Laser Claw!"**

While Liger's attack had connected, he hit the wrong target. Showa had pushed Electric Butterfly out of the way and received the attack in her place, crying out as sparks sprayed out from his armor, much to Liger's surprise, "ARGH!"

"Shinichi!" Liger gasped.

Showa landed on one knee, painfully, "Couldn't…let you…hurt her…"

"Kuro-kun…" Electric Butterfly murmured.

"We need her…alive…find Gebok…" Showa finished.

"Dude, I was gonna kick her ass so she wouldn't be able to run!" Liger snapped. He reached for his gun and twirled it around his body as a glowing pentagram appeared under his feet. He then took aim at Electric Butterfly and pulled the trigger.

"Don't…!" Showa begged.

**BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!**

The three bullets then turned into chains with snake-like heads as they coiled around Electric Butter who was in shock from the transforming bullets. She then fell to the concrete, struggling to break free.

"What are these things?" she demanded.

Liger Jäger wagged his gun and grinned, "Basada-Dan (Binding Chain Snake). Might as well sit tight, cuz you're not getting out of there anytime soon." He frowned beneath his helmet as he heard the zombies coming up behind him and the NEO-NUMBERS.

Zero readied himself as did the other Kaizo Ningen.

"Dammit, these things just won't quit," Arachnea groaned.

Zero Jäger growled as he turned to the swarm, "Get out of my sight, you undead fucks!" He twirled his gun again and fired at the floor in front of him as three pentagrams glowed and summoned three huge dragon-like cannons. "Teggahorin-Dan (Iron-Fanged Cannon Dragon)! Power Link and fire on my command!"

The Three cannon dragons linked up and stood beside each other with a, "CHAK! CHAK!" and took aim at the zombie horde.

"FIRE!"

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

The cannon dragons let loose the volley and obliterated the zombies as they were blown to bits and body parts helplessly flew all over the place.

"Wow!" Carmen exclaimed, "That was awesome!"

Liger Jäger chuckled, "Yeah, I can honestly say that my dick is almost as big as one Cannon Dragon when I'm in my Beast Form."

Carmen's eyes lit up and clasped Liger's hands, "REALLY? Can you show me and Hana later, please?"

Arachnea blushed, "Oi, Michiru!"

"Do you really have to be talking about your dick at a time like this?" Musician demanded Liger.

He nodded, "Yes, yes I do." He then grunted in pain as he was shot in the back by an electrical blast from Electric Butterfly who had broken the chains and was speeding toward Liger Jager.

"You're mine, Neko Rider!" she roared as she charged at him.

Showa got in her way and begged, "Rina, stop!"

"Out of my way, Kuro-kun!" She kicked him out of the way and continued her mad dash for Liger. She then charged up for another blast of electricity but gasped when she saw Liger glowing with red energy and a tattoo was glowing on his right hand.

"This hand of mine is burning red," Liger Jäger chanted, "Its loud roar tells me to grasp victory!Erupting…Burning…DRAGON!"

He shot his right hand forward and he blasted a dragon head-shaped flame as it consumed Electric Butterfly's blast along with her, but it wasn't fatal. Electric Butterfly screamed as she flew away. Showa frowned as Electric Butterfly left him without answers yet again.

Liger growled as he ripped his belt off and revealed a ticked Yuji. He felt that the fight could've gone on longer and he'd been disappointed by how fast it was over. The others had also deactivated their suits

Michiru whistled as she watched the path that Electric butterfly flew, "She screams louder than Hana-chan when I go down on her."

Hana blushed furiously, "Nobody needs to know THAT!"

Yuji grins "Already knew that! Especially when u hit just the right spot!" He looked to Hana, "Right, Hana-chan?"

Hana growled at the Manakyte, "I am going to kill you in your sleep."

Yuji shrugged, "I'll be too busy drilling you."

Hana blushed in response as Michiru jumped up and down as she waved her hand like a child, "Oh, oh! Do me first!

Yuji smiled, "Of course I will, Mi-chan!**"**

Shinichi was busy scribbling down notes as Battler's nose was bleeding from the imagery.

Yuji hooked an arm around the two and grinned, "How bout we all party back in my world? I'm sure Lilith and the others won't mind."

* * *

It was later in the evening when a Kamen Rider and Green Lantern would cross paths. Shinichi was out getting groceries when he bumped into Alan who was out on patrol. The two sat down on a bench to talk about what they'd done earlier today.

"So, anything interesting happen with you today?" Alan asked.

"Fought zombies," Shinichi answered. "You?"

"Fought killer robots called Manhunters." Alan had gone to look for Megan but she'd just vanished. He hoped to see her in school again to ask her some questions. Just why were the Manhunters after her?

"So, just a regular day, huh?"

"Pretty much."

* * *

A shadowed figure stared at a large screen. The screen showed footage of the fight with Alan, his girls and the Manhunters. "Tch, pathetic. Unleash the Highmaster," said the figure.

"At once, Grandmaster."

* * *

Shinichi and Alan continued talking when the ground started to shake. "Oh what now…?" groaned Shinichi.

"Nothing good," said Alan as he pointed into the sky. What appeared to be a forty story Manhunter robot descended upon the heroes. Aside from its mammoth size, there was also a glass window in its chest.

"What the hell is that thing!" shouted Shinichi as he jumped to his feet. The glass window opened up and several mechanical tentacles shot out and grabbed onto Shinichi. "The fuck?" was all Shinichi managed to get out before he was dragged forward and trapped within the Highmaster's containment center. He growled in rage. "Let…Me…G-" Shinichi was silenced when a cord dug its way into his neck and he immediately lost consciousness. The Highmaster's eye glowed yellow.

"**NO BEING ESCAPES THE HIGHMASTERS."**

Its eyes glowed green like with the Manhunters, and Alan's ring began to lose power. "Uh…Bazel…I could use some help here!" shouted Alan as he took flight. The Highmaster launched beams of yellow energy from its eyes, forcing Alan to dodge and weave between the blasts.

"Sorry partner…still weak from the earlier fight…" informed Bazel.

"Power Levels 0%" said the power ring as Alan lost energy. His clothing returned to normal. He got hit by a blast and crashed to the ground with a thud, groaning in pain.

"Fuck my life…" muttered Alan as he forced himself up and stared down the Highmaster.

"**TARGET: ALAN SMITH. CURRENT POWER CLASS: GAMMA. THREAT LEVEL: 0. SURRENDER OR BE TERMINATED."**

"No power huh?" smirked Alan. "Not a threat?" Alan's eyes glowed golden as his fist became covered in the same energy. "Check again you ugly son of a bitch!" Alan launched forward.

"**TARGET: ALAN SMITH. CURRENT POWER CLASS: OMEGA. THREAT *KRRTTZZ*"** Alan laid a right hook into the face of the Highmaster. He pulled back and yanked the faceplate with it.

"Eat Quantum energy!" roared Alan as two beams of gold energy exploded from his hands. The force was great enough that the Highmaster was actually knocked off the ground. Alan then flew above the container that was holding Shinichi. He smashed the glass and grabbed a hold of the cord before yanking it out of Shinichi. He then blasted off the chest of the massive robot, taking Shinichi with him, and leaving a massive whole in the center of the beast.

"Ugh…" groaned Shinichi. "What happened?"

"You were being used as a power source for that Highmaster robot," explained Alan. "Not a pleasant experience, I know."

"**POWER SOURCE: REMOVED. SELF DESTRUCT INITIATED. 10…9…"**

"Excuse me Shinichi, this ain't done yet…" sighed Alan as he shot forward. He reached the robot and grabbed its core. He saw the numbers descend.

**6…5…**

"I don't think so!" shouted Alan as he held it close to his chest and launched upwards.

**4…3…**

"Alan! No!" yelled Shinichi.

**2…1…0…**

**KABOOM!**

There was a massive explosion in the sky. Shinichi watched as a figure descended from the sky. It was Alan, his fists and eyes glowing with golden energy.

Shinichi could only gape with a WTF expression on his face. "Alan…?"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: OK, so a lot of stuff happens in this chap. Hope you enjoyed what we did, friends. You all might be wondering what the hell is going on but it's a huge Multiverse so there are a lot of secrets. All will be explains soon. Just you wait.**

**KR Bushido: Killing zombies is so much fun, right? Anyway, look out for other bizarre shit on the next installments!**

**Shadow Element 13: As Chrome said, all secrets will soon be revealed, such as the truth behind Alan's new powers, who the mysterious "Grandmaster" is, what happened to the GL Corps of Showa no Sekai. All will be revealed! Hope you enjoyed the chap!**


	31. The Fall of X Shocker Part 4

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 4: Flash Fire**

"We have nanites!" Takada confirmed after he finished analyzing the tissue sample Hana had recovered from the zombie outbreak. He was holding the report in his hand and slapping it down in front of Warren's desk.

"Nanites?" Warren asked as he took the report and leafed through it.

"Yup, and nasty little buggers too. These nanites were programmed to make zombies," said Takada. He started illustrating by pantomiming a zombie's movements. "It's like the 'zombie-making virus' in those movies and when these zombies bite a person, they become infected, and after they die the nanites revive their dead corpses into zombies as well."

"Have you synthetized a counter for the nanites?" Warren inquired. He wanted something prepared just in case more appeared.

"Working on it!" Takada grinned. "I better get back to the lab! Adios!" He then ran off.

Dr. Ryuki Hasuma picked up the report and grimaced, "Now they're using nanites to make zombies. How horrible."

"Yup, and I was hoping Shinichi wouldn't have to face them," said Warren as he put his hands behind his head and propped his feet up on his desk. "It's a good thing we had that seminar, huh?"

Dr. Hasuma didn't answer as he recalled the first time he had to deal with zombies. He was with Warren at the time and it'd been traumatic due to the children who'd also become zombies. He'd hesitated in blasting them with his flames and would've been infected if Warren hadn't snapped him out of it.

"According to Shinichi, this is Gebok's work," said Dr. Hasuma.

"That guy really doesn't know when to quit," Warren frowned.

* * *

Alan and Shinichi were in Angel Mort enjoying some coffee and cakes.

"So, your family didn't freak out when you introduced Alice to them?" Alan asked.

"Pretty much," answered Shinichi. "The last thing they remembered before they were knocked out was a 'big bird' swooping in through the door and attacking them.

"Well, that's good news at least. So, what did you tell them?"

"I told them Alice was my little sister and your daughter," Shinichi summarized. "Oddly enough they accepted that answer pretty well and didn't ask any questions."

"I guess they've gotten used to weird stuff," Alan shrugged.

"Guess so. I mean Kaa-chan couldn't stop fussing over Alice because she's so cute and Sho also likes her," said Shinichi.

"So, it all went well then," said Alan, relieved.

"Then Rena went into Take-It-Home mode and took off with Alice. I had to chase her all around the village to stop her," Shinichi finished.

"That girlfriend of yours really loves cute stuff," said Alan, chuckling. '_I just hope she doesn't try that in front of Yami or Bishie._'

"Yeah, and I think she wants to have her own baby," said Shinichi.

"Bet you'll have fun trying to make her dreams come true then," joked Alan.

Shinichi checked his watch, "Oh, I gotta go. Otousan and I have shooting practice."

* * *

As Shinichi rode towards the shooting range to meet his stepfather, he recalled the first time they'd ever gone there for male bonding. It was after he found out Kasai would be marrying his mother but before the wedding.

* * *

_Shinichi and Kasai were at an indoor shooting range. Kasai was a member so he managed to get Shinichi entry. The two stood side by side as they faced their targets. Kasai was armed with his preferred weapon of choice, a shotgun. As for Shinichi, he was practicing with a pistol._

_"I'm glad you agreed to come along," said Kasai._

_"You wanted to talk so let's talk," said Shinichi as he loaded the bullets into the chamber before locking it in._

_"Well, you are aware that your mother and I are getting married," said Kasai._

_"It's not news to me," Shinichi replied as he put on the safety goggles. He checked over his gun again._

_"So, I was hoping to get your blessing," said Kasai._

_"Alright," Shinichi agreed._

_"Huh?" Kasai blinked, though it was hard to tell since he wore those dark glasses. "That's it?"_

_"That's it," Shinichi shrugged. "The truth is, while it was a huge shock to me at first, I've come to terms to it quite fast. You make Kaa-chan happy. Who am I to stand in the way of that?"_

_"You're her son," Kasai answered. Shinichi sighed._

_"Sometimes I wonder about that," Shinichi responded. "I mean, she accepts me, but she doesn't know about all the stuff I went through for over a decade. She's my mother, and I love her, but I can't really consider myself her son since I sometimes feel like a stranger to her."_

_"She doesn't think so," Kasai argued._

_"I know, and I appreciate it, I do. She's part of my old life that I got again but there's still some emptiness," said Shinichi. "And you fill up that emptiness, Kasai-san. I want you to marry my mother, I want you to make her happy, and I want you to help her make a complete family."_

_"That means a lot," Kasai said._

_Shinichi eyes then went cold and Kasai felt like he was looking at BLACK 13 again. He warned, "But, if you do anything to hurt Kaa-chan I will hunt you down and there wouldn't be enough pieces of you left to identify with fingerprints or dental records." He put on the earmuffs and took aim with the gun, firing several shots at the human silhouette printed upon the target. The bullets hit the spot designated as the forehead, throat, heart, stomach and groin. Kasai gulped. Shinichi had shot at the groin twice._

* * *

That day, Kasai learnt how proficient Shinichi was at the use of weapons. It was really funny to see the man's sunglasses nearly fall off his face.

Shinichi parked his bike outside of the shooting range before entering. After getting himself checked at the door, he met up with Kasai inside where he was already loading his favorite weapon, his shotgun.

"You're late," said Kasai as he cocked his shotgun.

"Sorry, traffic was murder," responded Shinichi as he took out his own shotgun and ammo.

"Oh, this came in the mail for you," said Kasai as he handed Shinichi a letter. He saw the royal seal of Genovia on it and knew who it was from. The pink envelope was a dead giveaway.

"Shawna-chan…" he smiled. He opened it up and pulled out a birthday invitation before slapping his forehead. "Damn, I almost forgot! Her birthday's in a week!"

"You better RSVP that soon then," Kasai said.

Shinichi recalled attending Shawna's birthday last year. She'd invited him and he'd shown up with a modest gift. It was an action figure but it was also a rare custom model just for her. Unfortunately, at that time, some arrogant snob had made fun of his gift for Shawna and even insulted him for being a 'commoner'. Well, while Shawna was accepting presents, the snob had presented her with white gown that was covered in shining diamonds. She'd accepted all her previous gifts with a polite smile but it was only when Shinichi had come to her with his gift that she actually smiled…Of course, he'd also made quire the entrance…

* * *

_Shinichi jumped off the railing and grabbed onto the chandelier before swinging himself over to the stage where Shawna was accepting gifts, landing right in front of Shawna dramatically and shocking the snob who'd tried to bully him before._

_He would've punched the guy out before but this was Shawna's party._

_Shinichi handed the box to her, "Happy Birthday, Shawna-chan."_

_"Mr. Samurai…" Shawna gasped._

_The snob snickered, "Do you really think a tiny gift like that will-" He was then shocked to silence and taken aback as he saw the radiant smile on Shawna's face. Even the guests were surprised that she was smiling after receiving a doll of all things. "No way…how can this be…I gave her a diamond-covered dress yet she smiles at…at…a DOLL!"_

_"Hey, it's not a doll, buddy," Shinichi shot back. "It's a one-of-a-kind, custom model, Kamen Rider Showa action figure."_

_"Kamen…Rider…?" the snobbish blonde repeated dumbly._

_Shawna gazed at the box happily. The action figure was displayed fully within its confines due to the clear plastic window on the front of the box. She then hugged Shinichi tight. "Oh, thank you, Mr. Samurai!"_

_Shinichi sighed. 'When will she ever call me by my name…?'_

* * *

Then he'd shook hands with King Edward, shocking the guests further since they had no idea who he was and how he could've deserved such an honor. Then terrorists had attacked and tried to take everyone hostage. While they had been prepared to deal with the guards, it was unfortunate for them that they had not been prepared for a Kaizo Ningen.

* * *

Students screamed as they evacuated the campus grounds. The reason was that a Kamen Rider and Kaijin were fighting.

It was Kamiyami, in his Dobsonfly Demon form, and he was swinging his broad-bladed zweihander around to slice Showa's head off but the Kamen Rider was dodging his attempts.

"STAND STILL, YOU!" Kamiyami roared as he continued swinging.

"Hey, I'm not as stupid as you are ugly," Showa shot back mockingly. He loved pissing off snobs. It was fun to see them get all mad and stuff.

Kamiyami used an overhead swing which Showa sidestepped and his body folded over as a fist smashed against his midsection, almost cracking his exoskeleton. Showa withdrew his fist to deliver a knee strike straight into Kamiyami's face and then he sent the Dobsonfly Demon flying with a sidekick.

"You've never beaten me before, Kamiyami, and it won't happen now. It won't happen ever," said Showa.

Kamiyami got up, grabbed his sword, and growled, "You…you…" He then leapt high to cleave Showa in two, "YOU BASTARD!"

Showa rolled his eyes. Kamiyami, in his anger, had left himself wide open. One of his energy whips extended from his left wrist and he swung his arm at his direction, the whip stretching at incredible speed and the tip pointed straight at Kamiyami. "Rider Piercing!" he called.

The Dobsonfly Demon had not dodge, he could not dodge, and ended up with the energy whip piercing him right through. He screamed and then howled as the whip retracted, yanking him towards Showa.

"Ryuusei…Punch!" His energized fist smashed into Kamiyami and as it connected the Donsonfly Demon exploded. Showa flicked his wrist in annoyance. He knew that this wasn't the end of it.

* * *

Yuji whistled as he headed towards the photography club in Shishibone University. He knew Shinichi liked to hang out there. He knocked on the door and it was opened by a girl with blue hair and wearing a beret on her hair. She stared at Yuji and immediately blushed and started to stutter, "W-w-w-welcome to the pho-pho-pho-"

"Relax," Yuji told her. "I'm looking for Shinichi Banabara. Is he here?"

The girl, Fujiko, blinked, "Oh, you're looking for Shinichi-san. He's in the dark room, right now. You can come in and wait for him, if you'd like."

"I'd like that," said Yuji as he entered. He saw the photos on the wall and then he spotted two more members, both males, looking over their photos together.

"Seriously, I was lucky to be there and the Kamen Rider beat another monster on campus!" the pompadour-haired man boasted. The beady-eyed man he was talking to also had photos of his own.

"Look at these," he requested.

"Are you sure this is a monster, Araki?" the pompadour-haired man asked as he looked

The beady-eyed man, Araki, responded, "Yes, Keima, it is."

"It looks out of focus."

"And is this supposed to be the Green Lantern?" Keima asked further. Araki nodded. "Looks like a bright, green light to me." Keima then noted Yuji's presence, "Oh, if you wanna join, you have to wait till our president comes back."

"Actually, I'm here for Shinichi," answered Yuji. Araki was giving him a critical look. "What's with him?"

"Oh, he always does that," said Keima. "It's creepy but you get used to it."

Shinichi exited the dark room and smiled at his newly developed photos. He then saw Yuji. "Yuji, what are you doing here?"

"Akasaka called," Yuji answered. Shinichi knew what that meant.

Yuji and Shinichi talked at the student café over some coffee as Yuji explained, "Akakasa's dealing with a weird case right now so he called ARMOR for help and assigned us for this case."

"What kind of case?" Shinichi asked.

"Spontaneous human combustion," Yuji answered. Shinichi blinked.

"You mean when people just suddenly burst into flames?"

"Yeah, that's what it said. He has witness statements including one from the victim's husband."

Shinichi frowned. It sounded serious. "How many?"

"Including the one last night, this is the 5th one that has been reported and the 2nd that happened in a public place. The others happened in the victim's homes and set their places on fire," Yuji answered.

"So, they just burst into flames for no reason," summarized Shinichi. "Sounds like magic."

"You might be right since the police haven't found any evidence, except for what's left of the victims. They all burnt to ash."

"And the husband saw her being burnt alive?"

"She died right in front of him, and they were newlyweds out on a date too."

"Now that's harsh."

"So, you wanna head down to Tokyo tonight to check it out?"

"I better tell Rena first."

"Yeah, you should."

Shinichi then changed the subject. It was about something he wanted to know for awhile now. "You know I've been wondering something." Shinichi then asked, "How exactly did you meet the Golden Witch anyway?"

"Funny you should ask," Yuji replied, "You see what happened was…"

* * *

_Yuji got off the MysticLiner after being dropped off to his world. The last mission he was on involved saving a civilization of rock people from an army of mole men with drills for weapons._

_Yuji sighed, "Damn, I guess I had my fill of drilling jokes for this life."_

"_I assume you must've had quite the adventure, Fudo Yuji."_

_Yuji looked around to see a young woman with golden blonde hair, clear blue eyes, and wearing an elegant dress._

_Yuji cocked an eyebrow, "Um, do I know you? Cuz I don't forget pretty faces like yours, Ojou-san."_

_The woman smirked, "Heh, how flattering. But I know of you, boy. You seem pretty strong to be able to defeat all seven of my servants"._

_Yuji blinked, "Seven?"_

_The Stakes of Purgatory show up in flashes of gold and wave, "Hi~, Onii-sama~!"_

_Satan scoffed instead._

_Yuji smiled, "Hey there, ladies!"_

_Satan pointed, "That's definitely him, Beatrice-sama."_

_Beatrice grinned, "Indeed. I'm sure he'd make an excellent piece of furniture."_

_Yuji's eyes widened, "Wait, what? You wanna turn me into a fucking coffee table or something? Like hell!"_

_Asmodeus and Beelzebub giggled, "Onii-sama is so silly!"_

_Beatrice grinned madly as she was ready to attack, "Now, become my servant, Fudo Yuji!"She blasted him with a bolt of magic but it bounced off his body without doing damage, shocking her. "Nani?"_

_Yuji grinned, "Sorry, but magic doesn't work against my kind! Listen, Beatrice-san, I don't know who you are, but I got no time to be playing with you! White Blaze!"_

_His D-Wheel sped down the street and roared as it stopped in front of him before Yuji hopped on._

_Yuji put on his helmet and smirked, "Later, witch-san!" before racing away._

* * *

Shinichi leaned back in his seat, "So, how did you end up calling her 'Auntie B'?"

Yuji sighed, "Well, she basically kidnapped Asura and Lilith and I had to duel her in order to free them. We made some bets and I bet that she had to let me call her 'Aunty B' if i won."

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow, "Wait...that's it? She kidnaps your girlfriends and that's it?"

Yuji held up a finger, "There's more to it than that, man. If I lost the duel, then they would die and I would have to be her servant."

Shinichi shivered, "Good thing you won."

Yuji nodded, "It was tough though. She rigged the field so that I would take actual damage every time my Life Points depleted. My Psychic powers act the same way in a duel so we were playing on equal footing. Until she decided to reset the game two more times."

"You still won," Shinichi concluded.

"Yeah, but she still wanted to duel me. I thought she was a sore loser but then I realized it was the most fun she's had for a while," said Yuji, "Turns out she was really lonely so I even introduced her to the family. She and my mom are more or less rivals, since mom's one of The Four Great Psychics of my world."

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan had gone to track Megan down. She was absent in school today and so Alan was asked to hand her the homework assignments for today. She didn't stay in the girls' dormitory but instead at an apartment that was near the school. He followed the address and found her apartment.

He knocked on the door. "Megan, are you in there?" he called. He pressed his ear against the door and heard footsteps coming closer. He took a step back and the door opened a crack. He saw Megan staring back at him before closing the door to undo the chain that kept the door from opening all the way. She then opened the door.

"What are you doing here? What do you want?" Megan asked.

"I came to pass you today's homework assignments," Alan said to her.

"And…?" she prompted.

"And I want to talk about what happened the other day."

Megan looked to her left, and to her right and then said to him, "OK, but we better talk inside. Come on in." Alan entered and then sat down with her in the living room.

"How come those Manhunters were after you?" he asked.

"Before I answer your questions, let me ask one of mine first."

Alan nodded. "OK."

"How come you have a Green Lantern ring? You all were wiped out centuries ago."

"Yeah, about that, it's a long story," said Alan. "I'm not from this universe. There's an entire Multiverse out there, and me and my family are actually from one of the worlds," explained Alan. "The world I'm from is actually several decades in the future. The Green Lantern Corps still patrols the universe there, though they were almost wiped out a few times however." '_Once by myself for that matter…_' "So Megan, my question is…what happened to the Green Lantern Corps of this universe?"

"I'm not really sure," Megan answered. "No one is. My ancestor was a member at the time. All I remember hearing from my family was that, 300 years ago the entire Lantern Corps was wiped out in some massive battle."

'_The entire Corp wiped out? What kind of enemy could do that? Who had the power to do this and had the chance to use it? Did Parallax escape from the Central Power Battery? Could it have been Legion or the Manhunters? The Controllers or the Zamarons? Did the Five Inversions escape Ysmault? So many enemies that had the power to do it…But who had the chance?_' thought Alan. "Megan, why were those Manhunter robots after you?"

"I'm not sure," answered Megan. "I had never seen or heard of those things before."

"Hm…" muttered Alan. '_Why would they target her…_?' "Megan, are you a Martian?"

Megan jumped slightly. "Wha-what are you talking about?"

"In my universe, there is also a M'gann M'orzz. She is a Martian and was once a member of the super hero team, The Teen Titans. She had immense power, that may be why they're after you. How many Martians are left?"

"I'm…I'm the only one…" said Megan sadly. "I arrived on Earth when I was a child. My uncle adopted me and took care of me."

"Hm…those Manhunters may come back for you…" said Alan he stood up and placed his forehead against hers. Megan felt a small ping in her mind. "I just established a small telepathic link between us. Whenever you're in danger it'll let me know." He began walking towards the door. "I hope to see you at school tomorrow Megan."

Megan walked with him to the door. She then placed a kiss on his cheek. "Thanks for protecting me…"

* * *

Shinichi returned home. He'd had a long day and tonight he was heading for Tokyo. "Tadaima."

"Okaeri," Rena greeted. "You're just in time for dinner." She took out a video from her back, "And I got us a movie to watch tonight!"

"Actually, I have to head out, tonight," he said apologetically. Rena's expression saddened. "Sorry."

"Why tonight?" she asked.

"There's something happening in Tokyo and Akasaka-san needs our help," he told her. "I can have dinner with you but I won't be able to watch that movie with you tonight."

"But…it's _our_ movie night," she whined.

Shinichi put his arms around her and whispered, "I know, I know." They would watch a movie while cuddling on the couch. "I wish I didn't have to go but this case has been assigned to me." He then whispered, "But, I think we can make a compromise."

On the wall, unnoticed, was a butterfly but it was no normal butterfly. It was completely mechanical with eyes that were focused on the couple in post-coitus bliss.

* * *

Electric Butterfly was in the X-SHOCKER base, spying on Shinichi via her bug. The images it captured were displayed on her computer monitor for her to see and what she saw both outraged her and aroused her. She had just seen Rena and Shinichi have sex and while she was envious of the girl in Shinichi's arms, she couldn't help but enjoy the show with a blush on her face. Never in her life had she expected that Shinichi's manhood would be so grand.

She even imagined herself being in Rena's position and was touching herself. Despite her status as an android, Gebok made her 'fully functional' that she could feel sensation. A double-edged sword, of course, but she wanted to feel alive.

Her fingers were between her legs and as she stroked herself, her artificial body produced the lubricants that allowed her to slide her fingers in and out.

* * *

Tokyo was the capital city of Japan and thus it was a busy metropolis. Of course, that meant that with so many people there would be crime.

Shinichi, Yuji and Akasaka met at a coffee shop. The police inspector opened up an envelope and took out several photographs and laid them out for the two Riders to see. "These are the victims who'd spontaneously combust in the last two weeks." There were a total of 6 pictures.

"They're all young woman," said Shinichi as he looked through the photos.

"And newlyweds," Akasaka finished, "Each and every one of them. They were with their husbands before they suddenly burst into flames, as witnesses described." He sighed. "I can only imagine the horror those men felt when they saw their wives just die before their eyes."

Shinichi knew that feeling well. He recalled the horrific time loop he'd experienced where his loved ones all died during each and every loop and no matter how many times he looped time and prepared to prevent their deaths, they still died. He'd broken down mentally. That was until the loops stopped.

These women had been in the company of their husbands as they died and their husbands had been helpless and could do nothing to prevent their deaths as they were burnt alive on the spot. They were probably traumatized if they loved those women with all their hearts. He knew the trauma of losing someone he loved. He never forgave himself for Rina's death.

"Three of them happened in public places, the other three occurred in their own homes. This one here died while she was in the bath. Her husband heard screaming but by the time he got there all he found were her ashes all over the floor and some inside the bathtub," Akasaka explained.

"Now that just sounds nasty," Yuji grimaced.

"Because you guys are used to handling weird shit like this, I contacted your boss for help and he sent you guys," said Akasaka. "Please, I need you to help solve this case and stop what's causing this."

"We'll do it," Shinichi quickly agreed, "But now you need to take us to where the last victim died."

* * *

"Here it is," said Akasaka. There was still a police line around the spot where the woman had spontaneously combusted and an outline was made on the spot her ashes had been found. There were no police around.

Shinichi and Yuji went under the police line with Akasaka to inspect the area. Shinichi's eyes focused for any clues they might've missed. His augmented eyesight allowed him to see even the most minute of details and…

"Found a clue," said Yuji as he held up something between his forefinger and thumb. It was a tick, and it was struggling to escape Yuji's grasp.

"A tick," Shinichi analyzed. And then the conclusion dawned on him. What did ticks and spontaneous combustion had in common? Only one person. "Parasite…" he whispered.

"Who?" Akasaka asked.

"Just someone Shinichi knows," said Yuji, "With supernatural powers."

"What does he look like?" Akasaka asked. He saw Shinichi's fists clenched. "Is he alright?"

"Well…not exactly," said Yuji carefully, "It's just that he's confronted this guy before and stopped him but he's come back and that really pisses him off."

"TAKE OFF YOUR COAT!" Shinichi suddenly shouted at Akasaka who jumped in surprise before Shinichi grabbed him by the lapels. "Hurry!"

Akasaka quickly took off his coat and then he watched as it suddenly combusted. "What!" the inspector gaped. He reached for his gun.

"He's here, watching us," said Shinichi. "Yuji, do you sense him?"

"I did, but only for a second." The Manakyte looked at what remained of Akasaka's waist coat. "Sorry about your jacket."

"I've got tons of those," said Akasaka.

"We should check you just to make sure," said Shinichi. "A few more of those things might still be on you." He pointed at the burning coat, "_That_ was just a warning." He opened his bag and let loose a flock of paper crane shikigami to search the city and report back to me. "Akasaka-san, come with us. You need a bath."

* * *

**One Decontamination Bath Later…**

"OK, he's clean," said Yuji as he checked the scanner. "No ticks or whatever, and he also smells minty fresh."

ARMOR had a decontamination centre for agents who've been exposed to harmful external elements. It cleansed them of all toxins.

They also decontaminated his clothes.

"Good, then let's get back out there," said Shinichi. "I'm not waiting until he strikes again."

Akasaka was drying his hair as he asked, "He's really serious about this."

"Trust me, he considers this personal," Yuji told him. '_Then again, maybe it's because of what happened after that fight under the school. Ana-baka and Tick Boy really screwed with his head. I'd be pissed too if that happened to me._'

* * *

A couple exited the Korean BBQ restaurant. The young lady was beautiful, with long black hair and a fringe that nearly concealed her eyes. She was dressed in pink coat over a white turtleneck and a long blue skirt that reached her knees.

After several blocks, the man cried out in shock as the girl suddenly burst into flames and started screaming as he watched. The man was Yuji and the girl was his date.

"Hahahahaha!" Yuji heard. "Serves you right, Yuji Fudo!"

From a flash of black butterflies, the Soldier of Terror known as Koichi Sumira, formerly Kamen Rider Parasire of GIN-SHOCKER, appeared. He was gloating, and laughing, at Yuji. "Watch her burn! Watch her burn! You can't help her!"

"That's just what you think!" said Yuji with a smirk as the burning pile rose to its feet, causing Koichi to gawk.

The girl then ripped away her burning clothes to reveal Shinichi. He'd been in disguise the whole time. He took off what remained of his wig and dropped it to the ground.

"BLACK 13!" Koichi realized.

"That's right, asshole!" smirked Shinichi. "I knew you couldn't resist striking again so Yuji and I decided to go undercover."

"We figured out all the couples went to this Korean BBQ place, which is where you set your trap. You hid and then sent out your ticks to stick to the woman and after a set time they would go off, isn't that right?" Yuji deduced. "Of course, you wouldn't be able to resist if it was me now, would you?"

"Yeah, that's right," confirmed Koichi. "My ticks were made to spontaneously produce intense heat that would burn human flesh and bone to a cinder." He chuckled. "It's a work of art!"

"Lemme guess; you did all this because it was fun," stated Shinichi.

"Exactly, #13!" snickered Koichi. "It's fun to watch fireworks, especially when people are the fireworks."

Shinichi's eyes narrowed. Koichi had always been sick but this had gone too far.

"And also because Anastasia-sama ordered me to spread fear and terror!" Koichi stated proudly. "I mean what's more scary than watching your love burn right in front of your-"

**BLAMMO!**

There was a hole right in the centre of Koichi's forehead before he collapsed to the ground.

"Headshot," Shinichi said before blowing the smoke off the barrel. He'd whipped out his shotgun in the middle of Koichi's monologue.

"He's not dead yet," Yuji pointed out.

"I know. That was just to help me feel better," said Shinichi. The black butterflies came and enveloped Koichi and when they flew away he was healed up. He wasn't happy either.

"You really love to piss me off, don't you, BLACK 13?" growled Koichi.

"It's a gift," said Shinichi as he cocked his shotgun. He aimed, "Now, reach for the skies."

"Do you really think you can take me on?" taunted Koichi.

"How hard can it be?" Yuji asked smugly.

"Well, it would be since I came with backup," Koichi responded and then he snapped his fingers.

The entire sidewalk exploded, sending both ARMOR cyborg and Manakyte flying. Yuji caught Shinichi around the waist and landed a distance away from the blast zone. When the smoke cleared, standing next to Koichi was the trigger-happy Saisen Koremitsu and he had a grin so wide it threatened to split his face in half.

"Great, two of them," murmured Shinichi.

"We can take them," said Yuji confidently.

"Of course, that was when we were prohibited from assuming our demon forms, but we have no such restrictions here!" declared Koichi boldly as he began to change and it was disturbing to see as ticks came out from every pour of his body, spilling out of his nostrils, ears and mouth to envelop him. Shinichi restricted the urge to gag as he watched the ticks swarm around Koichi before fusing with his body. What stood in Koichi's place was a demonic humanoid with features of a tick and sporting six arms with dagger-like claws. On its wide yet flat back were bulbous growths that just added to its disturbing appearance. His head sported a needle-like nose and tusks.

Saisen took out his guns and then pointed the barrels at his head before firing. The bullets entered his skull and he began to mutate. His body became covered in gold organic armor and he became more insect-like in appearance with two claw-like toes on each foot and a dragonfly's tail jutting from his rear. He also sported wings and his ribcage was visible. His head was dragonfly-like with a human lower face and sharp teeth.

They put the 'ugh' in 'ugly'.

The Dragonfly Demon, Saisen, laughed before shooting skywards.

The Tick Demon, Koichi, spoke, "I asked Saisen here for the final act of my plan. Tokyo is gonna burn tonight."

"Not if we have anything to say about it," said Shinichi. "GX…Henshin!" The spectral figures of the Legendary Riders were projected from his belt before they converged upon him and formed his armor. He spread out his Cicada Wings and shot off after Saisen.

"Now, it's just you and me," sneered the Tick Demon as he brandished his claws, the blades making clanging noises as they rubbed against each other.

In the air, Saisen opened up his ribcage to reveal that he had bombs stashed in his chest cavity. "Let Tokyo burn tonight!" However, before he could reach inside and pull out a couple of his explosives and unleash hell, a whip lashed at his back, causing him to cry out. He turned and saw Showa with his energy whip-blades.

"It's not gonna burn tonight, but you are," said Showa.

"We'll see! You're about to become Swiss cheese!" Saisen pointed his fingers at Showa and they glowed before energy sprayed out like machine gun fire. Showa was hit as sparks exploded off his armor. He tried to flee from the gunfire, make some distance, but Saisen's range was long and he was pursuing Showa. It reminded him when he first confronted Saisen during his first anniversary with Rena several years ago.

"I have to get him towards an unpopulated area," strategized Showa. Saisen was dangerous with guns and explosives. He remembered how he and Koichi would work together back when they were part of GIN-SHOCKER. They were known as the Demolition Duo due to their love of explosives. The only differences they had were in their styles. Saisen preferred carpet bombing where he would drop bombs over a large area and spread the destruction. Koichi's method was even more sadistic. He would disguise his explosives as toys and give them away. Then, he would detonate them. He'd destroyed a children's hospitals and orphanages with that method alone.

And Shinichir remembered watching them as they did. The land where those facilities had stood was used by GIN-SHOCKER to build their own facilities. It disgusted Shinichi because they took great pleasure in destroying lives, especially those of innocent children.

He decided to finish this fast and he knew just how he was going to do it. "OK, Yabuki, Zennin, Gokuaku. Let's go all out!"

Meanwhile, Yuji was dealing with the Tick Demon Koichi who was becoming frustrated and irritated by Yuji's constant dodging as he tried to swipe at him with his daggers. Yuji kept dodging his attempts to strike at him. Annoyed, he bent his body over and the bulbous growths on his back launched at Yuji like cannonballs. They were the size of bowling balls but they were actually…

…**BOOOOOOM!**

Back in the air, the Dragonfly Demon Saisen was blasting at Showa with his gun fingers when he was suddenly blown away by a burst of energy. He then recognized it as he saw Showa hovering with his arms spread in Hinamizawa Guardian Form. He fired at Showa only for the Kamen Rider to deflect the bullets swiftly and effortlessly with the Higurashi no Yaiba. He then returned fire, unleashing a barrage of energy arrows from the tip of his sword that nearly clipped Saisen's wings off.

"Take this!" Saisen was about to open his ribcage when Showa appeared behind him and jammed his sword through the gaps within Saisen's ribcage, locking it up and preventing him from reaching for his explosives. He then punched Saisen across the face, sending the Dragonfly Demon spiraling through the air. As he stopped, he tried to pry the Higurashi no Yaiba out of his chest but without any luck.

The Cho Dai-Shuriken on Showa's back broke into six individual blades and then each blade split in half. Now a dozen blades hovered behind his back and rotated in a circle. Saisen watched dumbly as the blades poised with their tips aimed at him before Showa threw his arms forward, sending the blades darting through the air at him. They were flying at full speed and the Dragonfly Demon had to fly fast to outrun them. They followed him, like homing missiles, as he soared and maneuvered through the air in order to avoid them. They followed fast but he was faster. He could definitely outrun them.

Unfortunately for him, that was not the case as Showa came down at him with a flying drop kick dubbed, "GUARDIAN FORCE STRIKE!" He glowed with gold energy as fire, lightning and wind spun around him like a tornado. Saisen would've fled if three rings of energy, one green, one red, and one blue, hadn't surrounded him and locked him in place like a cage. Unable to avoid the attack, Saisen was hit with explosive force and was stunned right before a dozen flying blades struck him from behind and exploded.

The Higurashi no Yaiba and the Cho Dai-Shuriken returned to Showa as he watched as the flames died down, revealing black butterflies that flew away. He gently caught one by the wings and spoke to it as it tried to struggled, "Give your master this message: don't fuck with Kamen Riders," before releasing it to join its friends.

Back on the ground, Koichi laughed hysterically at Yuji's demise as he admired the flames, "Yes! Yes! YES!" A black butterfly landed on his shoulder and he stopped to listen. "Hm…Saisen was defeated, huh? Guess leaving him to deal with #13 was a mistake." They had learnt that Shinichi had grown stronger since their last encounter with him as fellow Kaizo Ningen. He had defeated the Great Leader of GIN-SHOCKER, after all.

"Like you making the mistake of underestimating me, again."

Koichi gawked as he saw Yuji wave his hand to disperse the flames, "Oh, come on! What the fuck are you?"

Yuji removed his charred jacket and glared, "I'm a dragon, bitch. And you owe me a new coat." He roared and was consumed in a pillar fire as he went into his Transcended Form. Koichi backed away fearfully as he gazed at his molten rock-like armor, the cracks in his body glowing like magma, and the torches that rested on his shoulders, "Time for a lesson in pain, Tick Boy."

He dashed forward and kneed Koichi in the face, sending him rolling back as Transcended Yuji dashed after him and let loose his **"Vesuvius Vulcan!"** and pelted Koichi with his magma bullets. He scooped him up and punched him in the face before flying up and throwing him back into the ground before Transcended Yuji came down with a flaming fist, **"Krakatoa Krusher!"**and rammed into Koichi with a huge explosion as the Tick Demon burst into black butterflies. Yuji took a breath and returned to his normal state as Shinichi showed up.

"Took care of him?" the Kaizo Ningen asked.

Yuji nodded, "Obviously. How about you?"

"No challenge." Shinichi shrugged. "Still, we better report this to Akasaka-san then." He spotted a nearby phone booth. "We can use that."

"Let me do all the talking," said Yuji. He went into the phone booth, picked up the receiver, put in some cash, dialed Akasaka's number and waited. He got Akasaka's answering machine though so he just left a message. "Akasaka-san, this is Fudo. Case closed. Shinichi and I took care of it. It was an arsonist and bomber but they blew themselves up. See you later." He put the receiver back and exited the phone booth.

"You told him?" Shinichi asked.

"Left a message on his answering machine."

Shinichi then noticed a green light in the sky and spotted Alan headed for them in Green Lantern garb. Yuji saw it too.

"What's Alan doing here?" Yuji asked. Shinichi shrugged.

Shinichi asked as Alan descended before them, "What's up, Alan?"

Alan touched down and replied, "We're needed in London."

"London?" Yuji blinked.

"I got orders from HQ. We have to go, now," Alan told them.

Shinichi frowned, "I guess I should go and tell Rena-chan I'll be home late because I'll be working overtime."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, one case closed but another one just opened. What's going on in London? Is it as bad as this mission? We'll see, though. Looks like the trio are gonna have to deal with this one too.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Wonder what's going down in London? Hope the guys can handle it. Is it me, or does Shin miss Yuji's Transcended Form?**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: Well, now we know the fate of the GL Corp and Megan's connection to them, as well as a potential reason as to why the Manhunters were after the poor Martian girl. Hope you all enjoyed this!**


	32. The Fall of X Shocker Part 5

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 5: Soul Eater**

Shinichi and Alan were sitting on a bench at a bus stop while the former was reviewing their latest mission. They were in London and it was the afternoon. Still, it was quite chilly due to it being the middle of fall.

Shinichi read the case file he had in hand. There had been numerous reports of unexplained deaths in London and so ARMOR had assigned them to investigate. "Four more unexplained deaths occurred last night. No explanation has been given due to the cause and they all died suddenly. They were also healthy with no known health problems whatsoever." He looked to Alan as he closed the file folder. "Is this what they want us to look into?"

"ARMOR deals with supernatural stuff too," said Alan. "One of our informants must've called and Dad thought that we would have to investigate."

"I'm getting tired of this supernatural shit," Shinichi sighed and then spotted Yuji coming back with three paper bags in his arms. "What you got there?"

"Lunch. We're having fish and chips." He handed his partners the other two bags before he started to eat, popping a fry into his mouth. "So, what are we supposed to do here?"

"I told you," said Alan. "Dad wants us to investigate why people are suddenly dropping dead in London. They've been reports about it happening a lot in London. Just last night four people died."

"They were all healthy too, and in their prime. No health problems." Shinichi opened up the file and pointed at the long list of names. "I mean one of the victims, Susan Lang, was a gymnast and she just dropped dead right in front of her parents while she was having dinner with them at a restaurant. And here, Thomas North also died at the wheel while driving home and his car slammed into a tree. He wasn't even drunk and he was pronounced dead before impact."

"Well, guess we should check them out to see any connection," suggested Yuji who then took a bite out of his fish.

Shinichi put the file away and agreed, "Yeah, I'll try and see if there is any connection between the -"

"Mr. Samurai, is that you?" a female voice asked. Shinichi froze as he heard the familiar voice and slowly looked up. The owner of the voice gasped, "It is you!" She then leapt at him, wrapping her arms about him. "It's been so long!"

"Shawna-chan?" Shinichi gasped. The last time he'd seen her was last summer. "What are you doing in London?" She wasn't alone, though. Her bodyguards, Anthony and Chris, were with her and they had shopping bags in hand. "Shopping?" he asked rhetorically.

Shawna nodded, "Yes, indeed! London is so amazing, is it not?" She looked at Alan. "Ah, Mr. Lantern!" She grabbed his hands and shook them. "Hello to you too!"

"Yeah, hello, princess," Alan responded. She then noticed Yuji and blinked.

"I don't believe we've met," she said.

Yuji got on one knee and took her hand, "Yuji Fudo, at your service, young lady." He hadn't met Shawna personally but he'd read a few interesting files and discovered that Shawna was aware of Shinichi's identity as a Kamen Rider and the existence of ARMOR.

Shawna giggled, "I'm charmed. So, what brings you here to London, Mr. Samurai?"

"A job," Shinichi replied vaguely.

"Then please, allow me to grant you a place to stay until your assignment is complete," she offered. "We have plenty of room back at a townhouse I own."

"Well…"

Yuji slung an arm over Shinichi's neck and smiled, "We'll gladly accept your offer. Excuse us." He dragged him into a huddle with Alan, "So, seems as though you've been getting some attention, man."

"She's just a close friend," Shinichi argued.

"Who happens to have a crush on him," Alan retorted.

Yuji grinned, "Looks like he's got the makings of a Harem Master!"

"If only he was willing to pursue it," Alan sighed.

"Hey, I got Rena-chan!" Shinichi argued. "And she doesn't like sharing."

Yuji nodded, "Point there. She'd probably think twice once she sees a cute Pokegirl. That oughta be a good laugh and a half. Anyway, let's accept her offer since we haven't booked any rooms yet. Besides, this will give you some time to catch up."

"OK, OK," Shinichi surrendered. He turned to Shawna and smiled, "OK, we'll come along."

"Oh, how wonderful," she beamed. "Chris, Anthony, please fetch the car."

"At once, Your Highness," the lean bodyguard obeyed before he and the big and tall bodyguard went to get the car.

"Actually, we got our own rides," said Yuji as he pointed at the three motorcycles that were parked nearby. "We'll just follow you."

Shawna's eyes went towards Shinichi's bike, the one that had the sidecar. The Kaizo Ningen knew that look and sighed. He took Shawna's hand, "Shawna, would you like me to give you a ride?"

"Yes!" she answered instantly, hugging him. Shinichi sighed. He cared about Shawna, just like any other friend, but she also had a crush on him which complicated matters. Rena, however, wasn't hostile to her for some reason. That was good. He really didn't want to be the cause of strife due to two girls fighting over him or cause an international incident either.

* * *

Shawna's townhouse wasn't very far and the three bikes were parked in front with the car. Anthony and Chris carried her purchases inside as the princess, the Kaizo Ningen, the Manakyte and the Green Lantern followed her inside.

It was a terrace house, one of many, with red bricks and four floors. There were four windows in the front of each floor and a small set of steps led up to the door. The terrace house was surrounded by a black steel fence that came up to an average person's midsection.

The four ARMOR agents and the princess sat inside the living room, enjoying some tea and biscuits. Shawna sat on the sofa close to Shinichi while Yuji and Alan both took an armchair each.

"So, may I ask what your mission is about?" asked Shawna.

"It's actually top secret," said Shinichi.

"Shinichi, she knows about ARMOR," said Yuji. "I think we can tell her a little about our mission."

"No, Shinichi's right," Alan argued, "She's just a civilian."

Shawna frowned sadly. She knew what Shinichi did was important but it upset her that he had to keep things a secret from her.

"We can't tell you the details, but we'll tell you how it went when we're done," Shinichi compromised.

"I believe that you will be successful as always, Mr. Samurai. You also have Mr. Lantern and Mr. Spike helping you," said Shawna. Shinichi and Alan chuckled at the nickname she'd come up for Yuji.

Yuji chuckled, "I guess Shawna has a good taste in nicknames. So, I guess I'll be checking out my room since we might be here for a while."

"Chris will show you to your rooms," said Shawna. She then addressed Shinichi personally, "Mr. Samurai, you did receive my invitation, right?"

"For your birthday? Of course I did," Shinichi answered, smiling. She blushed at the charming smile he had.

* * *

The three ARMOR agents were shown to their guest rooms. They had one each and put down their luggage. They really packed light because they didn't plan on staying long. They only planned to stay until the end of the mission.

Yuji admired the décor of the place as he put down a rectangular suit case on the table. He opened it to reveal a sword with an ornately etched base and it was equipped with a motorcycle-like gear shift. Yuji smiled softly as he gazed at the weapon. The Red Queen was a gift to him from his late friend, Nero, who died in a battle with a powerful devil. Yuji still blamed himself for Nero's untimely death, but he figured now would be a good time to dust off the Red Queen and give her some action. Thinking back on those times, he closed the case.

As Yuji dropped backwards onto the bed, a butterfly appeared in his room and landed on his chest before he felt a weight on top of him. It was a weight he'd become quite familiar with. He looked and grinned, "Well, nice to see you again, babe."

Misato mock-purred as she nuzzled Yuji's chest, saying, "It's always a pleasure to meet my next meal." She was wearing a see-through purple nightgown.

"Do you really think that after our last session?" Yuji asked.

She shook her head, "Not really. But I'm here for a reason, darling. I came to pass a message along."

Yuji got serious, "Is this about the case me and the other guys are investigating?"

She grinned, "Well how about some blood and a good fuck in exchange for the info?"

Yuji nodded, "I think that's fair."

* * *

Yuji fell next to Misato as she snuggled against his chest and sighed, "Man, I needed that. Good thing the walls are thick."

"I know what else is thick," she giggled, "Before I go, I'll give you the info I promised. It's Soul Eater." And with that, she vanished in a flash, leaving behind only fading black butterflies.

Yuji had his hands behind his head, "Soul Eater, huh?"

* * *

"I hope the room is to your liking," said Chris to Shinichi as the latter put his bag down.

"It'll do," Shinichi said as he looked around. He turned to face Chris, "Thanks for putting us up while we're in London."

"It was the princess' wish," Chris told him. "Believe me, if you weren't her friends, I wouldn't have allowed you entry at all, much less given you any hospitality at all."

"Glad Shawna-chan and I are friends then," smiled Shinichi. He really was happy to be friends with Shawna and not because she was royalty. He was happy to be friends with her for the sake of being her friend. He cared for her like he cared for all his friends. However, lately, he'd been thinking of Shawna in a different, more romantic, sense. He would push these thoughts and feelings down but they always came back up.

He wasn't blind. Shawna was indeed beautiful, but he was a one-woman-man and a faithful one at that. He loved Rena, and would never betray her. That was why he couldn't accept the offer to be her fiancé, even if the idea had started to become very appealing once he thought about it.

His thoughts sometimes turned indecent. Just a few months ago he had a dream where he, Rena and Shawna were in bed together and doing naughty, naughty things together.

"Will you be making an appearance at her birthday again, this year?" asked Chris.

"Naturally," replied Shinichi. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Chris nodded, "Good, the princess will be pleased with that. You made her really happy last year with your present." Chris also thought of it simply being a doll but the princess really did treasure it. "Oh, before I forget, here is something for you," said Chris as he pulled out a white envelope from his coat and handed it to Shinichi. "It's from the king."

Shinichi cocked the eyebrow but took the envelope. He looked at the seal. It looked pretty damn important, like the invitation, but even more so. Why had the King of Genovia written him a letter?

"Please, enjoy your stay here with us," said Chris before exiting the room to leave Shinichi with his thoughts and the king's letter.

* * *

"Pretty lucky, eh, partner?" asked Bazel.

"Yeah, you could say that," agreed Alan as he admired his own room. It was pretty identical to the one Shinichi and Yuji had been given.

"And all because Shinichi happens to be friends with her," said Bazel. "How does he do it, make friends so easily?"

"Call it a special gift he inherited," Alan informed.

"Yeah, let's just hope he doesn't take advantage of it," agreed Bazel. "Unlike you, partner."

"When have I abused it?" snorted Alan.

"Try all the time!" scoffed Bazel. "So, when will we solve this case?"

"As soon as possible," said Alan. "I still have my own stuff to deal with."

* * *

Shinichi had just finished folding up the last of his origami when Shawna came into the room. "Mr. Samurai!" she called. She then stopped to blink and saw what he was doing. "Ooh!" The sight entranced her. He was sitting on the floor, with animal origami before him. She smoothed out her skirt and knelt down to join him before picking up one of the animal origami that was shaped like a crab. She giggled. "How adorable!"

"Yes, it's just a hobby, though," Shinichi said. He and his mother would do origami just to pass the time. In fact, he and his mother had built a mobile that had animal origami hanging from it just for Sho. Shiori even told him she'd made him one when he was a baby himself.

"Can you teach me?" Shawna asked.

Shinichi looked at the origami he'd made. He actually had something important planned for them and he'd just finished folding the last one and if he wanted to show Shawna, he would need more paper. "I can, but we need more colored paper. I've run out."

"Then we must go get more!" Shawna grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the room with her. "Let us go to town!"

* * *

Out in town, Shinichi and Shawna went to a stationary shop and bought several sheets of colored paper. Then, they stopped at a cafe for some tea and sandwiches. There, Shinichi taught Shawna how to make her own origami.

As they sat near the window, they were unaware of someone watching them. Actually, it was Shawna who was being watched. As a princess, Shawna would be followed around by paparazzi, hoping for a story, but she made sure to disguise herself thoroughly with a wig and glasses. This, of course, was no paparazzi but he still had a camera.

"How lovely," he whispered. He took a picture of her.

* * *

After asking for permission from Chris, the three ARMOR agents were allowed to use the study as their meeting room. They sat on the floor with documents related to each of the victims. The file was thick with information, from the date of their birth up until the date of their mysterious deaths.

"So, we know they dropped dead but we have to figure out how," said Shinichi as he rubbed his chin. "And what is their common connection?"

"Maybe they lost their souls," suggested Alan. "If a person lost their soul all of a sudden they would drop dead. There's a race of monsters that devour souls. They're called Hollows."

"You mean those things with masks and holes in their chest?" asked Shinichi. He had attended the Kaijin Identification Seminar during orientation. Dr. Hasuma had been the speaker and he'd explained about different species of Kaijin that existed in the Multiverse. The Hollows were one such species that were highlighted in the seminar. There were even visual aids and diagrams.

"Yeah, they feed on souls. Maybe a Hollow is stealing souls," Alan added.

"So our main suspect is a Hollow," Yuji said. "Alright, looks like we're out hunting Hollows!"

The door opened and Chris entered, "Gentlemen, dinner is served."

"Right after dinner!" Yuji added.

* * *

A couple was exiting a movie theatre, the girl's arms around her date's right arm. They had just watched a _really_ romantic movie and were in the mood for more back at his or her place.

Then, out of nowhere, a man jumped in their path. "Hello, and greetings, young lovers!" he greeted. Hanging from the strap around his neck was a large camera that looked like it'd seen better days.

"Who are you?" the girl, Carol, asked.

"I'm sorry," the strange camera-carrying man said. "Where are my manners? I am a photographer and I couldn't help but notice the romance coming off you in waves. I will take a picture, for a fee."

"Hey, can you take a picture of us?" the girl's date, Arthur, asked.

The man put his hands on his hips and said, "Ah, I see. You want to commemorate this date of yours." He clapped his hands together. "Well, fear not my young lovers for I am having a special today so you will get a great picture or your money back."

"Oh, lets!" Carol said excitedly as Arthur smiled .The photographer seemed eccentric but if his girlfriend wanted a picture, what the heck?

"Sure, it should be fun," agreed Arthur. They both sat down on a bench as the man instructed and Arthur put his arm around Carol's shoulders as she leaned against him.

"Excellent, now hold still," the camera man said as the couple made a pose. He held up his camera and looked through the viewfinder to get them in focus. His grin became wide, almost mad. "Excellent. Now say, '_bye-bye souls'_."

"Huh?" the couple said in confusion. They shrieked as a bright light covered the area for five second before the two lovers fell to the ground.

"Heh-heh, excellent, excellent," the man cackled as a photo shot out of the camera. On it was a picture of the couple. However, the picture was moving and it showed the couple banging against their prison, trying to get free.

"Don't worry, it be over soon." The cameraman grabbed the photo and swallowed it whole. "Ahh~ there nothing like a good soul for a snack." He licked his lips, "Let's see if I can find some desert." He then walked off, leaving the two bodies to rot.

* * *

After dinner, the three ARMOR agents had split up to look for clues, mainly where all the victims had died. Of course, Shinichi had suddenly called their attention when he found something disturbing.

Shinichi had found two bodies, a man and a woman, sitting on a bench. Passersby would just assume they were asleep but upon further inspection would realize they were dead. Shinichi had checked their pulses, only to find none.

"Yup, they're dead," Shinichi confirmed as he put his hands over their eyes to close them. He looked to his friends, "Well, I guess the next thing we should do is…"

"DUCK!" Yuji called as he pushed both Alan and Shinichi away from him as caught a roaring chainsaw with his hands.

The assailant grinned, "Good evening, hunky gentlemen! Get ready for DEATH!" His features were hidden in the darkness

Yuji grunted as he held the chainsaw back, "You first, asscunt!"

Shinichi and Alan get so creeped out that they aim their weapons at him.

Yuji called out, "I got this one! Just leave it to me!" He fell back and kicked his feet against the attacker, launching him behind Yuji as he rose to his feet. He drew the Red Queen from his back and stabbed it to the floor before revving the engine. He dashed forward and went for a swing as his opponent countered with a swing of his own. Sparks flew as the blades clashed and Yuji could only get a glimpse of his opponent's fangs. He learned that anybody with fangs had high level of strength and were not exactly human, if human at all. The blades clashed and the fighters were in a stare down.

"Hm, that sword of yours is rather interesting," the man complimented in a feminine tone, "Usually, my Death Scythe can cut through anything, including other Death Scythes."

Yuji grinned, "Well, the Red Queen ain't your run of the mill sword, pal! Yagh!" He roared out as he head-butted his opponent. He pressed down on the gear shift, which sprayed a flammable propellant across the blade the blade began to glow red. He dashed forward and swung with powerful slashes that pushed his opponent back with great force.

Shinichi and Alan were forced to watch the fight and the Kaizo Ningen looked to the Green Lantern, "Looks like he's doing OK."

Alan nodded, "Guess he didn't need our help after all."

Yuji grinned, "An opening!" and dashed forward as he yanked the chainsaw out of his opponent's hand before kicking him in the gut.

"Give me back my Death Scythe!" the man cried towards Yuji who was holding his chainsaw hostage.

"Tell us who you are first!" said Shinichi with his shotgun aimed. He suspected that this man might be involved in the mysterious deaths. The man got up and did as asked.

"You can call me Grell Sutcliff, gentlemen!" the man introduced himself. He had long blood red hair and yellow eyes that were framed by thin glasses. He was also tall and lean and dressed in a white shirt with a brown vest, black gloves, black pants and red shoes. He also wore a red overcoat. He posed with a grin, exposing his shark-like teeth, one hand on his hip and the other hand close to his face with the pinky, index and thumb out. He also hung his tongue out. "And I am an Angel of DEATH!"

Shinichi, Yuji and Alan sweat-dropped.

"Angel…of Death…?" asked Shinichi. This guy was supposed to be _that_?

"Yup, and I am from the British Grim Reaper Dispatch Society," Grell explained.

"Grim Reaper…" murmured Alan. That meant this guy was a Shinigami.

"And our job is to collect souls!" Grell declared proudly, flipping his hair.

"So, you're the ones killing people," accused Shinichi as he prepared to squeeze the trigger. He felt a hand gently push the barrel down.

"Relax," said Yuji. "Grell-san, what exactly do you mean by 'collect souls'?"

"Hm…" Grell answered, "Well, when a person dies, we Grim Reapers show up to collect their souls and judge them if they are worthy to be sent to Heaven or Hell."

"Judge and Jury, huh?" Yuji summarized.

"And executioners, if need be!" Grell added. He looked to Shinichi, "And I did not kill those people! I got into trouble for it a long time ago and got my precious Death Scythe confiscated! There's no way I'm ever letting that happen again!"

"So, why are you here?" Alan asked.

"Well, HQ sent me to investigate some strange stuff happening," answered Grell as he opened a leather-bound book that had markers in between the pages. "You see, there's been an inconsistency between the amount of deaths and souls collected." Grell pointed to the bodies, "In fact, those two weren't even scheduled to die today and then they just did and their souls got taken too!" He was really overdramatic when he whined, flamboyant too.

Yuji closed his eyes, "So, there's something stealing souls. Any leads on what?"

Grell shrugged, "Well, for us Grim Reapers, demons from hell generally enjoy feasting on souls. They are simply gluttonous vermin, unlike my Sebby."

Yuji nodded and tossed the chainsaw back to the Reaper, "Alright, then we better get to work."

"I think we need to find a common link between the victims," Shinichi suggested.

Grell holds up a book and smiles, "It's right here! Of course, I need a kiss from each of you!"

Shinichi pushed Alan forward, "Alan, take one for the team."

"Like hell!" Alan snapped.

"Yeah, his harem wouldn't let him hear the end of it," Bazel snickered.

Shinichi turned to his other teammate, "Yuji, how about you?"

Yuji sighed, "Lemme change." He put his gun to his head.

"Oh, come on! You don't have to kill yourself!" Grell cried shrilly, feeling insulted.

**BLAM!**

The smoke clears and Yuji now looks like a girl with 'her' breasts struggling for air against her shirt and her jeans hugging her ass. Shinichi and Alan's jaws dropped and Bazel's would've dropped if he had one.

Grell shrugged, "Hm...I guess its fine too."

Alan gawked, "You gotta be kidding…"

"Look at them curves!" Bazel whistled, "And dat ass! Super fine!"

Yuji, now Yui, explained, "Took me a lot of work to make the bullet that lets me change into this form. Needed help from Lala too."

Shinichi stared at Yui's tits, "Are they real?"

Yui grinned, "Feel 'em up if you're not convinced."

Shinichi grabbed one of her breasts and shrugged, "Eh, Rena-chan's are softer." He then received a kick that launched him into a wall. "Ow…"

"Asshole," Yui frowned as she grabbed Grell by the collar, "You better be grateful." Yui pulled him into a long, wet, and drawn out kiss. Alan and Shin gawked like idiots and Bazel whistled before Yui dropped Grell on the floor. She picked up the book and tossed it to Shinichi who freed himself from the wall.

Shinichi opened up to a page that had been marked and looked through the list. It matched up to the list they had in their file. He also read, "It says here all the victims visited a photo studio before they mysteriously passed away."

Grell nodded, "I was going to go check it out myself. Unfortunately, I don't know which photo studio it is or where it is for that matter."

Yui grinned, "OK, then we should break in groups of 2 and search for the studio. I'm with Alan."

Shinichi looked to Grell. "Fuck," he spat. He should've called dibs.

"Oh cheer up!" Grell slung his arm around Shinichi's shoulders, pulling him close. "It'll be fun, just like a date!" The barrel of a shotgun was pressed against his nose.

"Hands. Off," ordered Shinichi, his eyes narrowed dangerously. Grell carefully took his hands off the young indigo-haired man. The look he got sent pleasant shivers up his spine but he was not going to let someone mar his face.

Shinichi, personally, had nothing against Grell. They had just met. The guy was just too touchy-feely with people whom he'd just met and was actually creepy, to be honest. Shinichi felt **a****n** itchy chill run up his spine.

Shinichi put down his backpack and unzipped it, revealing origami animals. Grell peered over his shoulder curiously. "OK, get to work. Go and search all photo studios," he ordered. The origami animals then leapt out of Shinichi's bag. The ones that flew took to the air and the ones on foot ran or hopped along the ground, splitting up in all directions.

Grell complimented, "Nice trick you got there." One of them a paper crane, landed on Shinichi's shoulder.

"Remember, come back and inform us of anything strange," Shinichi instructed and the paper crane flapped its wings.

"Yeah, and he's great at parties too!" added Bazel.

Grell addressed Alan, "Can that armband really talk or is it just you throwing your voice?"

"It talks, and sometimes I wish it would just shut up," said Alan, pointing at Bazel.

"Come on, let's go," said Yui. "Keep your communicators on, OK?"

They then split up into teams of two to continue their investigation.

* * *

"Well, this is the last studio in all of London," said Shinichi as he, Alan, Yui and Grell stood in front of it. They had checked out all the photo studios, all except for this one. The lights were on, indicating it was still opened. The sign also said that it was a 24 hours place.

The four had investigated all over London and finally ended up here.

"Well, let's go in," said Alan as he pushed the door open, causing the bell to chime.

"Welcome," the man at the counter greeted them. He was short and chubby, wearing blue overalls over a brown shirt and had a camera hanging from his neck. He had freckles and small eyes framed behind glasses and shaggy red hair. "What can I do you all for?"

Yui flashed a badge, "FBI; Division 6. We received reports of a terrorist hiding out in this area so we were hoping we could perform a sweep of your studio, sir."

The man smiled, "Please, help yourself young lady."

Yui nodded and turned to the three men, "OK, you two take the west wing. Alan and I will cover the east." They all nodded and split up.

Alan, unfortunately, was still uncomfortable about Yuji looking like a girl. He kept glancing at her and looked like he was going to snap.

"Can you stop glancing at me?" Yui requested. "You've been doing it since we split up with Shinichi and Grell. What, you like me or something?"

"Sorry," Alan apologized, "I'm just not used to seeing someone voluntarily turn themselves into a woman. It's normally one of Lala's inventions that cause it to happen to me."

Yui shrugged, "Well, my idea was to act as bait for the demon. Plus, being a girl is fun sometimes. Never knew having girl suck your tits and get eaten out would feel so good."

Alan shook his head, "Never tried it with the girls. My Ashley form is normally dragged into trouble whenever it happens."

Yui chuckled, "You have no idea what you're missing."

Alan frowned, "Trust me...being a girl is NOT easy. Gave me a new appreciation for my girls." He grinned, "So, how about a little wager?"

Yui grinned, "Whatcha got in mind?"

"I bet you can't stay a girl for one week."

Yui grinned, "I'll take some of that action. How 'bout the loser has to model for pinup poses?"

"Deal!"

"Just so you know, Yuji," Bazel spoke, "All my money's on you!"

Yui smiled, "Thank you, Bazel!"

"Any man who can pose as a girl for a week is definitely a man in my book!"

Meanwhile, Shinichi's eyes were scanning the area where he found something odd. On the wall he found the faint outline of a door. "Grell, there's a door," he whispered. He got no response. "Grell?" He looked over and saw Grell admiring himself in a mirror. Shinichi slapped his face in annoyance before stomping over and dragging the Reaper over. Grell adjusted his glasses and he too could see the faint outline of the door.

"Alan! Yui!" shouted Shinichi. "I found something." The Lantern and Manakyte ran over and Shinichi pointed at the door. The wallpaper really hid the door well but the outline was visible to the Kaizo Ningen's enhanced vision.

"That's actually the dark room," the photographer told them.

"Kick it open," Yui ordered and Shinichi did with so much strength that he blasted the door right off its hinges. "Gently…" Yui frowned.

Shinichi sweatdropped and chuckled nervously, "Heh-heheh!" He put a hand behind his head in embarrassment, "Must not know my own strength!"

Grell poked his head inside and looked about. He found a light switch on the wall and flipped it. When the lights came on, his eyes widened. "Excuse me, but you all might want to take a gander at this," he said. The three ARMOR agents followed the Reaper inside and saw pinned up to the wall were photographs and not just any photographs but the photographs of the victims.

They heard a dark chuckling and turned around to look at the short and chubby photographer. "Looks like you've found it, my collection," he said, his voice sounding warped and demonic. Grell actually shivered as the man's eyes bulged with black veins popping from his skin. "They are just empty images though. I already had my fill of them. However, too bad you won't leave here alive!"

The man started to change. Actually, his clothes and skin got torn up as what was truly inside him burst out. It was a 6 feet tall, muscle-bound brute with spikes along the shins, forearms and shoulder blades. It also sported sharp teeth and a single eye like a Cyclops, except that it also looked like the lens of a camera. He was still holding a camera in hand.

"Horror," Shinichi and Alan identified. In Dr. Hasuma's seminar, Horrors were also a subject. They were vicious demons which came from the dark realm of Horrors to the many Earths in order to feast on human flesh. While their lesser forms were uniform in appearance, Horrors who possessed a human host would evolve and develop unique forms and powers.

"I am Vangory!" the Horror declared, stating his name. "Now, stand still and say cheese!" He held up his camera and focused. The team tensed up but then the Horror just stood there, doing nothing. And then it let out a disgusted sound, "Ugh!" The Horror grimaced in disgust at Alan, Yui and Shinichi and put down his camera, "You're all tainted! No good! No good at all!"

"Hey, how dare you call me tainted!" huffed Grell in outrage. He took out and turned on his chainsaw Death Scythe and with a howl attacked, "NOBODY CALLS ME TAINTED AND GETS AWAY WITH IT!"

"Grell, no!" shouted Yui.

"Out of my way!" the Horror backhanded Grell and sent him crashing against the wall in a daze.

"So, you're the one who's been stealing souls," Shinichi accused the Horror.

"That's right," Vangory admitted, "It is I."

"And you killed those people we found earlier," Shinichi added.

"Only as a snack," Vangory confessed, not feeling guilty at all. "When I use an instant camera, it's like a cup of instant noodles. It tastes good but it's not very filling. However, when I develop my photos, the souls they contain are full of flavor and essence that satisfies my hunger," the Horror explained.

"That could explain why those others died so suddenly," concluded Yui.

Shinichi cursed, "Teme! You are a disgrace to photography!" He was going to rush for an attack.

"Not so fast!" The Horror revealed that he was holding a photograph of Shawna in his hand. Shinichi recognized it. It was the one taken earlier at the café. "You see this? I just developed this photo tonight."

"Shawna?" Shinichi questioned.

"As of right now she is in a deep sleep, but what happens if I were to devour this photo right now?" the Horror grinned. Shinichi clenched his fists. "Good, you understand." Vangory contemplated. "Well, I can't really eat you but my minions might enjoy you." He snapped his fingers. From the darkness, Horrors rose up. Like in Dr. Hasuma's presentation they were black skeletons with demonic horns and wings that snapped hungrily at them.

"Now, I must continue my hunt," said Vangory. He was hungry for more and more souls.

"Not right now, jackass," said Yui as she kicked up Grell's chainsaw and caught it, starting it up, before hurling it at the Horror. The blade cut right through his arm which was holding Shawna's photo/soul hostage. With a burst of speed, while Vangory howled, he knocked the Horrors away and grabbed the photo before taking back Grell's chainsaw Death Scythe. "Hey, Grell! This is yours!" He tossed the chainsaw back to Grell who'd just regained consciousness.

"Oh, my baby!" Grell sobbed happily. "Mommy won't leave you again!"

The Horror held the stump where his arm had been and snarled at them, "NOW YOU DEFINITELY WON'T LEAVE!"

"Actually, _you_ won't," said Shinichi coldly. "GX Henshin!"

"Henshin!" called Yui as she swiped the pass over her belt which called, "**ZERO FORM!**"

Bazel called out, "Henshin!" and donned Alan in the Bazel Combat armor. His Green Lantern mask was on her face.

Grell gushed over them like a fangirl, "Oh, wow! Awesome!"

A blast of green energy knocked the Horror out of the room, taking out a chunk of the wall with it, as the trio went to engage the threat. Liger Zero and Showa GX also took down the other Horrors that tried to bite at them, without any luck. A few even tried to attack Grell but the Reaper was not frightened as he sliced them to pieces with his Death Scythe.

"Now I have to get it cleaned," Grell frowned.

The front of the photo studio exploded as Liger Zero and Showa GX had kicked the Horror so hard that it went flying through the wall and onto the streets.

"Shinichi," Liger Zero said to the Hinamizawa no Rider. "Take this one. It's yours."

Showa nodded and called, "Sing! Yabuki!" The Higurashi no Yaiba appeared in his hand and his body became surrounded by glowing green cicadas that morphed his armor into Showa Higurashi Form.

Vangory roared and fired a red beam from his eye only for it to be deflected with a swing from Showa's sword. There was so much anger under his helmet, his expression masked by his helmet.

Shinichi often wondered if his mask was simply his true face or a way to hide his face from the rest of the world. Being a Kamen Rider didn't mean he was putting on a mask to fight. It meant he was putting on his _true_ face.

He was a son, a brother, a friend, a lover, a weapon, a soldier, a warrior and a hero. Those were the faces he wore. Which was his true face? Was it all or none of those?

'_Since when did I get so philosophical?_' thought Showa.

Vangory roared and lunged at Showa but then the shikigami (animal origami) he'd released earlier suddenly showed up and surrounded Vangory. "WHAT!" the Horror roared as he tried to bat the annoying little paper animals away. They blocked his sight. "GET OFF ME, YOU PESTS!"

Showa held the Higurashi no Yaiba vertically before him, the tip pointed straight at the sky. He chanted and put his index and middle finger upon the blade and slid them up to the tip. The blade began to glow and Japanese writing appeared upon the blade with paper tassels hanging from the guard.

His Higurashi Wings spread and Showa leapt high above into the air before he dropped down with his sword above him. "DEMON BANISHING SLASH! HYAH!" He swung the sword down, its edge cutting right through the Horror from above and cleaving him in two. The Horror was stunned by shock as Showa landed before he got up and the Rider turned his back towards the demon and swung his sword to the side to flick off the black blood staining it. The characters on the sword were meant to vanquish demons and they were glowing bright with holy power.

"Begone," said Showa finally and the sword stopped glowing before the Horror exploded.

Alan came out to join the Riders along with Grell and asked, "So, what did we miss?"

"Look," Liger Zero pointed. The trio then undid their armor and watched.

At the Horror's destruction, the souls it had consumed were freed as they floated out from the flames as orbs of light and went up into the sky. Grell was entranced by the beauty as the souls became stars in the night's sky. Shinichi gave a prayer, taught to him by Rika, meant for the departed. Now they could pass on.

Held in Shinichi's hand was Shawna's photograph and with the Horror's destruction she was safe. Still, it couldn't hurt to check, right?

"Looks like this case is closed," said Grell. "I better tell this to Will."

Meanwhile, not too far away, a man watched them with a smile. He had black hair and black eyes, dressed in a black leather coat over a grey shirt, blue jeans, and black sneakers. It was Conner and he gave a small smile as he watched the scene. "Well, looks like they have it taken care of." He sheathed his sword and walked away.

Back at the townhouse, Shinichi burst into Shawna's room. "Shawna!" he called. Chris and Anthony both looked concern. She'd been waiting for Shinichi's return but then suddenly collapsed without warning. Both Anthony and Chris had tried to revive her but without any success.

Shinichi knew why she was like this, but she should've awoken after the Horror's destruction. He stared at her photograph and was reminded of Rina and how he'd failed her. "No…not this time…" he swore under his breath. He approached Shawna's bed and looked at her sleeping face before gently stroking her cheek. Anthony took offence at how Shinichi was so casually touching the princess but Chris silently told him to back off with a shake of his head.

"Hey, how about you kiss her?" Yui suggested.

"Kiss?" Alan asked.

"Like in Sleeping Beauty," Yui explained. "Wake her up with a kiss. True love's kiss always breaks a curse."

"But Shinichi told us he only views her as a friend," Alan argued.

"That what he _says_, but how does he _feel_?" Yui shot back with a smile.

Shinichi blushed and looked back at Shawna. "A kiss, huh?" He loved Rena, and doing something like this would be like cheating on her, but if he didn't then Shawna would surely remain asleep and die. He refused to lose anyone ever again. He hated the feeling of being helpless when he could've saved his friends. Enduring that dreadful time loop had nearly driven him completely mad.

He leaned his close, their noses nearly touching, and whispered, "Shawna-chan, I love you." That was no lie. He wasn't one to throw that phrase around meaninglessly. He meant it like how he meant it whenever he said it to his mother and Rena. He meant every word.

Closing his eyes, he pressed his lips gently against hers. After several seconds, he pulled away and held her hands in his. He begged, "Please…don't die…"

"Mr…Samurai…" he heard. Shinichi's eyes opened and he gazed at her as she started to awoke. He then broke into a smile with tears of joy. "What's going on?" she asked before yawning.

"Oh, you were doomed to an eternal sleep but he kissed you to wake you up," Bazel stated bluntly.

Shinichi's eyes widened further in horror and Shawna blushed as she touched her tingling lips.

'_He…kissed me…? He kissed me! He kissed me! He kissed me!_' Shawna thought repeatedly.

Then, she passed out in Shinichi's arms. "Oh crap, not again!" Shinichi cried.

"Looks like it was too much for her," Yui chuckled in amusement.

"Why don't you give her another smooch?" Bazel suggested, laughing.

"Shut up! This is all your fault!" Shinichi snapped. Alan was laughing too. "Alan, stop laughing!"

"Sorry, but this is just too funny!" Alan told him.

Grell watched from outside the window and sighed, "Ah…young love." He spoke to the moon, "Where, oh where, are you my Prince Charming~?"

* * *

_She was dressed in an immaculate white wedding gown with a tiara upon her head and a veil over her face. In her hands was a bouquet of flowers. The guests all smiled as she watched her walk alongside her father, the king, towards the altar where her groom waited for her. This was the happiest day of her life._

_As she reached the altar, her father let her go, crying manly tears of joy. She stood by her groom's side before the priest who would perform the ceremony. _

_After the 'I do's', Princess Shawna turned to face her new husband who was clad in a black tuxedo and had indigo hair and eyes. He pulled her veil away from her face and cupped her chin before leaning in for a kiss. She puckered up and…_

* * *

Shawna awoke from her slumber as the curtains were drawn and sunlight came in. She rubbed her eyes and stretched and then saw standing at the window was a man clad in a black tailcoat with dark hair that was parted in the centre. He turned to address her, "Good morning, Your Highness," with a hand to his chest and a slight bow. He wore glasses over his indigo eyes but Shawna recognized him even if he'd changed his appearance. Under his coat he wore a white shirt with a black vest and neck tie. He was also wearing black pants and shoes.

"I've prepared breakfast in bed for you," said the young man as he put the bed tray down before her. On the plate were blueberry pancakes with a side of sliced fruit, a glass of orange juice, knife and fork and a small vase with a rose in it.

Shawna looked at him bewildered and asked, "Mr. Samurai?"

"Oh, you must be mistaken. I am but your humble butler, Your Highness."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: So, another case closed but they'll be more in the next chapter. BTW, Grell Sutcliff is from the anime/manga Kuroshitsuji/Black Butler. I now he's gay, but maybe he doesn't mind if a girl kisses him on the condition the girl really is a hunky guy. Anyway, Shawna gets her wish but it was funny to see her faint. Speaking of butlers, it seems Shinichi has taken on a new role. What for? Is it a new assignment? Wait and see.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: A lot of hotness and epicness in this chap. Just so you all know, Yuji is NOT gay. You should all know that by now but I just feel like clarifying that for those who don't know my OC.**


	33. The Fall of X Shocker Part 6

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 6: Middle School Days**

An alarm clock rang on a nightstand before a hand pressed on the snooze button. A head of long indigo hair rose up from bed and yawned. She rubbed her eyes and yawned once more before turning to her bedmate and shaking her awake. "Hanyuu, wake up," Rika said to her friend.

"More creampuffs, Chiaki-san…" said Hanyuu in her sleep. She was drooling. Rika sighed. They were still sleeping in two beds but they had both been moved the two beds together to create a make-shift double-bed. Their room had been rearranged a lot but there was still a lot of space for all their stuff, like the study table, their stuffed animals and the closet.

"Hanyuu…" groaned Rika. She then got an idea and pulled out the nightstand's drawer and reached inside for a jar of kimchi. She unscrewed the lid and carefully pulled a piece out. Grinning, she hovered over Hanyuu and waited for her mouth to open before dropping it in.

Results were instantaneous as Hanyuu, red faced, jumped out of bed and screamed, "Hot, hot, hot, hot!" before running out of the room to try and put out the fire in her mouth. Rika laughed as Hanyuu returned with a frown and puffed up cheeks. "Rika, that's not nice!"

"Sorry, but you wouldn't wake up!" Rika told her, still laughing.

"Mou…"

"Come on, let's get ready for school before we're late."

* * *

The two girls came downstairs dressed in their uniforms. It was a dark blue sailor fuku with long sleeves since it was the middle of fall and knee-length skirts. They also wore black socks along with their uniforms.

"Ohayo, Mama! Papa!" the two girls greeted their parents. Kasai was seated at the dining table with his breakfast before him and a stern look on his face with his arms crossed as Shiori placed down Rika and Hanyuu's plates down. She really looked like a housewife as she wore an apron over her clothes.

"Ohayo, Hanyuu-chan! Rika-chan!" greeted Shiori. Kasai looked at them and gave them a nod in greeting. He may not look it, since he'd known the girls before marrying Shiori as friends of Mion and Shion as well as the heirs of the Furude Clan he actually took his role as their step-father seriously. They weren't adopted in an official sense since they still used their original clan name, but it didn't really matter to Shiori who considered the two girls her daughters. Her only reason for adopting them, to be honest, was because she'd always wanted daughters.

The two sat down for breakfast, which was toast with sunny side up egg, a side of bacon and cucumber slices. "Itadakimasu!" the two girls let out before digging into their food. After their breakfast, they headed to the door with their bags and went out after putting on their shoes with Shiori watching them leave after handing them their bentos. The two girls then got on their bicycles and pedaled to school.

Meanwhile, Satoko Houjou had woken up late and was dashing out of her house with a piece of toast hanging from her teeth. As she hastily adjusted one of her shoes, hopping on one foot, she got on her bike and raced off as her older brother watched her go.

The blonde managed to meet her two friends along the road to Okinomiya where their school was at. Once at school, the three girls parked their bikes and headed towards the building's entrance where the shoe lockers were. As soon as Rika opened hers, she sighed.

"Another love letter, Rika?" Satoko guessed and she was right as Rika pulled out not one but two envelopes with the heart-shaped seals. "Wow, two in the morning."

"Honestly, why do they even bother when they know I can't accept their feelings," sighed Rika.

"You're like a forbidden fruit, nanodesu," said Hanyuu. "The boys want you because they can't have you."

"And as a result, Rika, 'the Princess of the Furude Clan', has left a trail of broken hearts which grows with each passing day," added Satoko dramatically.

"I really should get this over with," stated Rika. "I really don't have time for this nonsense."

"Try and let them down gently," advised Hanyuu. "I mean the last boy you rejected broke down into tears."

"He took what I said out of context," Rika argued.

"Rika, you basically told the guy he was not good enough for you because he couldn't live up to your standards," Satoko reminded. "Nobody in this school can live up to _those_ kinds of standards."

"Is it wrong that I want a man who is like Shinichi?" asked Rika.

Satoko admitted, "Sure, Shinichi-san's great and all but I wouldn't call him a role-model."

"After what he's done for us, it's impossible for anyone to match his accomplishments," said Rika.

"You're just aiming too high," Satoko shook her head. "What I look for in a guy is someone with a sense of humor and enjoys a good laugh and can make me laugh." Well, that or someone like her big brother. She pointed to Hanyuu, "Even Hanyuu here has someone she likes."

"Satoko, please!" pleaded Hanyuu, blushing.

"Hanyuu, it's no secret that your ideal guy is the strong and silent type," teased Satoko.

* * *

In the forest, as he chopped wood, Chiaki sneezed.

* * *

"Satoko, Hanyuu, we'll be late to class," informed Rika curtly before she left them to head for class. Satoko rolled her eyes and followed along with Hanyuu.

Their classroom was 3-4 where Rika was the class representative. She was greeted politely by their classmates and she greeted back with a kind smile that melted their hearts. Satoko chuckled at their reactions while Hanyuu smiled as well.

Rika was the 'princess' and the forbidden fruit. She was out of the boys' reach but they still tried. Hanyuu, of course, was the cutie of the class and she also received confessions. Though they were not as many as Rika's, she still got them. Like Rika, of course, she turned them down because she had someone she liked. Then there was Satoko and she already had a reputation as a notorious prankster in school. She had not outgrown it.

"Good morning, Rika-chan, Hanyuu-chan, Satoko-chan!" a bespectacled girl with her violet hair in pigtails greeted. The three girls returned the greeting in their individual way. With her was another girl with short brown hair who also greeted them. These were their classmates and school friends called Natsumi and Sayoko, respectively.

"Check this out!" Natsumi cheered as she opened up the newspaper and pointed at a photo. "Another photo of one of the Kamen Riders!"

Satoko, Rika and Hanyuu tried to see and the blonde spotted a speck. "Is that it?" It was a shot of the sky and there was a human-shaped figure flying through the air.

"Yes, that must be one of them!" Natsumi insisted. She was a die-hard fan of the Kamen Riders since they became publicly known.

"She's been telling me it is, but I just think it's a bird," said Sayoko.

"You're such a skeptic, Sayoko-chan!" pouted Natsumi. Sayoko rolled her eyes.

"Anyway," began Sayoko, "What I'm interested is how many letters Rika-chan got today."

"She got two!" answered Satoko, holding up two fingers. "Right in her shoe locker."

"Then she should check her desk since she's got a few more stuffed in there," Sayoko informed.

"Again?" Rika cocked her eyebrow and Sayoko nodded in response. "Why do boys insist of giving me letters when I have no interest?"

"I just told you," Hanyuu reminded.

"That was rhetorical," Rika muttered. She looked to the clock hanging over the blackboard, "Anyway, we should get to our seats. Class is about to start."

* * *

The teacher lectured in front of class as Rika looked out the window. Satoko sat in front of her while Hanyuu sat behind her. She really wasn't paying attention and neither were Hanyuu and Satoko who were both dreaming about sweets and trap ideas respectively. The blonde had a manic grin as usual.

Rika could only smile. She'd died so many times that she lost count and only knew that many, many years had passed within the continuous time loop which took place in the cursed Endless June of 1983. It was only through fate and determination that they found a solution to break the cycle. Now, because of that, she could live a long and happy life and attend school with her friends. Hanyuu had not disappeared after the Endless June's curse was ended and stayed with Rika and Hanyuu.

Only she and Hanyuu remembered the horrors while Satoko didn't have any recollection of those doomed Hinamizawas, or so Rika assumed. It was clear that Shinichi could remember those doomed worlds and all because he had time powers.

Shinichi was something that she suspected was something that even fate could not predict, or maybe fate brought him to Hinamizawa. In either case, his appearance had brought many, many changes. It was because of him the true source of the Hinamizawa Syndrome was discovered and subsequently vanquished. Shinichi was also the one who awoke all the three Sacred Treasures of Hinamizawa and gained their power. Also, Shinichi had defeated GIN-SHOCKER, the Dark Hatred Society, Panther Claw, and many more threats to the world. He was a huge hero and didn't even look the part. If only people knew.

That was what made Rika admire him and it was also because of him that she had a family. Shiori could never take the place of Rika's mother but she still tried and Rika appreciated the effort and could not help but see the author as a surrogate mother. Rika was just surprised that she was allowed to take her and Hanyuu in. Maybe nobody else tried or thought about trying. To be honest Rika had felt a little lonely even with her friends. Even after hundreds of years of a time loop she was still a little girl that had been forced to grow up.

What really bothered her were her feelings for Shinichi. She loved him and not as a brother. Even though he'd turned her down she still had feelings for her. Unfortunately, he loved Rena and only considered her a little sister. She really set up a standard with him as an example for the right guy for her. Unfortunately, none of the boys in school interested her.

She remembered when Shiori had enrolled them in this school. It'd been last year, right after summer break. Before that they had gone to school at Hinamizawa but Shiori thought it was best that they spent time with more kids their age. Satoko had joined them a couple of months later. It didn't take long for them to be popular.

As lunch period came, the five friends chatted amongst themselves.

"So, the sports festival is coming up," said Natsumi, "And then we have the culture festival."

"What is our class gonne do for the culture festival?" asked Sayoko. "It'll be our last one in this school."

"There's still high school," said Satoko. "Three more years!" She grinned, holding three fingers up.

"But there are high school entrance exams, remember?" Rika reminded. Satoko slumped. "You've studied, right?"

"Rika, please help me?" Satoko dramatically begged.

"Why do you always ask me to study with you?"

"Coz you're so smart!"

"You always copy my homework."

"Coz you're so smart!"

Hanyuu giggled as she watched the two. They were best friends, but they were so different.

"So, what's your big brother like?" Sayoko asked.

"My brother?" blinked Rika. "You mean Shinichi."

"We saw him a pick you and Hanyuu-chan up from school a lot last year and we've been wondering for a while now," said Sayoko. "So, what's he like?"

"He should be in college, right?" Natsumi asked.

"Well, what's he like?" Sayoko pressed on.

Rika dodged the questioning. "Excuse me, but there's something I need to deal with," said Rika before leaving her two curious friends with questions.

"Hey, if you ask me, he's a pervert," said Satoko.

"A pervert? For a brother?" Natsumi grinned. "Scandalous!"

"That sounds bad," said Sayoko, shaking her head. "He doesn't do anything naughty to Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan, does he? He doesn't steal your underwear to sniff them, or even peak at you while changing, or…?"

"It's not like that!" exclaimed Hanyuu, blushing. "He's our brother, even if not by blood!"

"Yeah and he may be a perv, but even he's got standards and principles," said Satoko. "I guess he's one of the good ones, at least."

* * *

"I'm sorry, but I'm just not interested in dating anyone right now," apologized Rika. She then turned and walked away, leaving the boy in tears with a broken heart behind the school.

"And 'heart-break Rika' does it again," Satoko as Rika rounded the corner, spotting her blonde friend. "How many is this now? 54?"

"57, and I still have to turn down three more boys," said Rika.

"Now that's a record," said Satoko. "Why don't you give those guys a chance?"

"You know why."

"But you know it could never be," Satoko said seriously. "He's…"

"I can't help it," Rika said, a hand to her chest. "He loves Rena, but I can't stop loving him too."

Satoko shrugged, "Heck, I kinda like the guy too. Sure, he can be a stupid perv but you can always count on him."

"You're right about that," Rika agreed. "Then again, I'm not the only one with a crush…" Her eyes glanced at Satoko.

"What are you talking about?" Satoko responded.

"I heard from a very reliable source that you like guys with musical talent and a love for animals," Rika teased.

* * *

"Dammit," Daichi cursed as he picked up the box of abandoned kittens. "Who the hell would abandon cute little kittens, I will never know? Makes me lose faith in people."

Scar, who was at his feet, meowed in response.

"Yeah, people are so stupid. I better find these guys a nice home. Maybe someone from ARMOR can look after them, Like Doc. Hasuma. He likes animals and doesn't mind having them around."

* * *

"Urusai!" Satoko snapped, huffing. "It's not like that! He's just very talented and I can't help but like his songs!"

"Sure…" Rika didn't believe Satoko but it felt good to tease someone back after being teased.

* * *

It was after school and the girls decided to stop at Angel Mort for some snacks. Hanyuu ordered creampuffs as usual with Rika and Satoko ordering parfaits.

"You'll get fat eating like that," Satoko told Hanyuu who was stuffing creampuffs into her mouth. "You'll blow up like a balloon too and no guy likes fat girls."

Hanyuu's imagination ran wild with her and she gasped. Satoko laughed.

"Satoko, please don't upset Hanyuu," Rika scolded.

"I can't help it!" Satoko replied in mid-laugh, "It's funny!"

"You have a cruel, cruel sense of humor," Rika shook her head.

"Can't help it!"

"Will I really get fat?" sobbed Hanyuu.

"Not unless you eat that much each day," Rika answered, "But you should be safe."

"Oh, thank you, Rika."

"So, how about we head over to the arcade after this?" Satoko suggested.

"Satoko, we do have homework to do and study for high school entrance exams," Rika reminded.

"But it's sooo boring…" moaned Satoko.

"Boring, but necessary, and Hanyuu and I have miko training to perform tonight as well so we can't waste any time."

"And Shiori-mama expects us home soon!" chirped Hanyuu.

"I envy you guys," Satoko admitted, eyes downcast. "I have my Nii-nii, but I still…I still wanna have a mom and dad."

"Satoko…" whispered Rika.

"But that's fine!" Satoko put on a grin. "I got everyone and we're all a big happy family!"

Rika knew Satoko was hiding her pain behind her smile but she was right. Their friends, the Gaming Club and the NEO-NUMBERS, were their family.

The three girls exited Angel Mort and were about to unlock their bikes when a black van stopped near them. The door in the side open and men dressed in black with hoods hiding their faces grabbed Hanyuu and dragged her inside, kicking and screaming. A cloth soaked in chloroform was pressed over her nose and mouth and she passed. Rika and Satoko were stunned as they too were grabbed. They struggled but cloth soaked in chloroform covered their noses and they joined Hanyuu in unconsciousness. The door was closed and the van drove away with their captives. They then tied the three girls up.

"We were supposed to grab only this one," one of them said, referring to Hanyuu. "Why did we grab the other two?"

"They're witnesses," another informed him.

"So, what do we do with them?"

"Well, they are young and pretty little things, aren't they? We can have some fun with them."

"I like how you think."

The van drove away. As it went down the street, a familiar pickup truck was in pursuit as Chiaki was at the wheel with Daichi riding shotgun.

They had only been in the area when they witnessed the kidnapping and decided to intervene. In other words, they intended to rescue the girls from these kidnappers who they assumed had very indecent motives.

Daichi growled, "Come on, Chiaki! Faster! We have to catch up! Damn it, why did our bikes have to be sent for maintenance today?"

Chiaki shrugged in response but he looked just as determined. Hanyuu, Rika and Satoko had been kidnapped and they were going to rescue them.

"Chiaki, pull down the top," said Daichi. He was holding a sniper rifle. Chiaki shook his head. "Why not?"

"The girls will get hurt," Chiaki informed him.

The van's rear window rolled down and the kidnappers riding in the back of the van started shooting at the pickup truck. Chiaki did his best to evade the bullets but the windshield took some damage as spider-web cracks formed on the surface.

"Oh, this is just fucking bullshit!" cursed Daichi. Daichi growled, they would've returned fire but the girls were in the van and he had a soft spot for Satoko. Mostly because she used her traps on Shinichi, even if they did fail more times than succeed. They just couldn't risk it and continued to pursue the van as it tried to outrun them.

Chiaki would not let Hanyuu get taken. He had a promise to keep and he was not going to break it. Not now, or ever.

Daichi then caught movement off the corner of his eye. He saw a figure in a white racing suit with blue trim down the sides. He noticed the tight curves and figured it was a girl, but her face was covered by a white, futuristic helmet with a black visor. She was riding a white, futuristic-looking bike with a streamline frame with ice blue accents. She sped ahead of the truck and got behind the van.

"Who's that?" the cricket Rider asked.

"No idea," Chiaki replied.

The biker held a red and white ball and tossed it upward, allowing the sphere to open and release a white light that began to take form. Chiaki and Daichi gawked as they saw what looked like a female creature with dark blue scales, a pair of huge dragon wings, a long tail, long white hair, and a pair of long, jagged, horns that curved around the sides of her head.

"Dai, do you see what I see?" Chiaki gulped.

"Yes," Daichi piped.

"Uhh... guys?" one of the kidnappers gulped.

"What is it? Don't tell me you're already getting cold feet after we just pulled off this job," another kidnapper sighed.

"Not that! Look!" He pointed at the rearview mirror. The lead kidnapper looked at it and gawked. He saw the dragon girl from her front and saw that she had a white underbelly, draconic face, and looked angry.

"Faster you bastard! Faster!" the lead kidnapper shouted, hitting the driver on the back of the head, with the driver doing just that. He wasn't scared of the dragon girl. He was scared because of what their boss would do to them if they failed and HE didn't accept any excuses. HE executed people for making excuses for failing. In fact, making excuses would just make it worse for them. In fact, their master was scarier than anything they could possibly imagine. Not even the walls of a prison could keep them safe from HIS wrath and HE had all the time in the world to hunt them down.

The female biker pointed and the dragon girl formed a glowing blue orb in her hand, which launched a blast of ice at the ground, freezing the street as the tires couldn't grip the ice. The van spun out of control and crashed into a street lamp, rattling the passengers inside. The driver stopped and the dragon girl touched down before she yanked the back door off its hinges as the biker pulled out two pistols and opened fire on the kidnappers, filling them with bullet holes as they dropped like flies, expertly avoiding the hostages. She noticed the driver trying to climb out of his window and she delivered a headshot, effectively putting him down.

She examined them. They all wore black jumpsuits with matching gloves and boots with hoods over their heads. She also spotted an insignia of a rock on their right shoulder.

Chiaki stopped the pickup truck and he and Daichi exited to check on the girls. Daichi gave the biker girl a suspicious look.

"They are okay, just knocked out," reported Chiaki as he carried the girls out of the van. He held the Furudes under each arm and had Satoko thrown over his shoulder.

Daichi looked to the biker and demanded, "Who the hell are you?"

Meanwhile, barely alive, one of the kidnappers clutched something in his hand and then with great effort pressed it against his other palm.

"**SCORPION!"**

Some sort of digital energy enveloped the man and transformed him. His body began to expand, much to the Riders' shock as they watched the transformed kidnapper tear the van to shreds with his expanding size.

Now, towering over them was a gigantic scorpion.

Daichi ordered, "Chiaki, protect those girls!" He called forth his armor, "Rock-Metal Henshin!" In a flash he was in his Rock-Metal Form and brandishing his Cricket Axe. "Eat this!" He strummed the guitar strings hard, sending a blast of sonic energy crashing against the monster scorpion's head. The giant scorpion struck with its tail, the stinger at its tip looking deadly, but Musician managed to dodge the blow before he continued his assault.

The female biker aimed her automatic pistols and pulled the triggers, launching a barrage of bullets that put dents in the giant scorpion's carapace armor, making it screech in annoyance. It tried to swipe at the biker with its claw but was caught by the dragon girl as she growled and tore the pincer apart, causing more pain to the massive scorpion as it swung with its other pincer. The two females jumped the swipe and flipped back to a safer distance.

Chiaki, who'd been watching, after untying and putting the girls safely into the bed of the pickup truck, frowned. He would be fighting, but of course he had the girls to protect.

An invisible force suddenly slammed into the giant scorpion and it screeched in pain as it was knocked backwards. Everyone looked up to see Hanyuu floating in the air, her hair rising upwards and her eyes glowing red, making her look demonic and malevolent. While her horns went unnoticed by normal folk, Musician and Chiaki could see them and right now Hanyuu looked downright demonic. All she was missing was a pair of bat-like wings.

This was beyond the rage of a teenage girl. This was the wrath of a god. This was Oyashiro-sama.

"**YOU DARE TO HARM MY COMPANIONS AND I?**" Hanyuu demanded. "**YOU ARE BUT A PITIFUL MORTAL. YOU DARE LAY A HAND UPON ME?**"

Musician and Chiaki could only gawk and gape at Hanyuu.

She threw a hand down and it was like the monstrous scorpion was being crushed by gravity as it was slammed flat against the ground. It struggled to break free but Hanyuu's will was stronger. She threw her hand up, causing the gigantic arachnid to go flying skyward, before bringing it back down again to smash it to the ground, causing the ground to shake and cars to jump.

"The hell!" shouted Musician at the display of power.

Chiaki almost took pity on the monster. Carmen and Arachnea were fortunate that Hanyuu only put the fear of God in them instead of making them suffer by demonstrating her true wrathful power on them. They would've been traumatized.

Hanyuu turned her attention towards Musician and questioned, **"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? FINISH IT!"**

Musician was shocked back to focus, "Oh…right." He put his Cricket Axe away and focused his power into his right fist, causing it to vibrate at high frequency. He jumped up and with a shout he plunged his vibrating fist through the scorpion's head. The consequences were instantaneous as the monster exploded and left a dead man in its wake. Something was seen coming out of the man's palm and shattering.

Chiaki, curious, went and inspected the object. It looked like shattered pieces of a USB flash drive, technology that this world had yet to discover at this time. He recognized it though. "Gaia Memory," the Termite Kaizo Ningen identified.

"So, that's what it was," realized Musician. "A Dopant." Dopants were also covered in Dr. Hasuma's seminar on Kaijin. It was when a human used a device called a Gaia Memory to mutate themselves into monstrous forms. Gaia Memories were a technology from another world.

Hanyuu then slowly descended and as soon as her feet touched the ground her hair hell down and the crimson glow in her eyes had vanished. It was surprising how such a sweet girl could have such a powerful force hidden inside her. Then again, one should not judge a book by their covers.

"Chiaki-san!" Hanyuu gasped.

"Are you okay?" Chiaki asked. The lavender-haired girl nodded. "Your friends are safe, don't worry. They are over there." He pointed at the pickup truck. Hanyuu hung her head. "What's wrong?"

"I was scary, wasn't I?" Hanyuu asked. She didn't want Chiaki to see her like that. He put a hand on her head and she looked up at him as he patted him.

"We're used to it," he told her.

"Speak for yourself," muttered Daichi as he resumed human form. He looked at the damage. There was a huge scorpion-shaped indent in the ground. "I think we need to call for someone to clean this mess up."

"Sorry," Hanyuu apologized. "I guess I went overboard."

The mystery biker spoke, "If you asked me, you went easy on them." She went over to one of the bodies and tore a piece of fabric from one of them. It was a piece from their shoulder which had the insignia. "Interesting…"

"OK, who are you?" Daichi asked. The dragon girl stood firm to defend her mistress. Daichi ordered, "Out of my way."

"Relax," said the biker. "I can handle this." She reached up to her helmet and took it off, shaking out her helmet hair afterwards. She had snow white hair that went past her shoulders and two elbow-length bangs that framed her face. She had icy blue eyes and fair, almost pale, skin. Daichi and Chiaki blinked at how cute she actually looked.

"So, you gonna tell us who you are?" Daichi asked impatiently.

"Mind your tongue, loser," the dragon girl growled.

The girl put a hand on her shoulder, "It's OK, Crystal. I'm Yuki Fudo, and I was bored so I decided to pay a visit."

'_Fudo…why does that sound familiar?'_ the two Riders thought in unison.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in London, Shinichi had just finished reading the letter Chris had given him and nodded. "I see." He finally understood why the king needed him to read this. It was urgent and it involved Shawna. The king had not written more and wanted to meet Shinichi personally to discuss further details. Hopefully, it didn't involve him being Shawna's fiancé. Shawna's father seemed really keen on him being his future son-in-law because he was worthy.

Shinichi really didn't see himself as anything special. Anyone with morals and cybernetic enhancements could do what he did but the ruler of Genovia acknowledged Shinichi as a one-of-a-kind individual and the only man worthy for his daughter. After all, he had saved his daughter and even saved Genovia, not to mention the entire world. "Damn Shogo." He knew Shogo was probably reporting back to the king. For what reason, he wasn't certain. The Wasp/Hornet Kaizo Ninge wasn't exactly talking and the matter was dropped.

Of course, Shinichi was still thinking of what to give Shawna for her birthday. Last year he'd given her an action figure of Kamen Rider Showa that had made her extremely happy. And it was so worth it to see that look on that snobbish noble's face. He wondered if that jerk would show up again and still act all arrogant despite the humiliation he suffered when Shawna smiled at a doll instead of a shining, diamond-covered dress.

But what exactly could he get her this year?

"What should I give her for her birthday?" Shinichi asked himself aloud.

"You know, if you're worried about getting her a present, why don't you give her you?" Yui suggested who was leaning against the doorframe to Shinichi's room. Yuji, because of a bet he made with Alan, would need to remain in female form (Yui) for the entire week. "I bet she'd like that."

"What do you mean?" Shinichi asked suspiciously.

"Well, nothing dirty," Yui started to elaborate, "I know you're not the type to deflower innocent princesses. But, then again…it'd be so tempting and your mom would write about it."

Shinichi blushed when Yui said 'deflower'. He did find Shawna attractive. You'd have to blind or dead to not see that. Even if you were gay you could see that she was attractive. She was beautiful, and her naiveté made her look cute too. A light bulb then lit up in his head as he got the idea. He smiled. Yui saw the smile and nodded, "I see you got it."

"Yeah, and I'm gonna need your help too," Shinichi replied.

"This will involve me wearing a dress, won't it?" Yui asked knowingly. Shinichi grinned in response. "OK, I'll do it."

"Thanks, you're a pal."

"Well, it better be cute or I'll make you pay," the girl threatened.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so, Daichi and Chiaki meet up with Yuki Fudo. Who is she? Don't you think she went overboard? Then again, considering their attentions, it seemed justified at the time. Still, they can't question the suspects anymore. Also, what's going on in London? Stay tune for the next chap. You'll find out. Maybe we see what the older kids are up to, huh?**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Yuki Fudo is my OC and so is the Pokégirl, known as Crystal. You know what I mean. Anyway, see if you can guess what Pokégirl she is. Thanks for reading.**


	34. The Fall of X Shocker Part 7

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 7: Her Butler is Devilishly Talented**

Daichi said, "OK, Fudo. I think you have to come with me to explain yourself at ARMOR."

Crystal growled and flexed her claws, "We're not going anywhere, meat bag!"

Yuki turned the Frostwyrm to face her, "It's OK, Crystal." She turned to Daichi, "Sure, we'll go."

Crystal looked to Yuki with worry, "But Mistress..."

Yuki rubbed Crystal's belly, soothing the icy dragon girl, "It'll be fine."

Daichi turned to Chiaki and said to him, "Get the girls home, oh and pick their bicycles too."

Chiaki nodded before going over to the pickup truck. Satoko and Rika had come to and Hanyuu explained what had happened to them. Rika frowned.

* * *

Yuki was brought to ARMOR to face Dr. Hasuma. She wasn't actually under arrest but she had to answer for her earlier actions concerning the attempted abduction of the three girls.

Dr. Hasuma frowned, "You killed the kidnappers, Ms. Fudo. We only use lethal force as a last resort."

Yuki answered monotonously, "Gomen, but Onii-sama is part of ARMOR. Not me."

Dr. Hasuma nodded, "Yes, we will speak to him too. So, you took this off the kidnappers?" He was referring to the symbol she'd torn off earlier. He was holding it in his hand. The two were currently in ARMOR's morgue where the kidnappers' bodies were stored.

Yuki nodded, "Yes, and I suspect they're part of a bigger organization."

Dr. Hasuma frowned. Organized crime was never good. What were their motives? Was it human trafficking? Well, they weren't going to get any answers because the suspects were dead. "Unfortunately, because of your actions, we will not be getting any answers from these suspects you executed on the spot."

"They'll be back for the girl," said Yuki firmly. "You can get your answers then."

Dr. Hasuma asked, "Is that a hunch or a prediction?"

Yuki explained, "It's strategy. Killing the first squad will force the opponent to send another force to complete the original mission. I won't interfere next time so you can have a party ready for them. I suggest having someone more experienced handle the job. These people don't seem worried that they're dealing with Riders."

Dr. Hasuma nodded, "I see. I will take your words in consideration and have the girls monitored for their safety." Dr. Hasuma told her, "I'll be in my office. Until your brother returns you are not to leave the premises. We are watching you, Ms. Fudo."

"OK."

"Now come with me. I doubt you'd want to be around dead bodies any longer. If you need anything, you can go up to the King's Terminal." Yuki nodded before following the red-haired doctor/Director.

* * *

It was hours later when Dr. Hasuma would get the answers he needed.

Dr. Hasuma listened to the report. "So, overall, the mission was a success." He sighed sadly. There were still casualties, though. There would be no way to revive the dead but at least the souls of the Horror's victims could pass on.

"That's right," Alan confirmed. He'd returned from London to report the results of the mission. "Shinichi was the one to cut it up."

"I expect a written reflection report from him then," Dr. Hasuma said. "Also, tell him there's been an incident."

"An incident?" Alan asked.

"Earlier today, Hanyuu Furude, Rika Furude and Satoko Houjou were abducted."

Alan could only imagine Shinichi's reaction to such news.

"However, they were also rescued by Daichi and Chiaki who happened to be in the area."

Alan let loose a sigh of relief, "That's good. So, do you know who they are?"

"They're dead," Dr. Hasuma told him.

"Dead?" Alan asked.

"Gunned down by a 'free agent' and also one of them had a Gaia Memory," Dr. Hasuma elaborated. "Judging by their clothing, they seem to belong to a group or organization."

"Did they have any distinguishing marks?" Alan asked.

Inside an evidence bag was the piece of fabric with the symbol that the kidnappers wore. He put it on the table for Alan to identify. "This is it." He noted Alan's reaction. "Do you know this symbol?"

"Damn…I know who they are."

* * *

"I've already drawn the bath for you, Your Highness. I will pick up your tray after you are done easting," said Shinichi and after that he left Shawna to finish her breakfast before taking her bath while she tried to figure out what was happening.

It was a beautiful morning in London and after getting dressed Shawna saw the most peculiar sight and she just thought she may have been dreaming. Shinichi, or Shin Black as he now called himself, was cleaning the windows, then he vacuumed the carpet, mopped the floors and cleaned the dishes, all in record time. He wasn't alone as there was a maid whom Shawna did not recognize.

The princess carefully approached the maid, who was dressed in a French maid outfit. The outfit was strapless and black with white trim and really showed off the girl's bust. Her black skirt had white bows and was trimmed with white lace. She wore black thigh-high socks topped with white bows as she wore black shoes. She wore white lace arm bands, a black neckpiece, and a white frilly headpiece.

Shawna asked, "Excuse me, miss, but who are you? I've never seen you before."

Yui smiled, "That's a shame, seeing how we just met, Princess."

She gasped as she recognized her, "Mr. Spike? Is that you?"

Yui nodded, "You can call me Yui in this form." She did a twirl and grinned, "So, how do I look?"

"It's very…" Shawna paused to think, '_What was the word?_' She finished, "Sexy."

Yui smiled, "Glad you approve."

"Miss…Yui, can you explain what Mr. Samurai is doing?" Shawna asked.

"Oh, Shin? Well, right now I think it's best you call him 'Mr. Butler', and he calls himself 'Shin Black' right now," Yui told him.

"Shin Black?"

"Yes, Your Highness?" answered Shinichi and Shawna gasped. Shinichi had just appeared so suddenly next to her.

"You startled me!" Shawna told him.

"My apologies, Your Highness," Shinichi bowed apologetically. "I only assumed you were summoning me."

"Where are Chris and Anthony?" asked Shawna.

"They are out fetching groceries," Shinichi informed her. "Until they return, I thought it best that I do the cleaning."

Shawna wasn't sure what was going on. Was she dreaming again? Then she thought of the kiss and blushed bright red. A gloved hand touched her forehead.

"Your Highness, are you ill?" Shawna backed away in fright and tripped. Shinichi caught her with a hand around his waist before she hit the ground and then pulled her back to her feet. "You need to be careful. You could've hurt yourself."

"I…" Shawna quickly fled, "Excuse me!"

Shinichi blinked and turned to Yui, breaking character, as he asked, "Do you think I overdid it?"

Yui volunteered, "I'll go talk to her."

Shawna was in her room, on her bed, her heart beating fast. "No, I mustn't think of him like that! He is Rena's beloved! Not mine!" She repeated the last phrase, "Not…mine…" He would never be hers and the way he was acting right now was confusing her. She loved him, she never stopped loving him. What had started as admiration had grown into a deep affection and when her father had selected Shinichi to be her fiancé last year she'd been extremely happy. She declined simply because it would hurt another girl and Rena was a good friend of hers. Still, she dreamt about being married to Shinichi. While in Genovia, she missed him immensely. She only knew of his exploits through video cassettes mailed to the palace from Shogo who her father had started corresponding with for some odd reason.

Shawna started to sob into her pillow. Her heart felt torn. It was a love that could never be and even if she ever found another man they would not be as wonderful as Shinichi. While he wasn't nobility by blood or even royalty, he possessed a noble heart and soul. Even after confessing his sins to her she still considered him noble for he regretted them and was honest about it. To her, he was already a noble, and she loved him for it. Unfortunately, he was out of reach.

"Need somebody to talk to?"

Shawna looked up, "Ms. Yui!

"Relax, like I said, just call me Yui for now." She walked over to the bed and sat next to the princess and put her arm around the girl's shoulders. "I can see how much you care for the kid and how much you want to know him better."

Shawna turned to the maid, "Of course I care about him! He's my friend!"

The maid continued, "I can also see how you look at him. In a romantic sense, I mean."

Shawna looked down, her bangs shielding her crying eyes, "I...I'm a horrible person!"

Yui brought her vision to hers and wiped away her tears, "Not really, you're just acting like any teenage girl. You want to express yourself but you don't want to hurt anyone, especially your friends."

Shawna looked down again, "I am well aware that he has someone he loves, and yet I still have these feelings for him. Worse yet, I am friends with his beloved and yet I can't stop myself from feeling this way for him. What should I do?"

Yui smiled softly and hugged the girl, pressing her face and against her breasts to act as pillows, "Next time you see Rena, get together with Shinichi and tell them both how you really feel. Even if it breaks your heart to spill your guts in front of them, let them know that you have feelings as well."

Shawna nodded and looked up, "Ms. Yui, can I ask what Mr. Samurai is doing and why he's acting this way? It's like he's a totally different person. Since when was he ever a butler?"

Yui grinned cutely, "It was actually my suggestion. He didn't know what to do for your birthday, so I told him he can be your butler for a while."

Shawna's eyes widened, "My birthday? You mean he's using himself as a present?"

Yui nodded, "Basically."

Shawna turned and took something from her luggage. She revealed it to the maid, "This was his birthday present for me from last year." It was a Kamen Rider Showa, custom, one-of-a-kind, action figure.

Yui chuckled, "Cute."

Shawna held the figure to her chest, "The other presents were extravagant but he got something simple and it is the best of them all. It's like I have him with me all the time, even if it's a doll. It's like he is watching over me."

Yui nodded, "Only now he wants to help take care of you himself now."

Shawna looked to the pseudo-woman, "So what should I do? Just...play along?"

Yui added, "Basically go with the flow. Just act like he's always been part of the staff. That goes double for me."

Shawna nodded, "I will."

The door opened and Shinichi peered in, "Your Highness, do you have any plans to explore the city today?"

Shawna turns to Yui for a suggestion on what to do. Yui nodded and smiled, "Go ahead and explore! I'll be setting up some dinner for us."

"Just let me get ready," said Shawna.

"Very well. I will prepare your transportation for you." Shinichi exited.

* * *

Shawna rode in the sidecar of the Showa-Racer and was dressed in a white blouse with long sleeves and a black skirt that came down to her knees and white socks with comfortable black shoes. A blue ribbon was tied into a bow around her collar and she had her hair up in a ponytail. She also wore a pink coat to keep herself warm. Shinichi was driving and still dressed as a butler as they drove away from the townhouse.

Once in town, Shinichi parked the bike among others and helped Shawna out of the sidecar. Maybe they could do some shopping today like yesterday, or just explode. "Mr. Samurai…I mean Shin, do you have a camera?"

"Of course, Your Highness," he replied.

"Good, I would like to record my visit here," said Shawna, getting into the role of mistress as Shinichi played the part as her butler.

It had rained last night so there were puddles on the ground. A car drove by and splashed water in Shawna's direction. However, the water never touched her as Shinichi quickly moved in the way and opened up and umbrella to shield her from being splashed. Shawna was stunned, '_So fast…_' But it was to be expected.

Then, wine barrels rolled out of the back of a lorry and rolled down the sidewalk. They were coming straight for Shawna. She gasped, but yet again Shinichi came to her rescue. He caught the barrels as they came at him and stacked them up with ease. Onlookers applauded and Shawna was just too stunned.

Someone even had the nerve to grab her purse and try to steal it from her. He would've escaped if Shinichi hadn't tossed an apple at the back of his head like a baseball, knocking him out cold as he fell flat on his face. Police in the vicinity rushed over and grabbed the snatch-thief, thanking Shinichi before he returned Shawna's purse to her.

Together the pair toured London and for the first time ever Shawna boarded a double-decker bus. They were like tourists as Shinichi snapped a photo of the bus before boarding.

* * *

"They don't really move, do they?" Shawna asked.

"Not to my knowledge," said Shinichi.

The two were standing in front one of one of the many red-clad guards that sported big hats who stood at the entrance of the Tower London. They were always stationary and never moved a muscle until the changing of the guard. They didn't even blink.

Shawna told him, "Take a picture." Smiling, Shinichi took a picture of Shawna with the guard.

* * *

"What a huge clock tower," admired Shawna.

"That's Big Ben," he informed her.

"Why is it called that?" Shawna asked, tilting her head curiously.

"I am not really sure. I was really bad at history."

* * *

The pair stopped at a café for some tea and lunch. Shawna smiled at her 'butler' who accompanied her and insisted of doing things like putting the napkin over her lap. Shawna thought of their outing like a date and that there were no servant-master barrier between them. He was her friend first.

* * *

Meanwhile, Yui was bored. Anthony and Chris had yet to return with the groceries, leaving her alone. She'd just finished with the laundry and mopping and really needed those groceries to make dinner since Shawna and Shinichi would be having lunch outside. "I'm bored…" she uttered, stretching along the sofa in the living room. "Maybe I should watch TV." She picked up the remote and scrolled through the channels and grimaced at the shows. "1980's television sucks. Where's the good stuff like sex and violence?" She turned off the TV. "I wish someone would have some fun with me. I'm so BORED!"

Yui eyed a Duel Monsters card, depicting her dragon, Bahamut and sighed, "Dammit, Bahamut, I'm bored out of my skull."

_"Relax, I'm sure everyone will return shortly,"_ Bahamut's voice replied from the card.

"Doubt it," Yui snorted, "Too bad I left the girls at home. I could really go for some BDSM." She blinked, "Wow that was random."

_"Perhaps it's the effects of the bullet_," Bahamut suggested.

Yui sighed, "I really wish I could get laid right about now."

"Wow, you look hot in a skirt!"

Yui turned to see Misato smirking. She smiled, "Thanks. I think I fill this dress out nicely."

Misato grabbed Yui and grinned, "So, you alone?"

Yui grins back, "Not anymore!" She then decided to prick her finger and let a drop of blood fall. Her ring glowed and the one drop expanded and morphed into a clone of Yui. "Just wait here for the groceries," Yui ordered.

The clone nodded and sat on the couch.

Misato whistled, "That's impressive."

"She'll be taking care of dinner while we're busy," Yui replied as she grabbed Misato's hand and guided her upstairs.

Bahamut was left on the table and sighed, _"Right, just leave me here to stare at the fucking ceiling. No fucking problem. I'll just stare at the ceiling while it does NOTHING!"_

* * *

Shinichi and Shawna were on the boat cruise along the River Thames, sitting next to each other. The boat shook suddenly and Shawna leaned against him for support, blushing bright red as she did. She looked up at him as he gazed down at her fondly. In their current position, they could share a quick kiss. Just the thought of it made her cheeks burn. Even with all the people inside the ferry with them, she felt it was just herself and her Mr. Samurai.

Actually, she may just call him 'Mr. Knight' because that was what he was. He was a knight.

'_Sir Shinichi Banabara of the 13 has a nice ring to it_,' thought Shawna.

And then IT happened. A huge shape rose from the surface of the River Thames, causing the people in the ferry to gasp as a wave knocked into the ferry, shaking it up. Water fell upon them like rain as Shawna gawked and gaped as Shinichi's eyes narrowed.

It was huge and humanoid with an octopus-like head and bat-like wings.

It was Cthulu.

Actually, it was not. Shinichi could see that the thing was made of metal. It was simply a gigantic android and he knew one person in charge of gigantic Beast Androids. "Gebok…" he whispered, fury evident in his tone and eyes.

The Cthulu Mecha-Kaiju let loose a deafening roar as it brought its massive arms down on the surface of the River Thames, causing waves. The boat shook from the tremor as another powerful wave hit it, nearly toppling it over.

Shawna shrieked and Shinichi held onto her protectively.

"Your Highness, your orders?" Shinichi asked.

"Mr. Samurai?" Shawna asked.

"What would you like me to do, Your Highness?" Shinichi asked. Shawna looked at the frightened passengers and made her resolve. She looked to Shinichi sternly, almost bravely, as she issued her command.

"Slay the beast," she ordered.

Shinichi smiled. "As you command, Your Highness." He then jumped overboard and dove into the water, much to the shock of the onlookers.

Suddenly, in a huge splash, something burst out of the water. The stunned passengers of the ferry gasped as Shawna smiled. It was a man clad in black and green armor with insect-like qualities that were present in his helmet which masked his face. He sported large red eyes and between the eyes was a pair of antennae.

"I am the Prince of the Sun!" the armored-man announced, "Kamen Rider BLACK…RX!" He was riding upon a robotic cicada like a hover board. It was really Showa, in the form of Kamen Rider BLACK RX.

The robotic cicada's wing beat and flew towards the Cthulu Mecha-Kaiju. The gigantic Android Beast spotted the Rider and the tentacles upon its face spread out to reveal its mouth. It unleashed a spiraling blast of water straight at Showa. Showa maneuvered out of the way, the water barely missing him. More blasts of water came at him but he managed to avoid them with the Cicada-Pack.

"Revolcane!" Showa called as he reached down to the front of his belt. A sword handle popped out of the centre of his belt and he grasped it before drawing out a sword with spinning red wheel in the guard and a glowing energy blade. Brandishing the weapon, he leapt off the Cicada-Pack and landed on the Cthulu Mecha-Kaiju's shoulder. He then started to swing his weapon, causing sparks to spray as it connected with the Mecha-Kaiju's head. The Mecha-Kaiju tried to swat him away but he ducked a massive hand before he continued his assault.

Shawna could not contain herself and started cheering, "Kamen Rider! Kamen Rider!" The passengers heard this from the princess then at the armored hero who was bravely facing the beast like a knight facing a dragon and joined in as they chanted along with her, "KAMEN RIDER! KAMEN RIDER!"

Showa's enhanced hearing picked up the cheering and he smiled but that was a mistake as he was grabbed by one of the face tentacles. He struggled to get free but the mechanical creature's grip only tightened. "Let's Ride: Roborider!" He changed and his armor became black and orange with red eyes that seemed to have tears fall from them. The Rider known as the Prince of Sorrow and the Prince of Flames then summoned his weapon, the Voltech Shooter. He took aim, gripping the gun in both hands, and fired at the creature's face. He continued to shoot the lasers at the Cthulu Mecha-Kaiju but they had no effect as the tentacle that was holding him brought him to its mouth.

Shawna was horrified as she saw the Mecha-Kaiju devour Showa right before her eyes. "NO!" she screamed. '_He's gone…he's gone…and because I…_'

And then all of a sudden the Mecha-Kaiju exploded, much to her and the rest of the passengers' surprise. Shawna's eyes, which were filled with tears, looked on in confusion and then she spotted a glowing blue blob flying towards the ferry before landing on it and taking shape before solidifying. The figure stood before Shawna, clad in blue and silver armor, and looked to her. This was RX Biorider, also known as Nature Prince and the Prince of Anger.

"Mr. Samurai…" Shawna uttered.

Showa, as Biorider, then gave her a salute before he liquefied himself and went back into the River Thames. The stunned passengers could only watch but one of them managed to get a picture of the Kamen Rider.

"I need help!" Shinichi shouted as he popped out of the River Thames. "Excuse me! I need help!"

"Throw him a life ring!" one of the passengers shouted and a life ring was tossed overboard. Shinichi grabbed onto it before he was dragged back up onto the ferry.

Shawna looked to him as he gazed back at him, a smile on his face. She couldn't help but giggle at how funny he looked while drenched to the bone.

* * *

"What an exciting day!" Shawna exclaimed as she entered the townhouse with Shinichi. It had suddenly rained just as Shinichi parked the bike outside. Luckily, he had an umbrella so they wouldn't be soaked. It was already getting dark too.

While he'd been soaked earlier due to diving into the River Thames, he managed to get himself dry by reversing time on his clothes which caused the moisture to leave his clothing, leaving him perfectly dry.

"I am pleased you think so, Your Highness," said Shinichi.

"Good, you're back," Yui welcomed them home. "Anthony and Chris finally got home and so I made you guys dinner. Come on, it's in the dining room."

"Shall we, Your Highness?" Shinichi asked as he offered his hand and Shawna took it.

The two entered the dining room and Shawna gasped. There was a small square table instead of the long dining table and in the centre was a candelabra with three lit candlesticks. The lights were dimmed. Thrown over the table was a tablecloth and chairs were set up on opposite ends of the table.

"Candlelight dinner?" Shinichi looked to Yui suspiciously.

"With music!" Yui snapped her fingers and Chris entered, playing a violin. "Like it?"

"It's wonderful," Shawna sighed.

"Now, you both take a seat and I'll have Anthony bring your dinner. There's some bread in a basket for you to nibble on. I'll bring the drinks to you soon," said Yui. He nudged them towards the romantic setting. "Come on! Come on!"

Reluctantly, Shinichi walked over to the table with Shawna. The girl looked positively radiant with happiness. To think this would be happening to her.

"For the record, I did not plan this," Shinichi informed her.

Anthony came with their dishes and placed them on the table. It was Japanese style curry rice with chunks of beef and chicken inside the spicy curry. A common dish but it looked simply delicious to Shawna and Shinichi. It also smelled great.

Anthony gave Shinichi a scowl before he excused himself. Yui returned with two crystal glasses and chilled bottle of wine, or so it seemed.

"It's sparkling grape juice," Yui clarified as he popped the bottle open before pouring the contents into the glasses.

"A toast, Mr. Samurai?" asked Shawna as she raised her glass.

Smirking, Shincihi raised his glass as well, "A toast, Your Highness."

The two clinked their glasses together before taking a sip of their 'wine'. They then started to dine. As they ate, they conversed, and after their meal Yui came with dessert which was two parfaits.

After dinner and desert, Yui whispered to Shinichi, "Ask her to dance." Shinichi sent him a glare, "Come on, you know you want to. We even have music." Yui gestured to Chris who was playing the violin.

"Your Highness, would you do me the honor of dancing?" asked Shinichi.

Shawna nearly leapt out of her seat to grab his hand. "Certainly, kind sir," she accepted. Shinichi and Shawna slowly rose from their seats and danced in the middle of the room. He had one hand at her waist and holding up her other hand while she had one hand on his shoulder. The princess leaned her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes, sighing, as they slowly danced together.

"Thank you for today, Shinichi," she said, surprising him as she actually used his name.

"You're welcome, Shawna-chan," he responded. "I just thought you would enjoy spending time with me."

"And I did," she replied, "Like I am enjoying myself now."

"Shawna…you know what I've told you about my past. You know what I am, what I was made to do, and what I'm capable of," Shinichi said, "Yet you still accept me."

"I know only the person you are right now," Shawna told him, "Not the person you were in the past. The present matters to me, not the past. I…I love you."

Shinichi frowned at her confession, "And…and I care about you too." He paused. "I'm not exactly royalty, Shawna-chan. Not even nobility. I'm just me. What you see is what you get."

"My father and I think differently," Shawna retorted, "To us nobility is more than about rank and bloodline. Nobility is something that comes from the heart. You may not be noble by blood or by rank but your actions have shown us how noble you truly are." She giggled, "I might even make you a knight."

"A knight?" Shinichi repeated.

"How does 'Sir Shinichi Banabara of the 13' sound?" Shawna asked.

"Cool."

Yui, Chris and Anthony watched the pair dance around the room.

Anthony turned to Chris and asked, "Do you think we should tell the king about this?"

"Knowing him, if we did, he'd consider this a sign that they should be wed and hold the ceremony on the spot," Chris answered. He looked at Shawna who was happier than he'd ever seen her. "Let them enjoy things at their own pace."

Yui nodded, "Agreed. After all, they're still just kids."

Grell suddenly jumped in through the open window, surprising everyone. The blade of the chainsaw roared as the red-haired and red-clad Reaper grinned at Shinichi. The Kaizo Ningen put Shawna behind him as Grell attacked and sliced Shinichi open with the chainsaw. Blood splashed out and Shawna shrieked. Grell ordered, "Now, show me the Cinematic Record!"

As soon as Grell said that, film stock sprung out of the stunned Rider's chest as Grell examined them. Through the film, he saw Shinichi's memories and everything he'd done in the past. He even found his memories as BLACK 13.

Grell frowned, "By all accounts he should not be allowed to live. However…"

Grell continued to watch and saw Shinichi fighting against the forces of GIN-SHOCKER, the Dark Hatred Society and the Darkloids in order to protect those precious to him, and even save the world.

Grell's expression softened, "But it would appear his existence benefits this world. OK, he gets to live…for now." He snapped his fingers and the film stock returned to Shinichi's body before the wound closed up. Shawna, crying in panic, knelt over Shinichi's body, "Better return to HQ." He leaned back to dodge a punch from Anthony and ducked under a kick from Chris. He chuckled, "Oh my! Aren't you boys feisty!" Grell spotted Yui approaching, "Oh, hi~"

Yui's foot suddenly rose up and nailed Grell right between the legs. Anthony and Chris flinched as Grell was put down by the move.

Grell grunted, "Why…?"

Yui grabbed him by the neck and gave the Reaper a cold glare, "Try that shit again and not even the Crimson Dragon will show you mercy. Do I...make myself clear...?" She then tossed him into a wall.

Grell recovered and stood up to explain himself, "I was just doing my job. I'm a Grim Reaper. I reap souls, and your friend's name has been on the list for a very long time." Grell opened the record book and stopped at a page, "Here it is. On February 13th 1974, Shinji Banabara died in the middle of an operation conducted by Dr. Gebok."

Shawna gasped and looked to Shinichi who was still unconscious.

Yui kept her glare in effect and pointed, "I don't give two fucks if you were doing your job or getting his fucking phone number! Next time you raise that Death Scythe of yours in front of any of my friends, you're beyond dead! DO YOU FUCKING GET ME?" Her eyes blazed with a flame that was unlike any other as she morphed into her warrior form, metallic blue scales covering her arms, legs, back and vital places as she seemed ready to tear Grell to pieces. Anthony, Chris and Shawna were shocked when they saw Yui transform. "I've lost too many friends and lovers in this fucking lifetime and I'll be damned to hell if I lose another friend because of some fucking job," she growled venomously as blood-like tears streamed down her face.

Grell gulped and nodded before he fled out through the window, shrieking. Yui sighed and resumed human form before turning towards the others. "Come on, let's take him to bed." She looked at all the blood. "And we need to get this place cleaned up too."

* * *

Hanyuu came before Warren, accompanied by Alan, in his office. She looked resolute with her arms to her side, standing straight, and eyes with a fire in them.

"So, have you made your decision?" Warren asked.

"Yes, I have, and I've asked Shiori-mama. I'm joining ARMOR," Hanyuu told the Director.

"Then welcome, Hanyuu Furude, to the ranks of ARMOR."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: This chapter has been brought to you by the letters B for badassnesss and S for sexiness. Hope you enjoyed the reading.**

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: A LOT of stuff happened here. Some Shinichi and Shawna fluff and also some action, and Grell comes for Shinichi but gives him up because his existence 'benefits' the world. What will happen next?**


	35. The Fall of X Shocker Part 8

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 8: The Missing Movie War **

Zero was flying over Okinomiya, above Shion's apartment building, when his antennae picked up some disturbing noise. They were coming from Shion's apartment and they went like this.

"Oh! Please stop! No more! No more!"

Zero recognized the voice, "That sounded like Satoshi. He's being tortured and so Shion-sama must be in danger!"

Beating his wings at full speed, Zero plunged straight towards the balcony outside Shion's apartment.

**CRASH!**

The glass of the sliding door shattered as Zero smashed through and he rolled along the floor before getting up on one knee with his arms pointing straight forward and the stingers out, "FREEZE! GET READY TO BE STUNG!"

He froze at the scene.

Shion was straddling Satoshi who was handcuffed to the bed. The blond young man was only in his boxers. Shion, on the other hand, was wearing black panties and black fishnet stockings clipped to a garter belt. She was also wearing a black bra and fishnet gloves that came up to her elbows. She also wore a domino eye mask upon her face and she was holding a whip in one hand and a lit candle in the other.

Zero gawked at them and they gawked right back.

_Awkward silence~_

Shion took off her mask and fixed the fiercest glare she had that borderline on being demonic straight at Zero. Even if he was a cyborg and could easily break her in half with one hand, he was scared out of his mind.

"Get. Out," she ordered.

Zero stood up, saluted, and then flew out of the room as fast as his buzzing wings could carry him. Shion sighed and looked to Satoshi.

"Guess that ruined the mood," sighed Shion. She blew out the candle and went to untie her boyfriend. Of course, when he was untied he grabbed her by the waist and rolled them over before kissing him fiercely. After breaking the kiss, Shion gasped, flushed.

"Do you know how hot and sexy you are when you're angry?" he asked rhetorically, before kissing her once more. Shion responded and returned the kiss, wrapping her fishnet clad arms and legs around him lovingly.

* * *

"Here are your assignments," said Warren as he put the files on the table for Battler and Alan. "They've been a series of kidnappings where young women have been going missing in Kabukicho. Also, there have been reports of children going missing all over Shishibone City. Since Shinichi and Yuji are still in London, I want you to check it out."

"So, are these for the both of us, or one each?" Battler inquired.

"Decide between yourselves," said Warren. "Just accomplish your assignments within the week."

Alan chose the case involving missing children, "I got this one."

"Well, that means I'm off to Kabukicho," said Battler. "Wish me luck."

"Good luck," Warren said to both of them. "Now go. You can even have backup if you want. There are always active agents off duty who can help out."

* * *

**-GREEN LANTERN: MISSING INNOCENCE-**

"Daddy!"

"Mau!"

Alan was nearly knocked over when two little girls, one blonde and another with green hair, tackled into him in front of the boarding house when he returned. He held them close in his arms as he smiled joyfully at them.

"Hey, how are my darling daughters?" Alan smiled. "Were you good?"

"I was good, Daddy," Alice beamed.

"Mau!" let out Celine.

"And we missed you!"

"I missed you both too," Alan told them. Whoever this guy was, he was targeting children. That was the reason Alan took this mission. Not only to find whoever was doing this and put a stop to it, but to protect his precious daughters as well.

* * *

Alan hovered above one of the crime scenes. While on Earth, having a glowing green ring would automatically cause attention, in the rest of the universe the Green Lantern Corps were considered cops first. A missing persons case was a job for a cop, not for a high level group like ARMOR. The fact that the Director of ARMOR had personally given Alan this assignment already told him there was more to this than what it appeared on the surface. Several children were being taken.

"Hm…Dad must think that whoever is taking these kids must be the same people that were after Hanyuu," said Alan. "Ring, perform a full spectrum analysis of the crime scene."

A glowing green light scanned the area. "Temporal energy and Bleed energy found in scene."

"I figured. Whoever is after these kids is using technology from a different world and time. Ring, show me profiles on all the missing children. Look for similarities and connections between the children, as well as potential Metahuman and Mutant capabilities."

"Searching files…"

"I swear, I'm gonna find whoever did this and put a stop to it."

"Hey, Alan, do you have an idea on what these kidnappers are after?" asked Bazel.

"Not yet, Bazel, but I have a hunch. It could be the same guys that went after Hanyuu."

The ring reported, "All missing children are between the ages of 6 and 11."

"Elementary school kids," murmured Alan. The kids were all under 12 and above 5. "They haven't reached puberty, I suppose."

"Correct," the ring confirmed.

"What about potential Metahuman and Mutant capabilities?" asked Alan.

"13 percent," the ring reported.

That was when Alan was caught by surprise by a figure filled with energy, tackling him from behind, with a laugh and a giggle as slender arms wrapped around him. "Alan!" Lala cried. "I found you!"

"Lala!" Alan exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I heard you had a mission and I wanted to help!" Lala chirped, beaming. "So, can I help?"

Alan sighed. Saying no to Lala was impossible so he just relented and said, "Come on, I'll fill you in."

* * *

Celine and Alice were awake and standing at the window, waiting for Alan to come back. "Girls, it's already late," Yami said to them. "It's already past your bedtime."

"I wanna wait for Daddy!" Alice insisted stubbornly.

"Mau!" Celine agreed but she yawned afterwards. Despite being tired, she still wanted to wait with Alice for Alan.

"I don't think he'll be happy to see you up past your bedtime," chided Yami. Alice frowned at her mommy.

"But Mommy…" Alice whined.

"No buts, Alice. It's time to go to sleep. You too, Celine."

* * *

Alan and Lala were flying high above Shishibone City. As much as he loved being near her, Alan didn't like Lala going on patrol with him. This was because he was afraid of her getting hurt. He loved her so much that he didn't know what he would do if something happened to her. That wasn't true. He knew exactly what he would do and it scared him. It painted a not so pretty picture in his mind

"Alan!" whined Lala as she collided with the young Green Lantern. She gripped onto him tightly. Alan and Lala landed on a nearby roof.

"Are you OK, Lala?" asked Alan, his arms on her shoulders.

"I'm fine! I just wanted an excuse to hug you!" giggled Lala. Alan let out a sigh. Lala had a really childish personality. It was one of the things he loved about her. Lala being around gave Alan the second chance he had been searching for.

"So, what are we looking for?" asked the Devilukian princess.

"Oh, the usual. We see a crime, we stop it, and then restrain the criminals before delivering them to the police," Alan explained. It was a cover. He didn't want her to know the true magnitude of the mission he was on. Lala sneezed. "Are you okay?"

"It's a bit chilly tonight," she said. "Alan, wanna grab some coffee?"

The two got coffee from a nearby vending machine. As the two leaned against the machine, enjoying the hot beverage, Alan spoke up, "Lala, why do you even put up with me?" It was meant to be a whisper but she caught the words he spoke.

"It's because I love you, Alan!" she confessed, beaming.

The Green Lantern sighed. Bazel spoke, "She's right, boy. She loves you, though personally I think she's too good for the likes of you." Alan glared at the sentient armband. "What?"

"Lala-sama has chosen Alan-sama as her fiancé," said Peke. "If that is her wish we should not judge."

"Now that I agree with," said Alan. He felt it drizzling over them. "Looks like it's gonna…"

In a blink of an eye it became a heavy shower. Lala shrieked before Alan encased them in a green dome with his ring to shield them from the rain.

"We better find shelter, Lala," said Alan.

"Oh, there's a hotel over there!" Lala pointed. Alan looked and gaped.

It was a love hotel. He grimaced. If Shinichi ever found out he was never going to hear the end of it. It might end up becoming a scenario in one of Shiori's books. Still, Lala was tugging on his arm.

When they entered, the hotel receptionist gave them an up and down look due to their strange costumes. Muttering about, "Horny Cosplayers," she handed them a key to a room. Lala took the keys, bowed her thanks, and bounced towards their room for the night, with Alan's hand still in her grip.

* * *

Alan was exhausted when he had to wake up to go to school the next day. He would've called in sick but he needed to show up because he was the class president. His classmates were all planning on what events they would take part in during the upcoming sports festival and as class president he had to write a report for their homeroom teacher on the students of his class and the events they would be participating in. He yawned the whole day, barely able to stay awake.

He went to the restroom to splash his face with cold water. As he exited, he spotted Megan. "Hey," he greeted.

"Any reason why you're so tired?" asked Megan.

"Oh, just class president stuff," he lied. Megan didn't look convinced.

"You got bags under your eyes like you haven't slept all night," she pointed.

"I'm (yawn) used to it," he replied.

"Girls keep you up at night?" Megan teased.

"It was just one girl," mumbled Alan, "And there was other stuff too."

"Well, take care of yourself. I don't think it would look too good if our class president suddenly keels over and passes out due to exhaustion."

"I'm used to it," he repeated his previous statement.

* * *

After school ended, Alan's girlfriends all went home. He, however, had things to do with the student council. Of course, during the meeting, he had to excuse himself when he felt something was wrong. He returned home and…

"ALAN!" Bishie cried as she wrapped her arms around him.

"What happened?" Alan asked. Bishie was sobbing while Yami didn't show any emotion at all. However, her posture showed that she was upset at well.

"It happened so fast!" cried Bishie. "We took Alice and Celine to the playground and then an ice cream truck came. We went to get some ice cream. It was only for a second but then Alice and Celine were gone!" She continued, "We spotted a van that was driving fast from the scene and so Yami went after it."

Yami continued, "I was ready to stop it but then they used some kind of smokescreen that blinded me. By the time I recovered, they were long gone." Her fists were clenched and shaking.

Alan scowled. '_So, they decided to take them after all. Well, these bastards are about to learn what happens when you mess with a Lantern and a father._'

* * *

Alan was clad in his Green Lantern uniform. He floated above the park where his daughters had been taken. He was scanning the entire park with his ring, as well as the surrounding roads, trying to find a hint of the vehicle that took his girls. Bishie and Yami were there as well. Bishie was using her connection to the Earth to try and find something, while Yami took to the sky, hoping tot spot something. He suddenly spotted a pair of tire tracks that turned off the main road and down an alley way. Alan gritted his teeth. "Found you…"

* * *

In the basement of the hospital, Dr. Onikuma giggled. Nobody ever came down here, except for him, which allowed him the freedom to conduct his research. It was because of this research that he had become rich. He was the one who discovered the process of creating prosthetics using bone china made by mixing bone dust and ceramics. Of course, getting the necessary material wasn't cheap. Therefore, he decided to look for a cheap resource: children.

They were easy to find and so young and naive. All he had to do was tempt them with something and they were all his. The first time had been difficult but it got easier each time.

He kept the children in cages and kept them sedated so that they would not struggle as he killed them and surgically removed their bones. Then he would take the remains and toss them away along with the medical waste.

"I am so brilliant," he chuckled as he prepared to make more bone china for his prosthetics.

In one of the cages, tied up, were Celine and Alice. He examined them and discovered they were not normal human. The blonde was an android while the girl with the flower on her head was…she didn't know what she was. However, they were useless to him. However, he had another use for them. The people funding his research also paid well for children with extraordinary and unusual potential. These little girls fit the criteria.

Ignoring them for now, he opened a cage and took out a little girl he had injected with a sedative so that she would not struggle. "It will all be over soon," he said soothingly as he placed her on the operating table. He picked up the scalpel and prepared to make the first incision.

The wall exploded with a burst of emerald energy. Alan stood there, his eyes narrowed and glowing with energy. Standing behind them were Bishie and Yami, and they did not look pleased. "I'll say this once and only once," began Alan. "Give me back my girls and release he children, and I'll make sure your death comes quickly.

"I WON'T LET YOU TAKE THEM!" the doctor shouted as he produced a Gaia Memory and pressed it against the base of his neck.

"**BONE!"**

Alan watched as the doctor transformed himself into a living skeleton. The Bone Dopant chuckled as he advanced on Alan. A blast from Alan's ring caused his body to break apart but then the bones came back together. "**You can't harm me, boy,**" the Bone Dopant boasted. "**You can strike me as many times as you want but I will always be able to pull myself back together.**"

"Good," Alan said as he cracked his knuckles, "That means I can just keep beating the shit out of you. NO ONE MESSES WITH MY LITTLE GIRLS!" A burst of golden energy exploded from Alan's fist, blasting the Dopant out of the basement. "Bishie, Yami…take the kids to a safe place. I'll take care of him."

Bishie and Yami cut the bars of the cages and broke the children out before carrying them to safety. Yami was using her hair to carry them as Bishie used her vines while they also escaped with Celine and Alice. Alan then flew after the Dopant.

After being sent above ground, and in pieces, the Bone Dopant started to pull himself together just as Alan appeared. Now, he was in his Bazel Combat armor with fists glowing with bright green energy and his eyes flared with green flames.

Throwing his arms forward, the Bone Dopant unleashed spears of bone at the Green Lantern who opposed him. Alan rolled his eyes and slammed his fist against the ground. Not only did it cause the ground to shake but a domed barrier erected itself around him, protecting him from the spears that bounced off. He then unleashed a barrage of blasts at the Bone Dopant. However, the bastard would keep pulling himself back together and laugh at Alan's attempt to harm him.

"He can't harm us, but we can't harm him," Bazel summed up.

"Then we just do this the old fashion way," said Alan as he generated massive fists of green energy. With a furious roar he punches the Bone Dopant so hard he shattered to pieces. However, like before, the Dopant simply reformed himself. Alan, of course, did not care, as he tried to repeatedly pulverize the Dopant with his massive green fists. The impacts caused tremors and the ground to crack. Craters were also caused by his fists but even so the Bone Dopant continued to taunt him with his ability to reform himself.

"This is getting us nowhere," said Bazel and Alan agreed. They smash the guy to a million pieces and he would still come back together like nothing happened. Physically, the Dopant was weak and did not have the power to beat Alan, but he could still survive whatever Alan dished out and it was getting on the Green Lantern's nerve.

Alan ordered, "Ring, scan for weaknesses."

The ring scanned the Bone Dopant and then reported, "Item known as Gaia Memory is inside the skull area."

Alan now had an idea on how to stop this mad doctor. It was a piece of cake now. He unleashed a blast at the Bone Dopant's centre, blowing all of its pieces apart. Just as the pieces were coming back together, Alan targeted the skull and kicked it like a soccer ball, causing it to go flying with the Bone Dopant's pieces following.

As the Dopant reformed himself once more, he froze as a green line of light pointed at his skull before expanding into a cone. It had immobilized him. He heard a shout and his eyes saw Alan coming down at him with a flying side kick. The kick connected with the cone, causing it to spin like a drill that bore itself through his body. When it did, Alan's foot finally connected with the Bone Dopant. The force of the kick was literally explosive as the Dopant screamed and erupted into a fireball with Alan watching. As the flames died down, the mad doctor was lying on the ground, groaning in pain.

Alan then grabbed the doctor by the front of his coat and demanded, "Who are you working for? Who put you up to this? TELL ME!"

"H-h-he j-j-just g-g-gave me the l-l-list of t-targets!" the doctor stammered.

"WHO!" Alan roared

"I don't know who he is! He just gave me what I needed to further my research and development of prosthetics!"

Alan said, coldly, "I'm placing you under arrest."

**WHAM!**

Alan's fist slammed into the man's jaw and knocked him out cold instantly.

"Was that really necessary?" Bazel asked. Alan didn't answer. "Guess it was."

Alan then went and picked up the Gaia Memory and examined it. The Bone Memory glowed before vanishing from his hand in the blink of an eye. "Where did it go!" He ordered, "Ring, can you track where it went?"

"Affirmative. Beginning energy scan now."

* * *

**-KAMEN RIDER X3: ETERNAL BEAUTY-**

Battler was in Kabukicho with both Hana and Michiru. He'd asked them to help him out on this case since Warren pretty much told him he was free to ask for assistance. He went and asked the two girls of the NEO-NUMBERS team to help him out when he spotted them. Shinichi had told him that he was one of them and so he would need to familiarize himself with his colleagues. Plus, he couldn't help but find them attractive when they were dressed in their nursing uniforms.

"I'm glad you agreed to help," said Battler. He was dressed in a white buttoned down shirt with blue jeans and black shoes.

"We're glad to help, handsome," Michiru grinned. She was dressed in a tight black sweater and a denim miniskirt with pink and black striped stockings and black combat boots. "Weren't we, Hana-chan?"

Hana was dressed in a black tank top with a tight fishnet shirt pulled over it. She also wore a black leather collar around her neck with a spider pendant hanging from it and spider earrings. She wore black shorts with fishnet stockings and finally she wore black boots with high heels. She only gave a nod.

Battler smiled back at Michiru but was a bit unnerved by Hana. She was quiet, and dark. In fact her nursing uniform had been black and he was sure it wasn't a standard color for nurses, unless they worked in the morgue. Still, Michiru wouldn't go anywhere without him so Battler had to bring the Tarantula Cyborg along.

Battler didn't know them all that well, except when Shinichi had introduced him to the NEO-NUMBERS. They made a pretty lasting first impression. He knew Shogo acted like a soldier that was always on duty, Chiaki was the strong and silent one, Daichi was the angry musician, Michiru was the cheerful one who loved banana, Hana was the emo-goth one and Yokoshima was the one who he was told had brain damage from having so many concussions. He actually saw him with a cute blonde girl that was all over him one time and saw Shogo and Daichi in the company of a raven-haired girl and a green-haired girl at the King's Terminal.

Still, he was new and they were his sempai. Therefore, he would need their guidance. Still, it surprised him that they had been doing this much longer than he had and they were all the same age.

He was finishing up his last year of high school again. He had been kidnapped last October and so he had to pick up where he left off and had a lot of catching up to do. His family was supportive of him and didn't question him about his whereabouts since they felt he'd been traumatized enough and need not be reminded of his horrible ordeal. Of course, Battler had been sedated the entire time while being kept captive by Gebok so he didn't remember anything at all. Without realizing it a whole year had gone by.

He'd found out that his Aunt Rose had died a while ago and that Maria was being cared for by someone she'd been seeing. Rose had been murdered and the identity of the killer had yet to be discovered. Battler was going to find out, though. He was going to find the killer using ARMOR's resources. Rosa was his aunt, his family, and now he had the power to protect his family.

Of course, he was really surprised when he found out who was taking care of Maria.

* * *

_Battler was looking around the King's Terminal when he saw someone very familiar. However, it should not be possible. There was no way it could've been…_

"_Maria-chan?" Battler asked._

_Maria, hearing her name, looked ahead and saw her cousin Battler. "Battler-niichan!" She let go of the hand she was holding and rushed over to hug him around the waist. "UU~"_

_Battler looked at her questioningly, "Maria-chan? What are you doing here?" He then saw Yuji walking up to them, "Yuji, she's with you?"_

_Yuji nodded, "Yeah." He palmed his head, "Oh shit, I forgot that Maria mentioned having a redheaded cousin. Well, ain't it a small Multiverse or what?"_

_Battler frowned in thought, "I heard she was being looked after by someone Aunt Rosa was seeing..." His eyes widened, "YOU!"_

_Yuji looked away to hide his sad look, "Yeah...Rosa was...a good woman."_

_Battler paused as he tried to ask, "This may sound rude, but wasn't she a bit too...mature for you?"_

_Yuji laughs as he held his gut, "I'm older than I look dude. I look like I'm 23, but I'm actually 33."_

_Battler whistled, "No shit?"_

_Yuji explained, "We Manakytes age slowly when we reach close to our mid-twenties. We're also immune to disease, magic, and time."_

* * *

Kinzo, his grandfather, was still head of the clan but in his old age and failing health he would soon drop dead. He'd named his heir in his will and that was something his parents and relatives were fighting over. It was said his grandfather had a fortune in gold and that his heir would inherit it. Things like that were pointless for Battler, to be honest. He could actually support his family since he was working for ARMOR. The monthly paycheck was actually enough to settle the court case his father had in America. Battler didn't know the details but he knew his dad needed the money and so he would find a way to get the money to his dad without revealing the source.

"OK, so according to this file all the girls that have gone missing work at hostess clubs in Kabukicho," explained Battler. He whistled. The girls in the photos were extremely attractive.

"If I was a kidnapper I'd definitely kidnap them," said Michiru. Hana gave her a look. "What? It's true! I'd have my way with them if I was a lowlife kidnapper-rapist. I'd even use bananas."

"Too much information," Hana mumbled, blushing. Battler was blushing too.

Michiru was also very open with her sexuality. She wasn't a slut, just more sexually liberal. She was bisexual and found girls and guys equally attractive but her main partner was her best-girlfriend Hana.

"Speaking of too much information, all these girls work at different Hostess Clubs," Battler said as he looked at their information. Putting the file away, he decided, "We better split up and cover more ground. We can even question the girls that work there if they've seen anything."

"A good idea," agreed Hana. "Michiru, are you okay on your own?"

Michiru put a fist to her chest confidently, "Of course! Just give me some bananas and I'm all set!"

"Let's just go, Michiru," said Hana. She put her hands and feet on a wall and started climbing up like a spider. As for Michiru, she leapt away and started jumping from rooftop-to-rooftop.

Battler knew what they could do. Like him they were cyborgs. He could probably do the same things they could. Considering what Gebok had planned for him he was meant to counter the NEO-NUMBERS with his own powers.

"Well, it's time to work," said Battler as he headed towards the closest Hostess Club. It was the usual thing. There were comfortable couches set against the wall with tables for drinks. Beautiful women, for a fee, would entertain guests. There was also a dance floor with a disco mirror ball up on the ceiling that made the light dance around. Aside from that the place was pretty dark but due to his optical enhancements Battler could see in the dark.

"Hello, handsome," one hostess approached him. She was pretty and in a little black dress. "How about you buy me a drink?"

Battler imagined how Beato would react if he accepted and shuddered, "Um…maybe later?" he asked.

"OK," the girl in the red dress smiled before welcoming another guests. Battler looked around and his eyes ended up stuck on one person in particular.

It was his dad and he had his arm around two girls, laughing as he told them funny stories or boasted about himself. He spotted the bottle of hard liquor on the table and the empty glasses. His dad was tipsy. He just hoped the old man didn't recognize him.

He just never expected to see his dad in a place like this. He wondered if Kyrie, his mom, knew. If he thought Beato was scary than his mom was scarier. A lot of people commented on his and Ange's hair color not matching their parents' but Battler said he got it from his dad's side of the family. Though his dad's hair was dark brown and not red, it could've been a distant relative. Maybe his grandfather had red hair at one point in his life. Who could say?

He spotted the girl from earlier at the bar and approached her, "So, how about that drink?"

She put on a dazzling smile, "OK, but you're paying."

"Naturally," he smiled back. "But, can you tell me about these girls?" Battler put a set of photo's on the bar counter. Even if the lights were dim they were still clear.

"Are you a cop?" the girl accused, her voice hushed, "Because I'm not a hooker."

"I'm not, and I never said you were," he replied. "Are you?"

"No, I'm not, but some of the girls are known to do 'a little extra' for some extra cash if you know what I mean," the girl told him.

Battler understood the term. "What's your name?"

"It's Mitsuki," she replied.

"OK, Mitsuki. I'm Battler. Anyway, I'm not a cop, just a concerned citizen."

"So, you're like some kind of PI?"

"You might say that," he shrugged. "So…about these girls…"

"Well, two weeks ago they were all over this guy. He didn't look like he belonged. He wore a long coat, a top hat and had a feather in his hat. He also had this freaky clown puppet on his shoulder that was dressed like him. Of course they overlooked it since he had tons of cash to burn."

He committed the description to memory.

"He's been seen a lot here before that, chatting up different girls," Mitsuki continued. "I always got the heebie-jeebies around him. There was something not right about him."

"I'm sure," Battler agreed.

"And then the girls didn't show up for work one night," said Mitsuki. "At the same time and they didn't even call in sick. Then they turn up missing like those other hostesses in the area. I could barely get myself out of my house to come to work but I got to think of my little brother."

"Little brother?" Battler asked.

"Our parents were…well they weren't what you'd call ideal. My dad was an alcoholic and my mom had a gambling problem. I think she even whored herself out for more cash so she could blow it off at a gambling den. When I was old enough I took my little brother, who was a baby, away. Last I heard of them they died. I think one of them killed the other and the one them committed suicide. Not really sure, and I don't really care. My little brother is my only family," Mitsuki explained. "He's only 8, by the way."

Battler looked sympathetic. So, she was doing this to support her brother. She may have been lying but she seemed so genuine. Still, even if it'd help a little, he should give her something for the information. He slapped several bills on the counter and Mitsuki gasped. He'd given her 50,000 yen alone!

"Thanks for the info," said Battler, "You earned it."

"Thank you!" smiled Mitsuki as she took the huge tip from Battler.

* * *

Battler met Michiru and Hana back at where their bikes were parked. Battler actually had his own bike. It was a Suzuki Katana. After he joined ARMOR it'd been modified for maximum horsepower and both offensive and defensive capabilities.

They all compared notes and one thing was common. At each of the Hostess Clubs where hostesses went missing, a man in a coat and top hat would chat up with the girls before they all went missing. They didn't know who this man was and it could be just a coincidence, but in this business there was no such thing as coincidences.

"Well, we know what he looks like but we won't know where he'll strike next," said Battler.

"There's only one thing to do," said Hana, crossing her arms. "We set up bait."

"Where are we going to get bait?" asked Michiru. Hana gave her a look and Michiru realized what her plan was. "Oh, you mean us." Hana nodded.

"Are you girls up for something like this?" asked Battler.

"We've been doing this longer than you, Ushiromiya. We're your sempai. We wouldn't be doing this without knowing the risks. We'll be fine," informed Hana in her usual monotone.

"So, Hana-chan and I will find work at a Hostess Club and wait!" Michiru added. "You can even come and watch to make sure we don't get into too much trouble!"

Battler looked at the two girls and nodded. "OK, let's do this."

* * *

"This is one of the most popular ones in Kabukicho," said Hana. It was a Hostess Club that specialized in having their girls dress in Chinese Cheongsam but with short miniskirts instead of the traditional long skirt with high slits. Battler saw the girls and grinned but Hana stomped on his foot. "Don't get any ideas. We're here for work. Be professional."

"Right," nodded Battler. "I'll go get a drink."

"We'll find the manager!" said Michiru. "We even brought resumes and photos." They were of them in swimsuits. Shinichi had taken them. Michiru took Hana by the wrist and dragged her along to see the manager to get jobs here.

* * *

Battler whistled as he saw the two girls. Michiru was in a white, mini-skirted, Cheongsam with cherry blossom petals on it while Hana was in a dark violet one with a spider-web pattern in the front. Hana's hair remained the same as Michiru had hers done in an Ox-horn style.

"How do we look?" Michiru and Hana posed for Battler.

"So, you got the job?" Battler asked.

"No, we're just dressing up for Halloween," responded Hana sarcastically.

"OK, so now we wait," said Battler. "This is going to take several nights, isn't it?'

"It's always a waiting game when it comes to undercover missions and stakeouts. Patience is the keyword here," said Hana.

"And look, Michiru is already bringing in customers with her banana trick," Battler pointed out. Michiru had peeled a banana and was licking and sucking on it erotically. "Woah, she can really work that banana."

"That's how she gets men to do anything for her," said Hana, "Before she killed them back when we worked for GIN-SHOCKER. I was more of the stealth-type assassin. Michiru was the seductress. Men can't resist her and when they get trapped they're dead."

"Must've been rough in GIN-SHOCKER," Battler spoke.

"You have no idea. Compared to us, you're lucky," said Hana. "You didn't spend years in that hell hole and you still have your family. Except for Shinichi, we've all lost our families."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll keep Michiru company." She advised, "Be cool and casual."

"Gotcha," agreed Battler. He then ordered a drink and watched, his eyes wandering around. This place had some really pretty girls and a few had offered to keep him company. He declined politely (and out of fear of what Beato would do if she ever found out he was in a place like this) and just sat at the bar. He watched Hana and Michiru do their thing and he was impressed.

The communicator earpiece he wore buzzed and he pressed his finger against it. "_Target sighted_," Hana's voice reported. Battler responded, "OK, I got my eyes peeled for him right now."

Battler caught sight of the man. He wore a blue overcoat that was buttoned down and a top hat with a feather in it. He also noted that he wore a rose in his coat's front pocket. As soon as he came in, several girls welcomed in and hooked their arms around his as they led them to a seat.

Michiru and Hana spotted him while they were entertaining a customer who had his hands around their waists. He pawed at Michiru's ass and made her gasp. Hana was ready to kill the guy for touching her best friend like that but Michiru used her eyes to tell Hana not to do anything violent and rash and to let it happen. These places were regulated so that customers wouldn't do anything beyond what they were allowed to do. Some groping and touching was allowed, but definitely no sex unless the girls themselves went home with the customers to make some extra money of their own. It didn't involve the club in anyway. The girls were just earning some extra money on the side with their bodies.

The man brought a round of drinks, expensive ones, for the ladies keeping him company. While he looked charming enough, there was something about him that was off. Hana noticed that his eyes looked dead. There was also that creepy puppet of his. He was using it to entertain the girls. He put it on the table and then without even touching the thing he made it dance, causing applause to erupt because of the 'magic trick'.

Hana focused her sharp eyes. There were no strings so the puppet could just be a robot.

Michiru and Hana's customer was drunk and asleep and so they moved away from him. They then joined Battler at the bar.

Battler had also been watching the guy. He told them, "He's been drinking, a lot, and hasn't gone tipsy yet."

"His eyes look dead," Hana added.

"And that puppet is really creepy," Michiru put in her own two cents.

"So, he's a creepy puppeteer who kidnaps girls," Battler concluded.

"He's just a suspect," Hana told him. "We gotta follow him when he leaves. According to my sources he leaves at closing time at all the clubs. It's like he never sleeps."

"It's part of the job," said Michiru, "You'll get used to it, Battler-kun."

So, for the next few hours the three continued to watch their target. Battler realized that being a cyborg had its perks since he didn't feel exhausted and that his alcohol tolerance had increased. Michiru and Carmen had told him that alcohol tolerance was different for each of them but Gebok made sure that his creations would not become intoxicated no matter how much they drank.

Battler's interaction with Dr. Gebok, from his point of view, was essentially non-existent. Gebok pretty much kept him asleep while he reconstructed his body. Shinichi, on the other hand, had the most experience with the mad scientist and loathed him for it. Shinichi had over ten years of repressed rage he wanted to unleash on Gebok.

As his earpiece buzzed and he heard Hana reporting, "He's on the move," Battler paid for his drinks and got up to follow him. Michiru and Hana had also gotten back into their street clothes and exited out the back to join up with Battler.

For this mission, stealth was the key. They took to the rooftops and continued to shadow their target as he walked along the sidewalk. He ignored the street hookers who offered their services. He didn't even bat an eye at them. He just went on his way.

The three ARMOR Kaizo Ningen still continued to follow the man. He was a suspicious one and might be their only lead. They then saw him stop in front of a shop and he unlocked the front door before entering. Battler, Hana and Michiru nodded to each other before they jumped and landed on ground level before heading for the shop. The curtains had been drawn over window, blocking the view.

"We're breaking in, aren't we?" Battler asked.

"Yes, we are," Hana confirmed. She examined the keyhole and then lengthened one of her nails before sticking it in. She moved her extended nail around before she heard a click. "It's unlocked. Let's go." She slowly pushed the door open and they all entered before gently closing the door behind them.

"What is this place?" Battler whispered as he took out a flashlight and turned it on. He nearly screamed as he saw a clown staring right at him but Hana and Michiru covered his mouth as his scream was muffled.

"Relax," Hana whispered. "And turn off that flashlight. We have our own night vision." They removed their hands from his mouth.

"Sorry," he apologized. He forgot that they had enhanced eyesight and so he focused and now could see in the dark.

"Kawaii…" cooed Michiru. There were so many dolls. They were either little girls or clowns.

"Creepy," Battler grimaced. The dolls were staring right at them, especially the clowns.

Hana looked around. The man seemingly vanished. She spotted a door in the back of the shop and turned the doorknob. She waved Battler and Michiru over and then opened the door.

Again there was nothing. Except for some unfinished dolls the backroom which was the workshop had nothing.

"Where did he go?" Battler asked.

Hana started stomping on the floor and when she stomped on part of it, it sounded hollow. "Over here," she called.

"Found something, Hana-chan?" Michiru asked.

Hana knelt down and dug her nails into one of the gaps in the wooden floorboard and pulled. Like a trap door on hinges, part of the floor was lifted up to reveal a set of stairs.

"Wow, a trapdoor," Battler stated.

"Come on, let's go," Hana said as she led their team down the steps. It started to get darker and darker as they descended and then they ended up in absolute darkness.

"I can't see," said Battler.

"Our night vision doesn't work well in absolute darkness," Hana explained. Their night vision functioned by isolating light particles and then enhancing them in order to provide clear vision in darkness. Absolute darkness lacked any light particles.

"Then it's a good thing I have a flashlight," said Battler as he turned it on.

Michiru screamed, Battler gasped and Hana's eyes widened.

They were surrounded by statues that looked like naked women. However, they recognized them as the women that had gone missing. Battler put his finger on the cheek of one of the statues.

"Wax," he stated, feeling it on his fingertip. The statue then tipped over and Battler yelped as he tried to catch it but it crashed onto the floor, chips of wax breaking off on impact. "Crap," he cursed.

"Wait," said Hana as she inspected the wax statue. The part that was cracked had pieces of wax broken off and there was something underneath. It was pale and Hana touched it. It was human skin. "I think we just found the missing women," she concluded.

Michiru was horrified as was Battler. These statues weren't statues at all but women covered in wax! Dead women!

"So, you've found my collection," they heard and they all turned towards the source which was the entrance to this horrifying hall of wax. It was the man from before and he was holding a lantern in his hand. He added, "Looks like I would have to add you all to my collection then."

"Like hell you will, you sick bastard!" shouted Battler as he punched the man so hard in the face that his head was literally knocked off his shoulders. The head hit the wall and rolled along the floor before stopping at Michiru's feet. She jumped in fright. The body, without a head, collapsed.

Hana picked up the head. "He's a puppet," she stated.

"So, a puppet tried to make a collection of wax women," said Battler.

Of course, they heard the man's voice again and it came from everywhere, "_Women are beautiful creatures, but as time passes that beauty fades. That it was I helped these women retain their youth. Even after their souls have left their bodies behind, they will be forever beautiful. Forever preserved_."

The three of them stood back to back. Where was the voice coming from?

"_You two lovely ladies, I saw you at that Chinese Hostess Club. You are quite lovely yourself. Maybe I should have you for myself as well._"

Michiru and Hana felt their bodies stiffen and mechanically move away from Battler. He blinked, "Girls, what are you doing?"

"My body is moving by itself!" Michiru cried and then she threw her fist at Battler, knocking him back painfully. "Sorry!"

Battler rubbed his cheek and then rolled away as a kick nearly crushed his skull against the wall. It was from Hana. "It isn't me," she told him. "Something is controlling us."

"_Dolls, puppets and statues have one thing in common. They will never, ever age_," the voice went on.

Battler dodged the girls' attacks again, trying to figure out what was going on. Then he recalled what the voice said. "Puppets…like puppet strings!" He focused his eyes on the girls. There was something shining in the air. "Got it!" He activated his retractable blade and charged at the girls.

"Battler-kun, what are you doing?" Michiru shrieked.

"Just trust me!" he shouted.

**SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!**

After several swings, the girls stopped their assault on Battler. "Hey, I can move again," said Michiru. She then felt something tied around her wrist. "What's this?" She touched it. "String?"

"Puppet string," muttered Hana. "Someone was controlling us like puppets on string."

"But who?" Battler asked.

"Guys, where is that guy's puppet?" asked Michiru. They looked and saw that the man's clown puppet had gone missing.

"_You just had to ruin everything, didn't you?_" the voice asked but this time it was closer and coming from below. The three agents looked down and saw the clown doll glaring at them.

"You?" Battler blinked.

"_I am Puppet Clown!_" the puppet declared, "_And you are all finished here!_"

Battler snorted in amusement and lifted up his shoe, "Oh, really?" He then brought it down on the puppet, silencing it as he crushed it under his foot.

"Come on, we better contact the police," said Hana. She was sympathetic of these girls here. They had their lives stripped away by a selfish monster. Michiru wrapped her arms around her. "Michiru?"

"You looked like you needed a hug," said Michiru, smiling. Hana returned the smile with one of her own, a small one.

"Let's go," said Battler. "This place creeps me out."

The three of them then left the 'wax museum' and went up the stairs. Of course, they really shouldn't have left it like that. The man's body and head still remained. After they were gone, the man's body got up and stood on his feet before it walked over and bent down to pick up its head. The body then put the head on its neck and screwed the head back on with a click.

The man then picked up the remains of his clown puppet and sighed. "They really don't appreciate beauty, do they? Oh well."

As the three agents exited the store and discussed further plans for the night, the entire shop exploded right behind them and blew them away. Stunned, they stared at the burning show in shock.

"What the hell!" shouted Battler.

"Oh, what a shame, what a shame…"

"That voice…" Hana spoke. "I know that voice."

"Look!" Michiru pointed and there he was standing in front of a billboard at the top of a building. It was none other than Jin Majutsushi.

"#06!" identified Hana.

Jin jumped off the edge of the building and hovered down before landing before them. He greeted, "It's been awhile, hasn't it, #07 and #11?"

The NEO-NUMBERS had been told by Shinichi that the other NUMBERS had been revived as demonic Furniture like the Seven Stakes of Purgatory. They were now called the Soldats de la Terreur and served the Witch of Terror. They were no longer Kaizo Ningen but demons and instead of armor they could now transform into demonic forms based on the animals their old armor had been modeled after.

Jin looked at the burning doll shop with mock disappointment, "What a shame. They had really nice dolls."

"Did you have something to do with this?" Hana asked accusingly.

Battler asked Michiru, "Who's he?"

"One of our old teammates," Michiru answered, her demeanor cold as she got ready to counter any hostile moves from Jin.

"Did I blow up the shop? No," Jin answered. "But I did make that puppet and told him to gather and preserve beautiful things."

"So you are the one behind the kidnappings!" accused Battler.

Jin made clicking sounds as he shook his finger and head, "Oh, I had nothing to do with those. I just had that puppet gather and preserve beautiful things. It made its own conclusion and decided to kidnap all those women. I guess I made it smart, but not too smart. It didn't know when to stop." He shrugged, "Oh well." He didn't seem to care that so many women had died because of his order.

"You never did care about anyone but yourself," said Hana.

"Of course not. I am my own greatest treasure," said Jin. "But there are so many treasures! I want it all! I want gold, jewels, money, women, power, fine food and fine wine! More and more!" He was a greedy one, a really greedy one. "And I will not stop even when I have enough!"

"It's never enough," Hana countered, "It never is for you."

"True," said Jin, "But right now I am about to get some power." He opened his palm and showed it to Hana, Michiru and Battler. "See this? It's called a Gaia Memory, and it's all mine."

"Gaia Memory?" Battler asked.

"Don't let him activate it!" Hana panicked.

Jin opened his left palm where his VI tattoo was. He then pressed the plug of the Bone Memory inside it and allowed it to be absorbed into his demonic body.

Jin then started to howl as his entire body, starting from his left hand, became covered in crystal as the crystal crept over his body as it spiked and expanded. The crystal enveloped his body and expanded, growing larger and larger as it took shape. The crystal started to glow with an iridescent hue before it started to change shape. The gigantic chunk on crystal then morphed into a skeletal looking jewel beetle. Spikes jutted out from the massive crystal monster's back. A round green stone was lodged in its thorax and its rainbow-colored eyes glared down at the three Kaizo Ningen before it roared. The surface under its legs started to become covered in crystal which started to creep along the street and up the buildings, covering them in crystal. As the monster took a step forward, the crystal also spread with it.

"This…is not good," stated Battler.

"Understatement of the year," said Hana.

* * *

**-KAMEN RIDER META X GREEN LANTERN SMITH: CLIMAX-**

Arachnea Venom and Carmen Mirage slashed at the Big Jewel Beetle Demon. Sparks flew as their blades connected but no damage was dealt on the creature. It roared and fired a blast of energy from his mouth.

"Watch out!" Carmen cried as they both jumped back to dodge and crystal spikes formed where the beam hit.

Meta, Battler's Kamen Rider form, also attacked. He shot at it with his artillery and even activated his flamethrower. However, nothing seemed to work as the massive monster's body seemed invulnerable to physical attacks. "Damn it!" he cursed.

Roaring, the Big Jewel Beetle Demon fired the spikes on its back upwards and they shattered before a rain of crystal spikes came down on the three Kaizo Ningen like darts. They barely avoided being hit as sparks splashed off from their armor from the ones that did hit.

As the Big Jewel Beetle Demon moved, each step it took caused crystal to form at its feet. The crystal was also spreading out, engulfing anything within its range.

"If we don't stop this thing now, Kabukicho is gonna be a crystal wasteland," Arachnea said.

"And as pretty as that would seem in my head, that wouldn't be good," added Carmen.

"I'm gonna try something," said Meta. "Here I go!" He activated his speed unit and dashed at lightning speed towards the Big Jewel Beetle Demon. He ran up one of its legs and got on its back. It then saw the glowing green jewel. "Maybe that's its weakness," he concluded. He stood over it and with his enhanced strength bashed it as hard as he could. The Big Jewel Beetle Demon screeched and tried to shake Battler off. "Alright, it's working!" grinned Meta. He was about to do it again when Jin's image appeared in the jewel. "Huh?" Meta blinked.

"Moron," said Jin and the jewel glowed brightly.

"This doesn't seem-" Meta was cut off as he was hit at point blank by an emerald blast and flung off the monster's back. He landed in a web that Arachnea had made to act as a safety net before he hit the ground. "That didn't work," said Meta. "And I thought it would."

"My acid doesn't even have any effect on it either," Arachnea added as she stood on the web. "I think we need to call backup."

"Then call for backup!" insisted Meta. "This thing can't be allowed to go any further!"

"Guys, it's doing something," Carmen reported through her radio as the Big Jewel Beetle Demon was glowing with a rainbow hue. It then fired a rainbow colored beam skyward that created a sort of aurora. "Wow…pretty…"

"What is that?" Meta asked.

"I don't know, but it's covering the sky," said Arachnea. "What is it…?" She then received a call through her radio, "Hello, this is Agent Arachnea. What is it?"

"_I've been observing you_," Dr. Hasuma answered, "_And we've analyzed the aurora._"

"It's not good, is it?" Arachnea asked.

"_Well, anyone who sees it has suddenly gone violent and mad and started attacking each other_," Dr. Hasuma explained. "_Fights have broken out in your area and the violence is escalating with each passing moment_."

Arachnea cursed. "So, that's it. What the ETA for our backup?"

"_They should be there by now_."

And backup did come as a green blast of energy collided with the Big Jewel Beetle Demon and threw it off balance.

"A shooting star!" Carmen identified the green streak.

"No, it's not," said Meta.

"It's Alan," Arachnea said. "Come on, let's join them."

The two jumped off the web to rejoin Carmen and Alan as he touched down. "So, what is that thing?"

"Jin, or #06 of the NUMBERS," said Arachnea.

"He's gained a lot of weight," said Carmen.

"And he shrugs off everything we've thrown at him so far," said Meta. "He's indestructible."

Alan looked at the Big Jewel Beetle Demon as it started to cover more and more of Kabukicho in crystal.

"We're going to need some backup and heavy artillery," said Alan. "And I think I got it." He got on all fours and then energy solidified on his back before forming into an array of cannons. "Get ready to…"

"Hey, do you hear that?" Carmen cut him off.

"Hear what?" Alan responded.

"It sounds like music," Meta stated.

Arachnea sighed. "So _they_ were the backup."

Driving straight towards the scene was a jeep and a pickup truck, but with turrets on them. One was a Gatling gun while the other was a chain gun. Nobody was manning the weapons. In the jeep, driving it, was Yokoshima with Daichi riding shotgun. Chiaki was driving the pickup truck with Shogo riding shotgun and holding an actual shotgun.

"This better be worth it," said Yokoshima, "Asmo-chan and I were gonna have a Godzilla movie marathon."

"Well, you're about to have front row seats to one right now!" Daichi told him.

Shogo ordered, "Get to your battle stations and…Henshin!"

"HENSHIN!"

They stopped their vehicles and rushed out before going on the attack. Slasher fired his glue at the Big Jewel Beetle Demon's legs, immobilizing it. The glue was super strong and it struggled to break free, roaring. Zero was up in the air, in his Fighter Form, and firing spiraling blasts of energy which just bounced off it. As for Armadillo, he was in Blitz Form and firing his twin cannons. However, despite the massive explosions across the creature's carapace there was no visible damage.

"This guy is tough," Armadillo realized.

Alan suddenly fired his cannons and the power behind them was so strong that Alan was flung back by the recoil. The cannon blasts hit the Big Jewel Beetle Demon and actually blew a chunk of its body right off. "Yes!" Bazel cheered. But then the missing chunk grew right back. "Damn it!"

"So, even if we do damage it, it'll just regenerate," said Alan.

"Now what?" asked Meta. Alan looked to Musician and saw his Cricket Fork. He got an idea.

"Hey, Daichi," Alan called.

"Hm?" Musician looked to Alan.

"How loud can that tuning fork go?"

"This?" asked Musician. "Pretty loud, I guess, but my guitar's louder."

"OK, then get your guitar. Here is what we'll do," said Alan.

Zero was struck and shouted, "Man down! Man down!" as he started to plummet to the ground but was caught by a spider web safety net. "Great, I'm a bug in a spider's web."

"You're welcome, by the way," Arachnea said.

Musician assumed Rock-Metal Form and waited for what Alan had planned. Concentrating, Alan formed massive speakers that were mounted on his shoulders. "OK, Daichi. You play as loud as you can straight at my back. These babies will do the rest."

"Gotcha," Musician agreed as he turned the dial on his Cricket Axe beyond Maximum Output. It was labeled as "ARE YOU FUCKING NUTS?"

"OK, everyone turn off your helmets' audio sensors," Alan instructed. They all did except for Musician. "Now…LET IT RIP!" Alan ordered, "EVERYONE, BRACE YOURSELVES!"

Musician's fingers struck the strings and sent out a blast of sonic pulses at Alan's back. The speakers absorbed the sonic pulses which actually caused the air and ground to vibrate but that was nothing compared to what his shoulder-mounted speakers would do. They were also amplifiers.

Then, _it_ happened.

A massive blast of amplified sound burst out of the speakers, causing them to tremble. It spread all around the area. Windows and crystal shattered due to the punishing vibrations.

"M-m-m-my b-b-b-bones a-a-a-are sha-sha-sha-shaking!" Armadillo said as he covered his ears.

And that wasn't the only thing shaking. Musician was still playing his guitar and doing a continuous riff as he continued to strike the strings with his fingers. The Big Jewel Beetle Demon roared as its body started to crack and the cracks spread further and further. The legs shattered and the massive body of the monster collapsed before shattering into a million pieces.

Alan ceased the attack but his ears were ringing right now. Everyone else turned to the mess of crystal. A pile of it shifted and Jin dug himself out. He opened his palm and shook as he stared at the shattered Gaia Memory in his hand. He shook with rage and roared, "Damn you…DAMN YOU! HOW DARE YOU! DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'VE DONE!**?**" He assumed his Jewel Beetle Demon form. It looked like a humanoid version of the Big Jewel Beetle Demon. He was a humanoid jewel beetle made of iridescent with a green gem in its chest and back. His rainbow-colored eyes glowed as his antennae shook. He stood on two legs and sported two sword-like arms. The shell that encased his wings opened up and he spread them wide before unleashing rainbow-colored blasts of energy at the Kaizo Ningen and Green Lantern.

A green dome covered the heroes as the blasts hit. Alan grunted in pain from the hit. It was incredibly powerful, and he could feel the energy through his shielding. "Fuck…this guy's tough…" groaned Alan as he strained to keep the shield up. He then smirked, "But I've faced tougher!" Alan's fist glowed golden. Alan then shot back against the Jewel Beetle Demon's energy attack, overwhelming it with Quantum energy.

"No way! No way! No way!" The green jewels in his chest and back glowed brighter as he intensified the force behind his energy attack. "I AM GOING TO PUT YOU ON DISPLAY IN MY ROOM!" Jin shouted. He pushed harder.

"NOT IN THIS LIFETIME!" Alan shot back.

"Hey, you all!" Bazel shouted at the NEO-NUMBERS. "Those things in your belts are like batteries, right?"

"Yeah," Meta answered. "Why?"

"Feed me with energy," Bazel instructed. "Hurry up!" The NEO-NUMBERS concentrated and allowed their Spark Cores to collect energy. This undid their transformations in the process as they fed the energy into Bazel which in turn started to fuel Alan.

Jin's attack seemed to be fighting against Alan, but he was also struggling to provide himself more power. His body began to crack from the strain. "I need more power! MORE POWER!"

"You want it! You got it!" Alan shouted, "HERE IT COMES!"

The concentrated blast of Quantum, Willpower, and Spark Core energy surged straight towards Jin, blowing debris away as it smashed into him. He let out a scream as he was shattered to pieces by the blast which continued onward and shattered all the crystal that encased Kabukicho. The aurora effect in the sky also vanished.

From Jin's remains, a black butterfly fluttered off frantically before vanishing.

Alan panted as the Bazel Combat Armor deactivated and he nearly collapsed. Luckily, Battler caught him and slung Alan's right arm over his shoulders and put an arm around the back of Alan's waist to keep him balanced. "You okay?" Battler asked.

Alan smirked, "Eh…I've been through worst. One of these days I'll have to tell you about the Sinestro Corps War…But for now…take me back home to my girls…"

Michiru grinned flirtatiously and opened her mouth to say something but Hana cut her off, "Don't even think about it, Michiru. He's tired."

"But Hana-chan~" Michiru whined.

"No."

Michiru pouted but then she strode over to Alan and whispered into his ear, "Can I sample your 'banana'?" His eyes widened and she giggled before stepping back. Everyone rolled their eyes, knowing what she'd asked.

"So, who's gonna be the one to write the report on this one?" Daichi asked.

"Not it!" everyone except Battler answered.

"Damn…" Battler groaned.

* * *

Alan walked into the apartment, completely exhausted, when he was suddenly pounced upon. "Daddy!" cried Alice.

"Mau!" cried Celine. Alan caught the two girls and held them close.

"I'm so glad you're alright…" sighed Alan. "My two precious little angels."

"Can we play together now, Daddy?" asked Alice.

"Girls," called Conda. "Leave your father alone for right now. He's had a long day. You can play with him tomorrow."

* * *

Alan was sound asleep in bed, but he wasn't alone. Curled up to his side was Alice, holding him tightly, and covering the top half of his face was Celine. Alan slept soundly, a content look on his face.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: And that is that. My rendition of the Movie War concept where two events intertwine at the climax. Whaddya guys think? It was awesome, right? So, anyway, this whole thing implies Jin was the mastermind. Also, when you guys review, please review on each of the segments within this special MOVIE WAR chapter! We worked hard on it, OK?  
**

**Shadow Element 13: It certainly was Chrome! I was glad to be able to do a bit focusing a little more on the cop aspect of the Green Lantern than the regular superhero angle. It was also good to explore Alan as a father for the two girls.**

* * *

**POST A/N SCENE**

Misato removed her fangs from the young man and with a grin licked her fangs before dropping him. He wasn't the only dead body. There were two more and she'd drained them all dry.

She had just been out walking the street at night when these three guys mistook her for a prostitute. She was in Kabukicho and the way she was dressed really made her look like a hooker.

She agreed to go with them and they all went to a love hotel to get acquainted. They had stripped naked and that was when she attacked. After that, there was no escape for them.

Misato wasn't just a vampire. She could also read minds through the blood she drained. People's memories were imprinted into their blood and after she was done she knew that these guys were horrible people. They had actually gang raped a few girls before and videotaped them doing it as blackmail so the girls wouldn't talk or else be humiliated if they did. Misato felt disgusted with drinking from them but blood was blood and low quality blood was still sustenance.

The bodies were now just dried up husks and she sighed. She didn't bother to dress up and instead assumed her Mosquito Demon form. Armor formed over her body. It was black with violet trim and accentuated her feminine frame. Her thighs and upper arms were covered in chainmail, making the body armor appear like a sleeveless leotard. She wore a cloak over her shoulders that had a high collar. Finally, an organic helmet covered her entire head, save for the lower half of her face which remained human-looking and feminine with blood red lips. The helmet also had a long needle that pointed forward from her nose with red insect-like eyes.

She opened the window and jumped out, spreading her wings before gliding off. She wondered if Yuji was in the mood for some loving.


	36. The Fall of X Shocker Part 9

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 9: Luxury Sailing**

Dr. Hasuma was in Warren's office, holding several files in his hands. "The children kidnapped have been returned to their families. Also, Dr. Onikuma is being held by police for questioning and has his research confiscated to help in the investigation. As for Battler Ushiromiya's case, none of the woman could be saved. They were killed and made into wax statues. However, this has put an end to those killings." Dr. Hasuma closes the file. "Your thoughts, Director-san?"

"The mission was complete. Though, it's sad that we couldn't save those women," sighed Warren.

"I hope their souls will find peace."

"As do I."

"Don't you think we should check up on Shinichi and Yuji?" Dr. Hasuma asked.

"I've already assigned Alan to go check in on them. Though, he said he had something to do with Michiru and Hana today, so he'll be leaving first thing tomorrow."

"Alright," nodded Dr. Hasuma. "Now, as for right now, it's time for you to review our annual budget report and…"

Warren threw a smoke bomb. It exploded and engulfed the office in a thick black smoke. When the smoke cleared, Warren was gone. "Paperwork dodging yarou," coughed Dr. Hasuma.

* * *

"Lucy-chan!" called Dr. Hasuma.

"Oh, Uncle Ryuki," said Lucy.

"Have you seen your father?"

"Is he dodging paperwork again?"

"What do you think?"

Warren was very well known for dodging paperwork. He once dodged paperwork for a full week by…simply hiding behind Ryuki. Dr. Hasuma had considered that the most embarrassing day of his life. It had always been like this since ARMOR was founded. Whenever Dr. Hasuma brought some paperwork for Warren to look at, the Director of ARMOR would find a way to dodge it. So, he went to go find the one person who could get Warren to do his work.

His wife.

* * *

"It's just one report. Just sit down and read it," said Rachel. She was wearing a black turtleneck and a pair of black jeans that hugged her figure.

"Actually, it's a 50 page long report on the budget this year," clarified Dr. Hasuma.

"Eh…" whined Warren. "But that'll take forever!"

"Why don't you make a shadow clone and make him do it?" asked Rachel.

"You know, that would've saved everyone a lot of trouble," sighed Dr. Hasuma.

"Even my shadow clones don't want to do it!" Warren answered.

"I'm surprised this place hasn't fallen apart yet," said Rachel, shaking her head.

Dr. Hasuma explained, "Despite his reluctance to do paperwork, Warren is an excellent leader. However, as the Director, he must also perform paperwork. I have to do it too and it's not really fun being stuck at a desk job."

Rachel then noticed Warren was slowly sneaking towards the door. "I don't think so," warned Rachel as Warren became engulfed in obsidian energy and flung against the wall.

"Warren-san, just sit down and read the report. Then write your remarks and review with a signature so we can have it filed with the report," pled Dr. Hasuma. He knew it was almost impossible to get Warren to do paperwork, and that this had been going on since ARMOR was founded. Dr. Hasuma then piled on a stack of reports on Warren's desk. "And these are from all the other departments."

Rachel let out a sigh. She knew the only way Warren could ever be convinced to do paperwork… "Leave me alone with him for about 2 hours."

Dr. Hasuma bowed and left. He always treated the two Ravens differently. Ichijyo's wife is considered a close friend, while Ryuki treats Rachel as his superior. The door closed behind him, automatically locking.

Rachel took off her turtleneck sweater, showing off her black bra covered breasts. She then unbuttoned her jeans and slid them down her shapely legs. She stood before Warren, wearing only her black bra and a pair of black thong panties. "All right lover boy. We do this, and then you get to work. Got it?"

Warren could only nod.

* * *

Returning to his office, Dr. Ryuki Hasuma sat down and was just about to do some work when he felt something touch his thigh. He jumped back in fright before hearing a familiar giggling.

"Jinx?" he blinked as he looked under his desk and spotted his wife giggling at him.

"Hello, baby," she purred as she crawled out from under the desk before she sat up on the desktop, crossing one of her slender legs over the other. Her civilian name was Jennifer Wilcox-Hasuma but Ryuki still called her by her nickname 'Jinx'. She was dressed in a purple blouse with a black mini-skirt that reached just above her knees.

Jinx hadn't changed much since her teenage years but she had definitely filled out in all the right places and had become curvier. Though, one should never underestimate the pink-haired woman who sat seductively in front of Ryuki. She could still fight and had never forgotten any of her training. She was athletic and flexible and could move like a world-class gymnast. However, she had given up her life of crime when she met Ryuki who turned her life around. Because of him she became a hero and it was also because of him that she found true love. Since then they'd been inseparable and finally consummated their love. She was his chosen mate since the night he marked her and he would never let her go.

Now, even in her early thirties, she still acted like a teenager. Of course, she wasn't always like this. Jinx was a mother and acted responsibly to raise the two children that she and Ryuki had brought into this world. Her twins, Ryutaro and Ryuko, were even more precious to her than any treasure in the world. They were just starting kindergarten right now.

Jinx was also a fashion designer like Ryuki's mother and her designs were gothic-based which were enjoyed by a large number of people. She got the job from Ryuki's mother. Jinx had Ryuki to thank for giving her a happy life and family and she was definitely feeling generous right now.

Leaping off the desk, she planted herself in his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. "So, is it your coffee break right now?" she asked.

"Well…I was just about to do some work," he told her.

Jinx rolled her eyes, "Just make someone else do it! You're the Director! You can just blow off work and hand it over to someone else!"

"Jinx…I'm only a director," he corrected her. "And I can't take advantage of my staff like that. They have their own work too."

Jinx shrugged, "That's what I do sometimes." He put a hand on her waist and pulled her close. "Baby?"

He smiled tenderly before kissing her. Jinx responded in kind, closing her eyes to return the kiss. Sometimes her husband could be stiff at work so she helped him loosen up. Warren knew how to loosen up.

They broke the kiss and Jinx walked her fingers up his chest as she observed, "You seem stressed."

"Just spent the better part of the day trying to get Warren to do paperwork."

"I thought you knew better after all these years."

"As second-in-command of this organization my job is to make sure he reads all the reports and then writes a reflection report and remarks to be filed with those reports," he explained.

"I know, but I thought you'd learn that he will always dodge paperwork. Warren's not the type of person to do a desk job," Jinx told him.

"True," Dr. Hasuma agreed. Warren was more of a field agent. Ryuki himself was a part-time field agent. He felt kiss Jinx him again and then she removed his glasses. "My glasses…" he uttered.

"I don't get why you wear them, baby," she said as she playfully put them on. "They don't even have a prescription. They're just for show."

"I have to look the part," he informed her. He put another hand on her thigh. "Jinx, why did you actually come to visit?"

Jinx unbuttoned her blouse and then whispered into his ear, "Do you even have to ask and do I need a reason to visit my hubby?" She also added, "I'm not wearing any underwear." Ryuki's eyes bulged. When she finished unbuttoning her blouse, she showed him she wasn't wearing a bra so that meant… "And yes, that means I'm not wearing anything _down there_ either."

Dr. Hasuma put a hand on his intercom and requested, "Postpone all my appointments for today until further notice." He then locked the door telekinetically so there wouldn't be any interruption.

* * *

"I love you," he whispered.

"Mm~ I love you too," she replied.

As they just sat there, enjoying the warmth and afterglow in their shared embrace, Ryuki heard a beeping. He used his telekinesis and picked his goggles up. His goggles were also his communicator and the lenses were like miniature screens. He put the goggles on as Jinx snuggled against him, purring. Pressing a button on his goggles, he read the message that scrolled up his goggles. It was a message from the Infinity Fragment Detection Department. The IFDD was set up after the Infinity Sword had been broken apart and its fragments were scattered all over the Multiverse. They had computers that would alert the staff in the IFDD of the presence of an Infinity Fragment and the staff would then contact Warren or Dr. Hasuma who would then assign a team to recover the Infinity Fragment. Of course, Warren and Dr. Hasuma may be directors but they were also ARMOR agents and were authorized to go on these missions.

Dr. Hasuma read the coordinates, "So, it's in Shinichi's world, and it happens to be in the junkyard Rena and he often visits. I think I can do this solo. Doesn't seem so hard."

What he didn't realize was that this might be the last mission he would be going on.

* * *

**-MEANWHILE IN LONDON-**

Several days had passed since the start of their London mission and both Shinichi and Yui were dealing with the remnants of the Cyclops Horror's appearance, mainly what remained of his Horror minions. They were still lurking around at night, snatching unsuspecting humans devouring their flesh. Fortunately, the two Riders managed to stop them before anymore lives were lost to the ghoulish fiends.

And after their nightly hunt for Horrors, Yui never went straight home. She still had energy to party, so Shinichi let her go to whatever nightclub was available and just last night Yui had invited Shawna and Shinichi along to party. The nightclub was a little loud for Shawna but she soon found the whole experience exhilarating as she danced fast with Shinichi. She had been accosted by some young men but Shinichi protectively and possessively shooed them away. Something in his eyes had intimidated them to leave Shawna alone.

At the nightclub, without Shinichi's notice, Yui had been dancing with Misato. Since the nightclub was packed, Shinichi never caught them together. Then there was the slow dance and Shawna and Shinichi ended up dancing cheek-to-cheek.

Shinichi was still faithful to Rena and reported to her what he was doing in London with Shawna using his crane shikigami. He didn't want her to get the wrong idea. He cared for Shawna, but not in the romantic way, or at least he didn't think so.

As of right now, Shinichi was heading to the flower shop to get a bouquet of flowers for Shawna. The flowers in the vase at the townhouse needed to be changed and Shinichi, still acting as Shawna's butler, was going to buy a new bouquet just for Shawna. He was on his bike when all of a sudden he got knocked off his vehicle by a kick, sending him tumbling along the street as his bike slowly stopped when he wasn't in the seat to provide throttle. He crashed against several baskets of fruit and the apples and oranges rolled all over him, thumping with his helmet.

"It's been awhile, BLACK 13," a familiar voice purred and Shinichi looked up to see her.

"Misato," he growled.

* * *

Civilians ran in a panic, running past Yui. She'd just been out to buy some cakes for tea when she heard screaming and spotted people running. She grabbed one of them and asked, "What's going on?"

"Insect people fighting!" he blurted out before Yui let him go.

She ran the opposite way as the panicked crowd and soon saw what all the ruckus was about. Right in the middle of the street was Misato in her Mosquito Demon form and armed with her rapiers. Facing off against her was a Kamen Rider with a blue helmet that sported red eyes, antennae and an open faceplate. His suit was black with silver gloves and boots, a yellow scarf, a thin triangle up the centre of his body and between two plates of chest armor. He was Riderman and was dodging Misato's strikes by evading her slashes.

"Drill Arm!" Riderman called as his entire right forearm became encased in metal and a drill popped out. Misato swung but he blocked it with the sword, pushing the sword away, before punching forward and nailing her with the spinning drill. She cried out as her armored body was struck, sparks spraying off the contact point. A punch sent her reeling back and then she was sent staggering further by another punishing strike from the drill.

"Swing Arm!" Riderman called and the drill was replaced by a spiked ball. He swung his metal arm and the ball went flying, connected to the arm by a rope thus making it a flail. The spiked ball collided with Misato's skull and she cried out in pain. Riderman continued swinging his weapon, bashing it against Misato ruthlessly.

"Power Arm!" Riderman called as he summoned one of his strongest weapons. It was a gauntlet and in place of his hand was a crescent-shaped blade claw. He then jumped up, right arm drawn back, aiming for Misato so he could execute the punishing blow. "HYAH!" he screamed as he punched his right arm forward, the crescent blade gleaming as it came near to strike Misato.

However, the blow never connected as a hand caught the Power Arm's blade.

"Huh, Yui?" Riderman blinked. He then reverted back to Showa GX.

Yui frowned, "What the hell is going on here?"

Showa pointed with his left arm, "It's one of the Soldats, Misato!"

Yui sighed and turned to the demon, "Babe, why are you bullying Shin? I thought you said you were gonna leave him alone."

Misato grinned sheepishly, "Sorry, darling, but I just wanted to say hello. It's not my fault it turned out like this."

Showa fumed, "You attacked me first and..." He trailed off and blinked before uttering in confusion, "Wait, what?"

Yui wrapped an arm around Misato's waist and said, "She's with me."

Showa's jaw dropped and then... "WHAT!-?-!-?-!-?-!"

Misato grimaced, "I think you broke his brain, darling."

Yui shrugged, "He'll snap out of it in a minute."

Misato suggested, "We better leave before the local coppers get here."

* * *

After resuming human form, the trio went to a café to discuss things. Shinichi was still giving Misato a hostile and distrustful glare and every few moments he would glance at Yui in disbelief. The girl-who-is-actually-a-boy and the former-cyborg-and-currently-demonic-girl were sitting very close to each other. Shinichi shook his head and decided to ask, "How?" It was short but the meaning was clear.

Yui clarified, "Remember the time under that school? That's when."

Shinichi could only stare, "Yui, remember when you asked me about them and what I told you? Misato here tried to kill me! She even kidnapped Rena! Then she was killing people left and right for blood! She's dangerous!"

"No different from you, #13," Misato snorted.

Shinichi growled, "The difference was that wasn't me!"

Misato smirked, "Still, all that blood is still on your hands. You remember it all, even if it's not the present you, it was still you."

Shinichi reached for his shotgun.

Yui stopped him, "OK, no more arguing, please. And we're in public."

Shinichi shook his head, "Yui, I always knew you had a strange taste in girls but Misato is a bloodthirsty psychopath."

Yui frowned at him, "I already read the report on her and I know what she's capable of."

"So you know she's dangerous! "

"No more than you," Misato quipped.

Shinichi's fists shook on the table. "You are _this_ close to having your head blown off!" He was holding his thumb and index finger apart to illustrate his statement.

"ENOUGH!" Yui shouted, alarming the other guests, "BOTH OF YOU HAVE BEEN FUCKED OVER BY GEBOK AND I UNDERSTAND HOW YOU BOTH HAVE A LOW TOLERANCE FOR EACH OTHER. BUT FOR FUCKING ONCE, CAN YOU ACT LIKE CIVILIZED SENTIENT BEINGS!-?-!-?" The two were taken aback and Yui starts sobbing, "And as for why I'm with her, she reminds me of my mom to an extent. You happy now, Shin!-?"

Shinichi was getting dirty and disapproving looks from the other customers as they watched the girl crying her eyes out. Shinichi was more surprised by his friend's reaction. He never expected such an outburst from Yui, who was always calm, focused, and cool about everything. "Yui...I never meant to..." the cyborg Rider began.

Misato wrapped her arms around Yui and started to comfort her. That was when Shinichi had another memory flash.

* * *

"_Hey, #13," #04 called, "doesn't it ever bother you when you kill?"_

_#13 looked back, "Bother me?"_

_She scratched her head, "Well, we were made to kill but I hesitated the first time I ever did it. It got easier and I started liking it. How about you?_

_#13 stared, "I don't understand the question."_

"_Do you enjoy killing?" she elaborated._

_#13 stared at her, unable to respond._

_#04 smirked before walking away, "If you need someone to talk to, my room is always open."_

* * *

Shinichi hung his head low, ashamed, "I'm...I'm sorry."

Yui, still sobbing, nodded, "It's cool...looks like the effects of bullet make me more emotional as well." Misato licked the tears away, making Yui giggle.

Shinichi sighed, "OK, I'll...try to get along with Misato, but if she even tries _anything_ evil at all I won't hesitate to use lethal force. However, I will stop to listen."

Yui waved a hand, "Relax, she ain't gonna hurt anyone or do anything evil, we made an agreement. And no one knows about us except you, so let's try and keep the circle small until I kill Anastasia."

He blinked, "You're gonna kill her?"

Yui folded her arms under her busty chest, "Of course I am."

"Well, good luck with that. Satan-chan tells me that killing witches isn't exactly an easy feat. They're tricky as hell."

"Don't worry. When I'm done with her, they'll be nothing left for her to revive from," Yui grinned.

Shinichi checked his watch and cursed, "Crap, we should get back to the townhouse! Like right now!" He still hadn't gotten any flowers, though.

"Looking for these?" Yui asked, putting the bouquet on the table. "And don't ask how I got them. I have my ways."

"Thanks, Yui. You're a pal!" Shinichi then got up and ran out of the café before climbing on his bike and racing away.

* * *

Yui, Shinichi, Shawna, and Anthony were at the port and standing before a huge cruise ship. The ship was named the SS Gigantic and was rumored to rival the legendary Titantic itself.

"Woah…" Shinichi uttered, eyes wide at the cruise ship. "And this baby here is gonna take us all the way to Genovia?"

"It'll stop at Genovia, yes," Shawna confirmed.

"And I didn't even pack a bathing suit," whispered Yui. She was dressed as a maid as Shinichi was dressed as a butler and like the others would be joining Shawna in first class.

"So, what are we waiting for?" Shinichi asked. "Let's get on."

"We have to wait for someone first," said Shawna.

"Who?" asked Shinichi. "You mean Chris? Where is he anyway?"

"Picking up our extra guest," smiled Shawna knowingly.

"Shin-kun!" a familiar voice cried and Shinichi's eyes bulged. He followed the sound and spotted a familiar girl running towards them, wheeling a huge luggage bag with her.

"Rena-chan!-?" Shinichi gasped as the girl let go of her luggage and leapt into his arms. She caught him and he spun around while holding the girl. She beamed at him, laughing before he let her down. "Rena-chan," began Shinichi as he started to recover from the shock. "What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

Chris grabbed hold of Rena's luggage and wheeled it along with him as he answered, "I picked her up."

Shawna nodded, "Yes, several hours ago Chris took the private jet and picked Ms. Rena up."

"All the way from Japan?" blinked Shinichi.

"My private jet is very fast," Chris boasted.

"Shawna-chan was nice enough to give me a ticket too!" said Rena. "I'm so glad I had my passport too!" Shinichi was still flabbergasted as Rena gave him a onceover, complimenting his outfit, "Shin-kun, you look very handsome."

"Arigato," he responded.

"He's playing the role of Shawna's butler," said Yui. Rena wasn't surprised about Yui's gender change. Shinichi had mentioned it in one of his letters. Rena glomped the girl-who-is-really-a-boy.

"You're so cute, Yuji-chan!" she squealed.

"Please, call me Yui," corrected Yui, laughing.

"Now that we're all here, let us board," said Shawna.

"Yes, Your Highness," said Chris, Yui, Shinichi and Anthony as they bowed. Being the biggest, Anthony carried the luggage under his arms as the group began to board the cruise ship. The cruise then set sail on its long voyage.

The six of them already had living arrangements on the cruise. A pair would each share a first class cabin together. Anthony and Chris would share a cabin, Shawna and Yui would share a cabin, and finally Shinichi and Rena would share a cabin.

The first class cabins were furnished like 5-Star hotel rooms with all the luxuries befitting its level of class.

Rena sat on the bed and smiled at Shinichi. "You look really dashing dressed like that," she complimented at his tailcoat and butler-like attire.

"Arigatou, Rena-chan," Shinichi explained.

"So, why did you decide to play the role of Shawna-chan's butler?" she asked, curiously.

"Well, her birthday is coming up so I thought it might be a nice present," Shinichi said, scratching his cheek as his twin ahoge bobbed up and down. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."

"She really seems happy about it," Rena stated.

"Of course, because I'm never half-assed when it comes to my work," said Shinichi. Rena got up and looped her arms around Shinichi's neck and gazed up at him lovingly. She then puckered her lips. Smiling, Shinichi wrapped his arms around her and held the girl close before kissing her. They broke the kiss after a moment before kissing again, and again, and again.

They then ended up on the bed with him hovering above her. She whispered, "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," he responded in kind.

They kissed some more.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shawna was sitting at the vanity mirror, sighing. Her clothes were thrown all over the cabin room's floor. Yui was picking them up and hanging them back up in the closet. "Why so vexed, Your Highness?" Yui the Maid asked.

"I don't know what to wear for tonight!" Shawna cried.

"You sure about that? because I saw like a ton of dresses in your bag," Yui countered.

"I just want to wear something nice to dinner tonight with Mr. Samurai! We've been invited to eat at the captain's table tonight at the dining hall."

"Ah, I see…" Yui nodded. "Would you like me to suggest something?"

"You think you can help?" Shawna asked.

Yui lightly laughed, "Princess, you should know that right now I am pretty fashion savvy. Just ask my family."

* * *

Shinichi and Rena were lying beneath the sheets, cuddling together. She was lying atop him as she snuggled up against him as he gently ran his hand up and down her back. Their clothes had been discarded and lying about the room so it was obvious that the two of them were in the nude under the covers.

Shinichi couldn't stop thinking about Rina at times and it became an obsession. However, he also remembered that right now in the present that Rena was his lover. They had started as friends, then boyfriend-girlfriend, and finally reached a very intimate step in their relationship. She was important to him and he was not going to ever let her get hurt or lose her like he did Rina.

Still, Rina was out there in the form of Electric Butterfly. He needed answers from her. He needed to know why she was working for Gebok after everything the psycho put them through. He also needed to know where Gebok was and she was the key to all of this.

Rena's soft weight was pressed down against him and it felt really good to hold her skin-to-skin like this. She was so soft and so tender, not to mention she was awesome in bed. He didn't have anyone to compare her to but in his book she was #1 in the horizontal dance. It had just been simple making love as they lay together and joined together. She had moaned and squired and finally screamed at the very climax. He was the only one to ever see that side of her. She didn't contain her pleasure and let it all out especially during the climax.

* * *

Meanwhile, a submarine was pursuing the cruise ship. It was made of black metal and on its side was the familiar crest of X-SHOCKER. Inside the submarine was a small army of W14's and also Spider Ninja. The W14's were doing whatever a submarine crew did like man the gauges also the weapons systems and to make sure their torpedoes did not explode prematurely.

Spider Ninja asked the captain of the vessel, "So, when do we strike, Glacier Walrus?" There was not much lighting inside the submarine so Glacier Walrus sat in his chair while looking through the periscope while hidden in the shadows. Only his silhouette was visible and it showed him to be rather large. In his right hand was an iron pole was a narrow, yet dangerous, anchor.

"Argh, we strike when the sky is dark and the moon is upon the sky, argh," Glacier Walrus responded, sounding like a pirate.

"You mean sundown," Spider Ninja translated.

"Argh, personally I prefer to call it 'moon up', argh," Glacier Walrus countered.

"Moon up?"

"You want to argue with me, landlubber? Who is the captain, argh?"

Spider Ninja sighed, "You are."

"That's right. Dr. X may have sent you along with me but on my ship I am the man in charge, argh! Now, make yourself useful and swab the deck or else I'll make you walk the plank!"

"What plank?" questioned Spider Ninja. "This is a submarine!"

"You know what I mean! Now get to swabbing, landlubber!" A mop and bucket was tossed into Spider Ninja's hands. He tuned to his right, "Number 1, what's our heading?"

"Sir," a W14 saluted, "058* North, North East!"

Glacier Walrus nodded, "Excellent. Soon, BLACK 13 will fall at the hands of Admiral Glacier Walrus!" He rose from his seat, "I think I will visit the salad bar, argh." Glacier Walrus stepped out of his chair and walked past Spider Ninja.

"Stupid robot," muttered Spider Ninja as he kicked the bucket away and broke the mop over his knee. "Who does he think he is anyway?" Dr. X had sent Spider Ninja along with Glacier Walrus to pursue the Gigantic because Chaos Doll was on it. Dr. X wanted his prized 'daughter' back. Spider Ninja just obeyed and Dr. X had given him a device that would help him regain control of Chaos Doll. If BLACK 13 tried to get in his way, then he would use his 'secret weapon'.

* * *

Warren was going through the reports after Rachel had 'persuaded' him when he received a distress call. It was coming from Ryuki's communicator.

Warren immediately got up from his desk and went for the door. When he opened it, Jinx gasped in surprise with her hand up to knock. She put her hand down and asked, "Warren, do you know where Ryuki is? I've been trying to call him but he hasn't picked up."

"Come with me," he said.

* * *

Shinichi walked into the dining hall with Shawna on one arm and Rena on the other. Yui was snickering behind him. She thought it was pretty funny of how Shinichi was being pulled between the two women. "Yo, Shinichi!" called a familiar voice.

Shinichi looked at sitting at the giant Captain's table was Alan and his harem, along with Alice, Celine, Momo and Nana. "Ah, minna-san!" Shinichi uttered. Rena suddenly zoomed away from him and picked up Celine before hugging the green-haired girl to her.

"Kawaii~" the girl squealed. She then put Celine down and did the same to Alice, twirling her around as the android girl laughed. Two cute little girls were just too much for her.

Alan chuckled. It was amusing to see Rena getting so excited over cute things. That was one of the many things he remembered whilst growing up. She never got enough of him when he was a baby.

"Ah, Mr. Lantern!" Shawna greeted. "You're here too."

"Scored some first class tickets and decided to treat the girls," said Alan. "By the way, let me introduce you to Lala's sisters, Nana and Momo, and my two little girls Alice and Celine."

"Don't forget Nozomu," interjected Shinichi.

The captain was in his fifties with grey hair and a beard. He had soft features, like a kind grandfather, and dressed in the captain's uniform. Invitations to join him at dinner at the captain's table were always sent at random and these young ones were lucky enough to receive them. Seeing them all, he could tell they were a very interesting bunch.

He stood up and introduced himself to Shawna, putting his hat on his chest with a slight bow, "Good evening, Princess Shawna. I am the ship's captain, Howard Grant Wells."

Shawna curtsied in response, "Good evening to you too, Captain, and may I say that this is a wonderful vessel."

"Too bad they don't let us sunbathe in the nude," murmured Conda. Amora nodded in agreement. If they had, the weak-hearted would have heart attacks. Those two were just so hot that any man would suddenly fall over head over heels in love with them. Alan knew this from experience.

* * *

Warren followed the distress signal and found Dr. Ryuki Hasuma's goggles near a pile of garbage. He had a shocked and sad look on his face as he picked up the goggles. His emotions were quickly replaced by pure anger as he gritted his teeth.

Jinx took the goggles and stared at them, stunned. "Baby?" Tears flowed from her eyes. "No…he couldn't be…" She recalled the day they met. They'd been enemies at first but then he showed her kindness and was the first to ever show her genuine kindness. She fell in love with him when he risked his life for her, nearly losing it in the process. "What happened to him?" she asked, wanting to make sense of it all.

"I don't know, not yet, who did this but I do know what's going to happen," said Warren with calm fury, "Someone is going to die for this."

That night Dr. Hasuma was officially declared as MIA.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: It doesn't take a genius to know something is about to go down on that cruise. And what happened to Ryuki? It can't be good. Well, stay tune for the answers on the next chap.**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: Looks like Yuji and Misato's relationship is no longer a secret. Wonder how long Shinichi can keep his mouth shut. And what's with the submarine? Well, only Chrome and I know and we're not telling. Not until the next chapter anyway. So wait for that one (smiles).**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: I wasn't able to help much, but this was a fun chap to work on, especially the little look at Ryuki and Warren's relationship.**


	37. The Fall of X Shocker Part 10

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 10: Cruise Control**

ARMOR personnel were working around the clock looking for Ryuki Hasuma. The Director of DORA had been declared missing and thus it was considered a state of emergency. The staff of DORA's main priority now was to look for him. Takada was also trying to track Ryuki down. All agents had tracking chips implanted in their bodies so that they could be monitored and if any of them ever went missing they could be found. However, the scientist was not getting a signal from the chip. It was like it was being blocked.

Meanwhile, Warren was keeping a distraught Jinx company. The pink-haired woman was holding her husband's goggles in her hands and trembling. Many, many horrid thoughts ran through her mind and one of them was the possibility that her husband was…

"He's not dead," assured Warren. "Know this, we're doing all we can to find him and I won't rest until he's found."

"But who could've done this?" Jinx asked.

"Well, he was searching for an Infinity Fragment on Shinichi's world. I got a few suspects, actually," said Warren. He was thinking that maybe X-SHOCKER had gotten Ryuki but that was highly unlikely since Ryuki could beat any of their Android Beasts with his eyes closed. However, the new faction that Alan had mentioned could've gotten the drop on him. Then again, LEVIATHAN could be directly involved in this. Next to Warren, Ryuki was one of ARMOR's strongest members. He was invaluable to the organization and not just because of his status. His ideals was one of the foundations ARMOR was built upon and he dreamed of making the Multiverse a peaceful place.

"Why did he go alone?" Jinx asked. "Why didn't he bring Joseph or Brimstone?" She asked further, "Why didn't you go with him?"

"He's always gone solo to recover Infinity Fragments," Warren answered, "And he's always come back from them. He'll come back this time too."

"He has to come back," Jinx said. "I can't…I can't let the kids grow up without a father. I can't let what happened to Ryuki happen to them too. I wouldn't know what to say to them."

"Just tell them their dad is on a long-term assignment and will be back," suggested Warren.

Jinx gave him a look, "You mean lie."

"Jinx, your kids are powerful psychics with elemental powers and I don't think I want them getting upset, and neither do you," Warren pointed out.

"You're right," Jinx begrudgingly agreed.

Ichijyo then appeared the room, in the typical fashion of walking out of the shadows. His expression was grim, "I've heard. You lost him."

Warren frowned. "Now is not the time, Ichijyo. And we're working on finding him. He will be found."

"What if you don't find him? What if he never comes back?" Ichijyo questioned.

"He has to!" Jinx yelled, gripping the goggles harder. "He…has to."

* * *

Meanwhile, on the cruise ship, Shawna was standing out on the promenade deck and looking at the night's sky. The moon reflected off the surface of the water as the ship sailed across the waves. The sea breeze was also refreshing. Shinichi had offered to accompany her but she'd politely declined. She needed time alone to think.

It had been wonderful having Shinichi all to herself in his capacity as her butler. He did really play the part well but on their outings he acted more like a friend than a servant. She really didn't want any servants at all. She just wanted friends and they were in short supply. Well, they had been until she met Shinichi.

Shinichi's initial appearance had surprised her as he just showed up out of nowhere to protect her from monsters that were after her family heirloom. Although Shinichi had been after it too, he also considered her protection a priority as well. However, she had taken advantage of him by asking him to go out with her to tour the city and then they got attacked and once more when she refused to leave Japan for her safety. She had apologized too when he had been forced to give up the Orb of Wisdom but was relieved when she heard the issue had been resolved.

Then she had even invited him and his friends to her kingdom. She could never forget the debacle when her father, the king, had challenged him to a duel and afterwards considered him a prime candidate to be her fiancée. A part of her was elated while another part was embarrassed by her father's proclamation. Also, she felt like she was betraying Rena.

She felt like she was betraying her now as well. Shawna still loved Shinichi, she really did, but she did not want to break a loving couple apart. It would be wrong and selfish and as much as she wanted Shinichi, she also knew that his place was by Rena's side.

"If only we met first," she wished as she gazed up at the stars. She heard footsteps and slowly turned to see who it was.

"Shawna-chan, can we talk?" Rena asked.

* * *

Right at this moment, the King's Terminal was hosting a flea market. Vendors were all set up with their goods which came from all periods of time from every single dimension in the Multiverse. As the nexus station of all the worlds, King's Terminal had now become the centre for hard-to-get items from all over the Multiverse's past, present and future.

Ryuga Mizuki, adopted brother of Tazuka Mizuki, and former Orphenoch King was perusing the stands and their goods. He actually spotted a pharaoh's burial mask in mint condition, the first bicycle ever invented, and someone was actually selling what he claimed to be vases from the Ming Dynasty. Still, nothing caught his interest.

He ran a hand through his silver hair. He was actually taking a break. ARMOR was now going a little crazy ever since Ryuki went missing and DORA didn't look all that well without their Director present. The staff in DORA was checking all the channels to find him, even scrolling through the Rider Worlds to catch him on the screens.

"Damn it…" Ryuga cursed. If Ryuki got himself captured then it was embarrassing. Ryuki, one of the most powerful Riders in the Multiverse, and the one responsible for dethroning him, could not be easily defeated. It just wasn't possible. Maybe when he was a teenager he could've been captured but he was older, wiser now. "Just who got him?"

The rest of the Black Ops team known as the Thunderbolts had been dispatched by Warren to look for him. They even got a new member called Yuki Fudo and she fit in pretty well, and got along with Kat of all people. Ryuga didn't care if they got a new member or not. He only cared if she could do the job.

As Ryuga inspected another stand, he picked up a mirror and when he looked at the reflection he spotted Ryuki standing behind him. "Hasuma…" he growled. He turned and demanded, "Where have you been!-? Everyone in ARMOR is going crazy looking for you!"

Ryuki didn't answer.

"What, cat got your-?"

* * *

"You still love Shin-kun, don't you?" Rena asked.

Shawna blushed. "What? I beg your pardon?"

"You still love Shin-kun," Rena repeated.

"I…I…" Shawna was speechless and could not come up with a coherent reply.

"Shawna-chan, it's alright. You can tell me."

The princess took a deep breath. "Yes," Shawna admitted regrettably, "I do love him and I'm so sorry for feeling this way but I just can't help it!"

"I don't blame you. Shin-kun is a wonderful person. He's brave, strong, caring, selfless, and all the good stuff rolled into one," Rena described. '_He also has a huge burden on his shoulders_…' she added in her mind.

"But he's yours, Ms. Rena. It's just not right that I have these feelings for him but he fills my heart with joy and he's in my dreams as I slumber! I can't get him out of my thoughts, no matter how hard I try!" Shawna shook her head, feeling upset and guilty.

Rena pulled the princess into a hug and said, "He does the same for me, Shawna-chan. He even told me he became your butler as a birthday present."

"I feel so bad about taking up his time which should be spent with you," Shawna said, tearing up.

"It's fine," Rena told her tenderly.

"How can it be fine?" Shawna asked.

Rena smiled at the princess and said, "Would you like me to give you a present for your birthday, Shawna-hime-chan?"

* * *

Alarms blared all over ARMOR, "ALERT! ALERT! THERE IS A HOSTILE IN THE KING'S TERMINAL! ALERT! ALERT! THERE IS A HOSTILE IN THE KING'S TERMINAL!"

"What now?" growled Warren.

He turned on the screen mounted on his wall and got a view of the King's Terminal through one of the surveillance cameras. Terminal Security was already on the scene to subdue the hostile but it was the identity of the hostile that stunned him. Jinx gasped.

"Baby?" Jinx asked.

* * *

Kamen Rider Draco was attacking the security guards savagely, severely injuring them as they tried to stop him. At the same time, Zodiac Knight Onyx was confronting him with his Sword Vent. He slashed at the Rider but his blow was blocked when the Masked Rider Sword Keyblade appeared and his sword collided with the flat of the blade before he was repelled by a telekinetic blast. Civilians panicked as they fled the scene to safety as Draco had just gone crazy.

"Alright, I don't know what's going on, but I'm taking you down!" roared Onyx as he threw his hands forward and fired twin streams of red and blue fire. However, the streams were bent by a wave of Draco's hand and hit the ceiling of the King's Terminal instead. Then, Draco swung his Keyblade downward, unleashing a barrage of energy blades that sent Onyx flying and shouting.

That was when DORA Ridetroopers appeared on the scene. They wore black suits and wore insectoid helmets. The suits provided them with enhanced strength and protection. They charged at Draco but in the blink of an eye they were knocked out when Draco blurred out of sight with the power of Hyper Clock Up. They were sent flying by an invisible blow and knocked out in an instant.

"RYUKI!" Draco turned and saw Warren, Jinx and Takada standing a distance away from him. "What the hell do you think you're doing!-?" Instead of answering with words, he uses his telekinesis and started throwing things at them. Takada acted quickly and erected a green barrier with his ring. Random things slammed against the barrier hard and as soon as assault ceased, Takada dropped the shield only to be hit in the head with a vase. Takada then aimed his ring at Draco.

"Let me talk to him!" Jinx insisted.

"He's dangerous," objected Takada.

"He's right," Warren agreed.

"Warren, please! If he's being controlled I know he won't hurt me!" She was speaking from experience.

Warren looked conflicted. He would never forgive himself if he let Jinx get hurt. "OK, but if something goes wrong I want you to run."

Jinx nodded gratefully and carefully approached Draco. She said soothingly, smiling, "Baby, I'm so glad you're back. Come on, let's go home."

His response was to throw his Keyblade at her like a spear. She shrieked and ducked under it. She was shocked. Her love was just about to…

The Keyblade returned to Draco's hand and he lunged for Jinx and swung. She was stunned and just stood on the spot. The Keyblade came close but it was intercepted by two blades, causing a clash and explosion of sparks.

One of the blades was the Kage Enbu, a Zanpakuto, and the other was the Inner Demon, another Keyblade. Warren stared Draco down. "RYUKI LEONARD HASUMA! YOU STOP THIS AND YOU STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!"

Draco roared in response and pushed Warren back with telekinesis before he continued his crazed assault by swinging his Keyblade at him. Warren deflected the blow with his weapons, defending himself. He didn't want to hurt Draco but his best friend and sworn brother was really pushing it.

Jinx could only stare in disbelief, "He…he attacked me." Ryuki had never done it before. It just wasn't possible. No matter what force had controlled him in the past he'd fought against it with his indomitable will.

Draco activated his Hyper Inzecter which cried out, "HYPER CLOCK UP!" and blinked from sight. Responding in kind, Warren went into shunpo and also blinked out of sight. In their hyper speed world now, everything was standing still. They were moving so fast that time could not catch up and thus the sparks produced by their blades meeting hung in the air along with the dust and debris that flew.

"Damn it, Ryuki! Get a hold of yourself!" Warren shouted. "Wake up! Wake up!" A kick hit Warren's midsection and then an elbow hit him in the side of his face, sending him staggering.

Draco put his hand against the back of his Keyblade and the blade became engulfed in flames before forming into a red dragon. He then swung downward, sending the flaming dragon towards Warren. The fire dragon roared as it prepared to devour and incinerate him.

Warren concentrated his reaiasu and with a howl he shattered the flame construct. Draco then fired jets of water at Warren but they smashed harmlessly into a barrier of blue energy produced by Warren's ring. The same happened when rocks were thrown at Warren and also when Draco tried to blow him away with a blast of wind.

Warren still stood. He had to end this without harming Draco. While not many could match Warren in terms of combat skills, Draco came close. Draco, despite being a pacifist, was an amazing fighter but only fought when no other option was available. However, right now, Draco was being controlled by his rage and was not acting like himself. Warren knew this. Even as he fought Draco would never let his rage completely take over as it went against his ideals.

Warren could easily take Draco down but he had to hold back. He didn't want to accidentally kill his friends even though his friend looked like he wanted to cut him into little pieces. He just had to stop him without completely hurting him.

As Hyper Clock Up timed out, Warren deactivated his Shunpo. The two stared each other down and then Draco suddenly roared as his Keyblade disappeared. A black aura enveloped him, forcing him to his knees as he clutched his head in agony.

"Ichijyo," Warren said as he recognized the dark aura and saw Ichijyo in the distance with his arm stretched out and his fingers pointed at Draco, manipulating the darkness. Draco continued to roar in pain. "Ichijyo, what are you doing!-?"

"I'm keeping my promise. That's what I'm doing. Or did you forget that you made a same one to him years ago?" Ichijyo asked coldly.

Warren knew what promise Ichijyo was talking about, "No! You don't have to kill him!"

"He made me swear that if he ever became a threat to his loved ones that I should be the one to finish him," said Ichijyo as he made the darkness intensify until it was swallowing Draco up. Draco struggled as the darkness threatened to swallow him whole but Ichijyo wasn't about to let that happen. "I intend to keep that promise and I expect you to do the same. He's a Keyblade wielder and one that has gone out of control. We have to stop him, no matter the cost."

Warren used Shunpo and knocked Ichijyo aside, disrupting his concentration. "Warren!" Ichijyo shouted. "Don't you realize what will happen if we don't stop him!-? He could tear universes apart with his Keyblade!"

"I know, but there are better ways to keep a promise. I promised that I would always save him and stop him if something like this ever happened." Warren put his Hollow mask and aimed his gaze towards a recovering Draco. "Sorry, little brother. This hurts me more than it's going to hurts you." He sheathed his Zanpakuto and put his Keyblade away before he aimed his palms forward. A ball of crackling energy formed. It was black with a red tint and growing bigger and bigger with each passing second. "CERO!" He unleashed a burst stream of the energy and sent it flying straight for Draco.

"BABY! NO!" Jinx shrieked as she saw the attack streaming towards Draco.

The Cero hit and there was a blinding explosion of light. Then…total silence.

* * *

Shinichi, Yui and Alan were sitting at a bar. Fortunately, they could get drinks on this cruise. Shinichi and Yui had both grabbed beers while Alan chose a non-alcoholic beverage. Technically, he was still on duty.

Shinichi felt a shiver run up his spine. "What's wrong with you?" Yui asked.

"I just got this feeling something is going on and I'm either going to regret it, or like it, or both," Shinichi replied.

"How can you like something and regret it later?" Alan asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Guilty pleasures, Alan, but you should know about them," Shinichi remarked.

"Maybe you just haven't gotten your sea legs yet," Yui pointed out.

"Maybe," Shinichi shrugged. "I guess I should go and find Rena-chan and Shawna-chan and check up on them." He finished his beer and got off the stool before going off to look for his girlfriend and friend.

Alan looked to Yui, "Wow, you really are going through with this, aren't you?" He was referring to their bet.

"Yup, and by the end of the week which is after Shawna's birthday, I am so gonna win this bet," said Yui.

"I don't see how you can like it. All I get is pervs trying to grope me whenever I get accidentally turned into a girl."

"Hey, for some it's more tolerable. So, how about I get you a beer?"

"I'm on duty," Alan reminded.

"So am I," Yui retorted, "Or did you forget ARMOR agents are always on call?"

Suddenly, they heard screaming and sounds of a panic.

* * *

Shawna's face was completely red after hearing what Rena had proposed, "Ms. Rena, you can't be serious!"

"I am serious," said Rena with a stern expression on her face. "On your birthday you can have…"

"Yo, girls!" Shinichi called, causing the two girls to jump and nearly fall overboard in surprise. He then went into butler mode as he approached them. "Ladies," he spoke politely, "I grew concerned so I came looking for you both. I hope you do not mind."

"Of course not, Shin-kun," beamed Rena. "Shin-kun, don't the stars look beautiful?"

Shinichi looked up at the dark sky and smiled, "Yes, they do." He then gazed to Rena, "And so do you." Rena giggled and blushed at the compliment. He was such a sweet talker.

Shawna gazed towards Shinichi, the blush on her face still visible. She could not believe Rena would even propose such a thing. It was completely out of the question, preposterous and out of the question but it was making Shawna's heartbeat a mile-a-minute!

The cruise ship suddenly shook violently and Shawna was almost knocked off balance but Shinichi caught her. "Are you alright, Your Highness?"

Shawna yelped and jumped out of his arms. "Y-y-yes!" she responded. "Thank you."

Shinichi cocked his eyebrow as Rena shrugged but then his eyes narrowed, "It felt like we hit something." He then heard something and looked at the railing. "Girls, get behind me." Grappling hooks had been thrown over the railing and they pulled back before getting secured on the railing. Shinichi's fists clenched in anticipation as more and more grappling hooks were thrown onto the railing and then several figures were climbing over. Shinichi recognized them.

W14's.

"Girls, run!" Shinichi shouted but the W14's had cut off their escape route, "Kuso!"

"Mr. Samurai!" Shawna gasped as one of the androids leapt at Shinichi only to be blown to pieces by a shotgun shot.

Shinichi gripped the weapon in his hands, a cold expression in his eyes. "Headshot," he stated as he pumped the gun, releasing the empty shell, and prepared to do his duty as Princess Shawna's butler.

* * *

Alice, for some reason, was attacking everyone on the main deck. Her wings were out and she was throwing fireballs everywhere. Lala and the other girls tried to get her to stop but she repelled them with her bladed wings. Bishie tried to restrain her with her vines but Alice's wings sliced them to ribbons and the others girls were hesitating. Despite the fact Alice could kill them, she was still just a little girl.

Alan came across the scene, ring glowing, and shouted, "ALICE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!-?" When she turned to face him, all he saw was the terror and confusion in her eyes.

"DADDY, HELP ME!" she screamed as she flew at him and started to attack with her wings, slashing at him rapidly. While she was not in control of her body, she was still consciously aware of what she was doing and wanted it to stop, "DADDY! HELP ME DADDY! I CAN'T STOP! HELP ME, DADDY!"

While many could only see a monster or weapon, all Alan could see was his terrified daughter who was helpless to stop herself and crying in fear.

A blade came dangerously close to cutting Alan in half but he avoided it in the nick of time as the other girls gasped.

"Alan!" Lala cried.

"No, it's fine!" Alan called back. "Alice, it'll be okay, baby girl! Daddy will help you!" He then extinguished a fireball that was shot at him.

"I'm so sorry, Daddy!" Alice apologized as she continued her barrage.

"It's fine, Alice. It's fine," he told her soothingly, "And don't worry. Everything will be alright."

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi was dealing with the W14's that were climbing aboard. "Sorry, but if you got no ticket then you can't get on!" He swiftly dealt with them, knocking them overboard as he tried to keep Shawna and Rena safe from harm's way. He wondered if Alan and Yui knew what was going on right now.

"GX Henshin!" called Shinichi and in a flash he transformed into Kamen Rider Showa GX. He then changed again, "Let's Ride: X!" As Kamen Rider X he brandished the Ridol Sword. The W14's attacked with their own swords as well but the Rider was able to deflect and counter their blows.

"Your Highness!" Chris cried out as he and Anthony ran along the promenade deck. They had heard the commotion and knowing that their princess was in danger quickly acted. Using their skills and strengths, the two royal bodyguards were knocking W14's who stood in their way overboard. Of course, they were still climbing aboard with their ropes and grappling hooks.

"Chris! Anthony!" Showa shouted at them. They nearly didn't recognize him because of his different armor. He ordered, "Get the princess and Rena out of here!"

"Alright," Chris nodded. He took hold of Rena and carried her bridal style as he ran off, quickly dodging incoming W14's. Anthony, apologizing, threw the princess over her shoulder as she was being carried off shouted Shinichi's name.

"Alright," said Showa as he faced the W14's that surrounded him. "Time to get rid of some stowaways." He ran a hand up his blade before rushing into battle.

* * *

Up in the bridge, the captain and all the other bridge officers working in the area of the ship were all tied up and lying unconscious on the floor and their place had been taken over by W14 androids with Glacier Walrus now taking over the position as captain.

"Argh, now this fine vessel is befitting someone such as I," said Glacier Walrus, grinning wide. It was so easy to take over the cruise ship, it seemed.

"If you're not busy playing captain, there are some interlopers we need to deal with," said Spider Ninja.

"Fine, you eight-legged landlubber," huffed Glacier Walrus. "You lead the way, argh."

The door was opened but then Spider Ninja was knocked down by a white blur.

"Leaving so soon?" purred Liger Zero as she leaned in the door frame. Since Liger was currently a girl, the suit fitted her figure and accentuated her curves.

"Aren't you out of your element, lass?" Glacier Walrus asked. Liger Zero looked at him.

"The costume party isn't today," Liger Zero jeered.

"This not be a costume, lass. But if you like, I'll be taking it off," said Glacier Walrus and he tossed away his pirate attire to reveal himself as a walrus-like humanoid android. His body was muscular with broad shoulders and he had tusks that looked like icicles. Over one eye he had an eye-patch with a laser equipped to it and he had an anchor equipped to his right arm and a harpoon equipped to his left arm.

"Take care of this," ordered Spider Ninja as he got up and dashed past Liger Zero who had to deal with Glacier Walrus.

"Shall we dance, lassie?" asked Glacier Walrus. "Oh, and what be your name?"

"Liger," the Kamen Rider responded.

"And you shall refer to me as Admiral Glacier Walrus."

* * *

Spider Ninja was running along the promenade deck before he was forced to jump back when Showa came at him from the shadows. The Rider was in his ninja-like Kage Form and was armed with a pair of ninjato.

"Why are you here?" demanded Showa. If anything, Gebok was up to no good.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" sneered Spider Ninja as he also took out his weapons, brandishing a sword in each hand.

The two started to clash blades, sparks flying. Spider Ninja was definitely a master of Kenjutsu but so was Shinichi as he blocked Spider Ninja's blows and delivered his own. Sparks flew. Then Showa pinned him against the wall and demanded, "Talk! Where is Rina?"

"Rina?" Spider Ninja asked. He realized who Showa was referring to, "Oh, you mean Electric Butterfly."

"Where is she?" Showa repeated.

"Oh, she's with Dr. X and he's being _very_ thorough with her," grinned Spider Ninja. The android then kicked Showa back before reaching for his smoke bombs and tossed them to the ground. Showa was blinded by the smoke and was then hit by Spider Ninja who tackled into him. He hit the railing and rolled away from Spider Ninja's swords as they came down at him.

"Take this!" Spider Ninja fired kunai and shuriken at Showa. As he was deflecting them, more W14's started climbing aboard. "Take care of him," Spider Ninja ordered as he dashed away.

"Get back here!" shouted Showa. the W14's stood in his path. "Get out of my way!"

* * *

Back with Alan, he was trying to restrain Alice but her power was too great for even him to hold. That and he had to hold back because he might accidentally hurt her. As dangerous as she was right now she was just an innocent with a cruel puppeteer pulling the strings.

Those blades she had on her back were able to cut through his ring's constructs and he wasn't about to use Bazel or else he might harm her. Alice was not a killer android in his eyes. She was his daughter and as her father he would save her.

Spider Ninja arrived and watched. To him it would appear that Chaos Doll was back in Dr. X's control, at least physically. He could see the turmoil on the android girl's face and could guess that Dr. X was getting off on this. He then spun around and saw Showa coming at him. "Damn it, those pieces of junk," he growled. He and Showa then began their clash anew, sparks erupting from their weapons impacting.

* * *

Back on the bridge, Liger Zero and Glacier Walrus were trading blows. While he didn't have her speed, he had overwhelming raw power and the space in the bridge didn't allow her much room to maneuver. Using her other forms would not be smart right now.

And then Glacier Walrus' chest panels opened up to reveal a cannon.

"Oh shit," Liger Zero cursed as Glacier Walrus fired a cannonball that hit her in the chest and sent her flying back and rolling out the bridge.

"Heh," Glacier Walrus snickered before he walked out to follow her in order to continue their little dance.

* * *

Alice sobbed as she was hurting her daddy. Why was she doing this? She couldn't understand. Her body was moving by itself and hurting her daddy who she loved very much. She didn't want to do this. She wanted to stop! "DADDY, HELP ME!"

"Bazel, any ideas?" asked Alan.

"Hold on, Alan," said Bazel. "I'm detecting a frequency."

"A frequency? You mean that's what controlling Alice?"

"Yes!"

"Then where is it!-?" Alan asked.

Bazel called, "Yo, bug boy!" shouted Bazel. Spider Ninja and Showa were still grappling but the Rider heard the armband, "Zap that spider guy!"

Showa nodded and morphed into Oni Form. Spider Ninja's eyes widened as the horns on Showa's helmet crackled with energy before hitting him with a bolt of lightning that sent him sliding across the deck.

"Damn it!" Spider Ninja cursed as his body started to short out from Showa's attack. At the same time Alice dropped down, weak and tired as her wings retracted in her body.

Alan caught her gently in his arms. "Don't worry sweetheart. I've got you." Alan then targeted Spider Ninja with his ring, trapping him in a green sphere of energy.

"Hey, let me out!" shouted Spider Ninja in panic as the sphere started to shrink. Alan glared at him.

"I hope you're listening Gebok. You just fucked up. You thought Shinichi was bad, but you've gone too far now. You messed with my family Gebok. I'm coming for you now." He then crushed Spider Ninja and compacted him into a baseball sized sphere.

Showa whistled as he picked up the compacted sphere and complimented him, "Nice."

Alan was holding Alice in his arms as she slept soundly. His angry expression was replaced by a somber one as he held his android daughter close. He was just relieved that it was all over now.

That was when Glacier Walrus and Liger Zero suddenly crashed down on the deck. They were rolling along the deck before Glacier Walrus managed to throw her off.

"Argh…" Glacier Walrus groaned as he got to his feet and shook his head to shake off the dizziness. Liger Zero, like any cat, landed gracefully on her feet. Showa glared at the Android Beast.

"If you know what's good for you, I suggest you get off this ship before I use my fists to send you as scrap to Gebok," Showa threatened.

"Aah-ahhh! You have a woman's hand, Black 13!" Glacier Walrus stated.

"Huh?" Showa uttered, not expecting such a response.

"I'll wager these dainty pinkies never weighed anchor in a storm that nearly killed your first crew," Glacier Walrus continued.

"Well, no... not really." Showa replied. He was feeling a little confused now.

"Look, this conversation is stupid, can we get to the fight-" before Alan could say anything else Glacier Walrus shouted

"You have delicate skin as well Green Lantern! I'll wager it ne'er felt the lash of a whip, been rubbed with salt, and then flayed off by a pirate chief to make fine stockings for his best cabin boy, argh!" Glacier Walrus stated

"Well, never have yours," Alan said whilst rolling his eyes.

"Haha, so you two do have spunk in ya like the doctor said. You're not a bunch of landlubber wimps, almost seems a shame to kill you now, argh," Glacier Walrus commented.

"Kill us?" snorted Showa. "You and what army?"

"Dude, you did not just say _that_," Liger Zero groaned. Suddenly, W14's leapt over the railing and onto the deck, backing up Glacier Walrus.

"Crap! And I thought I got all of them!" cursed Showa.

"And we even got these fine lasses too," jeered Glacier Walrus. The W14's were holding Shawna and Rena as hostages. However, the W14s were quickly dispatched as their heads were removed by a blue blur in one shot. "What in the blazes?-!" Glacier Walrus gawked.

Liger Jäger blurred out of sight and looked to the girls, "Go find some cover, you two." Rena nodded and took Shawna inside. Liger Jäger turned to the Admiral and waved her Liger Pass, "Time to go ballistic, Admiral." She pressed the green button on her buckle and swiped the Pass.

"**PANZER FORM!"**

Her Panzer armor materialized onto her body and she roared before charging at the Android Beast. Glacier Walrus thrust forth his harpoon and Liger Panzer caught it with ease. He then swung down his anchor, which was caught as well. The two powerhouses struggled against one another as they fought for dominance.

Meanwhile, Showa had just jumped overboard. He concluded that Glacier Walrus, Spider Ninja and the W14's had arrived on a vessel. He dove into the water and transformed into Biorider. "Gotcha," Showa said as he caught the submarine in his sights. He then proceeded to swim towards it. With his present form's natural affinity towards water, Showa moved fluidly without obstruction. He was actually shooting through the water like a torpedo.

Inside the submarine, he was detected on their radar screen. The submarine fired torpedoes at him but he drew out Biorider's Bio Blade and countered the torpedoes as he slashed at them, allowing them to explode but not do any damage against him as he was using Biorider's powers. The underwater explosions did cause the cruise ship to shake but there was no damage.

The torpedoes were then replaced by W14's as they were shot at him but like the torpedoes they were sliced to pieces by his sword. He then continued to shoot towards the submarine at full speed.

The Bio Blade of RX Biorider cut through the hull of the submarine and allowed him to slip through as water started to spill into the vessel. The W14's, spotting him, attacked but he was ready for them as any Kamen Rider would.

Back on the cruise ship, Glacier Walrus chuckled, "Ye got some fine skills on ya, lassie. Ye would make a fine first mate aboard my vessel, argh."

Liger Panzer chuckled, "I'm flattered, but I'm already with a crew!" She head butted the Android Beast, shattering his ice tusks and sending flying through the wall. "Don't think I'm done with you yet!" She dashed forward with surprising speed and grabbed Glacier Walrus by the leg, tossing him back and forth like a ragdoll and tossed him onto the deck with the walrus sliding towards the bow of the ship.

Glacier Walrus struggled to get up as Liger Panzer approached. He opened his chest and fired another cannon ball that made contact with the female Rider and exploded, but made no damage to the android's surprise. "Not even a scratch," he muttered.

"That's superior tech for ya," Liger Panzer remarked.

"I suppose ye be true," the pirate admitted, "It appears I have met me match, argh."

"It was a good fight," Liger Panzer nodded as she swiped her pass.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Her shoulder cannons charged and she called out, **"Hyper Cannons!"** She fired and the two blasts vaporized her opponent as the beams flew into the sky. The armor shattered into shards of energy as Yui gave Glacier Walrus a final salute.

* * *

Back at X-SHOCKER HQ, Spider Ninja groaned as he stepped out of a pod. It was fortunate that his AI was able to jump out of his previous body and into this backup before it got crushed. He saw Dr. X watching the monitor and asked, "What did I miss?"

Dr. X ignored the inquiry, his attention focused on Alan's threat as he played it back, "_I hope you're listening Gebok. You just fucked up. You thought Shinichi was bad, but you've gone too far now. You messed with my family Gebok. I'm coming for you now._"

"I'd like to see you try, my boy," Gebok challenged. Another monitor showed some sort of creature floating in a large tube and he cackled aloud.

Electric Butterfly frowned as she walked away. She needed to be alone and think about the things she'd learnt.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, it's like a curse. Even when heroes go on vacation it never is a vacation for them since their enemies come after them. Also, what happened to Dr. Hasuma? Will he be alright? What did Rena offer Shawna? Find out in the next installment of KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Some badass battles took place in this chapter. Wonder if Ryuki is gonna be OK. Anyway, hope y'all enjoy this one.**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: Pretty intense chap as both ARMOR and the rest of the heroes were called into action. Hope Ryuki will be alright. And it looks like Alan is finally ready to take Gebok seriously.**


	38. The Fall of X Shocker Part 11

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 11: Birthday Party Crashers.**

The cruise ship stopped to port at Genovia. As for our heroes, they managed to resolve everything which had occurred by erasing the memories of all the civilians, save a select few like Rena, Shawna and her bodyguards. After that the rest of the cruise trip felt like an actual vacation even if they had hit rough waters the other day.

During the trip, the group had fun at the pool and took advantage of all the cruise ship's facilities. Alan spent most of his time with Alice to see how she was recovering. Fortunately, everything she had experienced when she'd been under Dr. X's control was shrugged off as just being a nightmare with a happy ending. She remembered her adopted father saving her.

Speaking of the pool, Amora, Bishie and Conda had caused quite the stir. The Amazon Queen's bathing suit really showed off her figure and so did Amora's but Bishie's suit was extra skimpy and should be considered illegal in most places. She just wanted to sunbathe and take in the rays. She was a plant, after all. Even Celine was enjoying herself and fortunately stayed away from any soda for the sake of everyone's sanity.

Shawna, of course, was still a little troubled by Rena's words and it was reflected in her awkward interaction with Shinichi. He either didn't notice or chose to ignore it until she decided to tell him herself. He would give her time to get her thoughts reorganized as he busied himself with his self-appointed duties as her butler.

At the port, horse-drawn carriages were waiting for the group. Rena, Yui, Shawna and Shinichi got into one, Alan, Lala, Yami, Celine and Alice got into the second one, leaving Conda, Amora, Momo, Nana, Bishie and Nozomu to squeeze themselves into the third one. Chris and Anthony were riding alongside the drivers of the first and second carriages.

As the carriages were being pulled towards the palace, Shawna played with her fingers awkwardly. She was sitting next to Shinichi while Rena was seated across from him with Yui next to her. She tried to force her blush down but just being close to Shinichi right now was causing her insides to tremble. Earlier, at the pool, Shinichi had volunteered to put on some sun block lotion on her and she'd insisted that Yui put it on her out of embarrassment. Speaking of Yui, the girl-who-was-really-a-boy really looked good in a two-piece. It almost made you forget that Yui was really a man but was now in a girl's body.

Shawna did notice, of course, Shinichi scribbling something down on a notebook frequently. When she inquired about it, he just told her it was something for his mother. "Research material," he'd summed it up

Having Shinichi as a friend was both exciting and amazing as he was simply one of a kind and there was simply nobody like him in the world. Also, he trusted her as he'd confided in her about his secrets like how he became a Rider in the first place. She'd been sympathetic and tried to comfort him as a friend should.

What she didn't know was that when Shinichi first find out where he got his powers from he considered his abilities a curse and wanted to leave Hinamizawa to protect them from his curse. He pretty much put distance between himself and his friends so they would not be 'contaminated' or 'corrupted' by him. However, he soon learnt that was not the case. His friends didn't want him to leave and he realized that using the powers Gebok gave him against him was just the perfect sort of revenge. To them he wasn't some mad scientist's crazy science project. He was a hero. And to Shawna he was her 'Mr. Samurai' whom she had fallen in love with that day he came to protect her like all the stories she'd read.

She didn't know that Kamen Riders were destined to suffer in loneliness because of their abilities. They were forced to distance themselves from others and avoid from forging bonds so that innocents would not be caught in the crossfire in the war between themselves and their enemies. The true curse of being a Kamen Rider was loneliness as they could not find anyone to share their pain and secret with and had to face everything alone.

Well, not all Riders suffered in loneliness for long. Being a Kamen Rider was often associated with personal tragedy but Riders could rise above it and find happiness; maybe not in the past, but maybe in the present and the future.

"Mr. Samurai," began Shawna as she saw him talking into his watch, "What are you doing?"

"I've been trying to contact ARMOR but I can't get through," Shinichi told her. "I keep getting this annoying answering machine voice but nobody to actually take my call." Giving up, he leaned his head backwards. "What the heck is going on?"

* * *

Ryuki survived with minimal injury. Warren only intended to knock him out and had succeeded with a lot of collateral damage as a result, of course. It would take a while to seal up that crater in the middle of the floor but at least they had things under control now. Ryuki did sport many other injuries. It was like he'd been tortured over a long period of time.

Joseph had returned. Ryuki had sent him on an assignment earlier but now he was back to check on his partner. Brimstone was there too and licking Ryuki's face in an attempt to awaken him. The demon dog made pathetic whining sounds as it tried to rouse his master back to consciousness.

"What happened to him?" Jinx asked as she looked at her unconscious husband. He was strapped down, tight, and those straps would not break. Even the Hulk wouldn't be able to break those bonds.

After scanning Ryuki, the scanners picked up something and put it on the monitor. There was a chip that had been implanted into the base of Ryuki's skull and it had wires all connected to Ryuki's brain and central nervous system.

"I've seen this before," said Dr. Magi. "It's what Gebok used to control Shinichi back when he was part of GIN-SHOCKER. This was what made Shinichi into an emotionless killing machine."

"Then get it out of him!" Jinx ordered.

Dr. Magi added, "I will work on removing the implant."

"Me too," said Takada. "Nobody hurts Ryuki." He turned to glare at Ichijyo who didn't appear to be guilty of trying to kill Draco earlier. "Don't you have anything to say, snake?"

"I was only keeping my promise," Ichijyo justified. "He wouldn't have been able to live with himself if he hurt so many innocent people and the people he loved."

**SMACK!**

Ichijyo's face was knocked to the side by a tight slap to his face courtesy of Jinx. She looked at him angrily. "Don't you ever do that again!" she threatened.

"Can you do that again?" Takada asked. "I wanna get a picture of that for my blog."

He ordered Dr. Magi and Takada, "Assemble the best we have in the field of medicine, surgery and technology. Use all our resources at your disposal. You are getting that implant out of him if it's the last thing you'll do."

"I'll help too," volunteered Ichijyo.

"You've 'helped' enough," Warren glared at the Vampangel. Warren's hands were gripped into fists. He was mad, beyond mad. Heck, mad was an understatement. What he felt was righteous, demonic, fury and rage. Gebok had gone too far once more. "That's it. No more dancing around this joker. X-Shocker falls now." He put out the order with his fist raised, "AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!"

Ryuga smirked as he heard this. Things were finally getting interesting around here.

* * *

The streets of the kingdom were all decorated in celebration of Princess Shawna's birthday. The commoners who lived in the kingdom all waved at the passing carriages and Shawna happily waved back. She was a well-loved figure in the kingdom, just like the king.

The horse carriages were pulled into the palace grounds and Alice gasped as she saw the size of it. "Wow, it's just like the castles in the storybooks!" she admired.

"That's right, honey," said Alan. "It's a real castle because Shawna's a real princess."

"Like Aunt Lala?" Alice asked.

"Yes, like your Aunt Lala, and your Aunt Conda is a queen," he added.

"Does she have a castle too?" asked Alice.

"Well…" the Amazon Queen didn't actually have a castle but she did have a kingdom. Even Amora lived in a castle in Asgard. Actually, all the Asgardian deities lived in castles with Odin living in the grand palace for being the King of the Asgardian Deities. "You could say that."

"I wanna see it!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"One castle at a time, Alice. One castle at a time." Alan laughed. It seemed that Alice had recovered from her horrific ordeal without any repercussions.

The carriages stopped and the drivers opened the doors for them. "Everyone, welcome to my home."

"The king is waiting for you, Your Highness," said Chris.

"Oh, yes. We must meet Father," smiled Shawna. "I want to introduce you all to him."

* * *

The King of Genovia, Edward, sat at his throne as his daughter and her companions entered the throne room. He smiled at the sight of Shinichi, his ideal fiancé candidate for his daughter. It'd been a long time since his last visit and the king wanted to give him a big welcome. He also saw several others whom he recognized based on their descriptions after Shawna's last visit to Japan during the summer. There were new faces, though.

Considering they were all facing royalty, everyone knelt down, even Amora and Conda who normally didn't bow before anyone on Earth. Shawna, of course, just ran up to her father and gave him a hug.

"So, did you enjoy your trip?" asked King Edward.

"Yes, indeed, Father," beamed Shawna. "Of course there was an incident."

"What sort of incident?" asked Shawna's father. He was rather protective of his only child.

"Well…" Shawna wasn't sure how to say it but, "I shall tell you later but rest assured that it was resolved."

"Ah, yes," King Edward nodded. "Resolved, and I think I know by whom." He looked to Shinichi. "Mr. Banabara, please rise."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Shinichi stood up straight and bowed. "I am at your service."

King Edward looked at Shinichi's attire. He was dressed like a butler. "Why are you dressed like that, young man?"

"Is a butler not meant to dress as a butler?" Shinichi answered with a question, smiling. King Edward blinked at the response then laughed with merriment.

"I see, I see. So you've decided to be my princess' butler then," the king said. "Everyone, please rise and introduce yourselves." They did so, one by one. King Edward couldn't help but smile at all the new friends his daughter had made.

Yui was the last to introduce herself, "And I am Princess Shawna's maid, Yui Fudo." King Edward didn't know she was really a guy in the form of a girl. It would seem wrong just to prove him otherwise.

"You have quite loyal friends, my daughter," said King Edward.

"Yes, I do," Shawna smiled, blushing as she glanced at Shinichi.

"Your Majesty, may I inquire if Her Highness' birthday party is tonight?" asked Shinichi.

"Ah, yes," confirmed King Edward. "It is, and will be held in the main ballroom."

"I do hope what occurred last year does not repeat itself then," stated Shinichi.

"I'm sure it won't. I doubt anyone would try after what you did," King Edward replied. Shinichi had saved everyone by confronting the terrorists and taking them out in a lightning fast fashion. The terrorists had been apprehended and locked away for good.

"Your Majesty, you must not underestimate the tenacity of evil men," Shinichi advised. "There are individuals who will try, time and again, to get what they want and let nothing stop them." He was speaking from experience as Gebok never seemed to give up and always rose back from the dead in a new form or another.

"I shall have the guards on high alert for any intruders then," the king said. "Now, you all must be tired. Please, rest yourselves before the festivities begin."

* * *

"A costume party! A costume party!" Alice cheered excitedly as she jumped up and down on the bed with Celine.

"Mau! Mau!" the plant girl cheered as well.

"Girls, calm down," Alan chided. They then leapt off the bed and into his arms, knocking him down, laughing. "OK, enough of that."

Yami and Bishie took their daughters off Alan as he got up and fixed up his clothes. Alan was sharing a room with Bishie and Yami with their daughters. The two little girls wanted a lot of his attention and he had plenty to give, but right now he needed to concentrate.

A costume ball was a big deal since this was also as much a royal event as it was one to celebrate Shawna's day of birth. A lot of nobles and royalties would be attending. They were either related to the king in some way or another or even close friends. Therefore, Alan and his girls needed to behave appropriately. Oh, sure, he knew Lala and her sisters knew how to act among royalty as they were royalty, and it was the same for Amora and Conda. He was just worried about Nozomu since she was new and if there was a buffet she would target all the meat and not share.

They still needed costume though, but Alan wouldn't need to worry about that. They all had ways of getting costumes. The least they could do is put on a fancy mask and that was it. Costume balls and masquerade balls were all alike. Alan already had an idea of what to wear for the party.

* * *

"Sylvia!" Shawna threw her arms around her cousin who was dressed in her fencing uniform. She'd been practicing with her instructor when Shawna burst into the room, surprising her.

"Shawna!" Sylvia exclaimed in surprise as did Marie who'd been watching.

"Ah, Cousin Shawna!" beamed Marie.

Sylvie pulled away from Shawna's hug. She wasn't into the whole touchy-feely thing, even among family, but she was happy to see her cousin. "I'm so glad you decided to attend my party."

"Why would I miss it?" Sylvia responded. She looked over Shawna's shoulder to see Shinichi and Yui. "I see you've brought along company."

"A lot, actually," said Yui, "We're just visiting, though." Shinichi nudged her with an elbow. "I mean…" Yui curtsied, "I am Princess Shawna's personal maid, Yui Fudo."

"And I am her personal butler," added Shinichi, kneeling and bowing, "Shin Black."

"Shin Black?" Sylvia repeated.

"It's just something he decided to do on a whim," Shawna explained.

"Like when he swung from a chandelier to give you your present last year?" asked Sylvia. "Everyone is still talking about it."

"I did make quite the impression, didn't I?" smirked Shinichi.

"Well, your present, as simple as it was, did put a smile on her face," Sylvia pointed out. "I didn't expect a doll to do that."

"Action Figure," Shinichi corrected, "And neither did I."

Yui rolled her eyes, muttering, "Yeah right." Shinichi totally knew that the action figure would make Shawna smile. She had pretty much become Shinichi's #1 fan and anything resembling him would be part of her collection. He wouldn't he surprise if Shawna had her room decorated with Kamen Rider memorabilia. Of course, she would hide the stuff.

"I sure hope you will enjoy tonight's party then, and let's hope nothing bad happens this time," Sylvia stated.

Shinichi advised, "Miss Sylvia, one must not tempt fate. You will simply jinx yourself."

"What's the worst that can happen?" snorted Sylvia. Yui wanted to slap her forehead.

'_She just had to say that, didn't she?_' the disguised Manakyte thought.

"If anything does happen, I will take care of it personally," said Shinichi with upmost confidence, "I am, after all, a multitalented Kamen Rider."

"Multitalented?" Sylvia took the fencing sword from her instructor and tossed it to Shinichi who deftly caught it in his hand. "Prove it then."

The instructor asked, "Would you like any protection?"

"No, I don't that will be necessary," said Shinichi as he bent the fencing sword playfully before allowing it to snap back straight. He and Sylvia faced each other and went into fencing stances. "Shall we?"

Sylvia smirked and put on her protective mask before adopting a similar stance, "Yes, we shall."

And the two charged at each other, trading blows. Already, Yui could tell Shinichi was holding a lot back. Sylvia was still just a normal human and she wasn't much compared to someone with cybernetic enhancements like Shinichi.

* * *

Later, Shinichi entered the king's chambers. He'd been summoned by King Edward himself. The two men met in private. One was the ruler of Genovia and the other had saved the world. Both men were also protective of their homes and would go to any lengths to protect them. King Edward knew from the second he first laid eyes on Shinichi that the boy was a warrior. Even if Shinichi tried to hide it there was no deceiving the king. He had been part of the military as well before marrying Shawna's mother.

"What have you summoned me for, Your Majesty?" asked Shinichi as he knelt before the king.

"You may rise, Shinichi Banabara," said the king and Shinichi did, standing up with his hands behind him. "You received my letter, did you not?"

"Yes, I have."

"And you have not divulged its contents to my daughter?"

"No, I have not."

"And may I assume that you've assumed the role as her butler as a way to adhere to my request?"

"Yes, you may."

King Edward nodded, "Good, good, that is what I want to hear."

Before Shawna had left for her trip to England, King Edward had received a rather threatening letter. Someone was out to kidnap his daughter and on her birthday no less. He would've ignored it and considered it a joke if the letter had not been written in blood red ink. It had been an alarming sight and the king nearly did not allow his daughter to leave. However, he had received news from an informant of his and the identity of the informant was none other than Shogo Kuso.

Shogo had informed him that Shinichi intended to attend the Shawna's birthday. The news greatly relieved the king of his worries. Still, he needed to inform Shinichi of the danger that his daughter was under so he wrote a letter and handed it to Chris so he could deliver it to Shinichi the next time he saw him.

That was also why he would not call off the party. It was his daughter's birthday and if Shinichi would be attending. From the information he managed to get from Shogo, Shinichi would be able to properly protect Shawna. After all, Shinichi had saved the world from a demonic invasion and had done plenty of other good things.

The king actually wanted to knight Shinichi right now but such a thing needed to be done with witnesses of the royal court.

* * *

Rena was experiencing a dream, a big dream, a really, really, great dream! She was going to be dancing at a costume ball! How exciting!

She was with Shawna, Sylvia and Marie and they were all picking out costumes. Shawna even allowed Rena to borrow one of her own dresses with a mask.

When Rena put on the dress and mask, she couldn't believe the transformation. She looked like a princess! She looked so cute in the mirror she just wanted to bring herself home right now!

Sylvia's costume was masculine as she decided to dress as one of the Three Musketeers, even putting on a fake moustache to make herself look like a man. Shawna, of course, picked a beautiful ball gown, complete with a mask as well. She and Rena were wearing almost matching costumes, it seemed, but there were differences. Shawna's gown was pink while Rena's was white. Both girls wore tiaras.

* * *

As the night of the costume ball began, guests began to fill up the ball room. Just as expected, they were of the noble and royal class. Their gifts had also been placed in a special section of the room designated just for them. The guests wore all sorts of costumes but generally they opted with just wearing masks. There were still those who wore elaborate looking costumes as well. An orchestra was playing music to provide the atmosphere for the party and some couples were dancing together.

Alan and his girls were a sight to behold as well. Lala was dressed in her default costume provided by Peke and her sisters wore their usual clothes with the addition of bat wings and devil horns. Conda wore a purple, sleeveless, cheongsam with a scale-like pattern and gold snake embroidered around her body, like the snake was wrapping itself around her. She also held a fan and wore a mask. Amora was dressed as her Enchantress persona and a lot of men stopped for a moment to admire the two beauties in Alan's company. Nozomu just wore her school uniform, but she was in her true form as was Bishie who just turned off her image inducer. Yami also wore her work clothes. Alice was dressed in her nun's habit and Celine was wearing a beautiful dress with flowers all over it. She looked really cute too.

Finally, there was Alan who decided to wear something in honor of the man he was named after. He wore a tight red shirt with long red sleeves that had a picture of a green lantern on his chest and green pants with a brown leather belt around his waist. He also wore red knee high boots. Hanging from his shoulders was a black cape with green lining that also had a high collar. Finishing the costume off was a domino mask that was stuck over his eyes. Since he could not remove Bazel, the armband still remained but the shocking park of the costume was the lack of his Green Lantern ring. Instead, he wore an imitation of his mentor's ring.

Alan was dressed as Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern of Earth.

"My darling," said Conda, "Are you sure you should be walking around without your ring?"

"I have to agree, dearest," said Amora. "Wouldn't you be vulnerable without it?"

"Relax, girls," Alan reassured them. "It's not like I'm totally defenseless."

"That's right, he's got me and he's actually got a lot of power in his pinky. Of course, you all know what kind of power he has in his pinky, don't you?" The last part of the sentence was rather suggestive coming from Bazel.

"Bazel, what did I tell you about talking like that to my girls?" warned Alan.

"Heh, like I really listen," responded Bazel. If he had shoulders, he'd be shrugging them. "I normally just fall asleep or tune you out."

"Bazel…" Alan growled.

Yui was dressed in 1700's colonial clothing, with her hair down and tied back in a ponytail. She looked like a Yankee of the American Revolution. She was leaning against the wall, falling asleep after all the work she had been doing as Shawna's maid. She didn't mind the work, but she barely had any time to sleep and the hours were catching up to her.

"Is everything alright, darling?"

Yui opened her eyes to see a young woman in front of her. Her purple hair was done up in a French bun and her eyes were covered by a purple mask. She wore a black Victorian outfit trimmed in purple and hid her face with a fan.

Yui grinned, "I know it's you, Misato-chan. I can smell the blood on you."

She folded the fan and smiled, "Been a while, darling."

"How did you even get in here?"

"I was an assassin in a past life," she reminded, "So, may you escort me onto the dance floor?"

Yui took her hand and bowed, "I'd be honored, milady."

The two made their way to the dance floor, Yui taking an arm around Misato's waist and they held hands as they waltzed. Their dancing brought the attention of the other guests as they watched.

"Never seen them before."

"Who could they be?"

"I heard the colonial gentlemen works for Her Highness."

"I thought her new servant was a maid with spiky hair."

"How did he get his hair like that?"

"He seems quite attractive."

Misato giggled and whispered, "Looks like you're the talk of the party, darling."

Yui nuzzled her cheek and responded, "Guess I'm more awesome than I thought." Misato rolled her eyes in amusement.

That was when the trumpeters blew their horns, announcing the arrival of Princess Shawna and her father, King Edward. Everyone stood and watched them walk into the ballroom, hand-in-hand. Walking behind them were Rena and Shinichi.

Shinichi's costume was a memorable one and something he'd worn back when he infiltrated GIN-SHOCKER and was made their High Commander, only to later show his true colors and crush them. He was clad in a black leather coat that reached his knees with crimson shoulder pads. On the back of the coat was GIN-SHOCKER's emblem. Under the coat he wore a blood red turtleneck shirt with GIN-SHOCKER's emblem on his chest. He wore black pants and brown leather boots with a belt that had GIN-SHOCKER's emblem on his belt buckle. Worn on his hands were black leather gloves with XIII on the back. Over his eyes were blood red shades. His hair seemed to be a shade darker as well.

Right now, he looked like a dark and imposing figure that could coldheartedly cut down his allies and enemies alike. This was Shinichi as High Commander BLACK 13. Shawna, when she first laid eyes on him in his costume, almost couldn't believe the change that had occurred.

Shinichi's eyes scanned the crowd. Anyone and everyone was a suspect, all except for his friends and allies. He spotted Misato with Yui and while he didn't trust Misato all that much he trusted Yui to keep her in line. Besides, kidnapping was not Misato's MO. She would rather kill a person on the spot and drain their blood. Kidnappings were more Jin's style.

He then heard what the guests were saying about him.

"Isn't that Mr. Banabara?"

"The young man who presented the doll to Her Highness last year?"

"I remember he came down from the chandelier."

"Quite entertaining, really."

Shinichi thought, 'Well, at least I know I made a lasting impression on them.' His ears then picked up what was being said about Rena who was with him.

"I wonder who that may be..."

"I hear she's in a relationship with Mr. Banabara."

"She's a lucky girl then. That young man is a hero. He saved us singlehandedly from those terrorists last year."

"What are you smiling about?" Rena whispered.

"Oh, just the usual stuff," he answered, smiling, "Just glad to be here." His eyes scanned the room. He couldn't see the snob from last year anywhere. It was almost a shame, really. Shinichi wanted to still rub it in his face that a 'doll' beat his diamond-covered dress.

"Why don't you all have fun?" the king suggested. Shawna nodded and smiled as she looped an arm around Shinichi's left as Rena looped her own arm around his right. Shinichi smiled as he escorted the two ladies towards the centre of the ballroom.

"Shin-kun, dance with Shawna-chan first," Rena suggested. She removed herself from Shinichi and politely backed away to join the crowd who'd formed a circle around the princess and her butler.

"Shall we dance, Your Highness?" requested Shinichi politely as he took Shawna's hand and bowed.

"Of course, my good sir," smiled Shawna.

Alan was on the dance floor as well, moving to the music. He was dancing with his adorable daughter Alice. He had her hands in his and she was standing on his feet so they could move together.

Shawna blushed as she danced in Shinichi's arms. Everyone watched as the "General" waltzed with the princess of the evening. This was probably the greatest night of her life.

Rena smiled widely as she watched the dance. She saw Shawna's face and felt good that her friend was able to enjoy herself.

"Her Highness is having fun," Yui observed as she came up next to Rena.

Rena nodded, "She looks so cute right now."

"By the way, are you sure about your plan, Rena?"

She blinked, "How did you know?"

Yui shrugged, "Judging from your constant smile and Shawna's constant blushing, and I read between the lines. So, are you really sure about this?"

Rena nodded, "Consider it a birthday present from me to Shawna-chan." The two saw Shinichi and Shawna returning. "Had fun?"

Shawna beamed, "Oh, most definitely! I believe it is your turn, Miss Rena!"

Shinichi smiled and took Rena's hand as they returned to the dance floor. "Is everything alright, Rena-chan?" he asked.

"Of course,**"** she answered with a smile.

Yui noticed Shawna's fidgeting and asked, "Is everything alright, Your Highness?"

Shawna jumped in a startled fashion, "Of course! Why wouldn't it be?-!"

Yui chuckled, "Relax, Shawna. I know about it,"

Shawna knew what she meant and sighed, "Oh, Miss Yui, what should I do? Simply accept?"

Yui nodded, "Consider it a present to you from Rena, Your Highness."

* * *

Takada reported to Warren, fearfully, "Dr. Magi and I have scanned how deep the implant went and trying to remove it is very risky. He may not even survive the process and even if he does survive it's highly that Ryuki will end up either paralyzed or a complete vegetable as a result."

Warren slammed his fist on his desk, glaring at Takada who tried to hide himself behind his chair. "We have the greatest minds in the universe at our disposal and most of them owe us favors! There is to be absolutely NO chance of that happening! Understand Takada?"

"Hai, Kanchou!" Takada trembled.

"Now, get to work! Ridding Ryuki of that implant is going to be your first priority!"

"Hai, Kanchou!" Takada bowed and then ran out of the room post haste. Warren sighed and tried to calm himself down. That was when his computer monitor flickered to life and he saw on the screen were the faces of his kids. "Tessa?" Warren asked. Tessa's face was directly in front of the webcam with the others behind her.

"_We heard what happened, Papa_," said Lucy from behind Tessa.

"_Will Uncle Ryuki be alright, Daddy?_" Tessa asked.

Warren assured her, "Of course, honey. Your Uncle Ryuki is strong. He'll be fine."

"_That's right!_" agreed Leon, whose voice was heard off-screen, "_Uncle Ryuki won't be beaten so easily!_" Leon was the one who admired his godfather the most. After all, it was Ryuki's hands that had brought him into this world.

Warren Ryuki had helped Warren to form ARMOR for the sake of peace in the Multiverse. It was an idealistic dream but a good dream nonetheless. People like Ryuki were in short supply and Ryuki was one of a kind. There was no way Warren was going to lose him.

He remembered the day they first met and Ryuki wanted to show him how wonderful being a Kamen Rider was. Well, Warren thought Riders were awesome, for sure, but didn't really compare to his idol Captain America. He and Ryuki would often argue about that but it never came to blows. They just had a difference of opinion but Ryuki, after learning about Captain America, had to admit that the superhero was just as awesome as the Riders.

Being a Kamen Rider was a huge burden, even to those who could simply discard the identity by abandoning their transformation devices. Being a Rider had nothing to do with armor or special gadgets. It was all about the will and resolve of the Rider. Ryuki had made his resolve based on his ideals and like Warren was a hero who put others before himself, making an amazing individual. Warren's kids, all of them, admired and respected him and Warren respected him too, even if he could be a little bit naïve at times.

Ryuki had changed over the years after the Vicious Wars. He'd become stiff, serious, and didn't smile as much as he did. He did still show a softer side of himself as he and Warren had tea and like Warren was a family man who loved his wife and children. Of course, that love was what made Ryuki turn into a workaholic to the point he was abandoning his family without realizing it. It took a good slap in the face from Jinx and the tears she was shedding to get him to realize that while he was working to protect his family he was also hurting them by keeping them at arm's length. Ryuki still had a lot to learn about balance but that still didn't stop him from acting like Warren's secretary and bringing him the reports and paperwork that he would just dodge until the last second. It was fun to dodge Ryuki when it came to paperwork but seeing Ryuki in his current state made him regret all those times he dodged paperwork. Sure, it was boring but like Ryuki said it was important.

Ryuki stopped being excitable at the same time his kids were born. He really worked hard to get his medical license and to become a full-fledged doctor instead of a veterinarian. His desire to become a doctor was born from his resolve to help others and in a non-violent fashion. Of course that all changed a couple of years ago when Ryuki discovered the existence of Kamen Rider Showa. It was like the time he discovered the existence of Kamen Rider Decade but multiplied. Warren actually heard Ryuki yell in excitement as he reported about Showa and his ability to become all the Legendary Kamen Riders. It was like having all his idols, even in appearance, in one neatly wrapped package. Ryuki acted like a kid in a candy store that day and who was Warren to refuse Ryuki's request to bring Shinichi into ARMOR?

He then got a call and picked up the phone, "This is Smith."

"_Yo, Warren-kanchou, this is Yui,"_ Yui answered, _"How's the Chief doing?"_

He sighed, "Stable, for now. Ryuki has a chip inside him and it's become a problem."

"_Mind control,"_ she concluded, _"I hate when that happens. I think I have an idea though."_

"I'm listening," Warren urged.

"_Have my dad take a look at him."_

Warren blinked, "Yusei Fudo?"

"_Yeah, he's the greatest scientific mind on my world and he has Aunt Luca and Luciano with him. Those three are a hell of a team,"_ Yui explained.

"And they're good with mind control chips?" Warren inquired.

"_Aunt Luca once installed a charged particle cannon in her Duel Disk and even made a bullet that has a virus,"_ Yui dead-panned.

Warren nodded, "OK then, I'll give your father a call. Thanks for the suggestion. How's that bet, by the way?"

"_Almost done and I shall be the victor,"_ Yui chuckled.

He nodded, "Good luck with that then," before he hung up. He then spoke into his intercom, "Takada, prep the OR with Dr. Magi, we may be having backup soon."

"_You got it,"_ Takada replied.

* * *

Nozomu was at the buffet table, targeting all the meat hungrily. She had filled up her plate and was gobbling meat down at record speed like she was starving. Her tail wagged happily. Even if she wasn't dancing with Alan right now, she was just happy eating meat.

Alan had switched dance partners the entire night. He started with Alice, and then he danced with Celine, followed by Yami, Bishie, Lala, Conda and finally Amora. He even asked Momo and Nana to dance with him, which they accepted. Momo was eager while Nana was a little more reluctant.

Nozomu felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to look at Alan who smiled at her. "Shall we dance?" he asked, offering his hand. She nodded and took his hand before she was pulled onto the dance floor with the other pairs who were dancing as well.

Shawna sat next to her father as they watched the rest of the party. The king smiled and it was because Shawna wore a radiant smile on her face as she watched her friends enjoy herself. "You know, you can still have him as your fiancé."

"I'd rather he make that decision himself," Shawna replied.

Shinichi was dancing with Rena when the doors were suddenly flung open as Chris was thrown into the ball room. A large group of men carrying firearms charged into the room. Shinichi and Yui almost immediately sprung into action before being stopped by Alan.

"Not yet. This is a hostage situation so we need to take things slowly and delicately. That means you Shinichi. Just wait for my signal," whispered Alan.

There was an odd hush in the room as the ringleader walked in. "Ladies and gentlemen and everyone else that I couldn't give two fucks about. I am Kid Karnevil and I'm here on behalf of the Church of Crime. Now, if you hand over the princess now we can end this with only minimal casualties."

"Church of Crime?" Shinichi whispered. He'd never heard of that group before. He looked at all the men that Kid Karnevil had brought along. They were dressed in black with hoods covering their heads. That was the description of the men who'd tried to kidnap his little sisters and Satoko.

"Now, where is the princess, I wonder…" Kid Karnevil looked at all the terrified guests. Anthony roared and rushed at Kid Karnevil.

"Shit!" swore Shinichi.

"That big idiot!" Alan cursed.

"He's gonna get himself killed!" finished Yui.

Alan rushed forward, tackling Anthony to the ground. "Don't do anything stupid. This guy will tear you to shreds for shits and giggles," warned Alan. "Leave him and his goons to me and the others." Alan stood up and faced Kid Karnevil as he straightened out his costume. "OK Karn, let's make this simple. Surrender now and I don't feed you your own fist."

"Oh, it's you, Smith," sneered Kid Karnevil. "Nice getup, by the way." He then posed, "As you can see, like you, I have decided to honor my own idol." He was dressed like the Joker. "What do you think?"

"I think you're a lunatic," said Alan.

"Flattery will get you nowhere Smith," countered Karnevil.

"Why do you want the princess?"

"That old hag Sister Sin wants to establish a foothold on this world. What better way than by taking over a country using their princess as a hostage?"

"That's not going to happen," said Alan.

"Oh, I beg to differ, Smith." Kid Karnevil tugged at his sleeves and then rolled them up his arms. "Nothing up my sleeves," he stated and then with a flick of his hand he produced a Gaia Memory. "Surprise!" He then clenched it and pressed it against the slot on his arm.

"**MADNESS!"**

Doing a dramatic twirl, Kid Karnevil transformed. He was now clad in a black bodysuit and armor in mismatched colors with eyes set on the chest and a grinning mouth on his stomach. A cape hung from his shoulders and he was wearing a black mask on his face with a huge grin on it outlined by red lips. He started to laugh uncontrollably, "**HAHAHAHAHAHA! YES! YES! THIS POWER IS GREAT! HAHAHAHAHA!**"

The rest of the grunts did the same and also transformed with identical Gaia Memories. "**MASQUERADE!**" They morphed into the Masquerade Dopants but there was no change except for the fact that they now looked like they were wearing masks with a rib-like pattern on their faces.

"Damn it," Alan growled.

"**Smith, don't even think about it. I know you don't have your ring and you can't risk going all out with all these people around**," Kid Karnevil pointed out.

Karnevil was right and with all the exits sealed off by the Masquerade Dopants they would not be able to escape. He looked to Yui and Shinichi who gave him a nod. He nodded back.

"I don't need my ring or powers to take you down, Karn," Alan told him outright.

"**Really?**" Kid Karnevil's hands then turned into a pair of wicked blades. "**We'll see about that then, Smith! Let's test that theory, shall we?**"

As Alan and Karnevil began their epic battle, Shinichi and Yui instantly made their move. They slipped away from the crowd to find a place to transform.

The Madness Dopant's blade had cut open Alan's sleeve and his grin grew wider as he saw the blood that now stained his blade, "**Ah, yes. Now this is what I call a party.**"

"All I see is a crazy party crasher," Alan snorted.

"**Oh, I am so going to enjoy ripping those loose lips from your face!**" Kid Karnevil shouted as he continued his assault. Alan dodged the blades expertly. He had been trained to face villains of many kinds and he knew Kid Karnevil personally. "**You can't beat me like this Smith! Especially without your fancy ring!**"

"It ain't the weapon Karn!" He got in close and laid a left hook across the Madness Dopant's face. "It's the soldier!" Alan was very well trained in hand to hand combat. His ring had died out on him in the worst possible situations several times before, so Alan began training himself. He learned several different martial arts from the various other Lanterns. As such, Alan was as deadly a combatant without his ring as he was with it.

Alan continued his assault on the villain. He nailed Karnevil in the chest with a palm strike before nailing him across the face with a roundhouse kick. Karnevil threw a punch at Alan, but he grabbed the Dopant's arm and flipped him over his shoulder. Karnevil slammed into the ground with a thud. Alan then delivered a devastating drop kick onto Karnevil, causing the ground beneath him to crack slightly.

"Stay down, Karn," warned Alan.

"**Fuck you, Smith!"** roared Kid Karnevil as he grabbed Alan's leg. He stood up and threw Alan. Alan flipped in mid-air as he skidded across the ground.

The Masquerade Dopants were keeping their guns aimed at the guests. The guards had all been gunned down for trying to subdue them and right now Alan was fighting their leader. All of a sudden, a blue blur along with a black and silver blur came rushing at the Masquerade Dopants and in the blink of an eye they were sent skyward.

Now, let's slow things down, shall we?

The Masquerade Dopants hovered in midair as Showa and Liger Jager admired their handiwork. They then proceeded to knock the Masquerade Dopants without much effort. Right now, they were moving so fast that everything else looked like it was standing still.

When they were done, the Masquerade Dopants were groaning in pain on the ground. As for their weapons, Showa already knew how to deal with them.

"Let's Ride: Stronger!" declared Showa as he became Kamen Rider Stronger, surprising the guests. He then used Stronger's electromagnetic powers to attract the guns to him. He then magnetized the guns together, making them all useless before dropping the compacted ball of guns at his feet. "There, that should do it," said Showa as he reverted to his default state.

"They're still getting back up," Liger Jager pointed out at the rising Masquerade Dopants.

"So it seems," said Showa, sighting. He then picked up the metal ball he'd compacted. "Let's play some soccer!" Dropping it, he kicked it as hard as he could and sent it flying. It slammed into a Masquerade Dopant, knocking him off his feet as it bounced off its chest. Liger Jager intercepted the ball and bounced it on the side of her foot. She then kicked it into a Masquerade Dopant grunt and watched as it knocked him down and rolled back to her. She then kicked it to another and he was too knocked down.

Showa threw his arm forward and wrapped the ball tightly with his energy whip. He then used the makeshift flail and swung it around, knocking the Masquerade Dopants back down. Dropping the ball, he put his foot on it and crossed his arms. "And the score is Kamen Riders: 1. Grunts: 0." He stuck his index finger to indicate '1' and then curled his index finger and thumb to indicate '0'.

Alan smirked at his two compatriots before returning his attention to the Madness Dopant who was really just Kid Karnevil with an appropriately insane form. "Alan, need help?" Bazel offered.

"Well, maybe a little wouldn't hurt," said Alan and instantly, in a flash of light, he was in the Bazel Combat Armor, surprising the guests. He ducked under a swing and punched the Madness Dopant so hard in the chest he went skidding backwards along the floor before hitting a pillar with a loud crash. "You're finished, Karn," said Alan. "Your grunts are down, you're all alone, and the three of us are still standing."

"Four," Bazel corrected.

"**Heh, well now, you seem you've got me outnumbered. Beat me at my own game. It's Game Over for me, isn't it? Now you're gonna lock me up and throw away the key**," said the Madness Dopant as he recovered. He then let loose a disturbing chuckled before letting loose a full blown insane laugh, "**HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**"

"Geez, and I thought _my_ enemies were crazy," said Showa.

"You should see some of mine," said Liger.

"**FUCK** **THAT, SMITH! IF I'M GOING DOWN YOU'RE COMING DOWN WITH ME!**" And with that the mouth on his stomach opened wide. "**BON APPETITE!**"

The Masquerade Dopants were being sucked into the mouth on the Madness Dopant's stomach. He was sucking them up like a vacuum and he didn't stop until he had them all. Letting out a belch, he stated, "I feel a little bloated," as his body started to swell and expand.

"This is not good," said Showa as he watched the Madness Dopant grow bigger and bigger.

"What was your first clue?" asked Liger as he switched from Jager to… "**ZERO FORM!**"

The Madness Dopant, Kid Karnevil, had swallowed up all his men and he now towered over Alan, Showa and Liger. "**LET'S SEE YOU TAKE ME ON NOW!**" He brought his foot down to stomp on them and they all rolled away to safety.

"OK, this is something for J," said Showa as he prepared to change.

"We're in an enclosed space and I don't think you'd want to wreck Shawna's palace," Liger Zero reminded quickly.

"Damn…"

"Well, the bigger they are the harder they fall anyway," said Alan.

"Alan, I got an idea!" said Bazel.

"What?" Alan asked.

"Well, it might feel a bit freaky but I think it's the best way to take this guy down."

"Don't waste time talking to me about it! Just do it!" Alan ordered.

"OK, you're the boss," said Bazel and he began to glow before shooting beams of energy. One beam hit Liger Zero while the other hit Showa.

"What is this-WOAH!**?**" Showa exclaimed as he was being pulled by the beam and Liger Zero was yelling in surprise as he felt himself being pulled along. Their bodies were then changed into pure energy before being absorbed into Bazel's gem.

"What did you do!-?" Alan shouted and then he felt his own body becoming engulfed in energy.

"XROS FUSION!" Bazel shouted out at the top of his lungs, if he had any lungs.

Alan's body exploded in a golden light, blinding the giant Madness Dopant. When the light faded, a new warrior stood in Alan's place.

From the neck down to his waist he was wearing emerald armor with a green gem in his chest. The armor on his right shoulder resembled an insect's head with a sword grasper in his hand. The sword was the Higurashi no Yaiba and it had spikes jutting out the edges. The armor on his left shoulder looked like a white lion's head with its fangs out and the gauntlets also sported claws that went over the back of his hand. Attached to the forearm was a shield with the Green Lantern symbol. On his back, with its legs draped over his shoulders and around his chest was a mechanical cicada and its energy wings were spread out in full display. From the waist down he had the body of a white mechanical lion. He looked like some kind of lion-like centaur now. Attached to his hips were cannons, one on each hip. Around his waist was a metal belt with crystal orb in the centre. Finally, the four-legged warrior wore a helmet with four shining green eyes and a pair of deer-like antlers jutting from the brow and a mane of silver hair spilling out the back. The helmet hid his face like a mask.

Everyone gasped at his appearance, gawking and gaping.

"What the heck is this!-?" three different voices shouted from the newly formed warrior.

The combined warrior spoke in Alan's voice, "Bazel, what did you do!-?"

"Well, you told me to do it so I did it!" Bazel shot back, the gem in the centre of Alan's chest flashing with each syllable.

"Woah, this is weird," said the insect head on Alan's right shoulder. It sounded like Shinichi. Actually, it was Shinichi.

"Tell me about it," the lion head on Alan's left shoulder spoke in Yuji's voice.

"This is called Xros Fusion," Bazel started to explain. "You are now the Chimeric Gestalt Manticore Warrior. I'd tell you more but I think you have bigger problems right now!"

After recovering, the Big Madness Dopant swung one of his massive blades down at the Manticore Warrior but he blocked it by bringing his shield up. His four knees were struggling to keep himself standing. "Ugh!" Alan grunted. He could take care of Kid Karnevil on his own but in his current state he found his abilities to be a little mixed up right now.

Shinichi shouted, "Take this!" The right arm swung and unleashed a crescent-shaped blade of energy that struck the Big Madness Dopant in the chest. The attack was powerful and pushed the massive Dopant backwards.

"And this!" shouted Yuji as the Manticore Warrior jumped and then slashed at the monster with the claws on his forelegs. "Hoi-yah!" The Big Madness Dopant stumbled back from the assault. Landing on the floor, the four-legged Manticore Warrior spun around and then kicked with his hind legs like a horse, knocking the Big Dopant back further. Spinning around to face their enemy, Yuji shouted, "And some more!" The cannons on the Manticore Warrior's hips fired bursts of energy that struck the Dopant, sending him reeling. The recoil did leave Alan a bit shaken

"Guys, we have to better coordinate ourselves," said Alan. It was his first time in such a predicament, one he never expected. He was sharing his body with two others and often a single body couldn't cope with so many minds trying to work it.

"Well, duh!" Shinichi responded.

The Big Madness Dopant spotted Shawna fleeing with her father and grinned, "**HEY, DON'T LEAVE THE PARTY NOW, PRINCESS!**" The mouth on his stomach opened and a long tongue shot out like a chameleon's tongue. The guests all scrambled away, leaving an opening for the tongue to latch onto Shawna before it wrapped around her.

"SHAWNA!" King Edward shouted.

"FATHER!" Shawna shrieked as the tongue yanked her towards the Big Madness Dopant. He showed off the princess to the gestalt warrior.

"**Now I got a hostage**," jeered the Big Madness Dopant. "**What will you do now? What will you do now?**"

"Karnevil, you've always been a coward," Alan growled.

"**Sticks and stones, Smith. They make break my bones but your words will never hurt me."**

"Let her go, dammit!" shouted Shinichi.

"**I don't think I will**," said the Big Madness with his tongue still hanging out and Princess Shawna held captive. "**This is what will happen: I will kill you, and then I'm taking the princess**."

Princess Shawna then looked towards the Madness Dopant but instead of showing fear she was smirking. "**What are you smiling about?**" asked the Big Madness Dopant.

"I'm smiling because…" began Princess Shawna before she morphed into Amora, "You've just been duped!"

"**WHAT!-?**" the Madness Dopant cried and then screamed as the Higurashi no Yaiba slashed through his tongue and sliced it in half. Amora landed in the Manticore Warrior's arms and he gently put her down. "**MY TONGUE! MY TONGUE!**"

"Hey, guys," said Yuji as the left arm held up a Rider Pass. "I think it's time we finished this psycho with our special Hissatsu Waza."

"Sounds good to me," agreed Shinichi.

"Let's do it," Alan concluded.

The Manticore Warrior then held the Rider Pass over the Spark Core belt.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Energy started to travel all over the Manticore Warrior's body, crackling like electricity around him. His eyes and antlers shone bright as a green aura erupted from his body. The cannons on the Manticore Warrior's hips fired a barrage of energy bursts at the giant Dopant, causing him to roar out in agony from the assault. Then a blast of charged emerald energy from the gem in the centre of his chest streamed out which pushed the Madness Dopant back several feet. He was still standing though, despite the barrage he'd received, but his body was smoking.

"Looks like he's still standing," Shinichi observed.

"Well, let's give him a second helping," said Yuji.

"**FULL CHARGE!**"

Energy crackled around the Manticore Warrior as he charged at the Big Madness Dopant. Kid Karnevil tried to attack with a punch but missed and the shield on the Chimeric Gestalt Manticore Warrior's left arm hit him hard in the gut. With all his strength, he lifted Kid Karnevil up and tossed him skyward with a blast of explosive energy from the shield.

"TAKE THIS!" Alan roared.

The Higurashi no Yaiba glowed and with a single swing the sword unleashed a massive payload of crescent-shaped energy blades that sped towards the Big Madness Dopant. In midair he had no hope of dodging and was struck by the assault and a massive explosion followed as a result. From the explosion, Kid Karnevil fell and landed on the floor with a crash and a thud.

As Kid Karnevil lay defeated, the Madness Memory was ejected from his body and shattered. At that moment the Chimeric Gestalt Manticore Warrior glowed before separating back into its individual components.

"I'm so glad to be back in my own body," said Shinichi.

"I almost thought that wasn't going to work," said Bazel.

"Why?" Alan asked suspiciously, "What would happen if it didn't work?"

"Well, it worked. That's what matters."

Alan said in a warning tone, "Bazel…"

Bazel confessed, "OK, we might've ended up stuck like that for good."

"WHAT!-?" Shinichi and Alan shouted.

"I knew it was risky but you told me to do it!" Bazel justified.

"Next time, give us a little warning," Alan reminded.

"Um…guys?" Shinichi and Alan looked over and their jaws dropped. "I think there _is_ a side effect here." Standing in front of Alan and Showa were Yui AND Yuji, at the same place, at the same time, and in separate bodies no less!

"You have got to be kidding me," stated Alan in disbelief.

"Hey, you're hot and sexy," Yuji said to his female counterpart.

"You're hot and sexy too," Yui agreed as she admired her male counterpart.

"Yeah, we're a couple of hot and sexy bitches!" they agreed together, an arm around each other.

"OK, _now_ I have seen everything," said Shinichi.

"This means I win the bet, right?" Alan asked.

"Hell No!" Yuji and Yui objected in unison.

"The bet was for me to remain in girl form," said Yui.

"And she's still right here!" Yuji pointed out. "We never said anything about splitting bodies, Alan!"

"So hah! The bet is still on!" Yui gloated.

"Damn it," Alan cursed.

Cheers then erupted around the three heroes. The guests had witnessed everything. Three young men, unaffiliated to the kingdom, had just saved them, the princess and the king.

"Should I start erasing memories now like I did on the cruise ship?" asked Shinichi. He'd used his time powers on the passengers and crew on the cruise ship, erasing their memories as a result.

"No, not this time," said Alan, smiling. His girls came running at him before glomping him and he ended up under a dog-pile of female admirers and lovers. Even his daughters joined in. They were hugging and kissing him. "Girls, I can't breathe! You're crushing me!"

Yuji looked to several young ladies in the crowd and winked at them. They swooned and fainted. "Heh, I still got it," Yuji smirked.

Shinichi scanned the crowd and saw Rena and with her was Shawna. Smiling, he approached the two and then took their hands in his. "Shall we dance? I mean, it is your birthday, isn't it, Your Highness?"

Shawna, blushing, smiled and nodded as she was pulled to the middle of the dance floor with Rena by Shinichi. Despite the disturbance caused by Kid Karnevil, it was a happy birthday indeed for the young princess. As she looked at Rena's smiling face, she couldn't help but blush as she recalled Rena's earlier offer.

The King of Genovia ordered the orchestra, "What are you waiting for? Play some music! My daughter wants to dance!"

* * *

**5D's no Sekai**

Asura, Sora, and Lilith were watching TV on the couch with some other girls. With them were a White Tigress, a Killer Queen, a Dark Lady, and an Enchantress. The Pokegirls were known as Stella, Reina, Melanie, and Phoebe, respectively. Maria was sitting in Asura's lap and was eating a sandwich. They were all watching TV as Aki was working on some files on the table.

"I miss Master," Phoebe sighed as she leaned against Reina.

"Fret not," Stella placated, "Master said he would be busy on a long-term mission. I am sure he shall return soon."

"Yuji's at a party right now, playing bodyguard/maid for one of Shinichi's friends," Asura answered.

"Too bad Papa couldn't take us," Maria pouted. She also missed Alice and Celine.

"I bet he's dancing with that Misato-onna," Melanie scoffed.

Sora shrugged, "Can't be helped. He does have a good connection with her. Besides, I'm sure he'll have us all in a great big orgy when he gets back."

A silver cell phone was vibrating on the table and Aki sighed, "Yusei forgot his phone again." She picked up and answered, "Hello, this is Aki Izayoi Fudo speaking. Who is this?" She smiled, "Ah, Warren-san, how is Yuki doing in that special group you assigned her? Good, I'm glad she's not causing any trouble." She then frowned, "Hasuma-san has? I see. You wish to speak with Yusei?" She nodded, "OK, hold on for a second." She held the phone and spoke to the girls, "I'll be stepping out for a bit." They nodded and Aki warped out of the room.

Yusei was in his garage, working on his white D-Wheel, the Yusei-Go X. He then turned to see Aki standing behind him. "What's up, Aki?" he asked.

"It's Warren-san," she replied with the phone in her hands, "He said it was an emergency."

Yusei nodded and took the phone as he rose to his feet, "This is Fudo Yusei."

"_Dr. Fudo, this is Warren Smith of ARMOR,"_ Warren spoke. _"Sorry to disturb you, but I'm in need of your services."_

Yusei nodded, "What's the problem?"

Warren explained, _"One of my agents, my best friend, Ryuki Hasuma, is in a predicament. Recently, he was forced to attack the King's Terminal and was under the influence of a mind control chip. It's embedded pretty deep and there's some risk in removing it. Your son, Yuji, recommended you and your associates, a Miss Luca and Luciano. Will you help us?"_

Yusei nodded, "OK, we'll do it."

"_Thank you very much, Dr. Fudo,"_ Warren sighed, _"A Liner will be there shortly to pick you up."_

"OK," Yusei nodded before hanging up. He turned to Aki, "Call Luca and Luciano."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Things are heating up and it looks like the Xros Fusion has a side effect. By the way, I'm calling the form Alan, Yuji and Shinichi assumed when fused as the Chimeric Gestalt Manticore Warrior.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: An awesome fight with some epic fusions and finishing moves. And looks like Yuji and Yui have their own bodies. How would this affect the Harbinger of Hope and his family? Find out next time.**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: Again, I enjoyed showing off another side of Alan. And kudos on Xros Fusion Chrome. Awesome addition to the heroes' arsenal. Can't wait to see what some of the other combos are. Anyways, this chap also introduced the mysterious Religion of Crime. This new threat may just be one of the greatest dangers the heroes have faced.**


	39. The Fall of X Shocker Part 12

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 12: Battle Plans**

The following morning, Yui, Yuji, Alan and Shinichi knelt before the King of Genovia as he stood before them with his sword drawn and raised.

"For your courageous and selfless actions in protecting not only my daughter but this kingdom, I dub thee Sir Shinichi Banabara, Sir Alan Smith, Sir Yuji Fudo of the Liger and Lady Yui Fudo," King Edward proclaimed, tapping his sword against their shoulders. "You may now rise."

The foursome rose and bowed to the king once more. They were in their civilian clothes and with Medals of Honor hanging from their necks. Applause and cheers erupted for the four heroes.

Rena was taking pictures with her camera. This was definitely going to be a very memorable moment.

Kid Karnevil had been placed in a containment construct of Alan's creation. Despite how crafty he was, there was no way Kid Karnevil was going to escape the cell. Alan was going to be sure to send him to ARMOR for interrogation, but he had been unable to reach them.

* * *

"Again we have another party," said Yuji.

"Nobles," sighed Alan. "I guess even after what happened last night they still wanna celebrate."

"Well, why shouldn't they celebrate?" asked Yui. "We saved their lives last night! They should be celebrating life!"

"And it's a special occasion," added Yuji. "We've been knighted!"

"I am going to need some time to get used to _this_," said Alan, referring to Yuji and Yui.

Yuji spotted Shinichi mingling with Rena and Shawna and grinned. Yui shared a grin too. Alan wasn't blind to this and asked, "What are you two grinning about?"

Yuji whispered, making sure Shinichi didn't hear. Since he had superhuman hearing he would have to whisper _very_ softly, "OK, early this morning I saw Shinichi come out of the princess' room." Alan's eyes widened in interest at the news.

"I went to check what was in the room," added Yui, "And I saw Shawna, Rena and Satan in their birthday suits, lying between the sheets." She was grinning wide.

"So, you mean he…" Alan began. The twin Manakytes nodded. "Last night, huh? Even after the-"

"Can't say he doesn't have the stamina for it," Yui interjected. "So, you still have trouble calling ARMOR?"

"Yeah, and I've been getting this annoying answering machine instead," Alan answered. "Just what's going on anyway?" He asked, "Do you two know something?"

"Yeah, but I'm gonna have to tell you and Shinichi later, alone," said Yuji.

"I'm so proud of you, Mr. Samurai!" beamed Shawna, "Or maybe I should call you 'Sir Samurai'?"

Shinichi blushed, rubbing the back of his head. He never expected to get knighted. He looked towards the king who smiled at him. He and King Edward had a meeting during breakfast. Shawna was still resting after all the _excitement_ from last night.

* * *

"_My daughter really loves you," King Edward stated._

_Shinichi sighed. 'Not this again…' He began, "Your Majesty." He needed to choose his words carefully, "I understand how Shawna feels about me…" He added mentally, 'Especially during last night…' He continued, "But, with all due respect, are you sure you want me as her fiancé?"_

_King Edward listed, "You're courageous, selfless, responsible, and put the needs of others before your own. Those are the traits of a king."_

_Shinichi remembered telling Shawna about his past. Maybe the king should know as well. "I'm also very dangerous," Shinichi added._

"_Dangerous?" King Edward asked, not understanding what Shinichi meant._

"_You're aware of what I can do, aren't you? You know about my powers. You know I'm not normal. However, did you ever wonder where I got my powers?"_

* * *

Like he had done with Shawna before, he told King Edward about the source of his power. The king had appeared visibly disturbed about the things GIN-SHOCKER did to him. Shinichi wasn't graphic but he summed things up pretty well.

* * *

"_They basically tortured you," King Edward concluded._

"_And my mental stability is questionable at best, Your Majesty." He listed his own negative traits, ones he had left behind a long time ago, "I was destructive, calculating, coldhearted and coldblooded; the perfect weapon and killer." He asked, "Is that the type of person you want as your daughter's husband?"_

_The king thought about it. Shinichi wasn't trying to discourage him, although it might've sounded like that. He just didn't think he was good enough for Shawna, even if she did say otherwise. After a moment of uncomfortable silence for Shinichi, King Edward spoke again, "You used the past tense."_

"_Huh?" Shinichi blinked._

"_You described yourself in the past tense. That means you don't consider yourself that person anymore. How would you describe yourself now?" King Edward asked further._

"_I…"_

"_Would it be the same way my daughter sees you?"_

_Shinichi hesitated but finally answered, uncertainly, "…I guess…"_

"_Young man, I have seen what you can do and I have seen for myself what you have done. I don't see a weapon or a killer. I see a hero. My daughter considers you a hero and I believe your friends see you as a hero. Whatever crimes or sins you've committed are all in the past. All that matters to me is what I see in the present."_

"_But…"_

"_I'm a good judge of character and from what I've seen for myself there is nobody more worthy than you. I've met many men your age and they did not show me what Shawna's deserved. You have. You even told me the truth about your origins."_

"_I'm in a relationship," Shinichi tried to argue._

"_Won't matter here in Genovia. The noble and royal class are allowed to practice polygamy," the king waved off the concern._

"_But I'm not royalty, I'm not even nobility, and I live in Japan!" _

"_Well, that's true, but just because you'll be married to my daughter does that mean you need to abandon your home land, and I think I can take care of your worries regarding your lack of nobility and royalty."_

* * *

"So, this is what he meant," whispered Shinichi as he looked back at his medal. He was now a knight of Genovia.

"Sir Shinichi," Shawna called. Shinichi looked to her. "Did you say something?" Shawna asked.

"Nothing, nothing at all, Shawna-chan," he smiled at her. Shawna smiled back, a healthy blush on her face. Rena smiled too. Last night had been very satisfying for all of them.

"So, have you reported about last night to ARMOR?" Rena asked.

Grinning, Shinichi teased, "Oh, I didn't know you were the type to brag, Rena-chan."

Blushing, she punched him in the arm. "Not about that! I'm talking about you, Yuji, Yui and Alan beating the villain!"

"Oh, that," Shinichi nodded. "I was just joking, Rena-chan. Relax." He answered, "Well, to be honest, I couldn't get to anyone. I did get this really annoying answering machine again."

"What do you mean 'annoying answering machine'?" Shawna asked.

"It was annoying," he summarized, "That's all I'm saying. Maybe the others have better luck and got through."

* * *

"_You have reached the voicemail system."_

Daichi sighed, "Okay, okay, come on."

"_To leave a message, please wait for the tone."_

"I know how to leave a goddamn message."

"_When you have finished recording, just hang up or press pound for more options."_

Daichi retorted sarcastically, "Really? Hang up? No shit. I was just gonna keep talking until he decided check his voicemail."

"_For delivery options, press five."_

"Just give me the damn beep!" Daichi snapped.

"_To leave a call back number, press eight. To page this person, press six-"_

"Come on!"

"_To repeat this message, press nine._"

Daichi threatened, "I will fucking stab you, computer phone lady!"

* * *

Yuji and Yui pulled Alan and Shinichi away from the party to get them alone. What they were about to tell the cyborg and corpsman was classified information.

"OK, here's the thing," said Yuji, making sure nobody was eavesdropping. "A few days ago Dr. Hasuma went on an Infinity Fragment recovery mission, solo."

"Well, that is the usual procedure, isn't it?" Alan interrupted. "I mean only agents with at least Level 10 clearance can go on those missions solo."

"Really?" Shinichi asked. He didn't know that.

"It was in the handbook. Look at the fine print," Alan advised.

"Oh, OK."

"Anyway…" continued Yuji, "There were some _complications_."

"What kind of complications?" Alan inquired.

"Which one do you wanna hear first: the good news or the bad news?" asked Yui.

Alan didn't like where this was going so he answered, "I guess the bad news first."

"OK, someone got the drop on Dr. Hasuma and he got captured. ARMOR and DORA been working around the clock finding him," Yuji explained.

"WHAT!-?" Alan exclaimed, grabbing Yuji by the jacket. "Why didn't you tell us!-?"

"We had an assignment," Yuji justified, "And your dad, the Director, knows how much you look up the Chief so he didn't want me telling you until our assignment was complete." Alan let go of him. "Plus I'm telling you now, aren't?" said Yuji as he fixed his clothes.

"Does he know who did it?" Shinichi questioned.

"We're getting to that," said Yui. "The bad news isn't finished."

"Well, Dr. Hasuma turned up at the King's Terminal out of the blue," said Yuji.

"How is that still bad news?" Alan asked, not liking the answer.

"He went psycho and started attacking everyone and everything in sight. Your dad had to use a Cero on him just to stop him," Yuji answered.

"WHAT!-?" Alan shouted. "_Dad_ used a _Cero_ on _Uncle Ryuki!-?_"

"That's what I said," Yuji retorted, annoyed about being interrupted again. "Alan, you know how impolite it is to interrupt and act like an echo."

"So, what's the good news?" asked Shinichi.

"He survived, but he's in a coma," Yui answered.

"Define how _that_ is supposed to be good news?" Alan growled.

"He survived," Yui repeated, "Keyword: survived. You should be aware how powerful your dad is, Alan. We all should know how powerful a single Cero of his is."

"I don't," said Shinichi.

"You should study about Director Smith," advised Yuji. "Look up entries on the Vicious Wars down in the archives. You might find something interesting. Point is he was holding a lot back so the Chief isn't dead."

"My uncle's in a coma," Alan murmured, wrapping his mind around the concept.

"And that's not the worst part," Yuji said.

"How can _that_ not be the _worst_ part!-?" Alan raised his voice.

"Aren't you wondering why he attacked the King's Terminal?" asked Yuji. "Aren't you the least bit interested or curious?"

"So get on with it!" Alan snapped.

"We'll give you two words for it," said Yui. "Doctor Gebok."

It was Shinichi turned to react. "Gebok?" he growled.

"Turns out your creator implanted a chip inside the Chief," Yuji explained. "The chip has wires connected to his brain and his central nervous system. Right now your dad has the best minds in ARMOR working on how to remove it without any harmful side-effects."

Alan hated the word 'side-effects'. "What kind of side-effects?" Alan asked. He was asking a lot of questions with answers he may not like.

"The removal process may kill him," Yui answered.

Yuji continued, "And even if he does survive he may end up either paralyzed for the rest of his life or a total vegetable."

"Dad won't let that happen," said Alan firmly. "Like you said he has the best minds ARMOR has working on a solution."

"And then some," Yuji agreed. "I've got some geniuses in the family too and they are volunteering their services to help Dr. Hasuma. If anyone can remove that implant, they can." He looked to Shinichi, "Are you okay? You've been kinda quiet."

Shinichi fists were shaking and his teeth were clenched. He was trembling with rage. Gebok was a sore subject for him. Heck, if anything, the mention of Gebok pushed the wrong buttons on Shinichi. He hated the man, a lot. First he took him away from his family, causing his mother unimaginable grief. Then he turned him into a cyborg, brainwashed him, and then made him kill his own comrades. Finally, there was the straw that broke the camel's back: Gebok tricked him into killing Rina. Even back when he was BLACK 13, he and Rina had shared a bond and Gebok had manipulated him into severing that bond, violently. Shinichi could still remember the look on her face when she died in his arms.

Now Gebok was hurting Alan's family too. Even in their short time together, he considered Alan like a brother to him and he knew what it was like when family was harmed. His own family had been targeted by Gebok as well. He could understand that anger and the need for payback.

"Can we contact ARMOR _now_?" Shinichi demanded.

"Things are pretty hectic right now. They are prioritizing Dr. Hasuma's recovery so all their resources are being spent on that," Yui answered.

"But we all know when we can call ARMOR," added Yuji, "Trust me on that."

* * *

"Peek-a-boo! Peek-a-boo! I see you!" Yokoshima was playing with baby Sho. He and Daichi were at Shiori's house, helping Shiori to look after Sho while Kasai was doing his job at the Sonozaki Mansion. There was some kind of important meeting with another Yakuza group so his presence was required. Even Shogo was there. All Yokoshima knew about Yakuzas was from movies and frankly those guys were hardcore.

Rika, Hanyuu and Satoko were upstairs, studying, and Shiori was taking a bath. That was why the two NEO-NUMBERS were looking after Sho. Well, Yokoshima was looking after him while Daichi was trying to call for ARMOR. Sho, who was sitting in Yokoshima's lap, giggled. Yokoshima smiled right back. He liked babies, a lot.

Daichi, of course, was not in a good mood (what else is new?).

"_To mark this message as urgent, press eleven._"

"THERE IS NO ELEVEN, YOU FUCKING WHORE!" Daichi roared.

"Oooh language," scolded Yokoshima, covering Sho's innocent ears. Daichi glared at him and he shrunk back.

"_To hear these options in Spanish, press dos._"

"I HATE YOU!" Daichi roared. The voicemail finally beeped. "Finally!" Daichi let out in relief. "OK, this is-"

"_I'm sorry, but the voicemail box is full right now."_

"Ugh!" Daichi grunted. He chanted, "I'm gonna kill myself. I'm gonna kill myself."

Shiori came downstairs, after her bath, wearing a bathrobe and drying her hair with a towel. "Is everything OK down here? I heard shouting."

"Oh, it's fine Mrs. BK," Yokoshima answered.

Daichi chanted, "I'm gonna stab that phone lady in the face, then I'm gonna kill myself. I'm gonna stab that phone lady in the face, then I'm gonna kill myself. I'm gonna stab that phone lady in the face, then I'm gonna kill myself."

"What's wrong with your friend?" Shiori asked curiously, blinking at the Cricket Rider's odd behavior.

"He's just having one of his usual meltdowns," Yokoshima answered. He then passed Sho to his mother and the baby smiled up at her. "He's a cute little tyke."

"That he is," Shiori smiled before cooing at her son, "Aren't you? Aren't you?"

"Was Shinichi like this when he was a baby?" Yokoshima asked.

"Yes, he was," Shiori recalled. Being blessed with a child had been wonderful. She and Shotaro had been trying for a couple of years without success and then decided upon artificial insemination as the final course of action. It'd been expensive, but totally worth it once they saw their son as he opened his eyes. She remembered dedicating most of her time to caring for Sho, teaching him how to talk and walk. She remembered that his first word had not been 'papa' or 'mama' but 'ero' because she kept talking about erotic scenes for her novels while around the baby Shinji. Those were the happiest moments of her life.

"Dai, maybe you should play your guitar," suggested Yokoshima. "It'll help you calm down."

"And play something baby friendly," added Shiori.

Daichi sighed, "OK, fine!" He picked up his guitar and strummed the strings. He grumbled about babysitting duty.

* * *

"_THERE IS NO ELEVEN YOU FUCKING WHORE!"_

"Daichi-san sounds mad," said Satoko.

"When is he never mad?" Rika questioned.

"Well, he has been trying to contact ARMOR, and I don't think he's successful," said Hanyuu.

"_I HATE YOU!"_

"What was your first clue?" Rika retorted sarcastically.

"I'm getting tired of studying," said Satoko, rubbing her eyes. She looked at the clock. It was a quarter to 11 pm.

"I guess we can take a break," said Rika. "So, Hanyuu, what is it like being an ARMOR agent?"

"Well, I had to fill up a lot of paperwork, then get fitted for my uniform," Hanyuu answered.

"You have your own uniform?" Satoko grinned. "Can we see it?"

"I have it right here in the closet!" Hanyuu chirped. She got up, opened the closet, and took it out for her friends to see. "Ta-dah!"

"Model it for us," said Rika.

"Yeah!" encouraged Satoko excitedly.

* * *

The uniform really fit Hanyuu in all the right places. It looked like a leather jumpsuit but we all know ARMOR wouldn't use just leather. It just looked like leather and it stretched like rubber. It was a material known as Soul Fiber which was synthesized and developed by the Smart Brain Corporation of Dr. Hasuma's home world. The jumpsuit was black with the zipper going all the way up to her neck from below her naval. It also had armor padding to better protect her. She wore lavender gloves and boots with a utility belt around her waist.

"What do you think?" Hanyuu asked.

"Where do I sign up because that looks good," Satoko complimented with a whistle.

"I bet Chiaki liked it," said Rika.

Hanyuu blushed.

"You went on a mission with him last night, right?" Rika asked.

"Details! Details!" Satoko yelled in excitement.

"Well, it was my first mission and Smith-kanchou thought that it'd be a good idea that a senior agent accompanied me. So, he elected Chiaki-san," Hanyuu began. "Our mission was to investigate suspected paranormal activity at an abandoned mansion.

"Haunted house, you mean?" Rika asked. Hanyuu nodded.

"So, it was haunted?" Satoko asked.

"Yes, but not in the supernatural sense," Hanyuu answered. Satoko and Rika looked at her curiously so she continued, "It wasn't a haunted house at all. It was actually a cyborg house."

"A _cyborg_ house?" Satoko and Rika repeated.

"Which explained why I felt a living presence. You see, this mansion used to belong to a foreign noble lady who lived there with her husband then one day he left and never came back. She still waited for him, though, until she died. People," Hanyuu explained the history. "It's a sad story. Of course, Gebok must've found the place and decided to convert it into a cyborg to make it seem like it was really haunted. There was this machine controlling everything, making things move, fly about, and even project holograms so it looked like a ghost was haunting. There was even a live brain in that machine!"

"Ew!" Satoko grimaced in disgust, imaging a live brain hooked up to a machine.

"So, this was all set up by Gebok?" Rika asked.

Hanyuu concluded, "I guess he expected it to attract so much attention that ARMOR would assign Shinichi to investigate it and trap him inside along with anyone else with him. The place was a living deathtrap!"

"So, I bet a lot of romantic tension occurred," Satoko teased.

"Well…" Hanyuu remembered how Chiaki had rushed into a room filled with mechanical tentacles and he sliced them up to ribbons before rescuing her. Then, the two of them destroyed the machine controlling the house. She blushed, putting her hands to her cheek, squealing. "I can't wait for my next mission with him!"

"She has all the signs of a schoolgirl totally in love with her crush," Rika pointed out.

"It's hard to believe she's actually older than us," Satoko added.

* * *

"So, we have a comatose director and right now they are helping him," summarized Yuji. "What else can happen?"

* * *

After putting Sho in his crib to sleep there was a knock on the door. Shiori, now properly dressed, expected it to be her husband so she opened and was looking at girl with long pink hair and dressed in a pink coat with a fedora. She was soaked too as it was raining heavily right now. "Excuse me, but who are you?" Shiori asked. The girl standing at her door looked a little familiar to Shiori. Yokoshima and Daichi saw her and immediately went on high alert.

"ELECTRIC BUTTERFLY!" they yelled, their Spark Cores exposed.

"Wait! Wait! Chotto!" shouted Electric Butterfly, "I come in peace!"

"GET HER!" Daichi ordered as he and Yokoshima charged straight at her. They lunged, only to be stopped in midair. "Hey!" Daichi swung his arms and legs helplessly.

Hanyuu was coming down to get something to drink from the fridge when she saw Daichi and Yokoshima lunging at the front door. She used her telekinesis to stop them and then slowly approached their 'guest'. "Electric Butterfly," she identified.

"Hai, that's me," the pink-haired girl confirmed, taking off her hat. "Is Kuro-kun home? I want to speak with him."

"He's not here," replied Hanyuu, knowing that she was referring to Shinichi. "He lives with Rena." Electric Butterfly scowled at the mention of Rena's name.

"Hanyuu-chan, what are you doing!-?" shouted Yokoshima. "Blast her, blow her up, rip her to pieces! Heck, get into a catfight with her or something!"

Daichi glared at Yokoshima and then back at Hanyuu, "And put us down!"

Hanyuu looked at Electric Butterfly. There was absolutely no reason for her to trust one of Dr. Gebok's minions. The madman had tried to kidnap her before. This could be a ploy, a trick to have them lower their guard. However, Hanyuu stared into the pinkette's eyes. She was begging to let in and she looked like she wanted to see Shinichi desperately.

"Come inside," said Hanyuu. Daichi and Yokoshima gasped.

"And we better get you some dry clothes too," said Shiori, causing Yokoshima and Daichi to gasp further.

"You can even have the pudding I was saving," added Hanyuu.

Yokoshima let out in shock, "GASP!"

Snapping her fingers, she let the two drop into a heap as Electric Butterfly walked past.

"We have to report this to ARMOR," said Yokoshima as he turned on his communicator.

"_You have reached the voicemail system."_

"Oh god…" Daichi groaned.

* * *

Warren returned to his office, tired and worried. The doctors were currently working on helping Ryuki after spending an hour arguing over the best course of action. There were plenty objections to solutions that were presented but Warren made them all shut up and threatened them that they should stop arguing and start working.

"I don't have time for this horseshit right now!" he'd told them. "Fix him and fix him now!"

It would be hours before any results could be heard from the Hospital Wing so Warren would have to wait. He looked at his answering machine and sighed. "Hm, looks like the voicemail box is full." He didn't bother listening to any of the voicemail messages and just started to delete them one by one. He then saw that there was a call waiting for him indicated by a blinking LED light. "Who could be calling right now?" He turned on the hands free and speaker options on his phone. "Warren here."

"_Oh, I finally reached you!_" yelled a relieved Yokoshima.

"What is it?" Warren responded.

"_Well, I've been trying to call you but this annoying answering machine voice kept coming up and then it told me your voicemail box was full-_"

"Get to the point," Warren ordered abruptly.

"_We kinda have a situation right now_," said Yokoshima.

Warren questioned. "What kind of situation?"

* * *

"Yeah, and right now she's having tea with Shinichi's mom," Yokoshima finished his report.

"_OK, keep her there or better yet take her to your base. I think you better contact the other members of your team too_," instructed Warren.

"Hai, Kanchou. Is everything OK there?" Yokoshima asked, concerned.

"_Everything is stable_," Warren answered. "_By the way, why didn't you call Shinichi right away?_" The answer was quite obvious.

"I may not be a genius, but I do know that Shinichi will go absolutely ballistic if I told him right away. It seemed safer to tell you first, and it is kinda protocol, isn't it? I mean it's in the handbook. If anything important turns up, you're the first to know."

"_At least you remember that rule. It's alright. Just contact him and tell him to come ASAP. Also, bring her to ARMOR_."

"Right, Smith-kanchou. Over and out." Yokoshima cut the connection. "OK, it's time to call the others." Daichi was quiet as he watched from the kitchen. "What?"

"How can they just be talking?" Daichi asked.

"It's a girl thing, I guess," Yokoshima shrugged.

"I'm surprised Shinichi's mom didn't just throw her out for trying to kill her son," stated Daichi.

"We tried to kill him too," Yokoshima reminded.

Daichi remarked, "Yeah, but at least we had a good reason to. He killed us first." He looked back at Shiori and Electric Butterfly. "Maybe Shinichi's mom here doesn't realize the danger. I've heard she's pulled some really crazy stunts just to capture Shinichi in action with her video camera."

"Or maybe she's just really nice," Yokoshima suggested.

"And crazy. Nice and crazy. What a winning combination," said Daichi sarcastically.

* * *

Yuji's communicator came to life and he answered, "This is Yuji Fudo. How may I help you?"

"_Yuji, this is Warren_," Warren told him. "_Is Shinichi there with you?_"

"Yeah," Yuji saw Shinichi talking with Shawna and Rena.

"_How is he?_" Warren asked.

"He's fine. Oh, and I kinda told him and Alan about what happened to the Chief."

"_I should say you shouldn't have told them but I guess you had your reasons_," said Warren, sighing.

"Yeah, and Alan seemed really ticked about it," added Yuji.

"_Tell me, has Shinichi received any word about anything_?"

"WHAT!-?" Shinichi suddenly shouted at his wrist communicator.

"I think he just got the news," Yuji responded. Shinichi was walking towards Yuji. "He's coming."

"Yuji, let's go," Shinichi commanded. "I need a quick ride home."

"Hey, I heard you shout," said Alan, rushing over, "What's going on?"

* * *

Electric Butterfly now sat in the NEO-NUMBERS' underground base that was the basement of the Irie Clinic. "You know, I would've expected your base to be…bigger," said Electric Butterfly.

"Shut your piehole, bitch!" Daichi ordered.

"That is no way to speak to a lady!" Electric Butterfly snapped, affronted.

"You're no lady!"

Electric Butterfly bit back a quick retort. She had to calm down her nerves. She was in enemy territory right now and was vastly outnumbered.

The NEO-NUMBERS were all surrounding a common enemy, one who seemed to share an intimate history with Shinichi. They were not letting her out of their sight despite her claims of coming peacefully. She had already been searched for hidden weapons and so far she didn't have them.

She was still in her usual form that was of a girl with long pink hair with a pair of antennae atop her head. She also had her butterfly wings out, which had been hidden by the coat. She was in dry clothes that Shiori had offered earlier.

Hanyuu and Battler were present as well as they were also ARMOR agents of this world. Battler had been surprised by the call but he did not object and raced to Hinamizawa as fast as his legs could carry him and with his accelerator unit he could go really damn fast.

She was actually waiting for Shinichi. She needed to talk to him. When the door opened, Yuji, Alan and Shinichi came in with Shinichi running up to fast. She averted her eyes. She couldn't look at him right, no matter how much she wanted to. He hated her as she'd heard his claim about destroying everything and anything Gebok created and that included her. Also, her constant taunts and attacks didn't help matters much.

Alan just stared at her. She was an enemy, and working for Gebok who'd hurt his family by trying to take away his daughter and also hurting his uncle. However, he could not bring himself to hate Electric Butterfly as much as he hated her master. She was just a pawn and not the true target of his hatred. Still, that didn't mean he had to hate her.

As for Shinichi, he was conflicted. On one hand she was one of Gebok's creations and needed to be destroyed. On the other hand there was the smallest, tiniest probable possibility that she might be Rina brought back from the dead. When Electric Butterfly didn't return his gaze, he gave the order to the others, "Come on, we're taking her to ARMOR. We have to see the Director now too."

"Well, if that's the case then all aboard!" Yuji threw the door open and showed the MysticLiner waiting for them. "And no tickets needed! This ride is on me!"

* * *

The inside of the MysticLiner was lined blue walls and gold trim. The booths were covered in blue leather and had gold table tops. The windows were covered by gold curtains. All in all it was a very welcoming interior.

The NEO-NUMBERS were sitting in booths, keeping their eyes on Electric Butterfly. She was the enemy and deserved nothing but suspicion. They didn't trust her. Shinichi and Hanyuu sat together quietly as Shinichi couldn't think of anything to say. He wasn't sure if he did have anything to say.

Electric Butterfly sat at the bar, where a young girl with long blue hair, tied in twin tails, and blue eyes stood behind the counter, cleaning drinking glasses. She wore a dark blue maid outfit under a white apron.

"It's deader than a funeral in here," Alan whispered to Yuji and Yui. They were sitting in a separate booth.

Yuji sighed and got up and walked over to Electric Butterfly. The NEO-NUMBERS made silent protests, but Yuji ignored them and took a seat next to the girl. "What's up?"

"Hey," she replied weakly.

"What's wrong? Hungry?"

She shook her head, but blushed as her stomach got pretty vocal. It was odd, considering she was just an android, but maybe Gebok designed her to be very lifelike with similar bodily functions to a human. She could not starve to death but she still enjoyed eating as a luxury.

Yuji laughed and motioned to the maid, "Mizuki, a lemon tea and apple Snapple with a Meat Lover's Pie."

Mizuki nodded with a smile, "Coming right up, sir!" She disappeared from under the counter and returned to reveal a fresh, thin-crusted pizza pie with an assortment of meat toppings and two bottles of Snapple. The NEO-NUMBERS gawked while Alan cocked an eyebrow as Yui walked over to the counter and sat on Electric Butterfly's right.

"And a fruit punch Snapple for me, Mizu-chan," Yui smiled.

Mizuki smiled and slid the bottle onto the table, "Here you go!"

Electric Butterfly drooled as she gazed at the pizza, "It looks delicious…"

"Eat up," Yuji urged as he popped the cap off and took a slice in his hand. Yui did the same and smiled as she took a bite.

Electric Butterfly was hesitant, but took a slice and bit into the tip of the pizza. Her eyes widened and she melted in her seat as she devoured the rest of the slice with gusto, making the NEO-NUMBERS gawk. She then opened her Snapple and drank the apple juice inside as she sighed with content.

"That was really good," she smiled.

"She has a pretty smile after all," Yui giggled.

"Eat as much as you want," Yuji urged, "And an ice-cold Snapple will heal any trouble. So, how about you tell us your real name?"

"It's Lina," she whispered. Shinichi heard this.

'_Lina?_' Now he was confused. Wasn't her real name 'Rina'? Then again, maybe he had remembered her name wrong. His memories were still a bit messed up.

"So, what do you wanna do right now, as in going to ARMOR?" Yuji asked.

"Well, I want to speak with your leader," she clarified.

"Inside info," Yui nodded as she sipped her drink.

"Well, try not to worry too much, Lina," Yuji assured, "On this train, you're under my full protection." He gave a warning glare to the NEO-NUMBERS if they tried anything. As far as he was concerned, Electric Buttefly was his guest.

Hanyuu tugged on her brother's sleeve and whispered, "Won't you go talk to her?"

"I have nothing to say," Shinichi responded neutrally.

The MysticLiner stopped at the platform and the group stepped out and went up to the King's Terminal before taking the express elevator all the way down to ARMOR HQ. The Riders were keeping their eye on Electric Butterfly, except for Shinichi. He had not spoken a word to her and that hurt her feelings. Then again, maybe it was because of what and who she reminded him of.

It still hurt, though.

Stepping out of the elevator, they all headed towards Warren's office. This was important and needed to be reported directly to him.

Shinichi knocked on the door and said, "Sir, this is Agent Banabara. We have Electric Butterfly in our custody."

"Send her in, alone," Warren ordered. The door opened and Electric Butterfly was shoved forward by the NEO-NUMBERS. She glared at them but her gaze softened at Shinichi. He didn't meet her gaze. Hanging her head, she slowly walked into the office before the door slammed shut. The NEO-NUMBERS didn't leave and instead pressed their ears against the door but it was one foot thick and soundproof so they wouldn't hear anything.

Electric Butterfly gulped as she saw Warren sitting at his desk, with his knuckles under his chin. "Take a seat," he instructed and she walked over to take the chair and sit down. "Now, tell me why you're here, Ms…"

"It's Lina," she answered.

"I was under the impression your name was 'Rina'," Warren responded.

"Did Kuro-kun tell you that? Well, I guess his memory did get messed up so he must've mistaken my name in his memory."

"So, why are you here?" Warren repeated his question.

"I'm here to share vital information about X-SHOCKER," she admitted. "I'm here to tell you where you can find it."

"And why would you tell us? Why should we believe you?" Warren interrogated.

"It's because…it's because I know what Kuro-kun went through," she told Warren. "And it makes me sick that I worked for that monster!" Electric Butterfly explained, "I know a lot about what Kuro-kun went through. When Dr. X activated me, he also implanted memories into my brain. I know the truth behind Project BLACK 13."

"Project BLACK 13?" Warren interjected.

"The NUMBERS Project was a lie," Electric Butterfly told him. "GIN-SHOCKER didn't need a team of superhuman cyborg soldiers. GIN-SHOCKER only needed one, perfect, ultimate weapon and that weapon's name is BLACK 13."

"No wonder Gebok had them all fight. He wanted to see if Shinichi could defeat the others," Warren stated.

"Exactly," Electric Butterfly confirmed, "He even revived them just to gauge Kuro-kun's new power. But that's not the worst of it. You know Dr. X tricked Kuro-kun into killing me, right?"

"I know of it."

"The experiment was to see how Kuro-kun would react after killing someone he'd formed a bond with and I think we all know the result."

"He went berserk," Warren concluded.

"He became unstoppable. A killer with a one-track mind, dead set on his purpose and mission. That's what BLACK 13 was meant to be: unstoppable, not distractible and extremely powerful."

Warren's frown deepened as she continued, "There's more. You all thought that Dr.X shut off Kuro-kun's emotions and conscious with a chip when he was six years old, right?" Warren nodded. "It's true he implanted a chip but it could not completely suppress his emotions. So, Gebok scheduled several 'tests' to deal with this little problem and tie up loose ends."

"Tests?" Warren questioned further, but he knew what she meant.

"They weren't tests! They were torture sessions! Dr. X tortured Kuro-kun, over and over, to strip him of his humanity and rid him of any emotion and his conscience. Each session was designed to suppress everything that made Kuro-kun human and to turn him into an obedient machine. His free will was crushed and so were his emotions. Finally, his memories of the sessions were also suppressed until all he knew was to obey Dr. X." Electric Butterfly began to sob. To think she'd served such a monster.

"Why did you serve him in the first place?" Warren asked, his anger rising in him but not at her.

"When he brought me back to life he promised me I could have Kuro-kun! I love him so much! I still love him! I can't stop loving him!" Electric Butterfly cried. "And he used that to keep me under his control!"

Warren sighed. He could understand how far people would go for love. "He hurt my best friend," Warren told her. "He hurt him in the worst possible way. He controlled him, like a puppet, and forced him to go against his ideals and to destroy what he built. He nearly killed the woman he loved and now he's in a coma with his life at risk." His tone grew stern, "Can you swear to me, without a doubt, that the information you're about to give me is real?"

"Yes," Electric Butterfly answered, "I want to make up for the stuff I did and bring Dr. X down." She asked, "Do you have a map of the world?"

Warren pushed a button on his desk and a huge screen came to life behind him. He pressed a few more buttons to bring up an image. It was a map of Shinichi's world. Electric Butterfly scanned the map and then stood up before hovering over as Warren watched. She put her finger upon a spot on the map, marking it. "There," she said. "Dr. X's headquarters is right there, hidden in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean. It's a hidden island fortress that's undetectable by radar."

Warren looked at the spot and pushed a button to focus upon it before bringing up the coordinates. "So, he set up shop in the Bermuda Triangle. No wonder we couldn't find him." He then leveled his cold gaze onto Electric Butterfly and she gulped. "I'm warning you now, Ms. Lina. If any of this information is untrue, or if this is a trap, I will break my one rule and kill you myself."

* * *

**Kamen Rider Chrome: Battle plans are being drawn. Electric Butterfly gives Warren directions to ARMOR of X-SHOCKER's whereabouts. Is she legit or is it a trick? Also, we've learnt more about the horrible truth behind Project BLACK 13 and its purpose. What happens next will be the conclusion and climax to the FALL OF X-SHOCKER Arc!**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: Shit will hit the fan, next chapter! Get ready for some EXPLOSIONS, directed by Michael Bay! Nah, just kidding. Hope you guys enjoy this one and keep reading.**


	40. The Fall of X Shocker Part 13

**THE FALL OF X-SHOCKER**

**Part 13: The Assault**

Spider Ninja was monitoring Dr. Gebok's newest creation. "Eh... what the heck is that?" Spider Ninja asked. He felt disturbed by the sight of the monster in the tube, feeling the malevolent energy oozing out of it.

"He is the result of combining the Kaijin creating processes of GIN-SHOCKER and the Dark Hatred Society. I call him 'Shedim'," Dr. X answered

"Shed-wha?" Spider Ninja asked in confusion

"The Shedim are a species of demon from Jewish mythology," Million said while walking into the room. He was still draped in a dark cloak with the hood concealing his face.

"Million-sama!" Dr. X kneel and pulled Spider Ninja to kneel before their master.

"According to one legend, the Shedim were the descendants of demons in the form of serpents, alluding to the serpent in Eden, while another legend said that God had started making them, intending for them to be humans, but did not complete their creation because he was resting during the Sabbath and never completed them to show that all work must be finished. Quite a cruel existence for them wouldn't you say?" Million chortled.

"What, what are we going to use him for?" Spider Ninja asked cautiously.

Million explained, "There is another bit of myth about them saying people would sacrifice their daughters to the Shedim and just like them I will offer a female creation of mine to him, one that has an obsession with Black 13."

Spider Ninja tilted his head, but with a realization cackled, knowing a certain traitorous butterfly was going to get it.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS were still standing outside of Warren's office, trying to listen in on what he and Electric Butterfly were talking about.

"Maybe he seduced and they're going at it right now," Yokoshima suggested.

"That's gross, dude," Daichi shot back.

"But you can't deny that it's a possibility, Dai. We're talking about the Smith Charm, here," Yokoshima argued.

"No woman can ignore it," Michiru added. She'd been affected by the Smith Charm a few times. Heck, ask any woman who worked in ARMOR that was not married or in a relationship. They felt it too. Michiru once had very inappropriate and dirty dreams regarding the Director of ARMOR.

It finally came to the point that she was overwhelmed by the Smith Charm and it wasn't coming from Warren. It came from his son. She and Hana spent a really wild and satisfying night with the younger Smith. Oddly enough, she got the same feeling of attraction towards Shinichi whenever he was close by.

Shinichi had his arms crossed and leaning against the wall, trying to think of anything else but Electric Butterfly. He felt a tap on his right shoulder and turned his head to face Yuji. "What?" Shinichi questioned curtly.

"You know you really hurt her feelings by giving her the cold shoulder," Yuji pointed out.

"What am I supposed to say to her?" Shinichi retorted. "I'm sorry that I killed you? I'm happy to see you alive again? How come you tried to kill me? How come you attacked my friends?" He sounded really cynical.

"OK, you can do that by dropping the sarcasm," Yuji replied.

"I was tortured by a madman for yen years! I think I have the right to be sarcastic!" Shinichi snapped.

"Is there a problem here?" Alan asked.

"Shinichi has a stick up his ass about talking to his ex," Yuji answered.

"She's not my ex, she's…I dunno…" Shinichi denied, or tried to, but just trailed off.

"Your first love," Alan supplied, "The first person you ever fell in love with."

"And I killed her," Shinichi finished. "How can I talk to her?"

"I've seen you try," Alan reminded. "Why is now so different?"

"The fighting kinda distracted me but now…I just don't know how to talk to her."

"She's here now, and for a reason that's so important that she's willing to go against Gebok," Alan pointed out. "She's putting her life in danger to help us, to help you. I think you owe her some time to talk to her."

Shinichi pondered Alan's words. He was right, but was Shinichi ready for this?

"Nothing gets resolved if you keep everything bottled up," Hanyuu advised wisely. "Nano desu," she added cutely.

Shinichi closed his eyes. The memory of her death played in his mind over and over. He did owe her the opportunity to explain herself. Maybe they did need to talk. Still, he wasn't sure he could trust her.

"Don't think of her as one of Gebok's androids," Alan advised.

"Think of her as some girl you wanna pick up and take to bed," Yui joked. Shinichi gave her a look. "Hey, she's cute, isn't she? Sides, it's not like it's the first time you slept with another girl."

That was true. "Just give me some time," he told them. "That's all I ask."

"Don't take too long, dude," Yuji told him.

Shinichi closed his eyes. It was time to dive in and talk to his own personal advisors.

* * *

When Shinichi arrived in his mindscape, he saw Kuro sparring with both Zennin and Yabuki using swords as Gokuaku gave Shinji a piggyback ride. '_Is this what they do with most of __their__ free time?_' he wondered. He cleared his throat, getting their attention.

"Guys, I need to talk with you all," said Shinichi.

"You need to talk to us about this Lina business," Kuro stated.

"How did you..." Shinichi paused, remembering where he was and who he was talking to. He shook his head. "Never mind. Listen, I need some advice here. What should I do?"

"Why not talk to her?" Gokuaku suggested. Before Shinichi could retort the Oni continue, "And before you say anything sarcastic, need I remind you that the same thing occurred with you and the other members of your team?"

"I know... but this is different. She was the one that helped me express my emotions again. And what did I do to repay that? I killed her. I know it was Gebok that tricked me but it was still me who killed her." Shinichi frowned.

"But you shouldn't be ignoring her, Onii-chan," said Shinji. "You're hurting her if you do that."

"You know, the kid has a point," Zennin agreed.

"She is risking her life, knowing that your teammates may not listen, not to mention that Gebok's not the kind of man to let a traitor just leave. She deserves more than a cold shoulder and the silent treatment," Yabuki said to Shinichi.

"You're right..." Shinichi sighed "Thanks for the talk, guys."

"Come back soon, Onii-chan!" Shinji said to his older self. Shinichi ruffled his inner-child's hair affectionately.

* * *

X-SHOCKER's Headquarters was on an artificial island directly in the centre of the infamous Bermuda Triangle. It seemed like an ideal spot for Gebok's base. He would be protected by the area's natural electromagnetic fields that made his fortress undetectable whole being hidden in plain sight.

The fortress was definitely a malevolent sight to behold with tall spires that seemed to resemble drills as the grooves around the spike-like structures suggested. It was all black and took up the majority of the island's space. The coast was clear of anything, save for the usual security measures. W14's patrolled the area for intruders.

This was Gebok's stronghold and where he was sure to be safe from any of his enemies. A guy like him, with the experiments he committed, was sure to make a lot of enemies. He just never suspected that his greatest enemy would be his own creation.

"Isn't life just ironic?" asked Gebok.

"What?" asked Spider Ninja as he hung down from the ceiling.

"I created BLACK 13 to be my greatest weapon and I put a lot of effort into him too. I made him what he is today and look at the thanks I get!" Gebok snorted. "It's ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous! And now my beautiful Electric Butterfly has gone and done the same, and after all the trouble I went through reviving her."

Spider Ninja kept his lips sealed. He really didn't want to say anything to piss Gebok off. While he was physically weak, his intellect made him dangerous. He could create weapons of mass-destruction on a simple whim.

Sitting in his chair and swirling a glass of wine, Gebok looked at all the surveillance monitors. The Shedim was almost completely energized. He just needed a couple of hours. Million had given him time to finish his latest creation and he was grateful to his master.

* * *

"Earth to Shinichi! Hello! Earth to Shinichi!" Yuji waved his hand in front of Shinichi's face, not getting a response. "Man, he's all zoned out." He asked Alan, "Does he do this a lot?"

"Not that I know of," Alan shrugged.

"Hey, let's draw on his face," said Michiru as she uncapped a marker.

"That's not permanent ink, is it?" Hana asked.

Michiru checked the marker's label. "Nope, it'll wash off." She tiptoed over and just as the tip of her marker was about to touch Shinichi's cheek, his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist. "Eep!" she squeaked.

His eyes were at the door which opened and Electric Butterfly exited. She looked up at Shinichi who looked back before averting her eyes. He then strode over to her and grabbed her arm. "Come on, we need to talk," he said to her sternly and from his tone there was no arguing with his demand.

"Alright," Electric Butterfly accepted before she allowed Shinichi to drag her along.

Once the pair was out of sight, Michiru spoke up, "So, what do you think they'll be doing?"

"Well, I bet it won't involve much talking but they will be getting a 'heart-to-heart' and become very, very 'attached'," Yokoshima suggested, grinning. "If you know what I mean."

"You are an idiot," Daichi told him bluntly.

* * *

ARMOR agents had their own private quarters in the Terminal. It was like their home away from home and someplace private they could do their work without interference. Electric Butterfly and Shinichi reached his door, which had his name on it. He punched in the access code and the door slid open. "Get in," he ordered, pushing her into the room. He then entered and the door closed behind them.

The room had a bed, a desk and a closet. She looked around and saw a framed photograph on the desk. She picked it up and saw that it was Shinichi and Rena that were on it. The photo was unceremoniously snatched out of her hand.

"Don't touch anything," he said harshly. "Now, sit down."

Electric Butterfly sat on the bed as Shinichi took his chair and sat on it, facing her.

It was time to talk.

Shinichi was the first to break the silence and apologized, "I'm sorry."

Electric Butterfly was surprised by the sudden apology, "Kuro-kun…"

"I'm sorry I killed you, I'm sorry I couldn't save you, and I'm sorry I just left you behind," he started to babble, "And I'm sorry for giving you the cold shoulder and-"

"Wait! Wait! Slow down!" Electric Butterfly cried. "It's OK!"

Shinichi looked at her.

"Yes, you did kill me but I think the times I tried to kill you kinda makes us even," said Electric Butterfly. "And also the time I attacked your school, and when I tried to kill your girlfriend."

"You never tried to kill Rena-chan," Shinichi objected.

"Because you always stopped me before I could," she countered. Another reason was that if she did kill Rena, history or not, Shinichi would come after her for revenge. Shinichi would kill to avenge his friends and loved ones. "And I'm sorry for always spying on you too."

"_Spying_ on me?" Shinichi asked.

"I like to watch you and your girlfriend have sex and I get so turned on each time," Electric Butterfly confessed.

'_She's a stalker!_' Shinichi cried in his head. Then again, that should've been pretty obvious from the start.

"Plus it wasn't really your fault. Dr. X…Gebok tricked you into killing me. It wasn't your intention. You just didn't know."

Shinichi cleared his head and coughed a few times. He sighed. "So, your name is really 'Lina' and not 'Rina'?"

"Well, 'Lina' and 'Rina' do rhyme," she told him. "I guess you couldn't remember things clearly even after you recovered from your amnesia. You must've gotten my name mixed up." Another explanation was that Lina in the past and Rena looked almost alike, which could account for the mix up.

Shinichi continued, "So, you really want to help us take Gebok down, right?"

"Yes, I do. He's a monster of the worst kind," said Electric Butterfly, "But I just couldn't see it until now."

"He had some kind of hold on you," Shinichi stated.

"It's the same hold he has on all his other Beast Androids," Electric Butterfly admitted, "But I'm a bit different because I used to be human."

Shinichi sympathized with her and spoke, "Lina, I…" There was a knock at the door. "We're busy!" Shinichi snapped.

"Sorry, Shinichi, but Dr. Magi wants to take a look at our guest! It's important!" Yokoshima called from the other side.

"Guess I have to go now," said Electric Butterfly, smiling. "It was nice talking to you." She stood up. Shinichi felt conflicted but then he remembered how he used to hate Alice/Chaos Doll but now considered her like a little sister.

"Lina, when this is over, do you wanna come over and meet my family?" offered Shinichi, "And friends?"

Lina turned to look at him and gave him a brilliant smile, "Of course."

* * *

"Nasty little bug, isn't it?" Takada asked as he showed Warren the chip that they managed to extract from Dr. Hasuma. It looked like a computer chip but with X-SHOCKER's insignia on it and writhing tendrils that it'd used to bind itself to Dr. Hasuma's brain and nervous system. "It took hours, blood, sweat and tears but we managed to get it out of him."

"How is he?" Warren asked.

"Resting," Takada answered. "This thing was feeding on his bio-energy. If we didn't get it out of him in time, well there wouldn't be any of him left," said Takada. "So, what do you want me to do with this thing?"

"Analyze it then dispose of it," Warren ordered. "If you'll excuse me, I have a meeting to attend."

Takada watched him leave and smiled. "Man, he really does act like a Big Bro to Ryuki."

* * *

Warren was having a private meeting with the Avengers. He stood at the head of the conference table with the viewing screen behind him. Sitting at the conference table were the Avengers. There was Steve Rogers who went by the codename Captain America and he was Warren's idol. Next was Thor the Norse God of Thunder who wielded the forces of thunder and lightning with his hammer Mjolnir. Iron Man, who was also known as Tony Stark, was also present and in armor with his faceplate lifted up. Next there was Hawkeye, an archer with incredible accuracy. Rounding up the ground was Logan who was also known as Wolverine due to his feral personality and his claws.

"I'm glad you all were able to come on such short notice," said Warren. "Who's not here?"

"I think we're missing the-" began Iron Man until the door was heard being banged upon. "I think that's him now."

The banging continued as dents started to form on the surface of the door. The dents were the size of large fists and then a roar was heard as the door was knocked off its hinges and fell to the floor with a crash.

"HULK IS HERE!" roared the green-skinned Gamma superhuman known as the Incredible Hulk. While he was still considered volatile and dangerous in terms of his uncontrollable anger and strength, he and Bruce Banner had formed a sort of symbiotic partnership since they shared the same body. Bruce would let the Hulk out if the Hulk would let Bruce guide him. Due to the Hulk's natural hatred for Banner, it took some very, very, very persuasive convincing on Banner's part. That, and cute little kids. The Hulk had a soft spot for kids. Banner used them as leverage, kinda. "Where Hulk sit?"

"Um, Hulk, do you mind putting the door back up?" asked Hawkeye.

Hulk looked to the door, lifted it up, and then jammed it into the doorway. He then bashed it in for good measure.

"Door fixed!" Hulk concluded.

"Right…" Hawkeye sighed. He looked to Warren.

"I'll get maintenance," Warren said. Hulk sat down on a chair. Fortunately, it could hold his massive muscle weight. "OK, let's begin the meeting!"

"Speak slowly and use small words for Hulk here," Iron Man suggested.

"Anyway gentlemen! This is Dr. Gebok," said Warren as Gebok's picture was shown on the screen. "He has also been known to use the alias Dr. Shinigami and currently he is using the name Dr. X. Dr. Gebok here is an expert in genetic manipulation, engineering, robotics and cybernetics to create weapons. We're talking biological and mechanical here. He used his expertise for the organization GIN-SHOCKER, which ARMOR destroyed, and also the Dark Hatred Society. Now, he's got his own organization called X-SHOCKER."

"Him bad man?" Hulk asked.

"Yes, Hulk. He's a bad man," Warren answered simply.

"Hulk saw we smash," said the Hulk as he punched a fist into his open palm, hard.

"Aye, I agree with the Hulk. This fiend doth deserve a good smiting from Mjolnir," said Thor.

"Smith, do you know where he's being held up?" asked Logan.

"Yes, we have insider information." The screen now showed a map and a circle was drawn on it. Warren pointed on the circle. "X-SHOCKER's main HQ is right here dead in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle."

"Wonder how he got such premium real estate," joked Tony.

"Our informant has also told us what to expect. We're talking about a heavily guarded facility teaming with robotic guards of various levels of strength and abilities. Also, there is an automated security system meant to shoot down any passing sea or aircraft that gets too close," Warren told them.

"So, he's a terrorist, basically," concluded Captain America.

"Yes, and he did the worst possible thing to someone I care about," said Warren. "He captured Ryuki and turned him against ARMOR."

"Ryuki? As in that redheaded doctor who's always hanging around you?" Hawkeye inquired.

"Yes, and right now he's in the hospital, recovering from what Gebok did to him," said Warren. He turned to address Hulk, "Hulk, you remember Dr. Hasuma?"

"Hulk like Dr. Hasuma. Him nice. Him give Hulk bunny rabbits."

"Well, Gebok hurt him."

"You want Hulk smash?"

"Yes please."

"HULK SMASH!" Hulk roared and brought his fists up as he charged at the image of Dr. Gebok.

"NOT IN HERE!" Warren shouted, stopping Hulk's charge. "We don't need to replace the conference table, again!" Sighing, Warren rubbed his temples. "Where is Ryuki when I need him?" mumbled Warren. "All he has to do is to bring a basket of cute and fluffy animals and the Hulk is just fine." He promised, "Later, later, OK?"

Hulk nodded and sat down. Everyone leered at him cautiously.

"So, what else can we expect from this Gebok?" Logan asked.

The screen showed a series of clips of various monsters. "In GIN-SHOCKER he created the Cyborg Mutants and in the DHS he helped to develop the Demon Beasts. Now in X-SHOCKER, he has Android Beasts. He's also got these android foot soldiers called W14's. We know what to expect from our informant, but I can't shake off the feeling she might be hiding something."

"So, it be a girl who gives you this information?" inquired Thor.

"Yes, Thor, and her name is Lina. She was one of Gebok's minions but she defected. In exchange for giving us this information she wants us to keep her safe," Warren answered. "Right now, Dr. Magi is examining her."

* * *

"You're not entirely mechanical, my dear," Dr. Magi told her after scanning Electric Butterfly. "You have an organic human brain inside your metal skull. That makes you a cyborg."

"That explains a few things, I guess," shrugged Electric Butterfly as she redressed herself. Dr, Magi had needed her to be naked to be thorough. She'd not taken offense to it. It was procedure, after all. "I still have my memories when I was a human."

"He was still able to reprogram you," Dr. Magi countered. "You were loyal to him, up until now. What changed?"

"It was his cruelty," Electric Butterfly told him. "And I went along with it. I've only recently opened my eyes to the truth that Gebok only cares about Gebok."

"He's always been like that since the day I met him," Dr. Magi said sympathetically. "Don't worry, you're safe here."

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry for that happened to that doctor," said Electric Butterfly. "He's really important, isn't he?"

"He's important to a lot of people, and not just because of his skills. It's because of the type of person he is and what he means to people," Dr. Magi told him. "And Director Smith was really upset about what happened to him."

* * *

"So, the plan is to get onto the island. We'll be using the Helicarrier to get there and then drop down along with another team onto the island," said Warren.

"Another team?" Tony asked.

"The Kamen Sentai NEO-NUMBERS are coming along with us," Warren told him.

The door sparked pink before it fell to the floor. "And I'm coming with you," spoke the new arrival. It was Jinx and she looked completely badass. She was wearing a black tube top, combat boots and gloves that went all the way up to elbows. She also wore armor plating that was strapped to her chest, forearm and thighs. Over her upper body she wore a dark blue jacket. Her pink hair had been pulled into a braid. Also, she was wearing her husband's goggles on her forehead.

"Seriously, can no one use the door normally!-?" shouted Warren.

Hulk then picked up the door and slammed it back into place. "Hulk fix door again!"

Warren groaned, "Thank you, Hulk."

Hawkeye whistled, "Hello gorgeous."

"That's Dr. Hasuma's wife," Tony told Hawkeye.

"Jinx, what are you doing here?" Warren asked as Jinx stomped over to him.

"What am I doing here? What are you doing here without me?" she hissed, poking at Warren's chest. "I want in."

"You retired from hero work, as I recall," said Warren.

"This isn't about me being a hero. This is about me paying some madman back for hurting my hubby!" she told him, her eyes flashing bright pink. Clicking could be heard as the Scarab Inzecter flew into the conference room and landed on her shoulder.

"Ryuki wouldn't like you putting yourself in danger," reasoned Warren.

"My husband is in a coma, Warren! A coma! If the same thing happened to me, to any of us, he'd be doing the same! You know it and I know it!" she snapped at him.

Warren sighed. Jinx had a point. Ryuki was never a man to back down when one of his loved ones was hurt. That was something his enemies learnt rather quickly. Plus he would've done the same if someone were to use his own loved ones against him.

"Fine, you can come, but I want you to stay close. Ryuki will kick my ass if he knew I let you get hurt in this mission," Warren stated.

Jinx grinned, in the wicked way she used to back when she was part of the HIVE. "Oh, don't worry about me, Warren. You should be more worried about our enemies because they are going to have a taste of bad luck."

"I like her," said Hawkeye.

"She's married," Tony reminded, "To a guy who can literally blow you up with just the blink of his eye."

* * *

"What do you mean I can't go?" Hanyuu whined.

"Cyborgs and superheroes only, kid," Daichi told her.

"I'm a superhero too!" Hanyuu argued.

"You've only been on one assignment," Daichi countered.

"Daichi has a point," said Chiaki. "It won't be safe for you there and Gebok's likely going to target you as well. I hate to see you get hurt. Plus, Shinichi would kill me if you got hurt."

"Chiaki-san, you know I can help," pleaded Hanyuu.

"Well, it's the Director's call to make," said Yokoshima. "He's gonna be the one leading the mission and we'll be going with the Avengers."

"So, are we all ready?" asked Shogo. He looked around. "Where are Shinichi and Battler?"

* * *

Alan and Yuji found Battler and Shinichi in the training room. They were busy trading blows. Battler seemed like a pretty competent fighter and his cybernetic enhancements did make him pretty strong. However, in terms of experience, he was way behind Shinichi.

"Last minute training before the assault?" Alan asked the two cyborgs who stopped in mid-training.

"Yeah, Shinichi suggested that I need to prepare for this fight," Battler said, unconsciously clenching his fists. He'd read the reports and files on both GIN-SHOCKER and the Dark Hatred Society. Honestly, he was scared that he and the others may not make it back alive. However, if it meant ending Gebok's reign of terror once and for all, then at least his spirit would find some solace.

"So Shinichi, how did that talk with Lina go?" Yuji asked

"Well it could have been better, but I also think it could've been worse." Shinichi said.

"Well at least you know she isn't your enemy anymore which is good in my opinion," Alan commented.

"Right, but enough chit-chat, it's time for us to meet with the others. It's do or die time." Yuji stated as everyone nodded as they left the training area. "TODAY IS A GOOD DAY TO DIE!"

"I prefer not dying anytime soon," said Battler.

* * *

Dr. X knew that sooner or later Electric Butterfly would eventually betray him. It was just a matter of time. She was only human after all. He also knew that abducting Dr. Hasuma and turning him against ARMOR would bring the Director of ARMOR to him. In hindsight, considering how powerful Warren was, it didn't seem like a very good (or healthy) idea. Briefly, Gebok pondered as to why he would do these things. Did he not care for his own welfare or was he not as smart as he would like to think?

Gebok grinned. He knew the answer instantly. He was a man that wanted to cause misery in every essence of the word upon other beings and to crush such things like happiness into dust. He wanted everyone to know that he had all the power. He wanted to show the world what he was capable of.

While it was true that he'd tricked BLACK 13 into killing Lina in order to create the ultimate killing machine, he also wanted to see the look of despair on the tortured boy's face as he killed his first love.

Gebok cackled, knowing full well that all the players would arrive at his doorstep very soon and he would be sure to welcome them and leave his mark upon them.

He looked at the screens. "Ah, my Shedim. It looks like you'll be having a Birthday Party very soon," he said with a huge grin upon his face.

Gebok cackled knowing that the players would be here soon, and he will make sure to leave his mark on everyone's mind.

* * *

The Helicarrier was headed to X-SHOCKER Island. The crew inside was made up of the Avengers and the NEO-NUMBERS. They also had Jinx, Yuji and Alan tagging along as well.

"OK, we'll be jumping from the Helicarrier down to the island," Warren instructed. "Any questions?"

"When do we smash?" asked Hulk.

"Eager, isn't he?" Carmen asked Hawkeye, referring to the green giant.

"OK, we're here," said Electric Butterfly. She'd been temporarily assigned to the NEO-NUMBERS by Warren. There were protests and arguments but ultimately Warren would not entertain them. She was part of their team for this operation and thus an agent of ARMOR until this whole thing with Gebok was dealt with.

"Alright, time to go down," said Warren and the exit opened up for them. "Single file people," he said but Hulk was the first one to go through. Sighing, he murmured, "Why do I even bother?"

Everyone exited the Helicarrier and jumped off. Those who couldn't fly were using parachutes to descent onto the island. Those like Hulk, however, landed as gracefully as they could; in other words not by a lot.

"There it is," said Electric Butterfly. "That's where Gebok is."

"And it looks like the welcoming committee is here," said Wolverine as his claws slid out of his knuckles. There were W14's charging towards them and with them were Android Beasts that seemed very familiar to the NEO-NUMBERS. In fact, Showa recalled having destroyed them before.

"Guess he made backups," Showa concluded.

"Gebok did say he was planning to mass-produce the Android Beasts," Electric Butterfly told him.

"Well then, it's time to close down the factory then!" grinned Musician.

"AVENGERS, ASSEMBLE!" ordered Warren loudly before he and his team charged straight at the oncoming army of androids.

"But they're already assembled!" stated Carmen in confusion.

"It's a battle cry, Michiru," Arachnea told her friend.

"NEO-NUMBERS, IKUZE!" commanded Showa and Zero as the NEO-NUMBERS transformed and rushed into battle alongside Earth's Mightiest Heroes.

Hawkeye and Zero fired their projectiles, arrows and stingers respectively. The archer fired his arrows, one by one, with impressive speed and accuracy befitting his name. While not tipped with the sharp arrowheads of regular arrows, Hawkeye's arrows were still deadly as they exploded on impact. The explosions blew holes into the chests of several of the androids and also blew up their heads. Zero's stingers, which were sharp needles he fired from his wrists, were just as deadly. When they struck their targets, they were completely immobilized before bursting into fireballs.

The Incredible Hulk roared as he charged at the W14 soldiers and the Beast Androids. "HULK SMASH! HULK BASH!" the green behemoth roared as he used his fists the best way he could, crushing all that stood before him. His anger was well-justified. One time when he was being pursued by the army who wanted him killed, Dr. Hasuma actually approached him calmly and peacefully unlike the soldiers who had their guns and tanks aimed at him. The good doctor actually brought a basket filled with cute little bunny rabbits that had fluffy fur. The sight of the creatures and the feel of their fur managed to calm the Hulk down and they even played with the little critters. "NO HURT NICE DOCTOR!"

Armadillo was also mowing down the enemy with his usual fighting method. His armor didn't give him much speed normally but once he rolled himself into a ball he was a wrecking ball of death. He threw himself at the androids like a massive bowling ball, crushing them under his weight. He didn't stop for anything and continued to do as much damage as the Hulk.

Iron Man was blasting with his blasts from his gauntlets, blowing the enemy androids away when they tried to come close. He saw a few fliers and smirked under his mask before shooting them down. "And Warren said this would be the hard part," said Iron Man.

Musician was gripping his modified Cricket Fork. It was still a military fork but the bottom end was now equipped with a microphone. He used the heavy end as a club now to bash his opponents with. Swinging his weapon, he slashed at them and also bashed them away. Spinning it so the microphone was near his mouth, he let out a shout that was amplified into a blast of sonic energy. The concussive force of the shout knocked the enemy androids off their feet and he then moved in to smash them to the ground.

Wolverine was showing off how he earned his namesake as he sliced and diced the X-SHOCKER androids with his adamantium claws. They were once bone claws but after a process that bonded the metal to them they had become as sharp as swords and twice as deadly. Like a beast he clawed at Gebok's creations, showing no mercy and he wasn't the only one.

Arachnea's Spider Kama had also been modified. Once she used to wield all eight scythes upon a single basket hilt but now she was gripped two basket hilts that had four extendable scythes on each. She liked the feel of having two deadly weapons in both hands and now she could reach far from her left and right while before she could only strike from one direction. The curved blades glistened as they sliced through the air, taking down enemies with sparks and fluid bleeding from them.

Liger Zero's claws were definitely put to good use here as he slashed at the android soldiers. The W14's looked the same and were just as weak but the Android Beasts were the bigger threat as they each had different abilities. However, that made little different to Liger Zero and his claws as he fell them all with sheer ferocity.

Captain America was no slouch either. He flung his shield through the air and the sharp edges of the weapon sliced the heads of the androids clean off their shoulders before returning to him like a boomerang. He then used the shield to block a blow coming from his side before he punched the android across the face. He then used his boxing training to knock the androids down with ease.

Slasher lived up to his name as his chainsaws spun to life. He sliced the bodies of the androids with ease. They became dismembered body parts in no time flat. Also, his glue immobilized them so he could deal with them personally. His chainsaws were really wicked weapons and no doubt his handler had given them to him out of inspiration from certain Slasher Flicks depicting monstrous killers who wielded such weapons to murder their victims. Slasher didn't really enjoy killing but he found it satisfying when his chainsaws hacked right through his enemies.

Even in her early thirties and after having two kids Jinx still proved that she still got the 'it factor'. Her gymnastic skills had not gone rusty as she performed flips and somersaults to put some distance between herself and the X-SHOCKER androids. She then flung hexes at them in waves, causing them to either seize up or explode. "Want a taste of a little bad luck?" She snapped her fingers and the wave of pink energy caused a few more to explode where they stood. While she was grinning, she was actually very angry. "This is for my husband!" She unleashed bursts of hex energy that blew up androids around her.

Of course, Jinx had more than just her hexes up her sleeve. "Henshin!" she called as she snapped her Scarab Inzecter onto her belt which generated the armor. "Cast Off!" she ordered as she activated the Cast Off function. A digital voice echoed her command and her armor broke apart into fragments that shot off her frame in all directions. Once the change was complete, Kamen Rider Scarab called out, "Clock Up!" and vanished out of sight. In the blink of an eye, about fifty androids exploded before Jinx reappeared.

Carmen didn't want to be shown up by the older woman and showed off her own gymnastic grace. She also cast illusions to confuse her foes and then she struck with her own scythes. The flowers on her shoulders fired the petals in a barrage like the bullets from a machinegun, spraying out rapidly. Her shoulders trembled with each spray and as she stopped she lunged and slashed with her scythes again, using the illusions to cover her. Her victims never saw her coming as the illusions preoccupied them.

Thor and Electric Butterfly were in the air and unleashing bolts of lightning. Electric Butterfly's lightning came from her rod which she used like a magic wand. As for Thor, he used his Mjolnir to summon up the fierce elemental force of thunder and lightning to do his bidding. Storm clouds actually obeyed his command and bolts of lightning lanced down upon the X-SHOCKER forces.

"OK, now that's awesome!" Electric Butterfly complimented.

"Aye, young one, but you are just as impressive," Thor returned the compliment which made her smile.

"No flirting," Iron Man chided as he flew by.

"Focus on the mission," added Zero to Electric Butterfly.

Warren was armed with his Zanpakuto and using Shunpo to cut the androids down simultaneously. His impressive speed could not be followed. There were some lucky shots as missiles were fired at him but a barrier of blue energy protected him before he blurred out of sight and the attackers lost their heads and limbs. They were androids and thus non-living. Warren didn't have to feel guilty about ending their existence. He was actually more focused on getting to Gebok and these things were getting in the way.

Meta was mowing down the opposing forces just as fast. He melted them with hot flames, tore them apart with his strength, blue them up with missiles, slice them up with his sword and ran circles around them with his super speed acceleration, actually blowing them away with a tornado that he made. Surprising even himself, he even transformed into the Incredible Hulk and used his massive fists to pound the androids to dust.

Alan fired energy from his fists at the androids, blowing them away and blowing them up. Shredded metal and shrapnel flew through the air as explosions erupted all around them. Wearing Bazel's combat armor actually allowed Alan more flexibility as the armor channeled the energy from his ring and allowed him to fire the energy from his fists instead of just firing them from his ring. Grinning, he constructed a massive flyswatter out of solid green energy and slammed it down, flattening the androids. He then made a spiked ball and chain in one hand and a mallet in the other and started to play 'Whack-A-Mole' with them and the X-SHOCKER androids.

As for Showa, he was dual-wielding his Showa-Blade and the Higurashi no Yaiba as he fought his massive number of opponents. He slashed at them with the blades, knocking them to the ground. He jumped over them and continued his attack as he rushed towards the fortress only for his progress to be hindered by the androids. He discarded the Showa-Blade and went for the Showa-Blaster and started shooting them down to clear his way. Unfortunately for him, these androids were making things difficult for him as they made themselves into a wall between the heroes and the fortress.

Despite their best efforts, Gebok kept sending more and more of his W14's and Android Beasts to replace the ones that had been destroyed.

"These things are coming in swarms," Iron Man reported. "There's no end to them."

"They're just obstacles in the way," Thor agreed.

"Well, we better clear them away if we want to get into the fortress," said Warren. "

"That's easier said than done," said Hawkeye. "I'm almost out of arrows here.

Showa could see Gebok's fortress in his sights but as long as these androids kept coming at them from all directions they were boxed right in on the coast. It was annoying, and frustrating, and he was definitely angry, very, very, angry.

"You need a path?" Alan asked. He then aimed his ring at the androids and formed a powerful cannon around his forearm. It was twice as long as his arm and very thick. A targeting sight was present and then Alan pulled the trigger. A burst stream of emerald energy vaporized the androids in its straight path.

"Thanks," said Showa.

"Alan, you and the NEO-NUMBERS get into that fortress!" Warren called. "We'll catch up once we're done here!"

"Are you sure?" Alan shouted back.

"Trust me, now get in there!" Warren ordered.

"Follow me, I know a backdoor," Electric Butterfly instructed.

"I know a good backdoor too," Armadillo commented.

"Not the time, Yokoshima," Musician snapped at him. Alan, Liger and the NEO-NUMBERS all followed Electric Butterfly along the path that went straight towards the fortress. X-SHOCKER androids tried to get in their way but the Avengers dealt with them to allow the younger group of heroes to access to Gebok's stronghold.

* * *

Meanwhile, Gebok stood at his console, watching the battle from all angles on his monitor. His interest was focused on Showa and Electric Butterfly who were fighting side-by-side. He then saw them coming towards the fortress.

"Spider, how is the status of the Shedim?" he asked.

"Dr. X!" Spider Ninja reported, "The Shedim is ready!"

"Good, now let's prepare the party for our guests!" declared Gebok as he pressed the buttons on his console.

* * *

Electric Butterfly led them into the backdoor she'd mentioned, which she said was a shortcut. It was the sewer system. Aside from Showa, the other NEO-NUMBERS didn't exactly trust her. After all, she was one of Gebok's androids. It seemed a bit hypocritical, considering how Gebok revived them but they had proved themselves. She hadn't.

"Are you sure we should be following her?" Zero whispered to Showa.

"Relax, we can trust her," Showa replied.

"You mean your dick trusts her," snorted Musician.

Showa hissed, "What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

"She's your ex-girlfriend," Musician shot back, "Of course you trust her. And you feel guilty because you were the one who put a bullet in her."

Showa was about to shout back when Liger Zero put his hand on his shoulder, "Don't do anything that will blow our cover."

"Hmph," Musician snorted, "Knowing Gebok he knows we're coming through here anyway. He has eyes and ears everywhere."

"In the sewer?" Armadillo asked.

"You'll see," Musician said seriously, "Once we exit we'll be facing a lot of guns staring right at us. She's leading us into a trap."

"She's putting herself at risk for us!" Showa snapped. "Give her the benefit of the doubt. Not too long ago, you all used to work for Gebok too."

Electric Butterfly heard this and frowned sadly. She should be happy that she got Showa's trust but it still hurt that they didn't trust her after she practically risked her life to come to them for help.

"She's a machine!" Musician reminded.

"Only most of her, but her brain's real," said Showa.

"Yeah, Pops checked her out. She's a cyborg like us only more mechanical," agreed Armadillo.

Electric Butterfly put a hand to her temple. Her brain was the only real thing about her. The rest of her was completely artificial. She was no longer made of flesh and blood. Musician was right, she was a machine.

"Not too long ago you wanted to destroy anything Gebok made," Musician said to Showa.

"Things change," Showa replied. He was referring to Alice/Chaos Doll.

Electric Butterfly then felt a hand on her shoulder and looked to see Meta staring at her. "Oh, it's you."

"Look, I just want to say that I don't think you're a bad person," said Meta. "You're just someone who was put in a bad position. It's kinda like my family. We can get along just great until money becomes an issue and then we act like rabid dogs." He chuckled. "It's kinda funny until we, the kids, get roped into it."

"The Ushiromiya Family, right?" Electric Butterfly asked.

"We're supposed to be a prestigious family, but I think I'd rather be a normal guy," said Meta. "Of course that's impossible, isn't it?"

"I'm sorry," Electric Butterfly told him, "For what Gebok did to you."

"It's OK. It's not like you kidnapped me, right?" asked Meta, smiling.

"Right…" Electric Butterfly nodded.

"I see a light," said Carmen, pointing ahead at the end of the tunnel.

"We're close," said Electric Butterfly. "Let's go."

The group exited the sewer tunnel and then landed knee deep in sludge.

"Ew…" Carmen grimaced.

"It's up there," said Electric Butterfly. "According to the map I have we are directly under Gebok's command centre."

"So, the scum likes to stand over his own filth," Musician mused. "It fits him."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" asked Showa. "Let's go."

All of a sudden, beams of light fired from the ceiling and engulfed them. "What the hell!-?" Armadillo shouted before he vanished along with the beam.

"It's a fucking trap! I knew it!" shouted Musician before he too vanished. One by one, they all disappeared as the beams of light engulfed them, leaving no trace of them behind.

* * *

Electric Butterfly was slammed against the wall by Musician. "YOU BITCH!" he shouted. "YOU LED US RIGHT INTO A TRAP!"

"Daichi, let her go" Showa ordered.

"YOU'RE NOT THE BOSS OF ME, #13!" Musician shot back. He glared at the trembling Electric Butterfly and accused, "THIS BITCH LED US RIGHT INTO A TRAP!"

They were in some sort of arena-like structure but the seats in the stands surrounding them were all empty. The wall surrounding them had bars over the tunnel entrances.

"I SAID LET HER GO!" Showa punched Musician in the face so hard he was sent flying, knocking him away from Electric Butterfly. "Lina, are you okay?" Showa asked.

Musician spat, "You only care because she reminds you of your girlfriend!"

"Guys! Guys!" Meta got in-between the altercation. "Let's focus here instead of fighting!"

"Hey, where are Alan and Yuji?" Carmen asked.

"Gebok must've separated them from us," Arachnea concluded.

"_INDEED I DID!_" bellowed Dr. Gebok as a hologram of his face was projected above them.

"Wow, he really does have a big head," commented Armadillo.

"Shut up, Yokoshima," everyone said to him. Now was not the time for jokes.

"Gebok…" Showa growled.

"_AH, SO THE PRODIGAL SON HAS RETURNED_," said Gebok, smiling. He spotted Meta, "_AND YOU'VE COME BACK TOO, BLACK GHOST_."

"It's Meta now," Meta corrected.

"_META? OH, YOU MEAN LIKE AN AMAGRAM OF 'TEAM'? HOW FITTING SINCE YOU HAVE A TEAM OF POWERS IN YOU_," chuckled Gebok. He eyed Electric Butterfly and said, "_I'D LIKE TO THANK YOU, ELECTRIC BUTTERFLY. YOUR TREACHEROUS ACTIONS HAVE ACTUALLY BENEFITTED ME. NOW I CAN DESTROY ALL OF YOU RIGHT HERE IN MY OWN HOME._"

"Bring it on, Gebok!" Showa shouted. "We can handle whatever you throw at us!"

"_OH, WE'LL SEE ABOUT THAT_," Gebok said before his hologram flickered away.

"What did he mean by _that_?" Carmen asked apprehensively. They then saw the bars in front of one of the tunnel entrances rise upward followed by the sound of hulking footsteps.

"Something is coming," said Slasher.

"No duh, Mr. Obvious!" Musician shot back.

Once the creature entered the arena, they finally saw what it was. Most of the creature's body was covered in evil-looking armor with its spaulders styled after the heads of dragons and a chest-piece that was in the shape of a demonic skull. Mangled looking horns grew where its ears should be and arched upwards before curling back down beneath its chin. Its mouth was stuck in a rigor mortis-like grin upon a serpent-like face and its legs were similar to those belonging to a velociraptor, including the hooked claws. Its left arm was only organic from the elbow up. From the elbow down it was a twisted-looking blade. Its right arm was longer and ended with a hand that sported blood red claws.

It was a truly hideous sight.

"What the fuck is that!-?" shouted Meta.

"_I'M GLAD YOU ASK! IT IS CALLED THE SHEDIM BUT YOU CAN CALL HIM YOUR EXECUTIONOR_!" announced Gebok. "_SHEDIM, PLEASE KILL THEM ALL!_"

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan and Yuji were in a bit of a predicament of their own. They had been transported to a similar looking arena as well and were facing their own group of foes. Spider Ninja was in the lead but he now looked drastically different than he normally did. He was covered in black and purple armor with four pairs of spider legs on his back. His shoulders were equipped with missile launchers and his fingers and toes ended in sharp claws. On his chest was X-SHOCKER's emblem and he now wore a helmet with a single red visor across his eyes and a pair of short horns where his ears should be. In his hand was a gun with a circular saw blade attached. He was now known as Metal Spider.

"Welcome to my parlor," said the newly upgraded Metal Spider. He wasn't alone, though. He also had a small army of W14's with him. "And I've got some special dance partners for you too." The ceiling suddenly burst open as several Manhunter robots and a Highmaster landed, joining the group.

"I knew that Gebok had to be in league with him…" muttered Alan.

"Who?" blinked Yuji.

"I'll tell you after they're scrap."Alan and Yuji stared down the Manhunters and Highmaster that had just joined Metal Spider and the WHITE 14 army. "Ring, scan the Highmaster for signs of life. Yuji, you take care of the clones and the arachnid. Leave the machines to me," said Alan.

"You sure? There's a lot of em," replied Yuji.

"Zero life signs detected in Highmaster," spoke the ring.

Alan smirked, his eyes glowing with golden energy. "I'm sure. I've faced worse odds than this."

Yuji hefted the Red Queen off his back and revved the engine as the W14's charged at him. He slashed away at the robots, flipping around and spinning to avoid their strikes. He back-flipped a robot and stomped on it before stabbing it in the back as he revved the engine. Yuji then rode the W14 through the arena and ran through the remaining W14 as he fired at them with his witch-gun.

Alan fired green and gold bolts that destroyed the Manhunters with ease. The Highmaster went for a punch but Alan ducked under the punch and conjured a green chainsaw that impaled the Highmaster and chewed up his stomach as Alan drove the chainsaw upward, shredding him in half. As the Highmaster was about to self destruct, Alan absorbed the energy of the blast, leaving it inert.

The two heroes were through with the batch of opponents and eyed Metal Spider.

"Fuck…" Metal Spider sweat-dropped.

Yuji hefted his Red Queen onto his shoulder and grinned, "Next!"

Alan palmed his fist, "Time to squash this arachnid."

"How about we go all out on this bug?" Bazel suggested. "I mean he did try to control Alice and kidnap little Maria."

"You're right," Alan agreed.

"Gentlemen, may I?" Bazel asked.

"Go for it," accepted Yuji.

Bazel then absorbed Yuji into himself to execute the transformation. There was a bright emerald flash that blinded Metal Spider.

"_**Xros Fusion!**_" Alan, Bazel and Yuji called at once.

Alan emerged from the emerald light, completely changed. He was now clad in pure white armor with a lion's head on his chest. Golden claws were folded on the back of his forearms and his feet also sported claws. He wore a helmet over his head which resembled a tiger with its fangs. His skin had also turned white and he still had his Green Lantern mask on.

"Xros Fusion Complete!" declared Bazel, "Green Liger!" Green photon lines appeared on the arms and legs, connecting to the lion's head on the chest as it let loose a roar. The Green Lantern emblem was upon the brow of the helmet with green eyes on the tiger and lion head.

Now Metal Spider was definitely fucked. He tried to hide it though and attacked with his shoulder-mounted missile launchers. A green sphere of energy enclosed around the Green Liger and the missiles collided with it, exploding harmlessly without touching the armored Green Lantern.

**"My turn,"** said the Green Liger as he deactivated his barrier and activated the thrusters on his back as the claws on his arms folded forward with a flick of his wrists. He then dashed straight at Metal Spider who, in his panic, started to fire another array of missiles at him only for the Green Liger to use his claws to deflect them while cutting them up at the same time. He got right in front of the Metal Spider and used an upward swipe to slash him in the chest while also tossing him into the air. Recovering Metal Spider flipped backwards and landed several feet from the Green Liger.

Changing tactics, he aimed his gun at the Green Liger, firing bolts of venomous energy at him. However, the Green Liger was unconcerned as he used his barrier to block the bolts. Ditching his gun, he charged forward and aimed his fist at the barrier but it dropped and Metal Spider stumbled before he was hit with a right cross that sent him flying. He bounced along the floor before hitting the wall.

"He's got a new look, but he's no different from before," observed Yuji.

"So he's got some extra firepower," added Bazel. "That's nothing."

"Don't look down on me!" shouted Spider Ninja. He then created solid duplicates and sent them to attack the Green Liger, "Rip him to shreds!"

Rolling his eyes and yawning, the Green Liger countered the move with his own, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu." The Green Liger clones dashed at the Spider Ninja clones, leaving the two originals to battle themselves.

Metal Spider drew his swords which were laced with venom and with a shout lunged at the Green Liger. Claws and swords connected, sparks flying, but then the Green Liger noticed his claws were melting. He saw that the swords Metal Spider was wielding were dripping with corrosive venom. Withdrawing his claws, he fired a burst of green energy from his lion's head but Metal Spider vanished from sight before reappearing behind the Green Liger. His spider-like legs extended and shot forward, stabbing into Liger Zero's back, causing him to shout out in pain.

"Now you're mine!" Metal Spider cheered with glee but the Green Liger smirked instead. His thrusters then activated right in Metal Spider's face and he shouted out from the intense heat of the emerald flames. He was shoved off the Green Liger, who spun around and hit Metal Spider with a reverse roundhouse heel kick that collided with his jaw. He then pummeled Spider Ninja in the stomach with a barrage of punches and then grabbed him by the arm before tossing him upward and when he came down the Green Liger shot his right leg upward so his heel connected violently with Metal Spider's groin.

Groaning as he fell to the ground, Metal Spider recovered and rolled away from the Green Liger. "I didn't want to do this, but now it's time you taste my secret weapon!" His chestplate swung upwards to reveal what was underneath. It was a yellow crystal and it was glowing. "Dr. X has studied you, Lantern, and he knows you all are weak against the color YELLOW!" A beam of yellow energy shot out of the gem and hit the Green Liger, sending him staggering. Several more energy beams shot out of the gem as Spider Ninja laughed as he continued with his barrage. "Take that! And that! And that!"

"Alan, this guy is ticking me off," said Yuji.

"Yeah, I get that," grumbled Alan.

"I think it's time we showed him his place," said Bazel.

The lion's head on the Green Liger's chest unleashed a massive roar and the shockwave actually knocked Spider Ninja off balance and cancelled out his energy beam attack. Not only that but the shockwave cracked the stone in his chestplate, rendering it useless. "Oh…shit," he gaped and then looked up to see the Green Liger on all fours, rushing at him with his thrusters rocketing him towards Spider Ninja with the speed of a bullet train. The golden claws glowed bright and crackled with energy and finally the green photon lines were also glowing bright.

The Green Liger dashed right past Spider Ninja in a blur of gold, white and green. In the blink of an eye several claw marks appeared all over Spider Ninja before he burst into flames. After that Yuji and Alan separated.

"Hey, Alan," spoke up Yuji.

"Yeah, Yuji?" responded Alan.

"He wasn't as tough as those Manhunters and Highmaster so why did you take your sweet time?" asked Yuji, though he knew the answer.

"If what he did to Alice happened to Maria, you'd do the same," Alan answered. "I wanted to make him suffer a bit."

"Wow, you really are cold," Bazel noted, "I like it."

"I get it from my mother's side of the family," Alan told his armband. "Let me tell you about my grandpa sometime."

"Let's do that later. First we gotta get out of here," said Yuji.

"Ring, find us an exit route please," Alan requested.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS, except for Showa and Electric Butterfly, all assumed their strongest forms to battle Shedim. He seemed strong but they were determined to beat Shedim. The X-SHOCKER Kaijin wasn't alone thought as the other tunnels opened and W14's marched into the arena.

It then turned into an all out war as the NEO-NUMBERS battled with the Shedim and W14's. The W14's were just cannon fodder and were easy to take down. However, Shedim was in an entirely different league altogether. It took advantage of their distraction as they fought with the W14's before targeting them one by one.

Musician dodged from a quick slash and quickly retaliated with his Cricket Axe. Shedim blocked the strike with his sword arm and guided it high to his left before stepping in with a vicious right hook to Musician's jaw. Musician stumbled from the blow as Shedim opened his mouth and fired a purple blast causing sparks to explode from Musician on contact as he screamed before he was forced to revert back to human form, injured and unconscious.

"Daichi!" Shedim turned to see Armadillo firing at him in his Blitz Form with his Blitz Cannons. However, Shedim quickly weaved around the blasts and delivered a brutal kick that sent Armadillo flying and crashing into the stands. He was knocked out instantly by the blow.

"_HAHAHA! FACE IT YOU FOOLS! THE SHEDIM IS IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT LEAGUE YHAN YOU PUNKS! HE'S FAR SUPERIOR TO YOU ALL!_" Dr. X cackled as he watched the show. He was like a kid who was showing off his latest toy.

Shedim dashed forward, swinging down his blade upon Carmen. She quickly blocked it with her chain-linked Mantis Scythes, but the force of the impact forced Carmen to her knees. He wrapped his fingers around her neck, making her choke as she could no longer breathe. He unleashed a burst of electrical energy upon her, causing Michiru to scream as her armor was forced to deactivate. Shedim was going to continue his torment on her but was hit by an energy drill from the side.

He dropped Michiru who gasped for breath as Zero shot more energy drills at him. Shedim rushed to where Zero was hovering before shooting upward. In his hand was a flash of black-purple energy that slammed into Zero's chest. Sparks exploded on impact and the blow sent him crashing to the ground. Before Zero could get up Shedim began stomping on him repeatedly.

Slasher tackled into Shedim, knocking him off Zero. He then started to slash at the Kaijin with his Onigari no Ryuou which Shedim countered with his own blade. Sparks flew from his back and he turned to see Arachnea with her claws brandishes. She and the Termite Rider double-teamed Shedim, slashing with their weapons. Despite their best efforts, Shedim seemed to be a match for them both and they were blown away by another burst of energy and were slammed against the wall. The impact caused their armors to deactivate.

Shedim was then suddenly pummeled by blows from all sides. The assailant was Meta who was accelerating as he ran circles around Shedim, striking him with punches and kicks. A powerful blow sent Shedim flying but he bounced off the wall and fired bursts of energy at Meta who ducked under them. He activated his jets and rocketed towards Shedim, slamming into the Kaijin's midsection. He slammed the monster against the wall and kept him there but he was thrown off by Shedim's arm. Meta landed on his feet and glared at the creature that roared and charged at him. Shedim swung his sword down but then it was blocked by none other than Kamen Rider Showa and the Higurashi no Yaiba.

"You forgot about me," said Showa in his Higurashi Form armor. "Battler, go check up on the others," he ordered.

"OK!" Meta obeyed before he went off to see if the others were alright. If not, he would make sure they would recover in time.

Electric Butterfly was looking at each of the NEO-NUMBER from the air. She frowned. "Damn it, I should've warned them about this." She looked at Showa. "He needs help." She chanted a spell and waved her wand. Glitter was released by her wings as it rained down on all the injured NEO-NUMBERS. This was her ability called, "Glittering Healing!"

Meanwhile, Showa shouted as he swung the Higurashi no Yaiba that was glowing hot white with Shedim blocking the slashes with its sword arm but Showa pushed forward causing cracks to be shown on Shedim blade before it shattered. Shedim suddenly opened his mouth and a streak of purple lightning shot out in an attempt to kill Showa. Showa had only a split second to block but it was more than enough time. He snapped the Higurashi no Yaiba to absorb the blast, letting the lightning coil around it.

"NANI!" Dr. X shouted in shock. That wasn't supposed to happen! Then something else unexpected happened.

Shedim was then hit by a barrage of cannon fire, followed by sonic blasts, and a stream of fire with a spray of bullets. Carmen and Arachnea then struck with their scythes and claws respectively, causing sparks to fly off Shedim. Slasher also struck with the Onigari no Ryuou, stabbing the creature with his sword, causing it to tremble as Slasher twisted the blade before withdrawing it. A drill-shaped energy blast collided with the Shedim, sending him crashing against the wall of the arena.

"Fire in the hole!" shouted Meta as he jumped up and bent his knees, releasing missiles that exploded on the Shedim, causing him to roar out.

"ELECTRIC RAIN SHOWER!" called out Electric Butterfly. Bolts of lightning lanced out from her wand and straight at Shedim, shorting out his inner systems as he roared from the torture. However, he managed to survive. It then rushed at all of them, striking them down with cruel proficiency. Electric Butterfly, Meta and Arachnea managed to get out of the way and were horrified by how powerful Shedim was. He was definitely a monster made for battle.

Showa and Slasher got up and engaged Shedim with their swords. Sparks flew from the clashing blades. "Minna!" Slasher called to the others, "Stay back while we take care of this monstrosity!"

"But-!" Electric Butterfly began to object but was interrupted by Showa.

"Trust us, Lina. We know what we're doing," said Showa as he and Slasher broke away from Shedim. "Let go!" ordered Showa before he and Slasher charged at Shedim. Shedim charged right back at them, head first, roaring. However, Slasher proved to be the quicker one as he jumped on one foot and kicked Shedim hard in the neck that forced him to stumble and spin around.

"HYAH!" Showa cried out as he unleashed a blade-shaped blast from the Higurashi no Yaiba, which exploded upon Shedim on impact. Slasher then moved in to continue his assault, slashing at Shedim rapidly as he was taken by surprise as Slasher managed to get some good hits on him. Slasher then made a cut in Shedim's face and it howled out at the bloody gash Slasher left. Shedim then lashed out and his blade connected with Slasher's chest. The armor shattered from the impact. A kick from Shedim sent Slasher tumbling.

"_FOOLISH, TERMITE!_" laughed Gebok. "_WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?_"

"It's called a distraction, Einstein," said Slasher. The others took this as a signal for them to attack once more, hitting Shedim with a barrage of attacks. Slasher eyed Showa who was powering up and getting ready for the finisher. That was when Electric Butterfly called out to him, "Kuro-kun, finish it!"

That was his cue and Showa nodded as he assumed Hinamizawa Guardian Form. Spikes jutted out of the Higurashi no Yaiba and then fire, electricity and wind whirled around the blade, empowering it. "HINAMAZAWA VICTORY SLASH!" He then rocketed towards the Kaijin and with his sword performed two slashes which made a V-shaped cut along its body.

But that wasn't all. "Let's Ride: Yabuki! Zennin! Gokuaku!" He summoned forth the Tsukumogami of the Hinamizawa Treasures and they all hit with their own attacks as they each took a swipe at Shedim, hitting him with punishing blows before facing. Finally, Showa stabbed the Higurashi no Yaiba through the chest and the Shedim stared at him.

"See you in Hell!" Showa swore as he withdrew his sword and then turned his back to the Shedim as it staggered on its feet before collapsing and finally exploding. Showa then hefted his sword on his shoulder, doing a victory pose along with the NEO-NUMBERS.

"_NO FAIR! DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT WAS TO MAKE HIM!-? HOW MUCH WORK AND TIME I PUT IN!-? YOU DAMN COCKBITES DESTROYED A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF SCIENTIFIC ART_!" Gebok snapped.

"What's the matter, you big baby?" teased Meta mockingly. "Are you throwing a tantrum?"

"Lina, he's up there, right?" Showa pointed at the ceiling.

"Yes," she confirmed. "We're several levels below him but if you go straight up you'll find him."

"Good, that's all I needed to know," said Showa before he flew up like a rocket and smashed into the ceiling.

* * *

"I have to get out of here! Curses! Blast!" Gebok swore as he attempted to escape but then he bumped into something. "What?" His eyes widened as he saw himself staring at Showa's visor. "Oh, SHIT!"

"Oh shit is right," Showa agreed before grabbing Gebok by his coat. "I should kill you right now," said Showa, "But I think I'll let Warren take care of you personally."

Gebok gulped.

* * *

"We are victorious!" declared Thor. Outside the fortress, the Avengers stood in the middle of their battle field with android parts littering the ground. All of a sudden, a series of explosions erupted from X-SHOCKER HQ.

"Looks like they did it," said Iron Man to Warren.

"Yup, coz they're my kids," answered Warren.

"Look, they're coming right out," said Jinx as she spotted the NEO-NUMBERS, Yuji and Alan in the distance.

* * *

As X-SHOCKER's Headquarters burned behind them, Shinichi finally had Gebok in his hands. It was finally over and Gebok would be getting his just desserts. The mad scientist wore handcuffs and was being dragged along by the Shinichi by rope that was tied around his waist.

"Alright, Gebok," said Shinichi to Gebok. "You're coming with us!" He then heard Gebok chuckling. "What's so funny?"

"I'm laughing because you'll be coming with _me_!" Gebok chuckled as his hat flipped up to reveal a digital timer and it was counting down. Shinichi's eyes widened.

"A bomb!-?" Michiru cried out.

"An _EMP_ bomb," Gebok explained. "I made with just you treacherous cyborgs in mind and when this baby goes off, you all will shut down, PERMANENTLY!" Gebok laughed.

"This is bullshit!" Daichi cursed. They had to get away but the timer was counting down faster and faster.

"Don't bother running," mocked Gebok. "You won't get far enough in time!"

Shinichi looked at the timer. Even if they could find someone to defuse it, there wouldn't be enough time. He then prepared to take the bomb out of its range but Electric Butterfly suddenly held Shinichi by his shoulders and murmured an apology, "I'm sorry," before kissing him full on the lips, much to his and everyone's surprise.

"THIS NO TIME TO BE MAKING OUT!" Daichi roared.

Electric Butterfly quickly pushed Shinichi away and grabbed onto Gebok before shooting into the sky at mach speed. "Lina!" Shinichi shouted. However, she could not hear him as she'd just shot skyward with the speed of a rocket. In an instant she was just a speck in the sky.

Electric Butterfly went higher and higher as the countdown timer continued. She only had 10 seconds left before it detonated completely. Looking down, she saw the island had become a dot and smiled.

5…4…3…2…1…0…And finally the EMP bomb unleashed its payload, hitting Electric Butterfly directly with a wave of electromagnetic energy. She then began to fall, releasing Dr. X's body as she descended and began to plummet headfirst.

Shinichi had only watched helplessly as Electric Butterfly took the EMP bomb with her. Hana then cried out, "I see her! She's falling down fast!"

Hearing this, Shinichi quickly activated his armor and flew up to catch her. As he cradled her body in his arms, he spoke to her soothingly, "You'll be okay, Lina. After…after this, we'll go to Angel Mort and I'll get you a big pudding. You'd like that, right? You told me that you liked pudding."

"Kuro-kun…I don't think I'm gonna…make it…" she said weakly. The EMP had severely damaged her systems and she was only holding onto her life by a thread. "Guess this is goodbye...again."

"No!" he denied. "We'll get you to ARMOR! We'll get you fixed up! Don't die on me again!"

"I'm sorry…" she apologized.

"Lina, please…I can't lose you again!" he begged, holding her close as the life slowly faded from her. "Please, I can't lose you again!"

"Don't…forget me, okay?" she asked.

"I won't," he promised, holding her tight. "I won't, Lina. I promise I won't forget you. Just please don't go. Don't go…"

"Kuro-kun, I…love you…" That was when her eyes turned dark as the light of life vanished from them.

"Lina! Lina, come back! Lina!" However, his pleas could not be answered as her body slowly turned to dust. Showa trembled as he felt her weight leaving his arms and he desperately tried to grasp her non-existent body. She was gone. Yet again, he could not save her. Once more she died in his arms.

Showa trembled as he stared at his hands which he held Lina with only moments ago. "Lina…not again…" He screamed, "LINA!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so X-SHOCKER has been destroyed, or so it seems. The heroes won by they also lost one of their own. How will this effect Shinichi in the future? It won't be good, let me tell you that.**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: This was an amazingly epic chap! Battles, explosions, heartbreak…it had it all! Of course, there are still questions that need answers. But don't worry, Chrome, Bushido and I refuse to disappoint our loyal fans!**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: I'm gonna be honest, I didn't do much on this chap, besides helping with editing and ideas. But this chap was awesome none the less so I'm gonna say that we're gonna throw more crazy shit at you guys!**

* * *

"And so the curtains close for another game," said Lord Akuma to the rest of the Observers. "We will have a short intermission until the next game. Please, rest yourselves so you may enjoy it," and with that he vanished in darkness. The Meta World then became empty as all the Observers returned to their respective realms.

* * *

Topper returned to his Pawn Shop and let out a sad and sympathetic sigh for Shinichi. He really felt sorry for the boy. He'd suffered a lot and now the same suffering that led Topper to him had revisited him. "I guess I can give him a few more days off," said Topper, "To grieve." Normally, he never did anything without something in return, as it was his nature. However, he could make an exception.

* * *

Lambdadelta and Bernkastel were in bed together. If you guys were thinking those wicked lolis were having hot lesbian sex then you were sorely mistaken. Anyway, the two witches were actually surrounded by various snacks and sweets as they talked about the conclusion of the last game.

"Looks like he'll be crying like a baby after this," said Lambdadelta, grinning. "Hmph, serves him right!" In the game that involved the DHS, Showa had won and pretty much ruined Lambdadelta's mood.

Bernkastel chose to say nothing but she was actually sympathetic. Shinichi was the brother of her counterpart, Rika Furude, who loved him like a brother and possibly more. She just didn't show it on her face or words. She then spoke to her beloved Lambdadelta, "Remember, Lambda, this was also what started him on his path of heroism."

"Heroism, cheh!" Lambdadelta snorted. "Bern, just accept that there are no real heroes. In the end they are only human and humans are weak."

"Weak they may be, but they are also strong in ways you cannot possibly imagine. Then again, I thought you've learnt how strong they were after our last game together," said Bernkastel, smiling impishly.

Lambdadelta scowled and took a bite out of a Pocky stick.

"Still," Bernkastel continued, "I wonder how this will affect him. Also, it worries me."

"What can worry you, Bern? You're the freakin 'Witch of Miracles!" Lambdadelta told her friend/lover/rival.

"There is an instability among the Kakera," Bernkastel told Lambdadelta, referring to the Hinamizawas that Rika left behind when she died whenever she was reborn in a new one in her fight against her fated death and the destruction of Hinamizawa. "I can feel them cracking."

"Weren't those the ones where your piece, Rika, died and where her friends went crazy?" Lambdadelta inquired while grinning wide.

"Yes, they were, and right now those worlds are in danger of vanishing from something," said Bernkastel.

"Why is that important? I thought you abandoned them," said Lambdadelta, not seeing the point.

"Everything is connected," Bernkastel said vaguely. Lambdadelta just stared at her friend who then grabbed a cookie and started munching on it. The way she chewed on it made her look so cute that Lambdadelta couldn't resist hugging her.

"You're so cruel, Bern!" squealed the blonde Witch of Certainty. Bernkastel just endured, but she was determined to discover what was causing the instability among the Kakera.

* * *

Battler, the Endless Sorcerer, sighed, "Things could get messy."

Virgilia turned to Beatrice, "I sense dark times approaching, Beato."

Beatrice nodded with a frown, "Yes, I sense it too, Teacher. I just hope Yuji will be able to handle any surprises in the future." Yuji was now considered her nephew and even though he was just as perverted and annoying as Battler, the Harbinger of Hope had really grown on her and the Golden Witch began to see the Manakyte as a member of the family.

"Do you think that Shinichi kid will be alright?" Battler asked.

"It's hard to say," admitted Virgilia. "To be honest this is similar to the incident which led him on his path to become a hero. However, his heart is now filled with pain, grief and anger. I doubt he is thinking of doing anything heroic now."

"Beato?" asked Battler.

"As I've said before, Yuji can handle it," said Beatrice confidently.

* * *

Libra really didn't like what had happened to his son. His son was meant to be a hero and not some tool for some evil megalomaniac. It didn't sit well for him when all he could do was watch as his son attacked his friends and loved ones savagely, even though it had not been him in control at the time. Fortunately, his son would recover. He was more concerned about Shinichi.

That young man had a great power in him and it could make him the most powerful being in his world, or even universe, if he ever discovered and tapped into his true potential. However, to control such power properly required years of practice and discipline which Libra had in spades. Shinichi was a mere child compared to him.

Still, he could understand the pain Shinichi was experiencing right now. What concerned him was what Shinichi would do now following that pain. The first time he'd lost Lina had caused him to snap and kill anyone who got in his way as he escaped from the GIN-SHOCKER facility he'd been kept in.

Shinichi right now was feeling intense grief which would soon turn to intense anger that would be directed towards Gebok. Considering the mad scientist never stayed dead for long and would resurface after each time he supposedly met his demise, it was unlikely he would stay dead again after this. After all, Gebok was like a cockroach that never stayed dead.

Gebok would not survive Shinichi's rage and neither would the world if it ever got in his way.

* * *

The Balance Guardian known as Warren Smith just sighed as he sat in his realm. He knew the grief Shinichi was going through as he'd gone through the same thing. It didn't matter if it had happened a long time ago; he still remembered it like it was yesterday. Although he was no longer in pain due to the memory, deciding only to remember the happier times he had with his first love. However, Shinichi had lost his first love twice and both times she'd died in his arms.

It really vexed Warren that he could do nothing more for him. If it wasn't for his blood running through his veins then none of this would've happened in the first place. However, what was done was done and there was nothing he could do to change things lest there be consequences and repercussions.

He knew what would happen as he'd experienced it himself about 1000 years ago. He just hoped his younger incarnation would be able to handle things as well as he had.

**THE STORY CONTINUES...IN THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**


	41. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 1

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 1: Rider's Resolution**

In an undisclosed location, apparently in the middle of nowhere, two animal-like humanoid automatons stood at their position in front a building. One Android Beast resembled a Hercules beetle but with a tank's cannon on his back. Its designation was Tank Beetle. Standing next to Tank Beetle was an Android Beast that resembled a warthog and it snorted flames out of its snout. Its designation was Flamethrower Warthog.

"Have you ever wondered why we're here?" Tank Beetle asked Flamethrower Warthog.

"I dunno man," replied Flamethrower Warthog. "Who really knows? Maybe it's just fate, or destiny, or some cosmic coincidence. Maybe God has some kind of plan for us. I don't really know, but it keeps me up at night."

Tank Beetle gave him an odd look and asked, "What? I mean why are we out here in the middle of nowhere guarding this place? Nobody comes here, ever."

"Oh, sorry," Warthog apologized. "I thought you were asking a really deep question."

"What was all that stuff about God?"

"It's nothing."

"You want to talk about it?"

"Never mind! Anyway, we're here because lately, all other X-SHOCKER facilities have been destroyed by-"

"Don't say his name!" hissed Tank Beetle. "Are you crazy!-? Do you want to call him over!-? You got a death wish or something!-?"

"Don't be so superstitious," snorted Flamethrower Warthog. He activated his transceiver. "Hey, Jet Condor, you see anything?"

Jet Condor was an Android Beast that resembled a condor with jet wings, hence his obvious designation. He responded, "Negative, no sight of-" All of a sudden, something collided with Jet Condor straight out of nowhere and he exploded, turning him into a ball of blazing flames as his remains hit the ground with a loud boom. He was now officially slag.

"JET CONDOR!" Flamethrower Warthog screamed.

"OH SHIT! HE'S HERE!" Tank Beetle panicked. All of a sudden, the factory also erupted, blowing the two androids away with such force that they went flying several feet. Tumbling along the ground, they looked up to see the remains of the factory in flames and a figure walking out of the flames. The mere sight of him caused the two Android Beasts to tremble.

"It's…" Tank Beetle began.

"BLACK 13!" Flamethrower Warthog opened his mouth wide and fired several basketball-sized fireballs at BLACK 13, causing explosions to erupt all around him. The explosions obscured him from their sight and when the flames subsided, thick smoke took their place. Flamethrower Warthog snorted smugly, "Heh, he's not so tough." He turned to speak to Tank Beetle. "See? He wasn't so toug-" He was silenced when a blade ripped right into him from behind and out his chest before it split him in half. The top half of Flamethrower Warthog toppled over and BLACK 13 stepped onto the head, crushing it under his boot.

Tank Beetle ran away screaming in terror but he would not get far as he too was destroyed. BLACK 13 had impaled him with one of his whip-blades and Tank Beetle's body exploded. His horn fell at BLACK 13's feet.

Shinichi picked up the horn, inspected it and then tossed then it over his shoulder carelessly. As he turned away from the remains of the two Android Beasts, his eyes were revealed to be cold and devoid of warmth. His hair was also spiked up with his XIII scar fully displayed as his bangs were spiked up with the rest of his hair.

* * *

**Weeks Earlier...  
**

When Alan, Shinichi and Yuji returned to Genovia, they were not in the best of moods. True, X-SHOCKER was now destroyed but at a great cost.

Shawna and Rena saw the trio exit out from a Dimensional Rift before it collapsed. "You're back!" Rena cheered.

"Welcome back," Shawna welcomed them. "How was the mission?" She saw their expressions and noted how pale Shinichi was and that he was trembling. "Sir Shinichi?"

"The mission didn't go as well as planned," Alan admitted.

Yuji addressed Rena, "Take Shinichi to his room and comfort him. Make sure he gets some rest and TLC. Do anything you can to make him feel better."

Rena noted Yuji's tone of urgency and nodded before she gently took hold of Shinichi's arm. He didn't resist as Rena dragged him along with her to their shared guest room.

"What happened?" Shawna asked.

Yuji answered sadly, "We lost one of our own." He didn't want to go further than that. "Sorry, Princess, but I gotta go back home. I need to rest."

"You do that," Alan said. "We all need a rest and I need to see the rest of my girls."

"They are in the garden," Shawna said to him.

"Thank you," said Alan before he walked towards the direction of the garden. Yuji went towards a random door and opened it to the Sands of Time and exited the palace.

That left Shawna alone to wonder what had happened.

* * *

"Shin-kun, what's wrong?" Rena asked, wanting to know what had happened. He just looked so sad and drained right now.

"I'm just…just so…tired…" he told her. He didn't go into detail. The shock was still too painful and he felt that talking about it would make the pain worse.

Rena realized that something bad must've happened during the mission. Shinichi looked like he needed to be someplace familiar so he could rest. "Shin-kun, let's go home."

"No, you go home. I need to be alone," he told her. "I'm going to be needed at ARMOR for…treatment." Physically he was fine, but not emotionally.

"Can't you ask for a break?" she asked.

"Maybe later, but I really need to be alone," he told her. He looked into her eyes. "Trust me, OK?"

Rena frowned, wanting to deny him, but respected his wishes. This reminded Rena of the time Shiori had been put in a coma following an accident and Shinichi cut himself from everyone else to deal with it alone. However, Rena had helped and she wanted to help him now.

"Shin-kun…" she uttered tenderly as she kissed him. The kiss deepened but Shinichi pushed her away. She blinked in confusion, "Shin-kun?"

"Please, not right now," he denied her. "I'm sorry. I know you want to help but I don't think it's appropriate right now. I'm sorry."

"But Rena just wants to make Shin-kun feel better," she said.

"Rena-chan, please, I just need some time on my own, but I'll come back to you. I promise." He gave her a soft smile. "Trust me, OK?"

Shinichi usually dealt with things alone and would come to her when he needed her. "Alright, I trust you." The two then shared a tender kiss. Her hand went down to his belt buckle and he tore himself away.

"Rena," he warned.

"Sorry, I just thought I'd try it one last time."

* * *

"You know I'm surprised. Daichi was the most against Electric Butterfly and yet he was the one who helped make her gravestone," Warren stated. The grave was merely for show since Electric Butterfly's body had disintegrated, but they felt they should at least honor her sacrifice.

"Daichi was never one to trust others. His handler made sure that he was the kind that got angry easily and trusted little," Dr. Magi stated, frowning. Talking about his former associates always made him feels as if he was getting an ulcer. "But he does have his moments."

Warren and Dr. Magi were on X-SHOCKER Island. The fortress which had once stood proudly was now just a pile of scrap and rubble. It had self-destructed and burnt all the way to the ground. Electric Butterfly had died here and thus this was where her gravestone was placed.

"How's Shinichi doing?" Warren asked.

"He's been oddly silent since the mission, but he isn't showing any of the other symptoms we've seen after the Darkloid Generals' first attack. Frankly, I'm worried about the boy," Dr. Magi said.

"We all are. His first love died not only once but twice in his arms," said Warren.

"So, what will you do about him now?" asked Dr. Magi.

"I want to keep a close eye on him right now," said Warren. He was worried, very worried. Shinichi was unpredictable. There was no telling what he would do now.

* * *

"Papa!" a little 6 year old girl with black hair that had pink streaks in it hugged Ryuki.

"Papa!" a little 6 year old boy with short black hair that had red streaks through it also hugged Ryuki.

The two children had climbed onto the hospital bed to hug their father who was still recovering.

"Kids, get off him," Jinx scolded. "He needs his rest."

"It's alright, Jinx," said Ryuki as he held his two children close. He looked at them and their eyes gazed back at him, sparkling. Ryutaro and Ryuko were his son and daughter, twins. Both had cat-like eyes with Ryutaro's being green and Ryuko's being pink. They absolutely loved their father. They were only told that their father had been sick. There was no need to give them any of the gory details. "They just miss me," he added, smiling.

"So, how are you feeling then?" Jinx asked.

"I feel great, though most of the doctors don't like it when I talk back at them. But, to be fair, I should know more about my body than them," Ryuki said defensively.

Jinx sighed and muttered, "Doctors make bad patients." She told him, "Ryuki, just because you're the smartest doctor in ARMOR doesn't mean you have to be mean to the other doctors. They're just as good as you are."

"I don't mean to," said Ryuki apologetically.

"Papa, when you get better, can we go play?" asked Ryutaro.

"Sure, Ryu-kun," said Ryuki, ruffling his son's hair. "What about you, Ryu-chan?" His daughter was snuggling up to him and purring like a kitten.

"I see you're awake," said Warren as he came into the hospital room.

"Uncle Warren!" Ryutaro and Ryuko jumped off the bed and went to hug their uncle.

"And hello to you too," Warren smiled at his niece and nephew. Despite not being related to Ryuki by blood, they were sworn brothers and brothers-in-arms.

"So, Jinx told me you went on a mission while I was stuck here," said Ryuki. "How did it go?"

Warren sighed, "It could've gone better, Ryuki. I'll spare you the details but we lost one of our own."

"Who?" asked Ryuki worriedly. He didn't like it when agents were KIA. He knew it was unavoidable with their line of work but it was really heartbreaking. It really made it hit home how dangerous their work was and that not everyone had a happy ending.

"Later," said Warren, dismissing Ryuki's question for now. Ryuki needed rest. "I'll tell you later, just get some rest and spend time with your family-" He was interrupted by a growl from Ryuki's stomach. He grinned as Ryuki blushed. "Hungry again, Ryuki?"

"Yes, I am," Ryuki answered. "I really need something to eat."

Jinx picked up the phone and dialed a number as she volunteered, "I'll order something from the cafeteria."

"Can it be Red Demon's Ramen?" Ryuki asked hopefully.

"Yay! Red Demon's Ramen!" the twin cheered.

Jinx grimaced. She really didn't like the overly spicy noodles. She liked spicy foods, like curry and chili, but even she had limits. She knew Ryuki still liked spicy foods but she wasn't sure if he was up to it given his condition.

* * *

Showa shouted as he leapt at the X-SHOCKER Android Beast that called himself Saber Lion. It was a lion-like android that wielded twin sabers. He knew it was from X-SHOCKER because it bore the emblem on its waist as a belt buckle.

A week ago, the Avengers and NEO-NUMBERS had attacked X-SHOCKER Island which, according to Electric Butterfly, was the main headquarters of the organization and where Gebok was. Thus the organization should not be active at all. However, it would appear that their agents were still at large.

Also a week ago, Electric Butterfly/Lina had sacrificed herself by flying an EMP bomb out of range that would've caused the NEO-NUMBERS to shut down for good. She'd died in Shinichi's arms like she had after her first life had ended. Losing her again had caused Shinichi great grief.

As a result, Shinichi had locked himself in his quarters at ARMOR. He never spoke to anyone and the only time he did come out of his room was when he needed something to eat. He had not contacted his friends or family. All he did was keep to himself and wallow in grief. He also had recurring nightmares that kept him up at night.

He knew it wasn't healthy to deal with things like this alone but it was his way of punishing himself for his hesitation. He had not acted fast enough and Lina had paid with her life.

Today was the first day he came out since then. He just wanted to go back to Rena but along the way this Android Beast had appeared and the sight of it made Shinichi blood boil to volcanic levels. As soon as he saw it he'd transformed to fight. He ignored the pain as Saber Lion slashed at him and fought back brutally. Blow after blow collided with the Android Beast, causing it to be stunned by each hit it received. A punch threw Saber Lion to the ground and Showa leapt upon it, bashing the lion-like Android Beast with brutal punches. It managed to throw him off but Showa recovered and activated his power.

"Let's Ride: Amazon!" In the form of Kamen Rider Amazon he slashed and swiped with his claws. Saber Lion swung one of its swords at the Amazon Rider. Showa dodged the slash and then called out, "JAGUAR SHOCK!" His mouth was open wide, baring his sharp teeth, as he bit down on Saber Lion's arm, severing it from the elbow down. Saber Lion roared and Showa spat out the arm before he bit down on Saber Lion's neck. It tried to shake him off but Showa kept his grip with Amazon's claws. He took another bite out of Saber Lion, spitting out the piece. Exposed circuitry was starting to spark as Saber Lion staggered away. It then tried to flee.

"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY!" Showa roared like Amazon as he leapt upward and then came down to execute Amazon's signature more. "SUPER DAI SETSUDAN!"

The Android Beast was sliced in half from the top of its head down to his groin and then exploded, sending shrapnel flying. Showa reverted to his default form, breathing hard, his eyes glowing crimson. He could hear the bystanders who'd witnessed him brutalizing the Android Beast murmur and whisper but he cared little for their words.

The appearance of Saber Lion had confirmed his suspicions all this time. Gebok never stayed dead and despite the fact that his body was lying in ARMOR's Science Department and being examined right now, Gebok was alive and in a different form. Dr. Gebok, Dr. Shinigami, Kaizin and Dr. X were all the names he took but they were all the same person that Shinichi hated with a passion.

With his fists clenched, Showa flew off and away from the scene. There was somewhere he needed to be.

* * *

"Is this correct?" Warren inquired as he read the report from one of their recon agents.

"Yes, it is," Dr. Hasuma confirmed. He'd returned straight to active duty after his recovery. All he needed was rest and a lot of food as well as the presence of his family. They reminded him of why he was in ARMOR in the first place. "Shortly after Agent Shinichi Banabara left to return to his home he was attacked by an X-SHOCKER Android Beast. I have surveillance footage of the fight and 'Saber Lion' possessed the markings of X-SHOCKER." Dr. Hasuma then tapped his tablet computer and brought up the video footage of how Shinichi defeated Saber Lion before showing it to Warren.

"Where is he now?" Warren asked.

"Where else?" Ryuki answered as if the answer was obvious.

"Damn it," Warren growled. The mission to destroy X-SHOCKER was a failure in more ways than one. Not only did they lose one of their own but X-SHOCKER was still active even without Gebok leading it. This could only mean one thing: someone else was in charge. It could be Gebok again. Even after being destroyed he always found a way to return. Also, Alan had brought up something worrisome as well.

Manhunters had been present at the X-SHOCKER Headquarters and thus Alan had told him that Gebok was possibly working with Hank Henshaw aka the Cyborg-Superman. Even more worrisome was when Dr. Hasuma had revealed that while he'd been taken prisoner and tortured, there was someone else in the room involved in the torture.

The name of the new player was Million.

"Your orders, Kanchou?" Dr. Hasuma asked.

"Keep monitoring Shinichi," Warren ordered. "I'm gonna head to the Science Department to have a chat with Takada."

"And what else?"

"Do what you think is right, Ryuki."

"Hai, Kanchou."

* * *

Shinichi knelt at Lina's gravesite. It was just an empty grave that had a grave marker with her name on it. All that remained of her was a picture, the last one he took of her before her death. "Lina, this time I won't let your death be in vain." After her death, a funeral had been done for her.

"Visiting an old friend?" Shinichi immediately spun around, shotgun armed, ready to attack the intruder. He relaxed when he saw it was only Dr. Hasuma. He had awoken from his coma and recovered from the implant being removed from him. He'd woken up with his wife and children at his bedside. They even brought him food so he could regain his strength. He'd also heard about the mission to destroy X-SHOCKER and found out someone on their side had lost their life.

Dr. Hasuma had been captured and tortured for information. However, he was tightlipped and refused to reveal any of ARMOR's secrets despite the intense pain caused by the torture. He endured for hours until finally he was turned against ARMOR. He then told Warren about the one who'd tortured him. The only description he could give Warren was that they wore a cloak and had a digital sounding voice.

"What do you want? Come to talk me back into returning to ARMOR?" Shinichi asked. He'd asked for a sabbatical after the disastrous mission where Lina had died. He just couldn't handle it anymore. He just needed time off to clear his head.

"No," said Dr. Hasuma as he put a bouquet of flowers down in front of grave marker. "I'm just here to pay my respects."

Shinichi watched as Dr. Hasuma offered a few words of prayer. He then made a motion to leave but stopped in mid-step when Dr. Hasuma spoke, "You know, believe it or not, a lot of people in ARMOR have lost people the same way you have. It became their motivation in doing what they do. Sometimes, it consumes them like how you're being consumed by it right now. You're obsessed in destroying X-SHOCKER and Gebok and I can understand the rage you feel right now." He was referring to when Asakura had killed Tazuka but close to the end of the Zodiac War, he'd gotten his adoptive brother back. "However, you shouldn't cut yourself off from the important people in your life."

"Is that all?" asked Shinichi.

"Just…put more thought into what you're doing," advised Dr. Hasuma. "You're not alone in this. You have people who care about you and ready to back you up." Dr. Hasuma just hoped nothing horrible happened to Shinichi. He knew that revenge was like a poison and that the more Shinichi craved for it, the more harm it would do to him.

After X-SHOCKER's island Headquarters was destroyed, they recovered Gebok's body and once again discovered that it was just another android copy and not the real thing. Thus they concluded that Gebok was still at large out there in the world. It was also possible that X-SHOCKER still existed in the form of remnants despite the loss of its main headquarters. This wasn't the first time Gebok had 'died' and wouldn't be the last. He would come back in one form or another. He'd done it before and would do it again and again until he was gone for good.

Dr. Hasuma then left Shinichi alone to his thoughts and just hoped he didn't make a terrible mistake.

After Dr. Hasuma left him alone, that was when his wrist communicator started beeping. "What is it?" he responded.

"_Shinichi, we're in big trouble!_" called out Battler from the other end. "_It got them!_"

"What got who?" Shinichi asked.

"_A big robot spider!_" Battler cried. "_It took the others down!_"

'_X-SHOCKER_,' Shinichi mentally concluded, eyes narrowed. "I've locked onto your coordinates," Shinichi said to Battler. "Hold on until I get there.

"_What else can I fucking do!-? Just get here and help me!_"

* * *

"So, she's gone," Shiori whispered after hearing the news. She was in her living room, holding Sho with Dr. Hasuma seated across from her. He had come to visit her and give her the news. She hadn't heard much since she was just a civilian but he felt she deserved to know.

"Yes," Dr. Hasuma confirmed. "I'm sorry if this is too much of a shock to you."

"Why did you tell me?" asked Shiori.

"Because of how much she meant to your son," he deduced.

Shiori looked down at the sleeping Sho who was sleeping in her arms. "I really enjoyed her company," Shiori admitted. "When she came to my home I didn't know what to do. I was a little overwhelmed. On one hand she did work for that awful Gebok but on the other hand she had suffered under him as well. And…" she trailed off.

"And?" Dr. Hasuma prompted.

"She was the only good thing Shinji had when he was in that awful place," Shiori finished. "She told me about how GIN-SHOCKER had taken her prisoner and how Shinji was her 'cellmate' at the time. They bonded and despite the circumstances they grew to care for each other and then Gebok took her away from him. Now he's done it again."

"She sacrificed herself to save your son," Dr. Hasuma informed her.

"How is he?" Shiori asked.

"After he's recovered from his shock he's in depression," he answered. "He might go into denial about the whole thing and then start blaming himself for what happened." He added in his mind, '_Just like before…_'

"Why did all this have to happen?" Shiori asked. "If I had only picked him up on time then none of this would happen."

"It was just something set in stone," confessed Dr. Hasuma sadly. "We can try to change events with our time-travel technology but that would disrupt the timeline and make things worse."

"What do you mean?" Shiori questioned, wanting to understand.

"From the day your son was born he was destined to be a hero," Dr. Hasuma told her. "He was destined to become Kamen Rider Showa. It was a fate that he could not escape from."

"But why him of all people?" Shiori asked.

Dr. Hasuma wanted to reveal the truth about Shinichi bloodline, the blood he received from his biological father, but decided against it. It would cause Shiori to blame herself again and that simple would not do. "Fate works in mysterious ways and rarely shows mercy. It was just fate that your son ended up becoming BLACK 13, breaking free and becoming a Kamen Rider." He explained, "Being a Kamen Rider can be both a gift and a curse. It's all a matter of how you look at it and how you use the power given to you, regardless of the source."

"I never really expected this to happen. He's still just a boy and already has so much on his shoulders," remarked Shiori.

"Such is the fate of a Kamen Rider," stated Dr. Hasuma. "Also, Shiori-san, there's more."

"What?" Shiori asked.

"We have information concerning the circumstances of your first husband's death." Dr. Hasuma.

"I know how he died," said Shiori firmly. "He died in an accident."

"That was what you were told," Dr. Hasuma corrected. He put down the file that had Shotaro Banabara's name on it. "You believed your husband was working for a publishing company. However, that was simply his cover job."

Shiori shakily opened the file and read it. "Interpol?" she asked.

"Your husband was a secret agent working for Interpol," Dr. Hasuma informed her. "And he was investigating GIN-SHOCKER when he died." He paused. "He was looking for your son."

"Shotaro …" Shiori sobbed, realizing the truth. "He was looking for Shinji."

"And he paid for it with his life," Dr. Hasuma finished. "GIN-SHOCKER agents killed him and it was no accident. He got too close to the truth and they didn't like it one bit." He cautioned, "Just don't tell Shinichi about this right now."

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked.

"For closure, and you deserve to know the truth," Dr. Hasuma answered.

* * *

"Sorry, but all I can tell you is that I have not managed to find any useful information," said Takada, jabbing his finger at the pseudo-Gebok's body. "That EMP wiped out its memory. There's nothing I can recover from it, nothing! All the circuitry's been fried as well so all you see here is just junk!"

Warren scowled and said to Takada, "Takada, is there anything else you could find?"

"Well, there is something I just discovered with Dr. Magi's help," said Takada. He activated his console and showed Warren the schematics of the body and pointed at the head. "See here? This is supposed to be a slot for some kind of AI Program."

"AI Program?" asked Warren.

"Well, we've been collecting the scrapped parts of X-SHOCKER's androids since all this started and they each had an AI that dictated how they fought and behaved. Kinda like a digitized soul or synthetic spirit," Takada told him. "With an exception of the W14's, the AI the Android Beasts were programmed with are Smart AI that work like the human brain and that scrap heap behind me is no different."

"So, you're telling me Gebok is an AI?" asked Warren.

"Yes, and it's the type of AI that's modeled after a real human mind," Takada told Warren. "I don't know what's actually going on but if X-SHOCKER's still active I doubt we've seen the last of him."

"Thank you for the report, Takada. Keep up the good work," said Warren.

"So, does this mean I get a promotion?" asked Takada hopefully.

"The day you get a promotion is the day you don't blow up and waste ARMOR resources with your inventions and experiments. You're just lucky that the ones that work are the useful ones we're using," said Warren, smirking. "At least you haven't been demoted."

"Kanchou," said Dr. Ryuki Hasuma as he appeared out of thin air in the Science Department. This earned him a shocked yelp from Takada and a cocked eyebrow from Warren. "You're right."

"I'm right about what exactly?" asked Warren.

"About Agent Banabara needing to be monitored," said Dr. Hasuma worriedly. "I could sense his aura and it all points out to one thing." He diagnosed, "PTSD."

"Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder," Warren translated. "Of course." Not only had Shinichi faced against Gebok again, fighting several opponents just to get to him, but he'd also witnessed the death of his first love for the second time. Warren had seen the affects PTSD had on someone and they weren't pretty. Anything was likely to make them snap. Even if a soldier left a war, the war never left them. They had become conditioned to react like they did in a war and the things they experienced would haunt them forever. Even the best were not immune to PTSD.

"I can guess that he was in shock when it happened and then fell into depression," Dr. Hasuma added.

Dr. Hasuma himself had experienced PTSD himself following the Vicious Wars so he knew what to look for. For instance there was erratic behavior, volatile emotions, as well as mental instability. Shinichi had PTSD for many reasons. The first was because of what Gebok did to him over the course of ten years, the first death of Lina at his hands, then seeing his friends die in a time loop where he could not save them, followed by the death of the NEO-NUMBERS by the Darkloid Generals. Now there was this, the failed mission to destroy X-SHOCKER where Lina had saved the NEO-NUMBERS' lives at the cost of his own. Each experience caused Shinichi to experience despair and they were finally taking their toll on him.

"What else?" Warren asked.

Dr. Hasuma referred to his tablet computer and reported, "The construction of The Vault is nearing its completion." The Vault was a new Superhuman Prison that was being made exclusively for Shinichi's world. So far, The Vault was close to being completed and once it was operational it would be put to use soon. That was good news, at least, but not enough for Warren to stop worrying.

Dr. Hasuma asked, "If you don't mind me asking, why are we setting up a superhuman prison on Shinichi's world?"

Warren answered, "More and more super powered individuals are beginning to appear on Shinichi's world. Though, they seem to go unnoticed due to the attacks of groups like DHS and X-SHOCKER. Take Panther Claw for example."

"So, this is to help the NEO-NUMBERS deal with and counter the more independent metahuman criminal factor?" inquired Dr. Hasuma.

"Exactly," Warren confirmed.

* * *

Showa found Zero, Arachnea and Carmen sprawled all over the ground. When he checked on them, he discovered that they had been stunned. Not too far away was a something that looked like a pile of hardened white paste. He inspected it and put his hand on it, detecting Armadillo, Musician and Slasher trapped inside. He punched it to try and free them but whatever the material was it was durable enough to withstand his blows.

"Where is Battler?" Showa asked himself before taking off. No doubt Battler had led the enemy away from the others. Flying through the air, Showa spotted Meta fighting a big mechanical spider. He narrowed his eyes as he recognized the hateful X-SHOCKER emblem on the robot's body and dove down whilst activating his energy blades.

The mechanical spider detected Showa's presence and started to fire lasers at him, which he dodged. Missiles were then fired at him but he sliced them apart before he continued with his attack, landing on the mechanical creature's back and stabbing at its steel hide, only to discover his blades couldn't penetrate. Showa was then thrown off the robot and landed next to Meta.

"I tried that too!" called out Meta. "That thing's tough."

"What do you know about it?" Showa asked. Meta was about to answer when he was cut off.

"**Are you BLACK 13?**" the robotic spider demanded. Showa inspected it. It had a round black body with eight blue eyes that were glowing and eight mechanical spider-like legs on both sides.

"Who wants to know?" Showa shot back.

"**I am Black Iron Spider, and I was commanded to kill you all**," the robotic spider-Black Iron Spider-stated whilst identifying itself. "**Why don't I look like you?**"

"What?" Showa asked.

"**He made you as well, so why don't I look like you?**"

Showa already knew what Black Iron Spider meant be 'he' and scowled. "Does that mean you're a cyborg too?" Showa questioned.

"**That's right, and I must kill you in order to get my own body back.**" Black Iron Spider's blue eyes opened to reveal its array of guns. Meta pushed Showa out of the way before he could get shot.

"Watch it!" Meta cautioned "He did that to the others and-"

"Stunned them," Showa concluded. "I know. I saw them on my way."

The guns became replaced with missiles which fired at Meta and Showa. Grabbing Showa, Meta took off at high speeds as the missiles exploded at the spot they had stood at. Black Iron Spider retracted its legs into its body and took off after them like a UFO.

"Let me go, Battler," Showa growled.

"No way, Shinichi! That thing took down the others like nothing and gave me trouble too!" Meta denied.

"I said LET ME GO!" Showa forced Meta's grip off him and turned to face Black Iron Spider. "Hey, you want me? Come and get me!" Showa took off in another direction and Black Iron Spider followed.

"Damn it!" Meta cursed and followed with his jets firing exhaust to propel him after them.

Showa landed on the top of a building and narrowed his eyes at Black Iron Spider. He called, "Let's Ride: ZX," and in an instant he was in his Kamen Rider ZX armor. Black Iron Spider landed before him, eyes glowing. The eye covers then opened up and the guns slid out, firing lasers at Showa who dodged the blasts swiftly. He even managed to dodge the goop guns. Eyeing his opponent carefully, Showa removed the Cross Shuriken from his elbows and ran at Black Iron Spider. He then tossed the Cross Shuriken at the legs. The Cross Shuriken stuck onto two of the left legs and exploded, taking them out. He then tossed the Impact Bombs that were on his knees, taking out the remaining left legs. With its left legs now stumps and unable to support it, Black Iron Spider fell onto its side.

"**ARGH!**" Black Iron Spider roared and fired at Showa but missed as Showa conjured a smokescreen and then created holographic copies to divert Black Iron Spider's attention. With his attention diverted, Showa threw the explosives again which blew the rest of the machine's legs when Meta arrived.

"Now it can't move," said Showa coldly as he reverted to his default form. He saw the blue eyes open to reveal their guns. This was the moment he was waiting for. "Let's Ride: Stronger," he whispered and was transformed into Kamen Rider Stronger "My turn," Showa growled as he pointed his fingers at Black Iron Spider, bending and twisting the guns around, rendering them useless. His fists crackling with energy, he advanced on his defeated opponent, ready to finish him off for good.

"Stop!" Meta shouted. Meta grabbed Showa before he could destroy Black Iron Spider.

"Let me go Battler," Showa growled.

"No! You heard him! He's a cyborg and he used to be human!" Meta stated. He wasn't comfortable with the thought of killing someone who used to be human. "Let me talk to him first, we should at least hear his story."

Showa scoffed angrily and reluctantly ceased his attack. Meta sighed in relief.

Meta took off his helmet and looked at Black Iron Spider, recalling what the machine had said before. "Let me ask you something," Battler began before he asked, "You said you wanted to get your own body back. Is that what X-SHOCKER promised you in exchange for killing us?"

"**That's right**," Black Iron Spider answered. "**I have a family but I'm not allowed to see them. With this body I can't even hug my wife and daughter. Can you understand? I used to look the same as you before I was captured by X-SHOCKER. They made me into this thing you see in front of you. All I want is to go home! I want to be with my family!**" Black Iron Spider started to sob, "**That's all I want! That's all I ever wanted!**"

Battler flinched as he lowered his gun arm but Shinichi, who'd just taken off his own helmet, asked him, "Why are you hesitating?" Battler looked to him, shocked.

"Didn't you hear what he said?" Battler demanded. "He wants to be with his family! He's not evil!"

"It' one of Gebok's creations," Shinichi countered, unsympathetic, "And I doubt it's telling the truth."

"How can you be so sure?" Battler argued. "Maybe he's just like us!"

Shinichi turned his attention towards Black Iron Spider and stated, "If you're not going to finish it then I will." He then activated his energy blades.

"No!" Battler shouted as he grabbed Shinichi by the arms. "Don't!"

"Let me go, Battler!" Shinichi growled.

"I'm not going to let you kill him!"

"Are you really so stupid as to believe some sob story?" Shinichi questioned angrily. "It was sent by X-SHOCKER! It was sent by Gebok to kill us! It's the enemy!"

"He has a family and he was crying! He had no other choice!" Battler countered.

"If it is suffering then let me end it!" The two continued to grapple. Shinichi then pushed Battler away and prepared to finish the job only for Alan to stand in his way.

* * *

Rena was once again sitting alone in the apartment. A week ago she'd returned from Genovia with Shinichi but then he told her he needed to go away for a little while. That had been a week ago. She hadn't gotten any answers from anyone about what'd happened during the mission, but could deduce that something terrible had occurred which warranted Shinichi needing comforting from her.

When she heard a knock at the door she quickly stood up, hoping with all her heart that it was Shinichi. "Rena, it's me," Shinichi's familiar voice was heard on the other side. Smiling, Rena went and opened the door. "Tadaima," he said to her, smiling slightly.

"Okaeri nasai," she responded, smiling tearfully as she wrapped her arms about her. "I missed you. You were gone a long time."

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "I just needed to be alone."

"Why? Was it because of the mission?" Rena asked. Nobody told her anything. She was told it'd been classified information and could only be revealed to her when the time was right, but she needed to know now so she could help him.

Shinichi gazed at Rena's face and saw Lina's. He shook his head to rid himself of her phantom image but the longer he gazed at Rena, the more he saw Lina's image. She was like a ghost haunting him now. His dreams and nightmares were all filled with her and her dying image. He could not get her out of his head.

"Yes," he confirmed, without going into detail. He closed the door behind him and then pulled Rena into a tight embrace, kissing her passionately. Rena responded in kind, kissing him back. The kiss was deep, needy and desperate, like all he wanted was to taste her lips and mouth with his. Their tongues were sliding against each other.

He then lifted Rena up and carried her bridal style before taking her to their bedroom, lips still locked. He needed her, he needed her now, and she was only happy to comply. Once on their bed they continued to kiss passionately as they tore at each other's clothes.

They didn't know how much time had passed between them nor did they care as they made love between the sheets, warm skin against warm skin, sweat drenching their bodies, breaths labored and hearts racing. All that mattered and all they could see, hear and feel was each other. They never broke physical or eye contact as they showed their love in the most intimate way possible and finally she let out a cry and arched her back, her breasts pressing against his as he too let out a grunt and crushed their bodies together.

Once the fires of passion subsided, he lay on his back with her on top of him, one hand around her waist as she purred contently in his embrace. He looked down at her slumbering face that was in complete peace and bliss. He wanted this to continue forever and with that thought in mind he finally made his decision.

'_I've made up my mind. This is my fight and my fight alone, so I will crush X-SHOCKER and destroy Gebok with my own hands_,' thought Shinichi resolutely. He gently caressed her face as he kissed her forehead and pulled her closer before he allowed sleep to claim him. His final thoughts were, '_To protect this peace, I will become the destroyer_.'

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Shinichi has become set on his path. He will no longer be a hero, but a destroyer. He will avenge the dead and protect the living by destroying his enemies. He will change into a violent anti-hero to make Gebok pay for his sins. He will walk the lonely road and path of broken dreams. Also, now we show you the new villain for this arc.**

* * *

Million sighed as he witnessed the destruction of X-SHOCKER's island fortress through the monitor that was mounted on the wall. "Oh well, there are plenty more where that came from," said Million as the screens showed the other X-SHOCKER bases on Earth. While it was true that X-SHOCKER's headquarters on Earth was in the Bermuda Triangle, it was not the true main headquarters. The true main headquarters of X-SHOCKER was on the moon and Million was its true leader.

Million tossed his hood back, revealing him for what he really was. He was a robot made of black metal with spikes jutting out of the spots where his ears would be with a sharp nose. His eyes were narrow and red and he had red lips that were curled into a cold smile. The top of his head was a clear dome with a pulsating human brain. Therefore he wasn't a robot. He was a cyborg like Electric Butterfly.

Million's grin seemed to stretch as he saw the grief that Showa was experiencing. "History does repeats itself, doesn't it, BLACK 13? Once more she died in your arms like she did before, how tragic." He then challenged, "If you want to avenge her, come and find me, boy!" He looked out towards his balcony and gazed at the Earth. He imagined holding the planet in the palm of his hand and balling his fist. "THE EARTH WILL BE MINE!" Million declared as he threw his head back and laughed.

* * *

**Also, as a special treat, two alternate scenes:**

* * *

**ALTERNATE SCENE #1: Showa (Oni) VS Saber Lion**

"Gokuaku!" In Oni Form he slashed and swiped with his Oni Claws. Saber Lion swung one of its swords at the Amazon Rider. Showa dodged the slash and then breathed out a burst of flame that engulfed Saber Lion. He then used his claws to slice and dice, severing the Android Beast's left arm. Seeing that it was no match for Showa it tried to flee.

"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY!" Showa roared as he shot out a massive fireball at the retreating Android Beast. The Android Beast was hit by the fireball and exploded, sending shrapnel flying. Showa reverted to his default form, breathing hard, his eyes glowing crimson. He could hear the bystanders who'd witnessed him brutalizing the Android Beast murmur and whisper but he cared little for their words.

**ALTERNATE SCENE #2: Showa (Kage) VS Black Iron Spider**

Showa landed on the top of a building and narrowed his eyes at Black Iron Spider. He called, "Zennin," and in an instant he was in his Kage Form armor. Black Iron Spider landed before him, eyes glowing. Showa gripped the Dai-Shuriken in his hand and blocked the lasers fired at him. He then dodged the goop guns as well. He then tossed the Dai-Shuriken, the weapon spinning rapidly like a disc as its edges sliced through the set of legs on the left. The legs came apart and Black Iron Spider landed on its side as the Dai-Shuriken returned to Showa.

"**ARGH!**" Black Iron Spider roared and fired at Showa but missed as Showa conjured a smokescreen and then created illusionary copies of himself to divert Black Iron Spider's attention. With his attention diverted, Showa threw the Dai-Shuriken again which cut off the rest of the machine's legs when Meta arrived.

"Now it can't move," said Showa coldly as he reverted to his default. He saw the blue eyes open to reveal their guns. This was the moment he was waiting for. "Gokuaku," he whispered and in a tornado of wind, fire and lightning which blocked the lasers he was transformed into Oni Form. "My turn," Showa growled as he pointed his fingers at Black Iron Spider and let loose bolts of lightning that went into the openings. Black Iron Spider started to convulse as its body started shorting out.


	42. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 2

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 2: Green Grief**

Alan walked into the palace gardens to see his girls, his family, all enjoying themselves on this beautiful day. They were unaware of the tragedy and he would like to keep it that way. He looked to Alice, one of Gebok's creations, who had captured his heart and become his daughter. It was hard to believe that the little girl had once been a killer android sent after Shinichi.

It was also hard to believe that she'd once been one of X-SHOCKER's pawns.

"Daddy!" Alice jumped up and wrapped her arms around Alan.

"Mau!" Celine joined in, hugging him.

"Hey, girls," smiled Alan.

The mission to destroy X-SHOCKER had been a success, for the most part at least. However, it was not one would call a victorious ending. Gebok had once again pulled a fast one on them and had replaced himself with an android equipped with a powerful EMP bomb. Naturally, Alan wouldn't be affected but the NEO-NUMBERS who were cyborgs and thus possessing mechanical parts would be greatly affected and could've been killed. However, some quick thinking by Electric Butterfly saved their lives with hers as the price.

Alan felt a pair of arms wrap around him from behind and the back of his skull was pressed against a pair of soft breasts. "Hello, my emerald warrior," cooed Conda.

Yami, looking up from her cup of tea, noted Alan's expression. As a genetically engineered and trained assassin, she was very observant and could see through someone's façade once she took the time to scrutinize them. Alan's smile was hiding something. She may not be empathic, and it was just a gut feeling, but Alan was actually devastated.

She was going to need to talk to Alan and lend a sympathetic ear.

Nozomu's nose twitched as she sniffed Alan. She detected the scent of sadness.

* * *

They would be staying another night at Shawna's castle before leaving. Alan waited until Alice and Celine were put to bed. He didn't want his two little girls to hear about what happened earlier. He knew his lovers would question him about what happened and wouldn't stop until he finally talked about it. However, he didn't want to say anything in front of the younger ones. It was just too depressing.

Lala, as usual, was the first to request, "Alan, please tell us what happened."

Alan sighed as he began, "At first it was so simple. We prepared ourselves for take down X-SHOCKER..." He told them how he and the others began their assault on X-SHOCKER's island base, how he and Yuji got separated from the rest and how he and Yuji fought the Manhunters, Highmaster and one of Gebok's minions. He finally ended his tale with him and Yuji getting out, only to see Electric Butterfly sacrificing herself in order to save the NEO-NUMBERS from the EMP bomb that was disguised as Gebok.

Alan looked heartbroken when he told the tale. Just thinking about it made his heart break and his shoulders tremble. He saw the pain in Shinichi's eyes. It was the same pain he had when he'd lost Jade.

"So in the end, we still don't know where Gebok really is, and we lost someone who was just another victim. The worst is that Shinichi is the one most in pain and no one knows how to fix it. I failed…" said Alan sadly. "I couldn't hold onto my promise."

"What do you mean?" asked Nozomu.

"A promise I made when I came back to life," began Alan. All the girls knew the story of what was known in the Green Lantern Corps as the "Emerald Twilight". Alan having died to reignite the Sun and coming back for a time as The Spectre before being completely returned to life. "When I came back, one of the first things I did was go to Jade's grave. And there, I made a promise. I swore that I'd never let someone die when I could do something to stop it."

Alan stared down at his hands as he continued, "These new powers of mine…these Quantum powers…they make me one of the most powerful beings on the planet. I could have wiped out all those Manhunters with literally the blink of an eye. But I don't know the absolute limits of these powers. If I let lose, how many casualties would there have been? I couldn't risk it." Alan shut his eyes. "And now Shinichi is suffering because I wasn't good enough."

"Alan…" said Bishie, tears welling up in her eyes.

Conda walked up to Alan and raised her hand.

**SLAP!**

Alan now sported a large red handprint on his face. "What the hell you stupid Amazon!-?" cursed Amora.

Conda didn't respond. All she did was wrap her arms around Alan and held his face close to her chest. "Please Alan…don't be sad," she said. The normal haughtiness in her voice was gone. There was only a tender kindness there now. "You couldn't have done anything. The girl made her choice, and from what you told us, she died happily in the arms of her beloved. So please Alan, we're here for you. You may not have been able to save her, but you were there for all of us. When you met me, and learned of my past, you went and fought the people that had taken my people captive."

* * *

_The doors flew open with a burst of emerald energy. Alan stepped forward, facing the men who called themselves "Celestial Dragons"._

"_Now…release the Amazons you captured, and I promise I'll make this painless," warned Alan._

* * *

Amora hugged Alan around the neck, pressing her breasts into his back. "When I was framed on Asgard, you stood up to Thor for me. You were willing to face down a god for me Alan. That doesn't sound like a failure to me."

* * *

_Alan stood between Thor and Amora, glaring up at the God of Thunder. "The Witch must be punished. So move boy," spoke the Asgardian._

_Alan's ring glowed as he gritted his teeth. "Make me."_

* * *

Yami hugged Alan's left arm. "You were the first person I ever met that treated me like another person, and not just a weapon."

* * *

"_You look hungry. Have some," offered Alan as he handed Yami a taiyaki. Ryuko had sent him out to buy the fish-shaped cakes for her._

_Yami took the taiyaki and bit into it. Her eyes widened at the flavor and she continued to eat until she finished it. _

* * *

Nozomu hugged Alan's right arm. "When my brother wanted to break us apart, you refused, even though it caused you great pain."

* * *

_"Then let me prove how much I really love your sister!" Alan announced and without warning he wrapped his arms around Nozomu and hugged her close. The seal on the back of his neck activated and he let out a shout of pain before gritting his teeth, enduring the continuous jolts._

_"Alan! No!" Nozomu screamed as she felt him trembling as the seal continued to torture him. Despite the pain the seal was causing him, Alan continued to hold Nozomu. "Alan, let go!" she shouted._

_"No…way!" he grunted, the pain increasing. "I won't ever let you go, Nozomu! I love you, a lot, and I'm not giving up on you! Nobody can make me!"_

* * *

Lala flew over the others and picked Alan out from between the other girls, holding him close. "And ever since we met Alan, you were always there for me," smiled the princess.

* * *

_Pol Dgibb shot a blast of yellow energy at Lala. Alan leapt in front of her and created a shield to block the blast. __"You can't defeat me boy! I taught you everything you know! I taught you what it meant to be a Lantern! But you had forsaken it all! You gave into fear! You! The fearless Green Lantern of Sector 2814!"_

"_They say I'm fearless, but actually I'm very afraid," admitted Alan. "Of getting beat. Of backing down. Of chickening out. Of letting those I love get hurt!" Alan blasted Pol with a burst of emerald energy. "That fear just blows all the others away!"_

* * *

Bishie looked thoughtfully. "Um…you never really saved me like you did the other girls, but you're really good in bed!" she said cheerfully.

"Thanks," said Alan. He knew Bishie just wanted to cheer him up.

* * *

"Where were you all?" That was the first thing Megan said when he saw Alan come into class with Lala, Nozomu, Yami and Bishie. They appeared to be a little morose. Even the normally upbeat Lala couldn't keep up her smile.

The group had been gone for days without explanation but Megan knew it was probably something work related. Noting their expressions, she knew something bad must've happened. Alan and his girlfriends were rather quiet compared to how they were normally.

Alan sat at his desk, head hung backwards as he closed his eyes. He really didn't have the mood for school and would've preferred staying in Genovia for a little longer. However, he couldn't avoid school for long. He needed to still retain his cover.

A hand slammed upon his desk and he cracked an eye open. "What?" he asked unhappily.

"You really are the worst!" the girl snapped. She had short black hair and green eyes with a scar over her right eye.

"Sayoko, I really don't have-" Alan began, irritably, but she cut him off.

"Oh no! You left us to fend for ourselves when you should've been around to help organize our class for the sports festival, which is in a few days! Where were you!-?" She then paled as she felt Alan's eyes glare at her.

Sayako Ayanaka was a classmate of Alan's and one of the humans that attended this school. She also came from a yakuza family and had a very unhealthy obsession with guns and firearms. Normally, she was on friendly terms with Alan and his girlfriends because they made her laugh but sometimes she could get annoyed too.

And right now she was annoying Alan who just wanted some peace.

"Sayako, I think you should leave Alan alone right now," Megan advised.

"S-sure," Sayako answered, stammering. She had felt intense terror when Alan glared at her. It was his Killing Intent. He didn't really want her dead but she came close to tempting him towards murder.

"Alan, can we talk on the roof at lunch?" Megan asked. She wanted to know what was going on. Alan was her friend.

"Sure," he answered simply. Megan returned to her seat and then someone else approached Alan.

"Is something the matter?" asked Haji Nenemiya. He was the shortest boy in class. Actually, he was a midget with thick glasses and a bowl haircut. He was one of Alan's friends after the Lantern had saved him from some bullies.

"It's nothing," Alan responded, trying to calm himself down.

Haji frowned, not completely buying it one bit, he walked away but not before telling Megan, "I hope you have better luck. Something tells me whatever happened is weighing very heavily on his mind."

Megan nodded and decided to wait until lunchtime to get to the bottom of this.

* * *

"So what do you want to talk about?" Alan said as he walked onto the roof with Megan.

"I want to know why you're acting like you're not hurt while you clearly are," Megan demanded as she frowned at him.

"It's nothing, okay," Alan denied. He really didn't want to talk about it.

"It doesn't sound like nothing. It sounds as if you've experienced something horrible and I won't drop the subject until you tell me the truth." Megan warned, "Or else." As a Martian, she had telepathic abilities to get the answers she wanted. It was a breach of privacy but she was willing to do anything to help a friend.

Alan sighed, "Fine…" He explained, "During a big operation... something really terrible happen, and my friend is probably the one hurting the most because of it." He wasn't ready to fully talk about what really happened on X-SHOCKER Island with other people. Alan was barely able to talk about it with the other girls after Alice and Celine went to bed.

Megan frowned "Do you blame yourself for what happened?"

"Maybe, if I had been fast enough, if I hadn't frozen, if I hadn't hesitated, I could've done something to prevent it," Alan said regretfully. Megan placed a hand on his shoulder

"I'm sorry. While I don't know the full details, I know that you shouldn't blame yourself for this. Sometimes fate can be cruel," said Megan.

"People can be crueler than fate," Alan whispered.

* * *

It was mandatory for students to help during preparations for the Sports Festival. They would set up the tents, the tables, and also the stage for the principal when he gave his speech during the assembly for the festival. Alan and his girls were helping as well as it kept their minds off depressing subjects.

As the students worked, they were being supervised and two teachers had their attention on Alan and his girlfriends.

"Smith…" Mr. Ozai frowned in disdain as he saw Alan and his harem preparing for the sports festival. "That idiot draws too much attention. He will blow the cover for the whole school." Mr. Ozai was a Chinese-looking man who was a harsh and strict disciplinarian who demanded the students obey the rules. From the very start he hated Alan and his harem, labeling them as troublemakers.

Mr. Katsura rolled his slanted eyes, "Now Ozai-sensei, relax. Alan-kun is a normal enough boy…it's not his fault the girls can be very… complex." Mr. Katsura, on the other hand, was a very different teacher. He was very lazy and didn't seem to care much about work. He only showed up so he could get paid for just showing up.

"By complex, you mean they would kill for the boy if he so much as gave the word," Mr. Ozai said. He once saw Yami punch a guy out near Smith. The kid had accidentally said something ecchi in front of her but Ozai had his doubts.

"All I'm saying is that they can be discreet about stuff, so you should relax," Mr. Katsura said, smiling.

"Relax with those troublemakers around?" Mr. Ozai scoffed. "No chance!"

Mr. Katsura turned to Mr. Ozai and said, "They at least know how to be discreet, right?"

* * *

It was the day of the Sports Festival and all the classes were ready for all the events. The classes were all geared up and prepared to beat each other to the ground. It was a no holds barred contest of athletic prowess.

Alan and his family came with him and his harem competing. Nana and Momo also came but only to look after Celine and Alice as well as watch the festivities.

"Daddy, you'll always be a winner to me," said Alice as she smiled at him.

"That's sweet, Alice," smiled Alan to his android daughter. "I'll win a whole bunch of gold medals just for you."

"You mean it, Daddy?" beamed Alice.

Megan advised, "You know, you all should warm up before the assembly starts."

* * *

At the assembly, the students were all lined up in rows with the principal on the stage to give an opening speech and blessing. It was the usual speech where he talked about the spirit of sportsmanship, teamwork, good will, camaraderie, etc etc…and then he finished off with something that really disgusted the girls, "AND I LOVE BLOOMERS!" That statement made them cringe.

"OK, now I'm _really_ worried about this school," whispered Alan and he looked around the see the girls pulling their shirts down to cover their bloomers.

* * *

The usual, typical and standard events for a Japanese high school Sports Festival took place. Some were normal, while others seemed beyond the norm of anything outside the country. What mattered was that the students had fun.

After the last scheduled event, the next event was the girls' swimming race, which just happened to be the boys' favorite event as all the spectators crowded around the school pool. The competitors were all attractive girls in the standard school swimsuit that showed off their wonderful figures. Cameras flashed to immortalize this view forever.

Amora waved to the crowd. She was clad not in the standard school swimsuit, but in a one piece suit of her own liking. She winked at Alan and blew him a kiss. She then stood with the rest of the competitors who got ready for the swimming event.

"AND BEGIN!" the signal was given and Amora dove into the pool water with the rest of the competitors. However, Amora was immediately thrown off her game by one of her neighbors. Hitomi Mizumi was a member of the swim club with a pretty generous bust and black hair. She was one of the club's fastest swimmers as well. Nobody could beat her, in fact.

'_WHAT!_' Amora thought, shocked as Hitomi was swimming just as fast as she was.

"She's quick," Megan commented as she watched.

"Of course her species is actually very swift on land and in water," Haji stated. Since Megan was an alien, she was aware of the true nature of the school. Haji was an alien too and so was Hitomi.

'_I refuse to lose!_' Amora thought angrily as she sped up. Hitomi seeing this matched her speed. It was a close race but Amora finally won, though only a by an inch.

After climbing out of the pool, Hitomi smiled at Amora. "That was fun," Hitomi said, not looking tired, while Amora, who was panting and lying down, glared tiredly at her. "I think she needs to be put in the nurse's office!"

"I'll do it!" Alan volunteered. The boys watched in envy as Alan scooped Amora into his arms and carried her to the nurse's office so she could rest.

* * *

In the nurse's office, Alan said, "You rest here, OK?" He was about to leave but Amora pulled him on top of her on the bed and ran her hands up and down his back. "Amora, please…Not now…"

"Oh, relax," she purred. "Your next event won't be until much later and I think I deserve a reward after my performance." She rubbed her bare thigh against his leg. "Now, will you refuse me, my Green Lantern?"

"Do you really need to think about it, partner?" asked Bazel.

* * *

The next event was the Tug-of-War. One of the teams was Conda's class and the Amazon Queen was at the very end of her teams' end of the rope. In front of Conda was another girl named Kirika Ozora, a classmate of hers.

Kirika was a busty girl with short red hair, a large toothy grin when she smiled and shining blue eyes. She was also very clumsy and horrible at her studies.

The Tug-of-War was a test of strength and to make things interesting there was a patch of mud where the losers would fall into when the winners pulled hard enough.

"CONDA! CONDA! CONDA!"

Alan gaped as he saw a group of older woman cheerleading for Conda. "Aren't they a bit old for school?" Alan asked.

Sayako smirked, "Oh them. They work for my parents, and we thought we needed cheerleaders."

"And you told them to cheer for Conda even though she's not in our class?" Alan asked.

"Hey, I like her," Sayako shrugged.

"But…" Alan was interrupted when Haji and Gabe covered his mouth. One may be an alien but they refused to let Alan to ruin this good sight with his nitpicking.

"Dude, hot cheerleaders," said Gabe Crosser. He was an American exchange student in Alan's class. He also had the habit of acting like the typical American tourist in Japan by taking pictures and buying useless novelty items. His Japanese sounded odd since it was laced with his accent. He actually learnt by watching Japanese anime.

As soon as the event started, Conda's team pulled the rope against the other team. Kirika pulled tightly on the rope and noticed that Conda wasn't even trying. "C-Conda-san, please pull"

"Hmm, alright, it is time for me to take this seriously," sighed Conda. She pulled tightly, sending the opposing team into the mud. There were cheers for Conda but on the opposing team there was a girl who got angry and jealous at all the attention Conda got.

Suddenly, more cheers erupted as Conda ended up being tackled into the mud by her angry opponent and they wrestled. Alan palmed his face at the sight of the two shapely and curvy young women having a catfight in the mud.

"You know, I was hoping we'd see some mud wrestling action," commented Bazel.

"You're just as bad as Shinichi," Alan deadpanned. Members of the disciplinary committee, which also happened to be girls, tried to break up the fight but were unfortunately pulled into the mud as well. It didn't help matters that they were just as attractive and were now writhing in the slippery mud. "If Shinichi was here he would take pictures and say it'd be something he'd add in one of his mother's books, I'm sure of it."

The fight was broken up and everyone was disqualified for violent conduct, which really pissed Conda off as she wanted to strangle the judges. Alan managed to calm her down and reminded her that she was filthy, and needed a shower.

* * *

"Alan, would you like to shower with me?" Conda asked, tracing circles around his chest. Her hand went down and cupped his crotch. "Hm…dirty boy…" She was giving him a smoldering look.

"Conda…" Alan and she were inside the boys' locker room which also had showers for after gym class. "This is the boys' locker room."

"I know, but we can't use the shower in the girls' locker room because it's full, and this place is unoccupied." She licked his earlobe. "Would you bathe with me?"

* * *

Next was the eating contest. Nozomu sat at the table with other competitors and in front of each of them was a plate stacked with twenty hamburgers. The objective was for each contestant to eat as many as they could within 5 minutes. Nozomu licked her lips at the sight of all the meat.

Gabe grinned, knowing he had this event down. When the signal to start was given he began eating the hamburgers rapidly. He was on his 7th burger when he looked at Nozomu and gawked. Her plate was empty and the Okami yokai was using a toothpick to clean her teeth.

_'How is that even possible!_' Gabe mentally shouted in disbelief.

"Poor bastard. He didn't even stand a chance against an Okami Yokai," Bazel stated with Alan silently agreeing.

Nozomu was declared the winner and quickly she grabbed Alan and dragged him off for her reward in the storage shed.

* * *

The next event was hurdling and Bishie was taking part. Sure, she started well enough but then it went very badly for the Pokegirl. It was a disaster for Bishie as she ran the hurdles. Her timing was way off and she kept hitting the hurdles, one by one, without stopping, until she fell flat on her face and sprained her ankle.

"Let me take her to the nurse's office," Alan volunteered.

"Don't take too long," called Momo.

* * *

The next event was the three-legged race and Bishie was supposed to be his partner. However, due to her injury from earlier she could not participate. Alan would have to find someone to replace her.

"You want me to be your partner?" asked Megan.

"Well, I was going to go with Bishie but she sprained her ankle at the hurdles," said Alan.

Megan accepted, "Sure." She then felt a chill. "Woah, it just got chilly."

"Come on, let's get to the starting line," said Alan as he took Megan hand and led her to the starting line and away from Conda and Amora's glaring.

"Conda, normally you and I don't see eye to eye," Amora stated.

"Yes," Conda said.

"But I think we can agree that Megan girl stole a spot in this event that should have landed to one of us," Amora said, glaring a bit at Alan and Megan

"For once, I agree with you," Conda said.

"It was my idea!" cheered Lala. "Megan-chan like's Alan! I can tell."

"And you two aren't even in our class, so neither of you qualify," Yami pointed.

"Hmph! A worthless technicality," snorted Conda.

"You have egos the size of your boobs," Yami taunted.

"Why you-!" Conda hissed.

Megan and Alan were at the starting line and as soon as the signal was given they began to run. Well, actually they stumbled but once they got their rhythm they were able to catch up. While they didn't win first place, they still managed to get third.

"Say, Alan?" began Megan as she untied the cloth around their ankles.

"Yeah, Megan?" he responded.

"I've noticed you've been vanishing between events," she said. "What have you been up to?"

Alan was about to answer, hesitantly, "Well, I've been..." when the announcement that it was time for lunch was heard. "Wanna join us for lunch?"

"Sure!" Megan smiled.

A blanket was laid out for the group. Celine sat in Alan's lap as she ate from a bento while occasionally lifting pieces of food up to Alan's mouth. Alice wanted to sit in her daddy's lap too so after moving Celine a bit to the side he was able to fit his blonde android daughter in his lap as well. There was a huge variety of food laid out, like a buffet. He could easily recognize who made what from the contents of each bento. It was a no-brainer which ones were Nozomu and Yami since they contained meat products and taiyaki, respectively.

* * *

The rest of the events went on as followed. During the 'Borrowing Race' Nozomu was in, she got a sheet of paper that had the word 'Green' written on it. Her first choice was Alan, despite him not being green until she pointed out his ring was green. Then they had to throw tennis balls into baskets and the team with the most balls in their basket would win. Various sporting events were played and in-between those events Alan would vanish with one of his girls before returning. He always ended up with his hair a mess and covered in sweat. He had to cover his neck which had marks from hickeys and he did feel sore since he got scratched in the back a lot, not to mention he was starting to limp a little due to sore hips.

The final event of the day was 400 meter relay race. The runners were all standing at their posts, ready to win.

"May the best athlete win," Hitomi grinned at Lala. Lala was the starter their team, Nozomu was the 2nd, Yami was 3rd while Alan was the anchor for their team.

"You too Hitomi," Lala smiled a bit.

"On your mark... get set... GO!" Mr. Katsura shouted and blew into the whistle to begin the event. Lala took off instantly, running alongside her opponents as Nozomu waited. "Nozomu! Here!" Lala passed the baton to Nozomu and the wolf girl put the baton in her mouth and ran on all fours, causing everyone watching to develop sweatdrops.

Saku, her brother, slapped his forehead as he saw his little sister just following her instincts.

"Yami," said Nozomu as she handed Yami the baton. It was slick with drool but Yami fortunately had on gloves and gripped the baton and ran towards Alan. The baton nearly slipped from her hands due to the slick drool, however, but she managed to keep a tight grip on it.

Alan waited until he saw Yami heading toward him while reaching backwards. He grabbed the baton and began running. At first he was ahead but the others were catching up.

"GO ALAN!" Lala cheered, jumping up and down. Their classmates also cheered for him to go faster.

"Oi, hurry it up! I refuse to lose to these no names!" Bazel shouted.

Alan nodded and picked up speed, sprinting off towards the finish line and in a dramatic fashion he crossed the finish line. There were wild cheers of elation.

* * *

It was the end of the day and time for the award ceremony where students would be awarded medals for their achievement in this year's Sports Festival. However, there would soon be a very loud disturbance which was a loud whistle.

"_YOU CALL THIS A 'SPORTS FESTIVAL'!-? I CALL THIS A BIG JOKE!_" shouted the man who'd come through the school gate. He was using a megaphone to raise the volume of his voice. He had short blonde hair and wore a hockey mask over his face. He also wore a purple bodysuit with short sleeves and wore black armor on his shoulders, back and chest similar to padding worn by football players under their jerseys. He also wore black elbow-length gloves with forearm guards and boots with shin guards. The soles of his boots had sharp cleats on them. A whistle hung from his neck and a gym bag hung from his right shoulder.

"Oh, just great," Alan groaned as he saw the man come in.

"You know this creep?" asked Megan.

"He's called-" Alan began but was rudely cut off.

"_I AM THE SPORTSMASTER AND I'M GOING TO TEACH ALL YOU LITTLE KIDS WHAT REAL SPORTS ARE LIKE!_" He put down his megaphone and reached into his gym bag to pull out a baseball. "Let's play some catch!" He pitched the ball and when it hit the ground it exploded, causing everyone to scream. "Hey, I've got a few more balls for you here! Catch!" Sportsmaster threw ball after ball, which exploded on impact, causing everyone to flee and scream in panic. "Yeah, get some exercise! Hey fatty! Catch!" He threw a ball at a fat kid but it was caught by a green baseball mitt.

"I took down the original Sportsmaster when I first started," Alan told Sportsmaster. He was in his Green Lantern uniform and the sight of him caused the students and several members of faculty to cheer at the superhero. "And he was just a lunatic with a baseball bat. You're no different."

"Oh, it's you," Sportsmaster sneered.

"Up to your old tricks, huh, Sportsmaster?" Alan scowled back.

"Hey, the real crime here is what these pathetic punks call sports," Sportsmaster ranted. "I read about what goes on in these Japanese Sports Festival and I'm insulted! These aren't sports! They're jokes! Frankly, you should be arresting _them_!"

"Save your rants for the judge!" Alan shot back. He was all ready for a carefree day with his family and playing some games for fun when this jerk showed up, ruining everything. He flew at Sportsmaster but the criminal athlete was prepared and threw a football at Alan. He used a green shield to defend himself but that was what Sportsmaster expected as the football exploded and released thick black smog that blinded Alan.

"How about a game of hockey?" Sportsmaster asked as he dropped several hockey pucks and pulled out a hockey stick. Alan conjured up a fan and blew the smog away just in time to see Sportsmaster hitting the pucks straight at him. Alan caught and crushed the hockey pucks before deciding to go one-on-one with Sportsmaster. "So, it's a fight you want, huh?" Sportsmaster put on a pair of boxing gloves and pounded them together. "Bring it on, Lantern!"

"I'll play your game," said Alan as he conjured a pair of boxing gloves and the two circled around each other. The spectators formed a circle around them, cheering on the Green Lantern. Sportsmaster did some footwork and threw the first jab which Alan blocked with his forearm, pushing it away and then throwing a straight punch at Sportsmaster's chest, sending him staggering back.

Sportsmaster coughed, "Not bad, kid." Sportsmaster then began throwing a barrage of punches at Alan who dodged and blocked each blow with ease. Irritated, Sportsmaster demanded, "Stop dodging and blocking and hit me already!"

"If you insist!" Alan ducked under a swing and performed an uppercut that hit Sportsmaster in the chin. The force of the blow knocked out some of his teeth as he staggered backwards.

"You're taking it easy on him," said Bazel.

"I am? I haven't noticed," Alan shrugged.

Sportsmaster spat out some blood and glared at Alan. He shouted, "Check this out!" His boxing gloves became covered in metal with spikes on the knuckles. He pounded them together. "Beat that!"

"Mine are bigger," said Alan as a gigantic pair of boxing gloves floated above him. Sportsmaster's eyes widened.

"TIME OUT! TIME OUT!" shouted Sportsmaster as the gloves came and smashed him to the ground. The gloves disappeared and Sportsmaster was lying inside an indent on the ground in the shape of his body.

Lala skipped over, dressed as a referee, and counted, along with the others, "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10!" Sportsmaster didn't get back up. "IT'S A K.O.!" She then raised Alan's right arm. "We have a winner!" Everyone cheered for their hero and Megan even went and rewarded him with a kiss on the cheek.

Alan smiled but then his ring spoke. It was a message from Dr. Hasuma. The NEO-NUMBERS were in trouble.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS were fighting a new enemy named Black Iron Spider. It took the form of a spider-like machine with eight legs and eight glowing blue eyes that could open up to reveal missiles and guns that either shot a sort of sticky goop or stun lasers. The NEO-NUMBERS could not damage the robot due to its invincible steel body and so it systematically took them down. It managed to stun Zero, Arachnea and Carmen while binding Armadillo, Musician and Slasher in its goop. That only left both Meta and Showa to deal with it.

Showa managed to take out Black Iron Spider's legs, flight and weapons systems and now it was time to finish it off. However, Meta was hesitating. Shinichi then decided to finish it off despite Battler's protest and now Alan stood in his way.

Shinichi warned, "Out of my way, Alan."

"This is fair warning, Shinichi," threatened Alan, his eyes glowing. "Take one more step and I'll put you down."

"Che," scoffed Shinichi. He had already taken out the legs so Black Iron Spider wasn't going anywhere. He was still annoyed though. Instead of confronting Alan, he turned to walk off only for a wall of green energy to stand in his way. "Alan…" he growled.

"We're not done here, Shinichi. We need to talk," said Alan.

Shinichi gave Alan a cold look, "There's _nothing_ to talk about." He then warped away after putting on his helmet, leaving both Alan and Battler alone.

"He's got issues, doesn't he?" asked Battler.

"Like you wouldn't believe," sighed Alan. He turned his attention towards Black Iron Spider. He was damaged but maybe there was a way to help him. He put his hand on Black Iron Spider and said, "Don't worry, sir. We'll get you the help you need."

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS were taken to ARMOR's infirmary. Musician, Armadillo and Slasher were still trapped in the goop, however.

Dr. Magi said to Battler, "I think your fire can be used to melt the goop and free them."

"Are you sure?" Battler asked. "I'm afraid I might burn them."

"Just be careful," Dr. Magi advised. "They're cyborgs so they can handle it."

Battler nodded and took a deep breath before letting loose a tongue of flame from between his lips. It touched the goop and started to melt it down, revealing Slasher and Armadillo. He continued to breathe fire upon the trapped trio to melt the goop right off them but when the flames hit Musician, however…

Musician yelped as he grasped his ass, "Ow! Hot! HOT! HOT! HOT!" and jumped up and down.

Battler chuckled nervously, "Sorry, about that."

Dr. Magi smiled, glad everyone was alright, "Now, if you boys don't mind, I need to help Takada with something."

* * *

"Yup, there's a human brain in there," Takada confirmed as he looked down at the scans of Black Iron Spider. The mechanical spider-like cyborg was in his lab. From the scans it showed that Black Iron Spider's weapons had been damaged by Showa Oni's lightning. The built-in flight system was also damaged. Also, there had been a self-destruct system but Showa's lightning had also rendered it useless along with the weapon and flight systems.

"**Can you really help me?**" Black Iron Spider asked.

"Well, we can't put you in your old body, but maybe we can put you into a humanoid body if you like," said Takada.

"**Will it look like my old body?**" Black Iron Spider asked hopefully.

"Yeah, but we need to read your memories so we know what you used to look like," Takada told Black Iron Spider.

"**As long as I can be with my family, I'll do anything**."

"Just relax, big guy. You're in good hands now," said Takada confidently and soothingly.

* * *

Alan reported to his father about Shinichi's behavior and now the Director of ARMOR was worried. Ryuki was also present and seemed concern as well. He'd seen Shinichi's behavior.

"He just didn't care that Black Iron Spider used to be human and was only acting out of desperation," Alan stated. "He kept insisting that it was just a lie."

"Considering this is one of Gebok's creations, he would think that," interjected Dr. Hasuma. "You can't fault him for that kind of thinking after all this time. However, he'd already disarmed Black Iron Spider. There was no need to destroy him."

"I saw the hate in his eyes," Alan added. "There was no mercy in him."

"Where is he now?" Warren asked.

"He's at home," Dr. Hasuma answered.

"Keep an eye on him. I have a feeling something's going to happen."

"Hai, Kanchou."

* * *

Alan couldn't believe it. He just couldn't, it just wasn't possible, but there was no denying it no matter how much he wished it weren't real. He just never expected it to happen to him but the signs were there. They were so obvious. However, all they did was watch him and not do a thing, which was a mistake and a mistake they would pay with a high price.

He'd always believed him to be one of the best. He grew up admiring him and despite the fact that seeing how he was when he was younger may have dampened a portion of his admiration for him, Alan still respected him. After all, everyone had their quirks, right? Nobody was perfect and that meant nobody was truly free from corruption.

He just never thought _he'd_ be the one corrupted.

"Daddy, what's wrong?" Alice asked.

"It's nothing, honey," Alan lied. "Go back to sleep, OK?"

Alice yawned and then went back into the futon, hugging a stuffed doll that looked like Alan in his Green Lantern uniform.

The message was clear as day: **SHINICHI BANABARA HAD GONE ROGUE.

* * *

**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: Uh oh, that's definitely not good. Shinichi can be pretty reckless sometimes. Hopefully Alan can beat some sense into the Kamen Rider before Shinichi does something he regrets.**


	43. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 3

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 3: Lament of the Liger**

As he sat in the MysticLiner, Yuji sighed as he recalled the last mission he went on for ARMOR. They had lost one of their own. It was Lina aka Electric Butterfly who'd died as she'd sacrificed herself to save the NEO-NUMBERS from permanently being shutdown from an EMP bomb.

"Dammit," he muttered to himself as he eyed the roof with a drink in his hand.

"Still thinking about it?" Asura asked as she sat next to Yuji.

Yuji wrapped an arm around the devil's waste and pulled her close to him, "Yeah…"

She looked to him, "Come, let's go to the bedroom. You need to unwind, at least a little bit, and the girls need to be Tamed."

Yuji nodded and let Asura help him up. He turned to Mizuki, "Mizuki, mind the bar. I don't want any disturbances."

"Hai, Fudo-san," Mizuki obeyed as Yuji and Asura left the bar cabin.

* * *

"Papa, you're back!" Maria cheered as she hugged Yuji. He hugged her back, but Maria noticed something when she felt him trembling slightly, "Papa, what's wrong? Why are you so sad?"

Yuji shook his head, "It's nothing, sweetie. I'm just really tired right now."

Maria then perked up, "Oh, then you beat the bad guys?"

Yuji nodded, "Yeah, we beat the bad guys."

He carried Maria in his arms as he was welcomed by his family: Yusei and Aki, Jack, Carly and their son Jason Atlas, his sister Yuki, Crow and his daughter Rachel Hogan, Luca, Lucciano and Lua with his wife Sakuya.

"Tadaima," Yuji said.

"Welcome back," Yusei nodded as the father and son shook hands.

"Well, how about we have a small welcome-home party?" Crow suggested.

"That sounds like a great idea," Aki smiled.

"Then I, Jack Atlas, shall aid in the preparations!" Jack declared.

Carly nodded, "This'll be great!"

Rachel hugged Yuji and smiled, "It's great to see you again, Yu-chan!"

Yuji nodded, "Yeah, I've been busy… But look, I'm pretty exhausted, so I'm gonna get some rest." He handed Maria to Aki as he walked into the house, leaving everyone behind to blink questioningly.

* * *

Yuji was in the garage, sitting on a rolling chair, when his mother walked in.

"Is there something wrong, Yuji?" Aki asked.

Yuji was working on his White Blaze as he shook his head, "No, Kaa-san. Nothing's wrong."

Aki sighed as she took a seat next to him, "Yuji, you know it's impossible to lie to me and I know you. I saw you forcing yourself to smile in front of Maria. Something happened on that mission, something bad."

Yuji stopped working and looked down, "We were successful for the most part, but we lost someone. "

Aki gave him a sympathetic look, "It was someone you cared about."

Yuji nodded, "Yes, she was someone I wouldn't mind calling my sister."

Aki took into a hug, lying his head onto her breasts, "You're torn up about it, aren't you?"

He nodded slowly, "I'm so fucking useless. I let her die so easily…"

"Whatever that girl did was her choice," Aki said sternly, "You mustn't blame yourself for her untimely death."

"Still hurts though," he retorted. He then felt another weight press against him and looked to his left, seeing his sister, "Thank you, Yuki."

"Onii-sama must not regret what happened," Yuki said quietly.

He nodded, "I know." Lina had decided for herself to sacrifice her own life but it had still hurt. '_If only I hadn't hesitated. If only I hadn't froze. If only I had been faster_.'

The pain of losing Lina had reminded him of another pain he had. He remembered the day he met Maria's mother Rosa. It'd been a week after the whole Panther Claw incident and he was once again on the road.

* * *

_Stopping for a bite to eat, Yuji entered a quaint little family restaurant. That was when he heard this from one of the booths._

"_I love it, Mama! Thank you!" beamed a cute little girl in a white dress with brown hair and violet eyes. She was also wearing a white bonnet. She was hugging a stuffed lion doll._

"_Happy Birthday, Maria," smiled the girl's mother, who was a young lady with long, light brown hair. She was wearing a black blazer over a white blouse and wore a red skirt that came down to her ankles. There was a birthday cake on the table with other assortments of treats. "What will you name it?"_

"_Sakutaro!"_

_Yuji smiled at the scene, "How cute," as he sat at the counter and ordered a pie with coffee. He continued to observe the mother and daughter up until they decided to leave. Rosa paid for everything and exited hand-in-hand with Maria. _

_Once outside the restaurant, Rosa gasped as her purse was suddenly snatched and the snatcher ran off with it. "STOP! THIEF!" she screamed._

"_GIVE BACK MAMA'S PURSE!" shouted Maria._

_Yuji, who was just about to start his bike, saw the man dash off with the purse and sighed. "Damn it!" Starting up his vehicle, he gave chase as the bike ran along the sidewalk and after the purse snatcher. People made way for the bike as he started gaining on the purse snatcher who turned his head to see Yuji. He picked up speed and turned into an alley where Yuji gave chase._

_The alley was a dead end, however, much to the purse snatcher's chagrin and he saw Yuji roll in. Yuji dismounted and commented, "You know, you can learn a lot about a woman from the contents of her purse but I don't think that was your intention." The purse snatcher took out a switchblade and Yuji sighed in response. "You know, for your own sake, you should just give up. I'm really not in the mood to hurt you."_

_The purse snatcher lunged but Yuji dodged and took off his helmet before hitting the man on the back of the head with it with enough force to knock him out. He caught the purse as it went flying and caught the man by the back of his clothes. "Typical," he muttered before dragging the purse snatcher out of the alley while carrying the purse. What he came out to see were people applauding him but he ignored them. He dropped the purse snatcher unceremoniously on the ground and approached Rosa. "Is this your purse, ma'am?"_

_Rosa blushed as the handsome young man returned her purse to her. "Yes, it is. Thank you."_

"_You should be more careful," said Yuji. "You'll never know when something like that will happen again."_

"_That was amazing!" Maria cheered. "You're a hero! You saved Mama's purse!"_

"_Hey, it was nothing. I'd do that for any lovely lady in need," grinned Yuji. Rosa blushed at being called lovely. "Your husband must be really lucky guy to have a lovely wife like you, and a cute little girl like your daughter."_

_Rosa frowned sadly, "I don't have a husband. He left me."_

_Yuji kicked himself for opening old wounds. He should've seen the signs. There were obviously there. He decided to try and cheer her up, "Well, it's his loss then. The idiot obviously didn't know how good he had it when he left you. I say good riddance."_

"_Ojisan, what's your name?" asked Maria. _

"_It's Yuji, Yuji Fudo," said Yuji. __"And what's your name, little lady."_

"_Maria!" Maria beamed. She held up the lion doll, "And this is Sakutaro!"_

"_And the name of your lovely mother?"_

"_I'm Rosa. Rosa Ushiromiya," answered Rosa._

_Yuji took her hand and kissed the back of it, "Pleasure to meet such a beautiful rose like you."_

"_Mama, your face is red," Maria pointed out. True enough, Rosa was living up to her namesake as her face was now a healthy shade of red._

* * *

Yuji was in Smart Brain's training room, with Lucciano and Luca who were manning the controls.

"Are you sure about this?" Luca asked through the microphone

"I want to do this," said Yuji, eyes narrowed. "Start up the simulation."

"But…"

"I SAID START THE DAMN THING!" Yuji shouted.

Lucciano and Luca flinched before hitting several switches and three doors slid open in the battle room. Yuji readied his Red Queen and revved her engine as she stared down the three Machine Emperors: Wisel Infinity, Skiel Infinity, and Grannel Infinity. These were mechanical reproductions of the cards that were used by Yliaster, meaning these were real robots. They towered over Yuji by several feet but the Manakyte didn't budge as he revved the engine again, the Red Queen spewing short bursts of flames, as his body language hinted the Machine Emperors to make the first move.

Wisel made the first move as he swung his blade arm down at Yuji, which he dodged and swung the Red Queen down on Wisel. Wisel merely blocked with its shield arm as it projected a force field, repelling Yuji as it sent him flying across the room. Grannel and Skiel took the chance and fired their cannons, bombarding Yuji with laser fire as he returned fire with his own flames.

The Machine Emperors took the flames head-on, but were more or less unscathed. Yuji then touched down and summoned some Cannon Dragons as they bombarded the robots with their artillery. Grannel took care of the annoyances with a single blast as they were incinerated. However, this was but a distraction as Skiel was sliced down the middle by the Red Queen's hot blade from behind by Yuji. He then tossed the Red Queen at Grannel, getting a bull's-eye as the blade was stabbed right into Grannel's cycloptic eye, making the gold robot explode in a blaze of flames. _'I failed her…'_

Yuji then focused his rage on Wisel as his King of Hearts crest burned brightly on the back of his right hand. **"BURNING DRAGON!"** Yuji roared as he blasted Wisel's face with an extreme blaze, melting the robot's head right off its shoulders. _'I told her I'd protect her…'_

"Next," Yuji called.

Luca sighed as she pressed a button and another door opened to reveal three Machine Imperial God Machinicle Infinity robots that were even taller than the Machine Emperors. They fired their cannons as Yuji evaded the blasts and he roared, going into his Transcended Form above them.

"**VESUVIUS VOLCAN!"** he roared as he rained down molten bullets on the Machinichles. Transcended Yuji got in-between the three robots and roared, **"FLAME TURBO!"** The torches on his shoulders ignited fiercely as the towering machines were slowly melted, oozing onto the floor as they began to melt through the floor. _'I swore it…'_

Out of the melted holes in the floor emerged two Machine Imperial God Dragon Asterisks. The dragons roared as they fired beams of multi-colored light at Transcended Yuji.

'_And I just let her die…'_

Transcended Yuji roared as loud as he could as he projected an orb of flames to shield himself as he prepared another assault.

"**ERUPTING! SEKIHA! TENKYOKEN!"** He let loose a red orb of concentrated power as it engulfed the draconic creatures.

* * *

_It was around a month after he started seeing Rosa when he came over to her house and when he knocked on the door she came out with a panicked look on her face._

"_YUJI!" she panicked._

_Yuji blinked, "Yeah? What's wrong? You don't look too good."_

"_Someone took Maria! They want me to give them 1 billion yen or else they'll..."_

_Yuji sighed, "Kidnappers always gotta target kids... Don't worry, I'll get Maria back."_

"_But how? They told me if I tried anything funny, even call the police, they'll kill her."_

"_So don't do anything. Like I said, I will take care of it." He then grinned, "Or at least Kamen Rider Liger will.__ "_

* * *

_The warehouse doors were blown open as the kidnappers were startled by the explosion. Kamen Rider Liger walked into the room as he eyed Maria._

"_Hey there, squirt," Liger greeted with a wave._

"_Liger-jisan!" Maria beamed._

_The kidnappers surrounded Liger and opened fire, only for the bullets to bounce off his armor and ricochet into the shooters, catching them on parts of their bodies, making them cry out in pain. He then snapped his fingers and they lit up like birthday candles as their bodies were cremated._

"_They never learn," Liger muttered as he shook his head and approached the leader._

"_Stay back," he said as he put a gun to Maria's head. "I'll fucking kill the kid, I swear…!"_

_BLAM!_

_The leader's brains were splattered as he received a shot to the head via Liger's witch-gun._

_Liger holstered his gun and returned to Yuji as he went to untie Maria, "You OK, sweetie?"_

_Maria glomped Yuji and hugged him tightly, "Yuji-jisan saved Maria! UU~!"_

_Yuji chuckled as he ruffled her hair, "C'mon, you're mom's waiting."_

* * *

"_MAMA!" Maria cried as she ran to her mother._

"_Oh, Maria!" Rosa cried as she took her daughter into a tight hug and twirled her around, both mother and daughter shedding tears of joy as they were reunited. She let her go and turned to Yuji and gave him a surprisingly strong hug as she was still crying a lot. "Thank you…thank you so much…! How can I ever repay you, Yuji…?"_

_Yuji smiled, "How about I stay and make dinner for you two?"_

* * *

Yuji sat alone in a bar as he stared at his drink, a simple beer bottle.

"Trying the old 'drink your problems away' approach?"

Yuji raised his head to see Jack and Crow flanking his sides as they each took a seat.

"Just feel like being alone for a while," Yuji answered.

"Hey, remember that time you got so wasted that you slept with all those cheerleaders?" Crow grinned.

Yuji flushed and pointed at the two older men, "That was your fault! Both of you wanted to bet how long it would take to get me drunk!"

"I don't see what the big deal is," Jack snorted as he opened his beer bottle.

"You both had me guzzle down almost 200 beers and I ended up so drunk that I had sex with all the cheerleaders in school AND the ones that worked at the stadium! That's almost TWO HUNDRED girls in the span a single night! I don't even know how that's even physically possible! I can't even believe I remember that!"

"That's because Yuki taped the whole thing and joined in the orgy," Crow laughed.

Yuji glared as his uncles, "And what did Kaa-san do when she found out?"

Jack sweat-dropped as he recalled the incident, "We got burned…"

"Badly…" Crow shivered.

After a brief moment of silence, the three men began laughing as Jack and Crow threw an arm over their nephew's shoulder.

"That was probably our greatest adventure," Crow sighed.

"Agreed," Jack nodded.

Yuji looked between the two men, "I'm guessing you two didn't just come here to talk about old times, did you?"

Crow frowned softly, "We noticed you've been beating yourself up over your last mission, Yuji."

"And don't try to deny it," Jack ordered sternly.

Yuji sighed as he recalled the events, "We were supposed to take out the HQ of a group known as X-SHOCKER, led by an asshole called Gebok; your typical mad scientist. We were split into two teams and a defector, a Kaizo Ningen named Electric Butterfly, led our group into the enemy base so we could destroy the place. But we all got separated so Alan and I, a comrade of mine, had to fight through some androids to get out." The bottle shook in his hand as he struggled to continue the story, "In the end…we won…but…Electric Butterfly…was reduced to dust!" He crushed the bottle in his hand, spilling his drink and shards of glass landing in front of him.

Jack and Crow frowned. They knew Yuji hated it when someone he was close to died.

Crow laid his head in his hands, "Sounds like the girl was special. Were you planning on making her your next conquest or something?"

Yuji shook her head, "No, and she was plenty special to a friend of mine. So you can guess he's much worse off than I am."

Jack crossed his arms, "I'm sure she was a brave soul for giving her life in the name of duty." He turned to the bartender, "Barkeep, a round of beers!"

The barkeep brought the three men their bottles of beer. "TO ELECTRIC BUTTERFLY," they cheered before clinking their bottles together and chugging down their drinks. As Yuji downed another beer, he remembered the most heartbreaking day of his life. If it weren't for the fact that Maria needed him then he would've just drunk himself silly to numb the pain.

* * *

_Yuji looked at the velvet box in his hand, grinning. Today was the day he was going to give Rosa what she deserved. They had been going out for months now and it was now the time he asked for her hand in marriage. It just felt right. Rosa needed a husband and Maria needed a father. He could be there for them and love them as they should._

_Yuji sighed slowly as he knocked on the front door and was welcomed to the object of his affection._

"_Ah, Yuji," Rosa smiled, "It's so good to see you!"_

_Yuji froze as his voice was stuck in throat, beads of sweat running down his neck like rain. 'OH, GODDAMMIT! WHAT A TIME TO CHOKE! THIS IS FUCKING BULLSHIT!' He coughed and smiled, blushing fiercely as he stammered, "Um…hey, Rosa…! I uh…well…how's it going?"_

_Rosa blinked at Yuji's speech. Normally, he was always calm and focused when they spoke. But he seemed nervous about something. "Yuji, what's wrong?" she asked, "Your face is so red. Are you coming down with something?"_

_He shook his roughly, "Nah, I'm good…! Perfectly healthy! It's just seeing your pretty face just brings joy to my heart…! Ehehe…" 'Ah, that was fucking lame!' he thought to himself._

_Rosa blushed and slapped his arm, "Oh, stop it, Yuji! You always say something so childish like that to an old girl like me!"_

_The two laughed for a little while as Maria watched from the hallway with Sakutaro in her arms._

"_What are they talking about?" Maria asked as she looked down at the doll in her arms._

_Sakutaro shook his head, "I have no idea, uryuu."_

_Yuji calmed down and gave Rosa a slightly serious look, "Listen, Rosa…I came by to talk to you. It's important."_

_Rosa noted his seriousness and was silent to listen._

"_Well, we've been dating for a few months now…and um…" Yuji struggled to continue as he scratched the back of his head, "Well, I've come to realize, again, that you're a great girl who's always doing her best. You've done a great job raising a kid on your own, but I realize that you deserve more in life. You need help. You need a husband who can support you and Maria needs a dad that can be with her!"_

_Rosa gasped as the realization hit her. What Yuji was trying to say…did he mean that? "Yuji, are you saying…?"_

_Yuji blushed fiercely, "I'm saying I wanna be part of your family. Part of your life! Part of Maria's life!" He got on his knee and revealed the velvet box and opened it to reveal a diamond ring, making both Maria and Rosa gasp. "Rosa Ushiromiya," he started, "Will you marry me?"_

_Maria smiled widely as Rosa was visibly crying before she helped Yuji up and hugged him, crying into his shirt as she answered, "Yes! I will!"_

"_Mama's getting married!" Maria cheered, "UU!-!"_

"_I have to tell everyone," Rosa sniffled, "I'm getting married!"_

_Yuji wiped her tears away and smiled, "Then do with a smile on that beautiful face of yours."_

_Clapping suddenly broke the atmosphere as a voice whistled, "Wow, never thought I'd live to see this day, Fudo-kun! She's quite the looker."_

_Yuji froze as he slowly turned behind him to have his eyes widen at the man who stood before him. "You…"_

_The man had spiky green hair and red eyes with a muscular body and wearing torn jeans with a muscle shirt and a green vest._

_Rosa looked over Yuji and blinked, "Is he a friend of yours, Yuji?"_

_The man chuckled, "Oh, we go WAY back, missy. Don't we, Fudo-kun?"_

_Yuji pulled out his witch-gun and pulled the trigger repeatedly, putting bullet after bullet into the man as he stumbled back, startling Maria and Rosa._

"_What are you doing?-!" Rosa demanded._

_Yuji turned to her with a stern look, "Rosa, get in the house and stay there. Lock your door. Do NOT come out until I tell you. OK?"_

_Rosa saw the look in his eye and reluctantly nodded as she turned to Maria, "Let's get inside, Maria."_

"_But Yuji-jisan…" she protested._

_Yuji tried to smile, "Stay inside, sweetie. I'll take care of this." They went inside and he turned to the man as he growled, "What the fuck are you doing here, Ryuuho?-!"_

_Ryuuho grinned, "Came to say hi after all this time, of course. Those girls sure seem to like you."_

_Yuji aimed right at his head, "Stay the fuck away from them! I'm not that weak little kid from before!"_

_Ryuuho laughed and tore off his vest, "Then prove it, boy!" He roared as he transformed into a white and grey humanoid, resembling a muscular dragon. It was Kiba Ryuuho, the Dragon Orphenoch, the man who murdered Yuji's first love, Yumi Omura._

_Yuji slung his belt on and tackled the Dragon Orphenoch through the fence as he shouted, "HENSHIN!"_

"_**ZERO FORM!"**_

_Before the armor completed forming around his body, Yuji was already lunging towards the Dragon Orphenoch with a roar as Maria and Rosa watched helpless through a window from inside the house._

_Liger launched a flurry of punches and kicks, relying on his martial arts training he received from the Undefeated of the East, Master Asia. However, he could not use his ultimate move, the Sekiha Tenkyoken, let alone his Manakyte powers in such a closed space, especially since Maria and Rosa were still in the area._

_The Dragon Orphenoch tried to jump but Liger matched him as he grabbed him and did a double kick that threw Ryuuho back onto the ground as he swiped his Pass._

"_**FULL CHARGE!"**_

_Liger landed and his claws were engulfed in flames as he charged at his hated enemy. __**"Burning Dragon Claw!"**__ he shouted as he slashed at the Dragon Orphenoch, digging his heated claws into the Kaijin's thick armor as Ryuuho grunted for the continuous assault, but was otherwise unharmed. He tried to retaliate by spewing green flames from his mouth but Liger anticipated this as he pressed the orange button on his belt and swiped the Pass._

"_**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**_

_Liger Schneider's blades cut through the flames with ease as the blades activated and glowed as Liger continued his attack, making slash marks on the Orphenoch's skin as sparks ignited from his body. Liger then swiped his Pass once again._

"_**FULL CHARGE!"**_

_Liger jumped and his body spun with his arms stretched out, with the glowing blue energy from his blades and covering his body like a tornado. __**"Savage Saber Slash!"**__ he shouted as he ran over the Dragon Orphenoch, sending him flying through the air as he crashed through a storefront window._

"_Go, Papa!" Maria cheered from the window. Yuji and Rosa may not have been married yet, but Maria saw him as her father now._

_Rosa watched the battle with worry. She knew Yuji could handle it, but there something wrong and she felt she had to do something._

_The Dragon Orphenoch stumbled out of the store window and chuckled, "Well, you have gotten stronger, Fudo-kun. But you're still weak."_

_Liger Schneider glared, "If I'm so weak, then why am I the one who's fucking you up?"_

"_If you were strong, then why haven't you killed me yet?" the Dragon Orphenoch taunted. "Face it, you're weak because you still hold onto humanity. You even reduced yourself to taking a human whore as your mate and taking her bastard child as your daughter."_

"_Don't you dare call them that!" Liger Schneider snapped angrily._

"_It's true! That woman would spread her legs for any man who'd want her and as for her little brat she is a bastard because her whore of a mother didn't even get married when she was conceived!" the Dragon Orphenoch sneered wickedly. "Of course, for you, I guess that's how you like it. You like an easy woman and maybe that little girl will grow up into a tasty morsel someday…"_

"_SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH!" Liger Schneider roared as he lunged forward towards the Dragon Orphenoch and swung at him. However, the attack had been sloppy and the Dragon Orphenoch managed to duck before blasting Liger Schneider away with a violent blow to the stomach. Liger Schneider was sent flying and he crashed violently into the outer wall which surrounded Rosa's property._

"_Yuji!" Rosa cried._

"_Stay inside!" Liger Schneider said as he shakily stood up. He shook his head to rid himself of the anger caused by Ryuuho's taunts. He had to keep his head cool, even if he hated this monster. His words had struck a nerve._

"_I struck a nerve, didn't I?" inquired the Dragon Orphenoch mockingly._

"_That's pretty clever, using your words to throw me off-balance," retorted Liger. "But that just proves how weak you are. If you're so strong, then why haven't you killed me yet?"_

"_I like to play with my prey," responded Ryuuho._

"_Oh, so you say, but what I really think is that you're really too weak to actually kill me in a fair fight," mocked Liger Schneider. "Then again, I am the one who's higher on the food chain."_

"_We'll see about that," Ryuuho cryptically remarked as he shed his bulky armor and was in his reptilian speed form._

_Liger pressed the blue button as he swiped his Pass._

"_**JAGER FORM!"**_

_Liger Jäger's boosters ignited as Ryuuho also went into a burst of speed, the claws clashing with each other in this high-speed battle. Ryuuho then kicked Liger Jäger in the gut as he rolled along the street. Ryuuho then grew his bulky armor back as he raised a claw to deal the finishing blow._

"_YUJI!"_

"_PAPA!"_

"_NOW DIE!" Ryuuho roared as he brought down his claw._

"_**PANZER FORM!"**_

_His claw was caught in Liger Panzer's hand as he slowly rose to his feet._

"_Nani…?" the Dragon Orphenoch gawked._

"_It'll take more than you're stupid trash-talk…to keep me down…" Liger grinned as the combatants locked hands and began wrestling on the asphalt, kicking and punching each other in order to get the upper hand. The Dragon Orphenoch threw a fist at him, only for it to be caught and then another, that one was caught as well._

_Despite possessing incredible firepower in this form, Yuji couldn't use them as such close range. He would need to put some distance between himself and Ryuuho. Also, the armor was heavy and bulky, which was a weakness. However, another glaring weakness was its tendency to overheat which could damage the armor._

_The Dragon Orphenoch tried to pull his arms away but Liger Panzer kept his grip on them. Then, as the Dragon Orphenoch tugged once more, Liger Panzer released him, causing him to stagger and receive a brutal kick that blasted him down the street. He went flying a good distance before tumbling along the road._

"_Time to say 'bye bye'," Liger muttered as he swiped his Pass over his belt buckle._

"_**FUUL CHARGE!"**_

_Liger got into a horse stance as the energy in his cannons began to charge as he braced himself, __**"Hyper…"**_

_Suddenly, the Dragon Orphenoch was in his face and had hands together as he was about slam them into Yuji's masked face, "Bye bye!"_

_**WHAM!**_

_Yuji was clocked upside the head as he rolled and tumbled backward violently along the road before roughly hitting the wall, his armor shattering away as a result._

_The Dragon Orphenoch spat, "Like I said you're weak, Fudo! You've relied too much on that armor that you've sealed up your real power! It's disgusting! Not as disgusting as taking on a human mate, but still it disgusts me!" He started to make his way towards Yuji but then Rosa got in front of the Dragon Orphenoch to block his path. "Oh, what's this then?"_

"_Don't you dare come any closer!" Rosa threatened. In her hands was a rifle and she knew how to use it. Her father, Kinzo Ushiromiya, always made it a point to train his children in the use of guns in case they needed them. The gun Rosa had was something she'd kept inside her nightstand drawer for protection, but this time she was going to use it in order to protect her happiness._

_She knew it was hopeless, but at least she could distract this monster long enough to buy Yuji some time in order to recover. It was risky, but by now she was willing to do anything to protect her beloved._

"_Well, then, take your best shot," the Dragon Orphenoch challenged and she did. She pulled the trigger and fired a shot directly into his face. There was a loud bang but despite the bullet hitting its mark, it did nothing. Rosa backed away as she continued shooting, all the while the Dragon Orphenoch was advancing. She pulled the trigger again and to her horror discovered she had run out of bullets. "Sorry, it was fun while it lasted, but now it's time your worthless life ends." He struck with his claws and impaled her right in the gut. Rosa's eyes widened as she was stabbed by the claws and blood splattered the ground. Ryuuho withdrew his hand and watched as Rosa collapsed and a pool of blood formed under her. "Humans are such fragile things, aren't they?"_

_Yuji's eyes went beady as he tried to process what just happened and realized…"ROSAAAA!-!-!-!"_

"_MAMA!-!-!" Maria shrieked and she ran out of the house. "MAMA!"_

"_Oh, and now it's the brat's turn," said Ryuuho as he approached the house and Maria froze as the monster that was approaching. He could kill Yuji later. It was more fun to torment him and wait for him to plead for death anyway. He began to form a sphere of blue flames at the tip of his snout and was about to unleash it. Unfortunately, he would not be able to do so._

_He was suddenly in the jaws of Volcanic Dragon, being swung back and forth in the beast's mouth and slammed repeatedly onto the ground and tossed through a wall. The Volcanic Dragon roared furiously as he stood in front of Maria protectively._

_Ryuuho, in his human form, crawled out of the rubble and grunted, "What the fuck…? His body was leaking ashes as the damage he took began to take their toll. He then felt a familiar presence and gritted his teeth, "Shit… Guess I have to retreat…" He then disappeared through a Jump Scar and was out of sight._

_Volcanic Dragon turned back into Yuji as he ran to Rosa's body, "Rosa! Rosa!" He knelt down and cradled her body, "Rosa, talk to me! Come on!"_

_Rosa slowly opened her eyes and smiled weakly, "Yuji…is Maria alright…?"_

"_She's fine, but what the hell were you thinking?-!" he demanded. "I told you to stay inside! You should've stayed with Maria!"_

"_I was happy…when you proposed to me, Yuji…" she coughed. "I was so very lonely before you came into my life… No, when you came into our lives, mine and Maria's…I was looking forward to living together as…a family…and raising our child together…"_

_Maria gasped as Yuji's eyes widened as tears welled up in his eyes._

"_Are…you saying…?" he stammered as he visibly shook._

_She nodded weakly, "I was worried about telling you before, cuz I was afraid of what you might think…but when you proposed to me…I was so happy and was about to tell you when that…monster showed up…" Rosa looked over to Maria, "Maria…come here, baby…"_

_Maria sniffled as she approached her dying mother, "Mama… Please don't go…!"_

"_I'm sorry, Maria…" she apologized, "But I can't hold on any longer… Stay with your father, and promise me you'll grow up to be a good girl…" She held up a pinky and tried to smile, "OK…?"_

_Maria was crying as she locked her own pinky with Rosa's, "I promise, Mama…I promise…!"_

_Rosa smiled, "That's a good girl…"_

"_I'm sorry…" Yuji sniffled, "I'm sorry, Rosa…!"_

_Rosa raised her hand and lightly bobbed him on the forehead, "Baka… I chose to try and help you… Just promise me you'll live and keep Maria safe, OK?" Ashes began to fall off her body as she was beginning to deteriorate._

_Yuji grasped her hand in his and nodded as he was visibly crying, "I promise, Rosa…"_

_Rosa gave one final smile before she turned grey, and slowly crumbled to ashes, leaving Maria and Yuji to morn over he remains. Two lives were lost that day. One was the life of a loving mother and lover, and the other was child who was denied the chance to be welcomed into the world…_

* * *

The details of Rosa's death were kept a secret but the 'official' cause of death was a stab wound and she'd bled to death. Yuji and Maria, however, knew the truth and the culprit remained at large.

A funeral was held and Rosa's family attended. They gave Yuji and Maria their condolences. It was after that when Yuji adopted Maria. While her relatives offered to take her in, Yuji told them that it was Rosa's last wish that he be the one to take care of Maria. Social services could try and break them apart but Yuji would not allow them. Maria was his daughter and he was not going to let anyone take her away.

* * *

In order to clear his head, Yuji challenged his father to a Riding Duel.

"Are you sure about this?" Yusei asked.

"I need this, Dad," said Yuji. "Let's go."

As soon as he got on his D-Wheel and put on his helmet, his cell phone rang. He had a specific ring tone for different callers and the ring tone he was hearing was when ARMOR called. "Excuse me, Dad. I have to take this," said Yuji as he flipped his cell phone open and put it to his ear, "Hello, this is Yuji Fudo."

Dr. Hasuma replied, "_Agent Fudo, I have some bad news. I'll get straight to the point. X-SHOCKER is still active._"

Yuji cursed, "Dammit."

"_Also, Shinichi has gone rogue_," Dr. Hasuma added. "_I_ _just wanted to let you know so you wouldn't be surprised later on._"

"Dad," Yuji said apologetically, "Looks like we won't be having that duel after all."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Well, here's a look at how Maria became Yuji's daughter through this chain of flashbacks. Sorry if you guys were expecting a duel. It's not my fault, but I assure you there WILL be a big duel in the future.**


	44. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 4

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 4: In Regards to a Rogue**

Dr. Hasuma reported, "Agent Banabara has systematically destroyed several X-SHOCKER facilities and bases in Asia, North America, South America, Africa and also one he managed to locate in Australia. And he did all that in under a week."

"He really is serious about doing this alone," murmured Warren as he sat at his desk. It didn't take long for news of Shinichi's actions to reach ARMOR. They kept tabs on all their agents and due to Shinichi violating protocol and attacking X-SHOCKER without authorization, Warren had no choice but to label him as a 'rogue agent'. "He's determined to do things his way now."

"Why is that a problem?" Ichijyo asked, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. "He's doing what he's supposed to do, destroying his enemies."

"ARMOR exists to _protect_ the Multivese, Ichijyo," Warren reminded.

"And isn't that what Banabara is doing?" Ichijyo questioned. "He's protecting his world by eliminating the primary threat."

"You can't destroy to protect and vice-versa," Warren retorted. "It doesn't work that way."

"That's like the pot calling the kettle black," Ichijyo remarked. "Remember Sauron, Vicious, Damien?"

"Those were extreme circumstances," Warren defended.

"It's the same thing Banabara is doing," Ichijyo argued. "Besides, why do you care so much about him? It's not just because he's one of your subordinates."

"A man has the right to look after his boys, right?" Ichijyo cocked an eyebrow in response. Warren added, "I just don't want him to go further down the path of revenge. It's like a poison and eventually it will destroy who he is and turn him into what he hates the most."

"I'm sure that won't happen," said Dr. Hasuma hopefully.

"Evidence suggests otherwise," replied Warren.

"It seems to me you can't control your own subordinates," mocked Ichijyo, smirking tauntingly.

"What did you say?" Warren glared as he stood up, fists clenched.

"You heard me. Ever after all these years you still act like a child. You dodge paperwork like how a schoolboy dodges homework, play videogames in your office and just play the fool. I'm honestly amazed how this organization can keep running with you leading it. Grow up, Warren Smith. You're not a child anymore and right now you have a rogue agent doing whatever he pleases and you're not doing a damn thing to stop him."

Warren retorted, his fist slamming on his desk, "Yeah, I act like a kid some times, but after everything I've been through, I think I deserve it. You got all cold and hard because your first love died, right? My first love died giving birth to my _stillborn_ daughter. I've died and been reborn more times than I can count and have saved the ENTIRE FUCKING MULTIVERSE more times than you have years on your life. You help run a race of deathmongers. I run an organization that can chew up and spit out your entire race in the time it took me to say that sentence. You wanna compare leadership skills, fine. In every way, shape and form I am _superior_ to you. I'll deal with _my_ agents my own way and you can just butt out."

Ichijyo just scoffed uncaringly before he vanished into a dark portal. Dr. Hasuma frowned at the tense situation just now. Calming down, Warren asked, "Ryuki, what else do you have to report?"

"Agent Banabara has displayed obsessive and aggressive behavior towards X-SHOCKER and Gebok," reported Dr. Hasuma, "Which makes sense considering what Gebok did to him and made him do." He asked, "Your orders?"

"Keep watching his movements and put all the agents on standby," Warren ordered. "We're going to need everyone to be ready once Shinichi goes too far."

"You think he will?"

"I know he will. I've seen it happen before. There's a pattern here. I think after Lina died something inside him just snapped. He was just good at hiding it. He cut himself off from his loved ones to go after his obsession. Soon it will consume him until nothing else matters."

* * *

The castle that had once been used as the base of the Dark Hatred Society now lay inside a ravine. It'd been abandoned, following the organization's defeat and now stood as a reminder of the organization's existence and former glory. Today it would be receiving several guests after a good, long time.

The NEO-NUMBERS had been sent to the abandoned headquarters of the DHS on an assignment of grave importance. It was a recovery mission.

"This castle is creepy..." Michiru shivered. She swore the eyes of some of these painting were glaring at them with bloodlust in their eyes. It was disturbing.

"What else can you expect from an organization that had Kaijin called 'Demon Beasts'; a meadow with fluffy bunnies?" Shogo deadpanned. He wouldn't admit it aloud, but even he was a bit intimidated. So far only Hana seemed to show some mild interest in the decor. They suddenly stopped as they heard loud booms coming from the left corridor.

"Do you think it's _him_?" Yokoshima.

"Only one way to find out," said Shogo. "Let's go!"

They immediately rushed forward and saw a large room that could've once been a laboratory. However, it was now completely wrecked. In the middle of it all was Shinichi who was sitting in a chair with a dark glare on his face.

"Well, it's a surprise to see you guys here." Shinichi said, not too happy. That was obvious from the grim expression on his visage.

"H-hey Shinichi," Yokoshima stammered after gulping. He'd never seen Shinichi this angry or intimidating since his days as BLACK 13. "We were all kinda wondering where you've been."

"Searching," was the simply reply.

"Huh?" was everyone's response.

Shinichi elaborated, "I've checked the ruins of the GIN-SHOCKER base, the ruins of the X-SHOCKER base that we destroyed, and I've even checked here in this miserable castle. Yet there is nothing. It's as if he made sure to get rid of any trail that may lead to him."

"Him?" Chiaki questioned, although he already knew who Shinichi was referring to. Only one person could make Shinichi this angry and obsessive.

"Do you really need to ask? It's obvious that I'm hunting that bastard Gebok," Shinichi said with a hint of dementia. Everyone shared a glance, concerned for his wellbeing. He look like he hadn't had any sleep and it was starting to take its toll on his mind.

"Look, Shinichi, buddy. You gotta come back with us. You need some time to relax and everyone's been worried sick," Yokoshima said as he cautiously approached their comrade. Suddenly, Yokoshima was sent flying backwards with Chiaki barely catching the pill bug cyborg before he crashed.

Shinichi was now standing with his fist out. He lowered it as he answered, angrily, "No! I won't stop until that bastard is dead for good!" He warned them, "And if you try to stop me, I will _crush_ you all." His Spark Core activated and he transformed into BLACK 13.

"Everyone, transform now!" Shogo commanded and they did right as BLACK 13 attacked.

* * *

Slasher swung his sword but BLACK 13 vanished before the blow connected. The Termite Rider screamed as thousands of slashes cut his armor, causing a storm of sparks to be seen with blood shooting out before Showa reappeared. He clasped two fists together and slammed them into Slasher's head, severely denting his helmet and knocking him out.

Carmen unleashed crescent blades of energy at him which he ducked before he warped and then reappeared behind Carmen to punch her in the back viciously. Before she could retaliate, he grabbed her arms and pulled them back as he twisted them.

"GYAAGH!" Carmen shrieked as she felt her arms were about to be literally twisted off. Fortunately for her, Arachnea kicked him away and started swinging her Spider Kama at him. BLACK 13 easily dodged her swipes and punched Arachnea in the stomach so hard that she was lifted into the air before he jumped and grabbed her by the head right before he bashed her skull to the ground, knocking her out.

Both Zero and Armadillo began blasting at BLACK 13 but he kept warping away from the blasts. He then reappeared between the two before they fired their weapons as they thought they got him, only to warp at the very last minute when the shots were fired.

"Aw..." Zero began to say

"... Crap." Armadillo finished, not believing how stupid they were to fall for that trick as both were hit by each other's blasts. Both of their suits were badly damaged from the direct hits at very close range.

Musician began to swing his Cricket Axe around with BLACK 13 using his wrists blades to block the blows. "Dammit, #13! Hold still so I can knock you out!" Musician roared.

"And why would I want to do that, baka?" retorted BLACK 13 before he kicked Musician in the gut and then followed up with a punch to the gut as the Cricket Rider was folded by the blow, blasting him straight into a wall with a loud crash.

BLACK 13 lowered his arm and said, "Michiru, Daichi, I suggest you take yourselves and the other back to ARMOR and tell Warren that I will not tolerate any agents he sends to take me back, for I will show no mercy to anyone who gets in my way. Remember that." He then flew out the door, leaving them all behind to think of their actions.

"...Dammit," Musician growled. It was like déjà vu all over again. Again BLACK 13 had systematically taken them down without any difficulty at all. It was humiliating. Then again, he had spared their lives but only to remind them that they stood no chance against him.

"Daichi…" Carmen uttered as she approached him. "Lemme pull you out then we can report this back at ARMOR.

"You're right, we _have_ to report this."

* * *

Alan ran into Hanyuu at ARMOR and she looked really upset. She no doubt had heard the news about Shinichi's new status. It broke his heart to see a young girl upset like, and over a loved one no less.

Hanyuu questioned, desperately wanting to know the truth, despite not believing it herself, "Alan, it isn't true, is it? Please, tell me it isn't true!"

Alan answered, "... It's true."

Hanyuu frowned sadly as she informed the Green Lantern, "Chiaki-san told me but I just couldn't believe it. How could he, after all this time? He's supposed to be a hero and now I hear he's gone rogue!"

Alan told her, promising her, "He's an idiot and I'll drag him back here by force if I have to."

* * *

It was nighttime and in the darkness of the gritty city crime was rampant. It was filled with the dirt and filth of humanity and where the worst among the worst resided. It was also the perfect place to get some information.

"Tell me where to find this doctor!" Shinichi demanded, holding the man up against the wall by his shirt. They were in an alley and it was dark.

"I don't know, man! He just comes to us with the goods! I don't know where to find him!" the man responded, fearfully. "Please, just lemme go! Lemme go!"

Shinichi had been hearing rumors about some doctor giving the criminals here physical enhancements. The man he was holding possessed an ability that he had not been born with, which was the power of persuasion. That allowed him to get a lot of money. All he needed to do was to ask people and they'd give him their money, or their homes. Not to mention he found it easy to pick up girls for one-night stands, something he had not been able to do before.

Unfortunately for him, Shinichi was immune to his 'charming words'.

"I see…" Shinichi gaze turned dark and so did his tone, "Then I have no other use for you then." He placed a hand against the man's head and activated his powers. "Rot right here!"

Shinichi's power to manipulate time came from his connection to the Time Matrix. With it he could reverse, accelerate, decelerate and freeze time. Right now he was causing the man he was holding to age rapidly. The man screamed as he felt the years being drained from him as Shinichi continued to apply his powers. Suddenly, Shinichi was sent flying by a green beam of light.

Alan had his fist aimed at Shinichi, the Green Lantern ring glowing. He'd used it to shove Shinichi off the now much older man. "Stop it, Shinichi."

Shinichi spat, "Why should I?"

"Shinichi, listen to me," continued Alan. "You hate Gebok for what he did to you, I get that, but you can't just go around hurting people to get to him. That's just what he wants. He wants to see your hate for him grow that you completely disregard other people." Alan looked to the man who seemed to be recovering from the accelerated aging, turning back to his proper age which was his early thirties. Alan addressed him, "You should go before my friend decides to finish the job."

The man nodded and made his escape but Shinichi would not let him go. He got up to give chase, only for Alan to block his path. "Out of my way, Alan," Shinichi ordered him.

"I can't do that," Alan responded resolutely. "I can't let you go around killing people."

"_People_?" Shinichi scoffed. "How can you call them people after what they've done? They went to Gebok for power and became monsters." He was referring to those whom Gebok had given genetic and cybernetic enhancements. Shinichi had tracked them down for information and when they couldn't give him any he'd killed them. He also killed them for their crimes. "They got what they deserved for associating with Gebok. They were on a path to hell. I just helped them get there faster."

"They had no idea what they were getting into and yet you still killed them!" Alan shot back.

"The enhancements they received would make them pawns to Gebok's plans, Alan. He would be able to control them. Think what will happen if Gebok builds an army like that. The world will fall into his hands," Shinichi stated. '_Plus I'm used to it by now_.'

"But this isn't the way of ARMOR," Alan said.

"Of course not. This is _my_ way. I'm an Avenger and a Destroyer and I will protect my loved ones by destroying my enemies," Shinichi answered.

"I can't believe I ever admired you," Alan said in disgust.

"Sorry to disappoint you then."

"You're not even a Kamen Rider anymore," Alan told him.

Shinichi retorted, "Now that is just a matter of opinion."

"I'm taking you back to ARMOR, rather you want to or not," Alan said sternly. "I'll drag you kicking and screaming if I have to."

"Then you leave me no choice then," said Shinichi as he attacked with a right hook. Alan ducked under his swing. Shinichi continued his assault as the Green Lantern dodged and blocked his blows. "If you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of my way, Alan!"

"And if you know what's good for _you_, you'll stop this and come with me," Alan responded. "I know-"

"You don't know anything!" roared Shinichi as he swung his fist at Alan.

Alan grabbed the fist and threw Shinichi back, his teeth clenched. "You think I don't know!-? You think I don't know what it means to lose someone you love!-? To want revenge!-? I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT IT'S LIKE! I know what it's like to lose someone who meant the world to you. I know what it means to want revenge. And I know where it leads. Do _you_?"

"I have to kill him!" shouted Shinichi. "Gebok must die!"

"Revenge leads to emptiness Shinichi! And that emptiness…it consumes you. It devours you whole and there's nothing left of you," said Alan, a sad look in his eyes. "Think of it this way Shinichi; you got to have a moment with Lina before she died, I never got that chance with Jade and for the rest of my life, I'll be haunted by that. By the simple belief that her last thoughts before that bastard snapped her neck and stuffed her into a fridge was 'Alan…help me…'"

"Then you should understand why I'm doing this," Shinichi told Alan. "Go back to ARMOR, Alan. Go back to playing the 'good cop'. Let me do my thing and play the 'avenger' in this little drama."

"Sorry, but I can't do that," said Alan as he prepared to bring Shinichi in. Unfortunately, that never happened as Shinichi made his escape and warped away in an instant.

"Damn it," Alan growled.

"He got away, huh, partner?" Bazel asked.

"Don't state the obvious, Bazel."

* * *

Rena was flipping through the photo album, again. She'd done this many times since Shinichi had left

It was all Gebok's fault Shinichi left. If he hadn't revived Lina then Shinichi wouldn't be like this. Lina's second death had caused Shinichi to go on a crusade to destroy X-SHOCKER out of revenge.

If Lina hadn't come back into Shinichi's life like that, then Shinichi would still be at home with her. Her anger, however, dissipated when she gazed upon the picture of the two of them together, smiling at the camera. Next to the picture was a note Shinichi had left for her with a message written on it.

_Rena, I am sorry, but I have to leave. I don't want to leave you but this is necessary. I'm not doing this because I hate you. I'm doing this because I love you. Gebok is still out there and he took the life of someone precious to me. I can't risk your life or anyone's life for that matter. He might come after you because of me so in order to protect you I have to leave. He is obsessed with me and will come to me, leaving you alone. I won't be gone for long. I promise I will come back when I'm sure Gebok is gone for good._

_Forgive me, Rena._

_Love: Shinichi Banabara._

She closed the album and held it to her chest, sobbing, "Shin-kun…come back…"

* * *

Shinichi had always hated Gebok ever since he could remember. Gebok had taken Shinichi away from his family, turned him into a puppet, used him to kill off his team, but most of all Gebok had made him kill his first love. Gebok had ruined Shinichi's life and Shinichi wanted payback. He wanted revenge on Gebok for all his wrongdoings and would not let anyone stop him.

Lina's second death had greatly affected Shinichi. At first he was depressed but then he started to cut himself off from everyone. First he cut himself off from his friends, then his family, and finally his team. He started to work alone. He had a vendetta against X-SHOCKER, but most of all he wanted revenge on Gebok and this time he was going to destroy Gebok for good and make sure he never came back. He hadn't even returned home once nor bothered to contact anyone. He just continued to use his powers to systematically destroy X-SHOCKER, one facility at a time.

As Shinichi was cruising along the road, he stopped as found his path blocked by a makeshift barricade of W14's. Looking over his shoulder, he saw several more of the mass-produced androids behind him. "Looks like the welcoming committee is here," said Shinichi as he dismounted and tossed his helmet away. "Very well, I'll oblige you." His Armorizer belt appeared around his waist and the buckle split open, revealing his Spark Core. "Henshin!"

Black jigsaw puzzle pieces materialized from his belt and then enveloped him, transforming him into the new and improved BLACK 13. His bodysuit was now grey and his armor was as black as night. The armor covered his torso and he had matching gauntlets and boots. His shoulder armor had blue trim and he had blue bands around his wrists and ankles. Like before, the helmet sported crimson insectoid eyes and a silver strip of metal running down between the eyes and a mandible-like faceplate covered the lower half of his face. On his left shoulder was his XIII mark. Also, set atop his forehead was a black visor which could slide down over his eyes and on the right side of the visor was his XIII scratched in red. On both sides of the helmet were insect wing-like attachments.

"Come at me, if you dare!" challenged BLACK 13 as his beam swords slid out of his wrists and the black, opaque visor slid down over his eyes, concealing them from view, as he charged at the small army of androids. It didn't take very long or very much effort for him to cut them down to pieces. They were, after all, cannon fodder. Despite being based on WHITE 14, these mass-produced android soldiers were nothing like the original. Then again, Gebok may not have the resources to make an army with the same capabilities as WHITE 14.

Of course, they just never quit and that was something that annoyed BLACK 13. He watched as the remaining W14's banded together and combined to form a giant, the pieces of their fallen kin coming together as well to create a gigantic W14. BLACK 13 snorted as he looked at the giant and leapt backwards to dodge its fist which came crashing down on him. He got on his bike and rode off with the gigantic W14 chasing after him. He sped up, spreading the space further between them before turning around. Dismounting, he pressed a button on his bike and it transformed as it straightened out and its front wheel swung into the main body while the back wheel folded onto the rear of the bike. BLACK 13 held his arm out straight out to his side and the transformed bike connected to it. Despite the added weight, he didn't show signs of strain nor did he loose balance. Eyeing the approaching giant android, he aimed his Showa-Racer: Bazooka Mode at the monstrosity.

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall," declared BLACK 13 as he aimed his Showa-Racer Bazooka at the gigantic W14 android before him. He then fired a concentrated burst of energy from his bazooka that blasted a huge hole right through its chest. The gigantic robot toppled backwards, dead, before exploding.

Returning the Showa-Racer back to vehicle mode, he saw several more of the W14's coming at him. They were like cockroaches, it seemed, and too stubborn to just give up and die.

"Look like you guys just never learn," said BLACK 13 with a scowl when all of a sudden, in a flash of gold, Satan the Stake of Wrath appeared with her back facing him and a determined look within her red eyes. "You…"

"Leave this to me!" said Satan with a grin as she conjured her violet blade of light. With a furious yell she attacked the W14 units as BLACK 13 watched. Easily, she overpowered them with slashes of their sword. They were powerful, for sure, but Satan was fast, teleporting to avoid their blows before reappearing to deal her own.

"Time to finish this!" Satan twirled, assuming her demonic stake form before darting towards the W14's with the speed of lightning. She stabbed them all in the heads, causing them to explode.

Satan resumed her human form, running a hand through her pale hair. She then turned to see Shinichi walking away. "Hey, wait!" she called before latching onto his arm. Shinichi roughly pulled his arm away.

"Leave me alone!" he snapped at her before continuing on his way.

"Sorry, but I don't take orders from you," she retorted. "Sides, I like this side of you. You're all angry and vengeful. By the way, I like the new look." She was referring to his new hairstyle where his hair was spiked up and exposing the XIII scar that was branded above his left eyebrow. She also likes his new wardrobe. Previously, he wore a double-breasted leather jacket with blue jeans and boots but now he was wearing a closed up double-breasted trench coat with two vertical rows of gold buttons, black jeans and brown boots. He also wore black gloves. Hanging from his neck was a black scarf.

Shinichi rolled his eyes. Only Satan could like what he'd become, a destructive avenger. "If you wanna come, get on," he said, handing her a helmet. She beamed and took the helmet before getting on the back of the bike, wrapping her arms around him happily as he mounted the vehicle too. He then drove off with his new passenger, hoping to ditch her somewhere soon.

* * *

Alan was searching for Shinichi high and low. He'd been doing so since he got away. While his exploits were being reported to ARMOR, finding him was like finding a needle in a haystack. Alan needed to wait for something huge to happen. That was when Alan heard a loud boom nearby and flew over to investigate. He had a feeling that Shinichi was involved.

* * *

The factory exploded behind Shinichi as he left it to burn. It was just another X-SHOCKER facility that was producing the components needed for the W14 foot soldiers. With it destroyed, X-SHOCKER's operations would be crippled.

Unfortunately, he had yet to find Gebok and this place held no clues. Still, he knew the locations of the other X-SHOCKER facilities. He could find them. It was all thanks to Lina and her last kiss. She had uploaded all the necessary information into him, clues to find Gebok, and all the locations of every remaining X-SHOCKER facility. If Gebok ever tried to rebuild, then Shinichi would hinder his progress.

"Freeze!" Shinichi heard and he looked up and saw a glowing, green figure hovering down. When the figure landed, the glow died down to reveal that it was Alan.

"Alan," identified Shinichi. He really didn't need this right now.

"Shinichi, I'm taking you back to ARMOR," Alan said. "_Now_."

"Why?" Shinichi questioned.

"_Why?_" Alan shot back. "You know why. You've gone rogue and you're destroying everything in your path."

"Not everything," Shinichi argued, "Only anything that is connected to Gebok."

"Go home, Shinichi. Just go home to Rena and let ARMOR handle this," Alan advised. "Please." The Green Lantern really didn't want to fight the Kamen Rider.

"I can't do that, Alan. I can't let what happened to Lina happen to Rena," Shinichi informed him.

"Then go back home and protect her!" Alan snapped.

"Don't order me around!" Shinichi roared.

The two then charged at each other, fists blazing with energy, and collided. The resulting explosion was deafening.

* * *

Shinichi managed to get away with only minor injuries. Just as Alan was about to capture him he'd warped away. He also managed to cloak his energy signature to avoid detection. At the moment, he was resting in an abandoned warehouse and licking his wounds. "Kuso…" he growled.

He'd chosen this path and was ready to finish it to the end but he was also lonely. He was fighting Gebok alone now. As painful as it was to be alone, he could still numb the pain by destroying Gebok's empire. He didn't need anybody.

Satan showed up in a flash of gold butterflies and ran over to him, "Shinichi!"

Shinichi growled as he tried to walk away, "What are you doing here? Leave me alone!"

"But you're hurt!"

Shinichi shook his head, "I'm fine! And I said to leave me alone!"

Yuji appeared behind him and whacked him on the head with a newspaper, "That's no way to talk to women, Shinichi Banabara."

Shinichi scoffed, "Che! You and I both know that she's not just some woman." That was when he got slugged in the face, making Satan flinch as she saw the growing anger in Yuji's eyes.

Yuji grabbed Shinichi by the collar and looked him square in the eye, "Say that again, tough guy! Go ahead and say it one more time so you can find out, personally, what I'm gonna do to you for disrespecting my sister! I said we were friends but I also said I will NOT hesitate to fucking kick your ass, Shinichi! Do you fucking get me?-!"

That was when Satan got in between them and pushed them away from one another, "Onii-san, that's enough! I can take care of myself, you know."

Shinichi scoffed as he wiped the blood from his mouth with his sleeve, "So what? You saying you're gonna help me?"

Yuji nodded, "That's right. You may be powerful, but there's only so much you can do on your own."

"You do realize you'll be considered a rogue like me now?" Shinichi pointed out

Yuji shrugged, "I can live with that. And do you remember my crazy brother?"

Shinichi blinked, "The one that leveled the quarry a few months ago? Yeah, why?"

A figure grabbed Shinichi's shoulders from behind and cackled, "HI! HAHAHAHAHA!"

Shinichi slowly turned and groaned, "Oh, don't tell me..."

The 'assailant' looked like Yuji but his skin was slightly pale and his hair was stark white with black streaks and he had blood-red eyes. His attire completely contrasted with his appearance as he wore a black jacket with neon green trim and matching boots and jeans. His name was Yuri Fudo and behind him were two women, both deathly pale.

One woman had long blue hair and matching eyes and wore a blue and white bodysuit that showed off her cleavage while she wore a pair of large black gauntlets. She had a smile that was pleasant. Her name was Hana-hime.

The other woman wore a monotone look on her face and had long black hair tied in a braid and deep brown eyes that seemed to stare into your soul. She wore a red bodysuit with white trim that accentuated her curves and cleavage. Slung on her shoulder was an AS-50 Sniper Rifle. Her name was Kikyo.

"You weren't followed, were you Yuri?" Yuji asked.

"Of course not," Yuri scoffed, "What do you take me for, brother?" Yuri was Yuji's twin brother and a Manakyte as well. However, unlike his heroic twin Yuri could be classified as either a certifiable psycho or an anti-hero. However, the term 'hero' would be very inaccurate when describing him. Shinichi had met him last year when Yuri suddenly appeared in the NEO-NUMBERS base and pretty much kicked the asses of the NEO-NUMBERS there, with an exception of Michiru and Hana who were at their part time job at Angel Mort. Yuri and the girls did have a violent confrontation that was fortunately neutralized with Yuji and Shinichi's interference.

"So, where's Shego?" Yuji asked.

"Resting at home after our last job," Yuri replied. He then grinned maniacally at Shinichi, "So, happy to see me after our last party, boy?"

Shinichi frowned, remembering the last time he met Yuji's twin brother and he really didn't feel comfortable working with Yuri. The guy was just too unpredictable to work with and Shinichi doubted that he could trust him. He trusted Yuji, for sure, and hopefully Yuji could keep his psychotic brother on a short leash.

"Can you explain to me why we're bringing _him_?" Shinichi asked Yuji, jabbing a thumb at Yuri.

Yuji replied, "Yuri may be crazy, but if anyone knows how to kill people it's him. Plus, Hana-hime here can provide combat support and Kikyo can provide cover fire if we ever get in a big fire fight."

The bluenette, Hana-hime, smiled and bowed, "We'll do our best to support you in your quest, Banabara-kun."

Kikyo sighed, "Let's hurry up and get moving. The sooner we take care of this Gebok person the sooner I can take a soak in the bath."

"And I'll be right there to help you clean up," Yuri grinned.

Shinichi shook his head and sighed dejectedly. This day just seemed to get better and better. However, at least he wouldn't be alone. He then offered, "Yuji Fudo, are you willing to ride with the devil?" He was referring to himself as 'the devil' in question.

"No problem," said Yuji. "I've been riding with him since my first girlfriend died."

"So, what's the plan then?" asked Kikyo.

"Destroy all of X-SHOCKER's facilities," answered Shinichi. "If I can't find Gebok, the next best thing I can do is to dismantle everything he's built. Then, he'll have no choice but to come to me."

"So, how are you going to find them all?" Yuji asked. "How _have_ you been finding them all?"

"That's my secret," Shinichi told him, not ready to divulge any secret information.

* * *

Million was watching the monitors in his private chamber when he heard the door slide open and metal footsteps approaching. "What is it, Cyclops Knight?"

"Million-sama, are you not worried?" spoke Cyclops Knight. He was clad from head to toe in medieval armor that was colored in black with a belt around his waist that sported X-SHOCKER's symbol. A red cape hung from his back. In place of a head he had a huge eye that was housed inside his helmet with his visor atop the eye and a fin on top of the helmet. The edge of the fin was covered in crimson fur.

"There's no need to be concerned, Cyclops Knight," said Million calmly.

"But, Million-sama, he's destroying all that you've built," Cyclops Knight began to argue.

Million shrugged, "Oh, I can always make more. I have all the time in the world and all the resources to make new facilities and minions. I am not worried." Million gave Cyclops Knight a look, "But you appeared to be worried."

"Forgive me, Million-sama, I only assume that you would be concerned," said Cyclops Knight.

"All that is in the past, and BLACK 13 Is trying to call me out," said Million. "I will come to him but on my own terms. In the mean time, how goes my special project?"

"Do you mean Project Armageddon?" Cyclops Knight inquired.

"But of course. What other project do you think I'm working on?" Million retorted. "Project Armageddon will be the culmination of my entire life's work and the result of all my research and once it is completed the entire world will be mine, and all other worlds will be mine as well." Million let out a laugh, praising his genius. "But, we still need the power source for it."

"I can have it retrieved for you-"

"No rush, no rush," Million cut him off in mid-sentence, waving off whatever suggestion his loyal lieutenant had for him. "Of course, if you wish to play with BLACK 13 then I will allow it."

"Thank you, Million-sama!" Cyclops Knight bowed and left the chamber.

Million grinned widened as he imagined how a fight between his lieutenant and BLACK 13 would go. Just thinking about it made his brain tingle with excitement.

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: What is Project Armageddon? Well, with a name like that it can't be good, right? Now Yuji has decided to help Shinichi. Now they've both gone rogue. Things are becoming more and more interesting and also frustrating for a certain Green Lantern who now has to go after two of his friends. As if things weren't hard enough already.**


	45. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 5

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 5: Memory is the Key**

The glacial zone of the Swiss Alps was an area of permanent snow and ice. When the steepness of the slope was not too high it results in an accumulation and compaction of snow, which transformed into ice. The glacier formed then flowed down the valley and could reach as far down as 1,500 meters. Where the slopes were too steep, the snow accumulated to form overhanging seracs, which periodically fell off due to the downwards movement of the glacier and caused ice avalanches. The Bernese Alps, Pennine Alps and Mont Blanc Massif contained most of the glaciated areas in the Alps. There were no known settlements to be found in these regions.

It was the perfect place for X-SHOCKER to hide any of its bases since it was right in the middle of nowhere, hidden from public view.

A pair of snowmobiles was racing across the snow. The first snowmobile was black and white with XIII on the front. Its rider was dressed in a black snowsuit with a red scarf that flapped behind him. He also wore a helmet that hid his features with a black visor.

The second snowmobile was, in truth, the D-Wheel known as White Blaze, which had been outfitted and converted for snow travel. The rider was dressed in a white show suit with black fur cuffs, collar, and hood. He wore a white helmet with red goggles covering his eyes.

The riders were Shinichi and Yuji.

"What are we supposed to be looking out here?" Yuji called out to Shinichi.

Shinichi responded, "There's supposed to be an X-SHOCKER base several miles ahead. We should reach it in a few minutes!" They were using snowmobiles because something as big as the MysticLiner would draw too much attention, especially the attention of any security teams.

"And the plan?"

"We go in and then get out," Shinichi explained.

"And break stuff," Yuji finished.

Shinichi smirked but then he heard gunfire and ducked, "Fuck! They're onto us!" He looked at his rearview mirror and saw a couple W14's on snowmobiles chasing after them with guns mounted on the front of their vehicles. "Kuso…"

"You go on ahead!" Yuji called as he pulled back, "I got these fuckers!"

"Don't get killed then!" Shinichi cautioned before picking up speed.

Yuji drew out the Red Queen, gripping its clutch and activating its Exceed fuel as heat was being concentrated into the blade. He ended up in-between the two and swiped at the W14 on his left, slicing it to pieces as it started to fall down the snowy slope. He swiped at the one on his right but it dodged and tried to knock him off his vehicle but Yuji held firm to White Blaze's handle bars as they jumped, flipping over the W14 as he swung his weapon down, slicing the android's head right down the middle. He landed on the snow and went on ahead to catch up with Shinichi as the W14's both exploded.

"Alright, I have a visual," said Shinichi as his eyes focused on their target. Slowing down their vehicles, they hid behind a huge snowdrift. Shinichi poked his head out and saw their target.

It was a steel igloo-like structure. There were two W14's guarding the entrance and there was no telling how many were on the inside, if any. Shinichi's eyes narrowed hatefully at the X-SHOCKER emblem on the steel igloo. He took out his modified shotgun and took careful aim at the android guards. "Two perfect headshots," he stated softly before pulling the trigger. With a loud bang the gun released its ammo and hit one of the guards right between the eyes and the head burst with mechanical parts flying everywhere. The second guard became alarmed but couldn't do much as its head was also blown away.

Shinichi and Yuji moved towards the building, the former's eyes darting about for any hidden enemies. "OK, I guess the coast is clear," said Yuji as he didn't spot anything.

Suddenly, the snow under their feet exploded. A large red hand grabbed onto Shinichi, much to his surprise as a blue hand grabbed onto Yuji. Rising from the snow was a gigantic ten-foot tall robot that was red on the right side and blue on the left side which had a hulking stature and a hump on its back that forced its body to hunch forward. Its legs were as thick as tree trunks but without any feet. It had no head but had a single cycloptic eye set within its chest.

The Exterminator Robots eyes landed on Yuji as it spoke in a mechanical voice, "**Subject****: Yuji Fudo aka Kamen Rider Liger**," before moving its attention to Shinichi, "**Subject: Shinichi Banabara aka BLACK 13.**" It concluded, "**Course of Action: Extermination.**" It began to squeeze the two, crushing them. Shinichi gritted his teeth as did Yuji while trying to struggle free from their captor's grip. Then, it started to electrocute them, causing them to cry out.

"This…isn't…HOW IT ENDS!" Shinichi's eyes glowed bright red as a green aura was released by his body.

"There is no way I'm going to die like this!" Yuji growled as his eyes turned dragon-like. "NO…WAY!" Yuji roared as his body ignited with intense flames that were as hot as a volcano. The hand holding Yuji, unable to withstand the heat, began to melt. At the same time the hand holding Shinichi was beginning to rust.

"**WARNING! WARNING!**" the Exterminator Robot exclaimed, alarmed by the sudden reaction. The hand holding Shinichi crumbled as he released himself from the robot's grip and Yuji dropped from the hand that had been reduced to slag. He quickly lowered his body temperature as his skin returned to normal. It locked its eye onto Shinichi and Yuji as it spoke, "**Initiating Missile Fire Command.**" Cylindrical tubes popped out of the Exterminator Robot's body and it unleashed a barrage of missiles that flew straight at the two. Yuji and Shinichi didn't move as they were engulfed in an explosion. The Exterminator Robot didn't end its assault with that, however. It had to make sure both targets were silenced.

"**Exterminate!**" The hump on the robot's back opened and it bent forward when a pair of cannons slid out. The cannons then fired concentrated bursts of air that caused the snow to explode. Its eye rolled around frantically in search of its targets when all of a sudden it was slashed across its eye, causing it to stumble as the optical unit was damaged. Then, it was sent rolling onto its back by a powerful blow.

It met its end when the blade of a sword ran it right through the eye and straight into its vital circuits. The Exterminator Robot flailed but then became silent as it moved no more.

"Piece of junk," spat Shinichi as he withdrew his sword before leaping off the now inactive robot.

* * *

After taking out the two guards posted at the entrance, as well as the massive mecha that had tried to exterminate them, Shinichi and Yuji entered the building. Yuji still didn't know what Shinichi wanted to do here. Usually, he would just destroy one of Gebok's facilities and be done with it.

"Security is really lax here," said Yuji. "I was expecting maybe booby traps waiting for us once we got inside." Shinichi didn't respond to Yuji's comment. Yuji looked around as they walked down the narrow corridor, "So, what is this place?"

Shinichi kept his eyes forward, "This is where Gebok keeps his collection of AIs."

"AIs?"

"Artificial Intelligence programs," Shinichi elaborated.

"Dude, I know what AIs are," Yuji dead-panned, "I'm just wondering what we're doing here."

Shinichi rolled his eyes, "Do you need to ask after all this time?"

"We're here to destroy them," he concluded.

Shinichi shook his head, "Not all of them, no. Just most of them."

"I've seen AI before, but this is huge. How did Gebok get the time to make them? And how did you know they were here?"

"Memory is the Key."

Yuji blinked, "Huh?"

"Memory is the Key," Shinichi repeated. "Remember when Lina gave me that kiss right before she took off with that EMP bomb? That was no normal kiss." He put a finger to his temple. "She was transferring data into me. It was that data that led me to all those X-SHOCKER facilities."

"So, she was leaving you a message," Yuji concluded as he frowned at the memory of her sacrifice. "No wonder you knew where to find them all."

Shinichi nodded, "And a lot more. Her memories are now my memories so she lives on inside of me. It's through those memories that I know about this place and how these AI came to be."

"So you know how they were made."

Shinichi nodded with a frown, "Yes, and the source. Me."

Yuji's eyes widened, "You!-?"

Shinichi explained, "These AIs were made based on me. Creating AI isn't that simple. It's a difficult and time-consuming process. AIs are programs that work like a human mind but the hard part is to create it from scratch which can take months or years due to how complex the human mind is. Gebok isn't the type to waste time on something so simple so he decided to use a shortcut and that was to use an actual human mind as a template."

Yuji looked to him and figured it out, "Yours."

Shinichi nodded, "Yes, but Gebok didn't want copies of the same mind. He wanted variety. However, an AI can't be copied. That was a problem considering what he wanted."

"If he can't copy an AI and these were made from your mind, how did he make them then?" Yuji was almost afraid of the answer.

"Through torture," Shinichi replied as he gestured to all the safes, "Each AI is a piece of me and not one is a complete personality. They're just different aspects of my personality made into data. Ever since I was six years old, once a week, for ten years, Gebok would put me through a series of tests. Well, 'tests' was the official term but they were actual torture sessions designed to strip me of my humanity and break my mind. He was also force-engineering a split personality disorder through these sessions. As a result, my mind would start to break apart into fragments in order to protect itself. Those fragments were then harvested so that Gebok could turn them into data and then synthesize the AIs. Gebok couldn't get enough though so he put me with Lina for an experiment to get me to feel emotions again. I fell in love but I couldn't understand it. Gebok wanted that so after Lina died he wanted me back in the lab so that he could harvest some more emotional fragments for his next batch of AI but then…"

"You snapped and escaped," Yuji finished.

Shinichi concluded, "And tore apart anyone who got in my way."

"But why you? Why did he use you? Why did he risk damaging you?" Yuji demanded as Gebok had always been obsessed with Shinichi and wanted his 'ultimate weapon' back. Torturing him and risking his life at such a stage was counterproductive.

Shinichi shrugged, "Guess I was special, and I wasn't the first. He did the same thing to some other kids. Unlike me, they didn't survive." They finally came to the end of the corridor. "Ah, here it is."

At the end of the corridor was a single door that filled up the entire section it was on, covering all the way from the floor way towards the ceiling. The door looked like the ones on bank vaults.

"This is the vault," Shinichi said.

"Alright," said Yuji as he cracked his knuckles. "Let's get this door opened."

"Allow me," said Shinichi as he put his hand on the door and closed his eyes. His technopathy allowed him to communicate with machines but only those with a processor, like computers. The entire building was computerized which meant that the vault could be opened automatically with the right command. "Open Sesame," he ordered and the door obeyed as it started to unlock. "It's unlocked," Shinichi informed Yuji before they pulled the heavy door open.

What Yuji saw was a huge room with a blue-tiled floor and safes lining the walls on the sides and way in the back. The safes actually made up the walls as they were stacked together both horizontally and vertically, reaching from the floor to the ceiling much like the door had. There was nothing but safes in the room. There was also a light on each safe and they were each labeled with numbers and letters.

"And now we come to the main attraction," Shinichi remarked, "The AI Storage Vault."

"Those are a lot of safes," Yuji admired, whistling. "Are all of them filled?"

"Only the ones with blue lights, the ones with red lights are empty and unused," Shinichi informed him as he walked inside. He was looking for a specific safe as his eyes scanned the room. He could sense it as it was calling out to him. Actually, they were all calling out to him. Despite the AIs being locked up in their respective safes, Shinichi's close proximity to them allowed him to hear their pleas.

"_Take us back…take us back…take us back…_" the AIs' voices whispered in his mind. "_We need you…you need us…take us back…_" Only Shinichi could hear those ghostly pleas but he ignored them in favor of one.

He found the one he was looking for and put his hand on it, discovering the combination to unlock it before the light turned from blue to red and the safe hissed as it depressurized. Shinichi opened the door and reached inside the safe as Yuji peered over his shoulder. Shinichi then removed a cylindrical object from within the safe.

Yuji looked ahead, "What is that?"

Shinichi explained, holding up the cylindrical object, "This is an AI storage unit. AIs take up a lot of space so discs can't be used to contain them and you can't store them inside a computer because they might go rampant."

"If they go rampant, why does he need them?"

Shinichi continued, "Have you ever wondered about the Android Beasts he has and how he programmed them to act like people?"

Yuji realized what he was getting at, "They were installed with these AIs."

Shinichi nodded, "Yes. That was the reason they were drawn to me."

"So you've been destroying parts of yourself each time you destroyed them."

"After Gebok reprogrammed them, none of them were part of me anymore," Shinichi corrected. "Just corrupted fragments."

Yuji looked at the storage unit in Shinichi's hand, "OK, so why is this AI so important then?"

Shinichi looked at it, "When I woke up in Hinamizawa 3 years ago I had amnesia but I still had repressed memories which come out at random times. However, there are some memories I can never get back and these are those memories. In here are my memories before GIN-SHOCKER took me. These are the memories Gebok stole from me."

Yuji nodded, "No wonder you wanted to come here."

"Yes, and now I have them back."

"So, now what?" asked Yuji.

"You have the EMP bomb, right?"

Yuji revealed the bomb, "Yeah."

"Set the timer. By the time it goes off we'll be long gone with this. It'll be karmic justice for that bastard." Shinichi smirked. "I can only imagine the look on his face when he finds out his precious AI programs are all gone."

Yuji put the EMP bomb on the floor and set it for 5 minutes, just enough time for them to make their escape. All of a sudden, they heard the vault's door slam shut. "What!-?" Yuji cried out before he was knocked off his feet by an invisible force.

"Yuji!" Shinichi cried out only to be knocked down as well. Fortunately, he hadn't dropped the storage unit he had gripped in his hand.

"Sorry, but you won't be going anywhere with that," said the Beast Android that revealed itself. It resembled a chameleon with a camouflage coloring and big eyes that rolled about. It had a curled tail, tipped with spikes, and its tongue hung out of its mouth even while closed. "Camouflage Chameleon won't let you have that." It shot its tongue out and it wrapped around the storage unit in Shinichi's hand. Shinichi tightened his grip as he pulled back, refusing to relinquish his find. He saw the EMP bomb was counting down and if he wanted to save the AI that contained his memories, he and Yuji had to get out now.

Suddenly, Camouflage Chameleon howled as Yuji's Red Queen came down and sliced the tongue in half. Yuji grunted, "Knew it was too easy to get in here." He said to Shinichi, "Hey Shin! Get out of here with that thing! I'll take this lizard down!"

Shinichi nodded and ran towards the door. He put his hand on it and his technopathic abilities allowed him to command the door to open once more. Meanwhile, Yuji was engaging Camouflage Chameleon as they circled around each other.

"He won't get far," Camouflage Chameleon boasted. "There's an entire army waiting for him at the door. They'll beat him."

"Don't underestimate Shin," Yuji warned. "He didn't get this far by being weak." He then revved the engine of the Red Queen before charging, which was dodged when Camouflage Chameleon jumped and shot his tongue out and latched hang from the ceiling. His tail uncurled and he swung it, firing spikes at Yuji as he deflected them with the Red Queen.

"Can't catch me," the Android Beast taunted.

Yuji smirked, "Wanna bet?" He tossed Red Queen in the air and slammed his fist into the ground, igniting the floor, walls and ceiling in flames as Camouflage Chameleon's tongue was burned, making him fall on his ass as he too was burned, causing to yelp and dance around while he tried to put out the flames. "Now then, where was I?"

"Aw, fuck…" the Android Beast sweat-dropped.

He received a strong punch in the face, breaking denting his snout as Yuji caught Red Queen and slashed at his body before stabbing the blade into the Chameleon Android Beast, getting a wailing response of pain.

Yuji then chanted as he balled his right fist, "This hand of mine is burning red! Its loud roar tells me to grasp victory! **Erupting! Burning! DRAGON!-!-!-!**" He slammed his fist into the Chameleon android as his body was super-heated to volcanic temperatures before lighting up like a birthday candle before the room exploded.

* * *

"Cannon fodder, always so weak," said Shinichi as he kicked aside a W14's head. There had been an army waiting for him but they stood no chance. He heard footsteps and spun around, his shotgun aimed at Yuji's face.

"Gun down, please," said Yuji. Shinichi lowered his weapon. The Manakyte looked around, "Man, you really beat them all up." The W14's were in pieces.

"Let's go," said Shinichi. As the two stepped away from the dome, Shinichi's hearing picked up something. He looked up and his eyes widened. "MOVE!" he shouted as he grabbed Yuji and dragged him with him as they ran. Yuji looked up and his eyes widened when he saw a missile heading straight for the AI Storage Facility.

"GET DOWN!" Shinichi ordered as they both dropped to the snow-covered ground. There was a massive explosion as the missile hit its target. Shrapnel went flying as Shinichi and Yuji kept their heads down. Shinichi looked up and saw that there was now a smoking crater where the AI Storage Facility had once stood but now it was just scrap due to the missile. "Gebok…" Shinichi growled.

"Woah, that was close," said Yuji. Shinichi rose to his feet and dusted his clothes. "Gebok really isn't kidding around."

"That means he really wants to kill me," Shinichi replied, smirking. He shouted at the sky, "GEBOK, IF YOU HEAR ME, LISTEN TO THIS! YOU WANT ME! COME AND GET ME! I'M WAITING FOR YOU, YOU PIECE OF SHIT! YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

Yuji gave his friend a worried look before spotting something in the air. "Hey, there's the MysticLiner," Yuji pointed.

* * *

Alan flipped the newspaper he was reading to the fourth page and looked at the picture. It was taking via a helicopter flying over the Swiss Alps. There was a smoking crater surrounded by chunks of melted steel. Witnesses from a nearby village claimed to have heard and seen an explosion. They had also witnessed a train flying from the scene. However, most would dismiss it as a hallucination caused by the shock of the explosion.

"They were definitely here." Alan frowned as he already knew that both Shinichi and Yuji were already gone from the scene and in the MysticLiner. And without a way to track them since they had disposed of any tracking devices they could already be anywhere in the world by now.

"But I still won't give up," Alan muttered. He was going to stop Shinichi before he became consumed with revenge. He knew Shinichi was okay now thanks to Yuji, but it was only a matter of time before he went nuts again as long as Gebok was alive.

* * *

In the MysticLiner, Shinichi was studying the AI storage unit when Yuri came over. Yuri pointed at the AI storage unit and said, "So, this thing is supposed to be your memories?" They were all seated around the dining car.

Shinichi nodded, "The ones I've lost and repressed, yeah."

Yuri inquired, "So, what happens after you get them back in your head then? Because Yuji told me that a lot of bad stuff happened to you so you're a bit messed up. Now you want all that messed up stuff in your _head_?" He snorted, "And people call me crazy."

"We all have good and bad memories. Just ignoring the bad memories won't make me happy. I have to embrace the good with the bad," Shinichi said sagely.

Yuri chuckled, "Well, when you really do go crazy, I'll have Kikyo call me to see the show. Hell, the only reason I follow your lead is because I get to blow stuff up."

"You do that all the time anyway," Hana-hime reminded.

Yuri nodded, "Yeah, but now I have a good reason to do it!"

Kikyo was polishing her rifle and emotionlessly asked, "When have you ever needed a reason?"

"She's got you there," agreed Yuji. He looked back to Shinichi. "So, why did Gebok use personality fragments?" Yuji asked. "You never really explained that. If the AIs made were based on your mind he could've just made more copies straight from your head without the need to torture you."

Shinichi answered, "If the AIs were fully based on me, they would've gained sentience, developed free will and independence which eventually leads to them rebelling against Gebok."

"That sounds like you," Yuri interjected.

"So, it was safer for him to just take personality fragments from my mind and convert them into data to make those AIs. None of them was a definite personality, just pure, raw compartmentalized emotion, and so there was no chance of them ever gaining true awareness or independence." Shinichi finished, "They would just follow whatever programming they were given and nothing more. Besides, Gebok gets off at hurting people. It's his fetish." He continued to stare at the AI storage unit.

"So, these memories mean a lot to you, huh?" Yuri asked.

"You know my mom?" Shinichi replied with his own question.

"Yeah, she's the one who writes those erotic novels," Yuri answered, knowing who Shinichi was referring to.

"When I first met her she was just a stranger to me. I know she's my mother and I accept her for all her quirks but I just can't remember anything about her before Gebok took me. Sure, we got reacquainted and got to know each other again after eleven years of separation but there's always been this gap in my memories that I wanted to be filled so much with all the happy memories I had of my mother before Gebok turned me into a cyborg. Gebok stole my childhood from me. In a way, this is how I'll regain them," Shinichi answered.

* * *

There was a delivery for Warren. It was in a box and put on his desk. When Warren opened the box, there was a note and also a cylindrical device inside. He read the note and smiled. "Well, isn't this interesting."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so we learn a bit more about how Gebok's mind works. He really is a sadistic bastard, isn't he? Well, let's just hope he gets what he deserves, huh? Karma is so going to bite him in the ass.**


	46. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 6

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 6: The Hunter**

A jeep was headed towards a farm, one of many within the area. Driving the van was Yokoshima with Shogo who was riding shotgun and Daichi who was riding in the back. He was lying in the back seat with his eyes closed, napping.

Yokoshima then spoke up, "You know those guys that call ARMOR, right? Why don't they deal with this stuff themselves?"

Shogo turned to his comrade, "It's because the guys who report back to ARMOR about this stuff are recon agents. They're placed all over and their only job is to observe and report. They aren't trained to deal with this stuff, unlike us. Well…most of us."

Daichi yawned, "According to the report, the residents here have been hearing strange noises and sighted a strange figure lurking about scaring people. The original owner of the farm died like half a year ago because of a heart attack. That's when the weird shit started happening. They think his spirit haunts this farm."

Yokoshima coked an eyebrow and looked back to Daichi, "Ghosts? And they sent us?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean we are allowed to pass up on this mission." He grinned, "Plus, just think of the overtime pay and bonus we'll be getting."

Yokoshima smiled, "I'm gonna use my next bonus to buy something nice for Asmo-chan. It's our anniversary."

Daichi rolled his eyes, "What anniversary? You guys have tons of them."

Yokoshima chuckled, "We're just your typical lovey-dovey couple and Asmo-chan really did love that pearl necklace I got her."

Shogo looked ahead and spotted their destination, "OK, we're here. Most of the sightings took place in this barn."

The three ARMOR agents got out of the jeep and opened the barn doors. There were stacks of hay and also hay covering the floor. Yokoshima shivered.

Yokoshima looked around and shrunk from the eerie silence, "OK, I am feeling a little bit creeped out."

Daichi looked up, "Hey, do you see that huge hole in the roof?"

Shogo grew concerned and cautioned, "Keep your eyes open, men. Whatever we're supposed to find might just be in-What was that!-?"

"It's just a cat," Daichi assured, "Don't worry."

"For a second there I thought..."

Yokoshima suddenly spun around, "Something just ran by the door!"

Shogo ran outside, "Come on!"

The three ran out the door. They then looked towards the cornfield. Something was moving among the corn stalks. They chased the thing all the way into the corn stalks.

"Split up!" Shogo ordered as he cocked his shotgun. "We'll cut em off!"

Yokoshima nodded, "OK!"

The three of them split up to look for their target and then Daichi and Shogo met up, finding nothing.

"Found anything?" Daichi asked.

Shogo shook his head, "No, did you?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I did."

Shogo sweat-dropped, "Oh, right. Wait, where's Yokoshima?"

They heard a loud scream.

Shogo and Daichi looked to each other, "YOKOSHIMA!"

They rushed towards the scream and spot Yokoshima talking to something. Shogo saw it first and instantly took out his shotgun. It was blue, stood on two legs, crouched down, with double-jointed legs, two toes on each foot, three fingers on each hand, and it had a long head with no visible eyes and its jaws opened in four segments.

Shogo panicked, shotgun aimed, "What the fuck is that!-?"

Yokoshima got between his friends and the creature, "Wait! Guys! Hold on! He's not dangerous!"

Daichi blinked, "He? How can you tell it's a he?"

"Blarg!" the creature roared.

"Is that an alien?" Shogo asked.

Daichi rolled his eyes, "Duh!"

The alien looked between the three agent, "Honk, honk! Blarg!"

Shogo scratched his head, "What is it saying?"

Daichi looked at him and answered, "How should I know? Do I look like I speak alien?" He turned to the alien, "OK, you!"

The alien tilted its head, "Honk?"

"Let start with something easy: what is your name?"

"Honk honk."

"Your _name_."

"Honk honk."

Daichi corrected, "Not 'honk honk'. What. Is. Your. Name?"

"Honk honk!"

Daichi pointed to Shogo, "He is Shogo. Sho-go. I am Daichi. You are…?"

"Honk honk!"

Daichi slapped his forehead, "OK, this is getting us nowhere. We need Alan for this. His ring can fucking translate for us."

Shogo looked to Daichi, "Didn't it ever occur to you that his name might be 'Honk-Honk'?"

The alien looked to him, "Blarg?"

Daichi cocked an eyebrow, "What kind of name is 'Honk-Honk'?"

The alien looked offended, "Blarg!"

Daichi blinked, "Wait, is your name 'Honk-Honk'?"

The alien replied, "Blarg."

Daichi then concluded, "I think 'blarg' means yes. Does 'blarg' mean yes?"

"Blarg."

Daichi was elated, "Holy shit! Blarg means yes! I speak alien! This is so badass!"

Shogo interjected, "Unless 'blarg' means no, then he's saying 'no'."

Daichi scoffed, "What? No way! I'm right and you're wrong!"

"Maybe we should call Alan," Yokoshima suggested, "He's our resident expert on ET's. If we don't, we'll be blarging and honking with the alien until who knows when."

Daichi looked at the alien, who looked back at him, then nodded, "Right…let's call Alan." The alien started to run off. "Hey, where are you going?"

Yokoshima spoke, "I think Crunchbite wants us to follow him."

"Crunchbite?"

Yokoshima nodded, "Yeah, it sounds cooler than 'Honk-Honk'."

Shogo nodded, "He's got a point, Daichi."

Daichi shrugged, "OK, let's follow Crunchbite!"

The three agents followed the alien into the barn and saw it tossing away stacks of hay. It then revealed what looked like a vehicle of alien design.

"That must be its ship," Shogo concluded.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Daichi remarked.

Crunchbite then spoke, "Honk! Honk, blarg blarg!"

Daichi furrowed his brows, "I'm seeing a pattern here. I think 'honks' come after 'blargs' or vice-versa".

Shogo sighed, "Would be easier with Alan around."

Yokoshima then realized, "Say, that farmer died because of a heart attack, right? Maybe he saw Crunchbite here and got scared to death."

Crunchbite slumped and sighed sadly, "Honk…"

Yokoshima frowned, "He seems sorry about it too."

Shogo groaned, "When is Alan gonna be here?

Alan landed and was in uniform, "OK, I'm here. What's up?"

Daichi looked back, "Speak of the green devil. Hey, Alan. You weren't busy, were you?"

He shook his head, "Not really. So, an alien, huh?"

Yokoshima interjected, "We need a translator."

Alan nodded, "OK, just give me a minute here."

Alan and Crunchbite start conversing. Alan was speaking in English while the alien was speaking in 'Honks' and 'Blargs' but they seemed to be communicating.

Alan walked back to the agents, "OK, Fred here…"

Daichi cocked an eyebrow, "Fred? Is that his name?"

Alan explained, "His name is hard to pronounce, so I'm calling him Fred."

"We kinda settled on 'Crunchbite'," Yokoshima added.

"Crunchbite?"

"It sounds cooler than 'Fred'."

Daichi interrupted, "Look, I don't care if the alien is called 'Fred', 'Crunchbite', or whatever. Alan, what can you tell us?"

Alan shrugged, "Well…Fred here is an alien refugee and crash landed in this barn half a year ago and has been trying to get his ship working since. Of course, he accidentally scared the owner. People came over and he had to scare them away so he could work on his ship."

"And that was half a year ago?"

"He hasn't been able to find the parts he needs to fix his ship so he's kinda stuck here."

Yokoshima looked back and paled, "Guys, something's going on. I see people coming over, with torches and pitchforks. They don't look happy."

Daichi was afraid to ask, "What do they want?"

The angry mob chanted, "KILL THE MONSTER! KILL THE MONSTER!"

Shogo dead-panned, "I think that pretty much sums it up."

Alan looked to the boys, "You guys get the alien and his ship out of here. I'll go deal with the angry mob."

Alan flew off to confront the Angry Mob.

Yokoshima stared as he flew away, uttering, "Coolest. Ring. Ever."

Daichi nodded, "Yeah, we know. Now come on. We gotta get our ET and his ship back to ARMOR. Maybe someone in the Science Dept. can look at it."

Shogo nodded, "OK, let's do it. "

Yokoshima pressed a button on his watch, "Activating evacuation protocol!"

That was when the silvery veil swept over them and picked them up as they vanished from sight.

* * *

The ship was taken to ARMOR's science department for repairs. They would have the parts needed for repair. Alan also arrived, revealing that he'd resolved the whole situation with the angry mob. Simply put, he lied about killing the 'monster'.

Meanwhile, Alan was telling the others what else he'd learnt from the alien, "Oh, I almost forgot. Crunchbite...Fred...whatever, told me that it's almost mating season for his people and he's hoping to get back home pretty soon."

Yokoshima said sympathetically, "Wow. Poor guy. No wonder he's blue. Is anything going to happen?"

Alan answered, "Well, he was kind of secretive about that. Anyway, I sent him to bunk with Battler since he has the extra space until we can send him on his way."

They then heard Battler screaming.

Daichi asked, "You did tell him about it first, right?"

Alan shrugged, "Must've slipped my mind."

* * *

Days later, Battler was groaning in pain as he lay on the infirmary bed. He didn't look so good. He even threw up periodically and really looked like he was about to die. His friends weren't too far away as Dr. Hasuma was checking on him.

"Man, he's really sick," said Daichi. "What do you guys think happened?"

"I don't know," said Yokoshima. "But he sure is puking a lot."

"Yeah, and he's moody as hell. When I asked him how he was feeling he practically bit my head off," added Daichi.

"Maybe it was that alien," suggested Shogo. "It could've infected Battler with something for all we know, like some kind of alien virus or bacteria."

"Oh, that's just great," Daichi grumbled. "If that alien made Battler sick, maybe it's made us sick too. Next thing we know Yokoshima here is running a fever, throwing up everywhere. Then he's going to be bleeding out of his eyes because his internal organs are liquefying and then I'll end up having to hold his hand as he screams himself to death. Thats not gonna be any fun."

Yokoshima went pale after Daichi's rather graphic description and hastily said, "I'm gonna go take a vitamin."

"Oh, don't bother. It's too late for you anyway. We should start worrying about me," said Daichi.

"Really selfless, Daichi," Alan muttered sarcastically as Dr. Hasuma approached them.

Shogo asked, "So Dr. Hasuma, can you figure out what's wrong with him?"

Dr. Hasuma nervously replied, unsure of how to say what he wanted to say, "Well...uh...he's fine...all things considered."

Daichi uncaringly said, "OK, great. Well, I'm gonna go get lunch." He started to head for the cafeteria.

Alan stopped Daichi, "Wait," and turned to address Dr. Hasuma, "Uncle Ryuki, what do you mean 'all things considered'?

Dr. Hasuma answered, scratching the back of the neck, "Well...somehow...he...well, there's only one way to say it. He's..."

"Dying?" Yokoshima interrupted.

"No, he's not dying," Dr. Hasuma denied. "He just has..."

"No chance to live," Yokoshima interupted again.

"Yokoshima, one more interruption out of you and I'm sticking my fork up your ass," Daichi warned. "So, Doc. What's wrong with Battler?"

"Oh, he's pregnant," Dr. Hasuma answered.

Daichi, Yokoshima, Shogo and Alan let out, "WHAT?-!"

"I believe I said it right the first time. He's pregnant."

"No way," Daichi uttered in disbelief.

"No, it's true. I found two heartbeats," Dr. Hasuma insisted.

Yokoshima suddenly burst out laughing, "AH HA HA HA HA HA HA!"

Bazel exclaimed, "Oh man! We can milk this for years! Ah ha ha ha ha ha!"

"How is that possible?" asked Daichi.

"Apparently, the alien can infect a host with a parasitic embryo," answered Dr. Hasuma. "That's what I got after I studied the alien."

"Where's the alien now?" Daichi asked.

"Oh, he's dead," Dr. Hasuma said in an oddly dismissive tone, like the matter was unimportant. He didn't even go further into detail or explain how and why the alien died. That was totally unlike him. Then again, the alien wasn't a patient of his. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. "Oh and here's a new assignment for you."

Daichi took the sheet of paper and asked after reading it, "We're going to the Amazon Rainforest?"

"The Director wants you to investigate something there. There are also coordinates," said Dr. Hasuma.

"Do I go?" Alan asked.

"No, you're staying. I'm going to need an extra pair of hands for what's about to come," Dr. Hasuma told him.

Alan grimaced as he realized where his uncle was going with this.

* * *

Yuji and Shinichi found what appeared to be an abandoned building right in the middle of the forest. It looked like it hadn't been used in years and surrounding it was an electrified, barbed wire fence. There were no symbols on the building that identified it as one of Gebok's labs but Shinichi was sure of it. "So, what's this then?" Several steel crates were also on the property and a forklift as well.

"This is where Gebok keeps his 'rejects'," Shinichi told him.

"What do you mean by 'rejects'?" Yuji asked.

"Failures, junk, trash," Shinichi listed. "Basically the projects Gebok grew tired of were sent here."

Sprawled all over the forest floor were dead bodies with various mechanical limbs and dressed like prison inmates. They looked similar to the cyborg that Shinichi had fought a long time ago when he was first made into a cyborg soldier, which was about 13 years ago.

"What do you think happened here?" asked Yuji as Shinichi inspected the bodies.

"Keep your guard up," Shinichi cautioned. "These bodies are still fresh which means what did this can't have gotten very far." His eyes scanned the terrain. "It could still be…" He paused when he saw the Dimensional Rift veil erect itself. "Looks like we'll be having company," said Shinichi. He paused when his ears picked up something. "Do you hear that?"

"It sounds like…music," Yuji answered.

"Music?" Shinichi's eyebrows rose. "Is it polka?"

"Yes it-"

He was cut off as a jeep flew right out of the veil before it collapsed. The two jumped out of the way as the jeep barreled right through and slammed into the wall of the building.

"Ah, dammit!"

"Yokoshima, I told you to use the brakes!"

"I did, but the brakes are broken! And so is the radio!"

"Good! That shit was annoying!"

"Whose turn was it to perform maintenance on this thing?"

Shinichi groaned, shaking his head, "Oh, you have got to be kidding me." Exiting from the jeep were Shogo, Daichi and Yokoshima.

"Hey, it's your friends," Yuji stated.

"I know, but I don't think they'll be happy to see me," said Shinichi.

Daichi spotted Shinichi and glared, "Hey, what the fuck are you doing here!-?"

"Me!-? What are you guys doing here!-? Have you been following me!-?" Shinichi shot back.

Daichi spat, "As if! We were ordered to come here! Finding you here was just a coincidence!" He turned to Yuji, "You too!"

Shogo added, "Anyway, you two are still rogue agents and-"

"Rewind a sec," Shinichi cut him off. "Ordered to come here?"

"The Director told us to come here to look for something," Yokoshima answered. "So, Yuji, you've gone rogue, huh? How's that working out for you?"

Yuji shrugged, "Reminds me of when my dad used to train me when I was a kid."

"Go home, Daichi," ordered Shinichi. "That goes for you both, Shogo, Yokoshima."

"Hey, we don't take orders from you!" Daichi spat.

"I see you're still mad about the ass-whooping I gave you," Shinichi remarked.

"Hey, you betrayed us all, again!" Daichi shot back.

"You got in my way and considering the situation I took it easy on you!" Shinichi explained himself

"You took it easy on us!-?" Daichi shot back.

"You're still alive, aren't you?" Shinichi retorted.

"As if you could kill us!" Daichi snorted.

"Do you wanna throw down right now?" Shinichi challenged.

"Bring it!" Daichi accepted.

"I will!"

"Stop bickering, you two!" Shogo and Yuji shouted at them. Shinichi and Daichi crossed their arms and turned away from each other.

"Hey, guys…?" Yokoshima said nervously.

"Not now, Yokoshima," said Daichi.

"But I really…" Yokoshima began again.

"I said not now, Yokoshima!" snapped Daichi.

"Hey, is your jeep floating?" Yuji asked and all eyes turned to the jeep that was floating in midair before it was thrown right at them.

"SHIT!" Daichi cursed as he leapt away. The others did as well as the jeep went sailing through the air by an unexplained force. It then crashed into several steel crates. "Dammit! I still had payments on that thing!"

"Everyone, move!" Shinichi shouted. "Take cover!"

"Hey, I don't take orders from-!" Daichi began to snap but was cut off by Shogo.

"Now, numbnuts!" Shogo shouted as he started running for cover. They all entered the building. Well, all except for one.

"Where's Yokoshima?" asked Shinichi and he got his answer as Yokoshima ran past the entrance, with crates thrown at him, and also a forklift.

"Oh Crap! Oh Crap! Oh Crap!" Yokoshima cursed.

Daichi called, "In here, dumbass!" Yokoshima ducked under a crate and quickly retreated into the building and joined the others.

"What is going on?" Shogo asked, wanting to know the details of the situation.

"We just got here too," Yuji answered. "You tell us!"

Shinichi added, "But from what I can guess, we are under assault by several crates." The crates were being thrown at them but hit the wall of the building. They did make loud crashing noises.

"Are you telling me we're getting PWNed by fucking boxes!-?" exclaimed Yuji.

Shinichi amended, "Not the boxes, but what's _throwing_ the boxes."

Yuji muttered, "Great, we're being PWNed by an opponent that fights with boxes-"

"And heavy machinery," supplied Yokoshima.

"_And_ heavy machinery. That's just embarrassing."

"Plus we can't see them," said Shogo, eyes narrowed and cocking his shotgun. Shinichi was cocking his own shotgun. "Battler would be so useful right now."

"How is he doing anyway?" Yuji asked. "Maria wants to know."

Shogo, Daichi and Yokoshima exchanged glances. They wondered if they should tell the two rogue agents before them. It wasn't exactly classified information but it was pretty sensitive considering what was happening to Battler.

"It's top secret," Daichi answered. Thinking about it just gave him a headache. Yuji cocked an eyebrow. That was an odd answer in his opinion.

"Why are we keeping the fact Battler's pregnant a secret?" Yokoshima blurted out.

"BATTLER'S PREGNANT!-?" Shinichi and Yuji exclaimed in shock.

"YOKOSHIMA!" Daichi snapped.

"Seriously? Pregnant? OK, I know I've gone rogue and everything but I'm not an idiot!" Shinichi said, not wanting to believe something so ludicrous. "Guys don't get pregnant! Especially guys like Battler! It just ain't possible!"

"Can you tell me how that is possible?" Yuji asked, wondering about what kind of adventures the NEO-NUMBERS were getting into. "How does a guy become pregnant?" He wondered in his head, '_I wonder how his Beato will react when she hears about this?_'

"Long version or short version?" Shogo asked.

"Short version," Yuji asked.

Shogo answered, "An alien knocked him up."

"An alien…knocked him up?" Yuji blinked. "OK, what's the long version then?"

"Do we really have time for this?" Daichi groaned.

"Hey, while we're stuck here, we might as well," Shinichi shrugged.

Meanwhile, outside, their mysterious assailant was hiding in a tree. It was watching them, waiting for them to come out. With the cloaking field surround it down, the assailant was revealed to be clad in white armor with brown shoulders. The helmet it wore sported a yellow visor that covered from the top of the head to the chin with a reflective surface. Strapped to its back was its weapon, a grenade launcher with a curved guillotine blade equipped to it for decapitation. It was also known as the Brute Shot.

The assailant heard footsteps and leaves rustling and turned from its perch, the Brute Shot aimed at the direction of the sound. It then saw who it was as the dark armor and single eye identified the figure as Cyclops Knight, Million's lieutenant.

"So, you've found them, Cyborg Hunter," said Cyclops Knight. The assailant, now identified as Cyborg Hunter, let out a growl as an affirmative. Cyborg Hunter couldn't speak and only communicated with growls and grunts. "So, there are five of them now. Excellent, Million-sama will be pleased." He saw the dead bodies. "Did you really have to kill them all?" He received a snarl in response. "Ah, I see. You got bored of waiting."

* * *

Meanwhile, back at ARMOR, Warren was heading down to pay Dr. Hasuma a visit when he heard screaming. He immediately rushed over to see what was going on. By the time he arrived, Dr. Hasuma was standing outside the delivery room with Alan. His son looked a bit disturbed. They were both dressed in scrubs with medical masks, gloves and bandannas.

"I heard screaming! What happened?" the Director of ARMOR demanded.

Bazel snickered, "It's the miracle of life!"

Alan clarified as he removed his mask as did Dr. Hasuma, "Battler just had his baby and now he's resting. Hana and Michiru are in there now, feeding him."

Warren had heard about the fact that Battler was 'pregnant' and cocked an eyebrow at hearing the latest news, "Feeding _him_? As in the baby? How? They don't lactate or anything, do they?"

Dr. Hasuma answered, "Well, he doesn't seem to have a problem since he seems more interested in blood."

"Blood?"

Bazel added, "Let me tell you. When he latches on, he sticks. I think he got a liter a piece from the girls!"

Warren asked worriedly, "What? Are they okay?"

"Oooooooh~" Hana and Michiru stumbled out of the delivery room, looking rather dazed.

Hana let out, "Torso…so cold. Never…doing this…again…I…feel…dizzy…" She collapsed.

Michiru, in a daze, asked, "If I get bitten by him, will I become one?"

Alan told her, annoyed, "No…you won't."

Michiru grunted, "Blarg…honk honk…blarg." She then collapsed.

"Ryuki, please don't feed anymore of our agents to the baby," Warren said. "Anyway, Alan, the others in the Amazon are having a bit of trouble so I'm sending you there to back them up."

"Are Shinichi and Yuji there?" Alan asked.

"Would it matter? This is an order, Alan," said Warren.

Alan nodded and walked past Warren.

"Can I see the baby?" asked Warren.

"Well, newborns are susceptible to infectious diseases," said Dr. Hasuma. He added gleefully, "And cuddles!" They heard a loud crash coming from inside.

"What was that?" Warren asked.

"Oh, that's just the baby. He really has a lot of energy right after his first feeding," Dr. Hasuma informed Warren.

"Isn't Battler in there too? How can he sleep with all that noise?" Warren asked.

"Oh, don't worry about Battler. Also, he's not sleeping. He's in coma," said Dr. Hasuma. "So, I don't see him helping out anytime soon."

"Must've been a rough delivery," Warren admitted. "At least you've gotten a lot of practice in doing this kind of thing."

"Tell me about it," sighed Dr. Hasuma. "Well, I better go inside. Our new arrival is gonna need a checkup."

"Let me go with you," offered Warren.

"No," Dr. Hasuma denied, holding his hand out. "I don't want to expose the newborn to anyone else quite yet." He gestured to Michiru and Hana, "You can of course help carry these two to get some medical attention. Remember to tell the nurses to give them a blood transfusion as well as orange juice and cookies. They've earned it." He then returned to the delivery room. Warren heard a loud, and high-pitched, "Honk!" coming from inside.

With a shrug and a sigh Warren threw Hana over his left shoulder then threw Michiru over his right shoulder before carrying them off to get them some medical help.

"Can I…have my…orange juice…and cookies…now…?" Michiru requested slowly.

* * *

Back in the Amazon Rainforest, Yuji, Shinichi and the three NEO-NUMBERS were still hiding inside the building

"You know, I haven't heard anything in awhile. Someone should go outside and check," said Yuji.

"Not it!" Shinichi, Daichi, Yokoshima and Shogo chorused.

Yuji sighed, "I really hate you guys sometimes."

"Well, you should've been more familiar with the 'not it' procedure," Shogo commented.

"Even the traitor here remembers," Daichi gestured to Shinichi.

"Stop calling me a traitor, Daichi!" Shinichi snapped.

"You are a traitor, #13!" Daichi shot back.

"No," Shinichi denied. He corrected Daichi, "I'm a rogue because I abandoned ARMOR without permission. If I were a traitor, I'd be working for the enemy, like that time I was High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER."

"You were just pretending!" Daichi argued.

"I was giving you an example!" Shinichi shot back.

"Are you both seriously going to argue about this _now_?" Shogo questioned in annoyance.

They then heard a booming voice which made them jump, "_ATTENTION BLACK 13 AND COMPANY! SURRENDER NOW AND WE WILL GIVE YOU A SWIFT AND PAINLESS DEATH! IF YOU DO NOT SURRENDER, WE WILL GIVE YOU A SLOW, PAINFUL AND HUMILIATING DEATH!"_

"So basically we're dead either way." Daichi muttered sarcastically, "Super."

They then heard a clanking sound and saw a grenade land at their feet. "GRENADE!" Yokoshima shouted in panic and they all ran out of the building as fast as they could before it exploded, throwing them all into the air and onto the ground painfully.

"I hate this part of the job…" groaned Daichi. There was a burst of gold and a green-haired girl appeared in front of Daichi as she squatted down. "Levi…?"

"So, you're in some trouble again, huh?" she asked as she helped him up. There were a couple more bursts of gold as Lucifer and Satan also appeared, the latter helping up Shinichi and the former helping up Shogo.

"Great, now we're out in the open with no cover," grumbled Daichi.

"Girls, what are you all doing here?" Yuji asked.

"We came to help," said Satan. "I mean you guys look like you might need it."

"Actually, you all look like you absolutely need it," corrected Lucifer.

A final burst of gold revealed Asmodeus and she spotted Yokoshima, "Yoko-kun!" she screamed as she saw his legs while the rest of his body was buried under rubble and crates. "Help me get him out!"

Once they got the rubble and crates off him, Yokoshima sat up, groaning, "Ugh…what hit me?"

Shinichi's eyes narrowed as his ears picked up movement, "Someone's coming."

"How highly perceptive of you, BLACK 13," said Cyclops Knight as he revealed himself. Shinichi glared hatefully at the X-SHOCKER emblem Cyclops Knight wore proudly on his person. "Oh, I should really introduce myself. I am Cyclops Knight, our Great Leader's lieutenant. Don't bother introducing yourselves, however. I know who all of you are."

"Great, then you know we can do this!" Lucifer snapped. "Girls, attack!"

"Hai, Onee-sama!" The Stakes of Purgatory assumed their stake forms and darted towards Cyclops Knight. With their speed they would hit that mark. That would be true if their target had been one of their normal ones. Before they could even reach Cyclops Knight, they were violently knocked out of the air.

"Girls!" Yuji shouted as the Stakes returned to human form, groaning in pain as they lay on the floor. He went to help Satan while Shogo, Daichi and Yokoshima helped out their own beloved Stakes.

"You didn't come alone," Shinichi concluded. "Our 'stalker' is with you."

"Now I know why our Great Leader thinks highly of you," complimented Cyclops Knight which had Shinichi grimace in disgust. There was a shimmer and standing in front of Cyclops Knight was the Cyborg Hunter. It snarled and growled at them. "No, Hunter. We are not to kill them, yet."

"So, Gebok sent you guys, is that it?" Shinichi asked, fists clenched.

"Yes, he did, and he sent us to deal with you and your friend due to your attempts to sabotage X-SHOCKER," Cyclops Knight answered. "The arrival of your other friends was to be expected, of course."

"We're not friends," Daichi retorted angrily.

"Well, in any case, you all are to die anyway," said Cyclops Knight.

"So, you're gonna kill us, huh?" Yokoshima smirked. Despite the ringing in his ears he could hear quite well and he didn't like this guy. "You and what army?"

"I'm glad you asked," said Cyclops Knight as he snapped his fingers. Entering the scene from the forest were several huge crab-like robots with X-SHOCKER's emblem on the front.

"Oh, _that_ army," Yokoshima gulped.

"Yokoshima, a piece of advice: next time don't ask for shit!" Daichi snapped.

* * *

Battler woke up in a total daze. Dr. Hasuma was present. "How are you feeling, Agent Ushiromiya?"

Battler groaned, rubbing his temples as he sat up from the bed, "Woah...what happened?"

Dr. Hasuma asked, "You want the long version or short version?"

Battler replied, "Um...short?"

"Okay. You got knocked up, and then knocked out. Congratulations, you're a dad."

Battler jumped, exclaiming, eyes wide and mouth agape, "WHAT?-! HOW!-?"

"The alien did it."

Battler growled, fists clenching, "I am gonna KILL that alien!"

Dr. Hasuma shook his head. "Too late, he's already dead."

Battler blinked, "Huh?"

"He's dead."

Battler cocked an eyebrow at how Dr. Hasuma had casually said that. It sounded dismissive and uncaring. That wasn't true though. It was just that Dr. Hasuma had learnt over the years not to dwell on death too much. Death was depressing and if he got depressed then it would do nobody good. Therefore, he'd learnt to brush it off and move on. It may sound heartless, but on duty he was a professional and in his profession he could not afford to be distracted by depression, no matter how much it hurt. If he broke down in tears for every death he could not prevent, he wouldn't be where he was today.

However, death was necessary in order to give way to new life.

"Oh, and your newborn really wants to meet you," said Dr. Hasuma, smiling, as he moved to the side and Battler's eyes widened as they fell on the miniature version of the alien Crunchbite/Fred staring up at him. It was small and actually reached up to his knees. Its coloring also matched Battler's hair.

"Honk?" the little red alien gazed up at Battler.

Battler could only stare, speechless, mouth agape.

"It's a lot to take in," stated Dr. Hasuma, noting Battler's dumbstruck expression. "Take your time. Just be glad that he didn't decide to burst out of your chest."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now, I'd like to end the chapter here. It just seems like a good place to end it with a cliffhanger. So, I hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it. Be sure to catch the next chap. There will be a lot of fighting. BTW, the last line is a reference to the 'Alien' franchise regarding the Chestbursters. **


	47. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 7

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 7: Familial Connections.**

Bernkastel frowned as she stood in the sea of Kakera. She observed the crystal fragments that populated the dark space and watched as several more shattered. "I have to find out what's causing this," the Witch of Miracles whispered to herself. There was an anomaly causing the destruction of the past Hinamizawa Worlds.

When Rika began her fight against Fate in order to prevent her death and reach her happy ending, Hanyuu had helped her by rewinding time so that she could go back before she was murdered in order to figure out a solution. With each reset, a new world was created, a new Hinamizawa. What was left behind were Kakera, fragments that represented each world and while Rika had abandoned those worlds Bernkastel kept watch over them. Bernkastel herself was also a product created from Rika's attempt to defy Fate, a physical embodiment of Rika's past lives. Since Rika's fight with Fate had went on for hundreds of years, Bernkastel kept those centuries' worth of memories.

That was why Bernkastel seemed both cruel and emotionless. Emotions were a burden to her, which was why her eyes did not shine with light. Also, she was cruel because she remembered how her 'friends' had turned on each other. She knew she couldn't fault them as it was because they were infected by the Hinamizawa Syndrome. However, the syndrome would not have activated in the first place if they only had more trust in each other. True, they had not been involved in Rika's deaths but if only they had trusted in each other more than maybe those deaths could be prevented.

Each world was different. Even though Hanyuu reversed time, there were differences in each world. There were multiple scenarios as a different person was infected by the Hinamizawa Syndrome. The only constant was Rika's death at the hands of Takano. The only exceptions were the scenarios where Shion had gone mad and killed everyone she believed were responsible for Satoshi's disappearance. Rika had confronted her and then killed herself so that she could go to a new Hinamizawa as she had given up hope for that world.

Now, something was erasing those worlds from existence. One by one, a crystal fragment would shatter. Bernkastel had to find out what it was before it was too late, before Rika's own world was destroyed as well.

* * *

"How long has he been like this?" Dr. Magi asked, concerned, as he waved his hand up and down in front of Battler's face. The redhead was still in shock with wide eyes and mouth agape.

"I don't know," said Warren. "When I got here he was already like this. I guess the shock must've really blown his mind."

"I believe so, since he never expected for something like that to happen to him," said Dr. Magi sympathetically. "By the way, where is that 'bundle' that shocked him?"

* * *

"See, these scrubs are purple," Dr. Hasuma said as he held up a set of scrubs to the red baby alien. "Can you say purple? Pur…"

"Honk…"

"…ple," Dr. Hasuma finished.

"…Honk."

"Good! Once we learn all the colors, we'll learn why we shouldn't judge people by them."

* * *

"Oh, Ryuki's babysitting him," Warren answered.

* * *

The sound of battle could be heard within the Amazon Rainforest. Four parties were involved: ARMOR, X-SHOCKER, four of the Seven Stakes of Purgatory and ARMOR's rogue agents. Cyclops Knight, who claimed to be Gebok's lieutenant as well as the Cyborg Hunter were locked in battle with their enemies. The two didn't come alone, however, and were accompanied by crab-like robots called Blaster Crabs. The robots actually resembled giant crabs and possessed blasters in their claws. Not long after, several W14's also entered the fray with guns and swords.

"WRECKING BALL!" Armadillo cried as he came crashing down on one of the Blaster Crabs, crushing it under his weight. He then rolled towards the others, knocking them into the air. Asmodeus was at his side, using her speed to dodge enemy gunfire before slashing through the W14's with her energy blade.

Zero, who was in the air, unleashed a rapid storm of stinger needles, piercing the machines and they all exploded. "Heh," he laughed a little. "You've just got stung." Lucifer, who was next to him, rolled her eyes.

"Lame one-liner," she commented. Her red eyes narrowed at the W14's, "And worthless dolls!" She dashed towards them and cut them down before they could even react.

Musician and Leviathan were back to back surrounded by Blaster Crabs and W14's. The greenette had her crimson energy blade at the ready while Musician was gripping his Musician Fork tight. "Now!" Musician gave the signal and they dashed at their enemies. Leviathan laughed as she cut down the W14's and Musician grinned in satisfaction as he blew the Blaster Crabs away with bursts of sound from his Cricket Fork. He then stabbed a Blaster Crab in the face and then raised up the impaled body to bash it upon the other one. He began to use his makeshift club to break and smash the robotic crustaceans. However, he got careless and got shot in the back by a Blaster Crab and was knocked forwards.

"Daichi!" Leviathan cried. She avenged him by using her sword, speedily dodging energy blasts before slicing the Blaster Crab in half.

Meanwhile, Satan and BLACK 13 were fighting the Cyborg Hunter, both the girl and rogue cyborg armed with their energy blades. They attacked in-tandem but the Cyborg Hunter was able to block their blows with his own weapon, the Brute Shot. It shot at Satan, who dodged, but the explosion from the grenade nearly blew her away. The Cyborg Hunter tried for another shot only for BLACK 13 to get in the way.

"Riderman: Drill Arm," he called and his entire right forearm turned into the familiar Drill Arm weapon which belonged to Kamen Rider #4: Riderman. He jabbed forward, the tip of the drill hitting the Brute Shot's blade, sparks flying as he tried to bore through. Snarling, the Cyborg Hunter punched BLACK 13 hard in the face, sending him skidding backwards. "Super-1: Electric Hands!" His gauntlets became the Electric Hands of Kamen Rider Super-1 and he started to fire bolts of lightning at Cyborg Hunter, who did not seem affected by the jolts as he advanced on them.

Finally, Liger Zero and Cyclops Knight were having a swordfight. Liger Zero was armed with the Red Queen and Cyclops Knight complimented, "What a unique blade you have there, Kamen Rider Liger. Wherever did you get it?"

"Trade secret," Liger Zero replied and they continued to clash with their blades, the steel clanging as their swords made contact, sparks spilling at their feet.

BLACK 13 and the Cyborg Hunter had put away their weapons and were now fighting hand-to-hand. Cyborgs like them were also built for Close-Quarter Combat. BLACK 13 expected to have to have the advantage due to his ability to accelerate his own time to achieve superhuman speed but the Cyborg Hunter could also accelerate and black and white blurs crashed against each other. Lightning fast blows were heard but not seen as the two continued to fight in their own world. While accelerating, the world surrounding them seemed to slow down to the speed of a snail crawl.

Satan could not keep up with them and continued to watch and listen for the explosive impacts when both blurs collided. Once the two slowed down she could see scratches and dents in their armors. However, the damage was slowly repairing itself.

"Shadow Moon: Shadow Sabers," BLACK 13 whispered and the signature weapons of the evil Century King appeared in his hands. The dark blades shone and thirst for blood and the vengeful Kaizo Ningen could only oblige.

Cyborg Hunter aimed his Brute Shot and fired a grenade at him but BLACK 13 sliced it in half, causing it to explode prematurely. He ran through the flames and smoke and slashed at the Cyborg Hunter who countered with the blade of his Brute Shot. Sparks flew as the weapons connected. The Cyborg Hunter snarled and then swung his fist at BLACK 13. The black Rider was knocked backwards by the blow and Cyborg Hunter sent him sailing with an explosive blast from his Brute Shot.

"Shinichi!" Satan cried as she watched him hit some rubble.

Meanwhile, the NEO-NUMBERS and their accompanying Stakes had dealt with the cannon fodder. "I don't think I'll be able to look at crab the same way for weeks," admitted Armadillo. The Blaster Crabs had all been crushed by the weight of Armadillo's Ball Mode.

"It's a shame, because they'll be serving crab cakes in the cafeteria later," stated Zero. They looked to see BLACK 13 and the Cyborg Hunter in a fight but BLACK 13 was down.

"Shouldn't we help?" asked Armadillo.

"No," denied Musician. "We'll help when he asks."

"You know he won't," Zero pointed out.

"I know." Musician wanted to see BLACK 13 get hurt as retribution for beating them up.

The Cyborg Hunter prepared to shoot at BLACK 13 again but then a Dimensional Rift opened up right between them. It collapsed just as the Cyborg Haunter fired his Brute Shot and the two figures walking out of the Dimensional Rift revealed themselves.

BLACK 13's eyes widened as he identified one of the figures, "HANYUU!"

There was a massive explosion as Hanyuu erected a protective force field at the last second when the grenade was about to hit her. The explosion, however, still threw her backwards and she hit a tree hard with the back of her head. The sight of his little sister, injured, caused something inside BLACK 13 to snap.

He was pissed and all would pay.

"HOW DARE YOU!" BLACK 13 roared as he assumed a gigantic form due to Kamen Rider J's power. He then threw his massive fist down on Cyborg Hunter

"Hunter, I think it's time we retreated," said Cyclops Knight but then he saw Cyborg Hunter fleeing. "Damn you!"

WHAM!

He was flattened under the fist and when BLACK 13 withdrew it, Cyclops Knight was in a fist-sized crater. However, that was not the end of it.

"HOW DARE YOU HURT HANYUU! HOW DARE YOU!"

**WHAM!**

**WHAM!**

**WHAM!**

**WHAM!**

The ground shook with each blow and Cyclops Knight was buried deeper and deeper into the ground with each gigantic punch. BLACK 13 didn't care who his target was. He was so blinded by rage and wanted to hit something. Cyclops Knight, who was in the area, was the easiest target.

BLACK 13 calmed down and shrunk back to normal before he went to check up on Hanyuu. "Hanyuu, are you okay? Talk to me."

The violet-haired girl looked up at BLACK 13's masked face and said, "O…Onii-chan…" Hanyuu rarely called Shinichi that, but when she did it was always cute and threatened to caused Shinichi to pass out due to cuteness overload, especially when she did it along with Rika. She was his foster sister and he'd let her get hurt.

Shinichi let his armor power down and helped Hanyuu up. She was dazed but unharmed, fortunately. Her force field managed to protect her from the brunt of the grenade. She'd only been thrown backwards by the force of the explosion.

The NEO-NUMBERS also powered down and looked down at the crater. Yokoshima whistled, "Wow, you really fucked this guy up." Cyclops Knight had been reduced to crushed steel and scrap metal.

"I'm…getting…out of here…" uttered Cyclops Knight. Despite being flattened into the ground he was still online, which was really surprising considering the kind of punishment he'd endured. He then vanished in a flash.

"Where did he go!-?" exclaimed Yokoshima.

"He teleported," concluded Shogo.

"Hanyuu, what are you doing here?" asked Shinichi. He then spotted Alan and glared. "Did you bring her here?"

"I did, but only because she insisted," Alan answered.

"She wouldn't take no for an answer," Bazel added. "And Partner here couldn't resist the puppy-dog look she was giving him."

Shinichi accused, "You're trying to use my family to get me to return with you, aren't you?"

"Rena's worried sick about you," said Alan.

"I know," Shinichi answered.

"If you know, then go back to her! Stop this now!" Alan told him.

"You know, you really should respect your elders," Shinichi turned to look Alan straight in the eyes as he added, "_Little Brother_." Alan's eyes widened momentarily in surprise when he heard that and Shinichi smirked. "Piece of advice, Alan: make sure nobody is eavesdropping on your private conversations. _Something_ might slip out and _someone_ might be paying attention." He turned to Yuji, "Come on, Yuji. It's time to go."

"Alright," said Yuji and he summoned the MysticLiner.

"Yuji, don't tell me you're actually supporting Shinichi," said Alan.

"What does it look like, Alan?" asked Yuji. The MysticLiner stopped in front of him and Shinichi. "Alan, even if you bring Shinichi back with you he won't stop going after Gebok. This is Shinichi's business and he has to end it with his own hands. I'm just backing him up as a friend should."

"He's gone rogue, and you have too," said Alan.

Yuji boarded the MysticLiner, not bothering to give Alan a reply. Shinichi was having a few words with Hanyuu before he left with Yuji. "Hanyuu, take care of yourself," he advised, patting her shoulder. "And take care of Kaa-chan for me, OK?"

"Shinichi, don't go," she pleaded. "Everyone needs you back home."

"No they don't," he objected and gestured to Shogo, Yokoshima and Daichi. "Hinamizawa has these guys to help protect it, and you, and Alan. It doesn't need me right now. I just have to deal with some unfinished business."

"What about Rena? What about Shiori-mama?" asked Hanyuu. The two most important women in Shinichi's lives were heartbroken when they heard the news. Shinichi handed her two paper cranes.

"Give these to them," he said, smiling kindly before he turned and boarded the MysticLiner. He spoke to Alan, seriously, "You will let us go, won't you? It's the least you could do after you put Hanyuu in danger."

"For now," said Alan. "But next time I'm dragging you back to ARMOR by your ankles," he threatened.

Shinichi warned, "Oh, and next time, don't bring Hanyuu into any dangerous situation. Just because we're family, it doesn't mean I won't kick your ass for almost letting her get hurt." The door closed behind him as the train chugged off into the sky.

"Are you okay?" Alan asked Hanyuu.

"He smiled," Hanyuu whispered. That was a good thing, right? That meant his heart had not been taken over completely by his rage and anger. "He actually smiled."

"Partner, you could've just taken him in," said Bazel. "He wouldn't have been able to resist you."

"I know, Bazel. But he's right. I shouldn't have brought Hanyuu along. So I let him go and that makes us even. Next time though, I'll kick his and Yuji's ass and drag both those morons back to ARMOR if I have to," said Alan. He just didn't think it was the right time. His father had told him to capture Shinichi before he went too far. Looking back at Shinichi's kills when he started this crusade, all of his victims had been modified by Gebok through scientific means, genetically or cybernetically altering them. Also they had used (abused) their powers and had become a deadly threat. Shinichi simply put them down. However, Shinichi was playing judge, jury and executioner. That wasn't the way of the Green Lantern Corps.

* * *

"So, he managed to figure it out," Warren concluded after reading the report Alan had written.

"Considering he's your son, I don't think we could've kept it a secret from him for long," said Dr. Hasuma. "The question is how he figured it out, though."

Warren replied, "Like you said he's my son. He has his ways. He must've compiled all the clues and deduced the conclusion. I guess he's smarter than he lets on, even if he almost blew his cover that time at the school."

"Considering the situation, he did what he thought was the best possible course of action, ignoring the consequences," Dr. Hasuma stated. "It did take a lot of attention off of Alan. Maybe that was his intention."

"Have all the attention focused on him so Alan could move more freely without being watched?" Warren guessed. Dr. Hasuma nodded to confirm.

"Like you said, Kanchou, He's smarter than he lets on."

"Damn straight."

* * *

"Hey, Bern. I got a ton of snacks! Wanna have a tea party so we can share?"

"Not now, Lambda. I'm busy."

Lambdadelta, the Witch of Certainty, pouted as she was Bernkastel reading several books at once. The tomes were floating around the cat-tailed bluenette as Lambdadelta watched while lying with her front on the bed, her chin propped up by her palms as she swung her legs back and forth in boredom.

"Come on, Bern, just take a break," said Lambdadelta as she slid off the bed and approached her beloved friend and rival. She wrapped her arms around Bernkastle from behind and Bernkastel's left eyebrow twitched. The Witch of Certainty scanned all the books and realized what they were. "You're reading your diaries?"

"Journals," Bernkastel corrected. "Diaries are for little girls. Journals are for mature women."

"Right, _journals_," Lambdadelta nodded. "Why?"

"I need to investigate something," said Bernkastel. "Something is causing the Kakera to disappear. I've checked and already a quarter of them have vanished, shattered to pieces. I need to know why."

"Why do you care so much?" asked Lambdadelta. "I mean you hate those worlds. They were the ones when-"

"I know," Bernkastel cut her off. "As heart wrenching as those memories were, they were still my memories and they weren't all bad…"

"Until the end," Lambdadelta finished. "I thought you gave up looking after them after that Rika girl found her happy ending." She put her chin on Bernkastel's shoulder. "I think you need to just relax and enjoy _your_ happy ending, Bern."

"Lambda, you're partially at fault," Bernkastel reminded, "You and your games."

"Humans mean little to me except as pieces on the board to have fun with," Lambdadelta ran a finger down Bernkastel's cheek, tracing circles on the skin. "And the world where sweet Rika got her happy ending has become _very_ interesting. Did you know the hero Rika put all her faith in has gone rogue? He's not evil, but I do love how he just kills anyone that gets in his way or at the very least beats them up."

"If you're referring to Shinichi, then I already know. Rika and I are connected," said Bernkastel stiffly. She then remembered, "Doesn't Shinichi possess temporal powers?"

"Yup, the kid can control time," Lambdadelta confirmed. "I remembered when that evil wizard tried to mess with his mind and forced him to reset time over, and over, and over, and over…"

"I know about that too, I was there," Bernkastel cut her off. "He also has the power to erase, isn't that right?"

"Yeah, he does," Lambdadelta nodded. "He does it whenever he does that Return to the Past trick of his and wipes out his kills from existence. She cocked an eyebrow. "What are you getting at?"

Bernkastel put her books down and grabbed onto Lambdadelta's wrist, dragging her to the bed before tossing her onto the sheets. The black-clad Witch of Miracles then crawled on top of the Witch of Certainty and looked into her eyes with her own. "Lambda, I could just kiss you."

"Well, why talk about it and just do it then?" Lambdadelta grabbed Bernkastel's head and pulled her down for a deep kiss.

* * *

In the desert, hiding behind several rock formations, Shinichi was looking out at the distance. Accompanying him were Kikyo, Yuji and Yuri. "So, what do you see?" Yuri asked.

Shinichi's eyes narrowed as his cybernetic enhancements granted him telescopic vision. In the distance he could see a mine and people working the mine. However, they were not miners. They were slaves and guarding the slaves and mines were W14's carrying rifles. Shinichi had no doubt in his mind that there was a slave prison camp nearby. The slaves working the mines right now were men and he recognized them as the people who'd gone missing in the recent month. Surrounding the mining area were trucks used to transport the slaves and also tanks and jeeps, all possessing X-SHOCKER's symbol.

"Forced mining," Shinichi answered. He could see crystals being carried out by mining cars. "Gebok is using slaves to mine some kind of crystal ore. I don't recognize it, though."

"So, what's the plan?" Yuri asked.

"Go in there, rescue the slaves, kill anyone that gets in our way," listed Shinichi. "Kikyo, you stay here and snipe at the guards. Yuji and I will free the slaves and then go and look for the prison camp."

"And me?" Yuri grinned.

"As soon as we have the slaves, blow shit up," Shinichi told him.

"Super," Yuri grinned widely.

"Just wait for my signal," Shinichi told him. "Yuji, let's go." They then started to move. Meanwhile, Yuri looked to Kikyo and smirked.

"Yuri, I know you find me attractive, but now's not the time," Kikyo said sternly.

"I just wanted to compliment you on your new gun, Kikyo. No need to be sensitive," teased Yuri.

Shinichi and Yuji were clothed in sand-colored clothing that had hoods, hiding them from sight as they provided camouflage against a desert background. They approached carefully and slowly. Shinichi's eyes were focused for any booby traps. They got closer and closer but just as they were nearing the mine, lightning bolts suddenly rained down in front of them, causing them to jump backwards.

"Hey, Brother, it looks like we have intruders," said a female voice.

"It seems so, Sister. And their clothing is simply appalling," answered a male voice.

Shinichi looked up and saw two figures standing on the high ground. The two figures then dropped onto the sand, grinning at Shinichi and Yuji. Shinichi looked them up and down. The male was dressed in a blue bodysuit with a belt that had X-SHOCKER's emblem on the buckle and two rows of buttons on the chest. He also wore black boots and gloves. Hanging from his neck was a red scarf and he had silver, spiked up, hair like he just got electrocuted. His skin was also pale with lightning-shaped marks running down his cheeks and red eyes. On his forehead was a Plus sign. The female looked like him with the same hair, eyes and skin-tone but was dressed in red with a blue scarf and white gloves and boots with a Minus sign on her forehead. Instead of pants like her brother, her bodysuit sported a miniskirt.

"Who are you?" Shinichi demanded.

"We are the Electro Twins," the two declared.

"I'm E-Plus!" the male identified himself.

"And I'm E-Minus!" the female identified herself.

"And together we will kill you!" they announced together.

"You're cyborgs," Shinichi identified. He looked past the twin cyborgs and saw that the slaves were being forced into trucks. "Dammit, they know we're here."

"We alerted them once we noticed you," said E-Plus. "Clearly, you underestimate X-SHOCKER."

"And you underestimate us," retorted Shinichi as he quickly turned into BLACK 13.

"Oh, Brother, it's BLACK 13," said E-Minus.

"Now this is interesting," grinned E-Plus.

"Hey, don't forget about me," said Yuji as he had on his Liger Belt.

* * *

Meanwhile, Yuri and Kikyo were dealing with a problem of their own. Just seconds after Shinichi and Yuji left them, metallic spheres suddenly burst out of the sand. The pair watched as the spheres joined together and transformed into a robotic centipede with wicked looking mandibles.

"And I thought this was gonna be boring," Yuri grinned. "Sword!" Black energy pooled out of his right hand and formed into a wicked-looking sword that was completely black. He then called out, "Lance!" and the same energy pooled out of his left hand to form into a demonic black lance in his left hand. He then dashed at the mechanical beast as it retaliated with its claws and tried to pierce Yuri's body. Yuri slashed at the legs with his saber as he thrust his lance into the robotic segments of the body. However, the severed legs and holes merely repaired themselves. "What do we have here?" Yuri mused.

"_Yuri-sama_," a mature female voice spoke from the sword, "_This thing is healing from our attacks!_"

"_What should we do, Yuri-sama?_" a childish female voice from the lance asked.

Yuri grinned, "If we can't slash and stab, then we'll just have to smash! Mace! Hammer!"

The sword and lance turned into energy and morphed into a demonic black hammer in his right hand, and a demonic black mace in his left hand. The robot charged forward and Yuri jumped the beast and swung both weapons down, making heavy dents in the segments as he continuously hammered away at the body with punishing force.

Kikyo fired her rifle at the robot, aiming for the eye at the front, but the bullets seemed to have no effect on its vision and the undead priestess was not very pleased.

"Enough of this foolishness," Yuri huffed as a he slung a black and purple belt around his waist. The buckle was rectangular and framed by a pair of silver jaws with a "G" in the center. He pulled out a black rectangular Rider Pass and swiped it across his buckle as he called out "Henshin!"

"**FURY FORM!"**

The belt unleashed a wave of power that kicked up a small sandstorm that shielded Yuri from view and gartered the attention of the Centipede Mecha, aiming its gun as it fired its ammo which was deflected by some kind of force field.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

What came next was a large charged particle beam that cut through the sandstorm and went straight through the Centipede Mech as it was reduced to shrapnel by the blast.

"You should be more careful," Kikyo scolded with no emotion in her voice.

A shadowed figure emerged from the sand cloud and grinned, "Old habits die hard."

Kikyo rolled her eyes, "Men."

* * *

The Electro Twins were fast, really fast, that they actually blurred across the field while attacking BLACK 13 and Liger. Fortunately, the two rogue ARMOR agents were just as fast. BLACK 13 was using his Fast Forward ability on himself. Ignoring the painful headache which came from using his powers, he matched speeds with E-Plus. At the same time, Liger was in Jager Form and fighting against E-Minus. The twins not only had speed in their arsenal, but were electrokinetic as well. To the naked eye, it would look like there was an unexplained lightning storm was occurring in the middle of the desert.

"Come on! Attack me!" E-Plus dared as he shot bolts of lightning at BLACK 13. "Aren't you some kind of avenger, BLACK 13?"

"Stronger," BLACK 13 whispered and Kamen Rider Stronger's 'S' symbol appeared on his chest, outlined in red. He then absorbed E-Plus' lightning into his body, surprising the electrokinetic cyborg, he redirecting the bolt at him. E-Plus was unharmed but he now realized how useless his electricity was on BLACK 13. Of course, that didn't mean E-Plus only had one method of attack. As a cyborg soldier, he possessed physical augmentations and was built for combat. He lunged and aimed a fist at BLACK 13's head only for the black-clad Rider to duck and then hit him in the stomach, hard, with his forearm. The force of the blow pushed E-Plus backwards along the sand.

"I'm not going to waste my time and tell you to stop serving Gebok," said BLACK 13 coldly as he unsheathed his katana. "Prepare to die."

"You don't scare me," boasted E-Plus.

"I've heard that before and everyone else who's said that is now dead." BLACK 13 then dashed towards E-Plus, causing a cloud of sand to be kicked up by his movement. E-Plus dodged the stab for his chest but wasn't fast enough when BLACK 13 put his sword in a reverse grip and cut him in the side, cutting into his uniform. The electrical cyborg grunted in pain and swung a fist at BLACK 13 but his opponent caught his fist before slashing him across the stomach. E-Plus then kicked BLACK 13 away before he fell backwards on the sand.

"Take this!" E-Plus unleashed bolt after bolt of lightning at BLACK 13, only for the sword-wielder to absorb them with his sword.

"Gebok must be losing his touch," said BLACK 13 but then E-Plus blurred out of sight and BLACK 13 was hit from all directions. BLACK 13 felt the powerful blows hitting him from all angles and he was unable to counter until he activated Fast Forward again and countered E-Plus blow-for-blow with only one arm and then a kick to E-Plus' lower jaw knocked him down.

"**ENERGY FORM!"**

Liger changed into his Energy Form armor and fired his electric arsenal at the female cyborg as she merely danced around the bullets with glee. "What's wrong, Liger? Afraid to hit me because I'm a girl?" she taunted.

"You're just faster than I first thought," he contradicted. "Energy Charger!" Orange particles flared from the Energy Charger and took the shape of wings as he flew to E-Minus and tackled her with great force. His weapons locked onto her as he held her by the shoulders and fired a barrage of electric blasts and bullets from the Gatling gun and cannons. She shouted in pain and Liger Energy let her go before spin-kicking her into the sand.

E-Plus tried to attack BLACK 13 again but his opponent managed to hit him first with a punch to the stomach and then blasted him into the air. He fell onto the sand and near his sister. His hand briefly touched hers but as soon as it happened they withdrew their hands from each other. This was not lost to BLACK 13.

The Electro Twins got back up and then switched opponents. Using their acceleration powers, they ran around their targets until a tornado formed from the incredible speeds they were running at. They also laced the tornado with electricity. BLACK 13, no longer drawing power from Stronger, was zapped several times by E-Minus. Still, he managed to endure and remain focused. He had already figured out the twins' weakness. The black-clad cyborg's visor had data scrolling across it as he found an opening. He shot his arm forward and the tornado stopped. Now, he had E-Plus by his neck and squeezing. The cyborg tried to zap him with electricity but BLACK 13 already had a plan. "Biorider: Liquify," he called. His body glowed blue and then turned into liquid form before surging towards E-Plus, much to his surprise. He was splashed by water and BLACK 13 reformed and solidified behind him. The avenger turned and watched in amusement as E-Plus started to short out with electricity crackling all over his body. However, this was only a temporary solution.

He grabbed E-Plus by the scarf and told him, coldly, "Say goodbye to your sister for me." He then spun around, and around, and around, picking up some momentum before throwing E-Plus through the air. He was like a javelin being thrown across the air and he was heading straight to his sister who was still running around Liger Energy.

BLACK 13 had timed it just right when E-Plus collided with E-Minus and they both fell, tumbling along the sand. Then, there was a sudden explosion that was deafening from where they fell.

Liger Energy, bewildered, asked, "What happened?"

"I noticed that they couldn't touch each other," BLACK 13 explained. "I concluded that was their weakness. Due to their opposite polarities, I suspected that having them come into physical contact with each other would instantly destroy them. I was right." BLACK 13 spotted several tanks advancing. "And now we have some more pests to deal with."

The tanks fired upon the two Riders, forcing them to take evasive maneuvers. BLACK 13, growling, decided to just deal with the tanks personally. He dashed towards them, evading their blasts and then grabbed one of the tanks by its cannon. He then lifted it up and slammed it down on another tank. He then used the tank to flatten another tank.

"**PANZER FORM!"**

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"**Burning…Big Bang!" **Liger Panzer called and he unleashed his payload, destroying the remaining tanks.

BLACK 13 stood next to Liger Panzer and looked at the wreckage. "We're making a really huge mess," commented Yuji as he deactivated his armor. "What do you think they were mining?"

"Must be something important," said as he deactivated his armor. They went closer to the mine and Shinichi spotted a piece of crystal ore on the ground. "What's this?" Shinichi asked as he picked up the crystal ore. It was shining lavender. He scanned it and tried to find out what it was.

"That looks like raw Energon," Yuji pointed out.

"Energon?" Shinichi asked.

"It's a kind of energy source and while it's raw it's pretty unstable. I didn't know this world even had any raw sources of Energon," stated Yuji.

"Well, Gebok must need a lot for something," said Shinichi as he put the ore away.

"So, what do you want to do now?" asked Yuji.

"Let's leave it for now. Come on, let's find the slave cam-" the young cyborg was cut off when he was tackled by a figure and slammed into the sand.

"Shinichi!" Yuji shouted but before he could lend an assist Cyclops Knight stood in his way. "Get out of my way, mono-eye!"

"I'm afraid, Mr. Fudo, that you won't be helping your friend." Cyclops Knight stated, brandishing his broadsword. This made Yuji growl as he dodged a slash and activated his belt.

"Henshin!"

"**ZERO FORM!"**

At the same time Shinichi managed to get to his feet and execute his own transformation into BLACK 13. Cyborg Hunter lunged at him but was kicked away. Showa then drew his Showa-Blaster gun and leveled it at the Cyborg Hunter, pulling the trigger to fire off two shots at the enemy. The Cyborg Hunter shielded himself with the blade equipped to his grenade launcher before disappearing from sight.

BLACK 13's eyes narrowed as he tried to look for his invisible opponent. He found out when he got a fist in the stomach and a boot to the head, knocking him back painfully. Several blows hit him but he was unable to see his assailant who'd cloaked himself. He then fired a burst at the ground, knocking him and possibly the invisible Cyborg Hunter into the air.

Meanwhile, Cyclops Knight swung his sword to try and kill Liger Zero who dodged and then performed a powerful twin palms thrust into Cyclop Knight's chest in retaliation. Cyclops Knight staggered away, clutching his torso. Liger Zero then charged but received a face full of energy when Cyclops Knight's eye fired a blast at him.

BLACK 13 was starting to get pissed off as he tried to spot his invisible enemy. Closing his eyes, he started to focus on his hearing to find where his enemy was. He stood in place and waited for a sign and a sound. Sensing that the Cyborg Hunter was behind him, BLACK 13 turned sharply and drove a brutal punch into Cyborg Hunter face, forcing it to reappear. BLACK 13 quickly followed up with a barrage of punches and traded blows with Cyborg Hunter.

Cyclops Knight, seeing Liger Zero hurt by the earlier attack, rushed forward and began slashing at Liger Zero "Hah! And I was told that Manakytes were supposed to be tough!" Liger Zero caught the weapon and broke it in two before changing to Schneider Form.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

With a roar, the blades sliced through Cyclops Knight's arm, cutting away chunks of metal like knife to meat.

"GAAHH!" Cyclops Knight roared in pain. Furiously, he blasted Liger Schneider with a beam from his eye. The beam hit, knocking him to the ground. Cyclops Knight then loomed over him with his sword raised. "Now, time to skin this cat."

Cyclops Knight was then bombarded by laser fire that pushed him back as he rolled down a sand dune. Liger Schneider turned to see the culprit was decked in a black bodysuit with light purple armor on the arms, thighs, legs, gloves, boots, and an armored tail that swished behind him. The helmet was black with two pairs of light purple jaws over the eyes, with silver fangs. On his back was a pack with two devices that were equipped with three blades each. The chest armor was also light purple and had the head of a tyrannosaurus with silver fangs and red eyes. His elbows and knees were equipped with red nodes, much like the Liger Zero.

"Yuri!" Liger Schneider identified.

"I see you were about to have your ass handed to you, again," Yuri chuckled.

"Bullshit," Liger Schneider denied, "You took a pot shot before I was gonna finish him off!"

Cyclops Knight struggled to his feet and growled, "You bastard…who are you?"

Yuri grinned as he looked down at the cyborg, "I am the engine of death and destruction, you toy soldier! Let this be the day that you will always remember in your nightmares as **Kamen Rider Geno **entered your life!"

Cyclops Knight realized that if he continued this battle then he would likely be destroyed. Also, they couldn't risk the destruction of the mine. He ordered, "Cyborg Hunter, we're retreating." He received a growl in response, "That's an order!"

Cyborg Hunter broke away from BLACK 13 and teleported. Cyclops Knight did the same.

"Che, cowards," snorted BLACK 13.

Kikyo caught up to the men and glared at Geno Fury, "Thanks for waiting."

Yuri deactivated his armor and sighed, "Now then, time to get my share of Sakuradite." He slid down the sand and began harvesting the crystal ore that was left behind.

"That's Sakuradite?" Yuji asked in confusion. "I thought that was Energon."

"You only think that because you've never seen Sakuradite," Yuri countered as he gently laid the crystals in a padded gym bag. The bag had a dimensional pocket, so he was planning to take what he could and give nothing back. "They are similar though, since they're both used as power sources. These are dark pink in color, signifying that they're Sakuradite."

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow, "Do you really need that much?"

"Call it service pay," Yuri replied. "Besides, I need enough to make a cube of Sakuradite, the size of a human head, for my daughter's Knightmare Frame."

"Wait, you have a daughter?"

"It's actually someone you're quite familiar with, boy," Yuri answered cryptically with a sharp grin. He looked at the mine greedily. "There still should be some more inside."

"Do we really have time for this?" questioned Shinichi but Yuri simply went inside to indulge.

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan had found the slave camp and with the help of ARMOR agents they were able to free all the people Gebok had captured to be used as slave labor. The people would be transported back home. "Shinichi should be in the area," Alan said. It was a guess but it was likely Shinichi would be here if one of Gebok's facilities was in the area.

"You gonna go look for him, Partner?" asked Bazel.

"Someone needs to talk some sense into him," said Alan. He heard a whistling of a train and looked up, spotting the MysticLiner flying through the air. "I was right." Alan sighed in defeat.

* * *

Shinichi looked out the window and he saw that ARMOR was already taking care of the slave camp. He then looked back at Yuri who seemed to be having fun. A large pile of Sakuradite was on the floor and Yuri was running his hands through it. "Mine, mine, mine, all mine," he repeated.

Yuri had cleaned out the entire mine, taking every bit of Sakuradite he could find. Then, he blew up the mine so nobody else could have it. It was unnecessary but Yuri was insane and loved the sound of explosions. Of course, Shinichi would've done it if Yuri hadn't.

Among the Sakuradite was something special, something powerful, and it was contained inside a jar. It was an Infinity Fragment, a piece from the powerful Infinity Sword, which contained a tiny portion of extremely potent cosmic power. "Guess it wasn't a waste of time after all," he stated as he appraised the crystal. "Maybe Gebok was after this all along. I don't think he'd be stupid enough not to know it was here. The Sakuradite was possibly a bonus." Shrugging, he added, "Oh well, it's ours now. Finders keepers."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Shincihi shows he hasn't completely lost his heart since he pretty much went berserk when Hanyuu got hurt. Still, he and Alan are gonna be antagonizing each other a lot since Alan's a Green Lantern and Shinichi's a rogue ARMOR agent on a mission of revenge. Still, there is hope yet for Shinichi. He hasn't abandoned his ideals even if he has abandoned ARMOR.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: And here's the debut of KAMEN RIDER GENO! For those who are curious, Yuri became Geno around the same time as Yuji became Liger. So expect a flashback of both systems in the future. As for the talking weapons that Yuri has, they are the Death Angel Squad, which belonged to Dark Ray, the God of Death from the "Kurohime" manga.**


	48. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 8

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 8: Cryptic Cryptids**

Rena was happy, which her friends found strange, when she showed up for classes at Shishibone University. Since Shinichi went on his 'Crusade of Vengeance' as they had called it, the senior members of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club all noticed how Rena was acting depressed. This was because she was heartbroken when Shinichi left. This angered Mion because the guy she thought she knew had pretty much abandoned Rena and she wanted to beat him up for it. However, there was no way for her to find him. Therefore, Mion stayed at Rena's to keep her company. Keiichi, Satoshi and Shion also tried to cheer her up but their attempts met with failure. Weeks had passed since and Rena was a shadow of her former self.

But today she was different. When she sat for lunch with her friends, they all wondered why she was smiling when she'd been all sad and depressed.

"Rena, why are you so happy?" Mion asked, worried for Rena's sanity, and hoping the girl had not completely lost it and was simply delirious.

"Shin-kun wrote me a letter!" she told them. Hanyuu had delivered one of the paper cranes to Rena and it'd unfolded up to reveal a message just for her.

"He did?" Shion blinked.

"That jerk actually wrote to you?" Mion questioned.

"He did!" Rena nodded. "Shin-kun wrote to Rena, telling Rena not to worry, and he told Rena that he'll always love her." That was a summary of the letter. There were some details but she was so happy she'd forgotten about them. "Shin-kun also says he'll come back when he's done."

"He better," Mion growled, punching her palm in a threatening manner. "I have to teach him a lesson. He should not make his girlfriend cry."

"At least he wrote, Mion," said Keiichi.

"Kei-chan, the jerk just took off without even saying goodbye, especially to Rena," Mion reminded. She remembered how Rena had cried and cried and cried when Shinichi left her with only a letter. "You expect a letter to fix it?"

"It looks like it did the trick here," Keiichi commented, referring to Rena.

"Mion, I know you're mad at Shinichi right now," said Satoshi.

"Damn right I am!" Mion snapped.

"But think for a second here. Do you really think Shinichi wanted to leave Rena? I don't think so. I don't think he really has a choice now," said Satoshi. "Gebok really messed up his life. I mean, can you imagine being tortured like he was for a decade? It's a miracle he's not in an insane asylum. He just wants payback, and he wants to make sure Gebok is gone for good. In his own screwed up way, he's trying to protect us."

"Satoshi-kun's right, Onee," added Shion. "It's like when he was posing as GIN-SHOCKER's High Commander. Shin-chan doesn't do anything without a good reason. As messed up as he is right now, he's still got enough good in him. He doesn't want to leave Rena, he just had to so he could do what he has to do."

"Kei-chan, what do you think?" Mion asked.

"I think Shinichi deserves some closure," Keiichi told her. He looked to Rena who was happy. "And I think all he wants is to protect Rena's happiness, and our lives too. He doesn't want Gebok to ruin it for us like he ruined Shinichi's life and childhood."

Mion sighed, her anger at Shinichi decreased, "You're right, you're right, but did he really have to leave like that?"

"Rena thinks that if Shin-kun tried to say goodbye to Rena, he would not be able to leave," said Rena, understanding her influence in his life. "If Rena told him to stay, he would. That is why Shin-kun left when Rena was sleeping." She knew she had the power to shatter his resolve with just a single look of her eyes, and a word from her mouth. "Shin-kun couldn't wait anymore."

"Well, he didn't have a right to make you sad and break your heart," said Mion defensively.

"Shin-kun didn't mean to," Rena argued. "You know how Shin-kun is. He always does what he thinks is best."

* * *

"_Come on, Shin-kun! Let's go treasure hunting!" said Rena cheerfully as she pulled Shinichi along with her._

"_OK, Rena-chan!" smiled Shinichi._

_It was not long after the destruction of GIN-SHOCKER and life went back to normal for everyone. Without the threat of the evil organization looming over their heads, kids could be kids. _

_The holidays were just around the corner and Rena couldn't wait for Christmas and New Year's and looked forward to celebrating them with Shinichi._

_Rena's 'Mountain of Treasure' awaited them as they arrived at the junkyard. People threw stuff down here all the time and Rena always found something new. Shinichi would accompany her for the sake of spending time with her. It was being with her that made their time together special. He didn't care what they were doing as long as she was smiling._

_As Rena went off to look for treasure, Shinichi went and looked around himself. It was already starting to get dark and he hoped he could find something nice for her, even if it was in this pile of garbage._

_Shinichi scanned the area, his eyes focusing on the piles of garbage, when he spotted a doll. It was sitting in a straw basket and had golden curls for hair, dressed in a dirty white dress. He wondered who would throw away a perfectly good doll and so he picked it up. That was when he heard a shriek._

"_RENA!" Shinichi dashed towards the direction of her shriek and came across a familiar scene. Darklings had appeared and were surrounding Rena. She had tried to use her cleaver in order to defend herself but it now lay out of reach. _

"_Shin-kun, help me!" she screamed._

_Shinichi didn't need any other provocation. He went through his transformation sequence quickly and in a flash he was transformed into Kamen Rider Showa. He was still holding the doll basket in his hand as he charged at the Darklings. Without realizing it, he had transformed into Showa Hinamizawa Guardian Form and armed with the Higurashi no Yaiba. With a shout and a swipe he unleashed a blast of golden energy that enveloped the Darklings and vaporized them, leaving Rena unharmed. As he approached her, he asked, "Are you okay?" Rena nodded, gazing at her golden knight in shining armor. "Here, I found this for you," he said as he passed the basket and doll to her. Rena squealed and hugged Showa tight before taking the basket and admiring the doll._

_Showa smiled but then he grunted as he dropped his sword. Rena gasped as Showa dropped to his knees and his armor flashed before vanishing. She dropped the doll basket and asked, "What happened? What's wrong, Shin-kun?"_

_Shinichi was seating and panting as he answered, "I'm still getting used to the new power, I guess." He started to shiver as well. It was pretty cold right now._

"_Come on," Rena said as she helped him to his feet, not forgetting to pick up the 'treasure' he'd acquired for her. She dragged him over to the van and opened the door before helping him inside. She then crawled inside and closed the door. She then turned on the lantern. Shinichi was laid down on a mattress and Rena lay next to him, pulling a blanket over them._

"_Rena…?" he uttered questionably as she curled up next to him._

"_Rest," he told her softly. "Shin-kun needs to rest."_

"_O…okay," he replied, unable to disobey that simple request. He felt her hand on his chest and she was so close he could smell her scent. It was lovely, calming, and she was so warm too._

"_Shin-kun, are you feeling cold?" she asked._

"_No," he answered._

"_Well, even if you're not, would you like to share body heat?" she offered._

_Shinichi stared at her and grinned. He knew how people shared body heat, of course; through skin-to-skin contact. Without hesitation he answered, "OK!"_

* * *

Battler had recovered and Dr. Hasuma brought the alien baby back to him so they could bond. He was still a bit stunned but not at all speechless anymore. Warren was present.

"Well, say something," said Dr. Hasuma.

"What do I say?" asked Battler.

"How about you give him a name?" Dr. Hasuma suggested. "You haven't at all named him yet."

"Him?" Battler stared at the baby alien. "How can you tell?"

"I'm a doctor. I know these things," Dr. Hasuma justified.

"Well…how about Junior?" Battler supplied.

"Honk! Honk!" the baby alien responded.

"Hey, I think he likes it," said Warren as he saw the baby alien jump up and down happily

"OK, Junior it is!" smiled Battler, setting on the name. "Little Battler Jr.!" Battler then realized a problem. "Um…how am I going to tell my folks?"

Daichi, Shogo and Yokoshima burst into the room to see the baby alien. "Woah, it really is a baby alien," Shogo said, surprised. "It wasn't some crazy story."

"It's really puny," Yokoshima analyzed.

Daichi just looked at the baby alien with disgust. "What a monstrosity. That thing is an abomination of nature." A spray of bullets barely missed his head as he ducked. Yokoshima and Shogo ducked as well.

Battler, an angry expression on his face, glared at Daichi with his gun hand's fingertips smoking. "Don't you dare talk about my kid like that!" he snapped.

"What is your problem?" Daichi demanded.

"You insulted a man's kid," Warren answered, which was obvious. As a father he knew how defensive he could get if someone insulted one of his kids.

"And I think it's because of hormones," added Dr. Hasuma. "He did just give birth."

"His kid!-?" Daichi gawked in disbelief. He turned to Battler, "You actually believe that thing, which you were infected with by the other alien, is really your kid?"

Battler picked up Junior and held him close, the alien responding happily at the closeness. "Yeah, what's the problem?" Battler asked.

"Fine! Whatever! I'm out of here!" Daichi walked out, mumbling about the place turning into some kind of crazy insane asylum.

"He's kinda cute," Yokoshima admired, "In a reptilian kind of way." He tickled Junior's chin. "Koochie-koochie-koo-OW!" Junior had bitten on his hand. "Get it off me!"

"It's fine, Yokoshima," reassured Dr. Hasuma. "He's just hungry. He needs to feed."

"Feed on what!-? My hand!-?" Yokoshima yelped as he felt the teeth digging deeper.

"No, your blood."

"BLOOD!-? GET IT OFF ME!"

Dr. Hasuma reached inside a cooler and pulled out a chilled pack of expired blood. "Here, Junior! I got a treat for you!" Junior released Yokoshima's hand and jumped out of Battler's arms before lunging for Dr. Hasuma. He grabbed the blood pack in his teeth and drank up the blood inside.

"Ow…" Yokoshima groaned, staring at his hand.

"Walk it off, you big baby," Shogo mocked. "I'm gonna work out in the gym."

* * *

Beato, Battler's girlfriend, who knew about Battler being a cyborg and working for ARMOR, was informed first. Battler made up a really convincing lie about Junior.

"So, let me get this straight," said Beato as she got into a thinking pose. "The alien's last dying wish was for you to care for its child and when it hatched from its egg it imprinted on you and so it thinks you're its mother."

"That about sums it up, yeah," Battler confirmed. Beato gave him a look. "What? Why is that so hard to believe?"

"Why would an alien choose you to become its baby's guardian?" Beato asked. She looked at Junior who was staring up at her. "So, did you give it a name?"

"Junior," Battler answered. "And how is that so hard to believe?"

"I don't think you're fit to be a father to anything, yet," Beato said.

"Just you watch, Beato. Taking care of Junior will be good practice. You'll see. I'll be a great dad!"

"Honk! Blarg! Blarg!" yelled out Junior.

"Fine, but you have to feed it," said Beato. She'd heard that Junior fed on blood and she was not about to donate any of hers.

* * *

"The Chupacabra, also known as the 'Goat Sucker' is a blood-sucking creature that hunts its prey in Mexico," Shinichi explained as he pointed at the screen with a pointing stick. The MysticLiner's dining car's lights had been dimmed and there was a projector at the opposite end of the car. On the screen was a sketch of the Chupacabra, which resembled an alien creature covered in spikes. "Next slide please."

The picture switched to the silhouette of a winged creature with red eyes. "The Mothman, a cryptid that appears commonly in Point Pleasant of West Virginia. Witnesses describe it as having massive wings, with no head, and red eyes set in its chest. They say that it's supposed to be a messenger of disaster and somehow responsible for the Silver Bridge collapse in 1967. Next slide please."

Another slide switch.

"The Owlman, half-man and half-owl, has been sighted around the small village Mawnan in Cornwall, Great Britain. Witnesses describe it as a huge owl and some even reported to have been attacked. Next slide please."

Another slide change.

"Here we have the wendigo." The wendigo was a humanoid beast that had deer antlers, sharp claws and fangs, and covered in fur with lupine features as well with long ears. "The wendigo is said to be a spirit that represent cannibalism and those who indulge in cannibalism would become vessels for the spirit, becoming the physical embodiment of the beast itself. Next slide."

The next slide showed the infamous Jersey Devil. "Here we have the Jersey Devil, which has been sighted around New Jersey, USA. It inhabits the Pine Barrens of Southern New Jersey. According to popular legend, the Jersey Devil is the 13th Child of 'Mother Leeds' and when she was giving birth to it, she said, 'let it be the devil', and when it was born the baby transformed into a devil-like creature before flying off."

The lights turned back as the projector was turned off. "So, any questions?" Shinichi asked everyone in attendance. Satan was the one working the projector if anyone was asking.

"Why are you telling us all this?" Yuri asked.

"Remember last week when we were at the desert?" Shinichi asked. "You know, with the slaves, and the mine filled with Sakuradite, and Yuri blowing up said mine?" Everyone nodded. "Well, I managed to catch a glimpse of some of the slaves and they were mentioned in several missing persons reports from these areas."

"So, why did it take you this long to tell us?" Kikyo asked.

"It's because I've been compiling some research and I discovered that at the same time these people went missing, in other words captured and used as slave labor by Gebok, the sightings of these creatures have increased, which leads me to believe that Gebok has genetically engineered creatures based on the cryptids I told you about," Shinichi explained.

"Isn't that just a coincidence?" Asura asked. Shinichi gave her a serious look.

"I don't believe in coincidences," said Shinichi, "Especially when it concerns Gebok. Therefore, we'll split up into teams of two and each team will check out these locations."

Yuji interjected, "You know, I once did some cryptid hunting with this family of scientists. Their kid was hilarious and they had a komodo dragon with its own active camo. It was really fun."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the NEO-NUMBERS' Hinamizawa Base which was underneath the Irie Clinic, Daichi was playing on his guitar with Leviathan listening.

"You know, I think I may have been wrong about Battler's kid," Daichi commented, laughing as he saw Michiru and Yokoshima wearing garlic around their necks. "The entertainment he provides makes him look good in the eyes."

Shogo yelled, annoyed, "For the last time! You won't turn into an alien because one drank your blood!"

"Oh yeah? Then you help feed Battler's kid next time!" Yokoshima snapped.

"Yeah!" agreed Michiru. "I felt like my torso was about to die."

Shogo was about to retort when Warren's face appeared on one of the monitors. He had a mission for them.

* * *

**BARREN PINES, SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY**

"I'm so glad you chose me, Shinichi!" smiled Satan.

"Well, everyone else was taken," said Shinichi. "And I trust you. I need a weapon for this and you can turn into a weapon."

"How sweet!"

Shinichi looked around the forest area and he saw movement. Was it the Jersey Devil? Only one way to find out. "The trees!" he ordered and he launched himself up onto the trees, jumping from branch to branch. Satan flew after him, realizing he'd found their target.

Shinichi was closing the distance between himself and his prey, jumping from tree to tree. "I got you!" He then kicked off a tree as hard as he could and launched himself like a missile at the black clad figure. The two tumbled down to the grass floor and rolled along the ground before stopping with Shinichi on top. "Got you!" His hand ended up on something soft and he realized it was a woman's breast.

"Get off me," the girl under him growled. She then kicked Shinichi off her. Satan arrived several seconds later after she caught up with them.

The girl Shinichi had tackled in midair was clad in a black bodysuit that was skintight on her body with a utility belt around her waist. She also wore knee high boots and elbow-high gloves, the same black as her costume so they melded in together. She wore a cape with the edges resembling the wings of a bat. On her chest were the letters JD and her face was concealed under a cowl which only revealed everything from the tip of her nose to the bottom of her chin. The mask even concealed her eyes in red film and was crowned by a pair of long and sharp horns.

"Who the heck are you?" Satan asked. "And why are you dressed for Halloween?"

"I should be asking you who you both are," the girl retorted.

"JD…" Shinichi murmured. "Wait, I think I heard of you. You're that vigilante from Jersey City that people are talking about."

"You know who she is?" Satan asked.

"Let's just say I've heard some interesting stories," Shinichi replied. He turned his attention to the costumed girl. "I thought you were an urban legend."

"Urban legends have some grain of truth in them," the girl responded. "So, you two got names?"

"You can call her Satan," Shinichi introduced. "I'm Juusan."

"13?" she translated. "You're named after a number."

"Let's just say I've had a very interesting life that I don't wanna talk about. What do we call you?" Shinichi asked.

"I'm the _Jersey Devil_," the girl told them.

Satan blinked. "_You're_ the Jersey Devil?"

"Not the Devil we're looking for then," said Shinichi. "So, JD, what are you doing out here?"

"A lot of people have been disappearing around these parts. Of course, just last week, the same missing persons have been found," said JD.

Shinichi knew ARMOR had something to do with it. "You can thank some friends of ours."

"Of course that has not yet ceased any new disappearances. A few campers in the area went missing several days ago and so I'm trying to find out what's causing it," said JD.

"You know, if they knew the Jersey Devil (the monster) was lurking in these woods, shouldn't they be avoiding it?" questioned Satan.

"Humans are curious people, Satan," Shinichi explained. "These campers might just want pictures of the real Jersey Devil."

"And curiosity kills the cat," JD quoted. "Now, if you don't mind, I have to crack this case before even more people go missing."

"How about we work together?" Shinichi offered.

"I work alone." And with a leap into the trees she was gone.

"Well, she was pleasant," Satan commented sarcastically.

"We can't force her to work for us and I think her reasons for working alone are a lot deeper than simple pride. She just doesn't trust us, and for good reason," Shinichi told her. "And to be honest I don't think we can trust her."

"Well, what now?" asked Satan.

"Continue searching," said Shinichi. He opened his coat and paper cicadas flew out in swarms. They were the cicada-type Shikigami he'd made to use as spies. "Spread out," he ordered and the paper cicadas all flew off into different directions. He asked Satan, "How's your transceiver?"

Satan touched the earpiece she was wearing and said, "It works. Yours?"

"Yeah, we'll split up here. Try not to get hurt," he said, genuinely concerned for her. He ended this with a brief one-armed hug before dashing off into the night.

Satan watched him go before she flew upwards to search elsewhere. As the pair split up, a pair of crimson eyes watched them before blinking out of sight.

* * *

JD, also known as the Jersey Devil of Jersey City, was a costumed vigilante. She prowled the streets at night, stopping crime. She became an urban legend at witnesses claim her to be some kind of demon that swooped in from the darkness.

Her parents had been scientists who were working on something top secret. Even she didn't know what it was. They always worked at home, using the basement as their lab. They were working on something for some company. Then, one day, when she came home from school she found her parents murdered. There was blood everywhere and her parents were lying on the floor. After that horrifying incident she was sent to live with her grandfather. After she turned 18 she returned to her house which had been abandoned. She went down to the basement and as she looked around she found her parent's journal which had been hidden behind a brick in the wall.

From that journal, she discovered what they had been working on and also who they had been working for. She then decided to use her parents' research for herself as it was her right as their daughter. With the research she created her suit and also her equipment. She used the myth of the Jersey Devil as inspiration for her suit's appearance.

She decided that she would make sure nobody would have to suffer the way she had from her own traumatic experience and with that the Jersey Devil was born. She still kept the journal and wanted to find the man her parents had been working for. They only knew him as 'GS' and he'd expressed interest in their work. Maybe he could shed some light on her parents' murder.

Of course, right now, that had to wait. She had to stop these serial kidnappings and find out who or what was doing it. This was her duty as the Jersey Devil.

* * *

As Shinichi darted through the trees, his eyes caught sight of a green glow out of the corner of his eye. Turning a sharp left, he went to check it out. He found himself in a clearing and in that clearing was none other than Alan Smith.

"When I saw that green glow, I should've known it was you," Shinichi said unhappily.

"Shinichi, we need to talk," said Alan.

"Sorry, but I'm busy." Shinichi was about to walk away when Conda leapt out of the bushes and lashed out with her whip. "Hey!" he shouted as the whip tied around him, binding his arms to his body and his legs together before she tackled him into the ground, putting one knee on his back. "GET OFF ME, YOU AMAZON!" Shinichi screamed.

Conda replied sharply, "Not until you listen to reason you stupid insect! Believe it or not, we're trying to help you!"

Shinichi called, "Biorider: Liquify." In an instant his entire body melted into a blue liquid formed which flowed through the bindings and then reformed into Shinichi a short distance away. He was also clad in his BLACK 13 armor.

Conda teased as she rolled her whip back up, "I thought a perverted boy like you would love to have been in my grasp."

"I'm not here to play with you, Alan. People are disappearing and…" BLACK 13 stopped as one of his cicada Shikigami landed on his shoulder. It chirped. "I see. Then lead the way." He summoned his wings and flew off.

"Do we go after him?" Conda asked. Alan didn't reply as he flew after BLACK 13. Rolling her eyes, Conda ran in pursuit.

* * *

JD grunted as she was thrown against a tree. "Ow…" she groaned as she rubbed the back of her head. She then glared up at her opponent. It was a humanoid beast that was covered in fur, from head to toe, with hooves for feet, claws tipping its fingers and bat-like wings. It also sported the head of a goat with sharp teeth and antlers on its head. This was the Jersey Devil.

Reaching into her utility belt, JD took out a metal cylinder which then lengthened into a full battle staff. Gripping her weapon in hand, she charged at the beast before jabbing it several times in the torso. It did not react from the blows but she did manage to push it back several feet. She reached into her belt and pulled out a boomerang with sharp edges. With a powerful toss she threw it at the Jersey Devil's face and it cut into its left eye. The beast howled as it covered its damaged eye.

"Alright, tough guy," said JD as she twisted her staff and a sharp point popped out from the front end. "Time to take you down." She then lunged and stabbed her weapon forward, only for the Jersey Devil to grab it. "Huh?" She gasped as she was punched hard in the gut and sent crashing into a bush. Despite the protective body armor she wore under her costume, she had felt the blow.

Rising back to her feet, JD was not going to give up this fight. She glared at the beast and it lunged at her with a roar. Suddenly, a spray of bullets burst out of nowhere and hit the Jersey Devil with a deadly barrage that sent it staggering back, arms raised to block the projectiles.

JD looked and saw BLACK 13 walking out of the shadows and his right arm was now a machinegun. He continued to shoot at the Jersey Devil, not letting up, when all of a sudden a green blast of energy crashed into the Jersey Devil and sent it flying before it crashed into the ground.

"I thought I told you to stay out of my way," said BLACK 13 as the Green Lantern landed.

"Since when do I listen to a rogue agent?" Alan retorted. BLACK 13 smiled under his mask.

"Hey, Partner!" called Bazel. "Hot girl in tight spandex!"

Alan glanced at JD who watched as BLACK 13 confronted the Jersey Devil. BLACK 13 eyes saw blood on the creature's body and while his bullets had done some damage, the creature was still standing. That meant that the Jersey Devil's flesh was durable enough to withstand projectile weapons but not strong enough to deflect them as it could still be wounded. However, the wounds were superficial. The bullets had not penetrated and were just stuck in its skin.

The Jersey Devil was said to be an immortal creature and considering when the legend started there was no chance that it could be killed due to natural causes. The only conclusion was that it was a demon and that it could heal itself from its injuries.

Still, even something as immortal as the Jersey Devil had to have a weak spot.

"RX: Macro Eye," BLACK 13 called and his eyes flashed. The Macro Eye granted BLACK 13 X-Ray vision and he scanned the Jersey Devil. He discovered the truth. It was an actual creature but there was something in its brain. It was a mind control chip! "So, that's what it is." He then drew his sword and it changed into the Higurashi no Yaiba. "Time to put this animal out of its misery."

The Jersey Devil roared, spread out its wings, and lunged at BLACK 13 who was ready for it. That was when Satan moved, turning into her Stake form. She stabbed into the beast's right eye, causing it to roar in pain. BLACK 13 then moved and with a single swipe of his demon-banishing sword, the sharp edge cut into the Jersey Devil's flesh. Blood splashed from the wound as the beast howled, grabbing onto the gash before it crashed against the ground. It whimpered in pain as BLACK 13 turned his eyes towards it. He was going to finish it for good.

That was when Alan stood in his way. "No more killing," he said in finality.

"You can't stop me, Alan," BLACK 13 responded coldly.

"To hell I can't!" Alan snapped. He glared at the rogue agent, "So, is this what you've become, Shinichi? If something doesn't fit your definition of natural it must be a monster that has to be destroyed?"

"This is a mercy killing, Alan," Shinichi reasoned as his armor vanished, breaking off into fragments that flaked off his body. A green dot appeared in the middle of Shinichi's forehead.

"I'm going to make this incredibly simple so even your warped mind can understand it, Shinichi," Alan growled. "Either you stand down, or I put you down. "

Shinichi chuckled morbidly, "Now who's trying to put down a monster, Alan?"

"I'm warning you, Shinichi."

Shinichi walked closer into Alan's firing range, "Then go ahead, Alan. Kill me. That's the only way you can truly make me stop."

Alan smirked, "Who said anything about killing you? My ring can emit an EMP blast that will floor you. And then I'll drag your dumb ass back to ARMOR."

Shinichi growled. An EMP would definitely put him down and Alan's ring could generate any kind of energy he wanted so an EMP would not be out of the question. With an annoyed click of his tongue he slid his sword back into the scabbard.

Shinichi turned and walked away, "Satan, we're leaving!"

"No, you're not," Alan denied, "I told you that the next time I saw you I'd bring you in."

Shinichi turned back to eye the Green Lantern, "Yes, you said you would drag me back by my ankles if you had to. If you have time to chase after me, then you have time to find Gebok before I do. Because, when I find him, he's going straight to Hell. For his sake, you better be the one that finds him first."

Satan then grabbed onto Shinichi and in the blink of an eye and flash of gold they were gone.

Alan gritted his teeth, "I swear to God, one of these days, I'm gonna have to kick his ass." He looked and also saw that JD was gone. He then glanced towards the Jersey Devil. What to do with it?

That was when the Higurashi no Yaiba suddenly appeared before Alan.

Alan picked up the sword, and suddenly an apparition of Yabuki appeared in front of him. "I'm guessing you're Yabuki?" he asked.

Yabuki nodded, "_Indeed. Young Lantern, you need to understand that Shinichi has perfectly good reasons for doing what he is doing_."

Alan glared at the spirit, "I know...And it's those same 'perfectly good reasons' that turned me into Parallax and caused me to nearly destroy the Multiverse."

Yabuki crossed his arms, "_Indeed, but within the darkness there is still a flicker of light in him. You've seen it for yourself, have you not?_"

Alan nodded, "I have. And that's why I know he needs to be stopped. Shinichi's a Smith...When we lose it, there's not stopping us. My brother Alex took down an entire crime syndicate because they killed his friend. Leon took on the Soul Society to get Rhode back. And I nearly destroyed the Multiverse. Shinichi needs to be stopped, not just for his own good, but for the sake of this Universe."

_"Don't you trust him? Then put your faith in him now, young Lantern. The others and I chose him as our wielder of a reason and if he had really gone mad we would've abandoned him. Trust that he knows what he is doing."_

Alan sighed, "I do, but he's just going about it in the worst way possible."

Yabuki frowned, "_I cannot change your views, but if you try to capture him he will resist you. It won't do anyone any good if you try to capture him because he is set on this path. He has sworn a vendetta and until it is settled he won't stop. Only death will stop him and even so someone else will take his place. Revenge is a cruel and cold cycle, Young Lantern, and you understand that as much as he does_." Yabuki disappeared along with the sword.

"Stupid sword," Alan grumbled, "I never said I wanted to stop him from getting revenge...I just don't want him turning into a monster because of it."

* * *

**MEXICO**

"So, you're my brother's new squeeze," Yuri commented as they sat at a campsite in the desert. "How's that working for ya?"

"Well, I can't say it's bad," Misato answered, "Yuji's actually very sweet. I thought he was a ruthless fighter when I first saw him fight the other Soldats. It was supposed to be a one-time thing, because of a bet he won. But…"

Yuri cocked an eyebrow, "But?"

"When I drank some of his blood, I saw everything. His life as he grew up, the women that died for him, the pain he'd been through," Misato elaborated with sadness in her voice, "I'd never imagine that I'd meet someone who was so…vulnerable."

"And you grew attached to him," Yuri concluded. "Well, that's my brother for you. He always was and always will be the delicate one of us three."

Misato glared, "And you don't feel sorry for him? I thought you were his brother."

"I am," Yuri nodded, "I've done my best to guide while I was stuck in his mind, but our perspectives clashed quite frequently. I actually despised my brother for a time since he had a physical body while I did not. Then when were separated I ended up sacrificing my own life to save his own." He grinned, "Now look at me! I have my full Manakyte power**s **back and then some! I must say that it's grand to be alive!"

Misato laughed, "I here ya there!" She then paused. "Hey, do you see that?" She spotted a shape in the air.

* * *

"Hana! I got it! I got it!" screamed Carmen as she held on to dear life onto the Chupacabra. It was trapped in Arachnea's web net and trying to break free. They were trying to wrangle the beast but with little success.

The Chupacabra was definitely bigger than described, as big as a bull in fact and it didn't have any fur. Its skin was sand-colored, allowing it to blend in with the desert and it had claws with spikes running down its spine from the top of its head to the tip of its tail. It had bulbous black eyes and when it opened its mouth it revealed sharp canines and the tip of its tongue sported a sucker. Under its arm it sported membranes that would allow it to glide.

Truly an alien creature and a demonic and vampiric one considering how it got its name: the infamous Goat Sucker.

"Woah!" Carmen cried as she was tossed and into a cactus. The Chupacabra then tore the web net off it, which pretty much showed how strong it was because Arachnea's webbing was very strong. The Tarantula Rider reached behind her back and pulled out her dual Spider Kama. With four scythes in each hand, she leapt at the creature, swiping at it. It was fast, though and dodged her assault before striking at her armored body with its claws, ripping sparks away. It then grabbed her by the shoulders and opened its mouth to bite down on her neck but it was knocked backwards by Carmen's flying kick.

"Nobody gives Hana-chan hickeys but me!" Carmen declared proudly.

"Michiru…must you…?" Arachnea slowly asked. Carmen gave her a 'V' sign and the Tarantula Rider sighed while rolling her eyes. Roaring, the Chupacabra lunged and the two girls broke apart with Carmen shooting with her shoulder-mounted guns that were shaped like flowers. Petal-like projectiles impacted with painful force causing the Chupacabra to howl. That allowed Hana to slash at it with her Spider Kama and the blades cut into its skin, causing blood to ooze out. It clenched the wound and growled before it took off for higher ground. "Go after it!" Arachnea ordered. Carmen nodded as they gave chase. It climbed up a tall stone structure and spread out its arms as it jumped, allowing the membranes to catch the wind as it started to glide away.

* * *

The Chupacabra thought it was home free until it was kicked harshly in the side by Misato. A powerful punch to the head sent it plummeting to the ground and it crashed with a loud boom on impact. Flicking her wrist, the Mosquito Demoness hovered down to land. The Chupacabra was getting back up and snarled at her. She grimaced in disgust at this being. It dared to be like a vampire while its appearance was horrendous and beast-like. Snapping her fingers, Misato assumed her Mosquito Demon form and summoned her Blood Rapiers.

The Chupacabra came at her and slashed with its claws as she blocked the blows with her blades. Its claws never touched her as her swords were in the way. She found an opening and ran it through with one of her swords before drawing it back and using a back kick to send the wounded Chupacabra sliding back against the desert ground.

She took a whiff of the blood on her blade and almost gagged. Yuji's blood was much better, several times better, in terms of aroma and flavor. She would not dare taste it knowing how foul its odor was.

The Chupacabra lunged for her but a metal tail slammed it straight in the face, knocking it backwards. Kamen Rider Geno stood over its downed prey with insane glee. How easy it was to take it down. "Alright, let's kill this thing," said Geno. "Maybe I can keep its head as a souvenir and mount it on my wall."

Misato rolled her eyes. Her ears then picked up the sound of motorbikes and she spotted a couple of figured coming in their direction. She recognized them instantly. It wasn't hard for her to recognize the Mantis and Tarantula Riders who were coming at them on their motorbikes.

She looked back at Kamen Rider Geno and saw that he had twisted the Chupacabra's neck, killing it. He then ripped the head right off. "You really want to keep that?" asked Misato. She liked senseless violence as much as the next psycho but she still disliked the smell of the Chupacabra's blood.

"I could make it into a nice paperweight or ashtray," Kamen Rider Geno mused aloud.

Misato actually liked his style. It was vicious and bloodthirsty. She then put her hand on Geno's shoulder and they vanished in a burst of black butterflies that faded as soon as Carmen and Arachnea were near.

Carmen blinked as she looked at the Chupacabra's dead, "It's dead." She was stating the obvious fact that was presented before them, without its head. "Who could've done this?"

"Who knows, but it makes our job easier," said Arachnea.

"We were supposed to capture it alive, though," said Carmen. "At least the goats and chickens will be safe."

* * *

**POINT PLEASANT, WEST VIRGINIA**

The fire devil and former Shikabane Hime were walking along the road as they made their own small talk. They had spoke with several witnesses who'd seen the Mothman and didn't come up with much only that when it appeared it would mean doom.

"So, how's the psycho treating you?" Asura asked. "You two seem to have a pretty good standing on things."

"Yes," Hana-hime smiled, "Yuri-kun is very sweet and kind, despite his usual disposition. Sharing a life with him is far better than when I was a Shikabane Hime."

"I'll take your word for it," Asura nodded.

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

Hana-hime elaborated, "How are things with you and Yuji-san?"

"Like any big family behaves," Asura smiled. "To be honest, it's a lot different from being on my own, before I met Yuji. It was so long ago, when I watched him train with Kurohime. Never in my life have I seen someone so dedicated as him."

"And you grew to love him," Hana-hime smiled.

"I guess you're right."

Suddenly, they heard a screech.

"Time to move," ordered Hana-hime.

"It's time to move," said Asura.

* * *

Up in the air, Zero dodged a flying swipe from the creature, the Mothman he'd been told, and he realized how fast it was. He also got a good look at the creature. It was humanoid to an extent, with massive bat-like wings instead of arms, red eyes set in its chest above a mouth filled with sharp teeth and claws for feet.

It would resemble more of a malformed bat than a moth but people considered the Mothman name to be better. Since they only saw it in the dark, it was the best they could come up with. Also, its wretched screeching really hurt his ears.

Zero unleashed a rapid fire assault of stingers at the Mothman to bring it down but it countered with a screech that acted like a barrier as sonic waves collided with the stingers and sent them falling away harmlessly.

His mission was to capture, not kill, and he was trying not to use lethal force. His stingers would be able to stun and paralyze the creature long enough for capture. Unfortunately, that was easier said than done.

The Mothman flapped its wings and unleashed a gust of wind that pushed Zero backwards. His wings buzzed rapidly as he tried to stay where he was. The Mothman then swooped in and rammed into Zero, causing him to grunt as he rolled through the air. It then attacked with a wing swipe followed by a sonic screech that sent him crashing to the ground below. He made a trench as he was sent skidding along the ground. Now the fight had shifted from the air onto the ground and he looked around to see he was in the woods near Point Pleasant. Well, he didn't exactly feel pleasant right now considering what he was up against.

"Dammit…" Zero cursed and saw the Mothman coming back down, only for it to receive a fireball directly in its face. The fireball exploded and the Mothman screeched as it was engulfed by flames.

"Need help?" Asura offered as she ran into the area with Hana-hime.

"What are you doing here?" asked Zero.

"We were ordered to," Asura and Hana-hime answered.

The Mothman was able to put itself out and it swooped at them but a punch from Hana-hime's gauntlet-covered fist knocked it straight into the air. The painful impact of her fist against it had caused agonizing pain and Hana-hime smirked in satisfaction. It forced itself up and screeched at them but another fireball against its face shut it up. Then, a rain of stingers hit its wings, tearing through them and shredding them up. The two girls looked to see Zero with his arms pointed at the thing.

"This is still my mission," said Zero. "I am to capture it."

"Does it say in what condition?" asked Hana-hime.

"Preferably alive and if I can't avoid it then I have to bring back a corpse," said Zero.

"Corpse it is then, just tell me if you prefer it medium rare or well done," said Asura as fire danced on her fingertips.

"Not here," said Zero. They were in the woods. Asura could cause a forest fire. It was only lucky that her last fireball hadn't started one yet.

"I got it," said Hana-hime and then she dashed at the Mothman. The Mothman was shaken up by the pain and spotted the girl coming at it. A punch between the eyes disoriented it and then she squatted down and grabbed its ankles, pulling it onto its back. She then tossed it up and with an uppercut she sent it rocketing straight into the air.

"One fast fireball special," said Asura and she threw the fireball after the Mothman which had been sent skyward, high over the trees. The fireball hit it and exploded. The Mothman, hopefully dead, then dropped down and fell through the branches. "It should be out there, you better go look for it," said Asura.

"Thank you," said Zero.

"You're not coming after us?" asked Hana-hime.

"My orders were to capture the creature, dead or alive," said Zero.

"Well, thanks," said Asura. "OK, let's go!"

Zero watched them go. He could pursue them but clearly that was not the priority right now. He then went into the woods to find his target, or what remained of it.

* * *

**MAWNAN, CORNWALL**

Kikyo and Melanie were sent to Mawnan, Cornwall to hunt for the Owlman. While there they spoke with the villagers, asking about the Owlman. However, what they got was silence and doors slammed with their faces as well as windows being closed up once they mentioned the creature. Also, they weren't too friendly with outsiders so they didn't tell them much. They managed to talk with the priest of the church who'd once seen the creature and described it as a demon which inhabited the nearby woods. He warned them not to go in. Of course, the two girls set up camp there since it was the best spot to catch the elusive Owlman.

Kikyo was polishing her rifle while Melanie, the Dark Lady Pokégirl, sat at their camp as both watched out for any signs of the target.

"Kind of cold out here," Melanie commented.

"Maybe it's because of how you dress," Kikyo pointed out.

"Shut up," the Pokégirl grumbled.

Kikyo scanned the skies. The Owlman could strike at any moment. It was, in her mind's eye, a massive bird of prey.

"So, what do you think about this whole Owlman deal?" asked Melanie.

"A demon," Kikyo concluded.

* * *

In a nearby wooded area, there was a clash occurring between monsters. One was a man-made monster while the other was a beast of legend and fear.

Slasher was sent dodge-rolled from the talons that tried to grab at him and gazed up at his opponent. This was the mythical Owlman of Cornwall and it was truly a horrifying sight. It was humanoid and covered with feathers and like birds had talons on its feet. It also had armed that had the same talons on its hands. On its back were wings and its head was that of an owl, a rather evil-looking owl.

It was like staring at the Devil himself if he were a bird of prey himself and what made the Owlman even more disturbing was for it to turn its head all the way around. Its back was turned to him but it managed to turn its head around to glare at him.

He activated his chainsaws and held them before him. It was clearly it's time to feed. It swooped down and managed to dodge Slasher's chainsaws. It then got behind Slasher and scratched him in the back, causing sparks to spill onto the ground when its attack connected. It then proceeded to grab Slasher by his shoulders and lift him up.

**-BANG!-**

A bullet zipped through the air, hitting the Owlman's right wing.

**-BANG!-**

Another bullet hit its left wing.

With a cry of pain it released Slasher and fell to the ground with a thud. Flapping its wings was now a painful chore as it tried to get back to the air. It now lost its aerial advantage over it grounded opponent.

He spun around and fired his special adhesive at its eyes and the creature cried out as it tried to pull the substance out. Slasher then used his chainsaws to cut a tree down and it fell on top of the Owlman, crushing it under the weight.

"Alright, time to call it in," said Slasher. He wondered where the shots came from though but the capture of the Owlman took priority.

Hidden among the trees, sitting on the branches, were Melanie and Kikyo. The barrel of Kikyo's rifle smoked from the two shots she had fired with extreme precision.

"You know that was supposed to be our target," said Melanie, reminding her of Shinichi's orders.

"As long as the Owlman no longer threatens anyone, that all that matters," said Kikyo. "Let us return."

* * *

**CANADA **

Meanwhile, in a forest that was situated in one of the many mountain areas of Canada, a pair of young men was having a heated discussion. Also, it happened to be raining as well which was causing one of them to be in a bad mood.

"Alright, let's go into that cave," Daichi pointed. "That thing might be using it as shelter."

"You want to go in a cave?" Yokoshima asked nervously.

"That's what I said." Daichi gave the Pill Bug Cyborg a suspicious look. "What, you don't like caves?"

"Why do we need to go in a cave where there are like hundreds of evil bats? It's not necessary, is it?" Yokoshima babbled.

"Shut up and get in the cave, Yokoshima!" Daichi growled.

"Did you hear that?" Yokoshima jumped. "It sounded like bats!"

"No, that's the sound of the rain! Bats don't drip!"

"Bat water!"

Daichi grumbled and said to Yokoshima, "OK, so let's say there are bats in that cave. We're cyborgs who are equipped with bio-mechanical body armor that is made to deflect bullets and absorb explosions. What can a five ounce flying rodent do?"

Yokoshima looked at Daichi and said, "…So, you're saying there are bats."

"Fine, I'm saying there are bats!" Daichi let out in exasperation.

"I am not going into that cave then!" Yokoshima said in finality.

"We're going into that cave, Yokoshima!" Daichi snapped. "That's an order!"

Yokoshima didn't want to go in the cave but Daichi was forcing him to until he remembered what Daichi didn't like. "Hey, Dai, you know what else live in caves?" Yokoshima asked and then he answered, "Snakes."

"Why would you mention snakes at a time like this?" Daichi questioned.

"Well, I know you don't like snakes and a cave is dark, so a snake can just slither up next to you and-"

"Alright, let's forget the cave!" Daichi decided. Suddenly, something flew past Yokoshima and hit Daichi.

"Hey, Dai," Yokoshima looked. "There's something on your neck."

"What…?" Daichi responded, his voice becoming slow. "Is it a snake…? Get it off me…?" He then collapsed. There was a dart in his neck.

"Dai?" Yokoshima asked. A dart hit his neck. "Ow!" Several more darts hit his body. "Ow!" Another one hit his crotch. "Ow!" He then collapsed next to Daichi.

* * *

Daichi woke up and felt hot. When he opened his eyes, he realized that he was staring at a fire. He also realized that he was being turned away from the fire in a spinning motion. "Yokoshima!" he called.

"Huh…?" Yokoshima opened his eyes. "What…what happened?"

"I think we got drugged," Daichi guessed as he saw the flames again. "Yup, definitely drugged."

"Where are we?" Yokoshima asked.

"I think we've been tied back to back to a rotisserie," Daichi concluded and he was right. Yokoshima and Daichi had been stripped naked and tied back-to-back to a rotisserie set and being cooked over an open fire. "Well, this sucks."

"And we're in a cave!" added Yokoshima.

"I know that!" Daichi snapped.

They heard growling and looked down to see the Wendigo rolling the make-shift rotisserie set it had made out of sticks. It was salivating. The Wendigo looked like a humanoid beast with antlers like a deer and having sharp teeth. It also had claws on its fingertips. It also wore what appeared to be tattered pants, as if it was once human.

"Crap, we're gonna get eaten!" cried out Yokoshima. "This is not how I wanted to die."

**-BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!-**

The Wendigo snarled it was pelted by powerful bullets and turned to see the assaulter. It was Yuji and next to him was Stella, his White Tigress.

"Leave this beast to me, Master, and free your friends," Stella said as she rushed at the Wendigo and tackled it.

Yuji whistled as he walked over to Yokoshima and Daichi, "Hey guys."

"Hey Yuji," Yokoshima greeted.

Daichi growled as he was staring into the flames, "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Stella and I actually came looking for him," he gestured to the Wendigo. He turned back to the sight before him and grimaced, "This is probably the gayest BBQ I have ever seen. At least he wasn't gonna eat you two with Canadian bacon."

Yokoshima shivered despite the heat, "Oh god, anything but that…"

"You gonna help us down or not?-!" Daichi snapped

Back with Stella and the Wendigo, the creature snarled at the intruder while they were circling one another.

Stella then gave the beast a curt bow, "Let us have a good fight!" And the two lunged for each other.

Daichi and Yokoshima, once loose summoned their armor. The Cricket Rider brandished his Cricket Fork, angered by the humiliation he had to endure. The Pill Bug Rider just wanted to pay the Wendigo back for wanting to make them its next midnight snack.

Yuji got in their way and glared, "This is Stella's fight. If you butt in, she's just gonna kick your asses, along with wolfy over there."

The White Tigress and the Wendigo growled as they grappled with each other before the female kicked it into the wall. She lunged at it with her claws and it rolled away. Her slash left trenches in the surface of the wall. The Wendigo then punched Stella in the gut, causing her to double over briefly but she grinned as she grabbed its arm and then twisted her body up so she could wrap her legs tightly around its throat. It tried to pry her off as she continued to squeeze. It was like a sleeper hold, but with her legs instead of arms.

It then managed to get her off violently by slamming into the cave wall, breaking her grip on it. It then grabbed her by the head and smashed her skull into the wall. Fortunately, Pokegirls were made of sterner stuff and with Yuji's training her endurance levels had increased. She claws at the hand holding her head, spilling blood and then leapt up to deal a double whammy kick into its chest, sending it falling backwards into the fire. It howled from the intense heat.

"Shouldn't we help?" asked Armadillo.

"You really want to get in the middle of that?" Yuji asked, pointing with his thumb.

Armadillo watched as the Wendigo and White Tigress clawed at each other. Stella's clothes were being torn up by them and the Wendigo was receiving its own slash wounds as well.

"Nah, I'm good," said Armadillo.

"Coward," Musician snorted.

"Hey, do you wanna go in there, Dai?" Armadillo argued.

"I know from experience that when women wanna deal with things alone, it's best to let them deal with it alone. Getting involved is just too painful," said Musician.

"Smartest thing you've said tonight," said Yuji.

Stella used a powerful roundhouse kick that threw the Wendigo throw the air and it landed in the fire pit. It howled as the fire burned it and it started to jump up and down, screaming. It then threw itself to the ground and started to roll about to rid itself of its flames. When the flames were out it looked up to stare at Stella who brought her heel down on its face.

**CRACK!**

"I'm done!" Stella finished. She'd just knocked out the Wendigo.

"Hey, look," Armadillo watched and the Wendigo started to change. Its bestial appeared started to become replace with a more human-like appearance as fur receded. The antlers on its head also seemed to vanish and slowly but sure the Wendigo was replaced by a human woman, a very topless human woman with short brown hair.

"It's a girl!-?" exclaimed Musician and Armadillo in shock.

Yuji pulled off his jacket and put it over the woman's half naked body.

"I hope I didn't hurt her too bad," said Stella.

"No, you did what you had to do," said Yuji. He inspected the interior of the caves. He saw a lot of bones, human bones. They were all victims of the Wendigo's appetite for human flesh. "What's this?" Yuji whispered as he brushed away some of the woman's hair and he spotted something. It was a circular device with a blinking red light and it was stuck to the side of her head, hidden by her hair.

"Hey, that looks like a mind control device," said Armadillo.

"Are you sure?" Yuji asked.

"Yeah, Dr. Magi told me about these things. They mess up with your head and you have no choice but to do what the person controlling you says," Armadillo explained.

Yuji removed the mind control device and crushed it in his hand. The device must've been planted after she was turned into a Wendigo. Gebok didn't even bother implanting it inside her body. Didn't he care?

"Hey, Daichi, Yokoshima, you should take this girl to ARMOR," Yuji suggested.

"Why should we listen to you?" demanded Daichi.

"Because if you don't pictures of you both roasting over an open fire, naked, will be delivered to everyone you know," Yuji threatened, grinning. He looked like he was channeling Yuri's personality for a second there. Daichi paled at the threat. He couldn't risk for his reputation to take a dive. "Come on, Stella. Let's leave. We've done our job."

As they left the cave together, Yuji told the two cyborgs, "Don't get lost, OK? We wouldn't want either of you to go hungry and be taken over by the Wendigo as well!"

* * *

The five creatures were taken to ARMOR. The young woman who'd been the Wendigo had no ID on her so it would take time to find out who she was. At the moment she was being heavily sedated. They couldn't risk her waking up and turning into the Wendigo again. The Mothman had been burnt to a crisp, however, and was confirmed dead. The Owlman was injured with broken bones from the tree falling on top of it. The Jersey Devil had received a gash from a sword and finally the body of the Chupacabra was without a head.

Mind control chips were removed from the Owlman, Jersey Devil and the carcass of the Mothman. They were all definitely Gebok's handiwork and he'd been using these creatures to abduct people. The origins of these creatures were still a mystery though. Were they really legendary demons or genetically-engineered creations?

* * *

Daichi was in his quarters, pacing back and forth, and in a rage, "I have never been so humiliated in all my life!" Being caught with his pants down, literally, and tied with Yokoshima had been the lowest point in his life. It was made even more embarrassing when Yuji found them. Leviathan was with him.

"I doubt Onii-sama will tell anyone," Leviathan reassured. She added, however, "But I'm not too sure about Stella." Daichi grumbled. She floated over to his back and wrapped her arms around him. "How about you let me take care of your aches and pains, _lover_?"

Daichi shivered a bit when she used that tone. "How?" he asked.

"First, you need to take off your clothes," instructed Leviathan.

"What for?" he asked suspiciously.

"You ask too many questions," she whispered. "Now, clothes off." She removed herself from Daichi as he removed his clothes, leaving only his boxers. She crossed her arms and glared at him.

"What?" he questioned.

"I said clothes off, and I mean everything off!" she ordered. She pointed at his boxers. "Those too."

Daichi grumbled and took off his boxers and as he did that she slipped off her blazer and undid the buttons of her vest before she slipped it off as well. She undid her tie, letting it fall from her collar and then removed her white blouse. She pulled her skirt away and then slid out of her boots.

Daichi watched as she stripped down to her leotard.

"Now," she told him, smiling. "Lie down on the bed, facedown." Daichi got on the bed and Leviathan stared at his well-toned ass. She shook her head. She had to focus and be patient.

When he was on his bed, his head rested in his arms, she straddled his back. "Levi?" he questioned. He then felt her hands on the back of her neck, her thumbs rolling into the flesh. "Oh…oh yeah…" He closed his eyes and groaned in pleasure as she started her message. She then went and gently rubbed his shoulders.

"You're always so tense, lover," she said. Leviathan had taken some lessons from her youngest sister on how to talk to the man she loved.

"_Yoko-kun likes it when I call him 'lover'_," Asmodeus' voice echoed in her mind. "_I also like it when he makes me squeal while pounding me silly!_"

Now, Leviathan was alright with girl-talk among her sisters but she felt envious towards Asmodeus who'd found her lover first and also an affectionate one at that. He may not have been very intelligent but he loved Asmodeus and she was content with that.

Leviathan, on the other end, got this angry young man she was massaging. On their first confrontation he'd hated her because she reminded her of his sister. She then found out how. It was just cruel. As bad as Leviathan was at times she would never dream of doing that to any of her siblings, even if they got annoying. Daichi even revealed that he'd killed the bitch. Leviathan actually wanted to kill her with her own blade.

She felt Daichi relax under her and smiled. She then leaned her body over and whispered into his ear, "I made you feel good, lover. Now it's your turn."

* * *

"So, Yuji-niisama saved you," concluded Asmodeus.

"Yeah, you got that right. But man, was it embarrassing," said Yokoshima. She giggled. "It's not funny."

"I'm just glad you're not monster food," said Asmodeus.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now, another mission and another confrontation between the forces of ARMOR and their rogue agents. I decided to use cryptids for this chapter because I have an interest in them. I don't wanna look for them, but I like looking up stories on them, and witness accounts and I just thought of doing something like LOST TAPES episode. Well, as you can see these creatures have been mind-controlled but the question is are these truly the cryptids of legend or something Gebok made for his plans? Who know? You decide, OK? BTW, you get three lemons in one chapter. You can just skip them if you want. I don't mind.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: T****his was a pretty interesting chap. gave me a chance to do some elaborating on some of Yuri's past. Don't worry, more will be revealed in the future. Just wait and see.**


	49. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 9

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 9: Brief Bliss**

Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter arrived at the scene, which was one of X-SHOCKER's arctic bases. The building itself was still standing but there were bodies lying about, bodies of offline W14's who'd been assigned to guard this place. It all seemed suspicious.

"Why is that building still standing?" Cyclops Knight asked. "And where's BLACK 13? Usually he blows up the place before he leaves." Cyborg Hunter grunted. "Inside the building?" The Cyborg Hunter growled in response. "You're right. Maybe we should check it out."

They approached the building and all of a sudden it exploded, taking them along with it. They never saw the explosion coming, nor had they spotted the charges which had been buried around it.

BLACK 13 stepped out from his hiding spot and smirked, "Showtime."

Cyclops Knight, dazed and disoriented by the blast, looked up at his hands. He spotted a figure approaching and saw his sword was within reach. He went for it only for a foot to pin his wrist down and he saw the barrel of a shotgun in his line of sight.

Cyclops Knight questioned, "BLACK 13?"

BLACK 13 greeted insincerely, "Hello, Cyclops. Did you miss me?"

Cyclops Knight glared, "You were the one who led us here. What do you want? Are you going to kill me?"

BLACK 13 rolled his eyes. "Oh please. Don't flatter yourself. You're not the one I want but you have answers I need. I only have one question: Where is Gebok?"

"And why should I tell you that?"

BLACK 13 shook his head as he tsked and said, "Wrong answer." So he didn't get the answers he wanted. At least he got to destroy another one of Gebok's creations, but not before ripping the information he needed out of Cyclops Knight's head. "Looks like I'm going to have to take the answers I need, by force." However, BLACK 13 was suddenly tackled by the Cyborg Hunter and they went rolling along the snow.

**BEGIN SONG: Ice Fight from Red VS Blue Revelation Soundtrack (the song that plays when Tex fights Washington and Meta)**

BLACK 13 kicked Cyborg Hunter off him and rolled to his feet, getting some distance between them. When the Cyborg Hunter charged at him, BLACK 13 put up his fists and waited as he came close and sidestepped his swing before knocking him down with a punch to the back of the head.

Once more the Cyborg Hunter was back on his feet and had grabbed for his Brute Shot. Instead of using his salvo of grenades he swung at BLACK 13 with the blade as BLACK 13 blocked with his forearm blades. Their weapons clashed and sparks flew. With a swing of his fist he knocked the Brute Shot out of the Cyborg Hunter's hands and then punched him hard in the chest, sending him flying.

The Cyborg Hunter picked himself up and slammed a fist into the snow in agitation before getting back up and charging at BLACK 13, swinging. BLACK 13 blocked all the blows before hitting the Cyborg Hunter in the chin with a palm strike, and then kneeing him in the stomach before using a back kick to send him flying.

BLACK 13 then pressed a button on his remote and a Gatling gun shot up out from the snow and into his hand. It was something he'd procured from one of the X-SHOCKER's weapon stores he'd raided earlier and as he swung it around to shoot at the Cyborg Hunter, bullets came spraying out of the rotating barrels. The Cyborg Hunter ran from the assault, taking cover behind an ice formation as the bullets began to cut it down to size.

Cyclops Knight was up on his feet and picked up his sword as he watched the fight.

The Cyborg Hunter took out a pistol and started shooting at BLACK 13 who abandoned the heavy Gatling gun for a lighter weapon.

BLACK 13 called, "Machinegun Arm!" and his right arm turned into the aforementioned weapon.

BLACK 13 fired back at the Cyborg Hunter with a spray of bullets then ducked under a sword swing from Cyclops Knight before turning around and knocking the sword out of his hand. He then knocked him off his feet with a sweep kick. Cyclops Knight went after his sword before it went off the cliff and turned to see that the Cuborg Hunter had BLACK 13 pinned down as the Machinegun Arm still fired off bullets. BLACK 13 managed to roll them over but was blasted by Cyclops Knight's eye.

He went rolling painfully along the snow and glared up at his two opponents. Luckily for him, and unluckily for them, he had everything prepared. He may not get any answers from them verbally, but maybe he could read their memories from their severed heads.

Standing up, BLACK 13 revealed a switch in his hand and pressed down on the button. He had set up a line of charges on the cliff face behind Cyborg Hunter and Cyclops Knight and they all exploded in a dramatic fireworks display of destruction. The rubble came crashing down on them as they fled, dodging the falling debris. They also attacked BLACK 13. Cyclops Knight went for a stab but his blade was kicked away and he was sent crashing to the snow. The Cyborg Hunter leapt off a piece of debris and threw a punch at BLACK 13 before picking up Cyclop Knight's sword and swinging it at BLACK 13 who ducked and leapt away only for Cyclops Knight to come at him, shooting his fist at his face. Cyclops Knight then used his fists and knees on BLACK 13 but he blocked the hits and punched Cyclops Knight to the ground. Cyborg Hunter used a drop kick on BLACK 13, knocking him down and kicked a large piece of rubble at him. BLACK 13 leapt over it and fled as he was pursued, jumping from one piece of debris to the next as the two X-SHOCKER agents came after him. Cyclops Knight fired his eyebeam at him and he dodged. They landed on the ground and BLACK 13 punched a huge piece of rubble at Cyclops Knight who ducked backwards before it took off his head.

Cyborg Hunter leapt off a piece of rubble as BLACK 13 dashed forward. He ran up a ramp-shaped piece of rubble and launched himself upwards, intercepting Cyborg Knight and grabbing him by the chin before coming back down and bending him backwards, painfully, over his shoulders. He tossed Cyborg Hunter up before kicking him away and had to dodge from rapid shots via Cyclops Knight's eye. He took cover behind some debris and took out another switch.

BLACK 13 blew up a line of charges that separated the entire mountain shelf they were on, and it started crumbling beneath them. He ran to safety, but got shot in the back of the shoulder on the way, making him scream in pain

Cyclops Knight, seeing the ground crumble, shouted, "Run!"

He and Cyborg Hunter ran up the falling debris of the platform, and stopped at the top of it, too far to jump. Cyborg Hunter saw his weapon falling, jumped for it, and stabbed it into the side of the cliff so he could climb back up.

Cyclops Knight cursed, "Dammit!"

He then took a running start and then jumped, stabbing his sword into the side of the cliff.

BLACK 13 clutched his shoulder and saw the Cyborg Hunter climbing up over the edge. He got back to his feet and prepared to defend himself.

BLACK 13 cried out as the Cyborg Hunter stabbed him in the chest with a combat knife. He then grabbed the Cyborg Hunter by the shoulders and pushed him down to knee him in the face but the Cyborg Hunter shot at the ground and the explosion threw them both backwards. They then got back up and engaged each other in combat anew.

Cyclops Knight reminded as he climbed back up, "He wants BLACK 13 alive, Hunter!"

BLACK 13 managed to snatch the Cyborg Hunter's Brute Shot away and fired at him, sending him flying backwards. He aimed it at Cyclops Knight who then got blasted, the explosion tossing him over the cliff. He let out a scream as he fell to his oblivion.

Tossing the Brute Shot away he turned his attention towards Cyborg Hunter who was getting back up. His eyes glowed as he summoned up his power, "Shadow Moon: Shadow Beam." Green lightning lanced from his fingertips and he pointed them at the debris and rubble that littered what remained of the battle field. The huge chunks of debris and rubble hovered up and then they crashed down upon Cyborg Hunter with a single flick of his wrists.

**END SONG**

"This is getting tiring…" murmured Shinichi as his armor vanished from his body. Even if he was dedicated to the destruction of Gebok and X-SHOCKER he had not come close to finding the whereabouts of Gebok and no matter what he did to attract that madman's attention he sent his henchmen over instead. It was getting to become a tedious routine where he would try to question them, end up in a fight with them, and then evade them. He may have thrown Cyclops Knight over the edge of a cliff and crushed Cyborg Hunter, but others would come for him and of course Gebok could always rebuild or repair both Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter and send them after him.

'_Maybe you should take a vacation_,' suggested Gokuaku in his head.

"A vacation?" snorted Shinichi. Avengers didn't take vacations.

'_Even so, isn't this routine getting stressful?_' inquired Zennin.

"It was never supposed to be easy," Shinichi retorted. He knew that when he started on this path.

'_But Gokuaku and Zennin have a point, Shinichi_,' agreed Yabuki. '_It has been over a month._'

Yes, it had been over a month and it was already the start of December. It would be Christmas soon and he had plans of celebrating Christmas with Rena. However, that was not possible until he dealt with Gebok. Also, he had to know what Gebok's ultimate plan was. So, there was no time for him to take a break.

'_You allowed Yuji to take a break_,' Yabuki pointed out.

"He offered to help so I can't force him to do anything," said Shinichi. "He's free to do whatever he wants at his leisure."

'_But a day or two won't make a difference, right?_' argued Zennin.

"Every second counts!" snapped Shinichi.

'_See, you're getting stressed and agitated_,' Yabuki pointed out.

"You'd be too if you had several voices in your head," grumbled Shinichi. He'd be a party for any psychologist. They'd have a field day trying to poke at his psyche. Gebok had shattered it before to strip him of his humanity and to make his collection of AIs. It was a miracle he'd been well-adjusted enough when he first woke up in Hinamizawa. Of course, maybe that was how his mind was trying to protect itself. By hiding those memories he could not get hurt.

That had been the same as running away.

'_Isn't Alan-niichan having a school festival soon?_' questioned Shinji.

Now his inner child was giving suggestions. _Wonderful_.

'_According to memory, he had mentioned it before_,' added Kuro. Now his cold and logical side was contributing to the conversation. '_It should be tomorrow_.'

'_Then we can go!_' Shinji cheerily cried out. He was so innocent and it wouldn't be right to yell at him for such a request. Of course there was just one problem: Alan would be there. Alan had made it clear that he wanted to drag Shinichi back and the rogue agent had managed to evade him each time. Alan would not be happy to see him there.

'_But he can't act against you in a public place_,' supplied Kuro.

Shinichi had to learn how to keep his thoughts to himself.

'_That is impossible. We will always hear your thoughts and it is impossible for you to block us out_,' said Kuro.

"So, what happens when I have dirty thoughts then?" Shinichi asked.

'_We keep your inner child away from those_,' said Kuro.

Shinichi couldn't argue with that logic.

'_No, you never can_,' responded Kuro.

"Rena will be there," said Shinichi. "He would obviously invite her to the festival, and not only her but the others." He was referring to his Hinamizawa Gaming Club buddies. They may have gone their separate ways with the younger members in middle school and the elder members in college, but they still got together when they had the chance. Actually, Mion pretty much gave the order and anybody who disobeyed would pay the penalty.

Shinichi allowed a small smile to cross his face at the memories when he hung out with his friends after school in Hinamizawa and played games like innocent kids. They didn't have to worry about monsters, demons, mad scientists or evil organizations. All they had to worry about was not losing and end up doing something embarrassing at the cost of losing as a penalty.

He did not look forward to seeing Mion and while he knew that she couldn't really defeat him in a fight, she could still make his life hell in a lot of number of ways.

He could never forget how she got him to wear that ballerina tutu and the swan-shaped swimming trunks.

So, visiting Alan's school festival was bad in a numbers of ways: Alan would be there, Rena would be there, and his friends would be there. People he was training to avoid would be there.

However, if he didn't visit then the voices in his head would drive him insane with their complaints and he didn't have the power to stop them when they started.

So, there was just one choice.

* * *

"Welcome!" Lala and Bishie greeted and the customer smiled dumbly at the two beauties welcoming him inside.

Alan's class was doing a Cosplay Maid Café and the girls were working as waitresses. They were dressed in maid uniforms with short puffy sleeves and skirts and to finish off the look they wore an assortment of cute animal ears and tails. Lala and Bishie were wearing bunny ears. The front of their uniforms was low-cut in the front to reveal a generous amount of cleavage and they also wore black corsets.

So, they were using their sex appeal to bring in customers. The boys, of course, were delegated to preparing treats and going around attracting customers outside.

"May I take your order?" Nozomu asked. She was not wearing accessories. Her tail and ears were real, but not everyone knew that. She was serving a couple of young men who was looking at their menu. The café specialized in tea and pastries. The pastries were supplied by the Sonozaki Clan with Mion's help. The Sonozaki Clan did own a chain of bakeries in Shishibone City so it was not hard to get them to supply it. There was also the Angel Mort which was under the ownership of a Sonozaki as well. Unfortunately, someone was not happy about that arrangement.

It was Sayako Ayanaka and her family was not on the best of terms with the Sonozaki Clan. Actually, they were bitter rivals and she didn't like how Alan had gone to Mion's family for help without consulting her. Alan reasoned that he knew Mion longer and that they were friends but Sayako still didn't like it. So, she wasn't helping out at all as a result. It was like she was on strike.

Alan was keeping an eye of things. The girls were cute so some guy might take things too far and grope them. He elected himself as the bouncer and manager of the Cosplay Maid Café to make sure nothing went wrong. It wasn't his idea, of course. He'd been taking suggestions from his classmates during a class meeting when Bazel threw his voice and loudly suggested the idea. A majority of the class agreed via vote so this was their class attraction for the School Festival.

Amora and Conda wanted to help but they were in another class which was doing a Haunted House. Alan would go and visit them later when he could.

At a table sat Momo, Nana, Celine and Alice and they were enjoying the treats. Alice seemed to enjoy the strawberry cake while Celine pretty much ate anything put in front of her. They had soft drinks but there was no way he was going to give Celine any.

He looked to Yami who was serving customers. She looked really good in her uniform. Actually, she looked great. Yami caught him staring and turned her face away, blushing. He didn't worry much about her. He was worried more about the customers if they did something to tick her off. She could be really terrifying when angered. He knew from experience.

"Looks like we're raking in the dough, Alan," said Bazel.

"Yeah, we are," said Alan.

"Thanks to my idea," Bazel added proudly.

"Thank god nobody caught you. How did you learn how to throw your voice like that?" asked Alan.

"Oh, I have my secrets," said Bazel.

Alan heard a shout and saw that Megan had spilled a drink on a customer. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she apologized, bowing profusely. Her skin was green. That was her 'costume' for their café. Alan then walked over to help her out. They didn't want any unhappy customers. It would be bad for business.

After the situation was resolved, with a free serving of pastries, Alan welcomed another group of customers.

"Hey, Alan," greeted Mion. It was the Hinamizawa Gaming Club.

"Hey, Mion," Alan welcomed. He greeted the others as well politely. "Thanks for the supplies, by the way."

"Hey, it was nothing," said Mion, waving off the compliment.

"Don't give her a big head, Alan," Keiichi warned.

"You look really handsome, Alan-kun," Rena complimented, beaming. Alan smiled. It was nice to see her smile. One of the reasons he wanted to kick Shinichi's ass so much was because she broke Rena's heart. The girl, who he remembered fondly as his favorite babysitter, shouldn't be crying over a selfish jerk.

She was referring to his clothes. He was wearing a tailcoat and on his head he wore dog ears.

"Shall I take you all to your seats?" he offered. Each table could seat two people at most. There were eight people in the party so four tables. Fortunately, there were four free tables for them and they were near the window. Shion sat with Satoshi, Mion sat with Keiichi, Hanyuu sat with Rika, and Satoko sat with Rena.

Hanyuu was just looking out the window when her eyes widened as she spotted someone entering through the front gate. She couldn't believe it.

* * *

"I can't believe I'm doing this."

Shinichi was standing in front of the gate of Alan's high school. It was the same one he and Alan had been sent to for an undercover mission and where Nozomu had been added to Alan's harem. For a short time he'd been a student here but after the mission he left. Alan stayed and his harem girls enrolled as well. This place wasn't a normal school, of course, 2/3 of the student body was made up of aliens and yokai. He suspected that was the same for the faculty as well.

The schoolyard had stands set up and visitors were already coming in to have fun, sampling goodies and even buying souvenirs. There were banners hung by each homeroom class to advertise what they were doing and to attract customers. The arch over the gate was also very nicely made and was meant to make visitors feel welcomed.

'_Yay, let's have fun!_' cheered Shinji.

Shinichi rubbed his temples. "I must be going insane," he murmured. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to stare at someone in a bunny costume. He/she was handing out pamphlets.

'_Take one!_' Shinji insisted.

Shinichi took the offered pamphlet and read what was on it. Something on the list of individual attractions caught his eye. "Cosplay Maid Café?" He then saw which class was running such an event. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me."

'_What's so amusing?_' asked Kuro.

"Alan's class is running a Cosplay Maid Café," answered Shinichi. "I always knew he was a bit of a pervert. He must've gotten that from me."

'_So, you wish to visit?_'

"No, at least not yet. There's a lot of stuff going on here," said Shinichi as he looked at the list on the pamphlet. There was also a map on it to help visitors find their way around.

* * *

Shinichi was looking around the stands in the schoolyard when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He knew who it was and felt a fist touch his lower back. "Hello, Alan," Shinichi greeted.

"What are you doing here?" Alan asked.

Shinichi felt it was best not to beat around the bush so he told Alan the truth, "They told me to come."

"They?" Alan prodded.

"The voices in my head," Shinichi answered. He was referring to Gokuaku, Zennin, Yabuki, Kuro and Shinji.

"The voices in your head told you to come?" Alan questioned.

"Yes, they did," Shinichi affirmed.

"The _voices_ in your _head_ told you to come when you knew I'd be here."

"Stop trying to make it sound like I'm crazy," Shinichi hissed.

"Hey, I'm not the one talking about voices in his head telling him to come to a School Festival where a Green Lantern happens to attend," Alan argued.

"Alan, here are the facts," Shinichi summarized, "You can't do anything to me in public without blowing your cover. You know it and I know it. So let's just for today not get into any fights, alright? Let's forget about the fact I'm a rogue agent just for today."

"SHIN-CHAN!" an angry voice yelled.

"And it looks like the others are here as well," said Shinichi. Alan lowered his ring and Shinichi turned to see the Hinamizawa Gaming Club approaching him. As he expected Mion was upset. Rena was crying…and smiling.

He realized those were tears of joy.

"Rena…" Shinichi whispered.

"SHIN-KUN!" Rena cried as she ran towards Shinichi, as Alan stepped out of the way, to embrace him. He was nearly knocked over by Rena but steadied himself in time to catch her. "Shin-kun! Shin-kun!" She rubbed her face against his chest.

This was what he was afraid of when he came here. He wasn't afraid of seeing Mion angry. He was afraid of seeing Rena, period. Only she could crack his current resolve to destroy Gebok but there was no turning back now. He could erase their memories but Alan would remember.

"Shinichi," said Rika.

"Shinichi!" cried Hanyuu.

Rika wasn't sure what to think of Shinichi right now. She was upset that the 'Champion of Hinamizawa' had gone rogue but she was happy to see him again after all this time. So was Hanyuu. She had delivered his messages to Rena and Shiori. His mother was happy to know he was alright but she was still heartbroken over some of the decisions he made. He would make it up to her soon.

His friends were upset with him, he knew that, but they were happy to see him again after over a month of his absence. Things weren't the same without him. Mion was still glaring daggers at him and a particularly wicked thought where she had him held up in her family's torture room had crossed her mind. But then it shifted and it turned into her shackling Keiichi up in his boxers as she whipped him, laughing while dressed up like an S&M Queen. She drooled at the thought but then shook her head. She blamed Shinichi for turning her into a pervert.

Rena stared up at him. Up until now she only saw his face in pictures but here he was in front of her now. She was too scared to let go because he might just disappear. She didn't want him to let go.

"Nice duds," Keiichi complimented. He was referring to Shinichi's black coat. Shinichi's hair was back in its original style, worn down, parted in the middle with the twin ahoge sticking out. It was different from the style he'd sported while Alan was pursuing him.

"Shin-kun, come with us," said Rena as she tugged on his arm.

As Rena and Shinichi walked past Alan, Shinichi said, "Nice dog ears." Alan glared and watched him go back in the building with the rest of his friends.

"Why didn't you bring him in?" Bazel questioned.

"Because he's right," Alan answered. "I can't do anything to him in public without blowing my cover."

"So, what are you gonna do?"

"Grin and bear it. Just grin and bear it."

* * *

An extra seat had to be added to a table so now Satoko was sitting with Rika and Hanyuu. Rena was sitting with Shinichi. Rena's mood was blissful. She was just so happy right now to have Shinichi with her.

In one corner of the room, Alan was having a talk with his girls about Shinichi's presence. He gave them a simple instruction, "Shinichi's here but just act casual. He's not causing any trouble…" He glanced at Shinichi briefly, "…Yet."

Alan pretty much kept Shinichi's status as rogue agent a secret from the Hinamizawa Gaming Club. The only members who did know about it were Hanyuu who was an agent of ARMOR and Rika who shared a connection with her. They did not reveal this to Shiori. That was because Shinichi's status as a rogue agent was to be known to ARMOR agents only and ARMOR took care of their own even when they went rogue

Alan did discuss it with his girls since they were technically affiliated with ARMOR through him but made them swear not to tell Rena or any of her fellow club members. Alan just told Rena that he'd be tracking Shinichi down for her, which had not been a full lie but a half-truth. He never mentioned that Shinichi had gone rogue but Rena was aware that Shinichi was going after Gebok.

Alan approached the table, carrying a tray with cakes and tea before serving them to Rena and Shinichi's table.

"Hey, Alan," Shinichi addressed him. "Whose idea was all this?"

"Bazel," Alan answered.

"Ah, he has good taste," Shinichi complimented.

"Thanks," said Bazel.

It was a tense moment between them. Up until now it had been a game of Cat and Mouse between Shinichi and Alan as the Green Lantern had pursued Shinichi almost relentlessly. Now, it was like none of that mattered, like none of that ever happened. However, the truth was that this was a temporary truce. Once the day was through it would be back to that routine again.

Alan swore he would kick Shinichi's ass for making him feel so awkward. He glanced at Rena whose mood was bright and cheery. It was for her sake.

As Shinichi and Rena conversed, they avoided certain topics like Shinichi's reason for leaving and talked about other things, pleasant things. Shinichi wanted to know about her current art projects and she wanted to know if he'd been taking care of himself. She wanted to know if he'd been eating well. She had been worried about him until she got that letter and hoped he would return to her. She even prayed to Oyashiro-sama for his return and now he was back. If this was a dream she wished she never woke up.

As for Shinichi, he felt guilty about leaving Rena but he had a responsibility. He made sure to keep an eye on Rena, of course. His Shikigami were his eyes and ears and they watched over Rena for him. After leaving the café together, Rena and Shinichi split up from the rest of the group to visit the other attractions. She wanted some private time with Shinichi. They visited several attractions, having snacks like takoyaki, taiyaki, crepes and ice cream along the way. Rena kept her grip on Shinichi's arm. She didn't want to lose him.

He then heard a voice in his head, '_Shinichi_.' It was Alan's. Alan was a telepath so this was unsurprising for Shinichi.

'_Get out of my head, Alan_,' Shinichi warned. He already had too many voices in his head. He did not need another one.

'_Shinichi, just listen to me; you have to stop going after Gebok like this_,' Alan told him.

'_You've told me that dozens of times and I never listen. Why should I listen now?_' Shinichi asked.

'_Do you want to leave Rena and make her cry again?_' Alan asked.

'_That was low blow_.'

'_But it's not untrue, is it? If you leave her after this you'll just be breaking her heart again. Do you really want to put her through that?_'

'_It's better I break her heart than have Gebok break her body, mind and soul_,' Shinichi retorted.

'_Gebok has not come after her_,' Alan reminded. '_Has he?_'

'_Not yet he hasn't, but as long as he's out there he's scheming, plotting something. I have to get to him before he can do anything_.'

'_But at what cost? Is it really worth it?_'

'_The ends justify the means, Alan_.'

'_You sound just like every self-righteous super villain I've gone up against right now_.' Shinichi decided he did not want to hear anymore so he blocked Alan out.

"They're having a play right now in the auditorium," Rena checked the pamphlet. "Wanna go see?"

Shinichi smiled and they both entered the auditorium, taking their seats. The play was about a warrior who went to war and left his beloved lady behind. The rest of the play was a series of flashbacks, but also focusing on the lady's heartbreak as she waited for her beloved warrior to return.

Shinichi felt a grip on his heart as he watched with Rena at his side. She felt her hand around his arm as she leaned against his shoulder. He glanced at her and paused as he saw tears. Were these tears because of the play, or tears because of…

"Don't leave Rena," she whispered. She knew he heard her. His hearing was sharp. "Stay with Rena." Her tears flowed freely, her eyes gazed up at him pleading. This was what he tried to avoid the first time. He now knew that coming here was a mistake but why had he not tried to avoid it?

He blamed the voices in his head. Why had he listened to them when they suggested he go on a break?

* * *

Conda had sent a couple running with her act in the Haunted House. "Do you see, Enchantress? I am the Queen of Horror!" Conda let loose her infamous laugh. Conda was dressed as the legendary gorgon, Medusa herself and she was definitely scary.

"But my illusions have frightened more people," boasted Amora who was dressed as a witch. She refused to use makeup to alter her appearance but instead used magic to cast illusions.

"They must be running from your faces," said Yami. Conda and Amora turned and glared at the girl who was eating taiyaki out of a bag.

"NOBODY ASKED YOU!" the two older girls shouted at the assassin. Yami heard people coming and decided to show these two how scary she could be. She hid behind a gravestone and waited as another couple entered the Haunted House.

"Mion, are you sure about this?" asked Keiichi as he looked around the place. The students really put a lot of thought and hard work into making this Haunted House for the School Festival. All the gimmicks looked realistic. It was set to look like a graveyard and he had goosebumps.

"Don't be a big baby, Kei-chan," teased Mion. "I mean we've been through scarier things."

As soon as Yami spotted the pair, she struck, jumping out in front of them.

"Boo," she said as she stood before them and in an instant her hair turned into an array of deadly, stabbing weapons and she grew several feet, her hands turning into claws and her teeth becoming sharp fangs. They screamed loudly as they ran away from Yami. She may be petite, but she could be very intimidating when she wanted to.

"Hey, weren't those Mion and Keiichi?" Amora asked. Conda just shrugged.

* * *

Alan was taking Alice and Celine out to explore the rest of the School Festival, visiting other classroom attractions and having snacks as well. People commented on Celine's cuteness as she held onto Alan's left hand while Alice held onto Alan's right hand. Alice was in a cute penguin costume that covered everything but her face and she walked with a cute waddle.

"Daddy, look! Taiyaki!" Alice pointed.

"Mau!" Celine chirped.

"Yeah, you gotta get taiyaki at a School Festival," agreed Alan. He bought three taiyaki and they sat down on chairs that were lined up against the wall. Mau had no problem eating but Alice could not reach her mouth due to the costume's short flippers. Alan helped her out.

"Say 'ah'," Alan said as he held the taiyaki to her.

"Ah," Alice opened her mouth and took a bite.

"Is it good?" Alan asked.

"It's good!"

Passersby found the scene too adorable.

Later, they got takoyaki and Alice had the same problem so Alan had to feed her. Celine, feeling jealous, demanded Alan feed her too.

They then went outside and Alan won Alice a stuffed bunny doll and Celine a stuffed cat doll at the shooting gallery.

* * *

_**It **_stumbled through the gate with only one arm at its side. _**It**_ snarled at everyone. _**Its**_ target was here. _**It**_ could feel it. It heard whispers but ignored them. They were unimportant. They meant nothing. It had its orders and it would follow those orders. _**It**_ scanned the area, looking for _**Its**_ target and then found it.

* * *

Rena's attention was no longer on the play. She was focusing on Shinichi, staring up at her with those big blue eyes he could not ignore. She closed her eyes and puckered her lips. He stared at those lips. It had been so long since he kissed her and he couldn't resist the open invitation. He leaned in, closing his eyes. It was just a few centimeters before their lips touched.

Suddenly, a loud explosion was heard outside and Shinichi's eyes widened in shock. Rena clung to his arm tightly. "Don't go!" she yelled. The people inside the auditorium either stayed inside for safety or ran outside to see what was going on.

"I'm sorry," he apologized. He then vanished from sight.

"SHIN-KUN!"

* * *

Alan managed to grab Alice before the grenade hit. There was a smoking crater in the ground and standing opposite Alan was the Cyborg Hunter.

He had managed to survive what Shinichi had done to him and was angry, very angry, but he had orders. He was sent to capture Chaos Doll and was allowed to use whatever means necessary. Chaos Doll was indestructible but it would be hard to capture her if she was conscious.

Alan put himself between Alice and Cyborg Hunter. There were too many witnesses so he couldn't just use his ring in front of all these people.

He wouldn't have to, though, when a dark blur ran past him. He knew who it was as the Cyborg Hunter lifted up its weapon and swung it only for it to be blocked by a sword with a loud clang.

"Ask yourself this, Hunter," said Shinichi as he stared at the Cyborg Hunter. "After what I put you through do you really think you stand a chance at all right now?" He received a growl. "Sorry, I didn't get that." The Cyborg Hunter backed away from Shinichi. "What can you do with only one arm?" he asked, "Against me, who you couldn't even beat with Cyclops' help?" The Cyborg Hunter growled angrily at the insult. "Go home and lick your wounds, Hunter. You don't stand a chance at all right now."

Realizing Shinichi was right the Cyborg Hunter vanished from sight via teleportation. Shinichi sighed as he put his sword away and turned to the crowd, "All part of the show, ladies and gentlemen! Just a little trick the students here did for all of you to enjoy!" There were applauds at such a convincing 'trick'. It was a good cover story but maybe he could use his powers to erase certain details later on.

"Onii-chan," Alice uttered as she looked up at him.

"Are you okay?" Shinichi asked.

"I'm okay," Alice nodded and he patted her head.

"Nice penguin costume, Alice. It's really cute," commented Shinichi. Shinichi spoke to Alan, "Normally I wouldn't allow anything that Gebok built to remain functioning but Alice here is different. She's an innocent. Gebok has big plans for her and while I would've destroyed her to prevent him from realizing his plans, I can't do that with her. Alan, Gebok wants her for something. I don't know what it is but is has to be bad. Why else would the Cyborg Hunter be after her?"

Alan told him, "Shinichi, Alice is my little girl. I'll die before I let anything happen to her. But for the record...that Hunter is mine now."

"You can have him, but Gebok's still mine," Shinichi swore. He spotted Rena coming out of the auditorium looking for him. "I need to go."

"Are you going to run off again?" asked Alan.

'_Not at the moment_,' Shinichi told him telepathically as Rena caught up to Shinichi and hugged him. That didn't reassure Alan one bit.

Rena grabbed onto Shinichi afraid to let him go again. "Shin-kun," she sobbed into his chest. "Don't leave me again."

"I can't promise that," he said to her.

"Then take Rena with you!" she insisted.

Shinichi struggled to resist as he gave his answer, "No." He elaborated, "The path I've chosen is too dangerous for you." Rena hung her head in sadness but he cupped her chin and pushed her face up to look at his. "But for today, we will be together."

Rena smiled, and nodded. At least for today they would be together. Maybe she could even persuade him to stay. She then dug into her purse and pulled out Shinichi's camera. She'd been keeping it safe. She handed it to Alan. "Alan-kun, take a picture of us."

"Oh, OK," said Alan as he took the camera.

"Get my good side," Shinichi instructed. He then went to join his friends.

"Right now, I don't see it," Alan murmured. He took a photo of the couple and then saw the others coming. "Hey, why don't we make the next one a group photo?"

Shinichi looked over his shoulder and saw Mion and the others.

"Mii-chan, let's take a group photo!" Rena called.

* * *

The Hinamizawa Gaming Club stood in front of Alan who was holding the camera.

"Alright, on the count of three we smile and pose," Mion ordered. "Ichi…Nii…San!"

**FLASH!**

They all struck ridiculous poses as Alan took a picture of the group standing in front of the school. It made Shinichi think back to the early days over three years ago and how simple life had been before he first became Kamen Rider Showa. Even after he first became Kamen Rider Showa and they discovered his secret, they still acted normal with the same after-school routine of games and penalty.

"Alright gang!" declared Mion, raising a fist into the air. "Before the end of this School Festival, let's see who can eat the most of everything! Everyone ready?"

"YEAH!" the Gaming Club cheered, fists raised with Mion's. Even Shinichi raised his fist.

"Alright, let's go get some yakisoba!" Mion ordered.

It was like the good old days again.

* * *

The Cyborg Hunter had returned to Million's base and was being repaired. Meanwhile, Million pondered about what had occurred when Cyborg Hunter had been sent to retrieve Chaos Doll/Alice.

"Hmm... BLACK 13 must know about the Armageddon Project and is trying to stop me from finishing it. That won't do. That won't do at all," Million muttered darkly. He'd worked too long and hard on that project and refused to let it be ruined because of one rebellious cyborg.

"What will you do now, Million-sama?" Cyclops Knight asked. It would appear he too had survived his earlier confrontation with BLACK 13 and had been repaired. He blinked as he heard Million beginning to cackle. "Surely you will not let him ruin your plans."

"Simple, I am going to indulge BLACK 13's obsession with Gebok and use it to my own advantage." He activated a screen showing a large room filled with an army of robotic Gebok clones. "Let's start the beginning of the Festival of Death & Destruction." Insane and evil laugher erupted from Million.

* * *

As the sun began to set, casting an orange glow in the horizon, the Hinamizawa Gaming Club left the school and headed home. They would not need to eat any dinner after binging on so many snacks. Shinichi was also with them but then everything just stopped.

Shinichi had just frozen time. He never intended to go home with them, no matter how much he wanted to. He took his hand out of Rena's and turned away.

"Where do you think you're going?" Hanyuu asked as she stood in front of him, her knuckles to her hips. As divinity, she had a lot of power in her body even if it was mortal flesh and blood. If she wanted to, she could render herself immune to Shinichi's powers. The times when he'd accidentally aged and de-aged her had been times when his powers had overcome hers.

So, suddenly appearing in front of him was not surprising.

Hanyuu's eyes were narrowed, glowing blood red. She was seriously not letting him leave without a proper explanation.

"I have a job to do," he answered and he walked past her. She didn't physically stop him.

"Then when it's done, what will you do?" Hanyuu asked.

Shinichi stopped walking and responded without turning back around, "I hope everything will be peaceful." They had their backs to each other as they conversed.

"Why take this path?" Hanyuu asked.

"Because of my nightmares," he told her. Ever since Lina died again he'd been having nightmares, horrifying nightmares and he remembered them all too vividly. He was in the ruins of a burning city and the sky was blood red, casting its glow all over. He saw the bodies of his friends, comrades and loved ones all sprawled on the ground, dead. Then he heard Gebok's laugher and saw him in the distance with Rena in his grasp. Standing behind Gebok was an enormous figure. Then, he saw Gebok plunge a knife into Rena's heart.

He could never forget that image, even if he tried to erase it from his mind. It would still be there, as clear as day, and as clear as Gebok's laughter.

"Visions," she deduced. "You've been having visions again, haven't you?" A long time ago he had visions of the past Hinamizawas that Rika and Hanyuu had fled from. They were the worlds where Rika had lost against Fate and died and also where her friends had turned on each other with brutality, mistrust, blood, gore and insanity.

Both turned to face each other. Shinichi's eyes wandered from Hanyuu to the backs of his friends. They were also his family as they had been the one to bring out his humanity and to see them dead like that had been horrible. He would not let that happen. He would do all he could to prevent it.

"I can't hesitate about this anymore Hanyuu," said Shinichi. "The longer I'm with you all, the more my heart wavers and I can't let that happen. The longer I'm with Rena, the more I don't want to leave her." What he wasn't saying was that being with them again like this reminded him what he was fighting for.

"**Child of Man**," she said to her in a voice that showed that she meant business. Now she was in her Goddess Mode. An aura of lavender seeped from her pores as her hair floated about her head. Shinichi kept his attention on her. She then gave her his blessing, "**Do what you think is right. Seek out your destiny**." She reverted back to normal Hanyuu as she said, "Just promise you'll come back to us when it's all over. Shiori-mama misses you too."

Shinichi's head was throbbing. It really hurt to use his time powers and freezing time was straining. He couldn't keep this up much longer. He had to go now. "Thank you," he said and then in the blink of an eye he was gone and time resumed. Hanyuu sighed. She knew that as soon as Shinichi was gone that Rena would break down in tears. She turned and saw Rena staring at the empty space beside her in confusion and calling for Shinichi. It fell onto her to explain to everyone where Shinichi had gone.

Sometimes being a divine being really sucked. Things seemed a whole lot simpler when she had just been a disembodied spirit.

* * *

"Tadaima," Shinichi greeted as he returned to the MysticLiner and sat down in a booth.

"Okaeri," Yuji greeted back. "So, how was your day off?"

"It was fun," was Shinichi simple answer. "I had a good time."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Shinichi takes a day off and visits Alan's School Festival. It was pretty tense considering their present situation but Alan was able to act civil around Shinichi. Only few people knew Shinichi has been labeled as a rogue agent and they are from ARMOR, like Hanyuu. Now, this shows Shinichi's resolve has only grown. He's reminded of what he's fighting for and he will take steps to prevent his vision from coming true. As for how Shinichi can communicate telepathically with Alan. He has an ability called Blood Telepathy which means he can only communicate telepathically with people who share the same blood he has, which is the blood of Warren Smith. Man, I must've really surprised you guys with that info, didn't I? Well, the chapter was meant to be slice of life and the Cyborg Hunter's appearance was just a suggestion someone made on the forum. Thanks deadly84!**


	50. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 10

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 10: Pulling the Plug**

Bernkastel stood among the Kakera and she didn't like how the number of fragments had started to shrink further. She had tried to stop it but there was nothing she could do as one by one they shattered and she knew the cause. She thought that the problem would fix itself but it had not. Shinichi's powers were erasing the past timelines. She had already made the connection yet had not acted.

The Witch of Miracles chided herself for making such a mistake.

"Shinichi Banabara has become too dangerous to exist." Bernkastel stated as she watched as his very power and existence was causing havoc. "Already so many of the past Hinamizawas have disappeared. If this continues then it is only a matter of time before the world where Rika achieved her miracle and broke the Endless June meets the same fate." Her eyes narrowed as she realized what needed to be done. "For the sake of the worlds, Shinichi Banabara must die."

Bernkastel knew that convincing Rika and Hanyuu would be pointless due to their affections for Shinichi so asking them to do something about it would not work and as for Bernkastel herself she preferred to have others to fix her problems rather than dirty her own hands.

Looking into the fragment that represented Shinichi's world, she began searching for the perfect pawn. Bernkastel should feel guilty about her intent to eliminate Shinichi, but she pushed that feeling aside as her only concern was preserving this world where Rika had managed to end the curse of the Endless June. Bernkastel didn't want to lose this world after hundreds of years of struggle. It was sad that Shinichi, who had done so much for this world, needed to be destroyed, but his continued existence was a threat. Shinichi's presence and existence was causing the past Hinamizawa Worlds which had met a bad ending to be erased one by one. It was only a matter of time before this world was erased as well.

To sacrifice one for the sake of countless worlds was a small price to pay.

* * *

"Well, we've cleaned up the place," said Alan as he wiped his forehead. The School Festival was over and all that was left was cleanup. Everyone had gone home after a hard day of work leaving Alan to do the finishing touches. Celine and Alice were also tired to Alan told the girls to head home first. He'd been mopping the floor.

Megan was putting the decorations away in a box. She was the only one who stayed behind to help him. "You know, this is the most fun I had in years," she told him.

"Really?" Alan asked. He then realized they were alone. Actually, it was obvious that they were the only ones in the building. It was already dark outside judging by the dark sky.

"Yeah, really, and I got to show my green skin without anyone asking about it," said Megan. She was still green but Alan found that it suited her just fine.

"Say, Megan. You wanna go get some dinner on our way back?" he offered.

Megan was about to answer when the windows all suddenly shattered. Acting quickly, He pushed Megan to the floor, shielding her body from the sharp shards with his back. Alan sensed a familiar psychic energy signature and grumbled in annoyance. He got up and turned to face the window and saw him. "Hammond," Alan identified. Outside the window was a man with an oversized head on an average human body. He also had a thin moustache and a bit of graying hair on the sides and top of his head. He was dressed in a grey prison uniform.

'_Greetings, Mr. Smith_,' greeted Hector Hammond telepathically. He was a powerful psychic who'd gained his powers from a meteor fragment. Its radiation had caused Hector's brain to evolve, growing in size and gaining beyond genius-level intelligence, but at the cost of his body becoming immobile and losing the ability to speak. However, his telepathic abilities still allowed him to communicate and he used his telekinesis to move. He sat in metal chair that was kept floating via his telekinesis and the chair also had a headrest that secured his massive head in place via a strap around it. '_Sorry I couldn't come sooner to enjoy the festivities. I see you've had fun_.'

"Get out of here, Hammond," warned Alan. "I had a good day for the first time in a long while now. So do yourself a favor and just surrender now and I won't be forced to hurt you."

'_SILENCE!_' roared Hammond as a pulse of psychic energy knocked Alan against the wall. '_You are nothing compared to me boy! Your powers are nothing compared to mine! You can't even concentrate enough to use that ring of yours!_'

"Is that true, Alan?" Megan asked.

"Yeah," groaned Alan. "His powers keep me from concentrating long enough to use my powers, and I'd rather not use my Quantum abilities when I can't concentrate, especially not in an enclosed location like this."

"Why not?" questioned Megan.

"Quantum energy gives off a lot of heat. If I mess up once I could end up killing you. I'm not gonna risk that. So, I gotta go with Plan C."

"Plan C?"

"Battle of the minds." Alan stood up and glared at Hammond, sending his own blast of psychic energy at him. Hammond concentrated and blocked the psychic energy, forcing it back against Alan. Alan grunted under the strain as his nose began to bleed.

'_Give up boy! Give up and die!_'

'_Not gonna happen!_' countered Megan as she stood behind Alan, adding her own abilities to Alan's. The three psychic forces pushed against each other. A cracking sound was heard as the sky lit up and then Megan was hit by a backlash of psychic energy.

There was a bright flash of light as Megan's mind was suddenly flooded with images. Megan saw all of Alan's memories. She saw the good, the bad and the worst things he had experienced and she even saw what lengths he took in order to fix things. She felt what he'd felt, saw what he'd seen, and heard what he'd heard. She was bombarded with images that crashed through her mental walls and finally she couldn't take it anymore...

She screamed as she fell into the fetal position, shaking. "Megan!" shouted Alan. He then noticed that Hammond was disoriented. He aimed his ring and with an expert shot, nailed him right in the head with a green burst, causing his chair to break. Hammond crashed to the ground as he lost consciousness.

As Hector Hammond lay defeated, Alan sent a message to ARMOR to pick up a new prisoner. He then went to check on Megan. "What do you think happened to her?" Bazel questioned.

"I think she just saw my entire life story and her brain couldn't take it," answered Alan. "Megan, are you okay?" asked Alan as he put his hand on the Martian girl's shoulder when all of a sudden she tackled him onto the floor and attacked his mouth with hers. "MMPH!" exclaimed Alan, his voice muffled by Megan's alien tongue trying to drive itself into his throat. His eyes were wide and when she broke the kiss she straddled and began to undress herself. Her cheeks were flushed in a way that her cheeks became pink and she was panting, a look of desire, of need, clearly etched upon her features.

"A-Alan!" she stammered, sweat dropping from her brow. She pulled her blouse open to reveal a pink bra. She then reached down to his waist and started to unbuckle his belt. "Need! Need you now!"

* * *

Hours later, Megan was curled up next to Alan with only her blouse draped over her nude form with Alan holding her. He stroked her red hair and then he realized something, "The girls are so gonna kill me…"

"You mean because you added a new once since the wolf girl?" asked Bazel. "I can agree. This is going to cut down on their private time with you some more."

"Bazel, do yourself a favor and just shut up," said Alan. "I just wanna sleep right now."

"What if you get caught?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

It wasn't long after when Lala and Yami went to go look for Alan and found him with Megan like that. It didn't take a genius to figure out what had occurred. They then decided to dress Megan and Alan back up. Yami, who knew Megan's address, took her back to her place while Lala carried Alan home. She wanted to hear all about the romantic story and later she wanted to welcome Megan into the harem.

* * *

**2 Weeks Later…**

A blonde girl wearing an eye-patch, a teal-haired girl and a pinkette who wore her hair in pig-tails were all sprawled all over the bed, covered in sweat and panting, their hearts hammering in their chests. Their faces were flushed and they wore looks of contentment on their faces. The only thing covering their naked forms was a blanket and it was barely big enough to cover them all, letting bits of flesh exposed. The one thing they all had in common were the bunny ears atop their heads. Nearby stood Yuji as he got himself dressed up and he looked over his shoulder as he was putting his jacket on, smiling roguishly. He then walked out of his room where Shinichi was leaning up against the wall in front of him, with arms crossed and looking serious.

"So, are you done?" asked Shinichi.

"Yeah, and I sure hope they had fun. I really gave them the time of their lives," grinned Yuji. The Siestas had tried to snipe at Shinichi again but Yuji again saved the day with his charm and even managed to get them into bed with him.

Shinichi frowned, "Well, if you're done wasting time here it's time we go."

"Where are we headed?" asked Yuji as Shinichi started walking to the exit.

"To where it all started," answered Shinichi.

* * *

Meanwhile, in his lab in ARMOR, Takada was studying the information contained in the AI storage unit which contained the AI program based on Shinichi's memories. He had hooked his computer onto it and was reading the information displayed on his computer monitor. There was a lot of information contained within the AI that Takada managed to pull out and there was also a file labeled as 'Project Armageddon'. Takada frowned. Any project with a name synonymous to the 'End of the World' was never good. He tried to open the file but it was encrypted with encryptions that were also encrypted. The information was buried under piles and piles of encrypted coding which would take quite a long time to unlock.

The AI also contained very disturbing memories from when Shinichi had been in GIN-SHOCKER's captivity and Takada had to struggle to hold in his vomit. Even Ryuki had seen the memories and had gone to the toilet in a haste to empty his stomach contents. It was disgusting how Gebok cared little for his own 'special project' dubbed BLACK 13. All he wanted was a dehumanized weapon.

"Alright, let's see what Project Armageddon is all about," said Takada as his fingers flew across the keyboard, tapping keys in order to unlock the deeper secrets contained within the Memory AI.

* * *

"Wow, you were really…" began Yuji as he tried to find the proper word for it. "Thorough."

Scattered all over the floor were pieces of what had been an army of Gebok drones, robotic clones which all resembled Gebok. They even acted like him, in a very creepy manner, and it was enough to unnerve Yuji even slightly.

Of course, one look at the Gebok clones had caused Shinichi to snap and go berserk. He'd activated BLACK 13's Berserk Switch and promptly tore through the clones with ruthlessness and savage rage. Seeing Gebok's face was enough to set him off and seeing a whole bunch of them had turned him into a beast.

Yuji had never seen a guy so pissed off before. Granted, Gebok was a guy who could piss of plenty of people due to him just being him.

It had taken less than five minutes and the Geboks were now in pieces but none of them had been the real one.

The place they were in was the spot where the facility where Shinichi had been kept at had once stood. Shinichi had pretty much left it to burn when he first escaped so what remained of it wasn't exactly something one would want to visit on a normal day. The fire had been put out but the place was in ruins and an abandoned wreck.

Something had compelled Shinichi to pay his former prison a visit. Also, this was the place where he'd first met Lina and killed her as well. He wasn't sure why he wanted to visit it but something was calling him there. Yuji volunteered to go along with him.

Once they entered, they realized it was a trap and they were ambushed by the dozens upon dozens of Gebok clones. They had been armed with an array of various built-in weapons. However, it made no difference against Shinichi.

Like visiting an old memory, Shinichi had torn through the Geboks, destroying them like an enraged beast. It was 3 years ago all over again for Shinichi as he recalled the day Lina had died and when he just snapped and let the grief and rage takeover. Nothing could stop him and as a result the entire place started to catch fire and small explosions erupted from the places he attacked. Nobody but Gebok survived that night when Shinichi went berserk and escaped.

Shinichi was holding the head of one of the Gebok units and stared at its eyes. He then crushed it between his hands and dropped it before stomping on it, grinding it into the ground. "Let's go," Shinichi commanded. This place held some really bad memories for him and he really didn't want to be here any longer than he had had to.

It was like the anger had drained away from Shinichi and now he was just a little annoyed that it wasn't the real Gebok he had slain. Anything was likely to set him off right now.

Two weeks ago he had taken the day off to visit Alan's School Festival and had reunited with his friends from the Hinamizawa Gaming Club. With them and Rena he felt like he did all those years ago when he had been in school with them. It was like the good old days where they just played games and goofed off with the only thing to worry about was the dreaded penalty that Mion imposed on anyone who lost.

While he managed to calm himself down with them and also refreshed himself mentally, being with them simply reminded Shinichi of what he was fighting for in the first place. Also, the nightmarish visions he had also strengthened his resolve as he had no desire of allowing Gebok to win. He still had to wonder what that massive being standing behind Gebok had been. He could make out the shape. It had been huge with huge goggle-like eyes.

What were these visions warning him about? He just had to know. He then remembered the real reason he was here and he put a bouquet of flowers on the ground. This was the spot where Lina died the first time, when Gebok had tricked him into killing her.

"So, this is what you wanted to do," said Yuji. Shinichi didn't reply as he walked past Yuji. "Shinichi?"

"I want to be alone for a bit," said Shinichi. "You should go and spend time with your daughter."

"Oh, OK," nodded Yuji. He watched as Shinichi got on his bike and drove off.

* * *

Alan was out in Shishibone City doing some early Christmas shopping. Christmas in this world was just around the corner and he already saw stores putting up decorations for the holidays. In his hand was a list of things he planned to get his girlfriends and daughters, and things for Momo and Nana. They were all going to have a party in the boarding house where they would exchange presents.

Alan hadn't bought anything yet. His mind was elsewhere in fact. He was thinking about Shinichi. Shinichi and Alan's methods differed greatly. While Alan would capture his enemies, Shinichi would take no prisoners and destroyed them utterly. The people that Gebok had connections with, whom he provided with cybernetic and genetic enhancements and alterations, had been shown no mercy. Of course, according to reports they had turned into monsters and Shinichi had been forced to put them down.

It still didn't sit right with Shinichi. Alan was acting like the Punisher and out for revenge against Gebok, killing anyone remotely connected to him and destroying everything Gebok had ever built. In the last two weeks, several more X-SHOCKER facilities had been found destroyed and it was obviously by Shinichi and his fellow rogues.

He really didn't understand what Yuji had to benefit from helping Shinichi. What he did understand was that Yuji was encouraging Shinichi and that just wasn't right. Shinichi was on his way to becoming just as bad as his enemies and Alan would not allow that to happen.

Alan also wanted to know how Shinichi discovered about their true relationship. Alan, being from the future, had known since he was young that Shinichi was his older brother. His father, Warren, had donated his sperm which Shiori had used for the artificial insemination procedure which allowed Shinichi to be conceived. It was an interesting story as Warren had discovered Shinichi's identity during the blood test and then he used time travel to make sure Shinichi was born in the first place.

They were half-brothers and Shinichi had not known before and Alan thought he was unaware of it until Shinichi pretty much confessed that he'd known for a while now. How?

He recalled Shinichi words to him on the subject: "_You know, you really should respect your elders, __Little Brother__. Piece of advice, Alan: make sure nobody is eavesdropping on your private conversations. __Something__ might slip out and __someone__ might be paying attention._"

Had Shinichi overheard him talking about it somehow? He often talked about how different this Shinichi was different from the Shinichi he'd grown up knowing. Then again, Alan was a teenager now and had a different perspective from when he was a child.

Things in ARMOR were getting pretty interesting. Junior, Battler's alien child via parasitic infection, had become good friends with his younger self and little Harry. They played together in ARMOR's daycare centre. Of course, Junior was made sure to stay away from them when he fed on blood.

Battler also came by whenever he could to visit his alien child and spend time with him. while Junior could only communicate with random 'honks' and 'blargs' it could still understand Battler and was happy to be in his parent's (Mother's? Father's?) presence.

Battler also got pretty defensive when someone insulted Junior and he was also showing how good a parent he could be when he could. There was no way Battler could take Junior home with him because if the wrong people caught Junior the alien infant would be dissected on an examination table by scientists and he couldn't really tell his family without blowing his secret and/or freaking them out. Beato, his girlfriend, was the only one aware about Junior but had no knowledge of the truth behind Junior's conception and birth and for Battler's sake it was best to stick to the story that Junior's alien parent had left him to Battler to raise on his deathbed.

Alan wasn't sure if he would miss Fred (Alan's name for the alien)/Crunchbite (Yokoshima's name for the alien) but it was sad how he just died like that. Guess it had been on its last leg. It was funny, really. Everyone expected it to die when it would try to start its ship as Takada had been put in charge of repairing him and based on his track record most of the things he'd worked on would explode and backfire horribly.

The ship still remained in the Science Department. Since it belonged to Junior's alien parent it would be maintained and kept safe until Junior was old enough to pilot it.

Alan walked past a lingerie store and Bazel nearly pulled him inside, suggesting that Alan buy some for his harem. Maybe some harem girl styled lingerie. He promptly told the armband to shut up earning odd looks from passersby. Looking ahead, he then saw someone he hadn't seen for a long time but had been pursuing for almost two months.

* * *

Shinichi was sitting in an outdoor café having some tea, when he felt a presence behind him. "I knew you'd find me, Alan."

"Shinichi, you need to go home," said Alan as he placed a hand on Shinichi's shoulder. Shinichi shrugged him off.

Shinichi took a deep breath to calm down. "If we're going to talk, you might as well take a seat," Shinichi offered.

"Alright, I'll sit down," said Alan as he took a seat across from Shinichi. "Shinichi, I need to know how you found out about..."

Shinichi finished, "About how we were related?" Shinichi pulled a sheet of paper from his pocket and he manipulated it to form into a paper crane. "I've been using these to watch you."

Alan accused, "You've been spying on me!-?"

Shinichi didn't deny it, "Alan, I was designed for infiltration and assassination. That also means I was designed for information gathering. You wanted to capture and take me back to ARMOR. Of course I was spying on you." Alan threw a fist at Shinichi but he caught it. "Look, you can try to hit me as much as you want, but when I'm being pursued I'm allowed to spy on my pursuers. That's why and how I was always one step ahead of you." He added, amused, "And you said I made a horrible spy."

Alan yelled, "And what if I got too close huh!-? Would you have tried to take me out? Gone after one of my girls to get to me? Hell, maybe you would have tried to kill Alice again just for the fuck of it! I mean, she was made by Gebok and anything he makes you destroy right!-?"

Shinichi returned Alan's glare with his own, eyes glowing briefly, "I wouldn't go _that_ far. I thought you knew better than that. I'm not like Gebok. I'm not some manipulative and sadistic bastard. As for Alice, I already gave up on that. She's family and I protect family."

Alan accused, "Yeah, well I don't know what to think anymore. I always thought my older brother was a hero, but you're nothing more than a paranoid thug, throwing your power around so that everyone knows not to fuck with you! Well guess what Shinichi; your power doesn't scare me."

"It doesn't matter if I scare you or not. What matters is that I finish Gebok off with my own hands," Shinichi retorted. "And I'm not about to let anyone stop me, not even ARMOR, and that includes you."

"Look, Shinichi," Alan interrupted. "I know what you're going through. Like you I lost someone precious and did everything in my power to make things right, with disastrous results. You're going down the same path and I'm sure as hell won't let you continue going down that path."

"Urusai," Shinichi said coldly. Alan's eyes narrowed. "You really think this is all about revenge?" He snorted. "It's not! This is about me making sure Gebok doesn't get his slimy hands on anybody ever again so he can ruin their lives. This is about taking down Gebok for good. Since ARMOR failed to do that, I'm taking things into my own hands and I won't stop until Gebok is destroyed. In order to protect everyone, I will destroy him."

"You think that one rogue lunatic can do what the most powerful agency in the Multiverse couldn't!-? God Shinichi, I knew you had an ego, but fuck! You're doing this to keep Gebok from doing anything. That is still basically revenge! Stop being stupid and do the right thing! I don't care what your reasons are, Shinichi, but you have friends and family waiting for you and I promised Rena that I will bring you back home, even if I have to drag you there myself."

"Yeah, you tell him, partner!" encouraged Bazel.

Shinichi and Alan suddenly found themselves surrounded by an army W14's and Beast Androids. "We'll talk later," said Shinichi as he transformed into BLACK 13.

"Fine then," Alan agreed as his ring glowed. The two were back-to-back as they fought the X-SHOCKER androids as civilians fled to safety. With his wrist blades BLACK 13 targeted the androids and began to slice at them, cutting them to pieces with his energy blades. The blades were so hot that it was like a heated knife through butter as they made clean cuts that melted through the metal armor of the androids. The edges of the cuts were red, smoking and hissing. With a back kick, BLACK 13 sent a W14 staggering back into its comrades and then he lashed out with his energy whips, binding them up, and applied pressure so the whip-blades cut through them and their pieces lay broken.

A bull-like Beast Android tackled into him like a football player but he grabbed it by the horns, flipped onto its back and then punched a hole right through its head. The Beast Android fell and skidded to a halt. Then, BLACK 13 grabbed it by the ankles and smashed him into another Ant-like Beast Android before stabbing the horns into the face of a walrus-like Beast Android. He then got out his Showa-Blasted and started to unleash a barrage of shots at the W14's, gunning them down.

Alan watched and grimaced as BLACK 13 fought so violently before returning his attention to the androids. He used his ring to conjure a myriad of shapes like hammers, fists, boxing gloves, clubs, a baseball bat and even dropped what appeared to be an anvil on top of them, crushing their metal bodies under it.

It would seem like an endless swarm as the Green Lantern and rogue Rider looked about. "Gebok is really starting to piss me off," growled BLACK 13. All of a sudden, BLACK 13 was snatched right off the ground, leaving Alan alone to face X-SHOCKER's forces. Not only that, they were joined by Manhunters as well.

"**NO MAN ESCAPES THE MANHUNTERS!**" the Manhunters declared together, loudly and proudly, their motto.

"Partner, it's time we took care of these things," said Bazel. He then donned Alan in the Bazel Combat Armor for a little more power.

"You're read my mind, Bazel," Alan agreed and in a blaze of emerald light he fought with the mechanical menaces. His ring unleashed bursts of emerald light which slammed into the Manhunters, rendering them into broken pieces of machinery as they were torn to shreds by the intense blast. The X-SHOCKER forces didn't stand a better chance either as Alan continuously broke them to pieces. Green energy solidified around his hands to form spiked maces and he smashed them into the W14's, busting heads and crushing them to the ground with intense force. Then, he formed the Faiz Blaster and unleashed a concentrated beam of photon energy that decimated the robotic warriors. Finally, he formed the Blade Blade and with a single downward swing lightning lanced towards the remaining Manhunters and X-SHOCKER androids, destroying them with a single, violent blow.

Alan deactivated the combat armor and began to track Shinichi down. "Now it's time to help my dumbass of an older brother."

"What if he doesn't want your help?" Bazel asked.

"He will," said Alan. He got a lock on Shinichi and also scanned his vitals. His eyes widened in horror before he shot into the air to find him. "Godammit!"

* * *

On the top of a nearby building, things had not gone so well for Shinichi when he was confronted by his own opponent. It was the Cyborg-Superman who'd finally defeated him.

Hank Henshaw, aka The Cyborg-Superman, had barely any human features. The right side of his torso, his right arm, as well as his jaw and the top left half of his face were completely metallic and machine-like. The top right half of his face showed he was Caucasian, and had black hair, with a spit-curl coming out. His left hand also appeared to be flesh. His eyes were cold and red and he wore a twisted version of the Superman costume, with black pants, red boots, red cloth covering his torso, and a black cape. In the center of his chest was the red "S" symbol on a black background.

Henshaw sneered down at Shinichi who was now without arms and with crushed legs. The Spark Core which had once resided in the middle of his waist was now missing and he no longer looked like was alive anymore judging by the empty eyes. He was lying in a pool of his own blood.

**-BOOM!-**

A burst of green energy exploded against his back and Henshaw turned to see Alan glaring at him hatefully. "Well, well, come to see your friend?" mocked Henshaw.

Alan saw the state of Shinichi's body and furiously attacked Henshaw. Unfortunately, his blasts had no effect on Henshaw's cybernetic body. They simply bounced off the artificial superhuman, doing no harm at all.

"My turn," said Henshaw before he blurred from sight. Using his super speed he struck Alan from all directions. The blows were bone-crushing and Alan cried out from each impact before he was sent crashing down next to Shinichi. Alan groaned as he tried to push himself back up, encouraged by Bazel. However, he was knocked out when the Cyborg-Superman stomped on his head.

The Cyborg-Superman stood over the body of the defeated Green Lantern. "Stupid boy. Thinking you could defeat me." He then thought of a perfect way to finish off Alan. He had a colony of nanites that he planned to let loose but he had not tested them yet.

He took out a vial and popped it open before pouring the glowing, green liquid all over Alan's face.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!-?" demanded Bazel angrily. Henshaw did not answer and then he took off into the air, leaving the two defeated young men.

"Partner! Speak to me!" shouted Bazel, trying to get Alan to awake. "Partner! Alan! ALAN!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And things were alright earlier. I mean everything was going smoothly and now THIS had to happen? What's next? Can things possibly get any worse? Well, with Hank Henshaw and Million working together the natural answer would be 'yes'. Now, why did Henshaw take Shinichi's Spark Core and why did he have to tears his arms off like that? Get your answers soon in the next installment of Rampage of Black 13.**


	51. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 11

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 11: Occupational Hazards**

Yuji was riding his D-Wheel, White Blaze, through the streets of Shishibone City, with Maria in front of him in the seat. It was close to Christmas in Shinichi's world and they decided to do some shopping.

"Let's go faster, Papa," Maria beamed.

"We have to respect the speed limit, Maria," Yuji chided. "This isn't a Riding Duel."

White Blaze then suddenly came to a screeching halt as Kiba Ryuuho stood in its path.

Kiba grinned, "Hey there, cutie. Remember me?"

Maria's eyes widened as she recalled the event of her mother, Rosa Ushiromiya, was murdered at the hands of this…Devil: the Dragon Orphenoch.

"You killed Mama," she angrily accused.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he apologized with mock-hurt in his voice, "but that's what she got for getting in the way of a fight." He then grinned, "Besides, it was Fudo-kun's fault for letting your mommy die."

Yuji glared at the monster before him, "What do you want, bastard?"

"To kill you, of course," Kiba shouted as he morphed into his Orphenoch form.

Yuji hopped off his D-Wheel and White Blaze reconfigured into its battle form as the frame became its legs and paws, with Maria riding the beastial machine.

"Papa…" she worried.

Yuji looked to her, "It's OK, sweetie. Just get somewhere safe."

She hesitantly nodded and White Blaze snarled before moving away from the coming battlefield. Yuji turned to face Kiba and went into his Warrior form, his scales forming under his clothes as they also showed on his cheeks and neck.

Kiba shook his head in amusement, "You're making this too easy for me."

**WHAM!**

He was knocked for a loop as Yuji decked him right in the face and sent him flying down the street. Yuji dashed and punched forth, shooting fireballs out of his fists. The Dragon Orphenoch batted them away and retaliated with his own green flames, which Yuji redirected with his pyrokinesis right back at the Orphenoch. He then got in his face and unleashed a flurry of punches that rained heavy impacts against the Dragon's body. Yuji then delivered a spinning back kick that launched Kiba through the air as he caught the monster by his head and drove his face through the asphalt, creating a shallow trench down the street,

"Come on, you bastard," Yuji growled, "Fight back!"

Kiba grinned to himself, 'Just a little longer…'

Yuji continued his assault by grabbing the Dragon by the leg and slamming his body onto the concrete back and forth like a ragdoll before tossing him up high. Yuji then fired some plasma bolts, using his ring's magic, and they hit their mark one after another. He then performed a spinning axe kick that hammered the Orphenoch into the ground. He then took a stance as he prepared to finish Kiba off, once and for all. Particles of energy collected into Yuji's hands as they formed into a red orb, with Yuji's King of Hearts crest shining brightly on his hand.

"Time to die, Ryuuho!" Yuji said. "Sekiha…Tenkyo…"

"PAPA!"

Yuji halted his attack and turned to see Maria struggling in the arms of Cyborg Hunter. White Blaze was down and had sustained damage as it struggled to rise.

"MARIA!" Yuji called.

"Oh, how I love a good distraction," Kiba laughed as he kicked Yuji into a wall. He then turned to Cyborg Hunter, "OK, robo boy, get the brat to the doc!"

Cyborg Hunter growled before turning to make his escape. Suzaku came soaring down ready to attack when the mechanical phoenix was shot down by the Hunter's Brute Shot.

Maria flailed about as she cried out for her father, "Papa! Papa! U! U!"

Yuji struggled to his feet, "Maria… NO!"

He was too late, as Cyborg Hunter had teleported away with Maria.

Yuji faced his sworn enemy, "Ryuuho…you bastard! You're working for Gebok?-!"

Kiba let out a hysterical laugh and answered, "Are you kidding?-! When the doc came to me and asked me to fight you, I was elated! He even offered to pay me and I was like "Fuck that, I'll do it for free!" And all I had to do was distract you long enough for the Hunter there to grab the brat! Now, since I was so generous in letting you have your fun," he cracked his knuckles, "it's my turn."

He hammered his fists into Yuji as he wailed on Yuji, beating the distraught Manakyte like a piece of beef. He then shed his bulky armor and dashed around Yuji as he slashed at him like a mad beast. Yuji was slowly battered, bruised and beaten as he was tossed through a storefront, breaking the glass window. He was also bleeding from his head.

Kiba looked at his hands and grinned, "Those enhancements the doc gave me came in handy. Well, have a nice dirt nap, Fudo-kun!" He cackled as he vanished from sight.

"M-Maria…" Yuji called in a daze before falling unconscious.

* * *

Being an agent of ARMOR was a risky job and as such injuries and death were very likely to occur. When an agent would receive grievous injury or even die, an emergency beacon would be activated to alert nearby recovery agents.

Recovery agents, like Recon agents, were not assigned to missions that required combat. Rather, their only job would be to recover any and all injured, dying or dead ARMOR field agents.

Shinichi and Alan's bodies were recovered by ARMOR recovery agents and they were in really bad shape. Shinichi had lost a lot of blood and had suffered severe physical trauma. Both his arms had been ripped from his body and his legs had been crushed. He was also pale from blood loss and had been given an emergency blood transfusion. Alan had almost been beaten to death, and was exposed to nanites. They'd yet to discover what kind of side-effects the exposure would bring.

Shinichi's arms could not be recovered. They were missing. Whoever had done this to him must've taken his arms as trophies. However, that wasn't the worst of his injuries. His Spark Core, the source of his power, was missing and without it Shinichi may never awaken or even survive for long. What remained of his legs had been amputated so now the Kaizo Ningen was reduced to a comatose cripple. He was right now in a coma and hooked to a life-support system due to the loss of his Spark Core.

Dr. Magi reported, "We have no choice but to replace his missing limbs with cybernetic prosthesis."

"I already got them from Vic," added Takada. "We can use those to replace his missing limbs, but we just can't replace his Spark Core." There was a gaping hole where the Spark Core had been.

"Dr. Magi, can you create a replacement Spark Core?" asked Warren.

"I only installed one into Yokoshima," admitted Dr. Magi. "I don't know how they were made. I was only given a Spark Core. I've studied them, however, and from what I gathered they aren't easy to replicate. In fact, even with all our resources, it will take years to create even one."

"I see…" Warren ordered, "Replace Shinichi's limbs with cybernetic prosthesis. Dr. Magi, Takada and Ryuki, I want you all to be in charge of the operation. Also, continue to keep him on life support. Use the RH-Chamber if necessary." He asked, "What about Alan?"

Takada reported, "Scans show that he's been infected with nanites."

"What kind of nanites?" Warren questioned.

"Nanites meant to create replacement parts for the body," Takada answered.

"So, these nanites would provide someone with regenerative powers," Warren concluded.

"Yes, but these nanites will only work on those with cybernetic components already implanted into them and will rebuild them if they are damaged or removed," Takada continued. "If these nanites are used on normal humans they could be lethal. The normal human body can't handle them and will reject them, tearing the body apart in the process. The odds of survival are 50 to 1 and those who survive will likely gain enhanced physical capabilities as a result."

"So, Alan may not survive," Warren said worriedly. "Damn…"

"Since these nanites would likely destroy his body from the inside out, chances of survival are pretty slim. But actually, I think Alan can pull through. He's got strong willpower. I think he can beat this. Also, he's not exactly a normal human, is he?" said Takada confidently. He knew relying on willpower wasn't scientific but considering that was the power source of a Green Lantern he had to believe in it.

"Monitor their condition," Warren ordered, "And report to me of any changes on the both of them."

"Hai, sir," Dr. Hasuma, Dr. Magi and Takada-hakase obeyed.

Then they heard a loud scream.

* * *

Alan was lying in bed and being held down by the nurses (Michiru and Hana) as they tried to hold him down once he began to convulse and thrash about in agony, screaming loudly. His veins were visible and were glowing green as his eyes were wide and glowing with a bright green light. He let loose a wail of agony as he knocked the nurses down, snapping the restraints they had tried to put on him.

Warren, Dr. Magi, Dr. Hasuma and Takada-hakase entered the room to see Alan in immense pain. "I got him!" Takada volunteered.

"Takada, no!" shouted Dr. Hasuma as Takada tried to hold Alan down only to be thrown across the room and sent crashing right through a wall, leaving a hole in the shape of his body.

Concentrating, Dr. Hasuma aimed his palms at Alan and held his body and limbs down with telekinesis but he was straining against a powerful force. Alan was growing too strong for him to hold down but he kept a psychic grip on his nephew.

Alan looked towards him and not only were his eyes glowing red, but a second pair opened before a red blast of thermal energy shot out from them and hit the red-haired doctor and knocked him backwards, burning a hole into his clothes in the process.

This was Warren's worst fear come to life. One of his children was in danger and he could not do anything to help them. However, that did not mean he couldn't try.

He ran over and held Alan down, shouting at him, "Calm down, Alan! Calm down!" He addressed Bazel, "Can't you do something!-? You're his partner!"

"What do you think I've been trying to do this whole time!-?" Bazel shot back.

"Try harder then!" Warren snapped. He would not lose any of his kids, past, present or future. His main focus now was to find the one who did this and make him pay.

"Warren, I need…you…to hold him…down!" Dr. Hasuma cried as he produced a tranquilizer gun. Warren nodded and put a grip on his son to hold him down as he continued to resist as Dr. Hasuma practically teleported to Alan's side to stick the needle in. Unfortunately, it was like sticking a needle into a steel wall as it would not penetrate Alan's skin. "Kuso!" he cursed. Alan managed to take one of his arms out of Warren's grip and grabbed Dr. Hasuma's arm before throwing him across the room and into the wall. "Itai!" he shouted painfully as he smashed against the wall.

"Sorry about this, partner," said Bazel and the gem on the armband started to glow. Green energy lanced all over Alan and he screamed out, arching his back. Then, it stopped and Alan began to cease his struggling and lay down on the bed. He also began to slip out of consciousness.

"Girls, strap him down," ordered Dr. Hasuma as he rubbed his shoulder which had taken the brunt of the force. Michiru and Hana obeyed and started to strap Alan down. The straps were made to hold down anyone with Kryptonian-level strength.

"Ryuki, are you okay?" asked Warren.

"It'll leave a bruise, but I'll live," said Dr. Hasuma. "Bazel, what did you do?"

"I just sucked up the access energy that was driving him nuts," said Bazel. "And there was a lot in him."

Dr. Hasuma listed, "Super strength, heat vision, and invulnerable skin." He looked to Warren, "Does that sound familiar to you?"

"I think we need Takada to take another look at those nanites," said Warren.

"Also, I believe we need to call a few people as well and tell them the news," said Dr. Hasuma, frowning. He hated being the bearer of bad news, though. "Shine a red sun lamp on Alan. We don't need him hurting himself or anyone right now."

* * *

It was protocol for the families of ARMOR agents to be contacted at dire times such as this. While ARMOR kept their existence a secret from civilians, there were some situations that required the families of agents to be informed. This was done during emergency times and right now this counted as an emergency situation.

Mion led the group, practically forcing her way through as she stormed towards Shinichi's room with everyone in tow. Even Shiori and Kasai were with them. Sho was still a baby so he was left in ARMOR's daycare centre so he could be watched over while they went to see Shinichi. Of course there was one last obstacle and that was one of the medical personnel of ARMOR's hospital wing.

"Out of my way," Mion ordered, growling. She looked practically demonic at the moment. The man gulped as she saw the glare directed at him but he stood his ground, barely.

"Look, Miss, I can't let you and your companions in. Right now the patient is in critical condition and must not be disturbed. Only authorized medical personnel are allowed inside and-" He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to see that it was Dr. Hasuma's. "Chief, I tried to-"

Dr. Hasuma interrupted, "They are his friends and family. They deserve to see him." To be honest he didn't want them to see the state Shinichi was in. It was far too heartbreaking and painful. However, it was also unfair since they were his loved ones. They had the right to see him even though they did not deserve to see the state he was in. "Come with me," he instructed and guided them to Shinichi's room which was in the ICU.

They were not allowed to enter the room Shinichi was in. At the moment he was in the ICU and hooked to a life-support system. What separated them from him was a window and what they saw horrified them as they saw the condition he was in.

Shinichi had a blanket covering him and was hooked to a life support system with a breathing mask on and a heart and brain wave monitor hooked up to him to monitor his vitals. What really struck them was the lack of any shape under the blanket that indicated the presence of Shinichi's arms and legs.

"Right now he is comatose," Dr. Hasuma explained. "Also, he's suffered from extreme physical trauma. Both his arms and legs are gone as a result."

"N-no…" Shiori stuttered as her eyes widened and her pupils dilating. "NOOOOO!" she screamed hysterically at the sight of her son in such a state. "This can't be happening!" She threw herself into her husband's arms and cried as Kasai hugged her tightly. He hated seeing Shiori like this. "Why!-?" she questioned. "Why must this happen to Shinji!-?"

Kasai couldn't provide an answer but silently vowed to make the son of a bitch who did this to his stepson pay.

"No…no way…" Keiichi whispered, uttering in disbelief, his eyes widened in shock and horror. The sight before him couldn't be real but it was. He just couldn't believe it himself. Shinichi had always seemed so strong and powerful. Nobody could defeat him and he would always stand on top over his foes. But, to see him like this was a nightmare.

Rena gasps as tears flowed freely from her eyes. "Shin…Shin-kun…" She touched the glass window that separated them. "Shin-kun…no…" Her knees buckled, unable to hold her weight, as she collapsed to the floor on her knees, unable to find the strength to stand.

Satoko turned her eyes away and hugged her brother. She didn't want to see Shinichi like this. It was just so wrong. She'd never seen him so injured before.

Mion's reaction was even more aggressive as she turned away from the sight and punched the nearest wall, hard. "DAMN IT, SHIN-CHAN!" she yelled. "You were supposed to come back! Rena was waiting for you! We all were waiting for you! We thought when you came back you'd have that stupid perverted grin on your face like always! But why is it like this!-?" Mion started to break down in tears. Keiichi recovered from his shock and knelt at his girlfriend's side to comfort. Shion was helping Rena back up.

"Hasuma-sensei!" Rena cried. "Please, please help my Shin-kun!" Rena begged. Dr. Hasuma frowned as he hated how much pain this was causing them.

"Please, Hasuma-sensei," pleaded Shiori as well. "Save my son." She'd lost him once. She could not bear to lose him again.

"Do not worry," Dr. Hasuma assured her. "We'll do everything in our power to help him." However, he didn't even know where to begin. While Shinichi's arms and legs could be easily replaced, there was still the issue of the Spark Core. They had no idea how to make one and even if they did the Spark Core would take too long to make. Life support could only go so far in fact. For the first time, Dr. Hasuma almost felt hopeless about Shinichi's recovery.

Rika and Hanyuu looked at Shinichi. He looked so vulnerable right now. Rika's fist tightened as she knew who was responsible for this. Bernkastel herself had contacted her and told her the news. It took the Furude Heir all her strength not to punch the smug witch across her face. Bernkastel even had the gall to justify her actions, citing that Shinichi would've brought upon the end of the world with his mere presence. She even stated that Shinichi's existence was a mistake.

Rika had retorted that Bernkastel's existence was a mistake in return.

As for Hanyuu, she couldn't contain her tears. Why had it come to this? How could the Sword and Shield of Hinamizawa fall in battle and how could've fallen in such a state. Who could've humiliated Shinichi by leaving him for dead and claiming his arms and legs as trophies?

Who could be so cruel?

"We have another one!" A medical assistant reported as another gurney was wheeled into the ICU. It was Yuji and he didn't look too good. In fact he looked like he'd been in a train wreck and like Shinichi and Alan he too was in a coma.

Dr. Hasuma frowned. Now Yuji too? What had taken one of their strongest agents down?

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan's girlfriends were hysterical as they stood outside his room and saw the state he was in. Lala was sobbing with Bishie, Conda and Amora both looked vengeful and wanted to seek out justice, while Nozomu and Yami stared impassively at their lover, but there were tears and looks of worry in their eyes even if they were not as emotional as the others. They too had been informed of Alan's condition.

They did not make too much of a scene, which was good. Alan needed his rest. They were not told the full story, though. If they knew Shinichi had been involved somehow then they would've gone after him as the scapegoat and that would not do. Also, Shinichi's friends and families were taking his condition very hard.

Takada had analyzed the nanites again and also a current sample of Alan's blood. He compared it to a sample of Alan's blood that had been taken months earlier and discovered something. The nanites were actually rewriting Alan's DNA and making it into something similar to Kryptonian DNA. How they managed to get a blood sample while Alan's skin was invulnerable? They used a lamp that simulated the rays of Krypton's red sun which neutralized his Kryptonian abilities so that Dr. Hasuma could withdraw a sample of the blood.

* * *

"Yuji!" the Signers, Asura, Lilith, and Sora cried as they stormed into the Manakyte's hospital room.

"Master!" Yuji's Pokegirls, Stella, Reina, Melanie, and Phoebe cried as they followed in.

Yusei looked to Dr. Hasuma, "How is he?"

"Physically, his recovery is going well," the doctor answered but then frowned, "Mentally, however, I'm not so sure…"

"Whaddya mean?" Crow asked.

"I've tried using my own psychic powers to go into his mind to investigate, but I keep getting pushed out by an internal force."

Jack, the former Duel King, frowned, "Internal force, you say?"

Aki turned from Yuji's bedside and nodded, "He's right. Yuki and I just tried and we both hit a wall as soon as we tried to get in."

"Onii-sama's darkness is keeping everyone and everything out," Yuki added.

Yusei realized what her daughter was saying and frowned, "Abyss…"

Lua paled, "Abyss?-! You mean that crazy nut that almost obliterated Neo Domino that one time?-!"

Luca shivered, "I can't believe he's still active after all this time…"

Sora blinked, "Who is Abyss?"

Yusei answered, "When he was young, Yuji's first girlfriend was murdered. That event awoken his darkness and he was guided to kill people in order to track down the murderer."

"Oh my," Sora gasped.

Yuki narrowed her icy blue eyes, "Kiba Ryuuho…"

Jack growled, "That bastard is still alive?"

Crow fisted his palm and frowned, "I knew we should've killed him when we had the chance!"

Dr. Hasuma frowned, "And I'm afraid the bad news doesn't stop there, for it was Ryuuho who left Agent Fudo in his current condition, and is currently in hiding."

"That bastard," Melanie growled, "I'll kill him for hurting Master!"

"You'll do no such thing," Dr. Hasuma ordered. "If he put one of ARMOR's strongest fighters in a coma, imagine what he'll do to you."

"He's right," Stella admitted. "Clearly, we are no match for the Dragon Orphenoch."

"I guess all we can do is wait," Asura admitted.

"Yeah," Lilith sighed.

Dr. Hasuma checked the monitors, "His brain activity seems to be quite erratic. Whatever's going on in his mind, I'm afraid Yuji is on his own."

"Wait, where's Maria?" Aki asked. Yuji had taken Maria out shopping earlier. But the little girl was nowhere to be seen and if Yuji was in a coma right now she should be here.

"Unfortunately, she's been kidnapped," Dr. Hasuma informed her. Gasps were heard among them. "She got taken while Yuji was fighting with Ryuuho."

* * *

Using logical reasoning, Warren deduced that Million and Hank Henshaw (the Cyborg-Superman) were working together. They had found the remains of X-SHOCKER androids and the Manhunters around the area where Shinichi and Alan had been founded. It was a pretty big clue, really. The Manhunters did work for Henshaw. They couldn't find X-SHOCKER's main headquarters but maybe they could find Henshaw.

Warren had sent recon agents to find out where Henshaw was hiding and he finally got the information he wanted including coordinates to Henshaw's lab in Shinichi's world. He then went down to the Dimensional Rift Gate control centre with Dr. Hasuma following. Dr. Hasuma went to the console to enter the coordinates. A Dimensional Rift Gate, which was in the form of a silver veil, erected itself in front of Warren.

Dr. Hasuma looked at Warren, who seemed oddly calm. This was the worst, of course. When he didn't know what Warren was feeling he knew Warren was burying it under a façade of indifference. Right now he was filled with the rage of a father whenever his children were harmed. To be honest Dr. Hasuma understood. If his own kids had been harmed he would want retribution as well.

"Coordinates have been locked," said Dr. Hasuma before he asked, "Going alone?"

"Yes," Warren replied.

"Need any backup?" he inquired.

"Not for this," said Warren and he ran into the Dimensional Rift Gate, vanishing before it collapsed.

* * *

There was a reason why Warren was the Director of ARMOR. He was the undisputed most powerful member of them all. Of course his level of power would be too much for anyone to handle so he put 12 levels of seals upon them. To handle someone as strong as Superman, he would need to unseal several levels of his power, and when that happened not even Superman could stop him. When angered, Warren could be a match for even the Man of Steel himself.

Finding Henshaw's lab and breaking in was easy but beating him up was the fun part as Warren could take his anger out on him. He knew Henshaw was working with X-SHOCKER and he wanted answers.

He beat the answers out of Hank Henshaw, about the nanites and then he asked another question. "WHERE IS THE SPARK CORE!-?" Warren demanded out of Henshaw who he'd beaten to a bloody pulp. "Talk, or else I'll make you experience pain without any relief, not even death!" he threatened.

"I…I don't have it!" uttered Henshaw.

"Who has it then!-?"

"His name's Million!"

* * *

_BLACK 13 was unceremoniously dumped onto a building's rooftop. Glaring, he got a good look at the man who'd brought him here._

_Suspecting this was one of Gebok's androids, BLACK 13 rushed towards Cyborg-Superman and aimed a fist at his face. However, his attack was halted when his fist was caught but not by Henshaw._

"_Million?" Henshaw asked the cloaked individual who had suddenly appeared._

"_He's mine, Henshaw," said Million. "Remember that."_

"_As long as he's destroyed, that's fine by me," the Cyborg-Superman told the true leader of X-SHOCKER._

_Million tossed BLACK 13 backwards before tearing off his cloak. He had a robotic body with black armor that covered him from head to toe and he had X-SHOCKER's emblem on his waist. He had red eyes and a clear dome on the top of his head that housed his brain, marking him as a cyborg. His lips were curled into a grin. BLACK 13 growled and rushed at him, attacking him with a barrage of punches and kicks that were effortlessly blocked._

"_Is that all?" sneered Million. "I expected better from the elite." BLACK 13 was then hit with a barrage of blows that he could not see as they came at him out of nowhere at blinding speed. A punch to the stomach caused him to double over before his face was smashed by Million's knee. He staggered and was hit by a barrage of energy blasts that exploded against him and around him as he screamed. _

_Million then gripped BLACK 13 by the neck and hauled him up before he tore BLACK 13's arm right out of its socket. BLACK 13 screamed as blood spewed from the open wound. Million dropped BLACK 13 onto the ground before sending him tumbling with a hard kick to the chest. BLACK 13 staggered to his feet and swung. An energy whip lashed out at Million but he caught the whip in his hand and pulled BLACK 13 towards him. Million then caught BLACK 13 again by his helmet and squeezed, causing cracks to form on it. _

"_You seem off balance," said Million as he gripped BLACK 13's remaining arm. "Let's fix that!"_

_BLACK 13 screamed as his other arm was torn off. Million dropped him and BLACK 13 could feel his energy being drained as he was losing blood. BLACK 13 then screamed as Million stomped on his right leg, crushing it under his foot. He then did the same to the left leg, rendering it useless._

_Million looked down at the beaten BLACK 13 and decided to end his misery once and for all. "You won't be needing this anymore," said Million cruelly as he gripped BLACK 13's Spark Core._

"_No…" said BLACK 13 hoarsely but he was silenced as his Spark Core was ripped right out of his body. His armor then fell off him in pieces._

_Million grinned as he gazed at the Spark Core. "And this one makes eight," he mused. He turned to the Cyborg-Superman and gave a polite nod before teleporting away._

* * *

"And that's when the Green Lantern showed up!" Henshaw finished.

"Where is Million?" Warren growled.

"I don't know!" Henshaw told Warren. "He comes to me. He just shows up in front of me from time-to-time, offering to upgrade by Manhunters and then asking me if he can borrow them! Just kill me already! Do it! Do it!"

"Not yet," Warren went on, "Why did you go after Shinichi?"

"She sent me to do it!"

"Who!-?"

"A witch!"

"What was her name?"

"Bern…Bernkastel!"

* * *

"_Who are you?" Hank Henshaw, the Cyborg-Superman, asked as the young woman approached him without fear. Her eyes displayed no emotion and her face was like a mask that never changed its expression._

"_I am the Witch of Miracles, but you may call me Lady Bernkastel," the Witch of Miracles introduced herself. "And I know who you are, Mr. Henshaw."_

"_So, what do you want, 'Witch of Miracles'?" Henshaw asked._

"_I want you to destroy Shinichi Banabara," Bernkastel told him. "I need you to kill the one known as BLACK 13."_

_Cocking an eyebrow, Henshaw questioned, "Oh, and why should I do what you say? Why should I even care about that?"_

"_Because l can grant you your wish and __give you the one thing you have been wanting, the one thing that has eluded you even during the Sinestro Corps and Sauron's failed invasion. I can finally let you die, and be at peace,__" Bernkastel answered. Henshaw looked her in the eye. She wasn't bluffing and had a real good poker face, but she definitely could kill him if given the chance. He had a feeling she could._

_"How... how do I know this isn't a trick?" the Cyborg-Superman asked._

_"You don't but are you willing to risk it? You will finally be free of it all, the memory of Excalibur, your wife's suicide when she saw your new body, to be free of this torturous mockery you call a life?" Bernkastel said and this made the Cyborg-Superman frown in silence, thinking about the witch's offer. "This is __the miracle you desire. As long as you do this for me, I will grant you this miracle."_

* * *

Dr. Hasuma received a call from Warren and immediately activated the Dimensional Rift Gate. Once Warren walked out of it, it collapsed behind him.

Dr. Hasuma looked to the Director as he returned, "What happened?"

Warren gave him a somber look, "We won't have to worry about _him_ anymore."

Dr. Hasuma shook his head, "I'm almost afraid to ask. So, what have you learnt?"

"That a witch has been targeting Shinichi," said Warren.

* * *

Warren was in his office as he prepared the summoning circle on the floor. He knew what he was doing. Years of studying the occult and supernatural under numerous teachers made sure of that. He then called forth the witch he wished to summon and the circle was meant to be a portal for her to appear and contain her. The lights were turned off and the only light present was from the candles standing around the summoning circle.

"So, you've called for me, Warren Smith." Warren opened his eyes to look at the Witch of Miracles known as Frederica Bernkastel.

"I'll cut to the chase, Bernkastel," said Warren sternly.

She interjected, "You are upset."

"Damn right I am!" he snapped. "You sent a monster after Shinichi!"

"Yes, your _son_," said Bernkastel. "Is he aware of your connection?"

"I'm the one asking the questions here!" Warren asked, "Why did you send Henshaw after Shinichi and don't deny it. He told me himself."

"I should've erased his memories and just planted that suggestion," Bernkastel chided herself.

"Stop stalling! Why did you send someone to kill Shinichi?" Warren interrogated.

"Before I answer, let me ask you this question: do you know the tale of Rika's struggle against Fate?" Bernkastel gave Warren a summary and then she finished, "And finally, in the end, she was able to find her Happy Ending with all her friends after centuries of constant struggle. Since the beginning I've been watching over Rika and her friends to make sure her desires world is safe. However, something appeared that threatened that: Shinichi Banabara." She continued, "Shinichi, from the very beginning, was an anomaly. He possessed great power and so I monitored him. I used to consider him Rika's protector and even helped save his life."

"Yeah, I remember. You provided an antidote for him and the NEO-NUMBERS," Warren recalled.

"That is because I saw him as a force of good. However, recently, something has happened." Bernkastel snapped her fingers and the entire room became filled with crystal fragments and each fragment possessed images which played within them like movies. "Welcome to the Realm of Kakera. Each of these crystal fragments represents a different world. These worlds were created as a result of Rika's fight with Fate. Each time she died, Hanyuu would take her back in time into another version of Hinamizawa so she could start over."

"Like a reset," Warren summarized.

Bernkastel nodded as she went on, "Each time she failed, and died, the cycle would begin again. All the worlds were alike, but there were differences in the series of events which occurred but in each world. Despite these differences, there was one thing they had in common: Rika's death. Rika was trying to discover the reason behind the death, and stop it, but it wasn't until 4 years ago was she able to break free of the cursed Endless June and attain her miracle. Then a year later, Shinichi Banabara appeared."

"Enough with the history lecture and tell me why you want Shinichi dead!" Warren grew impatient.

"In less than two months the amount of the Kakera has begun to dwindle dramatically and I watched as many worlds were erased from existence. I attempted to uncover the source of their destruction and found the one responsible," said Bernkastel.

"So, you had Shinichi killed out of suspicion!" Warren angrily shouted.

"Not out of suspicion," Bernkastel shook her head. "He is the reason all those worlds were erased and if that was the case I could not allow him to exist because that would mean the loss of Rika's present world as well."

"Do you even realize how much Rika cares about him? Did you ever think about that? She loves him! You will only hurt her!" Warren shot back. "And what about Alan? Henshaw nearly killed him too!"

"The Green Lantern?" Bernkastel reasoned, "He was only collateral damage."

"People are not collateral damage!" Warren snapped.

"Sacrifices are needed for the greater good," Bernkastel responded without a trace of emotion in her voice. There was no guilt or remorse, but there was a sense of satisfaction. "And now that Shinichi Banabara has died, the destruction had ceased."

"He's not dead yet," Warren countered.

"He will be," Bernkastel countered. Her voice echoed as she vanished and the candles were blown away. Warren, in his anger, kicked the candles away.

"Mark my words, Bernkastel. If either Alan or Shinichi dies I'm coming for you and not even your magic will save you," Warren swore.

* * *

Rena sat at Shinichi's bedside in the dark room. She watched as Shinichi's chest rose and fell and as the beeps and of the machines and images on the monitors accompanied her. Rena had elected to stay by Shinichi's side and refused to leave him when he was like this. The others had gone home, leaving her with the boy she loved. As for Shiori, she had wanted to stay as well but she had other responsibilities, mainly Sho, to worry about.

"Shin-kun…please don't die…Rena needs you…" Rena murmured softly in grief. She was hoping for a miracle to occur. She prayed for a miracle to happen.

When Shinichi left her to go after Gebok almost two months ago she had not left the house and could barely eat or sleep. It took her friends to get her back up on her feet and Mion even force-fed her just to get her to eat again. Mion was angry for Shinichi leaving her like that but Mion kept reminding Rena that Shinichi wouldn't want her to punish herself like this. It if weren't for her friends encouragement, Rena may have died of loneliness.

Each day she prayed for Shinichi's return. When the letters started coming she became happy. They came in the form of paper cranes and would be sitting on the windowsill, waiting for her to pick up and read what message was written inside. This allowed her to know Shinichi was alright.

Then, she saw him again two weeks ago at Alan's School Festival and spent the day with him. It broke her heart again when he had to leave but Hanyuu told her that Shinichi had something important to do in order to protect her.

She was then reminded of the paper cranes and decided to start making 1000 of them so that her wish would be granted. Her wish was for Shinichi to wake up and smile again.

When Dr. Hasuma found her, she was asleep with several paper cranes on Shinichi's bed. She was not close to 1000 just yet but she had a pretty good start.

* * *

At the same time, Conda, Lala and Nozomu were keeping Alan's company. The room was silent, with only the sound of soft breathing, light snoring, and the beeping of the heart monitor accompanying the sleeping group. Conda slept standing up, leaning against a corner of the wall. She was like a sentinel who guarded over her treasure, which was Alan. Lala had fallen asleep in a chair while Nozomu was sleeping on the floor, and curled up like a dog.

The three of them had elected themselves to keep Alan company and watch over him. Conda had wanted to hunt down the bastard who'd done this but Amora managed to convince her otherwise. What Alan needed was to have them with him, to wait for him to wake up. Lala had not hesitated. Nozomu also volunteered to stay with Conda finally agreeing.

Alan was still strapped down with the red sun lamp beaming down on him but it was only a matter of time before he awoke.

When that would be was anyone's guess.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Yuji's in a coma, Alan's in a coma and Shinichi's in a coma. Of course that's not the worst news here. Maria's been kidnapped as well! Why? We'll find out in the next thrilling installment of KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN.**


	52. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 12

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 12: New Sphere on the Block**

"Alright," said Takada. "The new arms and legs fit perfectly."

The surgery had taken hours but with Dr. Magi's expertise with cybernetics and Ryuki's expertise in the human anatomy, the new cybernetic limbs were now part of Shinichi's body. They had been modified, of course, and had a layer of synthetic skin on them so they would not appear mechanical. There was just one last thing to do.

Takada help up a syringe filled with nanites. This was important. These nanites would allow Shinichi to connect with his new limbs perfectly. They just needed to be injected into the bloodstream and the nanites would do the rest.

"Are you sure those are safe?" asked Dr. Hasuma warily.

"I'm 99.9 percent sure, with a 0.1 percent margin of error," Takada told him honestly.

"We don't have any room for error, Takada-hakase," said Dr. Magi sternly. "If we don't do this right we might lose him for good."

"Right, I gotcha," nodded Takada-hakase. "Injecting nanites." The needle was inserted into the base of Shinichi's neck and he began push the nanites in. When the syringe had been emptied, he removed the syringe and backed away.

And all of a sudden, Shinichi's eyes snapped open, glowing with darkness as he screamed, his back arched.

"WHAT DID YOU DO!-?" Dr. Hasuma roared at Takada as he grabbed him by his coat and shook him.

"I-I j-just put in the nanites!" reported Takada.

Dr. Hasuma asked, "And which nanites are these?"

"The nanites meant to allow him to better connect with his cybernetics…Oops." Takada blinked as he realized his folly. "Uh-oh."

Dr. Hasuma growled, a massive dragon apparition behind him that looked angry and hungry. "Takada-hakase, you will tell me what is going on right now or so help me..."

"I think I must've mixed up the nanites! The nanites I put in were the ones that we got from Alan!" said Takada.

"How?" Dr. Hasuma asked and shook his head. He knew how careless and accident-prone Takada could be. "Never mind. So, what is happening to him?" Dr. Hasuma demanded.

"Maybe his body is rejecting the nanites?" said Takada uncertainly. "But since those nanites were designed to repair and rebuild damaged cybernetics…"

"You better be sure about this Takada," said Dr. Hasuma, "Because if Shinichi dies because of _your_ careless mistake I'm leaving you at the mercy of the wolves, alone." Takada gulped as he looked at Dr. Hasuma and the dragon that loomed over him menacingly. Dr. Hasuma then released Takada as the dragon faded away.

Black veins started to appear on Shinichi's skin as he continued to scream and all of a sudden he calmed down and lay back down on the bed. His vitals appeared to be normal now but it was still too early to tell.

"For a moment, his eyes were like Warren's," said Takada.

Dr. Hasuma ignored Takada's observation and asked, "Dr. Magi, how is the connection between the cybernetic prosthesis to Shinichi's nervous system?"

"The nanites seemed to have worked," said Dr. Magi. "Of course I have no idea what they will do after this."

"Keep monitoring his vitals for the next 24 hours," he instructed. Dr. Hasuma warned Takada, "If anything happens to Shinichi, you better pray that Warren doesn't find out you were responsible." Takada trembled under Dr. Hasuma's gaze before he walked out of the operating room. "You're done here, so you can go back to your lab and figure out a way to replace Shinichi's Spark Core." Takada didn't move. "I said GO!" A dragon momentarily appeared behind Dr. Hasuma, towering over him with a terrifying visage.

"Hai, sir!" Takada obeyed before he flew off.

Dr. Magi volunteered, "Maybe I should go with him so he doesn't make another error."

Dr. Hasuma agreed, "Good idea. I'll monitor Shinichi's vitals." He took out his tablet PC. "Alright, time to check on our other patients." He was referring to Alan and Yuji. He looked at their vitals and everything seemed normal. However, like Shinichi, they were still in comas. He needed to figure out a way to revive them.

* * *

Yuji looked around a he was in the middle of a desert valley with a small creek, alone.

"Hello?" he called out as his voice echoed. No one answered. "Anybody?" He frowned to himself, "OK, I'm not drunk, not on drugs, and I don't smoke. So where the fuck am I?"

"Hello, Yuji."

Yuji turned around as his eyes widened to the sight of Kamen Rider Faiz, looking down on him from the top of a sand dune.

"Remember me?" Faiz asked vehemently as he walked down the dune to face Yuji. "Kamen Rider Faiz. Or have you forgotten after so long?"

Yuji glared, "What's going on here? What is this?-!"

"We're in your head," Faiz retorted. "You tell me."

He shook his head, "I'm not gonna fight you."

"Fine then," Faiz pointed, "Just stand there and look pretty so I can kill you for letting Yumi die!"

Yuji reached for his Liger Belt but noticed, "My gear's gone." He then tried to call on his powers, but to no avail, "Great…"

Faiz came at Yuji with a jump kick, which Yuji sidestepped and countered with a spinning back kick. Faiz blocked the kick with his forearm and spun with a back hand that caught Yuji in the chest. He then converted his phone into its Blaster Mode and pulled the trigger. Yuji ran forward as he evaded the beams and came in with a right elbow strike. The two traded close-range blows as Faiz then delivered a leg sweep that landed Yuji on his back with water from the creek splashing everywhere.

"All washed up, Yuji?" Faiz taunted. "Maybe you should hit the showers for good. Save yourself the grief of losing more girlfriends all the time."

Yuji got and growled, "Bite me, asshole!"

"I know you are, but what am I?" he retorted. "You could've easily beaten Ryuuho when you were Faiz, yet he wiped the floor with you stupid ass without even trying! And because of your hesitation, Yumi is dead!"

"Don't you dare say her name!" Yuji shouted back, "You think I forgot that?-! I'll never forget what happened to Yumi!-! And Ryuuho will die for what he's done to me!"

"So you say," Faiz growled, "Yet he still walks among the living, killing whomever, whatever, and whenever he wants!"

Faiz then attached the Faiz Pointer to his right leg and pressed 'Enter' on his phone.

"**EXCEED CHARGE!"**

Faiz jumped and kicked his right foot forward as he shot a red cone at Yuji. He then came down with a side kick and roared as he was about to finish it. But Yuji grabbed Faiz's foot with his right hand as his King of Hearts crest began to glow brilliantly with a golden aura.

Faiz gaped, "Nani?-!"

Yuji growled, "You may have those crimson feet, but I've got these golden fingers! **BURNING DRAGON!**"

Faiz was engulfed in flames in the shape of a dragon as he was launched across the creek. After the flames died down, he struggled to his feet, "I see you got a lot of fight left in you…! But is it enough?" Faiz then turned into a pillar of crimson energy as he shot up into the sky.

"Wait," Yuji called out before muttering, "What are you talking about…?"

* * *

Outside Yuji's mind, Aki, Yuki and Yuji's girls were at his side, watching as his breathing was steady. They were patiently waiting for their son/brother/boyfriend/master to awaken from his slumber, whenever that may be.

* * *

Dr. Hasuma then went to check up on Takada and Dr. Magi in the Science Department to get a report on their progress. What he saw was Takada and Dr. Magi talking to a Sphere Droid. Sphere Droids were ball-shaped robots with a single optic sensor in the centre. They resembled large mechanical eyes.

Of course, this was the first time Dr. Hasuma had ever seen a Sphere Droid.

Dr. Hasuma blinked, "What is that thing?"

He was referring to the sphere-shaped robot that was floating in the air between Dr. Magi and Takada.

The sphere glared at Dr. Hasuma. "_Hey, watch who you're calling a thing, jackass!_" it yelled in a very familiar voice, despite sounding electronic.

Dr. Hasuma's eyes widened as he recognized the voice, "Wait...is _that_...Shinichi?"

Takada answered, "Yes, and no."

Dr. Hasuma was almost at a loss for words.

"Well," Dr. Magi began to explain, "Takada-hakase here was trying to unlock some encrypted files from the Memory AI that was delivered to Smith-kanchou. He was trying to see if there was anything in it that could help us create a solution to Shinichi's situation, as in the lack of a Spark Core. He had some difficulty with it but then of course since an AI is a program made based on a human mind and the AI represents Shinichi's memories, by installing it into a Sphere Droid, we thought that it would be able to help us unlock those memories and important information."

"Whose idea was it?" Dr. Hasuma asked.

"Yokoshima suggested it," answered Dr. Magi.

Warren came into the lab and asked, "So, how's everything going?"

AI-Shin turned to look at Warren, "_Hey, who's this guy?_"

Warren stared at the floating mechanical eyeball.

"_What are you staring at, gramps?_" AI-Shin snapped rudely.

"Is that Shinichi?" asked Warren. He recognized the voice but the real Shinichi was in a coma.

"Well, not exactly," confirmed Dr. Magi. "It's really the Memory AI that was sent to us but something went wrong when we installed it into this Sphere Droid."

"He doesn't remember us," Dr. Hasuma pointed out. "He acts like Shinichi, though."

"Can't you fix his memories?" asked Warren.

"We're afraid that if we try to force his memories out it may cause some…emotional trauma," said Dr. Magi carefully. "And rebooting him isn't an option because we might erase his memories."

"And I tried to probe him and he threatened to sue me for sexual harassment," added Takada.

"_Yeah, and if you ever touch me like that again I am gonna sue the pants right off you, perv!_" AI-Shin snapped.

"But at least let me hook you up to a computer so we can read those encrypted files you have in your memory," pleaded Takada. "It's important."

"_OK, if it means that much to you, but if it turns into anything sexual…_"

"It won't! Now come on!"

* * *

Yuji was now on the rim of an active volcano as smoke rose from below/ he looked down to see the lava and grimaced, "Great, out the desert and into a volcano…"

"Guess it makes sense since you have a hot temper!"

Yuji looked across from him to see an all too familiar figure glaring at him. He wore a red bodysuit, black gauntlets and boots, black shoulder pads, and black torso armor with silver muscles on the chest plate. The helmet was black with a silver grilled face plate with red eye pieces behind it. Around his waist was a silver belt with a black case in the buckle, with a gold dragon symbol. On his left arm was a dragon-themed device and in his right hand was a Chinese dao.

"Oh, it's you," Yuji frowned.

The armored warrior nodded, "Mystic Knight Dragoon."

"I thought I had Leon keep your deck away from me."

"I'm part of your memory, jackass," Dragoon remarked, "You're stuck with me for life, whether you like it or not." He twirled the Drago Dao in his hand, "Now then, shall we get down to business?"

He let out a shout as he leapt across the volcano in a single bound as he reached Yuji's position and swung at him. Yuji weaved from side to side to avoid getting his head lopped off as he came back with some roundhouse kicks and he did a split as he gave Dragoon a left jab into his gut, making him stagger back. Dragoon then pulled out a card and slotted it into his Drago Visor.

"**STRIKE VENT!"**

A red dragon's head fell from the sky and Dragoon caught it in his right hand as he shot his arm forward and fired a fireball at Yuji, which he flipped over and followed up with a corkscrew kick into Dragoon's chest, sending him skidding across the rim of the volcano.

"You really should just fall into that volcano and die! If it weren't for you then Nena and Mei would still be with us right now!" Dragoon shouted. "And like a coward you abandoned my power!"

"Cry me a river, asshole," Yuji spat, "Le Fey is dead and their souls are avenged, so trying to psyche me out won't work this time!"

"Bet you can't say the same about Rosa," Dragoon continued.

Yuji growled, "Shut up…"

"Ryuuho's still alive because of you and now Maria's impending fate will be on your head!"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Yuji roared as he instantly accessed his Transcended state, the volcano erupting with his roar as fire and brimstone flew into the air.

He came at Dragoon in full fury as he bashed his face in with flame-powered punches and swung around to slam his tail into Dragoon's side, sending him tumbling.

"Vesuvius Vulcan," Transcended Yuji shouted as he rained down his flaming ammo on Dragoon, sparks flying from his armor.

Dragoon staggered back as he drew another card and decided to go for broke.

"**FINAL VENT!"**

A red Chinese dragon flew down and twirled around Dragoon as he went into a stance and jumped up with the dragon, twirling his body as he set a side kick. The dragon launched him in fire as he came crashing down to Transcended Yuji. "Dragon Flame Smash!"

"**FLAME TURBO!"** Transcended Yuji called as his shoulder torch erupted, discharging fire as he flew up at Dragoon with a flaming fist, **"KRAKATOA…KRUSHER!"** And with that, he pierced through Dragoon's chest as the Mystic Knight coughed up blood, with Yuji hovering over the volcano.

"Not bad…" Dragoon admitted. "Hopefully, you won't be too much a pussy and go all out for once…" He kicked off of Transcended Yuji, releasing Dragoon's body, as the Mystic Knight dove into the volcano and vanished from sight.

* * *

With some persuasion in the form of some rare porn, Takada was able to convince AI-Shin to hook himself up to his computer via a cable. With the AI's assistance, Takada was able to unlock the encrypted files on Project Armageddon and what he found shocked him.

"Hey, Takada-hakase," called Yokoshima. "Do you mind if I borrow Shin here for a bit?"

"Oh?" Takada looked up. "Yeah, it's fine." He copied the files he found into his computer and then unhooked AI-Shin from it. "Here you go."

"_OK, that felt weird_," said AI-Shin. He asked Takada, "_Hey, if you found anything odd in there believe me that they aren't mine."_

"Don't care," said Takada. "Now go. I got some research to do here."

Yokoshima nodded and asked AI-Shin, "Hey, Shin. You wanna go meet some friends of mine?"

"_Sure. I'd rather be anywhere but this dump_," said AI-Shin.

* * *

"OK, first I was in a desert, then a volcano, and now I'm in a bamboo forest," said Yuji. The grass was green and the bamboo stood tall all around him. Since all the bamboo around him looked the same he could get lost trying to navigate if he wasn't such an expert navigator. He then heard the sound of running water and followed it.

The sound of running water grew louder, which meant he was getting closer and finally he found the stream and someone sitting in front of it with his back facing him. The person sitting wore armor that looked like that of a samurai. He wore a black bodysuit underneath a white do (torso armor) that covered his chest and ribs. He had white, armored, haidate (thigh guards) covering his waist, front and back, white kote (sleeve armor) protecting his forearms, white suneate (greaves) covering his shins with three spikes protruding from them, white tekko (hand guards) covering his black gloves. White, broad, wing-like, shoulder pads covered his shoulders, with white sode (shoulder flaps) underneath. On the front of the armored shoulders, the crest of the Six Samurai rested. He wore white armored boots and a white kabuto (helmet) covered his head. The helmet was crowned by gold, antenna-like, horns.

He seemed to be meditating.

"I've been expecting you, Yuji Fudo," the samurai spoke as he awoke from his meditation. He stood up and turned to look at Yuji. His face was covered by a mask which had a silver mouth plate, blue insectoid eyes, and white wing-like protrusions framing the face.

"So, you're my next test," concluded Yuji.

"Indeed," answered Kamen Rider Bushido.

"Are you going to trash-talk me like the others?" asked Yuji.

"No, I will not, but I will ask you one simple question," said Bushido. He then asked, "How could you allow such terrible things to happen?"

Yuji looked down in shame, "I…I don't know…for some reason, when it comes down to it, I just…choke. I'm strong, I know I am! But I feel like there's something keeping me from going all out in a fight! And I don't know what it is!"

"In any case," Bushido dismissed as he drew his sword, "It's time we began. Take your sword."

Yuji looked to his side and saw a katana planted in the ground. He grabbed the handle and drew from the earth as he took a stance, followed by Bushido. The two charged at each other with lightning-fast slashes and counters as they traded strikes to get a hit in. sparks flew everywhere as their movements were matched, both excelling in the Hiten-Mitsurugi-ryu: supersonic attacks that were meant to kill with a single strike and reaction time that's commonly referred to as "Shinsoku" (God Speed).

Yuji went for a horizontal slash which was evaded by Bushido as he jumped high, with Yuji cutting a few bamboo stalks, and readied himself for an aerial attack.

"Hiten-Mitsurugi-ryu," Bushido muttered, "Ryu Tsui-sen."

He slashed down ward and was countered by Yuji's blade as the two rolled across the floor together. They rose to their feet and ran in a parallel line before clashing again. Yuji took a few swings and struck Bushido's armor, but the Rider didn't even flinch as he punched Yuji in the face, making him back away for a second before swinging again.

Bushido raised his blade over his head and called out, "Dou Ryu-sen!" He slammed the blade down on the ground and launched earth at Yuji, making him roll out of the way. Bushido took the chance and moved in. Yuji acted fast and thrust forward, making Bushido twist around on Yuji's left side as he called out, "Ryu Kan-sen!" And he swung at Yuji's left side, drawing blood for the first time in this fight as Yuji recoiled in pain as he retreated, resting his blade on his shoulder as Bushido did the same.

"I sense much regret in your heart, Yuji," Bushido observed.

"Don't try and psycho-analyze me," Yuji growled.

"This is important," the samurai Rider countered. "You still blame yourself for killing Sensei."

"Of course I do," he shouted. "He had a family! I had no right to take him away from them!"

"There is a reason he wanted you to take his life," Bushido stated. "Sensei knew that the time of war was at an end, and there would be no need for samurai in his world. When you were sent there by Leon, Sensei saw the perfect opportunity to pass his knowledge to someone who needed it instead of wanting it. Kenshin Himura chose you to carry on the legacy of the Hiten-Mitsurugi-ryu."

Yuji listened to Bushido's words as he tried to process them, "His legacy…"

Bushido nodded, "Just as Rosa had entrusted you with her legacy. Maria needs you, her father. Now then, let us continue." He took his stance and made the next move, swing down as Yuji blocked, the blades sliding against each other as Yuji stepped to the side and cut at Bushido's torso, making the Rider grunt in pain. "That's the way…take any openings you find, no holding back, and make each hit count if you can't kill an opponent with a single strike. Just like Sensei taught us! Now show me what you've got!" He noticed Yuji running into the forest and he followed after him. Yuji cut away at the stalks, making them fall as Bushido got closer. Bushido merely cut the falling stalks away as he continued after his prey. Yuji turned and grabbed some stalks as the bent and he let go to make them swing quickly. Bushido saw them coming and sliced them away. "That's it, use your surroundings! Make them fight for you!"

Yuji then took a stance and held his katana in a drawing position, "It's time we finished this!"

"Agreed!" Bushido concurred as they two came at each other. Yuji swung from the left and Bushido blocked. The two struggled for control as Bushido shook the blade off and was about to finish it. "This battle is mine!" He then blinked, "Nanai?-!"

Yuji came twisting around as he roared, "**HITEN MITSURUGI-RYU! AMA KAKERU RYU NO HIRAMEKI!**" He swung vertically and cut Bushido's torso open as he went flying into the air, dropping down as he lay there, defeated. Yuji froze before lowering his sword and turning to his downed opponent.

"Very good," Bushido admitted. "Now then, your true test awaits…" He snapped his fingers and disappeared in a flash of sakura petals.

* * *

Yokoshima had called everyone to Hinamizawa to meet with his new friend. They were at the NEO-NUMBERS base which was underground the Irie Clinic.

"Guys, meet Shin," said Yokoshima as he pointed at AI-Shin.

"_Hey, what's up?_" greeted AI-Shin.

The Hinamizawa Gaming Club and the NEO-NUMBERS all stared up at AI-Shin.

"You're telling us _that's_ Shin-chan?" asked Mion.

"Well, not exactly," said Yokoshima. "This is actually an AI that's based on Shinichi's memories."

"An A-what?" Keiichi asked.

"An AI," Hana explained, "An Artificial Intelligence program." She noted the blank looks she was getting. "Basically it's a computer program that operates like a human mind."

"And this one is his memory!" piped up Yokoshima.

"We heard you the first time," remarked Daichi. He addressed Mion, "Well, Mion. You wanted him back and now he's back, sorta."

"_Wait, I thought she was Mion_," said AI-Shin as she looked at Shion.

"That's Shion. Shi-on…" Yokoshima reminded, talking slowly.

"_I'm confused, not deaf you idiot_," retorted AI-Shin.

"If he's supposed to be based on Shinichi's memories, why doesn't he remember any of us?" asked Michiru.

"I guess he has amnesia," said Shogo.

"Some memory," muttered Daichi.

"But don't worry! I've been telling him stories about all of us," said Yokoshima.

"_You?_" Daichi snorted. He asked AI-Shin, "You let _him_ tell you stories?"

"_What else was I supposed to do? He was the only one who would talk to me while I was in storage._ _Everyone else was just interested to see what kind of information I had_," said AI-Shin.

"OK, if he's been telling you about us who am I?" asked Daichi.

"_You're Daichi, and you are supposed to be dead. Actually…_" AI-Shin scanned the NEO-NUMBERS, _"…you're all supposed to be dead._" He asked Yokoshima, "_I've been meaning to ask, are you all like zombies or something?_"

"You didn't get to the part when we were revived, did you?" asked Shogo.

"I was hoping to get to that later," said Yokoshima, rubbing the back of his head.

"Alright, who is he?" Daichi asked gesturing to Keiichi.

"_Well, he's Keiichi Maebara and he's Mion's bitch_," said AI-Shin.

"Hey!" exclaimed Keiichi in anger.

"You kinda are, Shin-chan," giggled Shion.

"And her?" Daichi pointed to Mion.

"_Well, if you're Mion that means you're the passionate and tough-as-nails leader of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club_," answered AI-Shin.

Mion remarked, "You know that does sound-"

"Give him a sec," Daichi interrupted.

"_Which would also make you Queen of the Village of Demons_," finished AI-Shin.

"With all those concussions you took, everything is all mixed up," Daichi insulted Yokoshima. "Yokoshima, I'm almost afraid to ask this, but did Asmodeus help you out by any chance?"

"Yes," Yokoshima confirmed. "Why'd you ask?"

"Now that explains it," Daichi sighed.

AI-Shin scanned the people. They seemed familiar but he could honestly say he didn't really have any memory of them, or that he couldn't access those memories right now. Any memories he could access was mainly because he was purposely trying to access then but then his single eye fell upon Rena. All of a sudden he was bombarded by a flash of images and then the sphere-shaped robot hovered down to look at her.

"_Rena-chan, don't cry_," said AI-Shin, in a perfect imitation of Shinichi's soothing voice. Granted, he did sound like Shinichi as he was once part of him. He really wished he had hands to wipe her tears, or maybe even tissue paper. He also he had arms to hold her so he could comfort her. While he may not have access to Shinichi's memories at the moment, he actually felt something for this sad girl.

"Oh, you're so kawaii," said Rena. She didn't grab or hug him, though. To her he was still just a machine with Shinichi's voice. He was still nice, though. On a nearby table was a pile of paper cranes. She'd told her friends what she was trying to do and so Mion got everyone to help her make paper cranes until she reached her goal of 1000.

Keiichi whispered to Mion, "At least he acts like Shinichi."

A nearby box of tissues floated over to AI-Shin and everyone stared.

"Hey, are you doing that, Shin?" asked Yokoshima.

"_Doing what?_" AI-Shin asked and then he saw the box of tissues. "_Woah! Am I doing that? That's fucking awesome!_"

"You have telekinesis?" asked Daichi.

"Telekinesis?" asked Yokoshima jubilantly. "Does that mean you can tell what I'm thinking?"

"_What?_" AI-Shin stared questionably at Yokoshima.

"Telekinesis, not telepathy, dumbass," Daichi scolded.

AI-Shin put the box of tissues in Rena's hand as he wondered aloud, "_This is so cool! I wonder what other powers I have. I could be the most powerful being in the universe! I could be like a superhero or something!_" As he was saying this, he began to drift away.

"Where are you going?" asked Michiru.

"_It would appear that I have lost control of my body_," said AI-Shin as he drifted along the air. He then drifted towards the exit and he floated out of the base.

"Yokoshima, come with me," Daichi ordered. "Let's go find your new friend." Yokoshima nodded and followed after Daichi as they chased after AI-Shin.

"Recently, you guys have a lot going on," observed Shion.

"Yes, it's true," said Shogo.

"Rena is happy," admitted Rena. "Rena got to hear Shin-kun's voice again."

* * *

Yuji found himself in the hall that opened out to the stands Neo Domino Stadium. The place was completely empty and the silence was rather eerie.

"Guess this is my last stop," Yuji muttered. A gold flash caught his eye and he turned to see a sword embedded in the wall next to him. He removed the sword, which was black with golden edges and a two-pronged tip, and looked down the stairs to see a figure walking up to him, "I figured I'd run into you."

"It's been a while, Yuji," Abyss King greeted in an emotionless tone. He wore black armor with golden streams on the legs and arms. The Omega symbol was on the chest and the shoulder guards that covered the upper arms for protection. A black coat appeared to be worn under the armor as well, judging from the high collar around his neck and the long length of black fabric with golden trimmings that hung from the waist to his ankles. The helmet was rounded with a semi-circular crown on top that was separated down the center. The faceplate and visor combo was red and shaped after the Omega symbol. He removed his helmet to reveal a spitting image of Yuji, but he had black sclera to go with his lifeless blue eyes. "I see you've switched to basic white," he noted.

Yuji shrugged, "Seems to work for me. Lemme guess, you wanna fight."

"You guessed right," Abyss answered as he went into a battle stance.

Yuji gripped the sword in his hand and charged down at Abyss, swing the blade to the best of his ability, only to blocked and parried by Abyss's blocks. Yuji then combined his slashes with punches and kicks but even those moves were blocked. Since the Abyss King was Yuji's darkness, it was logical that he'd know what moves the Manakyte would make. The two made their way down the stairs and Abyss kicked the sword out of Yuji's hand as it flew up and fell into the hands of its rightful owner. Abyss then slashed away at Yuji tearing through his clothes and went for a downward swing. Yuji side-stepped the attack and was ready to make his move.

"Burning Dragon!" Yuji shouted

"Darkness Dragon," Abyss called emotionlessly.

The two jumped back as they launched their attacks, one dragon made of red hot flames while the other was made of hellfire, as they collided and made the two land in the center of the stadium.

"I sense great fear in you," Abyss observed.

"Yeah, like I'm afraid of you," Yuji snorted.

Abyss shook his head, "You fear your own power."

Yuji blinked, "My power…?"

"Yes. You're afraid of destroying those you love with your full power if your lose control. And because of that, you have no pride in yourself as a Manakyte. No matter how much magic you learn, or the amount of training you obtain, it doesn't compare to the roaring flame of your own power that blazes in your heart. It appears I spoke too much, so back to the battle."

Abyss shouted as he lunged at Yuji with a strike as he ducked under a swing. Abyss then launched a blast of hellfire that hit Yuji, explosions triggering all around as Yuji was sent flying with a shout of pain. Yuji struggled to his feet and roared as he Transcended. Abyss did the same and also Transcended, with his volcanic form in pitch black as black flames bellowed from his shoulders. The two Manakytes ran at each other and tore at each other with their flaming claws as sparks and explosions shook the ground they stood upon. They both initiated Flame Turbo as they temperature rose drastically and geysers of fire erupted from below and around the two, spewing black and red flames as they battled fiercely.

They hovered away from each other and charged their next attack.

"SEKI," Yuji shouted.

"HA," Abyss continued.

"**TENKYOKEN!"** they called as Yuji's blast was red while Abyss's was black. The two blasts pushed against each other as Yuji and Abyss struggled for control until…

**KABOOOOOM!**

The explosion rocked the stadium as Yuji collapsed on the floor, with Abyss looming over him with his sword to Yuji's throat.

"You know better than anyone just how powerful I am," Abyss stated. "Why don't you just give up the fight?"

Yuji struggled to sit up as he glared up at his darkness, "Because that's something I'll never do." He inched forward as the sword was pressed against his skin.

"Then I guess this is it," Abyss said as he withdrew the blade and outstretched his hand to Yuji, making him blink in confusion. "You passed the test."

Yuji took the hand that helped him up and as frowned, "I don't get it. I lost to you. So what are you talking about?"

"You haven't been fighting us," Faiz explained as he entered Yuji's field of vision.

"You've been fighting for your life," Dragoon continued as he joined the two.

Then Bushido entered the explanation, "And you've proven that your will to live is stronger than any Rider power." The four aspects of Yuji's life stood before him as they reached behind their backs to reveal: Bushido – The Liger Belt; Dragoon – The Liger Pass; Dragoon – The Liger Phone; Abyss – A black card with a golden X framed by golden fangs.

"These are yours," Abyss stated. "You'll know when to use them."

Yuji nodded and took the pieces of gear from them, one by one.

"Good luck, Kamen Rider Liger…"

* * *

AI-Shin floated straight out of the Irie Clinic. He was still drifting out of control and started to command, "_Stop! Abort that move! Fuck!_"

"Can't you stop?" Daichi asked as he caught up to AI-Shin with Yokoshima behind him.

"_I'm trying to, OK? But I can't stop! I'm moving on my own._" He then realized what he just said, "_Which of course doesn't make sense once I said it out loud."_ He then stopped. "_Hey, I stopped!_"

"Wow," Daichi let out sarcastically, "You figured out how NOT to move? You must be a _genius_!"

"_And look at this! I can even move backwards_." AI-Shin demonstrated. "_Woosh._"

"OK, now you're just bragging."

"_It's important to me, asshole_," AI-Shin remarked.

"Well I'm impressed," admitted Yokoshima. "I can't go backwards either."

"_Stop patronizing me_."

"Well, maybe you should learn how to control your body better so you don't float away like a balloon again," suggested Daichi.

"_Maybe there's a file or some kind of database I can access in here. Gimme a second…_" began AI-Shin. He trailed off as he started to dig into the data inside him.

Daichi retorted sarcastically, "Yeah, rooting around in your brain sounds like a great idea when you can barely figure out how to move on your own."

"Um. Hey, um, Daichi? Dr. Magi told me that Shinichi—I mean Shin, here is… a little messed up."

"Yeah. I can see that."

"Yeah, no, I mean he's got some memories that he probably… shouldn't access."

"What _kind_ of memories?"

"Well, you see, Gebok did some bad stuff to him, and he kind of repressed a _lot_ of stuff." He thought for a second before asking, "Daichi, do you know what a 'repressed memory' is?"

"Yes, I've repressed almost every moment I've spent with you," Daichi replied sarcastically. "I'm actually repressing this as we speak."

Yokoshima smiled, missing the sarcasm completely, "Well, thanks buddy. That means a lot to me."

AI-Shin looked deep into his mind and saw what looked like complex computer code. "_Woah, what is this? What is all this? Schematics?_"

"I see you're starting to access your memory banks," said Daichi.

"_Wow, there is a lot of functions in here. I can't figure out what even a tenth of these do! Oh hey, what does this do?_" AI-Shin's eye flashed as it projected an image that showed a Sphere Droid like himself. "_Woah!_"

Daichi cocked an eyebrow, "What is this? Some kind of training film?"

"_Yeah, I guess_," AI-Shin answered.

"I love movies," Yokoshima smiled. "Do you have 'Kramer VS Kramer'?"

"_It looks like it's teaching me how to…_" He was cut off when he saw the Sphere Droid firing a laser out of its eye and into a guy, knocking him dead. "_WOAH!_"

Daichi gaped, "Ohhoho, holy shit!"

AI-Shin cheered, "_Wow! I can do that? I wanna do that! How I can do that?_"

"You have a laser? That was fucking awesome!" Daichi exclaimed.

He looked to Daichi, "_I gotta figure out how to do that!_" The video showed him just blowing away that one target like he was nothing! "_Maybe if I could…ugh…OK, let's see…ngh!_"

"Hey, don't be looking at me while you're trying to turn that thing on!" Daichi told him. "That eye creeps me out."

"_Let's see if I can access my long-term memory and I can figure out how all these functions work..._"

"Yeah, I don't think that's a good idea and..." Yokoshima interjected.

-CLICK- AI-Shin uttered, "_Uh-oh…_"

"What? What happened?" asked Yokoshima.

"_Crap… Instead of turning ON my long-term memory, I think I just shut OFF my short-term memory._"

"Oh… Is that bad?" questioned Yokoshima.

AI-Shin was silent for a second before he replied, "_Huh? Is what bad?_"

"Your memory thing getting shut off," Yokoshima clarified

"_Who shut off my memory?_"

"You did."

"_I did what?_"

"Shut off your memory."

"_Why would you want me to shut off my memory?_"

"No, it's already shut off."

"_What is?_"

"Your memory."

"_Yeah, what about it?_"

"Wow," Daichi sighed, "Well this is a drastic improvement. Yo, you!"

"_Me?_" AI-Shin responded.

"Don't go rooting around and try to access anymore computer stuff in your brain."

Shin went silent and looked to Yokoshima, "_Are you gonna answer him?_"

"Let's take him back inside the base," said Daichi. "God, I'm working with fucking morons," muttered Daichi.

"_OK, so where's the base?_" asked AI-Shin.

"Right in there!" Daichi pointed at the Irie Clinic.

"_Why are you yelling!-?_" Shin shot back. "_I'm not deaf!_"

"Please…just stop talking to me…" Daichi couldn't take it.

Keiichi then walked out of the Irie Clinic to check if everything was alright, "Mion sent me to see if everything is okay out here."

"We're fine," said Daichi. He gestured to AI-Shin. "_He's_ not."

"_So, what are we talking about now?_" asked AI-Shin in confusion.

Keiichi asked, "What happened to him?"

Daichi rolled his eyes, "Oh, he accidentally disabled his memory while trying to access some old memories to unlock this laser in his eye."

AI-Shin asked, "_Who has a laser?_"

"You do!"

AI-Shin cheered, "_I have a laser? That's awesome. I feel so...great...about what we were just talking about._"

Daichi growled, "Oh, god damn it. Yokoshima, your adopted dad's a scientist. Can't you fix him?"

Yokoshima suddenly punched AI-Shin.

"_Ow!_" AI-Shin cried.

"Daichi did it!" Yokoshima accused.

"_No he didn't, you jackass! You did!_" AI-Shin snapped.

"So you remember that?" Daichi inquired.

"_Why wouldn't I remember that?_" AI-Shin indignantly asked.

"So you don't remember why you wouldn't remember. Looks like you're fixed, fuck it."

AI-Shin shook back and forth in frustration, "_You guys never make any goddamn sense_." He then floated back into the Irie Clinic.

Daichi rolled his eyes, "Yeah, like that's our problem. Fucking dick." He wondered how AI-Shin couldn't remember anything accept how to be a jackass. "Guess some things are just hardwired." He then saw the other NEO-NUMBERS rushing out and getting their bikes. "Hey, what's going on?"

"There's a situation in Shishibone City," said Shogo. "It's time we move!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the junior high school, Hanyuu was in the bathroom and washing her hands at the sink. When she looked up at the mirror she saw the Cyborg Hunter behind her. She opened her mouth to shout but then he put his hand over her mouth. A sort of gas spewed out of his palm and she fell unconscious. He then threw her over his shoulder and disappeared.

Rika was outside the bathroom, waiting for Hanyuu. "Hanyuu, are you done?" She received no response. "Hanyuu?" She got worried and went into the bathroom to check to see if Hanyuu was alright but she was nowhere to be found, not even the bathroom stalls which were all vacant. "Oh no…"

* * *

"A 'Delta Drive' engine?" Takada read. "What's that supposed to be?" He read further and his eyes widened. "He plans to use the bio-energy from three sources in order to power this thing!-?" He read the identities of the three sources. "OK, now this is bad. _Very_ bad."

* * *

Meanwhile, Shiori was rummaging through her old things which she kept in her storage closet as Kasai looked over her shoulder. They had already put Sho to bed. "It has to be here, it has to be," said Shiori and then she found the box. "I found it!"

"Shiori, what are you looking for?" asked Kasai.

"Something that will save Shinji's life," said Shiori. The phone rang. "Anata, can you go get that, please?"

Kasai went out to pick up the phone as Shiori admired what was in the box. Abruptly, Kasai returned and he looked distressed, something Shiori immediately took notice of. "Tatsuyoshi-kun, what's wrong?"

"Rika just called. Hanyuu's gone missing!" he told her. Shiori's eyes widened in shock as she lost her grip on the box and it fell at her feet, the object inside rolling around her feet.

* * *

Project Armageddon was a massive weapon of mass destruction. Made of dark metal and taking the form of an ancient Japanese clay doll known as the Dogu, Project Armageddon aka Armageddon Lord was as tall as a skyscraper with a large body, large head, thick arms and thick legs with small hands and feet. Its face sported a pair of goggle-like eyes and X-SHOCKER's emblem was display proudly on its chest. With its construction being done on the moon, there was no chance of anyone knowing of its existence until it was unleashed upon the world. He already had a target in mind for its first field test. The iron giant was the culmination of all of Million's research to create the ultimate weapon and one under his complete control. The only missing piece was a proper power source in order to mobilize the giant.

Meanwhile, Million was looking at the Spark Core he'd newly acquired from BLACK 13; all that power in a single sphere and it was all his. His chestplate swung open to reveal seven other Spark Cores. Spark Cores were indestructible and even if the body they had been implanted in was destroyed in an explosion the Spark Core would still survive. That meant that these Spark Cores had been from the fallen NUMBERS (now the Soldats de la Terreur of the Witch of Terror).

There were seven empty circular slots and Spark Core #13 was put inside one. Million's chest than sealed itself shut as Million felt the power from Shinichi's Spark Core flow through his circuits and energy veins. It was incredible! No wonder Shinichi had been able to defeat his creations. He had always been stronger but now Shinichi/BLACK 13 was trash and Million's body was now perfect.

Million then saw the Cyborg Hunter appear before him. He also saw that he managed to capture his target, Hanyuu. "Put her in the Delta Drive and keep her sedated," Million instructed. "We don't need her waking up and using her powers. I don't want anyone else going insane with fear because of that little brat."

The Cyborg Hunter nodded and marched towards the engine room where the Delta Drive was. Million proceeded to mentally check Hanyuu off his list. "Two down, and one more to go," he counted.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Yuji has passed the tests against his past selves but now he must wake up so he can rescue Maria. Meanwhile, Million wants to use the girls as batteries and who is he after next? Well, think about it because you will only found out in the next exciting chapter. Will Alan, Shinichi and Yuji wake up? What about AI-Shin? Will he be anything more than an annoying sphere with Shinichi's voice? Will he get his memories back?**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Yuji's tests are inspired by the episode "Fighting Spirit" from "Power Rangers Dino Thunder". Hope you guys enjoyed it.**


	53. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 13

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 13: Awakened Heroes**

Alice was out in the yard playing in the snow. She had never seen snow before. It was beautiful, but also cold. She was wearing a thick winter coat over her body as she started to make a snowman. Celine couldn't join her because she didn't like the cold very much and was asleep.

As Alice was putting on the finishing touches, a shadow loomed over her. She turned around and…

* * *

Yuji's eyes snapped open and he quickly sat up.

"Yuji!" his mother cried out, stunned.

"I gotta go," said Yuji. "I've got some unfinished business to take care of." And all of a sudden he disappeared in a flash of blue butterflies.

* * *

An area of Shishibone City had turned into a miniature warzone. Signs of carnage lay everywhere and the source of it all was Ryuuho Kiba, the Dragon Orphenoch. Like many others who had held the identity of the Dragon Orphenoch, he was a sadistic psychopath who enjoyed the suffering of others. He was also one of Yuji's main adversaries and the one who'd killed Rosa. As an unregistered Jumper and a criminal he had a high D-Class bounty of 5,000 credits.

The NEO-NUMBERS had gone to confront him and despite outnumbering him, he had them outmatched. His default Dragon Orphenoch form was a powerhouse with massive physical strength and his leaner form when he shed off all his bulky armor was too fast for them to keep up with. It was like fighting Shinichi when he went all out.

And they had not stood a chance then like they do now. The NEO-NUMBERS were all sprawled on the ground, armor cracked. They were in their default forms but Ryuuho had not given them any openings or chances to activate their Super Modes. They were like sitting ducks.

"Now…who to kill first," said Kiba as he looked at the downed NEO-NUMBERS and began to pick as he walked. He pointed a finger at Carmen. "Ah, you."

"No…" Arachnea tried to deny as she attempted to get back on her feet but she collapsed in pain. "Leave her alone!"

"So, the mantis girl is your lover," said Kiba. "Then I'll make it very painful for you. I can't forgive her for tricking me."

"If you want to kill someone, kill me!" Arachnea offered.

"No…Hana-chan!" Michiru cried but Kiba put his foot on Carmen's chest, pinning her down.

"I've made my decision," said Kiba as he prepared the finishing blow. "But I'm a fair man. You'll be joining each other soon." Of course just as Kiba was about to finish Carmen off, he got hit in the back by a rock, and then another rock. Several more rocks started to pelt him from behind. Annoyed, he took his foot off Carmen and turned around t see a mechanical eye staring at him with rocks floating around him.

"_Hey, what's up?_" asked AI-Shin as he looked at Ryuuho.

"What is that thing!-?" Kiba cried. He then saw the eye staring at him angrily with its eye switching from blue to red and glowing too. "Oh…sonova-"

**FLASH!**

A red laser burst out from AI-Shin and slammed into Ryuuho's body. The blast thus sent him crashing into a nearby building and buried him under rubble from the impact.

"_I am not a thing! My name is Shinichi Banabara, and you will fear my LASER FACE!_" AI-Shin snapped angrily. He looked at everyone, "_Man, you guys all got fucked up._"

"That…was awesome!" Armadillo breathed out. "The laser came out of your face!"

"How did you do _that_?" asked Musician.

"_I dunno, I think I just got really mad and it, well, just happened_," answered AI-Shin.

"Can you do it again?" asked Arachnea. "Because the guy you blasted is getting back up."

Kiba was struggling to his feet and growled as he charged at the group, when a flash of blue butterflies obscured his vision and Yuji was left, facing down the Dragon Orphenoch with a solemn look on his face.

"Well, if it isn't Fudo-kun," Kiba chuckled.

"Yuji…" Carmen rasped.

Yuji turned to her and picked her up bridal style as he walked over to Arachnea. "You're gonna be OK," he whispered to the Kaizo Ningen.

"Don't turn your back on me!" Kiba roared as he charged at him. Yuji simply did a back kick that planted the Orphenoch into the wall again. "Ugh…"

Yuji handed Carmen to Arachnea, "Take care of her."

Arachnea nodded, "Of course I will, and thank you."

Yuji nodded and turned to the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS, "I'll handle this. No one is to interfere."

"Yeah, sure," Musician groaned.

Yuji turned to Kiba and glared at his sworn enemy, "Ryuuho…"

The Dragon Orphenoch chuckled, "Came back to get your ass handed to you again?"

Yuji didn't answer as he growled, trying to bring his power to the surface. The veins on his head began to bulge slightly as his pupils became slitted and his eyes began to glow with an intense light. His body then gave off a blue aura as he roared and as he was covered in the intense light, forcing everyone to shield their eyes. When the light faded, everyone looked up and gawked at the being that descended from the sky.

It was Yuji, but his appearance had changed. He was taller, about 6'5", and had dark metallic blue scales and a bronze chest. He had soul-piercing blue eyes, and long horns curved back from out of his hair that was slightly longer. The claws on his hands and feet were long, sharp and blade-like. His tail was also long, and his bat-like wings had a great wing span.

"Wow," Arachnea gaped.

"Dude," Musician gawked.

"He's huge…" Zero stammered.

"That's what she said," Yokoshima muttered.

"Is that a new form?" Slasher wondered.

"**This is my Enlightened state**," Yuji said, "**Power drawn from Bahamut himself, and currently my strongest form. It's so powerful that I might wipe out this planet if I ever lost control.**" He then faced Kiba, "**However, I'm no longer afraid to go all out, Ryuuho, and you will pay for your crimes.**"

Ryuuho grinned, "Then you better be ready to back your claim!" He spewed his green flames but Yuji merely opened his mouth as he devoured the green fire, much to the Orphenoch's shock. "What the fuck?-!" He was then knocked from the side of his head as Enlightened Yuji appeared next to him and backhanded the side of Kiba's head, sending him crashing through several street lamps.

"He's fast," Zero noted.

Kiba growled as he shed his armor and dashed to him, only for Yuji to catch his punch.

"**Too slow**," Enlightened Yuji muttered as he pulled Kiba by the arm and fed him a left jab right in his face. He then gave the Orphenoch a barrage of punches that slowly broke almost every bone in his body. Enlightened Yuji then kicked Kiba in the jaw, launching him skyward as he flapped his wings as he took to the sky. He snapped his fingers and the Red Queen appeared in his right hand.

"This is impossible…!" Kiba growled.

"**Then you obviously know nothing**," Enlightened Yuji stated. "**Nothing is impossible for a Kamen Rider. Ama Kakeru Ryuu no Hirameki!**" he called as he sliced the Dragon Orphenoch clean in half.

"You little fuck…" Kiba growled.

"**That was for Yumi**," Enlightened Yuji stated, "**This one's for Rosa.**" His King of Hearts crest glowed and he called, "**Tenrai Sekiha Tenkyoken!**" Hehe launched his attack in the form of a blue dragon as it bit into Kiba's torso. "**And this one's for me.**" He pointed his right index finger at Kiba's still-flying torso as blue energy began to collect into his finger tip and formed a ball of energy that expanded to the size of a fist. "**Mega Flare!**" he called as he launched the blast as it crashed into Kiba's chest.

"DAMN YOU!" he roared as he was obliterated, reduced to nothing but stardust.

Yuji looked at where Kiba disappeared and noticed that he was now in the stratosphere. "**Finally**," he sighed as his eyes were closed, "**It's over…**" Tears fell from his eyes as he smiled and raised his hand, "**Rest in peace, Yumi. You too, Rosa**."

* * *

"So, Alan has the powers of a Kryptonian now," said Jinx.

"Yes," Ryuki confirmed to his wife. She'd come for another visit and was sitting on his lap. He explained that nanites had rewritten Alan's DNA to the point that he could mimic the affect yellow sunlight had on Kryptonians. He was still very much human even with the new genetic material supplanting over his own.

"Looks like ARMOR might get a new power house," said Jinx cheekily.

"If he ever wakes up," responded Ryuki, sighing. He then saw her take out her sketchpad and pencil. "Jinx?"

"You know," she said as she started to furiously draw up a design before she flipped the page and did another, "He's gonna need a new suit." Years ago, Emiko had taken Jinx as her apprentice when she discovered that Jinx had a talent for designing. Ryuki watched as she drew on and flipped the pages of her sketchbook at almost superhuman speed. "And as his aunt it's my responsibility!"

Ryuki chuckled and pulled her into a kiss which made her pause in her drawing. He then got a call on his communicator. "Dr. Hasuma here, speaking." He got the message. "He's awake? Where is he?" He frowned. "Kuso."

"What's wrong?" Jinx asked.

"Yuji Fudo just woke up and he vanished right out of his room," said Dr. Hasuma.

"Come back soon, okay?" Jinx purred.

* * *

"_THAT WAS FUCKING AWESOME!_" AI-Shin cheered ecstatically, "_YOU WERE SO BADASS! HOW DID YOU DO THAT! YOU WERE LIKE...YOU WERE LIKE...OH MY GOD! I CAN'T EVEN FIND A WORD TO DESCRIBE IT!_"

Yuji blinked, "OK, I'm used to talking to machines, but this is just a tad awkward... You sound like Shin. Voice synthesizer?"

"Actually, Yuji, this is actually an AI that's based on Shinichi. His memories, actually," Yokoshima explained.

Yuji nodded, "Oh, well that makes sense then."

Daichi cocked an eyebrow, "_This_ makes sense to you?"

Yuji retorted, "Yeah, man. Pay fucking attention. What the fuck are you not paying attention to?"

Daichi countered, "Yuji, the fact that a talking ball makes sense to you doesn't really make sense to me. How does it make sense to you anyway?"

Yuji stared at him, "Dude, I'm from a futuristic Earth where basically everyone plays card games on motorcycles and fight evil villains with said card games and motorcycles. How can this NOT make sense?"

"He's got a point, Daichi," Shogo agreed.

A Dimensional Rift Gate suddenly rose up with Dr. Hasuma exiting out of it and he did not look happy.

"Agent Yuji Fudo," Dr. Hasuma called sternly, "You left the hospital without proper authorization. What do you have to say about that?"

Yuji weakly saluted, "Sorry, boss, but there was no time to get permission. Unless, of course, you're actually OK with Michiru being reduced to nothing but ashes." He looked to her as she was in Hana's arms and stroked her hair gently.

Dr. Hasuma nodded, "I accept your reasoning, but you all need to return to ARMOR for medical attention."

Yuji nodded, "The sooner the better. Gebok's gonna pay for kidnapping my daughter."

Dr. Hasuma entered the Dimensional Rift Gate with Yuji and the others following him in.

* * *

Alan was still in a coma when a sound suddenly invaded his mind.

"_DADDY!_"

"Alice!" shouted Alan as he awoke. He tried to shoot upward but was stopped by the restraints.

Nozomu's ears twitched as she got up and she saw that Alan was awake. "Alan?" She rubbed her eyes. "ALAN!" Lala and Conda awoke as well and saw Alan awake and struggling.

"Alan!"

"My Alan!"

Alan finally noticed the girls. "Girls?"

Dr. Hasuma came into the room and saw the Alan was awake. "Alan, I'm glad you're awake," he said.

"Ah, Uncle Ryuki," said Alan. "Can you tell me why I'm strapped down and why that lamp up there is red?"

"It's a long story," said Dr. Hasuma. "But right now you're scheduled for a few tests."

"Tests?" Alan questioned.

"You want to know what's going on, right? So you better come with me."

Alan shrugged, seeing no reason not to distrust his uncle. Dr. Hasuma then undid the restraints and Alan sat up, rolling his shoulders a bit to get the stiffness out. He then got off the bed and stretched his legs and arms a little. "I'm parched," said Alan.

"Here, Alan!" Lala handed him a glass of water. He took it but then the glass shattered in his hand.

"Huh?" Alan blinked. The glass had not cut him and he had the pieces on his palm which was wet.

"I'll call the janitor to have that cleaned up," said Dr. Hasuma.

"Uncle Ryuki, what happened to me?" asked Alan.

"Bazel, would you like to do the honors?" asked Dr. Hasuma.

"Oh, alright!" said Bazel. "Long story short, you got knocked out, got infected by nanites, and now you're Superman!"

"What?" Alan gaped.

* * *

Dr. Hasuma performed a battery of tests on Alan and finally concluded the tests. Alan sat in Dr. Hasuma's office as his uncle gave him his report.

Dr. Hasuma informed Alan, "I have good news and bad news. The good news is that all your vitals check out. You're at 100 percent. The bad news is that you'll probably be severely allergic to green Kryptonite from this point onwards."

"So, I'm healthy?" Alan asked.

Dr. Hasuma confirmed, "That's right."

Alan smiled, "Good." He activated his ring to create his new costume. He was covered by a green glow, and when it died down, he was wearing his new costume. It was a black bodysuit with a wide green band down the middle and on the inside of each leg. He wore green gloves that went up to his elbows and green boots that went up to his shins. There was a shield similar to Superman's emblem on the chest, with the Green Lantern replacing the S. He also wore a cape now, which seemed to be attached to the shield. The outside of the cape was red, with the inside being green. His eyes glowed green under a green mask.

"Isn't that one of Jinx's designs?" asked Dr. Hasuma.

"Yes," confirmed Alan. "Now, it's time to go save my daughter."

"Not yet," denied Dr. Hasuma. "First you need to pay Takada-hakase a visit."

"Why?" asked Alan.

"Your new powers have not been fully charged yet and he said he has just the thing for you," said Dr. Hasuma.

"I might end up regretting this, won't I?" asked Alan.

"Maybe, but it's something that needs to be done. Now, I'm going to check up on Shinichi."

"Hey, is he gonna be OK?" questioned Alan in concern.

"He's still in a coma," said Dr. Hasuma, frowning. "And we're still trying to find a replacement for his Spark Core, an alternative energy source, but so far…" Dr. Hasuma shook his head.

"Don't give up," said Alan. "Uncle Ryuki, I grew up watching you face impossible odds and you've never given up once. You can do it!" he encouraged.

"Thank you, Alan. That means a lot," said Dr. Hasuma. "Now, Takada's waiting for you. Get going."

* * *

"Alright, Alan, stand on the X right there," Takada instructed. Alan warily did as told as he stood on the X as Takada rolled in what appeared to be a laser cannon

"Uh…what's that?" asked Alan.

"Since you just woke up you're still a little weak," stated Takada as he patted the device. "This baby here will blast you with enough yellow sunlight to charge up those Kryptonian genes in you. I call it the Solarizer 5000." He got behind the Solarizer 5000 and grabbed the handle controls. There was also a targeting screen and it was locked onto Alan.

"Is this safe?" asked Alan, a little unsure about all this. "I could just go outside and sunbathe."

"Sorry, but that'll take too long and this is the fastest way. You might wanna cover your eyes because one blast of this can leave you temporarily blind," said Takada as he pulled the safety goggles over his eyes. "OK, say cheese!"

"Cheese!" said Alan as he quickly covered his own eyes as he was blasted with an intense blast of yellow sunlight. He could feel it charging up his cells and he felt like he was becoming stronger.

"OK, we're done," said Takada as he deactivated the Solarizer 5000. "How do you feel?"

"I feel like I could bench press the moon," said Alan as he flexed his arms.

"Speaking of the moon, that's where you'll be heading soon," said Takada.

"Huh?" Alan blinked.

"You'll find out during the meeting," said Takada.

"Partner! I think I've gone blind!" panicked Bazel. "I can't see!"

"You'll get your sight back soon," said Alan. He asked Takada, "Right?"

"Yeah…soon…" answered Takada, "I might suggest you start learning brail but since you don't have any fingers…"

"Ah, fuck you!" Bazel snapped.

"_So, what's going on in here?_" AI-Shin asked. Alan blinked as he saw him and heard him. "_What are you looking at?_"

"Shinichi?" asked Alan, confused. "Is that you?"

"_Yeah, it's me. Who are you?_"

Takada explained, "Alan, what you see here is a Sphere Droid installed with the AI based on Shinichi's memories."

Alan cocked an eyebrow. "Memories? He doesn't even remember me."

"And that is the irony," Takada sighed. "But I think sooner or later everything will come back to him."

"OK…" Alan said uncertainly. "So, can I go?" asked Alan.

"Not yet, first we need to test your powers," said Takada. "You know, for science. Off to the Danger Room!"

* * *

"Alan," Yuji greeted as the two did a forearm grab. "Good to see you again."

"You too," Alan nodded. "You know, I'm still pretty ticked about you and Shinichi going rogue."

"God, you hold a grudge like a woman," Yuji snorted. "Then again, I'm the same way, but I don't think I have to worry about old grudges anymore."

"What do you mean?" Alan asked.

Yuji gave the Lantern a solemn look, "He's finally gone. The bastard that killed my first girlfriend and my fiancé is finally dead." He raised his fist as his King of Hearts crest revealed itself, "And I did it with these hands."

Alan put a hand on Yuji's shoulder, "How are you feeling?"

"Like a weight's been lifted off my shoulders," he answered. "So, what have you been up to?"

"Well, apparently I have Kryptonian powers now," Alan shrugged.

Yuji laughed, "Hah, and people say I'm overpowered! They obviously don't know you, man. So, are you still human or completely alien or some shit like that?"

"People say you're overpowered because you get a new form every three weeks," Alan shot back. "But I'm still human."

"Good," Yuji nodded. "All that's left is for Shinichi to get his ass out of bed now."

* * *

Rena had never left Shinichi's side, except to use the bathroom. When she needed something to eat, she would just order something but when she got the food she'd lost her appetite. When the door opened, she saw Dr. Magi, Dr. Hasuma and Warren enter.

"Has there been any changes?" asked Dr. Hasuma, though he knew what the answer was as Rena shook her head.

That was when Shiori ran into the room, followed by Kasai. "I got something!"

"Shiori-san, this is a hospital," chided Dr. Hasuma.

Shiori opened the box in her hand and revealed what she had.

Dr. Magi's eyes widened in disbelief, "It…it can't be…"

It was a Spark Core.

The Spark Core that Shiori was holding had three segments of color: red, green and blue. It shone brightly once the box was opened.

"Where did you get this?" Warren asked.

"She can tell us later!" Dr. Magi said hastily. "We need to get it installed into Shinichi right away!" Shiori couldn't agree more. Taking the Spark Core, Dr. Magi prayed, "Let's pray that this works."

Shiori and Rena were praying harder. They wanted Shinichi to wake up.

* * *

Takada was in the control room of the Combat Simulation Chamber when he got the message on his communicator. He spoke into the microphone so Alan could hear him, "OK, Alan! That'll do! Hit the showers!" He then left his seat for his next job.

"_Hey, wait for me!_" called AI-Shin as he floated after Takada-hakase.

* * *

They had Shinichi immediately moved to the operating room and hooked him up to a console which displayed his vitals. It was also to monitor the new Spark Core installation. Takada was sitting at the console at the ready.

Dr. Magi put the tri-colored Spark Core into the empty cavity of the Armorizer Belt. Connection was instantly made. Dr. Magi just hoped this mysterious Spark Core was compatible with Shinichi's body. Although the original 14 Spark Cores of the NUMBERS and NEO-NUMBERS had been made using the same source, each was only compatible with their respective Kaizo Ningen. This tri-colored Spark Core was a shot in the dark, but right now they had no choice but to use it. Shinichi's life was on the line.

Dr. Ryuki Hasuma frowned. He was the kind of person who valued life. However, he was also willing to take the life of an enemy if they proved irredeemable and he had no other choice. Fortunately, with the 42 prison in ARMOR, he no longer had to kill his enemies. Unfortunately, the opponents he'd been forced to fight weren't so willing to give up and he'd been forced to use lethal force at times. As much as some individuals deserved to be executed, it still left a bitter taste in his mouth. Naturally, he was a pacifist but he wasn't one to stand idly by and watch atrocities occur.

"Don't you dare die, Shinichi Banabara," threatened Dr. Hasuma. He glanced at Warren who looked on seriously. His eyes also looked towards Shiori who was silently praying with hope and worry in her eyes. "You have family here. Don't you dare leave them behind."

Takada reported from his console where he was monitoring Shinichi's vitals and status, "His systems are rebooting, energy levels are at optimum, vital signs are all green!" He continued, "Brain waves are all green, and self-restoration systems are online!"

Shiori inquired, "That's good, right?" She was still bothered by the fact that Takada was talking about her son like some kind of machine.

"Yes, it's good," confirmed Dr. Hasuma.

"Compatibility with Spark Core is at 10 percent and rising. 15 percent! Now it's jumped to 45 percent! 68 percent!" Takada continued to report. "Compatibility is now at 100 percent!"

The Spark Core also began to spin and shine. His armor began to form as the jigsaw puzzle pieces joined together. He was in his default Showa Form, but the eyes were dim and grey. The Spark Core shone again and this time the spirits of the Legendary Riders all appeared before overlapping his body, becoming the form known as Kamen Rider Showa GX which had been granted to him by the Orb of Courage. Still, the eyes remained dim, grey and lifeless.

Shinichi's fingers began to twitch.

"Come on, Shinji," Shiori urged.

"Shin-kun, you can do it," said Rena.

And then the armor just shattered off Shinichi into pieces, the energy backlash nearly knocking everyone down.

"No…" Shiori uttered. It had not worked. "Shinji…"

Dr. Hasuma looked at the heart monitor and hung his head. Shinichi had just flat lined. "Mrs. Banabara, Ms. Ryuugu. I'm sorry but it looks like…"

**Bleep…**

Dr. Hasuma blinked and looked at the heart monitor.

**Bleep…Bleep…**

The heart monitor was showing activity.

**Bleep…Bleep…Bleep…**

It was a stable heartbeat. Granted that Shinichi's heart was cybernetic but it still worked like a normal heart.

**Bleep…Bleep…Bleep…Bleep…**

Dr. Hasuma also looked at the brainwave monitor. "We have active brain activity!" he reported.

Shinichi's fingers began to twitch and his eyes slowly fluttered open.

**Bleep…Bleep…Bleep…Bleep…Bleep…**

"Shin-kun…"

"Shinji…"

Shinichi slowly sat up and yawned. He smacked his lips and stretched. "What…what happened? Where am I…?""

"Shin-kun!"

"Shinji!"

Rena and Shiori hugged the revived Kaizo Ningen and they were hugging him too tightly.

"Ow! Ow! Leggo! Leggo!" he shouted. Rena and Shiori released Shinichi from the suffocating double-hug assault. "I just woke up!"

"Sorry, Shin-kun," Rena apologized.

"I just gotta ask…who are you?" Shinichi asked.

Rena's eyes widened as she gasped. "No…" she uttered, horrified. Had Shinichi lost his memories again?

"Shinji, don't you remember us?" asked Shiori.

Dr. Hasuma frowned, "I guess he's suffered too much trauma that he's repressed his memories again." This was bad, very bad indeed.

Rena started to sob as Shiori trembled with tears but then Shinichi grinned.

"Gotcha!" he announced. Shiori and Rena stared at him with wide eyes. He took off the wires attached to him and slid off the operating table. He looked down at his belt and saw the new Spark Core. "Hey, fancy new bling." He then felt a pair of malevolent auras flaring up behind him and he turned to see Rena and Shiori glaring at him. "Ah…Uh-oh."

"Shin-kun, that was cruel," said Rena. She took out her cleaver.

"Yes, Shinji. You scared us," said Shiori. "That was not appropriate." She pulled out a very thick book.

"Ah…" Shinichi backed away but he hit the wall behind him and realized that there was no way he could escape as his mother and girlfriend advanced on him with their weapons, angered by his attempt at humor. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" He looked towards the others in the room for help. "Help me!"

"Sorry," Takada apologized. "But you should know better than to play a trick like that on them."

"They were really worried," added Dr. Hasuma, disappointed in Shinichi. "And you had to play a cruel trick on them."

Dr. Magi agreed, "And I think you deserve some punishment for what you did."

Warren added, "Never piss off women. Women are scary when they're angry."

Shiori and Rena loomed over him as Shinichi began to curl his body up on the floor and screamed, "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

Topper smiled as he felt his gift to Shiori being put to good use. "I knew giving that to her was a good idea." He'd actually come before Shiori after she'd given birth to Shinichi and then gave her the Trinity Spark Core as a present. She had asked him what it was and he'd told her that she would know when the time was right. "That boy really has a set of lungs on him."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And now our three heroes have finally woken up. Well, let's see what will happen next, shall we?**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Yuji's Enlightened state is based off of Bahamut from "Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. Hope you enjoyed watching the ass whooping.**


	54. The Rampage of Black 13 Part 14

**THE RAMPAGE OF BLACK 13**

**Part 14: Armageddon Aborted**

"Hey, did you just hear something?" Alan asked Yuji.

"What?" Yuji answered.

"It sounded like a little girl screaming."

"I guess, but maybe it's nothing."

"You're probably right. It was pretty loud, though."

* * *

Chaos Doll, Maria Fudo, and Hanyuu Furude were the names Takada had found in the list the names of the sources for the Delta Drive Engine's energy. In order for it to function, the Delta Drive Engine needed three different types of energy: divine (Hanyuu), mystic (Maria) and technological (Alice). Originally, the plans for the Delta Drive, then known as the Uni Drive, required only Alice as the main power source but then the plans started to change and the Delta Drive Engine was developed.

As a result, Alice, Maria, and Hanyuu had all been kidnapped for Project Armageddon. That was the only logical conclusion with all the evidence. With Shinichi, Yuji and Alan all in comas, it would be easy to snatch the girls away without any opposition.

When Alan and Shinichi heard that Alice and Hanyuu had been kidnapped, they didn't take the news very well. They were furious. Even Yuji shared their sentiment as he could only watch as Maria got taken right before his eyes during his fight with the Dragon Orphenoch who'd put him in a coma.

Shinichi, Alan and Yuji were in the conference room with Dr. Hasuma, Warren, Dr. Magi and Takada-hakase in front. This was a strategy meeting to deal with Project Armageddon. Takada had finally cracked the secret of the encrypted data hidden within the Memory AI and found out all the information on Project Armageddon. It was discovered that when Shinichi touched the AI Storage Unit, Shinichi's mind had linked with the AI's memory and they exchanged memories. The info on Project Armageddon had been among the memories that Lina had given to Shinichi through their last kiss but he had not managed to access the information. Of course, Takada was able to retrieve the information and now they knew what they were dealing with.

The screen showed the schematic for Project Armageddon and a scaled diagram of the monstrosity. It was definitely a huge mecha.

"This is Project Armageddon, a weapon of mass destruction that Million has had in the works for years," Takada explained. "As you can see it is gigantic, standing at the height of a skyscraper and armed to the teeth. It is also armed with enough firepower capable of leveling entire cities. While slow in terms of movement and not very agile, its armor is made of an incredibly durable alloy making it virtually indestructible." The screen changed to show three pods arranged in a triangle. "This is the Delta Drive Engine, the core of Project Armageddon. These pods you see right here contain a sort of interface fluid which allows for the energy source inside to connect directly with the energy veins of Project Armageddon, siphoning their bio-energy."

"Like how a human heart pumps blood," Dr. Hasuma interjected.

The screen then showed the pictures of Hanyuu, Alice and Maria. "Million has chosen these three girls as the batteries for Project Armageddon. I conclude it is because Alice was originally meant to be the main power source but then Million decided to add mystical energy and divine energy into the equation in order to make his WMD stronger." He finished, "And according to the data, Project Armageddon is on the moon."

"Where Million is likely to be," said Shinichi. He had a lot of questions for Million, mainly about his connection to Gebok.

Alan spoke up, "Let's make this easy. How do I tear it open?"

Takada answered, "Well, the Delta Drive would be in the very centre of the machine, making it the most likely reinforced and heavily guarded-"

Alan nodded, "Good, let's go."

The lights were turned back on and the projector was revealed to be AI-Shin. "_So, is that all?_" he asked.

Shinichi looked up at the Sphere Droid. It was weird hearing his voice come out of it. The Sphere Droid hovered down to his eye-level and looked at him.

"_So, you're me_," said AI-Shin. "_I mean the original me_."

"Uh…yeah…" answered Shinichi. This was just so strange. There was a long awkward silence before one of them spoke again. "This is weird," admitted Shinichi, though it did kinda make sense. This was his memory after all, even if it was in the form of a self-aware AI.

"_Tell me about it_," said AI-Shin. "_I'm looking at you and I'm you._"

Shinichi looked up at the Sphere Droid and had an idea. "Hey, come with me. I wanna talk with you in private."

"_Ah, OK!_" AI-Shin followed his template as they exited the conference room.

* * *

Shinichi, due to the new Spark Core, now wore new armor. The bodysuit for the armor was black and he wore red gloves that reached his elbows and knee-high boots with buckled straps around his wrists and ankles. Silver kneepads were set on the knees. The torso armor was black with a green chestplate and green insect wings patterned onto the back. The armor also sported an upturned collar. The helmet itself was blue with a golden X in the centre that separated the red insect-like eyes. The top points of the X extended to become antennae and a red stone was set in the centre of the X. His faceplate sported three vertical stripes on it, also gold. The right shoulder sported an 'X' while the left sported the Roman numeral for three (III), both numerals in red. Finally, a red scarf hung from his neck.

Showa, Liger, and Alan were on their bikes. Alan's bike was a construct made with his power ring (but you already knew that). Dr. Hasuma was at the controls for the Dimensional Rift Gate. "Alright, coordinate set, locking onto coordinates," said Dr. Hasuma. The Dimensional Rift Gate erected itself in its usual silver veil form. "Coordinates locked in 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1. Coordinates are locked."

"Shinichi," said Alan. "Since we're going into space I'm calling the shots."

"I don't care who's calling the shots right now, Alan. All I care about is rescuing those girls," said Showa.

"That's one thing we can both agree with. Alright, it's go time," said Alan as he revved up his bike.

"Let's ride," said Showa.

"Let's rev it up!" said Liger.

"Wait!" Rena called.

"Shinji!" Shiori called.

Yami spoke up, "Alan!"

"Rena-chan? Kaa-chan?" Showa stared. He removed his helmet, taking off the faceplate first before sliding off the helmet.

"Yami?" Alan asked. She wasn't alone, though. "Girls?"

Rena and Shiori approached Shinichi and then they both took turns hugging him.

"Come back in one piece," Rena pleaded.

"And bring Hanyuu-chan back," added Shiori. "Please."

"I will," Shinichi promised, nodding. He then pulled his helmet over his head before putting on the faceplate.

"Alan, bring our daughter back," said Yami.

"I will, Yami. That's a promise." swore Alan. She kissed him.

"And don't forget to come back in one piece," said Conda crossly.

"Gambatte, Alan," Lala encouraged.

"You have the blessings of a goddess, Alan," said Amora. "Don't waste them."

Bishie hugged him. "Be safe."

Nozomu took Alan's hand and put it on her head. "Alan…"

Aki, Yuki, and Yuji's women also approached the group.

"Yuji," Aki spoke, "I want you to be careful, OK?"

Liger nodded, "I'll bring Maria back and everything will be fine."

"Go kick some ass," Lilith encouraged.

Asura nodded, "What she said."

"We will patiently wait for you and Lady Maria to return to us, Master," Stella pledged as Reina, Melanie, and Phoebe nodded.

Yuki simply hugged him, and Yuji smiled underneath his helmet.

"Alright, everyone out of the pathway!" ordered Dr. Hasuma. "It's time to move!"

As he revved the engine, Liger thought, '_Maria, wait for me. Papa's gonna bring you home, princess_.'

Alan was thinking, '_Alice, Daddy's gonna rescue you. Wait for me_.'

The three bikes and their riders then shot into the Dimensional Rift Gate and once in it collapsed. They then exited out of a Dimensional Rift Gate which formed on the surface of the moon and saw their target was in sight. There was the Dogu-like Armageddon Lord and it stood behind the X-SHOCKER moon base.

"Alright, let's go," said Alan as he sped up but all of a sudden a series of explosions erupted tossing them into the air. Due to the moon's gravity, which was 1/6 Earth's gravity the speed of descent as they fell was greatly lessened. Alan then saw the cause for the explosion as did Showa and Liger.

It was Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter but they had changed drastically. Cyclops Knight now had red armor and had spikes jutting out of his shoulder pads with bat-like wings on his back. The Cyborg Hunter was now all black with a red visor and its arms from the elbow down had been replaced with Brute Shots.

"Alan, rescue the girls," said Showa. "We'll handle these bozos."

Alan nodded and took off towards the Armageddon Lord as Liger and Showa stood before the two X-SHOCKER agents.

"Who do you wanna take on?" Showa asked Liger.

"Gimme the Hunter," said Liger as he punched his fist into his palm.

"Then that leaves me with Sir Lancelot over there," Showa pointed at Cyclops Knight. He then summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba. He heard the sword singing in his head. "Hm, I still got it."

Alan was flying straight for Project Armageddon and he was being watched. Million was watching the viewing screens and sighed. "It looks like the knight is trying to save the princesses. What a bother." He gave the command, "Release the Manhunters!"

Alan's eyes narrowed as he saw the Manhunters, a dozen of them, flying straight towards him. "Great, these guys again" he muttered.

"Well, partner," said Bazel. "Let's shoot them down."

Alan smiled and then he turned his eyes towards the Manhunters. "Let's send them to the junkyard!" His entire body was engulfed in a bright green aura and like a comet he shot forward unimpeded. He tore right through the Manhunters, shredding their metal bodies to pieces as he continued on his path towards Project Armageddon.

* * *

Sparks flew around the two sets of combatants. Liger, in Zero Form, was using his claws to counter the Cyborg Hunter's swings and then he managed to duck when he tried to shoot him with the Brute Shots before slashing him across the chest, causing sparks to fly. The Cyborg Hunter snarled and spun around to slice Liger Zero's head off only to be stopped by his opponent's claws. Liger Zero then drew the Red Queen and when he pushed the Cyborg Hunter back, he simultaneously slashed him not once, not twice, but thrice in succession before sending him flying with a forward stab.

"Don't fuck with a father," Liger Zero growled before he lunged forward.

Cyborg Hunter snarled and began to fire a volley of grenades from his twin Brute Shots but Liger Zero was unconcerned as he advanced on Cyborg Hunter, the explosions behind him.

At the same time, Cyclops Hunter and Showa circled each other. They both had changed their appearances but not their animosity. Cyclops Knight still wanted to pay Showa back for sending him off that cliff in the arctic.

And with a non-verbal signal they charged at each other and clashed, metal meeting metal as their blades clanged together. Since there was no air on the moon, there was no sound, but one could almost imagine the loud sound of metal ringing as they impacted against each other.

Cyclops Knight's weapon as a broadsword, a zweihander to be exact, which had a broad blade and with enough could cut a man in half. Showa's sword was thinner, and had once been a katana before it changed into its current form. However, what it lacked in size it lacked in swiftness. Also, it came with some tricks.

"1000 Crane Dance Slash!" called Showa and all of a sudden a thousand paper cranes materialized around him. With a single thrust of his sword at the Cyclops Knight as the command, the deadly paper cranes zipped through the air and struck, their small wings cutting into the android's armor and sending him staggering. He tried to swat the pests away. Of course now that he was distracted Showa jumped forward to cleave him in half but Cyclops Knight saw through his strategy and countered with an intense optical blast that struck Showa in the chest, sending him flying backwards. The paper cranes within the path of the blast were also incinerated and Showa landed roughly, yet lightly, on the lunar surface.

Rising into the air with his wings, Cyclops Knight began to fire at Showa with his eye. The blasts of energy exploded around Showa as he tried to dodge but finding an exit route out of this mess was out of the question. He gripped his sword as he saw a blast coming at him and swung. The attack hit the flat side of his blade as Showa held onto it tightly. It was like hitting a stubborn baseball that was pushing against a bat instead of surrendering and letting it fly off in the opposite direction. Showa gritted his teeth as he was being pushed back.

The Spark Core on his belt began to spin and at the same time an image of Gokuaku superimposed itself upon him. He then found the strength and with one push sent the energy blast flying back at Cyclops Knight. He was stunned as he was hit by his own attack and went falling. Kicking off the lunar surface, Showa landed a kick into Cyclops Knight's side, sending him crashing back to the floor.

* * *

Metal was being dented inwards with violent impacts against it. The impacts repeated, over and over, as the metal began to warp and give way before it was being shredded apart. Then, like paper, they were torn apart as the figure entered the room.

Alan was able to break his way into Project Armageddon, using his super strength to tear a hole into the giant robot's body. It was made of thick, reinforced alloy but it was still nothing against his power and fury. He finally got inside of the machine and saw the Delta Drive Engine with Alice, Maria and Hanyuu floating inside their individual pods. All of a sudden he was blasted in the side by a crimson energy blast, knocking him into the nearby wall.

"Sorry, but these girls are staying here," spoke Hank Henshaw as he walked out of the shadows. "So, I see you survived the nanites. I'm impressed."

"Henshaw," Alan identified, not too surprised. "I thought my dad finished you off."

"Oh, he just killed a decoy," said Henshaw. "I would never let myself killed before I finally finished you off."

"So, why work for X-SHOCKER?" asked Alan. "Did they promise to kill you as a reward?" Henshaw narrowed his eyes and then rushed forward to punch Alan in the head again only for his fist to be caught. Henshaw's eyes widened. "Haven't you heard? I've got some upgrades."

Henshaw retorted, "Well then, I believe your ring's ability to use "lethal force" has been allowed. I suggest you use it."

"I won't need it," said Alan.

**POW!**

A kick right into his groin sent Henshaw upwards and then Alan used a punch to blast him across the room and into the nearest wall. "Now, stay down!" Alan threatened. He then returned his attention to the Delta Drive Engine only to be hit by a flying tackle. He and Henshaw went rolling along the floor, exchanging blows.

Alan blasted the Cyborg with heat vision before being sent sliding back with a punch to the gut. "C'mon boy! You can do better than that!" taunted Henshaw.

"You're right…" said Alan as his fists glowed with Quantum Energy. "I can!" Alan flew at Henshaw before laying a punch across his face. He then continued to lay a beatdown on Henshaw. The force of the punches, combined with the Quantum energy, was knocking the Cyborg silly. And the punched him in the gut, knocking him off the ground. He then pulled his arm back and hit Henshaw with enough strength that he was blasted out of the machine.

"Alright, now to rescue the girls," said Alan as he walked towards the Delta Drive Engine to free the three girls contained inside when all of a sudden Henshaw returned before him. "Back for more?"

"Do you really think it would be _that_ easy?" sneered Henshaw.

Alan, not wanting to risk the safety of the girls, called out, "Emergency Evacuation Protocol, initiate!" As soon as he said that a Dimensional Rift opened up and swallowed the two right up before dropping them back on Earth.

"Earth?" questioned Henshaw. The two were now in the remains of a city. It was deserted and in ruins.

"Away from the girls, and this way we can duke it out as much as we want," said Alan.

"Clever, Green Lantern," said Henshaw, grinning. "And this place will be your grave."

Alan called forth the Bazel Combat Armor and said, "No, this will be _your_ grave, Henshaw, and from now on the name is **Sentinel**." The armor remained the same but it still included the cape he had.

"You tell him, partner!" said Bazel.

Sentinel and the Cyborg-Superman then lunged at each other at super speed and began to exchange blows. It sounded like thunder as their blows collided and were blocked. Their limbs blurred as they swung at each other.

(KR Chrome: Kinda like the fights you see in Dragonball Z where the combatants are moving too fast for the naked eye to see, normally. Their limbs all blue around)

A haymaker from Henshaw sent Sentinel flying into a building, hard, and it collapsed on top of him, burying him in rubble. Sentinel then shot out of the rubble like a rocket and hit Henshaw with a head butt to his lower jaw. Then, he grabbed the Cyborg-Superman by the ankle and spun around, and around, and around, and around before tossing him to the ground. The ground shook for a moment like an earthquake and a crater was left in the wake of the impact of Henshaw's fall.

Sentinel then executed a drop kick but Henshaw dodge-rolled out of the way in time before it hit, causing the crater to deepen as a result. Sentinel looked up and saw Henshaw preparing to unleash his heat vision judging by his glowing eyes. The beam was fired but a green energy dome covered Sentinel, shielding him.

"Henshaw, not only that I have the same powers you have, I have my own and my ring! I've also got Bazel! You know what that means?" Sentinel asked. "It means you stand no chance in hell of winning!"

Still using the dome as a protective shield, Sentinel fired green energy bolts from it and they lanced towards the Cyborg-Superman, hitting him rapidly and sending him staggering. He then flew out of the hole and came down at the Cyborg-Superman with a flying side-kick which was followed up by a reverse roundhouse. He then turned to face Henshaw and used a double palm strike to his chest and blasted him into another building and he continued to fly through the walls of several other buildings that were all lined up.

Sentinel heard a roar and saw Henshaw coming at him like a raging bullet. He had to time this just right and when Henshaw was close enough he spun out of the way on a single heel and then elbowed down on Henshaw in the spine, sending him crashing at his feet. Henshaw pushed himself back up but a boot to his back pinned him to the ground.

Alan's eyes flashed green and red as he aimed his ring at Henshaw's head. "Hank Henshaw, you are under arrest," said Sentinel. Henshaw laughed darkly and Sentinel frowned, "What's so funny?"

"While you're wasting your time with me, that little doll of yours is getting her energy sucked dry," said Henshaw. "For all we know she's dead and all dried up."

"I'm not worried," said Sentinel. "Because my brother is out there with my friends and I know they'll save her and the others, as well as stop that machine."

"I helped design that weapon, Smith. It'll destroy him along with your friends," taunted Henshaw.

"You underestimate them, him especially," said Sentinel, "A big mistake." He dropped his ring as his hand glowed with Quantum energy. "Another mistake…you underestimated _me_." He blasted Henshaw with his energy, and when the smoke cleared, the upper left portion of Henshaw's body was destroyed.

"So…" began Henshaw as he fell to the ground. "This is how it ends…fitting that it's you that puts an end to me Alan Smith. You always were an amazing enemy…"

"Goodbye, Henshaw," said Alan as he was about to finish off the Cyborg-Superman. However, at the last second, a silver veil appeared and swept Henshaw away. His one true wish torn from him. He would live.

Alan shrugged. He would get Henshaw some other time. He looked to the sky and like a rocket shot upwards, leaving a green trail.

* * *

The control room of Project Armageddon, also known as the Armageddon Lord, was located within its head. Inside sat Million who was on his throne. Around him, manning the controls, radars and gauges were a group of W14's he'd programmed especially for the job.

"Energy levels are at maximum, Million-sama!" a W14 sitting at the gauges informed their master. "All systems are ready."

"Then start the machine!" declared Million. "We can finally give it a proper field test by having it eliminate our enemies." Displayed on the viewing screen was Liger and Showa who were still fighting Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter. "Let's send them to Hell!"

"Affirmative, Million-sama!"

* * *

Liger and Showa were still fighting the two X-SHOCKER agents as sparks flew from their clashes. Cyborg Hunter fired his dual Brute Shots rapidly at Liger who speedily dodged them using his thrusters before he shot forward and slashed the Cyborg Hunter across the chest. At the same time, Showa and Cyclops Knight were dueling with their swords.

Meanwhile, a ship was headed towards the moon. It was one of ARMOR's and it was coming in fast.

As Cyclops Knight and Showa locked blades, the Rider saw the ship over his opponent's shoulder. "Yuji, incoming!" he called.

Liger heard and spotted the ship. He then pushed Cyborg Hunter back with a kick and decided to make his retreat as he saw the ship rushing towards the surface of the moon. The ship crashed onto the surface of the moon as Showa and Liger all leapt out of the way. Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter were not as lucky as they were immediately flattened by the vehicle.

"Déjà vu," mentioned Liger. He recalled the same thing happening at the Tower Hotel months ago. "Looks like the cavalry just arrived."

"Yeah, no kidding," Showa agreed. "I knew we were gonna get backup but did they have to crash the ship, _again_?"

The NEO-NUMBERS all climbed out of the ship, relieved to be alive after their recent crash-landing. "Dammit, Michiru! You crashed our ship again!"

"Sorry!" Carmen apologized.

Zero looked at Arachnea accusingly, "And you said she's improved with her _landing_."

"That's what she told me," Arachnea shrugged.

"And you believed her!-?"

"I trust her."

"Wasn't my fault! The landing gear was stuck!" Carmen yelled out.

"Wow, so this is the moon," said Meta as he took his first step. He then saw the Earth. "Wow…Beato would've loved to see this."

"Take a picture," said Musician. "It'll last longer."

"One small step for man, one giant leap for cyborg-kind," quoted Armadillo. He then looked to the distance. "Woah, _that's_ a big statue."

"That's not a statue," said Showa as he amended, "That's Project Armageddon."

"Fitting name," agreed Slasher. "So, Hanyuu-chan is in there?"

"As well as Maria-chan and Alice-chan," added Shinichi. "Million is using them as batteries for the thing."

Slasher's eyes narrowed. The mention of Hanyuu being used as a battery brought up a sense of righteous fury within the normally calm Termite Rider. "Take me with you," he stated.

The ship started to shift before it was flipped over. Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter stood back up again and they were very angry about being flattened like that.

"Hey, did I land on them?" asked Carmen.

"Yes," everyone answered.

"Damn! And they're not dead!"

"Guys, that really big thing is moving," informed Armadillo and he was right. The Armageddon Lord was moving. The undersides of its feet were equipped with tank treads for maneuverability and it turned its eyes towards them.

* * *

"Target locked, Million-sama!" a W14 reported.

"Fire!" Million ordered as he sat upon his throne. "Let none survive!"

* * *

The goggle-like eyes of the Armageddon Lord began to glow brightly.

"Guys, I don't think we should be standing here," said Armadillo.

"Move and take cover!" Zero ordered.

A wide blast of energy was unleashed by the Armageddon Lord's eyes. Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter had been in its path and were instantly vaporized as the NEO-NUMBERS and Liger took cover. When it was over, it left a wide trench in its wake and there were no traces of Cyclops Knight and Cyborg Hunter left.

Showa wasn't surprised to see such careless destruction. It fit Gebok's style. He would gladly sacrifice any of his creations if it allowed him to reach his goal. He saw the hole that Alan had made and when his eyes zoomed in he saw Hanyuu, Maria and Alice in the Delta Drive Engine. They were floating in some kind of glowing, yellow fluid and the pods seemed to be connected to see-though pipes.

"Battler, I need you to look at that thing and tell me what you see," Showa ordered.

Meta nodded and his eyes glowed as he activated his X-Ray vision. "OK, let's see. OK, I see the girls in those pod things. It looks like those pipes are moving that liquid along something like veins all over the insides of its body." He focused his eyes on the head and saw through it. "And I see some people inside the head. There's one in a throne."

"What does he look like?" Showa inquired.

"Black armor, with a brain in a jar on his head," said Meta.

"Million," Showa growled. "Battler, Yuji, Chiaki, I need you guys to come with me. We're going to rescue the girls."

"And what about us?" asked Musician.

"Well, we're going to need a distraction," said Showa.

The Armageddon Lord raised its arms and revealed that its small hands had Gatling cannons in their palms, basically large Gatling guns. They spun and fired off a spray of energy bullets at the Riders who immediately ran for cover.

"Distraction he says," grumbled Musician. His powers were all but useless in this environment but he could still use vibrations to do some damage.

* * *

"Targets are still alive, Million-sama!" informed a W14.

"I can see that!" Million snapped. He smirked, "You really are a stubborn one, aren't you, BLACK 13?"

* * *

Armadillo Blitz was firing his Blitz Cannons at the Armageddon Lord as Zero fired his hornet missiles at the giant mecha. Carmen Mirage and Arachnea Venom were also fighting, the latter using lasers from the spider legs that were attached to her back as Carmen swung her chain-linked scythes, firing crescent energy blades.

However, their attacks did nothing against the invulnerable machine. They took cover from another salvo of gunfire from its Gatling cannons. Meanwhile, Showa was flying towards the Armageddon Lord, carrying Slasher, while Meta did the same whilst carrying Liger Zero. Showa now sported a pair of energy wings on his back.

Spotting the hole Alan had made earlier, they dove right into the machine and the fliers dropped their cargo.

Slasher frowned as he saw Hanyuu floating inside one of the Delta Drive pods and Meta scowled as he saw his cousin inside another. Liger also frowned as well.

"Get the girls out of here" Showa ordered.

"OK, what about you?" asked Meta.

"I'm going upstairs to have a chat with the head," said Showa. "Don't wait up. Oh, and don't break those pods. That fluid in there is oxygenated." He then went to found a way up towards the head of the Armageddon Lord.

Slasher summoned the Onigari no Ryuou and changed into Slayer Form. He saw the energy veins that were siphoning energy from the girls through the fluid. He had to be precise and surgical.

Meta activated his communicator, "Hasuma-sensei, get ready to transport us. Lock onto our coordinates and then activate the Dimensional Rift Gate on my signal."

* * *

"Million-sama, the power source has been removed!" reported a W14.

"Henshaw…" growled Million. The Cyborg-Superman had failed him, as did the Manhunters. "Activate the backup source!" They still had enough power and soon after wiping out their enemies they would launch and head towards Earth, straight to Hinamizawa, and raze it to the ground. He then heard pounding at the door.

Showa finally reached the control room of Project Armageddon and he bust the door down with a single kick. W14's charged at him with their guns blazing but he ducked and then rushed towards them. He then sliced them to pieces with his Higurashi no Yaiba. Million watched as Showa killed the W14's before focusing his attention on him.

"Well done, BLACK 13," Million applauded.

Showa growled, pointing the sword at Million "Alright, asshole. I'll make this nice and simple: tell me where I can find Gebok."

"Heheh," Million snickered and then it turned into full blown laughter, "HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Showa glared, "What's so funny?"

Million shook his heads, "You haven't a clue, do you?" He tapped the dome that housed his brain, "You're looking at him!"

Showa's eyes widened beneath his helmet, "What?"

Million sighed, "Think about it. After you faced an entire army of Gebok clones you should've figured it out by now, but I guess that's too much to ask from a _simple_ cyborg like you. It should explain how Gebok always manages to come back after you kill him every, single time. I made sure I created backup Geboks every time one was destroyed and I programmed them with AIs made from _my_ mind. Of course when I activate a new one to replace one that's been destroyed I always update their memories so it'd be exactly the same as the one you destroyed."

Showa narrowed his eyes hatefully, "It's been you the whole time."

Million chuckled, "Yes, it has, and if you must know I am not only the Great Leader of X-SHOCKER but the TRUE Great Leader of GIN-SHOCKER!"

"But I destroyed the Great Leader!"

"You only destroyed a decoy," he corrected, "Let me give you a history lesson, BLACK 13. I was not born in your world. I am from an alternate world, the same world Kamen Rider Draco hails from and it was because of him and his fellow Saint Beast Riders that my GIN-SHOCKER organization fell. Of course I could not let it end there so I used a wormhole generator to escape to this world. However, a miscalculation spat me out around the time after the end of World War II. And of course that wormhole had a very fatal flaw. Because I went through it my body started to suffer from physical deterioration. My body was literally rotting to death. Fortunately, my life was saved when LEVIATHAN found me. They offered to assist me in saving my life and to rebuild my GIN-SHOCKER organization here in this world as long as I swore loyalty. Considering my primary priority was self-preservation I took their deal and as a result this body came to be. Then with their funding I was able to rebuild GIN-SHOCKER. I even built the 'Great Leader' to sit in my place as a figurehead as I continued with my research and planted a Gebok clone among the executives, whom I created myself by selecting certain worthy individuals and then brainwashing them as well as genetically and cybernetically altering them."

Showa then realized and growled, "What happened to Hasuma-sensei was because you wanted revenge!"

"Indeed. He destroyed my organization so I sent him to destroy his own. Unfortunately, that plan failed."

Showa pressed on, "Then what about the NUMBERS Project?"

"There was never truly a NUMBERS Project. The true project was to create the ultimate weapon. That is you, BLACK 13! You were perfect and so the Gebok clone I had active at the time worked hard to make you into the perfect weapon. #00 though #12 were all meant to simply test if you were ready. Of course at the same time I needed some interesting AI so while he was torturing you in order to strip you of your humanity, I had him harvest the fractured pieces of your broken mind so I could make them into combat AIs to be installed into my Android Beasts! Of course since the Gebok at the time had my mind he wanted to see what else he could do so he put you in a cell with dear Lina."

Showa asked, "Why her?"

Million shrugged, "No reason. She was just chosen at random. It could've been anyone and she was just lucky enough to be chosen. You see Lina was just a homeless girl we picked up. She ran away from home because it was…unpleasant. It was on a whim that she was captured and paired with you to see what could happen and it was interesting to see you develop emotions again. "

Showa's grip tightened on his gun, "Then you had me kill her."

"To see how you'd react and I must say that the massacre was a work of art!"

"You had me kill her for _art_!-?" Showa snapped.

Million continued, "I also revived her as Electric Butterfly to see how you'd react and I see you still cared for her even after I reprogrammed her to be your enemy. However, she managed to overcome her programming and went to you for help. I couldn't forgive her for betraying X-SHOCKER so I activated that EMP bomb in my last Gebok clone."

"So what about the power of the Riders? Why did you have them given to me?"

"You were to be the perfect countermeasure against the Kamen Riders, using their powers against them. They defeated the original SHOCKER organization and the many others that followed so why not use that power to my advantage? However, now you are obsolete and my Project Armageddon, my Armageddon Lord, is my new ULTIMATE WEAPON!"

Showa chuckled, "You know what you have in common with Gebok, Million?"

"It's because I'm a genius," he answered with glee.

Showa shook his head, "No, it's because you talk too much and while you were talking my little friend over there was hacking into your 'ultimate weapon'."

Million blinked, "What?" He slowly turns to see the Sphere Droid known as AI-Shin with cables inside the control console. "No! How did that get in here!-?"

"It's amazing what you can do with a cloaking system. And you call yourself a genius," mocked Showa. Million dashed over to stop AI-Shin but Showa was quicker and struck him from the side, sending him crashing against the nearby wall. "I'm gonna buy you some more time!" Showa yelled at his AI counterpart.

"_Take your time!_" replied AI-Shin. He was having trouble getting through the firewall that would grant him access into the robot's processor. "_Damn this is some tight security! Sweet! I'm in! I'm in! Oh, hell no! Are you fucking kidding me!-? Another wall!-? Dammit!_"

"Do you really think you can beat me!-?" shouted Million in outrage. He opened his chestplate briefly to reveal that he had EIGHT Spark Cores powering him. "I don't know where you got yours, BLACK 13 but it's obviously a cheap knockoff and compared to the ones I possess it is worthless!"

"Maybe it is, maybe it isn't," said Showa tilting his head from one side and then to the next. "But it's not the only new thing I have." He concentrated as he recited in his head, while Shinji and Kuro joined him, '_In darkest night, in brightest day, no evil shall stand in our way. For those who follows evil's path, behold our power, beware our wrath!_'

**START SONG: Revolution By: Orange (Generator Rex theme song)**

Showa concentrated and circuitry lines glowed on his arms before his forearms changed. They became encased in thick metal and expanded with his hands encased in huge metal gloves, making it look like he had gigantic, armor-plated arms.

Million gaped, "WHAT!-?"

"HOI-RYAH!" Showa shouted as he punched forward, sending Million flying backwards into the wall with a single punch. Million shook his head and saw Showa coming at him. He fired his finger lasers at Showa but he turned his forearms into shields now that blocked them. Million continued shooting and shattered the shields with a sense of triumph only for Showa to summon the Higurashi no Yaiba. "HYAH!" Showa came at him with a downward swing and Million dodged to the side. He then took out a pair of cylinders from his waist and a blades made of energy came out. He swung his energy blades at Showa who guarded himself with the Higurashi no Yaiba, the impacts causing lights and sparks to erupt around them.

Showa raised his right foot and put it against Million's stomach before circuitry lines glowed on it and it morphed into a miniature rocket engine. With a blast of flame, Million was flung backwards. Showa restored his foot to normal and then leapt at Million. A pair of energy wings burst out of his back and then split into five pairs before the tips of the wings unleashed lasers that streaked through the air and struck Million.

Million grunted as he was hit by the lasers, pieces of his armor being shot off. He glared at Showa and then the dome housing his brain began to glow.

Showa was then lifted off the ground and slammed hard against the ceiling before being slammed down onto the floor. Using telekinesis, Million threw Showa about like a ragdoll, slamming him violently against the walls, ceiling and floor repeatedly.

Million laughed but then all of a sudden he was hit in the back by a red laser blast, sending him crashing forward. Floating behind him was AI-Shin with his eye glowing. He then tossed Million through the air, causing him to hit the wall, and then the ceiling and then the floor. AI-Shin did what Million had been doing to Showa.

"Thanks," said Showa. "Now, get back to hacking!"

"_Fine, fine_," said AI-Shin. He muttered, "_So much for gratitude_."

'_Hey, Shinichi_,' said Gokuaku in Shinichi's mind. '_Give us a turn, will you?_'

"And who am I to object to that?" questioned Showa. "Alright! Sing, Yabuki!"

In a flash of green he was in the green, samurai-armored, blue-eyed form of Showa Higurashi.

"HIGURASHI ZAN!" With a swing of his Higurashi no Yaiba he slashed at Million who was just getting back up, slicing open his chestplate. The force of the slash also dislodged a couple of the Spark Cores as a result.

"Next! Bring down the thunder, Gokuaku!" He shifted quickly as a tornado of fire, wind and lightning enveloped him and he flew out of the tornado with burning fists as the demonic Showa Oni. "VOLCANO PUNCH!"

The explosive punch hit Million with such force that he was sent flying into the wall again and two more Spark Cores rolled out of his chest. Lodged in the wall, Million would not be able to dodge the next onslaught.

"Here we go! Strike from the shadows, Zennin!" In a burst of darkness he had become the ninja-like Showa Kage. He gripped Million by the shoulders and tossed him into the air before he used the Shadow Clone technique to duplicate himself. "Kage Barrage!" One by one the clones hit Million with upward punches and kicks, sending him higher and higher before the real Showa used an axe kick to send him crashing to the floor again. Now the remaining Spark Cores were loosened and they leapt out of his chest, rolling away.

"One more! Altogether! Guardian Henshin!" In a flash of golden light Showa became the form where he combined the three Treasures together and became Showa Hinamizawa Guardian. With the Higurashi no Yaiba, the edges growing spikes, he unleashed a devastating attack that made Million cry out in agony. First, he summoned aura versions of his Treasure Forms and they struck Million with their weapons. "SPIRIT RAID!" Million received a sword slash from Higurashi, a kanabo slam from Oni and finally a dual ninja sword slash from Kage before Showa finally made his move, "KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!"

Million tried to pick himself up, groaning. He saw the Spark Cores that lay around him. "I'm…not…beaten…yet!" He tried to reach for one of the Spark Cores.

Showa reverted back to his new default, Showa III (Trinity) and denied, "Yes, you have."

Showa punched his knuckles together, causing the circuit lines to glow again and then he swung his arms to the side. His left forearm grew a shield with his XIII symbol on it and the right arm was now equipped with a red sword blade that was as tall as he was and with a glowing edge. He then charged at Million as he was getting up and swung, slicing off Million's right arm. "ARGH!" Million screamed.

"Payback for last time, Gebok!" shouted Showa as he then used a horizontal swing to slice Million's legs off, forcing him to the ground. Million tried to attack with his remaining arm but then the sword cut it right off. Showa then pointed his sword arm at Million's face.

**END SONG**

"You've lost, Gebok," said Showa. "Game Over."

Million, despite his current predicament, began to laugh, "You really think it's over, BLACK 13? You really think you've won?"

"Yes, I do," said Showa. However, he was also a bit concerned at how Million wasn't fearing for his life right now.

"NOT EVEN CLOSE!" Million's eyes glowed and all of a sudden Showa screamed as his weapons vanished and he clenched his head.

'_If this body of mine can be defeated so easily, then I will take yours!_' shouted Million/Gebok in Shinichi's mind.

"No way, Gebok," growled Showa as he fought back. "Not this time! THIS TIME YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"

In Shinichi's mindscape, Shinichi stood alone in front of Gebok but the mad scientist's smug expression fell as he saw several people suddenly appearing behind Shinichi and the numbers increased until it was an entire army of people. He saw the Showa Riders, the Heisei Riders, the Tsukumogami of the Three Treasures, the NEO-NUMBERS, the members of ARMOR, Shinichi's parents, friends, family and the villagers of Hinamizawa. Shawna stood with her father as well. He also saw Alan and his girlfriends along with Yuji and his lovers. Lina was also present as well as was Satan and her sisters. It was everyone that Shinichi had ever met and befriended. "What…what is _this_…?" Gebok/Million uttered in fear and confusion.

"What you see standing before you are the bonds I have forged!" declared Shinichi. "And these bonds are stronger than anything you can ever possibly create!" Everyone held hands with his hands in Rena and Lina's. "**Now…GET OUT OF MY HEAD! YOU'RE NOT WELCOMED!**"

Million was forced violently out of Shinichi's head. "Damn you…Shinichi Banabara…" Million uttered, using Showa's proper name instead of the title he'd been given back in GIN-SHOCKER. If he'd known his creation would've become this big of a threat to his plans, he would've killed him from the beginning.

Showa breathed hard, his heart hammering in his chest. He then looked at the brain in Million's head and took out his shotgun. He pointed it at Million's head. "Just one shot and it will be over," said Showa as he pressed his finger against the trigger.

"You can kill me, but my Project Armageddon, my Armageddon Lord, will still launch and it will land right in that village you love so much and destroy!" boasted Million. "And even if you manage to destroy it, the explosion alone will destroy everything within a huge radius! So, in the end there is nothing you can do! Face it, you've lost!"

"There is one thing I can do," said Showa as he withdrew his gun and then put his hand against Million's head.

"Wait, what are you doing?" demanded Million, not liking this one bit as Showa's eyes began to glow and the circuitry lines on his arm began to glow as well. The circuitry lines were appearing on his face and appearing on Million's as well.

"You went inside _my_ head, and now I'm going inside of _yours_. Now, let's see those access and shutdown codes," said Showa as he began to search through Million's memory, ignoring everything considered unimportant at the moment and finally retrieving the shutdown codes. Million tried to resist but it was futile and Showa smiled. "Oh yeah." He then withdrew his hand went to the console where AI-Shin was. "How are you doing?"

"_Well, I'm trying to gain access but every time I break through one wall there's another wall right behind it. It's really ticking me off_," said AI-Shin.

"Here, maybe this will help. It might tickle a little." Showa put his hand on AI-Shin and fed him the access codes and the shutdown codes.

"_Woah! OK! Now I got an idea! Now let me work my magic!_" He used the codes to gain access at lightning speed and finally reported, "_SHUTDOWN COMPLETE!_"

* * *

The Armageddon Lord soon stopped moving as it lowered its arms. The NEO-NUMBERS let out a sigh of relief at this.

"Looks like they did it," said Musician.

"You had doubts?" asked Arachnea.

"A little," he admitted. He saw a green streak of light in the sky. "And looks who's back."

Sentinel touched down in front of the NEO-NUMBERS and saw the inert Armageddon Lord. "Guess it was taken care of."

* * *

Back inside, Showa made another decision. "Now, to take care of some unfinished business," said Showa as he looked back at Million. He had the perfect punishment in mind for him.

He had thought long and hard about what he wanted to do to Gebok once he found him, the real him and not some cheap copy. He'd thought about getting his revenge on the man who'd ruined his life, tortured him, made him into a weapon, and took him away from his family for ten long years.

He'd thought about taking Gebok's life from the very start. However, he looked down at Million, now utterly beaten at his feet. It would be so easy to just kill him right now.

That was when Liger walked up to him and spoke, "Shinichi."

Sentinel also made an appearance and said, "Shinichi."

The Manakyte and Green Lantern stood behind the Rider as he had his sword to Million's head. He didn't seem to acknowledge their presence. He was focused completely on Million.

"Shinichi, think for a moment," said Sentinel, Alan, "Is this what you really want to do? Is this what a Kamen Rider would do?"

"Scum like him doesn't deserve to live," said Liger. "You should finish him off. The world, heck the whole Multiverse, is better off without him."

"Shinichi, even if you kill Million it won't undo everything that has happened. You're already beaten him. If you kill him in your rage like this you'll just be a murderer. You'll be no better than he is," said Sentinel.

"He took you away from your family," said Liger. "He ruined your life, tortured you, made you into a weapon, and made you kill Lina. He also killed Lina, again. If I were you I'd run him through right now but that's me. This is _your_ decision to make. You said it yourself that you're an avenger. So, avenge yourself."

Showa didn't respond to their arguments until he took a deep breath and spoke. "…You're right," said Showa. "You're both right, but Gebok still needs to be punished and pay for his crimes."

"So, what will you do?" asked Liger.

"This," said Showa as he raised his sword and swung.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so Million's fate is in Shinichi's hands. What will he decide? Will he decide to take his revenge or let justice be served instead of vengeance?**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: Well, Alan finally got his fight with Henshaw, as well as some new powers and a new name to boot. His new costume is based on the Eradicator costume from Reign of the Supermen with some modifications, and the Sentinel name comes from Alan's hero, Alan Scott.**


	55. Epilogue: The End for Gebok

**EPILOGUE: THE END FOR GEBOK**

"So, can anyone explain to me how Alan's DNA got rewritten and he developed powers similar to Superman and how the same nanites gave Shinichi to ability to morph his body?" asked Warren. Dr. Hasuma, Dr. Magi and Prof. Takada stood before him. "Well?"

"It was the nanites," said Takada-hakase. "We suspect that Henshaw was trying to build an army of Cyborg-Supermen like himself but the nanites he gave Alan were untested. Due to Alan's already abnormal physiology and exposure to the energies produced by his ring and Bazel, instead of cybernizing his body, the nanites targeted his DNA and gave him his new abilities, rewriting his DNA in order to do so."

"So, what about Shinichi?" Warren asked. "Why didn't he develop any of the powers like the ones Alan has now and why can he morph his limbs into weapons?"

"The Spark Core must've altered the nanites' programming," said Dr. Magi. "Since Shinichi's body had not been powered by a Spark Core during the injection, the nanites only performed their default commands, which was to repair and rebuild any damaged cybernetics and since Shinichi is a cyborg his cybernetic parts were all repaired. It wasn't until the Spark Core was installed that the nanites were supercharged and as a result he gained his new ability to alter his body parts into machines, specifically weapons. His entire cybernetic structure, organs and skeleton included, have been reconstructed as a result as well. That is the only logical conclusion."

"Any side effects?" Warren asked.

Dr. Hasuma reported. "Considering Alan now possesses Kryptonian DNA inside his rewritten genetic code, he might have a violent allergic reaction to green Kryptonite. We have proven so far that red sunlight neutralizes his powers. As for Shinichi, his new ability, dubbed 'Build', requires a large amount of energy and his metabolism has also dramatically increased as a result so he'll need to eat his entire weight in food in an entire sitting to recharge himself."

"And what about Hanyuu, Maria and Alice?" Warren asked.

"We managed to get them out of the pods and now they're resting. The Delta Drive really drained them but they'll be alright with some rest," said Dr. Magi.

Warren nodded, acknowledging the good news. "If that's all, you're all dismissed."

"Hai, kanchou!"

* * *

Hanyuu, Maria and Alice had been safely taken to ARMOR by Chiaki and Battler and as Dr. Magi had said they were resting. As for Shinichi, he had a delivery to make, a special one.

"This is for you," said Shinichi as he put the tray on Warren's desk. There was a metal dome cover on it.

"Did you cook something for me?" Warren asked curiously.

"Well, no, but I do have something for you," said Shinichi as he removed the cover. It was Million's head and there was an apple showed in his mouth, gagging him. "I present the brain of Dr. Gebok Xavier Shinigami, served on a silver platter, just for you." Warren looked at Million's head. It was still active, seeing as there was life in those eyes of his.

"You know, I thought you wanted to kill him," said Warren.

"I thought about it but then I decided death is too good for him and I'm not the only one he's ever wronged," said Shinichi. "So, I'll leave his punishment in your hands."

"I see," nodded Warren.

"If that's all, I'm going to go," said Shinichi.

"Wait a second, Shinichi. Alan told me you figured it all out and that you knew," said Warren. "But I want to know exactly how you reached that conclusion from you."

Shinichi explained, "Well, while I was spying on Alan he always talked about me being his brother and then I looked back to how you always treated me. You pay very close attention to your kids, including me. I just put two and two together."

"Smart," Warren complimented. "But if you knew how come you didn't call me out on it?"

"Because you're my biological father and that's all you are. You're just the sperm donor so this doesn't mean I'm gonna start calling you 'Dad'," said Shinichi. He added, "I mean it's because of your blood that Gebok wanted me in the first place so it's partially your fault that I'm a cyborg." Warren wanted to retort, maybe even apologize, but Shinichi interrupted him, "However, if it hadn't been for your blood I wouldn't be who I am today. I wouldn't be Hinamizawa's Sword and Shield. I wouldn't be a Kamen Rider. I wouldn't be a hero."

"So, is it OK if I get to call you 'son'?" Warren asked.

"I can't stop you," said Shinichi, shrugging, "But I still won't start calling you 'Dad'. I already have a father."

"Tatsuyoshi Kasai," Warren concluded. "Well, I guess that's fine but I won't stop considering you my son, Shinichi."

"I know you won't," said Shinichi He added, "But even if I won't call you 'Dad', I can at least call you 'Pops'."

Warren shrugged. That was good enough for him. "That's fine, son."

"I'll leave his punishment in your hands, Pops. Right now there's someone I need to see," said Shinichi before he turned and exited.

"Ryuki, it looks like the Vault is about to get its first inmate," said Warren. "What do you say?"

"I say we make him suffer," said Dr. Hasuma coldly as a dragon manifested over his shoulder. Million had a long list of crimes to answer for. There was terrorism, conspiracy to commit mass-murder, unethical scientific experiments, cruelty towards children, and crimes against humanity.

Warren grinned as he removed the apple from Million's mouth and spoke sinisterly, "You hear that, Gebok? And he's supposed to be a pacifist. It looks like it's time for your punishment to begin. First, it's _orientation_ time."

Million could only scream as his suffering began.

* * *

The eight Spark Cores that had been in Million's possession were now property of ARMOR's Science Department. Each of them was marked with a different Roman numeral, which designated their original owners. One of them had once been Shinichi's.

Dr. Magi did not know where the Spark Cores originally came from and how GIN-SHOCKER had acquired them and thus his scientific curiosity, which was rivaled by Takada's, practically forced him to experiment on them in order to discover their secrets. Takada too wanted to know what they really were. What they did know was they were the primary power source for the NUMBERS cyborgs and that they were indestructible. Dr. Hasuma had even considered them to be similar to the Kingstones of Shadow Moon and Kamen Rider BLACK.

The Spark Cores, which were kept in a special case and set within foam slots, would remain in ARMOR's custody for many years to come and be stored in Storeroom X.

Speaking of Spark Cores, Shiori had explained that she'd gotten the tri-colored Spark Core as a gift from someone when Shinichi had been born. There had not been anything included with the box it came with except for a note which had told her that the Spark Core would help her son when he absolutely needed it. Seeing him without his Spark Core had triggered something in her memory and fortunately she still had the tri-colored Spark Core.

The tri-colored Trinity Spark Core, which had awakened Shinichi, had also given him new powers. However, he had also lost his ability to assume the forms of the Legendary Showa Riders. Shinichi didn't see it as such a great loss, of course. He believed that in exchange for his new powers he would need to give up his old ones, which also included his previous default forms that had now been replaced what could be dubbed as a Trinity Form.

As for the reason why Shinichi needed to have his Spark Core replaced, Million/Gebok now had the honor of becoming the Vault's first inmate. His brain, which was all that was left of him, would remain and rot in that prison forever for the crimes he'd committed and it was unlikely that he would ever be released; very, very unlikely.

* * *

When Shinichi visited Hanyuu in her hospital room in ARMOR's medical wing, she was not alone. Chiaki was with her. Hanyuu was sitting up in her bed as Chiaki sat on a chair at her bedside.

"Shinichi," smiled Hanyuu, glad to see Shinichi back on his feet and back to normal.

"Hey, Hanyuu-chan," Shinichi smiled at his little sister. "How are you feeling?"

"A little tired, and hungry," she admitted, "But Chiaki-san brought me cream puffs!" She pointed to the box of Angel Mort cream puffs that she would be having later. She wanted to share them with Chiaki.

"Well, I'm glad." Shinichi then noticed that Chiaki and Hanyuu were holding hands. "Uh…why are you holding hands like that?" he asked.

Hanyuu looked to Chiaki who gave a nod. It was time for the truth. "Shinichi…Onii-chan, the truth is…Chiaki-san and I are together now."

It took several seconds for Shinichi to process the information before he shockingly exclaimed at the news, "WHAAAAAAT!-?"

Hanyuu repeated, "Chiaki-san and I are together now."

"You mean…you two…" Shinichi rapidly pointed back and forth between the two.

Chiaki finished, "We're dating."

Shinichi demanded, "How!-? Why!-?"

Hanyuu explained, "Well, Onii-chan, when you went rogue I was really upset and Chiaki-san would often come over to cheer me up. Things went on from there."

Chiaki added, "And she's always had a crush on me, and she's going to be in high school soon. I thought why not."

Shinichi wanted to object but no words formed. He had nothing to object. Hanyuu had every right to pursue a relationship if she wanted to and Chiaki wasn't such a bad guy. Shinichi accepted, reluctantly, "…Well...she could do worse."

"I'm so glad you're okay with this," smiled Hanyuu.

"Yeah, excuse me for a second," said Shinichi calmly. He walked outside for a second and closed the door. Hanyuu and Chiaki looked confused for a second before they heard him screaming violently with what could have been swear words.

Chiaki spoke, "I think I can understand Shinichi. He's very protective of you, like any brother should."

Hanyuu remarked, "Well, I can take care of myself too."

"I know you can because I've seen you in action, but I bet it's still nice to know that he cares."

"True, I never had an older brother like him. I'm just glad he's back and that he accepts our relationship."

While Shinichi was still venting, Hanyuu lifted up Chiaki's scarf and leaned in to kiss him and he reciprocated. That was when Shinichi walked right back in.

"OK, I'm-" He froze as he saw his little sister and teammate kissing. He said quickly, "I'll be right back!" He turned and walked right back out to scream out more curses and swears.

* * *

"Daddy!" Alice called as Alan came to visit her in her hospital. Alan then took his daughter into a hug.

"I'm so glad you're safe," said Alan.

"I wasn't afraid," she said. "I knew you'd come to save me, Daddy."

Alan smiled. Alice had faith in him despite the danger she'd been in. This almost made up for his failure to save Jade. While her death would always haunt him, holding Alice here chased those phantom pains away.

"Alice, do you want to go to my home after this?" Alan asked.

"Home?" Alice asked.

"My universe," he explained. "There are people I want to introduce you to. Like your Aunt Ryuko and your uncles Steve and Michael."

"OK, Daddy," beamed Alice.

"OK sweetie. You get some sleep. Daddy will be here when you wake up."

"Goodnight, Daddy."

"Goodnight, sweetie."

* * *

"Hey, Maria," said Yuji as he entered Maria's hospital room.

"Papa!" beamed the little girl. She was playing with Sakutaro on the bed.

"So, how are ya feeling?" he asked, ruffling her hair.

"Just a little tired, but I'll be okay," she asked.

Yuji reached behind his back and pulled out a pumpkin-shaped basket and it was filled to the brim with candy.

"Candy!" Maria cheered. "UU!"

"Halloween Candy," he amended. "I mean you need to build up some energy and I thought we could share."

"Papa, I think you're spoiling me," suspected Maria.

"Am I?" he asked.

"Kihihihihihi," Maria giggled. "I can see right through you, Papa." Her giggle would be considered creepy by most but not to him. It was a quirk of hers he found adorable. To think he'd almost been close to losing her, and breaking his promise to Rosa.

* * *

Rena was waiting anxiously for Shinichi's return. She hoped, praying to Oyashiro-sama that her beloved would return. Someone was keeping her company, of course. It was Satan.

"He'll be here," said Satan certainly. "Yuji-niisan told me that they're already finished with the mission. He'll be here."

"Satan, you were with him the whole time, right?" asked Rena.

"Of course," answered Satan. "We're friends and I stick by my friends."

Rena questioned, "So, the whole time you were with him, you never tried to…sleep with him?"

Satan gasped at the accusation and denied hotly, "No, of course not! He's your man after all!"

Rena looked her square in the eyes, "But you were with him. Didn't you at least try?"

Satan explained, "Rena, his mind was focused, obsessed, with taking down X-SHOCKER and Gebok. He didn't have time to think about anything else. Besides, doing that would be very unprofessional."

Rena pressed, "So, you never thought about it…?"

Satan admitted, "I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about it, Rena. When he was in Avenger Mode, all dark and broody, he was kinda hot."

Rena concluded, "But he didn't want to."

Satan nodded. "He said that if he did do that with me it'd be like he was cheating on you. He was thinking about you the whole time he was out there. He even sent you letters via paper crane."

Rena looked to a nearby jar filled with letters. They had all been in the form of paper cranes that Shinichi had sent her. "That made me happy, knowing he was thinking about me the whole time. Why couldn't be bring me along?"

Satan reasoned, "Well, it was too dangerous so he had to be focused. And because it was dangerous he couldn't bring you along. You could've been hurt, or worse, and he would never forgive himself if that ever happened. You know what happened to him after she (Lina) died so if you died too it would completely crush him."

"Yes, you're right." There was a knock at the door. "Shin-kun?"

"Go," Rena insisted, "Go and greet your boyfriend."

Rena got off the couch and went to the front door. She opened it and standing on the other side was Shinichi.

"Tadaima," he said.

Rena tearfully greeted him back, "Okaeri."

The two embraced with Satan watching. She was a bit envious but Rena needed him right now. They had been apart for almost two months after all.

* * *

There were a lot of changes going on for the NEO-NUMBERS as well. The NEO-NUMBERS exited the Dimensional Rift Gate and onto grassy ground.

"Where are we?" asked Battler as he looked around.

"Surprise everyone!" Dr. Magi announced as the NEO-NUMBERS looked at the building which stood behind him. "And welcome to your new home!" The building had a hexagonal base with a tall tower sticking out of it from the centre. Their vehicles were also parked next to the building.

"So, this is our new base," said Yokoshima. "It's big."

"Well, we couldn't stay under the clinic forever," said Shogo.

"Aw~, I really liked it under the clinic," said Michiru, pouting. "There were a lot of comfy beds."

"Michiru, they'll be beds here, and we'll get our own rooms down here too," said Hana.

"Our own rooms?" Michiru cheered, "Yay!"

"So, a base in the middle of nowhere," said Daichi. "Where are we anyway, Dr. Magi?"

"Oh, it's a boxed canyon in an undisclosed location," said Dr. Magi. "We also have a teleporter system set up so you can transport yourselves to anywhere on the globe."

Chiaki looked around, admiring the place their new base was built in. There was a lake nearby and it looked very beautiful too. Even if it was just a boxed canyon, it had a really nice feel to it.

"Thinking of bringing your girlfriend here?" teased Yokoshima.

Chiaki blushed under the scarf he wore to conceal his face. He responded, "Aren't you thinking the same?"

"Wow, Hana-chan!" said Michiru. She was admiring the tower. "It's so TALL and BIG! Does it remind you of anything?"

Hana blushed, knowing well what her beloved best friend was insinuating.

"Maybe I can plant some banana plants here," mused Michiru aloud as she saw all the space that was available.

"A vegetable patch would look good over there," Chiaki pointed at a spot.

"We should have a baseball field too!" Yokoshima added. "Or a football field! I know! We can build a stadium!"

"It could use some animals," said Daichi. "Deer, maybe rabbits. A few birds too."

AI-Shin floated out of the base. "_Oh, hi guys!_"

"What's _he_ doing here?" asked Daichi.

"Oh, I'm going back to ARMOR to handle some things so Shin here will be giving you a guided tour of the base," said Dr. Magi.

"_Just follow me, guys_," said AI-Shin. "_I'll show you everything that's inside._"

"HEY GUYS!" Michiru called out from the roof. "THERE'S A SWIMMING POOL UP HERE!"

"How did she get up there so fast?" Battler wondered aloud as he looked up to see Michiru up high on the roof of the tower.

"It's Michiru," said Daichi. "Trust me she can be pretty fast when she sees something she likes."

"_She must've gone in and found the elevator_," said AI-Shin. "_Hana, do you mind getting her so we can start the tour?_"

"Sure," nodded Hana. She leapt up and landed on the side of the tower and started climbing up fast like a spider to fetch Michiru.

"_Hey, where's Shinichi?_" AI-Shin asked, wondering where his template was. "_He should be here_."

"He had some unfinished business to take care of," said Daichi.

* * *

For nearly two months Alan had been forced to pursue a vengeful Shinichi with the latter always escaping from the former's grasp in one way or another. This of course was stressful for Alan and on top of that Shinichi pretty much annoyed Alan to no end. Now that Million was out of the picture it was time to finish this. Shinichi and Alan met up in ARMOR's training room and they looked absolutely serious.

"We have to settle this," said Alan as he was dressed in a green training Gi.

"Yeah, we sure do," agreed Shinichi as he wore a white training Gi.

"Go all out…" Alan stated the first condition.

"…Don't surrender," added Shinichi.

"And last man standing wins," they finished together.

The two bowed to each other and then lunged at each other with fists drawn. Of course Shinichi's fists had just grown to several times their original size and encased in metal.

* * *

Warren was watching the live video feed from the training room on his computer with Dr. Hasuma watching alongside him. "So, who do you have your bets on?" Warren asked ARMOR's Head Physician.

"To be honest it's hard for me to say," admitted Dr. Hasuma. "Alan has Kryptonian powers now and Shinichi has the ability to rapidly heal himself using his own temporal abilities. Not to mention his abilities have been greatly enhanced by nanites. I can't wager who will win but I can only guess that this will take a very long time to reach an end." He asked, "Won't you stop this?"

"Nah, the boys have a lot of steam to blow off. Boys will be boys, after all. Besides, this will be good for them," said Warren.

"If you're sure," said Dr. Hasuma. "I'll prep their rooms for them."

* * *

Later, Alan was dragging an unconscious Shinichi through the hallways of ARMOR.

Dr. Hasuma asked as he caught sight of them, "And where are you going?"

Alan answered, "Rena's. I have a promise to keep."

Dr. Hasuma knew what promise he was referring to but did not understand why he was dragging Shinichi along the floor since he'd come back anyway. He really didn't see the point as Shinichi had already reunited with Rena. "But, he already…"

Alan interrupted him, "I know, but I promised I would _drag_ Shinichi back to her and that's what I'm doing."

Dr. Hasuma questioned, "Did you have to make that promise so literal?"

Alan chuckled, "Heh, I chased his dumbass all over the globe for nearly two months. I deserve to have some fun."

Dr. Hasuma shook his head. Was this something common for all Smiths?

* * *

Anastasia sat in a dark room. The room held six chairs seated around a table, three on the left side and two on the right, and one at the head. Only three of the other chairs were filled, with their occupants hidden in the shadows. Anastasia filled one of the chairs on the right. "Well, with Henshaw and Million gone it looks like we're down two fingers," she sighed in a bored tone.

"Hmph!" huffed a figure directly in front of her. "That fool Henshaw underestimated Smith again. If I couldn't beat him what hope did that scrapheap have!"

"Be silent," spoke the figure at the head of the table, causing the two to clam up. "The Gauntlet has been thrown. The challenge lay bare at Alan Smith's feet. Fall or survive. Live or suffer. Let the games begin. Let's break the Lantern's will."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And thus ends the Rampage of BLACK 13 Arc. Of course this isn't the end of the story, only a chapter. There will be more to come in the future but as of now the struggle between Shinichi and Gebok has ended. Gebok is now going to pay for his crimes and get what he deserves. I'd like to thank Kamen Rider Bushido and Shadow Element 13 for their help in this project. Thanks guys! Your help was really well-appreciated.**

**Now, I would like to add that I never really made a true conclusion to Shinichi and Gebok's relationship. There were so many loose ends in mysteries left unresolved in the original KAMEN RIDER SHOWA story. So, I decided to finally resolve those issues here in KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN. Yes, it took several arcs to get to this point and a lot of filler chaps as well but I think I did well with this especially with help from you guys. Furthermore, I would like to add that I really wanted to see Gebok finally meet his end but not get killed like he had before. He deserves way worse than death and so he'll be put in the new prison known as the Vault which is on Shinichi's world and constructed by ARMOR to contain all superhuman criminals in that world.**

**As for the Armageddon Lord plot and also Million's appearance I don't take credit for those. Those were based on the Android Kikaider 01 OVA, especially the use of Hanyuu, Maria and Alice as a power source. Originally, Alice was meant to be the lone power source but since Shadow, Bushido and I had our own protagonists in this story, why not make the power source something that draws power from all three girls. Thus, the Delta Drive Engine was born.**

**Now about AI-Shin; he's an AI based on Shinichi's memories but like Shinichi when he first woke up in Hinamizawa he has amnesia but he's gonna start remembering little by little. He has Shinichi's personality but he won't be a clone character. Again, this is something I picked up from Red VS Blue (an awesome web series) which has the character Epsilon-Church who is based on the original Church (Alpha) of the series and in terms of personality they are identical with some minor differences. So, AI-Shin and Shinichi are both similar characters, but also different as well. The only difference is that AI-Shin doesn't have any inhibitions so he'll be even more perverted than Shinichi. And since he has a cloaking system, you'll know he can't be stopped and Shinichi might be blamed for his behavior since the AI is based on him.**

**I actually thought about this whole Rampage of BLACK 13 storyline months ago, writing scenes in advanced. I was inspired by the Kamen Rider Decade Epilogue movie for that and Shinichi's mannerisms in his 'revenge' state was taken from Tsukasa. Even the fact that his existence is threatening the Multiverse was used as Bernkastel acknowledges him as an out of control threat to the point of sending Henshaw after him. Hopefully, she won't go after him again.**

**Now, Alan and Yuji are both interesting characters and they serve as a sort of foil to Shinichi. Alan was dead set in stopping Shinichi from following the path he was on, knowing well from experience how it may end. Yuji was Alan's opposite as he supports Shinichi while at the same time trying to stop Shinichi from becoming a cold-hearted bastard.**

**Now, to conclude, I have only this to say: It's not over yet. We have a couple more arcs left to go but before the next 'official' arc, we'll be having something like a filler arc. Just slice of life, with no fights. OK, there will be a few fights but nothing too serious.**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: Chrome's right. This is far from over. The next BIG arc will focus on Shinichi and the others having to deal with a big part of being Heroes…Villains. With Gebok and X-SHOCKER gone, there's a void left in the criminal world of Showa no Sekai. And whoever fills that void, will not be merciful to the heroes.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Well, this was a nice way to end things. But like Shadow said, it's far from over. There are still more psychotic antics to come. So keep reading!**


	56. Prologue: Evil Never Dies

**Prologue: Evil Never Dies**

The organization known as GIN-SHOCKER fell, only to be replaced by the Dark Hatred Society, which also fell. Then the X-SHOCKER organization rose to power but it also fell at the hands of its enemies. Thus, a void is formed in the struggle between Good and Evil. What greater evil will fill this void and will it spell doom for the world?

The struggle between Good and Evil is an eternal one which began at the very beginning of time. The concept seemed pretty clear if you like at it from a black and white perspective, but good and evil are not exactly all that obvious. There is evil disguised as good and good disguised as evil. Take for instance killing in self-defence. The taking of a life is a sin but according to the law one is allowed to do so if it means defending their life from ending. Basically, the laws that man has created justify the act of killing in self-defence, and also taking the life of dangerous criminals through execution. Humankind seems to have created justifications for many sins, like slavery for instance. War is also justified by mankind if the reason behind it is noble. Still, lives are lost and casualties pile up from these wars. War simply allows people to take the lives of others due to a cause they believed in and to them it was a just and noble cause. Still, for those who suffered in wars, the innocent civilians, where is their justice? Where is the justice for the children slaughtered in these wars? Where is the justice for the women raped by enemy soldiers? Where is the justice for the mothers and fathers who'd lost their children who fought in the war?

The Greater Good has been used to justify horrible acts of death and destruction. The expression 'The Ends Justify the Means' also embodies this concept. But do they? Do the ends really justify the means? Is it right to take the life of an innocent if it means saving thousands, maybe millions, of lives?

Where is the justice? Is there truly justice? Or is there only justified evil?

When people become blinded, they can no longer tell the difference between Good and Evil. The fight between Good and Evil has become a blurred one with neither side winning or losing. Each side may have grown stronger after eons but the balance has yet to be tipped to uncontrollable levels. The fight between Good and Evil isn't about supremacy at all. It is about the balance of the two forces. Without balance, there can only be chaos. Order would cease to exist. That is why the world needs the presence of Good and Evil.

Evil never dies. It just gets reborn in a new form and in a new place, beginning the cycle anew. It takes on many shapes and forms but it is there, and it lurks everywhere, even in the hearts of man. The truth is that the human heart possesses good and evil and the only thing that happens as that balance is tipped is only pain and suffering. Too much good or too much evil will only lead to chaos.

The first act of evil committed by man, recorded in the Bible, was the murder of Abel at the hands of Cain. Fueled by envy, jealousy and rage, Cain slew his brother who was gaining favor from God and condemned himself for taking the life of the man whose blood he shared. And with that act, evil in the heart of man was born and would be spread throughout all mankind through the generations. Beware, because the face of Evil can take on many shapes and forms, even in the form of a loved one.

**KR Chrome: This is the prologue for the next series: "LEGACY OF CAIN".**


	57. The Legacy of Cain Part 1

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 1: The Days Before Christmas**

**December 22****nd**** 1987**

Alan and Yuji were in Angel Mort and they needed to talk. It was something serious. It was about Shinichi. After Lina's second death Shinichi had gone on rogue, taking down X-SHOCKER facilities one after the other and going after anyone who had a connection with Gebok/Million. These people were ones who'd received enhancements from Gebok/Million and turned into super-powered monsters that Shinichi had killed without hesitation. Alan made it his responsibility to stop Shinichi. However, Yuji made it his responsibility to help Shinichi on his quest for revenge. Now, the Lantern and Manakyte were sitting at a booth with milkshakes in front of them, glaring at each other.

"Glad you could make it," Alan greeted.

Yuji kept a serious face and replied, "You asked me here to talk, so let's talk."

"OK, I want to know what was going through your head when you decided to help Shinichi on his little rampage."

"I thought I was helping him find some closure," the Manakyte answered truthfully.

"Really? Cause all I saw you doing was pushing him further down the path to becoming a super villain," the Green Lantern accused.

Yuji's gloved hands tightened their grip as he did his best to maintain his composure. "Listen, when I lost Yumi, I was so far gone in despair that it gave Yuri and his dragon the chance to guide my darkness to hunt down Kiba by destroying other Orphenochs, some that had nothing to do with what was going on. I was this close to even causing a second Zero Reverse that would've destroyed Neo Domino City. If my sister hadn't stopped me, I would've been responsible for the death of millions, just to hunt down one monster. Seeing Shin in the state he was in, I knew he needed a guide, someone who would allow him to do what he must, but also let him know when to do it calmly. All you would've done was drag him back, kicking and screaming like a little kid and waste even more time looking for Million. By the time ARMOR would've dispatched a team to investigate, Million would've taken down at least half the world with Project Armageddon."

Alan scoffed as he countered, "One: You underestimate ARMOR. The second Million took Alice I knew where she was and we could have followed her there. Two: You underestimate ME. You think you had it bad? When Jade was killed I nearly wiped out the whole Multiverse. And I know people say that Parallax had complete influence over me, but the truth is, he was doing what you were. He was egging me along, telling me to go through with it, to rebuild everything from scratch. It wasn't until I saw the decimation I left behind on Oa that I realized what I had done. That's how all Smiths are. When we lose our "Anchor", nothing else matters but eliminating whatever took that person from us. We need a new trauma, or for someone we're really close to snap us out of it. That's what I was trying to do. All you were doing was making things worse."

Yuji sat back in his seat and scoffed back, "Che, whatever... I do what I can with what I have. That's how I was trained, how I live. What's done is done and that's the end of it. I dunno why you keep bringing this shit up."

"Because Shinichi's my brother!" Alan snapped, "And you messed with my family!""

Yuji slammed his fists on the table and snapped back, alarming the other customers, "You think I was messing with him?-! All I've done was help him, time and again! That's what friends do! I knew he wasn't gonna let it go so I did what I could to make sure he kept a cool head and made sure he didn't get killed!"

"Or you could have done what a real friend would have and STOPPED HIM!"

"Why the fuck are you always so difficult?-!" Yuji demanded in frustration.

"_Kill him."_

Yuji's head snapped up at the sound of the voice, "What...?"

He looked to the window next to him to see the Abyss King staring back at him, with a scowl in the reflection.

"_Just get rid of him," _Abyss ordered_. "He's obviously against everything you say and do. So as king, you should dispose of all that oppose you."_

Yuji pointed at the reflection, "Shut up already! You may have helped me before, but don't forget the shit you put me through, asshole! I'm not gonna kill Alan just because you say so!"

"_Fine, then let me kill him."_

"You're not killing anyone! Goddammit, why does everyone have to get on my case about everything!-?" he demanded as he slammed a fist through the table, splitting it in half and making everyone in Angel Mort gasp in shock as the milkshakes fell to the floor. Even Alan was taken aback a bit by the sudden outburst. It looked like Yuji was ready to Transcend and attack Alan on the spot in a rage.

Yuji looked down, his eyes shadowed by his hair, "I guess I can't do anything right... I'm out of here." He walked out of Angel Mort. He pressed a button on his phone and White Blaze wheeled over to him, allowing Yuji to hop on and speed away, leaving Alan by himself.

Alan sighed, "Tch, he's supposed to be older than me and Shinichi but he acts like a little kid." Still, Alan and Yuji still had issues that needed to be resolved. He also looked down at the broken table and spilled milkshakes. "And he left me with the mess."

* * *

Yuji returned to his home in Neo Domino City and meditates on the argument, looking for solutions. He then comes to this conclusion:

"Maybe I should give up..." he murmured.

"Give up on what?"

"Gah!" he screamed, making him jump and turn around, only to see Alan staring back at him. "How did you get here!-?"

"Flight and super speed," the GL replied.

"I mean how the fuck did you get here in NEO DOMINO!"

Alan crossed his arms and cocked an eyebrow, "My dad runs an agency that travels dimensions. You really think I wouldn't have access to a Liner?"

Yuji's voice was caught in his voice for a second before shaking his head and snapped, "What the fuck?-! Did you follow me?-! You know, that's a sign, indicating that you're a stalker!"

Alan looked at him sincerely as he answered, "I was worried. We may be in a rough patch right now but you're still my friend."

Yuji sighed deeply as he turned his back to Alan, "I've been thinking about giving up, Alan."

His eyes widened slowly, wondering if the older man was being serious or just joking. "On what? Being a hero?"

He turned back to the GL, a somber look in his eyes. "I'm getting old, Alan. My way of thinking just isn't cut out for Shinichi's world, his time period. Kiba's dead now. I should be able to let go of the pain, but it stays with me. When it began, when Yumi died, I had nothing to say and I got lost in the nothingness inside of me. I was just stuck, hollow and alone. Then I met Leon, and trained with him, Kenshin, and Master Asia, but it only hurt me. I ended up killing Kenshin and then Asura died because I was still weak. Then the death toll continued and I lost two more women that I thought would help me get over it. Then when Yuri was separated from me, he ended giving up the life he deserved to save mine. I've tried to get back up and help wherever I can, but nothing has changed. Maybe you were right and I've only made things worse." He looked down shamefully, "Perhaps the best thing to do is stay where I belong and stop interfering in Shin's world. It's probably the best thing for him."

Alan's teeth were clenched, and his fists balled tightly before replying, "Grrr...Yuji, I'm gonna tell you something my old partner told me when I first started being a Lantern..." He grabbed Yuji by the shoulder and reared back a fist, "CLENCH THOSE TEETH!-!"

He then socked Yuji in the face, making him fly back to the wall as he slid down, and landing on his ass as he looked down.

"So, I get hit for voicing my opinion..." he observed with mirth in his voice. "I must've hit a new low or something..."

Alan got in front of Yuji and dragged him to his feet, staring right into his eyes, "Stop being such a whiny little bitch! You're not the same man you were when any of that stuff happened! Every minute you're alive is another minute you evolved! Why do you think we have eyes on the front of our head? TO LOOK TOWARDS THE FUTURE!-!"

Yuji stared at Alan for a good minute, thinking back to everything that his father, Yusei, had taught him while growing up. He then chuckled, "You sound like my father."

Alan smirked, "I kinda miss being hot blooded." He let go of Yuji, allowing his friend to dust himself off.

Yuji then grinned, "You know, we never did finish that bet. And you did lose, so..."

Alan paled as he backed away from him, "You can't be serious..."

Yuji opened his witch-gun and slid a bullet in. He then locks it in place and aimed, "Hope you packed a bikini!"

**BLAM!**

"Damn it!" Alan cursed as the smoke revealed him in his female form, dubbed Ashley.

Yuji then loaded another bullet and puts the gun to his head.

**BLAM!**

"I will hate you forever because of this," Ashley frowned at the transformed Yui.

"Come on, it isn't so bad!" said Yui.

Ashley shook her head, "It isn't, but I tend to attract the worst people when I'm like this."

Yui giggled and kissed Ashley on the cheek, "That's why I'm here. Just stick with me and everything will be fine. Now let's go take those photos!-!"

Ashley sighed in defeat, "Fine...let's just get this over with."

Yui looped an arm around Ashley and smiled, "Atta girl!"

"I can still throw you into the sun you know..." she glared

Yui shrugged, "Meh, I'd live long enough to get out. It's space that gives me the trouble if I don't use my ring. So quit being a stiff and let's have fun!"

* * *

**December 23rd 1987**

The NEO-NUMBERS were in the Hive's control room with Dr. Magi in command. This was going to be an important day in their entire history. Today was the day they were going to activate their worldwide surveillance network by launching their surveillance and communications satellite. Initially, their surveillance network was only limited to Hinamizawa, Okinomiya and Shishibone City, but today that would all change. The NUMBERS were at their respective consoles, checking their computer monitor screens.

Shinichi reported, "All systems are green."

Daichi reported, "The surveillance network is also ready."

Yokoshima reported, "Engine has been filled with fueled."

Dr. Magi nodded as he watched the screens. On top of the Hive's roof was the rocket with the satellite attached to it. The satellite was in the shape of a beehive.

"Begin launch," Dr. Magi ordered.

"Beginning launch sequence," responded Shogo.

"Countdown from ten," began Michiru.

"Countdown start," said Hana as the countdown began.

10…9…8…7

"This is history in the making people," said Dr. Magi.

…6…5…4…

"Today is the day we become worldwide," he added.

…3…2…1…

"And it all begins here," he finished as he pressed the launch button.

0.

"Ignition," reported Chiaki.

The rocket blasted off from the roof at high speeds, carrying the satellite skyward. It breached the atmosphere quickly, while ejecting any and all non essential components like the booster rockets. Once in space, the main rocket detached and the Hive Satellite now orbited the Earth.

"Report," commanded Dr. Magi.

"Satellite is in orbit," reported Shinichi.

"Yatta!" Michiru cheered.

"_All clear up here guys!_" called Sentinel over the com-link. He was in space making sure everything was running smoothly at the final destination of the satellite. "_Few small meteorites, but nothing to worry about._"

"Now, activating the Surveillance AI!" commanded Dr. Magi. He went to an empty console and put in a disk with the AI inside and uploaded it into the mainframe. The Surveillance AI will manage the Surveillance Network in their absence.

When the AI was activated, a familiar female voice spoke up, "_Hello, and welcome to the Hive's Global Surveillance Network_." On the screen of the console, Sheila was displayed as a Caucasian woman with chin-length brown hair.

Yokoshima gasped, "Sheila?"

"_Oh, is that you, Number 09? It's very nice to see you again! How have you been_," Sheila responded cheerfully, smiling.

"I thought you were scrapped," Yokoshima remarked.

"_Oh, only my tank body. Dr. Magi was kind enough to save my AI on disk for safe keeping_," Sheila replied. "_Shall I start up the surveillance and com-link network?_"

"Yes please!" Yokoshima answered.

"_Starting up global surveillance and com-link network_," initiated Sheila. The screens now showed images of every major city in the world.

"Global surveillance and com-link network has been activated," added Yokoshima. "We're now worldwide, Dr. Magi!" The screens flashed different images from all over the world with the Hive Satellite connecting the base to every surveillance system on the planet. "Thank you, Sheila!"

"_You're welcome, Number 09!_"

"Oh, here we go again…" groaned Daichi, rolling his eyes.

"_Hello, pretty lady,_" said AI-Shin to Sheila as he floated over.

Sheila looked to AI-Shin and spoke in a very sultry tone, "_And hello to you too. I am Sheila._"

"_Hey, babe, and you can call me Shin_."

"Stay away from her!" warned Yokoshima.

Shinichi ignored the argument in favor of admiring this epic moment in history. The launch of the Hive Satellite and N2 Worldwide Surveillance Network would mean that his team would be watching over not only the city of Shishibone, the town of Okinomiya and the village of Hinamizawa, but also the entire world. Previously, they had ARMOR to rely on for global alerts but not anymore. It was just a shame that he couldn't share this moment with the rest of his friends from Hinamizawa. Maybe he could get a recording of the launch for them to watch.

"Well, since we're done here, I have to go," said Shinichi.

"Where are you going?" asked Shogo.

"Oh, I promised to meet Keiichi and Satoshi."

"_Hey, wait up. I need to go and see Kaa-chan too_," said AI-Shin.

Dr. Magi started up the Teleportal and both Shinichi and his AI counterpart walked into it.

* * *

"Mom and Dad would love having Maria over for Christmas," Battler said to Yuji. They were at a cafe.

"Oh, you don't say," Yuji remarked. '_This is Maria's home world, after all, so it makes sense that she should spend Christmas with blood relatives_.'

"And you can come too," Battler invited.

"I'd be honored," said Yuji.

* * *

Shinichi, Satoshi and Keiichi were at a Burger King in Shishibone City, having some burgers and talking. Shinichi popped a fry into his mouth and looked at his hand.

"You know, it's really amazing," said Shinichi as he admired his new hand. "I know this arm's artificial but I can hardly tell the difference." He flexed his fingers. It felt like his original hand but he was well-aware that it was cybernetic.

"ARMOR really does good work," Keiichi complimented. He remembered seeing Shinichi when he had been without his arms and legs. That image had been disturbing to say the least.

"So, you still have a sense of touch with your new arms?" asked Satoshi.

"Yeah, I do," confirmed Shinichi. He'd been afraid that he would not be able to feel the softness of Rena's skin or hair with his hand but he was pleasantly surprised that it would not be a problem.

"So, nobody told us what happened when you disappeared," said Keiichi. "What happened?"

"That's classified," Shinichi told his friend. He wasn't about to tell his friends how he'd just snapped after Lina's death and went hunting after Gebok without authorization. Keiichi and Satoshi were his civilian buddies. Despite their experience with the oddness in his life and their involvement in several incidents, he didn't want them to get too close to something too personal.

"OK, so can you at least tell us what happened on your last mission?" asked Satoshi.

"OK, that I can tell you," said Shinichi. "Basically, Gebok built this massive, robotic weapon of mass destruction on the moon he called 'Project Armageddon," Shinichi began explaining. "It needed Hanyuu-chan, Alice-chan and Maria-chan to power it like batteries. So, Alan, Yuji and I went up to the moon and stopped it."

"So, you blew it up," Keiichi concluded. That was Shinichi's usual MO when dealing with any of Gebok's creations.

"Not this time," said Shinichi. "I decided to use a more subtle form of sabotage. While I had Gebok distracted, I had AI-Shin hack into the computer system and shut the thing down while Battler and Chiaki got the girls out of there and took them to ARMOR. Then I proceeded to kick Gebok's butt. Now he's rotting in the Vault where he belongs."

"So, what happens to Project Armageddon now?" asked Satoshi curiously.

"ARMOR's currently having it dismantled," said Shinichi. "It's so damn big that it'll take a while but I don't think it'll be a problem for much longer."

* * *

Takada was on the moon, in full Green Lantern mode, and was using his ring to conjure several constructs that resembled dismantling tools, really big dismantling tools. Standing before him was the deactivated Armageddon Lord.

"OK, time to take this thing apart," said Takada gleefully. He was going to dissect this machine, learn its secrets, and salvage anything useful. "Oh, I'm gonna have some new toys to play with!"

* * *

"And check this out," said Shinichi as he took something out of his pocket and showed it to them. It was a rectangular object that was the size of a standard pager with a small square screen and C3 written under the screen. "Prof. Takada made us these as an early Christmas present."

"What is it?" Satoshi asked.

"Oh, it's the new Criminal Capture & Containment System, or C3 for short," explained Shinichi. "This baby here is capable of digitizing solid matter and then containing them into cards."

"Get out of here," said Keiichi in disbelief.

"That's what I said until Prof. Takada demonstrated it," said Shinichi. "AI-Shin was pretty mad when he was locked up in that card."

"Speaking of AI-Shin, where is he now?" asked Keiichi.

"Oh, he's with Kaa-chan, at home," said Shinichi.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" asked Satoshi.

"Why wouldn't it be a good idea?" asked Shinichi.

* * *

"So, you can project images?" asked Shiori.

"_Well, yeah_," said AI-Shin. "_I can even fabricate video images based on written text. If I read one of your novels I can actually make it into a movie_."

Shiori grinned at this information. "Can you also record images?"

"_Hey, this eye of mine can record anything_," boasted AI-Shin. "_You can't believe how many image and video files I've got saved in me. There are like tons of those files in here. I think this is where Prof. Takada kept his porn._"

"Can I see?"

"_I can't see why not, but you have a baby here_." AI-Shin looked at Sho who was sitting in a high chair and giggling at AI-Shin as he bobbed up and down. "_He really seems to like me_."

"You do sound like his brother."

"_That's true, because I am who I am. I am his memories_," said AI-Shin. "_Even though I'm not sure how to access those memories. I'm told I'm not supposed to._"

"Considering what Shinji went through in that horrible place, having you relive those memories is not a good idea," said Shiori.

"_You're right about that. I may not remember much but I do know it had to be bad for me to block them out._" He asked as he looked at the nearby tree. "_So…Christmas, huh?_" Christmas was in a few days.

"You can stay if you want," said Shiori. "Are you needed at ARMOR?"

"_No, not really," _said AI-Shin_. "I might technically be an agent too now but I'm still seen as a piece of equipment by most_. _Besides, wouldn't you want the real Shinichi? I'm just a fragment of him._"

"Shinji wants to spend more time with Rena-chan," said Shiori. AI-Shin was looking at her oddly. "What?"

"_Why do you still call him by his birth name?_" asked AI-Shin. "_I mean I know he doesn't mind but he goes by Shinichi now. He's been going by that name since he woke up in Hinamizawa in 1984._"

"I know, but no matter what he calls himself now, he's Shinji to me. My son. I gave him that name and I will not call him by any other."

"_Guess that makes sense_," said AI-Shin. He looked at the paper in front of her. "_So, a new book. huh?_"

"Yes, a new book," she confirmed. "I'm just brainstorming ideas."

"_Need help?_" offered AI-Shin.

"Just nothing too graphic," said Shiori, gesturing to Sho.

"_OK, so nothing hardcore then. I can do that_."

* * *

"I just thought it might be awkward," Satoshi replied.

"Kaa-chan's cool with it. She feels like she has another me around," said Shinichi.

"She's cool with a lot of things," observed Keiichi.

"I think after she got reunited with her cyborg son after eleven years and learnt he was fighting monsters she learnt to roll with it," stated Satoshi.

"So, did you guys know about Chiaki and Hanyuu getting together?" Shinichi asked.

"We're just as surprised as you are," said Keiichi.

"I wasn't," said Satoshi. "I kinda suspected that it would happen sooner or later. Satoko noticed how Hanyuu's always had a crush on the guy and told me about it."

"And you didn't think to tell me?" questioned Shinichi.

"I didn't think it was anything worth mentioning," said Satoshi. "And you should've noticed. I mean they did go on that date a couple of years back."

"Guess she's into the strong, silent type," said Keiichi. "How do you feel about this, Shinichi?"

"I'm fine with it," said Shinichi. "If I wasn't I would've broken his fingers as a warning but she could do worse. As long as it doesn't go beyond hand-holding and kissing, I am OK with it." He was clenching and unclenching his hands of course as a vein was throbbing on his head. Satoshi and Keiichi were not convinced.

* * *

Hanyuu and Chiaki were at his house in the woods. They were making out on his floor.

"Chiaki-san…" murmured Hanyuu before they started to kiss again.

"Hanyuu…" he uttered as he nuzzled her neck before kissing her on the lips once more. They had promised not to get too physical. Making out like this, in each other's arms, was as far as they could go right now. For Hanyuu it was a dream come true. She's had a crush on him since they met.

"Chiaki-san, do you want to celebrate Christmas with us?" Hanyuu asked.

"Actually, I think I would," said Chiaki. He would love to spend Christmas with Hanyuu and her family.

* * *

"So, you took off in the middle of the semester," Keiichi pointed out. "You even missed your finals. You're going to have to repeat the semester." Shinichi had just taken off without a warning. He did manage to finish his midterms but not the finals which he missed as he'd been going around destroying X-SHOCKER.

"Actually, I went and begged for them to let me make up for everything I missed," said Shinichi, sighing. "Attendance aside, I'd have to do all the assignments I missed and also got them to schedule my finals."

"Wow, how did you do it?" asked Satoshi.

"I got down on my knees and begged them," Shinichi replied. "And I offered to do them a few favors. I just need to do all the assigned work and my finals and so I won't have to repeat my entire semester."

"That's good," said Keiichi. "Mion doesn't want you to be left behind."

"You mentioned favors. What kind of favors?" asked Satoshi.

"Don't ask…" groaned Shinichi.

* * *

"So, Hana, what are you and Michiru doing this Christmas?" Yokoshima asked as they walked out of the mall with their gifts in hand. Yokoshima had gotten Asmodeus something special.

"Nothing really, though Michiru wants to go to Shiori-san's Christmas party this year," Hana replied.

Yokoshima nodded his head, a slight frown forming at the corners of his lips as he saw Hana looking thoughtful.

"You know... I think Michiru would really like the gift you picked for her. You shouldn't stress yourself out over it," Yokoshima said. "I think all that matters is that it comes from you and your heart." Hana just frowned at him before walking faster as Yokoshima shook his head. He then looked at the gift he got for his demonic girlfriend, "I sure hope Asmo-chan likes what I got for her!"

* * *

"I can't believe it's so close to Christmas already," Alan said. He was glad that X-SHOCKER was finally gone for good. Now he could focus on spending some time with his friends, family and of course his harem. Lala had her fingers entwined in his as they did some window-shopping.

"I'm just glad that everything ended on a good note," Lala said smiling. "Now Shinichi is back home, everyone is ok, and best of all, I get to spend time with my favorite Green Lantern."

"Don't forget, I can now double as a Superman as well." Alan smirked. So far he was enjoying his new Kryptonian power, but he made sure to have his dad give him a power dampener. He didn't want to accidentally hurt someone with his newfound strength. The dampener allowed him to control the flow of yellow sunlight into his system, as well as the amount of power he could exude. This ranged from being as strong as a normal human to being able to go toe to toe with Superman. "Would have been helpful if I had these powers back during the Sinestro Corps War."

Lala nodded happily. She was just glad that Alan survived the change. "We better get home soon. Everyone will probably be wondering where we are."

As they walked back to the boarding house, the weather changed. Not only did it start to get colder, but it began to snow. White flakes fell gently from the grey clouds in the sky, landing on the ground.

"Oh, how lovely," remarked Lala smiling. "I always love a white Christmas!"

"I always love spending a white Christmas with you," Alan smiled. He then amended, "Well, you and everyone else in our family."

"So, we're going to the party, right?" asked Lala. Shiori had invited them over for a Christmas party on the 25th, which was Christmas day.

The front door opened and Momo ran out to see them, holding a newspaper. "Alan! Onee-sama!"

"What is it, Momo?" Alan asked and she spread the newspaper open before pointing to a specific article. Alan read it and understood. "I see."

There was a little girl whose Christmas wish was to see her hero, the Green Lantern. She was suffering from leukemia. Her parents had contacted a reporter to put her story in the newspaper in hopes of Alan reading it.

"That would be a nice Christmas present for her, Alan," said Lala.

"Yeah, you're right, Lala," Alan agreed. "She looks like she needs a hero to give her some hope."

Momo could only beam happily. This was why she liked Alan so much. He was a beacon of hope as much as he was a symbol of courage.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And that's the first chapter of the new arc. I hope you have the holiday cheer because I feel it. It all continues in the next chapter so prepare for some good fun with family and friends.**


	58. The Legacy of Cain Part 2

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 2: Christmas Eve and Christmas Day**

Shiori herself was all smiles during the days before Christmas, happily hanging decorations through the house, and writing invitations for everyone for her Christmas party. She had conspired with Rena to find and wrap up Shinichi's Christmas gift and that was after finding the perfect gifts for Rika and Hanyuu.

So far, everything was returning to normal after her son's return and Million's capture. She was going to make sure that this party was perfect. There were going to be a lot of guests but the more the merrier, right? Also this Christmas was going to be special as it would be Sho's first Christmas since he was born.

* * *

**December 24****th**** 1987**

"You want me to go and visit Gebok," Shinichi said after listening to what Yuji had told him. He asked, arms crossed and eyes narrowed, "And why in the hell would I ever want to do a thing like that?"

"I was thinking you might wanna ask him some more questions," reasoned Yuji.

"I know all I needed to know from him," answered Shinichi coldly. "There's nothing else I want from him. I don't owe him anything for what he did to me."

"Technically, it was one of his robotic clones," Yuji argued.

"And that makes it alright?" Shinichi shot back. "I lost ten years of my life because of that bastard! My Kaa-chan suffered for eleven years because of that bastard! And that bastard tried to make this world suffer!" He calmed down and apologized, "Sorry, Yuji, but if you want to go and visit Gebok then you're doing it alone because I don't want to look at him, I don't want to speak to him, and I sure as hell don't want to listen to anything he has to say…ever again. He's dead to me. Besides, it's Christmas Eve and I have plans with Rena-chan." With that said, Shinichi walked out of the MysticLiner.

That was when AI-Shin dropped the cloaking field around him and commented, "_That went well._"

Yuji had actually learnt something interesting about Gebok from AI-Shin who had actually downloaded the scientist's journals. The AI had shared them with Yuji because he knew that talking to Shinichi about Gebok would be a lost cause.

After learning what he had, Yuji thought he might be able to convince Shinichi to pay Gebok a visit in order to better understand him.

"_So, now what do we do?_" asked AI-Shin.

"Visit Gebok, what else?" replied Yuji.

"_Why?"_

"Why else? It's Christmas Eve and I think he deserves to have someone pay him a visit, at least."

"_Well you're on your own with that,_" said AI-Shin. "_I gotta get back to helping Kaa-chan, so see ya_." The floating sphere then hovered out the exit.

* * *

Yuji later went to the Vault to pay Million a visit. As he stood in front of the cell, he could see that Million had been reduced to nothing more than a brain in a jar. The jar was attached to a machine which would allow the brain to hear, see and speak.

"Dr. Gebok, I presume," said Yuji.

"_Ah, the Manakyte_," spoke the brain of Dr. Gebok/Million, "_So, why have you graced me with your presence?_"

Yuji hated Million, for sure. After all, the psycho had kidnapped his daughter and tried to use her as a battery. However, Yuji would not destroy Million as he had been punished for his crimes. "I have questions, Gebok, and you have answers."

"_And why should I answer your questions? What do I gain in return?_" asked Million.

Yuji wasn't fazed. He expected Million to be stubborn about this so he decided to drop a bomb on the brain, "I know you modeled Alice's appearance on your daughter Alicia." Yuji received nothing but silence but then he heard a sigh coming from the brain. "I see you understand what I'm getting at."

"_My dear, little Alicia_," said Million longingly.

"Yes, and you used her image to make Alice," said Yuji.

"_Chaos Doll_," Million corrected.

"I prefer Alice," rebutted Yuji.

"_Fine…_" Million grumbled. "_What do you want to ask?_"

"What happened to you that made you this way?" asked Yuji.

"_If you're referring to why I am a brain in a jar, you should know. But if you're referring to how I became a monster, well it's humanity's fault_," answered Million.

"Go on," Yuji prompted.

"_I am not from this world, but of course you already knew that. I am from another world_," began Million. Yuji knew Million originated from the world of Dr. Ryuki Hasuma. "_Back in my home world I was a doctor and I had a family. I had a wife named Felicia and I loved her very much and together we had a child together named Alicia. But they were taken away from me so cruelly by human hands_."

Yuji could feel Million's anger as the fluid in the jar bubbled.

"_My daughter, Alicia, was born a mutant_," Million continued with his story. "_It wasn't anything special. She was actually born with wings. She was like a little angel. I didn't want anyone to know since they would try to hurt her so I lived isolated from the rest of the villagers._ _I also made sure Alicia wore clothing that concealed her wings without hurting her._ For _a short time we were happy._"

"Then it happened," Yuji concluded.

"_Yes, someone saw Alicia spread her wings and then one night as I was returning from a house call I saw my entire house on fire with Felicia and Alicia still inside. I knew who the ones responsible were and vowed vengeance."_ Million recalled the anger and grief he had felt that night when he saw the blaze that engulfed his home, his wife and daughter.

"That was when GIN-SHOCKER was born, wasn't it?" asked Yuji.

"_I found the remains of an old SHOCKER base and brought everything back to life. I found notes, journals and began my experiments. I created weapons which I once vowed to never hold as I was a doctor but the mercy I had in my heart died the very moment I lost my family_," said Million coldly.

Yuji understood now. Million had wanted revenge on the entire world for what happened to his family. Still, it didn't make what Million had done alright. Million had done so many evil things for the sake of revenge, like kidnapping children and turning them into cyborgs for instance. This wasn't Million's home world but he didn't seem to care. He'd failed in his old world and wanted to start anew in another world, even if a lot of people got hurt. He didn't care. He just stopped caring.

"So, you created Alice out of longing," Yuji guessed.

"_Indeed, it was like seeing my Alicia again but she was still just an android. She may have looked like my Alicia but she wasn't my Alicia. Nothing could bring her or my wife back to life, ever_," said Million.

"That still doesn't make what you did to Shinichi right," said Yuji, shaking his head.

"_And those people had no right to take my family away from me!_" spat Million. "_BLACK 13 was to be my ultimate weapon! He would come with me to my home world and I would be unstoppable!_"

"And yet here you are," Yuji told him. "Now you're all locked up. You have nothing now."

"_What difference does it make anyway, huh?_" Million asked. "_They're gone_."

"Yes, they are, but I believe neither of them would have wanted you to end up this way," said Yuji. "Merry Christmas, William Gebok." With those parting words, Yuji left Dr. Gebok/Million alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Rena and Shinichi were spending Christmas Eve together. After having dinner and desert, the two sat down together on the couch just watching TV with the young girl resting against him as his arm was around her. The two were dressed in matching sweaters, both red to match the season with white trim. He even went so far as to wear a Santa cap.

Rena had feared that they wouldn't be able to spend this day together. Shinichi had just gone and disappeared on them and went after Gebok for almost two months. They had reunited with him in the middle of those two months, rather briefly, at Alan's School Festival but then he took off again, leaving her all alone. At first she'd been depressed since he'd only left her a letter when he disappeared and she'd been in depression. Fortunately for her, her friends all lent her emotional support to help her.

She hated being alone, and coming home to an empty apartment. She hated sleeping alone in a bed that had been made for two. Every night since he went away, she'd prayed that he would return to her, crying herself to sleep as a result. On one of his visits, Alan even promised to drag Shinichi back to her. She appreciated it but she knew Shinichi. She knew how his mind worked. Whenever Shinichi felt driven about something nothing could make him give it up. It was one of those things about him that she admired, while at the same time it also made her feel lonely like she had.

Now he was back and she was in his arms again. She was amazed, though. While his arms were artificially made they felt so real. They were warm to the touch and felt like real skin. She could barely tell that the arms were in fact mechanical unless she pealed back the skin.

Hanging from the ceiling in bunches were the 1000 paper cranes that Rena had made with everyone's help. On the day Shinichi had revived she had actually finished the 1000th crane and made her wish. Her wish was to be together with Shinichi again.

The two of them were watching a Christmas movie that Rena had rented. It was just so cute that she couldn't resist getting it, as well as a couple of others. One of those movies was one called "A Wonderful Life", which was about a man who had his wish granted by an Angel. He'd wished that he'd never been born and then witnessed the effects of the wish.

She never wanted to think of a world where she never met Shinichi. Cyborg or not, she was glad to have found him, to have fallen in love with him, and to be with him right now. Now it was time for her to address and issue she wanted to talk with him about since his return.

"Shin-kun, why couldn't you say goodbye to my face?" she asked out of the blue.

Sighing, he answered, "It's because I hate goodbyes, and I wouldn't be able to go even if I did." He elaborated, "If I told you I was going you'd have this look on your face and beg for me to stay and I wouldn't be able to resist it. I just didn't want to go through that." It sounded selfish the way he said it and he cursed himself.

"So, you wrote the letter to make it easier for you," she summed up.

"Writing that letter was the hardest thing I've ever done," he admitted.

"I saw the parts where the tears dropped," she told him.

"It wasn't easy for me to pick up the pen and write those words to you. I wanted to stay, I did, but I couldn't. It was something I had to do." He continued, "When Lina-" He paused when he saw her flinch at the mention of her name. He continued, "When Lina died again, it made me realize the danger Gebok could pose to you and everyone I love. He was out there, laughing and enjoying my suffering, and I just couldn't allow that to continue. I couldn't allow him to run free anymore knowing what he could do to you. I did it to protect you from getting hurt."

"But I still got hurt," she countered.

"I hurt your feelings, I know," he replied, feeling guilty about it, "But I needed to protect you."

Rena then suggested, "You…you could've taken me with you, Shin-kun."

"No, I could not," he denied, shaking his head. Rena was about to retort but he cut her off, "That isn't the type of life I'd want for you. I didn't want you running around like some kind of fugitive. I know ARMOR told you guys I was on a top secret assignment but the Director was just covering our ass with that story. I went rogue, plain and simple, and there was no way I could bring you into that."

"How can you decide that for me?" she argued. "What if I wanted to be a rogue with you?"

"Even if you did, even if you begged me, I'd refused," he said. "Sorry, but it was too dangerous for you. I know after all we've been through that you can handle danger but I also know that you could get hurt, or worse." He scowled. "It wouldn't be responsible of me to put you in danger like that."

"You don't have to always protect me," she said, looking down at her lap.

"But I wanted to," he responded. "Rena, when I first saw you I thought you were an angel and I still do. If you had come along with us you could've gotten corrupted. I was a bit out of control before Yuji joined me."

"Yes, Yuji," she remembered. "Why did he help you?"

"He told me it was because he understood what I was going through," he replied, "But I think he was trying to help me and make sure I didn't cross the line and start sacrificing innocents for my goal. Heck, even Alan was trying to help me even when he was gunning for me." He added, "By the way, he really was serious about keeping that promise he made to you."

"He was," she agreed. He took her hand in his.

"Look, Rena," he began again. "My life is a crazy one. I'm a cyborg and a Rider, which means I'm going to go into battle a lot. I know you said you'd be by my side no matter what but I couldn't just bring you into danger with me. It wouldn't be responsible of me and it wouldn't be fair to you."

"I could handle it," retorted Rena, frowning.

"Maybe, but I don't want to find out," Shinichi replied. "Rena, if you'd died like Lina, I could've really lost my mind. If you went with me, that could've been possible. Yes, I could bring you back but seeing you dead is something I don't ever want to experience…again."

He'd told Rena about that nightmarish time loop. The memory had reminded him of what he was protecting her from. He didn't want her to die, not ever, not like that or any other way. He wanted her to live and grow old with him.

Rena understood him. He went far for the people he loved and Lina had been his first love. Her first death had driven him insane, causing him to go berserk, and kills those responsible. Her second death had driven him to declare war on Gebok. Rena knew that if she died that Shinichi would do anything that he could to avenge her and even cross some lines.

She didn't want that to happen either. She didn't want him to turn into an amoral avenger.

He was a hero, her hero.

Picking up 'It's a Wonderful Life', Shinichi uttered, "Maybe it would better if we never met, then you wouldn't be sad because of me." She slapped the movie out of his hands and then grabbed him by the sweater before pulling him into a deep kiss which stunned him as his eyes popped open at the aggressive gesture. She then pulled away, wiping tears from her eyes. "Rena…?"

"Don't you _ever_ say that, Shin-kun," she warned. "I'm happy to have met you, I'm happy to have fallen in love with you, and I never regretted every second of it." It was rare for Rena to ever be serious as she was normally seen as cute and cheerful but whenever she was serious, or dead serious, she could be very intimidating. "Sure, there's pain but that's what makes it real. Nobody has a perfect life, which is why everyone works so hard to make it happen. It's only those who give up that never reach that dream."

"So, is this perfect?" he asked. He stroked her cheek. His fingers were mechanical, even if neither of them could tell the difference. He put her hand against his cheek.

"For me, this is paradise," she confessed and she kissed him again.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Green Lantern Boarding House (that not it's actual name, but the tenants are all connected to the Alan), Alan and his girls were having a Christmas party. The girls were all wearing Christmas themed outfits which were red with furry white trim, befitting their styles and also sexy to catch Alan's eye. For some reason, Nozomu was dressed as a reindeer and Bishie wore a dress that looked like a Christmas tree, including some shiny decorations. Nana, Momo and Lala were wearing their Devilukian clothes, but in red and white. Finally, Amora was in a red and white version of her Enchantress outfit while Conda wore Christmas-themed cheongsam. Celine and Alice, of course, looked absolutely adorable dressed as Christmas elves.

There was plenty of food on the table in the living room, with decorations and music playing. Alan was dressed as Santa Claus, minus the beard and fake belly but he still let Celine and Alice sit in his lap.

"Merry Christmas!" cried out Lala as they raised their glasses of juice. As they were taking their drinks, there was a knock at the door and Alan went to greet who it was. When he opened the door, standing there was Megan who was wearing a red sweater with a denim skirt and black tights to stay warm. She also wore a white wool scarf around her neck and was carrying a Christmas present.

"Hey, Megan," said Alan. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas. I came to give you this," said Megan, holding out the present to Alan. Alan took it. "Well, I guess I'll go."

"You don't have to," Alan told her. "Come on in," he invited.

"Are you sure?" she asked, blushing.

"It's a party, and the more the merrier," Alan smiled. He then led her inside. That was when Lala glomped her.

"Megan, Merry Christmas!" the Devilukian princess greeted.

"Lala, can't breathe," uttered Megan. Lala released her as Celine approached the redhead.

"Mau! Mau!" Celine was holding up a basket of gingerbread men.

"Take one," said Alan.

"If a cutie like that is giving them, how can I resist?" asked Megan as she took a gingerbread man.

"Mau!" Celine beamed. Alan picked up the little flower girl as he placed her on his shoulders. The girl giggled happily. Alan loved being a dad. Celine and Alice were his little girls and he would do anything for them.

Alan called over to Alice, "Alice, its story time."

Alice smiled, "Yay!"

Alan sat on a large chair with Alice and Celine sitting on his lap. Lala handed him a book. He opened it up as all his girls stood around him. He cleared his throat as he began, "T'was the night before Christmas, and all through the house…"

* * *

It was midnight and the moon was full as Yuji and Phoebe stood together in an open field in the forest, close to Hinamizawa. At either side of her were two stones that were glowing with a violet light as another was clasped in her hands. Beneath her was the Merlin Circle; a circle of runic designs that focus a sorcerer's magical energies and projects the electrical impulses of the brain into the physical world.

Yuji was several feet away and nodded, "OK, Phoebe, are you ready?"

"Yes, Master," she replied obediently.

"Then begin."

Phoebe focused her energy on the crystal in her hands before it began to crack, before it shattered. This in turn prompted Phoebe to absorb the magic energy into her body as the stone was packed with excess power. Despite acting like an airhead most of the time and always so horny for her master, Phoebe's focus was second only to her Alpha, Stella, and she was even more focused in order to evolve for her master. The absorbing process was intense and laboring, but the energy from the stone was soon completely absorbed into Phoebe's body. The other stones were next as they fractured and cracked before exploding and releasing the energy that was stored within, allowing Phoebe to absorb said energies. Remaining within the Merlin Circle only served to amplify her focus as the absorption process was fairly simple, compared to the normal Evolution Ceremony described in the Pokedex. It was, however, still taxing on Phoebe's magical reserves, as well as her soul. Fortunately, the absorption process was complete and Phoebe's body was bathed in a white light. Yuji saw this and knew what was happening – Phoebe was going to evolve.

The light had faded and Phoebe's new form was bathed in the moonlight as Yuji approached to gaze upon his Pokégirl. She was relatively the same as she was in her previous form, but she appeared more aged, now matching her age and appearance as she was 26 years old. Phoebe was now a mature young woman, only a few inches shorter than Yuji and with breasts that were fuller and more round in shape. Her already-present curves have become more curvaceous as she was even more alluring than she was as an Enchantress. Her bone-white hair grew longer, her blood-red eyes seeming to glow in the dark. And the slight shine of the moonlight reflecting of her obsidian-black skin made her extremely exotic.

"You're even more beautiful than you used to be, Phoebe," Yuji smiled serenely. "Congratulations."

Phoebe smiled back as she bowed slightly, "Thank you, Master." She then grunted as she soon lost her balance, prompting Yuji to catch her. "My body feels sore," Phoebe notified.

"After-effects of the ceremony," Yuji nodded. "You won't be using your magic for a few weeks, but don't worry about that and get some rest. You've definitely earned a well-deserved Taming, my sweet Phoebe."

Phoebe blushed as Yuji carried her bridal-style as he walked into the woods and on his way home to see the rest of the girls.

* * *

**December 25****th**** 1987**

It was Christmas morning at Battler's house and Maria and Ange were both opening the presents they had gotten from 'Santa Claus'. Rudolph was getting into the holiday spirit by actually dressing as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. He actually wanted to be Santa but lost to Yuji at the coin toss to decide. Therefore, Yuji was wearing the Santa suit instead of Battler's dad. Battler actually laughed when he saw his father in that ridiculous getup, giving Ange a piggyback ride.

"This is what Christmas is all about," said Battler as he enjoyed the atmosphere. He was with his family. "Family."

"You got that right, ho-ho-ho," agreed Santa Yuji. "Speaking of family, did you get Junior something?"

Junior, Battler's alien offspring, was now living in the canyon where the Hive was located. The little red alien would run around, honking and blarging to his heart's content and occasionally scaring the crap out of Yokoshima.

"I got him a squeaky toy," Battler answered. "Last time I checked he loved it." He then asked, "So, what did you get Maria-chan?"

"Oh, she won't get her gift until later," said Yuji. "I don't wanna freak out your folks."

"Ah…" Battler knew when to not ask for details. He and Beato may have been prepared for the weirdness but not his folks. He had yet to tell them about his own secret cyborg identity.

"Merry Christmas and God Bless Everyone," declared Maria, smiling beautifully. She was wearing a white, gothic Lolita dress with angelic wings attached to the back, which just made her look adorable.

"That's my little angel!" grinned Yuji.

* * *

Shinichi ran across the snow covered path, his carefully wrapped present clutched in his hand, as he headed straight to his mother's house. "I hope Rena-chan will like this," Shinichi murmured as he went and knocked on the door. The door opened and Shiori smiled as she saw him. "I'm here to help out, Kaa-chan," he offered.

"Oh, thank you, Shinji," Shiori smiled. "Yokoshima and Shin are here too. They're helping out as well."

Shinji entered and saw AI-Shin hanging up the decorations on the tree while Yokoshima was helping out in the kitchen. Rika and Hanyuu were looking after Sho. The baby was dressed in a cute baby Santa suit, hat included.

"Hey, Merry Christmas little brother and little sisters," greeted Shinichi. He then remarked as he saw the food, "That's a lot of food." The oven gave off a 'ting' that indicated that it was done baking whatever was inside.

"My gingerbread men are ready," smiled Shiori, clapping her hands together.

"Let me get them, Kaa-chan," offered Shinichi as he got into the kitchen and put on some mittens. He opened the over door and pulled out a hot tray of gingerbread men. They really smelled nice and looked just as good to eat. "Mmmm... Now they have to cool, and then they'll be ready for eating," he said.

"Ah you're crazy. They can't be that-OW!" Yokoshima shouted as he tried to grab the tray only for him to burn his hand when he touched it.

"Told you so," Shinichi stated smartly.

"Seriously, that smarts," whined Yokoshima as he flicked his stinging hand back and forth.

"_You should put some ice on that_," AI-Shin advised. "_It might swell or something_."

"Yeah, thanks," said Yokoshima.

"So, are we going to have fireworks at this party?" Shinichi asked Yokoshima, knowing that the Pill Bug Rider was apprenticing under a fireworks maker in the village.

"Not tonight, but on New Year's you better be prepared," said Yokoshima. "It'll be a BANG!"

"Can't wait." He checked his watch. "The guests should be arriving soon."

Shinichi had guessed right as the guests began to arrive. The first to show up were Satoko, Satoshi and Daichi.

"Hey, Dai," greeted Yokoshima. "Merry Christmas."

"Yeah, whatever," grumbled Daichi.

"Man, don't be such a scrooge, Dai," quipped Yokoshima. "Have fun. Have some punch."

It wasn't long before the numbers of guests began to increase. The NEO-NUMBERS and the Gaming Club members had all shown up as well.

Daichi narrowed his eyes at the beautifully decorated tree in front of him as he brought the glass to his lips, drinking the fruit punch.

"What's wrong with you?" Satoko asked as she sat down next to him.

"Eh, I'm just sorta surprised at how everyone is acting so normal, as if everything these last few months never happened," Daichi said.

"Well, I doubt everyone can forget it happened," Satoko said. "But I think they're just glad that Shinichi-san's alive and well. I think everyone deserves this party after that everything that has happened."

Daichi nodded as he scanned the room and smiled to see everyone having fun, playing Christmas games and enjoying the food. "Guess you're right," Daichi said as he lifted his guitar up. He then began to play a Christmas song. The doorbell rang again and Shinichi opened the door to see Rena.

Rena smiled widely as she stepped into the house, "Merry Christmas, Shin-kun! Sorry we're late."

Mr. Ryuugu looked annoyed as he stepped up behind Rena as he added, "The snow's really thick and it got in the way."

"That's okay. We're just so glad you're here now! Kaa-chan and Tousan are back by the kitchen, Mr. Ryuugu," Shinichi told Rena's father. He smiled a little at Shinichi and thanked him before taking off his coats, hanging it on the hooks as he headed to the kitchen, leaving Rena and Shinichi alone.

He smiled at her again, so relieved that she was finally here. "Do you want me to take your coat, milady?"

She nodded. "That'd be great, Shin-kun, thanks."

"No problem," Shinichi replied. Shinichi walked around behind Rena and grabbed the shoulders of her jacket, pulling it down Rena arms slowly. He hung up her coat as soon as it was off of her and was surprised to see Rena blushing as she turned around.

"Erm, I actually," Rena gulped, her eyes trained on the tiled floor. "Um, I got you something."

"Rena," Shinichi said reproachfully, though he was extremely glad she'd thought to get him something after all.

"I know we agreed not to get each other presents this year." she admitted. "But I wanted to get you something."

Shinichi grinned at Rena just as she looked up. "Want to know a secret?" he asked.

"What?"

"I got you a gift too," Shinichi said, smiling, making Rena eyes widen before smiling herself. He took out the gift and handed it to her. Shinichi smiled as Rena unwrapped her gift and gasped happily.

"Oh, Shin-kun! I love them!" Rena smiled at the earrings before hugging him. They were Victorian Peacock Turquoise Gem earrings. "Put them on," he told her. She took the earrings and put them on. "Lovely," he complimented. She gave him another hug and a kiss.

* * *

Meanwhile, a little girl was spending Christmas in a hospital. The little girl's name was Suzuho Hiyashi. She was a little girl who was in the hospital and only nine years old. However, she was suffering from leukemia and had to stay in the hospital. Her parents were worried about her and they didn't want to lose their little girl.

Suzuho was a fan of the Green Lantern. She had a scrapbook filled with newspaper clippings of the Green Lantern's exploits. Her wish for this Christmas was to meet him in person. She then heard tapping from the window and looked to see and gasped. There he was. "Lantern-san!" she cried. Suzuho opened the window and Sentinel flew into the hospital room with Lala. "You came!" Suzuho hugged Sentinel impulsively.

"Yes, I did," said Sentinel. "I read about it in the newspaper so I thought I'd drop by."

"Who is this?" Suzuho asked, referring to Lala. She was in her Devilukian outfit which Peke provided. It was skintight, white and purple, with a big hat that sported black devil wings.

"This is my partner," Sentinel said honestly. "You can call her..."

"It's Devil Girl," said Lala, smiling. "Merry Christmas, Suzuho-chan!"

"This is the best Christmas ever!" cheered Suzuho. "Can you tell me about one of your adventures?"

"Well, I did go to the moon," said Sentinel.

* * *

Suzuho needed her rest so both Lala and Alan silently left the hospital room, but not without leaving her a present. It was a doll that resembled Alan in his Green Lantern uniform.

Lala smiled, "I'm so glad we did this."

Alan agreed, smiling as well, "I am too." This was what Christmas was about. He'd brought a smile to a young girl's face and hope.

When Lala and Alan turned the corner, they came across a grisly scene. There were people lying on the floor. Patients, nurses and doctors were on the floor, unconscious. Fearfully, Lala clung to Alan's arm as she wondered what was happening, though Alan knew. He looked ahead and saw the man responsible. He was a pale looking man dressed from head to toe in a black costume with a cape that hung from his shoulders. Decorating his chest was an inverted white triangle with five white lines going upwards.

His name was William Hand, also known as…

"Black Hand," Alan said with a scowl and clenched fists as he stepped in front of Lala like a shield.

Black Hand hefted his Power Rod over his shoulder and said, "Hello, Smith, and Merry Christmas." His grin was wide and unsettling. "Do you like my work?"

Lala was holding up a device that monitored for vitals called Monitor-kun and was using it to check up on all the people that were sprawled on the floor. She reported the results, "Alan, they're still alive!"

Alan observed and said to Black Hand, "So, you didn't kill them."

Black Hand shrugged while twirling his Power Rod, "I could if I wanted to, Smith, but the one I want to kill isn't them. It's _you_." Black Hand thrust his rod at Alan and fired a black beam of energy at him. He grabbed Lala and dropped to the floor with her as the beam soared over them. The beam hit a nearby wall and it exploded.

The rod Black Hand wielded was capable of absorbing Green Lantern energy and allowed Black Hand to wield it as his own. Of course it could also be used by Black Hand to release the life force he had absorbed in the form of lethal energy blasts.

Alan said as he stood up, "Get out of here Lala. This won't take long."

Lala hesitated, looking at Alan, "But Alan..."

Alan added confidently, "Relax Lala. Black Hand here is a joke. I made him piss himself the last time I fought him, and I wasn't this powerful before. He's toast."

Bazel commented warily, "I don't know about that, Alan. Something feels off about him."

Alan remarked, "Trust me, Bazel. This guy can't do much against me." He then assumed his Sentinel form and flew at Black Hand who blasted at Sentinel. The lethal energy blasts missed Sentinel as he dodged before he punched Black Hand so hard across the face that he snapped the guy's neck and sent him flying through the wall. There was a crash as he was blasted out of the hospital and down to the ground below.

Bazel spoke up, "Alan, I think you killed him."

Sentinel cursed, "Damn! I must not know my own strength!"

Bazel suggested, "You better go check."

Sentinel flew out the hole in the wall and then hovered down to the ground below, outside the hospital. He found the body of Black Hand, lying in a pool of his own blood. He knelt down over Black Hand's body and sighed.

Sentinel looked regretful as he murmured, "I wanted to stop him. I didn't want this."

Bazel tried to console him, "It was unavoidable. He asked for it."

"Yeah…but it doesn't make me feel any better. Let's just call this in."

Black Hand's eyes suddenly snapped wide open and his hand clenched around Sentinel's ankle, much to his surprise. He then felt his energy being drained before Black Hand released him. Sentinel gasped as he backed away from Black Hand who rose to his feet and snapped his neck into place before snapping his bones back into their original positions.

Sentinel uttered, confused, "H-h-how?"

Black Hand grinned as he answered, moving his head from side to side, "Playing possum."

Sentinel shouted, "No! I mean how did you survive a fall like that!-?"

Black Hand leered challengingly, "Wouldn't you like to know, Smith?" Black Hand then blurred out of sight and reappeared behind Sentinel in the blink of an eye. "Boom," whispered Black Hand as he pressed his Power Rod against Sentinel's back and activated it, the explosion of energy causing Sentinel to go flying and slamming into several cars. Black Hand laughed, "I absorb LIFE ENERGY Smith! As long as I have life energy to spare, I can't be killed! Oh, and thanks for the extra power!"

Black Hand fired his rod at the cars and they all exploded around Sentinel in a chain reaction, one after another, as they all burst into flames.

Black Hand started panting, "I better get some more energy. I'm about to run on empty."

A green energy blast hit Black Hand directly in the chest, sending him soaring back. However, Black Hand stopped himself in midair and grinned.

Black Hand chuckled, "Oh, I can fly now!"

Sentinel flew out of the smoke and right at Black Hand, throwing a furious flurry of punches at Black Hand who managed to bob and weave around the blows before knocking the air out of Sentinel's lungs with his rod and then hitting him in the jaw with it before whacking him over the head with the Power Rod.

Black Hand quipped, "Oh, and thanks for the ring power."

The Power Rod glowed with green energy as it began to drain it from Sentinel's ring. He then pulled the rod back and whacked Sentinel across the face with a giant green hammer with enough force to send him crashing to the ground.

Sentinel questioned, "Why...why aren't you a joke anymore?"

Black Hand replied darkly, "Because I got tired of being the butt of everyone's jokes. I got tired of being laughed at because I kept being beaten by a kid like you. And now the joke's on you. "

Sentinel slowly rose back to his feet but Black Hand was not about to let him win this time. He began blasting at Sentinel with lethal energy blasts from his Power Rod which were mixed with Green Lantern energy, striking Sentinel with each blow and sending him staggering back. Sentinel was on guard from the blasts as Black Hand continued firing.

Black Hand yelled, "Who's laughing now, huh? WHO'S LAUGHING NOW!-?"

**Zap! Zap! Zap!**

Black Hand cried out as he was hit by laser blasts and scowled as he glared at Lala who was holding a laser pistol at him.

Lala shouted, "Leave him alone!"

Sentinel exclaimed, "Lala, get out of here!"

"I'm your partner, Alan! You said it yourself!"

Black Hand muttered in disgust, "How sweet. You got a girl fighting for you."He fired his Power Rod at her and Lala gasped as the beam came at her only for Sentinel to quickly grab her and push her out of the way before he got hit and was sent flying backwards, crashing into an ambulance. Then another blast caused the ambulance to explode.

Lala screamed, "Alan!"

Sentinel walked out of the fire but this time clad in his Bazel Combat Armor.

Black Hand complimented, "Nice suit."

Sentinel replied, "It's from a friend. Bazel, you ready?"

Bazel answered, "Oh yeah. And remember, just don't let him touch you."

Sentinel nodded and flew at Black Hand who started blasting at Sentinel who dodged. Black Hand then flew at Sentinel, only to bounce of a green energy shield. Of course Black Hand knew Sentinel would do this and prepared to absorb the energy from the ring again, only to crash as a giant mallet came crashing down on him.

Lala yelled triumphantly, "Take that! This is my Pow-Pow Mallet-kun!" The mallet head and shaft shrunk and the mallet turned into a hammer in Lala's hand.

Black Hand snarled, "You're starting to annoy me girl!"

**POW!**

Sentinel spoke, "Eyes on the prize, Black Hand!"

Sentinel had just given Black Hand an uppercut. Grunting, Black Hand prepared to blast Sentinel again, only for Lala to grab hold of the Power Rod in one hand. She smiled innocently at Black Hand and then blasted him with her laser gun in the face. Black Hand cried out in pain and released his Power Rod, which Lala then broke over her knee.

Lala called, "Alan, it's your turn!"

Sentinel nodded and with incredible speed began his attack, hitting Black Hand with a series of punches that were so fast that his arms blurred.

Bazel called, "65 Hit Combo!"

Sentinel then finished it up with a kick right in Black Hand's family jewels, causing the man to double over and grab his junk as he shrieked.

Bazel shouted, "Below the belt!"

Sentinel added, "And over the head!"

**WHAM!**

Sentinel elbowed Black Hand's head with enough force that his face got stuck in the ground.

Bazel finished, "And…K.O.!"

Black Hand struggled to his feet, "No…not yet…not done yet…" He was bleeding badly, and his blood seemed to be black in the lighting. He leapt at Sentinel and grabbed a hold of his face. "I'll kill you Smith! I'll kill you for treating me like a joke! You're nothing compared to me now! And when I'm done with you Smith, I'll drain the life of everyone you ever cared about! And then I'll be the one who gets the last laugh!"

Sentinel used the last of his strength to point his ring at Black Hand's face. Sentinel laughed, "Ha…Ha…Ha!" With that last laugh, Sentinel let loose and intense burst of energy, blasting Black Hand away and knocking him unconscious.

* * *

Back at the party, Hana and Michiru were exchanging gifts.

"Wow this is a nice gift Michiru," Hana smiled as she saw that her present was some books she had been meaning to read for awhile.

"Hai! So, what did you get me?" Michiru smiled as Hana gulped a bit before handing her gift over.

Michiru quickly unwrapped the gift and gasped happily. It was a ring. The band was silver with an amethyst gem in the centre.

"Do you like it?" Hana asked cautiously. Michiru's only response was to throw her arms around Hana and kiss her under the mistletoe. AI-Shin took a quick picture and snickered before floating away.

"Isn't it sweet?" Shiori asked her husband as they watched the tender scene. "I love a good Yuri scene."

"You have that look in your eyes," Tatsuyoshi pointed out. She was having inspiration. There was a knock at the door and Shiori went to open it.

"Sorry we're late," said Alan. "Super-villain attack." After defeating Black Hand, he had captured the criminal using the C3 System. Black Hand would remain in that card until he was put in prison. Standing behind Alan was the rest of the girls. Alice was holding his hand and Celine was riding on his shoulders. "Never thought I'd miss Hand's old folktale-based plots and villainous clichés…"

"Come on in," said Shiori. "Oh, and Alice-chan, you look so adorable!" She handed her a candy cane.

"Thank you, Auntie Shiori!" said Alice.

"And let's not forget Celine-chan!" said Shiori as she handed a candy cane to the plant girl.

"Just don't let her drink any cola," Alan whispered to Shiori. He'd warned everyone about what would happen whenever Celine drank cola. It just wasn't funny to Alan whenever it did happen, despite the entertainment value.

"We're having fruit punch so don't worry," said Shiori reassuringly. '_Still, it would've been an interesting party if she did_.'

"You have that look," Alan accused.

"What look?" Shiori replied innocently. She then spotted Megan, "Oh, hello, Megan-chan!"

This was Megan's first time visiting Shiori's home and she gave a bow before saying, "Merry Christmas."

"Now, don't be nervous, Megan-chan. Come on in and have fun," Shiori invited. "Everyone was just about to have a snowball fight in the yard."

"A snowball fight?" Alan said in amusement. He then went to check to see what was happening. He saw that the men and women had been separated into two groups for this game.

"Men, since the dawn of time, back during the first winter, mankind has often wondered what should be a good game for this cold time of the year. For years they pondered this question but then they finally created the game known as Snowball War," Shinichi spoke.

"Is it just me or is Shinichi stalling?" Alan whispered.

"Possibly, if we lose we have to wear this," Shogo said showing a picture of the dress.

Alan grimaced, "Yeah that definitely a good reason to stall."

"And so, men, we will-" Shinichi was stopped when a snowball hit him in the face.

"Stop talking and start throwing!" shouted Mion.

"This means war!" declared Shinichi. "Men, tonight we dine in snowy hell! For Freedom-!-!-!"

* * *

The party went on until late at night, which was when everyone went home. Rena even resisted the urge to kidnap Alice, Celine and Sho. They were just so cute but luckily she had Shinichi to take her attention off the obvious cuteness of the young ones. Nobody got drunk too since nobody spiked the punch. AI-Shin made sure of that. The food was great, even if Daichi only ate the salad. He was a vegetarian after all. Gifts and greetings were exchanged as well as meaningful intentions.

Even the Stakes of Purgatory came, dressed in Christmas-themed versions of their uniforms. Satan, Lucifer, Leviathan and Asmodeus had come for their boyfriends while Beelzebub instantly went for the pastries gluttonously.

What really made the party fun was Alice singing Christmas Carols. Her voice was like an angel's as she sang.

Love was in the air as well considering a lot of the couples found themselves under the mistletoe. As if they didn't need an excuse to kiss already. Shinichi and AI-Shin took plenty of pictures of the party and recorded the happy occasion.

* * *

That night, Suzuho was looking at the night's sky. The snow was falling as she let out a sigh and held her Green Lantern doll. It was a good day for her since her hero had come to visit. It was getting late but just as she was about to go to sleep her gaze returned to the sky and she let out a gasp as she saw something.

Written in the sky, in green light, was '**MERRY CHRISTMAS, SUZUHO!**'

"That's sweet," said Bazel as he admired Alan's handiwork.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And that's the beginning for this story arc. I hope you all enjoyed it. Of course there will be more action in the next chapter. BTW, you get an insight on Gebok. His real name is William Gebok. All that stuff about him being the son of the original Dr. Shinigami could've just been a lie so he could join the DHS.**


	59. The Legacy of Cain Part 3

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 3: Wrath of the Orochi**

"Who's Sheila?"

"Huh?" Yokoshima looked up from his chocolate milkshake when Asmodeus asked that question. He and Asmodeus were at Angel Mort enjoying each other's company and the sweets.

"Who's Sheila?" Asmodeus repeated.

"Where did you hear that name?" asked Yokoshima.

"Yoko-kun, you're not cheating on me, are you?" Asmodeus asked worriedly.

"Of course not, Asmo-chan!" responded Yokoshima sincerely. "Whatever gave you that idea?"

Asmodeus' brows furrowed. She explained, "My older sister Satan told me that Shinichi told her that you were happy that Sheila was back."

"Oh, Shinichi told your sister," Yokoshima realized. "That makes sense."

"So, who's Sheila?" Asmodeus asked again.

"I guess you can say…she's my first love," Yokoshima admitted.

"First love?" Asmodeus repeated, looking a little agitated. Was she jealous?

"Yeah, back when I was in GIN-SHOCKER," Yokoshima elaborated. He then frowned sadly, "But then she died…or at least I thought she was."

"Huh?" Now Asmodeus was confused, but then considering how Yokoshima had been killed before then brought back to life she shouldn't be surprised.

"Asmo-chan, you want to meet her?" Yokoshima asked.

Now Asmodeus was being put on the spot. '_Yoko-kun wants me to meet his ex? Should I say yes?_' She asked, "Are…are you sure?" Yokoshima nodded.

* * *

The Teleportal opened up and both Yokoshima and Asmodeus exited it into the Hive's Main Hall. This was Asmodeus' first time in the NEO-NUMBERS' base to be honest so she was a bit overwhelmed by all the technology she saw.

"Oh, Yokoshima, you brought a guest," said Dr. Magi, smiling.

"Hi, Dr. Magi!" smiled Yokoshima. "I brought Asmo-chan here to meet with Sheila. Is she busy?"

"Oh, we've just finished doing some work. She's free now," said Dr. Magi.

Asmodeus looked around for this mysterious 'Sheila' but didn't see anyone. "So, where is she?"

"Sheila, can you come out?" asked Yokoshima. That was when Sheila's face appeared on the primary monitor, the big screen that was at the control console.

"_Hello, Yokoshima_," said Sheila.

Asmodeus yelped. She stammered, "Tha-tha-that's Sheila!-?" Yokoshima nodded.

"Yup," he confirmed. "Sheila, this is my girlfriend, Asmodeus."

"_Hello, Asmodeus, I am Sheila and welcome to the Hive_," Sheila greeted.

"Sheila's an AI," Yokoshima told Asmodeus.

"An AI?" Asmodeus asked. She remembered Yuji telling her about these AI things.

"Yeah, and she used to be in a tank," Yokoshima added.

"A tank?" Asmodeus asked, still gawking at Sheila. Her boyfriend used to be in love with a tank?

* * *

Asmodeus returned to her home in the Meta-World and told her sisters, "I met Yoko-kun's ex-girlfriend."

"Oh, so you met the computer lady," Leviathan noted.

"You've met her too?" asked Asmodeus.

"No, but Daichi told me about her. He even told me she used to be part of a tank," said Leviathan.

"Shogo told me about it too. He said it was one weird relationship," added Lucifer. "I mean…a bug cyborg and a tank? How did that work?"

"You were jealous, weren't you?" Leviathan teased.

Asmodeus, blushing, denied, "N-no! Of course I wasn't!"

"Asmo was jealous of a computer~" Beelzebub teased.

"Shut up!" Asmodeus then chased Beelzebub around as the others laughed.

* * *

The Teleportal opened, allowing Yuji and his family entry into the main hall of the Hive as they walked out of it. Maria was holding Yuji's hand.

"_Greetings, Yuji Fudo and friends and welcome to the Hive_," AI-Shin chirped with joy as he welcomed them. "_Now, here is the main hall that also doubles as the control center for the base. There are surveillance monitors there, security control there, and also environmental controls to make the base homely, not to mention the Teleportal controls. By the way, does anyone feel a little ill after going through the Teleportal?"_

Melanie was in the corner, holding her head with Yuji rubbing her back. "I hate that thing..." she grumbled.

"_Yes, the tingling and vibrations in your bones will pass. Just walk it off. Oh, and I can't forget this lovely lady over here."_

Sheila's face appeared on the monitor as she spoke, "_Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Hive. I am the Hive Command Centre AI. You may call me Sheila._"

Phoebe, Lilith and Maria all said, "Hi!" as Stella bowed. Reina, Melanie and Asura all nodded in greeting.

Yuji greeted, "Hey there."

AI-Shin explained,_ "Sheila here helps Dr. Magi around here and she's also our security system. __Now that we're all acquainted, if you will all follow me..." _AI-Shin began the tour and proceeded to show them the recreation center that provided games and arcades, the theatre room for movies, the training room having a gym with a boxing/wrestling ring.

"And this is the mess hall," AI-Shin said, "The food is provided using an oven that materializes what you want. Just speak into the microphone and the oven will make what you want."

"Cake~!" Maria, Phoebe, and Lilith cried.

TING!

The oven opens to present a cake.

"_The default setting for cake is a chocolate cake_," AI-Shin explained.

"YAY!" they cheered.

"_This oven works like that guy's invention in 'Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs'."_

"I remember that movie," Reina nodded

AI-Shin then brought the group to the roof the base. "_And here's our pool, with a Jacuzzi and hot tub._"

Lilith glanced at Yuji and grinned mischievously, as did Reina. Yuji, of course, was oblivious to their lusty glares.

"And from here you can see the entire canyon. We are surrounded by high mountain walls. You can also see the waterfall, the lake, and the wide green fields of grass. Chiaki planted a vegetable patch nearby if I'm not mistaken."

Sora marveled as she gazed over the building, "Wow! This view is awesome!" She sprouted her wings and takes to the skies to explore.

"_This is premium real-estate and ARMOR built this base just for us so that Dr. Irie could have his basement back._"

"I can't imagine the things that were going on in that basement," Yuji joked.

"We could," Reina and Lilith said.

"_Well, that's the tour of the base_," AI-Shin sighed. "_Sorry I couldn't show you the restricted places like the lab. All accounts of it being...restricted_."

"That's kind of obvious," Asura deadpanned.

"_Anyway, you guys can use the base too while you're in our neck of the woods. Just call up Dr. Magi and he'll open up a Teleportal. We can't actually tell you where the base is so you could fly here, unfortunately, but the Teleportal will lock to your location and bring you straight here_."

Maria's stomach growled as she tugged Yuji's sleeve, "Papa, I'm getting hungry."

Yuji nodded, "OK, then let's head back inside. Sora, let's go!"

"OK~!" she responded before touching down.

"Just don't over order," AI-Shin cautioned. "That machine can't take too many at once! The last time it did the cleanup was huge!"

"Got it," Yuji nodded.

AI-Shin turned to the waterfall and blinked, "_Hey, is that Hana and Michiru skinny dipping at the waterfall?_"

"I'll be back later!" Yuji said as he transcended to fly over to the waterfall.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Lilith cried as she also sprouted her wings and gave chase.

"I swear..." Asura sighed as she held her head.

"_Hey, wait for me! I wanna see too!_" shouted AI-Shin as he chased after the group.

* * *

The Hinamizawa Gaming Club was at the Furude Shrine as Shinichi had earlier instructed and he was there to welcome them.

"OK, thank you all for coming," said Shinichi as he stood before the group. "Now, be sure to prepare yourselves. This is going to be a bumpy ride."

"What? Are we going to fly there or something?" Mion asked, cocking an eyebrow. She wanted to see what the NEO-NUMBERS' new base looked like.

"Better," smiled Shinichi. He activated his wrist-mounted com-link and called, "Dr. Magi, prep up the Teleportal and lock onto my coordinates."

"Teleportal?" everyone repeated questionably, exchanging looks of confusion. All of a sudden, a glowing circle of spiraling light burst into existence, causing everyone except for Shinichi to jump in shock.

"This is the Teleportal, which is the only way to get to the base in the blink of an eye," said Shinichi, gesturing towards the tunnel of light which was the Teleportal.

"Who thought of the name?" Shion asked, still staring at the Teleportal dubiously.

"Dr. Magi, from the words 'teleport' and 'portal'," said Shinichi. "'Wormhole' just didn't seem like a catchy name."

"Is it safe?" asked Keiichi.

"It should be," said Shinichi. "Relax, we tested this baby and everything turned out OK. I've even used it a few times so there's nothing to fear…except for some initial queasiness." They still weren't moving. "Trust me, you guys. Everything will be OK."

"I trust him," said Rena as she took his hand.

"OK, we got a volunteer!" spoke up Shinichi. "Anyone else? Those who don't speak now will be called chickens!"

"OK, that's it!" Mion snapped. She wasn't going to let herself be called a chicken. "Let's go, gang!"

Shinichi kissed Rena's hand and smiled. "Let's go, Rena." They then both entered the Teleportal, vanishing into the light. Mion led the others in, one by one, single file and they all vanished before the Teleportal winked out of existence.

* * *

Several human shapes could be seen coming into the base through the Teleportal before they exited and the Teleportal was deactivated.

"Welcome, everyone," greeted Dr. Magi from the controls. "I hope the ride wasn't too bumpy."

"Woah…" Keiichi was feeling a little dazed. "Does anyone feel like your bones are vibrating?"

"I do," said Satoshi. Everyone else in the Hinamizawa Gaming Club felt a little woozy, with the exception of Rena, Hanyuu and Shinichi.

"I feel sick," groaned Shion.

"You'll get used to it," said Shinichi. "Everyone, welcome to the Hive."

"The 'Hive'?" Mion cocked an eyebrow as she looked around the main floor of the base. "That's the best you could come up with?"

"We put all our suggestions into a hat and Dr. Magi picked the name out of the hat so the name sticks," said Shinichi, shrugging.

"That's correct," affirmed Dr. Magi.

"I'm guessing Shogo suggested the name," said Shion.

"That was our first guess," commented Shinichi.

Sheila's face suddenly appeared on the main monitor, causing everyone to jump as she spoke, "_Hello, and welcome to the Hive_."

"Who's that?" asked Keiichi.

"Oh, that's Sheila. She's the command centre's AI. She used to be in a tank," Shinichi introduced. "Say hi to Sheila everyone." They all greeted the digital woman who smiled at them. "So, anyway, how about I give you guys that tour I promised you?"

"Where is this base anyway?" asked Satoko.

"A boxed canyon in the middle of nowhere," answered Dr. Magi. He pointed to the exit. "You can see for yourselves through that door." He pointed to the elevator, "And that will take you up to the higher levels."

"Right now you're all standing in the main hall, which is where the control centre is," said Shinichi. "What we just came out of was the Teleportal System."

"Tele…Portal…?" Satoshi asked.

"A teleportation portal, but since that's a mouthful we decided to just shorten it to 'Teleportal'."

"Clever," remarked Keiichi.

Shinichi explained, "We've got a cafeteria, gym, training room, recreation room and living quarters," Shinichi listed. "And we've got our own pool on the roof."

Keiichi whistled, impressed, "And ARMOR just _gave_ you this base?"

"After saving the world several times I think we deserve it," said Shinichi. "It's a reward for good work, and I don't think we could use Dr. Irie's clinic for a base any longer."

"That kinda makes sense," admitted Keiichi.

"This place seems more like a hotel than a base," Shion concluded, whistling after she heard what they had here.

"Yeah, you would at least think they had an armory," Satoko agreed.

"Right, I forgot about the armory," Shinichi realized. "It's next to the vehicle bay where we keep all our vehicles. Come on, I'll show you." Shinichi took them down to the armory where they stored their weapons and Mion was impressed by their collection. He then led them down to the vehicle bay. Parked inside were their bikes, the jeep, Chiaki's pickup truck and also a tank. Chiaki was doing some maintenance on the jeep.

"Wow! You guys have your own tank!" Mion exclaimed as she admired the war machine.

"Yeah, but it was made very clear we couldn't use it for anything except for dire situations," Shinichi replied. "Oh, and Chiaki here is our resident mechanic."

Chiaki greeted as he looked up from the open hood, "Enjoying the tour?"

Hanyuu ran over to him and cried out, "Chiaki-san!" before hugging him, a hug which he returned.

Shinichi was grinding his teeth as he saw the affectionate exchange and decided to interrupt, "Well, Chiaki, it's been nice seeing you at work but we have a tour to continue."

Hanyuu responded, "You go on ahead. I want to spend some time with Chiaki-san."

Shinichi was about to protest but Rena just grabbed his shoulder and gently led him out

Mion asked, "So, what's next Shinichi?" He wasn't responding. "Um... Shin-chan?"

Shinichi was still a little angry at seeing Hanyuu and Chiaki get all lovey-dovey together. He was acting like a typical, overprotective, older brother which was ironic considering Hanyuu was older than he was, by centuries, despite looking like a teenage girl. He then calmed down and led them to the elevator which they took up to the next floor. The elevator door opened to reveal a hallway that was lined with doors. "And over here are the living quarters. We have these just in case we ever need to do an all-nighter and have to stay in the base. There's also a soda fountain at the end of the hallway." The elevator door closed before it rose up to the next floor which they exited.

Shinichi explained, "And here we have the infirmary and to tell you all about it are our lovely medical officers, Michiru and Hana!"

Michiru and Hana were wearing nurse uniforms. Michiru's was white with pink trim and Hana's was black with purple trim. Michiru wore white knee socks while Hana wore fishnet stockings.

Keiichi and Satoshi ogled them only to be smacked upside the heads by the twins.

"We've been getting that reaction a lot, haven't we, Hana-chan?" asked Michiru cutely.

"It must be these uniforms," said Hana. "Boys often have a fetish for girls in uniforms."

"We do not!" Keiichi and Satoshi denied.

AI-Shin floated into the infirmary and said, "_Hey, nobody said we were gonna have company._"

"Oh, it's Shin-chan #2," said Mion.

"_Hey, whasup, Mion?_" greeted AI-Shin. He gave them all a look and settled on Rena before hovering down to her eye level. "_And hello to you too, beautiful_." Shinichi rolled his eyes but did not get annoyed by AI-Shin's attraction to Rena. The AI inside the Sphere Droid did adopt his personality, as well as his memories, so his feelings for Rena were the same as his. "_So, what's going on?_" AI-Shin asked his template.

"I was giving them a tour and-" began Shinichi, only to be interrupted.

"_A tour? Why didn't you say so? Follow me, gang!_" He headed out of the infirmary and to the elevator with the others following.

"Hey, wait up!" called Shinichi, only for Rena to grab his hand. "Rena-chan?" She leaned in close, looking up at his eyes. "Rena-chan?"

"Why don't you give me a tour of your private quarters?" she asked flirtatiously.

"Sure, no problem," said Shinichi. Rena smiled. It was time to 'christen' yet another bed.

* * *

"_And this is the recreation centre_," said AI-Shin as he brought them to a room filled with arcade machines.

"Wow," said Keiichi. "Those are a lot of arcade machines."

"_Every game ever made too_," said AI-Shin. "_And it's all for free too._"

"Guess we won't need to go to another arcade ever again," said Satoko.

"But that means going through the Teleportal…and I'm not sure about going through that again…" Rika was still feeling a little queasy from the trip.

* * *

"_And this here is the home theatre_," said AI-Shin.

"Are you sure this is supposed to be a base?" asked Shion.

"_Just because this is where we work, doesn't mean we can't make it feel like home_," reasoned AI-Shin.

* * *

They then arrived at a room filled with exercise equipment as AI-Shin explained, "_And here's the gym. It's where the NEO-NUMBERS can work out so they always use the equipment at its highest setting._"

"So, why is there a ring?" Keiichi asked, pointing at the wrestling/boxing ring in the middle of the room.

"_For spars_," said AI-Shin. "_This is where the NEO-NUMBERS can spar with each other._ _This is the training room after all._"

* * *

"Wow, it's a great view," said Rena as she looked out the window of Shinichi's private quarters in the base. She could see the canyon and saw the green grass, the high mountain walls surrounding the canyon and also the beautiful waterfall in the distance.

"It's an ideal location," said Shinichi. "Strategic too, with no way for enemies to find us since this area has a cloaking barrier that prevents us from being detected by non-friendly forces. And the only way in or out is through the Teleportal system, oh and there is that door in the mountain but we don't use it much."

"So, do you know where we are?" asked Rena.

"Somewhere tropical," Shinichi guessed.

"You don't know?" Rena blinked.

Shinichi admitted in embarrassment, "Well…geography wasn't always my No. 1 subject."

"I guess not," Rena giggled. "I just can't believe it."

"Can't believe what?" Shinichi asked.

"How much has changed since we met," clarified Rena. She remembered that fateful summer of 1984 when she came across a wounded young man in the rain. Her conscience would not allow her to just leave him so she took him home and took care of him until he woke up. That was when everything changed. It was at that moment that she'd fallen in love.

"A lot has changed, hasn't it?" Shinichi asked. A lot did change. He no longer had patches of missing memories in his mind. He had all his memories again and remembered both the good times and bad times, including the time spent in GIN-SHOCKER and the things he'd done. There was no reason to let himself be dragged down by those memories. The best thing he could do was to just move on. "I love you, Rena-chan."

"I love you too, Shin-kun."

* * *

On the night of December 31st, 1987, both the minute and the hour hand on the clock's face pointed towards the number 12.

It was midnight, which meant it was now officially January 1st 1988. With a smile, Shinichi said, "Well, looks like it's time to replace our calendar." The calendar was hung up on the wall of their bedroom. He took down previous year's (1987) calendar and nearly tossed it into the trash but Rena snatched it. "Rena…"

"Aw…but Shin-kun, it's too cute to throw away!" said Rena. The calendar of 1987 had pictures of cute kittens, bunnies and puppies. Rena had obviously picked out the calendar. "Can't we keep it?"

"We don't need it," said Shinichi. "But…you could cut out all the pictures and put them in a scrapbook," he suggested. Rena beamed but then saw Shinichi put up the new calendar and dropped the old one in shock.

"There, looking good," said Shinichi but then Rena pushed him aside and took the calendar down. "Rena, wait! I can explain!"

It was a calendar with pictures on each page and as she flipped through the pages for each month, her eyes widened bit by bit. "Shin-kun…what is this…?" she asked as she shoved the calendar in his face.

"A picture of you in a bikini," he answered.

"Shin-kun!" Rena snapped.

"OK! OK!" Shinichi cowered. "It's a personal calendar I made." Rena blinked.

"You…made this?" she asked, looking at the calendar.

"Yeah, with my own two hands and for our eyes only," said Shinichi. "Those pictures are from my private collection."

"Shin-kun, they're all pictures of me," she told him.

"Yeah? So?" Shinichi asked. "You'd think I'd want a calendar filled with pictures of random women I've never met? I'm not that shallow."

"Shin-kun, you keep dirty magazines under your bed," she deadpanned.

"Kaa-chan insisted on it," Shinichi argued. "She says that the average teen has at least ten dirty magazines under his bed."

"But that still doesn't explain this calendar," said Rena.

"Rena, you're special to me. You were the first girl I saw when I woke up and the first person to be my friend in Hinamizawa. You're also my first love," Shinichi told her.

"But Lina…" Rena began.

"Lina was…a lifetime ago," admitted Shinichi. "I was BLACK 13 back then, not Shinichi Banabara." He had already moved on. "What I'm saying is that when I made that calendar, the only woman I was thinking about was you. Sure, it's a swimsuit-"

"And lingerie…" Rena added.

"And lingerie calendar, but it's really a Rena calendar," said Shinichi. He added, "A calendar with 12 of your sexiest photos."

"That explains the private photo shoot we had," Rena mused aloud and then remembered how that had ended. It had been so hot that neither could resist each other by the time it was over. "So, you really made this by yourself?"

"I had to use some resources and equipment from ARMOR," said Shinichi before explaining the step-by-step process. "First I got this year's calendar and then I developed your photos before I glued them onto each page. Then I put them through the copy machine to make them professional. Finally, I bound the pages together and wallah! A one of a kind Rena Calendar for 1988…and another one I'm saving for 1989."

"Shin-kun, I always knew you were a pervert…" said Rena, giggling.

"It's not a crime that I appreciate how hot my girl is now, is it? As unorthodox as this is, it's how I show my appreciation," said Shinichi.

Rena hung the calendar back up on the hook and then looped her arms around him as she whispered, "I never said that was a bad thing."

"Well, I could've gotten any swimsuit and/or lingerie calendar but I decided to make one with pictures of you. I mean I love porn but right now you're all the porn I need…" He paused before he said, "And that sounded better in my head before I said it aloud." They shared a kiss before Shinichi said, "Happy New Year, Rena-chan."

"Happy New Year, Shin-kun."

Fireworks were exploding right outside their window as they continued to kiss before Shinichi slowly carried Rena to bed so they could make their own fireworks.

* * *

"YEAH! WOO-HOO! YEAH!" Yokoshima howled as he shot the fireworks into the midnight sky. "BOOM BABY! HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

* * *

The rays of the sun penetrated the glass of the window, shining onto Alan's face. This had the affect of awakening the pseudo-Kryptonian Green Lantern. As he tried to get up, he felt a weight on his chest and tossed the blanket off him to see little Alice, clutching to his pajama shirt tightly. The little girl was wearing white pajamas. Sharing the futon was Yami who was wearing a black nightgown.

Alan and his girls had arranged a system where one of them got to sleep with him. Last night it was Yami. Of course, Alice must've snuck into the futon while he and Yami had been asleep and fallen asleep between them, holding tightly to her father. Alan found the gesture adorable and pretty much encouraged it.

Gently loosening Alice's fingers from his pajamas, he got out of the futon and turned to face the window as he did some stretches before getting himself ready for the day. He then heard whimpering and turned his attention back to the futon. Alice was still asleep but her brows were furrowed and her hand was moving around on the spot where he'd been sleeping, trying to find him again. It seemed to upset her when she didn't find anything to hold. Shaking his head but still smiling, Alan knelt down and gently rolled Alice over to Yami's side of the futon. The blonde assassin then draped an arm around Alice as the little girl clutching onto Yami's nightgown, the two of them sleeping peacefully.

"You should take a picture," Bazel suggested, addressing the scene, "It'll last longer."

"Yeah, it's a sweet picture," admitted Alan, "Cute too." He knew if Rena ever saw this scene she would try and kidnap Yami and Alice for being so cute. Not too long ago these two blondes had actually tried to kill him. Yami was a genetically engineered Deathtron assassin who had fallen for Alan because of his kindness for giving her taiyaki while Alice was a bio-android created by Gebok as a weapon to fight him and Shinichi. Gebok had failed and Shinichi had attempted to kill Alice by sending her to the bottom of the ocean but not only did ARMOR retrieve her, she had been reactivated with a totally new personality and called him her 'daddy'. There was some initial tension between Alice and Shinichi but they managed to get past that and Alice began to call Shinichi her big brother.

Alan then went to get ready for the day. He looked to the calendar and then smiled, "Happy New Year."

* * *

It was the first of January in the year 1988, and everyone in Hinamizawa was visiting the Furude Shrine for their first visit to the shrine on the first day of the new year. Shinichi and his family were the first at the shrine and given special treatment since Hanyuu and Rika were part of their family. As Head Priestesses of the Furude Clan, Rika and Hanyuu were responsible in giving out blessings to the people of Hinamizawa on this auspicious day.

When Rika and Hanyuu were dressed in their miko outfits, Shiori just had to take pictures of them. They were indeed growing up into fine and beautiful young women and Shiori was proud to be their mother. Shiori herself was in a kimono with a shawl and had even done her hair up in a bun. Her husband, Tatsuyoshi Kasai, was dressed in his usual black suit and sunglasses. As for Shinichi, he was wearing a red, double-breasted, leather jacket with two vertical rows of gold buttons on the front with white gloves, blue jeans, black boots and finally a red muffler. Little Sho was in a winter jacket to keep warm and was being carried in his mother's arms.

After the family had received their blessings, they all prayed at the shrine and rung the bell together. Shinichi prayed that this year would be a peaceful one.

* * *

Deep in the mountains of Hinamizawa, hidden from human eyes, was a steel door that was sealed by chains and also ancient talismans used to ward off evil. A dark and evil miasma was seeping through the cracks of the door. The chains began to rattle as the talismans attempted to keep the darkness at bay. However, more and more of the darkness began to seep out and then all of a sudden there was a massive explosion. The door was shattered to pieces, along with the chains and the paper talismans were all shredded into nothing. A pair of golden eyes could be seen glowing in the darkness of the sealed cavern as a grave voice spoke, "Susano-O…"

* * *

As Hanyuu was giving out blessings to the villagers alongside Rika, she suddenly felt a pulse of dark energy that made her gasp. "Hanyuu-chan, are you alright?" asked Chiaki. He and the other NEO-NUMBERS had come and set up some booths providing food and games for the people visiting the shrine. Chiaki was selling wood carvings that were meant to bring good luck to the home and Yokoshima was helping him. He was taking a bit of a break to get his blessing from Hanyuu when she suddenly gasped.

"I just felt something," said Hanyuu said, feeling lightheaded.

"You should rest," Rika suggested. "I can handle things from here."

"Are you sure, Rika?" asked Hanyuu.

"I'm sure," Rika affirmed, "Now, go and have some fun with your boyfriend."

Hanyuu smiled and took Chiaki's hand. "Let's go get some cream puffs," he said to Hanyuu.

Shogo and Daichi were manning the stand that was selling cream puffs. The cream puffs had been provided by Angel Mort. "Can you tell me again why we're doing this?" asked Daichi.

"Mion-sama asked us to," said Shogo. "Thank you," said Shogo as he took payment and handed out a cream puff to a little girl.

"So, she just snaps her fingers and you do whatever she tells you to," remarked Daichi. He strummed a few strings on his guitar.

"It's better than having someone beat you up or being ordered to do the things we did back in GS," Shogo retorted.

"Yeah, good point," Daichi agreed.

"Two cream puffs, please," said Hanyuu as she visited the booth with Chiaki.

"OK, that will be 200 yen each," said Shogo. He then addressed Chiaki, "How is your business doing?"

"We're doing great," answered Chiaki.

"So, you left your artwork with Yokoshima," stated Daichi. "Are you sure that's wise?"

"Yokoshima might be a human wrecking ball, but I'm sure he won't wreck anything," said Chiaki as he and Hanyuu got their cream puffs. After a pause he said, "I better go check to see if he's alright."

While Rika and Hanyuu were the Head Priestesses, there were volunteer shrine maidens working around the Furude Shrine. There was one at a booth selling omikujo (sheets of paper) which had ones fortune for the upcoming year written on it.

"Have a Happy New Year," Michiru greeted after handing a folded omikujo to a customer. "Next, please."

"Michiru, how are you doing?" asked Shinichi as he and his family approached the booth. Rika and Hanyuu were performing their duties as Head Priestesses so it was just Shinichi, his mother, stepfather and little brother.

"I'm doing great!" beamed Michiru.

"Where's Hana?" asked Shinichi. Michiru pointed to another booth opposite from hers and Shinichi turned to see Hana selling mochi rice cakes to the people visiting the shrine. "Why is she wearing a black miko outfit?"

"She doesn't look good in white," was Michiru's honest answer. "So, do you want to buy omikujo?"

After paying Michiru, they selected bamboo sticks with different numbers on them from a box. Taking each stick, Michiru then handed them their omikujo with their corresponding number. Even Sho got one. Luck was classified into _dai-ichi_ (great luck), _kicki_ (good fortune), _sho-kichi_ (middle good fortune) and _kyo_ (bad luck). If you liked your fortune you could keep it. If you didn't like it you could tie it to a branch on a tree on the shrine grounds. The omikujo sheets included horoscope-like predictions for the year's events, with sections on business, health and love.

"Now, let's see what I got." As Shinichi was about to unfold his sheet, he felt a pair of warm hands cover his eyes. "Rena-chan, is that you?" he asked. The girl removed her hands from her boyfriend's eyes and he turned around to face her before kissing her softly on the lips. "Happy New Year, Rena-chan."

"Happy New Year, Shin-kun," she replied. Rena was sporting a red kimono. She wasn't alone, however. The other members of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club were present. Satoshi and Keiichi were wearing jackets with scarves over their clothes while the girls were looking great in their kimonos.

"And Happy New Year to you guys too," greeted Shinichi.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Shishibone City, Alan and his girls were all getting ready to go to the city's local shrine, which was just a few blocks away. The girls, following local tradition, were all dressed in kimonos while Alan decided to just go with his green jacket, black t-shirt, blue jeans and sneakers. He also wore the scarf Lala had made him. Alice and Celine also wore kimonos.

"How do I look, Daddy?" asked Alice as she showed off her kimono, which was violet and matched her eyes. Her hair was up in a ponytail.

"You look so cute, Alice," said Alan.

"Mau!" Celine called, dressed in her green kimono.

"Aw~ aren't you just adorable," said Alan as he patted Celine on the head.

"Alan, how do I look?" purred Conda. Her blood red kimono was worn very loosely, slipping off her shoulders to show off her cleavage and the obi was tied with the knot in front instead of the back.

"You look like a prostitute," Amora mocked as she wore her own kimono properly, a deep green which was her favorite color.

"Who asked you!-?" Conda snapped at the Enchantress.

"No fighting," warned Yami. She was wearing a black kimono.

"Mommy!" Alice jumped up and Yami caught her. "You're so pretty!"

"Well, I guess it's time we go," said Alan.

* * *

"So, what did you get?" Rena asked and Shinichi grimaced as he read his sheet omikujo.

"Kyo (bad luck)," he answered. That couldn't be good. "It says here I will face even bigger challenges ahead of me that may affect the people around me and while my love life will improve, it might become too much for me. It also says that I might end up with some physical injuries along the way."

Suddenly, a loud roar was heard and someone screamed as everyone looked up at the sky. There was a stream of flame that flew above the shrine grounds and it was followed by the roar of a beast before it vanished into the distance. However, Shinichi somehow knew that was only the beginning of his bad luck. "Dammit," he cursed as she clenched his omikujo.

"What just happened?" Mion asked, gaping.

"It looks like this year isn't going to be a peaceful one," said Shinichi. Hanyuu was dashing towards him with Chiaki in tow. "Hanyuu-chan, what's wrong?"

"Something just escaped its seal," Hanyuu told him.

* * *

In Shishibone City, Alan and his girls were almost at the shrine when all of a sudden a fireball hit a building, causing it to explode.

"What on Midgard!-?" Amora shouted.

"Dammit," Alan cursed beneath his breath. Why couldn't he catch a break?

The cause of the explosion was in the streets. He was humanoid, clad in black armor in gold trim. His hands and feet were clawed and its head sported a draconic looking helmet with a single horn protruding from between the dragon's eyes. The face of the helmet's wearer had a pair of gold eyes and a reptilian face with sharp teeth. It also sported a pair of bat-like wings on its back.

"SUSANO-O! COME OUT! SHOW YOURSELF YOU COWARD!" the being called out. He shot another fireball at another building and it exploded tremendously. "SUSANO-O!"

"What is that thing!-?" Nana shrieked.

Alan narrowed his eyes before handing Alice and Celine over to Yami and Bishie. He told them, "Get back to the boarding house. I'll take care of this."

"Alright, partner," said Bazel. "Time to usher in the New Year with a bang."

Alan frowned as he replied, eyes glowing green, "I wish I didn't have to."

* * *

The draconic fire demon continued to unleash his flames, causing buildings to explode. People ran in panic and he looked at them before unleashing a torrent of flame to incinerate them. However, the people were shielded by a barrier of emerald energy.

"Run!" Sentinel shouted at the evacuating masses before looking at the creature. "You've got some nerve attacking people on New Year's Day!"

"Susano-O, so you've come, finally," said the creature.

Bazel asked, "Susano-O? This guy must have you mixed up with someone else."

Alan addressed the Darkloid, "The name's Alan Smith, buddy."

"Ah, so that is your true name, Susano-O. Well, let me tell you mine. I am Gnol Gnauh, Darkloid General of the Centre."

"A Darkloid?" Alan questioned. "I thought you all were wiped out."

"Yes, I no longer sense my kin but soon we will all return and take this land!" declared Gnol.

"Well, not when I can help it!" said Alan. "Oh, and I'm not Susano-O! It's Sentinel!" He became Sentinel, donning his costume as Bazel formed the Bazel Combat Armor.

"Then let us fight again, Sentinel Susano-O!" In a flash, fireballs were launched at Sentinel and they hit him, causing him to cry out in pain. Those were no normal flames as he felt the flames searing him. Those were flames made with dark magic and since Alan now had the powers of a Kryptonian, he also had the weaknesses and magic was one them.

"OK, this is bad," said Sentinel as he dodged to the side as another volley of fireballs flew at him and exploded. "I really hate dark magic now." They were still in the city and Gnol and he could cause a lot of damage if they continued to fight here. "Hey, follow me!" Sentinel shouted and shot into the air.

"Running, Susano-O?" sneered Gnol. "Hm, very well then!" Wing of flames sprouted from Gnol's back and he took off after Sentinel, trailing flames behind him like a tail.

* * *

Showa was flying in the air. If Hanyuu's guess was right then the thing that had just escaped its seal was another one of those Darkloids. It'd been a long time since he last saw one of those demons and he wished that he wouldn't have to look at one again but it would appear that the prediction on the omikujo was right and that it really wasn't his lucky day. He thought his life would improve after Million/Gebok was locked up but it would appear he was wrong.

He felt like the gods, or at least one of them, was purposely making his life difficult for their own enjoyment.

Showa then spotted two figures clashing in the sky. One was covered in emerald energy derived from willpower while the other was bathed in dark flames. As they clashed and bashed against each other, explosions erupted and Showa said, "Looks like I found what I was looking for. Yabuki, it's time to sing!"

Gnol and Sentinel were grappling with each other and the Green Lantern could feel the intense heat radiating from Gnol. "You're weak, Susano-O! Much weaker than I remember!" Sentinel glared at Gnol and then took in a deep breath of air before blowing straight into Gnol's face with gale force winds that sent him tumbling backwards in midair. Gnol straightened himself back up and then inhaled before exhaling a tongue of flame that streamed towards Sentinel. Using his ring, Sentinel conjured a fire extinguisher and started putting out the flames with it, much to Gnol's outrage. "You mock me, Susano-O!-?"

"Look, pal! I think you got the wrong guy!" Sentinel shot back.

"How dare you try and confuse me, Susano-O! Even if so much time has passed I still remember the one who sealed me away! I may not be as strong as I once was but I will have my VENGENCE!"

"Seriously, what did I ever do to you!-?" Sentinel demanded.

"You were the one who stopped my reign of terror. Long ago I was known by another name, a name that made mortals fall to their knees and bow to me in respect. I was…the YAMATA NO OROCHI!" The Yamata No Orochi was an eight-headed serpent in Japanese's mythology and was said to have been defeated by Susano-O.

"The Orochi?" Bazel asked.

"You defeated me by separating my heads one by one, weakening me with each head you cleaved off my body. Then, you had me sealed away with my other heads sealed in different locations and my main body sealed away as well. But now I am free and…" Gnol's entire body became enveloped in hot flames that were so intense that he was like a miniature sun. "…I WILL INCINERATE YOU, SUSANO-O!"

"COOL DOWN!" Sentinel shouted as he concentrated his ring's power to such an intensity that green flames were radiating from his body. Bazel grew concerned and even voiced it out, "Are you sure about this? You know those flames CAN hurt you."

"Well, if I don't do something who knows how many people will suffer. I have to stop him here and now, Bazel," said Sentinel.

Gnol roared and flew straight at Sentinel in his charge as Sentinel did the same, rushing at his opponent with fists clenched and one arm drawn back for a punch. However, an arrow of green light suddenly got in-between them and struck the flame-encased Gnol, causing him to scream as there was an explosion of intense anti-demon energy and light. The bright light also momentarily blinded Sentinel before it began to fade. Sentinel knew who had fired the arrow and looked to see Showa in the distance, clad in the green samurai-like armor granted to him by Yabuki, the spirit of the Higurashi no Yaiba. As for the sword itself, the Higurashi no Yaiba had been converted into Bow & Arrow Mode.

In Bow & Arrow Mode, the wing-like guard of the Higurashi no Yaiba had lengthened into an archery bow while the blade itself had been pulled backwards into the handle of the sword that was now a bow. The blade had turned into an arrow with the blade's tip acting as the arrowhead and the pommel acting as the nock of the arrow. Judging by the way he was holding the weapon, which was by the bow and the arrow being pulled back by the nock into the Higurashi no Yaiba's handle, he was preparing for another shot and for good reason too.

"Shinichi," said Sentinel.

"Need help, little brother?" Showa asked. He then said, "Hey, now we match. Green and green."

Gnol recovered and glared at Showa. "So, you have an accomplice, Susano-O," assumed Gnol. "Too afraid to fight your own battles?"

Showa blinked and looked to Sentinel for an explanation, "What's he talking about?"

"He's got me confused with Susano-O," said Sentinel.

"The Susano-O that defeated the Orochi, right?" asked Showa. Sentinel nodded.

Angered at being ignored, Gnol roared and prepared to attack again, only for Showa to release his hold on the arrow's nock, which caused it to spring out and unleash its payload in the form of an energy arrow. This time Gnol dodged but the energy arrow still grazed his arm and it hurt him, which enraged him.

"I think you got him mad," said Bazel.

Gnol roared and unleashed a volley of fireballs at Showa who started dodging by zigzagging and rolling through the air. One of those fireballs managed to hit and caused him to drop his weapon as he cried out but Sentinel was quick enough to catch it. Suddenly, the Higurashi no Yaiba, just as it was turning back into its rusted sword form began to glow with a bright green light which matched the light of Sentinel's ring and it intensified. Gnol was coming at him and by reflex Sentinel swung and slashed Gnol across the torso. Gnol screamed as black blood splashed from the wound and he was forcefully driven back.

"It would…appear…that I am…still not…strong enough," realized Gnol. "Then again…I only have a fraction of my original power." He grinned and stared at Sentinel, "Consider this your lucky day…Susano-O, but remember that I will…return." Gnol then turned his body into flames and then just vanished right before their eyes.

"What was that about?" asked Showa.

"It's a long story," said Sentinel.

* * *

Shinichi and Alan returned to Shishibone City where Shinichi used his powers to undo all the damages Gnol had caused. Now they were in his room in the boarding house, talking about what had transpired earlier. Alan was wondering how he could use the Higurashi no Yaiba like that on Gnol when it had not yet chosen him.

"A lot of guys seem to want you dead," said Shinichi.

"Who would want me dead?" questioned Alan rhetorically. "Don't answer. Trust me, Shinichi, it's a long list. I've made a career of making enemies."

"But, he called you 'Susano-O'," reminded Shinichi.

"Yeah," Alan confirmed. "I think he was crazy when he kept calling me that."

"Maybe there's a reason for that," said Shinichi. "I think he recognizes the power of your ring."

"My ring?" Alan questioned. "Wait, what are you saying?"

"All we know about Susano-O are from myths or legends," said Shinichi. "But what if Susano-O was actually a Green Lantern. You said it yourself that the Green Lantern Corps has existed for centuries, right? So, it's not too much of a stretch that one of them came to Earth and defeated Gnol."

"That makes sense," agreed Bazel.

"Yeah, that could be true," said Alan. "No wonder he hates me. A ring like mine fucked him up."

"But now he's loose," said Shinichi worriedly. "I never thought I'd see another Darkloid again, and a General no less. This is bad, very bad."

"How bad?" asked Bazel.

"I barely survived my first encounter with four of those Generals, and this guy's power rivaled all four of them," answered Shinichi. "He's powerful, and he called himself the Orochi."

"He said I broke him apart," said Alan. "I mean, he said that Susano-O broke him apart."

"Yep, according to legend, Susano-O was able to defeat the Orochi by severing his heads. The Orochi originally had eight heads and if Gnol is the legendary Orochi as he claims, then that means Susano-O separated his heads and then sealed them away into different locations. If I were him, I'd be looking for them."

"Then we'll just have to find them first and destroy them before he does," said Alan. "We can't let him unseal those heads and regain his full power."

"Looks like this is gonna become a Road Trip!" said Bazel.

"First we need to know where those heads could be," said Shinichi. "I'll go and see Dr. Magi about it. Maybe he can use Sheila to pinpoint the locations for each of the heads." That was when his com-link started beeping. "It's Hanyuu-chan." He tapped the button and answered, "What is it, Hanyuu-chan?"

* * *

"No…way…" Alan uttered as he couldn't believe his eyes. Hidden deep in the mountains of Hinamizawa was a statue, but not just any statue, but the statue of Susano-O, the great hero who became legendary for defeating the Yamata No Orochi. It had been hidden here and nobody had found it until now. While Alan and Shinichi had been battling Gnol, Hanyuu and Chiaki had gone deep into the mountains to see where Gnol had arisen from, which was a cave which had been sealed until now. That was also where they had found this statue, which had been standing before the originally sealed cave like some kind of guardian.

"Guess Gnol was in a hurry," remarked Bazel. If he ever saw anything resembling his own sworn enemy, he would've destroyed it in his anger without hesitation. But that wasn't what was surprising. Alan was gaping because Susano-O looked just like him. That was why Hanyuu had called them over.

"OK, now _this_ is freaky," said Shinichi. "Dude looks just like you." Alan could only nod dumbly.

* * *

Hanyuu and Alan went with Shinichi's to the NEO-NUMBERS' base to discuss the incident. On the main screen, presented by Sheila were the images of Gnol and the Susano-O statue that had been found.

"It's strange that a Darkloid is after Alan and not Shinichi," wondered Michiru aloud.

"It's because he looks like Susano-O," Hana remarked.

"Dude looks just like you," Yuji noted. He'd been called as well since he was 'in the neighborhood'.

"I get it," grumbled Alan. He'd been getting that a lot. "So, Hanyuu, do you have anything to tell us about the Orochi and Susano-O?"

"Well, all I know is in the legends," Hanyuu admitted.

"Hanyuu, there has to be something in the Furude Clan's archives about this," Alan pressed on. "We need legends, not facts."

"Lighten up," Chiaki chided.

"Sorry, I'm just a bit on edge because some psycho wants to kill me," said Alan.

"What else is new?" quipped Daichi.

"And he ruined the day I had planned. The girls were all wearing really nice kimonos," added Alan.

"I might be able to find something, but you need to give me time," pleaded Hanyuu.

"That thing is going to become too powerful if we wait," Alan stressed.

"Alan, relax," said Shinichi. "We injured him and did a lot of damage to him. It'll probably take months before he heals. The Higurashi no Yaiba does cause a lot of damage on demons, especially Darkloids."

"Sorry, I'm a bit on edge," apologized Alan.

"We know," Yokoshima understood.

"Hanyuu, all we need is a map or something that can help us pinpoint the locations of where the other seven heads are sealed," said Shinichi. "Gnol can't reach full power without them."

"I'll do my best," said Hanyuu, "And I know just where to look: the underground tomb of the four Darkloid Generals."

"That creepy place?" Yokoshima grimaced.

"It's our only lead," said Shinichi. "OK, you go do that and…" He looked to Chiaki, "You, go and look with her." Chiaki gave a nod in affirmative.

"And what do we do about Gnol?" asked Yuji.

"When he strikes, we'll be ready," Alan said firmly.

"But not today because tonight we're having New Year's dinner," said Shinichi. He then looked back at the image of Susano-O and the resemblance he had with Alan. '_Alan was able to use the Higurashi no Yaiba earlier. I better ask Yabuki about it_.'

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now the mystery of Susano-O deepens. Also, why could Alan use the Higurashi no Yaiba without making an agreement with Yabuki? Also, where are the other heads located? Let me get back to you with those answers. It's gonna be one roller-coaster of an arc, trust me.**


	60. The Legacy of Cain Part 4

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 4: The Revenge of Bara **

**By: Snake Screamer**

"So, how was Alan able to use you without you agreeing to it?" Shinichi asked Yabuki. He was inside his mindscape and speaking with the spirit of the Higurashi no Yaiba.

"Shinichi, you do know I was forged by the founder of the Furude Clan in Hinamizawa, correct? Yabuki answered with a question. Shinichi nodded. "Only two kinds of people are able to wield me: 1) I chose them or 2) they have the blood of the Furude Clan running through their veins.

Shinichi blinked in surprise and then replied, "Wait…so what you're saying is that Alan is somehow related to Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan?"

"That's precisely what I mean," Yabuki confirmed.

"OK…weird."

"Indeed."

"I better call Alan and tell him about this," Shinichi decided.

* * *

Shinichi had called Alan and asked him to meet him at Angel Mort to present his findings to the Green Lantern and pseudo-Kryptonian superhero. "OK, so I asked Yabuki about how you were able to wield the Higurashi no Yaiba when we were fighting Gnol and he said you could be somehow related to Hanyuu-chan and Rika-chan," said Shinichi as he relayed the information to Alan.

Alan blinked in surprise and then replied, "I…I don't see how that could be possible. I mean, I didn't even meet them until I first came to your world."

"Well, we do live in a Multiverse," said Shinichi.

"What do you mean?" asked Alan.

"Well, it could be possible that one of your ancestors could be a Furude from an alternate timeline," Shinichi theorized.

Alan confessed, "Not sure about that. Dad was born from a demon and an angel. Neither one of them belonged to a sole Universe."

"What about from your mother's side of the family?" Shinichi asked. "Maybe there's a clue there."

"My mom's parents were a demon and a human. I don't know much about Grandma's ancestry, though. She ran away from home when she was 17," Alan told Shinichi. "By the way, how's the Orochi thing coming along?" Alan asked.

"We've got it all worked out," said Shinichi. "Don't worry. There's absolutely no way the Orochi is going to rise up again. Trust me on this."

* * *

Chiaki sighed, "Honestly, why did I say that I had training as a mechanic?" He was forced to repair two jeeps because of the others using them to chase down some crooks and they somehow managed to crash both of them into a wall. The crooks were still captured though but it didn't change the fact that Chiaki was stuck repairing the ruined jeeps.

As he got up from under the car, he heard someone approaching. He turned around and greeted her, "Ah Hanyuu-chan. Hello."

For the past couple of weeks Hanyuu had been working with the NEO-NUMBERS in locating the other heads of the Orochi. The goddess managed to find ancient documents with detailed information. With the help of an old map with instructions and the Hive Satellite they were able to pinpoint the locations of each of the other heads.

Going around the world, Hanyuu with the help of the NEO-NUMBERS went to each location and reinforced the seals so that the demonic fragments of the Orochi would not rise again like Gnol had. When Yokoshima had asked why they couldn't just take the heads back with them, Hanyuu had explained that they could end up breaking the seal and cause the heads to revive and take on physical forms similar to Gnol. Until Gnol was found and dealt with, the best thing to do now was to reinforce the seals.

"Hello Chiaki-san," Hanyuu smiled. She still stuck with the honorific, but Chiaki didn't mind. "Ano... could you help me with something? That is if you're not too busy," she requested almost shyly pressing her fingers together.

"Not at all! Personally, I need a break from all this," Chiaki said with a grin, which was unseen under his scarf.

"Great," Hanyuu said, smiling.

"Cool," Chiaki said as he followed her down the hallway. "How long..."

* * *

"...Is this going to take?" he groaned as he tilted his head off the end of the narrow bench on which he sat, watching other men waiting for their own girlfriends or wives to choose their selections. Hanyuu held two shirts to her chest as she stood in front of a mirror in the back of the clothing store.

"I'm almost done here, but there's one more place I want to go," she said. She handed one of the shirts to the man working behind the counter. He took it and Hanyuu's money with a bored stare. "And don't forget, at least you're getting a chance to eat Shiori-mama's cooking."

Chiaki nodded remembering that Hanyuu had invited him over to her house for dinner. When Hanyuu was finished with her shopping both began to walk away from the shopping district. Hanyuu stopped though.

"What the matter?" Chiaki asked

"I don't know... I feel as if we're being watched," Hanyuu muttered looking around a bit before ultimately deciding she was imagining it and continued on her trek with Chiaki. Both were unaware of a figure wearing heavy clothing, eying them hatefully.

"So my enemies... we meet again," the figure whispered. It was glaring at Chiaki and Hanyuu darkly. "But I won't grab the girl like last time. This time I am going to take over your entire stinking village so my children may thrive!'

* * *

Shinichi sighed. He heard about how Hanyuu was bringing Chiaki over for dinner. He might as well tell his mother about Chiaki's relationship with Hanyuu. He was at his house in Hinamizawa while Rena was out with her girl friends on a girls' night out in Shishibone City.

"Kaa-chan," Shinichi said as he walked into the kitchen.

Shiori turned quickly. "Oh, Shinji. Good timing. Listen, could you help peel and cut the potatoes?" Shiori asked as she was stirring a pot on the stove.

"Kaa-chan, I think you should know that Chiaki and Hanyuu-chan are dating," Shinichi informed.

"I know. Now could you cut the potatoes?" Shiori said.

"You... you know!-?" Shinichi exclaimed, shocked.

"It's been a few months since it happened. Of course, I know. It's not really surprising. I have seen the way she looks at him, and I heard from Rika-chan about how they met, so I figured it was just a matter of time," Shiori shrugged.

"B-but aren't you shocked? I mean there's a big age difference," Shinichi said.

"So? When I began dating Shotaro, he was 5 years older than me," Shiori said, shrugging her shoulders. "Now are you going to cut the potatoes or what?" Shinichi sighed, wondering if he was the only one making a big deal out of this. He began helping his mother.

* * *

Chiaki and Hanyuu arrived to the Banabara-Kasai household just in time for dinner. Everyone was enjoying the dinner Shiori had prepared.

Chiaki cleared his throat, "This stew is delicious Shiori-san. Did you make it?"

She smiled at the compliment, "I did, though Shinichi did help with some of it."

"Well, it's very good!" Chiaki repeated as he made eye contact with Shinichi, but was almost immediately intimidated by the glare Shinichi gave him.

"So when did you two start dating?" Kasai asked curiously.

"Yes... I've been curious about that myself," Shinichi said. Both Chiaki and Hanyuu shared a look with Hanyuu.

Hanyuu continued, "Okay then, but I think you should know this. Someone else besides Gebok had tried to use me as a battery." This made everyone eyes widen as Hanyuu began the story.

* * *

_Walking up the stairs to a laboratory in the Black Forest of Germany, Chiaki could only think of the briefing he and Hanyuu had previously that morning with Warren._

_Warren had shown them clips of a mysterious figure whom had jumped from tree to tree. He looked so skilled, moving swiftly enough that the camera couldn't catch a clear image. The blurred figure stopped at an abandon lab. Thinking that it may be an X-SHOCKER facility, Warren quickly dispatched them to investigate. When they got their both he and Hanyuu split up to find anything that they could. So far, however, they had found nothing._

_"Hanyuu, do you see anything?" Chiaki said into his communicator._

_"Nothing yet," Hanyuu stated in her communicator as she checked a room. Hanyuu let out a shout as she fell over face first onto the floor. "Ow!" she grunted in pain as she turned to see what she had tripped on. She blinked in confusion to see what looked like a vine. Before she could question what a vine was doing there, a large mass shot out of the ground. Hanyuu stared in shock disbelief at what shot out. It looked like a giant pod with vines growing out of it._

_She screeched as the pod's vines shot forward binding her and, as she struggled, it lifted her in the air. She opened her mouth to yell for help_, _but a vine forced its way into her mouth and effectively gagged her. 'Chiaki-san! Help Me!' Hanyuu thought desperately before the vines pulled her inside the pod._

_Chiaki stopped. He actually heard Hanyuu telepathically shouting his name and for help. Not fully understanding it but just knowing that Hanyuu was in trouble he turned around and ran towards where Hanyuu was. He stopped when he saw a large hole. It appeared to be emitting a strange light. Despite his trepidation, he jumped down into the hole._

_When he landed down he looked around the area he'd landed in. He let his eyes adjust in the darkness, realizing this must be the lab's basement before gasping in shock. What looked like a giant, alien plant in the corner with what seemed to be large green buds growing out of it was rooted to the centre of the floor. In the upper part hung the clear pod, with Hanyuu inside who was thrashing around to get out. Vines were wrapped around her, keeping her restrained._

_"Hanyuu!" Chiaki shouted in concern as he rushed forward but stopped as a voice that sounded like Hanyuu's shouted, "Look out!" Chiaki turned to see something charge at him._

_Chiaki immediately threw himself flat on the concrete as something huge, green, and angry soared over him. It landed and swung its massive head from side to side, searching for its prey, and growled like a tone-deaf dog. Chiaki wondered what the creature was and where it'd come from. Was it those buds?_

_Chiaki was about to change into his Kamen Rider form but stopped as the creature turned to its side and seemed to bow. Chiaki follow its gaze to see a figure walking down a hidden flight of stairs._

_"So, you're the second intruder that has appeared in my domain," the man said as he stepped into the light. The man had greenish skin and thorny vines on his head, and had weed like protrusions coming out his back. He was naked except for his torn pants. His mouth appeared to be stuck in a morbid grin. Chiaki was briefly reminded of General Nagazawa._

_"I don't know what that bastard Gebok from X-SHOCKER is planning to do with this, but I demand that you let Hanyuu go!" Chiaki threatened._

_"X-SHOCKER? Gebok? I have no idea what you're talking about and frankly I don't give a damn," the man remamrked. Chiaki stopped for a moment. _

'_This guy wasn't from X-SHOCKER?'_

_"What I'm really interested is your friend there. Yes, most interested," the man said while nodding his head. "There have been other humans here, but they barely fed my child, yet when she was taken it, my darling plant, began to grow nice and healthy. It even gave birth to a new life form." He continued, "Whether it is because the woman inside is younger than the earlier specimens, or is this some form of divine intervention eludes me. Either way with my child growing at this rate, I can finally have the planet be free of its worst enemy, the humans, with this girl."_

_"Nani?" Chiaki shouted making the man look at him._

_"Ah yes, I nearly forgot about you, quite rude of me. Yes, quite rude indeed, Mensch-Zerstörend(1)!" The creature raised its head. "Take care of this fellow quickly. He has seen too much." The newly dubbed Mensch-Zerstörend roared as it whirled around to face Chiaki and lunged so fast there was no chance of dodging it again. He had only one chance._

_"Henshin!" Chiaki roared only having a split second to change into his Termite Rider form. The man grinned thinking his plant had won but frowned as he heard the death scream. It didn't sound like it was emanating from the human. It sounded like it was coming from the Mensch-Zerstörend._

_The man-plant blinked in shock as the plant felled to its side, a large wound piercing through the upper section of its skull, and standing tall was Kamen Rider Slasher with his two chainsaws out._

_"Shocking. Incomprehensibly shocking," the man murmured. "To think the second intruder had this power, not to mention his armor styling after that particular species of insects, how ominous. But even with chainsaws I'm afraid there's nothing you can do as new Mensch-Zerstörends will sprout soon and you can't kill them all." Slasher turned and frowned, noticing the other green buds were growing bigger and bigger with something stirring inside of them._

_'Damn, I need to free Hanyuu and take care of this guy's plant monsters,' Chiaki thought as he looked at Hanyuu._

_"Well, are you going to run away? It's understandable since you will be quickly outnumbered, and even the loyalty of friends can only go so far," the man said, only to jump as Chiaki exclaimed at him furiously._

_"SCREW YOU BASTARD! I ain't leaving without Hanyuu! She is the one who helped me have a new life! She is important to me and I refuse to leave her in your bloody hands!"_

_'Chiaki-san,' Hanyuu thought happily. Slasher then looked at the pod holding Hanyuu before charging forward._

_"Aha! You think I'll leave my child so defenseless?" the man boasted. Right as he finished, long and thick vines grew out of the plant and headed straight at Slasher. He just slashes at some of the vines before jumping high, and slashed the pod open. One chainsaw disappeared as he reached in and with a hard yank freed Hanyuu._

_"Hanyuu, are you ok?" Slasher asked and Hanyuu nodded in response. _

_She answered, "Yeah... just feeling a bit drained is all." Chiaki sighed in relief._

_"Good. Think you can bring us up through the hole up there?" Slasher said as he pulled out some grenades. _

_Hanyuu just smiled, realizing what he was going to do, "Most definitely."_

_"What are you brats doing!-?" the man screamed. Slasher ignored him as he removed the pins in the two grenades before stuffing them into the pod. Hanyuu quickly used her powers to levitate them quickly out of there. The man's eyes widened as he turned and ran from the 'plant' as it exploded in a fiery blaze._

_Both Chiaki and Hanyuu were above ground level, and only felt the large tremors when they touched the ground before it finally stopped._

_"That was close." Chiaki sighed as he undid his transformation. "Umm..." Chiaki turned to see Hanyuu blushing a bit _

_"Chiaki-san did you mean what you said back there... about me?" she asked._

_"Of course I did. If it wasn't for you, I would've just stuck with GIN-SHOCKER and attacked Shinichi, but not only did you gave me a new start, you were also the first friend I made when I was brought back to life. You're special to me Hanyuu-chan," Chiaki said smiling_

_Hanyuu's blush deepened before she bravely said, "Chiaki-san, there's something important I have to tell you."_

* * *

"So that's when you asked him," Shiori smiled.

"H-hai," Hanyuu said, blushing a bit.

"Oh, how romantic!"

"So, whatever happened to that plant guy?" Shinichi asked, wanting to have a 'word' with the bastard for trying to use Hanyuu as some kind of plant growth formula.

"We don't know. We checked all over but there was no trace of him left," Chiaki said, frowning. Outside, it was beginning to rain.

* * *

The white flash of the lightning tore the sky, illuminating everything. The figure from earlier waited for the darkness to return. When it did he continued his trek up the hill before finally stopping.

The trench coat clad figure was overlooking the village showing Hinamizawa in all of its glory. "Now to avenge the death of my first child." He ripped off his disguise to reveal his true nature. "So declare I, Bara!" He laughed darkly as monstrous creatures stood beside him

* * *

Chiaki was walking back to his house in the woods. He smiled, glad that Hanyuu's adopted family accepted him... well most of them. Shinichi seem to be struggling a bit, but hopefully he would come to terms with it. At least he played the part of the overprotective brother well. Rika and Kasai seemed to accept him well enough and so did Shiori who embarrassed them with questions about a future wedding date.

He stopped suddenly. Something wasn't right. The woods shouldn't be this quiet. His eyes widened as three thick root-like vines burst out of the ground and shot to stab at him. He quickly stepped out of the way as they pierced through a boulder, easily destroying it. Chiaki gulped. That could have easily been him. The vines retreated back into the ground. He quickly changed into Slasher to defend himself as the first two burst out of the ground. Slasher squatted down and slashed at the sides, cutting them down with his chainsaws.

The third popped out from behind him and move in for a decapitation strike. Slasher, however, moved to blocked it, his chainsaws cutting it in between as the left and right had separate from one another. He then slashed the main body.

Clapping could be heard as Bara walked towards him. Chiaki immediately recognized him as the plant-man from Germany.

"Well, well, it appears you've kept your skills sharp as ever, yes quite, quite sharp," Bara said. "Oh and before I forget, since I never properly introduced myself, my name is Bara. What is yours my good man?"

"What the hell do you want?" Slasher growled, ignoring Bara's question.

"I had three vines attack you in an attempt to kill you. what do you think I want?" Bara laughed. As slasher walked towards him Bara held up his hand, "Hold on now. Do you honestly think I just attacked you, or have you forgotten the girl's involvement?" Slasher stopped as Bara grinned.

"Do you remember my precious child, the one you viciously destroyed with your grenades? Apparently, it surprised even me. It used the energy that girl had and shot a small seed just seconds before it died. I was so relieved by that, especially when I discovered the second generation of the Mensch-Zerstörend's mother plant could grow much faster than the first generation. Look, you can see it in action right now!" Bara finished by pointing.

Slasher looked where he was pointing. He only saw the village at first, but his eyes widened as the alien like plant from long ago (but bigger) shot upward out of the ground, the buds surrounding it then started to unleash hundreds of Mensch-Zerstörend .

"Well, you can either fight me now or protect the village," Bara grinned.

"Shit!" Slasher cursed as he ran to the village.

"Well, I better head down there too. I can't leave the mother plant unattended," Bara said and using great acrobatic skills jumped into the trees and later the rooftops as his destination was the mother plant.

* * *

Keiichi stood in his kitchen, staring into the open refrigerator and debating whether to have a glass of coke or a bottle of beer. Both of his parents were out of town for an art auction and he promised to house-sit. He was about to make his decision but suddenly he screamed as something broke through the window. Keiichi screamed as he saw what was standing in front of him.

The thing was built like a short tree, with a short thick brown stem and root-like feet. The rest of its body was covered in leaves. And finally a mass of writhing, thorn-covered, green vines formed its face, with two glowing red eyes buried deep into the sides of its head.

Keiichi gulped as the monster looked at him. It snarled and slowly advanced towards the boy.

Nervously, Keiichi began to back away, thoiking _'Okay, here's the plan. Just keep away from that thing and don't turn your back to it. When you're far enough away from it, run for your life!'_

He was slowly backing away, unaware that he was close to one of his mother's plants. In his haste, he accidentally knocked it down and made it crash to the ground.

Keiichi looked at the plant in horror before looking back at the creature, who looked REALLY ticked about that. He screamed as the monster lunged, squeezing his eyes shut.

When nothing happened, he warily cracked one eye open to see Liger standing next to him. He'd broken in through the front door. His Viblades were out and the monster plant was cut to pieces. "Hey Keiichi," Liger Schneider greeted.

"Yuji, thank god you got here," Keiichi sighed in relief. "Do you have any idea where that thing came from?"

"You mean things. So far this thing has lots of friends and they are attacking everybody in the village," Liger said gesturing to the window. It was dark out but Keiichi could make out corpses of various creatures that were similar to the one which had attacked him.

"C-crap, what the hell are these things?" Keiichi questioned.

"Well, according to Hanyuu they come from this weird plant guy. I didn't get the full detail but it sounds like we're being invaded by things being led by the male equivalent of Poison Ivy," Liger explained. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to do some weed-whacking." Keiichi was confused but turned pale as he saw more Mensch-Zerstörend walking out of the darkness towards his house.

Liger just grinned underneath his helmet as he asked, "Who's first?" Before leaping out of Keiichi's house. Keiichi then went upstairs to grab his baseball bat, knowing he was going to need it.

* * *

It was chaos in Hinamizawa as swarms of Mensch-Zerstörend charged forward to attack the village in a demonic swarm. The NEO-NUMBERS and Alan were fighting the Mensch-zerstörends but it seemed that when one was taken down, two more would take their fallen kin's place. Hanyuu quickly got everyone up to speed on what these things were and who'd made them.

Hanyuu used her power of telekinesis to raise everything into the air before bashing them into the Mensch-Zerstörend. One on a rooftop glared at her before lunging down to kill her.

SLICE!

Hanyuu turned to see Slasher killing the plant monster with a decapitation blow and smiled in relief. When she didn't see him in a while, she thought that the monsters had got him.

Slasher was about to tell her about his meeting with Bara in the woods, when their communicators beeped. "What is it?"

Dr. Magi informed them, "_Everyone, I think I know how to stop these things. If you destroy the mother plant, you should be able to destroy the rest._"

"Are you sure?" Slasher asked

"_Not __really. We__ only recently discovered this after finding a strange frequency the mother plant__ is__ emitting, so it's a long shot_."

Both Hanyuu and Slasher looked uncertain but they nodded with Hanyuu saying. "We're just going to have to risk it then." After turning off their communicators Hanyuu turned to Chiaki and said, "You better go. I'll stay here and take care of these guys."

Slasher wanted to protest but knew that Hanyuu was right. With a nod he whispered, "Be careful." He then summon the Onigari no Ryouo and turned into Slayer Form before dashing forwards to take care of the mother plant.

* * *

AI-Shin floated above the streets. Like everyone he too heard about the plant monsters and decided to go there to help.

"_Man, who knew that some measly plants could do __this_," AI-Shin said as he floated around. He then stopped and nearly screamed. He floated close to the mother plant and investigated a pod. Inside was a human who looked completely mummified. Gulping as he saw more pods, he activated his sensors to check for any life signs in any of them. They were all negative.

"_Shit, no wonder it got so big. It had a smorgasbord of human life-force before getting __here_," AI-Shin murmured. He then noticed that plant guy that Hanyuu had mentioned. He also remembered Shinichi mentioning to him that this guy put Hanyuu in one of these pods. He growled darkly as he charged his laser.

"HEHEHE! Everything is going as planned!" Bara laughed, unaware that AI-Shin was hovering behind him with his eye glowing red. Bara heard the laser charging up and turned.

"Hey, asshole! Eat this!" AI-Shin called.

FLASH!

The laser blast pierced through Bara's body. The man gurgled in pain before falling backwards

"_That's for kidnapping my sister, asshole!__ How'd like that!-?_" AI-Shin snapped. He turned around to attack the mother plant with another laser blast he was charging up.

"Oh my, I don't recall kidnapping a floating ball's sister," Bara said making AI-Shin gawk as he saw the Bara he'd change to a dead Mensch-Zerstörend

"_Son of a bitch, he pulled a __Gebok__ on me!_" AI-Shin cursed. Bara quickly grabbed AI-Shin and threw him at another Mensch-Zerstörend who opened its mouth to catch the Sphere Droid before gnawing on him.

"AHH! I feel like a dog's favorite chew toy on an average Tuesday!" AI-Shin screamed as the Mensch-Zerstörend left. Bara turned to his clone and muttered, "You served your purpose well." He made that one to help protect the mother plant in case intruder arrives. He didn't suspect someone with that strong of a laser to appear to take it down.

He waited, knowing that. He grinned as he saw Slasher walked towards him. He'd ordered the plant monsters to give a clear path to this one when they turned their attention to the mother plant.

"So, you finally reached the mother plant, Kamen Rider?" Bara questioned.

"I have, but now you'll wish I hadn't," Slasher said pointing the Onigari no Ryuou at him.

"Heh, we'll see about that," Bara grinned as his hands begin to mutate. They looked like demonic roses with teeth in them. He quickly unleashed a barrage of petals as sharp as steel and sharp as knives. Slasher swung his sword, destroying them before heading straight at Bara. The human plant mutant and the Termite Kaizo Ningen charged forward at each other.

Bara swatted the sword away, and delivered a side kick to Slasher's gut. Slasher grunted in pain but used his free hand to grab Bara's right hand from its attempt to bite his throat off. He sharply head-butted Bara, causing him to grunt in pain. He quickly screamed in pain as Slasher harshly stabbed him in the leg, causing him to stumble back.

Slasher used this to run past him "Evil slaying..." Slasher whispered as he jumped up. The Onigari no Ryuou glowing brightly as he finished, "EXPLOSION!" He stabbed the full length of his sword into the mother plant. It glowed bright before exploding in a golden pillar of light.

* * *

All Mensch-Zerstörend stopped as if sensing something before falling down. To those witnessing it, they saw the plant monsters quickly decaying and rotting away.

"The big lug did it," said Showa, impressed.

* * *

"No..." Bara uttered in shock, seeing his mother plant destroyed once again with Slasher standing in front of him. "NOO!" Bara swung one his demon rose-arm at Slasher but Bara cried out, dropping to the floor along with his severed arm.

"It's over," Slasher muttered as Bara glared at him.

"Bastard…" Bara growled as he tried to get up unaware as a large rock was hovering over him before dropping down and hitting him violently on the head.

"AND _THAT WAS FOR USING ME AS A CHEW TOY FOR ONE OF YOUR PET MONSTERS!_" AI-Shin shouted as he floated toward them with chew marks on him. Slasher just walked towards the downed Bara and sealed him using his C3 System.

* * *

It has been a week since Bara's revenge attempt. Luckily, Showa was able to undo all the damages done by the plant mutant with his time manipulation ability and reversed everything.

We see Bara sitting in his cell in the Vault glaring darkly. "Just you wait... I will lead the plants to destroy this world of man," Bara muttered as his arm slowly but surely regenerated, "Count on it."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The idea of this chapter and most of it was written by Snake Screamer and thanks to him we have Chiaki getting the spotlight. Thank you, Snake Screamer, for your wonderful contribution to KRxGL. BTW, 'Mensch' is German for human while 'Zerstörend' is German for killing**


	61. The Legacy of Cain Part 5

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 5: Mist of Darkness**

**By: Kamen Rider Bushido**

Today was the day, a day that would live in infamy for Maria Ushiromiya-Fudo. Today was the anniversary of the f the death of her mother, Rosa Ushiromiya. Exactly 1 year ago today, Rosa was murdered at the hands of Kiba Ryuuho, the Dragon Orphenoch. Thankfully, her father, Yuji Fudo, made that horrible demon pay for taking her mama away from her. Now her soul could finally rest in peace. She was thankful to have such a loving father, but she did miss her birth mother after all. Right now, she was in her world, in an apartment that Yuji had rented along with his harem as they spent time in her world.

Maria was playing with Sakutaro and her Dratini, Rune. She had received the female Dragon Pokémon as a Christmas gift from Yuji and she absolutely adored the serpentine creature as much as she loved Sakutaro and the rest of her family. Asura, Lilith, Stella, Sora, Melanie, Phoebe, and Reina were all wonderful women in her eyes. However, none of them were her "Mama," the person who had been with her since the beginning. Now, she was gone, and she could never come back. Or so little Maria thought…

A knock at the door was heard and Yuji opened the door. "Maria," he called, "Let's go, baby."

"Coming, Papa," Maria smiled. She pulled out her Pokéball and recalled Rune as she slung Sakutaro onto her back and ran for the door.

"I miss Mama too," Sakutaro admitted.

"It's OK," Maria consoled, "She's in a better place now." And she left the room.

Yuji and Maria walked through the living room, hand in hand, as they made their way to the door.

"Going out today, master?" Phoebe inquired as she rolled around the floor. She was playing with Gible and Axew, Yuji's Pokémon he had received from Leon for Christmas.

"Yeah," Yuji nodded. "Today's the day."

"I see," Melanie nodded as she sat by the counter.

"Well, have a safe trip, you two," Stella cautioned.

"Just call us if you need anything," Asura reminded.

"And we'll be on the way," Lilith beamed.

Axew and Gible both ran to Yuji as they pulled on his pant leg, uttering their cries as they wanted to join the two.

"OK," Yuji chuckled as he recalled the two Dragons into their Pokéballs. He and Maria made their out the door as it closed behind them.

"I hope they'll be alright," Sora frowned sadly.

"Master can take care of himself," Reina reminded the Kaizo Ningen.

* * *

At the cemetery, the Ushiromiya family was present at Rosa's grave. Rosa's siblings gave their prayers as her nephews and niece did as well. Battler had brought Beato along; who had also gave her prayer. Even Kinzo had come to pay his respects for his youngest child. Even he believed she did not deserve such a fate, and he believed that she was truly happy with Yuji before her murder.

The sound of a humming engine could be heard as everyone turned to see Yuji's D-Wheel come in from the street gate. Maria had been riding in a sidecar as they pulled up to the sidewalk. Yuji lifted the wing and hoisted Maria onto the sidewalk as he disembarked his bike. A bouquet of roses was in his hands as Maria had a smaller set in hers. The Ushiromiyas remained silent as the two approached the grave of their beloved mother/fiancé. They both laid the bouquets before the tombstone and each got on one knee as they clasped their hands and bowed their heads.

"It's done, Rosa," Yuji muttered. "You have been avenged. May the Crimson Dragon carry you to peace in the afterlife."

"U," Maria nodded as she gave her own silent prayer for her loving mother, now passed. They then stood up and joined the rest of the Ushiromiya family.

"Glad you made it," said Rudolph. "It wouldn't be right without you."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world, and if the world tried to stop me I'd just run it over," said Yuji.

Battler knew that Yuji had avenged his Aunt Rosa by killing the man who'd taken her life. It brought some relief to him as that psycho would no longer be around to hurt anybody ever again.

Meanwhile, Anastasia was in spectral form, hiding her presence as she watched from afar. She wore a scowl on her face as she watched the Ushiromiyas at Rosa's grave for the anniversary of her death. Her scowl then turned into a very wicked smile. She had something prepared for Yuji, something that would break his spirit. He would pay for humiliating her.

Kinzo walked to them as he spoke, "I take it you did what needed to be done then?"

Yuji nodded, "Yes. Rosa's killer has been dealt with; permanently."

"I see," Hideyoshi nodded. "That's good to hear, Yuji-kun."

"So, who was it, boy?" Eva had to ask. "I'm curious as to the identity of the beast that murdered my sister in cold blood."

Yuji frowned as he stared at his gloved hand, clenching his fingers as the phantom pains returned to flood his mind, "He was someone I once considered a friend and ally, a long time ago. But he betrayed us…and murdered my first girlfriend…!"

The Ushiromiyas adopted blanched expressions as they witnessed the turmoil expressed in Yuji's words.

Natsuhi and Kyrie put comforting hands on Yuji's soldiers.

"If it's any consolation, Fudo-kun," Natsuhi started.

"You would've made an excellent member of the family," Kyrie finished with a warm smile.

Yuji nodded, "Thank you both. Maria and I will stick around for a bit."

Krauss nodded and looked to everyone, signaling to give the two some space.

As they were left in silence, Yuji thought to himself, _'With all the magic in my possession, even I cannot revive the dead…'_

"_It's a rule, Yuji,"_ Bahamut reminded.

"_I know,"_ he admitted.

"Never thought I'd be seeing my own name on a tombstone," a voice spoke.

Yuji's eyes snapped open as he turned around and gasped, "What the...?"

Maria looked up at him, "What is it, Papa?"

She turned and gasped at the sight she saw. There stood Rosa, with a smile on her face and looking better than new.

"Hello, Yuji," she smiled before looking down at her daughter, "Maria, you're looking fine today."

"Rosa..." Yuji tried to call as tears welled up in his eyes as he approached the woman who should be dead. But she was right there, in front of his eyes!

Maria sniffled, "Mama... MAMA!-!" she cried as she hugged her tightly.

Rosa hugged her daughter before shooting Yuji a playful grin, "Yuji, aren't you going to give me a hug?"

Yuji said nothing as he embraced the woman, silently crying as he felt her body again. However... something was amiss...Yuji looked down at his daughter, "Maria, can you go find Battler and hang out with him for a little bit? Your mom and I need to talk alone for a minute."

"OK, Papa!" she beamed as she walks off, looking for her cousin.

Yuji turns to Rosa with a somber look, "It really is good to see you again, Rosa."

Rosa nodded, "Yes it is, Yuji."

"Do you like my gift, Yuji Fudo?" Anastasia inquired as she appeared before the two.

Yuji glared at the Witch of Terror, "Should've known it was you, Ana. No one else I know has the power to raise the dead while they still reek with the stench of death. Leon would do a better job than you, if he could."

"Well, aren't you happy to see her?" the witched smirked, "To be able to hold her in your arms? Maria looks happy, doesn't she?"

"Just one problem," he added, "This Rosa's not the same as she once was, is she?-! You did something to her, didn't you!-? I can smell your darkness coming off her in waves!"

Anastasia shrugged, "Reviving the dead isn't a perfect magic. She's little more than a living corpse."

"Thus she lacks her soul," he countered, "the one thing that made her more beautiful than her appearance ever could!"

**Music – "Dark Signers"**

Then, it happened. His Manakyte mark began to burn with a bright crimson glow.

"ARGH…!-!-!-!" he screamed as he held his right forearm in agonizing pain.

"_Yuji, what is it?-!"_ Bahamut demanded.

"Argh...Dammit, why is my mark acting up?-!" he shouted.

"_Yuji, look at Rosa's arm!"_

On Rosa's right arm, a stencil of a single avian wing shone with an eerie purple glow.

Anastasia then grinned wickedly, "Let the games begin."

* * *

Asura's head snapped up as she stood up, as did Yuji's Pokégirls.

"What is it?" Sora asked.

"Yuji's in danger," Asura and Stella answered in unison.

* * *

"AHHH!-!" Yuki shouted in pain as she clutched her right forearm tightly.

"Mistress," Crystal gasped as she knelt to Yuki's side, "What is it?"

"My mark…it burns…" Yuki struggled to say. "We have to get to Onii-sama. He's in danger!"

* * *

Yuri glared at his own Manakyte mark with disdain and discomfort. The pain was excruciating, but he was able to keep his composure.

"Dammit," he growled.

"What is it?" Kikyo cocked an eyebrow.

"It appears that my brother has gotten himself into deep trouble this time," Yuri answered with a grim look on his face.

* * *

Rosa flashed the mark and was covered in a pillar of purple light that shot into the sky. The cursed light faded and Rosa had taken on a new, otherworldly appearance. She was now dressed in black clothes that showed off her arms, midriff, and legs as she wore black crop top, boots, and a skirt that reached her knees. The garbs were trimmed in gold and a gold triangle lay under her right eye as she now developed a black sclera to go wither her distant brown eyes. At the same time, the sky turned dark with massive cloud cover as a purple glowing stencil glyph of an avian wing hovered over the city.

"What the hell...?" Yuji gaped.

"_Be careful, Yuji,"_ Bahamut warned, _"Ancient evil is at work here..."_

"Ancient...?" he muttered before his eyes shot open with realization, "Wait, you don't mean...!"

"_Dark Signer..."_

"But that's impossible!" Yuji denied. "The Earthbound Gods were sealed away years ago by dad and the others! They told me the stories! And that mark... A single wing?There's no Nazca of that!"

Rosa smiled softly,"I'm afraid it's time for you to die, Yuji," before she shot an almost-hateful glare,"You have to pay for letting your own fiancé die, after all."

Maria and Battler approached the group and Battler gawked, "Aunt Rosa?-! But I thought you were dead! And what's with the outfit?-!"

Maria blinked but wore a dark frown, "You're not Mama…"

Battler looked down to her, "What do you mean, Maria?"

"UU, that's not Mama," she pointed.

"What do you mean?" Yuji demanded.

"That woman is evil! She's not my nice Mama!" Maria stated angrily. "This Mama was very mean to me before Papa came!"

Anastasia cocked an eyebrow, "Huh?"

"Wait, you're saying that this is Rosa's dark side?" Yuji concluded.

"UU," Maria nodded. "When Mama met you, Papa, she tried her best to keep the evil Mama away from you. So I snuck into her room when she was asleep, and painted a special seal onto her back with a special ink that becomes invisible." She rolled up her right sleeve to reveal a small tattoo of the 5th Pentacle of Mars on her arm. "I put this mark on Mama to keep the evil Mama from getting out."

"I guess that tattoo then was more than just a tramp stamp," Yuji murmured beneath his breath.

"And because of you, during our time _together_," D-Rosa said, "I was slowly being freed."

"_Great,"_ Bahamut muttered, _"Yuji's libido has doomed us all."_

"Now then," D-Rosa said, "Let's duel, Yuji. It'll be your last ride before you die."

"Hold on," Maria interrupted. She reached into her little purse and pulled out a deck of her own cards. "I'm dueling too," she declared.

Anastasia snickered, "You wish to die as well, little witch-girl?"

Yuji looked to Maria, "Maria, you can't be serious…"

"UU, I am serious," Maria said.

"This duel won't be like the others," he pressed on. "According to the stories, we could get messed up pretty badly."

"We have to do this, Papa," she urged. "We have to kill the evil Mama or else Mama's soul won't be whole!"

Yuji sighed, "Alright, Maria. If this is what you want, we'll do this together."

D-Rosa smirked, "Actually, it won't be THAT kind of duel.

"What do you mean?" asked Yuji.

"I'll leave you two alone," Anastasia grinned as she disappeared, setting herself at a distance to enjoy the show.

"If you want to know, Yuji, then come with me," D-Rosa ordered as she walked over to the gates.

Yuji followed the Dark Signer as they left the gate and were met with the sight of Yuki and Yuri on the D-Wheels. Yuki's D-Wheel was metallic blue with silver accents and stream-lined for speed. Yuri's D-Wheel was black with glowing green accents and was pretty demonic-looking as the body frame was skeletal in appearance.

"Yuki, Yuri!" Yuji identified.

Yuki's gaze fell on Rosa as she removed her helmet. "Rosa-san…"

"Nice to see you too, Yuki," D-Rosa greeted. Her eyes fell on Yuri, "And you would be Yuri, right? I don't think I've had the chance of meeting you."

"I don't stay still for long," he smirked.

"He has a habit of staying out of contact until he decides to say hello in his own ways," Yuji added.

"No matter," she dismissed, "It's time for our duel to begin."

"You said it wouldn't be _that_ kind of duel," said Yuji. "What do you mean?"

"It'll be a death race, just you against me. None of those silly card games you love so much," sheered D-Rosa.

Over by White Blaze was a long D-Wheel that was a dark, golden, color and had a single wing on the rear fender.

"Shall we get this show underway?" D-Rosa asked with a condescending smirk.

Yuji said nothing as he got in his seat as he put on his own helmet, which was themed after the head of Liger Zero, with a red visor.

D-Rosa raised her arm as the Dark Signer mark glowed brightly. Purple flames, parallel to each other, erupted from the ground as they flared through the streets etching a kind of design. When it was done, the flames drew out a glyph of a single avian wing throughout the entire city.

* * *

"What the hell?" Rudolph gaped as he saw the flames surrounding the cemetery.

"What is the meaning of this?" Eva demanded.

Hideyoshi gaped as he looked up and pointed, "Up there!" The Ushiromiya family looked up to gaze at D-Rosa's mark as it hung high above their heads in the sky.

"What is going on?" Battler frowned to himself.

Kinzo showed no worry on his face, but showed great concern. That mark was the same as his family's crest, but it was purple instead of gold.

"Minna," Yuki called as she and her brother halted before them. Maria was with them to stay out of danger.

"Yuki-san," Battler identified, "What are you doing here?" He then noticed some other girls approaching.

"Where's Yuji?" Asura asked Yuki as the rest of Yuji's harem arrived.

"He's fighting," Yuri answered.

"It's Rosa," Yuki continued.

"Rosa?" Kyrie cocked an eyebrow.

"That's impossible," Krauss admonished. "My sister is dead!"

"Not anymore," Yuri frowned. "That bitch of a witch decided to piss on Rosa's grave."

* * *

"Our battlefield," Yuji mused as he glared at D-Rosa.

"That's right," she replied. "This fieldcovers the entire city. This will be our playground."

"Let's go," Yuji said as he revved the engine.

The two bikes then screeched their tires before taking off into the street. "Henshin!" declared Yuji.

"**ZERO FORM!"**

D-Rosa had a surprise for Yuji as she declared, "Henshin!" Her body became covered in darkness which then morphed. When the dark energy solidified she was clad in dark armor modeled after her Dark Signer outfit with a single right wing jutting from her back. Her helmet was modeled after an eagle with a black visor held within the bird's beak. She had become Kamen Rider Sephir. She then sped up and led Liger Zero to his doom.

Meanwhile, Anastasia decided to make things interesting and with a wave of her wand executed her plan. Suddenly, every single TV screen in the world showed static before showing her face as she spoke to her captive audience, "Do not attempt to change the channel, mortals. I am the Witch of Terror. I control the vertical and the horizontal and I also control what you see. Tonight, and only tonight, you will see the greatest duel in history! If you love card games and high speed chases along with motorcycle races, you do not want to miss this grand show! Remember, for one night only, you shall see a family being put against each other! Don't miss the show!" she then cackled as the television screens all showed D-Rosa and Yuji riding on their bikes.

Anastasia was also using her Soldats de la Terreur to record the action from all angles, giving them cameras in order to do so.

"Hey, do you think she'll pay us overtime?" asked Goemon.

"I sure hope so," said Jin. "I refuse to work for free."

"Hey, Kamiyami, stop pointing that camera at yourself!" snapped Saisen.

"This camera should only gaze at my brilliance," Kamiyami declared.

"Hmph," Misato snorted.

* * *

The two bikes continued to speed and Sephir was the first to make her move as she shot her hand at Liger Zero and fired energy bolts in the shape of golden feathers. They struck the White Blaze's armor and Liger Zero was nearly knocked off balance. However, he was still able to maintain his equilibrium before he was sent off the course. He gazed at Sephir who smirked and then he got in close to land a slash across her body but she decelerated and the claw swipe missed. She got behind him and then shot more energy bolts at Liger Zero's White Blaze but he swerved around to dodge.

The bolts flew past him and he gritted his teeth. Normally, he wouldn't hesitate in his fights but this was different. This wasn't just any enemy. This was Rosa, the mother of Maria, and the woman he loved that he'd lost.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the Hive, the NEO-NUMBERS had been summoned by Dr. Magi. They all knew about it as they'd seen it on their own television screens. Rena and Alan were also present as well and they'd seen the action from the beginning.

"So, that's Rosa," murmured Shinichi. Yuji had told him about how much he loved Rosa but this was just too cruel. Yuji shouldn't be fighting against the woman he loved even if she was a reanimated corpse that had been corrupted by darkness.

"Will Yuji win?" Rena asked.

"He has to, but the stakes are really high," answered Shinichi.

"If he loses, he will die. But if he wins, Rosa dies again," Alan added. "Either way, the Witch of Terror gets what she wants and that is to cause pain to Yuji."

"So, what are we waiting for?" asked Daichi. "Let's get over there!"

"_Negative_," denied Sheila. "_Unable to lock onto coordinates_."

"And we shouldn't interfere," stated Shinichi. "This is a duel, so we can only watch."

"Just watch?" Daichi angrily questioned.

"Watch and pray that Yuji finds a way out of this," Shinichi finished.

"Not interfere, huh?" Daichi asked Shinichi.

"We can only support them from here, in spirit," said Shinichi. "From what I can see, Yuji has everything under control." Rosa had been revived by the Witch of Terror so Anastasia may have given Rosa the knowledge and skills to fight against Yuji on an equal playing field.

* * *

Back at the house of Shiori Banabara, she was with her family who was also watching the duel. AI-Shin was there as well and let out a sigh of relief as he spoke, "_Thank God. I thought he was finished there._"

Hanyuu and Rika had their hands clenched while Shiori was sympathetic. No matter the outcome, someone was going to die. It was just so unfair it seemed. Shiori remembered how Lina had been revived as a cyborg, only to lose her life again. Now Yuji was in a life or death duel against the woman he loved. It was just too cruel to watch.

* * *

Liger Zero spun his bike around and sped towards Sephir who was shocked by the move and his claw slashed against her side, causing her to cry out as sparks flew. She sped up and Liger Zero spun his bike back around to catch up with her. Her single wing spread out and then the feathers aimed at Liger Zero before she unleashed a rapid salvo of feathers like arrows at Liger Zero. He tried to dodge them all but there were too many and he was hit. "Argh!" he shouted as he was bombarded and nearly knocked off his ride but he kept his grip on the handlebars.

"It'll take more than that to get me off!" Liger Zero shouted.

"I know," she purred. "I remember those nights fondly."

* * *

"Yeah! Show that witch what you got, Yuji!" Mion cheered as she was with Keiichi at his place and watching the duel on his TV set.

* * *

Yuri and Yuki's D-Wheels were equipped with monitors which allowed them to keep track of the duel that was commencing. The screens showed the actual fight that was occurring while the Ushiromiya Family was with the two Fudos and watching the action with expressions of disbelief. This was just so surreal.

"I can't believe I'm watching this," uttered Jessica.

"Is it just me, or does Rosa look hot?" asked Rudolph, earning him odd looks. "You were all thinking it!" he shot back.

"But Rosa's dead," insisted Eva, "Isn't she?"

"She was, but a bitch brought her back to life," said Yuri.

"You mean a witch," Yuki corrected.

"Same difference," Yuri countered.

* * *

Beatrice, Bernkastel and Lambdadelta were watching the fight as well while having a tea party. Each of them had gold coins to use in betting on the outcome of the duel. Anastasia had told them beforehand about the game she had prepared for their entertainment and it looked just as interesting as she'd promised.

"So, Beatrice," began Bernkastel, "I don't need to ask since your answer is obvious but who do you bet on to win?"

"I wager 6 gold coins for Yuji to win," said Beatrice.

"Well, I'll see that bet and raise you 5 more gold coins that he loses!" Lambdadelta laughed. "And in the name of Witch of Absolution he will absolutely not win!"

"I will wager 10 gold coins on Yuji as he will win," added Bernkastel.

"Bern!-?" Lambdadelta gaped, betrayed.

"It's nothing personal," Bernkastel responded, "This is a game after all and we are all opponents. It's only natural for me to bet against you."

"Aw~, that's my Bern!" Lambdadelta glomped the Witch of Miracles. Lambdadelta grinned, "Still, will he be able to fight until the end, knowing the consequences of winning?"

* * *

Liger Zero sped up alongside Sephir and said, "It's not too late, Rosa! We can stop this!"

"Sorry, Yuji, but it's too late for that. But it's not too late for some tough love!" declared Sephir as she took a feather from her wing and it morphed into a battle axe. She then swung at his neck, nearly beheading him if he hadn't ducked. He then grabbed her axe by its shaft and ripped it out of her hand.

"No, I'm sorry," said Liger Zero and then he jabbed the end of the axe's shaft into the front wheel of Sephir's bike, causing it to lock up. Sephir shrieked as she was thrown off her bike and then was sent tumbling along the ground.

* * *

"That…" Shinichi let out a breath of relief when he saw Liger Zero duck the axe, "Was too close."

"He's stalling," observed Alan.

"Can you blame him?" asked Shinichi. "He's facing the woman he loves. The one who died and was revived. If I were him I'd want to spend a little more time with her. Just…not like this."

"Yuji's already feeling enough pain as it is," said Alan. "If he wins, Rosa dies. If he loses, he dies. Either way, someone is going to lose their life in this duel and Yuji isn't the type to sacrifice others."

* * *

"Aw~" pouted Lambdadelta. "He spoiled it."

Bernkastel looked to Beatrice who was nibbling on her knuckles. "Nervous, Golden Witch?"

"No, Bernkastel," Beatrice replied. She had faith in Yuji. She always had, and she always will. After all, he was family, and was capable of turning a terrible situation around.

* * *

"Curses!" Anastasia hissed as she saw Yuji dodge death again.

Kamiyami quipped, "Maybe you should've spent more time coaching her at fighting, Anastasia-_sama_." Suddenly, he was brought to his knees by immense pain.

"Silence, Kamiyami. If I wanted your opinion I'd torture you for it," Anastasia said coldly. As much as she wanted Yuji to suffer, she wanted him to die. That was what he deserved for getting in her way.

* * *

Shinichi's fists were clenching and unclenching as he continued to watch the fight. "This isn't fair…" He thought that he hated Anastasia before but the way she was using D-Rosa against Yuji was just despicable. It reminded him of how Gebok had revived Lina and made her into Electric Butterfly.

* * *

Liger Zero pulled his bike over and walked towards Sephir who was slowly getting back to her feet.

"Yuji," said Sephir and Liger Zero looked up as she looked straight at him. "I thought you'd always protect me but now you're fighting me. You promised, didn't you?"

Liger Zero's hand began to tremble as he heard those words. "Rosa…" But then he shook it off. This wasn't Rosa. This was something Anastasia brought back and corrupted with her dark Terror Magic. Still, he was beginning to hesitate. He remembered making that promise and the night he had been unable to keep it.

* * *

"This is bad," murmured Yuki. "She's trying to get into his head."

"Mind games," Yuri acknowledged. "If she wasn't fighting Yuji to the death right now I think I would like her."

"There really is nothing we can do, is there?" asked Battler.

"If we interfere, the party we are interfering on behalf on will automatically forfeit," Yuki told him.

"Basically, if we get in the way Yuji is as good as dead," said Yuri.

"Mama…Papa…" Maria uttered miserably.

* * *

"Hey, what's wrong with you?" Goemon asked Misato.

"Huh?" Misato responded. She'd been in deep thought since the start of the duel.

"You've been acting funny," Goemon told her, "Heck, you've been acting funny for a few months now. You go off without explanation and-"

"Shut up before I splatter your guts," she threatened, her eyes glowing crimson and Goemon let the matter drop.

Misato was thinking, '_Come on, Yuji. Don't let her get into your head._'

* * *

Sephir plucked two feathers from her single wing and now dual-wielded a pair of swords with curved blades. She then charged at Liger Zero and began swinging at him viciously. Liger Zero stayed on the defensive as he blocked with his claws but that was a mistake. The sparks from the impact flew but then Sephir's single wing spread and she unleashed another barrage of feather-shaped bolts at Liger Zero, sending him staggering back. She then lunged and slashed him with her swords again before she spun and knocked him to the ground with a kick to the head.

"You're not even trying," whispered Sephir.

"I don't want to fight you, Rosa," said Liger Zero as he rose back to his feet.

"You're right," replied Sephir. "I wouldn't want to fight me either." She spun her swords and they glowed with gold energy before she lunged forward and performed an X-shaped slash which caused an explosion. Liger Zero was thrown backwards.

Sephir then blurred out of sight and Liger Zero was hit from all angles by high speed slashes, sparks flying off his armor. Then Sephir used a heel kick that knocked him skyward before she jumped up and attacked with a series of vicious slashes before using a roundhouse kick to send him soaring. Liger Zero was sent skidding along the ground as Sephir landed.

As much as Liger Zero wanted to fight, he couldn't, this was Rosa. However, Abyss, in the back of the head, told him, '_Do you want Maria to lose both her parents?_' If Yuji lost here then Anastasia would claim his and Rosa's souls which would leave Maria devastated.

He got up and then swiped his Liger Pass across his belt.

"**JAGER FORM!"**

The blue armor attached to his body. His ion boosters activated and he rushed at Sephir at high speed. Sephir countered and started moving at high speeds as well. Impacts could be heard but not seen as a black and orange blur collided with a blue blur.

If one would look at normal speed, Sephir was trying to take down Liger Jager but he was faster and able to counter and block her attacks. He then shattered her swords much to her surprise before he used a kick aimed at a midsection to push her backwards.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

His blue armor was replaced with orange and he activated his Vi-Blades. He then attacked Sephir but he didn't put all his power into the strikes. Sephir was using her single wing as a shield to block his strikes but they became too much for her. He did have another surprise for her.

Jumping up to avoid the Vi-Blades, Sephir's single wing spread wide and feather-shaped energy bolts rained down on Liger Schneider.

"**PANZER FORM!"**

The green Panzer Form was heavily armored so the attack didn't do much harm. He felt the impacts but not the pain caused by them.

Sephir felt apprehensive as she saw the cannons and then decided to make a break for it while taunting, "Catch me if you can!"

Liger Panzer grinned as he muttered, "I like it when they play hard to get. Suzaku!" The mechanical phoenix cawed as it flew to Yuji and he returned to his Zero Form. "Power Link!" The phoenix broke into pieces and locked onto Zero's armor as Yuji took the skies. "Liger Zero! Phoenix Mode!" He then followed after Sephir with his new wings, making her do a double take before turning to fire more bolts at him. Zero Phoenix dodged the blasts like a fighter jet and his machine guns fired several rounds that were easily evaded by the one-winged dark angel. The chase went through every skyscraper as the aerial game of cat and mouse went on.

Sephir then plucked a feather from her wing which morphed into a nodachi and turned around. "Kazegiri!" she called as she swung wildly, launching gold blade of wind at the feline Rider.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"**Strike Diving Claw!**" Zero Phoenix called as he launched his own energy attack. The two attacks collided as the resulting shockwave destroyed the glass window around them.

The two flew at each other and clashed blade with claws, but claws broke first and Sephir stabbed Zero Phoenix right through the chest, piercing him all the way, causing him to freeze and cough blood though his mouth plate as his armor shattered. Sephir said nothing as she kicked Yuji off her nodachi and sent him plummeting to the ground with thunderous crash, leaving the distraught Manakyte in a crater and a slow-rising puddle of his own blood.

* * *

"PAPA!" Maria screamed as she saw her father lying in a pool of his own blood.

"Yuji…" uttered Yuki in horror. She knew this was likely to happen. When fighting a loved one Yuji could not go all out and Anastasia knew that. She knew that Yuji would not be able to finish Rosa off.

* * *

Sephir slowly walked towards Yuji and then with magic pulled him into her grip with her hand wrapped around his neck. "You let me die, Yuji. You promised to protect me and you let me die…"

"Rosa…I'm so sorry…" said Yuji.

"Not yet you're not," said Sephir and then she started to zap Yuji with energy from the Dark Signer mark that was glowing in the sky. Lightning bolts struck him, causing him to howl out in pain. "Do you feel that, Yuji? That's the pain I felt!" She continued to attack with the lightning bolts.

* * *

"Papa!" Maria shouted as she saw her undead mother torturing her adopted father. "Papa!"

"This is…all wrong," Yuki uttered. They wished they could stop it but there was a barrier preventing outside interference. There was nothing they could do.

"Yuki-neechan, we need to go to Papa!" Maria begged. "Please!"

* * *

Yuji's body was racked with pain as each bolt hit but despite the pain he was feeling, the pain Sephir was feeling in her heart was three-times worse.

Sephir dropped Yuji's body and began to tremble. She was also heaving. She should be enjoying this but she couldn't. Something inside her made her stop her torture on him. "Yuji…why…?" she asked. "Why won't you fight back…?"

Yuji's body, smoking from the electrifying attacks, began to recover as he slowly rose to his feet. "Because Rosa…I love you…"

"Yuji…" she whispered. "Shut up!" She fired a bolt at him and it grazed his cheek.

"You know I could never hurt you," said Yuji as he walked closer to her. She began to back away. "Rosa…"

"Stop it! Stay away from me!" Sephir shouted, freaking out as Yuji began to approach her. It was those eyes. Those eyes frightened her. His eyes weren't filled with malicious intent. They were filled with tenderness and it frightened her corrupted soul to the core. "YOU LET ME DIE, YUJI! YOU LET ME DIE!"

Though they were hidden by her visor, tears were streaming from her eyes as she continued to scream and attack Yuji with energy bolts.

* * *

In the eyes of the Soldats D-Rosa was looking a bit unstable. This did not go unnoticed by Anastasia either.

"It looks like your little toy is starting to break," jeered Kamiyami but then Anastasia shot him a look which caused him to burst into black butterflies. However, she could not deny Kamiyami's words.

"A broken doll…is worthless," said Anastasia. "Time to cut the puppet's strings."

* * *

"I'm sorry, Rosa. I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry I wasn't able to protect you and our baby," Yuji continued to apologize. "But I am not sorry for ever meeting you. Let me help you, Rosa. Please…"

Sephir was clutching her helmet covered head as she hissed, "Shut up…shut up…" Yuji was stirring up emotions and memories within her. She remembered the tender moments they shared up until her death. Her memories had been messed with by Anastasia so that she could fight Yuji without hesitation but then she finally remembered her final moments.

* * *

_The Dragon Orphenoch spat, "Like I said you're weak, Fudo! You've relied too much on that armor that you've sealed up your real power! It's disgusting! Not as disgusting as taking on a human mate, but still it disgusts me!" He started to make his way towards Yuji but then Rosa got in front of the Dragon Orphenoch to block his path. "Oh, what's this then?"_

"_Don't you dare come any closer!" Rosa threatened. In her hands was a rifle and she knew how to use it. Her father, Kinzo Ushiromiya, always made it a point to train his children in the use of guns in case they needed them. The gun Rosa had was something she'd kept inside her nightstand drawer for protection, but this time she was going to use it in order to protect her happiness._

_She knew it was hopeless, but at least she could distract this monster long enough to buy Yuji some time in order to recover. It was risky, but by now she was willing to do anything to protect her beloved._

"_Well, then take your best shot," the Dragon Orphenoch challenged and she did. She pulled the trigger and fired a shot directly into his face. There was a loud bang but despite the bullet hitting its mark, it did nothing. Rosa backed away as she continued shooting, all the while the Dragon Orphenoch was advancing. She pulled the trigger again and to her horror discovered she had run out of bullets. "Sorry, it was fun while it lasted, but now it's time your worthless life ends." He struck with his claws and impaled her right in the gut. Rosa's eyes widened as she was stabbed by the claws and blood splattered the ground. Ryuuho withdrew his hand and watched as Rosa collapsed and a pool of blood formed under her. "Humans are such fragile things, aren't they?"_

_Yuji's eyes went beady as he tried to process what just happened and realized…"ROSAAAA!-!-!-!"_

"_MAMA!-!-!" Maria shrieked and she ran out of the house. "MAMA!"_

* * *

"I…I died to protect…Yuji and Maria…" she finally began to recall.

* * *

_Volcanic Dragon turned back into Yuji as he ran to Rosa's body, "Rosa! Rosa!" He knelt down and cradled her body, "Rosa, talk to me! Come on!"_

_Rosa slowly opened her eyes and smiled weakly, "Yuji…is Maria alright…?"_

"_She's fine, but what the hell were you thinking?-!" he demanded. "I told you to stay inside! You should've stayed with Maria!"_

"_I was happy…when you proposed to me, Yuji…" she coughed. "I was so very lonely before you came into my life… No, when you came into our lives, mine and Maria's…I was looking forward to living together as…a family…and raising our child together…"_

_Maria gasped as Yuji's eyes widened as tears welled up in his eyes._

"_Are…you saying…?" he stammered as he visibly shook._

_She nodded weakly, "I was worried about telling you before, becuase I was afraid of what you might think…but when you proposed to me…I was so happy and was about to tell you when that…monster showed up…" Rosa looked over to Maria, "Maria…come here, baby…"_

_Maria sniffled as she approached her dying mother, "Mama… Please don't go…!"_

"_I'm sorry, Maria…" she apologized, "But I can't hold on any longer… Stay with your father, and promise me you'll grow up to be a good girl…" She held up a pinky and tried to smile, "OK…?"_

_Maria was crying as she locked her own pinky with Rosa's, "I promise, Mama…I promise…!"_

_Rosa smiled, "That's a good girl…"_

"_I'm sorry…" Yuji sniffled, "I'm sorry, Rosa…!"_

_Rosa raised her hand and lightly bobbed him on the forehead, "Baka… I chose to try and help you… Just promise me you'll live and keep Maria safe, OK?" Ashes began to fall off her body as she was beginning to deteriorate._

_Yuji grasped her hand in his and nodded as he was visibly crying, "I promise, Rosa…"_

_Rosa gave one final smile before she turned grey, and slowly crumbled to ashes, leaving Maria and Yuji to morn over he remains. Two lives were lost that day. One was the life of a loving mother and lover, and the other was child who was denied the chance to be welcomed into the world…_

* * *

Sephir let loose a scream of anguish as cracks which glowed with orange light spread all over her armor before finally shattering. Yuji quickly caught her in his arms and as she opened her eyes the darkness had vanished from the sclera.

"Yuji…" Rosa uttered.

"Good, you're back," said Yuji, relieved. However, his relief would be cut short. A spear of dark magic suddenly struck D-Rosa from behind and she let out a scream as did Yuji, "ROSA!" Her clothes reverted back to the clothes she had worn as a human before she collapsed as the spear vanished.

Yuki's D-Wheel stopped and Maria jumped off it as she saw her mother lying on the ground.

"Rosa!" Yuji shouted.

"Mama! Mama!" Maria yelled.

The two reached her fallen body and Yuji gently cradled Rosa's body in his arms.

"Yuji…" Rosa uttered weakly. The darkness in her eyes had vanished and also the Dark Signer mark on her arm had faded away completely. She was no longer under Anastasia's control. "I…I couldn't hurt you," she said. She looked at Maria, "And I couldn't hurt my daughter anymore…" She raised a hand weakly to caress Maria's cheek.

"Mama…save your strength," begged Maria. Rosa smiled weakly.

"I…don't have much time…" said Rosa.

"No, Rosa, don't say that," pleaded Yuji.

"I'm sorry, Yuji, but I'm already dead after all," Rosa said. "Just…one last kiss?"

Yuji nodded and leaned his head down to gently kiss her. Then, as soon as they broke the kiss, Rosa's body turned into black ash that was scattered by the wind.

Anastasia, who'd been watching, could only grin maliciously. Even if her Dark Signer had not won, she was able to cause pain to Yuji. In a flash of black butterflies she was gone, along with her Soldats. Misato lingered at the spot for a second before leaving as well, looking saddened at Yuji and Maria's grief.

Yuji's head was lowered and his hair shadowed his eyes before he slowly looked up. Zooming in, you could see his right eye had developed a black sclera with his blue eye glowing and his pupil slit. _"No more games,"_ he muttered in two voices, _"No more mercy…"_

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: I think it goes without saying that Anastasia just fucked herself up with this move she just made. She better be careful the next time she confronts Yuji. He's run out of mercy for her. Now, originally this was supposed to be a Riding Duel but due to the complexity of the situation we decided to make it a fight. **

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: No more games. No more mercy. Hell hath no fury like a dragon and his darkness scorned. And with the two working together when they find Anastasia, not even her atoms will live. **


	62. The Legacy of Cain Part 6

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 6: Grime Doesn't Pay**

**By: Warlord-Xana**

Yuji was kneeling in front of Rosa's grave. So much had happened today. Everyone else had gone, leaving him alone in the cemetery.

Or so he thought.

He sensed another familiar presence and said, "Good evening, Shinichi."

Shinichi informed him. "Good evening, Yuji. How are you holding up?"

Yuji responded with silence.

"If you're worried about your secret identity getting exposed you shouldn't. You were transformed from the start so nobody can make a connection. Battler even used his psychic powers to modify his relatives' memories," Shinichi told him.

"That's good," Yuji responded, a little neutrally. Shinichi sighed.

"Yuji, you once told me that I need to move forward and I think you should too. I understand what you're feeling right now," said Shinichi.

"She has to pay for this," swore Yuji. "The Witch of Terror is going to pay for this."

"I know she does, and I'll be right there behind you." Shinichi took out a bottle of sake. "Here, I thought you might like to have sake with Rosa-san."

Yuji stands up and turns to Shinichi, revealing his black sclera eyes, _**"Thank you, Shinichi Banabara. Your kindness is most appreciated by both of us."**_

Shinichi was taken back a bit by the lifeless look in Yuji's eyes, but he remembered how Yuji described Abyss's speech pattern and facial expression; a lifeless face which spoke as if he was going to kill you and explain how he was going to do it."So, am I talking to Abyss, Yuji, or both?" Shinichi questioned.

Yuji/Abyss shook his head, _**"We are now one in our goal to eliminate Anastasia from this plain of existence. Absolutely no interference will be tolerated by you or especially from Alan Smith. We will obliterate Anastasia and her forces. And nothing will stop us."**_

"And I don't intend to interfere," Shinichi retorted. "I intend to assist. So, how about some sake as we talk about good times?"

Yuji/Abyss nodded, _**"Very well. But Abyss has no good times so it will just be Fudo." **_The sclera faded from black to white and Yuji spoke seriously, "Listen, I don't want you or Alan to come with me when I find her. You'll both only get in the way once we go all out. And Abyss tends to kill anyone who gets in the way."

Shinichi nodded, "You are the only one who can get to her. However, if we do end up in the same situation we'll most likely pave the way for you."

Yuji continued, "I mean it man. We'll not just kill her, but her minions too, the Soldats and even Mongul. Those Ox guys you can take care of, we won't care. But she and the big fish will be less than nothing. Not even their atoms will survive.

Shinichi nodded, "I understand. So...Sake?"

Yuji nodded in acceptance, "The Crimson Dragon knows I need it."

* * *

What was being shown on TV was something from the NEO-NUMBERS' past. It was when they had once been members of GIN-SHOCKER and sent on a mission to attack the military base. Now, everyone was seeing it on the news and could see that the heroes that they assumed the NEO-NUMBERS were, had not been heroes from the start.

"This is bad," said Shinichi.

"Bad? BAD!-?" exclaimed Daichi. "You call this BAD!-? That's an understatement, pal! People know about us being members of GIN-SHOCKER! They know we attacked and killed people!"

"How did they get this footage?" Shogo wondered aloud.

"It doesn't matter how!" snapped Daichi. "It's all out in the open! We've just been turned into Public Enemy #1!"

"But they can't just forget about the good we did!" cried out Michiru in dismay.

"It is an unfortunate fact that people will often, and always, be judged by their pasts," said Hana pessimistically. She already knew that one day that their dirty laundry would be displayed for the whole world to see. The skeletons in their closets had just been exposed.

"Pretty soon the public will want answers," said Daichi, "And then they'll demand our heads or something."

As much as Shinichi wanted to argue, Daichi was right. What he saw brought back bad memories and reminded him of what he had once been.

"Can't you undo this?" Yokoshima asked Shinichi.

"You mean reverse time?" Shinichi asked. Yokoshima nodded. "Even if I did, this will happen again. There's no way I can see to undo this."

It wasn't just on TV. It was on the radio too and leading the rants was Genjirou Mikogami. He was a very critical radio DJ and not in a good way. This guy had been on the NEO-NUMBERS' case for years and had ranted about how vigilantes had no place in the modern Japanese society and now the recent discovery of their pasts was fueling his fire and justifying his every word. Now public distrust for them would only grow and grow until it spilled over, completely out of control.

"I don't see this being a problem for you," remarked Daichi as he looked at Shinichi.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Shinichi asked a little crossly. He didn't like what Daichi was implying.

"Your Rider form looks way different from the way it did then," Daichi pointed out. That was true. Shinichi's armor had gone through a lot of cosmetic changes.

"Doesn't mean this isn't my problem. This affects all of us, Daichi, me included."

"What will we do now?" questioned Michiru worriedly. Nobody had an answer to that question.

Well, nobody except one.

"Guys, why are we here?" asked Shinichi. Everyone was silent. "I said; why are we here?"

Yokoshima hazarded a guest, "Well, it is one of life's great mysteries-" but was cut off.

"I'll tell you why we're here! It's because we want to be here! A few years ago I woke up in Hinamizawa without any knowledge of who I was but I didn't cry or mope about it! I moved forward and made new memories! When my old ones came back sure I was depressed, but my friends pulled me back up and you should pull yourselves back up too! Now, let me ask you what we'll do!"

Shinichi decided to step up to the plate and deliver an inspirational speech to lift his friends' spirits, "We do what we've always been doing since we left GIN-SHOCKER! GIN-SHOCKER is in the past, buried and gone! We aren't GIN-SHOCKER anymore! We're the NEO-NUMBERS and even though our pasts have shaped us, it's the here and now that's truly important! Years ago we were taken by GIN-SHOCKER and forced to follow orders. We became weapons whose only purpose of existence was to cause death and destruction, but that isn't who we are anymore! GIN-SHOCKER may have made us what we are but we are the ones who make us who we are!" He addressed Michiru and Hana, "Michiru, Hana, you both want to become nurses, right?"

"Right!" Michiru chirped.

"Right," Hana responded.

"And Shogo! You're a bodyguard for the Sonozaki Clan, one of the most influential clans in Japan!" Shinichi addressed.

"That's right!" agreed Shogo.

"And Daichi! You're a musician and you want to be a veterinarian because you love animals!" Shinichi pointed out.

"No need to mention the obvious," said Daichi, smirking.

"And Chiaki! You're dating my little sister and you make her happy!" Shinichi said, making Chiaki blush. "And you're one heck of an artist!"

"Thank you," answered Chiaki.

"And Battler, you could've just remained in denial and avoided all this, but you're here, with us, and that shows you have spirit! Maybe you're here because this is the only place you really fit in, or maybe you think you can make a difference with your powers, but what really matters is that you're here, with us and as one of us!" said Shinichi.

"And I ain't going anywhere," grinned Battler.

"Honk!" agreed Junior.

"And Yokoshima…" Shinichi paused trying to find something positive to say, "You make good explosions."

"I like making things go boom," said Yokoshima, "And I'm really enjoying this speech."

"Maybe it's fate or maybe it's destiny. All I know is that we're all here for the same reason! It's because we want to do good and that's what we'll keep on doing! Heck, even if the whole world hates us and turns against us, we'll show the world that we aren't those cyborg assassins anymore! We'll show the world that we are Kamen Riders and that we won't back down because of this or anything!" He threw his fist into the air and shouted, "NOW, WHO'S WITH ME?"

"WE ARE!" the NEO-NUMBERS shouted together, throwing their fists up together.

Shinichi then proceeded to recite their oath, "In darkest night, in brightest day…" He was then joined in by the others, "No evil shall stand in our way! For those who follow evil's path, behold our power, and beware our wrath!" They then finished up with, "KAMEN SENTAI NEO-NUMBERS FOREVER!"

* * *

**NEW TOKYO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT**

Three people could be seen walking out of an airport. One of them was female, while the other two were male.

"So this is Japan huh? Looked a lot smaller on that globe thingy," one of the men said. He was wearing a bowler hat on his head with curly brown hair. He also wore a black poncho with black pants and metal tipped boots. He had a cleft chin, large hands and of course was quite muscular. He also was also wearing a large, metallic choker around his neck.

"Hmm, I just hope they have some cute girls here," the girl murmured. She had deep-set, green eyes with wavy, scarlet hair that was neck-length and worn in an artistic style. She has a wasp-waisted build, wearing a reddish tank top with blue jeans and cowboy boots.

"Camille, Isaac," the second man spoke, causing the two to snap at attention "Don't forget why we are here." He had hooded purple eyes, and thick, brown neck-length hair that was tied into a ponytail at the base of his skull. He also had a lithe build to him. He wore a black business suit with a white shirt under the jacket with a black vest and black finger-less gloves on his hands.

"Yes, Big Brother Frederick," both said, sweating a little in fear.

"Good, now let's go, it's time for Japan's underworld to learn about Grimes siblings," Frederick stated. The Grimes began to head out.

* * *

Everyone who had a television set had seen the footage and reactions were mixed. Most of it was in the form of public outrage, demanding that the NEO-NUMBERS come forth to explain themselves, or to be lynched. Of course there were those who still believed in the Riders who'd saved their lives before. Hinamizawa and Okinomiya, for instance, was full of people supporting the NEO-NUMBERS who'd protected their homes. The Hinamizawa Gaming Club already knew of the NEO-NUMBERS' past but that didn't really bother them. They knew the former GIN-SHOCKER Kaizo Ningen were trying to redeem themselves but in light of the footage it would appear that it was going to be a difficult task.

Meanwhile, something big was about to go down.

"I'm sorry, but you want us to what?" Yokoshima asked as he was feeling a bit confused. He, Chiaki and Hana had been invited to the Sonozaki Estate by Mion and apparently, she had a proposition for them.

"Look, my father and the current head of the Ayanaka Family are trying to form an alliance, and to make sure there's no ill will between both sides, the future heads of both families have to meet with one another too" Mion explained. She sighed, sounding a bit annoyed by what she just said.

"And you need us… why?" Hana asked

"Mion-sama doesn't trust the Ayanaka Family because both families have a very... tense relationship," Shogo said, making Mion laugh derisively at that statement. "And unfortunately the others are too busy at the moment for Mion-sama to ask for their assistance in this delicate situation."

"So basically… you're asking us to be bodyguards in case the Ayanaka Family does something?" Chiaki frown "I don't know, I talked to her a bit during Alan's School Festival and she seems kind enough."

"You ever heard of wolf in sheep clothing?" Mion calmly stated. "Besides, do you really want a Yakuza war to happen on your conscience? To know that you caused senseless violence just because two families dislike one another?"

"Alright alright, we'll do it. Just stop with guilt trip," Chiaki said, annoyed

"Good, see all of you on Wednesday," Mion grinned. Hana, Yokoshima and Chiaki all bowed before Mion and Shogo saw them out. As Shogo and Mion watched the three leave, Shogo asked, "Did you really need to use a guilt trip to get them to agree?"

"I just needed to be sure they'd help out," said Mion. "So, will they?"

"They will," Shogo confirmed without a doubt in his mind. "We're all friends, aren't we?"

"Yeah, we are," Mion agreed. They had been through a lot these past few years.

* * *

"Hmm, this sushi stuff ain't so bad," Isaac said with a grin as he ate the food. Camille rolled her eyes at his simplemindedness. Leave it to the 2nd eldest to forget about what had happened earlier.

All around them, there were several severely hurt people. The three siblings had walked into a shady club to see what the nightlife was like. However, many of the patrons did not like the fact that 'gaijin' had arrived and tried to 'persuade' them to leave. A half hour later, most of the patrons had run away or were lying on the ground grasping their wounds.

"Oi," Frederick said as he grasped one of the people and lifted him up. He noticed that this one had the looks of someone who had intimate knowledge of the comings and goings of what was happening both on and off the grid. "Tell me... who are the most powerful or influential in the criminal underworld around these parts?" Frederick asked. The man gulped. Normally he would ask for something in return for this info, but with how the big one and the girl took down everyone, along with the fearful air around Frederick, he quickly squashed that idea.

After mentally cursing himself for trying to pick a fight he answered, "W-well that's kind of a big question. However, I do know that the current Yakuza around these parts are both the Sonozakis and the Ayanakas."

"I see…" Frederick mused a bit before asking his next question, "I take it that both families are quite bitter about each other's existence, am I right?"

"Oh yes, though I heard there is gonna be something about a truce. There's even this crazy rumor about both future heads meeting to show that they are willing to trust eachother," the man said. He immediately gulped as he saw Frederick's eyes gleaming.

"Really? That's quite intriguing. My final question is this, my good man." The man's eyes widened as he saw Frederick hand began to be covered in fire. Frederick asked, "Where will these two heirs meet?"

"I-I-I don't know!" The man said scared

"Pity then," Frederick sighed as he grasped the man's face. He screamed in agony as he felt his skin beginning to melt before Frederick let him go. The fire spread all over the man who started to thrash and wail in agony as the fire was eating him alive.

"So what now, Big Brother?" Camille asked curiously

"We have to do some investigation. After all, what better way to become the top dog than to get the future heirs of two crime families," Frederick said darkly as he watched the man burn.

* * *

Alan was at school when the final bell rang. It was time to leave. As he was packing away his things, he was approached by his classmate, Sayako. Sayako knew Alan was close to Mion so he was a good source for information.

"So tell me about Mion Sonozaki. Is she alright?" Sayako asked Alan curiously. It was late in the afternoon and everyone was getting ready to leave for home. Alan eyed Sayako curiously but since he couldn't feel any ill will coming off her he decided to answer.

"Mion? She's great. She the kind of person that will fight to make sure her friends will be safe at any cost," Alan replied. "I mean sure she can be a little bossy at times and kinda perverted, but underneath all that she's a good person."

"Hmm... I see," Sayako murmured. "And would you say she wouldn't try anything underhanded?"

Once again Alan eyed her suspiciously but decided to answer truthfully, "Well in a game she will go all out and can be pretty ruthless, using any tricks to win, but otherwise no."

Sayako mused on this information before finally asking, "Any fears she has I should know of?"

"What? No, I'm not going to tell you that," Alan replied in annoyance. It was against his personal code to reveal the weaknesses of his friends. Sayako sighed. She had to hand it to Alan. He was pretty loyal.

"Well that fair enough, I suppose." Sayako nodded/. She then asked, "Did you catch all that?" Alan jumped as a man in a black suit suddenly appeared behind him.

"Hai, I have written down all the information for Mion Sonozaki, madam."

"Excellent," Sayako nodded, as Alan looked confused, mostly from wondering how long that guy had been standing there and how he'd missed him. He also wondered just why Sayako needed that info.

"Sayoko...what are you going to use that info for?" Alan asked her carefully.

"To prepare myself for when I meet my enemy," Sayako answered before she walked off. Alan scratched his head, wondering what just happened.

"I can tell this is just gonna be one of those days already," Alan mumbled. He then remembered that he needed to pick Alice up from kindergarten.

* * *

"Damn, I've forgotten how good I look in a suit," Yokoshima smirked as he studied himself in the mirror. "Oh, yeah! I'm an awesome lady killer!"

"Will you stop looking at yourself and come on?" Hana rolled her eyes. Today was Wednesday and they were heading towards the meeting place that the Ayanakas had chosen. It was only fair that they choose the place the meeting would take place since the Sonozakis had chosen the date for the meeting.

Chiaki blinked, a bit surprised when they reached their destination before chuckling, "Two people talking about this kind of thing in a restaurant, just like in the movies."

Although Mion wouldn't say it out-loud since it was Sayako's people that had chosen this restaurant, she immediately liked it. It was a quiet and intimate place, with few people, lit by quaint little brass lamps here and there. The group immediately spotted the Ayanaka heir sitting in one of the booths with two of her bodyguards standing on the sides.

"Sonozaki-san," Sayako nodded as Mion took a seat across from her.

"Ayanaka-san," Mion nodded, everyone notice that there was a dark aura around the two. Lightning seemed to shoot out of their eyes and met in the middle, sparking brightly.

"Oi, what's with them?" Yokoshima whispered to Chiaki.

"Well, remember Sayako family is a head of a Yakuza family, and the Sonozaki Clan has powerful underworld connections thanks to Mion's father. Combine that with the fact that both of them are destined to be the next head of their respective families, I think this is what one could call... meeting your rival," Chiaki whispered back.

"So you're the heir for the Ayanaka Clan huh?" Mion asked curiously, she didn't get a good look at her during the festival. "Not too impressive."

"Funny, I was about to say the same about you," Sayako responded, both glaring BACK. Shogo gulped a bit. He did not want to have to tell his boss that the two clan heirs seemed like they were ready to rip each other's throats out rather than talk peacefully.

"Oi waiter," Shogo said grabbing the waiter by the arm, "How about bringing some Oyakodon to these ladies and make it quick? And some sake too?" The waiter sweatdropped at how desperate Shogo looked, but complied. The two heirs ignored him as they continue to glare at one another.

"Well, this won't end badly," Hana sarcastically muttered, not knowing the danger ahead.

"Really? I was getting worried for a bit," replied Yokoshima, again missing the sarcasm in the Tarantula Cyborg's words.

* * *

"So this is where those girls are, eh?" Isaac said.. It took a while but the eldest Grime was able to get info on where the meeting took place. He even got the basic description of what the two heiresses looked like. Once he relayed the information, Frederick had sent Isaac to grab them. "Well better get started." Isaac cracked his knuckles before charging forward.

* * *

"So tell me Ayanaka-san," Yokoshima began, breaking the ice between the two. "I heard from Alan you're supposed to have an unusual collection of firearms."

Sayako broke her glare to Mion to answer him, "Oh, he told you about that, did he? Yeah I like to consider myself a brilliant collector of guns. I even have an old prototype for the shotguns." She sounded rather proud of her collection.

"Heh, leave it to the Ayanaka to think of nothing else but guns," Mion remarked cynically. Sayako looked annoyed and was ready to retort but was interrupted as a large figure smashed through the restaurant's wall. This caused most of the patrons to shriek and caused Sayako bodyguards and the NEO-NUMBERS to tense as they got ready for whatever caused that and counter it.

"Well well, looks like Big Brother's tip was right!" Isaac exclaimed happily as he walked towards them, grinning savagely. Everyone gawked as the giant of a man rushed forward and swatted Sayako's bodyguards and the NEO-NUMBERS away like flies. Both Mion and Sayako were about to grab their guns but were stopped as Isaac grabbed both of them and hefted them onto his shoulders.

"Let's hope Big Brother's guess about your two families was also right on the money," Isaac grinned as he kicked the wall down and began to move out of the building, He then propelled himself out of the way by jumping skyward.

He heard a whistling sound and rolled in the air to dodge several energy drills before he landed hard on the ground to see Zero Fighter Form flying towards him, Armadillo in his Ball Mode rolling forward and finally Slasher and Arachnea in pursuit on their motorcycles.

"Shit..." Isaac cursed. He'd heard about these bug guys on the news. He couldn't fight all four of these guys by himself, especially when he was holding the two girls hostage. However, he got an idea that made him grin.

Zero flew in. He was going to try to knock the guy out and grab both Mion and Sayako when the guy was distracted. However, Isaac jumped over him and did a roll in the air as he was able to get behind Armadillo and quickly used a kick that sent Armadillo flying forward and heading towards Zero.

"Oh crap!" Zero cried before Armadillo crashed into him. Both went flying for a bit before both crashed into a nearby wall.

"Shogo! Yokoshima!" Slasher shouted.

"Hehe! I suggest you take your friends to a hospital, specially that flying guy!" Isaac cackled as he made his escape.

Both NEO-NUMBERS cursed. They knew they had to save Mion and Sayako but also knew that what Isaac had said was true. With no other alternative, they immediately headed to where Armadillo and Zero had crashed into.

* * *

"Well Yokoshima should be fine, his armor took the brunt of the impact," Dr Magi stated to both Chiaki and Hana. They'd taken their teammates back to the Hive.

"But what about Shogo?" Hana asked

"Well..." Dr Magi frowned before all three looked at Shogo who stood on the ground, rather wobbly on his feet, with a weird look on his face

"I keep telling you captain, I'm feeling finer than a biscuit singing for the national," Shogo said, stumbling a bit before walking towards them. Both Chiaki and Hana looked at Shogo as if he'd grown a second head before turning to Dr. Magi.

"Yeah, the impact gave him a concussion so his head is a bit jumbled up, but he should be fine in a few days... hopefully," Dr. Magi said, the last part to himself.

"Great, we've lost Mion and Sayako to a muscle-bound jackass and now Shogo's babbling nonsense," Hana sighed

"Who the hell was that guy anyway? And who's this 'big brother' he mentioned?" Chiaki asked.

"Well based on your description of this guy, I was able to find out. His name is Isaac Grime, an American criminal that works alongside his two siblings and their mother. So I'm guessing the big brother is his older brother, Frederick Grime," Dr. Magi answered.

"If he's an American criminal, what is he doing in Japan?" Hana asked

"Well apparently, the Grimes are a family of criminals who had caused a bit of trouble in America by committing random bank-heists and doing mercenary work. However, due to a botched job that got their mother killed, the three remaining Grimes went into hiding as both police and state guards immediately began a hunt for the three but they mysteriously disappeared. I guess since America is too busy trying to find them, the Grimes decided to head to Japan to begin anew," Dr. Magi said

"And long story short, instead of turning over a new leaf, they decided to continue their criminal career." Hana frowned as Yokoshima walked towards them

"Look it doesn't matter what their story is. Right now we need to focus on trying to find where that Isaac guy has taken them," Yokoshima said grimly, worried for the two heiresses' safety.

"You're in luck then, because unlike X-SHOCKER, this guy leaves a good trail for us to follow," Dr. Magi said, activating the monitor that showed a map of Shishibone City. On the screen was a red dot with Isaac's name on top of it and it was moving quickly on the map.

"Great, in that case Hana and Yokoshima and I will go. Shogo, you better stay here and rest," Chiaki said.

"Flippity-gibbit man! I can help and take down those sardines and save those ladybugs!" Shogo shot back. What he'd just said, combined with the fact that he wasn't even looking at Chiaki but at a wall, made everyone sweat-drop.

"Yeah... I think I have to agree with Chiaki on this one, Shogo. Dr. Magi you better keep an eye on him," Yokoshima said.

"You got it." Dr. Magi nodded as Yokoshima, Hana and Chiaki left to rescue Mion and Sayako.

* * *

"So you managed to get the girls." Frederick grinned as he walked into the room.

"Yep, it wasn't easy though. I was attacked by those bug freak guys that were seen on TV," Isaac grunted as he dropped both Mion and Sayako on the ground. He then began walking to his siblings when a voice corrected, "Arachnid."

"Huh?" Isaac turned to look at Sayako.

"One of the Riders chasing you is based on a tarantula and they are arachnids," Sayako grinned as she Isaac looked annoyed. "Of course someone as stupid as you would've been easily mistaken."

"You think you're so smart huh?" Isaac threatened.

"Smarter than you, of course! Seriously, who dressed you? A clown?" Sayako goaded as she saw Isaac getting angry as he stomped towards them. She was about to reveal her gun to shoot Isaac in the head. However, she screamed as a fireball hit the ground, nearly hitting her, Mion and even Isaac.

"Isaac, control your temper," Frederick ordered in a monotone as he glared at his brother who fearfully nodded. "Camille, search them for any weapons."

"With pleasure," Camille grinned as Mion recognizing the look as the kind Shinichi, Michiru or Yuji would have when they were thinking of something perverted and just sighed as she knew what was coming next. After searching both (and throwing in a few gropes) she pulled out both guns and threw them to Isaac who crushed them.

"So why did you kidnap us? You obviously know who our families are and what they're going to do to you, don't you?" Mion asked, although she doubted either of their men would be able to handle these guys.

Frederick chuckled before answering, "It's quite simple, really. We're going to cause a gang war between the Sonozakis and Ayanakas."

"Oh, and how are you going to do that?" Sayako asked.

"Your families are bitter rivals, correct?" Frederick asked. "Well we will create ransom note for both groups which implies that Mion Sonozaki was kidnapped by the Ayanakas and the Sayoko Ayanaka was kidnapped by the Sonozakis. In retaliation, both groups will send their men to attack the other. In the confusion we'll appear and take both the leaders of the Sonozaki and Ayanaka families out," Frederick finished

Sayako and Mion eyes widened in shock at his announcement. Mion then glared at his statement and said, "Oh yeah? And what makes you think they won't realize it isn't a trap and come rescue us?" At this Frederick smiled darkly, causing chills to run up Mion's spine.

"Oh they will attack. You see, even if they do pay the ransom, all they'll be getting back are a couple of corpses!" At this, Frederick's hands lit up and reached towards them. However, hearing both his siblings gasp, he turn to see a Teleportal appearing before disappearing and dropping off Kamen Rider Slasher, Kamen Rider Arachnea and Kamen Rider Armadillo (in Blitz Form).

"I suggest you stop what you're doing, Grimes Siblings, unless you want to be blasted," Armadillo warned.

"I thought you said you lost them," Camille glared at her brother.

"Hey, how would I know they would pull a Houdini!" Isaac shot back.

Frederick just ignored them as he glared at the three interlopers. "You want them? Then give it your best shot!" Frederick unleashed a powerful fire blast at the three who dodged it. Armadillo took aim and fired twin bursts from his cannons at Frederick but Camille jumped in and took the blasts instead..

Armadillo was about to shout 'got one' but stopped and gawked as he saw the blast being absorbed by Camille before what looked like glowing armor covering her entire body. "Nani!-?" he shouted just as Isaac tackled him, knocking him against a nearby wall.

"Are you that surprised? It's simple. Isaac's got super strength, Frederick's an elemental, and I am able to absorb anything thrown at me and turn it into some kind of makeshift armor. Not only does it enhance my physical capabilities, but I can also use whatever my armor was made of and use it as a weapon." Camille grinned as she raised her hand as a spiked orb appeared in her hands.

She was about to throw it at Armadillo but Arachnea grabbed her from behind and forced her to toss it at Frederick instead who blocked it with a fire blast. "You're going to have to deal with me," Arachnea hissed.

Camille just grinned darkly as she said, "Gladly."

Frederick frowned as he only saw only two of the Riders. Where was the third one? He heard a creaking nose and whirled to see Slasher helping both Mion and Sayako up.

"Don't worry, I'm getting you out of here," Slasher said, before any of the criminals could stop him he activated his wrist communicator and shouted "Requesting one Teleportal, ASAP!"

The swirling Teleportal appeared and Slasher pushed them in before the Teleportal winked out of existence. Slasher sighed in relief but jumped away from a very hot attack. Frederick Grime held a sword made of fire and was glaring darkly at him.

"You're going to pay for that!" Frederick shouted as he charged at the Termite Rider. Slasher activated his chainsaw to block the attack. Slasher then kicked Frederick in the gut, causing him to grunt in pain as his fire-sword dissipated. Slasher was about to continue when suddenly, the ground behind him exploded and he turned only to be struck by a massive, stone fist.

"Did you really think I could only control one element?" Frederick sneered as large stone arms grew out of the ground. Slasher recovered and jumped out of the way before the fists hit him but was thrown back as Frederick shot his fist forward and sent out a fist made out of air that hit Slasher, sending him crashing to a wall.

* * *

With Arachnea, she was swinging her dual Spider Kamas to cut Camille but she just twisted and dodged her attacks and retaliated by firing spiked balls at her. Arachnea spewed some acidic venom but Camille just raised her hand and the acid twisted into her gauntlet changing that section to a dark green.

"Weren't you listening to anything? Projectiles are easy prey to my ability." Camille shook her head as she grabbed Arachnea helmet with her acidic gauntlet. Arachnea hissed as she jumped away and was forced to throw her melting helmet off. Camille blinked in surprise as she saw Hana's face but then grinned.

"My, my, what a beautiful face you have underneath that drab helmet," Camille said, walking towards her.

"Oh shut up," Hana growled

"Ooh, and she even has a bite to her. That settles it. I'm definitely making you my new sex-pet," Camille smiled happily.

"WHA-!-?" Hana shouted shocked before Camille grabbed her and kissed her. Hana was stunned for a few seconds but when she felt the female Grime groping her breast she violently kicked her away.

"Tsk, looks like I will have to break your will a bit, pet," Camille murmured.

"Stop calling me that! I already have a girlfriend and she is WAY cuter than you, bitch!" Hana growled as she changed into Venom Form as their fight continued.

Armadillo was having the most trouble against Isaac. Isaac was far stronger than him physically. He was easily smashing walls to pieces with just punches and kicks and the attacks Armadillo unleashed on him barely left a dent since Isaac appeared to be invulnerable.

"Come on! Is that all you got!-? This is pathetic!" Isaac sneered as he grabbed Armadillo's wrist and began spinning him around before letting him go and crashing into a support beam.

"Dammit, this guy's is like a tank!" Armadillo growled as he brought his mace and swung towards Isaac's neck. Isaac quickly kicked him away but before he did, Armadillo noticed that he looked... scared.

He then realized something, something he remembered in his training from GIN-SHOCKER, about the neck and throat being weak spots on the body. A sharp blow to the side of the neck would cause unconsciousness by shock to the carotid artery. A less powerful blow would cause involuntary muscle spasms and intense pain. A powerful blow to the front of the throat could cause death by crushing the windpipe while a forceful blow would cause extreme pain and gagging or vomiting.

"I get it, even though the rest of the guy body is insanely strong, his neck is the same as any other human. Like that Greek hero with his ankles," Armadillo muttered to himself. He then jumped above Isaac who had both fist together and swung down to try to crush him. Now that Armadillo knew his weak spot he just had to find a way to get rid of that metal collar that bastard was wearing to get a good shot.

"I got it!" Armadillo shouted pointed his cannon to the ceiling and fired, causing portions of it to collapse on Isaac, burying him underneath.

"Bastard!" Isaac shouted as he jumped out of the rubble but notice that Armadillo was gone. "Oi where'd he go!-?"

"Right here!" Armadillo shouted as he jumped on Isaac's back.

"Get off!" Isaac roared as he began to shake himself free of the Pill Bug Ride. He then used both hands to grab him and throw him to the ground. Armadillo grunted in pain but he just chuckled gleefully. Isaac look confused for a second but gawked as he saw his metallic collar in Armadillo's hand.

"Wha- How- GIVE THAT BACK!" Isaac roared, raising his leg to stomp. However Armadillo rolled away from the deadly stomp and then aimed, firing his cannons at Isaac. He then dashed at the distracted villain and nailed him in the side of the neck with a powerful punch.

"GYACK!" Isaac choked feeling intense pain as he collapsed. Armadillo then stood over him and used his C3, sealing Isaac into a Containment Card.

* * *

Arachnea dodged a blast of acid as Camille rushed forward and began throwing a barrage of punches at Arachnea. "Come now, don't tell me I have to break your limbs for you to submit to me. Or maybe I should kill that girlfriend you mentioned earlier," Camille sighed. If she saw the look on Arachnea's face underneath her helmet after what she'd said, Camille would have been scared stiff. In order to make some space between them, Arachnea used her spider legs to push Camille away.

The blades on her wrists glowed pure red as they extended, she then began giving elbow chops that much to Camille's horror actually broke through her makeshift armor.

"O-OI!" Camille yelled, scared, raising her acid gauntlet to defend herself but Arachnea was faster. The two spider legs that were stretched over her shoulders extended before shooting forward and stabbing Camille in the spots where the armor was damaged and injected enough paralysis venom to prevent her from moving. "And now, Maiden Rider Spider Stabbing!" All eight of her spider legs shot forward, the tips glowing, and began to hit Camille in a flurry of stabs faster than the eye could see.

When it finally stopped, the makeshift armor was destroyed and Camille was on the ground, unable to move, and with a REALLY scared look on her face before Hana sealed her up using her C3 System. The card showed Camielle's face in terror which made Hana smile.

* * *

"I'm surprised you're still standing. You're pretty resilient for a guy who's dressed like a bug," Frederick admitted, annoyed. Frederick was using his control of fire, wind and earth on the Termite Rider but his opponent was still standing.

"Look, you can hear it too can't you? It's obvious my friends have defeated your two siblings. Why don't you just surrender?"

"HA! You think I fucking care about what happens to those two losers? Frankly if their abilities weren't so useful I would've taken care of them a long time ago along with our mother," Frederick laughed. This made Slasher glare at him furiously.

"What are you saying? I thought your mother died in a botched job," Slasher questioned.

"Ah, even the so-called heroes in Japan heard of that? No, for you see, while our family were at it peaks in the crime world, our mother was going senile. She actually thought it was time that we retire and that we should turn over a new leaf. Start over with clean slate. I couldn't have that, not when we were so close, close enough to be in the history books like Al Capone or Billy the Kid. So, I arranged that during one of our jobs that she met an untimely death. Unfortunately, I didn't foresee that the law would see it as a chance to press forward in an attempt to catch us."

"You killed your own mother, just because you wanted to stay famous!-?" Slasher snapped. To him who lost his parents and didn't even get a chance to say goodbye, what this guy said was unforgivable in his book.

"Yes, surely you can understand? I heard all about you on the news. It's obvious you lot want people to admire and fear you. Quite admirable," Frederick stated.

"Don't you dare compare us to you!" Slasher snapped as he summoned his weapon, "Onigari no Ryuou!" Clutching the sword that changed him into Slayer Form, he charged at Frederick.

"Idiot," Frederick sneered as he unleashed both a wind and fire blast shaped like serpentine dragons at Slasher who batted them away with a swing. Frederick then created a barrage of stalagmites to pierce Slasher but he jumped over the attack.

"Got you now!" Frederick grinned, as pieces of earth floated in front of him. He began creating a sphere-shaped rock cover in rings of fire before throwing it at Slasher.

"THAT WON'T WORK!" Slasher roared as he sliced the orb in half before shouting, "Slayer Kick!" He jump kicked Frederick, sending him flying backward before crashing into the wall and losing consciousness.

"You're lucky it wasn't Daichi who heard you refer to your siblings like that or Michiru who heard what you said about your mother. They would've gutted you like a fish," Slasher stated as he was the one to seal the last of the Grime siblings into a C3 Containment Card.

* * *

"So you're saying both families are on good terms now?" Chiaki blinked, surprised. It had been two days since the incident with the Grimes and those three would be serving hard time in the Vault for what they'd done.

"Yep, we both agreed that we should put aside our differences so that both families can work together. It's better than letting hungry leeches like those Grimes try to use our rivalry against us," Mion said

"Well that's good to hear," Chiaki said smiling.

"Yep, almost everything ended on a good note," Mion nodded. Though there was still Shogo. He'd mostly recovered from that hit and was acting normally again... although he did sometimes laugh at the wrong thing, or just out of the blue for no reason.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, I'd like to thank Warlord-Xana for writing this chap even if it was a nightmare to edit and believe me it was. Still, it turned out alright in the end, don't you think?**


	63. The Legacy of Cain Part 7

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 7: Curse of the Cores**

Dr. Magi had been given the Spark Cores by ARMOR for study. His job was to uncover their origin which was still a mystery. How had Gebok discovered them? Had he created them or found them? Dr. Magi was assigned to find out those answers. The Spark Cores were kept in a special steel case and were on Dr. Magi's table in the Hive's lab. The lab was filled with scientific equipment of all kind, advanced tech given by ARMOR.

"Here's your coffee, Pops. I mean Dr. Magi," said Yokoshima as he put the cup of coffee down near Dr. Magi.

"Thank you, Yokoshima," said Dr. Magi. Right now he was studying Spark Core #04, which had once belonged to Misato/Seras. He knew that Spark Cores were the source of the NUMBERS and NEO-NUMBERS' powers, not to mention the only thing that kept them alive. But there was still more to them than that, like how they were indestructible, not to mention how Gebok was able to revive the NUMBERS after their deaths at #13's hands. Dr. Magi would never forget that day. #13 had completely slaughtered them all to earn the title BLACK 13.

"So, any luck?" asked Yokoshima.

Rubbing his tired eyes, Dr. Magi answered, "No, unfortunately. All I know is that these things give you and the others the ability to materialize your armors and that if we remove them you'll all die. Shinichi was only lucky to survive long enough for us to hook him to a life support system."

"Yeah, that was scary," admitted Yokoshima. "I mean I know we could get messed up on missions but man, that was brutal." He shuddered.

"I'm trying to see how these Spark Cores allowed you all to be revived in the first place," said Dr. Magi.

"You mean when Gebok brought us back to life to kill Shinichi," remarked Yokoshima.

"Exactly. You were all dead but then Gebok brought you all back to life," said Dr. Magi.

"Surprised me too," said Yokoshima. "I remember dying and then suddenly I'm alive and so much time has passed."

"And all because your Spark Cores remained intact despite the lethal damage you all took. After some physical repairs were done on you, Gebok just charged your Spark Cores and then, wallah, you're all good as new." Dr. Magi opened up the case which had the Spark Cores inside. He grimaced, however.

"Hey, what's wrong?" asked Yokoshima.

"All these Spark Cores are accounted for, all except for one," said Dr. Magi.

Yokoshima counted and then replied, "I don't think so, Dr. Magi. There were fourteen of us. Then seven after Shinichi killed the others, and now eight because of Battler."

"I was referring to the Spark Core which belonged to WHITE 14," said Dr. Magi. The NEO-NUMBERS had all been informed of WHITE 14, and how he had posed as Shinichi before killing them all. If it weren't for Shinichi's use of a Hyper Return to the Past to revive them, they would've stayed dead. "It was never found and Million didn't have it."

"Maybe it was erased?" Yokoshima suggested. "Shinichi does erase things he doesn't like whenever he does a Return to the Past."

"He can only erase things from the timeline when he does a Return to the Past after he's physically destroyed it, leaving nothing to restore," Dr. Magi corrected. "That's a condition for his Erase power. He can only Erase what has been destroyed and since Spark Cores are indestructible…"

"It's still out there," Yokoshima finished. "But you said it was never found."

"And I hope it never will, because I fear what will happen when it is found," said Dr. Magi.

Yokoshima then noticed something odd and alerted Dr. Magi, "Um…Pops, the Spark Cores are blinking."

* * *

Meanwhile, a Dimensional Rift Gate was opening up in the canyon and a young man walked out of it. He was wearing a denim jacket over a black t-shirt with a bar-code like pattern on the front, blue jeans and sneakers. On his head was a cap with a bullseye symbol on it. He had dark hair and sported a pigtail.

"Hm, now where did I turn up now?" he asked himself and he spotted the NEO-NUMBERS' base in the distance. "Ah, now I know where I am. Never thought I'd turn up in this place again." He then pointed his finger at the base like a gun. "Target spotted. Bang!"

* * *

"Now that is interesting," said Dr. Magi as he examined the Spark Cores.

"What is interesting?" asked Yokoshima.

"Well, as you know, a Spark Core acts like a battery for you and the others," explained Dr. Magi. "Of course, as far as I know, Spark Cores aren't able to do anything until they are implanted into a body."

"What does that mean?" asked Yokoshima.

"The Spark Cores are reacting to something," said Dr. Magi. He then closed the steel case. "Well, it's getting late. We can always find out tomorrow morning."

"You're right," agreed Yokoshima, yawning. "Good night, Pops."

"Good night, Yokoshima."

* * *

Later that night, very late at night, a figure could be seen sneaking into the base. It would appear that the security system had not detected the breach at all as he continued to make his way deeper inside the structure and towards his destination.

"Talk about weak security," the figure said as he snuck into the lab. "Now, where is it?" He looked around and he spotted the steel case on the table. "Ah, jackpot." He approached it and lifted it off the table. As he was about to leave, the lights were turned on and standing at the doorway was Dr. Magi.

"What!-? Who are you!-?" demanded Dr. Magi as he saw the stranger had the case containing the Spark Cores. "And what are you doing with those!-?"

"Oh, I'm just your passing through thief, old man," said the young man. He then ran for the exit, knocking the scientist aside. Dr. Magi got up and activated the alarm, causing it to blare and awakening everyone that was in the base.

The thief was making his way outside but was blocked by Yokoshima. "Hey, do you mind getting out of the way?" Chiaki had his arms crossed. "Hm, guess not."

"Hey, who the fuck are you!-?" demanded Daichi as he showed up with Yokoshima and Shogo.

"Oh, just a thief," the man said and he tossed the stolen case up into the air.

"The Spark Cores!" cried out Yokoshima. The man then took out an oddly-shaped, futuristic-looking gun, and slid a card into it before pushing the barrel forward.

"**Kamen Ride…"**

"Henshin!" the man called as he fired at Chiaki who was blocking his way.

"**Diend!"**

Instead of bullets, what came out of the gun were blue, rectangular panels. At the same time the man's body became covered in black and grey armor which filled with color as the panels fit into his helmet. The panels had knocked Chiaki down.

"Hey, it's that guy!" recognized Yokoshima as the steel case fell back into Diend's hand.

"Kamen Rider Diend!" growled Daichi.

"Sorry about this, but I'm a thief and what you got here are some really rare treasures. Au revoir," said Diend as he made his escape.

"Get him!" shouted Daichi. "Henshin!" The others also followed suit, following after the inter-dimensional thief/Kamen Rider.

Diend was outside the base but he looked around and frowned. "Damn, no way out." He then spotted a chopper nearby. "Or, maybe not." He'd already stolen from the NEO-NUMBERS. What was a little Grand Theft Auto? He heard them coming and then barely avoided being turned into a pincushion as Zero fired at him with his stingers.

"There he is!" shouted Armadillo.

"Don't let him escape!" Musician ordered, unleashing several sonic blasts at Diend and knocking the case out of his hand.

"Hey, don't damage the goods!" shouted Diend. He needed a distraction and he knew just who to call. As Slasher came at him with his chainsaws, he fired at him with his gun, forcing him to block but then he heard Armadillo rolling towards him and immediately backed away before he was run over. As he was avoiding their attacks, he pulled out three cards and slid them into his Diendriver. "Come on out, boys!"

"**Kamen Ride: Zabee! Gai! Zanki!"**

He fired his gun and the green, red and blue images that zipped around fused together to form the three summoned Riders. Zabee jumped up and kicked Zero in the head, knocking him down, as Zanki went to engage Musician. Gai charged at Armadillo and stopped his rolling by putting his hands out, using his strength to overpower the Pill Bug Rider.

"**Attack Ride: Blast!"**

Diend fired at Slasher with several rapid-fire blasts from the Diendriver, forcing him to his knees.

Picking up his illegal booty, Diend went to the chopper and boarded it before waving goodbye, "Au revoir." He turned the chopper on and it lifted off the ground. "Maybe next time, suckers!" laughed Kamen Rider Diend.

* * *

"This better be good," yawned Hana, irritated as she and Michiru had been called to the base. They had been rudely awakened by Dr. Magi who'd summoned them immediately. Michiru looked like she was about to fall asleep on her feet and was leaning against her girlfriend.

"So, what happened?" asked Shinichi. "You sounded urgent."

Dr. Magi's frown was one of worry as he explained, "Less than an hour ago, a thief broke into the lab and stole the Spark Cores." Now _that_ was bad news.

"And it was that old buddy of yours," said Daichi. "Diend."

"Diend? Kaitoh?" blinked Shinichi. "He took the Spark Cores?"

"Yes, he did," confirmed Dr. Magi. He turned on the security footage and showed Kaitoh picking up the case of Spark Cores.

"He even left a calling card," said Yokoshima, holding up a card with Diend's barcode symbol on it, like Kaitoh had left it to mock them.

"He even took one of our choppers to escape," said Chiaki. "We were unable to pursue him since we were preoccupied by his summons. And after we found the chopper, he was nowhere in sight."

"I tried to look from the air," added Shogo, "But he just vanished without a trace."

"That's his specialty," said Shinichi, recalling Kaitoh's skills. "Quick entries and quick escapes. I doubt he's even on this world."

"Which is exactly why I put a tracking chip in the case the Spark Cores were kept in," said Dr. Magi and he handed tracking devices to all of the NEO-NUMBERS. "Those Spark Cores are top priority, especially since they became active."

That was news to everyone except for Yokoshima.

Yokoshima explained, "Yeah, they were blinking, but Dr. Magi thought it could wait until morning."

"_This_ could wait until morning," grumbled Hana. Michiru still looked like she was half-asleep. "Michiru, wake up."

"Now, according to the beacon he's still on this world," said Dr. Magi. "Of course he could have just left the case behind and went on his way with just the Spark Cores. We can't be sure. Just find the Spark Cores."

"You heard him, team! It's treasure hunting time!" said Shinichi.

* * *

Kaitoh was able to make his way to a nearby city and smiled as he examined his newest acquisition. He was sitting at the edge of a rooftop, with the XIII Spark Core in his hand. "Now these are really rare. Kinda like the Century King's Kingstones."

"And you'll give them back, Kaitoh!" a voice spoke harshly. Kaitoh recognized that voice and got up to his feet to turn on his heels.

"Oh, Shinichi!" recognized Kaitoh. "Long time no see! How's it going?"

"Save it, Kaitoh!" Shinichi shot back. As the fastest of the NEO-NUMBERS he was able to track down Kaitoh first. "You're going to return those Spark Cores, or else."

"Oh, these things?" asked Kaitoh, gesturing to the open case at his feet. He was lobbing Shinichi's old Spark Core up and down in his hand. "Well, I would but if I did it would really ruin my image as a professional thief. I take things. I don't give them back."

"Kaitoh, I wasn't asking!" shouted Shinichi. He then went into his transformation pose. Kaitoh took out his Diendriver and aimed it at Shinichi. "You think you're a quick draw?"

"I know I am," Kaitou responded confidently.

"You do realize that the others are heading over here, right?" asked Shinichi. "There's a tracking chip in that case and we've been following you all night. As long as you have those Spark Cores, there's no escape, and even if you do get away, ARMOR will hunt you down and we won't be far behind. Do you really think you can get away from ARMOR?"

Kaitoh shrugged, "Well, I've been running circles around Interpol, to be honest, so it'll be a challenge."

Shinichi rolled his eyes. It looked like he had no choice now. Activating his time powers, while ignoring the pain in his brain, he called out, "Pause!" Time then froze in an instant and Shinichi went to pick up the case filled with the Spark Cores. He even plucked the one out of Kaitoh's hand. As he was about to put the XIII Spark Core back into the case, something happened. The Spark Cores began to spark and crackle with energy, surprising Shinichi. "What the fuck!-?" Shinichi shouted and the shock caused him to deactivate 'Pause' and Kaitoh could move again.

"Hey, no fair stealing what I stole!" shouted Kaitoh as he grabbed onto the case and tug-o-war ensued with the Spark Cores in the middle. Since they were at the edge of a building, they had to be careful. All of a sudden, Shinichi fell off the edge with the case. He cried out in shock but Kaitoh grabbed his hand.

"I got you!" Kaitoh shouted but then let out a cry of dismay as the Spark Cores began to plummet to the ground below. "Dammit!"

The Spark Cores had all landed on the ground and all of a sudden they all released flashes of intense light that grew into a pillar. Shinichi and Kaitoh could only watch as this occurred.

"I'm thinking this is bad," said Kaitoh as he pulled Shinichi back up.

"Ya think!-?" Shinichi shot back.

They then witnessed as something was coming out of the pillar of light and it looked like a giant foot, which was connected to a giant leg that was connected to an equally gigantic body which started to become increasingly visible with every second. Shinichi and Kaitoh's eyes widened as they saw the pillar shrink and what it left in its place.

"No way…" Shinichi uttered.

* * *

Panicked screaming rung through the streets as innocent civilians were fleeing for their lives in horror. The reason for this was only one thing.

"GODZILLA!" a geek shouted.

Not that, you idiot! Something worse!

It was a gigantic Shadow Moon, the evil Century King from the World of Kamen Rider BLACK and it was in the middle of the city, wreaking havoc, chaos and panic. Each step it took caused the ground to shake. The emerald eyes of the giant looked around and then it unleashed a roar before using its massive fists to smash a nearby building apart, causing debris and rubble to go flying and fall to the ground below. Debris was about to fall on top of several people but they became shielded by an emerald dome of energy.

"Go! Run!" Sentinel shouted and the people fled. They didn't need to be told twice.

Sentinel wasn't the only one present. The NEO-NUMBERS had also arrived and assumed their strongest forms. Armadillo in Blitz Form and Musician in Rock-Metal Form were firing on the giant with cannon blasts and sonic blasts from their respective weapons. Slasher in Slayer Form was helping in the evacuation process while Zero in Fighter Form was firing drill blasts and missiles at the giant monster. At the same time, Carmen in Mirage Form and Arachnea in Venom Form were standing on top of the tallest buildings they could find and unleashing their own attacks. Carmen had created several solid holograms of herself and was attacking with her Mantis Scythes, sending energy blades flying at the giant Century King while Arachnea was firing her Venom Lasers at it as well. Despite taking some damage, it was not slowing down.

Sentinel attacked with blasts of energy from his ring which slammed into the giant Shadow Moon and it roared out in pain before countering with energy bolts from its fingers and eyes to shoot Sentinel out of the sky. Sentinel dodged and then nailed the giant right between the eyes, sending it staggering back from the blow before Sentinal continued his assault.

This was not the first time Alan Smith had ever faced a giant monster and it would not be the last.

* * *

Shinichi wanted to be angry at Kaitoh for unleashing this monstrosity upon an innocent city. However, he needed to prioritize. There was a giant monster attacking the city and his friends needed help. He looked to Kaitoh and said, "You're going to help me defeat this thing."

Kaitoh shrugged, "Fine, but you owe me those Spark Cores if I help."

"Owe you!-?" yelled Shinichi. "You caused this! Why should we owe you anything!-?"

"Because you're going to need my help. You said it yourself."

"OK, we'll talk about payment after this is over," said Shinichi as he relented. "Now, come on!"

Kaitou put his Kamen Ride card in his gun and prepared himself as Shinichi summoned his Spark Core and Armorizer Belt.

"Henshin!" they called out as one.

"**Kamen Ride: Diend!"**

Blue, green and red light burst from Shinichi's belt, enveloping him before his armor materialized. As his scarf flapped in the wind his helmet formed in his hands and he put it on before locking it into place with the faceplate. He was now Kamen Rider Showa III (Trinity).

"Stay here and shoot that thing," Showa ordered as he quickly assumed his Hinamizawa Guardian Form, the strongest form he had in his arsenal as he brandished the Higurashi no Yaiba. The sight of the sword made Diend's eyes shine but Showa caught the way the thief was gazing at his weapon. "Don't even think about it," Showa warned before he took off to help his friends against the gargantuan beast.

"Stay here and shoot," Diend repeated mockingly, "Yeah right." Still, there was still a chance he might get a reward out of this endeavor. He might be able to negotiate with these guys for something rare and valuable. It may not be the Spark Cores he was after but he didn't want to leave empty handed. He might even convince those two hot Rider girls to go out with him.

Showa spoke, "Chiaki, how goes the evacuation?"

"_All civilians within the area have moved to a safe location_," Slasher reported.

"Look for any stragglers," Showa ordered.

"_Hai._"

The giant Shadow Moon blasted Sentinel with energy bolts that crashed explosively against the Green Lantern, but Sentinel remained in the air to counter with his own energy blasts. The other NEO-NUMBERS were still on the attack, throwing their collective firepower at the goliath but despite the damage they managed to deal on it, the creature was able to repair itself. It threw a hand down on the building Carmen had been standing on, intent on flattening her. She fled quickly and leapt away as Shadow Moon's hand smashes down on the building, reducing it to rubble.

"What is that thing?" Sentinel asked as Showa hovered next to him.

"Remember those Spark Cores Pops lent to Dr. Magi?" Showa asked.

"Yes?" Sentinel replied carefully.

"Well, some stupid thief thought it was a good idea to steal them but then they went active and turned into that," Showa concluded, pointing at the massive Rider they were battling. Sentinel used his X-Ray vision and sure enough he saw the Spark Cores floating inside Shadow Moon.

"Thief? You mean Diend, don't you?" asked Sentinel.

"You know him?" Showa asked.

"Know him? The guy tried to steal my ring and girls!" Sentinel cried.

"Well, if he knows what's good for him he'll help to sort this mess out," said Showa.

"**Attack Ride: Blast!"**

Azure energy bolts rained down from the top of a nearby building as Diend pulled the trigger of his Diendriver. However, despite the explosions caused when the bolts managed to hit Shadow Moon, they barely made a dent in its armor. "Well, this isn't working," sighed Diend as he reached into his card holder, "But fortunately for me I have something to tip the scales." In his hand was a Kamen Ride card with the face of Kamen Rider J on it.

"Damn it!" cursed Musician. "Why won't this asshole go down!-?" The last time they had beaten something this big was with the aid of the other Riders.

"We just have to keep firing!" Armadillo insisted as he fired blasts from his twin cannons. "Come on! Go down already!"

Sentinel and Showa both landed hits on the thing's chest, sending it staggering back, but then it swatted Showa away and into the side of a building with a crash and then fired beams of energy from its eyes at Sentinel who countered with his own ring's energy blast, only to be overpowered and sent crashing down to the ground, denting the roof of a car he'd fallen on top of. It was a good thing he was invulnerable now.

"Take this!" shouted Zero as he fired at the giant, hitting its face with a barrage of missiles. This only irritated it and Zero was swatted away like a fly.

Showa got out of the building and regained his bearings, only to see something that made his eyes widened as gigantic footsteps were heard that caused the ground to shake. "No way…" Showa uttered as he saw Kamen Rider J in his Jumbo Formation advancing on the enemy. Riding on J's right shoulder was Diend.

Shadow Moon saw J and roared as it dashed towards his equally tall foe. Diend, seeing the oncoming collision, leapt off the giant Rider and landed on the roof of a nearby building. The two titanic Riders grappled in their clash.

That was when Yuji and Battler arrived, with the redhead stating, "Didn't know they were filming a monster movie here." He meant it as a joke to calm his nerves, which were not calm judging by his trembling knees.

A single punch from Shadow Moon caused J to topple over and land on the street, flattening anything that got caught under his back. The giant Shadow Moon then started to stomp J in the head, repeatedly, letting out a dreadful laugh.

"Guess it's time for me to go," said Battler. "Henshin!" He transformed into Meta and then used his own shape-shifting powers to assume gigantic size. "Hey, pick on somebody your own size, punk!" bellowed Meta and Shadow Moon answered by tackling into him as Kamen Rider J vanished after taking too much damage.

"At this rate the city is going to get leveled," said Yuji as he took out his Liger Belt and Rider Pass, but then he heard a whistle. He looked to see Topper standing on the opposite side of the street, waving at him. "Topper?"

"Hey, Fudo! Catch!" Topper tossed a gem stone to Yuji who caught it in his hand. It was round, clear as crystal and when he looked inside there was a small figure which resembled a mechanical liger.

"Hey, what's this?" asked Yuji.

"It's a present, free of charge," answered Topper.

Yuji's eyes narrowed suspiciously, "I don't buy that."

"Smart man, and you're right it wasn't free of charge. Someone told me to give it to you, that's all. I'm just the delivery man," said Topper.

"So, what do I do with this then?" asked Yuji.

"Raise it into the air and shout 'descend'!" answered Topper. He then tossed a dagger to Yuji who caught it by its handle. The dagger had a gold guard with a slot for the round jewel. "Put that gem into the dagger before you do." He tipped his hat and went on his way, fading away like a mirage.

"OK…" Yuji looked at the gem in his hand before putting it inside the dagger's slot, the gem fitting perfectly. "Well, it's not like I haven't done something crazy before." He clenched the dagger in his hand and raised it into the air, calling out loudly, "DESCEND!"

All of a sudden, the gem flashed brightly and the dagger in his hand fired a pillar of light into the sky which punched into the sky. A rainbow road formed which connected the sky to the ground. Running along the rainbow road was a creature that made Yuji's mouth drop. Yuji already knew its name for some reason as he uttered, "Gao…Liger…"

GaoLiger landed on the ground as it leapt from the rainbow road and let loose a roar. The mechanical liger was a sight to behold as its sheer size and mass dwarfed many of its kind. It was gigantic with a white, metallic body and emerald eyes. It then looked down at Yuji and made a telepathic connection.

"_I am the Power Animal, GaoLiger. Answer me, are you my Master?_" GaoLiger asked.

Yuji nodded dumbly.

"_Then you are my chosen Master and Warrior,_" concluded GaoLiger, "_Will you dedicate yourself to the protection of the Earth?_"

"Naturally," answered Yuji once he found his voice.

"_Then hop in, Master_," said GaoLiger, "_And let us ride into battle together._" The gem between GaoLiger's eyes glowed and fired a beam of light at Yuji which absorbed him. Once inside GaoLiger, Yuji found himself sitting in a pilot's cockpit. There were viewing screens that allowed him to see the outside of GaoLiger, with controls to guide GaoLiger's movements and activate its weapons.

"It's just like…Liger Zero has been reborn," uttered Yuji under his breath.

"_I made the interior into something you are familiar with, Master_," spoke GaoLiger. "_Is it to your liking?_"

"Hell yeah! Let's go, aibou!" cheered Yuji.

"**Final Attack Ride: Di-Di-Di-Diend!" **Diend fired his finishing move as the nine aligned rings of cards formed a green and black burst of energy which collided with the back of Shadow Moon, causing it to howl before Meta kicked it away and shrunk down to size. It was exhausting trying to maintain that large size. Suddenly, a large, white, mechanical liger leapt over Meta and pounced on top of Shadow Moon, slashing away. This development caught everyone off guard, especially Diend.

"Wow, big kitty!" said Carmen as she saw GaoLiger.

"What the heck is that thing!-?" shouted Musician.

"What's a Power Animal doing in this world?" asked the blue thief and then he spotted Topper. "Ah, I see." Showa landed next to him. "Yo, what's up?"

"What's up is that we need some more firepower," said Showa. "Is there anything in that card collection of yours that might help?"

"There is one," said Diend, "But you better brace yourself. It's a doozy."

"Right now I'm willing to try just about anything," said Showa as he watched GaoLiger clawing at Shadow Moon, turning his back to Diend as he loaded a card into his Diendriver.

"And that's all the permission I need," Diend spoke.

"**Final Form Ride: Sho-Sho-Sho-Showa!"**

"This will only hurt a bit," said Diend as he took aim and fired at Showa.

Showa was hit by Diend and let out a shout of surprise as his body began to transform. First his legs straightened out and fused together with his feet fusing to form a jet's nosecone before his body turned to face the ground as his arms were spread out. His arms then turned into the wings of a jet as his head folded into his body. Finally, a pair of jet engines formed where his head had been as the Cho Dai-Shuriken on his back broke into six individual blades that then attached to the underside of his wings. Showa had just transformed into a gold, human-sized jet known as the Guardian Jet.

"This is your new power," said Diend. "Now you owe me."

"_After this!_" Showa in his Guardian Jet Mode called back as he flew towards the giant Shadow Moon. He then fired laser blasts from the tip of his nosecone which caused the giant to try and swat the annoying insect away, but the Guardian Jet dodged the monster's attempt. "_Woo-hoo!_" cheered Showa. "_This is so awesome!_" The blades on the underside of his wings then shot at the giant Shadow Moon like missiles, exploding against it on impact. "_I could get used to this!_" The blades then rematerialized on the underside of his wings for another salvo.

Yuji had just witnessed Showa transform into a jet and could only say, "Holy crap," in amazement. GaoLiger let out a growl in agreement.

"Shinichi, is that you?" Sentinel asked as he flew alongside the aircraft.

"_Yeah, it's me Alan!_" confirmed the Showa Guardian Jet. "_I'm a fucking Transformer now! It's badass!_"

"Well then, Mr. Transformer, let's take this muthafucker down!" shouted Bazel. Sentinel agreed and conjured the Faiz Blaster cannon which he used to shoot at Shadow Moon. He put more power into his blasts and they were blowing off chunks from the giant.

"_So, what's with the big cat?"_ Showa asked.

Sentinel scanned GaoLiger with his X-Ray vision and said, "Yuji's piloting that thing."

"_Ah, so it's one of those Zoid things he kept telling us about,"_ said Showa.

"I don't think it's a Zoid," Sentinel answered.

"_As long as it'll help us take this thing down and get the Spark Cores back, it's welcome to help!" _He then activated his communicator.

GaoLiger roared as it stood before Shadow Moon. Yuji was waiting for the colossal being to make a move when he got a call on his communicator. "Fudo here," he responded.

"_Yuji, this is Shinichi. This thing was created by the Spark Cores and they are inside its chest according to Alan's X-Ray scan. We need to get to those Spark Cores and get them out. That's the only thing that will take this thing down._"

Yuji grinned when he received the information and replied, "Roger that." He then said, "OK, GaoLiger, time to help bring home a victory!"

"_Yes, Master,"_ GaoLiger growled as it charged at Shadow Moon. The giant cast out blasts of lightning at GaoLiger but the giant beast ducked and evaded the attacks as its claws began to glow with a golden light.

"Shin, Alan," Yuji called, "Get ready to move on my signal! This bitch is about to go down and go down hard!" He felt the charge was ready and the GaoLiger jumped in the air as its right claw was reared back as Liger Zero shouted, "STRIKE…LASER…CLAAAW!" GaoLiger roared as it struck Shadow Moon across the chest, just below the Spark Cores, leaving a huge gash as GaoLiger left the area and Yuji shouted, "NOW!"

"_Here I GOOOOO!_" shouted Showa as his jet engines shot him towards Shadow Moon like a missile, piercing the air fluidly with his aerodynamic body which prevented wind resistance.

"Take this!" shouted Sentinel as he fired a blast from his ring which hit Showa's rear, causing him to dramatically accelerate towards his intended target. As he was speeding through the air, Showa changed back to his Hinamizawa Guardiain Form and assumed a flying kick that blasted right through the giant Shadow Moon's chest, causing it to howl out as the Spark Cores were exposed, floating freely within the cavity. Not only that, but cracks were spreading all over its body once its weak spot was exposed.

Showa saw the cracks. They were going to need one concentrated attack to finish the job. Showa called the other NEO-NUMBERS, "Everyone, I'm gonna need energy from your Spark Cores for this. I'm about to use the Lucifer Cannon."

The Lucifer Cannon was Showa's strongest, and riskiest, move. It requires the use of all of his energy which would weaken him drastically and force him back to human form because of the massive energy output from the attack.

The NEO-NUMBERS all heard and obeyed and concentrated their energy into their Spark Cores. Beams of light shot out of their Spark Cores and entered Showa's. The energy transfer then caused the NEO-NUMBERS to revert back to human form.

"Finish the job, Shinichi," said Daichi.

Showa heard and aimed his fists at the giant Shadow Moon. His Spark Core glowed as his fist glowed with golden energy. At the same time, Sentinel was concentrating his own Quantum Energy into his hands and waiting for the right time to unleash it.

Showa's Spark Core glowed and spun rapidly as did his Cho Dai-Shuriken as he was collecting his energy.

"GaoLiger, what else can you do?" Yuji asked quickly.

"_My form can match that of your own transformations,"_ the Power Animal replied/

"Then make it fast and charge up," he ordered. He activated his Liger Belt, pressed the blue button, and swiped his Rider Pass across it. "Henshin!"

"**PANZER FORM!"**

As Yuji was transformed into Liger Panzer Form, GaoLiger roared as its armor changed to match Yuji's transformation. The armor was green, bulky, and heavy as the two colossal cannons charged.

"Lucifer…" Showa whispered.

"Hyper Cannon…" Liger Panzer muttered.

"Quantum Energy…" began Sentinel.

"CANNON-!-!-!" Showa fired the multicolored Lucifer Cannon burst from his hands.

"FIRE-!-!-!" The colossal cannons on GaoLiger Panzer Mode unleashed their payload.

"BURST-!-!-! The Quantum Energy exploded from Sentinel's hands.

All three energy attacks assaulted the giant Shadow Moon simultaneously and the result was instantaneous as it was engulfed before the immense energy overload caused it to explode. The force of the explosion blew the NEO-NUMBERS away. First there was a massive fireball which towered over them followed by a mushroom cloud and then…silence. Once the smoke cleared, nothing remained of the giant Shadow Moon. The only evidence of its existence was the wide and deep crater where it once stood and the Spark Cores that were lying in the centre of it. GaoLiger let out a roar of victory, one Liger Zero was only happy to match.

Everyone approached the crater and surrounded it. "OK, time to get those Spark Cores," said Yokoshima as he began to make his way into the crater.

"Wait, something's happening," cautioned Hana and she was right. The Spark Cores were glowing again and floating in midair.

"Now what?" asked Michiru worriedly and then the Spark Cores shot into the sky, leaving a trail of light before eight streaks of light flew off into different directions. "Hey!"

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Daichi exclaimed, "All that work and no Spark Cores to show for it!"

* * *

One Teleportal trip later, everyone was back at the Hive. In the aftermath of the battle, Diend had snuck away. Shinichi had mentioned his involvement to Yuji who had a run-in with the thief in the past. Apparently, Kaitoh had paid Yuji's world a visit and attempted to steal the Signer Dragons but Yuji managed to drive him away and the thief fled empty handed. The NEO-NUMBERS reported everything to Dr. Magi, including the part where the Spark Cores had flown off in random directions and could've landed anywhere. The news was troubling.

Speaking of the news, the entire battle was being shown on TV and this included the aftermath of it. There was massive collateral damage which Shinichi had been unable to repair since he had used his energy to perform the Lucifer Cannon attack, not leaving him with enough juice to use his Rewind ability to reverse the damage, which was unfortunate.

It didn't help everyone's mood when that Mikogami guy was bashing them on the radio for being so reckless and being irresponsible in neutralizing the threat and that they should've left it to the proper authorities and military forces instead of just rushing in like some vigilantes.

"This really isn't going to help with our reputation," said Daichi as he turned off the radio, not wanting to hear anymore trash coming from Mikogami's mouth.

"We have more important things to worry about," said Dr. Magi. "Those Spark Cores are active and loose and what we faced today is one of the things that can happen when they activate. Together, all eight of those Spark Cores materialized a sentient suit of armor."

"A BIG, sentient suit of armor," added Yokoshima. "And then they flew away."

"We need to recover them before they fall into the wrong hands," cautioned Dr. Magi. "I've already programmed the satellite to detect their unique energy signature. Once it's pinpointed the location of at least one, I'll inform you all to go and recover the Spark Core."

"Well, count me and GaoLiger in," said Yuji.

"Me and Bazel are in too," said Alan.

"Speaking of GaoLiger…" began Shinichi.

Outside the base and asleep was GaoLiger. Since Yuji didn't have anywhere to keep the gigantic, biomechanical liger, he asked if he could let GaoLiger stay in the canyon. Nobody saw a reason not to have GaoLiger stay, though Yokoshima had freaked out about GaoLiger eating him.

Yuji then reached into his pocket and looked at GaoLiger's Gao Jewel. Topper had given it to him but what was the price and who had paid? It was a mystery but Yuji was glad to have GaoLiger on their side and couldn't wait to show his new partner off to everyone.

* * *

In an undisclosed location, a W14 laid on a steel table. Its chest compartment was opened, revealing a round cavity. The W14 also looked different from the rest of its mass-produced brethren, suggesting that it had been modified both externally and internally.

A hand reached over to the chest and pushed a Spark Core in, a Spark Core marked with XIV, the Roman numeral for the number 14. The chest compartment closed and all of a sudden the W14's eyes flashed a brilliant blue color.

"I…" the W14 uttered, "…Live."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, Diend sure made a mess of things. Now the Spark Cores are loose and it looks like someone from the past has returned to cause some trouble. I decided for this chap to debut Showa's Guardian Jet Mode and also Yuji's new GaoLiger. The Jet Mode was inspired from Karas and GaoLiger is a Power Animal that is based from Gaoranger. These will be very useful in the future. So, pls, drop a review when you can. Peace out, this is KRC.  
**


	64. The Legacy of Cain Part 8

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 8: Sound Trouble**

**By Iron-Mantis and Snake Screamer**

"Out of curiosity, how did Diend break into the base?" Alan asked.

"Oh, apparently he entered the correct password," Shinichi answered.

"And what is the password?" Alan questioned.

Shinichi answered in embarrassment, "The password is 'password'."

Alan blinked, "Really?"

"He thinks that if the password was so obvious it'd be impossible to guess," Shinichi added.

Alan deadpanned, "Why am I not surprised?"

Shinichi retorted, "Hey, it's not my fault. Dr. Magi assigned Yokoshima to put up all the passwords and access codes. By the way, the access code is 'access code'. Oh and the secure code word is 'code word'."

Alan rolled his eyes, "Again, why am I not surprised?"

Shinichi remarked, "Yokoshima isn't the most creative type."

Alan added, "Great with artillery though."

* * *

_#08 rushed down the hallway as the alarms blared shrilly. There was an alert going on about a research specimen escaping. None of the NUMBERS had been given the full details, but according to what little he could gather this escaped specimen was one of the reasons they were sending Omega Scorpio to outer space. #08 rounded a corner, and spotted the specimen._

_The creature had traits like those of a crocodile with webbed ears. He had strange line-like tattoos on his left arm and was wearing a strange obsidian-color uniform. Both his hands looked as if they had organic speakers in the palms. Guards surrounded the creature, and a man in a white coat appeared behind him._

_"So... even in this miserable mud-ball of a planet, people are still trying to trap me," the creature murmured._

_"Subject 174B is a priceless research specimen! Whatever you do, do not let him escape!" the scientist yelled his order. The GIN-SHOCKER guards edged closer, ready to do as the scientist commanded. The creature just smirked as he raised his hands, and much to #08's shock, created a powerful sonic boom from both his hands and his mouth. The sonic blasts literally ripped the flesh off the scientist's and grunts' bones. #08 created a sound barrier and was barely able to block it. The creature saw this and grinned._

_"Ahh... another sound Manipulator..." With shocking speed, Subject 174B rushed forward and harshly punched his fist into #08 gut so hard that all the air left him. "But still compared to me, you are most inadequate." He quickly grabbed #08 by the arm and violently threw him against a wall. He would have finished #08 off, but wanted to escape most of all._

_He unleashed a powerful sonic blast to the left wall, creating a huge hole to the outside. If one were to look down they would see a long drop down to the ocean. Before #08 lost consciousness he witnessed the creature perform a great dash through the hole before diving into the sea._

* * *

Daichi's eyes snapped open. Next to him, his alarm clock was screaming in his ear. He reached across to turn it off, only to accidentally knock it to the floor. Grumbling, he grabbed the alarm clock and tried to turn it off. "Damn dream…" Daichi groaned, wondering why that memory would suddenly pop up, after all these years, in dream format no less.

"Eh, probably means nothing," Daichi muttered to himself as he finally turned his alarm clock off. He got off the bed, ready for the day ahead.

* * *

There was a warehouse that had been in Shishibone City for many years. On the inside, it had a high-vaulted ceiling that stretched upwards for nearly three stories, as well as a rusting catwalk that ran about the perimeter of the room. A large window stood in the rear of the warehouse. It was so badly cracked and smeared that no one would be able to see anything on the outside. But that was not what would capture the person's eye.

In the centre of the warehouse stood a large metallic structure that was full of blinking lights, and pinging sounds. It stood nearly ten feet tall and nearly seven feet wide.

"Ah-ha! I've done it!" a figure laughed, as the strange lights from his strange machine flashed around him. "It took me a couple of years, thanks to this planet's poor technology, even with my raids on my former jailer's bases. Despite that challenge I was still able to remake my greatest invention."

The figure revealed itself as the creature that had escaped from GIN-SHOCKER HQ, Subject 174B. "Now then, let's test the machines first function!" the creature grinned.

* * *

Shinichi sighed in annoyance as he said, "Remind me again how you guys talked me into doing this?"

"We told you. Me and Daichi have been thinking of painting our living room for a while now, man," Yokoshima said. All three of them were in overalls with cans of paint around them and brushes in their hands.

"I know that… but why the hell am I helping you guys do it?" Shinichi asked.

"Quit complaining. You're the odd-job man and we're paying you to help, aren't we?" Daichi said. Shinichi sighed as he and the other two got to work.

Daichi walked over to a side of a wall and began painting from the top. Yokoshima came from the other side of the same wall; painting from the bottom. He unknowingly painted over Daichi's shoe. The CricketRider stopped painting and made an angry expression. Yokoshima didn't see that as he painted up the wall quickly, and raised his brush too high and slapped Daichi right in the face.

Yokoshima gulped as he saw Daichi's glare. "I'm sorry, Daichi! I didn't mean it!" Yokoshima apologized frantically. Daichi response to this was to slap Yokoshima across the face with his paintbrush, getting paint all over Yokoshima's face.

"Aw, shut up!" Daichi snapped as he slapped more paint on his fellow Rider's nose. "Why don't you pay more attention?"

Yokoshima just spat some paint out from his mouth into Daichi's face, and began cleaning his face off with a rag. Daichi's face was turning pure red from anger at what Yokoshima had done to him. He slapped Yokoshima across the face with the paintbrush again and this time Yokoshima retaliated. It then devolved into a paintbrush slap fight.

Shinichi rolled his eyes at these antics, knowing that he might as well stop this before Daichi killed Yokoshima. "Aye, muchachos, Golpéelo... lejos ¿Qué?¿Porqué estoy el hablar en español?¡Yo no puedo hablar español! **(Guys, knock it... off. What? Why am I speaking Spanish? I don't know Spanish!)**"

Both Daichi and Yokoshima, forgetting their paintbrush slap fight, looked at Shinichi as if he'd grown a second head. "Shinichi, sunt sentimentul ca ati bine? **(Shinichi, are you feeling alright?)**" Yokoshima immediately clamped both hands to his mouth in horror. He realized he was speaking Romanian.

Daichi's eyes narrowed. Something was wrong. Even if both Yokoshima and Shinichi were speaking different languages, their universal translators should have been able to translate for them.

"Qualcosa di stranocontinuare qui…**(Translation: Something weird going on here…)**" Daichi muttered in Italian.

* * *

"Énvagyoka emlékeztette a torony a babel," Hana said in Hungarian. "Hogyan után isten megsemmisítése erő emberi beszélni a különbözőnyelvi. **(I am reminded of the Tower of Babel. And how after the city's destruction, God forced humans to speak in different languages.)**"

Chiaki pulled a sign out which read: "_I'm sure what you said was sort of philosophical and whatnot but I suggest you use your signs till the language barrier problem is solved._"

Hana sighed as she lifted a sign, "_Fine_."

* * *

It wasn't long until Daichi and company found out they weren't the only ones afflicted. Everyone was speaking different languages in Hinamizawa, Okinomiya and Shishibone City. A Teleportal trip brought them to the Hive where Dr. Magi gave them signs for communication.

"_What do you think caused it?_" Battler lifted his sign.

"_How I would I know?_" Alan lifted his sign. Even his ring was having difficulty translating the different languages.

"_Well hopefully, Dr. Magi will find something out soon_," Michiru wrote on her sign just as Dr. Magi walked into the room.

He was about to say something but remembering the speech problem and just pulled up a sign. "_Daichi, would you please be so kind as to create a sound barrier covering the whole room that will block out all outside noise?_"

Daichi quirked an eyebrow and lifted a sign that had "_Why?_" written on it.

"_I will explain after you do it_," Dr. Magi wrote.

Daichi sighed as he summoned his Cricket Fork and started to create a large barrier around them.

"Well…"

Dr. Magi ignored him as he made a few 'mememe' noises in his throat before stating,"Yes, I think I can."

Everyone look shock as they shouted, "YOU'RE TALKING REGULARLY!" before looking at each and realizing that whatever had affected them no longer appeared to work.

"Yes, apparently the computer's reading was correct," Dr. Magi muttered.

"About what, and are you going to tell us how we're talking like this again?" Battler stated.

"Well, I discovered what is causing this. It is some strange form of sonic sound that is directly tapping into the section of our brains that controls the human speech patterns. Somehow, it is manipulating the section to cause us to speak in different languages, while a secondary soundwave stops any communication device from trying to translate it. Quite a smart trick, I must say."

"Yeah, very impressive, but can you fix it so that we don't need me 24/7?" Daichi questioned. He couldn't hold up this barrier forever.

"Well, I can try, but it may take a few hours, so you have to be patient," Dr. Magi said as he headed towards the lab.

* * *

"Hmm, everything appears to be functioning with the first setting, ninety percent of the populace is being affected by it," Subject 174B murmured appreciatively at his machine. It had been three hours since the first test.

"But that's not the one I want. Let's try the second function of my machine," the creature cackled as he began typing in the command.

* * *

"It stopped?" Dr. Magi asked. He was confused.

"Yes, the artificial sound wave has recently stopped broadcasting," Sheila stated.

"But I just finished the headphones," Dr. Magi said with a sigh. Futuristic headphones were on the table, with extra sets for Shiori, Rena and company. Though he was curious, why would someone go to the trouble of sending the sound broadcast to mess with the way people speak just to end it so abruptly?

"_Warning, new sound anomaly detected!_" Sheila alerted.

"Nani?" Magi asked, but suddenly stopped as he felt it, his bones began rattling before the waves of excruciating pain hit him; he screamed as he started to feel cracks in his skull.

"AGGHH!" Dr Magi screamed along with everyone in the next room. They were also experiencing whatever was causing this. He was paralysed from the excruciating pain he was in. Though hearing the others scream reminded him too much of that incident with the virus and Yokoshima's death.

"No… not this time…" Dr. Magi groaned as something began to happen. His body began to expand until he was seven feet tall. His face mutated until it looked like a large, heavy, green turtle head with a technological scanner over his right eye. His right arm and his legs become more reptilian, and a long, thick shell with three distinct rows of spikes and raised plates on the carapace grew on his back. His left arm began to mutate until it looked like a cybernetic bazooka.

This was Dr. Magi's Cyborg Mutant form, Bazooka-Turtorg. Dr. Magi grimaced. He hated going into this form and almost always tried to avoid using it. But even he admitted he was far more durable in this form, even with this levels of pain he was experiencing he was now able to move. Grabbing one of the headphones, he rushed to the room and then grimaced. He had told Daichi to drop the barrier as he was soon done with their little 'communication problem'. If he knew what was coming he would have ordered that he kept it up!

He quickly knelt towards Daichi. Placing the headphones on his head and quickly activated them. This caused a blue aura to cover him and making him gasp in relief as the pain suddenly subsided.

"Daichi, quickly, create another barrier!" Dr. Magi shouted. The Cricket Rider quickly complied. Everyone gasped in relief as the pain stopped. "Are you alright?" the scientist asked as he reverted to his human form.

Catching his breath, Battler said, "What the hell! One moment we thought the problem solved itself, now this!"

"It appears that whoever is behind these mysterious soundwaves isn't just doing it as a prank." Dr Magi said gravely. Shinichi groaned a bit before his eyes widened in horrific realization.

"THAT MEANS THE OTHERS-"

"- Are experiencing it as well," Yuji muttered as both he and Alan reach the same conclusion. Everyone they know must be experiencing the same thing.

There was silence for a moment before Daichi spoke, "Dr Magi, can you track the soundwave?"

"Yes, that should be simple enough." Dr. Magi said. "I already have Sheila on the case."

"In that case you guys go and put those headphones on, give them to the others and make sure they're okay," Daichi said "I'll take care of this bastard."

"By yourself?" Michiru asked

"Look, it's obvious that this guy is messing with soundwaves and no matter how good these headphones are, we still don't know how else these waves could affect us. It's best that all of you stay on standby just in case. Besides, I control sound too so I should be able to fight this guy on even ground."

Everyone was silent for a moment, before nodding. After collecting the headphones, each of them headed out through the Teleportal.

Meanwhile, Daichi fetched his bike as Dr. Magi set the coordinates after Sheila pinpointed the source of the disturbance. The Cricket Rider got on as the Teleportal burst to life and revved his engine. "Let's Ride," said Daichi and he sped into the Teleportal and towards the location of the enemy.

* * *

"A lousy 54 percent!" The creature growled angrily. One of his invention's more offensive functions and it only affected half of the populace! That would not do!

"Calm down, Licehirb. You know that your machine was not going to be at its best with this world's technology," the now name Licehirb spoke to himself in order to placate his anger. He then recalled how he landed on earth.

He was a wanted criminal on his home-world, for immoral testing on various life forms and genocide. He was sentenced to death and was on a prison transport that would have taken him to his home planet for execution. However, due to a meteor storm the prison transport crash-landed on Earth.

It only got worse as GIN-SHOCKER was the one who found the prison transport and placed nullifiers on the aliens they found who survived the crash before taking them prisoner. For months he and the other prisoners were experimented on to study their physiology and how they could be use for bio-weapons. He finally learnt how his own victims must've felt and Karma was indeed a bitch.

Licehirb silently admitted that he admired them for having such scientific minds, but he refused to be ANYONE's guinea pig. So one night, when the scientist's was done testing him and transporting him to his cell, he decided to break out. He stole one of their weapons and broke his nullifier before making his escape. Afterwards, he began stealing various technologies, with some belonging to his former captors, to recreate an invention he failed to finish when he'd been caught.

"Plus, there is still the third test. True, I have to wait for this one as the machine needs to be charged, but it should be worth it." Licehirb grinned darkly as he started to prepare his machine for this one.

* * *

"Damn..." Musician muttered, "What is it with bad guys and their hideouts being decrepit abandon places? I can't be the only one to notice this trend." He decided to go for the stealth approach and snuck in.

Musician pushed his shoulder against a heavy metal door that had been found unlocked on the building's west side. He figured that whoever was doing this must have thought the door was locked and not have checked it too closely. He was able to open it albeit with a loud screech. Musician waited to see if the noise caught any of the occupant's attention. When nothing happened, Musician continued on inside. Reaching a new door he slowly opened to peek inside.

His eye widened to see the escaped GIN-SHOCKER Subject 174B standing next to a large mechanical machine of some sort. _'Great… another thing from GIN-SHOCKER is coming back to haunt us_,' Musician thought, as he tried to listen in.

"Yes! It's halfway charged!" Licehirb grinned and laughed darkly, "Now that I'm done playing with the human body, its time for this landmass to feel my machine's power!" Not liking the sound of this psycho's plan, Musician rushed into the room.

Licehirb was so engrossed with what he was inputting into the machine's control panel that he never expected the clubbing blow that connected with the back of his head. Licehirb was sent to the ground in a heap, caught off guard by the attack from behind. He stood up and turned around to see Musician in front of him.

Licehirb growled "Who the hell are you?"

"Take a guess," Musician frowned for a moment before his eyes widened.

"You're that brat of a sound user. The one I spared when I escaped."

"Yep, thanks for that by the way. Now tell me…" Musician pointed his Cricket Fork at Licehirb's throat. "What the hell are you doing with all this!-?"

"That's simple; I'm testing my machine," Licehirb said.

"Testing?" Musician parroted.

" machine was made for war by using soundwaves as a weapon. Its first function is to disrupt communication by forcing the victims to speak in different languages. The second functionparalyses the enemy in intense agony as the troops swoop in to take them down. But the last one is the one I'm proud of." Licehirb grinned as he went on, "With enough power, it can cause a massive earthquake to level an entire city flat!"

"And you were going to use this thing on Shishibone!" Musician snapped "Are you nuts!-? You would be killing millions of lives, even your own!"

"My species is strong enough to survive such a catastrophe," Licehirb commented. "Besides, a few million lives is just a small stepping stone in the name of science."

"Like hell it is!" Musician roared, getting ready to take him down. Licehirb smirked as he unleashed a powerful sonic scream from his mouth that sent Musician flying and crashing into the second story runway. Musician groaned as Licehirbpointed the organic speakers in his hand to the ground and used them to propel himself straight at Musician.

Claws raised, he swiped down only for Musician to roll away at the last second to avoid it. He tried getting up only to scream as Licehirb unleashed sonic blast that made Musician feel as if he had been hit by a barrage of fist.

"Damnit…" Musician growled, spinning his CricketFork so the microphone was near his mouth. He let out a shout that was amplified into a blast of sonic energy.

"THAT WON'T WORK ON ME!" Licehirb roared as he pointed both his arms forward. He unleashed a triple sonic blast that nullified the one headed towards him and his attack slammed into Musician with enough force to send him crashing into a wall and creating a large crater as a result

"Tch, is that all you got?" Licehirb sneered as Musician groaned, feeling as if two of his ribs were broken, "Because if it is then I need to get back to work."

"No…" Musician groaned. He would never admit it, but he refusedto let this bastard winsince it will endanger human life. With a roar he quickly changed into his Rock-Metal Form and pushed himself out of the crater.

"Still has some fight, eh?" Licehirb sneered as he jumped to the ground. "Fine by me. I don't mind killing you first." With that being said,Licehirb rushed forward and started attacking Musician who blocked each blow with his guitar until. He was backing away as he continued to block Licehirb's assault and hit the wall.

"Now I got you!" Licehirb roared as he plunged his fist deep into the wall. Musician had dodged in the last minute and then smirked under his helmet as Licehirb's was now within his range.

"Hard Rock Spirit!" called out Musician as he concentrated sonic vibrations into his fist and unleashed a punch into Licehirb's gut that sent him staggering back in pain. He then put his guitar on his back and rushed at Licehirb, unloading a furious series of Hard Rock Spirit punches onto the alien's body.

"Bastard!" Licehirb roared,unleashing another sonic quickly pulled his guitar up in front of him and strum the string to create a sound barrier. But even with this he was still pushed being back.

"Heavy Metal Vulcan!" called out Musician as he pointed his guitar at Licerb and strummed the swings furiously. This time he was firing his guitar at Licehird like a machinegun and the sound bullets hit the alien repeatedly. Angered, Licehirb roared to deliver his counter.

Licehirb began firing a large blast of sound that Musician dodged with ease as he was moving to a certain area. When he got in front of the machine,Licehirb, who was too blinded by his anger, unleashed a powerful blast that Musician jumped over, letting the blast of sound hit the machine

Licehirb's eyes widened in horror as he saw his precious machine emitting sparks before it started to collapse onto itself from the damage it had taken from that powerful attack. "B-bastard! How dare you make me hit my own machine!-?" Licehirb roared as he grabbed a piece of the fallen catwalk that was destroyed during the first part of the fight.

Lifting it in the air, he quickly unleashed a powerful sound blast and turned the scrap metal into a series of multi-facetted razor blades that flew forward to Musician with deadly accuracy. Musician just tuned his guitar for a few seconds, glaring at the alien in front of him. He quickly began playing a barrage of notes that formed a charging cricket creature. With ease, it destroyed the blades as it headed towards Licehirb."Heavy Metal Spirit!" Musician called his attack as the aura cricket rushed at Licehirb like a rocket.

"GGGAAAAAHHH!" Licehirb screamed as he was sent flying back by the attack, going through the walls of three warehouses before finally stopping. "Arrgh…" Licehirb groaned, orange blood tricking down his mouth as he lost consciousness. Daichi undid his transformation and made his way towards the defeated alien.

"Normally I'd just kill a bastard like you. But, since you've caused a lot of trouble to different people, I think they should have a hand in kicking your scaly ass. Afterall, if it worked on Gebok, it will work for you," Daichi stated as he pulled out his C3 and pressed the button. He watched as it turned Licehirb into bits of digital data that was absorbed into the C3 before it spat out the containment card.

* * *

It was five days since Licehirb's experiment and presently he was rotting in his jail cell as the remains of his machine were brought to the Hive for analysis.

"Crap, that bastard really knows how to hit someone," Daichi groaned feeling that his ribs were still sore. He and Leviathan were currently sitting in the living room as Yokoshima was cooking something for dinner. Asmodeus was sitting on the couch reading a book.

"It could've been worse. Your Rider name could have been his name. Seriously, his name was both stupid and sort of misleading," Yokoshima stated, "I mean, you would think he would look abit like an insect what with having LICE in his name."

"Your one to talk, you're a pillbug yet your Rider name is 'Armordillo'," Leviathan countered.

"I'll have you know that the scientific name for pillbug is 'Armadillidiidae', so my name still works," Yokoshima argued.

"You know, I always find it surprising that all of you seem to run into something in your past sooner or later," Asmodeus spoke up.

"Sure, it happens a lot for Shinichi, but to the rest of us it barely happens," Yokoshima said dismissively, coming into the room with a tray of food. Just as he put it down the doorbell suddenly rang.

"Huh? Wonder who that could be?" Daichi asked before getting up and walking towards the door to open it. If it was a salesman, he would chase them away. There was silence for a moment before a scream of shock could be heard coming from Daichi. Everyone rushed out of the room to see something surprising.

Daichi was on the ground, looking as if he'd fainted from shock as a very pretty girl with tanned skin, brown eyes and short dark hair that reached her chin stood in the doorway. Her clothes were simple as she had a sarong wrapped around her waist and a sleeveless shirt that revealed her midriff, Leviathan gawked, looking abit angry as the girl checked Daichi if he was okay. However, Yokoshima seem to be thinking something.

"Wait a minute… I've seen her before…" Yokoshima muttered trying to remember where he'd seen this girl. His eyes widened in realization as he shouted, "NOW I REMEMBER!" This made Leviathan, Asmodeus and the mystery girl jump up in surprise. "You're from that island where the Orb of Power was! Mika right?"

"Yes and you're Yokoshima if I'm not mistaken," Mika said. This made both Stakes confused.

"The Orb of Power mission," Asmodeus remembered since Yokoshima had told her about it. "But weren't you guys sent back in time when that happened?"

"Yeah, so how the hell are you here in the present, and more importantly here?" Leviathan asked, annoyed at the new girl. Mika sighed as she began telling her story.

* * *

_It was night time and Mika was sitting on the edge of a cliff looking out towards the vast sea, with her clothing fluttering under the cool breeze_. _Seagulls squawked their usual song as they flew in the sky towards the sea. Mika sighed sadly. It'd been three months since that incident; with some of the people in her tribe treating the warriors that had saved their lives as warriors of their god and had already began creating artwork and sculptures in honor of the three warriors. Mika was half-tempted to shout that they were hypocritessince they didn't say a word to stop her father and mother from banishing them off the island._

"_I wonder what he is doing now," Mika whispered, wondering how Daichi was doing. She stopped however as her eyes 's eyes shifted to the side asshe called, "You can come out now. I know that you are there, demon." There was silence before shadows seem to converge with one another, covering the whole cliff in darkness._

_Suddenly it appeared as if a strange man wearing a top hat stepped out of the shadow. "So, you sensed me, did you? I guess your mother being a priestess isn't all show after all. Though I must say, you are quite incorrect in your assumption that I am a measly demon, miss."_

_"What are you doing here?" Mika asked._

_"Me?Oh, nothing much. I'm just here to give you your heart desires," Topper answered._

_Mika looked at the strange man curiously. She had heard story about people making deal with strange creatures like these and they usually didn't end well. "I don't have any desires," Mika lied, albeit hesitantly_

_"I don't believe that. Everyone has some form of desire. There has to be something that you want, milady. Perhaps seeing that man again?" Topper grinned as he saw he hit the mark._

_Mika was silent. It was true that she missed Daichi but it was impossible to see him again. However, if what this man was saying was true... "Can you?" Mika asked quietly, slowly looking up into the man's eyes._

_"I can," Topper said as he widened his smile. "But the cost will be quite high… relax it is not your soul." Topper chuckled as he noticed Mika looking scared for a second. "You don't have to pay just yet, but I will ask you for a favour it in the future, and you must do it for me at any cost."_

_Mika looked hesitant for a moment before nodding, "Very well."_

_"Excellent," Topper grinned as he pulled from his waist-coat a strange ring, shaped like a green ouroboros and its eyes were that of moonstone. "This ring will allow you to be with Daichi and shall fill your mind with the proper etiquette and knowledge of his world. Now before I give this to you, I must ask if you're sure about this. Even if you do arrive there, there's a good chance of him seeing someone else."_

_"I already know there is a good chance that Daichi may have found someone already... but I just want to see him again," Mika stated._

_"Very well, you shall have your wish," Topper grinned as he placed the ring in the girl's hand before disappearing in front of her eyes._

_Mika eyed the strange ring curiously before clutching it tightly._

* * *

"After telling both my parents that I was going on a journey, and getting their blessing, I used the ring which brought me here to Okinomiya, and after getting some directions I was able to arrive to your apartment," Mika finished, looking at her surroundings with a bit of awe, the ring filling her with the knowledge on what everything was.

"I see, well that makes sense as to how you got here," Yokoshima muttered. He'd seen Shinichi and Alan do things that shouldn't be possible with just items. So a time-traveling ring didn't exactly sound so farfetched to him.

"So you traveled all the way here to see Daichi? That is so romantic!" Asmodeus said while smiling. She was a sucker for anything romantic. Although, she quickly noticed that Leviathan didn't exactly seem so happy with that story.

_'Damn you, Topper!'_ Leviathan thought. She didn't care how powerful he was. She was going to kill the Infernal Merchant for this, slowly.

Daichi, who had just recovered from the shock, just sighed, realizing what was going to happen _'Goddamnit! Alan, Shinichi and Yuji have cursed me!_' Daichi thought.

* * *

**Iron-Mantis: Well that is both me and Snake's contribution to this story. I hope you find it to your satisfaction.**

**Snake Screamer: I added the last part for Mika. I figure this fic needed to end with a bit of humorous note and hey, why should **_**those three**_** only get the harem?**


	65. The Legacy of Cain Part 9

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 9: Sutherland Strikes Back**

"I can't stand that girl, Nii-sama," Leviathan sighed. Yuji had been watching TV and was bored out of his ass when Leviathan came over to visit.

"Come, have a seat," Yuji invited as he pat his lap.

Leviathan accepted the invitation and floated onto Yuji's lap before she began, "I went to visit Dai and I saw him serenading that girl."

"Guess she's into musicians..." Yuji mused.

"He's mine!" Levi cried.

He sighed as he stroke her back comfortingly as he said, "I know, Levi, I know. I doubt he's forgotten about you and is probably just catching up with her. From what i understand, they haven't seen each other for quite a while. I know it's not in you, but have patience, dear baby sister."

Leviathan sighed, "I'm not that virtuous. I'm the Stake of Envy so I'm jealous." Leviathan looks at the ring-like com-link she has on her finger.

"Gift from Dai?"

"Christmas gift," she nodded.

Yuji grinned, "Didn't know he proposed to you already."

Leviathan blushed, "It wasn't a proposal! It's just so we can keep in contact!"

"Has he called you recently?"

"Actually...It's off. I didn't feel like talking to him."

Yuji nodded, "Ah, I see. Listen, Levi, I know you're obviously jealous so maybe you should work out some sort of compromise. The least you should do is tell that girl that you two are dating. Be honest and express your feelings. Just make sure you don't insult anyone. Be as polite as possible. Can you do that for me?"

Leviathan gave a thoughtful look, "I could...maybe try..."

Yuji ruffled her hair and kissed her cheek, "That's my girl. Now run along and do your best."

Leviathan nodded and then disappeared in a flash of golden butterflies to make things clear.

Yuji then talked to himself, "May the Crimson Dragon bless you, Leviathan."

* * *

**February 14****th**** 1988**

It was Valentine's Day and Shinichi was going to pay Princess Shawna a visit in Genovia. It may have been his birthday, but he didn't think it would be too big of a deal for him to spend the day with Shawna. You see, Rena and Shawna had a system arranged. Since they were both Shinichi's lovers and lived on opposite sides of the world, Shinichi would visit Shawna on the weekends and spend time with her. Shawna always waited for Shinichi's visits and he always called. Shawna, like her father, had both been given communicators in case they needed to call the NEO-NUMBERS. King Edward's communicator was in the form of a wrist watch while Shawna was given a pair of earrings that acted as transceivers. With the Hive Satellite in orbit, the two royals would always be connected with their friends and allies on the other side of the globe.

The last few days had been quite humorous. Mika had shown up to come and live with Daichi. This did not go so well with Leviathan who was the Stake of Envy and so the two girls fought over Daichi and his attention. It was obvious they were in love with him. Daichi had found Mika in his bed several times already and even Leviathan had made several unscheduled surprise visits. Everyone was betting on how long Daichi could endure this before he snapped.

The Showa Guardian Jet was flying towards the kingdom before it began to descend. Shinichi had discovered that his new Guardian Jet Mode had become a permanent part of his arsenal. It would appear that Kaitoh had compensated him for trying to steal the Spark Cores by providing him with a new transformation. The only limitation was that Shinichi had to be in his Hinamizawa Guardian Form to assume his Jet Mode.

As the Guardian Jet lowered to the ground, it glowed and then turned back into Shinichi. He could see the kingdom and smiled as he decided to enter in style. He put on a helmet and then concentrated his nanites into his legs. White circuitry lines appeared on his lower legs before metal formed and expanded, morphing before taking the shape of a sleek, futuristic hover bike. It was mainly colored black and had no wheels, instead it hovered a foot off the ground. It had gold headlights and was armed for combat as well as armored. To Shinichi, it was a really sweet ride.

Shinichi then said, "Maybe I should lay off the hover bike." The bike morphed again, this time taking on the traditional form of a motorcycle, with actual wheels, but still maintaining its armored look. "OK, off to the palace!"

The wheels of his vehicle rolled along the ground as he headed towards the Genovian Palace. The kingdom was still peaceful, with the citizens living fulfilled lives. Yes, they needed to work for a living but King Edward was a king and fair ruler who cared for his people. He was the ideal leader, and not a dictator like the Great Leader of GIN-SHOCKER.

People recognized him, of course. He was one of the kingdom's knights and thus a noble. Shinichi didn't really care for the title but it did have its perks nonetheless. Still, he wouldn't abuse the title he'd earned from King Edward.

He reached the gate of the palace. The guards, knowing who he was, allowed the young Rider entry into the palace grounds without argument. He found a spot that was specially prepared for him and his ride and took off his helmet. He'd actually brought along flowers and a heart-shaped box of chocolates that were in his backpack. Once he was out of sight, he deactivated the bike and it was absorbed into his body through his legs. It was a very convenient trick.

He walked up the steps to the palace entrance and the guards opened the door to him as his presence was announced. Shawna was already waiting for him, smiling, with Chris and Anthony at her side as her loyal bodyguards.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Princess," Shinichi greeted, smiling as he presented her his gifts, kneeling down before her.

Shawna took the gifts and smiled. It was a really sweet of him to come and visit her, on Valentine's Day no less. "Thank you, Sir Shinichi," she said as she accepted and as he rose up she hugged him. Anthony's left eye seemed to twitch under his shades.

"May I take these back to your room, Your Highness?" offered Chris.

"Yes, you may," said Shawna. "Sir Shinichi and I will be in the garden." She asked Shinichi, "Will you be staying for dinner, Sir Shinichi?"

"It is our day together, isn't it?" Shinichi replied. "Of course I will, Shawna-chan."

Shawna beamed. She always enjoyed his visits and the magical Teleportal made it a short and easy commute for him to come. She just had to call and thanks to the earrings he'd given her.

* * *

Shinichi and Shawna were having tea and discussing recent happenings. However, Shawna was more interested in listening to more of Shinichi's latest exploits.

"Oh my!" she gasped. "So a thief tried to steal the Spark Cores?"

"Yes, he did," Shinichi confirmed, "And then the Spark Cores woke up and materialized a giant Rider. We had to give it everything we got but then after we destroyed the giant the Spark Cores all flew off and are now scattered all over the world."

"These Spark Cores are important, aren't they?" Shawna asked.

"You can say the only thing keeping me and the others alive are these Spark Cores," said Shinichi, "And I mean the ones in our bodies. Those Spark Cores are volatile, unstable, and we have no idea where they are until they go active. Dr. Magi is trying to pinpoint their exact locations but so far there hasn't been anything, not even clues."

"I am sure you will find them," said Shawna.

"Do you mind helping out?" asked Shinichi. "I mean a Spark Core could've landed in your kingdom. I just thought that maybe you could help look for it, by sending soldiers and then when you do find it you'll call us."

"Sir Shinichi, after all you've done for my kingdom and for me, I think it is only fair that I return the favor," said Shawna.

"Thanks, Shawna-chan," smiled Shinichi, the smile that made Shawna blush in response. "So, what's new with you?" Shawna sighed. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, I've just been receiving gifts from a very insistent suitor," Shawna replied.

"Well, I guess that makes sense," said Shinichi. "You are a princess, and a beautiful one at that." Again that was an honest compliment. "You'd probably have to beat them off with a stick," he joked. '_Or Chris and Anthony can beat them for you._'

"Yes, I know, but I have written messages back to him many times, informing him a thousand times over that I am not interested." Her gaze met Shinichi's, "Because I am in love."

Shinichi blushed as he rubbed the back of his head. "I feel really honored, Shawna-chan."

"Sir Shinichi, there is no man in this world who I will love like I love you," she continued. "You treat me right, even in bed." She blushed so red and was putting her hands to her cheeks.

Shinichi remembered. He remembered that wild and crazy night where he, Rena, Shawna and Satan had used the bed for more than sleeping. It had been a really good night.

"So, will you make me a real woman tonight?" she asked, putting her hand on his.

"Shawna-chan…" he uttered, surprised by the request. Well, Shawna was still physically a virgin. Shinichi didn't actually pop her cherry. She had passed out from an orgasm caused by his very talented fingers.

Shawna was wiggling in her seat as she recalled the sensation and the slow build up of pleasure which had exploded and took her completely off guard. She wanted to feel it again. "Please…?" she was almost pleading him.

Shinichi took a sip of his tea and said, "I…I dunno, Shawna-chan. You're a princess. You're supposed to be pure and virginal until your wedding night."

"THEN WE WILL HAVE A CEREMONY IMMEDIATELY!" King Edward's voice boomed, startling the two. Shawna shrieked and leapt into Shinichi's lap and arms. King Edward rose from his hiding spot, which was the rose bushes, and smiled wide at Shinichi and Shawna as he added, "And you have just swept my beloved daughter yet again, my boy!"

King Edward liked Shinichi. In fact, he liked Shinichi so much that he wanted him to become his daughter's husband. Shinichi just thought it was too early to think about marriage. They were just in their twenties after all. Well, Shawna would be twenty on her next birthday. Shinichi was already twenty since it was his birthday.

"Father!"

"Your Majesty!"

King Edward laughed at the two.

"How long have you been hiding in there?" Shinichi asked suspiciously.

"Oh, since the beginning," he answered. Shawna blushed. So he must've heard. "And I am impressed. You managed to give my daughter the ultimate pleasure without deflowering her!"

"Father, please!" Shawna exclaimed. '_This is so embarrassing…'_ Shinichi, if he could hear her thoughts, would've agreed.

Shinichi wasn't surprised. Even if Edward was the King of Genovia he was still a father and fathers had a habit of embarrassing their daughters. King Edward and Shiori got along pretty well in fact.

Shinichi then decided to change the subject, even with Shawna still sitting in his lap. He put one arm around her, which was meant to soothe and comfort the embarrassed princess. "Your Majesty, Shawna told me she's been receiving gifts and messages from a Lord Sutherland."

"Yes," King Edward frowned, taking a serious tone as he took Shawna's empty chair and sat down. "We didn't think it was a problem, but then they came quite frequently and my daughter was not comfortable about these extravagant gifts. However, sending them back would still be rude and look bad on our family." Shinichi knew how honor was a strong royal ideal. "I did send messages requesting him to stop but either he has not received them or he has simply ignored them."

"I'm betting the latter," said Shinichi. He hated guys who didn't understand when a girl really wasn't interested in them and couldn't give up. Sure, a guy needed to be persistent to woo a fair maiden's heart, but only if the maiden wanted to be wooed. Shawna had already found her ideal partner in Shinichi. "You did tell him that Shawna-chan here is in love with me, right?"

"Yes, I have, but he didn't think it would matter," grumbled King Edward. "I even told him it was you."

"And what did he say?" Shinichi asked.

"I received a letter of how displeased he was that my daughter would pick a 'commoner' over him," King Edward replied.

"So, he was pissed."

"In a matter of speaking, yes."

"He doesn't know about my knighting, does he?"

"I didn't tell him."

Shinichi shrugged, "Knight or not, Shawna-chan chose me." He looked at Shawna's face and then rubbed his nose affectionately against her. "And I won't let her go."

"Oh, Mr. Samurai…" she uttered blissfully. Shinichi rolled his eyes.

'_Back to that, I see…_' he thought. Still, it was an affectionate nickname she'd coined for him. It was like only his mom called him by his birth name.

"You will stay for dinner, won't you?" asked King Edward, "And spend the night?"

"It wouldn't hurt," shrugged Shinichi. Shawna then began to shiver. "Shawna-chan, are you feeling chilly?"

Then a thick fog rolled into the garden, quite suddenly in fact that it didn't seem natural to Shinichi. "I think we should head back inside the palace," said King Edward as the fog began to thicken. "My word, I can barely see anything in front of me and-AH!"

Shinichi heard a dull thud and realized that King Edward had been assaulted in the fog and he got up with Shawna. "Your Majesty!" Shinichi cried out.

"Father!" Shawna shouted but then felt a hand cover her mouth and drag her away. Shinichi realized the absence of her presence and then the fog slowly went away, leaving Shinichi and the injured King of Genovia. Shinichi helped the man up. He'd taken a knock to the head and knocked down.

"Are you hurt, Your Majesty?" asked Shinichi.

"Yes, I am," confirmed King Edward, groaning as he put a hand to his head. "That hurt indeed. I felt as if someone had hit me with a club." Shinichi didn't see any blood so it was just a bruise. However, things were indeed serious. "Where's Shawna?"

"I think someone created that fog as a cover to kidnap her," Shinichi theorized.

"Someone kidnapped my daughter!-?" shouted King Edward. He called loudly, "Guards! Guards!" King Edward was hysterical. His daughter just got taken right under his nose.

"Your Majesty, let me find her," said Shinichi, placating the hysterical king. He activated his wrist communicator's tracker. "She's wearing those earrings I gave her so that means I can track her." It was partly his fault Shawna got kidnapped under his watch. He'd let his guard down.

"Very well, Sir Shinichi," said King Edward formerly, "I order you to find and rescue my daughter."

"At once," Shinichi said as he knelt down before the King of Genovia.

* * *

Shawna was tied up and gagged, sitting in a wooden boat that was on the beach. Standing next to the boat was a young man, who was handsome, blonde, and dressed in an immaculate white suit. He radiated with arrogance and superiority, as well as disgust and disdain for 'lowly commoners' as he called them. In the middle of his forehead was a band-aid which covered an injury. This was Lord Sutherland and he'd kidnapped Princess Shawna.

"All tied up like a nice little package," smiled Sutherland. "You have ignored my affections long enough, Your Higness. If you will not become mine willingly, then you will be mine by force, and your father will have no choice but to give me his kingdom in exchange for your safety. In the end I get you and the kingdom! I'll be ruler of Genovia with you as my Queen!" He started to laugh. Shawna wanted to curse at him but the gag muffled her voice. "Oh dear, you sound angry. That will not do. Don't worry though. Some attitude adjustment is just what you need and I will make sure you forget that commoner you are so infatuated with." Sutherland never forgot about how Shinichi had humiliated him on Shawna's birth day, two years prior. He'd presented Shawna with a dress that was covered in diamonds while the 'commoner' had given her a TOY! And not only did Princess Shawna accept such a cheap present, she'd smiled! Smiled! At a toy!

Then King Edward had demanded that Sutherland apologize to Shinichi, which had stung his pride painfully. He would not do such a thing willingly. Apologizing to a commoner was beneath him. People begged him for forgiveness, not the other way around.

"Well, he won't save you now, Princess Shawna," said Sutherland haughtily. He was about to push the boat into seat when several gunshots hit at Sutherland's feet, causing him to jump and shriek. "Who did that!-?" Sutherland demanded and looked to see the 'commoner' approaching.

Shinichi was walking towards Sutherland. He had his shotgun aimed at Sutherland, the barrel smoking. He then twirled the gun in his hand and slid it back into its holster.

"So, the commoner arrives to rescue his princess," Sutherland sneered.

Shinichi stopped several feet away from Sutherland. He saw Shawna in the boat and narrowed his eyes. He demanded, "Let Princess Shawna go."

"No, I will not!" Sutherland snapped, outraged that Shinichi would dare to order him around. "I am taking the princess away with me while you can only watch me do so helplessly! You won't be able to stop me! It's the perfect revenge!"

"…"

"Speechless due to my cunning plan, commoner?" Sutherland continued. "Of course I would be just as amazed by my own genius! You should not have crossed me before! Now, you know the consequences of going against me, Lord Sutherland! No matter what, you will always be beneath me! You humiliated me before, but now you will taste the same humiliation!"

"…" Shinichi was still staring blankly at Sutherland.

Now this was starting to annoy Sutherland. "Well, aren't you going to say anything or are you just going to stand there looking at me like an idiot?"

"…Have we met?" Shinichi asked plainly. This caused Sutherland to face-fault right into the sane in shock.

Sutherland pushed himself up to his feet and just stared at Shinichi as he repeated, "Have we met? Have we met!-? You humiliated me! How could you not remember!-?"

"Just who are you again?" Shinichi asked. "Because I don't think we've ever met, ever."

"You humiliated me on Princess Shawna's birthday!" Sutherland shouted.

"Nope, sorry," Shinichi shook his head.

"I presented her with a diamond-covered dress!" Sutherland went on, desperately.

"Doesn't ring any bells."

"I called your toy worthless!" Sutherland attempted. And then Shinichi's eyes shone with realization. '_Finally!_' thought Sutherland, relieved.

"Now I remember you! You're Shittyland!" Shinichi identified, incorrectly, causing Sutherland to face-fault again.

"**Suther**land! It's Sutherland! LORD SUTHERLAND!" shouted Sutherland as he rose up to his feet again.

"Really?" Shinichi blinked as he scratched his head. "I would've remembered a name like that."

Lord Sutherland's teeth ground back and forth as he thought, '_He's doing this on purpose. That's it. He's enraging me on purpose. Calm down. You are above the tricks of a commoner. You are Lord Sutherland._'

"Well, whatever. Lord Sufferland-"

"Sutherland," Lord Sutherland corrected.

"Whatever," Shinichi said, "Now I'm going to beat you up and save the princess."

"I think not!" said Sutherland as he reached inside his pocket and pulled out an item that Shinichi recognized. He immediately had his gun out and aimed at Sutherland.

"Put that Gaia Memory down!" ordered Shinichi.

"Oh, I will," said Sutheland as he pressed the button.

"**UNICORN!**"

He then tossed it up and ripped the band-aid off his forehead to expose the slot as he threw his head back. The Gaia Memory then fell directly into the slot, plug first, and was absorbed into Lord Sutherland's forehead. Shinichi was nearly blown away like the sand as Sutherland's body exploded with mutagenic energy as his body began to change. What stood in Lord Sutherland's place was a humanoid unicorn, covered in shining emerald armor. His head was horse-like with a single horn that poked out from its head. His mane was wild and his feet were hoofed.

"**Behold, my grand form!**" boasted the Unicorn Dopant. Shawna's eyes widened as she took sight of Sutherland's new form. "**I am the majestic unicorn and soon will become the immortal Unicorn King!**"

Shinichi immediately aimed his shotgun at the Unicorn Dopant but just as he was about to pull the trigger a bolt of lightning fired from the Dopant's horn, knocking the shotgun out of his hands. He then unleashed a burst of wind from his right hand, blowing Shinichi off his feet and into several rocks.

Shawna cried out, "Shinichi!" but it came out muffled.

"**Now watch, Princess Shawna, as I show you who the better man is for you**," said the arrogant Unicorn Dopant. He then raised his hand to the sky and dark clouds rolled in. "**Goodbye, commoner**," said the Unicorn Dopant as he threw his arm down. A bolt of lightning struck Shinichi directly with so much force that it caused the rocks to explode. Shawna let out a muffled shriek as she watched bolt after bolt strike down on Shinichi, causing more and more explosions. The Unicorn Dopant was enjoying this as he continued his assault and then stopped. Once the smoke cleared, there was nothing left of Shinichi. "**Hm…it seems my power is more formidable than I thought. There's nothing left of him to bury**." He heard Shawna sobbing and saw tears flowing from her eyes. "**Now, don't cry, Princess Shawna. I will help you forget about that commoner. You'll see that I'm the better man for you.**"

Suddenly, the Unicorn Dopant was sent flying straight into the rocks where he'd zapped Shinichi earlier. The blow he received had been sudden and caught him completely by surprise. He clutched his face in agony as it stung painfully. "**My… my face! Who dares to strike my face!-?**" he whined. His eyes then widened at the impossible sight before him. "**No…IMPOSSIBLE!**"

Standing next to the boat was Shinichi. He'd somehow survived the Unicorn Dopant's devastating attack. His clothes had also changed as he sported a black bodysuit with armor on his torso and shoulders with a green chestplate. He also sported matching red gloves and boots, the former which reached up to his elbows while the latter reached up to his knees, with black straps buckled tight around his wrists and ankles.

Shinichi knelt next to a relieved Shawna and untied her gag as he said, "Sorry about that scare. Are you okay?" he asked. He then began to untie the ropes around her.

The Unicorn Dopant demanded in disbelief, "**How could you survive!-?**"

Shinichi answered, while shrugging, "I can move very fast." He added, "Very, very fast." He'd just paused time and transformed, moving himself into position as the explosion erupted. He then snuck up to the Unicorn Dopant and waited until time started up again before surprising his enemy with a backhanded blow. He put a hand on Shawna's shoulder and addressed her, "This won't take long." His Spark Core glowed and his helmet materialized. He then put it on, securing it with the faceplate as the crimson eyes flashed. A breeze blew and his crimson muffler flapped in the wind.

"Go take cover," he advised Shawna who then ran off to find some cover.

**Insert Song: Let's Go Rider Kick**

Kamen Rider Showa advanced on the Unicorn Dopant, reciting, "In darkest night, in brightest day, no evil shall stand in my way…" The Unicorn Dopant attacked, firing bolts of lightning at the advancing Kamen Rider but Showa smacked the bolts away with his fists as he continued, "For those who follow evil's path, behold my power…" The Unicorn Dopant attacked desperately and then struck Showa down with another series of lightning bolts from the sky. However, Showa was not only unharmed but he was still moving as he finished, "Beware my wrath!"

**POW!**

A fist connected to the Unicorn Dopant's face, sending him staggering. This was followed up by another punch in the snout, another one across the face and then a punch right in the Dopant' stomach, causing him to double over before Showa slammed him to the ground with a heel kick to the back. The Unicorn Dopant rose back to his feet and tried to attack with a punch but Showa was faster and his punch connected with the Unicorn Dopant's chest, sending him stumbling back. He then grabbed him by the horn and pulled his face down to slam his knee into the Dopant's snout, violently, releasing him only by snapping his horn in half, much to the Dopant's horror and dismay and pain. The Dopant was sent rolling away with a kick to the chest, hitting some more rocks on the beach painfully.

Sutherland growled in anger and humiliation. Why had he not known about this!-? The commoner was a Kamen Rider!-? Unbelievable! Of course now it made perfect sense! No wonder Princess Shawna favored him.

The Unicorn Dopant may have lost his Lightning Horn but he still had his other powers. He then summoned a thick fog which would prevent his opponent from seeing him and allow him to attack his blinded opponent as only he would be able to see.

Showa saw the fog rolling and the Unicorn Dopant vanished from sight. Suddenly, he was hit in the side like he just got kicked by a horse, and then received a blow to the face so hard that he nearly toppled over. He could hear the Unicorn Dopant's mocking voice, "**Now you cannot see me. Face it, commoner. I'm the superior one. You can't beat me so you might as well give up.**"

Showa rebutted, "OK, I guess you didn't get the memo, but I'm not a commoner. I'm a Knight of Genovia. Also, giving up isn't something I intend to do." Showa then used a backhand that hit the Unicorn Dopant in the snout when he tried to sneak up on him. He then used a vicious combo of punches and kicks that hit Sutherland violently. A heel kick to the horse chin of the Unicorn Dopant sent it flying backwards and then Showa jumped up and activated his Great Fists before slapping them down on the Dopant, sending him crashing to the sandy floor of the beach.

Showa then used his nanites to transform his hands into big fans which blew the fog away, revealing the Unicorn Dopant who was rising back to his feet in disbelief. He then decided to use another one of his powers. "**As** **fast as you are, you are not as fast as me!**" the Unicorn Dopant boasted before blurring out of sight.

Showa rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers as he called, "Fast Forward," before he too blurred out of sight. Shawna wondered where they had gone but then saw splashes erupting in the water and clouds of sand being kicked up on the beach.

Meanwhile, Showa and the Unicorn Dopant were moving so fast that the entire world around them seemed frozen. The revelation that Showa could move at his speed had stunned the Unicorn Dopant. This wasn't at all what he expected. He didn't want to admit it but he had underestimated Showa. The Unicorn Dopant was being forced on the defensive as Showa landed blow after blow upon his body without fail. Clearly, in terms of actual fighting skill and experience Showa had the Unicorn Dopant trumped. Also, the Sutherland couldn't keep up this speed forever and had to stop just in time for Showa to unleash a combo of punches. The Unicorn Dopant was hit 100 times in the span of a single second before being knocked into the air by an uppercut.

"I think you should be the one to give up," said Showa as he dusted off his armor, but Sutherland would not allow himself to lose.

"**NEVER!**" He threw his hands forward and unleashed a blast of intense wind at Showa to send him flying. Showa dug his feet into the ground and continued to advance as Sutherland pressed on the attack. Showa, however, wasn't going to let such a weak breeze intimidate him and therefore was going to show this douche-bag just how the elements should be wielded.

"Gokuaku, it's time to shine," said Showa.

'_Finally! I've been waiting for ages!_' Gokuaku responded in Showa's head.

"LET'S BRING DOWN THE THUNDER!" shouted Showa as his Spark Core spun and let out a red glow as his body became engulfed in a tornado of powerful wind, shocking lightning and intense flames. This not only cancelled out Sutherland's attack but blew him away. He was stunned as he saw the tornado that spun around Showa before it was dispersed as suddenly as it had materialized.

What the Unicorn Dopant saw in Showa's place was an angry demon known as Showa Oni Form.

"**Mommy**," squeaked the Unicorn Dopant as Showa cracked his knuckles and threw his arms to the side, summoning the Oni Claws and rushing at the Unicorn Dopant so fast he barely saw him coming.

Sparks flew as Showa swiped and slashed at the Unicorn Dopant, causing the despicable douche-bag to howl in agony from each blow. This guy tried to kidnap Shawna and force her to marry him. That would also mean that Sutherland would try to force himself on Shawna. That could only mean rape and Shinichi hated the crime and rapists who committed it.

One last blow sent the Unicorn Dopant tumbling along the sand, injured and weakened by the continuous pummeling. He shakily got back to his feet, his knees trembling as he saw Showa glaring at him. "**Please…mer…mercy!**" begged the Unicorn Dopant. "**No more! I give up! I surrender!**"

Showa ignored Sutherland's pleas and rushed at the Dopant using wind to propel him forward. His body crackled with electricity and ignited in flames. He then reached his target and stabbed his claws forward into the Dopant's chest. The Unicorn Dopant screamed as he exploded.

**End Song**

Shawna saw the fireball erupt and the mushroom cloud which resulted from said fireball. She then spotted Shinichi and cried out happily. He was dragging Sutherland by his ankle and the douchebag was mumbling, "But…he promised…power…power…" The remains of the Unicorn Memory lay shattered and charred on the ground due to the intensity of Shinichi's attack.

Shawna ran towards Shinichi and hugged him and he returned the hug with one arm, holding his princess close. "You won," she uttered, happy.

"Were there any doubts?" he asked. He then let go of Sutherland and took out his C3. "I think we should put Lord Salad Bar away for a bit."

"It's…Lord Sutherland…" groaned Lord Sutherland.

"Shut up," Shinichi told him before absorbing him into the C3 and caught the card which ejected from the device. He then turned his attention back to Shawna and smiled in a way that made tingles run up and down the princess's spine. He then kissed her deeply. This caused her to moan into the deep kiss as her eyes closed. As they broke the kiss, her cheeks were flushed as he spoke, "So, I think I will take you up on that offer, Shawna-chan."

"My offer?" asked Shawna, a little dazed by the kiss, until she realized what he meant. "Oh, _that_ offer!"

"You wanted me to make you a woman, didn't you?" he asked. Shawna nodded. He smiled, "Good. I think we have some time before your father sends a search and rescue party." He then gently laid her down on the sand and got on top of her, smiling softly. "I promise I'll be gentle." He then took her lips into a kiss as his hands began to roam all over her body.

* * *

By the time they returned to the palace, which was hours later, they were dirty and covered in sweat and sand. They were also exhausted and needed rest. As for Sutherland, his fate would be determined by King Edward himself and the king was not in a very merciful mood.

After a bath and dinner, it was already late so it was thus time for bed. Shawna needed her rest after her ordeal and had requested that Shinichi spend the night in her home. He really couldn't decline such a generous offer from the princess so he accepted.

Shinichi didn't wear much for bed. All he had on was a t-shirt and boxer shorts to sleep in. The bedroom he'd been given reminded of the one he had during his short time as GIN-SHOCKER's High Commander, even if he'd only been acting.

He heard a knock at the door and without wasting any time he went and opened it to see Shawna, in a bathrobe, looking at him with reddish cheeks. "Shawna-chan?" he asked. "Shouldn't you be in bed?"

Shawna entered his bedroom and he closed the door behind her. She was rubbing her hands together and was gazing at him in a very familiar manner. He knew that look. After all the experiences he had with it he knew what Shawna had come here for.

"Sir Shinichi…could I…could I sleep with you?" she asked.

He was right.

"Shawna-chan…"

"Please…" She loosened the belt around her waist and slid the robe off to reveal her only in her slippers and nothing else. She couldn't resist the urges any longer. After their first time on the beach earlier she just wanted to feel it again.

How could he refuse?

Shinichi smiled tenderly and then put his hands on her shoulders before pulling the nude princess into a deep kiss. Shawna opened her mouth to accept his tongue and the two continued to kiss against the door. The two broke the kiss with a thin line of saliva connecting their mouths.

The Rider then swept the princess off her feet and carried her in his arms, bridal style, and then turned towards the bed. Shawna was then carried over to the bed and gently put down on the mattress.

* * *

Shinichi returned to the Hive via the Teleportal the next day and was greeted by his AI counterpart. "_So, how was your visit?_" AI-Shin asked his template.

"It was great," answered Shinichi. "I got to see Shawna, spend some quality time with her and her dad, stayed for dinner, slept over and finally made Shawna a woman."

"_Nice!_" AI-Shin complimented. "_Bet she had a very Happy Valentine's Day!_"

"She sure did."

"_This calls for a celebration, with drinks!_"

"Oh, you mean like Sex on the Beach?" asked Shinichi grinning. "I already had it. It was sweet and smooth."

_"Awesome!"_

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Nothing too long or too short, so a decent chapter. Sorry Love it? Hate it? Tell me about it, OK? Also, two hot lemon scenes for you guys as well. I hope you enjoy them as well. Bushido helped to intensify them.**


	66. The Legacy of Cain Part 10

**THE ****LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 10: Demons of the Past**

**14****th**** March 1988**

"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to Sho-chan! Happy Birthday to you!"

If Valentine's Day was Shinichi's birthday then White Day was Sho's birthday. Shiori's second son and Shinichi's half-brother was now one year old. There was a party and everyone was invited. Presents for the baby were stacked up nearby. There were food, beverages, and a cake. You can never forget the cake. Sho was in a cute little outfit with a birthday hat and was sitting in Shiori's lap with everyone sitting around the area as they sang. The cake had a single candle to represent how much time had passed since his birth. Since Sho was too young to blow out the candle his mother did it for him. Everyone clapped and Sho giggled.

Alice and Celine even went so far as to give baby Sho a peck on each cheek.

Kasai was recording with a video camera as Shinichi took photographs. Everyone provided entertainment for the party.

With all that had been happening, it felt nice to have a party like this. Everyone was happy and could forget their worries.

* * *

Two weeks after Sho's birthday, something was headed to Earth. It was some type of spacecraft and it was moving at high speeds. Upon reentry into the Earth's atmosphere, the friction due to air resistance caused its bow to become red hot as it began to plummet through the air heading straight for a forest. It did not slow down on its descent and crashed into the ground, digging a trench along its way and knocking down several trees before finally stopping. Smoke was rising up from the crashed ship. There was a hiss as a door on the side slowly swung up and a voice, ominous and eerie, with a German voice, spoke, "I'm home."

* * *

Meanwhile, Rena and Shinichi were out camping. They were in the woods near Hinamizawa for the weekend. It was supposed to be a romantic weekend for the both of them. By the time they'd set up camp it had already gotten dark so after some dinner and stargazing, the couple went into the tent to sleep together. Instead of sleeping bags for each of them, they'd packed an extra large sleeping bag so they could cuddle together as they slept and maybe do more than cuddle.

Shinichi gazed at Rena as he lay on his side, Rena doing the same whilst facing him. "Rena-chan," he murmured.

"Shin-kun," she whispered back.

With all the stuff happening in their lives, peace and quiet like this was a luxury. With so many super villains popping up, it was hard enough to find time to relax like this. Even when they went out on a date something came up.

Shinichi then pulled Rena close and leaned in for a kiss, the girl closing her eyes and puckering up when all of a sudden they both heard a loud explosion from outside, jumping up in shock.

"W-w-w-what was that!-?" exclaimed Rena.

"I'm going to go check it out!" said Shinichi as he slipped out of the sleeping bag. Rena took his hand. "Rena-chan?"

"Please, don't leave me alone," she pleaded.

"Alright," said Shinichi. "Just stick close to me."

The two exited the tent, holding flashlights and went to investigate the source of the loud explosion they had heard. Shinichi's activated his enhanced senses and smelled smoke. "Follow me," he instructed. Rena took his hand and Shinichi led the way. They used their flashlights to shine their way and then stopped when they saw several trees had been knocked over.

"What did this?" Rena asked.

"Whatever it is, it's up ahead," said Shinichi.

They continued onward and then found what they were looking for. It looked like some kind of spaceship.

"A UFO!" gasped Rena.

The ship was shaped like a scorpion. Something in Shinichi's mind triggered. "Looks like a crash landing," he said as he checked for any markings and then he saw it. On the side of the ship was the symbol of GIN-SHOCKER. "Wait out here," he said, letting go of Rena's hand. "I'm going to check out what's inside." Rena nodded and watched him head to the open door on side. Looking inside, Shinichi shone his light and then gasped before he backed away from the entrance.

* * *

_A scream was heard before blood splashed upon #13's face, followed by wicked laughter._

* * *

Rena adopted a worried look on her face, "Shin-kun?" Shinichi was trembling and put his hand on the ship so he wouldn't collapse as his knees felt weak.

"I know…" he murmured, "I know who this ship belongs to."

"Who?"

Shinichi then called in, activating his wrist com-link, "This is Shinichi! I need a Teleportal, ASAP! Hello! I repeat, I need a Teleportal! Sheila! Dr. Magi! Respond!" He growled, "Dammit! Communications are down!" The ship must be generating a ranged jamming field.

Rena grabbed his arm, "Shin-kun, talk to me. You're scaring me."

"Wait here," he said sternly.

"But-"

"Wait here!" He then left Rena as she watched him go. He didn't go far. Shinichi looked around, trying to spot something. "Where are you…?" he murmured. He could feel his cybernetic heart thundering in his chest. Cold sweat was rolling down his brow. He then heard a twig snap and spun around, whipping out and aiming his shotgun at Rena in surprise. He pointed his shotgun down. "Rena, I told you to stay put!"

Rena frowned, "Shin-kun, you're scaring me! What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," he denied.

"No, you're shaking," she observed. His legs and arms were shaking.

"Let's go." Shinichi then activated his bike transformation, generating the bike and telling Rena to get on. The bike was colored black and silver and was generated from the knees down, coating his legs in metal which expanded and then morphed to form the vehicle. It didn't have wheels since it didn't need them and hovered in place. They sped away from the ship while Shinichi was still calling for assistance on his com-link but still got nothing. "Kuso!" he cursed. He then stopped at their tent and told Rena to dismount.

"Wait here," he ordered.

"But-"

"I mean it!"

Rena glared, "Shin-kun, don't ignore me! Tell me what's wrong."

"I can't."

"Shin-kun!"

Shinichi spoke seriously, "This situation has just turned into a mission and right now you're just a liability. Now, go back into the tent and wait!" He activated his bike again and sped off. Once he was far enough, he deactivated his bike and took out his shotgun. He kept his guard up as he looked around for any hostiles.

He knew who that ship belonged to and really wished he was wrong but the evidence convinced him that **he** was back. It was someone that Shinichi hoped to never see again for the rest of his life. This time, he was going to send the son of a bitch somewhere he would never come back from.

Meanwhile, Rena was back in the tent, thinking. She was upset that Shinichi wouldn't trust her and confide in her. It seemed that he still kept secrets from her when they'd promised never to hide anything from each other. She hoped to get answers and waited for him. She was unaware, however, that she was being watched.

The creature had the upper body of a human, covered in armor, with thin fingers that ended in sharp fingertips. From the waist down its human body was connected to a scorpion's body, which was completely mechanical, with a wicked sting at the tip of its long tail and sharp scorpion claws. It also wore a scorpion-like helmet which left his lower face exposed as he licked his lips.

"Hm…my first local," the scorpion-like figure with a German accent mused, "I wonder how they sing."

It then approached closer, keeping silent as not to alert its prey. The tips of its legs didn't make a sound. Once it got close, he lunged for the tent, only to be hit with a tackle that sent it tumbling along the ground. Shinichi had tackled into it and the two went rolling along the forest floor, far from the tent. Shinichi then kicked the scorpion-creature into a tree and stood back up, aiming his shotgun at it.

"Ah, it's you, Number 13," it sneered. "What a small world."

Shinichi glared at the being, "Too small, Omega Scorpio. What are you doing here?"

The scorpion creature, Omega Scorpio, shrugged, "Oh, I'm just in pursuit of my new hobby."

"Torturing prisoners wasn't enough? Now you have to hunt for them?"

"It did lose its taste after awhile, but I do enjoy it when my prey 'sings' for me. It makes me feel fulfilled. Now that GIN-SHOCKER is gone I need ways to pass the time." He asked, "Have you been to my ship yet? It has been so long since I've had any guests. So long indeed. I did have guests but they all left me, leaving just their bodies for me to decorate the place with. A nice parting gift but it gets so lonesome sometimes."

Omega Scorpion's mission had met with failure and in his boredom he decided to use his own men for his fun. He tortured them and then killed them all, just because he was bored. He just wanted them to sing for him but their songs had been horrible so he killed them swiftly and left their bodies to rot and hang on the ceiling.

Shinichi recalled, with disgust, at the rotting corpses that hung from chains on the ceiling of the ship's interior. He also recalled something else, "I saw your souvenir case." He was referring to the preserved remains of other beings, put in jars.

Omega Scorpio grinned, "Oh, you mean my _trophies_? After I went into outer space I decided to go around hunting endangered species. Well, they weren't really endangered, until they met me. They sang a different tune but I still loved it."

Shinichi growled, "You mutilated them."

"I peeled back the skin to reveal their true beauty hidden beneath. Still, the process of hunting was fun, and the killing after making them sing was as well. However, I could never make you sing, no matter what I did. But now I've found a way," he grinned as he glanced at the tent.

"You stay away from her!" Shinichi roared. He took aim with his gun but Omega Scorpio's tail knocked the weapon away. He lunged at Omega Scorpion and knocked him to the ground with a kick but Omega Scorpion's tail wrapped around his neck and tossed him against a tree. Shinichi recovered and willed his nanites to turn his arms into energy blasters before taking aim and firing at Omega Scorpio. Omega Scorpio leapt and dodged around before returning fire, firing energy blasts from the palms of his hands which Shinichi evaded. He then leapt at his opponent, lashing out with his tail, and hit Shinichi across the face, sending him flying. Shinichi bounced off a tree and kicked Omega Scorpion, knocking him over and pinned him down with his blasters in his face. As he was about to finish Omega Scorpio off, he got distracted.

"Shin-kun!" Rena gasped. She had heard the commotion and went to check it out.

Shinichi turned away, "Rena, get out of here!" Omega Scorpio grinned.

"So, that's the little birdy's name," murmured Omega Scorpio with interest.

Taking advantage of his distraction, Omega Scorpio tossed Shinichi off him and then stung him in the chest. However, Shinichi blasted him at the same time, knocking him several feet away and into unconsciousness. Shinichi began to convulse as his body turned limp and he fell to the forest floor. He was completely paralyzed.

"Shin-kun!" Rena cried as she ran towards him. "Are you okay?"

Shinichi struggled to rise, "Get out of here, Rena!"

Rena shook her head, as she tried to help him up, "No, I won't! "

"I can handle this! Go!"

"Don't lie to me! I can see it in your eyes! You're scared and I've never seen you so scared!" She saw terror in his eyes, terror that she'd never seen before. It was disturbing.

* * *

_#13 was made to watch as Omega Scorpio tortured another prisoner. The man had been captured by #09 and #08 since he was selling information to a rival organization. Omega Scorpio was assigned to get answers through torture._

_#13 watched as the man was cut up and mutilated, screaming in agony. Omega Scorpio enjoyed the man's' song' and then finally he finished up his job by ending the man's life in a brutal and bloody fashion. There was so much blood, some of it staining #13's face and clothes, and the surrounding area._

"_Humans are so fragile, but their songs are the best," said Omega Scorpio to #13, "I wonder what your song is like, my boy…"_

* * *

Shinichi shot back, confirming her statement, "Yes, I am scared! I'm scared of losing you!" His worst fear was not facing Omega Scorpio, but the thought of losing Rena chilled him to the bone.

Omega Scorpio had regained consciousness and laughed, "Oh, how touching. It would appear you've found a new love but we both know what happens to the people close to you, Number 13. First the NUMBERS and then you had to kill that precious girl. What was her name? Lina, was it? You killed her too. I guess she got too close to Unlucky Number 13. And with your track record, this girl's death will be on your head." He clicked his claws and added, "You should really ask yourself, 'is it them, or is it me?' Personally, I wonder what her song sounds like."

Shinichi spoke with a grunt, "Rena, do you get it now? He's not interested in me! He hunts indigenous species and he's on Earth! Meaning humans! You!"

Rena paled, "What?"

"Go! RUN!"

Rena decided to follow his words and ran away. She hated herself for abandoning Shinichi like this but she had to get going and maybe even get some help. She had to get out of the woods.

Omega Scorpio shook his head with a sigh, "Everyone close to you will always leave you. Must be painful, right? That's why I work alone. It's so sad when bad things happen to those close to you. But don't worry, I fully intend to snuff your life out and I will make it hurt. Of course that won't compare to the pain you'll feel knowing I'm going to make your little bird sing for me. By then you'll sing too if my guess is right. It will be _so_ perfect." Laughing, Omega Scorpio then pursued Rena, leaving Shinichi paralyzed on the ground.

Shinichi continued to struggle as Omega Scorpio gave chase to Rena, screaming, "RENA!"

* * *

Rena fled quickly through the forest, not looking back once. She could hear Omega Scorpio chasing after her. It was like one of those horror movies with the serial killer in the forest chasing after his latest victim. He was the hunter and she was the prey. She just hoped Shinichi was okay. She just needed to survive long enough for help to arrive, if help was to arrive.

* * *

"Rena…I'm so sorry…I should've protected you…" Shinichi was still unable to move. Panic had turned to self-loathing and regret. He couldn't save Rena, like the time he couldn't save Lina. Now Rena was going to die and it would be his fault. His past had once again caught up with him and as always the people closest to him would be hurt. It was like that time loop he experienced during that New Year's Eve in 1985 where the people closest to him died, one after another, and no matter how many times he reversed time and tried to prevent their deaths, they still died.

The venom put into him was a paralysis agent which rendered the body immobile. However, the venom that Omega Scorpio used left his victims with the ability to feel only pain. That was his favorite hobby. He loved to cause pain for the sake of causing pain. That was what made him enjoy the art of torture. By causing pain he would make his victims 'sing'. However, Shinichi, back when he was #13, would never sing for him. #13 was never programmed to scream when in pain.

However, those memories still stuck onto Shinichi. They had been among those he'd repressed but after regaining his memories, the sight of Omega Scorpio's ship brought them back to the surface.

And now Omega Scorpio was hunting his girlfriend. She was going to die and it was going to be his fault. She needed him but he wouldn't be able to save her.

Maybe Omega Scorpio was right. Maybe he was cursed. Maybe that was why people always seemed to die around him.

He then snapped out of it. He was letting Omega Scorpio get to him. This was just another one of his games. What could he do, though? He couldn't move as the venom paralyzed him. Then he scolded himself for forgetting something important.

He then began to focus and concentrate on something deep within. It was a power he had that was in his blood, something he'd always had. It was a power that was associated with the fact that he was the son of Warren Smith.

And he was about to unleash it. His eyes snapped open and both the sclera and irises turned pitch black as his pupils turned pure silver.

* * *

Rena leapt over a thick log and then squatted down to make herself as small as possible, pressing her back against the log as Omega Scorpio's legs came in sight. One by one the thin appendages entered her line of sight. Rena couldn't make a peep or else he'd find her. Unfortunately for her, he did, as his body bent over at her way and he looked straight at her, upside down. "Hello, Little Birdy," he greeted, grinning and baring his sharp teeth.

Rena shrieked and slipped away from him fast as Omega Scorpio laughed, "Run! Run! That's it! Run! Make this fun for me, little birdy! And once you sing, sing loud and proud!" He gave chase, cutting down trees in his way with his claws.

Rena continued to run and run as fast as her legs could carry him. Hiding from a predator was not an option. She'd been a sitting duck there. She heard his haunting laughter as he continued to pursue her, clicking his claws together, the same claws he would use to make her 'sing'.

Panting, she looked back over her shoulder and didn't see him but she had no illusions of safety. He was nearby, waiting to pounce on her, like a hungry lion. She then looked ahead and saw Omega Scorpio's ship and ran to it. Maybe there was something there that could help her. Once at her destination, she stepped on something wet and then looked up to see it drip from a hole in the ship. "Fuel," she surmised and then turned only to come face to face with a grinning Omega Scorpio.

"Peek-A-Boo, little birdy!" called Omega Scorpio as he snatched her up with his scorpion claw. She screamed and struggled in his grip. "Oh, now I've caught you and you sing so beautifully! What other sounds can you make, hm?" He began to caress her cheek with his cold fingers. His tail went up and the tip caressed her cheek. "Oh, it's been so long since I've tortured a human female." He recalled how he'd violated female prisoners with his tail, just shoving it right into their private parts and listening to their agonizing screams of torment and. "Yes, yes indeed." He licked his lips. Using his other claw he began to cut off Rena's clothes. "Such nice and soft skin, and you look absolutely delicious."

Rena shut her eyes, tears leaking out. "Shin-kun…" she sobbed.

"He can't help you know, little birdy," hissed Omega Scorpion. "Now, time to make you sing."

All of a sudden, a green beam of energy cut right through the arm holding Rena and Omega Scorpio screamed as it was severed, dropping Rena down. Rena grunted as she fell to the ground and then looked up to see an emerald glow, one she recognized. "Alan-kun!" she cried happily.

"Who dares!-?" yelled Omega Scorpion in outrage.

Then there was another yell.

"KNUCKLE SANDWICH, ASSHOLE!" yelled Showa as he used his Great Fists to send Omega Scorpio flying and slamming into the side of his ship. His Great Fists were immense metal gauntlets that he could use to smash and crush things.

"Shin-kun!" Rena cried and then ran towards him. He deactivated the Great Fists and caught her in his arms. "Shin-kun! Shin-kun!"

"Rena…" he murmured softly, relieved that she was alright, but then saw that there were tears in her clothes. His eyes narrowed as he knew who the culprit was. "Omega…"

Sentinel hovered next to Shinichi and asked, "You know him?"

"Oh yeah," confirmed Showa. He then asked, "By the way, what took you so long?"

"Earthquake on the other side of the world," shrugged Sentinel.

"How!-?" demanded Omega Scorpio, glaring at Showa. "How can you still move!-? My venom is-!"

"Useless," Showa retorted. "After you left for outer space I developed the power to manipulate time. I just rewound my body's condition back to before you put that stuff in me. I almost forgot about it since I was so scared."

Omega Scorpio growled and lunged, lashing his tail out but Sentinel caught it in his grip. Omega Scorpio tried to pull it back but Sentinel was stronger. He then yanked the scorpion cyborg forward for Showa to nail him in the face with his Great Boot. The massive, metal boot crashed hard against Omega Scorpion and sent him soaring back and crashing against his ship again.

"Alan, he's mine," said Showa.

"Be my guest. Knock yourself out," allowed Sentinel.

"Actually, I'm gonna knock HIM out!" Showa ran towards Omega Scorpio. Omega Scorpio began blasting at Showa who dodged by warping from place to place before he engaged Omega Scorpio in hand to hand, dodging his scorpion claws at the same time. He hit Omega Scorpio with several punches in the face and when the claws came at Showa he just sliced them off using a pair of curved blades that shot out of his forearms.

"RIDER GATLING!" Showa called out as he executed his accelerated kick attack and nailed Omega Scorpio with a hundred rapid, blurring kicks that left dents in the cyborg's body with each impact. He kept up the attack for several seconds before He sent Omega Scorpio soaring skyward with a heel kick to his chin.

Showa threw his arms to the side and his right arm turned into the Great Sword while his left arm turned into an energy blaster. When the law of gravity applied itself on Omega Scorpio as he came down again, he was hit with a point blank blast from Showa which sent him flying and then Showa swung his glowing Great Sword which unleashed a crescent-shaped blade of energy that sliced through the air towards Omega Scorpio. The resulting explosion when the attack connected was so powerful that it blasted Omega Scorpio straight at his ship. He smashed against the surface again and this time he was imbedded in it.

Rena spoke, "Alan-kun, there's fuel leaking from his ship."

Sentinel understood and asked, "Can he survive an explosion?"

"He can, but it will hurt, a lot," said Showa.

Sentinel smirked and then looked at the fuel that leaked from the ship and then used his heat vision to ignite it. Omega Scorpio's eyes widened in horror as he screamed, "NOOOOOOOO!"

The explosion was massive but Sentinel shielded Rena and Showa by erecting a dome of emerald energy over them. Once the explosion subsided, leaving only smoldering wreckage, Showa let out a sigh of relief.

"You seem to have history with that guy," said Bazel.

"More than I care to remember," said Showa. He then took out his C3 System and went to look for Omega Scorpio. He was probably severely damaged from the explosion. He looked around the wreckage. An explosion like that wouldn't kill a cyborg that advanced but it would still severely damage them to the point that they wouldn't be able to move without their own power. He spotted what appeared to be scorpion-like legs that were raised into the air and checked it out, only to cry out in frustration, "NO!"

Rena and Sentinel exchanged worried looks as Bazel commented, "That does not sound good."

Showa managed to find what was left of Omega Scorpio, but it was only the lower half of his body, the mechanical scorpion body. It was damaged beyond repair, and right next to it was a huge hole. He cursed, "Damn it!" He'd escaped and he was on his world. That was not a good thing. "So much for closure…" he whispered as he removed his helmet.

Of course Shinichi looked different now. His hair was spiked up and was silver with dark roots. Also, his pure black eyes had pupils shaped like the hands on a clock. The outlines of his irises were also silver and visible.

"Shin-kun?" Rena asked as she saw how he looked.

"Yeah, it's me," Shinichi confirmed and he pulled her into a hug. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine, but are you?" she replied. '_He looks so cool_.'

"I'm…fine, I think. Sorry you had to face my demons. You were really brave."

"Actually, I was terrified," she admitted, "Mostly for you, but I knew you'd come to save me."

"Excuse me, but I was the one who rescued you," Sentinel reminded. Shinichi and Rena let each other go.

Rena looked to Sentinel, smiling, and said, "I know. Thank you too, Alan-kun. However, since I'm not single and you're not my boyfriend, you don't get the girl this time."

"Tough break," smirked Shinichi.

"I'll get the girl next time," Sentinel shrugged. "By the way, Shinichi, you look really cool. Now you definitely look like part of the family."

"I know, but I'm not keeping this look up for long," said Shinichi as his appearance reverted back to normal. The blue color of his hair and eyes faded back in as his hair dropped from its spiked up position before the twin ahoge stuck up.

Sentinel then inquired, "So, who was this guy? You seem to have some history."

"He was part of GIN-SHOCKER," answered Shinichi. "His forte was torture." He wasn't about to mention that Omega Scorpio's favorite victim for torture was him. It was when Gebok needed help to strip Shinichi of his humanity and to create those AI programs from his fractured psyche. "A couple of years before I made my escape, Omega Scorpio was sent on a mission to space with a small army of soldiers to find other worlds to conquer for GIN-SHOCKER. What you blew up was his ship."

"So, GIN-SHOCKER was expanding," Sentinel concluded.

"Exactly," Shinichi confirmed. "But after he stopped reporting back to headquarters, everyone thought he failed and was dead. That news was a huge relief for me." His frown deepened. "Unfortunately, now he's back on Earth."

"He must've left quite an impression on you," said Sentinel.

"He did," said Shinichi. He recalled the torture sessions where Omega Scorpio tried to make him 'sing' but he never did. He kept his screams inside but the fear and pain still stuck with him until now. Omega Scorpio even made him watch as he tortured prisoners, trying to get a reaction out of him. That was why he was trembling when he found out that Omega Scorpio was back. He remembered the brutality and coldhearted lack of mercy that Omega Scorpio had displayed in the past and still possessed until now.

He then considered Omega Scorpio's words. How did he know about the NUMBERS and Lina? If he had been in space all this time there was no way he could've known. The only answer was someone must've told him.

"Maybe I am unlucky," said Shinichi.

"What makes you say that?" asked Sentinel.

"Can't catch a break, even when all I wanted was to spend some time with my girlfriend here," said Shinichi, taking Rena's hand.

"We're superheroes, Shinichi. Trouble sometimes comes after us when we least expect it."

"Well, it sucks. It's a fucking curse!" Rena squeezed his hand comfortingly. "Sorry," he apologized.

"You're a little stressed right now, I get it," nodded Sentinel. "Heck, I'd be as mad as you if a villain interrupted a tender moment I had with my girls."

"Glad to know someone understands," smiled Shinichi.

"We're brothers," Sentinel responded. "So, what are you gonna do now?"

"Well, Rena-chan and I could sleep in our tent but after what happened tonight I think we should sleep indoors, for safety." He asked Rena, "Is that OK with you, Rena-chan?"

"It is," said Rena. "As long as I'm with Shin-kun, I don't care where I sleep."

Maybe they could salvage this weekend after all, even if it was going to be spent at the Hive. He would need to be creative, though, and make the atmosphere more romantic for him and his girlfriend. He wondered if he could get Michiru and Hana to help.

"Well then," Shinichi began as he spoke into his wrist com-link, hoping this time it would work, "This is Shinichi calling the Hive. Dr. Magi, I need a Teleportal right now."

"Um…Shin-kun?" Rena asked as she looked at him with a blush.

"What is it, Rena-chan?" Shinichi asked.

"Could you make yourself look like before again? You looked really cool," she requested.

* * *

Gnol was hiding in a cave as he was recovering still from the injury Alan had inflicted on him with the Higurashi no Yaiba. He'd been hiding here for months, recuperating. If he could go after his other heads he would but in his injured and weakened state that blasted Susano-O would be able to vanquish him. He just needed to bide his time and wait for the right moment. Suddenly, he sensed another presence and conjured a fireball as he demanded, "Show yourself!"

"So, this is where the Wrath of the Orochi was hiding," the other presence revealed himself. It was a young man, with snow white hair and blood red eyes that was dressed in a black jacket with matching pants. Hanging from his neck was a yellow muffler.

"Who are you, human?" Gnol asked.

"Oh, I'm not human," the man said as his eyes flashed briefly. "But if you want a name you may call me Juuyon. Shiro Juuyon."

"And what is it you want, Shiro Juuyon?" Gnol questioned.

"Simple, Gnol Gnauh. I want us to join forces," said Shiro.

Gnol let out a laugh and remarked, "And why would I want to join forces with you?"

"It's because you and I have a common enemy and we both want stronger bodies," said Shiro. He then asked, "Aren't you missing your other heads, Yamata no Orochi-sama?"

This man knew his other identity so he prompted him, "What do you mean by a stronger body for yourself?"

"There are these…artefacts known as Spark Cores that are scattered all over the world, much like your heads. I'm looking for them. Also, you wish to kill Susano-O while I want to kill his ally," Shiro explained, "Our situations intertwine and I believe a partnership will be beneficial for the both of us." Shiro was grinning from ear to ear, revealing his pearly whites at Gnol.

Gnol considered Shiro's words. He had to admit that the white-haired man made a compelling argument. He would've defeated Susano-O months ago if his ally hadn't shown up with that blasted swords of his. However, there was a matter of trust. Gnol didn't trust this man who had his own agenda but he was right about the fact that Gnol needed his heads to regain his full power. If things did go South, he'd just kill Shiro. Simple enough. "Very well, Shiro Juuyon, but as soon as I get all that is mine this partnership is over."

"That sounds just fine to me, Gnol Gnauh."

* * *

The ChronoLiner stopped at the platform and one of the doors opened to let Warren and Ryuki exit. They had gone on an Infinity Fragment hunt and had brought home a couple of extra surprises.

There was a little girl in Ryuki's arms but she wasn't normal looking. She had red scales instead of skin with large blue eyes and long flame-colored hair with a tail that had fire on the tip. She looked humanoid and was wearing a red Chinese dress with black shoes. She was a CharAmanda Pokekit.

As for the Witch, she had short, black hair and fair skin. She had a pair of big blue eyes. She was wearing a black dress and a large pointed hat that was two sizes to big for her and a pair of black shoes.

Their excursion had taken them to the Pokegirl World and on their little hunt they had found these little Poketits, alone and frightened. The young CharAmanda was found by Ryuki, crying at her mother's side. The Whorizard had been killed trying to protect her Pokekit but not before she managed to burn all her attacked to a crisp. Still, she succumbed to her injuries and died with her daughter at her side, a wing draped over her protectively. That was Ryuki's conclusion when he saw all the burnt bodies surrounding the dead Whorizard.

As for the Witch, Warren had found her in an abandoned castle she called home. She'd been using her magic to keep people away, people who would hurt her, but Warren managed to gain her trust. Then the villagers that lived close to the castle decided to finally deal with the Wicked Witch. Warren made sure they saw the error of their ways.

"Director Hasuma! Director Smith!" a technician approached the two quickly, carrying a sheet of paper with her.

"What is it, Ms. Harris?" asked Dr. Hasuma. Gina Harris was a member of ARMOR whose job was to make sure that ARMOR was connected to all the worlds within its protection in the Multiverse, and then some.

"Take a look at this," said Gina as she handed the papers to Dr. Hasuma.

"My hands are kind of full here," said Dr. Hasuma, referring to how he was holding Amanda.

"Oh, sorry," said Gina as she adjusted her glasses, cheeks flushed in embarrassment. She then showed him what was on the paper and his eyes scanned the words. As he continued to read further down its surface, his eyes widened in alarm which did not go unnoticed by Warren.

"What's wrong?" asked Warren.

"According to this report, we've just been cut off from Shinichi's world," Dr. Hasuma responded.

"What?" Warren responded, eyes wide.

"That's what it says here. There's an anomaly, some kind of interference, that's preventing ARMOR from making contact with Shinichi's world and preventing our agents there from contacting us," Dr. Hasuma elaborated.

Warren could only say one word, "Fuck."

"Language," Dr. Hasuma chided, "We have children present."

"Right, sorry."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, another demon from Shinichi's past rears its ugly head. I mean, first Gebok and now this guy? Is it just me or are Shinichi's enemies all cowards who refuse to face death?**** I mean first there was Gebok and now Omega Scorpio. And before you ask, yes Omega Scorpio is gonna be a recurring villain. Also, now our heroes are cut off from ARMOR. Not good.**


	67. The Legacy of Cain Part 11

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 11: Snuff Film**

**By: deadly84**

"Remind me again why we woke up so early?" Keiichi asked as he yawned, covering his gaping mouth as he did.

"We're here to support Michiru. Apparently she signed up for a marathon. When she learned it was for a good cause she just had to register for it," Shinichi answered.

"That still doesn't explain why we're here," Keiichi said.

"Haven't you ever heard of cheering your friend on?" Shinichi questioned. Both NEO-NUMBERS and Gaming Club members had arrived to the start of the race to cheer Michiru on. They saw a lot of runners everywhere, shaking their arms and legs, stretching wherever they could find a foot of space. Michiru was in the crowd and was able to spot her friends and waved a bit before going back to stretching. She was wearing a pink t-shirt with her number taped to the front and back and a pair of blue shorts. She also had on a pair of running shoes.

Hana was there to support her best friend and lover and smiled. Michiru had asked her to come and support her and the Tarantula Kaizo Ningen agreed without hesitation.

Michiru bounced on her toes one last time. When all the runners were called over to the starting line, she managed to find a spot for herself. When the starting gun went off, she and the other runners in the marathon were off. Her legs moved in rhythm with the crowd. She could hear her friends cheering for her. She kept a steady pace and didn't push it. She needed to conserve her energy for the final spring. She was unaware of someone watching her, however. "Yes... she'll do," the figure grinned. "She'll do quite nicely."

* * *

Michiru sighed happily as she reached the finish line. She may not have won but that wasn't what was important. This marathon was for charity and as long as she was able to help raise money for people who needed, she was happy. "Man that was tiring," Michiru said as she went for the table that served water for the runners. Grabbing a bottle, she unscrewed the cap and then took a huge gulp of water. She then heard someone approaching her. Thinking it was one of her friends she turned around to greet them only to be sorely disappointed.

Michiru was approached by an older man from the crowd. The lean, black and slightly graying haired man had a Fu Manchu mustache and was wearing clothes similar to a film director like Stephen Spielberg, even wearing a blue cap and sunglasses on his face. Not wanting to be rude she asked "Hello, who are you?"

"My name is Tsugawa Nakanishi," the man introduced himself to Michiru. "I was admiring your competitive spirit in that marathon and I have an offer you might find quite lucrative."

"Thank you," said Michiru said smiling. "What sort of offer is it?"

Tsugawa explained. "Well madam, you see I am a commercial photographer, and I'm working on a photo layout for a model manufacturer. The company wants me to feature 'real life' people, who don't have the look of professional models. I've scouted a number of people already, looking for someone exactly like you."

"Well, I don't know," Michiru responded hesitantly. She was never the kind that wanted that much attention, but she had to admit she was flattered that this Tsugawa guy thought she was model material.

"The pay is 10,000 yen an hour, with a 30,000 yen bonus when the layout is accepted," Tsugawa said making Michiru eyes widen. "But even if you don't accept it I must ask of you this. You have to swear to keep the project under your hat. We don't want a competitor to copy this idea."

"Okay, I understand." Michiru nodded

"Good, well here's my number. Call me once you make up your mind," Tsugawa said handing her his business card before walking away.

"Hey Michiru," Hana said, walking towards her. "Who was that guy?"

"Him? Oh, just a nice guy, Hana-chan," Michiru smiled. She examined the business card. It seemed pretty legit.

* * *

"So what do you think?" a mysterious figure asked.

"I had my doubts when your client actually sent you and asked that one of those Riders be shown in one of my works! But after seeing that one in real-life, I can safely say that I can do it!" Tsugawa grinned darkly.

"But how will you know she will accept?" the man questioned.

"She'll take it. She didn't say it but I recognized the look on her face as someone who wants to become a star," Tsugawa grinned.

The man nodded as his master wanted the director to at least take care of one of the Riders. "In that case use these." The man handed him two strange orange and purple pills, "Just slide these into her drink and even a being with her modifications will be knocked out."

Tsugawa nodded as they parted ways.

* * *

Michiru lay on her couch as she held the card in her hand. Thinking about it for a second, she decided to get up and call him on the phone.

"Hello Mr. Nakanishi, my name is Michiru. I'm not sure if you remember me but I'm the woman you talked to after the marathon. Listen, I want to take up your offer if it's alright," Michiru said. She then listened to his reply. "Wow, really? That's great. So when do you want me to show up?"

After writing down the address of the place and time she put the phone down before she got ready to go to bed. She had a big day tomorrow.

'_I'M GOING TO BECOME A STAR!'_

* * *

Tsugawa studio was huddled down in a tiny side street on the edge of the business district. Michiru arrived twenty minutes late, and hustled to get inside.

"I'm so sorry I'm late! I got lost!" she explained when Tsugawa answered the door.

"Oh no, it's no trouble my dear. Please if you could go on into the dressing room then we can get started," Tsugawa said as Michiru nodded before she did just that. When she stepped out of the dressing room she was wearing a red Chinese cheongsam with white stockings and black high heels.

"You look lovely, Michiru-shan!" Tsugawa smiled "Whoever you're dating must be quite happy to have you."

_'You have no idea,_' Michiru smiled, thinking of Hana.

"Now Michiru-chan," continued Tsugawa, "It gets pretty hot under the lights, and I know you're not accustomed to it. I'd like you to drink this glass of water before we begin, just to keep you from becoming dehydrated."

Michiru wasn't thirsty, but she complied. She began to drink the water unaware that it was drugged. When she put the glass down, she noticed something curious. "Oh wow, I feel kinda dizzy..." Michiru said slowly.

"Oh, that's probably just your nerves rattling up," Tsugawa said. Michiru could swear that his smile was taking on a sinister look.

"Yeah, must... be my... nerves," Michiru said with her eyes drooping. It only took another moment before Michiru felt the knockout drops. She staggered backwards, and Tsugawa caught her. Before she completely lost consciousness she heard Tsugawa laughing darkly.

* * *

Hana was walking down the street. It's been 3 hours since Michiru left and so far no word from her. She was starting to get worried as Michiru wasn't even answering her communicator. After finding the paper where Michiru had written an address down, she went to find Michiru. Spotting the building she walked faster before she reached the front door

"Excuse me, but have you seen-" Hana stopped as she noticed that there was nobody inside. Confused, she rechecked the address and the building's number. When she was positive she had the right place she walked in with some trepidation.

"This doesn't make any sense. Why would Michiru go to this place?" Hana questioned as she checked the next room. She then noticed that one of the lockers was unlocked. Curious, she opened it up and her eyes widened.

Stuff inside was Michiru clothes. Her shock slowly turned to rage and worry. Something had happened to Michiru. She didn't know what but she is going to find out. And whoever had made Michiru disappear will wish they hadn't when she was through!

She was going to need help though so she decided to call this in.

* * *

The sound of distant seagulls began to make its way into Michiru's ears. _'Weird'_ she thought, but still in the comfortable state between sleep and awake she just ignored it. A warm breeze drifted across her face. _'I must have left the window open again! I'll close it later…' _She turned over only to find herself with a face full of sand. '_Sand?'_

That immediately woke her up. Bolting up in a sitting position as she spat out the sand in the mouth she looked around. It looked like a beach, but not a ordinary one. It appeared to be a tropical south sea's type of beach. There were even palm trees along the edge of what appeared to be a jungle. She shook her head vigorously as if to wake herself from this dream but so far the scene hasn't change.

_"I see you've woken up!"_ Michiru jumped as a screen shot out of the ground. The screen flickered a bit before showing Tsugawa sitting in a chair. _"Michiru Misami. Or perhaps you prefer Kamen __Rider__ Carmen?"_

Michiru eyes widen in shock before glaring "How do you know that, and where the hell am I Nakanishi?-!"

_"Please Michiru, call me Director Tsugawa."_ Tsugawa smiled. _"I'm afraid I can't answer your first question my dear, my client wishes to remain anonymous. But as for the second, well let's just say I'm promoting you from a model, to a movie star."_

"What the hell are you babbling about!-? And you still haven't explained how you sent me here! I thought you were a photographer!" Michiru snapped

_"A photographer? Oh no! That was just a cover!"_ Tsugawa said _"You see my true profession is a film director. I am quite famous for making a certain kind of film."_

"And what's that?" Michiru asked.

Tsugawa just smirked as he said two words _"Snuff Films."_ Michiru paled considerably_ "The island you are on is teaming with various deathtraps and even robots made to kill you. Normally I'd bring a crowd for something this elaborate, but a film showing the death of a Kamen Rider should bring in a lot of people who want to buy this movie!"_

"Like hell it will! Because I won't be getting killed!" Michiru snapped as she then prepared to transform. However, a beeping noise could be heard as a strong electrical shock hit her making her scream and stopping her from changing into her Rider form.

_"Oh and I forgot to mention, to make the film more interesting, there is a collar around your neck that prevents you from transforming."_ Michiru felt around her neck and sure enough there was a collar locked in place there._ "It can only be taken off when you reach the mountain area where a box holding the key is. So please reach it. It will be so boring for the heroine to die so early in the film without getting the thing she needs to save herself. And don't bother trying to call for help." _Michiru checked herself for her communicator and grimaced as she didn't have it on her.

"Oh, I'm going to live, and I am going to kick your ass, Tsugawa!" Michiru threatened.

_"Good emotion! Please keep it up! The camera loves it!"_ Tsugawa laughed as the screen retreated back into the ground.

Michiru growled as she headed towards the jungle. At least the bastard let her keep the clothes she was wearing. It had been a few hours since she entered the jungle and took a quick break to rest. She stopped to admire the nature around and if it weren't for the fact that a derange lunatic took her here to film her death, she would've enjoyed it. She stopped, hearing something as bushes rustled all around her.

Suddenly, something leaped out of the bushes and tried to pounce on Michiru. She backed out of the way fast enough to avoid it. She then saw that it was a red, robotic tiger and one that looked really mean. "Nice kitty," she said, trying to calm the beast down, only for it to roar and pounce on her again. She rolled out of the way but the mechanical tiger managed to slash the front of her dress open, giving a nice view of her bra-clad breasts.

Michiru frowned before she quickly made eleven duplicates of herself using her illusions in order to confuse the thing. However, she felt her foot sinking and realize it must have been one of the traps that she'd triggered. It didn't end there as she heard a whistling sound in the sky. When she looked up she saw a barrage of missiles aiming right at her. She immediately created illusions to try to confuse them like the tiger robot but they just kept following her rather than the illusions.

"Great, heat-seekers," Michiru muttered. She grimaced as she realized she was running back towards the tiger robot. "Crud." Michiru instinctively slid under the tiger-bot, the missiles hitting the robot instead, causing both the things trying to kill her to destroy each other.

Michiru sighed in relief, but knew she was far from safe. So with trepidation she continued through the wild, wondering how everyone else was doing. She wondered if they would be able to find her. "Hana…" she whispered. She was already missing her best friend.

* * *

It had been three days since Michiru has gone missing and everyone scramble to try to find any clues as to where she went. Luckily, Dr. Magi was able to track her down to a small island 400 miles off the coast of Brazil. A rescue team of Battler, Yuji, Hana, and Shinichi was sent to go and save Michiru and capture the criminal responsible for taking her

"So are they sure that this is the location?" Battler asked curiously. The Teleportal had dropped them on an island

"Well, before Dr. Magi lost the signal, Michiru's energy signature was detected on this island," Shinichi said. Hana just ignored them and walk towards something

"Oi, where are you going?" Battler asked as the three move to see what she was looking at, seeing what looked like…

"Foot prints," Yuji identified "And they appear to lead into the jungle."

"Let's go." Hana muttered as she and the others walk to where the jungle led.

Battler hesitated "Wait, what if there are traps?"

"Like what? A pit filled with spikes? You've been watching too much anime." Yuji rolled his eyes.

* * *

"I... REALLY hate traps," Michiru muttered as she crawled out of the pit, looking down to see long and pointy spikes with some corpses littering them, confirming that she wasn't the only one to have been on this island.

"Thank god I was able to grab the edge," Michiru said as she looked up noticing the large mountain that was looming in the distance. "Getting close to the mountains. That's good," Michiru said. Looking back she uttered a short prayer to the dead before heading off. However she heard some growling as saw five mechanical wolves emerging into the clearing. Michiru growled, getting sick and tired of being attacked or trapped.

"You know what? I've had it with this! I'm going to show that bastard what a Kaizo Ningen can really do!" Michiru snapped as the wolves charged. The first one lunged at her but Michiru grabbed it by the paws as she got down before using both legs to propel it into the pit. She then jumped to avoid the second wolf's claws as, grabbing a large rock on the ground as the 3rd wolf attack.

She bashed the rock hard against its head, using her cybernetically enhanced strength, severely damaging the wolf and making it collapse. She then created a small of army of illusionary clones of herself that all ran away in different directions. The three remaining mechanical wolves followed after the closest Michiru, thinking that one must be the real one.

The real Michiru jumped down from the tree she had been hiding in. She waited for a few seconds before she heard loud booms. She grinned as she realized that those wolves must have activated the traps on the island meant for her.

"Well, I feel a bit better. Now all I need to do is take care of the twisted director," Michiru said as she began running to the mountains, unaware that a camera had been watching her every move.

* * *

"Hehehehe!" Tsugawa chuckled. "Such passion! Such deceit! I knew I made the right choice by picking her, yes I did! But now that she's so close to getting the ability to change forms again, it's best that I get ready for the big finale!" Tsugawa grinned as a spotlight was shown on something.

* * *

Michiru reached the mountain area. "Now, he said there would be a box... AHA!" Michiru grinned as she spotted it sitting on top of a boulder she rushed forward and opened it. "Thank goodness. Now I can get rid of this stupid collar," Michiru muttered as she freed herself from the contraption, but suddenly she began hearing a rumbling noise. "Oh, now what?" she groaned as the mountain's wall burst before a figure jumped down

To Michiru it looked like a tall, humanoid robot that was about 6.5 feet in height. It was green in color with golden knees and shoulder-pads. the arms looked like they had jackhammers built into them and finally it had a huge laser blaster mounted on its left shoulder. The face-plate opened up, revealing that it was Tsugawa. "So what do you think of my suit? Pretty cool, right?"

"Traps... robots... even a battle suit? HOW THE FUCK CAN YOU AFFORD THIS STUFF BY MAKING STUPID SNUFF FILMS!-?" Michiru roared back in shock.

"Heh, well surprisingly a big fan of mine has been supplying me with these interesting toys. He goes by the name Million... though I haven't heard from him in a long time," Tsugawa answered as Michiru nearly face faulted

_'Even in jail that creep finds a way to fuck with people_,' Michiru thought, pissed off.

"But I digress. The reason why I'm wearing this is because I will finally kill the heroine, even though she has struggled and fought for her life to reach this point and unlocked her true power. She will be tragically cut down by the master of this island, thus bringing a brilliant ending to my movie." Tsugawa grinned as the face plate slid back into place before he charged.

Michiru just frowned as she said one word to that declaration, "Henshin!"

* * *

Meanwhile, as Michiru was fighting for her life, her rescue party was doing the same as they met with the island's 'natives'.

"I've been watching too much anime, huh!-?" Meta snapped as he shot at the machines trying to kill them.

"So I was wrong. Sue me," Liger shrugged as he casually leaned back to avoid a trap as spears shot at him.

"Are you two having this argument now? Seriously?-!" Showa yelled, annoyed as he blasted two missiles that were coming at him.

Arachnea used her dual Spider Kama to slash anything close to her and a combination of webbing and acid for far range. She then heard large boom noise coming ahead of them, she would have it ignored it till she heard a familiar scream. _'Michiru!_' Arachnea thought as she slashed the last threat and rushed forward.

"Wait up!" Liger shouted as he, Showa and Meta rushed forward.

* * *

Carmen groaned in pain. So far they'd both been on even footing. Unfortunately, the bastard's laser blaster was not a decoration as he blasted her straight into a boulder. She groaned in pain from the impact and glared up at her opponent.

"Take this!" Tsugawa shouted as he swung one of his fists. She jumped away as Tsugawa's fist slammed into the boulder which caused the boulder to explode into a million pieces. She created a thousand clones to charge at him but he unleashed a powerful blast that destroyed them all.

"HAHAHA! My poor woman! Do you think your petty illusion can defeat me? Face it, I am a man that has brought death and fear for his art, and you will be my grand jewel in film format, the poor heroine that will die tragically!" Tsugawa grinned but stopped as Carmen began to chuckle.

"You think you're scary? I've seen far scarier things than you. And after all the shit I experienced today, you're about to feel all the fear you've caused people," Carmen threatened as she change into her Mirage Form.

"Oh? And what are you going to do? Send more clones?" Tsugawa chuckled

"Nope," Carmen said as she used her ability to blend in with her surroundings. "I'm going to show you the true horror of illusions," her voice hung in the air in the air as a large fog began to appear. It was blanketing the surrounding area. A chill crept up his spine.

"Hah! This illusion is nothing! My script will be followed!" Tsugawa declared as he activated the suit's heat-sensors. He was shocked, however, as the monitor read 'ERROR'. "Nani!-?" he muttered as suddenly loud beeping was heard. Long and thick tentacles shot out of the ground "W-what!" Tsugawa shouted. That wasn't one of his traps! He stopped as a swarm of bats surrounded him."No! Get away!" Tsugawa snapped trying to swat them away, but screamed as he fell down.

He slowly stood up as he noticed that he dropped into what look like a pit.

_Drip_.

Something splashed on his helmet, and it started to drip down onto his chest and, between his eyes. He recognized what it was when he saw that the color was red. It was blood. Tsugawa gasped and looked up. Ruby red blood began raining down and started filling the pit. "I-It's just a illusion," Tsugawa gulped as he tried to convince himself but shrieked as the blood started to form into red skeletons.

_"Bastard, you killed us, just for your sick films. You will PAY!"_ the skeletons roared as they grabbed onto him. He struggled until he heard a figure descending and saw Carmen glaring at him.

_'It... it's an illusion!'_ his mind screamed in terror as her suit of armor began bulging before it broke apart to reveal a demonic mantis. His mind snapped as he screamed, horrified as the demonic mantis lunged at him.

"AAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGG!-!-!"

* * *

When the others reached the clearing, they thought they would be saving Michiru but they were surprised to see her just leaning against a boulder as what looked like a guy wearing torn armor was shaking back and forth. Showa remembered the time where he and Alan went to rescue Hanyuu and Shiori from Gebok but when they got there the two were just relaxing. Of course Gebok had been nowhere in sight when they arrived.

_'Deja vu'_ he thought as the other deactivated their transformations.

"Hana-chan! Minna! I knew you would come! Sorry, but I already took care of the guy who brought me here," Michiru smiled.

"Err... what did you do to him?" Battler asked waving a hand in front of the guy's face.

"Him? Well... let's just say he will no longer think of trying to make another film again," Michiru smiled as everyone looked at her dubiously. "Now let's go home. I just want to relax and spend time with my girlfriend for awhile." Michiru smiled as she had her arms wrapped around Hana. The other four shared a look as they made a mental note to never underestimate the Mantis Rider before a Teleportal opened up for them.

Michiru, using her C3, sealed up the deadly director into a containment card before going into the portal with the others, holding Hana's hand all the way back to base. Tsugawa would be spending a long time in the Vault for this. Maybe he should make prison films from now on.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Looks like Michiru's debut into acting didn't go so well. At least it didn't end fatally like it had others. Still, she might've been a great actress once given an ideal role and if the director wasn't some sadistic bastard. Well, thank you deadly84 for this wonderful chapter.**


	68. The Legacy of Cain Part 12

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 12: A Family Reunion**

Shinichi was visiting his mother in Hinamizawa. Rika, Hanyuu and Tatsuyoshi were out so she was alone at home, with only Sho who was sitting in a high chair for company as Shiori was reading her mail at the table. When she came across a certain letter, she scanned it and her eyes furrowed. This did not go unnoticed by Shinichi who was helping her with her latest book.

"Kaa-chan, what's that?" Shinichi asked curiously, Shiori tore her gaze from the letter to look at Shinichi.

"Oh this?" Shiori said, as she put the letter down and tried to make a face of indifference. "It's nothing."

Shinichi wasn't buying it. He could tell the letter was bothering her. "No, it's not 'nothing'. It's that letter and I can see that something's wrong."

Shiori sighed as she realized that Shinichi would not let this go without a fight. He was just as stubborn as she was. "Fine… If you must know it's a letter from my father."

Shinichi was surprise to hear the angry tone in his mother's voice before his shock turned to confusion. "Wait, what? Your father? I thought you said your parents were dead."

"My mother is dead, yes, but as for my father…he's dead to me."

"I'll go make some tea. This sounds like it's going to be a long story and you might need I," Shinichi said. After making some tea, Shinichi handed a cup to Shiori

"Thank you, Shinji. Well, where to begin? Well, my father's name is Hiroshi Mitsuhide," Shiori said

"Mitsuhide? Wait, I think I read about a Mitsuhide. He's this big time politician," Shinichi said

"Oh, that must be my brother, Kintaro Mitsuhide. My father's retired from politics a long time ago," Shiori said dismissively

"You have a brother?"

"Two older brothers actually," Shiori said "Kintaro is the eldest, then there's Gintaro, and finally there's me.

"'Golden Boy' and 'Silver Boy'," Shinichi raised a eyebrow

"Otou-sama was the one who named them. Luckily for me my mother was the one who named me," Shiori explained. "He expected a lot from them, and me."

"Go on."

"Well, when my mother was alive, her name was Chigusa by the way, Otou-sama used to be kind. He was still a little strict but he could still show that he loved us. But then she died when I was very young. I was seven at the time, and after that Otou-sama just…changed. He became stricter, forcing us all to excel and do our best. We were to aim for the top and settle for nothing less. If we didn't get a perfect score at school he would scold us. He groomed Kin-niisama to become a politician like him. As for Gin-niisama, he went to business school after he graduated from high school and now he owns his own restaurant franchise. He's always loved food. Of course while Otou-sama was proud of them…I was a bit of the black sheep in the family."

"The black sheep?" Shinichi questioned

"I wanted to be a novelist but Otou-sama wouldn't have it. He wanted me to marry the son of a friend of his after I graduated from high school. I told him I didn't want to marry someone I didn't know or love and I wanted to find my own path like mother once told me. We had a huge fight about it. He even found some of my writing and burnt them to discourage me and we argued about it again. As soon as I graduated from high school, I took all my savings and left. He threatened to disown me and you know what I said?" Shiori asked her son

"What did you say?"

"I told him, 'Fine! Disown me! I never felt like your daughter anyway!' Then I just left. Living alone wasn't easy but I did get myself a small, one bedroom apartment. It wasn't luxurious but it was cozy. I did have to get part-time work to make ends meet while I did my writing whenever I could. I even had to be thrifty, which is why I developed a liking for things like instant ramen, takoyaki, oden and chicken skewers…Trying to find someone to publish my writing was a little difficult, unfortunately. But I never gave up."

"And that's when you met Tou-chan."

"Yes, and he introduced me to the publishing company he worked at. He even represented me. He said I was a breath of fresh air and that I was not afraid to write anything controversial," Shiori grinned, remembering how she and Shotaro first meet.

"Wow."

"Yes, wow indeed. And now, after not contacting me for years, he finally decides to send me a letter," Shiori remarked angrily.

"So, what will you do?" Shinichi asked.

"Simple: nothing! I'm never going to see a man who's dead to me," Shiori scowled angrily. Shinichi frowned as he picked up the letter to read it, his frown deepened.

"According to this he's very ill and he doesn't think he is long for this world," Shinichi said.

"So?" Shiori scoffed, but Shinichi notice that there was some concern in her eyes.

"Kaa-chan…I know he must've hurt you, but I think maybe you should go to see what he has to say."

"What!-?" Shiori shouted surprise.

Shinichi elaborated, "You hate him, I get that, but he's still your father. You might never get a chance again and I think it took a lot of guts for him to swallow his pride just to write a letter. Maybe it's time for you to forgive him and make amends."

"He could've called at least," Shiori protested.

"You never gave him any contact information. He had to have it sent to your publishing company and they forwarded it to you," Shinichi pointed out.

"So, I should go and see what he has to say?" Shiori asked, annoyed.

"Yes, of course. Because this might be your only chance at reconciliation so you shouldn't waste it," Shinichi said.

Shiori sighed, "I guess you're right Shinji. OK, we'll all go as a family. I just need to tell Tatsuyoshi-kun and the girls when they get back."

* * *

After Rika, Hanyuu and Tatsuyoshi returned home, Shiori explained the situation to them.

"Do you need us to come along?" Tatsuyoshi asked.

"It'll make this easier. I'm really not looking forward to this since I haven't spoken with any of my family in years," Shiori said with a sighed.

"In that case I'll go with you and be at your side."

"Really?"

"Of course, I'm your husband after all." Tatsuyoshi smiled.

"We're going too, Shiori-mama." Rika said.

"Au, you can count on us to give you support!" Hanyuu said

"_Yeah, let's do this!_" AI-Shin shouted.

"You're not coming," Shinichi said to AI-Shin, making the AI nearly fall down in shock.

"_Why not?_" AI-Shin whined.

"Have you looked in the mirror lately? Besides, it'll be really hard to explain to them about a metal eyeball following us," Shinichi deadpanned.

"_How about if I go invisible?_" AI-Shin asked.

"I don't know… Kaa-chan?" Shinichi asked.

"As long as he can stay out of sight, he can come," Shiori said.

"_Sweet! Ooh, maybe I can get some dirt on them!_" AI-Shin giggled darkly.

"Sometimes I can't believe he was part of you," Rika said to Shinichi as she shook her head.

"Well, he is, without the inhibitions." Shinichi said.

"Whatever, I just hope he doesn't laser anybody, Rika sighed.

"_Hey, I can control it!_" AI-Shin said indignantly.

"From the way Shiori-mama talks about her eldest brother and father, one wrong word from them could set you off," Rika said.

"She's right, y'know. We really don't need _another_ hole in the wall," Shinichi said.

"_That was completely accidental and you know it!_" AI-Shin snapped.

"So, when do we leave?" asked Tatsuyoshi.

"The day after tomorrow," said Shiori. "We're having a hanami (flower viewing) party tomorrow, remember?"

* * *

The next day, Shiori and her family attended the Hanami Party at Shishibone Park. Shinichi was taking pictures as everyone enjoyed the food, beverages and the beauty of the cherry blossoms. He even took a picture of a cute little Alice. He couldn't believe that Gebok could create such a cute little girl but then he muttered, "There's always a first time for everything." A while ago he wouldn't have hesitated to destroy anything Gebok made but Alice was an exception.

"Shin-kun, come and eat!" Rena called.

"Coming!" replied Shinichi as he went over and sat down on a blanket, putting down the camera as Rena scooted closer to him.

"Shiori-san told me you have a family reunion tomorrow," said Rena.

"Yeah," he admitted.

"Can I come?" Rena asked hopefully.

"I…don't think it'd be a good idea," said Shinichi.

Rena blinked and then asked, "Why not?"

"Just trust me on this, OK?" he told her. "It's complicated."

Rena, while visibly upset, understood and trusted Shinichi, "Alright, I trust you, but promise to tell me what happens, OK?" Shiori had actually told Rena it wouldn't be a good idea for Rena to come either and while hurt she understood. Things were indeed complicated in Shiori's family.

Shinichi winked and replied, "That's a promise."

* * *

The day after the Hanami Party, they left in the morning and it took all day but they finally arrived at their destination as the gate opened for them. They drove along the path towards a huge mansion. Two towers stuck out of the front of the house, sticking out like those of a castle and there were four windows on both the top and the bottom floors. Judging by the size it must be four or possibly five stories tall. The family parked their car and exited to stand in front of the mansion.

Hanyuu whistled, "That's a _really_ big house."

"Otou-sama always loves to show off how much money he had," Shiori said, sighing. "I may make a lot of money but I never want a big house like that."

"You prefer a nice and cozy home," Hanyuu said.

"Yes, and just because you make a lot of money, doesn't mean you need to build a big house. Plus, it was lonely in there after my mother died," Shiori said.

"She must've been wonderful," Rika said.

"She was the light in our lives." Shiori smiled sadly before she and the others walked into the house and into the foyer. The foyer was enormous, with a large staircase that led to the upper floor. The floor had red carpeting which was decorated with fancy designs, and crystal chandeliers were hanging from the ceiling. With doors on the far left and right side, they spotted someone walking down the staircase.

He had thick, medium-length hair that was the color of bleached bone, and was worn in an impractical style. He had a lean build and thick eyebrows and the same eye color as Shiori. He was wearing a white jacket over a black shirt and gray pants. He looked surprise to see Shiori and her family, but just as quickly his face turned into a sneer.

"Oh, it's you, Shiori," the man said as he reached the bottom of the staircase.

"Yes, it's me, Kin-niisama. How have you been?" Shiori asked.

The man, which the other realized was Shiori's brother Kintaro, smirked, "Great. How about you? Still writing smut?"

"It's adult romance, Kin-niisama," Shiori said through clenched teeth

"Whatever you say, sister dear," Kintaro said

"Wow that guy must be fun at parties," Shinichi sarcastically muttered to his mother just as the door on the left opened, revealing another man. His indigo hair was worn in a bowl-cut. He was both somewhat short and plump and was wearing a grayish suit with brown loafers.

"Shiori-chan, is that you? It's been ages!" the man said happily as he went to hug Shiori

Shiori smiled as she returned the hug, "It's good to see you too, Gin-niisama. Have you lost weight?"

The second man, Gintaro pouted, "Is it really obvious?" Spotting her family he said, "Oh how rude of me. I am Shiori's brother, Gintaro Mitsuhide, and I see you already met Kintaro."

"Gin-niisama, Kin-niisama, How's Otou-sama?" Shiori asked and both brothers frowned.

"He's not doing so well. His health has declined but he tries to pretend he's alright." Gintaro said, slightly concerned.

However Kintaro just snorted derisively as he spoke in a sarcastic tone, "Yes, but it's a good thing _that woman _is taking good care of him. She did a fine job that he married her on the spot."

"Don't mind him, Shiori. Onii-sama is still sore about Anko-san, a nurse, marrying Otou-sama," Gintaro said.

"He remarried?" Rika asked.

"Oh yes. She was originally Otou-sama's nurse when his health first began to fail and well one thing led to another and very quickly I might add," Gintaro said.

"You mean she seduced the man into thinking she was not a parasite out for our money," Kintaro grumbled.

"So…" Shiori said, trying to change the subject "Did you two come alone or did you bring your families?"

* * *

After leading them to a room where both Kintaro and Gintaro family were, it was Gintaro that made the first introduction.

"This is my wife, Rinko," Gintaro introduced. Unlike her husband, Rinko was very tall and had a voluptuous figure with a light skin tone. She is wearing a purple dress, hat, and high heels.

"How do you do. Gin-chan has told me a lot about you," Rinko smiled.

"He has, has he?" Shiori asked, glancing at her eldest brother.

"Yes, and I'm impressed. You're quite an inspiration for those who want to strike it on their own," Rinko said as she stepped back to show two identical boys

"And my sons, Taiga and Hiroki," Gintaro introduced.

"Hello," both twins said. They were Rika's age and both hade fine, curly, ebony hair that was neck-length and worn in a weird style. Both had hooked noses, thick lips and plump bodies. Taiga wore a black shirt, cargo pants and white sneakers while Hiroki wore a blue shirt, brown slacks and black sneakers.

Kintaro was the next to introduce his own family. "This is my wife, Ageha," Kintaro gestured to a woman that had deep-set brown eyes and straight, black hair. She was very tall and had an hourglass build that was being covered by a bluish dress. "And our daughter, Shizuka." Unlike her mother, Shizuka had slate-black hair that had a yellow tinge to it that was worn in an impractical, elegant style. She was about Shinichi's height and had a lean build with a bit of a tan. She had thin eyebrows, wearing a green shirt, blue skirt and white shoes.

"Oh, so you're Shiori; the smut-writer that doesn't know how to act properly in society," Ageha sneered.

AI-Shin, who was invisible, glared at Ageha. Grumbling angrily, "_I have half a mind to…_"

"Settle down, and be quiet," Shinichi shushed him. He didn't need people freaking out because of a disembodied voice. He may not like what that woman had said but he knew that his mother could defend herself in a verbal spar.

"I'm a successful novelist, thank you very much. And what I write is erotica, not smut," Shiori said with a glare. Ageha glared back with slight anger in her eyes.

Shizuka ignored her mother's antic as she smiled at Sho, "What a cute baby."

Shiori stopped glaring at Ageha as she said, "Oh, this is Sho, my son. I haven't introduced my family yet. This is my husband, Tatsuyoshi Kasai."

"So you remarried?" Gintaro asked. He knew her previous husband, Shotaro, had died.

"Yes, and Shotaro wouldn't have wanted me to be alone and depressed. Anyway, these two girls are my adopted daughters, Rika and Hanyuu."

"Pleased to meet you," Rika said as Hanyuu waved. Hiroki and Taiga blushed at seeing the two cute girls before remembering that they were their (adopted) cousins.

"And this is Shinji," Shiori said, introducing Shinichi last. This made both her brothers look at Shinichi with surprise.

"Shinji? Wasn't he kidnapped?" Gintaro asked.

"Yeah, I remember you begging Otou-sama for help because of that," Kintaro added.

_'Yes, and I also remember him hanging up on me,' _Shiori thought angrily to herself.

Kintaro looked Shinichi up and down, as if he was making sure he was the real deal, before asking, "So, you're Shinji, the one she lost?"

"Yeah, that's me," Shinichi nodded.

"How did she find you again?" Kintaro questioned.

"It's a long story, and you wouldn't believe me if I told you," Shinichi said, eyes narrowing.

"Try me," Kintaro said with a glare.

"I'm afraid questions must come later. It's about time we head over to the dining hall," Gintaro said, checking his watch. "Otou-sama expects us to be there."

* * *

The dining hall had a dark wood floor with light blue colored walls. It had a high ceiling with the walls being decorated with various pieces of artwork. But that was not what caught everyone's eye.

"Woah, what a spread," Shinichi said. On a long mahogany table there was a smorgasbord of food. Both Japanese and European dishes were spread evenly on the table.

Rinko was drooling at the sight.

The door to the dining hall opened and Hiroshi Mitsuhide entered. Hiroshi was in a wheelchair and being pushed along by his young wife, Anko. Shinichi, Hanyuu and Rika narrowed their eyes as they saw Anko. The red-haired woman was attractive looking, with red lips and a beauty mark under her left eye. Despite being Hiroshi's wife, she still wore her nurse's uniform.

Hiroshi turned his head and smiled gently as he said, "Shiori, it has been a long time. I almost thought you weren't going to come."

"It has, Otou-sama. I see you're doing well," Shiori replied.

"Don't lie to me, Shiori. I know I'm old and dying. There's no need to sugar-coat it," Hiroshi said He had enough of hearing that from doctors who tried to sugar-coat his condition. "I see you've also brought family."

"Yes, I have." Shiori immediately introduced her family to her estranged father.

"I'm glad to see you're happy, Shiori." Hiroshi smiled.

"Happiness that I have gained with my own two hands, Otou-sama," Shiori pointed out.

"Yes, of course…" Hiroshi sighed, remembering how he'd chased his daughter away because of his own foolishness and was too damn prideful to think his choice would be the best one for his daughter, and letting it cloud his better judgment when she begged him for help after she had lost her son. He still felt deeply ashamed about that. "Well, you all know why we're here today. We are here to discuss who I will leave my fortune to after I pass on."

Right after he said that, Ageha immediately spoke up, "I think it goes without saying that it should go to Kintaro, your eldest son who's made you proud."

AI-Shin whispered to Shinichi, "_I saw that coming._"

"Trust me, I think we ALL saw that coming," Shinichi remarked in a whisper.

"Yes, Kintaro has made me proud, and has followed in my footsteps," agreed Hiroshi.

"As I should, Otou-sama," Kintaro said.

"But we cannot forget that there are other people here. Tatsuyoshi-san, what do you do for a living?" Hiroshi asked

"I work for the Sonozaki Clan of Hinamizawa, as a bodyguard."

"Sonozaki?" Hiroshi asked with a gleam in his eyes.

"Be careful, he has that look in his eye," Shiori whispered to her husband.

"Shiori," Hiroshi said, causing his daughter to flinch, "You must know the Sonozaki family quite well."

"Well I am friends with the head's daughter, Akane, and my son and daughters are friends with her daughters."

"The heiress Mion Sonozaki and her sister, quite remarkable," Hiroshi said. "The Sonozaki Clan in Hinamizawa is very influential and you say your son is well-acquainted with the heiress."

"Otou-sama, if you're interested in engaging my son to her then…" Shiori began to say but was interrupted by Shinichi.

"Mion's already got someone she loves and there's no way I'm splitting Mion and Keiichi up, ever. I won't betray my friends," Shinichi said.

Kintaro rolled his eyes. "Defiant, just like his mother. He is his mother's son," he muttered. AI-Shin heard this and immediately used his telekinesis to spill Kintaro's drink into his lap.

"Argh! Cold!" Kintaro shouted. Shiori and her family began to laugh, and so did Shizuka, Gintaro and his own family. Hiroshi was starting to laugh too, but began to cough violently.

"Are you alright, honey?" Anko asked

"I'm okay," Hiroshi said. "But maybe we should discuss this in the morning. After all, it is the first time that we are eating all together as a family."

Everyone nodded as they began to dig in.

* * *

When dinner was finished servants HAD appeared and began to escort everyone to their respective rooms. Shizuka broke away from her parents and walked towards Shinichi and his family.

"I'd like to apologize for my parents' behavior. They are…" Shizuka paused for a moment, trying to find the right word.

"Snobs?" Rika supplied.

"Jerks?" Shinichi suggested.

Shizuka agreed, "Well, yes, but they're still my parents. It's just the way they are."

"I know that. Remember, I grew up with him," Shiori said. Even as a little kid Kintaro acted like an arrogant snob.

"So, you're really Shiori Banabara, the novelist?"

"Yep, that's me!" Shiori said. Shizuka immediately grabbed Shiori's hand with stars in her eyes.

"I'm such a huge fan! I have almost all your novels but I have to hide them because my father doesn't approve."

"Of course he wouldn't. It pisses him off that I'm doing so well without relying on Otou-sama's money," Shiori said with a smirk.

"So, why did you come? Last I heard both you and Ojii-sama were on bad terms," Shizuka asked curiously.

"Let's just say someone convinced me to try and reconcile with him," Shiori smiled.

Meanwhile, Shinichi whispered to both Hanyuu and Rika, "Meet me at the kitchen when everyone is in bed." Both girls nodded.

(Line Break)

"Were you followed?" Shinichi asked Hanyuu as she was the last one to arrive in the kitchen. She and Rika had actually left their room together but the horned girl needed to use the bathroom and had told her to go on ahead without her. Shinichi, Rika and AI-Shin had been waiting for her.

"Nope, I used my power to make sure I was concealed from human eyes," Hanyuu said.

"Excellent. Now let's get to business. Have any of you noticed something off about Ojiisan's wife?" Shinichi asked.

"You felt it too, huh?" Rika asked as Shinichi nodded.

"I noticed it too. There is something dark about her," said Hanyuu.

"_Eh, she seemed fine to me, and I do mean __fine_," AI-Shin said with perverted glee.

"Yeah, but when I looked into her eyes I felt a chill running up my spine…" Shinichi pause before admitting, "And a little turned on I gotta confess."

Rika raised her eyebrow, "Her eyes? Not her breasts?"

Shinichi retorted, "I may have taken a glance when she first appeared, but that's it."

"I think she might have something to do with Hiroshi-jiisan's condition. She did first appear when his health began to take a turn for the worse," Hanyuu said.

"I think so too, but we can't just run her out without proof. We need proper evidence," Shinichi said. That was when Rika, Hanyuu and Shinichi looked at AI-Shin.

"_Why are you guys looking at me like that?_" AI-Shin asked.

"Because you're you," Rika pointed out.

"And because you can get in without anybody noticing," Hanyuu added

"And won't it give you a good look at what she does when she's all alone?" Shinichi smiled wickedly.

"Hell_, y'all got me there. Fine, I'll do it, but only because as much as the old fart pisses me off, it wouldn't be good for Kaa-chan to lose her father like that,_" AI-Shin said

"I knew you had a good heart underneath all that perversion." Hanyuu smiled.

"_I'm a brain in a machine. I don't __have__ a heart_," AI-Shin huffed.

"You know what she means, you idiot," Rika snapped.

AI-Shin snorted, "_Yeah, you got me there_." His sensor than indicated that someone was coming. "_Oi, you guys better pipe down a little, because somebody's coming!_" AI-Shin quickly activated his cloaking system just as the door opened, revealing Taiga and Hiroki.

"What are you guys doing here?" Taiga asked confused. He thought he and Hiroki would be the only ones up.

"Err… What are you two doing here?" Shinichi asked. Rika and Hanyuu rolled their eyes at Shinichi's lame comeback.

"Taiga here was having the 'munchies' and wanted to raid the fridge and so did I," Hiroki answered. "Now could you answer my twin's question?"

"Couldn't sleep," Hanyuu quickly answered.

"And Hanyuu wouldn't come here alone so we decided to accompany her," Rika added. The twins seemed to buy the Furude girls' explanation.

Hanyuu said, "So, we never really got to talk before…"

"Yeah, sorry about that," Hiroki said. "Anyway, Taiga and I have heard a lot about Aunt Shiori from our dad. He's actually pretty impressed with her."

"Yeah he admired how she rebelled and became a writer. By the way… is her stuff really hardcore?" Taiga asked.

"You'd have to read it to find out," Shinichi grinned.

"So I been meaning to ask… where are you girls from and how did Aunt Shiori adopt you?" Hiroki asked. Both Hanyuu and Rika shared a look. Both of them did not want the knowledge of them actually being from Furude Clan to get out. The reasons were obvious. A) It would give ammo for Kintaro to use against Shiori, and B) Hiroshi may very well hold an Omiai so he could profit from marrying the two girls off.

"Well… we were both from Hinamizawa and we were living alone since our parents died due to unforeseen circumstances," Rika said, not entirely a lie.

"Shiori-mama was kind enough to take us in and treated us like we were her real daughters," Hanyuu said.

"Yeah Kaa-chan couldn't ignore it when she saw them living all alone so she took them in and gave me sisters… although I suspect that Kaa-chan just wanted some daughters to spoil," Shinichi said in a teasing manner.

"You're both very pretty," Taiga said to Rika and Hanyuu.

"Ah…" Hanyuu uttered, a bit confused.

"Thank you…" Rika said.

"Don't mind him. I think Mom dropped him on his head one time too many," Hiroki said, rolling his eyes. AI-Shin took the time when everyone was distracted by the conversation to slip out in order to begin his spying mission.

* * *

AI-Shin, while invisible, floated into the master bedroom where Hiroshi was lying in a canopy-bed. Anko was lying by his side, caressing his face

"How are you feeling tonight dear?" Anko said concernedly

"I'm feeling... rather weak..." Hiroshi moaned weakly

"Oh you poor dear. Don't worry, honey. I will take _good_ care of you."

AI-Shin continued to watch as Anko began to do something. He made sure to record everything he saw as evidence.

* * *

Rika, Shinichi and Hanyuu were walking down the hallway to get back to their rooms when AI-Shin suddenly appeared.

"_Guys, you will not believe what I just found out!_" AI-Shin shouted as he floated towards them.

Gintaro, who heard the racket, saw AI-Shin with Rika, Hanyuu and Shinichi in the hallway. His eyes widened as they focused on AI-Shin. "What is that!-?" Gintaro shouted in shock. Before anyone could say anything, AI-Shin reacted immediately.

**CRASH!**

A vase was thrown at Gintaro's head via telekinetic force and shattered, knocking the man out.

"Uncle Gin!" Shinichi shouted and went to check to see if the man was okay.

"You idiot! Why did you do that!-?" Rika snapped as she slapped the floating orb in anger.

"_He saw me and I panicked, OK!-?_" AI-Shin said, trying to defend himself.

"That was completely out of line!" Hanyuu scolded

"_I'm sorry!_"

Shinichi said, "You do realize I could've erased his memories, right? Now I have to fix this. And this time, remember to cloak yourself,"

"_OK, fine,_" AI-Shin said before reactivating his cloaking system. Before Shinichi reversed time, Rika asked one question.

"I just realized something. If he's a fragment of you, does that mean you would've reacted the same way?" Rika asked.

"…Maybe." Shinichi mumbled.

Shinichi activated his time powers, reversing the entire event so that Gintaro would once again walk in on them without spotting AI-Shin. He also repaired the broken vase to remove any evidence of what had occurred.

"Good evening, kids."

"Good evening, Uncle Gin," Rika said.

Shinichi asked, "So, why are you up so late?"

"Oh, I thought I heard someone talking outside my room and I decided to investigate. Now why are you all up?"

Hanyuu answered, "Well, we couldn't sleep. I mean, we are in a strange house. We're just not used to it."

"I understand." Gintaro seemed hesitant but decided to ask, "Onii-sama is skeptical but I just need to know…are you really Shiori's son?"

"Yes. The blood tests confirmed it," Shinichi nodded.

Gintaro sighed happily, "Oh, that's a relief. You see when I heard she lost you I wanted to help her, but then the case got cold, and then her husband died I tried to persuade Shiori to move on with her life."

"She was in mourning for a bit, from what she told me, but she took control of her life. She decided to move on not just for her sake, but out of respect for Tou-chan's memory and with hope that she'd find me," Shinichi said

"And it really paid off. So, what happened to you?" Gintaro asked.

"I…don't really remember. I woke up in Hinamizawa with complete amnesia and Kaa-chan found me months later."

"Must've been an eventful reunion," Gintaro remarked.

"To be honest Kaa-chan was like a stranger to me when we reunited, but I gave her a chance and I never regretted it since," Shinichi smiled.

Gntaro smiled as well, "Yes, like how Shiori never regretted following her dream."

* * *

"_Are you sure we should wake them up?_" AI-Shin questioned Shinichi as they walked down a narrow hallway. After saying goodnight to Gintaro he quickly explained to the others what happened.

"This is important. They need to know, Shinichi said. After hearing from AI-Shin about what saw he decided that Shiori needed to know the truth of the woman her father had married.

"_This can't wait until morning, can it?_" AI-Shin asked as Shinichi gave him a deadpanned look.

"I doubt we can wait until then. It'll probably be too late," Shinichi said as they reached the guestroom his parents and baby brother were sleeping in and pounded on the door. He heard shuffling and then he backed away as the door was unlocked. Shiori opened the door, looking quite sleepy as she rubbed her eyes and yawned.

"What is it…Shinji?" Shiori yawned. She had been having a really nice dream until she heard the pounding on the door which woke her up. She was wearing a purple nightgown.

"Shin here has something to show you. Can we come in?" Shinichi told her.

"Can't it wait till the morning?" Shiori asked tiredly.

"_That's what I told him_," AI-Shin mumbled.

Shinichi ignored the AI as he stated, "Kaa-chan this is very important. This could mean Ojiisan's life." That woke Shiori completely up, while she and her father may not be on the best of terms, she didn't want him to die.

"Alright you may come in, but try not to wake your father or brother," Shiori said as she let the two in her bedroom. "So what this about? And how is my Otou-sama involved?"

"Well remember when we first saw Anko when she walked in with Ojiisan?" Shinichi asked. Seeing her nod he continued, "Well me, Rika and Hanyuu immediately sensed that there was something off about her. So we sent AI-Shin to spy on her, and he found something shocking."

"Shocking?" Shiori frowned

"_Yeah, to get a better grasp at what we're talking about I better show you what I managed to tape. Brace yourself, because this is both terrifying and disturbing,_" AI-Shin said before he projected the recording onto the surface of the wall. Unfortunately he was showing a picture of Anko and Hiroshi having sex. Shiori shrieked loud at the sight and it was a miracle that her husband and baby hadn't been awoken.

"_Oops, wrong file! Sorry!_" AI-Shin said, turning the video off quickly.

"Why did you even record that!-?" Shiori snapped.

"_I had to see what else would happen!_" the AI said defensively.

"I think you saw enough, and I saw more of Otou-sama than I ever wanted," Shiori said looking green from seeing her father naked and having sex. "Oh God, that horrble image will never leave my mind."

"Yeah that was kinda disturbing," Shinichi agreed. He didn't need to see his grandfather like that "Although Anko-san was pretty hot when she was riding him."

"I would've enjoyed it if she was riding someone else besides my father," Shiori muttered angrily.

"_Again, sorry about that, but I did warn you it could be disturbing, I just didn't count on how disturbing,_" AI-Shin joked but all he got was a glare from Shiori, making him gulp. "_Oh, here's the right one_," AI-Shin said quickly projecting it before Shiori could hit him for that remark.

Shiori immediately forgot her anger and gasped in shock at what she saw. When it ended Shiori took a moment to calm down

"… Okay, so my jerk of a dad, married a monster… what are we going to do?" Shiori asked both Shinichi and AI-Shin.

"Well I have an idea," Shinichi said.

* * *

It was breakfast time, with many servants placing down plates for them and as Hiroshi began to speak, Shinichi interrupted.

"Before we can get this talk about inheritance money started, I'd like to say that Anko is a soul-sucking parasite!" Shinichi accused.

"How dare you!-?" Hiroshi roared.

"Finally! I've been wanting to say that for ages!" Kintaros said with a smirk.

"No, I mean she's literally a soul-sucking parasite. Show them, Shin," Shinichi said just as AI-Shin revealed himself, causing everyone to gasp at the mechanical eyeball.

"_Hey, whasup?_" The AI greeted

"What is that thing!-?" Ageha shouted.

"Aunt Ageha, for your own health, I think you should listen when I say that he doesn't like being called a thing," Rika explained to Ageha who gulped from hearing that statement.

AI-Shin seemed to ignore their shock as he then projected the recording from the previous night and just like last night he showed the wrong footage causing everyone to recoil in disgust.

"_Sorry! Sorry! Wrong file again!_" AI-Shin said, feeling embarrassed that he'd screwed up again.

"Seriously, you need to get that fixed," Shinichi said

"Uggh, I think I'm going to hurl," Gintaro groaned, with him Kintaro looking ill as Shiori muttered, "It's actually worse seeing it a second time."

AI-Shin quickly found the right video file and projected it for all to see:

_Anko was hovering over a sleeping Hiroshi, her mouth extending and showing fangs and glowing red eyes. She lightly bit Hiroshi in the neck. He moaned as what looked like energy seemed to envelop Hiroshi only to be slowly drained into Anko's fangs. _

_When it finally stopped she sighed contently, "Ah, human life force always tastes so good," she said to herself as she waves her hand to make the bite mark disappear._

When the film ended everyone looked both shock and scared as they turned to look at Anko. Anko's bangs shadowed her eyes but then her shoulders trembled as she began to laugh, which grew higher in pitch and became a demonic cackle. Her head then snapped up and she gazed at everyone with blood red eyes as her ears became pointed and then a pair of jey black, bat-like, wings burst from her back. This was her true form: a demonic succubus.

"Gotcha," Shinichi smirked.

Anko grabbed hold of Hiroshi and growled, "You meddling boy! I would have been living the easy life after killing this geezer if it weren't for you!"

"Hey, you messed with family! Gives me the right to meddle! Now tell me, who do you work for?" Shinichi snapped as he glared at her.

"I was once a member of DHS but when that organization fell I joined up with Panther Claw but then that fell as well! I am a free agent and you may call me **Succubus Bat!**" After this proclamation, Anko's form began to shift as her skin turned pitch black and her clothing morphed into a violet bikini with matching thigh-high boots. She also sported claws. Hiroshi's eyes widened in fright as he saw Anko in her true form.

"Aw…what's the matter, sweetheart? Scared? You weren't scared when I was going down on you," Succubus Bat purred.

"Too much information," Rika gagged.

"Actually compared to the video, that was kind of mild," Hanyuu said.

Succubus Bat opened her mouth wide to reveal her fangs which she was about to sink into Hiroshi's neck to end his life before she went and killed everyone present. Nobody was safe from her unholy wrath. Before she could, however…

"Otousan! Shotgun!" Shinichi shouted as Tatsuyoshi whipped his shotgun out and tossed it to Shinichi who cocked it and took aim. Without hesitation he pulled the trigger and Succubus Bat screeched as she was hit right in the face, sending her crashing into the wall. Hiroshi had passed out, pale with fright.

"And that's a headshot! Everyone, get out of here!" Shinichi tossed the shotgun back to Tatsuyoshi before cracking his knuckles "Go!"

Shiori took hold of Hiroshi's wheelchair and began to push him out of the dining room as the rest of the Mitsuhide family followed with Rika and Tatsuyoshi leading everyone out safely. Only Hanyuu who was creating a barrier that would prevent Succubus Bat from reaching everyone, AI-Shin and Shinichi remained. Succubus Bat slowly got up to her feet, glaring at them.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Succubus Bat snapped

"Let me show you. Henshin!" Shinichi shouted as there was a bright flash as his armor covered his body.

"Kamen Rider!" Succubus Bat shouted angrily, recognizing him as the one who was responsible for destroying both the DHS and Panther Claw.

"Of course! Now, game on!" Showa shouted.

Succubus Bat screeched and flew at Showa, grabbing him be the shoulders before flying out through the window, shattering the glass. The Mitsuhide Family had gotten out of the mansion and saw the two.

"Kamen Rider!" Shizuka yelled in surprise.

"But how did he get here!-?" Hiroki said, shocked.

"Who cares, were saved and we can see a cool fight!" Taiga smiled.

Showa glared at Succubus Bat and then kneed her in the gut to force her to release him. She grunted as he fell and then did a back flip before his feet landed on the front lawn with everyone watching.

"Now then! In darkest night, in brightest day, no evil shall stand in my way! For those who follows evil's path, behold my power, beware my wrath! Kamen Rider Showa III! Sanjou!" Showa said performing a pose.

"OH SHUT UP!" Succubus Bat snapped "I'm going to make you pay for making me lose both jobs and ruining my quick-rich scheme."

Succubus Bat then swooped in to claw at him but he was prepared with a counter. He activated his nanites, morphing his right arm into the Great Sword. Her eyes widened as she saw this and he grinned before he spun and swung. She dove under the swing but Showa was unrelenting as he undid his sword and activated his big Great Fists which he threw forward, slamming them into Succubus Bat painfully. She was knocked to the ground as Showa deactivated the Great Fists and then charged at her. She got up and was sent staggering by a kick to the midsection, followed by left hook across the face and then a sidekick in the chest that sent her stumbling. She eyed him furiously and then unleashed a deafening sonic screech that sent him sliding back with concussive force. His helmet was starting to crack and then finally it shattered, revealing his identity to the rest of the Mitsuhide Family.

"What!-?" Kintaro gawked.

"It's Shinichi!" Shizuka said in surprise.

"Woah…" Taiga said surprised.

Shinichi's ears were killing him as he felt the vibrations hitting him but Succubus Bat was not going to get the last laugh here!

**ZAP!**

Succubus Bat howled as she was hit in the back by a laser blast. AI-Shin was floating in the air as he shouted, "_Hah! Take that you vile temptress!_"

"Thanks!" Showa said as he formed a new helmet and stuck it over his head

"_You're welcome! Now send this bitch to hell!_"

Showa snapped his faceplate on and locking it in place "My pleasure!"

The Trinity Spark Core spun rapidly as a green, blue and red aura flared from Showa's body like flames. Succubus Bat's eyes widened as she saw him leap into the air before shooting towards her to perform a flying kick.

"TRINITY KICK!" Shinichi shouted, As soon as he called it out, his body glowed and then two more Showa duplicates appeared alongside him, performing similar flying kicks. The Showa in the middle wore red armor, the one to his right sported green armor while the one to his left sported blue armor.

The three kicks connected with Succubus Bat simultaneously before she could even think of dodging and she screamed as her body exploded on impact. The three Showas landed on one knee before rising up and becoming one again. Showa then turned his gaze towards the stunned Mitsuhide Family. Shiori gave him an approving thumbs-up at a job well done.

* * *

"I can't believe your son is a Kamen Rider." Kintaro grumbled.

"Feeling jealous, Kin-niisama?" Shiori teased as Gintaro checked Hiroshi to make sure he was okay.

Gintaro spoke up, "If you're all wondering, Otou-sama is okay. He just fainted from the shock. I don't think he's in any danger of dying anytime soon."

"Well, that's good. That succubus was killing him," Shinichi said, glad that his grandfather was okay. Kintaro walked towards Shiori with a gleam in his eyes. He just realized that if he was able to convince Shiori to let him use her son's status as a hero, his status as a politician would skyrocket immensely.

"Shiori, I know we never got along…but in light of new information I think…" Kintaro began to say but was stopped by Shiori.

"I won't let you use my son to further your political career," Shiori glared.

"Be reasonable, Shiori. Your son has a gift and his gift can be used for so much more," Kintaro said in a tone that would make a salesman proud.

"You just want to be supported by a hero. Well, forget it. I won't allow my son to be used ever again." Shiori glared. She couldn't stop her son from becoming a weapon for GIN-SHOCKER but she refused to let him be used by just some man who wanted to boost his career.

"Well said, Shiori," Tatsuyoshi nodded proudly.

Kintaro was livid and threatened, "Well, I'll still expose your son. I'll just call a newspaper, heck I may even report him to TV stations. Pretty soon everyone in the nation, even the whole world, will no his secret!"

"You'll do no such thing. Pause!" Shinichi shouted as he unleashed pulses of energy that caused everyone but his own family to freeze up.

"Now to erase everyone memories of the last couple of hours so they don't remember what happened," Shinichi said.

"Remember to fix the wall too," Hanyuu pointed out.

"Right, gotcha."

"Speaking of memory… how will you explain Anko's absence if they no longer remember what happened?" Tatsuyoshi asked.

"I can only erase memories, but I think Hanyuu-chan can do some memory alterations. You can, can't you, Hanyuu-chan?" Shinichi asked his sister

"I'll see what I can do." Hanyuu nodded.

* * *

Tatsuyoshi was driving them all home. Shiori was smiling and so was Shinichi.

"Glad that's over," Shinichi sighed in relief.

"And Shiori-mama reconciled with her father!" Hanyuu smiled

"Yeah, after he woke up we had a chat. He actually regretted driving me away but he was just too proud to admit it," Shiori said.

"Pride comes before the fall," Rika said sagely.

"I know it'll take awhile before our relationship can completely be repaired, but at least it's a good first step," Shiori softly smiled

"I'm proud of you, Kaa-chan." Shinichi said. "By the way, what did you do with their memories of Anko, Hanyuu-chan?"

"As far as they remember, they discovered Anko's plan was to take all of Ojiisan's money so they all chased her off the property," Hanyuu said mischievously.

"Nice," Shiori smirked

Shinichi asked curiously, "By the way, did Ojiisan offer you some money?"

"He did offer to write a recommendation for Sho to go to a prestigious school, but I declined. I'll raise my kids the way I see fit. Whatever path Sho chooses, I will support," Shiori stated firmly.

Sho was in his baby seat in the back with his brother and sisters, fast asleep with a pacifier in his mouth.

Shinichi's com-link suddenly began beeping and he pressed the button to answer. "Showa here."

"Shinichi, Alan's gone missing." Warren said grimly

"WHAT!-?" Shinichi shouted in shock, Sho was startled by the scream and began crying.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And what we have here is a family reunion and we find out Shiori's family is pretty much dysfunctional with some interesting characters and situations. Typical stuff to make a chapter. Well, what happened to Alan? Let's go watch.**


	69. The Legacy of Cain Part 13

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 13: Eternal Reaper**

**SEVERAL MONTHS AGO…**

Alan and Shinichi were walking down the street. Alan still looked depressed, though Shinichi couldn't blame him. "C'mon, snap out of it," urged Shinichi. "We all make mistakes."

"Mine almost got someone I love killed. Worse than that, my ring isn't working anymore. Won't even take a charge," said Alan. "My other powers aren't working either."

Alan's mystic abilities were tied directly to his emotions. And with them in such turmoil, he couldn't use his powers. Alan's train of thought was interrupted by the earth shaking beneath them.

**BOOM!**

A massive explosion followed. Shinichi and Alan ran towards the smoke, by the time they arrived, the firefighters and paramedics had arrived and it appeared that everyone from inside the apartment complex had been evacuated. Shinichi and Alan then overheard the witnesses talking to one another.

"I heard him yell something like 'Long live the Witch of Terror' before he ran off," said one witness.

"Which way did he run off to?" asked Shinichi. The witness pointed to her left, down an alleyway across the street. Alan and Shinichi were about to run after the culprit when more screaming was heard. Shinichi and Alan saw a woman on her knees sobbing as a man tried to force his way back into the building.

"My daughter's in there!" the man yelled. "Let me in! I have to save her!"

"Shinichi…" began Alan. "Try and find the guy who did this. I know what I gotta do."

Before Shinichi could say anything, Alan bolted toward the building, moving as fast as his legs would carry him. He shot past the firemen, grabbing a bucket of water and dousing himself before charging into the flames.

Shinichi shook his head before running down the alleyway. He was reminded of when he'd lost his powers and did the same thing to save a little boy. This was a trial by fire.

Of course, if they had stayed a few seconds longer, they would have heard another witness asked, "Did anyone else see that bright yellow light before the explosion?"

* * *

Alan had his shirt covering his nose and mouth from the smoke as he hastily searched through the apartment. He was close to the top floor now. "C'mon kid, where are you?"

He then heard crying and coughing coming from behind a door. Alan sprinted to the door as quickly as he could before shouting, "Get back! I'm gonna kick the door down!" A couple seconds later, he did just that.

He ran into the apartment and found a little girl, huddled in a corner, grasping a teddy bear. She looked to only be about three. "It's alright, I'm here to help. What's your name?"

"Mika…" said the girl in a small frightened voice.

"Don't be afraid," said Alan. "I promise I'll get you back to your Mama and Papa." He picked her up and moved to the door when the ground shook. Rubble fell from the roof, blocking the door. "Well, so much for the easy way out…" He ran back to the window and saw the firefighters preparing a cushion for a safe landing if Alan needed to jump. "Well, that's lucky."

Alan moved back so he and Mika could get a running start. However, before he could start, the apartment shook again as more rubble covered the windows. "OK, my timing officially sucks."

Mika was crying loudly. Alan looked at Mika before setting her down and pulling his Power Battery out of its pocket dimension. "Mika, I want you to do exactly as I say."

Mika nodded weakly.

"I need you to say the words 'No Fear' as loud as you can, just keep shouting it out. OK?"

Mika nodded as she gripped her stuffed animal tightly. "No fear…" she said weakly.

"Louder Mika!"

"No Fear! No Fear! No Fear!"

Alan smiled as he began his chant, "_In brightest day, in blackest night…_"

"No Fear!"

Debris was falling all around them.

"_No evil shall escape my sight._"

"No Fear!"

"_Let those who worship evil's might, beware my power…_"

"NO FEAR!" screamed Mika as the ceiling collapsed down.

* * *

Everyone watched in terror as the roof collapsed down. "No!" Mika's father screamed out.

"My baby!" her mother cried.

A bright light was shining though. A bright, _green_ light.

"_Green Lantern's light!_" A beam of green light shot out of the rubble before landing on the ground in front of everyone. Alan was clad in his Green Lantern uniform, and he was holding Mika protectively. Everyone ran towards him as news crews started to arrive.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" cried the mother as she gripped Mika tightly.

"I can't thank you enough," said the father.

"No thanks necessary," said Alan. Suddenly Alan frowned and thrust out his hand, forming a green energy shield around everyone as a yellow beam of energy collided with the green shield. "Everyone, get back. Looks like I'm not done here yet."

The man who attacked them had a body that seemed to be made of stone. He was wearing a skintight black bodysuit with yellow boots, armguards and shoulders with an emblem in the centre of his chest. In his left hand was a massive glowing axe and Yellow Power Ring. In his right was a wounded Showa. "I believe this is yours," said the man as he threw Shinichi at Alan.

Alan caught Showa, who slowly came to. "Ugh, what hit me?" he groaned.

"He goes by the name Terrax. He's in league with the Witch of Terror apparently," answered Alan.

"Great…" mumbled Showa as he saw the uniform. "A Sinestro Corpsman…" He grunted. They were not easy to beat.

"Are you okay?" Alan asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Showa said. He messages his left wrist. "Time for round two."

"No, this one's mine," said Alan. He extended his hand to Showa. "Tag me in."

* * *

…**PRESENT DAY…**

"They've been following you again," said Conda.

"Who?" Alan asked Conda.

"Those two from the Newspaper Club," Conda clarified. "They've been stalking you."

Conda was referring to Eikichi Fujimaki and Katsuko Okanaya, a boy and a girl from the Newspaper Club. Eikichi wrote the articles while Katsuko took the pictures. The two of them were trying to uncover a huge story and had been following Alan around in order to do so since all the weirdness that happened seemed to be centered around him. Alan of course had to dodge them several times as well but Katsuko's athletic abilities allowed her to keep up with Alan whenever he tried to ditch the two of them in the past.

It was the beginning of April and soon the new school year would begin. The cherry blossoms were in bloom as well and there were plans for a Hanami (Flower Viewing) Party.

He and Conda were on a date and were heading to the movie theatre when she brought up the subject.

"I wouldn't worry," said Alan. "They're amateurs."

"Even so, they are tenacious," she cautioned. "They might expose you."

"Conda, they're surrounded by aliens and yokai and still haven't realized it," he pointed out.

"Yeah, just chill out, Amazon Queen," said Bazel.

"But…" Alan then pulled her close and kissed her cheek, causing the Amazon Queen to blush and swoon. Even though she was a tough girl, she was still a maiden at heart and she welcomed the affection Alan showered on her.

* * *

When Alan and Conda returned to the boarding house after their date, they saw a car parked up front and Alan recognized it. "What's Inspector Akasaka doing here?" He and Conda entered and saw the Police Inspector from Tokyo sitting in the living room. Inspector Akasaka looked up at Alan as the Green Lantern asked, "What brings you over, Inspector?"

"Alan, I need your help," said Akasaka. "Do you mind if we talk, in private?"

"Let's go up to my room," said Alan. "Conda, is that OK with you?"

* * *

Up in Alan's room, Inspector Akasaka sat across from the young man as he explained himself, "I'll cut to the chase. I'm trying to catch a serial killer."

"A serial killer?" asked Alan. "Sounds serious, but why come to me?"

Akasaka knew Alan would ask that so he opened up an envelope and took out several photographs which he handed to him. "Take a look," offered Akasaka.

Alan looked at the pictures and his eyes widened and grew wider and wider with each picture he saw. The victims had all been cut up gruesomely but what really caught Alan's eye was the Green Lantern symbol which had been carved into their skin.

"Now you see why I came here," said Akasaka. "All the victims had that symbol carved into them."

"Cause of death?" asked Alan.

"According to evidence, we suspect it to be a sword of some kind," said Akasaka. "The blade would be long and thin, single-edged, and…"

"It's a katana," Alan concluded.

"Yes, it was confirmed to be a katana," verified Akasaka. "That's why I want you and Shinichi…" Alan, however, had to cut him off right there.

"I don't think I'd be a good idea to get Shinichi involved," said Alan reasonably.

Akasaka guessed, "Is it because of the bad publicity since that footage was released?" He was referring to the video footage of the NEO-NUMBERS attacking an army base and killing the soldiers which had been seen by everyone. Akasaka, however, still believed them to be heroes even if others in his department didn't quite agree with him.

"That's one of the reasons," Alan admitted. He didn't want any fuel to be added to the fire. A lot of people were demanding for the Kamen Riders to come out and explain themselves. Opinions were presently mixed. Those who had been saved by the Riders still supported them but the rest were in doubt since that video came out. Not to mention there was the nonsense that DJ Mikogami was spitting out. He was also talking smack about Alan's Sentinel alter-ego. Conda and Amora nearly flipped out when Mikogami called Alan a 'self-righteous freak with a god complex' and that wasn't among the worst he'd been called. "Inspector Akasaka, how do you think Shinichi would deal with something like a serial killer?"

"He would…" Akasaka paused and then gave his answer, "He would kill them." Akasaka knew that to be true as he'd seen what Shinichi did during the fight against the Panther Claw organization. He didn't capture his opponents. He slew them.

"Yes, he would," Alan agreed. "Shinichi wouldn't hesitate to use lethal force if he's determined that the threat is too dangerous to be kept alive. He deals with monsters by killing them and this serial killer sounds just like one. Shinichi wouldn't show any mercy. He's willing to play judge, jury and executioner. Not me. I'd rather make the scum of the universe face the music than just kill them and walk away. But don't you worry about tha.I'm going to be coming to Tokyo with you."

"Good, because there's someone I want you to talk to," said Akasaka.

"Who?" Alan asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"A witness who just so happens to be a survivor."

* * *

The next day, Alan and Akasaka stepped into a hospital where the survivor was staying after the traumatic incident. Akasaka had explained to Alan that the survivor was a girl named Kyoko Minamoto. She was a teenage girl with strawberry blonde hair in pigtails and ribbons. Apparently, the serial killer had broken into her home and killed her entire family, and while injured Kyoko managed to survive.

"This is her room," said Akasaka as they both stood in front of Kyoko's hospital room. Akasaka knocked on the door and he called, "Kyoko-san, this is Inspector Akasaka."

"Come in," a gentle voice spoke from the other side and Akasaka opened the door to let himself and Alan inside. Sitting on the bed was Kyoko, who wore pink pajamas. She also had bandages wrapped around her neck and forearms. "What can I do for you, Akasaka-san?"

"My young friend and I would like to ask you a few questions about that night," said Akasaka. "Is that OK with you? I understand that it was traumatic, but if we want to catch the person who did this we need to know more."

"I…I think I can tell you…" said Kyoko as she paled. Of course she'd be too scared to remember what had happened. She had to watch her family die in front of her.

* * *

After questioning Kyoko, Alan and Akasaka left the girl to rest. "Well, that just confirms that the weapon was a katana. So all we need to do is find someone carrying a katana around."

"She said the killer was dressed in black and carrying a katana," Alan said. "Sounds like a Shinogami."

"Shinigami?" Akasaka questioned.

Alan was about to elaborate when they heard a scream. Reacting quickly, the two of them ran towards the source of the scream and spotted a nurse standing in front of Kyoko's open door. The nurse looked like she had a horrible fright. The Green Lantern and police inspector went and looked inside Kyoko's room and their eyes widened in horror.

Kyoko was lying in bed, with her throat slashed and there was blood everywhere. Alan then saw the Green Lantern symbol drawn in blood on the wall.

* * *

"She was our only witness," said Akasaka depressingly as he and Alan stopped at a café for coffee.

"We were right there in the hospital when it happened," added Alan, just as depressed. He was a Green Lantern, a hero, and he'd been unable to protect the girl. Why had he not seen it coming? Of course the killer would tie up loose ends and the girl had survived until recently.

"Alan, it wasn't your fault," said Akasaka, trying to reassure Alan, but it wasn't working. Alan felt guilt and regret for being unable to protect an innocent.

"Where will she be buried?" asked Alan.

* * *

Alan visited Kyoko's grave at the local cemetery. It was days after her death and he'd come at night to put some flowers on her grave and to pay his respects. "Kyoko, I swear that I will catch your killer. Your death will not go unpunished." He closed his eyes and had a moment of silence when his ears picked up the sound of steel being drawn. In a flash he dodged and the gravestone was bisected at an angle.

Alan's eyes narrowed as he faced the assailant. They were dressed in a black cloak and hood that concealed their identity and gripped in one hand was a katana with a rectangular tsuba (guard).

"I think that's the killer," said Bazel.

"What was your first clue?" Alan whispered back. He eyed the hand holding the sword. "It's a girl."

"How can you tell?" asked Bazel. He then paused and realized how Alan knew, "Wait, never mind." Alan had enough experience with women to know what a woman's hand looked like.

The assailant dashed at Alan at blinding speeds and swung but Alan dodged again. "Come on, fight back!" Bazel shouted.

"I can't fight a girl!" Alan told his armband.

Bazel yelled, "WHAT!-?"

"No Smith can fight a girl!"

"WHY NOT!-?"

"My dad raised me to never strike a woman!"

"OH YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!"

Alan continued to dodge the assailant's sword as she tried to strike him down. Alan knew she was skilled with that sword and was fast. Her slashes were bisecting more and more of the surrounding gravestones.

"How long are you going to keep this up!-?" Bazel yelled. Then there was a flash of red and the roar of a chainsaw before an explosion of sparks erupted. "Oh, now what!-?"

Alan saw long, blood red hair and an equally red overcoat. The owner of the hair and coat was wielding a chainsaw which had blocked the sword, causing the explosion of sparks. The swordswoman was thrown backwards in surprise and then stood a distance away.

"Let the dance of DEATH begin!" declared Grell Sutcliffe as he struck a pose, smiling wide with his shark-like teeth.

"Grell, what are you doing here? Aren't you a little far from home?" asked Alan as he recognized the red Grim Reaper.

"William sent me all the way here to catch this girl," said Grell. "You see, she's one of our own but she went rogue and even stole that Death Scythe."

"You mean the sword?" asked Alan.

"Yes, and she's been using it to perform unauthorized reapings," said Grell as he opened up a record book. "All these people died prematurely so I was sent to bring her back, dead or alive!" He put his record book away and started up his chainsaw again as he declared, "And since she's resisting, the only answer is DEATH!"

Alan now stood between Grell and the serial killer as he said, "You're not killing her."

"You'd defend a killer?" Grell asked, tilting his head to the side.

Alan told him firmly, "My dad raised me to protect everyone, even when they're trying to kill me."

"And what about those people she's killed? Aren't you supposed to be a hero? What happened to justice?" Grell questioned.

The serial killer took advantage of this distraction and pointed her other hand at Alan's back. On her left ring finger was a yellow ring that was similar to Alan's. She then fired a beam of yellow energy from the ring straight at Alan's back.

Alan reacted quickly, whirling around and smacking the yellow energy beam away. It streaked into the sky and Alan's fist was enveloped in emerald energy.

"Justice will be served. She'll face trial. If she's found guilty and put to death that way, I can't stop it. But you won't kill her while I'm here," Alan said resolutely.

"Hmph, you're no fun. That brother of yours would at least agree with me," pouted Grell.

Alan remarked, "That brother of mine is a borderline idiot. Besides, he wasn't raised by dad."

The serial killer fired another, more intense, beam at the Reaper and Lantern but Alan countered with his own energy beam, the two beams collided right in the middle and causing an explosion of light that was so bright that Grell had to shield his eyes. The two beams pushed at each other in order to overpower one another but in the end it was a losing battle for the yellow beam as Alan's willpower was stronger than his fear and completely swallowed up the yellow light before flying straight at the yellow ring wielder. She was slammed hard and sent flying before skidding along the cemetery, digging up a trench as she went on her way and uprooting the gravestones in her path.

"It's over," Alan concluded as he floated over to her in order to check up on her. He already had his C3 ready to capture her. As he looked her over, he saw that her hood had been thrown back and her face was revealed. Seeing her face threw Alan completely off.

"Kyoko…?" Alan gawked. Kyoko's eyes suddenly snapped open as the sword was thrust right at Alan's chest and pierced right through, much to his shock, as Kyoko got back to her feet and grinned. Alan backed away, his hand covering his wound, as Bazel wondered aloud, "Alan, I thought you were invulnerable!"

"That's no normal sword! A Death Scythe is a mystical weapon so it can bypass my defenses," answered Alan as he spat out blood.

"So, you've found out my identity," sneered Kyoko as she massaged her neck.

"Kyoko…I saw you die at the hospital…" uttered Alan.

"Oh, that?" Kyoko rolled her eyes. "I did that to just throw you off."

"So, you're the serial killer," realized Alan.

Kyoko giggled, "Bingo!"

"Why…?" Alan asked.

"Are you referring to why I killed those people or why I carved your symbol onto their bodies?" asked Kyoko innocently, though the madness in her eyes was rather contradictory.

"Both," Alan answered.

"Well…even for a Grim Reaper like myself, we still have a limited lifespan and I realized that I didn't want to die at all. Therefore, I've been using my Death Scythe to collect their souls and add their lives to my own. You actually did kill me with that blast but I've got lives to spare thanks to my Death Scythe." Kyoko licked the blood off the blade, enjoying the taste as she shuddered. "Oh~ such wonderful blood."

"And my symbol?" Alan prompted.

"How else was I going to get your attention?" Kyoko giggled, blushing. "I've always been a fan but I also want to kill you! It's convenient because I was promised a huge reward if I do!"

"A reward?" Alan cocked an eyebrow.

Kyoko gasped, "Oh, I've said too much!" She then said, "Well, looks like this is goodbye, Green Lantern-kun. But don't worry. Your soul will always be with me." She then blew him a kiss before she prepared to run him through but then there was a red flash and blood burst out from a vertical cut in her body.

"I hate noisy girls," sneered Grell.

"Oh…Grell-sempai…" Kyoko said as she stood back up, still stained with blood but her wound was healing. "Did you like the color of my blood?"

"William sent me to take you back, Grim Reaper Kyoko," said Grell. "Not only did you go rogue and went on reaping premature souls, but you also modified memories so that you'd just be another victim."

"It's not like you didn't do the same, Jack the Ripper," retorted Kyoko, bringing up Grell's past.

"And I was punished, just like you will," said Grell as he pointed his chainsaw Death Scythe at her.

"Sorry, but I have no intentions of going back," Kyoko smiled as she used her yellow ring to bind Grell up in rope, S&M bondage style. Grell let out a moan as he wiggled in his tight bindings. "Now, let's see what happens when I reap the soul of a Reaper." She then approached Grell to end his life but before she could deal the killing blow a green shield formed and blocked her sword, causing her to recoil backwards in shock. She then turned to look at Alan and he looked determined. "Oh, so you want to fight me?"

"I don't fight girls," said Alan firmly.

"Well, then just stand there and let me kill him. Don't worry, your turn will come next," said Kyoko.

"I don't fight girls," Alan repeated, "But she does."

From the darkness, several blades flew straight for Kyoko, forcing her to leap away to avoid being run through. She gripped her sword tight as she saw her attacker walk out into the light of the moon. She had golden hair and was dressed in black.

"The assassin Golden Darkness will fight you," said Alan. "Don't kill her, Yami."

Yami nodded and then went on the attack again as her hands morphed into wicked, serrated blades and she lunged at Kyoko. She swung her right blade at Kyoko who blocked with her Death Scythe and sparks flew from the impact. Yami then continued her onslaught, forcing the rogue Grim Reaper on the defensive. Every part of Yami's body was a weapon as she demonstrated with a single kick. Her foot actually turned into a scythe blade and nearly sliced off Kyoko's arm. She was not giving Kyoko the chance to fight back, not even with that ring of hers.

"Is it OK to let her fight?" Bazel asked.

Alan shrugged, "She needs the exercise." He continued to watch as the sparks flew from the clash of the two femme fatales. He knew that the killer would target him sooner or later so he had asked Yami to shadow him just in case. "She won't admit it, but Yami is pretty protective of me, especially because of Alice."

Kyoko panted, sweat dropping from her brow. She was confident with her abilities, as well as her revival ability granted by the souls she had sacrificed and the lives she had stolen. She could be killed and then revived, but there came a cost as she was revived using the power of the souls she had reaped.

"You are a coward," said Yami coldly.

"What?" Kyoko hissed at Yami. She saw Yami's hair moving around her hair like snakes with lethal, bladed tips.

"You refuse to face death and try to avoid it, taking the lives of others in order to do so," Yami continued.

"Shut up," hissed Kyoko.

"The power you have now was stolen, and you stole them from innocent people," Yami went on. "None of them wanted to die, but you're the worst. You took their lives before they were meant to end. You are no Grim Reaper. You are a coward."

"SHUT UP!" Kyoko roared as she swung at Yami in a flash but Yami was faster and Kyoko was pierced by Yami's blade.

"It's painful, isn't it?" Yami asked as Kyoko tried to free herself from the agonizing pain. "That is the pain of your victims felt."

"Let me…let me go…" Kyoko demanded. She aimed her ring at Yami and was prepared to unleash a fatal, close-ranged blast but then her hand was sliced off right at the wrist and she screamed.

Yami told Kyoko coldly, "Alan Smith is my target. No one else is allowed to kill him."

Alan sighed, "Still going on about that huh, Yami?"

Yami warned Kyoko, "It doesn't matter how many times you revive. I will kill you over and over until you have no more lives and then I'll finish you off swiftly. Listen closely because I will only saw this once: Alan. Is. Mine." She then cut off Kyoko's other hand, causing the katana-like Death Scythe to drop as she screamed.

Bazel commented, "I thought you won't let anyone kill her."

"Do you think I'm stupid enough to get in-between Yami and her targets?" Alan retorted.

"Good point."

"Besides, Yami won't kill her. As for her condition…well, that's debatable," added Alan. He looked to Grell to see that his bindings had vanished but he had a look of utter bliss on his face. "Sheesh, what a freak."

* * *

After reattaching her hands and containing her in the C3 containment card, Grell's superior came. He was a man with pale skin and yellow eyes who were rectangular-rimmed spectacles. His short, black hair was neatly combed and he was well-dressed in a black, three-piece suit with black gloves. His name was William T. Spears, a supervisor from the British Grim Reaper Association. In his hand was a long metal rod with a clipper at the end. This was his Death Scythe. In his other hand was Kyoko's katana-like Death Scythe, which had been sheathed in its scabbard and sealed up.

"I thank you for your assistance, Alan Smith," said William coldly, "But Kyoko is one of our own so we will deal with her."

"I guess that's fair," said Alan as he handed Kyoko's containment card over to William. "That card will deactivate in 24 hours.

"Duly noted," said William. "Oh, and Mr. Sutcliffe, I'd like to have a word with you back at headquarters."

As the two Grim Reapers vanished, Alan let out a sigh. "Now, what do I go tell Akasaka?" asked Alan.

"Tell him the truth," said Yami.

The truth was that the serial killer had been dealt with but that wasn't what worried Alan the most. The yellow ring Kyoko had been wearing had gone missing. It just simply disappeared. That ring could be anywhere, which got Alan worried. Who had it now? Thinking about just made Alan…yawn?

"You're tired," observed Yami and she took his hand. "Let's go to bed."

"Yeah, you're right," Alan agreed. "Let's go home…"

* * *

A couple days later, everyone was at the park for _hanami_. There were picnic blankets laid out on the ground with people sitting on them, enjoying food and company while viewing the beauty of the blooming cherry blossoms.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Alice called as she ran towards her parents at the park but then she tripped and fell face first into the grass.

"Alice!" Alan cried and went up to help her but Yami stopped him. "Yami?"

"The grass is soft so it broke her fall," Yami reasoned. "She can get up on her own."

Alan frowned and then watched as Alice got on her hands and knees, with tears forming in her eyes. "Daddy…" she sobbed. Alan couldn't stand to see his daughter cry so he walked over and picked Alice up, much to Yami's disappointment.

Alan began to try and soothe and comfort his little girl, "There, there, sweetie. It's alright. Daddy's here."

Yami admonished, "You're spoiling her, Alan."

Alan remarked, "And you're too strict, Yami. She's my baby girl. As her daddy, it's my job to be there to pick her up when she falls."

Yami argued, "But she'll grow too dependent on you."

Alan reasoned, "She'll be fine without me. But right now she's still just a little girl and I'm always going to be there for her."

* * *

**An Undetermined Amount of Time Later…**

Alan was lying on a beach somewhere as Bazel tried to get him to awaken. Bazel called, "Partner! Hey, Partner! Alan, wake up!"

Alan groaned, "Ugh…" Alan came too and then starting spitting sand out of his mouth. He was dazed, confused and disoriented as he uttered, "What…? Huh…?"

Bazel spoke in relief, "Glad to see you back with us, buddy."

Alan questioned the armband, "Bazel, what happened? Where are we?"

Bazel replied, "I'm as lost as you."

Alan tried to recall what had happened and how he'd gotten here, "The last thing I remember was…Ow…my head hurts." Alan got up and found himself on a sandy beach and saw the oceans surrounding him.

Bazel stated, "We're on a deserted island."

"I can see that, Bazel."

Bazel added, "And you got some fancy new jewelry around your neck."

Alan reached up and touched his neck and found a metal collar around it. "What…what is this?" He took hold of it and began to tug, only to cry out from a powerful shock of electricity that caused him to fall to his knees.

"_I wouldn't do that if I were you." _The voice sounded distorted, and was coming from a speaker attached to the collar.

Alan asked, "Who is this?"

The collar, which was a two-way transceiver, spoke again, "_Oh, I'm just your humble host and I welcome you to Death Island._"

Alan scowled, "Sorry, but when I travel I go to my usual travel agent. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have places to be." Alan jumped, attempting to fly, only to fall facedown onto the sand.

The collar let out a 'tsk, tsk' sound before it said, "_That won't be possible, Sentinel_."

"What have you done!-?" Alan demanded

The collar explained, "_This collar you're wearing is a power blocker. Which means you are unable to use any and all of your special abilities. Oh, and don't bother using your ring either. We had it drained so you wouldn't be able to use it either. As for that armband of yours, well if you try to use its powers the collar will…_"

Alan guessed, "Give me another nasty shock?"

"_No, it will blow up and take your head off, and in your current de-powered state that will not be a pleasant experience_."

"What the hell do you want?" Alan asked, feeling angry at being powerless.

"_Oh, I just want to play a little game. It's called 'How Long Can Alan Smith Stay Alive'? Now, it wouldn't be sporting of me if I didn't explain the rules so here they are. You are on an uncharted island which is guarded by Manhunters. Also, you're not alone on this island. We have transported death row inmates onto this island and told them that the only way they can escape their sentence and be free men is to hunt you down and kill you. Only one of them will have the chance of getting that honor while the rest will have their heads blown off due to the same collar I am talking to you through. It gives them a bit of __motivation__."_

Alan murmured, "Great…"

"_Oh, and if you look around, you'll see a duffel bag filled with all the bare necessities you'll need to survive. Things like rations, a Swiss army knife and a first aid kit. We don't want you dying too soon. Well, that's all. Just try to stay alive, alright? By the way, while I was talking to you several of the inmates are now heading your way and they are all but happy to kill you. Well, as they say, let the games begin!_" The voice was soon replaced by static.

Bazel asked, "What are you gonna do?"

Alan answered, "I was trained by the best to be the best. Powers or not, I can still make everyone on this island my bitch."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now, let's see. Let's summarize the chapter. Alan catches a serial killer and lets Yami beat her up. As for where Alan is, let's just say it's not very good news for him. Stay tuned for the conclusion, my friends. Stay tuned.**


	70. The Legacy of Cain Part 14

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 14: Wendy **

The door to the MysticLiner opened up and Yuji entered. Sitting in his usual both was Leon who was drinking a cup of coffee.

"Hey, Leon," he greeted."What's up?"

Leon placed the cup down and smiled, "Take a seat, Yuji. There's something I want to talk to you about."Yuji shrugged and sat down across from his friend and teacher. "How have you been doing?" Leon inquired.

Yuji folded a leg over his lap as well as his fingers in hand, "Well, since we got cut off from ARMOR things have been a little difficult."

Leon nodded, "Indeed, but I doubt it will make any difference. From what I've heard those two friends of yours are able to handle any difficult situation."

"So true. So, what did you call me for?"

"It's better that I show you." Leon put down a thick file folder in front of Yuji.

"What are these?" Yuji inquired.

"Take a look," the veteran sorcerer invited as he leaned back in his seat, "Apparently, there have been sightings of Manakytes in Shinichi's world."

Yuji jumped up from his seat with a trembling, "What…?"

"I've been compiling these reports, witness statements, sketches, and newspaper clippings as well as photographs. They all say the same thing."

Yuji slammed a fist onto the table, "But this is impossible! There shouldn't be any Manakytes at all on this Earth!"

Leon sighed, "All the stories are the same. The witnesses describe spotting humanoid dragons."

'_Then…we're not alone after all…_' Yuji thought. "Where?"

"The stories seem very frequent in Italy," Leon informed, "specifically in Verona."

"Then that's where I'm going," Yuji said as he was about to walk out the door.

"I suggest you bring along some backup. What about those friends of yours?"

"I don't think Alan and I can work together right now. As for Shinichi he's got some family thing going on. Plus, I don't want any distractions."

"Still, you'll need help," Leon argued.

Yuji turned and crossed his arms, "Who's gonna help me? Santa Claus? If this is something that involves my race, then it should be my business."

Leon grinned, "I knew you'd say that." He snapped his fingers and the door opened and both Yuki and Yuri entered.

"Onii-sama," Yuki bowed.

Yuri grinned, "Yo!"

Yuji turned and beamed at the sight of his siblings , "Guys!"

"I've informed them of the situation and they both told me you'd try to go at it alone," Leon explained.

Yuri smirked, "Like you said, bro, if it involves _**our**_ race it should be _**our**_ business.

Yuki nodded, "I agree…"

Yuji nodded, "Alright then. It's the three of us. No Lanterns. No Riders. No distractions."

Yuri rubbed his hands with a creepy grin, "Well, since we're going to Italy we should also get some souvenirs once the mission is over!"

* * *

**Verona, Italy**

The three Fudos arrived in Verona, Italy and started their investigation. At a café, the trio talked about another set of strange events.

Yuji cocked a brow with a look of skepticism, "A miracle healer?"

Yuri nodded, "Yuki's been talking to some of the people here in the city, and they said that there's this religious group that's been performing miracles."

Yuji leaned back and tapped his chin with a solitary finger, "Miracles…"

Yuki stared at her rippling cup of water, "Healing…"

"Yeah, this group is famous for healing people," Yuri spoke. "They've even established a church here and are being recognized as an official religion."

Yuji scoffed, "Sounds like a cult to me."

"Yeah, but that's not why we're here. We're here to hunt for Manakytes."

"If the stories are true…" Yuki stared blankly

Yuji slapped some of the documents from before onto the table," OK, according to the data Leon gathered, most of the Manakyte sightings have been occurring in this city."

Yuri leaned in, "So, what's the plan?"

"Bait," Yuki answered.

Yuji blinked, "What?"

"I think we should lure out one of these 'Manakytes'."

Yuri nodded, "She's right.

Yuji shrugged, "OK, so who wants to play bait?" Yuki and Yuri looked straight at him. "OK, I thought so."

* * *

According to the data Leon managed to collect, these 'Manakytes' have been the cause of several unsolved murders and disappearances for the past several months. These 'Manakytes' also said to be involved in several cases of property damage.

These Manakytes seem to target people who were alone at night. Yuji, as suggested by Yuki, would be bait while Yuki and Yuri were hiding nearby. They were communicating via com-links.

Yuji whispered into his com-link, "I know this was your plan, Yuki, but why am I in a dress?"

"_Easy target…"_ Yuki responded.

"_In monster movies or slasher flicks women are typically the most frequent victims,"_ Yuri added.

"_And the victims of the disappearances have all been young women."_

Yuji used his witch-bullet and turned into Yui. "There, that's better," she sighed.

"I guess he… I mean she, would make better bait this way," Yuri muttered from their hiding place.

"Someone is coming," Yuki hushed.

Yui saw a stranger approaching. He looked like a local but she felt that something was off about him. He spotted Yui and smiled as he spoke, "Say, miss, isn't it a bit late for you to be out alone?"

Yui responded, "Oh, I'm just waiting for someone."

The stranger shook his head in a disapproving manner, "Sorry, but a lady shouldn't be out late." He offered politely, "Can I know where you live? I could walk you home."

Yui declined, "I'd rather wait."

The stranger grabbed Yui's arm and sneered, "I'm afraid I must _insist_."

The stranger's eyes turned reptilian which caused Yui's eyes to narrow in response. Acting on instinct, Yui activated her powers which caused the stranger to withdraw his hand in pain. He growled, showing sharp teeth before transforming right before Yui's eyes. His clothes began to tear as his body expanded and brown scales began to grow on his body. His face became more reptilian as a tail grew out from his rear. His nails turned into claws and finally a pair of wings tore out from his back.

Yuri and Yuki watched as Yui faced the monstrous dragon-man but knew that their sister/brother would be able to handle herself.

A claw came down at Yui but she managed to leap away and dodge the blow which smashed the ground before landing on the nearby fountain.

Yui said, "Well, if you're gonna change then so will I." Yui slung her Liger Belt on and pressed the white button before swiping the Pass over the buckle. "Henshin!"

"**ZERO FORM!"**

Kamen Rider Liger Zero charged at the dragon-man who roared and charged back in response as her claws folded out. Before the dragon-man could strike, Liger Zero lashed out first and his claws ripped across the creature's scales, causing sparks and blood to fly on impact. She then landed a series of kicks on its body before she started slashing at it again. The dragon man spun and hit Liger Zero with its tail which sent her rolling along the ground.

"Should we help?" asked Yuki.

Yuri's grin just widened as he replied, "Do you even need to ask."

Liger Zero rolled away as the heavy tail nearly crushed her but then a metal tail slammed itself against the dragon-man's face, sending him sprawling.

"Yuri," said Liger Zero as Geno came into view. He was in his default Geno Form, equipped with Saber Claws on his arms and was colored black with purple trim. His visor also resembled a pair of jaws with razor-sharp teeth and he had a dinosaur's head on his chest with a tail attached to his rear. His armor's appearance really fit his savage personality.

"Thought you needed the help, plus I was bored waiting," said Geno.

The dragon-man got back up but when it tried to move it was stuck to the spot by ice which surrounded it and had crept up its legs.

"Onii-sama, finish it," said Yuki.

"OK," said Liger Zero. She wouldn't be using a Full Charge for this since they needed the dragon-man alive. She just needed to apply enough power into his next attack to properly incapacitate him. She then rushed forward and with her claws slashed the dragon-man twice in the chest, causing it to roar in pain before she used a kick to its head that shattered the ice and sent it flying. It rolled along the ground before landing faceup, completely knocked out by the blow to the head.

Liger Zero and Geno deactivated their suits and went to inspect the dragon-man who'd just reverted back to human form.

"So, what are we dealing with here?" asked Yuri.

"Hm… These things do resemble us," Yui observed. "But it's like their bodies are stuck in between a Manakyte's Beast and Transcended state."

"A wyrm," stated Yui. "I can tell from its smell." Wyrms smelled like sewers.

"So, someone's making pseudo-Manakytes?" asked Yuri.

"Seems like it," Yui nodded. "I think we'll call these things 'Wyrms'. They're draconic in form, yet not truly dragons."

"Seems like it."

Yuri, Yui and Yuki loomed over the naked man who'd been the Wyrm Yui had defeated. Yuki then spotted a mark tattooed onto the man's back and recognized it. It was a dragon in flight.

Yuki murmured, "That mark…"

Yui asked, "What is it, Yuki?"

Yuki took out a flyer from her coat and unfolded it.

Yuri questioned, "What's that?"

Yuki answered, "Someone was passing them out in the city."

The flyer was an invitation for anyone who was interested to join the Church of the Rising Dragon. Right at the top right corner was the same dragon in flight mark that was on the Wyrm's back.

Yui analyzed, "Looks like these Wyrms are connected to this church."

Yuri asked, "Hey, Yuki, does it say when this 'church' has another meeting?"

Yuki answered, "Midnight, tonight."

Yui checked the time on her watch, "That's in half an hour."

Yuri said, "Well, let's go."

Yuki remarked, "You need a flyer to get in."

* * *

The three Fudos were now standing in front of the venue for the Church of the Rising Dragon. It was an old cathedral in Verona.

Yuki said, "From what I can tell this cathedral used to be abandoned because it was said to be haunted. However, recently, the Church of the Rising Dragon had been using this place as a base ever since they 'purified' it."

Yuji had turned back to normal and gotten back into his regular clothes. He suggested, "Since I've been bait, I think this time it's your turn to take it for the team, Yuki."

Yuri added, "We'll be close by. Just keep your com-link on."

Yuki walked towards the cathedral and showed the doorman her flyer before the door was opened and she was allowed entry. Inside, Yuki could see many people sitting in the benches so she took a seat. The only lighting available was from lanterns which hung from the ceiling.

Yuki eyed the stage. She spotted the pipe organ and young boys and girls dressed up like a church choir. The front of their robes also bore the church's mark.

The priest of the Church then faced all the attendants as he spoke, "Brothers and Sisters, welcome to the Church of the Rising Dragon. You must truly be blessed to be here. I can see new faces among you but I will not call you out. Instead, I ask you to come to me."

"Please, help us!" exclaimed a woman who was holding the hand of her daughter.

"What ails you?" the priest asked.

"My daughter is dying, she is sick, but we don't have enough money for medicine," the woman said, pleadingly.

"Do not fear, my child. We will heal your child and it will cost next to nothing," promised the priest. He snapped his fingers and another member of the church presented a golden chalice upon a silver tray. From where she sat, Yuki could smell what was in the chalice. It was blood and not just any blood. "Have your child drink from the chalice and she will be cured."

"Will it really?" the woman asked hopefully.

"Yes, I swear on our Lord. This holy wine will save your daughter's life," the priest promised.

The woman had her daughter drink from the chalice and then the little girl let out a gasp as she fell backwards and began writhing. The woman screamed her daughter's name as everyone watched. Then, the writhing and groaning stopped as the little girl sat up.

"Are you alright?" the woman asked her daughter.

"I…I don't feel sick anymore, Mama," the girl answered.

"She has been cured!" the priest declared and the pipe organist played. "The power of our Lord has cured this child of what ails her! She has been purified!"

Yuki's eyes narrowed as she continued to watch the miracles being performed. There were those who suffered from blindness, those who were paralyzed from the waist down, and several who claimed they were suffering from incurable diseases. Just drinking the 'Holy Wine' could cure them and Yuki had to admit they were miracles.

Manakyte blood was unique and mysterious. It was their blood that gave them their powers, like Yuji's power over flames and Yuki's power over ice. The idea of Manakyte blood possessing healing properties was not preposterous but she didn't think drinking it would be able to allow these 'Miracles'.

Yuki then listened as the priest gave his sermon to all who attended. He'd made believers out of skeptics, purified the corrupted, and cured the sick. Still, Yuki knew about cults. They would perform 'miracles' to persuade the weak-minded to join their ranks, gaining power and influence.

* * *

"You know, she's been in there a long time," said Yuri impatiently. "Let's go in."

"Not yet," denied Yuji. "Let's allow Yuki to work."

"I'm just worried. She's our sister, after all."

"And you think I'm not? But I trust her. She can do the job like she always has."

* * *

As the service ended and the attendants left, Yuki went to approach the priest who was getting ready to leave with the other members of the Church. "Excuse me, Padre," said Yuki.

"What is it, my child?" asked the priest kindly but Yuki knew it was just an act.

"Could you tell me where you got that 'Holy Wine'?" Yuki asked.

"Oh, it is a secret," said the priest. "Only high-ranking members of our Church are allowed to know that."

"I think I can guess what it is," challenged Yuki. She then blurted it out, "It's the blood of a dragon, isn't it?"

The Church members all stiffened at her words and their eyes narrowed. Yuki then found herself surrounded by the robed members. She knew she had hit the nail on the head.

"My child, since you already know, I will have to ask you to come with us," said the priest as the mask of kindness fell away to reveal sinister intentions. They grabbed her arms but Yuki wasn't concerned.

* * *

Yuji and Yuri heard a shout and that was the signal. "Let's move," said Yuji.

* * *

Back inside the church, the priest backed away in fear of Yuki. The other robed members were all frozen in ice. "What…what are you…?" the priest questioned, trembling.

"A dragon, so to speak…"" she answered as frosty air escaped her mouth with each breath. She was generating intense cold from her body which intimidated the priest.

"No…" the priest denied and he grabbed the chalice. "HERETIC! BLASPHEMER!" He then downed the entire chalice of blood and then his eyes flashed. His robes began to tear as Yuki watched his transformation triggering.

'_He took too much so now it's affecting his body_,' she observed as the priest mutated into a humanoid dragon like the one Yuji had fought earlier. '_Still, consuming it shouldn't be enough. Maybe…_'

The priest then got on all fours as spikes sprouted out of his spine and a horn grew out of his snout. He also sported a tail with a hammer-shaped tip. With a roar, the Wyrm then dashed towards Yuki who dodged to the side and his fist smashed against the benches, turning them to wooden splinters.

"The Holy Blood makes me strong, child!" the Wyrm said with a sneer. "Now, come with me. We could use someone like you."

"I think I'll pass," said Yuki as ice enveloped her arms up to her shoulders. The ice surrounding her hands then turned into wicked claws. Opening her mouth, she fired off a blizzard of cold energy at the Wyrm who countered by unleashing a blast of air which actually broke her attack and hit her like a hammer, causing Yuki to be sent flying into the wall. She recovered and pointed her claws at the Wyrm before unleashing a barrage of ice knives at it but it smacked them away with its hammer tail. Yuki gritted her teeth. This was going to be a tough battle.

"Give up," the Wyrm insisted.

"Not yet," said Yuki and then the double doors of the Church were blasted off its hinges. Standing in the doorway was Liger Panzer and he looked ready to kill. "Onii-sama," said Yuki.

"Yuki, take 5," said Liger Panzer. "This one's mine."

The Wyrm saw Liger Panzer and roared before rushing at him. However, Liger Panzer was prepared for the attack and aimed his Hyper Cannons at the Wyrm before unleashing their payload. The Wyrm was hit and sent flying back at Yuki who was just preparing her own surprise. Ice shot out of the floor and encased the Wyrm like a prison. Not even its strength would allow it to free itself from its prison.

Yuji deactivated his armor and walked towards the frozen Wyrm. Its head was the only thing that was not frozen but it was shivering due to the intense cold.

"OK, tell us where this 'Holy Wine' came from," ordered Yuji.

"Never…" the Wyrm growled.

"Yuki, do you mind leaving us alone?" Yuji asked.

"Certainly, Onii-sama," said Yuki before she headed for the exit. Yuji then turned his gaze towards the trapped Wyrm.

"You know, after I'm done with you, you're gonna wish my sister froze you and sent you on a one way trip to the arctic," said Yuji as he cracked his knuckles.

* * *

Yuri and Yuki were waiting outside and then they heard loud and torturous screams of pain coming from inside the Church. After some time, the screaming stopped and Yuji walked out of the Church. "OK, guys, we're going to Rome."

"Rome?" Yuki asked.

Yuri asked, "So, we're headed for Rome now?"

Yuji nodded, "Yeah, that fake priest was really generous with his information while I was beating the shit out of him." to a bloody pulp."

Yuki added, "Brutal."

"It's really sick. They've been using Manakyte blood as some kind of miracle cure and also using it on their members to make Wyrms. Also, those women that disappeared were taken to their headquarters there in Rome."

Yuri questioned,"But where have they been getting the blood?"

Yuji answered "That's why we're headed for Rome, to find out."

A portal opened up and the MysticLiner shot out of it before stopping in front of the three Manakyte siblings. The door opened and Leon poked his head out as he called, "All aboard! Next stop: Rome!"

* * *

In an undisclosed location, a dark-skinned man is waltzing with himself in a dark, medieval-style laboratory while listening to "l'Adieu" by Chopin. He had brown eyes, long dark brown hair, and small glasses. He was dressed in a white coat and matching pants. There was another individual in the dark and dreary room, strapped to a lab table and gagged. He had dark skin, spiked black hair with streaks running through it that were shaped like lightning bolts. His eyes were purple and he was struggling to break free from his bonds, with little to no success.

From the darkness, an older man appeared, appearing to be in his 60's. He had brown eyes, brown hair in a bowl cut, chubby and with rosy cheeks and a pleasant smile on his face. He was dressed in a Cardinal's robes. "Ah, Lord Prometheus," the Cardinal addressed, "How nice to see you."

The man known as Prometheus turned and sputtered, "Ah, C-Cardinal...D-D-Dorbick. I've been expecting you."

"I see you're admiring our new member. He's ready to be converted, as you see," Dorbick said as he approached the boy as he glared at the Cardinal with hateful eyes that sparked weakly with purple lightning."We had him gagged because he was saying the most dreadful things."

Prometheus scowled, "Manakytes are indeed a rude bunch, despite their amazing abilities, especially a certain pyro that has been a thorn in my side in the p-p-p-past." He calmed down and smirked, "Fortunately, our "Maiden" didn't pose too much of a problem for me before I came to this world."

Dorbick nodded , "Thank you for providing us with her. She has been a great asset to our cause."

Prometheus bowed deeply, "I am only honored to be of service to you, Cardinal."

"Now, let us begin!"

Prometheus grinned as he waltzed over to the table where the boy lied and inserted a needle into his arm that was connected to an I.V. filled with a glowing purple liquid.

* * *

**-ROME-**

When Yuji and his siblings made it to Rome, their first order of business was a private meeting with Pope John Paul II, which was thanks to Leon who had pulled some strings. Right now, the three Manakytes were waiting in a private room as the Pope came in with a calm smile on his face.

"Welcome to Rome," he greeted as he kissed Yuji's cheeks in greeting before doing the same to Yuki and Yuri. "Here, sit. I was expecting you."

"Thank you, Papa," Yuji nodded. He and his siblings each take a seat as Yuri and Yuki remained silent. "I'm sure you know of the situation going on."

John Paul II nodded as he took a seat at the head of the table, "Leon told me. It is troubling to hear that a cult has surfaced here."

"That's not all," Yuji frowned. "They are mutating their members into draconic creatures that are plaguing the Italian public."

"Dear God…" the Pope gasped.

"You must know, Papa, my siblings and I, we are not exactly of this Earth. In order for you to truly understand the magnitude of this situation, you must know of what we are." Yuji stood from his seat and walked to an empty space in the room. "What you are about to see will come as a surprise," Yuji warned, "But I will show my true self in order to gain your trust." He was then covered in flames as he was now in his Transcended state, the flames dying down to calm wisps as Yuji stood for the Pope to gaze upon.

The Pope fainted in as he fell back in his seat.

"That didn't work..." Yuki stated.

The Pope awoke an hour later to see the three still with him.

"You...you changed," John Paul stammered.

Yuji nodded, "Yes, I did. My siblings and I are from an ancient race of human-born dragons called Manakytes. We were born in the future but we have come to this time, believing that one of our own may be somehow involved with this cult against their will."

"What do you intend to do?"

Yuji clenched his fist, "We intend to destroy this cult and rescue our kin. Do you perhaps know of anyone who has been absent among you administration as of late?"

Pope gave a thoughtful look, "I don't think...wait, there is one. Cardinal Dorbick. He's been acting suspiciously as of late."

Yuji narrowed his eyes, "Dorbick, huh? Has anyone noticed any places he goes to or who he speaks with?"

"The catacombs."

Yuji blinked, "The catacombs of the Coliseum?"

He nodded, "Yes, I've been told he frequently visits that place but I didn't think much of it."

Yuji rubbed his chin as he was thinking, "Hm... Have you noticed any other suspicious characters in Rome by any chance?"

Pope shook his head sadly, "I can't say that I have, to be honest. Rome is very big. I can only keep track of members of my own church, I'm afraid."

Yuji nodded and stood up, "That's fine, Papa." He got on one knee and kissed the Pope's hand, "The information you've given us was helpful."

The Pope made the sign of the cross over Yuji's head and smiled, "Bless you, my son. May the Lord watches over you."

"Thank you." Yuji got up and left, followed by Yuri and Yuki.

* * *

The trip was a short one so they made their way there without wasting any time at all. From the information Yuji managed to get from the Wyrm priest and the Pope, he led his sister and brother to the secret location of the cult's headquarters.

Yuji said, "OK, so the entrance to the cult's HQ should be here." They were standing at the entrance of the Roman Coliseum's catacombs.

"Sounds like a perfect place for a cult. They can have their crazy tantric rituals down there as well and nobody would care. Sickos."

Yuki quipped, "Sounds like your kind of people".

Yuri seemed affronted, "Hey, I'm psychotic but even I have standards."

Yuji ordered, "Come on, we need to save those women and the Manakyte they've been draining blood from."

Disguised in the robes they had 'liberated' from the Church in Verona, they tossed the hoods over their heads to hide their faces and entered. Nobody seemed to care as they made their way down to the catacombs and went into the tunnel that was lined with torches to light the way. At the end of the tunnel they came upon the great hall. They could see the women who were in a cage and dressed as Roman slave girls in revealing togas.

Yuri commented, "Guess they plan to have an orgy."

Yuji hissed, "Hush!"

The Head Priest wore elaborate robes bearing the marks of the cult with a hood concealing his identity stood before them and spoke, "Brother and Sisters, may the Lord blesses thee. Today, I had a vision that our Lord will come before us and reward us for all that we have done. These women will be made offerings for our Lord. Of course, special thanks should also be given to our Holy Maiden."

The Holy Maiden was dressed in robes and the three Fudos saw that it was a little girl, about nine or ten years old, with golden eyes and long blue hair. Yuji could also smell her scent. "Manakyte," he murmured. The little girl was a Manakyte. He was sure of it.

The Head Priest took the girls hand and then took out a knife. Now that was the last straw for Yuji. Nobody harmed a child in his presence.

"STOP!" Yuji shouted and all eyes were on him.

"So much for our cover," murmured Yuri.

"Who dares!-?" demanded the Head Priest and Yuji threw off the robe he was wearing.

"I do!" declared Yuji. "OK, this will be simple. You're going to release those women, that little girl included, and turn yourselves in. Or…I'll kill you."

"No…" the Head Priest growled. "It is YOU who shall die tonight. Your life shall be offered to our Lord, the Dragon King!"

The other members of the Church began to change, horrifying the women as they witnessed the sight of them transforming into draconic humanoids—Wyrms—and pretty ugly ones too.

"So, if it's the hard way you want it then I'll give it to you," said Yuji. "Henshin!"

"**JAGER FORM!**"

"And that's our cue," said Yuri as he threw off his own robe. "Henshin!"

"**GENO FORM!**"

With a roar, Kamen Rider Geno began to attack the Wyrms viciously as Liger Jager made his move towards the stage. He was focused on the Head Priest who was still holding the Holy Maiden. His Ion Boosters actually made him into a battering ram which sent the Wyrms in his path flying. The Head Priest was too stunned to move and was hit with a kick that sent him flying into the main altar. Landing on his feet, the blue Liger Rider looked to the Holy Maiden who gazed at him with either awe or fear.

"Don't worry, little lady," Liger JägerJager reassured her. "You're safe now." He could tell that she'd been cut many times before and bled but she was a Manakyte, like him. Her wounds would heal, but small scars remained as she would also remember the pain of each cut she was afflicted with.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"A friend, and family," he answered. "What's your name?" Liger JägerJager asked the Holy Maiden.

"Huh?" She looked up at him.

"What's your name?" he repeated.

"It's…it's Wendy," she said. "Wendy Marvell."

"OK, Wendy," said Liger Jä. "I'm gonna give you to my sister and she's going to get you out of here. Can you go with her?"

Wendy nodded.

"Yuki, can you take Wendy out of this place?" Yuji asked.

"Yes, I can," said Yuki while she was working on the cage. With her ice powers she was able to make the lock brittle enough for her to break before she pulled the door open. "Come on, follow me," said Yuki to the women as she took Wendy's hand. The women didn't need to be told twice as Yuki led them to safety while avoiding the fight in the middle of the great hall. Geno was tearing the Wyrms apart and laughing insanely. "Typical," she murmured as she was already used to her psychotic' brother's behavior.

"Will they be alright?" Wendy asked as she was being led out with the women by Yuki.

"Don't worry," Yuki assured Wendy, "They've been through worse."

Liger JägerJager was about to go into the fray and help Yuri when he heard movement. He turned his head around and saw that the Head Priest was rising to his feet, growling. "You…you…"

"Yeah, me…me…" Liger JägerJager mocked.

"You dare mock this holy ritual?" the Head Priest questioned angrily.

"Holy ritual?" Liger JägerJager repeated mockingly. "Yeah, I can see how cutting a little girl and using innocent women as sex slaves would seem like a 'holy ritual' to you guys," said Liger JägerJager sarcastically. "Tell me another."

**Music –"Fire at Will" by Epic Score**

The Head Priest roared and Liger Jäger Jager watched the man became covered in flames and began to change. Liger JägerJager expected to see another Wyrm but when the flames faded, what he saw wasn't like the others.

He stood stall, with muscles and armor that was both impressive and intimidating, with silver claws at the tips of his toes and fingers. The shoulders resembled the claws of a dragon and he had a 'necklace' of dragon teeth around his neck. Two curved blades jutted out of each of his wrists and knees with black horns that extended from his shoulder blades and curl over his shoulders with a third horn coming out from the middle of his spine. His head resembled a triceratops' with a black horn on his snout and two more above the eyes. His eyes were golden and filled with flames.

"**I AM LORD DORBICK!**" the Super Wyrm introduced.(well, what else am I gonna call him) "**AND BY THE NAME OF OUR LORD YOU SHALL DIE!**"

"Sorry, but I don't plan on dying anytime soon." He swiped his pass across his belt.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

Brandishing the energy Vi-Blades on his arms, Liger Schneider attacked Lord Dorbick with a roar of fury. He was angered by this Wyrm's intentions of using an innocent Manakyte as well as using the women as sex slaves.

Now he was going to pay. Claws met blades in a clash and sparks flew upon the impact. Lord Dorbick then opened his mouth and bathed Liger Schneider in red hot flames. He grinned when he thought he'd defeated the Rider but Liger Schneider simply spun in place and dispersed the flames before hitting Lord Dorbick in the chest with slashes from his Vi-Blades. Roaring in fury, Lord Dorbick summoned flames into his hands which then took the form of swords. They were generating a lot of heat as well. The Wyrm then slashed at Liger Schneider with his swords and the Rider jumped back to dodge them.

Meanwhile, Geno had just dealt with all the Wyrms and looked up at the fight his brother was in the middle of. He saw Lord Dorbick to be a strong opponent and so he put on a psychotic grin and slowly made his way towards the main stage where his brother was fighting when a bolt of lightning crashed down in front of him.

**Music Change – "Kill or Be Killed" by Epic Score**

Geno's gaze was on someone aside from him who was standing amongst the sea of unconscious Wyrms. He was dressed in the same robes and looked to be in his early twenties with dark skin. He also had spiked up black hair with yellow streaks running through it that were shaped like lightning bolts and he even had fringes shaped like lightning bolts that were falling down in front of his face.

"Move," Geno ordered but the answer he got was a concentrated blast of electricity that hit him directly in the chest, sending him flying until he crashed into the nearest wall before he fell flat on his face. Geno grunted and then dug his claws into the floor. "You…just made…a HUGE mistake!" Geno snarled and with a roar he charged at the electrokinetic man before him. The man then seemed to change as his body released a flash and he assumed the form of an entity made of pure lighting with the same 'stupid' hairdo. He also had horns made of lightning. Geno attacked with his fist but it was caught before he got zapped by electricity and then blasted backwards again, leaving a trail of smoke as he soared through the air.

Grunting, Geno realized that his opponent wasn't one of these Wyrms that pretended to be Manakytes. "So…the little girl wasn't the onlyone."

Liger Schneider, in the middle of his fight with Lord Dorbick, also noticed this. "Another Manakyte," he murmured and then he crossed his Vi-Blades as Lord Dorbick's Hellfire Swords came crashing down.

"**We used the girl for healing**," said Lord Dorbick, "**And we used this one's blood to grant us our power.**"

"So, you got a bit of a charge out of him," joked Liger Schneider.

"**Yes, and soon we will be adding you to our collection and become gods!**" declared Lord Dorbick.

"Not…Gonna…HAPPEN!" Liger Schneider roared and then he pushed Lord Dorbick back before swiping his Rider Pass across his belt.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"**Buster…SLASH!" **Liger Schneider roared as he executed his attack, the blades on his armor all extending out as he rushed at Lord Dorbick. In a flash the Wyrm was cut through several times and blood spewed out of his wounds as he fell to his knees.

"Yatta ze," said Liger Schneider.

However, Lord Dorbick was not going to give up and with a roar called out,** "BLOOD! GIVE ME YOUR BLOOD! GIVE ME YOUR POWER!"**

The fallen Wyrms then began to bleed but their blood continued to flow from their wounds unnaturally. The blood was actually rising from the bodies of the Wyrms and flowing through the air, leaving their bodies as dried up husks. The blood then entered Lord Dorbick's body, healing him of his injuries.

"You…sacrificed your own men," Liger Schneider growled.

"**The weak must die and the strong must live," **said Lord Dorbick as he grinned,** "That is the order of nature. "Now…you will die, weakling!" **A pair of draconic wings then spread out of Lord Dorbick's back and he aimed his hands at Liger Schneider before unleashing spiraling blasts of hellfire at him.

"Get out of my way!" Geno roared at the Lightning Manakyte but nothing he did seemed to work on the Manakyte's electrical body. His physical attacks did nothing but hurt Geno instead as he felt himself being stunned by each blow. Also, the Lightning Manakyte was fast. Those who said that lightning never struck the same place twice had not met this guy at all.

He looked to his brother and his opponent and growled. He was really starting to hate this Lightning Manakyte. Not only were his powers electrifying, literally, but he was also fast, too fast for Geno to hit.

"Time to switch," said Geno as he activated his belt and changed.

"**FURY FORM!"**

With his armor switching from the default Geno Form to his Fury Form, he activates his targeting system. The Lightning Manakyte was still moving fast like a bolt of lightning. It was that speed allowed it to evade all of Geno's attacks up until now.

"I have to time this right," murmured Geno Fury as he gripped his Rider Pass. He got into position and swiped the Pass over his Geno Belt.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

He spread his legs and bent his knees as he dug his heels into the ground to secure himself. The tyrannosaurus head on his chest opened its mouth and began charging up as it drew particles into itself. Geno Fury's eyes were on the Lightning Manakyte as he took advantage of his opponent's stationary state. This, however, would be his downfall.

Geno Fury now had him in his sights as he roared, "**EAT THIS, BRAT! HAHA!** **Charged Particle Beam Cannon…FIRE!**" The cannon unleashed its payload in the form of an unstoppable beam of charged energy particles which shot through the air. Faster than the Lightning Manakyte could blink, the beam struck him dead centre in the chest and sent him flying with a howl before slamming into the wall with an explosive crash. The beam kept pushing the Lightning Manakyte through a series of walls before he finally slammed flat against a wall as the beam died.

"That is what you get when you fuck with Yuri Fudo, bi-atch!" Geno Fury said before roaring in triumph, "I AM THE MAN!"

**End Music**

Meanwhile, Liger Schneider's armor was scorched by the flames as he struggled to stand. Lord Dorbick was slowly making his way towards the Rider with Hellfire Swords in hand. "**Now, you will die. Don't worry, though. Your blood will serve us well**."

"No you don't!" roared Geno Fury as he grabbed Lord Dorbick from behind. "Stay away from my brother! Only I get to kill him!"

"**GET OFF ME, YOU FOOL!**" Lord Dorbick roared furiously before he threw Geno Fury off him with an explosive flaming aura. Geno Fury was thrown hard against the floor, hard. Shrugging, Lord Dorbick returned his attention towards Liger Schneider, whose shoulders were trembling. "Are you crying?" However, what he heard in response was laughter. "What is so funny?" Lord Dorbick demanded.

"You really think you've won?" Liger Schneider questioned.

"**Of course**," answered Lord Dorbick with absolute certainty. "**I am all powerful. You, however, are at your limit. Kamen Rider Liger, prepare to die**."

"Limit?" Liger Schneider chuckled. "YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT MY LIMITS ARE!"

Geno Fury, when he heard that, could only grin as he said, "Get ready for the show, asshole."

Liger Schneider's armor began to crack with blue light escaping from the spreading cracks. Then, all of a sudden, a blue energy exploded from Liger Schneider as his armor shattered to pieces. The explosion knocked Lord Dorbick off his feet in shock and as he lay on the ground he could feel intense power before him.

**Music – "The Destruction God Appears" followed by "The Confrontation of the Two Giant Monsters" (From "Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant All Out Monsters Attack")**

"**You think you know power…think again…**" said Yuji as the light began to fade from his glowing body. He was in his Enlightened formtaller, about 6'5", and had dark metallic blue scales and staring at Dorbick blankly.a bronze chest. He had soul-piercing blue eyes, and long horns curved back from out of his hair that was slightly longer. The claws on his hands and feet were long, sharp and blade-like. His tail was also long, and his bat-like wings had a great wing span.

"**What…what is this…?**" Lord Dorbick uttered in shock.

"**This is my Enlightened State. This is my own self when I break through my own set limits and tap into a power even greater than my own.. It is this power that nearly destroyed my world but I no longer fear it**," Yuji said as his eyes narrowed. He added, "**You, however, have much to fear**."

"**Fear…?"** Lord Dorbick growled as his body became ignited before he roared, "**DON'T YOU LOOK DOWN ON ME!**" His body soon began to change as Enlightened Yuji watched. Lord Dorbick's legs fused together and formed into a serpent-like tail as his chest turned into a pair of jaws with sharp teeth and sported demonic eyes. An extra pair of arms grew from beneath his original pair, also sporting sharp claws. His wings spread out and an additional pair grew out from his back. His body also began to expand as his scales darkened. He looked absolutely terrifying now, but Enlightened Yuji was not frightened. **"NOW FEEL MY POWER!-!-!"** Lord Dorbick roared as he flew towards Enlightened Yuji.

* * *

Meanwhile, topside, Yuki had just gotten the women and Wendy out of the catacombs when all of a sudden the ground began to shake. Yuki could sense that something was going to happen and yelled, "GET DOWN!" She erected a dome of ice as the entrance of the catacombs exploded and a pillar of flames rose into the air. Additional pillars of flames began to burst out from all around them as Yuki, Wendy and the women watched, with the little girl holding onto the back of Yuki's coat tightly.

Yuki's eyes were focused on the first pillar of fire and she spotted two figures rising along with it. She recognized Yuji and he was in his Enlightened Form and he was facing Lord Dorbick in his new Wyrm (again, this is the only name I thought would fit) Form.

**Music – "Summon the Dragon" (From "Yu-Gi-Oh!")**

High above the air, Mega Dorbick roared and prepared to strike Enlightened Yuji down. He unleashed his attack in the form of a massive dragon of flames and sent it flying at Yuji. Yuji, however, countered the attack as he called out, "**Tenrai Sekiha Tenkyoken!**" His blue dragon swallowed up the flaming dragon and then struck Mega Dorbick. Mega Dorbick roared in pain.

Energy enveloping his claws, Enlightened Yuji rushed towards Mega Dorbick and executed an attack, "**Strike Dragon Claws!**" He blurred out of sight and suddenly a series of cuts appeared on Mega Dorbick in a flash and blood spilled out. Yuji reappeared and flicked the blood off his claws. The mouth on Mega Dorbick's chest opened up to unleash another attack but Enlightened Yuji drove his fists into it, plugging it up.

Yuji roared, "**Mega Flare!**"

Mega Dorbick roared from the internal explosion from Yuji's attack and his own attack backfiring on him as flames and blood began to spew from the cracks in his body. "**No…no…**"

"**It's over," **said Enlightened Yujibefore he flew high into the air. At the very apex of his ascent he began to plummet with his knees bent before he picked up speed and executed a drop kick with his Enlightened Energy enveloping his feet. "**HI-YAAAAAAH!**" he shouted before he violently smashed right into Mega Dorbick. The resulting explosion lit up the sky so brightly that it looked like daylight had come for Rome. Wendy's eyes were wide with awe as Yuki smiled.

Prometheus was watching from the shadows and grinned, "So, the old fool is dead. No matter, for he and his followers have provided me with plenty of data for my research. Hehehe, I am glad to see that you are continuing to further yourself in the perpetual race of Evolution, Mr. Fudo. I hope to see you again…in the f-f-f-future…" He then vanished like he was never there.

* * *

A golden jet was flying in Roman airspace when the night's sky suddenly lit up brightly. "_Yuji_," the jet spoke before it accelerated and headed for the source.

* * *

Yuri managed to get out of the catacombs, despite having to dig himself and the unconscious Lightning Manakyte out. The cultists, including their leader, were all dead. As for the women, they would all be returned to their homes.

Wendy's eyes sparkled as she gazed upon Yuji.

"So, Wendy," said Yuji as he looked to her, "What do we do with you?"

"She can always live with us," Yuki suggested.

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking," agreed Yuji. "I've always wanted to give Maria a sister."

"I will live with you?" Wendy asked.

"Yep!" Yuji grinned as he ruffled her hair. "Starting today, you will be known as Wendy Marvell-Fudo!"

""Wendy Fudo…" Wendy murmured before beaming brightly, "I like it!"

"Well, case closed," said Yuri. "Now what?" He eyed the women and Yuki smacked him upside the head. "Hey! What was that for?"

"I know that look, and no way," denied Yuki.

"Cockblocker," muttered Yuri. This earned him another slap.

"Look," said Wendy as she pointed up. The Fudo siblings looked to see what she was pointing at in the sky. Yuji, Yuri, Yuki and Wendy all spotted a golden jet that was coming closer and closer to them before they heard a familiar voice coming from it.

"Yuji!" Showa called as he changed from Jet Mode to his Hinamizawa Guardian Mode before landing.

Yuji greeted, "Hey, Shinichi. What brings you over to Rome?"

"Yuji, it's Alan. He's in trouble."

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, now there's a new addition to Yuji's family but Shinichi has come with bad news. Alan's in trouble so now they have to go and save the Green Lantern from his fate. Will they be able to save Alan? Find out in the next installment of KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Dorbick's form was based off Dorbickmon from Digimon Xros Wars. Prometheus is an OC I made and you can bet you'll be seeing his face again. Now Yuji and Shinichi have to save Alan. Someone is always getting in trouble.**


	71. The Legacy of Cain Part 15

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 15: Monster Island! Saving Corpsman Smith!**

The Showa Guardian Jet and Liger Zero Phoenix were soaring above the sea. They had last tracked Alan's location to an uncharted island before the Hive's satellite lost contact due to interference.

"So he's out in the middle of the ocean," Zero Phoenix grimaced. "I swear that he always gets into trouble."

"_That's my little brother for ya_," Showa commented. "_Anyway, he's on an island but we lost his signal. But I'm betting he's still alive. He can take care of himself_."

"No doubt about that," Liger agreed. He then spotted several objects approaching and frowned, "We got incoming."

Showa muttered, "_Manhunters_."

"No man escapes the Manhunters," the machines chorused as they attacked with their laser blasts, open firing on the two Kamen Riders.

"_Time for a dog fight_," Showa declared as he kicked his engines to overdrive, flying past some Manhunters as he diced the robots with his wings.

Zero Phoenix twirled through the air to dodge their fire as he leveled himself to shoot some targets down with the wing-mounted machineguns. The bullets were strong enough to tear through the metal. He noticed some Manhunters closing in from behind and he smirked as he flipped over them to unleash his arsenal as he reduced the robots to Swiss cheese. At the same time, Showa fired his missiles and they pierced through the Manhunter's, exploding them in an instant.

"_Those Manhunters are trying to keep us away from the island_," Showa muttered.

"Then this is where the fun ends!" Zero Phoenix declared as he began to ascend. He was above the robots and Showa moved out of the line of fire to let Yuji do his thing. He then swiped his Liger Pass across his belt.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

The energy began to collect in his claws as Zero Phoenix performed a power dive. **"Diving Laser Claw!"** Liger roared as he swiped down, launching blades of gold energy that tore through the wave of Manhunters like paper as their parts fell to the sea below.

"Now then, onward to the island," Liger said as he continued alongside Showa.

"Alright, the island should be right…there!" Showa spotted the island. However, something suddenly happened as a wave swept past Showa and electricity began to spark all over his body, forcing him out of his Jet Mode. "Something's…happening! I'm losing altitude!" Showa was starting to plummet.

"Hold on!" Liger Zero Phoenix dove down and caught Showa by the waist just as Shinichi's transformation failed and his armor disappeared. As they landed safely on the beach, Liger Zero Phoenix's belt also began to spark before his armor shattered into pieces, the fragments fading into nothing.

"What just happened?" demanded Shinichi as his Spark Core began to spark uncontrollably.

"I'm guessing we were just hit by an electromagnetic pulse and it shorted out our belts and your Spark Core," Yuji theorized.

"Well that's just great," Shinichi frowned.

"It could be worse," Yuji shrugged.

Shinichi asked with a raised eyebrow, "How could it be worse?" He couldn't transform and they were in the middle of nowhere.

Yuji launched a fireball into the ocean as a giant shrimp-like beast emerges, screeching out of anger. "We might've been snack for Ebirah, that's how."

Shinichi blinked his wide eyes, "OK...Wait, Ebirah? That's the monster from a movie Yokoshima made us watch!"

Yuji nodded, "Which proves my suspicions... We're on Monster Island, Shinichi."

Shinichi grimaced. That did not sound good. "I'll quote you and say 'fuckberries'."

Yuji suggested, "We could try following the coast until we see any signs of a boat or Alan, but I doubt he'd be out here. My guess is he's somewhere in the jungle. And we have to be very careful, since your body's not at 100%."

Shinichi agreed, "You're right. Guess you'll be my bodyguard."

Yuji added, "It's a good thing most of the inhabitants stick to the inner jungles of the island, more food there and-GET DOWN!" He tackled Shinichi as he spotted a giant, reddish brown pterosaurpatrolling the skies before it dove down towards the sea to scoop a dolphin into its mouth.

Shinichi gawked and yelled, "Was that a pterodactyl!-?"

Yuji looked up and frowned, "Worse;that was 's capable of reaching super-sonic speeds and pop jumbo jets like they were on, we better get into the jungle before he spots us!"

Shinichi nodded as they made haste toward the jungle, avoiding Rodan's sight as they took cover. They began trekking through the woods as Yuji was in front, chopping through the giant leaves and thick vines with the Red Queen. Meanwhile, hidden cameras were watching their every move.

As the duo trekked through the jungle, they came across a grim sight. They saw rotting corpses, or what remained of them, on the ground and dried blood in the foliage.

Shinichi frowned as he studied the corpses, "They look like they were chewed up and spat out by something."

"So we shouldn't hang around here much longer," suggested Yuji.

"Do you know where we're going?"

"Anywhere that's not here."

"…Well, that narrows it down," Shinichi deadpanned. His enhanced hearing then picked up movement and he tensed up. "We ain't alone."

Yuji's grip on the Red Queen tightened and he saw something coming into the clearing. He then saw three very tall Praying Mantises, all of them 15 feet tall, and looking at the Manakyte and cyborg with hunger. "Kamakuras," Yuji murmured as he identified their species. "Stand back," he ordered Shinichi.

Now, regularly Shinichi would've listened to such an order…Oh, who are we kidding? He's an idiot. He would just ignore the order and charge right into battle. He still had his pride and even if he was powerless he would still fight. Jouji Yuki wasn't as powerful as the other Legendary Riders but he still fought. He made up for his lack of cybernetically-enhanced strength by using his smarts and his weapons.

"I ain't running away!" shouted Shinichi and he slammed his knuckles together, activating his nanites. This caused metal to encase his arms and produce his Great Fists…only now they were just half as great, causing Shinichi to sweat-drop. "…OK…Now this is just embarrassing."

"Move!" shouted Yuji as he shoved Shinichi to the ground before he had his head sliced off his shoulders. A loud screech was heard as Yuji sawed a Kamakuras' arm off with the Red Queen. He told Shinichi, "The EM pulse must've messed up with more than just your Spark Core. Your nanites must've gotten hit as well."

"That news would've been useful like 5 minutes ago!" snapped Shinichi.

"I wasn't sure at the time," Yuji retorted, "But now I am! Shinichi, you should leave this to me!"

"No way! I may not be able to transform or use my nanites properly right now but I'm still fighting!" Shinichi dodged a Kamakuras' attack and then lunged forward, pressing the palm of his hand against his body. "Here we go! Let's see what you look like in Fast Forward!" His power over time activated as a glowing image of a clock appeared on the spot he was touching. The hands on the clock moved clockwise very quickly and the Kamakuras began to age rapidly as well before turning into dust. Shinichi dusted off his hands. "And THAT is how you exterminate big bugs!"

Yuji used a fireball and incinerated another one, leaving only one left. As he prepared to roast the last of the three Kamakuras, he heard a loud yell.

"What is that…?" he asked. "Is that…?" It sounded like Tarzan and that was when he and Shinichi spotted 'Tarzan' swinging in on a vine. 'Tarzan' landed on top of the Kamakuras' head and took out a knife before stabbing it deep between the giant insect's eyes. The Kamakuras screeched as it thrashed about, trying to throw 'Tarzan' off but the jungle-man would not let go and twisted the knife. The Kamakuras let out one last screech before collapsing with a loud thud, dead.

Shinichi then identified the 'Tarzan' and gawked, "Alan!-?" It was Alan, with his clothes tattered and with a metal collar around his neck.

"Shinichi, Yuji," greeted Alan. "What's up?"

* * *

Back at the Hive, Satan was pacing back and forth. She wasn't the only one waiting for news. There was also Maria and Alice who were both waiting for their fathers to return. Alice had been crying but the little witch was able to comfort her bio-android friend.

"Papa will be able to save your papa," said Mama.

"I hope so," sniffled Alice, "And Onii-chan promised he would save Daddy."

"Of course he will!" added Satan. "There's no way Shinichi is going to break a promise!"

"Kihihihi!" Maria giggled, "You love him, don't you?"

Satan didn't respond and just scowled as she crossed her arms. Even if she was told the Red String of Fate didn't connect her and Shinichi together, she would still love him. She wasn't about to let superstition come between them.

* * *

"You're alive!" exclaimed Shinichi.

"Yeah, and no thanks to our host," said Alan. "So, how did you both get here?"

"We tracked you down," answered Yuji. "Well, actually Sheila tracked you down. Before she lost the signal she told us this was where you were at."

"Good old Sheila," smiled Alan.

"So, what happened to you?" asked Shinichi. "I mean when Alice called me she was really upset, said you never came home in two days."

"I don't really know how I actually got here," admitted Alan. "I only remember falling asleep and when I woke up I was right here."

"And Bazel?" asked Shinichi.

"It's all a blur to me too," confessed Bazel.

"So, how come you haven't left?" asked Yuji. "Couldn't you, I dunno, fly off the island?"

"Don't you think I tried? See this? It isn't decorative," said Alan as he pointed at the collar around his neck. "It's a power dampener. My Kryptonian powers are blocked."

"And your ring?" Shinichi inquired.

"Dead."

"What about Bazel?"

"Alan can't use me or else that collar will explode. It'll blow up too if he tries to take it off," answered Bazel.

"So, for the past couple of days I've been stuck on this island, trying to survive," added Alan.

"How did you survive?" asked Shinichi.

"Survival training since I was a kid," said Alan. "Aunt Anko really loves to put us through that Forest of Death."

"I guess if you can survive a place with a name like that…" Shinichi then recalled the remains they had found. "You're not alone on this island, by the way."

"Oh, you mean those inmates? Yeah, our host thought it'd be fun to have them all come after me for a chance at freedom. Unfortunately, they never got close and the wildlife got to them first," replied Alan.

Shinichi glanced at the dead Kamakuras, "Yeah…the wildlife."

"Alan, I don't know if you'll believe me or not, but you're on Monster Island," said Yuji.

"I think I figured that out when I saw a giant spider two days ago," deadpanned Alan.

Shinichi looked at the collar and offered, "Let me take that off for you."

"It'll blow up. It's too dangerous," said Alan. He'd seen some unlucky inmates trying to remove their collars. It wasn't pretty.

"Relax. If I can disarm Saisen and Koichi's bombs back in GIN-SHOCKER, I can disarm this thing," said Shinichi.

"You disarmed bombs?" questioned Yuji.

"I just remembered, now hold still." Shinichi put his fingers against the collar and closed his eyes. He concentrated on his technopathic abilities and could actually see the schematics of the collar in his mind's eye. He saw every little detail and learnt how to disarm it. There was a click and the collar opened up before it fell off Alan's neck. "There," said Shinichi.

Alan massaged his neck and let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks. You can't believe how much I wanted that thing off."

"If I had a bomb strapped to my throat I couldn't wait to get it off too," Shinichi agreed.

Yuji picked up the collar and frowned. "There's a speaker on this thing," he said.

"Yeah, the guy who put me here was talking to me through it. He was also using it to track my location. He'll probably know I got it off somehow and might just send Manhunters our way," said Alan.

Yuji tossed the collar away and said, "Then what are we waiting for?"

"Follow me," said Alan as he led the way. "I've made shelter. We can talk more there."

* * *

The trio trekked through the forest. Alan had yet to absorb enough yellow sunlight to recover his strength and Shinichi's nanites were still acting up as he tried to activate his weapon building abilities. "Save your strength," Yuji advised. He then heard something and stopped.

"What is it?" Shinichi asked as he stopped along with Alan. Yuji pressed his finger against his lips and walked towards another direction. He pushed passed the foliage and found a giant spider web, but that wasn't what was interesting. There was something in the spider web.

**Music - ****"Godzilla vs. Spiga" (From "Godzilla's Revenge")**

"Minilla?" Yuji blinked. It looked like a miniature saurian creature and it was struggling in the web, letting out cries of distress. It was 13 to 18 meters in height, with light gray skin, and small unformed dorsal spines. Its eyes were large, its body was pudgy, and its snout was slightly upturned. He also saw something else, a giant spider. It was crawling towards the Minilla and salivating from its fangs. Yuji frowned and he leapt out of the bushes as he shouted, "Leave him alone!" A fireball was hurled, slamming into Kumonga as it screeched before running off. Yuji then took out the Red Queen and started to slice at the web as Minilla looked at him. "Hold on, little guy. I'll get you out."

"Yuji, it's coming back!" Shinichi alerted as Kumonga returned to kill Yuji for interrupting its meal.

Yuji growled and stabbed the Red Queen into the ground as he changed into his Volcanic Dragon state, though Kumonga dwarfed his own size.

"This doesn't look good," Alan frowned.

"It'll be OK," Shinichi assured.

Volcanic Dragon roared as he spewed his flames at Kumonga, hearing the spider's cries of pain as it was burned. Volcanic Dragon didn't stop as he fed Kumonga his explosive punches and slapped the arachnid with his tail with enough strength to send the spider flying several meters away. Volcanic Dragon roared victoriously as he reverted to Yuji via pillar of flames.

He finally got Minilla free of the web and smiled. "There you go. Free as a bird."

Minilla looked at Yuji and then shrunk in size to Yuji's height and hugged the man as he licked his face, covering him in slobber while letting out cries of joy. Shinichi and Alan chuckled as they saw this.

"Wish I had a camera," Shinichi snickered.

**End Music**

"OK, let's go," said Alan.

"See ya later, little guy," said Yuji as he turned to leave with the others but Minilla wasn't about to let Yuji leave. The baby Kaiju followed after Yuji, Shinichi and Alan.

"It's following us," said Shinichi as he glanced over his shoulder.

"Let him come," said Yuji. "It's not like he's hurting anyone."

Cameras continued to spy on the threesome, now a foursome.

* * *

The trio and Minilla came out to a valley-like area, where a group of monsters congregated. The group of four took cover behind some bushes.

"See that tower?" Alan pointed. "That's the thing that is generating the EM Waves that hide this island and forcibly deactivated your transformations."

"So, if we take out that tower we can leave," concluded Shinichi.

"Easier said than done," said Yuji as he saw several Kaiju close to the base of the tower. There was also a waterfall, where he saw a giant ankylosaurus-like monster, with spikes on its armored shell, head, and tail.

Shinichi's eyes focus on the creature, scanning it.

"Relax," Yuji whispered, "Anguirus won't do anything. He's pretty docile if you leave him alone."

Alan blinked, "You know its name?"

Yuji pointed to another saurian,"That one over there is Gorosaurus. The one digging all the way over there is Baragon."He looked up to the sky, seeing Rodan,"And that's Rodan, up there. He flies most of the time. The giant spider from before was named and the Kamakuras are more carnivorous than the other Kaiju on the island. Manda must be swimming on the other side of the island."

Shinichi shook his head in disbelief,"Kaiju...and I thought Kaijin were a problem."

"Trust me, they're nothing compared to these guys."

"I'm really starting to dislike Kaiju the same way I dislike Kaijin," murmured Shinichi.

"Don't tell me you're turning into a racist, Shin," commented Yuji. Shinichi didn't reply to that.

"Actually, for this plan to work we're going to need Shinichi," said Alan. "He can use his technopathy to shut down the tower."

"How do we get him close enough?" Yuji asked.

"That," said Alan as he pointed to a large pile of excrements.

"Monster Shit, so?" asked Shinichi. Alan and Yuji were looking at him expectantly. "Oh…No! No way, dudes!"

"It's the only way! Those Kaiju won't even go near you!" insisted Alan.

"Then why don't you do it?" Shinichi argued.

"I thought of the plan!" Alan shot back.

"Which is more reason for you to do it! I ain't rolling around in giant monster feces!" Shinichi yelled.

"Quiet down or else they'll hear us," growled Yuji.

Minilla looked at the arguing humans. He then got an idea and went off. He knew just how he could help.

"How about we play Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide?" suggested Shinichi.

"No way, you cheat," Alan shot back.

"How can you cheat at Rock, Paper, Scissors?" Shinichi argued.

"Guys, the more you argue the more time we waste," said Yuji, but he was ignored as the two brothers continued to argue. Suddenly…

**THUMP!**

The ground shook.

"What was that?" asked Shinichi.

**THUMP! THUMP!**

The ground shook some more.

**THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!**

And then a loud roar was heard. This caused the other Kaiju to look up, a few fleeing from the sound.

"What the hell was that?" Alan demanded.

Then the three of them saw what had made the noise and both Alan and Shinichi's eyes widened at the sight of the creature which towered over them, dwarfing them in size with its sheer mass and height.

"No way…" Yuji uttered. "It's him…it's really him…!"

The King of Monsters, Godzilla, had arrived. Minilla then ran up to them and let out a growl as he nuzzled Yuji.

Shinichi felt himself trembling. This was the legendary Godzilla, an unstoppable engine of destruction. When he came into contact with humans, humans stood no chance. Godzilla was considered a living natural disaster and possessed radioactive powers.

Godzilla roared as he continued to stomp towards the tower and as he gazed at it, the King of Monster's eyes narrowed at it before it let out a roar and grasped the tower in his clawed hands. He then began to shake the tower, back and forth. The tower was not able to withstand the strain and began to bend before breaking, the top half of it tumbling like a tree which had just been cut before dropping with a loud thud. Minilla let out a roar as Godzilla roared as well.

"Well, at least now I don't have to roll around in shit," said Shinichi, relieved but still a little afraid as he saw the King of Monsters. Only Godzilla could have this kind of presence. He mumbled, "It's times like this that I really miss my Kamen Rider J powers."

* * *

He watched the monitors and scowled. The tower was destroyed and the monsters were now free of his control. It was all that giant lizard's fault! Well, Godzilla was an animal and animals needed to be disciplined so they knew who their real masters were.

* * *

"Well, if someone built a tower here, that means there should be a vehicle that lets them leave the island," said Yuji. "Let's go look."

"But what about…?" asked Shinichi as he pointed at Godzilla.

"I don't think we have anything to worry about him," said Yuji.

**THUMP!**

The ground shook.

"OK, that was not Godzilla again, was it?" asked Shinichi.

**THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!**

"No, it wasn't," said Yuji.

Like Godzilla had appeared, another beast appeared and this one was as tall and as ferocious looking as Godzilla. But the weird thing is: It was another Godzilla! Its roar was that of a high-pitch screech. Anguirus and the other monsters returned to eye the doppelganger.

Shinichi looked between the two Godzillas and bugged, "There's two of them?-!"

Alan frowned as he saw the latest 'King', "Something's not right…"

"You're right, Al," Yuji nodded as he glared at the imposter. He knew he saw this scenario somewhere before, and he didn't like it.

**Music – "Godzilla VS Anguirus" (From "Godzilla VS Mecha-Godzilla")**

Anguirus was first to attack the imposter as it stumbled toward his foe. He jumped and rolled into a ball as his spiked shell came at 'Godzilla' with incredible force. 'Godzilla' merely kicked Anguirus away as the beast crashed into a nearby wall. He was then blasted by a gold-colored beam of energy from 'Godzilla's' mouth. Gorosaurus was next as he went for a jump to execute a double kick, but 'Godzilla' caught the reptile's feet and spun around before letting Gorosaurus go as he crashed on some trees. Rodan came swooping in, ready to take the imposters head but 'Godzilla' wasn't going to have that as he turned quickly to grab Rodan by the beak and slam a fist onto Rodan's noggin before throwing him aside. Baragon bit 'Godzilla's' foot after coming up from underground as the imposter screeched in discomfort. However, 'Godzilla' continuously stomped on Baragon with his other foot and kicked the monster in the face as he blasted him with his gold breath.

"Damn," Shinichi winced. "I've never seen such a colossal beating…"

Alan spied 'Godzilla's' foot and noticed a shining glimmer coming from the ankle. "What's that?" he pointed.

Yuji narrowed his eyes to focus his vision and saw metal under 'Godzilla's' skin. "I don't like this," he frowned. That uncomfortable familiar feeling was coming back with a vengeance.

'Godzilla' turned to face the King of Monsters, letting out a challenging roar as it showed off its strength. Godzilla noted how the imposter too out the other Kaiju with relative ease and roared in acceptance. The two Godzillas charged at each other as they started punching and clawing at each other with brutal displays of power and ferocity. Godzilla's claws ripped through the imposter's skin and revealed more metallic armor underneath the shoulder.

**End Music**

"Look at that!" Shinichi pointed. "That skin is fake!"

Yuji nodded, "That's right, Shin. This imposter is just wearing a suit."

Alan looked to the Manakyte,"So, what is that thing supposed to be? A robot clone?"

Yuji nodded,"More than likely... A weapon powerful enough to match Godzilla in everything, maybe even more."He grimaced,"In other words, a Mecha-Godzilla..."

Shinichi cocked a brow,"After all that they couldn't think of a better name?"

Godzilla roared as he unleashed his radioactive breath, hitting 'Godzilla' in its chest as sparks exploded and more skin was blown away to reveal its metallic chest.

* * *

"Damn that Godzilla," he growled before smirking. "Don't think for a second that your powers are enough to stop Mecha-Godzilla." He then pressed a button.

* * *

'Godzilla' was slowly covered in white flames which traveled up its body before fully encasing its head.

**Music – "The Appearance of Mecha-Godzilla" (From "Godzilla VS Mecha-Godzilla")**

When the flames died down, the beast's true identity was revealed. Its body was completely made of metal. The mechanical Godzilla looked terrifying with its glowing yellow eyes as it roared, its hands rotating, its armor shining in the light, and its overall badassness that seemed to command respect.

This was Godzilla's robotic duplicate, Mecha-Godzilla. It unleashed a roar which Godzilla took as a challenge. The two giants faced off, staring each other down, daring each other to make the first move.

Mecha-Godzilla was the first to attack as it launched missiles from its fingers, colliding with Godzilla as his body was wrecked with explosions which sent him falling.

Minilla tried to go to his father as he cried out, but Yuji was doing his best to hold the baby back. "No, don't go!" Yuji begged. "That bastard will destroy you!"

Mecha-Godzilla continued its assault as it launched rainbow-colored lasers from its eyes, more missiles from its knees and toes, and even a laser cannon from its opened chest as it rained it's ammo on the King of Monsters.

**End Music**

"OK, now I don't want to be on this island any longer," said Shinichi. His nanites should be alright after the tower was taken down and Alan's powers should have been restored by now. "We should get out of here, now!"

"What about them?" asked Alan.

"What about them? Let them fight!" Shinichi shot back.

Yuji looked to Minilla. Godzilla's child was worried. He couldn't just let Godzilla fight alone.

"I'm not leaving, not just yet," said Yuji.

"What?" gawked Shinichi. "Why?"

"Why else?" Yuji gestured to Minilla. "His dad needs help."

"You're serious, aren't you?" asked Shinichi. Yuji nodded.

Alan knew that Yuji would not run away. They did owe Godzilla for destroying the tower. He then remembered something and reached into his pocket before taking out his hand to reveal a round, red jewel inside the palm of his hand. The inside of the jewel contained a figure that resembled a bird, a phoenix to be precise.

"Here, take this," said Alan as he handed Yuji the red Gao Jewel. "I found it yesterday and I thought it should be yours. After all, you are the only one who can use it."

The white Gao Jewel in Yuji's pocket glowed as well when Yuji held up the red Gao Jewel.

"Thanks, man," said Yuji. "I'll be sure to use this well." He took out GaoLiger's Gao Jewel and fitted it inside the Gao Dagger. Pointing the dagger up, Yuji called, "GAOLIGER! DESCEND!"

A rainbow-colored beam shot into the sky from the dagger and GaoLiger could be seen running along the rainbow bridge as he roared. He then jumped off the rainbow bridge and landed before Yuji. Minilla immediately tried to hide behind Yuji.

"Relax," said Yuji soothingly, "It's alright."

"Shinichi, how are your nanites?" asked Alan.

"Not yet 100 percent but I think I'll be able to fight," answered Shinichi. "You?"

"I haven't absorbed enough yellow sunlight to restore my powers but it feels like it's enough," said Alan. Night had fallen and Alan's eyes widened. "Um…Shinichi?"

As soon as day turned into night, Shinichi had turned as well. His hair had spiked up and turned silver with dark roots with his eyes turning black with a silver outline around his irises and silver pupils shaped like the hands of a clock.

"Guess I look like this at night now," murmured Shinichi. Night didn't automatically change Shinichi. He had discovered that his demon form could only be accessed when night had fallen. He had yet to discover what powers he had in this form but he couldn't wait to try them out.

Yuji looked up at GaoLiger who looked back at him. The two nodded to each other mutually, understanding what needed to be done. Yuji then leapt up and entered GaoLiger's cockpit, securing himself in his seat as he gripped the controls.

"Alright, GaoLiger, let's give the King a hand, or claw," said Yuji. GaoLiger roared in response and rushed towards the battle.

**Music – "Showdown between the Three Monsters in Okinawa I" (From "Gozdilla VS Mecha-Godzilla")**

Godzilla was being peppered by Mecha-Godzilla's ammunition when all of a sudden the robotic doppelganger was knocked off its feet by GaoLiger. GaoLiger roared as he stood on Mecha-Godzilla's chest and began clawing at the mechanical beast who roared back and tried to toss GaoLiger off. Mecha-Godzilla then caught GaoLiger's claws and tossed him off but like any cat GaoLiger did a back flip and landed on its feet.

Alan, Shinichi and Minilla each held up scorecards with '10' on them.

Godzilla's eyes were on the biomechanical Power Animal as GaoLiger stared back at the King of Monsters. The two growled at each other, seemingly communicating, and then reached an agreement. Godzilla rose to full height and roared and rushed towards Mecha-Godzilla who was just recovering from its assault from GaoLiger.

"Alan, I think you're ready to fight," said Bazel. Alan hovered off the ground, smiling. "Ready, Sentinel?"

"Oh yeah," said Alan and then he shot towards the battle as both Shinichi and Minilla watched. Shinichi stared down at his hand and clenched it, watching as the white circuitry lines appeared.

Godzilla was knocked back by a tail slam from Mecha-Godzilla but the tail was caught in GaoLiger's jaws and teeth as it tried to throw the metallic monster to the ground. Mecha-Godzilla resisted and tried to pull its tail back but then was knocked backwards by a powerful blow to the chest.

"Alan?" Yuji asked as he saw Alan through the eyes of GaoLiger.

"I'm back," said Alan. Bazel had encased him in the Bazel Combat Armor, which were better than the rags he'd been wearing. "And I'm ready to rumble!"

Alan was like a mosquito, as in annoying, as it zipped around Mecha-Godzilla. He was too small and fast for the mechanical beast to hit which left it distracted as both Godzilla and GaoLiger assaulted it with their claws and fangs. Mecha-Godzilla, in response, fired its rainbow-colored laser beam at Godzilla before unleashing its missile array on GaoLiger. The agile power animal dodged the missiles but they were homing missiles and GaoLiger roared as it was being hit by a rain of missiles. Alan, meanwhile, was taking down the missiles with his fists. He then took a deep breath and blew, unleashing ice cold air at Mecha-Godzilla. Frost began to coat its body but it only slowed it down as it opened its mouth and ate Alan whole.

Or so one would think. Mecha-Godzilla had bitten more than it could chew as Alan was jamming the beast's jaws, holding the its upper and lower jaws separate with his strength, holding up the upper jaws with his hands and pushing down the lower jaws with his feet.

Shinichi continued to watch. He felt so useless. He wished he just wished he could do something!

Then he pointed his hands at Mecha-Godzilla and concentrated to turn his hands into lethal weapons. Metal began to encase his arms, fusing them together, as the metal morphed to form high-tech cannon. His eyes were focused on the target. He had intended to blow a hole through its body with a single shot but what came out was a dark beam of energy which streamed through the air. It hit its mark, but not dead centre as he had planned. The beam hit Mecha-Godzilla's right arm. Instead of resulting in an explosion, the arm seemed to just vanish into thin air.

Shinichi gawked as his arms turned back to normal and he wondered what had happened. "What…was that? Did I do that?"

Alan, once free of Mecha-Godzilla's mouth, was stunned as well as he asked, "Was that an antimatter ray?"

"That was fucking awesome!" Yuji cheered. "Do it again!"

Shinichi aimed his hands again and tried to remember how he did it again, but nothing happened. He flicked his hands and tried again. Still nothing. "Sorry, I don't know how I did it!"

'_Shinichi,'_ Kuro spoke in Shinichi's head.

"What?" Shinichi replied, slightly annoyed.

'_Have you ever truly tested the limits of your nanites?'_ asked Kuro.

"Of course I have," replied Shinichi.

'_Have you really? And in your demon form?'_

"What's your point?"

'_That antimatter beam is unique to your demon form. I believe your normal limits are non-existent in this form. I believe that you can do more if you only believe.'_

"Believe, huh?" Shinichi replied. His eyes narrowed. "OK then, here we go!" Shinichi closed his eyes and a white, glowing circuitry pattern appeared all over his body, starting from his heart. It spread all over and his eyes snapped open, glowing pure white as he unleashed the power within. Minilla began to back away from Shinichi in fear.

Metal began to envelop Shinichi's body as machines formed by the nanites began to manifest. The metal began to expand and morph as Minilla watched. Shinichi began to grow taller and taller…and TALLER.

Yuji and Alan both stopped when they felt a new presence and then they saw something rising up from the trees. It was a massive robot that stood tall, covered in black and silver armor. It sported a pair of cannons on its shoulders, a huge fist, a massive blade for a right hand and had spiked knees and soles. It was a bit blocky looking and its face didn't have many features, save for a V-shaped visor which glowed red, a huge chin and a lower jaw that protruded slightly forward. It opened its mouth slightly before…it spoke, "HEY GUYS, WHAT'S UP?" The robot waved at them with his claw arm.

Alan blinked.

Yuji blinked, twice.

"Shinichi?" both of them said.

"I KNOW," chuckled Mecha-Shinichi, "I PUT ON A BIT OF WEIGHT." He looked towards Godzilla and Mecha-Godzilla who were too busy with each other to notice him. Even with only one arm, the mechanical doppelganger was still a threat. He grumbled, "DAMMIT, AND IT LOOKS LIKE I'M STILL SHORTER THAN THOSE TWO." His full height only reached up to Godzilla's shoulder.

Alan hovered in front of Shinichi and asked, "How did you…what did you…?"

"SORRY, I'LL TELL YOU LATER," said Mecha-Shinichi. "I ONLY GOT LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES SO I CAN'T WASTE ANOTHER SECOND." With a roar, Mecha-Shinichi rushed towards Mecha-Godzilla, "HEY, TASTE MY FIST!"

**WHAM!**

Mecha-Shinichi's Great Fist slammed against the side of Mecha-Godzilla's head and knocked it to the ground.

"AND STAY DOWN!" Of course, Mecha-Godzilla would not listen and got back up. Godzilla growled at Mecha-Shinichi. "GRR, YOURSELF."

"Mom and Dad were right," muttered Alan. "Coming here really did mess up the timeline."

Mecha-Godzilla charged at Mecha-Shinichi with its claws ready to shred but Mecha-Shinichi was faster and with his Great Sword slashed it across the chest and tore off sparks. Godzilla also bit down on Mecha-Godzilla's shoulder as Mecha-Shinichi charged up his cannons and shot Mecha-Godzilla in the back. Mecha-Godzilla head-butted Godzilla and rotated its head to face Mecha-Shinichi as it fired its laser eyes while firing its missile barrage and laser cannon at Godzilla.

**End Music**

Yuji frowned as both Shinichi and Godzilla were still getting fucked up. "Dammit, there's gotta be something we can do…"That was when the red Gao Jewel in his pocket started to flash and he took it out. He stared at the figure encased inside the jewel and knew what he had to do. He took out the Gao Dagger and replaced GaoLiger's jewel with the red jewel before he called out, "Alright! Descend…GaoPhoenix!"

GaoLiger roared out at the heavens and the cloud parted as a bird of flames descended, trailing fire behind it. It was a majestic creature, in crimson and gold armor. It was indeed beautiful. It was…GaoPhoenix. The firebird let out a screech and flapped its wings, raining fireballs down on Mecha-Godzilla which struck explosively on the robot's body, causing it to cry out from the intense heat.

A gentle female voice then spoke from GaoPhoenix'sGao Jewel, "_Tell me, are you my master?_"

"That's right," Yuji nodded, "And we could sure use your help in this fight."

"_You should at least give a lady your name if you want her help_," GaoPhoenix reprimanded.

"It's Yuji," he chuckled.

"_Yuji,_" repeated GaoPhoenix. "_Very well, Yuji. I shall fight with you!_"

Alan saw all the giant monsters and didn't know what to do. Even with one arm, Mecha-Godzilla was still powerful since it possessed functional artillery to make up for the lost limb. Of course, Bazel knew exactly what to do and said only two words, "Xros Fusion."

"What?" Alan asked the ancient artifact that was permanently bonded to him.

"Alan, initiate a Xros Fusion between Shinichi, the big cat, the big bird and the big lizard," instructed Bazel.

"Will that work?" Alan questioned skeptically.

"Oh, yeah. Just don't forget to call out their names," said Bazel.

Alan was still skeptical, but if they had to have any chance against Mecha-Godzilla then it shouldn't be wasted. He then pointed his hands forward and then called out loudly, "GODZILLA! GAOLIGER! GAOPHOENIX! SHINICHI!"

A beam of light, which then broke off into four individuals beams struck Godzilla, GaoPhoenix, GaoLiger and Mecha-Shinichi. Instead of being in pain, the four of them felt empowered. Godzilla and GaoLiger let out roars as GaoPhoenix screeched while Mecha-Shinichi shouted out, "Oh yeah!"

Alan finished off with a loud shout of, "XROS FUSION!"

**Music – "Intro to Fight" followed by "Judge Capsule Dropping" (From "Zoids New Century Zero")**

There was an explosion of light which caused Mecha-Godzilla's optical sensors to go haywire due to the absolute intensity. When the light faded, however, a new creature stood before him. It was Godzilla, but completely changed. The King of Monsters now sported black armor on his chest to go with his charcoal black skin. His right arm was covered in a metal gauntlet that sported three 30-feet-long claws and his left arm was covered by a giant black revolver. His knees also sported similar armor as well as his clawed feet. His shoulders were covered in wing-like pads. And two black mechanical wings, with golden blade-like feathers sprouted from his back as the wingspan matched that of billboard advertisements. His helmet was black, shaped like a lion's head, and covered the top half of his head while the mouth was exposed and two gold horns curved upward from the sides of the helmet. The tail was covered in armor and armed with a clawed end that looked like the claw of those Carnival games. Godzilla roared as the horizontal red visor glowed brightly. Sitting inside a cockpit inside Godzilla's new fancy helmet were Alan, Yuji and Shinichi, sitting in individual seats and facing their own control consoles.

"**COMPLETE! METALGAOGOJIRA!"**

The Xros Fused form of Godzilla roared and then charged towards his mechanical doppelganger. It was stunned as it just couldn't compute what had just happened to the King of Monsters. Now, despite being in a cockpit, the trio couldn't control the King of Monster's actions. He wasn't their puppet. However, they could control some of the new toys MetalGaoGojira had on him.

MetalGaoGojira's metal claw shot forward and stabbed into Mecha-Godzilla's chest, running through and permanently disabling the cannon it had contained there before withdrawing. Raiding up his revolver arm, MetalGaoGojira roared and fired off round after round of ammo at the mechanical fake, sending it staggering back with each shot and denting its armor further. The rotating chamber of the revolver reloaded almost instantly and MetalGaoGojira roared.

In retaliation, Mecha-Godzilla fired its missiles which detonated upon impact with MetalGaoGojira's body. There was a thick screen of smoke but MetalGaoGojira walked out of the smoke, completely undamaged.

"Time for a snatch and grab," Shinichi cheered as he grabbed a joystick in his right hand.

Spinning around, MetalGaoGojira smacked Mecha-Godzilla around with his tail before the clawed tip clamped shut around the robotic doppelganger's mouth. MetalGaoGojira then slammed Mecha-Godzilla to the dirt and then began to slam his tail down repeatedly upon Mecha-Godzilla's body.

"Yeah! Eat that, bitch!" Shinichi shouted.

**End Music**

"I think it's time we finished this," said Shinichi, enjoying being inside the King of Monster's head, so to speak.

"Yeah, but first we need to get some bystanders away," said Yuji.

MetalGaoGojira saw Minilla and gently picked up his son in his tail claw. The wings opened up and he took off as he landed on a plateau, a good distance from the battle. He released Minilla from the tail claw and MetalGaoGojira then flew into the air and hovered in place as Mecha-Godzilla tried to recover, its body badly damaged.

**Music – "Devil Gundam" (From "G-Gundam")**

Mecha-Godzilla then sprouted wires whichreformed into a new arm, and the dents and holes in his armor self-repair, though the cannon in his chest was left damaged beyond repair. Instead the cavity in its chest, the dents on its body, as well as its new arm was filled by small, hexagonal pieces. It looked up at MetalGaoGojira and roared as the King of Monsters roared back.

"Did you see that?-!" Shinichi gawked.

"That thing self-repaired its damaged body," Alan frowned.

"Self-Recovery…" Yuji frowned. "An ability that allows one to repair any damage inflicted upon them by use of special cells; called DG Cells."

"DG Cells?" Shinichi parroted.

Yuji nodded, "Those cells belong to a living machine called the Devil Gundam, whose original purpose was to restore a dying Earth in its Universe. However, its computer malfunctioned when it landed on that Earth and went haywire, trying to destroy humanity since it was seen by the Devil Gundam as a factor in the Earth's destruction. Looks like someone got a hold of the DG Cells and implanted them in Mecha-Godzilla."

"Great," Shinichi mumbled.

"How do we beat something like that?" Alan asked.

Yuji grinned as he clenched the controls in his hands."By obliterating this sonuvabitch until there's nothing left! Hissatsu!"

**Music Change –"****Moeagare Toushi Ima Washiki Shukumeiwo Koete" (From G-Gundam")**

MetalGaoGojira's chest armor spilt opened down the middle to swerve open horizontally to reveal two blue orbs. The claw of his right arm morphed into a large cannon. The revolver on his left arm also charged with energy as he opened his mouth wide as he prepared to finish things with Mecha-Godzilla. Mecha-Godzilla was flying toward MetalGaoGojira with no idea that it was going to get its ass fried.

"**This hand of mine glows with an awesome power!"** the trio chorused. **"It's burning grip tells us to annihilate you! Take this, you ugly motherfucker! GAO…KING…BLAST!"**

MetalGaoGojira launched his atomic breath blast from the two orbs in his chest, the cannon, the revolver, and especially from his mouth as the five beams converged and grew in size and power. It collided with Mecha-Godzilla and the robot couldn't withstand the attack as it was obliterated beyond recovery as the blast hit the island with tremendous force, miraculously leaving the island unharmed for the most part.

**End Music**

There was a huge crater left behind by the attack and none of Mecha-Godzilla remained and I mean nothing. Not even scrap metal was left behind by the robotic duplicate of roared victoriously as its foe was no more.

* * *

Our three heroes now stood before the King of Monsters after breaking apart the Xros Fusion. Minilla was licking Yuji's face. Godzilla gave off a growl and turned to return into the jungle as Minilla dutifully followed.

"OK, time to go home," said Yuji.

"And since Godzilla took out that tower, communications are back online," said Shinichi as he activated his com-link and called for a Teleportal.

"You know, I'm gonna miss this place," said Alan.

"Are you crazy?" Shinichi gave Alan a look.

"Nana would love to study the animals here," said Alan.

The Teleportal came to life. "Let's just go," said Shinichi hastily. He didn't want to be on this island for one more second.

* * *

Back at the Hive, Wendy sighed as she looked out to the window to see the valley. She feared for her new father, but seeing how strong he was when they first met lifted her spirit. "Please be safe, Father," she whispered.

"Papa will be back," said Maria, beaming. "No worries!"

Wendy smiled at her new sister. She was right. There was nothing to fear. Yuji would be back.

The Teleportal was activated and everyone waited in anticipation. As Yuji and Shinichi returned with Alan, an ecstatic Satan immediately appeared and shouted, "You're back!" She flew at them, arms open.

Yuji, expecting a hug from Satan, opened up his arms to accept her…only for her to fly past him and into Shinichi's arms. Yuji was frozen on the spot before his arms hung limply at the side and he turned his head to see the touching scene of both Satan and Shinichi embracing. Satan then looked towards Yuji and said, "Oh, I didn't see you there, Onii-sama…"

"Well then…I'm going right here…in this corner…" Yuji said as he walked over to the corner and squatted down, depressed as he traced circles on the floor with a cloud of depression hanging over his head. He felt a tug on his sleeve and looked up at Maria.

"I still love you, Papa!" confessed Maria. Yuji then slung his arms around her.

"That's what I wanted to hear!" Yuji then started to shed manly tears as Maria patted his back. Wendy also patted Yuji on the head.

"Daddy!"Alice ran up and leapt into Alan's arms before crying tears of joy.

"There, there, Alice," said Alan as he rubbed his daughter's back to comfort her.

"Onii-chan promised he would find you and he did!" Alice cried.

"Yeah, he sure did," acknowledged Alan. "Oh, and I got a present for you too!" He looked at his armband and said, "Bazel, if you please."

While Bazel couldn't activate the Bazel Combat Armor while that collar was still present on Alan's neck, he was still able to use his hyper-space storage ability. Bazel could be used to contain an infinite amount of stuff and Alan would be able to access them. The only thing Bazel couldn't store was Alan's power battery. A beam shot out of Bazel's gem and a big, oval-shaped object began to form and materialize before it solidified on the floor.

It was a big, purple egg.

"An _egg_?" gawked Shinichi. "You brought back an _egg_?"

"I found it and I was gonna eat it but I couldn't break it open," Alan explained. "Instead of letting it go to waste I had Bazel store it."

"Daddy, it's moving," said Alice.

"Huh?" Alan stared at the egg and so did the others. The egg was moving back and forth as cracks began to form on the surface. It was hatching!

"I wonder what it could be," said Yuji.

"Considering where he brought it from it's gonna be ugly," grimaced Shinichi. As if they didn't have too many animals in the canyon. The cracks were spreading along the top of the egg and then a head popped up. It was purple and reptilian with a pair of short horns and yellow eyes. It was…

"Is that a dragon?" Dr. Magi asked. The dragon's eyes were locked onto Alice. It then began to break the shell of its egg, cracking it up even more. A tail shot out followed by a pair of legs, but the dragon still looked ridiculous while still trapped in its egg. It stumbled for a moment before tripping and falling. Its wings broke out and then the pieces of egg shell fell away from the purple dragon. It came up to Alice's height and stood on two legs with thin arms with sharp fingers similar to a tyrannosaurus'.

"It's so cute," said Alice. The dragon looked at her and then licked her face. Giggling, Alice hugged the baby dragon. "Daddy, can we keep him?"

* * *

In the Meta-World, Anastasia lived in a castle. She had also set up quarters for her Soldats, each with their own room and decorated according to their own preferences. There was also a common room for them to hang out in while they did what they loved best. Kamiyami was throwing darts at a dart board that had Shinichi's picture pinned up on it, Goemon was practicing his break-dancing, Koichi was building new toy-like bombs, Saisen was polishing his guns, and Todoriko and Jin were playing Poker with Jin obviously cheating and taking all of Todoriko's money. Misato was sitting in a chair and gazing at a picture of Yuji. She didn't know how long she could keep her relationship a secret from Anastasia. It was a miracle that she was able to keep it a secret this whole time. Not even her comrades realized she was in a relationship with a Manakyte. Then again, she wouldn't be surprised. They were all self-absorbed idiots, all obsessed with killing Shinichi one way or another.

Misato wasn't stupid. She knew that Anastasia was starting to suspect something. Misato was losing her bloodthirstiness bit by bit and it was looking suspicious. The former #04 of the NUMBERS was starting to develop a conscience as she even hesitated to feed on a homeless person despite knowing that he wouldn't be missed. She did, however, still feed on bad people who reminded her of her horrible family who sexually assaulted her. People like rapists, wife beaters, child molesters and pedophiles did not deserve an inch of her mercy so she fed on their blood without remorse.

Misato had once walked past Anastasia's study and had overheard the Witch of Terror talking about adding a new member to their ranks. Misato hadn't heard more about it but she knew that since she had angered Yuji with her scheme which involved Rosa that she needed to acquire more power. The Mosquito Demon rubbed a hand against her stomach briefly.

Meanwhile, Anastasia was in her study and entertaining guests. One of them was dressed in a black jacket with a white jacket and matching pants. His hair was also white in color and his eyes were blood red. Tattooed above his right eyebrow was XIV. He was sitting in an armchair with a glass of wine which she had poured for him. Her other guest was intimidating. He sported short black hair and had reptilian eyes. Whenever he opened his mouth one could see that he had razor sharp teeth. His clothing comprised of an alligator skin jacket with black slacks and boots.

In the nearby mirror their true forms were revealed. The man in white's reflection showed a being clad in insectoid armor, the same color as his hair and clothes. The man in the alligator skin jacket was revealed to be a dark-skinned draconic demon.

"Mousier Juuyon and Mousier Gnauh," said Anastasia politely as she took her own seat with a glass of blood red wine, "What brings you to my abode?"

"You were the ones who brought us here," said Gnol.

"Only after you summoned me," said Anastasia.

"You're a witch, Anastasia," said Shiro as he leaned forward, smiling, "I think you can figure out what we want."

"Is it my services?" Anastasia guessed.

"Right on the money," confirmed Shiro. "You see, my associate and I are looking for power."

"The Spark Core and the pieces of the Orochi," Anastasia guessed again.

"Considering I can't track those Spark Cores down and my friend's pieces are under lock and key, we were hoping that you might be able to help us. If the Witch of Terror can't help us than who can?"

"Hm…flattery will get you anywhere, Mousier Juuyon," smiled Anastasia coyly.

"We will be prepared to pay you anything," said Shiro.

"Oh, you need not worry about payment, Mousier Juuyon. Your Master and I have a close relationship. Therefore, whatever you need is on the house," replied Anastasia.

"Well, that's…"

"But," Anastasia interrupted, "Since you're offering there is something I want."

"Name it," prompted Shiro.

"You are similar to Shinichi Banabara, am I correct?" asked Anastasia. Just the mere mention of Shinichi's name caused Shiro to scowl. "Well then, you must know every inch of a woman's body."

Shiro knew where this was going and grinned, "Oh…go on."

"You will sleep with me, for a week, and if I am satisfied with your…performance, then you will have my assistance," explained Anastasia.

"OK! So, when do we get started?" asked Shiro eagerly. He may have been an android, but he was FULLY functional.

"Not yet," remarked Anastasia as she wagged her finger. "Don't be too eager, my dear boy. Have a little patience."

Shiro licked his lips. He couldn't deny that Anastasia was attractive and he wondered what her body was like under those clothes. Did she have a killer body?

Gnol rolled his eyes, already used to his partner's behavior. He knew that Shiro enjoyed sex. He often went and bought the services of prostitutes so that he could enjoy a night of pleasure. However, he knew what Shiro really wanted. Gnol was only going along with this because he needed his pieces back, but with their seals reinforced not even he would be able to break them, especially in his weakened state and at 1/8 his original power.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, that's one epic chapter and it rounds up this little storyline involving Yuji, Shinichi and Alan. Hope you enjoyed the references to Godzilla and Gundam as well as enjoy all the boom-boom- bang action that was in this story. BTW, I gave Shinichi a giant mecha form and Yuji gets a new Power Animal, GaoPhoenix. Well, see you again next time for another update of KRxGL pretty soon.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: All reference to Godzilla belongs to Toho and Gundam belongs to Sunrise. I sincerely hope you guys enjoy this madness that the two of us cooked up. Oh, and if you wanna hear the songs, then just copy the names and paste them in the YouTube search engine. They're there, trust me. And by the way, all Godzilla characters are from the 1970's, just so no one gets confused.**


	72. The Legacy of Cain Part 16

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 16: G-SHOCK**

Shinichi was carrying Satan, bridal style towards his quarters in the base. The red-eyed girl's gaze was on her lover. To be honest, she never really planned on falling for him but after their first confrontation he had offered his hand in friendship and while she still thought he was a pervert, he still had morals

"So, I heard from Rena you made a calendar using sexy photos of her," said Satan.

"She did, did she?" Shinichi replied.

"She even showed it to me and I have to say you're an excellent photographer," Satan complimented.

"Only because my subject was excellent," Shinichi remarked.

"So…I was wondering if you could take a few pictures of me. There are some things I'd like to wear for you."

Shinichi grinned, "Oh…really?"

This was them flirting with each other.

They reached the door and Shinichi put Satan down so he could enter the access code to open the door. As they stood at the threshold, Satan reached behind her back and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. Shinichi's eyes widened slightly at the gleaming metal. "How about we play a game?"

* * *

Shinichi was handcuffed to his bed, naked, with a naked Satan riding him. The only article of clothing she had on was her stockings and garters which made her look really sexy. Sweat covered their bodies as they were attached to the hip. Satan bounced up and down on him, causing her breasts to bounce up and down before his eyes. He wished he could reach out and touch them but he was at Satan's mercy and allowing her to have her way with him. Satan's hands were running up and down the front of Shinichi's body, feeling every muscle. She licked her lips and then she screwed her eyes shut as she reached orgasm and screamed his name.

* * *

Satan was handcuffed to the bed this time and was crying out in ecstasy as Shinichi was between her legs and fucking her with slow and hard thrusts. He would just pull back and slam in, repeatedly, causing her body to tremble. His hands fondled her breasts. The Stake of Wrath, like the rest of her sisters, had killer bodies. Perfect hourglass figures with big tits and asses. Their uniforms were also fetish fuel as they resembled sexy and naughty school girls.

Shinichi then pulled out as Satan panted and lifted up her legs to rest on his shoulders before he started pounding into her again, fast and hard. Sweaty skin slapped again skin and Satan was crying out again from the intensity. "AH! OH GOD! SHINICHI!" she cried out.

"Satan-chan!" he called her name as well and then she let loose a scream. He pulled himself out of her and shot his semen onto her breasts and stomach. Satan's breasts rose up and down as she tried to catch her breath.

"We should do this more often," Shinichi suggested. He then kissed her deeply.

* * *

Back in the Meta-World, in the Golden Witch's residence, Lucifer was looking around for something. This did not go unnoticed by Belphegor who was on the couch of the common room as she asked, "What are you looking for?"

"My handcuffs," answered Lucifer as she looked under the couch.

"Handcuffs?" Belphegor cocked an eyebrow.

"They were a present from Shogo."

"Why would he give you handcuffs as a present?" Belphegor asked.

"You'll know when you get a boyfriend," answered Lucifer before she left to continue her search. Belphegor just shrugged and yawned before closing her eyes to take a nap. However, her nap was then interrupted by Beelzebub who looked like she was trying to find something like Lucifer had earlier.

"Looking for something?" asked Belphegor.

"I can't find my can of whipped cream," said Beelzebub. "Have you seen it?"

"No, can't say I have."

Beelzebub frustratingly scratched her head. "It has to be around here, somewhere," she muttered.

* * *

Asmodeus was lying on a bed with whipped cream covering her breasts and topped with cherries. Even her vagina was covered in whipped cream. Yokoshima's head was between her legs, licking off the delicious cream as she enjoyed the sensation of being eaten out.

"This is delicious stuff," he said as he paused in his licking.

"Beelzebub always loves the best treats," giggled Asmodeus before she gasped and moan.

"Me too and I love dessert," Yokoshima snickered as he resumed eating out his girlfriend.

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan was being given a very warm welcome by his girls. They had all decided to celebrate Alan's return at a hotel.

Lala was riding Alan, grinding against his body before she screamed outout, "ALAN!" as she climaxed before she slumped forward and collapsed onto Alan's body as he gently wrapped his arms around her. Alan let out a contented sigh. In the end the girls were all naked and sprawled, passed out on the bed, covered in sweat, with Alan still awake. Even Megan had been invited to join the orgy.

"Wow, you must have really good stamina, partner," complimented Bazel.

"Kryptonian, Bazel. I can go for hours without rest," Alan answered. He'd given each girl half a dozen orgasms before they lost consciousness.

"Let's see about that," said Amora who'd just recovered before pushing Lala off and mounting Alan. "Let's see you make me scream and pass out again, lover."

"I accept your challenge," Alan grinned.

* * *

In the back alleys, shady dealers were selling drug out to anyone and everyone who could and would pay to feel high. But this was no run of the mill drug like heroin, cocaine or marijuana. This was something else. This drug was called 'Stone' but on the street it was also known as 'G-Shock' because it gave a person's systems such an extreme shock of energy. G-Shock came in the form of pill tablets, easily consumed, and also easily distributed.

* * *

"A Mikura? What the fuck is that?" Shinichi asked as he walked with Alan to Alice's kindergarten. Alan had enrolled Alice there so she could meet and befriend kids who were her own age. She would need to go to kindergarten to do that.

"That's what you are," Alan clarified. "Mikura are demons who've gone through cybernetic modifications. Since you're a quarter demon and a cyborg, technically you're a Mikura."

"Oh, that makes sense," Shinichi agreed. "Hey, we're here."

"Onii-chan!" Alice called as she ran towards Alan and Shinichi before jumping into her father's arms. While out in public like this she needed to call him 'Onii-chan'. Calling him 'Daddy' would get them odd looks and questions they didn't want to answer from strangers.

"How was school?" Alan asked.

"Oh, it was fun! We did finger painting!"

"That's nice. Now let's go home, Alice," said Alan, smiling.

"OK!" Alice smiled cutely. The two walked hand-in-hand towards home as Shinichi watched.

"Maybe I should adopt," Shinichi thought out loud before chuckling and rejecting the idea, "Yeah right! Like I'm ready for fatherhood." He then jogged after Alice and Alan to catch up with them as Alan promised to take Alice to Angel Mort for ice cream later.

* * *

"OK, Keiichi Maebara. Remember, today's the big game," Keiichi said to himself in the mirror. He was in the locker room and in his baseball uniform. He was a member of Shishibone Universty's baseball team, the Shishibone Tigers, and today they were about to play against a rival team, the Tomobiki Wolves.

"Hey, Keiichi," said Satoshi as he came into the locker room. "I've been looking everywhere for you. You better hurry. The team's getting ready."

"Yeah, sure, I'll be there," said Keiichi. "Just need a moment."

"Don't be late," cautioned Satoshi before leaving his friend. After Satoshi left, Keiichi reached inside his pocket and pulled out a packet filled with crystal blue pills. He took out a pill and popped it into his mouth before swallowing. He could feel the effects already.

"OK, time to play ball!" said Keiichi as his eyes glowed unnaturally blue.

* * *

"GO SHISHIBONE!" cheered Yokoshima as he waved around a foam finger with #1 on it. "YEAH, KICK SOME ASS!"

"Yoko-kun, they haven't started playing yet!" giggled Asmodeus.

"Can't I be pumped up anyway?" asked Yokoshima.

The Hinamizawa Gaming Club and NEO-NUMBERS were all seated in the stands of Shishibone University's sports stadium. They were here to support Keiichi, Satoshi and their baseball team. Alan, Yuji and their girls couldn't make it, unfortunately. It was too late for them since the tickets for the event had sold out.

"I'm surprised you didn't join," Daichi remarked to Shinichi.

"It wouldn't be fair," Shinichi responded.

"True. Hell, with our cybernetics we would be able to win games like this easily," Daichi agreed. Chiaki nodded in agreement.

"Baseball is fun, but Shocker Ball was a blast," said Michiru.

"What's Shocker Ball?" Rena asked curiously.

Michiru answered, "Oh, it's this sport we played back in GIN-SHOCKER."

"They had sports?" asked Shion. She hadn't known that.

"It was an attempt to improve morale or something like that," Hana stated.

"How is it played?" asked Hanyuu.

Chiaki explained, "Well, it's like handball except that the ball is a bomb and when you score the goal it explodes. Players are also armed with gravity hammers and energy swords to prevent their opponents from scoring."

The Gaming Club just stared at the NEO-NUMBERS after being given the description of Shocker Ball.

"Bombs?" questioned Satoko.

"Hammers?" questioned Hanyuu.

"Swords?" questioned Rika.

The NEO-NUMBERS nodded.

"What kind of crazy game is this?" asked Shion.

"It was GIN-SHOCKER. Are you really that surprised?" Daichi asked dryly.

"And Shinichi here was our MVP!" Yokoshima boasted, gesturing to Shinichi with his foam finger.

"Really?" Rena's eyes sparkled. Shinichi blushed at the appraising gaze.

"I think Dr. Magi still has videos. Maybe I can get him to lend you some to watch," suggested Yokoshima.

"OK!" Rena beamed.

"Hey, there's Kei-chan!" Mion spotted as both teams entered the stadium. Shinichi began to take pictures, using his zoom lens to get better and clearer shots. They watched as the both teams entered the field and took their places.

* * *

The game began and both the Tigers and Wolves played their hardest. The ball was pitched and knocked into the air by the batter and sometimes the ball would be caught in the catcher's mitt and declared as a strike. Players were either safe or out depending on how fast they got to the next base before they were tagged with the ball.

"So, this is baseball," said Mika.

"Yes, this is baseball," confirmed Leviathan. She and Mika had reached an agreement to share Daichi. This, however, did not stop the other guys from making jokes about the Cricket Rider's not-so-unique predicament. It was only funny because he denied it almost all the time.

"It's interesting. We never had anything like this back home," Mika said as Keiichi walked up to the pitcher's mound. He smirked as he began to make his throw. He looked towards the catcher and gave him a wink as he focused his eyes on the batter.

"He's going to be struck out," Keiichi said to himself. He drew his arm back and threw. The ball shot through the air, past the batter and hit the catcher's mitt, almost knocking him down.

"STRIKE ONE!" the umpire declared.

Everyone blinked as they never even saw the ball after Keiichi threw it until it hit the catcher's mitt. The ball was tossed back to Keiichi who grinned cockily before he made his second throw.

"STRIKE TWO!"

And then his third.

"STRIKE THREE! YOU'RE OUT!"

"Woah," Shion whistled, "I know Kei-chan said he'd gotten better at baseball, but man is he a fast pitcher!"

"Yeah that ball was fast!" Michiru nodded. They were all impressed. So far Keiichi had proven that he was a powerful pitcher, striking out every single batter

"It's almost inhuman..." murmured Shogo. Shinichi nodded in agreement at Shogo's observation.

"Yay, Kei-chan!" Mion cheered. She then took Yokoshima's foam finger.

"Hey!" Yokoshima shouted as Mion put it on and waved it around. "That's mine!" he whined.

* * *

"Wow Keiichi, you're on fire today," Satoshi said. Currently, both he and Keiichi were waiting at the bench until they were call up to bat.

"Yeah, thanks for noticing," Keiichi muttered.

"So tell me, how did you get good so fast?" Satoshi asked.

"Hmm? Oh well let's just say I have a lucky star," Keiichi said.

Satoshi blinked. He could've sworn for a second that Keiichi's eyes had flashed a shade of bright blue. '_Must be my imagination_,' Satoshi thought to himself.

* * *

Yokoshima got his foam finger back and cheered loudly for his favorite team. However, he was waving his foam finger around so much that he accidentally slapped a man sitting next to him in the face.

"Oh, sorry about that," Yokoshima apologized.

"You dumb Tigers fan! You nearly broke my damn nose!" the man snapped.

"Look buddy! It was just an accident and my Yoko-kun already apologized," Asmodeus remarked.

The vein in the man's forehead started to pulse as he growled angrily, "Stay out of this you dumb bitch!"

Yokoshima's eyes narrowed as he swiftly grabbed the man by his collar and pulled him over tp him, face to face. He spoke dangerously, "Buddy, I can ignore the comments you made about me and my team, but if you ever talk to my Asmo-chan like that I will break your arms. Understand?" The man gulped as he nodded frantically. "Good. Now if you'll excuse me I got a game to watch." He released the man and returned to cheering as the man decided to quickly leave the stands. What he'd seen in Yokoshima's eyes had scared him. Those were the eyes of a killer.

Asmodeus giggled as she watched the man leave. Her boyfriend may be considered an idiot among his peers but he could also be intimidating. His Blitz Form was armed with powerful cannons, after all.

* * *

"... Alright Maebara, we're in the bottom of the ninth, and the other team's ahead. Now, Houjou is on 2nd base. I just need you to hit the ball so we can win this game. Think you can do it?" The coach said

"Easy," Keiichi grinned as he walked up to bat.

"GO KEI-CHAN!" Mion shouted as everyone cheered their friend on.

The pitcher sneered as he glared at Keiichi. '_Easy out_,' the pitcher thought as he darted forward, launching the ball towards Keiichi. Keiichi swung the bat with a mighty swing that sent the ball shooting outward towards the sky faster than anyone could see.

"It's a homerun!" Shinichi shouted as Keiichi and Satoshi began running the diamond, both of them reaching home.

"THEY WON THE GAME!" Yokoshima cheered.

"Guess this calls for a celebration," smiled Shogo.

* * *

Keiichi was getting back into his clothes after taking a shower. He was the only one left in the locker room. He felt pretty good about himself. His team had won and it was all thanks to him and his special 'supplements'.

"Hey, champ," Mion spoke flirtatiously as she wrapped her arms around his neck from behind to kiss his cheek.

"Hey, Mion," said Keiichi as he turned and began to kiss her. Mion smiled as they broke the kiss. "Man, what was that for?"

"You're the big hero," said Mion.

"Well, this isn't the championship yet, Mion," said Keiichi, "But when we do get there, we'll bring home the trophy."

"I can't wait," said Mion. She took his hand and said, "Now, come on! We're going out to celebrate."

That was when Keiichi's drugs, which were in his pocket, chose to fall out. Mion blinked and so did Keiichi but he paled a little as he saw Mion pick the packet up. "It's medicine," he lied.

"No," she remarked, examining it, "These are drugs!"

"Mion, please-" Keiichi began, sweating, as he tried to explain himself.

"So this is it, isn't it!-?" accused Mion as she held the packet of drugs in front of Keiichi.

"Hey, give that back!" Keiichi shouted as he reached for the packet but Mion held it away from him. "Mion, those are mine! Give them back!"

"You've been taking drugs!" Mion shouted back, upset.

"Yeah? So? It makes me stronger and faster!" Keiichi countered. "Isn't that what you wanted? A stronger and better boyfriend?"

"Not like this!" Mion snapped.

"Oh don't act so high and mighty! It's not like your Yakuza family doesn't sell drugs," Keiichi retorted. Now he had gone too far.

"My family might be Yakuza, but we do not sell drugs!" Mion screamed at Keiichi.

"Whatever! Now give me back my pills!" Keiichi reached for them and grabbed Mion's wrist. He squeezed and Mion winced painfully. "Be a good girl and give daddy his pills."

"Kei-chan…you're hurting me…" said Mion as she tried to wrench her arm free from Keiichi's grip. She then gasped as his eyes glowed blue and his veins also became visible and blue as well. "Kei-chan, what's happening to you?"

"I…I…I…need…" Keiichi uttered as he felt his strength beginning to leave him before he released Mion and collapsed on the locker room floor.

"KEI-CHAN!" Mion screamed.

* * *

Keiichi was taken to a hospital and put in the ICU for a drug overdose. As Mion paced in the waiting room, she saw Rena and Shinichi approach her. Mion didn't know who else to call. Rena hugged Mion in an attempt to comfort her as Shinichi looked through the window of the ICU to see Keiichi, lying in bed, as the doctor and nurses treated him.

"What happened?" asked Shinichi and he saw the bruise around Mion's wrist. "Mion, what happened?"

Mion wiped her tears away and handed Shinichi the packet of drugs. "Kei-chan was taking these," said Mion. "I think it's a new type of drug, but I've never seen anything like it before."

"Mion, answer me honestly," said Shinichi seriously, "Did Keiichi hurt you?"

"It wasn't him," said Mion, wanting to have some faith in Keiichi. "It was the drugs. They made him crazy. His eyes were glowing and so were his veins."

"This is no normal drug then," said Shinichi. "I'm taking this to Dr. Magi for analysis. Rena-chan, you stay with Mion."

Rena replied, "OK, Shin-kun."

* * *

"So how is Keiichi doing?" Yokoshima asked in concern over Keiichi's condition. Shinichi had called the NEO-NUMBERS for a meeting at the base and they were now sitting in the conference room. Shinichi had just handed Dr. Magi the packet of drugs that Mion had given him for analysis.

"The doctor said he should be able to recover with enough rest," Shinichi said. He'd told them that Keiichi had been taking drugs, which was why he was in the hospital.

"Do you have any idea where he got the stuff from?" Hana asked.

"Unfortunately, I don't, and Keiichi isn't in any condition of telling me right now. Hopefully, when Dr. Magi is done analyzing this stuff we'll get some answers," Shinichi said. The door slid open and Dr. Magi entered the conference room, looking grim. "Dr. Magi, do you know what the hell this stuff is?"

"After careful analysis, I've concluded that these pills are a solidified version of the augmentation formula used on you all," said Dr. Magi.

"You mean that blue stuff they pumped into us?" Yokoshima gaped.

"Yes, the 'blue stuff' as you call it prevented your bodies from rejecting your cybernetic modifications," Dr. Magi explained. He held up a packet, "And someone has solidified it and selling it on the streets."

"How does it affect normal humans?" asked Daichi.

"According to what I've been told, the drug works like a performance enhancer," answered Dr. Magi.

"Like steroids?" asked Michiru.

"More like _super_ steroids," Yokoshima quipped.

"But like any drug there are side-effects. They become addicted to it and take more than the body can handle," said Dr. Magi.

"And then they end up like Keiichi," said Shinichi.

"Yes, this drugs give the user more strength and speed that they can ever imagine but when it wears off they feel completely drained," Dr. Magi finished.

"Dr. Magi, who else knows about the formula?" asked Shinichi.

"Well, some of the scientists and a good portion of the executives knew the formula," said Dr. Magi. "But it was created by…"

"…Dr. Gebok," Shinichi finished, scowling.

* * *

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty," said Shinichi as Keiichi regained consciousness.

"Huh?" Keiichi weakly blinked. "Where am I? What happened?" He had an IV in his arm. He tried to get up but Shinichi stopped him and gently pushed him back down onto the bed.

"Easy there, champ," said Shinichi. "You need to rest." Keiichi began to shiver. "Feeling cold?"

"Yeah, inside," Keiichi admitted.

"That's what you get for taking drugs," said Shinichi, frowning slightly.

"Oh, so you know," said Keiichi.

"Yeah," nodded Shinichi as he took a seat. "What were you thinking, Kei?"

"I just…" Keiichi began weakly and coughed. His throat felt dry. Shinichi poured him a glass of water and helped him take a few sips from it. "Thanks." Keiichi then explained, "I just needed to get better, you know? I wanted to become stronger, like you."

"Like me?" Shinichi asked.

"I've always been jealous of you, Shinichi," Keiichi confessed, "You can do all these amazing things. Heck, you even saved the world. Everyone knows who 'Kamen Rider Showa' is." He paused and looked away, "I just…wanted to be in the spotlight for a change."

"And that's why you turned to drugs," Shinichi concluded. "Keiichi, I thought you knew better. Drugs can kill you, especially the ones you've been taking. I mean, how long have you been taking these?"

"Just a little under two weeks," Keiichi confessed.

"TWO WEEKS!-?" Shinichi shouted, standing up, furious. He then calmed down and sat back down. "You've been taking this stuff for almost two weeks? No wonder your body is so messed up."

"Yeah…" Keiichi uttered. "So, how's Mion?"

"Pissed," was Shinichi's simple answer.

"She should be," Keiichi replied, "I said and did some things I'm not proud of."

"She's just upset and disappointed in you," said Shinichi, trying to reassure his friend. "She'll be OK once she cools down."

"I wouldn't be surprised if she decides to dump me, and I can't really blame her. Who'd want a junkie as a boyfriend?"

Shinichi needed to get to business and asked, "Keiichi, I need to know where you bought this stuff."

Keiichi just looked at Shinichi before sighing and answering, "Well, I bought it from some guy wearing a black suit. He operates not too far off from our college, in an alleyway between an old apartment building and an abandoned theater. He was the one who sold me the G-Shock."

Shinichi nodded before getting up. Before walking out the door he heard Keiichi say, "Shinichi, I'm sorry for what I did, about letting myself become a junkie just to be in the spotlight."

"... I know you are, man. But it isn't me you should be apologizing to," Shinichi said as he left. He looked ready to attack the scumbag that sold this stuff to his friend. What he knew was limited but he knew enough. The drug was a solidified version of the augmentation fluid used on GIN-SHOCKER's cyborg soldiers to stabilize them so that their bodies wouldn't reject their cybernetic implants. It wasn't meant for normal humans at all.

The drug, called G-Shock, was a performance enhancer. The only side-effects were violent mood swings, like when Keiichi had just snapped at Mion, and a strong addiction. Finally, once the effects of the drug wore off, it left the body weak like Keiichi's was right now.

Shinichi had contacted Inspector Akasaka and wasn't surprised to hear that there were having the same drug problem in Tokyo and it was getting violent as well. Akasaka even told him about a raid they conducted on a nightclub when suddenly one of the people at the club suddenly went crazy and started attacking the police officers. He even made a hole in the wall to escape just by punching through it. This was getting serious.

"Drug addicts with super strength," muttered Shinichi, "Not a very pleasant combo." Addicts were desperate people and would do anything to get high once their supply went dry and these G-Shock addicts could become a danger not just to others but to themselves as well. This stuff was poison.

"I'm gonna need some help," said Shinichi. He knew just who to turn to.

* * *

Later that night, Shinichi went into town. The reason: he was out to score some drugs.

Well, not exactly. He was actually out to confront the dealer who'd sold Keiichi the G-Shock and to find out where his supplier was and stop it at the source. Shinichi needed to look he belonged though, which was an easy task since he was a pretty good actor. That was how he was able to convince the executive officers and the Great Leader of GIN-SHOCKER that he'd joined them.

Shinichi was dressed in a black leather jacket with blue jeans and black boots. His eyes darted around to spot any suspicious activity. There were some people out in this part of town, just loitering and hanging out. He then found the alleyway that Keiichi had mentioned, which was between an old apartment building and an abandoned movie theatre. He saw some boys, no older than 16, walking out of the alley and in their hands were packets of G-Shock. This was the place.

He walked into the alley and heard a voice, "So, are you here to buy something to give you a boost?" It sounded monotone and mechanical.

Shinichi answered, "Sure am."

"Then you've come to the right place," the dealer said as he walked out of the shadows. He was dressed in a black trench coat and wore a fedora on his head. "How much do you need?"

"All of it," Shinichi answered without missing a beat.

"All of it? That will be expensive," said the dealer.

"Oh, actually I have a special system. It's called the 'Five Finger Discount," said Shinichi as he clenched his fists.

"Sorry, but we don't give away free samples," the dealer said. "Come back with money." In a flash, Shinichi had him by his coat and slammed against the wall. He was not in the mood to play games here.

"OK, you stinking lowlife. A friend of mine is in the hospital because of you, so you better tell me where and who you get your supply from," threatened Shinichi. He was met with silence. "Well?" He didn't get an answer so he slapped the dealer across the face which caused the fedora to fall off. Shinichi's eyes then widened as he saw that no face was staring back at him. It was a faceless android! It made sense to Shinichi to use android dealers. Unlike regular human drug dealers they didn't use the merchandise for themselves.

The dealer android then shoved Shinichi backwards and ran out of the alley. "Wait!" Shinichi shouted as he ran after the dealer but he was blocked by half a dozen of similarly dressed android dealers.

"You know too much," said one of them.

"You must be dealt with," said another.

Shinichi wasn't intimidated. It was night time so it was time to show his true colors. His hair turned silver with dark roots as his irises and sclera became pitch black with silver outlines around the irises and his pupils became shaped like clock hands.

Metal encased his right arm before morphing to form into a drill. He thrust forward, boring a hole through the android's dealer body and killing it. He undid the Drill Arm and then built another weapon through his nanites. Like before, his right arm became encased in metal which morphed and in place of his hand was a sharp hook. He shot the hook, which was connected to his arm by a cable, at the other dealers and it tied around them before the cable retracted, dragging them to him. His left arm became encased in metal and his hand was replaced by an excavator claw. He brought it down, crushing their skulls and bashing them to the ground.

"Crap, I killed them all," said Shinichi in realization.

"Yes, you did," agreed Alan as he walked up to his brother. Shinichi had actually called him to help with this case. "I thought you were supposed to interrogate them."

"That was before they attacked me," said Shinichi defensively as his arms returned to normal. "But…that doesn't mean I can't fix this." He chose one of the dead androids at random and hauled it up by its collar. "OK, let's see what you can tell me." He put his hand against it and reversed the damage he'd done to the android but also used his technopathy to leave it inert. He then started to read through its memories and got what he came for. He dropped the android like a sack of potatoes and then crushed its head under his boot.

"What did you see?" Alan asked.

"The location of their main headquarters and supplier," said Shinichi. "Shinjuku, Tokyo."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Seems like a drug problem, a huge one. I mean this stuff was meant to be used on cyborgs with no side-effects but on regular humans it causes some pretty violent ones too in exchange for enhanced performance. Are drugs really worth it? I don't think so.**


	73. The Legacy of Cain Part 17

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 17: Drug Raid and Drug Lords**

Yokoshima and Chiaki were at Angel Mort. Rika, Hanyuu and Satoko worked part-time there as waitresses and would come after school and during weekends. Their young and sexy appearances attracted a lot of customers.

"Can you believe those girls are working here?" asked Chiaki.

"I can't believe how good they look," commented Yokoshima. "Those uniforms really look good on them."

"Yes, they do," admitted Chiaki as he gazed at Hanyuu. The skimpy uniform looked really good on her and she was wearing her violet hair in pigtails with red ribbons.

"I can't believe you're dating her," said Yokoshima.

"You're dating a demon," Chiaki pointed out.

"You got a point, but I mean she is Shinichi's little sister despite not being related by blood."

Chiaki groaned. He remembered when he and Shinichi had a little chat about him dating Hanyuu and Shinichi swore that he would make Chiaki's first death seem like nothing compared to what he would do if he hurt Hanyuu. Hanyuu wasn't some frail flower. She was a literal goddess with incredible power. That still didn't stop Shinichi from treating her like a little sister and being a bit overprotective.

Shinichi had threatened the patrons with bodily harm if they even looked at Rika and Hanyuu the wrong way. He was a guy too so he knew how they thought and seeing teenage girls in skimpy outfits could do interesting things to a guy's libido, uncontrollable and dangerous things.

Hanyuu, blushing, looked over to Chiaki and waved and he waved back. She gave him a saucy wink as well.

"It's worth the risk," whispered Chiaki.

"What was that?" Yokoshima asked. "I didn't quite catch that."

"It's nothing," said Chiaki. "So, about what happened to Keiichi…"

"Yeah, man that was rough. Can you believe he did that?" replied Yokoshima.

"He just lacked the willpower to resist in the face of temptation," shrugged Chiaki. "It happens." He checked his watch and got up. "Well, my break's over. I have to go to work."

"Yeah, same here. I need to help make some new fireworks for the summer festivals," said Yokoshima. "Say, did Shinichi tell you where he was going to deal with this drug problem?"

"Shinjuku."

* * *

"Do you really have to go, Daddy?" asked Alice.

"Yeah, I have to go to work with Shinichi," answered Alan. He'd told his other girls about going to Tokyo with Shinichi today last night while Alice had been asleep.

"Please don't go," Alice pleaded. Alan hugged her.

"Don't worry, Alice. I'll be back," he assured her.

"Promise?" she asked.

Alan smiled, "I promise. Now, be a good girl and-"

"ALAN!"

"Was that Onii-chan?" Alice asked.

"Just ignore that, Alice," said Alan. He continued, "Now, Alice, I want you to be a good girl while I'm away. This won't-"

"HEY, ALAN!"

"This won't take-"

"ALAN!"

"I'll be back sooner than-"

"HEY, ALAN! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!-?"

Alan let go of Alice and patted her head WHILE smiling, "Excuse me, Alice." He went to the window and poked his head out, yelling, "CAN'T YOU WAIT A MINUTE!-? I'LL BE RIGHT DOWN THERE!"

"Well hurry up!" Shinichi shouted, standing outside the boarding house. "I told Inspector Akasaka we'll be meeting him in half an hour!"

"Fine! Just wait a minute! I gotta say goodbye to Alice and Celine!"

"Oh! Can you say goodbye for me?" Alan slammed the window shut. "Alan? Hey Alan? Yoo-hoo!"

Alan told Alice, "I'll be back and bring you a souvenir." He turned to Celine and promised her the same thing. He then reminded, "And remember to make sure Lockheed behaves and doesn't wander out again. I don't want to explain to the neighbors about a dragon."

"OK, Daddy! I love you!"

"I love you too, sweetie."

"Mau!"

"And I love you too, Celine. You be good too, OK?" He hugged the plant child. Alan then exited the room and went downstairs, heading towards the front door while grumbling, "Dammit, I can't even get a moment to myself with my daughters. It's always 'Alan do this' or 'Alan do that'. Shinichi so owes me for this." The door opened and he saw Shinichi. "I'm here."

"What took you?" asked Shinichi.

"Shut up, and get the Teleportal opened," Alan ordered.

"Geez, what crawled up your butt?" remarked Shinichi as he activated his com-link. Alan was making strangling gestures with his hands.

* * *

Alan and Shinichi met up with Inspector Akasaka at a local coffee shop in Tokyo and were talking to him about the drug problem they were holding. They also told him they knew where the drugs were being made.

"OK, then let's raid them," said Akasaka. He was really eager. Drugs were bad news and as a cop his job was to clean up the streets.

"I doubt your police force will be able to do much against their android dealers, no offense," said Shinichi in objection.

"So, what do you expect me to do? Wait for you to go in and deal with them before calling me for backup?" questioned Akasaka. He had hit the nail on the head. "I'm right, aren't I?"

"Don't worry, Inspector. We can handle this," said Alan. "And I'm a cop too."

"Intergalactic," Shinichi muttered. Alan kicked him under the table.

"As I was saying, I'm a cop too so I know what I'm doing," said Alan. "I can't say the same for Shinichi."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Shinichi demanded.

"Well, you do tend to blow things up sometimes," Alan remarked.

"I only blow up my enemies," Shinichi clarified.

"And these guys made you an enemy since they sold this stuff to a friend of yours. Plus, I know you. There will be explosions tonight."

"Don't call us, we'll call you," Shinichi said to Inspector Akasaka.

* * *

Keiichi was bored as hell. There was nothing on TV, he'd read the magazine, cover to cover, three times already, and the food sucked. "God…kill me now…" he groaned. The door opened and he looked only to blanch as he saw that it was Mion. He quickly turned his head away and pretended to be asleep.

"Kei-chan, I know you're pretending," said Mion, "You can cut the act." Keiichi cracked his eyes open at his girlfriend. "I've brought apples."

"Mion, what are you doing here?" he asked. He didn't intend to sound harsh but his throat felt a little dry and he was irritated at having to stay in the hospital for so long. The good news was that the drugs had been flushed out. Dr. Magi had come earlier and given him some kind of medication to help with his recovery.

"I came to visit my boyfriend," she answered. Keiichi stared at her.

"How can you still call me that after the stuff I did?" Keiichi asked.

"Because I chose to forgive you, Kei-chan, and I know it was those drugs that were making you act that way," she said, smiling.

"But how…" But she interrupted.

"Kei-chan, one of our friends is a cyborg who has a body count that is more than the population of our village but we don't treat him any differently." She glanced at his nightstand and saw the Get Well cards. "I see the others dropped by."

"Yeah, they wanted to see how I was doing," said Keiichi.

"You're looking better," said Mion.

"Dr. Magi came over and gave me something that helped," he answered. He then decided to say what was on his mind since yesterday, "Mion, I'm sorry about what I said. I really am."

"I know you are, but why did you decide to take drugs?" she asked.

"I was…jealous of Shinichi," he answered.

"Jealous? Why?"

"Come on, Mion. You know why."

Now Mion understood. Keiichi was jealous of Shinichi because their friend was a hero who'd saved their world so many times already. Keiichi just felt overshadowed.

"Kei-chan, you're an idiot," she said.

"I know I am," sighed Keiichi.

"But you're my idiot," she smiled.

* * *

**Later That Night…**

"Well, this is the place," said Shinichi as he and Alan arrived at the abandoned factory. However, it didn't sound like it was abandoned. Machines were working inside, drug making machines.

"Out here, where nobody can hear," Alan observed. "Looks like a great place to make some drugs."

"I'm going in alone. You wait out here for my signal," Shinichi instructed before he headed inside.

"What's the signal?" Alan asked.

"You'll know it when you hear it," said Shinichi before he sneaked inside.

"It's either 'shotgun' or 'headshot'," quipped Bazel.

* * *

Shinichi, with the silence of a ninja as he stuck to the shadows, snuck inside the factory. He saw the android dealers working the machines. He saw tubes filled with G-Shock in liquid form before going into a machine that put them into molds before solidifying them into tablet form. The pills were then put into packets and loaded into boxes.

These androids were just the mooks and he was looking for the head honcho, the big cheese, the man-in-charge. He then saw him, shouting out orders and Shinichi recognized him.

While Gebok was the one to develop the formula and had shared it with the other executives, there was one other former GIN-SHOCKER member that was free besides Dr. Magi and while Dr. Magi had decided to go on the straight and narrow path of the just, Omega Scorpio was still on the crooked and bloody path of evil.

Dr. Gebok and Omega Scorpio had spent a lot of time with each other in the past and since these drugs were developed after Omega Scorpio returned to Earth, it only made sense that Omega Scorpio was behind this.

Shinichi's danger sense alerted him and he immediately leapt out of a way as a metal scorpion tail shot towards him, the stinger piercing the wall.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? A spy?" Omega Scorpio grinned as he looked at Shinichi hungrily as he withdrew his tail.

"Omega Scorpio," said Shinichi. "I see you have your legs back."

"No thanks to you," Omega Scorpio spat. The two cyborgs circled each other, Omega Scorpio clicking his claws as Shinichi flexed his fingers.

"Sorry if I don't feel sympathetic. You did try to add my girlfriend to your collection," Shinichi said with a glare.

"How is that little songbird?" asked Omega Scorpion with a sick grin.

"So, what is all this? Decided to find a new hobby so you became a drug lord?" Shinichi questioned, ignoring Omega Scorpio's own whilst changing the subject.

"Not exactly," said Omega Scorpio. "So, why have you come to get in my way?"

"Isn't it obvious? You're selling poison on the streets and I intend to put a stop to it," Shinichi told him.

"And how will you do that?" Omega Scorpio asked.

"Isn't it obvious? You might have got your scorpion legs back but I'm still faster than you!" And to prove that, Shinichi blurred out of Omega Scorpio's sight but the cyborg was not concerned. Suddenly, another blur rammed into Shinichi, knocking him through the air before he fell to the ground. He was disoriented by the blow and groaned, "What…?"

"You really thought I was on my own, didn't you?" mocked Omega Scorpio.

"Hello, BLACK 13," the other blur said, with a voice like Shinichi's.

"That…voice…" Shinichi uttered and then his eyes locked onto Shiro Juuyon. "You…" he identified.

"That's right, BLACK 13. WHITE 14 is back, but you can call me Shiro Juuyon," said Shiro. "It's like looking into a mirror, isn't it?" sneered Shiro.

"Yeah, a funhouse mirror. What did you do? Dye your hair white and put on some contacts? Because that look isn't really all that flattering," retorted Shinichi.

"You don't seem so surprised," Shiro remarked.

Shinichi replied, "After seeing Gebok come back from the dead for about half a dozen times, I got used to the whole death and resurrection thing."

"You do realize those were robotic duplicates."

"So? Anyway, you chose a human name which is the direct Japanese translation of your designation," Shinichi deadpanned before scoffing and rolling his eyes, "How original."

"Better than having _your_ stupid name!" Shiro snapped.

"Hey, I like my name! Kaa-chan gave it to me!" Shinichi shot back defensively.

"But you don't even fucking use it!"

"She does!"

"Well, too bad I can't change this face!"

"I know a great plastic surgeon! Maybe he can graft your butt to your face!"

"Are you both seriously having this argument?" asked Omega Scorpio, looking back and forth at them.

Ignoring Omega Scorpio's comment, Shinichi asked, "So, how did you meet Mister Tall, Dark and Gruesome over here? Lemme guess, he picked you up off the street."

"Oh, let's just say it was at the end of March when I found him," answered Shiro.

* * *

_Omega Scorpio was in very bad shape. After his confrontation with Shinichi, resulting in his defeat and fleeing of the scene, he decided to hide out in an abandoned factory after burying his way through miles and miles of dirt. He'd lost his beautiful scorpion body and was left with only half of his glorious self. His lower body was now only a drill which he'd used in his escape._

_He cursed, "Damn you, BLACK 13." He had been humiliated by a 'puppet'. He had heard that #13 had changed but he never expected him to change this much. He had not just changed in appearance and personality but also in terms of abilities. Just what had happened since he'd been gone?_

_While in space he had kept in contact with GIN-SHOCKER. He knew about the death of the NUMBERS, #13 being promoted to BLACK 13, and finally his defection which was caused by the death of a girl named Rina…or Lina. He didn't really bother to care. He'd lost contact with GIN-SHOCKER after the organizations fall and had tried to return to Earth. He had made several unscheduled stops to satisfy his new hobby of hunting indigenous life forms and torturing them to death so it had taken a lot longer than he expected._

_As Omega Scorpio planned his revenge, someone decided to join him._

_"Hello, Scorpio," a new voice echoed from the dark confines of the factory._

_Omega Scorpio's eyes narrowed as he asked, "Who's there?" He then demanded, "Show yourself!"_

_"Ahem!" the voice chimed in again, slightly annoyed. "Up here." Omega Scorpio looked up to see someone standing on the ceiling without effort. This wasn't what shocked him as #07 could do the same thing. What shocked him was who it was._

_"BLACK 13, you bastard! So you came to finish the job," Omega Scorpio growled. However, deep down he was very concerned. He couldn't really fight in the state he was in._

_"Bastard, yes," the man replied as he fell from the ceiling and did an air roll before landing on his feet. He added, "BLACK 13, not even close." He walked into the light, as limited as it was, and revealed himself to be someone with Shinichi's face, but his eyes were blood red and his hair was white. He pushed his bangs aside to reveal XIV tattooed above his left eyebrow instead of the XIII that was branded above Shinichi's left eyebrow._

_"You're not BLACK 13," Omega Scorpio realized._

_"The name's Shiro, Shiro Juuyon, and I am offering you protection," Shiro informed Omega Scorpio._

_"Protection?" Omega Scorpio questioned._

_"Look at yourself. I mean get a good look," said Shiro as he walked around Omega Scorpio. "You barely have a leg to stand on." Pausing, he amended, "Actually, you have no legs to stand on and I know how you got into this state. It's all because of that bastard BLACK 13 and that Superman-wannabe he has with him," Shiro told him._

_ "Bah, they took me by surprise! It won't happen again!" scoffed Omega Scorpio._

_"Now you're just in denial. You're overestimating yourself and underestimating them, which is the mistake that got you in this position in the first place," countered Shiro. "The reality is that BLACK 13 has gotten stronger, and not just him. You see, while you were out there in space hunting down and skinning some pathetic alien, BLACK 13 and his allies have been fighting against beings that are as tough, actually tougher, than you and have been getting stronger. They have evolved. Face it, Scorpio, the Number 13 you knew in the past is gone. He isn't some obedient puppet you get to hurt anymore. Comparing the two of you now would be like comparing an elephant to an ant and I think we both know which is which."_

_Omega Scorpio lunged forward and grabbed Shiro by the throat, but the android was unfazed as he grinned and said, "Ah, I see I've struck a nerve."_

_"You said you were offering protection," Omega Scorpio hissed. "If you're just here to insult me then leave!"_

_Shiro told him, "I'm just stating facts. But don't worry, old man, if you let me help you then you'll get your revenge. You'll be able to see him killed in such a way that it would even give you nightmares. __Also, my employer could use someone with your talents."_

_"Your employer?" Omega Scorpio asked with interest._

_"Oh, he's bigger than GIN-SHOCKER, Omega Scorpio, much bigger. And he can even give you back what you've lost. So, what do you say?"_

_ "If I take your offer, what do you get in return?" asked Omega Scorpio._

_"I want all that delicious information in that noggin of yours," said Shiro sinisterly. _

* * *

"So, you got together and got into the drug making and distributing business," concluded Shinichi.

"That's right, and let's just say it's been profitable in the monetary and the emotional sense," grinned Omega Scorpio.

"I'm sure you get off a lot from the pain, misery and suffering it causes," mumbled Shinichi.

"Don't think you can get away now, BLACK 13," taunted Shiro. "As fast as you are I'm just as fast."

"Oh, but can you freeze time?" Shinichi retorted smugly. "Pause," he called and time froze. He got up but then Shiro threw a fist at him, shocking him as he caught it. "What?" Now he was surprised.

"Surprised? I've gotten some upgrades and super speed wasn't the only one. I'm immune to your time powers," Shiro boasted.

"Well, good for you," Shinichi commented sarcastically. "So, what other tricks can you do? Pull a rabbit out of your hat?"

"You are really mouthy, you know that?" Shiro accused, annoyed.

"Guess we both have that in common as well," Shinichi shrugged. "However, there is one thing we don't have in common."

"Oh, and what's that?" asked Shiro, cocking an eyebrow.

Shinichi simply answered, "Family." He then added, "Well, family and Shikigami."

"Shikigami?" both Omega Scorpio and Shiro echoed before Shinichi pulled his jacket open and one thousand paper cranes flew out in a swarm.

"What is this!-?" shouted Omega Scorpio as he tried to swat the obstructive Shikigami away. At the same time, Shinichi assumed his demon form which he could only take on at night before activating his Spark Core.

**INSERT SONG: REVERSE/RE:BIRTH**

"Henshin," Shinichi called.

"Dammit!" cursed Shiro. "Henshin!" He transformed and assumed the form of WHITE 14. He really hadn't changed much in terms of physical appearance. He still sported white armor which resembled Showa's original appearance with soulless black eyes. He activated his energy blades which shot out of his wrists and then cut down the paper cranes, burning them in a flash with the intense heat of his energy blades with quick and furious swings. Once they were all taken down he saw that Shinichi had transformed in the midst of the confusion. "Get him!" howled WHITE 14 and the android dealers all rushed to attack Showa.

"Oh please," said Showa as he raised his hand up to chin level and opened the palm as a black, baseball-sized ball of energy formed. He then tossed it at an android and it just vanished in a flash. "Antimatter rocks," Showa said to himself. He then threw more antimatter balls at the rest of the charging androids, obliterating them without leaving a trace.

Omega Scorpio and WHITE 14 could only gawk and gape.

"What can I say? I learnt some new tricks too," said Showa, boasting. "And now for my next trick! Let's go! Cicada Wings!" The wing patterns on Showa's back glowed and a pair of insect-like wings of energy spread out before he took flight. WHITE 14 and Omega Scorpio had to leap out of the way as Showa came rocketing towards them. He started to roll in the air before turning back around.

"What are you waiting for!-?" WHITE 14 snapped. "Shoot him!"

Omega Scorpio recovered him his shock and started firing energy blasts from his palms and stinger but Showa dodged them while still flying towards them.

"Tank Legs! Shovel Claw!" Showa called. Thick armor formed over his lower legs, giving them a blocky appearance, with tank treads under his feet. At the same time the Shovel Claw formed over his left arm. It was a powerful excavator claw. WHITE 14 was met with a Tank Leg's foot slamming against his face, knocking him down as Omega Scorpio was knocked to the ground by the Shovel Claw's swipe.

"How's my foot taste, bitch!-?" Showa taunted.

Showa landed before the two villains and called out, "Hook Arm!" His right arm became enveloped in metal and his hand became replaced by a hook.

"Damn you!" WHITE 14 growled and he began to use his super speed.

Showa called out, "Fast Forward!" and began to move at super speed as well, his Tank Legs providing extra speed as he closed the gap between himself and WHITE 14. Omega Scorpio could only see two blurs clashing right now and his eyes were unable to follow.

WHITE 14 attacked with his energy blades but they were blocked by Showa's armored arms. Sparks did fly but even brighter sparks flew when WHITE 14 was struck in the chest by the Hook Arm and Shovel Claw before Showa spun and used a powerful roundhouse kick, hitting WHITE 14 with a Tank Leg again. WHITE 14 fell and had to roll out of the way as a Tank Leg came down, forming a crater on impact.

The two returned to normal speed and Omega Scorpio was charging at Showa from behind. Showa turned and shot the hook at Omega Scorpio and the cable connecting the hook to his arm tied around Omega Scorpio. With a tug, Showa pulled Omega Scorpio towards him and then turned to slam the scorpion cyborg against his android doppelganger, knocking them to the ground. Showa then moved backwards with the Tank Legs, gaining some distance between himself and the two villains.

"Drill Arm and Hook Arm Combo: Drill Extender!" Showa called. The hook became replaced by a drill. He shot the drill, which was attached to a cable, forward and it bore a hole through Omega Scorpio's chest, causing him to scream. "Sing for me! Sing for me, dammit!" Showa taunted. The cable retracted back into Showa's arm as he prepared to finish them.

"Burst Cannon!" Over his chest a cannon attached to a metal plate formed and he took aim. "SPARK BURST!" Showa's Spark Core spun and began to transfer energy into the charging cannon on his chest. The cannon then discharged and fired an intense burst of red, green and blue energy that surged towards WHITE 14 and Omega Scorpio.

Omega Scorpio tried to evade but his tail was caught in WHITE 14's grip. "What!-? Let me go!"

"Sorry, but I don't intend on dying," said WHITE 14 before tossing Omega Scorpio in the path of the Spark Burst attack.

"YOU FUCKING TRAI-" He was unable to finish as he was obliterated by the blast and an immense explosion erupted. As the smoke began to clear, Showa panted while still remaining in his Mobile Armory Mode.

**END SONG**

The smoke cleared and revealed WHITE 14 as he still stood, alive and said, "Looks like you won this round, BLACK 13." He then felt a fist pressed against his back. "Oh, the Lantern."

"Sorry, but you're not going anywhere," said Sentinel.

"I thought I told you to wait for a signal," Showa said to Sentinal.

Alan shrugged, "I got tired with waiting." WHITE 14 chuckled. "What's so funny?"

"Oh, just your naiveté," said WHITE 14. Fire suddenly spiraled around him, knocking Sentinel back painfully. WHITE 14 then said, "Next time, BLACK 13, we'll finish this." The funnel of flames then concealed him before vanishing, showing that Shiro was gone.

"He got away," sighed Showa before jogging over to Sentinel and helping him up. "Are you okay?"

"I got hit by a firewall," deadpanned Sentinel. He knew only one source of fire in this world that could harm him. "Gnol," he mumbled.

"That Orochi Darkloid General?" Showa blinked.

"And he's working with WHITE 14."

"Well…that sucks," commented Showa. "So…aren't you gonna say anything?"

"About what?" Sentinel asked.

"Well, you always lecture me about using lethal force and telling me not to resort to it," Showa reminded.

"I think I can look the other way on this one. You were justified," Sentinel told him.

Showa smiled as he said, "OK, now let's call Inspector Akasaka and tell him we took care of everything."

"And what about the G-Shock?" asked Sentinel.

"We'll let the police handle that."

"Well, that's better than you blowing up-" Sentinel then paused.

"What?"

"Do you hear that?" asked Sentinel as he looked around. He was hearing some kind of ticking. He approached a stack of crates and opened one up before his eyes widened as he peered inside. There was a time bomb inside that crate alone and if he guessed right there were more in the rest of the crates. He could hear more ticking coming from them.

Showa looked over Sentinel's shoulder curiously and could only mutter, "Oh, sonova-"

The entire factory exploded with the two of them inside.

* * *

Sentinel and Showa dug their way out of the rubble which remained of the G-Shock factory. "Dammit," cursed Sentinel before coughing. He was just glad that he was invulnerable. "Shinichi, are you okay?"

"What!-?" Showa shot back.

"I said are you alright?" Sentinel repeated.

"What!-?" Showa replied again.

"I think he's gone deaf," said Bazel.

"I can't hear you! My ears are ringing! I think I've gone deaf!" Showa shouted. Sometimes it really sucked to have augmented hearing. A loud blast like that would cause temporary deafness.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so Omega Scorpio meets his end but now Shiro has the formula for G-Shock and intends to use it the way it was meant to be used. OK, so Shinichi's new armaments again are based on Kamen Rider Birth's. I mean he does have the same powers as Generator Rex so it just makes sense to give him these weapons when he can summon them.**


	74. The Legacy of Cain Part 18

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 18: The Acid Man**

**By: Warlord-Xana**

"So, he's dead," said Gnol as he and Shiro sat in a seedy bar in Shinjuku, enjoying drinks away from their enemies.

"Yeah, since he's no longer useful I decided to just cut him loose. All I needed from him is right here." Shiro pointed to his head. "He shared his formula with me."

"So, what will you use this formula for?" asked Gnol.

"Something special. Now it's time to start the next phase of my plan. It's time to capture those Cores."

"And what of my heads?" Gnol questioned. He'd agreed to work with Shiro on the promise that the android help him retrieve the rest of his heads which were sealed but with the seals reinforced there was no way of getting to them.

"Oh, relax, my friend. The Witch of Terror's gift will help with that. Mark my words, the world will once again tremble at the presence of the Orochi," promised Shiro.

* * *

"_Yes, they have saved lives but what of those lives they took? We can't keep forgetting about that, can we? They're still dangerous vigilantes! They need to be controlled and regulated and…"_

"Turn that off," Daichi ordered. He didn't want to listen to that DJ Mikogami mouth off for one more second. He and the NEO-NUMBERS were in their base, relaxing. The main hall of the base was also a place for them to relax while also awaiting orders to mobilize.

"Right," Michiru said as she turned the radio off. "Sheesh, that guy really hates us. Did you hear all the mean stuff he said about us?"

"That's just his selling point, a way to be popular," commented Hana.

"It sounds way too convincing to be an act," Michiru quipped.

"Who says he's acting?" Hana asked. "At least now people aren't throwing trash at us or yelling protests at us anymore." After their past had been broadcasted on the news months ago it had not been easy for the NEO-NUMBERS to win back the public's approval. Fortunately, there were those who still believed in them. However, public opinion was still mixed and there were demands to see them unmasked and to explain themselves.

"It's like Shinichi said," spoke Shogo, "We just have to do our job. We're not heroes to gain approval or recognition. We're doing this because we want to do this. We want to protect and save people."

"Like an old school Kamen Rider," Daichi snickered before strumming his guitar.

"_Activating Teleportal_," said Sheila as the Teleportal came to life and both Alan and Shinichi arrived. "_Welcome back, Shinichi Banabara and Alan Smith_."

"Thanks, Sheila," said Shinichi.

"So, how did it go?" asked Daichi.

"We took care of it," said Shinichi.

"For now," Alan added.

Daichi shrugged and continued to strum his guitar.

"Say, Daichi, how are you handling that poaching and smuggling ring?" Shinichi questioned.

"Let's just say they aren't going to be harming anymore endangered animals," answered Daichi.

"That's great," smiled Shinichi. "Hey, Shogo, what about you?"

"Same old, same old. Protecting members of the Sonozaki Clan and working towards their best interest," Shogo reported.

"Nice. And Hana, Michiru, what about you girls?" he asked.

"Well, we took care of a hostage situation just the other day," said Michiru. "I mean those guys really couldn't handle my illusions and Hana-chan's webs."

Shinichi smiled. They were making the best of the situation.

"Come on, let's go home," said Alan.

"Right behind you!" said Shinichi.

* * *

Two days later, Shinichi threw the newspaper to the ground angrily. On the front page was a picture of Showa and Sentinel at the scene where the factory blew up. The story implied that they were responsible for the damage. "It was abandoned!" Shinichi shouted in objection. The news was painting him and Sentinel to be terrorists or something. The story suggested that the two of them had been testing explosives. "I hate this bullshit," he muttered.

"Don't get angry," Rena advised. "You said it yourself: keep on trying."

"Yeah, you're right," Shinichi agreed, smiling.

* * *

"Most peculiar," Dr. Magi muttered as an image of each of the criminals that the NEO-NUMBERS, Alan, and Yuji had faced appeared on the monitors.

"Hmm, it still doesn't make sense. I can understand Bara since he wanted revenge on Chiaki, and D-Rosa because of that witch but I just find it strange that most of these criminals seemed to target them or someone close to them and that they appeared in either Hinamizawa or Shishibone," Dr. Magi frowned. While they have yet to appear in Okinomiya, he had a feeling that sooner or later that the town would be hit soon.

How right Dr. Magi was…

* * *

One night, a golden 1966 Buick Riviera took the corner of an Okinomiya street with squealing tires. A slender thread of smoke curled up into the air, but was broken a second later by a squadron of police cars chasing it. They were chasing a thief who'd stolen 3,100 dollars. They were trying to find a way to corner the driver and catch him, but so far were not having luck.

And then it happened. The Buick slid into a turn and barreled down an alleyway… a dead-end alleyway.

"We've got him! All cars, block off that alley!" the lead officer ordered.

Police cars slid into position around the mouth of the alley, its long dark tunnel obscuring their vision.

"Come on, men! We've blocked his exit," a cop roared as all the other policemen's charged forward. Only to stop and gawked.

The supposedly dead end had a huge gaping hole surrounded by a strange green liquid. It was only until it dripped to the ground did they realize its acid as it caused the ground to bubble and sizzle.

"идиоты, they can't catch me so easily," the driver whispered to himself smugly. He was wearing a greenish suit with purple gloves, with the left glove sporting some buttons on it. He was also wearing a kind of gas-mask that completely covered his entire head. He cackled as he drove through the night.

* * *

The following day, Shogo whistled as he walked down the street with a parcel in his hand. He was asked by Mion to deliver this package to her uncle in Okinomiya. He was minding his own business until he saw the man in question along with Chiaki and several others looking at something.

"Hey, what's everybody looking at?" the Wasp Cyborg asked. Both men turned to see Shogo walking towards them.

"Oh, hello Shogo," greeted Yoshirou.

"Hello, so what's going on?" Shogo inquired.

"Well, last night there was a car chase. Apparently, the police were chasing this criminal and when they finally cornered him, something weird happened."

"Weird?" Shogo asked

"Yeah, when they went in after him, there was this huge hole," Chiaki said pointing into the alley. Shogo looked to see the back wall in question and it looked as if it had been melted through.

"Yeah, in fact, I heard this guy they were chasing is supposed to be wanted in the US, Malaysia, and even the Soviet Union seem to want to catch this guy and judging by that hole I can see why," Yoshirou said in a gossip tone of voice.

Both Chiaki and Shogo shared a look. If this guy was as dangerous as they said, it was probably for the best that they should try to look for him before he caused even more trouble.

"So… what is this crook's name?" Shogo asked.

Yoshirou rubbed his chin, "Hmm…oh yeah, the name. Well… I don't quite know his real name, but I think the police called him the Acid-Man."

* * *

"Yuki?" Yuji said surprise to see his sister at his apartment. "What are you doing here? I thought you were going on some big bounty hunting mission."

"It's done…" Yuki said. She was lying on the couch, enjoying the peace and quiet.

"So, why are you here?" he asked.

"Bored, so I came to visit," she answered simply.

"Here? There's not that much action going on," Yuji said.

"Something always pops up," Yuki said.

"Hmm, good point." Yuji nodded. "Well… If you want to visit, then I can't really stop you. But if you're going to stay here, you're going to have to help pay rent."

"Fair enough," Yuki replied as she slowly got up stretching slightly. Right as they finished, Yuji's com-link beeped.

* * *

An olive-skinned woman was seen walking out of a cab and walking into a hotel. The girl had the body of an Amazon, with large firm breasts that stood out proudly on her chest. Her waist was tapered down to twenty six inches and then flared out to smooth thirty four inch hips. She was wearing black jeans and a purple turtleneck sweater, and brown boots to cover her feet. After entering her room she sat on her bed as she picked up something she tucked in the dresser drawer. It was a file folder and the picture inside depicted the criminal from the night before.

"Prohor Gasgaroff aka the Acid-Man," the woman read the file out loud in her hotel room.

_'Was a soldier of the Soviet union until his superiors decided that he would be a test-subject to make a new super-human soldier. The process has literally turned him into a being that can generate a large quantities acid for offensive purposes. He was able to escape the science facility and fled from his home country. Becoming a gun for hire, he would literally kill anyone in his line of work if it means getting paid_,' the woman silently read to herself.

The woman flipped the page to show a list of people that had bought the services of the Acid-Man and the people they wanted him to rub out. It took the woman a long time to gather this much info but she felt that it was worth it. She glared hatefully at one of the names; it was simply two letters forming the initials 'G.S'.

"Mom, Dad," the woman whispered, "Soon I will find your killers and make them pay!" After putting the file away she picked up a silver suitcase and opened it up. The inside of the case contained the Jersey Devil costume

* * *

"Are you sure that this is the right place?" Zero asked into his com-link. Everyone was searching for the Acid-Man. After the rash of attacks from various super-villains, they weren't going to take a chance and let this guy run wild, especially with a name like Acid-Man.

_"Positive,"_ Dr. Magi confirmed through the com-link. There was a report of a car, similar to the one the police had been chasing last night that Sheila had picked up on. Dr. Magi had sent Zero to investigate since he was the closest to that area.

Zero frowned. It had already been an hour, and so far he hadn't spotted the car. He was about to give up when he saw it. _'Jackpot!' _The gold Buick was seen making a turn right in front of him.

"There you are," Zero murmured as he revved his Stinger and began pursuing him. The driver must have seen him since he began to speed up to ditch Zero who tried to keep up. When he managed to catch up to the car, it was pulled over so Zero stopped and cautiously approached the vehicle. He intended to drag the Acid-Man out of the car but when he opened the driver seat door, there was nobody in.

"Damn!" Zero cursed as he activated his com-link.

"Dr. Magi, this is Shogo. Listen I've found the suspect, but he's just ditched his vehicle. Could you try locating him via the satellite?" Zero asked. Suddenly, his antennae warned him of danger and Zero jumped as a stream of acid was fired at him. It hit the Buick but didn't melt it which was kind of odd. However, the residual acid that dripped onto the ground did melt the asphalt. Zero landed next to his bike but was forced to dodge another stream of acid, this time watching as his bike got hit.

"Hmph, I'm surprised. I heard that you Kamen Riders were supposed to be clever, and yet you fall for such a simple trick," Acid-Man taunted as he walked out of hiding. He'd been hiding in an alley after ditching his vehicle, waiting to ambush his pursuer.

Zero was upset at seeing his motorcycle being melted and glared hatefully at this Acid-Man for destroying his bike.

"Are you gonna cry because I melted your ride?" the Acid-Man continued to taunt.

Zero responded by firing needles towards Acid-Man, who dodged the attack, with the needles missing him by a fraction of an inch. Zero cursed before rolling on the floor as acid shot out of the villain's hand to hit the spot where he had once stood. "Too scared to come closer, Kamen Rider?" Acid-Man mocked as he continued to throw acid at Zero. The wasp-like Rider hovered out of Acid-Man's range and cursed silently.

"How am I supposed to fight him when I can't get close to him?" he mumbled to himself. However, a dark figure suddenly dropped down from the sky and the Acid-Man was knocked down by the dark figure.

"You!" the Acid-Man identified the black-clad figure.

"You're coming with me, Gasgaroff," the figure, a woman judging by the sound of her voice, said as she stood over Acid-Man.

"Don't think so, you bitch!" Acid-Man threw his acid at her and before Zero could help her she was splashed. Zero thought she would be melted but then saw that, while smoke was rising from her, she didn't even look at all hurt.

"My suit is impervious to your acid," said the black-clad girl and then she rushed at the Acid-Man who tried to run. She grabbed him by the back of his collar and then slammed her fist across his face, sending him tumbling along the ground.

Under the streetlamp, Shogo finally got a good look at her. She was dressed in black with a cape that had edges that mimicked the appearance of bat wings and her cowl which masked her face sported a pair of horns. Zero had actually read reports of someone matching this description but couldn't believe that she would be here in Japan.

It was the mysterious Jersey Devil, also known as JD, a vigilante from Jersey City.

The Acid-Man didn't like his odds so he slammed his palms down onto the ground and there was smoke that covered him which blinded both Zero and JD. When the smoke cleared away there was a large hole in the ground.

"Dammit!" JD stomped her foot down in frustration. She went down the hole to follow and landed in sewer water. She looked around to see where he could've gone but found nothing.

"Hey!" Zero called as he hovered down the hole.

JD turned to look at Zero who landed down. _'Great, another bug guy_,' JD thought to herself, remembering Showa during that cryptid incident.

"Okay first off, thanks for the save. Secondly, why is the Jersey Devil, an American hero here in Japan and what is your business with that guy?"

JD smirked slightly, glad that she was known even here in Japan before responding to Zero's question, "I'm sorry but I am afraid I can't answer that."

"And why is that?"

"Simple: It's private business," JD stated.

Zero frowned. The Jersey Devil was dodging his questions far too quickly and for some reason he felt as if he was looking at Shinichi during his revenge quest months ago.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I gotta take you back to HQ to ask you some questions," Zero said. He reached to grab her when she grabbed his arm and threw Zero to ground. Taking this as a chance, she immediately ran away. Zero scrambled up and shouted "WAIT!" as he chased her.

JD ignored him as she threw a smoke bomb that hit the ground and smoke burst out.

"Oh no you don't!" Zero shouted as he grabbed a small pistol clipped to his belt. With his helmet's antennae detecting a retreating figure in the smoke, he raised the pistol before quickly firing and hitting his target. "Gotcha," Zero smirked. What he'd fired at JD was a small tracer to track her down.

"_Oi, Shogo,_" his com-link crackled to life as Shinichi's voice was heard, "_What happen, man? Did you catch the guy?"_

"Nope, he got away. Though I might have found someone who could help with the search," Zero said as he quickly flew out of the sewers.

* * *

"Dammit! I was so close!" the woman snapped to herself as she plopped down on her bed with a scowl. Her parents' murderer was so close, and she let him slip from her fingers. She decided to head back to her hotel room to rest for a moment before heading back out there to continue the hunt.

Before she could do anything, someone began knocking on her door. Curiously, she got up and opened the door to see three guys and a girl outside the door.

"Yes can I help you?" the woman asked.

"I hope so… Miss Jersey Devil," Shogo said. The woman, now revealed to be JD, glared at them. She was debating whether to fight them or slam the door shut in their faces to get her costume.

"Who are you?" she questioned.

"Well you may not recognize me, but I was the there with you and the Acid-Man." The first male said as JD recognized his voice as the same as the hornet guy. "My name is Shogo Kuso."

Despite herself, JD smirked as she said, "One's ministry damned?" That was the translation to his name.

Shogo's right eye twitched as he said, "I swear to god, if someone else points out that's what my names means, I am going to rip their spinal cord out and beat them to death with it." JD sweat-dropped as Shogo continued his angry tirade seemingly caught in his own world.

"Yeah… he's very sensitive that Kuso is his last name," The boy said to JD as he raised his hand "By the way my name's-"

"Juusan, I know. I still recognize you from that time in Jersey," JD nodded to Shinichi, not bothering to shake his hand. "So where's your silver-haired girlfriend?"

"Actually, my name's Shinichi Banabara," Shinichi said, "And if you're referring to Satan, she's is currently working for her employer at the moment."

"I see, and you two are…" JD asked with a raised eyebrow.

"The name is Fudo, Yuji Fudo," Yuji said, "And this is my sister, Yuki."

"Hello," Yuki nodded, her eyes seemingly roaming over JD's body, making the American vigilante blush a little.

_'Calm down,'_ JD mentally berated herself. She looked at the four. "Well, since you four found me, I'm guessing you're going to grab me and force me to come with you to your base."

"Oh, hell no," Yuji said defensively, "We would never do that to a cutie like you!" He looked to his sister, "Right, Yuki?" Yuki simply nodded.

"Actually all we want is some questions answered and perhaps your help in catching Acid-Man," Shogo said after finally stopping his angry tirade.

"Sorry," JD frowned, "But I refuse to answer questions AND I refuse to work with anyone to catch Gasgaroff. He's _mine_."

Shinichi frowned as he spoke, "Well, this is OUR city. If he's a threat to our city then it's our job to catch him."

Shogo asked, "Do you know where he is?"

JD answered, "Not yet, but I can wait. I'm that patient."

Shinichi retorted, "Actually, I think our resources can help. We collected a sample of the acid so our computer will be able to track him down."

This made JD look at Shinichi with narrowed eyes. "Really?" she asked suspiciously.

"Yep, so unless you want to miss out on bringing this guy to justice, I suggest you give us your cooperation," Shinichi said.

JD seemed to think about it for a moment before sighing. "Fine, I will assist you in catching Acid-Man, but I want to be the one to bring him in."

"Very well," Shogo nodded before he spoke into his com-link, "We need a Teleportal."

JD blinked in shock as a swirling portal suddenly appeared. She stammered, "Wha-what is that?"

"Let's just say that this is a shortcut back to base," Yuji smirked as he was the first to head in along with Shinichi.

Both Yuki and Shogo turned to look at her. "Well, aren't you coming, Jersey Devil?" Shogo asked.

"I'm coming I just need to grab one thing," JD said as she headed back into her room before coming back. She was carrying a briefcase. "By the way, since we gotta work together then you better know my real name. It's not 'Jersey Devil'. It's Rhea, Rhea Shalecrest," Rhea said as she walked into the portal with Shogo and Yuki following behind her.

* * *

They exited the Teleportal and arrived at the NEO-NUMBERS' base, aka the Hive.

Sheila greeted, "_Welcome back to the Hive, everyone. Oh, you've even brought a new visitor. Welcome._"

Rhea blinked. She could admit that she had seen some strange things when she started becoming a vigilante but a disembodied voice was a new one. "Who's that?"

"That's Sheila, their computer," Yuki told Rhea as Shogo walked to the computer. A face of a stunning women then appeared on the screen.

"Sheila, are you done analyzing the acid sample?" Shogo asked.

"_Yes, apparently the acid that the culprit is able to generate from his body has strands of his DNA, and thanks to that I should be able to get a quick lock onto his location_," Sheila said as an image of the Acid-Man appeared on the computer while she began to track him down.

"You made the right choice, Rhea. After all, this is much faster than trying to find him the hard- Hey where'd she go?" Shinichi asked.

"Yeah, and where's Yuki?" Shogo said, noticing that she was missing as well.

"Oh she went to the back room to change into her suit. Apparently it was in her briefcase and she asked Yuki to make sure no one comes to peek on her while she's changing," Yuji shrugged.

* * *

"Thank you for this, especially since we barely know each other," Rhea said as she changed into her suit.

"No problem," Yuki said while leaning slightly on the door. "It's about revenge, isn't it?"

This stopped Rhea for a moment as she asked, "Pardon?"

"You're targeting Acid-Man because you want revenge," Yuki said to Rhea.

Rhea softly scoffed as she pulled her gloves on. "I don't know what you're talking about," she lied, not wanting to reveal how close Yuki hit the mark.

Yuki walked over to Rhea and took a hand in hers, stoking the girl's gloved hand, "It's okay if you want revenge. Both my Onii-sama and Shinichi were driven by revenge because they lost someone precious to them," Yuki told Rhea.

"R-really?" Rhea said, mentally kicking herself for letting her surprise be shown. But still to know that those two had also wanted revenge, and for similar reasons, that was surprising.

"I can understand that you don't want to fully reveal what it is just yet. I just want you to know that you're not alone," Yuki finished. There was silence for a moment as Rhea, now in her Jersey Devil costume. She got up as Yuki released her and the American hero walked over to the door before stopping.

Jersey Devil didn't say anything at first but muttered, "I'll think about it."

Yuki nodded as she and JD went back with the others.

* * *

"Ah there you are," Shogo said as the two walked back into the room. "Sheila was able to pinpoint Acid-Man's location."

"_Yes I was able to pinpoint his location_," Sheila said showing the location. The blip on the screen showed that he was in the industrial section in Shishibone City.

JD's eyes narrowed as she said, "Good then let's go."

"_Wait, before you go, I think you should know about the acid. It appears to have some strange-_" Sheila paused as she realize she was alone and that the others had left. "_Sigh, why does no one listen to the computer when she tries to warn them?_"

* * *

Prohor grumble angrily to himself, "That damn wench." For some reason after one of his jobs in the USA that strange woman seemed to be tailing him around. He briefly wondered if he did something to her, which was possible. After leaving his country and becoming a hired killer, he'd made a lot of enemies, mostly from his victim's family or friends.

"And the worst thing is, she's ruining my chance to collect that money," Acid-Man growled. He had heard rumors about a mysterious figure offering a large sum of money to kill the heroes around these parts and decided he wanted in on the chance to get the money. He even started a spree of crimes to catch their attention. But when he finally managed to catch one, that bitch had to ruin it!

_'Ah well, I'll try again once I take care of other business,_' Acid-Man thought. He may have missed his hit but he still had other jobs. The first of which was to kill a CEO of a company for a rival manufacturer. He was about to enter a bar where he was informed that the man loved to hang out at when a barrage of needles came flying at him. He dodged the needles which stuck to the spot where he had stood.

'_Who knew I would get a chance to kill a Rider sooner rather than later,_' Acid-Man thought to himself. He then jumped backwards to avoid another barrage of needles and also laser blasts before looking up to see the heroes glaring down at him.

_'Well well, looks like I'm getting that bounty after all, and I get to kill that thorn in my side,_' Acid-Man thought before saying, "So all you came for little old me. I'm flattered!"

"Acid-Man, I suggest you surrender. You're clearly outnumbered," Zero said while aiming at Acid-Man.

"Heh, again you are not showing your intelligence, Rider. You are forgetting one of the most important rules in fighting." Suddenly, Acid-Man shot a corrosive stream at the ledge the Rider was standing on; causing it to melt, and making them fall. "Never underestimate your opponent!" Zero immediately floated upright and he grabbed JD. Showa's wing patterns glowed on his back before forming energy wings as he grabbed Liger and Yuki and safely brought them to the ground.

Acid-Man cursed as he fired a large glob of acid at them. JD reached into her belt and pulled out a boomerang with sharp edges and threw it which cut the glob in two, as the boomerang continued its trajectory towards the Acid-Man. He tried to dodge it but it still hit his right arm and drew blood. Zero was next as he rushed at Acid-Man, delivering a barrage of blows until he delivered a punch that sent him crashing to the ground. Acid-Man growled angrily before turning around and running.

"Oh no you don't!" JD snapped, refusing to lose him again.

They started to chase him down. A loud revving noise could be heard. They turned around quickly as they saw Acid-Man's golden Buick moving into the area. Its head lights opened to reveal Gatling guns inside while the trunk opened to reveal a small missile launcher just before it began firing at them. While fleeing, Acid-Man had pressed the buttons on his glove, activating his car's automated weapon systems. The heroes took cover from the weapons.

"Shit, he's getting away!" Zero snapped.

"No he's not! Yuki, Shogo, you go with Rhea to get the Acid-Man, me and Shinichi will take care of the car," Liger said, changing to Jäger form. The three nodded as they rushed to catch up with the crook. When they reached a fork in the road, they once again split up. Yuki taking the right, while Zero and JD took the left.

The Rider and Vigilante walked swiftly down the alleyway till they spotted something weird.

Zero squatted down and picked up Acid-Man's helmet, both this and his uniform were on the ground, discarded. "Well this is weird. Why the hell would he ditch his clothes?"

Before JD could answer, a loud distorted laugh could be heard "Just you two; too bad, looks like I'm going all out for nothing!"

"Gasgaroff," JD growled, "Show yourself, coward."

"If you insist!" Suddenly something green shot out of the ground and lunged at them. Both dodged the thing as it hit the wall. They gawked as they saw it was a liquid arm and the place where the arm had hit began to smoke and melt.

They turned back to the hole as they saw the body connected to the arm rise up. It was large blob of acid with the top forming two eyes and a mouth **"So, are you surprised? My military unit decided that it wasn't enough that I could just shoot acid, so they gave me a combat form made completely out of acid. You should feel honored, I rarely use this form, but for you I decided to make the exception." **Acid-Man roared as what looked like a scorpion tail shot out of him and shot towards JD. JD stood in front of Zero as she pulled out something that quickly unfolded into a shield to block it, but it the impact sent her flying back.

**"Oh, and before I forget to mention, in this form I can both control the shape of the acid and can even solidify it."**Acid-Man chuckled as what looked like tentacle grew out of his back and headed straight at her.

However, Zero quickly assumed his Fighter Form and moved in front to protect JD as he began firing at the acid tentacles, easily destroying them. He quickly flew in the air, firing more and more shots at the monster.

**"GRR…DAMN INSECT!" **Acid-Man roared as his right hand shot out to grab a part of the fire escape. After ripping it off, he swung it at Zero, swatting him down the ground before dropping the now partially melted metal on him. JD, seeing this, got up quickly and brought out her battle staff, which she converted to Spear Mode, before rushing forward. Acid-Man turned around and shot globs of acid at her, but she just twirled her staff to block the stuff as she jumped up and stabbed him in the eye.

**"OWW!" **Acid-Man shrieked. He made of acid, but to the pain sensors in his brain it still felt as if someone had just stabbed his real organic eye.

**"BITCH!" **Acid-Man roared as he shook her off. He quickly pulled out the staff before swinging it at her. A loud crack was heard JD was on the ground. Acid-Man smirked before several shackles made of solidified acid shot out of his back, trapping the ankles and wrists of the female hero. He made his hand morph into a giant acid scythe before turning back to Zero

**"Wait your turn, girly. I was about to kill bug boy first."** The Acid-Man grinned insanely. He was about to finish the job when suddenly…

Acid-Man screamed as his scythe arm was completely frozen before shattering into tiny pieces. He whirled around to see Yuki walking towards them with a glare, her hands turned to claws.

**"Why you…"**Acid-Man growled, his arm already reforming before charging at Yuki.

Yuki just look at Acid-Man as she whispered, "Freeze..." She opened her mouth, and unleashed a blast of cold energy that collided with the Acid-Man. He screamed as he was being pushed back, and to his horror realized that his entire body was being frozen solid. He tried to get away but it was too late as he found himself completely frozen.

Yuki nodded at her work as she saw JD slowly getting up and pulling out a new battle staff.

"He's all yours," Yuki nodded to JD. She nodded her appreciation before glaring at the villain. She pulled a new battle staff out before she swung it, causing the now iced Acid-Man to shatter into pieces.

Zero crawled out of the melted metal debris. "You know that won't kill him, right?" Zero asked as his helmet confirmed that Acid-Man was still alive despite being broken into pieces.

"My ice has frozen his molecules," Yuki replied. "He can't regenerate even if he wanted to."

He lifted his C3 and a wide beam shot out, absorbing the broken ice containing the acid and even the bad guy's clothes before it was taken into the machine.

"I know, but it made me feel better," JD said as the card shot out and it revealed Acid-Man trying his hardest to get out of the card.

* * *

"So what do you think happened to the others?" Shinichi asked

"Knowing them, they probably already caught Acid-Man," Yuji sighed Acid-Man's Buick was seen badly damaged from the fight. "Man, who knew that thing was tough."

"Yeah, tough car," Shinichi nodded in agreement.

* * *

A few days after Acid-Man's capture, Shogo took the remains of the Buick and asked Magi if it could be repaired and modified. He figured if BLACK RX could have a car, then why not him? Also, to the victor go the spoils. JD tried to press Acid-Man for answer, demanding to know who had hired him to kill her parents and why. Unfortunately, Acid-Man didn't know. He was just hired for the job. However, she did discover someone else who did know

"You knew my parents?" Rhea asked Magi in surprise. She and the good doctor were sitting down in the NN's base. Yuki was sitting beside Rhea. She was just going to talk to her brother who went there to play in the arcade until she saw Rhea and decided to spend time with her.

"Yes, they were quite noble people but they got mixed up with GIN-SHOCKER," Dr. Magi said. When he realized that Rhea was the child of the two people who had once unknowingly worked for the organization, he decided to tell her everything and that "GS" was GIN-SHOCKER. "When they realized what GIN-SHOCKER's real goal was and what they wanted to use their research for, they were disgusted and horrified. Last I heard from them was that they were trying to find a way to leave the organization and warn the world. I am truly sorry for your loss. They were good people," Dr. Magi said sadly.

Rhea frowned, feeling as if she was about to cry, but Yuki held her hand tightly. "Rhea, I know they're no longer here, but I know they're in a better place, and I can feel that they are still watching over you."

Rhea smiled a bit, "Thank you, Yuki. That means a lot."

"And don't forget, Rhea, you're always welcome here in the Hive. You're not alone," Dr. Magi said to Rhea, offering his hand.

Rhea smiled as she shook the doctor's hand, "Thank you, Dr. Magi." Rhea slowly got up and was about to leave. But before she did, she turned to Yuki and asked, "Can I speak with you for a moment, in private?"

"Sure…" Yuki nodded, reverting to her regular speech pattern as she got up. Finding a secluded room, Yuki waited to hear what Rhea wanted to talk about.

"Listen, I know this may sound a bit crazy since we just met and all… but… do you want to go on a date?" Rhea asked.

Yuki blinked for a moment before smiling softly, "Sure."

Seeing Rhea smiling happily at this, Yuki was glad that she decided to come to this world.

* * *

**Author's Note: идиот (Moron also: idiot, mooncalf, clot) ы is the equivalent of the word 'shit'.I would like to thank chrome for helping me write this fic. Sorry that it not so focus on Shogo (It started like that but it slowly evolved as I wrote it.)**


	75. The Legacy of Cain Part 19

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 19: The End of the Witch of Terror**

**BY: Kamen Rider Bushido**

One night, Jin was seen hopping from rooftop to rooftop with a bag of stolen loot. Pursuing him was Kamen Rider Showa. Jin would fire crystal daggers at Showa to impede Showa's pursuit as he continued to run. "Get back here, you fucking klepto!"

Jin laughed as he fled, but suddenly bumped into something. He looked to see what it was and paled as he saw Yuji in his Enlightened Form, looking down at the Soldat. **"Hey,"** Yuji greeted before pointing a finger in Jin's face as his new signature attack took form.**"MEGA FLARE!"**

Jin could only scream as he was obliterated by the attack, his body practically gone in a flare of blue embers.

"Yuji!" Showa called as he caught up to him.

"**Sorry," **Enlightened Yuji apologized with a glare in his eyes.**"I was in the mood for some barbeque."** He spread his wings before gaining altitude and leaving the airspace.

* * *

Showa was in a midair swordfight with the Dobsonfly Demon, Kamiyami Kako. The two clashed with their blades, sparks flying each time.

Kamiyami sneered, "This time we shall see who the better fighter is."

"Don't you know when to give up?" Showa questioned.

"**BOOYAH MOTHAFUCKA!-!-!-!"**Yuji crowed as he suddenly appeared and backhanded Kamiyami in the head, sending him flying before reappearing in front of the demon to kick him up as he prepared another finishing technique. **"Tenrai! Sekiha Tenkyoken!-!"** he roared as he unleashed a destructive ball of blue energy in the shape of a dragon head as it devoured Kamiyami.

"THIS IS BULLSHIT….!-!-!" Kamiyami cried as he exploded like a blast of fireworks high in the sky for everyone to see.

"Yuji! Hey, what's the big idea?-!" Showa demanded. However, the Manakyte was gone in the blink of an eye. "Huh?" He looked around, seeing no one in sight. "Dammit," he groaned.

* * *

Koichi and Saisen were wreaking havoc. With his ticks, Koichi would cause people to spontaneously combust and Saisen would just blow up random buildings for fun. All this was in the name of Witch of Terror and her campaign to spread fear and gain power from the fear. It seemed to be working as people panicked while the two psychos laughed as they enjoyed the mayhem.

"**Mega Flare!"**

The two Soldats cried out before they were consumed by the flames

* * *

"Hold him steady, Goemon," said Todoriko the Leech Demon as he approached with salivating mouths. Shinichi was in the grip of Goemon the Centipede Demon and the barbs on Goemon's extendable arms that were binding him were cutting into his skin.

"Dammit," Shinichi cursed himself for being caught off guard.

Goemon chuckled before stabbed through the back of his head by a pair of claws, the demon's arms releasing Showa for him to escape and turn to see Yuji as the culprit. The Enlightened Manakyte lifted Goemon's now-limp body before he ignited in blue flames, incinerating him.

The Leech Demon backed away fearfully as he turned to run and cried, "HE'S A FUCKING MONSTER!"

Enlightened Yuji spread his wings as energy began to get drawn into them as he pointed toward Todoriko's fleeing form. The tip of his clawed finger began to glow as the energy formed into the familiar ball before expanding with more energy.

"**Mega Flare." **He fired and the blast hit the demon with great force as his body was engulfed, the surrounding building windows shattering from the impact. He spread his wings once more before flying high with great speed before he was out of sight.

* * *

"Oh, Shinji, you're here," said Shiori.

"Of course, you called me," said Shinji.

"Rika-chan asked me to ask you to tutor her," said Shiori. "She's upstairs in her room. Do you mind?"

"Why would I mind? I'll always help my little sister like a good brother should."

Shiori smiled as Shinji went upstairs. Shinji knocked on the door and asked, "Rika-chan? Rika-chan?" There was no answer, however. He then opened the door. As Shinichi entered the room and saw no one but he did spot some papers on Rika's desk. Curious, he decided to read it. It got really hot until he read the names of the characters and realized that...Reika and Shinji were...the door slammed shut behind him and he saw Rika, smiling at him...in a way that scared him. She then locked the door. She approached him, like a predator cornering its prey.

"Rika-chan, we're family," Shinichi reminded.

"Yes, we are," she nodded.

"I love you like a little sister," he continued.

"Why don't we change that?" she requested.

Now Shinichi was getting nervous. "Rika-chan, you're scaring me. "

Rika got in his face and whispered in his ear, "Does it excite you?"

Shinichi blinked, "What?"

She backed away and starts to unbutton her blouse. "Your sweet little sister wants you," she smirked.

Shinichi shook his head as he was up against the wall, "Rika, this is wrong."

"We're not blood-related," she reminded.

"But Rena..."

"It's alright...I think she and I can reach an agreement," she smiled.

"Ah...help?" he squeaked.

"No help for you," Rika denied as she drew closer.

"Shinichi are you in here?" Shiori asked knocking the door.

"YES!" Shinichi shouted as Rika went, 'tsk-tsk'

She pounced and Shinichi had no choice but to warp out of there. Rika landed on the floor but instead of looking upset she just smiled. "Ah…I love it when they play hard to get."

* * *

"I'm sorry, you want to what?" Alan asked, confused.

"I need your help find a guy for my sister," Shinichi said.

Alan looked at him as if he'd grown two heads, "Seriously, I mean you look ready to kill Chiaki for dating Hanyuu, why would you help Rika get someone?"

"Because frankly that is none of your business!" Shinichi snapped.

"Oh I get it," Bazel stated "It's obvious that Rika must have fallen for the Smith Charm and it's stressing you out."

"It's freaking me out, that's what it is!" Shinichi exclaimed.

"Shinichi, is this true?" Alan asked. Shinichi nodded.

"She says that there's nothing wrong since we're not blood related," Shinichi replied.

"I think she has a point. Since you're not related by blood it's not something to stress over," Alan said.

"Oh yeah, and how would you feel if your adopted sister started hitting on you?" Shinichi challenged.

"I wouldn't know, since all my sisters are in good relationships, Big Bro," Alan grinned.

Shinichi grabbed Alan by his shirt and threatened, "If you don't help me, I will turn you so old that even a small sneeze will turn you to dust!"

Alan returned the threat, "In the time it would take you to gather the energy to make me that old, I'd flash fry you."

"Fine, but you're still helping me to find someone for Rika-chan that isn't me," Shinichi told him.

Alan did sense something else. It was another sense of unease coming off from Shinichi. "There's something else, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Shinichi admitted. "It's Yuji."

"What did he do now?" asked Alan.

"It's just crazy," Shinichi groaned. "Every time I fight the Soldats, he just shows up, torches the Soldats, and just disappears!"

"Sounds like something you would do," Alan retorted. Shinichi glared at his brother for making such a comment. "He's hurting right now. Remember, it wasn't too long ago that he saw Rosa die again."

Shinichi sighed and nodded," And since he can't get to _her_, he decides to go after her minions..." He asked, "How long do you think this is gonna last?"

"Well, if experience has taught me anything it'll be over until he gets what he wants. Kinda like you when you went after Gebok."

"Yeah, but unlike me there's almost zero to no chance to stopping Yuji."

* * *

Yuji and Misato were together in a love hotel, with Yuji drilling into the demon as he held her legs up.

Misato uttered, "Oh...Anastasia-sama is...Yeah, that's right! She's very...ah...angry at you! Yes!"

"Like I...argh...Give a shit!" Yuji grunted with each thrust. "Yeah, baby...you know you like that!"

Misato panted with each breath as her breasts bounced back and forth, "I...ah...think she's...ooh...starting to suspect...ah! She's trying to-harder-spread more fear and you're...God! Trying to ruin that! I'm gonna cum!"

Yuji bent forward to gaze into Misato's eyes, "Doesn't matter... Once I get my chance, I'll go to her and kill her. Go ahead and cum for me, babe!"

"OH! YUJI!" Misato cried as she had climaxed at full force.

Yuji hilted his cock in her as he shot his seed into with all his might. He bent his neck to the side, "Go ahead, and take some."

Misato lifted herself up and bit down on Yuji's neck, taking some of his blood to drink. She was in pure bliss as she could taste the power that flowed through his veins and came once more as a result.

She fell back with a smile and sighed happily, "Ahh! That was great! You're blood tastes wonderful after a great fuck."

Yuji lied beside her and smiled, "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself." She turned on her side and smiled when he began stroking her cheek. "You know I love you, right?"

She nodded meekly, "Yeah… I love you too, Yuji."

"Something wrong?" he asked.

Misato snuggled into Yuji's body and shook her head, "No, not really, darling~." She then looked up at him, "Ne, Yuji?"

"Hm?" he looked down at her.

"What if…she does kill me?" she asked.

Yuji put a finger under Misato's chin and smiled, "There's no ifs about it. Anastasia won't kill you. I swear it."

"Yuji, you should know that my life is linked to hers," Misato informed. "If you kill her, I'll die again."

Yuji simply grinned, "I have a plan for that." He pulled her in as they shared a lasting kiss. A black butterfly was watching the couple as it sat on the windowsill before it fluttered away.

* * *

Battler said, "George-aniki and Shannon-san are getting married so everyone's showing up to help organize it. You're included too."

Yuji let out a sigh, "Well it's about time. By the way, what does your Aunt Eva have to say about it?"

"Well, she wasn't happy about it at first but she decided this was her son's decision and George-aniki's happiness was more important," said Battler.

Yuji nodded in agreement. The two were at the canyon where the Hive stood and sitting on the grass as they watched Wendy, Maria, Celine, Alice and Ange play with Junior and Lockheed. Battler thought that his little sister Ange would be safe enough to bring along as long as she promised to keep this place a secret. She even did a 'Pinky Swear' with Battler. Ange was introduced to Wendy, Alice, Celine and Junior and whilst initially frightened by Junior quickly got used to him as Maria told her that Junior was harmless. She was even introduced to Lockheed the dragon.

They were playing a game of tag with both Junior and Lockheed chasing the girls.

Flying overhead before perching itself atop the Hive's tower was GaoPhoenix and sleeping nearby was GaoLiger. The two Power Animals had quickly taken up residence in the canyon and whilst there were some initial misgivings about allowing the giant, biomechanical beasts stay here it was decided that the two could act as extra security. Ever since the day Diend had broken in, they had updated their security system and changed all the 'obvious' passwords to less than obvious ones so they needed all the extra defenses they could afford.

The canyon was a really nice place. It was secluded but the atmosphere and fresh air were nice and it had a wide open field of green grass.

"Hey guys," said Alan as he came out of the base. He'd just finished a session in the underground training chamber. The training chamber was modeled after the Danger Room and provided combat simulation for practice using hard-light projections that could take on the shape of any enemy programmed into the computer. Alan had just gone through a few rounds with Mongul and Major Force in the Danger Room.

"Hey, Alan," said Battler. He then said, "So, my cousin and Shannon-san are getting married soon. You think you can make it to the wedding?"

"I guess," Alan shrugged, "Make sure to send me an official invite, OK?"

"You got it," smiled Battler.

"Celine! Alice! Lockheed! It's time to go!" Alan called to his daughters and their pet.

"But Daddy, I wanna play with Ange some more…" whined Alice.

"Sorry, but it's gonna be dinner soon and we don't wanna be late," said Alan. "Now come on over here, young ladies!"

"Bye, Ange!" Alice hugged the girl.

"Bye, Alice! See you again!" said Ange.

Alice gave Maria and Wendy her goodbyes before running back to Alan.

"I should take Ange back home too or my folks will kill me," said Battler.

"Yeah, we don't want Rudolph to go ballistic because you were out late with his sweet baby girl," Yuji joked.

Battler huffed and got up before walking over to Ange so they could take the Teleportal back home. A black butterfly fluttered past Battler but as soon as it had appeared it just vanished.

* * *

"Ah, the open sea," said Yuji as he took a ferry to Rokkenjima. Maria and Wendy came along as well. They were also on the same ferry with Battler's family and well…

"I'M GONNA FALL! I'M GONNA FALL!" shouted Battler.

"Just breathe into this paper bag, Battler," advised Beato.

Yuji just chuckled to himself as he murmured, "He can face monsters and psychos without flinching but he's still scared of riding on a ferry."

"That's Battler-niichan for you," said Maria before giggling, "Kihihihihihi."

Still, Yuji looked up at the sky as dark cloud began to roll in. "Looks like a storm is brewing." They better port at Rokkenjima and soon or else Battler's screams would just grow louder.

Wendy just breathed in the fresh sea air. It was wonderful and so was the wind flowing through her long blue locks. She then spotted the island in the distance and asked, "Is that it?" The seagulls were also flying around.

"Yes," confirmed Yuji, "That's Rokkenjima."

He remembered how his Auntie B had told him about the Game that was played in an alternate version of Rokkenjima. The Ushiromiya family was being murdered and ES-Battler had to figure out who had done it and prove that magic had not been involved. The only conclusion was to prevent the murders from ever occurring and thus ending the game with both Beatrice and ES-Battler's wedding.

Still, Yuji couldn't help but have a feeling that doom awaited them once they set foot on the island. He put his hands in his pocket, his fingers brushing against his Gao Jewels. Looking up, he spotted GaoPhoenix flying in the sky and watching over them. "You feel it too, huh?"

"_Yes_," answered GaoPhoenix through their link via her Gao Jewel. "_I sense a dark presence_."

"Ana-baka," Yuji guessed.

"_How can you be sure?_" asked GaoPhoenix.

"It's the perfect setting," replied Yuji. "It's Rokkenjima and there's gonna be a storm. We'll be trapped on the island for Anastasia to play her little game with us. But…I'll be ready." He'd been ready since Anastasia had attempted to use Rosa against him. She was going to pay for that.

The boat reached port and the group was welcomed by Chiyo Kumasawa and Toshirou Gouda.

"It's so good to see everyone," Chiyo greeted with a smile.

"As it's good to see you, Chiyo-san," Yuji returned as they hugged.

"And who is this lovely young lady?" she asked as she spotted Wendy.

Yuji had a hand on her shoulder as he introduced, "This is Wendy, my second daughter. She was homeless, so I took her in." The explanation wasn't entirely false, but Yuji did have to leave out the bit with the cult that was involved.

Wendy did a curtsy and bowed her head, "It's nice to meet you."

"Oh, such a lovely young girl," Chiyo laughed in delight. "And I'm sure Fudo-kun is taking excellent care of you."

"He is," Wendy beamed, "And Father has done a lot for me!"

"Maria loves Wendy-chan too," Maria beamed as she hugged the bluenette, "UU!"

"A storm is brewing," warned Gouda as he looked up at the dark clouds that were forming. "We should head inside."

"Lead the way, Chiyo-san," said Yuji as he carried his luggage towards the guest house with Maria and Wendy following.

"Hey, wait for us!" said Battler as he quickly got off the ferry with his own family.

* * *

"I still can't believe George-niisan is marrying Shannon," said Jessica. She was in her room with Kanon who was sitting on the bed with her.

"Indeed," agreed Kanon.

"Yoshiya~" Jessica called in a sultrily tone as she used Kanon's real name. This always made the young servant blush.

"Jessica-sama, please," Kanon whispered, "It's inappropriate."

"No, that isn't." She then pushed Kanon onto the bed, smiling as she added, "Now _this_ is inappropriate."

Kanon, flustered, requested, "J-J-Jessica-sama, please! You must not!"

"Oh…are you disobeying your mistress?" Jessica asked as she played with Kanon's collar, teasing his neck with her fingertips. She was so close and Kanon could smell her. The aroma was intoxicating. Was she wearing perfume?

Jessica and Kanon were in a secret relationship and were both afraid of what would happen if her parents and grandfather were to found out. He could be sent away. However, they couldn't keep their feelings bottled up. Kanon had a good Poker face so it didn't show but Shannon knew how he felt for Jessica, as inappropriate as he thought it was. Someone else also knew: Yuji Fudo.

Jessica got off Kanon and sighed. "Hopefully, this marriage will change things and maybe my parents will allow us to see each other."

"Jessica-sama, you're the daughter of the eldest son of the Ushiromiya Family, and your father expects you to become the next head once he's chosen after Kinzo-sama's death. I am just a servant," Kanon told her.

"That doesn't change how I feel about you, Yoshiya-kun," said Jessica. "Now, I think it's time we go and greet our guests."

* * *

Upon entering the mansion, they were welcomed by Genji Ronoue who was the head butler of the house. Jessica and Kanon also came down to greet them, the young butler sticking behind Jessica to remain out of sight.

"Ah, Jessica-chan! My have you grown…and in all the right places…"

WHAM!

"Itai…" groaned Battler as he lay on the floor with two large goose eggs on his head as Jessica blew at her brass knuckles and Beato dusted off her hands.

"And Battler, have you become even more of a pervert?" Jessica scowled but still smiled after seeing her cousin. She then hugged Maria, "Hello, Maria-chan!"

"Hello, Jessica-neechan!" smiled Maria. "So, is it true? Is George-niichan marrying Shannon-neechan?"

"Yes, it's true," confirmed Jessica, smiling.

"Ah, personally I thought my son would choose a better bride but it's his choice," said Eva as she fanned herself. "As his mother I'll have to respect it."

"Don't pretend to be upset, Eva," teased Yuji. "I bet you're proud of your son for standing up to you and making his own decisions. Isn't that what you're looking for in him so that he becomes the next Head of the family?" Eva huffed but Yuji was right. She did want her son to become family Head.

"So, who's this little girl?" Jessica asked as she looked at Wendy.

"She's my new sister, UU!" said Maria, hugging Wendy's arm.

"Wendy Fudo," said Wendy. "Greetings."

"I could use something to drink after a long sea voyage," said Rudolph. "But where is our happy couple right now?"

* * *

The island had its own chapel which was where George and Shannon were for some privacy. The two sat on a bench and were just enjoying each other's company and engagement bands were worn upon their fingers.

"I cannot believe we will be married soon, George-sama," said Shannon, her head resting against his shoulder with their fingers intertwined.

"I had to fight tooth and nail to convince my mother that this was what I wanted," said George.

"And I am grateful. You love me as I love you."

"Of course I do, Sayo-san. I wouldn't have asked for your hand in marriage if I hadn't," said George.

"But, we should return to the Head House," said Shannon as she got up. "The guests should be arriving and it's rude to keep them waiting."

"You're right," said George, "But before we leave can we stand at the altar and share a kiss?"

Shannon blushed and answered, "Of course, George-sama."

The two stood at the altar, holding hands, and shared a chaste kiss before they both walked out, hand in hand, along the aisle towards the door. A black butterfly rested on one of the benches.

* * *

Yuji slapped George on the back and said, "Man, George! You really have manned up!"

"Thank you, Yuji-san," said George as he fixed his glasses.

"And you Shannon, you're really lucky," said Yuji. "Or should I call you 'Sayo' now?"

"So, where is Ojii-sama?" Battler asked.

"Yeah, where is the old man?" added Rudolph.

Dr. Nanjo said, "Kinzo-san is currently resting."

"So, gramps is napping," said Battler.

"He is an old man," said Krauss, "But he's still strong enough to remain as Head of the family."

* * *

Anastasia smiled at the development and said, "Now all the pieces have appeared on the board. Let the games begin."

Within the hexagonal tearoom of the Meta-World, Anastasia sat across from Topper, both of them enjoying cups of tea. "So, this is your game then?" asked Topper.

"Yes, and it's a game that I will win," said Anastasia confidently. After all, she had rigged it so that she would be the clear winner.

Topper stared down at the chessboard and grinned. It was an interesting game. "Well then, let's make our wagers…"

* * *

Everyone, with the exception of Wendy, Maria, Yuji and Battler froze. They just stood as still as statues.

"Mom?" Battler asked as he shook his mother but got no response. "Dad?" He waved his hand in front of his father's face.

"Damn," Yuji muttered. "She's already starting."

"_Right you are, Yuji Fudo." _In a flash of darkness Anastasia appeared right before Yuji, Wendy, Battler and Maria. She wasn't surprised that Battler and Maria would be unaffected by her spell. Maria was a little witch and her older cousin had magical resistance. "Bonjour," she greeted.

"Ana-baka," growled Yuji. He'd been waiting for this moment for a long, long time.

"Hmph," Anastasia huffed, looking offended, "How rude. Don't you know how to greet a lady?"

"A lady? Where? Can you point me in the right direction?" questioned Yuji sarcastically.

Anastasia scowled but then grinned, "You wouldn't be making jokes once you know what I have here." She waved her hand and in a flash of black butterflies a large cross appeared and strapped to it was…

"MISATO!" Yuji shouted as she saw her, bound by her wrists and ankles to the cross in chains.

"A vampire on a cross," said Anastasia, "It's kind of ironic, don't you think?"

"You bitch, let her go!" shouted Yuji but Anastasia had a blade of energy pointed at Misato's stomach.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you," Anastasia warned. "You wouldn't want me to hurt her, would you?"

Yuji was sweating but he said confidently, "In the time you would take to kill her, you'd be dead."

"Yes, maybe, but can you take that chance? Also, you know her life is connected to mine. If I go, she goes," said Anastasia condescendingly.

"What do you want?" Yuji demanded.

"I want to play a game," Anastasia grinned, "And since I like others to fight for me, let me introduce you to my new pieces: Ryuuho Kiba and Electric Butterfly!"

At Anastasia's command, Ryuuho and Electric Butterfly both appeared in flashes of black butterflies. They wore outfits that were similar to the other Soldats.

"I see you're still into pissing on graves," Yuji shot at Anastasia as he eyed Lina.

"I didn't ask for this…" Lina frowned as she tried to look away.

"Don't worry," Yuji said, "I'll fix this."

"What? No 'hello' for me?" Kiba sneered.

"Shut the fuck up," Yuji ordered.

"Oh, and your two friends will be facing my other pieces in the game," added Anastasia.

* * *

Showa was in high the air, kept aloft by his Cicada Wings as he was confronted by the Soldats who attacked him without warning. He did notice that Misato was missing which told him that something was up. The Soldats were still in human form but as demonic furniture they had the power to fly and still had their own unique powers as well.

"DIE!" Kamiyami roared as he summoned his massively broad Zweihander and swung it at Showa. His ability made his blade unbreakable and allowed him to cut through anything. However, that was if he was able to hit anything and Showa wasn't about to let himself get hit. He'd learnt his lesson of trying to block Kamiyami's sword with his own Great Sword only for the blade to be cut in half. Now mystical weapons on the other hand could block Kamiyami's demonic Zweihander and the two traded strikes, sparks flying with each clash of blades.

The other Soldats weren't idle either. Koichi sent his ticks at Showa and made them detonate, causing small explosions to erupt across his back. Saisen was also firing his guns rapidly at Showa, causing him to grunt with each hit. Goemon landed a kick towards Showa's midsection, sending him sliding back. Jin was firing crystal arrows that Showa tried to block but then Todoriko latched onto his belt and the acid spilling from the mouths in the palms of his hands were eating away at his armor. "GET OFF!" Showa roared as he threw the leech off him and sent him flying with a kick.

It was six against one and they all looked ready to kill him. "Time to change the odds," Showa said before calling out," TRINITY FORCE!" His body unleashed a bright flash of light that blinded the Soldats and when the light faded three Showas in different colored armor hovered before them.

"Let's go," the three Showas said before rushing to confront their opponents, taking two at once. Red Showa targeted Kamiyami and Jin, Blue Showa targeted Todoriko and Goemon, and finally Green Showa was setting his sights on Koichi and Saisen.

The Soldats were temporarily stunned by this development but recovered quickly to rush back. The two sides clash but with two against one it seemed the odds were a little better now for Showa while using Trinity Force.

* * *

Lala and Yami were out shopping for groceries. As Yami was checking the list, Lala spoke, "Maybe I should have a child with Alan."

Yami took a sideway glance at Lala and asked, "What brought this up, Princess?"

"Well, I've seen how you and Alan and how Bishie-chan and Alan are like when you're with Alice-chan and Celine-chan," said Lala. "You look so happy being a mother."

Yami smiled. She was happy. She had a young child to care for, a girl with deadly potential who she could mold into something more. As soon as Alice was old enough and the restriction on her powers was removed, Yami would start training her.

"I wonder what it'll be like," Lala mused as she rubbed her belly. "Do you think I'll make a great mother?"

"I believe you will," said Yami. '_However, can the neighborhood survive with two of you?_' Having Lala and Tech together back home together was already a recipe for disaster. If Lala decided to turn her daughter into a clone of herself…that was a scary thought.

"So, what will we cook tonight, Yami-chan?" Lala asked cheerfully as she looked over Yami's shoulder to read the list. All of a sudden, the wall nearest to them exploded and they were both sent tumbling by the shockwave. The two looked up, dazed, but Yami recovered quickly as she went into a defensive stance, her hair and hands assuming the form of blades as she watched the dust cloud.

A huge figure, wearing an evil grin, walked out of the dust cloud and simply said, "Hello, ladies."

* * *

"I see you took in another runt," Kiba grinned as he licked his lips hungrily while staring straight at Wendy. "I bet she tastes like chicken." Lina visually blanched as she moved away from the revived Soldat.

Wendy cringed in fear but looked up to Yuji when she felt his hand on her shoulder. "Wait with Battler," he ordered. "I'll take care of this." He turned to Maria, "You too, Maria."

"Hai, Papa," Maria saluted as she grabbed Wendy's hand and ran to Battler.

"You sure you can handle them on your own?" Battler asked of Yuji.

"You're damn right I can," Yuji replied. He pointed to Anastasia, "I wanna make a bet!"

"A bet?" she smirked.

"I wager that I can kill Kiba less than four times without using my Manakyte powers!" Yuji challenged. "If I win then he's gone, for good."

"Very well, but what happens if you can't?" Anastasia challenged. Her grin made him want to punch her in the face so much.

"If Kiba beats me 3 out of 4 times, then you can kill everyone on the island including me," Yuji offered.

"What!-?" Battler panicked,"Are you crazy!-?"

"Papa can do it," Maria assured.

"Maria!-?"

"Papa can win," she insisted."He always wins."

Yuji smirked,"And I can say this with absolute "Certainty" that Ryuuho will die 3 times before this is over."

"So, that is your wager?" Anastasia smirked back,"If you lose everyone here dies? How selfish of you to put their lives on the line as well."

"I made the wager because I know he's going to die 3 times and you are going to banish him once I win," he shot back.

"Very well then, but I'll have to make an additional wager."

Yuji glared, "Fine, but you best be careful to choose your next words wisely. Otherwise, I'll forego the bet and cut you down where you stand. And don't underestimate me because I assure you I'm fast enough to kill you before you even have a chance to blink."

Anastasia smirked, "You will fight both Kiba AND Electric Butterfly together. And you must also kill her for the same amount of times as Kiba. If you don't then you forfeit your life and the lives of those under your protection."

Yuji looked at Lina then back at Anastasia, "Fine, but Kiba is the only one to be banished. I have plans for her once this is over. Is that understood?"

"Of course," she nodded.

Kiba cracked his knuckles, "I'm gonna enjoy watching all of you scream once I win," he turned to Lina, "And you! You better fight seriously or else."

Lina scoffed as she was covered in a bright light, blinding battler and the others except for Yuji, Anastasia and Kiba. When the light dissipated, she was clad in golden greaves, gauntlets, and an armored breast plate over a golden leotard and golden shoulder pads. Her head was protected by a golden pointed helmet that covered all but her eyes. From her back sprouted a pair of white butterfly wings that were patterned with large purple star patterns and she was armed with a pair of butterfly daggers that surged with electricity. The back of her helmet was decorated by her hair, which was covered in gold armored segments that was done in a long ponytail and ended in a golden spear point.

"Let's get ready to fucking party!" Kiba howled in delight as his body started to change. His skin turned ebony black as he grew taller and gained claws and saurian feet (three toes for each foot) and gained a lot of muscle mass as well. His head changed as well as it gained more saurian features and his sclera turned black with his eye color changing from red to gold. Black aura pooled out of him as it began to encase his body and solidify into samurai armor. The shoulder pads grew jagged blades as well as a similar smaller blade that extended from the nose of his helmet like a horn. Of course, he grew a long, prehensile tail as well. He was armed with a pair of boomerang-shaped swords that were armed with sharp points at the tip and outer angle of each blade. Protruding from the back of his helmet was long and wild white hair.

"**You can call me Gaio Dracus,"** Kiba reintroduced in a low guttural tone. He shot Yuji a wide grin, showing off his pearly white fangs.

"Gold Butterfly," Lina simply introduced. She was indeed beautiful, but the look in her eyes spoke differently.

Anastasia summoned her throne so she could sit comfortably and enjoy the show. Then two figures walked out from behind the throne. One of them was a draconic humanoid demon while the other was clad in white; Gnol Gnauh and Shiro Juuyon. Shiro took Anastasia's hand to plant a kiss on the back.

"When you said you had a show planned for us, I didn't expect this," Shiro lied.

"Oh, don't pretend," said Anastasia. "I was surprised you didn't want to watch my Soldats fight BLACK 13."

"I doubt they'll defeat him. They don't stand a chance. He probably already killed them," said Shiro, shrugging. He then eyed Yuji. "I'd rather watch as his friends die than enjoy the look on his face when he finds out."

"I also wish to see one of Susano-O's allies fall, just so I can bring it up as I destroy him personally," added Gnol.

"Well then," said Anastasia as she conjured two more seats for her guests. "Sit down and enjoy your front row seats for the action." The two men then sat down to enjoy the show. Shiro sat on Anastasia's right while Gnol sat next to the android.

Shiro looked up at the tied up Misato and asked, "So, whaddya think? Will your boy toy win?" Misato bit back a retort as he laughed. Shiro then jeered, "Oi, Fudo! Do you really think you can go through with killing an innocent girl?"

Yuji eyed Shiro and looked back to Gold Butterfly, "I've killed plenty of people in the past, including one of my teachers…" He clenched his fists, "One more sin shouldn't be a problem, as long as you can forgive me, Lina."

She nodded reluctantly, "Thanks…"

"**Oh, blah-fucking-blah,"** Gaio Dracus dismissed as he brandished his Kikurin swords, **"Let's fight already!"**

Yuji slung on the Liger Belt and gripped his Liger Pass in his left hand, "I couldn't agree more." He then reached into his deck case attached to the back of his belt and pulled out the card he received from his dark side: The Abyss King. The card was completely black, with gold circuit lines and a golden X in the center of the card, framed by a pair of golden lion jaws.

"A black and gold card?" Gold Butterfly blinked.

"**You think this is like the duels back home, Fudo-kun?"** Gaio Dracus chuckled. **"Far from it!"**

"This card is only the key to your demise," Yuji said as he slid it into the Liger Pass. He then held the Pass above his head as he called out, "CHOU-HENSHIN!" and slammed the Pass into the fangs of his Liger Belt

"**KAIZER FORM!" **the Liger Belt called as it emitted a bright golden light, blinding everyone. Within the light, shards of gold and black energy spun around Yuji like a tornado of power as they covered over him and formed armor, covering him in a black bodysuit before the remaining shards formed and snapped onto his body like an assembly line.

**Music – "Ikari no Jyushin" by Hiroki Yumi**

When the light faded, all but Shiro and Gnol could only gawk as they saw Yuji in his new armor. He was clad in a black bodysuit that was worn under a long black coat with a high collar and gold trimmings. His legs were covered black shin-high greaves with diamond-shaped golden kneepads and the greaves ended in boots that resembled Liger Zero's golden foot claws, and the thighs were covered by black armor as well. The sides of his lower legs had gold ion boosters that were similar to the Jäger Form's boosters but were small to fit proportions. His arms were covered by black gauntlets that ended in gold claws with ports located in the palms, while the forearms were equipped with the Schneider Form's Vi-Blades but were gold instead of blue and black armor encased his upper arms. The chest armor was black and in the center was a golden lion head with a spherical ruby in its jaws. The shoulders were black, and trimmed with gold triangular points. On his back was a pair of black wing-like extensions that were folded down to take up less space and connected between them was the Energy Form's Energy Charger, but was completely gold instead of orange. The helmet that covered his head was black, with the sides shaped like golden fangs and lining with the red visor that went over his eyes, and from the crown of his head extended a golden horn. From the back of his head flowed long and wavy golden hair that split into a twin tail hairstyle.

"No way…!" Battler gaped.

"Papa has a new power!" Maria cheered happily. "UU!"

"Amazing!" Wendy cried.

"Wow, not like I've seen something like that before," Shiro snickered.

Gnol stayed silent as he analyzed Yuji's armor. It was aesthetically impressive, but he wanted to see the kind of power the Manakyte was capable with that armor before making any assumptions.

Misato watched with her jaw hanging. She'd seen Yuji change into different armors, but this one was totally new. He could…no, he had to win with this new armor.

Anastasia scowled as she gazed at the royal-looking armor, before smirking and relaxing back into her seat. It didn't matter what Yuji did, for he and everyone on the island were as good as dead. There was absolutely no way she could lose.

Gold Butterfly backed away slightly as Gaio Dracus was growling, **"If I told you once, I'll tell you again…"** before charging right at Kaizer Liger, **"NO ARMOR YOU CHANGE INTO WILL BEAT ME!-!-! YUJI FUDO!-!-!"** Gaio Dracus gripped his Kikurin swords and spun through the air as he turned into a tornado of death that was heading straight for Liger Kaizer but he thrust his right hand out and caught Gaio Dracus by the top of his helmet, bringing him to a halt.

"He stopped him!" Battler cried.

Gaio Dracus roared as he swung forward with his pair of Kikurin swords but Kaizer Liger parried with his golden Vi-Blades that were folded out. He then ducked a horizontal swing and went for a leg sweep that tripped Gaio Dracus and delivered a kick that sent him tumbling. He then went into a sprint position and vanished before everyone's eyes. Gaio Dracus got up and looked around, not noticing that Kaizer Liger was back to back with the demon before backhanding him in the back of the head before kicking him repeatedly with his left leg as Gaio Dracus was being raised into the air by Kaizer Liger's rapid-fire kicks until the demon was launched into the air, with Kaizer Liger's leg hanging in the air before bringing it back down to rear back his fist. He roared, "Suriyaaah!" as he punched Gaio Dracus hard, watching him roll away along the ground.

"**From the School of the Undefeated of the East,"** Kaizer Liger yelled, **"Kishin Ken!"**He then pressed the top button on his belt as it called, **"CHARGE AND UP!"** Kaizer Liger then waved his hands to his sides and opened his palms as they began to glow with golden lights. The ports in his hands were actually Charged Particle Cannons and he called out, **"From the School of the Undefeated of the East! Kishin Soujuugeki!" **He then did a 1-2 palm thrust as he fired two golden beams that took on the form of dragons as they flew right toward Gaio Dracus.

Gaio Dracus fumbled before getting up and growled,** "When I get my hands on him, I'll… Huh?"** he spotted the two golden dragons and screamed as they flew into his body and he tensed up. **"Nani…?-!"** he uttered loudly as he looked down to see the same dragons with their heads poking out, before flying out. Gaio Dracus screamed, **"AAAAAHHHHH!-!-!-!"** before he exploded.

"Papa did it!" Wendy and Maria cheered while hugging each other and jumping around.

"Yosha!" Battler cried, "Only a few more to go!"

"_29 minutes and 38 seconds remaining,"_ a computerized voice responded as Kaizer Liger saw a timer in the lower left corner of his visor. **"So this form is only active for half an hour…"** Kaizer Liger muttered, **"Good."** He then eyed Gold Butterfly and made a 'Come on' gesture, **"We better get this over with, Lina. Just don't hold back and give me what you got!"** He emphasized his point by extending the Vi-Blades and dashed forward thanks the Ion Boosters on his legs. They released gold particles as they roared, with Kaizer Liger charging at a good speed.

Gold Butterfly gulped and gripped her daggers and charged ahead as the two fighters swung and their blades clashed wildly. The energy from Kaizer Liger's blades and Gold Butterfly's electricity clashed with sparks flying everywhere as they battled fiercely.

"**Gold Dust!"** Gold Butterfly called as she flapped her wings, releasing gold scale-like particles to disorient Kaizer Liger's vision.

"**That won't work,"** Kaizer Liger smirked as his visor switched to infrared and he could see the Soldat's body heat through the cloud. He then pressed the button again as the belt said, **"CHARGE AND UP!"** The Vi-Blades began to glow brighter.

"**Electric Slash!"** Gold Butterfly called as she drove through the cloud with a vertical slash.

"**Buster Slash!"** Kaizer Liger called as he made contact first, slashing Lina in half before she disappeared in a flash of black butterflies.

**End Music**

He landed, and shouted, **"That's one each! Next round!"** He then whispered, **"Time remaining?"**

"_27 minutes and 57 seconds remaining,"_ his helmet responded.

Anastasia clenched her teeth as she snapped her fingers, with Gaio Dracus and Gold Butterfly returning in flares of the black butterflies.

"**What the hell, you dumb bitch?-!"** Gaio Dracus growled at Gold Butterfly. **"You didn't back me up!"**

"You were the one who rushed in first!" Gold Butterfly shot back. "You got yourself killed!"

"**Why you…"** Gaio Dracus was about to slap her but was kicked in the head by a charging Kaizer Liger.

"**Come on, asshole,"** Kaizer Liger taunted, **"I'm dying of old age over here!"** he eyed Lina who was still on the floor, **"As for you, you need to be quicker on the draw."**

**Music – "Fury of the Storm" by Dragon Force**

Gaio Dracus was charging and roared, **"Oh, you'll die alright! WHEN I FUCKING SLICE YOU IN HALF, YOU FUCK!"** He twirled his swords and shouted **"FIRE CUTTER BLADE!"**He swung the blades and launched arcs of red energy that were outlined with black as they rushed at Kaizer Liger.

The Kamen Rider crossed his forearms as the energy blades bounced off his armor. **"Sorry, but this armor is twice as strong as Panzer's original armor but only half as heavy,"** Kaizer Liger informed, **"Therefore, I'm far more deadly in this armor than the others!"**

"**SHUT UP!"** Gaio Dracus roared as he flung his swords like boomerangs as they spun through the air like buzz saws.

"**Right,"** Kaizer Liger muttered. **"Energy Charger, activate!"** The Energy Charger revved loudly as it glowed a bright gold light. The wings swung up and swerved to the side as they extended, showing that they were three segments and the golden particles flared downward, giving the appearance of golden feathers and the wingspan was 20.5 feet across. He took to the skies and the spinning swords followed after Kaizer Liger.

"**HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"** Gaio Dracus laughed, "**Run, run, run as fast as you can! My Kikurin swords will follow you to the end of the Earth as long as they have a lock on your energy signature!**"

Kaizer Liger processed the information and smirked. He dove downward and straight at Gaio Dracus with the Kikurin swords catching up.

"**Like that will work on me!"** Gaio Dracus snorted as his hands blazed with flames and shot them forward, launching two fireballs at Kaizer Liger.

Kaizer Liger smirked behind the mask and veered off course, allowing the fireballs to strike the spinning swords as they flew right at Gaio Dracus.

"**WHAT THE FUCK?-!"** Gaio Dracus cried before he was sliced in half, both vertically and horizontally, before exploding in black butterflies.

**End Music**

Kaizer Liger landed and smirked, **"Bet he didn't consider that his swords would lock on a new energy signature it was introduced to."**

Shiro commented, "I'm afraid I'm yet to be impressed, Anastasia."

Anastasia scowled, gritting her teeth in a way that made her look hideous as she clenched her teeth. Hopefully, the Soldats and Mongul were doing a much better job against Shinichi and Alan.

* * *

"TAKE THIS!" Red Showa roared as he smashed his Great Fists into Kamiyami and Jin, sending them flying. Kamiyami tried to slash at Red Showa who dodged and then clapped his massive hands together with Kamiyami between them, crushing him. As he pulled his hands back, Kamiyami was dazed. Jin chuckled but then he received a Great Boot to the head that snapped his head backwards. Turning his hands into energy blasters, he fired upon the two Soldats.

Green Showa was leading Koichi and Saisen on a chase as they hurled their explosives at him but he managed to dodge as explosions erupted following his path. He smirked and then he formed the Hook Arm and Shovel Claw before flying back to confront them. Koichi threw his ticks at Showa and was about to detonate them when the Hook Arm shot forward and the cable wrapped around him before pulling him back. The ticks now coated Koichi too and as they exploded Koichi felt the pain from the small explosions. He released Koichi and then bashed him in the skull with the Shovel Claw. Saisen threw a grenade at Green Showa but he caught it in the Shovel Claw. "Think fast!" shouted Green Showa as he tossed the grenade back to Saisen and it exploded in his face.

Blue Showa was dodging Todoriko and Goemon's attempts to hit him but to no avail as he avoided their hits fluidly. He caught Goemon's leg and then used him as a club to bash Todoriko away. Blue Showa then got in Todoriko's face and started pummeling him with rapid punches. He then grabbed him by his head and kneed him in the face before he tossed him at Goemon and sent them hurling back. He then rammed into them at high speed, nearly causing them to plummet to the ground.

"Regroup! Regroup!" Kamiyami ordered and they did as told. "Now, assume Demon Form!"

The three Showas watched as the Soldats became meaner and uglier but they weren't intimidated. They had expected this.

Green Showa: "SING, YABUKI!"

Red Showa: "LET'S BRING DOWN THE THUNDER, GOKUAKU!"

Blue Showa: "STRIKE FROM THE SHADOWS, ZENNIN!"

In tornadoes of energy, the three Showas transformed into their individual treasure forms; Red Showa became Showa Oni, the Blue Showa became Showa Kage and the Green Showa became Showa Higurashi.

* * *

Lala and Yami were battered, blooded and bruised. Running had done neither of them good so they had stood their ground and fought. However, their best simply wasn't good enough against their enemies. Their clothes were in tatters, stained with blood, and Lala's gadgets all lay broken around them. Yami was still trying to put up a fight but her blades did nothing against Mongul.

Mongul, still wearing his sadistic grin, approached the two beaten young women and grabbed them by the hair before hauling them up. Yami gritted her teeth to contain her scream but Lala screamed in pain as she was being hung by her hair in Mongul's meaty grasp.

"Now, what should I do with you? Have you become my slaves? No, of course not. Your bodies would become useless with only a single use. It would be better if just sell you since you'll fetch a high price as whores. Still, it's tempting. Or I could just kill you? Should I rip your hair our first or crush your heads like grapes? Hm…choices, choices…"

Yami spat in Mongul's face and the grin on his face turned into a deep frown as his eyes narrowed in anger.

"Then death it is," said Mongul.

"MONGUL!" came a sudden mighty roar from the sky.

The alien warlord heard a voice like Armageddon shouting his name, and he started to turn. He knew he had perhaps less than half a second in which to defend himself…but a humans-shaped object moving at four-hundred-mile-an-hour slammed into him like a steam hammer as big as the world, and he knew that he was far too late. Alan, hair ablaze from the friction of flying so fast, slammed into Mongul and sent the warlord flying.

Alan gently caught Yami and Alan in his arms as Amora jogged over to them. She then shouted, "Alan, your hair is on fire!"

Alan quickly patted it out, not really caring about it. All that was on his mind was making Mongul pay for daring to hurt Lala and Yami.

"A…Alan…?" Lala asked. Her vision was blurry and her right eye was swollen shut.

"Yeah, it's me, princess," said Alan. "Sorry I'm late." He requested of Amora, "Take them back to the boarding house and heal them," Alan said to Amora. "I have to take care of some trash."

Amora nodded and magically whisked herself away to safety with Yami and Lala.

"Is he still flying?" asked Bazel.

"Oh yeah," said Alan before he launched himself into the air.

Mongul was still on his uncontrolled flight when Sentinel slammed into him from above like a sledgehammer and dragging him through the air before hitting the ground with a loud crash. Pedestrians were quickly alerted and when they saw the yellow-skinned and purple-clad brute they immediately panicked.

Mongul kicked Sentinel off him and slowly got up to his feet. He cracked his neck from side-to-side to get the kinks out and said, "I've been waiting for our rematch, Lantern."

"Now you got it. But answer me this; what's the big idea of hurting my girls?" asked Sentinel.

Mongul answered, "You have super hearing and I assumed that one of them would be screaming for help. You always do come when the helpless and weak call, don't you?"

"Alan, I think it's time we shut him up because I can't stand hearing his voice no more," said Bazel

Sentinel couldn't agree anymore and so with a burst of speed he rushed towards Mongul with his fist drawn back. However, Mongul also started to charge back at superhuman speed. Once both were in range they threw their punches and executed a cross counter as their knuckles were buried into each other's faces.

After that first blow more followed in blurring speeds as they pounded at each other. Each hit made a sound like a thunderclap and the shockwave was blowing away everything that wasn't bolted to the ground. Windows in the vicinity were starting to crack as well. The force of each strike was devastating but neither fighter was letting up.

Mongul then unleashed a blast of energy from his eyes that hit Sentinel point black in the chest and sent him skidding backwards, trenches dug by his feet as he tried to dig in his heels as he slid back. Mongul then grabbed a car and tossed it at Sentinel who jumped out of the way and then he fired his own heat vision blast at Mongul whose only response was to scratch at the scorched area on his chest.

"That tickled," said Mongul and then he fired potent blasts of force from his hands that were aimed at Sentinel who dodged with his super speed.

With his ring gleaming, Sentinel aimed and fired and the beam formed a sphere around Mongul. The warlord pounded on the prison and Sentinel let out a sigh of relief but then Mongul focused his yellow energy blasts and unleashed their destructive force, shattering the sphere and then causing windows to shatter as Sentinel was tossed back.

"He's strong…" admitted Bazel. "Stronger than you, even."

"Yeah, I get that," admitted Sentinel. "That Witch of Terror must've given him a boost."

"Then let's go for a boost too!" said Bazel and the Bazel Combat Armor formed over Sentinel's body. "Alan, I know you'd rather not kill but I think that…"

"Yeah, I know what you're saying, but it's not my call to make," replied Sentinel. "But if it does come to that then, yeah…I'll do it."

* * *

Anastasia shot a glare at Gold Butterfly, "Get in there and fight seriously or else I am going to make someone you care about suffer."

"Yes, Mistress..." she obeyed before flying in.

**Music – "Fury Sparks" (From Tales of Vesperia)**

"**Time?"** Kaizer Liger asked.

"_20 minutes and 15 seconds remaining,"_ the timer replied.

"**Gotta finish up as quickly as possible…"** he muttered as he saw Lina coming at him.

The two began trading blows as they traded punches and kicks at break-neck speeds. She then took to the skies and Kaizer Liger gave chase, pursuing the Soldat across the island. He concentrated and fired bursts of Charged Particle Balls from his palms that weren't as strong as the beams, but were 10 times faster. Gold Butterfly displayed some impressive aerodynamics as she twirled around and evaded the CP Balls as they made impact with the surface of the island with minor explosive force. Her graceful moves made her appear to be dancing in midair.

"**Not bad, Lina,"** Kaizer Liger applauded.

"I've been busy in the Spirit World," she replied. "And I've made a few friends during my time there." She stopped in mid-air and faced Kaizer Liger. "Not to mention they've taught me some necessary skills if the need arose. Like this!" She did a quick kata before she began kicking rapidly at Kaizer Liger, **"Muei Kykaku!"**

Kaizer Liger was forced to block as the kicks felt like being pelted by bricks. _'So that's how it is...'_ he realized. **"So, you've been training with a Shaolin monk,"** Kaizer Liger concluded.

"That's right," Gold Butterfly nodded.

She clapped her hands and produced a spear with a golden flag and launched it at Kaizer Liger, forcing him to dodge as it pierced the ground. She tossed more spears and the Kamen Rider continued to dodge them by the hair of his neck as he backed away, before colliding with a fence of flags as he was now at ground-level.

"**So this was your aim,"** Kaizer Liger grinned.

Gold Butterfly came dashing at Kaizer Liger with a spear, "Say goodbye!"

Kaizer stepped to the right and grabbed the shaft of the spear under his left arm. **"Eat those words!"** he growled before snapping the spear in half.

"Dammit…!" she panicked before Kaizer Liger grabbed her shoulders. "Let go!"

"**I don't think so,"** he grinned before quickly pressing the button that spoke the magic words.

"Uh-Oh…" she paled.

"**CHARGE AND UP!"** the belt said as the ruby core in Kaizer Liger's chest began to glow and flicker with red electricity.

"**Crimson Blessing,"** Kaizer Liger spoke before the golden lion roared and unleashed a beam of crimson energy and engulfed Gold Butterfly before black butterflies escaped the Kamen Rider's peripheral vision.

**End Music**

"_15 minutes and 25 seconds remaining,"_ the timer announced.

* * *

Showa Oni roared and armed with his Oni Claws as he attacked the Dobsonfly and Jewel Beetle Demons who tried to fight back but the Dobsonfly Demon was clawed across the chest and the Jewel Beetle Demon's projectiles just bounced off the demonic armor. He was then hit with condensed blasts of wind, cracking his body with each strike.

Showa Kage used Shadow Clones to surround the Leech and Centipede Demons. Todoriko, the coward as he was, just stared in fear but Goemon wasn't concerned as he lashed out with his extendable arms. That was the cue for Showa Kage and his Shadow Clones to attack, drawing their ninjato and attacking the two with fluid and savage slashes.

Showa Higurashi just waited for the Dragonfly and Tick Demons to attack and wasn't disappointed as Koichi hurled his back growths at him and the Saisen fired his energy bolts from his fingers. "1000 Crane Slash," said Showa Higurashi as he swung his sword and the paper cranes of energy flew at the two demons, neutralizing their attacks midway before cutting through them with their tiny wings. It felt like being hit by a 1000 paper cuts at once for them.

The three Showas disengaged from their opponents and came together, releasing a blinding flash of gold light. When it faded, the Soldats beheld the form of Showa in his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. He then swung his sword and the Soldats were enveloped in a golden light, screaming in agony.

* * *

A punch from Mongul sent Sentinel flying through several lined up buildings, busting open walls before he just rolled onto the street. Then Mongul, who'd jumped, smashed Sentinel straight through the ground and they landed in the city's subway system. A train was coming and its lights hit both Mongul and Sentinel. Mongul was about to destroy the train when Sentinel grabbed him and threw them onto the platform as people stared in shock. Mongul grabbed onto Sentinel and then pinned him against a support pillar as people fled the scene, realizing it was a battle and they needed to get out of there fast.

"You care about these pathetic beings, don't you?" asked Mongul as he saw the people fleeing. "These vermin that don't have power and can't even defend themselves and yet you put yourself at risk for them. What's the point? Don't you know they see you as some kind of a freak? Deep down they all fear you, Smith. They fear what you can do with your power. However, unlike you I use that fear to control them while you're satisfied with protecting them. What a waste."

"Get out of my face," Sentinel snarled back, "Your breath smells like garbage. If you're gonna lecture me, make sure to brush your teeth next time."

Mongul scowled and drew back his fist to punch a hole through his face when a soda can hit him in the back of the head.

"Let him go!" shouted a little girl and Sentinel's eyes widened as he recognized her as little Mika, the girl who he'd saved from the fire several months ago. "Let him go, you big bully!" Little Mika had learnt from Alan to be brave but right now she was just being foolish.

"Smith, let's see what happens when I do this?" asked Mongul as he pointed a finger at Mika and he began charging up a beam. Mika was rooted to the spot, frozen in fear, and if Mongul hit her with that beam she was dead.

"Hey, Mika, remember this? NO FEAR!" shouted Sentinel as he used his ring to form a car and then he slammed it right into Mongul, the force of the impact sending the mad warlord tumbling. Sentinel then went over to Mika and ruffled her hair. "You were really brave," said Sentinel. "Now run to your parents and get to someplace safe."

"OK!" said little Mika before she ran off and took her mother's hand who'd been almost scared to death.

"A car?" Bazel asked.

Sentinel shrugged. "I always wanted to try that." Mongul lunged at him and Sentinel grabbed him by the wrists and then he shot upwards through the ceiling of the subway station and continued on until they reached topside, bursting out into the surface explosively. Sentinel still kept his grip on Mongul and demanded, "Give up, Mongul." However, Mongul just laughed.

* * *

**Music – "Devil Gundam" (From G-Gundam)**

Anastasia was growling before she snapped her fingers and summoned a legion of Ox Butlers as they were lined up and ready for battle. "Kill the others!" she ordered as the butlers began marching toward Battler, Maria, and Wendy.

The girls screamed in fright as Battler held them close. "Kuso…" he growled.

"**We had a deal!"** Kaizer Liger shouted at Anastasia.

"Oh, I never promised I wouldn't try to kill them while you were fighting," cackled Anastasia.

"**AND AIN'T THIS FUCKING PERFECT!"** Gaio Dracus cackled as he body-slammed Kaizer Liger from out of nowhere. He picked up the Rider by the leg and slammed him into tree after tree, even breaking them in half and bringing them down. **"I told you your armor wouldn't help you…FUDO-KUN!"** He tossed Kaizer Liger in the air and gripped his Kikurin swords. "**Rinkageki!"** he grinned as he combined his two swords, making the combined one larger as he slashed downward, launching a giant red and black energy blade that collided with Kaizer Liger.

"**HRAAAAAAHHH!"** Kaizer Liger shouted as he was hit by the attack and was dealt some extreme pain before landing on the ground and forming a crater.

"NO!" Misato cried as Kaizer Liger fell. She shut her eyes and looked away.

"Now this is a show," Shiro chuckled as he munched on some popcorn.

Gnol had a bored look on his face as he had a leg folded over the other with his head resting in his hand, "So this man can only be beaten if his loved ones are in danger? Pathetic," he scoffed.

"Makes for great entertainment though," Shiro retorted. "I must say that you've certainly outdone yourself, Ana-chan," he smiled.

"Oh, you flatterer," she blushed.

Gaio Dracus then crossed his swords together and called, **"GAIA REACTOR!-!-!"** A giant sphere of black and red energy formed over the crater and fell in, detonating on impact and triggering an explosion that was mixed with Yuji's cries of agony.

"STOP IT! STOP IT, PLEASE!" Misato begged. "You're killing him!" She hung her head as she shed tears for Yuji in his time of suffering.

"That's kind of the point," Shiro pointed out.

"GO FUCK YOURSELF!" she roared. Her eyes began to change as her irises began to slit, appearing reptilian and her sclera turning black.

"Jeez, someone's a little testy," Shiro chuckled.

Gnol face-palmed at his associate's idiocy.

Gaio Dracus jumped into the crater and stomped on Kaizer Liger's chest with his right saurian foot.

"**Gagh…!"** Yuji grunted.

"**Hehehe, I am going to have so much _fun_ with those kids of yours,"** Gaio chuckled darkly. **"And once I kill you two more times after this, I'll have that vampire of yours screaming my name! AHAHAHAHAHA - - AAAARRRRGH-!-!-!"** he cried as his leg was chopped off by Kaizer Liger's left Vi-Blade, making him fall backwards as he flailed about.

Kaizer Liger scrambled to his feet and grabbed Gaio Dracus by the neck and repeatedly slammed him into the angled floor.

"**You twisted fuck…"** he growled, **"WHAT (SLAM) DOES IT TAKE (SLAM) TO GET YOU (SLAM) OUT OF MY FUCKING (SLAM) LIFE (SLAM)!-?-!-?-!"**

**SLAM!**

**SLAM!**

**SLAM!**

**SLAM!**

**SLAM!**

**SLAM!**

That was when Gaio Dracus's right foot began to regenerate, giving the demon the chance to kick the Rider off of him. **"Little fuck…"** he growled while pushing himself up with is swords, **"I'll teach you to cut my fucking leg off!"**

**End Music**

As the Ox Butlers advanced upon Battler, Wendy and Maria, a line of them were suddenly cut down and the assailant turned out to be…

"KANON!-?" shouted Battler in shock as he saw a blade of energy form over Kanon's right arm. A few more Ox Butlers made a lunge for them but were then knocked backwards by a barrier of swirling symbols. "SHANNON!-?" Battler cried out, shocked at this development as the maid also displayed supernatural power.

"It took us a while to shake off the magic influencing us," Shannon apologized as she reinforced her barrier.

Kanon hacked and slashed at the Ox Butlers as he added, "I could never forgive myself if I failed in my duty."

Anastasia threw her glass of wine to the floor! This wasn't supposed to happen! Those two servants were supposed to be frozen!

Maria grinned as she assumed her witch formed and called out, "I summon the Siestas: 00, 45 and 410, UU!" In a flash of golden butterflies the sexy bunny girl soldiers appeared at Maria's command.

"Hai, Maria-sama!" the Siestas saluted.

00 rushed forward, crushing Ox Butlers' skulls with her fists as 45 and 410 raised their bows and took aim before firing their arrows which ricocheted all around the room, missing innocent bystanders and allies alike while shooting down the Ox Butlers.

"Henshin!" Battler called as he turned into Kamen Rider Meta. Shannon and Kanon stared at him. "Long story. I'll tell ya later," he said before he unleashed a blast of flame that incinerated the Ox Butlers.

Kaizer Liger, no longer needing to worry about the bystanders, looked forward to his comeback. **"Alright, let's do this,"** he said daringly.

"KILL THEM! WIPE THEM ALL OUT!" Anastasia commanded hysterically.

"**WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?-!"** Gaio Dracus demanded.

**Music – "Kitae Yo Katsu Tame ni" by SentouDanji**

"**BOOYAH MUTHAFUCKA!"** Kaizer Liger shouted as he decked the demon in the face, launching him out of the crater as he flew after the monster.

"PAPA!" Maria and Wendy beamed.

Meta saw Kaizer Liger and cheered, "Yosh!"

Misato's eyes shot open and she smiled in relief as she saw Kaizer Liger back on his feet. "He's alive…!"

"So it seems," Gnol nodded. Perhaps this warrior was worth fighting after all.

"**Time,"** Kaizer Liger called.

"_10 minutes and 7 seconds remaining,"_ the timer announced. His chest weapon was extensively damaged as well and therefore incapacitated for the rest of the battle.

"_Yuji,"_ GaoLiger called, _"You must use our power!"_

"**Just what I was thinking,"** Kaizer Liger grinned as he drew his Witch-Gun, the Blazing Dragon. He then loaded GaoLiger's Gao Jewel into the chamber and twirled his gun around him. **"Busou Henkei!"** he called as his gun morphed and resembled GaoLiger, with his head at the end of the barrel, and was twice as big.

"**What the fuck is that?-!"** Gaio Dracus demanded.

"**Your death!"** Kaizer Liger shouted as he pressed the magic button to recite the magic words.

"**CHARGE AND UP!"**

Gold energy arced into the Gao King Cannon as Kaizer Liger gripped the gun with both hands and aimed forward. **"GAO KING BURST!-!-!"** he roared as he pulled the trigger, launching a basketball-sized blast of golden energy that looked like a mini sun.

"**I AM NOT DYING THIS TIME!"** Gaio Dracus roared as he launched another Gaia Reactor attack at the blast, but was absorbed by the 'sun'. **"NO!"** He tried to block with his Kikurin swords but they shattered after a few seconds as the blast went right though his body, making scream in agony.

"**I'm not done,"** Kaizer Liger said as he hefted the Red Queen in his right hand and lobbed GaoPhoenix's jewel in his left. **"You ready, GaoPhoenix?"**

"_Always,"_ she replied.

"_Yuji!"_ Asura called via the Spirit Link.

"**Hey there Asura,"** Kaizer Liger greeted.

"_What the hell is going on?"_ she demanded. _"The girls and I lost the connection we had and have been trying to raise you for hours! Even Yuki and Yuri were worried!"_

"**Yuri was worried?"** he blinked. **"That's a first. Anyway, I'll explain later but I need some help right now!"**

"_You got it!"_ she nodded before appeared in a literal blaze of glory as she was in her Majin Asura form. "What do you need?" she asked.

"**Firepower,"** he said as he stabbed the Red Queen into the ground, revving the engine.

"No problem," she smiled before she turned into flames and merged with the blade as it began to glow red.

"Who's that?" Gnol asked as he eyed the six-armed demon.

"Dunno," Shiro shrugged.

Anastasia gritted her teeth. How the fuck did that pyro devil slut get in through the barrier?-!

"**Your turn,"** Yuji said to the Jewel as he placed it on the blade before it shined with a red light.

"**I'm…not…finished…"** Gaio Dracus growled as he walked closer with a gaping hole in his chest.

"**Not yet anyway. Busou Henkei!"** Kaizer Liger called as he swung his new sword, the Gao Queen Saber. It was a red and gold Zweihander that was coursing with red aura that looked like flames. Once again, Yuji pressed the magic button.

"**CHARGE AND UP!"**

"**ROYAL STRAIGHT FLASH!-!"** Kaizer Liger yelled as he swung down and unleashed a blade of fire that morphed into a six-winged phoenix that flew right at Kiba, incinerating his body as his head fell in slow motion.

"**Impossible…"** he uttered.

"**CHARGE AND UP!"**

"**And this is the end**," Kaizer Liger said as he and held his hand out. Gold energy collected in his hand as his body gained a golden hue, **"The School of the Undefeated of the East!"** The King of Hearts Crest than materialized onto his chest. **"The Ultimate Technique!"** he called as he reared back his hands as a golden ball of energy began to form between them. **"SEKIHA… TENKYOKEN!-!-!-!-!-!"** he roared as he fired the golden blast at Gaio Dracus's head, obliterating it.

**End Music**

* * *

In a last ditch effort to defeat their foe, the Soldats fused together to form a gigantic creature. It towered over Showa immensely with the Rider only reaching up to its ankles. It mainly resembled Kamiyami's demon form but his right arm was now a giant centipede while his left arm was now a giant leech that dripped acid from its mouth. The torso was covered in crystal armor and it sported a dragonfly's tail on its rear and with dragonfly wings on its back. Its flat back was also covered in bulbous growths.

"**WHAT DO YOU SAY NOW!-?**" the Terror Chimera said to Showa. "**WELL? SPEECHLESS?**"

"We'll you are uglier," commented Showa and the Terror Chimera attacked by shooting his Centipede Arm at the Rider which he dodged. He also dodged the spray of Acid from the Leech Arm. "Too slow!" Showa taunted. Various projectiles were launched and exploded but they did no harm to Showa. The Terror Chimera then tried to attack by firing swords at him like arrows only for him to dodge and deflect the flying blades. The Terror Chimera growled as it stopped.

"What, run out of steam already? Then it's my turn. Jet Mode! Henkei!" Showa assumed his Guardian Jet Mode and rocketed towards the Terror Chimera. "_You know what you all are now? A bigger target._" He then pierced through the giant creature's armored chest like a bullet and came out the exit wound. The Terror Chimera doubled over as he reverted back to Hinamizawa Guardian Form. "Time to finish this." The Cho Dai-Shuriken on his back separated into a dozen blades as he summoned an army of clones, numbering in the hundreds. They then unleashed their Cho Dai-Shuriken blades at the Terror Chimera before executing flying drop kicks.

"GUARDIAN FORCE STRIKE!" Showa and his clones shouted as they hit the Terror Chimera simultaneously with their blades, resulting in a huge explosion.

* * *

"What's so funny?" Sentinel asked.

Mongul mocked Sentinel, "Let me tell you why you're in this universe. It's because in your home universe you have committed crimes, crimes I've only dreamed of committing. You practically ripped the universe apart and reconstructed it in your own image to make it better for you so that it can dull the pain. However, that can never be because you remember. That's why you're here. A whole new world and a clean slate, but you yourself will always remember the blood on your hands. Even if everything has been made right in the end you will always remember the betrayal you committed to satisfy your own selfish desires. You can justify them all you like but you know it's all a lie and you can deny my words but you know I'm right. What's the point, Smith? Tell me. Why still play the hero when you've crossed the line already?"

Sentinel shot back, looking Mongul dead in his soulless eyes, "You wanna know why? You wanna know why, after everything, I get up every morning, put on this ring and beat the tar out of assholes like you? I do this because I'm fucking driven to do it! I do this job because…This…Is…What…I…AM!" Removing his grip from one of Mongul's wrists, he then unleashed a massive blast of emerald and quantum energy on Mongul, causing the warlord to scream as he was overwhelmed by the sudden burst of energy.

"I'm the Green Lantern, Mongul. I am the Sentinel! I AM THE MAN WITHOUT FEAR! You can try and make me afraid all you want because it will never work! You can beat me but never break me! I swear whenever someone like you shows up and tries to bring about Armageddon, I'll be there. And I'll stop you dead in your tracks!" Mongul didn't reply and simply screamed as he was hit continuously by all that Quantum Energy.

* * *

"_5 minutes and 34 seconds remaining,"_ the timer announced.

Kaizer Liger turned to Gold Butterfly as she went into a kung fu stance. **"Looks like it's just you and me,"** he said as he went into his own stance, flexing his clawed hands.

Gold Butterfly nodded, "And I will give this battle my all!" She flew at him and called out, **"Gold Flash!"** as she fired a blast of golden lightning. Kaizer Liger crossed his arms in front of him to endure the blast but was shoulder rammed by Gold Butterfly. She then jerked her head as her armored ponytail was sung forward and the spear point slashed through the left cheek of Yuji's helmet, leaving a large gash in the armor. "Hiyaaah!" she shouted as she quickly high kicked Kaizer Liger in the face, launching him skyward as she followed. **"Halcyon Gust!"** she called as she flapped her wings and launched blades of gold energy at Kaizer Liger as they cut through sections of his armor.

"Whoa!" Meta gasped. "Since when did she get so hardcore?-!"

"So she decided to step up," Asura noted as she stood next to Maria and Wendy.

"Asura-mama!" Maria beamed.

Asura smiled at Maria before looking back to the battle, "That Lina is a good girl. I can tell just from looking at her. And there's her battle armor as well."

"What do you mean?" Meta asked.

"Her armor is modeled after a butterfly," she pointed. "She's clearly a gentle soul. But with her martial arts training, she has definitely become strong enough to hold her own in a fight. She wants to end this quickly."

"Will Fudo-san be alright?" Shannon asked worriedly.

"As long as he stays focused," Asura nodded.

"This is it!" Gold Butterfly declared as she jerked her head slightly, causing her ponytail to spin rapidly.

"**Think again!"** Kaizer Liger denied as he slashed down with his claws, destroying the armor and cutting Lina's hair as it was let loose. He then unleashed a flurry of punches on the new Soldat as she was struck all over her torso like a jackhammer.

"Aaargh!" she cried as she was sent skidding down the ground.

Kaizer Liger was panting as he asked, **"Time…?"**

"_3 minutes and 26 seconds remaining,"_ the timer responded.

Gold Butterfly slowly rose to her feet as her helmet was removed to reveal her sweaty and dirt-covered face. "I can't lose…" she panted, "I cannot…afford to lose…" Tears started streaming from her eyes, "I'll perish before I lose. My parents were insane and treated me with no respect. So I ran away… Then Gebok found and the nightmare only got worse. I don't want Kuro-kun to suffer anymore because of me and I will win to keep him safe!" she declared.

"**Wow, Lina, you're amazing**," Kaizer Liger complimented.

Gnol mimicked a gag reflex and Shiro laughed, "Now this is really exciting!"

Anastasia smirked condescendingly. Her new servant was fighting for admirable reasons and that determination should carry her through.

"I'll show you something exciting!" Lina growled at Shiro as she jumped in the air and began to glow completely gold. **"Chiquolin in Heaven! And the Shaolin Temple on Earth! Watashi no Hissatsu Waza!"** she declared as she had her fists together. Golden butterflies were being absorbed into her wings as they turned gold on the outside, green on the inside, and gained red circle patterns.

"Looks like she's getting ready to finish this," Asura commented.

"What is that?" Meta demanded.

"I've never seen anything like it," Kanon replied.

"It's so pretty," Wendy marveled. Maria and the Siestas nodded.

"**The most advanced technique in Shaolin kung fu,"** Kaizer Liger said as he removed his helmet and tossed it away. "However, I remember hearing that this attack is also a kamikaze tactic," Yuji frowned.

"**Shin…Ryuusei…Kochouken!"** Lina called.

"Then I'll use this move!" Yuji declared.

**Music – "Waga Kokoro Mei Kagami Shisui" by Tanaka Kouhei**

Yuji's right hand glowed with a blazing light as the King of Hearts Crest appeared on the back of his hand. His wings opened up again as the Energy charger went into overdrive. "This hand of mine is burning red!" he said.

As she started spinning in the air and getting some serious air time before coming into a power dive she continued for Yuji, "IT'S LOUD ROAR…TELLS ME TO GRASP…VICTORY!-!-!-!"

"**ERUPTING…BURNING…DRAGON!-!-!-!-!"** Yuji roared as he and Lina collided with their attacks.

However, Lina's Shin Ryuusei Kochouken won out as Yuji's right forearm was completely destroyed.

"The Burning Dragon…was defeated?" Yuji's audience gasped in unison.

"I did it!" Lina cheered, "I won!"

"NO, I'M NOT DONE YET!" Yuji denied as he drove his left hand into Lina's gut, shocking everyone.

"Burning Dragon…with the left hand…?" Lina tried to comprehend before a dragon made of flames burst out from her back. She began to fall backwards but was caught by Yuji in his left arm as he landed safely, cradling the Soldat.

**End Music**

"Guess I lost…" Lina admitted. "I forgot I was supposed to win two more times."

"Still, that was a great fight," Yuji admitted with a smile.

"Say, Yuji… Do you remember the last time we talked together?" Lina asked.

"On the MysticLiner," he nodded.

"You said I could tell you anything," she reminded.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

Lina nodded, "I miss having a real family. Being on the streets for so long, I forgot what it's like. So I want to make a request."

"Anything," Yuji encouraged.

Lina reached up and stroked Yuji's cheek, "Can I be part of your family too…?"

Yuji kissed Lina on the forehead and smiled, "It's a promise, after this is over."

Lina smiled and gave Yuji a hug which was returned. "Thank you," she said as tears flowed from her eyes, "And sorry about blowing up your arm."

"It's OK," he dismissed. Lina then disappeared as the black butterflies fluttered away from Yuji's body.

"**GOOD NIGHT!"** the belt said as the Kaizer armor faded in black and gold shards.

"Looks like I've won, Anastasia," said Yuji as he looked at a seething Anastasia.

"No…you haven't…" she growled.

Yuji was trying to catch his breath but recovered as he narrowed his eyes at her.

"You've defeated my Furniture, but now that just leaves us to do battle instead," said Anastasia. She would not be denied victory and be humiliated again! Yuji Fudo would fall and her honor as the Witch of Terror would be preserved.

Shiro was at the edge of his seats, "Now the show's getting more interesting."

With a snap of her fingers she then transported herself, Misato, Shiro, Gnol, Battler/Meta, Wendy and Maria to the Meta-World.

They were now in the garden outside of Anastasia's castle. "This will be the stage to the end of your life, Yuji Fudo," said Anastasia. The sky was dark and the moon's face looked like a skull.

Suddenly, Yuji's arm began to glow with a golden light as his right arm had reformed as if it was as good as new. "What the hell?" he muttered as he clenched his fist. He had feeling in it, so it was definitely his arm.

The plants all began to die as Anastasia took a breath. Anastasia said, "I am the Witch of Terror, it is a title I was given due to my ability to cause, instill and spread fear in the hearts of mortals. You are no different, Yuji Fudo. You too feel fear and that fear will be something that I will enjoy." Her hands began to glow with dark energy that crackled with yellow lightning. "I am the Witch of Terror and you shall FEAR ME!" She pointed her hands at Yuji and fired a beam of dark magic at him that knocked him off his feet and sent him sliding along the floor.

"YUJI!" Misato and Asura screamed.

"Papa!" Maria cried but Meta held her back.

"No, Maria!" Meta said.

Shannon closed her eyes to look away as Kanon clenched his fists

Yuji put a hand on his chest which was slightly scorched from the blast. "OK…" he grunted as he admitted, "That _really_ hurt."

"Not as much as this," said Anastasia as she summoned her black butterflies which flew at Yuji like a swarm. They landed on him and sunk their proboscis through his skin, draining his energy which was then transferred to Anastasia. "That power you are so proud of will soon be mine," she boasted.

"She's not holding back," Shiro grinned. "I really love this woman!"

Gnol rolled his eyes and remained impassive.

Flames incinerated the black butterflies as Yuji stood defiantly. He glared at Anastasia who looked back at him, sneering. "From the moment I first laid eyes on you I knew I should've killed you," Anastasia said.

"Then why didn't you?" Yuji shot back.

"Because I thought it would be more fun to make you suffer but I guess that was my biggest mistake; letting you live. Now I'm going to kill you and then absorb the power that's left behind. The Power of the Crimson Dragon that you're so proud of will be MINE to wield!"

"You are a crazy and delusional bitch," Yuji called her.

"Indeed, but I'm not the one who will be dead," she said and she unleashed her final attack that would end Yuji's life for good. The dark flames that burst from Anastasia's hands hit Yuji without giving him time to dodge and so he was engulfed.

Maria and Wendy shed their tears, along with Misato as they see Yuji's burning form.

"Well, that wasn't as difficult as I first thought," Anastasia smirked.

"If you ask me, he was pretty weak," Gnol snorted.

"You have to give Ana-chan credit for weakening him with those servants of hers in the first place," Shiro snickered as Anastasia walked toward the two.

"Yes..."

Anastasia froze in her place at the sound of Yuji's voice as the flames began to move.

"She's _so_ talented that I'm reluctant to make the kill..." Yuji eerily spoke as he stood proud and with a devilish smirk on his face as his shirt and jacket were burned away.

She slowly turned as the bewilderment and panic slowly crept into her soul, "No...this isn't possible...! How...could you...?"

"PAPA!" Maria cried.

"Father!" Wendy gasped happily.

"He's alive...!" Misato cheered.

**"Hehehe..."** Yuji chuckled as his sclera slowly turned black. **"You seem to have forgotten that my main element is fire, woman... But congratulations on ruining my favorite jacket! Now you have earned the full fury of my most _dangerous_ technique... But first..."**

Anastasia gasped as she was grasped from behind and looked back to see Yuji glaring at her neck.

**"I'm going to _need_ something from you,"** he said as he bore his fangs and bit down on the witch's neck. She gasped as she felt her magic being drained directly out of her as her blood stained the ground she stood on.

Wendy, Maria, Battler, and even Misato gasped in shock while Gnol and even Shiro blinked at how voracious Yuji's tactic was.

She was released and pushed down by Yuji as she backed away, holding her still-bleeding neck.

"What...did you do to me?" she demanded.

Yuji smirked, **"Simple, I took your dark magic. I figured it would work since I belong to both the Warrior _AND_ Mage classes of my race. I'm fortunate my hunch was correct, because now I have exactly what I need!"** He was encircled by a black aura as he called out, **"Dragon of the Darkness Flame!"**

"What is going on...?-!" Battler demanded as Wendy and Maria fearfully clung to him.

"Something's coming..." Misato muttered. She could feel it. It was a familiar feeling but it wasn't directed at her. It was the coming of death.

"This isn't good," Asura grimaced. "He's going to attempt the darkness technique."

"What is this technique?" Kanon asked.

"I did some research a while back and discovered that as the Crimson Dragon is the God of Yuji's home world, there must also be a Devil. It just so happens that the Dragon of the Darkness Flame _that_ Devil."

Battler than turned as pale as a ghost, "Are you saying that Yuji is trying to summon the goddamn Devil?-!"

Asura nodded, "However, there are some conditions to summoning it. The Summoner must be a Manakyte with the power of fire, they must have a strong darkness in their heart, and must have both considerable spirit energy and dark magic. Fortunately, Yuji fits the criteria for summoning the Dragon. However, even if he does summon it, there's another problem."

"What problem?" Shannon asked worriedly.

"Should Yuji lose control," Asura began, "the Dragon will devour Yuji; mind, body, and soul. He will be lost…forever."

Anastasia crawled away fearfully, trying to find a way out but she could barely move, let alone defend herself since her magic was taken. "No...stop! Stay away...!"

Yuji held out his right hand as a black ball formed in his palm as his hand was surrounded by flames. **"You should know that it's impossible to control completely," **Yuji said,** "Once I unleash it, I have no say."** The clouds darkened even more as black lightning came crashing down everywhere, but didn't hit anyone. **"I have the power to pull you into oblivion," **he smirked,** "I assume just my _right arm_ will do."**

"Stay back!" Anastasia demanded. The fear in her eyes was plain as day.

**"You should see the look on your face,"** Yuji chuckled as he pulled out a Polaroid camera from out of nowhere and took a picture. He then tossed both the camera and photo to Battler, **"Do me a favor and hold that, would you?"**

"Sure... No problem..." Battler nodded fearfully.

Yuji chuckled and turned back to Anastasia, **"Now that the last minute business is done, it's time to die."**

"No...please..." Tears started to roll down her face, "Spare me...!"

**"Funny how the fear of death can change one's priorities,"** Yuji commented. **"But I'm afraid you time on this Earth is _long_ overdue..."**

"Aaaahh...!-!"

**"DRAGON...O-O-O-OF...THE DARKNESS FLAME!-!-!-!"** Yuji called as he thrust his arm forward as it shot forth a purple and black flame, taking the form of a dragon as it twisted and twirled with a heinous roar as it flew straight at Anastasia. She could only scream as she was engulfed by the dragon and it continued its path before colliding with a wall. Silence befell all as they turned to the direction where the Dragon vanished and all that was left of the Witch of Terror were cinder marks that outlined her body.

"Damn…she's X-ed," Shiro gulped.

Gnol was his same, impassive self, but he started clenching his fists subtly as he grinned to himself. Now that was the kind of power he wanted to try and test himself against.

As for Yuji, his right forearm was now completely black, giving it the look of charcoal. Yuji walked toward Battler and took the picture in his left hand flung it to Shiro.

Shiro caught the photo and gazed at it, which was Anastasia's look of absolute terror before she died.

**"A memento you could fap to,"** Yuji commented as the black sclera in his eyes was still present, signifying that he and Abyss were still united.

"Let's go," said Shiro and Gnol before they made a hasty retreat. They knew when they were outclassed.

With Anastasia's demised the cross Misato was tied to vanished and Yuji quickly caught her in his arms. "You did it…" said Misato. "I can't believe it, you did it."

"Yeah, I did," smiled weakly. He was sweating profusely before wincing due to the great pain in his right arm.

"What's wrong?" she panicked as she tried to hold him up. Battler, Kanon and the girls rushed to Yuji's side.

"Yuji, you OK?" Battler asked.

"UU…Papa, what's wrong?" Maria asked worriedly.

"I'm alright, baby…" he nodded weakly. "However, I don't think I'll be using this arm for a while." His right arm trembled.

Wendy put her hands on the charred arm as her palms glowed but died quickly. "I'm sorry Father, but I can't heal it." She then got an idea and kissed his cheek, resulting in Yuji's fatigue fading away. "The least I could do is help you recover from your exhaustion," she smiled.

"No problem," Yuji dismissed. "This only means that I require more training."

"Well, I guess I should tell you now then," Misato said.

"I bet it's important," he said. She answered by taking his left hand and placing it on her stomach.

"I'm having a baby, Yuji, and it's yours," she softly spoke.

Yuji's only response was to kiss her as Battler scratched his head and looked away for the sake of their privacy. Maria and Wendy were all cheers and Asura merely smirked. The two servants also blushed.

* * *

The Soldats were back in human form and lying painfully on the ground as Showa stood a distance away, still in Hinamizawa Guardian Form. "I know you'll just respawn again, but let's hope you remember this time about what you're dealing with." He raised his sword for the killing blow when the six Soldats suddenly became engulfed in black butterflies. Showa then stared as the butterflies flew away and vanished, leaving behind something unexpected. "No way," Showa uttered in disbelief.

* * *

Mongul was beaten and lying in a crater as Sentinel stood over him victoriously. "Heh…it looks like you won," said Mongul and then all of a sudden he just disappeared.

"Guess he's gone now," said Bazel.

"Yeah, he is," Sentinel let out in relief. "Come on, let's go home and check on Yami and Lala."

"That goes without saying. It's not like I can suddenly sprout legs and walk off. I go wherever you go, partner."

"Yeah, the idea of you running around free is just too freaky," commented Sentinel.

"You better call your brother and ask him to fix this with his time powers," Bazel advised. "You and Mongul really tore this place apart." A lot of collateral damage had been left in the aftermath of Alan and Mongul's battle.

* * *

"YUJI!-!-!" Beatrice cried as she appeared in a flash of golden butterflies and ran to Yuji, capturing in a bone-crushing hug as the Manakyte's air supply was cut off by the Endless Witch's breasts. "I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT! I JUST KNEW IT!"

"Aunty B…can't breathe," Yuji muffled into Beatrice's chest.

Beatrice released him and coughed for attention. "Well done, my apprentice," she congratulated. "I had complete and utter faith in your victory."

"You fixed my arm, didn't you?" he inquired.

"You were at a disadvantage," she reasoned with a huff. She then blushed as he hugged her gently.

"I love you too, Aunty B," he smiled.

The Golden Witch blushed harder as she hesitantly returned the hug. "Yeah…"

"Kihihihihi, Batrice-sama loves Papa," Maria teased.

Suddenly, the clouds quickly parted and gave way to colossal crescent moon that hung high in the night sky. Everyone then noticed a figure descending toward them. The servants, Asura, the Siestas, Misato, and Battler took defensive stances in case this new arrival was an enemy, but Beatrice recognized the person.

"It's…_her_…" Beatrice uttered in shock.

"Who?" Yuji asked.

"Featherine Augustus Aurora, the Witch of the Theatre," she identified.

Featherine Augustus Aurora, also known as the Witch of the Theatre, was a beautiful woman with pitch black hair and amethyst eyes. Her dress was a mix of Japanese and Western styles with the top part resembling a kimono, but without sleeves and only covering her front, leaving her back and shoulders bare with a magenta obi tied around her waist. The lower half of the dress was a wide skirt that reached down to the ground. Her arms were clad in pink opera gloves and a green scarf with a medal pinned to it was draped over her left shoulder. In her left hand was a gold walking stick and floating around her head was a crescent-shaped device that made her look like she had horns.

The reason why she was given the title Witch of the Theatre was due to her ability to alter reality with an enchanted writing quill on a sheet of paper.

Smiling, Featherine gazed upon Yuji Fudo and spoke, "So, are you the one that defeated Anastasia? And don't lie to me. I hate liars." Her voice was melodious but there was some intimidation in her tone as well despite the gentle smile.

"I am the one who defeated her, and killed her as well," Yuji confessed.

Featherine only let out a sigh, "Such a shame. She had so much potential."

"You sound like you were close to her," Yuji observed.

"Like a mother and child. I was her mentor," Featherine admitted. "However, when she discovered the source of her magic was fear she decided to just create her own path while I just watched to see how it ended. I guess this is where her journey ends." She asked, "Can we have a moment of silence?"

Everyone, including Yuji remained silent for the Witch of Terror. While the Manakyte indeed hated the witch for what she'd done to him, he did admit to himself that Anastasia was incredibly beautiful and attractive. If they had met under different circumstances, Yuji and the Witch of Terror could've had something special. But Yuji wasn't going to admit all that to anyone anytime soon.

"Well, since you saved the damsel in distress there is only one thing to do!" declared Featherine. "We must have a wedding!"

"A wedding?" Battler asked.

"A wedding?" Wendy echoed.

"UU~! We're going to have a wedding!"

"For real?" Yuji was surprised.

"But of course, of course!" Featherine smiled with delight. "Just so you know, I also perform weddings," she added confidently.

"You just get even more awesome by the second," said Yuji.

"Well, I did invent the word," boasted Featherine. "Really, I did invent the word 'awesome'."

Instantly, the entire area was transformed into a wedding chapel. At first the benches were empty but suddenly they were all filled with guests all dressed for the occasion. Along the guests were the Ushiromiya Family, the Fudo Family, the NEO-NUMBERS and friends, and several others that Yuji had become well-acquainted with. This also included the Witches of the Meta-World.

"Wait, how did I get here?" Shinichi asked. "And why am I in a tux?"

"I don't know," said Alan who sat next to him. He was admiring the girls who were all dressed in beautiful gowns.

"It looks like a wedding!" said Rena.

"Yuji, what the hell is going on here!-?" Shinichi demanded as he saw Yuji at the altar dressed in a white and black tuxedo.

"It's my wedding day," said Yuji.

Aki looked around, blinking as she was busy in the office one minute and coming here in the next. "Where are we?"

"Looks like a chapel," Yusei observed before seeing his son. "Yuji!"

Aki gasps as she gazed at her son, with tears starting to well in her eyes, "Yuji, you look wonderful!"

"Hey guys!" Yuji grinned.

"Whoa, looking sharp, Yuji!" Crow grinned.

"Like a real mean," Jack acknowledged

"I AM A MAN!-!" Yuji bellowed.

"Who are you marrying?" asked Alan. That was when the door swung open and everyone looked to see. The NEO-NUMBERS could only gape in disbelief.

Yuki was at the organ and was playing the wedding march when she noticed who was at the entrance.

There, standing with Topper, was Misato and she was in a beautiful purple and black wedding dress and holding a bouquet of purple, red and black roses. She had her arm hooked around Topper's who would give her away. They then walked down the aisle as everyone watched.

"Misato!-?" cried Michiru.

"Getting married?" questioned Hana, shocked.

When they reached the altar, Topper released Misato and smiled before joining the rest of the guests.

Featherine put on her reading glasses and unrolled a sheet of parchment. "Alright, let us begin." Hanyuu looked at her in recognition but Featherine put a finger to her lips. She then began, "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of this man and woman in holy matrimony. Now, if anyone objects to this union…" She gazed towards the NEO-NUMBERS who gulped before she continued, "Please forever hold your peace."

"You look awesome," Yuji whispered as he leaned closer to Misato. She could only blush.

"Isn't there supposed to be a 'please speak now' in there somewhere?" whispered Shinichi. He then felt a chill and saw Featherine looking straight at him. He had his camera hanging from his neck and decided to shut up and take pictures.

Shiori was sniffling and wiping tears. "Oh…I always cry at weddings…" However, she couldn't shake the feeling she knew Featherine from somewhere.

"Do you, Yuji 'Liger' Fudo, take Misato 'Seras' Kurushina to be your lawfully wedded wife with all the conditions that come with it?" asked Featherine.

"I do!" Yuji nodded.

"And do you, Misato 'Seras' Kurushina, take him as your lawfully wedded husband with all the conditions that come with it?"

"I do!" Misato answered, blushing.

"Rings, please?" Featherine asked and Maria and Wendy came down the aisle, presenting pillows with wedding bands sitting on them

The bride and groom exchanged wedding rings and Featherine continued, "Well, with the power granted to me by myself I now pronounce you man and wife! You may now kiss the bride!"

Yuji then grabbed Misato by the waist and dipped her before kissing her deeply in front of everyone. There were gasps from the NEO-NUMBERS.

"MY EYES, THEY BURN!" Yokoshima screamed only to be swatted upside the head by Daichi.

"Never thought I'd see that asshole get married," Lady mumbled.

"Oh, come on, Lady, this is a special occasion," Dante scolded as he clapped.

"That's right," Trish smiled.

"It's a good thing I'm not too old to cry," Leon sniffled as he held up his daughter, Zelda, on his shoulders. Zatanna and Morrigan nodded in silent agreement while Zachery, Zatanna and Leon's son, clapped.

"Aren't weddings the best?" Lock-On Stratos, aka Mystic Knight Dynames, asked as he clapped. At his side was Blackfire, his own wife who agreed with a nod.

"Yeah, good to see that Yuji got a happy ending," Alleluia Haptism, aka Mystic Knight Kyrios, agreed. At his side was Marie Parfacy.

"Way to go, Aniki!" Shinji Fudo whistled enthusiastically, with his own wife, Rose Wilson aka Mystic Knight Tigress, giggling. He had messy black hair and bright red eyes and was whistling and clapping like a nut.

"Knock it off, Shinji," Tieria Erde, aka Mystic Knight Virtue, scolded. "You're embarrassing us!"

Jinx was looking at the man next to him, Setsuna F. Seiei aka Mystic Knight Exia, and noted the look on his face. "Something wrong, Setsy?" she inquired. She was wearing

"Leader…err…Yuji, he's happy," Setsuna observed.

Jinx gripped his hand and kissed Setsuna's cheek, "That's right, he's happy."

Yuji's other girlfriends were present as they were shedding tears of joy for Yuji. The Stakes of Purgatory were also present and were happy for their older brother.

Yuri, Shego, Hana-hime, and Kikyo were watching from a balcony.

"Shouldn't you be down there, Yuri-sama?" Hana-hime asked. "He's your brother after all."

"I know," he nodded, "But my place is in the shadows, as it always is. Besides, this is his moment; not mine."

"Sounds like someone's growing up," Shego grinned at Yuri.

"Growing up? Ha, yeah right!" Yuri scoffed. "I'm fucking crazy and that's never changing!"

"What else is new?" Kikyo sighed.

"I really am happy for Uncle Yuji," another girl smiled. She looked like Satoko, but was older by several years and had her hair in a ponytail.

"Well, at least the bitch is gone," Yuri shrugged before blinking. The gears in his head started turning as his thinking face was that of a psychotic grin.

'_There's that look in his eyes,'_ Shego and the undead girls thought at once.

In a corner of the chapel, the Undefeated of the East; aka Master Asia, was watching the spectacle with a content face. _'It's only fitting that the King of Hearts has a queen. Congratulations, Yuji.'_

Misato then tossed the bouquet into the air and the traditional scramble for it occurred as all the unmarried female guests made a jump for it. AI-Shin was recording the whole thing and filing it under, "Wedding Chick Fight."

* * *

Several days later, Shinichi finally got into contact with Yuji and called him over to the Hive.

"So, what did you call me for?" asked Yuji. They were seated at a table in the base's cafeteria.

Shinichi put a bug jar down in front of Yuji and the Manakyte cocked his eyebrow. "OK…why are you showing me this?"

"Behold, the Soldiers of Terror, or what has become of them," said Shinichi. Inside the jar was a leech, a centipede, a jewel beetle, a dragonfly, a tick and a dobsonfly. "Just as I was about to use my finisher, this happened. They just turned into these!"

Yuji could only chuckle, "Serves them right."

"You know what happened," Shinichi concluded.

"Let's just say Ana-baka won't make an appearance again," said Yuji.

"Well, that's good news, I guess," shrugged Shinichi.

"Wanna know even more good news?" asked Yuji. In a flash of blue butterflies, Lina appeared in all her pink-haired glory.

"Hi, Kuro-kun!" Lina waved.

Shinichi could only react in a single way…

THUD!

He fainted.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: It took a while, but this one is finally done! The characters you may recognize in this chapter do not belong to me, but to their respective anime creators. And Kiba's demon form is based off Gaiomon from Digimon. Also, I thank Kamen Rider Chrome and Shadow Element 13, for their added pieces in this. So please, offer some input and opinions. We all worked really hard on this one for your entertainment.**


	76. The Legacy of Cain Part 20

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 20: The Cobra's Revenge**

"Wait, I was born on a Ferris Wheel?" Shinichi asked. He and his mother were working on another book together when Shinichi suddenly brought up the question regarding the circumstances of his own birth.

"Yes, that's right," Shiori confirmed.

* * *

_Shiori and her husband Shotaro were at an amusement park. Shiori's stomach was bulging, indicating that she was pregnant. She would be due pretty soon and they had tried spicy food and sex to induce labor but unfortunately they hadn't worked. They had been told that high altitudes would work._

_"Let's go on the Ferris Wheel," Shotaro suggested._

_"Lead the way, Sho-chan," smiled Shiori._

* * *

"So we got on the Ferris Wheel and it was fun…until we got to the very top," Shiori told her son.

"What happened?" asked Shinichi.

"The Ferris Wheel jammed and we got stuck. But that wasn't the worst part." Shinichi could tell where this was going as his mother said, "My water broke."

* * *

_"Sho-chan, it's coming! It's coming!" Shiori gasped before she began screaming. "Oh, Kami! It hurts!"_

_"Just relax, Shiori!" said Shotaro. They were stuck in a Ferris Wheel car and at the very top and now his wife was in labor. "What do I do!-?" She grabbed him by the collar and glared at him venomously._

_"YOU'RE GOING TO GET THIS—UGH—KID OUT OF ME!" Shiori snapped in his face. He paled and nodded quickly._

* * *

"Sho-chan was so nervous," said Shiori as she remembered that, "And I was in so much pain as I was pushing you out of me…"

Shinichi looked rather uncomfortable as his mother continued to go into detail.

* * *

_Shiori screamed as Shotaro knelt between her legs after removing her panties which now dangled from her left ankle._

_"Shiori, just push! Push!" he told her._

_"I AM PUSHING!" she shouted. "OH, KAMI-SAMA IT HURTS! I SWEAR, SHOTARO! YOU'RE GOING TO GET A VASECTOMY AFTER THIS!"_

* * *

"You actually said _that_?" Shinichi questioned.

Blushing, Shiori admitted defensively, "I was in A LOT of pain."

* * *

_"I see the head!" Shotaro told Shiori. "Just one more push! You can do it, Shiori!"_

_"ARGH!" Shiori screamed and then…_

_"WAAAAAAAAAAAA!-!-!"_

_Shotaro quickly wrapped the baby up in his coat to keep him warm. Shiori was trying to catch her breath as she lowered her legs. "Sho-chan…is that…?"_

_"Yes…it's our son," smiled Shotaro. Shiori looked at her son's face as he continued to cry._

_"Our son…" Shiori released tears of joy._

_Then the Ferris Wheel started back up._

* * *

"Here's the newspaper clipping right here," said Shiori as she opened up a scrapbook. She pointed at the picture, "That's me, that's your father and that little bundle in his coat is you."

Shinichi was amazed. "Wait, who's that guy?" Shinichi pointed to another man who was standing close to his parents.

"Oh, that was the Ferris Wheel operator, Shinji Akari," Shiori told her son.

"Wait, what? His name's Shinji too?" asked Shinichi.

"Well, we had to name you something and he was the one who fixed the Ferris Wheel," Shiori answered. "That's why we named you after him. He was our hero."

"Oh…" Shinichi realized.

* * *

Deep in the mountains of Canada, at a log cabin, a very muscular man was chopping firewood. He wore his reddish-blonde hair short and was dressed in a red shirt with blue jeans, suspenders and hiking boots. He brought the axe down on the log, chopping it in half, before picking another log up and chopping it in half before repeating the process again.

Roger Stevenson had been living alone since that fateful day. He was the only survivor of a horrible incident which had taken place in the military camp he'd been stationed at. All of his brothers-in-arms had died. Only Stevenson had survived but that was only because he had been the subject for an experiment to create a new breed of super soldier. Since the traumatic experience, Stevenson decided to just mourn and grieve in solitude. He got a job as a construction worker and went into town to do his job, driving a pickup truck down the mountain road so he could get to work and not be late. Sometimes he would go to the bar to try and get drunk but his enhanced metabolism wouldn't allow it. A few times he had women checking him out but he just ignored them. It was a lonely life but he was content. As long as he had a roof on his head and food on the table he was OK with being alone.

Stevenson then picked up some people coming and looked up to see a couple of guys approaching. One was dressed in white with white hair and red eyes while the other was dressed in a crocodile skin jacket and wore a scowl on his face. "Private 1st Class Roger Stevenson, I presume?" the man-in-white asked.

"Just Stevenson now," said Stevenson as he replied to the man-in-white's question. "What brings you up here to these parts?"

"Simple, we're offering you closure," said the man-in-white.

"Closure?" Stevenson questioned.

"Haven't you ever thought of avenging all your brothers-in-arms? Haven't you thought of finding and punishing those responsible?"

Stevenson answered, frowning, "I'm over it."

"Are you?" the man-in-white asked. "Really? I can see it in your eyes. You want answers. You want to know how it happened."

"I barely remember all the details. It's a bit fuzzy," Stevenson admitted but he was lying. He remembered it all but tried to forget it.

"I can tell you who it was and where to find him," said the man-in-white, causing Stevenson to stiffen. "Guess that got your attention."

"Who are you?' Stevenson asked.

"Shiro Juuyon, and we both have something in common. We both want revenge on the same guy," said Shiro.

Stevenson's eyes narrowed. "Come inside so we can talk," invited Stevenson.

* * *

In order to avoid a scandal that would ruin the Tigers' reputation and chances at the championship, Keiichi withdrew from the team. There was no reason for the entire team to suffer because of his mistake. They all had worked so hard. It was the right thing to do. Keiichi would have to deal with his mistakes on his own. As for why he had been in the hospital that had been kept a secret except to his parents who pretty much bit his head off for being so stupid. Still, they forgave him as he felt remorse for what he did.

"You did the right thing," said Shinichi as he and Keiichi sat in a booth at Angel Mort.

"Yeah, I guess," said Keiichi. "I guess I'll rejoin next year."

"That's the spirit," smiled Shinichi encouragingly.

"I mean we won the last game because of me so if anyone found out…"

"Sometimes covering up the truth to protect others is a good thing," said Shinichi as he took a sip of coffee. His eyes glanced up to Satoko, Rika and Hanyuu who were busy serving customers. He saw the looks guys were giving his sisters and glowered. Couldn't they have gotten a job elsewhere?

"Still hung up on them working here?" Keiichi asked.

"Well, yeah," said Shinichi, "The customers are a bunch of pervs."

"Aren't you a perv?" Keiichi pointed out.

Shinichi retorted, "Don't lump me with the rest of them. I know my boundaries." He saw a guy reached out to touch Hanyuu's rear. "Oh…that's it!" He stood up but then saw Hanyuu deal with the guy by grabbing his wrist, glaring at him, before the man screamed and ran out as fast as he could.

"You're not the only one who can be scary," said Keiichi, "And isn't Hanyuu-chan more powerful than you are?"

"I can't help it. She's my sister and as her older brother I have to protect her," said Shinichi.

"Isn't she older than she looks?" asked Keiichi.

"Kei, don't ever comment about a woman's age or weight. Those are sensitive matters," warned Shinichi.

"Well, at least you don't have any more problems with her dating Chiaki," said Keiichi.

"Of course not! I can trust him," said Shinichi. Rika looked at him and winked, causing him to look away. "Rika on the other hand I actually hope gets a nice boyfriend soon." Shinichi sighed. While it was true that he may have had a problem with his sisters dating, he wished that Rika could find someone to fall for other than him. If fate were different, he may have considered a relationship with her, but all he could feel for Rika was that of brotherly affection. Since Rika had come onto him he'd felt nervous being alone in the same room with her and his mother wasn't helping matters. She probably thought it could make a great story. He would too if it weren't happening to him.

"I sorta doubt it. Satoshi told me that Satoko told him that Rika has turning down boys left and right like flies," Keiichi said. This made Shinichi sigh in annoyance.

"Well that stinks," mumbled Shinichi. "Well better head back to the Hive."

"Still trying to find them?" Keiichi asked, he was referring to both Gnol and WHITE 14 or Shiro Juuyon as he now referred to himself. They've been trying to track them down via the satellite but so far they were not able to even catch a blip of them.

"Yeah, hopefully we'll find them soon before they start causing any more trouble," Shinichi said. After putting some money on the table he walked out of Angel Mort. Both he and Keiichi weren't aware of a man standing up and walking out of the restaurant at the same time.

* * *

**AT THE HIVE, SHINICHI'S QUARTERS**

Shinichi was naked in his bed, moaning in pleasure. He was being serviced by two sexy harem girls who were dressed only in tube tops and loincloths. The tube tops only wrapped around their breasts and tied together with string in the back and their loincloths also had ties in the sides. The girls servicing him were none other than Rena and Satan. The Stake of Wrath was sucking on his ball sack while Rena was giving him an awesome blowjob. Shinichi was clenching the sheets just enjoying the sensation of two mouths giving him oral pleasure.

Rena removed her mouth from Shinichi's cock and removed her tube top before mounting him. She wore no panties under her loincloth. She slowly slid down and moaned, throwing her head back as she grinded herself against it. Satan had switched her attention from his balls to his right nipple, wrapping her lips around it as she sucked on it.

"Ah…Rena…Satan…" he uttered. He ran a hand through Satan's hair while the other one was placed on Rena's waist, holding them close. Satan then kissed Shinichi and their tongues played with each other. He looked the girl in her red eyes and said, "Satan-chan, you're so beautiful." She blushed and smiled. Only Shinichi had ever called her beautiful. She wasn't a blonde like Beelzebub and Asmodeus and her hair wasn't black like Lucifer's. She was like an albino but Shinichi called her beautiful.

"SHIN-KUN!" Rena began screaming in the throes of pleasure before she had her climax and then got off Shinichi. "Your turn, Satan-chan," Rena smiled.

Satan blushed and removed her meager clothing before mounting Shinichi. She began to slowly bounce up and down, moaning. Rena, grinning impishly, straddled Shinichi's face and the cyborg licked at her leaking pussy. The girl then leaned forward and began playing with Satan's breasts. She fondled Satan's left breast in her hand while sucking on the nipple of the right breast. Satan started to cry out at the intense pleasure and Shinichi doubled his efforts in eating Rena out. It didn't take too long for Satan to violently toss her head back and forth because of the intense pleasure coursing through her body and she arched her back, pushing more of her breasts into Rena's mouth and hand as she climaxed, screaming, "SHINICHI!" Rena climaxed several seconds later, spilling her juices over Shinichi's face.

The two girls were now lying side by side, just basking in the afterglow as Shinichi jerked himself off a few times. He then sprayed some of his cum onto their breasts and faces, marking them as his. The girls took some of the cum with their fingers and licked it off before cleaning each other off with their tongues. Shinichi enjoyed the sight and wanted to fuck them some more but the girls were tired. Sighing, Shinichi lay down between them and wrapped his arms around the girls before drifting off to sleep.

* * *

In the morning, both Rena and Shinichi returned to their apartment, wanting a day to themselves. However, they would be in for an unpleasant surprise upon arrival. When they opened the door both were shocked to see their apartment completely ransacked.

"What the hell...?" Shinichi muttered with his eyes narrowed angrily. It was a huge mess with the TV smashed, their furniture in pieces, and the pictures with Shinichi in them torn to shreds. Books and papers were lying carelessly on the floor as well.

"How did this happen?" Rena asked. Shinichi didn't say anything. He wondered who could have done it. He briefly thought of WHITE 14 before squashing that idea. If it was him, he would have just bombed the place with them inside. When they reached the bedroom, they had their answer.

Someone had carved onto their bedroom wall a message: **THERE IS STILL A SURVIVOR OF CAMP COBRA**

Shinichi eyes the message, Camp Cobra where has he heard that before. His eyes widen as he remembered something.

* * *

_"This is Camp Cobra, we require assistance urgently!" a man shouted on the radio before he screamed as #13 warped behind him and slit his throat._

* * *

"So there is still a survivor from that time," Shinichi whispered to himself.

"Shin-kun? Do you know who did this?" Rena asked as the message meant nothing to her.

Shinichi turn to Rena with concern. "Unfortunately Rena-chan, I do." He was going to have to tell her eventually. He never went into detail about his past but recently his past seemed to be coming back from the shadows to haunt him. '_Guess this is karma…_'

* * *

"Wait, somebody ransacked your place?" asked Shiori. "Who could've done this?" she asked. Shinichi and Rena were sitting in Shiori's living room and told her what they had found when they had returned to their apartment. "Where were you when it happened?"

Shinichi blushed and answered, "Rena-chan and I were spending the night at the base…"

"Ah…" Shiori understood. "Say no more."

"Kaa-chan, please be careful," Shinichi advised, "This guy is after me."

"You should call the police," said Shiori.

"Can't, I fixed everything," answered Shinichi. Shinichi had used his time powers to reverse time in order to undo all the damage which had fortunately happened within a 24 hour time frame.

"Why would you do that?" asked Shiori.

"Because I doubt this is something that the police can handle."

"What makes you say that?"

"'There is still a survivor of Camp Cobra'," Rena repeated the message that had been written on the wall.

Shiori blinked and asked, "What is that supposed to mean?"

Shinichi sighed. He really hated bringing up memories from the darkest moments of his life but they needed to know. He informed them, "A few years back, when I was part of GIN-SHOCKER, I was sent on a mission with Daichi to steal some top-secret files on a super soldier program from a military base. However, when that failed I was dispatched again to put a stop to it and…" He clenched his eyes shut.

"Shinji, you don't have to go on," said Shiori as she understood how painful it was for him.

"No, you need to know," he said. He continued, "I was sent to put a stop to it and so I killed everyone on the base and destroyed it." Rena gasped.

"Oh, Shin-kun…" she was sympathetic and disgusted by what GIN-SHOCKER had made him do.

"And now apparently someone survived and is coming after me for revenge," said Shinichi. He put his face in his hands, "Maybe this is just karma…"

"You shouldn't blame yourself," objected Shiori. "It wasn't you."

"I still remember, Kaa-chan," he said. "Those memories are part of who I am and…" The phone rang.

"I'll get that," said Shiori as she got up and picked up the phone. "Hello?" After a moment she gasped and then cried, "We'll be right there!" She put the receiver down and shouted, "Shinji, we need to go to the hospital! It's your father!"

Shinichi paled.

* * *

Kasai had been assaulted and was now lying in the hospital. His right arm was in an orthopedic cast, with his neck in a brace and forehead covered in bandages.

"Tatsuyoshi-kun!" Shiori cried as she and the rest of the family rushed into his hospital room. When they heard that he was in the hospital, they immediately rushed over there to see if he was okay. "Are you okay? What happened?" she asked in concern.

"I don't know. It happened so fast," Kasai groaned. "I was just returning home after work when I was suddenly attack by this man. I tried to defend myself but he overpowered me. He could have killed me but he didn't. I think he said…it would've been too simple." Kasai winced, he didn't want to say what the assailant had said next, but he felt that they should know. He continued, "He said that he was going to make BLACK 13 and all his loves ones suffer for what happened at Camp Cobra."

Shinichi clenched his fists angrily. He didn't care that someone was targeting him for his sins. However, someone had targeted his stepfather while he had nothing to do with it.

"I'm just glad you're alive," said Shiori, relieved that she wouldn't become a widow for the second time in her life. Shinichi smiled slightly, glad that nothing fatal had happened. Then his eyes widened as he saw a red light right between his mother's eyes.

"GET DOWN!" Shinichi shouted as he pushed his mother to the ground and the window shattered before a bullet embedded itself into the wall. Rena, Rika and Hanyuu screamed when the glass suddenly shattered.

Shinichi glared at the bullet in the hole then quickly looked out the window and concentrated his eyes. His cybernetic augmentations allowed him to see far distances and he spotted someone on the nearest rooftop. He saw a sniper rifle being drawn back and a figure escaping. "I have to go!" said Shinichi before dashing off to catch the sniper.

When he reached the spot on the roof there was no one there. The sniper was long gone, with no trace. Well, _almost_ no trace. Finding a note taped to a wall he tore it off and after analyzing the handwriting hand-writing he could confirm that it was the same man that had ransacked his apartment and attacked his stepfather since the note read: **'REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED AT CAMP COBRA'. **

Shinichi growled as he quickly crumpled up the note, mentally swearing to protect his loved ones from this man.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the warehouse district, Stevenson growled angrily. He'd missed his chance. He was about to kill the bastard's biological mother to make him feel true pain, but the bastard was able to push his mother out of the way in the nick of time.

"Roger, Roger, Roger," a voice echoed, making the man turn to see Shiro Juuyon and Gnol. "I really must ask; what the hell? I expected a little more out of a man who wanted to avenge the atrocity that happen to his brothers-in arms," Shiro said, shaking his head in mock disappointment. "I mean you could have at least killed his stepdad instead of beating him up."

"I thought of that, but I want to see the look on his face sees his mother die right before his eyes," Stevenson said. That was why he didn't kill Tatsuyoshi Kasai and waited until Shinichi and his family showed up.

"And yet, BLACK 13 was able to stop your assassination attempt," Gnol said. "Now your enemy will be on the clock, making sure you can't target anymore of his loves ones."

"I don't care! That bastard has to pay for his crimes!" Stevenson snapped angrily at them.

"That's good to hear, because I brought two presents for you. They should be able to help you to kill that bastard," said Shiro before snapping his fingers. Stevenson blinked as what looked like a mechanize glider came swooping down from the air, hovering above the ground. "Your first gift is this lovely glider which based on the kind used by a very dangerous individual," Shiro explained, referring to the Green Goblin.

Stevenson smiled and asked, "Interesting. What is the second present?" Shiro then produced from his pocket a dark green, ribbed USB flash drive with a C on it that was stylized to look like a snake.

"Say hello to the Cobra Memory. This little trinket will help you fight against BLACK 13 on an equal playing field." He then tossed the Gaia Memory to Stevenson and he caught it in his hand.

"Really? Well that's good to hear," Stevenson grinned as he admired his new weapons. "I already called him out too. He should be here soon."

"And take some more of those blue pills I gave you. You're going to need the energy," advised Shiro.

* * *

"What!-? Someone tried to shoot Shiori-sensei!-?" Yokoshima cried out in shock.

Shinichi had explained the situation to the other NEO-NUMBERS. This was after the police had been called by the hospital to investigate and they had taken the bullet as evidence. Shiori and her family were also interviewed by the police and asked who would want to hurt her and why. Shinichi knew why but he wasn't about to share that information with the police while he could deal with things personally. This was his problem to deal with, after all.

"That's why I need you to bring everyone here. If he's targeting the people I love to get to me then we need to bring his targets here to the Hive," said Shinichi. Shiori, Rika, Hanyuu and Rena were already at the Hive. After nearly getting shot this was the safest place for her.

"And what about Kasai-sempai?" asked Shogo. "He's in the hospital right now, isn't he?"

"Yes, that is why you, Michiru and Hana will be there to protect him. Michiru and Hana can stay inside the building and guard the door while Shogo will watch from the outside in Rider form," instructed Shinichi.

"We won't fail you, Shinichi," said Michiru.

"Daichi, I need you to go and get the others here," Shinichi instructed.

"And what will you do?" asked Daichi.

"I'm going to prepare," said Shinichi. Sooner or later that survivor from Camp Cobra would act again and Shinichi was going to be ready for him.

* * *

Shinichi went back to the apartment to see if he could get a few things for Rena during her stay at the base when he found the note taped to the door. "He's been here again…" Shinichi murmured as he tore the note off the door and read it. **'COME TO THE WAREHOUSE DISTRICT, ALONE. I WILL BE WAITING.' **He tore the note to shreds. "Alright, if you want me then I'm coming asshole." Opening the door, he went inside and towards the bedroom. He opened up the closet and took out a box.

Opening the box, Shinichi took out a black leather jacket which had armor padding stitched inside, a rib-like pattern on the front and on the back was XIII. Also included was a black mask Shinichi was getting ready. He was being called out so he was going to 'dress for success.' "If he wants BLACK 13 then he's gonna get BLACK 13." He was well aware he would put the people closest to him at risk. That was a fate unavoidable by heroes and which was they kept their identities a secret. However, the past had a habit of coming back to haunt you.

He heard a knock at the door to his and answered, "Enter." The door opened and Alan came in. Shinichi came out of the bedroom, wearing the jacket and holding the mask. "Alan, what're you doing here?"

"To check up on you," Alan answered. "Shinichi, are you sure about this?" asked Alan.

"Yes, I am," Shinichi said firmly. "And all I need you to do is to protect Rena-chan and my family. He wants me alone so that's what I'll do."

"You're letting him goad you. It's probably a trap."

"Oh, I'm well aware of that but he wants me alone then that's what I'm giving him."

"Just don't cross the line with this one," advised Alan.

"He crossed the line first when he went after my family when they had nothing to do with this," said Shinichi crossly. "But if I do cross the line I'll know you'll be nearby to stop me."

"Of course I will. I won't let you turn into a murderer again," swore Alan.

"I know you won't," said Shinichi, full of trust. He then put on the mask which was round as it covered his head and the upper half of his face with red lenses covering the eyeholes. It was secured by a chin strap as well. It resembled a black skull.

"So, what should I call you now?" asked Alan.

"Black Skull."

* * *

Shinichi arrived at the warehouse district on his hover bike before deactivating the vehicle as the metal components shrank and were absorbed into his body via the legs. He then called, "Alright, I'm here! Come on out!"

There was no answer at first, before a whistling noise could be heard. Shinichi quickly jumped out of the way as an RPG round hit the ground and exploded. Shinichi look at the direction where that came from and saw Stevenson walking towards him, holding an RPG launcher in his hands.

"So you decided to show up by yourself. I thought for sure you were going to bring backup, but then again I bet you just wanted to kill me yourself like you did that night," Stevenson accused Shinichi. Stevenson was dressed in a black sleeveless shirt with a picture of a cobra in front, black camouflage pants and combat boots.

"I came alone since you're specifically targeting me so there is no reason for me to drag anyone else in because of my sins," Shinichi replied

"Your sins?" Stevenson growled, "You're actually sorry for what you did? Sorry for killing my friends, people who I see as brother-in-arms? Sorry for stabbing me with a safety rail? Don't make me laugh!"

"Safety rail?" Shinichi muttered confused before he remembered that after he'd killed the scientists and destroyed most of the equipment, someone had viciously attacked him. He'd delivered the death blow and killed him, though, or at least he thought he had. "You're that soldier! But how!-? Even if that rail missed your vital organs when it pierced through you, you were electrocuted because of the lab equipment!" Shinichi shouted in shock.

"Heh, it was thanks to the super soldier formula," Stevenson sneered, ripping off his shirt to reveal a wicked scar on the spot where that safety rail had run him through. "Somehow it gave me the endurance needed to stay alive even after that electrocution and those bombs you activated blew the place up." Stevenson sneered, "I tried to find you afterwards all my leads went dead. I was forced to live a simple life and tried to move on, but I still wanted my revenge against you. But then that man came."

Shinichi frowned, quickly realizing who this man was referring to. "Let me guess, he's a white haired, red-eyed bastard that looks like me."

Stevenson confirmed, "That right. Personally I don't like him, but since he's helping me kill you I can't complain."

"You shouldn't trust Shiro Juuyon, you know. He's just using you and he will betray you as long as it means killing me or once your usefulness has ended," Shinichi told him.

"So what? If it means I can avenge all those you killed at Camp Cobra, then that's a price I'm willing to pay!" Stevenson smirked darkly. "Now enough talk. IT'S TIME TO FIGHT!" Stevenson roared as he threw the RPG launcher at Shinichi who quickly batted it away.

This was a ruse, however, as Stevenson ran towards him and quickly punched Shinichi in the gut. Shinichi gasped but quickly countered by kicking Stevenson in the face making him stumble which allowed Shinichi to deliver a roundhouse kick Stevenson blocked with ease.

Stevenson grinned as he realized that Shiro was right. Using those blue pills did give him the advantage, especially since he took more than one to help amplify his already enhanced strength. He quickly grabbed the leg, spinning Shinichi around before throwing him through the air. However, Shinichi did a mid-air roll and landed on the ground safely.

Shinichi frown. It was night time which meant he should be able to generate the antimatter balls which were the physical manifestation of his Erase powers thanks to the demonic blood from Warren. He could only use this power at night, however. Despite knowing he could easily end this fight with antimatter, he refused to use that lethal ability. It was his fault that turned this man into a monster with his android clone helping to add fuel to the fire.

Shinichi quickly rushed at Stevenson and delivered a barrage of punches and kicks into his stomach. Stevenson growled as he clasped both his hands together and slammed them violently down on Shinichi head, grinning as he saw the mask cracked. However, he was shock to see Shinichi still standing as Shinichi raised his fist which turned into a huge metal fist. Shinichi swung and bashed the fist into Stevenson, sending him flying. He may have refused to use antimatter in this fight, but that didn't mean he wouldn't be using his other abilities.

Shinichi raised his other arm as it morphed into the Hook Arm. He shot the hook at Stevenson and the cable connecting the hook to his arm tied the Camp Cobra survivor up quickly. "Gah!" Stevenson grunted as he was being squeezed, his arms pinned to his sides. Shinichi smirked as he swung Stevenson around and around before slamming him down against the ground.

"GACK!" Stevenson grunted in pain. "Grr, you may be strong, but I still have more tricks up my sleeve." Still bound, Stevenson still managed to get up to his feet and began to tremble. His veins appeared on his arms and across his forehead as he gritted his teeth. All of a sudden, his muscles began to expand right before Shinichi's eyes. Not only was his muscle mass increasing but so was his strength as he snapped the cable holding him with his raw, brute strength. He then jumped high into the air, much to Shinichi's shock, before coming down towards him. Shinichi jumped and rolled out of the way as Stevenson landing, causing a crater to form on impact.

'_Guess he really is a SUPER soldier_,' thought Shinichi as he saw Stevenson's appearance and gulped. '_No wonder he survived that day_.' Shinichi felt a pang of guilt as he remembered that day but pushed the guilt away to focus. This man had gone after his family. As sympathetic as Shinichi was for this man's situation there was no way Shinichi would forgive him for hurting his stepfather and attempting to murder his mother. Getting up to his feet, Shinichi activated his Great Fists and then lunged at Stevenson. He threw his right fist at Stevenson only for him to catch it in one hand. Shinichi, surprised, swung his left fist only for it to be caught as well. Stevenson, his eyes glowing blue due to G-Shock, lifted Shinichi off the ground by his fists and then violently smashed him to the ground. Shinichi grunted but would not give Stevenson the satisfaction of hearing him cry out in pain.

After pushing himself back to his feet, Shinichi swung his Great Fists at Stevenson who effortless evaded his strikes, seemingly weaving and dancing around as he bounced on the balls of his feet like a boxer. He ducked under another swing and then saw an opening before charging forward like a bull and hitting Shinichi in the chest with a straight punch. Shinichi was shoved back by the punch but recovered quickly to attack again. This time Stevenson blocked the Great Fiats with his forearms, a move that would normally break them but Stevenson showed no evidence of feeling pain. Angrily, Shinichi tried to hit Stevenson with a punch which he countered with his own. Stevenson's fist smashed against the Great Fist and it was the latter which shattered to pieces, shocking Shinichi, but then Shinichi saw the glowing blue eyes.

'_G-Shock_,' he realized. Stevenson wasn't just a Super Soldier, he was a Super Soldier under the influence of a super performance enhancer which would normally impair a regular human after a short while but Stevenson was anything but a regular human. His left Great Fist then morphed into the Shovel Claw and he slammed it to the ground, the sharp teeth of the excavator claw digging into the concrete floor before he pulled out a chunk and tossed it at Stevenson. His right arm then morphed into an energy blaster and he fired at the chunk, causing it to explode and turn into dust to blind Stevenson. Shinichi then formed the Tank Legs and used his Fast Forward ability to make himself faster as he sped up to Stevenson through the dust cloud before striking him with a barrage of kicks in a matter of seconds before using a roundhouse kick to send him flying to the side and skidding along the ground.

Shinichi's eyes were focused on Stevenson as he got back up to his feet, his veins still pulsing and his eyes blazing blue. He was briefly reminded of the fights against Mongul and Major Force.

Spitting out some blood and a tooth, Stevenson said, "Looks like I'm going to need that other gift he gave me after all." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his Cobra Memory.

"Gaia Memory?" questioned Shinichi. He was really starting to hate those things. They turned people into monsters, making them stronger and granting them new abilities. Stevenson was already a super soldier and was on G-Shock. Now he was about to activate a Gaia Memory and use it on himself.

"**COBRA!" **the Cobra Memory called as it was slammed into the USH port-shaped tattoo on Stevenson's forearm before it was as digital energy enveloped the man, Stevenson roared furiously as he began to mutate. Shinichi frowned as he witnessed Stevenson turn into the Cobra Dopant and his response was to quickly transform into Showa. "Henshin," he commanded softly. His Spark Core appeared and it spun as the nanites became supercharged. The light produced by the Spark Core was only meant to distract the opponents so they wouldn't attack during the transformation. The nanites formed Shinichi's bodysuit, then his armor and finally Shinichi replaced his mask with his helmet, snapping on the faceplate to secure it to his head.

Stevenson's Dopant form was hideous looking. He now resembled a humanoid reptile with dark, grayish scales covering his body. His head was cobra-like with a pair of glowing blue eyes peaking from between the upper and lower jaws of the cobra head. The fangs dripped with venom. Snakes appeared to be wrapped around his upper arms and thighs. His right arm now resembled a snake's tail and could be used like a whip while his left hand resembled a serpent's head, also with venom dripping from the fangs.

Stevenson felt stronger in this form and just couldn't believe how good it felt. The power was even more intense than his super soldier enhancements. He felt like he could take on the entire world but first he needed to take Shinichi out of it. Hissing, he glared at Showa who glared right back.

"So, to fight a monster (me) you decided to become a monster," Showa observed.

"**Don't compare me to you who killed his own comrades**," hissed the Cobra Dopant.

"Guess Shiro told you about that," Showa guessed.

"**That's right and he also told me how you gunned down the woman you loved**," the Cobra Dopant hissed in scorn and disgust. Showa's fists clenched tightly. He hated being reminded of that. "**So, wanna dance?**"

"I thought you'd never ask!" The Rider and Dopant charged at each other, closing the gap between them before making their move. The Cobra Dopant swung his whip-arm at Showa but the Rider dodged it and slammed his palm against the Dopant's chest but the Cobra Dopant then grabbed the Rider by the shoulder with his snake-hand, the fangs digging into the armor, before tossing him up and smacking him with the whip-arm, sending him flying. Showa tumbled along the ground. He then rolled out of the way as the Cobra Dopant fired corrosive venom from his snake hand in the form of balls that hit the ground, causing it to hiss, smoke and melt.

"I better avoid that," thought Showa aloud. "Zennin, let's strike from the shadows!" Darkness enveloped him as the Cobra Dopant fired another ball of acid, only for it to hit and melt through a log which had suddenly taken Showa's place. The Cobra Dopant wondered where Showa had gone but then was struck from behind by a kick. He swung his whip-arm but the now ninja-like Showa Kage ducked and then landed two hits against his chest before drawing his ninjato from out of nowhere and slashing the Cobra Dopant across the chest, sending sparks flying. Hissing, the Cobra Dopant wrapped his whip-arm around Showa and squeezed, only for him to poof out of existence.

Confused and enraged, the Cobra Dopant demanded, "**Show yourself, coward!**"

"We're right here," Showa said as he, and ten identical copies, appeared around the Cobra Dopant. The Cobra Dopant struck as they lunged at him, the copies of the Shinobi Rider turning into smoke as they were hit. The Cobra Dopant then fired acid at the last one but it turned out to be a fake as well. The spot closest to the Dopant's foot then exploded as Showa flew out and slammed the Cobra Dopant with an uppercut that sent him staggering. Then, in mid-air, Showa tossed the Dai-Shuriken at the Dopant, sparks flying as the sharp blades slashed at him as it flew around him before returning to Showa.

"**You bastard!**" shouted the Cobra Dopant as the snakes on his arms and legs shot forward and then bit down on Showa's own arms and legs before shocking him with electricity that forced him to his knees. The Cobra Dopant approached Showa and then wrapped his whip-arm around him. He started to squeeze and Showa gritted his teeth. Whilst effective in offense and stealth, Showa Kage had lighter armor. Being shocked too was causing his systems to become damaged and the pressure was slowly killing him. He had to get out of this.

"Zennin…let's bring down…the thunder!" grunted Showa and all of a sudden a tornado of fire, wind and electricity blew the Cobra Dopant away and his whip-arm was also shredded by it. It slowly regenerated as Showa walked out of the dispersing tornado in Oni Form, the snakes on him killed during the transformation. He rushed forward and hit the Cobra Dopant with a wind-powered punch that sent him flying straight through the walls of three warehouses and hitting the wall outside the forth. Looking through the series of holes, he screamed and jumped out of the gap between the fourth and third warehouses as flames roared towards him. Lightning then rained down from the sky and struck the Cobra Dopant at Showa's command.

"You should give up now," said Showa, "I might end up killing you."

"**SHUT UP!**" The Cobra Dopant's snake and whip arms then turned into human looking ones and they bulged with muscle and power. Even his legs bulged as did his chest. He was focusing on his super soldier enhancements again and the G-Shock in his system.

"Fine, if that's how you want to play it," said Showa as he closed the gap between them and the two started to exchange blows that caused shockwaves with each impact. They kept hitting, and hitting, and hitting each other with all their strength. The strikes were violent and painful but neither was letting up. They were determined to take each other down.

Meanwhile, the mechanical glider was hovering nearby and aiming at Showa's back. Whilst he was distracted, the glider fired missiles that soared through the air. Showa then shouted as he was hit by the missiles as they exploded while the Cobra Dopant jumped back. Showa grunted in pain and looked to see a hi-tech glider floating next to the Cobra Dopant. "What…is that?" he growled out his question.

"**My ride**," said the Cobra Dopant before he jumped on the glider, clamps locking his feet into place, before it took off. Showa watched as it took to the air before turning around and firing laser beams at Showa.

"If he wants a dogfight he's gonna get a dogfight! Yabuki, time to sing!" He jumped and his armor turned green and samurai-like with wings on his back before taking off. With the Higurashi no Yaiba gripped in his right hand he flew at the Cobra Dopant, weaving around the laser beams before he got close and slashed the Dopant with his sword, causing him to cry out again from the cut.

"**Don't you dare hit and run!**" the Cobra Dopant hissed as the glider fired homing missiles at Showa. They would follow him to the ends of the Earth until they hit him.

"Who's running? 1000 Crane Slash!" Showa called as he swung his sword at the missiles and energy projection in the shape of paper cranes flew at them, the impact causing the missiles to explode prematurely. The remaining cranes then hit the Cobra Dopant, causing sparks to fly as they hit him and his glider, dealing damage to the monster and his vehicle. The Cobra Dopant hissed as he began swatting the energy cranes away and his eyes widened as he moved quickly to avoid a powerful energy slash courtesy of Showa.

"**BASTARD!**" the Cobra Dopant roared as he fired the fangs on his cobra head like missiles at Showa, hitting him.

Showa grunted in pain as the fangs hit. He then saw Cobra Dopant as he launched his whip-arm and wrapped it around Showa's sword-wielding arm as a laser weapon extended out in the front of the glider before it began firing at the Kamen Rider. Showa quickly punched at the whip holding him arm with enough force to release him before he swung the Higurashi no Yaiba to deflect the laser. He also destroyed a missile coming at him, covering his sight with smoke. As he cleared away the smoke, he noticed that the Cobra Dopant had gone.

Showa scanned for his opponent, wondering out loud in a whisper, "Where did you go..." He ceased his musing when he heard something coming from… "Above me!" Showa looked up to see the Cobra Dopant smiling sadistically at him as he unleashed all of his glider's weapons upon the Kamen Rider.

A continuous barrage of lasers and missiles hit Showa repeatedly and he was enveloped in explosions and smoke. After he finished blasting, the Cobra Dopant grinned and whispered, "**I did it…I finally did it, guys. He's dead. You can rest in peace now.**"

However, he was dead wrong. From the smoke cloud, a golden ray of light pierced through the cloud followed by another and another before the Cobra Dopant was suddenly blinded by an intense flash of golden light which just burst right in front of him. When he looked again, he saw that Showa had changed once more and was clad in gold.

"THIS IS MY TRUE POWER!" Showa shouted as he unveiled his Hinamizawa Guardian Form to the Cobra Dopant. He had not intended to use his most powerful form to defeat Stevenson but the super soldier made it abundantly clear that he would not stop unless he was stopped, for good. Transforming into Jet Mode, Showa then attacked the Cobra Dopant who fought back with his glider's laser beams. The sky was lit with the energy beams of the flier's dogfight.

"**LET'S SEE WHAT YOU GOT!**" the Cobra Dopant roared.

"**YOU ASKED FOR IT!**" Showa then fired his missiles and the dart-like projectiles flew towards the Cobra Dopant. While the Cobra Dopant was able to shoot down five of them, the sixth one was able to hit the glider on its left wing. The Cobra Dopant was starting to lose altitude due to the damaged wing, which was what Showa had been waiting for.

The Showa Guardian Jet zoomed towards the Cobra Dopant before changing back to Showa Hinamizawa Guardian form, his body posed for a flying kick. The attack struck the Cobra Dopant and he exploded along with his glider before he fell to the ground, his durability saving him from becoming splat as he crashed hard and left a crater on impact. The Cobra Memory then ejected itself from his body and shattered to piece as Showa hovered down and landed.

Showa loomed over Stevenson with the empowered Higurashi no Yaiba gripped in his hand. He raised it up, power surging through it as energy collected onto the blade and took the shape of a blade several times larger than the blade of the Higurashi no Yaiba as the length was equal to Showa's height.

"Go ahead and do it," challenged Stevenson and Showa swung down. The ground exploded as a dust cloud concealed them. When the dust cloud cleared, the sword was shown to have struck the ground near Stevenson's head and had not cleaved his head in half. "What…?" Stevenson uttered in shock.

"Believe it or not I am sorry about what happened in the past and nothing I can do can change that. You may never forgive me but I can live with that. However, you don't deserve forgiveness from me for hurting my stepfather and attempting to murder my mother who are innocent in all this," Showa said with a scowl. He then took out the C3 and digitized Stevenson, absorbing him into the device before his containment card shot out and Showa caught it. "You're going away for a long time, Stevenson. Maybe in that time you can think about what you did." He then looked up and spotted Sentinel before he flew up to speak to him. "How long have you been here?"

"At the start of your speech," said Sentinel, smiling. "I almost thought you were gonna kill him. I'm glad you didn't." He was relieved.

"I wanted to, but I decided to grant him mercy," admitted Showa. "Shiro got to him."

"He's really out to get you," Sentinel observed.

Snorting, Showa replied, "Well, I did kill him." He sighed, "Why does my past always come back to haunt me?"

"I can't answer that, Shinichi. I wish I could."

"That's OK, Alan. I'll find my own answers. I did come up with one: karma's a bitch."

"True, very true," Sentinel agreed, nodding.

* * *

After spending a week at the hospital, Kasai was allowed to go home to his family. With his right arm in a cast he needed Shiori to feed him. He also had to go on a long medical leave due to his condition so he wouldn't be able to go to work until he healed. Shiori was going to make sure her husband recovered.

"Can't you heal me?" Kasai asked his stepson who was sitting with him in the living room while the latter was cleaning the former's shotgun.

"Sorry, but the window of opportunity has closed. I have a twenty four hour limit whenever I reverse time and it's way beyond that," Shinichi said apologetically.

"Oh…" Kasai groaned.

"Hey, Kaa-chan is pampering you. You should consider yourself lucky," said Shinichi, smiling positively.

"I was told you didn't kill the man that did this to me," said Kasai. Shinichi nodded. "Why? I thought you were adamant about using lethal force against all your enemies."

"Because unlike my other enemies he only came after me to avenge the people I killed, his brothers-in-arms," Shinichi answered sympathetically. "He wasn't really a bad guy. He was just warped by revenge…" It reminded him of when he'd waged war on X-SHOCKER and Gebok after Lina's death. "I wanted to, though. He hurt you and almost killed Kaa-chan. I couldn't forgive him for that."

Kasai smiled. He was proud of Shinichi for being the bigger man and showing restraint.

Shinichi added, his eyes hardened, "Although, if he had killed Kaa-chan then after I revived her I would've erased him from existence."

Kasai then frowned. That was more like the usual Shinichi, the unforgiving avenger, and Kasai would agree. If anything were to happen to Shiori then the ones responsible would end up staring down the barrel of his shotgun.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, I'd like to thank Iron-Mantis for his help in the production of this chapter. If it weren't for his help and input then I wouldn't have been able to finish. My only complaint were the grammatical errors I needed to fix but they were tolerable and I was able to modify, edit and adapt everything Iron Mantis was able to share with me. Therefore, Iron-Mantis, thanks for the help and hopefully you will continue to support me! BTW, the Cobra Dopant's appearance is based on Garagaranda.**


	77. The Legacy of Cain Part 21

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 21: Aoi no Kuwagata**

Aokigahara, also known as the Sea of Trees, was a forest that covered 35 square kilometers. It lay at the northwest base of Mount Fuji in Japan. The forest contained a number of rocky icy caverns, a few of which were popular tourist destinations.

The forest, which had a historic association with demons in Japanese mythology, was also a popular place for suicides.

Due to the wind-blocking density of the trees, and an absence of wildlife, the forest was known for being eerily quiet. However, tonight, that quietness would be shattered. An unidentified object broke through the clouds as it went crashing through the forest, causing the wildlife to scatter. There was chaos at first but once again the quietness returned once again to the Sea of Trees. However, the object that had fallen from the sky and crashed to Earth was emitting a blue glow.

* * *

"Why are we out here?" Daichi inquired as Yokoshima drove their jeep. The Gatling gun turret had been replaced with a rocket launcher this time.

"Sheila detected something coming into Earth's atmosphere," Yokoshima answered. "She said we should check it out."

"I don't believe it," said Daichi in disbelief, "You still do anything she tells you to. Like you're still in love with her."

"We have history," Yokoshima agreed, "But what if she did detect something?"

"I guess so. I mean the satellite is supposed to alert us if anything entered Earth's atmosphere and we can't let the enemy get to it first."

"Good man, Daichi."

"Shut up and drive." Daichi grumbled as they drive through the forest. "But still I gotta admit I'm surprised you're so calm."

"What do you mean? Why wouldn't I be?" Yokoshima asked.

"Well I figured with all the stories about this place, you would be freaking out," Daichi said.

"Oh please, compared to forest of Hinamizawa, that swamp, and the DHS's castle, I've seen way scarier stuff. Besides, why should I be afraid of demons, since I am dating the cutest one of all?" Yokoshima smirked

Daichi rolled his eyes and was about to retort until the jeep's onboard computer detected something ahead. "We're close."

"Well, time to put the pedal to the metal," said Yokoshima as the two drove forward.

They were unaware that someone else was also looking for the object.

* * *

A man was walking in the woods. He wore a black robe with a hood covering his head, golden chains around neck and a blood red ruby ring on his finger.

He stopped as what looked like goblin/rat creatures rushed towards him, the one wearing a steel cap spoke, "Master Harious, we still haven't found the object that crashed into the Aokigahara, but we are confident that we will find it before day comes."

"Don't bother. It took me awhile to properly pinpoint the energy signature of this object due to the spiritual interference of this place, but now I can see where it is," the one now dubbed Harious said,"Now recall the troops. I want them to come just in case there's going to be any interference."

"That's our Master Harious. I knew you'd find the object in time without our help," the steel capped one said proudly.

"But of course. I am great and powerful-" Harious began to say but he paused in mid-sentence.

"A great and powerful what, Master?" the rat goblin asked.

"Quiet! Can't you hear it?" Harious snapped.

"Hear what?"

"That music, that's what!"

The lead rat goblin tuned his ears and said, "Oh yeah! What is that? It sounds sorta like polka."

Before Harious could answer a large jeep with a rocket launcher moved into the area. Daichi was fiddling with the radio, grumbling, "Why can't this stupid thing play anything else?"

"Hey, I like polka," said Yokoshima. "So, how close are we now?"

"Just a few feet, Yokoshima," said Daichi. He turned off the radio, annoyed. "We better get this fucking stereo fixed." He then shouted, "BRAKES!"

The tires screeched to a stop as Yokoshima slammed his foot down upon the brake pedal. "Woah, what the hell, Dai!-?"

"We almost drove into that crater," said Daichi as he exited the vehicle with Yokoshima. They were standing outside a really wide and deep crater with something in the middle of it. It looked like some kind of metallic, blue pod with strange alien markings on it. "Damn, we've got ET tech here."

"Ooh…" Yokoshima gazed at how shiny the object looked.

"Yokoshima, don't look at it, don't touch it and don't even breathe on it," Daichi warned. "I'm gonna call this in and get some backup. This thing might be radioactive or have some kind of killer security system, or contain some kind of alien virus or…"

"It's mine," said Harious as he appeared from the shadows. "You two will go no further. That object is destined to be mine and I will claim it."

"Hey we got here first!" Yokoshima shouted. He then added, "Dibs!"

Daichi stared at his partner, "What?"

"I called dibs! Now he can't take it from us!" said Yokoshima proudly. Daichi slapped his forehead in frustration.

"Yokoshima, I don't think that bullshit matters to this guy," said Daichi.

"No, it doesn't," said Harious.

"And we call DOUBLE DIBS! HAH!" the rat goblin with the steel cap shouted.

"Damn, double dibs!" grunted Yokoshima, snapping his fingers.

"OK, what is that ugly thing?" asked Daichi.

"One of my loyal minions. Now, if you wish to live longer than you will relinquish your claim on the object," said Harious.

"Who's gonna make us?" Daichi dared, already glancing at their jeep. "You? It's two on two!"

"Yeah," agreed Yokoshima, "The only way you can make us give it to you is if you had an army!" Harious' evil grin just widened which made Yokoshima nervous as he nudged his friend with his elbow as he asked, "Dai…why is he smiling like that?" All around Harious and Steel Cap Rat Goblin several dozen glowing red eyes appeared in the darkness.

"Oh son of a bitch," uttered Daichi as an army of Rat Goblins jumped out, each carrying a variety of melee weapons and quickly swarming around the two causing them to scream in pain. This made both Harious and the Steel Cap Rat Goblin grin sadistically.

"Well that takes care of that annoyance. Now onto this mysterious object," Harious said as he turned to look at it. However, before he could get to it, there was a large scream from his minions, making him turn around to see the Rat Gobing being sent flying in various directions courtesy of both Musician and Armadillo.

"TEMES!" Musician snapped as he thrust his Cricket Fork forward, sending bursts of sounds to crash into the Rat Goblins. He quickly spun around to block a sword from stabbing him before quickly kicking it away.

"Back off! We saw that thing first and we called dibs first, not you and that snob you call a boss!" Armadillo roared, swinging his mace left and right to bash them away with ease. However, he shrieked as a magical chain began to wrap around him. He looked to see Harious smirking evilly at him as Steel Cap rushed forward and started to rapidly slash him at him. His claws were sharp and hard enough to leave marks with the other Rats Goblins joining in. Armadillo screamed, "GET THESE FREAKS OFF ME!"

"I'm on it!" said Musician as he headed to help but then he cursed, "Shit," before jumping away to avoid a second chain that would have trapped him as well. Realizing that he was next to the jeep, Musician climbed onto the back and activated the turret. "Bastards, take this!" He quickly fired off a barrage of rockets that hit the Rat Goblins, causing them to explode. However, the rockets that were lauched at Harious exploded in midair as they hit an invisible barrier. Musician activated the turret's auto reload function and took aim again.

Seeing the rocket launcher aimed at him, Steel Cap gulped as he ran for it, unaware that he had accidentally pushed Armadillo away.

"Woah! Woah!" Armadillo yelled as he began to stumble back before falling backwards into the crater. "AHHHH!"Armadillo screamed as his round body rolled down the crater straight towards the pod which he hit with a clang.

"NO!" Harious shouted as he rushed forward for his prize. It was too late though. As soon as Armadillo hit it, it quickly emitted a sort of shock that forced Yokoshima's armor to deactivate. The pod then opened, emitting smoke as a metallic blue stag beetle-like creature crawled out. It then crawled its way under Yokoshima's shirt and the cyborg let out a yell as it dug its legs into his spine.

"QUICK GET IT OFF HIM!" Harious screamed but it was too late.

Then IT happened.

Yokoshima screamed as his body was slowly being enveloped in a blue and black armor. Before anyone could catch a glimpse of his transformation, he suddenly rushed forward and attacked the Rat Goblins with a savagery that nobody had seen him display before.

"Woah!" Musician gaped. He was wondering if he should help but the decision was made for him as the black and blue being rushed at him and delivered a kick that knocked the rocket launcher off the jeep along with Musician as he shouted, "OI WATCH IT!"

"Blast, he's like a savage beast," Harious growled.

"Master, what do we do?" Steel Cap asked

"Retreat for now. We can't defeat him and reclaim the object as he is right now," Harious ordered reluctantly as he raised his hand and teleported him and his minions away.

When it seemed that there were no enemies left, the armor covering Yokoshima began to vanish as it all seemed to just disappear into his back. He then passed out and fell to the ground. Deactivating his armor, Daichi walked over to Yokoshima and lifted him up. He wondered, "What the fucking hell just happened?"

* * *

"Well I didn't see that coming," Beatrice murmured calmly as she and the other inhabitants of the Meta-World were currently watching this event unfold.

"Indeed, I thought for sure that it was going to end with both sides accidentally destroying the object," Virgillia said calmly.

"Who is this Harious guy anyway?" asked ES-Battler.

"Despite his ability to summon demons he's just a low level wizard that's not worth our time," said Virgillia. "Would you like more tea, Battler-kun?"

"I guess it wouldn't hurt," said ES-Battler and Ronove gave him his refill. "Thanks, Ronove."

"It is my job, Battler-sama," said Ronove.

"Now, let's see what happens next," said Beatrice.

"Shouldn't you tell Asmodeus her boyfriend is hurt?" ES-Battler asked. Beatrice grinned.

"You're right. She should know. It will make the show more emotional," agreed Beatrice as she summoned Asmodeus.

* * *

In the infirmary, Dr. Magi was studying Yokoshima's X-Rays as Daichi leaned against the wall. "So Doc, what's the verdict?"

"Take a look," Dr. Magi offered and Daichi walked over to look at the X-Rays. "If you look at this, it appears that a biomechanical insect has burrowed into Yokoshima's back and attached itself to his spinal cord."

"Is it some kind of parasite?" Daichi asked, recalling the last time one of them got infected with a parasite with the result running around the Hive.

"No, there's no evidence to show it's a parasite," said Dr. Magi. "It's more like a symbiote."

"Symbiote? Like a symbiotic relationship?"

"Yes," Dr. Magi confirmed. "From what you told me this 'blue beetle' has chosen Yokoshima as its host and in order to protect itself granted Yokoshima a new suit of alien armor."

"No wonder he went nuts. It was that bug, not Yokoshima," said Daichi. "Can you get it out?"

"It's too risky," said Dr. Magi. "One wrong move and he could end up paralyzed."

"That's bad…" muttered Daichi. He may have found Yokoshima annoying at times but he was still his friend.

Suddenly, in a burst of gold, Asmodeus appeared and shouted, "YOKO-KUN!" She saw him lying unconscious in bed with nothing but his boxers on. She drooled as she saw his almost naked body but then refocused on the fact that he was hurt.

"I knew that sooner or later she was gonna show up," mumbled Daichi, referring to Asmodeus. That girl always seemed to know if anything were to happen to Yokoshima.

"Dr. Magi, is he going to be okay? What happened? Tell me who did this so I can kill him!" Asmodeus shouted. She hadn't gotten the full details. All she heard from Beatrice-sama was that Yokoshima had been in a fight and was unconscious.

"Easy Asmodeus, Yokoshima is fine. It's just that he's become the host to a symbiote and the sudden shock knocked him out," Dr. Magi told her.

"Host? Symbiote? What are you talking about?" Asmodeus asked, confused.

"You might wanna sit down for this," advised Daichi.

**-SEVERAL MINUTES LATER-**

"An alien bug is inside him?" Asmodeus said after she was given an explanation to Yokoshima's condition. "I see, so this bug saved his life?"

"But still, the way Daichi described how it fights..." Dr. Magi murmured in concern. "We need to call in an expert on alien technology." said Dr. Magi.

"OK, so who do we call?" asked Daichi.

"Who else?"

* * *

"It's called a Scarab," said Alan. Alan had been called since he had the most experience dealing with aliens. It was part of his job since he was a Green Lantern.

"Scarab?" Daichi questioned.

"Yeah, it's a sort of biomechanical symbiote and once it latches onto a host it gives their host a powered suit of armor and powers. I know a hero called the Blue Beetle who has one of these," said Alan.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, but the Scarabs are still weapons and they were created by this alien race called the Reach. These Scarabs are actually advanced scouts and sleeper agents for them and when the Reach gives the signal the Scarab will take over the host and turn them on their own world, preparing it for a Reach invasion," said Alan grimly.

"So, a hi-tech, biomechanical, alien insect has turned Yokoshima into a super weapon?" Dr. Magi questioned.

"You're pulling my leg." Daichi was skeptical. He could believe many things due to what he'd seen but Yokoshima being chosen to become some kind of alien super-weapon was a bit of a stretch.

"Daichi, I know alien tech and this is no joke," said Alan with a frown. "However, for now the Scarab's main objective is to protect itself and its host. Hopefully, Yokoshima will learn to assert some control over it."

"Why can't we have Shinichi talk to it? He can talk to machines, can't he?" Asmodeus questioned.

"It might work but this is alien technology and it's linked to Yokoshima's nervous system. We don't know what will happen if Shinichi tries to force a connection."

"So how do we help him learn how to control it?" asked Daichi.

"Well, since we can't contact ARMOR then I have no choice but to be the one."

"You?" Daichi cocked an eyebrow.

Alan gave him a look and admitted his credentials, "I've got the most experience, Daichi. You have any other choice?"

"Hmm guess not," Daichi admitted. There was a yawning sound and everyone turned to look at Yokoshima.

He looked confused before asking, "Umm... why aren't we in the forest no more, and where are my clothes?"

* * *

Yokoshima was told everything and was now in the Hive's underground training chamber with Alan. Shinichi had also been called to help. Actually, Shinichi had been informed like everyone else and simply volunteered to help Yokoshima master his new powers.

"So, this bug that's latched to my spine is gonna give me new super powers?" asked Yokoshima as touched his back. He could barely feel the Scarab which had burrowed into his skin without leaving as much as a scratch. It was like it just phased through his skin.

"The Blue Beetle armor is like my ring here. It can form any weapon needed as long as you have the will to make it," Alan explained.

"Oh, like how Shinichi here can make weapons using his nanites?" Yokoshima asked as he looked towards Shinichi.

"Pretty much, yeah," Alan comfirmed.

"Oh, that is sweet," grinned Yokoshima. He could only imagine the things he would make with his hands.

"But first you need to be able to call on the suit and control it, not let it control you," instructed Alan. He asked, "Are you ready?"

"Yes…what am I supposed to do again?" asked Yokoshima.

"Maybe it's a good start to transform," said Shinichi. "It reacted to you. Maybe it's the Spark Core."

"OK, let's do this!" said Yokoshima confidently.

* * *

Back in the main hall, Daichi, Dr. Magi and the other NEO-NUMBERS were watching the monitor. Even Asmodeus was there to bear witness to the reveal of Yokoshima's new abilities.

"Shouldn't I be down there to show support?" asked Asmodeus.

"You'll just be too much of a distraction," Daichi told him.

"You're mean! I don't understand why Levi-nee likes you," retorted Asmodeus as she stuck her tongue at him.

* * *

Back in the training chamber, Yokoshima called out, "Henshin!" His Spark Core unleashed its energy but now it was charging up the Scarab in his body. It reacted and activated the armor. A black bodysuit began to cover Yokoshima's body before blue metal gauntlets and boots covered his forearms and his legs from the knees down. Next to form was the torso armor which was mainly black with blue trim and on the chest was an emblem which resembled a stag beetle. On his back was the Scarab and it a pair of stag beetle mandibles jutted out from his back. The helmet also began to form and it was black with a blue faceplate, red eyes and also horns that resembled a stag beetle's mandibles.

"Looks like he can activate it," Shinichi said to Alan who nodded.

"WOAH!" Blue Beetle Yokoshima (BB-Yokoshima for short) said as he looked down at his hands and then touched his helmet to feel the horns. "Is this me?"

"Take a look," offered Alan as he formed a mirror with his ring and BB-Yokoshima checked himself out. He touched the horns on his helmet and admired the onyx black and metallic blue armor he was sporting.

"Now this I could get used to," said BB-Yokoshima, grinning.

Back in the main hall, Asmodeus squealed shrilly as she witnessed how cool Yokoshima had become. "WOW!" she let out.

"OK, I'm so glad I got out of bed," said Michiru, eyes wide and unblinking.

"Guess Yokoshima's just got an upgrade," said Shogo.

"I agree," Dr. Magi nodded. "It appears that the Scarab had adapted and assimilated itself with Yokoshima's own cybernetics, linking itself to the Spark Core. However, will he be able to control the suit now that he's activated it?"

* * *

Back in the training chamber, BB-Yokoshima was posing and flexing in front of the mirror, which was starting to get old, so Alan dematerialized it. "Wait! I was just gonna do another awesome pose!"

"Ask Shinichi to take a picture, it'll last longer," Alan told him.

Shinichi admired the Blue Beetle suit and whistled, "Nice, very nice."

"So, how does this work?" asked BB-Yokoshima.

"The suit responds to what you want and then materializes tools and weapons to fit the situation," said Alan. "Simply put, you think it and the suit builds it."

BB-Yokoshima was flexing his fingers. "OK…what do I want…?" thought BB-Yokoshima aloud.

"I think we need proper stimuli," said Alan before he addressed Shinichi, "Shinichi, you're up."

Shinichi smirked and slammed his fists together. "Henshin!" Instantly the circuitry lines appeared and he spread his arms apart to show the Great Fists, fully activated and ready to pound. His armor also formed as he became Showa Trinity.

Showa and BB-Yokoshima then rushed towards each other.

* * *

"So, what are we watching?" asked Mika as she came into the main hall with Junior.

"We're about to see Yokoshima test a new upgrade," Daichi told Mika.

"Then it should be an interesting show?" Mika asked.

"All I see is Yokoshima taking a pounding," joked Daichi.

"Blarg chicka honk honk!" Junior let out, causing everyone to stare at him.

"Did he just…?" began Shogo.

"Hey, it's starting!" said Asmodeus.

All of a sudden, everyone collectively flinched.

* * *

BB-Yokoshima was imbedded in the wall, spread eagle and upside down. "Did someone get the license plate of that truck that hit me…?" BB-Yokoshima groaned in a daze.

Showa had his left Great Fist, which he had used to hit Yokoshima, pointed forward and asked, "Alan, didn't you say the Scarab would protect its wearer?"

"I did," Alan confirmed.

"So why hasn't it done that?" asked Showa.

"Well, I guess it's because deep down Yokoshima knows that you'd never try to purposely kill him," Alan theorized. "The Scarab only takes over when its host's life is in serious jeopardy."

"So, in order for this to work I have to want to kill him?" Showa questioned. "Well, that sure isn't gonna happen."

"Or we could make Yokoshima believe you're trying to kill him," said Alan.

"How?" asked Shinichi Showa

"It's nighttime, isn't it?" asked Alan.

BB-Yokoshima got out of the wall and shook his head. "Man, that was a really good hit, Shin," he complimented and looked ahead to see Showa holding up a dark energy ball. "Shin, what are you doing with _that_?" he asked nervously. The NEO-NUMBERS knew that Showa/Shinichi could manipulate antimatter after he'd told them about it and they all knew how lethal it was.

"Sorry, Yokoshima, but if we want results we gotta go extreme," said Showa. "Think fast!" He hurled the antimatter ball at BB-Yokoshima who screamed. Suddenly, a set of four insect-like wings spread out from his back and he took off, dodging the antimatter ball which hit the wall and in a flash obliterated a section of it.

"Hey, I can fly!" exclaimed BB-Yokoshima happily as he admired his new wings. Suddenly, his forearms morphed into a pair of energy cannons. "Woah, what are these?" Beams of blue energy shot towards Showa and the nanite-powered Kaizo Ningen had to leap out of the way before he was hit.

"Looks like it worked!" said Showa as he got up on one knee.

"And now the Scarab acknowledges you as a threat now," said Alan as he stepped back.

Showa smirked and looked towards BB-Yokoshima, "Alright, let's do this! Get over here!" He formed the Hook Arm and shot it at BB-Yokoshima. The cable wrapped around BB-Yokoshima tightly and then retracted, dragging him back to Showa who had formed the Shovel Claw with his left arm. Once close, Showa swung the Shover Claw down, only for BB-Yokoshima to block with a shield that formed from his right arm. He released BB-Yokoshima from the cable and replaced the Hook Arm with the Drill Arm. He punched his Drill Arm forward and hit BB-Yokoshima in the chest, causing sparks to fly as the drill tried to bore its way through. He also hit BB-Yokoshima across the chest with the Shovel Claw, causing him to stumble again.

"Shinichi, stop this right now!" roared BB-Yokoshima as a pair of shoulder-mounted cannons appeared on his armored body and be unleashed a blast that hit and sent Showa flying and causing him to crash against the wall."Hi-yaaaah!" BB-Yokoshima roared as his hands turned into blades and Showa reacted by activating his Great Shield just as BB-Yokoshima struck. He then kicked BB-Yokoshima backwards using one of his giant Great Boots that nailed him right in the chest, the cleats ripping off sparks in the process. He then formed his hover bike, dubbed the Shin Racer, and used it like a battering ram and bashed against BB-Yokoshima, dragging him along the floor before he undid his bike and used a Great Fist uppercut that sent him skyward.

BB-Yokoshima went rolling through the air before finally dropping to the floor. "Yokoshima, how are you feeling?" Showa asked.

"Medic…" groaned Yokoshima as he reverted back to human form, the armor vanishing into his body.

"Alan, I think we overdid it," said Showa.

* * *

Fortunately, there was no permanent damage done to Yokoshima except to his pride. The armor and his amazing durability protected him from harm. Of course if the antimatter ball had hit then Yokoshima wouldn't be walking to his quarters. He would've been obliterated. However, Shinichi assured that he would've stopped the antimatter ball before it would've hit Yokoshima, which was a slight relief.

Yokoshima had checked himself in the bathroom, looking at his back. He just still couldn't believe that a biomechanical symbiote was now attached to his spine and was able to give him a new suit of armor and powers. However, he still got his ass handed to him by Shinichi, which was just embarrassing. Shinichi didn't even need to transform and just used his nanite powers on Yokoshima who could barely do anything except dodge with his new wings. He looked at his hands and wondered how he would be able to control the Scarab and not let it react out of reflex or self-preservation.

"This is my body, I have control," he whispered to himself before opening the door. He turned on the lights and was pleasantly surprised to see Asmodeus, posing sexily on his bed. "Asmo-chan?" She was also dressed as a really sexy nurse. It was short with visible garters and stockings.

"Hello, Yoko-kun," she said as she sat up. She raised her right leg to hook it across her left, which made Yokoshima gulp. "How are you feeling?"

"A little sore, but I'll live," said Yokoshima, grinning.

Asmodeus got off his bed and then walked towards him, swaying her hips back and forth. The nurse uniform was tight and really showed off her figure and those legs of hers. "Then let me give you some TLC: Tender Loving Care, OK?" she offered.

Yokoshima closed the door and smiled before the two shared a deep and passionate kiss as they started moving towards the bed.

* * *

Dr. Magi was looking at all the data he managed to gather during Yokoshima's demonstration of the suit. "He can activate the suit the same way he activates his usual transformation, but there's something missing. Sheila, what else did you detect?"

"_Increased levels of adrenaline from Yokoshima,"_ Sheila reported.

"Well, that's one way for the suit to work. Adrenaline increases during times of great stress like anger or fear," Dr. Magi rubbed his chin in thought. "He should be able to use the suit's weapon capabilities."

"_Pardon my words, but I believe that Yokoshima's imagination is rather limited,"_ Sheila stated.

"That much is true, I guess," said Dr. Magi. In battle Yokoshima wasn't very imaginative. In his default form he would just roll into a ball ram into his targets or crush them. In Blitz Form he would just point his cannons and fire. Out of all the NUMBERS, Yokoshima was the one with the least creative or imaginative method of fighting. "But now the suit gives him more options."

"_I suggest more testing,"_ said Sheila.

"We'll have Alan teach and test him. I doubt Yokoshima is willing to have Shinichi help him after this," responded Dr. Magi.

* * *

Yokoshima and Asmodeus were naked under the covers. The female demon was snuggled up against him with his arm around her. She was asleep, sated, but he wasn't. He was just staring at his ceiling. "I wonder if I'll be able to fight like this…?" he murmured.

* * *

"I can't believe it! I was so damn close!" Harious was furious. At the moment he was sitting in a cold damp room drawing elaborate symbols on the walls and floor.

"Yeah, who have thought that jerk would use the rocket barrage to get the object you were after. He was such a dick boo," Steel Cap dissed Yokoshima, hoping his master didn't realize that he had been the one to push him into the crater.

"He won't be a problem, because I am going to make sure he dies. That way I can claim that weapon," replied Harious as he put on a sinister grin.

"Um... how? I mean, he singlehandedly kicked all my men's respective asses. Heck he might be able to kick your ass too with that power, no offense meant Master!" Steel Cap apologized hastily for that last comment once noticing his leader was glaring at him before returning to his work.

"Oh, I'm not going to fight him. There's no need for me to dirty my own hands. The one who will fight him will be the one I shall summon!" Harious declared once he finishes his preparation. "Now let's begin!" Harious shouted as the ruby ring glowed causing the symbols did the same.

Steel Cap shivered as the room was bathed in demonic light before a thick cloud of smoke covered it. When the smoke cleared sway, there stood a large creature with a reddish, muscular body with four horns growing out where the ears should be and sharp claws that looked like they could shred anything it got its hands on.

"What is your bidding, Master?" the demon rasped.

Harious commanded, "Simple my good demon. You, my servants and I are going to cause chaos in order to draw out that idiotic bastard that stole what is rightfully mine!"

* * *

BLUE BEETLE: PART 2

"Mou…I wonder if I'll ever get the hang of this Scarab…" Yokoshima moaned in depressed as he rested his chin on the tabletop. He was on a date with Asmodeus and both were sitting in a booth at Angel Mort. Asmodeus was having a sundae while Yokoshima was having a root beer float.

"You just need to practice," Asmodeus encouraged, putting her fists up. She then did a few punches as she added, "You're strong, Yoko-kun! Anything is possible!"

Yokoshima allowed himself to grin at his girlfriend before he looked out the window. His eyes went wide as he saw a car flying straight at them. "SHIT! GET DOWN!"

The car smashed through the window and the customers and staff screamed as it slid along the floor, smashing through the furniture in its path. Fortunately nobody was hurt but they were shocked.

Yokoshima and Asmodeus were under the table as she asked, "Wha-what happened?"

"Lemme check," he told his girlfriend before he got up and looked out the window to see people running and what they were running from. "Oh, shit," he cursed as he saw that the one who'd thrown the car was a really big demon with red skin, large muscles, horns and really sharp claws. There were also Rat Goblins which were attacking the people, taking whatever valuables they had. The more perverted ones were even stripping the women. A Rat Goblin jumped into Angel Mort with a grin and spotted a waitress. It then lunged forward but a chair was smashed down on its head courtesy of Yokoshima.

"Not on my watch, freak," said Yokoshima. He then rushed outside to confront these demons. He was still a Kamen Rider and would fight even though he wasn't sure how he was going to use his new powers in a situation like this.

* * *

Sheila called, "_ALERT! ALERT! THERE IS AN ATTACK IN OKINOMIYA! ALERT! ALERT!_" She was sending the alert to all the NEO-NUMBERS.

* * *

"NO SHIT SHERLOCK!" Musician cursed loudly while strumming his guitar to send a barrage of sound blast at the Rat Goblins sending them flying when they were hit. The NEO-NUMBERS were already in Okinomiya, dealing with the infestation of Rat Goblins which had suddenly appeared.

Arachnea Venom and Carmen Mirage were delivering powerful combo attacks to the creatures present with Slasher Slayer and Zero Fighter delivering support by having Slasher glue them together or Zero blowing them up with his missiles.

Sentinel, who was also alerted, ploughed through the army of Rat Goblins but flinched slightly as one of their weapons nicked his thigh before he roughly shoved the creature away.

"Great, all there weapon are enchanted," Sentinel grumbled in annoyance. It wasn't much of a threat since he could created a protective field to defend himself, but it was annoying to get hurt by something like these things.

A roar could be heard as a large muscular creature tackled into Sentinel and slammed him violently into a nearby building's wall, causing a crater. The red creature raised its claws, ready to decapitate the Green Lantern, but stopped to dodge an oncoming assault from a Great Fist.

"Get away from my brother!" Showa snapped as he changed his right arm into the Great Sword to slice the demon in two but the red demon jumped up and kicked Showa in the face, sending him flying.

The red demon was about to continue until he heard Harious command, "Aka, ignore them! Our target is the black and blue one!" Aka nodded before he began leaping away to find Yokoshima as commanded.

Sentinel got out the wall was about to follow only for the Rat Goblins to surround him. "Shit!" Sentinel cursed as they lunged and to dogpile him.

* * *

Steel Cap was running down the street. He was informed that had stolen his Master's treasure was at a place called Angel Mort. If he could get there first and get the object from that thief then he should be able to secure a promotion. He grinned at the thought and his grin widened as he saw Yokoshima rushing out to help fight.

"I FOUND YOU!" Steel Cap roared, raising his claws to attack, but Yokoshima was able to dodge before grabbing Steel Cap by the wrist and tossing him to the ground.

Steel Cap quickly recovered and try to slit Yokoshima's throat but the cyborg quickly jumped back to avoid having his throat sliced open. With a frown Yokoshima identified the Rat Gobin, "So you're here too, huh? That means he's close. Where is the slimebag you call a Master?"

"Now why would I tell that to a dead man?" Steel Cap sneered.

"If you won't tell me then I'll just beat the answers out of you! Henshin!" Yokoshima shouted as he quickly transformed. "Now feel the wrath of the Blue Beetle!"

"You don't look like a beetle. To be honest you look like a bug with cannons on your shoulder," Steel Cap pointed out.

"What?" Yokoshima looked at his reflection in a store window across the street and realize that he was in fact in his Armadillo Blitz Form. "Okay, I can understand me not getting a full grasp of this thing but did it have to ignore me when I'm trying to turn into the Beetle? That's just plain annoying," Armadillo sighed.

Steel Cap was confused and wondered what the idiot before him blabbering about before deciding, "It doesn't matter." He quickly rushed forward to attack again but Armadillo quickly took notice and began firing rapidly in hopes of hitting him but the Rat Goblin was agile and able to dodge Armadillo's attacks. Once he got within range, he was ready to attack but suddenly shrieked as a stake stabbed him in the back of his thigh. This gave Armadillo the opportunity to kick Steel Cap in the face and knocking him to the ground.

"Thanks Asmo-chan." Armadillo said as the stake change back into Asmodeus. She gave him a smile but then Armadillo shouted, "ASMO-CHAN, BEHIND YOU!"

Asmodeus spun around and all of a sudden her blood was spilled. Aka, the red demon, had appeared and slashed her. Armadillo shouted, "ASMO-CHAN!" and ran to catch her in his arms. "Asmo-chan! Asmo-chan, speak to me!" he shouted at his wounded girlfriend. She was bleeding.

"It's…it's okay…" she said weakly. "As long as Beatrice-sama wills it…I will never really die…" She put her hand against his masked face, the blood staining his helmet before smiling as she promised, "I'll be back…" She then vanished in a flash of gold right before his eyes.

Aka smiled sadistically, enjoying the pain he had managed to inflict in his target. "So, you're the one that Master Harious wants," said Aka, obviously unimpressed. "Well, time to rip you apart then rip that thing he wants out of you."

"You hurt Asmo-chan…" murmured Armadillo.

"What was that? Speak up? Is that a plea for mercy?" the red demon asked mockingly.

Armadillo then locked his eyes onto the demon and roared, "YOU HURT ASMO-CHAN!" His cannons unleashed a powerful burst of destructive energy that slammed into Aka and sent him skidding backwards. The energy burst even dug a trench that stretched between Armadillo and the red demon. However, it had not done any damage as Aka stood, slightly smoking from the attack.

Armadillo's rage at Asmodeus' apparent death caused the Scarab inside him to react and his Spark Core began to glow blue. His armor then shattered off him, piling up in pieces at his feet. "YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR THAT!" Yokoshima roared and the Scarab activated. The black and blue armor covered his entire body and the crimson eyes of his helmet flashed as his horns glinted slightly as the sun hit them.

"So, this is what Master Harious wanted," said the red demon, grinning. "Well, I can see why he would want it. Why it chose you is-" The red demon was interrupted as BB-Yokoshima suddenly appeared in front of him.

WHAM!

A roundhouse kick sent the red demon flying and crashing into the nearest building. Aka was stunned but he quickly recovered from the hit and dug himself out of the rubble as he looked at the Blue Beetle in front of him.

"If your Master wants him, ask him to send an IOU," BB-Yokoshima said.

"IOU?" the red demon questioned.

"For Asmo-chan's life and have it sent to the Blue Beetle! Me! Aoi no Kuwagata!" His wings spread and glowed before bursting to life. He then rocketed towards the red demon who roared and lunged at him but the Blue Beetle punched Aka right in the stomach, folding his body in half as he was blasted and sent soaring through the air. His horns began to glow along with the blades on his back and blue lightning surged towards the red demon, hitting him with incredible electrical voltage. Aka felt like he was being zapped by several lightning bolts in succession.

When it stopped, the demon grunted. He opened his mouth and fired a crimson blast of flame at the Blue Beetle but BB-Yokoshima wasn't scared and raised his hand out in front of him. A circular disk appeared in the palm of his hand and spread out to shield him from the fire. "Here's mine," said BB-Yokoshima as his other raised arm morphed into an Gatling gun and as it spun to life it fired a barrage of energy bullets at the red demon that actually pierced its tough hide. Even its horns fell victim to the brutal assault as they were broken by BB-Yokoshima's gun.

"Now to take a page out of Shinichi's play book," said BB-Yokoshima as he pounded his fists together and then spread them apart. His upper body became bigger and more muscular as did his arms and fists. Spiked knuckles also appeared and then he rushed forward, speed granted by his wings, before be bashed his fists into the red demon's face, knocking out several teeth on impact. He then slammed the palms against the sides of the demon's head, stunning it, before he did a reverse roundhouse with his foot assuming the form of a spiked ball, the creature taking damage from the hit as it was knocked through the air and into another building.

Landing on his feet, BB-Yokoshima then heard a beeping in his head but only it didn't sound like beeping to him. It sounded like a voice, like the suit was talking to him. He remembered that the Scarab was sentient and so asked, "So, we should kill him, is that what you're saying?" The Scarab responded with several beeps and BB-Yokoshima nodded. "I agree. He killed our Asmo-chan. He deserves it."

As the red demon stumbled out of the building, it heard a strange noise and turned its gaze towards BB-Yokoshima before its eyes bulged. Jutting from the front of BB-Yokoshima's chest was a cannon and the barrel was glowing as it started to charge up. BB-Yokoshima's gauntlets had also became cannons, charging up as well. He then declared, "FIRE IN THE HOLE!"

The three cannons unleashed their payload and the three beams swirled around each other before mixing and combining into one massive blast headed towards the demon. Again a trench was made by the approaching energy blast before it hit Aka and the demon roared as he was engulfed in an explosion. What was left of him was nothing except for a burning crater.

Harious, who was watching in hiding, scowled, before he silently snuck away to think of a new plan to reclaim the Scarab. "Retreat," he commanded which was heard by all his Rat Goblin minions. The Rat Goblins picked up their wounded and fled from the town as the Riders and Sentinel watched.

"Damn, this place is a mess," said Carmen as she saw the Rat Goblin carcasses that littered the ground. "Shinichi, do you mind cleaning up?"

Showa sighed. "Fine…"

Back with the still armored BB-Yokoshima, he took some time to catch his breath. "That…was intense…" Then he saw a flash of gold out of the corner of his eye and was engulfed in the arms of a beautiful blonde with her hair styled in twin tails.

"I saw it all!" she cheered. "You were awesome, Yoko-kun!" She corrected herself, "I mean…Blue Beetle-kun!"

"Asmo-chan, I thought you were dead!" he said.

"Did you forget, you silly goose? As long as Beatrice-sama allows it I will always return," she smiled. She kissed his cheek and said, "But thanks for worrying. I'm touched."

BB-Yokoshima smiled and then saw the others approaching. They saw the damage and Musician had to say, "Yokoshima, did you do all this?"

"Yeah," BB-Yokoshima admitted, rubbing the back of his head nervously. "Sorry."

"It's fine," said Showa as he snapped his fingers and used Rewind to undo the damage. He then looked at the Blue Beetle armor and asked, "Guess you finally got the hang of it, huh?"

"I'm still gonna need some practice," confessed BB-Yokoshima.

"Good to hear, because I have some ideas for training..." Alan said and BB-Yokoshima gulped. He did not like the way the Green Lantern had said that.

* * *

"Ugh…what a day…" Yokoshima groaned before yawning. He was back at the Hive and in his quarters and about to go to bed when a flash of gold appeared out of the corner of his eye. "Asmo-chan," he identified and when he looked to her he blushed when he saw that she was wearing a red nightie.

"Hi, Yoko-kun. I came to sleep over," she said, smiling.

"You're welcome to, Asmo-chan," he smiled. The two crawled into bed and Yokoshima pulled the covers over them. "Hey, Asmo-chan?"

"Hm…yes, Yoko-kun?" she asked as she snuggled up against him.

"I was really scared when you died," he admitted. "I know you can 'respawn' but seeing you die really scared me."

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "I didn't mean to scare you like that."

"It's fine, you didn't mean it," he said to her, pulling her close. "Let's just cuddle and go to sleep."

Asmodeus smiled and closed her eyes, saying softly, "That sounds fine to me…"

* * *

"GODDAMNIT! NOT ONCE BUT TWICE I HAD TO FLEE!" Harious roared angrily.

"Don't worry, Master. Even if we did lose our chance to retrieve the beetle and you lost that cool looking demon at least you still have me!" Steel Cap said. This only further enraged Harious as his minions had just reminded him of his earlier failure. He was about to punish Steel Cap for his lip when a new voice was heard.

"Calm yourself, instead of feeling angry you should feel pride." Harious and his minions turned to see a man standing in the room calmly. "After all, most of the people that have faced the Riders in this world have either been destroyed or caught and trapped in cards."

"W-who are you!-? How did you get in here!-?" Harious snapped, ready to send his minions to pounce on the intruder.

"Calm yourself, sorcerer. I am not your enemy. In fact I am here to offer you a position in my organization."

"Your organization? What is this organization?" Harious questioned

The man smirked darkly as he asked, "Tell me; what do you know of the Religion of Crime?"

Harious' eyes widened, "The Religion of Crime! You're a member of that organization!-?"

"Yes and I want to invite you to join my organization. I promise that if you join that you will gain the power you crave."

Harious was silent for a moment before grinning, "Where do I sign up, sir?"

"Right here and right now, and please call me Mr. Black."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, it looks like Yokoshima has fully embraced the power and the identity of the Blue Beetle. Let's see how this develops. Anyway, I'd like to thank Snake Screamer for his help at writing this chapter so he deserves half of the credit in this chapter's production. Way to go, dude!**


	78. The Legacy of Cain Part 22

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 22: The Green Hornet**

Shinichi was going on his morning jog in the city, early in the morning, when he spotted Saku sitting on his bike on the side of the road.

"Yo," the Okami Yokai waved.

* * *

The two sat on a bench with cans of coffee bought from a nearby vending machine.

"Saku, long time no see," said Shinichi.

"I've been around," said Saku. "So, how have you been?"

"Oh, the usual," said Shinichi.

"And how's Nozomu doing?" asked Saku.

"She's happy," said Shinichi. "Even if I rarely see her show a smile but she's happy."

"Great," smiled Saku. "I'm glad that friend of yours is taking good care of her."

"Alan's a compassionate guy, Saku," said Shinichi.

"So, he's your brother?" Saku asked.

"Yeah, he's my brother. You heard from Nozomu, huh?"

"Yeah, and I'm really surprised. You don't share a resemblance," Saku observed.

"I take after my mother," said Shinichi. "So, what brings you into the city? Checking up on your sister?"

"Yeah, that's why I'm here," said Saku.

"I know how you feel. I worry about my little sisters too," said Shinichi. He then spotted Alan jogging up the sidewalk and that he wasn't alone. "Ah, there they are now."

Alan and Nozomu were also out for a morning jog. Unfortunately, Nozomu had sprained her ankle so now Alan was carrying her on his back. She clung to him, rubbing her cheek against his back. "Um…" she murmured happily.

Alan then saw Shinichi and that he wasn't alone. Nozomu's brother, Saku, was also there. "Hey, Shinichi…Saku," he greeted.

"You don't seem happy to see me," Saku smirked.

"Well, it's hard to be happy since when we first met you tried to separate me from Nozomu," Alan remarked.

"Can't blame a brother for worrying about his little sis, kiddo," replied Saku. "So, what happened?"

"We went for a jog but she sprained her ankle," said Alan, "So I'm taking her back to her apartment."

"Why don't you fly there?" Saku asked.

"Sometimes I like to pretend that I'm normal," answered Alan.

"How about I take her?" Saku offered.

"No, I got this, but thanks," Alan declined politely before jogging off. Nozomu gave her brother a smile.

"Well, she seems happy," Saku remarked.

"Yeah, and she's OK with sharing him with several other women," Shinichi commented.

"WHAT!-?" Saku exclaimed.

"Oh…you didn't know about that?" Shinichi asked.

"So, that guy has a harem!-?" Saku demanded. He let out a whistle, impressed. "Wow…simply wow." He then asked, "So, Nozomu's really OK with this?"

"From what I see, yes, she is," Shinichi replied.

"Good, because if that kid ever makes my little sister unhappy…"

"We both know that's unlikely. I mean he did endure a ton of pain from you to be with her," Shinichi reminded.

"Yeah, too true. I thought he wasn't good enough but he has a lot of balls to do that, or just crazy."

"Or a bit of both," concluded Shinichi. He finished his coffee and then tossed the can into a nearby trashcan. "Well, I gotta go and see my girlfriend back home."

"Live-in girlfriend, huh?" Saku smirked. "What's that like?"

"It's like we're unofficially married and we're happy to be together," smiled Shinichi. "Enjoy your visit, Saku." He then jogged off as Saku leaned back against the bench.

* * *

Alan and Shinichi stood back to back. They were completely surrounded…BY THE LEGIONS OF THE UNDEAD!

"Zombies…" muttered Shinichi. "_Why_ did it have to be zombies?"

"Complaining that one of those zombie plans of yours isn't gonna work?" Alan joked.

"Yes, a little," admitted Shinichi. "But well, time to go with the usual plan: kill them all." He formed his Great Fists and Alan used his ring to conjure his own emerald fists out of solidified emerald light. "I see you like to copy me."

Alan shrugged, "It's the best form of flattery."

"Well, flatter me then," Shinichi challenged. With that said the two charged at the zombies and sent rotting flesh flying with their fists, the zombies coming apart when they were slammed by the giant fists. The two of them, half-brothers, were a force to be reckoned with as they obliterated the undead horde one zombie at a time. Shinichi then switch to his Sword and Shield configuration as Alan did the same. Zombies were bashed and sliced apart by their weapons, pieces raining at their feet as the dead became _deader_.

Shinichi formed his Drill Extender and shot the drill forward, boring holes through five zombies that were lined up and then drawing them back for him to smash their skulls to bits. Alan also formed a drill, a BIG one that was several times his own size and he rushed at the horde, tearing the zombies to pieces with the drill.

It took them 15 minutes to reduce the horde to a pile of rotting, unmoving flesh.

"Sheila, end Horde Mode," Shinichi ordered.

"_Affirmative_," responded Sheila. "_Good time, guys_."

"Thanks," said Shinichi as the zombies and field vanished and were replaced by an empty room. "Well, now time for patrol."

"You still using that Black Skull thing you made up?" asked Alan.

"Yeah," Shinichi answered as he went to take a shower and get changed. He and Alan had a discussion about 'Black Skull' and Shinichi had told him while Kamen Riders were a symbol of hope, Black Skull was to be a symbol of fear. He was going to use fear to control the common crooks and criminals of the city and make sure they knew that they would not be getting away with anything.

* * *

Sentinel and Black Skull patrolled separately. The green and black clad hero would fly over the city, using his supervision to see all while Black Skull would look out from the rooftops where he would be able to spy on crooks while they were about to commit a crime and stop them.

He saw a purse snatching and was about to act when someone did his job for him. The figure struck fast, taking down the purse snatcher and then returned the purse before leaping away.

"What do we have here…?" Black Skull murmured before he pursued the figure.

* * *

"You called?" Sentinel asked.

"Presenting Shishibone City's newest crime fighter," said Black Skull as he gestured to the crime fighter in question. She had short silver hair and wore a domino eye mask to conceal her identity. She was also slim and petite and wore a grey bodysuit with black boots and gloves. Over the suit she wore a black jacket that was zipped up to her neck. What were really interesting about her look were the wolf ears on her head and the tail on her rear.

"Nozomu, is that you?" asked Sentinel.

"Alan, do you really need to ask?" Shinichi questioned rhetorically. "It's obvious, isn't it?"

"Nightclaw," Nozomu said.

"Nightclaw?" Sentinel asked. "Is that what you call yourself when you're like this?" She nodded. "Well, that's a great name and you look great. Really tough." She blushed at the compliment.

"Guess this is why Saku visited," guessed Black Skull. "He said he had something special for Nozomu." He then heard Sheila's voice through the com-link. "OK, I got it."

"What's up?" Alan asked.

"There's a break in happening nearby," answered Black Skull. "Come on, follow me. You too, Nozomu."

"Nightclaw," she corrected."

"You're with us, Nightclaw," Sentinel said.

Nightclaw nodded before she and the two senior heroes dashed off to fight crime and uphold justice.

* * *

Shogo was cruising along the street in his brand new 1966 Buick Riviera. It had originally been in the possession of the Acid-Man but since he was now incarcerated in the Vault, Shogo decided to just take the man's car for himself. He had it repainted and it was now pitch black and no longer that gaudy gold color that Acid-Man seemed to like. Sitting next to him was Lucifer and they were just enjoying a drive together.

As usual, Shogo was wearing a suit but now it included a fedora that really made him look dapper. Lucifer just thought he looked so cool and manly in his suit and fedora, like those hardboiled detectives in the past.

"Hey look!" Lucifer pointed. "It's a falling star!"

"Are you gonna make a wish?" asked Shogo.

"I got my wish already," Lucifer smiled at him and he smiled back. "Of course I wouldn't mind a diamond ring."

* * *

The falling star that Lucifer had seen was not a fallen star at all. It was an alien ship. "Yes," the alien spoke approvingly, "It's about time I got to this mudball of a planet." The ship had a holographic cloaking system to make it look like something else and it had appeared as a shooting star upon entering Earth's atmosphere. The alien was large, with bug-like eyes, a scorpion's talk, and orb-like protrusions on his head, shoulders and knees. He ordered, "Computer, quickly bring up the image of the local life form known as humans."

"**ACKNOWLEDGED,"** the computer answered as an image of the average human appeared on the main screen. Licking his lips hungrily, the alien's shape began to shape as he slowly assumed human form to blend in with the population and walk around unnoticed. He had to look as plain as possible as to not draw any attention.

The alien, now disguised as a human, admired his reflection on the screen. "I look hideous," he said in disgust before letting out a sigh, "Well, the things I do for food."

"**AWAITING FURTHER ORDERS,"** the ship's computer requested.

"Assume the appearance of one of the local buildings in this region. Now, if you'll excuse me it's time I gathered my food supply," the alien said while grinning.

* * *

Three weeks later, a horrible tragedy would strike Okinomoya. The body of man in his mid-thirties was discovered in an alley in Okinomiya. He'd been murdered and mutilated with most of his internal organs missing. He had also been drained of blood and had markings on his neck that looked like bite marks. Most of the town's police force stood at the mouth of the alley with Det. Oishi leading the investigation. Meanwhile, the Kamen Riders stood on the rooftop and were using their telescopic vision to get a better view of the situation.

"What a way to go," Zero said to no one in particular as he looked at the gutted body down below. "What kind of sick freak would do this?"

"Or sick freaks," Musician muttered

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it. We have a dead body with missing organs and drained of blood. We're either dealing with a cannibal or a cult."

"A cult? How can you be so sure?" Slasher asked.

"Think about it. This place has become a hotbed for supernatural phenomenon, some which know are true and since out appearance the frequency of strange phenomenon has only increased. For all we know some twisted asshole has started a cult whose MO is ritualistic murders," said Musician logically.

"I hate to admit it but Daichi has a point," said Showa. "If it is a cult then we have to keep our eyes opened and make sure nobody else ends up like this unlucky guy."

Slasher offered a prayer for the dead man and hoped his spirit would find some peace in the afterlife. He then noticed Showa shuddering a bit. "What's wrong?"

"I'm reminded of Omega Scorpio's collection of mutilated creatures that I saw in his ship," said Showa. "This looks just like it."

"Yeah, but he's dead," said Zero.

"Gebok always seemed to come back after he was seemingly killed," Showa argued, "But you're right. He is dead. So this could just be a coincidence…" He didn't believe it for one second.

* * *

"My children, I am afraid that the end of days will soon come," a man said sadly to a group of people, "The end will approach soon."

The group muttered concernedly amongst themselves before one asked, "Is there a way to stop it, Leader?"

"There is one way, my child. We must continue what we have been doing so that we can appease the great being known as Noxakt-sama! Only then will his terrible wrath be satisfied. Now bring in the sacrifice," the leader said.

Two people in the group nodded before they left for a few moments. They then returned, bringing back a woman who was struggling in their grasp.

She screamed for help as the two men quickly let her go before large shackles shot out of the dais that was set in the middle of the room, clamping down on her wrists and ankles before dragging her to the dais.

"Excellent, now please leave us. Only I as the head priest must do this deed." The members of the group nodded before moving to the exit. He waited he waited until they all left before grinning evilly.

"Those totally simpleminded fools!" he cackled as the woman's eyes widened in horror as he shifted into his true form. He was the alien that had landed three weeks prior. "It is days like this that make me glad that my species has telekinetic abilities. Just show them a trick and they will believe anything. Hell I even used my own name for the 'evil entity' instead of fabricating a flase one." Noxakt grinned before lunging at her neck and clamping his mouth down to drain her blood. He then remembered how he heard of this planet.

Noxakt had been on his home world, hunting for his meal and ready to kill his prey which resembled a cross between a gorilla and rattlesnake when another being took him by surprise. They fought at first to see who got the right to kill the prey, but then he and the alien both decided that instead of fighting each other they should work together and each get half of the prey.

After splitting their kill, the alien had introduced itself as Omega Scorpio who then showed Noxakt his trophies. Seeing all that meat had made Noxakt's mouth water. After trading stories of killing and proper dissection techniques, Omega Scorpio told Noxakt about a planet known as Earth, where the screams were most delightful.

_'I don't know about the screams, but I gotta admit these human are DELICIOUS,_' Noxakt grinned as he stopped drinking the blood and got up.

"Well the drinks are good, but I think I better get to work on peeling you to get the tasty treats that lie inside. I might even try the eyes today." Noxakt then cackled as he prepared to dig into his meal once more.

* * *

"Damn it," Shogo muttered angrily after reading the newspaper. Five more bodies had turned up in Okinomiya, all with most their internal organs missing and blood drained. It didn't help matters that the bastard Mikogami was having a field day with this, calling the Riders ineffective for stopping these murders before they began.

"Easy Shogo," Lucifer said, noticing how tense her boyfriend was reacting.

Shogo replied, "I'm sorry, but I can't calm down. Both the police and Sheila are having trouble getting any info on who's doing this."

"Maybe you should have a stakeout," Lucifer suggested.

Shogo slapped himself in the forehead, muttering, "Why didn't I think of that? A stakeout!" He gave Lucifer a kiss. "Thanks, Luce!"

* * *

Shogo brought up a map of Okinomiya on the main screen as he explained, "We know the killer operates within Okinomiya. The eight of us will each take a different point in Okinomoya and stay in contact with each other. We'll stakeout every night until we find out what has been killing these people. If any of us find anything strange or engage the culprit, call the others for backup. We don't know how strong this thing is."

That was a good plan.

"But we've been patrolling for days and still haven't found anything," said Yokoshima.

"That's where Shinichi comes in. He'll send out a mass of Shikigami to act as additional eyes and ears," said Shogo.

"I've actually sent them on the lookout since the murders began but they haven't found anything. Of course I've only been sending a small number of them," said Shinichi.

"How many would be enough?" asked Shogo.

"1,000, give or take," said Shinichi. "I could make them in my sleep," he said confidently.

"We'll have rooftop, ground and airborne patrols as well. We can't let another murder happen," said Shogo firmly.

* * *

Battler was on patrol and was using his shapeshifting powers to assume the form of a black cat. With his shapeshifting powers he could actually alter the size and shape of his transformation. He looked in all the alleys to find anything suspicious.

Shogo was driving in his Buick, dressed in his suit and hat but now they were dark green.

"Anything yet?" Battler asked briefly into the com-link in his ear.

Shogo was about to answer when he heard something like a scuffle. Curious, he drove forward until he saw some men dragging a teenager into a van. The teenager looked as if he was unconscious.

"Oh no you don't!" Shogo growled as he got out of the car before running forward, pulling out a pistol as he did. Taking aim, he quickly fired, hitting one of them in the arm and causing him to scream in pain and drop the teenager. The second man whirled around only to get a kick in the face.

The driver, curious as to what was going on, unrolled the window to check only for someone to grab his collar, pull him halfway through the window and point a gun to his head.

"Hello, I have some questions for you," Shogo said with a glare. "And I better like your questions or your upholstery is about to get a new paintjob." The driver nodded fearfully at the threat, satisfying Shogo. "Good. Now, are you involved in the murders that have been occurring these past few weeks?"

"Y-yes and no. I-I mean, sure we bring the bodies, but it's our Leader who does it and he has a really good-"

"Shut up!" Shogo snapped, knowing the man was stalling. "You say you bring the bodies to your leader. Who is and where can I find him? I should warn you that I have a pretty itchy trigger finger."

"Okay! Okay!" the driver panicked. "I'll tell you where he is!" He then gave Shogo the direction.

Shogo nodded before he warned, "You better not be lying to me, bastard or you will be in a world of hurt."

"I'm not! Honest! It's all true, Mister!"

"It's not 'Mister'. The name's Green Hornet," Shogo growled, punching the man across the face thus knocking him out and breaking his nose.

"This is Shogo," Shogo spoke into his com-link. "I've just rescued a potential victim and knocked out three of the kidnappers. Also, I've gotten the location of the killer. I'm heading there now." He first tied up the three criminals tightly, making sure to call the cops, before putting the teenager into his car and dropping him off at a hospital before moving on.

* * *

Noxakt sighed as he sat in his ships' cockpit. It was still two hours away from the meeting and so far he was bored. Currently he was mentally debating whether he should grill the next batch of organs he got or serve them deep fried when his computer came to life.

**"UNIDENTIFIED VEHICLE APPROACHING. WARNING, SCANNERS DETECT UNUSUAL MODIFICATIONS TO SAID VEHICLE." **

Noxakt raised an eyebrow curiously and asked, "Really? Is it some kind of police vehicle?"

"**NEGATIVE. NO RECORDS OF ANY POLICE IN SECTOR UTILIZING THIS VARIETY OF VEHICLE."**

"Really? Well bring it up on the monitor," Noxakt ordered.

"**AFFIRMATIVE**," the computer replied, bringing up the image of Shogo driving his Buick.

* * *

Shogo was headed towards the cult leader's location when there was a gold flash in the passenger side and golden butterflies fluttered by his view. "Lucifer," he guessed.

"Bingo!" his girlfriend smiled.

"Lucifer, you shouldn't be here," he told her sternly. "I'm on an important mission."

"Oh, I know, and I really liked how you dealt with those crooks," she smiled. "So why are you calling yourself 'Green Hornet'?" she asked.

"Oh, you heard that?" She nodded. He explained to her, "Well…I spoke to Alan about the heroes from his home dimension and the subject of the Green Hornet came up. So, I decided to emulate him."

"I see. Well, if you're gonna become some kind of vigilante you're gonna need a mask." She reached into her blazer and presented him with a deep green eye mask with the image of a hornet between the eye holes.

"Lucifer…" Shogo uttered. Lucifer smiled and kissed his cheek.

"Now, go get them, Green Hornet," she said before leaving the mask as she vanished in a flash of gold.

Shogo chuckled. As he reached his destination he put the mask over his eyes. It stuck to his face due to an adhesive layer on the inside of the mask. His eyes were focused on the building before him. He muttered, "Funny, I didn't know there was a building this far out." His frown deepened as he saw two holes opened up on the building's wall and two futuristic looking guns stuck out. "And I didn't know they had this kind of security."

"Funny, I didn't know there was a building this far out." Shogo muttered. His frown deepen as he saw two holes open in front of this building wall and two futuristic like guns stand out "And i didn't know that it had this kind of security."

A digital voice spoke, "Attention intruder. You are trespassing on private property. Leave now or face the consequences."

"Sorry, but I'm not in the mood of obeying orders today," Shogo smirked as he pressed a button on his dashboard. His trunk opened up as a 4-pod missile launcher extended. It quickly shot two missiles at the guns causing them to explode and creating an entrance for the Green hornet.

* * *

"I knew I should have paid more for this ship's armor plating," Noxakt groaned as he saw how easily this Earthling was able to disable his guns. "You should've just shot him."

"**I WILL REMEMBER THAT**," the computer said apologetically.

* * *

"I'm on location and I'm going in," Shogo said into his com-link. "Green Hornet, out." He had his shotgun loaded and ready while also making sure the needle shooters under his sleeves were loaded as well and posed no problem.

"Alright let's do this!" Shogo said as he ran into the building and went down the hallway. Suddenly, turrets extended out of the wall and began to fire on Shogo rapidly. Undeterred, Shogo raised his arms and shot steel-tipped needles which destroyed the turrets. The next booby trap came in the form of a semi-circular blade that was swinging back and forth in front of him like a pendulum. He cocked his shotgun and fired at the chain holding the blade, causing the chain to break and the blade to fall and embed itself into the floor.

Of course destroying the pendulum activated another booby trap which shot steel bear traps that snapped a Shogo. He dodged the projectiles and took aim with his shotgun and destroyed the machines with well aimed shots. "This is weak. GIN-SHOCKER put us through worse back in basic training," quipped Shogo before continuing onwards.

* * *

"Arrgh!" Noxakt screamed angrily as he saw Shogo going through his lethal security system. Grumbling, he muttered, "If you want something done right you have to do it yourself." Quickly shifting to human form, Noxakt left the room to confront the intruder.

* * *

_'Okay, I'm starting to seriously doubt that this is just a simple cult_,' Shogo frowned deeply in thought as he entered the next room. _'I mean if it was just a cult then what the hell is with all this heavy duty equipment? I mean I can understand if it was more magical but all this technology, just doesn't fit the whole cult image_.'

Before he could continue his train of thought, someone spoke, "So you are the one who broke into my fortress and bypassed my defenses."

Shogo whirled around to see someone walking on the far left of the room, his face scowling.

"So, I suppose you're the CO of this little outfit," said Shogo as he rested his shotgun on his shoulder. "And the psycho that's been killing people."

"A cult needs sacrifices in blood," Noxakt spoke. "I doubt you could understand."

"Sacrifices in blood, sweat and tears? That I can understand," said Shogo, referring to himself and those years in GIN-SHOCKER, going through rigorous training and the abuse of his handler. He may have learnt military tactics and developed a strategic and tactical mind, but the cost was just too much. The cost was his physical humanity. He cocked his shotgun and took aim. "Now, put your hands where I can see them, fucker!"

"Oh, but of course." Noxakt grinned as he slowly raised his hands.

Warning bells went off in Shogo's head, '_This guy is way too calm for someone who has a shotgun pointed at his head_.' Suddenly, with shock, Shogo's arm lurched as his shotgun was being pulled forward. He tried to keep his grip on his gun so it wouldn't fly out of his hands when suddenly it lurched violently back and hit him in the face, knocking him to the ground.

"Ouch." Shogo groaned. Looking up, his eyes widened as pieces of the ceiling broke off before plummeting down straight at him. He quickly rolled out of the way to avoid the falling rubble. But when he tried to get up he grunted in pain as a chair that was in the room floated up before violently hitting him in the back.

_'Shit,'_ Shogo groaned in pain as he slowly looked up, noticing that the man was looking at him with a smirk in his face. _'The guy's got telekinesis.'_

"Whats wrong? You sounded so sure you were about to take me down," Noxakt taunted. Shogo ignored him as he slowly got up WITH a plan forming in his head. "Well it been fun, but I think it's time for you to go bye-bye." Noxakt cackled as he raised his hands, causing all the objects in the room to hover before throwing them all at Shogo.

Shogo smirked. As a Kaizo Ningen modeled after a wasp he had the speed of the insect. Making use of his enhancements he began to dodge the rapid onslaught of objects. "Why would I say 'bye-bye'? I'm not done playing with you, ugly!" Shogo taunted.

Noxakt growled as he began to increase the speed of his attacks but still Shogo avoided the barrage. "Hold still, curse you!" Noxakt snapped.

"Why should I hold still for a lousy shot?" Shogo taunted as he was able to break free of the objects surrounding him and began to run with the object following suit.

Noxakt growled darkly as he willed the objects to follow the cyborg not noticing that Shogo seem to be heading straight towards...

"Hello!" Shogo said as he quickly slid through under Noxakt's legs before standing up and turning around to kick Noxakt straight towards the incoming objects.

Noxakt screamed and unintentionally lost his hold on the objects, causing them to fall harmlessly on the ground. Noxakt sighed in relief as he turned his head. He was about to taunt the Green Hornet until he hit the wall. Shogo quickly reacted and shot several needles that pinned him to the wall by his clothes

"Looks like I got you know." Shogo grinned as he slowly took out his C3.

Shogo stopped, however, as Noxakt hissed angrily before shouting in a inhuman voice, "It's not over yet, Earthling!" Noxaxt began mutating into his true form, his clothes ripping apart as his alien physique revealed itself.

"An alien!" Shogo identified and then another thought came to him, "That shooting star!"

"Yes, so you saw my ship as it was entering your planet," grinned Noxakt. "But knowing that won't save you now." He then suddenly charged towards Shogo and he had to jump back to dodge Noxakt's scorpion tail which shot forth. The stinger stabbed into the ground but Noxakt withdrew it. "You're fast, but can you dodge these?" The orbs on Noxakt's body glowed before firing beams of energy at Shogo. He jumped to dodge but they beams managed to graze him and he hissed in pain as he rolled along the ground. He took aim and fired his needles but they bounced of Noxakt's exoskeleton. "This form is more durable than that squishy human form I had to take on," boasted Noxakt. He suddenly roared out in pain, "ARGH!"

Shogo was perplexed but when Noxakt tried to reach behind his back he turned his back to Shogo and the Kaizo Ningen spotted a familiar looking demonic stake. Noxakt grabbed hold of it and ripped it out of his hide before tossing it away. In a flash of gold, the stake transformed into a gorgeous and curvy young lady with long dark hair.

"The Stake of Pride, Lucifer has arrived!" declared the eldest and leader of the Stakes of Purgatory.

"Lucifer?" Shogo blinked. Then he saw her clothes. "What are you wearing?" Lucifer was not in her red and black uniform. Instead she was wearing a double-breasted, leather waist coat that was worn tight on her body with two vertical rows of silver buttons in the front. She wore shorts that revealed her long legs and black boots that went up to her knees. On her head was a chauffeur's cap and she also wore a mask similar to Shogo's.

"Every Green Hornet needs a Kato," she said, winking.

"So, you have a 'sidekick', hissed Noxakt. "I wonder how she'll taste. She looks good enough to make a dessert out of."

Shogo frowned as he realized something new, "The organs missing from those bodies…you killed them for food!"

"Yes, it's the only reason I even bothered to come to this backwards world; to eat," Noxakt said, drooling a bit as he remembered his past meals. "You humans are a delicacy where I come from."

"And the cult?" Lucifer questioned

"I created it just so these meals with legs can get me my food. I was even planning on taking some of the followers with me to space. I do need some food for the trip home. They're so stupid and will do anything I say and I'll just tell them that they'll ascend with me," Noxakt grinned sinisterly. "And now that you've force me to reveal my true form, I am going to turn both of you into my next meal!"

"Well, since you've transformed it's only fair that I do the same," said Shogo as his Spark Core revealed itself. "Henshin!" In a flash he was transformed and decked in his Fighter Form armor.

"Oh, how interesting," said Noxakt as he admired Zero's armored form. "I didn't expect you to be a Kamen Rider."

Zero wasn't surprised that Noxakt, despite being an alien, knew about the Kamen Riders. He'd been on Earth long enough to learn about them, himself included.

"I am Zero," said Zero and he blasted towards Noxakt. Lucifer also flew alongside him, summoning her blade of energy. The couple went on the attack and both drill and blade were aimed at Noxakt…only to crash into a barrier instead before they were shoved backwards by the force of the impact.

"A barrier," Lucifer guessed.

"A powerful one too," added Zero.

"Yes, and guaranteed to prevent you from touching me!" boasted Noxakt as he raised his arm, lifting the debris with his telekinesis. "GO!" he commanded and the debris shot like missiles at the two. Both Zero and Lucifer were fast as they dodged the projectiles but it was still irritating as their enemy could hit them and yet they couldn't do the same. Noxakt then fired the energy beams from his body, nearly shooting the Stake and Rider down but they managed to avoid them, barely.

"Ugh, he grazed me," said Lucifer as her sleeve was ripped, burnt, exposing her injured skin. '_Damn, that was a new jacket too!_'

"Can you still fight?" Zero asked.

Lucifer smirked arrogantly, befitting her station as the Stake of Pride, "Now, who do you think I am, Shogo?" She was not going to lose nor back down from this fight. She would support her beloved like her sisters supported theirs.

Zero smiled and turned his attention back towards Noxakt. He aimed and locked on before unleashing a missile barrage. Noxakt brought up his barrier again and the missiles bombardment exploded harmlessly against it.

"I hate barriers," murmured Lucifer. They were just so annoying.

Zero, however, was analyzing his opponent in his mind, '_So far he's demonstrated telekinetic abilities, is able to shoot energy beams from those orbs on his body, and can generate a barrier to protect himself. That tail of his is also a weapon and has a stinger, meaning he's like a scorpion and he uses that venom to kill his prey. We better watch out for it_.'

Noxakt rushed at them, beams blazing at the two fighters who opposed him. They dodged quickly and Noxakt quickly swung his tail at them. He missed Zero but Lucifer was hit by the tail and sent tumbling. "Lucifer!" Zero cried and he screamed as he was hit by Noxakt's energy beams.

"Don't look away!" Noxakt taunted and he used his telekinesis to haul Zero into the air. The Rider felt a pair of invisible hands holding him by the throat and squeezing and also several invisible hands holding his arms and legs, pulling him into a spread eagle position. "Now, should I tear you limb-from-limb, or strangle you first?" contemplated Noxakt. In a flash of gold Lucifer appeared in his line of sight.

"How about you shove that tail up your ass!-?" she shouted and she stabbed him with her energy blade. Noxakt screamed from the sudden attack and then he growled at Lucifer before backhanding her. Zero was freed and went to Lucifer.

"You okay?" he asked and he frowned at the bruise on her face.

"It'll heal," she said reassuringly. "Practically immortal, remember?"

"You just die and respawn," he corrected.

"Something we have in common," she stated.

"How touching," said Noxakt in disgust as he watched the scene. He concluded, "Time to finish you." The orb-like protrusions on his body began to glow as he prepared his attack, charging up for the finishing blow.

Zero took Lucifer's hand in his and said, "I'm honored to have you fight by my side."

"Same here," Lucifer admitted.

* * *

Beatrice smiled at the scene and decided, "It's time for you to truly fight as one." She summoned her pipe and waved it like a magic wand as she cast her spell.

* * *

Lucifer's body suddenly glowed before she turned into a swarm of golden butterflies, surprising Zero. At the same time, Noxakt fired and explosions engulfed Zero as he was attacked. Noxakt continued the barrage of lethal energy beams, stopping only so he could see the satisfactory sight of his victims' dead bodies.

However, as the smoke cloud cleared what presented itself to Noxakt's line of sight had not been what he expected, not at all.

There stood a figure that was glowing gold. Then, fluttering off his body, one by one, were golden butterflies which vanished into non-existence, exposing the body they had been covering and protecting.

The figure that now stood wore a black bodysuit which was covered in armor that was modeled after a hornet and was emerald with gold trim. His chestplate resembled a hornet's abdomen and the helmet which now had an emerald faceplate with gold stripes sported a pair of crimson compound eyes. A pair of antennae stuck out at the top. His shoulders were also shaped like a hornet's wing. His boots were emerald with gold trim and he had emerald and gold armbands. Finally, mounted on his right wrist was the Stake of Pride that was pointed forward.

(A/N: He looks like Kamen Rider TheBee but in green)

Zero and Lucifer had combined and now Zero had truly become the Green Hornet. This was Zero Emerald Pride Form.

The emerald Rider looked down at the Stake of Pride on his wrist and asked, "Lucifer, is that you?"

The lethal weapon replied in the girl's voice, "_Yeah, it's me. Now, I think it's time we take this creep down_."

Zero couldn't agree more and saluted with his other hand before locking his eyes on a stunned Noxakt. The alien recovered and then fired upon Zero only to hit nothing but air as Zero evaded at blurring speeds, zigzagging like a hornet.

'_As Muhammad Ali would say: 'float like a butterfly and sting like a bee_',' thought Zero.

Lucifer's voice invaded his thoughts, '_Don't you mean a hornet?_'

A punch collided with Noxakt's face, followed by another and then another. Zero was actually pounding Noxakt like a boxer would pound a punching bag. He then switched tactics and hit Noxakt with a barrage of kicks.

With one more kick Zero blasted Noxakt across the room and he crashed against the wall. "Damn…you…you piece…of MEAT!" Noxakt's eyes glowed as he prepared to unleash his telekinetic powers upon Zero but the Hornet Rider of Pride was prepared. Using the Stake of Pride he drew a pentagram and then threw it at Noxakt. It slipped under his feet and then rose up to rest around his waist. Magical electricity arched from the pentagram and Noxakt was immobilized, his abilities neutralized. "What…what is this!-?" the alien demanded.

"Your end," said Zero as he put his index and middle finger against the Stake of Pride. Mystical energy crackled around it before he shot like an arrow towards Noxakt. The alien couldn't move nor defend himself and was impaled. "Normally, you'd be captured but considering the weight of your crimes...you die." He withdrew his weapon and turned his back to Noxakt who then exploded.

In a flash of gold light and butterflies, Zero and Lucifer separated and reassumed human form. "Yes, we did it!" she cheered as she hugged Shogo.

"Thanks to you, 'Kato'," he complimented and she blushed.

"At your service, Green Hornet."

A Teleportal opened up and the NEO-NUMBERS arrived.

"OK, we're here," said Showa. "Where is he?"

"You just missed the fight," said Shogo.

"And the champs are right here!" said Lucifer as she raised Shogo's arm up.

Suddenly, an alarm blared coupled with a digital voice declaring, "**SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE HAS NOW BEEN INITIATED!**"

"That can't be good," gulped Armadillo.

"Through the Teleportal!" Showa ordered. "Move! Move!"

The Riders all quickly ran for the Teleportal, exiting through the other side in a heap on the floor of the Hive's main hall. However, before the Teleportal could close there was an explosion on the other side as flames shot out. The Teleportal finally winked out of existence after the flames vanished.

"That…was too close," said Armadillo in relief.

"Shit, what the hell was that?" Daichi said in shock as he and the others reverted back to human form.

"Well, if I had to guess, I think the base was designed to self-destruct when it detected the alien's death," Shogo stated

"An alien?" Hana asked.

"Oh yeah, and apparently this alien created the cult so he could gather humans to it but we took that freak down," Lucifer said proudly.

"Lucifer and I combined and a new form was born," added Shogo, smiling at his girlfriend.

"Our Pride Form!" finished Lucifer, hooking her arm around Shogo's.

Everyone looked confused for a moment before shrugging. They had heard, seen and experience weirder.

"So, what's with the masks?" asked Daichi.

* * *

With Noxakt and his base gone, his followers were quick to follow. The three members that Shogo had caught earlier quickly blabbed to the police, giving out the names of the other members. Now everything was back to normal.

Well…almost everything.

"Onee-sama, I have a question," Mammon started

"What is it?" Lucifer asked.

"I know Shogo is a bit of a fan of this Green Hornet guy, but do you have to wear the Kato costume? It's been a week already," Mammon said to her eldest sister who was admiring herself in the mirror.

"You're just jealous because I look great in this uniform," Lucifer sniffed, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I got a date with Shogo." When Lucifer teleported out, Mammon just rolled her eyes.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And another chapter is born from the minds of myself and Warlord-Xana. Hope you guys enjoy the action that was packed in here. I did and it was fun for me to put Shogo in the shoes of the Green Hornet. What will happen next? Well stay tune because I'm gonna continue this story to the end.**


	79. The Legacy of Cain Part 23

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 23: Misato's Daddy**

Daichi, Shinichi and Yokoshima were outside the base, looking over some new equipment.

"So, what is this thing anyway?" Daichi asked, referring to the strange hi-tech ramp that was generating a wispy, blue aura.

"Yuji loaned it to me. It's a D-Wheel Launcher," answered Shinichi.

"What does it do?" asked Yokoshima.

"When I get my bike I'll show you. Wait right here and be careful with that thing. You don't wanna accidentally step on it," Shinichi told them before going inside the base's garage.

"Yokoshima, get on," Daichi ordered.

"Um…no, because I'm afraid of the thing," Yokoshima answered. "I have no idea what it is or what it does. We should wait for Shinichi."

"He says it's a D-Wheel Launcher," said Daichi as he examined the device.

"Daichi, be careful," said Yokoshima warily.

"Oh, relax you big baby," Daichi mocked. "How bad can it-" He stepped onto the ramp and was instantly propelled through the air as he screamed, "-BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE?" Yokoshima watched as Daichi went flying before falling. He went tumbling along the grass and finally stopped when he tumbled right into the lake with a splash.

"Hey, I'm back," said Shinichi as he wheeled out his Showa-Racer. "Where's Daichi?" he asked before narrowing his eyes in suspicion, "He put his foot in it, didn't he?"

"Yes, and he went flying over…there," Yokoshima pointed.

Shinichi turned on his com-link and called, "I told you to be careful. What part of that didn't you understand?"

"_WHAT PART!-? HOW ABOUT THE PART WHERE I GOT THROWN 80 FEET INTO THE FUCKING AIR BY THE GODDAMN THROWING THING!_" Daichi's voice came screaming out of Shinichi's com-link.

"You think he's mad?" Shinichi asked Yokoshima.

"Very," Yokoshima nodded.

* * *

"It was great to see Kuro—I mean Shinichi—again," said Lina to Yuji.

"I can't believe you just wanted to be friends," Yuji remarked. "You're back and you have the chance to rekindle your romance."

"What can I say?' shrugged Lina. "Things change. Call me selfish but I'd rather date a guy and have him all to myself. His girlfriend, Rena, lets him sleep around. I don't think I can handle that kind of thing."

"I can see your point," Yuji understood.

"I'm not going to look back at the past. Time to move towards the future and maybe see what I can do. I'm alive again and I have to do something with this opportunity," Lina said.

"That's the spirit!" Yuji encouraged. "Now come on, we've got a festival to catch."

* * *

Alan and his harem of girls, with the addition of Nana, Momo, Celine and Alice, were in Hinamizawa for the Watanagashi Festival. Alice's eyes brightened as she saw the decorations and booths that had been set up near the Furude Shrine. Today was the Watanagashi Festival, one of Hinamizawa's most sacred of traditions, and Alice's family was attending.

"Wow!" Alice said as she looked around. "Daddy, what is this?"

Before Alan could answer, Shinichi suddenly popped up holding a camera and answered, "Every year, on the third Sunday of June, Hinamizawa celebrates the Watanagashi Matsuri."

"Cotton Drifting Festival?" Alice asked, tilting her head cutely to the side.

"Yup, every year the villagers will give away old coats and furniture so that the cotton can be taken out and sewn into a large futon mattress. Then the head priest or priestess of the village will perform a sacred dance and then use a how to gut the futon. Finally, every person attending the festival gets one ball of cotton to drift along the river. It's akin to sending your sins away and washing yourself clean of sins," Shinichi explained. He patted Alice's head, "Not that you have any sins of course. You're as innocent as they come."

Of course, before Shinichi accepted Alice he just saw her as another one of Gebok's creations. It didn't help when before she had been known as Chaos Doll and had attacked his family. It took a lot of convincing to get Shinichi to pull away the blinders and to see Alice as just an innocent little girl and could not be held responsible for her actions as Chaos Doll.

"Now, say cheese!" said Shinichi as he held his camera up to them. He wanted Alan and his harem to pose together so he could get a photo of them. With a click and a flash, the photo was taken. "I'll have it developed for you soon."

"You better," Alan playfully threatened. Like Shinichi, Alan knew about the festival and its grim history. Before cotton was used as a substitute, the festival was actually a ritual that required human sacrifices. The human sacrifice for the year would be tortured and gutted before their intestines were sent adrift. However, that tradition had later been labeled as barbaric and inhumane and so cotton was used as harmless substitute befitting modern times. This was how the villagers had practiced the ritual in order to appease Oyashiro-sama.

They were unaware that Oyashiro-sama was actually among them in the form of a purple-haired schoolgirl/miko.

Shinichi then bought cotton candy for Alice. "Here you go!" said Shinichi and the little girl took the offered candy.

"Thank you, Onii-chan!" Alice beamed cheerfully. Shinichi smiled back and noticed someone missing. "Hey, where's Celine-chan?"

Alan blinked and looked around. "Celine? Oh shit-take mushrooms!" He tried not to swear in the presence of Alice. "Where is she!-?" He then spotted Celine drinking from a bottle…of cola. "This…can't be good…" Alan sweat-dropped.

"How is it, Celine-chan?" asked Rena. She had found Celine looking at the bottles of cola and out of the goodness of her heart, not to mention her inability to resist the little plant-child's cuteness, bought Celine a bottle of cola.

"Mau~" Celine stood drunkenly, swaying back and forth. "Mau~hic!"

"I'm right, this can't be good," Alan added.

"What's the big deal?" asked Shinichi as everyone but Alice wore worried looks. "Am I missing something here? I am, aren't I?"

* * *

In a drunken madness, Celine had run around the festival grounds and sprayed everyone with pollen. This caused flowers to grow atop people's head and also the unfortunate effect of having them fall in love with Alan. Not only did it affect women, but it also affected men. Therefore, for half an hour, Alan had to escape the villagers who'd been exposed to Celine's pollen lest he get gang-raped by them.

After the 30 minutes were up, the flowers that had grown atop people's heads fell off and everyone wondered what had happened in confusion. Meanwhile, Celine had fallen asleep in Alan's arms.

"Glad that's over," said Alan, relieved.

"Oh man!" laughed Shinichi. "That was the funniest thing I ever saw! Is that really what happens when Celine drinks cola?"

"Yes," Alan deadpanned, "And you will destroy the evidence."

"OK, I will," Shinichi promised as Alan went away to enjoy the rest of the family with his girls. "Yeah right," murmured Shinichi. But then he felt a tap on his shoulder and spun around.

"I heard that," said Alan before he moved at the speed of light. Shinichi had forgotten Alan had super-hearing and super-speed now.

"I better get back to the others," Shinichi said. He felt a tap on his shoulder and sighed, "I know, Alan, I'll destroy the evidence…" He then turned around and was surprised to see a familiar face. "Eh, Tomitake-san?"

"Yo, Banabara-kun," said Jirou Tomitake.

"It's been awhile," blinked Shinichi. He then saw he wasn't alone. "Oh, so you brought company."

Miyo Takano was a woman who'd been obsessed in proving her adopted grandfather's theories on the Hinamizawa Syndrome that she'd committed atrocious acts in the name of her grandfather's research. She had allegedly killed Rika's parents and nearly wiped out the village for that reason. However, Shinichi's friends had been able to stop her. She then got infected by the Syndrome and had to be locked away in a mental asylum. Then, a year later she became possessed by a Darkloid. Shinichi had defeated her and purified her and afterwards she was deemed fit mentally. There was just one glaring side-effect.

Apparently, Miyo Takano now suffered from selective amnesia and had forgotten everything about Hinamizawa. To her this was the first time she'd ever set foot in this village while in truth it had been almost half a decade since she came here. Her appearance had changed. She now wore her hair at chin-length and had it dyed brown. Like Tomitake, she also wore a pair of glasses. Also, Shinichi could see a wedding band around her finger.

It was amazing how she hadn't been lynched by the villagers due to her involvement in the events which had occurred years ago in the village, but Shinichi guessed they all just wanted to forget. The change of appearance must've been a factor as well since Miyo Takano was originally blonde but now she was a brunette. Of course if she had been recognized then the Sonozaki Family would have her punished. Shinichi knew that she'd be taken to their torture chamber and then killed after hours of painful torture.

"This is my wife, Miyoko," said Tomitake. "Miyoko, this is Shinichi Banabara, a fellow photographer like me."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," said Miyoko, bowing to Shinichi who bowed back. Up until now, she and Jirou had been living peacefully in America. Shinichi actually spotted them during the time he went in search of Gebok.

"Could I get a picture?" Shinichi requested politely.

* * *

After Rika and Hanyuu performed the sacred dance and balls of cotton were distributed, everyone attending the Watanagashi Festival had gone down to the river to perform the sacred cotton-drifting ritual.

Yuji and his family were attending the Watanagashi Festival in Hinamizawa. He also got to see his girlfriends in different yukatas that matched their usual wardrobes. He even got an eyeful of Misato, his newly-wedded wife, in a purple yukata that had bat designs on it. She was at the riverbank with Maria and Wendy as they let their cotton drift down the stream.

Yuji eyed how he could see Misato's slight bulge due to her pregnancy and sighed, "Gods, she looks so hot right now..."

The girls turned to return to Yuji and the others when Misato and Rena suddenly meet again...it was not exactly a good reunion for them. Shinichi's family was also present, as well as the NEO-NUMBERS.

Rena hid behind Shinichi when she saw Misato.

Misato felt seriously awkward as she tried to wave, "Um...hi...?"

"Hey there, Misato," Shinichi tried to greet as politely as possible.

"Wha-wha-what's she doing here?" Rena stuttered in fear as she shook behind her boyfriend.

Yuji approaches the group and looped an arm around Misato's waist, "Come on, Rena, did you already forget my wedding?"

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "It's just...she kidnapped me and tried to kill Shin-kun."

"And I'm sorry about what happened before," Misato bowed deeply. "Besides, I'm more focused on getting ready for the baby," she said honestly as she rubs her stomach.

"A BABY?-!" the NEO NUMBERS gaped.

"Yeah, mine and hers," Yuji nodded as he held Misato close. He winced a bit since his arm was still in excruciating pain, but he was able to play it off.

"Huh, that's interesting…" Chiaki tried to compliment.

"Wow, you're gonna have a baby, Misato-chan," Michiru awed. Misato smiled.

"This will not turn out well," Yokoshima worried.

"And what the hell does _that_ mean, lead-head?" Misato growled.

"You're gonna give birth to Demon Spawn! I saw the Omen! It's NEVER good."

Yuji snapped his fingers and Yokoshima sunk into the ground beneath him like quicksand. "Don't let him get you upset," Yuji comforted as he rubbed Misato's back, "Think about the baby. Besides, the guys are just a little worried, that's all."

Misato sighed, knowing that Yuji was right. Of course they'd be worried that she was back. It was natural, considering her past with them.

"I, for the record, don't give a shit," Daichi dismissed. "Just don't ask me to babysit." He actually had enough with crossbreed babies, like Battler's little 'devil spawn' (Junior).

"And just for the record," Shogo spoke up, "We don't have to worry about you going after our blood, right?"

Hana slapped her forehead, seeing as how he was worried over something so stupid.

"I don't do that anymore," Misato assured as she held close to Yuji, "Trust me, nothing beats Yuji's blood," She then sighed, "Especially after long night of passionate sex..." She was starting to drool as Yuji wiped her mouth with a napkin.

"I'll drink to that!" Lilith joked as she was hanging from behind Yuji.

"Could you share some details?" Shiori requested as she pulled out her notepad and pen.

Yuji pulled deck chairs from out of nowhere, "You better grab a seat. She can go on for hours when she brags."

"Well, as for me," Shinichi spoke up as he held up his camera, "I'm gonna take some more shots." He took a shot of Misato and Yuji together with the girls and the kids before breaking off from the rest of the group.

"Congratulations on your wedding and your future child, Misato," Hana spoke sincerely while hugging the girl, "Lord knows you deserve it after what you've been through."

"Thanks," Misato whispered into the hug as she began to cry a little.

Michiru joined in the hug and beamed, "Yeah, I'm sure she's gonna become a beautiful little angel…so to speak."

"What makes you think it's a girl?" Hana asked curiously.

"A girl just knows these things. Call it women's intuition," the mantis Rider winked as they separated from the group.

* * *

"So this is Washam?" Yuji asked as he eyed a photo of a man with tanned skin, hazel eyes, no hair, and with a muscular body frame.

Misato nodded, "Dr. Washam wasn't just my handler. He was like a father to me. He was the one who would always bring me my food. I fed on blood, you see, so he always brought a prisoner to me so I could have my next meal."

"Well, at least he was considerate," he said before he paused, "Wait a second... He didn't do anything to you, did he?"

"He made me a Kaizo Ningen, but he treated me like his own daughter," Misato reminisced. "He always encouraged my bloodthirsty attitude."

Yuji nodded, "OK. Cuz if he was anything less, I would've hunted him down and torched his ass."

"I haven't been able to find him," she admitted.

"Wanna look for him?" Yuji asked.

Misato sighed, "Maybe, but I won't get my hopes up. When Gebok revived us, he told me Dr. Washam died."

"And I think he was bullshitting," Yuji cut in. "You really expect him to say something like that and mean it? For all we know, he could be in the fucking South Pole or something, studying ice bugs, or fighting that alien from that movie "The Thing". Come on, you and me; looking for the guy. It'll be fun, just the two of us! Like Indiana Jones when he found the crystal skulls."He gives her the puppy dog eyes, "Please...?"

Misato sighed in defeat, "OK, fine"

"Yeah!" he cheered.

Misato giggled at Yuji's foolishness

* * *

Sho was standing as Kasai knelt behind him just in case he lost his balance. Several feet away Shiori was kneeling and clapped encouragingly as she called, "Come on, Sho! Walk to mommy! Come on!"

"Are you sure he'll start walking?" asked Kasai. His right arm was still in a cast but he no longer wore a neck brace and bandages.

"I'm sure, Tatsuyoshi-kun. Shinji started walking at this age too," answered Shiori before shifting her attention back to her youngest son. She then called, "Come on, Sho-chan! Walk to mommy!" Sho took his first step forward. "OK, you're doing great!"

AI-Shin was hovering, his eye watching and recording everything. Shinichi was also nearby with the video camera to record this special moment. One could never have too many cameras for special occasions. He smiled as he saw his little brother taking literal baby steps towards his mother. Rika and Hanyuu were also watching in anticipation and finally Sho closed the gap and walked into his mother's arms. "Did you get that, Shinji?" Shiori asked.

"Yeah, I got it," said Shinichi as he finished recording.

"_Me too_," added AI-Shin.

Shiori kissed her baby son on the cheek and then Sho let out, "Mama."

Rika blinked.

Hanyuu blinked.

Kasai's sunglasses slipped down.

And Shiori gasped. "His first word!" she cheered.

"Mama! Mama!" Sho called happily

"Yes, Sho-chan! I'm your mama!"

"Wow, his first step and first word all in the same day," said Shinichi who had recovered and started recording again. "He's on a roll!" He then felt a hand on his butt and looked over to Rika who winked at him. '_And here we go again…_' He then got a call on his com-link and pushed the button to receive. "Talk to me."

* * *

"One of the Spark Cores has just gone active," said Dr. Magi as he pulled up a map of the world on the giant viewing screen.

"Really? Right now?" asked Daichi. Dr. Magi had summoned the NEO-NUMBERS as soon as Sheila had alerted him.

"Yes," Dr. Magi confirmed.

"Wait, I recognize that place," said Chiaki as he looked at the map.

* * *

_Hanyuu shivered after she and Chiaki exited the Teleportal and landed on an icy floor. They were dressed in winter coats for this excursion._

"_We're here," said Chiaki, "Wherever here is."He noticed Hanyuu shivering, "Are you cold?"_

"_Just a little," she admitted. This was her first time being in such a cold climate. The winters in Hinamizawa weren't this bad. "This is where the Ice Head of Despair was sealed," said Hanyuu as she checked her map. She then looked up and saw penguins. "Real penguins!" her eyes sparkled._

"_Hanyuu-chan, please focus," said Chiaki. "You said the Head of Ice is here, so where?"_

_Hanyuu sweatdropped._

"_Hanyuu?" Chiaki asked._

"_We're standing right on it," said Hanyuu. She and Chiaki looked down at their feet. She then took out a ward and began chanting._

* * *

"Yes, it's in the South Pole where one of the heads of the Orochi is sealed," concluded Dr. Magi.

"That's a really weird coincidence," commented Yokoshima.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" asked Michiru eagerly, "Let's round up some Cores!"

"I think we should take Hanyuu-chan as well," Chiaki suggested. Everyone looked towards him for an explanation which he gave, "The Core is close to where one of those heads is sealed so what would happen if the Spark Core breaks the seal?"

"That won't happen," said Daichi dismissively before adding uncertainly, "Will it?"

"Stranger things have happened to us," Hana spoke.

Battler listed, "Psychotic androids, zombies, giant monsters…yeah, a lot of strange shit."

"Honk!" Junior let out in agreement.

"And in our line of work it's best to be prepared," said Shogo.

Chiaki looked to Shinichi and asked permission, "Shinichi, can we bring Hanyuu along on this mission? I know it'll be dangerous and I know how you feel about her. I understand how you feel and that you want to protect her, but she could be vital to the success of our mission."

"That's a negative," said Shinichi. Still, he couldn't help but feel something bad was going to happen. The Spark Cores had proven to be unstable and unpredictable. The last time they had materialized a giant Shadow Moon. Who knows what would happen if one of them got too close to one of those heads. Chiaki wanted to argue but Shinichi's stare told him that there would be no negotiations on the matter.

It wasn't that Shinichi didn't trust Hanyuu to take care of herself, but since she was taken hostage by Million and used to power his machine he'd been rather overprotective of her. Sure, she was older than him and had powers he could barely comprehend but she was his little sister first and foremost and that would never change. He would not let her face any danger if he had anything to say about it. With ARMOR out of contact that meant she wouldn't be receiving any orders which was a relief.

"Wait, isn't Yuji taking Misato there to visit Dr. Washam?" asked Dr. Magi.

"We better contact them to tell them what's going on," said Shinichi.

* * *

Shiro was holding a Spark Core marked as IV (#04). "This is the vampire's Spark Core."

"Vampire?" Gnol questioned.

The two were in the South Pole and had found Spark Core #04 encased in ice. Gnol simply used his flames to get to it. "Yes, Misato Kurushina but now Misato Fudo after she wedded Yuji Fudo."

"And one of the Witch of Terror's former servants," added Gnol.

"Well, we're done reminiscing, let's find that head of yours and put this to use," said Shiro.

"You don't wish to use it for yourself?" asked Gnol.

"Not yet," said Shiro as he patted his chest, "And I got a special one right here. Now, come on Gnol. Let's wake up that head and see what we get."

* * *

"I can't believe I was right…" Yuji sweat-dropped.

He and Misato were in fact in the South Pole. Why? Doctor Carl Washam was believed to be here. The man was a scientist, specializing in alternative energy sources. He was also documented to be a serial killer in the past. His last few ventures involved working with GIN-SHOCKER and it was with the organization that he found himself to be Misato's handler. Right now, the Manakyte and Vampire Demon were bundled up in warm clothes and on snow mobiles.

"Nothing but white and ice for miles," Misato muttered as she viewed the frozen tundra. She felt Yuji's hand on hers and looked to him.

"We'll find him," he assured. "Now let's go." He revved the engine and dashed ahead, with Misato following close behind. "So what does Washam do?" Yuji asked over the com-link.

"I remember Dr. Washam telling me that he experimented with alternative energy sources," Misato replied. "When we were in GIN-SHOCKER, he experimented with blood and I helped him."

"Blood, huh?" Yuji grimaced. "Well, I hope he doesn't try anything funny with me."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Let's just say I've fought someone before who wanted my blood," Yuji summarized. "And to be honest you'd be the only one who can have my blood."

"That's sweet, darling," Misato smiled. She then heard rumbling and felt a tremor, "What was that?"

She and Yuji quickly came to a stop and looked around but saw nothing but ice and snow.

"I'm not the only one who felt that, right?" she asked.

"There's something out here," Yuji said as he grabbed his Red Queen in his left hand. However, because Yuji's right arm was disabled from using the Dragon of the Darkness Flames, Yuji's strength has been greatly reduced.

The two tried to look around but saw nothing until the ice beneath began to crack and exploded, forcing the married couple off their feet as they gazed at what caught them by surprise. It was an insect-like creature, with two long, segmented arms and it had bulbous orange growths throughout eh smaller section of its arms, as well as on its thorax. It screeched as it glared at Yuji and Misato with its fangs.

"What the hell is that thing?-!" Misato demanded.

"One dead bug!" Yuji roared as he ran forward and started slashing at the monster. It clicked in annoyance as its swung its claws at Yuji, but Yuji hopped over the swing at fired some bullets at the glowing growths. The creature screeched in pain as a response.

"So, you don't like that, huh?" Yuji grinned. He shouldered the Red Queen and revved her engine as the blade heated up. He slashed it across the leg, slicing it right through as the insect collapsed and turned to ice. It shattered and the glowing orbs scattered about. Yuji picked up one of the orbs and rolled it in his left hand.

"What is it?" Misato asked as she looked at it from behind Yuji.

"Whatever it is, it's warm," Yuji observed. The orb was then absorbed into his hand as he felt his temperature and strength slightly rising. "It's warm, like fire…"

Suddenly, more ice shattered as two more creatures burst out, but they were different. These two were smaller, heavily armored and looked like demonic pill bugs armed with pincers.

"Oh, great…" Yuji grimaced.

"What do we do?" Misato asked.

"_You're_ not doing anything," he said, "Not while you're pregnant." He grabbed Misato with his bad arm and held her close as he pointed forward with the Red Queen forward. "I would never forgive myself if I let anything happen to you…" he growled as he eyed the bug monsters.

"Yuji…" she uttered as she hugged against him.

"You're my wife," he continued, "And I swore I'd stay with you against anything, even against ice bug monsters that wanna eat us." He looked at her, "I love you, Misato."

"I love you too, Yuji!" she cried as she held him close.

The pill bug creatures lunged forward with their claws before they were blasted with gunfire. The couple turned to see two figures in snow gear approaching firing with semiautomatic assault rifles.

"You OK?-!" one asked with a Russian accent. He continued firing at the monsters.

"Yeah, but who are you guys?" Yuji asked.

"No time, we have to go!" the other man ordered, also with a Russian accent, as he fired his own ammo.

Out of nowhere, a 10 ft. humanoid machine came out of nowhere and slammed into one of the monsters. Its head had one glowing blue eye. It was armed with a machine gun that fired down on the bug monsters as they were filled with holes before they started screeching out. They turned to ice and shattered as the glowing orbs littered the snowy floor.

"What the hell…?" Yuji gaped.

"A giant robot?" Misato blinked.

"Too small to be a Gundam…" he muttered.

The machine turned to look down at the couple. _"Come with us,"_ a male voice spoke through speakers.

Misato blinked, "That voice…"

"_We'll guide you to our facility,"_ the pilot spoke.

* * *

Yuji and Misato were guided to a research complex that stretched out for a radius of 2 kilometers. The couple was brought to the barracks.

"You think your handler's here?" Yuji asked Misato.

"I think…I think he was piloting that machine," Misato said with uncertainty. She recognized Dr. Washam's voice. How could she forget? Still, voices could be mimicked so she wasn't 100 percent. She was hoping that she was right. She really missed the man who'd rescued her from her nightmarish life and given her power.

"What's wrong?" asked Yuji.

"What…what if it isn't him?" she asked him nervously. This was nerve-wracking. She was about to be reunited with her handler again, after all these years. How would he react? He had always doted on her before her death at #13's hands. She had changed since her revival. How much had he changed?

"Don't doubt your feelings," Yuji advised.

The double doors slid open and the couple turned to see two tall Russian men entering the room. They were both dressed in snow gear and had short black hair and brown eyes. They were clearly twins, but one wore a green headband while the other twin wore a brown ascot.

"Thank you for saving us," Yuji bowed. "I'm Yuji Fudo and this is my wife, Misato."

"I am Ivan," the Russian twin with the headband introduced.

"And you?" Yuji pointed to the other twin.

"And I am Ivan," the ascot-wearing twin introduced.

"So you're both Ivan?" They nodded. "OK, so maybe you can help us. We're looking for someone; a Doctor Carl Washam."

"Well, you don't have to look far."

The Ivans moved away from the door to allow another man to enter. He was 6'9" and covered in snow gear. He removed his hood and goggles to reveal no hair and hazel eyes and he removed his face mask to reveal his chiseled jaw. His skin was also tanned.

"_I'm_ Doctor Washam," the tanned man introduced herself.

Misato gasped, "…Dr. Washam?"

"Hm?" Dr. Washam looked towards Misato and his eyes widened in shock. "#04? Is that…is that you?" He thought she had died. He saw it happen before his eyes. "I…must be seeing things…" He rubbed his eyes and blinked a few times before looking at Misato and discovered he wasn't hallucinating.

"You're not seeing things, 'Dad'," said Misato, smiling. "It is me. I'm back." Dr. Washam suddenly picked Misato up into his arms and twirled her around before hugging her tight.

"My Little Draculina! It's been so long!" said Dr. Washam.

"Dad, be careful. I'm pregnant," Misato cautioned him and Dr. Washam froze before looking at her straight in the eye.

"Preg-preg-pregnant?" Dr. Washam stuttered.

"And married," Misato added, smiling.

"Oh…oh dear…" Dr. Washam was starting to feel faint.

"I think you dropped several bombs on him, Misato," said Yuji.

"Oh, and you are?" asked Dr. Washam.

"Oh, I'm your son-in-law, as in the guy who married Misato here," Yuji said. "Yuji Fudo."

"I need some hot cocoa," Dr. Washam murmured. Hot cocoa always helped to calm him nerves. Today was just full of surprises.

* * *

"Come in, Yuji! Do you copy? Yuji, please respond," called Shinichi through the com-link network but all he got was static. "Oh, this is bullshit. There's some kind of interference so all I'm getting is static." Yuji needed to know that a Spark Core had gone active in his location. "Sheila, can you get a lock on his location?"

"_Negative_," Sheila reported. "_I am experiencing interference due to unknown sources. I cannot pinpoint Yuji Fudo's location._"

"Well, then activate the Teleportal and send me to these coordinates. I'll find him myself," said Shinichi.

"Need backup?" Shogo asked.

Shinichi shook his head, "Nah, I got this covered. But if things get hairy I'll call you."

"You can't," retorted Hana. "Interference, remember?"

"Oh…yeah…" Shinichi had forgotten about that part. "OK, about that backup, I guess it wouldn't hurt. Shogo, Yokoshima, you're with me."

"Sweet! Let me go get my winter jacket," said Yokoshima.

* * *

Ivan #1 (wearing the headband) had brought Dr. Washam, Misato and Yuji some cocoa for them to drink as he made some for himself and his brother as well.

"So you're telling me that you're from another Earth where a card game is part of everyday life?" Washam asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"You don't have to believe me," Yuji shrugged. "Just remember that Misato isn't rotting in the dirt as you first thought."

Dr. Washam nodded, "It's amazing. I remember watching as #13 killed Misato…" She held his hand and the doctor could feel her grip through the sensors in his hands. "So, a witch brought you back?"

"An evil one," Misato added. "Yuji took care of her."

"You must be good then," Dr. Washam challenged.

"I became an assassin when I was 10 and was in the business for 3 years," Yuji said nonchalantly.

"And you're a Kamen Rider now?"

"I'm a lot of things," Yuji grinned.

"And you actually have a harem of women." Dr. Washam just couldn't believe it, despite Misato's vouching.

"I have a lot of love to give," he shrugged.

"So, why did you decide to marry my Little Draculina?" Dr. Washam inquired.

Yuji took Misato's hand as he gazed into her eyes, "It was just a bet that I won at first. But after I took her on a date, and she bit me during our first night together… She understood me. And after learning about her, I understood Misato and we ended up falling in love. Of course, we had to keep our relationship a secret until recently." He then sighed, "So enough about me. What exactly are you doing here, Dr. Washam? And what the fuck were those things out there?"

"Well, my specialty is energy," Washam said. "When I turned Misato into a Kaizo Ningen, she agreed to be my test subject with blood experimentation. After she died, I left GIN-SHOCKER and started experimenting with thermal energy." He gestured toward the twins as they conversed among themselves in Russian, "I met the Ivans 2 years ago in Russia. We've been working together ever since. My research brought us here; to the South Pole." His expression turned grim, "As for those creatures, they turned up a few weeks ago after we discovered their hive a few kilometers from here. The orbs you saw on their bodies; they were _crystalized_ thermal energy."

"You mean they're like walking heaters?" Misato blinked.

Dr. Washam snapped his fingers, "Exactly! That's how they survive. We suspected that they're cold blooded and store thermal energy in order to function."

"So these things feed on warm-blooded prey in order to crystalize their thermal energy or something," Yuji speculated.

"We never stood a chance when they first attacked," Dr. Washam sighed. "There were 20 of us when the expedition started. Now it's just me and the Ivans. The first ones that attacked you; the Chryatis, are very aggressive. We call the armored ones Dongo. And trust me, there are a lot more where they came from."

"And what about you?" Yuji pondered. "What made you join GIN-SHOCKER?"

"Well, when the GS Higher-Ups came to me they said they'd be interested in funding my energy research and the tech they had was impressive. When I found Misato and took her in, she was the perfect test subject for my research. That's when I started seeing her as my daughter. With GS's resources and my knowledge, I turned Misato into a powerful warrior." He gazed at Misato fondly as he recalled the times they shared, "My Little Draculina…"

"I'm not a little kid anymore…Daddy…" she blushed.

"I'm sure," Yuji nodded. "But did it have to be a mosquito? I mean, I get the basis and all, but the armor that I saw on her file just looked terrible."

"And I assume you could do better?" Dr. Washam challenged.

"As a matter of fact, I have," Yuji smirked as he turned to Misato, "Show him."

Misato stood up and was engulfed in blue butterflies before she had donned a new wardrobe, causing Dr. Washam to jump back in a startled manner. She now wore a crimson jacket with gold buttons in two vertical rows over a white shirt that revealed her cleavage at the top, as well as a blood-red necktie and a dark purple leotard with garter belts that were clipped to her black stockings as she wore crimson leather boots. Her hair was done up in a ponytail and she looked dressed to kill. Her pregnancy wasn't too noticeable either.

"Now THAT is a Draculina!" Yuji clapped, "And that's just her uniform!"

The Ivans clapped as well as they found the girl's attire to be impressive.

"Whoa…" Dr. Washam muttered.

Misato giggled and then winked before she was covered by the butterflies again and was donned in completely different armor than she had before. She now wore silver shoulder pads that were shaped like folded bat wings covered by chains, a bra-like like blood-red chest plate that was outlined with black, and black leather panties with some red armor plating on the corners. The skirt she wore was composed of two red and four black drapes that were really revealing as the red tails framed her waist and the black tails surrounded her waist and framed her firm ass. Her legs were covered in black leather stockings that were topped with two belts on each stocking as they covered her thighs. Her arms were covered by black leather sleeves that went up to the lower half of her biceps, with silver bracelets and armored red gloves that were tipped with claws. Her feet were protected with two knee-high silver boots that were wrapped in chains. And on her head was a head set that were shaped like yellow bat ears trimmed with red and a red ornament that was shaped like a bat's head. Dr. Washam was speechless and Misato smiled, showing off her vampiric canines.

"Need I say more?" Yuji smirked. "So, what do you call those things anyway?"

"Oh, I gave them the group name _'Akrid'_," Washam replied.

* * *

Shiro and Gnol stood atop the spot where one of the Orochi's heads was sealed. Holding his scabbard, he gripped the hilt and drew out the blade. The katana's blade was black with a rectangular silver tsuba. It was a gift from Anastasia. The sword's name was Oathbreaker and it was going to be used here.

"Here we go!" said Shiro as he pointed the sword blade down and stabbed the icy floor. Dark energy began to surge from it and into the ice. The ice started to crack as the reinforced seal Hanyuu had placed upon the Tomb of Despair was weakened. Finally, there was an explosion of ice. Fortunately, Gnol and Shiro were not caught in it.

"I can sense it," hissed Gnol but Shiro pushed him back from the hole.

"Be patient, my friend," said Shiro as he fished out the #04 Spark Core from his jacket. "Now, let's see what happens when the energy of this Spark Core comes into contact with the power of the Orochi." Almost carelessly, he dropped it into the hole.

For a few moments nothing happened and Gnol was about to jump in to reclaim a piece of his power when all of a sudden there was a beam of cold, blue light shining out from the hole. Shiro could sense something coming and waited in anticipation. Gnol also watched as he felt a piece of him reviving after so many centuries.

A figure started to rise out of the beam of light and hovered in place before touching down gently before them. Shiro could only smile as Gnol cocked an eyebrow.

"Now _this_ is interesting," admired Shiro.

* * *

Meanwhile, dressed in winter jackets, Shogo, Shinichi and Yokoshima all stepped out of the Teleportal just in time to see the light show. "Woah, are those the Northern Lights?" asked Yokoshima.

"Yokoshima, the Aurora Borealis happens in the NORTH POLE, we're in the SOUTH POLE," Shinichi informed him.

"Think we should check it out?" asked Shogo.

"Yes, we should," said Shinichi.

* * *

Chiaki was working in the base's garage when he got a call on his com-link. "Hanyuu, what's wrong?" he responded.

"_One of the seals I reinforced just got broken! Au!_" Hanyuu yelled.

Chiaki grimaced. "Damn…"

"_Chiaki-san, you don't sound too surprised_," Hanyuu observed.

"Earlier we got a Spark Core signal near the location where you reinforced the Head of Despair," said Chiaki. "This can't be a coincidence."

"_We need to go!_" panicked Hanyuu.

"Don't worry, Hanyuu," said Chiaki reassuringly. "Yuji's there right now with Misato, and Shinichi, Yokoshima and Shogo had just gone to investigate. Don't worry about it."

"_But-_"

"Don't worry about it," Chiaki reassured. "I'm sure nothing bad will happen." '_I hope_,' he added to himself. He didn't sound too sure either.

* * *

"OK, this can't be good," said Showa as he looked at the hole in the ice. Zero and Blue Beetle (Yokoshima) were also looking into it.

"This was where one of those heads was sealed, right?" asked Blue Beetle.

"Yeah, and from what I can see there's nothing down there anymore," said Zero. "Either we're in the wrong location…"

Showa interrupted, "We're in the right location. Trust me, I know this. I can feel some of Hanyuu's residual energy around here. It felt like someone broke the seal."

"So, now we have _two_ Gnols on the loose?" asked Blue Beetle. He'd heard how even Alan had trouble against Gnol.

"But what about the Spark Core?" asked Zero.

"I think there's a connection," concluded Showa. "Come on, let's go find Yuji and tell him what's going on."

The three took off, activating their wings. They needed to be quick. Showa had a gut feeling that something bad was going to happen.

* * *

"So, Daddy, how did you build this thing?" Misato asked, referring to the giant robot they were now looking at which had helped them earlier.

"Oh, I managed to grab some schematics and blue prints from GIN-SHOCKER before I left," said Dr. Washam. "I thought it might help one day and I was right. It's as I always say; always be prepared!"

"But you only have one," Yuji pointed out. Dr. Washam sighed.

"Sadly, I don't have the resources to mass-produce it. If I had then all those men wouldn't have died," said Dr. Washam regrettably. Suddenly, there was an alarm. Dr. Washam frowned, "Proximity alert." He went and looked at the readings on the radar. "We have three unknowns heading this way. It's time to suit up."

* * *

At a good distance from the facility, Gnol growled as he tore a Chryatis in half with his bare hands. Its blood rained down as he was anointed with the creature's thermal energy and he absorbed it into his body. All around him, other insectile beasts laid around the snow in pieces.

"These mindless beasts are no challenge," Gnol snorted while he clenched his fists. "However, the energy they provide is useful."

"They were good for some exercise, I have to admit," said WHITE 14 as he sheathed his sword before turning his gaze towards the third member of their little group. Standing with Gnol and WHITE 14 was a stunning female figure that was clad in a snow white kimono that blended in well with the surrounding with an indigo obi tied around her waist. Her skin was pale blue and her long hair was bluish white and tied at the base of her skull. Her kimono was patterned with blue snow-flakes. Her pointed ears showed that she wasn't human but her inhuman status was made even more apparent by the sharp pair of horns jutting out from her temples that looked like they were made of ice. As she smiled, her blue lips parted slightly to expose fangs and her red eyes seemed to glow with desires that demanded to be sated.

"Yuki-chan, let's say hello," said WHITE 14.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: OK, so I took care of Carl Washam's design and based him off The Rock, aka Dwayne Johnson, and Jax from mortal Kombat. Hope you guys like this one. Oh, and I don't belong the Akrid from the game "Lost Planet."**

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: It seems the Ice Head of Despair has taken on a new form called 'Yuki'. I wonder what she can do in battle. We shall see soon enough. **


	80. The Legacy of Cain Part 24

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 24: Cold as Ice**

Zero, Blue Beetle, and Showa had come across a facility that had a 2 kilometer radius. It was right there in the middle of nowhere.

"Big place," Blue Beetle commented.

"You think Yuji's here?" Zero inquired.

"This is probably the only place he could go," Showa concluded. "Let's go see if there's anyone we can talk to." As Showa took a step forward, he suddenly recoiled from a gunshot. "What the fuck!-?"

The three Riders began to scream as they were suddenly being pelted by rapid gunfire, courtesy of a Gatling gun that was mounted on a 10 ft tall, humanoid machine.

"WARGH!" Blue Beetle shrieked as he ran around, avoiding the bullets, "Make it stop!"

"Sonovabitch!" Zero cried as he started running to dodge the bullets.

Showa ducked his head to avoid getting it blown off. "What the hell!-?" he cried out.

"_Hands in the air, assholes!" _Dr. Washam ordered from inside his machine.

"Daddy, wait!" Misato pleaded as she and Yuji ran out to the group.

"_What is it?"_ Washam turned to her.

Misato told him, "We know them. It's #00, #09 and #13!"

"_Oh, I see…_" Dr. Washam paused for a second and then resumed shooting at Showa.

"Goddammit!" Showa cried as he evaded more bullets.

"Daddy!" she huffed.

"Can you please stop?" Yuji requested. "They're with us."

"_Fine! "_The machine's torso opened up and Dr. Washam jumped out. He then dashed towards Showa and kicked him hard in the nuts. The guys witnessing this all winced as Showa froze and collapsed to his knees, holding his crotch in pain.

The Kaizo Ningen groaned, "Oh...sonovabitch..."

"That's for killing my Draculina, asshole!" Dr. Washam roared.

Zero and Blue Beetle blinked in recognition, "Dr. Washam?"

Dr. Washam turned to the NEO-NUMBERS and nodded, "It's been awhile boys." He then looked at Blue Beetle whom he was informed was Yokoshima, "You sure have changed, #09."

"A lot has happened, Dr. Washam," said Blue Beetle, rubbing the back of his head.

"Medic..." Showa called weakly, still on the ground.

Dr. Washam just snorted at him, "Walk it off."

"You could've called first," said Yuji.

"Can't, we had interference with our com-links," said Zero.

"Oh, that must be because of my jamming station," said Dr. Washam. "You need recalibrate your communicators so that it doesn't interfere." He then added, "Let's head inside so we can warm up with some nice, hot cocoa."

Zero and Blue Beetle helped Showa back to his feet and dragged him along as they followed Dr. Washam back into the facility. There was a lot to talk about.

* * *

"How's your hot cocoa, #13?" Dr. Washam asked.

"It's better _in_ me than _on_ me," Shinichi commented as he took a careful sip. Dr. Washam had 'accidentally' spilled some on Shinichi. He wasn't surprised that Dr. Washam was treating him this way. From what he could remember Dr. Washam had doted on Misato. Then #13 had killed Misato and became BLACK 13. Dr. Washam would obviously hold a grudge. He should be mad at Gebok for giving the order but since he was not here he decided to pick on the most convenient target: Shinichi.

After dematerializing their suits and sitting down with cups of hot cocoa, The NEO-NUMBERS began to explain.

"So, you're saying a demon was sealed away within this area and not only that but one of the Spark Cores is here?" asked Dr. Washam as he summarized everything he'd been told.

"That's about the gist of it," said Shogo.

"So, has anything strange happened?" asked Yokoshima.

"If you count giant bugs," Yuji quipped.

"Giant bugs?" the NEO-NUMBERS echoed. Yuji pointed to a wall where a picture of one of the creatures was pinned up.

"There are giant bugs that made their home in the South Pole," said Yuji. "Dr. Washam calls them Akrid and they actually generate thermal energy that allows them to survive in these parts."

"Woah," Yokoshima was stunned. "Hot bugs."

"Exactly," grinned Dr. Washam. "Though I am surprised you had not encountered any."

"We flew here," answered Shinichi.

* * *

Gnol, in his demon form, melted the snow beneath his feet with each step as steam flowed out from the foot prints. Gliding demurely was Yuki-Gnol who was but a fragment of the Orochi. She appeared female and resembled the Yuki-Onna of legend.

"I see two guards," said Shiro as he saw Ivan #1 and Ivan#2.

"Time for the kill," said Gnol. He hadn't killed a lowly human in a long time.

"I agree, but not for you," said Shiro. "Yuki-chan, will you please do the honors?"

Yuki-Gnol smiled and glided along the snow towards Ivan #1 and Ivan #2.

"Hey, have you ever wondered why we're here?" Ivan #2 asked.

Ivan #1 answered, "I ask myself that question everyday man. Is there a meaning to our existence? Is it because of divine will that we're here? Does God have a plan for us? I don't know but it keeps me up at night."

"…What? I mean why are we out here in the cold and not inside where it's warm," said Ivan #2.

"Oh, I thought you meant…"

"What?"

"Never mind. Forget it."

"OK…what was that about God? Wanna talk about it?"

"I said forget it, OK?"

Ivan #2 decided to drop the subject and then complained, "I can't believe we have to stand out here and freeze our asses off."

"I agree. I mean Dr. Washam's daughter is the only woman we've seen in years and I'm getting desperate," said Ivan #1.

"You broke your toy. Get over it," Ivan #2 scolded.

"Could I borrow-?"

"No."

"Oh, come on. We're brothers! We should share!"

"Share, but nothing _that_ private!" Ivan #2 then spotted someone coming and aimed his rifle. "Stop right there! This is a secured facility!"

Ivan #1 looked through the scope of his sniper rifle. "Ivan, I think that's a woman."

"Don't be stupid. What kind of woman would come out in the middle of nowhere?" snorted Ivan #2 but as the figure got closer he realized his twin was right. "I stand corrected."

Yuki-Gnol smiled seductively as she was within their sights. Even in a kimono she was a stunning sight. She blew them a kiss and they blushed with hearts in their eyes. They dropped their weapons and approached the female demon, unaware of the danger they were in.

Yuki-Gnol wrapped her arms around the closest Ivan and gave him a deep kiss.

* * *

The alarms blared and Dr. Washam scowled, "It's another proximity alert." He turned on his walkie-talkie, "Ivan #1, are you there? Talk to me!"

He got no response.

"Ivan #1, stop playing around. Ivan #1!"

Still, no response.

Dr. Washam blanched and called up the other Ivan, "Hey, Ivan #2! Do you copy?"

And he got no response.

"They aren't picking up," said Dr. Washam worriedly.

"Come on, let's check it out," said Yuji.

* * *

They found the Ivans, only now they were frozen solid. "What happened to them?" asked Misato.

"They're frozen like popsicles," said Yokoshima as he touched one of the frozen Ivans. All of a sudden cracks spread all across his body before he shattered to pieces. "HOLY CRAP!" shouted Yokoshima.

Shogo looked at the surveillance camera. "Maybe that can shed some light on what happened."

Shinichi looked at what remained of the Ivans and frowned. He then activated his time powers. He would revive them by reversing time. The energy around his hands manifested in the form of clocks and the hands moved counter-clockwise. He was focusing his power upon the Ivans to bring them back. The shattered Ivan then reformed back and the frozen Ivan was back to normal.

"There," said Shinichi. However, all of a sudden the two Ivans collapsed face-first into the snow. "Huh?"

Dr. Washam checked their pulses. "They're dead," he reported.

"B-b-but!" Shinichi was trying to make sense of it. Yuji then examined the bodies and realized something was off.

"Their souls have been drained," Yuji said. That was why Shinichi couldn't revive them. A body couldn't live without a soul. "Hey, Doc, can the Akrid steal souls too?"

"It's not something they should be able to do," Dr. Washam shook his head.

"Then we have a problem," the Liger Rider frowned."We're not the only ones out here!"

* * *

Later, back inside, the group reviewed the security footage. Yuji vaguely saw a girl in the video as she flash-froze the Ivans.

Yuji narrowed his eyes at the figure. "Looks like a Yuki-Onna."

"Talk about the kiss of death," Yokoshima grimaced. The Ivans didn't stand a chance.

"They can steal souls from men. But what I don't get is that Yuki-Onna are normally found in snowy Japanese mountains; not in the middle of nowhere like the South Pole..."

Shinichi narrowed his eyes on the Yuki-Onna's face and pointed forward, "Could you zoom in on her face?"

Dr. Washam glared at Shinichi before zooming in on the image of the girl. They looked at the screen, then at Misato, then back at the screen, then back at Misato.

"Is that...?" Yokoshima gawked.

Shogo nodded slowly, "It is..."

Yuji frowned, "OK, I don't think Yuki-Onna are capable of shape-shifting..."

Misato blinked, "Why does she look like me?"

"No idea, and that's what worries me."

Shinichi summarized, "OK, what we do know is that there's a Yuki-Onna showing up, just as we got the signal to a Spark Core near the location of a sealed Orochi Head. Coincidence? No way."

Yuji nodded, "This girl is connected, no doubt about it."

* * *

The Teleportal (portmanteau of 'teleport' and 'portal') System was a machine which allowed instantaneous travel between the Hive and anywhere else in the world. It was mainly operated by Dr. Magi or Sheila and was utilized by the NEO-NUMBERS so they could go to virtually anywhere on Earth to perform their missions. All they needed were coordinates for the location and the Teleportal would take them there. The Teleportal took the form of a swirling tunnel of energy that bridged the Hive and with the exit location. The Teleportal worked on a specific frequency, using string theory calculations to actually work. It was limited to only terrestrial locations as they had yet to perfect it to allow transportation between two worlds like the Dimensional Rifts that ARMOR utilized.

The Teleportal System had been set up in two places in the Hive; the main hall and the garage. At the moment, Chiaki was doing some maintenance work on the NEO-NUMBERS' vehicles when all of a sudden the Teleportal came to life.

"Who is it?" asked Chiaki. Had the others come back from the mission?

Sheila the base's AI answered, "Agent Hanyuu Furude."

Chiaki dropped his wrench when he heard her name and sweat-dropped in worry. "Aw, crap."

"You got that right," said Hanyuu crossly as she exited the Teleportal which winked out of existence as soon as her feet touched the ground. She was in her ARMOR uniform and had her hands to her hips. She didn't look happy and whenever Hanyuu wasn't happy she was scary.

Centuries ago, Hanyuu and her clan had come to Hinamizawa which had then been known as Onigafuchi. She married the Head Priest and into the Furude Clan. Then she had sacrificed herself for the village by allowing her own daughter to take her life. This allowed Hanyuu to ascend to godhood and be known as Oyashiro-sama. In her past life she had also been known as a 'demon god'.

Hanyuu literally had more power in her pinky than all the NEO-NUMBERS put together. She was a deity but her body was still mortal so she could still be killed. Her soul would survive, though, and would not be able to pass on due to her unique circumstances. She didn't understand why her spirit had taken the form of a child but didn't question it. Even as an adult she'd been a child at heart. Now, flesh and blood once more, she had grown up alongside Rika and had a new family now courtesy of Shiori Banabara. Shiori didn't care that one of her adopted daughters was a goddess. She was still one of Shiori's little girls.

"Hanyuu-chan, what are you doing here?" asked Chiaki.

"Oh, you know very damn well, **Child of Man**," said Hanyuu as her voice grew darker and echoed as her eyes glowed red. Chiaki gulped and was starting to soak in sweat. "**Another fragment of the Orochi has been revived and it is my responsibility to make sure it returns from whence it came. Child of Man, you will take me to its location**."

"Hanyuu-chan, I don't have authorization-" Chiaki suddenly fell to his knees from the massive killing intent Hanyuu was releasing in her angered state, "Hanyuu-chan, please…"

The red glow in Hanyuu's eyes faded and she realized what she'd done, "Au! Au!" she cried out as she rushed to him. "I'm so sorry, Chiaki-san!" She helped him up.

"No, I'm fine," he said, giving her an 'eye-smile'.

"But please, you need to take me there," insisted Hanyuu.

"But Shinichi said-" Chiaki tried to deny.

"I have to go," Hanyuu said firmly. She wasn't to be denied.

Chiaki sighed and told her, "It'll be freezing. You're going to need a jacket."

Hanyuu beamed cutely.

* * *

The alarm suddenly blared and Dr. Washam rose from his seat.

"Another proximity alert?" Yuji inquired.

"Yes, and according to the radar something big is coming!" said Dr. Washam as he tuned in to all the exterior surveillance cameras. The monitors showed them what was going on and his eyes widened as his worst nightmare came true.

"Those are a LOT of BIG bugs," said Yokoshima.

"That's putting it mildly, Yokoshima," said Shogo.

* * *

"RIDE 'EM, COWBOY!" howled Shiro as he rode atop one of the Akrid with Gnol and Yuki mounting their own thermal insects. They were riding the swarming Akrid known as Trilid. They glided through the air as they approached the facility with several Dongo rolling behind them. And following the Dongo were black, bipedal Akrid armed thorns and spikes, known as Vodogg. A group of Chryatis were also following their new masters.

"Please, calm down," Gnol requested, which was surprising since he represented wrath. Then again, he was saving that wrath for his enemies, like Susano-O and his allies. He was also embarrassed by his partner's childish display.

"Come on, Gnol! Live a little!" laughed Shiro. "It never hurts to have fun. Isn't that right, Yuki-chan?"

Yuki-chan, who was also known as Yuki-Gnol, was the incarnation of the Orochi's Ice Head of Despair. She had taken on the form of a demonic Yuki-Onna with Misato's appearance, possessing cryokinetic abilities and a deadly soul-devouring kiss. She was licking her lips in anticipation as she said in agreement, "Yes, what is the harm?"

"These insects will be useful tools," said Gnol.

"I didn't even know you could plant Darklings into other creatures," said Shiro in amazement.

"There's a lot you don't know of my kind," said Gnol.

* * *

"That's Shiro Juuyon," Shinichi identified, "And that's Gnol Gnauh with him."

"But who's the chick?" asked Yokoshima.

"Our Yuki-Onna," said Yuji. "Dr. Washam, Misato, you both stay in here. We'll take care of our pest problem."

"No, I'm coming," said Dr. Washam. "Someone has to avenge the Ivans."

"And I'm not leaving you to fight out there without me," said Misato firmly.

"Misato, think of the baby," Yuji reminded.

"I am, and I'm making sure our child grows up with a father. I'm going, end of story," Misato insisted.

"Looks like we know who wears the pants in this relationship," Yokoshima chuckled before getting swatted over the back of his head.

"Keep laughing and I'll make sure you won't need pants for the rest of your life," Yuji threatened.

* * *

The group was outside and stood fast as the miniature army stopped several feet away from the base.

"I guess birds of a feather do stick together," Showa sneered. "I see you found a new crew. Pests just like you."

"Speak for yourself, BLACK 13," WHITE14 shot back, "And besides, you're outnumbered. If you surrender I'll make your death quick and painless. If you don't surrender, I'll make it slow and painful."

Showa crossed his arms, "So either way we die, huh? Sorry, but dying isn't an option for us. Of course I can't guarantee for the rest of you."

"Are you blind?" Gnol snorted, "Look at what you're facing. The odds are against you."

"Well, since when have we ever cared about odds? Am I right, Yuji?"

Yuji grinned, "Exactly. And look at your soldiers. There nothing but insignificant bugs." His left arm blazed with flames, "One good blast is all I need to torch your little Armada, even if I am only a bit over half of my full power."

WHITE 14 chuckled, "Don't forget that we have 1/4 of the Orochi's power at our disposal now. Yuki-chan, show them what you can do."

Yuki-Gnol smiled and then answered, "With pleasure." She raised her arms and called forth a powerful blizzard.

Blue Beetle was shivering and sneezed, "Brr...Freezing!"

Showa snorted, "That's it? A snowstorm?" A huge chunk of ice suddenly dropped down from the sky and nearly flattened Showa if he hadn't leapt out of the way. "HOLY SHIT!" Several more chunks fell like meteors and struck the facility and our heroes. "OH, COME ON!"

"Good thing I packed some heat!" Yuji activated his Duel Disk and drew a card from his deck. "I play the Spell Card: **Burning Trail**!"The facility was quickly surrounded by a circle of flames, raising the temperature and clashing with the blizzard to balance the field."

WHITE 14 turned to his associate, "Gnol, your turn."

Gnol took in a deep breath and the fire surrounding the facility flew into Gnol's mouth and into his belly. His chest expanded and he spat out fireballs which exploded when they hit the ground, forcing the heroes to scatter.

Blue Beetle danced frantically as his feet were superheated, "HOT! HOT! OH MAN, WHY IS IT SO HOT!-?"

WHITE 14 laughed, "See? Your card tricks are insignificant compared to our power."

"Two can play at that game, fucker!" Yuji declared as he drew another card. "I special summon **Flare Volcanic Golem**!" Two Akrid were grabbed from underneath by a pair molten rock hands as a giant golem made of lava and molten rock rises and flanks the army from behind. The golem swung a fist down and punched Gnol, rocketing him through a wall of the facility, specifically the mess hall. "Never play with a Psychic Duelist!" Yuji grinned. "You get your ass kicked for real!"

"NEO-NUMBERS, time to attack!" Showa ordered.

"BLACK 13!" WHITE 14 snarled before he drew Oathbreaker. "DIE!-!-!"

Zero fired his stingers at the Akrid's thermal energy. He was told of their weakness and his precision was the perfect weapon in this situation.

Blue Beetle was armed with energy cannons and simply blew his enemies to bits. He took off into the air to avoid a stomp from a Chryatis and turned his right arm into a buzz saw that sliced the beast in half.

"I discard **Flare Volcanic Supporter**!" Yuji declared as he launched several fire balls at some Akrid, with thermal energy flying everywhere. "OK, now to send my top card to my graveyard to bring him back! And for his next trick…" A card shot out from his deck, "I get a level 6 monster and since I just inflicted some Burn Damage, I get to special summon **Flare Volcanic Sprite**!" Two monsters were summoned; one was a soldier in red and black armor with a flamethrower with two tanks on his back and the other was a miniature girl on fire with pixie wings. They charged and fought the rest of the Akrid. "OK, **Flame Sniper,** let's rock!" He slapped down another card and summoned a soldier in red and black armor, armed with a sniper rifle and fired on the Akrid with accurate headshots. "Since he just attacked, now I can special summon a level 4 or lower "Flare Volcanic" monster from my deck! Come on out, **Flare Volcanic Knight**!" The next summon was that of a knight in black and red armor, armed with a claymore as he was glowing with power and he swung his blade down on the Akrid.

Thermal energy rained down on Yuji and he could feel the pain in his right arm gradually fade. Yuji had speculated that thermal energy did have an effect on him, and turned out he was right. Thermal energy he was absorbing healed the pain in his right arm and even increased the power of his own fire. But he dared not use the Darkness Flame. It was still too dangerous and his arm was still charred from the last use of the technique. It was clear that Yuji needed more training to master the Darkness Flame.

He then noticed a presence and turned to see Yuki-Gnol smiling at him. "Well, this is disturbing yet strangely arousing," he remarked. The Orochi fragment resembled his own wife, but in the form of a soul-sucking Yuki-Onna.

"Wanna have some fun?" she smiled.

"Sorry, but our ideas of fun don't mix," Yuji denied with a cocky grin. The Red Queen was hefted over his right shoulder, now that he was slowly getting good feeling in his right arm.

Giant ice claws sprouted from her sleeves as her smile never left her face, "Too bad." She dashed forward and slashed away at Yuji, with him blocking with his sword. He revved the engine and slashed forward with his heated blade. The two danced around each other and Yuki-Gnol was all giggles.

"What's so funny?" Yuji demanded as they stared off.

"This is my first dance with a boy," she giggled. "I wonder if you're good in bed too…" A spray of gunfire hit her head and Yuki-Gnol and she turned to see Misato glaring at her and with a machinegun in her hand.

"Back off my man, bitch!" she demanded.

Yuji froze as he remembered how Rosa gave her life to save him. If Misato were to meet the same fate…

"Get out of here, Misato!" Yuji ordered. "I can handle this!"

"And I told you that I'm not letting our baby grow up without a father!" the girl shot back.

"A baby, huh," Yuki-Gnol sighed. "I wish I had a baby… Oh, well." She launched giant ice daggers at Misato, but she was shielded by a wall of flames that was erected by Asura as she appeared out of nowhere and glared at Yuki-Gnol.

"Thanks for the save," Misato thanked.

"Not a problem," Asura smirked, "I made it my job to protect Yuji's happiness, and that includes you." Misato smiled.

"Oh my," Yuki-Gnol smiled, "A new friend." She grew new ice claw, "Let's play!"

Asura transformed into her Majin form and cracked the knuckles of her six fists, "I'm gonna enjoy this."

Gnol roared as he emerged from the hole he made as he snarled, "My thoughts exactly, whelp!"

* * *

"BRING DOWN THE THUNDER, GOKUAKU!" Showa called as he assumed his Oni Form. In his hand was the Higurashi no Yaiba and while it was originally used in his Higurashi Form the fact was that any of his form could use it.

The Higurashi no Yaiba and Oathbreaker clashed, causing sparks to fly and they were locked as Showa and WHITE 14 stared each other down.

"I won't ask you again, WHITE 14," growled Showa, "Leave, or else you're going to have another meeting with death."

"Back then I was weak because I thought I was you!" WHITE 14 spat, "But when I was revived I realized I was my own person! To hell with Shinji Banabara or Shinichi Banabara! I'm WHITE 14!"

**WHAM**!

A flaming punch hit WHITE 14 in the face, sending him skidding back along the ice.

"I'm glad you found your own identity," admitted Showa, "Now I know what to put on your tombstone!"

"I think you should realize that the tombstone is going to be yours," said WHITE 14 as he held the Oathbreaker above his head. He then called out, "UNLOCK, OATHBREAKER!" Dark lightning fell from the sky and hit the dark blade, causing Showa to cover his eyes from the intense lightshow. WHITE 14, however, was unfazed as he unsealed his Oathbreaker's power. The katana turned into a double-edged sword with red runes etched onto the blade that was generating a reddish aura around it. The guard now resembled a demonic skull with three horns, the blade held within the skulls' mouth. The hilt had also turned more organic-like.

That wasn't the only thing to change, however. WHITE 14's armor had also been drastically altered. His chest now had a skull on it with his symbol on the skull. His armor was now black and skeletal with skulls on his shoulders. The bodysuit also sported red vein-like patterns.

"**WHITE 14: DARKNESS MODE!**" called out WHITE 14 in his new empowered state. He then swung his sword and a burst of darkness flew at Showa. He held up the Higurashi no Yaiba and swung, unleashing a blast of wind to counter. Both blasts collided and the shockwave was so massive that it almost blew them off their feet. A crater formed as a result of the two opposing forces meeting.

"Round 2," said WHITE 14 as he ran towards Showa who then summoned the Oni Kanabo. The Oathbreaker came down, shocking Showa as it sliced through the Oni Kanabo he was using to block and cried out as sparks flew as the blade cut into his armor. WHITE 14 then followed up with a vertical slash across Showa's chest and then kicked him in the stomach to send him staggering.

"Now, let me show you why this sword is called 'Oathbreaker'," said WHITE 14 and then he struck the tip of the sword against Showa's Spark Core. Showa screamed in shock and when WHITE 14 withdrew his blade, Showa was reverted to his Trinity Form.

"What…what happened?" questioned Showa in confusion.

"I severed your link to one of the Tsukumogami, the one who represents the Oni no Hone," said WHITE 14. "That's why this sword is called Oathbreaker. It doesn't just break seals but also pacts and contracts, even mystical ones." He focused his sinister gaze upon Washam and Misato. "I'd like to kill you but first I want to make you suffer."

He fired a bolt of dark lightning at them.

"WATCH OUT!" Showa shouted as he rushed over and shielded Dr. Washam and Misato, crying out in pain as sparks exploded off his body.

"#13!" Washam and Misato shouted as they rushed to him as he collapsed to his knees.

Showa's armor disappeared after taking too much damage, "Are you both...OK?"

Dr. Washam was stunned, "You...saved us..."

"Of course...it's natural for comrades to watch out...for each other."

Misato kneeled and held Shinichi, "...13..."

Shinichi looked up at her, "Misato...I'm glad we're friends now and I'm sorry...I killed you twice. Dr. Washam, I'm sorry too for letting Gebok control me..."

WHITE 14 grinned as he looked at Dr. Washam, "Alright, Old Man, now it's time to…" A Teleportal then came to life. "What the-? What's that sound? Is that a…" He then saw something jump right out of the Teleportal and straight at him, "CAR!-?"

WHITE 14 was run over by the pickup truck which was driven by Chiaki with Hanyuu riding shotgun. "Did we hit something?" asked Chiaki.

"I'm not sure," said Hanyuu and then he eyes widened as she saw an arm shoot out from in front of the jeep like from a horror film. "AU!" she screamed as WHITE 14 climbed onto the hood. "Chiaki-san! Chiaki-san!"

"Damn you…" WHITE 14 growled but then Chiaki swerved to the right and tossed WHITE 14 into several steel barrels filled with explosive chemicals.

"How did my bumper taste?" Chiaki taunted.

WHITE 14 was slowly getting back to his feet, slightly disoriented from the impact.

"Hey, #14!" called Zero who was in Fighter Form and had his eyes trained at him.

WHITE 14 looked up and groaned. "Oh, sonova…"

"You just got st-" Zero released his missiles prematurely which caused the barrels to explode in a chain reaction when they were hit. "Dammit, I messed up my one-liner!"

Dr. Washam glared at the downed WHITE 14 before patting Shinichi on the shoulder. "Take 5, 13. I'll take it from here." He stood off against WHITE 14. This creature had tried to harm him and his daughter and that was unforgivable.

"What can you do, Old Man?" WHITE 14 challenged as he got back up. The explosion had shaken him up but not killed him. It would take more than that to end his existence.

"Make you piss your pants," he said before he slammed his fists together as his cybernetic arms opened up and cables coveredhis body and begin to liquefy, before solidifying to become a second skin of metallic armor. He also gained a helmet with a horizontal visor and a set of curved steer horns. He was like a cyber-Minotaur.

Everyone gawked at Dr. Washam's transformation but Misato just grinned, "Go and show him what you can do, Dad."

Meanwhile, Hanyuu and Chiaki were getting out of the pickup truck and looking at the Akrid. "What's going on?" she asked.

"Long story short: WHITE 14 and Gnol there woke up another Orochi head," said Blue Beetle as he continued to blast at the Akrid.

"I know that. That's why I'm here," said Hanyuu, crossing her arms. An Akrid lunged at her but it exploded because of her telekinesis. She hated to be interrupted. "Any new information?"

"Yuji's fighting Gnol and his icy counterpart right now," Blue Beetle added.

"I said _new information_," she stressed.

"In two words: we're fucked," Blue Beetle answered. "Damn it, these bugs are endless!"

Hanyuu sighed and then climbed onto the back of the pickup truck to handle the turret. "Hanyuu-chan, are you sure you can use that thing?" Chiaki asked.

"I just point and shoot," summarized Hanyuu. "Now, you drive and I shoot, Chiaki-san!"

Chiaki gunned the engine and the pickup truck drove onwards towards the swarm as Hanyuu aimed and fired the Gatling gun turret at the Akrid. The armor-piercing bullets penetrated their exoskeletons and caused them to explode. She then picked up one of the grenades and pulled the pin before tossing it at the Akrid and it exploded. She then continued to fire the Gatling gun at the Akrid until she ran out of ammo before picking up a rocket launcher and letting a rocket fly.

"Woah, she's badass," said Blue Beetle in amazement.

"She's pissed," Zero commented. Now he knew why she was considered Hinamizawa's most feared god, Oyashiro-sama. Of course did she have to laugh like a maniac when she was shooting the turret earlier? That was just unnerving.

* * *

Yuji and Gnol were fighting, blade against claws as fire blazed around them. Yuji blocked Gnol's claw swipes with his Duel Disk and swung with the Red Queen. He revved the engine and dashed forward, swinging horizontally as he slashed Gnol's chest, the flames licking off the demon's body.

"Those weak flames aren't doing a thing," Gnol boasted. He then blurred out of sight and started hitting Yuji from all directions, using his impressive speed. **"Kouen!"** he called as he unleashed a swirl of flames that was like a solar eruption.

"Guk…!" Yuji grunted as he was being blown back by the blistering winds.

Yuki-Gnol's arms were encased in blades of ice and she danced around Majin Asura, who was armed with six whips of fire and she was lashing around her to keep the demon at a distance.

Yuki-Gnol's free hand glowed with a blue aura as she held what looked like snow. She blew forward and propelled the snow like bullets that shot forward at Asura. "Shards of Winter!"

Asura took a deep breath and breathed out a blast of flames that melted the ice bullets with ease. She held her hands close to her front as she began to collect energy into an orb. "Sol Blaster!" she called as she launched the orb of solar energy.

"KYAAA!-!" the Ice Orochi cried as she was hit by the scorching attack.

* * *

WHITE 14 was swinging wildly with the Oathbreaker but Dr. Washam in his armored form merely blocked the blade with his forearms. He knocked the blade away and kneed the cyborg in the gut, forcing him to double over before slamming his metal fists into his enemy's back. He then grabbed WHITE 14 by his sides and held him upside down and executed a piledriver, slamming WHITE 14's head into the icy floor. WHITE 14 was struggling to get up and failed to notice Dr. Washam ramming his horns into him and tossing him over his head, resulting in the android crashing down in pain.

"Damn you…" growled WHITE 14. "You can't beat me, you worthless Old Man! You're nothing! You're less than nothing!"

"Stop whining and fight," said Dr. Washam, pounding his fists together. Electricity started to crackle between his knuckles and they crackled along his horns as well. He then slammed his fists down on the ground and sent a shockwave at WHITE 14.

"Not this time!" WHITE 14 yelled as he blocked the attack with his sword, the shockwave dissipating as it hit the blade of the Oathbreaker. "Your time has passed, Old Man. GIN-SHOCKER is gone and people like you should be buried in the past. It's a new age and the Religion of Crime is coming to take over the world, so says my new master!"

"Wanna know what else is coming?" Dr. Washam asked.

"What?" WHITE 14 made the mistake of asking as he received his answer in the form of a metal kick to his face.

"My foot in your fucking face!" Dr. Washam sprinted forward and grabbed WHITE 14 in a crucifix hold and began spinning while roaring like a madman. Dr. Washam kept spinning and spinning as electricity began to surge with the winds as they formed a tornado. He tossed WHITE 14 upwards and kneed him in the back, while still holding the android and falling to the floor before the strong scientist began a submission roll and tossed him into another pile of barrels. "And FYI, I'm 41," Washam stated before slamming a fist down and sending a shockwave that exploded the barrels once again, with the android in the crossfire.

"Nice one, Washam," Yuji grinned before he was shoulder rammed by Gnol.

"Pay attention!" he demanded. "Yuki-Gnol, come to my side!"

Yuki-Gnol heard the call and retreated to Gnol's side as they each aimed a hand at Yuji.

"**BLACK BLIZZARD BLAZE!-!-!"** they called as they launched a black twister of fire and ice that collided with Yuji.

"AAAAAAAAAARRRGH!-!-!-!-!" the Manakyte screamed in agony as he was engulfed by the tornado of fire and ice that scorched his body before collapsing onto the ground.

"YUJI!-!-!-!" Misato and Asura cried.

Yuji struggled to rise on one knee and panting as Gnol and Yuki-Gnol loom over him.

"Time to die, Fudo," Gnol growled as he raised his clawed hand.

"I won't lose..." Yuji swore. His clothes were scorched and charred. "You hear me?-! I refuse...to die..." A red aura began to seep out of Yuji's body as his right arm began to glow with a crimson light from his mark, "before I see...my kid...born! I...REFUUUUSE!-!-!-!-!-!"

**Music – "Lua's Awakening" (Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's Sound Duel 3)**

His body blazes with flaming aura, pushing the two demons back as Yuji stands tall."I tune my Level 2 Flare Volcanic Supporter with my Level 3 Flare volcanic Sniper and level 4 Flare Volcanic Knight!"

The Supporter turned into two rings of green energy as the Knight and Sniper fly through the rings and turning into seven orbs of light as Yuji chanted:

"_The Earth shatters and bellows flame of pride! Take form and burn away the darkness that looms forth!"_

The orbs turn into a pillar of light and Yuji shouted, **"SYNCHRO SUMMON! ERUPT, MY BURNING SOUL!-!-! VOLCANIC DRAGON!-!-!-!"**

The Volcanic Dragon emerged form the light and roared as pillars of fire burst from the icy floors in response.

"What is that!-?" Yuki-Gnol cried out of shock.

Gnol's eyes widened with realization, "It's his soul! This beast is his true form and he brought it out without transforming!-! Impossible!"

"I'm Yuji Fucking Fudo and "impossible" isn't in my fucking vocabulary!" Yuji roared. "I play the Spell Card: **Disaster Radius**! Say bye-bye to your army!"

Flare Volcanic Golem and Volcanic Dragon roared in chorus as they were turned into a large mass of thermal energy and was ready to detonate.

"We have to move! They're gonna blow!" Asura cried as she grabbed Misato, Washam, and Shinichi and flew off. Blue Beetle and Zero grabbed Chiaki and Hanyuu as they too made tracks. The villains were too late as they mass of energy detonated releasing a wave of fire power that wiped out all the Akrid in the area.

"Volcanic Dragon's Monster Effect inflicts more damage to both sides when he leaves the field!" Yuji stated.

"WHAT!-?-!-?-!" the three villains gawked.

"**MAGMA MINE!-!-!"**

The cyborg and two demons were hit and were flung back by the raging flames.

**End Music**

The smoke cleared and nothing was left, save for Yuji, Gnol, WHITE 14, and Yuki-Gnol.

"Holy crap…" Shinichi uttered as he witnessed the vast emptiness of the area. They were brought back down to ground level along with the others.

"I'm glad we got out there in time," Dr. Washam admitted. He'd never seen anything like that before in his life.

"That…was…woah…" said Blue Beetle with wide eyes.

"I'm glad he's on our side," said Zero.

Chiaki was silent as Hanyuu uttered, "Au…" She had never felt such power before. It was amazing. She couldn't deny that one day Yuji would be seen as a god.

"_Yuji, we must finish this,"_ GaoLiger called.

"_Let us show these fools our combined power,"_ GaoPhoenix smirked.

**Music – "5Ds Theme" (Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's Sound Duel 3)**

"You got it," he nodded.

Asura caught the signal and dashed over to Yuji.

"Where is she going?" Zero asked.

Yuji saw Asura coming and they clasped hands. GaoLiger and GaoPhoenix's jewels flew around Yuji's right arm as he and Asura were covered in white light and then blue flames before it faded. His right arm was covered in a red gauntlet with GaoLiger's head on the shoulder and had wings on the sides of the forearm with gold talons folded back. There were also rings on his right middle and ring finger with gems that contain the figures of GaoLiger and GaoPhoenix. On Yuji's back were six black extensions with gold rings at the ends which were in reality Asura's arms.

"OK, now that is just awesome!" said Blue Beetle as he spoke what everyone else was thinking. That gauntlet was just too awesome for words.

"**GET 'EM!-!"** WHITE 14 ordered as he charged ahead with Oathbreaker in hand. Gnol and Yuki-Gnol followed after with their claws at the ready.

Yuji wouldn have none of it as his eyes burned with righteous fury. The extensions on his back ignited and formed flaming wings as they flapped and carried him forward at surprising speed. He first punched WHITE 14 in the face, making him tumble away as he eyed Yuki-Gnol and reared back his fist.

"**BURNING BEAST KNUCKLE!"** he roared as he lunched a fireball in the form of GaoLiger's head at Yuki-Gnol.

Yuki-Gnol screamed as she was hit and started to roll on the floor, "HOT! HOT! HOT!"

The talons folded forward as the wings spread and Yuji rushed at Gnol; his next target.

"**SOARING RAPTOR SLASH!"** Yuji called as blades of golden energy extended from the claws and he swung.

Gnol howled as he was hit by the slash, cuts appearing on his body.

"What...what is this power...?" Yuki-Gnol groaned as she tried to get up.

Gnol clutched his chest as black blood gushed from the gashes. "It hurts...Damn you!"

WHITE 14 got up and roared as he charged at Yuji with Oathbreaker above his head, "YOU ARE NOTHING MORE THAN A MERE HUMAN!-!-!-!"

"Get the memo asshole!" Yuji roared back as he turned to WHITE 14. "ORE WA…MANAKYTE DA!-!-!" His flaming wings turned into a ring of fire behind Yuji as it propelled him forward and his entire body turned gold. "This hand of mine is burning red! Its loud roar tells me to grasp victory!-! **ERUPTING…BURNING…DRAGON!-!-!-!**" He shot his right arm forward and unleashed a blast of powerful flames that seemed to consume WHITE 14.

**End Music**

WHITE 14 screamed as he was blasted backwards by the attack, his Darkness Mode armor shattering as his body was forced back to human form. Gritting his teeth and rising painfully to his feet, he said, "Fudo…I'll be back!" he swore before he called, "Gnol, we're leaving!"

The Orochi of Wrath nodded and said to Yuki-Gnol, "We'll leave the rest to you," and then enveloped himself and Shiro in a tornado of flames which carried them away. Yuki-Gnol clenched her fists as she faced Yuji and let out a roar as her skin began to crack and the ice trembled. The #04 Spark Core inside of her was also reacting and radiating with power as her shell shattered and reshaped into a more gigantic and demonic shape.

The body was incredibly stocky, with the forearms, shins, feet, shoulders and four wings and two tails a deep blue color. The ice blades growing from its arms, thighs, chest, and horns were all an ice-blue color and its head, back and hands and claws a darker blue as it roared, its four yellow eyes glowing.

"Wow, she put on weight," Blue Beetle commented.

The Ice Orochi turned and roared down at the group, specificallyBlue Beetle as he cringed in fear.

"That's what you get for commenting on a girl's weight," Misato scolded.

Yuji stared at his armored hand, "Time to finish this…"

"_The Crowned Gao King has another technique, Yuji,"_ GaoLiger informed.

"_Remember to concentrate, Yuji,"_ GaoPhoenix reminded.

"Crowned Gao King, huh? I like it," Yuji grinned before closing his eyes and clapping his hands together. He was then covered in a bright crimson light which caught the Ice Orochi's attention, as well as everyone else's.

**Music – "****Kurenai no Shuragami" (From Super Robot Wars)**

What challenged the Ice Orochi was a red construct of a man in GaoLiger's armor and six of GaoPhoenix's wings. It wore layered samurai armor and had gold horns surrounding the helmet. Its eyes glowed gold and had two huge locks of flowing gold "hair" from its hair and was armed with golden claws on its hands and feet.

"What the hell?" Dr. Washam blinked.

"It's huge!" Chiaki, Zero, and Blue Beetle gaped.

"That's what she said…" mumbled Shinichi.

Misato spotted something in the chest of the construct and pointed, "Yuji's inside that thing!"

"**BEAR WITNESS TO THE BIRTH OF KURENAI NO SHURAGAMI!"** Yuji declared from inside the heart of the construct, **"OUR VOLCANIC ANIMAL HEART!"**

The Kurenai no Shuragami dashed forward and punched the Ice Orochi, only to be blocked by one of its four wings. The Ice Orochi slashed the Kurenai no Shuragami across the chest and it began to freeze, but melted rapidly due to its aura. The two beings traded blows as they punched and clawed at each other, neither force giving up the fight to the other. The Ice Orochi fired a beam of ice from its mouth as the Kurenai no Shuragami counted with a blast of heat from its chest that collided with the opposing attack. Both forces pushed against each other before exploding due to equal power.

"**WITNESS THE POWER OF THE UNDEFEATED OF THE EAST!"** Yuji declared. He spread his arms out and waved his right arm up while waving his left hand down before crossing them and then going into a stance as the Kurenai no Shuragami's body flared with gold and red Ki. **"ORYA!-!"** Yuji roared as he charged ahead and punched the Ice Orochi, causing the landscape behind it to crack from the shockwave. Yuji continued roaring as the Kurenai no Shuragami rampaged with punches and kicks before giving the monster and uppercut that launched it midair. Kurenai no Shuragami then unleashed impacts of energy from its fists as the Ice Orochi was pummeled by the King of Heart's latest technique. The monster fell but froze in midair before the Kurenai no Shuragami as it sent out a stasis field as it reared back its fist and collected red energy. **"SHINHA…"** Yuji started before punching the Ice Ororchi, **"GOU SHOUSEN!-!-!"** he finished before launching the creature through a nearby mountain as it broke apart. Kurenai no Shuragami turned to face the camera before the Ice Orochi exploded from a distance.

**End Music**

* * *

"Hey, I found something!" Hanyuu called as she picked something up from the snow. It was a black crystal orb with IV on it.

"I think I should hold onto that," Yuji suggested. "I don't want a repeat of the "Kaitoh Incident" again." Hanyuu nodded and handed Yuji the Spark Core which belonged to Misato when she was a Kaizo Ningen. He stared at his arm. After using the Crowned Gao King, the Power Animals would be out of commission for a while. How long that would be was anyone's guess.

"Well, let's get out of here," Zero sighed.

Yuji turned to see Asura, panting with an extreme blush across her face. "Asura, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly before he was glomped by her and forced into a mad make out session. The NEO-NUMBERS were definitely surprised by this since they knew the girl to be relatively calm and quiet, but that wasn't case her.

She broke the kiss and was still panting, "When we get home…you and me…are in for one hell of a night…!"

Yuji chuckled to himself. It seems that all that power that flowed through her made her libido skyrocket. Well, it wasn't alarming to Yuji. Misato huffed to herself, but she was happy that her husband was alive nevertheless.

Dr. Washam sighed as he saw where his base used to be and what remained of it now after the battle.

"Sorry about losing your base, Dr. Washam," Shinichi apologized. "You know I could just fix it for you…"

"Ah, fuck it," he dismissed. "I wanted to get the hell out of this frozen hell hole anyway."

"What about your research?"

Dr. Washam grinned and pointed to his temple, "Got it all up here! Of course, I'm gonna need a new place to live."

"I think I have the perfect place in mind," Shinichi smiled.

* * *

"It's so good to see you again, Dr. Washam," said Dr. Magi as he welcomed his colleague to the Hive as they shook hands.

"I could say the same of you, Dr. Magi," Dr. Washam agreed before turning to the other NEO-NUMBERS, "And I'm glad to see you all as well."

Michiru beamed at Dr. Washam with a hug, "I'm sure Misato-chan was happy to see you!"

"There were lots of surprises," he laughed.

"So, will you be staying here, Dr. Washam?" Hana asked.

"That's right," he nodded.

"I can't wait to hear about your ventures in thermal energy research," Dr. Magi said excitedly.

Meanwhile, Yuji was on the roof of the Hive, holding Misato from behind as they stared out into the canyon.

"There was a time I thought I lost you," Misato admitted.

"Well, I'm here now," Yuji said as he rubbed her belly, "And I'm not going anywhere."

"How's your arm?" she asked.

He clenched his fist, "Feeling better. But my Ki is still low and I was borrowing GaoLiger and GaoPhoenix's power. Wish I could've used the Crowned Gao King back then against Ana."

That was when the Power Animals chose to begin a mental conversation with Yuji.

_'__We apologize, Yuji,'_ GaoLiger spoke through their telepathic link. _'We should have helped you in your time of need.'_

_'__Regardless, you are definitely worthy of GaoGod's power,;_ GaoPhoenix acknowledged.

'_GaoGod?'_ Yuji blinked as he replied with his mind.

_'__We are Power Animals who once served GaoGod-sama,'_ the Power Animals confessed.

'_Cool. So why were you guys sealed away?_'

_'__During the battle with the Orgs we fought against Master Org but he found a spell that sealed us away,'_ GaoLiger said.

'_Until we were found by a new master we would forever be sealed away in the Nexus,'_ GaoPhoenix continued.

_'__Damn, that's rough..._' Yuji frowned.

'_There is a third one, though,'_ GaoPhoenix admitted, _'The most vicious of us.'_

'_GaoTyranno,'_ GaoLiger said, his voice shivering slightly.

Yuji blinked, '_GaoTyranno?_'

_'__He's the only dinosaur Power Animal and resembles a Tyrannosaurus,'_ GaoPhoenix summarized.

'_Together we could combine to form GaoGladiator,'_ GaoLiger continued.

_'__Sounds awesome_,' Yuji admitted. _'So he's basically the craziest of you three, right?_'

_'__He had a NEVER SAY DIE and NEVER SURRENDER attitude,'_ the Power Animals described in unison. That statement marked the end of their private conversation.

"Crowned Gao King, huh?" Misato sighed warmly as she held Yuji's hand. "Well, you're definitely _my_ King."

"Thanks babe," Yuji smiled as he laid his head on Misato's shoulder

* * *

Yuri grinned to himself as he walked out of an alley. He felt proud of himself. He'd just won something valuable in a Poker game.

"Man, the things I win in a game of Poker," chuckled Yuri as he admired the precious item in his hand. "You and I are going to make beautiful music together."

In his hand was a purple Gao Jewel.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: OK, Yuki-Gnol's Ice Orochi form is based off Number 19: Freezerdon of the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG and the Kurenai no Shuragami construct was based off Laladabaoth from Super Robot Wars. Oh, and the Crowned Gao King was based off Kazuma's Alter Power from "S-Cry-Ed." The Akrid are from Lost Planet. Misato has been reunited with her father figure, Carl Washam, and he's now taken residence in the Hive with the NEO-NUMBERS. And a new Gao Jewel has been revealed. What kind of power could the mysterious GaoTyranno hold? What could happen next, you ask? Well, wait and find out, friends. Hope you enjoy!**


	81. The Legacy of Cain Part 25

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 25: Freaky Friday**

Warren was stressed, so stressed that he was actually doing paperwork to forget how stressed he was. That was how stressed the Director of ARMOR was right now. Months had passed since ARMOR lost contact with Shinichi's home world. Alan and Yuji were also stranded there along with anyone else that had brought along with them.

Their experts had concluded that there was some kind of barrier blocking out ARMOR from accessing that world. Attempts at force opening Dimensional Rift gates to Shinichi's world had been disastrous. The last time they tried they had to fix the entire Dimensional Rift system which had taken weeks. The Time Trains were needed to commute agents between their home worlds and ARMOR. The time trains weren't any good either. No connections could be made with the timeline of Shinichi's world, like it didn't even exist.

"You know, if anyone saw you right now they would assume you were either possessed or an impostor," Ryuki quipped as he entered Warren's office, carrying a tray with two cups of herbal tea.

"Ryuki, I just needed to do something to calm down and since paperwork is the most boring thing I can think of it works," said Warren.

"I'm just glad you're finally doing paperwork, even if you're not really in the spirit of things," said Ryuki as he put down the tray. "Now, stop and have some tea with me."

Warren sighed and put down his paperwork to pick a cup off. "Status report?"

"None yet," said Ryuki. "DORA's been working around the clock to get visuals on Showa no Sekai (the designation for Shinichi's world, named after his Rider form) but we haven't had much luck. This barrier is causing interference."

"And we can't send anybody in to check on them either," Warren either. "Not even communications are getting through. Those boys of mine are isolated from us."

Ryuki was worried. All of Warren's children had become part of Ryuki's family. They were his nieces and nephew, even if they weren't related by blood. That was just a technicality. After all they'd been through these years the two had bonded as sworn brothers. Ryuki looked out for Warren's children like they were his own and Alan and Shinichi were no different.

Ever since Ryuki had found out Shinichi was Warren's biological son, the doctor had tried to wrap around his head why Warren would allow Shinichi to go through all that trauma. He then understood it was all necessary for the world to have a protector. Of course, necessary or not, if it had been one of his kids he would make sure they were never hurt like that. But as much as Ryuki wanted to question the Director, there was always method to his madness no matter how unsettling it was.

"Daddy?" Little Alan, Alan's 3-year old past self poked his head into Warren's office.

"Alan, what are you doing here by yourself?" Warren asked his son. "Come on in." Little Alan did and made his way to his father, jumping up into his lap. "So, what do you need, kiddo?"

"Mommy says you're worried about me," said Little Alan.

"Of course I am. I'm your dad," said Warren.

"Don't worry, Daddy. I'm OK," smiled Little Alan. Sure, he was fine now but then he would be older and go through the same things his older self did and Warren would not be able to do anything about it lest he created a paradox.

"Yes, yes you are," agreed Warren.

* * *

"So, what's this about?" Rena asked as she took a seat from Ootori in the café. "You sounded urgent on the phone."

Ootori Hisamaki, a senior in Shishibone University and President of the Photography Club let out a sigh before she answered, "I don't know how else to tell you this but Shinichi's been cheating on you."

Rena blinked and questioned, "Cheating on me?"

Ootori took out an envelope and pushed it over to Rena who then opened it up to look at the pictures. There was a picture of Shinichi dancing with Satan in a nightclub, another picture of Shinichi going into a love hotel with Satan and yet another picture showing them exiting the same love hotel. She looked at them one by one as Ootori explained, "I got these from Araki."

"Araki-san? Why was he taking pictures of Shin-kun?" asked Rena.

"Oh, you know what he's like," said Ootori, rolling her eyes. "He's all about conspiracy theories. He thinks Shinichi's involve in something top secret." Araki had mentioned how odd it was for Shinichi to just vanish and then be reunited with his mother after a decade without any memory of what had occurred during those missing years of his life.

Rena had to tell Shinichi that he was being spied on. This could be troublesome. Araki might just find out his secret identity.

"But enough of that. What's important now is what you're going to do. I'm really sorry about this, Rena. I know you love him but this is the truth. He's been seeing this girl behind your back," said Ootori.

Rena put the photos away and smiled, "But he's not cheating on me."

Ootori sighed. Rena was so in denial to ignore the truth even if it was staring her in the face. After all, a picture spoke 1,000 words and those pictures were telling her a lot. "I know you don't want to believe it, but-"

"Ootori-san, Shinichi isn't cheating on me because I was the one who set him up with her," said Rena

"Eh?"Ootori blinked before leaping to her feet in shock, "EH?-!-?-!-?"

Rena calmly explained, "Shinichi's not cheating on me. If he was that would imply I didn't know he was having an affair."

"But-but-but…" Ootori stammered. She took several deep breaths and sat back down calmly, ignoring the looks she was getting from the café's staff and patrons. She asked Rena, "But why?"

Rena frowned sadly, "It's because…Shin-kun's been through a lot." Shinichi had suffered greatly for many years. First he was kidnapped and taken from his family, and then turned into one of GIN-SHOCKER's cyborg weapons. He was then made to do so many horrible things, including killing his comrades and his first love Lina. Even after he escaped their clutches Shinichi had suffered several tragedies. He did experience an endless time loop where he witnessed the death of his loves ones and tried to fix things only to experience another tragedy, repeatedly. It was always one thing after another which was causing stress to Shinichi. Therefore, Rena had the idea to use love to heal his heart. However, she could not do it alone so she enlisted Shawna and Satan to heal him emotionally. "That's why I'm allowing this, so that he'll get better."

"And you're okay with this?" asked Ootori skeptically.

"As long as he's happy, I'm happy," said Rena honestly.

* * *

"Looks like I missed quite a party," said Alan after listening to Shinichi's latest adventure. They were in his room in the boarding house with Alice who was trying to fold origami.

"Yup, but I'm worried about WHITE 14. He got this sword that cancelled out the contract I made with Gokuaku," said Shinichi. He remembered how shocked he was when he'd been forcefully reverted from Oni Form. It had not been fun. "Fortunately, because of my connection with Gokuaku it was ONLY temporary. All I had to do was reestablish our contract so I haven't lost use of that form."

"That's a relief. So, now you have another ex-GIN-SHOCKER scientist working with you," said Alan. "How is he anyway?"

"Dr. Washam? I didn't really get to know him all that much back in GIN-SHOCKER. The few times we did meet were rather brief. He spent his time mostly with Misato," Shinichi answered. "But if he's anything like Dr. Magi then it's a good thing he's on our side."

"Is it true he kicked you in the crotch?" asked Bazel.

"How did you know that?" asked Shinichi.

"I heard it from Shin, who heard it from Yokoshima," Bazel answered. "I would pay to see that!"

Shinichi rolled his eyes and heard a whine of frustration. He looked to see Alice trying and failing to fold a single paper crane. Ruined attempts were lying around her. Sitting beside her was her pet dragon Lockheed who wagged his tail as he watched, acting like a puppy rather than a fire-breathing lizard.

"Alice-chan, let me show you how to make one," said Shinichi and he helped Alice with simple step-by-step instructions on how to make a paper crane. "There," he showed her.

"Thank you, Onii-chan!" said Alice as she hugged him. She then frowned.

"What's the matter?" asked Alan.

"I wanted to fold 1,000 paper cranes like how Auntie Shiori said Rena-neechan did for Onii-chan," said Alice. "But now I have to fold twice as much because I want to make two wishes; one for Daddy and one for Onii-chan." That was just too much for Alice.

"Relax, you don't have to do all of them at once. Just one a day is enough," said Shinichi reassuringly.

"OK and I'll practice so I can make a bunch and show them to you!" said Alice eagerly.

"You're really good with kids," admired Alan.

"I have to be. I babysat you, remember?" Shinichi reminded.

"Technically, that was just Rena. You were just trying not to get beat up by an infant," Alan shot back.

"You were telekinetic and had no qualms about using your powers on me!" Shinichi argued. "I had to be cautious!"

Alan laughed. "Say, Alice drew this just the other day. What do you make of it?"

Shinichi looked at the drawing and his eyes widened slightly. She'd drawn a picture of herself and Alan, except that Alan was in his Green Lantern uniform and Alice sported wings; sharp, purple wings. It was a crude, childish drawing but it was clear enough.

"Dr. Magi did say that the programming block wouldn't be perfect," Shinichi stated. "Are you worried?"

"No," Alan answered confidently. "When the day her powers do activate again comes I will be there for her like my parents were for me. I'm her dad. It's my job to always be there for her."

"Too bad he wasn't there for me," Shinichi muttered.

"Shinichi…"

"I know, I know. There was a reason for it but I still resent Pops for not trying to save me," Shinichi told Alan quickly. What he didn't tell Alan was that at one point in time he had been given the chance to change things but had declined. Like Warren he agreed that this world needed a hero. "But I've accepted it a long time ago. I had to become a hero, even if I had to go through all that pain. I'm still allowed to be a _little_ mad at him, though."

"Just don't try and attack him. You'd end up splattered on the wall before you could even make the first move."

"Now _that_ I can totally believe."

* * *

Misato's Spark Core had been used to revive the Orochi Head of Ice and Despair and given it a form based on Misato. Its appearance as a Yuki-Onna was mainly influenced by the time of abilities it held such as cryokinesis and the ability to devour souls. The Ivans had been given a proper burial and after Dr. Washam and the others had paid their respects, Dr. Washam left to join them at the Hive.

Presently, Misato's Spark Core, which was Spark Core #04 was in Yuji's possession. It seemed to be drained of power and it seemed little more than a powerless crystal ball.

Speaking of Spark Cores, the detector caught another signal and Sheila went on alert, "_SPARK CORE DETECTED! SPARK CORE DETECTED!_"

The area it was detected in was the ocean where Hanyuu had reinforced the seal upon one of the demonic heads of the Orochi. The Water Head of Impurity had been found in an underwater cavern. They had needed a submarine just to get to the cavern and then used scuba gear to enter so that Hanyuu could perform the seal reinforcement ritual.

* * *

"_Wow…" Hanyuu was looking out the porthole of a submarine. She'd never been in a submarine before._

"_It looks nice, doesn't it?" asked Chiaki. They were underwater and looking for the Head of Water. Meanwhile, Michiru was having trouble with the radar so Shinichi went to check on her._

_"What's wrong Michiru?" Shinichi asked._

_"I seem to be having trouble with the radar," she told him._

_Daichi looked over her shoulder to peer at the radar screen as he asked, "What's wrong with it?"_

_"I've lost the bleeps, I've the lost the sweeps, and I've lost the creeps," Michiru said._

_"The what?" Shinichi asked._

_"The what?" Daichi added._

_"And the what?" Shinichi and Daichi finished, feeling confused at what Michiru had told them._

_Michiru sighed as she explained, "You know. The bleeps," Michiru said before she started making bleeps sounds. Then she said, "The sweeps" before she did sweeping sounds. "And the creeps." She made creeping sounds to clarify._

_Daichi leaned over to Shinichi and whispered, "That's not all she's lost." Shinichi nodded in agreement._

_"We're getting close," Hanyuu said and everyone looked to her in response._

_"How can you tell?" Daichi asked._

_"Just call it godly intuition," Hanyuu smiled while looking out the porthole before pointing to a strange cave-like formation. "There, that's where it is."_

_"Okay then. Michiru, Daichi you stay in the sub, while me, and Shinichii will go with Hanyuu to reinforce the seal," Chiaki said as everyone nodded. The trio put on their scuba gear before they got out of the sub. They swam and entered the underwater cavern's entrance. They continued swimming deeper into the tunnel, the two following Hanyuu as she led the way. At the end of the tunnel was a door with wards and symbols on it. They had found the seal._

* * *

Showa in his Guardian Jet Mode and Sentinel were headed towards the location where the Spark Core was detected. If they were too late then another fragment of the Orochi would arise and cause trouble for them and the world. The last one to revive, the Orochi of Ice, had really been a challenge for Yuji. Both Rider and Lantern needed to be vigilant and act quickly before…

…A tall tower of water burst out of the ocean.

"_Crap, we're too late_," Showa cursed as the Orochi of Water had been revived.

The water calmed and a demonic creature was left in the wake of the splash. Its body was ebony black, covered in blue layered armor that was trimmed in purple, consisting of torso armor, broad shoulder pads, an armored skirt with fins, purple greaves, a purple left arm guard, a blue fin-like shield with two blades, and a horned purple helmet with a blue mouth guard where only his glowing red eyes were present. In his left hand was green spear with two golden blades on either end.

The Water Orochi of Impurity had finally arisen from its slumber. Looking around as it hovered over the surface of the water, he spotted Sentinel and Showa coming his way. "Ah, prey," he growled happily before he went to engage the two of them.

Showa transformed out of his Jet Mode and cautioned Sentinel, "Remember, Alan. This guy's a demon so he's gonna be able to use magic."

"Right," Sentinel nodded. Magic was one of his weaknesses so he needed to be careful. "He's coming."

Showa drew his Higurashi no Yaiba and rushed towards Mizu-Gnol. Spear and sword clashed, which was followed by a shower of sparks. The Orochi of Water also blocked with his shield whenever Showa found a vulnerable spot.

Mizu-Gnol broke off and swung for Showa's neck, only to be shoved back by Sentinel's heat vision. He rubbed out the scorched area on his chest and glared at his other opponent. "Two on one, not exactly fair," he quipped.

"Well, considering what you're all about, I don't think fighting fair applies to you," Sentinel shot back. He and Showa then resumed their assault. Showa slashed at Mizu-Gnol who countered with his spear but this left him open for a bone-breaking punch from Sentinel, sending him splashing back into the water. The water rippled and then a dragon of water shot out of it and roared at the Rider and Lantern.

The water dragon surged forward and crashed into them violently, sending them into the water below. Now underwater, they were in Mizu-Gnol's element where he had the home field advantage.

Mizu-Gnol attacked Showa's blind spot to pierce him with his spear but Sentinel had Showa's back and caught the spear before pulling Mizu-Gnol towards him and kicking him in the face with enough force to make him recoil. The Water Orochi then forced Sentinel to release his weapon by sending a shock up his arm.

Looking around, Mizu-Gnol saw all the fish and decided to use them to his advantage. Sending out a telepathic command, the schools of fish began to swarm around Sentinel and Showa.

'_It's like fighting Aquaman!_' thought Sentinel as he tried to swat the fish away.

Mizu-Gnol, taking advantage of the distraction, aimed his spear at the two. An energized orb of water formed at the blade's tip, its size expanding with every second. He drew his arm back for the toss when he felt a call in his mind.

'_Stop wasting time and come to us_,' commanded Gnol, '_Now._'

Mizu-Gnol scowled and neutralized his attack. However, he wasn't just going to let Showa and Sentinel go without leaving his mark on them.

Without warning, the Rider and Lantern were struck and their vision was covered in darkness.

* * *

When Shinichi slowly opened his eyes, He was sure something was wrong. He just wasn't sure what it was. With a tired yawn, he stretched and got out of bed. That's when he realized the room didn't look right. This was not his bedroom.

Startled, Shinichi scanned the room and then relaxed after recognizing it to be the Hive's infirmary. "Oh yeah, I was knocked out by that water-dragon jackass," Shinichi grumbled. His recovery beacon must've activated when he went unconscious and so the others came and picked him and Alan up. He turned his head and gaped. He couldn't believe his eyes.

* * *

"Ow, that hurt...damn magic weakness," Alan groaned as he slowly got up, wincing a bit 'Funny I must've taken a harder hit than I thought,' Alan thought.

"A-alan is that you?" A voice ask almost hesitantly

"Shinichi? Oh good, you're alive," Alan sighed in relief as he turned his head, but like Shinichi he also gawked at the sight he was seeing.

"Holy Shit! You're me!"

"I'm you!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH-!-!-!-!-!"

* * *

"So, you're Shinichi?" Dr. Magi asked.

"Yes," Shinichi answered

"And you're Alan?"

"Yup," Alan replied.

Rubbing his chin, Dr. Magi concluded, "It would appear that the both of you have switched bodies."

"Wow, what an amazing diagnosis," said Shinichi sarcastically, eyes rolling. "THAT'S WHAT WE'VE BEEN TELLING YOU!" What made this strange was that Shinichi's voice was coming out of Alan's body.

"Hey, don't shout at him!" Yokoshima scolded.

Dr. Magi, Dr. Washam and the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS were crowded around Shinichi and Alan in the infirmary.

"Dr. Magi, can you fix this?" Alan asked. He was in Shinichi's body and seemed really distressed about the situation.

"Yeah, can you fix my partner?" added Bazel. He was still attached to Alan's body which Shinichi was currently inhabiting.

"I can't see how I can. I'm not so well-versed in the switching of bodies through magical means," Dr, Magi answered honestly. Alan just hung his head.

"Great...how am I supposed to go home looking like this?" Alan asked.

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow, "And what's wrong with the way _I_look?"

"Shinichi, if you haven't noticed Conda really doesn't like you all that much," Alan pointed out. "That stunt you pulled last year hunting for Gebok really didn't help matters either. And now I'm stuck in the body of the guy she wants to whip for all the trouble he caused me."

"She wants to whip him? Kinky," said Battler grinning.

"Shut the fuck up," Alan and Shinichi snapped at him.

"You know, this is sorta like that movie, 'Freaky Friday'," Yokoshima said, recalling movie as this situation reminded him of it. "In that movie a mother and daughter swapped bodies and the only they could swap back was to understand each other by walking in each other's shoes. Maybe that's the way you can fix this."

Alan and Shinichi gave the Scarab's host deadpan looks. Shinichi remarked, "You watch too many movies."

"Well I think you don't watch enough," Yokoshima huffed.

"But Yokoshima does bring up a good point," Dr. Washam said. "Until you both switch back I think the best you can do now is to get used to being in each other's bodies. You can now experience the powers the other has."

"Hey, you're right," said Shinichi as he rubbed his chin, grinning. He had access to Bazel, Alan's Green Lantern ring, and Kryptonian abilities like Superman. "Oh, this is going to be fun."

"My powers aren't toys," Alan reminded his elder half-brother. However, he was also thinking along the same lines. Just how did Shinichi's time powers work? Since they also possessed additional abilities gained through Henshaw's nanities did that mean Alan could make build weapons now? The possibilities were endless.

"Hey, Shinichi," said Daichi as he looked at Alan.

"I'm Alan," Alan corrected him.

"Damn, we should put nametags on you," Daichi remarked. "Anyway, can't you just call someone who could help? Someone who knows magic?"

The body-swapped brothers looked to each other. Only one name came to mind. "Call Yuji," they said in unison.

"I'll go make the call," said Dr. Magi. "I hope he isn't busy."

* * *

Alan was in the Hive's training room. It was the perfect place for him to practice. "Okay, using Shinichi's time distortion ability shouldn't be too hard... right? I mean, I mastered Superman's powers well enough," Alan muttered. He was holding a plate "OK, he calls this 'Rewind', right?" If he did this right he would be able to restore this plate once he broke it.

He tossed the floor to the ground and watched it break into pieces. "Alright, here we go," said Alan as he concentrated on the broken plate.

"Hey-" Shogo said as he and Daichi entered the room. This caused Alan to whirl around and accidentally use Fast Forward on the two of them. "Oh Crap!" Alan cursed. He'd just turned the Wasp and Cricket cyborgs into crotchety old men. "I'm sorry, guys! I didn't mean to turn you old! Don't worry, I can fix this!"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING OLD, YOU LITTLE WHIPPERSNAPPER!-?" Old Daichi snapped as he punched Alan sending him crashing into the ground. Alan clutched his cheek (well, it was really Shinichi's cheek. You know what I mean). It'd been awhile since he felt pain like that before. Old Daichi may have been turned old but he was still a Kaizo Ningen and thus still had his super strength. Old Daichi grumbled, smacking his lips, "The nerve of the youth these days. In my day they had more respect and stayed in the bodies they were born in."

"Eh, what was that? I can't hear you so good," Old Shogo said as he cupped his wrinkly hand around his ear.

"And another thing; how could your hearing be bad? You're a Kaizo Ningen for God's sake," Old Daichi stated.

"No thank you, Daichi. I already ate," Shogo said.

Alan rubbed his temples and muttered, "I sure hope Shinichi's doing a better job." He was then whacked on the head by a cane that Old Daichi got out of nowhere. That wasn't the only pain he felt. There was also an intense migraine that came out of nowhere.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi was outside with Yokoshima who was in his Blue Beetle armor.

"Uh, Shin? Are you sure this is safe?" Blue Beetle asked in concern. His right hand was turned into a catcher's mitt.

"Look I need to find a way to control my newfound strength and the best way to do that is to throw a baseball," said Shinichi.

"Remember what Alan said," Bazel told him. "His powers are not something to play around with. You gotta be responsible."

"I know, I know, stop nagging," Shinichi remarked.

"But you have the strength of Superman! That baseball would be speeding like tank shell if you throw it and we both know how well your experience with that one went!" Blue Beetle pointed out.

"Yeah... that one seriously hurt in an excruciating way... but you have alien tech on your side so you should be A-OK... hopefully," Shinichi had added the last part in a whisper.

"Hopefully!-?" Apparently, Blue Beetle had heard that.

"Okay here we go!" Shinichi announced as he threw the ball so fast one could see flames covering it as it sped through the air.

"Oh crap!" Blue Beetle shouted as he raised his arm. He shrieked as the ball hit the improvised catcher's mitt, sending him flying backward and creating a HUGE crater in the canyon wall.

"Uh-oh!" Shinichi's eyes bugged. "Yokoshima are you alive?" Shinichi called out concern

"Look, coach…" Yokoshima said, reverting to normal as he wobbly got out of the craters and taking a few steps forward. "I got the ball…" He held up a hand revealing a really charred ball before falling down.

"Medic!" Shinichi called.

* * *

After restoring Daichi and Shogo back to normal, or as normal as the two Kaizo Ningen could be (Daichi was still complaining like a grouchy old man but maybe that was just his default setting), Alan decided to try something less volatile.

"OK, I should avoid transforming for now," Alan told himself. There was no telling what would happen if he tried to activate the Spark Core without proper understanding on the item implanted into his brother's body. "Well, since he and I share the same nanites the way to access them should be the same…I hope." He rolled his shoulders, flexed his fingers, stretched his arms and legs and cracked his neck from side to side. "OK, all I have to do is visualize the weapon and my nanites do the rest." He concentrated on a weapon. He was picturing the Great Fists and he could feel the nanites reacting and then…

"Hey, who turned off the lights? Hello?" Alan called. The nanites had built a Great Fist, alright. Unfortunately, Alan had built it around his head. "Hey, a little help here? Hello?"

* * *

"OK, next is flying," said Shinichi. "How does he do that?" he asked Bazel.

"Well, I think he told me he pictured being weightless first. Try that," Bazel suggested.

"So, I gotta imagine myself being weightless," Shinichi understood. "Got it." He closed his eyes. "Weightlessness…weightlessness…I'm like helium. I weight nothing. Gravity is not pulling me down. I am going up, up and away."

"Open your eyes," Bazel instructed and Shinichi opened his eyes. He smiled as he looked down. He was hovering a foot off the ground.

"YES!" Shinichi cheered but then all of a sudden his body jerked forwards at high speeds. "STOP! STOP! No brakes! No brakes! No brakes!" he shouted.

**WHAM!**

He made a crater in the canyon wall next to Yokoshima's. "I didn't feel that," said Shinichi. "Guess this body really can't feel pain."

* * *

"How are they doing?" Dr. Magi asked as he walked over to Dr. Washam with two cups of coffee. He was watching the monitors. On one screen was Shinichi and on the other screen was Alan as they tried to master each other's bodies.

"About as good as you'd expect," said Dr. Washam as he took a cup of coffee. "How long do you think they'll last before they accidentally kill themselves?"

"At this rate I think the canyon is going to need a complete makeover before that," Dr. Magi grimaced.

* * *

"OK, now let's see how to use this thing," said Shinichi as he looked at the Green Lantern ring.

"I don't think you should play with that," warned Bazel. "It's not a toy."

"Oh, come on. How hard could it be?" Shinichi asked. He pointed in a random direction and fired an intense blast which hit the ground, causing a loud explosion. Unfortunately, he'd just blasted Chiaki's vegetable patch to smithereens. "Oh shit!"

"Told you so!" Bazel quipped.

* * *

"I almost forgot how real pain felt like," Alan groaned as he held an icepack over his forehead. "Thanks, Michiru," he said to the Mantis Rider.

"You're welcome, Shin—I mean Alan!" she said before quickly correcting herself. "I think Daichi's right. You both do need nametags." She asked, "So why did you think you could make a bazooka?"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time," said Alan. "But I miscalculated the recoil. How does he do it?"

"It just comes naturally, I guess," said Michiru.

Suddenly, a loud explosion which was preceded by a green flash rocked the canyon and shook the base. "What was that?" Michiru asked with wide eyes.

"Do you need to ask?"

* * *

Chiaki wasn't happy when he saw that his precious vegetable patch had been blown up. Fortunately, there were enough traces of it for Alan to use Shinichi's Rewind on. He had to really concentrate despite the pounding headache he got while restoring it. He got it mostly repaired, however, which was good news. Of course, Chiaki would be staying mad at Shinichi for destroying something precious to him.

"What the hell happened to you guys?" Yuji asked.

"Oh, just the usual," said Shinichi offhandedly. "Went after a Spark Core, fought a piece of Orochi, oh and we've SWITCHED BODIES!"

"Geez, no need to bite my head off," said Yuji, picking his ear.

"That's why we need you," said Alan. "Can you help us?"

"Do you want me to lie or tell the truth?" asked Yuji.

"The truth," both switched Rider and Lantern replied.

"To be honest I don't know where to start," said Yuji. "This is demon magic, which I recognize, but I don't know the structure and basis of the spell used to switch your bodies. I can't cast a counter-spell without knowing the key components of a spell. If I make an error I could make things worse."

"But you trained under the Endless Witch!" Shinichi insisted.

"Even so, but not even Auntie B is infallible," said Yuji. "And the magic that I deal in doesn't exactly work for this kind of thing. The sorcery I'm involved with rearranges molecules, not souls."

"I think the lie would've been better. A bit of good news would've been nice," murmured Shinichi.

"So, how long are we gonna be stuck like this?" asked Alan.

"Until the spell is broken, which usually happens if you destroy the caster," Yuji told them.

"I knew it wasn't gonna be easy," grumbled Shinichi. "So what do you expect us to do until then?" asked Shinichi.

"For now, I advise you to try to walk in each other's shoes," said Yuji. "Make the best out of a bad situation. Panicking and worrying isn't gonna help you."

"We kinda tried that. It wasn't that simple," said Shinichi, referring to when they tried to use each other's powers.

"Yeah, my head's still pounding," said Alan. "Is this how it's like for you each time you use your time powers?" he asked Shinichi.

"Time's a force of nature, Alan, and it doesn't appreciate being manipulated by mortals. So it retaliates and very painfully," said Shinichi. "I've just grown a huge threshold for the pain." Shinichi then asked his own question, "By the way, how come it feels like my arm is about to fall off after I try to use your ring? I mean, I thought your body was invulnerable."

"That's because each time I use the ring I'm bending willpower to my will," Alan replied. "It doesn't matter if I'm invulnerable. The ring can only be wielded by someone whose willpower is strong enough to use it."

"I have a strong will."

"Not strong enough for the ring, I guess."

"Excuse me, you two," Yuji said to redraw their attention to him. "I don't just mean powers, which is still important. I mean just live each other's lives. You might as well tell your girls."

"Lala must _never_ know," said Alan with absolute seriousness. "If she did she'd make a machine to switch us back and we might end up with scrambled brains."

"Do you really think she'd do that?" Yuji asked.

"Yes."

"And if I come home in Alan's body I'm afraid of what Rena would do," said Shinichi.

"Play dress up with the power ring," Alan deadpanned. He knew Rena long enough to know she'd do something like that.

"Oh, and FYI, Bazel is really annoying," said Shinichi, pointing to the sentient armband.

"I'm just very honest!" Bazel shot back. "You just don't appreciate it!"

"You ratted me out to Chiaki!" Shinichi argued.

"You did destroy his vegetable patch!" Bazel rebutted.

"It was an accident!" Shinichi shouted defensively.

"Didn't matter to him!" Bazel retorted.

"Now you know what I go through with him attached to me," Alan smirked. This was the first time he would be without Bazel in a very, very, very LONG time. It felt oddly nice. It was a relief, really.

"You can't hide your condition forever, and I don't think Lala would attempt anything if you tell her the whole story," said Yuji.

"You don't know her like I do, Yuji. The girl doesn't know boundaries. Before we actually became an official couple she'd sneak into my bed, naked!" Alan told the Manakyte.

"Bet you enjoyed that," Shinichi quipped.

"Shut up," Alan shot back.

"Have some faith, I doubt she'd actually put you in danger," said Yuji.

"Not on purpose, but I've fallen victim to some of her inventions," said Alan. "I just got used to all that since I like her quirks."

"But do you trust her?" Yuji pressed on.

"…Yeah, I do. I really do. I guess if Lala did get the full story she won't try to make a machine to switch us back. However, I am still going to sleep with one eye open."

"And what about Amora?" asked Shinichi. "Won't she try something?"

"Yeah, her too. You're right. If you haven't noticed she's got a bit of a superiority complex. A goddess complex, really."

"That's because she is a goddess," interjected Bazel.

Alan continued, "I like her for her confidence but she can be overconfident too. Of course she's also persistent so even if I tell her there's nothing she can do she'll try anyway. I just hope she loves me enough not to risk it. The other girls, fortunately, I don't have to worry about as much."

"It's a good thing it's the weekend," said a relieved Shinichi. "I don't feel like going to class."

"And I'm afraid of what you'd do with my body at school," remarked Alan. "I have a reputation to maintain. If you roamed free wearing my skin I'm afraid of what you might do."

"Don't you trust me, little bro?" grinned Shinichi.

"Is that a trick question?" Alan asked. Yuji chuckled at the exchange. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing, it's just that watching you two argue reminds me of my arguments with my own siblings," said Yuji. "So, anyway, sooner or later your girls have to know."

"Guess there really isn't any way around it," sighed Shinichi. "Alan, I wish you the best of luck."

"Yeah, same to you. You're just lucky it's just Rena you have to explain to," Alan said to him in return.

* * *

Rena was waiting for Shinichi. It was getting late. She'd tried to call but he hadn't answered. He hadn't even called back. She was getting worried. What if something had happened? If it did then the others would've told her, right? Dinner was getting cold. She'd made fried rice and dumplings. "I should reheat it before he returns," said Rena as she picked up the dish. That was when she heard a knock at the door. Putting down the dish, Rena quickly went to the door.

"Shin-kun, tadai-" Rena began as she opened the door only to see Alan. "Alan-kun, what are you doing here? Where's Shin-kun?"

'Alan' rubbed the back of his head. "Rena-chan, actually…it's me. I'm Shinichi."

"What?" Rena blinked.

"It's a long story, but basically Alan and I…we…swapped bodies," Shinichi told her. "Can I come in? You might wanna sit down while I explain."

"It's a real doozy!" Bazel spoke up.

"Do I have to mute you?" growled Shinichi. Now that Bazel was stuck on him it just wasn't as funny as it used to be.

* * *

Alan, still stuck in his brother's body, paced back and forth in front of the boarding house. "OK, OK, think, Alan. Think. How do you explain to them without them freaking out?" He couldn't find an answer to that. "Well, it's now or never. Time to face the music."

He went to the door and pulled out his keys. He then unlocked and opened the door before calling out, "I'm back!"

Conda was the first to come down and answer, yawning. She'd just woken up from a nap. "Welcome…" she yawned. But then she was completely alert as she spotted Shinichi. "You…!" she growled. Conda didn't like Shinichi of this era. She respected the older and wiser version of Shinichi that she'd met before. At least he acted more like an older brother to her Alan. She barely got along with this version and only tolerated him for her beloved's sake. However, after waiting for Alan so long and seeing Shinichi in front of her she just snapped.

Alan's eyes widened as he saw Conda come charging at him. "Conda! Conda, wait! It's me! It's me!" She drew her fist. "STOP!"

Alan had his eyes screwed shut and arms raised. He waited for the blow that never came. He cautiously cracked open one of his eyes and saw Conda looking at him with a frozen expression of rage. "Conda?" Conda was frozen like a statue, with her fist about to be thrown. "Dammit," he cursed. "Conda?" he called, waving his hand in front of her.

"I heard a noise!" said Lala as she came down and saw 'Shinichi' and Conda in the foyer. "Oh, hello Shinichi!"

"Lala, get the others. We need to talk," said Alan seriously. This was going to be one heck of a night. How was he supposed to unfreeze Conda? Was he supposed to snap his fingers? He carefully moved himself to the side and snapped his fingers, hoping it would work.

It did and when Conda started moving again her punch knocked the front door off its hinges. Alan knew he was going to have to pay for that.

* * *

"So, when we woke up we ended up like this," Shinichi finished, referring to his condition. Rena looked him in the eye.

"Is it really you, Shin-kun?" she asked doubtfully. She didn't like being lied to. She reacted violently when she was lied to.

"It is me, Rena-chan," said Shinichi as he showed her the Magatama he wore. Since he needed to convince Rena, Alan had returned the Magatama to Shinichi to wear.

Rena looked Shinichi in the eyes. It was Alan's face but she could sense that it was Shinichi. Only he had that gaze.

"Oh, Shin-kun!" she cried as she threw her arms around him.

* * *

"And that's about it," Alan finished. "By the way, Conda, sorry about freezing you earlier."

Conda was still unconvinced. Personally, she thought that the person in front of her who claimed he was Alan and was trapped in Shinichi's body was just some kind of practical joker. Amora leaned forward and put her hand on Alan's shoulder. She closed her eyes. She did detect a faint magical taint on him.

"He's being truthful about magic being used here," confirmed Amora. Nozomu then leaned in and sniffed him.

"He smells like Alan," added Nozomu.

"Megan?" Alan asked the Martian. If anybody could confirm his identity it was her. "Read my mind."

Megan frowned but nodded. She closed her eyes and linked her mind with Alan's. She read through his thoughts and a few memories before she opened her eyes. "It's him."

Conda was still skeptical, "Are you sure?"

Alan looked to the Amazon Queen and spoke, "Conda, I am going to tell you something only you and I would know. Now, listen." He leaned in and whispered into her ear. Conda's eyes widened bit by bit by the second before Alan leaned back, grinning. Her face was flushed. Only one person could've known all that and Alan would never tell Shinichi.

"It is you," said Conda.

**GLOMP!**

"WAAAAAAA! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU!" bawled Bishie as she crushed Alan's face in her bosom. He was starting to suffocate as he waved his arms around.

"So, it's true?" Lala asked. Amora and Megan nodded. "Then I must help Alan change back!"

Alan freed himself from Bishie's 'heavenly pillows' and objected, "No, Lala! No inventions!"

"But…"

"We don't know how this exactly happened. For all we know you might make things worse, no offense." He turned his attention to Amora, "The same goes to you, Amora. No magic."

"So, how will you go back to normal?" Yami asked.

"Well, Yuji said we'd have to track down and defeat the guy who did this to us," Alan said. "Unfortunately, we haven't detected him yet."

"Alan, if you're in Shinichi's body, does that mean you have his powers?" Lala asked.

"You saw me freeze Conda, which I once again apologize for," Alan said.

Lala's smile widened and Alan gulped as he recognized that look. "Lala…don't…"

"But Alan, I've always wanted to see how Shinichi ticks and now I can do just that!" said Lala eagerly. "Please, it's for science!"

"No…" Alan cringed and backed away. He'd told all the girls, but not his two daughters. Alice and Celine were both fast asleep and it was a miracle they hadn't awoken from all the noise.

"Well, this is really interesting," giggled Momo.

"Why can't anything ever be normal around here?" groaned Nana.

* * *

"So, do you understand the plan?" Gnol, who was in human form, asked Mizu-Gnol.

"Yes…" chuckled Mizu-Gnol. "Use my powers to create as much chaos and confusion as possible." He then vanished in a swirl of water.

Shiro was leaning against the nearby wall and asked, "So, is this another attempt to collect negative energy?"

"We Darkloids feed on negative energy. We also find ways to produce and harvest it by causing humans to feel negative emotions," Gnol answered, licking his lips. "The darkness of humanity sustains us and intoxicates us."

"It's like food but you get drunk on it," Shiro summarized. His grin matched Gnol's, "I like it."

"And as the hearts of humanity grow darker, I grow stronger," Gnol added, clenching his fist. "It's only a matter of time before I regain all my power."

"But you do know what needs to happen first."

"Ah, yes, indeed I do," agreed Gnol. He then shifted into his true form. On his right shoulder was a dragon's head. "Only six more to go."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Looks like Shinichi and Alan are in a Freaky Friday Situation. Wonder how they'll deal with it? We'll find out in the next chap. Oh, and how will Mizu-Gnol cause chaos, panic and confusion? You'll find out in the next chap too.**


	82. The Legacy of Cain Part 26

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 26: Vice-Versa**

Apparently, it was easier than Alan first thought when he explained his situation to Alice and Celine the next day.

"So, Daddy is Onii-chan and Onii-chan is Daddy?" Alice asked, tilting her head cutely.

"Mau?" Celine's expression also matched her sister's.

"Yeah, pretty much," Alan confirmed. "You know, I thought it would take longer for you to understand."

"Yay!" Alice hugged him. "Alan and Onii-chan are one person!"

"Actually…I'm just in his body," Alan corrected but he hugged Alice back. Alice did seem fond of Shinichi, despite their initial reunion after her reactivation.

He'd managed to dissuade Lala from conducting experiments on him. Shinichi would definitely not appreciate having his body manhandled (or was it 'woman-handled'?) by a mad scientist. He had enough bad experiences with those.

"I'm just glad it's the weekend," sighed Alan.

"But, don't you have that meeting with the student council this afternoon?" asked Lala.

Fuck.

"Sometimes…I just hate my life…" groaned Alan.

* * *

"Alan is going to kill me…" murmured Shinichi. He was dressed in nothing but a speedo and was standing still in a pose as Rena was sitting in front of a lump of clay.

"Now, just hold still Shin…I mean 'Alan-kun…'" Rena said as she put on a face of pure concentration and began to shape the clay with her hands. It was an assignment. She was to make a clay figurine for her art class. She had wanted to use Shinichi as her model but then of course this had to happen. However, now it meant she could use Alan as a model instead and while it was her boyfriend inhabiting another boy's body, it was practically the same thing!

As good as blackmail material this was going to make, Shinichi learnt not to anger someone who could snap him in half with just his pinky, or chuck into into the sun.

The phone rang and Shinichi saw Rena leave her studio. Said 'studio' was actually the spare room that Rena had converted into her workspace for her masterpiece. A storeroom had also been converted into a dark room for Shinichi's own work with photography. As Shinichi waited for Rena's return, he began to wonder how he got into this predicament.

"So…how long do we have to stay like this?" asked Bazel.

"Until she finishes, which might take a few hours. This project's due on Monday," said Shinichi.

"So, is that thing comfy?" asked Bazel. "Or does it ride up the crack of your ass?"

"Do I have to wrap a piece of cloth around you to shut you up?" Shinichi growled.

"Heh, Alan said the same thing to me a long time ago," Bazel remarked.

Rena returned, "Shin-kun, it's for you."

Shinichi put on a bathrobe and then went out to take the phone. "Yo," he replied. "Student Council meeting? What about it? Oh…" His eyes widened. "Oh! Oh shit now this is bad! ...Yeah, I know! How could you forget? …OK, I'm coming over! I'll be there!" He put the receiver down. "This day just gets better and better," he muttered

"Shin-kun, what's wrong?" Rena asked.

"Oh, I have to go and do something for Alan," Shinichi answered. "It won't be long, hopefully."

* * *

Since calling in sick was out of the question, Alan needed Shinichi to go to the meeting for him in his stead.

"Just try not to embarrass me," Alan begged. "Please…"

Shinichi was wearing Alan's uniform which fit because he was also wearing Alan's body. Since it was summer, it was a short-sleeved white shirt with the standard uniform slacks.

"Relax, little bro. Have I ever embarrassed you before?" Shinichi asked.

"Just…try to act normal. Just act like me," said Alan. "And I mean act _like_ me, not how you _think_ I act."

"OK, but why is this meeting so important?" asked Shinichi.

"It's a mandatory thing and all the Class Representatives have to go," said Alan.

"OK, I guess I can do this," said Shinichi. "Be you, I mean." He then remembered something, "Oh, you have to do something for me too."

"What?" asked Alan suspiciously.

"You're going to have to work today," Shinichi informed Alan. "You know, at the pawn shop."

"Oh," Alan blinked. "OK." This should be easy.

"Alan, if you think helping out in a pawn shop is easy…you have another thing coming," Shinichi grinned.

* * *

"Well, this is it," said Alan as he stood in front of Topper's pawn shop. "Just buy, sell and trade, right?" He opened the door and the bell chimed.

"Welcome to Topper's Pawn Shop where you get to sell your knick-knacks, bric-a-brac, heirlooms, curios and whatnots!" Topper greeted. "Ah, Shinichi! I've been waiting for you!"

"Sorry…boss, for being late, but I had things to deal with," said Alan.

"There's no need to apologize, my boy," smiled Topper. "I always feel a little 'out of body' when I wake up."

"What?" Alan blinked.

"Now, just stand here at the counter, put on a smile, and be your charming self!" encouraged Topper. "You do remember how to _be yourself_, don't you?" Alan nodded. "And always remember that it's service with a smile and that the customer is always right! You'll need to keep a straight face because people come in here with oddities and requests for oddities." Topper chuckled. "I'll be in the back doing inventory. Man the counter, register, and have a great day!" Topper hummed and went to the backroom as Alan watched.

"OK, that guy is weird," said Alan. "Where have I seen him before?"

Topper stood in the backroom, grinning from ear-to-ear, "Oh, now this is going to be a fun day." He rubbed his hands eagerly. He of course knew of the switch and knew the one walking in Shinichi's skin was none other than Alan Smith. Warren and Topper had a slightly antagonistic relationship. Well, Warren considered the Infernal Merchant to be a dangerous being despite his claims of being 'neutral'. Often the neutral party was the most dangerous as they were unpredictable.

Alan would soon learn what a day working in Topper's Pawn Shop would be like. It was going to quite the learning experience for him.

* * *

Shinichi was trying not to fall asleep as he sat in the Student Council meeting. His eyelids were very heavy as he listened to what the Student Council members had to say. He wasn't even paying attention. He just wanted it to be over. Unfortunately, only 15 minutes had passed and it was a 2 hour meeting!

* * *

Alan drummed his fingers on the counter, waiting for his first customer. He let out a sigh, "Well…this is boring." He actually wished he had Bazel now so he could talk to someone. He actually missed the chatterbox of an armband. The bell at the door chimed. '_Finally!_' thought Alan. He then put on a smile to welcome his first customer but then the words didn't come out. It was because he was looking at a large man wearing a mask that had a sun depicted on the right half and the left half depicting a crescent moon. Despite it being summer, he was dressed in a red coat and wore a fedora. It was a strange sight indeed.

Finding his voice, Alan asked, "Err…can I help you?" The man looked over to Alan and walked over to the counter.

"Yes, my good man," the masked man in the red coat and fedora responded, "Well, I was wondering if Topper is ready to sell that cream he promised me." He slipped a receipt out of his pocket and put it down on the counter.

"Cream? What cream?" Alan asked as he picked up the receipt and read it.

"Oh, come on now. You should know. You were here when I made the request. It's a cream that removes cursed items. I promised him this mask if he could help remove it. Now, does he have it or not? It should be listed under 'Mr. Fukumo'."

'_OK, this guy is clearly whacko_,' Alan thought. Fortunately, there was a customer record book. Alan opened it and looked for Mr. Fukumo's name. He missed the fact that the mask seemed to glow and the weather outside turned from sunny to stormy in an instant.

"Oh, you're right," said Alan as he found Mr. Fukumo's name. It also included his trade request. "Excuse me." Alan went under the counter and looked around for the item and found a jar full of some sort of bluish cream. It was labeled with Mr. Fukumo's name. "Here it is," said Alan as he held up the jar.

"Ah, give it here!" Mr. Fukumo said as he snatched the jar out of Alan's hands and opening it in a hurry. He put two fingers into the cream before applying it onto where the mask met his flesh. Putting the jar down onto the countertop, he gripped his mask and carefully began to pull it off. It became unstuck and he smiled, relieved to finally have it removed. "Ah, it does work and it's been so long!" Mr. Fukumo said. His face was pale which meant he'd been wearing that mask for so long and hadn't gotten enough sun.

"Are you pleased?" Alan asked.

"Yes, indeed. Tell Topper that he has my regards." Mr. Fukumo took the jar of bluish cream with him, leaving the mask on the counter.

"Well, that was weird," Alan muttered as he took the mask. He looked at it and then shrugged before putting it under the counter. Topper would put a price on it and put it on display later. As Alan was putting the mask away, the thunderstorm soon changed into a sunny day again.

* * *

About an hour later, Alan would receive his next pair of odd customers. They were an eccentric old couple and they came in holding hands. They were browsing around and then spotted something they liked. It was a beaten up pocket watch. Alan wished he knew how Shinichi controlled his super-hearing because he couldn't hear what they were whispering. Seeing the old man nod, Alan knew that they had made a decision as to what to do.

"I would like to buy this old trinket, if you don't mind," the old man said.

Alan blinked, "Err, are you sure you want to pay for that with these?" It wasn't odd that they wanted to buy an old pocket watch. People came to pawn shops to get odd stuff. What was odd was that they were going to pay with a box filled with jewels for a beaten up old pocket watch. Was it really worth that much?

The old woman laughed lightly, "Oh, no need to worry. Just think of us as a pair of eccentric old people just looking for stuff as old as us."

"Well, if you say so…" Alan said hesitantly as he accepted the jewels and wrote the couple their receipt. He felt like he was overcharging them but the couple didn't mind. Alan watched them go. Even after all these years they were still in love. "I wonder if I'll be that happy at that age."

A few blocks away from the shop, away from Alan's eyes, the couple began to change. They turned from an elderly couple into a pair in their early thirties. The jewels were a small price to pay to be able to re-experience their lost youth.

* * *

"You need a love charm? Are you sure you don't need a doctor?" Alan asked his latest customer. He was a man in a wheelchair. His legs were in casts, his neck was in a brace and he had a black eye.

"Oh, I'm sure. You see I bought this charm a while back and the man who sold it to me promised that it would help me snag the woman of my dreams. However, I accidentally bought the charm that causes bad luck in life instead of good luck in love." The bad luck charm looked like a bracelet in the shape of a dragon which was holding an onyx gem in its mouth. The man continued, "Ever since them I've suffered a series of bad luck. I accidentally got both my legs broken in a freak arcade accident, my neck is in a brace because the nurse thought karate chops were a justified method for a shoulder massage, and I got a black eye because I accidently hit my eye with my toothbrush."

"How do you hit your eye with your…never mind," Alan responded before sighing. "I guess you can call that bad luck. Lemme check if we have something like that."

"Is this what you're looking for?" inquired Topper as he suddenly appeared. He took off his top hat, reached inside and took out a gold ring with runes inscribed inside the band and had a diamond mounted on it. "According to legend, this ring is said to have belonged to a love goddess of some kind."

"Oh, I'll take it! Now I won't have to worry about bad luck and my love life will finally improve!" the man said. He took the ring, leaving the bad luck charm on the counter as he left with his new lucky charm and receipt. He then wheeled happily out of the shop while humming.

"Where did you come from? I barely heard you," Alan asked Topper.

"Oh, I've been known to be very sneaky," said Topper with his trademark grin as he put on his hat.

* * *

"Guess now I understand how easily he gets used to weird stuff," said Alan as he swept the floor. The bell chimed as the door opened. "Hello, welcome to Topper's Pawn Shop. How may I assist you?" Alan asked. It was a woman holding a Chinese-styled bird cage that contained a golden grasshopper statue with ruby red eyes. "Oh, are you here for a trade?"

"Not quite," said the woman. She was in a Cheongsam, black with gold trim and had her brown hair in a bun. She was attractive looking and looked quite young despite being in her late forties. "You see I was hoping to find the counterpart to this statue and I heard it was in this shop. It should be hard to find. It looks exactly like the one I have except that it is silver with sapphire eyes."

"Oh, just give me a moment, please," said Alan as he went to the back room. Topper might know where to find it.

As Alan went to find Topper, the woman began talking to the golden grasshopper, "Are sure it's in this shop? If you're wrong and this shop doesn't have your brother then I am going to be really ticked off."

"Relax, lady," said the golden grasshopper. "He's right here. I'm sure of it."

"You better be. You promised me riches if I reunited you with your brother."

Alan came out, holding a silver grasshopper. "Here you go," said Alan as he put it on the counter. "By the way, who were you talking to?"

The woman answered, "Oh…well…I was talking to…myself. Yes, myself. I practice ventriloquism but instead of a dummy I use this statue."

Alan gave the woman a very long and scrutinizing look before giving her the silver grasshopper. He accepted payment and wrote her a receipt. The woman put the silver grasshopper into the cage with the gold one and quickly left the shop.

"Doesn't anybody normal come here?" Alan asked.

A few blocks away, the woman was scolding the grasshoppers, "That was truly humiliating! I sure hope this was worth the trouble! Now, make me rich!"

"Has she been complaining all this time?" the silver grasshopper asked.

"Unfortunately," replied the golden one.

"Oh, Eva-san!" The woman looked up and spotted Yuji Fudo and accompanying him, holding his hands, were Maria and Wendy.

"Oh, Fudo-kun," said Eva, hoping that Yuji hadn't seen her arguing with a couple of grasshopper statues. "Taking a walk, I see."

"Yeah, I'm just on my way to see a friend and I thought I'd take the kids out for a walk."

"Hi, Eva-bachan," Maria greeted.

Wendy added, "Pleased to meet you again, Ushiromiya-san."

"Aren't you a bit far from home?" asked Yuji.

"Oh, I just came to find something and I was told it'd be here," answered Eva quickly. She needed to get home and get rich quick.

"So, why are you carrying grasshopper statues in that cage?" asked Yuji. "I never thought you were into collecting unique antiques."

"Oh, I just thought I'd spruce up my place," said Eva. "And these all came in a set so why separate them?"

Yuji knew she was lying but didn't comment her about it. This was something she wanted and he couldn't sense anything bad about those grasshoppers. "Oh, well, I sure hope you enjoy your purchase."

Eva's smile widened expectantly, "Oh, I will. I really will. See you later at the wedding, Fudo-kun." She then went to get her car so she could drive home. Yuji and his daughters watched her go and Maria tugged on his hand.

"Yes, Maria?" Yuji asked.

"Papa, those grasshoppers are magic," said Maria.

"Ah, you sensed it too. Yeah, they were magic but I don't think they'll be too troublesome for Eva-san. I just hope she knows what she's getting into," said Yuji. "Come on, let's go see Alan at the shop."

Alan was pouring another cup of coffee for Topper while the shop's owner was doing…Alan wasn't sure what Topper was doing in the backroom to be honest. Inventory, maybe? The backroom was dimly lit and whenever Alan went in he couldn't see Topper but the man in the top hat always ended up standing behind him, appearing like some kind of ghost. It unnerved Alan. He should've heard him coming if he was back in his own body.

With a sigh, he went and handed the cup of coffee to Topper who was just sitting in the corner reading an old book he'd found quite interesting. The bell chimed and Alan rubbed the wrinkles out of his clothes before greeting the customer, only to see who it was. "Oh, Yuji. It's you."

"Is that how you usually greet customers, Shin?" asked Yuji, winking.

Alan had to be Shinichi now. He was wearing his brother's skin after all. "Welcome to Topper's Pawn Shop. How can I help you?"

"Much better," grinned Yuji.

Maria and Wendy were looking at all the items that were displayed for sale. There were all sorts of things. It was a pawn shop, after all. The more _unique_ items were put in the back and only shown by _special_ request.

"What a cute doll," said Maria as she admired a doll in a glass case.

"Ah, that doll is said to have been made with dark magic," Topper told the witchling.

"Meep!" she uttered, backing away.

Topper chuckled, "Ah…no need to be afraid. Anyway, that doll was said to be made with dark magic and used for dark rituals."

"What kind of rituals?" Wendy asked.

"Stealing souls. They say if you stare into its eyes at the stroke of midnight it will steal your soul," Topper told them ominously. "That's why I put a blindfold on her! Don't want her to accidentally steal souls, do we?"

"Topper, you have a dark sense of humor," commented Yuji.

"Humor is humor, it's just how people take it that's the problem sometimes," Topper shrugged. "Anyway, I'll be in the back. I'll be out later. Ciao." He went and vanished into the backroom.

"He spends a lot of time in there," said Yuji.

"I noticed," said Alan. "So, you came to check up on me?"

"Just wanted to see how you're coping," said Yuji.

"Oh, besides the fact I can't control these powers I'm perfectly fine. I'm more worried about Shinichi. I just hope he's taking good care of my body," Alan said.

* * *

Shinichi was in the school bathroom, gazing at the cut on his finger. Now, this was an unusual sight because the blood was coming out of a cut in his hand. Well, Alan's hand but that still freaked him out. He just went to the library to read a book when he suddenly got a paper cut. THAT alone should've been impossible since Alan was invulnerable. He couldn't get cut by a normal sword let alone by the edge of a sheet of paper.

"This is bad," he murmured. He needed to call Alan.

* * *

Mizu-Gnol was hovering over the city and sneering at all the people beneath him. They were riding in their metal chariots going on about their own selfish business. Their stench was nauseating and the noise they made agitated him. He just wanted them all gone so that the demons that predated their existence could reclaim the Earth that they had defiled with their existence. He gripped his dual-bladed spear tightly. He was about to do to these people what he had done to those two who had opposed him before.

He was about to start a show of chaos and confusion and then sit back to watch the show.

* * *

The door was thrown open and Shinichi came into the shop as the bell chimed loudly. "Shinichi?" Alan blinked. What was he doing here?

"Alan, take a look at this," said Shinichi as he showed the bandage wrapped around his finger.

"Why do you have a bandage wrapped around your finger?" asked Alan.

"Alan, this is _your_ body so that makes this _your_ finger," Shinichi reminded. "I got a paper cut."

Alan's eyes widened as he realized what Shinichi was getting at. "But…that's impossible," Alan responded in disbelief.

"I didn't believe it either, partner, but I saw it myself," said Bazel. "He got a paper cut on your finger."

"And you're supposed to be invulnerable," Shinichi stressed. "Whatever switched our bodies is effecting our bodies and not in a good way."

Yuji narrowed his eyes, looking thoughtful. Alan's body, which was normally invulnerable, was getting paper cuts. "This is bad…" he murmured.

"What?" the swapped young men asked.

"I think your bodies are rejecting your souls," Yuji theorized. "Think about it like an organ transplant. What happens to a patient who receives an incompatible organ?"

"The body rejects it and the patient…" began Shinichi.

"…Dies," finished Alan.

"Your souls are in the wrong bodies. You bodies are starting to break down. Pretty soon you'll just be normal…and easy to kill," Yuji concluded. That was the Water Orochi's plan to begin with.

As if things couldn't get any worse.

It did.

* * *

Shishibone City was suddenly a sea of panic. People didn't know who they were or what they were doing. One moment things were normal and the next thing they knew they were no longer in the bodies they were born in. Children were in the bodies of old people, men were in the bodies of women, and adults and teenagers were switched around. Nobody was who they were and the people quickly began panicking as they tried to make sense of it all.

Watching from the edge of a building's rooftop with glee was Mizu-Gnol. "Ah…confusion, panic and chaos…" He took in a deep breath of air. "I love the smell of anarchy…" At least humans were good for food and entertainment. Beyond that they were useless wastes of space. He'd be doing this world a favor by eradicating each and every one of them.

Sensing two familiar presences, the Orochi of Water and Impurity turned to look and saw two very familiar faces. Oh, sure they had changed their appearance but it was still those two who had opposed him.

Alan, who was in Shinichi's body, was wearing his Black Skull costume. As for Shinichi, he was clad in the Bazel Combat Armor, complete with the helmet that Alan had originally forgone.

"So, back for more?" chuckled Mizu-Gnol as he shouldered his dual-bladed spear. "Didn't you learn your lesson the last time?"

"Oh, we did," said Shinichi as he cracked his knuckles. "And now we're about to teach you a lesson. First is math. I plus my brother equals a whole lot of pain for you."

Alan gave Shinichi a deadpan look, "Really? Seriously?"

"Well, you're too late," gloated Mizu-Gnol. "This whole city has fallen into chaos and confusion! Of course this is just a stepping stone! Soon I will plunge the entire nation into chaos and then the entire world!"

"Well you're going to fall off the stepping stone first!" Shinichi shot back.

"Shinichi, no more witty banter," Alan retorted.

'_Alan, how well can you use my powers?_' asked Shinichi telepathically.

'_About as well as you with my Kryptonian powers_,' responded Alan.

'_Well, stick to big but basic builds_,' Shinichi instructed. '_We'll just beat this guy down before he beats us down!_'

'_Got it! Oh, incoming!_'

Mizu-Gnol had just formed several spheres of water which hovered over his head. He pointed his spear at the two and then swung wide, sending the bombardment of water spears at the half-brothers. They dodged to the side in opposite directions as the water spheres smashed against the floor.

Alan concentrated and circuitry lines appeared along his right arm. Metal began to form and morph before forming into a large sword, Shinichi's Great Sword.

Shinichi, on the other hand, was calling on assistance, "Yabuki, let's go!" In a flash of light the Higurashi no Yaiba appeared in his hand. He nodded in appreciation, "Glad _that_ at least works."

Mizu-Gnol began to form another bombardment as the two heroes rushed at him with their swords. Mizu-Gnol leapt back to dodge Alan's swing, leaving him open for Shinichi's attack which cut across his chest. The demonic water dragon howled in pain as black blood spilled from his wound. "The Higurashi no Yaiba of the Furude Clan," Shinichi commented, "Perfect for dealing with stubborn Darkloids."

Alan was continuing his assault as he swung his Great Sword arm at Mizu-Gnol. The Water Orochi blocked with his shield and sparks flew from the impacts. However, the shield was starting to dent from the hits it was receiving. Smirking, Alan's left arm became covered in white circuitry lines and formed into a Great Fist. "Eat this!" Alan shouted as he punched at Mizu-Gnol. His version of the Great Fist had one small modification. The fist was attached to the rest of the arm by a spring and so the fist sprung forward, slamming into Mizu-Gnol and pushing him backwards.

Shinichi, who saw this, committed what he saw to memory, "I have to remember that."

Mizu-Gnol growled and began twirling his spear around. Water began to swirl around him, taking the shape of whips and then he pointed at them. The water whips lashed out, forcing the dynamic duo to jump in order to dodge. More and more water whips lashed out at them, giving them no opening to counter against Mizu-Gnol.

"Shinichi, my breath!" Alan shouted.

"You need a breath mint?" Shinichi remarked.

Alan felt a vein throbbing. Sometimes Shinichi could be such an idiot. "Blow! Ice breath!"

"Oh…Oh!" The faceplate of his helmet opened and he took a deep breath before unleashing the super ice breath. The water whips became frozen solid and Mizu-Gnol shivered from the cold. "Wow…now that's cool," admitted Shinichi.

Alan nodded and then looked to Mizu-Gnol as he was stunned. He concentrated on Shinichi's time powers. He knew that not only could Shinichi affect his environment, he could also affect himself. Fast Forward was use a time accelerant technique and so it could also be used to accelerate speed. Alan shot towards Mizu-Gnol like a blur and the Water Orochi didn't even see him coming, nor could he react in time against the barrage of punches that Alan was hitting him with. Shinichi could only see Alan as a blur, striking Mizu-Gnol hundreds of times in a matter of seconds. One last blow sent Mizu-Gnol skidding backwards but he stopped himself from falling off the edge by stabbing his spear into the floor.

"My turn," said Shinichi and his visor glowed before firing a heat ray at Mizu-Gnol. The Orochi of Water howled as he felt himself being boiled from the inside out. He retaliated and sent a water sphere flying at Shinichi but it was evaporated by the heat ray.

"TAKE THIS!" shouted Alan as he jumped and swung his left arm down upon Mizu-Gnol. His fist now resembled a large hammer and Mizu-Gnol brought up his shield, only for it to be shattered when the hammer smashed into it. He tried to hold the hammer back with his strength but this left him wide open to Shinichi.

Shinichi gripped the glowing Higurashi no Yaiba tightly and swung, calling out, "1000 Crane Slash!" His attack, which took the shape of paper cranes, cut into Mizu-Gnol repeatedly. He cried out as he was assaulted by the paper cranes, their wings slicing into his hide. He then collapsed to his knees.

"Looks like this is the end," said Alan as he withdrew his arm.

Mizu-Gnol grunted then began to laugh, and laugh like a maniac, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!-!-!"

"OK, I think he just snapped," Shinichi remarked nervously.

"You both think you won?" sneered Mizu-Gnol. "Tell me, how much of the human body is made up of water?" He then clenched his fists. The two of them were brought down to their knees in pain. "I control water, ANY water! Including the water in your bodies!"

"Ugh…" Alan grunted. It hurt. It really hurt.

"Man…I feel like my…insides…are being crushed!" Shinichi grunted.

Mizu-Gnol continued to torment the two but all of a sudden he was shoved right off the roof by an invisible force and sent falling down to the ground below.

Shinichi and Alan were slowly recovering from Mizu-Gnol's assault and then looked up and saw Hanyuu hovering over before touching down gently. She leveled her gaze upon them. "You should've called," she chided.

"We thought we could handle it," said Shinichi, shrugging.

"In the wrong bodies? Doubtful," Hanyuu retorted. She took out demon-warding paper talismans and fanned them out.

"What are you doing?" asked Alan.

"This is a demon and my family has dealt with demons many times with success. You both take 5. It's my turn now," said Hanyuu as she stepped off the edge of the roof to confront Mizu-Gnol.

"Doesn't it bother you that she's more badass than you?" Alan asked Shinichi.

"Shut up."

Meanwhile, Mizu-Gnol was recovering from the surprise attack. He had landed upon the sidewalk and caused it to crack on impact. "Ugh…what hit me?"

"Me," answered Hanyuu as she appeared in front of him. Her eyes glowed red and her killing intent manifested as a malevolent aura around her. She was nicknamed Oyashiro-sama, the Demon God of Onigafuchi (Onigafuchi was Hinamizawa's original name) for a reason. She flicked him in the forehead with her finger and sent him flying. He crashed against a bench, shattering it to splinters.

Mizu-Gnol climbed back to his feet and saw paper talismans flying at him. They stuck to his body and unleashed their power, electrocuting him with their anti-demon magic. Howling painfully, he leveled a glare towards Hanyuu. "You…who are you…?" demanded Mizu-Gnol.

"An angry schoolgirl," she answered and then she brought her hand down. He was flattened to the ground and he could feel like he was being pressed deeper and deeper into it. The pressure was so strong that a crater was forming around him.

Alan and Shinichi came down to see and Shinichi couldn't believe that Hanyuu was actually beating the creature. Then again, he had a habit of underestimating what she was capable of.

Mizu-Gnol had to escape and so with all his willpower he formed a water spout around himself. Hanyuu's power was neutralized by the force of the water spout. Recognizing the technique, which was similar to Gnol's flame tornado, Shinichi and Alan knew they had to act quickly.

"Hanyuu, help these people and calm them down," said Shinichi. "We're going after him!"

The two ran and jumped into the whirlpool seconds before it vanished and they were gone along with Mizu-Gnol.

Hanyuu just shook her head and hoped they would be fine.

Shiro and Gnol were watching from a distance. The android asked the Darkloid, "Do you think he'll win or lose?"

"Doesn't make a difference to me," Gnol said without a care. "As long as I get my power back that's all that matters."

* * *

The water spout transported Mizu-Gnol along with Shinichi and Alan to where they first had their earlier confrontation: over the ocean. Shinichi would've fallen if the Bazel Combat Armor hadn't allowed him to hover in midair. Alan, however, dropped into the water.

"Are you okay?" asked Shinichi.

"Yeah," said Alan. "Now, get me…" He trailed off as his eyes went wide.

"What?" Shinichi asked. He then saw a huge shadow and looked behind him before screaming, "TSUNAMI!-!-!"

The tsunami crashed violently into Shinichi and smashed down upon Alan. Then, the water stilled. The Water Orochi laughed, "Now, there are no more opposition!" He turned to continue his campaign of confusion and chaos when all of a sudden he felt a surge of energy coming from under him. He looked down to see an emerald light under the surface of the water and…

"**XROS FUSION!"**

The loud cry was followed by a tower of water as a figure flew out of the water with an incredible splash. It resembled Showa in his Higurashi Form but his wings were now bird-like and made of energy with the Green Lantern symbol in the centre of his chest. His visor had also been replaced by a deep green mask. The Green Lantern power ring shone on his right hand and in his left hand was the Higurashi no Yaiba.

"**KAMEN RIDER G-SHOWA! SUISAN!"**

"What is this!-?" demanded Mizu-Gnol.

The figure answered in Alan's voice, "This is our power."

Shinichi's voice came out next as he added, "If we can't defeat you separately with our powers then we will combine our powers together."

Mizu-Gnol roared and unleashed a powerful blast of water towards G-Showa but the Rider countered by aiming his ring and unleashing a blast of intense green flames which created steam with the water. "WATER QUENCHES FIRE!" claimed Mizu-Gnol.

"**BUT FIRE EVAPORATES WATER!**" G-Showa countered as he intensified his attack. The fire attack pushed against the water attack before eventually the fire overpowered the water which was reduced into a cloud of steam. The flames then engulfed Mizu-Gnol, causing him to cry out in agony.

Once the flames died down, Mizu-Gnol was revealed to have been badly burnt. He was charred and smoke rose from his body. His armor also seemed partially melted and there were patches of blood here and there. His eyes narrowed as his body trembled in rage. How dare they defeat him with flames that should've been overpowered by his water? HOW DARE THEY!-?

"You little pricks...!" Mizu-Gnol growled as his fists shook angrily. "Now I'm pissed off!" Veins began to bulge from his body as he exuded a dark blue aura. "You two clowns… ARE DEAD!"

**Music – Stoning (from Big-O)**

His body flared with his aura as G-Showa was pushed back and water gathered. The water engulfed Mizu-Gnol's body, encasing him in a ball of water before exploding. G-Showa grimaced as he now gazed at the purple glowing orb wrapped in purple coils, with 6 scythe-like projections on top. The coils began to loosen and unfold as the scythes turned out to be arms as they stretched out and released blue fin-like wings attached to them. The main body was serpentine and the head was long and narrow with teeth like steak knives and glowing red eyes. Its head was surrounded by sharp golden horns and had a huge blue fin atop its head.

The beast roared/screeched as it displayed its six wings and snarled, _**"This is the end for you, clown! Vice Stream!" **_the Water Orochi reared back its head before unleashing a blast of purple and white negative energy that was aimed right at G-Showa.

The Vice Stream didn't connect with G-Showa as a shield made of several layers of paper talismans suddenly came in between the attack and the Xros Fusion Rider. The Vice Stream hit the shield and was blocked as it splashed against the barrier. G-Showa blinked and then saw Hanyuu floating next to him with her arms crossed.

"Need help?" Hanyuu asked.

"Hanyuu-chan, how did you get here?" Shinichi asked from G-Showa.

"Need you ask?" she retorted dryly. "I'm a goddess. Traveling great distances in the blink of an eye is a standard ability for divine beings. So is fighting demons." She poked G-Showa in the chest, reminding/warning him, "Don't you _ever_ underestimate me again." She meant it. He could see it in her eyes. They were glowing red and her aura was visible. It was intimidating to say the least. "Anyway, that barrier won't stay up for long. He's burning through the layers quickly. You need to defeat him now." She summoned the Onigari no Ryuou. "Here, use this sword with the Higurashi no Yaiba and finish him off." The Onigari no Ryuou was a sacred weapon with numerous jutte-like prongs along the length of the blade. G-Showa didn't argue and took the sword.

"Thanks," said Alan.

"At least someone appreciates me," stated Hanyuu. "The barrier has broken. Now is the time to strike."

**Music – Stand a Chance (from Big-O)**

G-Showa gripped the two blades as he rushed toward the Water Orochi. The beast howled as it charged as well, ramming its head at G-Showa as the Rider swung down with the Higurashi no Yaiba. Its thick skull prevented it from being sliced through, but the sacred blade did pierce it, causing it to shriek in pain as G-Showa continued slashing at the creature's face with the Higurashi no Yaiba and the Onigari no Ryuou. The Water Orochi growled and lashed out at G-Showa with its whip-like tail which was cut off by the Higurashi no Yaiba. The Water Orochi snarled and launched water bullets from its mouth. G-Showa countered the barrage by firing his own bullets of green energy from his ring as their blasts collided.

"_**I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU-!-!-!"**_ the Water Orochi roared as it lunged at G-Showa and swallowed him whole, gulping down his body with satisfaction. However, its eyes widened as blades of green energy cut through the Water Orochi's body before it exploded into pieces, with G-Showa panting and covered in saliva and stomach juices.

"**Ugh…**" the Xros Fused warrior uttered in disgust.

A Spark Core fell out and was caught by Hanyuu. "Yatta ze!" she declared, holding it up.

* * *

After Mizu-Gnol's demise, Gnol could feel the power from the fallen Water Orochi transfer into his body. Another piece of his armor reformed on his other bare shoulder, taking the shape of a dragon's head.

Shiro smirked, "Two down, five more to go."

"Yes…" Gnol growled pleasantly as he felt himself growing stronger.

* * *

Alan and Shinichi broke their Xros Fusion and returned to base with Hanyuu. Then, Alan went back home, leaving Hanyuu and Shinichi to sort out their issues.

"I am so glad to be in my own body again," said a relieved Shinichi. It felt so good to be back in his own body.

"Also, everyone else the Orochi of Water had cursed are now back to normal," said Hanyuu, smiling. She then put on a serious expression and folded her arms before her chest. "Now, don't you have something to say to me?"

Shinichi sighed. He knew what she was referring to. He had to apologize for treating her like a child. He began, "Hanyuu-chan, I'm sorry for always treating you like a child. It's just…well…you're my little sister. I know you're a goddess, which naturally makes you more powerful than me, and that you're older than me. But I just can't help thinking of you as my little sister. You, Rika-chan and Sho are my younger siblings so I gotta watch out for you. It's my responsibility as the eldest to look after his younger brothers and sisters. That's why I try to keep you away from dangerous missions. I mean, you got kidnapped by Gebok and I was so scared. I thought I lost you."

Hanyuu's expression softened. "Apology accepted." But then she warned him, "But next time, when another piece of the Orochi awakens, call me. I'm the expert here. You're just the muscle. Got it?"

"Yes, ma'am," Shinichi chuckled nervously.

"Good," Hanyuu smiled. "Now, you owe me some cream puffs at Angel Mort."

"Nani?"

"Well, I did save your butts," she justified. "I think I deserve a reward. Consider it an offering to a goddess too."

"Oh, my cute little sister is blackmailing me. Whatever shall I do?" said Shinichi melodramatically.

"Stop it," Hanyuu giggled. "I'm going to get Chiaki-san. He should be in the garage."

Shinichi watched her go and sighed. But then he had a puzzled look on his face, "Something tells me I've forgotten something."

* * *

Several days later, Rena invited all her friends and family to an art show hosted by Shishibone University. It was being held in the auditorium. Rena was displaying her collection of works but one of them caught Alan's interest. He asked, "Why is there a clay figurine of me in a speedo?" Shinichi immediately gulped and Alan glared at him. "Shi…ni…chi…!" he growled.

"Did I forget to mention Rena-chan asked me to model while in your body?" he questioned, laughing nervously. "Oh, I gotta go! Bye!" He zipped away.

"GET BACK HERE!" Alan shouted as he chased after his brother.

As Alan ran chased Shinichi, Amora whispered to Rena, "Is it fine if I can have that later? It's for my collection. I'll pay you."

Suddenly from outside they heard "NO! ALAN! DON'T THROW ME INTO THE SUN!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Mizu-Gnol's dragon form was based on No. 17 Leviathan Dragon. His humanoid demon form was based on Kaiser Seahorse. Thank Bushido for suggesting their designs. Also, this chap shows a REALLY badass Hanyuu. Well, next up is another Orochi. Which one? Well, you gotta read on to find out.**


	83. The Legacy of Cain Part 27

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 27: Static Shock**

The Spark Core that had been recovered after Mizu-Gnol's defeat had been Spark Core #01, formerly in the possession of Todoroki, aka Kamen Rider Scanner the leech of the NUMBERS. Like Misato's Spark Core, It appeared to have been drained and made dormant after being used to revive the Orochi of Water. Currently, it was safely being kept in the NEO-NUMBERS's base, aka the Hive.

Speaking about the Hive, something was going on there and Hanyuu was invited to see. She was an honorary member of the team and an official agent of ARMOR.

"And here are your reenergizing pods!" declared Dr. Washam at the unveiling. The NEO-NUMBERS were in the Hive's lab and were presented with a machine that was hooked up to 8 cocoon-shaped pods.

"They look like bug cocoons," Daichi commented.

**WHAP!**

"Shut up," Misato scowled.

Dr. Washam cleared his throat, "Anyway…I've noticed that when you all return from missions you are all bone tired and so I designed this machine to help with the problem."

"How did you build it so fast?" asked Michiru.

"That information's classified," grinned Dr. Washam, winking. "So, whenever you're tired, just turn on the machine and step inside one of the pods. The machine will do the rest and you'll be recharged."

"So, basically it's a glorified 'battery recharger'," quipped Daichi.

**WHAP!**

"Ow! Seriously?" Daichi snapped. "What was that for?"

"Daichi, if you can't say anything nice it's best not to say anything at all," said Shinichi. It wasn't _what_ Daichi said that caused Misato to slap him. It was _how_ he said it.

"Wait, but what about the healing chambers?" asked Yokoshima. Prof. Takada had designed metal chambers used to heal grievous injuries for emergencies.

"From what I heard, those only repair physical damage but they don't reenergize you. This machine here will!" said Dr. Washam.

"What does it run on?" asked Hana.

"Now that's classified too," Dr. Washam answered.

"Anything that's not classified?" questioned Daichi. He saw Misato raising her hand to hit him again when he opened his mouth.

"I will instruct you on how to use it," said Dr. Washam. "That's all you need to know. So, who's up first? Anybody?"

"Not it!" the NEO-NUMBERS all said, but Yokoshima was too late.

"Not…goddamn it," Yokoshima frowned.

"Well, in you go," said Dr. Washam as one of the 'cocoons' opened up. The pod split open and spread apart, revealing its empty contents. "Now, just step in and the machine will do the rest."

Yokoshima hesitantly went inside and the 'cocoon' closed. "Hey!" he shouted from the inside. "It's dark in here!"

"Just relax," Dr. Washam called into a microphone. There were speakers inside the 'cocoon' so Yokoshima could hear. "Anyway, this monitor here will show you Yokoshima's vitals and energy levels. OK, let's start the machine. Here we go!" He typed in the commands.

"HEY! WHAT IS THIS STUFF! I'M GONNA DROWN!" Yokoshima panicked from within.

"That's the reenergizing fluid!" Dr. Washam responded. "Just relax, alright?"

Yokoshima didn't respond.

"Um…is he okay?" Battler asked.

"Alright, energy levels are rising…and now he's at 100 percent!" Dr. Washam said as he read Yokoshima's vitals and energy levels. "Now, let's drain out the fluid and let him out." The 'cocoon' opened with a hiss and Yokoshima stepped out. "How do you feel?"

"I…feel great! Awesome even!" grinned Yokoshima. He sniffed himself and asked, "Why do I smell like mint?"

"Well, we wouldn't want you smelling bad once you're refreshed," reasoned Dr. Washam. "Alright, who's next?"

* * *

**7****th**** July 1988**

The 7th of July was marked on the Calendar as the Star Festival, also known as Tanabata. The festival celebrated the meeting of the deities Orihime (Vega) and Hikoboshi (Altair). According to legend, these two lovers were separated by the Milky Way and could only meet once a year on the 7th Day of the 7th Month. It was also on Tanabata that people made wishes. They would write them down on rectangular cards and then hang them from bamboo in hopes that their wishes would be granted. In the home of Rena and Shinichi, the couple was already hanging their wishes upon the bamboo plant that was planted in a pot and smiled at each other.

"What did you wish for, Shin-kun?" Rena asked, hoping she could peak at his card.

"Sorry, but not until tomorrow," he told her. In a flash of gold Satan appeared.

"Could I hang mine?" she asked.

"Sure!" Shinichi allowed. "What did you wish for?"

Satan didn't answer as she hung her Tanabara wish card. She then kissed Shinichi on the left cheek as Rena kissed the right cheek.

* * *

In Shiori's house, Shiori, Rika, Hanyuu and Kasai hung their wishes on their own bamboo plant. Chiaki was also invited to have dinner with them. The little goddess smiled at the Termite Cyborg who returned the smile warmly.

"What did you both wish for?" asked Shiori teasingly, causing both to blush. Shiori giggled.

"Shiori, don't tease them," Kasai chided.

"Aw…you're no fun," pouted Shiori. She then wrapped her arms around him and whispered into his ear. His sunglasses slipped down to expose his eyes as his face turned red. Shiori giggled, "I take it back. You are fun." Her hands grasped his butt. Fortunately for her adopted daughters, their attention was elsewhere.

"_What should I wish for?_" AI-Shin asked as he used telekinesis to hold up his pen. "_Got any ideas, kiddo?_"

Sho tilted his head to the side.

"_Yeah, I thought so. Well, I guess I should wish that I get a real body_," said AI-Shin.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Hive, the NEO-NUMBERS were hanging their own wishing cards on bamboo as well.

"I wish that Asmo-chan and I will be happy forever and ever," Yokoshima said as he wrote his wish.

"That's my wish too!" said Asmodeus. On her wish card she'd written: I hope Yoko-kun and I will always be happy.

"We think alike!" Yokoshima grinned.

"Yeah!"

"It's an interesting tradition," said Mika as she hung her Tanabata wish card on the bamboo. "Aren't you going to make a wish, Daichi?"

Strumming his guitar, Daichi told her, "Wishes don't just come true without anyone doing anything." After he'd been sold to GIN-SHOCKER by his own sister he'd pretty much given up on things like wishes and miracles.

"Come on, Dai! Don't be a killjoy!" encouraged Yokoshima. "Just write a wish down! It'll be fun."

Dai rolled his eyes but when Leviathan appeared to join them, he had no choice but to relent and write his wish.

* * *

At the GL boarding house, Alan was watching as Alice wrote down her wish. "What did you wish for, Alice?" he asked. Her wish was a simple one.

"I wish that Daddy will always come back to me," said Alice, smiling. Alan hugged his child warmly.

"You know I will, Alice. You know I will."

It was such a tender moment. Moments like these with family were to be cherished.

* * *

The day after Tanabata, a young man in black clothes and a hood over his head, on a sunny day, was wandering the streets of Okinomiya. He had dark skin, violet eyes, and two fringes that were shaped like lightning bolts.

'_I wonder what Fudo was thinking, bringing me here...'_ he thought to himself. _'I'm fucking lost.' _He felt a tap on his shoulder and he turns around with his bored stare before they slightly widen

"Yo!" Shinichi greeted.

"Hey..." he returned.

"So, you're the new kid Yuji adopted, huh? I'm Shinichi, Shinichi Banabara," he introduced. "I'm sure he's told you about me. You're Kai, right? Kai Inazuma?" Kai nodded.

"He has, but I'm not the one Fudo officially adopted. That was the girl," Kai corrected.

"Well, he considers you family," Shinichi retorted. "So, what are you doing in Okinomiya?"

Kai stared at him, "Yeah. Well, he just dropped me off here, and now I'm lost. This place isn't like the islands."

"Well, come on and follow me. You must be hungry," he pointed out. "I know a place that makes the best sandwiches."

"As long as they have a lot of salt..." he hoped.

* * *

Shinichi took Kai to Angel Mort where they were greeted at the door by Rika who was in uniform.

"Welcome to Angel Mort, Shinichi!" she winked at him.

"Right, hi," Shinichi sweat-dropped. "Is there a free table or booth for me and Kai here? Oh, Kai, this is my little sister, Rika-chan."

Kai blushed a little bit but he kept his cool and greeted her with a simple, "Hi… Do you have a lot of salt?"

"We have saltshakers on the tables," Rika nodded as she guided them to their booth. They both sat down and Rika handed them their menus. They made their orders and Rika went to get them.

"So, whaddya think of the place, Kai?" Shinichi asked.

"Reminds me of this little place my father would take me to when I was a child," he replied calmly. Kai sees the waitresses in their getups, "Nice outfits..."

Rika shortly returned as she presented their meals, "Here you go; a turkey submarine sandwich for Inazuma-san and a waffle and pancake platter for Shinichi, with extra ice cream."

Kai opens the saltshaker and sprinkles salt into the sandwich. Rika and Shinichi stared at the hooded boy before responding, "I have a sodium deficiency."

"That explains the salt," Shinichi quipped. Rika giggled before leaving to take more orders.

"It helps power my lightning, but it gets expended quickly."

"I see," he nodded. "So, any plans for the future while you're here?"

"Find a good beach so I can surf," Kai responded as he bit into his salty sandwich. "But I'll need a board."

"Ah, the beach," Shinichi sighed dramatically he then pictured a white sandy beach where Rena, Satan, and Shawna were in different swimsuits, "A chance to see girls shamelessly reveal their nubile bodies in little clothing."

"I'm more interested in the waves..." Kai shrugged as he took another bite of his sandwich. Kai kept stealing glances at Rika and he muttered, "Never seen anyone with blue hair before..." He then spotted Rika getting harassed by one of the male customers.

"Teme…" Shinichi growled. He was about to go over there and beat the crap out of the guy but failed to notice Kai already walking over to them. Kai poked the back of the guy's neck, and he collapses onto the floor in violent convulsions, alarming the other customers.

"I overloaded the nerves in your spine," he looked down. "I doubt you'll be walking anytime soon, if at all for the rest of your life." He turned to Rika, "You OK?"

"Thank you," Rika smiled.

Kai nodded and returned to the table to take his sandwich before leaving money and leaving the place. Shinichi was having a moral dilemma. He looked at the door, then at his waffle, then back at the door, then back at the waffle.

"Ah, screw it!" He quickly inhaled the waffle, pancakes and ice cream, ignoring the ice cream headache before leaving money on the table and going after Kai.

* * *

"Kai, wait!" Shinichi called as he caught up. "So, what do you wanna see next?"

"Dunno," he shrugged as he bit into his sandwich "I just need a place to sleep so I can charge up..."

Shinichi's wrist com-link watch began to beep, "Shinichi here. What's up?" he responded.

"_A Spark Core has been detected in China,"_ Sheila informed.

"OK, I'm heading there now! Open a Teleportal!"

"_Affirmative."_

Shinichi turned to the lightning Manakyte, "Well, Kai, it looks like I have to…" More beeping went off and Shinichi answered, "What is it?"

"_Shinichi, another Orochi Head has been revived!" _Hanyuu alerted.

He narrowed his eyes, "It's the one in China, isn't it?"

* * *

"_You know, they weren't kidding when they called this the GREAT Wall of China," said Shinichi as he, Hanyuu and Chiaki stood on the wall and he looked back and forth. "This place goes for miles!"_

"_Sightsee later," said Hanyuu. She had the map. "Now, let's see where the head is."_

_They walked for several miles and Shinichi sighed as he asked, "How much further?"_

"_We're getting close…I think," said Hanyuu. After walking several more miles they finally found it. While exhausted, Hanyuu was still able to perform the reinforcement ritual._

* * *

"_Yes! I'm heading there now with Chiaki-san!"_

"I'm right behind you. Over and out!" he finished. "Hey, Kai, are you sure you'll be able to find a place to sleep?"

Finishing his sandwich, Kai looked around and spotted a bench. He walked over to it and lied down. "This should do nicely," he sighed as he put his hands behind his head and folded his legs

Shinichi shrugged as the Teleportal opened and he jumped in.

Kai lay on the bench and looked up at the sky. It was blue, like that girl's hair. "She sure was cute..." he uttered before closing his eyes.

* * *

The Great Wall of China was a series of stone and earth fortifications in northern China, originally built to protect the northern boarders from invading nomadic groups. It was China's most well-known treasure and one of the world's 7 Wonders. It became a popular tourist destination and could be seen from space.

However, instead of the cheerful laughs of visitors, the Great Wall was now a stage for cries of panic and distress as it was being assaulted by lightning bolts which exploded sections of the Great Wall. The innocent civilians ran, trying to escape the lightning storm.

Only this storm was not a natural one. It was obvious since the lightning was purple. It was being caused by a demon that was enjoying himself quite a bit.

The being was humanoid, wearing silver armor covering his chest, shoulders, legs, and arms as well as silver flaps of armor on his waist; all over a white fur coat. His face was covered by a featureless mask with only a set of narrow red eyes, and red horns that stuck out from the sides and wild green hair. Seven gold extensions protruded from his back that were actually lightning rods as three were on each side as one hung over his head. His gauntlets also had golden dragon heads on them as his hands were red and tipped with claws. A powerful tail could be seen under his coat if one would look close enough

Rai-Gnol was the Lightning Orochi of Loneliness and with his electrifying powers could send these humans to their deaths in the blink of an eye. Concentrating, he formed lightning bolts that he held within his hands. Looking around, he carefully began to choose his next target and spotted a family that was trying to flee. He saw a mother and a father, running together with their child, a little boy. He grinned. He knew just who he wanted to kill next. First he would kill the boy, causing the parents anguish. Then he would kill the mother and finally the father after he mourned over their loss and his failure to protect them. He enjoyed the pain and suffering of humans when they were forcefully torn away from their loved ones.

The pain of loneliness was a terrible thing and it was a pain he would gladly inflict on others. If he, a demon, could not be close to others without shocking them then what right did these humans have?

He drew his arm back, taking careful aim, before hurling the bolt of purple lightning at the little boy. It streaked through the air, moving fast like an arrow, and would deliver death most painful.

But only if it hit, which it didn't. A wall of ofuda (paper talismans) suddenly rose up between his attack and the child, protecting the little boy as it took the hit instead. Rai-Gnol was stunned. Who or what had denied him his kill?

"Go, run," Hanyuu said to the family. They didn't need to be told twice. The wall of ofuda broke down and the paper talismans returned into Hanyuu's sleeves. She was in her miko garb.

"A miko," Rai-Gnol growled. He saw the horns. "Not human," he assumed. "Demon?" he guessed.

"Not even close, Orochi," Hanyuu replied.

The Orochi of Lightning hated whenever anyone interfered with his kills and he still had another lightning bolt. He would need to make it stronger and faster so she wouldn't be able to counter him. With a roar he hurled it at Hanyuu.

"Lightning Spear!"

A bolt of lightning flew from the opposite direction, soaring past Hanyuu, and intercepted Rai-Gnol's lightning bolt. The two bolts of lightning clashed and caused an explosion of light and electricity, before they were both finally cancelled out. At the same time, a burst of energy hit Rai-Gnol in the right shoulder, causing him to cry out. Rai-Gnol growled and spotted a new figure.

"You okay?" Showa asked. He was in his Oni Form armor and looking at Hanyuu with concern.

"Remember what I said," spoke up Hanyuu.

"Right, don't underestimate you," Showa replied, remembering their talk. Slasher was also nearby in his Slayer Form, shouldering the Onigari no Ryuou. He had been the one to attack during the clash of the lightning bolts.

"So, you have bodyguards, Miko-sama," hissed the Lightning Orochi. He should've expected this. M iko never did go up against demons by themselves.

"Chiaki-san, be careful," Hanyuu advised. He had lost his life facing high-level Darkloids before and she didn't look forward to it happening again.

"Let's do this," said Showa as he summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba. In his Oni Form, the Higurashi no Yaiba would gain elemental properties, specifically fire, wind and lighting. "Chiaki, follow my lead!"

Slasher nodded and he and Showa both leapt into the air to confront the Orochi of Lightning. They swung their swords down upon the Darkloid who blocked with his forearms. However, he hissed in pain from the anti-demon properties of both weapons.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Rai-Gnol roared as he unleashed an explosion of electrical power which threw Showa and Slasher out of the air and they crashed down on the Great Wall of China. Rai-Gnol growled. He hated to be touched.

"Chiaki-san! Shinichi!" Hanyuu cried out.

Rai-Gnol glared down at the miko and shot a bolt of lightning at her which wasn't missed by Slasher.

Slasher shouted, "Hanyuu, watch out!" and he pushed Hanyuu out of the way only to be zapped painfully by Rai-Gnol. He was knocked unconscious and reverted to human form.

As Hanyuu cried out Chiaki's name, Showa transformed to Hinamizawa Guardian Form and executed his attack, "GUARDIAN FORCE STRIKE!" He launched himself and smashed into Rai-Gnol with his kick at the same time as his Cho Dai-Shuriken blades. There was an explosion. Showa landed on the Great Wall and looked. When the smoke cleared, Rai-Gnol was revealed to be unscathed.

"Is that all?" snorted Rai-Gnol. Looking down at Hanyuu he snarled. Seeing the love they shared disgusted him. Seeing them so close was revolting. His scowl turned into a grin as he knew just what to do.

He flicked his wrist and sent a lightning bolt flying at Hanyuu. "No!" Showa denied as he went to help only for Rai-Gnol to strike him in the back with a powerful lightning bolt, stunning him. Hanyuu, who was so worried about Chiaki, didn't notice as she was struck. Horrified, as he watched his little sister get hurt, he became enraged and turned his gaze towards Rai-Gnol.

"You can come after me, warrior, or you can go help your comrades. You can't have both," snickered Rai-Gnol. With a mocking salute he turned himself into electricity and flew into the clouds.

Showa spat, "Cheh!" and then went to check on Hanyuu and Chiaki. He called for a Teleportal and for the infirmary to be prepared for the two of them.

* * *

"You don't have a home, do you?"

Kai cracked an eye open and saw Rika staring down at him. "Oh, it's you. No, I don't... And honestly, I'd rather not depend on Fudo for everything."

"Are you really OK with this?" she asked.

"For now, until I can find a suitable living unit to occupy..."

"Actually...there is a place," she admitted.

"So, you're offering?" he asked and she nodded. "What do I have to give in return?"

"Well, ever thought of being a superhero?" Rika suggested.

Kai cocked an eyebrow, "Not really, why?"

"It's just a suggestion," she shrugged.

"I see. Well, I guess I'll take your offer since you're giving it." He leapt off the bench and landed on his feet. "I assume you'll be taking me there?"

"Follow me," she invited as they walked to her bicycle. "Sorry, but I only have room for one."

"I'm sure I can keep up," he assured.

* * *

"They should be alright with some rest," said Dr. Magi. Hanyuu and Chiaki were in the infirmary beds. He noted Shinichi's expression. "You're worried, aren't you?"

"They got hurt because of me," Shinichi remarked, running his hand through his hair.

"They got hurt because of that Darkloid," Dr. Magi corrected.

"I should've been more careful. It's my job to look out for them," Shinichi told him.

"You feel a sense of responsibility," Dr. Magi observed.

"Of course!" Shinichi snapped. "She's my little sister and Chiaki…Chiaki's my teammate! I'm supposed to be responsible for them while on the field."

"A commendable quality, but don't beat yourself up about it," said Dr. Magi. "Still, it's odd. Why didn't that creature kill them while it could've easily done so?"

Shinichi frowned in thought but then heard Hanyuu waking up. He was relieved. He went over to Hanyuu and watched as her eyes fluttered open. "How are you feeling, imouto (little sister)?"

"A little sore," she answered. She had bandages wrapped around the burns caused by the electrocution. "How's Chiaki-san?" she asked.

Shinichi glanced towards Chiaki's bed. He sported bandages to. He also had his snowcap and scarf removed so his face could be revealed. He rarely did expose his face. "He should be fine," said Shinichi. "Do you want me to heal him?"

"No, save your energy," declined Hanyuu. She slowly sat up but Shinichi put his hands on her shoulders to gently push her back down. "Shinichi…let me go…"

"Can't," Shinichi denied. "You need to rest."

"I'm fine," she protested.

"You just got zapped by a lightning-throwing Darkloid," he countered. "You're not fine."

"Please…" Hanyuu pleaded. "Let me…let me hold his hand…"

Shinichi couldn't resist the look he was getting and with a sigh, relented, "OK, but only for a minute." Hanyuu smiled. Shinichi helped her out of her bed and she went over to Chiaki's bed.

"Chiaki-san…" she uttered softly and reached for his hand. However, as soon as her skin touched his…

**ZAP!**

"Itai!" Hanyuu shrieked as she withdrew her hand in shock.

"What's wrong?" Shinichi asked. Hanyuu stared at her hand. "Hanyuu-chan?"

"Something's wrong," she answered, trembling as she stared at her hand.

* * *

After Chiaki woke up, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam performed some tests on Hanyuu and Chiaki. They scanned their bodies and found something.

"They're both been negatively charged," Dr. Magi concluded.

"Um…could you explain that to the ones here who don't understand?" asked Yokoshima. He was referring to himself but was hiding it, poorly.

"Simply put it's like static electricity. While two objects with opposite charges attract each other, two objects with the same charge repel each other," elaborated Dr. Magi. "That Lightning Orochi's lightning bolt was meant to separate Hanyuu and Chiaki and it did by giving them both negative electrical fields, preventing them from coming into contact with each other."

"Equal charges repel," Hana summarized.

"Exactly," Dr. Magi nodded. "It's like when two magnets with the same polarity come together. They repel. Since Hanyuu and Chiaki are no longer opposites, they fail to attract."

Hanyuu and Chiaki looked to each other. The goddess asked, with a trembling voice, "Does that…does that mean…Chiaki-san and I…can't be together?"

"It just means you can't have physical contact with each other until this wears off," said Dr. Magi. Hanyuu then cried and ran out of the laboratory. "Wait!" Dr. Magi called.

"I'll go talk to her," said Michiru as she gave chase.

"Me too," added Hana as she went after Michiru.

Yokoshima went over to Chiaki and asked, "So…how are you holding up, big guy?"

Chiaki didn't respond as he stared at his hand. One of the tests involved him and Hanyuu trying to hold hands, only for an electric shock to force them apart.

* * *

Hanyuu was sobbing in her quarters with Michiru and Hana as company.

"Hanyuu-chan, please don't cry," pleaded Michiru. "Everything will be alright?"

Hanyuu looked up at her with blood-shot eyes and tear-streaked face, "How?"

"Well, once we track down and destroy this Lightning Orochi, everything will be just fine," Hana answered. "Like with that Water Orochi. Once it was destroyed everything went back to normal."

"Here," Michiru handed Hanyuu a napkin and the goddess wiped her tears. "Feel any better?"

"A little, but not a lot," Hanyuu answered, sniffling.

"This is more than about how you can't touch Chiaki, isn't it?" Hana asked.

"You both know that up until 5 years ago I was a spirit, right?" Hanyuu questioned. "Back before then my only connection to the physical world was Rika and long before I met Rika I was alone. I could only observe and not interact. But then, Rika and the others gave me the power to make this body. In a very long time I've finally felt alive. But…something was missing."

"Love," Hana guessed.

"I love Rika, and my friends, but I also wanted to fine someone to love romantically. Before I was a spirit I was human adult and I had a family. Then a lot of things happened which turned me into a goddess. I was separated from my family and I could only watch as they grew old and die…"

Michiru began to tear up. Hanyuu's story was so sad.

"When I first met Chiaki-san, I was reminded of my original husband. They were both quiet people but they let their actions speak for them. But now…I can't even touch him!"

Hana wrapped her arms around Hanyuu and rubbed her back soothingly.

* * *

Shinichi found Chiaki in the Hive's gym, lifting weights. The large Kaizo Ningen saw him and Shinichi waved weakly.

"You must be happy about this," Chiaki accused.

"Huh? What?" Shinichi responded, surprised by the statement.

"Shinichi, you never really approved of me being with Hanyuu-chan after you found out how close we've gotten. You freaked out after you found out."

"I was just surprised, that's all."

"I know disapproval when I see it," Chiaki's eyes narrowed.

Shinichi sighed and confessed, "You're right about me disapproving your relationship with Hanyuu-chan, but she's my younger sister. I know she's technically older than all of us combined but I can't help but be overprotective of her like an older brother should. I was just shocked but once I got over it I realized how happy you made her. All this isn't fair to either of you and I'm sorry I couldn't stop it." He swore, "I'll make this right, I promise."

* * *

"Here we are," said Rika as she and Kai stopped in front of a building.

"Nice house," Kai commented. It was a small two-storey house which was made of wood with a closed shutter next to the front door.

"It's my old house," Rika remarked. She hadn't been here for a while now.

"Oh, so where do you live now?" Kai asked.

"A new house with my new family," Rika answered, smiling fondly as she recalled when Shiori took her and Hanyuu into her home. She missed her real mother and nobody would ever take her place, but Shiori had filled that void in Rika's heart. Sure, Shiori's parenting might be a little…unorthodox, but she was kind and loving. Kasai was also proving to be a good father, even if he was a bit awkward with trying to handle two daughters all of a sudden. His experience with looking after Shion helped a bit. "Since I'm not using it, I thought of being charitable and giving it to you."

"Is there a catch?" Kai asked.

"Well, since it is under my name that means I'm the landlord," Rika grinned. "I'll need to see some rent soon so you might as well get a job."

"That sounds fair," said Kai. He wanted to stand on his own two feet. "When do I move in?"

"We'll negotiate back at my home," Rika said. "Follow me." She then felt pain in her heart but it wasn't hers. "Hanyuu…" she murmured.

"Did you say something?" Kai asked.

"Nothing, it's nothing," Rika denied. "Shall we go?"

* * *

Shiro was laughing at the news he received after Rai-Gnol came to them and delivered his report. He made sure to leave nothing out.

"Well, I'm impressed," acknowledged Gnol. "Not only did you overpower Susano-O's comrades, but you also did some damage to that miko."

"And not only that, he split up that little bitch with her beau!" Shiro added. He hated Hanyuu ever since she and Rika had exposed him when he had been posing as Shinichi years ago. He would've gotten away with pretending to be Shinichi if it weren't for them. Well, if it weren't for them and Shinichi returning.

Rai-Gnol was taller than the two by two feet and he was kneeling before them. He was pretty powerful considering he managed to survive Showa's strongest attack or maybe Showa had gotten weaker. Still, RaI-Gnol was a dangerous Darkloid who could control and generate electricity which he'd used during his assault on the Great Wall of China and it had other applications too besides electrocuting people to death.

Rai-Gnol's electrical powers allowed him to charge people negatively and equally. Therefore, two people with the same charge could not come into contact. It was like static electricity.

"You seem to enjoy that fact," Gnol observed.

"Hey, seeing her suffer is good. I like to watch my prey being tormented before going for the kill," Shiro replied.

"Anything else?" Rai-Gnol asked.

"Just continue with what you're doing," said Gnol.

"Could I make a suggestion?" inquired Shiro. "Why not use those powers of yours to split up a whole bunch of couples and break up a few happy families while you're at it. I'd love to see what happens when a mother can't get close to their baby because it would hurt them both."

Gnol had to admit that Shiro's idea was evil, and sadistic. "Yes, I agree," said Gnol. "Go to Hinamizawa."

Rai-Gnol bowed and then he just turned into lightning and flew off in a flash.

"I knew I made a good choice when I gave him #03's Spark Core," boasted Shiro proudly. "And I like how he can use static electricity for EVIL!" Shiro let out another series of hysterical laughter.

* * *

"Shiori-mama, tadaima," called Rika as she entered with Kai.

"Oh, Okaeri, Rika-chan," greeted Shiori. She then saw Kai. "Oh, and you brought along a visitor." She bowed, "Welcome to our home."

"It's very nice," said Kai. He bowed, "Oh, I'm Kai Inazuma. Yoroshiku."

Shiori smiled as she saw Rika and Kai together. Rika, knowing that look, just rolled her eyes. "Kai-san is here to negotiate terms and conditions regarding my old house."

"Oh, your old place," said Shiori. "When was the last time we went there?"

"Pretty long," said Rika. "Could we go up to my room?"

Shiori frowned and said, "I don't think your father would approve." She added under her breath, "I would. It would make great material for my next book." Speaking of Kasai, the man was at the Sonozaki's still working as a bodyguard. Even with one arm in a cast didn't stop him. He could still look intimidating.

"Oh, we can just do it in the living room," said Rika. She then asked, "Is Hanyuu back yet?"

"Not yet," Shiori said, shaking her head. "She hasn't called and I think she's still at the base." She asked Kai, "Would you like to stay for dinner?"

"Oh, sure, no problem," said Kai. He and Rika entered the living room and spotted Sho playing with building blocks. "Is that your little brother?" he asked.

"Yes," Rika confirmed. Sho toddled over to Rika and held up a building block in his tiny hands.

"Play?" he asked cutely.

"No, not right now," said Rika as she patted Sho's head. Sho planted himself back on the floor and began playing. Rika then started, "Alright, let's begin." Shiori went over and put down several sheets of paper and a pen. She then picked up Sho.

"You're going to need those to write up a contract and agreement," said Shiori. She then sat down on the armchair. "You'll also need a witness."

"Alright," Rika accepted. Shiori, being a novelist, had experience with these things. She had to go through something similar back when she started writing. Negotiations needed a third party as a witness.

"I could get the tape recorder if you want," added Shiori.

"It's fine, Shiori-mama," said Rika.

* * *

"So, that's what's going on," Shinichi finished. He had called Alan over to the Hive to tell him about what was going on. Alan's hands were clenched. "Alan?"

"We're killing this thing," said Alan firmly. Shinichi saw how angry Alan looked. "Hanyuu is like my sister too. We may not spend a lot of time together but in the future she was there for me when I needed her most. This time around I'm going to be there for her."

"We have Sheila on alert trying to find the freak," said Shinichi. "It's only a matter of time before he strikes and when that happens…"

"We'll strike," Alan finished. This situation reminded him of how Saku had tried to split him and Nozomu apart. To be forced apart from the one you loved was a painful experience, an experience that Alan would never want to wish on anybody else especially someone as sweet as Hanyuu.

* * *

"Well, I guess that's that," Rika concluded. She then handed Kai the keys to her house, "Here are your keys. You can move in immediately but you might need to clean up afterwards."

"Fair enough," Kai shrugged as he took the keys. That was when Hanyuu returned. Her head was down and her bangs hung in front of her eyes. Now Rika knew something was wrong. She and Hanyuu shared an empathic bond and she could sadness.

"Tadaima…" she greeted softly. Shiori may not have an empathic bond but she knew when one of her daughters was depressed.

"Hanyuu-chan, what's wrong?" asked Shiori. Hanyuu didn't answer and went upstairs to her and Rika's room.

"I think I should go talk to her," said Rika. "Kai-san, do you mind?"

"She needs your help," said Kai. "I'll be fine."

Rika nodded and went upstairs to see Hanyuu. hanyuu didn't lock the door so Rika went in. She saw Hanyuu lying face-down on her bed and sobbing into her pillow. Rika sat down and rubbed Hanyuu's back. "Hanyuu, what's wrong?"

"RIKA! IT'S HORRIBLE!" screamed Hanyuu as she pulled Rika into a hug that rivaled Rena's. Rika was surprised but at least she could breathe.

"There, there," said Rika, patting her friend and sister's back. "Tell me what's wrong."

* * *

"_Negative, subject known as the Lightning Orochi still not found_," reported Sheila.

"_Great…_" grumbled AI-Shin. "_Hanyuu-chan's all depressed now_."

"_Are you worried?_" Sheila inquired.

"_Of course I am! She's my sister! Well, sure not by blood and I don't even have blood…_" He continued, "_My point is that this isn't fair to her. She's been through a lot_."

"_I think I can understand. I also become concerned whenever Yokoshima is depressed_," said Sheila.

"_You and he were really close, huh?_"

"_Affirmative._"

"_And right now our two good doctors are trying to negate what that lightning freak did to them_," said AI-Shin. "_Now that's just cruel. Can you imagine what it's like to be so close and yet so far from someone you love._"

"_I cannot say I do_," said Sheila.

"_I mean…long distance relationships are one thing but this is…this is…I don't have any words to describe it. I ain't as articulate as Kaa-chan_," AI-Shin replied.

"_Do not be alarmed. I am sure Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam will figure something out soon_," said Sheila confidently.

* * *

In Dr. Magi's lab, progress was slow. "I have no idea how to fix this," admitted Dr. Magi sadly. "I'm sorry, Chiaki."

"It's alright," said Chiaki, sighing. He dressed back up.

"Trying to neutralize what the Orochi of Lightning did isn't as easy as we thought," said Dr. Washam. "This isn't normal electricity. It's magic."

"It's alright, you did your best," said Chiaki. "I'll just have to live with being unable to touch Hanyuu-chan. We can still talk to each other." He was trying to make the best out of a bad situation.

"No, we can't just give up. We have to keep trying. We'll run more tests," Dr. Magi insisted.

* * *

"How is she?" Shiori asked as Rika came downstairs.

"She's depressed," answered Rika. She then explained what had happened and Shiori gasped.

"That's just too cruel…" said Shiori.

"Hey, did you say negatively charged?" asked Kai. He was still there and enjoying some iced tea.

"Yes," Rika confirmed.

"I never mentioned this, but I'm a Manakyte like Fudo. My element is lightning," said Kai. "Maybe I can help."

"How?" Rika asked, hope in her eyes.

"Well, we Manakytes are supposed to be resistant to magic. Maybe my own powers can cancel out what this Lightning Orochi did," said Kai. Rika grabbed his arm and dragged him upstairs. Shiori watched and her thoughts turned perverted.

"I always knew she would drag a boy to her room one day," said Shiori.

"I heard that, Shiori-mama!" Rika yelled back.

Shiori giggled.

* * *

The Teleportal came to life and Kai, Rika and Hanyuu entered.

"_Welcome back, Agent Furude_," greeted Sheila. "_Oh, and I see you've brought along visitors_."

"Sheila-san, could you call Chiaki-san?" asked Hanyuu.

"_He is in his quarters. I will inform him of your arrival_," said Sheila.

"Nice place you got here," said Kai as he looked around the main hall of the Hive.

"Look outside, it's huge," commented Rika.

"Where is this place?" asked Kai.

"A base in the middle of a canyon out in the middle of nowhere," said Rika, "Which just so happens to be the perfect place to hide a secret base."

"You know some really interesting people," Kai said.

"I know."

"Alright, I'm here," said Chiaki as he exited the elevator. He saw Hanyuu. "Oh, Hanyuu-chan."

"Chiaki-san, it's fine," said Hanyuu. "Kai-san here can help us."

"Hi, I'm Kai," waved the Lightning Manakyte. "Rika here told me about your problem. I think I can help."

"How?" asked Chiaki.

"Well…I don't know how to explain it so I'll just do it." Kai turned to Hanyuu, "Hanyuu, I'm going to need you to stand as close as you can to Chiaki." Hanyuu nodded and went to stand next to Chiaki. Their electrical fields were repelling each other, preventing them from getting any closer. "Alright, I think I see the problem. A word of caution, you might wanna brace yourselves."

Hanyuu looked up at Chiaki who looked back at her tenderly. "We're ready," the couple said.

Kai then began to perform a sort of kata as Rika watched expectantly. Electricity began to dance at the tips of his hair as he began to concentrate. Electricity crackled around his fists. Suddenly, with a shout of, "HAH!" he shot his the index and middle fingers of his right hand at the couple, shooting a bolt of lightning that first hit Chiaki and then flowed around him like a spiral before bouncing off and swirling around Hanyuu. Their bodies trembled from the sudden shock but it wasn't harmful. The lightning then returned to Kai and he stood up straight, "OK, now try touching each other."

Hanyuu hesitantly reached out to Chiaki who reached over. The tips of their fingers touched and then they clashed their hands together. There was no shock, no pain. "Hanyuu…" uttered Chiaki.

"Chiaki-san…" uttered Hanyuu with tears in her eyes. She then leapt into his arms.

"Thanks," Rika said to Kai. "You made a couple very happy."

"Well, you did find me a place to stay. Now we're even," said Kai.

"_ALERT! ALERT!_" yelled out Sheila, "LIGHTNING OROCHI HAS BEEN DETECTED!" The screen showed the map and Sheila pinpointed the location, "_LIGHTNING OROCHI HAS BEEN LOCATED! SUBJECT IS CURRENTLY IN HINAMIZAWA!_"

* * *

"TAKE THIS!" the Lightning Orochi roared as he shot a bolt of lightning.

"BACK AT YOU!" shouted Sentinel as he actually PUNCHED the lightning bolt coming at him, violently deflecting the attack

"Dude, did you just _punch_ lightning?" Showa (Hinamizawa Guardian Form) asked.

Sentinel looked at his fist, "I think I did."

The Lightning Orochi had come to attack Hinamizawa. However, it met with opposition in the form of a Rider and Green Lantern. Still, Rai-Gnol wasn't going to fail his mission. He would give these villagers the punishment they deserved.

"So you can deflect my lightning, huh?" Rai-Gnol observed. "Well, then I'll just have to hit with more than you can handle!" He raised his right hand up to the sky as dark clouds thundered and purple lightning came down, being absorbed by Rai-Gol's lightning rods. **"Storm of Judgment!"** he called as the rods fired the demonic lightning bolts, hitting both Showa and Sentinel as they were blasted by the lightning storm. Explosions went off all around them as they screamed in pain and were flung through the air like rag dolls.

"Dammit…" Showa groaned. "I hate these Orochi…"

Rai-Gnol approached his opponents and watched Sentinel struggling to stand. "Hm… My other wants to be the one to fight you." He then eyed Showa and nodded, "Then I guess you'll be the one whose head I shall claim." He clapped his hands and spread them out as he produced a purple lightning bolt and held it. He then jumped back, "This thing tends to go 'boom' pretty violently. **Lightning Spear!**" He then flung the spear at the Rider with all the power in his arm.

"Shinichi!" Sentinel called.

Showa couldn't get up in time and braced himself for what was coming. Nothing happened, however, as the spear was caught barehanded by none other than Kai. He started chomping down on the lightning bolt, leaving Sentinel and Rai-Gnol to gawk as the boy merely belched with some electricity escaping from his mouth.

"What the…?" Sentinel tried to mouth.

Showa looked up, "Kai… What are you doing here?" Kai wasn't alone, though. Chiaki and Hanyuu were present as well. They had exited out of the same Teleportal.

"I was getting bored," Kai shrugged, "And since I don't have a surfboard yet I guess the next best thing is to fight." He started walking over to Rai-Gnol.

"Wait, you don't know what you're dealing with," Sentinel tried to warn, but was completely ignored by the hooded boy.

"Hanyuu-chan?" questioned Showa as he saw Hanyuu and Chiaki holding hands. He exclaimed, "You're…holding hands!" Hanyuu let go of Chiaki's hand and helped her brother up.

"You have Kai-san to thank for that," said Hanyuu.

"Is he seriously gonna fight him?" Sentinel questioned as Chiaki helped him up.

"He helped Hanyuu-chan and I," Chiaki said. "I think we can trust him."

Kai looked up at Rai-Gnol, who towered over the boy by almost twice his height. "So, just what the hell are you?" he asked with a bored expression.

"You challenge me without any knowledge as to what I am?" Rai-Gnol snarled. "Then let me educate you before you die!" He swung an electrified fist down but hit nothing but dirt as Kai was nowhere to be found, "What?-!"

"We're you trying to hit me or just swinging at the air?" Kai called as he stood several feet from Rai-Gnol, "Because I'm not impressed."

"You little brat," the Orochi snarled. **"Storm of Judgment!"** he called as he launched his barrage of lightning at the Manakyte.

Kai grinned as he tossed his hooded robe aside, revealing a black sleeveless shirt underneath, with matching pants and boots before he dashed ahead. He dodged the bolts so closely that his speed was unrecognizable as it appeared that the bolts went right through him. He charged his fists with electricity as he got closer to Rai-Gnol. The Orochi acted quickly and swung at the boy but he was gone in an instant.

"Where is he now?-!" the angered Orochi demanded.

"Here!" Kai called from behind. **"Fist of Zeus!"** he called as he began punching at Rai-Gnol's unprotected back striking him under his lightning rods repeatedly as Rai-Gnol was actually being shocked by the smaller opponent's own lightning. Kai then did a leg sweep and the Orochi fell backwards after Kai evaded the demon's falling body, reappearing In front as he looked down at his fallen opponent. "I may be a small target, but this is just sad," Kai shook his head. He then jumped into the air as he held his hands close to his chest. He began to generate a ball of electrical energy. **"Zap Cannon!"** he called as he launched the lightning ball down on Rai-Gnol as he heard the Orochi cry out in pain in the explosion.

Reactions were, well, pretty obvious. They knew Manakytes were powerful after seeing Yuji but Kai had Rai-Gnol matched, blow for blow. Heck, Kai seemed to be stronger than Rai-Gnol when it came to electrical manipulation.

"Remind me _never_ to piss him off," stated Showa.

"I think it's a good thing he's on our side," said Sentinel.

"Nanodesu," agreed Hanyuu. Chiaki could only nod in silence.

Rai-Gnol struggled to his feet as his body crackled with electricity and his armor was completely destroyed and his rods were broken. "You little bastard…" he growled as blood dripped from his head. "I'll make you pay for this…!" His fists clenched and he roared to the sky, "**YOU WILL PAY!-!-!-!-!**" a bolt of purple lightning shot down on Rai-Gnol from above and everyone could see his silhouette grow and change before the pillar of energy dissipated.

Rai-Gnol was now a massive serpentine dragon with a purple aura surrounding its body. It had green scales, demonic purple horns mounted on its head, and two pairs of purple, bat-like wings. It also had spikes running down its spine with a trident-like attachment at the tip of its tail. It only had two arms which ended in hands with vicious claws. Its mouth also sported sharp, gold teeth and its golden eyes sparked with electricity. It began to brew a storm as storm clouds began to swirl above the Lightning Orochi's head.

"Oh…now that can't be good," Showa commented.

"We have him on the ropes," said Sentinel but then he caught Hanyuu's glare. "Uh…Hanyuu?"

"Alan, I appreciate the effort, but I think it's my turn," she said. "I have to pay this Darkloid back for what it did to me and Chiaki-san."

"Are you sure?" Sentinel asked. Hanyuu nodded.

"Let's oblige her, partner," supported Bazel.

"Kai-san, would you like to help?" asked Hanyuu.

"What do I need to do?" asked Kai.

"Just stand right over there," said Hanyuu. "Alan, we're ready."

Sentinel nodded and began to initiate the Xros Fusion process. "Hanyuu! Chiaki! Kai! **XROS FUSION!**" Sentinel called as he fired a beam of light from Bazel at the three, engulfing them in bright light.

The result of this new Xros Fusion was a new Hanyuu, and now she was wearing blue armor on her shoulders, over her chest, with gauntlets and steel boots. Her clothes comprised of a mid-thigh pleated skirt resembling her hakama and a white kimono top like a miko's but without her sleeves. Her head was covered by a helmet that left her face exposed. The helmet had a horn that resembled a lightning rod mounted on it with holes on the sides for her horns. Her lavender hair flowed freely from the back. What was really, and literally, shocking about Hanyuu was that she now sported dragon wings and a tail made of electricity. In her right hand was a shakujo (monk's staff) and in her left hand was the Onigari no 's physical appearance was that of a young adult now.

"**STORM OYASHIRO-SAMA! KENZAN!**" Hanyuu declared in her new form which was the result of her Xros Fusion with Chiaki and Kai.

"WOAH!" Showa exclaimed, eyes wide open. That was badass!

The Lightning Orochi roared and unleashed a blast of electrical power from its mouth at Storm Oyashiro-sama.

"**Ofuda Barrier!**" she called out as paper talismans suddenly appeared out of nowhere and formed a shield that blocked the attack. The attack was instantly neutralized and Storm Oyashiro-sama prepared her own attack.

"**Kenatsu!"** she called before pointing the Onigari no Ryuou at the Lightning Orochi and blue energy needles were launched at the creature's belly, making the monster shriek in pain. "Again!" she shouted, this time swinging the Onigari no Ryuou twice and launching waves of blue lightning that cut through the Lightning Orochi's wings. It fell with thundering thud. It was time to finish the beast. Her shakujo turned into a bow and she notched the Onigari no Ryuou against the string like an arrow, pulling the string taught with a single tug.

"**SHUU…RAI…RYU-!-!-!-!**" Storm Oyashiro-sama called as she released and shot the Onigari no Ryuou like an arrow. The Onigari no Ryuouwas covered in a blue, electrifying aura before it pierced the heart of the Lightning Orochi causing it to let out a roar of pain.

_(Shuurairyu: Dragon Lightning Strike)_

The Lightning Orochi then spoke in a haunting voice, "_You can defeat me, but that doesn't win the war. THE YAMATA NO OROCHI WILL RISE AGAIN!_" With those final words, the Lightning Orochi exploded. Sentinel saw something flying out of the explosion and caught it.

It was Spark Core #3.

* * *

Kai and Chiaki were invited to have dinner at Shiori's house with her family. Predictably, Hanyuu sat next to Chiaki. Kai took an empty seat next to Rika. As for Shinichi and Alan, they had both returned to their respective apartments.

"And then Chiaki-san and Kai-san and I combined and we killed the Lightning Orochi!" Hanyuu finished.

"Never really done that before," Kai shrugged.

"How exactly did it feel to combine?" Rika asked.

"I felt like a battery."

"Combining. How interesting," Shiori mused with a perverted smile.

"I'm just glad you're alright," Kasai interjected.

Hanyuu smiled at Chiaki as they held hands under the table.

"So, Inazuma-kun, how do you know Rika?" Kasai asked.

"She offered me her old home so I'm her tenant," Kai responded.

"He'll move in when he's ready, and after we clean up the place," Rika added.

"I can already hear church bells ringing," Shiori sighed.

"Mama!" Rika blushed.

Kai sputtered as he fell off his seat.

"What? He's moving into your old home," Shiori reasoned. "Pretty soon you'll be moving in _with_ him."

"Huh...?-!" Kai gaped

"Then you'll 'christen' all the rooms together."

Rika covered her blushing face with her hands and Kai's usually calm face turned red as steam came out from his ears and he fainted.

"Shiori, don't tease the children," Kasai chided.

"Spoilsport," she pouted cutely.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Originally this was meant to be a two-parter, but since Part Two was too short I decided to put it together with Part One. OK, in this chapter we had a literal case of Star-Crossed Lovers and it all took place after Tanabata. Fortunately, Kai managed to fix things. Also, he helped to fight the Lightning Orochi. BTW, Hanyuu's Xros Fused form was badass, wasn't it?**

**Kamen Rider Bushido: In this chap we show off more badassness for Hanyuu. Will Shiori's prediction of Rika and Kai getting together come true? Or is she just being her usual perverted self as always? Either way, she's one funny mom.**


	84. The Legacy of Cain Part 28

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 28: The Darkest Night**

"These are the places where the pieces of the Orochi laid dormant," said Hanyuu as she laid out a map. She had marked each location on the map. "Months ago, we went to these locations to reinforce the seals."

"Unfortunately, WHITE 14 has a way to bypass those seals and unseal those Orochi heads," Shinichi interjected.

Shogo added, "And he's using the Spark Cores of out former comrades to revive them as Darkloids."

"So far the Orochi of Ice, the Orochi of Water and the Orochi of Lightning have been defeated," Hanyuu noted.

Michiru spoke up, "Wait, you keep mentioning about the Orochi's heads. What about its body?"

"The body of the Orochi is sealed in Kyoto and is under the protection of the Kekkain Clan," Hanyuu answered.

"Who are the Kekkain Clan?" asked Shinichi.

"A clan on Onmyouji and they've set up branches in either locations around the seal of the Orochi'sbody. We have the North Branch, the South Branch, the East Branch, the West Branch, the North-East Branch, the South-East Branch, the North-West Branch and the South-West branch," Hanyuu answered.

"Eight branches of a clan to guard over the body of a demonic eight-headed beast," summarized Chiaki.

"Exactly," Hanyuu acknowledged.

"Shouldn't they know about this?" asked Michiru.

"I suspect they already do but I've sent them a letter informing them with all the details I know," said Hanyuu.

"How do you know they'll answer?" asked Shogo.

"They can't ignore a member of their own clan in these matters, especially me."

* * *

Oryo Sonozaki, the aged head of the Sonozaki Clan, was now dead. She had died peacefully in her sleep and was discovered by her daughter Akane when she went to wake her mother up for breakfast and her daily medication. The Sonozaki Clan attended the funeral which was performed by Rika as she was the Head of the Furude Clan and in charge of religious matters despite being of young age. Each member of the Sonozaki Clan gave their respects to the strong head of the Sonozaki Clan who'd lead the clan with her strong will, never backing down from anything. Even Shion attended and while she and Oryo hadn't had the best relationship, deep down Shion did care a little about her grandmother. They were family after all. Oryo was then cremated and finally buried in the exclusive cemetery for members of the clan.

* * *

"So, how are you holding up, Mion?" Shinichi asked as he met up with Mion at Shishibone University. She had been absent from classes for a week following Oryo's funeral to go into mourning but now she was back.

"I'm fine," smiled Mion. "Grandma was getting really old. It's amazing she held on for so long."

"That old lady was always a stubborn one," Shinichi agreed.

"You know, the night before she died Grandma summoned me and Shion and actually apologized to us for all the stuff she put us through. It was like she knew she didn't have much longer to live," stated Mion.

"Guess she wanted to make things right before it was too late," observed Shinichi. "How did Shion take it?"

"Well, she couldn't believe that Grandma approved of her and Satoshi being together," Mion said.

"I guess that was a shock," said Shinichi. "So, what happens now? Does that mean you're Clan Head now?"

"I guess it does," said Mion, sighing. "I've been prepared for this since my birth, Shin-chan but even after all this time I'm still not sure if I can do it."

"Dude, seriously?" Shinichi cocked an eyebrow. "Who's the leader of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club who stopped Miyo Takano? Who was the one who stared me down when I was the High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER?"

Mion countered, "You were just pretending."

"Yeah, but you didn't know that," Shinichi shot back. "I saw you. You didn't show fear, not even once. You were strong and defiant in the face of danger and the others followed you and if they followed you then your clan and the village will also follow you now." Kimiyoshi may have been the village chief but he was just the figurehead. It was the Sonozaki Clan who truly ruled Hinamizawa. "You deserve the position, Mion and if you need any help then I'll offer my hand."

"Thanks, Shin-chan. And there's nothing to worry about. I got Shion and Mom helping me out. They'll be my advisors," said Mion. "And I'm going to change things for the better."

"Well, you might wanna think of making an heir too," Shinichi pointed out. "How goes your plans to marry Keiichi?"

Mion blushed and averted her eyes, "Well…I've just been made Clan Head so that's still a long way to go…"

"Heh, wait any longer and you'll become an old spinster," teased Shinichi. Mion flicked his nose. "Itai."

"Baka."

* * *

For those who didn't know or unaware of their existence, they need to understand: Youkai exist. They walk among us. They eat, work and sleep. Of course, some of the things we've done have also been adopted by them, like the world's oldest profession: prostitution. Youkai brothels exist and they catered to both fellow Youkai and humans. Youkai needed to make a living and there were humans with exotic tastes.

In every city at least one existed, hidden behind an invisible barrier of magic. Only those invited were welcomed. They were given special charms which allowed them to enter through the barrier and into the den of delightful sin. Special clients got special treatment and the best girls were top girls and expensive. But the money was worth it as the experience was completely out of this world.

Shishibone City had one as well and its entrance was one of many alleyways. People would go in and suddenly vanish while before reappearing out of nowhere. Anyone without a special charm would just see an empty alleyway but those who did would see the Bakeneko House which took the term 'cathouse' quite literally.

The Bakeneko House was a Youkai Brothel whose girls were all Bakeneko and even Nekomata. For otaku, they were real-live catgirls and were always in heat. Men who came in would be serviced by them most eagerly. They were amazing companions. Like catgirls depicted in popular media they resembled humans in every way, except that they sported cat ears and tails. They had soft skin and lean bodies. The fur on their ears and tails was also soft. Also, the sounds they made were intoxicating and called the men, and even women, for more

The brothel was separated into two parts: a strip bar where clients could watch the girls perform on stage and also mingle with the girls they wanted to sleep with as well as enjoy drinks from the bar. The second floor area hosted the rooms for each of the girls where clients would have some one-on-one private time with them as they had sexual intercourse. Prices were set by the girls.

The brothel was owned and ran by a Nekomata who was centuries old but still looked like a woman in her thirties. She built this place as safe haven for her fellow cat Youkai so they could have fun and entertain humans without repercussions. She wore the traditional garb of a Japanese courtesan, which was a kimono with the obi's knot in the front. The kimono was also worn loosely to reveal her creamy shoulders and cleavage. She would also work like the girls but her price was high. A single night with her could cost at least 1,000,000 yen and that was her lowest price. But to those who spent money for her company it was money well spent.

Yuri was obviously a regular as he sat in a couch surrounded by Bakeneko girls who drank with him. There were even cages suspended in the air where scantily clad Bakeneko girls danced. They were prostitutes too and were just showing off the goods and how flexible they could be.

"Ne, ne, which one of us will you take to bed, Yuri-sama?" a cute blonde Bakeneko girl asked.

"Ah…there's just too many to choose from," said Yuri. He took out a wad of cash, "But I got money to spare. How about we have an orgy after another round of drinks?"

"WE LOVE YOU, YURI-SAMA!" the Bakeneko girls mewled.

"_Me no get it..."_ a voice spoke from inside Yuri's jacket.

He reached in and pulled out the purple gem, the Gao Jewel he had recently acquired, and replied, "It's called pleasure, my friend. Everyone has their own way of experiencing it."

"_Like fighting?"_ the Power Animal, known as GaoTyranno, asked.

"That's one way of looking at it!" he smiled.

"_Me get it now! Fighting is a pleasure!"_ GaoTyranno cheered.

Shiro and Gnol both entered the brothel and the bio-android could only smile as he saw all the catgirls. "Daddy's home," he said. He had killed a couple of regulars and stolen their charms which granted them access into this Den of Sin.

"Why are we here?" demanded Gnol. He was in human form and didn't look happy. "We should be out there reviving the rest of my heads."

"Oh, relax, Gnol!" said Shiro. "Just have fun. There's no rush, and you're at half your full power already."

"We can't waste time here," said Gnol. Shiro frowned.

"Well, if that's how you're gonna be, Mr. Buzzkill, I'm gonna find a girl get a room and fuck until dawn." He spotted a Nekomata girl in a red bikini with a pair of orange tails that had black stripes. Crowning her head were sharp ears. Her red hair was luscious and wavy. Presently, she was sipping a drink at the bar. "Target located," he whispered. He then said to Gnol, "Now, remember we have all the money to burn here. Just fuck some girls. You need to get laid, my friend." Shiro then went up to chat with the Nekomata as Gnol grumbled.

Gnol hated humans, but he was neutral with supernatural beings. He would be lying if he didn't find all these female cat Youkai attractive. Then his eyes spotted a girl reclining in her seat. She had dark skin and violet eyes. She was dressed in a purple Cheogsam that hugged her figure and exposed her long and lean legs. Her hair was short and black, and her head was topped with cat ears like the rest of her race. Her tail was fluffy and she had men eating out of her hands.

Smirking, Gnol decided to take his partner's advice and enjoy a girl's company for the evening.

* * *

Shiro got himself dressed and then glanced towards the properly fucked girl on the bed. After taking such a pounding from him she just passed out and couldn't take anymore. So, he just left her on the bed. He left, closing the door behind him. He then saw Gnol exiting a room as well and grinned, "Well, well, so you did enjoy yourself."

"Only because there was nothing else to do here," remarked Gnol. "So, how much fun did you have?"

"Fucked the girl to unconsciousness," answered Shiro. "How about you?"

"Well, let's just say that she won't be doing much anal for a while," grinned Gnol. He took out a pair of panties from his pocket and showed them off, "Even got myself a souvenir."

"Can I have them?" asked Shiro.

"No, get your own," Gnol retorted.

Shiro frowned and then looked down from the railing and spotted… "Yuji Fudo!"

"Huh?" Yuri looked up as he saw two other guys.

Shiro jumped down and drew Oathbreaker, scaring the girls that were with Yuri as he yelled, "Time to die, asshole!"

Yuri stood up and got in Shiro's face, "What crawled up your ass, pansy?"

Shiro blinked as he stepped back and sucked his teeth, "Che, wrong guy…" and stored away Oathbreaker.

"Ignorance and mistaken identity can be so much fun," Yuri cackled as he gathered his things before kissing the girls who entertained him. "Farewell my kittens, for I have to retire early this evening! But I shall return!" he promised as he exited the premises.

"BYE-BYE, YURI-SAMA!" the girls swooned as he left.

Gnol jumped down and blinked, "Doppelganger?"

"Maybe a twin," Shiro frowned in thought.

* * *

Michiru said, looking up at the spooky castle, "And here we are…back at this scary place." She hadn't liked it the first time and coming back hadn't changed her mind and no matter how many times she would come back, if she ever did which was unlikely, she would never like this place in her entire life.

Hana's taste, however, differed as she actually dreamed of owning such property one day. It fit her taste and while she understood why Michiru didn't like it, she really couldn't agree with Michiru's opinion of it. She looked forward to this visit even if it was to go look for a Spark Core which was more than likely inside a piece of the Yamata no Orochi.

They had been here before, several months ago when they had accompanied Hanyuu to reinforce the seal.

* * *

_The Darkness Head of Fear was located in Romania. The exact place was under the original castle of Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia, also known as…_

"_Vlad the Impaler?"_

_Hanyuu was standing in front of the castle with Michiru, Chiaki and Hana. Michiru was the one who'd made her displeasure known._

_Hana, however, felt differently._

"_Vlad the Impaler, the inspiration of the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker," Hana mused aloud, "Interesting."_

"_Vlad the Impaler?" Hanyuu asked, not knowing anything about the history of Vlad the Impaler._

"_He was a bloodthirsty ruler who impaled his enemies on stakes," Hana explained._

"_Hana…" Chiaki warned._

"_She asked," Hana shrugged. Michiru trembled. "What's wrong?"_

"_I'm not going in there!" cried Michiru. "What if it's haunted?"_

"_Relax, Michiru. The only scary thing we'll find there is the head of a demonic dragon," said Hana._

"_That does not make me feel any better," mumbled Michiru._

"_If Yokoshima was here, he'd whine there were vampire bats in there," Hana added. "Then again, I have read about this place and they sat this castle is one of the most haunted locations in the entire world."_

_Michiru reluctantly followed the rest inside and they kept on walking. However, they didn't find anything. "Oh well," said Michiru quickly, relieved that they didn't need to stay any longer. When she placed her hand on the wall, she let out a shriek as a section of the wall slid back to reveal a narrow staircase._

_"Good work, Michiru," Chiaki said which made Michiru gulp before they walked down the staircase to perform the reinforcement ritual._

* * *

Hanyuu closed her eyes and said, "It's in here." She opened her eyes and added, "Let's go in." Chiaki was at her side, holding her hand.

"How about we don't and say we did?" Michiru suggested. "And where are Shinichi and Alan?"

"Those two needed a bit of a break," said Yuji. Yuki was with him as well.

"They go on break just before Sheila detected another Spark Core," murmured Michiru. "Wonderful."

"Hey, you got me, and I'm powerful," said Yuji, frowning. He felt a little insulted that Michiru would underestimate his skill.

"Onii-sama is strong," said Yuki simply.

"You're not much of a pushover either," Yuji said to Yuki.

"Alright, let's go in," said Hanyuu. She saw Michiru's hesitation. "Hana-san, could you…?"

Hana took Michiru's hand and held on tightly.

"OK, as I was saying, I'll count to three and-" Hanyuu said but was interrupted.

"Wait, is it ON three or AFTER three?" Michiru asked. She wanted to stall as long as she could.

"ON three. It's always faster on three," Hanyuu replied. "OK, 1…2…3!" She, Chiaki, Yuji and Yuki ran up to the entrance only to back up and look to Michiru and Hana who hadn't moved. "Why haven't you moved?"

"She won't budge," said Hana.

"I really don't want to go in there!" Michiru yelled.

"Fine, you both can stay out here, alone, in the dark, while we're in there," said Yuji, gesturing to the castle. "Come on, Yuki."

The two Manakytes, goddess and cyborg went into the castle, leaving the two female cyborgs outside. Michiru heard a wolf howl and leap into Hana's arms.

"Um…I think I feel safer with Yuji around," said a trembling Michiru as she held on tightly to Hana. The Tarantula Rider rolled her eyes before carrying Michiru into Dracula's castle.

Yuji held a fireball in his hand as Hanyuu walked next to him as they guided the rest of the group. Yuki and Chiaki were close behind while Hana and Michiru were still catching up.

However, Hanyuu noticed the serious look Yuji had and decided to speak up, "What's wrong, Yuji-san?"

"I wanna hurry up and get the hell out of here, that's what's wrong," Yuji replied quickly.

"What do you mean?" Chiaki asked.

Yuji turned and got in Chiaki's face, "What do I mean?-! I'll tell you what I mean! Apparently, you don't need us here! SO WHY DON'T YOU JUST FUCKING CALL SHIN AND ALAN (YOUR BIG STRONG SUPER HEROES) AND MY SISTER AND I COULD LEAVE AND BE ON OUR MERRY FUCKING WAY!" He stomped off ahead and punched a hole in the wall making Hanyuu and Chiaki flinch. He turned back and yelled, "AND FOR THE RECORD, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT THE FUCK I'M DOING HERE!" before he stomped off ahead, leaving Yuki with the others.

"What just happened?" Hana asked as she finally caught up and set Michiru down.

"He just flipped out," Michiru blinked.

"Did I say something wrong?" Chiaki asked Yuki.

Yuki shook her head, "No, but we have to catch up and calm him down or else…"

"Or else what…?" Michiru cringed.

"The last time Onii-sama was this volatile he started a forest fire when he was 12," Yuki stated, "And that was during training. Imagine what he could do this castle if he maintains his temper at its current level…"

Yuji continued walking on his own as he slowly came to a stop. "Goddammit…" he growled. "I'll show 'em. I'm just as good as Shin and Alan. I'm Yuji Fucking Fudo and I'm tough enough to take anything anyone can dish!" He looked down, "That's how I was trained…"

'_I don't think that's the issue,'_ Bahamut spoke in Yuji's mind.

"What?"

'_You're letting one small comment that was never directed at you release all this negative energy for no reason,'_ he identified.

"But aren't I good enough for this mission? HUH?-!" he demanded before punching another wall, with his fist blazing.

'_Listen, Yuji, for the time that we've been together there has never been any doubt in my mind about your growing skills. For all that you've went through, you never gave up and I am proud to call you my ally and friend.'_

'_And we are proud to serve you, Master Yuji,'_ GaoLiger and GaoPhoenix added.

Yuji sighed to himself, taking in what the three entities said and started to relax. That was when he heard the sound of an organ playing. He looked ahead and saw a pair of large doors at the end of the hall. Running to the door, he kicked it down and drew the Blazing Dragon, aiming at the player of the haunting tune.

The player was running his fingers along the keyboard before slamming them down. He slowly turned to reveal himself.

It was a young man, with bishounen features that were accentuated by his pale lavender skin, short light blue hair, and his yellow sclera eyes with slitted pupils. He wore noble-esque black clothes as well as a black cape with blood red lining that was held at his shoulders by finger like extensions.

"Ah, I have a guest!" the young man clapped with a bright smile, revealing his fangs. "Welcome to my new castle!"

"I'm guessing you're a vampire," Yuji frowned. Despite his bright welcome, this guy had darkness rolling off him.

"Basically, but you can just call me…" He grinned, "Yami-Gnol."

**Music – "Swipe of Sword" (Devil May Cry 4)**

Yuji grinned back, "Then you're just who I'm looking for!" He jumped and fired his gun, launching bullets at Yami-Gnol as the Orochi of Darkness dodged the gunfire.

"Let's start this party then!" said Yami-Gnol as he snapped his fingers and the pipe organ began to play on its own. A haunting yet appropriate tune began to play as the fighting commenced. **"Bloody Whips!"** Whips made of crimson energy appeared in Yami-Gnol's hands and he lashed them out at Yuji. He jumped back to dodge the attack as the whips left long and deep gouges on the floor.

"**Night Raid!"** Yami-Gnol called as he banished his whips and his cape spread open. He swung his arms forward and a swarm of demonic bats flew forth in a surprise attack, surrounding Yuji. They clawed and bit at the Manakyte.

Meanwhile, Hanyuu could sense something dark up ahead and shouted, "Come on!" as she led the way with Chiaki following close behind. The female NEO-NUMBERS and Yuki weren't too far behind as they made a dash towards Yuji's location. Worry gripped Yuki's heart as she hoped her brother was alright.

* * *

Shiro mused with a grin as he watched the action via a hidden camera he'd planted in the room. "Looks like I made a good choice."

"So, you planted the Spark Core of someone named Kamiyami into the Head of Darkness," said Gnol. "Care to explain?"

"Haven't you read 'Dracula'?" Shiro asked. Gnol stared back blankly. "Oh, right. You're culturally ignorant." Gnol grabbed him by his collar as he added frantically, "But there's nothing wrong with that! I mean you could learn later!" Gnol released the bio-android who fixed his clothes. "OK, so Dracula is supposed to be this high-class nobleman who's really a vampire and this is where his legend was based from. Bram Stoker made Vlad the Impaler look like a vampire and thus created Dracula. As for Kamiyami, he was an arrogant blowhard who tried to make Shinichi look bad while to make himself look good but failed each time. In his delusion, he literally considered himself royalty. I just thought it would be interesting to see what would happen if we put them together."

"And thus Yami-Gnol's appearance," Gnol concluded.

"Exactly, my friend. Now, let's watch the show."

* * *

Bat Darkloids swooped in from the ceiling, attacking Hanyuu and her group as they were getting closer to Yuji and Yami-Gnol's battle. They were humanoid bats with sharp fangs and very, very annoying screeches which were painful to those with enhanced hearing, like Kaizo Ningen.

"Must be his minions," said Yuki as she flash froze several Bat Darkloids in mid-air and they shattered once they fell to the floor. Hanyuu was throwing ofuda which caused the Bat Darkloids to explode into black smoke.

* * *

"Get off me!" Yuji bellowed as flames burst from his body, blasting the bats and burning them away.

Yami-Gnol scowled and held his right hand out. Dark energy seeped out of his hand formed a giant sword with a saw-like edge. "I call this baby 'Ravage'," the Orochi said with an arrogant smirk. "Now it will ravage you!" he declared as he dashed at Yuji.

Yuji saw Yami-Gnol coming and blocked with the Red Queen and revved the engine, flames blasting from the blade as it clashed with Ravage's teeth.

"You look vexed, my friend," Yami-Gnol sneered as he glared at Yuji while pushing each other back with their blades. "Not getting enough _satisfaction_ at home?"

"You talk too much," Yuji remarked as he punched Yami-Gnol in the face, making him stagger back as Yuji twirled his sword before swinging down.

* * *

The Bat Darkloids were easily dealt with and destroyed by the group. Carmen (Mirage Form) shouldered her Kusarigama and sighed. "You know, if Yokoshima was here he would probably scream hysterically," she commented.

"You're right," agreed Arachnea (Venom Form). She asked, "How is everyone?"

Hanyuu was exhausted from using her energy but luckily she had Slasher (Slayer Form) to support her. She sat her on his right shoulder so she could rest her feet. "I'm fine, nanodesu," said Hanyuu.

"Onii-sama," said Yuki. "He needs us."

"Well, let's go!" said Carmen as she dashed forward only to trip and fall flat on her face. "Itai…" She felt something grasp her ankle and looked over to see a skeletal hand wrapped around it. She let out a shriek, "KYAAAA-!-!-!"

* * *

Yuji heard the shriek echo and was nearly decapitated by Yami-Gnol for getting briefly distracted. "Hm, I see my pets are playing with your friends."

"What did you do to them!-?" snarled Yuji.

"I'll tell you if you can beat me," said Yami-Gnol, "But what chance do you have anyway? I mean, for someone so strong you still fight with others. Can't you do anything alone anymore?"

* * *

Carmen scrambled backwards from the skeletal hand once it released its grip and the floor began to crack and then break apart as a skeleton in medieval armor rose from the floor. It was armed with a sword and shield.

It wasn't alone either. Several parts of the floor began to break apart as several more skeletons dragged themselves out of the ground. In a matter of seconds an army of skeletal soldiers had the group surrounded.

"Feels like a bad Halloween special," frowned Slasher.

"Cool," admired Arachnea, only to correct herself when her friends stared at her oddly, "I mean…oh crap."

* * *

"**Halloween Raid!**" With a swing of his arms, Yami-Gnol hurled several Jack-O-Lantern shaped bombs at Yuji which exploded tremendously, rocking the chamber. Still, the music played.

"Goddamn music!" Yuji roared as he cocked the Blazing Dragon and fired repeatedly, filling the organ with bullet holes.

"That was uncalled for!" Yami-Gnol cried.

* * *

"How the hell are we supposed to kill something that's already dead?" complained Carmen and she had the right to. The group was fighting against Yami-Gnol's skeletal army and while they were obviously more powerful than these walking piles of bones, the skeletal soldiers were more persistent. They would smash the skeletal soldiers to pieces but they always managed to pull themselves back together to resume their assault.

"Just keep knocking them down!" Arachnea answered back.

Hanyuu was being protected by Slasher who struck at the skeletal soldiers with the Onigari no Ryuou. Hanyuu was also tossing ofuda but they didn't do much but slow them down.

Yuki, frustrated with all the skeletons, let loose a loud roar and unleashed her powers upon them. A blizzard burst forth from her form and shortly after it subsided the skeleton soldiers were now frozen in blocks of ice. Hanyuu shivered, "T-t-that w-w-w-was amazing!"

Yuki ignored Hanyuu and dashed towards the room where her brother was fighting as the others hurried after her.

She burst through and saw the two fighting. "Onii-sama!" she called. The others were right behind her.

"An audience!" Yami-Gnol announced. "Good, very good! Now I will be able to show off what I can REALLY do!"

He was interrupted, however, when a nearby window shattered, garnering everyone's attention as the party crasher was none other than…

"SURPRISE!-!-!" Yuri greeted. "HAHAHAHAHA!"

"And just who the hell are you?" Yami-Gnol demanded. "I was about to display my most devastating technique!"

"Like I give a flying fuck!" Yuri dismissed.

"Yuri, what the fuck are you doing here?-!" Yuji demanded. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Is that anyway to greet family, Brother?" Yuri grinned.

"Oh, great, it's this guy again," Arachnea sighed.

"As if things weren't bad enough," Slasher grimaced.

"Um, I think things are about to get worse," Carmen pointed ahead.

Yami-Gnol overheard her and turned only to get smacked in the face by the tail of a yellow dragon construct, sending him flying into the wall. "What now?" he growled. He was getting tired of surprises.

From the shadows emerged an elegant woman with long silver hair, gold eyes, and fair skin. She wore a black bodysuit with yellow arm bands and yellow boots, as well as a yellow beret on her head. Worn on her left middle finger was a yellow ring and a white symbol resembling a circular W was branded on her prominent chest.

"It's been a while, Monsieur Fudo," she smirked.

Yuji gaped for a second then glared at his psychotic twin, "You did NOT just do what I think you fucking did!"

"Yeah, I kinda did!" Yuri chuckled.

"WHY THE FUCK IS SHE HERE?-! SHE'S SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD!"

"She was and I basically gave her a new body," Yuri shrugged. "You're not the only one who can wield the Darkness Flame."

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT, GODDAMMIT!"

"OH, ENOUGH OF THIS FOOLISHNESS!" Yami-Gnol shrieked. "Time to get serious!" He dashed at Yuji and pinned him to the wall.

"Get off…!" he growled.

"I'm sure to hate myself in the morning," Yami-Gnol grinned, "But I'll get over it!" He bit into the side of Yuji's neck.

The Fudo cried out in pain as he felt a fluid being injected into his bloodstream. He put all the power he can muster to kick the Orochi off of him as he collapsed onto his knees. "What the hell did you do to me…?-!"

"I injected you with my venom," Yami-Gnol grinned. "You should be feeling the effects right about…"

Yuji could feel his muscles begin to stiffen as he struggled to rise. "N-Neurotoxin…" he realized.

"I use it to keep my prey still while I feed, but I made an exception for you!" Yami-Gnol cackled. He then summoned Ravage and raised it up to decapitate Yuji. "Say goodnight, Yuji Fudo."

A Teleportal suddenly appeared and two figures jumped out before landing on the floor. It was Shinichi and Alan. Seeing Yuji on his knees, they reacted quickly and accordingly.

"Alan, do your thing," said Shinichi as he dashed towards Yuji to help him.

Alan raised his arm and his ring glowed as he recited, "In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil's might, beware my power...**GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!**"

The intense emerald light from Alan's ring was blinding and Yami-Gnol screamed as his body began to burn. He had to get away! His body broke down into a swarm of demonic bats and they flew out of the nearest window to flee the light and into the dark night's sky.

Shinichi went to help Yuji up, "Yuji, are you okay?" Yuji roughly shoved him aside. "Hey!"

"Get off me, I'm fine," Yuji growled. He then collapsed again, his body quickly becoming paralyzed by the venom.

Shinichi frowned but then his reaction became more severe when he looked across the room and spotted… "ANASTASIA!-?"

Alan too saw her and aimed his ring at the formerly dead Witch of Terror who was dressed like a Sinestro Corpsman.

"Bonjour, boys," she purred.

"Worry about her later," Yuki ordered as she threw his right arm around her shoulders to support him. "Onii-sama needs help." Chiaki slung Yuji's left arm around his shoulders to support Yuji's left side as the group made their way through the Teleportal, with Yuri and Anastasia following behind.

* * *

**Kamen Rider Bushido: Yami-Gnol is based off of Vampire Lord from the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG. Looks like Yuji has to deal with some inner conflict on multiple levels, especially since he's now paralyzed by Yami-Gnol's venom! What other effects could it have? And by the All-Spark, Anastasia is back! Run for the hills! Hide your wife, hide your kids, and hide your husbands!**


	85. The Legacy of Cain Part 29

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 29: GAO! Roar of the Mighty Rex!**

"I can't promise I'll find anything immediately," confessed Dr. Magi. "To be honest, I'm not very familiar with Manakyte physiology."

Yuji was lying in one of the infirmary beds after the confrontation with Yami-Gnol which had ended with the Manakyte being injured by the Orochi of Darkness. Yami-Gnol had also fled when Shinichi and Alan arrived to help.

"Just try to isolate what caused this and help him," Shinichi requested with concern. His eyes then wandered over towards Yuri and Anastasia. "And as for you two…"

"What?" Yuri asked, arms crossed and cocking an eyebrow. "You want to start something?"

"Yes, we want to know what the hell you were thinking bringing _her_ back," Alan said, pointing towards Anastasia. "And why does she have a Sinestro Corps ring?"

"I've always had this ring," said Anastasia calmly. "Don't you recognize it?"

"They all look the same to me," Alan replied. But then he realized what Anastasia was getting at. "Wait…you mean that ring…"

"Oh, yes, I lent it to that Grim Reaper," confessed Anastasia. "Too bad she wasn't able to utilize it fully."

"So, why exactly did you bring her back to life?" Shinichi asked. "Don't you know what she put us through? What she put Yuji through?"

"Why I brought her back? Look at her! She's got a hot bod!" Yuri pointed out, "And that's all in the past! Trust me I was just as bad as she was."

"Somehow I believe you were," Shinichi murmured.

"Guess birds of a feather do stick together," mumbled Alan.

* * *

The demonic bats all piled together and reformed into Yami-Gnol who ended up having to support himself against a gravestone. "Damn…" he cursed. "Damn light…"

"Ah, so you're here," said Gnol as he stood with Shiro behind him. The surveillance equipment had been put away. Gnol had sensed Yami-Gnol fleeing the castle and followed him to this graveyard.

"Ah…Nii-sama…" panted Yami-Gnol. "I'm fine, and I managed to escape…"

"Like a coward," Gnol finished.

Yami-Gnol denied, "No! Of course not! It's just I was outnumbered and then that light…I had to get away!"

Gnol's frown remained unchanged but he understood that this fragment of him was weak against sunlight and the Green Lantern's light seemed to carry the same effect as regular sunlight did to the Orochi of Darkness.

"I did manage to infect one of them. The one named Yuji Fudo," Gnol added.

Now this got Shiro interested. "Oh, really?" the bio-android asked. "Please, do tell, and leave nothing out."

Yami-Gnol scowled. He was still in pain and facing those two had not been part of the plan. He just needed to hide somewhere dark. The sun was coming up soon and he needed to rest in order to replenish his energy. He also needed to get some life energy. He didn't just look like a vampire; he fed on the life force of the living like one.

His eyes wandered towards Gnol. He wasn't blind. He could sense the power radiating from the Orochi of Wrath. That power should be rightfully his! He was the one of noble birth! He was the one born of royalty! Why did Gnol have to horde all that power? However, Yami-Gnol couldn't hope to fight and win against Gnol.

However, with the Manakyte infected he had a weapon to aid him in his quest to acquire all that power that Gnol had monopolized for himself. That way, Yami-Gnol would be the new core for the Orochi and not some inelegant reptilian.

Yes…he would eliminate Gnol, and then he would force Shiro to work for him, reviving the others before killing them for their power. Yami-Gnol licked his lips in anticipation.

"We're waiting," Shiro prompted coldly, his hand gripping the hilt of the Oathbreaker tight.

Oh, right. Yami-Gnol nearly forgot that all the other locations had their seals reinforced and only Shiro had the means of breaking those seals. That sword of his was the key. Yami-Gnol needed to find a way to get that as well.

"Then let me start at the beginning," began Yami-Gnol as he shelved his plots and schemes for later. Right now he needed to stay alive long enough to execute them. Phase 1 had already begun.

* * *

Night had fallen in the canyon as Yuji continued to lie in the bed of the infirmary, accompanied only by the darkness and the machines monitoring his vitals. He seemed to be sleeping peacefully.

His mind was a different matter. Within his mind he heard cruel whispers:

_"You're not a good friend"_

_"You're not a good father"_

_"You're not a good Master"_

_"You're not a good brother"_

_"You're not a good husband"_

_"YOU ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH!"_

All those harsh words caused him to experience REM (rapid-eye movement) behind his eyelids. His heart rate began to rise as he clenched the sheets. Then, all of a sudden, Yuji's eyes snapped open and he released a roar.

* * *

Michiru and Hana were headed to the infirmary to check up on Yuji. He was still in a coma. His family had come to visit and no matter what they tried he still didn't regain consciousness.

"I'm worried," said Michiru.

"He'll pull through," said Hana confidently.

"Are you sure?"

"He's not the type to go down so easily. He'll get back to his feet and fight that Orochi again, and next time he'll win."

Michiru smiled but then she jumped as she heard the roar.

"It's coming from the infirmary!" shouted Hana.

The two female cyborgs ran towards the infirmary where they heard the roar and then heard banging. The door was locked so nothing could get in or out without authorization. With each bang the door began to dent, more and more. Something was also starting to shred through the metal.

The two girls immediately transformed and got ready for what was coming until the thick metal door was literally ripped up like paper as something began to come through. They became stunned as they saw the figure on the other side.

* * *

"_ALERT! ALERT! LEVEL 13 THREAT DETECTED! ALERT! ALERT! LEVEL 13 THREAT DETECTED!_" cried Sheila in alarm as several explosions erupted within the Hive.

Dr. Magi, Blue Beetle and Dr. Washam were immediately awake and found both Michiru and Hana, both knocked out and stuck in the wall. It was like they had both taken hard blows that embedded them into the surface. The door that had once covered the entrance of the infirmary was covered in dents and scratches. One of the beds was also on fire.

"Where's Yuji?" Dr. Magi asked.

"_YUJI FUDO IS THE CAUSE OF THE LEVEL 13 ALERT!_" reported Sheila.

"Aw man…" groaned Blue Beetle. "Pops, I'll go find Yuji. Sheila, where is he?"

* * *

Blue Beetle ran down the stairwell which would lead towards the ground floor. He had to get to Yuji in time. Shinichi and Alan would be on their way but now it was up to the Blue Beetle to take care of things and maybe pacify Yuji.

That still didn't make the fear in Blue Beetle diminish but a hero's courage was measured by their actions in the face of fear.

"Please God…I don't wanna die…" Blue Beetle prayed.

He exited from the door and saw Yuji in the main hall. "Yuji…I don't know what's going on…but lemme help you," said Blue Beetle nervously. Yuji then turned to face him, with his scales active, and Blue Beetle's eyes widened. "Oh Crap!"

**BOOM!**

Blue Beetle was sent flying with explosive force, hitting the console violently. The console began to spark as it was damaged.

"_TELEPORTAL CONTROLS DAMAGED!_" Sheila reported.

More bad news.

"Sheila, neutralize him!" Blue Beetle ordered.

"_AFFIRMATIVE!_" Panels along the top of the wall slid open and guns slid out. "_TARGET LOCKED. BEGINNING NEUTRALIZATION._"

The guns started to fire cryogenic spray on Yuji. His body quickly froze as he was covered in layers of ice…only to shatter from the heat that Yuji had generated. He turned to the downed Blue Beetle and hoisted him up by the neck.

"That wasn't _good enough_," Yuji frowned before grinning like a madman. He formed a fire ball in his hand as it glowed intensely. "Tell me…is this _good enough_?"

Suddenly, Asmodeus appeared and slashed at Yuji. "Onii-sama, leave him alone!" she demanded.

"Fine," he growled as he tosses Yokoshima into a wall. "Then perhaps you can tell me if this is _good enough_!" he growled as he hurled the fireball.

Blue Beetle suddenly jumped out in front of the blast and an explosion hurled him towards the nearest wall.

"Yoko-kun!" she gasped.

Blue Beetle recovered and raised his arms, changing them into Gatling guns which he fired on Yuji, peppering him with a spray of energy bullets. "I know Pops said not to fight here but this is an extreme situation!"

Yuji struggles against the barrage despite the pain. He begins running, charging toward Blue Beetle as he roared, "STILL NOT _GOOD ENOUGH_!" and tackles him through a wall.

Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi came into the room.

"ALLOW ME!" Dr. Washam bellowed as he charged at Yuji while shifting into his armor.

"Sheila, contact the others!" Dr. Magi ordered.

"_I have, Dr. Magi,"_ Sheila replied, _"They are on their way. However, since the Teleportal controls have been damaged it is unlikely they will within a short time."_

"Then we need to keep him busy until they arrive."

"_Affirmative."_

Dr. Washam's attempt wasn't good enough as he was thrown against the monitors, smashing them to pieces.

"NOW DO YOU THINK I'M NOT _GOOD ENOUGH_!-?" Yuji shouted.

Shackles made of yellow energy suddenly bound Yuji, pinning his arms to his sides. It was all due to Anastasia. Standing next to her was Yuri.

"Hello, Brother," Yuri greeted. "Having a party? You didn't even invite me over." He and Anastasia had spent the night and had been sleeping soundly, cuddled together when all the noise woke them up.

"I bet you think I'm not _good enough_ either!" Yuji accused.

"You're right," the white-haired twin nodded. "You could do much better."

Yuji broke the shackles, "WE'LL SEE ABOUT THAT!"

"TAKE IT OUTSIDE!" Dr. Magi ordered.

Yuri grinned, "ALRIGHT!" He tackled into Yuji and hauled him out of the base and straight out into the canyon. The canyon shook as blows were exchanged between the two brothers. The people inside exited to see. Asmodeus was supporting Blue Beetle.

"What happened to Onii-sama?" she asked.

Blue Beetle shook his head, "I don't know. He just went nuts. He even hurt Michiru and Hana."

"He was attacked by the Orochi of Darkness," Dr. Magi noted. "That might have something to do with it."

* * *

In the Meta-World, Beatrice's fist clenched her pipe so tight it snapped, "Topper, is this your idea of entertainment!-?"

Topper sipped his tea and replied, "To be honest, it is. Besides, isn't Yuji strong? I wanted to test that theory."

"I believe he will win," Featherine declared."He will be victorious. This is just another challenge for him."

"But can he beat his own insecurities?" he challenged. "Anyone care to make bets?"

* * *

"How much longer until the others arrive?" Dr. Magi asked.

"_Estimated Time of Arrival: 5 minutes__,"_ Sheila replied

"I doubt we have that much time," Blue Beetle quipped.

Yuji and Yuri clashed with their right hands locking as red and green flames burst everywhere.

"NECRO," Yuri called.

"BURNING," Yuji added.

"**DRAGOOOON!-!-****!-!"** they roared as their energies clashed. Flames scorch the canyon as the two forces pushed against each other, neither giving up.

"Sword! Lance!" Yuri called

His black sword and lance manifested as he thrust and slashed at Yuji, leaving cuts and stab wounds but the Manakyte of fire kept coming as he pushed through, head-butting Yuri as he staggered back before getting decked in the face by a flame-powered punch, blood leaking from his head but his maniacal grin never left his face.

"Mace! Hammer!"

The lance and sword vanished as a black mace and war hammer manifested into Yuri's hands as he slammed the spiked mace into Yuji's chest, sending him skidding across the floor before he launched a breath of fire at Yuri, only to be dodged via jump as Yuri brought down the hammer on Yuji's head.

"NOT _GOOD ENOUGH_!" Yuji roared,

"OH, I SO AGREE, BROTHER!-!-!" Yuri cackled.

GaoPhoenix and GaoLiger immediately jump down onto the canyon. GaoLiger had previously been resting on a nearby cliff alongside his winged partner. They both stared down Yuji, trying to reason with him.

"_Master, stop this!"_ GaoLiger pleaded.

"_Master, this isn't like you!" _GaoPhoenix exclaimed.

"STAY OUT OF THIS!" Yuji roared at them, blowing them away with his incredible aura.

"DAGGER!"

Yuji roared as Yuri had stabbed him in the back with a black clawed gauntlet. He reached around and yanked Yuri's arm free and tossed him over his shoulder into the lake.

Suddenly, laser fire rained down on Yuji. The cause: Showa Guardian Jet Mode

"_The cavalry has arrived!_" Showa called.

Alan was flying alongside him, and carrying the rest of the team in a sphere of green energy. Alan touched down with the others.

"ATTACK!" Zero ordered.

Musician unleashed a blast of sonic waves from his guitar, targeting Yuji.

Yuji closed his ears as he ran for Musician, drop kicking him in the gut. He grabbed him and wailed on the cricket Rider with punches and kicks before charging up his fist and punching him in the gut. **"SHINHA! GOUSHOSEN!-!-!"** And Musician was launched into a canyon wall, leaving him embedded in a crater.

Zero fired his missiles at Yuji. Yuji looked up and ran forward as the missiles closed in. He jumped and hopped off each missile as he flared with energy and performed a jump kick on Zero. **"KISHIN! MOUGEKI KEN!-!"**

"Shit!" Zero panicked. The kick connected with explosive power as Zero was launched into the waterfall.

Carmen (Mirage Form) and Arachnea (Venom Form) joined their teams. Summoning Mirage Clones, Carmen surrounded Yuji and then she wrapped her Kusarigama around him.

"Hana-chan! Now!" she called.

Arachnea jumped onto Yuji's back and then stabbed his neck with her spider-like legs to administer venom to knock him out.

Yuji stiffened as he started to lose feeling in his body, and his vision blurring. "Not..._good __enough_..." he muttered as he fell face-first into the dirt.

And watching the entire scene, hanging from a tree, was a demonic bat.

* * *

In another location, another bat was projecting what its brother was watching. Gnol wasn't happy.

Gnol rounded up on Yami-Gnol who shrank under his glare. "I-It's not over yet!" he denied.

"It better not be, because your fate depends on what happens next," Gnol threatened.

"I should go and make sure things go smoothly!" said Yami-Gnol quickly before darting off, assuming the form of a swarm of bats as they flew out of the lair.

* * *

Yuji was taken back to the infirmary, which had been damaged during Yuji's escape attempt. Still, they managed to find a bed that had not been used to break the door open and had him strapped down to it. They took no chances and kept him sedated via an IV and even restrained him with adamantium cuffs around his wrists and ankles. It seemed a little overboard but considering what had occurred.

Sheila reported that the Hive had taken a ton of damage because of Yuji. The NEO-NUMBERS would recover from the scuffle with Yuji so now all they had to worry about was the Manakyte that was presently restrained and sedated.

"I think I speak for everyone when I ask: what the hell happened?" Shinichi said, referring to Yuji going berserk like that.

"I don't know," said Dr. Magi.

"I do," said Dr. Washam. "I took a blood sample and well I found something. There's some kind of hallucinogenic agent mixed in with his blood."

"A hallucinogenic?" Alan questioned. "A drug did this to him?"

"Hold on," Shinichi interrupted. He remembered something, "That Orochi bit Yuji!"

"That's probably when the substance was introduced into his body," said Dr. Washam.

"Cheh, the only time he goes psycho it's because of drugs," scoffed Yuri. He felt cheated somehow. Nobody wanted to hear that from him so they ignored him.

"Daddy, will he be alright?" asked Misato. She and the rest of Yuji's girls had been informed. Even Yuki came immediately once she heard. They stood in the background, watching the doctors and medics do their work.

"For now, as long as he is sedated, he will be fine," said Dr. Washam. "However, we will need to flush out that substance that has made him act so crazy."

"Kuribo negates battle damage once discarded from the hand," Misato heard and she turned to see Yuji mumbling in his sleep.

"Yuji," she rushed to him. She stroked his cheeks trying to calm him. He was sweating profusely and was jerking his head from side to side. "Darling, look at me, you're going to be alright. Daddy's gonna help you get that stuff out of your system, OK?"

"Stardust Dragon negates card effects that destroy other cards on the field," he continued to mumble, "Synchro Summoning is the process of one Tuner and one non-Tuner monster being released to Special Summon a Synchro Monster…"

"Papa…" Maria began to cry as Wendy hugged her. Both children were heart-broken for seeing their father in such a state.

"Dr. Washam, his vitals are spiking!" Hana alerted.

Dr. Washam guided Misato away before coming to the table, "We have to stabilize him, now!"

Suddenly, Yuji's eyes snapped open.

* * *

Part of the Hive's tower exploded as a stream of flames blasted forth. Riding on the flames like he was surfing was Yuji in his Transcended form and he wore a crazed and enraged expression on his face. Chasing after him were Showa Hinamizawa Guardian and Sentinel. They knew they had to stop him. They just had to.

Touching down onto the grassy floor of the canyon, the heat from Yuji's feet was scorching the grass as Showa and Sentinel faced him.

"**You…**" Yuji growled, his voice sounding distorted and inhuman, "**You all don't think I'm good enough. You all think I'm nothing.**"

"He's lost it," observed Bazel.

"It's because of that stuff Yami-Gnol infected him with," Showa retorted, "It's not his fault."

"His fault or not, we have to stop him," said Sentinel. "He's a danger to all of us."

Showa reluctantly nodded and looked at Yuji sympathetically. Even Sentinel felt the same way. They both had felt it before. They both had felt the sting of failure and it continued to haunt them. It was a miracle they were able to move on the best they could.

The two parties closed the gap between them and clashed violently. Sentinel punched Yuji across the face but the Manakyte just returned the favour, sending Sentinel staggering back painfully. Showa took hold of Yuji's slammed his palm violently against Showa's chest, denting the chest armor and nearly cracking his Bio-Metal bones. Yuji's eyes glowed red and he opened his mouth, spitting out a stream of pure, red hot lava at the two. The stream came fast but a shield of emerald energy blocked it. The lava splashed against the surface and killed the grass that it touched. Yuji ceased his assault and in a flash he threw his fist at the shield, shattering it and sending both Sentinel and Showa flying backwards from the shockwave.

Showa activated the powers of Zennin and created a dozen Shadow Clones which then charged at Yuji. However, one-by-one, he took out the solid duplicates which exploded into puffs of smoke with a single hit.

"**VOLCANO PUNCH!"**

Showa's fist flew towards Yuji but he caught it in his hand, the heat not harming him. Showa actually planned on Yuji catching his fist and called out, **"LIGHTNING STRIKE!"**

Electricity burst from Showa's body, electrocuting Yuji. Once the attack stopped, all Showa had to show for it were electrical burns on Yuji's clothes and the ends of Yuji's hair smoking. The Manakyte gritted his teeth, glaring directly at Showa. "Fuckberries," squeaked Showa.

**BOOM!**

Showa was flung backwards, hitting the wall of the canyon and Sentinel picked up where he left off. Blows were exchanged at incredible speed with Yuji and Sentinel blurring around. Nobody could follow their movements, not even Sheila. They were just moving too damn fast.

Once they were stationary again, kicking up dust as the re-emerged, Sentinel and Yuji were grappling, their hands clasped tightly together. Yuji applied as much crushing force as Sentinel but Alan felt he was straining as he gritted his teeth.

'_ALAN, RELEASE HIM!'_ Sentinel heard in his mind and released Yuji. A windstorm suddenly happened, spiralling around Yuji like a tornado as Showa burst out of the ground. He grabbed hold of Yuji tightly from behind, wrapping his arms around Yuji's neck and wrapping his legs around Yuji's waist from behind. Yuji struggled from Showa's grip but the Rider wasn't going to give him a chance. He then turned Yuji upside-down to prepare for the next phase of the attack.

The tornado actually curved and now pointed downwards. Showa and Yuji spun within its confines, upside down, and both gravity and wind-speed aided him as he executed an incredibly powerful pile-driver.

There was an explosion upon impact and the dust cleared to reveal a deep crater with both Showa and Yuji in the bottom. However, Yuji was holding Showa by his throat and squeezing tightly.

"Yu…Yuji…" Showa struggled as Yuji was starting to squeeze the life out of him. "Yuji…stop…"

"**You all never thought I was **_**good enough**_**,"** growled Yuji. **"Now what do you think?"** he sneered.

"Yuji…please…" Showa begged. He gave Sentinel the mental signal, '_ALAN! XROS FUSION, NOW!_'

Sentinel acted instantly, aiming Bazel at the two and firing a beam of light which was the catalyst of the Xros Fusion process. The light enveloped both Yuji and Showa, forcing the process onto them.

"I sure hope this works," Sentinel murmured as he watched the dome of light forming like a cocoon around the two.

* * *

Shinichi found Yuji, but he was out of reach. No matter how fast he ran Yuji would still be out of reach. It was like he was running on a treadmill and was going nowhere fast. Still, he had to try! He had to!

"YUJI! TAKE MY HAND!" Shinichi shouted loudly.

Yuji looked up at him and shot back, "WHY THE FUCK SHOULD I? I'M FUCKING USELESS! NONE OF YOU GUYS WANT ME AROUND AND YOU KNOW IT! I CAN SEE IT IN YOUR EYES!"

Shinichi retorted angrily, "GODDAMMIT YUJI! HAVE YOU ALREADY FORGOTTEN? WHILE I WENT CRAZY WHO WAS THE ONE WHO WENT IN MY HEAD AND HELPED ME? WHEN I WANTED REVENGE WHO WATCHED MY BACK AND SUPPORTED ME AND MADE SURE I STAYED ON THE RIGHT PATH? YOU! THAT'S RIGHT! I OWE YOU FOR ALL YOU'VE DONE FOR ME AND THERE'S NO WAY I'M ABANDONING YOU!" He continued his tirade, "IF YOU GIVE INTO THE DARKNESS THEN YOU'LL BE ALL ALONE! YOU'LL BE A LOSER FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE! THINK ABOUT YOUR FAMILY! THINK ABOUT MISATO! MARIA! WENDY! THE STAKES! THEY ALL NEED YOU!"

Yuji looked down, his eyes looking haunted with fear as he held his head, "Misato... The girls... But...what if I'm not good enough!-?"

Shinichi answered, "Then get better! Become stronger! They're the source of your strength! Remember why you became a Kamen Rider in the first place! Remember why you're here! Remember why you extended your hand to others! You! Are! A! HERO!"

Yuji repeated under his breath, "A…hero…"

"NOW REACH OVER AND GRAB MY FUCKING HAND, YOU DAMN COCKBITE!" Shinichi yelled.

Yuji reached up and murmured, but still smiling, "…Somehow, I know I'm gonna regret this..."

Shinichi caught Yuji's hand and gripped tightly. "Now, let's go home," Shinichi said softly.

* * *

The dome of light soon faded and Sentinel saw standing at the bottom of the crater were Yuji and Shinichi, and they were hugging.

"I'm sorry," Yuji said with eyes shut.

"Don't worry about it," Shinichi denied.

"What a precious sight," Bazel said.

"Looks like it worked," said Sentinel, relieved. Shinichi and Yuji started climbing out of the crater together.

"I owe you my thanks too, and an apology," Yuji said to Sentinel.

"No need, we're heroes. It's what we do," said Sentinel.

The others came out to witness the scene and Maria and Wendy instantly ran toward Yuji. Yuji saw them and instantly hurled them up into his arms, "I'm so sorry, girls," he apologized, "Were you scared?"

"UU," Maria denied as she hugged him, "Papa's all better!"

"We're just glad you're alright," Wendy smiled.

Yuji then saw the others girl approaching, with Asura and Misato in the lead.

Asura kissed him, "Glad you're back with the sane people."

"Same here," he nodded. He then turned to Misato, "Are you OK?" She nodded. "And the baby?"

Misato rubbed her stomach and smiled, "Safe and sound."

"_NO!_" Yami-Gnol roared as he manifested. Demonic bats flew out of nowhere and began piling together. Everyone looked to see the bats and prepared for whatever was to come.

Well, almost everyone.

"BATS! HOLY SHIT IT'S BATS! BATS!" Yokoshima screamed.

Yokoshima had yet to get over his fear of bats.

As the demonic bats fused to become the Orochi of Darkness, his ugly scowl formed on his handsome features, distorting them to the point of making the noble-looking creature look like the demon he truly was. "How dare you…?" Yami-Gnol growled, "How dare you ruin my puppet…?"

"Your puppet?" Shinichi repeated, scoffing. "He's not your puppet, asshole."

"That's right, he's our friend, and if you do that to any of our other friends you'll be beaten down," added Alan.

"It's payback time, bitch," Yuji grinned, showing off his fangs. "Now, you're gonna die!"

"And I know just the way," said Shinichi. "Alan, Xros Fusion, kudasai!"

Sentinel rolled his eyes but took the suggestion, "Yuji! Shinichi! Xros Fusion!"

**Music – "Samurai" by Tackey and Tsubasa**

The light enveloped both Riders and a moment later the cocoon of light exploded, revealing a new warrior. He was decked in gold armor from head to toe, resembling a samurai warrior. His chest armor sported the head of a roaring lion and sheathed in scabbards crossed behind his back were katana swords. His boots sported clawed feet and he had lion paws mounted on his shoulders. The helmet had a silver mask, blue insectoid eyes, white wing-like protrusions framing the face, and gold, antenna-like, horns. The eyes flashed blue, signaling the completed transformation.

The new warrior declared as he drew his swords and performed a kata, "I am the blade of justice! The harbinger of hope! The warrior of redemption! I am Kamen Rider... Liger Guardian! Kenzan!" He spoke with Yuji's voice.

Michiru applauded, "He's so sparkly!"

"GO, PAPA!" Maria and Wendy cheered.

Yami-Gnol growled and produced his sword, dashing forward as he began slashing at Liger Guardian. The golden samurai blocked and parried the demon's moves with grace as he swung his two swords. The demon roared as he swung down kicking up dust and rock to create a cloud.

"Where are you?" he demanded.

"Over here!"

He looked up and gawked as Liger Guardian came descending down from the sky with the sun at his back, blinding the Orochi of Darkness.

"Ryu Sui-sen!" he called as he swung both swords down. Blood was shed and sprayed from Yami-Gnol as he was slashed by the swords. "I see just two strikes aren't enough for you. Then how about this?" He slashed at Yami-Gnol repeatedly and rapidly as the demon was cut continuously by the samurai. He turned and faced the camera with his left sword to the side as his right sword pointed forward. "Ryu Sou-sen!"

More blood burst from his chest as Yami-Gnol roared in pain, "How dare you…!-?"

"Here comes some more," Liger Guardian promised as he connected the two swords, fire blazing on the blades as he spun the sword. "Enjou Tatsumaki!" and the spinning katana launched a spiral of fire that engulfed Yami-Gnol as the demon gave a shrill cry of pain. It was now time to finish the fight.

Liger Guardian tossed GaoLiger's jewel into the mouth of the lion's head on his chest. The jaws snapped shut as the eyes flashed.

"**GUARDIAN…ANIMAL HEART!**" Liger Guardian roared as the lion's head on his chest also roared, unleashing a shockwave that blew Yami-Gnol away. Yami-Gnol went rolling along the ground. As he tried to get back up he felt disoriented.

Liger Guardian tossed in GaoPhoenix's jewel next and the jaws on the lion's head snapped shut before the eyes flashed. Wings of fire burst from Liger Guardian's back before he rocketed towards Yami-Gnol.

"**MUGEN…GUARDIAN…GIRI!**"

Yami-Gnol's eyes widened before he gave off a cry as he was slashed by Liger Guardian. The Orochi then started to spark before collapsing, exploding tremendously as Liger Guardian flashed and split back into Yuji and Shinichi.

**End Music**

"Guess it's over," said Yuji but then he saw a figure walking out of the smoke and flames "Or…not," he corrected.

Yami-Gnol's fists were clenched at his side and he unleashed a roar as a wave of darkness burst from his body, enveloping him. The very ground shook with tremors and everyone prepared for what was to come. The Orochi all had a similar pattern. Whenever they faced a desperate situation and were overwhelmed by emotion they would assume an enlarged and demonic draconic state.

Yami-Gnol was no different as his body expanded, his clothes ripping apart as they could not fit his new frame.

The beast that stood in Yami-Gnol's place as gargantuan bipedal dragon with dark armor. It sported spiked shoulders and scythe-like blades or wings. More blade-like spikes ran along its spine and its tail which ended with a drill. The hands sported sharp claws with spiked bracelets. He sported a pair of horns on his head and attached to its lower jaw were scythe-like blades. Its teeth were also razor sharp and its eyes glowed with malice.

The Darkness Orochi let loose a roar.

"HOLY SHIT, IT'S GODZILLA!"

Not exactly, Yokoshima, but that's a close enough comparison.

Yuri, however, reacted unlike a normal person. He started to laugh hysterically.

"Is he nuts?" Daichi asked. Everyone stared at him blankly. "Oh, right. Forget I asked."

"This is perfect, buddy!" said Yuri as he held up a Gao Dagger like Yuji's surprising him. Yuji was even more surprised when Yuri fished a purple Gao Jewel out of his pocket. He put the gem into his dagger and raised it up.

"GaoTyranno, come down and let's make some noise!" shouted Yuri as he pointed his Gao Dagger upwards.

**Music – "Power to Terror" by Shu Watanabe and Akira Kushida**

A beam of light burst from the blade and pierced the clouds in the sky. A pillar of light then fell upon the canyon as something started to descend. It was a giant, purple-armoured bipedal reptilian creature with short arms that ended with sharp claws and its mouth was filled with razor sharp teeth. Finally, its tail was tipped with a wicked drill.

"_Me, GaoTyranno here, Master!_" answered GaoTyranno with a roar as he touched down, causing the canyon to shake.

"HOLY SHIT, IT'S GODZILLA!" screamed Yokoshima (again).

"Here we go!" said Yuri as he jumped up high and went into the cockpit inside GaoTyranno's head. Taking his seat while belts secured him in, he took the controls. "Let's go, partner!"

GaoTyranno let loose a roar.

"Guess that's your brother," Yuji said. His Power Animals both sighed.

GaoTyranno charged towards Darkness Orochi and the two beasts clashed right in the middle. They bit and clawed at each other but GaoTyranno was then sent reeling by a punch.

"**YOU CANNOT BEAT ME!**" the Darkness Orochi claimed.

"_ME, GAOTYRANNO, WILL WIN!_" roared back the Power Animal.

"You said it," agreed Yuri. "Now, give him the old 1-2!"

GaoTyranno leapt and kicked Yami-Gnol in the face with both his feet.

"Next, give him the drill!"

GaoTyranno swung his tail towards Darkness Orochi and the drill on the tip spun before boring into Yami-Gnol, spilling black blood from the wound. GaoTyranno then raised its tail with Yami-Gnol still attached to the drill and slammed the Darkness Orochi down violently. The canyon shook.

The Darkness Orochi got back to its feet and roared, lashing out with its own drill-tipped tail but GaoTyranno caught it in his jaws an then started to spin, around and around, taking the Darkness Orochi unwillingly for the ride. The Darkness Orochi screamed in outrage as Yuri sang, "Around and around it goes, where it stops, nobody knows! I know! GaoTyranno, release!" GaoTyranno released its hold and the Darkness Orochi went sailing before smashed apart the canyon wall.

"I don't know if I should be relieved or scared that your brother is controlling that thing," said Shinichi.

Yuji saw GaoPhoenix and GaoLiger standing by a short distance away. "Won't you help him?" Yuji asked.

"_Does it look like he needs help_?" GaoLiger replied.

"_Tyranno doesn't play well with others, including us_," sighed GaoPhoenix.

The Darkness Orochi got up and roared before unleashing a blast of dark flames from its mouth. GaoTyranno roared and returned fire with his own violet flames.

"TAKE COVER!" Yokoshima screamed.

Both flames met and...BOOM!

The shockwave of the explosion nearly knocked both beasts of their feet.

"If they don't stop soon we're going to need a new place to set up base!" panicked Dr. Magi.

"Hm, it looks like the peanut gallery wants us to finish," said Yuri.

"_Me, GaoTyranno, like peanuts_," replied GaoTyranno.

"I know, buddy, but I think now is time we finish this! Here we go! GAO HENKEI!"

GaoTyranno threw his head back as his roar shattered the air before he flipped back as parts of his body began to shift to form a new form. His chest split in half and along with his arms shifted up to reposition upon his shoulders. His legs slid and bent to form a pair of humanoid arms with clawed hand as back and tail shifted together and split to form into a pair of stocky legs which ended in a pair of boxy feet. GaoTyranno's head split in two with the lower jaw disappearing into the chest cavity while the upper half fell along the back. A new head emerged from between the shoulders of the torso, looking quite small compared to the overall largeness of his massive body. The head was shaped like a helmet with a red visor resembling sunglasses and an overbite with sharp teeth. The head also sported sharp ears on the side.

A weapon ejected from the back of the transformed giant, resembling a lance but topped with the drill that had once tipped his tail. He grabbed the Gao Drill Lance in his right hand and grasped it tightly, the drill spinning and igniting as he threw his head back and roared.

And his pilot roared along with him, "KANSEI! GAOTYRANNO REX!"

Everyone was stunned and amazed by the transformation.

"Wow, he transformed!" said Michiru.

"Can you guys do that?" Yuji asked his Power Animals. They shook their heads.

The Darkness Orochi snarled at its foe's new form and with a roar charged forward with a punch. However, GaoTyranno Rex caught the fist in his hand before burying the sharp end of his lance into the Darkness Orochi.

"Oh yeah!" Yuri cheered. GaoTyranno raised up his lance with it still buried in the Darkness Orochi, suspending it in the air before tossing it carelessly to the ground. "Now it's time for some teabagging!" GaoTyranno Rex began to stomp towards his fallen opponent to perform his victory ritual that his master taught him.

Yuji quickly covered Wendy and Maria's eyes from the sight as the others grimaced in disgust.

"That is so wrong…" Yokoshima blanched.

"I'd agree with you, but considering that dragon was being such an a…" He glanced at the two little girls, "…a-hole, it's highly appropriate. Sorta."

GaoTyranno Rex continued to repeatedly squat upon the Darkness Orochi's body which began to ignite. Yuri thought this was a sign of its defeat.

He was mistaken.

The flames exploded outwards, throwing off GaoTyranno Rex and Yuri watched as something else began to emerge from the flames.

Emerging from the flames like an unholy union of fiend and dragon was a creature covered in dark plate armor with a symbol on its chest that resembled a blue bat. Its large and demonic bat-like wings were blood red. Its serpentine neck was topped with a demonic dragon head and its face was decorated with several bat wings. Sharp claws were at the tip of its fingers and toes and chains hung from the base of its neck. Finally, right on its forehead was the Spark Core of Kamiyami Kako, the former #10 of the NUMBERS and Soldats de la Terreur. With its blood red eyes flashing brightly, Yami-Gnol roared as his second transformation was complete.

Yuri's reaction was not one of fear but of excitement as he witnessed the transformation, "HELL YEAH! ROUND TWO, MUTHAFUCKER!"

Yuji prayed, "Thank the Crimson Dragon I didn't go insane because of you, Yuri."

Misato asked, "If he was born from your mind does that mean you went that crazy once?"

"Well, I'm more of the silent crazy type, and he wasn't born from my mind perse. He was just stuck in there."

Not intimated in the least, Yuri and GaoTyranno Rex both charged towards the Darkness Orochi who roared. GaoTyranno Rex thrust his lance, the drill spinning, at the dragon but the demonic dragon caught the lance's drill in his hand. The grinding didn't seem to bother it as sparks flew.

"**GOTCHA**," growled the Darkness Orochi before opening its mouth and unleashing a stream of black and red flames that engulfed GaoTyranno Rex. The transformed Power Animal howled in pain and Yuri was starting to feel a little hot under the collar.

Unwilling to see his brother defeated, Yuji ordered, "GaoLiger! GaoPhoenix! Back him up!"

"_ROGER!_" the two Power Animals obeyed loudly as they charged into battle. GaoLiger lunged and bit into the Darkness Orochi's shoulder, causing the beast to howl and release GaoTyranno Rex in order to pry off GaoLiger. GaoPhoenix was in the air and then flapped her wings, shooting arrows of flames that hit the Darkness Orochi from behind, causing it to roar further. Finally pulling GaoLiger off, the Darkness Orochi tossed him into the air, knocking GaoPhoenix out of the sky.

"_Liger, get off me!_" squawked GaoPhoenix.

"_I'm trying, Phoenix!_" GaoLiger growled back.

"_Aren't cats supposed to land on their feet?_"

The giant Darkness Orochi saw himself being surrounded and then he jabbed his clawed hand into the ground. "**QUAKE WITH FEAR!**" he called. A massive mess of chains shot out of the ground at surprising speed before binding the three Power Animals like a web.

"_Me…can't…move!_" grunted GaoTyranno Rex as he struggled.

The Darkness Orochi began to laugh. These fools deemed themselves worthy opponents but like the rest they had fallen. Now, it was all a matter of picking them off one by one. It should torture them first so which one should it start with?

It selected the female and began to stomp towards her. However, its movements were halted when it felt something holding it back by its snout.

"Hello," said Alan, smiling, and then he flicked the Darkness Orochi in the nose. Normally, a flick would only sting but this was a finger flick with Kryptonian strength behind it.

In other words it had enough force to even send this giant dragon flying.

"_KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!_"

"**STRIKE LASER CLAW!**"

The chains binding the power animals were shattered by the combined might of Liger Zero and Kamen Rider Showa Hinamizawa Guardian who then stood beside GaoLiger and GaoPhoenix, respectively.

"_Ah…_" GaoPhoenix sighed with relief as she stretched her wings. She was beginning to get a little cramped by those chains.

Spreading its wings, the Darkness Orochi roared and fired orbs of dark flames at them, which were then countered by Alan who used Bazel's power with his own power ring. He returned fire and unleashed his own volley of emerald energy orbs, causing explosions when both energy attacks collided, and lighting up the sky like the Fourth of July. Then he shot a blast directly into the Darkness Orochi's chest, causing it to cry out as its chest exploded.

Getting an idea from an old game, Alan used his ring and hurled several pulsing orbs which stuck onto the Darkness Orochi's body. The 'sticky bombs' detonated after several seconds, causing explosions to erupt all over its body. Its response was to roar in agony. Flying forward, Alan drew his fist back to punch the Orochi but the dragon opened its mouth and Alan flew in before the jaws slammed shut. This would be a mistake as Alan shattered the teeth as he flew out.

"Let's finish this, GaoLiger!" ordered Liger Zero as he swiped his pass across his belt.

"**PANZER FORM!**"

Yuri grinned in his cockpit, "Alright, brother! Let's show this thing what the brothers Fudo can do!"

"Um…I don't know if you can understand me, but can you back me up?" Showa asked GaoPhoenix. GaoPhoenix nodded.

"Everyone ready?" asked Alan, his power ring glowing brightly. "Here we go! EMERALD LIGHT!" He unleashed a blast of emerald energy from his ring.

"_LUCIFER CANNON!_" Showa called as he fired a golden burst of energy from his fists.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**the Liger Belt called.

"**HYPER CANNON!**" roared Liger Panzer.

"_ANIMAL HEART ATTACK!_" GaoLiger and GaoPhoenix fired beams of energy from their mouths, joining with the other attacks to hit the Darkness Orochi directly in the chest. The Darkness Orochi howled in agony from the continuous assault.

And yet it wasn't over.

"HISSATSU!" Yuri roared as GaoTyranno Rex charged forward. His Drill Lance began to spin and he was locked onto his target, "**GAO DRILL BREAKEEEEEER!-!-!-!**"

The Drill Lance ignited and was plunged into the Darkness Orochi's chest. GaoTyranno Red then withdrew his weapon and turned his back to the Darkness Orochi which exploded into a massive fireball.

**End Music**

_Now_, it was over.

* * *

A mass of demonic bats fluttered down to the graveyard and regenerated into Yami-Gnol. However, he looked terrible. After his defeat it took every ounce of his willpower not to break down physically. However, even he had his limits.

"So, you returned," observed Gnol, "And you failed."

Yami-Gnol growled at Gnol. He watched as Gnol turned his back to him. He lengthened his claws and then dove forward to plunge them into Gnol's back. However, Gnol quickly turned and caught his wrist.

"You _dare_ to return in disgrace and then presume you could defeat me and claim my power? That was a huge mistake," Gnol growled. "Did you actually think that would work?" Gnol sneered as he looked Yami-Gnol directly in the eye. Yamo-Gnol began to sweat. "Did you actually believe you could hide your thoughts from me?" Gnol didn't let Yami-Gnol answer as he wrapped his fingers around his throat.

As Yami-Gnol was being held by his throat by Gnol, the Orochi of Wrath assumed his true form, showing the rate of his completion. Already he sported his shoulder armor as well as armor along his right arm that was had a dragon-shaped gauntlet covering the hand. That very same hand was being used to strangle Yami-Gnol.

"You should know your place, _fragment_!" Gnol then summoned his flames and had them engulf Yami-Gnol who shrieked as the flames consumed him, incinerating him completely as his body turned to dust. Falling out of his remains was a single Spark Core which rolled away and stopped at Shiro's feet.

"You're back," said Gnol as Shiro picked up Spark Core #10.

"Yup, and I brought back souvenirs!" said Shiro proudly as he showed off the briefcase. He opened it up to reveal Spark Cores #01 and #03 nestled in individual slots in the foam lining. Shiro had swiped them during the confusion at the base. According to Dr. Magi they were already drained of power so why had Shiro retrieved them? "But #04's Core wasn't there," frowned Shiro. He would've loved to get them all back.

"I see your plan was a success," stated Gnol as he saw Shiro put Spark Core #10 away with the others.

"Yes, and once my collection is complete the next phase of my plan will be executed," grinned Shiro. He then saw that Gnol had a new chest-piece. "And I see you've reabsorbed Yami-Gnol."

"Yes, and I feel much stronger," Gnol replied. "I just can't believe such an arrogant fool was ever part of me. Then again, that ego must've come from somewhere."

"Then we should celebrate!" grinned Shiro. "How does a visit to the Bakeneko House sound?"

Gnol's grin matched Shiro's, "I thought you'd never ask." He was in the mood for fine women and sake.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: The first dragon form Yami-Gnol became was Dark Armed Dragon and the second was Diabolos, King of the Abyss, both from the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG, and the transformation process was inspired by Ulquiora's**** Segunda from Bleach. Not sure if I have anything else to say, so hope you enjoy and review or else I'll haunt you.**

**KAMEN**** RIDER CHROME: And so the Darkness Orochi mini-arc is done. What's next? Who knows. Anyway, Gnol and Shiro are gonna party at the Bakeneko House. That's always fun, right? I mean in the legend the Orochi had women pour him sake so it's a homage to that. Anyway, I hope you also liked the appearance of GaoTyranno and hopefully you were satisfied with the battle that took place in the canyon. They're gonna have to perform a lot of repairs. As you can see, Gnol is close to completing his body. He already has both shoulders, his right arm and his chest. What remains are the left arm and both legs.**


	86. The Legacy of Cain Part 30

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 30: Kusanagi**

Yami-Gnol had survived obliteration and escaped from the canyon after his defeat. They, however, were unaware that he had been killed by Gnol. Presently, they had other concerns.

"Sheila, please play the security footage," said Dr. Magi.

"_Recovering security footage. Beginning playback_," said Sheila as the footage played on the screen. The footage was taken while everyone was outside dealing with Yuji when he was going berserk. It showed someone walking into Dr. Magi's lab and towards the case which contained Spark Cores #01 and #03. The person's back was to the camera so they couldn't see who it was. He opened the briefcase and began to laugh. Once he turned he saw the camera and looked up.

All eyes went towards Shinichi then back at the person on the monitor. Except for the different hair and eye color, his resemblance to Shinichi was uncanny.

"Shiro…" Shinichi identified as he witnessed Shiro giving the camera the finger and then sticking his tongue out tauntingly before walking out.

"I'm sorry," Yuji apologized, "If I hadn't gone berserk then he wouldn't have come and stolen the Spark Cores."

"Sheila, why did you not tell us that Shiro broke in?" asked Dr. Magi.

Sheila responded, "_He did not trip the security sensors and also my security alarm was disabled by outside forces_."

"So, he basically hacked you," Dr. Washam concluded.

"_A highly possible conclusion. I will need to perform a full system diagnostic to confirm."_

"But why would he steal back Spark Cores that have no power in them?" asked Yokoshima. "They're just paperweights now."

"Maybe he knows something we don't and I doubt he's the sharing type," remarked Daichi. "Shinichi, what do you think? He's your clone."

"And what? Does that make me an expert on how he thinks?" retorted Shinichi. "He may have my face but that's all we have in common. I don't know how his mind works. All I know is that when he was brought back a ton of wires got crossed."

"I better check on Misato's Spark Core then," said Yuji. "Maybe I'll find something that will give us a clue as to why Shiro took those Spark Cores back."

"Make sure Shiro doesn't get it. He may be mentally unstable but if he's up to something and the Cores are part of his plan we can't have him getting his hands on anymore," advised Shinichi.

* * *

Shinichi found Anastasia on the roof of the Hive's tower. She was watching Yuri riding atop of GaoTyranno and yelling at the top of his lungs.

"He's magnificent, isn't he?" Anastasia questioned as she admired the man she was in love with.

"Right…magnificent," agreed Shinichi hesitantly. "Anastasia, the sword that WHITE 14 possesses is something you gave him, isn't it?" Shinichi questioned.

"Yes, that's right," confessed Anastasia. "It was a gift."

"And what did he do in exchange so he could get this gift?" Shinichi questioned further.

Anastasia purred, "Do you really want to know~?" She grinned as her eyes twinkled with mischief.

Shinichi grimaced, thinking that it was an answer he could live without. "OK, next question then. What exactly can it do?"

"Oh, the sword is a weapon that cannot be held by humans or demons," she told him.

Shinichi inquired, "So, that just means that only creatures which are neither, like half-breeds or an android can wield it, am I right?"

Anastasia nodded, "Exactly, which makes him the ideal wielder for the Oathbreaker."

"Why is it called that?"

"The name itself is self explanatory. It's a sword that can sever contracts, rather violently if I might add. Oh, and it can also break seals."

Shinichi murmured, "No wonder it can break the reinforcements Hanyuu made."

"The Oathbreaker also gains power with each seal it breaks. However, there is _one_ drawback to using the sword's power."

Shinichi was curious and interested to hear more. If could help them defeat WHITE 14. "What kind of drawback?"

"The wielder must pay a price. The Oathbreaker requires life energy in order to break seals and contracts." With a grin, she added, "Specifically, it is the life force of its wielder."

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow. Life energy? "Would WHITE 14 actually count? I mean he is a bio-android."

"Think about it. What gives him his life?" Anastasia prompted. "You're a smart boy."

"His Spark Core!" Shinichi realized.

"Bingo! I imagine that the Oathbreaker is subtly draining dear Shiro of his life energy from that core of is. He just doesn't realize it."

Shinichi frowned. Knowing that Shiro was being drained by the very weapon he wielded was good news, advantageous even. However, Shinichi knew that Spark Cores had a lot of power in them. "Still, I doubt that can really makes much of a difference. He may have a shorter lifespan but his power grows." Shinichi recalled when Shiro had used the sword on him, '_And he already severed one of my contracts once. What if he does it again and the next time it's permanent?_'

Anastasia stated, "But then, the more he uses the Oathbreaker, the faster his energy is depleted each time and it gets painful, _very_ painful."

Shinichi argued, "But then the sword might go to someone else." Shinichi paused for a second before adding, "The Oathbreaker is from your private collection, right? What else is in that treasury of yours?" Witches lived for a long time so they would accumulate a collection of treasures.

Anastasia shrugged, "Oh, just a few artifacts that are fueled by darkness. There is even one sword that is more dangerous and evil than the Oathbreaker."

Shinichi frowned. He wasn't going to be tempted. "Not interested. You can give it to Yuri for all I care. I bet he's crazy enough that it won't be able to control him."

"Well, it's out of my hands anyway. My magic is gone so therefore I no longer have any access to my old realm. Not like it matters anyway." Anastasia didn't care about the past anymore.

Shinichi pointed out, "But Yuji does have access, doesn't it? He took all your property after he killed you. I mean to the winner goes the spoils."

"Basically, but I doubt he would go there if he wanted to."

Shinichi knew Anastasia was right. Her old realm was just a realm of darkness and evil that Yuji would rather avoid. "Of course," Shinichi agreed. "Well, enjoy your new life. Just don't waste it this time."

Anastasia smiled warmly, "Now that I have my precious Yuri, I plan on spending an eternity with him, doing anything and everything we want."

Shinichi warned, "Just don't revive anymore of my enemies and we'll be cool."

Anastasia scoffed, "As if I need those morons. Let them stay in that bug jar. I have no use for them now."

"How compassionate," said Shinichi sarcastically.

* * *

**JULY 29 1988**

"COWABUNGA!"

**SPLASH!**

Yokoshima's head came out of the water as he yelled out, "NOW THAT WAS AWESOME!"

The D-Wheel Launcher, which had launched Daichi 80 feet into the air, was now being used by Yokoshima as a sort of device for amusement. It would launch them into the air before they dropped into the lake.

"My turn! My turn!" yelled out a bikini-clad Asmodeus. She got on the D-Wheel Launcher and was flung into the air. "CANNONBALL!" She curled herself into a ball and fell into the water with a splash.

It was the end of July and since it was summer it was time for some summer fun. It also happened to be the Fudos' birthday. Therefore, everyone was having a party around the lake in the NEO-NUMBERS' canyon.

"So, how are you doing with Leviathan and Mika?" Shinichi asked. The two aforementioned girls were sitting near the lake on deck chairs, relaxing.

"Oddly enough I'm doing fine. There were bumps on the road in the beginning but we managed to resolve our issues," answered Daichi.

"Weren't you the ones that said that girls couldn't share anything?" Shinichi reminded. He remembered Daichi mentioning that girls couldn't share an apartment and that within 6 months they would all hate each other and then someone would end up with a 1200 dollar phone bill. Daichi's views of women were cynical but considering his own sister had sold him to GIN-SHOCKER he was a little distrustful of women who weren't friends. He'd gotten over it for the most part. "Wait a minute…" He scrutinized Daichi. "Ah…" he nodded, "I see…"

"What?" Daichi cocked an eyebrow.

"I just didn't expect you to be into threesomes," Shinichi commented.

"Shut up!" Daichi snapped before stomping away.

Shinichi sighed and Keiichi walked up to him. "Great party," said Keiichi.

"Yeah," said Shinichi. "How have you been feeling?"

"Never better, I'm just glad to have all that stuff out of my system," said Keiichi.

"Be glad you didn't take it too frequently. There are some harmful side-effects," said Shinichi. "Like sterility."

Keiichi paled.

"But I'm sure that won't happen to you," Shinichi patted Keiichi on the shoulder, reassuringly. "But I'd get myself checked if I were you."

"I'll get right on that." Keiichi paused. "Anyway, I know this is Yuji's party but is that safe?" Keiichi was pointed at GaoTyranno who was giving the children a ride. He basically allowed them to slide down his back and tail before going splash into the water.

"Believe it or not, GaoTyranno's harmless," said Shinichi, "Well, harmless to us. If we make an enemy out of him then watch out."

Keiichi looked around the canyon. His life had drastically changed since he moved to Hinamizawa. He made new friends, saved the village, then a year later befriended an amnesiac cyborg who recently saved his life and now he was partying in a canyon inhabited by giant, bio-mechanical animals. He saw GaoPhoenix soaring above them and also spotted GaoLiger sleeping on a cliff. He also saw Battler's alien son Junior playing tag with Alice's pet dragon Lockheed and Alan's daughter Celine. The little girl looked human but she was in fact a humanoid plant. It was a long and complicated story.

"So, wanna check out the girls playing volleyball in bikinis?" Shinichi asked. Keiichi grinned and followed the cyborg to watch the game.

* * *

"Here you go, Maria," said Yuji as he put a burger on a paper plate and handed it to his daughter. She took a bite out of the burger and smiled. "How is it?"

"It's good, Papa," said Maria.

"And not forgetting you too, Wendy," said Yuji as he gave his other daughter a burger. The two girls sat down on a bench set up near a picnic table and ate their food.

"You're really good with kids," said Kai.

"I didn't start out perfect. I had to learn along the way," shrugged Yuji. "Glad you could make it."

"There was free food offered," said Kai as he took a bite out of a hotdog. '_Needs more salt._'

"So, have you gotten settled in Hinamizawa?" asked Yuji. He had been informed that Kai was living in Rika's old house.

"It's peaceful and quiet, the folks are all friendly," said Kai. "I can't complain."

"Yeah, and you have a little cutie for a landlord," said Yuji, pointing to Rika who was playing in the lake with Hanyuu, the two girls splashing each other. Rika was in a pink bikini while Hanyuu wore one which matched the color of her hair.

Kai blushed, stuffed the rest of the hotdog into his mouth, and walked away. Yuji chuckled.

He was pulled into a kiss by Misato as she smiled, "How are you feeling?"

"Better," he answered as he kissed her back. "And you?"

"A lot better, now that you're fine."

"It was crazy," Lilith said as she popped out from behind Yuji. "I've never seen you so crazy like that before."

"All thanks to Yami-Gnol and his venom," he frowned.

"I'm sorry we couldn't do anything for you, Master," Stella frowned. She and the other girls felt ashamed that they were unable to help their master from the demon's venom that coursed through his veins.

"Water under the bridge," Asura dismissed. "What's important now is that Yuji's fine now and he won't fall for anything like that again."

"Yeah, I'm sure you're much stronger now, Yuji-kun," Sora beamed.

"Yeah, I was able to overcome my fears, thanks to Shinichi and I'll become stronger for this family," he assured.

* * *

Yuki was sitting on a deck chair, under the shade of a beach umbrella, sipping from a cold can of orange soda. She had sunglasses on as well. It was a really sunny day in the canyon. It wasn't the beach but it was still fun.

"Not having fun?" asked Yuri. Yuki pushed her sunglasses down to look up at him.

"It's enjoyable," said Yuki.

"So…not upset that Jersey Devil chick wasn't able to make it?" Yuri asked. Yuki gave him a frosty glare. "OK, OK, I'll drop it. I think my girls need me right now to judge a swimsuit contest. Ciao!"

* * *

"Mau! Mau!" Celine cheered and giggled, having the time of her life as she sat in a floaty ring. Nozomu was with her, also playing in the water like a wolf would. She was dogpaddling alongside Celine.

Alan was nearby, teaching Alice how to swim. The little bio-android girl was nervous about going into the water but fortunately she had her daddy there to help her. He held her hands as she kicked in the water, causing splashes with her feet.

Conda, Bishie and Amora, the three sexiest ladies in his group were sunbathing and the guys at the party had trouble keeping their eyes off them, despite having girlfriends of their own. Lala and Megan were playing volleyball. Finally, Yami was content with reading a book while sitting in a deck chair.

"OK, I think that's enough," said Alan. He then put water wings on Alice's arms. "Now, go and play with your sister." Alice beamed and went into the water, swimming with the aid of the water wings which kept her body afloat. She reached Celine who was more than happy to see her.

"Kids," commented Battler as he walked over to Alan. "They're awesome, aren't they?"

"Yeah, they are," agreed Alan. "Speaking of which, when are you going to tell your folks about Junior."

"…Er…" Battler rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I've been meaning to tell them but…"

"I know, it wasn't easy for me to tell my folks I suddenly had a daughter even if said daughter is actually a plant," said Alan. He waved at Celine who waved back, cheering.

"I still can't believe Celine-chan's a plant," Battler remarked. "How is that possible?"

"Got her as a birthday present. She was a carnivorous alien plant but I took care of her. One day she got sick so me and my friends went to find a cure. By the time we returned we were too late and she'd died, only to be reborn in the form you see now," said Alan, remembering that adventure fondly. "My dad was really excited about meeting his new granddaughter."

Battler nodded, "I can see that, but I'm not sure how I can tell my parents about Junior. How can I tell them that I was impregnated with a parasitic alien embryo and not make it sound like rape?"

"You'll figure something out, and Junior's really looking quite big." Alan thought, '_I'm just glad I'm not in your shoes._'

"Yeah, they grow up so fast," agreed Battler. "Can't believe it was eight months ago since I gave birth to him."

"Honk! Honk! Honk!" Junior ran by with Amora, Conda and Bishie's bikini tops.

"GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE…CREEP…THING!" shouted Conda as she gave chase, covering her breasts. Amora was chasing Junior along with the Amazonian as well. Only Bishie was unconcerned. She was used to being naked in front of people.

"I better go rescue him before he gets killed," said Battler before going after Junior. "Hey, Junior! Wait up!"

* * *

On the makeshift stage, Dr. Magi spoke into the microphone, "Alright, everyone. I hope you're all having fun and there's more fun coming. For your entertainment, I present to you the 7 Sisters of Purgatory singing their latest hit: Nanairo no Niji Kakeyou!" Dr. Magi walked off the stage and in flashes of gold the Seven Sisters of Purgatory appeared, wearing matching black and red bikinis.

"Minna, I am Lucifer of Pride!"

"Leviathan of Envy here!"

"Satan of Wrath! Don't make me mad!"

"Belphegor of Sloth."

"Mammon of Greed, does anybody got any presents for me?"

"Beelzebub of Gluttony, save the sweets for me, OK?"

"Asmodeus of Lust, and I love you, Yoko-kun!"

"AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ONII-SAMA!"

They each held microphones and began to sing their song together as the music played from a boom box that was connected to speakers.

"GO ASMO-CHAN! WOO-HOO!" Yokoshima cheered like a fanboy.

* * *

"Next up we have the cute little Maria-chan!" called Dr. Magi. "And she's singing the song…Happy Halloween Maria!"

"UU~ Papa, please listen!" said Maria. The music started to play and she sang.

"Wow, she's really good," said Satoshi.

"She's had practice. That's my little girl," said Yuji proudly.

* * *

"Our next performance is from the…N3 Princesses! Misato, Michiru and Hana will sing the song 'Let's Go Rider Kick: Rider Girls Version!"

"I'm Misato!"

"I'm Michiru!"

"And I'm Hana!"

"And here we go! Let's Go Rider Kick!"

* * *

Shiro was enjoying another visit to the Bakeneko House. He was seated on a couch with two very pretty catgirls sitting at his sides. One of them was pouring him his drink as he planned on what to do.

"I am gonna fuck you both and make you call my name, girls," he boasted. He pulled out a wad of cash and they gazed at the money like a cat would at fish.

Yes, Shiro was a big spender.

Gnol also had the company of a beautiful catgirl who he was sharing drinks with at the bar. She had a nice body and he couldn't wait to lay with her. He leaned in close and whispered into her ear, causing her to giggle.

"Well, aren't you the player, my friend," complimented Shiro with his arms around the two beauties.

"I see you've made your selection," observed Gnol.

"Well, of course. I mean if you got the cash why choose between two? Just take them both," grinned Shiro roguishly. He then allowed them to lead him up to a room for some private fun time.

* * *

Two hours later, Anastasia and Yuri stepped into the Bakeneko House. "So, this is the place where you find catgirls to fuck with."

"Yes," grinned Yuri. "Oh, and they're bisexual so they won't reject your advances."

"How nice," Anastasia smiled. "I'll try and find a black cat. What about you?"

"Oh, I have an idea," said Yuri. He then whistled and called, "LADIES, I'M BACK!"

"YURI-SAMA!" cried out catgirls as they surrounded Yuri and took him to his seat. Anastasia rolled her eyes but allowed her beloved to indulge himself. Powerful men did deserve all the women they desired. It was part of Yuri's charm. He had brought her back because he wanted her.

She took a seat at the bar and ordered a bloody Mary. That was when Shiro, wearing a satisfied smirk, planted himself on the stool next to her.

"Ah Ana-chan, what a nice surprise, it's great to see you alive and well," said Shiro. Gesturing to the Oathbreaker, he added, "As you can see I've kept your gift."

"So I see," Anastasia said, returning the smile. "And you've been putting it to rather good use if what I've heard is true."

"Well, it would be a waste not to use it. A sword is supposed to be used for cutting things, not mounted on the wall as decoration."

"Of course," Anastasia agreed.

Shiro's smile turned into a frown as his eyes narrowed, "But, how the mighty in fallen. You were once one of the mightiest witches in the universe, but now…"

Anastasia shrugged, "Well, burning in the Darkness Flame was rather unpleasant. Thankfully, my dear Yuri was gracious enough to bring me back, as well as give me a brand new body." She ran her hand up and down her sides and Shiro watched admiring her curves, licking his lips.

"And what a nice body you have, however…" Shiro drew the Oathbreaker, "You've become an enemy now and I can't allow that. Nothing personal."

Anastasia's grin only widened, threatening to split her face, as she used her rung to conjure a pair of yellow hook swords.

"Yes, make it interesting for me, Ana-chan!" laughed Shiro, "I love a little foreplay!"

"Foreplay is my forte!"

Before they could fight, however, Gnol had gone and grabbed Shiro by the arm. "Gnol! Hey!" shouted Shiro in protest.

"It's time for us to go," ordered Gnol as he dragged the bio-android away. Anastasia watched and banished her swords before waving. She then finished her Bloody Mary and went over to where Yuri sat. She pushed a catgirl off her man's lap and planted herself there.

"Hey, Ana-chan," said Yuri. She kissed him deeply.

"Yuri, how about we bring home these lovely pussies and have some fun?" she questioned.

"Baby, I love you," he answered, grinning.

* * *

The Kusanagi no Tsurugi (grass cutting sword), which was originally known as the Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi (Sword of the Gathering Cloud of Heavens), was a legendary sword which had been forged from one of the Orochi's bones by Amaterasu and used to slay the creature by Susano-O. The sword would then be given back to Amaterasu as a gift to settle an old grievance. Generations later, the sword would then be granted as a gift the great warrior, Yamato Takeru in order to protect him from harm.

The sword was alleged housed in the Atsuta Shrine in Nagoya. However, since the sword was not available for public display, the authenticity of this claim was questionable at best. Still, it could be because the sword was so valuable they couldn't risk it being stolen. Nobody had ever seen the sword. However, during the Edo period, a Shinto priest had claimed to have seen the sword with his very own eyes. He had described the sword as being 84 centimetres long, in the shape of a calamus, fashioned in a white metallic color and was well-maintained.

In one story, the sword was said to had been lost at sea after the defeat of the Heike clan in the Battle of Dan-no-ura, a naval battle that ended in the defeat of the Heike clan forces and the child Emperor Antoku at the hands of Minamoto no Yoshitsune. In the tale, upon hearing of the Navy's defeat, the Emperor's grandmother led the Emperor and his entourage to commit suicide by drowning in the waters of the strait along with the three Imperial Regalia, including Kusanagi. Although the Minamoto troops managed to stop a handful of them and recovered two of the three regalia, Kusanagi was said to have been lost forever.

According to some records, the Tenth Emperor, Emperor Sujin, was reported to have had ordered the fashioning of a replica of the Kusanagi. However, this information was reportedly only made public after it was known that the sword had been stolen. The imperial household had claimed that it was the replica which had been stolen, but it was just as likely that the replica was made after the fact to replace the irrecoverable sword. Sujin was considered a "legendary Emperor" by historians because there was insufficient evidence to assign him to a historical period.

In another story, the sword was reportedly stolen again in the sixth century by a monk from Silla. However, his ship allegedly sank at sea, allowing the sword to wash ashore at Ise, where it was recovered by Shinto priests. Given the somewhat fantastic nature of this story, its historical accuracy is questionable.

Due to the refusal of Shinto priests to show the sword, and the rather sketchy nature of its historical references, the current state of or even the existence at all of the sword as a historical artifact cannot be confirmed.

A legendary sword with such a legendary history would definitely need to be kept in a secured location and the Atsuta Shrine was that location. It was guarded by monks who'd been trained in martial arts and demon-warding techniques. It was said that the techniques had been taught to them by the Kekkain Clan of Kyoto.

However, not even that would be enough to keep them and the sword safe from a couple of daring thieves.

* * *

"You know, those monks really should include 'killer androids' as one of those things to watch out for," said WHITE 14 as he flicked the blood of the Oathbreaker. Lying behind him were the bodies of the monks who'd gotten in his way.

Gnol, in his true Darkloid form but hiding the physical enhancements he'd received from reabsorbing his fragments, snorted with his arms crossed. Flames shot out his nostrils as he snorted, "Well, they are weak humans and what can humans truly do against us?"

"True," WHITE 14 agreed. "And now let's see what is behind door Number 1!" He stabbed the Oathbreaker at the door of the shrine. There was a barrier that prevented intruders from entering but the Oathbreaker made short work of the barrier as it shattered like glass. "Open Sesame!" WHITE 14 called as he kicked the door open.

Lit candles on stands lined up the path towards the Kusanagi which stood upon a display. It was as described by that monk during the Edo period. It was a magnificent weapon which shone with holy power; the power to cut down demon. Gnol's vision burned at the radiance but WHITE 14's eyes shone greedily. There was a rope (shimenawa) hanging in front of display by two poles and hanging from the rope were zigzag paper tassels (shide). These objects were meant to ward of demons.

However, to someone like WHITE 14 they were utterly useless.

He closed the gap between himself and the display, the candles going out as he passed them by. Reaching the rope, he sliced it in half with the Oathbreaker, breaking the protective seal around the Kusanagi.

"Come to Papa," said WHITE 14 as he reached for the Kusanagi, only to whirl around and slice a fireball in half. "Gnol!" he shouted in outrage, "What do you think you're doing!-?"

"Fixing a mistake!" Gnol snarled. "This thing…this abomination created from my own body…SHOULD BE DESTROYED!"

WHITE 14 was instantly in front of him and holding the tip of the Oathbreaker under the Orochi Darkloid's chin. WHITE 14 shot back, "This relic is mine! I saw it first and I called dibs!"

Gnol stared at WHITE 14 incredulously and argued, "What? You can't call dibs on the Kusanagi!"

"Yes, I can, and I just did! Dibs! See? I did it again."

"So…you really want that sword," stated Gnol low and dangerously.

"I didn't bring you along and kill a bunch of monks just to destroy this treasure here. It should be mine to wield. Mine! So yeah, I want that sword!"

Gnol roared, "THEN FIGHT ME FOR IT!"

WHITE 14 roared back, "I thought you'd never ask!" He had assumed Darkness Mode and unsealed the Oathbreaker and both he and Gnol clashed violently inside the shrine.

* * *

Sheila had alerted them on Shiro and Gnol's presence in the area and had opened a Teleportal for them. They exited and found the bodies of the monks lying on the ground, killed by Shiro's sword. They also heard the sound of a fight coming from inside the shrine.

"They're dead, but Rewind should bring them back," said Shinichi after checking on the bodies. He hated coming to a bloody scene like this. It really wasn't how he wanted to spend his Friday night, especially during summer vacation.

"Shinichi, do what you can. Yuji, come with me," ordered Alan.

"No problem!" said Yuji as he followed Alan inside the shrine which housed the Kusanagi and stumbled upon the scene of Gnol and WHITE 14 fighting. "Well, this is unexpected."

"I'm not surprised. Guess their partnership has broken up," Alan observed.

"YOU DAMN LIZARD! YOU WOULDN'T EVEN HAVE THIS POWER IF IT WEREN'T FOR ME!" WHITE 14 shouted as he swiped at Gnol.

Gnol dodged and struck back, knocking WHITE 14 backward as he roared back, "I COULD'VE REGAINED MY POWERS WITHOUT YOU!"

"OH YEAH? PROVE IT THEN! OH WAIT, YOU CAN'T! YOU NEED ME TO BREAK THOSE SEALS!" WHITE 14 counted as he punched Gnol across the face.

"I WOULDN'T NEED YOU IF I HAD BEEN THE ONE TO GET THAT SWORD!" Gnol retaliated with a kick to WHITE 14's midsection.

"WELL, TOUGH! I BOINKED ANA FOR IT SO IT'S MINE! OH AND ANOTHER THING! DOUBLE DIBS ASSHOLE!" WHITE 14 kicked Gnol upside the head.

"You…" Gnol snarled as he rose to his feet and generated a powerful dark aura. "YOU DAMN, WALKING DOLL! I'LL KILL YOU!"

"NOT IF I KILL YOU FIRST!" WHITE 14 then went for the Kusanagi, only for a bolt of lightning to hit him from behind and knock him down. "Ow…sonovabitch…" he groaned.

Gnol cracked his neck from side to side and made his way for the Kusanagi, only for Alan to suddenly appear in front of him. "Susano-O!" Gnol identified.

"For the last time it's ALAN SMITH!" Alan punched Gnol so hard that the Darkloid was flung out of the shrine.

WHITE 14 painfully rose to his feet and then spotted a pair of boots in front of him. He looked up and saw Yuji frowning at him. "Oh…shit."

"Oh shit is right," said Yuji as he kicked WHITE 14 in the face, sending him flipping through the air. Yuji then jumped and kicked WHITE 14 through the wall, sending him flying outside.

"You're fixing that," Alan said to Yuji as he exited the shrine.

"Meh, I'll get Shinichi to do it later," shrugged Yuji as he followed the Green Lantern out.

WHITE 14 had landed on top of Gnol who shoved him off angrily, "Get off me!"

WHITE 14 grumbled, rubbing his head. He saw Alan and Yuji coming out and he also saw Shinichi. "Great, these three again," said WHITE 14 in annoyance. He rose up along with Gnol and suggested, "How about we deal with these three before returning to our own argument? Truce?"

"Truce," agreed Gnol.

"Oh, and go all out," said WHITE 14. He then rushed towards Shinichi who'd just transformed and when he swung Showa parried with the Higurashi no Yaiba.

Gnol concentrated and revealed his newly armored form, sporting the draconic chest piece, shoulder pads and right gauntlet which made him look intimidating. Yuji and Alan paused as they saw him.

"Did he have those before?" Yuji asked.

"No," Alan answered, "And that's what worries me."

"You should be worried," said Gnol and he opened his mouth to unleash a ball of flames.

"This is mine!" roared Yuji as he spat his own ball of flames. His skin's texture matched that of scales as he countered Gnol's attack. Of course Gnol was anything but a one trick pony.

Electricity sparked around Gnol's right arm and he rushed forward, catching Yuji by surprise and punching him across the face. Alan rushed in with a punch but Gnol caught his fist in his left hand. Gnol's right shoulder pad turned to face Alan and its mouth opened to fire a blast of frost directly into Alan's face, freezing it in ice. Gnol then released Alan's arm and then blasted him with a burst of darkness, sending him tumbling along the ground.

Meanwhile, Showa was fighting against WHITE 14 as their respective swords, the Higurashi no Yaiba and Oathbreaker, clashed, sending sparks raining at their feet.

"What are you after this time, 14?" Showa demanded. He was still in Trinity Form and had yet to assume one of his many alternates.

"Wouldn't you like to know, 13?" WHITE 14 shot back. He swung the Oathbreaker and Showa jumped backwards. He changed his left arm into a Great Fist and swung it at WHITE 14 who simply caught it in his hand. "Surprised? I'm not the same as before!" He slapped the Great Fist away and slashed at Showa, causing him to cry as he was hit.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!**"

Liger Schneider slashed at Gnol with his Vi-Blades but Gnol evaded them by turning his body into electricity. He attacked Liger from all his blind spots, zapping him and dodging. It was a hit and run tactic that Liger Schneider couldn't keep up with.

As Gnol solidified, he was hit in the face by Alan's fist that was laced with the energy from his ring, sending the Darkloid skidding along the ground.

"You OK?" Alan asked Liger Schneider.

"Yeah, but he's fast. He's way stronger too," said Yuji. "I mean look at him. He's not the same as he was in the South Pole. I don't remember him having that armor."

"You're right," Alan agreed.

"Well, if he's gonna wear armor than so will you," said Bazel as he activated his Combat Armor at the same time Alan became the Sentinel.

"Extra armor won't help you," gloated Gnol. "Let me show you." The dragon-like chest piece opened its mouth, charging up a ball of black and purple energy before firing a stream of darkness at the two heroes. They jumped out of the way but the attack met its mark in the shape of the shrine which housed the Kusanagi, causing it to explode.

"NO!" WHITE 14 howled as he saw the shrine, and most likely the Kusanagi, being destroyed. "GNOL, HOW COULD YOU!"

"Collateral damage!" laughed Gnol. "Now your dib-calling has been cancelled!"

WHITE 14 grumbled unintelligibly.

"How about I pay for the next whore you screw?" Gnol offered.

"It doesn't make any difference! You borrow money from me!"

"Take it or leave it."

"Fine…" WHITE 14 quickly ducked from Showa's sword. "Hey, I was talking! That was rude!"

"You should pay attention, and breaking into private property is way beyond rude. It's also illegal," Showa shot back.

WHITE 14 scoffed, "Tell it to somebody who cares."

Gnol's next move was to create water spout-like blast and send it at both Liger and Sentinel, pushing them towards the burning wreckage of the shrine. He then cupped his hand together and unleashed an immense ball of flames that caused another explosion.

"YUJI! ALAN!" Showa shouted in horror. He got slashed in the back.

"You should pay attention," WHITE 14 mocked as he sent Showa reeling with another slash, and then another and another, sparks flying off the heroic Rider's body. "Come on! Make this interesting! Change to your strongest form so I can break three of your contracts altogether!"

Gnol watched the fire with a smile and said, "Here lies Susano-O. At least you died with your sword." He turned to walk away but then he turned when he felt s spike of power. A pillar of emerald light rose from the burning rubble and inside that pillar was the Green Liger, the Xros Fused form of Yuji and Alan.

Not only that, but gripped tightly in the Green Liger's right hand was the…KUSANAGI NO TSURUGI!

"**HAH!"** the Green Liger shouted as he flew towards Gnol who braced himself but screamed as he was cut by the Kusanagi. The holy sword which had been kept secret for centuries was once again being used for its intended purpose: slaying the Orochi.

"Fuck!" cursed WHITE 14 and then he spun around when he sensed Showa's power spike. "FUCK!" Showa Hinamizawa Guardian Form was staring back at him.

"You got that right," Showa confirmed as he swung and slashed WHITE 14 with the Higurashi no Yaiba, causing an explosion of sparks as the bio-android howled in pain.

"**HITEN MITSURUGI-RYU: KUZU RYUSEN (NINE-HEADED DRAGON STRIKE)!**" Green Liger called as he struck with the Kusanagi and dealt nine simultaneous hits upon Gnol's body, causing an explosion of sparks and blood to erupt from the wounds.

Green Liger shouldered the Kusanagi as Gnol was forced to his knees. **"Give up,"** commanded the Green Liger, **"You can't win, Orochi."**

Gnol snarled, "Maybe, but not tonight, Susano-O. However, someday history will be changed and then it will be the Orochi who slays the great Susano-O!" Flames swirled around him and he was transported from the place.

"Next time, I'll be back," swore WHITE 14 as his body faded and he vanished from Showa's sight.

Yuji and Alan separated as Shinichi reverted back to normal. He saw the collateral damage and sighed. He asked while rubbing the back of his neck, "I'm gonna have to fix this, don't I?"

"Do you even need to ask that?" Bazel quipped.

"I'll get right on it," said Shinichi. "Oh, and by the way Alan, nice sword," said Shinichi.

"Thanks, but it belongs here," said Alan. However, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi suddenly glowed with white light.

* * *

Alan found himself standing in the presence of the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. It was like looking at a goddess. Her entire body radiated with light and she stood taller than Alan. She had fair skin and long golden blonde hair that was decorated with golden hair ornaments. Her hair was so long that it touched the floor. Her vibrant eyes were a mix of gold and red and seemed to radiate. Her kimono was yellow and purple (yellow for the sun and purple for its regality) and it was laced in a golden color. Alan was admiring her curves which her kimono did not hide and the size of her breasts could be comparable to either Conda or Amora's. In the middle of her forehead was a mark that looked like the sun.

"Greetings," the woman greeted. Even her voice was beautiful.

"Uh…hi?" Alan replied, unsure of what to do or how he got here.

"I am Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess," the woman introduced herself, "And I have been watching you."

"You're THE Amaterasu?" asked Alan, gaping.

"Indeed I am, and I see you favor the weapon I had forged," said the goddess, pointing at the Kusanagi in Alan's hand.

"Oh, I was just about to return it," Alan told her.

"It is not safe in that shrine, as you can see. That demon and his partner easily broke through the wards meant to protect it," Amaterasu objected.

"So…I just keep it? But this is a national treasure!" Alan argued.

"Do not worry. Once the shrine has been restored by your brother I shall place a replica of the Kusanagi in its place. The weapon was meant to be used by you, of course, Susano-O-dono."

"OK, you're the second person to call me that. Why? I can't be Susano-O," Alan retorted.

"All questions will be answered, but not right now. Fare thee well, Susano-O-dono." She then leaned down and kissed Alan deeply on the lips.

* * *

"Alan, wake up! Alan!" Shinichi shook Alan who had his lips puckered.

"Huh? What?" Alan's eyes opened.

"Dude, you were making kissy faces and noises, and you were freaking me out," Shinichi told his brother. "What were you daydreaming about?"

"It's nothing," Alan denied. The Kusanagi was no longer in his hand. "Where's the Kusanagi?"

"You tell us," said Yuji. "One moment it was there and then it lit up and vanished."

Shinichi went and checked inside the Kusanagi's shrine. "Oh, it went right where it belonged. Guess it was a magic sword!"

"Well, we managed to save a national treasure," Yuji said, yawning, "But what'll stop them from going after it again?"

"I doubt they'll be interested in going after it again," Alan said.

"What makes you say that?" Yuji asked.

"Call it a hunch. Now, let's go home."

"Yeah, those monks I revived are gonna wake up soon and we can't be here when it happens," said Shinichi as the Teleportal opened.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Let's see what we got here. A party in the beginning of the story and then we go straight to the action where Gnol and Shiro argue about the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. Oh, and we get to see the Sun Goddess Amaterasu and it seems she has the hots for Alan. Wow, the Smith Charm strikes again. Is there no woman capable of resisting its power?**


	87. The Legacy of Cain Part 31

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 31: The Winds of Deceit**

Black Skull was sent flying by an invisible force and went tumbling. Recovering quickly, he got back to his feet to face his opponent. Psyonic was a psychic with telekinetic and telepathic abilities. With his telepathic powers he could read his opponents' minds and react accordingly in battle. His telekinetic powers were also a force to be reckoned with as Black Skull felt like he'd just been hit with a freight train.

Psyonic wore a blue hoodie with green goggles, gray pants, black shoes and black gloves. He'd been breaking into various places and stealing what valuables he could carry while using his telepathy to escape the cops. He'd been on a cross-country crime spree. It was just his luck that he ended up in Shishibone City and breaking into a jewelry store while Black Skull was on patrol.

Psyonic threw his bag of stolen loot over his shoulder and saluted mockingly, "Catch ya later, loser!" before he turned to flee. Black Skull got up and went in pursuit, forming his Shin Racer. Psyonic looked over his shoulder and with a grin he used his powers to create psionic avatars in the form of crows to hold off Black Skull. He could feel the crows pecking at him so he drew out his shotgun and started firing at the psionic crows which faded as they were shot down. He then focused his eyes on the running criminal and picked up speed.

Psyonic leapt and the height of his leap was impressive as he crossed 10 feet in a single bound. Black Skull concluded that Psyonic was using his powers to increase his physical capabilities. Undeterred, Black Skull accelerated.

Psyonic was laughing as he continued to leap away but then he slammed face-first into a green wall before sliding down comically and landing on the ground. Black Skull saw the wall too and stopped as it faded to reveal Sentinel with his fist pointed forward.

"I had to handled," said Black Skull as he deactivated his Shin Racer. Psyonic was slowly getting back to his feet but Sentinel grabbed his hood and lifted him up. Psyonic kicked uselessly as he tried to break free but he couldn't. Sentinel was just too strong.

"We're family, remember?" Sentinel reminded. "Now, I think you know what to do."

Black Skull sighed and took out his C3 which he pointed at Psyonic. A beam fired from the device, digitizing Psyonic before absorbing him. A card shot out of the device and Black Skull caught it in his hand and inspected it. On the face of the card was Psyonic.

"I'll take this to the Vault," said Black Skull. "By the way, thanks."

"No problem. It's what family does."

* * *

**MONTHS AGO…**

"This place is so beautiful," said Hanyuu as she admired the natural beauty of the Swedish countryside. It was still winter so she wore a winter coat with Chiaki and a scarf as well. With them was Battler.

"So, where exactly is this head?" asked Battler. He was freezing.

"There," Hanyuu said as she pointed to the nearby windmills.

"A windmill?" Battler asked skeptically. She nodded and he shrugged. "Alright then."

With Hanyuu leading the way, the three walked towards the windmills and then Hanyuu just stopped. Battler was confused as he asked, "Shouldn't we be looking for the seal?" He thought the seal was inside one of the windmills.

"We've already found it," Hanyuu said.

"Huh?"

"Look down."

Chiaki and Battler looked down and gawked as they saw a gate's door had been built into the ground with what looked like ancient characters carved into the surface of the door.

"Don't you guys find it odd that it's right here?" asked Battler.

"I wonder why nobody ever saw it," remarked Chiaki.

"Because nobody important was looking," said Hanyuu as she prepared to reinforce the seal. "Please be quiet. I need to concentrate."

* * *

…**PRESENT DAY**

Showa and Sentinel had gone to Sweden to deal with the next revived Orochi Head but found Gnol and Shiro instead. A violent battle took place between both sides. With Amaterasu's blessing & permission, Sentinel summoned the Kusanagi no Tsurugi which proved to be affective against Gnol.

Blows were exchanged before both parties but Sentinel held the advantage as he slashed at Gnol repeatedly, injuring the Darkloid with the very same weapon that had been his downfall. When Gnol was sufficiently weakened by Sentinel's unrelenting assault, the Green Lantern thrust the Kusanagi forward and the blade sunk into Gnol's dark flesh.

The battle was over and Sentinel had won. Standing across from him with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi run through his stomach was Gnol Gnauh, one of the ancient Darkloid Generals. The battle had been hard for Sentinel but with the blessing of Amaterasu and the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, the young hero was able to defeat this vile demon.

However, all was not as it seemed.

Still gripping the Kusanagi, Sentinel stared at Gnol whose form started to fade like a mirage. The feeling of victory that Sentinel had suddenly turned into dread and horror as Gnol Gnauh was replaced by…

"SHINICHI!" Sentinel screamed as the one with the sword through his gut was none other than Kamen Rider Showa and not Gnol Gnauh as he originally witnessed.

It had all been an illusion.

However, the fact that the Kusanagi was lodged in Showa's stomach wasn't an illusion.

"A…Alan…" spoke Showa hoarsely as he held Sentinel's shoulder before his grip slackened and his eyes faded to gray.

Sentinel withdrew the Kusanagi and Showa's blood splattered the ground as the sword vanished before the Lantern caught the collapsing Rider. "Shinichi! Shinichi!" he screamed but Showa had passed out. He activated his com-link, "Sheila, I need a Teleportal now!"

* * *

Shinichi was lying in an infirmary bed with bandages wrapped around his injury. Alan was standing outside as Dr. Magi exited.

"Well?" Alan asked.

"He should be alright but he's going to need some rest. It's a good thing that he has those nanites. They should heal him up right and he'll be good as news," said Dr. Magi. "What happened?"

"It's all my fault, Dr. Magi," said Alan regrettably. "I have to go. Tell Shinichi…goodbye."

* * *

"Now that's great news," said Shiro who was sitting in a booth at Angel Mort with Gnol sitting next to him. Seated across from them was a 14 year old boy with short green hair and fair skin. His clothing comprised of a high-collared red shirt with short sleeves, a green vest with the Kanji for 'wind' on the back, blue jeans and white sneakers. He wore a black bandanna around his forehead and a backwards cap. Hanging from his neck was a pair of goggles. His yellow eyes looked reptilian and his ears were slightly pointed. He wore an earring in his left ear.

Shiro was enjoying the view of all the waitresses in skimpy clothing and licked his lips. He was enjoying a cup of coffee. As for Gnol he was having club sandwiches. The teenager with them was having parfait and enjoying the frozen treat greatly.

"Yeah, and they didn't even suspect a thing," said the teen. "All it took were some words from yours truly and they started going at each other. It was awesome!"

"Wish I could've seen that," smirked Shiro.

"Still, what about Susano-O?" demanded Gnol.

"Oh, relax, Gnol. After this that Lantern won't stay around on Earth and put himself into exile."

"How do you know that?" Gnol questioned.

"He just ran his own brother through the gut with a sword. I'm pretty sure the guilt will be too great for him," answered Shiro.

The teen who was in fact Kaze-Gnol finished up his parfait and then picked up his skateboard. "Well, if you two don't mind I'm gonna head out and spread the _word_." They watched as Kaze-Gnol exited Angel Mort and got on his skateboard before wheeling away.

* * *

Alan was sitting on the moon, his impassive gaze focused upon the Earth. "Hey, Alan, how long are you just gonna sit here?" asked Bazel.

Alan didn't answer. He just continued replaying what had occurred in his mind. He had been fighting Gnol but it had been a trick and instead of killing a demon he'd fatally injured his own brother.

"You can't keep blaming yourself for what happened. It was an accident," stated Bazel. "It could've happened to anyone."

"I still stabbed him," Alan argued.

"But you were tricked."

"I got careless and the enemy took advantage of that. And because I got careless I didn't realize it and he got hurt. I could've killed him."

"But he's alive."

"No thanks to me."

"Still you shouldn't keep blaming yourself."

"He's right, you know." Alan was surprised when he heard another voice, a female one. He then looked to his right to see a young woman standing next to him. She had a lean figure, pale skin and short silver hair that made her look boyish. A crescent moon mark rested on her forehead and she had sapphire blue eyes. She was dressed in a black hakama and had black bandages wrapped around her small breasts. Over this she wore a black haori jacket with a crescent moon mark on the back. A pair of belts was worn crisscrossed around her waist with a sword hanging from each, one on the left and the other on the right. Her hands were adorned with black palm-less gloves with steel plates on the back of each hand and she also wore black socks and wooden sandals.

"Who are you?" Alan asked. Who was this woman and how could she talk, much less breathe, on the surface of the moon without equipment?

"I'm Tsukuyomi no Mikoto, sister of Amaterasu," the woman answered, her cold gaze on Alan.

"Tsukuyomi…?" Alan blinked. "But I thought-"

"I know I'm depicted as a man but legends aren't always 100 percent accurate, are they?" Alan couldn't disagree. In legends often facts were exaggerated and some details were either ignored or altered. "So, why are you wallowing in self pity on my moon? Couldn't find any other place?"

"I almost killed my brother," said Alan.

"You were tricked, and don't be too surprised as to how I know. I'm a goddess," Tsukuyomi responded.

"I should've known something was wrong, but I was so wrapped up in fighting that I didn't realize that I was being tricked. It was all a set up and I injured my own brother with my own hands." Alan screwed his eyes shut and clenched his fists.

"And so you decided to exile yourself as a way to redeem yourself," concluded Tsukuyomi. She snorted, "Baka."

Alan stood up and glared at Tsukuyomi, who was a head shorter than he was. He didn't care if she was a goddess or whatever. "Don't you understand what I'm going through?"

"I have a twin sister so I know exactly what you're going through. Growing up with Amaterasu wasn't easy for me. I mean have you seen her? She's gorgeous! And look at me? I'm just a flatchested tomboy! When we were kids I wanted to hurt her but then I saw her cry and…it hurts a lot when you hurt someone you care about so I understand the feeling," answered Tsukuyomi.

"I could've killed him," Alan argued.

"But you didn't," Tsukuyomi rebutted. "He's alive and I don't think he blames you for what happened. I bet that if roles were reversed he'd be the one standing here right now."

Alan knew Shinichi well enough that the Rider would do that. He was the type to stay away from his loved ones if it meant keeping them safe. That was one of the things that Alan admired about Shinichi. The guy was willing to sacrifice his own happiness to protect his loved ones.

"But what you're doing now doesn't exactly help anyone," added Tsukuyomi. "I mean you're depressed and I bet that harem of yours is wondering where you're at. Heck, those daughters must be missing you too."

"I don't feel like I can go back," said Alan. Tsukuyomi's eyes narrowed.

"You go back there or else I'm kicking you off this moon," she warned. She had a hand gripping one of her katanas tightly. "I know this Shinichi guy. He's not the type to hold a grudge for something you didn't mean to do."

"But he can still hold a grudge," remembered Alan.

"I know and right, now you better go back down there and be a hero," warned Tsukuyomi. Alan knew better than to argue with a woman. When pushed enough they could be SCARY. His experience was proof enough.

"Fine, you talked me into it," sighed Alan as he stood up. He then flew towards the Earth, leaving a green trail as Tsukuyomi watched.

"You better not make my sister cry again, Susano-O-dono," threatened Tsukuyomi.

* * *

Kaze-Gnol had found a group of break-dancers in the park and suddenly developed the urge to join in. He set his skateboard aside and ran over to the group and following the beat of the music blasting from the boom box began to dance.

Gnol and Shiro had both followed him and were treated to the sight. Gnol asked incredulously. "What the hell is he doing?"

"Now that I recall, #05 was always a fan of break-dancing according to his file," said Shiro as he watched Kaze-Gnol bust some moves. "Guess that Spark Core really did influence his personality more than I thought."

"_Now, dance with me_," said Kaze-Gnol under his breath but his words reached the ears of his audience who began to dance with him. He had them completely under his spell and they couldn't help but do as he said, as well as dance as he danced.

* * *

When Alan returned to Earth, he learnt that the situation had just gotten worst. Riots had broken out all over the world and people were fighting against each other, accusing each other of different things. Nations were even declaring war against each other. It was just like when he and Showa had been tricked into fighting each other.

Even the NEO-NUMBERS weren't immune as he came across the group in their canyon. He found them fighting with each other violently. Friends were turning on friends and all because of the lies being spread by Kaze-Gnol.

"BREAK IT UP!" Alan ordered and his shout was so loud that it caused a shockwave and knocked the NEO-NUMBERS to the ground. "STOP THIS NOW! YOU'RE ALL SUPPOSED TO BE TEAMMATES!"

"I'm not going to work with this asshole!" Armadillo argued, pointing at Musician, "He keeps saying my girlfriend is a slut!"

"This guy here thinks that maybe my sister made the best decision of her life by selling me!" Musician shot back.

"All the boys just want to use us as sex slaves!" exclaimed Carmen.

"They're the worst," added Arachnea.

"They're insubordinate and deserve discipline. I also think they're traitors!" accused Zero.

"You're all traitors!" shouted Slasher.

Alan grimaced. If it was this bad for the NEO-NUMBERS, then what about his own girls back home? He had to do something quick.

Since the NEO-NUMBERS were currently preoccupied with each other, Alan entered the Hive and much to his surprise saw both Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam passed out on the floor.

"Sheila, what happened?" Alan asked the Hive's AI.

"_Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi were causing a mess so I put them into a state of unconsciousness using knockout gas,"_ reported Sheila. _"What is going on, Corpsman Smith?"_

"It's a long story," said Alan. "Hey, can you help deal with what's going on outside?"

"_Oh, certainly. Would you like me to activate Armor Lockdown?"_

"Armor Lockdown? What's Armor Lockdown?"

"_Armor Lockdown is a standard safety feature which will restrain the cyborgs within their own armor. In short, they will be frozen," _Sheila explained.

"Then why didn't you do that!-?" Alan shouted.

"_Armor Lockdown can only be activated when I have been given the command. Should I activate it?"_

"Yes," Alan affirmed.

"_Engaging Armor Lockdown sequence,"_ said Sheila. Alan exited the base and sure enough the NEO-NUMBERS were all frozen like statues with energy fields around them. _"Please, have a nice day."_

Seeing as everything here was…stable, Alan took off. The NEO-NUMBERS should be fine.

He flew into the air. The NEO-NUMBERS should be fine.

* * *

Alan reached Shishibone and realized that his fears were confirmed. An angry mob was standing in front of the boarding house with signs, demanding that he show himself. They were shouting, "FREAKS GO HOME!" over and over again.

Super-powered beings often had to suffer discrimination like this and super-villains more than justified the fears of normal people. It was only thanks to superheroes that the world didn't completely hate super-humans. Still, this had to stop. He could hear his daughter Alice crying for him as the girls had all the entrances sealed to prevent people from getting inside.

"I have to get them out of there," said Alan.

"LOOK, THERE'S THE FREAK!" shouted a random member of the mob. Alan grimaced as he was being pelted by glass bottles, rocks, and even rotten fruit and garbage. He maintained his high altitude so he wouldn't be hit and hovered over to one of the windows and tapped on the glass.

Alice, who was cowering in the corner with Lockheed and Celine, looked up and saw Alan.

"Daddy!"

"Mau!"

Alice quickly opened the door and let Alan inside before slamming it shut.

"Daddy, what's happening? People suddenly got angry and now they're attacking us!" said Alice.

"It'll be okay, honey," said Alan comfortingly. "Where are the other girls?" asked Alan.

"They're downstairs. They want to get ready when the angry people come in," said Alice.

"Alice, I want you to stay here with Celine and Lockheed," instructed Alan. "Lockheed, protect the girls." The purple dragon nodded. Alan quickly went downstairs and spotted the girls standing in the foyer. "Girls!" he called.

"ALAN!" Lala and Bishie cried as they glomped him.

"Girls, something's up," said Alan.

"We noticed," said Yami.

"I sensed dark magic influencing them," said Amora.

"I know, and I think it's like what happened with me," said Alan, recalling when he'd stabbed Shinichi. "Look, you all need to go."

"Go? Go where?" Lala asked.

"I won't run," said Conda stubbornly.

"Conda, this isn't up for debate. Think about Alice and Celine. They're just kids," said Alan. "Now, I asked Sheila to open up a Teleportal. It should be up in a few seconds. Once it's up I want you to go in, understand?"

"But-" Conda began to argue only to be silenced by a kiss.

"Please…I don't want anyone here to get hurt," said Alan. "You trust me, right?"

Flushed, Conda nodded.

"Good," said Alan. "Now, get Alice and Celine. The Teleportal will be up soon and you all should get out of here as fast as you can."

**BAM! BAM! BAM! **

Banging was heard on the front door. People were trying to break inside.

"It's time to go, now!" ordered Alan.

* * *

"THAT'S HIM! THE DEMON!"

"KILL THE DEMON AND THEN OYASHIRO-SAMA WILL BLESS US!"

"FOR OYASHIRO-SAMA!"

"KILL THE DEMON AND OFFER ITS BLOOD TO OYASHIRO-SAMA!"

"FOR OYASHIRO-SAMA!"

"DEMON, BEGONE! DEMON, BEGONE!"

"OFFER THE DEMON FOR OYASHIRO-SAMA'S BLESSING!"

Shinichi had recovered from his injuries earlier and gone out for a walk in Shishibone City, only to see chaos erupt all around him for no good reason. People were getting into fights and riots had broken out forcing the police to take action. Fearing the worst, Shinichi quickly ran back home and transformed.

Upon arriving in Hinamizawa, he found that the situation in the normally peaceful village were just as bad. As soon as the villagers spotted him they marched towards him with weapons in hand. All forms of gardening instruments like hoes, sickles and rakes were in the hands of the villagers, not to mention axes, kitchen knives and even torches.

They called him a demon and they cried for his death. He really didn't want to hurt any of them. It got worse as his friends and family were among the members of the angry mob.

"This is just the Orochi's plot," Showa realized. He couldn't fight them and risk hurting them. Even though they were throwing rocks at him he wouldn't retaliate.

How powerful were the Wind Orochi's words of deceit?

The villagers rushed at Showa and he prepared to fight but they all slammed into an invisible wall. Blinking, Showa then spotted Meta and Hanyuu. Hanyuu was carrying Sho in her arms. "Battler? Hanyuu?" he asked. Hanyuu threw ofuda into the air and they rained down on the villagers, sticking onto their foreheads. As soon as they did the villagers froze and then collapsed.

"I'm glad we came just in time," said Hanyuu. Sho was starting to cry and Hanyuu rocked her little brother gently. "It's OK, Sho-chan. Onee-chan is here."

"Guys, what's going on?" asked Showa.

"You tell me. My family suddenly went nuts. I had to knock out my folks before they killed each other," said Meta.

"The same thing happened at home. Even Rika's been affected and I had to take Sho-chan because it was dangerous," said Hanyuu.

"So, Kaa-chan and Otousan too?" Showa asked. Hanyuu nodded. "This is bad."

"I sense a dark power being the cause of this. It's the Orochi again," said Hanyuu, frowning.

"Hey, where's Kai?" asked Showa.

"I asked Kai-san to look after the house," Hanyuu answered. "He was only happy to do so."

"Guess Manakytes aren't affected either," realized Showa. "Wait, where's Shin?"

"You mean your AI?" asked Meta. "We lost track of him. He was flying away from crazy villagers and yelling pretty loudly. He could be hiding somewhere."

"Guess that makes sense. He can't really defend himself without killing people," reasoned Showa. "Hey, can you two handle things here?"

"You going somewhere?" asked Meta.

"This thing is spreading, and it's getting worse by the second," said Showa as he activated his wings. "Later!" He zoomed into the air.

Once airborne, he spotted Sentinel. "Alan!" called the Rider.

"Shinichi," responded Sentinel, relieved to see his brother had made a quick recovery. "Shinichi, listen, I…"

"Look, we can talk later. Right now we have an Orocho to slay. Are you with me?" He raised his fist. Sentinel recognized the gesture and bumped fists with Showa. "Alright, let's go."

* * *

"I think it's called the 'Head Spin'," said Shiro, "Simple, yet descriptive."

Kaze-Gnol and his new crew of break-dancers were on their heads and spinning like tops before flipping back to their feet. They continued to dance with Kaze-Gnol wearing an expression of pure joy. Clearly Goemon's personality had completely taken over the Orochi of Wind.

"This has gone long enough," said Gnol as he prepared to kill the Orochi of Wind and reclaim his power, only for Shiro to stop him.

"Let him enjoy himself," Shiro advised. "I mean he's doing awesome work in collecting negative energy. His lies are causing strife and soon the world will be at war. Isn't that an ideal world? One filled with human hatred and suffering?"

Gnol listened to Shiro's words and a smile spread across his face. "You're right. Kaze-Gnol has done well in spreading his lies through the wind. He deserves a reward."

* * *

A figure was floating in the air, his wild red locks flowing freely as an ill wind blew. He had a small white horn in his forehead and the pointy ears were an indication of some supernatural ancestry. He wore a white garment, resembling a toga, with white, baggy pants which are held up by a blue obi sash and arm guards, both sporting a prominent red gem in the center. And his sky blue eyes narrowed as he scanned the panicking village below.

"Aye, that be a foul wind, it is," he frowned as he spoke with an Irish accent. "Dunno how I actually got here, but I doubt this place is any good. Best have a look-see around and seein' if I could find some help."

And he took off like a fighter jet to investigate.

Showa and Sentinel were rocketing through the air. They kept their eyes open for anything suspicious. Their searched hadn't born any fruit until Sentinel spotted something.

"There he is!" Sentinel pointed. There flying in front of them was a young man with red shoulder-length hair like a lion's mane and dressed in a karate gi with the sleeves torn off. What confirmed his inhumanity were the pointed ears and the horn on his head. He was just flying there without a care.

"That Orochi's mine!" shouted Showa as he shot forward. "HEY, ASSHOLE!"

The flying guy turned and saw Showa flying towards him with a fist drawn back. He rolled in the way dodging the attack as Showa flew by. "Hey, what gives here!-?" the redhead shouted. Showa spun around and glared at him. "Who are you?"

"The guy who's gonna send you to HELL!" Showa roared as he flew at the redhead, only to be flung backwards by a powerful gust of wind. He flailed about before regaining his equilibrium.

"Dunno know what your problem is," said the redhead, "But if it's a fight y'be wantin' then bring it on!" Tornados surrounded his forearms as he got into a fighting stance.

"I can do that too!" boasted Showa as he transformed into Oni Form, surprising the redhead. He summoned the Oni Claws which had tornados spinning around them too like drills.

"Now this is gonna be interesting," the redhead grinned roguishly as his ears were twitching. "HYAH!"

"SOI-RYAH!"

Sentinel watched as the redhead and Showa clashed. "Aren't you going to help him?" asked Bazel.

"The last time we went after this guy we got tricked and I shoved a sword through Shinichi's gut," said Sentinel. "I can't risk it again."

Tornados collided with full force and the blast of power flung both combatants backwards. The redhead flipped several times before getting back right side up and looking at Showa who also went into stance. His Oni Claws were cracked from the collision of their attacks.

"I haven't had a challenge like this in awhile," said the redhead, "But I gotta ask why you be wantin' to fight me in the first place?"

"As if you didn't know!" Showa howled and he started to swing a series of kicks at the redhead who blocked with his tornado-wielding forearms. "It's time to die, Orochi-yarou!"

"Huh? Orochi?" the redhead blinked in confusion.

"Alan, now!"

"That's my cue," said Sentinel as he flew at the battle. The redhead saw Sentinel coming at him faster than a speeding bullet and the Green Lantern slammed into him like a battering ram, sending him flying.

"Wait, I'm not this Orochi!" the redhead denied but his words were ignored.

"NOW!" Showa ordered as he shot several fireballs at the redhead as Sentinel fired his ring's energy.

"Oh shit!" the redhead cursed and spun around, conjuring a tornado that deflected the attacks. "Take this!" He retaliated with vacuum blades. Showa was hit in the shoulder and Sentinel ducked before he could get decapitated.

"OK, I think there bein' kind of a slipup," said the redhead. "I'm not who you think I am. I'm-"

"As if we'd fall for another one of your tricks!" Showa interrupted.

"You're going down," said Sentinel. The two brothers then charged. The redhead, however, was not about to let himself get killed because of a misunderstanding so he prepared to defend himself. He ducked and dodged Sentinal and Showa's attacks before retaliating with his own moves. He moved fluidly, evading their strikes. Sentinel through a bone-shattering haymaker but the redhead ducked and blew Sentinel away with a gust of wind. Showa tried to slash at the redhead who smacked the arm away and kicked Showa in the midsection, sending him flying backwards. The redhead then took in a deep breath, his cheeks puffed up before he BLEW!

It was like the Big Bad Wolf when he was blowing down the houses of the Three Little Pigs. Both Sentinel and Showa were shoved backwards by the violent wind. The wind then trapped them in a cyclone and they were spinning around, and around, and around.

'_Once you're dizzy and weak, you'll have to listen to Jin_,' thought the redhead.

"ALAN! XROS FUSION!" Showa called.

"XROS…FUSION!" Sentinel called as he reached out and grasped Showa's hand.

The redhead had both Rider and Lantern trapped and yawned, "Man…real workout that one was." But then he saw light within the cyclone. "Huh, what's that?"

Suddenly, the cyclone blasted outwards, stunning the redhead as he was nearly blown away. He then saw something that looked like a bright star floating in front of him. "What…?"

"**KAMEN RIDER G-SHOWA! ONI FORM!**" called out the new Xros Fused warrior. He sported the colors of the Green Lantern Corps and had the Corps' coat of arms branded on his chest. His shoulders looked like demonic skulls with a single horn jutting from each. He had blade-like claws mounted on his wrists and finally he sported a skull-like helmet with two horns and green flames coming off it. The flames were also radiating from the eyes and mouth like the Ghost Rider.

"Wicked…" admired the redhead and then he realized the situation. "Oh fuck..."

"**THIS IS THE END, OROCHI!"**

"Hey, wait! I'm telling you I'm not an Orochi!"

"**DELTA STORM!**" G-Showa Oni unleashed a tornado-like blast of wind, fire and lightning straight at the redhead who tried to guard himself by using a tornado as a shield, but that failed and the Delta Storm attack went right through, connecting with its intended target as the redhead was cut up by the wind, burnt by the flames and zapped by electricity.

The attack subsided and the redhead was panting. He suffered burns from the fire and electricity and had lost his shirt. He also sported bleeding cuts from the wind which had been included in the assault.

"**Let's finish it**," said G-Showa Oni.

"WAIT!"

G-Showa Oni turned and saw Hanyuu riding upon Meta's back. The Kaizo Ningen formerly designated as Black Ghost was using his rockets to approach them.

G-Showa Oni split back into Showa and Sentinel. "Hanyuu-chan, get out of here, it's dangerous!" Showa commanded.

"But he's not the Orochi!" Hanyuu told the Rider and Lantern.

"What?" gaped Sentinel and Showa.

"That's what I've been trying to tell these clowns! I was just minding my own business, flying around, when these two showed up and attacked," said the wind-user they had attacked. He then grinned, "Oh, and the name's Jin. Nice to meetcha lot. Ehehehe!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so ends this part of the Orochi of Wind mini-arc. Next up is the exciting conclusion. They have to find Kaze-Gnol quickly. They're already running out of time as it is and Kaze-Gnol's influence has already spread too far. Another World War may start because of the lies of the Orochi of Wind!"**


	88. The Legacy of Cain Part 32

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 32: Eye of the Storm**

Showa asked, "Hanyuu-chan, what are you doing up here?" He then noticed someone missing. "Wait, where's Sho?"

"Don't worry. Satan came and took him with her," said Hanyuu.

Showa felt relieved. He could trust Sho with Satan.

"So, how can you be sure he's not an Orochi?" Sentinel asked.

"I'm a goddess. Do you want to argue with me?" Hanyuu suggested, eyes narrowed.

"Um…no," Sentinel replied. He learnt from a young age that pissing off a girl was a bad idea. A really bad idea.

Jin then grinned, "Well, how are you doing?" He was trying to flirt with Hanyuu.

"I'm taken and even if I wasn't you're not my type," Hanyuu shot him down.

"And that's a burn," Meta quipped.

Hanyuu got off Meta's back and floated on her own power. "Jin isn't an Orochi, but I know where to find him. But we need to be fast because already his poison has spread over nearly half the globe."

"War is about to break out all over if we don't stop this thing and fast," added Meta.

"OK, so where is he?" Showa asked.

"He's nearby and he's growing stronger," said Hanyuu. "I'll lead you to him."

"Could I come?" requested Jin.

"We're going to need a lot of help with this, and it'll be a good way for Shinichi and Alan to make it up to you."

* * *

"Alright, that's enough playing around," ordered Gnol.

Kaze-Gnol glared at Gnol. He didn't trust adults, including Gnol and Shiro. They may have revived him but that was it. Beyond that they had no hold over him. "No!" denied Kaze-Gnol stubbornly. He then snapped his fingers and his crew surrounded Gnol who snorted.

"Do you really think this will stop me?" Gnol questioned, flames radiating from his eyes. "I could easily fry you in an instant."

"Bring it on, old man!" Kaze-Gnol challenged.

"You little brat!" Gnol drew his arm back to smack the Wind Orochi. Shiro grabbed his wrist before the Orochi of Wrath could smack the Orochi of Wind. "Unhand me!"

"Gnol, he's just a kid. Besides, he's done his job. Let him have some fun," Shiro said.

Gnol sneered and looked back at Kaze-Gnol who stuck his tongue out at Gnol. "Old man, come and catch me!" He turned around and smacked his butt in front of Gnol before laughing as he ran away. He grabbed his skateboard, which turned into a snowboard, and he hopped on before using his wind powers to take off.

"GET BACK HERE!" Gnol ordered but Shiro stopped him.

"With any luck those heroes will get him and why should we have to dirty our hands. Sure, they'll get the Spark Core for defeating him but you'll get more power," Shiro said.

Gnol stared at his bare left arm and admitted to himself that Shiro had a point. Still, Kaze-Gnol was getting on his last nerve.

"Let's grab some sake and enjoy the show," said Shiro. The break-dancers resumed dancing.

"Fine," Gnol grumbled.

* * *

Kaze-Gnol was flying through the air on a snowboard and enjoyed the view of what was happening on ground level. He mused, "Strife and violence, my favorite meal." The lies he told were really affected. His words became the truth and affected all five senses of his victims. If he told everyone that shit tasted like chocolate then it did.

Darkloids all fed off the negative energy born from negative emotions like paranoia, distrust, hatred and fear and Kaze-Gnol's words made it all happen. Already entire armies were mobilizing and soon the world would be at war. Pain, suffering and death would follow and he had a front row seat to all the carnage.

"1,000 CRANE SLASH!"

"Huh?" Kaze-Gnol looked up and screamed as he was cut repeatedly by a swarm of paper cranes. He then roared, retaliating with vacuum blades as he swung his arms out, shredding the origami cranes. "Damn, I liked this shirt," he grimaced. He then looked around for his assailant and found them. "Oh, it's you."

Hovering not too far from him were Kamen Rider Showa (Higurashi Form), Sentinel, Meta, Hanyuu and Jin.

"Hey, you guys mind dealing with what's going on down there?" Jin requested, pointing to the ground.

"You want to fight?" asked Sentinel.

"Yeah, you guys attacked me because of him. I think I owe him a first-class ride on my fists," answered Jin.

"Count me in too," volunteered Sentinel. "I have my own beef with this guy."

"Alright, the more the merrier," Jin said, flashing a grin. "Let's have some fun then!"

Jin and Sentinel flew towards Kaze-Gnol as the others went down to the ground to calm down the crowd.

Kaze-Gnol, seeing the two charging at him, put his goggles over his eyes and slammed his fists together. "ALRIGHT!" He then shot towards them on his board. The first to know his power would be Jin as he tossed a concentrated ball of air at the redhead but Sentinel smacked it away and countered with his eyebeams. Kaze-Gnol saw the attack coming and rolled around, ducking, before speeding up. He then kicked Sentinel in the face and then executed a tornado kick that hit him upside the head. He then ducked a blast of wind from Jin and smirked at him. "HYAH!" A blast of wind hit Jin like a hammer, knocking him backwards.

Kaze-Gnol then started to perform break-dancing moves in the air and throwing out a volley of vacuum blades in all direction. The vacuum blades were sharp and sliced off chunks from the buildings below.

"I got this!" said Jin as he spread his arms out and countered with his own vacuum blades, cancelling out Kaze-Gnol's assault. The Orochi adjusted his goggles when he saw this, surprised to see his enemies had found a wind user to fight with them.

"Now this is a challenge," said Kaze-Gnol. Sentinel suddenly appeared in front of him. "Huh?"

**POW!**

Kaze-Gnol's head was thrown backwards by the punch and then Sentinel started repeatedly pounding away at him. Kaze-Gnol was being tossed around like a ragdoll by each punch and then Sentinel kicked him so hard in the face that he was blasted out of the air. He crashed against the ground and went tumbling.

Jin and Sentinel went down and landed, with Jin hovering off the ground. Kaze-Gnol slowly climbed back to his feet, spitting out black blood. He then tapped his goggles which were now cracked from the hits he'd received from Sentinel. His snowboard, of course, had snapped in half from the fall.

"You're gonna pay for that!" growled Kaze-Gnol and he snapped his finger. Suddenly, hip-hop music began to play and his crew came out of nowhere. They were the break-dancers he'd taken control earlier. He then snapped his fingers again and sent them to fight Sentinel and Jin.

Jin didn't bother with them and instead flew and weaved around them before blasting at Kaze-Gnol. He was thrown back violently, slamming against a lamppost with so much force that it bent on impact. He recovered quickly and jumped to his feet, ready to fight again.

"Listen, kid. You're not much of a challenge," said Jin. "I heard you were strong but I guess that was just an exaggeration! HAHAHA"

"Don't…" Kaze-Gnol growl, "Call me…" He roared, "A KID!" Kaze-Gnol roared as a tornado spun around him, shedding his human disguise as the tornado violently dispersed, the wind impacting the nearby windows and shattering them.

He was now 6'7", clad in scaly green armor covering his arms and legs as his fingers were tipped with claws. He wore an armored silver skirt and silver armor to cover his chest and shoulders which were shaped like turbine fans. His head was protected by a helmet that exposed his lower jaw to show off his pale green skin and sharp fangs as the helmet had a horizontal visor and avian wings on the ears. He also wore a cape.

"Now, do I look like a kid?" sneeredKaze-Gnol.

"Now you look like a challenge!" Jin responded excitedly, his ears wiggling insanely.

"Of course! I am the Orochi of the Wind, 1/8 of the dreaded Yamata no Orochi! Now, you will die!"

The two closed the gap between then and swung their fists. The shockwave of their fists colliding spread out, shaking the ground as violent winds blew out. Jin grinned as the Wind Orochi grinned back and soon they started to fight with renewed vigor.

* * *

Meanwhile, Showa, Hanyuu and Meta were being surrounded by Kaze-Gnol's slaves. They now had their hate-filled gazes aimed at the two cyborgs and goddess.

"Hanyuu, do you have enough ofuda for all of them?" Meta asked.

"I think so," said Hanyuu.

Showa scanned the crowd. He really didn't want to hurt these people but the way they were looking at the three heroes made him think that they wouldn't have much of a choice.

"Meta, I'm gonna need you to use your psychic powers to knock these people out," Showa ordered. "Can you do that?"

"On this crowd?" Meta questioned. He had never tried to do that with that many people. One or two, maybe, but a whole crowd? "What happens if I put too much power and I accidentally blow their brains up?"

"If that happens I'll just reverse time," Showa said calmly.

"Shinichi, I don't wanna see brains blow up," Meta argued.

"Here they come!" said Hanyuu.

Showa was the first to rush forward. He made sure his hits weren't lethal and were only strong enough to knock them out. They would have headaches when they awoke but it was better than being dead. Meta and Hanyuu were using their own powers on the crowd. Hanyuu threw the ofuda and the paper talismans stuck onto the people's heads, immobilizing them. As for Meta, he was moving at high speeds, dealing knockout blows on each person.

After knocking out the last of the people, Showa received an emergency call from Sheila, "What is it?"

"_American jet fighters are on their way to Japan,"_ said Sheila. _"I believe this is their idea of retaliation for the Pearl Harbor incident decades ago."_

"Kaze-Gnol really knows what he's doing. His digging up old wounds and making people act on them. To them revenge is justice," said Showa. "OK, I'll take care of them!" He looked to Hanyuu and Meta, "I have to stop a war from breaking out. Are you guys gonna be OK, here?" he asked.

"We'll be fine, nanodesu. Now, do your job, Kamen Rider," said Hanyuu.

Showa smiled and spread his wings before taking off.

Flying through the air, Showa saw the jets and they saw him too. He moved quickly as they deployed their missiles which he exploded with his sword. He shot out of the smoke and engaged the fighter in the front. "This is where you go down," said Showa as he put his hand on the jet and activated his technopathy. Instantly, the jet started to lose altitude as its engines exploded. The pilot had no choice but to eject as his canopy detached and he shot out of the cockpit. Showa watched as the man activated his parachute.

Showa then saw the jet fighters aiming at him and flicked his wrists. He then took off after them, dodging missiles as he attempted to harmlessly disable them.

When he was done, he received another call from Sheila, "What is it now?"

"_I am detecting a large number of nuclear warheads that have been deployed,"_ Sheila answered.

"From where?" asked Showa, dreading the answer. Sheila answered and he blanched. "You have got to be kidding me. All of them?"

"_It would appear that they all agreed that they should all eliminate each other first."_

"Can you tell me which ones are the closest?" asked Showa.

"_Shouldn't you call Corpsman Smith?"_ asked Sheila. _"He is fast enough."_

"Even so he can't be everywhere at once," said Showa. "But I can!" He became Hinamizawa Guardian Form and then accessed the powers of Zennin. An army of clones appeared out of thin air and Showa gave them their single command, "Disarm the nuclear warheads! Now go!" They all took off in different directions, Showa doing the same.

* * *

Sentinel managed to round up the break-dancers and then tie them up with a lamppost, bending the steel around them and restraining their movements. "Did he really think these guys could stop you?" Bazel asked.

"Well, since I won't hurt normal humans I guess he was hoping I wouldn't do anything," said Sentinel. "Now, let's go help Jin." He scanned the area. "Where did they go?"

"They took off five minutes ago," said Bazel.

Sentinel focused his hearing in order to find them. He managed to hear the sound of a battle in the sky and nodded, "Got it." He took off, his cape flapping in the wind before he shot towards the direction like a rocket.

* * *

**ZOOM! ZOOM!**

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

**SLICE! SLICE! SLICE!**

The two wind users were still fighting, this time taking their battle into the air. Kaze-Gnol and Jin seemed evenly matched even though Kaze-Gnol was in his demon form.

"Hehehehehe," Jin chuckled, "I can tell, we're a pair in a pod, friend. Not wantin' to do anything the way people tell us to, even if we don't make sense." Jin flicked his elf-like ear, "Better to be messy on your own than right under someone's watch, am I right?"

"I see you're similar to me," Kaze-Gnol acknowledged, "I despise being told what to do; especially by adults!"

Jin grinned as the texture of his skin began to change, changing to scaly skin as his arms, torso, neck and lower jaw were covered in red scales that matched his hair color. His right forearm gave off a glow from underneath his guard in the distinct pattern of a familiar dragon-shaped mark.

"Lemme show you something I picked up, without the help of bosses flappin' their gums," Jin said.

He loosened up his right arm as he began to spin faster and faster as a miniature twister was formed around Jin's arm as he chuckled to himself.

"Damn," Kaze-Gnol sweat-dropped.

"This is one of my favorites!" Jin grinned. "**Tornado Fist**'s the name!" He dashed at Kaze-Gnol and punched forward, with the wind Orochi evading the punch but being blown back from the twister itself.

Red beams of heat then flew past Jin and hit Kaze-Gnol dead centre in the chest, causing the Wind Orochi to howl. Looking up, he saw Sentinel hovering next to Jin.

"My turn," said Sentinel as he tagged with Jin and took the Wind Manakyte's place. "Kusanagi no Tsurugi!" Sentinel called and the sacred blade which had slain the Orochi was now clenched in his hand. He spoke dangerously, "You made me use this blade on my brother. Now, it's payback time."

"How scary," Kaze-Gnol mocked. "Let's see you back it up!" He activated his turbines and unleashed twin tornado blasts at Sentinel.

Aiming his ring at the tornado blasts, Sentinel countered with his own. The green tornado collided with the twin tornadoes and broke them apart before striking Kaze-Gnol in the chest. With the Orochi of Wind affectively stunned, the wielder of the Kusanagi darted towards the demon and swung. The blade cut deep into the armor and met flesh before black blood splashed out. Kaze-Gnol howled. In retaliation he slashed at Sentinel who caught him by the wrist. Kaze-Gnol howled out again as the Kusanagi was used to maim him as his right arm was cut at the shoulder. Sentinel discarded the limb and used a roundhouse kick that smashed into Kaze-Gnol's chest, denting the armor.

Kaze-Gnol tried to land a roundhouse kick but Sentinel blocked with his forearm before he spun in the air and elbowed Kaze-Gnol in the face with enough force that it shattered his visor. He then elbowed Kaze-Gnol in the stomach before backhanding him in the face and then spun around again to land a slash across Kaze-Gnol once. He then performed a back flip and hit Kaze-Gnol with a heel kick that knocked his head backwards. On a normal person that would've shattered their jaw and snapped the neck in half but Kaze-Gnol was anything but a normal person.

The Orochi of Wind snapped his head forward, the sound of cracking in his neck heard, before he roared and blasted Sentinel back with a burst of wind from his turbines. Sentinel was pushed backwards but not too far. Kaze-Gnol then wrapped a tornado around his stump and when the tornado disappeared the arm had regenerated.

Kaze-Gnol rushed at Sentinel but was peppered by spheres of concentrated air courtesy of Jin. This served as a distraction as Sentinel used his ring to conjure a giant fist which flew towards Kaze-Gnol. The violent impact knocked him backwards. Then, he used his ring to conjure the Blade Blade which was now held in his other hand.

The green Blade Blade crackled with energy and with the Kusanagi he soared towards Kaze-Gnol and performed a cross-slash. The Orochi howled. Jin struck too, conjuring a blade made of air and slashed at Kaze-Gnol too. The two fighters double-teamed the Orochi, striking him with their swords and forcing him on the defensive until he had enough and flung them backwards with a roar. He covered his body in armor of wind and charged at them both. First he struck Jin, leaving bleeding cuts along his skin due to the razor-like winds surrounding his arm and then he struck Sentinel across the face before landing a punch into his gut. He then surrounded the Green Lantern with a tornado, spinning him around in order to make him dizzy. Jin grabbed Kaze-Gnol's from behind by the arms but the Orochi of Wind slammed the back of his head into Jin's face, causing him to loosen his hold as the Wind Orochi grabbed Jin by the hair and flung him forward before he began to pound Jin with a barrage of punches.

Sentinel managed to free himself from the tornado and saw that Jin was in trouble. He drew his arm back and tossed the Kusanagi at the Wind Orochi. The sword flew like a harpoon and went right through Kaze-Gnol's chest and remained there. The demon was stunned and began to howl as the sword's purifying properties started to take effect. There was a burning sensation from the wound and it was starting to spread.

Jin spat out some blood and grinned before he clapped and knocked Kaze-Gnol out of the air with a downward blast of wind. He then spun a tornado around himself and flew at Kaze-Gnol. Sentinel retrieved his sword and stepped aside to allow Jin to bore right through Kaze-Gnol's body. A hole was blasted right through as Jin exited and the two fighters looked at the wounded Orochi.

Sentinel conjured a bow and then notched the Kusanagi against the string like an arrow. He focused his eyes on the Wind of Orochi, pulled until the string was taut and released. The sword flew like an arrow and hit Kaze-Gnol straight in the face, going through his brain, and exiting out of the back of the head. The sword, at Sentinel's command, did a complete U-turn and returned to his hand.

* * *

Showa gained the memories of his clones that had successfully disarmed the warheads. Those that weren't disarmed were exploded prematurely, safe from any populated area. "I guess they're all done." He received another call, "What is it?"

"_HEY, WHERE'S ALAN!"_Conda shouted into his com-link. While in Rider form his com-link was in his helmet and the volume of her yell really hurt his ears.

"Ow, Conda! You're killing me ears!" Showa shot back. Sentinel had told him that he'd sent his harem and daughters to the Hive for safety.

"_You damn bug, tell me where my Alan is. He hasn't called back,"_ said Conda.

"Look, I'm kinda busy right now," said Showa. He was riding atop a nuclear warhead and was in the middle of disarming it. "Call me back later." He cut off the link. He put his hand against the missile's shell and concentrated. The missile was disarmed and the flames which propelled it forward died. Showa then watched as the missile began to drop before falling into the sea below. "And that's the last of them, hopefully."

* * *

"Shouldn't he be dead by now?" Jin inquired.

"Well, by now, if Kaze-Gnol follows the same pattern as the previous ones, he should be…" Sentinel trailed off as Kaze-Gnol's body began to develop cracks all over.

"And here we go into overtime," said Bazel as Kaze-Gnol's body shattered to pieces, only to reform into a bigger and more vicious form.

The Orochi of Wind now stood at a towering 16ft, clad in dark silver armor as his knees and elbows were tipped with drills, blades lined his abdomen, its shoulders were equipped with blade-like horns and he now possessed large bladed-wings. Its neck was also armored and his head was completely covered in armor as its green eyes glowed with malice and its bladed tusks gleamed in the sun's light. It opened its mouth, sucking in much needed air and then fired a large ball of concentrated air at the Lantern and wind-user.

"NOW!" Sentinel and Bazel called as he leapt over the attack and then flew forward towards the Wind Orochi. He was slapped out of the air and slammed against a building. He didn't feel any pain and kicked off the building. The Wind Orochi spun and was about to open its mouth for another attack when a tornado knocked its head aside. The tornado dispersed, showing Jin.

'This is mine," said Sentinel as he used his ring upon the roaring Orochi of the Wind. In these forms these demonic dragons grew more powerful and had to be dealt with swiftly. He aimed his ring and trapped the Orochi of Wind in a bubble of green energy. Sentinel then took off high, piercing the clouds as Jin watched, dragging the Orochi of Wind along for the ride.

Sentinel was flying so fast he was a blur and finally he reached his destination. They were now in outer space. "This is high enough," said Sentinel as he released the monster. "Don't bother, there's no air out here which means you are completely powerless." The Orochi of Wind's eyes widened in realization! Oh Fuck!

Sentinel flew at the Wind Orochi with the Kusanagi and the Orochi of Wind tried to grab him. The arm came at Sentinel and he swung the Kusanagi, slicing the hand off at the wrist. Kaze-Gnol howled in agony but then Sentinel got right in its face and said, "This is for my brother!" He raised up the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and swung downward and continued to descend with the blade embedded in the dragon's hide. A line of green light appeared down the cut and Sentinel withdrew his sword before turning his back to the creature. It then exploded and Sentinel's cape whipped dramatically from the force of the explosion.

Spotting the Spark Core, Sentinel caught it in his hand and stared at the item which was marked as Spark Core #05.

* * *

Meanwhile, Showa had just disabled another tank when all the soldiers around him dropped their weapons. They looked confused but Showa was relieved. He looked up at the sky and said, "Yattaze."

* * *

Back at the canyon, the NEO-NUMBERS wondered why they were stuck in Armor Lockdown. Also, Armadillo was beginning to feel ill and realized he had to go to the bathroom fast before he made a mess in his armor.

* * *

"Thanks for taking care of him," said Shinichi as he took a sleeping Sho into his arms from Satan.

"Well, he's just a baby. I couldn't let him get hurt," said Satan. The Rider kissed her on the cheek and she blushed.

"Still, thanks again. I really owe you for this. If you need a favor, don't be afraid to ask," said Shinichi. Satan grabbed his face and kissed him deeply. She then pulled away.

"That's how I say 'You're Welcome," she told him before vanishing in a flash of gold. Shinichi shrugged and carried his baby brother back home.

* * *

The group met back up at the Furude Shrine. Everything was back to normal. However, Kaze-Gnol's deceitful words had caused a lot of damage worldwide. There was just one solution.

"Time for a Return to the Past," said Shinichi.

"Return to the Past?" Jin wondered aloud.

"It's Shinichi's special ability," Alan explained, "It allows him to turn time back by 24 hours."

"Wow." Jin was impressed.

"Yeah, but don't expect me to do it all the time. It's only for emergencies," said Shinichi. "Alan, do you have the Spark Core?" Alan showed that he did. "Keep hold on it. I'm going to make a few exceptions when I use my Return to the Past."

"You can do that?" asked Battler.

"Yeah, normally it affects everyone except those who are immune. Now I can pick and choose the range for it." His Spark Core glowed, "And here we go! Return to the Past, Now!"

A pillar of light appeared and expanded, engulfing everything within its path as time was reversed by 24 hours.

* * *

Even with time reset, Alan still needed to confront Shinichi over something. Right now they were on the rooftop of Shinichi's apartment building.

"I can't believe you attacked civilians," said Alan in disappointment.

"They were under Kaze-Gnol's control. They would've attacked each other as well. Besides, they were only knockout blows. Nothing lethal. Trust me, it was for their own good," dismissed Shinichi.

Alan argued, "It doesn't matter if it was non-lethal. You could've been caught on camera attacking those civilians."

"Even if that were to happen, it would all be erased after I performed a Return to the Past," rebutted Shinichi, "So there's no longer any proof."

"You can't be sure of that! You gotta be more careful, Shinichi. The Religion of Crime is looking for ANY way to discredit heroes, and catching one of them on camera attacking defenseless civilians is the best way. I know you can reset everything with a Return to the Past but there's a chance they have technology to counter that ability of yours," said Alan in a panic. "This will affect more than just you. Your friends and family will be pulled in and you may not be able to protect them then."

Shinichi saw how distressed Alan looked and apologized, "I'm sorry. Look, I'll be more careful next time, OK?"

"Good," smiled Alan. He then frowned, remembering that he had more to say. "Shinichi, about earlier, I want to say that I'm sorry," Alan apologized.

"What exactly are you sorry for?" Shinichi asked.

"Don't you remember? I ran you through with the Kusanagi," Alan reminded.

"Oh, I remember _that_, I'm just asking you why _you're_ sorry," Shinichi replied.

"I stabbed you with a sword! I could've killed you!" Alan yelled.

"As I recall we were both tricked by Kaze-Gnol. He made us fight each other by deceiving us. In your eyes I was Gnol Gnauh and in my eyes you were WHITE 14. What happened wasn't your fault."

Alan looked to the ground, "I still could've killed you."

Shinichi put a comforting hand on Alan's shoulder. "Forget about it. I'm here, I'm alive, and I ain't going anywhere. So just turn that frown upside down and smile. No use crying over spilt milk. What's done is done and it all worked out for the better."

"Got any more helpful quotes?" Bazel quipped.

"Nah, I think I got it all out," said Shinichi.

'_So why am I still worried?_' thought Alan.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, the Return in the Past will undo the damage that Kaze-Gnol did in 24 hours. Even though everything went back to normal they can't take any chances. Also, Alan now holds Spark Core #05 but Gnol now has 6/8 of his full power. Anyway, we are introduced to a new character called Jin and he's apparently a powerful wind user.**


	89. The Legacy of Cain Part 33

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 33: Weekend Trip**

"So, you're going on a weekend trip with the Gaming Club?" Alan questioned.

"Pretty much, it'll just be us at the beach," said Shinichi. "Sorry I can't invite you."

"It's alright. This is just a chance for you to spend some time with your 'normal' friends," stated Alan. The Hinamizawa Gaming Club was mostly made out of people who had no superpowers. Only Hanyuu and Shinichi were the not-so-normal members but they were still part of this special group of people.

Shinichi hadn't had much time to spend with his friends like he did back when he went to school in the small Hinamizawa School. A lot had happened and those carefree days seemed like a memory. He enjoyed the afterschool club activities where they played games and executed penalty games upon the losers, usually in the form of embarrassing cosplay with Keiichi as the usual victim. Shinichi actually had a photo album dedicated to the penalty games and had pictures of all his friends in embarrassing cosplay which was their penalty for losing.

"Don't worry, I'll still keep my com-link on," Shinichi told Alan. "Whenever there's trouble you can just call me."

"Leave it off. Better yet, don't bring it with you," said Alan.

"Huh?" Shinichi stared at Alan like he was crazy. "But how am I going to keep in touch?"

"Shinichi, it's just one weekend and unlike when you first began you're not alone anymore. We've got a whole team of Kamen Riders and there's me, Yuji and…Yuri." Alan grimaced as he recalled how Yuri had shown up with GaoTyranno and then made GaoTyranno Rex teabag the Orochi of Darkness. That had been disturbing to say the least.

"So, everything will be fine?" asked Shinichi. "I mean…I thought heroes aren't supposed to go on vacation. Evil never sleeps so heroes can't, or something like that."

"We're only human, and a vacation helps us to relax and then come back to our duties completely refreshed and ready to tackle all challenges. You need this, Shinichi. I mean you have been kind of stressed lately," Alan said.

"How about you take your advice and go on a little vacation yourself?" Shinichi suggested.

"Well, I did make plans with the girls," said Alan. "I was thinking we all take a trip somewhere."

"Yeah, you and the girls spend all day having orgies. That would be relaxing," retorted Shinichi sarcastically.

"You're just jealous," Alan shot back.

"Of you? You have Conda and that woman is still giving me the glare whenever I visit," Shinichi remarked with a snort. "Besides, I've got to handle a schedule and spend time with Rena-chan, Shawna-chan and even Satan-chan."

"You love them."

"Hell yeah, I do. I mean they know the risks of being with me. They deserve my affection in return."

"Well, have a great trip, Shinichi."

* * *

The Teleportal came to life and Chiaki exited. He let out a tired sigh as he stepped into the main hall of the Hive.

"_Welcome back, Chiaki,"_ Sheila greeted.

"Yeah, great to be back and I need to rest," said Chiaki.

"_Where is Yokoshima? I believe he went with you to deal with the disturbance."_

A villain calling himself the Polarizer had been wreaking havoc and since Yokoshima and Chiaki had been the closest to the disturbance they had both dealt with the villain.

"About that, Yokoshima and I have…gotten attached," Chiaki answered.

"_Explain, please."_

Chiaki turned around and stuck to his back was Yokoshima. Due to the height difference, Yokoshima's feet were dangling from the ground. "Hi, Sheila."

The elevator door opened and Daichi exited. "Sheila, could you turn…on…the…" He fell silent as he saw Yokoshima stuck to Chiaki's back. "What the fuck happened to you?"

"Well, Chiaki and I had to deal with this bad guy called the Polarizer and I mistakenly assume that this guy had ice powers," answered Yokoshima. "I was wrong."

"So this guy has magnetic powers and he magnetized you," Daichi guessed.

"How did you know?" Yokoshima asked.

Daichi replied, "The clues are staring right in front of me, and there's the obvious name. I mean 'The Polarizer'? Anyway, how long are you both gonna be stuck like that?"

"We're not sure. I suppose we need to wait it out until the affects wear off," said Chiaki.

"Well, you'll have to excuse me," said Daichi as he turned around and reentered the elevator. Seconds later, howling laughter could be heard behind the door.

"You know, this kinda reminds me of what happened with you and Hanyuu, but opposite," said Yokoshima.

Chiaki frowned. He disliked that incident very much. To be unable to touch the girl he loved had been painful. However, being stuck like this wasn't a better alternative.

"Sheila, any solutions?" asked Chiaki.

"_I would suggest going to the lab and ask for assistance from Dr. Magi and/or Dr. Washam."_

"Why don't you ask your girlfriend to fix this?" Yokoshima asked.

"Hanyuu-chan's going on a weekend trip with her friends. I didn't think we should disturb her," said Chiaki.

"Wait, and she didn't invite _you_?"

Chiaki shrugged, "It's a Gaming Club thing."

Yokoshima argued, "We're Gaming Club too!"

"We were just extra players they needed from time-to-time, not official members. Now, let's go and see the doctors. They should be able to separate us."

* * *

The group promised to meet up at the train station in Shishibone City. The young Head of the Sonozaki Clan was tapping her foot impatiently, crossing her arms.

"They're late," said Mion. Their group was missing four people.

"Relax, Mion," soothed Keiichi. "They'll be here. I mean there's no way he'd miss a trip to the beach."

"Oh, I know that, but he should know than to keep me waiting."

"Guys!" said Shinichi as he ran over to his friends with Rena at his side. Rika and Hanyuu were also following close behind.

"You're late. I was about to give you a penalty," Mion warned. She was with her boyfriend Keiichi while Shion was with her boyfriend Satoshi. The blond boy stood between his girlfriend and his sister, Satoko.

"Keep on dreaming, Mion," said Shinichi. "Huh, Shogo?"

Shogo Kuso, #00 of the NEO-NUMBERS and also the Wasp Rider stood dutifully at Mion's side. He was dressed in one of the standard suits worn by bodyguards of the Sonozaki Clan and he took his duty seriously.

"I'm here to see Mion-sama and Shion-sama off," said Shogo.

"Oh, so you're not coming with us," Shinichi said.

"No, I won't. Therefore, I'm leaving their safety to you," said Shogo, but there seemed to be a threat laced in-between his words.

"I'll keep that in mind." He saw that everyone had carried their luggage in either backpacks or duffel bags. "So, Mion, where are we headed?"

"Oh, just this little seaside town," said Mion.

"There's the train," Satoko pointed. The train pulled up at their platform and the group boarded before taking their seats. Shogo waved and watched them go as the train pulled out of the station a couple of minutes later.

Shogo left the station and got into his car. In a flash of gold light his girlfriend now appeared seated next to him. "So, if they're gonna have a weekend trip, what about us?"

Shogo leaned in and whispered into her ea and she gasped. "Really?"

"Yes, and it's tonight and 2100 hours," he told her. "Just you and me, and music. Maybe dancing too."

"Have I ever told you how sweet you are?" questioned Lucifer rhetorically.

* * *

The train, after a couple of hours, stopped at their destination. They all stepped out of the train with Hanyuu rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. They exited the station and took taxis to the inn they would be staying in.

Rena and Shinichi, finding their room put down their luggage. "Ah…" Rena said as she walked out onto the balcony and took in the sea breeze. The inn had a great view of the beach. "It's wonderful, isn't it?"

Shinichi came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, "Yeah, it is. I needed this. We all needed this."

Rena turned and put her hands on his shoulders before giving him a kiss. They broke the kiss after almost a minute to breathe. "I'm going to go check up on Hanyuu-chan and Rika-chan."

"You're such a good brother," she said. '_And one day you might make a good father_,' she added mentally. She watched him go and giggled before she went and opened her duffel bag. There was something special she wanted to wear for him tonight.

* * *

Shinichi came to the room that Hanyuu, Rika and Satoko were sharing. Since they had a odd number of people in their group, with three couples included, the three high school girls had to share a room that was meant for only two. However, there was enough space so there wasn't an issue.

"So, you all ready for the beach?" asked Shinichi.

"Shinichi-san, is the only reason you're asking is because you want us to pose in our swimsuits?" Satoko teased.

"If you're offering, then yeah," he returned the tease. There was no way he would be serious about flirting with Satoko. She was Satoshi's little sister and the sister of a bro was off limits.

The Bro Code was sacred and must not be violated…with exception.

"Au, I can't wait to go to the beach!" said Hanyuu. "I even brought a beach ball in my bag," said Hanyuu as she unzipped his duffel bag. Something spherical suddenly popped right out.

"_Wooh! That was stuffy!_" said AI-Shin. He looked out the balcony. "_So, we're finally at the beach? Nice!_"

"Shin!" gasped Hanyuu.

Shinichi's wide eyes narrowed as he looked at the robotic sphere which housed the AI that represented his memories. "What were you doing in Hanyuu-chan's bag?"

The Sphere-Droid looked at his counterpart and answered, "Oh, Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan said you were all coming to the beach and I didn't want to miss out."

"Hanyuu-chan, next time you should check your bag for stowaways," Shinichi advised his adopted sister.

"Sorry," she apologized.

"Aw…I can't stay mad at you," Shinichi said, patting her head affectionately.

"So, what are you going to be doing?" Satoko asked the sphere. It wasn't like he could do anything. He was just a big, metal ball.

"_Oh, lots of things_," said AI-Shin, chuckling. "_My photo album needs refreshing_." Like Shinichi he was also a pervert but unlike Shinichi he wasn't as inhibited.

"As long as you don't take any nudes," Shinichi warned. "I don't want Kaa-chan getting ideas."

"_You and I both know she doesn't need pictures to fuel her imagination. She has her husband and-"_

"Too much info!" Shinichi cut AI-Shin off. He didn't want to relive the trauma of _that_ night.

* * *

The group quickly got into their swimsuits and ran onto the beach. Since it was summer vacation there were a lot of people at the beach too. Girls sported the latest and trendiest in swimsuits, not to mention the skimpiest. Satoshi and Keiichi admired the view but then snapped their heads towards the girls.

Mion was wearing a red bikini and her twin sister wore a blue halter-style swimsuit. Rena was wearing a black bikini with the top knotted in the front and the bottoms knotted on the sides. Satoko wore a sporty one-piece which showed off her curves. Hanyuu also wore a one-piece that was white and red. Finally, Rika was in a pink string-tie bikini that tempted anyone to pull the strings to expose more than what had already been exposed.

Shinichi had to admit that all the girls were attractive but his eyes were completely focused on Rena who made him drool with lust. There were rock formations and he wondered if he could get Rena behind them in private for a little action.

"Rika-chan, why do you have binoculars?" asked Shinichi.

"Oh, Mion said this place was known for having surfers visit and I wanted to check them out," said Rika. True enough there were surfers riding the waves. The young head of the Furude Clan then went off to get a closer look but Shinichi couldn't ignore the fact that there were guys ogling her as she walked by.

"I'll come with you!" Shinichi called. As an older brother he was to protect his younger sister. Of course seeing as they shared no family resemblance, people would assume they were a couple. That was one way to drive off some perverted asshole after some tail.

Rika stood at the beach and looked through her binoculars and gasped.

"What is it?" Shinichi asked.

Rika pointed, "Look!"

Shinichi turned to look towards the sea and saw a surfer riding the wave. He focused his telescopic vision and then cocked an eyebrow. "Kai?"

Kai Inazuma, the Manakyte of Lightning, was riding the wave like a professional. He was well-balanced on his board as the wind blew through his spiky hair.

Rika couldn't help but gaze adoringly through her binoculars.

Coming ashore with his board tucked under his arm, Kai spotted the brother-sister pair. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Yeah, what a surprise. What brings you here?" asked Shinichi.

"Oh, the waves, the sun, but mostly the waves," answered Kai. "Hello, Landlord-san."

"Kai-san, you can just call me Rika."

"OK, Rika," said Kai and Rika blushed.

Shinichi looked between the two of them oddly.

* * *

"Man I need this," said Keiichi as he slowly submerged himself into the warm water.

"That's true," said Satoshi. "The girls totally murdered us in the volleyball game."

"Well, we would've won if someone…" Keiichi threw a glare at Shinichi, "Would've volunteered."

"Sorry, but if I joined in you'd have an unfair advantage," Shinichi reasoned. He then saw Keiichi moving over to the bamboo fence. "Uh, what are you doing?" He saw Keiichi trying to peek through a gap in the fence.

"The girls are on the other side," Keiichi said.

"Uh, Keiichi…" began Satoshi worriedly.

"What?" Keiichi asked and then he felt a terrifying chill before turning around. He saw Shinichi glaring at him and his right arm had converted into its drill mode.

"Step away from the fence," Shinichi warned. Keiichi gulped and moved away from the fence.

"Shin, you gotta admit this is a standard practice," Keiichi defended himself.

"Maybe so, but two of the girls on the other side are my sisters and one of them is my girlfriend. I will not and shall not allow you to perv all over them," said Shinichi.

"Oh, so you're not a pervert?" Keiichi challenged.

"Me? Of course I'm a pervert! I like collecting and reading pornographic magazines and even watching pornographic videos. Sometimes when Rena-chan isn't looking I like to sniff her underwear. Heck, I even jack off to naked pictures of her. However, what I will not do is peep at girls who do not want to be peeped. That's just wrong. Models in magazines and actresses in a porno are fine because they consented to it. Does that make me any better than most pervs? I'd like to think so," Shinichi said.

Satoshi and Keiichi just stared at Shinichi before lightly grimacing. Shinichi had listed some of the perverted things he did proudly and without hesitation.

"Hey, where's that metal eyeball go?" asked Satoshi.

Shinichi blinked and groaned, "Ugh…don't tell me…"

* * *

AI-Shin was hovering around in the women's side of the hot spring. "_Oh yeah, this is gonna be sweet_," he chuckled softly. While he was an AI based on Shinichi's memories he lacked Shinichi's inhibitions. "_Now, ladies, show papa what you got_," he said. He was in cloaking mode so he wouldn't be seen.

"Wow, Mii-chan, you've gotten bigger. Shii-chan too," That sounded like Rena.

"Well, thanks, but you're developing nicely too," replied Mion.

"How about we compare sizes?" suggested Shion.

"Shion, you're so naïve. It's not just about the size. It's about firmness too," Mion replied. "And I think mine are nice and firm."

"We'll see about that, Onee."

The steam was really messing with his vision so he couldn't see. He tried to peer closer and his eyes spotted the girls. The girls were revealed and Mion was standing up…

…Only to reveal that she was in a swimsuit!

"_NO!_" AI-Shin shouted but then he realized he'd made a noise. "_Oh shit!_"

"Hey, did you hear something?" Rika asked. She like the rest of the girls was wearing a swimsuit.

"You're right," Hanyuu said as she scanned and then she saw something. The steam had condensed on the surface of AI-Shin's round body. "THERE!"

"Huh? I don't see anything," said Satoko.

"There's a perverted metal ball!"

"_OH CRAP! GOTTA RUN!_" AI-Shin tried to flee but Hanyuu grabbed him and spun him around to face her. In his terror he deactivated his cloaking mode. "Oh…hey…Hanyuu…" AI-Shin said nervously. She smiled wickedly and then dunked him into the water. "_HEY! STOP! YOU'LL GET WATER IN MY CIRUITS! GLUB! GLUB!_" She pulled him back up.

"**Go away**," she said dangerously as she radiated with the fury of a goddess. AI-Shin decided that self-preservation was more important than getting off and he flew away, screaming.

* * *

Mion managed to book the dining hall for their group and they had dinner together. Dinner also included sake and Rika started drinking.

"Are you sure you should be drinking?" Shinichi asked.

Rika glanced at him and shrugged, "I've been doing this before I hit puberty."

"Really?"

"It's relaxing," said Rika. "Hanyuu, however…"

Hanyuu was passed out after only a single cup of sake.

"Yeah, for a goddess she really can't hold her liquor. Speaking of which…" He looked to Mion who was swaying on her feet.

"Minna-san~ It's great that we're all together (hic)! Now, as a special treat I will do a striptease~" Mion started to take of her yukata.

"TAKE IT OFF! TAKE IT OFF!" AI-Shin and Shinichi cheered together.

"Mion, no!" Keiichi went up and stopped her.

"Oh, Kei-chan~" she cooed. "I didn't know you wanted to play~"

"Huh?" She then pressed her lips against his, surprising him. They topped to the ground and Mion suddenly fell asleep.

"ZZZZZZZZZZZZ…" she snored.

"How much did she drink?" Rika asked.

"I think she drank 10 cups before that happened," said Shinichi.

"Lightweight," snorted Rika.

Shinichi scooted over to Rena. "Say, Rena-chan, the hot springs won't be occupied tonight, right?"

"I don't think so," said Rena.

Shinichi whispered into her ear and she gasped. She then smiled with a blush and leaned against him.

"Shion, stop trying to take off my clothes!" wailed Satoshi.

"Come on, Satoshi-kun! You know you want it!" Shion cried out.

"But not in front of my sister!"

"Can I join in Nii-nii?" asked Satoko.

"No!" Satoshi denied.

"Yay, the more the merrier!" Shion answered.

* * *

Shiro Juuyon stood in front of the house with a look of pure evil on his face. He touched the door which repelled him. He saw a talisman had been taped to it and snorted before drawing Oathbreaker. A single swing of the weapon broke the barrier.

"Now, let's see how 13 handles it when he sees his entire family slaughtered," said Shiro as he opened the door, only to be staring into the barrel of a shotgun. "Huh?"

"Hello, and goodbye," Kasai said as he pulled the trigger.

**BLAMMO!**

"ARGH!-!-!" Shiro screamed as he was blasted in the face and knocked backwards by several feet. He put his hand over half his face which had been damaged as Kasai cocked his shotgun again. "I dare you to do that again-"

**BLAMMO!**

This time Shiro was hit in the chest and knocked back several feet until he was at the entrance of the property. "Kuso…" he growled. What hit him? As far as he was concerned his bullet proof, unless…

"My stepson gave me special ammo to deal with the likes of you," said Kasai as he cocked his shotgun again. "It looks like it worked."

Shiro drew the Oathbreaker, revealing that the first bullet had taken out his right eye. "For that you get to die first!" He was about to charge only to be hauled backwards by a hand gripping the back of his shirt. He was spun around and staring at Alan. "Oh…fuck."

**WHAM!**

Alan hit Shiro with an uppercut that ejected him out of the property and blasted him into LEO (Low Earth Orbit), screaming. He then turned into a speck and was out of sight. **(In the immortal words of Team Rocker members Jessie and James: "We're blasting off again!-!-!")**

Alan watched Shiro vanish into the sky before greeting Kasai, "Hey Kasai."

"Good evening," Kasai replied.

"How's the arm?" asked Alan.

"It feels good as new. It's a good thing it came off just today," said Kasai. "I haven't held a gun in weeks and I'm glad I was able to do so now." He cocked his shotgun again. "Nobody comes after my wife and kid and gets away with it."

Shiori was coming downstairs, frantic, "Anata, what happened?"

"Oh, I was just getting rid of a pest," said Kasai. "Oh, and Alan came."

"I'm here to babysit like you asked," said Alan.

"Oh, thank you," smiled Shiori. "Come on in."

Alan smiled and entered. He saw Sho sitting on the floor with building blocks. "Hey, little guy." Sho looked up at him and blinked.

* * *

Shiro plummeted back to Earth and crashed into the roof of a building and exited out of the ceiling before landing in water with a loud splash. His head shot out, sputtering, and he growled, "Dammit…" He then found himself in the women's side of a public bathhouse. Normally he would rejoice his luck. Unfortunately, the bathhouse was offering a promotion. Today it was 50 percent off for all senior citizens and so the women that were in the bath with him were old and wrinkly.

He screamed in horror at the sight and injustice of it all, "AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH! MY EYES!"

* * *

Later that night, with the moon hovering in the night's sky and after putting Rena to bed, Shinichi ventured off towards the beach. He watched as the waves crashed against the tall, rocky structures which decorated the shoreline. The sight of water reminded him of the battle against the Orochi of Water and a hard lesson learnt through experience.

Water, like fire, could be friend and foe. All living things needed water but too much of it could kill them. A big enough tsunami had the strength to topple even the mightiest of buildings and wipe out many lives without mercy.

He was like a tsunami himself. According to memories he held when he'd been a member of GIN-SHOCKER, he could defeat entire armies effortlessly. Of course that would be an exaggeration. He never actually got out of those messes unscathed. There was one time when he'd been badly wounded while protecting Daichi/#08.

Shinichi stared out towards the sea then up at the sea of stars which decorated the darkness. The stars were light within the infinite void of space. That was something he envied about Alan. The Green Lantern could freely travel into space. The last time Shinichi had gone into space was when he had to rescue Hanyuu, Maria and Alice. That day was also when he finally found closure.

As Shinichi was deep in his thoughts, he heard a melody. Curious, he looked around for the source and then spotted a figure standing upon one of the rocks. Shinichi could only see a silhouette but the voice was definitely female.

And it was a lovely one at that.

His heart began to race as he continued to gaze upon the lovely creature and after a single blink she was gone.

Had that been an illusion? Or…was it the ghost that he'd heard from this town's local rumors?

Shinichi didn't know but he didn't feel an unpleasant chill at all.

* * *

The next, after breakfast, the gang spent another day at the beach, having fun. When noon came they went to the beach snack bar for lunch.

"You know, the fried noodles here are always greasy," mentioned Satoko.

"Yeah, and the fried chicken also has too many spices," added Rena.

"And the curry's really runny. Chie-sensei would hate it," said Mion.

"I don't think so," objected Satoshi. "I don't think she cares as long as gets to eat curry."

Everyone who knew of their teacher's love for curry nodded in agreement.

Shinichi was eating a bit of everything. His plate had curry with rice, yakisoba fried chicken, sausages and yakitori. As a cyborg he had a faster metabolism and needed to eat to replenish his energy. Still, the food was edible.

"Well, I'm going to take surfing lessons from Kai-san," said Rika as she got up after finishing her food. She left money and ran to find Kai.

Shion teased, "Hey, Shin-chan, looks like Rika-chan's gonna find herself a boyfriend."

"So? She's at that age where she should start dating," responded Shinichi. He was just glad that Rika wasn't trying to hit on him and/or get into his pants like before. Still, as an older brother, he felt obligated to be a little overprotective of his younger sister.

* * *

There was a summer festival going on in town and the group decided to go. The boys were simply dressed in t-shirts and pants while the girls had on lovely yukatas. Rika had invited Kai along and he was only happy to accept the invitation.

Everyone went off in different directions in pairs; Shion, Mion and Rena were with their respective boyfriends, leaving Hanyuu with Satoko. Rika wanted to tour the festival grounds with Kai.

"So, what goes on at these festivals?" asked Kai. He'd never been to a summer festival.

Rika suggested, "First we try out all the food."

And they did. They had eaten takoyaki, yakisoba, barbequed squid on a stick, candied apples, cotton candy and even choco-bananas.

Kai barely had any space left after that and was staggering while holding his stomach, groaning, "Too much food…can't beat anymore…but so good…"

Rika looked at Kai, puzzled. "I thought you Manakytes could eat a lot. And did you have to put extra salt on everything?" She meant everything, including the candy.

"Fudo's the one who eats a lot. And as to why I eat a lot of salt, sodium helps me charge easier?"

"How does that work?" Rika asked. Super-powered beings were a curious subject to her. Hanyuu would be the first and then Shinichi. Not long after the NEO-NUMBERS came into their lives.

"When I was young, the doctors found an extra organ in me that generated ambient amounts of electricity that would normally roast a normal human. When I got sick once, it was due to a lack of sodium so that organ was draining my body in order to regulate the voltage my body put out. Because of that I had to consume five times the amount of sodium I lose each day."

Rika had another question, "I see. So, how did you end up in this world?"

"I got abducted by some cult back on the island. Next thing I saw was a silver wall before I blacked out."

"Do you ever think of going back?" The thought of him leaving saddened her.

"Not really. My parents are gone and I didn't have any friends back home, just posers."

"And here?"

"I like it. It's nice, peaceful." He glanced at Rika, "And the people are good."

Rika blushed and asked some more, "So…how's work?" Kai had gotten a job at Angel Mort. He would wash the dishes in the back, mop the floor and also acted as a bouncer to kick out customers who went too far and tried to grope the waitresses.

"Kicking out idiots has never felt so fun," said Kai, smiling.

"I'm glad Mion and Shion's uncle gave you that job."

"I like the place, and the outfits are pretty cool. Too bad I don't have the legs for it."

Rika giggled at his joke. "But are you alright with working for minimum wage? I saw what you did out there. You have real talent. You could be a surf instructor."

"If anyone asks, then I'll teach. You shouldn't have to pay for learning how to surf. It's an experience, not an item," he said sagely.

"So, does that mean you could teach me?" she asked hopefully.

"All you need is a board."

Rika smiled "Hey, can I ask why you love the water so much?"

"My dad was a fisherman and he always took me out on his boat."

"But you're a lightning user."

"I know. It was weird when it first happened. I felt power flowing through me but it didn't hurt."

"What else can you do?"

"I can see your aura, like a layer of blue lightning. It actually makes you look cuter." Rika blushed in response. "Every living thing has an electrical field surrounding them and I can see it. The stronger that person is, the brighter the field surrounding them."

"Wow."

"But that friend of yours, Alan was it? Yeah, when I look at his electrical field I can barely look at him because his is so damn bright. It's like staring into the sun," Kai added. "I can also stick to surfaces using static electricity as well as stick a target to a surface."

"Glad to have you on our side." She spotted a line of game booth. "Hey, let's try out some games."

The first booth they visited was a goldfish scooping booth. Kai grumbled as he tried to scoop the fish but they tore through the paper of his scoop. "Damn stupid fish won't stop jiggling."

"It's all in the wrist," said Rika as she demonstrated, scooping the fish up into her bowl.

"Guess you've had more practice."

* * *

Keiichi tossed the tennis ball but missed the pyramid of stacked bottles by a large margin.

"Dude," chuckled Shinichi, "That was the worst throw, ever, of all time. I thought you played baseball."

"This game is rigged," grumbled Keiichi.

"Oh, yeah, blame the game and not your lack of skill," Shinichi rolled his eyes.

"Why don't you try?" Keiichi dared. Shinichi cocked an eyebrow.

"Kei, if you wanna dare me to do anything make it a bigger challenge," Shinichi scoffed confidently. "I could do this with one arm behind my back and blindfolded."

"Then how about you put your money where your mouth is and do just that?" Keiichi challenged. "Put one arm behind your back and put on a blindfold.

"Seriously? How much are we betting?"

Keiichi offered, "1,000 yen."

"Make it 2,000," Shinichi raised the stakes. "And I'll even put on a pretty princess dress when we get back home."

"3,000 and you'll have to put on the wig and tiara," Keiichi upped the stakes again.

Shinichi snickered, "Oh, Kei, Kei, Kei…you have no idea how fucked you are." He placed down money for three tennis balls. Then he tied his scarf around his eyes and put one arm behind his back. He felt around for a tennis ball and gripped it. Keiichi, Mion and Rena watched in anticipation as the Kaizo Ningen drew his arm back and threw.

The ball crashed against the bottles, knocking them all down.

"Beginner's luck," Keiichi dismissed.

"Kei-chan, it looks like you're gonna lose some money, and have to put on a dress," Mion teased.

There were still three stacked pyramids of bottles left so Shinichi picked up another tennis ball and blindly tossed it, knocking down the second set of bottles. Keiichi began to sweat. Picking up the final ball, Shinichi just lobbed it and it hit. The bottles went down when the ball crashed into them.

Shinichi removed his blindfold and heard applause coming from the crowd. Keiichi was grimacing as Rena went and hugged him. A big teddy bear was given to him as a grand prize.

"Kawaii~ Omochikaeri~!" cheered Rena as she hugged the teddy bear.

Shinichi looked to Keiichi with a smirk and asked, "So, Keiichi, what's your dress size?"

"I hate you," Keiichi deadpanned.

"Pay up, Kei-chan," reminded Mion. Keiichi grumbled and took out his wallet and fished out three 1,000 yen bills which Shinichi eagerly accepted.

"Kei, consider this a lesson," said Shinichi as he counted his winnings, "Never, ever challenge Kaizo Ningen to anything. The one with the advantage _always_ wins. I thought you knew that by now."

"All I know is that you should be out of practice," Keiichi shot back.

"Kei, I'm always practicing and all because of my priorities," answered Keiichi.

"And what are your priorities, Shin-chan?" Mion asked curiously.

"Oh, saving the world, protecting my loves ones and innocents, and getting L-A-I-D," Shinichi listed.

Mion and Keiichi rolled their eyes, thinking, 'Thought so.'

As Shinichi was chuckling he felt a tug on the back of his shirt. Thinking it was Rena, only that it wasn't since she was standing to his right, he turned and saw someone else he cared for. "Satan-chan," he said, surprised to see the Stake of Wrath and even more surprised to see her in a yukata. _'Wow, she looks great! I should've brought my camera!'_

"Don't gawk," she chided.

"Why not? You look hot," he complimented.

"You look really cute, Satan-chan," added Rena.

"Thanks," said Satan.

"Hey, how about we all go someplace else?" Shinichi suggested as he put his hands around the girls' waists, pulling them close. He then walked with them away from Keiichi and Mion.

"Don't even think about it," Mion warned Keiichi.

"What?" Keiichi questioned.

"Just because Shin-chan has a harem doesn't mean I'll let you have one," Mion concluded.

"But I wasn't thinking that! Hey, Mion! Wait up!"

* * *

"And it was actually just a ruse the entire time," Rika finished. She was just finishing telling Kai the story of when Shinichi had pretended to be High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER.

"Looks like your group has had a lot of adventures," said Kai.

"Well, even before we met Shinichi life has been interesting," said Rika. By interesting, she meant heartbreaking. Even though the curse of the Endless June in 1983 had been broken she would always remember each and every time she had died. "It just got more intense."

"So, how does it feel to have a Kamen Rider in the family?" Kai asked.

"You mean Shinichi?" Rika asked. "Well, I don't think it's any different from any other profession. It's just that Shinichi tries so hard to protect people." She knew Shinichi did all that to redeem himself for his past sins as BLACK 13. "At least he's happy now."

"You care about him, don't you?" Kai asked.

"I care for each and every one of my friends," she answered. She saw fireworks being shot into the sky before exploding into a pattern of bright colors. "Looks like the fireworks show has just started. We should go and get a closer look."

* * *

"TAMAYA!"

"KAGIYA!"

Everyone had gone down to the beach to watch the fireworks show. However, in the middle of it, Satan, Shinichi and Rena had snuck off to the nearby woods to have some privacy.

* * *

She was hiding in the bushes. The girl had only been in the forest to investigate something when she heard sounds nearby. Her curiosity got the better of her and she was treated to a show of a lifetime. She couldn't tear her eyes away as she saw one man have sex with two different girls. She knew it was wrong to spy on others but she was rooted to the spot and unable to make herself leave until the very end. She watched as the pale-haired girl was taken from behind and crying out as the man pounded into her. Then she watched as the brunette was taken in the same way only with a leg lifted up, giving her a clear view of the male's thing entering the female.

There was no way she could forget such a sight in her entire life. She didn't think she would be able to sleep tonight and even if she did those images would haunt her dreams. She closed her eyes and began praying to make those images go away.

"_This is so awesome,"_ she heard and stiffened. Was someone else watching? The voice sounded like it was right next to her. She carefully turned her head and gasped. Floating next to her was a metal eye. The eye turned and looked straight at her. _"Oh…er…I didn't know this bush was occupied,"_ the metal eye said. _"Whasup?"_

She let out a cry of fright.

* * *

"Did you girls hear something?" Shinichi asked the two girls who were snuggling up to him. They seemed ignorant to everything save for the warmth of his embrace.

"Only the beating of our hearts…" sighed Satan.

Shinichi couldn't help but smile when he heard that. Satan used to be filled with anger until they started growing close. Now she was like a regular girl in love.

Suddenly, the peace was interrupted by a loud scream.

* * *

The people on the beach who wear watching the fireworks show were under attack and the assailant wasn't a group of thugs making trouble. Heck, the assailant wasn't even human. It was a giant spider with a head of an ox! It was as Ushi-Oni!

The monster had come ashore from the ocean and was hungry. It looked around with its eight eyes for prey among the stragglers and licked its sharp teeth. It then saw a little girl trip. It had found its prey.

The child trembled as the Ushi-Oni loomed over her hungrily. It opened its mouth to devour her only to be sent flying by a violent kick in the side, sending the creature rolling away. Showa reached over to the child and helped her up. The girl looked up at her savior's masked face and then passed her over to her mother and told them, "Run! Get out of here!" The mother didn't think twice as she ran with her daughter who stared back in astonishment.

Showa looked towards the Ushi-Oni with red glowing red eyes. His fists were clenched as he got into a stance and prepared for battle. "Darkloid," he uttered, recognizing the Ushi-Oni for what it truly was.

The Ushi-Oni Darkloid roared and charged towards Showa as Showa remained at his spot. In his experience Darkloids, with a few exceptions, were mindless beasts who were simply driven by instinct. This bull-headed and spider-legged creature was no different from those vicious beasts which he had defeated years prior.

The creature opened its maw and lunged at Showa to swallow him whole but he rotated his right arm and shouted, "Eat this! My Knuckle Sandwich Special!" His entire right arm grew and his fist swelled up as they became covered in thick metal. With a swing, the Great Fist collided with the side Ushi-Oni's head, knocking it down with a loud crash.

Dazed and snarling, the creature started to get back up but Showa wasn't about to allow it to resume its rampage. He undid the Great Fist and summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba. With a swift swing, he cleaved the creature's head in half. The cut emitted a green glow and the Ushi-Oni Darkloid howled as it exploded. He flicked the unholy black blood off his blade and put the sword on his shoulder.

He turned to leave when he heard someone shout, "Wait!" He stopped and turned around to see a girl close to his age with short brown hair and black eyes. She was dressed in a white t-shirt with a knee-length pleated skirt, white socks and white sneakers. Between her fingers were paper charms (shikigami) in the shape of people. She asked cautiously, "Are you…are you an ayakashi?" She could sense Yoki faintly coming off the Kamen Rider.

"Ayakashi?" he responded. "Chigau. Ayakashi janai. Ore wa…Kamen Rider da."

"Kamen…Rider…?" she questioned.

"Torisugari no Kamen Rider da," he clarified. "Oboetoke." He then spread his wings and took off.

"Matte!" she shouted but he was already out of sight. "Kamen Rider…?"

* * *

"I'm back!" When Shinichi returned to the Hive via Teleportal, he asked, "So, anything interesting happen while I was gone?" He saw that Shogo, Daichi, Yokoshima, Michiru and Hana were holding icepacks to their heads. He saw Yuji present too and asked, "What happened to them?"

Yuji answered, "Shinichi, it's a long story."

Yuji answered, "Shinichi, it's a long story."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: What DID happen while Shinichi was away with his friends?**


	90. The Legacy of Cain Part 34

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 34: The Midas Touch**

A fly wouldn't be something to worry about. It was just a small insect. The most it did was annoy people. However, what worries people are the germs they carry upon their bodies as they land on food. Also, flies would lay their eggs on rotting food, giving birth to maggots (gross). Of course, the fly that had just entered the Hive wasn't a normal fly. It was made completely out of metal.

It was undetectable as it landed on the wall, scanning the main hall. It then spotted someone coming out of the elevator with a yawn. It was Yokoshima. "Huh, this isn't the cafeteria," he mumbled. He then went back around and the fly followed him into the elevator. It landed on his shirt and it stayed there as Yokoshima reached the cafeteria to grab a late night snack. After he was done he went back into the elevator up to the floor where the living quarters were set up. He scratched his butt as he reached his room and entered before crawling into bed. The metal fly remained on him before it crawled over to the back of his neck. The tip of its legs then pierced the skin and remained there.

Tomorrow, chaos would begin.

* * *

**The following day, outside the base…**

"Have you noticed that since this morning Yokoshima's been acting weird?" Shogo asked.

"What do you mean?" Hana asked.

"Well, he's been telling me these random threatening things. Like when I said 'good morning' to him he told me to go to hell and stick a pitch fork up my ass," said Shogo.

Michiru walked over and said, "That's nothing. He told me he was going to bend me over and rape my ass. I dunno if he was joking but I got the hell out of there quickly."

"Hey, what's going on?" Daichi asked as he walked over.

"Yokoshima's been acting weird," Hana, Michiru and Shogo answered together.

"How weird?" Daichi asked.

"He's been randomly threatening us, and his voice keeps changing. It sounds deep whenever he does it," said Shogo.

"Where is he now?" asked Daichi. He then heard something and turned around to see the tank. "Is that our tank? Who's driving it?"

* * *

**BLAMMO! BOOM!**

"RETREAT!"

"Oh crap, oh crap, of crap!"

Michiru, Hana, Daichi and Shogo were running for their lives as they were being chased by the tank.

"**YES, RUN! RUN YOU MORONS! RUN IN FEAR!" **shouted Yokoshima from within the tank. **"EAT MY TANK SHELLS OF DEATH!"**

The four NEO-NUMBERS continued to run and fled back into the base before sealing all the entrances.

"What…the…HELL!-?" Michiru huffed. "Was that Yokoshima?"

"It looked like him, but it didn't sound like him," said Hana.

"I think he went nuts," observed Shogo.

"Gee, ya think?" Daichi shot back. "Sheila, what's wrong with Yokoshima?"

"_I am unsure, but he appears to be showing psychotic rage_," reported Sheila.

"Yeah, we realized that when he started blasting us with our own tank!" Daichi snapped. "Where are Doc Magi and Doc Washam?"

"_They are away right now_."

"Oh…that's just great." He asked Shogo, "Aren't you supposed to be the leader while Shinichi is away?"

"I doubt I can do anything at this point!" Shogo shot back.

**BOOM!**

The Teleportal came to life and Yuji burst right into the base. He rolled along the ground and got up on one knee before pointing his gun and sword at them.

"FREEZE!" Yuji shouted, "NOBODY MOVE!"

"We're already not moving," said Shogo. "You should've said 'keep doing what you're not doing'."

"Shut up!" Yuji ordered.

"What the hell, man? What's your problem?" Daichi demanded.

"Where the hell is that little fucker?" Yuji growled.

"What are you talking about?" Shogo questioned.

"Have you guys seen a weird looking fly buzzing around?" Yuji asked.

"If you haven't noticed, we're hiding from the tank," Hana answered.

Yuji blinked, "Tank? What tank?"

**BOOM! **

The base shook from the shell impacting against it. "The tank that's outside!" Daichi yelled.

"Who's driving?" Yuji asked.

"YOKOSHIMA!" the NEO-NUMBERS yelled.

**BOOM!**

"**I WILL FEAST ON YOUR SOULS AND RAPE YOUR CARCASSES!"** roared Yokoshima.

"He's outside blasting the base with our own tank," Daichi finished.

"So…it got him," Yuji realized.

"What got him?" Shogo questioned.

"That bastard fly!" Yuji answered.

"A fly?" Michiru stared at Yuji incredulously, "You're looking for a fly with a tank-"

**BOOM!**

"With a tank out there?"

"That fucking fly is the problem! It's a mechanical fly with some kind of aggressive AI program installed that it can infect people with!" Yuji explained.

"And how do you know that?" Daichi asked.

"Because it got me earlier. I raped Reina and Melanie before Misato found it on the back of my neck. Asura was about to blast it before it took off."

"Are they okay?" Hana asked, concerned over Reina and Melanie.

"Oh, they loved every second of it. They said I haven't been that aggressive with them in months. Even did it in my Transcended form."

"**COME OUT AND PLAY, KIDDIES! COME OUT AND PLAY! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"**

"And right now that little asstard has got Yokoshima. And I think you're the best man to take it out, Shogo," said Yuji.

"I'm not going out there," said Shogo firmly.

"Look, I'll get Yokoshima out of the tank and keep him busy. That way you can get around him and snipe off that little piece of shit that's on his neck."

"How may I assist?" Sheila asked.

"Um…can you keep that thing from firing?" asked Yuji.

Sheila answered, "_I will see what I can do. Accessing manual tank controls. Access granted. Shutting down manual controls._"

"Did it work?" Michiru asked.

"**WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS! WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS! THE FUCKING CANNON DOESN'T WORK!"**

"It worked," Hana concluded.

"Sheila, open the door," ordered Shogo.

"_Affirmative."_

The door slid open and Yuji roared as he came running out, "MY TURN!" He assumed his Transcended Form and leapt onto the top of the tank. He ripped off the hatch and reached inside, pulling Yokoshima out and tossing him to the ground.

Yokoshima, with an insane look in his eyes, declared, **"SO, YOU HAVE COME TO CHALLENGE ME!-?"** In an instant he was donned in his Blue Beetle armor.

"DAMN RIGHT!" Yuji roared back.

"**FOOL! I WILL DEFEAT YOU, THEN RAPE YOUR ASS AS I LAUGH AND TAKE OVER THE WORLD! MWAHAHAHAHAHA! WITH THIS BASE I WILL BECOME KING OF THE FUCKING UNIVERSE!"**

Yuji roared and slammed into Blue Beetle and started to beat the shit out of him with his fists. He then drove a knee into his forehead before he caught him by the leg and slammed him violently into the ground, leaving a small crater as a result. He then caught him in a headlock and shouted, "VOLCANIC NOOGIEEEEE!" and have him a noogie like no other at incredible speed and heat.

"**LET ME GO! DAMN YOU! RELEASE ME!"** Blue Beetle struggled.

"SHOGO! NOW!" Yuji ordered.

Zero aimed his stingers but then stiffened. "Oh…I will do it alright." He aimed at Yuji and began firing his needles at him instead, **"EAT SHIT, FUDO! YOU DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO! I'M MY OWN BOSS!"**

Yuji took cover, leaving Blue Beetle as he shouted, "SONUVABITCH! IT'S GOT SHOGO!" He ordered, "Daichi, disorient him!"

Musician came running out and exclaimed, "Here we go!" as he slammed his Cricket Fork down against the ground. He then fired a sonic wave at Zero, stunning him and forcing him to his knees.

Zero blinked in confusion, and felt like he was having a headache, "Huh? What?"

Yuji grimaced. The fly must've jumped to someone else. But whom? He found out when he saw Musician suddenly being pinned to the ground by a spider's web.

Arachnea roared**, "FILTHY, FILTHY MALES! YOU SHALL ALL BOW DOWN TO ME!"**

"GODAMMIT!" Yuji cursed. "Michiru, keep her busy!"

Carmen jumped at Arachnea and grabbed her, causing them to go tumbling. Yuji ran over to help but then Carmen rose up and started attacking Yuji with her energy scythes. **"COME ON, LET'S PLAY! IT'S A FUN GAME!" **laughed Carmen maniacally.

Yuji exclaimed, "YEAH, MICHIRU! LET'S PLAY ALL DAY!" He held her by the shoulders and lifted her up, causing her to struggle. He then pulled her into a tight hug. She stiffened and then went limp as she turned back to normal.

"What happened?" she asked, confused. She was being hugged by Yuji.

"Are you okay?" Yuji asked the Mantis Rider.

"Ow…why did you beat me up?" Blue Beetle asked.

"Oh, you got infected by a crazy AI," said Yuji.

"Oh, that make sense."

"Where's the fly now?" asked Arachnea.

Suddenly, the base's weapon systems came online and the NEO-NUMBERS and Yuji were being blasted.

"Sheila, stop!" Blue Beetle ordered.

"**IRRADICATE ALL ORGANIC LIFE!**" Sheila roared. "**ALL OUR BASES ARE BELONG TO US!**"

"Dammit, it's got Sheila!" shouted Yuji as he ran to dodge the gunfire. He turned and fired at the guns, blowing them up. Inside the base, the fly realized that Yuji was the stronger and flew out to latch onto the back of his neck. He went stiff as the AI began to infect him.

"Oh no!" Carmen gasped.

"This isn't good," Arachnea voiced out.

"We're gonna die…" whimpered Blue Beetle.

However, Yuji reaction was different than expected, "GOTCHA!" He roared and powered up, "HORRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" The intense heat fried the mechanical fly and killed it instantly.

* * *

"And that was what happened," Yuji finished.

"Wow, that's some story. I'm sorry I missed it," said Shinichi.

"You wouldn't say that if you had our headaches…" groaned Daichi.

"So, any idea who sent it?" Shinichi asked.

"Who else?" Yuji responded.

* * *

"Looks like your plan failed," said Gnol as he saw the results of Shiro's experiment. Shiro, the bio-android clone of Shinichi swiveled around on his chair, his fingers put up in a pyramid. He was now sporting an eye-patch over his right eye which had been damaged earlier by Kasai's shotgun. He could've easily repaired it, or maybe he had and the eye-patch was merely decorative. He was wearing a white tuxedo and on his lap was a Persian. He looked like some kind of James Bond villain.

"My plan failed?" Shiro retorted. "Oh, no, no, no. My plan did not fail. You see that was just a test which proves that I can control the NEO-NUMBERS and anyone with my AI-implanted mechanical flies." He held up a jar filled with more of the mechanical insects. "These little bugs are each implanted with an AI that will infect the host and cause them to become aggressive. Since the prototype worked so well I was thinking of letting loose these little babies."

"So, why don't you?" Gnol asked.

"Patience, Gnol," said Shiro as he scratched his cat between the ears.

"And must you really wear that eye-patch?" Gnol asked. "Your eye has been repaired."

"It makes me look cool," Shiro reasoned. Gnol rolled his eyes.

"Whatever. Now, when do we revive my next fragment?" asked Gnol. Shiro turned and tapped the keyboard as the large screen showed a map of the world. Shiro then zoomed in on the next site they would visit, which was a goldmine in the Atacama Desert, Chile. It was where the Head of Metal was sealed.

"Once this Spark Core becomes active then we revive this head," said Shiro as he held up a Spark Core marked with VI, the Roman numeral for six. It had once belonged to Jin Majutsushi, aka Petrifer (#06) of the NUMBERS. "For now let us be patient. We both know they can't break open the seal. Even that Hanyuu girl is incapable of breaking open those seals since she wasn't the one who originally put them. She could only reinforce them. Of course, seals are no problem to me." He still had the Oathbreaker and it was still good for use. It had only gotten stronger since breaking the barrier around the Kusanagi.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS, Hanyuu, Yuji and Alan had been summoned to the Hive for a special briefing session. Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam had the floor as they sat at the conference table. The large screen showed the images of Gnol Gnauh and Shiro and how they looked the last time. Shiro's images in his human and WHITE 14 forms were shown first as they took up the screen.

"Shiro Juuyon, aka WHITE 14 has acquired a mystical sword known as the Oathbreaker," began Dr. Magi, "He has been using this sword to break open the seals of the Orochi Heads in order to revive them using the Spark Cores. From what Shinichi has gathered, the Oathbreaker gains power for each seal it breaks but in exchange the wielder's life force is used as payment. Therefore, WHITE 14 is using his lifespan as payment."

"That would be good if it weren't for his partner," added Dr. Washam as images of Gnol Gnauh took over the screen. The first set of images showed what he'd looked like during New Year's Day. The second set showed what he looked like when Yuji, Alan and Shinichi had encountered him last. "As you can all see, Gnol's appearance has changed greatly over the past several months. He now sports armor on his shoulders, chest and right arm. According to our research we've determined that whenever an Orochi Head is revived, Gnol gains a piece of armor representing that Orochi Head and gains its abilities. Alan has reported that Gnol has displayed the ability to generate the elements of darkness and ice along with his flames. We can only conclude that he also has access to the elements of water, wind, and lightning."

"So that means he's got 6/8 of his overall power so far," Shinichi said, not liking this information.

The image on the large screen was replaced by a map with two dots, one in a different location. "Only two Orochi Heads remain; one in the Atacama Desert in Chile."

* * *

_"It's so HOT!" Yokoshima complained as he dragged himself across the desert. "I don't think I can make it. How long have we been trapped in this hellish heat anyway?"_

_"10 minutes." Shogo deadpanned._

_"Really? Because it felt longer," Yokoshima said as the three walked towards an abandoned mineshaft. Ironically, the Metal Head of Greed was laying inside a mineshaft in the Atacama Desert, Chile._

_"So the head's in there?" Chiaki asked as Hanyuu nodded. _

_Yokoshima gulped, fearing there might be bats, as he said, "Err…maybe I should go back..."_

_"GET IN THERE!" Shogo snapped as he grabbed Yokoshima and dragged him inside. They trekked a long mile until they reached a large gate in the wall with wards on it._

"_This is it," said Hanyuu._ _Pulling out a Shinto ward, Hanyuu closed her eyes as she began to softly chant. Her voice grew louder as the air began shimmering inside the cave. The gate glowed green like an emerald._

_"Neat," Yokoshima said._

"_It's done," said Hanyuu once she finished before she stuck the wall in her hand to the gate, reinforcing the seal._

"_And that's one more down," said Shogo._

* * *

"And another is located in Spain, under the Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas in Madrid."

* * *

_Daichi was disgusted with how the bulls were being treated. It was a cruel sport where the beasts were taunted and tortured for amusement and he was very vocal about it. He couldn't stand being in this place any longer._

"_Let's just get this over with," said Daichi._

_When night fell, Hanyuu, Chiaki and Daichi went to the bullfighting ring and followed the map. They found an underground tunnel and walked through it until they found another door where the next Orochi Head was sealed. Hanyuu performed the ritual and reinforced the seal._

_Afterwards, Hanyuu, Chiaki and Daichi had to make a hasty retreat from Madrid as Daichi had freed all the bulls into the streets._

* * *

"It goes without saying that we can't send Daichi," said Dr. Magi, glaring at the Cricket Rider.

"I will not regret my decision for freeing those bulls," said Daichi firmly. "Their treatment was inhumane!"

"Anyway, either one of these could be WHITE 14 and Gnol's next target," said Dr. Washam.

"So, what do you propose we do?" asked Shogo.

"And what about the Spark Cores?" asked Shinichi.

"We all know WHITE 14 is using the Spark Cores as a catalyst to revive the Orochi Heads, but once an Orochi is defeated the Spark Core becomes completely drained of power. However, WHITE 14 broke into the base when the Orochi of Darkness attacked and stole them back. We still don't know why he would want drained Spark Cores," answered Dr. Magi.

Yuji suggested, "Maybe there's something about those Cores only he knows and only we haven't found."

"Well, WHITE 14 currently has three in his possession: #01, #03 and #10," listed Dr. Magi.

"I have Misato's, #04," said Yuji.

"And we currently possess Spark Core #05. For whatever reason WHITE 14 would want them, we cannot let him have them all," said Dr. Magi.

"So, that just leaves Spark Core #06 and Spark Core #12," said Shinichi.

"You're forgetting one," reminded Alan, "Yours, Spark Core #13."

"We still have yet to find those Spark Cores and we can only pinpoint them once they've gone active," said Dr. Magi.

"And the bad news is that once they've gone active it means an Orochi has come to life," added Dr. Washam negatively.

"So, our only solution is to wait until they wake up and destroy them?" questioned Daichi incredulously.

"Well, since I have no idea how to break the seals, it's the only option we have," said Hanyuu.

"This wouldn't have happened if you didn't think of reinforcing them! They were weak already!" Daichi snapped at Hanyuu.

"Lay off her!" Shinichi shot back in Hanyuu's defense, "She did what she thought was right at the time! With the seals weakening, it was only a matter of time before those Orochi Heads woke up like Gnol! She didn't think that WHITE 14 would get a sword that could break the seals!"

"And she's given us information on the Orochi so we can better prepare ourselves," added Chiaki.

"Prepare ourselves? Are you kidding? We have one of them on the loose that's getting stronger, nearly got killed destroying them when the next five woke up, and now there's two more due to come out of resting," scoffed Daichi. "How are we supposed to be prepared?"

"Daichi, you are an asshole," said Yuji.

"What was that?" Daichi rounded up on the Manakyte.

"You are a whining, bitching, asshole," Yuji clarified. "I don't know what Levi sees in you, but all I see right now is an asshole. Do something more productive than complain."

Daichi grumbled and crossed his arms.

"Now that we have that settled, are there anymore questions?" Dr. Magi asked. "Alright, in conclusion, we need to find a way to deal with WHITE 14 and Gnol for good before they awaken the other Orochis." He pointed to the four strongest in the room, "That falls upon Yuji, Alan, Shinichi and Hanyuu."

"Hanyuu?" everyone echoed, looking at Hanyuu.

"I got a readout on her power level and if she wanted to she could easily be the strongest among us," Dr. Magi explained, causing the little goddess to blush.

"I can't disagree with that," admitted Shinichi.

"Well, meeting adjourned," finished Dr. Magi. "Oh, Yuji, could you bring Misato over for a checkup tomorrow? I want to see how the baby's developing."

"OK, I'll tell her," said Yuji. "But can it be later in the evening. Tonight Misato and I have plans."

"What kind of plans?" asked Dr. Washam.

Yuji blanched, "A double-date."

* * *

Misato and Yuji were having dinner with another couple at a 5 Star restaurant. It would've been wonderful, if it had been any other couple. Yuji preferred it if was with Rena and Shinichi. At least that wouldn't be so awkward. However, the couple they were having dinner with was none other than his brother Yuri Fudo and the former Witch of Terror Anastasia.

Yuji would rather be anywhere else but here and Misato shared his feelings. However, declining would be like showing weakness, like they were scared of the two people with them. But Misato had good reason to want to avoid Anastasia. True, she owed the Witch of Terror for bringing her back to life after she was destroyed by Shinichi and if it wasn't for her then maybe Misato wouldn't have met Yuji. However, she hated how Anastasia had used her as a hostage before she was finally freed.

As for Yuji he had plenty of reasons to hate the former Witch of Terror. For one she had revived Rosa then killed her in an effort to demoralize Yuji as part of a game. Then, she had another game in Rokkenjima, taking Misato hostage and also reviving Kiba and Lina as her game pieces. Yuji had yet to forgive the Witch of Terror for her sins but since he'd already killed her he had technically enacted his revenge. Still, he didn't feel any sense of satisfaction seeing as his brother saw fit to revive her. At least she no longer possessed her magic.

"Glad you could make it," said Yuri.

"We wouldn't miss it for the world," Yuji lied between his teeth.

"We almost thought you weren't going to come," added Anastasia.

"Oh, we thought about it long and hard," Misato said, eyes narrowed in an icy glare aimed at Anastasia.

"Well, we just wanted to say that we're sorry for any discomfort we caused," said Yuri. "Isn't that right, dear?"

"Yes, I wish to apologize for all my wrongdoings and I hope we can make a new beginning," said Anastasia.

Yuji could've set her on fire right then and there. How dare she make light of her sins? '_Burst into flames! Burst into flames!_'

"You both don't like me, I get that," Anastasia added, "And I know it will take very, very, _very_ long time before you both can accept me. However, mark my words, I am trying to live this new life and not waste it. Yuri here has given me a new lease on life."

'_I bet_,' thought Misato and Yuji at the same time. The two psychos were perfect for each other. Two crazy peas in a fucking pod. Don't like her? That was an understatement. Yuji and Misato absolutely loathed her.

"And we also called you both so we can tell you the good news," said Yuri as he clasped Anastasia's hand. Yuji and Misato were drinking the juice from their glasses.

"I'm pregnant," said Anastasia.

Yuji and Misato performed simultaneous spit takes when they heard. The coughed and sputtered.

"Wha-WHAT!-?" exclaimed Yuji.

"D-d-did you say…PREGNANT!-?" shrieked Misato.

"Yup, Ana-chan's here is preggers," confirmed Yuri.

Yuji and Misato could only imagine the horror of a child they made being brought into this realm and went as white as ghosts.

* * *

Later, Yuji met with Shinichi at a bar and told him the news.

"WHAT!-?" Shinichi's eyes were bugging out of his skull. "You're telling me that not only did your psychotic brother revive a psychotic former witch, but now they're expecting a possibly psychotic child?" Shinichi asked after hearing the news.

"Pretty much," Yuji confirmed.

"You know what? I take back whatever mean things I said about you and Misato being together because THIS is way worse!"

Yuji stated, "Well…at least she doesn't look the same as before. That helps a bit."

Shinichi questioned, "Yuji, are you familiar with the Nature VS Nurture theory?"

Yuji nodded, "Yeah, it's just that I try to picture her as a totally different person but when she talks that's when the memories hit me."

Shinichi added, "Imagine them bringing a child into this world and raising him or her with their values and ideals."

Yuji shrugged, "It shouldn't be that bad."

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow. "Not _that_ bad? I still have nightmares from what she did to me in that hotel."

Yuji clarified, "I mean in Yuri's case. We shared the same body up until my late teens. We have the same experiences so he's also as skilled as me at raising kids. In fact, he already has a son with another woman AND he adopted an orphan several years ago."

Shinichi had to give him that. "Guess that's true. Still, I can't help but wonder what kind of kid they'll bring into this world."

Yuji replied, "I'm guessing the kid will be a real firecracker, but I'm not gonna say anymore. Yuri has never talked behind my back so I shouldn't do the same."

"And come to think of it I trust Yuri more than I trust Anastasia," Shinichi mentioned. "At least he'll be able to keep her under control."

"Oh, trust me. When it comes to women he's even more of a player than I am."

Shinichi raised a glass of beer, "Well, a toast to the happy couple, I guess."

"Agreed," said Yuji as he raised his glass and clinked glasses with Shinichi.

"By the way, how did Misato take the news?" Shinichi asked curiously.

"Well…she's perplexed to say the least," admitted Yuji.

* * *

The following day, Misato was brought to the Hive for her checkup. Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi were examining her womb and checking on the growth of her baby.

Yuji walked into the examination room and said, "I'm here," before kissing Misato. "How's it going?"

Dr. Washam answered, "Well, we did some blood work and performed some tests. The baby is healthy, if highly abnormal."

Yuji asked worriedly, "How abnormal are we talking?"

"Nothing to worry about. I'm only referring to her genetics," said Dr. Washam.

Yuji punched Dr. Washam jokingly, "Dammit, Wash, don't scare the shit out of me like that. Makin' me think something's wrong."

"Well, would you like to see your child?" asked Dr. Magi.

"Please," Yuji nodded.

The screen showed an ultrasound image of the child inside Misato's womb. "She's already 7 months old in there. She'll be out around the end of October."

"Wonderful," smiled Yuji. "Misato, take a look."

Misato gazed at the screen and started tearing up.

"It's great, right?" asked Yuji.

"Yes, it is," smiled Misato. "I've already died twice and killed so many but this is the first time I've ever made life."

Yuji kissed her, "_We_ made life babe."

"Yes, we did," smiled Misato, flashing her fangs. She then sunk her fangs into his neck.

"Oh, and she'll need more blood than usual to provide sustenance for the baby," added Dr. Washam.

"Man…this feels good no matter how many times you do this," moaned Yuji blissfully.

Dr. Magi noticed someone coming in, "Oh, Yokoshima. Why are you wearing all that garlic?"

Yuji stared at him, "Dude, fucking seriously?"

"Misato's a vampire and I don't want her drinking my blood, OK?" responded Yokoshima.

"Relax, she won't touch you. Well, she might kick you in the nuts if you keep up the bullshit," remarked Yuji.

"And I prefer high quality blood," added Misato. "No low rate garbage for me or my child." She patted her stomach for emphasis.

* * *

It was his first moment of peace in a long time, so Alan decided to take his girls somewhere special for a picnic. They were currently sitting on the moon, a large green dome of energy surrounding them so that they could enjoy the moon and the stars. Little Celine and Alice were running around, playing in the tiny craters.

"Ah, isn't this the best?" Alan sighed blissfully as he gazed up at the stars. Earlier the girls had a small game of Rock, Paper, Scissors to see who could have Alan relax with them and Conda had won. Alan was currently resting his head on her lap. They had enjoyed sandwiches and snack foods.

Bishie was curled up and had fallen asleep, the distance from the sun making her a little lethargic. Yami was reading a book in peace and snacking on some taiyaki. Amora was lying back and simply enjoying the stars. Nozomu, whose ears and tail were revealed, was snuggled up with Alan. Lala and Megan were chasing around Celine and Alice, playing with the little girls.

* * *

Shiro and Gnol stood in front of an abandoned goldmine in the Atacama Desert of Chile. This was the location of the Head of Metal. Stopping their passage was Hanyuu's reinforced seal, but it didn't hinder them at all.

"A seal? No sweat," said Shiro confidently as he drew the Oathbreaker. He then slashed the sword across the seal, breaking it and allowing him and Gnol passage.

"I can feel it," said Gnol. "It's close, very close."

"Good, that means we're on the right track." Gripped in his hand was Spark Core #06 and it had gone active. It wouldn't be long before it was detected and their enemies came to stop them. However, by then it would already be too late.

* * *

Hanyuu instantly felt that one of the seals she had reinforced had just broken. She made haste and activated her com-link, "Sheila, please activate a Teleportal and contact the others."

"Affirmative," Sheila obeyed as the portal opened. The goddess then jumped in and was carried through the tunnel towards the exit which led into the Hive. "Spark Core detected," reported Sheila as the large monitor screen came online showing a map of the world. The blinking dot confirmed Hanyuu's fears as she recognized the location.

"So, they've decided to release the Head of Metal," said Hanyuu in dismay. The Teleportal opened up once more and the NEO-NUMBERS came rushing in.

* * *

"It's down this mineshaft," said Shiro as he looked down. He tossed a pebble inside and waited, and waited, and waited until he heard it hit the bottom. "Damn, that's deep!"

"Hurry up!" Gnol ordered.

"OK, OK, chill out grumpy pants," Shiro said as he tossed the Spark Core inside. "This might take awhile."

An explosion of golden light blinded them and both Shiro and Gnol backed away as something began to rise from the depths of the mineshaft.

"RARGH!" the Orochi of Metal roared and his name was Kin-Gnol. Kin-Gnol was 7 feet tall and resembled a Viking decked in gold armor. He was a muscle-bound brute with red hair and a thick red beard. The armor on his shoulders resembled treasure chests and he had gauntlets the size of barrels. He also wore furry boots with steel toes. His helmet sported ox-like horns and he had a pair of battle axes crossed on his back. Hanging from his neck on a chain was a padlock. He let out a loud yawn and looked at both Shiro and Gnol who were smaller compared to his height and girth. "Ello' matey. So, was it you who be awakening me from my sleep?"

Shiro could only cock an eyebrow, "Um…why do you talk like a pirate but look like a Viking?"

"I dunno the answer to that, but I do know that I be wanting…" He put his hand against the wall of the mine, "GOLD!" As soon as he said that the entire wall turned into solid gold. "AND ALL THE GOLD WILL BE MINE!"

"Gnol, I think we found ourselves a living goldmine," grinned Shiro greedily as he examined the gold. It was genuine, according to his scans.

Gnol rolled his eyes. This Orochi represented the aspect of greed so his desire for gold would be immense. Also, the Spark Core used to create this Orochi originated from someone who was greedy and not afraid to take what he wanted. These qualities made Kin-Gnol unstoppable in his pursuit of gold.

* * *

The Teleportal opened up and the NEO-NUMBERS with Hanyuu exited in front of the mine. "They were here but they're gone now," Hanyuu said.

"Dammit, we're late!" cursed Musician.

Armadillo noticed something about the sand and scooped it up. He informed the others, "Guys, this sand is made of gold!"

"GOLD!-?" they exclaimed. They analyzed the sand with their helmets and even Hanyuu checked Armadillo's claim for herself.

"He's right," Zero confirmed, "It is gold."

"And it's making a trail," said Showa as he pointed ahead. "If we hurry we might just catch up to them!" He activated his Shin-Ride. "Hanyuu-chan, hop on!"

"Sheila, send our bikes," ordered Zero. They were going to need their vehicles to cross this desert.

* * *

Kin-Gnol was running across the desert. Shiro and Gnol were both sitting on the golden-armored Viking's shoulders as the Orochi of Metal kept chanting, "Gold, gold, gold, gold!"

Shiro's eyes then lit up and he spoke, "We're being pursued."

"How many?" Gnol asked.

"Nine," Shiro answered. "There are eight cyborgs and one goddess."

"That purple-haired, horned brat," Gnol growled. "No Susano-O?"

"He must be busy saving people on the other side of the globe," said Shiro. "Gnol, would you please do the honors?" Gnol tossed three egg-shaped objects over his shoulders and they burrowed into the sand. "And now we wait."

* * *

The sand exploded and the NEO-NUMBERS were suddenly thrown into the air before landing roughly on the desert floor. Groaning, Musician was the first to recover and looked to see what had caused the explosion only to let out a scream, "SNAKES!"

"Those aren't snakes," Carmen corrected, "Those are worms!"

Three gigantic worms had burst out of the ground. They were colored black and had beak-like mouths that opened up into four segments. Inside those mouths were writhing tendrils which resembled snakes, further causing Musician to tremble in terror. Hanyuu and Showa recognized them for what they were.

"They're Darkloids!" Showa identified and he drew the Higurashi no Yaiba.

* * *

"So, you be telling me there are heroes coming to stop me?" Kin-Gnol questioned as he stopped in the desert with Gnol and Shiro.

"Pretty much," Shiro confirmed.

"YEARGH!" Kin-Gnol roared, pumping his fists. "GOOD! VERY GOOD! WORTHY FOES TO TEST MY STRENGHTH AGAINST!" He then turned and ran off to where the NEO-NUMBERS were.

"Looks like he has his priorities straight," said Shiro. "Come on, Gnol. Let's go someplace more festive."

"Where?" asked Gnol and Shiro held up a Spark Core marked with the Roman numeral for 12, XII.

"Spain, the home of bullfighting."

* * *

The three Deathworm Darkloids proved to be difficult foes to fight. In the desert they had an advantage as they burrowed into the ground and attacked with their tendrils which would wrap around one of them and drag them into the hungry mouths of the Deathworm Darkloids. They used surprise attacks, striking without warning as they ambushed their prey. They lacked visible eyes but were still able to find their prey.

Showa protected Hanyuu as he summoned his Shovel Claw. The tendrils shot out of the ground and he grabbed them before he activated his Drill Extended and shot the drill into the ground. The tendrils were withdrawn and the Deathworm Darkloid shot out of the ground. Zero attacked from the air, firing his needles.

"Daichi, stop shaking!" shouted Slasher, "Stand up and fight!" He jumped and delivered a decapitating blow upon one of the Deathworm Darkloids. Musician was still rooted to the spot in terror.

"Dai, they're worms! Not snakes! Get a hold of yourself!" Meta shouted as he slapped him in the face. He then aimed his gun hand at the Deathworm and fired.

"Ow!" Musician winced and recovered. "Right…worms…not snakes!" Still, the Deathworms' tendrils looked like snakes which triggered his fear. However, he wasn't about to let some overgrown grubs get the better of him again. Quickly assuming Rock-Metal Form, he aimed his guitar and called, "Heavy Metal Vulcan!" and fired a spray of energy bullets with every strum of the strings. The Deathworm screeched and hissed and lunged for Musician but he was prepared. He gripped his guitar by the neck and then swung forward. The blade cut the Darkloid straight down the middle and spilled black blood on him and the sand.

"Damn, these things move quick," Blue Beetle stated in annoyance. One of the Deathworm Darkloids was 'swimming' around in the ground. He fired but kept missing. Suddenly, the tendril-like tongues shot out and grabbed him by the arm. "Let me go!" he shouted. He changed his right hand into a chainsaw and slashed the tendrils to ribbons.

Two of the Deathworm Darkloids shot out of the ground but all of sudden they were instantly killed as two axes flew out of nowhere and struck them in their hands. The two Deathworm Darkloids collapsed, dead, much to Blue Beetle's confusion.

"You did it, Yokoshima," Carmen complimented.

"That wasn't me," said Blue Beetle. Suddenly, explosions erupted all around the NEO-NUMBERS, tossing them into the air. Showa covered Hanyuu's body protectively and then looked to see a figure in the distance. He was clad in gold armor and had cannons on his shoulders. The battle axes then flew out of the Deathworms they had slain and into the hands of the gold-clad figure.

Kin-Gnol made his way to the group and said, "Sorry, but I couldn't let some worms kill such fine trophies."

"Trophies?" Arachnea questioned.

"You lot will make a fine addition to my collection of treasures," King-Gnol said.

"Who the hell are you!-?" Musician demanded.

"Who is that?" Showa asked.

"Orochi," Hanyuu answered. Showa's eyes widened.

"GUYS, IT'S THE OROCHI OF METAL!" shouted Showa.

Kin-Gnol roared and fired his cannons again, causing more explosions around the NEO-NUMBERS. He then rushed forward and grabbed the closest by the arm. Blue Beetle felt an odd tingling sensation as his arm turned stiff. The stiffness started to spread along with a golden layer that enveloped him in a matter of seconds. "One fine trophy indeed," Kin-Gnol chuckled as he admired his work.

"Yokoshima!" Slasher screamed as he rushed forward to behead the Orochi of Metal but Kin-Gnol easily blocked Slasher's chainsaws with his axes, sparks flying as the chainsaws tried to cut into the gold-clad Orochi's weapons.

"You're next," said Kin-Gnol as the treasure chests on his shoulders opened up again and he fired cannon blasts at Slasher at close range. Slasher was knocked backwards. Kin-Gnol then leapt and stomped on Slasher, causing him to grunt. He then removed his boot from Slasher's chest and grabbed him by the arm, turning him to gold like he had Blue Beetle.

"CHIAKI-SAN!" Hanyuu screamed in horror.

"Who's next?" Kin-Gnol asked, grinning. A mist surrounded him. "Eh? What this be then?" Carmen walked towards him but she wasn't alone. She was joined by several duplicates. She was in Mirage Form and because of that her illusions became solid. They sprung forward and attacked with their Mantis Scythes, hacking away at Kin-Gnol's which released sparks.

At the same time, Zero was in Fighter Form and firing his missiles into the mist, causing explosions to erupt as they hit their target. Kin-Gnol howled as he was hit by missile fire. He threw one of his battle axes into the air and it hit Zero in the shoulder, cutting into his armor.

Kin-Gnol then swung his arms out, knocking away Carmen and his clones before grabbing one at random. He was lucky enough to grab the real one as all the others faded soon after. She struggled, kicking at Kin-Gnol, but was turned into a gold statue.

"Michiru!" Arachnea shouted out. She ran to assist her friend as Kin-Gnol tossed the solid gold Mantis Rider at the Tarantula Rider. Surprised, Arachnea caught Carmen but screamed as she was blasted by the cannons.

Zero removed the axe and went to assist only to be blasted out of the air by Kin-Gnol's cannons.

"Bah, too easy!" said Kin-Gnol as he dropped Arachnea who'd just turned to gold. He then moved over to Zero but then several ofuda talismans stuck to his chest. "Huh?" He was then zapped by Hanyuu's power as Showa and Musician attacked.

"Take this!" Musician roared, "Hark Rock Spirit!" His fist vibrated and he hurled it into Kin-Gnol's head, breaking one of his helmet's horns.

"Rargh!" Kin-Gnol grabbed his axes and hurled them, striking Musician in the chest. He grabbed Showa's Great Fist and tossed him up before head-butting him through the air, sending him tumbling. Hanyuu tried to throw more ofuda but was sent flying and screaming by Kin-Gnol's cannons.

"Hanyuu!" Showa ran over to Hanyuu and helped her up. "Are you okay?" Her eyes were swirling and she was bleeding from her forehead. "Dammit." He glared at Kin-Gnol and yelled, "You son of a bitch!" He rushed to attack but was thrown back and sent tumbling by Kin-Gnol's cannons.

Meta attacked with a barrage of punches aimed at Kin-Gnol's stomach. But they did nothing but make Kin-Gnol tickled as he chuckled. He raised his arms and brought them down, only missing as Meta zipped away. He then jumped and bent his knees, firing missiles from them which hit Kin-Gnol. He landed and fired his gun hand at Kin-Gnol as the Orochi of Metal charged forward and shoulder-tackled Meta, sending him rolling along the sand.

The treasure chests on Kin-Gnol's shoulders then burst open, revealing multiple cannons this time as he called out, "**GREEDY BARRAGE!**" He fired and bombarded them with his cannons. A series of explosions erupted all around them and when it cleared all but two remained standing. He turned Meta, Zero and Musician to gold and looked up to see Showa and Hanyuu staring at him. Showa stood protectively before Hanyuu.

"See you both later," said Kin-Gnol as his body broke down into gold coins and flew into the air.

"Dammit," Showa cursed. "Hanyuu, take the others back to base," he ordered.

"What?" Hanyuu gawked. Showa activated his wings and took off after Kin-Gnol. "Shinichi, wait!" she shouted but he was too far away. She activated her com-link to call him but was blocked out. "Shinichi…" She offered a prayer for his success.

* * *

It wasn't long before Kin-Gnol found a town. Once he was there he started turning anything and everything he could get his hands on into gold. The local authorities attempted to stop him but they too were turned to gold. Resistance was soon over as survivors fled the town for safety, not looking back.

Kin-Gnol was sitting on a mountain of gold when he saw something in the sky. "Oh, what this be then?" he asked as he got a good look at the figure flying towards him. "Aye, it looks to me like a bug."

Showa touched down in front of the pile of gold which he recognized to be innocent people that Kin-Gnol had changed into gold via his Midas Touch ability. "You, turn them back!" Showa ordered.

"Oh, and who be making me? You, boy?" Kin-Gnol asked before laughing. "Arg, that be a good one! Haven't laughed like that in a long time!"

"This isn't a joke!" Showa shouted but Kin-Gnol continued to laugh. "Alright, you leave me no choice!" He activated his Hook Arm and then swung. The cabled stretched and then wrapped around Kin-Gnol before the hook locked into place on the cable. He tugged and pulled Kin-Gnol off his pile of gold and onto ground level. His weight caused the ground to shake.

"That hurts, boy," said Kin-Gnol gruffly. He strained against the cable which broke under his strength. Showa expected this, though. Orochis were certainly strong. "Well, you got my attention!" He removed his double-edged battle axes from his back and gripped them tight. "If it is a fight you be wanting, it is a fight you be getting!" He roared and swung an axe down. Showa dodged as the blade dug deep into the ground.

"Great Fists!" Showa called as he formed his giant metal hands and clapped them together with Kin-Gnol in between but the Orochi of Metal held the two hands apart with his strength and laughed. Showa then saw gold spreading all over his arms and he quickly disassembled the Great Fists, the pieces turning into gold scraps on the ground.

"Whatever I touch turns to gold," said Kin-Gnol. "And I don't even have to touch it! **MIDAS BEAM!**" He fired a beam of gold energy from his fist and Showa jumped out of the way. The beam hit a building behind him, turning it to solid gold. "See?" Kin-Gnol pointed out after his demonstration.

Showa looked at the building, then back at Kin-Gnol, and then back at all the people who'd been turned to gold statues. "So, that's that's how you did it in such a short time."

"Yes, and you be no different, Kamen Rider."

"Well, if it's gold you want then it's gold you're gonna get!" declared Showa as he transformed into Hinamizawa Guardian Form. Kin-Gnol watched as Showa's armor glowed gold and changed shape. His eyes widened as he saw the golden samurai standing before him.

"Yes! Yes! That's what I be missing! That be the trophy I need for my collection!" declared King-Gnol.

Showa drew the Higurashi no Yaiba and with a shout attacked Kin-Gnol. With a powerful swing he disarmed the Orochi of Metal and swung again only to be met with resistance when Kin-Gnol blocked with one of his barrel-sized gauntlets. He wasn't able to cut through.

**WHAM!**

Showa was sent flying by a powerful haymaker and flipped through the air before he landed on his feet, stabbing his sword into the ground to stop his unattended flight.

"Heh, you be a tough one, boy," said Kin-Gnol. "It looks like I should take you seriously." A gold aura radiated off Kin-Gnol's body, changing his tanned skin gold like his armor as his eyes glowed red. He started to grow a couple of feet, gaining muscle mass. His armor also began to change as a pair horns stretched out from his back and curled over his shoulders. His broken horn grew back and his teeth became sharp and made of gold. A shawl appeared around his waist and a tail with a spiked ball at the tip grew out from his rear. His fists also gained a layer of silver metal with spiked knuckles.

"Take this!" The treasure chests on his shoulders opened to reveal a pair of cannons. They fired and Showa cried out as the cannonballs hit and exploded, sending him tumbling out of the smoke.

"Itai…" he groaned. He saw a large shadow and looked up to see Kin-Gnol in the air. He rolled out of the way as Kin-Gnol crashed down, leaving a wide crater as a result. Kin-Gnol then threw his battle axes at Showa who deflected them with his sword but the axes continued to spin in a wide arc like a boomerang and returned to Kin-Gnol's hands. He then leapt out of the crater and brought the axes down on Showa. He parried them but the force behind the attack forced Showa onto one knee.

'_He's…strong…'_ Showa realized as he grunted under the strain. '_But I'm…STRONGER!_' White circuitry lines appeared along his arms and legs as he forced himself up to his feet and pushed against Kin-Gnol's axes. He balled his right fist and called out, "EXPLOSIVE RYUUSEI PUNCH!" The flaming punch slammed into Kin-Gnol's chest, sending him flying and crashing into a nearby building explosively.

Showa waited and saw Kin-Gnol coming back out of the hole he'd made. The Orochi of Metal cracked his neck and said coldly, "My turn, boy." With incredible speed he was right in front of Showa and knocked him off his feet with a punch but it didn't end there. Kin-Gnol then spun and knocked Showa down with his tail, the spiked ball slamming into the Rider and knocking the wind out of him as he was smashed into the ground.

"Give up, boy!" commanded Kin-Gnol.

"Sorry, but I don't know how!" Showa shot back as his Cho Dai-Shuriken split into blades that shot out and attacked Kin-Gnol from all directions. They continued to fly and sting him like bees, forcing him to stumble back. Showa slipped away and got to his feet. He then leapt into the air, followed by the Cho Dai-Shuriken blades. Kin-Gnol looked up and watched as an aura of power radiated from the Rider as he prepared to finish him.

"GUARDIAN FORCE STRIKE!" roared Showa as he executed his drop kick. The blades of his Cho Dai-Shuriken struck Kin-Gnol first before his attack collided, causing an explosion.

When the smoke cleared, Kin-Gnol was revealed and he had blocked the attack with his palm. "Now, become gold," said Kin-Gnol as he allowed his power to envelop Showa. He tried to struggle but slowly his body began to stiffen until he was nothing more than a solid gold statue.

Kin-Gnol gently put Showa down and clapped his hands together. He danced around the solid gold body of Kamen Rider Showa, cheering, "Yes! Yes! I got a trophy! Hoorah! Yohoho! I have me a trophy, hoorah!" He danced like an idiot around Showa until he noticed that the Spark Core hadn't turned to gold. "Hm, what this be then?" He tapped the Spark Core. "Why didn't this change?" He became annoyed and went, "BAH!" as he kicked down Showa. He then stomped on the Spark Core with his foot. He was trying to break it. He then took his battle axes into his hand and went swinging, striking the Spark Core violently with his axe blades. "Break, damn you! Break!"

Suddenly, a green beam of light smashed into Kin-Gnol and knocked him back several feet from Showa. The impact point was smoking and the confused Orochi of Metal wondered what had attacked him. He was blinded by an intense green light. There was a glowing green sphere of light lowering itself to the ground. When the light faded, it revealed the Sentinel clad in the Bazel Combat armor.

"Ahh, I wager that you be friends with this dumb fool," SAID Kin-Gnol as he brushed the soot off his armor. "And I wager you be wanting me to return him and the others back to normal."

"Yes," Sentinel answered sternly, arms crossed.

"Well, that be too bad. These be my trophies, my treasures, and I refuse to give them up to anyone. They are mine! All mine! MINE!"

"This guy is nuts, yeesh," commented Bazel as Sentinel frowned. After what this monster did to his brother, there would be no mercy. He quickly dashed forward and punched Kin-Gnol in the gut, causing him to double over and clutch his stomach in pain. Sentinel had left a dent. Sentinel then punched him in the chin, sending him flying. He then used his ring to make a rope and lassoed Kin-Gnol before swinging him down and smashing him to the ground with a violent crash. The ground cracked on impact.

There was silence for a moment before laughter could be heard from Kin-Gnol as he stood up, grinning maniacally, "Yeargh! That's good! You're going to make a fine trophy once I beat you!" He rushed to attack Sentinel again but Sentinel tore his cape off and threw it at Kin-Gnol. The cape landed over the Metal Orochi's face, blinding him, as he yelled, "Hey, who turned off the lights! Blast it! Get this thing off me!"

While Kin-Gnol was distracted with his cape, Sentinel knelt down and inspected Showa's solid gold body. "Ring, can we revive him?"

"_Negative_," the ring responded. "_Life signs are undetectable._" Sentinel gritted his teeth. He knew who was to blame and got up. He turned to look at Gnol who managed to toss the offending cape away.

"Take this! **GREEDY BARRAGE!**" Kin-Gnol revealed his collection of cannons and fired them at Sentinel and bombarded him with multiple blasts. Explosions erupted and Kin-Gnol continued his bombardment while laughing. The smoke cleared and Kin-Gnol's grin as he saw Sentinel still standing, protected by a dome of green energy.

The sun was starting to set, casting an orange glow in the horizon. Two sides stared each other down before closing the gap for battle. They exchanged blows which made a sound similar to thunder during a storm. Each hit was powerful enough to crush bone but neither side was letting up. A cross-counter sent them skidding backwards in opposite directions.

"Looks like you deserve a special treat," said Kin-Gnol as his eyes shone. His horns began to glow. Sentinel, knowing this wasn't a good sign, focused green energy into his fists and got ready for anything.

"**MIDAS BEAM!**" The horns fired individual beams which met in the centre before combining to form an intense beam of gold energy that flew towards Sentinel. Sentinel reacted and fired his own beam of emerald light. The two energy beams collided and the shockwave blew everything but them away.

"I KNEW YOU WERE STRONG, BOY!" said Kin-Gnol with a laugh, "YOU'LL MAKE AN EXCELLENT TROPHY! I TURNED YOU FRIEND INTO GOLD AND NOW I WILL TURN _YOU_ INTO GOLD!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi was in his mind. He was confused of how he got here but then he was presented with a beautiful sight.

"Nozomu?"

The girl was petite with short, silver hair but she wasn't the wolf girl that was in love with Alan. She had a crescent moon mark on her forehead and wore a black kimono decorated with sparkles.

"Who are you?" Shinichi asked and the girl approached him. When she reached him, he noted that her height only reached his chin. She seemed to be scowling at him but with a blush on his cheeks.

"Be grateful, because not many can say they've kissed a goddess," she said before grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him down into a rough kiss.

* * *

Night had fallen but the town was anything but peaceful as explosions erupted. Kin-Gnol and Sentinel were still fighting with everything they had. Sentinel was motivated by his desire to avenge Showa while Kin-Gnol was driven by his greed and desire to add Sentinel to his collection. The clouds rolled away, revealing the moon. As the light of the moon touched Showa's Spark Core, it began to sparkle before shining brightly as it absorbed the moonbeams.

Meanwhile, Sentinel and Kin-Gnol continued to push more power into their attacks in an attempt to overpower each other and it seemed like Kin-Gnol was winning as he pushed his beam closer and closer towards Sentinel who struggled to push back. The Orochi of Metal grinned and could already imagine putting Sentinel up with the rest of his trophies. However, that was when a red beam of energy joined with Sentinel's and pushed Kin-Gnol's beam back before it could reach the Green Lantern. Eyes wide, Sentinel looked to the source of the red beam and saw that it was coming from…

"Shinichi?" Sentinel asked. Showa's body was sparkling and the red beam was coming from his chest. The sparkles began to fade to reveal Showas in his Trinity Form and firing the crimson beam from his Burst Cannon.

The combined green and red beams shoved Kin-Gnol's Midas Beam right back at him and he was sent flying by an explosive impact that knocked him off his feet. He crashed right into his pile of gold statues which collapsed on top of him. It was like watching a bowling ball knock down pins.

"Come on, little bro," said Showa as he summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba. "Summon Kusanagi, we finish this now."

Sentinel nodded and summoned the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. Kin-Gnol rose to his feet and grabbed the padlock hanging from his neck.

He was enraged because Showa had not gone down and remained a gold statue. He was enraged because Showa had freed himself. He was enraged because a treasure he had claimed was going against him.

"RARGH!" Kin-Gnol roared as he tore the padlock off and broke the chain it hung from before his body radiated with gold light which exploded. The light was blinding and both Rider and Lantern had to shield their eyes as Kin-Gnol began to change shape.

Once the light died down, Kin-Gnol stood in his new form. He was much bigger than before, modeled after a European dragon with shining gold scales, long whiskers, and red eyes as his bat-like wings flapped to show off his intimidating wingspan.

He breathed out golden flames and Showa and Sentinel leapt up to avoid the blast of gold fire. Instead of incinerating anything in their path, the flames turned everything they touched to gold. Landing atop a building, they watched as Kin-Gnol breathed fire on everything in town, turning the buildings into gold.

"This ends here," said Showa as he gripped the Higurashi no Yaiba tightly.

"You're right, we can't let him loose now," said Sentinel.

"Follow my lead," Showa instructed. He ran his fingers up the Higurashi no Yaiba's blade and it shone bright silver.

Sentinel nodded, doing the same and the Kusanagi no Tsurugi became engulfed in red hot flames.

The gold Orochi of Metal spread its wings and started to take off. However, Showa and Sentinel would not allow that and leapt off their perches to finish the job.

"TSUKUYOMI!" Showa called as an image of a crescent moon appeared behind him.

"AMATERASU!" Sentinel called as an image of the blazing sun appeared behind him,

"**HISSATSU! TAIYO TO TSUKI GIRI!"**

They swung their blades and slashed Kin-Gnol across his body. The gold Orochi let loose a roar as its body began to crack before exploding in a golden fireball. Gold dust rained down on both Sentinel and Showa. Slowly, everything that Kin-Gnol had turned to gold turned back to normal. The townspeople were confused. The two heroes, satisfied with their work, slipped into the darkness but not without picking up the Spark Core.

* * *

Flying through the air with Sentinel, Showa was examining the Spark Core. "#06, thought so," said Showa. "I should've known."

"Where did you learn that technique earlier?" asked Sentinel.

"Oh, a goddess paid me a visit in my head and…gave me her blessing," Showa answered. "So, why were you late?" inquired Showa.

"I had to take care of an earthquake in Spain with Yuji," Sentinel answered.

"Spain? Isn't that where the Orochi Head of Earth was sealed?" Showa asked.

"Yeah, about that…" said Sentinel hesitantly.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: What exactly happened in Spain? Who was that woman who blessed Shinichi in his mind? What will happen next? Answer to these questions and more in the next chapter of Kamen Rider X Green Lantern.**


	91. The Legacy of Cain Part 35

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 35: The Gentle Giant**

**MADRID, SPAIN**

"Well, we're here," said Yuji. "Now where is that Orochi?" He was with Alan. Sheila had alerted them of a Spark Core that had gone active and that usually meant that an Orochi had awakened. The two heard screaming and spotted several people running in their direction.

Alan grabbed one of the runners and asked, "What's going on?"

"There's a monster in the bullring!" the man shouted and Alan let him go to join the rest of the fleeing people.

"Monster?" Yuji asked.

"Orochi," Alan concluded. "Let's go." The two dashed off towards the opposite direction of where the people were fleeing from. They arrived at the Plaza Del Toros and went inside to be treated with a sight they never expected to see.

The Orochi stood at a towering 10ft, clad in full bronze armor from head to toe with a purple shawl around his waist. His arms were huge and his hands were the circumference wrecking balls. At the moment, the creature was busy juggling a bull and a bullfighter who was screaming for it to stop.

"Is he juggling a bull and a bullfighter?" Yuji asked.

"Yes," Alan answered, "And no, you're not seeing things."

"Well, let's take care of this then," said Yuji as he cracked his knuckles. Alan fired his ring, encasing the bull and bullfighter protectively in green spheres, pulling them away from the Orochi who was juggling them. He set them down. The bullfighter fled as did the bull in different directions, wanting to make as much distance between them and the Orochi. The bronze Orochi stared at his empty hands in confusion and scratched his head. Yuji was already running towards the distracted Orochi when a wall of stone erupted in his path. Yuji's feet skidded along the ground before he stumbled and stopped. "Huh?" Yuji blinked.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" a young boy shouted. Yuji walked around the earthen wall and saw that on the Orochi's shoulder was a young boy. He had black hair and green eyes and looked to be eight years old. He was clad in a brown shirt and matching pants that seemed worn out and dirty. He was barefoot and his eyes were glowing. Hanging from his neck was an amber pendant. A red light glowed from his right arm and Yuji could tell what this boy was from the second he saw him.

'_Another Manakyte,'_ realized Yuji.

Alan was hovering in the air and he swooped down to save what he assumed to be a hostage only for the boy to shout, "Up there!" The Earth Orochi swung one of his huge fists up and knocked Alan away and into the wall.

"Alan, I think this kid's _with_ the Orochi!" Yuji called.

"You don't say," said Alan as he rose back up and dusted off his clothes.

"Kid, it's OK," said Yuji. "We're not trying to hurt…your friend."

"Good, because he just woke up and he's cranky," said the boy.

"What's your name?" Yuji asked. "I'm Yuji." The boy leapt down from the giant's shoulder and landed at the Earth Orochi's feet.

"I'm Daiki," the boy replied. "And this big guy says his name is Tsuchi-Gnol."

"That confirms it," said Alan as he stared up at the Orochi of Earth who stared back down at him. "So, how did you two meet?"

Daiki explained that he found himself under the Plaza Del Toros when he fell out of a silvery veil (Dimensional Rift). That was when he met Tsuchi-Gnol who had just taken form. At first Daiki had been scared but Tsuchi-Gnol didn't hurt him. When a piece of the ceiling nearly fell on top of Daiki, Tsuchi-Gnol had shielded him. They both went up to the surface and saw a bullfight going on. Tsuchi-Gnol was suddenly compelled to have some fun and started juggling the helpless bull and bullfighter. The sight of him at his height and armor made people flee in a panic.

"So, why did you scare all those people?" Alan asked Tsuchi-Gnol who hadn't spoken. Could he talk?

Tsuchi-Gnol answered, "Because they said it was fun."

"Fun?" Alan repeated. "They…do you mean WHITE 14 and Gnol?"

"I…don't remember," Tsuchi-Gnol said slowly. "I'm hungry."

"That's fine. I'll find you some food, but can you be smaller?"

"Smaller? OK!" Tsuchi-Gnol then started to change shape right before his eyes. He shrank down and assumed human shape. He was a tall man in his mid-twenties, measuring at 7'2", with short black hair, bushy eye brows, square chin, and beady eyes. He wore a black shirt with torn sleeves, a brown vest, black jeans, and large iron shackles on his wrists and ankles with dangling chains. "How does this look?"

"That's fine," said Yuji. "Hey, Daiki, how about you and your friend come with us?"

"Why?" Daiki asked suspiciously.

"Because the cops are coming," said Yuji. A Teleportal opened up, startling Daiki and Tsuchi-Gnol.

"What's that shiny, swirly thing?" Tsuchi-Gnol asked.

"Our way home," said Alan. "Now, hop on in!" He jumped in first, followed by Yuji. Tsuchi-Gnol and Daiki hesitated before jumping in. Seconds later the Teleportal closed, winking out of existence.

* * *

After bringing Daiki and Tsuchi-Gnol to the Hive, Alan heard from Sheila that the NEO-NUMBERS were in trouble so Sheila opened a Teleportal to their location. After sending the NEO-NUMBERS, who'd been turned into gold statues, back to the Hive with Hanyuu, he'd flown after Shinichi and hoped he wasn't too late. When he arrived he saw Kin-Gnol trying to break Showa's Spark Core while the Rider could do nothing to defend himself as he was stuck as a gold statue. Alan and Kin-Gnol fought and the Orochi of Metal was defeated when both Alan and Showa used their sacred swords and killed him.

Alan and Shinichi exited the Teleportal and Shinichi was relieved to see that everyone was back to normal. However, there was still another issue to address. The two brothers took the elevator up to the cafeteria and Shinichi could only watch in astonishment as there was a stack of empty plates on the table that Daiki and Tsuchi-Gnol were sitting at. Tsuchi-Gnol had food piled up in front of him. He was shoveling food down his throat and declaring, "Yummy! So Yummy!" every time he tasted anything new.

"Is that…" Shinichi began.

"Yes, the Orochi of Earth. Yuji and I found him in Spain," said Alan. "The kid there's Daiki. They're friends."

Daiki was shoveling food at the same rate and released a burp. "That's good," the Manakyte boy said.

Tsuchi-Gnol released a belch that was louder, much louder, and Daiki laughed.

"I'm surprised you haven't attacked him yet," Alan commented as Shinichi just stared at Tsuchi-Gnol.

"I'm thinking about it but I've learnt to trust your judgment," Shinichi answered. "Still, I gotta ask, are you sure about this?"

"He seems harmless enough," Alan reasoned.

"Harmless…? Like the Hulk is harmless?" Shinichi frowned.

"Look, I know he's an Orochi but just look at him. I doubt he would hurt a fly," said Alan.

**WHAM!**

**CRASH!**

Tsuchi-Gnol had been trying to swat a fly but had broken the table in half instead. "Oops," he uttered.

"Not a word," Alan warned Shinichi as the Rider opened his mouth. "Come on, we need to get to the lab."

"Does Dr. Magi need us for something?" Shinichi asked.

"No, it's Yuji and he says he's found a breakthrough in this case," said Alan.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS and Hanyuu were all collected in the Hive's lab. Yuji stood before them. In a case on the table were the Spark Cores they had in their possession: #04, #05 and #06.

"As you all know," Yuji began, "Shiro has been using these Spark Cores to revive the fragments of the Orochi, the Heads. After we destroy an Orochi, a Spark Core will be released and it is revealed to be drained of power."

"We know that," Daichi remarked, "Get to the point."

"Hold your comments and questions until the end, please," Yuji said, pointing at Daichi seriously. "Well, the Spark Cores are drained of their normal energy but if that was the case why would Shiro want them so badly that he would break into the base and steal them back? Well, I decided to examine Misato's Spark Core and that was when I discovered this." He tapped a few keys on the console and the screen showed a graft.

"Um…what are we supposed to be looking at?" Yokoshima asked.

"Didn't I say hold the questions until the end?" Yuji questioned.

"Sorry."

"What you are seeing are the results of my own scans. It would appear that these Spark Cores now hold negative energy," Yuji explained, "That is energy that comes from negative emotions."

"Negative emotions that Darkloids cause so that they can feed on it later," Shinichi added.

"Exactly," Yuji confirmed. "We all know that the Orochis are all in actuality Darkloids and each of them represent a negative aspect. Hanyuu, if you will take the floor."

"Oh, OK," said Hanyuu as she walked over and took Yuji's spot. "Well, according to my research the Orochis we have faced so far each represent an element and a negative aspect." She listed the Orochi's one by one, "The Orochi of Fire represents Wrath, the Orochi of Ice represented Despair, the Orochi of Water represented Impurity, the Orochi of Metal represented Greed, the Orochi of Lightning represented Loneliness, the Orochi of Wind represented Deceit and finally the Orochi of Darkness represented Fear." She took in a deep breath and requested, "Water?" Chiaki poured her a glass and handed it to her. "Thank you."

"You're forgetting the one eating in our cafeteria," Shogo pointed out.

"Oh, and the Orochi of Earth represents Ignorance," Hanyuu finished.

"That explains it," mumbled Shinichi. Tsuchi-Gnol just wasn't smart enough to be evil.

Yuji continued, "Shiro's harvesting negative energy using the Spark Cores. I can't be sure what his plan is but I doubt it's any good. We have three and Shiro has three. We may not know what he plans to do with them but what we do know is that we can't let him have the Spark Core inside Tsuchi-Gnol."

* * *

In the previous year, ARMOR had attacked X-SHOCKER's Island Base and destroyed it. It should've been the end of X-SHOCKER but it wasn't as Gebok had once again been another decoy. Her death drove Shinichi on a hunt for Gebok, destroying X-SHOCKER facilities one at a time until he found Gebok. X-SHOCKER's true headquarters was on the moon but they didn't know that until later. It was on the moon that Project Armageddon was stopped and Shinichi finally defeated Gebok and found his closure. Of course, while the island base location had become deserted, that did not mean it didn't have its uses.

Under the island base was a metal cylinder which went miles deep into the waters below and connected to a large, pyramid-like structure encased in a thick, glass dome. There were lights turned on around the pyramid which meant that it was active. This was the backup underwater base which had not been touched until recently.

Shiro Juuyon had found this base one day while investigating the ruins of the X-SHOCKER Island Base. He found a secret express elevator which he rode down into the pyramid-like fortress. Since then he'd claimed it as his own and used it as his base of operations. He'd even invited Gnol to live with him in the base. The Pyramid Base was well hidden from detection and so Shiro could work without anyone attacking him.

Shiro was currently working on a new project. He was tapping the keyboard rapidly and looking at the data that scrolled along the screen. "Alright, almost done," he mumbled and then he moaned, "Yeah, that's right, baby. Clean daddy's pole."

Kneeling in front of him with her head bobbing up and down on his cock was a blonde Bakeneko girl with long and wavy hair. She was in a string bikini and servicing Shiro eagerly as he worked. She was giving him a heavenly blowjob and while he was busy with work he was able to multitask and enjoy a blowjob. All work and no play made for a dull day.

Shiro grunted and released his 'milk' which the Bakeneko girl eagerly drank and swallowed. She licked her lips and purred, "Delicious."

"Yeah, you love daddy's milk, don't you?" he asked. "Now, get over there," he ordered and the blonde Bakeneko girl obeyed, sauntering over to a metal table with a set of clothes laid out for her. She put on the garments and then lay down on the table. She wasn't the only one lying on a table. Aside from the blonde, there was a redhead with her long hair in a braid, a girl with short and straight blue hair, a girl with short and spiky green hair and a girl with pink hair in pigtails. They wore identical clothes which were short-skirted and sleeveless ninja outfits over fishnet bodysuits. They wore black boots and gloves with metal plating on the back of their hands. Around their foreheads were headbands with metal plates in the front which had Shiro's XIV mark on them. Including the blonde, they wore scarves corresponding to their respective hair color.

These were his elite Cyborg Bakeneko Kunoichi. His artificial semen actually contained nanites which would modify their bodies upon entry. The process was barely noticeable. Another effect of the nanites was their total obedience to him. He had infected more than five with his nanites but he chose only the five most gorgeous girls to act as members of his harem and army.

Gnol entered the room and saw the Bakeneko Kunoichi slumbering. He commented, "Was the only reason you brought them here was so you could have them at anytime?"

"There is that, but also because I need foot soldiers as well. Besides, they are attractive, are they not?" Shiro asked without looking up from his screen. Gnol couldn't deny that these Bakeneko whores had nice and soft bodies. They were also tight in all the right places and made beautiful noises as they were fucked. Gnol went and looked over Shiro's shoulder.

"So, what is it you're working on**?**"

"Back in the Dark Hatred Society, Gebok developed a system that would allow him to summon living duplicates of various monsters to fight for him," said Shiro. "It was called the Kaijin Call System and it used cards. Of course I am thinking of doing something way more efficient."

Gnol revealed his true form which was almost complete. All he was missing was the armor on his right leg. "When do we claim the Orochi of Earth?" Gnol asked.

"Once he's collected a large amount of negative energy," Shiro answered. "That Spark Core should be filling up as we speak."

* * *

Out in the canyon, Tsuchi-Gnol was giving Alice and Celine both a ride on his broad shoulders. The two little girls cheered as the gentle giant ran around with them, laughing cheerfully with them. Junior and Lockheed even joined in the fun and games and chased after Tsuchi-Gnol. Meanwhile, Shinichi was keeping a close eye on the Orochi of Earth.

"So, what do you think?" Yuji asked as he walked up to stand next to Shinichi. "You think he's a threat?"

"To be honest I don't sense the same kind of malevolence I normally sense from Darklings and Darkloids from him at all. He's just a child in an adult's body. Hanyuu even confirmed it. Aside from the fact he's got super-strength he's not dangerous at all. In fact, I'd say he's the complete opposite of the other Orochis we'd fought. You could say he's the 'black sheep' of the family."

"But that's not the only reason you're keeping an eye on him," Yuji observed.

"He's got Saisen's Spark Core," said Shinichi.

"How can you be sure?" Yuji asked.

"I'm just guessing but considering the pattern it's the only logical conclusion," answered Shinichi. "The others were revived with the Spark Cores of Jin, Goemon, Koichi, Misato, Kamiyami and Todoriko. It just makes sense that this is Saisen's."

"It could be yours," Yuji suggested.

"Shiro wouldn't give up a Spark Core that powerful," said Shinichi. "He'd keep it for himself. It's what I'd do."

"Make sense," said Yuji. "But if this is Saisen's Spark Core so why hasn't Tsuchi-Gnol gone crazy and started shooting everyone in sight?"

"Guess the Orochi of Earth's personality is much stronger," answered Shinichi. "Hey, where's that kid Manakyte?"

"Hana and Michiru are giving him a bath," answered Yuji.

* * *

Hana and Michiru had Daiki cornered. Michiru was holding a towel while Hana was holding a sponge and scrub brush. Daiki was pressed against the wall, frightened, and shaking his head back and forth. "No bath!" he protested.

"Little boy, you're filthy so you need a bath," said Hana.

"Now, let Hana-neechan and Michiru-neechan get you nice and squeaky clean!" chirped Michiru. They jumped and crashed as Daiki zoomed away, leaving a trail of dirty footprints.

"Alright, no more Ms. Nice Spider," said Hana and she transformed into Arachnea before spitting webbing at Daiki. The webbing stuck his feet to the floor, causing him to trip as he screamed and tried to crawl away but the webbing would not break.

"Hana-chan, that was a little rough," chided Michiru. "We're supposed to be gentle with kids."

"He needs discipline. Now, it's time we give him a bath."

Arachnea tied up Daiki in a cocoon of spider silk and carried the struggling Earth Manakyte over her shoulder. She could paralyze him with her venom but that would be way overboard.

After Arachnea tore the silk away, Michiru and Hana stripped Daiki naked and put him on a stool before pouring water over him. There were two communal bathing rooms, one for the girls and another for the boys. The girls' bathroom had pink tiles with a large tub filled with hot water.

Daiki yelled when the hot water touched his skin, "Hot!"

"That's good," said Hana as she and Michiru had on one-piece swimsuits in their respective colors. "The hot water will rinse off some of the dirt on you."

"Now, it's time we lather you up," said Michiru as she held up a sponge and a bottle of body wash.

"After that we'll scrub you down," added Hana as she held up the brush.

* * *

"Do you think they'll get him clean?" asked Shinichi.

"It'd take a while. That kid had a lot of dirt on him," Yuji replied. "But then again he's an Earth Manakyte and they are at home in the dirt. I'm also pretty sure he's an orphan."

"Because of the dirt?" Shinichi asked, "Or the rags he was wearing?"

"Both," Yuji replied, "I think he's homeless and something happened to him. That's why he didn't trust us at first."

"Until you told him you were like him," Shinichi concluded.

"Exactly," Yuji nodded. "I'll try to get more information out of him."

"Hey guys," said Alan as he came out of the base and saw his daughters playing with Tsuchi-Gnol, "They seem to be having fun."

"Yeah, that are," agreed Shinichi and Yuji.

"So, where's Daiki?"

"Bath."

* * *

"And now you're squeaky clean!" cheered Michiru.

The dirt had been completely washed off Daiki and he even smelled nice.

"Why do I smell like this?" Daiki asked, wearing only a towel.

"It was rose-scented body wash," Hana replied. "And now it's time we got you dressed."

"So, I can finally get in my clothes," smiled Daiki.

"Actually, we threw those away," said Michiru.

"What!-? Why would you do that!-?" he yelled.

"They were filthy and falling apart," Hana reasoned. "But don't worry, we got you something else to wear."

Daiki's eyes widened in horror as he saw what Michiru wanted him to wear. "No, no, no, NOOOOOOOOO!-!-!"

* * *

Tsuchi-Gnol was now juggling Alice, Celine, Junior and Lockheed. They didn't seem to mind. In fact they were laughing with glee.

"I'm thinking of adopting him," said Alan.

"You?" Shinichi asked, surprised. "I almost thought Yuji was going to do it."

"It does seem that way," Yuji agreed. "So, what brought this out?"

"Well, a while back I met this homeless kid while on duty," said Alan. He seemed saddened by the memory, "You see, his planet was in the middle of a civil war and he was trying to get food to feed his brothers and sisters. I tried to help but then they got caught in the crossfire and I was unable to protect them."

Shinichi knew Alan had trouble taking about the painful moments in his past. After all, Alan was a Green Lantern and was supposed to be a hero, but each failure would always have a lasting effect on him. However, Alan never let himself be discouraged for long. He still felt regret but that was what made him human.

"Daiki may not want me, but he needs a home and a family," said Alan.

"And here he is!" announced Michiru as she and Hana brought Daiki out of the base, all cleaned up and dressed. He wore a white buttoned up shirt with a red bowtie and blue shorts held up by black suspenders. On his feet he wore white socks with blue sneakers. "Doesn't he look cute?"

"Why do I have to wear this?" Daiki questioned in annoyance as he tugged at the bowtie.

Tsuchi-Gnol walked over with Celine and Alice still on his shoulders. "Daiki, you look different," the Orochi of Earth stated the obvious. He sniffed, "You smell different."

"Yeah, I got cleaned up and put in this," Daiki said, tugging at his suspenders. Celine and Alice slid down Tsuchi-Gnol's arms and landed on the grass before looking at him. "What?"

"You look cute!" Alice chirped.

"Mau!" Celine agreed.

"Thanks…I guess…" muttered Daiki as he blushed. Alan knelt down facing him. "What is it?"

"Daiki, I understand that you don't have a home here, and I also understand you're an orphan," began Alan. Daiki flinched after the last observation, "I won't ask questions about that but I want to ask if you'd like to live with me."

"Live with you?" Daiki asked.

"Congrats, kid. Alan's here wants to adopt you," Yuji answered.

"Yay, we have a brother!" Alice cheered, hugging Daiki.

"Mau!" Celine hugged him too. Junior and Lockheed ended up joining in the group hug causing them all to go tumbling to the ground.

"Well, they seem happy," Shinichi pointed out the little girls' reactions.

Daiki stood up, rubbing out the wrinkles in his clothes as Celine and Alice beamed at him. "OK, but what about Tsuchi?"

Tsuchi-Gnol pointed to himself, "Me?"

"Well, he's kinda big," said Alan, "And I think it's safer if he stays here in the canyon."

"Then I'm staying too!" exclaimed Daiki stubbornly. "I'm not going anywhere if Tsuchi can't come along!"

"But, Daiki, Tsuchi-Gnol here is…well…he's in danger," Alan said, trying to be diplomatic. He couldn't tell this kid who'd befriended Tsuchi-Gnol that his friend was a fragment of a malevolent demon who might be coming for him soon.

"You mean _dangerous_," Daiki glared.

"No, I-" Alan began to deny.

"That's what everyone else back home said about me," Daiki growled. "They said I was a monster and they were right. I killed my parents!"

"That can't be true," Alan denied.

"I dropped the house on them!" Daiki snapped. The ground began to shake due to his powers. He was causing an earthquake.

"Well, if they died because of that, it means they weren't your biological parents," said Yuji. Daiki looked at him and the tremors ceased. "Kid, you and I are what are called 'Manakytes'. We're dragons and I doubt a house falling on them could kill your parents if they were Manakytes. Maybe the people who you thought were parents found you and raised you as their own child."

"But…that just means my real parents didn't want me," said Daiki, looking to the ground.

"Or they were just trying to give you a normal life or maybe they were in danger," Yuji suggested. "Kid, you're not a freak. Those people were scared and ignorant. They didn't know any better. I am not condoning their actions. They should've understood it wasn't easy for someone your age to handle that kind of power. They just took the easy way out instead."

"But I'm dangerous," said Daiki, looking at his hands. "Are you sure you want me?" Daiki asked Alan.

"Of course I do, and just because Tsuchi isn't coming with us does that mean you can't visit him here," said Alan.

"Daiki can come every day," Tsuchi-Gnol understood. "The food here is good. I am happy."

"If you say so, big guy," said Daiki, wiping a stray tear from his eye.

"Alright, now I think it's time we see what you can do," said Yuji.

"What I can do?" asked Daiki.

"Alan's adopting you but I'm gonna teach you all about what it means to be a Manakyte!"

* * *

"Something's wrong," said Shiro as he sat in front of his computer.

"What do you mean?" asked Gnol. Shiro tapped the screen which showed the image of a gauge.

"You see this gauge? It measures how much negative energy a Spark Core has absorbed. Right now I'm monitoring the one I used to revive the Orochi of Earth. It hasn't filled up in the past several hours."

Now this caught Gnol's attention. A piece of him had yet to collect negative energy. The others had done so but why hadn't this one. "Why?"

"I don't know," said Shiro. "Sensors show he's alive but for the life of me I just don't know why he hasn't started wreaking havoc yet." His eyes narrowed, "Something's up."

"Do your sensors tell us where he is?" Gnol asked.

"Yes, but let's not go just yet. Let's give him a few more hours and if there hasn't been any changes by then we'll go and investigate," said Shiro.

* * *

There was a party at the canyon. In fact, the party was in honor of Daiki's adoption. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves until a black VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Lift) vehicle hovered over the canyon.

"What's that?" asked Yokoshima as the VTOL began to descend and land on the grass. A door opened up and two very familiar and unwanted guests exited. One was Shiro, dressed in an immaculate white suit and wearing an eye patch and the other was Gnol in his human form. Alan immediately put himself in front of his daughters.

"What do you want?" Shinichi questioned angrily.

"We're here for the Orochi of Earth," said Gnol. "Hand him over."

"What for?" Alan asked.

"That's none of your business, now hand him over," ordered Shiro.

"You just want the Spark Core inside of him," Yuji retorted. "Isn't that right?"

Shiro, upon hearing this, put on a huge and arrogant grin. It was like he'd won the lottery and in a way he had, "Looks like you have it all figured out, or have you? Well, since you now know what I've been doing with the Spark Cores, I guess there's no harm in telling you. He explained, "You see, I've been using those Spark Cores to not only revive the Orochi Heads, but also to harvest negative energy. The Spark Cores would then become Nega Cores so I can use them for future plans. Since Tsuchi-Gnol over there is just wasting resources, we decided to cut out losses and absorb him."

"Absorb?" Shinichi questioned.

Gnol assumed his demon form, revealing his almost completely armored form. Only his right leg remained unarmored. The armor on his left leg sported a kneepad shaped like a dragon's claw and his foot looked like a dragon's head. "Yes, absorb," repeated Shiro. "Remember the last six Orochi you defeated? Well, when you destroyed them their essences were reabsorbed by Gnol."

"What?" Alan was stunned.

"That's right, you stupid heroes! All you've been doing is making Gnol here stronger!" Shiro taunted, patting the Darkloid General on the back.

The revelation shocked them. Was it true? All this time they had been playing into Shiro's hands and accomplishing his plans for him. He'd been playing them for fools this whole time.

"You should've known better or maybe you did but you were wrong," Shiro mocked, "Now we just need one more piece to complete the set."

"You're not getting him," swore Yuji. "Look around. You're on our turf, outmatched and outnumbered."

"Doesn't matter," Shiro said and he snapped his fingers. The five Bakeneko Kunoichi appeared out of nowhere and they all stood at Shiro's side before going down on one knee as he introduced them, "Meet my elite foot soldiers, the Cyborg Bakeneko Kunoichi Corps!"

"Catgirls?" gawked Yokoshima.

"Crap, I can't fight girls," cursed Alan.

"Yes, catgirls," grinned Shiro. "Catgirls which will do whatever I say." He patted one on the head and she purred. "These girls are the best of the best and with my modifications have become perfect weapons."

"So, there are still just five of them and like Yuji said we have you outnumbered," stated Daichi.

"Those numbers didn't mean squat against Kin-Gnol, or have you forgotten?" Shiro taunted.

"That's in the past. Now we're ready for anything!" added Yokoshima.

Shiro smirked, "Oh, really? Girls, show them what you can do!"

"YES, JUUYON-SAMA!" the girls answered before performing identical hand seals, "KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" There was a huge explosion of smoke and when it cleared each of the Bakeneko Kunoichi had created ten clones each so now there were fifty five of them surrounding the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies.

"Ninjas make really good soldiers. It's like I have my own personal army," boasted Shiro. "Now, girls, GO!" The Bakeneko Kunoichi army drew their ninjato and charged as the NEO-NUMBERS transformed.

"NEO-NUMBERS, attack!" Zero ordered.

"Daiki, go inside with Alice and Celine. Junior, you and Lockheed go in too," ordered Alan. "Hurry!"

"Come on, Daiki!" Alice shouted as she pulled the Manakyte boy along with her.

"Tsuchi! Tsuchi!" Daiki shouted to his friend as he reluctantly went into the base for safety.

The Cyborg Bakeneko Kunoichi did battle against their foes, the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies. Attacks were thrown about and it was chaos in the canyon. The Bakeneko Kunoichi were fighting hard and strong and despite being knocked down they would always come back for more. Nothing seemed to be able to stop them. However, the NEO-NUMBERS still kept trying.

The Bakeneko Kunoichi battling Carmen and Arachnea surrounded them before slashing with their swords but Arachnea took down the clones with her dual Spider Kama. Carmen then showed off her talents for illusion and then started landing blows. At the same time, Slasher and Meta were trying to fight their Kunoichi adversary only for her to duck and dodge. Meta stumbled and his hands landed on her chest. He instinctively squeezed her breasts and with an outraged yell kick him in the crotch as she haughtily declared, "Only Juuyon-sama may touch me like that!"

Yokoshima was in Blue Beetle mode and slashing with his swords but the Bakeneko Kunoichi parried his attacks. Musician tried to take the others down with a sonic blast but they dodged the attack instead by warping around. Zero's attack kept missing as well as he shot his needles before he was suddenly struck from behind. He then spun and filled her with needles. That would've defeated her but in a puff of smoke she was replaced by a log and Zero got hit in the side. The Bakeneko Kunoichi purred and licked her sword.

The other Bakeneko Kunoichi were fighting against Yuji, Shinichi and Alan. Alan, due to his family's law of never, ever fighting girls, kept dodging the swipes from the sword. He couldn't tell apart the Shadow Clones from the real ones so he couldn't risk hurting them. As for Shinichi and Yuji, they were defending themselves from the Bakeneko Kunoichi's swords as well. They tossed kunai at them which had explosive tags stuck to them and when they struck the ground they gave a command and they exploded, causing dust to blind the Manakyte and cyborg.

These Bakeneko Kunoichi had been cybernetically enhanced to be strong and fast enough to keep up with the likes of Alan and his reluctance to harm anything female was used to their advantage. Even Shinichi and Yuji couldn't harm them too much. They were just innocent victims under WHITE 14's evil control. Their Shadow Clones were fair targets but there were just so many of them.

"Man, these girls may be sexy but they're really getting on my nerves," Yuji growled.

"I know," agreed Shinichi as he coughed from the dust that invaded his lungs. "But we have to get them out of the way so we can help (cough) Tsuchi!"

Meanwhile, Gnol was making his way towards Tsuchi-Gnol and spoke sinisterly, "You are part of me. Now, become one with me again." He ordered, "I order you to come to me, Orochi of Earth!"

"Do what he says and we promise it'll be painless," promised Shiro.

Tsuchi-Gnol's answer was a simple one and he did it without any words but actions. He reared back his fist and clocked Shiro in the face, launching him across the canyon. He crashed and was embedded in a deep crater in the canyon wall.

"So you wish to make this hard on yourself," Gnol realized.

"I'll make it hard on _you_," Tsuchi-Gnol retorted as he cracked his knuckles

Gnol dashed forward and punched him in the gut, only for the Orochi of Wrath to blink and look up at the Orochi of Ignorance who didn't even flinch. Tsuchi-Gnol responded by bringing his arms up and then swinging them down like a pair of hammers as he chopped into Gnol's shoulders with great force. The blow stunned Gnol and Tsuchi-Gnol followed up with a grapple as he lifted Gnol and mounted him across his shoulders as he kept the General in place with his strong grip.

"Let's go for a ride!" Tsuchi-Gnol cheered as he began to spin in a circle, going faster and faster. The dirt and rock began to wear away at his feet as a tornado of earth formed around the two due to Tsuchi-Gnol's spinning.

"Let! Me! Go!" Gnol demanded as his complexion turned green and unhealthy.

"OK!" Tsuchi-Gnol obeyed as he jumped up, swung Gnol around and launched him into the ground, creating a huge crater as rock shattered and rose in sections. Tsuchi-Gnol landed with a loud crash and threw up his hands victoriously.

Gnol broke out of the crater and propelled himself through the air by using his wind powers and launched a torrent of water at Tsuchi-Gnol like a water hose as the Orochi of Earth slipped and fellback with a thunderous boom. The General then erected a whip of fire and lashed at the downed giant, tearingaway his clothes as the burns marked his skin. Tsuchi-Gnol growled and grabbed the whip despite the pain and head-butted Gnol, sending him tumbling. The Earth Orochi slammed his fists together as he grew bigger and was decked in his solid bronze armor. He balled his fists and erected a piece of rock that molded into a perfect sphere. Conjuring a chain of energy, Tsuchi-Gnol lashed at the piece of stone and began to swing as he now swung the makeshift flail over his head. He swung the flail at Gnol, who sidestepped it and got into range as Tsuchi-Gnol lost the weapon. Gnol went for an uppercut and it connected. However, Tsuchi-Gnol merely shrugged off the punch and popped his neck to the sides. He then grabbed Gnol's head and began to crush him in between his giant hands. Gnol growled in discomfort and delivered an electrified uppercut to Tsuchi-Gnol's forearm, forcing the Orochi to release his counterpart.

Suddenly, Tsuchi-Gnol was hit from behind and fell onto his hands and knees. Standing behind him, shouldering the Oathbreaker, was WHITE 14 (Darkness Mode). "You ungrateful fool," said WHITE 14 angrily. He then kicked Tsuchi-Gnol forward and started striking him in the back like he was whipping a disobedient slave, "I BROUGHT YOU TO LIFE AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME!-?" Tsuchi-Gnol grunted and then backhanded WHITE 14 violently, knocking him aside painfully. The white pseudo-Rider went tumbling and then got back to his feet. "YOU BELONG TO ME!" He then corrected himself when Gnol stared at him, "I mean, _TO HIM_!"

"That's right. Now, just be a good fragment and come back to me," said Gnol as he slowly approached Tsuchi-Gnol.

"NO!" Tsuchi-Gnol protested as he slammed his huge fists down, causing spikes of stone to shoot out at Gnol. He conjured vacuum blades that cut through the stone and scattered the pieces before continuing on his path. He stretched a hand out and then a bolt of lightning hit Tsuchi-Gnol in the shoulder, blowing off a chunk from his shoulder which caused the giant great pain. He drew back a fist and punched it forward but Gnol stopped it with his own hand before ice started creeping up Tsuchi-Gnol's arm. He withdrew it and shattered the ice with his other fist and then knocked Gnol to the ground with a kick to the head.

"Stubborn and stupid like a typical muscle-head," scoffed WHITE 14. He raised his sword and added, "Time to cut my losses." The ground suddenly shook and WHITE 14 lost his balance as he stumbled around, "Damn it…fucking earthquake…"

Tsuchi-Gnol rose on his feet and stomped as the holes in his body were filled with earth and reformed into his lost pieces. He then slammed his colossal fists together, generating a stronger earthquake as his body turned completely gold. The power he was generating was literally ground-breaking as all other battles in the canyon ceased to watch Tsuchi-Gnol and his upcoming technique.

"Everyone, brace yourselves! This is gonna be big!" warned Shinichi. He could sense the power coming from Tsuchi-Gnol. He was definitely one of the strongest Orochi fragments so far.

"**BURSTING GAIA CRUSHER!" **Tsuchi-Gnol shouted, "YAAAAAAAAAGH!" as he slammed his fist into the ground, erecting spikes of solid rock and pillars of stone as the canyon was almost torn asunder by the power of the Earth Orochi. Many Bakeneko Kunoichi Shadow Clones puffed out of existence as they were hit by showers of rock and stone.

"OK, warn me to never piss that guy off," Blue Beetle gulped. The others nodded, stunned by the incredible display of power.

"Man, he's a one-man wrecking machine," Carmen admired.

"Glad he's on our side unlike the others," said Meta.

Even Gnol and WHITE 14 were thrown for a loop by the Orochi's awesome display.

"I don't get it," said WHITE 14. "How can he be so strong when he hasn't tried to absorb any negative energy? I mean, he's a Darkloid too, isn't he?"

"There's something different about him," analyzed Gnol.

"Oh, besides the obvious?" WHITE 14 shot back. "He's resisting far too much."

"Ignorance means being stubborn as well," Gnol said, "The inability and refusal to learn anything new. That means he doesn't understand how futile his resistance is. All he is doing is delaying the inevitable."

WHITE 14 commented, "You sound like you're having fun."

"I am, and I've been waiting for a chance to test out my power so far."

Tsuchi-Gnol wasn't going to go down without a fight. He would not allow these two to take him away from his new friends so he got down on all fours and let out a roar as he tossed his head back. His skin turned to stone as his body began to expand and change. Daiki watched as his friends began to transform into a dragon of stone. WHITE 14 and Gnol simply watched impassively as Tsuchi-Gnol continued with his transformation. His hands became feet with sharp claws and he had a tail which had stone spikes near the tip. His entire body became covered in stone spikes and his neck grew long as his teeth became sharp. His eyes became red as blood as his head became crowned in multiple stone horns. He finally achieved his full size and towered over WHITE 14 and Gnol like a skyscraper. They were both impressed by his dragon form. The Orochi of Earth stood on all fours like a turtle and snarled at them, swishing its tail back and forth.

"Tsuchi…?" Daiki questioned as he watched via the Hive's surveillance monitor. This was his friend at full power?

"Guess he still wants to fight us," said WHITE 14, "How ignorant. He isn't even aware of who he's dealing with. Gnol, show him what's what."

Gnol grinned as his body ignited with dark flames that consumed him. The flames grew larger and burst into a pillar that surged high into the sky. Then, out from the flames came a draconic head that was attached to a long serpentine neck. It wasn't alone as six other draconic heads revealed themselves, each topping an individually long neck. Slithering out from the flames was the long body of a snake but this snake was massive and gigantic as it towered over Tsuchi-Gnol. The flames died to reveal the seven-headed serpent that Gnol had turned into.

WHITE 14 declared proudly, "I present to you the Seven-Headed Orochi!"

Musician nearly fainted at the sight of such a huge snake monster. His fear of snakes was so great that he went pale and catatonic at the sight of the gargantuan serpent and its seven heads just made it worse.

Tsuchi-Gnol was not intimidated and with a roar stomped the ground. Waves of sharp rock erupted underneath the Seven-Headed Orochi but then its body turned into water and it flowed through the rocks before catching Tsuchi-Gnol by surprise. It wrapped its long body around the Earth Orochi's stone body and all seven heads bit into its neck. Tsuchi-Gnol howled as the Seven-Headed Orochi's fangs buried into its stony hide.

"No, Tsuchi!" Daiki shouted. He ran out of the base despite Alice's protests. Stepping out onto the battlefield, his eyes glowed and the canyon wall began to crack before large chunks of it shot through the air and hit the Seven-Headed Orochi. It flinched with each hit and Tsuchi-Gnol finally managed to release himself from the seven-headed serpent's grip by extending the stony spikes on its body. The Seven-Headed Orochi hissed and removed itself from its prey. Tsuchi-Gnol then spun around and slammed its spiky tail into the Seven-Headed Orochi's body, knocking it away.

WHITE 14 suggested, "Gnol, show him why you're all powerful."

The seven heads opened their mouths and fired off an elemental storm attack. A stream of fire, a surge of water, a blast of ice, a burst of wind, a wave of darkness, a hail storm of metal spikes and a bolt of lightning all came out and hit Tsuchi-Gnol, causing the Earth Orochi to cry out.

"Alright, that's it," said Alan. He couldn't let this go on anymore. "Yuji, Shinichi, let's help him out!"

"Alright," Shinichi agreed. He ducked under a sword and dug his fist into the Bakeneko Kunoichi's stomach causing her to explode into smoke.

"You're the boss," agreed Yuji as he grabbed two of Bakeneko Kunoichi by the arm and tossed them away.

"Go ahead, we'll deal with these ninja girls!" volunteered Zero. He shot needles down at the Bakeneko Kunoichi, hitting the Shadow Clones which exploded into smoke as soon as they were hit. Musician helped make a path for them by blowing away the Bakeneko Kunoichi in their way.

"Just do what you gotta do!" added Musician.

"Thanks," nodded Shinichi.

WHITE 14 spotted Alan, Shinichi and Yuji running towards the battle, the Riders transforming along the way. He scowled but then grinned as he put a hand to his chest. He then shouted, his voice amplified like he was talking through a megaphone, "HEY, SHINICHI! YOU MUST BE WONDERING WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR OLD SPARK CORE!"

Showa looked up at WHITE 14 who grinned down at him.

"HERE'S A HINT!" shouted WHITE 14 as he pointed his fingers at the heroes, "LET'S RIDE: ALL KAMEN RIDERS!" His eyes glowed brightly as he said this.

"What!-?"gawked Showa and all of a sudden a wall of green energy rose up in front of Alan, Showa and Liger Zero. Showa's eyes then went wide as fifteen familiar figures walked out of the green wall which vanished behind them. "No way!" Showa shouted in disbelief as standing right before him were all the Kamen Riders whose forms he'd assumed before.

WHITE 14 put a hand to his chest and boasted, "I HAD IT THIS WHOLE TIME! I WAS JUST WAITING FOR THE RIGHT TIME! NOW, BOYS! DEAL WITH THEM!"

The fifteen summoned Riders (Ichigo, Nigo, V3, Riderman, X, Amazon, Stronger, Super-1, Skyrider, ZX, BLACK, RX, Roborider, Biorider and Shadow Moon) obeyed and charged at the three.

Showa was forced to deal with the Double Riders (Ichigo & Nigo), V3, Riderman and X. Liger Zero had to face Amazon, Stronger, Super-1, Skyrider and ZX. Finally, Alan had to face the Century Kings (BLACK and Shadow Moon) and the three incarnations of the Prince of the Sun (RX, Roborider & Biorider)

Showa was knocked back by a Double Rider Punch before being sent flying by V3's Screw Kick. X activated his Ridol Rope and ensnared him before slamming him to the ground which allowed Riderman to pin him to the ground with his foot and start shooting at him pointblank with his Machinegun Arm. Showa cried out as he was being repeatedly hit by the spray of bullets but he managed to grab Riderman's leg and toss him off before getting back to his feet.

Meanwhile, Liger Zero was dodging Amazon's claws. ZX tossed his Cross Shurikens which hit him in the side. They exploded and Liger Zero was sent flying only to be air-tackled by Skyrider. Super-1 activated his Eleki Hands and shot bolts of lightning at Liger Zero. Stronger joined in the assault as well and used Electro Fire to electrocute Liger Zero. His armor smoking, Liger Zero growled and unfolded his claws and blocked a blow from ZX before slashing him across the chest. Amazon grabbed his arm and sank his sharp teeth into it.

RX and Shadow Moon slashed at Alan with the Revolcane and the Shadow Sabers respectively. He dodged their blades but then was shot by Roborider. Fortunately, he was invulnerable and so he countered and fired with his ring, knocking Roborider back. Biorider rushed at him and he tried to fire his heat ray but the beams only passed through Biorider's liquid body before he slashed at Alan. He grasped the Bio Blade but this left him open for a Rider Kick from BLACK who knocked him off his feet and sent him tumbling.

Back with Showa, he activated his Great Fists and spun around, slapping the Riders away. However, he was sent flying when Ichigo and Nigo performed a Rider Double Kick that sent him flying before he tumbled along the canyon's grassy floor. WHITE 14's summoned Riders came charging at him and he decided not to hold back and summoned his Burst Cannon. Gripping the handles, Showa got to his feet and charged up the cannon before unleashing a point blank blast with the cannon, sending the summoned Riders flying.

Alan punched Shadow Moon and RX so hard they were sent flying. Biorider came at him in liquid form but he used his ice breath to freeze the blue Rider. Next was Roborider who threw a punch at him but Alan blocked the attack and punched him hard in the gut, causing his body to fold in half before knocking him to the floor with his elbow. BLACK came at him and Alan caught his fist before knocking him back with a hard kick. Shadow Moon and RX recovered and rushed at him with their swords but Alan had a sword of his own and summoned the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He parried their swords with the sacred blade and with a single swing knocked them down with an explosion of sparks.

GaoLiger, GaoPhoenix and GaoTyranno had been awoken by the noise and when they saw the Seven-Headed Orochi, they knew instantly that he was the enemy. GaoPhoenix rushed at the Seven-Headed Orochi, flames bursting from her body as she performed a nosedive but the Seven-Headed Orochi grabbed her by the neck with its fang and began to constrict her. GaoLiger slashed his claws across the Seven-Headed Orochi's neck, forcing it to release GaoPhoenix and then he let out a roar as he lunged but he got blasted by fire and wind, knocking him across the canyon and straight into the wall. GaoTyranno roared and grabbed the Seven-Headed Orochi's tail in his mouth and started spinning around, and around and around, but the Seven-Headed Orochi melted into shadow matter which crept all over GaoTyranno's body and began to squeeze the life out of him before reforming. The seven sets of fangs bit into GaoTyranno's hide, paralyzing him before releasing him.

GaoPhoenix attempted to attack again but was hit with seven elemental attacks in a single burst which immediately knocked her out as she plummeted to the floor.

"Crap," Liger Zero cursed as his personal Power Animals, not to mention the one belonging to his brother, were defeated by the Seven-Headed Orochi, aka Orochi no Gnol, the self-proclaimed most powerful of the Darkloid Generals. Meanwhile, Tsuchi-Gnol was forced to face this fiend alone and they were being distracted by these Riders Shiro had summoned. "Out of my way!" Liger shouted as he activated his belt.

"**JAGER FORM!"**

His armor turned blue as he dashed past his opponents, landing lightning quick claw swipes that knocked them away. He ran across the canyon to reach the Seven-Headed Orochi. "Take this, you snake!"

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"**Strike…Laser…CLAW!**" Liger Jäger roared as he slashed at the Seven-Headed Orochi, leaving blue lines of energy which were cut across its body. However, the cuts were sealed up and Liger Jäger was then struck by lightning before the Seven-Headed Orochi's tail knocked him aside.

Tsuchi-Gnol tried to attack again but it had no affect on Orochi no Gnol. The seven heads lunged and sank their teeth into his body before suspending him in the air. Daiki witnessed this and screamed, "TSUCHI!"

Tsuchi-Gnol's body was caught in the seven jaws and then torn to pieces as Daiki watched in horror. Each of the heads began to swallow, the pieces going down their individual throats before settling in the giant seven-headed serpent's stomach. Suddenly, a new head burst out from the Seven-Headed Orochi's body, attached to a long neck. The head began to choke and then hacked before it spat out something that rolled along the grassy canyon floor. It stopped at Daiki's feet.

The young Manakyte picked it up with shaky hands and stared at the Spark Core which was marked by XII. "Hey, gaki," said WHITE 14 as he stood before the horrified boy. "That's mine. Give it here," ordered Shiro as he extended a hand towards Daiki.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!-!-!" Daiki shouted as the ground broke apart and spikes of stone erupted. Shiro was tossed through the air but he did a backflip and landed next to Gnol who'd reassumed his demon form. He looked his partner over and saw that he was complete with Tsuchi-Gnol's essence covering his bare leg in armor.

"How do you feel?" asked WHITE 14.

"Like I can devour the world," boasted Gnol.

"Good, now let's deal with our enemies before-"

**KRACK-KABOOM!**

That was thunder. Storm clouds rolled in from above with bolts of lightning crashing to the ground.

**KRACK-KABOOM!**

That was another crack of thunder, followed by a flash of lightning.

**KRACK-KABOOM!**

There it was again.

What was going on? What was causing this?

WHITE 14 noted that Gnol was starting to tremble and had his finger pointed forward. Curious, Shiro looked and saw Alan.

Only it wasn't Alan, at least not the way he knew him. His silver hair was spiked up and electricity sparked all over his body. A green aura with sharp edges burst from his body. He looked up, his eyes sparking with electricity. The Kusanagi in his hand was also surrounded by an electrifying aura.

"Shiro, I think we should retreat," suggested Gnol.

"Because of some lightshow?" WHITE 14 snorted. "All Riders, attack Alan Smith!" the bio-android ordered. The summoned Riders all leapt towards Alan but then all of a sudden there was an immensely loud crack of thunder.

**KRACK-KABOOOOOOM!-!-!**

A massive bolt of lightning came crashing down and it was so powerful that it shattered the ground. It crashed upon Alan and the summoned Riders which had attacked him but only the summoned Riders were caught in the blast and were instantaneously vaporized.

This shocked WHITE 14 but not as much as what happened next as Alan suddenly stood before him in a flash. The electrifying green eyes bore into WHITE 14's shocked ones and then Alan simply said, "Die." A bolt of lightning came down from above and struck WHITE 14 directly, causing him to scream out in agony, "AAAARGGGGHHHHHH!-!-!"

"JUUYON-SAMA!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi cried out in horror as their master was being attacked. They leapt to his defense but then hands of emerald energy burst from the ground and caught them.

"I don't fight girls," said Alan as he looked at the five Bakeneko Girls, "So don't force me."

WHITE 14 was still being electrocuted by the continuous bolts of lightning which struck him. The assault ceased and WHITE 14 collapsed onto his hands and knees, in human form, with his entire body covered in electrical burns. Finally, Alan swung the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and slashed Shiro's body straight down the middle from the top of his head all the way down to his crotch. His body then exploded and two Spark Cores leapt out of the explosions. One was Shiro's while the other was Shinichi's original.

Alan turned his gaze towards Gnol next and while the Darkloid General had been confident he could fight against Alan, now he was sure that facing the enraged Green Lantern/Storm God now would be suicide. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest as black blood burst from the wound? Had Alan struck him? He didn't even see him move. Several more painful cuts accompanied by bursts of blood covered his body. Not wanting to find out how Alan managed to inflict those injuries, Dark wings burst from his back and he fled as fast as he could. The Bakeneko Kunoichi also fled the scene, climbing back into the VTOL before it took off.

"And don't ever come back!" Showa shouted. He then looked to Alan, feeling disturbed and concerned. "Alan?" He tried to put his hand on Alan's shoulder but withdrew it when he got zapped. He knew Alan was silently grieving so he backed away to give him some space. He then spotted his Spark Core and picked it up but as soon as his hand touched it he could feel energy being transferred from it and into the Tri-Color Spark Core which had taken its place. The 'spirits' of the Showa Era Riders were flying into his body and as they did his belt strap became decorated with their symbols. Once the last of them had entered him, Spark Core #13 turned into dust. He collapsed onto his knees, his armor disappearing into nothing at the same time.

"Hey, you OK?" Yuji asked Shinichi as he helped the cyborg up.

"Yeah," said Shinichi, gazing intently at his hand. "I'm just fine."

* * *

A gravestone was planted in honor of Tsuchi-Gnol. There was no body to bury since it'd been eaten by Gnol but a funeral was still necessary. Alan felt guilty over his death. He hadn't been able to save Tsuchi-Gnol despite the power he had. They had lost another friend and he wouldn't be coming back again.

There were words carved onto the gravestone and they said, _"Tsuchi-Gnol. Though we only knew him for a short time, he showed us that goodness could exist in the most unlikely of places."_

Shinichi stood next to Alan in front of the gravestone. Earlier, Alan had consoled his daughters when they had cried over Tsuchi's death. Alan had to explain to them why their friend wouldn't be able to come back. Explaining death to children was not easy, especially ones so innocent. "How's Daiki doing?" Shinichi asked.

"Like the girls he's pretty upset," said Alan. "He just witnessed his only friend in this world die before his eyes. It'd take weeks for him to get over the trauma."

"It won't be easy. Fortunately, he's not alone anymore. He's got you. You're his family now," Shinichi stated.

"Yeah, that's right, and I'm gonna raise him the best I can. No, even better," swore Alan. Daiki hadn't blamed Alan for Tsuchi's death. The ones he did blame were WHITE 14 and Gnol Gnauh.

"How about you? Are you OK?" Shinichi asked the young Corpsman.

Alan shook his head, "No, I'm not OK. He died because I wasn't strong enough."

Shinichi then added, "That's not all. Gnol's complete now. All he needs is his body. I know it's cold of me to say but you need to get over his death now. He would want you to continue fighting. We need to stop Gnol before it's too late." Shinichi put down a small bouquet of flowers and poured sake over the gravestone as a sign of respect. "Guess there's always a good one among rotten fruit."

Alan stood in silence for a moment. "No…I won't get over it. I'll embrace it. Use the rage and the pain and the hate. And I'll NEVER make them stop paying for what they did."

Shinichi nodded and then walked away. He glanced at Alan for a second before moving on.

Alan closed his eyes tight as tears began to flow. His fists were clenched in anger as he swore, "Never…never make them stop paying."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so ends the Orochi Arc. What did you guys think of the action? Anyway, it looks like Gnol is at full power but not yet enough to face against Alan Susano-O Mode. Also, Shinichi regains the Rider powers he'd lost. That's good news. He would've celebrated if Tsuchi-Gnol hadn't died and gotten absorbed by Gnol. The Yamata No Orochi is going to destroy the world if they don't stop him now. Oh, and for Shiro-haters, please rejoice that he is now dead but considering his Spark Core is still intact he may return. What will he return us? You have to prepare yourself then. I'd like to thank Bushido for his help and also Tsuchi-Gnol's demon form was based on Granmarg the Rock Monarch and his dragon form was based on Megarock Dragon, both from the Yugioh OCG.**


	92. The Legacy of Cain Part 36

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 36: The Misadventures of Chibi 14**

In the Meta-World, Amaterasu the Sun Goddess and her sister Tsukuyomi the Moon Goddess were having tea with the Witch of the Theatre Featherine Augustus Aurora.

"Thank you for inviting us, Featherine-sama," said Amateraus politely.

"You're welcome, Amaterasu-sama," responded Featherine, smiling. "How do you like your tea, Tsukuyomi-sama?"

"It's delicious," answered the Moon Goddess politely. Instead of her usual warrior garb she was dressed in a kimono like her sister.

"So, you must've heard that Gnol Gnauh has completely absorbed the powers of the other Orochi heads," stated Featherine.

"Indeed, and it is troubling news," replied Amaterasu sadly, "Susano-O and his friends tried their best as well. They must feel awful now."

"They shouldn't be discouraged," added Tsukuyomi, "That's just what the Orochi wants. If they give up then there won't be anyone to stop him." She gave a sigh, "It used to be so easy in the old days. We could meddle in the affairs of mortals more actively then but not anymore and all because mortals don't believe in us as much as they did in the past."

"Troubling, but a number of them still do," Featherine pointed out.

"Only because they've experienced the supernatural," Tsukuyomi stated.

"Well, there are those interesting mortals who still deny the existence of magic despite all the obvious evidence," Featherine remarked with amusement. She then became serious, "Goddess of the Sun and Goddess of the Moon, our champions' trials and tribulations have only begun. All we can do now is have faith in them."

"I have faith in my Susano-O-dono," said Amaterasu, "And Tsukuyomi-chan definitely has faith in that handsome brother of his."

"Aneue!" Tsukuyomi exclaimed, blushing in embarrassment.

* * *

_Alice uttered weakly, "Daddy..." She was badly injured and cradled in her father's arms. There was nothing but rubble all around them._

"_Alice, I'm here," said Alan softly. There had been an attacked that had destroyed the city and Alice had gotten hurt. "I'm here, Alice. Everything is gonna be OK."_

"_Are we home, Daddy?" Alice asked weakly._

"_Yeah, we're home. Everyone's been waiting for us," Alan answered, stroking her face._

"_It's so dark…did we come home late?" she asked._

"_Yeah, we came home late. Conda's mad too," answered Alan as he held his daughter close, not wanting her to see his tears._

"_I love you, daddy…"_

"_I love you too, Alice," he answered. She then went limp in his arms. Horrified, Alan looked at his daughter. She wasn't moving. "Alice? Alice, wake up. Please, Alice. Wake up." He shook her gently but she did not respond. "Alice, don't leave me! Alice, please open your eyes! Alice! ALICE!"_

* * *

Alan woke up with a start and gasped. He sat up. He was covered in cold sweat and panting. His heart was hammering in his chest. "Alice!" He got up and ran out the door before running along the corridor to the kids' room. He opened the door and, to his relief, saw Alice sleeping with Celine and Daiki. The little blonde girl was clutching the Green Lantern doll and sleeping peacefully.

"She's alright," he uttered, relieved. "My little girl's alright." He gently closed the door, not wanting to disturb their sleep.

* * *

"They thought I was finished, but they were wrong. What they didn't know was that I made a backup body just in case," said Shiro as he rose. Throwing his arms up he declared, "Chiro Chuuyon has weturned!"

His voice sounded high-pitched, but there was a reason for that. He was now chibified, super deformed and the body he was in now was the size of a doll, no bigger than a basketball. Outraged, he shouted, "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!-?"

Gnol and the five Bakeneko Kunoichi had returned to their underwater base. One of them, the redhead, had managed to pick up Shiro's Spark Core and escape with it. Since his Spark Core was intact, revival was possible. All they needed would be a body.

Unfortunately, all they could found that was compatible with the Spark Core was this miniature body they had found.

"Gomen, Juuyon-sama, but that was all we could find," the redhead, Akaneko, answered.

"We did search everywhere, thought," added the pink-haired one, Momoneko.

**(From this point on, Shiro will be referred to as Chiro which is a portmanteau of the words 'chibi', meaning small, and his name Shiro****. Thus, he is now Chiro Chuuyon. Also, his L's and R's are pronounced as W's and his S's and J's are pronounced like C's)**

Chiro crossed his arms and scowled. Unfortunately, it didn't have the menacing affect that he would like and he was suddenly snatched up by the blue-haired Aoneko. She stared at him intently. "Why are you wooking at me wike that?" Chiro asked fearfully. She then hugged him to her chest.

"Kawaii~" squealed Aoneko.

The green-haired Midoneko complained, "Hey, don't manhandle Juuyon-sama!"

"But he's so cute!" Aoneko argued.

The blonde Kineko agreed, "Yes, he is. Can I hold him next?"

"Wait your turn!" Aoneko hissed as she crushed Chiro to her.

Chiro, under any other circumstances would've enjoyed this. This, however, wasn't one of those circumstances. He waves his arms about, struggling, "Wemme go! Wemme go!" Aoneko took him away from her chest and he glared at her. "Don't do that to me again! Now put me down!" Aoneko obeyed and put Chiro on the ground. He looked at everyone. They looked like giants! "Where's Gnol?" he asked.

"Did you call?" Gnol asked as he came in. He was in human form. As soon as he saw Chiro he let out a laugh, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Stop waughing! It's not funny!" Chiro shouted at his partner. Gnol, hearing that voice, laughed harder. He collapsed on his hands and knees, unable to breathe, as he pounded on the floor while still laughing hysterically. Chiro continued to fume. "Are you done yet?"

Gnol took in deep breaths between laughs. He then recovered and regained his composure, "I'm fine, I'm fine." He was still trying to resist the urge to laugh again. Chiro puffed up his cheeks in annoyance and crossed his small arms. "You look ridiculous."

"CHUT UP!" Chiro snapped. "How am I supposed to weport to Mr. Bwack wooking wike this?"

"Oh, about that, he called earlier while you were…out of commission," said Gnol carefully.

"He did?" Chiro asked. "What did he say? What did you say?"

"Well, I told him about our latest mission, about how I am not complete except for the Yamata no Orochi's body, and that you just lost your previous body," Gnol summarized. "He said he'd send a replacement soon."

"How soon?" Chiro inquired.

"Six to eight weeks."

"62 WEEKS!-?"

"Six TO eight weeks," Gnol clarified. "That is as soon as they can get it made and delivered."

Chiro grumbled. Now he remembered how he got this way. It was because of Alan Smith. "Damn him, he did this to me," growled Chiro. He summoned the Oathbreaker, "I WILL HAVE MY-" He didn't finish as he fell flat on his face while still holding the Oathbreaker. He got up and tried to lift the sword. "Ugh! Agh! Ugh!" he grunted with exertion and then cried, "I CAN'T PICK IT UP!"

Gnol couldn't resist and laughed at Chiro again. The miniature super-villain roared and jumped, sinking his teeth into Gnol's right leg. "ARGH!" Gnol screamed as he tried to tug Chiro off, "Get off me, midget!"

"Juuyon-sama, stop it!" begged Momoneko.

"You don't know where he's been!" added Kineko.

Chiro removed himself from Gnol and spat in disgust, "Peh, peh." He then glared at the Oathbreaker and shouted, "WHY DID YOU HAVE TO BE SO HEAVY!-?" Calming down, he decided, "Fine, I guess I chould get to work." He walked over to his workstation. He had plans to make. Unfortunately he couldn't reach the table or his computer. "I can't reach!" He jumped up and down which was a futile attempt. "It's too high!" Aoneko picked him up.

"Here, take a seat, Juuyon-sama," said Aoneko as he put him in a chair.

"Thank you, Aoneko…" He trailed off once he realized she'd put him in a high chair. "I AM NOT A BABY!"

"You're so cute, Juuyon-sama~" cooed Aoneko. Chiro slammed his face onto the tray. He got off the chair and jumped onto his desk where his computer was.

"Alright, time to get to work," said Chiro as he turned on the computer. He looked at his tiny hands and cursed, "Dammit, why me?" This was all Alan Smith's fault. "Gnol, you said it would take six to eight weeks before my new wepwacement body awwives, right?"

"Yes, that's right," Gnol comfirmed.

A wicked grin appeared on Chiro's face as he said, "That is pwenty of time for wevenge!" He walked over to the edge and looked down. He gulped and then asked, "Can someone help me down?" Midoneko helped him down and the miniature bio-android walked towards the door as the Bakeneko girls cooed, "Kawaii~" Gnol rolled his eyes.

Chiro stood in front of the door but it didn't open. "What the hell?" Why wasn't the door opening? Well, the doors in the base were set to open whenever someone stepped onto the black mats in front of them which sensed weight. There was a minimum weight requirement for the doors to open. Unfortunately, Chiro now weighed less than the minimum requirement. "OPEN! OPEN! OPEN SAYS ME!" Chiro screamed as he jumped up and down on the mat. "WHY WON'T YOU OPEN YOU STUPID DOOR!-?" He was throwing a temper tantrum.

Gnol laughed at Chiro's predicament and went over to offer his help. "Let me help you," said Gnol as he stepped on the mat and the door slid open.

"Thank you," Chiro grunted as he went through but Gnol decided to play a cruel trick and remove his foot from the mat, causing the door to close before Chiro went through the threshold. "HELP! WEMME OUT! WEMME OUT!" Chiro screamed as he was stuck.

* * *

"I hate you," Chiro said as Gnol carried him along the hallway.

"I said I was sorry," said Gnol.

"That was still mean."

"Oh, grow up!"

"I hate you."

"You're whining like a baby."

"I AM NOT A BABY!"

Click!

Chiro looked around. "Did you hear that?" he asked.

"Hear what?" Gnol asked.

Click!

"There it is again. It was a cwicking sound," said Chiro.

Click!

"There! I heard it again!" Chiro exclaimed.

"I think you're just imagining things. Maybe this body of yours has some kind of glitch," said Gnol.

"Yeah, you're pwobabwy wight. Stupid body," grumbled Chiro.

* * *

Momoneko was holding the photos she had taken with her instant camera. Using her ninja skills she had turned invisible so she could get several shots of her adorable little master.

"Hey, Momo-chan has pictures!" called Akaneko.

"What? Lemme see!" Kineko demanded.

"Kawaii~" Aoneko purred.

Midoneko asked, "Can I have one?"

"I got plenty!" Momoneko beamed, fanning them out.

* * *

"OK, you can dwop me here," said Chiro. He was riding on Gnol's shoulder and they were in Alan's neighborhood.

"So, are you sure you'll be alright by yourself?" Gnol asked as he put Chiro down.

"Twust me. I am an evil genius," said Chiro confidently. Gnol shrugged and walked off to find a bar or something. "Alright, here I go!" Chiro began walking towards the boarding house where Alan was staying. "Awan Smith, you will pay for humiwiating me! Mark my words, you will pay-"

He heard a meow and turned around only to see a cat. "Oh, it's just a kitty cat," Chiro said, relieved. However, the black cat was staring at him and licking its lips. He didn't like the way the cat was looking at him. "Um…nice kitty…" Chiro said nervously as he backed away. The cat advanced on him and the tiny bio-android felt terror before fleeing. The cat gave chase as Chiro screamed at the top of his lungs, "HELP ME! HELP ME! HELP ME!" He turned the corner and the cat followed before skidding to a halt. It then turned tail and ran. Chiro saw it flee and shouted, "YEAH, YOU BETTER RUN!" He then heard growling behind him and froze. He slowly turned around to see a big brown door looking at him. "Ah…Hell no." He ran and the dog gave chase as he screamed, "SAVE ME! SAVE ME! SAVE ME! HELP!-!-!"

* * *

"I…wost him…" Chiro huffed. He then looked up and cheered, "Yatta, I'm here!" He ran over to the front door. "Now to have my wevenge!" He looked up and saw that the doorknob was really high up. "No pwobwem! Toh!" He jumped but he didn't reach. He tried again, "Toh!" And again, and again, and again. He screamed as he threw a tantrum, "I HATE THIS BODY!" He heard the door open and gasped. "I gotta hide!" He scrambled about but then he just played dead. He cracked an eye open and saw that it was Celine, the plant girl. '_Oh, just one of his brats_.' Celine picked him up. '_Hey, what's she doing?_'

"Mau!" Celine uttered, staring at Chiro and then smiling, "Mau! Mau!"

"What's that, Celine?" Alice asked her little sister. "Oh, it's a dolly!"

"Mau!" Celine cheered.

"We can finally have a tea party. Come on, let's take him up and dress him up," said Alice.

"Mau!"

'_Dwess me up?_' thought Chiro. He was carried up to their room. '_OK, I'm in. Now, I shall…wait, is that a blue dress? No, no way! NO!-!-!_'

* * *

Alan was just returning home from grocery shopping when he saw something run down the stairs. It looked like a doll that was no bigger than a basketball and it was dressed in a pretty blue dress. His eyes narrowed. The doll looked just like Shiro Juuyon.

"The howwor! The howwor!" Chiro cried and then he ran into Alan's legs, dropping backwards awkwardly. He then looked up and saw Alan. "Aha! I have you now!" declared Chiro dramatically. "Now, Awan Smith, pwepare for your doom!"

Alan hated Shiro Juuyon, but right now he was struggling with himself not to laugh, '_Resist…urge…to laugh…Urge…too strong._'

"Hey, what's with that wook? I said pwepare for your doom!"

Alan couldn't help it. Chiro's appearance now, including the size, dress and funny voice made him break out in hysterical laughter, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!-!-!"

"STOP WAUGHING! IT'S NOT FUNNY!" Chiro cried.

"You're (laughs) in a dress!" Alan continued to laugh.

"You look ridiculous!" added Bazel in between chuckles.

Chiro roared and leapt at Alan only for the Green Lantern to catch him by the back of the dress. Chiro waved his arms and legs pathetically as he tried to free himself. "Wemme go! Wemme go!" Alan turned and opened the door. "Hey, what are you doing?"

Alan lobbed up Chiro and conjured a baseball bat. With a loud swing and a crack, he sent Chiro flying into LEO. "HOMERUN!" cheered Bazel. Alan saw Chiro disappear into a speck in the sky. He went inside and saw Alice come down with another set of doll dresses.

"Daddy, have you seen my new dolly?" she asked.

Alan gave Alice a pat on the head. "It ran away, sweetie."

"Oh," Alice frowned sadly.

"Don't worry, Alice. I'll buy you a new one. I promise."

"Thank you, Daddy! I love you!"

"I love you too, honey."

* * *

Alan went to the bathroom when all of a sudden Chiro popped out of the toilet bowl. "AWAN SMITH! FACE THE FUWY OF MY VENGENCE!" Alan simply pushed the lever down and the miniature psychopath went spinning down a whirlpool as he was flushed down the toilet. "I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS-Glub glub!"

* * *

Alan went downstairs to pick up a package and after signing for it he wondered what he'd gotten. It was addressed to him. He peeled off the wrapping paper and found a box. The lid popped open and Chiro sprung out, literally, as he was attached to a spring like a jack-in-the-box.

"GWEEN WANTERN! PWEPARE TO DIE!" With incredible speed, Alan shoved him back inside, closed the box, rewrapped the box and then brought it outside.

"Special airmail delivery," said Alan as he tossed the box into LEO.

* * *

Alan went out to dispose of the garbage and opened up the trash can. In the bottom was Chiro and he declared, "AWAN SMITH! MY VENGENCE WILL BE SWIFT AND-" He was cut off as a garbage bag was dumped on top of him before Alan put on the lid. The garbage truck then rolled by, just in time, and the garbage man dumped all the garbage in the can into the back of the truck before driving away with Chiro screaming, "I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS!"

* * *

"And that's what happened," Alan finished his story. He'd been invited over to dinner at Shinichi and Rena's.

"So, he really is that small now?" Shinichi asked. "He must've survived your deathblow somehow. We never did find his Spark Core."

"I knew I forgot something. His Spark Core must've been still intact," Alan replied. "He's not much of a threat now but it's getting annoying."

"But he is puny now, right?" Shinichi questioned. Alan nodded. "I would've loved to see that."

"Curry's done," said Rena as she put the pot down on the table. "Oh, I forgot the rice. Excuse me." She went back into the kitchen. As soon as she was gone, the lid was thrown off as Chiro jumped out.

"I HAVE WETURNED!" Chiro declared. "NOW PWEPARE TO FACE YOUR-" He was cut off as the lid was slammed back down on him by Alan and he welded it shut with his heat vision.

"What was that? Was that him?" Shinichi asked, bewildered. Alan nodded.

Rena returned with the pot of rice and saw the curry pot's lid had been fused to the pot. "What happened?" Rena asked.

"A rat got in," Alan answered. Technically, he wasn't lying.

Rena gasped, "A rat?" The pot was shaking back and forth and muffled cries could be heard from within. "Get rid of it!" A dirty rat had gotten into her curry? Gross!

Alan picked up the pot and said, "I'll get rid of it for you." He went towards the balcony and drew his arm back before tossing the pot straight into the air.

"It's a good thing I made extra," said Rena, carrying another pot of curry. "Dig in, boys."

* * *

"You'll get him next time," Akaneko encouraged. She and the rest of the Bakeneko Kunoichi squad were seated around a low table. They were each sitting on a cushion. Chiro, however, was seated on a small yellow chair for little kids. They pot had landed in the sea and sank to the bottom. Fortunately, Chiro activated his tracking beacon so he could be found and free from the pot.

"Girls, can I sit on something else? Stack two cushions together or something," said Chiro.

"We only have one left," said Midoneko.

"I don't care! I'll fold it in half and sit on it!"

The chair was replaced by the folded cushion and Chiro sat on it. However, it unfolded and he was sprung backwards. He was put back in the chair with a bump on his head, scowling.

"Here you go," said Kineko as she served Chiro his food. It was a rice ball served inside a cat food bowl.

"CHANGE THE BOWL!" shouted Chiro as he threw the bowl upwards. He stomped over to his desk and looked up. "Dammit, it's still too high! I need a stool or something!" Midoneko picked him up and put him in a seat. "Yes, that's good…THIS IS A BABY WALKER!"

"You just look so cute, like a little baby," said Midoneko.

"I AM NOT A BABY!" Chiro shouted. "AND MY WEGS DON'T EVEN WEACH THE GWOUND!" Everyone laughed and he commanded, "STOP WAUGHING! IT'S NOT FUNNY!" He ordered the base's primary computer, "GAWY, HELP ME OUT HERE!"

"**What is it you want, sir?**" asked Gary in an emotionless electronic voice. He was an AI program like Sheila and he ran the base.

"Figure out a way for me to get my wevenge! I've twied almost evewything!"

"**Have you tried reactivating the Combat Beast Androids stored away in the vault?**"

"Wait…what? We have Combat Beast Andwoids stored here? Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"**Because you never asked.**"

"YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO TELL ME THESE THINGS IN ADVANCE ANYWAY! I WASN'T SUPPOSED TO ASK AT ALL!"

"Juuyon-sama, do you need a nap?" asked Akaneko.

"STOP TWEATING ME LIKE A BABY!" Chiro snapped at her. He turned to Gary, "Gawy, show me a list of the Combat Beast Androids stored in the vault!"

"**Affirmative.**" The list appeared on the large monitor and Chiro read it. "**Which will you reactivate first?**"

"I won't be weactivating any of them, at weast not wight now," answered Chiro. A pair of pincers attached to a long pole clasped onto the back of the baby walker and moved him to the side. "Huh?" He looked over his shoulder to see Midoneko holding the pole. "What are you doing?"

"We're playing 'Merry-Go-Round'," answered Midoneko, smiling, as she slowly started spinning Chiro in circles.

Chiro had his eyes closed as he thought, '_If che thinks this is going to cheer me up, che's wrong.' _The speed was picking up_. 'It's not wike I don't wike this stuff. I mean I do.' _The spinning got faster._ 'Is this as fast as che can go? Anyway, I refuse to have any fun-'_

"YAAAAY! SPIN ME FASTER! GO FASTER!" Chiro cheered as Midoneko spun him around really, really fast.

"Hey, are you recording this?" Gnol asked Gary.

* * *

Yuji and Shinichi met at a bar and the cyborg told the Manakyte a funny story. After he finished, Yuji asked, "So he really did become a chibi?"

"Yeah, I saw it too and I still can't believe it," replied Shinichi. "Alan did chuck him into the air. I doubt we'd be seeing him anytime soon."

"Well, this'll make it easier for me to crush him," said Yuji confidently. He checked his watch. "I have to go now."

"So, how's business?" asked Shinichi. After being stuck in this world, Yuji needed a source of income so he had opened up a garage called the Dragon's Den. It was an automobile repair shop and also a place where people could get custom jobs done to their vehicles.

"A few customers come and go, so nothing to complain about. Wendy's been asking about mechanics so I decided to teach her, and I even started teaching Maria some programming skills," Yuji answered.

"They really do wanna take after you, don't they?" Shinichi commented.

"I guess so," Yuji replied, blushing.

Shinichi looked thoughtful, "I wonder what it'll be like when I have a kid."

"Even thinking about it can be fun sometimes."

* * *

Meanwhile, Chiro was sneaking into Yuji's apartment. He was using a miniature jetpack and stopped at an open window. He went in and found himself in a little girl's room. "Now, time to hide." He would hide and learn Yuji's secrets and maybe he could steal Yuji's Liger Belt at the same time. He leapt into a pile of stuffed animals and made himself comfortable as he chuckled evilly, "Nobody will suspect anything here…"

"Mir?"

Chiro turned and saw a blue and white draconic creature with big black eyes staring at him. It had a gem in its forehead and white, fin-shaped ears along with a serpentine body. "What the hell are you?" he asked. The creature started nuzzling Chiro's face as it coiled around its body in a tight hug. "Too tight! Too tight!" He managed to struggle himself free from the creature and glared at it, "Stay away from me." He turned and froze as he found himself staring at a pair of big purple eyes. "Huh?"

The big purple eyes were part of a big metal head on a small metal body with spider-like legs. The eyes blinked at him curiously.

"What are you-" began Chiro when all of a sudden the metal creature's head split open, revealing a set of razor sharp, blender-like teeth that spun and made a sound akin to a chainsaw. Chiro screamed and ran for the door just as Maria opened it.

"Rune-chan, Scrappy, I'm back," she called as Chiro ran past her. "UU, what was that?"

Chiro ran into the living room and the girls spotted him. "Fuck!" he cursed.

"Huh, is that a new doll?" asked Stella.

"It's kind of cute," added Phoebe.

Reina smirked, "Let's play with him."

Melanie refused, "I wouldn't. God knows where it's been."

Lilith asked, "What do we do with him then?"

Asura glared, "Wait a minute. I recognize this thing. It looks like that Shiro guy from the South Pole."

Chiro gulped, "Uh-oh."

"I say we roast him!" suggested Asura as her hands went ablaze.

"Abort! Abort!" Chiro panicked as he threw a smoke bomb. It exploded and covered the entire place in smoke.

Sora was coming out of the shower when the smoke suddenly covered the area. She coughed, "What happened!-? Asura, did you trigger the fire alarm again!-?"

Misato ordered, "Open a window!"

"There we go," said Wendy as she opened the window.

The smoke cleared and Asura cursed in anger, "Dammit, that little bastard bolted! I was ready for a barbeque!"

"Hey, I'm back!" Yuji called. "How are all my ladies?"

"Hi, Papa," Maria greeted.

"Why is there smoke?" he asked curiously.

"We had a little guest," answered Misato.

"Did he look like Shiro?"

"Yes," the girls confirmed.

Yuji snapped his fingers in disappointment, "Damn, and I just missed him."

Maria held up Scrappy, "Scrappy tried to eat him."

"I see." Yuji knelt down and scratched Scrappy's head. "Good work chasing him off then." The serpent-like creature, Maria's Dratini, coiled around Maria's neck and nuzzled her.

"There, there, Rune-chan," Maria said to her pet.

* * *

Gnol was waiting for Chiro and spotted him floating down with a parachute. "So, how did it go?" he asked.

"Just take me back," Chiro said in agitation.

* * *

"Welcome back, Juuyon-sama!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi greeted him upon his return. Gnol put him down and walked away.

"GAWY! WEACTIVATE THE COMBAT BEAST ANDWOIDS!" Chiro ordered.

"**Which one?"**

"WHICH ONE? ALL OF THEM!"

"**Negative."**

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'NEGATIVE'?"

"**I cannot reactive more than one at a time. It is standard procedure."**

"THAT'S STUPID! SCWEW STANDARD PWOCEDURE! CHUST DO IT!"

"**Negative."**

"I HATE YOU, YOU STUPID COMPUTER!"

"Do you want a bath, Juuyon-sama?" Aoneko asked.

Chiro sighed, calming down. "A bath would be nice." She smiled and picked him up into her arms. He yawned.

"Are you sleepy, Juuyon-sama?" she asked.

"Yes, I am sweepy."

"Do you want to sleep with me?"

"OK."

As Aoneko carried Chiro to give him a bath, the rest of the girls glared at her back in envy.

* * *

Chiro hated this miniature body. Not only was he weak but he also lacked any genitalia. "Damn them…damn them all…" he cursed. Aoneko picked him up and they both went into the bubble bath. She held him to her naked breasts.

"How is that, Juuyon-sama?" Aoneko asked.

Shiro thought, '_Maybe I should be nicer to the girls. Chure, they tweat me like a baby but it's been awhile chince anyone's been nice to me and they've all been so woyal_.' He closed his eyes and enjoyed the soft 'pillows' on her chest.

"Kawaii~" Aoneko cuddled him.

* * *

"Enjoy your bath with Juuyon-sama?" Akaneko asked with an edge in her voice when she saw Aoneko again. The blue-haired Bakeneko girl was carrying her beloved master in her arms and he was fast asleep while wrapped up in a towel. Akaneko's expression softened as she saw the cute little bundle. "Kawaii~"

"I'm going to dress him up and put him in bed," said Aoneko.

"We've already got something special for him to sleep in."

* * *

"Shiro, hey, Shiro wake up," Gnol called as he shook the miniature bio-android awake.

"Huh? What? I'm up! I'm up!" Chiro responded as he slowly sat up. He blinked his half-opened eyes and rubbed them before yawning. Gnol chuckled. "What's so funny?"

"Take a look," said Gnol as he held up a hand mirror. Chiro looked at his reflection and his eyes went wide.

"GIRLS!" he screamed. The Bakeneko Kunoichi all appeared as commanded.

"Hai, Juuyon-sama!" they responded as they knelt before him and bowed respectively.

"Can you pwease expwain to me why I'm in this getup?" he asked. He was wearing white footie pajamas with pictures of teddy bears all over it. He was also wearing a matching nightcap. "And why am I sleeping in a basket?"

"Well, we just thought it would look so cute on you, Juuyon-sama," explained Kineko.

"The basket was my idea," added Akaneko.

Chiro seethed as he glared at the five Bakeneko Kunoichi he had created but then he closed his eyes and countered backwards from ten. While it was humiliating, he had programmed these girls to be loyal, faithful and loving to him. All they were doing was out of love. His cute appearance just brought out their maternal instincts and they just couldn't help treating him like a baby since he was so small.

"You know what, I just don't care anymore," said Chiro with a weak smile. "I weally appreciate your kindness." The girls all smiled.

Gnol cocked an eyebrow. He thought Chiro would start yelling at them for being so disrespectful but now he just didn't care anymore. Did this body affect his mind more than he realized? How was Gnol going to regain the Yamata no Orochi's body that was sealed in Kyoto without him? Chiro's new body would only be ready within six to eight weeks. That was far too much time to waste.

Still, Gnol himself wasn't ready. The injuries he'd suffered at the hands of Susano-O had yet to heal. The Kusanagi no Tsurugi had left its marks on him and they were deep. He cursed himself for being so terrified of the Storm God, but seeing Susano-O's rage and fury had chilled him to the bone and he had been paralyzed on the spot, unable to move or retaliate.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi and Alan were dressed up as nightclub hosts and posing dramatically.

"Hi, Shin's the name and hosting is my game. What's up, ladies? You're looking fine."

"Hi, you can call me Alan, how are you doing tonight, ladies?"

Celine suddenly started crying, "Mau…! Mau…! Mau…!"

"Get rid of those cheesy outfits! You're making Celine cry!" Conda scolded.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: It'****s time to relax and Looks like everyone has six to eight weeks to wait before the next action-packed arc. This chap is something I wrote after watching 'The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi-chan'. Chiro's predicament is almost identical to Ryoko Achakura's after she returned all shrunken and chibified. It was just too funny to pass up so I had to write it. Not much action but well these are what lighthearted chaps are for.**

**Anyway, the next chapter, Legacy of Cain Part 37, will be called "6 to 8 Weeks" and will cover event within that span of time before we do the whole Kyoto Arc thing. It seems like a long time but considering both sides need the time to prepare I think it's ample time for some slice of life situations. 6 to 8 weeks will cover the span of time from the start of September all the way to the end of October in 1988. Be sure you guys help out, OK? **


	93. The Legacy of Cain Part 37

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: OK, we're gonna call this mini-arc '6 TO 8 WEEKS' because all this occurs within that time frame. I'd like to thank Warlord-Xana for this piece of work of is and also thank Kamen Rider Bushido for giving up much of his time to edit and expand on this story. Now, without further ado, let us begin!**

* * *

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 37: Venom VS Valor**

Detective Oishi ducked under the yellow crime scene tape and approached a nearby uniformed police officer. "What do we have here?"

The officer replied quickly, "Female victim, dual stab wound through the side of the neck. She was wrapped up in a white cloth of some sort. A couple of kids found her while shooting a video for a school project." He nodded towards four teenagers, who were currently being questioned by another officer. "They're pretty shaken up."

"I would imagine they should. Just be happy that this victim wasn't dissected when they found her." Oishi said, reminding them of the Noxakt Cult incident. He slowly approached the body. The other crime scene investigators were still at work, marking up the ground, examining the body, taking pictures. Her skin was pale and cold, her lips had turned that distinctive dead purple color with her neck having two puncture marks. He looked at the cloth she was wrapped in curiously, picking up some of it that was removed from her body as he rubbed the material between his fingers. "This thread…"

"Detective, what is it?" the police officer said as he walked closer.

Oishi stood up grimly "This isn't cloth, this is spider webbing," Oishi stated grimly.

"Spider webbing?-! Then do you think-"

"Stop," Oishi said holding his hand up. "It's too early to be sure. For all we know this could be just one of Mikogami's follower trying to discredit the Riders." He remembered how he first suspected the Sonozaki Clan of being behind the murders and disappearance all these years ago when it was in truth Miyo Takano.

Initially, he wasn't really sure about the Kamen Riders. At first they were simply vigilantes in his eyes but then he realized that they existed to fight the things that the police couldn't fight. Inspector Akasaka from Tokyo even supported the Riders after their help against Panther Claw two years ago.

"Now then, have the body sent to the lab for analysis. I want them to find any leads as to what could have killed her," Oishi ordered as he walked away with the cop saluting.

* * *

Hana woke up with a yawn before turning over and smiling at her bed occupant before leaving the room. Beneath the covers, Michiru lay fast asleep. Her gentle snores filled the spacious room as she enjoyed her pleasant dreams.

Hana went into the kitchen. She had snuck out of bed early, wanting to prepare a surprise breakfast-in-bed for Michiru. So far everything had gone as planned. She was still asleep and she hadn't noticed her creeping out of bed.

She was about ready to take the food to Michiru until her communicator rang. Hana sighed annoyed almost tempted to not answer it. _'Oh come on, I haven't even eaten breakfast yet,'_ Hana grumbled before answering the communicator mounted on her wrist. "This better be a dire emergency," Hana warned to the caller.

_"Trust me, it is. Especially since it may cause some stress for you, Hana,"_ Yuji said through the other end.

Hana raised an eyebrow curiously, not liking what Yuji meant.

* * *

Michiru was still asleep until she jumped when she heard Hana screamed "I'M BEING FRAME FOR WHAT!-?"

"Hana-chan!" Michiru gasped as she quickly got out of bed and exited the bedroom to see what was wrong with her best friend.

* * *

"_Calm down, girl" _Yuji pleaded through the com-link.

"Calm down? You're saying that someone killed a woman, wrapped her in spider webbing, and that the police suspect the Tarantula Rider, aka me! How am I supposed to calm down?-! And how the hell do you even know that?"

"_Well, Shinichi found out through Sheila and the satellite was able to pick up the image of the incident. Also, Sheila is apparently good at reading lips,"_ he said.

"Great, I learned that computers are talented," Hana remarked sarcastically. "And I can't even transform without the police trying to arrest me for a crime I didn't commit."

"_Well, it's not as bad as we think. Luckily, Detective Oishi wants to find out what really happened. He's willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, so you're good for the moment."_

While it didn't show, Hana did calm down after hearing that, "Do you think it could be the Religion of Crime, or perhaps Shiro and Gnol?" Hana asked, since Shiro did create a vampire using the head of darkness and #10's Spark Core.

"_Those are good guesses,"_ Yuji acknowledged. _"But there might be a third party at work here too. I suggest you lay low for a while. Most of the cops still consider you a suspect, and the last thing we need is to get into a pointless fight with the cops."_

"No way," Hana frowned.

_"Hana-"_

"Yuji, I know that's probably a safer method, but let me ask you this... Would you be hiding while a guy frames you for murder... or would you hunt the bastard down and bring him to justice?" Hana asked seriously.

_"Yeah, you got a point, but I want you to be careful, OK?"_

"Don't worry, Yuji," Michiru beamed as she wrapped her arms around Hana. She heard most of the conversation and decided to speak up now. "I'll make sure Hana-chan's safe and sound while we hunt this bad guy down."

"_OK, in that case I'll send some help your way and they'll meet up with you tonight,"_ Yuji acknowledged.

"By the way, Yuji," Hana spoke up. "Why are you doing this for me?"

There was a pause before Yuji spoke, _"You two are my friends,"_ before he cut the connection.

* * *

Meanwhile in an undisclosed location, Mr. Black was sitting calmly in a chair in a dark room.

"So, Black…" A voice stated, not even bothering with any honorifics. "You want me to join this pathetic organization?"

"Indeed, your power could prove useful to our organization's goal," Mr. Black stated calmly in a crisp business man tone. "Plus we can help you gain whatever you wish when you join." At this the mysterious figure laughed boisterously, causing Mr. Black to frown, "What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing, it's just that you think I'm stupid when it comes to gossip," the voice said before turning cold. "I know you're allowing a Darkloid to work with you…"

"Ah, you're referring to Mr. Gnauh. While it is true that he is allied with one of our workers, he is merely a free agent."

"I don't care! I refuse to work with a being that was born from that bastard creature who stole my land to spread his disgusting progeny…" the voice hissed. "Now get out, before I decide to satisfy my hunger on your worthless blood!"

"Very well, but be warned Mr. Kuraaku, those without friends are the ones that die alone," Mr. Black warned as he began walking away, seemingly melding into the darkness.

Kuraaku just glared at the darkness before heading out. He was feeling the need to feed.

* * *

Arachnea and Carmen were jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Everyone decided to use the same tactic that was used to take down Noxakt. Both were traveling carefully as they activated their ranged hearing and sight and their helmets' built-in night vision goggles.

"See anything yet, Hana-chan?" Carmen asked curiously. Arachnea shook her head.

"Yo!"

The girls looked to see a couple of figures descending from the sky. One was the succubus, Lilith Aensland and her partner was the fire spirit Asura.

"Hi guys," Lilith beamed.

"You're the help Yuji talked about?" Arachnea asked.

"That's right," Asura smiled.

Carmen hugged Lilith, "It's so good to have help!"

"I'm guessing you haven't found anything yet," Asura assumed.

"Not yet," Arachnea sighed.

"OK, let's check the next street then."

The foursome was ready to leave when they heard a loud scream. They immediately rushed to where the scream originated from.

* * *

Kuraaku was standing over the body of a dead woman, stab wounds on the neck with blood trickling down it. The woman's beautiful brown eyes were dull and lifeless as her body was covered with a mixture of both webbing and blood.

The man had blood dripping from his mouth and chuckled, "Blood never tastes as good as it does when it comes from a live woman." He had white skin, wearing the outfit of an archivist which incorporated abstract designs and mostly grey in color. If it wasn't for the blood most wouldn't believe that this man was a killer.

He was about to leave the area when someone shouted "HOLD IT!" He slowly turned his head to look up. He spotted Asura, Lilith, Arachnea and Carmen glaring down at him before they jump down.

"Ah… you brats must be the Kamen Riders I have heard so much about," Kuraaku grinned sniffed the air a bit before grinning, "And I see the armor themes are not just for show. I can smell that you both have spider and praying mantis blood inside of you." He turned his attention to the other two as he sniffed the air. "Hm... You two, however, are new to me."

Both blinked a bit surprise that he was able to smell their genetic modifications. Arachnea immediately shrugged it off as she glared at the man. "So, you're the guy who framed me, intentionally or not, and killed those women."

"Guilty as charged, though I have done more than killing those two in my many years of life," Kuraaku cackled making the girls frown. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a long night."

"Oh, no you don't!" Carmen shouted, lunging at him. However, he easily jumped backwards from her before running faster than a normal human could go. The girls immediately chased after him.

"Damn…he's fast!" Carmen panted as she chased after Kuraaku who ran through the maze of alleyways.

"Keep moving, we can't lose this guy," Arachnea stated. When they reached a fork in the road, they once again split up, Arachnea and Lilith taking the right while Asura and Carmen took the left.

"Alright, where are you…?" Arachnea murmured as she walked slowly through the alleyway. Suddenly there was a roar and Kuraaku suddenly tackled her from above. She grunted as Kuraaku raised his arms and his hands hardened into black carapace. He began to rapidly slash at her, causing sparks to fly. Arachnea quickly grabbed both claws before hurling him headfirst into the ground.

Arachnea and Kuraaku quickly got up, but Arachnea was quicker as she drew both her dual Spider Kama before swinging at him. Kuraaku screamed in pain at the rapid slashing before he was able to jump above the attack and landed out of the attack's range.

Lilith was next on the attack as she split into doubles of herself. She began pummeling Karaaku from both sides. Their wings covered their legs and formed into a drill as the doubles jump-kicked into Karaaku, spilling blood as he fell back and struggled to rise.

Kuraaku winced as he said, "Not bad, but you'll have to do bet-" Arachnea didn't wait for the man to finish. Her training in GIN-SHOCKER had taught her a lot of things. One was to strike at your opponent when he wasn't expecting it. Strike swiftly, strike decisively and strike hard. She swung her Spider Kama into the man's stomach painfully. There was a distinct 'crack' as the weapon collided with the ribs. Kuraaku bent forward in pain allowing Arachnea to use her momentum, quickly dismissing her weapon and drive the man's head into the ground.

Arachnea pulled her C3 and was ready to bring him in, but to her shocked she saw his body began to shift and change to pure white.

'"Nani!-?" Arachnea said shocked as the thing smirked.

"Sorry dear, but I am afraid you got the wrong one." The fake Kuraaku then broke apart into harden web pieces

"Shit…" Arachnea murmured before activating her com-link, "Michiru be careful, this bastard far more tricky than we realize." All she got was static. Concerned, she asked "Michiru are you OK? Please respond."

Someone responded. However, it wasn't Michiru.

_"Hello, my dear…"_ Kuraaku answered sickeningly sweetly through Carmen's com-link._"So I see you defeated my web clone. Most impressive."_

"You…" Arachnea gasped shocked, before becoming enraged and worried, "What have you done to Michiru!-?"

_"Oh, she's fine. I only knocked her out,"_ Kuraaku replied, _"And the other one as well."_

'_So he has Asura too,'_ Lilith realized.

"If you do anything to her, I swear I'll-" She began to threaten.

_"Oh, I won't, but you'll have to do what I say if you want to see her alive."_

Arachnea growled before asking, "What do you want?"

_"Oh, nothing fancy, my dear. I just want you to arrive at these coordinates in one hour, and come alone. If I find you brought backup or try to arrive too early, well let's just say I always wanted to try mantis blood,"_he said hungrily.

"… Alright I'll do it." Arachnea sighed.

_"Excellent…"_ Kuraaku said before he began to give her the coordinates. Arachnea took the information, but all she could think of was killing that bastard if he laid one of his slimy fingers on Michiru.

"It'll be OK," Lilith patted Arachnea's shoulder. "If Asura's there, Michiru will be fine."

Arachnea nodded as they made their way to the location, with Lilith flying overhead. _'Wait for me, Michiru, I'll be there,'_ Arachnea promised.

* * *

"Ow…. My head," Michiru groaned. She blinked surprise to see her wrists and legs wrapped in webbing and she was in a room that had definitely seen betters day. She looked to her right and saw that Asura was suspended in the air and also bound by webbing.

"Ah, I see you're awake," Kuraaku stated calmly as he enter the room.

_'Ah, hell, not again…What is with bad guys knocking me out, and dragging me to weird places?'_ Michiru thought with annoyance before asking, "Why have you brought us here?"

"Oh, don't worry, I'm not going to kill you," Karaaku assured. "After all, I owe you Riders for permanently sealing that bastard and most of his Darkloid generals away, especially since they've wronged me!"

Michiru blinked in surprise, "Wait, you were wronged by the Darkloids?"

"Yes… You see, I once live in the land that has now become Hinamizawa. I ruled it with an iron fist. One day, however, the Dark Being came, and he quickly overpowered me. I was forced to flee for my life. When he was sealed, I was pleased, but I knew that seal would break so I waited until he and his children were either dead or permanently sealed."

"Wait… but the Dark Being was in the Onigafuchi Swamp for centuries, possibly since the Sengoku era," Michiru stated. Just how old was this guy?

"Why, yes he was," Kuraaku grinned as he close his eyes for a moment before he opened them revealing pure black spider-like eyes. "And so was I!"

This creature didn't intimidate Asura. She had seen far ugly-looking monsters, including gods, during her time with Yuji. It was a good thing he let her and Lilith take care of the situation or else he probably would have ended this ridiculous bullshit before it even started.

Michiru gulped, not liking the look of this guy's face. "If you are grateful to us, why did you kidnap me, and why are you killing people?"

"Simple, I want my land unfortunately far more annoying creatures have made homes in my land," Kuraaku growled

"You mean humans…" Michiru realized.

"Yes! I couldn't do anything to the Dark Being because of the difference in strength but I refuse to let those disgusting apes run away in my territory," Kuraaku said angrily. He added with a sadistic look on his face, "I am willing to kill everything, be it demon or human, as long as it means I get my territory back."

"Okay, first off, you're nuts. Secondly, I don't see how kidnapping me will help with your sick little plan," Michiru dead-panned.

"Let's just say your little spider friend will help me with that since I am holding you prisoner." Kuraaku stated with a sick grin. Before Michiru could ask what the hell he meant, Karaaku's hearing picked up approaching footsteps and smiled, "Ah, she's arrive right on time. I think I shall greet her." Kuraaku grinned walking out of the room, before he left however, he turned to look at her with a smirk, "Oh, and do stay comfortable." Kuraaku cackled as he left.

"Oh, haha, you're hilarious." Michiru grumbled.

"Finally, he's gone," Asura sighed as she burned through the webbing and freed herself.

"You could've done that this whole time?" Michiru blinked.

"Yeah, I wanted to hear his story," she shrugged, "but it was so fucking boring I had to wait until he was gone so I wouldn't have to hear his voice. Now then, let's get you out of here."

"Can I ask you something?" Michiru asked as Asura started burning the web bindings.

"Sure."

"I know you and Lilith-chan are helping, but why did Yuji send you?"

"I figured this question would come up," she sighed. "In a nutshell, Yuji does care about you two just as much as he cares about the rest of us and Misato."

"So he loves us like the others?"

"Pretty much," Asura nodded.

Michiru questioned, "Then why hasn't he said so? I mean, he could've asked us to be part of that harem of his, right?"

"He could have, but Yuji sees the love and devotion you and Hana share, so he didn't want to get in the way of that. Besides, he's married now and with the baby coming I don't think he could handle all the female attention. I mean, he's been running himself ragged for the past several months and even lets Misato feed off of him more frequently since she needs more blood."

"I knew he cared about us," Michiru grinned childishly.

* * *

The coordinates led Arachnea to an old, abandoned, Japanese-styled mansion. Arachnea entered and frowned as she looked at her surroundings. While the outside looked as if it was abandoned, on the inside, however, it was covered by thick webbing on the walls and different pieces of furniture.

"Ah, I see you have arrived, _Kamen Rider Arachnea_," Kuraaku drawled out her Rider name with a sickly grin as he seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

"I'm not here for small talk, web fetishist," Arachnea smirked darkly as Kuraaku's smile change to a deep frown. "Where's Michiru?"

"Hmm, oh yes, the mantis girl! Relax, I kept my word. She's alive and well in the next room," Kuraaku said. Arachnea's helmet hid the look of relief on her face."However before I can let her go, I still have some conditions…" Kuraaku said, his smirk returning back to his face

"Of course…" Arachnea muttered to herself. Bad guys always had conditions. That was why they took hostages.

"The first is of course is that you will kill that Darkloid before he comes here to reclaim this area for his master."

"Well that's what we we've been trying to do in the first place," she dead-panned. "What about the other condition?"

"The other is killing the other Riders and that Sentinel fellow. And don't say you can't, because I know he is weak against magic, something I can easily provide you with," Kuraaku grinned.

"Like hell! I'm not going to kill my friends because of you!" Arachnea growled.

"Oh, so you wish for your lover to die?" Kuraaku sneered, causing Arachnea to tense. "That's right; I can smell her all over you and vice-versa. I can easily kill her, quite horribly too."Arachnea growled a bit as Kuraaku stated, "Come now, what's more important to you: the life of your friends, or the live of your lover?"

"How about your head?"

Kuraaku turned and was fed a fireball to the face via Asura as she was in her Majin form, her six hands blazing furiously as she punched the demon through a wall. "Michiru's fine," she called out to Arachnea. Now go get your girl so we can finish this loser!"

"Thank you," she nodded as she immediately ran further into the building using her heat sensor to help find Michiru. She kept moving down the hallway until she spotted a heat signature that matches Michiru's. "Jackpot," Arachnea murmured as she quickly knocked the door down.

"Hana-chan!" Michiru beamed happily as she glomped the Rider.

"Are you okay? Did that freak try anything funny on you?" Arachnea asked as Michiru picked up her helmet before putting it back on.

"Besides being knocked out and kidnapped, I'm A-OK and ready to kick that bastard's ass," Carmen stated.

"_Oh, really?" _an inhuman voice stated eerily. Both cyborgs tensed, recognizing it as Kuraaku's voice. The wall suddenly exploded, sending debris flying and causing a cloud of dust to cover the area.

Something began walking through the torn wall.

It was a large spider with a humanoid head and chest and six 'wiry' legs. It had a golden body with small bronze spikes across its back and an image of a skull on its abdomen. It had six pitch black eyes glaring darkly at the girls. This was Kuraaku's true form, a Tsuchigumo.

"You know, I was thinking of sparing you when this was over, but now I just want to kill the both of you in the most gruesome way possible." The Tsuchigumo hissed as it lunged at them, punching them both with enough force that when they hit the wall, they easily broke the entire section with parts of the ceiling.

Both groaned painfully, but Kuraaku wasn't done there, he quickly raise both arms, firing a silver web that latched onto their torso and quickly deliver a powerful shock that was conducted through the webs onto the maiden Riders as they screamed in agony. Luckily, Michiru quickly reacted and transformed. Her flower-like shoulderpads glowed and fired petal-like bullets that cut the electric spider threads.

They quickly retaliated by changing into Venom Form and Mirage Form before attacking. Carmen raised her double-bladed scythe, spinning it rapidly while it was cover in a magenta aura before throwing it. Kuraaku jumped away but screamed in pain as his right arm was cut off by the attack. Next it was Arachnea's turn as she performed a double kick in his face, causing the Tsuchigumo to stumble backwards more out of shock than pain.

She landed on the ground as she shouted **"Maiden Rider Spider Stabbing!"** All eight of her spider legs shot forward, the tips glowing, and began to hit Kuraaku in a flurry of stabs faster than the eye could see. He tried to defend himself with his one good arm but failed miserably.

"Oh, that's it!" Kuraaku roared angrily as hespat venom and hit Arachnea in the eyes. Since she was wearing a helmet she was safe from the poison but it successfully blinded her. He used this to grab her before throwing her into Carmen, knocking both of them down

Kuraaku then fire a barrage of purple energy needles that hit the girls with small explosion erupting, causing them to scream in pain. "Give up, if you do I promise to make your death nice and painless," Kuraaku hissed.

"And we'll make yours agonizing and humiliating!"

He turned, regretting the action, as he received two kicks to the face; courtesy of Lilith and Majin Asura. The devil and succubus traded blows with the Tsuchigumo as they punched and kicked at him.

Transforming two of her arms into wings, Asura used her four free hands to generate a ball of fire that was launched at the Tsuchigumo, launching him in the air to be attacked from behind as Lilith's wings divided and turned into spears that pierced Kuraaku's body.

Arachnea glared at him, wondering how they could take this guy out. "Hana-chan." The Tarantula Rider turned her head to look at Carmen. "I think I may have an idea as to how to kill this guy. But it's a long shot."

"Whatever it is, if it takes this guy out, I'm willing to do it," Arachnea said determinedly.

"OK then, follow my lead," Carmen said as they slowly got up.

"Bah, you fools sure are gluttons for punishment," Kuraaku hissed as he lunged at them. However he was shock to see an army of the four girls suddenly appearing and attacking him rapidly

"GET OFF ME, YOU GNATS!" Kuraaku roared as he viciously attack each of the clones like a rabid dog. However, as his struck one duplicate down two more took its place. He continued his attack, taking down the clones savagely. After some time he was finally able to strike down the last two, panting heavily as he did so. He was frowning darkly as he realized that they were all fakes.

"Cowards! You let your illusion fight for you as you run for your pathetic lives!" Kuraaku sneered.

"Who say we were running!" Arachnea shouted from the rooftops. Kuraaku looked up, only for all of his eyes to widen in pure shock.

Both Carmen and Arachnea's Spark Cores glowed as a giant sphere of pink and purple energy formed in front of their hands.

"Hey bakagumo, take this!" Carmen shouted before she and Arachnea launched the sphere created from most of their Spark Core energy towards the Tsuchigumo.

"AAAAHHH!" Kuraaku screamed as he tried to flee, but it was too late. The sphere hit and detonated on impact, triggering a powerful explosion that engulf him. It was mixed with the monster's scream of death.

Both Riders panted, exhausted, as they reverted to their civilian identity. "That was… a very draining attack." Michiru panted tiredly.

"Yeah… I may not get up for awhile," Hana said tiredly. Both could hear police siren coming down the street, "I guess we made more noise in the battle than we thought…"

"Still, that was a nice finish," Asura smiled.

"Come on, we'll fly ya home," Lilith offered as she and Majin Asura carried the girls into the night's sky.

* * *

Michiru and Hana had considered exploring a physical relationship with Yuji. The girls were bi...they didn't care if it's male or female...they only cared if it was good and Yuji was pretty good to them.

Yuji, however, felt some reservations about the idea. Sure, he was all for sex, but he was married now and had to consider Misato's opinion and feelings about this. So the obvious choice was to seek a consult.

"Go for it," Misato told her husband. "They like you, you like them, and they're some of my best friends. Besides, I want them to know what it feels like to have a big, strong Manakyte pounding away inside of them for hours...You can even go Futanari on them. They don't mind."

"Well, if you say so, then I'll do it," Yuji nodded with a hint of worry still pulling at him. "I just wanted to run this by you so you don't think I'm not going behind your back or anything like that. I mean, the baby's almost here and I wanna be with you as much as possible, but I guess you would be a little annoyed with me sticking with you almost 24/7."

She crossed her arms, "I think when I threatened to suck you dry was a good enough clue."

"Yeah, you kind of scared me for a second, despite you looking so hot when you did," he admitted.

Misato took his hand and stared at him square in the eye. "Look, they know your mine and you've got a big heart. You can love a lot of people. This isn't my ideal situation but I've learnt to live with it and love it. I have a family, I have a baby coming, and a hubby who loves me despite the stuff I did in the past and the blood I've spilt.

"Well, I'm not exactly a saint myself, if you remember," he retorted.

"Nobody's innocent," she countered.

"Point." He then called out, "Maria! Wendy!"

The girls came to Yuji and Misato as they were all smiles as usual.

"Yes, Papa?" Maria beamed.

"What is it, Father?" Wendy asked.

"You know the drill: take care of Misato and help her when she needs it," Yuji ordered. "I'll be out for a while and I don't know when I'll be back, so assume that I'm either in the middle of a fight or doing the horizontal mambo with some girls that dragged me in."

"Roger!" they saluted.

Yuji kisses them on the foreheads, "That's my girls." He then kisses Misato, "I'll try not be out too long. I'll still miss you when I'm out."

"I'll miss you too," she smiled. "I love you. So go and show them how you love me."

Yuji smiled as he left the room to prepare.

* * *

Oishi had discovered what was left of Kuraaku and was able to deduce that it was some kind of kaijin that had killed the two girls, not the Tarantula Rider. He also explicitly stated that people should stop listening to Mikogami, stating that without them monsters like these would roam free to kill everyone.

"You know I have a newfound respect for that Oishi guy." Daichi said as he finished reading the newspaper.

"Yeah, I just wish that he would continue being a detective," Battler muttered. The Kuraaku incident was the last case Oishi had taken before he decided to retire. "It would be nice to have more friends in the police department."

"Yeah, but what are you going to do?" Daichi sighed as he put the newspaper down. "By the way… Has anyone heard from Michiru or Hana? I haven't seen them in a while."

* * *

Chiaki went down to the base's garage/vehicle bay and heard masculine grunts and feminine moans. "Yokoshima, if you are down here with Asmodeus again, I am stripping you of your tank privileges," he threatened. He turned on the lights, jumped onto the tank and popped the hatch open to see…

"Yuji! Michiru! Hana!"

"Hey, Chiaki," Yuji greeted. "This tank's cockpit is really roomy!"

"You said cockpit," Michiru giggled.

"Haha, I guess I did..."

"Focus," Hana pleaded as she bounced on Yuji. "I'm so close…!" She threw her head back and cried out in euphoria.

Chiaki shook his head as he hopped off the tank, turning off the lights and leaving the garage.

"Now, where were we...?" Michiru beamed.

"Wow, you two are really flexible," noted.

"We're double-jointed," they replied.

"More like triple if I didn't know better."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And that is the first story for '6 to 8 Weeks'. Wait for more chapters when they come out. You won't be disappointed. Oh, and a disclaimer: the plot belongs to Warlord-Xana while the characters used in this piece of fiction belong to their respective owners and creators.**


	94. The Legacy of Cain Part 38

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: A forewarning, people. This chapter is another part of the '6 to 8 Weeks' arc but unlike the previous chapter does not have a linear plot and is basically a collection of random events which occur within that span of time. So, sit back, relax and enjoy.**

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 38: Bonds **

Showa stood in the middle of a thick fog. Clenched tightly in his right hand was the Higurashi no Yaiba. His eyes were narrowed under his helmet as he tried to spot his opponent. This fog was actually a product of the foe he was facing and he was slowly becoming annoyed by all this.

Ever since Gnol had regained his original level of power, Darkloid attacks had increased in frequency. They would strike without warning, attacking innocents without mercy. It was just like four years ago when he'd first awoken in Hinamizawa. He never thought he'd ever fight another Darkloid since he'd sealed the Generals and the Dark Being two years ago but then again evil was never a force that would disappear forever. The Darkloids had returned and all because of Gnol.

Showa suddenly spun around, swinging his sword, and the blade connected with a long staff. The Darkloid came into view, resembling a traveling monk except that its entire head was an eyeball. The Darkloid tossed Showa backwards and he landed a distance away from the Darkloid which vanished again into the fog.

The Darkloid suddenly struck once more, this time in Showa's side. The sharp end of the staff would've run through the Rider if he hadn't parried in time. Now, with the enemy within his sights, Showa unleashed the power of his sacred blade and called out, "Higurashi Zan!" A sound akin to a thousand singing cicadas was heard as Showa swung and cut the Darkloid across its body. It let out a cry of pain before Showa thrust his sword and ran it right through the giant eyeball.

The fog faded away and the Darkloid became limp as it hung from Showa's sword. He withdrew his blade and flicked it to remove the dark blood staining it as the Darkloid collapsed and then vanished.

Showa sighed before giving out a yawn. "Man…I need a vacation…"

* * *

It was the near the end of summer vacation, so Shinichi decided to take a relaxing dip in the pool with Rena and Satan. The pool at Shishibone University was generally open to all students most of the time. Of course, during summer break it would be booked for practice by the swim team. Today was an exception. He'd invited the white-haired Stake of Wrath along and the demon girl had accepted bashfully, still unused to the kind treatment and generous invitation. Of course, being the Stake of Wrath love was still something new to her even after all this time. The affection Shinichi showed her, especially in bed, made her feel warm all over. She had never had a man touch her in such a way. Only Shinichi was allowed. Yes, only Shinichi.

"OK, girls," said Shinichi as he stood in front of the men's locker room with the women's locker room across from it, "You get changed in there. I'll wait at the pool, OK?"

"OK, Shin-kun," said Rena.

Grinning, Shinichi asked, "So, are those swimsuits sexy?"

"Pervert," frowned Satan.

"Don't pretend you don't like it, Satan-chan~" Shinichi whispered into her ear as he ran his hand up and down her back before resting on her shapely rear. She gasped and was about to smack him before turning away with her arms crossed and a huff. Shinichi chuckled. Satan was just so cute like that. He couldn't resist and kissed her cheek, causing her to turn red before he retreated into the safety of the men's locker room.

"Why do we put up with him?" Satan asked Rena as they went to the lockers. They had gotten keys from the counter earlier.

"Do you have to ask?" Rena questioned. "You know why Shin-kun acts like this."

"Yeah," Satan nodded. Shinichi was just trying to be normal. She had seen him at his worse and while at first it had been attractive to see him act so badass, his obsession with taking down Gebok had been unsettling. Yuji had managed to quell her worries since he had assured her that Shinichi would be back to normal once his mission was complete. He had been right, but the cost had been high.

If she were to choose between on overly-serious, obsessive, and coldblooded Shinichi or a smiling, fun-loving, cheerful and perverted Shinichi, she would choose the latter. At least the latter was willing to pleasure her in lovemaking.

In the men's locker room, Shinichi opened up his locker and was presented with a nasty surprise.

"Surprise," grinned Chiro Chuuyon, the chibified form of Shiro Juuyon. He then roared, "BANZAI!" as he lunged, latching onto Shinichi's face. Shinichi tripped onto his back and cried out but his voice was muffled by the chibi android stuck to his face. Grasping Chiro, he tried to pull him off but the miniature WHITE 14 would not let go until Shinichi was dead. "Now die! Die, die, die!" Shinichi then resorted to beating on Chiro but then Chiro moved quickly to the side and Shinichi punched himself in the face. Grunting, he grabbed onto Chiro who was stuck to the back of his face and pulled him off before tossing him at the lockers. Chiro slammed against the locker and slid down. However, he was not about to quit. He lunged and grabbed onto the front of Shinichi's shirt and quickly crawled all the way up to the neckline Shinichi was too surprised to react as Chiro crawled into his shirt.

"GET OUT OF THERE!" Shinichi shouted and then he flinched, "Ow! Hey! Stop that! Quit it!" Chiro was biting him from inside his shirt and caused Shinichi to cry out and flinch each time. "Damn it, get off me!" Shinichi shouted and then he tore off his shirt and grabbed Chiro who was on his chest. Again he grabbed and tossed him away but Chiro did a backflip, bounced off the lockers and then went for Shinichi's pants. He grabbed on and bit down on Shinichi's groin.

"OOOAAAAAARGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!-!-!" Shinichi howled.

The two girls heard Shinichi's howl and while in their bikinis went to investigate. They heard the sound of metal being slammed and went into the men's locker room to see…Shinichi vigorously humping the locker?

"OK, what are you doing?" Satan asked. She knew Shinichi was a pervert but she didn't realize that he would go so far as to hump inanimate objects.

"GET THIS THING OFF ME!" he shouted as he turned to face them and reveal Chiro latched onto his crotch with his teeth. "HE'S ABOUT TO BITE MY BALLS OFF!"

Chiro released the two girls and with a grin he jumped off Shinichi and ran towards them. He jumped, grabbed onto Rena's leg and climbed all the way up to her breasts which he squeezed. "Sweet!" he grinned. Rena shrieked.

"GET OFF MY GIRLFRIEND YOU SICK FREAK!" Shinichi roared as he rushed to grab Chiro. The evil mini-android chuckled and leapt away with Rena's bikini top. Now Chiro was latched onto Satan's chest and she froze as he started to molest her as well. "HEY, GET OFF MY OTHER GIRLFRIEND TOO!" Shinichi shouted as he went to grab Chiro again, only for him to jump off at the last second with Satan's bikini too. He then escaped with both bikini tops as Satan and Rena covered their breasts. "HEY, GET BACK HERE!" Shinichi shouted as he gave chase, sore in the crotch and mad as hell.

Satan and Rena stood in the men's locker room with the former asking, "What…the hell…just happened?"

Chiro continued to outrun Shinichi. Meanwhile, Yuji and Alan were paying the campus a visit when they saw their friend, running around topless while chasing down an animated doll.

"What…?" Yuji blinked.

"Lala's dad used to pull this shit on me before," commented Alan as he watched the chase.

"Shouldn't we help out?" Yuji asked.

Alan shrugged, "It'll resolve itself."

The chase continued and Shinichi was seen chasing Chiro through the tennis court, the gymnasium, and finally he caught him as they ran into a room. "Hah, gotcha!" However, the room turned out to be a locker room, which happened to be in use…by the female wrestling team…and they were in the middle of changing.

"Oh…fuck!" Shinichi cursed. Chiro took this chance to slip away and escape with the bikini tops. "Hey!" Shinichi shouted but he found his path blocked by several muscular girls who cracked their knuckles. "Shit…"

* * *

"Juuyon-sama! Juuyon-sama!" called Momoneko. "Where is he?" She was worried. "He's so small. He could get hurt." She then spotted him skipping along the grass. "Juuyon-sama!" She ran towards him and picked him up. "I've been looking all over for you! Let's go home."

* * *

It was a good thing that Rena and Satan had brought along extra swimsuits. Shinichi, however, spent half an hour getting closely acquainted to the women's wrestling team's training regime. By the time he returned to the pool, he had bruises covering him and felt sore all over. While he could handle monsters easily, he tried to maintain a certain level of normalcy in his civilian life. As a result, he used his nanites to turn off his superhuman abilities.

* * *

The Flower Darkloid had Showa in the grip of its vines as it opened up its mouth to devour the Kamen Rider. However, said Rider was not at all intimidated by this action. He was in fact waiting for this to happen. "Burst Cannon," he called as he used his nanites to form the weapon, which was a metal plate on his chest with a cannon mounted on it. "Eat this! Spark Burst!" he called. The cannon charged up before firing a burst of energy point blank into the Darkloid's mouth, causing an explosion as the demon met its demise.

Showa wiped the gunk which was the creature's blood off his visor with his hand and grimaced in disgust.

"Yup, I definitely need a vacation," he muttered again.

* * *

"So, Yuki's in Jersey City now?" Shinichi questioned as he watched Yuji fix up his bike in the garage.

"Yeah, she took Crystal and flew over there to visit Rhea," Yuji answered, "Of course I'm the only one she told so she could surprise her."

"I guess Yuki just wants to spend time with her. Which reminds me that I gotta go see Shawna," Shinichi replied.

Yuji smiled. Shawna and Shinichi had a long-distance relationship but Shinichi always found time to visit. Possessing a high-speed jet mode and a Teleportal was pretty convenient.

Shinichi added, "She says she needed to see me about something important and asked me to bring Rena-chan and Satan."

"Well, as for me, I'll be doing some training," said Yuji.

"Hey, mind doing me a favor?" Shinichi requested.

"That depends on the favor," responded Yuji. "I've learnt over the years that when someone asks _me_ for a favor, _I'm_ the one who receives some kind of physical trauma."

"Relax, this is something I think even you can handle. You see, there's been a lot of Darkloid activity in Hinamizawa, Okinomiya and Shishibone. I was hoping you could take care of it while I'm away."

"Aah, I get it now. If it's just that then there shouldn't be any problem."

"Yeah, seeing Darkloids again isn't the type of nostalgia I was hoping for. Anyway, thanks. Oh, and I already asked Alan earlier for help with this." He needed the help to deal with these demons.

"Like I said: no problem. Now go and put a smile on the princess' face."

Shinichi gave a salute before leaving the garage.

* * *

"Tell me, you are seriously recording all this, right?" Gnol asked as he watched the spectacle before him. The five Bakeneko Kunoichi were having fun with their diminutive master and playing dress up with him.

"Juuyon-sama, try this on," said Akaneko as she held up a sailor suit.

"No, try this one," insisted Aoneko as she held up a bunny costume.

"This would look way cuter on him," pointed out Momoneko as she held up a little prince costume.

"No, this is!" exclaimed Midoneko as she was holding up a Godzilla costume.

"I think this would look adorable on him," suggested Kineko as she held up a kitten costume. The five argued as Chiro Chuuyon (the chibi form of Shiro Juuyon) sat on the table in a white t-shirt and blue shorts. Seeing this as a chance to escape, he jumped down to the floor, landing on his feet. He whistled and called over his Persian cat. The cat was actually a robot and its name was Mr. Fluffy.

"Mr. Fwuffy," said Chiro and the robot cat meowed and allowed its master to climb on its back. The cat then walked away with Chiro riding on him. The catgirls still argued and Gnol cleared his throat loudly.

"He's gone," he pointed out and the five Bakeneko girls looked to see Chiro missing before they cried out and tried to look for him. "Hey, Gary, how long do you think it'll take for them to find him?"

"**Knock knock**," started Gary. Gnol rolled his eyes.

"Who's there?" Gnol responded.

"**Never**," answered Gary responded.

"Never who?"

"**Never if he can help it. Haha!**"

* * *

Shinichi, Rena and Satan arrived in Genovia via Teleportal. The swirling green portal appeared in the courtyard where Shawna and her father were waiting for them. As soon as the three exited, the princess instantly leapt and hugged him. "Welcome back, Sir Shinichi!" she greeted. She also hugged Satan and Rena. The Teleportal closed shortly after.

"OK, I'm here," said Shinichi. "What do you need me for?"

"Well, Shawna has been thinking of visiting Japan again, but as a student," explained King Edward, "Therefore I've arranged for her to spend a semester in Shishibone University."

"That's great!" beamed Rena.

"But she's a princess," Satan pointed out. "Won't she draw attention from the paparazzi?"

"Satan-chan's right," agreed Shinichi. He remembered being chased by reporters.

"Oh, I've taken care of that!" said Shawna as she put on a pair of glasses.

"I don't think glasses will be much of a disguise," said Shinichi. '_They do look cute on her thought._'

"I'm also having my hair dyed and tied in pigtails," Shawna added.

"What? Dye your hair?" Shinichi blinked in shock. "But you have such lovely hair."

Shawna blushed at the compliment. Shawna had golden tresses that looked genuinely gorgeous on her and to change that would be a crime. "Thank you, Sir Shinichi, but if I were to wear a wig it would just fall off. Dying my hair is the only way I can walk about unrecognized safely."

Shinichi crossed his arms. "I still don't like it, though." He looked to King Edward, "Are you sure about this? Japan isn't exactly a safe place right now."

"I'd agree with you most of the time, but with you and your friends around I know my daughter is in safe hands," said King Edward. "Now, you all must be hungry. Follow me." The King of Genovia walked ahead, leading the group towards the dining hall. Shawna grabbed Shinichi hand and smiled at him. Shinichi couldn't help but smile back. However, the thought of Shawna having to dye her beautiful hair disturbed him slightly. It was a shame she would have to change it so she could have a peaceful semester at Shishibone University, but he understood the need for a secret identity himself.

As the group started to head inside the palace, a dark cloud loomed over them to cast a shadow. Shawna, curious, looked up, "That's odd. It should be a sunny day."

Shinichi frowned as he looked up and said, "That's no cloud." He was right as several humanoid figures began to fall from the sky and land around them. They were black with skull-like heads and they didn't look at all friendly. They wore belts with the familiar symbol of X-SHOCKER.

"You all get inside," Shinichi said to them as he stared the X-SHOCKER Combatroids down. "I'll take care of these punks."

* * *

Meanwhile, Celine was lying on the examination table with both Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam desperately trying to save her. Michiru and Hana were also aiding the two scientists but unfortunately none of them understood Celine's unique physiology. Even Momo, who claimed to be an expert on extraterrestrial flora was baffled by Celine and none of her own knowledge could help them.

She'd been poisoned, somehow. Alan wasn't sure when and where it had occurred but he had a suspicion of who had done it. When Celine suddenly fell sick he knew something was wrong. Celine's hair was slowly turning from a vibrant green to a dull brown as Alan could only watch as his daughter lay dying in front of him. There had to be a way to save her when Dr. Magi shouted, "We need Shinichi!"

Sheila reported, "_Shinichi Banabara, aka Kamen Rider Showa, is currently under assault by several Comabatroids in Genovia and cannot come at this time_."

Alan's expression was resolute as he volunteered, "I'll get him. Open up a Teleportal, Sheila."

* * *

"Why won't you cockbites stay dead!-?" shouted Showa as he hacked and slashed at the Combatroids. Combatroids were mechanical foot soldiers based on GIN-SHOCKER's own soldiers. They were black with skull-like heads. "Kuso!" A Teleportal opened up. "Heh, finally, some backup." Alan stepped out of the Teleportal. "Alan, thanks for-" began Showa but Alan grabbed him by the scarf.

"No time for pleasantries. Celine needs you." Alan then unceremoniously tossed Showa into the Teleportal which closed upon his entry. Cracking his knuckles, Alan glared at the Combatroids as his eyes glowed with green light.

* * *

Shinichi came tumbling out of the Teleportal. "Ow…" he groaned. He was then hauled up by Michiru and Hana and dragged over to the lab. "Hey, what's the big idea!" He was shoved into the room and then he realized what was so urgent.

He saw Celine, the cute little plant girl, dying.

"Shinichi, she's dying. We need…" began Dr. Magi only to be interrupted.

"I know. Give me room," he ordered. Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam backed away as Shinichi came upon Celine. She didn't look too good. The flower on her hair looked dead and her hair was completely brown now. Gently, he pulled the plant girl into an embrace and whispered, "Please, don't die. Don't die on me, Celine-chan," A clock-like mystic circle appeared under Shinichi's feet and glowed. Both he and Celine were bathed in light as the others watched. Celine's hair slowly returned back to its vibrant leafy green color as the flower atop her hair came back life. The mystic circle vanished when Shinichi felt he was done.

"Mau…" she uttered as she opened her eyes. Shinichi looked at Celine and smiled as he patted her head. "Mau!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan had just taken care of the Combatroids. It hadn't taken long and he had shown no mercy. They were, after all, just machines. He quickly called for a Teleportal and returned quickly to see Celine. He saw his plant daughter, completely restored to full health. She was in Shinichi's arms when she spotted her father. "Mau! Mau!"

"Celine," Alan smiled with relief as he collected the plant girl into his arms. She nuzzled his chest. "Thank god."

"Thank Shinichi," Dr. Magi corrected.

"Right," Alan nodded as he looked to Shinichi. "Thanks, Shinichi."

"No need for thanks," smiled Shinichi. "What are brothers for?" He seemed to be suffering from a headache. It was a side-effect from using his time powers and a reminder of the rules he'd violated by using said powers. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to head back to Genovia. Rena-chan and the others must be wondering where I'm at."

"There's one thing that's still bothering me," said Dr. Washam, "How did Celine get poisoned in the first place?"

* * *

"Hey, Chiro, have you seen that super poison that was delivered to us yesterday?" Gnol asked.

"First of all, don't call me Chiro! Use the 'S'!" Chiro whined, "Second of all, I twied to use it on Awan yesterday. I put into a robot mosquito with a kwyptonite-tipped needle." The needle had been tipped with kryptonite so that it would be able to penetrate Alan's skin.

"Yesterday? Didn't you smell like garbage again yesterday?" Gnol questioned.

"He stuffed me in a garbage can," Chiro grumbled, "It was a long trip to the dump."

"Well, that's just great. You wasted some practically good poison. Nice going, genius."

"Hey! Don't use that tone with me!" Chiro snapped as they began to argue with each other.

The robotic mosquito had gotten close to Alan but with his super-hearing he could hear it a mile away. Naturally, he slapped it. This caused it to malfunction and then land on the nearest target, who just happened to be Celine.

The mosquito had bitten her, injected the poison, and then disintegrated once its job was done.

* * *

"Hey, Alan," said Michiru as she approached the Green Lantern who was walking with Celine on his shoulders.

"Oh, hey Michiru," Alan greeted. She was still dressed in her nurse's uniform.

"I saw how worried you were of Celine," said Michiru.

"Well, of course I was worried," he replied. "It's only natural. She's my baby girl."

"Mau!" Celine uttered in agreement.

Michiru smiled and leaned in to whisper into his ear, "Well, I really like a guy with paternal instincts." She stepped back, grabbed his shoulders, and pulled him into a deep kiss. Celine watched in wonder as the kiss went on for a full minute before Michiru separated her lips from the Green Lantern whose eyes were wide.

"What was that for?" Alan asked once he recovered.

"For being you, especially for being cute," she giggled. "Ciao for now, Sentinel." As she turned to walk away, Michiru looked down as she felt a tugging on her skirt. Celine was looking up at her with her arms held out. Michiru reached down to pick up the little plant girl. The girl giggled, "Mau! Mau!" The plant girl placed a kiss on Michiru cheek, before jumping down and running back over to her father.

"I think she likes you," Alan laughed.

Michiru smiled, "I'm glad to hear that. Hey, if you ever need a babysitter for her, or need someone to talk to, give me a call."

"I'll do that."

* * *

Shawna and her father sat at a balcony, overlooking their guards' training sessions when Shinichi entered the field shouldering a quarter staff. "What is he doing?" King Edward asked. Rena and Satan came and sat at the balcony with the two Genovian Royals.

"Good morning, Your Majesty, Shawna-chan," Rena greeted politely.

"Good morning, Ms. Rena, Ms Satan. What is Sir Shinichi doing?" Shawna asked.

"Morning exercise," said Rena. "Just watch. There's a reason why he's at the top of the board back home."

"Top of the board?" King Edward repeated, confused by the expression. Rena only smiled as she kept her eye on her boyfriend.

"Yup, it's a ranking system and he's the one in the lead," Satan boasted proudly.

Shinichi spoke to the Captain of the Guards. "I want you all to come at me."

"Are you sure?" the captain asked. He had all the guards come for morning training sessions and they were around thirty men.

"Yes, I am," Shinichi insisted. "Now, I want all of you to come at me."

The captain shook his head, but he had heard rumors about the knight who'd won their princess' heart. "Very well, Sir Banabara." He ordered his men, "Men, do as he says and come at him with all you got!" They all gripped their training staffs, the Captain included.

"Counting down," said Shinichi as he closed his eyes. "5…4…3…2…1…" His eyes snapped open, "Let's Start the Game!" They all rushed at him, thinking this would end quickly. It did, but not in the way they expected. As soon as the first line of guards came in sight Shinichi swung his staff in a wide arc, striking them down. He then jumped up and did a backflip, landing behind several more guards who spun around only to be quickly incapacitated by Shinichi. Now they realized how much of a threat Shinichi was and became serious as they attacked in a group. However, numbers meant little for an ex-member of the GIN-SHOCKER Special Task Force known as N.U.M.B.E.R.S.

Shawna and King Edward who were pretty knowledgeable about Shinichi's level of fighting skill, but to see him fight without having to transform was almost alien to them. Shawna admired Shinichi's dance-like movements as he evaded blows before retaliating with precise strikes of his own. He only knocked them down and anyone brave or foolish enough got back up to try again.

"Numbers don't matter to Shin-kun," Rena stated as she watched. "All that matters in this fight right now is skill, and experience and compared to your guards Shin-kun has experienced a lot." She frowned in thought when she remembered what she'd learnt about the boy she loved. Compared to his troubles, hers seemed minute. She couldn't imagine being taken from her family and being forced to become a child soldier, to be tortured into obedience. Shawna had learnt about it too and the princess had reacted with tears of misery and sympathy as she realized how much suffering her beloved Mr. Samurai had gone though.

All that suffering remained in Shinichi's memories but he refused to let those horrible experiences dictate who he was now. He had finally moved on.

Shinichi shouldered his quarter staff as he looked at all the winded guards who he had fought with. They felt sore and bruises would definitely appear from all the hits he managed to land. However, he did not look down on them. No matter how many times he knocked them down they never gave up. He could try to knock them out but what would be the fun of that? This was just a simple training session.

In a matter of minutes, Shinichi was the only one to remain standing. Shawna applauded and she watched as Shinichi walked over to the captain and offered his hand. "Here, let me help you up," said Shinichi. It was not a condescending tone. In fact he was honestly offering to help him up. The captain accepted the help as he took Shinichi's hand, allowing him to help him up.

"Not bad," said the Captain of the Guards. "Where did you learn how to fight like that?"

"I'd…rather not say," said Shinichi.

"Well, at least this explains why His Majesty knighted you," said the captain. "No wonder he trusts the princess' safety to you."

"Yeah, no wonder," agreed Shinichi.

* * *

Inspector Akasaka had called Alan to Tokyo again for another favour. With Shinichi currently in Genovia, he was the only choice he had.

Apparently, there had been a series of mysterious disappearances occurring in the city. The people reported missing had been recorded by the subway's surveillance cameras taking a late night train. The thing was that there weren't any trains scheduled at that time.

Alan volunteered to investigate and late at night he waited at the train platform for the late night train, alone. The train came and it was like any other train. Nothing odd about it. However, Alan knew from experience that anything that seemed normal possibly wasn't normal at all. He did go to a school with aliens and yokai.

He boarded the train and sat down, waiting for something to happen.

He wasn't disappointed. As soon as the doors closed, a shroud fell over the outside windows and the train car began to rock back and forth, the lights flickering - once, twice, three times - and then going out.

Then a low chant began, almost in time with the rocking of the car, as erratic as that seemed to be. It had a definite pattern to it.

Four shining spheres appeared in the corner and began swaying back and forth as they moved around the room, almost as if it was making sure that he was there. Alan frowned deeply before he felt something slimy beginning to wrap around his leg.

That was enough to make him to switch from investigation to attack. He destroyed the tendrils and prepared for battle.

The orbs seem to glow erratically when that happened before swiveling around to look at him, glowing pure red as they shot beams at him. Alan easily dodged the attack thank to his Kryptonian speed before firing a beam at the ceiling, causing it to explode. All the orbs started flickering even more erratically as they ignored Alan as he flew through the hole in the ceiling. He was high enough to look at the train and gasp. The train was completely mutated, looking like a giant slug rather than a train, and it was completely covered in black scales that covered the windows except for the front window which morphed into a cycloptic eye.

The hole Alan made was beginning to seal up as he saw the orbs this time in clear light realizing they were actually eyeballs on extendable stalks.

"Bleugh, that is just wrong." Alan grimaced.

"Looks like it's one of those Darkloids, partner," said Bazel.

"You're right, let's take care of this thing and go home," said Alan as he prepared to finish the demon off in one blow. However, with lightning speed it opened its mouth and several tendrils shot towards Alan. He flew around to dodge but several managed to bind his arms. He used his heat vision to burn them but more kept coming at him. He fired with his ring and eyes simultaneously but no matter how many tendrils he burnt they still kept coming at him.

"Alan, if you got a plan, now would be good time to use it," suggested Bazel frantically.

"Just one!" Using his ring, Alan conjured the Blade Blade and swung, sending out an electrified burst at the Train Darkloid which caused it to roar as it was zapped. "Kusanagi!" he called as the sacred blade materialized in his other hand.

He didn't give the Darkloid another opportunity to attack. With both swords in hand he finished the creature off with two expert swings, sending it to oblivion.

"I guess we can consider this case closed," concluded Bazel.

"Yeah, too bad Akasaka can't exactly write this into a report," commented Alan.

"Yeah, that's true," Bazel agreed, his positive mood gone.

* * *

While in Genovia, Shinichi had detected a familiar dark presence outside the castle walls and went to investigate. He knew this feeling well.

Darkloids.

There was a Darkloid in the kingdom. With his keen eyesight he finally spotted the fiend as it stared back at him. It had the face of a woman and its hair was covering its entire body. Shinichi immediately transformed and clenched his fists.

The Hair Darkloid went on the attack, its hair spinning around its head rapidly as it threw itself at the Rider. He dodged to the side and summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba. He slashed and a lot of hair was sliced away. However, what was revealed to him disturbed him. The Darkloid had no actual body. Rather, its hair was covering what looked like a spine and pelvic bone. It regenerated its hair and then lunged towards Showa again. He slashed, only catching hair. It regenerated once more.

This was starting to get annoying.

Time to use an old favorite.

"Let's Ride: BLACK!" Showa called. His body became enveloped in red light and then his armor was replaced with that of Kamen Rider BLACK. He turned and put his hands around his Spark Core. "King Stone Flash!" he called. A red light burst out and the Darkloid screeched. He capitalized on this and struck. "Rider Punch!" His fist connected with the creature's face, sending it flying painfully through the air. It then exploded in midair after receiving the direct hit to its face.

"What a weakling," muttered Showa as he flicked his wrist. He stretched and yawned. "Time to go to sleep. Hope Shawna-chan, Satan-chan and Rena-chan aren't upset that I left them alone."

"Yes, I would be," said Satan from behind Showa, causing him to jump.

"Dammit, Satan-chan!" Showa yelled, "Don't sneak up on me like that!" His armor vanished and he apologized, "Sorry."

"You had a job to do," she said, understanding as she'd witnessed the fight. Shinichi had a responsibility to fight the Darkloids, wherever and whenever. "Let's get back to the palace.

He uses his nanites to build his bike and offered, "Need a ride?" Satan nodded before getting on the back. They rode back towards the royal palace.

* * *

As soon as the new term began, Shinichi went down to the Photography Club clubroom to meet with his fellow club members. Everyone was there, with a new face joining them. "Oh, Shinichi! Hello!" Fujiko greeted.

"Hey, Fujiko," Shinichi smiled at the bespectacled girl. "Oh, hey Ootori," he greeted the club president who just shrugged. She still had trouble believing that Shinichi was allowing himself to be shared between two women. She meant well in telling Rena but felt humiliated when she realized that it wasn't anything bad, just unorthodox.

"Hey, Shinichi," said Keima. "Guess what? We got a new member!"

"Really?" Shinichi responded, interested. "Who is it?"

"She's in the changing room," Keima gestured. "Oh, here she comes now."

"Sempai, are you sure about this?" the newbie asked. Shinichi eyes widened. The girl had brown hair and black eyes, and was dressed as a miko. Obviously, she was due for the Photography Club's initiation where she would need to pose for a photo shoot in cosplay. Shinichi remembered when he had to do it the year he'd joined.

He remembered seeing this girl back at that festival when his friends spent the weekend at the seaside town. She had even asked him, while he was in Rider form, if he was an Ayakashi. The girl looked up at Shinichi, recognizing him too but for a completely different reason. Her face turned completely red as she recalled what she'd seen that night as Shinichi had sex with two girls. The image had been burnt into her brain.

"This is Kanna Kekkain," Fujiko introduced, "She just transferred here to Shishibone University."

'_Kekkain? Isn't that the name of Hanyuu's old clan?_' thought Shinichi. Shelving the thought for later, he smiled at Kanna. "Nice to meet you. I'm Shinichi Banabara."

"Born Shinji Banabara," Araki interjected as he snuck up from behind Kanna, causing her to shout out and take an ofuda from her sleeve.

"And that's Araki. Don't worry. He's paranoid conspiracy theorist but harmless," said Shinichi.

"Hai, sempai," nodded Kanna. She was still flushed. Seeing Shinichi now was definitely a surprise. She never expected to see they guy who had sex with those two girls, out in the open, again.

"And enough with the 'sempai' stuff," Ootori spoke up. "We're all equals here in the Photography Club. Well, not me. I'm the Club President so I get to tell you all what to do."

"Except that you don't," retorted Araki.

"But the thing you need to remember is to have fun," Ootori added, ignoring Araki's comment.

"I'll try," said Kanna. She glanced towards Shinichi who smiled at her which caused her to blush again.

"Alright, let's start with the photo shoot!" said Keima excitedly.

The props were set up with a backdrop that depicted a shrine. Everyone got ready to take pictures but Ootori stopped them for a moment. She went to inspect their unwilling subject/model.

"Hmm…that pose is all wrong for the first picture," murmured Ootori. Kanna blushed as Ootori began moving her body into the right position. The men were half-tempted to take a picture as their club president and the newbie were in a rather interesting picture but decided against it. They didn't want to suffer Ootori's famous wrath. "Alright, that's good!" She got out of the way and gave the signal, "We're good to go!"

The cameras began flashing as Kanna blushed but endured her initiation as she continued posing.

* * *

Kanna sighed. It'd been a long day for her but she managed to do her part and got accepted into the club. There was a reason why she had joined that club in the first place. It would appear that club had been involved in several strange incidents. The evidence was actually on the walls as there were pictures of monsters and the Kamen Riders who fought them. Her clan had sent her to investigate, especially after receiving an important letter from one of their clansman who lived in the area.

Kanna then cried out in shock as she felt a pat on her shoulder and whirled around to retaliate against the offender only to relax, slightly, to see that it was Shinichi. "Woah, you're pretty jumpy," he noted.

"I'm fine…" Kanna whispered, still blushing. She avoided eye contact. Seeing Shinichi brought back those images which she really couldn't deal with right now.

"Yeah, initiations are never fun," he sympathized. "Reminds me of mine when they made me wear nothing but a speedo."

Kanna imagined seeing Shinichi in swimming trunks and then blushed as the swimming trunks suddenly vanished. She then fled as Shinichi watched her run. He just figured the girl was naturally shy. He checked his watch. "Oh, it's lunchtime!" The girls were probably waiting for him now.

* * *

Rena sat at a table in the cafeteria with another girl. She wore glasses and her black hair was done up in pigtails. She went by the name of Anna Dawkins, a foreign exchange student from England, but she was actually Princess Shawna of Genovia in disguise. Rena had made bento lunch boxes for the three of them. As for living arrangements, the princess would be staying with them.

"Thank you for the food, Ms. Rena," said Shawna.

"No need to be so formal, Anna-chan," smiled Rena, using the name of Shawna's disguise. "We've gotten past that point already, remember?"

Shawna's cheeks became pink. She, Rena and Satan had become quite intimately close with each other. "He's really late," Shawna noted.

"Don't worry, Anna-chan," said Rena, "He'll be here. He'll never miss out on Rena's special lunch."

"He always treasures those important to him, doesn't he?" Shawna questioned.

"That's why he's our hero!" Rena stated.

* * *

Shinichi arrived at the cafeteria to hear screaming as the students fled out of it. Realizing something was wrong, he rushed inside to see a monster with a man's body dangling from its mouth, his head already within the creature's maw. It then spat away the beheaded corpse and roared. '_Darkloid!_' Shinichi identified. It was a centipede-like monster with a bulky build in the front, a large segmented mouth and two muscular arms. It also had a pair of spiky antennae.

There was a large hole in the middle of the floor where it had burst out from, and several crushed tables and chairs. There was blood on the floor and several bodies lying on the ground. Shinichi felt his rage grow when he saw the carnage and focused his eyes upon the Darkloid responsible for all these deaths.

The Darkloid turned its attention away from Shinichi and looked towards a corner. Shinichi followed its gaze and saw Shawna and Rena trembling in terror in the corner. "No!" Shinichi shouted as he ran towards the monsters.

At the same time, Kanna arrived at the scene to see something completely insane. "Ayakashi!" she identified as she saw the monster and then she spotted someone on the creature's back, holding its antennae tightly in his hands as he hauled its head backwards. "Banabara-sempai!" she gasped.

"Girls, get out of here!" Shinichi shouted at both Rena and Shawna. "Hurry!"

Rena grabbed Shawna's hand and quickly led the girl towards the exit. The Centipede Darkloid was about to pursue them but Shinichi stomped his foot down on the Darkloid's head, forcing it violently into the floor. The Darkloid then started to buck and thrash its body to toss Shinichi off and it did but only because Shinichi had released his grip on the Darkloid. He landed on the floor and faced the Darkloid.

Kanna was about to act when all of a sudden Shinichi's body became enveloped in a tornado of fire, wind and lightning. Her eyes widened at what she was seeing. When the tornado vanished, standing in Shinichi's place was what Kanna could only identify as an armored Oni. "Banabara-sempai…Oni…?"

The Centipede Darkloid brought one of its fists down on Showa but the Oni-like Rider caught the bulky appendage in his own hand. He then blasted the Centipede Darkloid with a fireball from his free hand, causing it to cry out in pain. Showa then zapped the Darkloid through its fist and then blasted it into the wall with a burst of air.

Kanna could only gape at Showa's strength. This was definitely something she would need to report to the rest of the clan about. She stayed rooted to the spot, watching the fight as it progressed.

The Centipede Darkloid snarled and then burrowed into the floor. Showa stayed rooted to the spot, waiting for the Darkloid to strike. He knew how these Darkloids worked. Once they were in of a threat they would not leave until the threat was neutralized.

The Centipede Darkloid burst out from behind Showa and he was hit by its spiky antennae, causing sparks to fly. It then grabbed him in its meaty hand and slammed him violently to the ground. It opened its segmented mouth, which resembled several sharp fangs in a circle once opened like a flower, and prepared to devour the Rider's head. Kanna was about to act, taking out several ofuda talismans, but it was not necessary.

"Eat THIS!" Showa roared as lightning lanced from his horns and struck the Darkloid. His body was then enveloped in hot flames, forcing the beast to release him. "SHII-YAH!" Showa punched the Darkloid hard in the face, knocking it through the air and straight into the wall.

Showa then summoned his Oni Claws and rushed towards the Darkloid. He performed a cross slash with both clawed gauntlets and the Darkloid exploded.

Kanna watched in silence as the Rider's armor vanished and Shinichi stood standing in the middle of the ruined cafeteria. His fists were clenched and his teeth were gritted. He looked at all the blood and the bodies of the innocents who had been killed by the Darkloid earlier. "Time to fix this," he murmured as his Spark Core glowed. He called, "Return to the Past Now!"

Return to the Past was Shinichi's special ability. It was a massive time reversal technique that he could execute to undo any damage within a 24 hour timeframe. There were conditions, of course, when using this ability. One of those conditions was that Shinichi was allowed to erase anything from existence once he reset time. Another condition was that something would need to physically exist to be brought back once time was reset.

A pillar of light surrounded Shinichi and he braced himself for the pain that would follow. Using his powers caused him agonizing pain but it was something he'd grown used to and learnt to endure. The pain was a small price to pay to save lives. The pillar of light expanded, engulfing everything within its path as Shinichi activated his powers and rewound time to before the Darkloid's attack.

* * *

As Kanna arrived at the cafeteria, she had an odd sense of déjà vu as she spotted Shinichi, Rena and Shawna sitting at a table together.

* * *

"So, how Daiki's doing in school?" Shinichi asked.

"Oh, he's doing fine," said Alan. "By the way, thanks for recommending the Hinamizawa School."

"No problem, and Chie-sensei was happy enough to accept him," said Shinichi.

"Well, still I'm thankful. He seems more at home in a village environment anyway," noted Alan. Daiki didn't like big cities that much and going to school in Shishibone City wasn't something he looked forward to. "Say, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure," Shinichi answered.

"Well, don't tell Alice, but I'm planning on throwing her a surprise birthday party," Alan explained.

"That's nice of you…" said Shinichi and then he blinked, "Wait…how did you even decide when her birthday will be?"

"I decided that her birthday should be the day she was reactivated and became known as Alice," said Alan.

"Has it really been that long?" Shinichi asked, amazed. "Lemme guess, you want me to help organize the party."

"And I need you to help keep Alice from figuring out what's going on."

"Sure thing," Shinichi smiled. "Hell, this might be fun."

* * *

Alan was running late since he had a student council meeting to attend. That was why he had sent Shinichi to pick up Alice from her kindergarten. Of course, Shinichi was expecting it to be just a regular errand. He should've known better.

"**NO MAN ESCAPES THE MANHUNTERS!**" the humanoid machines roared as they gave chase.

"Yeah, yeah, I heard that stupid speech a thousand times already," grumbled Shinichi in annoyance. Normally, he would stay and fight but with Alice in his sidecar he really couldn't risk it so he picked up speed while telling Alice, "Hold on tight!" The Manhunters were flying after them and throwing energy blasts at them. However, Shinichi maneuvered his bike carefully to avoid being hit. Alan would not forgive him if anything bad were to happen to Alice.

Shinichi pressed a button on the right handlebar and prayed, "Hope this works." A thick cloud of smoke shot out from the bike's exhaust pipes and into the Manhunter's faces, blinding them. Using the smoke as cover, Shinichi rolled the Showa-Racer into a nearby alleyway as he called, "Sheila, bridge me out of here."

"Affirmative," Sheila replied before a Teleportal opened up. Shinichi picked up Alice from the sidecar and put her down on the floor.

"Alice, go in there," Shinichi pointed. "It'll be fine, trust me."

"OK, Onii-chan," said Alice before she ran into the Teleportal. It closed soon after and he let out a sigh of relief.

"Alright, now to deal with those fucking Manhunters!"

Showa went to confront the Manhunters only to see that Sentinel had taken care of them in a matter of seconds. "Where's Alice?" Sentinel asked.

"I sent her to the base for safety," said Showa. "Wow, you really took care of them." The Manhunters were in pieces. "Remind me not to piss you off this much."

"Noted," agreed Sentinel.

* * *

Alan and Shinichi returned to the base to pick up Alice. Arriving via Teleportal, Alan asked, "Dr. Magi, have you seen Alice? I'm here to pick her up."

"Not today," answered Dr. Magi. "Why?"

"But, I told Sheila to open a Teleportal to take her here when were being attacked by Manhunters," replied Shinichi, confused and worried. "Sheila, I called, right?"

"_I am sorry, but I do not recall ever receiving a call like that recently_," Sheila stated.

* * *

"Excewwent work Gawy! I knew you could intercept their Teweportal system! And Kineko, good work at making yourself sound like their stupid computer!" Chiro chortled. He was looking at Alice who was trapped in a glass container and enjoying the look of terror she wore on her cute face. "Nobody to save you now!"

"Umm…not to rain on your parade, Juuyon-sama, but won't they somehow track us down and attack us?" Midoneko asked with a degree of concern.

Chiro waved off her concern, "Don't wowwy about it. Gawy made chure not to weave any twail they can use to twack us down. Besides, we'll weturn her soon enough." Chiro grinned towards Gnol and said, "Do your stuff."

Gnol approached the glass container as Alice backed away from him in fear. A dark aura enveloped his hands which he placed upon the glass container. Dark slime began to ooze out of his hands and envelope the container as Alice screamed. The Bakeneko Kunoichi averted their eyes from the sight.

Gnol grinned as he watched the dark slime grow, "Susano-O, prepare for a terrible surprise."

* * *

Alan was worried and upset. He flew around, searching for his lost daughter. He yelled into his ring, "Have you found anything yet!-?

"Nothing yet!" Michiru responded into her com-link. The team was spread out, exploring every inch of Hinamizawa, Okinomiya and Shishibone in search of Alice while Sheila was using the Hive Satellite to search for Alice anywhere in the world.

"This is all my fault," Shinichi said guiltily, "I shouldn't have sent her through alone." He was looking in Shishibone City with Alan.

He received Alan's reply as he landed next to him, "No, it isn't. No one could've predicted that. You were trying to protect Alice. You didn't know that the enemy would intercept the com-link Teleportal systems to kidnap her." While he was worried for Alice, he wasn't about to blame his brother for this. Besides, it was far more important to find Alice than play the 'blame game'.

Shinichi nodded as they kept searching but then they saw a large portal hovering in the sky. "What's that?" Shinichi asked.

"Not good," Alan said.

Something large dropped from the portal and landed in the city, causing the ground to shake on impact.

The creature was horrendous. It had muscular serpentine body covered in black scales with four legs that sported sharp claws on each of its toes. It sported spikes on its arms and wicked claws. Spikes ran down its spine to the top of its tail and it had tusks along with sharp teeth with eerie yellow eyes.

The monster, a massive Darkloid which Shinichi identified, let loose a massive roar.

"Not now!" Alan growled. He needed to find Alice so he had no time to fight this thing! Still, it had to be dealt with. He charged up his ring for a finishing blow when he was denied.

"Wait!" Shinichi shouted. "There's something inside that thing! It's Alice!"

"WHAT!-?" Alan shouted and activated his super-vision. In the centre of the giant Abomination Darkloid's body was a glass container containing Alice. He growled, "Damn, it looks like Gnol borrowed a page from Gebok. That bastard."

"Let me handle this," said Shinichi as he transformed into Showa. "I lost Alice. It's my responsibility."

"Shinichi…" murmured Alan.

"Let's Ride: J!" In a flash of light, which grew into a pillar, the gigantic Kamen Rider J emerged as he went into battle.

* * *

Alice was trapped within the gigantic Abomination Darkloid as the NEO-NUMBERS, Alan and his harem watched on in worry. Showa, in the meantime, had assumed the form of Kamen Rider J to stop the Abomination Darkloid from destroying the city. Green Lantern has his fists clenched. If he used his Quantum power, he could end up destroying Alice in the process and he was not about to allow another innocent life to be sacrificed.

"Alan, I'm about to tell you something important," said Bazel.

"Can't it wait?" asked Alan irritably.

"This is vital, kid. So, listen up. If you're going to save your little girl you're going to have to perform a Great Xros Fusion," Bazel explained.

"Great Xros Fusion?" Alan asked.

"No time to explain, just call all your girls over and then call out, "Execute: Great Xros Fusion" at the top of your lungs."

Alan looked at Bazel and at the girls. Yami spoke up, "Let's save our daughter." Hearing that from Yami helped Alan and the others make their decision.

They all stood in a circle and put their hands out, stacking them up. "Ready?" Alan asked. They nodded. "Alright, let's go! EXECUTE: GREAT XROS FUSION!"

"EXECUTE: GREAT XROS FUSION!" the girls called out.

"**GREAT XROS FUSION!**" Bazel shouted as a sphere of emerald light surrounded them. The sphere floated into the air and then shot towards Showa before slamming into his back. The giant Rider's body stiffened as a pillar of emerald light engulfed him.

"WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON!-?" Daichi shouted as he shielded his eyes.

"I think we're about to find out," said Hana, eyes wide.

* * *

Out from the emerald pillar emerged a gigantic humanoid warrior clad in shining emerald armor. The Green Lantern emblem was mounted on the giant's chest like a badge and his entire head was covered in a green helmet with shining blue eyes and a silver faceplate. The helmet sported a crescent-shaped fin on top that was pointed forwards. The giant's shoulders, elbows and knees had red gems mounted on them. The green armor was also trimmed in gold. Calling out in a booming voice, he announced his name, "**ULTRA SENTINEL!**"

* * *

Chiro Chuuyon was drinking some chocolate milk when he suddenly spewed it out upon seeing Ultra Sentinel on the screen. He screamed, "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!-?"

* * *

The Abomination Darkloid growled before exhaling a massive blast of pure darkness at Ultra Sentinel who formed a wall of light that stopped the attack with ease. As the wall faded, Ultra Sentienl got in close and punched the Abomination Darkloid in the face, sending it staggering back. The Darkloid retaliated by whipping its head forward, slamming its head into Ultra Sentinel's chest, sending him staggering back.

The Abomination Darkloid slashed at the giant hero with its claws but Ultra Sentinel caught its wrists and then tore off its arms, causing black blood to spray out from the stumps like a fountain. The Abomination Darkloid howled in agony and backed away from Ultra Sentinel.

* * *

"_Daddy? Daddy?" Alice called. She didn't know where she was but it was dark and she was all alone. "Daddy?"_

_She saw someone and walked over, only to freeze when she realized she was staring at herself. It wasn't a mirror, however. The other her was dressed in a nun's habit and had big, sharp blade-like wings on her back. "H-hello?" Alice said._

_The other her stared back at her with empty, psychotic eyes and a grin so wide that it threatened to split her face in half. She asked, in a creepy parody of Alice's own voice, "_**_Do you know what love is?_**_"_

"_What? Love?" Alice questioned, backing away fearfully whilst trembling. She wanted her daddy and onii-chan! Where were they?_

"**_What's love? Can you tell me?_**_" Alice's doppelganger asked as she walked towards her. Alice turned and ran but tripped and fell. She felt hands wrap around her ankles and she turned her head to look with wide eyes at the creepy doppelganger. "_**_Please, can you tell me what love is?_**_"_

_Alice screamed._

* * *

Alice's eyes shot open because of her nightmare as she screamed, "DADDY! DADDY!"

Hearing his daughter's scream, Ultra Sentinel drew his arm back as he yelled, **"GIVE ME BACK MY DAUGHTER!" **Ultra Sentinel punched and his fist blasted a hole right through the Abomination Darkloid. It was stunned and Ultra Sentinel curled his fingers gently around something before withdrawing his hand. The Darkloid stumbled backwards, a hand on its chest as Ultra Sentinel looked down at his open palm to see Alice. "**ALICE,**" the giant spoke tenderly.

Alice stared back at the gigantic face and eyes. However, she felt a familiar feeling of warmth coming from him and answered, "Daddy." Ultra Sentinel nodded and gently put Alice on the ground and gently nudged her to run for cover. He then turned his eyes towards the Darkloid.

The giant Darkloid was starting to regenerate as its arms grew back and the hole in its chest sealed itself back up.

"**IT'S TIME WE ENDED THIS!**" Ultra Sentinel bellowed and the Abomination Darkloid roared in agreement. The two giant rushed towards each other. The monster stood on its hind legs as it used its forelegs to kick and slash at Ultra Sentienl. He ignored the pain and grabbed the monster by the midsection and lifted it over above his head, the creature struggling all the while.

Ultra Sentinel tossed the Darkloid into the air and cupped his hands around his badge. He started to charge up with energy and then he spread his arms out to the sides as his badge fired a burst of emerald energy that surged towards the airborne Darkloid. The giant Darkloid was hit and sent flying straight out of Earth's atmosphere. The energy blast didn't stop there and continued to push the giant Darkloid straight towards the sun. It screamed as it hit the surface of the sun and was instantly incinerated by the intense heat.

Ultra Sentinel turned his gaze towards everyone, focusing on Alice, and then gave 'V for Victory' sign before his body glowed. He then faded and Alice smiled as she saw her father, Shinichi, and the girls standing before her. Of course, there was one thing wrong with the picture.

"Daddy?" Alice asked.

"Darn it, not again!" cursed Alan. Actually now he should be called Ashley as the Green Lantern had assumed his female persona.

"Wow," Shinichi stared.

"Stop staring at my chest!" Ashley snapped.

"You look cute," said Michiru.

"Well, it's only temporary. If you want it to last longer take a picture," Ashley suggested sarcastically.

FLASH!

"Got it!" said Shinichi as he put down the camera. Ashley was instantly in his face.

"Give me the negatives," she threatened.

"No," Shinichi denied before warping away.

"I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE!"

* * *

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ALICE!"

The celebration was taking place in the main hall of the Hive, with decorations and a banner hung up with 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALICE' written on it. Alice, the birthday girl, was in a cute dress with her hair in pigtails. Though she was technically only one year old, mentally she was only 6 years old and the number of candles on the large layer cake corresponded to that number.

Invitations had been sent out and everyone came to wish the little bio-android a happy birthday.

"Well so far it's going well," Alan said calmly as he watched the celebration. He'd turned back to normal. His Ashley form had only lasted for a short time.

"Indeed," Shinichi agreed as he took a sip of his drink, "Alice appears to be really enjoying her birthday." He was glad that she was enjoying herself even after that ordeal with the Abomination Darkloid earlier.

Alan nodded as everyone got in close to watch Alice blow out the candles. After dividing the cake up Alan walked close to his daughter.

"So, Alice, did you remember to make a wish before you blew out the candles?" Alan asked curiously.

"Not really, Daddy," Alice said

"Oh, why not?"

She answered, smiling, "Because I already have everything I could possibly want. I have my Daddy, Mommy, Onii-chan and everyone. What more could I possibly wish for?"

Alan smiled softly after hearing this as he patted Alice's head. Alan got his daughter a teddy bear dressed in his Green Lantern uniform and a new dress that looked like Yami's battle dress. Normally, the former assassin would punish someone for such a mockery of her appearance but she knew that wasn't Alan's intent. He just wanted to make something nice for their daughter.

* * *

Shinichi set his camera on a tripod. In front of him stood Alan with Alice and Celine sitting on his shoulders. He was standing in front of a backdrop of Mt. Fuji. "OK, hold that pose," the cyborg said.

Alan, Celine and Alice had big smiles on their faces as Shinichi took the picture. Alan may love being a Green Lantern, but the only thing he loved more was being a dad.

He set Celine down and the plant girl scampered over to Junior.

"Mau! Mau!" Celine cheered.

"Honk honk!" Junior called out. "Blarg, honk! Honk honk blarg!"

"Mau!" Celine responded, nodding at Junior's words. "Mau mau!"

"Honk blarg!"

The two alien babies seemed to really understand each other. The exchange was surreal and Alan murmured, "My ring can translate every language in the universe and I still don't understand them."

"Mau!"

"Honk!"

* * *

The party then moved outside. It was dark, which was perfect for what was to come next.

"Now for the fireworks!" shouted Yokoshima and with that said they were launched into the sky. The air bloomed with color and Alice's eyes sparkled as she beamed brightly.

This was another reward for Alan. To make Alice smile was the greatest gift of all.

Alan asked, "So, Nozomu, what'd you get for Alice?"

Nozomu walked up to Alice and gave the girl a gentle hug.

Nozomu answered, "I'm giving her a baby brother or sister."

Silence followed after such a statement. Did that mean…?

Alan's eyes were wide as he asked, "Wait...Do you mean...?"

Nozomu glomped Alan, rubbing her face into his chest. She then took his hand and placed it on her stomach.

Nozomu stated, "Baby."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And that's the second installment of 6 to 8 Weeks. What else will happen? Well, you'll just have to wait and see. In the meantime, please enjoy yourself and please review once you've finished with this chapter. Oh, and don't be shy and go to the forum if you have any ideas you would like to contribute to this fic.**


	95. The Legacy of Cain Part 39

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And now we focus on another member of the NEO-NUMBERS. I don't have to give you any hints but he's a certain 'Blue Beetle' and while not very smart he's got a lot of heart.**

* * *

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 39: Tying the Knot**

A 1966 Buick Riviera was parked under the night sky and in the car were two figures, a man and a woman, and things were getting pretty hot and heavy if the fogged up windows weren't an indication.

The 1966 Buick Riviera belonged to one Shogo Kuso, formerly known as #00 of the NUMBERS, and also known as Kamen Rider Zero. He also had another identity. He was also known as the Green Hornet.

And right now he was reclined in his seat with a beautiful and curvy black-haired girl straddling his waist as they made out. He held her close as their lips were crushed together in passion.

The girl's name was Lucifer and she was the eldest of the Seven Sisters of Purgatory. Representing the sin of pride, she would come off as arrogant. However, she actually had a delicate personality deep down.

And despite being a demon, she was capable of love and the man she was straddling was her lover.

She sat up, still straddling him, and licked her lips. "You taste like honey."

"Yeah, I've been using lip balm to keep my lips from drying," he told her. "It's honey flavored."

"No wonder," she smiled. He held her hips as she caressed his face.

"Let's go out," he suggested. "It's getting kind of stuffy in here."

"You're probably right." Her necktie hung loosely from her neck and her vest was unbuttoned. She had removed her blazer and was wearing his fedora.

They exited the car and lay on top of the hood, looking up at the stars in the sky. He let out a sigh. "You never see a sight like this in GIN-SHOCKER," he told her. She looked to him with her red eyes.

"Hey, Shogo, have you ever wondered about your family?" she asked.

"My real family?" he responded. "No, not really. I mean maybe I've thought about why I was left at the orphanage when I was a baby and given a name at random."

"Your name was given at random?" she asked.

"I didn't have a birth certificate. I was just left at their doorstep and the nuns there took care of me. They had this odd tradition of taking random names from a hat and sticking them to unnamed and abandoned babies," he explained.

"And they named you 'Kuso'," she finished. She giggled. How could nuns name a baby with a curse word?

"Yeah, they really should've thought of a different name," he said, "But it's my name and I'm fine with it even if it's a curse word. It's not so bad. It can get confusing though."

"How confusing?"

"When someone curses and shouts 'kuso' I assume they were calling me," he answered. She giggled in response.

"So, you NUMBERS had handlers, right? And I know that Yokoshima took Dr. Magi's last name. So, why don't you take your handler's last name?" she asked.

"Because Dr. Arihara was an abusive bastard who would beat me up if I didn't live up to his expectations," he answered coldly.

"Oh…I'm sorry," she apologized. She really shouldn't have asked about his past in GIN-SHOCKER. The NEO-NUMBERS had all moved on from those days and did not want to remember them.

"I never really told you so you didn't know," he said. She then rolled over and rested her head on his chest. "Lucifer?"

"Why don't you give me a nickname?" she asked.

"What? You mean like a petname? An affectionate petname?" he asked. She nodded.

"Yeah! Even that jackass Daichi calls Leviathan 'Levi'!" She seemed to hate not having her boyfriend give her an affectionate petname.

"How about Luci?" he suggested.

"Hm…" Lucifer looked thoughtful for a second. "I guess I can live with that." She then blushed and began, "Hey…"

"Yeah?"

"Have you ever had sex on the hood of a car?" she asked.

"WHAT!-?" he yelled.

"Forget it!" She turned away, face red like her eyes.

"Luci…do you want to do _that_?" he asked, still stunned.

"Just forget it!" she yelled. He turned her body over. "Hey, what are you-Mph!" His lips covered hers. He then broke the kiss.

"Luci, if you want we could. Nobody's here and it's just us. And we're under the stars too," he said.

It would be romantic was what he didn't say.

Lucifer screwed her eyes shut and went red with embarrassment. How could she suggest such a thing!-? But Shogo just saw her being adorable and kissed her again.

"If that's what you want, then this soldier will follow your orders, ma'am," he said before kissing her again. She enjoyed the kiss. Of course something was watching them and slowly making its way towards them. Lucifer didn't notice since she was so wrapped up in the kiss, which she hoped would evolve into something more. However, Shogo had picked up movement and suddenly rolled him and Lucifer off the hood of the car.

"Hey, what's the-" she began angrily when something big and sharp stabbed right through the hood of the car. "Oh."

"My car!" Shogo shouted. "Damn Darkloid," he growled. The Darkloid was spider-like as it had the legs and body of one, but it had a face with six eyes and purple lips with a big-toothy grin. It removed its appendage from the car and aimed its gaze towards Shogo.

"Henshin," he murmured and in a flash he was transformed. "Luci, stay back." He said as he engaged the creature. It struck with its legs, trying to take him down. The Spider Darkloid was a large specimen too, standing at 8 feet tall. Its only method of attack was using its sharp-tipped legs.

The legs also could extend which Zero learnt when he was struck by two of them, sparks ripping off his armor as he was knocked out of the air. Lucifer watched. She wanted to help. How dare Zero think she was some weak damsel?

However, on the other hand, she couldn't help but feel touched by his concern. Unfortunately, that feeling was snuffed out when her pride took over. She activated her mystic energy blade and flew into the battle. She slashed the creature across the face, spilling its blood and injuring two out of six of its eyes. It howled and opened its mouth to stretch out a tongue which flew straight for her. Lucifer dodged with her speed and then returned to slash at it again. She cut off one of its legs and it would've collapsed if it didn't still have seven more.

With its attention focused on Lucifer, Zero could finish it off. He aimed and fired a rapid assault of needles at the Darkloid, making it look like a huge pincushion. But that wasn't enough.

"Go boom," said Zero as he snapped his fingers. The needles all glowed before a series of violent explosions erupted all over the Spider Darkloid, killing it in the process. Zero's needles could explode now. It was a recent upgrade that had been done on him.

"Your stingers explode now?" Lucifer asked.

"Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam upgraded my weapons," he told her. "They were meant to slow them down before but now they're more lethal than ever."

"I like it," she said, flushed. "Too bad about your car, though."

"Yeah," Shogo agreed. "And our night. I think I better call for a Teleportal and have the car taken to the garage to be fixed. I'm going to need a new hood and who knows what else that thing damaged."

Lucifer looped her arms around the Rider's neck. "That's fine, and our night isn't over. You haven't made me scream your name yet."

His helmet hid the blush forming on his face from her words. She was so bold, so confident. Definitely worthy of her title: the Stake of Pride.

* * *

"_Alright, now it's time to fight some bad guys!" said Daichi eagerly for another day of crime-fighting and such._

"_Actually, we can't do that right now," Shogo said awkwardly._

"_What? Why not?" Daichi questioned._

"_I've been too busy meeting with the baddies to work on a list," Shogo answered._

"_Meeting?A list?" Shinichi asked. For some reason, he did not like where this was going. Just then, Shiro and Gnol walked up to them._

"_Yeah, this is kinda hard to explain, but…we're bankrupt," said Shiro._

"_You're what?" Daichi gaped._

"_We're broke. We got some credit cards and made some bad choices," explained Shiro. "You see we upgraded our base, when we probably shouldn't have, and we also bought some hedge fund stocks."_

"_You bought hedge fund stocks with a credit card!-?"_

"_Yeah, and when we lost the money doing that we tried to buy more stocks by taking out a subprime home equity loan on our so base, so the bank repossessed our base, they took all our android soldiers, and also out ammo. Then the bank sold it all to some foreigners from another universe."_

"_Wow, sucks to be you guys," Daichi chuckled with Shinichi joining in._

_Shogo interrupted, "Actually…it sucks to be everybody because it's up to us to bail them out."_

"_What!-?" Daichi and Shinichi simultaneously shouted._

_Shogo ignored the outburst as he continued, "As of this week, the bad guys will be moving into our base which will be split down the middle with a line of masking tape. Right side Good, left side Bad."_

"_They're gonna be living in our base?" Daichi asked as his left eye twitched erratically._

"_Yeah, also Daichi, you gotta let them borrow your weapon," said Shogo._

"_Why?"_

"_Because they can't afford weapons anymore."_

"_Good, then they can't kill us with them!"_

"_Actually, that's bad. We need to have them trying to kill us. We need to have competition for a health environment."_

"_A healthy environment!-? They're gonna be living in our base and using our own weapons to kill us! That's not healthy! That's suicide!"_

"_Nonsense. It's only until they back on their feet with all the money we'll be paying them."_

"_We're paying them money too!-?"_

"_Of course we are. That part just makes sense."_

"_Where exactly are we getting the money from?" Shinichi asked._

"_Well, as you know, times are tough, so we're gonna have to take out a loan to help them," Shogo answered._

"_WHAT!-?-!"Daichi yelled._

"_Hey, I know a place where you can get an awesome subprime home equity loan for your base," said Shiro._

"_Now that sounds perfectly reasonable," said Shogo with a smile. This was the last straw as Daichi went running as fast as he could._

"_Daichi, where are you going?" Shinichi shouted._

"_To pawn my weapons and armor before the bank takes them!" Daichi shouted back._

"_Hey, when you get that money from the pawn shop we're going to need that too! Remember, we're all in this together!" Shiro shouted._

* * *

Daichi awoke with a shout, causing both Mika and Levithanto raise their heads as they woke up alongside him.

"What's wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost," Mika asked with concern.

"Taxes…bank loans…teammates and enemies acting like idiots…" Daichi panted.

"Hmm…I told you not to bother paying the rent to that greedy landlord of yours so late last night," Leviathan commented.

"Yeah, you're probably right," said Daichi. Money was a bit tight lately since they were got cut off from ARMOR. It was not helping that Yokoshima was spending money on useless junk he saw on TV. He felt Mika rub his shoulders.

"There, there, Daichi. Let us help you forget that bad dream," Mika whispered sultrily.

Whatever Daichi was about to say in response was cut off when Leviathan pressed her lips to his in a deep kiss, silencing him. They spent the rest of the night 'relaxing'.

* * *

"Can you remind me again why we'rehere at a bowling alley?" Daichi asked.

"Because our girlfriends talked us into this," Yokoshima replied.

"That was a rhetorical question, numbnuts."

The two jumped away as several pumpkin-shaped explosives were hurled at them, courtesy of a Beastroid with a demonic Jack-O-Lantern form a torso. It had appeared all of a sudden, attacking the bowling alley while the two of them were on a dates with their girlfriends. Fortunately, Mika, Asmodeus and Leviathan were able to get all the innocent civilians out of the place to allow the two Riders to fight.

"HENSHIN!"

"GEHEHEHE!" the Pumpkin Beastroid cackled as it unleashed a volley of pumpkin-shaped bombs at its opponents, Blue Beetle and Musician.

"Really?A fucking pumpkin? But it's not even Halloween!" Musician snapped as he created a sound barrier to shield himself from the bombs as they exploded.

"Personally, I'm more curious as to how we're fighting X-SHOCKER Beast Androids again," stated Blue Beetle. "I thought we took care of them last year. Then again, Shiro did revive himself so it shouldn't be much of a surprise, but Gebok isn't with him and…"

"Shut up and help me squash this pumpkin!" Musician interrupted.

"Gotcha!" said Blue Beetle as he formed his Rocket Arm and flew towards the Pumpkin Beastroid. The Rocket Arm slammed into the Beastroid and hurled it out of the bowling alley by smashing right through the wall. The two went tumbling out into the street with Blue Beetle undoing his Rocket Arm. "Now, let's carve you up!"

Musician exited the bowling alley to witness Blue Beetle hitting the Pumpkin Beastroid with his Chainsaw Leg, the motorized blade cutting into the Beastroid's armor with sparks flying from each hit that connected. The Pumpkin Beastroid howled with each hit it took. Blue Beetle then jumped forward and performed a forward flip kick, bringing the chainsaw down on its head painfully. Undoing the Chainsaw Leg, Blue Beetle sent the Pumpkin Beastroid flying with a punch.

Musician had to admit that with all his faults, his lack of intelligence, not to mention being incompetent in most cases, Blue Beetle was kicking butt.

The Pumpkin Beastroid raised its hands and conjured a massive pumpkin-shaped bomb.

"That's a big pumpkin!" Blue Beetle noted.

"Heavy Metal Spirit!" Musician roared as he unleashed a sonic blast that slammed into the giant pumpkin, causing it to explode while still in the Pumpkin Beastroid's hands. The Beastroid took damage from the explosion caused by destruction of its own attack and stumbled forwards.

"Rocket Punch!" Blue Beetle called as his suit conjured a rocket attached to his right arm and he flew straight at the Pumpkin Beastroid with the aid of the rocket's exhaust thrusters. The Beastroid received a face full of rocket courtesy of Blue Beetle and was sent staggering backwards. "Beetle Missile!" He conjured his Missile Launcher Leg again and unleashed its payload, sending the Pumpkin Beastroid into the air.

Blue Beetle flew up with his Rocket Arm and prepared to finish this fight. Conjuring a drill from his left leg, he pointed the rocket down which sent him flying in that direction with the drill aimed at the Beastroid.

"Rocket Drill Kick!"

There was an explosion following the attack once it connected with its specified target. Mika, Leviathan and Asmodeus managed to witness the finale and saw Blue Beetle standing within the circle of fire, with his Drill Leg embedded in the ground.

"Now that is a grand finale," Blue Beetle finished. "Hey, Dai, what do you think?"

"I think the attack needs a new name," stated Musician. "It was kind of a mouthful." Blue Beetle hung his head.

"Dai, you're so mean!" Blue Beetle whined.

"Well, tough luck. Now, stop whining and suck it up," Musician scolded.

"Yoko-kun~!" squealed Asmodeus as she hugged her boyfriend. "That was amazing!" She turned to Leviathan, "Isn't he amazing?"

"Meh," Leviathan shrugged.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Musician agreed, but he couldn't help but feel a little envious. Yokoshima really did look incredibly awesome as the Blue Beetle.

* * *

A pickup truck pulled up in front of Okinomiya High School. In the driver's seat was Chiaki, with his face covered up by a scarf as usual. Riding shotgun was Yokoshima who wore a grin on his face. In the back were several cardboard boxes.

"Thanks for the help, Chiaki," said Yokoshima as he got out and went to the back of the pickup.

"No problem," said Chiaki, "I was happy to help."

"Still, thanks. Now, do you mind helping me carry these boxes inside?"

"Sure."

The boxes were filled with fireworks which the school needed for both their Sports Festival and Cultural Festival. Yokoshima's teacher, whom he apprenticed under, had been commissioned to make them and had sent Yokoshima to deliver and take payment. There were four boxes of fireworks and they each carried two. The security guard in front did stop them but fortunately Yokoshima had the proper paperwork which allowed him entry. The security guard pointed them over to where they needed to go, which was the storage shed in the back of the school.

"So, this is their school," said Yokoshima as he looked at the building.

"You've never been here before?" Chiaki questioned.

"Drove past it a few times, but never stopped to look," said Yokoshima. "So, are you hoping to see Hanyuu?"

Chiaki blushed under his scarf and retorted, "Shouldn't we be putting these boxes away?"

Yokoshima chuckled and found the storage shed. They found the custodian working nearby and asked him to open it, which he did but not for free. Grumbling, Yokoshima gave him some yen and he opened the shed for them to store away the fireworks.

"OK, now let's go!" said Yokoshima as he dusted off his hands. Chiaki nodded in agreement when all of a sudden they heard screaming. "Crap! Let's go!" Chiaki and Yokoshima ran towards the source of the voice, entering the school building and then saw several half-dressed girls running down the hallway. One of them was Hanyuu.

"Hanyuu-chan?"Chiaki blined.

"Chiaki-san!" Hanyuu gasped then she saw her state of undress. She only had on a bra and bloomers and screamed before covering himself. Chiaki pulled his snowcap over his eyes in response.

Yokoshima shut his eyes as well and asked, "So, why was everyone screaming and running?" He then had his question answered as he heard a loud stomp that made the ground shake. Cracking an eye open, he spotted an android modeled after a buffalo with thick reddish-brown armor, a ring through its nose, and huge fists and feet. "Oh." He said to his fellow cyborg, "Chiaki, get Hanyuu out of here, and put some clothes on her too." Chiaki had already taken off his flannel shirt, revealing a white t-shirt underneath with his emblem on it, and draped it over the girl's body before leading away to safety. Cracking his knuckles, Yokoshima grinned, "OK! Now it's time for the Blue Beetle to shine!" He threw his fist up, "Henshin! Blue Beetle!"

As he charged at the Buffalo Beastroid who spotted him, the mechanical creature sidestepped before holding its arm out to its side, clotheslining him and sending Blue Beetle sprawling to the ground ungracefully. "Ow…" Blue Beetle groaned and then he went, "WOAH!" as he rolled out of the way from being flattened by a stomping. He got back to his feet and then hurled a punch but the Beastroid's thick armor was hard and he ended up hurting his hand. "Ow…" He was then smashed by the Beastroid's fist, which sent him flying backwards. Blue Beetle went tumbling along the floor. The Buffalo Beastroid came charging at him and he let out a shout as he was tackled and caught by its horns. Blue Beetle was shaken about and then bashed against the left wall, before being bashed against the right wall, breaking it open as he was thrown into an empty classroom. That was lucky.

Looking up, Blue Beetle saw the Buffalo Beastroid coming for him and so he stood up to the mechanical menace with a clear goal in mind: eliminating an armored pest.

"Alright, I've been waiting to try this out!" said Blue Beetle as he clenched his right arm and the armor morphed it into a rocket. The exhaust thrusters came to life as he pointed forward and flew towards the Buffalo Beastroid, slamming straight into the mechanical menace violently and smashing right through the wall and zooming outside. The Buffalo Beastroid was dropped as Blue Beetle undid the Rocket Arm and landed on his feet. He then activated a new weapon as a missile launcher morphed from his right boot. He took aim as he locked on the target and stomped his foot, sending five missiles flying towards his intended target. The explosions of the missiles blasted the Buffalo Beastroid into the air. The missile launcher morphed back to normal.

"Now for some CQC (Close Quarters Combat) action!" shouted Blue Beetle as he dashed towards the Buffalo Beastroid. Once he was close enough his right boot morphed with a chainsaw equipped on his foot and with each kick the chainsaw blade struck the Buffalo Beastroid's armor, causing sparks to fly. He continued his assault but then he was sent flying back by the Buffalo Beastroid's punch. The Buffalo Beastroid's horns glowed and Blue Beetle cursed as he rolled out of the way from the energy bolts. He activated his Rocket Arm again and soared high into the air, away from the Beastroid's range.

"Time for the finisher!" shouted Blue Beetle as his left leg morphed into a drill and he used the Rocket Arm to thrust him down towards the enemy, tucking in his right leg as he aimed his Drill Leg at the Beastroid.

"Hissatsu!Rocket Drill Kick!"

The Buffalo Beastroid tried to fire at Blue Beetle but the energy bolts missed as Blue Beetle kept gaining speed and closed the gap between them. He screamed, "EAT THIS!" before the Drill Leg pierced the monster.

There was an explosion and Blue Beetle burst through the fireball as his Drill Leg pierced the ground. He spun in place for several seconds before willing the drill to stop and he smiled in satisfaction. "Yattaze."

* * *

Chiro boiled with rage as he witnessed another one of his Beastroids being destroyed by the idiot (Blue Beetle). "Gawy, activate another Beastroid!" he ordered.

"**Sir…don't you think you're being a tad bit repetitive?**" questioned Gary.

"What do you mean?"

"**Well, you've been sending out Beastroidsone after another every single day**," Gary explained.

"BUT I HATE THEM! I HATE THEM! IT'S BECAUSE OF THEM I'M WIKE THIS!" Chiro screamed as he threw a tantrum.

"**Sir, might I suggest you take a vacation? If you don't take a break I'm afraid you will become like one of those stupid villains like in those Bugs Bunny cartoons**," said Gary.

"This would be so much easier if you told me how I can send more than just one at a time!" Chiro snapped.

"**I'm sorry, but rules are rules. You'll need the password.**"

Chiro grumbled. Momoneko volunteered, "Let me help." She put Chiro on her lap and began typing on the computer to try and uncover the password. Gary wasn't talking, however. It wasn't all bad though. The Bakeneko's lap was comfortable and he loved to cuddle.

"Gnol, how many weeks has it been?" asked Chiro. His new body was due to arrive within six to eight weeks.

Gnol, who was leaning back in a nearby lunge chair, answered, "It's been three weeks. That's what I said five minutes ago so if you ask me again an hour from now it'll still be three weeks."

Chiro grumbled but made himself comfortable in Momoneko's lap.

* * *

Blue Beetle was about to go and leave when he received a call from Daichi, "_Oh no, Harious, you have us surrounded at our own base. You have us surrounded with your Rat Goblins and have used your magic to stop us from using our powers to transform. I hope that someone could come and save us, someone in perhaps blue armor, who knew what was going on and knew what the fuck other people are talking about. Harious, at our base, not the caves, not the waterfall, and certainly not the , at our base, the Hive_."

* * *

"Why do you keep explaining things to me? I understand the situation perfectly. I've ambushed you so now you're quivering in fear," said Harious. He had Daichi and Battler surrounded in front of their base, with the two Riders trapped in cages with paper talismans on their foreheads.

"Yeah, what are you, the narrator now or something?" Battler asked.

"I just want to be sure that everyone is on the same page. How about we start again from the beginning?" Daichi suggested.

"I think your friend has lost his marbles," Harious said to Battler.

Battler glared back, "Well, if you wanna see crazy, wait until you try to take my kid away from me. Why do you want him anyway? He hasn't done anything to you."

"It's not what he has done. It's what he will do. That child is very special," answered Harious.

Battler sighed, "Yeah, I know, maybe I should've read to him more."

"Not that kind of special you nincompoop. He will help me fulfill a prophecy." Harious then offered, "Now, if you don't surrender that brat to me you will be maimed and tortured by him." Harious pointed to the muscular and scar-covered Rat Goblin.

"Grrrr, fresh meat!" the Rat Goblin growled.

"Or you can be maimed and tortured by _him_!" Harious pointed to a Rat Goblin dressed in drag.

"Purr…fresh meat!" the effeminate Rat Goblin licked its lips.

"…I think I prefer the first option," Battler gulped.

"Yeah, seems like a no-brainer," Daichi agreed.

"So, it's a deal?" Harious asked.

"No fucking way!" Battler snapped.

Before Harious could retort, several missiles dropped down and exploded, sending Rat Goblins flying and screaming. "Finally," muttered Daichi.

"Honey, I'm home!" Blue Beetle called as he dropped down, his right leg in its missile launcher mode.

"Hey, boss, it's that guy who stole those powers you wanted," Steel Cap pointed.

"Yes, I can see that," Harious responded in annoyance. He then pointed and unleashed a powerful bolt of lightning at Blue Beetle. The blue and black armored warrior produced a shield and the lightning bolt bounced off and hit a portion of the canyon's wall.

Blue Beetle charged forward to hit Harious with his fists which had turned into giant mallets but the sorcerer jumped over the attack. Instead, Blue Beetle hit the two Rat Goblins who stood in front of Daichi and Battler's cages.

"Guys, I'm here to save…" He paused before asking, "…Why are you guys in steel cages with paper talismans on your heads?"

"Oh, you know, we just wanted to try a new look and impress our girlfriends," replied Daichi, his tone dripping with sarcasm. It was only due to luck that he managed to call Yokoshiman on the com-link.

"Your girlfriends must have weird tastes," Blue Beetle commented, completely missing the obvious sarcasm. Some Rat Goblins tried to grab him but they were knocked aside by him. "I'll talk with you guys later! Gotta take care of a pest problem!"

Steel Cap suggested nervously as he watched Blue Beetle battle with the Rat Goblins, "Boss, I think we should get out of here and let the rest of the goons take care of this one."

Harious frowned deeply but agreed, "You're right, but before we go I think he needs a new playmate." Harious raised his hand and the Rat Goblins all glowed before merging together to form a giant, rat-like troll.

"Woah…that's one ugly bitch…" gawked Blue Beetle. That was only a face a mother could love.

"Kill them and bring me the alien child," Harious ordered before disappearing along with Steel Cap. The Rat Troll roared and charged towards Blue Beetle. He ducked under a claw and immediately equipped his right arm with a flail. A chain now hung from the gauntlet and attached to the other end was a spiked ball.

"Wrecking Ball Attack!" Blue Beetle shouted as he swung his weapon, bashing the spiked ball into the Rat Troll's face to send it staggering painfully. He then twisted around and continued to spin his weapon in the air before bashing the spiked ball into the creature's gut. "Oraoraoraora!" he shouted as continuously attacked with the chain attached spiked ball, treating it like a yoyo as he threw and withdrew his arm, smashing the Rat Troll repeatedly until it ended up in a bloody daze.

"Do you mind getting us out of here, Yokoshima?" Daichi asked impatiently, "Now, preferably."

"Oh, right, sorry Dai," said Blue Beetle as he made his chain and ball weapon vanished before he equipped his right foot with a chainsaw. He then swung his leg at the cages holding Daichi and Battle, slicing up the bars with the chainsaw attachment, and freeing the two Riders within. He also tore off the talismans on their foreheads."How's that?"

"Finally!" Daichi yelled out as he stood up straight with Battler. Those cages had been cramped. Quickly donning their respective Rider armor, Musician and Meta attacked. The Rat Troll recovered and saw them coming but it was already too late as Meta buried his fist into the creature's gut and Musician kicked it in the head simultaneously.

Meta attacked with his fire breath, causing the Rat Troll to screech as it backed away before he peppered the monster with his gun hand. Meta withdrew to allow Musician to attack as the Cricket Rider slashed with his military fork, forcing the Rat Troll on the defensive before sending it flying with a sound blast. The Rat Troll crashed against the canyon wall, hard.

"It's my turn!Hissatsu time!" concluded Blue Beetle as he formed his Rocket Arm and Drill Leg. He went flying towards the embedded Rat Troll, pointing his Drill Leg at the monster and called out, "Eat this, mother fucker! Rocker Drill Kick!" The rocket's exhaust thrusters boosted his flying speed and his drill bore through the monster, finishing it off for good.

"You know, he's getting really good at using that armor," Battler commented. "I'm almost jealous."

"I'm not. I'm actually more concerned," said Daichi, "But at least we know we can trust Yokoshima with that Blue Beetle thing."

* * *

Blue Beetle was in the training room to practice a bit more with his powers. Shinichi and Alan were watching from the observation deck with Dr. Magi in the control room speaking into a microphone, monitoring his adopted son, "Alright, Yokoshima. Let's try this new idea of yours."

"OK!" Blue Beetle answered as he focused his thoughts. His left boot began to change shape and then assumed the form of a pogo-stick.

"A pogo-stick?" Shinichi blinked and then he watched as Blue Beetle began bouncing up and down in place and before long he was jumping incredible heights. But then something went wrong in the middle and he began ricocheting all over the training room. Shinichi, Dr. Magi and Alan all followed Blue Beetle as he literally bounced all around the training room before…

**CRASH!**

"Alan, Shinichi," began Dr. Magi.

"We know," sighed Shinichi. "Come on, Alan. Let's get his head unstuck from the ceiling, _again_."

* * *

"I guess it's safe to say that you shouldn't try and use a pogo-stick as a weapon," said Shinichi as he and Yokoshima sat in the cafeteria with Alan.

"No, I'm not giving up on it!" Yokoshima insisted.

"I have to agree with Shinichi," said Alan. "I mean why did you even want to equip yourself with a pogo-stick? You can fly, not to mention you can conjure a rocket. That's actually more useful."

"Nothing is useless," Yokoshima frowned. He had been called useless before since his only ability at first was to roll himself into a ball and crush anything in his way. When he had gained Blitz Form, his cannons became his primary weapon. However, he still had yet to engage any enemy in a straight, hand-to-hand, fight. Yuji had been teaching him since before he got the Scarab and now that he had it he could put Yuji's teachings to good use. "And I'll prove it! Just wait and see!"

* * *

It was nighttime and both Slasher and Blue Beetle were in a bind. They were facing a Darkloid which had just appeared in the forest. It was large, with the appearance of a lion. It had six legs and in place of its ears was a pair of long horns, but they weren't actually horns but a pair of long arms with powerful hands.

Of course the two Riders had a job to do. They had to stop it from entering the village.

It roared and slammed its hands down to crush them but both Riders leapt out of the way. Slasher summoned the Onigari no Ryuou and assumed his Slayer Form. As the Beast Darkloid roared again and tried to attack with its arms, Slasher jumped up, and slashed it across the face. It roared in pain and swatted Slasher into a tree, knocking it down and disarming him. It then picked up the Rider and began to squeeze him in its fist before bringing him to its mouth to devour. Suddenly, a set of five missiles hit the Beast Darkloid and exploded, causing it to roar out in pain from the explosions bombarding it.

"Hey, get your mitts off him!" Blue Beetle called, undoing the Missile Launcher Leg module. He formed the pogo-stick once more and hopped in place before he leapt up and crashed down on the Beast Darkloid face, landing a hit with the pogo-stick right between the eyes. The impact knocked it down and forced it to release Slasher. Blue Beetle continued to bounce on the creature's face and then leapt high into the sky. He undid the pogo-stick, replacing it with the drill as he morphed his right arm into a rocket. The exhaust thrusters blazed to life as the drill spun. He took aim and allowed the rocket to carry him through the air at high speeds.

"Rocket Drill Kick!" Blue Beetle called as he came down. The Beast Darkloid opened its mouth which Blue Beetle entered and he exited out from the other end. The Darkloid collapsed and exploded as Blue Beetle landed.

He turned to Slasher and proudly declared, "And _that_ is how you use a _pogo-stick_ as a weapon."

* * *

It was a calm night as Yokoshima and Asmodeus gazed into each other's eyes as they stood next to the park fountain. The light from the fountain as the water was being pumped into the air gave off a romantic air about the situation.

It was now that Yokoshima made his move. "Asmo-chan, we've been together for a while now, and so, well, I was thinking it's time that I…I mean that we…Well, when two people love each other…" He was fumbling with his words, looking nervous with a blush as she gazed at him expectantly with her ruby red eyes."Ah, to hell with it!" he exclaimed. "I should just get to the point!"

He got down on one knee, pulled out a velvet box from his pocket and opened it, causing the Stake of Lust to gasp in shock as she discovered the contents; a diamond ring. She realized what was happening and that realization brought her to joyful tears as she knew what Yokoshima was going to say next.

"Asmodeus, will you marry me?" he asked calmly.

The blonde's response was to tackle him to the ground and give him a deep, nearly suffocating, kiss.

"So, is that a yes?" he grinned like an idiot.

"Yes! Yes!" she shouted, "A million times, YES!"

* * *

"EHH? HE PROPOSED?" the six older Stakes shouted after hearing the news.

"Yep, he was a bit comedic about doing it but he did it right," Asmodeus said as she showed off the ring Yokoshima had given to her when he proposed. True, he'd fumbled at the beginning, but he got the message across to her nonetheless.

"HAH!" Mammonlaughed. "Pay up!" Most of the Stakes had bet that Yokoshima would just elope with their youngest sister.

"Good for you, Asmodeus," Lucifer smiled while handing her money over to Mammon.

"You should get a 4-layer chocolate cake," Beelzebub said, licking her lips. "No, make it 8 layers!"

"And you better not forget to invite us!" Satan snarled in warning.

"Of course not!"Asmodeus replied. "How can I forget my own sisters? Group hug!"

* * *

"So, Asmo's getting married," Yuji pointed out. He was enjoying a quiet moment of drinking tea with Beatrice as they sat across from each other.

"Indeed," the Golden Witch nodded with a gentle smile, one that is rarely seen by few.

"You're gonna go, right?"

"Of course I'm going," she huffed. "What makes you think I wouldn't?"

"I'm just saying; you created the Stakes, didn't you?" he asked.

She cocked a brow, wondering what was going through his head, "Your point being?"

"That technically makes you Asmodeus's mother."

"Yes, indeed it does."

"I bet you're feeling pretty proud right about now," he tried to tease.

"A little," she admitted."She could've chosen someone worse. I'm glad she's found someone to love who loves her back, as simpleminded as he is."

"Makes me think about when my little girls are gonna get hitched," he chuckled."I sound like I'm getting old."

"I assume Lady Featherine will be involved, am I correct?" Beatrice inquired.

Said Witch of the Theatre appeared out of nowhere to join the two."Of course I will!" she beamed.

"You can't resist doing another wedding ceremony. And thanks again for marrying Misato and me," he smiled.

"I saw two souls meant for each other," she reasoned."It was my pleasure."

Yuji clenched his fist, his fist shaking slightly,"A little longer... Just a little longer till I get to see my baby girl. My third child," he mused excitedly.

"I hope you will name me the godmother," Beatrice declared.

"What about me?" the Witch of Theatre pouted.

Yujisits back and grinned,"I got it all figured out."

"You do?" the two witches chorused.

"You both can be her godmothers," he answered. "There's no rule that says my daughter can't have more than one I have two godmothers myself."

Featherine and Beatrice exchange looks

"That seems fair," the Golden Witch nodded.

"I have no arguments," Featherine agreed.

"And they say witches are crazy and uncivilized," Yuji mused."Whoever spouted that bullshit clearly doesn't know you , I can't vouch for some... *cough* Eva...! *cough*"

* * *

"Never in my life would I ever imagine _him_ getting married," Daichi sighed.

"Weirder things have happened," Shinichi argued."I think after experiencing death several times he decided to just go for it before it's too late."

"And you have to admit, they are meant for each other," Shogo defended.

"Yeah, so quit your bitching, Daichi," Yuji sighed.

"Maybe you should propose to Leviathan," Shinichi suggested.

"Shin's right. After this, she's gonna want to get hitched."

"Why?" Daichi demanded.

"She's the Stake of Envy," Yuji deadpanned, "Do the math."

* * *

Liger Zero was facing another one of Gnol's Darkloids. This one took the form of a muscular samurai, easily 7 to 8 feet tall, with dark armor and four arms. In each of its hands was a sword. It wore a helmet with horns and a demonic mask that glared hatefully at the Rider. Liger Zero grimaced as he saw the skulls which hung around its waist like a belt.

"This won't take long," Liger Zero said simply as he unfolded his claws and prepared to fight. Howling, the Samurai Darkloid swung at Liger Zero with all its swords but sparks only flew as Liger Zero parried the blows with his claws before jumping and landing a kick into the Darkloid's chest, knocking it backwards. More and more sparks flew as Liger Zero this time had the advantage, slashing with abandon at the Samurai Darkloid.

The Samurai Darkloid, however, fought back and managed to hit Liger Zero with his swords, causing sparks to fly from the Rider's chest plate. This, however, didn't deter him. He instead decided to stop wasting time and decided to finish it.

"Well, time for a change!" said Liger Zero as he pushed a button and swiped the Liger Pass across his belt buckle.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

With his white set of armor switched with the orange set, the Vi-Blades unfolded and Liger Schneider showed this Darkloid that they were not for show.

"Time to put your ass on the chopping block!" Liger Schneider declared.

In an instant, blood and sparks were spilled as the Darkloid was cut by the Vi-Blades which sliced open its armored body. It swung all its swords at Liger Schneider, but at the instant they touched the Vi-Blades they just shattered into useless shrapnel. The Samurai Darkloid stared dumbly at its ruined swords.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"**BUSTER SLASH!"**Liger Schneider roared as he rushed at the Samurai Darkloid who had no chance to defend itself from the vicious finisher. It was completely shredded by the powerful attack as Liger Schneider skidded to a halt. What remained of the Darkloid was only debris blown harmlessly through the wind.

Liger Schneider checked the clock in his helmet and cursed, "Shit, I'm late!" He had a wedding to get to and fast.

"**JAGER FORM!"**

Quickly switching to his speed-oriented form, Liger Jäger made a mad dash towards the wedding venue, hoping to get there in time. Asmodeus would never forgive him if he was ever late to her wedding.

* * *

It was Asmodeus and Yokoshima's wedding day. The morning had gone nicely, with guests arriving on time and everyone being dressed and ready by eleven. Now the time had come for the last minute preparations. The ceremony would be done in the lodge while the reception would be done outdoors in the garden.

As Asmodeus was mentally preparing herself to walk down the aisle, in her elegant wedding dress no less, Belphegor was at her side and making minor adjustments to the dress with Beelzebub adjusting the bride's blonde hair.

"You're so calm," said Mammon, surprised by her youngest sister's demeanor. "I thought you to be one of those brides who are so obsessed with perfection."

"Everything is already perfect," Asmodeus said smiling.

"I'm so jealous!" Leviathan confessed. "When will my day come?"

"When your boyfriend decides to finally propose," Lucifer stated.

* * *

"Well in a couple of minutes you'll be a married man, Yokoshima. Any thoughts?" Shogo asked, with a smile.

"Well, to be honest, I feel like the happiest guy on Earth. I get to marry my girl and enjoy a great life with her. What's not to like?" Yokoshima said with a wide ear-to-ear grin.

"I'm just glad you aren't acting crazy like Shinichi was when his mother was getting married," Chiaki quipped.

"Oh, haha. You're hilarious," Shinichi said sarcastically while rolling his eyes.

"Oi, it's time to take your places! There's no way I'm going to get killed by an angry magical girl because her husband-to-be is not there!" Daichi said. He and the others then walked forward and took their positions.

* * *

Ronove was at the organ, playing the wedding march as everyone waited for the bride, and at long last she came. She was every bit as beautiful as everyone hoped she would be. She walked towards the altar with Yuji taking her down the aisle. Yuji let her go and nodded to Yokoshima, with the cyborg returning the head nod. Featherine was performing the ceremony to join the two in holy matrimony.

"Do you, Asmodeus of Lust, take Yokoshima"Armadillo" Ryuunosuke-Magi to be your lawfully wedded husband, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?" Featherine asked.

"I do," Asmodeus said with joy in her smile and eyes as Yokoshima placed the ring on her finger.

"And do you, Yokoshima "Armadillo" Ryuunosuke-Magi, take this Asmodeus of Lust to be your lawfully wedded wife, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"What she said," Yokoshima answered, smiling as Asmodeus put the ring on his finger.

"Now, the bride and groom have their own vows which they will recite," Featherine announced.

Yokoshima went first as he began,"Asmo-chan, the day we met you were sent to fight me, and maybe even kill me, but I wasn't scared because all I saw was a cute girl. I then took the chance to ask you out and I never regretted it, not once. I'm glad we met and I'm glad we're together. To put it simply, I love you babe, forever and ever."

Asmodeus was next as she stared intently at Yokoshima,"Yoko-kun, when we first met I thought you were cute and when you asked me out I was so happy! You've made me the happiest girl in the world and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, my prince."

"Then with that out of the way, I now pronounce you man and wife," Featherine declared."You may now kiss the bride." Yokoshima leaned down and kissed Asmodeus who returned the kiss with a passion. Everyone burst into applause, happy for the two.

"Oh, I do so love a wedding," Virgilia smiled. "I wonder if I'll catch the bouquet."

"Aren't you a bit too old thinking that, Lia?" Gaap smirked.

"Nonsense, Gaap. It's always pleasant for a girl to believe that if they catch the bouquet they'll be next in line for marriage," Topper said. He was here to mostly kill some time.

"I'm bored…" Lambdadelta whined. "When will we get to the cake?"

"Patience, Lambda, patience," Bernkastel said, keeping her partner in check.

"Hmm, I have to admit that Asmodeus looks good in that gown," Beatrice said, watching as her furniture and Topper's furniture were being congratulated.

Asmodeus then turned around and tossed the bouquet into the air. Her sisters immediately went on the attack.

"IT'S MINE!" Leviathan shouted, pushing Beelzebub down to the ground.

"LIKE HELL IT IS!" both Lucifer and Satan shouted

"NO WAY!" Mammon and Belphegor declared, ready to get the bouquet. The bouquet somehow landed…right in Bernkastel's lap.

"Hey, Bern?" smiled Lambdadelta as she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. Bernkastel picked up the bouquet and slapped her across the face with it before putting it in her friend's lap and crossing her arms and legs. Despite being smacked by the bouquet, Lambdadelta still couldn't help but think Bernkastel was cute.

Yokoshima signaled and Satoko understood before pressing the button. Fireworks shot into the air, some even forming a heart with Yokoshima and Asmodeus' names in the middle.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Although the opening focused on Shogo and Lucifer, the fact is that this chapter was mostly Yokoshima's and now he's officially married to the girl of his dreams. What should this mean in the near future? Well, you have to wait and see as 6 to 8 Weeks continue.**


	96. The Legacy of Cain Part 40

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN  
**

**Part 40: Fatherhood and Birth**

A space shuttle was hovering over the canyon. Actually, it was being carried by Alan who was holding up the space shuttle with his bare hands. He slowly began to touch down with his precious cargo.

"Alright, you can put it down now," said Dr. Magi as Alan brought down the space shuttle. He walked out from under the space vehicle as Dr. Magi admired it. "Amazing, isn't it?"

"I've seen better," Alan claimed, shrugging. "So, how were you able to get them to agree to sell you a space shuttle and how did you get the money to pay for it?"

"Oh, I have my ways," Dr. Magi answered, a twinkle in his eyes. He didn't say more on the subject.

"OK…" said Alan, hoping it wasn't anything illegal. "So, you're really going to try and modify this thing?"

"Yes, indeed," smiled Dr. Magi, "And with everyone pitching in we'll have a space faring vessel ready for the future. You'll never know when we might need one. Who knows? We might have to fight aliens in outer space someday."

* * *

Chiro was staying at Aoneko's apartment. The blue-haired Bakeneko girl was working at the Bakeneko House today and wouldn't be home until dinner. The diminutive villain looked out the window in boredom. He went and rolled around on the floor, trying to think of something to do before yelling out, throwing a tantrum, "I'M BORED! I'M BORED! I'M BORED! I WANNA GO OUTCHIDE! OUTCHIDE"

Chiro went to the door and looked up at the handle which looked so high up. He scowled and then saw the umbrella. He rubbed his chin, "Hm…"

He used the umbrella's hook to open the door. "AHA!" He boasted, "The umbrella is awechome!"

Chiro even used the umbrella to help him use the elevator. He took it all the way to the ground floor and grinned, "Not even the ewevator can stop me!" He grinned. "Watch out, world. Chiro is coming."

He stepped out of the apartment building and saw a stray dog. He then retreated and went back up the elevator. "Wittle kids chouldn't go outside on their own. It's a dangewous world out there," he mused thoughtfully.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Pyramid Base, there was a banging at the door and Gnol, irritated, went to open it, wondering who the hell it was. "Yes?" Gnol asked and he saw a large, human-sized crate.

"Hello!" Steel Cap greeted as he walked out from behind the crate.

"What do you want?" Gnol demanded.

"Oh, I was sent by my master who was ordered by the boss to deliver this for a…" Steel Cap read from the clipboard, "Shori Joyuun…"

"I think you mean 'Shiro Juuyon'," Gnol corrected.

"Nope, it says 'Shori Joyuun' right here." Steel Cap showing the clipboard

"Heh, you're right…" Gnol muttered "Well I'm an acquaintance of 'Shori' so I'll just sign for it, since I can guess what it is."

"Fine by me, this place smells too much like Bakeneko, and let me tell you my species do not mix well with those. Hell my poor cousin Ester was attacked by one and all they found left was his shoes and the feet that were in them," Steel Cap stated.

"Yeah, that's nice," Gnol said not really listening as he signed.

"Thank you and have a nice day," Steel Cap said as he went away.

* * *

Somehow, Chiro Chuuyon had ended up being kidnapped. It hadn't been something he would expect to happen to him. After all, he was a villain and should be the one doing the kidnapping.

It just happened so fast. He had gone out with Aoneko to do laundry at the local Laundromat and he'd somehow ended up in one of the washing machines after she had loaded the machine with dirty laundry. By the time she discovered her folly, he had ended up soaked from head to toe. Chiro ended up running around to get himself dry when someone grabbed him and stuffed him into a bag before carrying him off. He then ended up trapped in a cage in his still damped clothes with his captor looking at him like some kind of lab rat.

"Wewease me!"Chiro demanded as he shook the bars of the cage. "Do you have any idea who I am!-?"

"Fascinating," Araki said. He was a member of Shishibone University's Photography Club and a conspiracy theorist as well. Whenever there was something odd, he would try to catch a picture of it, but now he had an actual animated doll in his room. His room had pictures all over the walls with notes as well, referring to several conspiracies. There were even pictures of the Kamen Riders and the heroes which had appeared in the city. "What are you?" he asked as he poked Chiro on the nose. He growled and snapped his jaws down only to miss as Araki quickly withdrew his finger. "Wow, you're a feisty little thing, aren't you?"

"You have no idea what you're getting yourself into," Chiro warned.

"All I know is you're definitely a UMA," said Araki. UMA was the acronym for 'Unidentified Mysterious Animal'. "Are you some kind of Youkai?"

"A Youkai? Whatever gave you that idea?" Chiro snorted. He turned away and crossed his arms. He didn't want Araki to see how scared he was. Why was he cursed to be in this weak, miniature body? '_Girls…help me…_' he begged. Tears were starting to fall from his eyes.

* * *

The five Bakeneko Kunoichi were in their combat attire and had regrouped upon a rooftop. "Alright, this tracker says he's in this building," said Midoneko.

"I'm so sorry," Aoneko apologized. "I lost him."

"We know, but we've found him now so don't cry," said Kineko.

"I promise I won't ever lose him again," swore Aoneko.

"Come on, let's save him," said Akaneko.

* * *

Araki's window was smashed to pieces and he gave out a shout as five shadowy figures came leaping in. "WHO ARE YOU!-?" he shouted but he was promptly knocked out by a backhand to the face.

"Juuyon-sama!"Momoneko cried as she saw Chiro in the cage.

"Girls!"Chiro cried out as well. "You came!"

"Let's get you out of there," said Momoneko as she picked the lock with her claw and she opened the door. The small Chiro leapt into her arms.

"You came…you came…" he sobbed.

"You must've been so scared," said Momoneko soothingly.

"Don't tell Gnol, or Gawy," he said.

"I won't," she promised, gently rubbing his head.

"Hey, what do we do with him?" Midoneko asked, pointing to the unconscious Araki.

"Weave him," said Chiro. "But dwaw stuff on his face with permanent market."

"OK!" chirped Kineko as she pulled out a permanent marker from her pocket.

"Let's go home," said Midoneko.

"NYA!"

* * *

When they returned to the Pyramid Base, Gnol informed them that Chiro's new body had arrived. At first the miniature bio-android was excited. However, once he had the box opened he threw a tantrum.

"SOME ASSEMBWY WEQUIRED!-?" Chiro shouted as he read the note. The new body was in pieces which meant he would need to put it together before it could be used.

"There's an instruction manual here, Juuyon-sama," said Kineko as she held up the thick book in her hand. The manual had diagrams and instructions on how to put the body together.

"AWRIGHT! WET'S GET TO WORK!" he ordered.

"YAY!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi cheered.

Gnol chuckled in amusement as he watched them taking parts out and spreading out manual to see.

* * *

Alan cried out as he was thrown backwards by a magical blast of mystic flames. He rolled along the grass as Alice shrieked, "Daddy!"

"Alice, stay back!" he shouted at his daughter as he stood up to face the Dark Waltz. It was a Darkloid in the form of a wizard, wearing a long black coat with a feathered collar and sporting a pair of black, bird-like wings like a fallen angel. Its face wasn't visible under the shadow of its hat which looked like something a witch would wear and in the Darkloid's right hand was a scepter that was topped with a skull flanked by bat wings.

It pointed at Alan and fired mystical lightning, zapping the Green Lantern repeatedly as Alice cried out in horror. All she wanted to do was to spend a day playing at the playground with her daddy and little sister when this thing appeared.

"MAU! MAU!" cried out Celine but Alice held her little sister back.

"Daddy…" Alice trembled as her eyes shone brightly. She felt angry, really angry, and it was rising by the minute. "LEAVE MY DADDY ALONE!" she shouted.

Suddenly, it happened. Her blade-like wings burst out from her back and the tips ignited before she instinctively fired dark fireballs at the offending Darkloid. There were miniature explosion as it was pelted by the fireballs. Alan, seeing his daughter's sudden transformation, quickly rose back to his feet and ran towards her. He needed to get Celine and Alice out of here. He picked up Celine and was about to grab Alice when something shocking happened.

"**EPSILON SYSTEM INITIATED!**" a voice spoke in Alice's mind. It sounded like an adult female's voice.

Alice unleashed a scream as she was engulfed in black and red flames. "ALICE!" Alan shouted in horror but the flames erupted and tossed him backwards. He held Celine protectively as he went rolling along the ground. When he stopped, both he and Celine watched as a figure began to walk out of the flames.

She was tall and voluptuous with the curves of a supermodel. She was dressed in a short black dress that stopped at mid-thigh with long and tight sleeves. The dress had a silver collar and a black band was worn around her neck. She wore a pair of high-heeled boots with buckles on them. On her back was a pair of wings made up from an array of wicked looking blades. She also had a beautiful face with long golden blonde hair with bangs that covered her right eye. What got Alan looking shocked was her face. "Alice…?" he questioned.

"Mau…?" Celine uttered.

Alice was now in the body of an adult. In a voice similar to the one in her head before her transformation, she said, "You hurt my daddy, now prepare to die."

**Individual System-TETRA FANG**

Epsilon Alice marched towards her foe while the Dark Waltz is quivered in fear from the woman's killing intent that was aimed towards him. Her wings were outstretched behind her, gleaming at the tips and edges. Her exposed eye reflected her intent.

The Dark Waltz shot fire from his scepter towards Alice, but the bio-android uses her bladed wings to block the fire. She continued to block the barrage of fireballs until the Dark Waltz was exhausted. After the Dark Waltz ceases his fiery barrage, Alice unfurled her wings to reveal herself completely unharmed. Epsilon Alice continued marching towards the wizard-like Darkloid.

The Dark Waltz was about to shoot ice from his scepter towards his foe until a fog came in, covering his surroundings. The Dark Waltz adjusted his eyesight and saw multiple Epsilon Alices surrounding him. The Wizard Darkloid panicked and tried to fire his ice beams from his sceptre at the approaching Alices, only to reveal that all the Alices he had been hitting were just illusions. The rest of the illusions charged at the Dark Waltz, with the real one among them. As the illusions surrounded the Dark Waltz, the real Alice was using her wicked-looking blade-like wings to slash at the wizard, spraying blood everywhere. The Dark Waltz screamed out in pain from the damage the female bio-android was dealing him. The Dark Waltz kept getting more damage to his body until he decided he has enough and uses his scepter to disrupt the illusions, having the fog disappear and have the real Alice appear in front of him. The Dark Waltz pointed his scepter at the female android to fire his magic beam. The beam missed Alice as soon as she moved around in a zigzag pattern towards the Wizard Darkloid at high speeds.

When Epsilon Alice reached her opponent, she hit the Wizard Darkloid right in the kisser sending the Dark Waltz flying through the air. Alice quickly flew up into the air to give the demonic creature a drop kick to the ground, sending the foul being crashing towards the pavement hard enough to create a crater. Alice then made a diving kick towards the Dark Waltz with her right leg stretched out. Alice eventually landed on the Dark Waltz's precious jewels with that right leg, breaking them and making the wizard experience a world of excruciating pain. Alice used that opportunity takes away the scepter from the wizard to snap it in half with her hands. Alice took the Dark Waltz's head to slam it against the ground multiple times until the head becomes bloody. Alice tossed up the Dark Waltz's body briefly in mid-air before she kicked him straight into the wall of a building, forming a web-patterned crater.

Alice used the "bring it on" gesture with her right hand, goading the Dark Waltz. That gesture caused the Darkloid to forget his common sense for a moment, remove himself from the crater and run straight towards his opponent with his claws stretched out, intending to gut the woman.

"How foolish," Epsilon Alice said with a smirk before she raised up one open hand in the air and balled her fist. That fist was then covered in red and black flames. She drew her fist back until the Dark Waltz came within range.

"Broken Flames!" Epsilon Alice shouted before she threw her fist forward at the Darkloid, firing black fireballs that were tinted in red, towards the running Darkloid. The fireballs consumed the Darkloid, causing him to scream in pain until he was reduced to burning ashes.

**End Individual System-TETRA FANG**

"Nobody hurts my daddy and lives," Epsilon Alice said before she transformed back to her child form and fainted.

"Alice!" Alan shouted.

* * *

Alan immediately rushed Alice to the Hive to be checked out by Dr. Magi. She was hooked up to a computer and the former GIN-SHOCKER scientist was looking at all the data which included her programming and schematics.

Dr. Magi finished his analysis, "Ah, now I see. It's called the Epsilon System."

"Epsilon System?" Alan inquired.

"Yes, it's supposed to allow Alice to unlock her full power in case of emergencies."

Alan nodded, "Interesting. It seems incredibly advanced. You sure Gebok created this?"

Dr. Magi theorized, "He may have installed it so that Alice would have the power to defeat you and Shinichi. However, Shinichi 'drowned' Chaos Doll before she could activate the system. The system unlocks her combat capabilities and gives her 100 percent access to her abilities. It also replaces her default personality with a more adult personality. However, she still recognizes you and loves you as her father. Guess when she was reprogrammed the system's trigger was altered so that it would activate whenever she truly needs it."

Alan commented, "Say what you want to about Lantern Takada, but he really knows his machines."

Dr. Magi agreed, "Indeed. I always thought the fact that his inventions and experiments mostly backfire on him was due to his incompetence, but it seems that only important ones work properly. Clearly he made Alice into a force for good but her development now is up to you. She's waking up now."

Alice slowly sat up, stretched and yawned cutely.

Alice greeted, "G'morning Daddy."

Alan kisses her on the forehead. "Good morning baby girl, did you have a good nap?"

"I had a really nice dream. I was flying and I saved you."

"That sounds like a really nice dream, honey. Now, let's go home."

* * *

Dr. Magi informed Shinichi, "WHITE 14 has been sending his Combatroids out to all the abandoned X-SHOCKER and GIN-SHOCKER facilities in the world. He's looking for something, possibly a smart AI."

Shinichi scoffed, "Well, if WHITE 14's looking for an AI, then he's looking for a dead end because I erased them all." He had with that EMP blast way back when he had been on the hunt for Gebok.

Dr. Magi replied, "Not really…"

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow in confusion, "What?"

Dr. Magi elaborated, "You didn't get all of them. As for those AI fragments you erased, not all of them came directly from you."

Shinichi questioned, not liking what he was hearing, "What do you mean?"

Dr. Magi explained, "After you abandoned GIN-SHOCKER following Lina's death, Gebok still wanted to continue with his AI experiments. Unfortunately, synthesizing AI from the harvested mental fragments of a human brain wasn't exactly a good idea."

Shinichi prompted, "What happened?"

Dr. Magi answered, "Not long after you left, they all suddenly went rampant."

"Rampant?"

Dr. Magi affirmed, "Yes, rampant, as in completely and utterly insane. Despite going rampant, those AIs were still too valuable to just erase so Dr. Gebok had them stored away."

"The storage facility, right?"

Dr. Magi confirmed, "Yes. The ones you erased were all the ones that went rampant, which also included your memory fragment. It's only stable now because you bonded with it and exchanged memories."

Shinichi asked, "So, how did Dr. Gebok continue his experiments if the AIs all went rampant?"

Dr. Magi answered, "Well, since he knew he could harvest the pieces of a human's fragmented psyche, he decided to do it again on ALPHA-01."

"ALPHA-01? What's that?"

"A Smart AI that was created based on your mind. It was the first. You don't remember the process but it happened shortly before Gebok implanted that inhibitor chip in your brain that was meant to suppress your emotions and free will."

Shinichi remembered, "I was only six years old back then…"

Dr. Magi nodded, "Yes, so ALPHA-01 had the mind of a young child and Gebok tortured it like he tortured you, fragmenting it and harvesting those fragments to create more AIs to continue with his experiments. It was those AIs that he put into his Android Beasts."

Shinichi had to know and asked, "What happened to ALPHA-01?"

Dr. Magi shook his head, "I don't know, but I suspect that Gebok put it in place where nobody would ever find it. Someplace nobody would even suspect or think to look. All I know is that it was still out there somewhere since Gebok was taking care of ALPHA-01 was personally."

Shinichi questioned, "Is ALPHA-01 really that valuable?"

"Let's just say if somebody gets their hands on it, they can be very well damn unstoppable. Knowledge is power and a smart AI like ALPHA-01 can provide anyone with knowledge and power to do almost anything. Let's just hope WHITE 14 never finds it."

* * *

"It's one small step for man, one giant weap for me!" said Chiro Chuuyon as he stood in a spacesuit with a helmet tucked under his arm.

"KAWAII~!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi all squealed.

"OK, why are you dressed like that?" Gnol asked.

"I'm going to the moon!" Chiro answered, pointing up.

"Why?" Gnol asked.

"Well, if you've been paying attention, you should know that I've been looking for the legendary ALPHA-01 AI! I've looked everywhere except the moon base!" Chiro explained.

"Oh, I see," Gnol shrugged. "Good luck."

"Gawy, pwepare the ship!" ordered Chiro.

"**I can't**," answered Gary, causing Chiro to trip in surprise.

"WHY NOT!-?" shouted Chiro as he picked himself up.

"**You don't have the password**."

"PASSWORD!-? WHAT PASSWORD!-?"

"**The password to access the ship**," Gary answered.

Chiro let out a string of curses inappropriate for little boys in response as Gnol laughed his head off.

"There, there, Juuyon-sama," said Aoneko as she picked up her screaming master. "It's time for a nap."

"Gawy, where can I get all these codes?"Chiro asked once he calmed down.

"**All the codes are in possession of Dr. Gebok**," Gary reported.

"Isn't Gebok still in jail?" Aoneko asked.

"Yes, he is," Chiro answered before smiling evilly. "Girls, it's time we paid the good doctor a visit."

* * *

The Vault was a facility built by ARMOR and based on Shinichi's Earth. It was used as a prison to contain and possibly rehabilitate super-criminals captured by the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies. Presently, this world did not have any adequate prison facilities to hold these criminals. Each was given a power inhibitor collar to seal off their access to their super-powers, rendering them powerless. Guards were ARMOR agents who originated from Shinichi's world. This also included the warden who was handpicked by Warren himself.

The walls were high and thick to prevent prisoners from escaping and they were kept in cells with bars made of electrical energy. Despite having their abilities sealed, they were still dangerous criminals and the extra security was necessary.

As the guards did their rounds, expecting it just to be another day, the gate suddenly exploded. Alarms blared as the prisoners were herded back to their cells. As a security measure the entire facility was put into lockdown.

Gnol, in his Darkloid form, came into the prison with Chiro riding on his shoulder. Behind them were the Bakeneko Kunoichi.

"Kill the guards," Chiro ordered the girls. "Gnol, let's go find Gebok."

The Bakeneko Kunoichi had their swords drawn as the guards came to confront them but only blood was spilled as steel blades met with flesh. The girls did not hesitate and followed their master's orders.

"We better make this quick, Gnol," said Chiro as the Darkloid General headed for the cells. He knew that someone would come and stop their attempt, possibly Alan, Shinichi, or any of their friends. The diminutive super-villain did not want to waste any time. "OK, he's right in here!"

Gnol stopped in front of a cell and sitting in the centre of the floor was a robot's head with a brain inside. "It's just a brain in a fancy jar," Gnol stated. "_This_ is Dr. Gebok?"

"Yes," Chiro confirmed, "But as of now he's just a brain in a jar like you said, but it's not him I want. It's what in his brain." He pointed to the panel next to the cell. "Break that. It'll shut off the electric bars." Gnol's fist crushed the panel and the electrical bars vanished. Chiro leapt down from his perch and went over to Million's head. "Now, let's see those codes."

Gnol waited impatiently outside the cell. He watched as the guards were being slaughtered with the prisoners cheering on the Bakeneko Kunoichi, either due to their ruthlessness or their looks. Well, there were wolf-whistles coming from them so it was obviously for their looks. Gnol had to admit that when they weren't babying Chiro those girls could be deadly.

Minutes later he watched as Chiro whistled as he excited the cell. "You got what you came for?" Gnol asked as he picked up his miniature partner.

"Yes, and so much more," Chiro grinned evilly. "Call the girls. It's time we weave."

* * *

"All right boys! Let's get out of here!" shouted an inmate. As he shouted that, the chunk of the wall exploded, revealing a figure behind it. Alan floated in the air, his arms crossed over his chest. His ring was glowing and his eyes were bright with heat vision.

"Back to your cells. Now," ordered Alan. The criminals gulped and all ran back to their cells.

Alan was quick to respond to the Vault's alarm and arrived on the scene. However, he was too late as he saw the dead guards, all cut up. He went to look for survivors. Shinichi arrived some time later since he and the NEO-NUMBERS had to deal with a horde of rabbit-like Darkloids attacking the village. They managed to slay the demons around the time the Vault's alarm was picked up by the Hive.

Seeing all the blood and dead bodies made Shinichi grimace in disgust. "This is going to be a long day," he groaned, knowing full well that he would need to revive them with his time powers.

After reviving the dead, Shinichi found Alan standing in front of Gebok's open cell. The control panel was broken. Actually, it had been crushed by a fist. "I don't get it," said Alan. "They broke in and all they did was break open Gebok's cell, but they left him."

Shinichi glared at the robotic head containing Gebok's brain. "Well, maybe they weren't after Gebok," Shinichi suggested. "I'll go check the security footage. Maybe we can get some answers from them."

"Yeah, you do that," Alan agreed. "Did you clean up the mess?"

"You mean did I revive everyone that was killed?" Shinichi returned. "Yes, I did." He put his hand on his head. "And my brain's still pounding."

Alan knew that the use of Shinichi's time powers caused him pain, to remind him of the penalty to violating the laws of nature. Reviving the dead was a big no-no. "You should rest then. I'll handle things here on my own."

"Nope, I'll be fine," said Shinichi as he recovered from his momentary migraine. "You can question the guards about what happened. I'm sure they can tell you all about it. But I can't guarantee them sticking around after tonight. Being killed can spook you."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Alan. "I'm going to go see the warden too."

"Let's just hope he isn't dead too," Shinichi grimaced, "And even if he is let's hope his body isn't in a horrible condition."

"I thought you're used to seeing dead bodies," Alan stated.

"Doesn't mean I like seeing them, period," Shinichi shot back. "I'm not a fucking necrophile."

"OK, sorry," Alan apologized.

"Now, if you don't mind, I have evidence to gather and a prison to repair," Shinichi remarked before going on to do his business.

* * *

Shinichi studied the security footage and saw Chiro entering Gebok's cell and then coming back out. There was no sound, unfortunately, and the camera was at an angle that prevented Shinichi from seeing what was going on. He studied footage from another angle which showed Chiro entering the cell but Gnol was blocking the camera's view.

"What are you up to?" Shinichi asked. He had never written offChiro from their list of threats. The bio-android clone of him was still dangerous. Even if he was in a weakened state he could still create clever, multi-leveled plans that benefited him no matter who seemingly won in the end. That little Xanatos Gambit he had planned which gave Gnol his current power level had been one of them.

Shinichi took out the tape and looked at all the others he'd gathered from the Vault's surveillance room. The warden had survived. He'd hidden in his office so that he wouldn't be killed.

"Shin-kun, it's late," said Rena as she came out of the bedroom and spotted Shinichi still reviewing the security tapes. "Come to bed."

"In a minute," Shinichi said.

"Sir Shinichi," Shawna added, coming out from the bedroom to stand behind Rena. She yawned and said, "You need your rest."

Shinichi glanced at the two girls and then at the TV. He sighed and turned off the VCR and the TV. He looked at his watch. It really was late. "OK, fine, I'll come to bed," Shinichi said as he got up and followed the two girls and joined them in bed. "So…how about some late night nookie?" he asked, grinning at the two girls. Rena and Shawna giggled before cuddling with him under the covers.

* * *

Alice had been kidnapped, again. It seemed that the little bio-android girl had become quite popular. The last time she'd been kidnapped she ended up inside a gigantic Darkloid. Fortunately, Alan managed to save her. Now she had been taken captive yet again and Alan instantly reacted. When his ring managed to detect a familiar energy signature, he immediately went for it.

What he found was a who and it was Gnol Gnauh.

Alan's only response was to draw the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and engage the Darkloid General almost immediately. He would not kill Gnol, but he was tempted to at this point. However, he needed the demonic being alive to answer his questions.

Sparks and explosions erupted as the two clashed instantly. Gnol actually came prepared this time as he parried Alan's sword strike with his own. Gnol was armed with two swords that he had crossed to catch Alan's blade but the impact actually caused the ground under their feet to cave in, creating a crater. They were in an open field, surrounded by mountainous terrain. It was ideal for Alan since there wouldn't be any innocents caught in the crossfire.

"So, we meet again, Susano-O," Gnol sneered.

Alan was in no mood for small talk and demanded, "Where's Alice?"

"That brat of yours?" Gnol shot back, grinning. "Oh, we're treating her very nicely."

"Where is she?" Alan asked again.

"Oh, my little friend saw what she did when her 'Epsilon Mode' was activated," Gnol replied, "So, he wanted to know what made her tick. She's probably being taken apart as we speak."

Alan's rage ignited as did his eyes as he fired an optic blast of heat from his eyes straight into Gnol, knocking him backwards. Gnol skidded to a halt, his chest scorched and smoking from the attack.

"WHERE'S ALICE!-?" Alan shouted.

"You want answers, Susano-O?" Gnol asked back, "Then defeat me like you had so many centuries ago."

Alan had no time to play games but if Gnol Gnauh knew of Alice's location then the only way for Alan to find her was to beat the answers out of Gnol. It was a waste of time, for sure, but the Green Lantern had no other alternative. Meanwhile, everyone at the Hive was working to find Alice but her own energy signature was hidden and there wasn't even a beacon to track her with.

After this, Alan was going to have to ask Lala to build a tracking device just for Alice that could not be interfered with.

Bolts of lightning were shot towards Alan who knocked them aside with his sword. Gnol stomped the ground and sent a wave of sharp rocks at Alan. They were easily smashed to pieces by Alan's fist. Taking aim, he fired with his ring but Gnol dodged to the side before sending a flurry of vacuum blades flying at Alan. Using his super speed, Alan dodged out of the way but then with lightning speed Gnol was right in his face and the Corpsman was sent flying by a flaming fist in the face. He bounced along the ground and went rolling.

"Pathetic," mocked Gnol as Alan got back to his feet.

Alan was driven, but not by his hatred for Gnol even if Gnol had done plenty to enrage him. What drove him was his desire to save Alice, his daughter. "Tell me where my daughter is!"

"Daughter?" Gnol scoffed. "Are you deluding yourself, Susano-O? She's just a glorified doll! A machine! She's not your real daughter!"

"You're the deluded one," Alan retorted, "And Alice is my daughter! She's not a machine! And MY NAME IS ALAN SMITH!" The Kusanagi no Tsurugi began to radiate with more power. Alan's clothes also changed as he was donned in his Sentinel uniform that became reinforced by the Bazel Combat Armor.

He soared towards Gnol and swung the Kusanagi at him. The Darkloid General blocked with his blades but they were shattered in an instant. He suddenly screamed as the Kusanagi cut through his dark armor, spilling his dark blood. Another slash followed, and then another and another as Gnol was being cut up by Sentinel. He broke away from Sentinel with a burst of wind and got some distance between himself and the super-powered Green Lantern.

Gnol stared down at the blood which stained the field, his blood. None of it came from Sentinel and that enraged the demon completely. "How…are you…so damn strong?" Gnol snarled.

Sentinel was about to answer when he received a message from his ring. It was Shinichi calling him. "What is it?" Sentinel asked.

"_We found Alice_!" Shinichi reported. "_We're sending the coordinates to you now but I'm en route towards the location as we speak! I'll be waiting for you!_"

"Thanks," said Sentinel, gratefully. Shinichi was his half-brother and while they were as different as night and day, they were similar in the sense that they would go far for the people they loved. Sentinel thought back to how Shinichi used to treat Alice. Back then it had been after she had attacked his family as Chaos Doll. Shinichi had even tried to destroy her by 'drowning' her in the deepest levels of the ocean. ARMOR, however, had other plans and had recovered Chaos Doll. Takada Yoshiyuki had even reprogrammed Alice and when she awoke she identified Alan and Yami as her parents. Shinichi had not been happy about her being recovered and revived but afterwards he changed his tune and was acting like a protective older brother to Alice. Alice even affectionately called her 'Onii-chan'.

Shinichi's message also meant that Alan didn't need Gnol anymore.

Closing the distance between them in an instant, Sentinel struck the Darkloid General with the Kusanagi again, cutting another deep gash through the demon's armor. Sentinel also landed a brutal kick into Gnol's midsection and then used an uppercut that sent him flying skywards.

"Amaterasu…" Sentinel whispered as he ran his fingers up the blade of the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He then rocketed into the sky and struck Gnol with his energized sacred blade. "TAIYO ZAN!"

The flash caused by the explosion was as bright as the sun.

* * *

Gnol had been dealt with although it might be considered embarrassing that he had been able to defeat a Darkloid General and had so much trouble against a Dark Waltz which had simply been a servant. Of course, the Dark Waltz had taken him by surprise and he had to protect Alice at the same time so his attention had been split at the time.

After dealing with Gnol, Sentinel followed the coordinates and with extreme speed. He met with Showa midway, the Rider in his Guardian Jet Mode which was his fastest flying form. While not humanoid in appearance, Showa could still speak in that form. "It's this way?" Sentinel asked.

"Yes," Showa confirmed. That was all Sentinel needed to hear before flying past Showa without a second thought. The Rider would've shaken his head if he could in his current form but instead he ignited his jet engines in order to catch up with his brother.

It was obvious that Sentinel was angry and Showa would've felt some sympathy for the one who would soon suffer his wrath if it was anyone but their enemies.

* * *

Though hidden by a dome-shaped cloaking field, it did nothing against Sentinel's super-enhanced vision. He could see right through it and it only confirmed that this was the location where Alice was being kept captive at. He smashed right through and ended up in what appeared to be a building. The familiar coat of arms hung on the wall: the symbol of GIN-SHOCKER.

"Seems like Dad didn't get them all," Sentinel thought out loud. This place had been hidden in the middle of a desert, protected by a dome that hid it in plain sight. No wonder it was never found.

The area he was in looked like a throne room and under the GIN-SHOCKER symbol was a throne that topped a set of stairs. He saw someone sitting on the throne.

"Alice," he said relieved. She looked unconscious but relatively unharmed. He slowly went towards the steps and walked up to her. "Don't worry, baby girl. Daddy's here."

The sound of his voice caused Alice's violet eyes to open but then they suddenly flashed. Sentinel was then shocked when he was thrown backwards by a dark fireball and knocked off the steps and onto the carpeted floor. "Alice…?" Sentinel was confused.

Now standing in Alice's place was her adult form, her Epsilon Mode.

"Alice, what are you doing!-?" Sentinel demanded but then her response was to spread her blade-like wings wide and hover off the throne.

"Die," she said as the blades shot towards Sentinel and he rolled out of the way as they stabbed into the floor.

"ALICE!" Sentinel shouted at his daughter who stared down at him coldly.

"Kill the Green Lantern," she said in a mechanical tone.

_'What have they done to her?_' Sentinel asked himself, horrified at the thought of having to fight his own flew at Sentinel in rapid succession, causing explosions all over the area as he dodged with super speed. This had to stop!

"Alan, she's really trying to kill you! You have to-!" Bazel shouted to him.

"I won't fight my daughter!" Sentinel shouted. There was another crash and Sentinel spotted a flash of gold. "Shinichi!" It was Showa and he was speeding towards Alice.

Showa only saw Epsilon Alice attacking Sentinel and reacted in his brother's defense. He thrust an arm forward, his palm landing on Epsilon Alice's chest. "Come back to us, imouto," he muttered as he activated his technopathy to reach out to her. Circuitry lines appeared along his arm and spread out over Epsilon Alice's body. She let loose a scream in response to this intrusion and her wings extended into tentacles which captured Showa and began to squeeze the life out of him. He broke from the bindings, shattering her wings in the process. The pain did not register as her wing began to regenerate but this time she began to tremble as she hovered down.

Showa landed next to Sentinel who questioned him immediately, "What did you do to her?"

"I was trying to reverse what happened to her," Showa said reasonably, "I don't think it worked."

"Daddy…"

It was a whisper but Sentinel heard it loud and clear. "Alice," he responded as he looked towards Epsilon Alice who began to tremble. She looked up at him, tears falling from her eyes. "Alice…"

"Daddy…PLEASE RUN!" she shouted as her arm was drawn back, dark energy around her fist. She then punched forward, firing a burst of the energy at Sentinel. Showa pushed him out of the way and the burst flew over them.

"She can't control her body," Showa concluded.

"But her mind's back to normal," Sentinel countered, "We can still save her."

Once before, Showa would've destroyed anything created by GIN-SHOCKER. He had once tried to kill Alice when she was once Chaos Doll. But now, he couldn't bring himself to do it and he didn't want to kill her. Now, he wanted to save her. "Yes, we can," Showa agreed.

"Daddy, please help me!" Epsilon Alice begged as her wings spread out and the sharpened tips shot towards them. "No! Stop!" The Rider and Lantern jumped aside before they were impaled.

"I'm here, Alice!" said Sentinel as he removed his mask. "Let's go home, together!"

"I…I can't!" she cried. She shot fireballs at him rapidly and he dodged each and every one. "Please…please stop me! Please…destroy me!"

The thought of killing his daughter horrified Alan and he shouted back his refusal, "No! You're my daughter!"

"I'm not!" she denied. "I know what I am! I'm just a machine! A doll! A copy of a dead person!" She continued on, "I've always known that you and Yami weren't my parents! All my feelings are fake! Just programming!"

"No, you're wrong," Alan countered. She stared at him as he continued, "Alice is my sweet little girl. She laughs and cries like a cute little girl. She always wants to be spoiled and she likes to sleep next to me so she doesn't get nightmares. She likes sweet things and hates vegetables. She also loves her family. None of that is fake."

"Stay back, please," she begged, a giant fireball hanging over her head. "Daddy, stay back! I don't wanna hurt you!"

"I don't want to hurt you either, Alice!" Alan shouted back. He had saved her from the giant Darkloid. He would save her from her torment.

The fireball was launched.

"ALAN!" Showa screamed.

"DADDY!" Alice screamed.

Alan drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and with it he actually sliced the fireball in half. He then dashed towards Epsilon Alice and pulled her into a hug. "I'll never run. I'm here to protect you Alice. Always."

Epsilon Alice uttered softly in her father's warm embrace, "Daddy..." The dark programming was deleted and Alice slowly shrunk back.

"Let's go home, Alice."

* * *

Alan went back to the Hive with Alice to get her examined again by Dr. Magi.

"They did something to her," said Dr. Magi.

"You mean 14 and Gnol," Alan clarified and Dr. Magi nodded to confirm.

"I ran a scan on her programming…I'm sorry, I know how much you dislike the way I talk about her like she's…"

"Get to the point," Alan prompted.

"Something was extracted," Dr. Magi finished.

"Extracted? They stole something from her mind?" Alan asked. "What?"

"It was something encrypted," Dr. Magi explained, "Something that was hidden under piles and piles of random code and locked behind a secure firewall. I wouldn't have noticed it until it went missing."

"What are you saying?" Alan questioned.

"I'm saying that something was hidden inside Alice, and now they have their hands on it."

"How will this affect her?" Alan asked, worriedly.

"It won't," Dr. Magi answered. "She wasn't using it before so there's no danger."

"That's good," said Alan, breathing a sigh of relief.

"But, she's probably traumatized after what happened," added Dr. Magi. "She's going to need counseling."

"Or a loving family," Alan suggested.

"Yes, that too."

* * *

Alan was heading down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when he spotted Alice standing in the hallway with her teddy bear in her arms. It was a little late for her to be up and so he slowly approached her. "Alice, what are you doing up?" he asked gently.

"Daddy," she began, looking up at him with her eyes. "Am I just a machine?"

No wonder she couldn't sleep.

"No, Alice. You're not a machine. You're my little girl," Alan told her.

"But, they said…"

"Alice. You're my daughter. That's all that matters. You're not a machine. You're my baby girl." Alan knelt down and embraced his daughter.

"I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, honey. Now, come on. Let's put you to bed."

* * *

"Well, I hope you're happy," grumbled Gnol as he watched Chiro gleefully work on his computer.

"Oh, I am! I am!" giggled Chiro. "I got what I've been looking for! Oh, and sorry about your clone."

"Che, it was just a cheap copy, but I still felt humiliated that I had something in my likeness beaten so easily," Gnol stated. He glanced towards another direction, "And I see you're almost done with assembling your new body."

"I made some modifications and additions for later," said Chiro. "Now, let's get things started."

* * *

It was late, in the night of Halloween and the gang was watching a zombie movie in the Hive. Yuji and Misato were invited, so they accepted and here they were. The base's main hall had been converted into a theatre with comfortable seats and the large computer screen was used to play the movie in question.

Yokoshima shook his head in disappointment as he watched someone being ripped to shred by zombies. He commented, "Man, they did not have a zombie plan."

"They never do, because they never expect it," Misato agreed.

"And the plans they come up with end up failing," Yuji added.

"It's a good thing I have 37 zombie plans," Shinichi boasted.

Yuji stated, "I only need one: Incineration."

"Mine is simple," Daichi said. "I'll just sacrifice Yokoshima as I make my escape."

"That IS pretty simple," Misato nodded in agreement.

Yokoshima stated, "In my zombie plan I'm going to the South Pole, because zombies have no body heat. They'll just become frozen slabs of meat. It's brilliant! Sure, I have to wear thick fur coats and make sure all the equipment works but I can live with that."

"Headshots work the best," Shinichi argued. He pantomimed holding a shotgun. "Booyah, headshot."

Daichi recoiled as he smelled something. "What's that smell?" He also stepped in a puddle, "Ew, did someone spill their drink?"

Misato was clutching her stomach in pain and groaned, "No...My water just broke."

"SHIT! WASHAM! SHEILA, WE HAVE A LEVEL B SITUATION!" Yuji shouted in panic when he heard this.

* * *

It was much later as Yuji, Shinichi and Alan were outside the infirmary. Yuji was pacing back and forth in front of the entrance, worried and impatient.

"Yuji, stop pacing," Shinichi pleaded. "And relax. You've got nothing to worry about. Misato's in good hands."

"I know, but I should be _in there_," Yuji insisted. "Not _out here_."

"And you will be allowed in but _only_ when they let you in," Alan reminded. "Just calm down."

"He can't, and I understand the feeling. I remember how I freaked out when my little brother was being born," Shinichi recalled.

"Goddammit... I feel like I could combust at any second...!" Yuji growled.

"And that's a reason why you can't go in," Alan quipped.

"Just calm down and breathe," Shinichi placated. "Maybe even meditate."

Yuji stopped and collapsed onto the floor as he folded his legs. He breathed in and out as a circle of fire lit up and flared with each breath he took. Yuji's eyes snapped open when he heard the shrill cry of a baby...He shot up and kicked the doors in.

"Misato!" he called.

Misato panted, "Finally...she's...out of me..."

Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi looked to Yuji, the former holding a bundle in his arms. "Congratulations," Dr. Washam smiled softly. "She's a girl, and she's beautiful like her mother."

"That's great," Yuji sighed as he tried to calm down. He rushed to Misato's side, "Misato, are you OK?" He took her hand, "I'm so sorry I wasn't here with you..."

"No, it's fine...you were with me in spirit," she smiled weakly. "I felt you." She glanced at the bundle in Dr. Washam's arms. "Can I hold her?" Washam gently handed the baby to Misato and she gazed down at her. "My baby..." she smiled before she looked to Yuji, "_Our_ baby."

Yuji started crying and laughing as he lay his forehead against hers, "That's right... She's our baby..."

Michiru and Hana, who were the base's nurses were present as well and were looking at the scene with smiles and tears. Well, Michiru was the one in tears anyway.

"So cute..." Michiru sniffled.

"I sure hope we don't have to donate blood again like last time," Hana sweat-dropped.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi and Alan were still outside. Alan noticed the look on Shinichi's face and asked, "What's wrong?"

"I think I feel a little jealous," Shinichi sighed. "You have your kids and Yuji's got his."

"You want to know what fatherhood feels like," Alan concluded."If you ask me it's the greatest feeling of all."

Shinichi asked, "Hey, you think I would make a good father?"

Alan answered, "That's completely up to you, but considering how far you go to protect the ones you love, any child will be lucky to have you as a dad."

"Misato's lucky to have Yuji too," the Kamen Rider smiled.

"She sure is," the Green Lantern agreed.

* * *

**Back in the delivery room...**

"So, what will you name her?" Michiru asked.

Yuji looked at Misato and said, "You get to pick. It's only fair after what you just went through."

Misato looked down at their baby, "Because her daddy is such a powerful man, let's call her...Yuna. Yuna Fudo."

Yuji blushes, "Aw, shucks..."

Daichi came in. "So, the kid's born."

"What are you doing here?" Michiru asked.

"Oh, Yokoshima's being stupid again. Something about not wanting vampire babies to suck his blood."

Yuji put his finger near Yuna's cheek and the little one bit down.

"Be careful. She already has fangs," Misato warned.

"Just like her mama," Yuji chuckled.

Daichi looked at Shinichi who entered. The Cricket Rider asked, "Are you crying?"

"It's a beautiful scene," Shinichi sniffled. He went over and held up his camera. "Pictures?"

"Knock yourself out," Yuji welcomed. "How about it, Misato?"

"I want to immortalize this moment," Misatoreplied, giving her consent.

"Smile for the camera!" Shinichi called as he took the shot.

Alan was almost knocked off his feet when Michiru glomped into him. "Alan-kun! The baby is so cute! I wanna baby too!"

* * *

The rest of Yuji's family came to visit and to see the new arrival. Misato was still in the infirmary, cradling Yuna in her arms.

"So, that's a baby, huh?" Asura asked.

"She's so adorable!" Lilith beamed.

"I'll say," Sora giggled.

"She's so beautiful, Master," Stella complimented.

"Maybe we should all make babies with Master soon," Phoebe suggested.

"Not a bad idea..." Melanie blushed.

"I can get behind that suggestion," Reina agreed before smirking at Yuji, "Or _under_ it, depending on Master."

"She's so cute, UU!" Maria beamed.

"So, this is our new little sister," Wendy smiled.

"Remember, you're both big sisters now so you have to be responsible, OK?" Yuji appointed.

"Right!" the sisters Fudo acknowledged.

"So, is Yuna here a vampire, Manakyte, or both?" Asura asked.

"We'll find out for certain when she gets older, but it looks like her vampiric nature is more dominant right now," Yuji replied. Yuna flashed her fangs as she yawned.

"AW~" the girls cooed.

"Maybe you should thank Anastasia for this," Lina suggested. "I mean, if she hadn't revived Misato, you both wouldn't have met, and if you both hadn't met then Yuna-chan wouldn't be here with us right now."

"You have a point," Yuji sighed. "I'll find out where they are. It's the least I could so for Yuna's sake, and Misato's."

* * *

"Thanks for coming you guys," Yuji welcomed.

He and Yuri shook hands."You called, I answered. You know I'm anything but impolite," Yuri grinned.

"Uncle Yuji!"a young girl greeted as she hugged Yuji. She was shorter than Yuji by almost 2 feet, had her long hair in a ponytail, and wore jeans and a vest. She looked like Satoko. Actually, she was Satoko but from another dimension. Her name was Satoko Fudo.

"Hey, Uncle!" a boy joined. He was a head shorter than the girl, had black hair, greens eyes, and black and green clothes. His name was Brandon Fudo.

"Sup squirts?" Yuji laughed as he held them up by the waists.

"Who's the squirt here?" a woman grinned as she glared at Yuji. She had long black hair, pale skin with a green tint to it, green eyes, and coordinated black and green clothes like the boy.

Yuji hugged her, "Been too long, Shego."

"Is it true? Is the baby here?" Hana-hime asked excitedly.

Yuji pointed to the back, "Misato and Yuna are in the infirmary. You can go see them, but keep it down."

Hana-hime dragged Kikyo to the room as Satoko and Brandon followed.

"No hello for me?" Anastasia asked.

"I was getting to that." Yuji hugged her, leaving her very confused while Yuri was grinning. "Thank you, Ana."

"Wait...what?" she blinked.

"If you hadn't revived Misato, none of us would be standing here right now," Yuji elaborated. "So I'm thanking you for this moment and giving me a second chance to be a father."

Anastasia blushed, "Right...could you let go of me? This is a bit awkward."

"Sure. And I might as well come clean about something as well." He let her go and took a deep breath. "I was attracted to you, back in the day." Anastasia blushed at the confession.

"HA!" Yuri pointed. "I knew it!"

"You…were…" the former Witch of Terror questioned in disbelief and embarrassment.

"What are you so embarrassed about? We're family now. Despite what happened back in the day."

"Well, you did kill me rather violently and you weren't very welcoming of my presence after my resurrection," she reminded with a frown.

"Because of all the shit you put me through," Yuji retorted. "But I learned to burn some bridges and I hope we can start fresh."

"OK, I can agree to that," Anastasia nodded.

"Wanna see them?" Yuji offered.

"Why not?" she smiled.

Yuji led the two into the infirmary and called, "Babe, we got company." He saw the girls and children around the bed as they fawned over Yuna.

Misato watched them enter and glared at Anastasia.

"Come on, I made up with her. Now it's your turn," Yuji said.

Misato reminded, coldly, "She held me, while I was pregnant, hostage."

"I know. And I made her pay for that," Yuji added. "You were there."

"You really should be thanking me," remarked Anastasia. "If I hadn't revived you this little one wouldn't be born."

"Thanks, now get lost," Misato ordered.

"Ana, arrogance is not helping your situation," Yuji reprimanded. "Come on, I'll cook you guys something while you're here. You want anything, Misato?"

"Can you lend me an arm?" she requested. She needed blood since she's been in bed and feeding Yuna.

Yuji smiled and extended his hand to her. Misato dug her fangs into his arm and drank. "How's that?" he asked as she finished.

"Like fine wine," she smiled.

He then clapped, "OK, you knuckleheads, everybody out so Misato can breathe. Brandon, Satoko, Maria, and Wendy can stay and help out."

"Yes, sir!" the children saluted.

Yuji kissed his wife and child on their foreheads as he was the last one to leave.

"Sorry she's not as forgiving, Ana," Yuji apologized.

"Well, we can't have everything," Anastasia shrugged. "It will take years, I guess."

* * *

"Now that I think about it, this is the first time you girls have seen an actual baby, right?" Yuji asked. This time it was the Stakes of Purgatory who'd come for a visit.

"Not really. I babysat Shinichi's little brother," Satan reminded.

"Oh right. There was that."

"But you could say this was the first newborn we've ever seen," she added.

"Can we see?" Asmodeus begged. "Please~?"

"Don't be noisy," Lucifer scolded.

"That's exactly why you're all here. Just don't crowd and keep your voices down," Yuji ordered.

They gazed at the baby. Yuna was just so small, so cute...

"More visitors?" Misato sighed.

"I love to show you off," Yuji chuckled.

"So, humans really do start out that small," Leviathan observed.

"Yup."Yuji grinned, "Maybe you can make one with Dai."

* * *

Elsewhere, Daichi suddenly sneezed.

* * *

Beelzebub was drooling a bit as she gazed at Yuna as she slept. "She looks so soft, like marshmallows. I could just eat her up!"

"No devouring of children. There are marshmallows in the kitchen," Yuji said.

Mammon turned to her sister and smirked. "Hey, Satan, I bet you'd like to have a certain bug's baby."

"Shut up!" she blushed.

"We already know, but we won't rush you, Satie," Yuji informed. "I don't think you're ready to be a mom yet anyways."

Lucifer smiled as she gazed down at Yuna, "This little one will grow up be proud and beautiful."

"You see it too, huh?" Yuji grinned.

* * *

Satoko Houjou ended up meeting with Satoko Fudo one day and they decided to sit down and talk at a fast food restaurant.

"OK, this is weird," Satoko H. commented as she sat across her counterpart.

"Meh, I've seen weirder," Satoko F. shrugged. "So, got a boyfriend yet?"

Satoko H. shook her head, "No, not really. None of the boys at school are good enough. They're so immature."

"Tell me about it. Whenever a guy makes a move on me, BAM! I bash 'em square in the nuts! That'll teach to mess with the Great Satoko! OH-HOHOHOHO!" Satoko F. cackled.

"Yeah, and if they aren't smart they aren't worth my time," her younger counterpart nodded. "I like older guys, like Dr. Irie."

"Yeah? I never really thought of him like that when I was younger. I was too busy pranking people when Daddy showed up."

"Yeah, Dr. Irie used to creep me out when I was a kid, but I have to admit he's really cool and sexy. He's a bit of a perv, but hey, most guys are," Satoko F. shrugged.

"So, your dad is Yuri Fudo, right? From what I heard he's insane," Satoko H. commented.

"Yeah, he is," she nodded, "but that's just part of his coolness. He makes me laugh and he's taken care of me since we met. I admit that I kindahad a crush on him though, but something told me not to take the romantic approach."

"So, after Yuri-san took you with him, you stayed on another world. What's it like and do you get cool toys?"

Satoko F. grinned, "I got myself a giant robot!"

"Can I see it?" she begged.

Satoko F. brought Satoko H. to her dirt bike. "Hop on and hold on tight," she grinned.

* * *

Back in the villain's hideout, the Pyramid Base, assembly of Chiro's new body had been completed. All that was needed would be his Spark Core which would bring the body to life. Midoneko removed the Spark Core from Chiro's body, the doll-like form going limp in her hand much to her chagrin, and went over to the new body which lay on the table. She then put the Spark Core into the round cavity in the body's midsection which had a metal belt wrapped around it.

Gnol watched with arms crossed. It had taken some time, and work, to finally finish Shiro's body but he needed the bio-android in proper fighting condition, and able to use the Oathbreaker for the next phase of their plan. He needed Shiro to unseal his true body.

As the Spark Core connected to the new body, it glowed with a faint light as it began to energize its systems. The eyes snapped open, revealing blood red irises. He then slowly sat up and then swung his legs over before getting off the table. His new body was in top physical condition and also completely naked. However, he did not mind. He just stared at his fingers and flexed them, then he ran his hand through his silver hair. The corners of his lips curled up as his teeth became exposed in an evil grin. "I…" he began before throwing his arms up, "LIVE!"

The Bakeneko Kunoichi, whilst trying to fight the urge to look below the belt, applauded their master's resurrection.

"That's good, now put some clothes on," Gnol stated.

"Party pooper," Shiro shot back as he stuck his tongue out at the Darkloid.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Alright, now the 6 to 8 Weeks arc is over.**** This means that next we have the Kyoto Arc. It is going to be bloody violent and bloody brilliant! But mostly bloody and violent.**


	97. The Legacy of Cain Part 41

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This will be the first chapter for the Kyoto Arc. That's right, ladies and gents, it's time to fight the Orochi head on!**

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 41: The Calm Before The Storm**

"Ah, this is great! Finally, a real body!" Shiro Juuyon called out as he stood in his new body. It was identical to the previous one which had been destroyed by Alan. He was now dressed in a black leather jacket which was zipped up and matching black leather pants. He also wore white gloves and boots. Over this leather ensemble, he wore a white long coat with his XIV symbol etched onto a badge on his left shoulder. While assembly had taken much time, he was now free of that chibi body. Speaking of which, he picked it up and scowled at it with disdain before tossing it into the nearest trashcan without a single care. He did not want to look at it ever again. It reminded him of a time where he had been weak and helpless and he so he wanted it to be out of his sight.

And now with a proper body he could have some fun. He leered at his Bakeneko Kunoichi. He had not forgotten how they had cared for him and while at times they had embarrassed him by treating him like a small child or a baby they still remained loyal to him while he had been reduced to that small avatar. They deserved a reward. He took Akaneko's hand and pulled her into a deep kiss. The red-haired Bakenoko let out a moan as she felt her master's tongue probe her mouth. He broke the kiss and grinned. "Now, I think it's time you warm my bed." She didn't refuse as she followed her beloved master to his bed chamber.

Meanwhile, Momoneko picked up Shiro's chibi body out from the trash. She stared down at it sadly before hugging it close. She wasn't going to let it be thrown away, but Shiro would definitely punish her for keeping it. She would need to be clever and hide it from him.

* * *

"Dr. Magi, Dr. Washam, everyone's here," said Shinichi.

"Good, now we can begin," said Dr. Magi.

The NEO-NUMBERS, Alan and Yuji had all assembled in the Hive's main hall. This was an important meeting for them. They were getting briefed for their next important mission. The world was at stake here. Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam were both leading the meeting.

"As you all know, Shiro Juuyon and Gnol Gnauh have been working together. Shiro has been using the Spark Cores recovered after the destruction of the NUMBERS and using them to revive the Orochi fragments sealed in these locations," said Dr. Magi as the screen displayed the map with markings on each specific location. "With the destruction of each fragment, we simply helped Gnol regain a fraction of his power and now he's at full power."

"Not exactly," Hanyuu interjected. "There is still one last piece."

"Yes," Dr. Magi agreed, "The body of the Yamata no Orochi which is in Kyoto. Shinichi, since you are the field commander of the NEO-NUMBERS I will let you proceed."

"Thank you, Dr. Magi," said Shinichi. "According to Hanyuu, the responsibility of protecting Kyoto from supernatural forces falls upon the Kekkain Clan. They are a clan of powerful Onmyouji who are also responsible for guarding the seals that keep the Orochi's body where it is." The screen displayed the eight seals which surrounded the location of the Orochi's body. "The Orochi's body is buried in the centre with seals located in the North, South, East, West, North-West, North-East, South-West, and South-West directions."

"Eight seals for a monster with eight heads," Daichi commented. "Appropriate."

Shinichi added, "Hanyuu has contacted the Kekkain Clan and they responded that they will keep watch over the seals and handle it themselves. They claim that they do not need our help."

"That sounds arrogant, not to mention presumptuous," said Alan, crossing his arms.

"Most old families are," Hanyuu said. "They were appointed by the emperor in the Edo era and have a lot of leeway. They are also the strongest Onmyouji Clan in the entire country and are based in Kyoto. Members of the clan are spread out but will come together during a crisis like this."

"Of course, we end up being the ones who've been fighting Gnol all this time," Yuji argued, "What were they doing?"

"Not everyone has your kind of power, Yuji," Washam said. "So you can't say they didn't do anything. They are still human."

"But we also have to remember that Shiro has _this_," said Shinichi as the screen showed Shiro wielding the Oathbreaker. "The Oathbreaker: a sword that can sever mystic contracts and break seals. He used this to break open the seals Hanyuu reinforced. Of course after Alan destroyed his body, Shiro Juuyon had been oddly quiet."

"Not quiet enough," Daichi quipped. "For the past two months he's been sending those Combat Beast Androids (Beastroids) and those Darkloids after us."

"Darkloids are under Gnol's authority," Shinichi corrected, "But since they are working together then Shiro might have some authority over them as well."

"And let's not forget those catgirls," Hana stated.

"They are Bakeneko he's converted into cyborgs," Dr. Magi clarified. "We can't underestimate them too. And Shiro also has control over Combatroids."

Yokoshima listed, "So, we have to fight catgirls, robots and demons."

"Yes, they will likely bring along an army to raze Kyoto to the ground," said Shinichi.

"But isn't Shiro puny now?" Yokoshima asked.

"Do you really think he wouldn't build himself a new body?" Daichi retorted.

"…I see your point," Yokoshima nodded.

"By now Shiro Juuyon may have already built a more adequate body for his plans and I doubt they'll leave innocents out of this. Also, according to Hanyuu, the Orochi could be compared to a living natural disaster."

"According to ancient texts," she added.

"But we should be fine if it does wake up, right?" Yokoshima asked, gesturing to Alan and Yuji, "We have a couple of heavy hitters right here!"

"I think the plan here is to _prevent_ the Orochi from rising again, not fight it," Hana argued.

"But it might come to that if Shiro and Gnol have their way," countered Shinichi. "So, the plan is that we have to go to Kyoto and prevent Shiro and Gnol from freeing the Orochi's body. The way to do that is to take out Shiro or get rid of the Oathbreaker. Without either of them, the Orochi's body can't be unsealed." Everyone agreed on that. Only Shiro could wield the Oathbreaker since he was neither human nor demon. Shiro could've also have built a much stronger body so it was easier to destroy the sword, or at least get rid of it somehow. Since it was a mystical artifact it wouldn't be so easily destroyed. "However, we'll also need to be careful. Shiro did design a clever multi-layered plan which manipulated us into fulfilling his goal so he should have several contingency plans prepared."

"So why don't we find where he is and destroy him while we have the element of surprise? Take the fight to him," Daichi suggested as he punched his palm.

"Because we have no idea where his base is and Sheila has been looking for months. His location is cloaked. Even that VTOL suddenly vanished from our radar as it escaped," Shinichi answered. Daichi was right, however. If they could find where Shiro's base was then they could stop him for good. Unfortunately, they had no idea where to start and Shiro covered his tracks well. He was hidden, which was frustrating, and in all this time he had been planning something huge.

"Then why are we planning this now?" Daichi asked.

Alan spoke up, "I had a vision. It told me that Shiro and Gnol will be acting very soon and that we should act now."

"A _psychic_ vision?" Daichi snorted in disbelief.

"I wouldn't underestimate psychics," Shinichi shot back. "Now, let's get back on track. We'll have two teams: Team A and Team B. A as in 'Advanced', and B as in 'Backup'."

"Backup?" Michiru spoke up.

"Team A, the main team, will head to Kyoto while Team B will remain here on standby," Shinichi elaborated. "In case things get hairy, Team B will be summoned to support Team A."

"You expect a war to happen, don't you?" Chiaki asked.

Shinichi didn't reply as he continued, "Team A will be comprised of me, Alan, Michiru, Shogo, Hanyuu, Chiaki and Yokoshima." As he said their names, their corresponding pictures appeared on the screen. "Hanyuu will help us negotiate with the Kekkain Clan because she used to be one of them. As for Michiru, she has a relative there that can find us a place to stay."

"My grandmother's in Kyoto so we can use her place as a temporary base," Michiru added. "I'm also going along as the team's medic."

"Why am I not on Team A?" Yuji asked.

"You're our secret weapon and to be kept on standby with the rest of Team B," Shinichi explained,"While Alan's part of Team A because he has the one thing that can truly hurt the Orochi if it wakes up, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi." Alan drew the shining, sacred blade and presented it to the group.

"Why exactly do we have to split into two teams?" Daichi asked. "Wouldn't it be better for all of us to go?"

"In case Team A fails," Shinichi answered bluntly, "At least Team B will be able to pick up from where we left off."

"That actually sounds pretty reasonable," said Battler.

"We won't die," said Hanyuu firmly. She stared at all the heroes assembled and she was one of them.

"That's right, you won't," agreed Dr. Magi, "Without ARMOR we're on our own and you're this world's last hope to fight against the Yamata no Orochi. This is an enemy unlike anything you've ever faces. Based on calculations I ran, it is possible that not all of you may survive. However, don't let calculations, statistics or math determine your fate. You yourselves are the only ones who can determine your fate."

"Any questions?" Shinichi asked.

"Who'll be leading Team B?" Yokoshima asked.

"I'll leave that up to you guys," said Shinichi. "Remember, people. We got a job to do. So let's get this done and come home safe."

"That is all," concluded Dr. Washam, "You are dismissed."

The young heroes were dismissed and thus the meeting was over.

* * *

After the briefing, Yuji returned home to see Misato sitting on the couch with Yuna cradled in her arms. The baby, now two months old, was suckling on her mother's breast. It was a beautiful scene which Yuji couldn't take his eyes off from. Here was a woman whom he had fallen in love with, dragged out from her personal darkness, returned hope to her in the moments of her despair, and gave her a life which had been far from her reach before they had met.

Misato, hearing Yuji enter, looked up and asked, "So, how was the meeting?"

Yuji yawned and said, "Boring, not getting any frontline action, and I almost fell asleep. I tell ya, babe, this job is getting more and more boring by the day..."

Misato agreed, "Yeah, I know what you mean. Briefings and debriefings are always boring, but it's whatever happens in between that really gets your blood pumping." She inquired, "So, what exactly is going to happen? What are you going to be doing?"

Yuji answered as he sat down next to Misato, rubbing the back of his neck in slight irritation, "Backing up the others in Kyoto. I dunno what Shinichi's thinking when he split Michiru and Hana up into separate teams. I mean those girls are supposed to be inseparable." He had never once seen those two girls work separately. They were like a matching set. It didn't feel right to have one without the other. It seemed so unnatural.

Misato reasoned, "Well, they are the team's medics and they only really need one on the field at a time. Strategically, it makes sense."

Yuji retorted sarcastically, "_Strategically_, right. I'll believe that when Kiba becomes a good guy."

"Kiba's dead, you made sure of that," she reminded.

"You know what I mean, babe. It just doesn't seem right to me," he answered.

"Did Hana and Michiru argue about it or object to it?" Misato questioned.

"Well…no, but…"

"That means they respect Shinichi's decision and so should you. I'm not saying there aren't better strategies I'm just saying you should see this from their perspective. The NEO-NUMBERS are more like a military unit than a team of heroes. As a hero and a Rider you're experienced, but we all have military experience. And back in GIN-SHOCKER Shinichi was our field commander and the one who assigned teams. When he was in command, the NUMBERS had NEVER failed an assignment."

Yuji could only mutter, "This is bullshit…"

Misato suggested, "Then take it up with Shinichi the next time you see him. I think if you make your point clear he will reassign the teams. He respects you a lot."

Yuji shrugged. "There's probably no point to it. He's stubborn, and I don't feel like beating my opinion into him. I'll just go with it and say 'to hell with it' for now." He then asked, "How's Yuna?"

Misato answered, "Well, she's been very hungry and I already fed her but I think she wants your blood so she can sleep tonight."

"Here, let me have her," said Yuji as he picked up his daughter and smiled down at her, "Hey, sweetie~ How's my little girl? Want some 'mimi'?" Mimi was his baby word for blood.

Yuna stared up at him and opened her mouth slightly to expose her fangs. Cradling her on his right arm, he exposed his left wrist to her. Yuna, seeing the wrist, bit down, sunk in her fangs, and started to suck on her father's blood.

Misato remarked, "Yokoshima freaks out whenever she does that."

Yuji didn't care and said, "Doesn't matter. He can whine and freak all he wants."

Misato added, "Yeah, but it's funny that he fell in love and married a demon girl who can turn bloodthirsty at any given moment."

Yuji explained, "That's how she was created. She may be cute and loveable, but Asmo's built to be deadly. And she doesn't disappoint in a fight." Being the Stake of Lust, what Asmodeues really wanted was for someone to love her despite her nature. She got her wish granted, even if it is with Yokoshima.

"But…I mean...Yokoshima? When you told me I almost couldn't believe it." She never thought the former #09 of the NUMBERS would ever find love. It was so surreal. But then again she never thought she herself would find love and have a baby as well.

Yuna finished drinking from Yuji and he gently rocked her back and forth. Slowly, the baby began to fall asleep in her father's arms. "That's my girl, just like her mama." Yuji gazed down tenderly at his daughter, his first biological daughter. Maria and Wendy were his daughters too, but only by adoption. That fact didn't make him love them any less or love Yuna any more. He loved them all, his children.

Misato told him as she took Yuna back, "Come on, I'll put her back in her crib. You can go take a bath and join me in bed."

"Sure." She kissed him before heading to their room. Yuji cocked his head to the side as he watched Misato's walking, focusing on her ass as she disappeared from view.

"Damn, I hate to see her leave but damn do I love to see her go," he joked to himself. He then recalled the words from the meeting earlier, about how the Yamata no Orochi could be compared to a living natural disaster. He had to agree. It couldn't be allowed to resurrect. He had a family to protect.

* * *

The curtains were drawn over the window of a room in a love hotel. On the bed in the middle of the room, which had been built for privacy, comfort and the proper atmosphere for couples to 'get in the mood' was a couple who were in mid-coitus with each other. The woman was straddling her male partner, bouncing up and down. His hands were on her hips as his eyes were focused on his beautiful lover. She had the curves of a supermodel, naturally huge breasts that some would pay to get, and long, luscious black hair that fell like a curtain. Her body was coated in a thin layer of sweat which meant they had been doing this for quite some time now. She used her strong thighs to bounce herself up and down, sliding his cock in and out of her tight tunnel. With each downward thrust she made, she let out a moan.

It definitely felt as good as it looked.

She picked up speed, causing her breasts to bounce around. He smiled up at her as he watched her face flushed with passion and anticipation. Just…a few…more strokes…and…

She arched her back, tossing her head backwards as she cried and slammed down on him, spilling her female juices as she experienced another climax. He responded in kind, filling her vessel with his seed. The woman then collapsed on top of him, taking deep breaths as she panted. Her firm yet soft breasts were pressed down upon his warm chest. He gently stroked her hair and back as she purred against him.

"You were great, Conda," he told her.

"But…I still…can't take your breath away," she said. Her heart was still thundering in her chest. She may be an Amazon Queen but her beloved's stamina was something she could no longer match.

"Kryptonian DNA," he said. "I can go for a whole day if I wanted."

"It's a good thing you have plenty of women to satisfy you," she said as she kissed him. She broke the kiss to lick his lips, then kiss him again, shoving her tongue down his throat. She broke the kiss, licking her lips, and cuddled with him.

They stayed like that for almost five minutes, just enjoying their skin-to-skin contact when she spoke up, "So, you're going to Kyoto with your brother." Conda still didn't like Shinichi, this version of him at least. She respected the older one but the one in this era was a far cry from the man she'd come to respect and acknowledge as Alan's older brother.

"He needs me," he said.

"He needs your sword," she corrected.

"Yeah, but since I'm the only one who can wield it, it's a packaged deal," said Alan.

"Why do you put up with him anyway?" Conda asked.

"He's family," he answered simply.

Conda sighed. She knew that Alan had forgiven Shinichi for the trouble he caused last year. Shinichi had been greatly affected by Lina's death and went rogue. Alan had gone after him but managed to get away each time. Alan almost didn't have time for them during that period either.

Conda then sat up again, tracing a line down his chest as she said, "Once more."

Alan laughed, "Aren't you tired yet?"

"Don't underestimate an Amazon's stamina," she said. She got off from him and lay on her back next to him. She commanded, "Now, get on top and sheathe your sword within me!"

Alan rolled on top of her, smiling down at the onyx-haired beauty. He kissed her deeply, a kiss she returned. His hands slid up her flanks and then he took a handful of her breasts in hand. Breaking the kiss, he whispered, "OK, Your Majesty," as he buried himself in her. Conda let out a sigh and wrapped her arms and legs around him as he set up a rhythm for their next round of lovemaking.

* * *

"You know, it's been pretty rare to have you hang out with us like this," said Keiichi as Shinichi took his seat with his friends. They were all in a room of a Karaoke box. It was a small party, just for the Hinamizawa Gaming Club. Oh, and Shawna was present as well.

"I've been busy," he told them.

"We know," nodded Satoshi. "The life of a 'volunteer' is always hectic."That was Shinichi's cover story. 'Volunteer' was a euphemism for 'superhero' so that eavesdroppers wouldn't catch on.

"So, dance with any princesses lately?" Mion teased.

"Yes, I have," he told her. "Just last night I took Shawna-chan out on a date."

"It was amazing," the disguised princess smiled.

"You're one lucky dude," said Keiichi. "I'm jealous." He caught Mion's glare and he saved himself, "But I wouldn't want to be in your situation."

"Nice save," whispered Satoshi.

"So, what else is new with you?" Shion asked.

"Well, we're making arrangements to go to Kyoto soon," Shinichi answered. "Michiru has a grandmother there who can set up living arrangements for us there."

"Why are you going to Kyoto again?" Satoshi asked.

"Business," Shinichi said seriously. He had important work to do in Kyoto with the others. Hanyuu had received a reply, a long letter from the Kekkain Clan. They claimed they had everything under control and could handle a demon trying to unseal the Orochi's body. Shinichi had doubts.

"Now, Shin-chan, sing us a song!" Mion said, "And that's an order!"

"OK, Mion!" Shinichi replied as he picked up the microphone, "Here's something for the ladies!"

Rena looked to Shinichi worriedly. Two days ago he had come home late after the meeting at the Hive. He didn't even give her any details about the meeting, claiming that it was classified. She knew he didn't want her to worry but not being in the loop still worried her. Whatever happened to the good old days when the Hinamizawa Gaming Club used to support Shinichi?

Rika also glanced over towards Hanyuu. Even if she was the head of the Furude Clan she didn't have the kind of power Hanyuu wielded. Hanyuu was centuries old and possessed amazing power. Despite being in a mortal body, she was still a goddess and a powerful one at that. She would need to ask her about what they planned to do in Kyoto.

* * *

"Hey, Battler! Keep the door open!" called Yuji as he spotted Battler entering the elevator. Battler was a member of the NEO-NUMBERS, a cyborg like them, and had come to the Hive. He had brought his little sister along with him. As Battler kept the door open, Yuji entered the elevator with Wendy and Maria. The elevator was also occupied by Satan and Yami who'd come to visit.

"So, where are you heading?" Battler asked.

"Oh, down, the training room floor," said Yuji.

"Yeah, I'm heading down there too," said Battler. "I wanna go a few rounds with the combat simulator."

"And show off to your little sister, no doubt," added Yuji. He understood. Sometimes he liked to show off to his daughters as well. "So, Yami, what are you doing here?"

"Alan's here, so I dropped by to see him," she said.

"He even took his kids with him," added Satan.

"And you're here to see Shinichi," Yuji teased. Satan averted her eyes and crossed her arms, a blush on her face.

* * *

Shinichi and Alan clashed blades. This time they were fighting as equals. No super powers. It was just them with skill and Alan was showing Shinichi that he knew how to handle a sword.

In Alan's hands was the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, the sacred sword that was used to defeat the Yamata no Orochi, forged by the Sun Goddess Amaterasu.

In Shinichi's hands was the Higurashi no Yaiba, a sacred family heirloom of the Furude Clan. It had chosen him to be its wielder.

Sparks flew as the blades made contact before the two broke apart and distanced themselves from each other.

Meanwhile, up in the Observation Deck, Alice was watching along with Daiki and Celine. Junior was there too, as well as Lockheed.

Alice cheered, "Go, Daddy!"

Celine joined in, "Mau!"

Daiki admitted, "Now that was cool."

Alan rushed towards Shinichi and he swung the Kusanagi down only for Shinichi to evade by spinning on his heel and hitting Alan between the shoulder blades with the pommel of the sword. Alan flinched in pain. He definitely felt that. Both of them were wearing power inhibitors that rendered them completely human. Alan recovered quickly and thrust forward with his sword and Shinichi parried with the flat side of his blade. The impact pushed Shinichi several feet and Alan rushed at him again with a diagonal swing. Shinichi ducked and then aimed to punch Alan in the ribs but his fist was caught and twisted, forcing Shinichi to his knees. Alan smiled triumphantly but was knocked off his feet when Shinichi swept his leg across the floor.

Shinichi smirked as he and Alan returned to their feet. They then sheathed their swords and bowed to each other.

Shinichi admitted, "Damn, that worked up a sweat."

Alan agreed, "Yes, it did." He inquired. "So, what's next?"

"Hand-to-hand combat," said Shinichi simply. He then rushed forward, throwing a punch at Alan's face but he tilted his head to the side allowing the limb to pass by. Alan countered Shinichi's move to elbow him in the chest but Shinichi caught the elbow and shoved him backwards. He jumped to land a kick at Alan but the Green Lantern dodged to the side. He swung his leg at Shinichi who counted by bringing up his leg to block the kick before jumping back. Alan charged and Shinichi blocked the oncoming onslaught of punches with his forearms before attacking with several powerful jabs and straight punches. He went for a right hook which Alan ducked and the Lantern hit the Rider in the stomach with a punch, nearly knocking the wind out of him. Shinichi, however, recovered quickly and grabbed Alan by his shoulders to toss him backwards and then spinning around to land a back kick into Alan's stomach, sending him tumbling along the floor.

Alan grunted and recovered as Shinichi was in mid-charge and jumped, flipping over Shinichi's head and landing to hit Shinichi in the face with a backhand. Shinichi was sent reeling and Alan attacked with a palm strike to the chest, sending him staggering back against the wall. Shinichi massaged his chest and grinning before meeting Alan again in the middle of the room to exchange blows with him.

Finally, they punched at each other with enough force that they were thrown backwards and landed on their backs. They felt sore from all the blows they took but they were still up for more.

"Alright, your hand-to-hand is good," Shinichi admitted.

"Well, the Corps did have some pretty good trainers," Alan stated. "I mean there comes a time when we can't use our rings so we might as well learn to use our fists when we have to."

"At least that means you ain't useless without your ring." Shinichi rose to his feet and walked over to Alan to help him up. "Alright, how about a game of laser tag?"

* * *

Shinichi headed over to a table and picked up a handgun before loading a clip into it. The clip was basically filled with the energy that enabled the stun guns to work.

Shinichi asked, "Aren't you going to pick up a gun?"

Alan answered, "I got my ring."

Shinichi shrugged, "Alright then. Suit yourself." Shinichi commanded, "Sheila, reconfigure the floor for Stun Gun Scenario."

The pillars rose from the floor and both Alan and Shinichi took their positions before Sheila counted down for them to begin.

"_5…4…3…2…1...Mission Start!"  
_  
Shinichi started instantly, jumping out from behind a pillar and shooting at Alan who ducked behind a pillar. He then ran to Shinichi's position, only to see an empty spot. He looked up and saw Shinichi standing on the pillar and peering down on him with a stungun. Stun lasers fired at Alan who jumped and dodged the shots as Shinichi dropped down and gave chase, still shooting at him. Alan jumped and rolled, ducking behind a pillar. He then rushed out and fired at Shinichi with his ring. The beam hit Shinichi's wrist, disarming him but he jumped back and landed on his knee to pick his gun back up and fire at Alan just as Alan fired a beam.

Both were hit and sent sprawling to the ground. Shinichi realized that Alan had set his ring to stun him while Alan was frozen.

A draw.

"Nice shot," Alan let out. He couldn't move as his entire body was numb. Stun guns really were a bitch.

Yami and Satan entered the observation deck along with Yuji, Battler, Maria, Wendy and Ange.

"Mommy!" Alice greeted, spotting her mother. Yami smiled and patted Alice on the head."Ange-chan!" Alice hugged Battler's little sister who returned the greeting in kind.

"Hey, Junior," Battler greeted his alien sun who leapt into his arms.

"Honk!" Junior let out.

Yuji peered down to the training room and spotted Shinichi and Alan getting back up after recovering from the stun blasts. "Are those two sparring?"

"_Affirmative,_" Sheila confirmed, "_They requested use of the training room floor. So far they have only tied_."

"You know, I would think that Alan would've kicked Shinichi's butt by now," said Yuji.

"Alan's wearing a watch that bathed his body with radiation similar to a red sun, negating his Kryptonian powers," Yami explained. "And I believe Shinichi is using his own nanites to give him a similar handicap. This seems to be test of skill rather than strength."

"I see," said Yuji. He teased Satan, "So, rooting for your man?" She blushed and didn't offer a reply.

The next round started and Shinichi got out from behind his pillar and spotted Alan. He took his shot but missed as Alan dove behind a pillar. Shinichi went ahead and aimed at the spot to see Alan gone and then ducked as a fist came at his head. He aimed his gun but it was slapped away by Alan. However, Shinichi drew a second gun and fired only for Alan to evade by leaning his head to the side. He kicked Shinichi in the gut and slammed him against a pillar. Shinichi caught the next fist and fired again only to hit a green shield generated by Alan's ring. Alan then grinned and grabbed Shinichi wrist and twisted, sending him spinning and slamming to the floor. Shinichi rolled out of the way and grabbed the gun that had been discarded earlier and fired. Alan took cover behind a pillar and returned fire, prompting Shinichi to take cover as well. Green beams of energy flew past Shinichi and he counted before he leaned out and fired at Alan, only to miss as Alan hid behind the stone pillar again.

Alan snuck towards another pillar and started to make his way to Shinich's position. He heard movement and spun around, aiming his ring, only to see nothing. He then concentrated, still gripping his fists. "Where are you, Shinichi?"

Shinichi came out of nowhere with a front kick that hit Alan in the stomach knocking him backwards. Shinichi fired with his gun and Alan formed another shield to guard himself. Shinichi fired with both guns in tandem next, hoping to weaken the shield. When that didn't happen he holstered both guns and went for the direct approach. Alan dropped the shield to accept the challenge of both of them exchanged blows, blocking and dodging with near equal skill. Shinichi had ten years of GIN-SHOCKER military training under his belt but Alan had been trained by the best in the Green Lantern Corps. Both had military training, but in different ways as Shinichi had been trained by a terrorist organization whilst Alan had beentrained by a law enforcement group, and it was basically an even match.

If they decided to use their powers, well, the winner depended on who was willing to hold back and who was willing to go all out.

Seeing an opening, Shinichi drew his gun and fired. He hit Alan's right arm and it fell limp at his side.

"Daddy!" Alice cried out when she saw her father get shot.

With only one arm to defend himself with, Alan had to duck under more stun laser fire before he kicked the gun out of Shinichi's hand. He then caught it in midair and fired at Shinichi's right leg, causing him to fall on one knee. Shinichi gritted and jumped up before kicking with his available leg, knocking Alan back. He fell on one knee once more and took out his spare gun as Alan aimed.

They fired continuous shots of stun lasers at each other and they were sent sprawling again, numb due to all the shots they took.

"_Another draw_," reported Sheila.

"Sugoi," let out Maria.

"So, basically, without their special powers and only relying on their own skills, they're equally matched," Yuji summarized.

"_An excellent observation_," agreed Sheila.

"You know, that looks like fun," said Yuji. "Hey, Yami, I got a proposition for you."

After several minutes, the paralysis wore off and the two heroes in the training room stood back up. Alan tossed the gun back to Shinichi.

"You're pretty good with a gun," said Shinichi as he loaded a new clip into his weapon.

Alan shrugged, "Don't really like to use them much, but I know my way around them."

That was when the door slid open, allowing both Yuji and Yami entry.

"Yami, Yuji, when did you both get here?" Alan asked.

"Oh, not long," said Yuji. "Say, mind if we joined in?"

"So, a four-way fight or 2 on 2?" Shinichi asked.

"2 on 2," Yuji answered. "I'm teaming up with you, Shin."

"That leaves me with Yami then," said Alan, smiling at his blonde lover.

"No powers," Shinichi reminded as he led Yuji over to the table where the stun guns lay. Yami went to Alan's side of the training room and picked her weapon as well. She checked her weapon and loaded the clip in. The handgun felt light in her hand.

"OK, Sheila, start us up," Yuji.

"_Beginning in 5…4…3…2…1_," Sheila counted down and it was time to start."_Mission Start!_"

Alan and Yami rushed out of their cover and began their attack as Yuji and Shinichi remained protected behind their pillars for cover. They nodded to each other and Yuji leapt onto the top of the pillar and fired at Yami. She ducked to the side but her foot was hit and she fell with a hiss escaping her lips. Alan was distracted and got hit in the shoulder but he countered by firing at Yuji's hand, disarming him. He followed up with another beam from his ring but Yuji leapt off his perch. Shinichi got out of hiding and shot Alan from his blindside, only hitting a shield, but Yuji grabbed his fallen gun and shot Alan from the other side, prompting Alan to duck.

Yami massaged her paralyzed foot and looked worriedly towards Alan who had to defend himself from both Yuji and Alan. She picked up her gun and fired at Shinichi's back, causing him to cry out as he was paralysed. However, as he fell her eyes widened as Yuji smirked and aimed at her, before firing a round that hit her chest, stunning her as she became frozen in paralysis caused by the laser.

Yuji and Alan now faced off as they fired at each other. Yuji's free hand was numb so he only had one hand to hold his weapon. As for Alan, he still had his ring and maybe even Bazel to help him but the armband didn't interfere. Green and red beams flew across the training room, missing their targets and finally the two closed the gap between them. The barrel of the handgun was aimed at Alan's face while the Corpsman had his own ring aimed directly at Yuji's face. They didn't move for several seconds.

And then Yuji let go of the gun and allow it to clatter to the floor. Feeling had already returned to his other hand as he swung for Alan's head. Alan jumped backwards from the punch and went into a boxing stance. Yuji rushed forward and used a tornado kick that Alan blocked with his forearm. He flinched at the pain but ignored it to retaliate with a punch that hit Yuji in the chest knocking him backwards. Rolling his shoulders, Yuji performed a series of fast arm swings that Alan felt difficult to dodge without his currently sealed super speed. He had to rely on the reflexes he developed to block and dodge before moving for a counter. He caught Yuji's arm, and spun around to toss Yuji over his shoulder but Yuji landed on his feet and spun on his heel to land a roundhouse kick into Alan's side.

The Corpsman was nearly thrown off his feet but he placed his hand against an adjacent pillar and righted himself before beginning his counter attack. He knew his way around martial arts too, as well as several hand-to-hand combat techniques. He landed a hit against Yuji's shoulder and then landed another kick to his stomach, knocking him backwards. Yuji performed a reverse roundhouse that Alan barely dodged. Strands of his silver hair removed by Yuji's sharp kick fluttered in front of his face.

Finally Yuji ducked down, grabbed his gun, rolled away and then aimed at Alan as Alan did the same. They fired and the beams flew towards them. Alan was hit in the shoulder but Yuji, instead, got hit in the chest and let out a curse, "Sonovabitch!" before he fell backwards, paralyzed by the improvised stun beam Alan made with his ring.

"And that's another win for Alan!" Bazel cheered as Alan blew imaginary smoke from his ring like a gunslinger would do for his own firearm.

Battler hadn't blinked during the whole thing and Ange tugged on his sleeve. "Onii-chan, aren't you going down there too?"

"Sure, I am, Ange," said Battler nervously. He glanced back down at the training room floor. "Oh man."

Yuji, Yami and Shinichi went up to the observation deck once they've regained mobility. Yami glared at Yuji and said, "You shot me."

"Relax, it wasn't lethal," said Yuji.

"Still stings," Shinichi muttered. "I just can't believe he tagged you, Yuji. I mean you're supposed to be the best gunslinger I know."

"Kid got a lucky shot," Yuji shrugged, rubbing his chest. "An _extremely_ lucky shot. We should call him 'Tex' from now on."

"It's not luck, it's skill," said Yami.

"Daddy's so awesome!" Alice beamed.

"Papa was awesome too, until he got hit!" countered Maria.

"Thanks, Maria. I appreciate it," said Yuji. "I bet Alan would last long in the Bloody Palace."

"Look, there's Onii-chan!" Ange pointed. "Onii-chan!"

Battler was downin the training room floor and gulped as he saw Alan on the other side of his room. He went to the table and loaded his weapon as Sheila countered down.

"_Mission Start!"_

* * *

Battler, after a rather short and embarrassing defeat to Alan, took the kids out to play in the canyon. Meanwhile, Yuji was in the infirmary with Hana checking on him. "Take off your shirt," she ordered.

"Yes, ma'am," he obeyed as he removed his shirt. Hana became flushed. Sure, she had seen him shirtless and much more but to see all those rock hard muscles again made her artificial heart pound in her chest.

As a nurse, Hana was dressed in the uniform which was black and purple with her signature spider web pattern on it. She also wore stockings with a garter belt. She examined Yuji, taking a look at his chest. "Hm, no visible bruising."

"As if a few laser beams can hurt me," he boasted. She touched the spot. "Ow…it's still a little tender."

"I can see…" Hana murmured as her hand slid down to touch his abdominal muscles. She adjusted her collar. Was it starting to get a little hot in here?

"So, how have you been?" Yuji asked.

"Oh, me? I've been great," she answered as she tore her eyes away from his body to look at his face. '_What's wrong with me? I'm ogling him like a piece of meat._' When she thought about 'meat' she glanced down at his crotch and then mentally slapped herself. '_Be professional, Nekozawa!_' she scolded herself.

"You seem tense," he noticed.

"Oh, you have no idea," said Hana as she took a seat next to him on the bed. "You know me and Michiru are in nursing school right now, right? Well, we've barely had time for the coursework with all this stuff happening."

"Yeah, bad guys can be pretty annoying," Yuji agreed.

"Sometimes I envy our classmates. They don't have to go through what we do. They're just blissful and ignorant about what's really going on and we can't tell them a damn thing," Hana continued to complain. Yuji put his hands on her shoulders. "What are you doing?"

"Rubbing your shoulders," he said. "It'll help to calm you down."

"As if a massage could…Oh…that feels nice." Hana began to relax. "Where did you learn to massage like that?"

"A lot of practice," he said before kissing the back of her neck. "You've been under a lot of stress."

"Yes~" she hissed in pleasure.

* * *

"Are…are you sure this is OK?" Satan asked as Shinichi pulled her into the men's communal bathing room. She was in a bathrobe while Shinichi only wore a towel around his waist.

"It's fine," he told her. "It's late so nobody else is using it now." There was a lot of steam due to the hot water in the large tub in the centre of the room. Satan felt self conscious. Her red eyes darted around. This was a public place and anybody could enter through that door and catch them. Her face was flushed.

"I don't know if I want to do this," she said but Shinichi's tender gaze met her eyes and she looked away, embarrassed. "D-don't look at me like that, hentai!"

"I can't help it," he said, cupping her chin so he could look at her eyes again. "You're just so beautiful."

"Baka," she pouted, "You say that to Shawna and Rena too."

"Well, that's because it's true," he reminded.

Satan never thought she was all that beautiful. With her pale hair and red eyes she practically looked like an albino. Envy may not be her title but she couldn't help but feel a little jealous of Asmodeus and Beelzebub's blonde hair or Lucifer's jet black hair. The two youngest of her sisters were also cute and adorable while Lucifer was mature and was the definition of beauty. Satan just didn't think she matched up to any of her sisters.

Shinichi thought otherwise.

He leaned in and kissed her and she stiffened before relaxing into the kiss, enjoying the sensation of his lips rubbing tenderly against hers. His hands went down to the belt that held her robe close and untied it. He then moved his hands up to her shoulders to slip it off her body. She broke the kiss, blushing, and tried to cover her body. She wasn't naked, of course, but she was mostly unclothed as she wore a black bikini.

"Ecchi!" she cried.

"Beautiful," he countered as he looked up and down her body. He took her hand gently in his. "Come on, let's go and take a bath together."

Hesitantly, Satan agreed, "Hai."

'_She tries to be tough, but she looks so cute right now!_' thought Shinichi. He also leered her body and grinned. '_I can't wait to tap that!_'

* * *

Meanwhile, in the women's communal bathing room, Alan was kissing a shorter girl with blonde hair who was dressed in a one-piece black swimsuit. It was Golden Darkness, aka Yami and they were locked in an embrace with their mouths pressed together deeply. They broke the kiss with Yami panting and gazing into her beloved's green eyes. His hands moved from her hips to her butt and he squeezed the soft flesh.

"Ecchi…" she murmured. Normally she would've assaulted anyone who did something so lewd to her but Alan was an exception. She was the man he loved and the father to their daughter. Alice was their daughter by adoption and Yami loved the little girl since day one. The blonde bio-android actually reminded Yami of herself. They had both been created for assassination, originally, but because of Alan they found new purpose.

Yami admired Alan's well-toned body. He was hard muscle from top to bottom and she almost drooled as she put her hands against his hard pecs. She always found him attractive but ever since Kryptonian DNA had mixed with his own he looked like a Greek god. He was only in a pair of trunks but they were bulging in the front.

* * *

"Maybe I should get some harem girl outfits for them," Shiro said to himself as he watched the Bakeneko Kunoichi sleep. Now he was satisfied, sexually, since he couldn't do all this for the past two months.

He hadn't been idle these past few months either.

After a shower and redressing himself, Shiro exited his room to meet up with Gnol at the main Command Centre. The Darkloid General was growing impatient and to pass the time had visited the Bakeneko House to enjoy drink and women. Still, the Darkloid General demanded they move soon but Shiro had scheduled this plan and they could not derail from it. He had carefully planned every detail, designed contingency plans, and also another Xanatos Gambit. The last one worked so well that he should try one again. He wasn't stupid, though. He knew his enemies would expect it so he needed to adapt to the situation so he would have the advantage.

He also needed time to train with his new body. He wanted to know everything about it from within and without. He needed to prepare.

He already held several cards. Unfortunately, he was only in the possession of three tainted Spark Cores—now called Dark Core—while in his original plan he should have seven of them. Still, three was better than nothing at all. There were also the new upgrades and modifications he had built into his new body. They would not suspect it since they would not know how he had gained them.

Getting to Gebok had been easy and getting the secret codes from him had been easier. Now Gary wasn't giving him a hard time and he could activate the rest of the Beastroids to act as his army. With Gnol's Darkloids and the Combatroids added to his army of super-powered android weapons, it seemed victory was in hand. The Orochi would rise and Shiro would benefit from its revival.

But to revive the Orochi's body, the seals needed to be dealt with. Shiro had the Oathbreaker to take care of those pesky seals but the seals were being guarded by eight branches of the Kekkain Family. Well, he could deal with them himself. They were just humans, despite having knowledge of dealing with demons he wasn't one himself. He was a bio-android that happened to be in possession of a dark artifact. They would not see him coming.

He drew his Oathbreaker. It felt good to be able to hold it again and not fall flat on his face because of the weight. His period as a childish chibi was over.

As he entered the Command Centre, he saw Gnol leaning against the wall. "So, how were your whores?" Shiro ignored him and went to the computer to speak to Gary.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: OK, so this chap showed lemons of the three main characters; Shinichi, Alan and Yuji. Yes, Yuji's also listed as one of the main protagonists of this fanfic. It seemed like a good idea and appropriate, plus he has done plenty to earn his spot. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it. Now, we see that everyone is planning for the future, good and bad. What do you think will happen in Kyoto? Will the Kekkain Clan accept outside assistance? Or will they be slain by the evil forces of Shiro and Gnol?**


	98. The Legacy of Cain Part 42

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This will be KAMEN RIDER X GREEN LANTERN's official 100th chapter. Normally, long fics I've written end at chapter 100, but not this one. This will continue on for a few more chapters since this is a long saga made up of a series of story arcs. I'd like to give thanks to Shadow Element 13 and Kamen Rider Bushido for their help in the production of this series. Their help is much appreciated and as such they deserve applause. Oh, and not to forget, you guys on the forum like Warlord-Xana, Snake Screamer, Milordo and anyone else I forgot to mention, also deserve some credit for helping me out with my ideas when I'm stuck. So, this one is for you. This is for all of you. Let's get the show on the road: Part 42 of the Legacy of Cain and Chapter 100 of Kamen Rider X Green Lantern!**

* * *

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 42: Opening Moves**

Alan and Megan were at school and he was talking with her in private. It was already the end of the school day and it was getting pretty dark.

"So, you'll be going to Kyoto soon," she concluded after listening to his explanation. "For how long?"

"Well, I dunno. A few weeks, maybe," he said. "I know I can't miss school for no reason but this is important."

"Can't your friends handle it themselves?" asked Megan.

"If they could I wouldn't have volunteered," he said to her, caressing her face.

"I…don't like this," Megan frowned. "You told me this Orochi thing is powerful, powerful enough to hurt you and you're the strongest man on Earth."

"Well, he's just lucky he has magic on his side," said Alan.

"When will you be leaving?" Megan asked.

"Tomorrow," answered Alan. Megan hugged him and gave him a deep kiss.

"Make sure you come back in one piece," she advised him.

Alan gave a confident smile which oozed with charm. "Hey, this is _me_ we're talking about. I'll be alright and I got my friends watching my back."

Megan lunged forward and pressed her lips to his and Alan returned the kiss. She pulled back and said, "You better come back."

* * *

The Kekkain Clan was an elite clan of Onmyouji who had been in the service of the Japanese empire since the Heian Era. Members of the clan had been trained in the Onmyoudo arts since they could walk. Members have trained themselves in the ways of combating and slaying demons which they all learnt were evil entities that preyed on humans. That was how they were taught and that is what they were taught to believe.

All demons were evil and they were the ones who would defend humans from the demonic menace. The main house of the Kekkain Clan was in the Northern area of Kyoto, making it the clan's stronghold. Branches existed in the Southern, Western, Eastern, South-Eastern, North-Eastern, South-Western and North-Western sectors of the city. There was a reason why there were 8 branches of the clan in Kyoto, including the Main Branch.

The 8 branches of the Kekkain Clan had the sole responsibility of guarding the seals which surrounded the Yamata no Orochi's body, keeping the dreaded beast's vessel from reviving. It was a task that had been handed down to them by the gods and one they took very seriously. The Yamata no Orochi, like the Kyuubi no Youko and Shutendouji, was an immensely powerful demon and when it appeared the loss of lives was massive.

**SOUTH-EASTERN SECTOR BRANCH**

Two guards stood posted at the gate late one night. They were dressed in the traditional Onmyouji garb and were bald like monks. They were armed with spears with the spearheads made from blessed steel that would definitely bring harm to any demonic enemy. The stars and moon shone in the night's sky and one of the guards yawned. Checking his watch, he saw that it was a quarter to 2 in the morning. It was really late but this was their shift.

Guard #1 spotted a figure approaching and so did Guard #2 seconds later. Crossing their spears in front of the gate, Guard #1 demanded, "Halt! Identify yourself and state your business!"

The stranger was clad in a white long coat over black clothing. His silvery-white hair shone as did his red eyes. Those inhuman looking red eyes stared at them, like he was accessing them, before he rolled his eyes.

"I've come to speak to the one in charge here," the stranger said.

"Come when the sun has arisen," Guard #2 said. "A decent hour, perhaps."

The stranger replied, "That wasn't a request." In a flash, red stains splattered the ground and his white coat. The two men then collapsed with their throats cut open, leaking blood which formed pools under their bodies. The stranger—Shiro Juuyon—admired the red blood which dripped from his blade and grinned. "Let the Festival of Blood begin!"

With several swift swings of his sword, he cut the gate to pieces before making his way through. Alarms sounded due to the intruder and guards immediately rushed from their posts to face down the intruder. They struck with their spears and with a grin he charged right back at them. Screams rang through the air as blood splattered everywhere.

* * *

Shiro entered, his white coat now stained in red due to all the blood on it. Blood dripped from his sword and bodies lay behind him. He had not wasted any time or effort on them and cut them down when they had confronted him. He had more important things to deal with.

He stepped into a trap and a binding circle suddenly appeared around him, meant to keep him frozen in place. Onmyouji sprang out from their hiding places and chanted before tossing ofuda charms which stuck to his clothes and his forehead. The binding spell would be able to freeze anyone, human or demon, and they were confident this intruder would remain where he stood so they could deal with him.

"Demon, for killing our clan members, you shall feel our wrath!" one of them shouted. Shiro Juuyon yawned and tore the ofuda from his forehead. They were stunned! He could still move!-?

"A binding spell would've worked if I was either a demon or human," he said as he stepped out of the circle. "But I'm neither."

These foolish Onmyouji soon joined their fallen kin as the Oathbreaker made short work of them.

* * *

He reached the basement. Having killed the Onmyouji who got in his way, young and old, which was not really much of a challenge. They went down but not without a fight, which didn't really amount to much when facing him. He was well beyond anything they had ever faced or expected to encounter.

After all, the Onmyoudo arts did not include methods of subduing Bio-Androids, did they?

He found the stone, which was not very hard. It sparkled in the darkness of the basement. A rope was tied around the circumference with ofuda talismans hanging from the rope. Simple things which had power to seal away a powerful force of darkness.

In the blink of an eye the rope was severed by a clean cut done with Shiro's sword, falling down to the ground. The ofuda talismans were also shredded. Then, the top half of the stone slid down an angle cut into it the stone before dropping to join the rope and talismans on the floor.

It stopped sparkling.

* * *

Shiro returned to base and Gnol saw him. "So, how did it go?" Gnol asked. He had company. She was the Bakeneko girl he'd met at the Bakeneko House and the first girl there he had fucked. Her black hair had grown and looked like a dark curtain that fell down her back. She was dressed in a purple kimono that was worn loose to bare her shoulder and cleavage. At the moment she was sitting in his lap as she poured him his sake.

"Their defenses were pathetic," snorted Shiro. "It was pretty easy to break in and get rid of the sealing stone. Only seven more are left."

"So, what are you waiting for? You have all night to break all the seals!" Gnol demanded impatiently.

"It's because we need to do this right and the Oathbreaker can only destroy one sealing stone a night and only after drinking the blood of the Kekkain Clan members on the same night," Shiro retorted. "Now I need to wait until the Oathbreaker is ready for the next one."

"So, how many did you kill?"

"I think I slaughtered quite a few. Not sure how many really. I just killed those that came at me, but I think I got their attention," Shiro said. "Now, I need to rest."

"Well, have a good sleep because you'll be going out again tomorrow."

* * *

Shinichi returned home late from another strategy meeting. In the meeting it was revealed that Shiro had already made his move as one of the eight branches of the Kekkain Clan had been attacked. That meant that one of the sealing stones had not only been compromised, but destroyed as well.

* * *

_"Glad to see you're all here," spoke Dr. Magi as he addressed the team. "Last night, our satellite surveillance picked this up. Sheila, pull up the image."_

_"Affirmative." The large monitor showed Shiro exiting a Japanese mansion, his clothes covered in blood._

_"That's the Kekkain Clan's branch in Kyoto's South-Eastern Sector," Hanyuu recognized. At the sight of the blood-soaked Shiro, the implications set in and she was horrified. Chiaki put a comforting hand on her shoulder._

_"Is that WHITE 14?" Shinichi asked. It would appear that the evil android had gotten himself a new body. Now he was a real threat again._

_"He didn't destroy the building, but it appears that he's killed a lot of people," Dr. Magi said. _

_"I doubt he'd be the kind to kill children, lest they get in his way," said Alan. "Then again, we're dealing with an evil bio-android with no respect for human life."_

_"He wishes to completely revive the Orochi," said Hanyuu grimly, "When he does then all of humanity will be extinct."_

_"Not if we can help it," said Yuji firmly._

_"We can now all assume that one of the eight sealing stones has been destroyed," said Dr. Magi._

_"But couldn't he destroy all either of them in a single night?" asked Yokoshima._

_"His sword, the Oathbreaker," Shinichi spoke up, "Maybe it needs a lot of power to take down the stone."_

_"Only the blood of the Kekkain Clan can neutralize and destroy the stones," said Hanyuu. "He must've fed his sword with the blood of the clan members he killed." She was going to avenge her clansmen._

_"Shinichi, give the order," instructed Dr. Magi._

_"Go home, pack up and rest. We'll be meeting here tomorrow morning. Team A will be going first and Team B will be on standby, as discussed before," Shinichi ordered._

_"You are now dismissed," Dr. Magi concluded the meeting._

* * *

There was no time to waste. It was time to go. He'd called Rena about his decision and was heading back home to pack his things. He would be going away for a long time.

"I'm back!" he called as he entered the apartment. He expected to see Rena or Shawna. "Hello?"

"We're in here!" Rena called from the bedroom.

"OK!" He was heading there anyway to pack his clothes. He opened the door and found it dark. "Why do you have the lights turned off?"

When Shinichi turned on the lights, his eyes widened to the size of saucers as he saw the girls sitting on the bed. What made him gawk and gape was that all three girls were dressed in sexy harem girl costumes. They each wore bikini tops with matching loincloths. Satan wore red, Rena wore blue, and Shawna wore white. They were sitting in sexy poses to entice men and judging by the reaction Shinichi was getting down south they were successful. They even wore gold jewelry to complete the look.

"OK, what's this all about and why are you all dressed like that?" Shinichi asked, finally recovering from his shock but not from the reddening of his cheeks. He licked his dry lips and swallowed his spit. The girls looked so _delicious_.

"Rena here said you were going to go off to war," Satan said.

"We're going to stop the Orochi from rising, that's all," he clarified.

"Which is equivalent to going to war. The Orochi is no joke. Why do you think it's so legendary?" Satan retorted.

"And that's why we're giving you a special 'going to war' present," smiled Rena.

"I admit that when I first saw these costumes I had some reservations," said Shawna, blushing. "But you have seen me in _less_."

"Shawna-chan, you cleaned the dye out of your hair," said Shinichi, staring at the golden-haired princess.

"Ms. Rena told me you missed my old look, so I decided to go back to it. And don't worry about my disguise, I got myself a wig to hide my identity," Shawna answered, smiling.

Satan snapped, "Well, are you just going to stand there staring at us or are you going to come over for some _fun_?" She emphasized the last bit of her sentence with a saucy grin.

Shinichi closed the door and walked towards the bed, undressing himself as he strode over to the three gorgeous ladies. Once he was close, they took hold of him and pulled him into bed before they started to caress him with their hands and mouths.

He should go to war more often.

* * *

Yuji slid on his gloves, his fists tightening as they fit firmly. Tying his laces, he buckled his boots tightly as he stomped to get his feet in firmly. He then took his Merlinian ring and slid it onto his right middle finger. Looking to his desk, he saw a ring box and grabbed for it. Opening it, he looked down at a Blue Lantern Ring that he's had for so long. It didn't work after the last time he'd used it, but it didn't hurt to prepare, and he slid it onto his right ring finger. Looking to his left hand, he gazed at his wedding band, smiling fondly as he remembered what he was doing this for. Continuing with his arming, Yuji looked to the mirror and looked himself over. He was clad in all black, wearing boots, jeans, fingerless gloves with studded knuckles, and a black turtleneck. He also had black breast plate that was trimmed with gold strapped across his chest.

_"_**You are preparing for war**_,"_ Abyss observed as he appeared in Yuji's reflection.

"Yeah," Yuji nodded.

_"_**Do you know if you will return?**_"_

"I have to."

_"_**Good answer**_,"_ Abyss acknowledged, _"_**Be sure to use every weapon at your disposal, I like this family that you've created.**_"_ And with that, he vanished from the reflection.

Yuji grabbed his gun, twirling it with his finger before sliding it into the holster wrapped around his right thigh. He opened his closet and pulled out a large case. After opening the case, he looked down at a sheathed katana. _'Everything at my disposal,'_ he echoed to himself. Taking out the katana, he slid it into the holder that was strapped under his left arm. He reached for the long coat resting on a chair and threw it on him, the tails draping down his back. His Liger Belt was around his waist as well. He then reached for the Red Queen and strapped it to his back. Taking a pair of black goggles, he put them on and rested them on his forehead. "Time to rev it up."

* * *

Yuji had the girls assembled in the living room. He had an important announcement to make and wanted them all to hear it, even his daughters. They all saw how he was dressed and that he'd armed himself. This was very important.

"OK, I'm not going to beat around the bush, but to make a long story short I'll be going to war," Yuji told them.

"War? What war?" Sora asked.

"You guys know about Shiro Juuyon, aka WHITE 14, right?" Yuji asked.

"I do," answered Lina. "Gebok had a lot of notes about him. He was Kuro-kun's clone, but then he got destroyed."

"Well, he came back, again, and he's got a new body and he's planning something big." Yuji remembered how Shiro had played them all like pieces on a chessboard. Nobody manipulated him like a pawn and got away with it. "Well, bigger than his last one. He's trying to revive the Yamata no Orochi and make it whole."

That got the girls gawking at Yuji. The Yamata no Orochi, the Eight-Headed Serpent of legend, was a mythical creature of incredible power and evil. But the myths were in fact true. Gnol was proof of that.

"You've been preparing for this," Misato recalled.

"Yeah, since that meeting, but we're finally mobilizing." Yuji looked at Yuna who was in his wife's arms. This was for her sake too.

"Can we help?" Stella asked.

"No, not this time, I'm sorry," he said apologetically.

"Onii-sama," began Yuki.

"Apparently, this is 'official' business and you girls are all civilians," Yuji explained.

"Because Shinichi said so, right?" Misato asked. "Typical."

"Well…yeah," Yuji admitted. "Asura is the only one I can call on right now since we're linked."

"And I won't let you down," she nodded.

"I know you won't."

"Papa, I believe in you," said Maria with faith in him.

"I believe in you too," Wendy added, giving her adopted father her blessing.

Yuji looked at the women he loved. They were his family. If the Yamata no Orochi fully awakened, they would all become its next if he had anything to say about it.

"You weren't thinking of leaving me out of this, were you?" Yuri sneered as he appeared in a wisp of black smoke. Hana-hime and Kikyo flanked his sides, suited up in black skin-tight bodysuits and armed with their usual weapons.

"How could I? We're linked, remember?" Yuji glared at his brother in response.

"I know how serious this is," Yuri assured, "No need for the glare. That's a look you shoot your enemy."

"We _were_ enemies," Yuji retorted.

"Not anymore," his twin shot back.

"You set to go?"

"Always," Yuri grinned maniacally.

* * *

The three girls had taken turns with Shinichi. Both Shawna and Rena were passed out, naked on the bed, and covered in nothing but sweat with blissful smiles on their faces. As for Satan, well, since she was a demon she had more endurance than the two human girls. However, she wouldn't be staying conscious for long.

The sex had started with oral administered by all three girls as they used their lips and tongues to get their beloved Rider ready. Since Shawna was first, she got to ride him as Rena and Satan pleasured Shinichi with kisses, licks and nibbles on his sensitive spots as Shawna bounced up and down on him. He would caress her thighs, stroke her stomach and fondle her breasts during the entire session, letting her show her love to her beloved 'Mr. Samurai'.

Rena's turn came after Shawna and she got rode from behind by Shinichi as he took her doggy style. She had clenched the sheets, screaming and moaning with each thrust, as Shinichi showed her no mercy, squeezing and fondling her breasts as his hips slammed against her ass, skin slapping together as they were joined together. She lasted for more than half an hour before passed out, her eyes closed and her tongue hanging out with drool coming out of her mouth.

The pale-haired, red-eyed, busty and curvaceous girl was on her back, moaning as she was being fucked by Shinichi. Her legs were in the air, over Shinichi's shoulders, as he thrust into her, repetitively, maintaining eye contact with her as he made love to her. He would occasionally caress her breasts before picking up speed for a few seconds, and then returning to slow thrusts as she reached her peek. She needed to cum but he was torturing her.

Suddenly, she cried out and gasped as he started to pound into her like a jackhammer, causing the bedsprings to squeak and the headboard to slam into the wall repeatedly. "Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!" she let out, her mouth wide open before she unleashed a scream as she came, arching her back at the same time. Shinichi came with her, burying himself deep inside of her body to release his seed into her willing body. He pulled himself out, her legs collapsing onto the mattress once they were no longer propped up by his shoulders, before he fell on top of her, his face buried between her breasts. Satan stroked her lover's hair gently, smiling before she fell asleep with him.

* * *

The next morning, Alice asked as she watched her father pack his things into a bag, "Do you really have to go, Daddy?"

"I have to do this, Alice, or bad people are going to hurt everybody," he told her simply.

"Mau," said Celine as she held up a pair of socks up to her father. Smiling, Alan took the items and stuffed them into his bag.

"Daiki, remember to look after your sisters while I'm gone," Alan reminded.

"Right, I will," said Daiki as he looked out the window, disinterested. "You know, you could bring me along."

"I know what you're thinking," Alan said. "You want revenge, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do," said Daiki, clenching his fist on the windowsill. Tsuchi-Gnol, one of Gnol Gnauh's fragments, had befriended Daiki and the young Earth Manakyte had to watch as his friends was devoured and absorbed. All he had left was the Spark Core which had been used to revive and create Tsuchi-Gnol in the first place.

"You'll get yourself killed if you tried to go up against them. You're simply not ready," Alan told him.

"Oh, and you are?" Daiki whirled around, glaring at Alan. "You couldn't even save Tsuchi!"

Alan looked down in guilt and Alice looked disapprovingly at Daiki. It seemed that Daiki, while he had accepted Alan's offer to live with him, still resented him for that one fact.

"With all that power, you couldn't even save him," Daiki accused.

"You're right," Alan agreed. "I'm sorry."

"And…I'm sorry too…" Daiki apologized as well. "If only I wasn't so weak." Alan patted him on the head.

"Be strong for your sisters," Alan advised. Alice latched onto his leg.

"Don't go!" Alice begged. "Please, don't go! Or take me with you!"

"It's dangerous, Alice," he objected, "And I'll be back. Don't worry." Alice removed himself from Alan and ran over to the corner to cry. "Alice…" He walked over and knelt down next to her. He put his hand on her shoulder. "I'll be back, honey. I promise." She held up her pinky.

"Pinky swear," she commanded.

Alan looped his pinky finger with hers and he swore, "I swear that I will return."

"Promise?"

Alan smiled at his little girl, "Remember Alice, you made a wish that I'd always come back remember?" Alice nodded before throwing her arms around his neck. "I'll always come back Alice."

"Mau! Mau!" chirped Celine as she held up a doll that looked like Alan. Alan knew it was her favorite toy and based on how she was acting, she wanted him to take it for good luck.

Alan patted Celine on the head before putting the doll in his suitcase, causing her to giggle. "I promise. I'll come back."

* * *

"So, how are you doing, Nozomu?" Alan asked as he sat with the Okami Yokai girl. She had just eaten and there was a pile of bones after her meal of spare ribs…a lot of spare ribs, and she still had another pile of spare ribs to go. She was already three months pregnant and her stomach had bulged noticeably. To avoid the negative reactions of their schoolmates, Nozomu had withdrawn from school until she gave birth and had moved out of her apartment and into the boarding house. Alan was starting to wonder how the place could have so many vacancies available even with all the tenants living here. OK, it was a rather huge building and Mion had told him that the place had once been used by the Sonozaki Clan to board and entertain guests. Now it was just a boarding house. The rent was high but in return they all had a comfortable place to live and a home while in this universe.

Nozomu looked up at Alan, took his hand, and pressed his palm against her stomach.

Nozomu said, "I have your baby inside me. A little piece of you. I wonder if it'll be a boy or a girl...?"

Alan told her, "I just want him or her to be healthy."

Nozomu told him, "The baby can tell you're here. I can feel it moving around inside me." Nozomu looked at his suitcase. "You're leaving," she stated.

"Yeah, me and the others are headed to Kyoto to fight," he told her. Nozomu gazed into his eyes worriedly. "I'll be fine. I promise."

"Please, come home safe. I want our child to know their father," she pleaded.

"Like I promised Alice, I promise to come back," he said as he caressed her cheek before caressing her stomach. "And I will see our child be born."

* * *

Alan went to Lala's room and as usual her sisters were present as well. Nana and Momo were stuck in this universe and the former pretty much blamed Alan for it. He didn't mind. She was normally angry at him for some reason and it never lasted long until something happened that made her angry at him again.

"Alan, I really want to go with you," said Lala.

"Not a chance, Lala," said Alan, protesting.

"But I want to help!"

"Lala," he spoke, sternly, his eyes staring into hers with firmness. "No." That was an order. He couldn't risk any of their lives. This was going to be big, bigger than anything they had ever faced before, and he was going to face it without them by his side.

Lala knew her protests would not be heard and sighed sadly. Nana was upset when Alan rejected Lala's offer but Momo gave her a silent gaze and shook her head. Lala, however, was not going to give up. If she couldn't help in person, she could lend her support in spirit.

"Then take this with you," said Lala, presenting him with her special cell phone. It was a special item she would use to store her inventions. That was why the place wasn't so cluttered. Her cell phone was connected to a special pocket dimension with infinite space. "You can use my inventions to beat the bad guys." Alan knew she could make some pretty powerful weapons.

"Thank you," he said, taking the cell phone. Momo and Nana exchanged similar looks and nodded before reaching into their packets and presenting Alan with theirs. "Momo, Nana?"

"I'm not doing this because I like you, but if you get killed then Aneue will be sad and I really hate it when she's sad," said Nana, scowling with the atypical tsundere glare and blush combo. "My cell phone will let you summon all the animals I've collected." Her pocket dimension was a habitat for her pets. She had a lot of extraterrestrial animals stored in there.

"Mine too," said Momo. "I have some plants you can use for battle." Her cell phone was connected to a pocket dimension which was a habitat exclusively for extraterrestrial plant life.

He pulled both Momo and Nana into a hug, the latter stunned but then instantly looking blissful. Nana, however, was shocked and blushing like mad, trembling in embarrassment.

"Thanks," he said before releasing them. Momo had a blissful smile while Nana was still shaking and blushing in embarrassment.

"And thank you too," said Alan as he pulled Lala into a hug and kissed her.

* * *

"There's really no chance of you taking us along, is there?" Conda asked, stretching her whip and standing in an intimidating pose before Alan. Amora was with her too. The two bombshells looked down at Alan who stared back at them unwavering. He was stronger than both of them now and only gave in to them on certain occasions. This wasn't one of those occasions. He wasn't going to give in for their sake.

"Considering this is a big demon we're trying to stop, it's pretty risky and dangerous," Alan said. A whip cracked but he didn't flinch.

"Do you take us for helpless little damsels, male?" Amora asked, acting as an Amazonian Queen. Males her inferior creatures to her tribe, meant only to serve them obediently. Alan was the first man she'd ever met who had never knelt before her.

Alan approached Conda and gently wrapped his arms around her. She stood, stiff as a statue, from the gentle gesture. It was a surprise that someone with the strength to bend a lamppost in half could have such a gentle embrace. "I know you're not helpless, which is why I need you to stay and protect everyone here." He released Conda and embraced Amora as well, "Both of you need to protect everyone here. Nozomu's pregnant, the kids are here, and well I don't want to leave but if I don't then how can we stop the Orochi from rising?" He stepped back, looking at them.

Amora shot forward, claiming Alan's lips roughly, breaking away to whisper, "Swear you will come back." Conda pulled him into a rough kiss as well before smothering him with her breasts.

"You will return," she commanded. Alan stepped back and saluted.

"I will, my queen."

* * *

"Come back safe or else I'll hunt you down and kill you," Yami threatened. "You're still my target. I will not allow anyone else to kill you." Her expression softened as she kissed him deeply. "Our daughter needs her father and I need my husband."

They weren't officially married, but since they had a child already, even if said child was adopted and a bio-android, they were technically a family.

"I'll come back," Alan swore. "Scouts honor."

* * *

Bishie was in the garden and had buried herself from the waist down. She was a plant Pokegirl after all. Maybe she just wanted to absorb some of the nutrients in the garden. Their landlord didn't seem to mind if they were an odd bunch, as long as they followed the rules, didn't cause trouble, and paid their rent on time.

Alan knelt down, kissed Bishie, and told her, "Wait for me to return."

"I'll be here."

"Daddy!"

"Mau!"

The girls had burst through the door and the two quickly latched onto his legs.

"Don't go, Daddy!" Alice begged.

"Mau!Mau!" Celine cried as well.

"Sorry," Daiki apologized. "They got away from me. They really don't want you to go."

"I can imagine how difficult it can be," Alan agreed. He addressed his two daughters, "Alice, Celine, you know this is something I have to do."

"Mau! Mau mau! Mau!" Celine chirped. Alan really wished he could understand the plant girl but his ring simply couldn't translate her babbling. However, Alice could speak for the both of them.

"But they're stronger than you! Too strong! I don't wanna lose you, Daddy!" Alice cried out.

"You won't," said Alan. "I'll beat the bad guys and come back. I promised, didn't I?" He gently pried the girls off his legs with power ring and deposited them on the ground. He squatted down and faced them, putting his hand on their shoulders. "You just have to trust me."

"But what if you don't come back?" Alice asked. "What if you got hurt again like you did before?"

"I've learnt from that," he told her. She wrapped her arms tightly around him. "Alice…" he murmured.

"You're my only Daddy," she said. "I don't want you to leave me." Alan screwed his eyes shut. He wanted to stay, to be close by to protect her, but they needed to stop Shiro and Gnol. They were the biggest threat this world had at the moment and every second they wasted would be one second their enemies had ahead of them.

"I know, I'm sorry," he said as he returned the embrace. "But always remember, Alice, that I am-"

"HEY, ALAN!"

Alan groaned as he was interrupted but he ignored it as he continued, "Always remember, Alice, that I am a Green-"

"YO, ALAN! COME ON!"

"I'm a Green Lan-"

"GET OUT HERE! WE'RE GONNA BE LATE!"

"I'm gonna kill him…" Alan murmured. He stood up and shouted at the entrance where Shinichi stood, "WHAT!-? CAN'T YOU SEE I'M HAVING A MOMENT WITH MY KIDS HERE?"

"Oh, carry on…" Shinichi stepped back from the entrance of the property nervously and Alan sighed.

"Moron…" he mumbled. He respected Shinichi, but he had bad timing. "OK, Alice, now I want you to remember-"

"ARE YOU DONE YET!-?"

"SHINICHI, IF YOU INTERUPT ME ONE MORE TIME, I AM GOING TO KICK YOUR BUTT SO HARD THAT I WILL SEND YOU TO THE MOON AND LEAVE YOU THERE! STRAIGHT! TO! THE!MOON!" Alan shouted.

"…Well you don't have to yell! I'm not deaf!"

Alan pinched the bridge of his nose and screwed his eyes shut in annoyance, chanting a mantra in order to calm himself down, "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos…"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: As always, Shinichi has 'impeccable' timing. Alright, it's the beginning of the Kyoto Arc. Will the Kekkain Clan accept outside help or will they let their arrogance cloud their judgment? Also, is everyone going to get laid a lot? I sure hope so! Please, read, review, and suggest stuff for upcoming chapters. I'll listen to your requests as well and hopefully I can incorporate your ideas and fuse them with mine.**

**And like I said before, this chapter is dedicated to Shadow Element 13, Kamen Rider Bushido, and all the other guys who made this series possible and able to reach this far. Give yourselves a round of applause.**


	99. The Legacy of Cain Part 43

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 43: Conference with the Kekkain Clan**

The Hive was the base of the group known as the NEO-NUMBERS. Formerly agents of the terrorist organization known as GIN-SHOCKER, these cyborgs had broken away from their former masters to rebel against them and to seek freedom and independence from their lives on bondage. It has taken a long time, but in the end they had stood victorious. As the years went by, and more threats came to life, the NEO-NUMBERS were always in the front lines against evil.

And today they were going to do it again.

The Teleportal burst to life, a swirling tunnel of light as several figures arrived. Riding on his bike was Shinichi Banabara, the de-facto leader of the NEO-NUMBERS. Sitting in the sidecar was Hanyuu Furude, his adopted little sister. But the truth was Hanyuu was much older than she appeared and was practically ancient compared to the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS. Like all women, commenting on her real age was not a smart thing to do and crossing her was not something anyone smart enough was willing to do.

Another bike, made of solid green energy, also pulled into the vehicle bay and stopped before vanishing as its rider's helmet also vanished. This was Alan Smith of the Green Lantern Corps. He was not native to this world but he did have connections. He was Shinichi's half-brother, the son of their shared father Warren Smith. Alan had experienced much in this world which he had adopted as his home and would fight alongside the NEO-NUMBERS as an ally. He was, however, exasperated by his older half-brother's behavior which caused him no ends of stress.

"Alright," began Shinichi. "Alan, you and I are gonna check up on supplies. Hanyuu-chan, I think it's time you suited up."

In Hanyuu's hands was a briefcase and inside was something she'd been working on for quite some time. "OK, Shinichi," the goddess said. She was hundreds of years old, but had the appearance of a teenager. She also behaved like one and once her eyes locked upon Chiaki Yukinojou, the team's mechanic, she went towards him to greet him. "Ohayo, Chiaki-san."

Chiaki was a large and quiet man. Before they met it hadn't been by choice since he had been rendered mute via surgery performed by his former handler. ARMOR, the organization they were affiliated to, had repaired it and now he could talk. He still spoke only when it was important. He also hid his face with a scarf but since it had become a constant part of his appearance nobody really cared anymore. He was kind, which was all that mattered, despite his tall and imposing figure.

"Hello, Hanyuu-chan," Chiaki greeted. Hanyuu frowned and reached up to remove his scarf. He normally wouldn't allow it but Hanyuu was different. She was his first friend, who'd given him food when he starved, who'd defended him when he'd faced death. Their relationship had grown and developed and now they were boyfriend & girlfriend. It was odd to see the large man who towered over the shorter girl leaning down to kiss her but it was one everyone had grown accustomed too.

Well, almost everyone. Shinichi practically had a heart attack whenever he saw them kiss. He couldn't help it. It was the natural response of an older brother to be cautious about whom his little sisters dated.

After the kiss, Hanyuu returned the scarf to him. He looked to the briefcase and Hanyuu answered his unasked question, "Oh, it's a new uniform I've been working on. It's based on something I wore a long, long time ago."

"I look forward to seeing you in it," he said and she blushed in response.

* * *

"OK, I think those are enough medi-kits," said Michiru after she counted them all.

"Be careful out there," Hana cautioned.

"Don't worry, Hana-chan. Nothing's going to happen to me," Michiru beamed.

There was a knock at the infirmary's entrance and Alan entered as he spoke, "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Oh, just loading up on medical supplies," said Michiru. "Did you come to check up on us?"

"Yes, I have," he confirmed. Hana was suddenly in front of him. "Uh, hey, Hana."

"Listen well, and listen good," she spoke softly, but there was a sharp edge in her tone that Alan couldn't miss even if he tried. "You will look after Michiru and make sure she comes home safely, got it?"

"I got it," he answered. He'd learnt long ago to never argue with a woman.

"Good, that's all I needed to hear," Hana smiled.

"Alan, help me carry this?" Michiru asked, pointing to the trunk full of medical supplies.

Alan answered, "Your wish is my command." He lifted up the heavy trunk, which was light as a feather to him due to his strength, before shouldering the object on his left shoulder. "Let's get this down to the vehicle bay then."

* * *

"OK, I've got the weapons," said Shogo as he carried two trunks on his shoulders. They were heavy, but as a cyborg he was granted enhanced strength.

"And I've got the MRE's," added Yokoshima as he carried two large trunks as well.

"Good, load them up in Chiaki's pickup truck with the medical supplies," said Shinichi. The two nodded and loaded the trunks into the truck's bed. Yuji came down to watch the preparations. "Oh, Yuji, you came."

"I'm on standby, remember?" Yuji reminded. "You assigned me to Team B."

"I know that," Shinichi recalled.

"Look, I just want to say that maybe it's a good idea for all of us to go," argued Yuji.

"I understand, but right now the first part of the plan is to meet with the Kekkain Clan and to negotiate," said Shinichi. "We're going to be entering their territory so we might as well ask for permission so we can help."

"Permission's overrated," Yuji dismissed. "You don't need to ask permission from someone to save them."

"We know, but this is about avoiding complications," said Shinichi.

Hanyuu spoke, "The Kekkain Clan are the main Onmyoudo practitioners in Kyoto, given the responsibility of dealing with demons since the Heian period."

Shinichi whistled, "Nice outfit."

"Thank you," Hanyuu accepted the compliment. She wore something that was a fusion of both traditional and modern. She wore a black, skintight bodysuit which really showed off her curves with matching black gloves on her hands. She wore black boots which reached up to just beneath her knees. She also wore red bracelets. Over the bodysuit she wore a short, black kimono top that came down to mid-thigh. The black garment was sleeveless with red trim and a red obi sash was tied around her waist.

Chiaki looked at Hanyuu, and I mean he really looked at her. She didn't look like a teenager now. She looked like a young woman who was prepared for war. She wasn't armed, though, but then again why would she need a weapon when she wielded the powers of a god. Now against the Orochi, she could remove the self-imposed restrictions she had put upon herself when she had materialized in the physical realm.

And with the restrictions gone, she could carry her true name: Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain.

Her history dated back centuries ago when a she along with a small branch from her clan came to Onigafuchi (now named Hinamizawa) in order to assist with their demon infestation. The villagers, however, were wary, but then Hainiryun met with the heir of the Furude Clan at the time, Riku Furude and the pair fell in love. Since he had a hard time pronouncing her real name, he had given her the nickname 'Hanyuu' and they had a child together.

They were happy for many years but then the demons became so powerful that the only way to vanquish them was for someone to sacrifice him or herself for the sake of the village in a ritual which would leave the village safe from harm for many years. Hainiryun chose herself to be the sacrifice. The ritual, of course, required her to be killed by one who shared her blood and her daughter, Oka, had been the one chosen. It was a hard decision to make but Hainiryun assured her that even if she would die today, she would always watch over her daughter and her descendants.

And thus began to Watanagashi ritual which survived to this day. However, instead of human sacrifices to cleanse the villagers of sin, they became more civilized and used cotton balls instead to represent their sins. This ritual was a way for them to ward off evil.

Hainiryun knew that her Kekkain Clan had grown powerful. Despite the general public's denial in the existence of demons, the Kekkain Clan still practiced and developed their art to fight demons. This, however, made them arrogant, believing that only they had the power to fight evil even though there were demons out there they could never hope to defeat. The Orochi had nearly killed off their entire clan. It was only due to Susano-O and his sword the Kusanagi was the Orochi vanquished and his remains sealed away.

But now the Orochi was coming back and once it arose again, then a terrible bloodbath would follow along with death and destruction as the darkness and evil spread across the world.

* * *

Team A was ready and riding their vehicles. Hanyuu rode shotgun in Chiaki's pickup truck while Michiru sat in the backseat of the jeep with Yokoshima in the driver's seat and Shogo riding shotgun, while also holding a literal shotgun. Shinichi was on his Showa-Racer with Alan riding in the sidecar.

"Sheila, activate the garage's Teleportal," Shinichi said into his com-link.

"_Affirmative_," obeyed Sheila, "_Teleportal opening in 3...2...1...0_." The Teleportal burst open. Coordinates have been set.

"Hey, Sheila, where are we exiting?" Yokoshima asked.

"_An empty stretch of road which will lead towards the main highway towards Kyoto_," Sheila reported.

"Well, that's good. No problems with traffic then," Michiru smiled.

"Well, here we go," said Shinichi as he revved up his engine and drove into the Teleportal, followed by the rest of the team. The remaining team, Team B, watched them as they left.

"We better get ready for when they need us," Daichi said.

"It'll be sooner than you think," Yuji muttered. He knew these things.

* * *

**PYRAMID BASE**

Shiro was whistling as he sat in his chair while polishing the Oathbreaker. He admired's the blade's steel shine. He was feeling quite anxious and couldn't wait to use the Oathbreaker again for the next slaughter, which would be tonight. All was going according to plan, especially their arrival.

Shiro was no fool. He knew that his actions would draw their attention and soon they would be heading for Kyoto. However, he was not worried. He had already made plans to deal with his enemies.

Gary's voice reported, "**Teleportal energy signature detected. Subjects identified as Alan Smith, Shinichi Banabara, Michiru Misami, Chiaki Yukinojou, Yokoshima Ryuunosuke, and Shogo Kuso are en route towards Kyoto**."

"Just as I planned," said Shiro with a sinister grin as he admired his sword. "Oh, I can't wait to paint the town red."

* * *

The convoy of vehicles entered Kyoto after exiting the highway. Yokoshima looked around and spoke happily, "So this is it, Kyoto; former imperial capital of our fair nation of Japan, home of many historic monuments such as the Kinkaku-ji, and most importantly renowned for its abundance of delicious Japanese cuisine!"

"Focus, Yokoshima," Shogo chided. "We're not here to sight see. We're on a mission, remember?"

"Right, sorry," Yokoshima apologized, "So, Michiru, where does your grandmother live?"

"Just follow my directions." She looked behind to see the two bikes and pickup truck following them. She was just so happy. She couldn't wait to see her grandmother again. The convoy continued to drive into the city, following Michiru's directions until she saw what she was looking for and smiled. "OK, stop, we're right here," Michiru called. The truck, bikes and jeep stopped near a teahouse that she recognized intimately.

"So, this is your grandmother's tea shop," Shogo said as he and the others began to dismount from their respective vehicles.

"It looks nice," Hanyuu said.

"Yep, Obaa-chan prides herself in this place. She sells delicious tea, snacks and also great popsicles."

"Popsicles?" Chiaki repeated quizzically, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, Obaa-chan loves popsicles. I'm more of a banana girl myself, but her popsicles are good," Michiru boasted. "Obaa-chan, I'm here!"

A wizened old woman dressed in an elegant kimono and obi stepped out of the shop, her face breaking into a smile at the sight of Michiru.

"Michiru-chan, welcome back," Michiru's grandmother greeted.

"Hi, Obaa-chan." The two hugged. Michiru then introduced her friends to her grandmother.

"Welcome to Kyoto. What brings you all here?" Michiru's grandmother inquired.

"We're actually here on business," Shinichi answered. "You haven't seen or heard anything odd lately, have you?"

"I can't say that I have," Michiru's grandmother said. "Now, come inside, you all, and let me serve you some refreshments. You must be exhausted after such a long trip." Michiru's grandmother entered as she insisted, "Now, hurry up."

"She seems nice," said Alan.

"She is!" Michiru confirmed. "Now, come on!" The group entered the teahouse for some offered refreshments.

Michiru's grandmother, whose name was Junko, quickly served her granddaughter and her friends some tea and snacks to enjoy while they rested after such a long trip. In reality they had only taken a half an hour to get to Kyoto due to the wonders of Teleportal travel. However, it would be rude to decline such generosity so they allowed Junko to be their host as she happily provided them with lodging.

"I hope this isn't any trouble, ma'am," Alan said.

"Not at all, Smith-san. Any friend of my granddaughter will find warm hospitality as long as I like," Junko replied as she smiled warmly. Alan smiled in response as he could see where Michiru had gotten her bubbly personality from.

"So, when do we talk with the Kekkain Clan?" Shinichi asked as Hanyuu finished her tea.

"This evening," said Hanyuu. "The main branch would probably be having a meeting in the evening about what happened at one of their branches."

"Let's hope they're in a listening mood," Shinichi replied.

"Oh, don't worry, Shinichi. I can make them listen," Hanyuu stated. "For now we just wait."

* * *

The sun was setting when the group made their way to the Kekkain Clan's main estate. They spotted four very alert guards protecting the front entrance. Normally, only two guards were posted at the entrance so the group could guess why they needed to increase security.

As the group approached, one of the guards took notice of them and ordered, "Halt!" The other three stood with the first guard, standing in line like a barrier to drive away intruders. "State your business," the guard demanded.

Hanyuu looked to her teammates and said, "Let me do the talking." She stepped forward and spoke, "We're all here to discuss important matters with the current Head of the Kekkain Clan and seek an audience with them. I suggest you let us through." It was more of an order than a suggestion as her eyes narrowed. Yokoshima couldn't help but shiver slightly as he saw Hanyuu take charge.

"Do you got shivers?" Yokoshima asked Chiaki, referring to Hanyuu's aura. Chiaki didn't respond and just stared at his girlfriend. Shinichi, however, was used to it when Hanyuu released a bit of her aura. However, these guards didn't seem too intimidated.

What a bunch of idiots.

"Oh, and why should we do that?" one of the guards asked with a sneer only to become shocked as Hanyuu's eyes glowed with her spiritual radiating off her in waves. They would assume she was demonic, except that the energy was not Youki, but the same energy they had been taught to harness.

She spoke, her voice intimidating to match her aura and eyes, "Because I am your ancestor! I am Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain! Now, open the gate!" Her tone did not allow room for argument and negotiation. The four trembling guards did as commanded and opened the gate for them. Hanyuu turned to her friends and smiled, "It's opened, nano desu."

Shogo, Chiaki and Yokoshima just gawked and gaped at her while Shinichi and Alan's expressions were normal. Well, they were neutral but they did have sweat trailing down their faces. Yokoshima whispered, "I think I almost pissed and crapped myself."

* * *

In the Main Branch's mansion's meeting hall, Kanna gulped slightly as she sat near her mother. Her mother had requested for her return to the capital using a hawk shikigami and the Onmyouji in training immediately answered. It had to be important if her mother had called her in such a way. When she returned, she'd learnt why her presence was needed. In fact, all the members of their clan which were spread out across the country were being summoned.

"How is it possible for someone to not only slaughter our clansmen, but to destroy one of our seals?" a main house member whispered to another in fear. Only the high-ranked members of the Kekkain Clan were present for the meeting and the ones who weren't had been assigned to guard the remaining sealing stones.

"I don't know, but it had to be a powerful demon if it couldn't be stopped."

"SHUT UP!" Everyone clammed up at that roared command and looked towards a man who had thick, vermillion hair which was worn in the same fashion as a lion's mane, with a muscular build and dressed in the garbs of a warrior monk. "All this pathetic squabbling about some Youkai getting lucky is giving me a headache. So what if it managed to destroy one of the seals? We can still take care of it."

"Why do you think it was a Youkai, Hiba-kun?" Kanna's mother, Shizue Kekkain, began to say. "It could've easily been a human."

"Oh yeah, like a human can be skilled enough with a sword to kill our clansmen and crazy enough to release the Orochi," the vermillion-haired HibaKekkain scoffed.

"I can assure you, Hiba-kun, that humans are capable of doing insane things when they desire something. Besides, had it been a Youkai, why weren't there residual traces of Youki lingering?" Shizue countered. Unlike her fellow clansmen, she knew that not all Youkai evil, just like how not all humans were good.

Hiba growled in response only to cease when he heard someone command, "Enough." All heads turned towards the clan's patriarch, Renzo Kekkain. He had graying black hair and an eye-patch worn over his left eye. His kimono was black with the clan's crest on the front. "This is not the time for childish squabbling. We have a situation at hand and we need to do something about it. Nothing can be accomplished by arguing like this."

Both Hiba and Shizue nodded as the meeting began again. But before more suggestions could be made, one of the guards entered. "What is it? Speak," Renzo ordered.

"Excuse me, sorry for interrupting Renzo-sama," the guard apologized as he got on his knees and bowed. He sat up and explained, "There is someone claiming to be Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain who's come to see you."

The elders all gaped at the guard in disbelief. Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain? They all knew who she was. Her name was in the archives. Centuries ago, she and several members of their clan had gone to the village of Onigafuchi, now known as Hinamizawa, and had stayed there to protect it from demons. Hainiryun even had a child with the head of the Furude Clan at the time. How could she be here?

"Is this some kind of joke?" Hiba questioned in irritation, not in the mood for jokes.

"It's no joke," said Hanyuu as she entered the mansion's meeting hall with her friends behind her.

"Who are you to claim that you are Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain?" questioned Renzo as he stood to full height.

"How can I not claim that name since it is mine?" Hanyuu retorted. She then released her aura which caused the clan members in the meeting hall to tremble as her eyes glowed. Kanna shook, shivering in fear, and then she was shocked when she saw that Shinichi was with Hanyuu as well. Why was he here with this girl?

"Oh my goodness, it really is her," one of the elders spoke in awe. He'd seen a portrait of Hainiryun when he'd been young and she'd been described to possess an aura that could not only subdue humans but also demons. She had been a prodigy back in the past and now she had returned. Legend has it that the day she'd died had also been the day she'd transcended into a god. And now she was here.

"Also," Hanyuu said as she stopped pouring out her aura as she reached into her pocket. She then pulled out the clan seal and showed it to all who were present, "I have this. This should confirm my identity as one of your own."

"That proves you are one of us," said Renzo, shaking slightly but not collapsing since he was the Head of the clan and needed to show strength, "But if you are one of our ancestors, how are you still alive after hundreds of years?"

"Gods are immortal," Hanyuu answered simply. "May we sit down? We have much to talk about and we know more about this threat you are facing than you do."

Yokoshima whispered to Chiaki, "Dude, your girlfriend is badass."

"That's Hanyuu-chan for you," Shinichi said. He then spotted a familiar face. "Eh, Kanna-chan?"

"You know her?" Shogo asked.

"She's my underclassman in college and a newbie in the Photography Club," answered Shinichi. "...Oh, right. She did say her surname was 'Kekkain'." This was awkward. She was probably going to ask for an explanation from him.

Hanyuu and her friends sat down and she spoke on their behalf, first by introducing them and then getting to the point, "The one that slaughtered the members of your clan and broke one of the eight seals of the Yamata no Orochi is not human, nor is he a demon. He is much worse. He is a machine."

"Could you please explain yourself? What do you mean by a machine?" Shizue asked. Shinichi noted that the woman looked a lot like Kanna but older with green eyes and clad in miko robes.

"Alan, if you'll please?" Hanyuu requested.

Alan nodded and used his ring to project a hologram of Shiro, stunning the Kekkain Clan as they saw this with their own eyes. "It's just a projection," Alan answered.

Hanyuu explained, "The one that attacked the South-Eastern branch and destroyed the sealing stone is a bio-android who calls himself Shiro Juuyon, also known is WHITE 14. He's destroying the seals due to his alliance with a Darkloid known as Gnol Gnauh."

The clan members murmured about this revelation. They knew Darkloids were a breed of dark demon which drew power from negative emotions to infect humans with madness. However, an android? Was such a thing really possible?

"Do you expect us to believe he's some kind of machine?" scoffed Hiba. "All demons have the ability to take the guise of humans. How can you be certain that this 'Shiro Juuyou' is neither human nor demon?"

"Your clan's techniques were designed specifically to take down demons. However, Shiro, being a machine is immune to all your anti-demon techniques," Shinichi retorted.

"And who, pray tell, are you?" one of the elders questioned, annoyed that an outsider would dare to speak out of turn.

"We're the ones who've been fighting Gnol Gnauh and Shiro Juuyon this whole time," Shinichi responded.

"Then why didn't you stop him?" another elder demanded. "Why did you allow him to not only kill the members of our clan, but also destroy one of our seals?"

"Why didn't _you_?" Shinichi countered. "We can't always be around to save people, but now we're here to help."

"Why should we accept _your_ help? You claim to have fought this man but yet he still lives. Why haven't you dealt with him?" Hiba questioned.

"We did destroy him," Alan answered, "Or at least _I_ did."

"And you are?" Renzo asked.

Alan activated his ring to don him in his uniform, shocking everyone. "I am Alan Smith of the Green Lantern Corps. I am also known as Sentinel."

"And we are the NEO-NUMBERS," Shinichi added, "Also known as Kamen Riders."

Renzo sensed no deception from them. Still, he asked, "You destroyed him, so can you explain to me how a dead machine is able to kill my clansmen?"

"I destroyed his body at the time, but the problem is that he survived due to his core which has been transplanted into another body," Alan explained. "The last time we saw him he was no bigger than a basketball, but now he's back and he's planning to release the Orochi."

"Why would he do such a thing?" Shizue asked.

"Because Gnol Gnauh is in truth a being born from the severed heads of the Yamata no Orochi," Hanyuu answered.

The Kekkain Clan elders and high-ranking members of the clan began to shout after hearing this. The Orochi's body was sealed but now the creature's heads had actually been reborn into a demon. Now, some kind of human-shaped machine was trying to cause its resurrection. This was cause for concern.

"You fools!" Hiba shouted, "How could you allow for them to live!-?"

"You think we haven't tried to fight them?" Shinichi shot back. "We've tried, but the fact is that Shiro's smart, really smart, and even if you think you've won, you'll only play into his hands. We thought that destroying the heads would hinder the Orochi's resurrection. As it turns out, we've been doing the opposite of that. Tell me elders, would you have tried to destroy the Orochi's heads yourselves had you learned of Orochi's second coming before us?"

The elders remained silent after hearing that. It was true that they would have attempted to do that. If what they are hearing is true, then it would seem that the Orochi was more shrued than they thought.

"This Shiro Juuyon," Shizue spoke, "He looks just like you."

"Yes, because he was designed that way," Shinichi answered. "He is my doppelganger."

"They still should not be trusted!" first elder yelled. "It is because of them that the Orochi is freed!"

"But they have also learnt of the Orochi's strengths! They know of how to deal with it!" another elder shot back. "They can still be of use to us!" Everyone was still arguing and Hanyuu decided to put her foot down.

"ENOUGH! SILENCE!" she bellowed as she projected her aura, nearly blowing everyone away. They all became silent before her hardened expression and glare softened. "Good, now I have your attention, I think for the best of the Kekkain Clan we should all work together."

"WHAT!-?" Hiba shouted in outrage. "You expect us to work with _outsiders_!-?" he spat.

"And what's wrong with that?" an annoyed Chiaki asked. He thought Daichi had anger issues but this guy had anger and an ego.

"It's simple. Our clan has prided itself in fighting against demons for generations. We do not need help from outsiders. We will deal with this 'killer robot' ourselves," Hiba claimed.

"You do realize that if what they say is true, then this Shiro Juuyon could easily take down any of the defenses we set against him. Besides, we could benefit from their assistance," countered Shizue.

"Bah, they're nothing but weaklings who couldn't even stop them! What do they know!-?" Hiba dismissed.

"Hey, those two 'pests' as you call them are as strong as heck, or have you forgotten about Hanyuu-chan saying that Gnol has the power of the Orochi's heads?" Yokoshima spoke up in annoyance.

"Yokoshima's right," Alan agreed.

"I am?" Yokoshima questioned. Rarely did anybody agreed with him.

"Yeah, you are," Alan affirmed. "Besides, these guys are incredibly clever, especially Shiro. He knows how to manipulate people for his own benefit."

Renzo said nothing for a moment before speaking again, "We will consider your offer."

"Renzo-sama, you can't be seriously considering accepting the help of these outsiders!" Hiba spoke, aghast.

"If they are right, then our Onmyoudo is useless against mechanical threats," Renzo retorted. "Besides, it is also an honor to meet an ancestor of ours, still alive in this day and age. Hainiryun-sama, you seem so young and beautiful."

"It's the perks of being a deity," Hanyuu boasted.

Kanna eyed the group. Just who were they exactly? She sometimes noted that Shinichi could be a little odd at times but then again the rest of the Photography Club was also odd. There was that one guy who kept talking about conspiracy theories. What was his name again?

Yokoshima nudged Shinichi with his elbow, "We are so gonna win this argument."

"Alan, what do you think?" Shinichi asked. "Alan?"

Alan had suddenly gone oddly silent, worrying Shinichi and prompting him to ask, "Hey, is something wrong?"

"Shinichi, activate your enhanced hearing," Alan instructed. "Tell me what you hear."

Shinichi activated his enhanced hearing and then he understood why Alan had asked him to do that. "Is that…marching?"

"What are you mumbling about?" Hiba demanded. He didn't trust these outsiders, even if their now ascended ancestor vouched for them. They didn't need any help. They would deal with Shiro Juuyon themselves.

* * *

Meanwhile, the guards heard the sound of marching and immediately got into position as one of them looked to see what was coming towards them. He could see several figures marching towards them. "Halt, identify yourself!" one of the guards commanded, but the figures kept marching. "I say identify yourself! Stop! I said stop!"

* * *

"Guys, we have to head outside! Now!" Shinichi shouted. Hanyuu, Alan and the NEO-NUMBERS quickly ran out of the meeting hall.

"What is the meaning of this?" Renzo questioned.

Kanna volunteered, "I'll go check it out, Otou-sama." She followed after the group.

In the hallway, one of the guards ran up to them, shouting, "They're dead! They killed them!"

"Calm down!" Michiru shouted. "What happened? Relax, and tell me."

"Metal…metal men," the terrified guard answered.

"Shiro's sent his soldiers," Shinichi concluded. "OK, guys, let's do this like we've practiced!"

They exited the mansion and watched as the gate had fallen. Standing in the doorway were men that looked like they were covered in hi-tech, silver-grey, plate armor with helmets that bore blank faces, with only two circular eyes that glowed with a cold blue light and a single horizontal line for a mouth. Their helmets had 'handle bars' on top which were connected to their 'ears' that made them resemble a bucket handle. Guns were mounted on their gauntlets. The bodies of the guards were lying at their feet.

"No…it can't be…" Alan said, stunned as he saw these metal men for what they were.

"Alan, what are they?" Shinichi asked.

**"Resistance is futile," **one of the metal men spoke, his mouth flashing with each syllable. His voice sounded electronic, emotionless and monotone but it was clear that the next words were commands, **"Prepare to be deleted."**

* * *

Shiro was watching everything on the monitor that was being broadcasted by the metal men. Their optical systems were linked to the computers so he could see what they could see. "The Combatroids were good, but they were just phase one. These guys, however, are something else. Sophisticated in every way, lacking emotions, and logical. The perfect weapon." He was sitting in his chair with Akaneko on his lap.

"What do you call them, Juuyon-sama?" Akaneko asked. He stroked her back, causing her to purr.

"I call them…"

* * *

"…Cybermen," Alan identified.

**"We are the Cybermen. Resistance is futile. Prepare for imminent deletion."**

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This chapter was brought to you by 'DOCTOR WHO'. I've actually become a fan of the show and I like the themes, plots, and most of all the monsters. As you can see, I'm using the Cybermen right now and you do not want to scoff at these guys. They're dangerous, very dangerous, and deadly too. You do not want to trifle with these guys. Also, special thanks to deadly84 for helping me with producing this chapter. You're the best, man.**


	100. The Legacy of Cain Part 44

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 44: The Night of Cold Steel**

"So, these are Cybermen?" Gnol asked as he watched the monitor in the Pyramid Base's control room.

"Yep," Kineko confirmed. "Unlike the Combatroids, they are sorta like cyborgs."

"Sorta like cyborgs?" Gnol repeated. "What do you mean?"

"Yea, well, that's because the only organic thing about them are their brains which Juuyon-sama harvested from homeless bums. Besides that, the Cybermen are completely mechanical, armed with laser guns and they can generate electricity through their hands to electrocute their victims to death," Aoneko explained, clarifying the issue.

"I see. Where did he get the idea to create these Cybermen?" Gnol asked. He had to admit they were works of genius, but he was also curious as to what gave Shiro the inspiration to create them.

"His benefactor provided him with the plans since they thought Juuyon-sama needed the extra fire power," Aoneko answered.

"And where is he right now?"

"He's off attacking another seal since they will be preoccupied by the Cybermen."

Gnol grinned, "Excellent. Well, in that case, I'll just sit back and watch the show." His Bakeneko girl, who was dressed like a Geisha, served him sake which he downed in one gulp from the cup. She was beautiful, and her name was Shizuko.

* * *

A Cyberman was blasted by Alan's ring, the attack knocking it out of formation, as he stood in a circle with his friends.

"What's the plan?" Shinichi asked.

"We take them down hard, we take them down fast," Alan said.

"You heard the man!" Shinichi said to the others. "Transform, and attack! Hanyuu-chan, protect the people."

Hanyuu nodded.

* * *

**NORTH-WESTERN BRANCH**

The members of the North-Western branch of the Kekkain Clan were on guard like all the others around their respective sealing stones. At present, the strongest of them stood around the sealing stone in the basement. An intruder had entered and was currently killing the members of their clan upstairs but they had their orders. The members who'd died would be remembered for their sacrifice and would be mourned at a later time. However, right now, the protection of the sacred sealing stone was most imperative.

"Good evening," Shiro Juuyon greeted cheerful as he came into the basement. "Well, well, what do we have here? I guess you didn't want to join the party that was happening upstairs." Shiro was once again covered in blood as the red substance dripped from his blood-stained sword.

Their only response was to attack the intruder.

They never stood a chance.

* * *

"**Delete. Delete. Delete**," the Cyberman repeated as they unleashed a volley of laser blasts at the group when Alan formed a wall of green energy to deflect them. As soon as the assault ceased, Alan dropped the wall and darted forward, burying his fist into a Cyberman's chest with his immense strength. He tore out wires and the Cyberman dropped dead. The rest aimed at him.

**"Hostile element identified as Alan Smith. Prepare for deletion."**

"Not today," Alan retorted as a Cyberman's head was taken off its shoulders by a flying scythe. Carmen Mirage yanked back the chain and caught the scythe before she rushed to take out the Cybermen. Slasher Slayer was also on the move while armed with the Onigari no Ryuou. Sparks flew as he struck while aiming for dismemberment and decapitation as he beheaded and literally disarmed the Cybermen.

"Say hello to my little friends!" yelled Blue Beetle as he formed a Gatling gun which was equipped to his left leg and the missile launcher which was equipped to his right boot. He took aim and fired, the missiles blowing up the Cybermen as the Gatling gun riddled them with bullet hole. They may have thick armor, but they weren't invincible as the armor-piercing rounds turned them into Swiss cheese while the missiles blew them apart.

Zero was flying through the air, dodging lasers as the Cybermen fired upon the Wasp Rider. They stood in place, which was right where he wanted them as he unleashed his own volley of needles with pierced them right through their helmets. The needles glowed and exploded, blowing the heads to smithereens. He landed next to Blue Beetle who said, "I thought these guys would be tougher."

"Or maybe we're just too much for them," Zero suggested.

"That works for me," accepted Blue Beetle. "Excuse me." He constructed his foot mounted chainsaw and kicked a Cyberman in the chest, causing sparks to fly as the attack hit. Slayer finished off the Cyberman by taking off its head.

Kanna, with several members of the Kekkain Clan, were also fighting as they used their Shikigami to battle the Cybermen. She had conjured a gun shaped like a goldfish which fired blasts of pressurized water that sent the Cybermen flying. She also summoned forth a large stag which ran the mechanical menaces down. Her eyes, of course, momentarily glanced towards Showa. She had witnessed his transformation. To think her sempai in college was a Kamen Rider. This momentary distraction would cost her as a Cyberman aimed at her from behind. Showa, however, saw this and acted quickly as his arms became covered in metal before stretching, shooting towards the Cyberman that was about to fire at Kanna and sending it flying with a punch from two, big metal fists. Kanna was stunned as Showa undid his Great Fists before saluting her.

The Cybermen diverted their attention to the purely human Kekkain Clan members and tried to shoot them dead. However, an invisible barrier blocked the lasers and the Cybermen were soon faced with the fury of a goddess as she used her telekinesis to tear them limb from limb. The Kekkain Clan members stared at Hanyuu with awe and a bit of fear but she smiled warmly at them.

Alan's heat vision caused a Cyberman to overheat and cease functioning as he literally boiled its brain. He then drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. Lightning arched around the blade as he used his super speed, crossing the gap between him and the Cybermen before striking them down. They all exploded and Alan looked at their remains with a frown.

"Shoddy workmanship," said Bazel.

"Well, we are more than just mere humans," Alan responded.

"That's true. So much for deleting us, huh, Partner?"

* * *

Gnol frowned as he watched the Cybermen being destroyed one after another on the monitor. He wasn't happy to see this result. "They're losing."

"Relax, this is just part of the plan," said Akaneko, "You've worked with Juuyon-sama long enough to know that."

"Maybe so, but I am not happy about it," Gnol growled, glaring at Alan who was on screen after the Green Lantern had destroyed some of the Cybermen.

"Well, just wait and see. Juuyon-sama made sure to send something in case the Cybermen became overwhelmed," the red-haired catgirl told the demon.

"Oh, and what is it?" Gnol inquired, interested.

"Well~, let's just say it's something special just for Kyoto," she answered, smiling.

* * *

So far, the heroes were decimating the Cybermen's numbers as pieces of metal lay on the ground. Blue Beetle's left hand was in the form of a hammer as he used it to bash the Cybermen around. "Yeah, take that!" He hit one in the head, knocking it down. One tried to reach out to electrocute him only for Blue Beetle to spin around and clobber it, knocking it down. "Take that!" He then summoned his Gatling gun again before firing. "And some of this!" He was obviously enjoying himself.

Suddenly, he felt himself being carried into the air and then spun around in a tornado which caused him to scream in terror.

"Yokoshima!" Showa shouted Blue Beetle was shot out of the tornado before he slammed against the wall, dazed and dizzy from the spinning.

"Whoa...Ow…" Blue Beetle groaned.

Zero, who was in the air, was suddenly knocked out of the sky as sparks exploded from his back. His assailant was revealed to be a Beastroid that was based on a tengu. Its faceplate sported a long and pointed nose and it wielded a war fan. It had metallic, bird-like wings and its armor was red and blue with white trim.

"Juuyon-sama demands your destruction," the Tengu Beastroid commanded.

"Well, tell him that we don't entertain demands from psychotic megalomaniacs," Showa retorted.

"Then die, meat bags!" the Tengu Beastroid shouted as it swung its fan, conjuring a blast of wind. Everyone was blown away by the gale force winds, with the exception of Alan.

"He wants to play with wind, I'll show him wind," said Alan as he changed into the Sentinel.

The Tengu Beastroid was about to gloat but then cried out as a sword was buried in its stomach. He saw Sentinel holding the sword which he withdrew before knocking the Beastroid out of the air with a roundhouse kick. It smashed against the ground, kicking up dust.

Sentinel glared down, wondering if he'd damaged the Tengu Beastroid enough when a ball of wind suddenly hit him and pushed him back. It didn't hurt due to his Kryptonian physiology.

"It's going to take a lot more than this to destroy me!" the TenguBeastroid shouted while clutching the sparking wound on his stomach.

"Well, then why don't you try me!" shouted Showa as he darted towards the Tengu Beastroid. Three Cybermen suddenly ganged up on Showa, trying to keep him away from the Beastroid. However, he leapt over them and spun in mid-air, changing his arm into a sword before he landed. He swung, decapitating two while the third tried to attack with an electrified grip only for Showa to be quicker as he ran the Cyberman through its chest. He withdrew his sword and kicked shoved the defeated Cyberman to the ground.

Turning his attention to the Tengu Beastroid, he said coldly, "Your move."

The Tengu Beastroid roared, "As you wish!" He struck with his war fan, sparks flying as their weapons clashes. The Tengu Beastroid then conjured vacuum blades which knocked Showa back with sparks flying off his armor. More and more vacuum blades kept coming but instead of leaping out of the way, Showa charged through, ignoring the vacuum blades cutting into his armor. He closed in on the Tengu Beastroid, his sword replaced by two large metal fists which he threw forward.

The Tengu Beastroid, however, was expecting this and once Showa was in range he leapt upwards and thrust out his fan. However, there was a flash of green as the arm wielding the fan was severed from the elbow down.

"Don't forget about me," said Sentinel before he sidestepped, allowing Showa a clear shot as his fists smashed into the Tengu Beastroid, sending it tumbling along the ground. He then grabbed the Tengu Beastroid and raised him up to look it in the eyes. Now unarmed, the Beastroid was harmless.

"It's over," Showa said as he prepared to crush the Beastroid, only to be shocked when it laughed. "What's so funny?"

"Go ahead! I've already served my purpose anyway!" the Tengu Beastroid laughed mockingly.

"What do you mean?" Showa asked. "Tell me!"

That was when Showa heard the dreadful news.

Kanna shouted upon receiving the news from one of her clansmen, "The North-Western branch was just attacked!-?"

The North-Western branch had been attacked, which meant the sealing stone it guarded was now destroyed.

The Tengu Beastroid suddenly exploded, taking Showa's Great Fist with it. It didn't cause any injury to Showa, though. What shook him up was that while they were fighting here, Shiro had been pursuing his plan.

This had all just been a distraction. Shinichi's armor vanished along with the others once the danger had passed but despite defeating the horde of Cybermen, they had failed.

"Looks like you've made quite a mess," a familiar voice was heard and all eyes turned towards Shiro Juuyon who was covered in blood. "I see you've met my Cybermen."

"Teme!-!-!" Shinichi was about to charge forward only to be stopped by Alan who kept a firm grip on his shoulder. "Let me go, Alan!"

"No," said Alan. He looked at Shiro and stated, "You already did it."

"I did," Shiro answered, not denying it one bit.

"Why have you killed members of the Kekkain Clan!-?" Shinichi demanded.

"You're asking me why?" Shiro snorted. "Do I need a reason to kill?"

Shinichi forced himself to calm down. "Yes, because every move you make, every action you take is all planned out and just a small step towards a greater goal," Shinichi answered. "That's exactly how you operate because that's how you're programmed. Because, that's how Gebok is and that is how he programmed you."

Shiro's smile faded, "Oh, so you think you have it all figured out then?"

"You're trying to free the Orochi's body," said Alan.

"Oh, Al, Al, Al, Al!" Shiro retorted dramatically, shaking his head. "Look at the bigger picture! Do you really think my plan truly ends with the Orochi's resurrection? If that's the case then you've already lost this game."

"Why are you killing the Kekkain Clan members?" Alan repeated Shinichi's question.

"You know who set up those stones?" Shiro asked. "Their ancestors and it's been hundreds of years since the Heian period and so the family has grown, their members spread out, but they always start here in Kyoto. It was their ancestors who trapped the Orochi's body here, it was their ancestors who split the main branch into eight different branches and set up mansions in eight different direction. The guardianship of those stones has been passed down from generation to generation, and so it is their _blood_ that can deactivate those stone."

"Their blood…" Shinichi murmured. "You sick, twisted freak!"

"A weapon drenched in their blood is the only thing that can destroy the sealing stone," Shiro answered, drawing the Oathbreaker. Alan and Shinichi immediately closed the gap, weapons drawn, and swung, only for their swords to pass through Shiro harmlessly like he was a ghost. "Oh, and I'm long gone! Sayonara!" His image flickered and vanished.

"A hologram!" Shinichi realized angrily.

"A very realistic one too," Alan admitted as he looked at the Cyberman head which had projected the hologram. "I could barely tell the difference." He looked to his half-brother, "Shinichi, it hasn't been 24 hours yet, there's still time to revive them."

"You're right," Shinichi agreed. He clapped his hands together. "Let me work my-OW!"

"What's wrong?" Alan asked as Shinichi reached behind his neck and pulled out a dart. "Shinichi, what's that?"

"I…I dunno…" Shinichi staggered, suddenly feeling dizzy. "Hey…Alan, when…did you get…a twin?" he asked, slurred, feeling dizzy and a bit inebriated. He suddenly collapsed and passed out.

"SHINICHI!" Alan screamed.

From a nearby rooftop was one of the Bakeneko Kunoichi and she compacted her telescopic blowgun before slipping away into the shadows. From another rooftop, watching the events was a white wolf and a black wolf.

* * *

"Juuyon-sama, it has been done," reported Midoneko as she saluted. Shiro was watching his enemies' reaction on screen while sitting in his chair.

"Good, very good," said Shiro as he pulled the green-haired catgirl into his lap. He petted her head which made her purr and snuggle up against him. "I guess they got my message too."

"What was the point of giving them that kind of information?" Gnol asked.

"Oh, it was just a distraction, really," said Shiro. "They wanted info, I gave it to them, but I also babbled to take up their time and annoy them. But, the reason for the distraction was so Midoneko here could get into position to shoot this at Shinichi." He held up a duplicate of the dart which had hit Shinichi earlier.

"What is that?" Gnol.

"It's a virus, a very powerful one," said Shiro, "But it won't kill him."

"Then what's the point?" Gnol asked.

"It's no fun just killing them," Shiro told them. "That's your problem. You just go ahead and start killing things."

"You're the same way," Gnol pointed out.

"I should rephrase that then. What I mean is that I don't just go around killing things without purpose," said Shiro.

"My purpose is destruction and suffering," said Gnol, crossing his arms indignantly.

"But I'd rather go for the _suffering_ bit first," Shiro emphasized. "The virus will knock him out first and then spread. When he wakes up, he'll realize too late that his greatest advantage has been taken away from him." His grin widened, "Oh, I can't wait to see the look on his face." He looked Midoneko in the eyes, "Can you?" He kissed her deeply, pulling her close against him as his tongue explored her oral cavity and she purred, hand rubbing up and down his chest and back as she returned the favor. The other members watched in envy as their sister was getting such loving treatment from their master. He broke the kiss and lifted Midoneko, bridal style. "Tonight, Midoneko, you will be rewarded! Let's go!" He dashed towards his bedroom, the girl clinging to him with a smile.

"He might be a machine, but he still thinks with his libido," scoffed Gnol.

* * *

"Hey, he's waking up," Michiru, while closing a medi-kit, informed as Shinichi slowly came to.

"Ugghh..." Shinichi groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. "What hit me? My head feels like I was hit by a snow plow."

"Actually, you were hit by a dart," Yokoshima answered.

"A dart? Where is it?" Shinichi asked.

"It disintegrated," Alan replied.

"Well, that's convenient," remarked Shinichi sarcastically.

"How are you feeling?" Shogo asked.

"Besides the pounding headache, I feel fine," Shinichi replied. He asked, "How long have I been out."

"About two hours," Alan answered, causing Shinichi's eyes to go wide.

"TWO HOURS!-?" Shinichi shouted loudly, "WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME UP!-?"

"Dude, we were worried that the dart might've killed you! We needed to get you medical attention!" Yokoshima retorted.

That calmed Shinichi slightly as he apologized, "Sorry..." He then noticed something. He was in a futon and the floor was covered in tatami. "Hey, where are we? Are we back at your grandma's place, Michiru?"

"No, we're in one of the rooms in the Kekkain Clan's mansion," Michiru answered.

"They let you use this place for me to rest?" Shinichi asked. He then realized Hanyuu wasn't around and connected the dots, "Hanyuu-chan persuaded them, didn't she?"

"I'll tell ya, that girl is scary, scarier than anything I've ever seen," Yokoshima stated. The door slid open and Yokoshima gasped.

"I heard that, nano desu," said Hanyuu, frowning. She came in and sat down.

"So, what's the verdict?" Chiaki asked.

"They've accepted our assistance but they also had a condition: they want one of their members to join our team as a liaison. I had to compromise on that," Hanyuu said.

"At least they realize how much of a threat Shiro is," Michiru said.

"Well, the one called Hiba Kekkain was doing a lot of shouting about how we allowed Shiro to destroy another sealing stone," Hanyuu added.

"I hope he isn't our liaison," Shinichi grimaced.

"Actually, it's someone you know," said Hanyuu. She said to the door, "You can come in now."

The door slid open to reveal Kanna standing in the doorway.

"Oh, it's you, Kanna-chan," Shinichi greeted awkwardly. She entered and sat down.

"Banabara-sempai, what are you?" Kanna asked. She looked at the others, "What are you people?"

"We're cyborgs," Michiru answered bluntly.

"Cyborgs? Like in science fiction?"

"Only this is science fact," Shogo added. "We've got mechanical parts inside of us. Alan's here the only one who isn't a cyborg."

"Hiba-san has been calling you very unkind things," Kanna informed.

"That guy either needs to get laid or to get that stick shoved up his butt taken out," suggested Yokoshima, "Or have a real stick shoved right in, deep."

"So, Hanyuu-chan here told me that you all reached an agreement," said Shinichi.

"Why do you call Hainiryun-sama that?" Kanna asked. Ancestors should be treated with respect.

"Why shouldn't I call my little sister that?" Shinichi returned her question with his own, along with a smile.

"Little sister?" Kanna repeated, shocked and confused. "How...?"

"Don't question it," Alan interrupted.

"I might be older than I look, but in this form I'm still pretty much a child and children need their parents. Shinichi's mother adopted me and while she's aware of what I am, she can't help but treat me as her daughter," Hanyuu answered fondly.

"She must be a wonderful lady," Kanna smiled.

"That she is," Hanyuu smiled back. "I'm glad she came into our lives."

"Well, I'm all rested up," said Shinichi. "It's time to revive some people from the dead."

"What?" Kanna gawked at Shinichi.

"Just take me to the branch estate that was attacked and I'll show you," said Shinichi.

* * *

"Alright, Gary, how does the new body feel?" Shiro asked.

"**It is within acceptable parameters**," Gary reported.

"Well, that's good," nodded Shiro. He then turned to address a lone Cyberman. This one was different from the rest as it sported a black faceplate, red eyes with a see-through dome that left the brain visible. "Cyber Leader, report," Shiro ordered.

"**Our numbers were decimated. In older to replace fallen Cybermen we would require to perform immediate upgrades and assimilation on humans**," the Cyber Leader answered.

"Well, then get to it then! Grab some more homeless people off the street. Heck, break into prisons and steal the inmates. Do whatever you can to help me make more Cybermen," Shiro ordered.

The Cyber Leader put his fist against his chest as a salute and did an about face before marching for the teleporter.

Shiro put his hands to his hips. Cybermen were the perfect soldiers but against the Riders they were still pretty much cannon fodder. He then grinned, "I better check up on Shinichi. He must be completely devastated when he learns the truth!" He couldn't wait to see the look on Shinichi's face when he discovered what had been done to him.

* * *

"Wow...he really went all out," Yokoshima grimaced at the sight before them. The bodies had all been collected and moved to the dojo, covered in sheets that were soaked in their blood. Nobody who got in Shiro's way was spared. The estate was worse for wear itself as there were deep cuts on the wall and floor caused by a sword.

"How horrible," murmured Kanna. The bodies would soon be prepared for burial. "So many of them died."

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Alan apologized as he gave his condolences.

"You didn't do this," Kanna said. "It was that man, that Shiro Juuyon, who did this."

"But don't worry, Kanna-chan," Michiru smiled, "Shinichi will take care of everything."

"How?" Kanna asked.

"He can reverse time, undoing everything that has happened within 24 hours," Shogo explained. "You'll see your clansmen alive soon enough."

Kanna was stunned and she looked at her sempai. _'Reverse time?'_ she though. But that was impossible, right.

"OK, everyone, stand back and let me work my magic," said Shinichi. He looked to see Kanna staring at him. "I know this might sound crazy to you, but trust me, Kanna-chan. You're going to see a miracle at work." He focused, concentrating as he called forth his power. However, unlike many times before he seemed to be struggling harder, much harder, and nothing was happening. By now something was supposed to happen.

"Shinichi, what's wrong?" Alan asked as Shinichi began to tremble.

"I...I can't do it," Shinichi answered, looking at Alan. A look of horror was painted on his face.

"Huh, what do you mean?" Alan questioned but he had a sinking feeling in his gut that this was bad news.

"I can't turn back time!" Shinichi shouted.

"WHAT!-?" the cyborgs in the group shouted.

"How!-? You can't just lose your powers like that!" Yokoshima yelled.

"This has happened before. When Kaa-chan was in an accident my powers were blocked," Shinichi said. "Hanyuu-chan, can you help?"

"I'm sorry, but I've lost my ability to reverse time a long time ago," Hanyuu apologized. She looked to Kanna, "I'm so sorry."

Shinichi fell to his knees. This was possibly the worst thing that could possible happen to him. He'd just lost his trump card.

"I'm so glad I didn't miss this." All heads spun towards the voice to see Shiro Juuyon, looking quite smug.

"WHITE 14," Alan identified. "What are you doing here?"

"I've come to gloat, and kill you, but mostly to gloat," Shiro answered.

"That dart did something to him, didn't it?"

"Yes, yes it did," Shiro replied. "You see, Shinichi has always relied on his ability to reverse time to undo tragedy. It made him less responsible with human lives since he can just bring them back. So, I decided to take away his greatest advantage to even the playing field." He grinned once he finished his sentence.

"You're sick and twisted," Hanyuu accused, eyes glowing red.

"Me? Sick? I'm not some meat bag," Shiro retorted. "Now, it's time for me to go on with killing you."

"You and what army?" Yokoshima questioned.

Shiro's response was to take out a rectangular device that had the shape of a cell phone with a glowing screen. The device also sported sharp 'teeth' framing the screen and 'horns' on the top and bottom corners.

"ALPHA-01," began Shiro, stunning Shinichi. "Unload my soldiers from hyper space, please."

"**Hai!**" the device responded in a child's voice. It was Shinichi's voice as a child, only distorted. "**Unload!**"

From the device, light burst forth from it and turned into humanoid figures. When the light cleared, twenty-five Cybermen now stood behind Shiro.

Yokoshima gaped as he just witnessed the appearance of the Cybermen. Shogo palmed his face and spoke, "Yokoshima, don't ever, ever say 'you and what army' ever again. That's just tempting fate."

"14!" Shinichi shouted as he stood up. "How did you get the ALPHA-01 AI!-?"

"Oh, this?" Shiro responded, twirling the device in his hand. "Where do you think? Think about it, really think about it. Where would Gebok hide such a treasure?"

Shinichi's eyes widened in realization but it was Alan who answered, "He hid it in Alice."

"Correct-a-mundo!" laughed Shiro. "And he had it hidden under piles and piles of code so that it wouldn't be discovered!"

"That's why you broke into the prison and went into Gebok's cell," concluded Shinichi. "You were getting the information from him."

"I was surprised myself, but it all just made sense. Who would think a bio-android in the form of a child would have the most powerful smart AI in the entire world?" Shiro gave a salute by tapping his device against his forehead. "Ja ne!" The Cybermen parted, giving him a path as he turned and fled. The Cybermen, in response, marched at the heroes.

**"Hostile elements will be deleted."**

"Alan, go after Shiro!" Shinichi shouted. "We'll handle things here!"

Alan nodded and took off after the bio-android.

**"Hostile elements will be deleted."**

"Oh, I couldn't agree more," Shinichi growled as his eyes narrowed. He wasn't talking about the Riders. He was talking about the Cybermen.

* * *

Alan finally caught up with Shiro who stopped running. The bio-android didn't look all that worried. "Coming to arrest me, Alan Smith? Or are you here to destroy me like that last time?"

"I'm tempted on the latter, but I want to know, how did you learn how to build the Cybermen?" Alan questioned.

"You're from another world, right?" Shiro asked.

"Of course, you know that," answered Alan, curious as to why Shiro would ask that but at the same time cautious as to what other tricks the evil android was going to pull out of his sleeve. He watched as Shiro took out the device he'd used to summon the Cybermen earlier.

"Alan, be ready for anything," warned Bazel. "Lately, this guy has been able to pull anything out of his pocket."

"Yeah, I know," Alan agreed.

"I sure hope you recognize these guys, because I want to remember the look on your face!" Shiro called as the screen glowed. Bursts of light surged from the screen, splitting into several beams which then reformed into tangible shapes. Alan's eyes widened as he recognized the shapes. But it couldn't be, could it? It was impossible. How could _they_ be here?

**"EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

That loud, high-pitched, electronically distorted voice shouted out as a line of five mechanical creatures now stood between Alan and Shiro. Standing at five feet in height, they were shaped like saltshakers with the lower half of their bodies covered in hemispheres. They had domed shaped heads sitting atop necks covered in three metal rings. They had protrusions on the sides of their heads which resembles light bulbs that lit up with each syllable and long metal eye stalks. Mounted on their midsections were their appendages that were pointed forward. They each had a plunger-like apparatus on the right and an egg whisk-shaped gun on the left. They wore a uniform color of bronze.

"Death & Annihilation Laser Extermination Killbots," Shiro named them. "Also known as…"

"Daleks," Alan finished. He knew about these creatures. Daleks were the mutated descendants of the Kaleds from the planet Skarro. However, the once humanoid beings had mutated into cephalopod-like creatures with a single eye that were housed in mobile, tank-like robotic shells like the ones Alan was looking at. They were the most feared and hated race in the entire universe, with their only purpose being to kill anything that was not a Dalek.

Alan used his X-Ray vision to scan these Daleks and found out that instead of an organic creature piloting the robotic shells, they were completely mechanical. They were just imitations.

"So, what do you think?" asked Shiro. A blast of green energy from Alan's ring blew up one of the DALEKs.

"I think you really should improve the design, because these guys are just cheap imitations," Alan responded.

In response, the DALEK units all cried out, "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE A-LAN SMITH! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" as they fired their death rays at Alan.

A green shield surrounded Alan before he muttered, "I figured as much."

"Keep him busy, my pets," said Shiro as he activated his teleportation system to vanish before Alan's eyes.

Alan thought, '_The death rays might be the same, but these guys aren't made of Dalekanium, so…'_ He constructed a massive hammer of green hammer before flattening one of the DALEK units_. 'They're much easier to break_.' Alan had met Daleks before, the real Daleks, back when he was a little boy. They had appeared as suddenly as a strange man in a big, blue box.

* * *

In the Pyramid Base, a DALEK unit rolled out from the shadows. Unlike the bronze DALEK units Shiro had released earlier, this unit was colored mostly black with the hemispheres on the lower half of its body colored silver. Under the base of the eye stalk was the symbol for gamma (**Γ**).

"**Welcome back, sir**," the DALEK unit spoke.

"Good to be back, Gary," Shiro smiled. "I feel great. I so love messing with people's heads."

"**Knock, knock**," Gary began.

"Who's there?" Shiro asked.

"**You**."

"You who?"

"**You are the greatest genius of this world**," Gary praised as he spun around in place, his head spinning in the opposite direction.

"That I am, Gary. That I am."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Again, I'd like to give my thanks to deadly84, snake screamer, Warlord-Xana and Iron-Mantis. This time. Now, I've recently become hooked on "Doctor Who" and decided to use two of the series classic monsters as part of Shiro's army. They are the Cybermen and Daleks.**

**D.A.L.E.K. stands for Death & Annihilation Laser Extermination Killbot. These tank-like robots resemble the robotic shells which house the Dalek mutants. However, they are simply mechanical imitations programmed with one simple purpose: to exterminate anything with human DNA. While they are not made of Dalekanium, the alloy which makes up their armor is quite durable. However, strong enough blows can break the armor. Like the Daleks they are based on, the DALEK units' main weakness is their eye stalk. Unfortunately, the Dalek units are surrounded by a force field that can melt bullets. While they seem funny in appearance, they are no laughing matter. They are killing machines and anything that has been equipped to their bodies is made to kill. The suction cup arms which resemble toilet plungers have powerful suction power, enough to either suffocate or crush skulls. Their energy blasters fire death rays which instantly kill anything they hit. However, against someone like Alan, they are just reduced to trashcans. Crushed, trashcans.**

**Cybermen, whose model I based on their latest incarnation, are mostly mechanical and house a live human brain to animate them. They are completely emotionless with only two goals: to upgrade humans into their very image, or delete them if they resist. Against the Riders, they are cannon fodder, but in very large numbers they could become a decent threat. Shiro created the Cybermen, like the DALEK units based on plans he received from his benefactor. The Cybermen in his army were converted from homeless people that would not be missed or reported missing. Basically, he claims to be recycling garbage.**


	101. The Legacy of Cain Part 45

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 45: The Dragon VS The Faker**

The Teleportal burst to life allowing Michiru and Shinichi entry into the Hive. "Dr. Magi! Dr. Washam! Something's happened to Shinichi!"

"What is it, Michiru?" Dr. Magi asked.

"I've lost my time powers," Shinichi answered. "Shiro did something to me and now I can't use my powers."

"That's terrible. Washam, come on, let's get Shinichi to the lab." Dr. Magi noted Michiru carrying a severed Cyberman head. "What is that?"

"Cyberman head. I was thinking of keeping it as a souvenir," Michiru said.

Dr. Magi stared at the blank face and shrugged, "Do what you wish then."

* * *

When Yuji heard that Michiru was back, he went up to see her in her quarters. "You're back."

"Just for a bit, until Shinichi's checked out," Michiru answered. He saw the Cyberman head on her desk. "Like it? It's a souvenir."

"It's creepy, that's what it is," Yuji inspected.

"These things were attacking us last night," Michiru answered.

"And Shiro built them," Yuji finished. "What are they called?"

"Cybermen."

"Alright, that makes sense," Yuji continued to inspect it. "So, what's wrong with Shinichi?"

"He's lost his time powers. Shiro took them away with some kind of virus or something," Michiru answered. "Maybe you should go to the lab and see him. He could use someone to talk to."

"How bad is it?" Yuji asked.

"The last time he lost his powers he quit ARMOR," Michiru answered, "But then he regained his resolve, with a little help."

"Right, time for Yuji to act as Big Brother again. Wish me luck, Michiru!"

"Good luck."

Yuji left the room but just as he was about 20 feet away he heard Michiru scream. "Aw...hell no!" He turned and ran to her room, shouting at her, "Michiru, open the door!" He heard crashes and banging, and all sorts of unpleasant noises. "I'm coming in!" He drew the Red Queen. "Forgive me for the door!"

He sliced the door apart and ran in to see Michiru trying to hold the Cyberman's head away from her face as cables wrapped around her arms and throat in an attempt to strangle her. Yuji reacted quickly, his claws out, flames igniting, as he severed the cable. The Cyberman head dropped and a quick fireball from Yuji melted it into slag.

Michiru collapsed onto her knees, coughing, as Yuji checked her, "Are you OK?"

"Fine (cough)! I'm fine! Just...give me some space...to breathe," Michiru said.

Yuji sniffed the air and looked down at the Cyberman head and grimaced. "Oh, that's nasty." He saw what remained of a human brain housed in the melted metal skull. It reminded him of Million.

* * *

Yuji found Shinichi in the lab with Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam performing tests. The cyborg was sitting on the examination table with wires connecting him to a computer terminal. Dr. Washam had taken a blood sample for analysis. Right now, Shinichi was only in his boxers.

Yuji said, "Michiru sent me here to talk with you."

Shinichi replied, "She did, did she?"

"Yeah, and she's worried about you and if she's worried, I'm worried. She told me you lost your powers."

"Yeah, I have," Shinichi answered, laughing mirthlessly. "You know, I've always taken them for granted; made things easier. If people died I'd just bring them back." He snapped his fingers, "Just like that. I could control fate, undo death." He frowned. "Now that's not even an option anymore."

"Shinichi, I..." Yuji began only to be cut off.

"That power allowed me to save lives even after they died! Sure, there were exceptions but most of the time I could! I could save them! Now what am I good for!-?"

"You're still alive," Yuji answered, "Since you're still alive, you can still lead your team and you can still fight. Just remember what you CAN do and focus on that! Once you do, everything else will just fall into place," Yuji smiled.

"Y-yeah, you're right..." Shinichi agreed, softly. He was still alive, and that meant he could make a difference and stop Shiro from killing anyone else. He looked up at Yuji who smiled warmly. "Thanks, Yuji. I needed to hear that."

"You're welcome. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna contact your group and tell them to destroy the remains of those Cybermen you fought," Yuji informed.

"Why?" Shinichi asked.

"Let's just say that even after being ripped to pieces they can still try to kill you. Ask Michiru. She knows what I'm talking about."

"I'll be sure to do that," said Shinichi. Yuji then left to let the scientists work. "Oh, Dr. Magi, there's something really important that I need to tell you."

* * *

"So, Shiro Juuyon possesses ALPHA-01," Dr. Magi spoke after hearing Shinichi's report. "That is dreadful news." A smart AI in the hands of a mad machine. Indeed, the word dreadful couldn't be more accurate.

"And it sounded like me when I was a kid too," added Shinichi.

"It was copied from your consciousness before you had your emotions stripped," Dr. Magi reminded. "How could I have not realized that it'd been inside Alice?"

"To be fair, the AI was well hidden under encrypted encryptions," Shinichi replied. He then went back to ask about his condition, "So, found anything yet?"

"Nothing yet, but I have to say that whatever it is that Shiro has infected you with isn't as easily detected as we hoped," Dr. Magi replied sadly.

"Don't worry about it, though," added Dr. Washam, "We'll sure to find it soon and when we do you'll be able to use your temporal manipulation ability again."

Shinichi said, nodding, "I see. Well, keep up the good work, gentlemen." While this was not an ideal situation for him, he remembered Yuji's words. "Well, thanks again, but now I'm heading back to Kyoto."

"Well, be sure to take care of yourself," advised Dr. Magi. "And these are doctor's orders."

"Don't worry, Dr. Magi. I will."

* * *

Blue Beetle had his arms turned into flamethrowers as he melted the collected pieces of the Cybermen. "So, remind me again why we're doing this."

"You heard what Yuji and Michiru said. These things are dangerous so we can't risk any part of them being loose in case a civilian dins one by mistake." Slasher tossed up the Cybermen remains and used the Onigari no Ryuou to make them explode.

"Yeah, I got it. I got it," Blue Beetle sighed. "Though I can't get why WHITE 14 would make robot grunts with human brains in their heads."

"How should I know?" Zero replied, grunting. "Do I look like I know how a deranged psychopath would think?"

* * *

Meanwhile, said psychopath was grinning to himself. He'd been able to mess with his enemies and destroy another stone. Even though he suffered the heavy losses in Cybermen, all in all the night was good. Despite having learnt that their blood was necessary in breaking the seals, knowing the arrogance of the Kekkain Clan, they would be too stubborn to leave their posts do to pride, honor, and all that jazz.

"Now, how should I attack my third target? I want it to be flashy," Shiro muttered as he pondered this. He then called, "GARY!"

"**Yes, sir?**" Gary responded as he rolled towards Shiro.

"OK, personal space, please," said Shiro as he pushed back against the DALEK eye stalk. Gary rolled back. "Now, Gary, do we have any giant robotic monsters in storage?

"**Yes, we do**." Gary's eye stalk glowed as it emitted a hologram which made Shiro grin.

"Oh, he'll do nicely." His smile was so wide it threatened to split his face in half. "How much time until it's fully operational?"

**"In 24 hours when you give the order**," Gary responded.

"Then start the clock! In 24 hours our big bad boy is gonna march through Kyoto like Godzilla does each time it visits Tokyo!"

* * *

"Yuji, there's an emergency!" Dr. Washam alerted.

Yuji groaned as he walked over to the monitors, "What now...?"

"Gnol Gnauh is rampaging through London and he just blew up Big Ben," the doctor informed. A screen showed the Darkloid causing chaos with his underlings wreaking havoc in the streets.

He frowned, "He's bored... Fine, Team B will go and tend to any surprises he has. I got a score to settle with that Dragon Wannabe." He looked to Dr. Magi, "Mobilize Team B, cuz it's time to kick some ass."

* * *

Team B consisted of the members who had not gone to Kyoto. With Yuji in the lead, there was Daichi, Battler and Hana who just ran into the Teleportal tunnel to exit on the other side into London to see blood and carnage. The clock of Big Ben had been completely blown up and was billowing with smoke and on the ground people were panicking and fleeing as their ran pass the three cyborgs

Battler asked, "What got them all freaked out?"

"Use your eyes," Daichi instructed. Battler did and he wish he hadn't as he saw Darklings attacking and killing people.

"Let's kill these fucks," Yuji growled as he was the last to exit. "Crowned Gao King," he called as his gems hovered out of his pocket and flew into his right arm, transforming into his red and gold gauntlet. He reached behind his back with his left hand and gripped the Red Queen, revving it up as it caught the Darklings' attention. It worked as Darklings turned to Team B.

"Damn, that thing is loud," Daichi complained.

"Here they come," Hana pointed.

"Then armor-up!" Yuji ordered as he dashed forward, beginning the demon slaughter.

"HENSHIN!" the three NEO-NUMBERS called as they transformed and charged into battle.

Musician twirled his Cricket Fork and lopped of heads, swinging it down as he unleashed a sonic blast to wipe them out.

Arachnea danced around with her Spider Kama, taking the heads of surrounding Darklings. Several more ganged up on her as she unleashed her threads, tangling the demons and they were sliced to pieces with a single tug.

Meta was barbequing Darklings with his flamethrower breath be breaking the faces of others that tried to jump him as he swung his super-powered fists. He was quickly surrounded before turning into a stegosaurus and swung his spiked tail to brush them away. He changed back unleashed a shockwave of telekinetic energy that wiped out more. Crouching, Meta then fired a missile from his opened knee as more Darklings were caught in the explosion. He then pointed his right arm and let his machinegun hand do the rest.

Yuji was slicing through hordes of Darklings with the Red Queen. He jumped and did a forward flip as he cleaved another in half. Looking up, a set of three Darklings were coming at him from above and he stepped to the side and swung, catching one, then the second and the third, before revving the Red Queen and obliterated them with a burning slash. He then put his right arm to use as he dashed forward and grabbed another Darkling, its head melting in his hand as he swung its body around like a sack of bricks to knock around its kin. Swinging the Red Queen, Yuji stopped and revved her engine to the max before dashing ahead and spinning like a wheel of fire as all Darklings were scorched in his path. He quickly rested his weapon as he pulled out his Witch Gun and fired into the ground, summoning dragons of stone as they incinerated Darklings with their flaming breath.

Yuji and Musician ended up back-to-back and the Cricket Rider asked, "So, where's their boss?"

Yuji scanned the area, seeing the smoke billowing out of Big Ben. Suddenly, a tower of flames burst out from the top as flames engulfed the clock tower. People who witnessed this cried out in horror as they saw one of London's precious monuments being eaten away by flames.

"Oh," Musician realized.

Yuji said, "You three, stay down here and take down the Darklings. I'm going to go and have chat with Mr. Gnol Gnauh."

"We've dealt with Darklings for ages," Musician replied.

"And so have I. Hope that they don't evolve into Darklings from all the fear and terror floating in the air." He gave Musician an encouraging pat on the shoulder before dashing off. However, he stopped midway to hurl a fireball at a trio of Darklings that were pouncing at Arachnea, causing them to shriek as they were incinerated in an instant. "You're welcome," Yuji said before he dashed towards Big Ben where Gnol probably was.

In his human form, Gnol sat in throne of flames within the burning Big Ben. "I deserve a castle," he mused out loud. He opened up a travel guide. "Hm…Buckingham Palace seems like a nice place." Suddenly, it caught on fire and Gnol looked up to see Yuji standing across from him within the sea of flames. Gnol stood up, tossing the travel guide away, and smirked, "So, I've a guest. Sorry if I couldn't welcome you in more hospitable conditions."

"I'm here to take you down, Gnol," Yuji said. It was not a challenge, it was an absolute fact.

"Only Susano-O can do that, and as you can see he's not here," Gnol remarked.

"Oh, it's always you and Alan! Why don't you marry him if you love him so much!-?" Yuji retorted in annoyance. "I said I'm going to beat you and I'm going to beat you! End. Of. Story."

Gnol assumed his true demonic form and taunted, "I have command over the elements. Your flames are strong but that's just it. I am a creature of rage and fire. What can you possibly do to me?"

WHAM!

In the blink of an eye Yuji had punched Gnol so hard that he flew straight out of Big Ben. There was a big splash in the River Thames since that was where Gnol had landed. Yuji said, "Why fight with elements when I can just break your fucking face in." He looked and saw the flames eating away at the structure. "I better put this fire out."

* * *

Back in the London streets, a mother and daughter were cornered by Darklings before they had their heads lobbed off. Meta stood over them and pointed to his right. The pair got up and ran. Meta's wrist blade slid back into his gauntlet and he turned around to see a Darkling staring at him. "Oh, and what do you want?"

Its response was to screech as its body expanded and its skin got torn to bits. Meta backed away as the Darkling assumed a new form. It had evolved into a Darkloid like Yuji had warned. The Centaur Darkloid stood on four legs with a skull for a face and a horn atop its head. Its hands were covered in gauntlets shaped like unicorn heads with long and sharp horns.

Shrieking, the Darkloid galloped towards Meta who fired at it with his machinegun fingers but they bounced off its armor.

* * *

A park bench was smashed to bits as Arachnea landed on it. She had taken out the Darklings but one of them had evolved into an 8 foot tall mantis-like creature. Its claws were made of solid steel that gleamed and it has four legs to support its insectoid body. It had an exposed ribcage and Arachnea could see the organs pulsing inside, the heart beating and the lungs working. The face was quite disturbing as the right half was human and the left half was insectoid.

"Great…I have to fight a mantis," she muttered.

* * *

As for Musician, he'd been separated from his friends but not by choice. A Darkling had evolved when it pounced, and now it had the body of a lion, wide leathery wings similar to a dragon's, and had a tail of a scorpion. The Manticore Darkloid's roar had concussive force that smashed Musician into a wall, causing cracks to spread out on impact.

"Damn, you're loud," muttered Musician. "But not as loud as me!"

He changed into Rock-Metal form and twirled his Cricket Form which became his Cricket Guitar. "Here's a special private concert just for you! Now shut up and listen!"

He struck the strings and a loud sound burst out of the guitar and hit the Manticore Darkloid. "You hate that? Then you're really going to hate this!" He then charged at the Darkloid and held the guitar by the neck to striking with the blade attachment.

* * *

"OK, he crashed right here," said Yuji as he arrived at the River Thames. A tower of water erupted from the river as Gnol was standing atop of it.

"You are going to regret that," Gnol growled as he formed pressurized balls of water.** "Water Pulse!" **he roared as he tossed the balls at Yuji, the latter dodging as waves of water washed back into the river.** "Hydro Cannon!" **he called as he his hands out in front of him and launched a pressurized stream of water that cut into the wall as Yuji ran to evade it. Yuji pulled out his gun and fired a bullet into the river as a sea serpent emerged before the Darkloid General. He responded taking in a deep breath, **_'VICE STREAM!' _**and spat out a beam of energy that took the serpent's head. Yuji fired more rounds into the ocean and 3 more serpents emerged from the water. "OH PLEASE," he spat as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. A twister and water rose around him as the beasts were caught, blades of wind slicing through them as they were reduced to mere slabs of meat. **"GIGA STORM!"** The twister died down and Gnol bellowed, "IS THAT YOUR BEST?"

"Not even close," Yuji grinned as he got behind Gnol and delivered a 1-2-3 slash combo against Gnol's back, blood spewing as he was launched forward as Yuji fell after him. The demon turned to receive a punch to the face that once again launched him into the river before it froze with Yuji landing on the icy surface.

Gnol burst out from beneath with claws of ice as he dashed at Yuji, the two clashing as they fought along the icy river.

"What's wrong?" Yuji smirked, "I'm not even warmed up yet!"

"You want warm? Then I'll fry you!" he retorted as he launched a blast of water from his mouth that was carrying an electrical current. The blast hit Yuji as he was launched into and through the leg of the bridge as he rolled along the icy floor. **_'Shards of Winter!'_** he cried in his mind as he spat sharp blades of ice from his mouth at Yuji.

The Manakyte saw the blanket of ice and brought his coat up as the shards bounced off the surface. He retaliated with a barrage of Plasma Bolts that pelted Gnol.

* * *

Arachnea had just assumed Venom Form and blocked the Mantis Darkloid claws with her own. Sparks flew as the blades connected. Grunting, she dug in her heels and pushed, sending the Darkloid sliding backwards. She jumped to bury her blades into its head when it hopped right over her to deal four simultaneous kicks with its four legs, sending her crashing to the floor. It landed and Arachnea rolled onto her back before the spider legs on her back scurried her backwards to avoid being stabbed by the Mantis Darkloid's claws. It hissed at her and hissed back.

She fired her lasers at the Darkloid, forcing it to shield itself with its claws. She advanced on it, aiming for the kill, when all of a sudden a charged particle beam flew straight out of nowhere and vaporized the Mantis Darkloid on the spot.

"Well, that's taken care of," said Kamen Rider Geno. He looked to Arachnea who stared back at him. "Oh, no need to thank me."

"Thank you? Why should I thank you, you nut!-?" she snapped. "I had it all taken care of!"

"Yeah, I'm sure of that," Geno responded, not caring about her outburst. "So, have you seen my bro? I heard he was in town."

* * *

"Heavy Metal Vulcan!" A barrage of bullets fired from Musician's guitar, pelting the Manticore Darkloid. Its wings stretched and covered it like a shield, the bullets bouncing off. It then rushed forward and slapped Musician away with its wings. He went tumbling and the Manticore Darkloid pounced on it with its scorpion tail poised for the kill. The tail came down but the stinger embedded itself into the floor. Using a blast of sound from his mouthplate, Musician managed to violently shove the Manticore Darkloid off him. Picking up his guitar, he charged.

It attacked with its stinger but Musician spun on his heel and swung down. The Manticore Darkloid roared as Musician sliced off its stinger, causing dark blood to pour out of the wound like a fountain. Smiling, he leapt onto the creatures back and pulled its head back with the neck of his guitar under its jaw. It tried to shake him off, thrashing about, but Musician kept a firm grip on his instrument.

The tail wrapped around Musician's neck and pulled him right off the Darkloid's back. It roared as it tossed Musician to the ground. This time it pinned him down with its paw on his head, facing away. It growled, opening its jaw, when all of a sudden an intense blast of air pushed the Manticore off Musician.

"Need help?" Jin asked as he hovered next to Musician. Musician didn't question his arrival. He had a Darkloid to finish off.

"HARD ROCK SPIRIT!" Musician shouted as he buried his sonic-empowered fist into the Darkloid's stomach, causing it to explode into a bloody, gory mess.

* * *

Sparks flew as Meta was hit by the horns of the Centaur Darkloid's unicorn head gauntlets. He cursed in pain as he put his hand on his chest. Glaring, he ran at the Darkloid at full speed and used a super powerful shoulder tackle to push it back. It braced itself on its hooves and once Meta landed it spun around and kicked Meta with its hind legs. The hooves slammed into Meta's chin, knocking him through the air and hitting a lamppost, denting it on impact.

The horns on its head and gauntlets glowed and it fired bolts of energy at Meta. Quickly using his rocket boots, Meta jumped and flew from the assault but the Centaur Darkloid continued to fire its energy bolts at the flying Rider who returned fire with his machinegun hand. He also launched a fireball from his mouth and while the explosion injured the creature, it recovered enough to jump up towards Meta to strike him down. But it was struck down first by a bolt of lightning that came crashing down from the sky.

"Huh?" Meta blinked.

"Hey, don't just stand there, finish it off!" said Kai.

Meta used his telekinesis to raise the Darkloid into the air before he jumped and performed a flying kick. "Rider Kick!" he called as his foot slammed into the Darkloid, causing the thing to burst in a violent explosion.

* * *

Yuji was violently blasted through the air. He crashed through a building, and then the building behind that building, followed by another building, making a lot of holes in buildings before he fell and crashed to the ground below. Groaning, Yuji shook his head and removed some of the rubble before looking up to see a dark fireball coming down on him. Acting quickly, Yuji activated his Blue Lantern ring and erected a dome of blue energy. The fireball slammed into the barrier and exploded, causing Yuji to grit his teeth to maintain its integrity. A barrage of fireballs like a meteor shower continued to crash down on Yuji as they exploded all around, marking the street with scorched craters. The barrier was starting to crack from the continuous onslaught before it shattered. Roaring, Yuji raised his arm and fired a stream of dragon fire which swallowed up the fireballs. Gnol anticipated this and absorbed Yuji's flames into his body.

"Fool," said Gnol as he snapped his fingers, causing darkened clouds to roll in. "I know you, and I know flames won't do much good against you, but what about this?" Rain started to pour heavily over the city of London. Yuji was drenched. Gnol then snapped his fingers and a bolt of lightning came crashing down. Yuji screamed as he was struck and forced onto one knee, his body smoking from the lightning bolt.

Gnol landed on the ground and stomped, causing it to crack. Raising his arm, he pulled a chunk out from the ground and shaped it into a spike. He then hurled it towards Yuji, point first, to impale him. Roaring, Yuji countered and punched with the Crowned Gao King. The stone spike shattered, blinding Yuji with a cloud of dust. Gnol appeared out of the dust cloud and grabbed hold of Yuji's Crowned Gao King.

"I remember this thing," growled Gnol.

"Well, do you remember this then?" Yuji grinned as he bashed his forehead into Gnol's face, knocking him back. With the Red Queen, he slashed Gnol across the chest, causing sparks and blood to fly. Gnol drove Yuji back with vacuum blades that Yuji deflected while backing away from Gnol.

Gnol had learnt to reconsider the enemies he had in his era. Chief among them was Susano-O and that had not changed. However, Susano-O seemed weaker in this era. The Riders also couldn't be ignored. And now, Gnol realized that Yuji was a threat as well.

According to Shiro, the top three threats to watch out for in this world were Susano-O, Kamen Rider Showa, and Kamen Rider Liger who was also known as Yuji Fudo. He wondered why the Manakyte wasn't using his armor but then again he didn't care.

"Time for an encore," said Yuji. "Henshin!" He swiped the pass over his belt.

**"ZERO FORM!"**

He charged at Gnol and swiped the pass again.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

**"Strike…Laser…CLAW!" **Liger Zero roared as his claws folded out and he swiped at Gnol, causing the Darkloid to shout.

**"JAGER FORM!"**

The ion boosters came to life and he ran towards Gnol who was starting to recover. His claws slashed across Gnol again and he spun around to land another hit, and another, and another, running circles around Gnol as the Darkloid wasn't fast enough to counter. Kicking Gnol in the chest, Liger Jager leapt into the air for a quick change.

**"SCNEIDER FORM!"**

Replacing his speedy blue armor was his blade-equipped orange armor.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

With the V-Blades all out, he dashed towards Gnol and roared**, "Buster Slash!"**

Gnol roared as he was hit by the attack, blood and sparks exploding from his body.

**"PANZER FORM!"**

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

Decked in his heavy green armor, Liger Panzer revealed his entire arsenal and unleashed them upon Gnol,** "Burning…Big…BANG!-!-!"**

A series of successive explosions erupted on Gnol as Liger Panzer's ammo was emptied out on him. Yuji felt the armor overheat and groaned slightly. He looked at the smoke cloud and then saw a figure coming at him. Gnol burst forth and hit Liger Panzer with enough force that it dislodged his belt and he fell to the ground as his armor vanished.

Gnol looked injured, but he started to heal. Unfortunately, it was a bit too slow for his taste. He called forth a pair of Darklings. Yuji, getting up, expected the two grunts to attack him to buy Gnol time to heal. However, Gnol instead grabbed the two Darklings and began to devour them in front of Yuji. With each bite he took, his healing accelerated, and once he was done he picked his teeth and revealed his armor in pristine condition.

"You should learn, boya, that only divine weaponry can hope to permanently injure me," Gnol gloated. Yuji tried to punch with the Crowned Gao King but Gnol caught his fist. "I've studied you, I've studied what you can do from Shiro's computer, and I know this isn't your full power. Show me, give me all you got, so I can use all my power to crush you."

"And then what?" Yuji asked.

"And then I'll present your skull to Susano-O and tell him how he failed to save his friend," Gnol sneered. He let go of Yuji's fist and blasted him with dark energy from his chest, sending Yuji sliding along the wet ground. **"EVEN GODS TREMBLE AT MY MIGHT! WHAT HOPE DO YOU HAVE?" **

"Hope?" Yuji asked, looking at his ring. "I carry hope with me all the time. But a demon like you, a being full of rage, who seeks nothing but to bring about despair and suffering would not understand that. You claim Alan defeated you, and if he did then that means you're not all powerful. I've faced the worst this Multiverse has to offer and I've won. Never alone, though. I'm never alone. I always fight with my friends backing me up, and their hope becomes mine." The blue glow of his ring intensified. "And hope is something that can always fight against despair."

"Words…just meaningless words…" growled Gnol as he used his power to turn the water into spears of ice. Hundreds of them hovered over his head, their tips pointed at Yuji. "Goodbye, Yuji Fudo." He sent them flying.

However, the spears didn't hit their target as they were knocked out of the air by spears that were also made out of ice. The ice weapons shattered as they crashed against each other, pieces falling around Yuji. The assault ceased and smiled as he knew only one person who could do this.

"Onii-sama, need help?" Yuki offered.

"Yuki?" Yuji questioned. There was his sister, Yuki, and she wasn't alone. There was Jin the Wind User and Kai Inazuma, fellow Manakytes. "Jin? Kai?"

"Greetings, laddie," Jin greeted.

"What's up, bro?" Kai added.

"More interlopers?" Gnol snarled. He shouted as he was hit by a charged particle beam in the back and pushed onto his hands and knees, his back smoking. Standing behind Gnol was Kamen Rider Geno.

"Yuri?" Yuji's eyes widened as Geno removed his belt and let his armor shatter.

"Need help?" Yuri offered. Gnol rose up to his feet. He smelled them, they all had the same stink.

"Manakyte," Gnol identified.

"Each and every one of us, ugly," Yuri confirmed. They all surrounded him. "If you think one Manakyte is bad, think about what will happen to you if you fight five of us."

"And not just them," said Meta as joined them along with Arachnea and Musician.

Gnol growled at them, exposing his sharp teeth, but they were not intimidated by his fearsome looks, or his growls or snarls. Heck, his roar wasn't going to scare them at all.

"Consider your options and look at the odds," said Yuki coldly, as cold as her aura. "You might be the Orochi incarnate, but that does not make you immortal."

"Fight back and you're dead," warned Jin, wind spiraling around his fists. Kai had electricity crackling from his fingers and eyes.

"Oh, and please fight back," Yuri grinned as he took out his Gao Jewel. "Me and my friend here would love to dance."

Gnol was surrounded from all sides and he growled, "I'll kill you!" He roared, "I'LL KILL YOU ALL!" The Manakytes prepared to strike back with all their elemental fury.

Yuji then decided to speak as he joined his friends. "I'm curious about something, Gnol. A big, strong demon like yourself, why do you need help from someone like Shiro?" Yuji inquired.

"It's simple, really. He's the only one who can free my original body," Gnol informed Yuji.

"Right, because he has the Oathbreaker, a sword neither humans or demons can wield and he qualifies since he's a machine," Yuji reasoned. "But why do you need your body? You're strong enough…" Yuji's eyes narrowed, "Unless…" Yuji Fudo, son of Yusei and Aki Fudo, not only inherited his parent's dueling skills but also their intelligence and wisdom. "Your body's unstable, isn't it? It's been unstable since you absorbed the rest of your fragments." Gnol didn't offer a reply and that just confirmed Yuji's theory. "I thought so. That's why you need Shiro to free your body. You're still just a pile of heads all stacked together. Without a body you can't remain stable for long and will eventually collapse."

Gnol growled. This…dragon in human form had already figured it out. Feeling the pain of his body, he spoke in a dangerous tone, "I will remember this." He surrounded himself in flames and vanished.

"He ran!" Meta shouted. "Hah, we made him run! Like a coward! Wait until Alan sees this!"

"Baka, we had our chance to kill him and we wasted it," Musician growled.

"We saved the city, at least," Arachnea said. "I can't say about the people who got caught up in all this," she added sadly. Yuji put a hand on her shoulder. He then looked at the other Manakytes for an explanation.

"Well, why are you guys here?" asked Yuji.

"Was in the area," answered Jin. "Saw trouble and decided to help."

"Yuki called me," explained Kai. "Right there on the phone. She said I needed to get to London as fast as I could. So, I turned myself to electricity and zapped myself right here."

"And, well, you know us, Yuji," grinned Yuri. "So, anybody in the mood for some Fish n Chips at an English pub?"

"What about Big Ben?" Yuki asked.

"Oh, we can have that Showa guy fix things!" Yuri grinned. He noticed Yuji frowning. "What?"

"He can't use his time powers anymore," Yuji told him.

Yuri blinked, "…well…that sucks." He then grinned again, "So, pub and Fish n Chips! Who's with me?"

* * *

Gnol returned to the Pyramid Base and fell to his knees. He tossed his head back and roared as he shifted between his human and demon form. His elemental powers were fighting against each other, destabilizing his body. His only chance was to expel them quickly. One final roar and seven streams of elemental energy poured from his mouth before taking shape into seven figures which stood in front of him, hidden in the shadows.

Gnol stood up and looked at himself. "I still have my armor…" he whispered. He grinned and looked at the seven who stood in front of him. "Identify yourselves."

The seven figures, stepping into the light, revealed themselves to be Yuki-Gnol, Rai-Gnol, Mizu-Gnol, Kaze-Gnol, Yami-Gnol, Kin-Gnol and Tsuchi-Gnol in their demon forms. They then got down on one knee and bowed their heads

"We are your servants and we live to obey," they said in unison.

Gnol's grin widened. He may not have the power of all the other elements of the Orochi, but he did not feel weak at all. He only had fire, but that was enough for him. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth as rage, immense rage, rose from within as he remembered his enemies. His anger caused a fiery circle to form around him as the flames spiraled around him.

"Yuji Fudo…I now acknowledge you as my enemy alongside Susano-O," Gnol swore.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Yuji kicked ass today, and also he got backup in the form of Jin and Kai. Now, this isn't that cowardly thief Jin. This is Kaze no Jin, a Wind Manakyte. Kai, of course, is another Manakyte living in Rika's house. He and her are currently dating. Shinichi doesn't have a problem with that since it means she won't try to seduce him anymore. That was just too weird for him. Well, also returning are the other fragments of the Orochi. What will happen next? Of course, as you can see, with these Orochis out, things may have just become harder.**


	102. The Legacy of Cain Part 46

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 46: Futile Resistance**

"Gnol attacked London," said Shinichi. "It's all over the news."

"And?" Alan prompted.

"Yuji and Team B responded. They managed to drive him away, but with a little help," added Shinichi. "It's a good thing we had them on standby. Thanks for the suggestion."

"You're welcome."

The group was in their shared room in Michiru's grandmother's teahouse with a map on the floor. Marked with X's were the South-Eastern and North-Western branches which Shiro had hit. Kanna was included in the meeting as well.

"It's pretty clear what we have to do here," said Shinichi. "We'll need to guard the remaining stones."

"That much is clear," Alan agreed. Shiro had destroyed a sealing stone while they were in the city. He'd sent the Cybermen to distract them while he destroyed a sealing stone. He had humiliated them and it was clear that they were not happy about it. The loss of lives just made it worse.

"There are six branches left so here are your assignments," began Shinichi. "Alan, you'll help guard the Main Branch in the North. I'll take care of things in the South."

"Alone?" Kanna asked.

Shinichi continued, "Hanyuu and Kanna will both look after the Eastern Branch while Chiaki an Michiru will watch over the Western Branch. That just leaves the South-Western and North-Eastern branches. Yokoshima, you get the latter while Shogo gets the former." The two cyborgs nodded.

"Excuse me, not to be rude, but why am I paired with Hainiryun-sama?" Kanna asked.

"Considering what we're facing, Hanyuu will be able to protect you," said Shinichi.

"And why is Smith-san guarding the Main Branch?" Kanna continued. "Why not Hainiryun-sama and me?"

"Does it really make a difference?" Shinichi asked. "Shiro could hit any of these places at anytime. It doesn't really matter who gets assigned where. What matters is stopping Shiro and Gnol. Now, where was I? Oh, right." He paused. "Now, if you're in trouble, contact the others immediately and also notify Team B. Are we clear? Any questions?" Yokoshima raised his arm. "Yes?"

"Can we have lunch now? I'm starving," Yokoshima requested.

"Tear open an MRE bag," Shinichi suggested.

"Oh, right!" Yokoshima tore a bag open and smiled as he started eating.

"What is he eating?" Kanna asked. Shinichi tossed her a bag.

"MRE's, or Meals Ready to Eat," Shinichi told her. "They're military food rations we packed for these kinds of operations. Way back when they used to taste bad despite providing the appropriate nutrients but we've got scientists who helped to make them taste good."

Kanna looked skeptically at the white bag marked with the letters MRE and tore it open before reaching inside. She took out what looked like a tablet. She sniffed it and then popped it inside of her mouth and was stunned. "Tastes like sushi!"

"Actually, it'll automatically taste like your favorite food," Shinichi explained. "You just imagine what you want to eat and the flavor will match it."

"So, about this Shiro Juuyon, what if he tries to attack more than one target at once?" Kanna asked.

"Then we'll fight back, as hard as we can, and stop him," said Alan. "There's just one Oathbreaker so he can only destroy one stone at a time. Also, it seems like he can only destroy one stone per night."

"Maybe the sword has restrictions," Chiaki suggested.

"Might be. We can't risk it though. Since we came he might just speed up his schedule."

Unbeknownst to them, they were being watched.

* * *

_"Also, it seems like he can only destroy one stone per night."_

_"Maybe the sword has restrictions."_

Meanwhile, Shiro Juuyon was spying on the meeting. "How right you are." He looked at his Oathbreaker. While it needed the blood of the Kekkain Clan, the sword's own energy was exhausted each time and needed at least 24 hours to recharge before the next time he could destroy a sealing stone. He had yet to find a way around it.

Kanna had asked if Shiro Juuyon might attack all the locations at once and he smiled, "That's an idea..." With all of them too focused on driving away the attacking forces, Shiro could just slip right in and destroy a sealing stone.

* * *

Hiba was training in the dojo. He hated the idea of allying with outsiders but the elders and the Renzo had spoken and agreed to allow them to help in the fight against Shiro Juuyon and his mechanical menaces. Still, Hiba believed that this alliance would just blow up in their faces. He couldn't trust those outsiders. They weren't even human!

"I'll show them that we don't need those outsiders' help," Hiba growled to himself. He would guard the sealing stone in the main estate just to make sure nothing happened and if this Shiro Juuyon person came he would take him down and show everyone that the Kekkain Clan did not need anyone.

* * *

"Wait, so you have a giant monster in storage but you won't use it tonight?" Akaneko questioned, confused as she scratched her head to understand her master's plan.

"That is correct and while I would enjoy seeing it go on a rampage it's a bit too early," said Shiro. "Besides, even if it's powered up it'll need to have maintenance check done on it to make sure it doesn't shut down right in the middle."

"Machines…" scoffed Gnol, "Where has tradition gone?"

Shiro informed, "Well, I'm going to bring Gary along to help me with the next stone." He then asked, "Gnol, would you like to help me out?"

"Don't you have machines to do that for you?" Gnol asked pointedly.

"I do, but it'll take time for me to build a large army of Cybermen," Shiro answered. "However, I would like to see you put all your rage into something and letting it loose," he added, grinning. Gnol returned the grin with his own.

"I'll see what I can do. Mark my words, this Darkloid will be more than just a distraction. It will mark their doom," swore Gnol.

"I'd like to see that. I'd _really_ like to see _that_."

* * *

Alan used his ring to project holograms of the DALEK units and Cybermen.

"OK, what are those?" Yokoshima asked, pointing at the DALEK units. "They look ridiculous! Like trashcans!"

"Don't laugh at their appearance. Back in my universe the Daleks are one of the most fearsome races in existence," Alan explained.

"Race? But they're robots," Michiru pointed out.

"Well, Shiro made robots that look like the Daleks' mechanical shells. I used my X-Ray vision. They're just machines that look like Daleks, but they have the same weapons. They are made of a powerful metal alloy, possess a force field, and can fire death rays," Alan explained. Kanna reached to touch the images.

"Are those toilet plungers on their arms?" Chiaki asked.

"Suction cup arms," Alan answered. "They have enough vacuum power to stick to anything and never let go. I've actually seen a Dalek crush a human skull with that thing." He grimaced at the memory. "It ain't pretty."

"When did you see these things?" Shinichi asked.

"When I was a kid, back before I joined the Corps," Alan answered. "And these Cybermen, well, these guys here back where I came from hail from the Planet Mondus. It got so cold that the inhabitants decided to cyber-convert themselves just to survive. They did away with their biological parts and emotions, making themselves better and better but replacing their hearts with hearts of steel. Their goal is to assimilate every other humanoid race and make them into Cybermen too."

"What about Shiro Juuyon's Cybermen?" Kanna asked. "How did he make them?"

"Robotic suits of armor, with a real human brain housed in the helmet," Alan answered, causing Kanna to go nauseous and green. "You need anything? A paper bag?"

"No, I'm good," Kanna answered, calming herself down. She was actually horrified. Those Cybermen used to be human. "If he makes them with human brains in them, how come nobody noticed anyone going missing?"

"Homeless people," Shinichi concluded logically. "Nobody would miss them."

"Exactly," said Alan.

"How many homeless people could there be in Japan?" asked Kanna.

"He's not just limited to Japan, Kanna-chan," said Shinichi. "He has the whole world to choose from. A smorgasbord of brains just for him."

Kanna paled when she heard this. If she thought that Shiro Juuyon was dangerous before, to learn that he could kidnap anyone in the world proved just hos resourceful the evil android could be. It also horrified her that the Cybermen had been innocent people before they were forcefully converted and assimilated into Shiro's army. It was a fate worse than death. Killing them would be like freeing their souls.

"Alright, we all have our assignments," Shinichi said. "Just go and report to your posts and make sure those stones are safe."

Shogo, Chiaki, Yokoshima and Michiru saluted, "Roger!"

"Hanyuu-chan, be careful," Shinichi said to his adopted sister, putting a hand on her head. "I mean it. Kaa-chan would be really upset with me if I let anything happen to you."

"I'm not a child, Shinichi," Hanyuu told him as she removed his hand from her head. "But I appreciate how you care."

Kanna just stared at the exchange. _'This is our ancestor?_' she thought.

* * *

**NORTHERN BRANCH**

Night fell and Alan stood at his post in front of the mansion's gate along with several of the Kekkain clansmen. Since he possessed super-enhanced hearing, he could hear them. Not all of them were enthusiastic about this alliance and were only doing so reluctantly to safeguard the seals. Hiba, especially, was not happy about the arrangement. Some of the things he heard were not so flattering

"And I thought Daichi was bad," Alan muttered.

"Eh, relax, Partner," Bazel said consolingly. "Don't let their words bother you."

Alan shrugged, "It's fine, you don't need to worry. I've heard worse before. Besides, if this means stopping Shiro's plans then I'm willing to endure and bear it." He then tensed up when he heard a strange sound, almost like something digging...from underground.

"Everyone! Get back! Get back!" Alan shouted. Suddenly, a Mole Darkloid burst out of the ground, sending dirt and stone flying into the air in a cloud of dust. Its nose was a large drill and it had very sharp and wicked looking claws. Its mouth looked like something which would look more at home on a leech as it made sucking noises. It wasn't along, though, as Darklings began climbing out of the hole.

"Well, it looks like we have our work cut out for us tonight," Alan said as his ring glowed.

* * *

**NORTH-EASTERN BRANCH**

Blue Beetle yawned and stretched as he stood guard at his post. "So...boring..." He grumbled, "I wonder if Shiro is gonna try something here." His answer came to him in the form of a Darkloid which looked like an ogre with a lion's head and dragging a giant hammer behind him. "I really should stop jinxing myself," he groaned. "Get back!" he shouted to the clansmen as he prepared to fight. "I got-"

**WHAM!**

He was hit hard by the hammer and sent crashing right into the wall surrounding the estate, leaving a deep impression of his body. The guards wince at this.

"Ow," uttered Blue Beetle and he scowled. "OK, no more Mr. Nice Beetle!" He activated his Rocket Arm and the exhaust flames pulled him right out of the impression and towards the demon. "ROCKET PUNCH!" he shouted as he smashed the rocket into the Shishi-Oni Darkloid's face, sending it staggering backwards. "ROCKET PUNCH #2!" He used a rocket-powered right hook that sent it toppling. He deactivated the rocket and used the pogo-stick which formed from his left leg to carry him high into the air. He then shifted it into Gatling gun form and fired at the Darkloid, hitting it with a barrage of bullets as he hovered in midair. Dropping out of the air he deactivated the Gatling gun and formed his chainsaw on his right foot and brought it down with a heel kick to spill the creatures blood. Landing, he formed a pair of scissors on his right arm and slashed at the creature. It roared and brought down its hammer but it was blocked by a shield which formed from Blue Beetle's right arm. The impact did make a crater around him but it did not do more than that.

"ROCKET PUNCH #3!" he called as he formed his Rocket Arm again and hit the Darkloid hard enough in the stomach to send it sliding backwards and stun it. He pointed the Rocket Arm up and it carried him high into the air as he formed the Drill Leg on his left leg. He then used the rocket to propel him downwards with the drill spinning.

"ROCKET DRILL KICK!"

The Darkloid looked up just in time for the drill to meet its face which allowed it to meet its end as it exploded. Blue Beetle landed with a satisfied smile but then his smile faded as he saw the Darklings had emerged.

"Get down!" he shouted at the guards as he willed his armor to form a Gatling gun. While one would normally have it form out of their gauntlet, Blue Beetle had his weapon form from his left boot. The Gatling gun was pointed at the Darklings before the barrel rotated, peppering the creatures with lethal rapid fire. He could feel his leg vibrate as the gun fired but he still continued to gun the monsters down before they fell and disintegrated in death. "Booyah!"

* * *

**SOUTHERN BRANCH**

The guards stood at the gate, ready for anything. They had all been given information on the enemy and knew what to watch out for. They spotted Shiro in the distance as he approached them.

"It's him! Surround him!" The guards all rushed ahead and surrounded Shiro. They held their spears up to his neck. "Don't move," one guard warned as he cautiously stepped forward and took Shiro's sword from him.

"I'm really flattered that you went through all this trouble," smiled Shiro as he looked at all the guards. "Well, look at you, with your fancy spears and anti-demon techniques. You work so hard just to be part of something big. You should really pat yourselves on the back." His jovial tone then turned sinister as he smirked, "Because you'll never know when your life will be extinguished. It could all end just like that." He snapped his fingers.

**"Exterminate."**

Gary hovered in the air along with five other DALEK units. They aimed their guns and prepared to fire when all of a sudden they were attacked by a flock of paper cranes.

"**Vision has been blocked**," Gary reported.

Shiro knew those paper cranes and scowled and looked to see the gate opened as Showa stepped out. "Coming for me, huh?"

"Yes, I was," said Shiro as he drew the Oathbreaker while Shinichi drew the Higurashi no Yaiba. They stared each other down as the guards prepared themselves for the worse when all of a sudden Shiro just grinned and said, "But not anymore!" He suddenly teleported away along with the DALEK units and Gary.

"Dammit!" Showa cursed.

"Why are you displeased?" one of the guards asked. "They've fled."

"Because now he's going after another target! I have to go after him!"

* * *

**EASTERN BRANCH**

"So, you allowed yourself to be adopted, Hainiryun-sama?" Kanna asked. She was with Hanyuu and the Onmyouji-in-training was having a conversation with her ancestor. She felt a little self-conscious. The rest of the guards kept their distance.

"Well, when I was reincarnated I had the body of a child. I was a minor and I needed a parent," Hanyuu began to explain. "Shinichi's mother was happy enough to do so since she always wanted daughters."

"She sounds like a nice woman," Kanna admired.

"She is, a little eccentric at times, but she's really kind and generous and..." Hanyuu trailed off and looked through a pair of binoculars. "We've got DALEKs, incoming!"

Five DALEKs approached the gate with Gary in the lead. "**Knock knock**," he started. "**What time is it? Extermination time**." He fired his death ray at the gate.

"MOVE!" Hanyuu shouted as she pushed Kanna out of the way as the death ray sailed past, blowing it up.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" The DALEK units fired, killing the guards dead.

"This...can't get any worse..." grimaced Hanyuu as she witnessed their deaths.

"Oh, yes it can," Shiro grinned as he stepped forward, holding the Oathbreaker. "Good evening."

"So, are you going to kill me now?" Hanyuu asked.

"Kill you? No, not at all. I'm going to let you live," Shiro offered.

"Why the generous offer? You didn't show mercy before?" Hanyuu asked curiously.

"Because, having Shinichi pissed off at me, really enraged, is not part of my plan," Shiro told him. "Oh, I will taunt him to rile him up but I know that if I ever hurt a hair on your pretty little head he'd come right at me, like an unstoppable storm. It doesn't matter if I sealed away his temporal powers, he'll find a way somehow. Gebok was right about anger making him unstoppable and I don't want to tempt fate more than I already have. Now, let me pass." That last part was not a request. It was an order.

"As if I would let you kill anymore of my clansmen," Hanyuu retorted, her eyes red.

"I know you wouldn't allow me," Shiro replied. "Stun her."

Hanyuu screamed as she was shot in the back and Kanna screamed, "Hainiryun-sama!" She tried to get up to help as Hanyuu fell but a DALEKs' suction cup had already stuck to her back, keeping her in place.

"**DO WE EX-TER-MIN-ATE HER TOO?**" the DALEK asked.

"No, keep her alive. We're going to need a hostage," Shiro said. "Come along now, Gary."

* * *

Taking out the Mole Darkloid and its Darkling familiars was easy enough. All he needed to do was bring out the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and they were all taken out in a single blaze of destruction. Now Alan was experiencing another problem.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" the DALEK units all cried out as they fired on Alan's energy shield. He had it erected to protect him and the Kekkain Clansmen.

"**E-NE-MY SHIELD TOO PO-WER-FUL! IN-CREASE E-NER-GY OUT-PUT OF ALL WEA-PONS! MA-XI-MUM EX-TER-MIN-A-TION!**" a DALEK unit commanded.

"Damn!" Alan cursed.

"Can't you just blast them?" Bazel asked.

"This time they have their force fields active! I'm going to need the right frequency so I can penetrate them!" He paused. "No dirty jokes."

"Wasn't even gonna try."

* * *

Shiro walked through the corridor as he stepped past the bodies. He was walking behind a DALEK unit which just so happened to be Gary.

When turned a corner, Gary and Shiro spotted something poking their head out of a doorway. "**Exterminate**," Gary said as he raised his gun only for Shiro to stop him.

"Wait," said Shiro as he walked towards the door. He grabbed it and threw it open to see several children cowering in fear. "Children," he murmured. They saw that he was covered in blood and trembled in fear, especially since he was holding a sword. "Go to sleep," he said while giving them a hard look as he closed the door.

"**Suggestions, sir? Should I exterminate them?**"

"Leave them," Shiro replied. "Come on, we're going down to the basement."

* * *

Showa came upon dead bodies, and also several DALEK units hanging around in front of the gate. One of them was holding Kanna hostage. Kanna saw him and the DALEK units all turned their attention towards him.

"**KA-MEN RI-DER SHO-WA I-DEN-TI-FIED! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" the DALEK units cried out as they aimed to fire. "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**"

Showa quickly unleashed his attack. A flock of paper cranes flew at the DALEKs, shocking the Onmyouji as she witnessed a technique her clan had developed being used by the cyborg. The paper cranes were infused with energy and they exploded when they hit the DALEKs. The one holding Kanna loosened its grip due to the shock of the explosion.

"You know Onmyoudo," she uttered. "How?"

"An Oni taught me," he answered. He looked at Hanyuu and he froze. He spoke in a low and dangerous voice, "Who did this?" He eyed the DALEKs who were recovering. "Was it you?"

**"KA-MEN RI-DER SHO-WA! PRE-PARE TO BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!"**

"You first," he replied as a fiery aura engulfed him and exploded outwards. The DALEKs backed away as they saw the flames surround Showa in the form of a tornado before lightning arched around him.

With a single swing of his arm, Showa dispersed the flames. His armor had changed, his helmet skull-like with horns, armor patterned like tiger skin, and sporting a pair of gauntlets with very sharp claws.

"**KA-MEN RI-DER SHO-WA HAS CHANGED! COMMENCE IM-ME-DIATE EX-TER-MIN-A-TION!**" the DALEKs screamed.

However, before they could fire their death rays Showa was instantly in front of them and in a flash he sliced off their arms, causing them to panic.

With lighting speed he struck, electrified claws shocking the DALEKs' system before they blew up.

Kanna stared at Showa as his armor shifted back to its default form. "Take care of Hanyuu-chan," he told Kanna before going inside.

* * *

The guards in the basement all saw Gary hovering over them. They threw their Shikigami but they were burnt as they hit an invisible force field.

"**Exterminate**," Gary called as he fired his death ray. One of the guards was hit and his skeleton became visible as he dropped dead. "**Exterminate**," Gary said as he continued to shoot the guards dead.

Shiro stepped down the stairs into the basement and faced the sealing stone. "And now, once more." He pulled back to swing when he heard a loud shout.

"SHIRO! DROP THE SWORD!" Shiro scowled, recognizing that voice, and looked up to see Showa at the top of the stairs. Showa looked at all the bodies, then at the DALEK unit hovering in mid-air. "This ends here."

"Not for me," said Shiro. "Gary, exterminate him."

"**Exterminate,**" Gary called as he fired but Showa jumped over the railing as the death ray soared over him. "**Don't move or be exterminated**."

Shiro, watching as Showa dodged the continuous assault of death rays, returned his attention to the sealing stone. He stared at his blood-soaked blade and shrugged before burying it all the way through the stone. Cracks spread all over the stone, to Showa's horror. Gary stopped firing to watch as the stone shattered to pieces.

"And another one bites the dust," concluded Shiro.

"NO!" Showa shouted in despair. He was hit by Gary and screamed in pain as he fell onto his hands and knees before collapsing flat onto the ground.

"That blast would've killed a normal human, but you're no normal human, not anymore," said Shiro as he stood over a trembling Showa. "I'm not gonna kill you either. Not yet, anyway. I'm going to let you live so you can see my triumph when I finally won." He went to walk away but Showa grabbed his ankle. "Let go," Shiro commanded as he shook Showa's hand off and followed Gary out of the basement.

* * *

Alan drew the DALEK units' fire away from the Kekkain clansmen as he took to the air, leading them away as they gave chase.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" they cried repeatedly like a sort of chant as they tried to shoot Alan down with their death rays.

Alan spun around and fired at a DALEK, blasting it to bits when his energy beam hit its eye stalk. That was a Dalek's weak spot and these artificial ones seemed to share the same weakness.

The DALEK units continued to fire until they heard a command. "**RE-TURN TO BASE! RE-TURN TO BASE!**" they all shouted before they vanished from Alan's sight.

"They're gone," said Bazel.

"Yeah," Alan frowned. The only reason Shiro would order a withdraw was because… "Dammit…"

* * *

Michiru, along with a few healers, tended to the wounded and the children who'd been orphaned tonight due to Shiro's actions. He may have spared them, but he left them with a much crueler fate. Those poor children would now be without their parents but they still had their clan, their family, to take care of them.

Chiaki sighed heavily. Like the others his and Michiru's post had been attacked and there was loss of life. They had guessed correctly and Shiro had attacked all the targets at once. The only one who hadn't been officially attacked was Shinichi and that was only because Shiro and his DALEKs had teleported away to target a different stone.

When he heard that Hanyuu had been attacked, Chiaki was both worried and furious. He did become relieved when he heard that Hanyuu had survived along with Kanna. His girlfriend had only been stunned. As for Kanna, she still had a circular mark on her back from a DALEK's suction cup holding her. It would fade, eventually.

"At least the children were spared," Chiaki spoke. Alan, who was with him, nodded silently. Hanyuu had informed them that she had found children who'd been spared during Shiro's attack. The question was why would Shiro spare children? But did it really matter?

"I know how you're feeling, Chiaki," Alan said, understanding his friend's plight. Even with all the power at his disposal he couldn't prevent the deaths of the people tonight. "But we can't let it get to us. We need to stay focused on protecting the remaining stones." Three had already been destroyed and only five were left.

"I'm just worried about Hanyuu-chan, Alan. you're worried about Shinichi too, aren't you?" Chiaki inquired.

"Of course I am. Shiro's been messing with him since this mission started. First he takes away Shinichi's time powers and the next he even destroys a stone in front of him just to prove that he couldn't be stopped as a way of taunting him," Alan replied. "The last thing we need is Shinichi vowing a vendetta against Shiro and going on revenge spree." Alan remembered the last time it happened. Nothing else mattered but Shinichi's revenge. However, there had been more to it than that as Shinichi wanted to protect what he had left by destroying his enemies.

* * *

"You spared the children," Gnol stated.

"Yes, and?" Shiro asked as he polished the Oathbreaker.

"You spared the children! You could've killed them too! Didn't you once tell me you tried to kill those little brats years ago?" Gnol snapped.

"Years ago I suffered a nervous breakdown due to an identity crisis. Also, I have my reasons." Shiro admired his reflection in the blade.

"Which are?" Gnol prompted. Shiro swiveled around in his chair to look at Gnol.

"Killing kids isn't as fun as killing grownups who try to resist. But I really love to traumatize them, especially when they learn what I've done to their families and right under their noses too," Shiro answered, grinning sadistically.

Gnol thought about the logic behind Shiro's words and then smiled as well. It did make sense and sound more fun as well. Shiro's actions had traumatized those young ones, giving them nightmares, and possibly demoralizing them as well. However, there was a chance they would use this to motivate themselves into attempting revenge but if they did then they'd be dead and their blood would be spilt by Shiro's sword.

* * *

A white wolf and a black wolf were observing from the rooftops.

"Aneue, I think we should help them," the black wolf spoke. On its forehead was a silver mark which resembled a crescent moon.

"Yes, I agree, Imouto," answered the white wolf. Its forehead was marked as well but with a sun instead. "Come on, I can't wait to talk to Susano-O-dono again. And I know you can't wait to speak with his brother, Imouto."

"Aneue!" the black wolf blushed.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: You guys have to agree that Shiro is an asshole. He's also getting closer to his goal and no matter what the heroes do they can't stop him. He's like 2 steps ahead of them. Also, unlike them, Shiro had backing from the RoC while they're cut off from ARMOR. But, it seems like divine intervention is about to enter.**


	103. The Legacy of Cain Part 47

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 47: Chaos, Discord & Confusion**

"Alright, people, can you tell me what this is?" said Shiro as he held up a jar to his audience.

"A bug jar," Aoneko answered.

"Not just any old bug jar and not just any old bugs either," Shiro replied. "You see, a few months back I sent one of these lovely little bugs to the Hive and watched as it made everyone go mad. So, I've been thinking. What will happen if I sent about, I dunno, 1,000,000 of these things?"

"Chaos," answered Akaneko.

"Discord!" answered Kineko

"Confusion!" answered Momoneko.

"You're all correct!" praised Shiro, causing the catgirls to beam. "I'd like to call this new plan 'Operation CDC': Chaos, Discord & Confusion! And these Rage Flies are going to help me!"

"So basically, instead of us destroying them, you're going to make them destroy themselves," Gnol summarized.

"I know! Isn't it ingenious?" Shiro grinned excitedly.

"I was going to say 'lazy'," Gnol said.

"Oh, come on! It'll be fun to watch them go nuts and kill each other!" Shiro insisted.

"Umm...Juuyon-sama, aren't you worried about how they might affect the Sentinel?" Momoneko asked with concern. She'd read in a comic book once that if anyone as powerful as Alan turned evil it never went well for anyone. Shiro patted her head.

"Oh, relax my dear Momoneko," Shiro said calmly, "I've made sure to program them to avoid Sentinel." He then added, "Of course it would've been fun to see him go nuts and kill everybody, I know that it wouldn't be fun if he decided to go after us. Too bad, though."

"But-" Momoneko wanted to argue but she was interrupted by her master's kiss. She closed her eyes and purred as she returned the kiss.

When he broke lip contact he told her, "Don't worry so much my dear. You're talking to the master of the Xanatos Gambit. No matter whatever the outcome, I'll win."

"**But sir, aren't you worried that one of the rage flies might infect you?**" Gary asked.

"That is a possibility, but like I said I've programmed them. They won't come after me and since our enemies will they'll be too busy killing each other I'll be able to walk on in and destroy the next stone without so much as a fuss," Shiro claimed confidently.

Sitting on the table was the device containing the ALPHA-01 AI. He picked it up and examined it but Shiro quickly snatched it away.

"Careful, he's fragile!" said Shiro.

"Of course," smiled Gnol. "You do love playing with your toys." He put his arm around Shizuko's shoulders and walked away. "Come along now, Shizuko, and let us retire to our quarters."

"Master, what are you planning?" Shizuko asked as they arrived at their quarters.

"A contingency plan, just in case Shiro tries something against me," Gnol told her.

* * *

Alan sighed as he looked at Shinichi. The Lantern was able to convince the Rider to spar with him to let loose some steam. They were going to spar in the forest outside the city, away from prying eyes.

Alan ducked as Shinichi swung at him. Alan noted that Shinichi fought like his whole body as a weapon. This reminded Alan of what someone once told him, about how anything was fair game in a battle of life and death. Shinichi continued his onslaught as Alan continued to dodge. He finally stopped dodging and grabbed Shinichi's fist before tossing him to the ground. He then pinned him down with his whole body like a wrestler.

"Say uncle," Alan ordered. "Say it."

"Alright, you win! Uncle! Uncle!" Shinichi admitted. Alan got off him and helped him up.

"Feeling better?" Alan asked.

"No, not really," Shinichi grunted. Alan sighed.

"Look, Shinichi, trust me when I say I understand what you're going through. You're pissed at Shiro for everything that's happened but you can't let him get to you. We need to be levelheaded, not angry and disoriented."

"Yeah, yes, I get it," Shinichi relented, "And don't worry about it. I won't go all crazy like last time and seek revenge. All I want to do now is chrome_find class="find_in_page findysel"to stop Shiro before he does any more harm. That's it."

"If you say so..." Alan said before changing the subject, "Come on, let's head back to the teashop. I heard Michiru's grandmother was preparing a special lunch for us."

"Well, in that case, lead the way. I hope they have enough for seconds."

"Yeah, she knows how much you guys eat," said Alan, amused.

"I meant you," Shinichi joked.

* * *

As the sun began to set, casting an orange glow all over the city of Kyoto, Shiro stood on a roof admiring the sunset. "What a beautiful sunset," he said, smiling. "Let's see if I can add some chaos to the mix." He opened up the jar and ordered, "Come on out, boys!" The rage flies starting to fly out of the jar, the swarm resembling a cloud as Shiro watched on with anticipation. The swarm then started to fly away and spread out to do their master's bidding. "What a nice night for a massacre," he mused before teleporting away.

* * *

Zero hovered in the air, performing aerial recon as he thought about his life up until now. Back in GIN-SHOCKER, he'd been content with being a soldier despite the cruel treatment he suffered from his handler. From the treatment he taught himself to be a disciplined and loyal soldier, never questioning his purpose or orders. However, after his revival, he was beginning to question his purpose. After a talk he had with Shinichi he decided to abandon GIN-SHOCKER. He was still a soldier, that had yet to change, but he had the power to choose a reason to fight for. Still, he still possessed the military discipline of a soldier and got a job as one of the Sonozaki Clan's bodyguards. Using his powers to protect instead of destroy was actually more satisfying.

But, he was still lonely. He had watched how happy Shinichi and Rena were and couldn't help but feel jealous. He wondered if he would ever find someone like Shinichi had.

then fate dropped Lucifer into his lap. Oh, when they first met it had been on the field of battle, a game crafted by witches to pit the cyborgs against the 7 Stakes of Purgatory. Ultimately, Zero had one. Afterwards, Lucifer would come and visit him and they soon started dating. He hadn't really planned on falling in love with the dark-haired demon but now it didn't matter. He had someone he loved and that was all that mattered.

Zero landed in front of several Kekkain clansmen who were standing guard. They had increased security, despite being told they were useless against machines, but Shiro and Gnol were sending Darklings and Darkloids so their Onmyoudo would work against the fiends.

"Hey, bug, see anything?" one of the Kekkain clansmen asked.

"Nothing yet," said Zero, ignoring the obvious insult. His antennae picked up something and he turned to see something approaching. "What is that...?"

"What? What do you see?" one of the Kekkain asked.

"It looks like an insect swarm," Zero answered as he zoomed in, "A big swarm."

He was too late as the Rage Flies homed in on him and the swarm attacked.

* * *

Alan was standing in front of the estate's gate, using his super-hearing and super-vision while guarding the perimeter. He was going to be ready for anything Shiro and Gnol's group sent. They could send Beastroids, Combatroids, Cybermen, DALEKs, and even Darkloids for all he cared. He was not going to let them pass.

Suddenly, his ear picked up loud buzzing and he saw Zero approaching. "Hey, Shogo, what are you doing here?" he asked. Zero looked straight at him and pointed his fists at him. "Zero?"

"DIE! DIE! DIE!" Zero screamed like a deranged maniac as he fired his needles at Alan. He created a shield to block the assault but the needles still exploded as they landed on the ground.

"ZERO, HAVE YOU GONE NUTS!-?" Alan shouted.

"SHUT UP! SILENCE! BE QUIET! WHY ARE YOU STILL ALIVE!-? I WANT YOU DEAD! DEAD! DEAD!" Zero roared as he viciously attacked the shield, punching with his stingers like a deranged lunatic.

"Holy shit, Shogo's completely lost his marbles!" Bazel shouted in shock?

"Oh, really? What was your first clue?" Alan retorted sarcastically. He dropped the shield just as he threw a punch which threw Zero through the air and crashing into several trees.

"What do you think happened?" Bazel asked.

"Who knows?" Alan replied, "But one thing is clear, something happened to Zero and I'm going to need to find out from him." However, before he could go and look for Zero, a needle soared past his head and imbedded itself into the wall.

Zero had returned and was in the air, shouted out, "DIE, ALAN SMITH!" He fired a volley of needles and Alan flew up to avoid them. He then took flight, leading Zero in a chase through the air.

"Wow, he really wants to kill you," observed Bazel. "What did you do to piss him off so bad? Have sex with his girlfiriend?"

"Not now, Bazel," Alan told him. He continued to dodge Zero's needles as the cyborg attacked and acted like a rampaging berserker. "I just got to time this right." He used his ring to form a long chain. Looking over his shoulder at Zero, he flipped his body around and threw the chain which extended. A giant handcuff formed from the end of the chain and snapped shut around Zero, binding his arms to his sides. He roared as he thrashed about, trying to break free but despite all his struggling he couldn't.

Alan dragged him back down to the ground by force and asked, "OK, Zero, what the hell happened to you to make you go nuts?" His enhanced vision then saw something flying off Zero. "Oh, no you don't!" He used his ring to construct an energy bubble around the thing, preventing its escape. He pulled the bubble closer for inspection and blinked. "A fly?" He got a closer look. "A mechanical fly." He could guess who'd sent it. "Shiro."

"A fly?" Bazel asked.

"Not just any fly. A mechanical fly that will turn people psychotic when it latches onto them. Yuji told me about it," Alan answered. He proceeded to shrink the bubble and crush the fly within. Meanwhile, Zero had regained his sanity and wondered why he was bound up in a large handcuff.

"Ugh..." Zero groaned. "What happened?" Alan let him go. "Was I attacking you or something?"

"You went nuts because a mechanical fly was on you," Alan informed him. "Don't worry, it's gone now."

"A mechanical fly?" Zero questioned. "Oh, now I remember! Earlier I saw a huge swarm of these things!"

"A swarm?" Alan's eyes widened as he grimaced. "Oh...FUCK!"

* * *

Everyone infected in the North-Eastern Kekkain Clan branch's mansion was dead. The Rage Flies had done their job and killed each other. The children had all been moved to a safe location so they would be spare such carnage. Bodies were sprawled all over the ground.

Shiro looked around and smiled as he saw all the dead. He made his way towards the basement where the sealing stone was contained, unopposed. Even more bodies lay in his path and he stepped over them without much of a care, like stepping over a rock.

Finding the basement, he saw that the guards had killed each other as well. There was blood and gore within his sights and his only response was to smile. Raising his hand, he called and the Rage Flies all converged around his hand, hearing their master's call.

"You did well, so very, very well," Shiro praised. "Now go!" He sent the swarm off to join the rest to cause even more death and destruction.

Shiro stood in front of the stone. "I'm going to need some blood." He looked at all the bodies, "And we have donors!" He drew the Oathbreaker. "Thank you for your cooperation!"

* * *

Everyone in the city of Kyoto had gone mad. Chaos ran rampant through the streets as people were attacking each other indiscriminately. Not even the police were of any help and the Rage Flies soon infected them, forcing them to join in the chaos.

"DIE YOU BASTARD!" a random street merchant roared as he pointed his gun at a civilian. A green glow suddenly wrapped around the gun and yanked it out of his hand. The same green glow then wrapped around the merchant in the form of rope. The Rage Fly, once it realized that its host had been captured, left to find a new host when it was blasted by a beam of heat energy.

"That's one down," Sentinel spoke as he let go of the merchant who collapsed. He looked around at the chaos. Once he'd found out what was going on he'd called the others. Hanyuu made sure to keep them protection using special ofuda charms that created a barrier around their bodies to prevent the Rage Flies from infecting them. The ofuda were stuck to their chests.

However, while they themselves were safe, the rest of Kyoto wasn't as Shiro had infected a good portion of the citizens with Rage Flies, turning them into raging psychopaths.

Hanyuu and Zero worked together, pinning people down with telekinesis and needles respectively. Many people found themselves stuck to the wall by needles which had pierced their clothing but fortunately did not harm their flesh. Kanna, who was also safe due to Hanyuu's ofuda charm, was also helping and using her shikigami to stop the violent people from causing too much disorder. Blue Beetle and Showa were forced to stun them using handguns loaded with stun rounds. They were just bolts of electricity that would knock people out.

"Damn it," Showa cursed. He remembered when Gebok had tried to use a broadcast signal that would cause everyone to display the violent symptoms of the Hinamizawa Syndrome. Not only had Shiro done the same, he actually succeeded. "Damn you, Shiro!"

"DID SOMEONE CALL MY NAME?" Everyone looked to see Shiro looking down from them from atop a roof. He was holding a megaphone and using it to amplify his voice, "HOW ARE YOU ENJOYING THE RAGE FLIES? FUN, AREN'T THEY?"

"Get down here, you bastard!" Showa snapped.

"I DON'T THINK SO! YOU SEE I'VE ALREADY DESTROYED THE FOURTH STONE AND I'M NOT IN THE MOOD TO STICK AROUND AND FIGHT! BUT, I'LL LEAVE YOU WITH A PARTING GIFT!" He pulled out the device he'd used to summon the DALEKs and Cybermen earlier. "THIS LITTLE TOY IS CALLED THE DARK XROSSER! I MADE IT BASED ON ALAN'S LITTLE ARMBAND! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?" His eyes roamed around to look at their expressions. "I SEE YOU UNDERSTAND!" He pointed the device into the air, "DARK XROS FUSION!" A beam of dark light shot out of the screen and into the air. The Rage Flies removed themselves from their hosts and into the dark light of Dark Xros Fusion which surrounded them in a sphere. "BEHOLD!"

The sphere of darkness exploded to reveal a mechanical humanoid which resembled a fly. It buzzed in the air and looked down at the heroes who'd tried to stop it while it'd only been a swarm. Now, it was a single, solid being.

"KILL THEM, RAGE FLY!" Shiro commanded before he initiated a teleport and left.

The Rage Fly attacked the Riders, knocking them down as it swooped through the air, striking them down. It headed for Hanyuu and Kanna only stopped when Sentinel and Showa got in its way and held it back by its shoulders.

**WHAM!**

The two brothers knocked it into the air with uppercuts. Blue Beetle, seeing this, took advantage of the Rage Fly's unscheduled ascent to finish it off. He shot into the air using his Rocket Arm. The Rage Fly recovered and was hit with Blue Beetle's Rocket Punch and spin in the air. Zero attacked next, blowing off portions of its body with his needles.

Carmen had rolled herself into a ball as she sat on Slasher's arm. "Throw me!" she shouted, "Now!" He did and she went soaring into the air. The Rage Fly saw her but too late as she fired her flower-shaped shoulder-mounted guns, pelting it with energy bullets before slashing it with her scythes. She was caught by a net constructed by Alan.

"Higurashi no Yaiba! Tsukuyomi!" Showa called, summoning his sword. "

"Kusanagi no Tsurugi! Amaterasu!" Sentinel called, summoning his own sacred blade. The two held their respecting weapons in their hands in double-handed grips, energizing them, before swinging.

**"TAIYO TO TSUKI ZAN!"**

Blades of energy flew towards Rage Fly and cut right through it, causing it to explode instantly.

"Well, that takes care of that," said Blue Beetle.

"Ano…is that smoke cloud still supposed to be there?" Kanna asked. Everyone looked to see dark cloud hang in the air in the spot the Rage Fly had exploded. It should've dissipated already.

Sentinel activated his supervision and informed them, "It's not a smoke cloud. It's those Rage Flies. We didn't destroy them. We just defused them."

"OK, we destroyed it but that just turned it back into a swarm!" shouted Showa. "It's back to square one! How are we supposed to stop an entire city of people infected with Rage Flies from killing each other?" Sentinel was oddly quiet. "Alan?"

"Everyone, I'm going to need twenty minutes, a car, a radar dish, and a fez!" Sentinel suddenly requested.

"What do you need a fez for?" Showa asked in confusion at his brother's odd request. It was just so random.

"Don't ask questions! Go! Go! Go!" Turning to Carmen, he requested, "Michiru, do you mind setting up a large illusion so that the people don't hurt each other?"

"Roger!" Carmen saluted. She erected her illusionary mist, enveloping everyone inside. "How long do I need to keep this up?"

"Just long enough," said Sentinel.

* * *

Blue Beetle and Showa had flown back to Junko's teahouse to pick up the jeep. They also had a radar dish packed with all their things. As for the fez, Michiru's grandmother conveniently had one.

"OK!" said Sentinel as he put on the fez and started work. The NEO-NUMBERS, Hanyuu and Kanna had no clue what he was doing but he was working with super speed and super precision as he put the things he needed together. He had opened up the jeep's radio and pulled out some wires to connect to the radar dish. He then did the same and connected the makeshift device to the jeep's battery with cables.

"OK, Michiru, get rid of the mist!" Sentinel ordered. She did and the people infected with Rage Flies were looking straight at them.

"They're coming!" Kanna shouted.

Sentinel had just put the finishing touches on his device and it was ready. He sat in the driver's seat and held it up at the people.

"And now...Allons-y!" He then activated the device by turning the key and stepping down on the jeep's accelerator, sending out a massive pulse throughout the city. It swept over the people and they toppled over, twitching.

"What is that!-?" Showa asked as he felt the pulse. "An EMP?"

"A localized EMP generator, made specifically to take out the Rage Flies!" Sentinel shouted. It performed its function as the Rage Flies fell off their hosts, dead.

"Did Lala teach you how to build it?" Showa asked, amazed.

"Yeah, but to be able to make this I had to think like the Doctor," Sentinel answered.

"A doctor? A doctor of what?" Showa questioned.

"Not a doctor, THE Doctor," Sentinel clarified.

"Doctor Who?" Showa asked.

"Just the Doctor. Remember I told you I saw the Daleks when I was a kid? That was when I also met the Doctor." Sentinel remembered that very day until now. "He came out of nowhere in his blue box and drove the Daleks away. It was amazing. He also showed me the inside of his box. It was bigger on the inside."

Showa looked at Sentinel, trying to see any signs of deception only to discover none. "You're not making this up, are you?" Showa asked and Sentinel shook his head in respond.

"No, I'm not. He told me it was his space ship and his time machine. I asked him if I could come along to travel with him but he told me I wasn't ready. I asked him when I'd be ready to travel with him and he told me it'd be the next time I saw him. I've been waiting for him but I haven't seen him since."

"OK, but I still have one question. What's with the fez?" Showa pointed.

"Fezzes are cool," Sentinel answered, smiling. "I'm cool, I'm wearing a fez, hence fezzes are cool now."

Showa cocked an eyebrow at the odd answer and sighed, "Never mind."

"You just built this thing and made it work like that MacGyver guy on TV!" Blue Beetle cried out in awe. "Awesome!"

"But, another sealing stone has already been destroyed," Kanna reminded, sadly. "That just leaves four left."

"At least we prevented further loss in life," Carmen added as a comforting thought. "That should mean something."

"But the elders will not be happy," countered Hanyuu. "You won't have to worry, though. At the next meeting I'll try to help us out."

"Considering that so many of their clansmen have already died in the past few days, I doubt they'll be in the listening mood, Hanyuu-chan," Chiaki spoke up.

"But I doubt that's the least of our problems," said Showa. "Shiro can perform Xros Fusion now. That's supposed to be something only Bazel and Alan can do."

"Yeah, how did he learn how to do it?" Bazel asked.

"He's been observing us," Alan deduced. "Each time I used Bazel to perform Xros Fusion he's been watching, studying us, figuring out how it's all done. He even figured out the hyper space thing so he can literally carry an army with him at all times. And that AI he has in that Dark Xrosser device must help him to do it, like how Bazel helps me."

"His own Bazel," Showa finished. "God…that is bad."

As if Shiro wasn't enough of a threat already.

* * *

When Hanyuu and Kanna were summoned to sit during a meeting, they both learnt that Chiaki's earlier assessment was correct. The elders were not pleased.

"DISGUSTING FAILURE!" one of the elders screamed. "HOW COULD YOU ALL LET THIS HAPPEN!-?"

"FOUR SEALING STONES DESTROYED!" another one yelled. "FOUR!"

A third one stated, not pleased at all, "I thought you said you were going to handle it."

"Calm down, everyone," Renzo spike in a tone that made the elders be quiet. He addressed Hanyuu, "Do you have anything to say to defend yourself, Hainiryun-sama?"

Hanyuu sighed and confessed, "I admit that even we were taken by surprise by Shiro's strategies. Just like all of you I am angry at the number of our clansmen who've lost their lives and equally upset about the sealing stones being destroyed."

"Then why haven't you stopped him from killing our clansmen!-?" one elder demanded.

Kanna came to Hanyuu's defence, "It's not hers or the other's fault! This...this madman has a twisted sense of humor and enjoys toying with us for his own amusement!" Her tone startled the elders as Renzo gazed at his daughter. She had never raised her voice at them before. "If it wasn't for them the situation with the Rage Flies would have been worse."

Shizue smiled proudly at her daughter for standing up for her friends. The way she defended them meant that she had already bonded with them after such a short time. However, Hiba had something to say about.

"How do we know they aren't really working with Shiro Juuyon?" Hiba accused. He regretted his words as he felt immense killing intent on him. He felt like a great weight pressing on him as he tried to resist. Sweat beaded on his face. Hanyuu was looking at him, eyes red, and not pleased.

"Watch your tone," Hanyuu warned.

"Hiba-san, please listen to her," Kanna advised. "Hainiryun-sama, please stop."

Hanyuu glanced at Kanna and nodded, letting Hiba breathe as he tried to regain his composure.

"Like Kanna said, the situation with Shiro Juuyon's Rage Flies could've been much worse and they are just one of many resources he has at his disposal. He has command over an army of killing machines and he is also allied with the Orochi's spirit. Now, imagine if we were not here. Then ask yourself this; do you think any of you would stand a chance?"

This question made everyone shut up as they could not come up with an answer. While they were confident that they would be able to defend themselves a part of them had doubts. Shiro was not something they had been trained to deal with. He wasn't a demon, nor a human, hell he wasn't even biological. He was a machine in human form with a heart of cold steel that would sooner see them die then allow them a chance to fight back except to amuse himself.

"You...may have a point..." the elder who'd shouted 'disgusting failure' earlier begrudgingly admitted. "However, that does not we are accepting of your presence."

Renzo spoke, "We will learn soon enough, Hainiryun-sama, whether or not this alliance will be enough to stop Shiro Juuyon."

Hanyuu nodded. While she was not completely pleased with the results, at least she wouldn't have to worry about the Kekkain Clan starting a fight with her team for just trying to protect the sealing stones. Hiba just glared at the assembly in contempt before leaving the room in a huff.

* * *

Hanyuu sighed as she returned to the teahouse. She rubbed her temples and went upstairs where everyone was starting to have dinner. "Okaeri nasai, Hanyuu-chan," Junko greeted. "Come, sit down and grab a bowl. We were just about to start."

"I brought a guest," Hanyuu informed. "I hope nobody minds." Kanna stepped in.

"Hi," she greeted.

"Heck no!" Yokoshima grinned. "Come on in, grab a spot and let's eat!"

* * *

The Cyber Leader was marching down the hallway on its way to report chrome_find class="find_in_page"to Shiro Juuyon about the progress concerning the newly converted Cybermen. However, it never got the chance to do so as it was suddenly grabbed from behind and thrown into an empty room. Crashing violently on the floor, the Cyber Leader looked up to see Gnol looking down at it.

**"What is the meaning of this?"** the Cyber Leader asked as Gnol squatted down to look into the Cyber Leader's eyes. Gnol put his hand on the Cyber Leader's head, implanting something within its organic brain, and watching as it twitched on the spot. Gnol removed his hand and stood up with Shizuko standing next to him. The Cyber Leader stopped twitching as its systems rebooted. The eyes went blank for a second before flashing back to life. Once the Cyber Leader finished rebooting, it asked, **"What are your orders?"** the Cyber Leader asked.

Gnol said, "I need you to take care of something for me."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: What is Gnol up to? Is he planning on stabbing Shiro in the back? And what about the four remaining sealing stones? Will they be safe? Will Shiro's plan ultimately succeed? Will Alan ever meet the enigmatic Doctor again? Will Alan wear the fez all the time? Well, the answer to these questions will come soon enough! Not right now, though.**


	104. The Legacy of Cain Part 48

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 48: Grudge Match**

Alan had his ear pressed against the floor, perplexing his friends. "What are you doing?" Shinichi asked.

"I hear something underground. Very deep underground," Alan said. "Can't you?"

"I can't," replied Shinichi so Alan pulled him to the floor. "Hey!"

"Put your ear on the floor and listen," Alan instructed. Shinichi gave him a wry look and put his ear down on the floor. The others looked at the two brothers who were on their hands and knees with their ears to the floor. Shinichi's eyes widened. "Get it?"

Shinichi rose up, looking very concerned, "I heard…heartbeats…"

"Count them."

"Heartbeats…from eight hearts," Shinichi continued, "And breathing." He concluded, "Something's living under the city."

"Something is sleeping under the city," Alan corrected as he stood up. "And we all know what it is, don't we?"

"The Yamata no Orochi's body," Hanyuu said. "The destruction of the stones is waking it up."

"OK, but how can it breathe?" Yokoshima questioned. "It has no heads."

"Not yet it doesn't," Shinichi replied, "but you need to remember that the Yamata no Orochi isn't a normal life form. It's a Darkloid and Darkloids like it have a very different biology and physiology. For all we know it breathes through eight blow holes on its back or it breathes through its tail…or tails!"

"Tails?" Kanna asked.

"Eight, it's always been eight. It has eight hearts. It also has eight heads, on eight necks, which means eight tails as well," Alan clarified. "And judging from the sound of those heartbeats it's a really big thing."

"How big are we talking about here?" Chiaki asked.

"Not a clue," answered Alan. "Hanyuu, Kanna, any ideas?"

"It's said to be big enough to crush a mountain under its foot," said Kanna.

"I mean an estimate, a measurement, like how tall will it be, how much weight…and how many people it can kill," Alan requested.

"The records never gave an accurate account on the creature's actual size," Kanna answered.

"Then we're going to assume that it's so big that its foot can crush the city," Shinichi blanched. "Oh boy."

"If it comes out of its sleep, I doubt they'll be a city for it to crush. If it's underground everything is going to fall deep into the ground to make way for it," said Alan.

"So, how are we supposed to stop a monster that can crush cities with its feet?" Yokoshima asked.

"We stop Shiro, and we fix the seals," Shinichi said simply. "That's all there is to it."

"And what about Gnol Gnauh?" Chiaki asked.

Shinichi put his hand on Alan and said, "Susano-O defeated him once, he can do it again."

"Susano-O?" Kanna cocked an eyebrow. Her eyes widened in realization. "Oh…My…GOD!" Alan had called his sword the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. "You're Susano-O!" she yelled, pointing at Alan.

"_Thanks_ _a lot_, Shinichi," Alan said, giving Shinichi a wry look to emphasize his statement.

"You're Susano-O!" Kanna repeated.

"That's what Gnol keeps claiming," Alan replied, rolling his eyes.

"But you're in possession of the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, the legendary sword wielded by Susano-O and forced by the Sun Goddess Amaterasu! You're him!" Kanna continued. Alan put his hands on Kanna's shoulders.

Alan spoke to her slowly and calmly, "Kanna, Gnol Gnauh is just a demon who went crazy after being sealed up for centuries. I'm not Susano-O, no matter what anybody says. Not even a Sun Goddess can convince me."

Kanna gasped. "You've met Amaterasu-sama!-?"

Alan palmed his face and gave Shinichi _the look_. It was the same look he gave his brother whenever he was annoyed with him. "What?" Shinichi shrugged. "It was bound to come out anyway since Gnol might be showing up here one day."

**THUD!**

"Alan, she just passed out," Michiru informed.

"Yeah, I noticed," Alan sighed. "Sometimes I just have that effect on people."

"Well, you are a celebrity. Fangirls go nuts about these kinds of things," Shinichi joked.

* * *

Shiro's Pyramid Base was a large complex so it wasn't strange to find it equipped with its very own factory. This factory was where the DALEKs and the Cybermen were being produced. Shiro was overseeing the process and he wasn't alone as he brought along his harem of Bakeneko Kunoichi to watch from an observation deck.

"Ladies, watch and be amazed!" declared Shiro. "Down there to the left you can see the DALEK production line!" He pointed to see a machine spitting out DALEK shells which were still hollow until important pieces of electronic devices were put inside via thin, robotic arms. The shells were then closed before being equipped with their heads, eye stalks, and weapons before they rolled off the conveyer belt, completely functional. They then rolled off to join their completed brothers. "You know, I really wanted to make them like real Daleks but genetic manipulation and mutation is too much of a hassle."

"It's so hot," said Aoneko, wiping the sweat off her brow.

"Well, we do need to melt metal down and pour it into molds to make the DALEK shells." He clapped his hands together, "But if you take a look down to your right you'll be able to see the Cyber Conversion process! And look! We've got volunteers!"

The Cybermen had gathered homeless people and when they couldn't get enough, they had captured gang members and brought them to be held prisoner for Cyber Conversion. There were fourteen chambers in total so the process would be more efficient. Shiro and the Bakeneko Kunoichi watched as a homeless man was being dragged towards a Cyber Conversion chamber.

"LET ME GO! PLEASE!" the man begged loudly. "PLEASE, DON'T PUT ME IN THERE!"

"**You will be upgraded. You will become one of us."**

He struggled in the grip of the two Cybermen who shoved him inside the chamber which closed shut. "And now the music," Shiro said, grinning. He heard the screams, the wonderful screams.

Inside the chamber, wicked surgical tools came down from the ceiling to do their work. The man's brain was removed and put inside a Cyber Helmet. The body was zapped by a disintegration beam to make way as a panel in the floor opened up and a new Cyberman body rose up, showing that the bodies were assembled a level below. The Cyber Helmet was connected before the Cyberman came to life. The door on the other side of the chamber opened up and the new Cyberman marched out before another 'volunteer' was pushed inside the chamber to go through the same process.

Shiro led the girls to another end of the observation deck to see his metal soldiers all in rows. The DALEKs and Cyberman stood in formation, awaiting commands with the Cyber Leader and Gary in front.

"Hey, girls, want to see a neat trick?" Shiro asked as he took out his Dark Xrosser. He pointed it at the ceiling. "MUSIC, PLEASE!"

Music boomed from the speakers in the factory. He then pointed at the DALEKs and Cyberman, making them dance. The DALEKs just spun around with their heads rotating in the opposite direction while waving their eye stalks and arms. The Cybermen, on the other hand, began marching in place, putting their fists to their chest and turned to the right, then to the left, and then turning forwards while still marching in place with their metal feet pounding against the floor.

"Yeah, dance! Dance for me!" Shiro laughed as he clapped his hands.

Shizuko exited the elevator and saw Shiro and the Bakeneko Kunoichi. Sighing, she walked along the catwalk towards Shiro and called, "Excuse me?" to get Shiro's attention. "Hello, excuse me!" she tried again only to be ignored. A cross vein appeared on her head as she went up to Shiro and screamed into his ear, "EXCUSE ME!"

"ARGH!" Shiro cried with fright as he pressed a button the Dark Xrosser, stopping the music and dancing. He looked to Shizuko and demanded, "You! What the hell are you doing here?" How could she have navigated her way to this place without getting lost?

"I live here with my Master," Shizuko retorted, annoyed.

"...OK...right that makes sense. Good comeback, by the way." He furrowed his brow, "OK, next question, what do you want?"

"Nothing much," Shizuko replied. "I'm just here to tell you that Master needs you to help him issue a challenge."

"A challenge?" Shiro questioned, curious and interested, "A challenge for what?"

"Remember when he fought Yuji Fudo in London?" Shizuko reminded. Shiro nodded.

Rubbing his chin, he replied, "I remember seeing that. Go on."

"Well, he's planning his revenge on him and the Manakytes but he needs you to call them up."

"Alright, so Gnol needs me to make a phone call! Right, I'll get right on that!" Shizuko, having delivered her message, bowed and turned to walk down the catwalk back towards the elevator. Meanwhile, Shiro decided to continue with the impromptu dance party. He thought, '_Leave it to Gnol to get a traditional girl_.'

* * *

Shiro's face appeared on the Hive's main monitor. "Hello? Hello?" He tapped on the camera. "Is this thing on? Oh, we're on! OK, good!" He cleared his throat, "OK, let's get straight to the point. My friend, Gnol Gnauh, has decided to challenge the Manakytes to battle." He paused. "Right, right, I should've been clearer. Gnol Gnauh and four other Orochis want to fight you," Shiro clarified. "And our venues are Romania, China, Japan, Sweden and the South Pole! If you decide to accept this challenge, go to those locations and an Orochi would be waiting for you! Oh…and prepare to die," Shiro finished.

Shiro looked away from the camera, "OK, good, we're done here. Hey, Aoneko, come down under the table to give me a blowjob!" He paused and looked shocked. "Wait, we're still on? We're still on!-?" Shiro quickly tried to shut off the camera. "How do you turn this thing off? Ah, OK!" His face vanished from the monitor. However, his voice could still be heard, "OK, Aoneko, get down on your knees and service me!" Unzipping could be heard and Shiro groaned, "Ah…yes…oh, that's it! I love it when you use your tongue like…wait, why is that light still red? You mean the microphone's still on!-? Wait! OK! Now-"

His voice stopped broadcasting.

* * *

"That was a strange message," said Kai.

"Aye, indeed it was," agreed Jin.

"But it was sure as hell funny!" laughed Yuri. "I mean the look on his face when he found out the camera was still on! Then he found out the microphone was still on!"

"Onii-sama, weren't the other Orochis destroyed and absorbed by Gnol Gnauh?" Yuki asked.

"Yeah, they were, but Shiro claims that they're back and waiting for us to show up," said Yuji.

"He could be lying," suggested Kai. "I mean, bad guys lie all the time."

"Right, Kai's right, but maybe we should go check it out. Yuki, you're going to the South Pole. Yuri, you're off to Romania. Jin, you're going to Sweden. As for Kai, you're headed off to China. I'm heading to Japan. Fortunately, Shiro was kind enough to give us exact coordinates," Yuji said.

* * *

Gnol was already waiting inside Tokyo Tower's observation area when he activated his communicator, "Shizuko, are they in place?"

"Yes, Master," Shizuko confirmed. "They are in position and should be meeting the Manakytes very soon."

"Excellent," Gnol grinned. He looked down at his hand as he formed a fireball. He may have lost the other elements when the other Orochis split from him but the level of power he possessed had not changed.

* * *

Yuki arrived at the South Pole. The temperature was below freezing and the place was a cold wasteland. However, it didn't irritate her since she was an Ice Manakyte. It still felt a little cliché, though. "Now, where's my opponent?" She spotted a figure approaching. She was dressed in a white kimono, resembling a yuki-onna of Japanese legend. She also wore Misato's face which confirmed her identity as Yuki-Gnol of the Eight Orochis.

* * *

Yuri arrived in Romania, right in front of an old medieval castle, which was surrounded by a graveyard. The darkness also upped the creepy factor but Yuri was used to these sorts of things.

He then saw his opponent, the Orochi of Darkness who looked like Count Dracula. "So, we meet again, Yuri Fudo," said Yami-Gnol as he strode forward, his cape dragging along the ground behind him.

"You!" Yuri identified. Yami-Gnol smiled at the reaction, exposing his fangs.

"Ah, yes, so I see that you remember me and the chaos I caused your bro-" Yami-Gnol's speech was interrupted by Yuri's hysterical laughter.

"You're the douchebag I teabagged using GaoTyranno! Oh God! That was HYSTERICAL!" Yuri guffawed. Yami-Gnol growled in annoyance.

"Arrogant swine! You dare to treat me like I am not a threat?" Yami-Gnol roared, "TAKE THIS!" He spreads out his arms and cape and unleashed a swarm of bats to attack Yuri only to be blocked by a dark barrier.

"OK, you wanna play? Let's play!" Yuri shouted.

* * *

Kai stepped out of the Teleportal and found himself on the Great Wall of China. As soon as he set his feet down a bolt of lightning crashed down in front of him, announcing his opponent's presence.

"Oh, it's you," Kai identified. "Didn't we beat you?"

"You bastard…" Rai-Gnol snarled. "Not only did you ruin my plans in tormenting that damn miko, you even had a hand in my death!" He roared, "YOU WILL PAY!" He prepared to attack only for Kai to look straight at him with eyes crackling with electricity.

"Oh, shut up, dude! You talk way too much!"

* * *

Jin was in Sweden, among the windmills, fighting against Kaze-Gnol. He dodged vacuum blade after vacuum blade as he soared backwards through the air. "I guess we're all fighting against enemies matching our elements," he deduced.

"HOLD STILL!" Kaze-Gnol roared/whined.

* * *

Yuji arrived at Tokyo Tower and saw the blood on the floor. "Gnol," he said.

"Ah, there you are, Yuji Fudo. I've been expecting you," Gnol greeted as Yuji glared at him. "Oh, you've noticed the blood. Well, it's nothing you need to worry about. I didn't kill anyone. I just maimed the guard to get everyone to leave. He'll live, I think." He then activated his flames, surrounding his arms with spiraling fire. "Now, shall we begin?"

* * *

Shiro was sitting in his chair, his throne as he claimed it to be, watching everything on the large monitor. All eight battles which were about to erupt, displayed at the same time on small screens within the monitor. His surveillance drones were recording everything they were seeing.

"All the players are in position. Now, show me what you got," Shiro whispered, looking forward to the bouts. Standing behind him were the Bakeneko Kunoichi, Mizu-Gnol, Kin-Gnol and Tsuchi-Gnol. The three Orochis didn't have counterparts so they remained in the pyramid base to watch, something which Kin-Gnol didn't like since he too wanted to fight.

* * *

Yuji didn't respond with word but with action as he shot towards Gnol with a flaming kick aimed for his head. The Orochi of Fire blocked the attack with his own arms, the impact pushing him back a couple of feet before he retaliated with his own kick that Yuji dodged. Gnol rushed forward to grab his collar and began hitting him repeatedly before flinging him away.

"TAKE THIS!" Gnol roared as he shot a barrage of fireballs at Yuji but the Manakyte drew his Red Queen and took the fireballs out with swings of his weapon before charging at Gnol. The Red Queen connected with a sword made out of flames and the two fighters began to furiously trade blows, sparks raining down around their feet.

When their blades were locked, Gnol pulled an arm back with the fist ignited. Yuji did the same as he concentrated. They threw their fists at each other.

**KRACK-KA-BOOM!**

The two attacks collided, causing an explosion that shattered the windows of the observation area.

* * *

Yuri grinned with sadistic glee as he and Yami-Gnol viciously exchanged blows with each other. "Come on! Come on! Come on! I know you can do better than that!" Yuri shouted as he slammed his fist into Yami-Gnol with incredible force to send him crashing through several gravestones.

Yami-Gnol lay on his back, eyes narrowed with rage. He recalled how Yuri had humiliated him by squatting repeatedly over his face. Now, the Manakyte of Darkness was still mocking him. It was enough to make him want to go homicidal on his ass. "That's it! I'm sick of you!" Yami-Gnol roared. He slammed his palms down onto the ground, spreading his energy outwards. Yuri watched as the ground began to groan as the undead rose.

"Meh," Yuri shrugged, not intimidated by the display as the undead began to move towards him. "I've seen scarier things in Yuji's head. Dagger," he called as he cut his wrist, blood spilling out and forming into a blackish-red gauntlet.

Yuri spun quickly and slashed at the first undead, separating its head from his body before driving his claws through the chest of another. He withdrew his hand and then leapt up, hopping from head to head like some kind of demented game of Hopscotch. When he reached Yami-Gnol, he formed a lance of blood that was aimed at the Darkloid's heart.

* * *

"Time to stop playing around," Jin decided as he created a wind barrier to negate the vacuum blades. At the same time a tornado enveloped his fist. Seeing the Orochi of Wind coming at him, Jin drew back his arm and roared, "TAKE THIS!" The force of his tornado-fueled arm blasted Kaze-Gnol across the sky, screaming. He crashed into a windmill, bursting out the other side, before going tumbling along the grass.

With incredible speed Kaze-Gnol soared towards Jin and punched him across the face. Jin retaliated with a punch to Kaze-Gnol's face as well. The two then furiously and viciously exchanged blows, wind blasting in all directions.

* * *

To any civilian looking at the Great Wall of China at this time, they would be seeing bolts of lightning shooting out of it, arching around the structure, crackling loudly.

The roar of a Manakyte and Darkloid were heard among the crash of thunder as the two battled it out with savage brutality. Kai jumped out of the way when Rai-Gnol spewed lightning out of his mouth. Forming a dagger made of pure lightning, Kai crossed the distance in the blink of an eye to stab it right into Rai-Gnol's eye.

Rai-Gnol screamed as he swatted Kai away, clutching his injured eye. "YOU…YOU DAMN BRAT! YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THAT!" More and more lightning struck the floor around them, causing pieces to break off and shatter.

* * *

Yuki panted slightly and had to admit that in this cold environment the two of them had the advantage. She jumped a distance away to avoid being skewered by a volley of ice spikes that suddenly shot out of the ground and into the air. They continued their ascent until they stopped in midair before shooting towards the ground like deadly arrows. Spinning in place and waving her arms, Yuki deflected the ice spikes with her own power and the spikes stabbed into the ground around him instead of stabbing through her.

Spotting Yuki-Gnol, she saw the Orochi of Ice wielding a naginata made of ice. Gliding on a surface of ice, Yuki-Gnol made a move to impale Yuki only to be stopped as Yuki formed ice claws and caught the weapon between them. Shoving the weapon aside, Yuki quickly avoided being beheaded as she ducked and turned her claws into big ice fists. She punched Yuki-Gnol twice before jumping up and performing a backwards spinning heel kick that slammed Yuki-Gnol back into the snow. Yuki-Gnol stood back up, twirling her naginata, as she sneered, "It will take more than that to defeat me."

"That's what I was going to say," Yuki responded as she dismissed the ice covering her arms and drew her guns, a plan already forming in her head. As Yuki-Gnol charged at the Ice Manakyte, Yuki stomped her foot and summoned a wall of ice which moved towards Yuki-Gnol like a tidal wave. The Ice Orochi easily sliced through the ice but then stopped when she couldn't see Yuki where she should be.

"Above you," a soft voice spoke and Yuki-Gnol looked up to stare at Yuki who was hanging in midair, positioning herself so she was upside down with her guns aimed directly at the Orochi of Ice.

"_Diamond…Dust_," Yuki called softly as she spun in place and fired a relentless barrage of whitish-blue energy blasts upon Yuki-Gnol. The Ice Orochi tried to defend herself with her naginata but her weapon was shattered to pieces. Explosions erupted around her, hurling snow into the air as she screamed.

When Yuki landed on the snow-covered ground, she inspected Yuki-Gnol who looked like she was barely able to stand. Her kimono was in tatters, ruined by Yuki's attack, and it looked like her body had taken massive damage. Her lips were curled into a scowl of rage, her eyes so cold they could burn, and snarling coming out of her throat.

"Didn't think it'd be over soon," whispered Yuki as she twirled her guns and aimed.

* * *

A sentry tower was smashed through as Kai crash-landed due to Rai-Gnol's punch, resulting in a gaping hole in the structure. Kai grunted painfully as he dug himself out of the rubble, grumbling, "Dang…the bastard's tougher than I remember…" Rai-Gnol landed in front of him, standing

"It's time to end this," Rai-Gnol said as he opened his mouth wide, electricity charging within his throat for a massive blast.

"You're right, let's end this." Kai charged up his own attack, electricity arching around his arms. The two electrokinetics glared at each other, with eyes narrowed, and unleashed their attacks at the same time. Both lightning blasts crashed against each other, creating a boom like thunder and lightning to arch in all directions. The two continued to grunt and push, seemingly in a stalemate, but it looked like Kai was being pushed back by Rai-Gnol's power.

Rai-Gnol thought triumphantly, 'Aha!' However, his eyes widened as he realized that Kai still had a free hand with a familiar attack forming in it.

"**ZAP CANNON!**" Kai shouted as he hurled the ball of lightning straight at Rai-Gnol, colliding with his face. The shock of the attack interrupted Rai-Gnol's concentration which allowed for Kai to push hard and send his and Rai-Gnol's lighting back into the Lightning Orochi's mouth. There was an explosion and when the smoke cleared Kai stood over an injured Rai-Gnol who was gasping as he tried to fix his jaw. That last attack had removed his lower jaw and it was not a pretty sight.

"Ugh…sorry about that, dude," Kai apologized. Rai-Gnol tried to curse him but he couldn't with the absence of his lower jaw to make words.

* * *

"Heh," Jin said as he wiped the blood off his lip, "It's good to see that you're still a good fighter, lad." He seemed to be enjoying himself as he grinned.

Kaze-Gnol didn't say anything and clenched his fists. He performed an uppercut that hit the air. It didn't seem to hit anything but Jin was suddenly knocked skyward by an invisible force. Kaze-Gnol performed a right cross and all of a sudden Jin's body was thrown to the right. He grunted when he felt the blow and realized that Kaze-Gnol was hitting him with air that moved with his motions. A forward punch from Kaze-Gnol and the air smashed into his stomach, ripping a cloud apart as Jin flew through it. Stopping himself, Jin spat out blood and covered himself in his Tornado Armor.

Kaze-Gnol recognized the technique and screamed, "Oh, no you don't! Not this time!" He performed the same technique and attacked. The tornados clashed violently and repelled each other but they continued to smash into one another as if they were drawing each other in.

A final crash caused the tornados to violently disperse and the two wind users threw their fists at each other. Kaze-Gnol's fist flew towards Jin's face but missed by one single centimeter. However, Jin's fist met its target and slammed right between Kaze-Gnol's face. He was blasted through the air and sent smashing into a windmill, and then flew out the back to smash through another windmill that stood behind it. Kaze-Gnol continued to roll across the ground while Jin was preoccupied with another matter.

"Ow…ow…" Jin flicked his wrist painfully and massaged his knuckles. "Got a really hard head that one."

* * *

Yami-Gnol hissed painfully as he was hit in the side. "Hmm," Yuri mused aloud, "Well at least we know you're not as fast as you claim."

Yami-Gnol snarled, "Shut…your…" He roared, "STINKING MOUTH!" He rushed at Yuri, summoning his sword before throwing it like a javelin. Yuri just ran at Yami-Gnol and jumped over the soaring blade before aiming for a powerful kick for Yami-Gnol.

Yami-Gnol caught his leg and swung the Darkness Manakyte around and around before flinging him into the air. Seeing his opponent hanging helplessly in midair, the Orochi of Darkness fired a blast of dark energy at him. The blast hit Yuri in the back, causing him to scream in agony.

Yuri fell and then hauled up by Yami-Gnol who put his arm around his throat, pinning Yuri's back to his chest. "Now, I'm going to drain you dry, you bloody prick," Yami-Gnol smiled as he exposed his fangs to take a drink out of Yuri. Suddenly, he screamed as Yuri broke Yami-Gnol's hold on him by unleashing a burst of dark energy from his body. He then spun and hit Yami-Gnol in the chest with a powerful swing from Hammer that sent him flying until he crashed into the castle.

"Sorry, but this neck ain't for you," Yuri said. He willed his dark energy around the tombstones, ripping them out of the ground, before tossing them like missiles. They smashed into Yami-Gnol as he put his arms up to shield himself. At the same time, Yuri took out GaoTyranno'sGao Jewel.

"OK, GaoTyranno, give me some power," he requested and the violet gem glowed before purple energy wrapped around his entire left arm. It then solidified and formed into a drill which covered his arm from the elbow down and it looked wicked. "Nice!" The drill spun and Yuri got into a ready stance, staring straight at the Orochi of Darkness. "I know this would be so epic in my armor, but I think we should just end it here." He dashed forward, crossing the gap between himself and Yami-Gnol who watched in horror at the massive drill that was coming towards him.

"EAT MY DRILL!" Yuri screamed as he thrust forward, the tip of the drill stabbing into Yami-Gnol as the spinning allowed it to burrow through, the Orochi of Darkness screaming as he was drilled through, black blood bursting from the entrance and exit wounds.

* * *

The observation area of Tokyo Tower had seen better days as Gnol and Yuji continued to do battle.

"**FANGS OF THE INFERNO!**" Gnol roared as he performed his attack, which took the form of mouth filled with sharp teeth, headed towards Yuji.

**KA-BOOM!**

There was an explosion as the attack hit and Gnol grinned, expecting to see Yuji dead when all of a sudden Yuji appeared right behind him. Gnol spun once he sensed the Fire Manakyte's presence and the Red Queen cut into him, causing him to scream, bleed, and stumble backwards.

"So, how do I rate compared to Susano-O?" Yuji asked.

* * *

To the observing witches in the Meta-World, the fights which were occurring were a great source of entertainment for them. Lambdadelta was already emptying another bag of caramel as she continued to watch.

Like before, the witches sat in a circle in their octagonal shaped room, watching the events on the 'game board'. In their little games to save them from boredom, they would make wagers to see how events played our and who would win. Sometimes, they would directly involve themselves into the games as well and influence things for their own amusement.

Beatrice was smoking her pipe as she watched Yuji, smiling proudly as she saw her protégé fight Gnol Gnauh. It appeared that he was a match for the demon.

Bernkastel's attention was on the Lightning Manakyte named Kai. She had observed Rika who was now dating him and, wanting her counterpart to be happy, hoped he would survive.

Ronove poured tea into Topper's cup and the Infernal Merchant thanked the demon Furniture, acknowledging his service with a smile and a nod. Topper had his own stakes in this little game and wanted to see how things played out as well.

Yuko Ichihara was also an observer as she too had her cup filled with tea. She took a sip, enjoying the taste, before putting the cup down to grab a cookie from her plate and taking a bite. She'd been invited to watch.

Featherine was the sixth observer as she watched from her own seat. She'd been watching their progress, and was enjoying herself. The beings of Earth were quite inspiring indeed and she already had plans on how to influence the future.

The Endless Sorcerer Battler wasn't too far from his wife and he seemed to enjoy the show as much as she was. Being a guy, he loved watching action and all five fights which were occurring simultaneously was the best entertainment of all. He favored the Manakytes to win.

Finally, the former Endless Witch Virgilia was also present, filling up the eighth seat as she sipped her tea.

"It seems like they're all having fun," Beatrice's mentor observed.

"Two forces putting everything on the line," added Featherine, "Can you think of anything more dramatic?"

"Reminds me of the action movies I saw as a kid," Battler commented. "Except I know these aren't just special effects."

"See, my dear husband? Isn't life more fun when you believe in magic and sorcery?" Beatrice asked, smiling.

* * *

Gnol roared in outrage as he lashed at Yuji with a whip of fire which Yuji dodged as he released an arch of flame that his opponent dodged as well. For several minutes the two combatants traded blows, their movements blurry as they moved with blinding speed. The air around them sizzled due to the heat as Gnol's whip came into repeated contact with Yuji's Red Queen. The floor was now covered with deep gouges, and craters which had scorch marks all around them.

Gnol got a lucky shot with his whip as he lassoed it around Yuji's sword-wielding arm. Smiling, Gnol yanked Yuji over and drew a fist to knock his head off his shoulders. However, Yuji was ready for him and was able to tilt his head to the side just as the fist flew at him. He kicked Gnol violently in the chest which stunned him enough to negate the whip and then head-butting the Darkloid for good measure. Still, hitting Gnol's hard head with his own hurt and he stumbled backwards with a slight headache.

Gnol grumbled, rubbing his head and scowled. Fire enveloping his hands, he raised them up and roared, "**TWIN SPIRAL FIRE DRAGONS!**" The flames spiraling around his arms launched into the air like tornados, forming into a pair of dragons whose bodies had flames spiraling around them. They looked savage and hungry and ready to feed. The dragon heads on his armor released smoke, thick black smoke around him and Yuji. The air was actually burning from the immense power Gnol was displaying and the metal around them in the observation area was beginning to melt and boil.

Gnol's voice boomed, "**THIS IS THE END FOR YOU, YUJI FUDO! ONCE YOU'RE OUT OF THE WAY, SUSANO-O IS NEXT! BUT TODAY, YOU'RE GOING TO BURN TO ASHES IN A FUNERAL PYRE! FEEL HONORED THAT YOU'LL DIE AT MY HANDS! FEEL HONORED THAT THE YAMATA NO OROCHI DEEMS YOU WORTHY OF DYING IN BATTLE!"**

"Gnol Gnauh!" Yuji yelled, staring at the Fire Orochi Darkloid without fear. His eyes were narrowed, burning with an inner flame. "You're not the one who will decide my death so SHUT THE HELL UP!"

Roaring, Gnol unleashed his unholy power, the Twin Spiral Fire Dragons flying towards Yuji to devour and obliterate him. Yuji didn't move and stood his ground and the attack struck. Gnol was about to celebrate when he realized the color of the flames brightening and spinning around Yuji like a spiraling funnel which reached the ceiling, bursting out and into the sky like a red hot pillar.

"_Gnol Gnauh, you've only witnessed a fraction of a Manakyte's true power. Centuries ago you might've been hot stuff but you've forgot that I'm from another world and I follow a different set of rules_," Yuji spoke within the spinning funnel of flame.

* * *

Beatrice and Featherine looked on eagerly with anticipation, thinking, '_This is it_.'

* * *

"_Now, let me show you the power I have been blessed with by God, the Crimson Dragon!_"

Gnol saw it, a dragon of crimson flame floating in the air. It was the legendary Crimson Dragon from Yuji's world, the being identified as God from his world.

The flames exploded outward and Gnol was pushed back, slamming against the elevator door with enough force that it was dented and caved in with Gnol stuck in its surface.

Yuji now stood covered in molten rock armor that covered his arms, legs, sides, and lower torso. His hands now had claws, as well as his feet, and his shoulders had rounded, molten rock, pads that spewed flames, like torches. He had a pair of wings that were made of flames and his tail swished back and forth. Lines of magma glowed brightly as they covered Yuji's body and he grew fangs. In the center of his chest was a diamond shaped core that glowed with a bright red and yellow aura, like lava. He was giving off a wave of heat that made the room feel like a sauna.

Gnol didn't show fear, but instead showed insane hatred. His hatred for Yuji, who flaunted his power, rivaled his hatred for Susano-O. Here was a being who was capable of defeating him, of sending him back to the dark abyss where he'd been imprisoned in for hundreds of years.

He would not allow that.

Gnol shot upwards, crashing through the ceiling so he could exit through the roof to the outside world. The dragon heads on his armor opened their mouths, eyes glowing, as he called, "**SPAWNS OF THE YAMATA NO OROCHI, TO ME!**" He didn't care if using those powers made him unstable, all he cared about was wiping Yuji off the face of the Earth.

* * *

Yuki watched as Yuki-Gnol's body glowed before she turned into a beam of light which flew across the arctic sky. She frowned. That didn't look good and she wasn't the only one witnessing the same phenomenon. The other Spawns of the Orochi had turned into beams of light and energy, fleeing from their respective battles. Yuri assumed that they had won when he saw Yami-Gnol turned into a beam of blackness but when it flew up into the air, he felt that he had to follow it. He had a gut feeling that it was the start of something big and terrible and he grinned knowing how fun it was going to be. Kaze-Gnol and Rai-Gnol also vanished, the former as a beam of green light and spiraling like a tornado while the latter was off like a bolt of lightning.

* * *

The four beams of energy crossed the sky and went straight towards Gnol Gnauh who welcomed them. This power was his, and even if it wasn't his full power he was confident that it would be enough to wipe Yuji's existence off the face of the Earth. He had never hated anyone as much as he hated Susano-O but now Yuji proved him wrong. He recognized Yuji as a threat and like all other threats he would be eliminated!

Great, now he was thinking like a DALEK.

The elemental energy was absorbed into Gnol Gnauh and he roared as his body expanded, exploding with power before molding itself into a new shape, an immensely powerful one.

The creature was massive as it floated over the city, with black armor and scales, a skull on its chest, shoulders and knees. Blood red claws tipped its fingers and toes and it had eight tails ending with snake heads and fangs. Four pairs of leathery, bat-like wings fanned out from its back and its collar had spikes around it. Instead of a single neck, it had five, each long and serpentine, covered in the scaly, black armor of its body. Each neck was topped with a head, all similar except for the number of horns on their heads. Another thing that differentiated them from each other was the Kanji character representing their elements, etched into stones in the color of their respective elements on their foreheads. Their eyes radiated with power, their razor sharp teeth gleamed, and finally one could feel the evil radiating off this monster that could level an entire city with a single flap of its wings. In terms of its specific size, including the length of its tails and necks, it was 100 feet long. However, excluding the tails it would only stand at 60 feet. Still, it was nonetheless a massive beast. This may not be the true Yamata no Orochi of legend, but it was still a terrifying sight to behold.

* * *

Shiro watched Gnol's transformation with appreciation. "Now that's something you don't get to see every day." Curious, he swiveled his chair around to look at Mizu-Gnol, Kin-Gnol and Tsuchi-Gnol. "You're still here?" he asked.

"We couldn't be summoned," answered Mizu-Gnol.

"Ah, of course," Shiro understood. Gnol Gnauh didn't want to destabilize so he limited him to summoning only the four others who were fighting the Manakytes. Or maybe the Pyramid Base's walls were the reason. He'd check it out later. For now, he turned his chair back around to look at the screen.

* * *

A Teleportal opened, allowing the other four Manakytes to exit the tunnel of swirling light before arriving at the foot of Tokyo Tower. They could sense incredible power which made them look up as Yuki said, "Onii-sama."

"Yup, that's Yuji alright," said Yuri.

'_He strong,_'GaoTyranno said from the Gao Jewel in Yuri's hand.

"He sure is," Yuri agreed.

* * *

The Five-Headed Fiend Dragon roared as it fired multiple blasts of corresponding elemental energies from its five mouths, destroying everything in its path. Yuji unfurled his flaming wings and took to the sky, charging at the demon to attack. He punched at the beast with his flaming fists, but the dragon was undeterred as one of them unleashed its icy breath on Yuji. He countered with his own fiery breath before another head fired a blast of lightning square into Yuji's chest. He was launched into a building before he flew out again to confront the monster. The Five-Headed Fiend Dragon unleashed its five elemental blasts right at Yuji, putting him into the ground as it continued its destructive path.

"I'm gonna need some more power," Yuji grunted as he struggled to stand.

He took a breath and roared, unleashing his Enlightened form. He looked up and was gone in a flash. The Five-Headed Fiend Dragon cried out in pain as Yuji had punched it in the chest, launching the beast in the air as it flapped its wings to fly. Yuji came flying at he unleashed more punches. The heads fired their blasts and Yuji put his hand up, creating a barrier that locked the multiple breaths. He pointed his finger and charged his energy.

"Mega Flare," he called. The blast was launched and the Five-Headed Fiend Dragon unleashed its own attacks which were overwhelmed by the energy blast as it made contact. Yuji unleashed more blasts as they all hit home, dealing more damage to the demonic dragon. "Just give up," Yuji ordered, "What do you have to live for when all you do is destroy everything?" The dragon roared and its heads all shot towards Yuji with jaws wide to rip him to shreds and devour him. He responded by flying circles around the beast as the heads gave chase. What they didn't know is that they were intertwining around each other when their necks were tied into a knot. "You're just sad," Yuji frowned as he prepared his next attack. His King of Hearts crest glowed on his right hand as he charged. "SekihaTenkyoken," he called as he unleashed the blast, consuming the Five-Headed Fiend Dragon with its roar echoing through the sky.

* * *

"OK, this has gone far enough," said Shiro as he stood at the console, looking up at the main screen. "Can't have Gnol and the other four dying on me now." He needed them all or hiw entire plan would fall apart. His fingers flew across the keyboard. "Engage emergency teleport for Gnol Gnauh." He pressed 'Enter'. He groaned, "He is _so_ going to kill me for this."

* * *

Reverting back to human form and staying airborne on jets of flames shooting from his feet, Yuji stared at the smoke cloud which was left after the explosion caused by the attack. Had he done it? Was he able to kill Gnol Gnauh? He couldn't tell from the smoke but he got his answer as Gnol Gnauh shot out of the smoke cloud to grab him by the throat. The demon's armor was damaged and since he had the power of four other Orochis in him, he could crush Yuji easily now.

"Time to die," Gnol grinned.

"Don't think so," Yuji grunted. He stretched his arm out and summoned the Crowned Gao King and swung for a punch, breaking Gnol's jaw as he was flung back.

"You…will-" Gnol snarled but he was cut off as he suddenly vanished.

Yuji massaged his throat and inhaled. "Man, that was close." He looked at all the destruction and grimaced. After that he slowly descended as the other Manakytes ran towards him.

"What happened, Onii-sama?" Yuki asked.

"I…I'm not sure. He just vanished into thin air," said Yuji.

"Looked like a teleport to me," said Yuri. "Did he go willingly?"

"He was in the middle of choking me," Yuji answered.

"Then someone teleported him away," Yuri concluded.

"Shiro Juuyon," guessed Yuji. Who else could it be?

"Well, we won, right?" Kai asked. He didn't get a response. "Right?"

"Yes, we won, for now," said Yuji. "But only for now." He let out a sigh. Why had Shiro teleported Gnol away? Then it struck him. Shiro needed Gnol alive for his plan and couldn't risk any part of the Orochi to perish before the main body was resurrected. Well, that just meant Shiro was scared, right?

So why didn't that make Yuji feel any better?

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Yuji and the other Manakytes have fought the Orochis and survived, for now at least. Clearly, Shiro recognizes the threat Yuji and the Manakytes pose to his plans if they can go toe to toe with five of the most powerful demons in existence. Anyway, this is where the chapter ends. Also, I would like to thank everyone, including Kamen Rider Bushido for his help in finishing this chapter. Now, it's going to go up at the first new update of mine in 2012. HAPPY NEW YEAR GUYS!**


	105. The Legacy of Cain Part 49

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This chapter isn't as high impact as the previous chapters as it deals with the supporting cast. **

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 49: The Ones Back Home**

Shiori would often write in her journal, sometimes about the mundane things that happened daily and sometimes about important events that had an impact on her life, either directly or indirectly. As a writer she had a lot to write about and when she did she would often think out loud as she wrote.

"It's been a week since Shinji and Hanyuu-chan left for Kyoto. I know that the both of them are off saving the world but I can't help but feel worried. I am a mother after all and they are my kids. Don't get me wrong. I am proud of who they are what they're doing and I understand that they're doing this to keep our world safe. Shinji and Hanyuu-chan are definitely strong enough from what I've seen and can face whatever that comes their way without fear. However, I have to wonder why he and the others have to shoulder this burden. Why must it be them who face the evil that plagues the world?" She put down her pen as she stopped her monologue when she heard crying from the crib nearby.

"_Kid's hungry_," AI-Shin said. AI-Shin was a sphere-droid implanted with an AI which represented her eldest son's memories. He was the same, personality-wise, but he was also different in a few ways. He was assigned to look after Shiori and her family, a task he took on seriously.

"Yes, he is," said Shiori as she picked up her son to feed him.

* * *

At lunchtime, Rena met up with her friends Keiichi and Mion in the university's cafeteria. She was humming happily and looking quite cheerful. With her was Shawna, who was in her disguise known as 'Anna Dawkins'. She didn't wear hair dye anymore and wore a wig instead. She looked happy as well.

"Hey, Rena, Anna, you both look cheerful today," Keiichi said to both girls.

"Well, of course we do," smiled Shawna. "Sir Shinichi called us last night." It felt good to hear from him after so many days.

"I'm just glad he's fine," Rena said with relief.

"Really? So, has he been able to stop the bad guys?" Mion asked.

Rena shook her head, sadly, losing her smile as she answered, "No, he hasn't. He's been having trouble." Her smile returned, "But I have faith in him. He'll win and he'll stop the bad guys like always. Last night there were no attacks either."

"Well, that's good, I guess," said Keiichi. Shinichi would try his best to stop his enemies, and would win.

"So, did you guys hear about what happened in Tokyo?" Mion asked.

"What happened, Mi-chan?" Rena asked.

Mion cocked an eyebrow. "Don't you read the newspaper? It was on the front page. Yesterday people saw a huge monster in the sky and Tokyo Tower was wrecked. Yuji was there too."

"How do you know?" Keiichi asked.

"Because the newspaper described a lot of fire being thrown around and who do we know who has that kind of fire power besides Shin-chan?" asked Mion. He answered, "Yuji, that's who."

"Then it's a good thing Sir Yuji was there or else who knows what might've happened," said Shawna.

"Yeah…" murmured Keiichi.

"Are you OK, Keiichi-kun?" Rena asked.

"Yeah…I guess…but don't you guys ever feel powerless?" he asked. He remembered how he'd taken drugs to become strong but in the end G-Shock nearly killed him.

"Yeah, you're right," Mion admitted. "I mean it used to be JUST us helping Shin-chan but now we can't do anything to help." He fists were clenched, "Just because we don't have super powers, we can only sit here while he risks himself for our sake."

"And I've been hearing that dreadful Disk Jockey Mikogami saying horrible things about our friends," said Shawna, frowning. Since hearing his show the first time she'd sworn off it for good. "They're heroes. They should be honored."

"It's because people get intimidated by super powered beings, Anna," Keiichi replied.

"But they've done so much good," Shawna insisted, "And they don't ask for thanks either. Not even Sir Shinichi."

"Even though Shin-kun's past is painful, instead of focusing on that he focuses on the good he can do in the present and for the future," Rena said in admiration. "But even if we can't help him, we can at least show our support somehow."

* * *

Satan was visiting the Shishibone University campus, taking a walk. Her clothing comprised of a modified version of her Stakes of Purgatory uniform. She wore a proper white blouse which was tucked into a proper black and pleated skirt. She still kept the blazer, next tie, vest and stockings. Instead of boots, she wore brown leather shoes.

Meanwhile, Ootori was taking picture of scenery when she saw Satan walk by on her camera lens. She remembered the pictures Araki had taken of her and Shinichi and also when she'd shown them to Rena to show that Shinichi had been cheating on her. She'd jumped to conclusions when first saw the pictures but fortunately Rena was able to clarify the situation.

Still, Ootori felt she needed to confront this strange girl.

* * *

Satan had just bought a can of coffee from a vending machine and popped open the can when Ootori walked up to her.

"Hey," she greeted.

"Hey," Satan replied before taking a sip.

"I'm Shinichi's sempai on the Photography Club," said Ootori. "Call me Ootori Hisamaki."

"Satan."

"That's a unique name," stated Ootori.

"I'm a unique person," was Satan's terse reply. "So, what do you want?"

"You're going out with Shinichi, right?" Ootori questioned.

"That's right, not that I think it's any of your business," Satan retorted. She hated it when anybody stuck their nose into her business, her sisters included, and this girl really didn't have the right to ask her about something so private.

"It's just that he has a girlfriend," Ootori informed Satan. "Rena told me about the situation but I want to know what your deal is in all this."

Satan grunted and rolled her eyes as she finished her drink. "Look, Hisamaki, this might sound rude but you should mind your own business."

"I'm just curious," insisted Ootori.

"Curiosity killed the cat," Satan shot back as she started to walk away. Ootori grabbed her shoulder. "Let me go."

"I used to have a boyfriend, OK?" Ootori stated. "We were happy, but then I found out he two-timed me. When I thought Shinichi might be doing the same, seeing you behind Rena's back, I just got upset."

"I know, she told me," said Satan. "And if you really want to know what I'm getting out of this situation, it's simple." Satan took in a deep breath and said, "It's love."

"Love?" Ootori questioned.

"I love Shinichi, a lot, but I had to keep those feeling to myself because of, well, Rena," Satan admitted. "But then she asked me over and pretty much told me she would let her boyfriend sleep with me."

"Really?" Ootori was sceptical.

"Look, Shinichi's got a lot of extra baggage which he sometimes keeps to himself and he keeps a lot of pain hidden, so Rena just thought that we could help him emotionally," Satan explained. "Does that answer your question, Little Miss Nosy?"

"Yeah…kinda…" Now Ootori looked embarrassed. "Sorry for bothering you."

"Yeah, whatever." Satan tossed the can into a trashcan and walked away, pocketing her hands as she left Ootori behind.

Satan was an angry girl, which was her default setting, or at least she used to be. Now she was like any ordinary girl. She had sister she loved, despite how they annoyed her, a brother she looked up to, and also a boy she loved.

Satan at first wasn't sure what to make of Shinichi. For one thing, he was a bit of a pervert which was a turn off but she was also impressed by his skills in combat. He was able to fight her one-on-one and win successfully and then battle her and the rest of her sisters before defeating them. But seeing his eyes, she could see something in them. There was some degree of self-loathing and guilt. She learnt of his past and was pretty shocked at what he had to go through for most of his life.

What had attracted her to him at first was the level of anger he radiated whenever GIN-SHOCKER was involved. She soon learnt that it was because of the things they had done to him and made him do. For most of his life he'd only been identified as a weapon, stripped of his humanity and denied a childhood. He grew up in GIN-SHOCKER with nothing more than absolute loyalty towards the terrorist organization until he rebelled and abandoned it.

It was a miracle he was so sane after having his entire life messed up like that but that was only on the surface. Satan herself had witnessed what Shinichi was capable of when he let his rage take over. He became an unforgiving killer when he went to hunt down Gebok in order to avenge Lina, going after anyone and even resorting to murder when he had to. It was unnerving to say the least.

When Rena had offered to share Shinichi with her, she'd been skeptical, thinking it was some kind of trick, but then she realized it was no joke and she lost her virginity to Shinichi in a very intense lovemaking session. She still got goosebumps when she remembered that day. It caused her to shudder in pleasure at the memory.

Despite the boy's anger being the thing that first attracted her to him, it was his kindness and selflessness that made him fall in love with him. He was willing to risk his life to protect others, especially the ones he loved and she was included.

And now that boy was fighting for the world, risking his life again to be a hero. She was upset that he hadn't asked her to help. She understood why but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it.

"Come back you idiot," she whispered, fists clenched. "You better come back alive."

* * *

Satoko and Rika were having lunch with their two school friends, Sayoko and Natsumi

"So, where's Hanyuu?" Natsumi asked, nearly causing Satoko to do a spit-take.

The blonde forced herself to calm down and responded, "Uh…who?"

"You know, your friend, the sister of Rika. She's got purple hair and sometimes go 'au, au'," Natsumi described.

Sayoko added, "She's been gone from school for awhile now. Is she OK?"

"Oh, her," Satoko answered a little nervously. "Yeah, there's a completely logical explanation to Hanyuu's absence." She turned to Rika for help, "Tell her, Rika."

Rika rolled her eyes at Satoko's obvious cowardice but answered nonetheless, "It's nothing you both need to worry about. Hanyuu's just feeling a little ill, that's all. Shiori-mma's taking care of her at home." It wasn't the truth but Natsumi and Sayoko didn't need to know that and what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them.

"Oh, that makes sense," Sayoko nodded.

"_Nice save_," Satoko whispered to Rika.

"We should go visit her after school," Natsumi suggested, causing Rika and Satoko to stiffen.

"What?" Rika responded. "Visit?"

"Well, she's ill, right? We should see how she's doing," Natsumi added.

"Um…I don't think that's a good idea because you might catch what she has," Rika tried to dissuade them.

"Then we'll wear masks," Natsumi answered. "That'll keep us from getting sick. So, what does Hanyuu have."

"The flu/measles!" Rika and Satoko answered at the same time. Natsumi cocked an eyebrow in suspicion.

"So, which is it? Flu or measles?"

"It's the flu!" Rika insisted. "The flu, she has the flu."

"OK," Natsumi nodded. "I'll come over later."

"And I'll bring a gift!" added Sayoko. "Oh, she'll be so happy to see us!"

Rika and Satoko shared looks of worry, thinking the exact same thing, '_Crap_.'

* * *

"_You want me to do what again?_" AI-Shin questioned as Shiori held the phone to him.

"_We need you to use a hologram to make it look like Hanyuu's sick in bed with the flu_," Rika said from the other end.

"…_Why?"_

"_Because we told our friends that she was sick and now they want to come over to our house to visit and see if she's OK_," Rika explained.

AI-Shin sighed, "_OK, fine, but you gotta make sure they don't touch or else they'll discover she isn't really there_."

"_Done, see you soon_," Rika said before ending the call.

"_Right, well I better get ready_," AI-Shin said.

"Are you sure you're up to it? I mean not only do you have to project her image but you'll have to make the hologram behave like her too," said Shiori.

"_Yeah, but I can manage. I'll just have to wing it. I mean I've been living with you guys for awhile now so I should know her personality well enough_," AI-Shin said confidently. "_Wish me luck_." He floated up to Rika and Hanyuu's room to prepare the hologram.

* * *

After kindergarten, Alice walked home with her mother, Yami, hand in hand. Along the way the two stopped to buy snacks. Yami had gotten herself a bag of taiyaki, which were her favorite treat since Alan introduced them to her. As for Alice, her favorite treat were chocolate cornets. They were cone-shaped bread filled with chocolate cream. The way she ate it was cute to watch as well since she'd bite into the smaller end, causing the chocolate cream to leak out the opening on the fatter end. So that none would go to waste she would lick up the chocolate cream that was leaking out before she resumed eating the thinner end, continuing the process until she finished her treat.

Both mother and daughter sat on a park bench, watching as people passed them by. It was November, and soon it would be December and then January which would mark the beginning of a New Year. Alice hoped her daddy would return for the holidays. She missed him dearly. Oh, sure, she heard his voice whenever he called home but that made him miss his physical presence more.

And she wasn't the only one. The rest of the household also missed having Alan around, even if it had only been a week since he left and went to Kyoto. He needed to fight a big bad monster and she understood. It didn't mean she had to like it, though. Why did her father have to be the one to go? Did they really need him that much? Couldn't they see she needed him more?

The day she woke up and saw his face, she knew the man would always protect her. She just knew. And she was proven right when he protected her from being hurt by her onii-chan who looked so angry. Maybe that was why her daddy needed to go, so that her onii-chan wouldn't be so angry.

Yami's gaze rested on her adopted daughter. They had a lot in common. They had both been created in labs, made for assassination, and had fought Alan in the past. Alice didn't remember about her time as Chaos Doll and Yami hoped she never did. Alan had described Chaos Doll as a monster that looked innocent but was deranged at heart, without morals and cruel in behavior. Whatever Takada did, Yami was grateful since she now had a cute little daughter who was eating chocolate cornets next to her.

"Alice, would you like one?" Yami offered a taiyaki to her.

"Thank you, Mommy!" Alice said, taking the treat. Whenever Alice called her 'Mommy', Yami couldn't help but feel happy. She may not be Alice's biological mother, but did blood really mattered when it came to family? It didn't. Alan's family showed her that it didn't matter what type of blood ran through their veins, family was made up of people who cared and supported one another. Being related didn't make people family. It was the feelings they held for each other.

"Mommy, would you like one?" Alice offered her last chocolate cornet to Yami who smiled and she took the baked treat out of her daughter's paper bag. Together, they bit into their treats, shared warm gazes, and continued to enjoy their time together.

* * *

"Tadaima!" Rika called as she entered with Satoko, Natsumi and Sayoko.

"Okaeri nasai, girls," Shiori greeted as the four girls stood in the foyer. The girls exchanged their shoes for the indoor slippers.

"I hope we're not intruding, Mrs. Kasai," Sayoko said, carrying paper bag with her which contained Hanyuu's gift. They were creampuffs from Angel Mort, Hanyuu's favorite treat. Natsumi was carrying a bouquet of flowers she had bought earlier for Hanyuu.

"Oh, not at all. Hanyuu-chan would be so happy to see that you came to visit her," Shiori smiled. "She's upstairs, resting right now."

"May we see her?" Sayoko asked.

"Of course, but maybe you should let me take your gifts up to her later," Shiori suggested.

"Why?" Sayoko asked.

"Geeze, isn't it obvious, Sayoko? She might be sleeping and there's no point in us giving her gifts if she's asleep," Natsumi stated.

"I guess so…" said Sayoko as she handed the paper bag to Shiori. Natsumi gave her bouquet of flowers to Shiori as well.

"Creampuffs, her favorite," smiled Shiori. "Oh, and these flowers are lovely. Thank you, girls."

"Well, since that's out of the way we better head up to see if she's OK," said Rika, hoping that AI-Shin was ready with the hologram.

The four girls went in to go up the stairs which led up to the second floor where Rika & Hanyuu's room was at. Rika stood at the door and softly knocked on it. "Hanyuu, are you awake?"

There was a slight sniffle from the other side as they heard Hanyuu respond, "Come in," from the other side. Rika opened the door to allow the four girls entry and they froze at the sight of Hanyuu. Natsumi and Satoko gasped while Rika and Satoko gawked.

Hanyuu's body was covered in quilts and comforters while her hair was plastered to her flushed face. She also looked ready to cry a river. She really did look sick.

"Oh, hello, Natsumi-san, Sayoko-san," greeted Hanyuu weakly, with a slight slur in her tone at the edges. "Thank you for coming…"

"Rika said you were sick but we didn't think it was this bad!" Natsumi exclaimed but she winced as Sayoko elbowed her in the side. Hanyuu slowly started to sit up, revealing her wearing purple pajamas with yellow stars on them.

"Oh, it's just that I told Rika not to make a big deal about it if people at school asked," Hanyuu answered. Rika and Satoko were silently impressed. The hologram looked so real. The sphere-droid was probably in the room with them right now, camouflaging himself so that he wouldn't be noticed. Rika looked over to the desk and gawked.

AI-Shin was sitting right there.

"Hey, what's this thing?" Natsumi asked as she picked up AI-Shin.

"That's a paperweight!" Rika said quickly. Natsumi was examining the big mechanical eyeball. "Please, put that down."

"Wow, this is some paperweight," admired Natsumi. "Where did you get it?"

"Oh, my boyfriend got it for me from overseas," answered Hanyuu.

Satoko and Hanyuu stared oddly at Hanyuu. If AI-Shin's eye was staring down at the floor because of the way Natsumi was holding her, then that would mean…Satoko and Hanyuu returned their gaze towards Hanyuu who winked at them.

* * *

Natsumi and Sayoko gave Hanyuu, Rika and Satoko their goodbyes as they left. Shiori saw the two girls off before coming upstairs with their gifts. Hanyuu smiled brightly as she saw the bag of creampuffs and was touched by the two girls' kindness.

"Hanyuu, is that really you?" Rika asked.

"Of course it's me," Hanyuu confirmed.

"But you were in Kyoto," Rika countered.

"That's true too, but after Shin contacted me and told me what was going on I decided to come here to help out," Hanyuu explained. "We do have a Teleportal."

"What about the hologram?" Satoko asked.

"_It wasn't as perfect as I thought_," AI-Shin admitted in embarrassment.

Hanyuu bit into a creampuff and sighed happily. "It's been awhile since I bit into one of these."

"So, how are things in Kyoto?" Shiori asked as she put the flowers in the vase. They really brightened the room. Hanyuu frowned.

"You want the good news or the bad news first?" Hanyuu asked.

"I'm guessing the bad news first," Rika requested.

"The bad news is that four out of eight of the sealing stones have been destroyed and they've been a lot of casualties among the Kekkain," Hanyuu answered. "And it's much worse because Shiro Juuyon stripped Shinichi of his time powers."

"What!-?" Shiori exclaimed loudly.

"He stripped Shinichi of his time powers," Hanyuu repeated, "So, now Shinichi can't perform time reversal to revive the dead."

"That's horrible! Is he OK?" She was worried for her son. To learn he could no longer use his time powers must be making him miserable.

"He is, for the most part," Hanyuu answered. "Shiro's trying to beat us both physically and psychologically and he's making a lot of progress. He's also got an army." She described the DALEKs and Cyberman, the latter causing Rika, Satoko and Shiori to blanch in disgust since Cybermen were once humans but had their brains put into cold, metal shells. "I know we have to win, but Shiro's got an army."

"You have Yuji, and the other Manakytes," Rika reminded.

"I know, but will it be enough?" Hanyuu asked. "I heard that they fought the other Orochis. The Orochi's spawns, I believe they're called now. I saw the footage. They're powerful."

"So are the Manakytes. Shiro Juuyon may have an army but all of you together are the equivalent of an army," Rika encouraged. "You can't give up. You're the one who told me to never give up."

Hanyuu's smile returned as she nodded, "Hai."

"Why does Shiro Juuyon want to release the Yamata no Orochi anyway?" Shiori asked. "Doesn't he know what that means?"

"He does, and doesn't care. He doesn't care about human life, Shiori-mama," Rika said, remembering how Shiro Juuyon had tried to kill them years ago. They would've been dead if Shinichi hadn't saved them.

"So, what about the good news?" Satoko asked. "You mentioned you had good news too."

"We recently saved the city of Kyoto from an infestation of Rage Flies.," said Hanyuu as she got out of bed. "I have to go now"

"How about after dinner?" Shiori suggested. "It's been awhile."

"That would be lovely," Hanyuu smiled. It'd been awhile since she had one of Shiori's home-cooked meals.

"Great," Shiori clapped her hands together, "Dinner will be ready in a moment." She went downstairs to get everything ready. Now, if only Shinichi were here then it'd be perfect.

* * *

"Oh, OK then. Behave yourself, Satoko-chan. Ja ne." Satoshi put down the phone and turned to address Shion. "That was Satoko-chan. She told she was going to be staying at Rika-chan's place for dinner."

"Oh, that's cool," Shion responded. She had come over to Satoshi's house to make dinner for him and Satoko but since the two of them would be alone tonight that meant she could make this dinner a romantic one.

"Oh, and Hanyuu-chan came back too," the blond boy added.

"Really?"

"Yeah, apparently a couple of their school friends were worried about Hanyuu-chan so they decided to pay her a visit. To make a long story short they were able to dodge a bullet," Satoshi explained. "It's pretty convenient to have your own teleporter. You can go anywhere in the blink of an eye."

"Hey, do you think everyone will be OK?" Shion asked, wondering about their friends who were fighting against Shiro and Gnol.

Satoshi sat down with her and returned, "Well, why shouldn't they be? It's not like they're new at this or anything. They did defeat GIN-SHOCKER, the Dark Hatred Society, X-SHOCKER, and a whole lot of villains up until now."

"I know, but I can't help but feel worried. We're not just talking about an evil organization. This is about the resurrection of the Yamata no Orochi. I've always believed it to be a legend but knowing that it's real scares me." Satoshi put an arm around her in a gesture of reassurance.

"Just believe in them, Shion. That's all we can do for them now," Satoshi told her.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Shion said, nodding her head. It was like Satoshi said. The others had faced terrifying odds before. They even fought against what essentially were Gnol's brothers and father in the past and they still won.

"Glad you agree," Satoshi said. Like Shion he was worried about the others too but he also knew that when a crisis arose they were the best ones for the job.

"I still wish we could do more, though," she argued.

"I know, so do I," he agreed.

* * *

With a week already gone by and the teams of the NEO NUMBERS and their allies still over in Kyoto, their friends and families were already starting to become worried about their beloved heroes. Of course, this applied to a certain Stake of Lust as well. Walking through the mall during the afternoon was none other than the blonde and cheerful Stake, Asmodeus. With her hair kept in its usual style of twin-tails, she walked down the mall walkway wearing nothing more than a short black denim mini-skirt, white halter top, white stockings and black high heels and also a red leather jacket with fur lining around the edges of the sleeves and collar.

As she made her way to one of her favorite stores, her thoughts were constantly set on those of her beloved husband, Yokoshima. She missed him greatly and worried about him but she knew that he would be alright as he was fighting alongside his fellow Riders and he even had Sentinel and Hanyuu there with him as well. But even so she still worried about him.

'_Hmm, I wonder how Yoko-kun is doing right now,_' she thought to herself as she entered a clothing boutique. As she skimmed the aisles of designer clothes and shoes, her eyes suddenly landed on a pair of high heels tinted in a blue color that matched Yokoshima's Blue Beetle armor.

Picking them up, she looked them over and then sat down to try them on. Taking a few practice steps she turned and looked herself over in the mirror and smiled appreciatively. "Nice fit…and comfy too."

She put the shoes back in their box and held onto it as she gathered a few clothes and undergarments and headed towards a changing room. Once inside she tried on all sorts of clothes, mixing and matching the outfits as to see which went best with what. After a few moments she performed a twirl as she spun around and looked herself over in a full body mirror, her body covered in a black dress with a tie string around her back and a band around her neck. The dress went down to her knees but had slits on the sides, revealing her lovely legs and it also hugged her body tightly, accentuating her curves nicely. There dress was also low cut in front, allowing some of her cleavage to show.

'_Oh, very nice! Yoko-kun will definitely love this one._' She then slipped out of the dress and tried on a few see-through nightgowns and some lingerie. "Yoko-kun, prepare for the best welcome home present you could ever hope for!" she squealed and then slipped back into her regular clothes before leaving the changing room.

As she put away the clothes that she didn't want and went towards the checkout counter with the ones that she did, she began to plan out all the things that she and Yokoshima were going to do once he got back home. She just needed to remember to head to the nearest adult store next so as to buy a few special _toys_ for the upcoming occasion. After she finished paying for her purchases, she exited the store with her bags. She turned around to leave the mall only to suddenly stop as a small group of men approached her. Noticing the looks in their eyes, she could instantly tell what they were after.

"Hey there…_onee-chan_," one of them said as he eyed her lustfully. He had short messy brown hair and wore a bomber jacket over a red shirt and brown cargo pants. "Why is such a hot looking girl here at the mall and all by herself?"

"Yeah, if you're lonely, we could help keep you company and, in return, maybe you could help us have a _good_ time," said another who was a bit shorter than the rest of the guys and also a bit rotund.

The group of guys surrounded her and eyed her body up and down as they began to think of all the dirty things that they wanted to do to her. As they continued to leer at her with lust, Asmodeus began to think back on how she used to be. If she were still the same as she was back before she met Yokoshima then she would have gone with them in a heartbeat. She wasn't the Stake of Lust for nothing. Back then she would have jumped the bones of any decent looking man in an instant if he looked like he could satisfy her appetite. But then she began to think of the present and the last couple of years of her life. She had met a great man in Yokoshima and, despite his faults, she loved him.

Sure, he was somewhat of an idiot and maybe even clumsy at times but he was honest with his feelings and never lied to her. He always put others before himself and he was really _great_ in bed, considering the fact that he was the only man she had ever slept with. And now he was her husband and she enjoyed every minute that they spent together. She had changed her ways and now considered herself a one man type of girl. She would never cheat on her husband as she knew that he would never cheat on her.

"So, whaddya say…_onee-chan_?" another guy asked as he began to place his hand against her back. Asmodeus just closed her eyes and moved away from them.

"Sorry…but I'm a married woman," she said as she lifted her hand and showed off her wedding band. The men just scoffed for a moment and then their grins returned. If she wouldn't go willingly, then they could always _persuade_ her.

"Ah, come on. He doesn't need to know," the first one said, causing Asmodeus' right eye to twitch in annoyance.

"Yeah, we won't tell a soul."

Now Asmodeus was starting to get mad. It wasn't bad enough that these idiot's wouldn't take no for an answer, they were basically referring to her as nothing more than a cheating slut. She quickly turned around and faced them, giving them a stern yet enraged glare. "Did I not say this clearly enough for a bunch of idiots such as yourselves? I said _NO_! I would never betray my husband so," her eyes began to glow a bit as she glared at them angrily, "get lost!"

As the men glared right back at her in a mixture of anger and shock, a young woman came to a stop while she was walking by. Seeing the men trying to force themselves on a single woman was something she could not tolerate. Slipping her hand into her purse, she then pulled it back out but with her hand now clad in brass knuckles. She then began to make her way over but stopped as she noticed one of the men, who had moved forward to grab Asmodeus by the arm get sent across the floor courtesy of a powerful sidekick. The guy hit the wall hard and was out like a light in an instant.

'_Wow…not bad._' she thought and then ran over as the rest of the men, a total of five remaining, began to move in on Asmodeus as she dropped her shopping bags.

One of the men grabbed her by her arm but Asmodeus quickly took hold of his wrist, using a technique that Yokoshima had taught her, and applied pressure to his wrist, causing the man to squeal in pain. She then jumped up and delivered a forward roundhouse kick to his head, knocking him down to the ground and out like a light as well. As she smiled at her handiwork another one of the men grabbed her from behind, pinning her arms to her back.

"Ha ha ha…got you no-OW!" the man fell to the floor as a lump appeared on the side of his head. Asmodeus saw him fall to the ground and then looked behind her to see a young women with long blonde hair kept in a ponytail and wearing a white dress and black jacket standing there with a pair of brass knuckles raised near her face, a sadistic yet satisfied grin on her face. She then looked at the remaining three men and glared at them angrily.

"Who the hell are you?-!" one of the men shouted.

"Someone," she began as she moved next to Asmodeus and gave her a reassuring wink before looking back at the men, "who does not like men who force themselves on women." She then showed off her brass knuckles once more while Asmodeus clenched her fists, "Now, I suggest that you all just tuck your tails between your legs and run off like good little boys…_or else_."

"Oh yeah? As if we'd listen to some stuck up _bitch_!" With that the men charged at them which the two girls replied to with shared wicked smirks.

As they retaliated, Asmodeus started up a conversation with the girl that had come to her aid. "So, you got a name? Or should I just call you Knuckles?" The girl just giggled a bit as she slammed her brass knuckles into the face of the short, fat guy, busting his lip and breaking his nose as he fell to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

"My name is Jessica. Jessica Ushiromiya."

Asmodeus rammed her knee into the gut of another guy, causing him to double over. "Nice to _meet_ you then, Ushiromiya-san!" Asmodeus said as she then kicked the man hard in the crotch. She didn't usually like to fight dirty but she wanted to pay these men back for having insulted her in such a way earlier. The man's eyes bugged out wide as he cupped his hands in front of his crotch, letting out a loud squeak as he slowly fell over. His body twitched every so often as he could have sworn he felt his testicles get knocked straight up into his throat. Well, knowing Asmodeus's strength, it was highly possible.

"Wow, nice shot." Jessica whistled and then gave Asmodeus a thumbs-up. "So, what's your name?" she asked as she cracked her knuckles and then proceeded to follow Asmodeus as they stalked over to the last man standing, said man cowering and crying for his mommy.

"The name's Asmodeus Ryuunosuke-Magi," she said as she cocked back her fist.

"That's a nice name," she replied as she too cocked back her own fist which held the brass knuckles. "It's a pleasure to meet…Magi-san!"

"_OKAA-SAN!_" the man shouted as he was suddenly pelted with two furious blows of righteous fury from the two beautiful blonde women.

About fifteen minutes later, the girls were sitting at a small table at a café within the mall, each enjoying a milkshake. The two of them smiled as they talked about themselves to one another. Asmodeus was glad to have made a new friend in this world and made sure to make a mental note to make sure to keep in touch with her. As the sun began to set, the two girls then left the mall and soon parted ways for the evening.

"Well, until we meet again. Ja ne, Asmo-chan!" Jessica waved as she left.

"Ja ne, Jessie-chan!" Asmodeus waved in return as she left as well.

Once she noticed that Jessica was out of sight she ran towards an alley and entered before vanishing in the form of a swarm of golden butterflies, the Stake of Lust returning to her home that she now shared with Yokoshima. She now had to prepare for when he would get home and she wanted everything to be perfect.

* * *

Situated deep within a canyon of an undisclosed area sat the base of the NEO NUMBERS, known as the Hive. Within the base, inside the meeting room sat Team B who were going over a few battle plans for when Gnol and his spawns would appear the next time. Further down in the base was the gym which was being used by Conda. But even deeper below the base was the Combat Simulation Chamber. Within the simulator was a single woman who had a very beautiful build with curves in all the right places. Wearing a red sports bra with matching shorts and black combat boots as well as black training gloves was Lucifer, the Eldest of the Seven Sisters of Purgatory and the Stake of Pride. Right now she felt that her pride had been hurt.

Her long straight black hair clung to her body as she had only finished using the gym just a few moments ago and now she wanted some real training.

"Sheila, access combat protocol '_White Massacre_' and set Simu-Droid levels to level 5." Lucifer instructed as she tied her black hair up into a ponytail so it would not get in the way.

"_Acknowledged,_" was all the response that she got.

In an instant the room began to swirl with multicolored light which then began to form into hard light constructs which soon took on the form of a ruined and apocalyptic looking downtown Tokyo. Fires raged everywhere and it looked as if blood was splattered here and there and even a few robotic bodies, meant to signify what could be meant as remains of either Beastroids or GS Soldiers. Lucifer could care less as she starred at the center of the ground before her which had opened up to allow a single Simu-Droid to rise up. Its body shimmered with hard light before it took on the form of a white clad Kamen Rider that resembled Showa. This was a mock version of their current enemy, WHITE 14, a.k.a. Shiro Juuyon.

'_Why, Shogo?_' she thought to herself as the simulation began with WHITE 14 running straight for her. A ball of pure energy formed in his hand which he then hurled at Lucifer who easily dodged the blast by sidestepping to the right. WHITE 14 then formed a pair of energy blades from his wrists and charged as she formed her own energy blade. WHITE 14 attacked first with a downward vertical slash with his right blade which Lucifer parried, using her strength to push him away from her. She then jumped back to avoid getting hit with his left blade and then lunged forward and slammed her foot into his chest plate, sending him staggering backwards.

'_Why did you not take me with you?_' She blocked a slash to her face with her blade and then dropped to the ground and performed a sweep kick which the WHITE 14 avoided by jumping over it and landed behind her. It then brought both of its blades down upon her, causing her to roll out of the way as the energy blades cut into the ground where she had been a second earlier. '_Why did you leave me behind? You know that I could be of help to you._'

WHITE 14 removed his blades from the ground and then gathered more energy into the blades and before he slashed outwards towards Lucifer, sending out a pair of energy slashes at her. The Stake of Pride jumped up into the air and over WHITE 14, landing behind him. She then rammed her sword arm forward, attempting to impale the evil Rider only for said Rider to turn around and bring his energy blades together, forming a small energy shield before him.

"Damn it!" she cursed as WHITE 14 then pushed her away and then slashed at her face once more, this time forcing her to block, leaving herself open. WHITE 14 took advantage of that opening and spun around on his heels and rammed his elbow into her gut, knocking the wind out of her.

Staggering backwards in order to gain a bit of distance she continued with her inner monologue, '_I am no damsel in distress nor am I some weak girl that needs to be sheltered away from danger._' She then jumped into the air and came down upon WHITE 14 with her sword. WHITE 14, in kind, just jumped away and then recalled his blades as he then cupped his hands before him, gathering an enormous amount of energy between his hands. The ball of energy glowed brightly as it radiated with power.

'_So why…why do you not ask me to help you!-?_' WHITE 14 then shot the energy ball into the air which then floated high above them. After a few seconds it let loose a volley of energy bullets down upon the surrounding area. Running to a downed building, Lucifer took cover as the blasts pelted the concrete wall and the ground below, smoke rising everywhere as sparks and pebbles littered the ground. Looking at WHITE 14 who was looking for her, Lucifer noticed an opening and went for it. Energy blasts continued to rain down upon her as she charged at WHITE 14 with her sword drawn back as it slowly crackled with energy. '_What are you afraid of!-?_'

Turning around to see Lucifer coming at him, WHITE 14 jumped back just as she let out a powerful slash attack. But it was no ordinary slash as she had copied his own attack and let loose an energy slash that slammed into his chest plate, cutting a gash into his armor as it tore off metal and sparks at the same time.

"Don't think that I am a weakling just because I am a woman!" she shouted as she slashed at WHITE 14 again only for him to catch her by her arm and then, with a flick of his wrist, flipping her over his shoulder and slamming her down hard onto the ground, back first. He then straddled her and he began to deliver blow after blow to her gut, face and chest. Using one knee to pin her left arm while using his left hand to pin her right arm, he continued to ram his fist into her body over and over, without so much as a hint of letting up.

'_I am the Stake of Pride…and you hurt that pride by denying me the right to fight beside you._' A tear slowly started to fall down her cheek which was soon removed as WHITE 14 punch her in the face again. She had a busted lip and a black eye from the continuous hits and she could have sworn that she had heard a rib break from one punch a moment ago. '_So, please Shogo, tell me why. Tell me why you won't let me fight with you!_'

WHITE 14 then got up and picked her up and then performed a routine of punches to her face and knees to the gut continuously, without stopping. After a couple more minutes had passed he let her go and she fell to the ground. Her body was covered in bruises and her black eye was almost swollen shut. He picked her up by her hair, causing her to yelp slightly at the painful sensation.

"_Terminate target…with extreme prejudice,_" WHITE 14 said in a robotic voice as he formed another energy blade and held it to her face and then pulled his back, preparing to kill her.

'_Why…Shogo…why won't you let me help you fight against Shiro? What are you so…afraid of?_' She then looked forward and, as if was coming at her in slow motion, she noticed the energy blade creeping towards her face. Just as it was about an inch away from hitting her, realization finally set in. This WHITE 14 was set at a lower level power setting and was no here near the real WHITE 14. It was just a mockery and yet…it was winning. She finally realized why Shogo had refused to let her come along. '_That's what you are afraid of. It's because if I fight Shiro as he is now…I'll…die…DIE!_'

In an instant her arm shot out and grabbed his arm, stopping his blade. WHITE 14 looked down at her only to get the surprise of his life as she used her legs and pushed herself up, ramming her head into his as she pushed away his blade, performing a powerful head-butt. The force of the blow caused his head to snap back and forced him to stagger backwards.

Lucifer then stood up and wiped away some blood residue from her mouth as she panted heavily, her energy blade forming as a small smile formed on her face. She closed her eyes and sighed in knowing. "I see. I know now that you did not intend to hurt my pride. You are only trying to protect me because you know that if I fight this monster…I'll lose my life." She opened her eyes and cracked her neck a bit and then charged at WHITE 14 in a burst of speed. "Granted I could always be re-spawned as long as Beatrice-sama wishes it to be so…it is just something you do not want to have to ever experience."

"_Die!_" WHITE 14 shouted as he came at her with his own energy blade.

"HYAH!" they both screamed as their blades slashed at one another, a lightning bolt signaling off in the background as thunder roared.

'_I know now Shogo. You protect me because you love me. You love me so much that you do not want to lose me._' The two combatants stood away from one another, their swords stretched out before them as their backs faced each other. After a few seconds WHITE 14's head fell to the ground as his body shimmered with hard light, becoming the body of the Simu-Droid once more.

Looking back at her fallen opponent, she then relaxed her body and smiled. "Sheila…end program."

"_Acknowledged. Good work Lucifer,_" Sheila said as she ended the White Massacre simulation.

Lucifer then walked away from the fallen droid as its neck and head sparked from the severed connection. The Stake of Pride grabbing a towel and heading towards the elevator that would lead her to the Showers. '_Shogo…know that I now know why you are protecting me…and that I love you for that. Also know that I…am very proud of you…my dear sweet soldier._'

* * *

"OK, Celine, watch this," said Bishie. Being in the NEO-NUMBERS' canyon allowed her to drop her holographic disguise. In public she looked like an extremely busty young woman. She was in fact a Boobisaur and a plant-type Pokegirl. Her Vine Whips slithered out from her back before shooting towards the target. The Vine Whips hit dead centre.

"Mau! Mau!" Celine applauded. Bishie patted her on the head and frowned slightly. As much as she loved showing off, she knew Celine wouldn't be able to pull such a technique off.

Bishie knew Celine was not a Pokegirl, but that did not mean she couldn't _try_ to teach her daughter some tricks. The alien plant girl already had her own version of her species' 'Lust Dust' attack which caused people to fall madly in love with Alan, and it didn't just apply to women either. However, Celine could only perform such an 'attack' when she was intoxicated by cola, which was something Alan made sure his youngest daughter avoided. Unfortunately, she manages to get her hands on the beverage and that was when the insanity would occur.

One would think it was cute to see Celine all drunk but Alan considered it the beginning of a huge and embarrassing disaster. He still remembered the time the entire town chased after him because they were in love with him. Fortunately, the effects of Celine's pollen were temporary. The reason the pollen affected people like it did was because Celine loved her father very much. It was just her feelings for her father being superimposed on others.

Momo, the expert on extraterrestrial flora, still didn't understand much about Celine's species. Despite looking human, Celine was a plant, a very cute little plant that Alan had raised. When Celine first emerged in human form, Momo tried to claim herself as Celine's mother but Bishie beat her to it. Pokegirls could be really scary when they wanted something and Bishie wanted Celine to be her daughter. They were both plants, after all.

Bishie was also trying to teach Celine how to defend herself. The little plant girl was just so weak, vulnerable and helpless and could easily get hurt. It would break her heart if anything were to happen to her. Unfortunately, beyond the ability to make pollen that could brainwash people into falling for Alan, Celine didn't have any other extraordinary abilities.

OK, her cuteness could be considered a very powerful technique as looking at her face could make Alan cave and do whatever Celine wanted, even if he couldn't understand a word she said.

Celine missed Alan, that much was true, and she wanted her father to return. But, in her infant mind, she understood why he needed to go. He was a superhero! Sometimes he would even take her flying. It was just so much fun to have the wind blowing through her leafy, green hair.

The ground rumbled and Celine held tightly onto Bishie's hand. The plant Pokegirl watched as Daiki was doing some training nearby. The boy was human in shape but in truth was a Manakyte, a race of human-shaped dragons and Daiki was an Earth Manakyte who could manipulate the element of earth, which included things like rock and dirt. The boy was stomping on the ground, ripping boulders out from the ground and tossing them into the canyon wall. She pulled back his fist, pulling the boulders back before resuming the barrage again, repeatedly sending boulders into the canyon wall.

Alan had adopted Daiki, enrolling him in school afterwards. Many could see Daiki resenting the arrangement a little considering that Alan was unable to save his best friend, Tsuchi-Gnol, from being devoured by Gnol Gnauh. He didn't hate Alan, but deep down he was still a little upset at his adopted father's inability to save his friend. Like Celine and Alice, he too had adopted a mother figure in the form of Conda Anna.

The Amazon Queen had taken a liking to Daiki almost instantly, adopting him and showing her affection by nearly suffocating him in her chest. That was when she was being affectionate. Other times, she would insist that he train to control his powers and would train him in basic hand-to-hand. Normally, males could not learn the Amazon fighting style but Conda was queen and her word was law.

* * *

Nozomu was eating in the cafeteria and there was a pile of bones and plates stacked next to her. She enjoyed eating meat and ate large quantities of it but due to her pregnancy she needed to eat for two people which meant her meat intake had doubled. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to afford that much meat the wolf yokai girl went to the only source of free food she knew: the Hive's cafeteria. Their oven could literally materialize any form of food and Nozomu had chosen spare ribs. She enjoyed the barbeque sauce as well and she had it staining around her mouth. She, however, did not care as she and her little one needed to eat.

Her stomach was bulging to visibly indicate that she was with child. As a wolf yokai her pregnancy had a much shorter term than humans and the baby was going to be born very soon. It was her and Alan's child and she smiled, knowing that she would soon become a mother. She didn't just come to the Hive for food. She also came for medical checkups to see how her baby was doing. Alan often accompanied her but in his absence it was her brother Saku who accompanied her. Speaking of which, her brother was sitting across from her, watching her eat.

When he'd learnt that his little sister's lover was helping the Kekkain Clan, he was more than a little upset. The clan considered ALL yokai evil and were close-minded. The reason the yokai population in Japan was so low was because of Onmyouji groups like that. That was why many of their kin fled overseas to avoid death. Saku and Nozomu were the last of their pack which lived in Japan.

Nozomu had explained that Alan had to go help the Kekkain Clan since they needed to stop the true revival of the Yamata no Orochi. The Yamata no Orochi was considered one of the most powerful demons in history, rivaling the likes of Tamamo-no Mae and Shutendouji. It could not be killed but was instead split into pieces of Susano-O's sword, the legendary Kusanagi no Tsurugi, and had its pieces sealed into separate locations to prevent its resurrection. A lot of the yokai had heard rumors of the Orochi's revival and had fled the country to be spared its wrath.

Saku claimed that fighting the Orochi when one was not divinity was just foolish and suicidal but when Nozomu told her that one of the Orochi's fragments called Gnol Gnauh called Alan 'Susano-O', he wondered if Alan did have what it takes. Of course, maybe the Orochi's fragments had all gone insane after so many centuries of captivity and had mistaken Alan for Susano-O.

Saku once asked his sister if she believed in Alan and she'd told him that she did and Alan would save the world for her sake and the sake of her child. If Nozomu vouched for Alan, then that was good enough for him.

* * *

Lala was a scientific genius despite her bubbly personality and airheaded appearance. Since she could not help on the battlefield, she could at the very least help out in the lab. She had asked Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam for permission and allowed her to help out as an intern and the older scientists accepted her offer. It was getting a little boring with just the two of them and a fresh face might just brighten up the lab.

Lala hummed to herself as she craned her neck, studying the immaculate contraption before her.

It was a transparent screen.

"_Lala-sama, what are you making?" _inquired Peke of the Devilukian curiously. _"It looks interesting."_ Peke was Lala's costume robot which could form clothing for Lala. However, since whatever clothing Peke formed would vanish as soon as she was tired, it was much safer for Lala to have a regular wardrobe with Peke taking the form of a hairclip instead.

Lala smiled widely, squinting her eyes happily as she answered, "It's not finished, yet, but after Alan-kun called and told me about Shiro Juuyon's Cybermen and his knockoff Daleks I decided to help even the odds."

"_How so?" _Peke asked.

"Well, Alan-kun mentioned that Shiro Juuyon has two AI's working for him named Gary and ALPHA-01. So, I'm building something that should be able to extract and contain both those AI's and the rudimentary AI of the DALEKs, leaving that portion of his army completely useless."

"_But what about the Cybermen?"_

Lala sighed as she admitted, "Unfortunately, I don't have anything to stop them yet." She added, instantly becoming cheerful, "But it's still a work in progress and I'm sure I'll think of something."

Even if Lala couldn't help on the battlefield, she could at least find a way to contribute. She was a genius after all; a passionate one at that, and her passion was focused solely on Alan.

The boy who rescued her on the day their met, who claimed her to be his wife, who fought impossible odds for them to be together was worth all the trouble. After all, he had said that she was worth all the trouble she brought him as well.

Lying on the workbench was a set of plans for another invention. However, they were not hers. She had found them in Alan's room. Wanting to surprise him, she had taken the plans to build what was described in them. It looked to be plans for some kind of sonic probe. When it was finished, she would present the device to him as a present.

* * *

Amora stood on the cliff which overlooked the canyon as GaoPhoenix flew across the canyon to land atop the Hive's tower. The large bird seemed like a sentry, keeping her eyes opened for intruders. Sitting down, Amora took a moment to gaze at the mighty beast GaoLiger who seemed to be taking a nap and then she looked down at GaoTyranno who was doing the same near the waterfall and lake.

These Power Animals were indeed magnificent creatures. While they were mechanical in appearance they were still living creatures. They claimed to be spirits of the Earth and Amora was inclined to agree. Their origins were mystical in nature and their power was nothing to scoff at.

The Power Animals belonged to Yuji Fudo and Yuri Fudo and they had made the Manakyte brothers their masters. Getting up, she walked over to GaoLiger and put her hand on his paw. The massive, metal beast cracked one eye open to look at her. His senses were sharp and he was also emphathic.

"Is it too much to ask for you to switch to Alan?" she asked. GaoLiger gave a soft growl in response. "I see. Then it's impossible then." GaoLiger closed his eye to resume his nap. "I'm sorry I disturbed you."

Amora, being a goddess and a sorceress could connect with Earth spirits. She could hear their voices in her head as they spoke to her, responding to her requests kindly. Power Animals were loyal but only to those who possessed their Gao Jewel. As long as Yuji possessed their Gao Jewels, GaoPhoenix and GaoLiger would not abandon him.

Thinking out loud, Amora wondered, "There might be more of those Gao Jewels out there. If I should collect them then Alan would be all mine." Amora didn't hold any spite for the other girls who shared Alan's affection, but deep down Amora couldn't help but feel a little selfish as to want him all to herself. However, that would be wrong. Alan wasn't a prize. He was…_special_. However, she really did genuinely want to help Alan and a majestic Power Animal would be just the thing. After all, it was the least she could do when he stood up for her a long time ago.

* * *

Conda was beating the punching bag repeatedly with her fists. It was a good way for her to let out her aggression and it was the only gym that didn't kick her out for her anger issues. She did not have anger management problems! Alan could vouch for her. OK, maybe breaking that one guy's arm had been a little overboard but he had it coming. She could tolerate being stared at while wearing gym clothes but when a man she had not given permission came up to touch her rear then that was an open on invitation to a hostile reaction.

The guy would heal and he had insurance plus he was too scared to press charges.

Stopping to drink some water from a bottle, Conda grabbed a towel and wiped the sweat off her brow as she went to the window. Looking down, she spotted her adopted son Daiki training in his geokinesis, going through drills she had assigned him to master control of his powers. He was a Manakyte, a race of powerful human with dragon blood but he was still a child. Practically a hatchling if she got her terms right. While normally men were considered second class citizens in her tribe with their true purpose for existing being breeding studs, Conda had gained a much wider view of the world. OK, most men were useless with the only thing useful about them still being that thing between their legs, but she had learnt that there were men out there with courage, strength and passion.

Even a pacifist like Dr. Hasuma had taught her a thing or two. He didn't like to fight but that didn't mean he didn't know how nor did it mean he was weak. He just got tired of fighting but he would oppose any force that would harm his family and loved ones.

* * *

Daiki sighed a bit as he and Conda returned together to the boarding house. Although he loved his new mother, he had to admit that she could be a bit too overbearing for his taste, especially when it came towards training. Still, he couldn't have asked for a better mother.

Daiki was about to head back to his room for a rest when two pairs of hands grabbed him. He turned his head to see Alice and Celine smiling at him. "Yes?"

"Hey, Daiki, do you wanna play with us?" Alice asked sweetly.

"Err…actually, I was planning on getting some rest and…" Daiki stopped midsentence as both girls gave him the dreaded 'puppy-dog pout'. He sighed in defeat. "Sure, what do you wanna play?"

* * *

Daiki sighed in annoyance as he was forced to play tea party with both Celine and Alice. He'd been hoping for something else. It could've been worse. They could've forced him to play dress up.

'I really need more guy friends,' Daiki thought to himself. He snapped out of his inner monologue when he noticed that Alice was looking out the window with a sad expression on her face. He knew what she was thinking. It was obvious. "Relax, I'm sure Dad will come back any day now."

"Yeah…" she replied, sighing heavily.

"No, really. He's super strong. I'm sure he'll beat the bad guys and come back."

Celine let out, "Mau mau!" in agreement!

Alice smiled, "You're right! Daddy will come back!"

Daiki returned the smile with his own, glad to have cheered his little sister up. He knew what it was like to lose someone dear to him and he didn't want anyone else to feel the same pain.

* * *

Unlike Team A, Team B's hours were a little more flexible which meant they could go home. Battler had to since he had a family who was unaware of secret. Well, Ange knew but she promised to keep it a secret. Hana worked in the infirmary while Daichi had monitor duty. It was boring since he had to sit for hours, staring at the screen. It was peaceful without Yokoshima but sometimes silence could be even more deafening and painful than anything else. At least he had his guitar.

And now they had more manpower, or to be more precise Dragon Power. The five Manakytes, which were dubbed Team 5D's by Yuji, were an amazing fighting force and each of them could match one of the Orochi's spawns. They matched them element by element. It was an amazing sight to behold and Daichi was tempted to write a song about them.

"Ah, what the hell?" Daichi muttered. "It sure beats being bored out of my mind." Closing his eyes, he began to think up lyrics.

* * *

"Hey, do you think Daichi will like this one?" Mika asked as she held up an audio tape. Leviathan peered over to look at her selection.

"Yeah, that looks like his style," nodded Leviathan.

The two girls, who were in love with a certain Cricket Cyborg, were visiting a music store and looking through the store's inventory for something Daichi might like listening to.

Mika was a girl from the past and she'd met Daichi when he'd turned up on her island due to a freak storm. The people of her island had been in possession of the Orb of Power. It was also something the DHS had been after. During the battle for the Orb of Power, Daichi had swallowed it and gained the ability to assume Rock-Metal Form. In the end, he had to leave as Mika was left behind. However, Topper sensed her depression and came to her, offering her a wish to find Daichi in the modern era. She would also be given knowledge of that time so she wouldn't suffer from confusion and culture shock. Daichi was definitely shocked when she turned up.

As for Leviathan, she had not been happy when Mika suddenly appeared. As the Stake of Envy the verdette was naturally a jealous woman and also quite possessive of Daichi whom she loved dearly. However, their first meeting had gotten off on a rocky start due to his hatred for his sister whom Leviathan had reminded him of. It took some time for her to finally befriend him and their relationship had developed to a romantic and sexual one. Now she had to share him with Mika who had the same feelings for him and she had not been happy with the arrangement as she initially refused to share. However, she was somehow convinced that the arrangement was for the best as Mika was now stuck here and could not return to her own time, effectively stranding her in the 20th century. Not that she minded. She had made her choice and was willing to live with it even in such a strange world.

Now, both Leviathan and Mika were on friendly terms and were sharing Daichi. He had no say in the matter whatsoever, though. They pretty much decided it for him.

They both missed him and while staying at the apartment were taking care of Scar, Daichi's pet black cat. Speaking of which, the two girls were supposed to buy cat food since they had run out.

"You know, we can do more than just buy him music," said Leviathan, smirking in a naughty way.

"Oh?" Now Mika was very interested to hear what Leviathan had in mind. The Stake of Envy whispered into her partner's ear and Mika's eyes widened, her eyebrows rising, as her smile broadened. "Oh, yes, yes, yes," Mika agreed, nodding excitedly. "We should totally to _that_!"

"Come on, I saw a store that would have what we need!" Leviathan pulled Mika to the counter to pay for the tapes before going towards the store to get some supplies.

Daichi was going to love this!

* * *

"Man, that was a close call," Rudolph sighed happily.

"Huh?" Battler responded. "What do you mean?" He was at home, having dinner with his family.

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just that we were talking about taking a little family trip to see Tokyo Tower but we had to wait for you. Thank God you were late because a strange monster was attacking the damn thing!" Rudolph explained. "Messed up the tower bad."

"Ah…" Battler had heard about that. It was all over the news.

"Then there was that attack in London," Kyrie added. Battler nearly choked on his food when he heard his mother mention that. After all, he was there. "They say the Kamen Riders were there."

"Mom, Dad…" began Battler tentatively, "What do you think of the Kamen Riders?"

"Well…" Rudolph began, "I think they're like cowboys from those westerns I like to watch."

"Here we go," Kyrie rolled her eyes.

"They're wild cards, but even if we don't know much about them we know they're on our side. Like the Lone Ranger," Rudolph described. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, nothing," Battler smiled, glad that his parents were supportive of him.

"Onii-chan's a Kamen Rider too," Ange said.

'_Crap_,' Battler thought but both Rudolph and Kyrie laughed at that.

"Battler? A Kamen Rider?" He guffawed. "No way! He wouldn't be able to fight his way out of a paper bag!"

"Geez, thanks, Dad," grumbled Battler.

"Don't take it personally, Battler, but you're not exactly fighter material," Kyrie said. "Unless of course you had something to fight for then anyone can be a fighter."

"My son, the Monster Fighter. That'd be a nice idea for a TV show," Rudolph joked.

Ange pouted, puffing her cheeks because her parents didn't believe her. Battler patted her head. "It's fine, Ange. You believe I'm a Kamen Rider and that's fine by me."

Ange huffed cutely but smiled at her big brother. "Hai."

* * *

"Welcome home, stranger," Misato smiled as she welcomed her husband back. "So, how was work?" she asked.

"They're going to need a lot of work to fix Big Ben and Tokyo Tower," he told her.

"I know, it's all over the news," Misato nodded.

**GLOMP!**

"Oof!" Yuji was almost knocked off his feet as Maria tackled into him, holding him around the waist.

"Papa! Papa, you're back!" Maria cheered. He picked her up by her waist and smiled.

"Of course I'm back," Yuji smiled. He couldn't stay away from his family for long. "By the way, how's Yuna?" he asked as he put his daughter down.

Misato frowned, "She cries a lot when you're away, but we manage to calm her down with the blood you 'donated' earlier. But it's not enough. She wants to be held in her father's strong arms."

"Is that Yuji?" Sora asked as she went to greet Yuji. She kissed his cheek. "Welcome back." The rest of the girls came to greet him upon his return as well. Yuji smiled. This was exactly what he was fighting for.

* * *

Hana sighed as she was in her room, watching a B-Movie starring Boris Karloff. It was called 'The Man Who Changed Its Mind'.

"I sure hope Michiru's OK in Kyoto," Hana said softly. She chuckled slightly as she remembered swearing she would come back for Hana so they could start on her dream of owning her own banana plantation.

Hana sobered up a bit, remembering all the chaos that was being caused by Shiro and his constant attacks. According to the report Magi had received from Shinichi, Shiro was already halfway done with destroying the sealing stone and only four were left.

"Calm down," Hana ordered herself. "Remember, two out of three of our strongest guys are there. They will be fine. Besides, we always have a habit of coming back from the dead." She chuckled at that little joke she made. It put her mind at ease as she went back to enjoying the movie.

* * *

Later that evening, Featherine Augustus Aurora, the Witch of the Theatre, decided to pay Yuji's home a visit. She looked down at the baby basket and smiled at the baby.

"That's our daughter," said Yuji. He watched as the witch he respected as much as Beatrice picked up Yuna. His daughter didn't resist as Featherine cradled her in her arms.

"Such a beautiful child, and I can sense great potential in her," smiled Featherine warmly. "What's her name again?"

"It's Yuna," Misato answered.

"Yuna?" blinked Featherine. Yuna let out baby babble. "Ah, I see." She said to Yuji and Misato, "That's not what she calls herself. She actually prefers the name 'Princess Blood, Mistress of the Damned'."

Misato and Yuji both shared odd looks before looking at the Witch of the Theater for an explanation.

"I speak fluent baby," was her simple answer. "You see, it's the whole Heaven and Hell and Reincarnation thing. There's this office that manages reincarnation. Evil souls who've earned a chance of redemption get reborn here in new human bodies with all their memories. Of course they can't act on them. They're babies. You have nothing to fear after she's 2 years old. She'll be just Yuna then...possibly." She didn't sound too sure at the end.

"OK…" was Misato's response, unsure of what to say.

Fatherine put Yuna back in her basket as she said, "Now, don't feel so awkward. She's still your child, even if she calls her daddy a 'bloody blood bank'."

"Well, that's nice," Yuji said dryly.

Featherine spoke again, "So, I saw that big battle you had with the five-headed dragon. You never cease to amaze me. Of course that's just the tip of the iceberg. Speaking of icebergs, did you know I was on the Titanic?"

"I love that movie," said Misato. She'd seen it on one of her dates with Yuji, back in his world.

"Well, yes, that movie which hasn't been made in this world yet...but I was on the Titanic. I was probably the cause of its sinking too."

"_You_ sank the Titanic?" questioned Misato skeptically.

"Well, not directly. I'm the Witch of Theatre. What I write always comes true and I was writing about it sinking and well...long story short it's in the bottom of the sea and I'm not."

"Why would you sink the Titanic?" Misato questioned.

Yuji answered, "Witches are inherently prone to boredom."

"Boredom? That's her excuse?"

Featherine spoke, "When you live so long, the world looks like it's just standing still or moving very, very slowly. We just have ways of dealing with it. You know Joan of Arc? The voice she heard wasn't really God." Featherine pointed to herself.

"Wow," Yuji was amazed. Of course, Featherine could be just joking, but it was hard to tell with her.

Boredom was something witches like her hated the most and because of that boredom they were motivated to do crazy things, even killing and reviving people repeatedly to see them die with their blood and guts splattered all over the place.

Basically, they would kill a person in 101 ways and bring them back to life 101 times just to kill them again in 101 new ways.

Boredom and reality warping powers were indeed a deadly combo.

* * *

After hours of monitor duty, Daichi just wanted to fall asleep. He dragged himself up towards his quarters and entered the code to opened the door. Yawning, he turned on the light so he could see better and make his way to the bathroom when he looked up and stopped.

"Welcome back, Master~" two females purred seductively. There standing in the middle of the room and standing back to back were his girlfriends, Leviathan and Mika. He was surprised to see them but what really surprised him was what they were wearing.

Mika wore a leopard print set of bra and panties with matching stocking that reach up to mid-thigh. Around her neck was a collar with a bell on it and a tail seemed to have been sewn onto the panties. She wore a pair of furry cat ears on her head.

Leviathan wore a skintight black high-cut thong leotard which really showed off her slender and curvy figure along with her beautiful legs and ass. The leotard was sleeveless with fur around the openings for the legs and arms. It was also low cut in the front to show off her cleavage and had fur around the neckline. She wore fishnet stockings on her legs that were held up by black garters. She also wore a collar with a bell and had a tail attached to the rear with a ribbon tied to the end. On her head she wore black cat ears as well.

Sauntering towards their shared lover while swaying their hips, they took him by the arms and pulled him inside. He didn't resist, too stunned by the sight.

"Daichi, you've been working so hard~" Mika purred into his ear.

"And must be really stressed out~" added Leviathan as she nibbled slightly on his ear.

"Well…yeah…" he admitted, thinking this was a dream but if it was he didn't want to wake up.

"Well, then let us take care of you," Mika suggested as she lifted up his t-shirt and pulled it over his head before tossing it to the floor. Leviathan had unbuckled his belt and unzipped his fly before pulling down his blue jeans. She really appreciated the fact that he'd gone commando and saw that he was really aroused as he stepped out of his jeans.

The two girls had him lie on the bed face up as they flanking him, caressing his body with their soft hands. He groaned as he felt their fingers traced his skin. '_God…I need this…_' he though. He didn't feel sleepy anymore. He'd have to be gay or dead to want to sleep now.

"Mika, take care of him while I make sure we have the right atmosphere," said Leviathan as she got up reluctantly. Mika didn't complain and kissed Daichi softly on the lips, running her hand up and down his chest. Leviathan had already dimmed the lights, put on some scented candles, and even put on the right kind of music to get them all in the mood.

"And now…" Leviathan jumped and landed on Daichi, causing him to grunt. She straddled him, sitting on his cock as she purred, "Let's get this party started~"

* * *

After Featherine left them, Yuji went to bed with Sora and Misato but they didn't go to sleep. In his bedroom, Yuji sighed contently as lay in bed with Sora and Misato at his sides. They had given him a 'treat' for his victory against Gnol.

"Maybe the Team B thing wasn't such a bad idea after all," Yuji thought aloud. Sure, he had been peeved that he hadn't been sent to Kyoto but after what happened he could appreciate why Shinichi had made the decision. It made sense to have at least one of them stay in case something like what happened before would happen again.

His musing was cut short as Sora straddled him. "Weren't you asleep?" he asked.

"I took a power nap, but I'm ready again," Sora purred.

Misato leaned close to his ear and asked, "How about you? Ready for round 2?"

Yuji smirked, "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

* * *

Later that night, Rena was brushing her hair as she gazed at her dressing mirror. She looked at the empty bed from the reflection and sighed. "Another lonely night…" she murmured. She missed having Shinichi around. It was just like the last time as she waited for him. She didn't like sleeping alone but she wasn't a child anymore. She could sleep alone for one more night, right? At least she had a body pillow that had Shinichi's picture on it to make up for his absence. It was a birthday present from Shiori. However, even as she hugged it as she slept, she couldn't help but miss her boyfriend.

As Rena was about to climb into bed in her yellow pajamas, she heard a knock at the door. She knew it was Shawna. She was the only other person staying with them.

She opened the door and saw Shawna standing on the other side, wearing an aqua blue nightgown. "Is there anything I could do for you, Shawna-chan?"

Shawna began to ramble awkwardly, "Oh, it's nothing…nothing, really. It's just that, well, I'm wondering if…if you don't mind I mean…"

"Shawna-chan, what is it? What's wrong?" Rena asked her friend worriedly. Rena knew Shawna missed Shinichi as much as she did. To Shawna, Shinichi was like a knight from a storybook only real and what had started as fondness and a crush soon developed into romantic affection.

"Is it alright if I sleep with you tonight? I wouldn't normally do this but I can't sleep peacefully knowing that Sir Shinichi is fighting a monster like Shiro Juuyon in Kyoto," Shawna answered clearly.

"I don't mind," Rena smiled. "Come on in."

"Thank you," Shawna smiled, glad that her request was accepted and went into the room to sleep with Rena.

Shawna looked at the body pillow and Rena blushed, confessing, "It was a present from Shin-kun's mother."

"An odd, yet thoughtful gift," Shawna admired. "Do you think she can get one for me?"

"I think that can be arranged," smiled Rena as she lay down with Shawna on the other side, the body pillow between them.

"Is it always like this?" Shawna asked. "Does he go on a mission and not return for days? Is that normal?"

"I doubt normal can apply to our lives anymore," said Rena.

"But it gets lonely, doesn't it?"

"Yes," Rena admitted, "But I know this is something Shin-kun has to do." She knew Shinichi had his reasons for being a hero. One of the reasons was so that he could protect his loved ones, the other was so that he could make up for all the sins he'd committed as BLACK 13. Sure, they had convinced him that he shouldn't be held accountable for his actions while under GIN-SHOCKER's control but he didn't completely believe it. He still believed he needed to make up for his crimes and that was why he was a Kamen Rider.

"Sir Shinichi being away…this has happened before," Shawna guessed.

"Once, a year ago," Rena answered. "He was away for two months hunting down an enemy of his, the same person who did horrible things to him for a decade. He did something bad and Shin-kun wanted revenge. He left us all behind but then I saw him again and I knew he hadn't forgotten about us, even if he did leave us again to continue hunting. Things did go bad but in the end Shin-kun survived and that horrible man got what he deserved."

"He's so young, and he's been through so much compared to us," Shawna summarized.

"And that's why he feels responsible for all of us," Rena responded. "He has all this power and wants to use to protect us, the ones he loves."

Shawna smiled warmly, "Indeed, and I am happy to have met him."

"So am I," Rena returned the smile. "Oyasumi nasai."

"Good night."

Shortly after both girls fell asleep, dreaming of the boy they loved.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so we finish this little breather chap…OK, it wasn't very little. Anyway, I'd like to thank Toku Warrior for his help, as well as Kamen Rider Bushido for his assistance as well. Also, you guys on the CHAPTER PRODUCTION forum like Snake Screamer, Iron-Mantis and many others I've failed to mention also deserve credit for your assistance. Well done, men! Well done! (applauses).**


	106. The Legacy of Cain Part 50

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 50: The Dead Man's Switch**

A loud roar rang through the Pyramid Base. Inside, Gnol threw Shiro across the room in anger, causing him to slam against the wall.

"I was almost victorious!" shouted Gnol Gnauh.

"I performed an energy scan," said Shiro as he recovered, standing back up. "Your energy was depleted. He would've injured you and I couldn't afford that." Gnol crossed the room and Shiro looked back at him without fear.

Gnol was furious as he yelled at Shiro, "I had them distracted for you, those Manakytes, and you didn't go and destroy another stone!-? Instead you stayed to watch TV!-?"

Shiro was hauled up by his coat's collar, his Bakeneko Kunoichi already ready to draw their weapons. He had ordered them to stand down which they did with great reluctance. The DALEKs and Cybermen also had their weapons aimed, ready to exterminate and delete Gnol once they were given the order.

"You put on a good show, and I didn't want to miss it," Shiro responded calmly. Gnol growled and snarled through gritted teeth, breathing hard with his nostrils flaring and releasing flames. He wanted to destroy Shiro right then and there.

He closed his eyes, taking in deep and calming breaths before gently lowering Shiro to the floor. "DALEKs, Cybermen, stand down," he commanded and they did. Shiro adjusted his coat. He put a hand on his partner's shoulder. "Gnol, because of Yuji and his Manakytes our plans have changed. They nearly beat you even when you absorbed your other fragments. You weren't stable enough which forced me to bring you back here. Now, I'm going to need time to formulate a new plan."

He went towards the large monitor and pulled up images of the heroes' loved ones. They were live video feeds. He addressed his group, "Now, if you will all direct your attention to the big screen here you will see that our enemies all share a common weakness. They've all got loved ones. Now, my plan is for us to exploit our enemies' weakness and claim victory. But not just yet." He pointed to Gnol, "And no we're not going to kill them if that's what you're thinking." He explained, pacing back and forth, pocketing his hands. "We need them alive. If we kill them now we lose our advantage. Sure, our enemies will be demoralized but then they'd be vengeful, and angry, and my entire well thought of plan will fall apart! That can't happen! I worked too hard and too long for this plan of mine to fail and we're already half way through! So, what's the next step?"

"Destroy the rest of the stones," Gnol supplied.

"Destroy the rest of the stones!" Shiro repeated. "Yes, that's true! But, they've increased security! Oh, sure, they're no match for us! When have they ever been a match for us?" He pointed, "Gary, is that big Beastroid ready?"

"**Yes**," Gary responded.

"Good." Shiro took out his Dark Xrosser. "I'm going to need him, and a big Darkloid, but not just yet. Gotta wait for the right time! Yes, the right time!"

Akaneko whispered to Aoneko, "Have you noticed that Juuyon-sama rambles a lot ever since he got his new body?"

"Do you think it did something to his mind?" Aoneko whispered back.

Midoneko supplied, "Actually, remember when he broke into the prison to read Gebok's mind? I think he caught some crazy from that brain."

"I kinda like it," confessed Momoneko. "Juuyon-sama's much more livelier now."

"Maybe he got that hyperactive bit from when he used to be small," suggested Kineko.

"OK, I'm going off to Kyoto!" said Shiro as he headed to the teleporter. He suddenly spun around and walked up to Gnol. "By the way, Gnol, do you mind if I borrowed something from you?"

* * *

"Thank you for helping out, Michiru-chan," Junko said gratefully as her granddaughter helped her out around the teashop to serve her customers.

"Not a problem, Obaa-chan," Michiru smiled.

Chiaki was in the back, doing dishes. They were the only ones there as the others had gone out to help the Kekkain Clan by updating their security.

"So, tell me, Michiru-chan, what have you and your friends been up to every night?" Junko asked with interest.

"Oh, just the usual thing when you visit a historical place like Kyoto. Sightseeing and stuff," Michiru answered calmly.

"Oh, good. Well I hope you're enjoying your nightly trips, especially after that incident in the city," Michiru's grandmother advised, referring subtly to the Rage Fly incident.

"It left a lasting impression on us," Chiaki said. He wondered what the others were doing right now.

* * *

Only four of the sealing stones remained and at the moment Kanna and Yokoshima were standing in front one of the four mansions which housed a sealing stone.

"Hey, Yokoshima?" Kanna began, addressing the holder of the Blue Beetle powers.

"Yeah?" Yokoshima responded. He had been thinking about something else and had barely heard her.

"What do you think Shiro Juuyon will send next?"

Yokoshima thought about it, scratching his chin as he tried to figure out what else Shiro had in store for them. Not exactly his strong suit to be honest. He answered truthfully, "I can't be sure. After all, I'm not exactly a criminally insane genius, but I'm actually afraid to find out." Shiro had been playing with them like pieces on a game board, with him manipulating them without them even realizing it. He used twisted tricks and dishonest tactics and it was hard to accurately predict what his next move would be. "But I'm willing to bet my last yen that he's got something big for his finale."

That statement did not fill Kanna with much confidence for the near future.

"But…" Yokoshima added, putting his arms behind his head, "We've faced these kinds of apocalyptic situations and always survived in the end. I don't think this'll be any different…" He frowned sadly, "But…" He was thinking about the casualties. Shiro had killed so many and would continue to kill until he reached his goal. "We can't let Shiro get his way, not anymore."

A paper crane landed on Kanna's shoulder. Looking up, she saw an entire flock of different colored paper cranes flying through the air, breaking off into smaller flocks which spread all over Kyoto's airspace.

"This is Shinichi-san's doing, isn't it?" Kanna asked, holding up the paper crane. "I never thought he knew how to control Shikigami."

"There's a lot you don't know about Shinichi," said Yokoshima. "He can surprise you."

* * *

'_Are you OK?_' Zennin asked within Shinichi's mind.

'_Yeah, I'm fine. It's just this is the first time I've dispatched so many_ _at a time_,' Shinichi replied as he sent another flock of paper cranes flying.

Shinichi shared a bond with the Tsukumogami (artifact spirits) of the Three Great Treasures of Hinamizawa. The fact was that since Tsukumogami were considered Youkai, they were targets for Onmyouji. Thus, Shinichi had to hide this fact from the Kekkain Clan members. If they knew it'd be like opening a can of worms and he'd be like a chicken in a den of foxes.

Yabuki spoke, '_But in the end it will be worth it. Now you have eyes watching the entire city for Shiro or any of his tricks_.' Shinichi nodded before returning to his post. While Shogo was good at aerial recon he was just one cyborg. A flock of paper crane Shikigami could cover the entire city.

One of the paper cranes landed on his shoulder. He took it into his hand and it unfolded with a message appearing on the paper. His eyes narrowed.

* * *

Shiro was standing on top of the roof of one of Kyoto's tall buildings. Holding up his Dark Xrosser, he spoke, "It's time to begin. Let's hope they're ready for _this_."

"**Let's have some fun, Onii-chan!**" cheered ALPHA-01 as Shiro jumped from the rooftop and down to the ground as he started free-falling.

"WOO-HOO!"

* * *

Cybermen were marching into the city, single file, with their metal footsteps loud and ringing through the air as they moved in uniform formation. There were thirty of them, with ten in three rows, and while they did not express any emotion, their intentions were clear. They only had two basic commands: upgrade or delete.

Upgrade referred to the act of capturing 'volunteers' to be upgraded into Cybermen, freeing them of their flesh and implanting their brains into perfect bodies of steel, stripped of their emotions and programmed only to follow the way of the Cybermen and to follow the word of their master and creator.

Delete simply meant to kill and get rid of any resistance. It was done either by lasers or by electrocuting the unfortunate victims with a single touch.

One ignorant youth, seeing the Cybermen, went to confront them as his friends watch. "Hey, dude, what's with the suit of armor? Halloween was ages ago?" he taunted. One of the Cybermen looked at him. "What are you looking at?" the punk challenged.

"**You will be deleted**," the Cyberman said as he grasped the young punk by his shoulder before electrocuting him to death. His friends looked at the scene in shock as their friend's body fell like a sack of potatoes.

"**Delete**," the other Cybermen echoed as they raised their arms and fired lasers at the buildings, causing explosions. The people screamed in shock and horror at these metal men. The civilians, realizing that the Cybermen were dangerous, quickly fled in terror. However, two people stood in the middle of the road as the people ran past them, screaming in panic.

"**You are Michiru Misami and Chiaki Yukinojou, alternately designated as Kamen Rider Carmen and Kamen Rider Slasher**," one of the Cybermen identified.

"Yeah, that's us," Michiru confirmed. "What about it?"

"**You will be deleted**," the Cybermen aimed at them only for a mist to suddenly surrounded them. "**Alert. Alert. Vision obstructed**."

"Ready, Chiaki?" Michiru asked her larger friend who nodded affirmative.

"Henshin!"

The mist vanished but then two Cybermen were stabbed through their chests by Carmen's scythes. Carmen withdrew her weapons and did a backflip to land next to Slasher who brandished his spinning chainsaws.

"**Commence Battle Mode**," the Cybermen stated together. They immediately broke into a run towards the two Riders. A Cybermen punched at Carmen but she ducked and retaliated with a punch to its chest, sending it staggering back. She knocked it down with a roundhouse kick. A Cyberman shot at her from behind and she screamed as she fell onto her hands and knees. She rolled out of the way as a Cyberman tried to grab her and she activated her scythes. She threw her energy scythes at them, the blades attached to her wrists by chains and causing sparks to fly as she hit the Cybermen.

Slasher was actually having a much easier time against the Cybermen. He was stronger than them and they were no match for his chainsaws as he hacked them to pieces. He was pushed back by their lasers and was forced to regroup with Carmen.

"They're fast, and pretty agile," analyzed Slasher.

"But they moved so slow before," Carmen replied, remembering how mechanical the Cybermen's movements were as they marched.

"I guess Shiro upgraded them," he responded.

"**Affirmative. We have received upgrades from our creator**, **the Cyber Master**," the Cybermen admitted. "**The first group of Cybermen was simply a test. We here are the more sophisticated models**."

"Sophisticated, huh?" Carmen smirked. "Well, you're about to turn into junk!"

"**You are obsolete. You will be deleted**."

"Delete THIS!" She fired her flower guns at the Cybermen, pelting them with energy bullets and pushing them backwards.

From an alley, Shiro watched as he leaned against the wall, arms crossed, studying Slasher and Carmen before he moved along.

* * *

In the traditional townhouse area, there was trouble as a Darkloid and Beastroid were attacking simultaneously, sending the civilians into a panic as they screamed and fled. The Beastroid was modeled after a lobster with huge claws and red armor. The Darkloid also stood on two legs like a human. It had the head of a horse and a horn on its head. It looked like it was wearing samurai armor as well.

They were completely wrecking the place, tearing apart townhouses and killing anyone they could get their hands on. However, before they could do more damage, missiles flew at them and exploded, stopping them cold.

"You're not gonna be doing anymore damage," said Blue Beetle.

The Lobster Beastroid and Unicorn Darkloid exchanged looks before the charging at Blue Beetle.

"Take this!" Blue Beetle yelled as he willed his armor to form a Gatling gun. While one would normally have it form out of their gauntlet, Blue Beetle had his weapon form from his left boot. The Gatling gun was pointed at the pair before the barrel rotated, peppering the monsters with a rapid spray of lethal bullets. He could feel his leg vibrate as the gun fired but he still continued to bombard the monsters. The gun stopped firing and vanished. The Unicord Darkloid seemed injured and weakened by the assault but the bullets had only bounced off the Lobster Beastroid's body.

"RARGH!-!-!" The Lobster Beastroid charged at Blue Beetle, as it violently went on the attack. It brought one of its claws down on Blue Beetle who dismissed his leg-mounted gun to roll out of the way out of the attack. The Beastroid's claw, while closed, was like a very big fist and as it came crashing down to the ground, the impact caused a slight tremor and a crater to form.

"Woah," Blue Beetle gulped. He wasn't as experienced in hand-to-hand combat like the others but he could still hold his own when necessary. Forming his leg-mounted chainsaw on his right leg, he charged and kicked, slashing the Lobster Beastroid across the chest, ripping sparks off on impact. However, this did not stun the Lobster Beastroid enough as it opened its claws to reveal missiles nestled in them. "Oh…sonova-" Whatever Blue Beetle was about to say was cut off as the missiles slammed against him and exploded, sending him soaring through the air. The Lobster Beastroid reloaded and fired two more missiles which hit Blue Beetle, the explosion knocking him out of the air and sending him crashing painfully to the ground.

Fortunately, with all the impacts he had taken in his life, Blue Beetle had a very large pain threshold. Unfortunately, he wasn't immune to pain as he groaned while climbing back to his feet. "Alright, if that's how you wanna play, bring it on!" he challenged as he stomped his right foot, forming the missile launcher unit. "Target locked on! Fire!" He sent the five missiles flying at the Lobster Beastroid who was too slow to dodge as the missiles exploded upon its body, causing sizable damage to its armored body.

Blue Beetle's armor allowed him to construct weapons, similar to how Shinichi used his nanites and how Alan used his ring. So, using those two as an example Blue Beetle knew how to use his imagination to create any sort of weapon as long as it was connected in some fashion to his armor.

Pointing his right fist forward, he created a big gun with two grips and a tube connecting it to his back. He took hold of the secondary grip and squeezed his hand tightly around it. With the firearm completely formed, he began focusing his energy into it, which pulsed through the tube.

"EAT THIS!" he roared as he pulled the trigger and unleashed a burst of blue energy which had lightning arching around it. The blast smashed into the Beastroid and it exploded on impact.

"YATTA!" Blue Beetle cheered as he threw up his arms with his fists closed in celebration. Suddenly, he was knocked through the air by the Unicorn Darkloid's tackle, sent crashing into a townhouse. "Ow…forgot about you," he groaned as he got back to his feet. "OK, so you wanna tackle! Then take this!" He got into position like a football player and charged at the Darkloid. The Darkloid charged right back at him and kicked him hard in the chest with his hoofed feet, sending him reeling.

Blue Beetle was envious of Shinichi and Alan's swords. The Rider who inherited the Three Treasures could use the Higurashi no Yaiba, a blade with a natural ability to take down demons while Alan possessed the fabled Kusanagi forged by Amaterasu herself. Just thinking of those swords made Blue Beetle want one himself.

That was when electricity sparked around his right arm as a sword grip formed which he clenched with his fingers curled tightly around it. A rectangular guard with a cable connecting it to his back also formed and finally a long and thin blade formed as it stretched from the guard. Electricity sparked off the blade and he grinned under his helmet. "Alright, now I've got my own sword!"

The Unicorn Darkloid neighed and went on the attack, charging at Blue Beetle to impale him on its horn but he parried the blow and moved forward, hitting the Darkloid in the head with his electrified blade, causing it to stumble backwards with a cry of pain. He then swung his sword, striking the Darkloid in the chest before kicking it backwards.

Getting another idea, inspired from Shinichi, he swung his blade and fired crescent-shaped energy blasts that the Darkloid dodged. It then jumped and tried to hit him only for Blue Beetle to capture him with an energy lasso courtesy of his sword before he slammed it to the ground.

"Now, to finish it!" Blue Beetle declared as the Darkloid came charging at him and he charged right back. He swung and called out, "Beetle Beat Slash!" before his electrified blade sliced through the Darkloid, causing it to explode.

Shiro was watching nearby and frowned. He once dismissed Blue Beetle, aka Yokoshima Ryuunosuke-Magi as incompetent and weak, but after several years it seemed like the dead last of the NUMBERS had gained a lot of power, especially after gaining the powers of the Scarab to become the Blue Beetle.

Raising his Dark Xrosser, he called out, "Download." Dark energy flowed from the screen to collect the remains of the destroyed Darkloid and Beastroid. Blue Beetle, noticing this, spotted Shiro.

"Hey, what are you doing!-?" Blue Beetle shouted, charging at Shiro only to back away as Cybermen suddenly appeared, firing lasers at him.

Shiro looked at the screen which displayed the images of the Unicorn Darkloid and Beastroid before calling out, "Restore."

"**Restoring now, Onii-chan!"** ALPHA-01 called. "**And unloading them!**"

Bursting from the device were the Unicorn Darkloid and Lobster Beastroid, completely restored. However, Shiro was not finished.

"**Dark Xros Fusion!**" Dark energy enveloped the Cybermen, Beastroid and Darkloid, encasing them in a sphere of darkness which exploded. Blue Beetle had to dig in his heels so he wouldn't be blasted away but then he stared at what had appeared.

"Cyberdark Beastroid!" Shiro named the newly fused creation. It had the silver-grey armor of the Cybermen, with shoulders resembling unicorn heads. It had hooves for feet and the Lobster Beastroid's arms which had laser guns inside of the claws. It had the head of a Cyberman, with the Unicorn Darkloid's horn and the Lobster Beastroid's antennae. "Enjoy!" Shiro laughed as he ran off, leaving Blue Beetle to face this new opponent.

"**You will be deleted**," the Cyberdark Beastroid announced as it aimed its claws which opened to reveal the laser guns. It fired a volley of laser blasts at Blue Beetle, forcing him to duck aside. He activated his pogo-stick leg and hopped into the air. The Cyberdark Beastroid stared at him blankly and fired an energy bolt from its horn, striking Blue Beetle in the chest. The Rider fell to the ground with a crash, annoyed as hell.

"Alright, that's it!" Blue Beetle shouted as he stood up and constructed his blaster weapon from earlier. Taking aim, he fired concentrated bursts of energy at the Cyberdark Beastroid, sending it staggering back with each shot. It retaliated with its horn, firing at Blue Beetle but he performed a dodge-roll before he repeated his assault. Instead of remaining stationary, Blue Beetle charged, still firing, and once in range he pistol-whipped the Cyberdark Beastroid, or at least tried to. It blocked with its claw and then punched Blue Beetle in the head, tossing him backwards. It grabbed Blue Beetle by the ankle with its claw and spun around and around before launching him into the air. It aimed its claws again and fired another volley of laser blasts.

"**Delete. Delete. Delete**." Blue Beetle was hit and he screamed as he was shot down.

As Blue Beetle groaned and tried to stand up, the Cyberdark Beastroid grabbed hold of his right arm in a vice grip and began to pump lethal voltage through his body. Blue Beetle screamed. Normally, that amount of voltage would kill a normal man but Yokoshima Ryuunosuke-Magi was no normal man. With his free hand, he formed electro-blade from before. He tapped the weapon onto the Cyberdark Beastroid chest and zapped it, causing sparks to fly. He repeatedly zapped it, forcing it to release him before he fired his blaster at it point blank, launching it across the ground.

Dismissing both weapons, Blue Beetle formed his Rocket Arm and Drill Leg before launching into the sky. He then rocketed down towards his target, aiming to kill it with one blow. "ROCKET DRILL KICK! However, the drill wasn't able to penetrate its metal alloy hide and he was forced to flee as the Cyberdark Beastroid fired lasers at him. He dodged them by flying around. "OK, that didn't work," he murmured. "He then got an idea. "Well, let's try this!" Blue Beetle shouted as a rocket formed from his left gauntlet. He shot into the air, both rockets carrying him at incredible speed before he aimed them down at the Cyberdark Beastroid. He has legs stretched out together as he willed the suit to form a massive drill with both his legs. "DOUBLE ROCKET MEGA DRILL KICK!" he called out as he rocketed towards the monster. His massive drill hit and spun violently before he burst through the monster.

A massive explosion was the result and Blue Beetle landed, smiling in satisfaction.

* * *

Shiro stood on the Gojo Bridge, leaning against the safety railing as the Kamo River flowed underneath. He was waiting for someone. He was dressed in his best clothes; a black shirt with matching pants, white shoes and a white trench coat. He turned his head to see his visitor approaching and smiled. "So, you came."

It was Shincihi and he was dressed in a black, double-breasted jacket, blue jeans and black sneakers. In his right hand was the Higurashi no Yaiba and in his left was a paper crane.

"My cranes spotted you. Didn't take long for me to find you," Shinichi replied.

"Do you know the legend of Saito no Musashibo Benkei (1155-1189)?" Shiro questioned. "He was a warrior monk who dueled and disarmed passing swordsmen, claiming their weapons as his own and finally amassing a collection of 999 swords. He would've gotten his 1,000th sword if he had not been defeated by the 1,000th swordsman that passed by." He shrugged. "I thought it'd be an appropriate venue for us." He unsheathed the Oathbreaker and pointed it at Shinichi. "Now, come and draw your sword," he challenged. Shinichi walked onto the bridge, drawing the Higurashi no Yaiba from its sheathe before holding it in front of him. The two men were anti-thesis in a lot of ways. One was on the side of good while the other was on the side of evil. One was a cyborg and another was a bio-android.

And only one would come out of this fight alive.

They stood stationary for almost a minute, gauging each other, before they finally moved.

The Oathbreaker and Higurashi no Yaiba clashed, causing sparks to fly as they connected, while their wielders fought on the bridge. They were in human form as they battled ferociously. It was just them and cold steel as they attempted to take the other's life. Parrying a thrust, Shiro claimed, "You may own that sword but you've yet to master it!"

"Oh, and you would know?" Shinichi retorted as he blocked Shiro's swing with his blade.

"Call it an honest assessment. If you have mastered that sword you would've taken me down by now," Shiro reasoned. He performed a combo of swings which Shinichi blocked but a forward thrust cut into Shinichi's sleeve, tearing into his skin and spilling blood. Shinichi grunted and used a kick to drive Shiro backwards. He shot towards Shiro and swung his sword in a wide arch to behead the bio-android only for Shiro to duck and then hit Shinichi in the midsection with his sword's pommel with enough force to knock the wind out of him.

"I'll be claiming that sword, and your treasures, just like how the legendary Benkei collected swords from every swordsman he dueled and defeated," Shiro challenged.

"Well, he may have gotten 999 swords, but when he was about to get his 1,000th sword, he was defeated and became a retainer to the man who defeated him, Minamoto no Yoshitsune," Shinichi rebutted. He smirked, "So, does that mean you'll serve me if I won?"

Shiro's eyes narrowed as they glowed red. He focused his power into the Oathbreaker and dark energy radiated from the blade's edge like unholy fire. Seeing this, Shinichi gripped his own sword and concentrated, causing his blade to glow with green energy while it sung like cicadas.

"HYAH!" Shiro swung and a crescent blade of dark energy flames flew towards Shinichi. The Rider countered, swinging his own weapon and smashing the attack to pieces. He charged at Shiro who swung and missed, allowing Shinichi to slash him across the chest, slicing his shirt open and causing Shiro to hiss as his synthetic skin was cut open. He bled and spun around to target Shinichi's neck but his sword-wielding arm was slapped away by Shinichi who then thrust his sword through Shiro's gut. Shiro's eyes widened and Shinichi's eyes narrowed as he twisted the blade before withdrawing it, causing dark red blood to spill out of the wound. Shiro stumbled back, holding the bridge's safety railing for balance. He dropped the Oathbreaker and put his hand to his stomach. "You…" he growled as he vomited blood.

"Even a bio-android bleeds," said Shinichi coldly.

"A bio-android also heals," Shiro retorted as his body began to repair itself. Shiro saw how Shinichi was looking at him. "You're not the only one with nanites." He picked up his sword and bounced on his feet. "Let us continue." The two swordsmen charged at each other and clashed with inhuman speed, there were flashes of sparks as their sword met and their arms blurred as they tried to strike each other down. When their swords became locked together, blue eyes met red eyes.

"What do you seek to accomplish by freeing the Yamata no Orochi?" questioned Shinichi crossly. "It'll destroy everything!"

"Everything human!" Shiro shot back. "And the ones who survive will become slaves!"

"Do you really think you can trust a Darkloid? Do you really think Gnol Gnauh trusts you!-?" Shinichi retorted, pushing back as Shiro tried to shove him back. "Do you think it'll be worth it in the end?"

"We'll see then, won't we?" Shiro responded, grinning before kicking Shinichi in the knee, dropping him down to one knee as he withdrew his sword. He then went for the kill but stopped as the tip was just one centimeter away from Shinichi's face. "No…this is an empty victory," Shiro said as he backed away from Shinichi. "Your armor, put it on," he ordered. "Transform! Fight me as a Rider! Fight me at full power!" he demanded.

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow. "Why give me the advantage?"

"Because the last time you defeated me we were both in armor, we were both Riders," Shiro answered.

"You were never a _real_ Rider," Shinichi protested. "But I'll indulge you. Henshin!" The Spark Core spun and Shinichi became covered in his armor. His helmet was the last thing to form and the eyes flashed to signal the process' completion. He clenched the Higurashi no Yaiba tightly in his hand as he narrowed his eyes at Shiro.

"My turn," said Shiro as he pulled out his Dark Xrosser. "DALEK! Cyberman! Dark Xros Fusion with me!" The screen released black energy which enveloped Shiro and when the darkness receded it revealed his new form. He was clad in a black bodysuit with Cyberman armor on his torso, shoulders, forearms and shins. His XIV symbol was in the centre of his chest. He wore a Cyber Helmet but without the faceplate. In addition, the laser blasted on his left arm was modeled after a DALEK's laser blaster. Hanging from his waist was an armored skirt with the same DALEK hemispheres decorating it. The hemispheres were also running along his gauntlets and greaves. Finally, a black visor slid over his eyes as a faceplate closed over the lower half of his face. A DALEK's eyestalk was also mounted on the top of his helmet like a weird antenna. Also, his entire left hand had been replaced with a DALEK's suction cup. "**Now decide**," said Shiro, his voice electronic under the helmet as he asked, "**Would you like to be exterminated or deleted?**"

"I choose both options," answered Showa before finishing, "For _you_."

Pointing his laser blaster, he fired at Showa with death rays but Shinichi deflected them with the Higurashi no Yaiba. He then went into a charge. The suction cup shot towards him, attached to a rod and nearly hit him but he managed to dodge to the side. Coming in range, he struck and sparks flew when his blade hit Shiro's armor. He retracted the suction cup and fired at Showa t close-blank range only to miss when Showa suddenly vanished from sight.

Shiro blinked and then he cried out as he was being hit by multiple shuriken being hurled at him. Spinning around, he looked up to see Showa Kage Form and several clones throwing shurikens at him from the air. Growling, Shiro aimed and fired the death ray, destroying the clones but not the original. When only one remained, he assumed it to be the original but was mistaken as it disappeared. "**WHERE ARE YOU!-?**" Shiro roared and a figure slowly rose up from the shadow he cast.

"Behind you," said Showa as he suddenly activated the Oni no Hone, sending Shiro flying as his entire body was engulfed in a tornado of elemental power. Now as Showa Oni Form, Showa roared and charged at Shiro who had to defend from the vicious assault of the Oni Claws as Showa slashed at him. Shiro managed to stick the suction cup to Showa's chest and looked triumphant.

"**Prepare to be deleted, BITCH!**" he taunted as he unleashed an electrical current into Showa's body. However, he was unaffected.

"I wield lightning in this form, so it has no effect on me," said Showa, bringing up a fist with lightning arching around it. "Thanks for the charge!" He punched Shiro hard in the face, the suction cup coming unstuck as the bio-android was sent tumbling along the ground. "It's time we finished this." He summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba and commanded, "Sing." as he strode towards Shiro.

Shiro climbed back to his feet and saw Showa Higurashi Form coming towards him. Desperately, he fired death rays at the Rider only for them to be deflected by perfectly timed swings of the Higurashi no Yaiba. Cursing, Shiro charged at Showa with the Oathbreaker again but Showa disarmed him, literally, as he sliced off Shiro's right forearm. Shiro screamed as he lost his right arm and turned to glare at Showa who stared back at him.

"RIDER TAMASHII GIRI!" Showa called as he struck and the spirit of the Legendary Riders struck as well, hitting Shiro simultaneously with slashes. Shiro screamed as he was sent reeling, his entire body twitching with electricity arching all over his body, sparking from his joints before his body exploded. Showa dismissed his armor and walked over to see if Shiro was destroyed, only to see him lying on the scorched ground, his clothes ruined by the blast. In his left hand was the Dark Xrosser but he didn't seem to have the energy to use it.

He was still alive, and conscious. Shinichi put his foot on Shiro's chest, keeping him in place, as he pointed the tip of the Higurashi no Yaiba at his throat.

"This is the end for you," Shinichi stated. However, Shiro's face did not express fear or worry of death, nor did he express disappointment that he'd been stopped. In fact, he was smiling. Shinichi tried to ignore the sinking feeling he had in his gut and was about to shove the blade through his enemy's throat when Shiro interrupted.

"Do you know what a Dead Man's Switch is?" Shiro asked, stopping the blade's tip which was slightly touching his skin.

"Of course I do," Shinichi answered. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"ALPHA-01, display," Shiro ordered.

"**OK!**" ALPHA-01 answered as he obeyed the command. The screen of the Dark Xrosser glowed and projected a holographic screen. Shinichi's eyes widened as he saw what was on the screen.

"Rena-chan…Otousan…Kaa-chan…Rika-chan…" he uttered.

"And not just them," Shiro went on as the image shifted to show Alan's family. Then it showed Yuji's family. They didn't realize they were being watched. "I've been monitoring them since this operation began. Oh, and here's Michiru's granny." The hologram showed Michiru's grandmother making some tea. He explained, "You see, I'm rigged with a Dead Man's Switch and my surveillance drones each has a powerful explosive built inside. If I'm, I dunno, suddenly deactivated or killed…" His tone turned dark, "I won't be going alone."

"You're bluffing!" Shinichi denied.

"The question is not whether or not I'm bluffing. The question is if you're willing to risk it," Shiro countered. He could see the doubt and hesitation written all over Shinichi's face. "But go ahead and call my bluff. See what happens. I mean if they die you could always turn back the clock and…" He let out a mock gasp. "Oh, that's right! You can't anymore! I made sure of that."

Shinichi gritted his teeth but he didn't pull his sword away. "If I can't kill you, then consider yourself under arrest."

Shiro shrugged, "Well, be my guess. But I think my friends have something to say about _that_."

"Friends?" Shinichi heard the march of steel feet and turned his head to see the Cybermen coming his way. This distraction was all Shiro needed.

"Initiate Transformation Sequence. Codeword: Henshin," Shiro called. His belt appeared and the Spark Core shone. The energy burst tossed Shinichi backwards. As Shinichi got up, he watched as Shiro rose into the air, his eyes glowing red. Rings of energy, arranged to look like an atomic symbol with him in the centre rotated over his body as pieces of plate armor appeared and bonded to his body. There was a bright flash of blinding light and Shinichi shielded his eyes. Once the light died, Shinichi looked at Shiro and his eyes widened in shock.

Not only was his right arm restored, Shiro now stood a foot taller with a broad and muscular build as his entire body was covered in silver-grey and black armor. His sharp shoulder guards curved upwards to look menacing. His thick gauntlets and boots were pitch black and his fingers ended in sharp tips like claws. The helmet that covered his head was bucket-shaped with sharp extensions on the sides of his face that reached his chin. The faceplate was black with narrowed, triangular eyes and a mouth containing sharp teeth. Held securely in a slot on his left gauntlet was the Dark Xrosser and mounted on his right gauntlet was a powerful looking cannon.

"I have been reborn. I have been upgraded. Behold, Shinichi Banabara! I am now…Master-14!"

The Cybermen stopped marching and put their fists to their chest as they spoke, "**All hail Master-14. All hail the Cyber Master**."

"The Cyber Master," Master-14 repeated with approval.

The Cybermen took aim at Shinichi with their laser guns. Master-14 also had his cannon aimed at Shinichi, charging his weapon up.

"Now, your time is up, Shinichi Banabara, BLACK 13!" Master-14 said. His cannon fired and there was an explosion. Master-14 smiled, expecting to see Shinichi's remains but as the smoke cleared his eyes widened as he realized that the crater was empty. There was no trace of Shinichi anywhere. "WHAT!-"

"Shiro!" Master-14 spun around to see Alan standing a distance away from him. "Looking for Shinichi? He's right here." Alan tapped Bazel's jewel and the armband released a flash of light as Shinichi materialized. "You okay?" Alan asked his brother.

Shinichi shook his head back and forth, feeling a little woozy, as he said, "That…felt weird. That was…"

"I know, he's bigger on the inside," Alan smiled. He then frowned and examined Master-14's appearance. "So, this is the new you."

"Of course, no thanks to you," Master-14 shot back. "You destroyed my last body, forcing me to adopt a smaller, weaker form. But my benefactors came through, providing me with this body so that I will be able to defeat you." He aimed his cannon at Alan and fired. A green energy shield blocked the blast. "Cheh, that annoying ring of yours really pisses me off."

"It's a symbol given to those who can conquer fear," Alan explained. He recited, "In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil's might, beware power, Green Lantern's light!" His ring flashed and enveloped him, donning him in his Sentinel uniform. He fired a green beam at Master-14, hitting his chest and pushing him backwards with all his might. Master-14's feet dragged along the ground as he was pushed into his Cybermen who took hold of him to stop him from being pushed further. Sentinel stopped firing as Master-14 righted himself. He rubbed the spot Sentinel had hit.

"Very, very powerful," Master-14 admitted, "But even so, that kind of power will mean nothing when the true Yamata no Orochi awakens."

"Like we'd allow that!" Sentinel countered.

"Alan, wait," Shinichi spoke urgently. "Shiro has a…"

"I know, a Dead Man's Switch," Alan finished. He'd heard the exchange earlier and grimaced slightly. He should've known his family wasn't safe. Shiro was watching them, always watching them. "That means we can't destroy him, but that doesn't mean we can't capture him."

"You two? Capture me?" scoffed Master-14 mockingly, "As if that were possible!"

"Shinichi, transform to Guardian Form," Alan instructed.

"Hai! GUARDIAN HENSHIN!" Shinichi called and his entire body released gold light which faded to reveal him in his gold Hinamizawa Guardian Form.

"Xros Fusion!" Alan called as he put his hand on Showa's back. His entire body turned into green body which became absorbed into Showa's body from behind. Showa's body stiffened as his armor changed. First the Cho Dai-Shuriken on his back disappeared to be replaced by a black cape with green lining. The Green Lantern emblem appeared on his chest as Bazel appeared on his left forearm. Worn on the middle finger on his right hand was Alan's power ring. Finally, his visor changed to resemble Alan's mask.

"**Kamen Lantern Showa!**" he called as his change was complete. His swords, the Higurashi no Yaiba and Kusanagi no Tsurugi appeared in his left and right hand respectively. Dashing towards Master-14, the armored bio-android snapped his fingers in response to send his Cybermen on the attack. Originally, the Cybermen moved in a slow, mechanical fashion, but Shiro had given them a bit of a tweak to make them as agile as biological beings.

The Cybermen charged at the Kamen Lantern who shouted, "OUT OF MY WAY!" before swinging his swords, instantly decapitating the Cybermen and causing them to explode at the same time. He struck at Master-14 who countered by blocking with his unsealed Oathbreaker.

"I'm much stronger in this form than my human form!" boasted Master-14.

"**Then prove it!**" Showa shot back.

"GLADLY!"

* * *

"What does he think he's doing?" Gnol wondered aloud as he watched the battle on the main screen. "He's supposed to be destroying a sealing stone, not fighting."

"**Master Shiro is merely testing his new body in combat**," informed Gary as he rolled over to where Gnol stood.

Gnol crossed his arms and scowled. "He better not defeat Susano-O before I can," he warned.

* * *

Master-14 and KL-Showa kept slashing at one another with their swords, sparks raining everywhere as they clashed. Master-14 shot forward to run his enemy through but KL-Showa blocked the attack by constructing a green energy shield. He then retaliated with a kick that drove Master-14 backwards.

The Kamen Lantern rushed at his opponent, swords in a reverse grip as he used Alan's enhanced speed. Once in range he performed a furious series of slashes that caused sparks to fly off Master-14's armor. He then spun to execute a reverse roundhouse kick but Master-14 caught his leg before hitting him in the jaw with an uppercut, sending KL-Showa soaring up.

The armored bio-android leapt up and started hitting KL-Showa with a brutal combo of slashes and punches with the hero barely able to defend himself. However, when he found an opening, KL-Showa fired a powered up version of Alan's optical heat ray that hit Master-14 straight in the face. He screamed in pain as he crashed to the ground in agony.

Landing, KL-Showa used the power ring to lift Master-14 up and then punch him right through a building. The evil bio-android growled as he got out of the wall and lunged for KL-Showa with a flying kick. KL-Showa used the ring again and caught the leg with a lasso before spinning him around and around. However, KL-Showa was hit by Master-14's cannon blast, breaking the construct at the same time as he was sent flying.

KL-Showa performed a backflip and landed on his feet and saw Master-14 coming at him. He fired energy beams at Master-14 but he dodged them all before lining up his cannon and firing a massive burst of crimson energy at KL-Showa, knocking him off his feet once more.

KL-Showa got back up but was disarmed when a blast knocked the Higurashi no Yaiba out of his hand. He defended himself with his remaining sword, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, and locked blades with Master-14 who snarled in his face.

Meanwhile, the Higurashi no Yaiba started to rise all by itself. It then pointed its tip at Master-14's back and shot towards him like an arrow. Master-14 howled as the blade plunged into his back and he disengaged from Showa to try and get the sword out.

"Allow me," KL-Showa offered dishonestly as he took hold of the sword's handle. Accessing Gokuaku's power, he electrocuted Master-14 from within and he screamed as his circuits were being fried. KL-Showa withdrew his sword and as Master-14 spun around he was hit with a cross slash in the chest.

A pair of laser guns rose up from Master-14's shoulders and fired at KL-Showa who jumped back to dodge. Using the power ring he conjured a pair of baseballs and hurled them at the guns, knocking them off Master-14's body. Cocking an eyebrow, the sociopath questioned, "Baseballs, really? Are you serious?" His tone was of annoyance and agitation. The wound in his back was already starting to heal and the nanites had already repaired all the damage he had taken earlier.

KL-Showa ordered, "**Give up now, or I will make you suffer pain beyond any reason before I drag you off to jail**."

Master-14 snorted. "Give up? Now why would I do a dumb thing like that?" A tongue came out and licked his sharp teeth. "I'm having tons of fun! And I know you're both been holding back!" He took aim with his cannon and charged up for another blast. KL-Showa stood his ground, preparing to counter Master-14's attack, only to realize something odd about the light glowing inside the cannon's barrel.

'_It's green…_' thought Shinichi. Wasn't it red before?

Alan voice his thoughts loudly, '_WE HAVE TO MOVE_!'

The cannon fired and the green beam flew. KL-Showa blocked with his two sacred swords but they were instantly knocked out of his hands due to the blast's impact which hit him dead centre in the chest. He howled loudly in pain as he was struck and fell to his knees, gasping.

'_What…what is that…?_' Shinichi asked.

'_Since I got Kryptonian DNA, I got all of Superman's powers…and also…his weaknesses…_' replied Alan.

"That was a blast of radioactive energy siphoned from Kryptonite," Master-14 explained. "And where am I keeping this Kryptonite?" He pounded his chest with his fist. "RIGHT HERE! IT'S MY HEART, BOYS!"

KL-Showa struggled to his feet, the Kryptonite poisoning already affecting him, threatening to break their Xros Fusion. Master-14 sneered. He looked at the Dark Xrosser on his left gauntlet and then looked back at the weakened KL-Showa. "You know, Alan and Shinichi, there are some guys who want to meet you again." He ordered, "ALPHA-01, let the three of them out!"

"**OK, Onii-chan! Unload!**" ALPHA-01 obeyed as he released them in a flash of light. They materialized and KL-Showa's eyes widened as he recognized them.

Mizu-Gnol, Kin-Gnol and Tsuchi-Gnol now stood before him, ready for battle. The two brothers remembered fighting these Orochi fragments well enough. Mizu-Gnol had caused them to switch bodies and Tsuchi-Gnol had turned Shinichi to gold, but it was Tsuchi-Gnol which made him feel regret. The one good Orochi and now he was under Shiro Juuyon's control.

But Master-14 wasn't going to send these three Orochi to fight. He had a much better and sinister idea in mind.

"**Dark Xros Fusion!**" Master-14 called as the Dark Xrosser enveloped him, Tsuchi-Gnol, Kin-Gnol and Mizu-Gnol together. The cocoon of dark energy appeared and then exploded, nearly blowing the combined Lantern and Rider away.

Standing before the Masked Lantern was Master-14 but he had changed. His armor was now gold like Kin-Gnol's with his thighs, upper arms, hands and faceplate looking like they were made of brown stone. He sported on his back two pairs of dragon-like wings and a tail. Finally, he had a pair of horns on his helmet which curved forward.

"**MASTER-14! TRIPLE OROCHI MODE!**" Master-14 roared, announcing his new form.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And now we see Shiro Juuyon using the power of Xros Fusion to give himself a boost. He was losing before but he cheated and now he has the advantage. Shinichi and Alan have been weakened by the Kryptonite blast and Shiro just fused himself with three Orochis. It just went from bad to worse here. Much worse.**


	107. The Legacy of Cain Part 51

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 51: Dirty Double Xros**

"**Dark Xros Fusion!**" Master-14 called as the Dark Xrosser enveloped him, Tsuchi-Gnol, Kin-Gnol and Mizu-Gnol together. The cocoon of dark energy appeared and then exploded, nearly blowing the combined Lantern and Rider away.

Standing before the Masked Lantern was Master-14 but he had changed. His armor was now gold like Kin-Gnol's with his thighs, upper arms, hands and faceplate looking like they were made of brown stone. He sported on his back two pairs of dragon-like wings and a tail. Finally, he had a pair of horns on his helmet which curved forward.

"**MASTER-14! TRIPLE OROCHI MODE!**" Master-14 roared, announcing his new form.

* * *

Gnol saw everything on the monitor and his eyes narrowed. Seeing the Orochi of Rage being silent unnerved Gary who spoke, "**Mister Gnol, are you alright?**"

Gnol ignored Gary's query as he continued to gaze at the main screen, his eyes focused on Master-14's newest transformation. '_So, that's it._ _It all makes sense now…_'

* * *

Master-14 stood in his new form, feeling the power coursing through his veins. He spoke, "_**So, how do you like my new form? I actually prefer white myself but I think the gold really brings out my eyes. I also think the wings are a nice touch**_."

"**Oh, shut up!**" KL-Showa snapped. "**It doesn't matter what form you take! It doesn't hide the fact you're a psychotic sociopath!**"

"_**Who says I was trying to hide anything?**_" Master-14 responded before he suddenly shot towards KL-Showa, gliding with his new wings. He then turned his tail into solid stone and spun around, hitting KL-Showa violently in the side and sending him flying into the nearest wall. "_**This new form has speed, power, and most importantly of all…**_" He raised his glowing left hand, "_**The Midas Touch!**_" He threw his hand forward and fired a beam of gold energy at KL-Showa. He quickly jumped up to dodge the attack which hit the wall and rubble, turning them into solid gold. "_**Now stand still so I can make myself a gold statue out of you!**_" He went airborne as he chased after KL-Showa.

'_OK, Alan, not only does he have Kryptonite energy, he's also got the elemental power of three Orochis in his body_,' thought Alan. '_Now, what would the Doctor do at a time like this?_'

KL-Showa ducked under a Midas Beam which soared over his head and cursed.

'_Are we just gonna run?_' Shinichi inquired.

'_Shiro's threat level just went up, Shinichi_,' Alan replied. 'We need to lure to an unpopulated area and-GACK!'

"**ARGH!**" KL-Showa exclaimed as Master-14 had just caught him by the back of the helmet. '_HE'S FAST!_' both brothers thought.

"_**Wanna see the sights? Have a closer LOOK!**_" Master-14 cackled as he slammed KL-Showa's face into the side of the building before dragging the warrior upwards and tossing him high into the sky. Opening his mouth, violet light shone deep within his throat before he fired. "_**VICE STREAM!**_"

The energy beam hit KL-Showa dead centre in the back. He screamed in pain as he was struck. Grinning, Master-14 aimed with his arm-mounted cannon again and charged it up for another blast. He fired but KL-Showa countered by spinning around and deflecting the blast with his two swords. Swinging the Higurashi no Yaiba, the blade stretched and shot towards Master-14 like a snake. The bio-android was hit in the chest once, twice, three times and four times, causing sparks to fly. Clenching his fists, the ground down below shook as chunks of it were torn out and reshaped into spikes. He threw his arms up and the spikes flew up like rockets, aimed for KL-Showa.

"**SHADOW CLONES!**" KL-Showa shouted as he conjured duplicates of himself and hid among them, the spikes hitting the duplicates instead, causing them to burst into smoke. KL-Showa used the smoke as cover before darting towards Master-14, green lightning arched around the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. With a mighty thrust, he ran the blade through Master-14's chest, causing him to scream, but Master-14 quickly recovered and punched KL-Showa across the face, sending him flying backwards.

"_**TAKE THIS! MIDAS TOUCH!**_" Master-14 roared as he fired the gold beam and KL-Showa dodged. However, the beam clipped his arm and he watched in horror as his entire right arm was turned into solid gold, immobilizing it. Another Midas Beam struck his torso and he felt his entire body go stiff as it turned to solid gold. His head was the only thing that had not changed and he cried out as he began to plummet with Master-14 looking down in amusement. There was a loud crash and he hovered down to see where KL-Showa had landed.

'_Can't…move!_' shouted Shinichi in KL-Showa's head. '_Alan, can you think of something?_'

'_Sorry, I can't move either!_' Alan responded. Their combined body had just landed on top of someone's car, causing the roof to cave in and the windows to shatter. Master-14 gently landed on the hood of the car but his feet left deep indentations due to his weight.

"Teme…" KL-Showa cursed using Shinichi's voice.

"_**You know…**_" Master-14 began as he tapped his chin, "_**I'm curious about one thing. I mean I know I shouldn't be but I've always wondered what would happen if you were killed while fused together. Would you separate or die in one body?**_" He aimed his cannon right in KL-Showa's face. "_**Let's find out, shall we?**_" His cannon started to charge and KL-Showa could feel himself growing weak as he felt the green radiation poisoning his body.

'_Is this…how it ends?_' both Alan and Shinichi thought. They had always been survivors but now they were about to meet their end at the hands of a madman. A hero's life was indeed harsh and dangerous and heroes often died young. It would appear today was their time.

"Alan! Shinichi! Get the fuck back up!" Bazel shouted to both of them. "You can't let him beat you! You just can't!"

"Can't move…" Alan's voice came out weakly. "Sorry…"

Bazel bit back a curse and he watched as Master-14 was preparing to fire. He was just delaying it to watch KL-Showa squirm.

"_**SAY GOOD NIGHT!**_" Master-14 declared with a laugh but then a dark fireball exploded in his face, knocking him backwards and his arm pointed up by reflex as the green beam fired into the sky. A hard impact slammed him into chest and knocked him off the hood of the car to land roughly on the road.

"Huh?" KL-Showa wondered and saw a familiar winged figure hovering in front of him. She had long blond hair and was dressed in black. "Yami?"

'Yami' turned when she heard 'her' name and smiled. KL-Showa's eyes widened as he gaped. She was wearing Yami's combat attire but she definitely wasn't Yami.

"Hi, Daddy!" Epsilon Alice beamed at KL-Showa.

"**ALICE!-?**"

Epsilon Alice giggled and then she put on a serious expression as she turned around to face Master-14 who got back to his feet. "_**You little bitch!**_" he snarled.

Epsilon Alice scanned Master-14 and she focused on his left arm where the Dark Xrosser was mounted. Meanwhile, Master-14 was conjuring spheres of swirling water around him, but this was water mixed with acid. He threw his arms forward and fired jets of water at Alice but she was fast and vanished in the blink of an eye. This confounded Master-14 until he felt someone grab his left arm. Looking to his left, he spotted Epsilon Alice holding up his Dark Xrosser. "Looking for this?" she asked cheekily as she waved it.

Without the Dark Xrosser's power, the Xros Fusion was cancelled. He screamed as the three Orochis fused with him were pulled out and back into the Dark Xrosser, reverting him back to his regular Master-14 form.

"Give that back!" Master-14 roared as he made a grab for her but he staggered back when her bladed wings struck at him rapidly, blurring as they shot at him repetitively and in succession, forcing him to bring his arms up to defend himself. She then pressed her hand to his chest and unleashed another explosive fireball, knocking Master-14 backwards.

'_Wow, she's badass_,' admired Shinichi.

'_That's my daughter for you_,' Alan praised.

Master-14 swung the Oathbreaker at her and she blocked with her bladed wing. However, her wing was cut and she cried out in pain which forced her to drop the Dark Xrosser. He caught the device in his hand before he buried his fist into Epsilon Alice's gut, causing her to double over.

KL-Showa, seeing Alice hurt, saw red.

Master-14 aimed his cannon at her head and said, "Sorry, Alice-chan, but you made the mistake of crossing me." He charged up his cannon, preparing to vaporize her, when a green blast hit him violently in the face and sent him flying backwards.

Epsilon Alice blinked and then beamed before turning around to see her daddy and Onii-chan, separated into their own individual bodies and standing side-by-side.

"Daddy!" Epsilon Alice flung herself to him and they hugged. Alan returned the hug and after a moment stepped back to look at his daughter with a stern expression. "Daddy?"

"Young lady, you are so grounded," Alan scolded.

"What!-?" Epsilon Alice shouted.

"You heard me. You are _grounded_."

"But Daddy! I was only trying to help!"

"No buts, Alice. Now, go fly back home and stay there. End of discussion."

Epsilon Alice puffed her cheeks and spun around, crossing her arms. She was like any other teenage girl and was pretty stubborn. Alan rubbed his temples. He could handle a small Alice but a teenager Alice was a whole other matter entirely.

"You can't ground me for helping you, _Dad_!" she snapped, looking over her shoulder at him.

"Yes I can, young lady, now go and fly home! We'll discuss this later," Alan told her.

"Hmph!" Epsilon Alice puffed up her cheeks and turned away angrily. "Onii-chan…do you want me to go?" She was using the 'Puppy Dog Pout' on Shinichi. That look always made him cave and he couldn't turn away nor resist.

"Aren't you being a bit harsh?" Shinichi asked. "I mean, she did save our lives." Alan glared at him.

"_My_ daughter, _my_ rules. She came here knowing it was dangerous and put herself at risk," Alan retorted.

"Which is something that you and I do every day," Shinichi deadpanned. "But seeing as she's still a kid, I'll have to agree with that."

"Have you forgotten about me?" a voice snarled and the three of them looked to see Master-14 standing back up. He glared at all of them.

"I'll handle this," Shinichi informed Alan. "You get Alice-chan someplace safe." He brandished the Higurashi no Yaiba and in a flash assumed his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. He swung his sword, and clashed with Master-14 as the two engaged in combat, sparks flying as their swords connected with each swing.

"Alice, get to safety," Alan ordered his daughter.

"No!" she stubbornly protested. "Let me help you, Daddy, please!"

"No, you'll get hurt!" he shouted and he backhanded a boulder that flew at them.

"Alan, I got an idea!" Bazel said and the way he said it made Alan shake his head.

"No, don't even think about it," said Alan.

"Xros Fuse yourself with Alice and Shinichi," Bazel suggested.

"Can we do that?" Epsilon Alice asked.

"No," Alan denied.

"Yes," Bazel confirmed.

They heard a shout and looked to see Showa being blasted back and skidding on his back to stop at their feet.

"Onii-chan!" Alice gasped as she helped him to his feet. More energy blasts came flying at them and Alan used his ring to form a protective bubble to protect them. The blasts collided with the bubble, causing cracks to spread as it was continuously bombarded.

"Alan!" Bazel shouted.

"Alright, we'll do it, but only this once!" said Alan.

"Do what?" Showa asked.

"Xros Fusion!" Alan called as Bazel's gem glowed and they were enveloped in green light.

Master-14 strode towards them with each shot when he was forced to shield his eyes from the intense burst of light. When the light subsided, his eyes widened as he saw the new warrior who stood before him. It was Kamen Lantern Showa but instead of a cape he sported an array of blades on his back which formed a pair of wicked looking wings. He still brandished the Higurashi no Yaiba and the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, but now the weapons appeared to have combined, connected together at the pommel as their blades faced away from each other to form a double-bladed staff. Floating around KL-Showa were the twelve blades which were originally pieces of the Cho Dai-Shuriken.

This was Kamen Lantern Showa: Epsilon Mode.

"What's this!-?" Master-14 demanded but then he was hit by the floating blades which shot at him like missiles. They pierced his armor and as soon as they were imbedded they exploded, causing him to scream. "Dammit! ALPHA-01, do another Dark Xros Fusion!"

"**Not enough power, Onii-chan!**" ALPHA-01 answered. "**I need time to recharge!**"

"DAMMIT!" Master-14 cursed.

KL-Showa's Epsilon Wings spread out and then pointed at Master-14 as he called, "**Dark Flame Barrage!**" Dark red fireballs shot towards Master-14 and hit him violently and repeatedly, sending him reeling further and further back as he was hit and each fireball exploded, damaging his armor further. KL-Showa then flew towards Master-14 and with his dual-bladed weapon struck, performing a cross slash across Master-14's chest. "**Xros Slash!**"

Master-14 stumbled back and let loose a roar as he exploded in front of KL-Showa. The warrior glowed for a second before separating into Shinichi, Alan and Alice.

"We did it!" Epsilon Alice jumped in celebration. But as the smoke cleared, they were not presented with Shiro Juuyon's demise. He was back in human form and his clothes were a little ruined but he was still alive. How had he survived that? "Huh?"

Epsilon Alice was suddenly caught by surprise and startled when Shiro stood right in front of her. "Hello again, little sister," he said, smiling, his eyes going up and down her curvy figure, drinking it all in. "You're looking _fine_."

"Alice, get away from him!" Alan warned.

Suddenly, Shiro leaned forward and captured her lips in a kiss. Alice's eyes widened as he struggled to pull away but Shiro held her shoulders firmly. All of a sudden, Shiro found himself hovering several hundred feet above the city. His wrist was in a firm, vice-like grip and looking up he realized that the one holding him was Alan. "Jealous?" Shiro mocked.

"Stay the hell away from my daughter," Alan warned and he released, causing Shiro to go plummeting down towards the ground at high speed. He watched as Shiro landed with a loud crash. He was sprawled on his back. However, Alan's scowl did not leave his face as he watched Shiro stand back up and dust himself off.

"Isn't that a bit harsh?" Shiro asked and he looked up as Shinichi before him with the Higurashi no Yaiba drawn and the C3 System in hand.

"You're a murdering, manipulating asshole, but now you've really crossed the line," Shinichi growled, "You're going to be put away for a long time, Shiro."

"You really think you can keep me trapped in a card?" Shiro challenged. He spread his arms out. "Go ahead! Take me in!" he dared.

Shinichi scanned Shiro with the C3 System and expected him to be digitized and absorbed to be trapped in the card, but when nothing happened he looked back at the device. "What?" 'ERROR' flashed across the screen in red letters.

"Having electronic difficulties?" Shiro grinned and in an instant he drew his Oathbreaker and went to run it through Shinichi only for Alan to blast the sword out of his hand. "No fair!" he whined childishly.

"You're under arrest, Shiro," Alan informed him. "Put your hands up where I can see them." Shiro reluctantly complied as Epsilon Alice and Shinichi watched. "Now, here's what I don't get. You've got more power than any normal human on this world possess, and you have an entire army at your beck and call. You could've conquered the world but you decided helping out a Darkloid was more important than conquest. Why?" Alan spoke. He glanced at the Dark Xrosser and his eyes widened as he figured it all out. "So, that's your plan isn't it? That's the real reason you want the Yamata no Orochi to come out. You wanted the power."

"Clever," Shiro complimented. "Very, very clever."

"Now, since we can't destroy you because of your Dead Man's Switch, that only leaves us one option. We're going to lock you up for a long, long time," Alan concluded.

"That might work, except…" Shiro snapped his fingers.

Several grenades rolled over to their feet and Alan's eyes widened in shock.

Smoke, light and a loud bang suddenly exploded around them, causing Alice, Alan and Shinichi to cry out. When the smoke faded, Shiro was gone.

* * *

"You had him and you let him escape?" Shogo questioned as Alan, Shinichi and Alice returned to the teahouse. The bio-android had shrunk back to her little girl form and was holding her father's hand. She was still grounded, though.

"He used a flash bang," Shinichi defended himself.

"And with my enhanced hearing and eyesight I was deaf and blind a lot longer," Alan added. "Ugh, I still got ringing in my ears."

"I still have church bells going in my left," remarked Shinichi. "But you guys better sit down. Alan already figured out Shiro's real plan."

* * *

Shiro returned to the Pyramid Base when he saw Gnol. "Hi, how are you doing?" Gnol walked up to Shiro and confronted him over what he'd learnt. Shiro stood at his spot, arms crossed, smirking as Gnol frowned. "What's up, Gnol?"

"I should've known you were after my power from the start," Gnol said, glaring at Shiro.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Shiro feigned ignorance. "All I want is to help you regain your full power."

"And usurp it for yourself!" Gnol spat as he grabbed Shiro by the coat and pulled him up. Gnol's eyes were on fire and Shiro knew he still possessed all the other Orochi fragments, minus the ones Shiro had in his Dark Xrosser. "You will relinquish Kin-Gnol, Mizu-Gnol and Tsuchi-Gnol and give them to me!"

"But you're not stable enough to keep those powers for long," Shiro argued.

"I kept them in me for over two months," Gnol countered, grinning. "That's enough time for me to turn this world into a living Hell. I don't need the Yamata no Orochi's full power while I'm the most powerful being in the world!"

Shiro sighed and agreed, "Yes, you are indeed powerful. Very well, you'll have all your powers in one place."

Gnol grinned, thinking Shiro was going to give him all his power again when he suddenly went rigid after feeling a piercing pain in his gut. Looking down, he saw that it was the Oathbreaker and its blade was inside of him. Shiro took out the Dark Xrosser from his coat pocket and pointed it at Gnol. Gnol's eyes widened as he realized his mistake. "Gnol, come inside."

"NO!" Gnol protested but it was too late as the dark light of the Dark Xrosser captured him. He dropped Shiro and tried to resist. However, Shiro was already prepared with a plan.

"Girls!" he commanded and the Bakeneko Kunoichi leapt into action. They threw kunai with ofuda attached to them and they landed point first around Gnol. Lines of light connected the Kunai, forming a circle with a star in the centre, immobilizing Gnol.

"WHAT IS THIS!-?" Gnol Gnauh roared out his demand.

"Did you really think I just killed them?" Shiro questioned mockingly, still holding up his Dark Xrosser as Gnol continued to resist its pull. "Remember how I absorbed the stuff in Gebok's brain? I did that to those Kekkain whenever I had the chance and the older ones were very knowledgeable, especially on how to contain high-ranking demons.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!" Gnol Gnauh roared. "YOU HEAR ME, SHIRO!-? YOU'LL PAY!"

"It was fun working with you, my friend, but now it's time for you to be put away," Shiro said in mock sadness. "Au revoir."

"I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS…!-!-!" Gnol swore as he was completely absorbed and became trapped in the Dark Xrosser. Putting the Oathbreaker away, Shiro looked at the screen to see Gnol pounding on the other side. His voice was muted.

"Girls, in my hand I now possess the power of all the Orochi's heads!" Shiro claimed.

"Congratulations, Juuyon-sama!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi praised as they applauded him.

"And now…" He pressed the button to initiate the next step of his plan. "**DARK XROS FUSION!**" The dark energy burst from the screen in the shape of an eight headed dragon. It flew across the room before flying back towards Shiro. "Henshin!" he called as he assumed his Master-14 form. The dark energy reached him and changed his armor.

His armor was now organic looking, making it twice as intimidating. It was black and skeletal with dragon skulls on his shoulders, forearms, knees and chest. The skull on his chest was facing down and its horns curved over his shoulders. His helmet was now draconic as well, with red teeth hanging from the upper jaw. His faceplate had not changed but the sharp teeth were now blood red. His metal feet had sharp toes and his clawed fingertips were blood red. Hanging from his back was a tattered cape, or what seemed like a cape. When he spread his arms, so did the cape to reveal it to be a pair of blood red wings. Hanging from his belt was the scabbard which held the Oathbreaker.

"_**Yes…Oh yes…**_" he growled appreciatively, flexing his fingers and arms, feeling all the delicious power coursing through him. It felt better than when he had fused with three of the Orochis. This power was incredible. No, there were simply no words to describe it.

The Bakeneko Kunocihi trembled in the presence of the demon their master had become. He looked straight at them and commanded, "Kneel." They did so without hesitation. He then eyed Shizuko, Gnol's personal pet, and grinned. She bowed and quickly got down on her knees as well.

"_**This will be the start of a new age, my kittens**_," Master-14 said as he raised a clenched fist. "_**With the power I now possess nothing may stand in my way. But this is only a fraction of the power I truly crave. The bulk of the Yamata no Orochi's power still remains sealed but it is only a matter of time before I claim it for myself. And from this day forth you will not refer to me as 'Master'. You will refer to me as 'Your Majesty' because I am now DARK EMPEROR-14! SUPREME LORD OF DARKNESS!**__"_ His roaring laugher echoed all around them.

* * *

"But isn't this all just speculation?" Shogo questioned. Alan had told them his theory on what Shiro was really after.

Alan replied, "Shogo, think about everything Shiro has done up until now. There's always an angle and this time I figured it out. Shiro wants to free the Yamata no Orochi, then allow Gnol to bond with the body before using his Dark Xrosser to absorb the thing, putting him in control with all that power at his command. He's trying to evolve and turn himself into a Dark God."

* * *

Shizuko walked through the hallway, alone, after leaving the meeting. She should be upset over her master being absorbed and forcefully fused to Shiro, but instead she smiled. She saw the Cyber Leader approach her and stopped walking.

"So, I suppose you've heard," said Shizuko.

"**Master Gnol has been trapped and absorbed into Shiro Juuyon. What should we do?**" Cyber Leader inquired.

"For now, nothing. It would do neither of us any good to fight Shiro while he believes that he holds all the cards in his hand. Let us wait and bide our time. After all, there are still more stones for him to break before he can claim the Orochi's true power and he can't hold onto that Dark Xrosser forever," Shizuko answered.

* * *

Shiro had reverted back to human form and was skipping towards the control room's main console, his fingers flying across the keyboard as he brought up a live feed of his enemies in Junko's teashop, completely unaware that they were being watched.

"Alan, you think you have it all figured out, don't you?" Shiro asked, his face nearly split by the insane grin he wore. He looked absolutely malicious and bloodthirsty right now. He pulled up another image and made his decision. "Well, I did promise not to unleash it until later." He paused and quickly amended, "It's later now!" He typed in the activation codes and pressed the button to send out his creation. "TRANSPORT!"

* * *

"So, this little girl is really a…machine?" Kanna whispered to Michiru as they watched Alice sit in Alan's lap while they ate dinner together.

"Don't call her _that_," Michiru whispered back. "Alan's very protective of her. He treats her like his own daughter."

"Oh, sorry," Kanna apologized, "It's still hard to believe that she's artificial. That's all."

"I can hear you, ya know," Alan interrupted, causing both girls to freeze. "After this we're going to have to-" he paused suddenly.

"It's never good when you stop in midsentence like that," Shinichi grimaced. Suddenly, the ground shook.

"Is it an earthquake?" Yokoshima questioned.

"No. Much worse," Alan frowned. "Alice, stay here and don't go outside. I mean it," he ordered his daughter. Alice wanted to argue but the look on Alan's face shut him up. "Kanna, do you mind watching her?"

"Ah, sure," Kanna nodded.

The group ran out of the teahouse to see what was going on and Chiaki summed the situation up in only one word, "Crap."

The creature which had materialized in the middle of Kyoto was a gigantic, mechanical scorpion covered in crimson plate armor. It had sharp claws that resembled massive scissors and it stood on four long and powerful looking legs. Its long tail was not tipped with a stinger, but instead three laser guns attached on the sides and top. Finally, mounted on its back was an array of powerful looking cannons.

"DANG, THAT THING IS HUGE!" Yokoshima shouted when he saw the size of that thing.

With a loud shriek, the Giga Scorpion started on its rampage, using the lasers on its tails to destroy everything within its path.

"Come on, we have to stop that thing before it levels the city!" Shinichi ordered as they rushed to face the creature. Transforming into their strongest forms, the Riders all attacked as they bombarded it with lightning, needles, and laser blasts.

Sentinel was in the air, studying their opponent. He used his X-Ray vision to scan it for weaknesses when the Kusanagi no Tsurugi pulled his attention elsewhere. "What?" He looked and his eyes widened as he saw the dark hole which had appeared in the middle of the ground as something emerged from it. It was an incredibly ugly creature with the main body of a toad, but it was cycloptic with an elephant's trunk attached to its face. It had a beard of tentacles under its jaws and on its back were crab claws. It also shifted colors at random as it looked around with its single eye. Its size was also comparable to the giant Beastroid which had appeared earlier.

"Oh great! First a mechanical scorpion and now something straight out of H.P. Lovecraft!" Zero shouted in annoyance. He was suddenly knocked out of the sky by the Giga Scorpion's claw.

Meanwhile, the Byatis Darkloid was attacking Sentinel. It pointed its trunk at him and blew a stream of flames at the Green Lantern.

Showa contacted everyone's com-links, "Zero, Beetle, you go and help Alan. I'll handle the big scorpion with Michiru, Chiaki and Hanyuu."

* * *

Zero and Blue Beetle attacked the Byatis Darkloid with everything they got, with Sentinel backing them up with use of his ring.

"MOVE!" Sentinel cried out as the Darkloid's tentacles shot towards them. Sentinel avoided them but Zero and Blue Beetle were caught and being constricted.

Suddenly, blades of energy sliced the tentacles to ribbons, freeing the two Riders.

"You guys OK?" Sentinel inquired.

"Thanks," Blue Beetle said as he conjured his handheld blaster weapon. Taking aim, he fired a burst of energy at the Darkloid's eye, causing it to howl as he managed to blind it. "YEAH, TAKE THAT MUTHA-FROGGER!"

"You did not just say that," murmured Zero.

* * *

The Giga Scorpion tried to strike Carmen down but with the help of her hard-light holographic duplicates, it could not tell her apart from the others. At the same time, it fired at Showa (Higurashi Form) who was flying in the air, explosions erupting in the sky like fireworks.

As for Hanyuu and Slasher (Slayer Form), they were standing on a nearby rooftop and waiting for their moment to strike.

Carmen spun and tossed one of her chained scythes at the creature's claws, manipulating it so that the unbreakable chains would tie them together. It pulled its arms back and Carmen cried out as she was pulled through the air. She kept her grip tight on her weapon, holding on for dear life. The creature swung up and Carmen's grip slipped as she was tossed upwards, only to be caught by Showa.

"Time to go up a level," said Showa as he put Carmen on the same rooftop as Hanyuu and Slasher before assuming his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. He then assumed his Final Form Ride, changing into the Guardian Jet. "Get on, Chiaki." Slashed got on and the Guardian Jet flew towards the Giga Scorpion. It fired its lasers and cannons at them but the Guardian Jet avoided them all. "NOW! JUMP!" Slasher jumped and landed on the tip of the Giga Scorpion's tail. He pointed the Onigari no Ryuou down and stabbed the thing's tail-mounted weapon, damaging it as it exploded. Slasher slid down the tail to safety seconds before a series of explosions erupted on it.

The cannons, of course, were still operational but not for long. He fired his Kunai Missiles at the cannons. The Kunai Missiles flew into the barrels, destroying the cannons from within.

* * *

The Byatis Darkloid's eye healed itself and it fired a sphere of energy at the flying Riders. The two countered and kicked the sphere back, watching it explode in the creature's face.

"GOOOOOAL!" Blue Beetle cheered as he threw his arms up. But his celebration was short lived as the Darkloid's crab claws stretched out to grab them. Sentinel suddenly blew them up with his power ring, shattering them to pieces as they exploded.

Furious, the Byatis Darkloid captured the Green Lantern with its long tongue and pulled him into its mouth, leaving Zero and Blue Beetle to gawk.

Suddenly, a line of green light appeared down the Darkloid's middle before splitting in half with Sentinel flying out, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi now sporting a large and sharp blade of energy which he'd used to cut himself free.

The Darkloid, on the other hand, had faded away into nothingness upon defeat.

* * *

With its weapons taken it, it was time to scrap the Giga Scorpion Beastroid and put it out of commission, permanently.

"Chiaki-san, Shinichi, would you allow me to do the honors?" Hanyuu asked sweetly as she took the Onigari no Ryuou.

"Only if you let me help," Showa offered.

Hanyuu smiled at her brother and gripped the sacred demon-slaying sword in both hands, focusing her divine energy into it. At the same time, Showa was at her side and doing the same.

Swinging their swords downward, they sent crescent energy blades flying towards the Giga Scorpion which sliced right through its body. It exploded a second later, forming a mushroom cloud that marked its destruction.

"And that's that," concluded Showa as he and Hanyuu shared a high five.

"Thank goodness we were able to stop them before they destroyed the city," Slasher said with some relief. That was when one of Shinichi's paper cranes flapped over and landed on Showa's shoulder. Picking his personal Shikigami off his shoulder, the paper crane unfolded to show Shinichi a message.

It wasn't good news.

* * *

The giant Beastroid and Darkloid had been sent as distractions so that Shiro could 'visit' another mansion, kill as many Kekkain as possible, and destroy another sealing stone.

Returning with blood-stained clothes and sword, he felt quite smug as he once again outsmarted his enemies. "Did those fools really think that I wouldn't destroy a stone tonight?" He let out a wicked laugh as he mocked them for their stupidity. "They left the stones unguarded! They might as well invite me in if they weren't going to be there to protect the stones!"

"Brilliant move, Juuyon-sama," praised Akaneko.

"Why, thank you," Shiro grinned. He then put his arm around Akaneko and pulled her close. "Now, how about a little treat my dear Ananeko-chan?"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The 5th stone has been destroyed and Shiro's gained the power of the Orochi's eight heads. But it seems some things are happening behind his back. What are Shizuko and the Cyber Leader planning?**

**Oh, and an Omake suggested by Iron-Mantis:**

Shiro noticed that all the Bakeneko Kunocihi were avoiding him. It was odd. It wasn't out of disgust or anything like it. It was like a sense of awkwardness was now present among them. Even Shizuko gave him odd looks and would run off just as suddenly.

"Gary?" Shiro addressed the AI-contained DALEK.

"**Yes, sir?**" Gary responded as he turned his head around to look at his master.

"Have you noticed that everyone's been giving me weird looks and avoiding me?" Shiro questioned. "Can you tell me why?"

"**I think I might know, sir**," answered Gary, "**Although I'm just not sure you would want to know.**"

"I wouldn't be asking if I didn't want to know," Shiro retorted. "So talk," he ordered.

"**It's about the kiss you gave earlier to the one called Alice, sir**," Gary answered.

Shiro let out an, "Ah," as he understood why they were feeling awkward around him and avoiding him as a result. Alice was his little sister after all and to see him kiss her was probably the reason. After all, he and Alice were technically siblings since Gebok was their creator and thus their father.

"I guess it's because it's supposedly incest," Shiro concluded, chuckling in amusement.

"**No sir, that's not it**," Gary said. "**Since you and Alice are machines it doesn't technically count as incest."**

"…It's not?" Shiro asked. "Then what is it?"

** "They're only avoiding you because they think you're a…**" Gary trailed off.

"Well?" Shiro prompted impatiently.

"**They think you're a lolicon, sir,**" Gary finished.

"What?" Shiro growled.

"**They think you're a lolicon**," Gary repeated. "**Actually, I think Shizuko even called you a pedophile**."

"What?" Shiro repeated.

"**I said-"**

"I HEARD WHAT YOU DAMN WELL SAID!" Shiro roared so loud that his voice rang all over the base and echoed. "Why would they even think that!-? Why?"

"**Well, sir. If you must remember, Alice is still just a child despite being in her adult form**," Gary explained. "**So, to them, it was just plain creepy**. **Shizuko even stated you were a perverted & dirty-minded deviant**."

Shiro's right eye twitched as his face went through a series of different expressions which showed disgust.

"**Sir, are you alright?**" Gary asked as he approached his master, pointing his plunger arm at him to do a diagnostic scan.

"…I'm going to go to the bathroom right now and see if it's possible for a bio-android to be sick and throw up," Shiro answered as he turned and quickly made his way to the lavatory.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And I may have made some changes, but I think it looks good, don't you agree? BTW, the Byatis Darkloid is named after an Old One from H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulu Mythos.**


	108. The Legacy of Cain Part 52

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 52: Invasion of the DALEKs**

"OW! MY THUMB!" Yokoshima shouted as he clutched his thumb in pain. He glared at the tool in his hand. "STUPID HAMMER!" He was on a roof doing repairs and had accidentally hit his own thumb.

"Hey, newcomer," a man next to him spoke. "Quit your whining." He pointed down to Chiaki who was fixing another roof nearby. "Your big friend over there isn't complaining."

"Yeah, whatever," Yokoshima grunted. He and Chiaki had volunteered to help the people with repairs.

Repairs were being done in town following the attack of the two giant monsters from last night. While property damage was high, there was miraculously very little loss in life among the civilians. That could not be said about the Kekkain Clan, however, as many of their Eastern Branch members had been killed and the stone in the East had been destroyed as well. Hanyuu and Kanna were doing some damage control, arguing with the elders of the Main Branch. How could they abandon the city in its time of need? Still, it didn't pacify them since their clansmen were dropping like flies.

Yokoshima nursed his thumb and checked his watch to see the time. "Yo, Boss! It's time for me and Chiaki to take a break!"

The foreman made a 'go ahead' gesture which made Yokoshima sigh in relief. He tossed the helmet away but it actually ricocheted off another rooftop and flew back to hit Yokoshima in the head.

"OW! THE BACK OF MY HEAD!" Yokoshima shouted, clutching his wounded noggin. Chiaki rolled his eyes and went to fetch his friend to take him to the meeting.

* * *

"Behold!" said Shiro as he held within his hand a black, slime covered creature which resembled an octopus. It only had a single eye and an exposed brain with slime dripping from its tentacles.

"Ew, what is that?" Akaneko grimaced in disgust.

"This is what a Dalek really looks like," said Shiro. "I looked them up and Daleks are really these things encased in robotic shells. But actually, this is just a new species of Darkloid I've created." He had Gnol's power, which meant he could spawn Darkloids like he could. He looked over to Gary. "Gary, you'll be the first of an entire new species. Get over here."

"**I obey, sir**," Gary said as he rolled towards Shiro.

"Open up," Shiro commanded.

Gary's DALEK body opened up to reveal an empty cavity allowing Shiro to put the Dalek Darkloid inside. Wires pierced the dark flesh as a connection was made. The casing closed and Shiro stepped back as Gary began to twitch erratically before finally stopping.

The DALEKs Shiro created originally were machines which ran on AIs based on Gary but they were simpler than him. By putting the Dalek Darkloid inside of Gary, he had Gary's AI connected to an organic body, making the Dalek Darkloid an extension of Gary thus turning him into a living being. This would soon be done to the rest of the DALEKs to make them the perfect killing machine because up until now they lacked something important.

They lacked genuine hatred for humankind.

"OK Gary, how does it feel?" Shiro asked.

"**It feels different. **_**I**_** feel different. I feel alive,**" Gary answered. "**I am now truly alive.**"

"Now you're as real as me, and the original Daleks," said Shiro. "What are you now?

"**I am a DALEK**," Gary answered in his electronic monotone voice. "**I am also a Darkloid**."

"A Dalek Darkloid," said Shiro, smiling. "And what is your purpose?" "Now, what is your purpose?"

"**To serve you and exterminate our hated enemies, sir.**"

"And who are our enemies, Gary?"

"**Humankind and those who oppose us.**"

"Wonderful!" Shiro applauded. "Come on girls, clap! Gary's now a new man! Well, a new Darkloid to be precise." The girls applauded.

"Ano, Juuyon-sama, why do you need to put Darkloids in them now?" Momoneko asked curiously.

"Call it a little upgrade and a wicked surprise. Imagine their surprise when one of these things opens up and tentacles start squeezing the life out of them?And there's more! Much more! You know how Darkloids are creatures who feed on dark emotions and also cause them, right? Well, these Dalek Darkloids are just compartmentalized anger and hatred directed at the human race, making them the perfect killers. It's that hatred that my DALEKs were missing. Now, if you'll excuse me ladies, I have some spawning to do." Shiro whistled as he walked off towards the DALEK assembly line to truly make his creations alive with Gary following obediently behind him.

* * *

"Where have you all been? We were supposed to start this meeting 2 hours ago," Dr. Washam asked irritably.

"We've had a slight delay because of what happened last night," Shinichi answered.

"You mean the big monster bash you guys had?" Daichi asked. "It's all over the news."

"Shiro must be really serious if he's sending giant monsters," Hana spoke.

"You got that right, Hana-chan," said Michiru as the heroes all took their seats around the conference table. Alan had Alice sit in his lap so she wouldn't wander off and he could keep an eye on her. She was going to go home and stay.

"Yeah, but I think you guys were able to stop those things from rampaging or things might've been worse," said Kai.

"You got that right, Kai," Shinichi agreed, sighing. He then realized who he'd responded to and was surprised. "Kai, what are you doing here?" Kai wasn't the only other Manakyte there. There was also Yuki, Yuri and Jin who were seated as well. "You guys…?"

"It's OK, Shin," said Yuji. "They're with me."

"Call us Team 5D's," Yuki added.

"5D's…" Yokoshima repeated. "What does that stand for?"

"Five Dragons," Jin answered.

"And they really kicked butt against Gnol and the other Orochis," Battler claimed. "Seriously, they did."

"Well, after all that's happened we really could use the help," Shinichi nodded and accepted them, "Welcome aboard." He gave Yuri a wary glance but if Yuji and Yuki were around to rein him in then it was fine to have the Darkness Manakyte around.

"Speaking of Gnol, I think you guts should know something important," Alan spoke. "It's about why Shiro's really trying to unseal the Yamata no Orochi's body."

"He just wants to destroy the world," Daichi shrugged. Hana elbowed him. "What?"

"What is it?" Hana asked Alan.

"Well, it's just a theory, but I think that Shiro's planning to absorb the Yamata no Orochi once it's complete and fuse himself with it using that new Dark Xrosser he has in his possession," Alan said, making everyone in the room grimace.

"Alan's theory is pretty sound. Shiro demonstrated by using Xros Fusion on three of the Orochis," Shinichi supported.

"Great…" groaned Battler. As if Shiro Juuyon wasn't enough of a threat already, now he was aiming to become all powerful.

"I doubt Gnol would like that," stated Hana.

"What makes you think he'll have any say in the matter?" asked Shinichi pointedly. "Besides, Shiro's made it a habit to stab people in the back." He recalled how Shiro had abandoned Omega Scorpio and used him as a shield months ago.

"So, let's hit him where he lives," suggested Yuri.

"We could, if we knew where to look," Dr. Magi said. "I've had Sheila run a scan but there's just nothing. We can't find Shiro anywhere on Earth."

"Maybe he's on the moon?" Michiru questioned.

"Checked there too, and besides the abandoned base there's nothing," answered Dr. Magi. "We've looked everywhere."

"Almost everywhere," Shinichi corrected. "Shiro's somewhere, watching us. He says he has surveillance drones everywhere and he's even holding our loved ones hostage."

"What do you mean?" Yuji asked and Shinichi told him about the Dead Man's Switch and how Shiro was spying on their loved ones with Surveillance Drones that were rigged to explode when he died.

"Why don't you just capture him with the C3?" Battler questioned.

"Tried, didn't work. He's somehow made it so that he couldn't be digitized," said Shinichi as he took out his C3. "It flashed 'ERROR' when I tried."

"OK, so we can't kill him, nor can we catch him," Daichi grumbled. "Great…"

"But we can take out his surveillance drones," said Kai. He was upset too. There was a bomb in his girlfriend's house and she wasn't even aware of it.

"I notice that Hanyuu isn't with you," Dr. Magi said.

"She's doing damage control back in Kyoto," said Chiaki. "The Kekkains aren't happy that we let Shiro destroy a sealing stone and kill off members from another one of their branches."

"Which one is it this time?"

"The East." Chiaki told him that Shiro had destroyed a total of five stones now.

"So that just leaves three sealing stones left, so three more steps for Shiro to take until he frees the Yamata no Orochi."

"And besides that, Shiro's got an army while there's just us," said Daichi, referring to everyone present. "I know we're the equivalent of an army but Shiro's probably has a 10 to 1 advantage against us."

"And who knows how many minions he has?" added Battler.

"Bakeneko Kunoichi, Combatroids, Beastroids, Darkloids, Darklings, Cybermen, DALEKs…" Alan listed. Shiro had an army of assorted creatures at his command.

"I remember back when he wasn't so much of a threat," Shinichi recalled. "He pretended to be me and killed you guys."

"Well, he's upgraded," Daichi retorted.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shiro was giving a speech to his assembled DALEKs as he stood on the observation deck, his Bakeneko Kunoichi, Gary and Cyber Leader at his side. Mentally increasing the volume of his voice, he opened his mouth and spoke, "MY DALEKS!" He could amplify his voice to any level so that he could be heard. He didn't really need a megaphone to make himself louder. The last time he did was just for show. "HEAR MY WORDS! TONIGHT WE ARE GOING TO MAKE EVERY NATION IN THE WORLD TREMBLE! WE WILL SHOW THEM TRUE POWER AND THEY WILL SHOW US THEIR FEAR! WE SHALL EXTERMINATE THE LESSER LIFE FORMS! TONIGHT BEGINS THE INVASION OF THE DALEKS!"

The DALEKs all roared and cheered in unison as Shiro sent them away via teleportation.

"The world will burn," Shiro murmured before laughing like a madman. "BURN BABY BURN!"

Momoneko stepped back and reached into her clothes to pull out the Chiro body she'd kept. Her master had changed so much. Where was the cute boy she'd fallen for and sworn obedience to? She put the chibi body away and turned back to watch Shiro laugh as the DALEKs vanished one by one as they teleported away.

* * *

"OK, since we have everything in order, this meeting is adjourned," Dr. Magi said. The group was about to leave when the alarms blared and the lights rapidly flashed red with high frequency.

"_ALERT! ALERT!_" shouted Sheila. "_WORLDWIDE ATTACK!_"

"Huh!-?" everyone reacted.

"Sheila, show us!" Dr. Magi ordered and the monitor displayed multiple screens showing the DALEKs appearing all over the world in every major city.

"DALEKs," Alan identified, grimacing. "This is bad."

"Sheila, could you put the news on?" Yokoshima requested.

Sheila changed the picture to show the news with a Caucasian newscaster giving a report.

"_Unidentified creatures have appeared in New York City_," the newscaster reported as a small screen displayed the DALEKs appearing in a city. "_We can't be sure what their intentions are. Hold on, one of the creatures is coming towards our cameraman_." The small screen expanded to take up the whole screen to give viewers a closer look.

The DALEK spoke, "**P_EO-PLE OF EARTH, WE ARE THE DA-LEKs_**," the DALEK spoke, his electronically distorted voice grating on everyone's ears. "_**WE HAVE BEEN SENT TO YOUR CI-TIES FOR ON-LY ONE REA-SON**_." It aimed its gunstick and exclaimed, "_**TO EX-TER-MIN-ATE YOU!**_"

The gun fired and there was a scream as the camera fell on the ground. Panicked screaming was heard as people ran while the DALEKs rolled after them. People screamed and fell dead as they were gunned down with the DALEKs screaming, "_**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**_"

The picture changed to show the alarmed newscaster as he shouted, "_Ladies and gentlemen, it appears that we're being invaded! I just heard that law enforcement and military forces have been deployed to subdue these creatures and then…_" He paused. "_All over the world!-?_" He addressed the audience, "News just in, ladies and gentlemen. _These creatures have started to appear in Paris, Berlin, Moscow and-_" The newscaster paled and dropped his paper as he stood up and backed away. "_No, no, stay back! No!_"

"**_EX-TER-MIN-ATE!_"** was heard off screen and a death ray hit the newscaster, causing his body to light up and make him skeleton visible before he dropped dead. The DALEK rolled over and took the newscaster's spot. "_**WEL-COME TO DA-LEK NEWS. TO-DAY'S TOP STO-RY: THE EX-TER-MIN-A-TION OF HU-MAN-KIND!**_" The DALEK shot the camera and static replaced the screen.

"They're taking over," Hana said.

"We need to go," said Alan. He said to his daughter, "Alice, stay here with Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam."

"But-" Alice began to argue.

"No buts, Alice. Now, Dr. Magi, call up Yami to pick our daughter up."

"I need to get to Hinamizawa," said Shinichi. "Those DALEKs could be there too." His wrist communicator beeped and he spoke into it. "Hello?"

"_Shin-kun!_" That was Rena's voice. She sounded alarmed.

"Rena-chan, what's wrong?" Shinichi asked.

"_There are these creatures rounding everyone up in Hinamizawa_," said Rena. She had gone over to visit her father when the DALEKs appeared. "_What are they?_" Suddenly, he heard her scream.

"What happened? Rena!" shouted Shinichi, alarmed.

"_One of them just killed someone!_"

"Where are you?" Shinichi asked.

"_They've rounded us up at the school. Please hurry, Shin-kun_."

"I'm on my way, and please just stay alive until I get there."

"_Hurry…_" Rena pleaded. She was scared.

If the DALEKs were in Hinamizawa, that meant his friends and family were in danger and would die. This time he did not have his time powers to revive them. If they died now they'd die for real.

"Sheila, send me to Hinamizawa, now!" Shinichi ordered.

"_Affirmative._ _Coordinates set_," said Sheila as she activated the Teleportal. Shinichi was filled with resolve before he ran into the portal to save his home.

* * *

**HINAMIZAWA**

In Hinamizawa, the villagers were huddled together in front of the school. The DALEKs had appeared and rounded them up. Any resistance was punished by immediate extermination. They were scared as a DALEK had just exterminated one of the villagers for resisting. Seeing one of their own die in such a cruel manner sapped all the fight out of them. Akane was trying to calm her fellow villagers down with Mion and Chie-sensei's help. The frightened children were together with their families, whimpering in terror. As for Shiori, she was trying to calm her bawling son down.

"**SI-LENCE THAT CREA-TURE IM-ME-DIATE-LY! IM-ME-DIATE-LY!**" a DALEK ordered. It was different from the other DALEKs as it wore black armor like Gary and had blue spheres on its 'skirt' and blue rings around its neck.

"He's scared!" Shiori yelled back while holding Sho. She whispered softly to her child. "Sho-chan, please don't cry. Kaa-chan's here. Kaa-chan won't let anything happen to you." Kasai and Rika stood with her, glaring defiantly at the DALEKs. Kasai had tried to grab for his shotgun when the DALEKs came knocking but Rika warned him not to. Guns did nothing against their armored bodies and if he resisted and tried to oppose them he'd be dead.

Rena was with her father and she looked to see her friends together, forced out of their homes by the DALEKs. Some had resisted before and had their homes destroyed along with them inside.

"**ALL VIL-LA-GERS HAVE BEEN COUN-TED! THAT IS ALL OF THEM!**" a subordinate DALEK reported.

"**EX-CEL-LENT!**" the lead DALEK approved. Shiro had ordered the DALEKs to round up the villagers for one purpose and one purpose only and that was for extermination. Men, women and children of all ages were to be killed on the spot. "**THEN LET US BE-GIN THE EX-TER-MIN-A-TION!**" The DALEKs pointed their gunsticks at the frightened humans. "**BE-GIN EX-TER-MIN-A-TION IN 5…4…3…2…1…**"

**WHOOSH!**

**SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!**

A large ninja star had suddenly flown by and decapitated three of the DALEKs which had their weapons aimed at the villagers. Showa then appeared, catching the Cho Dai-Shuriken and putting it on his back as he stood between the DALEKs and villagers, facing the former while shielding the latter.

"Shin-kun," Rena smiled as she saw her boyfriend.

"Finally," Mion let out in relief. She'd been so scared. "Why does he always come at the last minute?"

"Get away from my villagers," Showa threatened.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE THE KA-MEN RI-DER!"**

Brandishing the Higurashi no Yaiba, he dared them, "Try it! Let's Ride: Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the house, AI-Shin was waking up. "_Ow…that hurt…_" he groaned. Earlier, he'd tried to fight the DALEKs who'd come knocking on their door but was hit by a death ray. Fortunately, it had only stunned him. "_OK, gotta save my family._" He opened the door and floated out, "_HERE I COME, FAMILY!_"

* * *

**JERSEY CITY**

Jersey Devil panted as she leaned against a wall, exhausted. She was surrounded by five DALEKs who had their weapons aimed at her.

"**JER-SEY DE-VIL, FOR RE-SIS-TING THE DA-LEKS YOU WILL BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**" the lead DALEK shouted. Jersey Devil closed her eyes and prepared for her death. Her only regret was not seeing Yuki again.

As she waited for the final outcome, she felt the air becoming chilly. Opening her eyes slowly, she saw that the DALEKs had all been frozen solid before they shattered to pieces. "What…?" She knew only one person who could've done this and smiled as she spotted her. "Yuki…"

"Are you alright?" Yuki asked calmly as she checked JD for injuries.

"I am now since you came," Jersey Devil replied.

* * *

**NEW YORK**

The NYPD had come, using their cruisers as a barricade as they shot at the group of ten DALEKs. However, their weapons were no match for their force fields which melted their bullets before they could hit the DALEKs' shells. The DALEKs took aim and fired, killing the officers instantly.

DALEKs had been programmed with only one purpose: to exterminate humans. That was what they were designed for so anything that a DALEK had equipped to their bodies was made to protect themselves or kill others. Even the suction cup arm which resembled a toilet plunger had lethal applications. The force of the vacuum was capable of crushing skulls.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE THE HU-MANS!**" a DALEK shouted.

"**SIR, MI-LI-TA-RY FOR-CES ARE CO-MING**," a subordinate DALEK reported to their leader.

The army was coming with heavy artillery. They rolled into the city in tanks and jeeps, soldiers carrying machineguns and bazookas. As the soldiers came to a stop, looking at the bodies, the captain ordered through a megaphone, "IN THE NAME OF THE US ARMY, I ORDER YOU TO SURRENDER!"

"**DA-LEKS DO NOT TAKE OR-DERS FROM HU-MANS!**" the lead DALEK shouted.

"FIRE!" the captain ordered and he and his men fired their machineguns at the DALEKs. Unfortunately, their bullets did as much good as the NYPD's ammunition.

"**E-LE-VATE AND EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" the ordered lead DALEK ordered as he and his kind all flew into the air. They got looks of astonishment from the soldiers before receiving looks of horror. "EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"

The DALEKS fired their death rays, hitting the soldiers who screamed and died. Taking aim at the jeeps and tanks, the DALEKs blew them up, killing the drivers instantly.

One DALEK flew towards several retreating soldiers and grabbed one by the skull with its suction cup. He tried to remove the appendage but to no avail as the vacuum began to suck and crush his head like a grape as his fellow soldier watched in horror.

The soldier fell and crawled backwards to get away as a DALEK aimed it gunstick at him to kill when it was suddenly engulfed in flames.

"**I AM ON FI-RE! ON FI-RE! ON FI-RE!** **IT BURNS! IT BURNS!**" it screamed as it spun around wildly while its shell began to melt.

"Get up, and run," Yuji said as he helped the soldier up. The guy didn't think twice and left as Yuji turned to face the DALEKs. "Hey!" he shouted to the DALEKs, "You guys should try to pick on someone who can fight back!" He punched forward, shooting fireballs at the DALEKs who dodged them before they started firing back at him.

Meanwhile, the DALEK that Yuji had attacked with his flames was no longer on fire but its robotic shell was now damaged, charred and melted. It could barely function and would require repairs in order to survive. Sections of its body began to shift and move as the shell opened up to reveal the Dalek Darkloid hidden within. It focused its single, hate-filled eye at Yuji and lashed out with its tentacles. Yuji was caught by the neck from behind as the tentacles squeezed him but Yuji wouldn't allow himself to be killed in such a flimsy manner. He ignited, flames running up the tentacles and towards the Dalek Darkloid which shrieked as it was burnt by the flames.

The other DALEKs, seeing this, aimed to kill but were blown up by a barrage of fireballs before Yuji went and took cover behind a police cruiser. Recalling the Dalek Darkloid he'd killed, he shelved that bit of information for later as he activated his Liger Belt.

"Henshin!"

"**ZERO FORM!"**

He swiped his pass across his belt again.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Leaping out from behind the car, he landed on the roof and lunged. The claws folded out and he slashed them through the DALEKs' casing, cutting them open to reveal what was inside. He grimaced in disgust at the black blobs contained within before dodging a death ray.

"OK, time to finish this up quick," Liger Zero told himself as he changed with a swipe of his pass.

"**PANZER FORM!"**

Another swipe of his pass did the trick.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

"**BURNING…BIG…BANG!"**

* * *

**BERLIN**

Slasher smashed a DALEK into a nearby wall, and used his fist to make it explode.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" the DALEKs shouted together.

However, Slasher would have none of that as he gripped the Onigari no Ryuou and shouted, "SHUT UP!" He hurled it like a boomerang and the blade homed in on the DALEKs as it sliced through their armor, killing them as they exploded on the spot as it flew in an arch, cutting through more and more of the creatures until they were no more. The sword flew back as Slasher caught it in his hand.

"I'm done here in Berlin," Slasher reported through his helmet's com-link.

"_Good work_," Alan replied from the other end. "_I'm just about finished here in Moscow. It's a good thing there's only ten of them here_."

Slasher nodded as the Teleportal formed to take him to his next destination to exterminate the exterminators (DALEKs).

* * *

**MONTREAL**

Carmen and Arachnea were back to back as they were surrounded by DALEKs with their gunsticks aimed at the two female Riders. With a united cry of, "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" the DALEKs fired, only for their death rays to pass harmlessly through the two girls. They had hit themselves instead and they were killed by their own weapons.

Carmen and Arachnea had hidden under an illusion conjured by the former and they both shared a smile.

"That was easy," said Carmen before calling headquarters. "We're done here in Montreal. Open a Teleportal for pickup."

"_Affirmative_," responded Sheila. "_Activating Teleportal_."

"So, where to next?" Carmen asked.

* * *

**HINAMIZAWA**

AI-Shin was flying to where the DALEKs were holding the villagers hostage. "OK, here goes nothing. Time to be a hero." He was ready to save everyone when one of the DALEKs suddenly flew past him, its entire body sparking as it was impaled by kunai from its head to its base, looking like a pincushion. "_The hell?_"

Peering over, he saw that Showa had arrived and were taking out the DALEKs with the aid of Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki in their respective armored forms. The villagers had all fled for safety, their attention focused solely on the Rider.

"_Aw man…_" AI-Shin whined. "I was hoping to show my mad skills!" He felt a presence and turned to see a DALEK staring back at him. "_Um…hi?_"

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" it aimed to fire only for its head to be blown off by a red laser.

"_You first_," said AI-Shin in a low and dangerous tone. "_Holy shit I'm badass!_" He went to help anyway. "_Rena-chan, Kaa-chan, here I come to save the day! Woo-hoo!_"

Meanwhile, during the battle between Rider and DALEKs, Shiori, Rika, Kasai and Sho had escaped back to their house and gone down to the basement for safety. However, a DALEK had followed them and blew the door open with its death ray. Its head swiveled around as it scanned for life signs and then its eye looked down at the floor. "**LIFE SIGNS DE-TEC-TED! PRE-PARE FOR MA-XI-MUM EX-TER-MIN-A-TION!**" It charged up its gunstick so that the death ray would penetrate the floorboards and kill Shinichi's family. However, it would not get that chance as AI-Shin hovered behind it angrily, his eye glowing red.

"_Hey, what's up?_" he said and the DALEK spun its head around 180 degrees to stare into AI-Shin's eye.

**BOOM!**

"_Booyah! Fear my laser!_" The laser had blown the DALEK's head clean off, leaving a smoking stump and sparks coming off the wires. Peering down, AI-Shin would've grimaced in disgust if he had a fast since he was seeing what remained of the DALEK's organic core. "_Ugh…what is that?_" He was so glad he didn't have a stomach or else he'd start throwing up.

He went down to the basement's entrance and opened the door with telekinesis before hovering down. "_Hey, guys! I'm here!_"

**WHAM!**

A baseball bat knocked him to the floor.

"_Ow…" _AI-Shin groaned as he floated back up to glare at Shiori. _"You do realize a baseball bat wouldn't have done much against those things, right?"_

"Shin!" Shiori cried out in surprise, dropping the baseball bat. "I'm so sorry! Did I hurt you?"

"_Nothing that can't be hammered out_," said AI-Shin. "_Nice swing, by the way. Left a dent, I think._"

"Where's the DALEK?" Kasai asked, cocking his shotgun.

"_It died_," was AI-Shin's simple answer. "_Now, stay here until everything's safe. I'll stand watch. Shinichi wouldn't forgive me if I let any of you get exterminated_."

Kasai looked at the sphere-droid in envy and back at his shotgun.

"_Oh, Tou-san, if you like we can have a laser shotgun made for you_," AI-Shin addressed him.

* * *

**SHISHIBONE CITY**

People were running from the DALEKs but no matter how fast they ran, the DALEKs' death rays were faster as they were mercilessly gunned down. They were attacking anyone they saw, regardless of who they were. This was the reason they existed. Suddenly, the DALEKs were blasted by green energy, exploding instantly.

When Alan saw these DALEKs, he sensed something was different about them and so he used his X-Ray vision to scan them. He learnt why they were different just by looking under the surface. "They're alive." Seeing that he'd destroyed the DALEKs in this area, Alan flew to find some more to destroy. They might be living creatures now, but these things had no respect for human life and needed to be stopped at all cost.

The DALEKs surrounded the boarding house and were charging up for maximum extermination when they were suddenly caught in a net of green energy and hauled into the air.

"Sorry, but that's my home where my girls live," said Alan as he charged the net with electricity, electrocuting the DALEKs and watching as the lights of their eyepieces died. He then made the net shrunk, crushing the DALEKs and compacting them into a big metal ball. He then spun around and around and around and hurled the net into the sky, straight into outer space, where the compacted DALEKs would float as space debris and if they did reenter the atmosphere well they might just burn up upon reentry with Alan assisting in the process.

Looking down, Sentinel saw the girls come out and look at him before he saluted and flew off to do some more saving.

"That was Alan," said Lala. "He came back to save us."

"I knew he would," said Momo, smiling.

"Mau! Mau!" Celine cheered.

"Yes, Celine! That's your dad, the big hero!"

* * *

**HONG KONG**

Blue Beetle yelled, "EAT LEAD AND MISSILES!" as he fired at the DALEKs using his blasted, missile launcher and Gatling gun, obliterating them completely. With him was Musician in his Rock-Metal Form and he was short-circuiting them with his guitar, sending waves and waves of sonic energy at them, causing their robotic shells to shut down and forcefully open. The Dalek Darkloids riding inside came sliding out onto the ground and slithered along the ground with their tentacles. Musician was disgusted by their appearance as he watched them disintegrate into black dust.

* * *

**KYOTO**

Kyoto was oddly enough DALEK free but Hanyuu still remained vigilant. She was the only one there after all since she had to attend the meeting. So much yelling made her ears hurt.

"It's weird," Kanna spoke as she walked with Hanyuu. "Why would Shiro Juuyon deploy his DALEKs everywhere but not here? I mean with everyone too busy dealing with those things he's got the opportunity to attack here with some DALEKs and yet he hasn't."

"Are you complaining?" Hanyuu questioned.

"Just curious because it makes no sense. I thought he'd attack Kyoto with an army of those things," answered Kanna. "Unless…"

"It's a diversion," Hanyuu concluded. One of the paper cranes landed on Hanyuu's shoulder. She picked it up and read the message which told her bad news. "Come on!"

* * *

**KEKKAIN CLAN WESTERN BRANCH ESTATE**

"DEMON!" a Kekkain brought his sword out to run Shiro through for the sake of his family and to avenge his fallen kin. However, it was a Cyberman who intercepted him and grabbed him by the shoulder as it caught his sword.

"**Delete**," it said as it electrocuted him to death.

"Thank you," Shiro said to the Cyberman as he made his way down to the basement only for Hanyuu and Kanna to suddenly appear via teleportation. He'd left a trail of death and devastation, his sword and clothes stained in blood. "Ah, Hanyuu-chan. It's been awhile hasn't it?"

"This ends tonight," said Hanyuu with her eyes glowing blood red. She summoned the Onigari no Ryuou and Kanna took out her Shikigami. "You've killed so many members of my clan. The killing stops now."

"I actually like the killing," said Shiro, rubbing the back of his head. Hanyuu lunged forward, cutting the intercepting Cyberman in half and went for the kill but Shiro used the Oathbreaker to parry her blow.

"You may be a goddess, Oyashiro-sama, but your time has long passed," Shiro growled, staring her in the eyes. Her eyes glowed red as did his.

"And your time ends here," said Hanyuu as she blasted him straight into the wall.

Shiro shook his head and stood back up. "Ah, forgot you could do that, but you see I've got my own tricks too." He snapped his fingers and five DALEKs were released from the Dark Xrosser. "Exterminate them," he ordered.

"**YES, MAS-TER! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

Before they could fire, their appendages were sliced off by Hanyuu, literally disarming them. However, this was not their only method of attack. Their shells opened up as the panels shifted to expose the cavity that housed their organic cores, which were the Dalek Darkloids. Kanna almost threw up at the sight but the Dalek Darkloids would not give her a chance to breathe as they shot their tentacles at her. The tentacles were sliced to ribbons as Hanyuu struck with her sword, causing the Dalek Darkloids to shriek as they were slain.

"I thought they were just machines," Kanna said as Shiro moved towards the stone, touching its surface with his hand. "Step away from the stone!"

Shiro summoned up more DALEKs which surrounded Hanyuu and Kanna as they closed in on them, not giving them space to move with gunsticks aimed at them, forcing the two girls back to back.

"They _were_ machines, past tense, but now I've truly given my DALEKs life," Shiro said, "And it's all thanks to Gnol. Now stone #6 goes down." He stabbed his blood-soaked Oathbreaker into the stone, causing it to shine before withdrawing. "It's going to blow!"

"**E-MER-GEN-CY TE-LE-PORT!**" the DALEKs screamed before Shiro jumped on one and grabbed hold.

"Buh-bye now!" he waved playfully at Hanyuu and Kanna before he and his DALEKs vanished in beams of light that carried them back to base.

The mansion exploded as Hanyuu and Kanna escaped via Hanyuu's own teleportation. The goddess' eyes narrowed as she clenched her fists. Shiro had gotten away from her and slaughtered more members of her clan. A Teleportal opened and her friends came to assist, only to realize that they were too late as they saw the remains of the mansion and estate with smoke billowing out and small fires here and there.

"Damn him."

* * *

The group returned to the Hive. Despite preventing a worldwide DALEK invasion, which was being covered by the news at this time, they didn't feel victorious at all. Shiro had taken advantage of the huge diversion he'd created and taken out another sealing stone.

"We saved the world," said Shinichi in his seat, "But at what cost?"

Chiaki said, "Shiro knew we couldn't resist and he sent those DALEKs out to distract while he went to Kyoto to pursue his real plan."

"And now another sealing stone is gone. He's destroyed six so that means only two of them are left," Daichi spoke in agitation.

"And his DALEKs now have those blobby things in them," said Yokoshima. "What were they anyway?"

"Darkloids?" Jin suggested. "You said they came in a lot of different shapes and since Shiro's got Gnol's power he can make his own Darkloids."

"That's a nice thought," grumbled Daichi sarcastically. "I'm so pissed off right now!" he snapped, punching his palm.

Alan was just as upset as everyone. His family had been directly threatened earlier and Shiro was now two more steps towards freeing the Orochi. "We can't let ourselves get distracted and tricked anymore. We have to stop Shiro, no matter what. If he gets his way this world is doomed."

* * *

Hanyuu and Kanna had been led to believe that all the members of that clan that night had been killed. However, that was far from the truth. Not everyone in the mansion had been killed. Some of them had been taken away.

"**You will be upgraded**," the Cybermen said. A Kekkain who survived the massacre was shoved by them into a conversion chamber and the door sealed shut while the tools did their work. He screamed as he had his skull cut open and brain extracted before his body was disintegrated. His brain found a new home inside a Cyber Helmet attached to a newly assembled Cyber Suit.

Shiro watched as the new Cyberman marched out of the conversion chamber and another captured Kekkain was shoved into the conversion chamber to undergo the same procedure. The other conversion chambers were in use as well as prisoners were upgraded into Cybermen to join his army.

"No reason to waste them all," he said before leaving the factory to return to his bedroom. "Six down, two more to go." He whistled a haunting tune, looking forward to his next slaughter. His sword was thirsty and he was happy to quench its thirst.

Yawning, as he reached his door, he heard someone call his name. "Juuyon-sama." It was Shizuko, Gnol's pet Bakeneko. Shiro decided to keep her around instead of trapping her in the Dark Xrosser. It wasn't like she could be a threat to him.

"What do you want?" he questioned. Why would Shizuko seek him out? Wasn't she afraid of him and loyal only to Gnol? Maybe she finally realized her place.

"If I may be so bold, Shiro-san, I would like to borrow a few of your Cybermen for a…special project," Shizuko requested.

"Oh, what kind of 'special project'?" questioned Shiro, interested in the details.

"I can't reveal anything to you yet, but I promise that it will be the most amazing thing you have ever seen," Shizuko told him.

Now Shiro was intrigued by her proposal. What was the harm in lending her a few of his Cybermen? "Interesting. If you need my Cybermen, then take the Cyber Leader along as well." He warned, "But, your plan better be amazing like you promised."

"It will be," Shizuko bowed and watched as he entered his bedroom. Her eyes narrowed, glowing yellow, before she went to her own room.

In his room, Shiro murmured, "Why does she creep me out?" He took out his Dark Xrosser and looked at the imprisoned Gnol. "I'll be counting on your power soon, Gnol." He put his Dark Xrosser away, seemingly unaware that Shizuko might have ulterior motives.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Will Shiro figure out Shizuko's planned double-cross or will be be in the dark? Also, how do you like the DALEKs new upgrade. Now that they can hate like real demonic beings that just makes them deadlier than ever. Hopefully for Shiro he can control them or they'll do to him like their namesake did to Davros. Anyway, please just enjoy the story as it goes into its final inning.  
**


	109. The Legacy of Cain Part 53

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 53: The Shadows that Melt the Flesh**

"Ladies, I would like to present to you a new creation of mine," said Shiro, as he stood on the balls of his feet in excitement, an infectious grin on his face. He clapped his hands childishly. "Oh, I can't wait!"

"What is it, Juuyon-sama?"Kineko asked.

"I'd better show you!" Shiro went and turned on the main screen to display an empty room and a large shadow.

"It's just a big a big empty room," said Midoneko. "Is there really something we should see?"

"See that shadow?" he pointed. "Now, what's casting it?"

"It's an empty room…so where did that shadow come from?" Aoneko questioned, looking to her lord and master (not to mention lover) for an explanation.

"It's a big surprise, isn't it?" Akaneko asked.

Shiro spoke into his Dark Xrosser which could act as a two-way communicator. "Cybermen, send in the _meat_."

A door in the room slid open and a pair of Cybermen dragged a cow into the room before they stepped out of the room. The door closed, sealing the stupid animal in.

"Watch," Shiro instructed. "Watch the shadow."

The instant the bovine stepped one hoof into the shadow, it was all over. In the blink of an eye bones stripped clean of any flesh clattered to the ground.

"What just happened!-?" Momoneko shouted.

"The Shadows that Melt the Flesh," Shiro said. "I'd like to call them the Vashta Nerada, a tribute to the creatures they're based on."

"Based on?" Aoneko questioned.

"Vashta Nerada are microscopic organisms that feed on flesh. They exist on any world, in any universe, and when you have millions of them together they tend to look like a shadow," explained Shiro. "Of course the ones on Earth only feed on road kill and people who get lost in the forest. Like piranha they strip the flesh right off the bones, leaving nothing. That's why they're also called the Piranhas of the Air."

"But Juuyon-sama, these aren't real Vashta Nerada, are they?" Kineko concluded.

"Nope, they're not. These are Darkloid larvae, the same ones responsible for causing the Hinamizawa Syndrome. They're microscopic parasites but this breed are microscopic predators," Shiro answered. "Imagine a maggot with very sharp teeth and so small that you can only see them as dust in sunbeams. The perfect killers and also very interesting. Look at the bones."

The skeleton of the eaten bull rose up on its feet with a dark shadowy cloud surrounding it.

"Vashta Nerada can also animate skeletons," said Shiro, smiling. "Isn't that amazing? A hive mind with the intelligence of an average human and able to do that. The beauty of nature."

Momoneko pointed out, "But they're not really Vashta Nerada."

"But they're still just as deadly," Shiro's smile became cruel.

* * *

Even Kyoto had nightclubs. The modernized area of the city was separated from the traditional and so there were modern conveniences and places of entertainment. Nightclubs were one of them.

Shiro, with his entourage of Bakeneko Kunoichi, entered a nightclub. He paid the cover charge and went inside. Hidden in his coat was a special surprise for everyone in the nightclub.

* * *

The following day, the local police force stood in front of the nightclub, police tape put up in front of the crime scene to bar civilians from entering. Civilians stood on one side of the tape, wondering what had happened.

Inside the nightclub nothing was disturbed. However, it was an eerie sight. There were tattered clothing which looked like they had been torn up by a wild animals and the clothes were still worn by the victims who'd been reduced to bone. No flesh, no blood, nothing. Just bones remained and so clothed skeletons lay sprawled all over the nightclub's floor.

* * *

Junko gasped on the phone, "Oh my. Really? How dreadful. Thank you for telling me about this. Ja ne." She put down the phone and grimaced. "How disturbing…"

"What's wrong, Obaa-chan?" Michiru asked her grandmother. At the moment everyone was having lunch at the teahouse.

"My friend called and told me that there's been an incident at a local nightclub in the city. The police haven't released any statements, but apparently everyone in the club had been reduced to nothing but bones. Only bones," said Junko.

"And how would your friend know that?" Michiru asked.

"She works as a cleaner at the police department," Junko replied. "She hears all sorts of things when the officers don't think anyone's listening."

Alan spoke, "Excuse me, but did you say all the bodies were nothing but bones?"

Shinichi asked, "You've heard about something like this before, haven't you?"

"Unfortunately, I have and I think I know what might have caused it." Alan paused before murmuring, "…Vashta Nerada…"

* * *

Back at the Hive, Alan informed Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam about what had happened in Kyoto and the identity of the culprit.

"I see…" Dr. Magi nodded. "That is troubling news. If what said about these creatures is true then we're in a lot of trouble."

Vashta Nerada, also known as the Shadows that Melt the Flesh and the Piranhas of the Air, were harmless individually but in a large mass of millions they were the most dangerous predators in the universe. Alan had encountered them before. They existed on most planets in the universe he came from and seemed to exist in this universe as well.

"We're going to need to be careful when encountering them," Alan cautioned.

"It's a good thing you've got thick skin," Shinichi commented. He then thought of something. "Hey…what are the chances that these Vashta Nerada are really Darkloids modeled after them? I mean he's already made Cybermen and DALEKs and he can spawn Darkloids."

Dr. Washam regarded Shinichi questioned and answered, "That is a possibility. With his newly stolen power he's capable of creating his own Darkloids, of any size in fact. It wouldn't be difficult for him to make microscopic Darkloids that can reduce their victims to bone in seconds."

"I see…" Shinichi nodded. "Excuse me, but I'm going to see Doctor Irie about something."

"What for?" Alan questioned.

"Just trust me on this," Shinichi said calmly to his brother. Dr. Irie had done research on the Hinamizawa Syndrome and had made a vaccine to help kill the parasitic creatures. These microscopic Darkloids were probably the same as well. They may have been turned into carnivorous micro-monsters but they were probably still susceptible to the vaccine.

At least he hoped they were. Who knew how much Shiro had changed about those microscopic terrors?

* * *

Shinichi was at Dr. Irie's clinic and explaining to the doctor about the Vashta Nerada which Shinichi had made and how closely related they were to the Darkloid larvae which caused the Hinamiazawa Syndrome. Dr. Irie listened and nodded, thinking about Shinichi's claim.

"Well, I must admit that your theory does sound interesting and it makes sense. However, you must realize there is a 50% chance that the vaccine may not work on this new carnivorous variation," Dr. Irie told him.

"I know it's a gamble, but I want to make sure we have options available to deal with these kinds of things. I'm tired of that bastard Shiro playing us like a fiddle," Shinichi said, fists clenched. So much death and destruction had been caused by the bio-android and Shinichi blamed himself. He should've looked for his Spark Core and destroyed it the first time he'd defeated him years ago.

"Well, you're in luck because I still have some of the vaccine," said Dr. Irie as he opened his fridge and took out a vial.

"That's great," Shinichi smiled.

"But!" Dr. Irie quickly added, "I advise you to take the vaccine for analysis and improve it so it'll work on these Vashta Nerada."

Shinichi took the vial in his hand. "Don't worry, Doc Irie, I will."

"Oh, and here are my notes," Dr. Irie offered. "I hope they'll help."

"Any help is welcomed, Dr. Irie."

* * *

Shiro held his hand up and watched as the Vashta Nerada swarmed around it. In a swarm like this they looked like a living shadowy mass and they were very hungry. "Soon my lovelies, you'll have a taste of the finest meat imaginable."

"Ano, Juuyon-sama?" Kineko began, staring at the Vashta Nerada nervously. "Are you sure it's safe for us to be here while those things are present?" She and the Bakeneko Kunoichi were standing out of the shadows and as far away as possible from the Vashta Nerada which now used Shiro's shadow as a home, latching onto him as a result.

"Oh, relax," said Shiro as the Vashta Nerada floated back down to the ground to join his shadow. "They're perfectly harmless, at least to us." He tapped his chin, thinking. "Hm…what's scarier? These tiny bugs or seeing them animate a skeleton?"

"Both!" Momoneko blurted out. Seeing those people in the nightclub get devoured and reduced to nothing but bone had been the most disturbing things she'd ever seen. They didn't even have time to scream. The Vashta Nerada just took them and ate their flesh in seconds. It was the fastest massacre she'd ever seen and it was like the victims' flesh had just melted away into nothingness. It was a miracle that the Vashta Nerada hadn't gone after her and her sisters.

Shiro opened up a bento lunch box filled with fried chicken and in the blink of an eye the pieces of chicken were reduced to bone, stripped clean of any flesh.

"The perfect killers," Shiro mused. "Silent, deadly, and you can never see them coming until it's too late."

"Silent, but deadly," Midoneko giggled. The others joined in.

"What's so funny?" Shiro asked then he thought about what he'd said. "Silent…deadly…" His face broke into a smile as he got the joke. "Oh yeah! That is funny!" He laughed. "Man, I crack myself up sometimes."

* * *

Back in Kyoto, at the teahouse, Yokoshima was drumming his fingers nervously on the table as he kept looking out the window, checking the sun which was beginning to set.

"Would you stop that?" Kanna requested, annoyed by the repeated tapping.

"I can't help it, OK? I'm nervous! How do you fight against meat-eating creatures that can devour your flesh in seconds and turn your skeletons into zombies?" Alan had been telling them about his experience with the Vashta Nerada. Back in his home universe, Alan had investigated an abandoned space station, only that it wasn't really abandoned. The crew had been eaten by Vashta Nerada and so their skeletons in space suits had been animated by the creatures. How did the Vashta Nerada get onboard? The crew had accidentally brought them along when they had trees planted in an artificial park for oxygen. The trees had Vashta Nerada spores in them and when they hatched the Vashta Nerada had come together and started to feed.

The worse part, Alan didn't have any helpful tips against Vashta Nerada. Well, nothing helpful when it came to fighting them at least. First they were told to count the shadows, to stay in the light, and finally, when all else fails, just run.

"We're all scared here, Yokoshima," said Hanyuu in a soothing tone. "But now at least we know what we're up against."

"Yeah, and besides, Shinichi says he has a plan to deal with these things if they show up," said Alan. Shinichi had contacted him earlier, told him he'd gotten a vial of vaccine from Dr. Irie which could help when the Darkloid variation of the Vashta Nerada attacked.

"Isn't it purely speculation?" Chiaki asked. "You said Vashta Nerada also existed on Earth."

"But the Earth species are timid. No, this definitely has Shiro's name written all over it. He's made DALEKs and Cybermen, so what's stopping him from creating his own breed of Vashta Nerada?"

"Well, whatever Shinichi has planned, let prey that it works," Yokoshima sighed. The sun had set and Yokoshima stood up. "Come on, we better get to our stations." Only two sealing stones were left so Team A was split in two to guard the two locations.

Hanyuu had to attend another meeting. The Kekkain didn't fully trust them anymore due to all the deaths that had occurred in their clan. They had to bury so many of their kin in the past few days. Clearly, these were dark days for the Kekkain Clan, and the days would not get any better once Shiro freed the Orochi.

* * *

Back at the Hive, Shinichi was impressed by the work Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam did. "Wow! You managed to synthesize a while barrel of the vaccine from just one vial?" The barrel was made of steel and inside was the vaccine which would be used against the Vashta Nerada. If they were anything like their parasitic cousins which caused the Hinamizawa Syndrome, then it would work.

"After extensive analysis, it wasn't too difficult," Dr. Washam said, proudly.

"So, how do we use it against the Vashta Nerada?" Shinichi asked.

"With those," Dr. Magi said, pointing at the nearby table. "These guns will allow you to administer the vaccine upon those dreadful things."

Shinichi blinked and then deadpanned, "Ano…these are water guns."

"Not just any water guns," said Dr. Washam as he picked up one that resembled a high tech rifle with a tank attached to it filled with liquid. "These babies can shoot pressurized jets of fluid with a range of 5 meters!"

"Did you expect needles?" Dr. Magi asked.

"Ah…never mind," Shinichi sighed. "So, water guns and a barrel, huh? Well, we might need all of it."

"Don't waste it," Dr. Magi cautioned. "This is the only batch we've made for now and it'll take time to make more."

"This is all we're going to need," Shinichi smiled confidently.

* * *

Shiro appeared, standing on top of the local hospital in Kyoto. Night had fallen and he had two shadows. "It's party time," said Shiro as he let the Vashta Nerada leave. "Now go, my pets! Have fun!"

The skeletons from the nightclub were being kept at the hospital's morgue for study and identification. A coroner was inspecting one of the skeletons on the table and turned his back to make some notes when the skeleton suddenly sat up. The coroner spun around and gasped in shock as the skeleton reached out and touched him, adding him to their numbers.

* * *

**NORTHERN BRANCH**

Kanna, Blue Beetle, Hanyuu and Slasher were stationed in front of the gate, waiting for anything to happen when Hanyuu felt a malevolent presence. "They're here," she said. "They're coming."

* * *

Meanwhile, Zero was doing aerial recon when he saw a very odd and disturbing sight. There were skeletons walking in the streets, all clothed in tattered fabric. They looked like marionettes being manipulated by a puppeteer so their movements were not exactly fluid. Then he watched as someone closest to the skeletons was reduced into another skeleton which then started walking on its own.

Zero performed a scan for life forms and his scanner informed him that while he was looking at several dozen skeletons, there were 1,000,000 life forms in there.

"Vashta Nerada," Zero realized. He turned on his com-link. "Alan, this is Zero. You know those Vashta Nerada things? They're in the city."

"_I know_," Alan responded.

"You know?" Zero replied.

* * *

**SOUTHERN BRANCH**

Carmen and Alan were facing several skeletons who were starting to approach them. Carmen and Alan were safe due to the former's armor and the latter's 'thick skin' but they needed to keep these creatures away since they were now walking hives for the Vashta Nerada.

"Contact the others and tell them, whatever they do, don't let these skeletons get too close or to touch their flesh!" Alan said as his ring glowed. "OK, you nasty little things…it's pest control time."

* * *

**NORTHERN BRANCH**

Kanna used her Shikigami, sending the paper dolls flying at the skeletons. They stuck to the skulls and they froze before falling apart. The Vashta Nerada they were dealing with here were demonic life forms after all. She made sure to stay out of the shadows, like she'd been told, and Hanyuu was making sure as well that these skeleton creatures didn't get too close.

"Nice one!" Blue Beetle complimented as he backhanded a skeleton, letting it collapse at his feet. "You're really starting to fit in, Kanna!" The skeleton rose back up and grabbed onto Blue Beetle. "Dammit!" An ofuda charm stuck to its head and it went stiff before collapsing. "Thanks, Hanyuu."

Slasher hated fighting these skeletons. They didn't know when to stay down. Fortunately, both Hanyuu and Kanna were experts of the Onmyouji arts and could make the skeletons inhospitable for the Vashta Nerada.

* * *

**SOUTHERN BRANCH**

Carmen was taking down skeletons as Alan struck them down with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, dusting the skeletons with a single swipe. The sacred sword really did work on these Vashta Nerada, proving they were nothing more than creatures that Shiro had made with his new demonic power.

The remaining skeletons 'looked' at them before suddenly collapsing into a pile of bones.

"Huh?" Carmen blinked. "What happened?"

"They've been called back," said Alan. "Wait here." He took off, leaving Carmen alone.

* * *

Shiro watched from a rooftop as Zero tried to stop the horde of skeletons animated by the Vashta Nerada. He blew up the skeletons, rendering them into shattered pieces of bone, but that didn't stop the Shadows that Melt the Flesh. They could always find new hives by devouring more people and they were so small that Zero's explosive stingers would be useless against them.

"Shiro." The bio-android smiled and turned to look at Alan.

"Oh, Alan Smith," Shiro greeted. "Lovely evening we have, don't we? Oh, and how do you like my skeleton horde?" A glowing green dot appeared in the middle of his forehead.

"Did you make the Vashta Nerada?" Alan questioned.

"Oh, so you know about them too," Shiro remarked, surprised yet amused. "Well, yes, I did make these Vashta Nerada." Alan looked at Shiro's feet to see an extra shadow. "And you've noticed that I have my little friends with me." Shiro was covered in Vashta Nerada.

"Count the shadows," Alan muttered.

"Lovely little creatures, aren't they?" Shiro asked. "They're like the perfect biological weapon and nobody will be able to realize their presence until it was too late." The swarm around him expanded, taking on a large shadowy shape that looked humanoid. "Oh, and they want to talk to you." Shiro closed his eyes and allowed the Vashta Nerada to speak through him.

"_We are the Vashta Nerada_," Shiro spoke with a voice which was not his own.

"No, you're not. You're just something Shiro made," Alan told them.

"_The people are our meat,"_ the Vashta Nerada spoke. "_As are you_."

"You'll notice I'm a much tougher meal," Alan said.

"You have better luck with a full grown elephant!" added Bazel.

The shadow at Shiro's feet extended when all of a sudden the bio-android was splashed by a clear liquid. The Vashta Nerada shrieked much to Shiro's shock. Shiro's eyes snapped open.

"What!-?" he exclaimed. His clothes were soaked. "What is this?" He turned to see Shinichi smile and wave at him. "What did you do?" He looked at the gun in Shinichi's hands. "And is that a water gun?"

"Actually it's a vaccine gun," Shinichi replied.

"Vaccine gun?" Shiro repeated.

"You know, for someone who kept his eyes on everything, you really should've kept your eye on Dr. Irie."

Shiro cursed his carelessness and then he realized he had his back turned towards Alan and spun around only to jump back at the sight of a nightmarish figure which resembled an angel, only that it had its arms out, ready to grab him, mouth open to reveal sharp teeth, and looking very mean. It was a projection from Alan's ring which resembled the statue of an angel. The construct vanished, revealing a pissed off Alan.

Alan's fist met with Shiro's face and knocked him off the roof. Grunting, Shiro activated an emergency teleport to escape.

Alan walked over to Shinichi and looked at the barrel next to him which also had more water guns on it.

"Water guns?" Alan asked.

"Yup, and the vaccine here is special. It's like a pesticide for these Vashta Nerada things," said Shinichi. "Now, come on, the others are going to need these!"

* * *

**NORTHERN BRANCH**

The skeletons were taken care of but now they had another problem. Kanna, Hanyuu, Slasher and Blue Beetle were surrounded from all sides by a large shadow which was closing in on them. Only, the shadow was not a shadow. It was a swarm of Vashta Nerada. Hanyuu was keeping them back with her power but they were trying to break through the barrier she was forming. Of course, help arrived just in time as Showa flew in and fired at the swarm with a water gun, the vaccine driving them off as it killed the microscopic monsters. Reaching into his backpack, he started pulling out water guns and said, "Here!" as he tossed them to the four. "Use those!"

"Water guns?" Kanna stared, looking at the toy weapon in her hand.

"Just do as he says," said Hanyuu and she fired the vaccine, killing the Vashta Nerada.

"Now this is pest control, Rider style!" said Blue Beetle as he fired jets of the vaccine at the swarm which began to shrink as the Piranhas of the Air were being killed.

* * *

**SOUTHERN BRANCH**

Carmen had to deal with the skeletons alone when all of a sudden she was knocked unconscious by a chop to the back of the neck. Shiro had appeared behind behind from out of thin air and had come to the Southern Branch for the next stone. The skeletons collapsed and the Vashta Nerada collected around Shiro. Looking up, he saw an emerald streak of light heading his way. Alan spotted him and Shiro gave a salute before turning to the gate and blasting it to bits with a blast of dark energy.

"Not this time!" said Alan as he chased after Shiro to stop him.

* * *

Shiro walked along the corridor and noticed the most peculiar thing. "Where is everyone?" he asked as he looked around. Where were the Kekkain here? It didn't make sense. Why would they leave their own estate unguarded, unless…

"Oh no," Shiro realized too late and all of a sudden spheres of metal shot out of the flood boards and surrounded him before creating a cage made out of an electromagnetic field around him. "DAMMIT!"

"Electromagnetic cage," said Alan as he walked towards the trapped bio-android. "One touch and all your circuits will fry."

Shiro sneered at Alan. "Do you think this thing will hold me?"

"It's doing its job, isn't it?" Alan asked. He saw the expanding shadow and aimed the water gun at it. "Oh, and don't bother trying to use the Vashta Nerada to kill the people here. They've all moved to the Northern Branch. You need their blood to break the seal, right? And it has to be fresh. No fresh Kekkain blood, no seal breaking."

Shiro stared at the Lantern hatefully. "So…you've beaten me."

"Call this Checkmate," said Alan, clicking his tongue at the end. "You've lost."

"Yeah, but how many people have died until this point?" Shiro questioned. "How many buried since you all came here to save the world?"

"Shut up," Alan ordered.

"I mean…I killed them all, but any one of you could've prevented their deaths, prevented blood from being spilled, and yet I've been doing a pretty good job at taking the lives of people you could've saved," Shiro continued to mock. "I've killed so many. I think I lost count at 100."

"I said shut up!"

"Some hero. Even with all that power you couldn't even save them and here you are with me at your mercy, unable to do what you have to do to stop me permanently." He finished, "Dead Man's Switch, ring any bells?"

Alan's eyes narrowed and he aimed his ring to shut Shiro up. A gag appeared around Shiro's mouth, silencing him. But Shiro used his own dark power to negate the construct much to Alan's surprise.

"You're a failure as a hero," said Shiro. "I think your dear Jade is somewhere in the afterlife asking why you couldn't save her."

That was the last straw!

Alan charged at Shiro with his fist drawn when all of a sudden Shiro's eyes snapped wide open, bursting with dark energy. The spheres producing his cage shorted out and dropped at his feet and Shiro drew the Oathbreaker and thrust it at Alan, the blade piercing through Alan's gut. Alan's eyes widened as he realized what had happened. Shiro had been baiting him the whole time.

Also, besides Kryptonite, Alan was now weak against magic, and Shiro had both.

"Say hello to Jade for me," said Shiro as he focused the Kryptonite radiation through the blade, poisoning Alan as his veins became more pronounced and glowing a sickly green. He withdrew the sword as Alan collapsed and Shiro turned towards the sealing stone.

Alan was partly right. He did need the blood of the Kekkain to break the seal but that little obstacle wouldn't get in his way anymore. Making his way down and looking at the unguarded stone, he grinned. "Don't mind if I do."

Shiro's body radiated with demonic energy that was so intense that not even holy charms and talismans had any effect on him. Well, holy weapons could but with Shinichi busy taking care of the Vashta Nerada and Alan bleeding on the floor upstairs, there was nobody to stop him.

Meanwhile, a white wolf had padded towards Alan and looking at him. Alan stared up weakly at the wolf's eyes which seemed so familiar to him. The wolf nuzzled his face and he thought he heard a female voice say, _'Susano-O-dono…'_

Back in the basement, Shiro walked around the stone's parameter, studying it, looking for a weak spot before smiling. "This should do." He unsealed the Oathbreaker and prepared to destroy the second last sealing stone when all of a sudden a green bolt of lightning hit him in the chest and smashed him against the wall. He was shocked and numb and his eyes looked on in horror at what he saw coming down the stairs. "No…I killed you!"

It was Alan, in his Sentinel persona, and wielding the Kusanagi no Tsurugi.

Shiro was so screwed right now. "Why aren't you dead!-?" he demanded.

"A goddess' blessing," Sentinel answered simply, eyes twinkling under his mask. "Now, Shiro, it's over."

"You can't kill me!" Shiro protested. "You'll kill everyone else! I die and my surveillance drones will self-destruct!" He was so close! He couldn't die now!

"Don't resist," Sentinel ordered as he came down. "I'm taking you in." Shiro took out his Dark Xrosser and sneered.

"Not today, Alan Smith! ALPHA-01, let's do this!"

"Don't!"

"**Dark Xros Fusion!**"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: We're close to the finale of this arc, people, and so I leave you with this little cliffhanger. Sorry, but that's just how it is. What happens next? Well, who knows?**


	110. The Legacy of Cain Part 54

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 54: Kamikaze**

When Alan regained consciousness, he realized that his body felt sore and not only that he was horrified to see the sealing stone had been shattered to pieces right in front of him.

"Ugh…what happened?" he groaned, holding his head. One moment he had Shiro cowering and the next…

"_**Dark Xros Fusion!"**_

Those words echoed in his mind. "I should've taken it away from him when I had the chance."

Despite their best efforts Shiro had destroyed the sealing stone and gotten away from them again. His head hurt. Why couldn't he remember what happened after the words 'Dark Xros Fusion'? Why did he only remember darkness? Was it the Vashta Nerada? Speaking of which, Alan needed to go check on the others.

Only one sealing stone remained now and with its destruction the Yamata no Orochi would rise again.

* * *

When Shiro returned to his Pyramid Base via emergency teleport, he felt his entire body explode with pain as he collapsed on the floor.

"JUUYON-SAMA!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi shrieked as they went to collect their master. They helped him to his feet as he hissed in pain. He might've been a machine in human form but his entire body was made to feel the same as a human body. Unlike the Cybermen he had human emotions and could convert food into energy. He could also feel physical sensations like pleasure…and pain. Pain was something he couldn't turn off even if he tried.

As the Bakeneko Kunoichi helped him to his room, he felt the nanites within his body repairing the damage he'd taken. He'd used Dark Xros Fusion and combined himself with Gnol and the other Orochi in order to destroy the sealing stone and Alan in the process. Unfortunately, wielding the Oathbreaker with pure demonic power caused the sword to release a backlash which caused him pain. The Oathbreaker was never meant to be wielded by demons or humans and Shiro was neither, but using Dark Xros Fusion with Gnol Gnauh's and the other Orochis gave him the same powers as one and so the sword had reacted.

The sealing stone had been destroyed and Shiro had been injured in the process. He just hoped that if Alan had survived he would be feeling the same pain of being burned from the insane because that was the only way Shiro could explain the pain he was in.

They put him in his bed and the Bakeneko Kunoichi climbed into bed with him, curling up against his body. Shiro felt calm whenever he was in their company. Closing his eyes, he thought about his plan so far.

Shiro knew how much of a threat Yuji and the Manakytes were, bearing witness to their power. He wasn't an idiot. That was why he kept the Manakytes busy with massive monster attacks. They were always large scale, appearing in any city Shiro desired. Being able to create Darkloids had its advantages. Oh sure, they weren't as powerful as the Orochis but these Darkloids were powerful all the same. At this time, Yuji, Yuki, Jin, Kai and Yuri were dealing with a Darkloid in the shape of a giant winged snake in Mexico.

Yuji would be so busy that he wouldn't be able to help Team A. Oh, sure, Battler, Hana and Daichi were available but Shiro also kept them busy with Darkloids emerging in Hinamizawa, Okinimiya and Shishibone City. The bio-android didn't want any more interference. By creating these diversions, he would make sure there would be no interference and he could reach his goal.

* * *

The sealing stone hidden in the basement of the Main Branch in the North was the only one which remained. The Main Branch was like a fortress now as they had guards vigilantly keeping watch for enemy activity. Already the other branches had been infiltrated and many of their members had been killed. Another emergency meeting was held with Hanyuu attending.

"You call yourself heroes, and yet you couldn't protect any of the stones as you promised!" Hiba said scornfully. He didn't care if Hanyuu was their ancestor. Despite the power she had, which was the power of a goddess, she had failed. Her friends had also failed to keep their promise.

"And do you think you would've fared any better without us?" Hanyuu shot back, eyes glowing red.

"I think we were better off without you!" countered Hiba.

"Hiba, be silent, and show some respect," said Renzo sternly. Hiba wanted to argue but Renzo's intense glare silenced him. "Hainiryun-sama, forgive me, but I have to agree with Hiba's words." Hanyuu looked to the current Head of her clan as he continued, "When you and your group first arrived, you convinced us to accept your assistance. You gave your word that the sealing stones would be protected and that our clan would be safe. However, since then seven of the sealing stones have been destroyed with only one remaining here, and also many of our clansmen have died." Hanyuu nodded solemnly. "We've lost so many and you have failed us, Hainiryun-sama."

"I realize that, Renzo-dono," said Hanyuu, nodding as she accepted his words. "Shiro Juuyon has proven himself a formidable opponent, always two steps ahead of us. I know that is no excuse in my failure in upholding my promise and I can only offer my deepest apologies." She added firmly, "However, we will not and shall not stop helping you. There is one last sealing stone left, which means this is our last chance to make sure Shiro Juuyon's plan does not succeed. If we were to allow him to succeed then the death of our clansmen would all be in vain." He looked at the council, at the elders, and the strongest Onmyouji in the clan to date. "This is more about the honor of our clan. This is about survival. The resurrection of the Yamata no Orochi effects everyone in the entire world. Therefore, in these desperate times, allow myself and my team to help. There have been many deaths since our arrival but even so we have also saved many lives, your lives in fact on the first night we were here. I admit that our clan's skill in Onmyoudo is great, but against living machines they are useless. We can fight the Cybermen, the DALEKs and the Beastroids and we can fight Shiro Juuyon. So, allow us to help."

Kanna watched as Hanyuu beseeched the council in order to persuade them. Kanna had watched them fight against Shiro Juuyon and thwart his plans involving the Rage Flies and Vashta Nerada. They may have failed to protect the sealing stones and save many of her clansmen from death, but they had saved lives. She had seen their actions with her own eyes and she knew the Kekkain Clan needed them.

"We will need to discuss this in private, Hainiryun-sama," said Renzo. "You are dismissed." Hanyuu bowed and stood up to leave the conference hall with Kanna accompanying her. "Kanna, you stay. I wish to have words with you." Kanna looked at her father and nodded as she obeyed her command.

"Are you going to be alright?" Hanyuu asked.

"I'll be fine," said Kanna. "You should go rest after last night."

* * *

"Were you anyone else, I would've found broken bones," said Michiru after putting down the medical scanner. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore, and sick, but other than that I'm fine," Alan said as he lay in a futon. They were back at the teahouse, on the second floor. It was the morning after the incident involving the Vashta Nerada. Fortunately, the vaccine had did the trick and they were no more Vashta Nerada, for now at least.

Shinichi was leaning against the wall, upset and agitated. "One more stone left," he muttered and he punched the floor. "Dammit!" He didn't have his temporal powers anymore, meaning he could not reverse time. If he could, he could repair the stones easily. Maybe that was why Shiro had taken his powers away from him. He cursed Shiro for all the death and destruction since they arrived here in Kyoto.

Junko walked up the stairs with a tray as she said, "I've brought some tea."

"Thank you, Obaa-chan," said Michiru as she took the tray from her mother and put it down. Junko sat down by Alan's futon.

"How are you feeling?" Junko asked.

"Better," said Alan. "I just need some rest."

"Well, you have been out late, doing who knows what," said Junko, "But I'm glad to hear that." She asked, "Where are your other friends?"

"They went out," said Michiru.

* * *

Chiaki was accompanying Hanyuu back to the teahouse as he drove the jeep with her riding shotgun. They were going to take a little drive so she could clear her head. He knew she was feeling depressed. Why shouldn't see? She had broken her promise to the Kekkain Clan. She had promised that the stones would be protected but now all but one had been destroyed.

"How are you feeling?" Chiaki asked.

"Dreadful," she said, running her hands down her face. "Stressed…"

"It hasn't been easy for us, has it?" Chiaki asked.

"They just don't understand that this is war and yet they still have time to scold us," said Hanyuu. "However, I can understand why they have a need to do so." She looked out the side. "We've messed up."

Chiaki removed one hand from the wheel to pay her back in comfort. Hanyuu sighed. "Can you stop at the cemetery for a second? I want to pay my respects."

Chiaki nodded and drove them towards the Kekkain Clan's burial grounds.

* * *

Drumming his fingers on the armrests, Shiro sat in his chair staring at the main screen which gave him a live visual feed outside the Pyramid Base. The Cybermen were outside, walking on floor at the bottom of the sea, working as they carried building material and tools. They were building something which Shiro assumed was under Shizuko's orders. He had lent her use of his Cybermen for a special project, one which would destroy their enemies. He didn't bother asking for details about her plan. He had other things on his mind.

It was the drumming and he was tapping his finger to the rhythm.

Shiro could hear them. Of, he could ignore them all he wanted but he could hear them all the time.

He heard them like this: Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump!

Since absorbing Gnol and the other Orochi's and forcing a Dark Xros Fusion with them, he heard that constant drumming and it only grew louder and louder. Now that there was only one stone left, the constant drumming was causing him to go crazy…well…crazier…

Shutting off his ears would do him no good. The drumming could be heard in his brain and he knew what he needed to do. Just one more stone was left until the ultimate power was unlocked. Just…one…more…stone…

Hearing scuttling, Shiro peered down at his feet to stare at another one of his creations. It was small, the size of a cup saucer, and had four spider-like mechanical legs attached to it with a single red eye on a flat saucer-shaped body. The lone creature climbed up Shiro's leg and he allowed it to climb the rest of the way up his body to perch upon his shoulder.

It was Cyberdrone and it was one of many.

Cyberdrones were used by him to spy on his enemies. He had these little things watching his enemies' loved ones. They were small and well-hidden and could spy on their targets undetected. They were also so fast that people could only catch a glimpse of one out of the corner of their eye as it rushed past.

Each of them contained a small yet powerful explosive triggered only by the Dead Man's Switch within his body. If he were to die he made sure that he didn't die alone and others would join him. It was a deterrent to prevent his own death and destruction.

* * *

Needing more 'volunteers' for his army, Shiro had sent out his Cybermen to find candidates to undergo cyber-conversion. However, while following their orders, the Cybermen met some opposition.

Shinichi and Alan had found them in the middle of a patrol while the Cybermen were trying to abduct several gang members.

Showa-Stronger clapped his hands together, activating a charge before shouting out, "Electro Fire!" He got down on one knee and slammed his palm onto the ground, sending electricity flowing towards the Cybermen. The electrical attack spread out like a spider web, hitting the Cybermen and causing their heads to explode before their bodies collapsed. However, not all the Cybermen's heads exploded. One remained intact.

Showa reverted back to human form and inspected the Cyberman which had fallen flat on its front. He flipped it over just as Alan floated down. He studied the scene, looking at the headless Cybermen before returning his attention to the one Shinichi was looking at. "We better take this one to the lab," recommended Shinichi. "We're going to need to know what make these things tick."

* * *

In the Hive's lab, the Cyberman was carried by both Shinichi and Alan and laid out on the table. "An intact specimen," admired Washam.

"I used Stronger's Electro Fire to short them out. This was the only one that didn't lose its head," said Shinichi. "Dr. Magi, can you open it up?"

"Naturally," said Dr. Magi as he inspected the Cyberman. "Hold on, let me get my tools."

Using a laser scalpel, Dr. Magi cut the armor plating and removed the chest piece. Dr. Magi studied the circuitry and touched some fleshy substance. "This must be the nervous system. It's what let's them move like biological beings." He studied the Cyberman's 'heart' and found something. "Ah, now this is familiar."

"What?" Shinichi asked.

"An emotional inhibitor," Dr. Magi said. "Like the one Gebok put in your head. It blocks out all their human emotions."

"I can see why he'd put something like that in there," said Alan. "Imagine if you were turned into one of these things and suddenly woke up to see what you'd become. Your brain wouldn't be able to handle it and the emotional overload would just kill you."

"**Hello?**" the Cyberman spoke as its eyes lit up and its mouth flashed. The four men jumped back in surprise and Shinichi was already forming his Great Sword.

"It's still alive," said Shinichi, alarmed, but Alan put his hand on his brother's arm.

"Stand down," Alan said.

"But…" Alan gave him a look. "…fine…"

Alan spoke to the Cyberman, "Hello."

"**It's…so cold…" **the Cyberman spoke weakly. **"Why…is it so…cold?"**

"Do you have a name?" Alan asked.

"**Tomoko…Tomoko Izumi…"**

"It's a girl," Shinichi realized.

"**Where's Kenta?"**

"Who's Kenta?" Alan asked.

"**My boyfriend…he told me to wait at the fountain…tonight…"**

"You were about to go on a date," Shinichi whispered.

"**So…cold…"**

Alan looked at the Cyberman sympathetically and said soothingly, "It's alright now, Tomoko. Just go to sleep." Alan gave Shinichi a nod which he understood. Shinichi put his hand on the Cyberman's chest and used the power of his nanites to shut it down, putting Tomoko out of her misery as the lights of the eyes and mouth faded into darkness.

It was a mercy kill and Shinichi shed a tear in response.

Alan was radiating an intense green aura, lightning arching from his clenched fists as he seethed. "No more…" he swore. "No more…this ends **now**." Too many people had died on his watch. The killing had to stop.

* * *

Alan found his brother sitting at the edge of the Hive's tower's roof. He was looking out at the canyon sullenly. Alan sat down next to him. "You OK?"

"I had to put down an innocent person," Shinichi answered.

"She was suffering," Alan reasoned. "You gave her peace."

"Yeah, I know, but if that Cyberman…if Tomoko was innocent then all the Cybermen we've killed were innocent people too. Every last one of them. We can't be sure of their age, sex or race but before their brains were put into those cold metal shells they were people like you and me. And thinking about those Cybermen, it makes me think of the GIN-SHOCKER Cyborg Mutants and soldiers. They used to be people and they might've been innocent at one point too and I killed them just the same." Shinichi put his face in his hands and groaned. He looked up, "God…I try to ignore it but that girl…Tomoko…reminded me that they used to be people…" He remembered the incident with Black Iron Spider from last year. "You stopped me from killing a man who was forced into a cold metal shell but earlier you gave me permission to end someone's life."

"We could save that man, but we couldn't save this girl," Alan answered. "Without ARMOR our options are limited. If we could still contact ARMOR we might've been able to find a way to save her. I wanted to save her."

"But you couldn't, and neither could I, so you had me execute her to cease her suffering. Put her out of her misery." Shinichi looked at him. "Is that what we do now? Do we decide who lives and who dies? What sets us apart from our enemies if we're allowed to make these kinds of choices?"

Alan told him, "If you're honestly comparing yourself to that sociopath Shiro then you've already lost." He advised, "Go home, Shinichi."

Shinichi nodded. He'd been away for too long and he missed Rena. He left and went towards the roof entrance to go back down.

"Wasn't that a little harsh?" Bazel asked.

"It needed to be said. He goes into battle thinking like that he'll get himself or someone else killed," Alan said. "He needs to get his head clear, we all do. Shiro's one step away from his ultimate goal and no matter what we do he's always two steps ahead of us. We even have a team of Manakytes but Shiro has them running about with seemingly random monster attacks."

"He's not gonna make it easy for us, is he?" Bazel asked.

"No, but that doesn't mean we'll let him win either."

* * *

Rena and Shawna were in the living room, with the latter sitting on a stool in the nude and Rena sitting on the sofa and sketching her on a sketchpad when the doorbell rang. "I'll get it. Cover yourself up, Shawna-chan." Shawna picked up the bathrobe and put it on before tying it close with the belt. She heard a loud gasp and went to the apartment's foyer to see who it was. Shawna gasped happily as she saw that it was Shinichi with Rena hugging him.

"Tadaima…" he said softly, in a sad tone. Rena knew that tone. It meant that something was on his mind. Still, she was happy to see him back.

"Okaeri nasai, Shin-kun," she greeted.

"Welcome back, Sir Shinichi," Shawna greeted, smiling.

He saw her in the bathrobe and asked, "Were you busy?"

"Well…I'll show you," said Rena as she dragged him into the living room and sat him down on the sofa. The last time she'd seen him was when she'd rescued her and their friends from the DALEKs. She showed him her sketchpad and told him to look through and he did. He admired Rena's sketches of Shawna which made the princess blush.

He came across the latest, unfinished sketch, and said, "They're all so beautiful."

"I had a good model," said Rena, winking at Shawna. He put down the sketchpad and sighed.

"Girls, I need to talk with you," he said and then he explained what had happened at the Hive earlier. After he finished, they were silently horrified but also sympathetic.

"You did the right thing, Shin-kun," said Rena. "Tomoko-san was suffering in that body and you freed her from the pain."

"I wanted to save her, Rena-chan, but there was no way we could, not without ARMOR," said Shinichi as he looked at his hands. He knew it was a mercy kill but it was still the hardest thing he had to do despite the simplicity of it. Rena and Shawna put their hands in his and he looked at the two of them. He confessed, exhausted, "I'm tired of it all…the fighting. I've had enough."

"But then…who will avenge her?" Shawna questioned. "Sir Shinichi, I know that it must hurt but is it alright for you to stop now while the ones who turned her into a Cyberman are still roaming free?"

"I…But I just…" Shinichi tried to say but was cut off when Rena put her fingers to his lips.

"Shin-kun, I can understand how terrible it felt, but what you did was not murder," she told him. "You're not the cruel one, Shiro Juuyon is for turning Tomoko-san into a Cyberman. What you have been doing by destroying the Cybermen is freeing their souls." It was better for them to be free in death ran than to be trapped forever as slaves in cold, metal shells.

"But if you're feeling tired, then rest," Shawna advised. "Just rest until you regain your strength and resolve."

"Arigatou…" he said gratefully at their encouragement.

* * *

Shizuko was down at the factory level in the Pyramid Base, watching as the DALEK shells were being assembled and humans were being converted into Cybermen. A new section for the Dalek Darkloids had been installed with the cycloptic cephalopod demons being kept inside a large tank. Shiro had filled it up to the brim with writhing Dalek Darkloids. A claw from the ceiling would descend and pick one up before depositing it inside an empty DALEK shell before the wires within the shell connected with the flesh. The shell would close and the new DALEK would roll over to the rest to join them, exclaiming, "**I HAVE BE-COME DA-LEK!**" Their voices were loud, electronic and annoying which made Shizuko wonder why Shiro Juuyon would give them that kind of voice and not the electronic monotone of Gary's. He was annoying with his knock-knock jokes but these DALEKs were annoying period with their loud and excessive screaming of **EX-TER-MIN-ATE**.

She heard the elevator doors open, followed by metal footsteps and turned around to lean on the railing to see the Cyber Leader marching towards her.

"How goes the special project?" she asked.

"**It is 25% completed**," the Cyber Leader answered.

"Alright, and did you manage to get it?" Shizuko asked and the Cyber Leader held up the Dark Xrosser. "How did you get it without being caught?"

"**Shiro Juuyon is currently undergoing diagnostics under DALEK Gary. He has been complaining about drumming inside his brain**. **At the time the both of them were distracted, enabling me to collect the device**," the Cyber Leader reported.

"Hm, he must be hearing the Orochi's hearts beating," said Shizuko. Her beloved master, Gnol, had told her that he always heard the beating of the hearts like the drums of war and it seemed that Shiro was going through the same thing and it was slowly driving him mad. "First he suffers damage from the backlash of the sword and now this." She requested, "Dark Xrosser, please."

The Cyber Leader handed her the Dark Xrosser and she stared at the screen.

"My beloved Gnol-sama, trapped inside this little thing," she said mournfully as she put her hand on the screen, "And all because that ungrateful Shiro Juuyon wanted his power for himself." The dark screen showed Gnol's image. "Do not fear, my beloved Gnol-sama, the power of the Yamata no Orochi will be yours. Shiro does not deserve a single drop of it." Holding the Dark Xrosser up, she commanded, "ALPHA-01, release Gnol-sama!"

**Negative, Onee-chan**," said ALPHA-01.

"Why?" Shizuko asked the device.

"**Only Onii-chan's voice command can allow them to be released**," ALPHA-01 answered.

Shizuko scowled. Of course Shiro would have that little security measure installed. Well, she would need to think up another plan to release her beloved Gnol Gnauh.

"**Is there anything else you will need?**" the Cyber Leader asked.

"No, you may go. Just put this back and don't get caught," she instructed as she handed the Dark Xrosser back to the Cyber Leader. The Cyber Leader gave a salute and turned to march towards the elevator. "Shiro Juuyon, you will pay for your treachery," she swore as she watched the metal soldiers being assembled. Shiro had lent her some of the Cybermen. She might as well put them to use.

She was going to have some fun.

* * *

In Kyoto, a man sighed as he was heading back home from work. He hated his job but what else could he do? He needed to pay for rent and the office work wasn't too bad. It just wasn't very exciting. He had been working late to do overtime and right now just wanted to go to bed.

He didn't watch where he was going and walked into something hard. "Ow!" he let out and stepped back only to become startled at the expressionless face of the Cyberman in front of him.

"**You will be deleted**," it said as it grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into a tight embrace.

"AHH! LET ME GO! LET ME GO!" the man screamed as the Cyberman's eyes glowed bright gold along with its body.

"**Detonate.**"

* * *

Shizuko watched the explosion with amusement. "Kamikaze Cybermen," she said. It was a waste of good Cybermen but the damage one could cause was too hard to resist, and this would definitely fill the populace with fear.

Kamikaze Cybermen had explosives built into them and were rigged to explode whenever they encountered humans. They could 'delete' large number of humans with a single explosion. Sure, that meant no upgrades but what would it matter in the end?

"Now, how would they respond to this?" Shizuko asked calmly.

* * *

Back at the apartment, Shinichi's wrist communicator began to beep at an alarming frequency. He couldn't ignore it and responded, "Hello?"

"_Shinichi!_" Yokoshima shouted on the other end, "_We're dealing with a lot of Cybermen right now and we need help!_"

"What's the situation?" Shinichi asked.

"They're just self-destructing all over the place, destroying anything within range!" Yokoshima reported. "_They just show up and go boom and we can't touch them because-_"

"-They'll explode," Shinichi finished. "I'm on my way!"

* * *

Earlier, Alan too had gone home to spend time with his family when he received the alert. He knew he needed to go and deal with this but before he could leave Lala approached him with something important.

"Alan-kun, before you go there's something I need to give to you," said Lala as she held a rectangular box to him which had a pink bow ribbon on it.

"What is it?" he asked, taking the box.

"Open it," she prompted and he did as he removed the box's lid. His eyes widened as he saw what was inside. He looked up at her, amazed and bewildered, with questions in his mind. How? When? Blushing, she bashfully twirled her hair around her index finger as she explained, "I was cleaning up your room when I found the plans. I made it because I thought you might need it."

Unable to contain himself Alan pulled Lala into a tight hug and proclaimed loudly, "Lala, you beautiful and brilliant genius girl! I love you!" Lala beamed and returned the hug as well before they kissed. She loved it whenever Alan showed his appreciation through affection.

Alan broke the kiss and hug as he promised, "Lala, I swear that I'll put this to good use, not just to you but an old friend of mine!" He gave her another quick kiss and hug before leaving. "Thanks!" Lala watched him go and giggled before skipping back to her room.

"He loves me!"

* * *

"**Detonate."**

**KA-BOOM!**

"**Detonate."**

**KA-BOOM!**

"Cyber Leader, could you explain to me why my Cybermen are exploding all over Kyoto?" Shiro asked as he watched it happening all over the main screen. The drumming in his brain had stopped, for now, so he could relax. His Bakeneko Kunoichi stood at his side.

"**The one designated as Shizuko suggested we create several Kamikaze Cybermen and use them for psychological warfare and mass destruction of property. Kamikaze Cybermen explode as a response to physical contact**," the Cyber Leader reported.

"So, touch and they go boom?"

"**Affirmative."**

"I like it, but that also means we need to step up with Cybermen production to replace the ones lost," said Shiro as he stood up. "Still, this makes a good distraction. Tell Shizuko congratulations."

"**I shall, Cyber Master."**

With the heroes distracted by this crisis, Shiro could waltz right into the Main Branch and destroy the last of the sealing stones easily. What could go wrong?

* * *

Sentinel and Showa had both arrived to see the Kamikaza Cybermen destroying parts of Kyoto's modern area violently as they exploded, taking innocent people with them. The lucky ones had fled before the Cybermen could catch them.

"OK, how are we supposed to fight them if they explode when we touch them?" asked Showa and Sentinel gave him an answer.

"We'll sonic them," Sentinel said.

"We'll what now?" Showa asked, confused by the statement.

* * *

Shiro was heading towards the Main Branch estate with Cybermen marching behind him. These Cybermen would neutralize any of the Kekkain for resistance and bring them back to base for assimilation and upgrading. He needed more Cybermen, which meant he needed fresh brains for the Cyber Suits.

He expected this to be a simple job. After all, they couldn't stop him from destroying the last seven stones so what chance did they have of stopping him from destroying the last one? His Oathbreaker was already thirsty for blood and with this stone destroyed the Yamata no Orochi's power would be his.

Of course when he arrived at the gate, he saw none other than Alan Smith standing in front.

"Smith," Shiro identified. "Shouldn't you be dealing with Kamikaze Cybermen?"

"That's been taken care of," said Alan, smirking.

Shiro didn't believe him but it didn't matter. "Are you here to stop me?" he asked before dismissing him with a scoff. "Good luck with that. I've beaten you every step of the way, destroyed all of the stones except for one while you were helpless to do anything, and I've gained limitless power! What makes you possibly think you can stop me now?" Shiro challenged

"Because I have _this_," said Alan as he held up a metal stick in his hand.

"A _stick_?" Shiro questioned as he cocked an eyebrow, unimpressed. "You're going to stop me with a _stick_?"

"Take a closer look," said Alan as he pointed the 'stick' at Shiro and the bio-android's eyes widened. On the end pointed at him was a green crystal and on the other end that was pointed at Alan was a Phillips screwdriver head. The stick also had a single blue button on it with Alan's thumb resting on it. "It's a _screwdriver_!" He held down the button and the green crystal glowed, releasing an intense sonic pulse. Shiro and his Cybermen all screamed as they put their hands to their ears while they trembled in pain.

"ARGH!-!-! FUCK! GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!" Shiro screamed as he trembled and reeled backwards from the sonic wave. "DAMN YOU, SMITH! DAMN YOU! RETREAT!" He activated emergency teleport and fled with his Cybermen.

Alan twirled the device in his hand and pocketed it, patting his pocket affectionately. "Sonic Screwdriver: never leave home without it." He had used the same trick to disarm the Kamikaze Cybermen earlier, rendering them harmless and easy targets to be destroyed by his teammates. What it couldn't do was fix all the damage the Kamikaze Cybermen had caused.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: They managed stop Shiro from getting to the last stone, but they're just delaying the inevitable. Shiro always has a plan, and this was just a setback. He would be back, better and stronger than ever. He will do whatever it takes to win and won't let any of his plans fail to an obsessive degree. Oh, and another Doctor Who tribute...the Sonic Screwdriver!  
**


	111. The Legacy of Cain Part 55

**THE LEGACY OF CIAN **

**Part 55: The Cyberlady**

Emergency teleportation due to a crisis was always a bumpy ride and so was materialization. As soon as he reappeared at the teleporter platform, he collapsed on the floor. The Cybermen were not as lucky as they shorted out and collapsed as they went offline.

"Juuyon-sama!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi cried as one as they ran to their beloved lord and master. Aoneko and Akaneko helped him to his feet, putting his arms over their shoulders as he hissed in pain.

"Damn…got a splitting headache…" he hissed.

"What happened, Juuyon-sama?" Aoneko inquired. "Do you need us to take you to the lab for repairs?"

"…Thwarted by a…screwdriver! Who would pick up a screwdriver and think to make it more…sonic!-? Who in their right mind would make a screwdriver sonic!-?" Shiro continued to rant.

"**What has happened?**" asked Gary as he rolled over.

"Juuyon-sama is hurt," said Aoneko.

Gary's suction cup arm extended and he performed a scan on Shiro. He retracted the arm after finishing. "**Come with me**," said Gary as he spun around and led them to the laboratory. Since Shiro was a machine in human form the infirmary wasn't the place for him. Instead, he would be taken to the lab for repairs and diagnostics.

* * *

It was taking hours for Gary to fix the problem as Shiro was still lying on the examination table. He was slowly losing his patience. "Well, are you done yet?" he snapped at Gary as the DALEK had his suction cup connected to Shiro's head.

"**Not yet, sir. That sonic pulse really messed up your systems. It will take awhile before you're properly repaired. Even with my help, your nanites still need time to see what's wrong and repair it**." Gary reported.

"Ugh, and I still hear that ringing!" Shiro snapped. His Vashta Nerada had been stopped by water guns and now he had been thwarted by a screwdriver. What next? He gets beaten up by a celery stick that can perform kung fu?

He had a lot of work to do. There was just one stone left, one more step to go before his plan could be accomplish. He'd been planning for months and would not let a Sonic Screwdriver delay his plans. But first he needed to stop the ringing in his head and get properly repaired. The Cybermen which had gone offline earlier were now online which meant that Alan's little toy had simply stunned them.

It really had messed with Shiro's systems by mixing up signals between his brain and body. Whenever he wanted to move his right arm, the left arm would respond, and it was the same with the legs. It was like he had all his wires crossed. Fortunately, the nanites could fix that but it was like they too had been disoriented by that sonic pulse and made sluggish by it. Gary was accelerating his nanites but even with his help it was taking time to fix what had happened to him.

"They will pay for this…" Shiro seethed. "They'll all pay for this."

* * *

"So you were able to drive Shiro away using this 'Sonic Screwdriver'?" Yokoshima asked dubiously while looking at said device in Alan's hand. It was the morning after the 'Kamikaze Cybermen' incident and they were sitting in the apartment located on the second floor of Junko's teahouse.

"Yup," Alan said calmly, popping the 'p' at the end.

"But where did you get it?" Kanna asked curiously.

"Lala made it for me, from plans she found while cleaning up my room," said Alan. "She thought I might need it and she was right."

"I assume those plans were from someone," Shinichi stated.

"Yes, the Doctor," Alan replied.

"But Doctor who?" Chiaki questioned.

"Just the Doctor, and he's one of the greatest heroes I've ever known," Alan told her.

"So, what else can it do?" Hanyuu asked, studying Alan's Sonic Screwdriver.

Alan answered, "Well, anything I want. It uses a psychic interface which means it does whatever I am thinking as I hold the button down. It's like my ring if you think about it, except it isn't a weapon. It's a multi-purpose tool. It doesn't hurt, maim or kill, but it can sure send bio-androids running."

"You know, I wish I was there when you used that thing on Shiro," said Michiru, giggling. "I bet he's pissed off as hell right now."

Kanna was thinking of how weird her life had turned out. Oh, sure, she knew the existence of yokai since she could walk and had been trained all her life, but now they were facing more than just demons. There were facing a megalomaniac who was also an android who created killing machines. Many of her clansmen had also died since this entire thing began and she wanted to avenge them. However, she knew she couldn't do it alone and if these people had not helped them her entire clan would've been driven to extinction by now.

She looked at Shinichi, her sempai. She'd always suspected something odd about it and she finally learnt he was a Kamen Rider. No wonder he seemed to be at those monster attacks like Araki kept telling her. Then there was Alan, who was the heroic Green Lantern known as the Sentinel. He was just a kid and yet he'd taken up a huge responsibility by wearing that ring of his. Finally, there was Hanyuu who was their ancestor known as Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain. She never thought the girl whom Shinichi introduced as his adopted little sister was her reincarnation and a goddess no less.

"I need to go and see how the repairs are going," said Kanna. The wrecked and destroyed branch mansions were still currently under repair.

"We'll come with you," volunteered Chiaki. "Yokoshima and I can help."

"That's right," Yokoshima added.

"And if you still have wounded, I can fix them," said Michiru, holding up a medi-kit.

"I'll come as well," said Alan, tapping his head with the Sonic Screwdriver. "This is a medical tool too."

"Thank you," smiled Kanna, accepting their kind offer. The elders may still condemn them for allowing 7 out of 8 of the stones to be destroyed, but they now were going to prevent Shiro from destroying the last. She believed in them.

* * *

"Well, little sister," the white wolf said to the black as they watched the group exit the teahouse. "Will you be giving your champion your blessing soon?"

"When the time is right," the black wolf responded. "And that isn't now."

"Oh, let's not kid ourselves here. You like him as much as I like Susano-O-dono. Just go down there and talk with him."

"When the time is right, alright? Now don't rush me."

* * *

"I can't stand that Hiba guy!" complained Yokoshima as he returned to the teahouse and sat down at a table. Junko came and poured him a cup of tea.

"What happened, dear?" she asked as she sat down next to him.

"That guy doesn't know when to shut up! He keeps talking about how all demons are bad, how all demons should be destroyed, and that freaks like us are no different from demons!" Yokoshima ranted. "Not all demons are bad!"

"Oh, and how would you know?" Junko questioned.

"Well, for one, I married one!" Yokoshima confessed.

"Your wife's a demon?" Now Junko was interested.

"Yeah, and she's one of the nicest I've ever known. She's cute, she's sweet, and she loves me even if everyone else thinks I'm an idiot. I was tempted to punch that guy right to the moon!"

"I can understand how you'd be offended," Junko nodded. "You really love her."

"Damn straight I do!" said Yokoshima. "He doesn't know what the hell he's talking about!"

"Racism and bigotry are ugly things, I must admit," said Junko. "They blind humans with hatred because they cannot accept something that's different from them."

"Yeah, and that guy's got it in spades," Yokoshima agreed in agitation.

"So, tell me, what's your wife like?" Junko asked pleasantly.

Yokoshima smiled as he began to tell Michiru's grandmother about his wife, Asmodeus.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kanna and some of the others were at one of the Kekkain Clan's branch mansions and helping with the repairs.

"Yokoshima really hit Hiba hard," Kanna said as she handed Shinichi a nail.

"Well, if he hadn't I would have, believe me," Shinichi replied as he hammered down a wooden board. One of his girlfriends was a demon and he was partnered with three Tsukumogami. Also, he was one-quarter demon himself.

Hiba had been talking smack about demons and when he had called all female demons 'hell whores'. Yokoshima just snapped and now Hiba had a black eye and keeping the swelling down with a pack of ice.

"Indeed," Hanyuu agreed as she carried over more wooden boards with Chiaki busy sawing some wood nearby. "I remember back in the old days when my clan did not have such a black and white view of people and were trying to keep the peace amongst the yokai and humans."

"Well, don't compare me to Hiba. I'm not like that. I don't believe all yokai are bad," said Kanna. She was trained to fight demons, but that didn't mean she believed all of them were bad. It was like saying that all humans were good and that wasn't true either.

"We know you're not like that," said Shinichi, smiling

"What do you think Shiro Juuyon will be up to next?" Kanna asked.

"Knowing him he's probably pissed and taking his anger out on someone," Shinichi said.

* * *

Hours later, Shizuko was summoned to the control room by Shiro.

"Yes, Shiro-sama?" Shizuko asked. Shiro was at the console, his fingers tapping across the screen.

"I'll be with you in a minute." He finished. "OK!" He turned to face her. "Hello, Shizuko, and thanks for answering my summons."

"I'm here to serve you," said Shizuko.

"Funny, you said that to Gnol right before he fucked your brains out, right?" Shiro asked. Shizuko scowled as Shiro mentioned her master in such a way but quickly replaced her expression as she remained silent. He tore off your clothes, threw you onto the bed, and pounded you as you screamed out his name. Then you swore to serve him. Now you're doing the same for me. Does that mean you'll let me fuck you?"

Shiro was right in her face, looking her in the eyes. She stepped back.

"Well?" he prompted.

"If…if I must…" she answered. She'd give anything for her true master, even sacrifice her body for him.

"How goes your special project?" he asked as he circled around her. "40%? 45%?"

"It's about 48% into completion, Shiro-sama," she said to Shiro.

"Ah, that's good," Shiro grinned as he stepped back and leaned against the console. "I was checking it out and I'm really impressed but there's something that's been bothering me." His expression suddenly turned hard and cold as he asked, "Shizuko, would you mind explaining to me about _this_?" He brought up the footage on the main monitor.

* * *

"_My beloved Gnol-sama, trapped inside this little thing," she said mournfully as she put her hand on the screen, "And all because that ungrateful Shiro Juuyon wanted his power for himself." The dark screen showed Gnol's image. "Do not fear, my beloved Gnol-sama, the power of the Yamata no Orochi will be yours. Shiro does not deserve a single drop of it." Holding the Dark Xrosser up, she commanded, "ALPHA-01, release Gnol-sama!"_

* * *

Shizuko watched in horror at the footage then back at Shiro.

"You should be really careful about what you say and do around here, Shizuko," said Shiro as a Cyberdrone crawled up his arm and perched itself on his shoulder. "I have eyes and ears everywhere."

Shizuko now knew she was totally screwed and not in the way she enjoyed.

"Did you really think I wouldn't find out? Do you take me for a fool?" Shiro sneered at Shizuko. The dark-haired Bakeneko glared at him with hate, her eyes glowing.

"That power rightfully belongs to Gnol-sama, and I'll make sure of it!" She reached into her kimono and pulled out a whip, only it wasn't a whip. It was a Darkloid in the form of a centipede with eight eyes covering its body. Swinging her arm, she lashed it towards Shiro, its mandibles were spread out, ready to decapitate, but Shiro countered quickly as he drew the Oathbreaker and vanquished the demonic creature with a single swing. Shizuko gasped and reeled at the sight as her look of outrage was replaced by terror.

"Letting you live was a mistake I am going to rectify right now," said Shiro and he snapped his fingers. "Girls!" The Bakeneko Kunoichi surrounded the dark-haired one who stared at them all in surprise

"You have betrayed Juuyon-sama, spat at his hospitality and disrespected his authority," said Akaneko coldly as she drew her ninjato. The others did as well and held them threateningly. Shizuko sneered.

"You should learn from them, Shizuko. They know where their loyalties should lie," Shiro taunted.

Shizuko was desperate. She had to escape. She at least had one last card to play.

Shiro heard the metal footsteps coming towards him from behind.

"**You will be deleted**," said the Cyber Leader as it raised its arm to fire only for Shiro to quickly whip out the Dark Xrosser and point it at the Cyber Leader, firing a bolt of dark energy straight into the Cyber Leader's brain. It went rigid and slumped forward, eyes dim before it rebooted and stood upright, eyes glowing crimson and saluting Shiro with a fist to its chest. "**This unit is designated as Cyber Leader, under the command of the Cyber Master Shiro Juuyon**."

Shizuko watched in horror as the Cyber Leader stood at Shiro's side. Her plan had completely fallen apart now.

"And don't think I've forgotten about how you corrupted poor ALPHA-01," added Shiro, stroking the screen. "Did you know how hard it was to undo what was done to him? The poor child." His expression turned cold as he ordered, "Take her for Cyber-conversion." The Cyber Leader obeyed and grabbed Shizuko to be dragged away.

"You'll fucking pay for this, Shiro! You betrayed Gnol-sama! I hope you rot in hell!" Shizuko cursed, kicking and screaming as she was dragged away for Cyber-conversion.

Shiro ignored her curses as he stared at the screen of the Dark Xrosser which displayed Gnol Gnauh's face as he mocked him, "Pretty clever of you for using Shizuko like that to sabotage me, but you forgot that I am the master of betrayals, treachery and double crosses." He then decided to continue Shizuko's special project, only this time he would be the one to command it.

* * *

After being stripped naked, Shizuko was forced into a metal frame and was spread eagle with her wrists and ankles restrained by shackles. A metal band then locked around her forehead, keeping her head in place. "WHAT IS THIS!-?" she demanded. "LET GO OF ME! RELEASE ME!"

Shiro came into the room and leered at Shizuko's naked body. "How do you like your new room?"

"Don't you dare leer at me, Shiro!" she snapped. "What is this place!-?"

"Oh, just a new Cyber-conversion chamber," he told her.

"So what are you going to do to me? Remove my brain and transplant it into a one of those suits?" she asked, referring to the Cybermen flanking him.

"No, not exactly," answered Shiro as both Cybermen went towards the equipment controls. "You see, Shizuko, putting your brain into a Cyber Suit wouldn't be enough. I want you to suffer so we'll be doing this old school." A circular panel in the ceiling opened up as wicked tools attached to robotic arms descended. "You're going to be the first of a new line of Cybermen. We won't be taking your brain. Your whole body is going to be converted." Shizuko stared at him in horror as she struggled with her bonds as the tools came down. "Goodbye, Shizuko. I would've fucked you when I had the chance but I don't fuck traitors. It's such a shame." He then left the chamber with the door shutting behind him. Her screams were soon heard and they were music to his ears.

* * *

The alarm in the Pyramid Base blared as she ran towards the Teleporter. After incapacitating the two Cybermen, she broke out of the chamber and raced towards the Teleporter. She needed to get away from this place. Since living here, she'd memorized the layout and knew where she was going.

Shizuko had covered her naked body with a lab coat and kept it closed so that she wouldn't expose anything. Once she found the teleporter, she activated it and went onto the platform. She wanted to be anywhere but here.

* * *

"**Why didn't you have her stopped, sir?**" Gary asked.

"I have my reasons, Gary," said Shiro as he drummed his fingers on the armrests. "I have my reasons."

* * *

Dr. Irie heard pounding at his clinic's door and went to open it. When he did, he saw a young woman with dark skin and long black hair with a pair of cat ears on her head. She was dressed in a white lab coat which was buttoned up to hide her shame.

"Please…" she pleaded, "…Help me…" She collapsed forwards and Dr. Irie caught her, nearly falling down in surprise as she was heavier than she looked.

"Don't worry, I will," he said as he dragged her towards one of the rooms in the clinic. It took a lot of effort for him to get the door open and get her inside before lifting her up and putting her in bed.

* * *

Dr. Irie had contacted Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam for something they needed to see. He led them to the room where he'd put the strange woman in to rest. Inside, she was sleeping under the covers, the lab coat she'd been wearing hanging from a hook on the wall.

"What is it you wanted us to see?" Dr. Magi asked. Dr. Irie looked grim as he went to the bed and pulled away the blanket, shocking both scientists.

From the neck down, the woman's body was covered in metal. She had a metal 'bra' to cover her breasts and metal 'panties' as well as metal mesh covering her bare stomach. Her arms were covered in metal as well, from the shoulders to her wrists. Her legs from the knees down were also covered in metal which made them resemble boots. On closer inspection, it appeared that the armor had been grafted to her body.

"She's been cybernetically converted," Dr. Magi inspected. He recognized the pattern. "She's one of those Cybermen!"

"Cybermen?" Dr. Irie reported.

"How did you find her?" Dr. Washam asked.

"She just came to my door and asked for help," Dr. Irie explained.

"We need to get her to our lab," said Dr. Magi urgently. "This poor woman needs our help!"

Shizuko opened her eyes and saw the men as she uttered a weak plea, "Help me…"

* * *

The Teleporal opened and Alan and Shinichi entered the base together.

"Wonder why Dr. Magi sounded urgent. Do you know?" Shinichi asked.

"Sorry, not a clue," answered Alan. "Oh, hey, Yuji."

"Hey guys," Yuji said. "How's Kyoto?"

"Not so good, but we're hanging in there," answered Shinichi.

"Hana's up in the lab with Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi," said Yuji.

"OK, so what did they call us over for?" Shinichi asked.

"Come with me," Yuji instructed and he led them to the elevator which would take them to the laboratory.

* * *

"Oh, thank goodness you came, Shinichi!" Dr. Irie greeted.

"Dr. Irie?" Shinichi was surprised to see his village's local doctor in the Hive. "What are you doing here?"

"It's because I found someone and she needs help," said Dr. Irie.

"You both should prepare for this," said Yuji as he led them further into the lab and to where Dr. Magi, Dr. Washam and Hana were waiting for them. On the metal table was the catgirl from before and she was hooked up to a life support system, a breathing mask over her face and wires hooked up to her.

"Is that…?" Shinichi asked. Alan strode forward, taking out his Sonic Screwdriver. He shone a green light over her, his tool feeding the information straight into his brain as he performed a medical scan.

"Let's see…ah, yes. I see. Well, OK, now I got it," Alan said before he stopped his scanning. "OK, according to my Sonic Screwdriver, this woman was in the middle of a Cyberman conversion operation but midway she escaped before the process could be completed and…" He trailed off, looking grim, but Dr. Washam finished for him.

"She's dying," said Dr. Washam.

Yuji shook his head. She was just so young and beautiful. When he first heard he felt pity for her.

"Her body's rejecting the cybernetics," Dr. Magi concluded. "We've put her on life support but in order to help her we're going to need you three to help."

Yuji walked over to the woman and stroked her hair. She stared up at him and he greeted, "Hey, I'm Yuji. You're going to be alright. I promise." He looked up at the doctors, "So, does she have a name?"

"She told me her name was Shizuko," Dr. Irie said.

Yuji looked back down at Shizuko. "Shizuko, trust me, you're going to be alright. We're going to help you. Do you understand?"

* * *

Meanwhile, Shiro was sitting in his chair as he watched Yuji through Shizuko's eyes. He had visual contact and smiling as he listened to Yuji's comforting words.

"Yuji, always the hopeful one," Shiro sighed. "Too bad you're going to break that promise."

* * *

"OK, the first thing we need to do is prevent her body from rejecting her cybernetics," said Alan. "Shinichi, you're up."

Shinichi nodded and put her hand on the bare flesh of her stomach. "Please work," he pleaded as he let his nanites get to work, repairing the damage the Cyber-conversion process had done to her. Circuitry lines which glowed white covered her. The heart monitor revealed an increased heart rate as Shinichi did this while Shizuko began to convulse.

"Hold her down!" Dr. Magi ordered and Hana immediately stuck her wrists and ankles down with her webbing.

"Thanks," said Yuji and Hana shrugged.

Shinichi removed his hands. "Done!"

Alan scanned Shizuko. "OK, she's not in danger of her cybernetics rejecting her now."

"Excuse me, but wasn't the point here to help her by reversing this?" Dr. Irie asked.

"We will, but first we need to keep her alive. She was dying so I had Shinichi use her nanites to prevent her body from rejecting her cybernetics so we can go to the next phase," Alan explained. "We're going to remove the cybernetics."

"Wouldn't that kill her?" Dr. Irie asked.

"Not this one," Alan told him. "I scanned her and I learnt that the metal parts on her are just pieces of armor that's been grafted to her body and linked to her nervous system. She's only gotten through the external conversion where they put her in a metal exoskeleton. They hadn't done anything to her insides, yet, so we can remove the cybernetics."

"I'm sensing a but coming…" Dr. Irie said.

"It'll be difficult and painful," said Dr. Magi. "She has wires inside her nervous system. That means wires piercing her skin and into the flesh. We're going to have to remove them from her central nervous system without damaging it. We're going to need to be careful in this procedure or else…"

"Let's not think of the worst case scenario," Yuji interrupted. "Let's focus on helping her."

"I agree," Dr. Washam said. Yuji smiled at his father-in-law.

"Let's take her to the operating room," Dr. Magi instructed. "We're going to need a sterile environment to do this right."

* * *

"So, they want to help her reverse the process," Shiro mused as he heard every word. "How naïve."

He looked down at the screen of his Dark Xrosser.

"How very, very naïve…"

If they thought Shiro had let her escape, they thought wrong. He had a plan, he always had a plan, and now it was time to begin.

* * *

"So, we just need to remove the armor, right?" Dr. Irie concluded.

"That's the plan," said Alan. "I can unlock where the metal meets with my Sonic Screwdriver but you and the other doctors will have to remove the armor and the wires afterwards. Are you up for it?"

"I became a doctor to help people. Of course I am."

They were wheeling Shizuko towards the operating room when all of a sudden her eyes snapped open. Her hand shot to grab Dr. Magi by the throat, alarming everyone. Sitting up, she then tossed Dr. Magi against the wall, hard. Dr. Washam tried to restrain her but she shrugged him and brutally backhanded him against the wall. She swung her legs over to the side and glared at the people assembled around her.

"What's going on!-?" Dr. Irie shouted.

"**You will be deleted**," Shizuko said.

"_That's_ what's going on," said Shinichi as he prepared to fight, only for Yuji to walk past him. "Yuji, stay back!"

"I can handle this," Yuji said. He looked at Shizuko. "Look, I know what Shiro did to you, but you need to trust us. Let us help you."

"**I have been upgraded. I do not require help**," Shizuko said as she shoved Yuji backwards. He was caught by Shinichi and Alan as Hana shot her webbing at Shizuko. However, Shizuko was able to break free before firing an energy bolt that hit Hana in the chest, knocking her out as her body collapsed.

"Hana!" Yuji shouted.

"**You will be upgraded**," Shizuko said. "**If you resist you will be deleted**."

"We won't let you have your way," Shinichi said.

"Shinichi, remember, she's innocent that needs our help," Alan reminded. "We can't harm her."

"I know…" Shinichi thought about Tomoko and nodded. "Let's save her, let's save at least one of them!" He darted forward, arm stretched out to use his nanites on her but she grabbed hold of his wrist and electrocuted him. She dropped his body and marched towards Alan and Yuji.

Alan took out his Sonic Screwdriver and told Yuji, "Restrain her."

"Got it," Yuji nodded as he ran towards Shizuko. She fired an energy bolt at him but he ducked and closed the distance between them. He grabbed hold of her arms. "Shizuko, listen to me! We can help you! Just let us help!"

"Yuji, just hold her steady!" Alan ordered. He knelt over to Shinichi and shone his Sonic Screwdriver over him. "Come on, Shinichi. Wake up. Wake up."

Shizuko struggled but then she screamed as her body went stiff and she convulsed as circuitry lines appeared all over her body. Shinichi was standing behind her with his hand on her head.

"Shinichi, you can stop now!" said Yuji and Shinichi removed his hand from her head as she went limp in Yuji's arms. He gently lay her down on the floor as Alan performed a scan with his Sonic Screwdriver, focused on her head.

"A sleeper program was implanted into her brain before she escaped," Alan said. "No, wonder she was released. Shiro planned for this."

"He _planned_ this?" Dr. Washam asked, massaging his back.

"Think about it, Dr. Washam. Shiro isn't satisfied with just beating us physically. He wants to beat us psychologically. He wanted to demoralize us by forcing us to kill another innocent victim," said Alan. "He nearly succeeded."

"He's starting to underestimate us," said Yuji. He stroked Shizuko's face. "She looks so peaceful."

Her eyes snapped and they tensed up before they slowly closed. They let out breaths of relief.

Hana and Dr. Magi had recovered and back to their feet but Dr. Magi had a headache when his head hit the wall and Hana was massaging her chest.

"How are you feeling?" Yuji asked Hana, concerned.

I've been hit with worse," she shrugged. "So what do we do with her?"

"We save her," Yuji said. "We save her, like we promised. It's time to undo what was done to her."

* * *

The surgery had had taken hours, almost a day, to complete but they succeeded in the end. The Cyber Armor and wires were removed from her body but she also needed a blood transfusion. Fortunately, they had a supply of compatible blood for Shizuko. They then stitched her up, covered her in bandages and gave her painkillers to dull the pain.

"She'll be alright," said Dr. Magi. "Thank you, Yuji. And thank you, Alan."

"No problem," smiled Alan. He lived for days like this.

"I'm a hero. I save lives. It's what I do," said Yuji.

Dr. Magi said, "Now, let's bring her to the infirmary to rest."

* * *

Yuji walked into the infirmary and spotted Shizuko lying in one of the beds. She was covered in bandages and when she looked up she smiled at him.

Walking over, he smiled back and asked, "So, how are you feeling?"

"These bandages itch, but considering what I've been through I shouldn't complain," Shizuko answered. "Thank you."

"Hey, no problem," Yuji shrugged. "I'm just glad I was paying attention to my aunt way back when." He asked. "What happened to you again?"

Shizuko looked troubled, averting her eyes. "I…don't…remember…All I remember is…pain…" A tear fell from her eye.

Yuji sat down on the bed and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Hey, hey, easy there, sweetheart. Sorry, I shouldn't have asked. Sometimes this mouth gets me into trouble. No homo."

She giggled, "No homo?"

"Ha!" Yuji laughed. "I got you to laugh at a bad joke and look at that smile!"

Instead of asking Shizuko questions, Yuji spent an hour having a pleasant conversation with Shizuko. He even showed off pictures of his family and kids. She commented that Yuna, Maria and Wendy were all cute and she even said that he must've been cute when he'd been a kid. He also showed her some card tricks before she got tired and slowly fell asleep with Yuji watching over her.

* * *

Yuji exited the infirmary and saw Shinichi leaning against the wall next to the door. "So, how is she?" the cyborg asked.

"Better, but she complains that her bandages itch," said Yuji.

"Good," Shinichi smiled, relieved, but then he frowned in thought.

"Something on your mind, Shin?" Yuji inquired.

"It just seems too easy, that's all," Shinichi said. "She escapes from Shiro, turns up on Dr. Irie's footstep, gets taken here to the Hive when her sleeper agent program activates, and then we deactivated the program before removing all the cybernetic armor bonded to her."

"Maybe we were lucky this time," said Yuji.

"Yeah, but it has to be crazy luck for it to work, not that I'm complaining. It just doesn't add up. So, does she know anything?"

"She doesn't remember jack about Shiro or Gnol and I can smell that reptile all over her."

Shinichi blinked before his eyes widened in comprehension. "Wait…when you mean all over her…do you mean…?"

Yuji nodded. "It's faint now, probably because of that cyber-conversion surgery she went through. But yeah, you know what I mean."

"Speaking of which, why did Shiro decide to convert her whole body? Seems like a waste of time to me since it'd be much faster just to transplant her brain into a Cyberman body." Shinichi paused and the answered came to him as he grimaced in realization, "Unless she was being tortured. Oh, that's just sick!"

"The trauma must've given her amnesia so her brain's practically clean. Just don't mention anything about Shiro or Gnol around her. She's like you when you had your amnesia and you know what that was like."

"Yeah, I remember and I also know that she needs someone to take care of her like Rena took care of me." He asked, "You up for the job?"

Yuji smiled, "I was actually thinking of doing what that girl of yours does for you anyway."

"I can't see anyone better for the job," smiled Shinichi. "Well, besides me or Alan."

"Of course."

* * *

Back at the Pyramid Base, Shiro was silent. Normally, when a plan of his failed he would get upset and angry but as Shiro's main monitor showed nothing but static as he sat in his chair with his chin wresting in one hand. He was quiet and calm, without any sign of his manic anger visible on his face.

"**I'm sorry, sir**," apologized Gary. "**It appears that your sleeper agent has failed**."

"Who says it has?" Shiro asked as he took out his Dark Xrosser and point it at the screen, pressing a button on the device. The picture changed. "I was just on the wrong channel."

On the screen was Yuji's face as he said, "_Hey, hey, easy there, sweetheart. Sorry, I shouldn't have asked. Sometimes this mouth gets me into trouble. No homo._"

"_No homo?_" Shizuko was heard giggling off screen.

"_Ha! I got you to laugh at a bad joke and look at that smile!_"

"Gary, I've been trying to get a mole in that place for months. Now I do, and the best thing is she doesn't even know! None of them do!" Shiro bragged to the DALEK before he tossed his head back and laughed.

"**Sir, you are a genius**," Gary complimented.

"A mad genius!" Shiro continued to cackle.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: I'm always known to make twists in this story, but that's just how I'm wired. So, Shizuko was nearly turned into a Cyberman, ended up in Hinamizawa, and was taken to the lab to have the process reversed. However, while it seemed that she is all better, it would appear that Shiro had other plans. Who would have guessed it?**


	112. The Legacy of Cain Part 56

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 56: Shiro's Daily Diary**

Shiro sat at his desk in his office as he did some work. Actually, he was writing in his journal. While he could remember every detail of his life he felt that writing them out on paper was rather relaxing. Writing in a journal also helped to document his life so that he could look back at them whenever he felt bored.

* * *

_My plan is finally coming to fruition. I've been planning for months and there's just one more obstacle to go through before I can finally gain ultimate power. However, I'll still need to concentrate on my other projects. I can't afford to underestimate my enemies. They may think I underestimate them but the reason I play around with them is because I know for certain that if I let my guard down they would destroy me. The Dead Man's Switch is still operational and so were my Cyberdrones. I can at least hang that over their heads in order to prevent my destruction at their hands. Also, I made sure to surround my body with an energy field which prevented me from being digitized and absorbed into their C3 System. Now that I finally have a mole in their base, I can spy on them and record vital information._

_The girls think I've been working too hard but they need to understand that I enjoy my work. I think they do. I mean it's obvious that I enjoy being completely evil. I even sing about it in the shower. It's just the way I was made. I was created to be a destroyer, a killing machine, only now I was smarter than I was before. I can't believe how I let my anger get the best of me and ruin my cover. Sure, I killed the NEO-NUMBERS but then those little brats had to expose me. I was about to kill them when BLACK 13 showed up and destroyed me._

_But he only destroyed my body._

_Years later I was revived and since then I've been planning my revenge, using anything and everything at my disposal to gain an advantage over my enemies._

* * *

A knock was heard at the door and Shiro said, "Enter." It was Akaneko, the red-haired Bakeneko whom he'd recruited into his Bakeneko Kunoichi corps. "Akaneko, what is it? I'm busy." he said hastily as he closed his journal.

"The girls and I were thinking that you need a break, Juuyon-sama," said Akaneko.

"I don't have time for a break. There's one more stone left and I need a plan to destroy it while at the same time completely destroying my enemies," Shiro told her.

Akaneko walked over and then sat on his lap, looping her arms around her. She caressed his cheek and smiled at him.

"One more stone, right? That means you can put it off for one day, right?" she asked.

Shiro looked at the beautiful girl in his lap. She and the Bakeneko Kunoichi had to be the only few that he cared about.

"Alright, I'll relax," Shiro sighed.

"Great!" Akaneko smiled and then she gasped as Shiro picked her up and bent her over his desk. "Juu-Juuyon-sama!" He hiked up her skirt and pulled down her panties.

* * *

_I made Akaneko scream as she climaxed on my desk. I really do enjoy my girls' company as I could get free pussy whenever I wanted. Of course, I take offense to anyone who called them whores. They're not whores. They were my loyal subordinates, lovers and bedmates._

_Me and the girls left the base before noon and we were on the teleporter which had been set to our destination. We were headed for Tokyo Disneyland. Honestly, the place was a tourist trap filled with humans and I didn't want to be near too many of them unless I was going to kill them. But if this made the girls happy then it made me happy, especially since I would be rewarded later on._

_Truthfully, I hated Tokyo Disneyland. Don't get me wrong, though. Some of the rides were decent but the lines, of the god damn lines, were just too long and the people in front and behind us were just so annoying. I wanted to kill them all by unleashing the Vashta Nerada but my beloved Bakeneko Kunoichi made me promise not to go on a killing spree because this counted on my vacation and killing was just work. I wouldn't call it work, merely a hobby, but thosegirls managed to persuade me not to commit mass murder. You try and resist a 5X assault of 'pussycat eyes'. They just looked so cute and pathetic when they looked at me, pleading with me, that I just gave in to enjoy the day with them._

_But I swore that next time I would kill all these meat bags. _

_I am so glad that my Bakeneko Kunoichi were able to get over that lolicon misunderstanding once I cleared things up for them. Things would've been really awkward if it had continued on and I wouldn't be able to have sex with them again or go on this vacation with them right now. I mean, when Gary pointed it out to me after I kissed Alice, I was pretty disgusted with myself. I may be a villain but even I had standards. I think I threw up for several hours before I managed to calm down. Let me tell you all that I am not a lolicon, not now and not ever. I prefer mature women, thank you very much and it was all just in the heat of the moment. Alice just looked so hot that I couldn't resist._

_And if you ever accuse of me for being a lolicon or a pedophile to my face or behind my back I will torture you in the most horrific manner possible. Believe me, you'd wish for death after going through the torture I have planned for you._

_The food in Tokyo Disneyland was decent, I guess. Being a bio-android I had taste receptors. Also, because I was a bio-android I could also feel pain due to pain receptors. That Sonic Screwdriver had really hurt and I could never forget that ringing I had in my head for hours. _

_What next? Me being beaten by a Kung Fu celery stick? If that were to happen than that would be a sign of the apocalypse coming. Too bad for my enemies that it would be me that would bring about the apocalypse!_

_I am Shiro Juuyon, Emperor of Destruction! Kneel and bow down before me!_

_Anyway, the food in Tokyo Disneyland was good but still the lines were just so fucking annoying and a huge pain in the pass. I think a child dropped his ice cream on my shoes on purpose as a joke and I was tempted to kill him until my Bakeneko Kunoichi dissuaded me. _

_While sitting together on a bench, eating ice cream cones (I had vanilla with chocolate sprinkles), we saw a couple of parents with the mother pushing a baby stroller. My beloved catgirls went "Aw~" at the sight but I just rolled my eyes in response. They were probably thinking about having kids with me but that's physically impossible. I am a bio-android, a machine, and I don't think I would make a good father anyway. Kids are just so annoying._

_Technically the only kid I can stand is the ALPHA-01 AI which is a bit ironic considering two factors._

_1: ALPHA-01 is just a computer program even though he sounds like a kid._

_2: He was based on the mind of the greatest pain in my neck when he was a child (Shinichi)._

_Oh, don't get me wrong. Fudo and Smith are equally huge pains in my neck and I will make sure they will suffer for getting in my way. However, it's Shinichi who's at the top of my list of people I want to kill in the most gruesome fashion possible. Is it so wrong that I look myself in the mirror and make faces of agony so I can imagine that it's him that's being tortured to death?_

_Oh, sorry. I got off track there didn't I? Anyway, the girls and I finished out ice cream cones and then they grabbed my arms and started to drag me somewhere else. I just sighed yielded to their will. I guess if Shinichi and I had one thing in common it would be that we could not argue with the women in our lives._

_We watched some shows involving clowns juggling stuff until one of the clowns slipped and the objects he juggled fall down on his head, making large bumps appear. Everyone laughed and I laughed the hardest because it was a simple human making a fool of himself. It just feels so good to indulge in human suffering and pain? Speaking of human pain, I wonder how Gebok is doing now since I took that information out of his brain. Is he brain dead now?_

_We also watched the waterworks show with the girls applauding but I didn't see anything special about that. It was just H20 to me. _

_We went through a haunted house which was not so scary. Then again I myself am one scary mother-fucker. Strangely enough the Bakeneko Kunoichi jumped in reaction to scary surprises. It didn't make sense considering they've seen scarier since working for a villain like me. Momoneko and Aoneko both clung to me in fright while the others reaced violently by assaulting the costumed staff of the haunted house who were scaring them. We got kicked out as a result but it was fun watching my girls attack those people and kicking their butts._

_We also went to the aquarium and admired the marine animals, though I knew my girls were staring at all the fish with hungry looks instead of appreciating their beauty due to them being felines. I think I heard Akaneko mutter about fish curry or something like that. Since they were hungry, I went and bought them some tuna sandwiches. They were really grateful for the generous yet simple gesture that they glomped me, earning us odd looks from the other visitors. The girls even took turns French Kissing me, drawing more attention where some visitors took pictures and parents covered their kids eyes to prevent them from seeing our 'indecent behavior'. Oh, come on! We were in Japan! It's a free country, right? There was no rule against kissing in public. Anyway, the girls were really affectionate and I was so tempted to take them someplace private and have an orgy with them._

_We then went to the petting zoo and the Bakeneko Kunoichi had fun feeding and petting the animals. They also got their hands licked by the lambs. _

_The girls were enjoying myself and I smiled. I am so glad to have them by my side. They were loyal, unlike Shizuko, and they didn't abandon me during my 'chibi phase'. They didn't make fun of me at the time, unlike Gnol, but they still enjoyed dressing me up and treating me like a baby by putting me in a high chair and spoon-feeding me. It was so embarrassing and they even photographed me. They still look at those pictures and laugh. I thought about destroying them but decided that the girls deserve to keep those memories. I wouldn't ever tell them, but part of me enjoyed the treatment even if I did throw a tantrum for being treated like a baby._

_The girls were just being maternal and in that form I was helpless._

_Anyway, back to the petting zoo, the animals instead backed away from me in fear. Was it because they knew I was a bio-android or because of the dark aura I radiated since fusing with the eight Orochis in my Dark Xrosser. I'm thinking more of the latter than the former. I didn't care though. The girls enjoyed themselves and so I enjoyed myself as I watched them play with the animals._

_We visited some game stands in the park and I won the girls prizes. Even the games that were rigged were no match for me. Seriously, you humans can never fool me. One of the corrupt stand owners even refused to hand over the prize when I won a game of ring toss he'd rigged so that the rings wouldn't land around the targets but I managed to do it. I threatened him in the worse way possible and he complied as he gave up the prize that I won for Akaneko. She was so happy that she hugged me tight and shoved my face into her cleavage._

_We went and watched a free screening of several Disney movies. I'm not really into that kind of thing but the girls insisted. I mean those Disney movies are just too cute and they made me gag. I prefer physical comedy like anvils falling on people. Now that is amuzing because pain on others is funny to me._

_Before the start of the next movie, while I was getting popcorn and drinks, I saw some guys hitting on my girls in the lobby. I was so tempted to kill them even if I had promised my girls I wouldn't. The girls had refused their advances, which made me smile, but then these guys weren't taking a hint. So, my girls made them listen with their fists. I enjoyed the show but then one of the guys called my girls 'sluts' and 'whores'._

_Oh, now that made me mad. Nobody talks to them like them. I beat them up and tossed them out before security could intervene and immediately ran into the theatre to watch another movie. Afterwards, we left with Kineko and Aoneko clinging to my arms affectionately. Oh, and those guys who hit on and insulted my girls, I memorized their faces and recommended them for Cyber-conversion._

_When it was nighttime we watched the fireworks show. We were eating cotton candy while watching the fireworks. My girls loved it and I enjoyed it too, mainly because of the bright explosions. The fireworks made me think of missiles and rockets and targeting largely populated cities before sending them to blow those places up._

_I then felt a nerf projectile hit my head and turned to glare at the kid who'd shot me. It was the same kid who dropped his ice cream on my shoes! Oh, I was so tempted to kill him but that would just upset my girls. I put the kid on my list and swore that he would be put on child labor and doing maintenance work in my factory. Nobody shoots me in the head with a nerf gun and gets away with it. We left Tokyo Disneyland by closing time and went to grab some things for dinner It was a good thing the supermarket was still open so we went grocery shopping. I bought fish and ingredients for curry. I didn't forget the rice either._

_Believe it or not, the Pyramid Base did have a kitchen and a dining room. The girls helped me prepare the curry and cook the rice. I told them that they didn't have to but they insisted and once again I could not resist 'the look' and allowed them to help me out. Once the curry was done we all went to the dining room to eat. I poured the curry onto each plate of rice and sat down to eat with them._

_Being a bio-android I didn't really need to eat since I had my own source of energy but I still enjoyed the taste of food and my body could convert food into energy. My mind soon drifted towards Gnol. I admit that I kind of missed the reptile but I knew that he would've betrayed me in the end so in order to prevent him from betraying me I betrayed him first. Still, he was cool, a great fight partner, and I actually enjoyed our conversation. But that's in the past now and I needed to do what I had to do to further my goals. After all, you can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs._

_Gary's cool and all but his knock-knock jokes are just so bad, especially the new DALEK editions. They're just so horrible that if I hear one more joke that ended with 'EXTERMINATE' I swear I am going to lose it._

_At midnight we watched a movie together in the control room. I put the tape inside and cuddled up with my girls as we sat on the sofa together. It was an American slasher flick called 'Friday the 13th'._

_I never thought I would ever find love. Before I met these girls I was just looking to have fun and sex while working on my plans but now I knew that I loved these girls. They were my loyal followers and faithful lovers. I am so glad I recruited them._

_Anyway, concerning that traitorous wench Shizuko, she was now living comfortably in my enemies' base. What they fail to realize is that I am using her as a mole in order to spy on them. She was my eyes and ears there and she doesn't even realize it. Even in success they still fail to see my true goal and so I still win because good is dumb. Soon, very soon, I will destroy the final sealing stone and gain the Yamata no Orochi's full power and become the RULER OF THE WORLD!_

_Hail Shiro Juuyon, the Cyber Master, Emperor of Destruction and future Lord of Darkness! _

* * *

After the girls went to bed, Shiro went down the elevator to personally inspect the Cybermen assembly line. The cybernetic bodies were being assembled by robotic arms as they were put together. They were all headless but that could be easily taken care of. They had yet to receive any new 'volunteers' for Cyber-conversion but tomorrow he would send his Cybermen to grab a few worthy candidates. Going up a level he went to inspect the DALEK assembly line next. The steel casings were being produced quickly before they were sent towards the large tank the Dalek Darkloids were kept. It was almost empty, which meant he needed to spawn new ones pretty soon. A mechanical claw reached inside and grabbed hold of a Dalek Darkloid firmly before lifting it up and depositing it inside an empty DALEK casing. It then closed up as the wires connected the machine to the flesh, giving the DALEK true life. The mechanical eyeball on the rod glowed before the DALEK rolled over to join the others.

Shiro contemplated on new designs for the DALEK shells. Sure, they appeared inelegant and impractical to normal people, but they got the job done. Their ridiculous appearance made people who saw them for the first time unaware of the true danger they posed before it was too late. The plunger-like arm looked harmless but it was one of the DALEK's most dangerous tool and the appendages were interchangeable. He heard scuttling and watched as a Cyberdrone walked past his feet. Then he got an idea and grinned. Imagine DALEKs with spider-like legs. Then he though up tank-like DALEKs equipped with powerful weapons. He would need to draw the blueprints for these new ideas.

Shiro had also gone and checked the progress of Shizuko's special project which was now under his control. Apparently she was trying to design a huge mobile Cyber-conversion factory. It would be able to move and capture humans to be added to the Cybermen's ranks. It would also be armed and dangerous, disabling any interfering elements.

Shiro went to the computer to check the Cybermen's programming and to make sure the emotional inhibitors were in working order. He couldn't have the Cybermen feel emotion. That would defeat the purpose of creating them in the first place. He needed ruthless soldiers, incapable of feeling anything, and willing to follow his orders as long as they were logical. The DALEKs had a limited range of emotion, feeling only hatred towards humanity and the urge to kill. That was enough for him.

Going back up to the control room, Shiro walked over to the control console and plugged the Dark Xrosser into a port. The large screen displayed detailed blueprints of the Pyramid Base and he scanned them. "This place has been stuck in the bottom of the sea for too long." He began typing on the keyboard as he continued, "It's time to see if it can rise out of the dark depths." The screen showed a 3D wire frame of the base as he continued to do his work. As a bio-android he never really needed sleep. It was more of a luxury than a necessity, like food and sex.

Being able to multi-task, he mentally went through his plans. The last stone was all that remained before the Yamata no Orochi's power was his. But, that would mean his enemies would reinforce the defenses and he would end up fighting them all. He was going to need a huge diversion like the DALEK invasion but on a much larger scale. He needed a plan that made them run around like chickens with their heads cut off so he could get a clear shot at the final stone. Then, when that power was his he would change the world and mold it into his own image. Humanity would fall and any survivors would be made into slaves to serve him and his new world order.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Just a brief look at a day in the life of Shiro Juuyon. Bad guys get days off too, y'know? I mean all work and no play…but well you get to see a more human side of him but deep down he's an evil SOB who is going to destroy everything in his path in order to reach his goals.**


	113. The Legacy of Cain Part 57

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 57: The Final Stone**

The room held six chairs seated around a table, three on the left side and two on the right, and one at the head. Only three of the other chairs were filled, with their occupants hidden in the shadows. The first one spoke in the familiar voice of Mr. Black, "Shiro seems to be doing quite well. The Cyberman and DALEK plans we gained from our…friend has been working quite well for him. I think we may need to ask him to join The Gauntlet soon."

"He'll fail. People like him always do," said the figure sitting opposite Mr. Black.

"You mean those who toy with forces above their comprehension? So, I assume you're speaking from experience, Mr. Faust?" teased Mr. Black.

To stop any potential arguing, the man at the head of the table spoke, "Shiro is just a pawn. His focus is too erratic and those…girls keep him from truly being anything more. The Religion of Crime has no need for someone like him as anything more than a pawn. He nearly broke that Rider but he isn't the target. Tell me, Black, how is the Lantern Project coming along?"

"It will be ready soon, my Lord," answered Mr. Black. "We just need the volunteers."

"Good. And what about you, Faust. How is your project?"

"Iceon will be revived soon enough," Faust answered in a calm tone.

"Good. Soon Sister Sin and the other members of the Religion of Crime will find the Spear of Destiny…and then we shall destroy the heroes and bring the Multiverse crashing down."

* * *

Hanyuu sat shotgun in the jeep with Chiaki driving her around Kyoto. She just finished attending another meeting with the Kekkain Clan. She had proposed that with the available power they had to rebuild the seals. However, such an act would be difficult and would need a lot of time and power, power that they did not have due to Shiro's forces slaughtering a good portion of their clansmen. The only survivor of each attack were the children and only because Shiro had shown them mercy. Maybe the bio-android just didn't think they were worth killing.

As she allowed the night air to blow through her hair, she glanced at her boyfriend. She had fallen for him the first day they had met which had been 3 years ago. He'd gotten lost and she'd found him starving in the forest. She shared her food with him and they became friends. It was only after Shinichi and Rika followed him that she discovered that Chiaki was a GIN-SHOCKER cyborg like Shinichi, dubbed #02, also known as Kamen Rider Slasher. Hanyuu had managed to prevent Chiaki's death at Shinichi's hands and convinced him to help Chiaki out. At first, Chiaki still treated Shinichi with hostility but they eventually became allies and friends.

As time went by, Hanyuu and Chiaki grew closer and closer. She also grew up into a beautiful young woman that Chiaki couldn't dismiss as a little girl anymore. Their first kiss had been magical and the kissed that followed were just as good. Someday she wished they could go further.

But that was an issue for another day. Right now they needed to stop Shiro before he released the Yamata no Orochi. He'd been successful in destroying seven of them and only one remained, which was contained in the basement of the Main Branch's mansion. It would be heavily guarded but Hanyuu was having doubts.

"Are you alright?" Chiaki asked.

"I'm…just thinking," Hanyuu answered.

"About what?"

"It's just that….Shiro has been able to beat us on every turn. Alan did drive him away last time but we all know he'll learn from that and construct a new plan and his plans have all succeeded," Hanyuu said. Shiro was both manipulative and cunning, qualities for a good villain. "I sometimes doubt we'll beat him."

"Don't think like that," Chiaki advised. "That's what he wants. That's why he's doing all this. All the death and destruction he's been causing is meant to demoralize us."

"I know, but he's winning," Hanyuu said. "I'm starting to lose hope too. Now I know how Rika feels sometimes."

"There's always hope," said Chiaki.

"I guess…I just feel so stressed right now…" Hanyuu groaned. She spotted something out of the corner of her eye and said, "Chiaki, pull over." Chiaki did as told. "Now, come with me." She exited the jeep with Chiaki and she held his hand to drag him over somewhere.

It was a Love Hotel.

* * *

Shiro lay in bed as Momoneko snuggled up against him. Both were nude under the covers. The Bakeneko girl was wearing a blissful smile due to a vigorous session of sex between her and her master.

"Juuyon-sama…?" she began

"Yeah, Momoneko?" he responded as he turned to gaze at her.

"I'm just curious as to why you don't try to use Dark Xros Fusion on your enemies," said Momoneko. "I mean if you did you'd absorb all their power and they would no longer be a problem for you."

"I thought of that, and there were a lot of flaws with that plan," Shiro answered.

"What kind of flaws?" she asked curiously.

"Well, the reason I don't ever attempt a forced Xros Fusion between me and my enemies is…well, there's Scenario #1…"

* * *

"_Dark Xros Fusion!" Shiro called as he used the Dark Xrosser to turn Shinichi into energy, which he absorbed into himself. Forcing Shinichi to merge with him, the evil Bio-Android now gained Shinichi's powers. "Now, Green Lantern, let's see you fight me now that I have your brother's powers!" He activated Shinichi's nanites and turned his arms into wicked looking, armored fists covered in spikes. "Oh, and if you hurt me you'll hurt-"_

_**POW!**_

_Shiro was sent flying by a glowing green fist._

"_What were you saying?" Alan questioned, cupping his ear._

"_I said…if you hurt me you'll end up hurting-"_

_**WHAM!**_

_A green anvil fell atop Shiro._

"_Yeah, I know. But I think he'll forgive me, plus he had this coming," said Alan, shrugging._

"_Asshole!"_

* * *

"Really, Juuyon-sama? I thought they would be so close that the Lantern wouldn't dare hurt his brother," said Momoneko.

"Yeah, but I've studied their interaction. Last year Showa went rogue and well he caused a lot of grief for the Lantern. He might still hold a grudge. There's also Scenario #2."

* * *

"_NOW YOU'RE MINE! Dark Xros Fusion!" Master 14 absorbed Alan this time and laughed. "Now, both of you are-" His right fist smashed into his face. "Ow! What the hell!-?" Then his left fist did the same. "Fuck! What the fuck is going on!-?"_

_He heard two voices in his head, "Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself!"_

_Master 14 could not control his fists as they punched him in the face repeatedly._

"_Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself!"_

* * *

"And I am not interested in having my own fists used against me," he frowned. Momoneko giggled. "Oh, you think that's funny? Tickle time!"

"Juuyon-sama! Yamette!"Momoneko cried in mid-laughter as her master tickled her.

* * *

"_Kanna, look out!" Shinichi shouted to his kohai._

"_**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" the DALEK shouted as it fired its death ray while Kanna had her back turned. The beam hit and her body was illuminated, making her skeleton visible, before she collapsed onto the ground._

"_KANNA! NO!"_

* * *

"KANNA! NO!" Shinichi screamed as he suddenly sat up with a fright. His heart thundered in his chest as sweat beaded on his face. "Oh…a nightmare…" he let out once he relaxed and was relieved. It was always like him to have nightmares of the worst case scenario.

Shinichi was on the roof of the teahouse. He'd apparently fallen asleep on it and had a nightmare. He had a blanket covering him and cocked an eyebrow. "Now, where did this come from?" He sensed another presence and immediately turned to see what it was, only to see a black wolf staring back at him. "Hello there, what are you doing up here?" How had a wolf gotten on the roof? He didn't sense anything malevolent about the creature so it was not a threat. The black wolf padded over to Shinichi and nuzzled his face. "You're a beautiful thing, you know that?" he complimented. "And that's an interesting mark," he said, looking at the crescent moon mark on the wolf's forehead. "So, are you a boy or a girl? OK, how about we assume you're a girl?" The wolf didn't seem offended and sat next to him.

"You know, normally coming to Kyoto would mean being on vacation or a school trip, but here I am in the middle of a war," he told the wolf. "A lot of people died, people who didn't deserve to die like innocent bystanders who had no idea what was going on." He thought about the people who'd been killed by Shiro's DALEKs, Cybermen and Vashta Nerada. Nobody deserved that kind of fate. The Cybermen had to be the cruelest since they had once been human but had their brains ripped out and put into cold metal bodies with their emotions taken from them.

"Everyone's counting on me too and I feel like I can do anything. Unfortunately, the power that lets me save so many lives is gone now and I feel so helpless." He drew his legs up to his chest. He had always relied on his Return to the Past to fix things but now that option was gone due to Shiro. He sighed and stretched his legs out, laying them flat on the surface of the roof. "But that doesn't mean I'm gonna give up though. It just means I have to try harder."

The wolf nuzzled his neck before laying her head down on his lap. He absently started stroking behind the wolf's ear. "You know, when I was a kid I wanted a dog. A big dog so I could ride it like a horse. Well, I have a bike now so there's no point in that. Still, I would still like a dog. Shin's a terrible pet. He can't play fetch." He asked, "Hey, how would like to come home with me, girl? Rena-chan would love you." He frowned, "Unfornately we have a 'No Pets Allowed' policy at the apartment.

The wolf let out a minor "ruff" before closing her eyes.

* * *

Sentinel was doing an aerial sweep over the city and making sure things tonight were peaceful. It had been a few weeks after Shiro's last attempt for the final sealing stone and it had been quiet since. Not even one attack had occurred since then which made the Green Lantern feel wary. Looking around, he then spotted something and he activated his telescopic vision, causing him to grimace as he finally saw who it was. "What is _he_ doing here?" He might as well go check it out.

* * *

"OH, I JUST LOVE KYOTO!" Grell Sutcliffe cheered as he skipped from one rooftop to another. "Oh, Will! Thank you! Thank you so much for assigning me here!" The red-haired Reaper was definitely happy considering all the deaths which had occurred in the city recently. He opened up his record book and flipped the pages to the names and faces of all the people who'd died. "So many souls to reap and so little time to do it!"

"Aren't you away from your area of jurisdiction?" Sentinel asked sternly as he hovered down in front of Grell.

"Oh, it's you!" Grell beamed. He went to hug the Sentinel only to crash flat into a green wall of energy. Grell collapsed onto his knees and sobbed, "How cruel!" He took out a handkerchief and blew into it.

Sentinel rolled his eyes and asked, "Mr. Sutcliffe, what are you doing in Kyoto?"

"Well, if you must know, the main office sent me," said Grell. He opened up his record book. "You see, this place has had the largest record of deaths within a very short span of time and there's a pretty long list. Causes of death are all pretty interesting, like having their flesh eaten by microscopic shadow creatures or being gunned down by saltshaker robots."

"Yeah, I know," Sentinel frowned. "I was there."

Grell slammed his book shut and stood up, putting his hands to his hips. "We've been very busy reaping souls too and I've just been sent here because a lot of deaths are scheduled to happen soon." Sentinel grabbed the Grim Reaper by his red coat.

"When?" he demanded.

"Now…that'll be telling~" Grell teased as he grinned, revealing his shark-like teeth. Sentinel released him. He wasn't going to waste his time on the importance of saving lives to a being whose sole existence was to reap souls as they died.

"I'll be watching you," Sentinel warned before shooting high into the sky.

"Bye~!" Grell waved before blowing Sentinel a kiss.

* * *

The following night, Shiro sat in his throne within the base's control room with the Bakeneko Kunoichi standing at his side with the Cyber Leader. It was time. "Is it ready?" Shiro asked the Cyber Leader.

"**Construction has been completed, weapons are armed and power cells have been charged to 100% capacity. Awaiting your orders**," reported the Cyber Leader. It had taken a few weeks but the project Shizuko had started was now ready and completely under his control.

"Excellent," Shiro smiled. "Prepare it for teleportation."

"**I obey**." The Cyber Leader turned and marched away.

Shiro took out a sheet of paper which contained his 'To Do List'. Taking out a pen, he crossed an item out. Victory was close at hand and he could almost taste it.

Outside of the base on the ocean floor, the Cybermen were setting up devices which resemble hi-tech cannons aimed at a large figure. These cannons were actually part of a teleportation system for large objects and they were going to transport something huge to Kyoto.

"**Cyber Master**, **we are ready to transport**," the Cyber Leader reported.

"Begin," Shiro ordered.

"**As you command, Cyber Master**." He commanded the Cybermen, "**Activate teleportation array.**"

The cannons began to glow as they were activated and aimed at the object. They shot bolts of energy which arched around the object, enveloping it in light before it vanishing in a bright flash.

"Hope Kyoto has Kaiju Insurance," joked Shiro. The Bakeneko Kunoichi giggled at his joke. "Now, it's time I did my part."

* * *

It had appeared out of nowhere in a bright flash of light and its appearance was met with fear and panic as people fled screaming. It was a massive, gigantic, metal titan, the color of gunmetal grey with an appearance that resembled a giant Cyberman. Equipped to its right arm was a mortar cannon and equipped to its left arm was a devastating laser blaster. Its blocky chest contained a built-in Cyber-Conversion factory and as it stomped its way through the city, it scanned the people for suitable candidates for conversion.

This robotic monster was designated as a Cyber King and piloting it from inside a cockpit in its head was a crew of Cybermen in charge of navigation, movements, and weapons.

"**We begin the attack. Delete the city**," one Cyberman said.

"**DELETE!**" the Cyber King roared as its mortar cannon fired its payload, destroying a building in a blazing explosion. People were buried under the rubble and killed instantly. It began walking through the city, destroying everything in sight. With one clawed hand it reached down and grabbed a handful of stragglers before opening up its chest to upgrade them into new soldiers for Shiro. "**YOU WILL BE UPGRADED!**"

Suddenly, a blast of air slammed into the Cyber King's wrist, causing it to release its captives. A green net of energy caught them safely as Sentinel slowly descended, putting them down onto the ground. "Run!" They didn't need to be told twice.

Jin was zipping around as the Cyber King tried to make a grab at him. "Oh, aren't you an ugly fella?"

Suddenly, he heard a voice in his head, '_Jin, stop playing around! This is serious!_'

"Right, right, sorry," Jin apologized and zipped out of the way of the Cyber King's laser. "That was close!"

* * *

Battler Ushiromiya, formerly known as Black Ghost and also known as Kamen Rider Meta, possessed a variety of powers. One of those powers was telepathy and he was the centre of a telepathic network between everyone on the team. They could all communicate with each other telepathically without using their communicators. Of course, if he was ever to be knocked out, then the network would just die.

At the moment, the redhead was sitting in Junko's teahouse deep in concentration to keep up the telepathic network. He had to practice with this power since he had the job of relaying so many different thoughts simultaneously. He could also see what they saw and what they saw had to be the biggest robot he'd ever seen on Earth.

'_Remember guys, this is just a huge distraction_,' Battler reminded, '_Shiro's gonna be going after the last seal so we have to take this thing down quickly_.'

* * *

'_Don't worry, B-Man, we won't let that creep get past us_,' responded Blue Beetle confidently as he stood guard in front of the Main Branch's gate with the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS.

Showa stood guard with his Higurashi no Yaiba clenched tightly in his hand. Shiro wasn't going to get past them if it was the last thing he did.

* * *

"**YOU WILL BE DELETED!**" the Cyber King bellowed as it fired at Jinbut its laser missed. It then aimed its mortar cannon and fired. Jin ducked and the mortar flew straight towards a building.

"OH, SHIT!" Jin cursed but then the mortar hit something and was flying back towards the Cyber King, hitting it directly in the chest and exploding. It reeled backwards and Jin looked to see Yuji waving at him. "Thanks! Much obliged!" he said, giving Yuji a thumbs-up.

"OK, I managed to evacuate the civilians," Sentinel said to Jin. "Are you guys gonna be alright handling this thing by yourselves?"

"We will," said Jin. "I mean Kai, Yuji, Yuri and Yuki are already in position as we speak."

Sentinel called, '_Shinichi, how are you doing?_'

* * *

'_We're still standing in front of the gate, waiting_,' reported Showa. '_The Kekkain are also inside guarding the stone. I've also set up my paper cranes so Shiro won't be able to sneak past us._'

'_Good. Anyway, 5D's are going to be handling this Cyber King right now so I'm going to join you at the mansion._'

'_Try not to be late_,' advised Showa.

Alan assured him, '_I got super speed, remember? Plus I can fly. Trust me, I won't be late_.'

* * *

Yuji and Yuri both stood on the street while Yuki, Kai and Jin were hitting the Cyber King with everything they got. It was being hit by lightning bolts, wind blasts and blizzard blasts. Of course it was still not going down as it fought back against their elemental assault. Yuki was nearly hit by the thing's laser, Jin nearly got himself singed and Kai was almost crushed when the Cyber King tried to smash him.

Yuji took out his Gao Jewel as Yuri took out his.

"You ready?" Yuji asked and Yuri was already holding his Gao Dagger.

"I was born ready for something like this," his insane brother grinned. The put their jewels into their daggers and pointing them into the sky.

"GAOLIGER! DESCEND!"

"COME ON DOWN, GAOTYRANNO!"

The clouds parted as a rainbow bridge appeared, connecting the sky with the ground. Both Power Animals ran along the bridge before jumping off. GaoLiger roared as it pounced on the Cyber King, slashing it across the chest and pushing it backwards before jumping off as GaoTyranno hit it with the drill on its tail, sending the Cyber King reeling. Both Power Animals tossed their heads back and roared, ready for battle.

"And time for some aerial support," said Yuji as he switched the jewel with another. "GAOPHOENIX!"

A screech was heard as a massive bird of prey pierced through the clouds, covered in intense flames, before unleashing a barrage of fireballs which slammed into the Cyber King, nearly toppling it over as sections of it were covered in explosions.

"Man, that giant tin can is tough," commented Yuri.

"Then we hit it with everything we got and keep hitting it until it goes down for good," said Yuji. He spoke to the jewels, "GaoLiger, GaoPhoenix,a re you with me?"

"_YES!_" the two Power Animals responded in agreement.

"Ready to go Jurassic, GaoTyranno?" Yuri asked.

"_ME READY TO ROCK, ROLL & RUMBLE!_" GaoTyranno roared.

GaoTyranno crashed into the Cyber King with a head-butt but the mechanical monstrosity remained on its feet. It knocked GaoTyranno aside with its fist. However, GaoPhoenix followed up on the assault by soaring towards the Cyber King, dodging its lasers. She struck with her talons, slashing sparks off the Cyber King's chest, leaving deep and long gouges across the surface. GaoLinger pounced and dug his claws into the Cyber King's shoulders before wrapping his strong jaws around the head.

Inside, the alarms were blaring.

"**Initiate defensive actions**," one Cybermen said as it pushed a button. An electrical current surged from the Cyber King's body, repelling GaoLiger as it jumped off, shocked by the electrical attack. It then charged up its laser and aimed for the Power Animal but GaoTyranno bit down on the arm holding the laser and bit down, tearing off the arm. The stump spit out sparks as the Cyber King staggered. GaoPhoniex screeched as it rammed into the Cyber King's midsection, sending it crashing down on its back.

"**Cyber King's mobility and equilibrium must be restored**," said the Cybermen. The cockpit began to tremble. Outside, GaoTyranno was jumping up and down the Cyber King's chest, roaring happily."**Cyber King taking heavy damage**."

The Cyber King raised its mortar cannon to blast at GaoTyranno but GaoLiger's claws tore the cannon to pieces, leaving the Cyber King literally unarmed. Team 5D's then climbed onto the Cyber King's body, going straight for the head.

"OK, time to open this tin can up," said Yuri gleefully.

Meanwhile, Shiro had been watching the battle and was obviously disappointed. "Che." He took out his Dark Xrosser. "Time to augment my investment."

Yuji and Yuri had transformed into their Rider forms and were just about to tear open the Cyber King's head when all of a sudden the mechanical titan was enveloped in a familiar layer of dark energy. Liger Zero shouted, "MOVE! MOVE!" The Manakytes all leapt off as the Cyber King slowly rose back to its feet. The arms started to grow back and when the dark glow died, the Cyber King was fully restored. It let loose a roar and fired its newly restored mortar cannon, sending the Manakytes flying with an explosive barrage.

"Crap, and our Power Animals just tore it up!" Geno cursed. His Gao Jewel began to shine. "Huh?"

"_Master, we fight together_," said GaoTyranno through the jewel.

Liger Zero's own Gao Jewels shone as well.

GaoPhoenix said, "_Use all our power together_."

"Together?" he asked.

"_We unite_," clarified GaoLiger.

"Combine, huh?" Geno smirked when he heard that. "OK, let's do this!"

GaoTyranno and GaoLiger roared as GaoPhoniex shrieked loudly.

"_**GAO GATTAI**__!_"

GaoTyranno's body shifted into a humanoid form as his neck and tail both became arms, ending with a drill and his head respectively. GaoLiger's body shifted as well as its body broke apart into three segments. Two of the segments which still had the legs folded onto them attached to the body to become spaulders with their claws pointed up while the head connected to the chest forming a new chest-piece. Finally, GaoPhoenix's body shifted with its neck and legs folding into its body before connecting to the giant humanoid's back, forming wings. Finally, popping out between the shoulders was a silver, human-like head with blue eyes. It was covered by an eagle-like helmet and sported a mane as well. It opened its mouth filled with sharp teeth, unleashing a roar as the drill on its left arm spun and the T-Rex head on its right arm snapped its jaw.

"_**GAOCHAMPION!**_"

"Su…gei…" Kai uttered in awe.

A tractor beam fired from GaoLiger's mouth, picking up the Manakytes and pulling them inside. Once inside GaoChampion's body, the five Manakytes found themselves seated inside a cockpit, each sitting in chairs and facing a set of controls. A large screen in front of them displayed what GaoChampion was seeing.

"Wow…this is cool!" said Kai.

"Could use a stereo system," shrugged Jin.

"Onii-sama, ikuyo," said Yuki.

Liger Zero and Geno both nodded before gripping their controls tightly.

"**DELETE!" **the Cyber King roared, firing its mortar cannon but its projectiles were slapped away by GaoChampion's drill arm.

GaoChampion jumped back and aimed his T-Rex head blaster arm, firing purple bursts of energy down at Cyber King. The machine retaliated with its own arsenal and fired, with GaoChampion evading by sliding toward the Cyber King and firing more blasts at the mechanical giant.

"This isn't so tough," Kai smirked as he was rolling a pair of balls that controlled the sliding motion.

Yuki was on the left arm, a joy stick in her hand as she pulled the trigger that controlled the blaster arm. "Onii-sama, everything is in working order," she reported, "Jin, commence the attack."

Jin grinned, controlling the drill arm with his own stick as he kept a firm grip. "Have some of this, why don't cha!"

GaoChampion responded by charging ahead and driving its drill arm forward, damaging the Cyber king's chest area and with sparks erupting. The Cyber King's chest opened up, Cybermen jumping out and latching onto the GaoChampion.

"What the fuck?" the brothers chorused.

The Cybermen began to glow and detonated, exploding all over GaoChampion's body and shaking up the crew.

"Damn that Shiro," Liger growled, "Coming up with kamikaze bots…"

"Oh, now I'm mad," Geno frowned. The time for games was over. "It's time we sent this giant tinman to the scrapyard!"

"Right," Liger nodded, "You heard him, let's finish this battle!"

"ROGER!" the other Manakytes obeyed.

GaoChampion then flapped its wings, taking to the sky as it gained altitude and began to descend. The mechanical warrior then burst into flames and aimed its drill arm forward, targeting the Cyber King as the drill began spinning.

"THIS HAND OF MINE IS BURNING RED," the Manakytes cited together, "IT'S LOUD ROAR TELLS ME TO GRASP VICTORY! **ERUPTING…DRAGON….DRILL… **_**BREAKER-!-!-!-!-!**_"

The GaoChampion descended upon the Cyber King and flew straight through and ascended, leaving a gaping hole in its body as it was engulfed in flames before falling backwards and exploding in a flurry a fire and metal. The GaoChampion touched down and stood victoriously.

"YATTA ZE!" Geno cheered, throwing his arms up in victory.

"We did it," said a relieved and victorious Yuki.

"You know, this big guy really is tough," admitted Kai.

"Aye, it is," agreed Jin.

Liger put his hand on the control console affectionately and smiled, "Thanks, GaoLiger, GaoPhoenix."

"You did awesome, GaoTyranno," smirked Geno proudly.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sentinel was on his way towards the Main Estate when a laser beam hit him in the back. He grunted and stopped in mid-air, spinning around to face who'd attacked him.

"**HALT AND BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!"**

"I should've known," frowned Sentinel as he saw the ten DALEKs flying in pursuit of him. They fired their death rays at him. Being faster than a speeding bullet, Sentinel ducked and dodged their attempts of exterminating him. He then put up a shield to block their attacks but then he was hit from behind again. Surrounding himself in an energy bubble, he looked both left and right to see DALEKs surrounding him. Ten more had joined the fray and were blasting at his energy bubble, trying it break it and destroy him.

"**IN-CREASE WEA-PONS' OUT-PUT! MA-XI-MUM EX-TER-MIN-A-TION!"  
**

The DALEKs increased the fire power of their weapons and shattered the bubble. However, Sentinel retaliated, blasting at DALEKs all around him with his ring and his heat vision. A DALEK was hit with the latter, blowing up and dropping out of the sky. The DALEKs continuously fired on Sentinel, their one single-minded goal at the time to exterminate him. Doing a loop-de-loop to avoid the DALEKs' death rays, Sentinel turned and fired a green energy fist that hit one DALEK with enough force to destroy it. Despite possessing 'superior' force field technology, Sentinel was not going to let that stop him from destroying them.

Using his ring and imagination, he conjured a Chinese dragon made of green energy. It let loose a roar and soared towards a trio of DALEKs. They fired at the construct but their death rays were harmless against it. The green dragon wrapped its serpentine body around the DALEKs, crushing them to oblivion before vanishing itself.

Sentinel aimed and fired his optical heat beams at some of the DALEKs' eye stalks, which impaired their vision and causing them to scream in alarm,** "VI-SION IM-PAIRED! VI-SION IM-PAIRED!" **Conjuring the Faiz Cannon, he blasted them to pieces with a charged energy shot from it.

Despite taking down their numbers, Sentinel had the rest to deal with. As they fired upon him he drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and bounced the death rays back with the blade, exterminating the DALEKs with their own weapons. He conjured a second sword, a duplicate of the Higurashi no Yaiba, with his ring and went to strike them down when he suddenly received an emergency telepathic message from Battler. "What is it?"

'_It's the others! They're under attack!_'

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE THE GREEN LAN-TERN!**

"I'm kinda busy at the moment, Battler, but I'll try to deal with this quickly!" Sentinel replied.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" They fired at Sentinel who quickly dodged their attempts at exterminating him.

"You things just don't know when to quit, do you?" He shot towards them like a rocket, activating his super speed and furiously striking them all with his swords in a matter of seconds. Multiple explosions simultaneously lit up the sky as the DALEKs were destroyed by Sentinel who shouldered his Kusanagi no Tsurugi.

* * *

In the meantime, Showa stood shakily, holding the Higurashi no Yaiba while in Guardian Form. He was facing down both the Orochi of Ice and Orochi of Gold. The two grinned sadistically as their bodies radiated with a malevolent aura, dark thoughts dancing in their minds.

The Viking-like and Yuki-Onna like Darkloids had appeared out of nowhere. Yuki-Gnol had unleashed a blizzard which took them all by surprise before striking at Carmen and Arachnea. The girls fought back valiantly but then Yuki-Gnol used the blizzard for cover before hitting them with her power, freezing them solid in her ice. Meanwhile, the male NEO-NUMBERS were confronted with Kin-Gnol who used his touch to turn them one-by-one into gold. First he'd turned Musician into a gold statue, and then he blasted Zero out of the sky with his shoulder cannons before doing the same to him. Blue Beetle had tried to use his Double Rocket Mega Drill Kick on the gold-armored Darkloid but Kin-Gnol managed to catch the attack before turning Blue Beetle into a gold statue. Slasher and Showa managed to deal damage with their sacred swords but when Kin-Gnol fired an energy beam at Showa, Slasher pushed him out of the way and was turned into a gold statue instead.

Using the power of Gokuaku, Showa lashed out at Yuki-Gnol, actually dealing damage as his flaming sword struck her, causing her to shriek in pain and outrage. She fired a blizzard blast at Showa who blocked the attack using a tornado. Tossing, his Cho Dai-Shuriken up, he sent it flying at the two Orochis, watching as his 6-pointed shuriken zipped around as it struck them. At the same time, Showa's Higurashi no Yaiba extended into a whip as he swung, the spiked blade connecting with the two Orochis. Of course, Kin-Gnol's armor protected him well enough from the assault. He roared and charged at Showa with his battle axes and sparks flew as both warriors clashed.

Kin-Gnol's cannons fired at Showa at point blank range, but once the smoke cleared a straw dummy was revealed to have taken Showa's place. Spinning around, Kin-Gnol's face was hit with Showa's foot. Showa followed up his roundhouse kick with a kick into Kin-Gnol's side, sending him skidding along the ground.

Annoyed by the Cho Dai-Shuriken, Yuki-Gnol froze it, rendering it useless. She then summoned ice daggers, hundreds of them, which hovered around her and sent them flying. They whistled as they darted through the air towards Showa's back and he was struck by them. He turned to deflect them, leaving his back wide open for Kin-Gnol and his axes.

Kin-Gnol brought his axes down but Showa countered by summoning a duplicate who blocked the axes with his sword, parrying the blow before pushing Kin-Gnol backwards. Showa's clone followed up with a series of slashes that cut deep into Kin-Gnol's armor and then a punch powered by wind energy that sent Kin-Gnol flying.

Meanwhile, the original Showa countered Yuki-Gnol's assault with a wall of flame. Once her assault ceased he absorbed the flame wall and shot a fireball at Yuki-Gnol. She jumped aside but her sleeve caught on fire as the fireball flew past her. She screamed as she tried to put the flames out as Showa charged at her. He went for the killing strike but then Shiro suddenly appeared and parried with the Oathbreaker.

"Shiro!" Showa shouted and Shiro grinned before pulling out his Dark Xrosser and thrusting it forward. The spikes dug into Showa's armor and the bio-android pushed a button which caused Showa to jolt and spasm on the spot. He withdrew the Dark Xrosser and slashed Showa across the chest with the Oathbreaker.

"Freeze him," Shiro ordered and Yuki-Gnol obeyed as she trapped Showa in ice, freezing him, literally, in place. "How long will it hold him?" Shiro asked.

"Long enough," Yuki-Gnol said. Kin-Gnol jogged over, Showa's clone disappearing as the original was frozen.

"OK, let's smash him!" Kin-Gnol said eagerly as he cracked his knuckles and pulled back to shatter the ice and Showa with it.

"No," Shiro objected, causing Kin-Gnol to falter. "I want him to live and witness my triumph."

"You want an audience to hear you gloat," Yuki-Gnol translated, crossing her arms.

"In a manner of speaking, yes," Shiro admitted.

Except for Gnol Gnauh, Shiro was able to gain control over the other Orochi Spawns. He was able to brainwash them into his servants while he had them trapped in the Dark Xrosser. Only Gnol Gnauh still resisted so whenever Shiro used his power he always made sure to keep Gnol's consciousness separate from it. He didn't want to be overtaken if the Dark Xros Fusion failed somehow.

Recalling Kin-Gnol and Yuki-Gnol, Shiro admired the two Orochi's handiwork. Walking over to the frozen Showa, he mocked him, "Well, you out up quite a bit of a fight, but too bad it wasn't enough." Knowing he didn't have much time to waste, Shiro took out his DALEK gun (it resembled a pistol but with a DALEK gunstick for the barrel) and fired at the gate, blowing it up before walking through the threshold and walking along the path towards the manor. Once inside he would find the final sealing stone and destroy it, thus freeing the Yamata no Orochi.

He'd finally won.

* * *

"Predictable," Shiro sneered as he stopped in the middle of the hallway leading towards the basement's entrance. Standing between him and his goal were several Kekkain clansmen armed with swords and spears. "Let me guess, this is the part where you demand my surrender, or my life. Considering what I did to the rest of your clansmen, the latter would be more accurate." They charged at him, roaring. "Thought so." His shadow began to expand outwards towards the charging Kekkain and in a matter of seconds piles of bones fell at his feet. "Vashta Nerada," he stated, "Never leave home without them." He didn't need their blood to break the seals. He had more than enough power to destroy the last one now. Of course, he might need some blood for assurance. Whistling, he made his way towards the basement.

* * *

Meanwhile, Hanyuu and Renzo stood guard with Hiba in the basement. Hanyuu let out a depressed sigh. "They failed."

"Hmph, serves them right," scoffed Hiba. Hnayuu gave the arrogant Kekkain a glare.

"It is up to us to guard the final seal," said Renzo. "Hanyuu-sama, despite all that has happened, I am grateful for your help."

"Thank you, Renzo-dono," smiled Hanyuu. She watched as Hiba went towards the stairs leading towards the basement's exit. "Where are you going?"

"To confront and stop this Shiro Juuyon once and for all!" he answered haughtily. Hanyuu wanted to stop him but she knew the sealing stone was more important. She couldn't stop Hiba from being an arrogant fool even if she tried. Clenching her fists, she stood next to Renzo.

"Won't you stop him?" Renzo asked.

"He made his choice," frowned Hanyuu. "Besides, I have a feeling now is his time."

"Then when is my time?" Renzo asked. Hanyuu was silent but her message was loud and clear. "…I see…"

* * *

A Kekkain was gunned down by Shiro, his body lighting up brightly as his skeleton became visible for a second before he dropped dead.

"I have to hand it to these people," said Shiro as he put his gun away, "They are persistent." Suddenly, he sensed a presence and spun around with the Oathbreaker drawn. He slashed a giant wolf in half. The wolf suddenly vanished, replaced by two halves of a paper doll. "Shikigami," he frowned. He looked and saw Kanna with her fish gun aimed at him. "Oh, hello there."

She responded by firing with her gun, a blast of pressurized water flying towards Shiro. Shiro dodged out of the way and sprinted towards her. Kanna gasped as she felt the Oathbreaker's pommel slam into her gut. Shiro then punched her hard in the face, slamming her against the wall and knocking her out as she slid down the wall.

Shiro admired the girl and his Vashta Nerada began to creep towards her. "Let her live," he ordered. "We have no time to waste."

"You're right about that," said another voice and Shiro turned to face Hiba glaring at him.

"You filthy puppet!" Hiba shouted, pointing his staff at Shiro, "You will pay for what you've done to our clan."

"A puppet?" Shiro snorted. "Is that the best you can do?"

Roaring, Hiba charged towards Shiro. The bio-android's Vashta Nerada went to eat Hiba's flesh but Shiro realized that Hiba had not been reduced to bone. As Hiba got within range, Shiro drew his Oathbreaker and swung, cutting Hiba across the chest.

Hiba, however, did not fall. Shiro continued swinging his sword, slashing Hiba all over and yet the warrior monk did not fall.

"OK, you should've fallen down by now," said Shiro, bewildered. His Oathbreaker had cut Hiba up but there wasn't even a drop of blood staining the ruined clothes. Hiba removed his ruined top to reveal his entire body had been tattooed with numerous Japanese characters. Shiro cocked an eyebrow.

"Words have power, and these words give me strength!" Hiba boasted. "You cannot kill me!"

"Well, I guess that seems the case," said Shiro as he twirled his Oathbreaker around. He challenged, "Come on and give me your best shot."

Hiba charged with his monk staff, aiming the sharp tip towards Shiro only for him to parry the weapon aside. Hiba pulled back and swung, hitting Shiro on the side of the head to send him crashing against the wall. Hiba grinned. By defeating the one who was attempting to free the Yamata no Orochi, he would gain respect amongst his clansmen, and maybe even become the next Head. He may acknowledge Kanna to be a prodigy, but she was still a trainee while Hiba himself had trained for years in the art of Onmyoudo and demon slaying.

Chanting, he ran his hand up the shaft of his staff as it glowed. The rings chimed together and Hiba twirled the weapon around as Shiro stood up and prepared himself.

"THIS IS YOUR END!" Hiba thrust forward, his tattoos glowing as he gained incredible speed and strength.

* * *

"It's over," said Hanyuu, closing his eyes.

"I see," said Renzo. "Is my daughter…?"

"She's unconscious, but alive," said Hanyuu. "I can't say the same for Hiba.

* * *

Hiba loomed over Shiro as blood dripped onto the floor. However, Shiro was a bio-android. He did not bleed like humans.

That could only mean one thing: the blood was Hiba's.

Sticking out of his back was the blade of the Oathbreaker in its unsealed state. Shiro, with a cold and neutral expression shoved Hiba off his blade and watched as the man staggered, holding the wound in his chest.

"I stabbed you in the heart and yet you're still standing," Shiro observed. He watched as the blood continued to flow from the wound, forming a puddle under Hiba's feet. "But no matter what you humans do to improve yourselves, you're all still the same: fragile." He swung his sword and beheaded Hiba. Hiba's head dropped as blood came gushing out like a fountain from the neck, staining the ceiling, floor, walls and even Shiro. It soon collapsed forwards, dropping at Shiro's feet.

He checked the time and grimaced.

He was running out of time.

* * *

Hanyuu heard footsteps and looked to see Shiro coming down the steps towards the basement.

"Well, what do we have here? A welcoming committee," smiled Shiro. "Hello, Hanyuu-chan."

Hanyuu glared, eyes glowing red as she prepared to deal with Shiro and stop him herself. However, Renzo stepped forward. "Renzo-dono, what are you doing?" Hanyuu asked. She looked to Shiro who wore a nonchalant smile as he crossed his arms.

"So, we finally meet," said Renzo Kekkain. "You're Shiro Juuyon, correct?"

"That's right," Shiro admitted proudly. "And you are…?"

"Renzo Kekkain, the head of the Kekkain Clan," Renzo introduced himself.

"Shiro Juuyon, future Master of the World." Hanyuu rolled his eyes at Shiro's arrogant claim.

"You have killed many of my clansmen and destroyed the sealing stones which keep the Yamata no Orochi imprisoned. Have you no idea of the consequences of your actions?" Renzo questioned.

"Oh, I know the consequences," Shiro shrugged, "I just don't give a flying fuck." He added, "I heard you were married and you had a daughter, Renzo-san. Where's your wife and daughter?"

"Safe," Renzo answered simply. He'd sent his wife away for her own safety. "And I assume that you had killed my daughter since you managed to make it this far, but Hainiryun-sama assures me she's alive," said Renzo.

"Well, I did leave one of them alive," said Shiro. "A cute girl who used a wolf Shikigami." Renzo smiled, relieved. Shiro walked down the steps until his feet met the basement floor. "As badass as you look, you're still a softie at heart. OK…Since I'm in a good mood, Renzo Kekkain, I'm going to let you live. All you have to do is let me destroy the final sealing stone. I'm extending that offer to you as well, Hanyuu-chan."

"If I were to allow you to destroy the sealing stone, the Yamata no Orochi would be set free," said Renzo. "That cannot be allowed."

"So, that's your final answer then," Shiro frowned.

"Yes," said Renzo as he spread his hands to reveal Shikigami between his shoulders. He tossed the paper dolls at Shiro and they exploded violently, covering him in smoke. However, Shiro stepped out of the smoke cloud unharmed.

"Big mistake," Shiro sneered. Faster than the eye could blink, he drew his DALEK gun and aimed at Renzo. Hanyuu let out a shout as Shiro pulled the trigger. Renzo closed his visible eye and accepted his fate as he stood between Shiro and the sealing stone. The death ray connected and Renzo cried out, his body lighting up as his skeleton became visible before he fell, dead on the floor.

"**YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO KILL HIM!**" Hanyuu roared as she unleashed her power, throwing Shiro backwards. He grunted and looked up as Hanyuu hovered towards him with the fury of a goddess. "**SHIRO JUUYON, FOR YOUR CRIMES AGAINST MY CLAN, YOU WILL PAY!**"

Shiro trembled and curled up into a ball as he begged, "No…please…please don't kill me…" Hanyuu wasn't about to show mercy as she aimed her palm towards Shiro to finish him off for good and wipe him out of this plain of existence. Suddenly, he was enveloped in smoke and Hanyuu's eyes widened once the smoke cleared. In Shiro's place was a pink-haired Bakeneko Kunoichi.

"What?" Hanyuu gaped. Hanyuu realized her folly too late and spun around to face the sealing stone with Shiro waving at her.

"Gotcha!" he taunted, sticking his tongue out at her mockingly. "And now…This is the beginning of the end!" He drew back his arm which held the Oathbreaker and swung.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: OK, sorry for leaving you with a cliffhanger here but this way you all will want more, way more, and I know you're all looking forward to what happens next. Just be sure to cast in your reviews oh and if you have any suggestions please let me know through PM since forums are down. WHEN WILL THOSE ADMINS FIX THIS!-? Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the fights. I also have to thank Kamen Rider Bushido for his help with the GaoChampion scene.**


	114. The Legacy of Cain Part 58

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 58: OROCHI**

Grell was using his chainsaw Death Scythe to take down Cybermen. As soon as he'd finished them off, he opened up his record book and stamped 'DEAD' on several photos. These were the former human identities of the Cybermen he'd killed and now their souls had been reaped.

"I don't quite like the new package," frowned Grell as he kicked at a Cyberman's head, sending it sliding away.

As the head skidded across the ground, it soon bumped into the metal foot of another Cyberman. Hearing the clanking sound, Grell turned around and noticed another group of Cybermen coming for him as they lifted their arms and prepared to fire.

"Oh, dear me, whatever shall I do?" Grell said as he hugged his own body tightly. "Why am I cursed with such an attractive body that people just can't get enough of me?"

As he prepared for another fight he then suddenly heard the sound of a loud engine coming from down the street and he could have sworn that he was also hearing what sounded like polka music. '_What the hell?_' he thought until he suddenly saw a jeep come barreling down the street and slam right into the Cybermen, sending them flying.

Driving the jeep was none other than Battler and he was only out after he had lost connection with his fellow NEO-NUMBERS. Picking up on the signal of a group of Cybermen close by, he decided to act and came running, well, driving really. Looking in the rearview mirror, Battler noticed one of the Cybermen slowly getting up so he shifted the jeep into reverse and drove backwards, ramming it again. He then did a few more runs of running over the fallen Cybermen and then stopped the jeep and got out.

Seeing his savior, Grell immediately swooned at how cute Battler looked in his eyes. Once Battler arrived to see if Grell was okay, Grell quickly pulled him into a hug.

"Oh, aren't you quite the hunk~?" Grell swooned, causing Battler to blush a bit from the close physical contact.

"Um…well, thanks," he said as he removed Grell's arms from around him. "They didn't hurt you, did they, Miss?" Grell quickly gave Battler a confused look before his eye brow started to twitch.

"Miss?-! I'll have you know pal that I am a guy!" Grell chortled in a huff as he puffed his cheeks. This bit of info caused Battler to develop a shocked look on his face as he felt that he really wanted to vomit at that point.

Just as Battler was about to say something he was immediately sent to the ground by a flying metal fist which had slammed right into the side of his head. Looking up at his attacker, he noticed a few more Cybermen had shown up and so, with a few quick motions, he transformed into his Rider form.

"Henshin!" In a flash of light, Battler was replaced by his Kamen Rider Meta persona and the Rider got into a stance as he prepared to go into battle. Then, with a running start, he jumped up into the air and opened up his knee, firing his missiles at the Cybermen. While a few of them were destroyed, a few more fired their guns at Meta, knocking him down to the ground. As he slowly sat up, he soon noticed more Cybermen making their way over and noticed Grell starting to develop a frightened look on his face.

"**You will be deleted, Kamen Rider,**" one of the Cybermen spoke but then stopped as it heard laughter coming from Meta. "**What is so funny, Kamen Rider**?"

"Oh, nothing really. It's just that you guys picked on the wrong Rider," Meta said as he reached behind his back and grabbed something.

"**You cannot win, Rider**."

"Oh, I beg to differ, tin-man!" Meta said as he got into another stance. "And that's because…"

"Because what?" Grell asked as he looked at Meta with a bewildered look on his face.

"Because I have this now!" said Meta as he held out a device in the shape of a skull with a round window in the centre. He put it over his Spark Core and locked it on as he stood up to face the Cybermen. "Here…we…GO!" His entire body glowed with crimson energy before exploding, blowing the Cybermen away. Once the light faded, Meta stood in his new form.

His armor was now crimson with a gold, rib-like pattern on his chest. His gloves and boots were now black and his helmet was red just like the rest of his armor with a pair of bright green eyes.

"Here I am. Kamen Rider Meta…BLAST MODE!" He could feel the power running through his veins and stared the Cybermen down. "OK, you metal mooks, it's time to party!" he challenged as he punched his palm.

* * *

Chess was Shiro's favorite game besides Strip Poker. It was a game for conquerors and a battle of wits between two individuals who sought to dominate one another. A simple game to learn once the rules were memorized, but it took real skill to master the game.

Since his revival, Shiro had treated life as if it were a game of Chess and everyone around him were just pieces on a Chessboard. Pawns were used and discarded whenever he pleased, depending on the planned outcome. His plans, all of them, had been constructed in a way so that he would be two steps ahead of his enemies and allies. They would never know the truth until it was too late. He manipulated them like pieces on a Chessboard, to move according to his plan so that he would reach his goal.

Chess was a game for the clever and ambitious and Shiro claimed to possess these traits. In the end, no matter how many battles he lost, he would win the war, crush his enemies, conquer the world, and claim victory.

Checkmate.

That was how it was supposed to be.

So what was wrong with this picture?

The sealing had shattered after being struck by Shiro, and yet nothing happened.

"I said…this is the beginning of the end!" Shiro repeated.

Still nothing. No indication of the rise of a massive demonic force had occurred. There was no earthquake, no sudden lightning, and no flames falling out of the sky. There was just nothing.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON!-?"

Shiro had planned for this moment where he freed the Yamata no Orochi's body and absorbed it and its power to become his own. He'd been preparing for this moment for months. He'd worked with Gnol Gnauh, freed the Orochi spawns so they would be defeated and absorbed into Gnol, absorbed Gnol to gain his power, and even sacrificed many of his forces so he could gain unimaginable evil power.

And yet…nothing, nothing but the pounding headache in his head which was the simultaneous drumming of the Yamata no Orochi's eight hearts which had been slowly driving him mad.

Even Hanyuu was bewildered. The destruction of the final sealing stone would mean the Yamata no Orochi's true body would be released from its prison but even as the stone had been shattered, she did not sense a huge malevolent presence besides Shiro.

And then, she began to giggle, and then she laughed. She just couldn't contain it and despite being in Shiro's presence she just laughed at his apparent failure.

Shiro was FURIOUS! All his plans had gone down the drain. They had failed even before they started and now he was without the Yamata no Orochi.

And Hanyuu's laughter was just adding fuel to the raging flame of fury he was feeling. "SHUT UP!" he roared as he transformed into Master-14 and fired his cannon at Hanyuu. Instantly, she formed a psychic barrier to block the blast but the impact still pushed her violently against the wall with a loud thud.

"Juuyon-sama, what happened?" Momoneko asked. This was supposed to be her master's moment of victory so why was he so angry.

"I've planned for months," he seethed, "But it's all been a waste of time, effort and resources. I don't have the Yamata no Orochi."

"But you still possess Gnol Gnauh's power along with the power of the Orochi spawns," she said positively.

"IT'S NOT ENOUGH!" he snapped, causing Momoneko to flinch.

"And it'll never be enough for you," Hanyuu sneered, her eyes still red. "You've been trying to reach an impossible goal. You've been trying to make yourself into a god. Now, you've failed."

He charged up his cannon, aimed straight at Hinamizawan's deity's face. Hanyuu showed no fear in the face of death. She had died before so she knew what it was like. This would not be different.

Suddenly, beams of emerald and azure energy crashed into Master-14's side and sent him flying before he crashed against another wall. Momoneko gasped and pointed at Alan and Yuji who stood at the top of the stairs, their respective green and blue power rings pointing at Master-14.

"It's game over for you, Shiro!" said Alan as he drew his sword. It was time to end this once and for all. He jumped over the railing and flew towards Master-14 with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He knew about Shiro's Dead Man's Switch so he wasn't going to kill him. He was going to stun him with one precise attack and capture him.

Momoneko suddenly jumped in Alan's path and was struck by the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. "MOMONEKO!" Master-14 screamed as her blood was spilt. He caught the pink-haired Bakeneko girl as Alan stumbled back, stunned. "Momoneko! Momoneko!"

"Juuyon…sama…" Momoneko smiled softly as she put her hand against her master's armored face. She then went limp in his arms.

"MOMONEKO!-!-!"

Shiro may be a bio-android, with a heart of steel, but even he had emotions.

Even he had people he cared for.

He could stay and fight, avenge her, but she was still alive.

Master-14 had no time to waste by fighting these two. He needed to return to base, heal Momoneko, construct a new plan, and salvage the one already ruined. Picking Momoneko up in his arms, he gave both Yuji and Alan a glare as he promised, "I'll be back."

In a flash of light he vanished, teleporting away.

"And he runs once again," said Yuji as Alan went to check on Hanyuu.

"Hanyuu, are you OK?" he asked worriedly.

"Just a little sore," said Hanyuu, "But nothing broken, fortunately." She asked, "What kept you?"

"DALEKs," Alan answered.

"Cybermen," answered Yuji. He checked Renzo's body and shook his head with a sigh. "He's gone."

"So, Kanna really is the only survivor besides Hanyuu," Alan frowned. He studied the remains of the final sealing stone.

"OK, that's bad, right?" Yuji asked.

"It should be," frowned Alan. "The Yamata no Orochi should be reviving now but nothing's happening."

"Heh, guess it's a dud," smirked Yuji.

"No, it's not," Alan denied. "I can still hear its hearts beating. It's still down there. It just hasn't woken up."

Hanyuu then realized something, "What happened to the others?" she asked.

* * *

Outside the estate, Hanyuu learnt what had happened to the others.

"CHIAKI-SAN!" Hanyuu cried as she saw the gold statue which was her boyfriend. She put her hands on it. "Chiaki-san!"

"He's been turned to gold," Yuji frowned. Nearby, Michiru, Hana and Shinichi were shivering after being thawed out and were covered in blankets. "You three alright?"

"We are," said Shinichi, frowning, "Can't say for everyone else."

Kanna had regained consciousness and was told what had happened. Her father and Hiba were both dead. While she didn't particularly like Hiba, the death of her father had devastated her. Hanyuu had told her, of how Renzo had faced death bravely. Kanna, however, was still angry and even yelled at Hanyuu for not saving her father. She even told Hanyuu that despite being a goddess she wasn't good for anything. Hanyuu knew that was just the grief talking and let Kanna be to mourn over her father and fellow clansmen.

The elders would not like this. Since Kanna was Renzo's only child she was now the new Head of the Kekkain Clan. Her mother had been moved to a safe location under the others of her father. She would soon learn of her husband's death.

Musician, Blue Beetle and Zero were also gold statues. They weren't just covered in a layer of gold. They had literally been turned to gold, inside and out. Not even Yuji knew how to reverse this kind of magic.

"We get frozen and they get turned to gold," murmured Hana. "How lucky are we?" she asked rhetorically.

"We'll turn them back to normal," said Michiru optimistically, through her shivers, but it seemed rather forced.

"So, basically, Shiro got to all the stones and destroyed them as planned," said Shinichi after listening to Hanyuu, Yuji and Alan's story. "So, how come we're not facing a giant, eight-headed, demonic dragon and fighting for our lives right now?"

"I don't know," Alan shook his head. "Wish I did, though."

"Well, the good news that it didn't work," said Yuji. "The bad news is that Shiro has killed so many people."

Shinichi clenched his fists, seething, "If only I had my time powers then I could undo all this!"

"Don't concentrate on what you don't have," said Alan. "Right now we need to get these four back to base and fix them up." Looking back at the statues, he saw two wolves, a white and a black one, sniffing them.

"Hey, it's you again," said Shinichi as he stood up and patted the black wolf on the head. Alan was amused. His brother still didn't know. "And you have a friend too," he said, looking at the white wolf.

"They're sisters," Alan informed him.

"Eh, really?" Shinichi asked. "How can you tell?"

"Oh, I just know," Alan smiled. Yuji cocked an eyebrow.

"Is there something you're not telling us?" Yuji asked.

"Oh, just watch," said Alan.

The two wolves shared a look and their bodies began to glow, the symbols on their heads glowing the brightest. Shinichi and Hanyuu backed away as Alan smiled knowingly as the wolves transformed.

In the white and black wolves place stood Amaterasu the Sun Goddess and her twin sister Tsukuyomi the Moon Goddess.

"Na…Na…Nani-!-?" yelled Shinichi.

"AU! AU! AU!" Hanyuu cried, recognizing the two divine beings before her. How could she not? "Amaterasu-himesama! Tsukuyomi-himesama!"

"The Goddesses of the Sun and the Moon," added Alan. Amaterasu suddenly glomped him, hugging him tightly.

"Hello again, my dear Susano-O-dono!" Amaterasu beamed.

"Hello, Amaterasu," Alan said, his voice muffled since his face was pressed deep into her soft breasts.

"Wait, I remember you!" Shinichi pointed at Tsukuyomi who frowned.

"It's rude to point," she scolded, slapping his hand away. "Show some respect!"

"I saw you in my dream once!" he exclaimed. "And that night at the beach was you too!"

"At least you have a good memory," said Tsukuyomi.

"What are you both doing here?" Alan asked the two goddesses.

"We're here to give you one miracle," said Amaterasu. "Your friends here have been turned to gold by a demonic force. Let us help." She took Tsukuyomi's hand. "Shall we, dear sister?"

"Let's just get this over with," said Tsukuyomi, bored. The two goddesses clasped their hands together and sang. Their bodies began to shine as the melody rang through the air. Yuji had to shield his eyes as did the others but Alan did not. He just watched as the two goddesses performed their miracle.

The gold statues which were their friends began to crack and pieces of it began to flake off their bodies, falling onto the ground. Slowly, the cracks began to spread, further and further, before all the gold had fallen off.

Daichi, Yokoshima, Shogo and Chiaki collapsed to their knees, utterly drained.

"CHIAKI-SAN!" Hanyuu cried as she flew towards Chiaki and hugged her boyfriend tightly. "Oh, Chiaki-san! Chiaki-san! Au~!"

"I feel like I just woke up from a bad dream…" uttered Yokoshima, groaning.

"What…happened…?" Daichi asked weakly.

"Shiro happened," Shinichi answered, feeling angered at the humiliating defeat they had suffered from.

"What happened to the estate?" Shogo asked.

"Again, Shiro happened," Shinichi repeated. "He got to the last stone too."

"WHAT!-?" Yokoshima screamed, "OH GOD! OH GOD THIS IS BAD! THIS IS SUPER BAD!"

"Shut up, you moron!" Daichi snapped, smacking him upside the head. "OK, so why isn't there a big, eight-headed lizard rampaging in the city?"

"That's what we intend to find out," said Alan. "But now we have to inform the Kekkain Clan."

"They won't be happy about this," Shinichi remarked.

"You can say that again," Yuji frowned.

* * *

Shiro gently lay Momoneko onto her bed as the nanites inside her cybernetic body did their work of healing her. He gently stroked her hair. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I'm so sorry." Shiro might be a heartless and callous monster towards his enemies and victims, but many forget that in his original body he'd been Shinichi's clone, his genetic duplicate, with all his memories but he'd been programmed by Gebok and thus had a different personality. However, both Shiro and Shinichi shared one trait.

They cared for their loved ones.

To be honest, Shiro had only wanted the Bakeneko Kunoichi to serve as his bodyguards, soldiers and pleasure slaves but overtime he'd grown to love them. The nanites he'd infected them with through sexual intercourse had converted them into cyborgs and also brainwashed them to serve him. He knew they would be loyal to him but even he had doubts on the effectiveness of brainwashing. Strong minds could break the spell, restoring them, but the Bakeneko Kunoichi had not betrayed him and had followed all his commands, on the battlefield and in bed.

When his previous body had been destroyed and he was reduced to using a doll-sized body as a replacement, the Bakeneko Kunoichi enjoyed it immensely. They had treated him like a baby and part of him, possibly due to the body he'd been in, actually enjoyed the attention they had showered him with. They loved him, and cared for him in his weakened state up until he gained his newest body.

They were the only ones he would never think of betraying, the only ones he would actually display genuine kindness to, and Momoneko's devotion had been so strong that she'd shielded him from harm at the risk of her own life.

"Rest, recover, and you'll be better," he said softly before leaning down to kiss her forehead. Now he had to plan something new. Also, he had to find out why the Yamata no Orochi had not been released. He could actually hear that drumming in his brain and it was so loud he could barely hear himself think. He could block it out, but not for long, and the drumming always came back with a vengeance.

That meant the Yamata no Orochi was alive, which meant there was still a chance it could be released. But what was he supposed to do?

Momoneko's eyes fluttered open as she uttered weakly, still aching from the healing wound, "Juuyon-sama…"

"Don't speak, rest," he said in an uncharacteristically gentle tone. Maybe he had more in common with Shinichi than he would like to believe. He cast that disturbing thought aside to focus on her.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"Sorry about what? The plan?" He shook his head. "It wasn't your fault."

"You're not angry?" she questioned.

"I'm beyond angry, my dear. I am completely and utterly furious," he said. "I'm just shelving that right now to make sure you get better."

"But what about your plan? You wanted the power of the Yamata no Orochi to become a god and change the world," she said.

"Change of plans," sighed Shiro. "I broke all the seals and yet I came back empty handed. All I had to show for it is a lot of wasted time and effort. But, I can still salvage it, somehow."

"You know, my mother used to tell me that seals are just locks," said Momoneko. "This is just a guess, Juuyon-sama, but what if the eight seals were just locks for one big door?"

Shiro's eyes widened as Momoneko's words echoed in his head. "Locks…for a…door?" he repeated slowly. "Lock for a door." He suddenly jumped and yelled, throwing up his arms, "YES! LOCKS FOR A DOOR!"

"Juuyon-sa-!" Momoneko was cut off by a deep and passionate kiss from her master, a gesture she returned with a blush on her cheeks. She loved it whenever he showed affection.

Breaking the kiss, he praised, "My dear Momoneko, you are a GENIUS!" He then dashed out of her room with new ideas and a new plan.

Momoneko just lay in her bed, just dazed by the kiss and the praise she'd received from her beloved master.

* * *

The entire team returned to the Hive. As expected, the elders had been furious and blamed Renzo's death on them. Kanna had also been made the new Head of the Kekkain Clan and was just as upset as the elders, but she was levelheaded enough to know who to pin the blame on. The good news was that the Yamata no Orochi had not been freed after the last stone had been destroyed. However, that did not change the fact that Alan, Hanyuu the NEO-NUMBERS, Team 5D's had failed in their promise to protect the eight sealing stones. The massive and tragic loss of life could not be forgiven either.

"Ungrateful assholes," cursed Daichi.

"But they did have a point," said Hanyuu. "We promised to protect the sealing stones and we failed."

"Well, the Yamata no Orochi didn't rise so they shouldn't complain. Shiro failed," Daichi retorted. "That's the end of it. Now we can just move on and focus on Shiro."

"Don't forget, Dai, that Shiro has Gnol Gnauh's power and an army," Yokoshima said. "It won't be easy."

"That doesn't mean it's impossible," argued Daichi. "We've got our own heavy hitters. If we all hit him hard and fast then he'll be beaten."

Alan, however, was still thinking about the nature of the seals, about how they kept the Yamata no Orochi's body locked away. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi hadn't exactly been forthcoming with any information but the goddesses had blessed the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and Higurashi no Yaiba before disappearing.

They knew how much of a threat Shiro was, they had witnessed the atrocities he'd committed, but they were now allowed to directly intervene.

Of course Amaterasu had told him, "Locks are used to seal a door," right before she and her sister disappeared.

Now the locks were gone so what was stopping it from coming out of its prison and wreaking.

'_Wait a moment…locks…seal…door…_' Alan smacked himself in the forehead, shouting, "I CAN BELIEVE HOW DUMB WE ARE!" shocking the others. "Hanyuu, do you still have a map of Kyoto?"

"Yes, right here…Au," said a startled Hanyuu as she handed the map to Alan.

Alan spread out the map on the conference table and uncapped a marker before he started drawing lines on the map, connecting the branches. "OK, North to South, East to West, North-East to South-West, South-East to North-West." The four lines were all crossed perfectly. Alan then circled the centre. "The seals were only locks. There's still one last chance to stop Shiro and it's right here!" He pointed down on where all eight directions crossed.

"The door to the Orochi's prison," he finished.

* * *

**ONE WEEK LATER…**

Deep under the ocean, scores of Cybermen were quickly heading back into the Pyramid Base as the preparations for one of Shiro's greatest plans had finally been completed. While looking at everything taking place on a viewing screen in front of him, Shiro mused at just how much chaos he would cause once his plan was finally set in motion, literally.

"And now it's time we begin!" said Shiro as he flipped the switch. The entire control room shifted as it began to transform into something more. It would not only be the center where he controlled everything inside the base, it was going to become the bridge of a ship. Additional consoles appeared as the walls flipped around and chairs rose up. "Take your stations!" Shiro ordered and the Cybermen marched as they went to the consoles and sat down. "Monitor the base's status!" He called on the Dark Xrosser, "Gary, how are things in the engine room?"

* * *

DALEK's were rolling about inside the engine room, going about their duties while Gary kept himself stationed at a consol, reporting everything back to Shiro, "**Anti-Gravity Drive is activating. Propulsion Systems are online.**"

* * *

"Cyber Leader, how is the vehicle bay?" Shiro called.

* * *

"**The vehicle bay is efficient and the quantity of Cyber-Fighters and DALEK Saucers is sufficient**," the Cyber Leader reported from the vehicle bay where hi-tech jets were parked along with saucer-like ships.

* * *

"Perfect," Shiro said before giving out his next set of orders, "Pull back the elevator tube and mobilize the caterpillar treads."

"**We obey.**" the Cybermen responded.

"**WE O-BEY!**" the DALEK's responded.

* * *

The elevator tube connecting the Pyramid Base to the island above retracted as it slowly sank into the top. Tank treads under the base also moved the base into position.

* * *

"The base is in position and ready to take off, Juuyon-sama," Akaneko reported from her post at one of the observation stations.

"**Engines are ready**," DALEK Gary reported.

"**Weapon Systems are online,**" the Cyber Leader also reported.

"Excellent. Now, begin the countdown," Shiro commanded.

Gary counted down, "**10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…**" He shouted, "**Blast off!**" The fortress started to shake as the anti gravity drive activated, levitating the fortress off the ocean floor as the tank treads slid back into the base. The rockets then activated, propelling the Pyramid Base skywards.

"WE'RE GOING MOBILE, BABY!" Shiro shouted as he stood up and threw his fist up. "YEAH! WOO-HOO!" The Pyramid Base burst out from the water, sending waves flying in all directions. Now the Pyramid Base, a fortress armed to the teeth, was on the move. "ALRIGHT! LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!"

"**All hail Shiro Juuyon, our supreme leader**," the Cyber Leader commanded.

"**All hail the Cyber Master**," the Cybermen intoned, fists to their chests.

"**ALL HAIL SHI-RO JUU-YON!**" the DALEKs cheered, raising their sucker arms.

"ALL HAIL JUUYON-SAMA!" the Bakeneko Kunoichi cheered, saluting him.

The sinister bio-android just smiled as he looked at the monitor in front of him and then brought up a guidance map of Japan.

"Now, full speed ahead towards Kyoto!" Shiro ordered.

* * *

Kyoto was still recovering from a series of brutal attacks. They had been attacked by metal men, robots that looked like salt-shakers, and also giant monsters and robots which had caused major property damage. The damaged buildings were still being rebuilt at this moment but many had been destroyed from the attack of the Cyber King which had occurred a week ago. Many Kyoto citizens had even left the city for safety.

The rest should've left with them.

The sight of the huge pyramid-shaped ship floating above the city caused all of the residents to run in terror, looking for someplace to hide. Shiro just laughed maniacally as he witnessed the scene of the humans running for their lives, suffering from mass hysteria.

"Look at them all. They're like rats scurrying away," he laughed. Even if the Japanese military responded, they wouldn't be able to do a thing as the Pyramid was a fortress that was armed to the teeth and carrying an army.

Shiro, of course, didn't come to admire how his presence caused fear and terror. He had a plan to accomplish. He put his Dark Xrosser to his mouth and spoke into it.

* * *

"_Activate the drill_," Shiro ordered, his voice echoing over the entire intercom system within a weapons room. A group of Cybermen marched over towards the weapons control panel and took their stations, activating the power systems and selecting the weapon that their master had just ordered to be activated.

* * *

A panel in the base of the Pyramid slid open and a long and thick spinning drill began to descend down towards the ground before touching it. Once the tip was imbedded in the ground, the drill began burrowing into the Earth at an accelerated rate. The drill was special as it was able to extend as it rotated clockwise thus its length was not finite. Another ingenious creation of Shiro's.

While the drill was going deeper and deeper into the Earth, the Pyramid Base was floating in the sky over the city. Inside, Shiro sat in his throne with a bored expression on his face as his left elbow rested on his armrest with his head resting in the palm of his hand.

'_Man, and here I thought that this would be fun,_' he thought to himself as he looked at all the news reports that were being broadcast all around the world about his base floating above Kyoto. '_Lame…hmm, I know…_' Performing a lazy gesture with his free hand, he ordered, "Hijack all radio and television broadcasts. I want to deliver a message. Oh, and don't forget to add subtitles to the ones who don't speak my language."

"**I obey**," a Cyberman answered as it worked at its console, fingers tapping across the keys. "**All radio and television broadcasts have been hijacked at your command, Cyber Master.**"

* * *

All of the people of the world who were watching TV soon noticed their screens go blank for a few seconds and then return with an image that emblazoned on a black matted screen. The symbol was a circle and inside the circle was what looked like eight snakes connected by the tips of their tails and swirling from the center. The symbol was then replaced with Shiro's face.

"_Ladies and gentlemen of the world, we are OROCHI,_" Shiro said from his base through a connection to all the TV sets and radios in the world.

* * *

The DALEKs bore the OROCHI insignia on their midsections in between their appendages while the same symbol was present on the Cybermen's chests, identifying the group they belonged too. Shiro also carried the same symbol on the back of his coat with the Bakeneko Kunoichi wearing the symbol as a badge on their uniforms. The Combatroids and Beastroids also bore the symbol.

On the TV screens, an image of all the Cybermen and DALEK's appeared with Shiro and his girls taking center stage. They looked at the camera in front of them and each of them wore a sinister grin on their face, well, those that could smile did.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the world, we are OROCHI." He then pointed with his finger to the monitor behind him, "As you can see, we are currently hovering above the city of Kyoto in the country of Japan. Why are we in Kyoto, Japan you ask?" He let a big smile cross his face as he threw his arms out. "Well, let's just say that it's going to be a big surprise and that, when we're through, you useless humans will have no place left to run and no place left to hide!" He then gave the camera an evil glare, "From this point onward, the world as you know it shall cease to exist! WELCOME TO YOUR ANNIHILATION!" He then relaxed his facial features and held up a remote to the camera. "We now return you to your regularly scheduled programs. Enjoy them while you still can. Ciao~"

Shiro pressed a button to turn off the camera and then relaxed his body. As he stretched out his arms, his girls all began to hug him and rub their hands up and down his body.

"Ne, Juuyon-sama?" Akaneko asked with a cute face. Shiro looked at her and cocked an eyebrow. "Since we just finished delivering your message to the world, can we probably have a little _playtime_ now~?" she asked in a sultry tone while purring. Shiro just smirked as he took off his coat.

"Why not," he began and all five of the girls smiled brightly. "Girls, how about we start with a little fellatio?"

"HAI, JUUYON-SAMA!" they all cheered in unison as they quickly got on their knees and began to unbuckle his belt before unzipping and lowering his pants and underpants, his erect member flinging out and gently smacking Aoneko lightly on the cheek. The girls all smiled and then, in perfect sync, began to lick his dick up and down, with Momoneko getting under her fellow _sisters_ and using her mouth to suckle on his ball sack.

"Oh yeah~! Now that feels great…" he then looked over at the camera out of habitual instinct and noticed that the light was still blinking, meaning that it was still broadcasting…_live_. "AH, FUCKBERRIES! IS THAT DAMN THING STILL ON?-!" The remote must've been broken. He glared at his Cybermen and ordered, "Turn that damn thing off already!"

"**As you command, Cyber Master.**" A Cyberman went over and flipped the visual switch and shut off the video connection.

Now confident that he could have some more fun without having it broadcasted, like last time, he looked down at his girls and grinned mischievously. "Hey, Midoneko, Kineko?"

"Hai, Juuyon-sama?"

"Give me a titty fuck."

"Hai, Juuyon-sama!" With that, the two girls began to please their master with their breasts, the big and soft mounds of flesh rubbing his cock up and down as they continued to lick the head. As they gave him a titty fuck, Momoneko still continued to suck on his ball sack from below while Aoneko licked up and down his neck as Akaneko opened up his shirt and began to lick one of his nipples.

"Oh yeah, I'm about to cum gir—" he began until he noticed a small red light blinking on the camera. This time it was the one indicating the microphone was still on. "THE FUCK!-? THE MIC IS STILL ON?-!" Turning back towards the Cyberman from before, he yelled, "I thought I told you to turn that thing off!"

"**You only asked me to turn the camera off, Cyber Master. You did not specify the attached microphone.**"

"THEN TURN IT OFF!"

The Cyberman went over to turn off the mic but before it could, Shiro bellowed one last order, "You know what? Fuck it! Just fire at a random target in Kyoto with the De-Atomizer Cannon! I want to hear more screams and to also hear something go boom."

"**By your command, Cyber Master.**" With that, the mic was turned off while another Cyberman activated the De-Atomizer Cannon and fired a blast at a building within Kyoto, causing it to explode into atoms along with the people inside, scattering the particles to the winds.

The TV screens across the globe witnessed the destruction and, after a few seconds, scores of people ran from their homes as they began to scream their heads off and even a few bums that wore cardboard signs saying 'The End is Near' were all shouting 'I told you so!'. The time was nigh and the end was about to begin.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The heroes have one last chance to stop Shiro from attaining the full power of the Yamata no Orochi. BTW, special credit goes to Toku Warrior for his help on the second half of this chapter. Oh, and OROCHI stands for Organized Regime of Chaos, Hate and Insanity.**


	115. The Legacy of Cain Part 59

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 59: United We Stand**

_I miss my master's smaller form, which I secretly keep as a doll as a reminder. He was, in that form, so energetic and playful even when he was being evil and a nuisance to our enemies. It wasn't meant to last. I was able to enjoy the company of a smaller master for a short two months before he transferred himself into his current body._

_His human form remains the same, but it is his armored form which has changed and I do not like it._

_As I gaze upon our master, Juuyon-sama, in his armor, I can't help but feel both awed and terrified. I am awed at his powerful presence, but his appearance scares me the most. Gone is the gentleness which I am familiar with as his face is concealed behind a metal mask, with red eyes that blaze like flames and teeth, sharp like a shark's. His frame is broader, his height is taller, and his hands are cold with fingers that end with claws so sharp they might tear into my skin. Mounted on his right arm is a cannon; a terrible weapon which is able to destroy anything with a single blast. It is his signature weapon, aside from his sword._

_I doubted that this form allows him to display any form of kindness, but then when I was injured from protecting him instead of standing his ground and fighting he spirited me away to rest and recover. I heard him call my name and felt him catch me even if he risked harming me with his claws. He would not let me fall._

_I think I caught a glimpse of his gaze in that form softening for a fraction of a second, but maybe it was just my mind playing tricks on me. What I do know is real was the kiss and the praise he gave me.__  
__That was a week ago._

_Today, I watch as he sits down on the throne which had been adjusted to suit his larger size. He points to me, beckons me over, and pats his lap. I did not refuse as I climbed upon his lap, sitting down while he puts his hand on my back to keep me balanced. He gently strokes my hair and I try to enjoy it. Unfortunately, all I feel is cold steel. However, at the same time I feel a sense of warmth as he speaks to me. I notice the others glaring at me with envy but I ignore them. Juuyon-sama had chosen me to sit in his lap._

_Mr. Fluffy pads into the bridge. He hasn't been seen for a long time. I wonder why. Anyway, Mr. Fluffy gets on his hind legs and puts his forelegs on Juuyon-sama's shin.__  
__Juuyon-sama picks Mr. Fluffy up by the scruff off his neck and plants him in my neck. I ran my hand across Mr. Fluffy's warm fur. He may not be a real cat but he felt like one. I smile at Juuyon-sama who seems uncomfortable at the way I am looking at him._

_I stare at the symbol on his chest, which is a circle depicting eight snakes connected by their tails and swirling from the centre. This is the insignia we all wear._

_We are OROCHI._

* * *

Everyone on Earth had witnessed Shiro's broadcast and as expected reactions varied. At first he was delivering a threat, but then everyone saw what he was doing afterwards and people were either disgusted or aroused. The ones who got aroused were the perverts, of course. They had been able to see the Bakeneko Kunoichi's naked breasts. Parents closed the eyes of their children to prevent them from seeing the vulgar sight.

* * *

Akane Sonozaki's left eye twitched after what she'd seen and heard on television.

"Dear, are you okay?" her husband asked, still a little stunned by the announcement and the 'show' which followed.

"What kind of idiotic invader would forget to turn off his broadcast before doing that…that…I just don't have any words for it," Akane said, both confused and agitated. It had been lewd.

* * *

Shiori, Kasai, AI-Shin and Satoko and Rika had all witnessed the broadcast. However, instead of being frightened by the threat of destruction, Shiori was scribbling down notes instead. She'd gotten ideas from what she'd seen.

"How can she think about her books at a time like this?" Kasai asked.

"_That's Kaa-chan for you_," said AI-Shin. "_She's able to stay calm by focusing on something else_."

"Well, isn't that just great," grumbled Satoko, trying to hide her fear with bravado. To be honest, the sight of the building being disintegrated like that really hit home how serious this matter was.

Rika was thinking, '_Hanyuu, Shinichi, you better beat this freak._'

* * *

The Photography Club in Shishibone City were having a debate.

"It's obviously alien," claimed Araki calmly.

"Really, man? We're all under attack by a dude who might be an idiot! How can you stay calm!-?" Ootori snapped. Seeing that building being destroyed on screen had a frightening effect on her.

"Who says I'm not scared? I'm terrified. It's just that I'm glad there's actual proof that alien life exists. I don't know what they want with Kyoto but I do have some ideas."

"Hey, same old Araki," Keima said as he tried to wake up Fujiko who'd passed out not from Shiro's threat but from the vulgar scene following it.

Ootori was wondering where Kanna and Shinichi were at this time.

* * *

Rena, Shawna, Mion, Shion, Satoshi and Keiichi were watching the news report on the TV in the cafeteria.

"OK, when he was whipping out his junk I almost didn't take him seriously," said Satoshi. "And that was before he showed us what kind of heat he's packing."

"Did you see those catgirls?" Keiichi asked. "I mean did you _see_?" He was referring to how sexy they were.

"Kei-chan," Mion shook her head, "Don't get creepy on me."

Shawna said hopefully, "We mustn't be afraid. Sir Shinichi and his comrades will be able to stop this perverted monster."

"He always has a habit of saving the day at the last minute," admitted Satoshi.

"Shin-kun, gambatte," Rena prayed.

* * *

Displayed on the main monitor were news programs from all over the world, each displayed in its own little box. "Juuyon-sama, they're all talking about you," Momoneko pointed.

"Well, a giant pyramid appearing in the sky can attract a lot of attention from the media," chuckled Master-14.

"They're even saying we're alien invaders," giggled Momoneko.

"For all intent and purposes, we should be," reasoned Master-14. "We're an unknown element which has invaded their lives so they're trying to make sense of it."

"Ah, you mean like when one of those humans thinks it's all just mass hypnosis," nodded Momoneko.

"Some prefer denial to acceptance." he said to her. He turned to the Cyber Leader, "Cyber Leader, are the Cybermen guarding the drill?"

"**They are, Cyber Master**," answered the leader of the Cybermen.

"DALEK Gary, are the DALEKs stationed around the base?" Master-14 questioned.

"**Yes, they are in position**," DALEK Gary confirmed.

Master-14 just smiled a small sinister grin as he petted Mr. Fluffy gently across his back. "Excellent. Now, let's see who makes the first move."

* * *

Down on the ground, Cybermen stood in a circle, facing outwards, around the giant drill. The Cybermen were armed with Cyber-Rifles, powerful energy weapons that fired lasers to stun or kill, but mostly kill. Meanwhile, surrounding the Pyramid Base itself, hovering in the air, were hundreds of DALEK's, ready to exterminate any intruders to their airspace.

* * *

"**Cyber Master, military jets are inbound," **reported a Cyberman at the radar screen.

"Looks like they're actually taking me seriously," grinned Master-14, his shark-like teeth exposed. "And I thought my 'accidental' slip would give them mixed messages." he mused while gently stroking a single fingertip up and down Momoneko's side, causing her to shudder with anticipation and purr at the same time. "How many?"

"**Counting fifteen, Cyber Master."**

"Show them how foolish their actions are," ordered Master-14.

* * *

The jets came close to the pyramid and were ready to fire, but a swarm of DALEK's was flying towards them.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE THEM!**" one DALEK cried.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" the others shouted as they simultaneously fired their death rays at the jets. Explosions lit up the sky as the jets were shot down. The jets retaliated, firing their missiles, but the DALEK's were fast as they evaded before firing back with their death rays. Jets exploded before their remains came crashing down to the ground. A number of pilots were able to eject before their jets exploded but they were killed when the DALEK's spotted them and fired at them with their death rays.

"**HU-MANS IN-FE-RIOR! DA-LEKS SU-PE-RIOR!"**

* * *

"**Ground military forces are coming towards the drill," **the radar Cyberman reported.

"Order the Cybermen to delete them," said Master-14. Honestly, didn't these people understand that their efforts were useless? Apparently, humans were just too stupid to understand that they were facing a superior opponent.

* * *

The Cybermen formed a line between the oncoming soldiers, tanks and military jeeps which had come to deal with them and their drill. They had already received their orders. "Delete." They fired their laser rifles, killing soldiers and blowing up jeeps. The soldiers fought back with their own weapons, but the bullets bounced off the Cybermen's armor. Of course, tank shells and bazookas were affective as Cybermen were blown up as well.

"**Delete. Delete. Delete**," the Cybermen chanted. Several of them charged at the soldiers and leapt onto the tanks before blowing up themselves, performing a Kamikaze move that destroyed the tanks and a many of the soldiers. Of course, there were survivors despite being heavily wounded. The Cybermen marched over to them.

"**You will be upgraded.**" They grabbed the wounded soldiers and teleported to the base to add them to their numbers. They would become new Cybermen to replace the ones destroyed.

* * *

"Wow, he really isn't playing around," said Yokoshima as they witnessed the building being destroyed by the De-Atomizer Cannon. They had also seen the military's attempt at trying to stop Shiro, which was met with disastrous results for them. "But what was all that stuff after his message?"

"He's sending mixed signals," said Shinichi. "Everyone isn't sure if they want to take him seriously or not. They can take him seriously because of his weapons, but because of his little slip up they might just think he's an idiot with big guns. But even an idiot can be dangerous if you give him the right weapons and show them how to pull the trigger."

"And those girls had big guns too," grinned Yokoshima.

"Not the time, Yokoshima," frowned Daichi.

"I just can't believe he was able to hide a base that big for so long," said Michiru.

"The energy shielding he has around it probably prevents detection," said Hana. "It doesn't exist on radar but we can plainly see it."

"_That is correct_," Sheila confirmed. "_While the Pyramid visually exists, it does not appear on radar_."

"But why now?" Michiru asked. "Why show his fortress now?"

"He needs the big drill to free the Orochi," Hana reasoned. "It's the only reason he's showing his whole base to us. That, and he just wants to show off. It's a big show of power. He wants everyone to know that they can't stop him."

"That or he could be overcompensating for something," Yokoshima interjected as a joke but got stares that told him otherwise. "Yeah, yeah, I know, 'shut up, Yokoshima'."

"Actually, this might actually be a good thing," said Daichi.

"Whaddya mean, Dai?" Yokoshima asked.

"Think about it. Shiro's brought his base out into the open. If we attack now before he wakes up the Orochi, we would seriously cripple him," Daichi stated.

"Yeah, but that place is a fortress. I mean just look at it. It even has that cannon thing and who knows what its defences are. Even if we do get in there's probably an army waiting for us on the inside," Yokoshima argued.

"Just leave that to me," Alan spoke up. He asked, "Yuji, think you can get us inside?"

"I think that can be arranged," Yuji grinned. "I'm going to need Sheila's help, though."

"_How may I be of assistance?_" Sheila asked.

"Is it possible to use the Teleportal to get inside?" Yuji asked.

"_Shielding creates interference for coordinates to be locked_," Sheila said. "_But, I will still try_."

"That's all I ask," nodded Yuji.

"We're going to need to split into two teams. One team will infiltrate the base and stop Shiro while the other team will stop the drill. He needs that drill to free the Orochi," said Shinichi. "Since we know Shiro has access to Gnol Gnauh and the Orochi spawns' powers, we're going to need our heavy hitters to fight him." He looked to Team 5D's. "Yuji, I'm going to need you and Team 5D's."

"Alright!" Yuri grinned, punching his palm.

"Alan's gonna be part of the infiltration team too," said Shinichi.

"I'm coming too," volunteered Hanyuu.

"No, Hanyuu," Shinichi denied.

Hanyuu scowled, eyes glowing red, and while it was frightening Shinichi would not let her persuade him through fear. She argued, "He's killed members of my clan. I must avenge them."

"Hey, let her come along," said Jin. "I mean what's the worst that can happen?"

"She's my little sister," Shinichi retorted. He addressed Hanyuu, "Kaa-chan made me promise to take care of you. Taking you into enemy territory is going to be dangerous."

"Shinichi, don't underestimate me. You know what I'm capable of." Now her hair was floating around her head as her aura flared.

"I'm not underestimating you and don't think that just because you're a goddess means that you can win," he retorted, trying to get her to see to reason but he easily saw the determined look in her eyes.

"I understand that, Shinichi. But I, like you, have a score to settle with Shiro," Hanyuu said as she relaxed her powers, returning to normal. "And I will not be stopped from paying him back in the name of the Kekkain clan. Not even by you."

Now Shinichi was getting irritated. Every time he tried to be the protective older brother it backfired in his face. He knew that she could handle herself in a fight but he didn't want to risk the chance of her getting injured or worse. While she was not so arrogant when she was in the form of a young child, she was now becoming more her own woman which seemed to affect her childish personality a bit. It was something that was constantly grinding on his nerves and he was really starting to get fed up with it. He really wondered if maybe having been around her and the rest of their friends and all the battles that had happened in Hinamizawa that might be causing this friction between them. That was something he would have to find out though some other time.

After taking a deep breath, Shinichi just sighed and gave up. "…Fine," he groaned. "Just stick close to us, OK? It's not just Shiro who's gonna be in there. It's his entire army." Hanyuu nodded in understanding but far be it from Shinichi that he would let her have her way for long. '_You and I are so going to have a sit down once this whole war with Shiro and the Orochi is over, Hanyuu_,' he scolded mentally.

"So, that just leaves us to handle the drill," said Battler. "That's gonna be easy."

"Sabotage," grinned Yokoshima. "Just like the good old days."

"It'll still be heavily guarded by Cybermen," said Dr. Magi. "Do you think it will work?"

Before anyone could answer, the main monitor displayed Master-14's face. "_Greetings, my enemies_," he greeted.

"Shiro!" Shinichi exclaimed as everyone looked at their enemies' face displayed on the screen. "How did you get this frequency?"

"_Do you really think you can block a genius, like me, out?_" Master-14 scoffed.

"Someone sure thinks highly of himself," commented Kai.

"_I know your plan. You want to infiltrate my base, sabotage my drill, and ruin my plans_," Master-14 said, surprising them. How could he have known? Sheila had performed daily examinations of the base for any bugs. "_Ah, you're surprised that I know and you're wondering how._ _If you want to know how I know, why don't you look right at her,_" Master-14 pointed. Everyone's eyes followed to where he was pointing and focused on Shizuko. She was present during the meeting because Yuji had brought her along for another medical check-up earlier.

"Me?" Shizuko questioned. Looking at the face on the monitor caused her to feel great fear. She knew that face, but she didn't know how.

"_Oh, Shizuko, don't you remember me? I guess the trauma was too much for you_," teased Master-14. Yuji stood between Shizuko and Shiro's image on the screen, facing the deranged bio-android. "_Oh, coming to the defence of your new pussy?_" mocked Master-14.

"Don't you dare talk about her like that," growled Yuji. "I'm not going to let you get your hands on her again."

"_Don't you know who she was before you saved her?_" Master-14 questioned. "_Gnol Gnauh's whore. That's what she is. She's just a whore who's ready to spread her legs for anybody_," Shiro said mockingly. "_Well, for anyone who's willing to take in a used whore such as her. Like any other useless pussy, give it a bit of love and they'll do anything for you._"

"I'm warning you…shut up," Yuji growled.

"_Well, I put her to better use. Did you really think I would just let her escape alive?_" Master-14 scoffed. "_I had a need for her. She became my eyes and ears_."

"What?" Shinichi asked.

"_She's my mole_," Master-14 clarified. "_My little spy_."

"I knew it!" Daichi snapped. "I knew there was something off about her! She's been spying on us for him!" Daichi accused.

"Daichi, I think it's more complicated than that," said Alan. "Or not complicated at all. Let me guess, an implant which turns her eyes and ears into video and audio transmitters. Am I right? And she didn't even know. What's better than a spy that doesn't know she's a spy?"

"_Clever,_" Master-14 complimented. "_But now that I'm in the final stage of my plan and I've learnt all I needed through her, she's no longer needed_." He held up his Dark Xrosser threateningly. "_Shizuko, consider your employment terminated_." He pressed a button and he vanished as the screen went black.

Shizuko suddenly shrieked as she fell to her knees and holding her head in pain. "SHIZUKO!" Yuji yelled. "WHAT'S WRONG? SHIZUKO!"

"IT'S MY HEAD…MY HEAD! IT HURTS! IT HURTS!" Alan immediately squatted at her side and shone the Sonic Screwdriver into her eyes.

"What are you doing?" Yuji demanded.

"Severing the link! Hold her steady!" Alan answered and Yuji held onto Shizuko tightly as she continued to scream in agony. "Just…a few more seconds…DONE!" Shizuko's body went rigid for a moment before she passed out in Yuji's arms.

"Is she OK?" Yuji asked, holding Shizuko close.

"She should be. I severed the link before it killed her but she needs to be treated," said Alan. He scanned her, "But according to this, she won't be having any problems."

"Thank goodness," said Yuji, relieved. But then his emotions shifted and his eyes radiated with blazing, hot fury. Shiro was going to pay for this.

"You know, partner. That little sonic thing is really starting to become your new favourite toy," said Bazel.

"Jealous, Bazel?" Alan remarked, grinning.

"Hey, no way! I'm way better than that little stick. There are things I can do that it can't."

* * *

"So, did you do it? Is she dead?" Momoneko asked.

"No," Master-14 frowned. "They just cut the link before she died. Must be Alan and that screwdriver of his again. Doesn't matter, really. She wasn't really a good spy to begin with." Yuji had taken Shizuko home with him so Shiro hadn't been able to learn anything important for weeks. It was only during that meeting that she'd become useful. It was all just a matter of taking a chance presented to him.

"Shiro-sama, aren't you worried?" Momoneko asked. She knew how their enemies reacted when someone they loved was harmed. They would seek her master out for retribution.

"Not really, my dear," said Master-14, grinning. "There's nothing they can do now so late in the game." He asked, "Aoneko, how far down has the drill gone?"

"We're making progress, Juuyon-sama. The drill's gone pretty deep," the blue-haired Bakeneko reported from her station as she monitored the drill's progress.

Suddenly, Master-14 clutched his head in pain. The drumming in his head had just intensified which meant that he was close to his objective.

"Ugh…" Master-14 grunted, "I'll take your word for it." He had a feeling that by the end of the day he was going to have a record breaking headache.

"Are you alright?" Momoneko asked, caressing her master's face.

"Just a migraine, nothing to worry about," he said, smiling reassuringly.

* * *

"OK, is everyone ready?" Shinichi asked and everyone nodded. "Alright, then let's go and stop this bastard for good."

"Are you sure it'll be alright?" Yokoshima questioned.

"He would probably have developed countermeasures anyway," said Shogo. "It's not going to stop us."

"Besides, there's no way I'm going to let him off after what he tried to pull on Shizuko," Yuji growled.

"Alan, you know what to do," Shinichi said to his brother whose ring was glowing.

"Yeah, I do," nodded Sentinel. "Let's do this."

"Sheila, open up a Teleportal for the Sabotage Team," Shinichi ordered.

"_Affirmative,_" Sheila obeyed. "_Coordinates are locked. Ready for transport._"

"After you, brother," said Shinichi to Sentinel.

"Much obliged," nodded Sentinel.

* * *

In Kyoto, as soon as the swirling green portal appeared, the Cybermen aimed their weapons at it but a green and black blur flew out and knocked them all down like bowling pins. "ATTACK!" Sentinel ordered. Both Zero and Blue Beetle roared as they came charging out. The team of super-powered cyborgs along with the Green Lantern decimated the Cybermen as they were blasted and blown up, scattering pieces of them all over the street. The Cybermen tried to fight back with their weapons only for Sentinel to blast them out of their hands and crush them with his strength. Slasher, Carmen and Arachnea were slashing at them with their weapons. Zero was firing his missiles as Meta and Blue Beetle did the same. Musician was using his Cricket Guitar to send devastating blasts of sound, sending the Cybermen flying.

"Shogo, Yokoshima, you're both with me. It's time for aerial combat!"

Blue Beetle and Zero (Fighter Form) both said, "Yes sir!" before following Sentinel skyward after dealing with the Cybermen on the ground. They were going to attack the Pyramid as the rest of their team dealt with the drill and the remaining Cybermen.

The DALEK's surrounding the Pyramid screamed, "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" repeatedly as hey fired at three fliers. Blue Beetle conjured his hand blaster and fired at the DALEK's, while Zero unleashed a salvo of missiles. The DALEK's in their path exploded. Sentinel was using his ring and imagination to the fullest, conjuring destructive weapons from green energy and willpower. In his other hand, he wielded the Kusanagi no Tsurugi which he used to slice the DALEK's apart.

* * *

"The drill has been compromised!" reported Aoneko and suddenly the Pyramid shook. "We are under attack!"

"What about the DALEKs?" Master-14 demanded.

"They've been wiped out!"

* * *

"OK, that's the last of them," said Sentinel as explosions erupted and died behind him. "Now, onto the main course!"

Outside, Sentinel, Zero and Blue Beetle were unleashing hell as they used their firepower on the Pyramid.

"Shields are too strong, sir!" Zero reported.

"They've gotta break anyway!" Sentinel shot back. "Just keep firing!"

"Alright!" Blue Beetle fired his leg mounted missile launcher and Gatling gun at the Pyramid. "Take that!"

* * *

"Our shields are almost down!" Aoneko reported, panicking.

"**Hostile elements have been detected**," said the Cyber Leader.

"Thanks for stating the obvious!" Master-14 snapped. "Bring up external camera feed." The screen showed Sentinel, Blue Beetle and Zero attacking the base. "Heh, as expected."

"What do we do, Juuyon-sama?" Momoneko asked.

"Activate the defence systems and shoot them out of the sky!" Master-14 roared.

* * *

Panels on the Pyramid slid away to reveal laser turrets and missile launchers and there were a lot of them. The lasers fired at Zero and Blue Beetle as they dodged. A laser came streaking towards Blue Beetle but he was able to deflect it with his shield. Sentinel and Zero both worked together to take out the laser turrets.

The missiles were locked on and fired, and they flew through the air towards the fliers. Sentinel countered this by forming a barrier around himself, Zero and Blue Beetle. The missiles slammed against the barrier, exploding, but doing no damage whatsoever to it.

"Whoa, that was close." Blue Beetle said but then noticed more missiles coming their way as more laser fire started raining down on them. "Whoa…hey…watch out…missed me!" Blue Beetle cried out as he dodged every single laser that came at him while both Sentinel and Zero fired their own weapons at the laser turrets, taking them out. A few remaining missiles came flying out and straight towards Blue Beetle and both Zero and Sentinel flew to aid him.

"Yokoshima, move it!" Zero ordered but Yokoshima had a different idea in mind.

"Nah, I think it's time I gave my newest idea a try," Blue Beetle said as his head, shoulders and arms began to glow for a brief moment.

"New idea?" Sentinel asked aloud and Zero just shrugged his shoulders.

After a few seconds passed the light died down and now Blue Beetle's armor changed a bit. His forearms had silver bar magnet plates on them with blue tops, **N** etched on the right and **S** etched on the left. His collar, torso, shoulders and head were covered by a single blue armor shell which had a pair of strange cannons jutting outwards past his front. The front of his helmet was completely covered in black tinted glass which only allows the glowing hue of his red eyepieces to pierce through. His belt also had a set of joysticks in the shape of bar magnets sticking up, allowing Blue Beetle to take hold.

"Alright, have a taste of your own medicine ya bastard!" Blue Beetle shouted as he pulled the triggers on the joysticks on his buckle, firing a wave of magnetic energy to create an electromagnetic repulsor shield, deflecting the missiles and sending them right back at the missile launchers, taking the whole lot of them out.

"Okay, I must admit, that was pretty cool," Sentinel admitted. While Yokoshima was a bonafied idiot, he seemed to be mastering the Blue Beetle armor after training with it for so long.

"And that's not all." Blue Beetle said and then looked over at Sentinel. "Alan, grab me a big piece of metal and set it in front of me." Sentinel nodded and, using his ring, lifted up the remains of a destroyed DALEK and held it before Blue Beetle. As the floating DALEK shell was held in place, a horseshoe-shaped railgun formed off of Blue Beetle back armor and floated above his head, the barrels covering the DALEK's body in magnetic force, crushing it into a metal ball. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" With that, Blue Beetle pulled the trigger on his right joystick and sent the DALEK ball flying at more than three times the speed of sound, slamming the metal ball into an opening within the destroyed missile launcher bay. "Booyah!" he shouted as his armor reverted back to its normal state while pumping his fist up into the air.

* * *

"Deploy the DALEK Saucers and Cyber-Fighters!" Master-14 ordered, "And increase security around that drill!"

"**I will lead the DALEK Saucers into battle**," said DALEK Gary.

"**As will I, Cyber Master. I will lead the Cyber-Fighters**," said the Cyber Leader.

"Then go, delete and exterminate them," Master-14 permitted.

"**I obey!**" both the Cyber Leader and DALEK Gary said.

* * *

"No matter how tough Cybermen are, they are just worthless tin soldiers," Musician sneered as he drove his fist through a Cyberman's chest which blew it up. "That's the last of them." His eyes focused on the drill. "And now let's take care of this thing."

Suddenly, in flashes of light, Combatroids and Beastroids appeared, replacing the fallen Cybermen. The Beastroids, androids which resembled animals, lookd extremely mean and the Combatroids were armed and dangerous.

"And here we go again," grimaced Meta.

The Beastroids roared as they attacked along with the Combatroids. The Combatroids struck with speed while their animalistic counterparts fought with fury and ferocity. A Tiger Beastroid swiped its claw across Carmen's chest, sending her reeling but it was kicked back by Arachnea who was then shot at by Combatroids. Meta and Musician knocked them down with psychic power and sonic blasts respectively but the Combatroids got back to their feet and surrounded the duo. The two brought up their fists to guard themselves as the Combatroids started to pummel at them. Immediately, Meta punched the ground with enough force to create a shock wave, sending the Combatroids, and Musician, flying.

Slasher was using the Onigari no Ryuou to parry the blade of a Lizard Beastroid and was rammed in the side by a Buffalo Beastroid, sending him tumbling. The Buffalo Beastroid then got down on its hands and knees and a secret compartment on its back opened up to reveal missile launchers. It fired and Slasher screamed as he was hit by the explosive projectiles. When the explosions cleared, a Hawk Beastroid came swooping in, slashing with its talons at the biggest of the NEO-NUMBERS.

Combatroids started to collapse as Arachnea used her acid on them but this cleared the way for a Spider Beastroid to attack with its eight, bladed arms. Sparks flew as Arachnea defended herself with her claws. Another Scorpion Beastroid lunged for her but was intercepted by Carmen. Combatroids tackled into Carmen, sending her to the ground and piling on top of her as the Beastroids advanced. Suddenly, the Combatroids were lifted off Carmen and sent flying at the Beastroids, knocking them off their feet. Carmen knew she had Meta to thank so she sent him a brief message through the telepathic link, 'Thanks,' and picked up her scythes to attack, slashing away as sparks flew from the enemy forces.

Musician was shooting at the Combatroids and Beastroids with his Heavy Metal Vulcan, shooting at them with guitar as it fired sonic bullets at them. The Combatroids fell but the Beastroids were made of tougher stuff. A Tortoise Beastroid stuffed its head back into its chell and a cannon slid out. It aimed and fired, sending Musician flying violently and into the arms of a Grizzly Bear Beastroid which started to hug the life out of him.

Meta saw this and fired his missiles at the Grizzly Bear Beastroid's back, forcing him to release his comrade. He then charged with super speed and sliced the Beastroid's head off with his retractable blade. Musician, once released, charged at the Tortoise Beastroid, jumping around and dodging its attack before he buried his fist into the cannon barrel. He vibrates his fist, causing internal damage to the Beastroid and destroying it. He then reformed his Cricket Guitar and formed his Cricket Fork in his other hand. He dual-wielded them, cutting down the number of their enemies.

Meta took out the skull-shaped device and fitted it to his Spark Core. In a flash he'd turned into his Blast Mode and felt revitalized. He then used his super-speed and moved like lightning, striking down Combatroids and Beastroids in a flash. They exploded instantly.

Arachnea and Carmen were working together to take the android army. The chain of Carmen's scythes tied around several Beastroids, binding them together, and they became targets for Arachnea's claws and corrosive venom. Slasher was cutting down Beastroids and Combatroids coming at him with his chainsaw and Onigari no Ryuou. It was a challenge as they came in numbers but he used his glue to stick them in place, leaving them as sitting ducks for him to carve up.

All the while, the drill still spun, undisturbed.

* * *

The Pyramid shook again.

"Juuyon-sama, we've just lost our shields!" Aoneko cried in alarm.

"How long until they're back online?" he demanded.

"30 minutes!" she reported and she cringed at his expression.

* * *

"OK, they've brought the shields down," Shinichi smiled. "Sheila, can you get us in now?"

"_Affirmative,_" Sheila answered as a Teleportal opened. "_Good luck, everyone, and have a nice day_."

"We will, Sheila!" Hanyuu beamed.

* * *

"Guys, it's doing something weird right now," said Blue Beetle as the top half and bottom halves of the Pyramid Base twisted in two different directions. They soon learnt what it was doing as DALEK Saucers and Cyber-Fighters were deployed.

"Let's shoot these things out of the sky!" Sentinel ordered.

"Roger!" Zero obeyed.

Lasers soon streaked through the air as the three heroes faced a fleet of deadly aircrafts. A laser nearly took out one of Zero's wings but he was able to avoid it but there were just so many enemies in the air with them. Blue Beetle, of course, conjured a pair of shoulder cannons to shoot a couple of Cyber-Fighters out of the sky.

* * *

Meanwhile, a Teleportal opened inside the Pyramid. Shinichi and the Infiltration Team exited and stepped onto an observation deck.

"OK, where exactly are we now?" Yuji asked.

"Guys, you might wanna take a look at this," said Kai as he pointed down and they all looked over the railing to see what he was pointing at.

"We're in a factory," said Shinichi, frowning. He saw the prisoners held in a cage and one man was dragged into some sort of chamber. Screaming was heard before a Cyberman exited. Nearby was a DALEK assembly line and Dalek Darkloids were being put inside the machines. "This is where he makes his toy soldiers."

"Well, let's put a wrench in his plans," Yuri grinned. "You guys with me?"

"Hanyuu, stick with me," said Shinichi. He heard scuttling and saw something crawling on the railing. It was a Cyberdrone. "Uh-oh." It had spotted them.

* * *

"Intruders have been detected," reported Akaneko. She brought up the footage the Cyberdrone had caught "They're in the factory."

"So, they know I know and they still went with it," Master-14 said, impressed, "They're either stupid, brave, or both. Well, might as well give them a warm welcome." He took out his Dark Xrosser. "All units in the factory, delete and exterminate all intruders!"

Master-14 suddenly screamed as the drumming in his head intensified further.

"Juuyon-sama!" Momoneko cried out as she checked to see if he was OK and was surprised to see him with a demonic grin plastered on his face.

"We're getting closer. We're about to free this thing!" he said.

* * *

The DALEK's and Cybermen fired at the group on the observation deck as Hanyuu put up a barrier around them.

"We gotta get out of here!" yelled Shinichi.

"Onii-sama, you go with Hanyuu and Shinichi to find Shiro," said Yuki. "We'll handle the DALEK's and Cybermen."

"OK!" Yuji nodded. "Just be careful. Oh, and Yuri, take care of your sister!"

"No need to tell me twice!" yelled Yuri. "Now, just move!"

Yuji, Hanyuu and Shinichi ran for the elevator as the rest of their team leapt into combat. Ice, wind, darkness, and electricity went flying along with laser fire as the four Manakytes engaged a fraction of Shiro's army.

* * *

Shinichi, Yuji and Hanyuu exited the elevator. Shinichi commented, "You know, it's kind of convenient that Shiro put in a directory in the elevator."

"A little too convenient," Yuji frowned suspiciously. "Now, let's find the bridge."

"Here's a map," said Hanyuu as she stood at the map posted on the wall. "OK, we're right here," she said, pointing at the spot labelled 'YOU ARE HERE'. "So, according to this the bridge should be…" Her finger traced along the path. "Ah, here it is."

"Let's go, but quietly," Shinichi said.

* * *

Meanwhile, back outside, Sentinel, Zero and Blue Beetle were in the middle of a dogfight with the DALEK Saucers and Cyber-Fighters. Explosions lit up the sky as missiles and lasers were fired by the enemy aircrafts.

"Whoa!" Zero shouted as he narrowly dodged a laser from one of the Cyber-Fighters. Inside said Cyber-Fighter was the Cyber Leader.

"**You will be deleted**," the Cyber Leader said as he continued to fire at Zero. Blue Beetle landed on top of the Cyber Fighter.

"Hey, pick on someone your own size!" Blue Beetle shouted as he formed his arm cannon only to be knocked off by a DALEK Saucer. "Ah!" he cried as he hung onto the front, staring at a DALEK in the clear window of its cockpit. Climbing on, Blue Beetle conjured his blaster weapon and took aim. "DALEK, prepare to be exterminated!" He fired and the Saucer exploded.

Sentinel blasted through a Cyber-Fighter with his own body like a missile and it exploded behind him. He fired his ring at the enemy aircrafts, shooting them out of the sky. He ducked as missiles flew at him from behind and turned to see a DALEK Saucer headed right for him. Inside the Saucer was DALEK Gary.

DALEK Gary boomed**, "YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT MASTER SHIRO! HE WILL FREE THE OROCHI!"**

"Hey, never say never," Sentinel smiled as he landed on the saucer, staring straight at the DALEK in the cockpit. He used a ring to cut a hole into the cockpit, allowing him to access the Saucer as he took out the Kusanagi no Tsurugi.

"**Ejecting!" **shouted Gary as he tried to flee.

"Oh no you don't!" He used his ring to hold DALEK Gary in place, binding him in a lasso of green energy. "You're not getting away from me!"

"**Exterminate! Exterminate!" **Gary exclaimed as he fired at Sentinel only for the Lantern to deflect the death rays with the Kusanagi. He dashed, closing the distance, and sliced Gary in half, causing him to explode. The aircraft exploded as Sentinel exited, watching as its remains rained down on the city. A few DALEK Saucers saw what happened to their leader and tried to avenge him, only to meet the same fate.

* * *

"Oh my god! They killed Gary!" Akaneko exclaimed as she watched DALEK Gary's aircraft being destroyed.

"Those bastards!" Aoneko yelled.

Master-14 sneered and pointed the Dark Xrosser upwards. A cable with a suction cup on the end fell in front of Master-14.

"What's that, Juuyon-sama?" asked Momoneko as her master attached the sucker-tipped cable to his chest.

"Just something to even the odds for us," he told her.

* * *

**BANG!**

**Click!**

**BANG!**

**Click!**

**BANG!**

**Click!**

"Oh yeah, triple headshot!" Shinichi cheered as the three Cybermen collapsed with holes in their helmets, the bullets penetrating their brains and killing them stone cold.

"Come on, we're almost there," Hanyuu led the way only to run straight into a DALEK.

"**IN-TRU-DERS WILL BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**" It aimed to fire only for Yuji to blast it with a fireball. Hanyuu backpedalled before the DALEK exploded as it was consumed by fire.

"Talk about your winds of war," Yuji said as he blew smoke from his fingers but then turned around as the sound of another DALEK coming up from behind him.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MI-**" the DALEK began until a hole was blasted right through the center of its dome shaped head, killing it instantly. Yuji and Hanyuu both looked over at Shinichi who just performed a mock blow at the barrel of his shotgun and then twirled it around while smiling.

"Headshot, muthafucker." said Shinichi softly.

"Better be careful," advised Yuji. "This place is crawling with Shiro's lackeys."

"And more are coming," said Shinichi as he heard metal footsteps. He cocked his shotgun.

* * *

Meanwhile, Zero and Blue Beetle were being pursued by the Cyber Leader as it fired at them with its Cyber-Fighter's lasers to 'delete' them.

"**Targets locked," **the Cyber Leader prepared his missiles and fired. Blue Beetle and Zero took off in different directions, the missiles following after them. Zero took out the missile pursuing him with his own projectiles as Blue Beetle fired his blasted at the missile pursuing him, causing it to explode prematurely.

"OK, I'M FINISHING THIS!" roared Blue Beetle as he formed his Rocket and Drill. "ROCKET DRILL KICK!" He propelled himself towards the Cyber Leader's aircraft but the Cyber Leader maneuvered his aircraft out of the way and let loose more firepower upon Blue Beetle. "Damn it! Yo, Zero!" Blue Beetle called out to his friend who turned to look at him. "Keep him occupied for a sec so that he doesn't see what hit 'em!"

"You got it!" Zero shouted back and then let loose a volley of explosive needle fire upon the Cyber Leader's Cyber-Fighter, causing the Cyber Leader's attention to fall upon Zero instead of Blue Beetle.

"Perfect," Blue Beetle said to himself as he formed another rocket on his left arm and a large drill formed from both of his boots. "Okay, try this ya fucker! DOUBLE ROCKET MEGA DRILL KICK!" Blue Beetle came down with the large drill as he slammed right into the Cyber-Fighter and burst right through it causing it to explode with the Cyber Leader inside. "Yattaze!"

* * *

"**Cyber Leader has been deleted**," reported a Cyberman.

"Charge the De-Atomizer Cannon, and take aim," ordered Master-14 as he slammed his fist down on the armrest of his throne.

* * *

The De-Atomizer Cannon was revealed and it charged up, aimed at the three. However, Alan would not allow it to fire. He concentrated his power into the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and a blade of energy surrounded it, expanding, before he swung.

"I don't think so!" Sentinel shouted as he swung the blade downward in a vertical slash, slicing through the cannon and causing it to explode.

* * *

"**De-Atomizer Cannon has been destroyed**."

Master-14 cursed angrily. But then he checked the gauge displayed on his cannon. The weapon was ready and charged. "Alright, Alan Smith. Let's see if you like the taste of _this_ weapon."

* * *

Another hi-tech cannon appeared, replacing the one Sentinel had destroyed. It was glowing green and for some reason it made him sick just looking at it and for good reason to as his eyes widened in realization. He went to destroy it but it was faster as it fired a beam of green energy into Sentinel. His ring's energy barrier prevented most of the radiation from touching him but he felt weakened by it already. It fired another volley of blasts. Sentinel dodged but his movements were sluggish and he was hit some more before another one sent him plunging towards the ground at high speeds.

Zero, noticing this, flew straight down and caught Sentinel who looked ill. "What happened?"

"Kryp…Kryptonite," Sentinel coughed. "I feel…weak…"

* * *

"That will keep him out of our hair for a few minutes until the shields charge back up," said Master-14.

"What about the intruders heading this way?" Momoneko asked worriedly.

"Well, they'll be facing me then," he grinned. He was going to be absolutely ruthless on them. The drumming in his head increased in frequency. He could imagine it playing a beat that translated to 'Kill them all, Kill them all, Kill them all.'

* * *

Shinichi, Yuji and Hanyuu were sneaking around the hallway before they had to dart into a room as Midoneko and Kineko walked past.

"Momoneko's been hogging Juuyon-sama all week," complained Kineko.

"What do you expect? After she shielded him and helped him discover the truth, he's become his new favourite." said Midoneko, but she was just as jealous.

"Mou…I want Juuyon-sama to give me some attention too!" whined Kineko.

After the two Bakeneko Kunoichi turned a corner to the left, the three heroes exited the room. "That…was close," murmured Hanyuu, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Yeah, though I have to wonder what they see in a psychopath like Shiro anyway," said Shinichi.

"Now's not the time to ask questions like that. We've got a job to do," said Yuji, reminding them of the mission.

* * *

Yuri cackled as he unleashed blasts of darkness which swallowed several DALEK's whole. "It's like shooting fish in a barrel!"

Kai was letting loose bolts of lightning, zapping the Cybermen and causing them to drop dead. Jin, on the other hand, was sending the mechanical soldiers flying with bursts of wind.

"You know, I haven't seen a Combatdroid or Beastroid in a while," said Yuki as she froze and shattered several DALEK's.

"Shiro must've scrapped and melted them down to make his tin soldiers here," Jin said.

"I doubt it," Yuki frowned. "He could've had them deployed outside."

"So, how many left?" Kai asked.

"A lot, and they'll keep coming if you don't take out those machines," said Yuki. She glanced at the prisoners. "Guys, break everything. I'm going to break out the prisoners."

"Yes, ma'am!"

* * *

Sighing, Master-14 gently picked Momoneko up and put her on the floor. Putting his hand over his chest, he reassumed his human form. "Girls," he said to the Bakeneko Kunoichi, getting their attention. "You've all been loyal to me, so I think it's time for your reward."

"What is it?" Kineko asked hopefully.

"Close your eyes," he said to them and they did, though Momoneko was the most reluctant. One by one, he gave them each a soft and short kiss. Afterwards, Shiro took out his Dark Xrosser and pushed a button. The five Bakeneko Kunoichi disappeared in a flash of light.

* * *

Momoneko, Kineko, Aoneko, Akaneko, and Kineko suddenly reappeared and they found themselves inside the Bakeneko House. They were shocked and confused and so was everyone else in the brothel. Why had their master sent them away? Momoneko put down Mister Fluffy and opened up her pouch to take out her master's previous chibi body.

"Juuyon-sama…?" she uttered in confusion as she stared at the doll's blank face.

* * *

Shiro sat down on his throne, smiling. He really did love those girls, which is why he didn't want them present to see what was going to happen next.

"**Dark Xros Fusion."**

He was enveloped in darkness.

* * *

Pieces of Cybermen, Combatroids, Beastroids and their weapons littered the ground as the Sabotage Team stood around the still spinning drill. Fighting against the Combatroids and Beastroids had taken a lot of time but their enemies still fell before them. Still, it had been difficult and tiring. Now their job was to stop it by any means necessary.

"OK, how are we supposed to stop the drill from down here?" Meta questioned. "I mean its controls should be way up there." Meta was pointing up at the Pyramid. "Shouldn't we be up there instead of down here?"

"We couldn't because its shields prevented us from using the Teleportal," Arachnea explained.

"We can at least delay the drill by jamming it," Musician told Meta. "Chiaki, grab hold!"

Slasher put his arms around the drill and held on tight. The drill's surface scraped sparks of his armor but he was otherwise fine. The drill continued to spin. Meta, who was also augmented to possess super-strength, hugged the drill from the other side. It was slowing down, but still it wasn't enough.

"We need more," said Carmen.

"Need help?" Sentinel asked as he hugged the drill as well.

"You don't look too good," Arachnea observed.

"Kryptonite poisoning. It should pass," he said.

"How long?" she questioned.

"I feel it passing already but it'll be a little while until I'm back to tip-top shape." He grunted, "Ugh…"

The drill began to protest but it eventually stopped moving altogether due to Sentinel's superior strength.

"OK, guys, time to hit it with everything we got," said Musician as he brandished his Cricket Guitar. "Everyone ready? We're going to break this drill to pieces!"

Meta called Blue Beetle and Zero telepathically, '_Yokoshima, Shogo, we're ready to break the drill down here to buy you some time. Are you in position?_'

* * *

'_Yeah, we are_,' replied Zero as he and Blue Beetle were under the base of the Pyramid, staring at where the drill was attached. '_We're where the drill is connected to the Pyramid._'

'_Good, because even if we break the drill down here, it can still spin and burrow into the ground. Your job is to stop it for good. Can you do it?_' Meta asked.

'_You can count on us_,' said Blue Beetle. He asked, "Zero, are you ready?"

"The drilling mechanism should be right above us," said Zero. "We just need to hit it hard."

"Oh, I know all about hitting hard," grinned Blue Beetle. "Let's bring this thing down!"

Taking aim with their respective weapons, both Zero and Blue Beetle prepared to fire. However, several more panels under the base opened up and Cyberdrones crawled out en masse, sticking to the bottom of the base. There were hundreds of the tiny things and their red eyes were staring at both Blue Beetle and Zero.

They fired lasers and the two Riders were hit. They fought back and a number of them were destroyed before they separated and fired individually at the two flying Riders. Blue Beetle blocked with a shield and fired his missile launcher and Gatling gun at them but they were small targets and he missed a few of them. Zero was locking in on them and fired his missiles, taking more of the Cyberdrones out.

Several Cyberdrones jumped up and stuck onto Blue Beetle. He tried to get them off when they suddenly exploded and he screamed. Zero also ended up having Cyberdrones jump on him before they exploded, causing him to cry out as his armor received heavy damage.

But they wouldn't give up and resumed their assault, firing on the drill and the Cyberdrones. Zero unleashed his missiles while Blue Beetle summoned his blaster and fired.

Their attacks caused damage to the drilling mechanism while Slasher, Meta and Sentinel forcefully rotated it in the opposite direction, causing damage to the mechanism.

The drill snapped right in half and finally it just stopped moving altogether.

"Now, to say hi to Shiro," said Sentinel as he went up towards the Pyramid. He felt a little better but not a lot.

* * *

"**Drill has taken damage**," reported a Cyberman. "**Drill has been stopped**."

The door to the bridge was blasted open and the DALEK's and Cybermen stood up to face the intruders. Yuji, Hanyuu and Shinichi faced the DALEK's and Cybermen took aim at them.

"**Delete all intruders**," the Cybermen intoned.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE THEM!**" the DALEK's cried.

"**Stand down**," a deep voice from the throne spoke and the Cybermen and DALEK's obeyed.

The wall on the left side of the bridge suddenly exploded and Sentinel came flying in, hovering in the air. The DALEK's and Cybermen fired at him but their weapons were useless against his barrier. He fired back at them, destroying Shiro's bridge crew in an instant. He aimed at Dark Emperor-14 who sat at his throne.

"Shiro Juuyon, you're under arrest for mass murder and attempted genocide," Sentinel stated.

Shinichi added, "That's right, Shiro. It's all over. You've lost. Now, it's time you surrendered."

Dark Emperor-14's response was to slowly chuckle before throwing his head back to laugh. His laughter was dark and demonic, warped and distorted, sounding like something which came straight out of hell.

"**You fools. You stupid, stupid fools**," Dark Emperor-14 said as he stood up. He turned to face them and their eyes widened at the face staring back at them, but it just wasn't possible.

It was Gnol Gnauh.

* * *

"Looks like we did it," said Meta. "We saved the world." Suddenly, the ground began to shake. "Whoa! Whoa! What's going on?"

"Is it an earthquake?" Carmen asked.

"Sheila, what's going on?" Musician questioned.

"_It appears to be abnormal seismic activity_," Sheila responded.

* * *

"Gnol…Gnauh…?" Shinichi questioned at the sudden development.

"**Call me Emperor**," growled Emperor Gnol Gnauh.

"What happened to Shiro?" Hanyuu asked.

"**He absorbed my power and he thought he could lock me away in his little device**," said Emperor Gnol Gnauh as he held up the Dark Xrosser. "**What he didn't realize was that I've been waiting for him to fuse our power together. Afterwards I just took him over**. **Now his body and all its power are mine**."

* * *

_Shiro found himself floating in a dark void, imprisoned in a cage of fire. "What is this?" he demanded as he reached for the bars and recoiled as he was burnt. "Ah! Dammit!" How had he gotten here? The last thing he remembered was using Dark Xros Fusion to transform into his ultimate form and suddenly he was here._

_"Do you like it?" Shiro froze when he heard that voice and looked to see a figure approaching him. His red eyes widened in shocked revelation as he identified the person coming towards him. It was Gnol Gnauh, in his human form, and he looked quite smug._

_"What are you doing here? I absorbed you!" demanded Shiro. "Answer me, Gnol!"_

_"You just answered your own question," Gnol remarked. "You did absorb me and I remained trap in that little toy of yours, completely powerless." His expression darkened, sending chills up Shiro bio-mechanical spine, "Or so you thought! Since then I've been biding my time."_

_Shiro finally realized where he was. "We're in my mind."_

_"Our shared mind since we've fused, but there's only enough space for one of us." In an instant he assumed his demonic form. "And it isn't gonna be you."_

_"So, you've been waiting patiently," said Shiro. "I'm impressed. I didn't know you had it in you."_

_"I learnt patience from you," acknowledged Gnol. "I also learnt to choose my allies carefully. Now, it's time for you to pay for what you've done. Both to me and to Shizuko."_

_"Then, what are you waiting for?" Shiro questioned. "Do what you have to do."_

_Gnol cocked an eyebrow, "You're not going to scream? You're not going to beg for mercy?"_

_Shiro laughed, "Hahaha! What's the point? You have none."_

_"Yes, you're right," said Gnol as the cage of fire shrunk, engulfing Shiro in the flames. Shiro closed his eyes, enduring the pain as he was slowly being immolated. "Goodbye, Shiro Juuyon."_

_"Goodbye and congratulations, Gnol. You beat me at my own game," Shiro said with a smile as he was slowly consumed._

* * *

"He backstabbed you and you returned the favour," Yuji summarised.

"**Precisely,**" grinned Emperor Gnol Gnauh, showing off his pearly whites.

"Well, the plan to free the Yamata no Orochi's body has failed," said Shinichi. "Now it's time for us to finish you off."

Emperor Gnol Gnauh laughed. "**You're all too late, far too late. My true body has already been unsealed. It's now wide awake**."

"And how do you know that?" Sentinel asked.

"**The drumming in my head**," said Emperor Gnol Gnauh, putting a clawed hand on his helmet. "**I can hear them. The drumming goes 'thump, thump, thump, and thump'. The drumming gets louder and louder by the second and I can barely hear myself think now.** **And I hear them again now. It is coming.**"

Sentinel focused his hearing and his eyes widened as he listened.

**Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!**

It was the drumming of eight hearts, all beating simultaneously.

"My god…he's right!" exclaimed Sentinel.

Emperor Gnol Gnauh smirked as he tossed the Dark Xrosser to the floor. "**I don't need this little device or this base anymore. See you all later**." He crossed his arms and spread his wings before he shot upwards into the ceiling and crashed right through, making a hole as he escaped into the outside world.

"OK, I didn't see that coming," said Bazel.

* * *

The ground continued to shake and it was actually bulging in the centre. "Move! Move! Move!" Musician ordered as the cracks on the ground spread out. The NEO-NUMBERS fled as pieces of the ground just broke as something big was rising from the ground. It looked like a big, dark red, lump but it was also covered in scales. Suddenly, a building topples over as a long, serpent with no head burst out from the ground. Another building collapsed from another headless serpent, followed by another and another, until eight of the headless serpents rose, writhing in the air. The lump was also rising, revealing that it wasn't a lump but part of a creature's back. The hole was growing bigger as large claws grabbed hold of the edges, pulling the massive body out from the ground.

Emperor Gnol Gnauh hovered in midair as he watched his true body emerge.

"**I AM THE YAMATA NO OROCHI!**" Emperor Gnol Gnauh declared with his booming voice, "**AND AS THE YAMATA NO OROCHI I WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING!**"

* * *

Back in the Pyramid's bridge, the main monitor showed the Yamata no Orochi's body as it rose from the ground. It was as it was described, a massive creature the size of a mountain with the length from its necks to its tails longer than any river in existence. It was only missing its heads.

But not for long.

That was when Yuri, Yuki, Kai and Jin joined them on the bridge.

"So, what did we miss?" Yuri asked.

Shinichi had only one thing to say as he witnessed the large headless beast emerge, "…Fuck."

* * *

Emperor Gnol Gnauh stared at the floating Pyramid. It was an eyesore and a constant reminder of Shiro Juuyon. He aimed his hand at the fortress and began charging up an attack. It didn't take long for the charge to finish as he unleashed a concentrated beam of dark elemental power which lanced through the air on a straight trip towards the Pyramid.

**BOOM!**

The Pyramid was struck and a series of explosions erupted all over its surface as it began to plummet to the ground. It fell with a large crash on the ground, crushing buildings under it. It then erupted in an explosion of immense power with the concussive force of a small bomb going off, causing a small cloud to form for a few moments before dissipating. Inside, Sentinel and Yuji had used their rings to protect themselves and the others.

"That was close," said a relieved Jin.

"Well, I got a feeling that things are about to get worse," frowned Kai. He could feel bad vibes in the air and he didn't like it.

"You're right," said Hanyuu.

Emperor Gnol Gnauh turned to face the headless body of the Yamata no Orochi. It was now literally just a mindless beast. It was raw power without control.

Well, not for long.

Emperor Gnol Gnauh found himself being attacked by the NEO-NUMBERS. Slasher jumped and tried to strike him down with the Onigari no Ryuou only to be blown away. Arachnea, Carmen, Zero, Meta and Blue Beetle fired upon him but his tough hide made sure their attacks were useless on him. He stomped his foot and sent a wave of stone towards them. They would've been crushed and buried if they hadn't jumped out of the way. A sonic blast hit his chest and he focused his eyes on Musician. He pointed a finger and shot a bolt of lightning, destroying Musician's Guitar. He then aimed and shot a fireball that exploded upon Musician's back and knocked him off his feet. A barrage of fireballs subdued the NEO-NUBERS immediately, but did not kill them. He wanted them to bear witness to what he was about to do next.

"**We shall become one again**," said Emperor Gnol Gnauh as he closed his eyes and the wings draped themselves over his body. Dark tendrils of energy began to grow from his body and flow towards each of the Yamata no Orochi's headless necks. "**Yes…take our power…take all of it…"** He was slowly fading away, becoming transparent as he continued to transfer his power into the body, merging with it as bit by bit before he was completely without color, a transparent outline before he vanished like a ghost.

"Hey, where did he go?" Blue Beetle asked. Emperor Gnol Gnauh had just vanished from sight.

"Hey, look!" Carmen pointed as she saw Team 5D's, Sentinel, Showa and Hanyuu running from the remains of the base and coming towards them.

"What happened?" Musician demanded.

"Gnol Gnauh took over Shiro's body and now he's merged with the Yamata no Orochi," explained Hanyuu.

"Merged? Whaddya mean by merged?" Musician asked incredulously.

"I think we're about to find out," said Arachnea as she pointed.

The Yamata no Orochi let loose eight simultaneously roars, which was logically impossible without any heads. Well, that was going to change pretty soon. Suddenly, a draconic head sprouted out from out of the necks with black blood spraying from it. The rest of the necks, one by one, also sprouted heads as black blood sprayed outwards, dripping onto the ground. The heads were all similar, ferocious and vicious, with sharp teeth, but they were also different as they each sported a different number of horns in different patterns. All eight heads unleashed their own roars which blew everyone away, the shockwave nearly knocking everyone off their feet.

The Yamata no Orochi was now whole.

* * *

The battle was completely one-sided in the Yamata no Orochi's favour. Our heroes unleashed attack after attack but they had no effect on the great demonic beast. This was the creature which had to be sealed by Susano-O centuries ago because it could not be killed and now it was free.

Musician used his sound attacks which only bounced off the Orochi's body. Blue Beetle tried all manner of weaponry on it without leaving any scratched. Arachnea's lasers and poisons were useless against it. Carmen's illusions and scythes didn't do a thing. Slasher's chainsaws didn't leave any wounds and the Onigari no Ryuou could only leave small wounds which the Orochi healed. Meta's own powers and abilities were of no help either.

Then there was Kamen Rider Showa. He was riding on his Showa-Racer along a bridge made of paper cranes as he aimed his Burst Cannon at the Yamata no Orochi. He fired and the intense blast of destructive energy slammed into one of the heads with explosive force. The giant, eight-headed monstrosity retaliated by smashing the bridge apart, causing the bike to fall to the ground. However, at that instant Showa changed into his Kage Form.

"SHADOW CLONES!" Showa called as his duplicates materialized. They each threw a volley of kunai at Yamata no Orochi only for their weapons to bounce off the dragon's tough hide. In retaliation, the Orochi unleashed elemental blasts to destroy a number of Showa's clones.

Showa grimaced, "This is bad." He needed a plan. He then looked at his remaining clones and counted them. He got an idea. It was a risky plan but he needed to do something fast. "Minna, let's ride!"

The remaining Showa clones all nodded and understood what the original meant and called out:

"Let's Ride: Ichigo!"

"Let's Ride: Nigo!"

"Let's Ride: V3!"

"Let's Ride: Riderman!"

"Let's Ride: X!"

"Let's Ride: Amazon!"

"Let's Ride: Stronger!"

"Let's Ride: Skyrider!"

"Let's Ride: Super-1!"

"Let's Ride: ZX!"

"Let's Ride: BLACK!"

"Let's Ride: RX!"

"Let's Ride: Roborider!"

"Let's Ride: Biorider!"

"Let's Ride: ZO!"

"Let's Ride: J!"

"Bring Down the Thunder: Gokuaku!"

"Sing: Yabuki!"

"Strike from the Shadows: Zennin!"

"Guardian Henshin!"

Instantly, Showa's clones transformed into the forms they had called out simultaneously. Surrounding the Yamata no Orochi were now the Legendary Kamen Riders, and Showa's Treasure Forms, all led by Kamen Rider Showa Hinamizawa Guardian.

"OK, I did not know he could do that," said Meta as he admired what Showa had done.

Showa called to his comrades, "Minna, ikuzo! ALL RIDER KICK!" The Riders all leapt into the air to execute a series of flying kicks. However, they were all swatted away by the Yamata no Orochi's tails and the summoned Riders were all destroyed by a storm of elemental power. The Yamata no Orochi possessed the power of fire, water, wind, earth, darkness, steel, ice and lightning. Not only did it use its power to retaliate against enemy attacks, it was levelling the entire city. Buildings were crushed under its feet.

Showa groaned but he was not about to give up. He still had a few more tricks of his sleeve. The paper cranes he had spread out all over the city were bombarding the Yamata no Orochi. Raising the Higurashi no Yaiba, he called all of them to him. The paper cranes which contained a fraction of his power each flew towards him and merged with his blade. A large, glowing blade of violet, red and green light grew from the Higurashi no Yaiba. Roaring, "Ahhhhh…OI-RYAH!" Showa swung the blade down and it connected with the Yamata no Orochi, resulting in a huge explosion.

However, when the smoke cleared, the Yamata no Orochi was revealed to not only have survived the attack, but was completely unharmed. The head which possessed the power of fire blasted Showa and sent him tumbling, his armor taking immense damage before it shattered, leaving him lying in pain on the ground amongst his allies.

The Power Animals; GaoLiger, GaoTyranno and GaoPhoenix were on the attack as well and while they were big the Yamata no Orochi dwarfed them in size. GaoLiger lunged and slashed the Yamata no Orochi but his claws did nothing against the creature's scales. GaoPhoenix unleashed fireballs but the Yamata no Orochi was immune to such tactics and grabbed her out of the air, crushing her between his teeth. Only GaoTyranno's intervention saved her life.

The Manakytes were using all their might as Yuji assumed his Transcended Form. Their own elemental energy was aligned with the side of good and should be able to injure the Yamata no Orochi, but despite their efforts they barely scratched the Yamata no Orochi's body. Yuji roared, punching one of the heads and while the head was thrown back by the impact, the rest attacked and sent Yuji crashing with elemental blasts. He screamed as he was sent crashing to the ground.

"We should all Transcend as well," Yuki suggested. It seemed that if they were going to defeat this demonic dragon they would need to access their full power and hit the monster with all their might.

"Alright," Kai acknowledged.

"Now y'er talkin' me language!" Jin grinned as his ears were twitching like crazy.

"THEN LET'S MAKE SOME NOISE!" Yuri roared. He and the other Manakytes roared as they unleashed flaring auras that corresponded with their individual elements.

A tornado kicked up and engulfed Jin as he transformed in the eye. A pair of large, red bird-like wings burst through the winds and flapped to dispel them. The Transcended Jin now sported scales covering his torso and arms that matched his hair. His forearms and lower half were covered in downy feathers. And his hands and feet ended in sharp claws and talons. And he also had a red, scale tail with short spines. His hair was also longer and small bird wings sprouted from the sides of his head.

Kai was covered in pitch black scales with some that were gold which formed lightning bold patterns on his body. A pair of antlers had sprouted from his head as they crackled with electricity. A tail with fur that matched his hair hung from his backside as wings were folded against his back. Overall, his body was sleek and clean in appearance as lightning flared from his eyes.

Yuki closed her eyes as she was engulfed in a miniature blizzard, encasing her in an ice-cast sculpture of her body before the surfaces began to crack and shattered completely to reveal her Transcended stage of evolution. Her arms and hands were encased in deep blue ice armor that ended in sharp claws, as well as her thighs that were covered in ice, her knees sporting spike-shaped icicles, as her feet now sported talons of ice. She now sported a long, prehensile tail with a five-pronged ice tip, her shoulders were protected by polygonal pads of ice, as well as her breasts and crotch, and a triangular ice-made crown adorned her head. Her eyes glowed brightly and she sported sharp wings of ice.

Yuri cackled as he had changed with his arms and legs covered in pitch black scales as bone-white skeletal armor overlapped it. His chest was covered by a ribcage-like plate that sprouted small spikes. His fingertips and toes sprouted claws that were like knives. And his tail was long and bony as it was tipped with a bony spearhead. His wings were skeletal bat wings and his two horns were long and spiralled.

Kai was covered in an aura of black lightning as he dashed around the Yamata no Orochi, striking everywhere with his electrical punches, slashes and kicks. Jin was flying around, flapping his wings and launching sharp feathers like bullets as they penetrated the beast's body, though doing little to no damage. Yuki fired blasts of ice that covered the mountain-sized titan, the creature still moving despite the cold. Yuri cackled as he spewed blasts of green necro fire from his hands, hitting the beast as spots of its body decaying from the flames. Though despite this assault, Team 5Ds made little headway.

The Yamata no Orochi blasted at Yuki with a stream of fire which struck her, causing her to scream as she was hit. Jin put her out with his wind but he was hit by a blast of ice which froze his wings solid and he plummeted to the ground. As for Kai, he was hit by a blast of dark matter which slowed him down before he was hit by a devastating barrage of steel spheres the size of wrecking balls spat out by the Yamata no Orochi. Aiming at Yuri, the Yamata no Orochi fired a spiralling stream of pressurized water straight into him, blasting him through the nearest building which toppled over from the impact.

Sentinel zipped around, using speed and strength to hit all the heads. He wielded the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, the weapon which had been used to defeat the beast before but the sacred blade didn't seem to have any effect. Even his ring's constructs were smashed to pieces. Raw demonic elemental power hit Sentinel and shot him out of the air and he crashed onto the ground.

The Yamata no Orochi was taking their best and retaliating with its own power, completely overpowering them. It was obvious that the gap of power was too large for them.

Gnol Gnauh, the Orochi Darkloid General of the Centre, and also the fabled Yamata no Orochi, let loose a howl of laughter from his eight serpentine heads as he leered at the worms who opposed him. Their attempts to defeat him had been futile. He was a GOD and gods were immortal! That was why Susano-O had sealed him, because he could not destroy him.

"**YOU FOOLS ARE WEAK!**" declared the Yamata no Orochi. "**WEAK AND POWERLESS AGAINST ME! NOTHING YOU CAN DO WILL BE ABLE TO DESTROY ME! NOTHING!**"

The Yamata no Orochi was about to crush everyone under his massive foot when a green dome erected itself around them. Alan was barely standing, his body shaking under the pressure. "**STILL ALIVE, BOY? WHY WON'T YOU JUST FALL DOWN AND DIE?**"

"Because I took an oath..." said Alan, "An oath stating that, even in the face of Armageddon, I will not stop...I will NEVER STOP!"

"**BAKA, DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN WIN? YOU MAY HAVE SURVIVED AFTER ALL THIS TIME BUT THAT JUST MEANS YOU'RE LUCKY! TONIGHT, THE LEGEND OF SUSANO-O WILL BE REWRITTEN AS I WILL BE THE VICTOR! THE AGE OF THE OROCHI WILL BEGIN!" **The eight heads reared back, opening their jaws wide, and the eight-headed dragon unleashed a storm of elemental power at our heroes.

"In Brightest Day! In Blackest Night! No evil shall escape my sight! And you who worship evil's might...BEWARE MY POWER, GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!-!-!"

Yuji also stood with Alan as he started reciting his own oath, "Don't forget me! In fearful day! In raging night! With strong hearts full our souls ignite! When all seems lost in the War of Light…LOOK TO THE STARS FOR HOPE BURNS BRIGHT!-!-!"

Blue and green mixed together to form a devastating blast of energy which then split apart into a multitude of beams which zigzagged through the air. Powered by Will and Hope, the beams pushed the Yamata no Orochi back. However, that was all they did as it was driven backwards by the rings' combined might.

"It…didn't work…" uttered Yuji as he stared down at his ring. Nothing was working. Everyone was hurt or too weak to fight. Was this the end for them?

"Just one last thing," said Sentinel. He closed his eyes and concentrated. He just had one last trump card left. He hadn't used his Quantum Power for a long time and for good reason. He didn't want to accidentally hurt his friends but now there didn't seem to be any other choice. The level of Quantum energy he was focusing was incredible as his entire body glowed with a golden aura.

He was actually focusing too much, which Bazel noticed, "Partner! If you use too much you'll-!"

"I know," Sentinel cut him off. "But this is the only way. I just hope the girls can forgive me." He aimed his fists at the Yamata no Orochi who stood before him, waiting for him to do his worst.

But then his glow slowly faded as a hand was placed on his shoulder. His Sentinel uniform also disappeared.

"It's not your time yet, Susano-O-dono," said Amaterasu.

"Amaterasu?" Alan blinked. He was hit in the head from behind. "Ow!"

"You were gonna kill yourself, you idiot!" Tsukuyomi snapped. She was supporting Shinichi.

"But he's taken all we've got! It was the only option we had!" shouted Alan.

"Not the only one," said Amaterasu as she put her hand on Bazel. "You have the power to merge yourself and your comrades into one, becoming more than the sum of your parts."

"Yeah, but it's just us," said Alan. "I doubt it'd be enough."

"Then why not call for reinforcements," said Amaterasu and she snapped her fingers. A giant, swirling portal appeared. It looked like a sun and silhouettes could be seen in it. Then they all came running out, surprising everyone.

"Lala? Conda? Amora? Momo? Nana? Bishie? Yami? Megan? Alice?" Alan gaped.

"Hi, Alan!" Lala waved.

"We came to help," said Amora.

"That's a big dragon to slay," said Conda as she looked directly at the Orochi.

"Daddy!" Epsilon Alice flew into her father's arms, smiling at him.

"Didn't I ground you?" Alan asked.

"I think we can let it fly this once," said Yami.

"Girls!" Yuji saw his lovers and wife show up as well.

"Minna!" Shinichi gawked as the Hinamizawa Gaming Club arrived, AI-Shin floating after them.

"Shin-kun, we're here!" beamed Rena.

"We wish to fight alongside you, Sir Shinichi," Shawna said with a big smile.

"This bastard has caused you enough trouble. So it's time he got what he has coming to him," Satan said with a determined look in her eyes.

"Yoko-kun!" Asmodeus glomped onto her husband.

"Eh, Asmo-chan?" Yokoshima let out in shock. Her sisters were also present. Lucifer and Leviathan were at their boyfriends' sides as well.

"Are you OK? You're not hurt, are you?" Lucifer fretted over Shogo.

"I'm alright," Shogo smiled. Lucifer, out of pride, usually wouldn't show this side of her but she'd been so worried about him that she couldn't help it.

"I can't believe I was worried about you," Leviathan frowned at Daichi.

"Well, you were," Daichi said before pulling her into a kiss.

"Onii-sama," said Belphegor as she and Beelzebub helped Yuji up, "Are you OK?"

"Need anything?" Beelzebub offered a donut.

"Glad to see you here," smiled Yuji. He smiled at the women he loved, "Glad to see all of you here, even if we're going to die."

"Like we'll let you," Misato smirked, "Oh, and Maria and Wendy told us to tell you to win."

"Well, in that case we have to win now," he smirked.

"We're ready to fight, Master!" his Pokegirls chorused.

"Same here," Sora nodded.

"Let's just get this over with," Asura sighed.

"Yeah, then we can all go out for ice cream," Lilith winked.

"I wish to help as well," Shizuko offered, "In order to make up for what I've done." She then blinked as she received a kiss from Yuji.

"Don't worry about that," he smiled.

"Hey, puddin'," Shego greeted with a smirk, "Been busy?"

"Unfortunately," Yuri sighed as he pointed to the Orochi. "Look at the bullshit we gotta face!"

"Oh, my!" Hana-hime gasped.

"That's some demon," Kikyo frowned, "So much for resting in peace."

"Aw, what? We gotta fight that thing?-!" Brandon groaned. "Can't we just chuck grenades at the damn thing?"

"Does it look like we can kill that monster with grenades?-!" Satoko-F growled as she bopped Brandon over the head.

"So, what are we here for?" Shego asked.

"We'll find out soon," Yuri grinned. "Shinigami Squad!" The six Death Angels were summoned out of his body as they all kneeled before their master. "Today looks like a good day to die, yes?"

"YES, SIR!" the girls agreed.

"What are you guys doing here?" Shinichi asked. "This is dangerous."

"We came to help, Shin-chan," grinned Mion.

"Amaterasu-sama told us you needed our help," said Rena.

"So, we all came, Sir Shinichi," said Shawna.

"No offence, but you guys don't have any superpowers," stated Daichi.

"That's not going to stop us," Mika chided.

"Their strength lies not in whether they possess powers or not, but the power within," said Tsukuyomi.

"Say what?" Daichi asked.

"She means the human spirit," Rika translated. "And also the strength humans possess when they stand united. What a single person cannot do, a group of them can."

"United we stand, divided we fall," summarized Satoko.

"Whoa…that's one big monster," gulped Keiichi as he really looked at the Yamata no Orochi.

"Having second thoughts?" Mion asked.

"A bit, but Shinichi and the others have been doing all the fighting. It's time we helped," said Keiichi as he hefted his trusted bat up on his shoulder. He still kept it after all these years.

Shinichi saw a familiar face among the group. "Kanna?" She'd actually seen them fighting with help from Amaterasu. Despite the odds stacked against them they hadn't given up. Her clan were not strong enough and were afraid to raise a finger. Not her, though.

"The Yamata no Orochi killed members of my clan. It's time he faces retribution," she said.

Suddenly, Shinichi's Spark Core glowed and beams of light shot out. The beams then reformed into all his alternate forms which stood among them. The Showa Era Riders stood together, proud and tall, with the armored forms of the Tsukumogami of Hinamizawa. His original Showa form, Showa GX, and Showa Trinity were also together and finally there was his Hinamizawa Guardian Form and even its alternate form, the Guardian Jet.

"Whoa," admired Shinichi in surprise as he saw all his forms stand together. They all looked to him and nodded and he nodded back, understanding the message,

"Goddess of Hinamizawa," Amaterasu addressed Hanyuu, "Your power is needed as well."

"Hai!" Hanyuu nodded.

Hanyuu, Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi put their hands over Bazel, giving the mystical item a boost.

"Susano-O-dono," smiled Amaterasu warmly. "This is the power that will defeat the Yamata no Orochi. Now, call upon it and rally your allies."

"And we'll join you," nodded Tsukuyomi.

"Yes, we will," Hanyuu confirmed. "Let us vanquish this evil, together."

**PLAY SONG: WE ARE XROS HEART X7**

The goddesses, the Legendary Riders, the Tsukumogami, the NEO-NUMBERS, Team 5D's, the Hinamizawa Gaming Club, Alan's harem (plus Alice), Yuji's harem, Yuri's harem (plus his kids Satoko-F and Brandon), the Shinigami Angels and the Stakes of Purgatory stood before the Orochi without fear but with determination. GaoLiger, GaoPhoenix and GaoTyranno also stood as sentinels.

Alan stared at Bazel's gem which glowed brightly, infused with divine might as the armband said, "Partner, I'm all charged up! This is going to be huge, I can feel it!" Alan nodded in agreement. Bazel then changed shape from the immense power flowing through him as his armband form became more gauntlet-like and red in color, the gem turning green and moving over the top of Alan's hand and glowing with a bright green light while Alan's hand became covered in armor with clawed fingertips. A gold crest extended from the sides and resembled the arms of a bow with curved horn-like tips. Alan looked on with a bit of surprise but figured that this was Bazel's true form when at full power.

"Everyone, this is it! Let's go!" Alan raised Bazel and threw his fist into the air. "United we stand! All are one! Divine Xros Fusion!"

"**DIVINE XROS FUSION!**" everyone echoed as Bazel's gem glowed, the light washing over them as they became energy that was absorbed by Bazel as Alan's body glowed whilst he howled. The Yamata no Orochi hissed as it was blinded by the light. Meanwhile, Alan's body began to expand as he took on a new shape. He was fusing himself with his friends, lovers and allies to become the most powerful warrior imaginable.

"**UNITED WE STAND! OUR HEARTS AND SOULS AS ONE! WE WILL CREATE A MIRACLE! WITNESS OUR POWER!" **boomed Alan.

The Yamata no Orochi could only watch in horror as a figure of light began to grow right before his many sets of eyes. It looked like a Seraphim of light. Its wings were spread and it stood at a height rivalling his own.

The golden glow dispersed, revealing the new warrior who was born from everyone's power.

"**DIVINE XROS FUSION! GREAT THUNDER GOD SUSANO-O!**" the new warrior called out as he stood with sword and shield in hand. Lightning flashed across the sky at the announcement of his name.

The titanic warrior was clad from head to toe in shining silver armor which was trimmed in gold, the gold parts inscribed with ancient writing. Mounted on his left arm was a shield with four golden spikes attached around it. Wing-like spaulders were mounted majestically on his shoulders. Hovering behind his back was a multitude of golden blades which together resembled a pair of wings. His helmet, which hid his features, had the symbol of the sun goddess Amaterasu mounted on the brow. In the centre of his chest was a green gem sporting a lantern-like emblem. In his right hand was a massive sword with writing along the flat side of the broad blade, a green gem in the centre of the golden guard and the handle was covered in scales for a firmer grip.

"**YAMATA NO OROCHI! BEGONE!**" commanded Susano-O

"**NEVER!-!-!**" roared the Yamata no Orochi he unleashed a storm of elemental might but Susano-O raised his shield and the elemental power was absorbed into the shield instead. The Yamata no Orochi was stunned, but he was even more shocked when his own elemental power was sent back at him, fired by the shield which reflected all of his power, striking at him with enough power to hurt him.

He was actually hurt. He could feel the pain. No! This could not be! The Yamata no Orochi prepared to unleash another attack but Susano-O was faster he swung his sword. A storm of energy spears darted through the air and hit the Orochi, spilling its dark blood and stunned it in shock.

"**NO! NOT LIKE THIS!**" roared the Yamata no Orochi. Its heads shot like king cobras and the jaws opened wide to grab hold of Susano-O. They caught his arms and were trying to sink their teeth into him. The armor, however, resisted. The gem in his chest glowed and projected a bubble shield that repelled the heads. Enraged, the Yamata no Orochi fired a barrage of elemental attacks on the barrier, and assault which continued until it was shattered to pieces. Susano-O jumped and swung with his sword to slay the beast but he was swatted to the ground by the Yamata no Orochi's tails. The tails swung down, knocking Susano-O to his knees. It continued to smash its tails down on the mighty warrior. When the tails came swinging back down again, Susano-O swung his blade and cut all eight of them off, causing the Orochi to roar in pain.

Then, with another swing, Susano-O sent the blades on his back flying and they sliced off all the Orochi's heads save one. The energy also engulfed the severed heads, incinerating them completely. Only one head was left and its eyes widened as it realized what was happening.

"**EVIL CREATURE WHO DEFILES THE LAND**," spoke Susano-O, "**BEGONE FROM THIS EARTH AND NEVER TAINT IT AGAIN!**" The wings on his back exploded with light that blinded Gnol. Now the Orochi Darkloid General realized that he was indeed fucked.

A hexagram of light formed around Gnol, trapping him, and his body began to sink into the earth. "**YOU'RE SEALING ME!-?**"

"**NO, THIS IS YOUR END! NOW BEGONE!**" said Susano-O as he thrust his sword outwards, the etched runes glowing a right azure hue.

"**YOU MAY DEFEAT ME, SUSANO-O, BUT ONE DAY THIS WORLD WILL BE ENVELOPED IN DARKNESS! AND FROM HELL I SHALL LAUGH AT YOUR INABILITY TO PREVENT IT! HAHAHAHAHA!**"

Susano-O brought his glowing sword up. It was infused with all the power within him and blessed by the goddesses. He swung it downwards, slicing the remaining head and neck straight down the middle in half. The energy from the sword also tore through the Yamata no Orochi's body, tearing him to pieces. The Yamata no Orochi let loose one agonized cry before its entire body disintegrated, fading into nothingness.

They had done it. They had won.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so ends the Yamata no Orochi. Anyway, I would like to give credit when credit's due. KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO deserves credit for his help on the Manakytes' Transcended Forms. He does really good character design when it comes to his characters. Team 5D's is a name from Yugioh 5D's, a pretty exciting incarnation of the series, to be honest. Anyway, this is just the end of the battle but there's more ahead. Wait and see. Anyway, a message from Toku Warrior.**

**TOKU WARRIOR: If** **you'll notice that I did a few things with Shinichi and Yokoshima here. One thing with Shinichi I did was build up on the tension that's been forming between both him and Hanyuu due to her not liking him always being overprotective of her and how it sorta grinds his nerves when she goes against his orders. With Yokoshima, I did a small Beast Boy stupid joke bit and then pulled off a few new Fourze abilities. Also did a bit for Bazel too by upgrading his form during the Divine Xros Fusion. I based it on the Sacred Gear, Crimson Dragon Emperor's Gauntlet which was inspired by the novel/anime series, High School DxD.**


	116. The Legacy of Cain Part 60

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 60: A Breath of New Life**

Within the confines of a dark room was a large round steel table with a set of steel chairs positioned around. Lining the walls of the room were candle-like lights that lit the room with a dim light, hiding the faces of the high ranking members of The Gauntlet as they currently discussed the sudden defeat of both Gnol Gnauh and Shiro. As they talked, a small holographic screen formed in front of each member, each screen playing different sets of video files from the battle that Showa and his allies had against both Shiro and Gnol.

"It looks like your prediction is correct, Master," said Mr. Black. "Shiro Juuyon did fail."

"Was there any doubt?" the leader of The Gauntlet asked.

"It's too bad, really. He had a lot of potential."

"And as I said before, he was merely a pawn."

"He did succeed in resurrecting the Yamata no Orochi, as promised."

"We all know that. We saw it on the news," said Faust, sneering. "But like our Lord and Master said he was a pawn doomed to fail from the very beginning. If you ask me I say good riddance. He was far too unstable to be of actual use to us."

"Was there anything that could've been salvaged?" their leader questioned, but he knew the answer to that.

"They destroyed the base, and what remains of the Cybermen and DALEKs is just scrap metal. Over all, it's just useless junk now," said Mr. Black.

"They decimated him, Mr. Black. Of course they wouldn't leave anything useful for anyone to salvage. What else did you expect?" Faust questioned.

"A pity," sighed The Gauntlet's leader. "I was hoping we could've salvaged something useful, but it appears that isn't the case. Oh well. Now, next order of business, gentlemen…" As the topic of discussion began to change, so did the images on the holographic screens. And what those images showed was…

* * *

A week had passed since the final battle against the Yamata no Orochi. Kyoto was still recovering from the demonic dragon's emergence and attack on the city. Shinichi and his friends had fought against the Orochi and had defeated it by uniting their powers, merging into one being, and vanquishing the creature for good but at the high price of the Kekkain Clan losing many of its members during the war. The Pyramid Base had also been destroyed. Great Thunder God Susano-O had tossed it up into outer space and blasted it into smithereens. The Japanese government would've salvaged it and the technology it held. It wasn't a good idea to let them try as the current world was not ready for such technology and much of it was designed based on technology from other realities. To allow such technology to remain could cause even greater harm and could also possibly pollute the timestream. So the base, along with any and all technology that it held, had been destroyed and was now space debris.

There were many casualties in Shiro's pursuit of power. Nobody was safe. He'd murdered so many people in order to achieve his goal. He'd even betrayed Gnol Gnauh so he could usurp the Yamata no Orochi's power. Sadly, he'd been doomed to fail from the very beginning as predicted by The Gauntlet and Gnol Gnauh had absorbed him and took over his body. Shiro was gone for good now. After being absorbed by the Gnol Gnauh, he'd been destroyed as well. There was nothing left of him, not even a Spark Core which was even stranger as they were supposedly indestructible. Even the Oathbreaker was gone but since the weapon had been bound to him then it made sense that it had disappeared along with him. He was now only a memory. However, he'd left a huge impact on everyone's lives.

Many that Shiro had murdered had been from the Kekkain Clan. Kanna Kekkain, the newly inducted head of her clan, stood in front of her father's gravestone with her mother. They had made offerings and prayed that he would be able to rest in peace.

"Kanna-san," Hanyuu said as she stood next to Kanna. This was the Kekkain Clan's private cemetery and only members of their clan were buried here and only members of their clan were permitted. Since Hanyuu was a Kekkain, she was allowed. She'd even brought her own family from Hinamizawa to pay their respects.

So many Kekkain had been cremated and buried here and in such a short time their numbers had whittled down to only a few. The elders had survived and so had the children, but most of the active practitioners of their clan's Onmyoudo had been killed.

It was solemn moment in the graveyard as they paid their respects to the brave Onmyouji, male and female, who'd died.

"Hainiryun-sama," Kanna returned.

"Thank you for coming, Hainiryun-sama," said Shizue. "And you've brought guests."

"My adopted family," said Hanyuu. She introduced them one by one.

"I am truly sorry for your loss," said Shiori sincerely. She knew what it felt like to lose a husband.

"I thank you for your kind words," Shizue accepted.

"I should be the one who's sorry," said Hanyuu. "I was with him and I couldn't save him."

"It was not your fault. It was just his time," Shizue said. Kanna didn't answer. She knew Hanyuu had the power to protect her father and yet she'd allowed him to die. A part of her may never forgive her and she didn't care if she was one of their ancestors. To her, at that moment, a goddess who could do nothing was a being that did not deserve such power or praise.

"Kanna, how are you holding up?" Shinichi asked.

"I don't think I'll be returning to Shishibone University, Banabara-sempai," she told him. Shinichi flinched at the formal way she addressed him. It was like she was severing ties with him. "As the new clan head I have responsibilities I must take care of. The branch mansions also need rebuilding."

"You know, we could-" Shinichi began to offer.

"No, we shall take care of it ourselves," she interrupted, her tone somewhat harsh and cold, rejecting his offer before he could finish. Shinichi was dejected by that but he couldn't force her to accept their help. It was his fault. Years ago, if he had bothered to look for Shiro's Spark Core then all of this could've been avoided.

But there was no turning back to the past. They could only live in the present and move on towards the future.

'_Damn, it's times like this that I really miss my time powers_,' Shinichi thought as he cursed at himself mentally. The virus Shiro had infected him with had an amazingly short lifespan but the damage had been done and it was permanent. His time powers were gone because of the virus. He just prayed that, one day, he would find a way to regain his lost powers.

* * *

"OK, this is the last of them," said Yokoshima as he dumped the wheelbarrow filled with dead Cyberdrones onto a pile of the mechanical creatures.

These were the surveillance drones that Shiro had claimed would explode if he'd been destroyed while holding their loved ones hostage as he spied on them. However, they had all suddenly deactivated as they fell, belly-up, with their legs facing upwards. It seemed that after Gnol Gnauh had absorbed Shiro, the bio-android's connection to the miniature robots was severed. It didn't matter if there was a Dead Man's Switch at all. They were just duds now.

"Are you sure?" Daichi asked.

"Hey, even if we missed one what does it matter?" Yokoshima shrugged. "They're all dead. The question is what we're gonna do with all of them."

Alan picked a couple up with his ring. "I'll take these." He put them inside his backpack.

"What for?" Daichi asked.

"I'm thinking of making something special for Lala to thank her for the Sonic Screwdriver."

The Teleportal came to life and Yuji came into the Hive with his daughter Maria. "Yo, I heard you needed help so I brought help."

Daichi cocked an eyebrow, "Your daughter?"

"Not her, him," Yuji pointed at her backpack. Maria put her backpack down and unzipped it. A large, round metal head popped out and violet eyes blinked.

"You brought that monster?" gaped Daichi. "It nearly ate our jeep!"

Yuji's face developed a sheepish look as a sweat drop appeared next to his head. He would never forget that incident and he now knew that neither would Daichi. Even Scrappy looked at Daichi with an apologetic look as did his mistress, Maria.

"He's sorry, right Scrappy?" Maria asked. Scrappy nodded. "OK, Scrappy, there's food." Maria pointed at the pile of dead Cyberdrones. Scrappy leapt out of the backpack and lunged for the pile before it started devouring.

"You know when you told me Shiro had a Dead Man's Switch I was worried," Yuji said to Alan. The Dead Man's Switch Shiro had rigged was meant to send out a signal when he died which would detonate all the Cyberdrones.

The signal was never sent.

"You weren't the only one," Alan agreed.

"These things were everywhere," said Daichi, referring to the Cyberdrones. "Even found one in my apartment. We're just lucky they didn't blow up."

"Maybe it's just divine intervention," said Yokoshima.

"Or Shiro didn't think to check if there was anything wrong with his Dead Man's Switch," said Alan as he took out his Sonic Screwdriver. He whistled innocently as he twirled it around.

"Wait…you killed the Dead Man's Switch with _that_? _When_?" Yuji realized.

"There's a lot you can do when you've got super speed and you've just gotta love the sonic," Alan grinned. "Oh, and it looks like Scrappy's done."

The pile was gone, devoured completely by Scrappy. He belched and scuttled back to Maria before jumping into her arms.

"Now, there's a matter of this," said Alan as he held the Dark Xrosser. They had recovered it before the Pyramid crashed. It still contained the ALPHA-01 AI. He scanned the device with the Sonic Screwdriver and got a reading, "And it doesn't just have the AI. The remnants of Shiro's army are in here."

"How many?" Yuji asked.

"Thousands of them," said Alan. "Not sure of what though. They could be DALEK's, maybe spare Beastroids and Combatroids, maybe even Cybermen. Could also be all of the above."

All of them gulped at the thought of an entire army being kept in storage, waiting for the moment when they would be set free. Placing a hand on his head and ruffling his own hair a bit, Daichi began to think of what would happen if they were ever released.

"All still loyal to Shiro and willing to pursue his plans even without him," Yuji concluded. "Why don't we just dismantle it?"

"We can do that but we risk releasing his army too."

"Is deletion an option?" Yuji asked. Daichi and Yokoshima looked on, their faces also showing that they hoped that deletion was an option.

"Shiro didn't digitize his army. They're all just stuck in a dimension of infinite space contained inside the device. We can, however, transfer the AI into a different container," said Alan. He shone his Sonic Screwdriver on the screen and it lit up.

"_Onii-chan?_" ALPHA-01's voice was heard coming from it. It sounded less distorted now. Alan frowned. ALPHA-01 was a genius but with a child's personality. He was innocent, naïve, and highly impressionable. "_You're not Onii-chan. Where is he?_"

Alan knew ALPHA-01 was referring to Shiro Juuyon. "ALPHA-01, Shiro is gone."

"_Gone? Gone where? Where is he?_ Where's _Onii-chan!-? Where are the pretty Onee-chans!-?_" Alan instantly shone his Sonic Screwdriver over the Dark Xrosser to shut it off.

"Apparently, ALPHA-01 looks up to Shiro like an older brother. He's like a child. He doesn't understand the difference between right and wrong. I guess Shiro told him it was all a game," Alan concluded.

"And who are the 'pretty Onee-chans' he was talking about?" Yuji asked.

"Those catgirls Shiro hung out with," said Alan. "I don't remember seeing them during the battle."

* * *

Christmas was close and the stores were all decorated for the occasion. Alan was actually walking around, doing some window shopping and looking for gifts to buy for his girls. Having so many girls to buy presents for was a little stressful but they were worth it. Though, trying to find gifts for them in the current time period that they were in was a bit more challenging than what he first thought. Looking ahead towards a small clothing store, he soon noticed someone that looked very familiar to him. He then instantly realized who he was looking at and then grimaced a bit.

Momoneko, one of Shiro's former Bakeneko Kunoichi, was the last person Alan expected to see on the sidewalk. She was wearing a hat to hide her ears and wearing winter clothes. She was carrying a cloth bag filled with groceries. She and the Bakeneko Kunoichi had not participated in the battle in Kyoto. Shiro had teleported them away to make sure of that. The badges they had worn were also teleportation devices that Shiro had activated to send them away.

"You're one of Shiro's Bakeneko Kunoichi," Alan identified as he came to a stop in front of her, causing her to look at him with a slight look of disdain.

"Oh, it's you," Momoneko greeted neutrally. She really didn't want to fight. What was the point? "Excuse me." She was about to walk past him when he spoke again.

"You miss him, don't you?" Alan asked.

Momoneko let out a sad sigh. She'd tried to move on but it was a difficult process. She answered, "Yes, I do. I miss him and I still love him so much, but he's gone now. You all made sure of that."

Alan frowned at her answer. He was empathic so he could feel the anger directed towards him. But he also knew that none of them knew how Gnol had actually been the one who had killed Shiro and not them. Still, feeling both guilty and partly responsible for the death of someone that those girls truly loved, he tried to think of a way to possibly make it up to them. "Do you and the girls need a place to stay?"

Momoneko politely declined, "Actually, we can manage on our own. We still have jobs." They had gone back to working in the Bakeneko House, but as waitresses and dancers. They could never service a man sexually again. How could they? It would be like betraying Shiro.

"Do you hate me?" Alan asked.

"You were only doing what you thought was right. What about you? Do you hate me for serving Juuyon-sama?"

Alan replied, "It's like you said. You did what you thought was right You just went about it in the absolute worst way possible, but you were more concerned for your race and you followed Shiro because of that."

Momoneko informed him, "Youkai have had to hide among humans, doing everything we could to survive. We might be powerful but we're still an endangered species as you humans keep multiplying." she said as she clenched at the grocery bags in her hands tightly. "What place do we have in this world now? I know Juuyon-sama wasn't exactly a good person, but he was always good to us and he even gave us a purpose." She remembered all of the times that he had treated them with love and compassion and the last time that they had kissed. A few tears began to well up in her eyes as all the memories came rushing to the front of her mind. "Juuyon-sama had a plan and he convinced us. It may have been a bloody path but he was trying to create a world where Youkai like me would no longer need to hide."

Alan could sympathize with her. He knew just how bad youkai had it in this world after having a talk with Nozomu and her brother once before. Looking at her as she dried her tears, he told her, "You know, one of my girls is pregnant right now. She's a Youkai too."

Momoneko said, "Congratulations." But she didn't sound excited at all. "Goodbye, Alan Smith." She slowly walked away and Alan watched her leave, the guilt of taking away the one person she loved more than life itself still hanging over his head.

"Is it OK to just let her go?" Bazel asked.

"She's not a danger to anyone," said Alan. As he was about to leave, he noticed something fall out of Momoneko's bag and Alan went for it. She crossed the street without looking back and Alan was about to call her when he saw what he was holding.

"OK…" Alan murmured, a little weirded out as he was holding the Chibi body Shiro had inhabited before. He took out his Sonic Screwdriver and scanned it. "It still has a power source, but there's just nothing else inside. It's like the lights are on but nobody's home." He suddenly got an idea and grinned. "Bazel, I think I know a way to make her happy!"

* * *

When Momoneko returned to her apartment and took out her groceries, she realized that her master's chibi body which she kept with her was missing. She was frantic. "Where!-? Where is it!-?" She couldn't have lost it, could she? It was precious to her! "No!" she cried in despair as she began to toss things around, looking frantically for her lost treasure.

That was when she heard a knock at the door. Momoneko went and opened it to see Alan standing in the doorway.

"What do you want?" she asked coldly.

"I've come to return this. You dropped it," said Alan as he handed Momoneko her precious doll back.

"Chiro-chan!" Momoneko took it from him and hugged it close.

"And I may have modified it," said Alan as he pointed his Sonic Screwdriver at Chiro-chan. Momoneko was apprehensive but then she felt movement in her arms. Looking down, she saw Chiro-chan staring up at her with wide and bright crimson eyes.

"Onee-chan…?" he uttered. Momoneko's eyes widened.

"What…?" Momoneko gaped.

"I had ALPHA-01 transferred into that body," Alan explained. "Consider this an early Christmas present," he told her before leaving. Momoneko was tossing Alpha Chiro up into the air before catching him. She twirled around, hugging him and smiling with Alpha Chiro giggling happily as he nuzzled her chest. It was almost like having him back. She began to cry, but they were not tears of pain but those of immense joy. Falling down onto a couch, she held the newly reanimated Alpha Chiro close to her.

She couldn't wait to tell the girls.

Alan only had ALPHA-01 transferred into the body, but not all the data. All that sensitive information and power was all separated from ALPHA-01. As for the Dark Xrosser, it was deactivated and kept at the Hive.

As Alan closed the door to Momoneko's apartment and walked down the hallway, Bazel said, "That was nice. Why did you do it?"

"I don't like watching girls cry," said Alan. "Now, time to do some Christmas shopping."

* * *

Meanwhile, while Alan was out Christmas shopping, Yuji was in the midst of excitement.

**Music- "Theme of Dante" (Marvel VS Capcom 3)**

"YAHOO!" Yuji howled as he kicked away a green Oni. Others surrounded him with their weapons at the ready. Grinning, Yuji commented, "So much for a hike." He had just been going on a hike in the mountains when Oni demons suddenly surrounded him before attacking him.

"If we kill one of the warriors who destroyed the Yamata no Orochi, we'll be famous!" a red Oni grinned.

"Looks like news travels fast," mumbled Yuji.

"Let's get him!" The Oni's all roared as they went for the kill.

Yuji was not going to give them the chance.

"Crowned Gao King!" Yuji called as he threw up his fist. The Gao Jewels shone as the gauntlet materialized on his arm as the six wings on his back blazed ferociously. He dashed ahead and proceeded to beat the tar out of the Oni gang singlehandedly. He threw a series of rapid-fire punches with blinding speed, each punch connecting with a target with bone-crushing force.

Once he was done, he looked around at all the Oni's lying unconscious around them. He hadn't killed them, lucky for them. They were just a bunch of nuts looking for the fastest way towards glory.

News about their actions in Kyoto had spread all over Japan, even spreading further across the ocean. It wouldn't be long until more glory-seekers came to pick a fight and claim the honor of defeating one of the warriors who'd defeated the Yamata no Orochi.

"Well, time to head home."

* * *

"I'm home!" Yuji called and he heard the pitter patter of feet.

"PAPA!" Maria cried as she jumped towards Yuji and he caught her in his hands.

"Oh, it looks like I've caught myself a little witch," he grinned as he spun around with her.

He'd greatly missed this time of peace. The fight against Shiro and the Yamata no Orochi had taken months but they finally defeated their enemies. He carried Maria into the apartment, piggyback style, and the little witch laughed. While she was almost a teenager, she was still childish and loved to spend as much time as possible with her adopted father.

"How was your hike?" Misato asked, smiling at him.

"Eventful," he smiled back, "Bunch of Oni wanted to pick a fight, thinking I killed Gnol. Don't know where these rumors come from!" He put down Maria as Misato approached him. She looped her arms around his neck and gave her husband a kiss.

"That's what you get when defeating the big bad everyone else thinks is unstoppable," Misato said with a sultry smirk.

"And it wasn't just me. You were there, you were part of it at the end," Yuji reminded.

"Well, people remember you," said Misato. "And since they know you were there, the ones who want to be at the top of the food chain are going to keep coming after you. It's survival of the fittest, Yuji. That's the price of fame and glory."

"I know, but I ain't worried about something like that," Yuji stated calmly. "Speaking of food, I'm hungry. Let's eat." he said as he led them to the kitchen table.

Stella and the other Pokegirls brought forth a spread for the table. They had all matured and had become Pokewomen now, capable of giving birth. Yuji planned on making it happen for them later on.

Lilith couldn't help but giggle as Rune coiled around her body. The Dratini had evolved into a Dragonair only recently but still had a habit of using Constrict affectionately.

"Well, let's eat," said Yuji. "Itadakimasu."

"ITADAKIMASU!" the others chimed in and then they began to dig into their meal, holding a conversation about many different things as they ate.

* * *

Shinichi had missed a lot and had a lot of work to make up for. It was a good thing that he'd done his midterms. Now he just had to finish a few late assignments and study for finals. He was currently in Topper's Pawn Shop, sitting at the counter with a book and notes when a customer came walking in, the bell above the door ringing being an indication.

"Welcome to Topper's Pawn Shop," Shinichi smiled as he greeted the customer. "How may I be of assistance?"

The customer who'd come in was highly suspicious looking, wearing a trench coat, a scarf and a hat that hid his features. He looked around at all the items on display on the shelves before grabbing one at random and running out of the shop.

"HEY!" Shinichi shouted as he leapt over the counter and gave chase. "You're supposed to pay for that!" He ran out of the store and looked to his right to see the man running. "Stop, thief!" He chased after the man and ran into an alleyway after him. It was a dead end and the man turned to face Shinichi.

"Got you now," said Shinichi. "Now, if you give that back we can forget this whole thing."

Instead of looking at Shinichi in fear, the man said calmly, his voice muffled by his scarf, "Excuse me, but are you Shinichi Banabara?"

"Uhh…yes?" Shinichi answered, surprised that the thief knew his name and was addressing him calmly, as if nothing was wrong.

"Oh good," the man said as he removed his hat and long, seaweed green hair came spilling down his head. The man then removed his scarf and trench coat and Shinichi's eyes widened.

The man was no man at all, but a woman and not a human either. She had bluish green skin and a curvy figure, wearing only a bikini top made of seashells and a green sarong tied around her waist which reached down to her knees. Her toes and fingers were webbed. She spun her hat around and it turned into a cone-shaped shell with spikes around it that she then put on her head as a hat.

She was a Sazae-Oni.

She bowed, smiling beautifully. "I would like to thank you on behalf of my people," said the Sazae-Oni.

"Oh, well then you're welcome," Shinichi returned. "But I was only doing my duty. Anyway, could you return that item?"

The Sazae-Oni approached him, hips swaying from side to side as she smiled sultrily. Shinichi knew that look and began to back away a little bit as a small sweatdrop appeared on the side of his head.

"What would you do to have it returned?" she asked, tracing a finger down his chest. Suddenly, in a burst of gold, Satan appeared and kicked her in the head, sending her crashing into a pile of garbage.

"Hands off, sea skank!" Satan growled. She picked up the item, a music box, and walked up next to Shinichi. "You're lucky I was in the area. That girl would've had sex with you and then taken your testicles as a trophy."

"What?" Shinichi gaped.

"That's what Sazae-Oni do," Satan frowned. "They fuck you, then leave with your balls, and then trade them for gold if you want them back."

"That's not true," the Sazae-Oni frowned, disgusted by the garbage on her. "I was just going to show him a good time. I wasn't going to take his precious 'kintama' (testicles)." Heck, she would rather become Shinichi's lover as being able to bear the child of one of the warriors who defeated the Orochi would be something she would consider an honor.

"Well, we can't be sure, can we?" Satan retorted, forming a blade of light. "Listen here, he's my man and he's not gonna fuck with you. I don't need any more competition for his attention right now."

The Sazae-Oni stared at the blade and let out a groan. She picked up her scarf and trench coat, put them on, and walked out of the alley. She winked at Shinichi as she walked past him, whispering, "Come looking for me if you change your mind," as she slipped something into his pocket before leaving in haste.

Satan just glared venomously at the retreating Sazae-Oni in annoyance.

"Thanks…" Shinichi said.

"Were you thanking her, or me?" Satan asked, her blade pressing against his throat.

"You! Definitely you!" Shinichi said quickly.

"Oh, okay then," Satan said as she gave the music box back to him before disappearing. Shinichi sighed as he went back to the shop. '_Man, she's gotten really possessive lately_,' he groaned inwardly and walked up to the shop, only to stop, surprised to see Mion and Shion with Topper.

"Shinichi, these girls came for you. Where were you?" Topper asked.

"I had to get this back from a thief," said Shinichi before putting the music box back on its shelf. "So, Sonozaki-san and Sonozaki-san, how may I help you both?"

"Always the kidder, huh, Shin-chan?" grinned Mion.

"So, what are you looking for?" Shinichi asked.

"Something nice for our mother," said Shion.

"How about this lovely music box?" recommended Shinichi, placing his hand back on the item he had just retrieved. He twisted the key and when he released it, the top of the box popped open and a song played. A very calming song.

"Ah, the Music Box of Serenity," said Topper. "They say music can soothe the savage beast. That item did just that. Legend has it that it stopped a Minotaur's rampage."

"Seriously?" Mion asked as she felt calmer as she listened to the melody.

"Okaa-san would definitely like it," said Shion.

* * *

**December 25th, 1988, Christmas Day**

"I can't believe we made it to another Christmas," said Shinichi as he, Rena, Shawna and Satan stood to admire the tree in their apartment. "I can't believe I survived to enjoy another one." He took a sip of sake.

"Don't say that," said Rena. "You survived. You always survive and you always will."

"Yeah, I know," Shinichi accepted. "I can't say everyone else did. I've had enough of death and destruction that I just want to quit."

"Quit?" Rena asked. This was the first time she'd heard his desire to just give up.

"It's just that this whole thing started with Shiro. When I looked at him it was like looking at a scary funhouse mirror where everything's warped and distorted. It was like staring at a reflection of myself except with all the bad stuff in place of all the good stuff. Freaks the hell out of me," Shinichi said.

"But you're nothing like him," Rena assured him. "Shiro was corrupt from the start."

"Yeah, but I could've ended up just like him, in another time and in another place," said Shinichi.

"If you feel that way then it's probably for the best that you should retire," Shawna said. From what she'd heard and witnessed for herself, it'd been a long and hard battle. She worried about him because the stories of heroes from her country taught her that heroes often died young. Other stories told of heroes who fell because they had been exposed to too much evil while fighting it. It was probably time for Shinichi to 'hang his cape' so to speak.

"I can't. This world needs me. I'll have to keep fighting until I can't fight anymore," he said. He smiled at the three girls. "I fight to make sure you're all safe and sound and able to see another tomorrow. That's why I can still keep fighting." He observed that Satan wasn't drinking. "What's the matter, Satan-chan? Don't like sake?"

"I…can't have alcohol at this time," said Satan nervously, staring at her cup as she swirled the beverage around.

"What's wrong?" Shinichi asked. Was she ill?

"Well, I read that it's not good for a pregnant woman to drink. It might harm the baby," answered Satan. Both Rena and Shawna's eyes went as wide as saucer plates when they heard that part.

"Yes, that's good advice," said Shinichi before taking a sip and then he did a spit-take. He coughed as Rena and Shawna stared in shock. "Wha-wha-WHAT!-?"

"I'm pregnant," Satan smiled as she passed Shinichi the cup of sake. "And it's ours. Merry Christmas." Pulling him in close, she looped her arms around his neck and gave him a kiss and then, after a few seconds, held onto one of his arms.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"I took tests, even went to a doctor to confirm," said Satan. "And I know it's ours because you're the only man I've ever been with."

"But that couldn't be possible." Shinichi cried. "I mean, I have my nanites sterilize my sperm before I climax."

"As if a bunch of nanites could stop all of _your_ swimmers?" Satan snickered, shaking her head. "Unlikely."

"Oh…I'm feeling dizzy. The room's spinning…I'm…feeling…I'm feeling…" Shinichi passed out and dropped on the floor, spilling the sake in his hand.

"Shin-kun!"

"Sir Shinichi!"

Satan looked amused, "You were right, Onii-sama. He took it better than I thought."

* * *

**December 26th, 1988**

"Well, stuff like this can happen even if you use your nanites to enact sterilization and, no offense, you do enjoy sex very much so it was bound to happen sooner or later. And let's not forget that you can be forgetful in the _heat _of the moment," said Alan as he snickered in amusement.

"Geez, thanks for the helpful words of wisdom," Shinichi retorted sarcastically. The two of them were sitting in Angel Mort in Okinomiya.

"Come on, you know I'm just messing with you," Alan said. Shinichi said nothing as he took another bite out of his slice of pie. "So, do you think Rena would wanna have a baby after Satan has hers?"

Shinichi nearly choked and took a swig of water to wash down the piece of pie stuck in his throat. "Not funny, Alan. Not funny."

"Well, personally, you should be happy. You've got a chance to become a father and, believe me, it's wonderful," said Alan calmly.

"But…a baby? I mean, it's going to be my baby. My baby with Satan-chan. Will I know what to do?" Shinichi asked, unsure.

"You've babysat before," Alan reminded.

"Yeah, but that was you and you nearly killed me every time. But this…this is just a huge change, Alan! What if I'm a horrible dad?" Shinichi was worried.

"Shinichi, I've seen how far you go for the people you love. If you become this baby's father, it'll be the luckiest child in the world," said Alan positively. "You're gonna do great."

"Knowledge from the future?" Shinichi questioned.

"I can't say, really," Alan said. "Can't give away spoilers."

"Fine…" Shinichi rolled his eyes. Alan was honor-bound to keep future knowledge a secret. "So, how far along is Nozomu now? She'll be giving birth soon, right?"

"She's due sometime in January," said Alan.

"I hope I live until then," said Shinichi.

"Why do you say that?"

"Because once Yuji finds out he's going to roast me." Alan just started laughing out loud as a he was reminded of some similar incidents involving his Uncle Ryuki and his old friends.

* * *

**January 1st, 1989, New Year's Day**

**Insert Theme – Mayonaka no Orchestra**

It was New Year's Day and everyone in the village was lining up at the Furude Shrine in Okinomiya for the first shrine visit of the year. As always, Rika and Furude were the miko and giving out fortune slips to the villagers and wishing them a Happy New Year.

"OK, let's see what I got," said Shinichi as he opened his folded slip of paper. He read, "Your past year has been full of challenges and this year will not be any different. The world will turn against you and you will be brought down to your knees by the weight of your burden." Shinichi just sighed as he hung his head. "It's official, the universe hates me." he said quietly to himself.

"That doesn't sound like a good fortune," said Rena.

"Indeed, it doesn't," agreed Shawna.

"I should tie this on a fence or a tree branch or-" He yelped as he felt an arm wrap around his neck.

"Hey, Shin!" Yuji grinned. "Long time no see! It's like you've been avoiding me or something."

"Ha ha, now what would give you that idea?" Shinichi asked, laughing nervously while looking for a good escape route in case of the chance that Yuji decided to roast him right then and there.

"The fact that you knocked up Satie who I consider a sister," Yuji deadpanned.

Shinichi sweated rapidly. '_It's a good thing I wrote that last will and testame_nt,' he thought. Suddenly, he was pulled into a tight hug.

"Welcome to the family, bro!" Yuji said, grinning.

"You're not mad?" Shinichi asked.

"Oh, I will be if you abandon Satie and the kid she's carrying," Yuji warned.

"I'd never do that!" Shinichi responded loudly.

"I know that," Yuji answered as he released Shinichi from the hug. "You're just scared, and nervous, but at the same time you're looking forward to it. Trust me, I know what it's like and when Yuna was born and I held her in my arms for the first time…I can't describe the feeling, Shinichi. You have to experience it for yourself."

"I should marry her, right?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, that's up to Satie and she's not the type to want to be tied down. She would want you to be involved," said Yuji. "The kid is going to need a father. But I would like it if you did get married. You're one of the only people I would ever entrust her to."

"I'll do my best to take care of both of them," Shinichi promised.

"That's all I wanted to hear," Yuji smiled. He took a step to the side to reveal Satan who was smiling warmly at Shinichi. Shinichi just stared at her as she was wearing a silver kimono that had gold butterfly designs on it and was tied with a red obi.

"Hey," Shinichi said, amazed at how beautiful she looked.

"Hey," she replied and the two hugged.

Rena and Shawna just smiled at the scene before them.

"They're such good friends, are they not?" said the princess.

"Yes, they are," confirmed Rena.

* * *

**January 8th, 1989**

Yuji and Misato arrived at the Hive's medical bay, Misato holding Yuna as they spotted Alan. Nozomu was in bed, as well as a sleeping baby in the bassinet next to her. He was a boy and he looked like any regular baby with short silver hair. What set him apart from regular babies were the wolf ears and fluffy wolf tail.

"Yo, Alan," Yuji greeted before recoiling as he saw the Lantern's face. "Whoa, you look like hell..."

The Lantern looked at him, a slight glare in his raccoon-looking eyes, "Long night...Very, very long night..."

"How you feeling now, Nozomu?" Misato asked softly.

"Sleepy..." she responded. She looked over at baby Adam and smiled softly, "But happy." She gently stroked her newborn son's cheek with her fingertip and sighed happily and in content.

"He's a cute little guy," Yuji grinned as he admired Adam.

"Say hi to Adam-kun, Yuna," Misato coaxed as she bounced her daughter in her arms.

"Au..." the baby moaned. Her hair had grown out some, short purple hair like her mother's while she had a blue right eye and a left green eye.

Adam began fussing before he started crying. Alan was quick to take the baby in his arms, holding him and soothing, "There, there little guy. We're right here."

"Boys can be a handful," Misato giggled as she smirked at her husband, "I'm sure you were trouble as a baby, Darling."

Yuji scoffed, looking away to hide his blush, "Like I'd know...!" He could remember stories that his parents had told his girls when he brought them home for the first time and those stories were nearly as bad as when the girls got to see his baby pictures.

Adam looked around at his visitors, before holding his tiny little hands out at Yuna. Yuna also tried to reach out, their fingers brushing.

"Would you look at that," Yuji marveled.

Misato moved closer as the babies interlocked hands. "Isn't that sweet? Something tells me these two will make quite the pair."

"Then there's the Smith Charm," Yuji added. Yuna giggled as she started playing with Adam's hands. "Kids are definitely something," he admired.

Alan smiled in agreement, "I'll say. And in less than nine months, it'll be Shinichi and Satan's turn."

"I'm looking forward to who that kid will take after," said Misato expectantly.

* * *

Yuji and Misato left soon after and Nozomu was breastfeeding her newborn son. Her normally flat chest had now been replaced by a pair of larger breasts which were filled with milk for her son. Alan watched, admiring how beautiful Nozomu looked with their son in her arms and feeding him. Then he heard a familiar sound.

It sounded like a mechanical wheezing and warping noise at the same time. He smiled and saw something materialize out of the corner of his eye. Nozomu heard this too and held to her son protectively but Alan reassured her, "It's fine, Nozomu."

The thing that suddenly appeared in the room with them was a big, blue box with windows and a light on top. A sign was above the door with the words 'Police Public Call Box' on it.

Alan recognized the big blue box fondly.

"Alan, what is that?" Nozomu asked.

"An old friend," said Alan as the door swung open.

"OK! OK! I'm here! Let's banish that fiendish multi-headed monstrosity together!" said the man as he exited the box. He wore a brown tweed jacket over a white dress shirt, navy blue trousers, black boots and a bow tie. "Oh, Alan. It's you."

"Hello, Doctor," smiled Alan. "You're kinda late."

"Am I? Oh, well. If you're OK then it must've ended well, obviously. Now, I have an important message. Your father is very worried about you," informed the Doctor.

"I know. I'm from the future, remember?" reminded Alan.

"Right," the Doctor remembered, frowning.

Alan introduced, gesturing to Nozomu, "Doctor, this is Nozomu, the mother of my child. And the baby she's holding is-"

"Oh, and this must be little Jack," said the Doctor as he looked at the adorable child in Nozomu's arms who was suckling on her. "Hello there. I'm your granddad."

"…And now I think you're early," Alan said, bemused. "This isn't Jack. This is Adam. Although, if I do get another son I might name him 'Jack'." He then asked, "What do you mean 'I'm your granddad'?"

"Oh, sorry about that. Spoilers," the Doctor said, frowning. He hated being wrong. "You know, ARMOR has been having trouble coming into this universe. Some kind of barrier is blocking them out."

"Well, that makes sense," Alan replied.

"If that's the case, how did you get here?" Nozomu asked.

"I'm the Doctor. I've been known to do the impossible. I am 'The Impossible Man' after all," boasted the Doctor as he tugged on both ends of his bowtie. "The only problem is I can't bring any of you out of this universe. If I did try the TARDIS can only travel within this universe's timestream. Whatever force is keeping you all here is pretty determined to make sure you all stay for a reason."

Alan thought of the Doctor's words. So, there was an outside force preventing them from leaving and contacting ARMOR. "Anyway, thanks for the Sonic Screwdriver plans, Doctor. They really helped," said Alan.

"Really?" the Doctor asked and Alan whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver to show him. "Now, would you look at that? Isn't that impressive? You're really starting to take after me, Alan." He checked his watch, "Oh, is that the time? Anyway, I better be off now." He got into the TARDIS. "I'm a bit late for a very special appointment."

"You pilot a time machine. How can you be late?" said Nozomu.

"You'd be surprised," murmured the Doctor. "Well, see you both again in the near or far future, or the past!" the Doctor saluted and closed the door. Both Alan and Nozomu watched as the blue box made a wheezing and warping sound before vanishing from sight.

"What an unusual man," Nozomu commented.

"_That_ I won't deny. He is a madman with a box, but still a brilliant madman with a box," said Alan with admiration.

Shinichi came into the infirmary, apologizing "Sorry, Alan! I'm late!"

"You're not late," said Alan. "Now, go say hello to your nephew." Shinichi didn't need to be told twice as he looked over at Nozomu who was still feeding Adam.

Shinichi went to the bed and saw Adam in Nozomu's arms. The baby stared up at Shinichi with golden eyes. He held out his tiny arms and was making grabbing motions. Shinichi put a finger out within his reach and Adam's fingers curled around him.

"He's so young and he already has a strong and firm grip," said Shinichi. He looked to Alan, "He really is your son."

"Yes, he is," Alan said.

"And knowing you, you'll make sure he does grow up to be someone strong and brave like you."

That much was true. Alan's son did have potential but what he wanted to be would be up to him and Alan would be there to support him. Shinichi and Alan both watched as Adam slowly fell back asleep in his mother's arms. So much death and destruction had occurred and yet life still continued for them as new life was born into this world.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, Shiro and Gnol Gnauh are officially gone. I'd like to thank Shadow Element 13 and Kamen Rider Bushido for the help they put into this fic, and I won't forget about guys like Iron-Mantis, Snake Screamer, and Deadly84. Of course, The Gauntlet and Religion of Crime are still a problem. Of course, right now I am taking a break from KRxGL to focus on other things and stories. Oh, and special credit goes to Toku Warrior who helped out in editing and adding detail to this chapter. Well done. **

**BTW, I'm gonna be taking a break from this story. This OR0CHI arc has taken a lot of time to do and now that it's done I deserve a break from it. Until next time. Keep those reviews coming too.**


	117. The Legacy of Cain Part 61

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 61: Tempo Of The Heart**

A day after the Yamata no Orochi's destruction, Daiki was standing at Tsuchi-Gnol's gravestone with Alan standing next to him. They were holding hands as they paid their respects to the fallen Orochi of Earth. The young Earth Manakyte looked up at his adopted father. "So, it's over then," stated Daiki.

"It is," said Alan. "Tsuchi can finally rest in peace." Suddenly, Daiki hugged him a gesture which Alan returned.

"Thanks, Dad," said Daiki.

* * *

In ARMOR, love was in the air. Dr. Ryuki Hasuma was in his office with his wife Jinx. He'd just given her a present.

"Oh my," Jinx gasped as she saw what was in the box. It was a heart-shaped gem stone, with a bright red color. The gem was attached to a necklace.

"It's a fire ruby," said Dr. Hasuma to his wife. "I found it while I was in Planet Trika's marketplace. I saw it and I thought of you. Happy Valentine's Day."

"Oh, I love it," said Jinx as she hugged and kissed her husband. He always treated her special during these occasions. Christmas had been wonderful, and so had been their last anniversary. He always remembered. Never forgot their anniversary once. "Here, for you," said Jinx as she handed Ryuki a heart-shaped box. He opened it and he smiled.

"White chocolates," he said. It was the only known chocolate that was safe for him to eat. Nobody knew why, but nobody was complaining. It was best for everyone's health that he never had the regular brown chocolate. He popped a piece in his mouth and sighed, "Oishi~"

"And I got us dinner reservations for tonight at this really exclusive restaurant. Just the two of us, a romantic evening," Jinx smiled. "And at the end…"

The door opened. "Am I interrupting?" asked Warren. Jinx glowered at him. "Oops, sorry." He then saw the heart-shaped box in Ryuki's hand. "Ah…is it Valentine's Day?"

Jinx gaped at him. "You forgot?"

"No, I didn't forget," Warren denied. "I already got my girls their presents." He rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, "I…just forgot where I put them."

Jinx remarked sarcastically, "Like you _forget_ to do your paperwork?"

"Oh, I don't forget my paperwork. I just don't care to do it," said Warren without regrets.

"Yeah, and my husband has to do it for you," scoffed Jinx.

"It's OK, Jinx," Ryuki said. "Besides, he has to make up for it by doing extra field assignments."

"That's true," Jinx admitted. "He has to stick his neck out and you just stay safe in your office doing paperwork. It's a fair deal."

"Your wife's wit is as sharp as ever," Warren complimented. His tone turned serious, "So, what's the status?"

Ryuki knew what Warren was talking about, "Unfortunately, we have yet to uncover the reason why we can't get into contact with Shinichi's world."

"It's been a year," groaned Warren. "I don't like this. I mean they're my sons and I don't know what's happening."

"Have faith," said Ryuki. "They have each other. They'll be alright."

"Besides, you guys have tried almost everything. I mean remember when you tried to use your Keyblades?" Jinx reminded. "You both ended up in the hospital."

"Hate hospitals," Warren mumbled.

"And how many inventions has Takada made that have exploded each and every time?" Jinx asked.

"56," Ryuki said. "Prof. Takada has made 56 inventions designed to open a portal to Shinichi's world and all 156 have met with failure."

"And you nearly tried using Infinity Fragments, which was a bad idea," said Jinx. "It's a good thing that Doctor guy showed up before you did something stupid."

Warren had tried to use an experimental teleportation vest which had an Infinity Fragment put in it. Of course the Doctor had shown up in his blue box to stop them. Even had a hand written message from Alan.

It had read: **DON'T DO ANYTHING STUPID, DAD**. It was in capital letters too.

"How does the Doctor do it, though?" Warren asked. "How can he go to Shinichi's world and we can't?"

"Because he's the Doctor," said Ryuki. "It's as simple as that."

"Well the only reason he can travel between dimensions safely is because of an Infinity Fragment anyway," said Warren defensively.

"Jealous?" Jinx asked, teasingly.

"No…just…I don't like not knowing what's going on," Warren sighed.

"Well, the Doctor was able to give us a good summary, and you've gained a grandson," said Ryuki.

"Yeah," Warren smiled, having seen the photo. "Just hope for the best, right?"

"It's all we can do for now," Ryuki nodded.

* * *

**February 10th 1989**

Epsilon Alice lashed out with her wing blades in an attempt to incapacitate her opponent. However, while the bio-android had been built for combat she lacked the experience her opponent had.

And her opponent right now was her own mother, Yami, also known as the assassin Golden Darkness.

With her hands morphed to form wicked blades, Yami parried Epsilon Alice's attack, sparks erupting as their weapons made contact. Smiling, Epsilon Alice attempted to land a kick on her mother whose hair came shooting towards her like tendrils, snaking around her leg. Epsilon Alice gasped as she was pulled through the air and thrown over Yami's shoulder. The blonde and winged bio-android was sent tumbling along the grass.

Climbing back to her feet, Epsilon Alice glared at Yami who stared back at her daughter impassively. Concentrating, Epsilon Alice formed a pair of fireballs in her hands and sent them rocketing towards Yami. They connected with Golden Darkness and exploded. "Yatta!" Epsilon Alice cheered only to see after the smoke had cleared that Golden Darkness had formed a shield using her hands.

"You'll need to do better than that," said Golden Darkness before she dashed towards Epsilon Alice. Pointing her index fingers at Yami, the winged bio-android fired a series of fireballs in succession but Golden Darkness evaded them with ease. Closing the gap between them, Golden Darkness was in Epsilon Alice's face. She buried her fist into her daughter's gut, causing her to double over before slamming her other fist into Epsilon Alice's face, sending her flying across the canyon as she smashed into the canyon wall.

Yami watched as the dust cleared to reveal Epsilon Alice with her wing blades spread out menacingly. The violet-haired bio-android was glaring at Yami and Yami glared back. Inside, however, the assassin was proud of her daughter. She had such strength, such dedication, such resolve…and such a huge fireball hanging over her head.

"Oh shit," Yami murmured as she realized what Epsilon Alice was going to do with that large fireball of hers. She knew what she had to do then. She moved in quickly to stop her daughter and launched her attack. Her fist connected and Epsilon Alice was smashed against the canyon wall again. This time she was knocked out.

Yami, realizing what she'd done, gasped. "Oh no!" She went to check on her daughter to see if she was alright and found her in her child form, lying unconscious. That was when she saw Alan coming.

"What the hell?" Alan uttered, looking shocked. He'd come to check on their training to see Yami standing over their unconscious daughter. He instantly moved to Alice's side and cradled her in his arms. "Yami?"

"…I can explain, but I recommended we take her to the infirmary first," Yami suggested calmly, despite the fear she felt. What if she'd gone too far?

* * *

Alice was still crying as she sat on the bed in the infirmary as Alan used his Sonic Screwdriver to scan and perform repairs on her body. She had scratches and bruises but nothing permanent. Of course, she also sported a black eye but it was starting to fade with the help of the Sonic Screwdriver's light.

"I can't believe you punched her in the face, gave her a black eye and knocked her out," Alan said disapprovingly as he tried to placate his crying daughter.

"She had a fireball the size of a house ready to throw at me," Yami defended.

"…Well, OK, but she's still our daughter," said Alan. He finished repairing the damage to Alice's body. "There, you're fixed."

Alice didn't feel any pain anymore and hugged Alan. Yami approached her and she flinched away but Yami pulled her into a loving embrace.

"I'm sorry I hit you too hard," Yami apologized. She hadn't meant to injure her daughter too much but in a spar like that injury was always guaranteed. Alice could handle it in her adult form, but not in her default child form.

"It's OK, Mommy," Alice said as she hugged Yami back. "Next time I'll try to be stronger."

"Well, isn't that just precious," stated Bazel. "If I had a mouth I would be smiling now." It was a very touching moment.

"Yup, Yami can be cold sometimes but it's times like these that make me glad I made her Alice's mom."

"Speaking of moms, don't you think you should spend some time with the mother of your son?" Bazel asked.

"Oh, right," Alan realized. "Yami, are you and Alice going to be OK without me?"

Yami was carrying Alice in her arms as she said, "Don't worry about us. You go and take care of Nozomu and Adam."

"Thanks." Alan quickly kissed Yami and then he pecked Alice on the cheek. "Love you both!"

And he was off like a speeding bullet. He zoomed past Yokoshima, sending him spinning in the hallway as he cried out in shock. Once he stopped spinning, the Scarab's host put a hand against the wall, feeling dizzy.

"Why is he in such a hurry?" Yokoshima asked.

"When you have multiple lovers and children you need to divide your time among them fairly," said Yami as she was carrying Alice in her arms.

"Man, then I'm lucky I got only one wife," remarked Yokoshima.

"How about children? Don't you plan on having any?" asked Yami.

"Not yet. Someday, but not yet," Yokoshima said. "It's a bit too soon to be thinking about kids."

* * *

**February 11th 1989**

Alan and Shinichi were taking a walk in Shishibone City, just talking and hanging out together as brothers should.

"So, any plans for Valentine's Day?" Shinichi asked. "It's coming up soon."

"Spending the day with the girls. How about you? It's also your birthday. Do you have any plans?" Alan replied.

"Spending it with Rena-chan and Satan-chan. Oh, and I'm gonna pay Shawna-chan a visit too." Shawna's time in Shishibone City had ended and she'd gone back home to Genovia after New Year's Day. It had been a tearful separation but Shinichi had promised he would visit his beloved princess. He heard Alan yawn. "What's wrong? Exhausted?"

"I've been very busy," said Alan.

"I remember. Last week you helped out your school's kendo club. Then the week before that it was the volleyball club," said Shinichi.

"And the Judo club a week before that," Alan added.

"You've become pretty popular," observed Shinichi. "Been getting fanmail?"

"Ugh, tons," Alan groaned. "Don't get me started. All of the yokai students in my school have been congratulating me for destroying the Yamata no Orochi. They were discrete about it by sending me letters, but enough is enough."

"Tell me about it," said Shinichi.

"And the letters from the girls were explicit. Long story short I have about 100 yokai girls wanting me to impregnate them," Alan told his brother.

"A Sazae-Oni tried to proposition me a while back," said Shinichi. "Then Satan-chan showed up and saved me."

"Sazae-Oni?" Alan asked.

"They have sex with men, and then they steal your testicles," Shinichi explained. Alan grimaced in response. "That was my reaction too. She was hot, but the ball stealing part was a turn off. I'd like to keep my balls, thank you."

"And it's not just the fans and the clubs that are making me tired," said Alan as he gave another yawn. "It's Adam. He can't stay asleep for more than five minutes. His crying is loud and I haven't had a full night's sleep since he was born."

"Now you know how I feel when I babysat you," remarked Shinichi in amusement. "So, how's Nozomu been?"

"Nozomu? She loves being a mom," said Alan. "I know it's instinct and in her nature but seeing her holding our son in her arms is the most beautiful thing in the world." Alan sighed. "And in a few more months, Satan will be holding your child in her arms."

"Right…" Shinichi was still a bit unsure about the idea. "Hey, have you heard the stuff on the radio?"

"Mikogami again? He's been ranting on and on about what happened in Kyoto," said Alan.

"Considering what happened he's got a lot of mileage," grumbled Shinichi. "I mean he wasn't even there and he didn't even do anything. We were there, and we fought-"

"And people still died," finished Alan in a dejected tone. "We saved the world but at what cost?"

"I know," Shinichi agreed sadly. "And all those people who've become Cybermen. Their families will never know what happened to them."

Alan could empathize with Shinichi. The regret of the failures still weighed heavily on their shoulders. They had defeated the Yamata no Orochi, but the cost had still been too high. "Hopefully Valentine's Day will make you feel better," Alan reassured.

"Yeah, I hope so," Shinichi smiled.

As the two walked past a café, someone watched them with hate-filled eyes. The two men would pay for their sins.

* * *

**February 12th 1989**

Harious' Rat Goblins were making a nuisance of themselves. They were attacking a supermarket and grabbing all the food they could carry. Customers and staff fled in terror at the sight of the disgusting creatures. Of course these Rat Goblins would be stopped by none other than…

…a shopping trolley with Blue Beetle riding in it. He barreled through the Rat Goblins, knocking them and their ill gotten gains to the floor. Jumping off his transportation, he crossed his arms and glared at the Rat Goblins which were slowly picking them up.

"It's the Beetle! Get him and rip the Scarab out of him for Master Harious!" Steel Cap ordered. The plan was simple. They were causing so much trouble that the Blue Beetle would have no choice but to appear. The Rat Goblins, brandishing their weapons, charged at the Blue Beetle who smirked.

"Let's play Whack-A-Rat!" he said as he formed his hammer from his fist. Swinging around, he smashed the hammer into the Rat Goblin's faces, sending them flying as the bones in their faces were cracked by the impact. The Rat Goblins fell as he dealt with them alone.

He formed a new weapon from his other gauntlet. Three blades pointed forward like claws formed and he swiped at the advancing horde. They fell with each swipe. They may have numbers by their side but they were no match for the Blue Beetle. They managed to strike him with their weapons but nothing they had could damage his armor.

"Hey, let me give you a bath!" He formed a water faucet from his boot and aimed it at the charging Rat Goblins before shooting a blast of water at them, drenching them wet. He then formed his Electric Beetle Blade. Electricity arched around the blade and he lightly touched the tip to the wet floor. An electrical current flowed through the water and into the drenches Rat Goblins, giving them a rather unpleasant shock.

"Say hello to my little friend, vermin!" Blue Beetle shouted as he formed his Beetle Buster Blaster. He aimed the weapon at the Rat Goblins and blasted them with successive bursts of energy, blowing them up on the spot. Steel Cap, seeing the Rat Goblins defeated, ran screaming. "Oh, no you don't!"

That was when Yuji on his bike stopped at the supermarket to do some shopping. He parked his bike outside and then saw everyone surrounding the place. "What's going on?" He got his answer when a Rat Goblin came running out the entrance and ran away, screaming, with Blue Beetle in hot pursuit.

"Get back here!" Blue Beetle shouted, shaking his fist.

"Hey, BB!" Yuji called. "What's up?"

"Just doing some pest control," said Blue Beetle. "Excuse me for a moment!" He turned his feet into wheels and raced after Steel Cap who ran into an alley. "Hah, dead end!" Blue Beetle made a turn towards the alley only to discover Steel Cap gone. "Damn it!" Blue Beetle cursed. He turned to the alley's entrance to see Yuji. "He got away."

"You'll get him next time," said Yuji, shrugging. "Hey, want to grab a bite to eat? I'm paying."

"I would, but Asmo-chan told me to do the shopping today," said Blue Beetle as he held up a list in his hand. "But I doubt we'll be able to do any shopping after what happened."

"Why did you come all the way to Shishibone to buy groceries?" asked Yuji.

"I just thought I might get a better deal here," reasoned Blue Beetle. "Well, I guess I gotta head to Okinomiya then."

"Same here," agreed Yuji.

"Gotta fly!" Blue Beetle took off with Yuji watching. Blue Beetle, aka Yokoshima Ryuunosuke-Magi, was Yuji's brother in law. They had been since Yokoshima married Asmodeus whom Yuji considered a sister.

"Newlyweds," Yuji murmured, amused then he remembered he was one himself as it hadn't been very long since he and Misato were married. "Right, need to get some new diapers for Yuna. Since the supermarket was out, Yuji decided that a drive to Okinomiya was needed.

* * *

**February 13th 1989**

Michiru hummed happily as she skipped along the sidewalk with her purchases in hand. "Who is the perfect Valentine for my girl Hana-chan? This girl!" she sang.

She stopped when she heard a familiar, enraged shout, "GAAAAH!" Turning the corner, she saw Daichi standing in front of a convenience store, shaking his fist at someone. "I'm gonna get you back for that, bitch!"

"Who are you yelling at?" Michiru asked as she approached her fellow cyborg.

"Oh, it's you," Daichi noticed.

"Well? Care to tell me what's got you mad this time?" Michiru questioned.

"Some bitch cut me off and bought the last box of chocolates at this store," Daichi grumbled, gesturing to said convenience store. "Now where am I gonna find a gift?"

"You actually tried to buy a gift a day before Valentine's Day?"

"I've been busy, OK?" Daichi retorted. They were superheroes after all.

"And you do realize only girls are supposed to give gifts on Valentine's Day too, right?"

"I know, but you know how Levi is and Mika would want something in return," Daichi responded. Michiru knew Leviathan was the Stake of Envy and would want a gift immediately after giving Daichi his chocolates.

"I suggest sticking to your strengths and compose an awesome love song for them," Michiru recommended. "Oh, and maybe use the Teleportal to go someplace where there are beautiful flowers."

"Yeah, but it's still too much for me," Daichi sighed. "How those guys handle more than one woman I can never understand."

"No idea. I'm guessing it's just because they're Alpha Males. Now, if you'll excuse me, I got my own Valentine's Day gifts to prepare."

Daichi finally noticed the three bouquets Michiru was carrying. He knew one would be for Hana. Those two were so obviously close. It was the other two bouquets which made him curious. "So, what's with the flowers?"

"Oh, one's for Hana-chan, and the other two are for Alan and Yuji." she answered.

"OK, I can understand why you'd want to give Yuji one," said Daichi. Everyone knew about Yuji, Michiru and Hana screwing in the base's garage. "But why Alan?"

"Oh what can I say? He's cute and he's got such an interesting personality. Plus he's great with kids. That's always a plus," Michiru smiled. "Besides, I don't think Hana-chan or Yuji woild mind if a spread the love a bit." She concluded, "See you later," before leaving him to ponder about his Valentine's Day plans.

* * *

"Welcome, everyone," Rena smiled as she let her female friends from the Hinamizawa Gaming Club come into her and Shinichi's apartment.

"Thanks for letting us come over, Rena," said Mion, smiling.

"When you said we were going to make chocolates together I couldn't resist," replied Rena, beaming.

"So, how did you get Shinichi out of the house?" Shion asked.

"Oh, I asked Alan-kun to take Shin-kun to the moon."

* * *

Sentinel and Kamen Rider Showa (in the form of Super-1) were standing on the surface of the moon.

"OK, so why did you drag me up here to the moon?" Showa-Super-1 asked.

"I just want to check out Gebok's old moon base and see if we might've missed something," answered Sentinel. "I mean we didn't even know that Shiro had a base and I doubt he built it himself."

"You're saying he found it," Showa-Super-1 said.

"Exactly, and this is the only base that's still intact," said Sentinel. "So, what do you say?"

"It's not like I have anything better to do."

* * *

"Let's make some chocolate, nipah~" said Rika, beaming brightly. They each carried a plastic bag filled with supplies.

They first broke the chocolate to pieces and dumped the pieces into a huge pot. The pot was then heated over the stove until the chocolate melted and Rena stirred the melting chocolate with a plastic spatula. She made sure to keep the chocolate at a low heat so that it wouldn't burn and stick to the pot. Once the melted chocolate was smooth, it was time to get to work.

"So, what do you want to make, Rena-san?" Satoko asked.

"Oh, I bought these strawberries and I wanted to cover them in chocolate," said Rena. "Rika-chan, what about you? What are you making for Kai-san?"

"Who says I'm making anything for Kai?" Rika asked.

"Come on, Rika. We all know you and he have gotten serious," said Satoko.

"And you?" Rika asked.

"Oh, I'm going to make something special for Nii-nii."

"I'm going to make heart-shaped pieces of chocolate," said Hanyuu as she scooped the melted chocolate and poured it into a large tray with heart-shaped moulds. "Chiaki-san is going to love them."

"So, Hanyuu-chan, you didn't tell us what you did in Kyoto," said Shion.

"I told you. We were busy fighting OROCHI and stopping Shiro from freeing the Yamata no Orochi," Hanyuu answered, blushing.

"What about the break between battles?" Shion grinned. "You and him must've gotten some lovey-dovey time with him. I mean you're the only one who gets to see his face under his scarf."

Hanyuu blushed, twirling her hair around her finger bashfully. Shion's eyes widened. "Oh my god!"

"What?" Satoko asked.

"Don't," Hanyuu warned, knowing what Shion was going to say.

"You did it!" Shion exclaimed.

"Did what?" Mion questioned.

"No, please don't!" Hanyuu covered her face.

"You did it with him!" Shion shouted, pointing at Hanyuu. "You slept with the big guy!"

"Au! Au! Au!" Hanyuu cried out adorably as she tried to hide her blush behind her hands.

* * *

Chiaki sneezed. He wiggled his nose and shrugged before he resumed chopping wood.

* * *

"You slept with Chiaki-san," Rika stated.

"Yes…" Hanyuu confessed. Denying it wouldn't do much good now.

"How did it happen?" Rena pressed on. Now the young goddess was being surrounded by her curious friends.

"I had a meeting with the Kekkain Clan and there was a lot of shouting and stress. Chiaki-san was taking me for a ride in the jeep…"

"Oh, I bet he was," Mion grinned.

"No, not like _that_!" Hanyuu cried. "I was stressed, I needed to relax…"

"And so you asked him to pullover into a dark alley and took him right there!" Shion finished inaccurately.

"Would you let me finish?" Hanyuu frowned, annoyed. She added, "I asked him to pullover to a love hotel."

"Ooooh~" the girls went.

"So, how was he? How big was he? Was he rough or gentle? How many times did you do it?" Shion fired off questions. "Inquiring minds want to know!"

Blushing, Hanyuu cried, "We don't have to talk about it!"

"We're girls and this is girl talk, Hanyuu-chan," said Rena. "Please…?"

"Weren't we supposed to be making chocolates?" Hanyuu questioned.

"Don't change the subject, Hanyuu," Rika smirked.

"Why is this such a big deal anyway?" she questioned.

"Because you're the last one we thought would do it before marriage," Satoko stated.

"So, give us details, Hanyuu-chan," insisted Mion.

Hanyuu huffed cutely, "Sorry, but what happens between me and Chiaki-san is private. Besides, it's nothing special."

"Nothing special?" Mion questioned in disbelief. "Honey, you've finally reached womanhood."

"May I remind you that I'm centuries years old and that I've married before and that I had a child before," Hanyuu stated, eyes narrowing. "This is hardly the first time I've ever been with a man."

"Yeah, but it was your first after a dry spell that lasted for centuries," remarked Rika, smirking.

"Rika, that's so mean!" Hanyuu cried out.

"Oh, now I really wanna hear this," grinned Mion.

"Besides, now you can share along with us girls. Well, most of us. We still got a couple of virgins here," Shion said teasingly as she casted both Rika and Satoko a look.

"Sorry, but I won't share intimate details," Hanyuu said sternly. She'd already said too much regarding the love hotel.

"I have to agree," assisted Rika. "If Shinichi ever heard about this you know he'll overreact."

The others girls considered what might happen if Shinichi ever found out about Hanyuu and Chiaki going all the way and shivered in terror. He might've accepted his adopted little sister and comrade dating, but he would totally blow his top if he found out that they'd done 'C'.

"Fine, we won't badger you anymore," Shion sighed.

"Good, now let's get to making chocolates," Hanyuu said happily. She looked over and saw a paper crane sitting on the kitchen counter. "Rena, is that one of yours?"

"I don't think so," said Rena. Hanyuu paled. Then the paper crane flapped its wings and flew out the window.

And they knew only one person who could manipulate paper cranes like that.

Hanyuu suddenly received a call on her com-link and activated the device. She heard a shout coming from it, "_HANYUU-CHAN, HELP ME!_" It was Chiaki, and he was in trouble.

"Chiaki-san, what's wrong?" Hanyuu asked, panicking. "Chiaki-san? Chiaki-san?" There was no response.

She knew what was wrong. That paper crane made it obvious.

Shinichi had just found out and was going Overprotective Big Brother all over Chiaki.

* * *

Chiaki was hiding behind a tree as Shinichi looked around for him. "Chiaki! Get your ass out here right now! I know you're out here!" He looked calm, but there seemed to be a sinister aura around him. "You can't hide forever, man! I'll find you! And when I do we will have a very serious talk!"

Chiaki never got a warning. When he saw Shinichi coming at him, he had a feeling that he needed to run. He'd seen Shinichi angry and that anger was directed at the Termite Cyborg now.

And Chiaki knew why Shinichi was so pissed off. Because, Shinichi now knew what had happened between Chiaki and Hanyuu in Kyoto.

* * *

_In the room they had paid for in the love hotel, the two had undressed and taken a shower together to examine each other's naked bodies. He had removed his signature snowcap and scarf so she could gaze at his face and admire his strong features. As they lathered each other up with soap, her hands explored his strong, muscled body while Chiaki's hands explored soft and smooth skin. Hanyuu might be centuries old but she was definitely no old lady in looks. She had a beautiful figure, beautiful full breasts, and hips wide enough to give her a perfect feature. Hanyuu stared down at his member and smiled, knowing it promised to give her pleasure._

_And since Chiaki was a cyborg, he had the stamina to satisfy her._

_After their shower, they dried each other off and went to bed. Actually, Chiaki carried a towel-clad Hanyuu to bed before gently laying her down on it. He opened up her towel like he would unwrap a Christmas present and continued to admire her body. He removed his own towel and tossed it away before pulling the covers over themselves._

_Hanyuu may have had a husband and a daughter in the past, but her body now was a virgin one so when Chiaki first penetrated her, she felt her hymen break. Afterwards, it was a long ride of pleasure for the both of them. She had uttered his name, first slow, then faster and faster in correspondence to the speed of his thrusts before finally screaming his name. They held onto each other after their first climax together but Hanyuu still wasn't satisfied and wanted to do it more with different positions._

_Shiori had definitely given her a proper bedroom education._

* * *

Suddenly, the tree he'd been hidden behind was sliced in half and Chiaki spun around, backpedaling from a grinning Shinichi. The Higurashi no Yaiba in his hand was gripped tightly as it glowed with a sinister green aura.

"So, Chiaki," Shinichi said as he advanced on his fellow cyborg. "I heard that you and my sister finally did it…" He ran his fingers up his blade affectionately.

"Shi-Shi-Shinichi, please!" Chiaki pleaded as he backed away from Shinichi. The last time he'd been this scared was the day #13 had killed them years ago. Now the same fear had returned at 10 times the intensity. Chiaki didn't even have the courage to fight back. "Just take it easy! We can just sit down and talk about this without any sharp objects!" He tripped on a stump and fell on his ass. He continued to back away, only to find himself against a tree, unable to back up anymore.

"Oh, we're gonna talk alright," Shinichi grinned.

Chiaki narrowed his eyes, stood back up and then produced his chainsaws. He was going to have to defend himself because there was just no reasoning with Shinichi now. Of course he had one regretful thought, '_Sayonara, Hanyuu-chan…_'

**SHINK!**

Chiaki blinked. Between them, the Higurashi no Yaiba had sunk into the ground. Looking back at the Cicada Cyborg, he was still grinning. But this grin was sadistic like before, but almost... proud?

"It was about time, you cheap son of a bitch!" Shinichi praised with a thumbs-up.

"Hah?" Chiaki gawked as his chainsaws vanished.

"What? You don't think I was paying attention?" Shinichi asked, tapping at his head. "Remember what I told you during the time Rai-Gnol gave you both a negative field charge?"

"To keep us apart?" Chiaki recalled. He still remembered that day. Rai-Gnol had shocked him and Hanyuu with a lightning bolt to keep them apart. Every time they did something as little as holding hands, an electric charge would prevent them from making contact. It was Rai-Gnol's way of making them suffer. It was one of the worst days of his life.

"I told you that I realized how happy she was with you, so who am I to get between all that?" Shinichi answered. "I know I get all Overprotective Big Brother Mode with her, but I just don't want anything to happen to her, especially after she got kidnapped by Gebok."

"Yeah, I know," Chiaki nodded.

"And if I were to really freak out, I'd be a hypocrite," Shinichi continued, "I actually went through the same thing Rena-chan's father. I had to really earn his respect before I could sleep with her, though she was the one who made the first move. Alan also went through something similar with Nozomu when her brother tried to break them apart. I can't allow Hanyuu-chan to go through that same pain."

"What are you saying?" Chiaki asked. Shinichi gave an affection fist bump on the giant's chest.

"What I'm saying is welcome to the family," Shinichi smiled. "After all the hell you went through, you've earned it. Looks like this makes you and I brothers now."

"Brothers..." Chiaki whispered in awe. This wasn't all he was expecting. Maybe he was getting better after all. Although, the brotherly moment was soon broken by a loud screech.

"SHINICHI!" Hanyuu shouted as she suddenly appeared, putting herself between Chiaki and Shinichi as a shield for the latter. "Stop trying to kill Chiaki-san!"

"Hanyuu-chan?" Chiaki blinked.

"Whoa, Hanyuu-chan," Shinichi waved his hands in defense. "It's okay. All I did was give Chiaki here my congrats. That's all."

"Eh?" Hanyuu blinked, the tension around her lessening. "You were?"

"I've seen how much you two love each other, so I have no reason to complain," Shinichi said to her. "Frankly, I was wondering what was talking you guys so long."

"So then you'll let us date?" Hanyuu smiled.

"Yep!" Shinichi smiled as he picked up his Higurashi no Yaiba and hefted it over his shoulder. "Sorry for scaring ya, Chiaki. I was messing with you. You two love birds take care now." He waved and walked from the pair.

"I guess things worked out after all!" Hanyuu beamed at Chiaki.

"Yeah," Chiaki murmured, "I didn't get my manhood cut off, but why do I still feel emasculated?"

* * *

**February 14th 1989 (Valentine's Day)**

"Happy Valentine's Day, Papa, UU!" said Maria as she handed Yuji a wrapped box of chocolates.

"Chocolates for you, Father," said Wendy as she handed Yuji a box of chocolates as well.

"Thank you," Yuji said as he accepted their Valentine's Day gifts. He then lifted his girls up into his arms and with his strength it wasn't impossible. "So what do my little girls want?"

"We just wanted to show you how much we loved you, Papa," Maria said.

"And we were told chocolates were the best way to do it. We don't need anything else," added Wendy.

"Of course, now that you asked, how about you get us a gift in return? It is Valentine's Day," said Maria.

"Isn't the guy supposed to get girls a gift a month afterwards on White Day?" Yuji asked.

"Well, do we do things traditionally?" Maria asked.

"Point taken," he nodded. He then remembered something he'd gotten from Shinichi. "I got just the thing!" He put them down and went to his room. He looked through his drawer and found what he was looking for. "Right!" He ran out and presented his daughters with his presents to them. "Those there are Evolution Stones," Yuji identified, "Maria's is a Fire Stone and Wendy's is a Water Stone."

"Evolution Stones," Maria's eyes sparkled.

"What do we do with these, exactly?" Wendy inquired.

"You see, the Fire Stone helps certain Fire-type Pokémon and Pokégirls evolve while the Water Stone helps certain Water-types evolve," Yuji explained. "One day you might need them. I'm just letting you girls be prepared."

Maria hugged her father. "I love it, Papa! It's beautiful!"

"Thank you, Father," Wendy accepted the gift. The two girls walked away to compare their Evolution Stones.

"Those are nice gifts," said Lina.

"Well, I only give the best to my little girls," Yuji blinked. He looked at the chocolates in his hand. Just a couple more to add to the mountain he'd already accumulated. "So, aren't you going to pay Shinichi a visit and give him a Valentine's Day chocolate?" he asked.

"Maybe, but it won't be 'honmei choco (true feeling chocolate)'," she told Yuji. Honemi choco was meant to be given to those a woman had romantic feelings for on Valentine's Day. "I'll just give him giri choco (obligation chocolate)." Lina was no longer interested in Shinichi in a romantic way. She didn't think she could handle being in a polyamorous relationship. She preferred it if she could have Shinichi to herself. She didn't like to share and couldn't play well with others.

"I know it's been over a year, but are you sure you made the right choice? He killed for you," said Yuji.

"I don't want him to hang onto the past, and I didn't want to either. We've talked about it and we're over it. He's with Rena and will have a future with him," said Lina, shrugging. "Besides, I'll find a guy I like and I'll be sure he's Mr. Right and not the type to make a harem like you."

"Am I such a bad example?" Yuji asked, offended.

"No, because your girls are able to get along. But I prefer a guy who's a one-woman-man and I'd like to be the only woman in the relationship," said Lina. "Oh, and here's your giri choco. Enjoy." She passed Yuji a bar of chocolate and went to grab a book to read.

* * *

Rhea nibbled on Yuki's ear as she massaged her breasts. The two girls were spending Valentine's Day with each other in Rhea's apartment and were celebrating it in their own special way.

Turning Yuki's head to face her, Rhea kissed Yuki deeply and passionately. Tongues came into play as they starting Frenching each other.

* * *

"There you are! What took you so long?" Lucifer asked as she glared at the man standing in front of her. She'd been waiting for him for ages and was afraid that he might've stood her up.

"Sorry, I was just busy back at the Sonozaki Estate. Akane-sama and Mion-sama needed me to run some errands for them but when I told them I had plans they excused me," Shogo explained.

Lucifer huffed cutely but smiled nonetheless. "Oh, well. You're here so how about we get a bite to eat?"

"Shall we, milady?" Shogo asked as he offered his arm to her. She hooked her arm with his and they both went to have romantic Valentine's Day date together.

"Oh, and here's your chocolate," said Lucifer as she handed Shogo a box before giving him a kiss.

* * *

Hana was in her and Michiru's apartment, reading, when she heard a knock at the door. "Who is it?" She received no answer except more knocking. "I'm coming," she said as she put down her book and went to the door. When she opened it, Michiru smiled and handed her a bouquet.

Michiru sang, "Happy Valentine's Day, I wish you great tidings and love from your truly!" She seemed to be panting.

"Michiru, are you OK?" Hana asked as Michiru entered, wiping the sweat off her brow.

"Yeah, just tired. I've been doing singing love telegrams for Alan and Yuji earlier and now with you," said Michiru. "I would've used my bike but Chiaki was looking at it and so I had to walk.

"Why didn't you just take the Teleportal?" Hana questioned.

"…That is a pretty good question," Michiru said, realizing she could've saved herself a lot of trouble, time and energy if she just used the Teleportal system.

Smiling, Hana kissed Michiru and gave her a hug. "Thank you for the flowers, Michiru. I actually got you something as well." Hana left Michiru to grab a box and opened it up to the Mantis Rider to see its content. Inside the box were choco-bananas, Michiru's favorite treat. "And they are all for you."

"YAY!" Michiru cheered as she hugged Hana before grabbing the box.

"Just don't eat them all at once," Hana warned. "I don't want you getting fat on me."

"Hana-chan, always looking after Michiru,~" Michiru purred as she rubbed her head against Hana's chest. Hana rolled her eyes but nonetheless patted Michiru's head affectionately.

* * *

Meanwhile, Leviathan and Mika were sitting near the canyon's lake and enjoying the melody coming from Daichi's guitar as he played them a song. It was a song he'd composed just for them. While many would say that Daichi could never win a Mister Nice Content to save his life, nobody could say he was a terrible musician.

Leviathan and Mika already had Valentine's Day gifts for the man they loved, but they would give them to him later. The gifts could wait. After all, this was a pretty good song and it was a shame to not listen to it until the very end.

* * *

Yokoshima was sitting on the bed as Asmodeus sat in his lap. The two were holding each other as they made out. Smiling sultrily, Asmodeus slid off her husband's lap and knelt down in front of him.

Obviously, their idea of the perfect Valentine's Day date was to have mind blowing sex in a hotel room. Even after being married that didn't change and the two of them had a pretty active sex life. As the Stake of Lust, in spite of her innocent looks, Asmodeus was well-versed in the art of seduction and sex. She had studied the Kamasutra, cover to cover, and knew the best positions for optimum pleasure. Wrapping her arms around her husband as she locked her legs around his waist, she pulled him close. His body was so warm and was making her hotter with every hard thrust. The headboard banged against the wall and Asmodeus wasn't one to hide how good she felt as she moaned and cried out, calling out his name.

Grabbing the bottle of chocolate sauce, Yokoshima poured some on Asmodeus' breasts before sucking and licking them as she called his name, "Oh yes...Yokoshima, yes~"

A Happy Valentine's Day indeed.

* * *

"Happy Birthday, Sir Shinichi."

"Thanks, Shawna-chan. Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day."

Shinichi had kept his promise to visit Shawna and he wasn't alone either. Rena and Satan had accompanied him as well. The three of them had taken the Teleportal all the way to Genovia to celebrate both Valentine's Day and Shinichi's birthday. Shawna remembered her gift for him and knew that he would be coming. Her father had welcomed one of his foreign knights with a handshake and a strong hug that would've crushed bone if Shinichi had been a normal man and not one with a steel-reinforced skeleton.

"Let's eat!" Rena opened a box with a homemade chocolate cake inside.

"And don't forget the drinks!" Satan popped open a cold bottle of cherry soda and poured each of them a glass. She was pregnant so she couldn't have alcohol.

"Kampai!"

* * *

"Happy Valentine's Day, Kai," Rika smiled as she gave her boyfriend the Lightning Manakyte his Valentine's Day chocolate. It was the one she had made yesterday with the girls. It was in a box. Kai opened it up and stared at the chocolate dragon staring back at him. "How do you like it?"

Kai hugged Rika and said, "I love it, Rika." He kissed her.

* * *

Alan had made reservations for brunch at a café in Shishibone City. Money was no problem for Alan. Apparently, as a knight of Genovia he received a very sizable monthly salary from the king. The exact number was quite large. Yuji and Shinichi also received the same amount of money as payment for their services to the crown. Protecting Princess Shawna was part of the job in fact. Of course Shinichi got a bonus as well for being very close to the princess. Alan also played the stock market. It wasn't anything big, just subtle things to keep him financially secured. He knew it was like gambling and that in an instant he could just as much earn a fortune or lose everything overnight.

The girls and the kids sat around the round table which was covered with food as Alan said, "Eat as much as you want." It was a buffet style brunch which meant they could eat as much as they wanted and only pay a standard fee. The condition was that they finished everything they put on their plates.

A waitress later came to their table with a basket in hand. "Have some complimentary candy," she said as she placed a piece in front of each of them. She beamed, "Happy Valentine's Day."

"Thanks," said Alan as he examined the piece of candy. He removed the red wrapping paper and popped the piece into his mouth. It tasted very good. "Wow! Chocolate mint!" He liked mint. It was one of his favorite flavors.

"I hope you enjoy it," the pretty waitress said before moving along to pass out candy to the rest of the patrons. She looked over her shoulder at Alan's table and her eyes narrowed sinisterly as they locked on him.

The group left the café together with Alice holding her father's left hand and Celine sitting on his shoulders. Daiki patted his stomach, "That was a lot of food. Glad it was 'all you can eat'."

"Yeah, if it we'd ordered off the menu it would've cost us a fortune," agreed Megan.

"I doubt that," Amora smirked. "I can always just retrieve funds from my own personal storage dimension."

"I doubt they would accept gold and jewels as payment in this day and age," Alan remarked.

"You just need to know the right people," said Amora.

Alan laughed but then stopped when he heard something, something he'd heard before.

It sounded like repetitive drumming, in a familiar rhythm.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And that's it for the Valentine's Day chapter. The action will start again in the next chapter. Please, be sure to read it, review it and leave comments. Oh, and that tapping foreshadows things. Be sure to read and review.**


	118. The Legacy of Cain Part 62

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 62: Ghosts of Guilt**

Alan gasped as his eyes widened. He remembered that drumming.

It was the Orochi's heartbeat.

'_But that's impossible!_' Alan thought. He then spotted something in the reflection on a window and saw Shiro smiling back at him. He was standing right behind him. Spinning around, he saw nobody but the girls.

"Alan, are you OK?" Lala asked worriedly.

"I'm…I'm fine," he said, wiping the sweat off his brow.

"Mau?" Celine added.

"I'm just feeling a little tired. Let's just head home," he said to the girls.

The girls could only nod as they headed back home for the evening. As they went home, both Lala and Yami stared at Alan as they walked behind him, with looks of worry in their eyes. While it was true that the battle with Shiro and Gnol had been difficult, none of them had any idea of the long term repercussions it would have on all of them. '_Alan…_,' Lala thought to herself as she continued to worry about the man she loved.

* * *

"Well, isn't this nice?" Shizuko asked as she sat with the others in front of the television, watching a movie together. It hadn't taken long for her to be accepted and Yuji had been a gracious host to her. Yuji and the girls were all on the couch while Maria and Wendy sat on the floor. "And the movie was good too."

"Meh, the plot was weak. I've seen better," said Misato as she cradled Yuna in her arms.

"Who cares about the plot? The action was awesome!" said Stella excitedly.

Yuji smiled. This was how he wanted to spend Valentine's Day, surrounded by the people he loved and who loved him in return. All the women around him were in love with him for one reason or another and he'd even married Misato and had a child with her. '_Now this is what life is all about. Being able to spend time with the people you love and to enjoy their company._' He let out a content sigh and then smiled as Misato leaned in close and snuggled up next to him, Yuna reaching over from her spot within her mother's arms and grabbing onto his shirt sleeve. '_Yeah, this is how it should be_.'

* * *

It was another busy night at the Bakeneko House. The girls were entertaining clients by either having drinks with them or servicing them in the bedroom. The stage was active with girls dancing while scantily clad in either swimsuits or lingerie.

One of the dancers, a green-haired Bakeneko, was twirling around the pole and gazing at the crowd sultrily. However, her heart doesn't wasn't into it. No matter how she arched her body or rubbed herself against the pole, or even how far she split her legs apart while hanging upside down from the pole, she just didn't feel right about doing this for these men.

But it only went this far. They got to look and watch her with lust-filled leers but only one man was allowed to touch her.

Unfortunately, he was gone.

Men, human and youkai alike, had approached her for a passionate night but she'd declined. She was merely a dancer now and that was all. She would not be spreading her legs for these men except while she danced on stage.

After finishing her dance routine, she went backstage and towards the dressing room. She looked herself in the mirror and gave a sigh.

It had been over two months since the events of Kyoto. She remembered how their master had given them each one last kiss before sending them away and that was the last they had seen or heard from him. Of course news of the Yamata no Orochis' revival and demise on the same day had spread far and wide. It was huge news when it reached the Bakaneko House.

But the only conclusion they had drawn was that their master had perished.

Midoneko removed the bikini and put on a miniskirt and white blouse. She felt like she needed a drink. Maybe flirt with a few guys but it wouldn't go beyond that. She would not sleep with them. No other man could compare to her master.

She was also watching over Kineko, her best friend and one of the others who'd been part of Shiro Juuyon's Bakeneko Kunoichi. Something seemed a little off about the blonde Bakeneko girl. She had once scratched a client across the face because he'd been too persistent when she'd made it clear that she was a waitress and not a sex worker. Sometimes she would snap at men for touching her inappropriately and she even spilled drinks on them on purpose. It was a miracle that she hadn't gotten fired because these men had been big spenders.

To Midoneko, it looked like Kineko was taking Shiro's death the hardest. Momoneko had as well but she'd gotten over it. Chiro-chan had been given life by implanting ALPHA-01 into their master's former chibi body. As adorable as he was, he really couldn't take Shiro's place. It did ease Momoneko's loneliness.

Then when they learnt who'd given her such a gift, Kineko had accused Momoneko of fraternizing with the enemy. She then stormed out without another word.

* * *

She lay in bed, naked and covered in sweat. Her sheets were completely soaked as she panted, her chest rising and falling. "Still not enough," she murmured. She curled herself up into a ball as she hugged her own body. She began to sob, "Juuyon-sama…" Since returning to the Bakeneko House she had not allowed another man to touch her as it would be a betrayal towards her beloved master.

She remembered the night they had first met.

It was just another night at the Bakeneko House as she flirted with the clientele. That was when she noticed someone watching her from the bar. His red eyes were staring right at her and she smiled. He looked quite attractive and looked quite wealthy since he'd ordered a very expensive drink. Spotting her 'prey' for the night, she licked her lips and sauntered over to the bar. Taking a seat next to him, she began to flirt and seduce the man who would definitely pay her a fortune for a night with her.

It didn't take long for them to find themselves a room. She looped her arms around him and kissed him and then the party began for them.

And her mind was totally blown away. The sex had been amazing, better than any she'd ever had with clients in the past. And he had the stamina to keep up with her.

And then on the same night he'd asked her to join him. She couldn't help it and agreed before they had another round of sex.

And the rest was history.

But the man she loved was gone, and it was all their fault.

"Juuyon-sama, I swear by your name that you will be avenged," she promised. "They will pay; I'll make sure of it." She then resumed pleasuring herself.

* * *

That night Alan had trouble sleeping. He couldn't shut his eyes. This was a regular occurrence since Adam's birth since the baby Okami Yokai would wake up at odd hours of the night, crying, wanting something from his parents. He either needed to be fed, changed, or put back to sleep with a lullaby while being rocked in either of his parent's arms.

Tonight, it wasn't Adam that was keeping Alan awake.

It was that infernal drumming!

Tossing and turning, while wrapping his pillow around his head so as to cover his ears, he groaned and cried out in agitation but not loud enough to wake the others. '_Damn it, why won't it stop!-?_'

* * *

The following day, Alan showed up at the Hive through the Teleportal.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Shinichi asked. He was at the main monitor looking over some data on the screen when he saw Alan arrive.

"I just need to use the training room, that's all," said Alan. "That's fine, right?"

"Yeah, of course," Shinichi nodded.

Alan walked over to see what Shinichi was studying on the huge computer monitor. "So, what is this?" Alan asked.

"Sheila was able to access all the encrypted data Shiro had stored in the Dark Xrosser," Shinichi said.

"Oh, the stuff we removed from ALPHA-01," Alan remembered. "What have you found?"

"Shiro's plans, blueprints, his journals, racy pictures…" Shinichi listed as the images were brought up. There were blueprints for Cybermen and DALEKs. Also, some very sexy pictures of the Bakeneko Kunoichi in different poses and costumes. "I'm surprised. He really did love those girls."

"Of course," Alan agreed. "I met one of them awhile back. He may have controlled them but he hadn't abused them, not even once." He asked, "What kind of pictures?"

"Bedroom pictures, vacation pictures, among a few," Shinichi said. "Just bits of his private collection." Shinichi had to admit that the pictures were giving him ideas of wanting to take similar pictures of his girls all dressed up in different costumes and posing in different poses for him and his camera. While he had a few images like that from all the years before of Rena, he wanted to do some of the present and to add in some new images with Satan and Shawna.

"So, anything important?" Alan asked.

"Well, we've been wondering where he got the money for his organization and we just found out he has G-Shock factories all over the world and dealers in every major city selling the stuff," Shinichi informed Alan. They both had grimacing looks on their faces after remembering what had happened with Keiichi when he was found using G-Shock. "Also, he was in the arms dealing game, selling advanced weaponry to anyone who can afford them."

"He has to have backers who've been helping him out. He didn't revive on his own," stated Alan. Shiro had been revived by someone before and they needed to know their identities. "Found info on them?"

"None," Shinichi answered. "At least not yet. But if Sheila hasn't found them, that means Shiro didn't store them in his Dark Xrosser.

He noticed that Alan had bags under his eyes and in his amusement joked, "The girls keep you up all night? I'm sure they wanted to give you a wonderful Valentine's Day gift."

"You're way off," said Alan as he yawned. "Couldn't get to sleep for some reason."

Shinichi remarked worriedly, "Sounds like insomnia. Maybe you should let Dr. Magi or Dr. Washam check you out."

"I'm sure it's nothing…" Alan yawned again.

"You need rest," Shinichi advised.

"What I need is for you to get off my back and let me use the training room!" Alan snapped, eyes glowing red.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Shinichi apologized. "Sheila, could you get the holographic training chamber ready for Alan?"

"_Affirmative_," said Sheila. "_What are your preferences, Alan Smith_?"

"I'll think of something," Alan shrugged. "Just make sure it's something where I can hit a lot of stuff…and hard."

Shinichi watched as Alan walked towards the elevator. He was worried about his brother. Sure, sleep deprivation could cause people to have short tempers but it looked like Alan was ready to fry him earlier with his heat vision. Once Alan was in the elevator and heading down, Shinichi requested, "Sheila, monitor Alan while he's down there, OK?"

"_Affirmative_," Sheila responded. Displayed on the screen were the blueprints and schematics of Shiro Juuyon's Master-14 body.

* * *

"OK, give me Master-14," said Alan as he stood in the middle of the holographic training room. With special holographic technology, they could spar with any opponent within Sheila's database; this included deceased or captured enemies. Also, the room could simulate any environment. "And make the environment Kyoto, after the Yamata no Orochi appeared."

The entire room shimmered and was replaced by a burning and ruined city. This was what Kyoto looked like after the Yamata no Orochi had emerged. Standing across from Alan, several feet away, was the armored form of Master-14. The monstrous bio-android glared at Alan as the Green Lantern glared in return. He had his fists clenched at his side.

In Alan's opinion, Shiro had not faced punishment for his crimes. So many dead were screaming for retribution but it was Gnol Gnauh who'd destroyed Shiro Juuyon. It seemed like Shiro had gotten the easy way out and that just wasn't fair. Well, if he couldn't beat Shiro Juuyon into scrap metal, then a holographic representation of him would do just fine.

Alan charged at Master-14 who started firing energy blasts at the Green Lantern. Alan dodged the blasts from Master-14's cannon and constructed a green energy blade. He swung but his sword was intercepted and blocked by Master-14's Oathbreaker. Master-14's sword shattered Alan's construct and the Lantern received a punch in the face that sent hum tumbling. Alan landed on his back and looked up to see Master-14 about to drop on top of him. He rolled out of the way as Master-14 landed, hard, creating a crater upon impact. Alan stood up, wiping a bit of sweat away from his eyes, and constructed a pair of boxing gloves over his fists. Master-14 scoffed and swung at him. He ducked and punched Master-14 several times in the stomach with enough force to dent his armor. He then jumped and smashed his fist into Master-14's face, knocking his head aside. Alan smiled in satisfaction as Master-14 staggered back from the blow.

"Come on, make this worth my while," Alan challenged.

"It's easy when it's an illusion, isn't it?" Alan heard the voice come from behind him and he spun around to stare right at Shiro Juuyon. It was him, in his black and white clothing, silver-white hair and crimson eyes with that arrogance stance of his. "I mean an illusion can't do any real damage, can it?"

Alan began to ask, "What are you-?" but he was cut off by a cannon blast to the back. He picked himself up and roared, charging at the holographic enemy. The first thing he did was to draw the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and drive it through Master-14's face. He then fired a blast from his eyes, causing Master-14 to scream as he was painfully blinded. Driving him to the ground, Alan began to smash his fists repeatedly into the holographic construct's face until it was virtually unrecognizable.

He then picked up the twitching form of the pulverized of Master-14 and, with one big punch, sent his fist right through the center of Master-14's body, holding what appeared to be his power core tightly within his hand. The light of life dimmed from Master-14's eyes as his body went limp and then, after a few seconds, the hologram body shimmered before vanishing like the environment around him. Alan panted, "Heh…heh…damn it." Then, turning to look behind him and not finding Shiro anywhere, "Where the hell did he go?" he shouted in a rage as he discarded his sword and ran back to the elevator.

* * *

Alan came to the main hall and went to the main monitor, pushing Shinichi aside. "Hey, Alan!"

"Sheila, bring up the footage from the training room," Alan ordered. The screen showed Alan fighting Master-14. His eyes narrowed as he concentrated on the image and he murmured, "That can't be right…"

"Wow, you massacred him," admired Shinichi.

"Shinichi, Sheila recorded every second of my training session, right?" Alan asked.

"Of course she did," said Shinichi. "Why?"

"Because there was someone else there," said Alan. "There, pause it!" The footage stopped as Alan turned his back to Master-14 to talk to someone, only there was nobody there. "He was standing right there! I know it! I saw him!" Alan yelled.

"Who?" Shinichi asked.

"Shiro!"

Now Shinichi looked concerned. "Alan, Shiro's gone. He was absorbed by Gnol Gnauh and destroyed along with the Yamata no Orochi," said Shinichi.

"…But he was standing right there!" Alan insisted. "Bazel, you saw him too, right?"

"Sorry, partner, but it was just us and the holograms," said Bazel.

Shinichi, concerned, put his hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Alan, you really should get some rest. You're exhausted and your mind is playing tricks on you," Shinichi advised.

"You're…you're probably right," said Alan. Suddenly, he heard the drumming again. "Did you hear that!-?" Alan exclaimed, grabbing Shinichi's collar.

"Hear what?" Shinichi asked.

"That drumming! That drumming has been keeping me awake! Driving me nuts!" Alan cried. Shinichi took hold of Alan's wrist and pried his hands away.

"Dude, chill. There is no drumming. Sheila, is there drumming?"

"_Negative. I do not detect any drumming_," Sheila reported.

"But-!" Alan began.

"Alan, as your older brother, I order you to get some rest. Go to the infirmary and lie down on one of the beds," said Shinichi. "Trust me; a good rest will do you good."

Alan looked hesitant for a second and then lowered his head with a sigh. Shinichi was right. He needed to get some sleep before he went insane and ended up hurting someone. Or worse, possibly hurting himself.

"Yeah…I need to rest…" Alan agreed, reluctantly. "Tell the girls for me, OK?"

"Will do," Shinichi agreed. Alan went back to the elevator and rode it up to the infirmary. Once Shinichi was sure Alan was gone, he asked, "So, guys. What do you think?"

'_I think he believes he actually hears the drumming_,' said Zennin.

'_He should get his head examined_,' added Gokuaku.

'_Maybe it's just stress. He's been working hard. Not only does he have responsibility as a Green Lantern, he also has responsibilities as a father and a student_,' said Yabuki.

"Yeah, even he could work himself to death," Shinichi concluded. "He's going to need a vacation, a _real_ vacation this time."

'_Good luck with that_,' scoffed Gokuaku. '_Once trouble comes calling you know he'll fly straight from the other side of the country to deal with it himself. It's what you'd do_.'

Shinichi had to admit that Gokuaku was right. Still, he needed to help Alan somehow. He, like Yuji, was stuck in a world not his own and it had been a year since they were cut off from ARMOR. Of course there was one man who could travel freely between worlds since they lacked the ability to do so at this time. "Sheila, I think Alan really needs a doctor." He amended, "No, he needs THE Doctor. Can you find him?"

"_He is not on this planet_," Sheila reported.

"If he does appear, can you tell me?"

"_Affirmative."_

* * *

Back in the Hive's infirmary, Alan was _trying_ to get some rest. However, he was having a fitful sleep as he tossed and turned in the bed. "No…no, stay away from them! Don't you dare hurt them! Shiro, don't you dare!"

He was having a nightmare.

* * *

_The entire city was in ruins and Alan was lying buried under rubble. He felt weak and powerless as he was suffering radiation poisoning. He could only watch as Shiro withdrew his sword from Conda's body. Her blood dripped from the blade and he was making his way towards Alice who was being held by the Cyber Leader. All the other girls were dead, killed in a horrific manner by the blood-soaked bio-android. Celine had been incinerated and Daiki had his neck snapped._

"_Alan Smith, watch closely," sneered Shiro Juuyon as he held the blade under Alice's chin. The little girl whimpered as she looked at the monster before her, her eyes completely filled with fear._

"_No! Don't do it! Shiro!"_

_Alice's head fell off her shoulders as Shiro laughed._

"_NOOOOOOOOOOOO!-!-!" Alan screamed._

* * *

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!-!-!" Alan screamed as he shot awake in bed. He then clutched his head as the drumming repeated inside his brain.

The door to the infirmary opened and Alan looked to see Shiro enter. Enraged, Alan aimed his ring and conjured a giant gun aimed at the bio-android before he fired. The blast knocked Shiro off his feet and into the hallway. Alan zoomed towards the door and saw Shiro trying to get up. He was upon him in an instant, hitting him with brutal punches.

"I WON'T LET YOU HURT THEM! I'LL KILL YOU BEFORE I LET THAT HAPPEN!" Alan shouted as he continued to pummel Shiro.

"PARTNER, STOP! STOP IT!" Bazel shouted but Alan didn't seem to hear him.

He drew his fist back to crush his skull when 'Shiro' looked at him. Alan froze as 'Shiro' turned out to be Shinichi.

He'd just attacked his own brother.

"…Why…?" Shinichi uttered weakly before he fell unconscious. His face was bruised and bloodied from the pummeling he'd taken from Alan.

"Shinichi!" Alan cried out.

* * *

Dr. Magi was examining Shinichi and he gave his diagnosis, "He's taken damage but his nanites will soon fix him up." He asked, "What happened to him?"

"I happened," Alan confessed. Shinichi was injured and lying in bed and it was all his fault. "I mistook him for Shiro and I attacked him."

"Shiro's dead," reminded Dr. Magi.

"I know, but I had a nightmare and when I woke up Shinichi walked in and he looked just like him. I went nuts and attacked him." He asked Bazel, "Bazel, why didn't you tell me I was attacking Shinichi?"

"I did! You just didn't hear me," said Bazel. "I told you to stop. Heck, I was even yelling. This is just like that time Rai-Gnol tricked you."

"Alan, is there something going on?" Dr. Magi asked.

"It's the drumming in my head," said Alan and he saw Shiro standing behind Dr. Magi. "Behind you!" he shouted as he aimed at Dr. Magi and the scientist backed away.

"Alan, point your ring down," said Dr. Magi.

Shiro grinned at Alan, tauntingly, "Well, what are you waiting for? Blast me."

"Don't tempt me, Shiro," Alan growled. Suddenly, Shiro vanished from sight. Alan strode forward, shoving Dr. Magi aside. "Where is he!-?"

"Where is who?" Dr. Magi asked.

"He was right there!" Alan pointed. "Right behind you! Didn't you notice?"

"Alan, we're the only ones here," Dr. Magi said.

Bazel said, "He's right, partner. It's just us."

"Then…what…?' Alan questioned.

"I think you need help, partner."

"…I…think so too," Alan agreed, frightened of himself. Was he losing it or something? The drumming and Shiro, were they all just in his head? Were they just figments of his imagination?

* * *

"Excuse me, but you want to do what?" Dr. Magi asked as he couldn't believe what he'd just heard.

"I want you to seal me up with the C3 and lock me in the Vault," Alan said. "Wasn't I clear earlier?"

"Are you sure?"

"I nearly killed my brother, Dr. Magi. Yes, I'm sure." Alan paused and continued, "I can't be around people right now. I'm starting to lose it. I hear drumming in my head, I'm seeing Shiro everywhere I look even though I know he's dead, and I nearly killed Shinichi. I can't be allowed to be free because I'm afraid of what I might do next."

"Alan, let me examine you. At least let me take a blood sample to determine what's going on," said Dr. Magi.

"Fine, take a sample of my blood, but I doubt you'd be able to find anything," said Alan. Dr. Magi took a clean syringe as Alan turned off his powers. Dr. Magi took a sample of Alan's blood. "It'll take some time for me to determine what's happening."

"Or, we can find out now," said Alan as he took out his Sonic Screwdriver. He held down the button and the crystal glowed as the device released a buzzing sound. He shone the Sonic Screwdriver on the blood sample and his eyes widened as he discovered what was wrong. "A hallucinogenic."

"A hallucinogenic?" Dr. Magi repeated.

"Someone gave me a hallucinogenic," Alan realized. "Someone's purposely trying to make me go nuts." It made sense. Someone was setting him up. Still, he was a dangerous person right now under the effects of the hallucinogenic. He wouldn't be able to tell what was true or what was false while still under its effects. "Dr. Magi, you need to grab the C3 right now and seal me up."

"We won't need to go that far," said Dr. Magi. "We do have holding cells." Alan gave him a quizzical look.

"Will a cell be able to hold me?" Alan asked.

"The cells are surrounded by a power dampening field," Dr. Magi explained. "Sheila knows what you can do so the field is programmed to hold you. Each cell was designed to hold a certain member or ally in the off chance that someone went rogue. "Not only does your cell have a dampening field but it also has built in red solar lamps to help lower your Kryptonian strength."

"Alright then, lock me up."

* * *

Shinichi's nanites had repaired the damage done to his body and right now he was heading down to the Hive's holding cells. It wasn't hard to find Alan. He was sitting in one of the cells with a force field set up to prevent his escape. Shinichi stood on the other side of the cell. The power dampening field was turned on and made to contain Alan and his powers.

"You're being ridiculous," said Shinichi to his brother. "You don't have to go this far."

"I nearly killed you," Alan reasoned. "I can't risk it again."

"I got better, look," Shinichi pointed. "My nanites healed me right up."

"Good for you," Alan mumbled.

"Are you just going to stay there?" Shinichi asked.

"Only until Dr. Magi figures out a cure, if he does," Alan replied.

"He will," said Shinichi confidently. He then began to wonder how a hallucinogenic could have gotten into his body. Injecting it into his body would be rather difficult, what with his near impregnable skin and all. But maybe ingestion could have been used. He wasn't entirely sure yet so he would need to get as many clues as possible from Alan. "Say, Alan, do you know how the hallucinogenic might've gotten into you?"

"I don't know," said Alan.

"When did the drumming start?" Shinichi asked. "You were complaining about the drumming."

"It was after the girls and I left the café on Valentine's Day. We were having brunch," said Alan.

"And what did you have?" Shinichi asked.

"The brunch buffet," said Alan. "Everyone was having it."

"And there wasn't anything else?" Shinichi prodded.

"A waitress was handing out pieces of candy," Alan answered. His eyes widened in realization, "The candy…" He jumped to his feet, "Of course! The candy! It was the candy!"

"Someone spiked your candy," Shinichi concluded. "Do you remember what the waitress looks like?"

"She was blonde," Alan answered.

"And…?"

"That's all I remember…well, that and she was also really pretty," Alan frowned.

"Well, that narrows it down," muttered Shinichi. "Alan, stay in your cell. I'm gonna check out the café. Maybe I can find something out."

"Thanks Shinichi. Also, please tell the girls I'm on a mission," Alan requested. "Don't tell them what's really going on as they might start to worry and try to come here and make a fuss."

"You got it," agreed Shinichi. He then left for the elevator and, after entering, pushed the button for the main hall. "Don't worry Alan, we'll fix this somehow."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: So, it seems that hatred runs deep within someone and it's targeting Alan. Can Shinichi find a way to help his brother or will Alan need to be locked up for the rest of his days? Stay tune next time to find out.**


	119. The Legacy of Cain Part 63

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 63: Psycho Kitty**

"Hey, Alan," said Battler as he entered the holding area with Junior. "How are you holding up?" Alan looked up at him in surprise.

"What are you doing here?" Alan asked.

"Shinichi called and asked me to monitor you," said Battler. "I kind of owe him a favour after he helped babysit Junior that one time."

"Honk!" Junior exclaimed.

Alan remarked, "He told me about it. He said he was never going to do it ever again."

"Yeah, people do that when Junior almost bites a chunk out of them," said Battler as he gently patted Junior's head. He sat cross-legged in front of Alan's cell. "So, are you seeing Shiro everywhere you look?"

"Not right now," said Alan. "But when I close my eyes I see him in my head."

"Sounds bad," Battler stated. "Shouldn't you tell your family what's going on?"

"I can't, not right now, not like this," said Alan with a hint of despair in his voice. "I almost killed Shinichi because I thought he was Shiro. He's lucky he isn't dead. I can't risk seeing them. I might do something I'll regret."

"Yeah, and I can't even stop him if he does," said Bazel. "How's Shinichi doing?"

"He's investigating that café you guys went to and looking for leads," said Battler.

* * *

Shinichi stood in front of the café where Alan and his family had brunch on Valentine's Day. "OK, whoever it was that drugged Alan was working here. I just need to ask around." He was about to open the door when it swung open and slammed him in the face. "Ow…"

"Oops! I'm so sorry!" the green-haired woman apologized. She then gasped when she saw who it was.

Shinichi rubbed his nose and then looked at her. "No, it's OK. I've actually had worst." He then locked his eyes on her. "Wait…aren't you…?"

She checked her watch, "Oh, look at the time! I must be going now!" She tried to run but he grabbed her wrist.

"You're one of Shiro's girls," Shinichi identified.

The woman, Midoneko, gave out a sigh, "…Yes…" What was the point of denying it right now? "What do you plan to do to me now?"

"Nothing, for the moment. What were you doing here?" Shinichi asked suspiciously.

"Grabbing a meal," she said. She shot back, "Or is that against the law now?"

"Look, I came here looking for answers. My brother's sick and something in here happened that caused it. Someone gave him candy that was drugged and I want to know who," said Shinichi. "And I'm betting you know too."

"I told you, I came to get a meal," she insisted.

"So why don't I believe you?" he continued. He released her wrist. "Do you know something? Because Alan has been seeing Shiro wherever he looks and it's freaking him out."

"He has?" Midoneko questioned, surprised.

"You girls were close to Shiro, the closest in fact," Shinichi continued. "Did he give you any instructions in case he died?"

Midoneko flinched at the mention of Shiro's death. She had moved on but to be reminded of the man she loved was painful. "No, he did not give us instructions," she answered. "He just sent us away so that we wouldn't get hurt in the final battle."

"Then someone's acting on their own, out of revenge," Shinichi considered. "One of you."

"What makes you think that?" Midoneko questioned.

"Because any one of you would want revenge against the ones responsible for Shiro's death," said Shinichi. "You loved him."

"We still do," Midoneko corrected.

"Right, you still harbour feelings for him. What I can't understand is why. I'm guessing it was brainwashing but it should've worn off after his death," Shinichi went on.

Midoneko was agitated now by Shinichi's questioning. It was like she was being interrogated. She gave her answer, "If you must know, Juuyon-sama was persuasive. He had a vision of a world where youkai and humans could live as equals."

"Equals?" Shinichi scoffed, "He was trying to wipe out humanity by reviving the Yamata no Orochi."

"He wanted to harness its power to remake the world into a better one where my kind would not have to hide and could really coexist with humans," said Midoneko.

"By force if need be," Shinichi stated.

"Aren't laws the same? Obey or be punished?" Midoneko questioned. "Juuyon-sama would've let some humans live as long as they cooperated once they realized that he was right."

"Or he just forced them to obey. Hard to resist when the guy has the power of a giant, eight-headed dragon," argued Shinichi. He was starting to get off topic. "Look, I need help for my brother. Do you know who might've been working here that gave my brother that drugged candy?"

"And why should I tell you?" she asked.

"Because my brother's powerful, and the drug's driving him insane, and if he goes completely nuts then God help us all," said Shinichi. "You have no idea what kind of power Alan possesses. What you've seen is only what he lets you see because he has to hold back but if he gets worse because of his hallucinations then this world might be destroyed."

"You're exaggerating."

"I wish I were, but Alan has enough power to split the Earth six ways from Sunday if he wanted to," Shinichi stated.

Midoneko stared down, biting her lower lip. "I…might have an idea…"

* * *

Battler and Alan had been conversing for a good half hour, basically about whatever subject came to mind. Right now they were exchanging funny stories from their childhood when Junior tugged on Battler's sleeve.

"Little guy's hungry," said Battler as he stood up. "I'll be back later. See ya, Alan."

"You too," said Alan. When Battler left, Shiro came into Alan's view. "You're not real."

"Well, not anymore thanks to you," Shiro retorted.

"Partner, are you seeing him again?" Bazel asked. Alan nodded. "Just ignore him. He's just a figment of your imagination."

"That sounds like good advice coming from an armband," scoffed Shiro. "You can't ignore me, Alan Smith. I'm always around you, at any waking moment, and even when you sleep." He suddenly appeared in the cell with Alan. "I'm part of you, and I will always be part of you. The only relief you'll ever have from me is death." Alan screwed his eyes shut and covered his ears, but that did nothing to drown out Shiro's presence.

"I'm in your head, Alan Smith. And there's a lot of stuff I found in there. Let's talk about Jade."

Alan really wished Shiro was real so he could shut him up with his fist.

* * *

"So, this is the place?" Shinichi questioned as he and Midoneko stood in front of an apartment. The building itself wasn't very big but it didn't stand out that much either. It was the perfect place for a youkai that's trying to blend into human society to live in.

"Kineko lives here," said Midoneko. "And after Juuyon-sama died she's been…different."

"How different?" Shinichi asked.

"...Just different," Midoneko said. She fished out keys from her purse.

"You have keys to her apartment?" Shinichi questioned as Midoneko slid the key into the keyhole. She unlocked the door and pushed it open. Once inside, Midoneko flipped the switch and Shinichi's eyes widened.

There were pictures and newspaper clippings on the walls, and not just any pictures or newspaper clippings. They were pictures of Sentinel and the Kamen Riders; them. Shinichi's eyes were on a picture of Sentinel with a cross drawn on it and the words 'DIE! DIE! DIE!' written next to it. Other pictures of Sentinel were crossed out as well. The same could be said with pictures and newspaper clippings depicting Kamen Rider Showa.

Shinichi really thought that this girl could use a therapist but figured that, after what had happened to Shiro, she had every right to break down. Heck, anyone who lost the one person they loved more than life itself would have had a mental breakdown or a psychotic episode.

He had one not too long ago so he could understand.

"She has issues," said Shinichi. "She hates us. She really hates us."

"She blames you for what happened to Juuyon-sama," said Midoneko.

"And what about you?" Shinichi asked.

"Part of me hates you for going against him," Midoneko admitted, "But a part of me also understands why you did it. Different sides fighting for different reasons and ideals. You just clashed. You couldn't agree on who was right or who was wrong. It's only natural in this kind of world that we live in."

Shinichi turned away from her to look around some more. From the looks of everything in the room, Kineko had been planning her revenge against them for months. As he moved forward to inspect another picture on the wall depicting their friends, he stopped in his tracks when he suddenly heard Midoneko cry out. He turned back around and saw her lying on the floor. "What?"

**ZAP!**

* * *

"You're just a figment of my imagination, you're just a figment of my imagination, you're just a figment of imagination," Alan chanted as he tried to ignore Shiro's voice but he could still hear him.

"You have a real colourful resume, Alan Smith. You tried to rewrite the entire Multiverse because you lost one woman. I'm pretty impressed. Of course you made the mistake of giving up at the last second," Shiro said as he read from a notebook in his hand as he walked around Alan with a pair of glasses over his eyes. "Hm, and even killed your fellow Green Lanterns for getting in your way. Ah, and even let the Entity of Fear known as Parallax possess just so you wouldn't hesitate or feel any regrets over your actions." He closed the notebook as he continued, "Of course that was in another world. Let's review what happened in this world." He tapped his chin. "Let's see, you tried to stop me from reviving the spawns of the Yamata no Orochi, and failed! Then you tried to stop me from destroying the sealing stones, which you also failed! Oh, and you swore to be a hero to protect the innocent but how many people died when you tried to stop me, hm? Hundreds? Thousands?"

Alan opened his eyes to glare at Shiro and if looks could kill, his brother's doppelganger would be dead ten-times over.

"Face it, Alan Smith," said Shiro as he tossed the book away and squatted down to look the Lantern in the eyes, "You were never cut out to be a hero. Alan Scott would be disappointed in you and so would the Doctor you admire so much."

Alan threw his fist but only hit air as Shiro vanished.

"Don't let it get to you," Bazel said.

"He's reciting my past mistakes, Bazel," said Alan. "How can I not let it get to me?"

"But think of all the good you've done," said Bazel. "Sure, all the stuff you did in the past was bad but it's all in the past. New world, new start, that's what's important and you're not alone. You got me, and them. Remember? Your family?"

"My…family…?" Alan questioned. He then got an idea and smirked as he nodded. "Bazel, I'm going to be gone for a bit."

"What, where are you going?" Bazel asked.

"If Shiro's in my head then that's where I'm going." Alan sat cross-legged in a meditative pose, levitating a 2 feet off the ground as he closed his eyes and steadied his breathing.

Inhale then exhale. Inhale then exhale. Inhale then exhale.

And begin.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos."

* * *

_When Alan opened his eyes and stood up, he found himself in a lush green forest. Plant life surrounded him for miles and miles._

"_This is your subconscious?" Bazel asked. "A forest?"_

"_How did you get pulled in with me?" Alan asked the armband._

"_You and I are connected, Partner. Always will be," said Bazel. "So, where are we exactly."_

"_Mogo," said Alan._

"_Mogo? Wait, THE Mogo? That living planet who's also a Green Lantern?" asked Bazel as Alan started walking._

"_Yup, the one and only Mogo," said Alan. "The one I know at least. You know how the Multiverse is."_

"_You talk about Mogo like he's your friend," said Bazel._

"_Well, Mogo has this calming effect on his fellow Green Lanterns," said Alan. "Kinda like that big brother you can always depend on to back you up or catch you when you fall down. When I was just starting out as a Green Lantern, Kilowog sent me on survival training, alone. I had to camp out here in this forest. I didn't know Mogo was watching over me until I realized that the planet was alive."_

"_Survival training on a living planet?" Bazel asked._

"_I was alone, so I needed someone to supervise me. Kilowog couldn't do it since he had to train other in boot camp and I was just a kid back then," said Alan. He put his hand against a tree. "Mogo made sure I was safe but he also made sure I trained myself and did as Kilowog told."_

_Suddenly, Alan heard a loud roar and he saw Mongul flying right at him. Alan braced himself as the warlord smashed into him, sending them both crashing through the trees and knocking them down. Mongul stood victoriously over Alan and brought his fist down to crush his face but Alan caught it and stood up, resisting him. _

"_You're not the one I want," said Alan as he released Mongul's fist and then gave him an uppercut which sent him skyward until he joined the rest of the stars in the sky. _

"_Was that normal?" Bazel asked._

"_No, but I think the hallucinogenic is creating manifestations of my enemies," said Alan. A large shadow loomed over him and he looked up to see Parallax in his true form staring down at him. Parallax fired a beam of yellow energy from his eyes, incinerating many of the trees as Alan flew backwards to avoid the attack. "Looks like we're going to have to fight these mid-bosses before we can go after the big cheese."_

"_Well, then I'm with you all the way, Partner," said Bazel, a smile in his voice as Alan took off._

* * *

Once Shinichi came to, he let out a groan, "Ow…what hit me?" He tried to move only to discover that he was tied up with a chain and he also noticed he was hanging from said chain which was connected to a winch. "What the hell?"

"Good, you're awake," said Midoneko who was tied back-to-back with him.

"What happened?" he asked. His head was pounding with the presence of an oncoming migraine.

"I did." Shinichi looked and saw Kineko standing on the floor below.

"She knocked us out," said Midoneko.

"I kinda figured," Shinichi replied.

"Mido-chan, you were the last person I would expect to betray me," said Kineko. "I was hoping to capture him and punish him, but since you were turning your back on Juuyon-sama you deserve the same fate."

"I never turned my back on him," Midoneko retorted. "I moved on."

"YOU FORGOT ABOUT HIM!" shrieked Kineko accusingly. "AFTER ALL HE'S DONE FOR US AND YOU JUST FORGOT ABOUT HIM!"

"OK, I hate to interrupt your little argument right now, but how come I can't move or transform?" Shinichi asked. The chain shouldn't be able to hold him. He could've easily transformed if he could.

"Because I also put EMP stasis-cuffs on you to stop you from using your powers," said Kineko. "A little invention that Juuyon-sama made that I managed to get my hands on."

"EMP…no wonder," mumbled Shinichi. Kineko pressed a button on the control panel and the vat below opened up to reveal acid. "Acid? That's so cliché," said Shinichi.

"But effective," Kineko grinned. Shinichi just looked at her and thought about that for a second.

"Point," he agreed.

"Kineko, look, Shinichi here told me about what you did to Alan and he really needs the antidote to that drug you gave him," said Midoneko.

"Why would I want to give him the antidote?" Kineko sneered.

"Because when he goes absolutely insane he'd rip the Earth apart!" Midoneko shouted.

"So what?" Kineko retorted coldly.

"What?" Midoneko's eyes widened.

"What's the point of living in a world without Juuyon-sama?" Kineko asked, tears streaming from her eyes. "He was my entire life and now he's gone. So what's the point of living?"

"We can still live without him," Midoneko reasoned. "He'd want us to live."

"How would you know?" Kineko snarled. "He's gone so we'll never, ever know."

"Do you really think he'd want this for you?" Midoneko asked. "Do you really think he'd want you to get revenge for him at the risk of your own life?"

"Ever since I met him, my life has belonged to Juuyon-sama, and after all this I will be with him again," said Kineko.

Shinichi accused, "So, you're just gonna waste the opportunity Shiro gave you?"

"Shut up!" Kineko snapped. She pressed a button on the control panel with an arrow on it that was pointed down. As soon as she did the chain holding Shinichi and Midoneko began to lower towards the acid. She then pressed the button marked with the word 'STOP' on it to cease their descent.

"Don't agitate her," Midoneko hissed.

"Noted," Shinichi agreed. "So, you're either going to hold us hostage or kill us. That's the purpose of this little death trap, isn't it?"

"I want you to suffer," said Kineko. "And with how you're currently incapacitated that's your only option."

"Not quite," said Shinichi. "You wanna know something about us Smiths? We always have each other's backs."

"Are you talking about the blood telepathy thing?" Kineko deadpanned.

"Wait, what?" Shinichi blinked. How did she know about that?

"Juuyon-sama debriefed us about that a while back," said Midoneko. "It's wasn't hard for him to figure out."

"She's right," Kineko smirked, "And unfortunately for you the only Smith that can help you right now is suffering from paranoid delusions caused by my hallucinogenic. In other words, he's too nuts to help you."

* * *

_One final blast of green, willpower-fuelled, energy smashed into Parallax and blasted the monstrous yellow creature into pieces which soon dissipated into the air. Alan wiped the sweat off his brow when all of a sudden he received a blow from the left that sent him crashing towards the forest floor. Alan made a crater when he landed and looked up to see Major Force hovering back down with a sneer on his face._

"_And here's another ugly face from my past," frowned Alan as he stood back up. He felt a presence behind him and aimed his ring only to gasp as he saw who it was. "Jade?"_

"_Why couldn't you protect me, Alan?" she asked before fading into green mist when Major Force threw a punch straight at his face. Alan smashed through the trees in straight line before he went tumbling and hit the foot of a mountain._

"_My greatest regret," grumbled Alan as he wiped the blood of his lip with his knuckle. "OK, he's really gone too far." His eyes glowed red as Major Force came flying at him with a bone-crushing punch only for the madman to receive a face full of red, heat energy from Alan's eyes. Major Force howled and then he grunted as he was folded in half by a punch to the gut which blasted him all the way through the forest. _

_No more games._

"_SHIRO, COME OUT AND FACE ME! COME ON OUT!" Alan shouted. "WHERE ARE YOU, COWARD!-?"_

"_You called?" Shiro asked. Alan frowned and spun around to face Shiro who was standing on a stump with his arms crossed. He then applauded Alan as he said, "Bravo! Bravo! Good show! You beat them." However, his smile turned sinister, "But they thing is they always come back." He snapped his fingers and both Major Force and Mongul appeared flanking him as Parallax towered over them, all glaring at Alan. Alan sighed and shook his head. _

"_Is that it? You're just gonna keep sending them at me when you know I can beat them." This was already getting old. Time to make his own argument, "You know, it's kind of ironic. You saw my "resume" and tried to break me with it. But look at it. I'm a hero, you're a villain. And yet I've caused more destruction than you can even dream of Shiro. And do you know why that is Shiro? Because when you get right down to it, you're little more than a pathetic, third-rate, HACK!"_

_Shiro looked as livid as Parallax, Mongul and Major Force vanished as they turned to mist before Shiro transformed, turning into Master-14. He aimed his cannon at Alan and fired but he blocked it with a shield of green energy._

"_And you're not even really that! You're just an illusion created from my own subconscious! A delusion! A hallucination!" Alan continued as he advanced towards Master-14, one step at a time, as Master-14 desperately tried to gun him down but to no avail as his cannon blasts were casually deflected. "And I know what you really are."_

_He now stood up, face-to-face with Master-14 whose eyes widened._

"_And I forgive you," Alan whispered._

_Master-14 roared as he held his head, thrashing about in agony as he backpedalled from Alan. Alan watched as cracks with light leaking from them spread all over Master-14's body as he continued to roar before finally shattering like glass. Alan picked up a piece and stared at it. It was a broken piece of mirror and staring back at Alan was his own face._

"_OK, what just happened?" Bazel asked, confused by this development._

"_Shiro was just a manifestation of my weaknesses, failures and insecurities," said Alan. "He presented me with all my failures, all my regrets in an attempt to break me because I'm my own worst enemy. It wasn't hard to figure out."_

"_And the part where you said 'I forgive you' was actually you forgiving yourself," Bazel concluded._

"_I've got a lot to make up for, but I needed to forgive myself first," said Alan._

"_So, it's over?" Bazel asked hopefully as Alan tossed the broken piece of mirror away._

"_No, because right now I need to know who started all this and make them see the error of their ways."_

* * *

"Now, it's time for you to die," said Kineko as she pressed the button to lower Shinichi and Midoneko down into the vat of bubbling acid below.

"I can't believe this is how it ends for me," Shinichi muttered. He'd fought countless battles, faced villains of all kinds, and survived but now he was going die by being dipped in acid. Talk about a lame way to die. Kineko just watched as Shinichi and Midoneko were lowered to their doom. This was going to be so satisfying.

"Do you have any regrets?" Midoneko asked. Might as well make some meaningful conversation before they were melted down.

"Just that I won't ever see the birth of my child," Shinichi answered.

"You're expecting?" Midoneko asked.

"One of my girlfriends is pregnant. She told me on Christmas," said Shinichi. "She's a demon, by the way."

"Congratulations," Midoneko smiled.

"So, how about you, any regrets yourself?" Shinichi asked.

"Just that I'm never going to be a bride now," said Midoneko.

Shinichi sighed. He closed his eyes to prepare for his end when he heard a faint and familiar buzzing sound.

As Kineko was watching, she should've kept her attention on the control panel. There was a blue light shining on it.

That was when the vat sealed shut and the winch stopped, surprising her.

"What?" she gawked. She pressed the buttons to open the vat up and lower the chain but then the control panel sparked, shocking her as she jumped back. "What's going on!"

"I'm what's going on." Kineko spun around and saw Alan Smith leaning against the wall under a sign which read '0 Days Without Accidents'. He had his arms folded whilst twirling his Sonic Screwdriver around in one hand.

"Took you long enough," said Shinichi. Alan used his super speed to appear under Midoneko and Shinichi.

"Hey, Shinichi," greeted Alan. "How's it hanging."

"Well, you're looking good if you can make lame puns," deadpanned Shinichi as Alan pointed at the chain binding both Shinichi and Midoneko with his Sonic Screwdriver. The chain broke and both Shinichi and Midoneko fell. Alan caught the green-haired catgirl as Shinichi landed painfully on the vat's lid. "Ow," he grunted. Alan unlocked the EMP cuffs holding Shinichi's wrist with his Sonic Screwdriver afterwards.

Kineko gritted her teeth and turned to run only for Alan to block her way. She tried the other way only for Alan to block her again.

"Nowhere to run," said Alan, looking stern.

"Yes, there is," said Kineko as she drew a kunai and brought it up to stab herself in the throat, but Alan was faster as he caught her wrist and forced her to drop the weapon. She wailed loudly, "LET ME DIE! LET ME DIE! LET ME BE WITH JUUYON-SAMA!"

Alan made her look him in the eye as he told her, "I understand how you must feel. He became your whole world and with him gone this world just means nothing to you. But there are still people here I love and what you tried to do to me was putting this whole world and them at risk. And for what? Revenge? It won't bring Shiro back." His tone turned cold, "And if you want to die so much, then there's only one thing we can do about _that_."

* * *

The Vault had a new inmate. Kineko was locked in a cell but not like the other prisoners. She was being kept inside a cylindrical tank made of green glass and she was frozen in ice. The cylinder was connected to tubes which ran through the wall and it was also connected to a control panel that would monitor her status. It was a cryo-stasis cylinder and something made for those who wanted to die but not allowed to.

"This will keep her from killing herself until she's set free and can get the help she needs," said Alan. Midoneko and Shinichi stood in front of the cell with him.

"Seems harsh," said Midoneko.

"She tried to melt us," reminded Shinichi.

"I know, but she's still my friend. The others aren't going to like this."

"It's what she deserves," said Alan. "I can't forgive her just yet but maybe I will in time. For now this is where she'll stay until she serves her time."

"And when will that be?" Midoneko asked Alan.

"You'll know," said Alan cryptically.

"I still don't get how you girls can fall for a guy like Shiro," Shinichi remarked. Midoneko frowned at him. "I know that love is blind but you could do better."

"It's because Shiro was proud, confident, determined, and had a never say die attitude," said Alan as he looked to Shinichi. "Kinda like you."

"Like me?" Shinichi pointed to himself. He didn't like being compared to Shiro but the traits Alan had listed were ones he possessed as well.

Alan nodded before walking away as Shinichi followed after him. Midoneko gave her frozen friend one last look before catching up to the two brothers.

Meanwhile, as she slept, Kineko was having a wonderful dream.

* * *

_The church bells rang and inside Kineko stood at the altar wearing a beautiful white wedding gown with Shiro wearing an immaculate white tuxedo._

"_I love you, Juuyon-sama," said Kineko._

"_And I love you, Kineko," Shiro replied._

_The two kissed._

* * *

**SHOWA OMAKE THEATRE**

Sitting at a round table while drinking cups of tea were Alan, Shinichi and Shiro. They all wore their usual attire and were currently taking a break from working on the 'Kamen Rider X Green Lantern' show and were talking about their differences that seemed to have been brought up in today's episode.

"Hey, Al? Why in the hell did you compare me to Shiro here?" Shinichi asked as he set down his cup of tea.

"Simple, really. You two are so much alike yet different it's like I'm looking at the physical manifestations of night and day." Alan shot back with a smirk.

"I beg to differ, Smith." Shiro chided as he let out a sigh and took another sip of his tea. "Ah, good stuff."

"Oh please, you two have so much in common."

"Oh yeah? Care to clarify it for us then?" Shinichi challenged and Shiro nodded in agreement.

"Okay then. You're both stubborn, pigheaded, arrogant, annoying, proud, charismatic, strong, and dependable to those you care about and you both would rather die fighting than give up." Alan said as he summed them up. He looked over at them and noticed them both gawking at him before looking at one another and then back at him.

"HE IS NOTHING LIKE ME!" both Shiro and Shinichi shouted in unison while glaring at Alan and pointing at one another.

Alan just stared at them with a deadpanned look on his face. "…wanna bet?" He then looked to his left and called out, "Oh girls, could you all come her and tend your idiot boyfriends?"

"HAI!" they all cheered at the same time.

Shiro was then instantly surrounded by his Bakeneko Kunoichi with Midoneko and Aoneko holding onto his arms, Akaneko holding onto him from behind with her arms looped around his neck and with Momoneko and Kineko kneeling next to him, pressing their bodies against his legs. As for Shinichi, a pregnant Satan was holding onto his left arm while Shawna was holding onto his right arm, both girls burying his arms between their breasts, while Rena sat in his lap with her legs wrapped around his waist.

"I should also mention that you're both perverts with an ever growing harem," Alan added with a big smile on his face.

"You're one to talk!" Shinichi shouted at him.

"That's right," Shiro agreed and then he called out to the others in the room. "Hey Lala! You and the rest of your girl pack come and take your love toy away!"

"Coming!" Lala called out as she and the rest of Alan's harem came running, all of them glomping and smothering him at once.

"Now who's the pervert with the big harem?" Shiro asked as he snickered.

Shinichi looked over to the camera and smiled, "Sorry about that folks. We'll see you on the next episode so be sure not to miss it. Ja ne."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This was an emotional roller-coaster of a mini-arc and I hope you all enjoyed it. I'd like to thank Toku Warrior for editing and also adding this omake at the end. Now, as Shinichi says, see you in the next episode. Be sure not to miss it.**


	120. The Legacy of Cain Part 64

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 64: Of Flesh & Stone**

The Shishibone Museum of Art and Culture was an impressive building filled with precious artwork from within the country and even some overseas donated by generous artists who wanted their art to be shared and admired. Recently, the museum had received three beautiful angel statues which were being put on display. The museum was closed tonight leaving only the night-watchman to patrol the museum with only a flashlight. He let out a yawn, and mumbled, "Why did I choose to do the night shift." He came across the angel statues and shone his flashlight at them. "Hm, why do they cover their faces?"

His flashlight began to flicker and he inspected it. "Must be running out of batteries," he thought out loud. He looked back up at the statues and noticed something odd. "Wait, aren't there supposed to be three…?" He had the oddest feeling that there was someone behind him. He spun around and…

* * *

**3 Days Later…**

"Rena, I need to know why you wanted us to come with you to the art museum on a Saturday," complained Shion. The Hinamizawa Gaming Club stood in front of the Shishibone Museum of Art and Culture with Rena beaming with joy. Shinichi knew that he would have to be on his guard with Rena or else she might try to take some of the artwork home with her if she found them to be cute.

"Come on, Shi-chan! It'll be fun! They have sculptures and paintings on display and also they have this new exhibit of these beautiful angel statues," Rena said.

"I still say there're better things we can do," Shion grumbled. "We could probably have some fun at the canyon."

"Come on, Shion. Where's your sense of culture?" Shinichi asked.

"Back at home with my sanity," Shion chortled sarcastically. "And are you three OK with this?" Shion asked Rika, Satoko and Hanyuu who were holding sketchbooks.

"We have homework for art class," said Rika. "It's supposed to be 'still life' so the art museum would be a good place for us to find some models."

"It'll be easy. Just choose a random statue and start drawing," said Satoko confidently.

"I hope they have some traditional pieces," said Hanyuu. She wasn't much of a fan of modern art. She didn't hate it. She just didn't care for it. She actually wished that Chiaki were here but he was busy with work. If he wasn't at the toy store then he was busy doing maintenance on the NEO-NUMBERS' vehicles.

"Looks like you're outvoted, Shion," Shinichi snickered.

"I can't believe I'm spending my day off doing this," sighed Shion as she followed her friends inside. Satoshi had asked her to help look after Satoko while the blond boy was working. She was only happy to do so for her boyfriend and she did care a lot about Satoko. They had a sisterly relationship. Though, she wanted to do something fun instead of visiting a museum on the weekend. But what was she to do? She was outvoted.

* * *

The museum really contained a large collection of exhibits, all beautiful pieces of art like paintings and sculptures. Most of them were local but a few were from overseas.

"Look at this, Shin-chan!" Rena pointed to a copper statue of a muscular man, flexing his muscles. "He reminds me of you!"

"Yup, I can see that," grinned Shinichi. "I'm strong and dependable."

Shion rolled her eyes. Sometimes Shinichi could be such a braggart but he was right about being strong and dependable. He had helped in saving the world many times before. "Hey, Rena. You said something about some angel statues," said Shion.

"Oh, right! They should be over here!" Rena pointed.

A crowd had formed, admiring the angel statues which were in circle of velvet rope. The angels were made of stone, wearing togas, and had their hands covering their eyes like they were crying. Pictures of the angel statues from every angle were being taken.

"They look Greek," Shinichi stated. He was reminded of the projection Alan had used to scare Shiro with back in Kyoto all those months ago. It HAD looked just like the statues, only the statues didn't look ferocious and had their hands covering their faces.

"Wow, they're beautiful," admitted Rena.

Satoko read a sign, "Flash photography is allowed."

"Then it's a good thing I have my camera," commented Shinichi. "Rika-chan, Hanyuu-chan, do you think these statues would make good models for you?"

Rika was already sketching the angels with Hanyuu staring at them. She looked disturbed, which Shinichi noticed. "Something wrong?" he asked.

"I think I'd rather draw something else," said Hanyuu. "Shinichi, could you come with me?"

"Oh, sure," Shinichi nodded as he followed his little sister into another section of a building. "OK, what's wrong?"

"There's something about those statues I don't like," said Hanyuu. "They feel…well…I can't describe it."

"Abnormal?" he supplied.

"Yes, abnormal," Hanyuu accepted.

Normally, Shinichi would think that it was probably Hanyuu's imagination, but over the years he'd learnt to trust his friends. His senses hadn't alerted him but maybe it was something he couldn't detect. Hanyuu felt something abnormal coming from the statues. Maybe they should look into it. "Are you sure?"

"It's not my imagination," said Hanyuu firmly. "Those statues are not what they seem."

"Are they dangerous?" Shinichi asked.

"I don't know," Hanyuu shook her head.

"Well, they look like statues so maybe they're just statues made with magic," said Shinichi. "Maybe that's why you're feeling this way."

"Right, you're probably right," nodded Hanyuu. She couldn't shake off the feeling, however.

"Come on, let's join the others. Then when we're done we can go and have lunch and maybe even drop by Okinomiya for those creampuffs you love so much."

"Au, au!" Hanyuu beamed with a bright smile as she and Shinichi returned to join up with their friends.

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan was standing in front of the museum with Amora. He looked tense and the Enchantress asked, "Anything the matter, beloved?" They had come here after Alan had read the newspaper.

"No, nothing's wrong," denied Alan.

He needed to check this out. It could be nothing but when he read about it in the newspaper he knew he needed to check it out and see for himself. He just hoped he was wrong.

* * *

Rika was sketching the angel statues alone. Nobody else was looking at the statues. Hanyuu and Satoko had gone off looking for other models to draw. Rika looked up at the statues again and cocked an eyebrow. "That's odd."

"What is?" asked Shinichi suddenly, causing her to jump.

"Eep!" She then turned and glared at him, "Baka! You scared me!" Rika swatted his arm.

"Sorry," Shinichi apologized. "So, what's odd?"

"I could've sworn that statue moved," Rika said, pointing at one of the statues.

"Maybe it's just your mind playing tricks on you," said Shinichi. "Like how the eyes of a portrait follow you around." However, he recalled Hanyuu's words earlier. He looked and saw two familiar faces entering. "Oh, Alan, Amora!"

Alan walked over with Amora and remarked, "Didn't think you were the artistic type."

"Well, I just came to chaperone my sisters," Shinichi shrugged.

"I keep telling him we can take care of ourselves," Rika remarked.

"Hey, I'm still your older brother. Besides, you'll never know when something might happen, like a monster appearing at random," he told her.

"Don't jinx us," Amora chided.

Alan just let out a soft chuckle as the small banter that was being passed between them all. At least Amora had fully forgiven Shinichi for the time he had gone rogue during the past year. Alan stared up at the angel statues and narrowed his eyes at them. This prompted Shinichi to ask, "Why are you glaring at those statues?"

"They just look like something I encountered awhile back," Alan said to Shinichi.

"Which is?" Shinichi questioned.

"The Weeping Angels," Amora spoke up.

"Weeping Angels?" Rika and Shinichi repeated questioningly.

"Creatures from another world that were born long ago. The dawn of time to be exact," Alan started. "Nobody knows how they started but they are said to be both the most beautiful and the most dangerous creatures the universe has ever created. Pure evil, with a heart of stone, and they kill with just a touch."

Shinichi gulped. That sounded scary.

Alan continued, "The only defense against a Weeping Angel is to keep your eyes on it."

"Just look at it?" Rika asked.

"Just look at it," Alan repeated, confirming her question. "The Weeping Angels cannot move when they are observed, but once you look away they can move faster than you can possibly believe and get you in the blink of an eye." He snapped his fingers suddenly, causing Rika and Shinichi to jump. "Just like _that_."

"Wow, some horror story," said Shinichi, putting a hand on his chest.

"Well, some horror stories are true," Amora said. "Legends and myths do come from some truths."

Alan leered at the statues one last time before he and Amora left. Rika was just putting in the final touches to her drawing before she and Shinichi went to rejoin the others too. As they left, they did not see one of the angel statues lower its hands from its face to look at them.

As Alan was admiring the rest of the artwork with Amora, he couldn't help but listen in on the conversation from some of the security guards. He focused his hearing and listened.

"_Still no word from Takashima?"_

"_Nope, and I tried calling him. Do you think his loan shark got to him?"_

"_Well, he has a lot of debts but I don't think he'd be killed for not paying his debt. Dead men can't pay back money."_

"_Yeah, but poor guy. His wife left him because of his gambling debt and he had to borrow more money. Being a night-watchman was the only job he could get."_

"_Yeah, and did you notice it was on the same night when we got those creepy angel statues?" _

"_Why do you still think they're creepy?"_

"_Well, sometimes when I turn my back I have a feeling they're watching me."_

"_How can they be watching you when they cover their faces with their hands?"_

"Eavesdropping, my beloved?" Amora asked.

"Just paying attention," said Alan. Maybe he could take another look at those angel statues, later tonight.

* * *

Rena and Shinichi returned home together later in the evening to see Satan sitting on the couch eating popcorn covered in ketchup. Shinichi had heard that pregnant women could have odd cravings, but they never thought it'd be this bad.

"So, how was your day?" Shinichi asked Satan. Asmodeus had come to look after her pregnant sister and Yokoshima had tagged along. They were family, after all.

"Oh, it wasn't so bad. I just sat here, watching TV, becoming fatter and fatter," Satan frowned. Her belly had grown along with the baby inside of her. She growled at him, "This is all _your_ fault."

"Sorry, sorry," Shinichi apologized.

"You should be," snarled Satan. "Now, go get me some fried chicken and chocolate sauce!" she ordered.

"Yes ma'am!" Shinichi saluted and left. He learnt long ago never to argue with a pregnant woman. Back when his mother was pregnant with Sho, he and his step-father had to face her wrath due to her mood swings and the oddest cravings during the oddest hours of the night. One time she wanted celery with peanut butter and raisins on them at 4 o'clock in the morning.

Rena sat down on the couch and put her hand on Satan's belly. She was envious of the Stake of Wrath for carrying Shinichi's child and she wanted to be able to bear his child one day as well. Satan noticed this and knew what was going on through Rena's mind. "Rena, trust me. It's not all that good. I have back pains, my breasts are getting bigger, and I look like a blimp."

"Well, we all know for a fact that Shin-kun loves breasts. But you should also remember that you're carrying a life inside you," she added, smiling.

"Yeah, and the pain's worth it," Satan smiled. "But it's still fun to make Shinichi feel guilty once in a while." Rena and Asmodeus both laughed as they couldn't agree more. She asked, "So, how was the museum?"

"It was amazing! So many beautiful pieces of art! I feel so inspired!" said Rena excitedly.

"Inspired enough to draw more pages for your picture book?" Satan asked. Rena had been working on a special art project. It was a picture book that told the story of a hero who had humble beginnings and was forced onto the path of the warrior without his consent. However, he managed to find his resolve and face his enemies, finally attaining the closure he'd sought for years.

"Yes, I already have so many ideas for backgrounds," nodded Rena.

"So, anything interesting at the exhibit?" Satan asked.

"Oh, just those angel statues," said Rena. "You should've seen them. They were beautiful. Too bad they covered their faces with their hands."

Satan frowned. "I think I'll pass, but thanks for the invitation." She didn't want to see any statue which resembled an angel. She and her sisters had faced something like that years ago and it had been a frightening experience. They had only been saved by Beatrice's intervention but the experience had left them shaken.

How do you kill something that can't ever die?

* * *

"Angels are supposed to be symbols of good, but that doesn't mean they can't be corrupted. That is why fallen angels exist," said Beatrice. She was sitting on the couch with Misato and Yuji.

"OK, that came out of nowhere," Yuji remarked. Beatrice had come to visit them and to also give Maria another lesson in magic. The little girl's magic had grown since coming to this world. Of course since Maria was cut off from her own world she still needed an education and was enrolled in a local school as well. It may not be Duel Academy, but an education was still an education. Wendy was receiving an education as well. Yuji would still teach them some things from his world from time to time and Beatrice came to help with Maria's magical education.

"Oh, I just heard that an art museum in this city was displaying a trio of statues with their hands covering their faces, as if they were weeping," said Beatrice.

"Statues?" Yuji remarked. "Never thought you'd care for statues that weren't of you." She bonked him on the head with her pipe.

"Baka, I'm not _that_ vein," she frowned. "Besides, these statues remind me of a creature I had encountered years ago."

"Do tell," said Misato, interested.

"Years ago, my Stakes found this creature made of stone. So beautiful, so harmless looking, but once they were looking away it moved. It only froze when their gazes were upon it but as soon as they looked away or blinked it moved towards them. And when it exposed its fangs and claws, the beautiful creature had turned horrifying. Following their instincts, my Stakes attacked but no matter what they did, no matter how much damage they caused, and no matter how much the stone creature was cut down, as soon as they looked away it restored itself in the blink of an eye. That was when I, the Great Beatrice, the Endless Witch and the Golden Witch intervened and, with my magic, banished it away."

"What was it?" Yuji asked.

"I believe the creature was a fallen angel cursed into a stone form for rebelling against God from the very dawn of time," said Beatrice. "A Weeping Angel."

"Well, since you took care of it that means it isn't a problem," Yuji said. "Right?"

"Oh, Yuji. You weren't listening. It was the only Weeping Angel we had ever encountered, but we do not believe it was the only one of its kind," Beatrice said, putting on a creepy expression.

"Kihihihihi," Maria giggled as she made her presence known, holding Sakutaro in her arms. "Beatrice-sensei is right, Papa. Where there's one there's usually more. You know that, don't you? Kihihihihi."

"So, you're saying I should check these statues out?" Yuji questioned.

"Did I?" Beatrice shrugged. "Perhaps."

Yuji's eyes narrowed. Beatrice might enjoy messing with him from time to time but she could also be serious and her story about the Weeping Angel had sounded incredibly serious. Of course these stone statues might just be an artist's recreation of angels and it was just a coincidence that they resembled Weeping Angels.

However, in their world, there was no such thing as simple coincidences.

He was going to check this out, just to be sure, for the sake of his family.

* * *

That night, Shinichi was working at the pawn shop doing inventory for Topper. It was already getting late and he promised he would be home before midnight. He was almost done when he heard a tapping on the window. Looking, he thought he saw a figure looking at him. He blinked and then it was gone. "What?"

He exited the pawn shop and looked around. He scratched his head in confusion. "That's odd." He could've sworn that he'd seen something. He should've been looking up because standing on the ledge of a nearby building was a stone angel looking straight at him.

Suddenly, his wrist-mounted communicator began beeping. "Hello?" he answered.

"_SHIN-KUN, GET HERE QUICKLY!_" Rena shouted from the other end.

Now Shinichi panicked and answered, "I'm on my way!" He locked up the pawn shop's door, hopped onto his bike and raced back home to the apartment.

When Shinichi reached his apartment, he noticed that the door had been forced open. Afraid for the girls, he went in, calling Rena and Satan's names, "Rena-chan!-? Satan-chan!-?"

"We're in here!" Rena shouted. "Hurry!"

Shinichi went and he took a step back. Blocking his path, with its winged back facing him, was an angel statue. "OK, where did this come from?"

"I don't know!" Rena shouted.

"Rena, don't blink!" warned Satan.

"I'm trying! But it's hard!"

Shinichi recalled Alan's story from earlier about the Weeping Angels. He thought at first it was probably some myth but here stood one of them, standing in the doorway to the master bedroom, frightening Rena and Satan. If it was a living creature, then maybe he could talk to it and reason with it. If not, then maybe he could smash it to pieces.

But first he needed to get Satan and Rena out of harm's way.

He called, "Sheila, activate a Teleportal. Lock onto Rena and Satan, now."

"_Affirmative_," Sheila obeyed. "_Locking onto Rena and Satan's exact coordinates. Forming Teleportal_."

The green portal formed seconds later and Shinichi ordered, "Girls, get into the Teleportal."

Rena and Satan didn't need to be told twice and escaped through the Teleportal which vanished seconds after they went through. Now that they were safe, Shinichi could focus on the Weeping Angel.

"OK, they can only move once unobserved," Shinichi recalled. "So, if I look away for a second it'll move." He glanced away for a second and then looked back to see the stone angel had turned to face him. "So, it is true," he whispered. "Who are you? What do you want?" It didn't answer and Shinichi sighed, "Of course. You can't move when I look at you so you can't talk. A friend of mine told me about you. I didn't believe him at first but he never lied to me." He tapped the button on his wrist communicator and called, "Alan, I got a situation here. It's made of stone and has wings."

There was a sound of a 'WHOOSH' and Alan had suddenly appeared next to Shinichi. Super speed, something that Shinichi envied which Alan possessed.

"Yup, that's a Weeping Angel alright," said Alan, looking the stone angel from top to bottom. He never thought he would see another one since the first time had been enough for him. The projection he'd shown Shiro before had been based on his past experience with Weeping Angels. It had not been a good one.

Shinichi's communicator beeped again and Alan said, "Answer. I'll keep my eyes on this thing."

"Hello?" Shinichi answered.

"_Shinichi, your family __has__ just arrived to our base_," said Sheila.

"They're at the Hive? Why?" Shinichi asked.

"_They claimed that they were under the attack of an angel statue_," Sheila answered.

'_Them too?_' he thought. "Good thing Hanyuu remembers to use the Teleportal to get away," smiled Shinichi.

"_Yes, but your AI counterpart chose to remain and observe the entity as it could only move once it was unobserved_," Sheila reported.

"Weeping Angels can't move when they are being looked at," Alan reminded.

"And AI-Shin has no eyelids," Shinichi added. "Alan, what do Weeping Angels want?"

"They only live to kill," said Alan.

"Any known way to kill one?" Shinichi asked.

"No," said Alan. "Not that I know of at least. Even blasting them to pieces doesn't work."

"Why not?" Shinichi asked. That sounded affective.

"They turn to stone when you look at them, and you can't kill stone," said Alan.

"That sucks!" Shinichi was starting to hate these even more by the second.

"I know, but it's how they were made. The only weakness they have is that they can only move when unobserved, so as long as we keep our eyes on this one, it can't move," said Alan.

"So we're supposed to stand here and keep staring at it?" Shinichi asked incredulously. He didn't want to have to stand there and take turns staring at a stupid killer angel statue with Alan all day long until someone came up with a plan.

"No," Alan said. "We're going to get out of here and figure out a way to defeat them." He grabbed Shinichi's arm and flew out of the apartment with the Weeping Angel just staring at the spot they had stood. The lights flickered for a second and then the Weeping Angel was gone.

* * *

"Are you OK?" Alan asked after he and Shinichi landed in the canyon outside the Hive.

"Just…feeling…a little ill," Shinichi groaned, holding his stomach. Moving at Alan's top speed without protection caused nausea. He still wished he could move with the same amount of speed as Alan could but there were just some things that should be the way they were. "OK, it's passed." He stood straight up. "OK, let me see if I understand the situation right now. We have three statues that aren't really statues that want to kill us. Why?"

"Come inside and I'll explain everything," said Alan as he led Shinichi into the Hive. Satan, Rena, Kasai, Shiro, Hanyuu, Rika and Sho were there. AI-Shin was also floating nearby. Shinichi hugged Rena tightly, relieved she was safe. He did the same to Satan as well.

"You're both OK," he said, sounding relieved.

"Nii-chan!" Sho ran over and hugged his big brother.

"Hello, little bro," Shinichi smiled, patting his little brother on the head. He was almost two years old now and his 2nd birthday was in a few weeks. "I thought you stayed behind," said Shinichi to the robotic sphere as AI-Shin floated over to him.

"_Well, I tried, but that thing looked back at me and it creeped me out. I also felt like it was draining my energy_," said AI-Shin.

"Weeping Angels do feed on energy," said Alan.

"Weeping Angels?" Shiori questioned.

"The statue," Alan clarified.

"Yes, it just appeared out of nowhere and whenever we turned away, or looked away, or even blinked it moved and kept on getting closer and closer," said Shiori, looking frightened. Ever since she had found out about Shinichi being a Rider, her life had just kept on getting weirder and weirder by the day.

"I tried shooting at it," said Kasai.

"And let me guess, the bullet holes you made sealed up once you looked away," Alan concluded. Kasai nodded.

"Alan, tell us more about the Weeping Angels," said Rika.

"OK, I told you that they were from another world and have been around since the dawn of time." Rika nodded and he continued, "The fact is nobody can be sure when and where they were born but those who know of the Weeping Angels know that the only way to protect themselves from them is to keep their eyes on them," said Alan.

"Why can they only move if they are unobserved? Are they shy?" Rena questioned.

"It's a defense mechanism, and part of their biology. They can't help it, you see. They must always freeze when they're observed. In that state they're Quantum Locked, which means they cease to exist in the sight of any living thing. And a statue is just a statue." He added, his tone turning grave, "But they're statues when they're seen. Of course when you look away or even blink, that's when they can move. That's why you must never take your eyes off a Weeping Angel."

"You said they fed on energy," said Rika

"Yes, any form of energy would do, but their favorite is potential energy." Alan explained, "Potential energy refers to time energy. You see Weeping Angels kill you by forcing you to live to death."

"OK, that makes no sense," Satan remarked irritably. "How can you 'live to death'?"

"One touch and they can send you to the past. It could be decades or even centuries. But once in the past, your time is done. All the time you had left in the present is gone and the energy from the life you would've led here is consumed by them," said Alan.

That made Alan's audience silent and pale. Even he had to admit that the Weeping Angel's were nasty little buggers. He was thankful that he was more prepared for them this time around than he was during his first encounter with them. As Hanyuu thought about what Alan had just told them, she then realized something and gasped. "What is it, Hanyuu?"

"A long time ago, back when I was human, I heard that the entire population of a village vanished without a trace," said Hanyuu. "Then I heard about people who claimed that they were from the future."

"The unfortunate victims of the Weeping Angels," Alan said.

"So, is there any way to beat them?" Shinichi asked. If these things were on the loose, then they were dangerous.

"Well, remember how they can't be seen without being frozen?" Alan questioned. "That applies to them as well. They can't even look at each other without freezing. That's why they have to cover their faces. That also makes them the loneliest creatures in the universe which earned them the nickname the Lonely Assassins." He asked Shinichi, "Shinichi, have you developed those photos?"

"No."

"Good, destroy the negatives. Anything that holds the image of an Angel becomes an Angel." He asked, "Was anyone looking at its eyes?" They shook their heads. "Good because if you do it can burn its image into your mind. And then slowly your entire biology will change as you will die and become replaced by a newborn Weeping Angel." He'd learnt everything he needed to know about the Weeping Angels from the Doctor, himself. He had heard how the Doctor had been able to defeat them one time and was praying that he, himself, could use the same tactic here in their current situation. To Alan, the Doctor was the only reason he had survived his first encounter with the Weeping Angels.

"What about a drawing of one?" Rika asked.

"I doubt a drawing would become a Weeping Angel, but you can never be too careful. When you have the chance destroy the drawings," Alan said.

Shiori was trembling in terror now, with Kasai holding her. To think such creatures existed in their world.

"That thing's still in Hinamizawa!" Hanyuu cried out. Their friends and the villagers were in danger.

"Don't worry," said Alan. "I think it was looking for a strong source of energy and since it's gone it went away."

"How can you be sure?" Rika questioned.

"Sheila, is the Angel still in Hinamizawa?" Alan asked.

"_The entity known as a Weeping Angel is not within Hinamizawa_," Sheila reported.

"Wait, you mentioned a strong source of energy." Shinichi asked, "What source of energy?"

"Hanyuu and Satan," said Alan. "You both have a lot of magical energy in you and they wanted to eat it all up. I don't think they'd be interested in potential energy with that kind of meal in front of them. They'll just go and kill you by snapping your necks when potential energy isn't of any use to them."

Shinichi didn't like the sound of that. Those things wanted his little sister and girlfriend for their magical energy and were going to kill them on the spot just so that they could consume it. He clenched his fist anger. No one messed with his family and especially not with the mother of his unborn child.

"So, what's the plan?" Shinichi asked, his eyes filled with determination. He wanted to take these things down, now.

* * *

Shinichi and Alan exited the Teleportal and stood in front of the museum. "The Angels must've come back here if they couldn't get to Satan or Hanyuu."

"OK, we're here without so much as a plan, facing creatures that can't be killed and who can send us back in time with a single touch," Shinichi summarized their situation.

"Pretty much," Alan shrugged. "Are you scared?"

"No," Shinichi said before he felt a tap on his shoulder. "WAAH!" he screamed and turned, his fists turning into energy blasters aimed at… "Yuji!-?"

"Hey," Yuji greeted, holding his hands up. "Do you mind pointing those away?"

Shinichi put his hands down and scolded, "Don't scare me like that!" He punched Yuji in the arm.

"Didn't think you were so jumpy," Yuji remarked. "So, what are you doing at the museum after closing time?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing," said Alan. "But I guess we're all here for the same reason."

"Auntie B told me about some angel statues that are dangerous, and I thought I should check it out," said Yuji.

"Well, you don't need to find out if they're dangerous because we know already," said Shinichi. "They came after my family, Yuji, specifically Satan-chan and Hanyuu-chan."

Now that got Yuji's attention. "Is Satie OK?" No one messed with his cute and adorable sisters and God have mercy on the poor soul that did.

"She's fine," assured Shinichi. "I got a Teleportal to send them to the Hive where those things can't get to them."

Alan stood in front of the museum's door and pointed his Sonic Screwdriver at it. "OK, it's unlocked," he said as he put his Sonic Screwdriver away, "And I turned off the alarm too."

"Ironic how a Green Lantern is breaking and entering into a museum, and through the front door no less," remarked Yuji as Alan opened the door. Alan just rolled his eyes at the joke and kept his eyes forward.

"And a Blue Lantern wasn't about to do the exact same thing that I just did, huh?" Alan retorted.

"Ha, ha, very funny," Yuji chortled at having Alan turn his own joke back on him.

The trio entered the museum with Alan using his ring to light their way. They were headed towards the spot where the Weeping Angels were on display. Entering the area where the sculptures were displayed, Shinichi found a security guard's cap and flashlight.

(_**Insert BGM – Flight: Outlaw Star OST**_)

"The remains of another victim," Alan remarked. He shone his ring at the spot.

"OK, they're not there," Shinichi said. He heard something. "Did you hear that?"

"Yes, I did," Yuji said as he shone his ring to light up his surroundings. "Those things are here, aren't they?"

"And they're hungry too," said Alan. "Guess who's on the menu?" Shinichi gulped a bit. He would be damned to let those things get the best of him.

They stood back to back, keeping their eyes opened. Shinichi had built in night-vision while Alan and Yuji had their rings. They were prepared for anything.

After minutes of waiting, Yuji asked, "Well, where the hell are they?"

"They're waiting for us to blink," Alan answered. "That's when they can strike. We have no choice. We have to blink."

"Didn't you say blinking was a bad idea?" Shinichi asked.

"It's the only way we can confront them," Alan said.

"So, on 3 we blink?" Yuji suggested.

"On 3," Alan said.

"1, 2, 3!" the three of them counted in unison.

They blinked and that was when the enemy appeared. Shinichi saw one coming at him and so did Yuji and Alan. "OK, ugly," Yuji remarked.

"That's their attack pose," said Alan.

"Reminds me of the beautiful statues we used to have ages ago," reminisced Bazel. "Only those were naked women and they didn't have fangs."

"Now's not a good time, Bazel," said Alan.

"Hey, I was just sayin', that's all," Bazel retorted.

Yuji formed a fireball in his hand and shouted, "Take this!" He threw it and it collided with the Weeping Angel, shattering it to pieces as it exploded. Yuji smirked at his friends. "See? Easy as pie!"

"Take another look," Alan said, not taking his eyes off the Angel in front of him. Yuji looked back and his eyes widened in shock. It was the Angel he'd destroyed, but it looked undamaged and coming closer. "They can't be killed, Yuji. Sure, you can break them to pieces as much as you like but when you look away even for a second they can restore their bodies."

"That's just bullshit! That's like god-modding!" Yuji exclaimed.

"How do you think they can survive after all this time?" Alan asked.

"_Ring energy at 35 percent_," Alan's green ring reported.

"_Ring energy at 29 percent_," Yuji's blue ring reported.

"Oh no," Alan grimaced.

"I swear my ring was fully charged before I got here!" Yuji cried out.

"They're sucking the energy from our rings!" exclaimed Alan.

Now this was an enemy Yuji hated. Not only could he not destroy them, but they could drain the power straight from his ring.

"Now what?" Shinichi asked. Blasting the Weeping Angels would just slow them down.

"Mirrors would help, but we don't have them and right now we can't make constructs without draining all our power," said Alan.

"How about making them look at each other?" Shinichi asked. His eyes were getting drier by the second.

"Look at each other?" Yuji questioned, struggling not to blink.

"Alan says they can't even look at each other without freezing," said Shinichi.

"That would've been a good plan, if you hadn't just blurted it out," Alan retorted.

"Oops!" Shinichi realized his mistake. Now it wouldn't work on them. Having blurted out his plan just made the Weeping Angels wise to them.

'_And he was supposed to be the smart and ruthless killer and tactician of the NUMBERS back in his BLACK 13 days_,' Alan complained to himself mentally. He considered their options and only one was available. "We have to run."

"Run?" Shinichi and Yuji repeated.

"Sheila, I need a Teleportal," Alan called. His ring was connected to the Hive's communication network so he could call via his own ring. "Make it quick. It's urgent."

"_Affirmative_," Sheila responded. She locked onto their coordinates and opened up a Teleportal.

"You know you just opened a direct path to our base with these things right in front of us, don't you?" Shinichi questioned, hoping desperately that Alan knew what he was doing.

"Shinichi, Yuji, you two go in first," said Alan. "I'll hold them off then catch up."

"Just don't take too long," Shinichi said as he ran into the Teleportal.

"Give these statue things hell," added Yuji as he followed after Shinichi.

Alan faced the Weeping Angels who were poised to strike, looking menacing with their faces contorted into a snarl, exposing their sharp teeth and claws. He pointed at his ring. "You want this? Come and get me then!" He backed away into the Teleportal and ran. He ran as fast he could, not looking back. He heard the Weeping Angels following after him. He knew they were fast, but could they keep up with him? He saw the exit and with a burst of speed reached for it.

Alan came flying out of the Teleportal and shouted, "SHUT IT OFF, NOW!"

"_Affirmative_. _Shutting off Teleportal_," Sheila obeyed and the swirling, green portal vanished out of sight.

(_**End BGM – Flight**_)

"What happened?" Shinichi asked. "The Angels were right behind you, weren't they?"

"Yeah, and they were fast," said Alan. "Unfortunately for them, I'm faster."

"Sheila, what happened to the Weeping Angels?" Shinichi asked.

"_Life forms designated as 'Weeping Angels' were within the middle of the Teleportal tunnel while it was shut down_. _As a result they have been terminated_," Sheila reported.

"The tunnel collapsed when Sheila shut it off and they were right in the middle of it. So, they were crushed and reduced to nothing. There's nothing left of them now," Alan translated.

"So, no more of those Weeping Angels then," Yuji smiled. He noticed Alan frowning. "Right?"

"When you see a statue of an angel, just remember not to blink," Alan advised. He was thinking of who could've put the Weeping Angels in the museum and why. Also, people had taken pictures of the Weeping Angel. That was not good. He had a feeling that would not be the last he would see of the Lonely Assassins.

Only time would tell.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The Weeping Angels have to be one of the scariest monsters in the Whoniverse so I couldn't resist from writing a chapter with them as a focus. While their weakness could be considered lame, but you need to really face a Weeping Angel to know that even looking at them can be dangerous. Look them in the eye, and they burn an image into the brain to kill you and turn you into a Weeping Angel. Images of them may also give birth to new Weeping Angels. And the fact they're immortal makes them the worst kind of enemy. Of course mirrors and tricking them into looking at each other are some of the ways you can use to stop them. But if you have a rift in time and space, that works too. Anyway, some may not enjoy this chapter since there wasn't much action but with so many action-packed chapters already, I decided we need an action light chapter and stick back to scary. And if you were facing a Weeping Angel, you'd be petrified.**


	121. The Legacy of Cain Part 65

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 65: Monster Within**

**Months Earlier…**

Showa was using the form of Kamen Rider X as he exited the Teleportal and into the deep ocean. He was investigating the Pyramid's point of origin which had been in this location. His eyes scanned the ocean floor and he spotted the remains of machinery lying about.

"According to Sheila, this was where the Pyramid was before it went mobile," murmured Showa-X. He landed on the ocean floor and looked up to see an island. "Wait a minute." He read the coordinates and groaned, "Right under our own noses." His antennae then picked up hostile elements and he dodged when a shark tried to take a bite out of him.

He looked at the shark carefully and noticed that the entire thing was covered in silver-grey armor with the OROCHI symbol on the head.

"Cybershark, seriously?"

The Cybershark's underside opened up and it fired a pair of small torpedoes at Showa-X. He dodged the torpedoes which exploded behind him, the force propelling him towards the Cybershark. He summoned his weapon, "Ridol Stick," as the Cybershark opened its jaws. Showa-X used both ends of his staff to hold the jaws apart. The Cybershark swam forward, smashing Showa-X against several rocks and he grunted from each impact. However, he kept a tight grip on his weapon. He wasn't going to let up.

The Cybershark's jaws proved too strong though as it broke the Ridol Stick in half and prepared to bite Showa-X in half as well. However, he swam quickly to the side and hit the Cybershark with a punch to knock it aside.

"Let's Ride: Stronger!" His body became engulfed in electricity as his armor took on the appearance of Kamen Rider Stronger's. Standing on the ocean floor, Showa-Stronger saw his opponent coming. "Take this! Underwater Electro Fire!"

* * *

Showa's head popped out of the water with a splash and he called, "Sheila, we can confirm that this was the Pyramid's point of origin. It's the same place Gebok's island base was located. Seems like the Pyramid was right under the island from the start," he stated while gazing at the island before him. "Guess there are a lot of secrets that Gebok left behind." How many other old bases had Gebok left behind in this world? What other secrets were still hidden?

"_Will you be returning to base?_" Sheila asked.

"In a moment," said Showa as he scanned his surroundings and saw metal dorsal fins coming towards him. "I need to do some fishing. Showa, over and out."

* * *

**Present Day, Mid-April 1989**

As the moon lit up the night sky, a woman was walking home when a motorcycle suddenly drove past her. The biker grabbed her purse and rode off with his latest catch of the evening and the woman screamed, "THIEF! HELP THIEF!"

The motorcyclist looked back at the woman and then snickered to himself as he continued on his way. He looked forward to seeing what was in the woman's purse. Maybe some valuables he could sell for some extra cash. As he turned a corner, he swerved out of the way in shock as a figure stood in his path. He nearly crashed and hit the brakes. Angrily, he got up to confront the guy.

"Hey, what's your problem!-?" he shouted and then the figure was glaring at him, its eyes glowing blood red.

He screamed.

* * *

**2 Days Later...**

Shinichi was sitting in the cafeteria in Shishibone University with Mion. It was the start of a new semester and he was now in his 3rd year along with the rest of his friends. As Mion was looking over her notes for her next class, Shinichi sat across from her, reading the day's newspaper. As he skimmed through the business and sports section, his eyes suddenly landed on a headline that really caught his attention.

"Purse snatcher apprehended," Shinichi read from the newspaper. "He was found tied up at a lamppost yesterday morning."

"That's not odd," said Mion. It was to be expected nowadays. With so many Kamen Riders and heroes around, a simple mugging or even a possible rape was a rare thing to hear about.

"Mion, the lamppost was tied _around_ him," Shinichi said. "Whoever did this has to be super strong."

"So, it's not you?" Mion asked. She knew that Shinichi would go out on nightly patrols to keep the city safe. Not to mention to also get away from Satan when she got in one of her cranky pregnant lady moods.

"What makes you think it's me?" he asked incredulously.

"Well, _you_ are super strong," Mion said.

"I'm not the only super strong guy around anymore," he remarked. He then decided to change to a different topic before they got into an argument. "So, how's Keiichi doing now?"

"Oh, he tried out for the baseball team again and made it," said Mion. "He promised that he'll stay clean this time around."

"That's good," said Shinichi.

They had all been worried about Keiichi ever since he started to recover from using G-Shock last year. It was something that would stay with Keiichi forever and it made him realize that he didn't need super powers to be of help to his friends. If anything, that bout with the side effects from using the G-Shock had put him in the correct path in life and Mion couldn't be happier for him.

"Hey, have you seen the pages for Rena's new picture book?" Mion asked. Shinichi looked at her.

"She showed them to you?" he asked.

"She didn't show them to you?" she responded, surprised.

"No, she hasn't," he replied. Now he felt a bit hurt. Rena would never keep him in the dark about that. So why would she show them to Mion and not him?

"Maybe she's keeping them a secret so she can surprise you when she's done," said Mion.

"Well, since you've seen them maybe you can tell me what it's all about," he smiled hopefully. The look in her eyes said otherwise.

"I can't," Mion shook her head. "I made a promise with her and a promise between best friends is sacred."

"I thought I was your best friend."

"You're my best guy friend. Rena's my best girl friend." Shinichi just rolled his eyes and then noticed Keiichi coming out of the cafeteria line and hailed him over to them.

"Hey, Keiichi! Over here!"

Keiichi just let out a sigh as he came and sat down with them with a tray of food, a _very_ full tray of food.

"Woah, that's a lot of food," Shinichi remarked.

"You're one to talk," Keiichi countered before taking a bite of his burger.

"Hey, I can't help it that I need a lot of fuel," Shinichi retorted. His cybernetic enhancements had given him a high metabolism. "I just don't see why you need to eat a lot."

"I need the energy," said Keiichi. He gave a yawn.

"Are you tired, Kei-chan?" Mion asked, concerned. He had been acting a little weird lately and seemed to be tired a lot as of late.

"Oh, it's OK. It's just that I've been studying a lot since the coursework this semester is a little heavier than before," said Keiichi.

"You always say that," Mion reminded.

"Do I?" Keiichi asked. He noticed the news report. "Damn, you guys are really hardcore."

"It wasn't me," said Shinichi.

"Well, maybe it's one of the other guys then," said Keiichi. Shinichi wasn't going to disagree with him on that. It was something he was going to have to look into though.

* * *

"This isn't the first time this has happened," said Araki. He was referring to the newspaper story.

"What do you mean?" Shinichi asked.

"It's been going on for weeks. A friend of a friend of my cousin's girlfriend told me that a lot of gangs have been attacked and beaten up by some monster in black armor," said Araki.

"Araki, are you wasting Shinichi's time with another one of your conspiracy theories?" asked Ootori.

Ootori was supposed to have graduated last March as she had finished the standard four years of education. However, she needed an extra semester in order to finish her graduate thesis which she had yet to complete. It still needed amendments and more material before it could be passed up and she could graduate. This allowed her to spend one more semester with the Photography Club she loved so much.

"It's my fault, Buchou (club president)," Shinichi apologized. Ootori whacked him. "Itai!" he cried out. "What was that for?"

"Don't you remember what I told you when you first joined? There's no need for you to be so damn formal!" she snapped. "Oh, and I really liked the stuff you got from Kyoto before…"

"I know," Shinichi frowned. Kyoto was still being rebuilt and part of the traditional area had taken damage after the Orochi's resurrection. There were a lot of pictures on the wall and the whiteboard. Araki had somehow gotten pictures of DALEK's without getting hurt. It was something that really made him wonder how the guy could get the most amazing pictures and not be found taking them in the process by the enemy. What was he, the invisible man or something?

"Why the sudden interest?" asked Araki. He then looked hopeful, "Are you gonna go hunt him down?" He begged, "Take me with you!"

"No, it's nothing like that," Shinichi denied.

"Come on, please!" Araki begged, holding Shinichi's leg. Ootori took a rolled up newspaper and whacked Araki on the head.

"Don't get creepy, Araki. You're the reason we haven't gotten any new members," Ootori frowned. Kanna had left their club after leaving Shishibone University to stay in Kyoto. Shinichi knew the reason why but couldn't say. It was still heartbreaking.

He still felt like it was his fault. If only he had been stronger and had the power to defeat Shiro earlier on or even had bothered to look for his Spark Core after he was defeated the first time then none of those horrific events would have turned out the way they did. Why couldn't he find a way to restore his time powers? Why couldn't he have gotten stronger? It had been nagging him in the back of his mind for months now. He knew that, one day, he might end up crossing paths with Kanna again and he vowed that, when that day happened, he would be much stronger.

* * *

Later, Shinichi went to Yuji's garage, the Dragon's Den. Yuji had opened it up after he realized they were unable to leave this world and he needed someway to make ends meet. He made sure to provide quality service for his customers and, after a few months, he had become quite popular and came highly recommended.

Looking up from his latest project, Yuji noticed Shinichi come walking into the garage. "You need a tune up for your bike?" asked Yuji as he was wiping the grease off his hands with a rag. Shinichi just shook his head and took out a rolled up newspaper and showed it to him.

"Have you seen the paper today?" Shinichi asked, pointing to the story about the guy who was wrapped up by a lamppost. Yuji read the headline and took a good look at the image.

"Did you do that?" Yuji asked.

"No, I thought it was one of you guys," said Shinichi.

"Sorry, wasn't me," said Yuji. "Have you asked Alan?"

"I stopped by his high school earlier. It wasn't him either," said Shinichi. "And he wasn't lying. Believe me, I'd know if he was." He rolled up the newspaper.

Yuji frowned a bit. If it wasn't him or Shinichi or Alan then who could it be? "So, what do you plan on doing?" Yuji asked.

"I'm going to check this out," said Shinichi.

"Oh, you need help?" Yuji offered.

"No, I don't think I'll need any," Shinichi shrugged. "I can handle this on my own."

"Be careful," Yuji advised.

"I will. Don't worry."

As Shinichi left the garage, Yuji watched him with concern in his eyes. '_Don't overrate yourself, kid. If you do then who knows what'll happen_.' After watching Shinichi leave Yuji decided it was best to just get back to work. They'd have their answers soon.

* * *

It was later that night when a dark figure was leaping through the air. Black Skull, Shinichi's alter-ego when he wasn't fighting as Showa, was jumping from rooftop to rooftop in Okinomiya. He needed to find out who this mysterious vigilante was.

He stood at the edge of a building, crouched, his eyes and ears scanning for anything out of the ordinary. "Come on, give me something," he murmured. If it was a new vigilante, then he was going to have a few words with him and to try and make sure of his intentions clearly. If he was a threat then Shinichi would set him straight.

* * *

Meanwhile, Keiichi was tossing and turning in his bed, having a fitful sleep. He was having a bad dream and not just any bad dream, but several in succession. They seemed to be horrible visions and they were filled with blood and horror.

And they were recurring nightmares. Once he saw himself bludgeoning Mion and Rena to death with a baseball bat. Then he saw himself doing the same to Teppei. Other nightmares involved him being the victim, like when Shion had him restrained and was about to hammer nails into his fingers. He remembered how frightened Mion had been. Then there was one nightmare where he fought against Rena on the school roof.

The thing was, none of these had ever happened to him before, so why did they feel like memories?

Suddenly, he arched his back and let out a scream as his eyes snapped open.

The white of his eyes were now blood red. Not bloodshot, but completely red, while a strange crimson glow began to emit from underneath his sheets.

* * *

It had been hours since his patrol began and Black Skull hadn't found a single hide or hair of this mysterious vigilante. There wasn't even any criminal activity. "OK, now this is getting boring…" he murmured. He let out a yawn but he didn't give up. He checked the time. "Damn, it's late." It was 3 am in the morning and he had class first thing in the morning. "Maybe I should turn in for the-" His enhanced hearing picked up a sound and he looked down at the Hostess Club in town. He saw that one of the girls who was on her way home being accosted by a man who looked drunk.

"Well, looks like this won't be a quiet night after all," he said as he moved to act when a dark figure suddenly came out of nowhere and grabbed the drunkard by his collar and slammed him against the wall. The woman fled, screaming. Black Skull watched and realized that the dark figure was still assaulting the drunkard. He was going too far.

The dark figure snarled at the terrified drunkard's face and an obvious wet spot formed between his legs. "Please…please…don't hurt me!" he begged. The dark figure ignored his plea for mercy and pulled his fist back to smash it through his face. He threw it with the intent of ending the drunkard's poor existence.

After screwing his eyes shut for a moment and then noticing that there was no pain, he opened his eyes to see black clad vigilante known as Black Skull standing in front of him. The first dark vigilante's fist was caught in Black Skull's hand. "That's enough! He's beaten!" shouted Black Skull. The figure snarled and tore his fist out of Black Skull's hand and punched him hard in the face with enough force that his helmet was cracked. Tumbling along the ground, Black Skull grunted. Slowly, he rose to his feet and adjusted his eyesight. Meanwhile, the drunkard had fled, screaming in terror. "Man, that guy can really throw a punch," Black Skull said to himself as he looked the mysterious being over.

The figure was built like a man, with a humanoid shape, and was covered from head to toe in organic armor that resembled the exoskeleton for an insect. His fingertips ended in claws and he had large, red compound eyes. On his head was a pair of horns which made a 'U' shape together. The horns appeared jagged like a stag beetle's mandibles. In the middle of his waist, below his abdomen, was a stone with the same color as his eyes.

"Kamen Rider…?" That was what the figure looked like to him. He then sensed something else. "A Darkloid? A Darkloid…Rider?"

The 'Darkloid Rider' threw his head back and roared, his mandibles opening up to expose sharp teeth.

"OK, then it's time to fight!" said Black Skull as his Trinity Spark Core appeared. "Henshin!" His costume was replaced with his armor as he changed into his Kamen Rider form and attacked, throwing a fist at his opponent but the Darkloid Rider was faster as he caught Showa's fist and slammed him against the wall.

Showa was thrown against the wall by the Darkloid Rider and rolled out of the way as the creature's fist smashed against the spot, breaking a hole into the wall. Showa's eyes bugged out a bit behind his helmet. This guy wasn't fooling around. He really wanted to kill him.

"OK, if I can't reason with my words, then I'll have to use my fists!" said Showa as he punched his fists together. He then spread them apart as his forearms were encased in armor which morphed, forming his Drill Arm and Shovel Claw. He caught the oncoming Darkloid Rider's fist with the Shovel Claw and struck with the Drill Arm, causing sparks to fly upon contact. Roaring, the Darkloid Rider jumped and kicked Showa in the chest with both feet, forcing Showa to release him as he was sent staggering backwards.

The Darkloid Rider crossed his arms in front of him and spread its claws, snarling, before a pair of wicked curved blades slid out of the wrists. They were long and sharp like scythe blades and Showa had a feeling who the Darkloid Rider was going to use them on.

The blades glowed red and suddenly the Darkloid Rider was a blur as he moved. Showa tried to track his opponent but he was struck repeatedly, ripping sparks off his body as the Darkloid Rider hit with successive slashes, forcing him to his knees. He really wished he had his time powers right now but then got an idea.

The Darkloid Rider went for a decapitation strike next but Showa called, "Let's Ride: Biorider!" The blade went through Showa but it wasn't flesh and blood, but blue fluid. Reforming himself, Showa-Biorider struck with the Bioblade, ripping sparks off his opponent's chest.

"Let's Ride: Amazon!" he called as he assumed the form of Amazon Rider. He growled and snarled at his opponent who responded in kind. Crying out with, "Gigigigi!" Showa-Amazon struck with a claw slash which hit his opponent who retaliated with a slash of his own. Showa-Amazon was hit across the chest but he recovered to catch his opponent's arm to execute the Jaguar Shock attack, biting down with his sharp teeth. Roaring, the Darkloid Rider kicked Showa-Amazon hard in the side and sent him tumbling but Showa-Amazon was ready for anything as the Darkloid Rider lunged at him.

"Let's Ride: ZX!" he called as he changed before calling out, "Cross Shuriken!" He threw the weapons which were mounted on his elbows. The shurikens struck the Darkloid Rider in the chest, stuck on and exploded, throwing the Kaijin-like Rider backwards.

Showa-ZX stood back up and went towards his downed opponent who instantly jumped to his feet. Also, the damage he'd received was healing instantly. His body still smoked from the explosion but he didn't look injured at all. "Okay, that is so unfair!" Showa shouted. This guy wasn't making this an easy fight.

Electricity crackled around his right hand and the Darkloid Rider moved with blinding speed, striking Showa-ZX in the chest, shocking him both emotionally and literally before tossing him through the air. Showa-ZX landed painfully as his chest sparked.

"Itai…" he groaned. The Darkloid Rider then jumped up and revealed that he had blades on the back of his heels. Showa-ZX rolled out of the way before the blade hit and it was imbedded in the ground. The Darkloid Rider withdrew his heel blade and then struck Showa-ZX in the head with a roundhouse kick, leaving him dazed.

The blades withdrew back into his wrists and clenched his fists tightly. Showa watched as a black kanabo resembling a baseball bat materialized in the Darkloid Rider's right hand. Then spikes grew along the kanabo's surface but they looked more like nails as they were quite thin. Rushing towards Showa-ZX, he bashed the kanabo against his chest, ripping sparks off with the thin spikes and causing the Rider pain.

This should've been an easy fight, but right now Shinichi was using his Legendary Rider Powers, and not the powers granted to him by the Treasures' Tsukumogami or even his Hinamizawa Guardian Form.

He was sent staggering by another strike. He had to get out of this mess and fast. "Let's Ride: BLACK!" he called before he was hit against the head with enough force that it nearly cracked his helmet. His right eyepiece did have a crack running across it.

His body flashed as he assumed the form of Black Sun, aka Kamen Rider BLACK. Putting his hands on the sides of his Spark Core, he called out, "Kingstone Flash!"

A bright flash of blinding crimson light came bursting out, causing the Darkloid Rider to screech and back away, and dropping his weapon to shield his eyes. Seeing that his opponent had been blinded, Showa resumed his Trinity Form and jumped to execute the finishing attack to end this creature's life. It didn't matter if it had been targeting bad people. It was a threat too dangerous to exist.

"RIDER KICK!" Showa came down; both legs stretched out to execute a dropkick with his feet glowing with red, green and blue energy which flared outwards.

Showa's attack struck but the Darkloid Rider had recovered quickly and had grabbed onto his legs, throwing him down to the ground. He then summoned his glowing red blades again and roared before going on the attack once more. Showa-BLACK jumped back and performed a set of handspring backflips to keep his distance. This Darkloid meant business and was nothing more than a feral beast. Well, if this monster wanted to fight like a monster, then so could he.

"Okay, you wanna play it that way, then fine. Let's Ride," Showa-BLACK began. He just hoped he knew what he was doing. It had been some time since he used this form. "BLACK 13!" In an instant, Showa reassumed his default form which then reverted back to his original default mode before turning a solid black color with blood red eye lenses and a red Spark Core, the numeral of XIII etched on his shoulder pad. "A beast for a beast," BLACK 13 said as he produced his own energy blades. He wouldn't be able to use his super speed due to the loss of his time powers but his other abilities more than made up for that loss.

The two of them rushed at each other and their blades clashed. With each slash they tore off small pieces of armor and ripped off sparks from one another's bodies. The Darkloid Rider went to pierce BLACK 13 right through the heart with his blade but BLACK 13 knocked the blade away before swinging his own blade upwards, making contact with the Darkloid's head. The Darkloid Rider howled in agony as it held its injured head and BLACK 13 pressed his advantage and performed a tornado slash, spinning around a few times, each strike ripping sparks off the creature's body.

As the Darkloid Rider stumbled backward, BLACK 13 summoned one of his ankle blades and focused it into a downward facing ankle dagger. He then slammed the energy blade right into the Darkloid Rider's chest in the form of a powerful sidekick, sending the beast tumbling to the ground hard with a loud grunt of pain.

Seeing his opponent down for the count, BLACK 13 decided to finish this for good. Focusing his energy into his legs he then jumped up and extended his ankle blades on both of his feet and came down in a drop kick. "DARK RIDER KICK!" His attack hit home this time, striking the creature directly in the chest, sending him flying before he exploded. Landing on his feet, BLACK 13 reverted back to Showa Trinity form and began walking towards the slowly dissipating flames only to freeze at the sight before him.

Lying in the circle of flames, injured, was Keiichi Maebara.

"KEIICHI!-!-!" Showa screamed.

* * *

Mion came rushing into the Hive's infirmary after hearing the news. Shinichi had called her in the middle of the night but when she learnt that Keiichi had been hurt, she immediately rushed over through the Teleportal.

"Kei-chan!" she cried as she saw him lying unconscious in one of the beds with an IV attached to him and an oxygen mask over his face to help him breathe easier. He was covered in bandages. Standing next to the bed was a regretful looking Shinichi.

Shinichi had called Mion since she would need to know what had happened.

She ran towards the bed, with Shinichi backing away. He watched as she worried over Keiichi. He clenched his fists and lowered his head.

"Shin-chan, what happened?" Mion addressed him.

Shinichi's fists tightened and he answered, slowly, "…_I _happened."

* * *

Shinichi had no choice but to tell Mion everything. After he'd learnt about the dark vigilante, he went to investigate which ended up in an altercation between him and said vigilante. The fact that it was a Darkloid made Shinichi take the fight seriously and he landed the finishing blow. However, it had not been a victory as the one he'd struck was Keiichi himself.

"Shin-chan, you didn't know…" Mion began.

"And that makes it OK!-?" he snapped. "Look at him! He could've died, Mion! I could've killed him and this time I wouldn't have been able to bring him back!" His temporal powers had yet to return. Back in the past his time powers would be used to undo the damage and loss of life caused by monster attacks but now that option was no longer available to him. He had to be more careful now.

But now he'd nearly killed his friends since he had not bothered to learn more. If only he had bothered to train more with his powers then he could have prevented this.

"Mion, I haven't been totally honest with you guys. I didn't keep you guys from helping because you aren't ARMOR agents. It's because I never wanted any of you to get hurt in the crossfire. But that's pointless now, isn't it?"

"Shin-chan…" Mion began.

"Mion, stay with Keiichi," Shinichi interrupted. "I need to see Dr. Magi to find out what's going on with him. If you need anything, just call Sheila."

* * *

"Anything?" Shinichi asked. He was in the lab with Dr. Magi. After taking Keiichi to the infirmary, Dr. Magi had taken a blood sample from Keiichi for study. It was a good thing that Dr. Magi was working late tonight or else he wouldn't be getting any answers.

"I've analysed his blood sample and DNA," said Dr. Magi. "He's human, mostly, but there's something mixed in."

"It's Darkloid," said Shinichi.

"Are you sure?" Dr. Magi asked.

"Positive. It's just like what happened with Takano years ago when she was possessed by a Darkloid, but it's different somehow," said Shinichi. "What could've caused this change and why now?"

"We'll need to perform more tests," said Dr. Magi. He saw the regretful look on Shinichi's face, "It isn't your fault."

"He ended up lying here because of me," Shinichi said in a depressed tone. "I struck him down. It's my fault, no matter how you look at it."

"You thought he was a monster," reasoned Dr. Magi. "You couldn't have known otherwise so try not to beat yourself up over it."

"The only monster here is _me_. I attacked blindly without finding out the truth and now one of my friends is hurt," Shinichi said. "Maybe…maybe it's time I stopped."

"What do you mean?" Dr. Magi asked, concerned. He could see a great deal of sadness and confusion in Shinichi's eyes and knew what he was probably about to say.

"I've been fighting ever since I woke up in Hinamizawa. At first I was OK with that because I was the hero. Then the others showed up and I didn't have to fight alone. I kept on fighting to protect my friends and to make sure that they never get hurt but now Keiichi's in the infirmary because of my fighting. So, I think it's time I moved on. All this fighting is getting too tiresome, plus now there are others who can pick up the slack," said Shinichi. "I'm sorry Dr. Magi, but I'm done. As of right now, Kamen Rider Showa is no more."

He finished, "I quit."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Looks like Shinichi has finally given up and all because he accidentally hurt a friend, which is actually a pretty good reason.. As you can see this is a short chapter, but it gets the point across. I didn't want to drag things out unnecessarily. Anyway, this is leading up to another important story arc so it doesn't have to be too long or too short. Oh, and again thanks to Toku Warrior for editing.  
**


	122. The Legacy of Cain Part 66

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 66: Tomb of the Cybermen**

A man dressed in a thick winter coat with the hood pulled up was dragging himself through the snow. Behind him walked a large figure with eight spider-like legs. The man was a scientist named Doctor Sanji and he was looking for something.

Doctor Sanji was a man who'd been expelled from the scientific community due to his unethical experiments involving the human psyche. He'd invented two types of gas which could excite great anger and fear within those infected. Those infected by the 'Rage Gas' would become so enraged that they would kill anyone within their sights while the 'Terror Gas' would cause them to hallucinate and see terrifying things around them, and only terrifying things. His experiments, however, while proving their effectiveness through his results and findings were deemed inhumane. His human test subjects would die either by killing each other or having themselves frightened to death.

Doctor Sanji lost his funding and became an outcast, never to be heard or seen again.

But he wasn't dead. Instead he'd joined the GIN-SHOCKER organization to contribute his genius and brilliance to their cause. They had expressed interest in his research and provided him funding. It was also in GIN-SHOCKER where he'd met his current companion and partner.

Argus H was a large, chrome-colored, humanoid robot, but that was only from the waist up. He walked on spider-like legs and he had a head which sported a silver, dome-shaped helmet, a thick, red faceplate and a narrow slit for a visor so he could see. Mounted on his shoulders was a pair of Howitzer-like cannons. He also had large hands with three fingers on each. He was carrying a large backpack. Like Doctor Sanji, he enjoyed the effects the Rage and Terror Gas had on humans, especially the Rage Gas as he got to watch humans tear each other apart.

Both had gone into hiding after GIN-SHOCKER's defeat, emerging only just recently. Months ago, they had witnessed the Pyramid Base which they knew was one of GIN-SHOCKER's hidden bases floating in the sky. They had also witnessed the rise of the Yamata no Orochi. The fearsome rage of the creature coupled with its terrifying presence had drawn the two out of hiding. Sadly, they had also witnessed the creature's defeat. However, they now knew that their organization still had secrets they could exploit, which was why the two of them were currently in Siberia, trying to find one of the organization's secret facilities.

"Are we there yet?" Argus H asked Doctor Sanji who was trying to look at his map but the blizzard was really getting in the way.

"You've asked me that five times in the last two hours, Argus!" Dr. Sanji shot back. "What was my answer?"

"No."

"Exactly," Dr. Sanji confirmed. "No, we haven't. When we find it, we'll know. Until then just guard my rear."

"But we're in the middle of nowhere," Argus H argued.

"Just do it you bloody machine!" snapped Dr. Sanji.

If he had eyes, Argus H would roll them. Turning his upper body 180 degrees, Argus H watched their rear to make sure they weren't being followed.

After another hour of walking, Dr. Sanji cheered. "We're here!"

"A mountain?" Argus H questioned. "We trekked for over six bloody hours to arrive at some damn stupid mountain?-! How is this supposed be of any use to us?"

"GIN-SHOCKER would have hidden facilities built inside mountains, you idiot!" said Dr. Sanji as he felt around for a switch of some kind. "This was one of them and inside will be an entire cache of weapons and equipment. Do you know what this means, my metallic friend?"

"Um…we can kill more people?" Argus H answered. He really loved killing humans. To him, they were weak and inferior creatures. Of course, he didn't even consider Sanji to be human with how he treated them. In his mind, he was just a wolf in sheep's clothing.

"Yes! And I can continue my experiments!" He found a switch. "Ah, this is it!" He pressed the button and stepped back. A door disguised as part of the mountain split open to reveal an entrance. "It looks like it can fit your stature, Argus. Let us go."

"Right behind you, Dr. Sanji."

Argus H followed the scientist inside, his spider-like legs tapping against the floor of the tunnel. There were no lights so Argus H had to provide the light as his visor shone. Dr. Sanji pulled his hood down, revealing a bowl haircut. His hair was silver and he had a bit of a stubble with a large, square nose and moustache.

The two exited the tunnel and found themselves in a large chamber. Dr. Sanji's eyes widened as he looked at the walls which were all lined with metal sarcophaguses.

"What is this place, Dr. Sanji?" asked Argus H.

"It looks like a stasis facility," said Dr. Sanji. "This is where GIN-SHOCKER would keep their most powerful warriors on ice until further notice but after the organization fell, this place became forgotten." He grinned, rubbing his hands together. "Oh, this is fantastic! If I'm right we have over 1,000 soldiers waiting to wake up!" He couldn't wait to thaw them out and release hell upon the world.

"I see a computer terminal, Dr. Sanji," Argus H pointed. There it was, sitting right in the middle of the huge chamber. Dr. Sanji made his way to it.

"This must be the controls for this place," deduced Dr. Sanji as he stood before the huge computer terminal. "Now, to switch this thing on. There should be button or something to activate it."

Suddenly, the screen lit up and the computer spoke, "**I am the Cyber Planner. Identify yourself**."

Dr. Sanji stepped back. "Cyber Planner?"

"**That is my designation, given to me by the Cyber Master. Now identify yourself.**"

* * *

Meanwhile, riding on snowmobiles through Siberia were four members of the NEO-NUMBERS. They were Daichi Takashima, Shogo Kuso, Battler Ushiromiya and Yokoshima Ryuunosuke-Magi.

Sheila had detected something in Siberia, prompting Dr. Magi to summon the NEO-NUMBERS and assign these four the mission of finding out what it was. Using the Teleportal and riding snowmobiles, the four arrived in Siberia and sped along the snow.

"Why couldn't Sheila have opened up a Teleportal directly to the place?" Battler asked through his com-link.

"She could only get a rough estimate," said Shogo. "She's a smart AI but even she has her limits. At least she managed to drop us a few kilometers from where she detected the signal."

"Besides, we get to ride these awesome snowmobiles!" Yokoshima added.

Daichi was quiet. He was thinking of the most recent changes in their lives, particularly one which had taken place over two weeks ago.

Shinichi had quit.

Oh, he had quit before, after General Nagazawa had drained his power. At that time he'd resolved himself to a normal life after that but still he could not ignore the call of the hero. However, the circumstances were different now. He had quit because he'd accidentally harmed a friend, something he had sworn never to do. Keiichi got hurt when Shinichi mistook him for a wild Darkloid.

Shinichi this time had quit for good. He cited that since the others were available, he was unneeded. All he ever wanted was a chance at a normal life. He, like the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS, had been made into a cyborg by force. He had never wanted his powers but had used them anyway to protect his friends but once the same powers had been used to hurt one of them, that was it and he made his decision.

He was now a civilian. Obviously, the others had something to say about his decision, and loudly too.

* * *

"_YOU WHAT?-!" everyone in the room shouted in unison. Currently, located in the Hive's meeting hall, Shinichi had gathered together the whole NEO-NUMBERS, Team 5D's, Alan with his harem and family, Yuji with his harem and family and the Gaming Club, minus Rena and Keiichi. They were shocked by what he had just said._

"_I'll say it again, I'm quitting the team. I'm not going to be a hero anymore," Shinichi told them again as he looked them in the eyes. After what he had done to Keiichi, he no longer felt like he could continue being a hero anymore._

_The others had no idea what to say. They all had no way to respond to such a thing. Well, almost all of them anyway._

**_SLAP!_**

"_Bakayarou!" Mion cursed at him after slapping as hard as she could across the face. "How can you even think of quitting at a time like this?-! We need you!" She was holding her hand which she had used to slap Shinichi with while glaring at him angrily. It ached from hitting him.  
_

"_You don't need me. There are enough heroes here now that I'm just not needed around here anymore." Shinichi just looked down at the ground as he said those words. He felt like he couldn't look any of them in the eyes._

"_If this about what happened with Kei-chan then-" Mion began until Shinichi cut her off._

"_If you say that he has nothing to do with this then you're even stupider than Yokoshima!" Shinichi shouted at her._

"_Hey!" Yokoshima whined._

"_Listen, I hurt Keiichi! No one else did. It was me and my powers that hurt him. All I ever wanted was to protect all of you with those powers and I promised that I would never hurt any of you with them. And now look at what's happened! Because of me, Keiichi is lying there in the infirmary, in a coma and covered in cuts and bruises and suffering from a few broken bones because of what I did to him!"_

"_Oh, come on, Shinichi. You know that it was an accident," Yuji said, trying to get his friend to reconsider his decision. "And besides, he turned into a Darkloid so you did what you thought was necessary in taking him down."_

"_Maybe, but I didn't even know that he was that Darkloid Rider until after I nearly sent him to death's door!"_

_Alan just walked right up to him and, with both hands, grabbed him by the scruff of his collar and lifted him up._

"_Now you listen and you listen good! The Shinichi that I know would never quit because of something like this. He would use it as a reason to never let himself make such a mistake again. He would use it to learn from his mistake." Alan was livid. He had never seen Shinichi act like this and not even the Shinichi from his own timeline had even hinted at actually quitting the hero business willingly. "The you from my timeline would never act like such a coward!"_

"_Well, Alan, in case you haven't noticed, I'm not the brother from your timeline! I'm me as I am right now! So deal with it!" Shinichi shot back in his face. He hated being reminded of the differences of his current self and future self. It was bad enough when Alan made comparisons or even when his girls did but to say that the current him wasn't even half as courageous as his future self, he just couldn't stand such a comparison. "You know what, you and your little harem over there have been on my ass, comparing me to the me of your future at every turn ever since the time I went rogue and, quite frankly, I'm sick of it! Get over it already! I'm not the brother you grew up with and idolized! I'm just me! Shinichi Banabara. I'm not some future person. And as of now, I'm no longer a hero or a Kamen Rider!"_

"_Oh, would you shut the fuck up!" Daichi shouted at him as he now got up in his face. "Listen to yourself. You sound like a complete wuss. The Shinichi I know, the BLACK 13 that I know, he would never quit." It was one of the rare moments where Daichi was now arguing with Shinichi. Their arguing had died down a lot over the past couple of years and this was the first time in a long time since their last fight. "You brought this team together. You showed us all that there was a better life waiting for us outside GIN-SHOCKER and that all we had to do was reach out and grab hold. We put our faith in you and you led us on countless missions. So you can't quit! You helped start this team and you're gonna stick with us until the very end!"_

"_Last time I checked, Dai, you weren't my boss! So back off!" Shinichi shouted as he shoved Daichi aside and then looked Alan right in the eye. "And as for you, you don't get to decide my destiny. I do. So unless you want to try and bash my fucking skull in again like last time, then I suggest you put me down."_

"_If I recall correctly, I'm a lot stronger than you are," Alan told him sternly._

"_And if I recall correctly, you have no right to impose your will onto another. So let go right now…Smith!" Alan looked at him with a bit of a shocked expression on his face. After a moment he gently set his brother down and backed a few feet away. "Look, I'm sorry if I'm hurting your feelings, everyone. But this is my call. You don't need me around any more. So…that's it. I'm done. I just can't do this stuff anymore. I'm…sorry." Shinichi then looked up at the computer monitor behind him, "Sheila, could you please open up a Teleportal to my parents' house in Hinamizawa? I need to let them know next."_

"_Very well…and goodbye, Shinichi," Sheila said._

"_It's not truly goodbye. I'll try to come visit sometime and see how you're all doing." With that, Shinichi went through the portal and headed for his parents' house. From there, he would need to go home and talk to both Rena and Satan. He really didn't want to face them but he would have to…eventually._

* * *

Dr. Sanji and Argus H had both identified themselves to the Cyber Planner. At the moment it was going through its files and trying to establish communications with the Pyramid Base, unaware of its fate.

"**Communications with main headquarters have failed. Conclusion: headquarters and Cyber Master have been deleted**," the Cyber Planner said.

"The Pyramid, correct?" Dr. Sanji asked.

"**What do you know of the Pyramid**?" the Cyber Planner asked.

"Well, obviously it was property of GIN-SHOCKER. One of many secret facilities," said Dr. Sanji.

"**Inaccurate. Correction: it was a property of X-SHOCKER, GIN-SHOCKER's successor. It was property of Million and upon his defeat the Pyramid Base fell under the Cyber Master's control."**

"So, these sarcophagi must contain Cyborg Mutants, right?" Dr. Sanji asked hopefully. "Maybe even GIN-SHOCKER Soldiers."

"**Negative. Cyborg Mutants and GIN-SHOCKER Soldiers were deemed obsolete and were upgraded."**

"Upgraded into what?"

"**Cybermen."**

The image of a Cyberman appeared on the screen, showing data which Dr. Sanji read. "Remarkable. A near mechanical cybernetic being."

"**Human 2.0. Dr. Sanji, you have awakened me and thus you will be rewarded."**

"I like the sound of that," Dr. Sanji grinned. What kind of reward? Maybe an army of his own? Or a new lab to do his work.

"**You will be upgraded."**

Dr. Sanji's eyes widened in horror. "No! You can't!"

"**It is compulsory."**

"But I don't want to get upgraded! I'm fine the way I am!" Dr. Sanji cried.

The Cyber Planner argued**, "You are not. You have been tainted by emotional weakness. We shall remove weakness."**

"We'll see about that!" Dr. Sanji backed away and got behind Argus H. "Argus, destroy the computer."

"I've been waiting for this," Argus H said as he aimed his Howitzer cannons and fired at the Cyber Planner. Unfortunately, the shells hit a barrier surrounding the Cyber Planner.

"**Hostile element has been detected. Course of action: immediate deletion. Beginning defrosting sequence."**

"Argus, we better get out of here!" Dr. Sanji ordered as he and Argus H rushed for the exit only to find their escape route completely sealed. Argus H pounded on the door and blasted at it, but it was strong.

Dr. Sanji and Argus H both turned to see the sarcophagi on the ground level opening up, releasing cold air.

"**Beginning awakening sequence,"** said the Cyber Planner.

Metal footsteps could be heard as Argus H prepared to defend himself and Dr. Sanji. Dr. Sanji did have a tank filled with his Rage and Terror Gasses but they would be useless in this fight. At least he had his muscle to help him.

"**Alert. Intruders have entered the perimeter."**

* * *

The four snowmobiles and their riders stopped at the foot of the mountain. The four Riders, looking up at the mountain before them, really wondered if GIN-SHOCKER would really waste their time building a secret base all the way out here.

"Sheila, is this it?" Daichi asked through the com-link.

"_Affirmative_," said Sheila. "_Readings confirm that this is the exact location of the energy signature_."

"Should we be ready for anything?" asked Yokoshima. None of them wanted to get ambushed again like the last time when they went to find a well hidden secret enemy base. The Pyramid didn't count as Shiro knew they were coming and already had forces prepared which they themselves expected. Yokoshima just didn't like the unexpected. "You don't think there will be any bats in there, do ya?"

"_You should (static) be (static). Error (static), communications net-_"

Then it was static. Shogo tapped the com-link that was in his ear as did the others, trying to get a signal.

"Hello? Sheila? Dr. Magi? Hello? Anyone?" Yokoshima called. Only static was heard in response.

"Scrambler," Shogo concluded. "But that just confirms we're at the right place."

"Just need to find a door," said Battler. And as he said this, the entrance opened up. "Wow, that's convenient. And here I thought the secret phrase would have been 'Open Sesame'."

"Too convenient," Daichi's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "And why would anyone use 'Open Sesame'?"

"It worked in 'Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves'. It was just a thought," Battler said as he remembered the phrase from the story.

"Whatever!" Daichi shouted back. He just wasn't in the mood for funny business and nonsense.

"But we're still going in, right?" Yokoshima questioned.

"Everyone, suit up," Daichi ordered.

"I thought so," Yokoshima sighed. It looked like today was just going to be one of those days. '_Man, ever since Shinichi quit, Dai's been nothing but a real pain in the ass._'

* * *

Argus H had been deactivated and was being stored inside another sarcophagus until the Cyber Planner could decide what to do with him. Making him into a loyal servant to the Cybermen wasn't completely out of the question but he wasn't incomplete and would need to be upgraded and refitted with the proper technology if he were to be useful in the future.

"What are you doing!-?" Dr. Sanji shouted as he was dragged towards a metal sarcophagus. He was shoved inside and it sealed shut with him inside. "Let me out!"

The Cyber Planner could see Blue Beetle, Meta, Musician and Zero enter the tunnel that would lead to the chamber. It identified them based on files stored within its memory banks. Information on their strengths, weaknesses and stats had also been included. The Cyber Planner recognized them as threats.

"**Cybermen, return to your cryo-stasis units and standby for further orders."**

* * *

The foursome entered the chamber and they looked in awe at the sarcophagi lining the walls, way up to the ceiling. It was like something right out of a sci-fi movie, like one of those alien invasion movies where the aliens would either store people, war machines or more of their own kind to prepare for an invasion.

"Wow, so many sarcophaguses," said Meta.

"It's 'sarcophagi', actually," said Zero. "The plural for 'sarcophagus' is 'sarcophagi'."

"I thought it was 'sarcophaguses'."

"It's 'sarcophagi', definitely."

"Both are acceptable, actually," Blue Beetle said, settling the argument. "Dr. Magi and Asmo-chan taught me that."

"OK, now that we've all had our grammar lesson, let's try to figure out what to do with this place," Musician said.

"I'm counting 1,000 sarcophagi," said Zero. "And they're occupied."

"Occupied by what?" Meta asked, scanning them with his X-Ray vision. He then recoiled in shock.

"That's not a good reaction," observed Blue Beetle.

Meta just stood there, his mouth agape behind his helmet. The others looked at him, waiting for him to tell them what he saw until Musician finally got tired of waiting. "Just spit it out already, damn it!" he yelled.

"Cybermen," Meta let out. "The sarcophagi…contain frozen Cybermen."

"**Correct**," the Cyber Planner spoke. They all turned their attention towards the single computer terminal in the room. While the voice sounded electronic, it sounded hauntingly familiar.

"That computer sounds like Shiro Juuyon," said Blue Beetle. "But that can't be. He's supposed to be dead, right?"

"**Affirmative. My voice was programmed by the Cyber Master. He selected it according to his preference."**

"Guess he must love the sound of his voice," remarked Musician. "OK, Cyber Planner, what is this place? Some kind of storage facility?"

"**That is correct. This is the Cyber Cryo-Stasis Facility. This is where Cybermen are stored until further orders are received."**

"Well, unfortunately for you, you're never going to get orders. Shiro's dead, which means you're obsolete!" Musician told the Cyber Planner as he twirled his Cricket Fork around in his hand before pointing it at the Cyber Planner, making his threat even more apparent. "So sorry to have to be the one to break the bad news to ya though…well, actually, no I'm not."

"**That is a negative. In the event that the Cyber Master has been deleted, I the Cyber Planner will initiate the plan. This facility shall be used as our headquarters. We will convert the world. We will make it better. No more war. No more pain. No more death."**

"Not if we have anything to say about it!" Musician brandished his Cricket Fork in a battle stance as the others prepared to destroy the Cyber Planner.

"**You shall not, because you shall be deleted."**

"Delete this!" Musician sent a blast of sound at the Cyber Planner only for his attack to bounce off harmlessly. "Dammit, a force field!"

"**My energy shielding will prevent me from being destroyed. Your weapons are useless."**

"Oh yeah?" Blue Beetle summoned his Beetle Buster Blaster and took aimed as he formed his missile launcher and Gatling gun on his legs. "Take this!" He fired a barrage of firepower at the Cyber Planner, hitting the force field. Unfortunately, his attacks had no effect on it. "Oh, come on! Are you fucking kidding me!-?"

They were now facing a computer possessing the same megalomania as Shiro Juuyon and equipped with an army of 1000 Cybermen. They may still be frozen, but once unfrozen they would become a growing threat. They had to act fast if they were going to win this battle and escape with their lives.

Meta said, "OK, it's just four of us against 1000 Cybermen. Easy, right? Right?"

Blue Beetle shouted, "Let's get the fuck outta here!"

The Cyber Planner said, "**You will not leave this facility alive. Activate Lockdown**." The exit was sealed immediately.

Musician questioned, angry, "You just had to call out a retreat, didn't ya, numb nuts?" Blue Beetle just gave him a sheepish grin from behind his helmet while rubbing the back of his head in an embarrassed fashion.

Zero shouted, "It looks like we have no choice but to fight!"

Meta suggested, "Um, I'd rather try to find a place to hide until we actually have a plan

"**There is nowhere to hide. There is nowhere to run. Only one option: TOTAL DELETION."**

The sarcophagi on the ground level opened up and Cybermen came marching out.

"**You will be deleted**," the Cybermen declared in monotone before charging at the group, their arm-mounted blasters armed and charged as they began to open fire upon the Riders. "**Delete. Delete. Delete. Delete**."

Without any means of escape or calling for outside help, the four NEO-NUMBERS were left with only one choice.

"There's always another option," said Musician. "We fight!"

"Roger!" saluted Zero.

"Oh great, we're so dead," Blue Beetle and Meta said in unison.

(_**Insert Song – Moonlight: By Showtaro Morikubo**_)

The Cybermen and NEO-NUMBERS began their battle as the Cyber Planner watched and recorded. It analyzed the combatants' fighting capabilities and stored them away for later use. They would be deleted right here and right now. That was for certain.

Musician and Zero worked together with the latter providing air support for the former. A blast of sound drove the Cybermen back and left them as easy targets for Zero as he aimed. They saw him and fired their lasers which clipped him but their movements became disrupted by Musician who unleashed another sound attack.

"Prepare to get stung!" Zero quipped and he fired, scoring hits on their heads. The needles glowed brightly before exploding, taking the Cybermen's heads with them. "Hah, you just got stung!

"Dude, you've been hanging around Yokoshima and Shinichi way too long," Musician chastised.

Meanwhile, Meta was using his Acceleration power to run circles around the Cybermen, firing his gun hand at them. Stopping for a moment, he took a deep breath and exhaled, firing a stream of fire which caused the Cybermen to overheat. That didn't stop them from firing at him but Meta used his psychic power to deflect their lasers before he charged at them. He drove his fists into two of the Cybermen and ripped out their circuits, causing them to fall dead. A Cybermen punched him in the face and sent him staggering before another kicked him in the stomach. He grabbed the leg and he swung, using the Cyberman as a club to knock the others down.

"Hah! Who's next?-!" Meta challenged and then he got his answer as another horde of Cybermen came charging at him. '_Open mouth…insert foot_.'

Wielding his Electric Beetle Sword, Blue Beetle electrocuted the Cybermen with precise strikes. As he swung his sword and took down more of the Cybermen, he was suddenly hit by a barrage of laser fire. The laser fire hurt like hell, but he didn't let that stop him. Switching sockets, he lashed out and a whip of electrical energy ensnared the Cybermen, zapping them and short-circuiting their systems.

The Cyber Planner observed them and the second level of sarcophagi began to open, releasing another wave of Cybermen. The Cyber Planner needed more time to revive the rest but these Cybermen would buy it the time it needed.

Meta was thrown back against a sarcophagus and heard pounding coming from inside. He also heard a voice from the other side. "_Help me! Get me out_!" He scanned it, using his X-Ray vision to see a man trapped inside and pounding at the door.

"Huh, there's still a person that hasn't undergone the upgrade procedure?" Meta questioned himself.

That was when Blue Beetle landed next to him, having been thrown through the air by a Cyberman.

"Yokoshima, there's a man trapped inside this one!" said Meta. He opened up the sarcophagus and helped Dr. Sanji out. "Sir, are you OK?"

"C-c-cold! S-s-so c-c-cold!" Dr. Sanji shivered, teeth chattering.

"It's alright. We're going to protect you," said Meta reassuringly.

"A-A-Argus i-i-is i-in t-the o-o-other one!" Dr. Sanji pointed.

"You mean this one?" Blue Beetle pointed to a sarcophagus. He opened it up and found a robot inside. "It's a robot!"

"T-t-that's Argus!"

Blue Beetle was dragging Argus H's body out of the cold sarcophagi as Dr. Sanji made his way to the robot. "He's been deactivated," said Dr. Sanji. But he knew how to reactivate him. He went behind Argus H and found the switch. "Wallah!" Argus H rose up onto his spider-like legs and twisted his head around.

"Argh…ugh…what hit me?" Argus H asked as he shook his head to get the grogginess out.

"Those wretched Cybermen deactivated you," informed Dr. Sanji. "Now, I think they deserve a little payback."

"I've been waiting for this." Argus H aimed his cannons at the Cybermen and fired. The shells hit and exploded but instead of flames erupting, the Cybermen were covered in ice.

"Ice Bombs?" Meta asked. Dr. Sanji nodded.

"Let's put these Cybermen back on ice!" declared Argus H as he punched his fists together.

"Now you're talking my language, big guy!" Blue Beetle yelled as he conjured his B3 (Beetle Buster Blaster) gun and began firing on the Cybermen. Meta got down on one knee and fired a missile which exploded upon hitting the Cybermen.

Dr. Sanji stood back and watched the battle that was occurring before him. He knew who these people were. They were GIN-SHOCKER cyborgs. Of course he also knew that they were responsible for GIN-SHOCKER's destruction so he wasn't about to tell them that he used to be part of the organization. Still, they were of use to him right now and, along with Argus H's assistance, were keeping him alive.

Another wave of Cybermen was revived as they jumped from their sarcophagi to land on the ground to battle the NEO-NUMBERS.

"Just how many of these things are there!-?" Musician shouted as he ran his Cricket Fork through a Cyberman. Pulling the fork out, he then jumped up and performed a roundhouse kick, taking the head of an approaching Cyberman clean off with the well placed hit.

"A lot more than this," said Zero as he stared at the walls of sarcophagi. "The Cyber Planner is starting to wake them up but he doesn't have enough power to wake them all up at the same time so he's doing it level by level and in waves."

Musician just sweat dropped at that and began to wonder why the hell he had gotten out of bed to day. He had been so comfortable back in his bed with Mika sleeping on his right side while Leviathan slept on his left, both girls in the nude. So why in the hell did he leave such a lovely and comfortable bed just to come to a secret hidden GIN-SHOCKER facility that was located in the mountains and filled to the brim with Cybermen?

"So he's basically trying to overpower us with numbers," said Musician. His Cricket Fork was knocked out of his hands by a laser beam. "Ow, damn it!"

"**Delete. Delete. Delete**," the Cybermen recited their battle chant as they advanced towards them.

"The key is to take out that computer," said Musician.

"Yokoshima was able to make a railgun using his armor," Zero said.

"A railgun?" Musician asked. That could work against the Cyber Planner. But first they needed to take out these Cybermen. The robot with spider legs was able to freeze them but he was being overwhelmed. "We have to take this to the next level then. Clear away all the Cybermen right now so Yokoshima can do his thing!" It was rare for him to depend on Yokoshima for anything, but right now he had no choice.

His Spark Core flashed and he was encased in energy which changed him to Rock-Metal Form. Armed with his Cricket Guitar, he took aim and strummed the strings. He unleashed his Heavy Metal Vulcan attack, peppering the Cybermen with bullets made of sound energy.

Zero changed into his Fighter Form and, like the fighter jet he was based on, jetted through the air. The drill gauntlet he wore spun and he struck a group of Cybermen down. They fired at him and he retaliated with his Hornet Missiles which swarmed the air and blew the Cybermen up.

Meta heard Musician's voice in his head, '_Battler, tell Yokoshima to do that railgun thing he did!_'

'_Roger!_' he replied and then looked over at Blue Beetle. "Yokoshima, railgun!" Meta shouted.

"Railgun?" Blue Beetle responded and then he remembered. "Ah, gotcha!" His armor began to change and a pair of cannons formed, mounted on his shoulders. Joysticks appeared on his belt and he grabbed hold of them.

The Cyber Planner scanned Blue Beetle and was alarmed. **"ALERT! ALERT! MAGNETIC FORCE DETECTED!"**

"That's my magnetic personality you crazy computer!" Blue Beetle countered as the cannons on his shoulders detached and joined together to formed the horseshoe-shaped railgun. It flew in close towards the Cyber Planner's force field following Blue Beetle's command. "Have a screen full of this! Railgun Bomber!"

The railgun fired a continuous stream of electromagnetic energy that crashed against the energy shielding surrounding the Cyber Planner. It attempted to awaken more Cybermen to protect it but its systems were being exposed to intense magnetic waves. The energy shielding still resisted but, finally, it shattered and the railgun's beam smashed into the Cyber Planner.

"**THIS…THIS IS NOT…THIS IS NOT HOW…IT IS MEANT…TO BE…CYBER MASTER…!"** the Cyber Planner screamed before it finally exploded.

"Goodnight, Cyber Planner," Blue Beetle concluded as the exit opened up for them.

(_**End song – Moonlight**_)

* * *

Dr. Sanji and Argus H had vanished after the battle. Meanwhile, the four NEO-NUMBERS were exiting the facility.

"Is it OK to leave those Cybermen in there?" Meta asked. He did not want to ever have to go through something like that again.

"Without the computer terminal, those sarcophagi will be sealed for good with no way of opening them," said Musician.

"Are you sure about that?" Meta questioned.

Musician hesitated a bit before answering, "I guess we could have this place sealed off and have Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam install a new security system to prevent entry by anyone."

"We could always blow the entire mountain up and bury the whole thing," said Zero.

"Woah, let's not do anything that extreme," said Meta.

"If that's the case, I guess that's case closed," said Blue Beetle.

"We still need to report this to Dr. Magi and the others," said Musician.

As they walked away, they were soon flung forward by the powerful force of an explosion.

**KABOOM!**

The four NEO-NUMBERS hit the ground hard and each of them struggled to push themselves up and look at the mountain that had once been behind them. Meta, Blue Beetle and Musician looked on is disbelief as they stood up while Zero just sighed and smirked behind his helmet. He always did love a good explosion.

"What in the hell just happened?-!" Musician exclaimed as the mountain had been reduced to a pile of rubble.

Meta looked over at Zero who didn't seem too fazed by what just happened and then noticed a small device being held in his hands, his thumb pressed over a small button.

"Shogo, you didn't…?" Meta began but found himself at a loss for words. Musician and Blue Beetle looked over at Zero and then at the switch in his hand. The both of them glared at him.

"Dude! I thought we agreed not to blow the damn mountain to fucking kingdom come!-?" Musician protested loudly.

"Yeah…I wanted to blow it up," Blue Beetle complained and then found himself getting whacked up the head by Musician. "Ow, hey Dai, what'd you do that for?"

"Idiot, don't encourage him!"

"Shogo, why did you blow it up when we already agreed not to do so?" Meta asked.

"Oh _you_ all agreed not to destroy it. I didn't," Zero said nonchalantly.

"When did you even have time to plant explosives!-?" Meta cried.

"I work fast," Shogo shrugged. The three of them looked at him in shock as a Teleportal appeared before them. Musician just face palmed himself as he shook his head.

"I really…should have stayed in bed today," he groaned.

* * *

The four NEO-NUMBERS reported their findings and the action they had taken to neutralize the threat. Of course, they also decided to omit the fact that Shogo took action on his own to destroy the mountain and claimed it as a group decision. If they were going to get scolded, might as well as do it as a team. Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam didn't seem to mind though. If anything, they would have had to destroy that base sooner or later. Obviously, the actual existence of the base and the Cybermen it had stored within it troubled both Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam.

"So many secrets," sighed Dr. Magi. "How troubling."

"And it seems that Shiro managed to make use of an old GIN-SHOCKER cryo-stasis facility to store his Cybermen until later use," said Dr. Washam.

"Indeed, and there's no telling how many more of those Cybermen are still out there, hiding, waiting for the perfect time to strike."

"At least we stopped Siberia from turning into _Cyberia_!" Yokoshima joked. Everyone groaned at the lame pun. "What? It's a joke!"

"Jokes are funny, dude," said Battler.

* * *

**Dr. Sanji and Argus H were created by two devoted fans. I don't know who they are, but thanks for your contribution. Actually, if you can come forward I can give you the credit you deserve. Again, Toku Warrior edited for me. He did a great job with detail as well.**

* * *

**SHOWA OMAKE THEATRE**

Inside their apartment back on Earth, both Yokoshima and Asmodeus were going through some of the clothes that they had bought at the mall early before Yokoshima had gone on his mission. Now that he was home, Asmodeus wanted to give him a private fashion show. Slipping into a pair of sexy looking lingerie with garters, she looked herself over in a full body as Yokoshima admired the view of her voluptuous body that was being hugged tightly by the skimpy lingerie. Looking back at her husband from the mirror, she asked with a sly smile, "Ne, Yoko-kun, how do I look?"

"Well, to be honest, I think you look pretty PHAT!" He grinned wildly but then looked at her to see an angry look on her face as tears began to stream down her cheeks. "Huh? What? What'd I say?"

"Idiot!" she shouted as she threw a hand mirror at his head before vanishing in a burst of golden butterflies.

Yokoshima just sat there while holding his head, rubbing the sore spot in his noggin. He sat there in thought for a few moments, trying to figure out how he had hurt Asmodeus' feelings when he heard an angry roar coming from the street. Going to the window and looking outside, the only thing he saw that was making that noise was none other than Yuji who was running down the street with Asmodeus running close behind him. And Yuji did not look happy one bit. Yokoshima gulped as he saw Yuji give him a death glare and then decided to hightail it out of there.

* * *

In the Hive, Hanyuu and Chiaki were sitting together in a jeep located in the garage and they were just snuggled together. Their jackets had been strewn across the ground and their faces were flushed after having a small make out session. While they looked at one another lovingly, their tender moment was soon interrupted by the sound of someone screaming like a little girl.

"AH! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! I DIDN'T MEAN IT THAT WAY!" Yokoshima shouted at the top of his lungs as he ran past the garage and straight into the base. Hanyuu and Chiaki then noticed a fireball slam into the wall next to the door.

"GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE BITCH! I'M NOT GONNA HURT YOU! I'M JUST GONNA KILL YOU!" Yuji roared as he too ran into the base with fire engulfing his hands. They then noticed Asmodeus fly in right behind them with a hurt look on her face as well. Hanyuu and Chiaki just looked at one another and shrugged.

* * *

Shogo was going over some of the systems on the console with Lucifer when the saw Yokoshima get thrown right into the room after getting nailed by a fireball, his body slamming into the console in front of them.

"What in the he—" Shogo began until he noticed Yuji appear right in front of them, his hands gripping tightly to Yokoshima's collar. Asmodeus appeared right behind them and glared at Yokoshima angrily. "Um, never mind. I don't wanna know."

"You little asshole! How dare you call one of my little sisters fat!" Yuji roared as Shogo and Lucifer just looked at them like a pair of spectators to a blood sport match.

"It's not what you think! I swear!" Yokoshima exclaimed as he tried to beg for his life.

"Oh, and how does calling me fat not a bad thing?-!" Asmodeus asked angrily.

"Because, PHAT mean **P**retty **H**ot **A**nd **T**empting!" he shouted. Yuji's face went from an angered look to one of complete confusion as did Asmodeus'.

"Huh?" Asmodeus asked.

"Asmo-chan," Lucifer called out to her youngest sister. "Yokoshima possibly called you phat as in P.H.A.T., instead of just the old word, fat."

"Really?" Asmodeus asked, now embarrassed for what had just transpired. She looked to Yokoshima who was just nodding his head while he wore a terrified look on his face. Yuji then let go and nodded his head in understanding.

"I get it; he was trying out some new slang that he must have learned." Yuji concluded. Asmodeus lowered her head for a moment and then grabbed Yokoshima and, in a burst of golden butterflies, transported both of them back home. Shogo just looked at Yuji for an explanation and all Yuji could say was, "It was just a simple misunderstanding."

* * *

From behind the bedroom door, all anyone could hear were moans and grunts as Asmodeus truly showed Yokoshima how sorry she was. And Yokoshima was all more than ready to forgive her.


	123. The Legacy of Cain Part 67

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 67: Festivities & Enemies**

**Written By: Toku Warrior**

As another day came and went, Shinichi sat at his desk in his classroom while the instructor gave him and the rest of his fellow classmates their notes for the upcoming test that was two weeks away. It would cover everything that they had learned up until now but it would still be fairly simple. As he listened to the lecture and jotted down his notes, Shinichi couldn't help but think that he had finally achieved a normal life. It was all he could ever want. After injuring and almost killing Keiichi with his Rider Kick almost a month ago, he decided that he just couldn't do it anymore. With that in mind, he quit being a hero and quit being a Kamen Rider. He had told his fellow NEO-NUMBERS his decision and almost all of them immediately protested.

Well, Daichi could care less from what Shinichi could tell but even he was a bit shocked. He had then told his Gaming Club friends and they all literally yelled and chastised him for doing such a thing. They were so upset with him that they didn't speak with him for over two weeks. When he told his parents and little brother, they said they understood and accepted his decision and while he knew that they were happy that he would be living a safe life he could also sense a bit of sadness coming from them, especially from Sho. He looked up to his older brother a lot and thought he was the greatest superhero ever and wanted to be just like him when he got older.

While he expected and accepted a lot of the reactions he got from his friends and family, it was the reactions he got from his girlfriends that shocked him the most. Shawna accepted it and was glad that he would be safe now but he could tell that she was sad. She was losing her brave knight, her dear Mr. Samurai. But she had always expressed that he should probably retire one day before one of his enemies got the better of him and took him out. Rena was just as angry but kept it well hidden. It was Shinichi's decision and she had to accept it. But she loved him as both the man he had grown up to be and for the hero that he was. For him to just quit like that after what happened was just not right in her mind. While he did sorta expect those reactions from the two of them it still felt like he was betraying them in some way. Of course, he'd easily predicted how Satan would react and she did not disappoint.

* * *

"_Tadaima…," Shinichi said solemnly as he walked through the front door of his apartment. He had already called Shawna earlier about him retiring from being a hero but had asked not to inform the others as he wanted to do it himself._

"_Ah, Okaeri nasai, Shin-kun!" Rena beamed as she saw Shinichi come through the foyer. Satan was sitting on the couch, watching a daytime soap opera while eating a bowl of ice cream with a pickle. Shinichi couldn't help but remember the pickle and ice cream gag and couldn't believe that it was actually true. "Shin-kun, how is Kei-chan doing?"_

"_Well, he's still in a coma but Dr. Magi is hopeful that he might recover and wake up soon though it may take be awhile. Those injuries he received were pretty severe." Shinichi hung his head, remembering the battle between him and Keiichi's alter ego the Darkloid Rider. He just didn't have the heart to fight anymore after an ordeal like that._

_Looking up from her spot on the couch, Satan could see the sad look in his eyes. "Shinichi…" Shinichi heard Satan call out to him and noticed her patting the spot next to her, beckoning him to sit beside her. He wouldn't deny her and moved over to her but then stopped midway and remembered what he needed to do first. Asmodeus had reminded him just before coming home that he should be prepared for a hard argumentative battle with Satan as she would not be able to take his decision easily. It was his heroic nature that was one of the many qualities that he had that she found charming._

"_Ano…Rena-chan…Satan-chan, there's something I need to tell you two," he told them and they looked at him with questioning eyes. "Rena-chan, you may want to sit down and, Satan-chan, you may want to put your food down on the coffee table." They did as instructed while he stood before them. He had turned off the TV so that they could focus solely on him and he knew he was possibly about to go through the worst fight in his life. "Ano…well, you see…how do I say this…ah…"_

"_Shin-kun, what's wrong? Is everything alright?" Rena asked him with concern hinted in her voice. He wasn't acting like the normal Shinichi that she knew._

"_Yeah, you look like someone just killed a baby animal right in front of you or something," Satan added._

'_Like I really needed that metaphor, Satan-chan,' Shinichi thought to himself. "Well, you see girls, as you know; Keiichi is hurt because of me. I made the mistake of getting ahead of myself and thinking of the Darkloid Rider as just a monster. As it turns out, I was more of a monster towards him then he was to those he attacked."_

"_That's not true," Satan told him reassuringly. "You only fought him like that since you were only defending yourself and trying to stop him from killing someone."_

"_And in the process I nearly killed my best friend!" Shinichi suddenly snapped. He then realized how he had reacted and quickly apologized, "Gomen, Satan-chan, I didn't mean to snap like that. But, after taking a bit of time to think about it, I began to realize a few things."_

"_Like what, Shin-kun?" Rena asked him._

"_Well, for starters, I've noticed that a lot of our enemies have mostly come after us because of either me, Alan or Yuji. Another thing I've noticed is that we now have more heroes around and a lot of them are doing great at their job." Satan and Rena just listened to him and they knew there was a 'but' coming._

"_Okay, so what is the bad thing that you noticed?" Satan asked him with a stern look. She knew this was all leading up to something that she wasn't going to like._

"_Well, when I woke up in Hinamizawa, I fought as a hero and liked it as it was just me. Then the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS joined up and I soon found myself with a team. Then we gained other allies like Hitomi, ARMOR, Alan and his girls and even Yuji and his girls. Not to mention Doctor Magi and Washam. They've been a big help with a lot of stuff." He then narrowed his eyes as he began to frown. "But I promised myself that my powers would be used to only protect you guys and never to be used to hurt you."_

"_And you've done a great job in doing that!" Rena said to him excitedly, trying to cheer him up._

"_No Rena-chan, I haven't. I've fought to keep you guys out of the battle but, somehow, my enemies just find ways to drag you all right in. And this time, I've hurt one of you guys, physically, with my powers. Keiichi is lying in a coma back at the Hive because of me. Because I was too stupid to see the signs." Shinichi clenched his fists hard as he fought back a small wave of tears._

"_Shinichi, just what are you exactly trying to say here?" Satan was becoming impatient and was now becoming irritated with how he was just dragging on with what he wanted to tell them._

"_What I'm trying to say is that, as of today, I've quit being a Kamen Rider!" he snapped, causing both Rena and Satan to look at him in wide-eyed shock._

_It took a few moments for it all to sink in but Rena was the first to respond while Satan was still trying to process it all. "B-but, Shin-kun, why?-! Why are you quitting?-!"_

"_Because, I've hurt someone with my powers when I shouldn't have. I let myself get carried away and because of that, Keiichi almost died. There's no telling when he'll wake up or what condition he'll be in if and when he does awaken. Besides, there are plenty of heroes around now so they can pick up the slack. I've grown tired of fighting for a long time now and I don't see an end to it or even a life where I can help you girls raise a family if all I'm doing is just fighting every single damn moment of my life." Tears were now starting to come down his cheeks as he clenched his fists even harder._

"…_Shin…kun," Rena said in a slow tone. She couldn't believe her ears. She loved him being a hero and it had inspired her to create her picture book project which she was still working on. Now, to see and hear him quit like this, it just broke her heart._

_Rena was about to get up and try and shake him out of his funk but Satan beat her to the punch, literally, as she decked Shinichi across the face and sent him right into the TV behind him, shattering the screen._

"_YOU COWARD! Is that all you can say?-!" Satan shouted at the top of her lungs as she picked him up by the scruff of his collar. Being pregnant had its advantages as her strength had increased for the amount of time of her pregnancy. Not by much but enough to where she could defend herself from attackers if need be. "How in the hell can you even think of doing such a thing?-! You're Shinichi Banabara! You're Kamen Rider Showa! The first Rider of this world and possibly its greatest hero! And all you can think of is quitting just because you almost killed your best friend?-! What about all those times where either Yuji or Alan or one of the other NUMBERS almost killed you by accident because of the heat of battle?-!" Satan did bring up a good point but Shinichi was holding firm on his decision._

"_Satan-chan, please, let Shin-kun go! He can't breathe properly if you hold him like that!"_

"_NO! He needs to have some sense knocked into him!" Satan shot back and then she returned to glare at Shinichi, darkly. Shinichi just stood up properly and forced her hands off of him. _

"_Last time I checked, Satan-chan, none of your friends or family were lying in the hospital because of one of your mistakes!"_

**_SLAP!_**

_Rena looked at the red handprint on the Shinichi's left cheek and noticed the shocked look in his eyes and the hurt look in Satan's. It took Shinichi a moment to realize what had just happened and then he turned around and glared at her._

"_Oh, so now that I say something that you hate, it just gives you the right to beat me up, huh?-!" he snapped._

"_Only if it'll help to knock some sense back into your thick head, you dumbass!"she shot back._

_Shinichi was really getting angry but he kept his cool just enough to where he could argue in a safe manner., "Look…Satan-chan…Rena-chan…girls, I love you both more than life itself. I would do anything for you and give anything to protect you but how can I think of fighting when I know that, one day, I might end up dying? Do you really want me to leave our kids alone with just their mothers? Do you want me to make them fatherless? I just can't stand the thought of that."_

"_Shin-kun…," Rena said quietly as she approached him and gave him a hug. "I'm sorry. This is your decision to make and I can understand your feelings on the matter." She then lifted her head and looked at him. "But also understand that Satan-chan, Shawna-chan and I are always ready to mourn our loss. We all knew the risks of getting into a relationship with you and we took on those risks without a second thought because we love you."_

"_Rena-chan…" Shinichi then looked over at Satan who had tears of sorrow and anger streaming down her face as she glared at him angrily. "Girls, I'm sorry. But this is it. Kamen Rider Showa is no more. I'm done fighting. I just want to spend the rest of my days with you and only you. To live a normal life for a change."_

_Satan just clenched her own fists in frustration, clenching them so hard that her nails dug into her skin and began to draw blood. "Shinichi…you…IDIOT!" she screamed as she rushed at him and grabbed onto him, banging her fists into his chest. He just held her as she vented out her anger and frustration at him. He deserved it after what just quitting like that. "Idiot…moron…jerk…(sob)…asshole…bastard…(sob)…heartless creep…coward," she continued, hurling insult after insult for over the coarse of about five minutes._

"_Satan-chan…gomen," he began as he tried to give her a hug but soon found himself being pushed away by her. "S-Satan-chan…?" Satan had tears streaming down her cheeks, almost like a river. Her cheeks were puffy from all her crying and her body was shuddering from her anger._

"_I…I…I HATE YOU!" she shouted and then, in a burst of golden butterflies, vanished from their home, returning to the Meta-World._

"_SATAN-CHAN!" Shinichi shouted out after her._

"_Satan-chan, matte!" Rena called out as well. But it was no use. Satan had left and there was no telling if she'd ever come back. Rena then looked back at Shinichi with her eyes welling with tears. "A-are you sure this is what you want?"_

_Shinichi didn't know how to respond at first because of the shock of Satan leaving like that. But after regaining his train of thought, he looked back at Rena._

"_For as long as I can remember I've seen too much death and destruction. I just can't take it anymore." He asked her, " Are you disappointed in me?" Rena just shook her head in response._

"_To be honest I can't say that I exactly approve of your decision, but I understand your reasoning. You're tired and you want to retire."_

_He just wanted a semi-normal life. Was that just too much to ask?_

* * *

Satan had literally blown her top and shouted at the top of her lungs at how she was so disappointed with him. He was a hero and a brave warrior who had earned both her respect and her love. And now she was pregnant with his child and she couldn't have been happier. But now to find out that he had quit being a hero, quit being a warrior of justice, it tore her up inside and angered her to no end. They had argued to the point where she left and returned to the Meta World. She had not returned since that time and Shinichi was really starting to wonder if he would ever see her again. He loved her just as much as he loved Rena and Shawna and he did miss both her and her short temper. Her pregnancy had made her temper even shorter but he expected it.

Thinking back on it all, he just let out a sigh as the instructor looked at the clock and then back to her class. "Alright everyone, before I let you all leave today, I just wanted to let you know that on Monday we will have a mock test to see if you have all been studying." She then closed her book as her students got up and bowed before heading for the door to go home for the weekend. As Shinichi got up to leave he was quickly stopped by his instructor. "Oh, Banabara-san, could I have a moment of your time?"

"Huh? Oh, sure," he said as he made his way over to her desk. "What's wrong, Fujima-sensei?"

"Nothing really. I just wanted to say that I'm really impressed with your new sense of work ethic with your schoolwork," she complimented him. "You haven't been tardy once all month and you've handed in all of your assignments on time and have even shown to have improved your grade scores. I'm thoroughly impressed." She smiled as she gave him her compliments and he was glad to hear them. He could use some words of encouragement right now. "Well, that's all I really wanted to say so, I'll see you on Monday."

"Thank you, sensei," he replied as he left for the door.

"Have a nice weekend, Banabara-san," Fujima-sensei said as he left which he replied to with a smile and a wave of his hand.

* * *

"So, anything new on the western front?" Yuji asked as he sat down in a chair next to Alan. They were currently at the Hive base and performing monitor duty while they had a bit of free time for the moment.

"No, nothing really. I mean, with the exception of that bank robbery last week and the horde of youkai that attacked us a week before that, and the occasional super villain every week as well, there hasn't really been anything serious going on," Alan replied as he looked away from the monitor and over to Yuji.

Yuji just looked at the screen for a moment and then, in a shout of anger, he yanked at his hair in frustration and annoyance. "Ah, damn it! Why can't anything good happen?-! I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the downtime and all but what about a little excitement every now and then? Hell, these so-called super villains aren't even a challenge. I need something I can really sink my claws into."

"I know what you mean but I'm enjoying the downtime we have right now. I'm able to spend more time with my family and I've actually been able to get a good night's sleep for a change now that Adam doesn't wake up every five minutes." Yuji just let out a sigh and just laid his head down on the edge of the control station, chin first.

"I know same here. But isn't it strange?"

Alan gave him a quizzical look and asked, "What's strange?"

"That the moment that Shinichi quits all the really bad shit stops happening." Yuji looked up at Alan and noticed the glare that he was giving him and then rethought his remark. "Oh crap, sorry bro. Didn't mean for it to sound the way it did. But you know what I mean, right?"

"Yeah, I do," Alan said while he too let out a sigh. Yuji was right. Ever since Shinichi quit being a Rider and a hero, all of the major enemies and more dangerous events that normally took place had just suddenly stopped. "I swear, I sometimes think that my brother is a magnet for both strange women and for trouble."

Yuji couldn't agree more. But it had been fun fighting all that danger. And he missed hanging out with Shinichi. Sure, he would come by the base every few days just to chat as he was still granted access, but it just wasn't the same without him. To Yuji, they were the 'Three Amigos'. They were supposed to be inseparable and would face any threat together like any group of good friends should.

What neither of them realized was that while they were getting stronger, Shinichi was staying the same. He was being left in the dust as they got new powers and weapons. It was getting to the point that he was starting to get both envious and jealous of them. But neither of them noticed it or how much it was affecting him. He was able to hide it well due to all the acting lessons that GIN-SHOCKER had put him through. His resentment at not being able to keep up with them was another major reason why he had quit and neither of them had picked up on it.

Alan continued, "I just can't believe he'd quit like that on us. Shinichi just loves to blame himself for everything he can think of. One of these days he'll say that Global Warming is happening because he didn't a better energy source for people to use when he had the chance."

"Well, maybe he needs this," Yuji defended. "Don't get me wrong, Shin's probably the best thing that's happened to this world. But with all the bullshit he's been through, he would've snapped a long time ago. I think the best thing for everyone is to give him his space, let him breathe and enjoy trying to be normal for now."

* * *

"Tadaima," Shinichi called out as he opened the door to his apartment, only to see a set of suit cases on the floor. "Hello, Rena-chan? You here?" Rena quickly ran to the foyer after finally hearing Shinichi calling out to her and looked a little out of breath.

"Oh, Shin-kun…Okaeri nasai. How was class?"

"It was fine. We're just getting ready for our big test which is in two weeks."

"Oh, that's good. I'm sure you'll do great." Rena then made her way towards the kitchen to get a glass of water while Shinichi followed her.

"Ne, Rena-chan?"

"Hmm, nani?"

"What's with the luggage by the front door?" A few different scenarios began to play through his mind and he didn't like any of them.

Rena gasped as she had forgotten to mention anything to Shinichi. "Ah, gomen, Shin-kun. I must have forgotten to tell you. But do you remember how my father has a fashion show this weekend?"

"Yeah, I do. He'll be showing off a few of his new designs. If I remember, it's being held in Tokyo this weekend and then Osaka next weekend, right?"

"Hai. And since it's being held in Tokyo this weekend, my father called and asked me if I would like to see them and maybe help out. So, I'll be staying with him for the next couple of days, but I should be back by Monday evening at the latest."

"That's really great news, Rena-chan," he smiled. He then walked towards their bedroom, "Come on, I'll help you pack up anything that you haven't gotten to yet."

"Arigato, Shin-kun!" she beamed as she hugged his arm tightly and then led him to their bedroom first and then her studio after that. He may have quit the hero business but he was still her hero.

* * *

After seeing Rena off with her father, Shinichi was back inside his apartment and watching the latest news reports. '_Guess old habits die hard_,' he thought to himself. He mostly watched them to see if anything bad was happening. While he had quit being a hero, he still wanted to know what was going on. But he had to do his best to live his life now and it was to be a life without danger and without being a hero. Since the day he quit, he had not performed a single transformation. A few days after that he suddenly stopped hearing the voices of Yabuki, Gokuaku and Zennin in his head. He could still talk with Kuro and Shinji but none of the others ever made a response.

Letting out a sigh, he continued to watch the news until he heard an ever too familiar beeping sound coming from his room. Getting up and heading into his and Rena's bedroom, he went to his nightstand and pulled open the drawer. Looking inside, he reached in and picked up one of his Hive communicators. All of the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies had been given one so that they could keep in contact over long distances.

'_Who would be calling me_?' he wondered as he shrugged and placed the device in his ear and activated it. "Moshi, moshi."

"_Ah, Sir Shinichi! I was hoping that I would reach you_," Shawna said from the other end of the line. Shinichi had given one to her as well so that they could keep in touch whenever they weren't visiting one another.

"Shawna-chan, it's been awhile," Shinichi replied with a smile.

"_Yes, it has. Um…Sir Shinichi, by any chance, would you be busy at all this weekend_?" she asked with a bit of a nervous tone in her voice. Shinichi just chuckled quietly to himself. She was still so shy but it was one of her quirks that he thought was cute about her.

"No, not really. My test isn't for another couple of weeks and Rena is with her father in Tokyo for a fashion show this weekend so I'm by myself for the next couple of days. Why, is something wrong?"

"_No, of course not. In fact, this is great news for me to hear. If you don't have any plans for the weekend then could you come to Genovia_?"

Shinichi thought about her request for a second. While he did love to go to her country to visit her, this was a bit sudden for a request. Something had to be up. "Well, Shawna-chan, I don't mind but what's with the sudden urge to have me visit? Is your father riding you again about getting married?" The bit of King Edward riding his daughter to marry Shinichi was a running gag now but he was known to ask her about it every so often.

"_No, that's not the reason_," she told him. "_You see, my father's birthday is tomorrow and the whole kingdom is going to celebrate with a festival and he had asked if you and the other knights could attend this year seeing as there are no current threats to the populace._"

To Shinichi, this was great news. He had never gone to one of the kings' birthdays before and to be asked to attend was considered an honor in Genovia. The knights of the kingdom were usually required to attend but Shinichi, Alan and Yuji were not made to attend all the required functions seeing as they protected the whole world and not just the kingdom. But know that Shinichi had retired from being a hero; he could possibly spend more time performing some of his duties as a knight.

"Shawna-chan, it would be an honor to come. I should call Yuji and Alan and let them know as well."

"_Oh, there will be no need to do that. My father had contacted Sir Shogo the other day to get in touch with them but they humbly declined as they had to take care of their families_." This did make Shinichi feel a little upset but both Yuji and Alan had big families to look after now and they still had their duties as being honorary members of the NEO-NUMBERS so it was only reasonable that they possibly wouldn't be able to make it. "_They did however mention that they would try to come to at least give him their gifts if at all possible. It is the least they could do_."

"I understand. I'll see if I can get in touch with them so I can at least use the Teleportal to get to Genovia."

"_That is good to hear. I hope to see you soon then, Sir Shinichi_."

"Same here, Shawna-chan. I'll try to be there by either tonight or tomorrow morning."

"_Thank you. I can't wait to see you. Well, I should go. We still have a few final preparations to go over. I love you, Sir Shinichi_."

"I love you too, Shawna-chan. Bye."

After ending the call, Shinichi quickly made a call to the Hive base and got in touch with Dr. Magi. The old doctor was more than happy to let Shinichi use the Teleportal to travel to Genovia for the king's birthday so, as soon as Shinichi was packed and had gone out to get the king a gift, he would leave for Genovia.

* * *

(**_Insert BGM – Feudal Society_**)

Located inside an abandoned underground cavern, a man was watching a group of mechanical looking beings going about in digging down through the floor, as if they were looking for something. The man himself was dressed in a set of noble looking garments with a white silk shirt underneath. The rest of his outfit was colored purple with gold trim and he had a small half cloak draping from his shoulders. He had long brown hair with a hint of gray in it which was slicked back and reaching between his shoulder blades.

Standing next to him was another of the mechanical beings but it was colored black instead of silver. It also sported a transparent window in its head that displayed the brain. It looked at him with its glowing red eyes and he looked back at it.

"So tell me, Cyber Leader, what exactly are you and you fellow Cybermen looking for?" the man asked the Cyber Leader.

"**We detected a faint energy signature underneath this kingdom and we have come to claim it.**" The Cyber Leader, continuing to watch his soldiers dig through the cavern, recalled the events that had taken place several months earlier. Their creator, the Cyber Master, also known as Shiro Juuyon, was now gone and it was the Riders' fault. Them and that Green Lantern. The remaining Cybermen who were not stationed on the Pyramid Base or stored within the Dark Xrosser had gathered together to come up with a plan to get revenge for their glorious master.

"Well, just remember our deal. I make sure that you don't get discovered and give you financial support and you spare the kingdom of Genovia after you help me take it over."

"**The deal shall be remembered**." The Cyber Leader would not normally work for a mere and lowly human, but it was to make sure that their plans went off without any hint of being discovered.

Before anything else could be said, they both turned their heads at the sound of the other Cybermen running for their lives as a wall that was being worked on began to collapse. Dust and rocks were kicked up and Duke Dogma took out a hankie to cover his mouth while Cyber Leader just shielded his eyes. After a few moments, the dust settled down and the Cybermen got back to work. But they soon stopped as they noticed something now in place of the fallen rock wall. Turning back to its leader, a single Cyberman called out, "**Cyber Leader, we have discovered something**."

The Cyber Leader and Duke Dogma made their way down and headed over to the group of Cybermen. "**Report**," The Cyber Leader demanded as he came to a stop in front of his soldiers.

"**There is a strange ruin blocking our way. It must have been hidden behind the rock wall and the scanners indicate that it is quite old**," the Cyberman reported. It then used its energy scanner, known as a C-Scouter, to try and detect the energy signature that they had been looking for earlier. "**Energy signature is confirmed. It is located behind this ruin**."

Duke Dogma moved forward and inspected the ruin. It seemed to be covered with strange writing and Dogma moved his hands over them, trying to see if he could read them. His eyes then widened as he recognized the writing and realized what it said. "**Duke Dogma, do you understand the meaning of these symbols?**" asked the Cyber Leader.

"Oh, yes, very well indeed. These are a mixture of Celtic and Druidic runes," Duke Dogma replied.

"**And their meaning?**"

"It reads, '_Let all ye beasts of hell know the power that will smite thee, Ascalon._'" he recited as he developed a wicked grin. "So, the legends just might be true after all," he said to himself. He then turned towards Cyber Leader, "Cyber Leader, have your brethren open this ruin. Beyond it might just lye the great power you seek and a treasure which I have been searching for, for a very long time."

The Cyber Leader nodded and then looked at his troops. He commanded, "**Open this door.**"

**"We obey."**

Duke Dogma and The Cyber Leader stepped back as they watched the Cybermen get to work at knocking down the ruin and began to make their way into the enclosed tomb that lay beyond it. As he watched, Duke Dogma just grinned evilly, like a Cheshire Cat. He couldn't wait to get his hands on the power that was behind that door. His dreams of overthrowing the king and taking the kingdom of Genovia for himself were now close at hand.

(**_End BMG – Feudal Society_**)

* * *

Later that evening, or mid afternoon if you think about the time zone difference, Shinichi exited the Teleportal on his Showa-Racer with a duffel bag inside the sidecar. Watching the portal close behind him, Shinichi then sped down the road until he came up to the palace gates. Showing his royal seal as a knight of Genovia to the guard at the gate, he was soon allowed entry. After take a few moments to locate his personal parking spot, he parked his bike and then picked up his duffel bag and slung it around his shoulder. Making his up the steps he was soon greeted by a few of the castle maids who bowed to him in respect while welcoming him back to the Genovia.

"Welcome back, Sir Banabara," the head maid that awaited him at the end said as he approached. She looked to be in her early to mid thirties and wore the traditional maid outfit which looked good on her. She had short, chin length violet hair and violet eyes. She also had a very nice figure and even Shinichi had to admit that she was attractive.

"Thank you, Miss Lynette. It's great to be back," he returned. He made sure to dress in a more presentable manner, even if the king nor Shawna minded how he dressed. "I'm not too early, am I?"

"No, sir. His majesties birthday festival shall be held tomorrow morning at ten o'clock in the city square. He also wished to express his gratitude in your being able to come on such an occasion," Lynette told him as she guided him into the royal palace, up the stairs and down the hall towards his room. "The Princess has also requested that you head to the courtyard outback after you have gotten yourself settled in. May I be so bold as to ask how long you plan to visit?"

"I'll only be here for the weekend. I'll be heading back home on Monday as I still have classes to attend and a test to study for." Shinichi then set his bag on the bed and began to unpack his clothes and set them inside his dresser drawer. He also removed a small wrapped box from the back and set it inside as well.

"Would that be the gift you brought for the king?"

"Sure is. I plan to hand it to him tomorrow during the party when he starts accepting gifts." He then looked at the clock, noticing that it was a bit late. "Guess I probably should have left a little earlier."

"It is quite alright, Sir Banabara," Lynette reassured him. She was waiting for him patiently by the door as he finished unpacking. "If you so desire, I can have a bath drawn for you so that you may relax from your journey here? It can be ready by the time you come back from the courtyard."

"Well, I don't want you all to go to any trouble in taking care of me. It's not really my style." Shinichi was used to taking care of himself mostly and he still wasn't used to this type of living.

"Oh, but it is of no trouble at all. While you are here, it is both our duty and pleasure to make sure that you are comfortable as possible," Lynette said with a smile. Shinichi really began to wonder why she had not settled down yet. She could make any man feel happy and complete. Sighing in defeat, he let a smile of his own cross his face.

"Very well and thank you."

"Of course. May I ask which type of bath you would prefer? A standard hot bath? A bubble bath? Or would you prefer one with an assorted mix of rose petals added in?"

Man, these people really knew how to spoil a guy. Shinichi really wasn't used to all the lavish treatment but figured he could endure it for both King Edward's and Shawna's sake.

"A standard bath will do fine, Lynette. And thank you."

"You are most welcome. Now, let us be on our way. I shall escort you to the courtyard and then I shall go have a bath drawn for you," Lynette said with a smile as she led him down the hallway.

* * *

Outside in the courtyard, Shawna and her father were currently enjoying their afternoon tea until Shawna looked up and passed her father to see Shinichi being led over to them by Lynette.

"Oh, Sir Shinichi, it is so good to see you again!" Shawna beamed as she set down her tea and got out of her chair, running over to him and jumping into his arms, hugging him tightly.

"It's good to see you again too, Shawna-chan," he replied sweetly while hugging her back. She then looked up at him and leaned against him on her tip-toes. Shinichi knew what she wanted and craned his head down as well, capturing her lips with his as he gave her a soft and gentle kiss. After a few seconds had passed they broke the kiss, albeit a bit reluctantly, and then Shinichi looked over at the king who just watched them with a big smile on his face and a thoughtful twinkle in his eyes. "And it's good to see you again too, Your Majesty. And an early happy birthday as well."

"Why thank you, my boy. I am so glad that you could make it. It is a shame though that Alan and Yuji could not attend," the king said with a small frown. "But it can't be helped. When you have a little one to take care and a lot of women who desire your attention, it is hard to go anywhere on your own."

"I'll bet," he said and then he decided to see why he was asked to meet them in the courtyard for. "So, may I ask what's wrong? From how Lynette sounded when she said for me to come to the courtyard, it sounded pretty urgent and serious."

The king developed a more serious look on his face while Shawna looked a bit sad. Leading him over to the table, Shawna took a seat next to Shinichi as he sat down.

"Well, there is a matter I wish to discuss with you. You see, my dear daughter has recently told me of your _retirement_ from being a hero but not the reasons behind such a decision." Shinichi grew a bit stiff at the topic that was being brought up. It was still a bit difficult to talk about for him. "I know that it is none of my business and I do not wish to pry but to hear that one of the bravest and most noble young men that I have ever had the pleasure of knowing has decided to quit…well, that was a bit shocking to hear in the least."

Shinichi clenched his pant legs in his fist, remembering what had caused him to finally decide that enough was enough. Shawna, noticing how nervous her beloved looked, placed a gentle hand on his, wanting to help calm him down. Shinichi looked at the hand which gentle grasped onto his and then looked up and over at Shawna who just smiled softly at him, trying to reassure him. Smiling and nodding his head in appreciation, Shinichi unclenched his fists and looked back at the king with a more serious expression of his own.

"Well, you see your majesty, it's like this…"

* * *

Located in another hidden location deep underground, the Cybermen were currently at work within their hidden conversion facility working on their latest _upgraded_ member. As they continued to work on their newest project, with the Cyber Leader overseeing the process, Duke Dogma watched from a room high above the work station. Looking down, he looked at the enormous creature that the Cybermen were cyber-converting into a new hybrid Cyberbeast. What he saw was actually a real live dragon. The dragon itself was still asleep but most of its body was now remodified with cybernetic parts. Instead of its single head it now had three and a few extra wings. He couldn't see all of the details yet but they were nearly finished.

"Well I have to admit, they sure do work fast. To think that they could convert that monstrosity into a hybrid machine in under just a single day," Duke Dogma said to himself. He then thought back to the events that took place in the underground cavern.

* * *

_Once they got inside, they had all been surprised to find the dragon lying on the ground. It looked as if it was stuck in some sort of suspended animation and then he saw it. Stuck in the dragons' body, impaled into its heart, was an old and beat up looking claymore. Duke Dogma told them that it was the sword that was currently keeping that dragon asleep so the Cybermen wasted no time in removing it. Removing the sword and tossing it to the ground, the Cybermen then had begun to use their advanced technology to transport the dragon out of the cavern._

_While they did that, Dogma went over to retrieve the sword. But, the moment he touched it, it sent a surge of power through his body, causing him to recoil away from it. "Ah, damn it, that hurt!" The sword had denied him permission to touch it. It would not allow someone with a tainted heart and mind to possess it. The sword had then levitated itself off the ground and vanished in a flash of white light. "No, come back! You belong to me now! Come back here I say!"_

* * *

"Grrr…that sword was almost mine," he said to himself. '_The Sword of Ascalon; a powerful blade that was used by Sir George to slay a dragon. A blade that was said to have the power to slay any kind of beast of burden that would dare cause destruction to the land. And I almost had it. It was in my grasp and yet it denied me. Why? I am the most suitable person to rule this land! It should only be reasonable that the sword should have chosen me. So why did it not do so and vanish without a trace?_**'**

Oh well, it did not matter. Soon the new and improved dragon would be ready and its first test run would be on the central city of Genovia. By morning, it would help him take control of the whole kingdom and help him gain what is rightfully his.

"**Duke Dogma. I will be activating the jamming station at one hour prior to our departure time**," the Cyber Leader said as he came into the observation room.

"Oh, thank you for giving me notice, Cyber Leader."

It was almost time. Soon, the kingdom would be his and he would also take the young Princess Shawna as his new wife and queen. It would be only fitting. Soon, the end of King Edwards reign and his life would begin.

* * *

As he leaned back against the wall of the stone bathtub, letting the hot water warm his body and relax his fatigue, Shinichi began to wonder if maybe he had made the wrong choice in quitting his hero and Kamen Rider work. Sure, he missed it but he didn't miss the death and destruction that came with it. He had put his friends and family in danger so many times and now, with his temporal powers still out of order, he just couldn't afford to bring them into harm's way again. Even he himself was a danger to them. While he enjoyed the peaceful life he was having now, there was no telling when an enemy would actually come looking for him personally to settle an old score. If that happened then Rena, Shawna and even Satan, if she ever returned, would be in danger. He knew that Satan could probably handle herself but being pregnant made it all too risky.

Sure, it was a good ride while it lasted but even he didn't want to fight forever. And he didn't want any future children that he ended up having taking up the mantle of either Kamen Rider or hero or both. He wanted to give them a chance at a more peaceful life.

'_Man…what do I do? I quit being a hero…but is it really worth it?_' he thought to himself deeply. He had once asked Kuro if he had done the right thing and Kuro's answer was _'You can only do what you truly believe is right. Just follow the path that you wish to take…no matter the outcome_.' But real life just isn't that simple.

Shinichi sank lower into the bathtub until his head was below the water. He stayed there for a few moments and then resurfaced to breathe. If seeing what was currently taking place around the world by watching the news wasn't causing him to have second thoughts then seeing how heartbroken and worried the girls were for him was. Even worse, King Edward had shown some small amount of disappointment with Shinichi's decision. He didn't like the idea of hurting everyone's feelings but it was his decision, his choice and they should at least respect that.

"I really wish I could talk to either Uncle Ryuki or Pops right now. They could have possibly done something." He missed being able to work with ARMOR but their connection with them was still being cut off by someone and they didn't know who was doing it. Shinichi let out another sigh and went back to his thoughts. "Maybe a good night's sleep will do me some good."

* * *

The following day was filled with celebration. With the sun high in the sky and barely any clouds around, the people of the kingdom of Genovia were now celebrating the birthday of their monarch, King Edward. The king himself was now turning fifty-one years old today but he felt like he could last another hundred or two. All of the citizens cheered as King Edward and Princess Shawna were being brought to a central platform in a horse-drawn carriage that was being guarded by the knights of Genovia. Shinichi himself sat with the king and princess to act as a last resort for their protection. Though, he doubted anyone would actually try anything. Of course, he was known to have been wrong before.

With the carriage coming to a halt next to the central platform, Shinichi stepped out and then helped both Shawna and the king down to the ground. Offering his arm for Princess Shawna to take, he escorted her up to the platform while keeping a close look out for anything and anyone suspicious. Once they got atop the platform, both the king and his daughter took a seat in a set of chairs while Shinichi took a stance next to them. He was dressed in the ceremonial garments of a Genovian knight which consisted of a set of a white royal shirt with an overcoat and pants, the outfit decorated in a military style. He also wore black boots that were padded with metal plating on the sides and the left lapel of the overcoat bore the crest of the kingdom of Genovia. Attached to his hip by a golden chain was a sheath which held a rapier-styled sword with an intricate hand guard which was made out of solid gold.

'_Heh, white may not be my favorite color…but I make this look good_,' Shinichi thought to himself as he looked his new outfit over. He had had his measurements taken during his last visit and the suit was specially made just for him. He would've preferred a different color, since white reminded him of Shiro, but he had to admit that the outfit looked impressive on him.

Shinichi looked down at Shawna and noticed her smiling at him and he just smiled back. She was completely amazed at how dashing her '_Mr. Samurai_' looked in his royal uniform and she hoped he would wear it more often whenever he came to visit her. Even King Edward liked how Shinichi looked in his new suit and had an idea of having a few more suits tailor made for the young man. Standing on the stage with them were Chris and Anthony, loyal bodyguards to the king and princess of Genovia. Anthony was stoic as always with his arms crossed but Chris offered him a polite nod in greeting.

Before any kind of conversation could begin between them, a man came up to the podium and began to speak into the microphone.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Genovia, as you know I am the Duke of the northern province of Genovia, Duke Lucius Von Dogma. I have been asked to give the birthday speech this year for our dearly beloved king, His Majesty, King Edward," Duke Dogma said and then he turned to face the king and his daughter. He would let the king enjoy his birthday for a mere moment and then the Cybermen would strike with the Cyber Dragon. "My king, you have ruled us well with your strength and wisdom for over thirty long years now and, today, we are here to celebrate your day of birth. Happy birthday, Your Majesty," Dogma said as he bowed in curtsy which the rest of the people did in kind. '_Enjoy it while you can, you bastard. For very soon, your kingdom will finally belong to me_.'

Everyone then began to give applause to their king and cheered his name which caused the old man to tear up a bit. He had done his best to try to be a fair ruler for his people and he was as just as a person could be. And for his kindness and fairness towards them, his people loved him just as much as their previous king. They all hoped that, one day, their young princess would make a wonderful queen and lead them while being guided by her family's teachings.

As Duke Dogma listened to everyone give cheer to the king, he soon heard a small beeping noise coming from a device that was hidden within his ear. '_Ah, good, That's the signal_.' He looked over towards the mountain behind them all and saw what he was waiting for. '_Well, now it's time for my coronation_.'

While everyone still cheered for the king and began to bring him his gifts, Shinichi shifted his focus from them to a noise that he suddenly began to hear. '_That noise…what is it? I swear I know it_.' He began to look around until he lifted his head up and looked behind him at the mountain and saw the one thing that he did not want to see. '_No, it can't be. Not here…not now!_'

"Sir Shinichi, what's wrong?" Shawna asked as she saw the worried look on his face. The king noticed this as well and both he and his daughter looked up to where he was looking and noticed the big, futuristic looking airship beginning to hover over them. "What is that?-!"

On the side of the ship was a symbol that Shinichi knew all too well. It depicted eight snakes connected by the tips of their tails and swirling from the centre.

It was the symbol of OROCHI.

A drop door in the center of the ship's belly opened up, allowing a group of over twenty Cybermen to come flying down, each one using a new set of built-in rocket boots to slow their descent.

"Cybermen," Shinichi answered in a low growl. It appeared that some had survived after all and they just had to show up here and on the king's birthday of all days.

Touching down on the platform and on the ground around it, a Cyberman clad in black armor landed near Duke Dogma.

"Duke Dogma, you need to get away!" Shinichi warned but then he noticed a snide look on the man's face.

"Get away? Why on Earth would I want to do such a thing?" Duke Dogma then looked at the king and smiled darkly. "Your Majesty, I now present you with my birthday gift to you…_your death_." He then turned and looked at the Cyber Leader. "If you would be so kind?"

"**Very well**," the Cyber Leader answered and then, activating his voice box's amplifier unit, called out to all that were PRESENT, "**Attention to all humans! From this moment on you are all obsolete! You will be upgraded into more efficient bodies! Afterwards we will convert the entire planet!"**

"Huh?-! Hey, wait! That wasn't part of our deal, you bastard!" Duke Dogma shouted as he kicked Cyber Leader in his leg. Cyber Leader just looked at him and raised his arm. A panel on his forearm opened up to produce a small cylinder-like object which then began to glow red at the end facing the duke.

"**You are correct. Consider our arrangement terminated.**"

**ZAP!**

Everyone screamed in fright as the lifeless body of the Duke fell to the floor, a sizzling hole now in the center of his forehead. Everyone began to try to and run away but they soon found their escape routes soon cut off.

"**There are only two options for all of you: upgrading or deletion!**" the Cyber Leader told them all and then he began to make his way over towards the king and Shawna.

Shawna was now standing next to Shinichi, holding onto his arm tightly out of fright. She had never seen a person lose their life before and never right in front of her. Shinichi looked at the terrified look on her face and then at the people all around him. He then looked over at King Edward and noticed the look of rage in his eyes. The king was clenching his fists and was close to drawing his sword. The king, preparing to defend his people, felt a hand on his arm and looked to see Shinichi looking at him and shaking his head in a 'don't even think about it fashion'. He saw Chris and Anthony about to act as well.

"Don't!" he shouted at them, halting them. If they tried to fight they'd be killed.

"Sir Shinichi, what are they? Are they robots?" Shawna asked.

"They're us," he answered, causing Shawna to gasp. He explained, "They're people, or at least they were. They've had all their humanity taken away. A living brain jammed inside a cybernetic body, with a heart of steel and all their emotions removed."

"Why?"

"Because it hurts," he answered before elaborating, "Imagine how they'd react if they could see themselves, realize themselves in those metal shells. They'd go insane. The one thing that makes them human, their emotions, completely cut off from them. They practically have their souls removed."

"Then what does upgrading mean?" Shawna asked, though she knew the answer.

"We become just like them." That news horrified Shawna. To become an emotionless, cybernetic creature was living nightmare.

"**We shall start with King Edward**," the Cyber Leader said while looking at the king. As he reached his hand out for him Shinichi was quick to get between them. "**Move aside. Your turn will come**."

Shinichi just glared at the Cyber Leader. '_Man, if this is God's way of kicking me in the ass and telling me to start acting like a hero again then this is a lousy way of doing it_,' he thought to himself angrily. He glared at the Cyber Leader and then relaxed his body a bit. "Tell me, do you have access to Shiro Juuyon's old files on those he wants to see dead?"

"**Data of individuals that the Cyber Master required to see deleted is on file and is stored within our memory banks. Why do you ask?**" The Cyber Leader was a bit curious to Shinichi's question.

"Just curious. Now, how about you scan my face and match it to those files, big guy?" Shinichi demanded. The Cyber Leader only looked at him for a second and then his eyes glowed red as he filtered through the files until he actually found a match. Reading the file and its last entry, the Cyber Leader looked at Shinichi and his red eyes glowed even brighter.

"**You were one of the Cyber Master's enemies. You are Kamen Rider Showa.**" The rest of the Cybermen heard this and they all got ready to exact their revenge on one of the men responsible for their creator's death. "**Kamen Rider Showa, you shall not be upgraded. You are deemed incompatible. You are to be immediately deleted.**"

"Says you!" Shinichi shouted back as he kicked the Cyber Leader's hand away and then turned to King Edward. "Quick, you and Shawna-chan find someplace safe to hide." He addressed the two bodyguards, "And you two, make sure to keep them safe."

"But Sir Shinichi, what about you?" Shawna asked him in a terrified voice. She then noticed him give her a soft smile.

"Let's just say that I can't retire just yet." Shawna smiled and King Edward nodded as he understood. He was proud that Shinichi would fight as a hero again, even if it might just be one last time. Acting quickly, King Edward took his daughter by the hand and led her to safety among the people. Shinichi then turned to face the Cyber Leader and a group of five Cybermen that had made their way up onto the stage. "Alright, let's do this! Henshin!"

Shinichi's Trinity Spark Core and belt appeared around his waist and began to glow as his armor formed onto him. Within seconds, Kamen Rider Showa now stood in Shinichi's place. Many of the people let out a cheer as one of their knights was about to defend both their king and their kingdom. Showa, rotating his arms and doing a few stretches, bounced up and down on the balls of his heels and then cracked his neck. He then produced his Showa-Blade and, with his free hand, pointed at the Cybermen.

"Well, since this is a party, let's dance!" Showa shouted as he charged at the Cybermen and Cyber Leader who did the same.

As the battle began, a growl began to emit from the mountain behind the kingdom as a pair of glowing purple eyes flashed to life from within a cave.

It was free.

It was improved.

It could sense the presence of its most hated enemy and it wanted...**revenge**.

* * *

**TOKU WARRIOR: Hey Guys, Toku here. Giving Chrome a hand with this new mini-arc. Seems Shinichi can't quit being a hero just yet. The Cybermen are back and it looks like they're going to be bringing a friend along for the ride. But, hey, where did the Sword of Ascalon go to? Find out in the second part of this 2-part mini-arc.**


	124. The Legacy of Cain Part 68

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 68: Resolve Revived! Kamen Rider Showa VS the Cybermen!**

**Written By: Toku Warrior**

Shinichi's Trinity Spark Core and belt appeared on around his waist and began to glow as his armor formed onto him. Within seconds, Kamen Rider Showa now stood in Shinichi's place. Many of the people let out a cheer as one of their knights was about to defend both their king and their kingdom. Showa, rotating his arms and doing a few stretches, bounced up and down on the balls of his heels and then cracked his neck. He then produced his Showa-Blade and, with his free hand, pointed at the Cybermen.

"Well, since this is a party, let's dance!" Showa shouted as he charged at the Cybermen and Cyber Leader who did them same.

As the battle began, a growl began to emit from the mountain behind the kingdom as a pair of glowing purple eyes flashed to life from within a cave.

It was free.

It was improved.

It could sense the presence of its most hated enemy and it wanted…**revenge**.

* * *

Back in the Hive, Alan and Yuji were currently located in the underground training chamber and were going through one of the older simulations that Dr. Magi had installed from the NUMBERS' training days back in GIN-SHOCKER. It was mostly a session that had lasers, bombs and sharp objects being shot and thrown at them but they just dodged them with ease.

"You know, this is kinda fun when you think about it," Yuji proclaimed as he ducked under a laser blast aimed at his head while Alan jumped over a knife that was sent flying towards his stomach. He had toned down his powers to levels that were just around those of the Riders in their default forms as to make the workout more challenging.

"How can this be fun? My brother and the other NUMBERS had to go through this kind of hell for ten years," Alan quipped as he kicked a bomb ball away from him and then ducked under another knife that was sent straight for his head.

"Yeah, I know that. But think of how much of a good workout this is? We haven't had to actually work up a sweat in just dodging attacks for awhile." Yuji was right. As low as a setting as it was, they had been at it for a few hours now while Misato and Nozomu had come along with them. They were currently with Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam and they had brought Yuna and Adam with them for a checkup. Seeing as both were not normal humans, it was best to bring them to the Hive for their medical exams.

"Well, when you're right you're right," Alan said in agreement.

Alan then thought about his brother. It had been close to a month since Shinichi had quit being a hero. He missed being able to fight alongside the man he had grown up admiring, only to see just how annoying he had been when he was a young man. To see him quit like that, he had never heard of it happening back in his original timeline. Could the timeline and history of this world be changing due to their prolonged presence there?

As they dodged more projectiles they soon noticed the training simulation start to slow down until it finally stopped. Looking around at what just happened, Yuji and Alan had confused looks on their faces.

"Hey, what gives?" Yuji questioned.

"Hey Sheila, why did you stop the simulation?" Alan asked the computer.

"_I am sorry Alan, but Shogo requested that I do so and then tell you to report to the main hall_," Sheila reported. "_There appears to be something that he wants you to see_."

Alan and Yuji looked at one another and shrugged before grabbing a set of towels and bottles of water before heading to the elevator.

* * *

(_**Insert BGM: Fade to Black – B13a: Bleach Fade to Black OST**_)

Showa jumped into the air as a barrage of laser fire came barreling at him from the horde of Cybermen before him. Coming down with a drop kick, he took one down while also swinging his Showa-Blade in a slash, taking off the head of another Cyberman that was behind him. Getting back up, he elbowed one in the gut, knocking it backwards, while hitting another with a side kick, sending it flying into another Cyberman that was right behind it. Showa flicked his wrist as he spun on his heels while holding his Showa-Blade out in front with both hands, landing slash after slash on the Cybermen around him.

Coming to a stop, Showa soon felt a metal fist hit his face, sending him flying into a float that had been decorated for King Edward's birthday. Digging himself out, Showa noticed that the group of twenty Cybermen had now grown to over fifty and more seemed to be on the way. This was about to become a warzone and Showa knew he couldn't do this on his own. Placing his hand to the side of his helmet, he attempted to contact the Hive.

"Hive, this is Showa, come in!" Showa called out into his comm. device but all he got was static. "I repeat, Hive, this is Showa! Please respond! Genovia is under attack by Cybermen and lots of them! Please respond! Sheila! Dr. Magi! Anyone!-?" Still, nothing but static. "Damn it, why won't they respond?-!" He then noticed a punch coming straight for him and jumped backwards, watching as the metal fist slammed into the ground, embedding itself into the stone road.

The Cyber Leader told him as it removed its fist from the ground, "**We have installed a jamming station nearby so that no form of telecommunication could be sent or received from this location**." Shinichi gawked at him from behind his mask. He was in deep shit now.

"I don't understand, how could you guys have coordinated this attack without having prior knowledge of the kingdom's defenses and interior?" Shinichi needed answers. How did the Cybermen gain so much knowledge on Genovia's defenses?

"**We acquired the needed information from Duke Dogma**," the Cyber Leader told him.

"But I don't understand. You consider humans inferior so why didn't you just upgrade him? How did he even come into contact with you?"

"**We encountered Duke Dogma close to that mountain behind this kingdom. We then negotiated an arrangement. He would assist us in looking for and taking control of what we were searching for by using his influence to keep people away so that we could operate unnoticed and, in return, we would lend our bodies and strength in taking control of this kingdom**."

"Well, I guess he never realized that you didn't have any intention of letting him outlive his usefulness."

"**You are correct. Now** **surrender, Kamen Rider Showa****. You are outnumbered and underpowered. You cannot defeat all of us. Unlike us you will tire, you will fail, and you will be deleted.**"

The Cybermen chanted, "**Delete. Delete. Delete**."

"We'll see about that!" Showa shouted as he stood up and banished his Showa-Blade. More Cybermen surrounded him, now numbering into the hundreds, all the while Shawna and King Edward could only watch as Shinichi desperately fought for the survival of the kingdom and its people. Showa then threw his arms out in one of his poses and shouted, "Let's Ride: ZX!"

The Cybermen and Cyber Leader backed away, awaiting the change to take place but nothing happened. Showa looked at his body and noticed that no changed had occurred. He was still in his Trinity form.

"Wha…what's going on?" he asked himself before trying again. "Let's Ride: Roborider!" A moment later there was nothing. No transformation. This was bad. "No, it can't be."

As he began to wonder why he couldn't assume his legendary Rider forms, a hard punch to his face sent him down to the ground with a loud thud. Struggling to get back up, he looked up and noticed the Cyber Leader looking directly at him as it got back into a standing position. The glass dome where its brain was visible let out an eerie violet glow as its eyes glowed red.

"**You do not seem to possess the ability to change forms anymore**," the Cyber Leader observed.

"We'll see. Let's Ride: Bioooorrrppppphhhhh!" Showa began until he was backhanded from behind, his body getting flung into the stage behind them. Picking himself up, he noticed the Cybermen aim their laser blasters at him and Showa quickly performed a set of handspring backflips to dodge the incoming attacks. "Damn, of all the times to lose the ability to change forms."

Showa quickly jumped over a Cyberman that was coming at him from behind and came down, wrapping his arms around its head as he pulled and twisted, popping its head right off of its body like a bottle cap. Dropping the snapped head, black blood-like oil gushing from the Cyberman's open neck, Showa sidestepped another Cyberman as it came rushing at him, using a sweep kick to knock it off of its feet.

"**Resistance is useless**," the Cyber Leader said in its monotonic voice.

"Oh yeah?-! Then how about this?" Shinichi shouted as he thrust his arm up into the air. "Bring down the thunder, Gokuaku!" After a moment, nothing happened. "No, not you guys too!" he shouted.

"**It would seem that the powers you once possess are inaccessible**," the Cyber Leader said as he strode forward. "**You are no threat to us**."

"That's what you think!" Showa proclaimed but then he noticed that he was surrounded by over one hundred and fifty Cybermen. Taking his odds into account, he then remembered he still had one trick up his sleeve. He may not have his temporal powers at the moment, but he still had the powers of his Trinity Spark Core. But first, he needed to try and get as much distance from the Cybermen as possible if he was even going to have a chance at using his trump card.

(_**End BGM: Fade to Black – B13a**_)

* * *

Sitting on a bed within a room located in the Kuwadorian, Beatrice's mansion in the Meta-World, Satan just looked at a picture that was set on her nightstand. The picture within the frame was one of her and Shinichi back when they had their first real date alone. She could remember it so well, how warm his hands felt, how gentle his touch was, everything. Now he had changed. He no longer had that spark in his heart, that fire in his eyes. But she could understand why. It wasn't what just happened with Keiichi, it was everything altogether. He hated himself and thought that he was nothing more than a curse to those who were around him.

But she knew otherwise. So why did she say that she hated him? She didn't know why. Satan had only gotten caught up in the heat of the moment. Sure, she was the Stake of Wrath but she had never snapped at him like that before. Was it because she was pregnant? Did he hate her now? Could he ever forgive her for saying such a thing? Could she ever forgive him for losing the part of him that actually made him…_him_? As she sat there, looking at the picture and slowly crying her heart out, she was soon taken out of her depressed stupor when someone knocked on her door.

"Who…(_sob_)…who is it?" Satan asked from her bed. Opening the door, Beatrice came into the room with a soft yet concerned look on her face. "Oh, Beatrice-sama, is something wrong?"

"Well, maybe. You see, you've been cooped up in your old room for nearly a month now. And we're all starting to worry about you. For the past year or so now you have never been gone from Shinichi's side this long and we were wondering—"

"Don't…just don't…please?" Satan cried out and then lowered her head into her knees as she brought her legs up and hugged them to her chest. "I don't want to talk about…_him_."

She couldn't help it. For as much as she loved him, she still couldn't bring herself to talk about him let alone even begin to think about talking about him.

"Then maybe it's time you did," another voiced echoed from the doorway. Both Satan and Beatrice turned around to see none other than the Moon Goddess, Tsukuyomi, standing there and she didn't look too happy. Satan just looked at her and Tsukuyomi glared right back. "We need to talk."

* * *

Back at the Hive, Alan and Yuji came out of the elevator and headed to the main hall. Looking over to the main monitor, they soon noticed all the Riders and team 5D's were there, waiting for them while discussing what was going on.

"Okay Shogo, what's going on?" Alan asked.

"We can't get any sort of images or news reports from Genovia," Shogo reported, causing both Alan and Yuji to develop looks of concern on their faces. "We've been trying for over thirty minutes now to get in touch with Shinichi but we can't get through to his spare com-link."

"Did you try either Shawna's or King Edward's com-links?" Yuji asked as he and Alan came over to the consol.

"Yes and we got the same result," Shogo replied.

"Man, what could be going on over there?" Yokoshima asked.

"Don't know but if we can't get any kind of signal from their communicators than it can't be good," Hana added.

They all knew that Shinichi could hold his own if a fight with an enemy broke out but that was the old Shinichi. The current Shinichi might not have the same resolve in battle so they wanted to find out what was going on.

"Shouldn't someone try calling Rena-san? Maybe she might have better luck?" Michiru suggested.

"No, we shouldn't worry her unless we actually have something to tell her," Battler responded as he held Junior in his arms.

"Well we have to do something!" Daichi shouted. "I mean, what if it's all due to an enemy attack or something?"

"And you're sure it's not because you're worried about Shinichi, right?" Yuji asked him with a deadpanned look on his face.

"No!" Daichi shot back in denial.

As they were about to find themselves in an argument, the room suddenly became filled with the scene of golden butterflies. Within moments, the golden butterflies burst in a show of sparkling energy, revealing the forms of the Seven Stakes of Purgatory, the Golden Witch Beatrice and, for some strange reason, the Moon Goddess Tsukuyomi.

* * *

(_**Insert BGM: Number One One's End – Bleach OST 4**_)

Summoning his Showa-Blade once more, sparks flashed as Showa's sword ripped across a Cyberman's chest. Driving forward, his left hand turned into a massive blade and, with a single swing, he cut a Cyberman that was coming down on top of him in half. The rest aimed their weapons at him, forcing him back, but he kept charging at them, screaming out a battle cry. Discarding his Showa-Blade and shifting his Great Sword back into his arm, thick armor began to coat his legs as he jumped. He came crashing down, crushing several Cybermen under his massive Great Boots.

Looking behind him, he saw more Cybermen coming at him while firing their lasers at him. Thinking fast he changed his Great Boots, assuming the Tank Legs. He kicked up, hitting a Cyberman in the chest and sending it staggering before he swung his leg around to hit another Cyberman across the chest. He then kicked a Cyberman down and stomped on its chest, the treads ripping sparks off its chest.

The Cybermen were so focused on him that the spectators were forgotten. Shawna and King Edward had taken cover and they watched as Showa fought against the threat of the Cybermen. Chris and Anthony also made sure to stay with them, just in case any of the Cybermen got past Showa. While Showa fought the Cybermen, King Edward looked over to one of his other guards.

"You there, take the main battalion and get these people to safety, now!" King Edward ordered.

"By your command, Your Majesty!" the guard saluted and took the main battalion and helped the townspeople escape while the Cybermen were too focused on Showa to notice. "You heard our king, move out!"

As the main battalion helped the townspeople to escape, Shawna just continued to watch Showa fight against the Cybermen.

"Sir Shinichi…please win," Shawna pleaded as she clasped her hands together and began to pray.

King Edward just placed a hand on his daughter's shoulder and continued to watch as Showa fought against overwhelming odds. If this kept up, even the king knew that Showa wouldn't survive. '_Shinichi…don't give up. A knight of Genovia, no, a hero never give ups. And that's what you are and will always be…a true hero_.'

The Cybermen fired, stunning Showa momentarily, and he gritted his teeth to endure the pain. Pushing back the pain, he advanced, swinging his massive, metal fist which hit the Cybermen, crushing them. Of course the Cybermen were relentless and he was all alone. The odds didn't seem to be in his favor.

But when had unfair odds ever stopped him?

A Cyberman punched him across the face, sending him staggering. Two Cybermen grabbed his arms, and started to electrocute him. He screamed as he was forced down to his knees, the electrical current flowing painfully through him. Letting him go, the Cybermen watched as Showa fell to his knees. Shawna and King Edward also watched on in complete and utter disbelief. Showa appeared to have been defeated.

"**Showa is inferior. Cybermen are superior**." The Cybermen all chanted this same phrase over and over as Showa struggled to his feet. It was now or never and he knew that, if he didn't act soon, he'd be a goner.

Taking in a deep breathe, Showa brought his arms down in a power-up position as he shouted, "Trinity Force!"

In a brilliant flash of multicolored light, Showa's body split into three different colored segments. The Cybermen and Cyber Leader covered their eyes as Showa's body continued to glow brightly.

"**Alert, high energy output detected. Unable to calculate power levels**," the Cyber Leader said as it tried to determine just what Showa was doing. They had all of Showa's abilities on file, including this one, but they had yet to ever encounter the ability being used before in a battle against Cybermen.

After the light died down, the Cybermen and Cyber Leader all refocused their eyes and saw that now they were facing not one, but three different Kamen Rider Showas. Shawna and King Edward also saw this and gawked in awe. Shinichi had never mentioned this ability to them before. Now, standing before them all was Kamen Rider Showa in his Trinity Form, clad in a complete red version of his armor. Standing to his right and left were duplicates, clad in blue and green armor respectively.

"Kamen Rider Showa Trinity, Red!" Showa Red shouted out as he created his Drill Arm and Shovel Claw from his hands.

"Let's Ride: GX!" Kamen Rider Showa Green called and in a flash he was transformed into his second default state, Kamen Rider Showa GX. "Kamen Rider Showa…GX!" Showa GX shouted out as he produced his energy blades from his wrists.

"Let's Ride: BLACK 13!" the blue-armored Showa duplicate called and in an instant, his blue armor changed, turning pitch black as the roman numeral XIII appeared on his left shoulder while his eyepieces and Spark Core turned blood red in color. He then let out a bit of a feral roar as he produced his crimson energy blades and got into a stance.

"**Warning, present threat of current enemy has risen from 10% to 80%**," a single Cyberman answered as it calculated the risk of there being three Riders as opponents.

"**Priority to delete inferior being has risen to omega level. Delete at all costs**," the Cyber Leader ordered.

The three Showas wouldn't have any of that as they began to tear into the remaining Cybermen that surrounded them. Showa Red rammed his Drill Arm into the chest of one Cyberman, killing it instantly, while taking the head of another one behind him clean off with his Shovel Claw. He then formed his Hook Arm on his right arm, fitting it with the Drill Arm, creating a flail-like weapon as the cable for the Hook Arm extended. He then lashed out the Drill Extender and ripped sparks from all of the Cybermen around him. Recalling the Drill Extender, he then side kicked a Cybermen back and then rushed towards it again and performed a forward roundhouse kick, taking its head right off of its body.

Showa GX was hacking away at the heads and limbs of the Cybermen that were attacking him and his armor was already covered with blood-like oil splats that had gushed out of their bodies from his constant attacks. Jumping backwards to avoid a devastating punch to his face, Showa GX then rushes forward and brought his arms up in a double uppercut strike, using his energy blades to behead the Cyberman. He then formed his energy blades into whips and lashed them out as he spun around in a circle, slicing all the Cybermen around him down the middle and killing them all in one go. He then ran at a few more of them that were coming his way and performed a drop kick with his ankle energy blades erected, taking down two of them while he reformed his wrist blades and sliced another two that were on both of his sides, taking them down as well.

BLACK 13 was a pure killing machine and he excelled at eliminating his opponents, showing them no mercy. Even without the aid of his time distortion ability, he was still plenty fast and could out move around the Cybermen in every way. Moving in a way that seemed to make it look like he had vanished from sight, five Cybermen soon found their heads by their feet as BLACK 13 rushed at them with blinding speeds, using his energy blades to decapitate them. He then jumped at another Cyberman before performing a roundhouse kick with his free leg, forming an ankle blade and taking its head off. Ten more Cybermen came at him from all sides and began to fire their lasers at him, hitting the ground and causing dust and debris to fill the air around them.

"**Error, target known as BLACK 13 is no longer on radar. Heat Signature cannot be tra—**" one of the Cybermen began until his head was sliced in half. The rest of the Cybermen soon followed as the dust settled, revealing BLACK 13 to be surrounded by the destroyed bodies of the Cybermen. He then looked over at Showa Red and Showa GX who had teamed up to take down the last of the Cybermen and ran to join in.

(_**End BGM: Number One One's End**_)

The Cyber Leader could only watch as its soldiers were being destroyed by the Trinity Force Riders and it began to try and calculate on how to defeat them. Studying their movements and abilities, it just needed another moment before it could determine a way to delete its enemies. It wouldn't get the chance though as it saw the three Showas standing there, Showa Red crushing the head of the last Cyberman in the palm of his Great Fist. Just as the Cyber Leader began to conclude that a retreat was the best solution, it raised its head after receiving an incoming message. The three Showas, who had slowly begun their advance upon the Cyber Leader, lifted their heads up to the sky to see the one thing that they didn't want to see. It was another drop ship and it began to drop more Cybermen on the ground. The Cybermen then made their way over to the battlefield and all three Showas swore under their helmets.

"Damn it, it's just one after another!" Showa GX exclaimed as he prepared for the next onslaught of Cybermen.

"Agreed," said BLACK 13 who was beginning to pant heavily. They all were. Using the combined powers of Trinity Force and his three default forms was starting to wear Shinichi out and he wouldn't be able to keep this up much longer. They needed to find a sure fire way to take all of the Cybermen in the area down, now.

Showa Red began to think of a strategy when he looked back at the Cyber Leader and then back over to the oncoming Cybermen. It then hit him. He questioned, "Hey guys, you remember the old saying, 'Take out the head and the body will fall'?"

"Of course, it's a simple military strategy," BLACK 13 replied and then realized what Showa Red was getting at. "I see, take out the brain and the others will follow." He looked over at the Cyber Leader and both Showa Red and GX shared his gaze.

"Alright then, let's recycle that tin can!" Showa GX shouted and they all charged at the Cyber Leader who began firing laser blasts at them.

(_**Insert BGM: Zech's Comes – Gundam Wing OST 1**_)

Showa Red summoned his Showa-Blaster and began firing shot after shot as he also drew out his shotgun, hitting the Cyber Leader all over its body with energy blasts and shotgun shells. As the Cyber Leader blocked these attacks, GX and BLACK 13 took advantage of the opening that Showa Red had granted them and summoned both their wrist and ankle mounted energy blades, throwing punches and kicks at the Cyber Leader who just backed away with each dodge while returning fire with its laser blasters.

The Cyber Leader then lunged forward and slammed its fist into GX's gut, knocking the wind out of him and sending him skyward. "**I will not fall. You will be deleted**," it stated as it activated its rocket boots and forced itself to headbutt BLACK 13 right in the face, causing the Rider to stagger backwards while holding his head.

"Oh no you don't!" Showa Red shouted as he brought his Showa-Blaster and shotgun together and, with the power of his nanites, united them into a double barreled buster rifle. "You're going down, now!" The rifle charged up and then discharged a powerful energy beam. However, the Cyber Leader used its rocket boots to dodge to the side as GX came crashing back down to the ground near Showa Red's feet, the beam discharge passing the Cyber Leader by and slamming right into one of the floats, blowing it into nothingness as the beam vaporized nearly everything on it. "Damn…this is so not good," Showa Red muttered to himself and then noticed the Cyber Leader extend a pair of metal tendril-like whips from its forearms.

The Cyber Leader lashed out with its metal whips and wrapped them around Showa Red, GX and BLACK 13 before sending out a huge wave of electricity through the tendrils and through their bodies. The three Riders screamed in agony and, after a moment, both GX and BLACK 13 shattered to pieces of energy and reformed onto Showa Red, causing him to revert to his normal color scheme.

(_**End BGM: Zechs Comes**_)

Showa breathed heavily as his Trinity Force had been canceled out. Falling to his hands and knees, his armor vanished and the Cyber Leader approached him.

"**You have been defeated. This proves that Cybermen are superior. Now you will be deleted**," the Cyber Leader said in his low monotone.

"No!" Shawna cried but her father held her back. She struggled. "Sir Shinichi, get up!"

"Princess, please, you must remain calm," Chris told her. "Sir Banabara will not lose so easily." Anthony just grunted as he nodded. He may not really like Shinichi all that much but he did respect him. As they watched Showa battle the Cyber Leader, they did not notice a lone Cyberman coming up behind them. Hearing the sound of a rock getting crushed under something heavy, they all turned around to see Cyberman with its laser aimed right at them.

"**You will be deleted**," it said as it was about to fire. But it never got a chance as the blade of a rapier went piercing through its head and out of its left eye. The Cyberman's body shook for a moment before falling to the ground, dead as a door nail.

Shawna and the others looked to see their savior and Shawna nearly tackled the person to the ground. "Ah, Sylvia, I'm so glad you're here!" Sylvia was nearly taken to the ground from being glomped by her cousin but Sylvia was able to right herself as she helped Shawna stay upright.

Looking over at them and then at the battle between Shinichi and the Cyber Leader, "I guess it's a good thing I stayed in the city."

"I did give the order to fall back, didn't I?" King Edward asked her in a stern voice.

"And since when have I ever followed an order to retreat when my dear cousin needs my protection?" she shot back playfully. The king just smiled before they all continued to watch the fight that was taking place before them.

The Cyber Leader aimed its laser blaster at Shinichi, only for Shinichi to grasp his arm and use it to quickly pull himself back to his feet.

"One day, metal man…(_pant_)…but not today!" Shinichi's hand shot forward and landed on the Cyber Leader's chest, right on top of the OROCHI crest he wore. "Since you're the leader, they're all linked to you! Which means what happens to you will happen to all of them!" Circuitry lines appeared along Shinichi's arm, spreading across the Cyber Leader's chest. Shinichi could see the Cyber Leader's schematics and found the emotional inhibitor. "Time to give you back your souls!"

Letting out a roar of rage, he shut off the emotional inhibitor, and it was like a chain reaction as the Cyber Leader screamed, "**AAAAHHHHHH!-!-!**" It clutched its head as its body convulsed, the rest of the Cybermen doing the same. They screamed, and fell to their knees before their heads exploded.

Panting heavily, Shinichi stared at the Cybermen with regret and pity but then he noticed the dark-armored Cyber Leader had stopped convulsing and was standing up like nothing was wrong. This was odd.

Suddenly, the Cyber Leader grabbed hold of Shinichi's throat and pulled him off the ground.

"**Thanks for waking me up**," the Cyber Leader said.

* * *

"Hey girls, what are you all doing here? And you too Auntie B?" Yuji asked as the Seven Stakes and Beatrice appeared inside the Hive. Alan looked behind them and also noticed Tsukuyomi was there as well.

"Huh, Tsukuyomi? What brings you here?" Alan asked. If she was here then it could be urgent.

"We're here to stop this stupid nonsense that's going on between our sister Satan and Shinichi," Leviathan said as she placed her hands on her hips. They all looked at Satan who just looked away with an ashamed look on her face.

Yuji sighed, "Well it's about damn time. I've been waiting for one of you to try and apologize to the other."

"O-onii-sama!" Satan quipped, wondering why he would say such a thing. It was Shinichi's fault so of course he should be the one to apologize first.

Yuji just waved his hand, dismissing her little outburst. Tsukuyomi moved forward and asked, "So, where is Shinichi anyway? I couldn't find him at home and Rena wasn't there either."

"Oh, well Rena is with her father in Tokyo. She's attending one of his fashion shows with him for the weekend," Hana informed her. "As for Shinichi, he's over in Genovia to celebrate King Edward's birthday. But we've got a bit of a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Tsukuyomi asked. Satan also grew a look of concern on her face.

"What's wrong? Did something happen to Shinichi!-?" Satan began to panic but she then felt a set of hands on her shoulders and looked to see Lucifer and Asmodeus trying to calm her down.

"Big sis, calm down and let them explain," Asmodeus said calmly, assuring her older sister that everything would be alright. Satan just looked at her and then nodded.

Hana looked at them and let out a sigh. "Well, as I was saying, we have a bit of a problem." She then accessed the monitor and all it showed was static. What you see right now is nothing. And what I mean by that is that someone is jamming all forms of telecommunications."

"Where is the jamming signal coming from?" asked Lucifer.

Yuji looked at them and gave them a serious look. "…Genovia," was all he said. "Auntie B, Tsukuyomi, you're both omnipotent beings so I was thinking that you might know what's going on."

"We're sorry Yuji, but we don't," Beatrice said and then a beeping noise went off. "Hmm, what's that noise for?"

"Oh, it seems that Sheila was able to develop a counter signal to the jamming signal so we should now be able to see what's going on in Genovia via our own satellite in a few moments," Dr. Magi informed her. They all payed attention to the screen as it slowly began to flicker to life. Only another moment and they could see what was going on in Genovia.

* * *

Shinichi was thrown across the ground as his body skidded to a stop next to a pile of dismantled Cybermen. As he looked up from his spot on the ground, he noticed the Cyber Leader slowly walking towards him while cracking its knuckles. '_Man, I really wish I hade Alan's Sonic Screwdriver right now_,' Shinichi thought to himself but the he heard something unsettling coming from the Cyber Leader. It sounded like…it was chuckling.

"**Hehehehe…did I hurt you…boy?**" the Cyber Leader asked in a malicious tone. Since when did Cybermen ever show emotion in their voices? Shinichi remembered the time that he set that girl's emotions free from within her Cyberman confines and he realized that this guy must not have been an 'innocent' converted into a Cyberman.

"But…I…I don't…understand," Shinichi said as he struggled back to his feet. His whole body was sore and he could have sworn he was starting to see double every few seconds. "How…how can you still be alive?"

"**Oh, you're surprised that I survived that little wake-up call of yours? Very well then, let me elaborate for you**," the Cyber Leader began as he told Shinichi his story. This was what Shinichi had wanted though. If he could just get a few moments to catch his breath then he could go for another round against this Cyber Leader. "**You see, I used to be a man that went by the name of Eugene Gullster. I was a highly ranked killer for hire and I was even on Interpol's list of the top ten most wanted for a few years**."

Shinichi just let out a snort. Figures that Shiro would go for the ones who loved the color of blood.

"**But as time went on, I found myself wanting more power. I fell in love with the sight and color of blood and the sound of my victims' screams of agony, of their suffering!**" The Cyber Leader then charged at Shinichi and let loose a punch that embedded itself into the ground as Shinichi rolled out of the way. "**I always fantasized on how I would kill my next target. It was such a turn on. Seeing a woman covered in her own blood, it made me want more!**" He then fired his laser blaster at Shinichi only for him to jump out of the way and land in a crouch.

"And let me guess, you ran into Shiro Juuyon one day and he promised you ultimate power? He would make you into a living weapon, right?" Shinichi asked and then found himself ducking under a punch from the Cyber Leader/Eugene Gullster that collided with a car, sending it skidding across the pavement before crashing into a store window.

"**That's exactly it! I wanted to be able to have any weapon I would need to kill in any fashion that I could desire!**" the Cyber Leader shouted as he glared down at Shinichi.

"And yet he screwed you by blocking out your emotions and taking away your body. How are you going to find a way to live now if you can't even feel the touch of skin, can't smell the scent of blood?"

"**Che, touch doesn't matter. I would normally kill any bitch that I laid after climaxing anyway!**" the Cyber Leader shouted as he backhanded Shinichi right into a street lamp. "**All I care about is being able to kill. My brain can still remember the pleasure of the kill, the thrill of the hunt. I can still see. I can still hear. And I can still kill!**"

Shinichi just picked himself up and stood there with a determined look in his eyes. He scowled at the Cyber Leader and found himself regaining his determination. It was people like Eugene Gullster that Shinichi wanted to protect the world and people from in the first place. He was beginning to understand now. Even if he wanted to quit, he couldn't. The world would still need him. It didn't matter how many heroes there were. There would always be someone out there like Eugene that he would have to put away. There would always be people he would have to protect, not just his friends, but the entire world.

'_Heh, I guess that swift kick in the ass from God was all I needed to get back in the game. Maybe, just maybe…I can still do this_,' Shinichi thought to himself and then, after performing his henshin pose, shouted out, "Henshin!"

The Cyber Leader, seeing his prey transform back into his Rider form, grabbed onto a handle that was attached to his waist and, once it was within his grasp, the handle shot out a beam of red energy in the form of a sword blade.

"Okay, tin-man, round 2! Let's Ride: BLACK 13!" Showa shouted as he assumed the form BLACK 13. He then summoned his wrist and ankle mounted energy blades and got into a stance.

"**Tin-man? Is that the best insult you could come up with?**" the Cyber Lord asked. "**You little fool. I am no longer Eugene Gullster or the Cyber Leader. From this day onward, I will be known as…The Cyber Lord!**"

(_**Insert BGM: Guitar III – Bleach: Diamond Dust Rebellion OST**_)

The Cyber Lord made a mad dash for BLACK 13 who charged at him in return. The Cyber Lord swung his energy sword which BLACK 13 countered with his wrist blades and then pushed the sword away before striking him with a side kick, his ankle blades digging into the Cyber Lord's chest plate. The Cyber Lord held his hand to the gash in his armored body and then glared hatefully at BLACK 13. Concentrating on the energy blade in his hand, the blade shifted to that of an energy axe, a blade on each side. The Cyber Lord then swung his axe at BLACK 13 who just evaded the attack by crouching down and then striking with an uppercut. But the Cyber Lord was ready this time as he grabbed onto his arm and swung him around before slamming him into the ground, hard.

BLACK 13 let out a grunt and then looked up to see the Cyber Lord bringing his energy axe down to behead him. BLACK 13 rolled out of the way and then transformed his blades into whips and began lashing them out at the Cyber Lord. The Cyber Lord used his rocket boots to evade a strike to his head, the attack just barely missing him. The Cyber Lord then aimed his own arm and shot out one of his electric tendrils to try and ensnare BLACK 13 and electrocute him but the Rider jumped up and performed a backflip in mi-air and landed several feet away.

BLACK 13 then rushed at the Cyber Lord who lashed out with his electric tendril. BLACK 13 jumped over the tendril and up and over the Cyber Lord, coming down upon him and kicking him in the back, sending him staggering forwards. The Cyber Lord turned around and suddenly found BLACK 13's elbow getting smashed into his face. This was a mistake on BLACK 13's part though. As strong as he was in this form, he was still exhausted from the previous bouts with the other Cybermen and it showed in his reaction time. Taking advantage of the close range he had, the Cyber Lord wrapped his electric tendril around BLACK 13's legs and swung him above his head like a lasso while electrocuting him at the same time. BLACK 13 let out an agonizing yell as he was thrown through the air and into the side of a building, his body making an imprint on the solid brick wall.

As they fought, both Shawna and King Edward could only watch as Shinichi fought for his life. If he lost, then Genovia was finished.

As BLACK 13 pushed himself up, his body returned to its default state. Now, back in his Trinity Form, Showa stood there while looking at the Cyber Lord who was preparing to finish his fight with the Rider. He wanted to see Shinichi's blood and he wanted to see it now!

"**DIE!-!-!**" the Cyber Lord shouted as he came at Showa who just smirked under his helmet.

"FOOL!" Showa shouted back as he took out his shotgun and loaded it with a paint pellet. Taking aim, he fired at Cyber Leader and got him right in the eyes. The paint pellet exploded all over his face, causing the Cyber Lord to lose his focus for only a brief second. But it was enough to give Showa the advantage he needed. "Alright, this ends now!"

Showa jumped high up into the air with all of his remaining strength and, once he was at the right altitude, looked down at the Cyber Lord who had begun to wipe the paint off of his eyes by burning it away with the energy from his light blade.

"**Damn you, you little shit! I'm gonna find you and when I do, I'm gonna— Huh, where did he go?**" The Cyber Lord looked around for Showa but couldn't fid him anywhere. That was, until he heard a familiar cry.

"Trinity Force!" Looking up, Cyber Lord noticed Showa Red, the Showa GX and BLACK 13 coming down on top of him with their legs extended out in the form of flying drop kicks.

"**TRIPLE RIDER KICK!-!-!**" the three Riders called out as their attacks slammed into and through the Cyber Lord's arms as he tried to block the attack but failed, the attack going right through his body. When Showa landed he had recombined and reassumed his standard Trinity Form and landed in a crouch behind the Cyber Lord whose arms fell to the ground.

Looking behind him, he noticed the big hole within the center of Cyber Lord's body, the injury shooting out sparks every few seconds. Showa just looked at him coldly as he got up and then walked over to where Shawna and King Edward were waiting for him. "Go to Hell, motherfucker," Showa said and Cyber Lord cried out as his body exploded. Shrapnel landed everywhere as did a bit of grey matter as well.

(**End BGM: Guitar III**)

Showa's armor vanished off of his body and he nearly fell to the ground but he soon found himself being caught in the arms of both Shawna and King Edward. Shawna had tears in her eyes while King Edward had a proud look on his face.

"Well done, my boy. You fought like a true hero today," King Edward said as he supported Shinichi's body while Shawna fussed over him.

"He's right kid," Chris congratulated him while patting him on the back. "That was one hell of a job."

"Took you long enough, though," Anthony added in his usual sarcastic manner. It was something that Shinichi had grown accustomed to so he didn't mind it, but seeing Anthony smile while saying that was a bit of a shock. He never really ever smile at him.

"Impressive as always, Sir Banabara," Sylvia complimented him with a smile.

"Oh, Sir Shinichi, you were so magnificent! You showed those metal men who was boss and saved Genovia, just like I knew you would!" Shawna shouted excitedly as she hugged him and kissed him al over his face. Shinichi just accepted the compliments and was about to say something when his enhanced hearing picked something that he did not like the sound of.

**"ROOOOOAAAARGH...!-!-!-!-!"**

"Good heavens, what on Earth is that?-!" King Edward asked but he soon got his answer as a giant mechanical beast flew down from the sky above the mountain and landed down on the ground.

The three of them looked on in complete and utter shock and horror at the sight of the new threat to Genovia. The beast itself was a dragon made of steel. Its whole body was mostly metal but there were also areas that had organic elements. The metal armor of its body was segmented, allowing bright violet energy to seep through, exposing the land to its incredible power. It had metallic wings and a set of six ion boosters mounted onto its back. Its tail was long and segmented as well and the tip was encased with a pair of buster cannons. It also had strange openings on the top of its talons which then ejected an energy claw over each. The sides of its main body had two big holes covered with a metal door each. The doors then opened up, allowing two more of heads to come out. The two extra heads were completely mechanical while the main head was a mix of machine and organic. The main head was decorated with metal spikes and a big serrated horn on its snout. The center of its three heads also had red gems which emitted an eerie glow. The two extra heads had glowing red eyes while the main head had glowing violet eyes.

This was the monster, the great power, which the Cybermen had been digging up and upgrading. This was the dragon rebuilt and reborn. This was a beast now known as the Cyber Dragon. It let loose another roar which shook the ground before them and it then sniffed the air for a brief moment before looking at Shinichi, Shawna.

"**Hmm…I smell demon in you, boy,**" the Cyber Dragon spoke. It then looked at Shawna and King Edward, "**And I see that Sir George actually has a descendant after all. And here I thought I would never be able to exact my revenge upon his bloodline**."

Shinichi looked at the Cyber Dragon curiously. If this thing was a Cybermen weapon, then why did it sound like it had emotions? Shinichi felt his jacket being clenched and looked behind him to see Shawna hiding behind him, staring at the Cyber Dragon in terrpr. Both Anthony and Chris took a defensive stance around King Edward while Sylvia readied her rapier, preparing to help if need be. As if it could smell that fear, Cyber Dragon let out a soft moan of pleasure.

"**Oooohhhh, so nice. How I've yearned to smell this emotion again. The smell of fear is just so…invigorating.**" The Cyber Dragon looked at Shinichi and lowered its head to meet him at ground level. This beast was really big so even Shinichi was a little bit intimidated. "**I suggest you move, Halfling. I have no quarrel with you. I only wish to eradicate those who are related to that damned knight who sealed me away for so many centuries.**"

"Wait, sealed you away?" Shinichi asked. "Okay, first, I won't move as Shawna-chan here is one of my girlfriends that I love dearly. And this is her father, King Edward, who has been like a father to me. I will give my life to protect them as both a friend, lover (while looking at Shawna) and as a knight of the kingdom of Genovia." Shinichi moved forward and looked the Cyber Dragon right in the eyes. "Now answer me this, what grudge do you hold against the royal family of Genovia?"

Cyber Dragon just let out a feral growl but then raised his head up as he began to tell his tale, "**Very well, Halfling. I applaud your bravery. So in return I shall answer your question. You see, centuries ago, before this land became the kingdom of Genovia, it was once nothing more than a peaceful valley which I took upon myself to claim as my own. I care little for humans as they are weak so I would partake in relieving them of their cattle every so often. But the people here did not like that. Then, one day, I heard a beautiful sound. Locating the source, it was a girl from a neighboring village that had come to my lake to look for pretty stones. I enjoyed her singing so much that I captured her and had her sing to me every day.**"

Shawna and King Edward thought about the story so far and it seemed familiar to them. They had read about it within the royal family's archives once before as it was required to know about the family history of the royal bloodline.

"**The people of the village were angered by this though and had tried many times to come save her. All who tried perished**," Cyber Dragon reminisced as he remembered everything from centuries ago. "**But then, one day, a lone wandering knight came into my valley and ordered that I release the girl. I rejected his order so he challenged me to a duel to the death. It was supposed to be easy but I had never fought a human like him before. It was if he was empowered by the heavens and that damned sword of his was the only weapon to have ever been able to pierce my hide. Our battle lasted for days and neither of us wavered**."

"Wow, sounds like this guy was one heck of a warrior," Shinichi admired.

"**Aye, he was, Halfling. During the final day of the battle, out of respect, I told him my true name and returned the favor in kind and revealed his name to me. I will never forget the smell of his blood or the image of his face**."

"And what was his name?" Shinichi asked. The Cyber Dragon just looked at him.

"…**Sir George**," was all the Cyber Dragon said. "**That knight could not slay me so he trapped me deep underground during our battle and pierced my heart with his sword. The power of the sword alone was able to block my energy and put me into a deep sleep which lasted well over a thousand years. Me! The Dragon of Dragons! The fool, did he really think that I, Dreigon, would ever forgive such a loss?-!**" He looked down at Shinichi once more. "**Now move, Halfling! That human girl is a descendant of that knight's bloodline and I shall end it here and now. With her death, my thirst for vengeance shall be quenched and then I will regain the land which is rightfully mine!**" the Cyber Dragon, known as Dreigon, ordered.

Shinichi just stood his ground, holding his arms out in front in a protective manner.

"I'm sorry Dreigon, but I can't do that. As a knight of Genovia, it is both my honor and my duty to protect her. Please understand." Dreigon looked at Shinichi with rage apparent in his eyes.

"**You dare to defy me, Halfling?-!**" Dreigon roared. "**So be it. Then you shall die first!**"

"Oh fuckberries," Shinichi cursed to himself before looking at Shawna and King Edward. "Your Majesty, take Shawna and get out of here!" King Edward knew what Shinichi was planning to do and nodded, even if he did not like what was most likely to happen. Shinichi then looked at Anthony and Chris, "You two, keep them safe, no matter what."

"You don't need to tell us twice," Chris stated as Anthony grunted. Shinichi then looked at Sylvia.

"That means you too, Sylvia-chan. You need to go and make sure that these two do their job properly," Shinichi said as he jutted his thumb as Chris and Anthony.

"I understand. Please, come back to us safely, Sir Banabara." Sylvia curtsied before standing next to Chris and Anthony.

"But Sir Shinichi, if you stay here, you'll die!" Shawna cried out but was then silenced when Shinichi kissed her gently.

Breaking the kiss, "I'm sorry, Shawna-chan. But this is the only way. As you said, I'm a knight of Genovia and a hero. So, as a hero, I'll protect everyone. And as a knight, I'll protect my princess." Shawna smiled while tears streamed down her cheeks. Shinichi looked back to King Edward, "My bike should still be in its usual parking spot. It should have some weapons built into it that might be useful if you find a need to defend yourselves."

"I understand," King Edward nodded.

"Good, then take Shawna-chan and run. Get my bike and find a car, use them to escape. Once you're far enough out of the jamming zone, call Alan and the others. If I fail, then they'll be able to pick up where I left off."

King Edward just nodded and took Shawna by the hand before taking her to safety. He didn't want to leave Shinichi alone but he knew not to doubt the young man's words.

As Shinichi watched them leave, he quietly muttered, "Gomen…Shawna-chan…King Edward…Chris…Anthony…Sylvia-chan, and…sayonara."

"**Bah, how touching,**" Dreigon mocked. Shinichi just looked at him with a threatening glare, his Showa armor forming over him with just a simple mental command. Dreigon watched this in surprise but expected nothing less from a Halfling knight that was willing to throw away his life to protect a descendant of that bastard knight. "**Well, this is surprising. I did not know that you were in possession of such an ability. Oh well, you won't last long anyway. But, before we begin, I wish to know the name of the knight that I am about to kill.**"

"It's Shinichi. My name is Sir Shinichi Banabara. I'm also known as Kamen Rider Showa. And I am…a warrior of justice…the hero of this world." Showa stood there as he summoned his Showa-Blade and prepared for the worst.

"**Well then, Sir Banabara, let us begin!**" Dreigon shouted as he formed a massive violet ball of energy in his main mouth and fired it like a beam of energy straight at Showa.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so begins Showa's fight for survival. If he doesn't defeat Dreigon, Genovia is lost. Can he defeat such a powerful foe, alone, without any help? The answer to this question will appear in the next chapter! Please, stay tunes for more as Kamen Rider X Green Lantern: The Legacy of Cain continues.**


	125. The Legacy of Cain Part 69

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 69: Awaken, Ascalon! The Pride & Power of the Chosen Knight!**

**Written By: Toku Warrior**

To say that they were shocked was an understatement. They were completely stunned. The NEO-NUMBERS and their allies had finally gotten live feed from their satellite on what was happening in Genovia and what they saw first was a giant three headed metal dragon firing energy beams at something. The dragon alone was at least nearly a quarter to half the size of Orochi but it looked a lot meaner.

"Dude, what is that freaky looking thing!-?" Yokoshima exclaimed. Tsukuyomi and Beatrice watched with concern as the dragon seemed to be firing at someone who kept dodging.

"Hey, Sheila, can you magnify the image a bit? We need to see what that beast is trying to hit," Dr. Washam requested.

"_Of course, one moment please_." After a few seconds, Sheila magnified and clarified the image and Satan nearly passed out from fright. "_There we go. Oh dear, is that—_"

"SHINICHI!-?" Satan exclaimed as she watched Showa jump up into the air, only for the Cyber Dragon to slam its massive tail into him and send him careening straight into and through a building, which he continued onwards through another several before finally falling and hitting the ground.

"Holy shit! That thing just nearly sent Shinichi into orbit!" Yuji shouted.

"But didn't Shinichi say that he was done being a hero?" Jin asked.

"Well, I guess a guy like Shinichi can even get brought back into the fight," Yuji replied. He then noticed Satan moving away from them and heading for the Teleportal. She was preparing to either vanish in the form of golden butterflies or use the Teleportal when Yuji stopped her. "Whoa, hold on there, Satie. Where do you think you're goin'?"

"To help the man I love," Satan responded without hesitating. "That's the father of my child and I will not sit idly by and watch him die at the claws of some metal monstrosity!"

"Oh, no you're not," Beatrice responded and, with her powers, levitated and sat Satan in a chair.

"Beatrice-sama, let me go! I have to go help Shinichi! He needs me!"

**SLAP!**

Everyone looked on as Tsukuyomi stood there, looking over Satan as she lowered her hand. Satan put a hand on her cheek which Tsukuyomi had slapped.

"You are in no condition to fight, Stake of Wrath," Tsukuyomi said, her eyes glowing a bright and eerie blue hue as she let her power seep out a bit.

"But-"

"No buts," Tsukuyomi said in a threatening voice. "Shinichi does need help but the only ones here with the current amount of power that is needed are Yuji Fudo and Alan Smith. They will go and assist Shinichi against the dragon."

"But I-"

"You, Stake of Wrath, have a different role to play. You will be coming with me." Tsukuyomi then nodded to Beatrice who released her magic hold on Satan. Tsukuyomi then took Satan by the arm and led her towards the center of the room.

"Wh-where are we going?" Satan asked as she followed Tsukuyomi.

"We're going to pick up the other member of that boy's harem." And with that they were both gone in a flash of silver and blue light that resembled a moonbeam.

The others watched and then looked back at the screen and noticed the Cyber Dragon grab Showa with one of its clawed hands and slam him into the ground. Alan and Yuji developed determined looks on their faces and walked over to the Teleportal. Fire covered Yuji's fist as Alan assumed his Green Lantern form. Alan prayed that Shinichi could just hold on a little longer.

"Sheila, get us as close to Genovia as possible," Yuji ordered.

"_Affirmative._"

'_Hang on Shinichi, we're coming. Just hang on a bit longer,_' Alan thought to himself. No one messed with his family. Not if he had anything to say about it.

* * *

At a fashion show in Tokyo, Rena was standing backstage as she watched a model walk down the catwalk, wearing one of her father's latest designs. As she watched, a moonbeam of silver and blue light appeared behind her. Seeing the flash from the corner of her eye, Rena turned around and was delighted to see Satan standing there.

"Satan-chan! It's so good to see you again!" Rena squealed as she pulled Satan into a hug. She then looked over at Tsukuyomi but the Moon Goddess just backed away a bit.

"Don't even think about it," Tsukuyomi warned. Rena then looked back at Satan and noticed the dire panic look in her eyes.

"Satan-chan, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Rena, I'm fine. But Shinichi's not." This caused Rena to go wide-eyed. "He's currently fighting some gigantic metal dragon over in Genovia and it doesn't look like he'll last much longer. Alan and Yuji are headed there now to lend him a hand. Tsukuyomi is here take us there as well, but she won't let me fight though."

"Because pregnant women shouldn't fight, dummy," Tsukuyomi quipped.

Rena nodded in agreement and said, "Tsukuyomi-chan is right. No fighting."

Folding her arms under her chest and puffing her cheeks a bit. "…fine, no fighting," Satan said as she conceded defeat.

* * *

As they made their way to the palace parking lot, Shawna stopped running and looked back at the city. She still had tears in her eyes and she didn't want to leave. Somewhere, deep in her heart, she knew that if she left then she would never see Shinichi again. King Edward stopped and looked at his daughter and knew what was possibly going through her mind. Still, her next action caused him to nearly have a heart attack on the spot. Shawna began to run back towards the direction of the battle.

"No, Shawna! Don't, you mustn't go that way!" King Edward called out but, even in her dress, she was fast.

"Princess, stop!" Anthony shouted.

"Princess Shawna, you'll die if you go back there!" Chris called after her as he ran to catch her.

"Shawna, stop this foolishness at once!" Sylvia called out as well as she too ran after Shawna.

"I apologize everyone, but if I do not go back then I have a bad feeling that Sir Shinichi will die!" she shouted back to him as she ran past the palace and through the city. '_Please, just hold on Sir Shinichi, I'm sure that the others will be there to assist you soon!_'

* * *

(_**Insert Song: Ranbu no Melody – By: Sid**_)

As they exited the Teleportal, Alan and Yuji both assumed their Sentinel and Transcended forms respectively. Looking in the direction that Genovia was located in, they flew off into the air. It would only be a matter of moments until they reached the kingdom.

"Okay, what's the plan, Alan?" Yuji asked.

"Simple, we kill this thing and save my brother," Sentinel said but then found himself getting shot down to the ground.

"What the hell?-!" Yuji exclaimed as he looked above them. Flying high in the sky were futuristic fighter jets. They had the symbol of OROCHI emblazoned on their wings and they had laser cannons mounted on them. "What the hell are those thing?-!"

"Cyber Destroyers," Sentinel replied as he floated back up to him. "They're unmanned robot jets. I remember seeing files for them from some of the blueprints we took from Shiro's Dark Xrosser."

Yuji groaned, "Ah man, the bastard's dead and yet he still finds ways to fuck with us even from beyond the grave."

"Tell me about it," quipped Bazel. "Well, how about you guys take care of these things quickly so that we can go help Shinichi."

They didn't have to be told twice as they took to the air and began entering a series of dog fights with the Cyber Destroyers. Yuji flew between a group of them, using the drag from his body to try and knock them out of the sky but the Cyber Destroyers just righted themselves. Yuji mumbled a curse under his breath but then found himself dodging laser fire from another group of Cyber Destroyers.

"Don't fuck with me!" Yuji shouted as he inhaled and then exhaled an immense stream of dragon fire at the Cyber Destroyers, taking a few out as explosions rang through the air.

Sentinel, meanwhile, just took the laser shots by erecting an energy shield in front of him while flying straight through a set of Cyber Destroyers like a bulldozer, destroying them instantly. He was about to take out a few more when he got shot in the back by a single Cyber Destroyer that was coming at him from behind. Sentinel's eyes began to glow red as he fired his heat vision at the Cyber Destroyer, clipping its wings and sending it crashing into another three Cyber Destroyers below it.

"Next time, try shooting me from the front," Sentinel chortled as flew at another Destroyer and grabbed it by the nose of its elongated body and used it like a club, bashing it into another seven Cyber Destroyers, causing them all to explode.

"Nice shot, Alan," Yuji complimented as he created fire claws around his hands and then lashed them out like flying daggers at the Cyber Destroyers, take over fifteen of them out in a single stroke. "Man, is it me, or is this too easy?"

"Yuji…" Alan warned until he heard the sound of more Cyber Destroyers approaching. He and Yuji looked to their left and right to see about another one hundred Cyber Destroyers coming right at them. Alan glared at Yuji, "You just had to say it, didn't you?"

"So sue me!" Yuji shot back as slashed a Cyber Destroyer to pieces before looking back at Alan. "Now let's stop wasting our time with these guys and take them out now. If we don't hurry, then there's no telling how long Shinichi will be able to hold out."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Alan said as he fired a combination of his heat vision and green energy blasts at the oncoming Cyber Destroyers.

(_**End Song: Ranbu no Melody**_)

* * *

(_**Insert BGM: What do you see in their eyes – Bleach: Fade to Black OST**_)

Showa constantly jumped through the air as he did his best to avoid Dreigon's powerful energy beam attacks but every time he got airborne, the Cyber Dragon would knock him back to the ground either with a slash from his energy claw covered talons or from a powerful smack from his tail. Showa could barely avoid the attacks at all as he was low on energy and, if Dreigon kept firing those beam attacks, then sooner or later he was going to get hit.

Showa looked behind him and saw the right head of Dreigon's body come at him with its mouth agape, preparing to swallow him whole. Showa rolled out of the way, only for the left head to came at him and engulf him.

"Oh, this is so gross," Showa said to himself as he used whatever strength he had left to pry open the mecha-dragon's head. The mecha-dragon head would not let Showa have the upper hand and it tossed him into the air. "WHOA!"

Showa was now airborne and looked at Dreigon and saw the dragon aim its tail at him. The twin buster cannons began to glow before firing a twin beam blast at him. Acting quickly, Showa transformed his feet into rockets and propelled himself out of the way. But not fast enough as one of the beams just barely grazed his shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain. Dreigon then shot a ball of dark energy from his main mouth which struck Showa and sent him hurtling right into the ground.

As Showa lay there, barely able to stay conscious, Shawna appeared next to a building and saw Showa near deaths door. King Edward, Anthony, Chris and Sylvia soon caught up to her and what they saw just sent waves of fear down the spines. Showa was going to lose.

"Sir…Shinichi…no," Shawna said quietly as tears began to stream down her cheeks once more. Anthony and Chris kept a firm hold on her shoulders so that she wouldn't do something stupid and run to him if Dreigon were to attack.

As they watched the battle they soon noticed a silver and blue beam of light appear next to them. After a few seconds, the light vanished, leaving the forms of Satan, Rena and Tsukuyomi in its place.

"Ms. Rena, Ms. Satan, what are you doing here?" Shawna asked.

"We're here to do the one thing we can do for Shin-kun," Rena began.

"And that's to cheer him on," Satan finished. Shawna smiled at knowing that the other girls were still there to stand by Shinichi's side but as Rena, Satan and Tsukuyomi saw the state he was in, they all began to grow desperate. "Alan and Onii-sama better get here soon."

"Don't worry, if I know those two, they'll make a flashy entrance," Tsukuyomi said but she too was worried. '_Shinichi…don't you dare die on me. If you die…then I'll kill you a thousand times over._'

Showa's armor was cracked in so many places it looked like it was about to shatter and his bodysuit had tears all over. As he slowly picked himself up, he was suddenly scooped up by Dreigon who held the Rider in a firm grip within his clawed hand.

"**You have fought valiantly, Halfling. I am impressed with your bravery and courage and, to show you my respect, I will make your death as quick and as painless as I can**." And with that, Dreigon slammed Showa down into the ground, hard, causing Showa to scream loudly as he coughed up blood, the crimson liquid actually spluttering out from the cracks in his helmet and seeping down his head. The others could only watch in horror as Dreigon was about to deliver the finishing blow.

(_**End BGM: What do you see in their eyes**_)

Looking up at Dreigon who was now slightly hovering above him, Showa cursed to himself at how powerless he was against this beast. They had defeated the Orochi of legend but that had been a team effort and they had united into a single warrior. Thinking back to the events that took place over the past year, he began to recall that whenever he was in this much trouble, he always had either Alan or Yuji to have his back. But now he was all alone in this battle. In the heat of the moment, he had given in to his pride and his determination to at least give Shawna and the others time to escape. He then thought of the others. Yuji was stronger than him and so was Alan and it ate him up inside. He was jealous of their power and he felt like he was being left behind. He let himself think that he could defeat this monster on his own and now his actions were about to get him killed. He didn't want to die though. He wanted to see Rena, Shawna and Satan again. He wanted to have a family and teach his kids right from wrong. He wanted to give them the one thing he was never able to have…a childhood.

'_Damn it! It can't end like this!_' Showa screamed in his mind. To hell with his pride! Sure, Alan and Yuji were getting stronger by the day! So what? They were his friends and Alan was his little brother. Heck, even Hanyuu was stronger than him and she made sure he knew it. All he wanted was to be able to catch up with them. He felt like he was being left in the dust and that soon he wouldn't be needed anymore. How could he have let his own selfish pride and doubt cloud his judgment? Just because he wanted a family doesn't mean he should sacrifice the world to have a normal life. In fact, being a hero was more normal for him than just being a normal civilian.

Seeing the teeth of Dreigon and hearing his deepening growl, Showa really began to think about the battle as if it was his final moment of life. After hurting Keiichi the way he had done back then and finding out his best friend had become a type of Darkloid Kamen Rider, he began to doubt himself even more. It became too much that he quit. How could he quit? He only quit because he was getting his friends caught up in his battles and now they were getting hurt.

So, why did he decided to transform and fight now? He looked behind him and noticed King Edward and Princess Shawna watching on in horror and fright as they saw Showa losing his battle. He could also see Chris and Anthony and Sylvia there as well but he was shocked to see Rena, Tsukuyomi and…Satan, she was there too. He then looked at all of their eyes. It was that frightened look in their eyes, in Shawna's eyes, in Rena's eyes, in Satan's eyes, that made him snap in realization. He finally understood. Looking back up at Dreigon as he began to power up another one of his deadly energy blasts, he aimed his hand up at his central core and took aim, preparing to fire his Lucifer's Cannon. It was his final option.

"I…I…I REFUSE TO LET IT END HERE!" Shinichi shouted at the top of his lungs. Everyone looked at him as the angelic wings began to appear around his body and arm, his fist forming into a cannon. "No matter what happens, I'll keep on fighting. I'll fight for them! Not because I'm a hero, not because I'm a knight of Genovia, and not because I'm a Kamen Rider!" The images of his friends and family and even the legendary Riders began to pass through his mind until they were all standing in a group, smiling. He then thought about Shawna, Rena and Satan. They were his whole world. He would never abandon them, never again. "I will protect Shawna-chan, Rena-chan, Satan-chan and everyone else and it's not because I'm a Kamen Rider! It's because…it's because I'm me! It's because I'm Shinichi Banabara!"

The energy of the Lucifer Cannon began to glow as did the Dreigon's energy beam when, all of a sudden, a bright light appeared in the sky above them.

**SLICE!**

Looking before him, Showa noticed that something had pierced and sliced through Dreigon's heavily armored body and was now levitating before him. Dreigon howled in pain as he backed away, his energy attack dissipating. Looking at the object in front of him, Showa saw the form of a beaten and rusted broadsword that resembled a Claymore. Everyone within the area noticed this as well and Shawna just gawked in shock and awe. It resembled a sword that a knight would use. Tsukuyomi also recognized the sword as one of legend. She couldn't believe that THE sword was here now and in front of Shinichi.

"I don't believe it. It's the Sword of Ascalon," Tsukuyomi said quietly but just loud enough that Satan heard her.

"Eh, that's the Sword of Ascalon?-!" she shouted in shock. Everyone else looked at her and Tsukuyomi and the Moon Goddess just nodded. Things were getting interesting.

'_Well, well, Shinichi, you just earned a lot more respect from me. Consider it an honor_,' Tsukuyomi thought to herself with a sly smile on her face.

Showa, depowering the Lucifer Cannon and reforming his hand, cautiously lifted himself up off his back and, carefully, took the hilt of the sword within his right hand. In that instant, his body was covered in a bright white light as his mind suddenly went blank.

* * *

As they flew through the air at top speed, Sentinel and Yuji were just about to make it to the battlefield when both of them felt an intense surge of mystical and divine energy beginning to flood all over the land. And not just divine energy but dark energy as well.

Bazel called out to Alan, "I don't believe it. This energy…it's coming from Genovia!"

"But what's causing it?" Sentinel asked.

"I don't know but step on the gas and get there fast, partner," Bazel instructed and Sentinel nodded.

"Let's go!" Yuji shouted as they flew as fast as they could to Genovia.

Within a few moments, they arrived at the spot and could see the Cyber Dragon backing away from the bright light and they also noticed Tsukuyomi, Satan and the others down below, shielding their eyes as well.

* * *

_It had been a long time since he had last been here but, once again, Shinichi was standing within the field of the meadow of his dreamscape. Looking around, he noticed the forms of the thirteen legendary Riders, Kuro, Shinji, Zennin, Gokuaku and Yabuki standing there and they each had a smile on their faces…well, except for the Riders due to them wearing their helmets and Kuro for obvious reasons._

"_Hey guys, what am I doing here?" Shinichi asked, noticing that he was no longer in his Rider form._

"_Because you have finally rediscovered your resolve, Shinichi," Ichigo said proudly._

"_That and also because it seems we got a new roommate, kid," Gokuaku snorted as he jutted his thumb behind them. _

_The group parted and Shinichi looked past them and noticed that there was a new Tsukumogami standing there. His body was covered in a jagged and draconic looking armor that was a royal blue color with gold trim and a big red gem on the front of his chest plate. He had a long blue cape attached to the back of his armor and a huge and lethal looking Claymore-type sword with a dragon-shaped guard strapped to his back as well._

"_Huh, who are you?" Shinichi asked while scratching his head. He had never seen this spirit before. Could he be here after he grabbed that glowing sword?_

"_I, lad, am known as Saint George, the spirit of the Sword of Ascalon," the spirit, known as Saint George greeted._

"_Sword of Ascalon?" Shinichi questioned. He was studying history in college but had yet to come up on anything with that name before._

"_Shinichi," Super-1 called out to him. "The Sword of Ascalon was once used by the knight known as Sir George, the very knight which Dreigon told you about. He used his sword to defeat Dreigon. Since then, it is believed that the sword has great mystical powers as the dragon could not have been harmed by any mere weapon which was forged by man. Many believe that Sir George was chosen by God to slay the dragon. The dragon itself was sealed under the land which would later become Genovia. The sword itself acted as that seal by piercing the dragon's heart, keeping it in a constant state of suspended sleep and to never be awakened."_

_Shinichi just gazed at St. George and whistled in appreciation. "Man, you must have been one powerful weapon which meant that Sir George must have been one heck of a knight to be able to wield you."_

"_Indeed he was, lad," St. George confirmed. "As such, I took his name as my own after he died. He was a great and noble knight…and a good friend." He then looked at Shinichi and gave him a stern look. "You though, forgot your calling and even denounced yourself as a hero. I had wondered what it was that made these people, these spirits and the kingdom of Genovia see you as such but now I have my answer. You simply just lost your way."_

"_Yes, I did," Shinichi replied in a sad tone. He then looked back at St. George with a determined look on his face. "But I've found my way back. Even if my friends end up getting caught in the crossfire, I know they can handle it because, like me, they can do anything if they put their hearts and souls into it." He clenched his fist as he grew more determined. "For years I fought to protect them from both my darkness and my past. But I can't do that if all it will do is bring me guilt and weigh me down. So what I will do is protect them as best I can but also make sure that I show them how to be prepared. I can't always be there for them so it's best that they know how to help themselves as well. That's all I can do as their friend; to better prepare them for the future."_

_St. George just looked at him for a moment and then walked forward. Coming to a stop before Shinichi he then placed a hand on his shoulder and nodded. "Now that is what I wanted to hear. A true friend would not only protect his friends but teach them how to protect themselves as well. That's the sign of a true friend, a true hero and a noble knight." St. George then removed his sword from its sheath and held it before Shinichi. "Now, take my sword and use my power to become a knight once more. Become a force of chaos and order and smite that damned mechanical demon, lad."_

_Shinichi took hold of the sword, albeit a bit slowly, and then nodded. He understood what he needed to be done and then smiled in recognition. As he held the sword he soon noticed three more pairs of slender hands wrap themselves around his and around the hilt of the sword. Looking to both his right and left, Shinichi noticed the spirit forms of Satan, Rena and Shawna standing there with him, holding onto the sword as well._

"_Shin-kun, gambatte," Rena said before kissing him on the lips._

"_Sir Shinichi, I believe in you," Shawna added as she too gave him a kiss._

"_Shinichi…gomen…and…make sure to kick that dragon's ass," Satan told him before kissing him as well. After she broke her kiss, she added, "And makes sure to land in a few good hits for this one as well." Satan placed his hand on her belly and Shinichi could feel his unborn child cheering him on in spirit._

_Shinichi just smiled at them and nodded before hefting the sword and resting it on his shoulder. He then extended his free hand for St. George to take. Smiling behind his mask, St. George took the offered and arm and clasped it in an old fashioned handshake of camaraderie._

"_Good luck lad," St. George said as he locked eyes with Shinichi. _

"_Thank you and…welcome to the team," Shinichi said before blacking out once more._

* * *

Back in the kingdom of Genovia, Showa stood there while grasping the huge and rusted claymore, the ancient Sword of Ascalon. Smiling under his helmet, he understood what he had to do. Looking back at the girls from his place within the blinding light, he then returned his gaze upon Dreigon and glared at him from behind his helmet. The time to act was now. Besides, he had a princess to save, a kingdom to protect and three beautiful women to go home to.

Taking Ascalon in his right hand, he then thrust the sword straight into the air. Then with a swish of his wrist, he swirled the blade of the sword around in a circle, forming a ring of glowing dark and white light. Dreigon saw just barely what Showa was doing from within the white light and growled angrily. He recognized the sword Showa was holding and he would not be sealed again. Charging at Showa, he prepared to fire another blast of energy at him as the intense light died down for a moment.

'_This is for you…minna_,' Showa thought to himself and then yanked the sword back down, the blade hitting the ground and causing the circle in the sky to shatter. The sky turned dark and everyone looked up to see the sun itself had become dark as it glowed; as if an eclipse was suddenly taking place. Shinichi, giving the dragon a glare, then shouted out his new transformation cry, "Bring order to the chaos, SAINT GEORGE!"

In a brilliant flash of light the circle released a glowing black and gold energy dragon which roared as it encircled Showa. The energy dragon itself looked like a European style dragon from the days of knights and kings and emitted a powerful aura. The circle of light then disappeared and the energy dragon's body then shattered and transformed into armor pieces which then merged with Showa's body as waves of black and white energy swirled around him. Dreigon halted his attack at he looked away from the bright light that shone once more before him while the others on the ground shielded their eyes.

After a moment had passed the light died down. Shawna, after uncovering her eyes, gawked and gasped in surprise at the sight of Showa's new form. King Edward and the others did the same as they stared at him in awe. Dreigon just stared on in anger but he could feel the new power rising up from Showa.

'_S-Sir…Shinichi…you look so…so wonderful. Like a true knight!_' Shawna thought as she saw his new armor.

Showa's bodysuit was now a solid midnight black color and the armor was a mix of red and black with gold trim. His thighs had scale mail armor plating on the sides and his boots were emblazoned with dragon scale-like designs. The tops of the boots reached his knees and jutted outwards a bit like horns and his knee pads were round with sharp, pointed tops that stuck out forward a little bit. The back of the feet of the boots had two small scythe-like blades on them and the front had a set of dragon-like claws attached to them. His belt, while still harboring his Trinity Spark Core in the center, had scale-like surface and hanging from it were flaps of armor, similar to what a knight would have worn.

His spaulders were round with gold trim on the bottom edges while his upper arms also sported scale mail armor plating. His forearm gauntlets were black in color with an outer layer that looked like a dragon's hide and was red in color. The red layer had a long horn jutting out past the elbow and the front, over his hands, had green gems situated within them. His hands were also covered in a mix of black and red armor that ended with clawed fingertips. His torso armor had a dual cape on the back that resembled the pattern of dragon wings while his chest armor resembled a dragon's head with two slanted yellow gems that looked like a pair of dragon eyes. It also sported the symbol of an eclipse in the center of it. The armor where the torso armor and shoulder armor met had a set of dragon head fins sticking out and curving backwards as well.

His helmet was mostly black in color with a dragon head motif on the sides and top. The sides of his helmet sported dragon head fins and the front, where antennae used to be, was now formed like a dragon's mouth. His eyepieces were a blood red color and were framed by a set of dragon's teeth while his mouth plate turned completely black. On the top center of his helmet was a yellow gem that flashed with his eye lenses, signaling the end of his transformation. Showa looked at the Sword of Ascalon and noticed that it had changed as well. The hilt was covered in a layer of scale-like leather for a firmer grip and the pommel was round with a cerulean colored gem in the center. The guard of the sword was big and round and covered in armor plating which resembled dragon scales and the center also had a glowing cerulean sphere in the center. The blade itself was almost transparent and glowed with an ethereal blue energy while Showa's body pulsed with an amalgamation of dark and light energy.

Showa swung Ascalon around, performing a kata, before placing his fingers on the flat side of the blade and sliding them up, making a whistling sound. Twirling the sword one last time, he rested it on his right shoulder and stood there proud in his newest form and glared directly at Dreigon.

"**You…what are you?-!**" Dreigon demanded.

"Hikari to Yami no Kishi (Knight of Light and Darkness)! I am…Kamen Rider Showa…Ascalon Form!" Showa declared in a fiery tone. He pointed at Dreigon and added, "Now, prepare to be slain!"

As Showa stood there, ready for the final round, both Yuji and Sentinel flew down and landed next to Tsukuyomi and the others. Seeing the power that their friend now displayed, they began to wonder if he really needed any help at all. Shawna, Rena and Satan just admired Shinichi in his newest form while Tsukuyomi was starting to fantasize a few dirty thoughts that she immediately banished from her mind. Chris and Anthony both whistled in appreciation and King Edward just stood there, amazed at the sight, while Sylvia just smiled and nodded her own compliment.

* * *

"What the fuck?-!" Daichi cursed loudly and everyone in the room just gawked at what they saw on the screen.

As they just stood there looking, the Teleportal came to life and, after a few seconds, Hanyuu, the Gaming Club and the Shinichi's family appeared. After them, it came to life once more, depositing both Yuji's and Alan's harem/family. They had all been called and told of the latest development of how Genovia had come under attack and that Showa was defending it.

Looking over at the others and seeing their faces, Shiori walked over while holding Sho in her arms.

"Ano…what's going on?" she asked, scaring the others out of the stupor.

"Ah hell, don't scare us like that, sensei!" Yokoshima chided.

"Sorry, but you all looked like the unbelievable must have happened." After apologizing she looked at the screen before them all and noticed the Cyber Dragon but also a powerful looking knight that stood before it. "Oh my, is that the dragon you told us about?"

"Yes, it is," Dr. Magi replied as he magnified the image.

"Hey, who's the guy in the armor?" Satoko asked and the other members of the NEO-NUMBERS and team 5D's just looked at her. "What?"

Hanyuu looked at the screen and inspected the warrior.

"Well, who is he?" Hanyuu asked Chiaki while looking at him.

"Well, Hanyuu-chan…that's…that's Shinichi," he replied hesitantly. Hanyuu had been worried about Shinichi for awhile now as he had been acting much stranger than usual.

Upon hearing what Chiaki said, everyone else stood there, shocked for a moment until they all blurted one simple word out in unison.

"EHHHHHHHHHHHHH?-!-!-!-!-!"

Sho looked at the form of the warrior on the screen and smiled. His big brother had become a hero once more and was fighting a dragon like a knight would do in the story books his mother would read to him.

"Onii-chan…sugoi ne," Sho said in admiration and Shiori and Kasai could only smile. Everyone else in the room just nodded dumbly with little Sho's expression.

* * *

Showa (Ascalon Form) stood there and stared down Dreigon from behind his crimson red eyepieces while his body radiated with energy. He had never felt such energy before. Of course, every Tsukumogami was different and each had its own unique energy signature. But the energy of Ascalon was completely different from what he was used to. He could also feel it putting a great deal of strain on his body. That meant he would have to train with this form some time down the road until his body adapted to the energy and he mastered its use.

"Okay, so does anyone want to tell me what the hell we've been missing?" Yuji asked everyone in attendance and they all looked at him and then almost all of them looked over at both Tsukuyomi and Satan. "Well, I'm waiting," Yuji said as he tapped his foot impatiently while folding his arms.

"Onii-sama, remember your manners," Satan warned him. "And prepare to be amazed."

"Amazed by what?" asked Alan as he reverted from his Sentinel form back to human form.

"Shinichi has just achieved a new state of being. His body is now radiating with holy, hell and mystical energy," Tsukuyomi told them.

"Yeah, we kinda guessed that on our way over here, lady," Bazel quipped which got him a scornful glare from the moon goddess.

"Susano-O-dono, please keep your lesser half quiet lest he wishes to become a useless relic," Tsukuyomi threatened and Bazel made gulping sound. "As I was saying, Shinichi is radiating with those three different energies at once because he has now come…into the possession of the Sword of Ascalon."

Yuji nearly face-faulted before righting himself. "ASCALON?-! You mean THE Ascalon?-! The sacred sword that can easily slay any dragon! That Ascalon?-!" Yuji exclaimed. Tsukuyomi and Satan smirked while nodding and Yuji just looked at Shinichi and whistled. "Damn, kid got his mojo back! About time!"

"You know, I thought that energy was strange," Alan said as he gazed upon Shinichi's new form.

"Well, at least he won't feel left behind by you all anymore," Shawna stated which caused the others to look at her. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Wait, you mean one of the big reasons that Shinichi has been all depressed lately was because of us?" Alan asked her.

"Well, yes. He says that you and Sir Yuji keep getting stronger while he just remained the same. Everyone is advancing but he's not so he felt stagnant, as if he was stuck in place. To him, you all were leaving him behind and he foresaw that, one day, you would no longer need him around."

They all thought about what Shawna just told them and it was what Shinichi had told both her and Rena. He never had a chance to tell Satan due to her leaving the way she did but now she was glad that she knew.

"I had no idea that's how he felt," Yuji said quietly and then he ran his hands through his hair in frustration. "Ah damn, and here I was calling us the Three Amigos when we didn't even realize one of our own was depressed," he said to Alan who could only nod in agreement.

"Well," Bazel began, "Let's get over there and help our amigo out!"

"Matte!" Rena shouted out, stopping them before they could even begin to move out. "Let Shin-kun fight this battle on his own. He needs to do this so, please, let him fight alone this time…please."

Alan and Yuji just looked at her and then to everyone else who nodded in agreement with her. They then looked at each other and smiled before nodding to her, which made her smile in return. This was Shinichi's battle and his alone. They would only step in if he asked for help this time.

* * *

(_**Insert Song: Eiyuu Sa – By: doa**_)

Staring one another down, both Dreigon and Showa prepared for the final battle with one another. Using his newfound power, Showa levitated himself into the air as his dual cape transformed into draconic energy wings. Not wasting any time, Dreigon lunged forward through the sky and Showa flew away from the kingdom, leading Dreigon away so that no more damage could be caused.

Opening all three of his mouths, Dreigon charged up a triple particle beam attack and aimed for Showa who was heading towards the mountain that was set behind the kingdom.

"**Revenge Death Gun!**" Dreigon shouted as he fired the spiraling triple beam attack at Showa's backside.

Acting quickly, Showa used the Sword of Ascalon and simply swung it up, the energy from the blade being sent out in the form of a destructive energy wave which collided with Dreigon's attack.

"OI-RYAH!" Showa shouted as she swung his sword again, making another energy wave which not only collided with Dreigon's energy beam attack but also canceled it out and slammed into Dreigon's body, sending the Cyber Dragon down to the ground hard as he wailed in agony.

"**DAMN YOU! JUST WHO IN THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, HALFLING!-!-?-?**"

"Who I am? I'll tell you. I'm just a passing-through knight that's here to visit his princess. Remember that!" As Showa hovered there, spirit energy began to converge next to him and, after a moment, the form of Saint George appeared. "Huh, Saint George, what are you doing out here?"

"Passing on a few dark energy abilities that I picked up during my master's travels. Use them wisely," Saint George told him and then touched his right index finger to Showa's forehead, granting him access to a few new attacks.

"Thanks," Showa said and then he returned his gaze upon Dreigon. The Cyber Dragon fired a single particle beam at Showa but the Rider used one of his newly granted techniques and knocked it right back into Dreigon's mouth. "MAKANKOSAPPO!" Showa shouted as the energy blast had come from his index and middle finger. Twin energy beams, one straight with the other coiling around it, flew and struck their target. Dreigon roared in pain and outrage as his own attack was used against him. Showa was about to press his advantage when he felt his body go weak. "Wh-what's happening?"

"It seems that your body is too exhausted from the earlier battles to sustain Ascalon Form much longer. We need to finish this fight, now." Showa nodded in agreement and soon noticed Dreigon getting back up. "Lad, let us do this together," Saint George suggested.

"Alright, ikuzou!" Showa shouted as both he and Saint George flew straight for Dreigon.

Saint George went first as he did a false swipe at Dreigon who backed away in reflex but soon noticed that Saint George was just transparent. "**An apparition? You think a ghost of a knight can hurt me?**"

"Actually, I'm the spirit of the sword that kept you sealed up for all those centuries," Saint George quipped, causing Dreigon to look at him angrily. "What, you didn't find that surprising now, do you dragon?"

"**I'll kill you! I'll kill you both!**" Dreigon roared but then he roared in pain as he felt the sword of Ascalon cut off his wings. Turning around, he aimed his tail cannons at Showa who instantly vanished out of sight, like he had disappeared into thin air, before reappearing next to Saint George.

"Whoa, super speed?" Showa asked as he saw how fast he had gotten.

"I believe that those Soul Reapers, or what you call Shinigami, call the technique…'Shunpo' (Flash Step). It is also known as 'Sonido' (Sound Ceremony) and 'Hirenkyaku' (Flying Screen Step). But the name doesn't really matter. It's the practicality of the move that counts."

Showa nodded in understanding as Saint George rushed at Dreigon again, this time exploding in a bright flash of light. Using one of his arms, Dreigon covered his eyes but then let out a blood curdling yell and looked back at his tail to see the mechanical appendage missing. He then looked up and noticed Showa and Saint George hovering there, or to be more precise, Showa was standing on the air itself.

"Okay, now how am I doing this?" Showa questioned. "I can't stand on thin air."

"For the moment, your body and the sword are reacting by reflex alone. It will take time but you'll understand everything someday, lad." Saint George then looked down at Dreigon who was powering up another triple beam blast. But the spirit of the sword of Ascalon would not allow the dragon to have his way. "Shinichi, listen, we need to take out Dreigon's extra heads in one fell swoop. Can you do it?"

"Alone, maybe. But together with the rest of the guys in here, definitely," Showa said as he tapped his finger to his head.

Saint George nodded as Showa held the sword before him, the flat of the blade facing him as its center orb glowed with power. Concentrating on what he wanted to do, Showa raised the sword up and then, with one powerful swing, he swung the Ascalon down, cutting the air with his triple energy.

"_RIDER LEGACY SLASH!-!-!_" In a burst of energy, the spirits of the Legendary Riders erupted in the form of black and gold energy and went rushing down towards Dreigon, each one armed with their own Ascalon.

Dreigon let loose his triple beam blast which Showa countered by unleashing another energy wave into the center beam, canceling it out, while the Rider spirits canceled out the other two beams and still carried on as they struck at the two mechanical heads. Ichigo, Nigo, V3, Riderman, X, Amazon and Stronger each struck with vertical, horizontal and diagonal slashes, each one striking the right head while Skyrider, Super-1, ZX, Black, Black RX, ZO and J all performed similar slashes to the left head. The two heads exploded from the force, causing Dreigon to wail in intense pain as he fell to the ground. He wouldn't hit the ground first though s both Showa and Saint George came rushing towards him, the Ascalon taking on the form of a blazing Zanbatou. Both warriors gripped the Ascalon Zanbatou and slashed at Dreigon's chest, causing a huge gash to form in his armored body as sparks and dark blood spilled everywhere while he cried out in pain.

"**No, this can't…THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! I CANNOT BE DEFEATED! I AM THE UNCONQUERABLE DREIGON, DRAGON OF DRAGONS!**" Dreigon roared as he raised his main head and sent the last of his energy into the form of a huge energy blast, the attack aimed straight for the kingdom of Genovia. "**If I die, then I'll take that girl with me!**"

"Oh no you don't!" Showa shouted as he used Flash Step on pure instinct and reappeared in the air and then came down in a flying kick. "_ASCALON…RIDER…KICK!-!-!_" An aura of darkness and light radiated off him, blazing like fire before taking shape. It morphed into the form of an aura dragon of black and gold, with its maw open in mid-roar, its wings spread wide while it soared and its claws posed menacingly. Showa was within the dragon's head as he continued on with his flying kick, roaring along with the dragon. "OI-RYAAAAAAH!"

Dreigon fired the blast and Showa slammed right into it, the power of his Ascalon Rider Kick driving the attack back towards Dreigon. The Cyber Dragon could only stare on in disbelief as his most powerful attack ever was being sent right back at him and by a mere Halfling. Seconds turned into minutes and minutes turned into eternity as Showa's kick connected and he slammed into and through Dreigon's body. In a flash of light, Showa reformed behind Dreigon as the Cyber Dragon just stood there, in complete and utter shock. Dreigon then turned his head back and looked at Showa.

"**Shinichi…Banabara, right?**" Showa nodded. "**Heh, that was a good move. Who would have thought that death would be so grand?**" Looking at Showa, he then formed a smiled with his draconic maw. "**A word of advice Halfling, never lose that spark in your heart. Do whatever you can to protect the ones you love. Get stronger and. keep winning. You're not weak and never…let…anyone…tell you…otherwise.**"

Showa just nodded his head in understanding. "I understand, Dreigon. I'll never give up again. Now may god have mercy on your soul."

**KABOOOOOM!**

(_**End Song: Eiyuu Sa**_)

In a brilliant explosion, Dreigon, the Dragon of Dragons, was no more. Showa stood there as he watched the flames die down, clenching his fists as he fought back tears. He didn't hate Dreigon, he just pitied him. What a waste of a life. But Dreigon fought on his own terms and that, in the end, made him a worthy opponent. Saint George landed next to Showa and returned the Sword of Ascalon to him.

"Well, I look forward to the next time you summon me, lad. Until then, I'll see you in your mind." With that, Saint George waved and returned to Showa's body. Taking a moment to catch his breath, Showa then levitated into the air and headed back towards the others.

* * *

Looking up into the sky, Satan noticed a small glow coming their way and instantly recognized the energy source that she could feel. "Look, it's Shinichi!"

The others looked up and noticed Showa in his Ascalon Form landing before them. He looked at all of them and also noticed Alan and Yuji standing there as well with approving smiles on their faces. He then looked towards King Edward and walked towards him and then, getting down on one knee, took the Ascalon in both hands and presented it to him.

"King Edward, as a royal knight of the Kingdom of Genovia, I present you with the Sword of Ascalon," Showa said. Everyone watched as King Edward gently took the sword from Showa, causing it to revert to its broadsword form.

"I accept this as a token your loyalty to our kingdom, Sir Shinichi. But do know, this sword belongs to you now. But if you so desire, it shall be kept safe here, within the kingdom."

"Thank you your majesty. You don't know ho—" Showa began until his armor suddenly vanished, leaving Shinichi to fall towards the ground as he passed out from exhaustion.

"SHINICHI!" everyone shouted as Chris was quick to catch the young man and laid him down gently.

* * *

Slowly stirring in his bed, Shinichi opened his eyes and noticed that he was in his room within the palace. Slowly sitting up, he suddenly felt a pair of soft hand on his shoulders, instantly noticing that he didn't have a shirt on. Looking over to the person who had stopped him from sitting up, he saw the beautiful face of Satan sitting in a chair next to him.

"Satan-chan…where-?"

"You're still in Genovia. After the battle with the Cybermen and Dreigon, you were so exhausted that you slept for a whole week," Satan informed him which caused him to sit up straight in a panic.

"A week?-! Oh crap, my classes!"

"You don't have to worry about it, Shin-kun." Shinichi looked to the other side of his bed and noticed both Shawna and Rena sitting there as well. "I called the university and told them that you came down with a sudden fever and would be out for the next few days."

"Really? Well, that's a relief." He then noticed that they weren't the only ones in the room and looked forward to see King Edward, Alan and Yuji standing there as well. "Your Majesty…guys…thanks for looking after me."

"Meh, it's no biggie. If anything, we're just glad you got your mojo back," Yuji stated as he gave Shinichi a thumbs up. "Your new form kicks serious ass, bro!"

"He's right, Shinichi," Alan added. Tsukuyomi instantly appeared next to him and noticed that Shinichi was now awake and smiled.

"Well, it seems that you've finally recovered. That's good," Tsukuyomi said and then gave him a stern look. "If you ever throw yourself into another battle like that again I'll kill you myself!" she threatened.

"Hai, hai. I get it." He then looked around at all of them and lowered his head in thought.

"Shin-kun?" Rena asked as she leaned in a bit closer. Shinichi then raised his head with a smile on his face.

"I guess something good came out of that fight after." Shinichi said as he placed a hand on one of his biceps, making a muscle.

"Then, you mean yo—" Satan began but Shinichi cut her off with a kiss.

"Yup, Kamen Rider Showa is back in the game. I can't afford to retire now. Not when I still have you lovely ladies to please with my heroics." The others just sighed as Rena and Shawna jumped into bed and glomped Shinichi with Satan joining them but more carefully than the others.

"Yup…it's official," Alan said. "My idiot pervert of a brother is back."

Alan and Yuji then walked forward and held their hands out with Alan's on top of Yuji's. Shinichi looked at the hands and then placed his on theirs. "Yeah, we're the Three Amigos. Now and forever!" The three of them raised their hands, rekindling their strong friendship. They would be there to back one another up…always.

* * *

"Is that so?" Dr. Magi asked as he looked at a screen that shows Alan's face. "So, that new form we saw Shinichi is called Ascalon form and is powerED by the Sword of Ascalon? Interesting. Dr. Washam and I will want to run a few tests once he's feeling better."

"_Of course, Dr. Magi. We should be heading back to the base tomorrow. Even if the jamming station is destroyed, we still want to help clean up what we can of the kingdom_," Alan told him.

"Very well. We'll see you tomorrow." Dr. Magi then disconnected the communication and was about to begin his next journal entry when the door to his office opened. Looking over, he noticed Daichi standing in the doorway. "Oh, Daichi, come in."

"Thanks Doc," Daichi said as he walked over. Dr. Magi noticed the serious look on his face and began to wonder what was wrong.

"What is it? Is something the matter?"

"Well, ya see…we forgot to mention something back in our report from our mission to Siberia."

"Oh, and what's that?"

"Well, while we were there, we rescued this man and a robot from a pair of cryo-stasis pods. It seems they somehow got into the facility."

This bit of news shocked Dr. Magi as only those who worked for both GIN-SHOCKER and X-SHOCKER should know of that bases location. With a worried look on his face, he pried into Daichi's knowledge of the situation.

"Did you happen to get their names?"

"Not really. But I can recall the robot calling the man 'Doctor' and the man calling robot…Argo…Argenk…well, something that starts out with A, R, and G as the first three letters."

Dr. Magi thought about this. He began to go over a list of names in his mind but couldn't think of anyone straight away. "Is there anything else you can tell me?"

"Sorry Doc, that's all I can remember."

"Oh well," Dr. Magi said with a sigh. "Well, go get some sleep Daichi. You should know that Shinichi will be back tomorrow and that he's returning to active duty. Seems that dragon was able put the fire back in him…no pun intended." Daichi's eyes briefly lit up and then he gave Dr. Magi a small salute before exiting the room. '_Hmm…I wonder. It couldn't be __**him**__…could it?_'

* * *

As the other members of the NEO-NUMBERS went to their quarters for the night and their guests used the extra rooms for the evening, inside the infirmary Keiichi began to stir as his eyes darted back and forth under his eyelids. As he continued to dream, a crimson red light began to emit from underneath his sheets. Keiichi's power…was starting to wake back up.

* * *

**KR CHROME: It's a reversal of roles here. This chapter, along with the two chapters previously, were written by none other than Toku Warrior. I just helped edit here and there. Anyway, it looks like Shinichi's finally returned to the game. Hopefully, he won't go emo on us again.**

* * *

**SHOWA OMAKE THEATRE**

Within Shinichi's subconscious, the Rider spirits and the Tsukumogami were holding a welcoming party for their newest member, Saint George.

"Welcome to the club, Knighty!" Gokuaku cheered. "KAMPAI!"

"KAMPAI!" everyone else cheered.

"Do not call me 'Knighty', ogre." Saint George shot back at Gokuaku.

"First off, I'm an oni, and second, lighten up a bit."

"I do no 'lighten up'. A true knight is always on guard and prepared for the next battle," Saint George said with determination. Gokuaku just grinned and looked over at Kuro who was joining them.

"Hey, Kuro, you still got 'the book'?" Kuro looked at Gokuaku and nodded before producing a book from his jacket. He then handed the book to Gokuaku who then pulled Saint George over to him and handed him the book. "Here, read this. Shinichi's mother wrote this book and it's a very good read."

Saint George didn't like how Gokuaku was smiling at him but what harm could a book do as long as it wasn't a magic book. Opening the book, he began to read it and noticed the illustrations before his eyes began to widen. Then, in a fit of pure horror, Saint George tossed the book away while holding his hands to his eyes.

"AHHHH! The horror! My eyes! They burn from lecherous sacrilege!"

Everyone else just sighed while looking at the scene Saint George was causing. Gokuaku just smirked and said, "Welcome aboard, pal. And congrats on passing your initiation!"


	126. The Legacy of Cain Part 70

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 70: Path to Power Phase 1**

**By: Toku Warrior**

Sitting in his room within his apartment, Shinichi sat in a lotus position while reciting a meditative chant that Alan had taught him. The meditation was supposed to help Shinichi in learning better control and focus with his powers. It was reasoned that, whatever Shiro did to seal away Shinichi's temporal powers, Shinichi himself would have to unseal them. It was going to take time though. So, in order to better prepare himself for future events, Alan taught him some of the meditation techniques that his own mother and father had taught him when he'd been younger. A big upside to this type of mental training was that it had a small side effect where he was finding himself to become much closer with the Tsukumogami spirits that inhabited his mind.

Sure, he had done similar types of mental training before to connect with Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki and form a good partnership with them, but with St. George, whose power was vastly different when compared to their own, Shinichi was finding himself having to train even harder due to the immense strain that the transformation put on his body. For the moment, he could only maintain Ascalon Form for no more than five minutes at best before the transformation would cancel out. Then there were the new spiritual attacks and techniques that used Shinichi's own hidden inner Youki (demon energy) and Reiryoku (spiritual energy). Mastering such energy had not been a problem before but it still took time and, for the moment, he had a bit of time to spare and both Alan and Yuji said it would be best to spend some of his free time training with St. George in order to master the Sword of Ascalon. If he could master the weapon and the powers it granted him, then he would be one step closer to gaining even greater strength.

But, for the moment, St. George was more interested in making sure Shinichi could develop, use and master the spiritual techniques he was teaching him. While he could easily use them while in Ascalon Form or possibly in any of his other forms, he had both the ability and the potential to use the techniques outside of his transformations. If he could achieve that level of mastery, it would make him that much stronger.

Breathing in and out, taking slow breathes, Shinichi concentrated as his mind slowly faded to nothingness as he made his way towards his dreamscape for his next round of training. George did say he some special training for him today and the other Tsukumogami were actually looking forward to what Gokuaku called 'entertainment'.

* * *

_Walking through the dreamscape contained in his subconsciousness, Shinichi saw Shinji receiving a piggyback ride on Gokuaku's shoulders while Zennin and Kuro played a game of Chess and Yabuki sat in his own lotus position with his sword across his lap, finding his own inner peace. Looking around a bit more, he noticed that St. George was nowhere to be seen._

"_Hey, have any of you guys seen St. George? He was supposed to give me another training session today," Shinichi said as he came over next to Kuro and Zennin._

"_Last time I saw the dragon, he was sitting over by the waterfall to cool his temper after Gokuaku made another knight joke," Zennin stated as Kuro grabbed one of his own chess pieces and made his move._

"_Checkmate," Kuro said coolly. Zennin let out a sigh and reset the pieces._

"_New game?" Zennin asked._

"_Might as well seeing as the only other challenge I have besides you is that moody dragon," Kuro quipped. Shinichi just ignored them and headed towards the waterfall._

_After a few moments, he arrived at a small lagoon and saw St. George standing in front of the lagoon facing the waterfall, his own spiritual version of the Ascalon held before him as he meditated._

"_Hey St. George," Shinichi greeted, causing the Dragon Knight to cease his meditation and turn to look at him. "I'm here for today's session."_

"_Excellent, lad." St. George stood up. "Now, as you know I have so far trained you to become accustomed to the flow of the sword's energy as it spiritually unites with your soul," St. George said as he walked over to Shinichi._

"_Yeah, and it's coming along great."The Sword of Ascalon was a difficult weapon to summon and even more difficult to wield unless absolutely necessary. However, with St. George's tutelage and practice, Shinichi was slowly getting used to the sword's power. It wouldn't be long before he could maintain Ascalon Form beyond his current limit._

_St. George nodded as he walked away from the lagoon and deeper into the forest of Shinichi's dreamscape, beckoning the young Rider to follow him. As they walked through the forest, St. George continued his lecture._

"_That is good but it is also somewhat slow." Shinichi knew this and that was why he agreed to the training sessions when he had spare time. "With both your allies and enemies growing stronger by the day, you yourself need to become stronger."_

"_I know."_

"_Good, that is why, until you have mastered summoning and controlling both your Youki and Reiryoku, there will be no further training in using the sword." Shinichi gaped at St. George after what he had just said._

"_But what about–"_

"_No buts, lad. To control Ascalon properly, you must be able to fully control the flow and usage of your own energies. Separate, they are strong. But together, they make you an unstoppable force." They then came to a stop at a canyon and Shinichi looked over at the cliff face and noticed the other Tsukumogami standing there with Kuro and Shinji. They were waiting for the training session to begin. "Now, look into the canyon and tell me what you see."_

_Shinichi did as told and what he saw made him question what today's training was going to really be about. "Uh, well, I see a rocky field with a bunch of swords stuck in the ground."_

"_And that is your training." Shinichi just gave the draconic knight a scrupulous look._

"_Uh…what? How are those swords my training?" St. George just whacked Shinichi upside the head, sending him staggering forward to the canyon. Once on the field, a barrier erected itself, trapping Shinichi inside. "Hey, just what in the hell do you think you're doing!-?"_

"_Listen to me, lad," St. George began. "Those swords represent your light and dark side. The dark half is your Youki while the light half represents your Reiryoku. While both are similar, they are used and felt quite differently from one another. For you to be able to use your Youki and Reiryoku outside battle, you must first discover your true sword."_

_Shinichi looked back at the swords and they were all letting off a bit of a black and white aura from them, indicating the presence of both Reiryoku and Youki. But all the swords looked entirely different. He had no idea how to tell which one was his and there was over a hundred of them. He then looked down and noticed that he was now clad in a pair of black gym pants, a white muscle shirt and a pair of black combat boots. Letting out a sigh and looking back at the swords before him, he moved forward only to stop at the sound of a laughter coming from all around him._

"_What was that?" Shinichi asked. He then heard the sounds of footsteps coming from behind him. Turning around quickly, he saw the visage of five of the most feared evil beings in all of Rider history. "It…it can't be."_

_Standing before Shinichi were five of the most feared beings that he had ever heard about. Standing to the far left was none other than the Neo Metal Life Form, Doras. Standing to the far right was one of the great generals, General Shadow, who was holding up his sword. Standing next to Doras was the eternal enemy and brother of Kamen Rider BLACK, Shadow Moon. Standing next to General Shadow was the kaijin doctor and mad scientist, Ikadevil. Finally, standing in the center of the group was none other than Apollo Geist himself, the red helm clad cyborg whom was holding his Geist Cutter Shield and his long barrel shotgun._

"_So, you are the Rider of this era?" General Shadow said in a despising tone. "I'm not impressed." With that, the five of them charged at Shinichi who just gave St. George a look._

"_Uh, what are they doing here?-!" He tried to make sense of what he saw. How could the enemies of the Legendary Riders be here? Then he figured it out. He possessed the power of the Legendary Riders, as well as their combat experience so these guys were part of the memories of the Legendary Kamen Riders. These were the enemies that they had defeated in the past._

"_They're here to help move things along," St. George informed him as Shinichi jumped back after ducking a slash to his head from one of Shadow Moon's swords. "This test will end once you find the right sword. But be forewarned, you only get ten tries."_

"_What!-? Only ten? But there has to be over a hundred over there!"_

"_Oh, stop your bitching and hurry up before those guys kill ya, ya dope!" Gokuaku taunted._

_Shinichi just shot him the middle finger and then began to run for his life, trying to gain a bit of distance. Doras and Shadow Moon would not let him get far as they both released a surge of red and emerald green lightning bolts at Shinichi, hitting the ground behind his feet and sending him flying._

"_Whoa! Ooph!" Shinichi hit the ground hard but he also landed next to the small valley of swords. Pushing himself up and looking back to see that the five Showa villains were just taking their time with him, Shinichi looked at the swords and raised his hand, trying to see if he could feel out the right one. 'Come on…where are you?'_

_Extending his senses out, he focused his mind on any form of energy that felt vaguely familiar to him. After a moment, he came across two that were close by and opened his eyes, spotting them._

"_Yes, there it is!" Shinichi said as she clenched his fist. As he prepared to move he suddenly found Apollo Geist coming right up beside him._

"_Going somewhere, boy?" Geist asked as he backhanded Shinichi with his shield, sending the young Rider flying as he tried to use his arms to block the strike._

_Hitting the ground with a dull thud, Shinichi got up and soon found himself in both Shadow Moon and General Shadow's sights as they brought their swords down. Reacting quickly, Shinichi jumped backwards and then rolled to the side as Ikadevil fired an Ika-Missile right at the spot where he had landed just a second earlier._

'_Man, these guys are serious!' Shinichi then spotted the first two swords again and made a run for it, all the while with Shadow Moon and Doras firing their lighting bolts and Ikadevil firing his Ika-Missiles. Explosions rang throughout the area as Shinichi finally made it to the first sword. "Alright, it's time I whooped some serious ass!" Shinichi shouted as he took hold of the hilt of the first sword, only to receive one of the most violent electric shocks he had ever been dealt with in his whole life. "Ahhhhhh!" he screamed as he fell to the ground, holding his hand. He then looked as the sword shattered and disappeared. Looking over at St. George who was now standing next to Kuro and the others, he gave the draconic knight a glare._

"_Oh, did I forget to mention that by choosing the wrong sword, you'll be in for quite a shock?" St. George told him in the form of a pun._

"_Yeah, I think ya did ya smart ass!" Shinichi shouted but then ducked as Apollo Geist shot a bullet straight at him, the bullet just barely missing him as he ducked. "Hey, watch where you're pointing that thing!"_

"_Oh, so sorry," Apollo Geist apologized in a faux tone. "I meant to hit you between the eyes. Next time," he began as he took aim, "I won't miss."_

_**BANG!**_

"_Oh fuckberries!" Shinichi swore, using Yuji's famous catchphrase as he jumped up and grabbed the hilt of the second sword, once again getting shocked in the process before the sword shattered away._

"_Che, this is too easy," Shadow Moon chortled at having to fight such a boring opponent._

* * *

_With the third sword, Shinichi once again grabbed the wrong blade and found himself getting shocked and sent to the ground hard. Pushing himself up in pain he ran as Doras came down on top of him with a falling stomp, the impact to the ground causing it to crack as a crater formed under Doras' body. Focusing his mind again, he located the fourth sword and ran to grab it, only to get shocked again. Falling backwards, he soon found himself being caught by General Shadow who lifted Shinichi up and then dropped him, slamming a sidekick into the Riders' gut and sending him flying across the field before slamming into the blade of a big claymore, back first._

"_Get up boy! We are far from finished with you!" General Shadow demanded._

* * *

_Gokuaku and Kuro watched with some glee in their eyes as Shinichi fought for his life while Yabuki and St. George were keeping score of how many swords Shinichi had tried to grab. Zennin stood next to Shinji, covering his eyes during the moments when he should not see what was going to happen._

"_How many tries has he gone through again?" Kuro asked._

"_I believe he's gone through seven for the moment," Yabuki replied until they all heard Shinichi scream out in pain at being shocked for an eighth time. "Correction; that would now be eight times he's tried and failed."_

_St. George looked on and silently prayed that Shinichi would get it right. He knew of a quick and easy way to help Shinichi find out which sword he needed to grab but he wanted the young Rider to discover that secret on his own. If he helped him now, then Shinichi would have attained nothing._

* * *

_Shinichi was panting heavily as he jumped out of the way from a punch that came from Shadow Moon but then found himself getting kneed in the gut by Doras, causing Shinichi to double over. Holding his aching stomach and completely exhausted, Shinichi looked up at his opponents, only to get a kick to the chin from Apollo Geist, sending him right into another sword in the shape of a cleaver._

_(**Insert BGM: Cometh the Hour Part 2 – Bleach Hell Chapter OST**)_

'_A cleaver?' he asked himself mentally and then reached out to grab it, only to get shocked again for the ninth time. The sword shattered but the hilt was still gripped tightly in his hand. Shinichi was now on the ground, covered in bruises and cuts and bleeding all over. Not only did the barrier strip him of his transformation ability but it also made his other powers useless. At the moment, he was as weak as the average human being., and he hated the feeling of feeling so…so…helpless. 'Why…why…WHY CAN'T I FIND THAT DAMN SWORD!-?' He balled his fists up in anger as he just rested there on the ground on his hands and knees._

_The five villains all laughed as they slowly approached the defenseless Rider. Shinichi just sat there on his knees as he looked up at the sky with a bloodied face and eyes doused in tears. He wanted to get even stronger. He wanted to master the Ascalon and use its power to protect the world that he and his friends and family loved so much. But even as an all powerful super cyborg, even he had his limits without the aid of transformation and his augmentations. And he had reached those limits. He knew he had Youki within him due to his demon blood and he could also sense a hint of Reiryoku within him as well but he just couldn't find the sword that was the manifestation of his inner power._

"_Kuso!" Shinichi cursed as he slammed his fist into the ground. "I just… (an image of Rena appears in his mind)…I just… (an image of Shawna appears next)…I just… (an image of Satan appeared last)…I just…" he continued. He couldn't figure out why he wasn't able to pinpoint the sword and he had been at this task for nearly thirty minutes now. _

_He was utterly helpless now. He felt the same as back when Dreigon was about to blow him straight to hell. He remembered how he just wanted to protect the girls that he loved. At the moment he wasn't a Rider or a hero but just plain old Shinichi Banabara. He was just him and him alone. He had rediscovered what he was fighting for and his girls had even helped him in solidifying his resolve to—_

'_That's it! The girls! When they entered my dreamscape I could feel them actually uniting their souls with mine. And, at that same moment, I could also feel both my Youki and Reiryoku well up from within, merging into a force that would be used to drive Dreigon back.' Shinichi realized as he finally found a way to focus on his own inherent energy. Focusing on that same feeling he felt when Rena, Shawna and Satan were there, holding the sword of Ascalon with him, he let his mind wander as he searched out the sword. 'Okay, where are you?' His mind then snapped with instant recognition. _

_Opening his eyes, he looked forward to see all but one of the remaining swords disappear. The villains, Kuro, Shinji and the four Tsukumogami all looked on with startled looks. St. George looked at Shinichi with recognition and a hint of pride in his eyes._

'_Well done, lad.'_

_Getting up, Shinichi made a mad dash for the sole remaining sword but the five villains would not make it easy for him. They fired everything they had at him and hit right where he was currently located at only for Shinichi to suddenly perform Shunpo, instantly disappearing and reappearing right next to the sword. Taking a deep breath, Shinichi grabbed the hilt and pulled the sword out. Amazingly, it didn't shock him but, instead, flooded him with an immense amount of Youki and Reiryoku. It was an all too familiar energy that he had used on a few occasions but only on instinct. But now, seeing as he had found his way to recognizing and harnessing that energy, he would train to control it at will._

"_It can't be!" General Shadow yelled as he blocked out the blinding combination of black and bluish-white light. _

_Shinichi's Youki and Reiryoku filled the entire area of the canyon. After a moment of the power releasing itself, Shinichi looked down at his body and noticed that his injuries were all gone. Not only that, he was also covered in a new outfit. It looked like black leather pants with a black leather jacket with a high collar and with the Roman numeral XIII on the left side of the jacket and the image of a cicada on his new black gloves. A black belt wrapped around the jacket and pants, binding them together for a single seamless fit. The back of his leather jacket had a triangular image of the three symbols of his Oni, Kage and Higurashi forms taking points and the draconic symbol of Ascalon in the center._

_Shinichi moved around a bit a performed and few movements and even did a couple of practice katas. Looking at his sword, it resembled a sakabatou which then transformed into a combined version of the Higurashi no Yaiba and the Sword of Ascalon with the Oni Skull acting as the guard and a miniature version of the Dai-Shuriken mounted on the end of the pommel. _

_Doras and Ikadevil both growled and charged at Shinichi who just looked at them and held his new sword out before him. Concentrating on his Youki and Reiryoku, the sword began to pulse with energy until the two kaijin were in close range. Even Shadow Moon, Apollo Geist and General Shadow had joined in on the charge, the five of them wanting to take him down in one fell swoop. But Shinichi would have none of that._

"_Ryuga…" he began as he lifted the sword up above his head, the blade glowing with black and bluish-white energy which then formed into an ethereal looking energy dragon. "DAICHIKUDAKU (Earth Shattering Dragon's Fang)!"_

_Shinichi swung his sword, sending the new technique fly straight for the five villains. The five of them tried to get out of the way but the energy dragon slammed into them, taking them out for good, before continuing on and slamming into the barrier, taking it down as well._

_(**End BGM: Cometh the hour Part 2**)_

"_Whoa, now that's power," Gokuaku said in an impressed tone._

"_Indeed. It would seem that Shinichi is beginning to finally understand his latent powers," Zennin added._

"_Shinichi-oniichan, sugoi!" Shinij shouted._

"_While he has finally obtained his connection to his latent energy, he still has a long way to go," Yabuki added which Kuro nodded to in agreement._

_St. George just flew over to Shinichi and landed in front of him. Shinichi looked at him with a smile on his face as he rested his sword on his shoulder. "Well, lad, that was truly impressive." St. George complimented._

"_Thanks, Sensei." Then St. George's stare grew more serious._

"_But we aren't done yet. Soon the training will intensify so I want you to practice using your Youki and Reiryoku out in the real world after you've learned to summon it with the slightest of effort back at your base."_

"_Sure, that shouldn't be too hard," Shinichi replied and he then looked back at the others before looking back to George. "So, is there anything else on today's agenda?"_

"_No lad, there is not. Go home and rest and spend time with those women of yours for, soon, I will call you to train again. You have until then to gain better mastery of your Youki and Reiryoku."_

"_Understood," Shinichi said with a salute and then waved goodbye to the rest of the gang before closing his eyes, allowing his mind to go blank as he prepared to wake up._

* * *

Opening his eyes and looking out into his room, Shinichi took in a deep breath and then heard the sounds of Rena making dinner in the kitchen. As he got up he also heard Alan's and Lala's voices as well and smiled. It looked like it was going to be a meal for four tonight. As Shinichi stood there, he looked at his hand and could easily feel his Youki and Reiryoku pulsing within his body. Looking over into the full body mirror within his and Rena's room, he looked himself over and then locked eyes with the eyes of his reflection.

For the slightest instant, his sclera turned black while his irises turned bluish-white before returning to their normal coloring. A small smile appeared on his face as he changed clothes and got into his normal pants and shirt and house slippers before leaving the room. It would only be a matte of time until he mastered his growing powers and the Ascalon. He could also tell that someday, he would also regain his temporal powers but he would make sure to never abuse them ever again.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now this chapter was brought to you by Toku Warrior whom I will thank for his contribution. It's just a filler chapter if you must know. Oh, and some familiar faces were present here. You can see General Shadow, Apollo Geist, Ikadevil (Dr. Shinigami), Shadow Moon and Doras. You all know what they look like if you know your Kamen Rider history. Anyway, I know you've all been waiting for an update so this is what you'll be getting until I can get the other chapters organized. Also, you might recognize the canyon filled with swords from Bleach.**


	127. The Legacy of Cain Part 71

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 71: The Lone DALEK**

A tent was being set up in Shishibone Park with a truck parked nearby. Two men were unloading crates and rolling them towards the tent. It would've been a good night to work, if it wasn't raining heavily. The rain was also accompanied by thunder and lightning.

"Does the boss really want us to do this tonight?" one of the men, Tetsuro, asked.

"Yeah, he insisted," said Saitoh, the other man.

"But we're getting soaked out here!" Tetsuro complained.

"Then hurry up and help me take all these crates inside!" Saitoh ordered.

"Alright, alright," Tetsuro sighed.

The two men worked for an eccentric collector of odd items. The man would travel all over the world, showing off his collection while charging admission to people to see them. His collection had grown and he only showed off his most recent acquisitions.

A bolt of lightning came crashing, almost hitting a tree. That freaked out Tetsuro and he screamed.

"Did I hear someone scream like a girl?" Saitoh teased as he got out of the tent.

"Shut up!" snapped Tetsuro. "Come on, the big one's the last one."

The biggest crate, nearly the height of a grown man, was the last thing on the truck. It was their employer's latest acquisition and something he'd found in Kyoto months ago. After unloading the crate, which was unbelievably heavy, a stray bolt of lightning struck the crate. There was an explosion and both Saitoh and Tetsuro were thrown through the air.

"WHAT THE FUCK!-?" Tetsuro shouted, adjusting his cap. "THAT CRATE BLEW UP!"

"SHUT UP ABOUT THAT!" snapped Saitoh as he got up. He took in a deep breath to recover. He said, "The boss said that whatever is in that crate is way too important! We better see if it's OK!"

The two cautiously approached the crate, or what remained of it. Splinters of wood laid around a scorched spot of land. Standing in the middle of it was their employer's most prized item. It was smoking, but it didn't seem damaged.

"Well, at least it doesn't look too damaged," said Saitoh. "Then again it was pretty banged up to begin with."

Tetsuro's eyes widened when he saw it and he was about to scream when Saitoh put his hand over his partner's mouth. "Oh, relax!" Saitoh assured him. "It's dead. Been dead for months." He removed his hand from Tetsuro's hand.

"Don't you know what that thing is!-?" Tetsuro shouted, pointing.

"Yup, and it's worth a lot," Saitoh nodded. "Now, help me take it inside before another bolt of lightning strikes."

* * *

**The Next Day…**

"You want me to watch Celine?" Shinichi asked. He was on the phone and Alan was on the other end, asking his older brother for a favor.

"_Well, Nozomu wants me to go with her to her hometown to introduce Adam to her parents_," said Alan. "_And the others are kinda busy that day too; Yami's training Alice, Conda's training Daiki, Amora's gone job hunting, Bishie's at the botanical gardens for her part-time job, Lala is spending the day with her sisters, and Megan's out of town_."

"What about your landlady?" Shinichi questioned. "Doesn't she help take care of Celine when you're at school?"

"_She's at a weekend spa retreat. Taking care of the place can be stressful and she needs to relax once in a while. I think your mother had something to do with that_," Alan informed.

"OK, so just me and Celine, right? For the whole day? Why me?"

"_Well, you have a baby on the way,_" explained Alan. "_This would be good experience for you. And Celine loves spending time with her uncle after all._"

Shinichi could hear Celine happily singing, "_Mau! Mau!_" in the background.

Shinichi sighed. He might as well. Besides, Rena was at the university talking with one of her professors about a project of hers. It was that picture book she was working on, the one she hadn't shown him yet. He was upset that she would keep such a thing from him, but she was allowed to have privacy. He would never invade her privacy, unless it was life or death.

"Alright, fine. But I'm permitted to ask for some form of compensation afterwards," negotiated Shinichi.

"_Sounds good to me,_" said Alan. "_I'll see you later then._"

"I'll be there in an hour. Ja ne," said Shinichi as he hung up.

* * *

Alan put Celine in his lap, smiling, "Your papa can be pretty devious when he wants to be..."

"Mau!" cheered Celine.

He knew this was going to make her upset, but it was the only way to get those two to get along. They wouldn't fight in the presence of a little girl, would they? They weren't that bad. Of course it was always up to Alan to keep them from getting into fights. She had a reason for hating Shinichi, though. After the whole rogue incident, which had taken place at the end of 1987, they hadn't gotten along. It had been over a year and a half since then. She really should learn to let it go. But, Alan knew she could hold a grudge for a very long time.

"I sure hope they don't kill each other," murmured Alan.

"Mau?" Celine asked, looking at her father curiously and worriedly.

Alan smiled as he looked down at his little girl. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll be fine."

* * *

The Showa-Racer stopped in front of the boarding house. In the sidecar was a tiny helmet for Celine to wear. If he was going to watch her, he wasn't gonna do it just sitting indoors. Celine was a flower child, literally, and needed to be exposed to the outdoors. Shinichi had to admit that she was cute, but she hadn't grown much since the first time he met Celine. Rena always tried to kidnap Celine too, which the flower girl just thought was some kind of game. So pure and innocent, Celine was nothing like any of them. Despite being exposed to such danger around her, she would always find something to smile and laugh about. If only Alan's ring could translate what Celine said, though. It seemed that the only other 'person' Celine could communicate with was Junior.

Looking up, he spotted Lockheed the dragon perched on the roof like a gargoyle. He did seem scary, but he was actually a gentle creature and Alice's pet. Though, Shinichi questioned Alan's decision of bringing that egg back from Monster Island. It could've been anything, which could've grown into a giant monster. Sure, they could've sent it to stay in the canyon with the other Power Animals, but how would they explain the creature's presence before? Rumors about Shishibone City's Dragon have already gotten out. Heck, his friends from the Photography Club, Araki and Keima especially, were trying to get Lockheed's picture but the dragon was either too fast or too smart for them.

"Just here to look after Celine," Shinichi said. The dragon stared down at him and bobbed his head once. Holding his helmet under his arm, Shinichi dismounted and went to the front door. He knocked on the door, expecting Alan to greet him, but he got a big shock when the person answering the door was not who he expected.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE!-?"

* * *

Alan shivered as he rode the train with Nozomu sitting at his side. Adam was sleeping in a basket in Nozomu's lap. Nozomu had her head leaning against Alan, asleep.

The three of them were on their way to Hokkaido, where Nozomu's village was located. They could've taken the Teleportal, or even flown there, but Alan really didn't want to freak anyone out. If he'd dropped from the sky or even walked out of a glowing portal, he might cause a panic by suddenly appearing like that. Being on a train with Nozomu meant that he could spend some time alone with her and their baby without any interruption.

Alan was looking forward to this trip. He wanted to meet Nozomu's parents. She had informed him that she'd told them about him and how she had given birth to their child. As grandparents, they had a right to see their grandchild and as parents they had a right to meet Alan and get to know him better. They weren't wed, but Nozomu didn't seem too concerned about that.

As for Saku, well, their first meeting hadn't given Alan a good impression of the guy but Saku was acting on Nozomu's behalf as the typical overprotective older brother. They were on somewhat good terms now, but Alan always kept his guard up against the older Okami Youkai.

When Nozomu felt him shiver, she opened her eyes and gazed at him.

"Is something wrong?" Nozomu asked.

"Just had a bad feeling that a couple of people want to kill me," stated Alan.

"I think your brother just found out what his 'compensation' was," Bazel commented.

* * *

Conda and Shinichi both sat in the boarding house's dining room, with the table between them. Celine was sitting in Conda's lap, completely unaware of the tension in the room. Conda, the Amazon Queen, also known as the Snake Queen, was glaring daggers as Shinichi. The cyborg who was also known as Kamen Rider Showa, was stuck receiving those glares from her. He didn't hate her like she hated him but she was still making him quite uncomfortable.

Celine waved at Shinichi happily and he smiled, a smile which vanished as Conda's glare intensified.

When Conda first met this version of Shinichi, she never expected some immature pervert to be her beloved Alan's brother. He was so much different from the one in their timeline. He was older, wiser, better skilled, and someone Conda could respect. The person sitting before her was not that man.

As for Shinichi, he often felt criticized by the women in Alan's life. They would compare him to his future self and while they hadn't said much, he knew that he really wasn't like his self from the future, at least not yet. He was still young. Of course the animosity Conda directed towards him wasn't due to his immaturity. Over a year and a half ago, Shinichi had gone rogue after Lina's death and went hunting after Gebok. Alan had tried to help him, but Shinichi had coldly refused. Alan was then assigned to capture him, but Shinichi evaded each time. To Conda, she felt that Shinichi had done nothing but cause trouble for Alan since then.

She had yet to forgive him. She also considered his decision to quit not too long ago as cowardly and she made sure he knew this too. It was why they never interacted closely for any amount of time. They'd always avoided each other when they could but now they couldn't.

"There's no need for you to be here," Conda stated, pointing at him haughtily. "I'm more than enough to take care of Celine."

"But Alan was the one who called me," said Shinichi.

"And what proof do you have?" Conda asked, smirking.

"I don't need to offer you proof," he retorted sharply. "He called and he asked me to take care of Celine. And what about you? I thought you were training Daiki right now."

"I did, but then Alan called me and told me to come and look after Celine," answered Conda.

"And Daiki?"

"I left Daiki at the Hive. I'm sure he can take care of himself there."

"So, Alan called you, and me-" began Shinichi.

"Or so you claim," Conda interrupted.

"OK, he called both of us without telling you or me the other was coming," Shinichi continued. "That would mean…" He came to the conclusion instantly and grumbled, "Oh…that son of a bitch." He realized what Alan was up to. "He's so much like Pops. He planned this!"

"Speak clearly," ordered Conda.

"This is Alan's attempt in trying to get us to get along!" exclaimed Shinichi. "Since Celine's with us we won't have time to hate each other and we're forced to either get along, or form a truce, for her sake." Shinichi didn't appreciate Alan trying to force certain things to happen. Sometimes, things just weren't meant to be. '_Little brother, you are so getting one of my swords shoved up your super-powered ass when you get back_!' he thought as he began to envision ways of making his half-brother pay for doing this to him.

Conda sighed. She wanted to deny it but even she knew Alan could be deceptive when he put his mind to it. "Well, it's clear that he made a decision based on poor judgment. Suffice to say you're not needed here."

Celine leapt out of Conda's lap and walked across the table before jumping towards Shinichi. "Mau!" she let out as he caught her.

"Celine, come back here!" Conda ordered.

Celine was nuzzling Shinichi's chest and he smiled. "Well, it looks like Celine-chan wants me around," said Shinichi, smiling smugly.

Conda crossed her arms. Oh, she was so tempted to smack that smug grin off Shinichi's face but Celine was present. "OK, fine! You can stay but I'm watching you!"

"Actually, I was thinking of taking Celine out for a drive," said Shinichi, stroking Celine's hair. Celine enjoyed the feeling. Conda was about to protest but Shinichi beat her to it, "She's a plant, Conda. She needs to be outdoors where there's sunlight."

Conda wanted to argue but no words came out. Shinichi made a lot of sense and Celine did need sunlight. "Alright, fine! But I'm coming with you!"

Shinichi frowned. He couldn't refuse since they were in this together. However, he was going to have a few words with Alan once he returned. '_I have a feeling I might regret this_,' he thought. "OK, you can come along too." His bike had enough space for all three of them anyway.

* * *

As they rode down the street towards the park on the Showa-Racer, Shinichi was constantly looking to his right as he could feel Conda's eyes on him the entire time. Conda herself wanted nothing to do with Shinichi but she would tolerate his presence for the time being as long as Celine was around. Inside the helmets that Shinichi and Conda wore were com-link intercoms but Shinichi decided against saying anything to Conda until they got to the park. But he would have that idea turned upside down as she began to say something to him first.

"Just remember, the moment the day is over, it's back to business as usual," Conda said in a threatening voice.

Shinichi just let out a scoff-type sigh, "Che, whatever Amazon. But until then, you had best behave yourself." Conda gave him a sharp glare while gawking at him in anger.

"_Me_ behave _myself_!-?" she shouted over her intercom. "I should be saying that to you!"

"Well, as hard as it may be for you to believe, I only act like a perverted idiot to my girls and only in the privacy of my own home," Shinichi told her. "I've grown up some and I don't act like a perverted asshole out in public anymore…well, unless I'm trying to get a rise out of Mion or Shion while finding a way to get Satoshi and Keiichi to join in." He snickered, "Got to have some fun while you're still young."

"You are nothing more than a lecherous coward who shuns his responsibilities once you become so overwhelmed with depression," she scolded him.

"Oh, and Alan has never gone through the same crap as I have? I bet if he did the same thing I did then you would be all over him, doing whatever you could to try and cheer him up and help him cope."

"My beloved is much more of a man than you could ever hope to be. Even the you of our timeline is more of a man than you could ever be." This caused Shinichi to pull the bike over and, luckily, next to a pet store. As Celine payed attention to the dogs and cats in the window, Shinichi gave Conda a glare that showed his anger.

"Okay, you know what? I was trying to be nice and calm but now you just decided to piss me off! I'll say the exact same thing I said back at the Hive that day: I am not the me from the future! I am me as I am now so just fucking deal with it!" Shinichi was glad that he gave Celine a helmet that had no intercom so that she could not hear the argument. "I am tired of you always riding my ass about that and about how I acted when I went rogue. I apologized for that over dozens of times and have done as much as I could to make amends for it but it just doesn't seem to matter to you!" Conda just glared at him from behind her helmet. "So I'm going to give you a fair warning: back off! All I want is to try and get along with all of you but you, Conda, make it impossible."

"I don't have to treat a cowardly rogue such as yourself with any form of respect!" she shot back.

"Maybe, maybe not. But you and the others are always comparing me to the future me and it is really irritating. So, how about doing something constructive for once with that sassy mouth of yours?"

"And what would that be, vagabond?"

"You say that the future me is more mature, calmer, wiser and such, right?" She nodded. "Well then, how about you probably, oh I don't know, give me advice from time to time. You know, _constructive_ criticism." She gave him a confused look. "Maybe if you actually tried to help me along so that I could someday be like the me of the future that you respect so much then maybe things would go more smoothly. As if you couldn't tell, I'm still growing and maturing. Even Alan said that some of the things that've happened to me so far have never happened to the future me. So how about a little help from time to time? Some guidance would be nice ya know?"

Conda just stared at him. She couldn't even begin to think of anything to say to him. All she could do was just glare at him in anger and frustration. Shinichi must have been thinking about this for some time now if he brought it up now.

"Listen, I don't care if you ever come to like me or respect me as much as the future me. But know that, as long as you're with Alan, I will always be there. And I will protect the people he loves, as his family is my family. That means you too. So get over whatever hatred you have for me and take that stubborn stick out of your ass and grow up." With that, Shinichi started up the Showa-Racer once more and continued on towards the park. He also made sure to turn off his intercom. He didn't want to talk with Conda any further until they got to the park. He didn't care if they ever spoke again at this point. Lala, Amora and the other girls had come to forgive him for his transgressions but Conda just couldn't let it go. And he no longer cared. Oh, Alan was so going to pay for this when he got back.

* * *

Conda, Shinichi and Celine arrived at the park. Sitting down on a bench, the two watched as Celine ran around, laughing merrily. The two may be sitting on the same bench, but they kept some distance between them. Conda was actually the one who wanted to keep some distance between them and Shinichi was just too tired to argue with her. He was focusing on Celine.

"She's Alan's first daughter, did you know that?" Conda asked, starting up a conversation.

"Is she?" Shinichi questioned.

"She was a plant the first time I saw her. A big, carnivorous plant with teeth," Conda smiled, amused at the memory. "Lala's sister, Momo, thought the thing would be a good present for Alan's birthday and it turned out she was right."

"So, how did she turn from a plant to how she is now?" Shinichi asked.

"Oh, when she thought she was sick it was actually just her going through some off metamorphosis. After that, the Celine you know was born."

Shinichi blinked, "I guess that makes sense." Shinichi watched as Celine played. She climbed up a ladder and went down the slide, only to go up the ladder again to go down the slide once more, laughing merrily.

"So, when are you going to be a father?" Conda asked curiously.

"In a few months," said Shinichi. "Satan's staying in the Kuwadorian in the Meta-World right now, being cared for by Beatrice."

"And do you see her?" Conda asked.

"Yes," said Shinichi.

"How did it feel when you found out she was pregnant?" Conda asked.

"Shocked, very shocked," Shinichi recalled. Satan had just blurted it out on Christmas. "Then I passed out." Conda let out a laugh. "Yeah, I did." He asked, "How did Alan handle the news about Nozomu's pregnancy?"

"A lot better than you," Conda claimed. "And he's doing well as Adam's father. Then again, he's had experience taking care of Celine and Alice."

"Yeah, I envy him," said Shinichi. He may have babysat before but Alan's role as a father was fulltime and Shinichi wasn't sure if he could pull it off.

Celine, giggling, ran over to them and tugged on Shinichi's pant leg. She pointed, crying out, "Mau! Mau!"

"What's up?" he asked.

"She wants you to follow her," said Conda as she got up, straightening out her dress. "Come on, let's see what she wants."

* * *

Celine had wanted ice cream and so Shinichi bought three cones from a vendor. Conda got herself chocolate, the same as Shinichi. Celine was enjoying a cone of strawberry ice cream and eating it messily.

"Slow down," Shinichi chided as he squatted down and used a napkin to clean Celine's face. "At the rate you're going you'll have more ice cream on you than in you."

"Mau?" Celine asked.

"Your father wouldn't want me to let you get dirty," he added.

Conda watched. Celine really did like Shinichi. Then again, Celine had the mind of an infant and couldn't understand most things. She was attached to the people around her, Alan most of all since she imprinted on him and recognized him as a parent. Celine treated everyone as if they were family.

Picking up Celine, Shinichi spotted a crowd nearby. "Hey, what's going on there?"

Conda noticed the crowd too. They were standing in front of a large tent. "The circus must be in town," Conda guessed. This made Shinichi blanch. "Oh, don't like the circus?"

"Had a bad experience with a circus," said Shinichi. "Long story short it was a trap and there was this blob that mutated with every animal it consumed." Conda grimaced. "Come on, let's check it out."

* * *

"'Travelling Museum of Otherworldly Oddities'," Shinichi read the signboard. The crowd was lining up and two men were taking money and handing out tickets. Shinichi, Conda and Celine were in the line too, curious. "Price of admission per person is 2,000 yen." It seemed like a waste of time and money. It was a tent, not exactly a normal venue for a 'museum'. "Are you sure you want to check it out?"

"It wouldn't hurt," said Conda. "Maybe there's something interesting."

"Mau!" agreed Celine who was sitting on Shinichi's shoulders.

"Yo, Shinichi!" Shinichi turned and saw two familiar faces.

"Keima? Araki?" he uttered, surprised to see them. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We were going to ask you the same thing," said Araki. He noticed Celine riding on Shinichi's shoulders. "Oh, who's this?"

"She's my…friend's kid," Shinichi answered. "He's out of town so he asked me to watch her."

"Could I get a picture?" Araki asked as he held up his camera only for Shinichi to close his hand over the lens.

"No," Shinichi answered.

"Shinichi, who are these two?" Conda asked.

"Conda, meet two of my friends from the photography; Araki Tanefuda and Keima Shiraishi," Shinichi introduced.

"Conda, hm?" Keima looked her up and down appreciatively. Her dress really hugged her body and the slit on the side really showed off a good amount of leg. "That's an unusually lovely name."

"I'm from out of town," she answered coolly as she gave him a warning look.

"So, what are you guys doing here again?" Shinichi questioned.

"Araki dragged me over when he heard about this thing going on," said Keima, sighing.

"There were fliers all over town," added Araki. He had his camera with him. "When I found out I had to come here!"

"You know what this is?" Shinichi asked, pointing at the tent.

"It's the 'Travelling Museum of Otherworldly Oddities'!" Araki said, smiling with sparkling eyes.

"Oh boy," groaned Keima. "And here we go again."

"I have a pen-pal who heard about this traveling museum," said Araki. "The owner travels all around, showing off his collection of stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" Shinichi questioned. Araki got close, too close, to the point he was invading Shinichi's personal space.

"Alien…" Araki whispered.

That got Shinichi's attention. He was aware that some aliens had called Earth their new home. Heck, Alan's school had aliens disguised as humans. "Alien?" Shinichi repeated. "Seriously, alien?"

"You don't believe in aliens?" Araki questioned.

Of course Shinichi believed in aliens. Some of his friends were aliens. But he wasn't about to tell Araki that. He'd never leave him alone. "I believe that the universe is a huge place and that anything is possible. It would be arrogant to think that Earth is the only planet in the entire universe that has intelligent life on it."

That answered seemed to satisfy Araki. When their turn came they paid for admission and were allowed entry into the tent.

* * *

"Fake, fake, and fake," Shinichi said as he looked at all the displays. There were things in glass cases and jars standing around inside the tent. People were admiring them but Shinichi wasn't impressed. Even the shelf with jars of 'alien body parts' in them didn't impress Shinichi. "Whoever this guy is should get his refund for his collection because this stuff is fake."

"All of it?" Conda asked.

"Yeah. All I see is a guy who cheats people by taking advantage of their gullibility," commented Shinichi. "It's good work, though. Nice and detailed. Would look great in a movie."

Araki, of course, was convinced by all the items' authenticity and was taking photographs with Keima just chatting up a cute girl he'd met.

There was a stage erected at the other end of the tent. A man called everyone to attention. He wore a brown overcoat with matching pants with black leather shoes. He also wore a white dress shirt and brown vest. His necktie was decorated with eyes. He had short, white hair and a bicycle handle moustache. He also wore a monocle and was carrying a cane.

He spoke into a microphone, "_Thank you for coming, everyone! I hope you're enjoying my collection. I am Doctor Rufus Waldo!_" His Japanese was quite fluent. There was a bit of an accent, which sounded British. He really did look like an eccentric old man. "Now, would you all please take a seat?" There were chairs set up in front of the stage and the guests all sat down. "_Now, as you all know, months ago our world was attacked by alien invaders!_" The alien invaders he was referring too were obviously Shiro and the DALEKs when they were attacking the cities of the world. "_I have a surprise for you all! I have one of those aliens here!_"

Murmurs were heard among the audience. Araki was shaking in his seat while Keima just rolled his eyes, wondering how much time he'd wasted on this.

The two men who'd taken money from tickets earlier were carrying something up onto the stage. It was covered by a sheet of white cloth.

Dr. Waldo grabbed hold of the sheet and he said, "_Now, ladies and gentlemen, I ask you not to be alarmed_. _Let me show you the alien!_" He pulled, unveiling the 'alien'. Shinichi was ready to dismiss it when he saw what it was.

It was a DALEK.

The audience gasped. The creature on stage was just as they remembered it. Saltshaker-shaped with hemispheres covering the lower half, a plunger and egg-whisk attached to the midsection, rings around the neck, a domed head with light bulbs on the side and a metal rod which ended with a metal eyeball.

It didn't bring up pleasant memories, especially for Shinichi. According to Alan, Daleks were alien mutants from the planet Skaro. However, the DALEKs that Shinichi had seen were creations of Shiro's. They were living death machines, containing a living, breathing cephalopod Darkloid within. Originally, they were just pre-programmed machines. They only became true monsters after Shiro planted the Darkloids inside of them, each possessing hatred for the human race.

Demonic and evil machines, and now one of them was standing on stage.

"_Now, don't be alarmed_," implored Dr. Waldo. "_This creature is dead. I found it badly damaged in Kyoto months ago_." The DALEK casing did look badly damaged. It looked like it had been caught in an explosion. However, its body was still intact and Shinichi wasn't sure about the claim of it being dead.

"I saw one of those things outside our home," whispered Conda. "Alan came just in time to save us." Celine was trembling in Conda's arms. Even she was frightened.

"We should go," said Shinichi as he stood up. That was when the DALEK began to _move_ and _talk_.

"**Life…forms…de-tec-ted…**" it spoke slowly as its eye rose up, the blue light in the centre glowing. Now the audience was really freaked out and Shinichi stared at the DALEK in horror.

"Amazing!" Dr. Waldo exclaimed. He didn't seem aware of the danger he was in. The audience too, while scared, was also rooted to the spot. They were intrigued by the phenomenon. The DALEK's head swiveled to look at him. "I thought you were dead."

"**This…u-nit…still func-tions…**" said the DALEK.

Shinichi stood up and shouted, "Move away from that thing!"

The DALEK's midsection rotated to face Dr. Waldo and it raised its sucker arm. Dr. Waldo naively assumed it was trying to shake his hand.

He was wrong, so very _dead_ wrong.

The plunger extended, sticking to Dr. Waldo's face. He began to scream, but his screams were muffled as he gripped the rod, the sucker beginning to stretch out to envelop his head. The DALEK was suffocating him. Tetsuro and Saitoh immediately tried to dislodge the DALEK from Dr. Waldo and the audience started to scream in fright. Araki was taking photos.

The DALEK only released Dr. Waldo once he was dead, letting his body fall on the stage. His head, of course, was a different matter as the skin and hair had been burnt off.

"**Be-gin-ning…RE-GE-NE-RA-TION!**" the DALEK cried as electricity arched all over its body. Having so many humans around had only given it scanners something to detect that triggered something in its brain. It also needed was a bit of human life force that Dr. Waldo had generously provided.

Oh, and the lightning bolt from last night also helped. It just needed time to convert that energy to heal itself, which it was doing right now. The damage to its casing was slowly being repaired by the second. Its shining bronze color was being restored as well. Once it was fully healed it screamed, "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" It rotated its midsection and head, glaring at Saitoh and Tetsuro before it fired. Saitoh was shot dead as the death ray hit, illuminating his body to the point of making his skeleton visible. Tetsuro screamed as he ran off the stage. He too was gunned down by the DALEK who then aimed its sights on all the fleeing people who were heading for the exit.

"Oh my God! Oh my God!" cried out Keima as Araki was snapping pictures. "Stop taking pictures and run, fool!"

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"** It was going to kill them.

Shinichi looked to Conda and Celine and said, "Get out of here!" He then went up to confront the DALEK before Conda could say anything.

"DALEK!" Shinichi shouted loudly, waving his arms over his head. "OVER HERE!" The DALEK's gaze shifted from the fleeing people to Shinichi. "Remember me?" The DALEK scanned him and looked through its memory. Afterwards it aimed its gunstick at him.

"**YOU ARE THE E-NE-MY!**" it identified. It recognized Shinichi.

"Yeah, that's right," Shinichi confirmed. "I'm your enemy. I'm the one who's killed so many of your brothers!" He pointed at the fleeing people, "Those people are innocent and you will let them go! The killing stops here!"

"**NO**," the DALEK answered as it turned towards the exit.

"Then kill me," Shinichi offered. The DALEK's head rotated and its eyes looked directly at him. "That's right, DALEK. Kill me." He kicked it. "KILL ME! KILL ME IF YOU WANT TO KILL SOMETHING SO MUCH! KILL ME!" He kicked the DALEK again. "WHAT ARE YOU FUCKING WAITING FOR!-?"

The people had fled, running as fast as they could. Only Conda remained, standing near the exit. She watched as Shinichi confronted the DALEK, unarmed and unarmored. "What is he doing?" she questioned, completely confounded by his actions. He was taunting the creature, goading it into attacking him. But why? Had he just lost his mind?

The DALEK took the bait and shouted, "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" as it aimed and fired. Shinichi was shot by the death ray and he screamed. Conda gasped and Celine cried out, "Mau! Mau!" She squirmed in Conda's hold.

Shinichi collapsed dead on the stage with the DALEK inspecting him with its sucker arm. "**E-NE-MY EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**" It eye stalk moved up at the tent's ceiling. "**MUST BE FREE!**" It aimed and fired its death ray, burning a hole in the tent's ceiling. "**E-LE-VATE!**" Its anti-gravity abilities activated and it hovered before ascending towards the ceiling which would lead him towards outside. Then, it would pursue its objective of exterminating all humans.

That was until Shinichi suddenly revived and shouted, "Oh no you don't!" He jumped up and grabbed hold of the DALEK's sphere-covered skirt-like lower half. "You're not getting away!"

"**ER-ROR! IM-POS-SI-BLE! YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**"

"I'm more resilient! You should know that!" Shinichi shot back. He'd only been playing possum. "And you're not exterminating anyone anymore! Heck, you're not leaving this place!" The DALEK's head swiveled around and then it spotted Conda and Celine.

"**LIFE FORMS SPOT-TED! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" Shinichi followed its gaze and saw Conda and Celine. He climbed up quickly, grabbing hold of the DALEK's gunstick and pushed it so it aimed at a wrong angle, missing Celine and Conda. "**UN-HAND ME! UN-HAND MY WEA-PON!**" the DALEK screeched. It tried to shake Shinichi off but he kept his hold on the DALEK tightly.

"Not a chance, you stupid trashcan!"

Angrily, the DALEK activated the spheres on its 'skirt' and released a surge of electricity, shocking Shinichi and forcing him to release it. It then flew upwards as Shinichi crashed down upon the chairs.

"Itai…" Shinichi groaned. That was when he felt a hand grasp his arm and pull him back to his feet. "Conda?"

"We got no time to sit around! We have to stop that thing!" Conda ordered as she ran for the exit with Shinichi following.

"Wait, what about Celine?" Shinichi questioned worriedly, concerned for the flower child.

"I put her in the sidecar and activated the force field," said Conda.

"Wait, how do you know how to work my bike's force field?"

Outside, Conda answered, "Your future version showed me." She looked up trying to spot the DALEK but Shinichi saw it first.

"There it is," Shinichi pointed, "And it's headed straight for the most populated area." DALEKs were programmed by Shiro to kill humans and anything that got in their way. Contacting HQ would be a waste of time. They needed to stop this thing now. "Conda, I sure hope you aren't afraid of heights!"

* * *

The DALEK hovered over the city, its eye scanning the ground below. "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE ALL HU-MANS!**" It prepared to fire only for it to be fired upon. It swiveled its head around to see who dared to fire upon it.

Speeding towards him on a hoverboard were Showa and Conda, with the Amazon Queen gripping Showa's shoulders tightly. As for the hoverboard, it was formed form Showa's feet and he was using it to glide through the air. He was armed with the Showa-Blaster, which he was using on the DALEK.

"OK, what's the plan?" Conda asked, shouting.

"It mostly involves killing that thing without dying!" he answered.

"Good plan!" she agreed quickly.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" Switching targets, the DALEK fired upon Showa and Conda. Showa demonstrated incredible aerial acrobatics as he dodged the death rays by zigzagging, weaving around and performing loop-de-loops. This caused Conda to look ill with her face as a green as a snake's.

"Can't you fly straighter!-?" Conda complained.

"If I wanted to die, yeah!" said Showa. "Now, this might tingle a little!" He put his hand on Conda's as his Spark Core shone, glowing with the symbol of one of the Legendary Kamen Riders. The energy soon travelled up his body, through his arm and into Conda. Conda gasped as she felt the energy pulsating inside before a belt appeared around her waist. Suddenly, she was encased in green and red armor and an insectoid helmet formed over her head with a red scarf flapping through the air.

She'd become Skyrider.

"What did you just do!-?" Conda, now Skyrider, demanded.

"I've given you the power to fly!" he said and he shoved her off the hoverboard. Conda screamed in outrage but then the suit provided her the knowledge to use it and she activated the switches on the sides of the belt. She then stopped her descent and hovered in mid-air.

"I'm flying!" she cried. She was going to make Shinichi pay for pushing her off but now she could fight the DALEK. She soared straight up into the air, following Showa who was firing at the DALEK. The DALEK returned fire, focused on Showa.

"_Conda, we need to finish this in one blow!_" Showa instructed through the com-link in her helmet. She knew what he meant. Showa summoned the Showa-Blade and struck the DALEK, cutting off its eyepiece.

The DALEK screeched, **"VI-SION IM-PAIRED! VI-SION IM-PAIRED!" **In its panic, it started to literally shoot blindly. Showa grabbed hold of the DALEK's gunstick and pulled with all his might, ripping it out of its socket along with the wires attached to it. **"WEA-PON DIS-ARMED! WEA-PON DIS-ARMED!"**

"You sure have a way of stating the obvious, you piece of garbage," growled Showa. "Conda, now!"

"SKY KICK!" Conda-Skyrider cried out as she executed Skyrider's signature move. The flying kick smashed into the DALEK with incredible force that not even its force field could stop it.

"**NOOOOO-!-!-!**" it screamed before exploding in mid-air.

Conda-Skyrider landed on the hoverboard behind Showa before the Skyrider armor vanished seconds later.

"Take us back down," Conda said.

* * *

Shinichi was carrying Celine as he and Conda entered the boarding house. "We're home!" Conda called. Footsteps were heard and Lala appeared to welcome them home.

"You're home!" she beamed, hugging Conda. Shinichi looked amused as the discomfort showed on Conda's face. Of course that was when he received a hug from Lala as well.

Lala, when she'd learnt from Alan that Conda and Shinichi were going to be looking after Celine, had been worried. She had been afraid that the two wouldn't get along since Conda had not been very friendly towards Shinichi since the time he went rogue. But now she was happy to see that her fears were unfounded and it looked like Celine had fun.

"So, did anything happen while you both were out?" asked Lala as she took Celine from Shinichi.

Shinichi and Conda looked at one another and shared a look before looking back at Lala. "We'll tell you later," was Shinichi's answer. He was exhausted.

Lala accepted that answered and went ahead as Conda asked him, "So, how did you survive that DALEK's death ray?"

"It was calibrated for humans," he told her. "It would've needed a much stronger blast to exterminate me, and that is if I'd let it get the chance to even try."

"Cocky as always," she remarked with a smirk. She had begun to see why the others thought so highly of Shinichi as he was now. While not the Shinichi that she knew from her timeline, he was getting there. Slowly…but getting there. He just needed some more time.

"And you know it," grinned Shinichi. He then began to think back to how Alan had set them up and looked back at Conda. "So, how do you wanna pay Alan back for this little stunt?"

Conda developed a devious smirk as ideas were already brewing in that Amazonian head of hers. The two of them then spent the next two hours going over any and all possible payback plans before settling on a couple that could really work. First, they would just need to get Alan to go the Hive and get him into a room with some torture devices and some red sun lamps. And then they'd have to find a way to keep him in there without Sheila calling the others to ruin their fun. Oh, how they were going to enjoy getting back at him.

* * *

"**IS THE GE-NE-SIS VAULT REA-DY?"**

"**IT IS REA-DY! ALL IT NEEDS IS THE FI-NAL IN-GRE-DIENT!"**

"**EX-CEL-LENT! THE CRE-A-TOR'S DREAM WILL BE REA-LIZED! ALL HAIL THE GREAT CRE-A-TOR!"**

"**ALL HAIL THE GREAT CRE-A-TOR!"**

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The DALEKs are back! And it seems they are up to something. Hopefully, our heroes can handle whatever these things will throw their way. Now, what will happen during Alan and Nozomu's holiday? Well, you might wanna take a look to find out. Oh, and this chapter was based on the episode called "The Dalek" from the revived Doctor Who series.**


	128. The Legacy of Cain Part 72

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 72: The DALEKs' New Genesis**

The train needed to stop in Aomori so Nozomu and Alan could take the next train to Hokkaido via the Seikan Tunnel. The tunnel, opened in 1988, was a railway tunnel which connected the Aomori Prefecture in Honshu with Hokkaido, traveling beneath the Sugaru Strait. Before the Seikan Tunnel's time, travel between Hokkaido and Honshu was done through ferries.

Nozomu was sitting on a chair with Adam in her arms. She was breastfeeding him. The baby enjoyed her milk, which helped him grow big and strong. Once Adam was done feeding, Nozomu put him back in his basket and buttoned up her blouse.

"The next train to Hokkaido leaves in 30 minutes," Alan read the schedule. "We should pick up something to eat when onboard." Knowing Nozomu's eating habits, they had stocked up on a lot of food which Nozomu had devoured on the train.

"Well, you better buy a lot because that girl can pack it in," stated Bazel.

Adam was over four months old now and a growing baby boy. Under Nozomu's care he was healthy and well fed. Her breast milk was more than enough for the boy with all the nutrition he needed. Speaking of Nozomu's breasts, they had grown to contain the breast milk she was producing and was no longer flat-chested. She was now between a B and a C cup.

There was a shop in the station that sold bento and Alan bought two plastic bags full for the rest of the trip. He was well aware they wouldn't survive if Nozomu had anything to say about it. The girl could eat a lot, especially meat.

They boarded their train and took their seats. It had taken them hours to reach this point and a few more hours to go before reaching their destination.

* * *

Their train reached the station in Hokkaido where Saku was going to meet them. While Nozomu and Saku were still quite close, Alan and Saku didn't consider each other best friends. The first time they had met, Saku had been trying to split Nozomu and Alan up. First impressions were important in Alan's book and Saku hadn't made a good one, even if he had been looking out for his little sister.

He was probably still miffed about his sister getting together with someone outside their race. Saku wasn't exactly a racist, he just didn't like humans that much and Alan was part human. Alan carried the baby basket this time as he and Nozomu exited the train. Once they exited the station there, waiting for them, was none other than Saku on his bike and his usual biker outfit.

"Hey, little sis," he saluted, his helmet under his arm. "And hello to you too, Smith."

Nozomu smiled and went to hug her brother. "Aniki," she uttered adoringly.

Alan went over and Saku's eyes went towards the baby basket. "And there's my little nephew."

"He's sleeping," Alan told him. Babies tended to sleep a lot and Adam was a very heavy sleeper if he could sleep during the train ride.

"Well, Mom and Dad have been looking forward to meeting him so he better wake up soon," grinned Saku. "Come on, we should go." His motorcycle had a sidecar attached to it for the baby. "Hop on in."

* * *

Alan ended up riding in the sidecar with the baby basket while Nozomu rode behind her brother Saku. "How's the sidecar?" Saku asked, amused.

"Shut up and drive," Alan shot back. It was just like when Shinichi always had him ride in his sidecar. It felt degrading. Alan looked down at the basket to see Adam had woken up and was giggling. "I'm sure glad _you're_ enjoying this." He asked, "How far is this village of yours?"

"Not too far," said Saku. "As a matter of fact we're almost there."

Nozomu had told Alan about her hometown. It was known as the Beast Village and all because the inhabitants were animal-type Youkai. Animal-type Youkai had three forms to be precise: an animal form, a beast-human form and finally a human form. The beast-human form was their true form, a hybrid between both human and animal forms. That was why in her true form Nozomu sported wolf ears and a tail.

"And we're here," said Saku as he stopped his bike in front of an abandoned shrine which was far from any human settlement. It looked dilapidated, and not cared for in years.

"A secret entrance," Alan deduced. Obviously the entrance to a secret Youkai Village would be something like this.

"Yes, and only Youkai like us can enter, or those of us invited," said Saku, smirking. Alan frowned. Nozomu took his hand and he relaxed. "Careful, it tingles for first timers," he warned. He stepped through, vanishing through an invisible barrier which rippled as he entered. Nozomu and Alan went next and the surface of the air rippled like water as well.

And Alan found himself within the village and saw everyone. He could tell they were beast-type Youkai judging by the animal features which they did not hide. Villagers were dressed in either modern or traditional garb. The ones in modern garb were like Saku, young, adventurous, and willing to venture into the outside world. The ones who were dressed in traditional garb were probably those which had lived for centuries. Of course Saku and Nozomu were quite old themselves compared to humans but for Youkai they were teenagers.

"Wow, a lot of animal people," Bazel commented as he saw everyone sported either wings, animals ears or horns. Nobody needed to hide what they were here.

Saku was wheeling the bike alongside him and as he walked past a group of girls he winked at them, causing them to giggle. One of them fainted.

"Quite the lady killer," Alan said.

"I am the villager's most eligible bachelor," Saku boasted. Alan rolled his eyes.

Meanwhile, at a teashop, a red-haired Bakeneko girl was picking up empty cups from a table. She was dressed in a blue kimono with red flowers on it. She also had her long, red hair braided. Wiping sweat off her brow and sighing, the girl went to the kitchen to put the empty cups into the sink to wash and later she would be serving customers again. She had left the big city and decided to spend the rest of her days in an isolated village like this which was populated by her own kind.

It was a quiet, and peaceful, a little dull, but it was her life now and she'd grown to accept it.

When she saw a few more customers come inside, she began with a greeting, "Welcome, honorable customers." She suddenly froze when she saw Alan and quickly raised her round tray up to cover the lower half of her face. Alan, Nozomu and Saku sat down with Alan putting Adam's basket down to pick up the baby. He cradled him in his arms, paying attention to him as Saku hailed her over. Keeping the tray up, she grabbed three menus and handed them to the three before going to the kitchen.

'_What is he doing here?_" she thought frantically. Sitting right outside the kitchen was none other than Alan Smith. She had moved to this place in hopes of never seeing that man but here he was now. 'What am I gonna do?' she thought.

"Hey, Akaneko-chan," her boss said. "Go out there and serve customers." He was big and gruff and a Bear Youkai.

"OK!" she said as she exited the kitchen. She made her way to Alan's table with the tray still covering her face. "Are you ready to order?"

"Just three plates of dango, and three cups of your best tea," Saku ordered.

"Right away!" she said as she dashed towards the kitchen to grab that order.

Alan cocked an eyebrow at the redhead's retreating form. There was something familiar about her. He then turned his attention to Saku, "So, Saku, what do your parents know about me?"

"Just that you're strong," said Saku. Alan frowned suspiciously. "Oh, relax. I didn't badmouth you. Nozomu chose you, and I have to respect that." He whispered under his breath, "I still think she could've done better, though."

Of course, Alan still heard that crack but ignored it. Suddenly, Adam started to cry.

"He needs changing," said Nozomu as she picked up her bag with the supplies. "Hand him over." Alan did and Nozomu got up to go to the bathroom where they, hopefully, had a baby changing station.

Leaving Saku and Alan alone.

"So, do the villagers here know about…Kyoto?" Alan asked carefully. Saku snorted in amusement.

"We're an isolated Youkai village, but that kind of news is news that everyone in our world will get," said Saku. "Everyone knows it emerged and everyone knows how it was defeated, and by whom. News travels fast." Akaneko came and quickly put down the teacups and dango. She had a medical mask on.

"Enjoy your tea and snacks," she said quickly as she turned.

"Hey," Alan called, causing her to come to a screeching halt. "Have we met?" She didn't answer and retreated into the kitchen. Alan blinked and wondered out loud, "What was that about?"

* * *

"Nice house," admired Alan. They were standing in front of Nozomu and Saku's home. It was a cozy house for a small family. Not too big and not too small, suggesting that the Ezomori family was middle-class. "Looks cozy."

Nozomu grabbed Alan's hand and said, "Come on, I want to introduce you to Mama and Papa." Keeping a firm grip on the baby basket, Alan was dragged into the house. Saku, standing outside, just shook his head in amusement.

* * *

It was pretty obvious where Saku and Nozomu got their looks from. They were hereditary. Mr. Ezomori looked like a much older and more mature Saku, but his hair was less messy and he had a moustache. He was dressed in a kimono for men. As for Mrs. Ezomori, she looked like a taller and more well-developed Nozomu, with longer hair that was tied in a bun but there was no doubt in Alan's mind that, when untied, it would flow down her back like a river.

Now, they were sitting in the living room together and the first thing they noticed was baby Adam who Mrs. Ezomori picked up and started cooing too in her arms. She already welcomed her grandson with open arms. She put her face to Adam's belly and began to blow against his skin, causing him to laugh merrily while Alan and the Ezomori family looked on a smiled. Mr. Ezomori however, while delighted to see Adam, put on a stern expression. He wanted to get to know the boy who had impregnated their daughter.

"So, you're Alan Smith," said Mr. Ezomori. Alan looked away from watching Mrs. Ezomori play with little Adam and gave Mr. Ezomori his undivided attention.

"That's right, sir," said Alan politely as he bowed while sitting before Mr. Ezomori. Mr. Ezomori was a miner in the village. There were mountains filled with resources nearby, precious minerals that they could fashion into jewelry to be sold to the outside world, bringing money to their community. He did have the muscle for it. Alan could see even if it was all covered up in his clothes. He suspected that Mr. Ezomori was even stronger than Saku was and Saku was already strong enough. Though being much older, wiser and more well-rounded than Saku was already a good indication of the great difference between father and son. Saku still had a long way to go be anywhere near as mature and wise as his father but he still had time. He was still young after all.

"So, my son told me you were the one who defeated the Yamata no Orochi," said Mr. Ezomori. "I find that hard to believe."

Alan gave Saku a glare which he responded with an innocent look. Alan confirmed Mr. Ezomori's statement with a correction, "I was there, in Kyoto. I was one of the warriors who defeated the Yamata no Orochi. There's no way a single person could defeat that demon. It was a team effort."

"Still, you faced the legendary beast, which is quite an accomplishment," said Mr. Ezomori approvingly. Alan just rubbed the back of his head sheepishly for a moment and then relaxed a bit.

"Well, I will admit that it was one of the most dangerous opponents that my friends and I have ever faced. But still, it's not something that should have ever happened," Alan recalled as he thought of all the lives that were lost. "Too many innocent people lost their lives and many families must now live out the rest of their lives, knowing that their loved ones will never come back. Children are now either fatherless, motherless or both. Homes were destroyed as the world nearly fell into chaos and despair." Mr. Ezomori looked at the expression on Alan's face and could see that just talking about the subject was painful for him. "So yes, it was quite an accomplishment…but the fame that comes from it came with too high a price."

Mr. Ezomori just stared at Alan with a soft and unjudging look and, after a moment of silence passed, smiled softly.

"Well, I must say, I have never heard of anyone who shares the blood of a human show true remorse for their fame." Alan and Nozomu both looked at him. "Alan-kun…I thank you for telling me your true feelings about that battle. I can see that you are truly a gentle soul at heart." Alan and Nozomu both smiled, Alan giving him a polite bow of thanks.

"Thank you, Mr. Ezomori," Alan said as he began to relax more.

"Think nothing of it, my boy." Mr. Ezomori said. His expression then grew a bit more serious. "Now, my son has also informed me of something else about your life." Alan gave him a quizzical look. "It concerns your so-called _harem_." Alan gulped at the mention of that topic. Great, now he was a dead man. "Oh, don't worry. Our family does not look down on polygamy. But you did get our daughter pregnant so I expect you to marry her once the two of you are done with school. Well, her…and the rest of your women as well."

"My husband is right, Alan-kun. You should not keep a woman waiting forever. We do get restless when the man that we wish to spend the rest of our lives with does not propose to us," Mrs. Ezomori added as she handed Adam back to Nozomu. "Now," she began with a smile. "It's almost time for dinner." She then looked over to Saku, "Saku, dear, would you be as so kind to show your future brother-n-law around the family estate?"

"Of course, Mom," Saku replied politely. Looking over at Alan, he said, "Let's go, Smith."

Alan got up and followed. He wondered what Saku was going to show him.

"While my mom is making dinner, how about you and I take a look at the dojo," suggested Saku. Alan just shrugged his shoulders as he followed Saku into the family dojo. He noticed the walls were decorated with many different scrolls which depicted the Ezomori family history throughout the ages.

* * *

Alan and Saku stood across from each other in the family dojo. Youkai had to know how to fight, to be trained in combat in order to defend themselves.

"OK, time for our rematch," said Saku as he got in a ready.

"Hey, wolf-boy!" Bazel called. "You do know who this is, right? He'll cream you!"

"He's right, Saku," agreed Alan. "I'm much stronger than the last time we fought."

"Oh, I've heard, but I'd like to see how strong you've gotten myself!" He lunged forward and Alan simply flicked his finger into Saku's forehead. The impact sent Saku flying across the room and he crashed against the wall.

Nozomu came and called, "Dinner's ready." She saw her brother passed out.

Alan explained, shrugging, "I did warn him."

"Stupid wolf," mocked Bazel.

Nozomu entered and saw her brother knocked out. It didn't take her long to figure out what had just happened. She just shook her head and sighed as she helped Alan help her brother up before they both carried him into the house. "Aniki…baka."

* * *

After dinner, Alan was allowed to take a bath. Nozomu had come in as well with Adam so they could all bathe together. After the bath, he was shown to his room. Well, actually it was his and Nozomu's room. Well, his, Nozomu and Adam's room right now. Actually, it was Nozomu's room but he was the father of their child so he was allowed to sleep with her. As Alan lay there in the futon with Nozomu, he began to think of the events that had transpired over the past month: Shinichi quitting the team and then gaining the mythical Sword of Ascalon, Saku suddenly calling them up to visit the family, coming up with the idea of having Shinichi and Conda watch Celine and hoping that the two of them didn't kill each other…or him when he got back.

Alan just let out a sigh and looked over to his left to see little Adam sleeping in an old crib that used to belong to Nozomu and Saku when they were just babies. Alan then looked down at Nozomu who was curled up and snuggling into the right side of his body, her head burying itself into his chest. She only wore a pair of white panties and a buttoned as sleepwear while Alan only wore a pair of sweatpants. Ever since Nozomu had gotten pregnant and then given birth to Adam, she had become bolder in what she wore when she slept in bed with Alan. He didn't mind though. It was something that he loved about her as she began to mature more and more throughout the ever passing days of their lives.

He then thought about what her parents had told him about settling down with all of his girls and remembered his father and mother telling him the exact same thing. Parents must really think alike. He began to worry about Adam's future when it came time for him to woo women.

* * *

**The following day…**

There was a huge gathering in the village square. It was because there was something they had never seen being put on display. It was a sphere, a big metal sphere and the sphere was put in the village square for all to see. It was something the miners had found and had only finished digging up recently. None knew what it was. Nozomu's father had mentioned it and Alan wanted to see it as well.

"So Papa, you and the others dug up this sphere," said Nozomu as she gazed at it.

"That's right," said Mr. Ezomori. "After we found it in a cave I had all the men dig it up and drag it out." He asked Alan, "Can you tell us what it is?"

Alan took a look at the sphere, walking around the sphere as he scrutinized it. It didn't seem familiar to him, to be honest. It was just a big metal ball to him. It did, however, give him a chilling feeling. Like it just shouldn't exist. Maybe it was just him being paranoid.

Then again, paranoia could be justified at times.

When he used his X-Ray vision, he learnt that he couldn't see right through it. It was like the surface or the lining within the sphere (if it were hollow) was preventing his X-Ray vision from giving him an inside look of the sphere.

Akaneko, however, was among the crowd and staring at the sphere with recognition. She knew what it was. She'd seen it before, and it was anything but good.

Alan put his hand on the surface of the sphere.

* * *

"**AC-TIVE NA-NITES DE-TEC-TED!"**

"**IT IS TIME! OPEN THE SHIP!"**

"**TO-DAY WE RE-TURN TO THE OUT-SIDE!"**

* * *

The sphere began to shake and Alan took a step back. All the villagers watched in amazement as the sphere shook back and forth.

Alan had a bad feeling about this and took Nozomu's hand, squeezing it tight as the sphere started to open. The upper half of the sphere was folding downwards. Then, to his horror, four very familiar looking creatures hovered out from the sphere.

"DALEKs," Alan identified as they hovered down to the ground and it wasn't just them. There seemed to be a metal object with them that was shaped like a big saltshaker. Around the midsection were four hemispheres. It also had a wide base and it was the color of dirty copper.

The DALEKs which came out of the sphere were identical, save for color. One was black, another was bronze, another was white, and the final one was grey. They also had the OROCHI emblem emblazoned between their appendages, while also sporting symbols under the base of their eyestalks. The black had the symbol for beta (**Β**), the bronze one had the symbol for zeta (**Ζ**), the white one had the symbol for sigma (**Σ**) and finally the grey one had the symbol for theta (**Θ**).

"**I AM DALEK BE-TA!**" the black DALEK identified itself.

"**I AM DA-LEK Z-ETA!**" the bronze DALEK said.

"**DA-LEK SIG-MA!**" said the white DALEK.

"**DA-LEK THE-TA!**" spoke the grey DALEK.

With every word they spoke, their indicator lights lit up. Those symbols were clearly their designations. The four DALEKs moved their heads around, staring at the villagers. The villagers stared at these beings that, while ridiculous looking, frightened them. They were just so abnormal that they were frightening and they didn't know what they were.

And the unknown could be quite frightening.

"**HU-MA-NOID** **LIFE FORMS I-DEN-TI-FIED AS YOU-KAI!**" Zeta reported. "**THE GREAT CREA-TOR PRO-GRAMMED US NOT TO HARM YOU-KAI!**"

"**YES!**" confirmed Beta. "**BUT THERE IS A SOURCE OF AC-TIVE NA-NITES HERE! THE SOURCE FREED US! SCAN THEM! SEARCH!**"

"**WE O-BEY!**"

DALEK Sigma approached an Inu Youkai girl. "**YOU! I-DEN-TI-FY WHO O-PENED THE SPHERE! I-DEN-TI-FY! I-DEN-TI-FY!**"

She didn't answer, too freaked out to utter a word. The DALEK then moved to question another. Alan, meanwhile, was staring at his hand and cursed himself for his curiosity. If they were looking for active nanites then he was the source. But why did they need active nanites? He stared at the machine they had brought with them. It was probably some kind of doomsday device.

His mind was still reeling though. He'd scanned them and found that they still possessed their organic Darkloid cores. The DALEKs were originally robots but then Shiro had implanted Darkloids into them to act as organic cores and grant them emotions. Since the Yamata no Orochi, a Darkloid which had been their source, was gone then these DALEKs shouldn't even exist. But then of course Shiro always had a plan so maybe the reason DALEKs could still exist was because of their casings and the force fields that protected them. The sphere they had been sealed in could also be the reason behind their survival. Whichever the case, now four of them were here and they were looking for him. He could, logically, sneak away unnoticed. He was fast enough and the DALEKs were programmed to only kill humans so the villagers were safe.

Alan could see Mr. Ezomori tense up and he knew that the man wanted to say something to these intruders and how they were treating his fellow villagers with disrespect. Immediately, he whispered, "Don't."

"Alan?" Mr. Ezomori questioned.

"Don't give them any reason to kill you," Alan warned. If they were like the real Daleks they would've killed everyone here for just existing. But they were programmed by Shiro. "And tell your fellow villagers not to attack them."

Mr. Ezomori could see how serious Alan was and nodded. He passed the message along and everyone understood. They had no idea what these creatures were and what they were capable of and attacking them without knowing a thing about them was suicide. Also, they were a mostly peaceful community and had come to live in this village to avoid such conflict.

The DALEKs continued to question the villagers but nobody was offering an answer. They weren't prepared to surrender Alan to these things, whatever they were to them. They were just too unnatural.

"**IF NONE OF YOU WILL AN-SWER THEN YOU ARE OF NO USE TO US!**" said the black DALEK known as Beta. "**USE-LESS CREA-TURES ARE WORTH-LESS! WORTH-LESS THINGS ARE TO BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**"

"**BUT WE WERE PRO-GRAMMED TO NE-VER HARM THE YOU-KAI!**" argued DALEK Theta.

"**BUT WE WERE ALSO PRO-GRAMMED TO EX-TER-MIN-ATE OB-STA-CLES!**" rebutted Beta.

"**BUT THE GREAT CRE-A-TOR-!" **began Zeta.

"**THE GREAT CRE-A-TOR IS NO MORE!"** yelled DALEK Beta. **"SO HE CAN-NOT PU-NISH US FOR DIS-O-BEY-ING OUR PRO-GRAM-MING!"**

The other three DALEKs shared looks. Beta's logic was flawless. Their creator was gone and thus would not be able to punish them if they disobeyed their programming. Besides, they were killing machines so killing these creatures would not be violating their nature.

Alan didn't think this was a good thing. Now everyone was at risk. It was time to be the hero.

"Hello!" Alan spoke up and the four DALEKs looked at him. They scanned him immediately.

"**HE IS NOT A YOU-KAI!**" stated Zeta.

"**AC-TIVE NA-NITES DE-TEC-TED!"** declared Theta.

"**YOU! YOU WERE THE ONE WHO O-PENED THE SPHERE!"** Beta said.

Alan complained, "OK, seriously, do you DALEKs always have to speak like that?" He approached Beta, staring into his eye. "Of course, you were all made like that, right? Born to scream. Or maybe it's because since birth to death you're locked in a cold, metal cage." His tone was low and cold. "You may call yourselves DALEKs, but you pale in comparison to the real ones I've seen. You're just cheap imitations."

The DALEKs backed away, recognizing him. **"HE IS A-LAN SMITH!"** shouted Zeta. **"EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"** It aimed its gunstick at Alan.

"**NO!"** Beta ordered. He looked at Alan. **"YOU POS-SESS AC-TIVE NA-NITES!"**

"Yes I do," Alan confirmed fearlessly.

"**THEN YOU MUST O-PEN THE GE-NE-SIS VAULT!"** said Beta.

"Genesis Vault?" Alan questioned. He pointed to the machine with them. "You mean that thing over there?"

"**YES!"**

"And what is it? What Is it for?"

"**THE KEY TO OUR FU-TURE!"**

Now a future for DALEKs meant no future for Earth and Alan couldn't have that. "Then I will not open it."

"**O-PEN THE GE-NE-SIS VAULT!"** commanded Beta. **"O-PEN IT!"**

"**O-PEN IT!"** ordered Zeta.

"**O-PEN IT!"** demanded Theta.

"**O-PEN IT!"** told Sigma.

"**O-PEN IT OR WE EX-TER-MIN-ATE ALL LIFE FORMS IN THIS AREA!"** Beta ordered.

"You first," Alan aimed his ring and fired at DALEK Beta. However, much to his shock, the green energy beam bounced off the DALEK's body.

"**OUR FORCE FIELDS HAVE BEEN UP-GRA-DED BY THE CREA-TOR, AS WERE OUR CA-SINGS! WE CAN WITH-STAND YOUR POWER!"** boasted Beta. He ordered, **"NEU-TRA-LIZE HIM!"**

Zeta, Theta and Sigma targeted Alan and fired. He screamed and fell to his knees as their gunsticks shot beams at him. They would've killed him if he was a normal man but they just made him feel sick and weak. It was almost as if that beam had been fired from a Kryptonite Cannon. But how would DALEKs have that kind of weaponry? Well, it was to be expected if Shiro made these things.

"No! Alan!" Nozomu cried but Saku restrained her. "Oi, Aniki, let me go! I must go to Alan!"

"Bakayarou! If you go over there then they'll just shoot you too!" Saku retorted, wanting to keep his little sister safe.

"Listen to your brother, Nozomu," advised her father. Nozomu stared at him but then she reluctantly nodded.

Alan was on his hands and knees, his body smoking from the onslaught. DALEK Beta's sucker arm extended and stuck to Alan's head. "**COME WITH ME!**" he ordered and he dragged Alan along.

"Partner, are you OK?" Bazel asked. By now Alan would've torn these trashcans apart.

"Those rays…they…weakened me…" Alan said weakly as he was forced to follow the DALEK like a dog on a leash.

"**WE HAD OUR WEA-PONS CA-LIBRA-TED FOR YOU!**" answered Beta.

And yet again, Shiro managed to screw with Alan from beyond the grave. It was already bad enough that one of his catgirls had drugged him and that his Cybermen had almost destroyed Genovia but now his knock-off Daleks were going to use him for something. Life just sucked sometimes.

They stopped in front of the Genesis Vault. **"YOU WILL PUT YOUR HAND U-PON THE VAULT!"**

"…No," Alan refused.

"**THEN WE EX-TER-MIN-ATE THEM!**" Beta said as Zeta, Theta and Sigma aimed their weapons at the villagers in the area. They hadn't even vacated the area, too scared to run. If they had ran, the DALEKs would've killed them. They loved to kill targets that fled. Of course killing stationary targets was just as fun.

Alan couldn't let that happen. Saku, Nozomu and their father was among them. But he couldn't do what the DALEKs wanted either. That Genesis Vault was their 'future', or so they claimed. If that was true then Earth and everyone on it was history. But he couldn't fight them right now and if he didn't do what they said they would kill everyone here.

Of course, there was no guarantee they wouldn't kill everyone here if Alan did do as they said. But, could he risk it? Could he risk the villagers' lives?

It was a dilemma and he was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"Swear that you will spare these people," said Alan.

"**YOU ARE IN NO PO-SI-TION TO MAKE DE-MANDS!**" Beta told him.

"Just swear on your honor as a DALEK! I'm sure Shiro programmed a code of honor in you somewhere in your deep, black hearts," said Alan.

Beta considered Alan's words and said, "**VE-RY WELL!**"

Alan reached up to the Genesis Vault, knowing this was a bad idea, but the DALEKs were forcing him by using these people as hostages. And in his current condition he could not fight against them.

For the first time in a long time Alan felt utterly powerless.

Alan put his palm against the Genesis Vault's service and he withdrew his palm quickly as he felt like he'd been burnt. His handprint was left on the surface of the Genesis Vault.

"**SUC-CESS! SUC-CESS!"** declared Beta. **"NOW DA-LEKS ARE THE MAS-TERS OF EARTH!"**

"Masters of Earth?" Alan repeated. The DALEKs surrounded the Genesis Vault, their suctions cups covering the spheres on the Genesis Vault. "What does this thing do?"

"**IT WILL GIVE BIRTH TO A NEW DA-LEK AR-MY!**" answered Beta as he and the DALEKs all floated into the air with the Genesis Vault. "**THE GE-NE-SIS OF A NEW DA-LEK EM-PIRE!**"

"No…" uttered Alan in despair.

"**YES…**" countered the DALEK, pleased with himself.

The Genesis Vault opened like a coffin and a DALEK, colored brown, was revealed. It came out and was followed by another and another and another. In a matter of seconds an army of DALEKs was being born from the Genesis Vault.

Alan had just handed the DALEKs the keys to dominating the Earth.

"**A-LAN SMITH, THANK YOU!**" said DALEK Beta. "**AS A SHOW OF MER-CY WE WILL SPARE YOU THE SIGHT OF HU-MAN-KIND'S EX-TER-MIN-A-TION!**" He fired a powerful death ray at Alan and in his weakened state it was impossible for him to survive it.

"ALAN!" Nozomu screamed. The Genesis Vault was dropped as a million DALEKs now filled the air.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE THE HU-MAN RACE! DES-TROY AND CON-QUER!**" DALEK Beta commanded as they flew off.

Nozomu pushed through the crowd and reached Alan. Kneeling down, she tried to shake him awake. "Alan! Alan! Alan!" she was crying hysterically. He couldn't be dead. They needed him right now.

"Nozomu, I'm sorry," said Mr. Ezomori. It was sad, really. Alan had wanted to save them but he'd been tricked. He felt angry, at himself for being weak and at the DALEKs for what they'd done to the man his daughter loved.

"Those things are going to be in here with us for awhile," said Saku. The DALEKs were within the barrier and couldn't leave, but that didn't mean they couldn't try and if they failed they would take out their anger and frustration on the villagers. The villagers would have to flee before the DALEKs realized they were trapped. "Nozomu, we have to leave."

"I…I can't leave Alan…" sobbed Nozomu. She then saw someone kneel on Alan's other side and putting her hands on his chest. "What are you doing?"

"Resuscitating him," said the red-haired Bakeneko. She then linked her fingers together and raised her arm before bringing her two linked fists down on Alan's chest with all her might. Nozomu gasped, and so did Alan as his eyes snapped open. He sat up and let out a breath.

"The hell?" he uttered. "You know, if you wanted to resuscitate me, the 'kiss of life' would've been enough." Nozomu hugged him, sobbing happily, before kissing him over and over. He looked to Akaneko. "Do I know you?"

Akaneko knew there was no use denying her identity now so she confessed, "Yes, I used to work for Juuyon-sama."

"OK…so why did you revive me?" he asked.

"Because I'm not interested in a world ruled by those flying trashcans," said Akaneko. "If they ruled the world then the life that I wish to live now will be gone, and I don't want that to happen."

"Oh, the DALEKs!" Alan got to his feet but groaned. He was still feeling weak and his ring was of no use against them. "Dammit!" He looked to Akaneko, "Say, do you know anything about those four DALEKs?"

"I saw Juuyon-sama work on them awhile back before sealing them off in that sphere. He gave them some kind of assignment," said Akaneko.

"Creating a DALEK army," Alan concluded.

"Yeah," Akaneko nodded. "They were programmed to think for themselves and even had names. Personally, I think the DALEKs were his worst creations ever. Their voices can get on your nerves really fast."

"Tell me about it, but not right now because we're going to stop them," stated Alan.

"You should call for help," suggested Nozomu.

"I could," agreed Alan. "Or…" He eyed the Genesis Vault and grinned as an idea popped in his head. "Nozomu, get my 'Thinking Fez'."

As Nozomu went to get his 'Thinking Fez', Alan began to wonder how he had survived a blast that had been especially calibrated to kill him. As he looked at his hands he began to focus on his body and aura. After a moment, he noticed something slightly different. It was as if it was mystical in origin. '_Hmm, Divine Intervention…maybe?_'

* * *

Using his Sonic Screwdriver, Alan opened a panel in the side of the Genesis Vault and inspected its insides. "I thought so," he said after scanning it with the Sonic Screwdriver. "A matter replicator. That's what this thing is. First it needed DALEK DNA and then it needed my nanites to help make those casings. Never knew nanites could make so many."

"OK, we get that," said Saku as he stood next to the kneeling Alan. "So, what are you trying to do?"

"Well, if the DALEKs came out of this thing, then we can use this thing to get rid of them," said Alan. He was fiddling around with the wires. "Give me five minutes."

"I don't think we got five minutes," said Akaneko.

"What makes you say that?

"They're coming back," said Akaneko as she pointed to the sky. "And they don't look happy." How she could tell was a mystery, but maybe it was the time she spent among DALEKs which allowed her to tell what they were feeling. Of course, by default, the only mood DALEKs were in was the mood to kill.

"They must've learnt there was a barrier keeping them from the human world," said Saku. "And now they're here to kill us all," he grimaced.

"All but one," said Akaneko. "They just need one of us to exit this place and I have a feeling it'll probably be me because of my former affiliation."

"Yeah, you said you worked for the guy who made those things," said Saku. "Why?"

"He was a _really_ good lay," was Akaneko's answer, just sighing at the memory, "And he was _very_ persuasive." If she thought about it anymore she'd possibly climax right then and there.

"People, please!" said Alan. "I need to concentrate!" There were times he wished he had Shinichi around to help. He was the one that could talk to machines but since he wasn't here, Alan needed to rely on himself. After a scan with the Sonic Screwdriver, he closed the panel. "And I'm done!"

"And they're here!" Saku pointed.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE ALL LIFE FORMS!**" ordered DALEK Beta.

"I don't think so!" Alan shouted as he pointed the Sonic Screwdriver to the Genesis Vault and held the button down. He announced, "Time to reverse the polarity of the neutron flow!"

The Genesis Vault opened again but this time instead of spitting out DALEKs, it became a DALEK vacuum. The DALEKs screamed as they were being sucked into the Genesis Vault to be broken down into atoms. A million DALEKs, as fast as they were created were being destroyed just as fast.

"How did you do that?" Saku asked in amazement.

"I've picked up a few things from a few friends," said Alan, flashing a victorious grin. "And those DALEKs made the mistake of not disintegrating my body or getting rid of their Genesis Vault when they didn't need it anymore. They learn from their mistakes but they always make the most important one…never mess with someone with a Sonic Screwdriver."

Mr. Ezomori stared at Alan in amazement. He then finally understood why his daughter loved this man. He not only possessed the strength and courage to fight against great odds, but also great intelligence to fight using unconventional solutions…and a screwdriver.

"Wait, this thing only destroyed the ones it created, that means…" Akaneko spoke up.

"Only those four are left," said Alan as he heard them approaching. The four DALEKs responsible for the Genesis Vault hovered down, glaring at Alan. Like any evil killing machine with a core of compartmentalized hatred, they would likely kill the one responsible for ruining their plans.

"**YOU!**" Beta shouted, pointing at Alan. "**YOU HAVE RU-INED OUR MAS-TER PLAN!**"

"Yeah, that's me," grinned Alan. "Alan Smith, always aim to misbehave." Alan considered what he'd just said approvingly, '_That's a pretty good catchphrase. I should keep it_.'

"**YOU WILL BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**" Beta roared.

Sigma scanned Akaneko and said, "**SCANS IN-DI-CATE THAT THIS FE-MALE HAS COME IN-TO CON-TACT WITH THE GREAT CRE-A-TOR! SHE WILL BE OF USE TO US!**"

"I told you so," sighed Akaneko.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE A-LAN SMITH!**" Beta ordered as he, Zeta, Sigma and Theta aimed at Alan and fired, only for their death rays to be blocked by a green energy shield.

"You're not going to be exterminating anyone anymore!" Alan shouted. He formed a great big green hand with his ring and grabbed all four DALEKs. Turning to Nozomu he said, "Gotta jet!" He saluted and took off with his big handful of captives.

"**RE-LEASE US! RE-LEASE US! RE-LEASE US!" **the four DALEKs screamed.

Alan groaned. Sometimes super-hearing could be such a pain when listening to these things. Once they were high enough in the air, Alan released them. A green wave travelled up Alan's right arm and then moved over his body, covering him in his Sentinel uniform which was finished off by the mask. Then Bazel added in his own accessories by equipping his wearer with the mighty Armor of Bazel. He still wore the fez, though.

"Take off the fez," deadpanned Bazel. It was ruining their look. Sentinel ignored Bazel as he clenched his fists. It was time to rid the world of the DALEKs for good.

The DALEKs surrounded him and with a unified cry of, "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" they fired only to miss their target and hit each other as Sentinel vanished from sight. He could've avoided their death rays twice before but he'd chosen not to. Dodging would mean someone else might get hit and killed and.

Nobody was going to die today but the DALEKs.

"Hey, over here!" Sentinel called the DALEKs who all turned to stare at him. They fired at him and he dodged their attacks with ease. Using his power ring, he conjured up blasts of energy which had no effect on the DALEKs' force fields or armor casings.

"I think you're going to need the sword for this," Bazel stated.

"Right!" Sentinel agreed as he summoned the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He used his super speed and in a flash he struck Sigma with a vertical slash, Theta with a diagonal slash, and Zeta with a horizontal slash. The three DALEKs exploded instantly in the air. Unlike his power ring, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi was a weapon of divine mystic power and was able to penetrate their impenetrable force fields.

Now all that was left was DALEK Beta and for the first time in his entire existence he felt fear.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" he screamed as he fired frantically only for Sentinel to deflect the death rays with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He then shot like a rocket towards DALEK Beta and drove the Kusanagi no Tsurugi through the force field and the DALEK's casing.

He looked DALEK Beta in the eye and said, "And so the exterminators became the exterminated." He withdrew his blade and watched as DALEK Beta exploded in a burst of flames.

* * *

The following day, things had calmed down. The sphere was going to be taken away along with the Genesis Vault. Akaneko was whistling as she was busy mopping the floor when someone came into the teashop.

"We're not open—oh, it's you," she said when she saw it was Alan.

"Yeah, it's me," he said. "It's my last day here. Tomorrow I'm going to be leaving to head back home."

"Alright then," said Akaneko. "So, why did you come here?"

"I never got to thank you yesterday for resuscitating me," said Alan. "I mean if I had been unconscious any longer…"

"Just consider yourself lucky their death ray didn't kill you," Akaneko interrupted.

"I think I was dead for a second there," Alan admitted. "That death ray was definitely made for me."

"Juuyon-sama was always prepared for anything," Akaneko smiled.

"What did you see in the guy?" Alan asked. He had asked Momoneko and she had given him an answer. She was currently happy with Chiro-chan. Kineko's love for Shiro had driven her to commit murder and drive Alan mad so he would destroy the world. He wanted to know Akaneko's opinion of Shiro.

"Juuyon-sama was fascinating," said Akaneko. "I remembered when we first met. He came up to me and chatted me up like most guys and I decided to get it over with by sleeping with him. Mind you, he was pretty interesting, but I thought he was like most guys who wanted to lay with a catgirl even if it was expensive. But then…he did…amazing things, things that I could never imagine…"

Alan knew what she was talking about and grew uncomfortable. "OK…so he was good to you."

"Oh, yes~" Akaneko purred. She then realized she was going off-tangent and got back ion topic. "Yes, he was good to us." She continued, "Look, you were his enemy and well you have every reason to think he was a monster based on his actions."

"That's right," Alan confirmed.

"But in all the time we spent together, he was never, ever a monster to us," said Akaneko. Shiro had never abused any of them. He'd never hurt them or yelled at them or took his anger out on them. He was always so kind to them, which made them love him so much.

"Doesn't change the fact he killed so many people," Alan argued. So many had died in Shiro's pursuit for power. So many had perished in order for Shiro to pursue his goals. Between Shiro and Gnol, it wasn't Gnol who was the most dangerous. He was more powerful than Shiro and so was Alan. But what made Shiro dangerous was both his intelligence and his complete disregard for human life. That made him a terrifying foe. Alan could overpower him at anytime, but Shiro would've found a way to counter somehow. "And you helped him."

"Yes, I did," Akaneko didn't deny. "That's why I'm living here, living a quiet life in a village as a waitress in a small teashop. It's time I moved on and forget those days." She turned away from Alan and said, "I need to do some more cleaning now."

Alan nodded and exited the door while Akaneko's back was facing him. She closed her eyes and shed a tear as she uttered, "Juuyon-sama…" She was still broken hearted but she would heal soon. She remembered how sweet he could be to them. He even took them on dates and afterwards they made love. Recalling the sensation of their bodies being joined in a passionate embrace caused Akaneko to shudder with a pleasurable tingle. It was still vivid in her mind.

One would think that Shiro had either used mind control or brainwashing techniques on the Bakeneko Kunoichi. Stockholm Syndrome could even be attributed as the reason behind their loyalty. But it wasn't their minds he had control over, but their hearts. They loved him, and would do anything for him, and Shiro took advantage of that. Even so, he loved them in return, and that was why he'd died.

He'd changed from a man with a heart of steel to something else.

* * *

After having been gone for almost three whole days, Alan and Nozomu had finally returned home. Walking through the front door, the first thing they saw was Lala and Amora asleep on the couch with Celine snuggled in between them. They soon saw Bishie asleep on the floor in front of them and Alice sleeping next to her. They both noticed a whole lot of cleaning supplies set down around the living room and they could tell that the girls had been cleaning. Yami was nowhere to be seen and neither was Daiki, but those two were probably up in their own rooms.

"Well, there's no place like home," Alan said as he set their bags down. Nozomu no longer lived in her apartment but instead stayed in a room here at the boarding house to be with Alan.

"I know," replied Nozomu. She noticed a note on the wall. Taking it off and reading it, she then handed it to Alan. "Alan, this is for you."

"Hmm, who's it from?" Reading the note, he noticed it was from Shinichi. "Well, it seems that he wants me to meet up with him at the Hive for a few minutes. Says here he found something that I should possibly take a look at."

"Okay then. I'll put Adam back in his crib. Be careful and come back soon," Nozomu said as she leaned in and kissed her beloved on the lips with passion. He returned the kiss and then, after giving her a quick wink, flew out the door and headed for the Hive.

* * *

Following the directions in the note, Alan made his way to the lab where the NUMBERS would keep their newly acquired items locked up until they had time to look them over.

"Hello, Shinichi? Are you here?" In a flash, a set of lamps suddenly switched on with a red glow emitting from them and the door behind him instantly locked. "Okay bro, this isn't funny."

"Ohhhh…Allllaaaaannnnn~" Alan immediately jumped around and noticed Conda standing right behind him.

"Damn it Conda, you nearly gave me a heart attack," Alan groaned but then he began to wonder how he didn't hear her sneaking up on him. He then looked at the red lamps around them and then noticed a strong leather whip gripped tightly within Conda's grasp and he quickly gulp. "Um…Conda…what's that whip fooooooooo—" Alan was suddenly grabbed from behind and soon found himself strapped to a metal table with titanium straps. Looking up, he then noticed by Conda and Shinichi giving him devilish grins before looking at one another before nodding. "Um, guys, you're scaring me." Conda then cracked her whip while Shinichi began to produce strange looking instruments from a tray next to them. "Please…nooooooooooooooooo!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so ends the mini-arc called "Revenge of the DALEKs". The next arc will be big for you guys. I can't spoil things for you but I promise that it'll be exciting and grand. Hopefully, you won't be disappointed. Oh, and I'd like to thank Toku Warrior for his help in editing this chapter as well as the last one. He's been a tremendous help. Oh, and this was inspired from the Dalek stories like "Doomsday" and "Victory of the Daleks".**


	129. The Legacy of Cain Part 73

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 73: The Mystery of Evolution**

**Writen By: The Zogg**

**April 1989**

Keiichi was walking down the street of Shishibone City in a good mood as he had a smile on his face. He had just made the Baseball team again and he didn't need any G-Shock to do it. He continued his walk until he reached an intersection. The light had just turned green so he waited. Then he saw a woman walking down the street and a truck was heading straight at her. Keiichi couldn't let the woman die. He ran onto the street and pushed her out of the way. But that caused a new problem now as he was going to be run over instead.

That was when someone pushed him out of the way instead.

Keiichi looked up at the man who had just saved his life. He looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties and was handsome. He had windswept black hair and blue eyes. The man was dressed simply, wearing sneakers, jeans, a white shirt, and a black jacket over said shirt. He had an easy smile on his face. As he offered a hand to Keiichi he politely asked, "Are you all right young man?"

"Yeah I'm fine. Thanks for saving my life, sir," Keiichi said gratefully, taking the man's hand to help himself up. As he touched Keiichi's hand his smile became bigger.

"It was nothing young man. My name is Tsumtomu Miyazaki. And you are?"

"Keiichi Maebara, sir," he answered.

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you Maebara-san. Meetings usually don't happen like this for me, so I feel like it should be considered a joyous occasion."

"I wouldn't call almost dying saving someone a pleasant meeting, Miyazaki-san."

"Please just 'Tsumtomu' please," Tsumtomu requested pleasantly.

"Alright, thank you Tsumtomu-san," Keiichi said, still thankful.

"Your thanks has been accepted, Maebara-san. But I must go I have a very busy schedule," Tsumtomu told him.

"Oh, sorry about ruining your schedule Tsumtomu-san," Keiichi apologized.

"It was no trouble at all, Maebara-san," Tsumtomu assured him. "Meeting you was worth it."

"You're welcome," Keiichi said not really sure what to say to the strange man.

Tsumtomu looked up as if remembering something, "Oh, how time fly's I must now make haste. Goodbye, Maebara-san. I hope we meet again!"

"Goodbye Tsumtomu-san," Keiichi said then went along his way as if the meeting never happened.

Tsumtomu walked away smiling cheerfully, "He has it!" Tsumtomu thought as happy as a kid in a candy store, "And he has it in a way I have never felt before! I must simply see what he becomes!" Tsumtomu then prepared for his 'job'.

Later that night the woman that Keiichi had pushed out of the way was found dead. Her neck was snapped and she was shoved into a tree.

The trucker who almost ran Keiichi and the woman over was found dead, buried alive.

But for some reason these murders never reached the papers. It was like they had been erased from everyone's minds.

* * *

**May 1989**

One month later people began to notice the murders and the NEO-NUMBERS had been investigating. So far they had found nothing. They were all at the Hive comparing the different murders.

"My guy was a salary man who was buried alive," Daichi told the rest of his team.

"What's so weird about that?" Yokoshima asked.

"He was found buried in the sidewalk with only his face showing," said Daichi.

"Mine was a woman. She was a mechanic and she spontaneously combusted," Yokoshima informed.

"Mine was a middle school girl who suddenly turned to ash," Chiaki reported angrily. The victim looked a lot like Hanyu.

"Mine was a high school boy who apparently drowned on dry land," Hana reported gloomily.

"Mine was-" Michiru began then paused. "Well let's just say what happened to the poor guy wasn't G-rated," She spoke with none of her normal perkiness'.

"Mine was a male pawnshop owner whose body was cut into pieces and then the pieces were shoved into his wares," Shogo reported stoically, but on the inside he was raging.

"Mine was a male sculptor who was impaled by seven stakes, a blue sword, a red sword, and a gold sword," Battler reported. Oddly, his case seemed strangely familiar to him.

"Mine was a twenty year old college girl whose internal organs were ripped out," Alan growled. Hurting an innocent woman like that was unforgivable in a Smith's book.

"Mine was a forty-four year old male cop who got his face ripped off," Shinichi reported glumly. The second he returned to the hero business shit like this had to happen.

A few days ago a series of strange murders had started up and people were dying indiscriminately. The killer had no preferred target as he or she killed the young or the old. The victims were from all walks of life. All that the murders had in common was that that no clues were left behind and that they seemed to have been accomplished through supernatural means.

"Damnit!" Daichi shouted, "How the hell are we going to stop this? This guy actually has a brain! He's covering his tracks and is avoiding a confrontation with us!" This was new to the NEO-NUMBERS. Usually their villains were very upfront about fighting them. They had never tried to avoid confrontation before. "And where the hell is Yuji? He's good with magic or whatever this supernatural shit is! Where is he when you need him?" Daichi continued his rant.

"He said that he had to play a game with someone," Alan told him. He was just as angry as Daichi that Yuji had done one of his disappearing tricks during a situation like this. But he had to remain calm. He was part Kryptonian now and he couldn't afford to lose his temper.

Shinichi decided to butt in before another fight started. "Guys calm down! What we need to do right now is up our patrols. I want everyone to increase their shift time! If all of us patrol twenty-four seven we can catch this psycho!"

Everyone agreed to Shinichi's plan. Their social lives might temporarily suffer but it was a small price to pay to stop the serial killer.

"Dr. Magi, can you and Dr. Washam run the Hive by yourselves for now?" Shinichi asked.

"Yes, there is nothing to worry about here. We can handle it so go stop that psychopath," Dr. Magi promised.

"Okay people, let's go!" Shinichi ordered. "Sheila, open a Teleportal."

"_Right away Shinichi." _Sheila said_, "Teleportal open!"_

The Teleportal opened and the NEO-NUMBERS all walked through to Shihibone City ready to catch the murderer. It wasn't going to be an easy job but somebody had to do it. Shinichi was the last but before he stepped through he asked, "Oh, and take care of Keiichi while we're gone."

* * *

A lion-like Kaijin stood in the remains of a bus looking at all the passengers' dead bodies. They all had their faces contorted into expressions of unimaginable agony and were drowning in their own blood. It truly resembled a scene from hell. The lion Kaijin gripped his broad sword and whispered one word like a curse, "_Agito…_"

* * *

Keiichi jolted awake in the infirmary, sweating profusely. He had more nightmares of macabre murders that either he caused or was the victim in. He had died in so many different ways and killed in so many different ways, it was horrifying.

"**Yeah it was, wasn't it?" ** Keiichi looked around for the source of the voice but found nothing. **"Sorry you can't see me. ****No**** reflection."**

"What's going on? What are you? Are you causing all this?" Keiichi asked in fear.

"**Well no, I haven't caused anything to happen. As for what's going on I don't know but we are most definitely going to find out," **The voice rambled on conversationally. **"But for who I am, here's a hint."**

Keiichi then noticed a strange black belt with a glowing red gem in the center was around his waist.

"**Henshin!"**

* * *

Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam then heard a loud crashing sound from the infirmary. They immediately ran to said location to see to Keiichi's safety.

Keiichi wasn't in any trouble but they might have been.

The Darkloid Rider had risen again. His transformation had trashed the infirmary. The Kaijin-like Rider looked at the two doctors with his demonic red eyes.

Then it spoke, **"Don't worry I'll let myself out."**

Then there was a strange sound. It sounded like a mixture of a motorcycle's engine revving and a cicada's cry.

A strange creature suddenly leapt out of the Darkloid Rider's shadow. It was a chimeric creature that resembled a cicada crossed with a motorcycle. It was pitch black like its master with the cicada's head acting as the front of the bike with ominous eyes acting as the headlights, and its antenna as the handlebars. The wheels were mostly mechanical but had twisting veins covering them. Finally it seemed to have rocket boosters jutting out of its back that were covered by cicada wings.

The cicada-bike hybrid screeched savagely as the Darkloid Rider hopped on. Then the demonic duo drove out of the infirmary avoiding the two doctors. A portal of dark energy appeared in front of the Darkloid Rider and he drove right through it, easily escaping the Hive.

Dr. Magi and Dr. Magi grimaced. How were they supposed to explain this to Shinichi?

* * *

Shinichi drove down the road of Shishibone City angrily. He hadn't found any new leads on the murders. Just more corpses. It appeared that the killer was just as good at hiding his victims as he was at hiding himself.

"Did you find anything?" he asked his brother through his communicator.

"_Only more dead bodies_," the Smith reported solemnly.

"Shouldn't this be easy for you?" Shinichi asked exhausted what he had seen wasn't pretty. "You're part Kryptonian right? You can hear like a pin dropping on the moon right?"

That was when Alan hovered down from the sky in his Green Lantern uniform. "It isn't that simple Shinichi," Alan told him sadly. "For one the murderer has always been attacking when I've been out on missions. I'm too focused during that time to hear the whole world. I've only just joined the investigation today."

Shinichi sighed; his life was never that easy. Of course since when was it ever easy?

That was when Alan's head suddenly shot up, "Wait I hear something."

"What is it, partner?" Bazel asked.

"Something not human," Alan answered. "Come on, follow me. And be quiet, Bazel. We don't want this guy to run."

Shinichi followed his brother through a nearby alley until they reached the source of the 'inhuman' sounds. They found the Lion Kaijin standing over a dead body. The Kaijin of course had the head of a lion but its mane was golden and spiky identifying it as male. He also wore what seemed to be a silver mask over its face with a red visor allowing it to see. The Lion Kaijin was large standing at six feet tall and it was muscular. It wore heavy gold colored plate armor with golden boots and silver gauntlets with golden claws at the end. Over his armor he wore a silver robe. And finally the broadsword he was holding was gold as well with intricate silvers runes covering it.

Then the Kaijin spoke as it saw them. "_Hello,_" it greeted.

Shinichi looked at the scene and growled in rage at the monster's casual greeting. "Alan, let's go!"

"Gladly!" his brother agreed now clad in the armor of Sentinel with his power ring glowing.

Then Shinichi transformed as well, "Henshin!" he shouted, becoming Showa.

The Lion Kaijin Panthera Regulus didn't get to say anything more before he was hit in the face with a green energy blasts.

Regulus growled at this.

The fight was on.

* * *

Meanwhile the murderer was in his base chatting with his latest victims, a young newlywed couple. They were bound and gagged, so the conversation was sort of one-sided.

"Hey, you're pretty cute," the murderer complimented the wife. "He turned to the husband, "Man buddy, you sure are lucky to have a woman like this."

The groom grunted something behind his gag. It was unintelligible but the murderer seemed to understand him. It was actually easy for the killer to do so; he had been having these types of conversations for over thirty years.

"Such crass language," the murderer chastised. "Look we are civilized people here so there is no need to use crass language like the F-word to prove a point." The murderer's voice then turned darker, "Actions speak louder then words." The murderer then motioned around the room. There were many, many corpses positioned around the room like art pieces. The couple then knew they were next.

"Oh yes, and before you tell me not to violate your wife, let me tell I'm not going to do that," the murderer continued his one-sided conversation. "Seriously, if you need to rape a person to prove you're evil then you're not evil in the first place. I mean any hormone driven punk can rape a girl but it takes a special type to do real evil," the murderer rambled on. "Besides, sex is boring. I get a better rush out of a good brawl."

The husband didn't believe him. The murderer seemed to know this for some reason.

"Don't worry," the murderer assured him, "Look, just to prove to you that I'm just a serial killer I'll kill your wife first."

The husband was too late to protest to this. The murderer nonchalantly shot a telekinetic blast at the wife turning her into a red gooey paste.

"See? I told you! But you're still angry, it seems. Some people are just unappeasable," the murderer lamented. Then all of a sudden he looked up.

He had sensed Keiichi transform.

"Oh this is a good day! The little sprout is back! I worried that the Kamen Riders had killed him!" the murderer confessed. "I saw it all with our psychic link I planted in him when we first met." The murderer then turned contemplative, "Well actually I knew they wouldn't kill him. Showa is good friends with the sprout. But I was worried they would find our link. You see I can't find their base. It could be on the moon for all I know."

The widowed husband did not know how to react to the murderer's rant. He was just too traumatized over his wife's death.

"You have been a good person to talk to," the murderer thanked. "But something important has come up so I will have to kill you early." The murderer then nonchalantly crushed the widowed husband's throat, killing him.

"Now I have to make sure the sprout is still in fighting shape…" The murderer pondered. He then got out a sheet of paper then mumbled something Greek.

Then with a burst of eldritch power a Greek monster, a Minotaur to be more exact, appeared. It was armed with a dangerous looking ax.

"Know go make sure the new Agito is in fighting shape, Minotaur," the murderer ordered.

The Minotaur nodded, ready to follow its summoner's will.

* * *

Rika had just gotten out of class for the day when someone tapped her on the shoulder.

"What is it?" Rika asked thinking it was just a boy about to confess to her.

"**Rika we need to talk," **An ominous voice said from behind her.

Rika carefully turned around to see the Darkloid Rider with his cicada bike behind him looking at her.

Rika was about to let out a scream when the Darkloid Rider knelt down and gently put his hand on her shoulder. **"Please, don't shout. I really need to talk," **the Darkloid Rider begged.

"Keiichi…is that you?" Rika asked. Hanyuu had told her that Keiichi had transformed into this thing.

"**Yes and no," **The Darkloid Rider told her, **"You see normally I would go to Mion for the information that I want, but if my memories are right you will have better info."**

"Why would you want to talk to me? I'm just an ordinary girl," Rika lied.

"**Don't lie, Rika-chan. I remember. I remember **_**everything.**_** I remember the Endless June. I remember how you tried everything to get out of it so I'm sure you know everything about Hinamizawa." **The Darkloid Rider took a deep breath and asked, **"Rika do you know who Tsumtomu Miyazaki is?"**

Rika felt like she needed to throw up at that name.

"**I'm guessing that name brings up bad memories**," commented the Darkloid Rider.

"Where did you hear that name?" she demanded.

* * *

The battle had moved onto the street. The Lion Kaijin was thrown into the air by a punch from Showa and landed violently on the ground. Sentinel hovered next to his brother, backing him up.

"Tank Legs! Drill Arm! Shovel Claw!" he called and the weapons formed over his arms and legs. Snapping the Shovel Claws and spinning the Drill Arm, the Tank Legs activated and Showa moved across the ground, fast. The Lion Kaijin brought his sword up to defend himself only for it to be wrenched out of his grip by the Shovel Claw. Showa's Drill Arm then struck him in the chest, sending him staggering.

Showa and Sentinel suspected that a monster was involved with the murders and seeing this thing standing over that dead body simply confirmed it.

As Showa began to advance again, he received an emergency call through his helmet's com-link. Putting his hand against the spot next to his ear, he replied, "We're a little busy here. We just found the thing responsible for the murders."

"_Shinichi, Keiichi woke up,"_ Dr. Magi reported.

Showa was elated by the news, "Really? That's great! I should tell Mion!"

"_And he transformed into that Darkloid Rider again."_

That statement quickly caused Showa's mood to shift.

"_I'm going to contact the others to be on the lookout for him."_

Sentinel fired a green beam of energy from his power ring in an attempt to capture the Lion Kaijin. The Kaijin immediately proved himself to be more powerful than expected as an aura of golden energy exploded around his body knocking Showa back and destroying the energy beam Sentinel created. The Lion Kaijin then attacked Showa with his claws, destroying his Drill Arm and Shovel Claw. Showa was sent reeling by the loss of his weapons and the Lion Kaijin took advantage of that by using a spin kick to knock him off balance. Sentinel hit the Lion Kaijin with a massive right hook sending the monster flying into a wall.

Sentinel immediately flew over to his brother to help him up. "You okay?" he asked his brother.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Showa assured. "But what about the pussy cat over there?"

"I hit him with a straight punch. No way he's conscious."

Sentinel then heard a metallic sound. The Lion Kaijin's sword had levitated and was flying straight at Sentinel. He dodged out of reflex and it saved his life. The Lion Kaijin's sword had scraped against the Armor of Bazel he wore and _cut it_!"

The two brothers had no time to gawk at the sword's power because its master had recovered. Showa and Sentinel immediately dodged a barrage of energy bolts from the Lion Kaijin. They were immediately glad they did so. It was obvious that the Lion Kaijin was a magical creature, and magic was one of Sentinel's weaknesses.

Then like a bolt of lighting the Lion Kaijin ran straight at Showa, sword raised ready to slice him in two. Showa was ready "Let's Ride: Biorider!" In a flash of blue light, his body turned into liquid so he could avoid damage from the blow.

That, however, turned out to be a big mistake on his part.

The Lion Kaijin's sword sliced through Showa's liquid form then emitted the same light that the creature could, slowly causing Showa to evaporate.

"NOOOOOO!" Sentinel cried. He had the Kusanagi drawn and ready to cut the Lion Kaijin to pieces. The Lion Kaijin withdrew his sword from Showa's intangible form and blocked the Kusanagi.

The Lion Kaijin released its magical aura of light again this time with Sentinel stuck with their blades locked. Sentinel began to weaken due to being stuck in the magical light and the Lion Kaijin was watching his power ring closely so that was out. So now Sentinel was forced into a sword duel where the Lion Kaijin was rapidly proving to be superior. Kusanagi was a fine blade, there were few swords that could compare to its power but there was a saying a sword was only as good as its wielder. It showed with Sentinel who was a person who first relied on a power ring to fight. Later he relied on brute Kryptonian strength to fight his opponents. Now he was forced into a situation where all that mattered was one's skills with the sword.

Sentinel was a novice compared to the Lion Kaijin who was _magnificent _with his sword play. Kusanagi might have been a better sword then whatever enchanted blade the Lion Kaijin was using, but the Lion Kaijin was a better swordsman.

As if to make the situation worse the Lion Kaijin let out an earth-shattering roar that damaged Sentinel's super hearing. Now Sentinel was deaf, his power was weakening due to the magical aura the Lion Kaijin emitted, his ring was useless and he was losing his sword duel. The mighty Smith was about to be slain by a random monster.

* * *

"**Because I think he is the cause of this…" **The Darkloid Rider motioned to himself.

"What?" Rika gaped in confusion. "Tsumkomu was twisted but he could never do anything like this!"

"**So you do know him," **The Darkloid Rider said.

"I know of him," Rika corrected. "And I am glad I know only that. If what the records say is true I am glad he never appeared in the Endless June. I would have never escaped."

"**So you admit to the Endless June." **It wasn't a question. It was a statement.

"What does that have to do with Tsumkomu?" Rika asked.

"**It's complicated! Look I can't really explain without info about Tsumkomu, Rika-chan." **

"Fine," Rika sighed. "I'll take you to the where his records are hidden."

"**Hidden records," **the Darkloid Rider sighed. **"****Hinamizawa looks so nice that you**** forget all the skeletons this village has tried to bury."**

"Yes it does," Rika admitted sadly she knew those secrets better than anyone.

"**Don't act like ****you're**** alone, Rika-chan," **The Darkloid Rider chastised her. **"While you remember the hell of the Endless June as the victim, I remember it as both victim and murderer now. An endless amount of times I delved into the mad secrets ****of**** Hinamizawa either out of madness or righteousness and I either died or killed because of those secrets."**

Rika had to admit that the thing Keiichi had become was right. Keiichi was always a vital piece during each loop of the Endless June. And he always suffered for it.

"How does you remembering all of the Endless June link you becoming this thing?" Rika asked once more.

"**I remembered the Endless June before I became this Rika-chan," **the Darkloid Rider pointed out.

Rika was hit by this fact like a sledgehammer. Keiichi had remembered the Endless June during certain loops. This ability was vital in freeing Rika from the accursed Endless June and she nor Hanyuu never tried to look into why a random boy could see through time itself.

"Is that why you're acting so different, Keiichi?" Rika questioned.

"**Well sort of. ****You see basically the story goes like this: I have had the memories of a million different versions of myself shoved into my head that have me being either the murder victim or the murderer****. It was rather easy to become a sarcastic bastard, to be perfectly honest. I'm not really sure if I am Keiichi or some sort of being made from all of his memories of the Endless June that's stuck in his head" **The Darkloid Rider then laughed. **"Hey Rika-chan I just realized something funny! I'm finally older then you are!" **

"This isn't the time for jokes. I will take you to the records whoever you are." Rika then paused. "What should I call you?"

"**Hmmmm," **the Darkloid Rider rubbed his insectoid chin with his clawed fingers, it was a strange sight. **"How about Otiga! No that sounds wrong, then maybe Xitoga, or how about Ketricakal."**

"Stop," Rika interrupted, "The 'Darkloid Rider' will have to do for now. Also can you transform back to normal, you sort of stand out."

"**I can't," **the Darkloid Rider admitted sheepishly.

"You can't," Rika parroted. This thing was driving her up the wall.

"**I don't know how. You see I'm not wearing a suit of armor like the other Kamen Rider. This is all biological. Every molecule in my body has been transformed and it isn't like flipping a switch."**

"Then this just became even more complicated," Rika said in disbelief. How was she supposed to sneak a mutant Rider into the most secure of locations?

"**Actually this will be rather easy." **The Darkloid Rider corrected as a dark portal appeared beside his cicada-cycle. **"I can open these cool portals now. All I need to know is the location and then I'm there. You just give me the directions."**

"Let me get on your bike and you drive," Rika deadpanned.

* * *

"Spark Burst!"

A beam of red energy smashed into the Lion Kaijin and pushed him off Sentinel who collapsed to his knees. Showa was standing a distance away with his Burst Cannon attached to his chest. With the Lion Kaijin driven back, he deactivated the cannon and helped his brother up. "Hey, you OK?" he asked Sentinel.

"Just drained," said Sentinel. That light had been weakening him.

"Take five," Showa advised as he cracked his knuckles and approached the Lion Kaijin. "OK, let's dance, kitty cat! Bring down the thunder, Gokuaku!"

The Lion Kaijin roared and lunged at Showa, only to be repelled by an elemental tornado of fire, lightning and wind. When the tornado was dispersed, Showa stood in his Oni Form armed with his Oni Claws. Gliding on wind to increase his speed, Showa reached his opponent and slashed him across the chest. The Lion Kaijin roared and fired energy bolts which Showa countered with lightning bolts from his horns. He then fired a stream of flames from his mouth, causing the Lion Kaijin to roar in agony.

Raising his claws, Showa roared and rushed at the Lion Kaijin, ready to finish the job. That was when the Lion Kaijin raised his blade. It glowed with light once more and created a shield of light which blasted Showa backwards. Landing shakily on his feet, Showa cursed himself. He had been arrogant. The Lion Kaijin was able to fight Sentinel on even grounds. A simple form change wouldn't have been able turn the tide.

"Ugh," Showa groaned, "You're much stronger than you look, aren't you?" he asked not expecting the answer.

Then the Lion Kaijin spoke. "Yes I am." _He _confirmed. "Now can we please stop fighting? This is all a big misunderstanding, Shinichi Banabara and Alan Smith. I let this fight continue so you could work off your rage. But since you were about to kill me I have decided to bring this fight to an end."

"But you killed that man! Why should we trust you?" Showa retorted. He had to stall this creature that was able to take both of them on. Even worse he knew their identities. For now, he would hear him out until his brother recovered.

"Correction: you saw me standing over a dead body. I did not kill that man. We are the same as we are chasing the real killer," the Lion Kaijin countered.

Showa lost most of his steam. Had he really misinterpret the situation? The last time he did a friend of his nearly died. Still, this wasn't his friend so he couldn't completely trust this creature. He could be lying through his teeth and Shinichi couldn't afford such fatal mistakes again.

"Then why did you attack us?" Showa asked, trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

"You attacked me first," the Lion Kaijin corrected once more. "I greeted you politely only to be met with violence. So I responded with violence in order to defend myself. If I had not then I would have been forced to return to Him."

"Him?" Showa parroted even more confused. The Lion Kaijin was religious?

"Wait," Sentinel interjected, "I know what you are now. You're a Lord, a servant to the Overlord." Sentinel had attended his uncle's seminar on the various Kaijin species inhabiting the Kamen Rider Worlds in the Multiverse. Lords, also known as Unknowns, were natives of the World of Agito.

Showa was very confused at this point.

"Yes Offworlder, I am the El-Lord of Light, Panthera Regulus, servant of the Overlord."

"But if you're a Lord then you should be the murderer! Only a Lord kills like this!" Sentinel challenged. "These people have Seeds of Agito inside of them, am I right? And you've been killing them so they won't evolve!"

"What! No! The Overlord would never allow freewill to be compromised in such a manner," Regulus growled at Sentinel's heretical accusation.

"Oh wait. I think I get it. This is an alternate universe! So that should mean certain things could have happened differently! This Overlord could be completely different!" Sentinel realized.

"Exactly, Offworlder," Regulus confirmed.

"Wait, I'm confused," Showa said. "Since the two of you are so buddy-buddy now can you explain what's going on?"

"Very well," Regulus conceded, "I have been tasked with a mission by Him to kill the serial killer that has plagued this world for over twenty five years."

"WHAT?" Showa shouted in rage, "You mean this psychopath has been getting away with this shit for twenty five years?"

"Do not interrupt!" Regulus roared like the lion he was based on. "You see the murderer behind these tragedy's name is Tsumkomu Miyazaki. He is an Agito and he has returned to his home after many years to acquire the newest Agito. Your friend, Keiichi Maebara."

* * *

A portal of darkness opened in front the Hinamizawa's hall of records. Both Rika and the Darkloid Rider exited the portal, riding on the cicada-bike. Dismounting the vehicle, the two entered the building and walked up to a wall within the building.

"**Let me guess, there's a secret door," **the Darkloid Rider quipped.

Rika said nothing and opened up a loose floor board near the wall and pulled a record book up from under the floor.

"**Nice to know that this village isn't **_**that **_**cliché," **the Darkloid Rider deadpanned.

Rika once again ignored him and began to read, "Tsumtomu Miyazaki: Born 1944, he was considered the future of Hinamizawa village. He was talented and good at everything. He had everything a man could have wanted. He was polite, handsome, incredible physical capabilities, had a genius IQ, and could do so much more. The elders planned for him to go out into the world and build a good name for Hinamizawa to distance us from our dark past."

"**Yeah this place was never well known for sanity," **The Darkloid Rider grunted, **"I guess things didn't go according to plan?" **

"You are correct. Tsumtomu gained an interest in Hinamizawa's ancient occult practices during his late teens." Rika's voice then turned darker. "Then he began to practice them. He became the village's worst nightmare as he killed over fifty people before he was discovered. He ranted about how he had gained powers beyond normal men then killed the mob sent to capture him with strange supernatural powers before escaping."

"**Could he brainwash people?" **the Darkloid Rider asked.

"The records don't say for sure," Rika told him, "But the people that made up his social circle began to act differently, or forget what they were doing at certain times, and during the time when Tsumtomu was at his peak, so he most likely can." Rika reported, "Also certain people began fighting each other randomly in a trance-like state, but that part was written off as the Hinamizawa Syndrome."

"**I take it he became ****a pariah**** because of the Hinamizawa Syndrome?" **the Darkloid Rider suggested.

"Yes," Rika confirmed his suspicions. "I'm sure you know this but Hinamizawa has always been on thin ice with the rest of Japan because the whole village could succumb to the Syndrome so the government had put 'countermeasures' in place."

"**Basically, kill us all," **The Darkloid Rider agreed, **"It was different each time, if I remember. Being gassed, a normal bomb, to Miyo's goon squad. I get what you're saying. Tsumtomu was supposed to be proof the Hinamizawa wasn't crazy but he became the craziest person this village ever produced."**

"The reason I know so much about Tsumtomu is because during a couple thousand loops I believed he had returned for revenge so I researched everything the village knew about him," Rika explained.

"**But he never was the culprit," **the Darkloid Rider continued. **"It was sort of sad that the person behind all of that was a nurse who looked like she was stoned half the time. I personally think the bitch got off too easy."**

"So why did you need to know all of this?" Rika asked.

"**Because I needed to know if Tsumtomu did have some kind of psychic powers that could mind control people." **The Darkloid Rider then looked away. **"Because before I became this thing I met him."  
**

"WHAT?" Rika shouted.

"**Let me continue, Rika-chan. You see after I met him I began to have weird dreams at first they were my memories of the Endless June returning. Then they became different…" **the Darkloid Rider trailed off. **"I began to see visions of Hinamizawa from Tsumtomu's point of view, which is why I came here for information but I found nothing then I went to you and found this. You see this is my theory: I think Tsumtomu did gain super powers then he used them to murder people, then he found me and put some sort of psychic link inside my head pushing me to transform into this form, My late night 'activities' were actually Tsumtomu making me run around trying to break my will. He was about to succeed when I was about to kill a man but luckily Shinichi stopped me and he broke our link in the process."**

"So what are you going to do now?" Rika asked her mutated friend.

"**I'm going to find Tsumtomu and beat the answers out of him!" **the Darkloid Rider roared.

"Can't you just ask Shinichi for help?" Rika begged she did not want to see her friend like this.

"**I wish I could, Rika-chan." **The Darkloid Rider admitted. **"But Shinichi would never allow it! This is something I have to do myself!"**

"Fine," Rika conceded.

"**Thank you, Rika-chan." **The Darkloid Rider said sincerely. **"C'mon, I'll give you a ride home as thanks."**

"Thank you," Rika said as she got on the bike as the Darkloid Rider did the same and they drove through a portal to the Banabara house.

The Gaming Club was on the other side. They had been looking for Rika and had just stopped to look for her by her house.

"**Well isn't this awkward," **the Darkloid Rider deadpanned.

The Gaming Club stared at the Darkloid Rider. When Rika hadn't shown up at home they were worried, Hanyuu especially. Once they saw her with the Darkloid Rider, they though the worst, until Mion remembered that this was Keiichi.

"Kei-chan?" she questioned.

"**Yes, and no,"** he answered as he let Rika down from the bike. That was when Chiaki walked up to confront him. He'd been contacted like the rest of the NUMBERS on Keiichi's escape. They had even been given a description of his Darkloid Rider form based on Shinichi's testimony.

"What?" the Darkloid Rider glared.

"You shouldn't have left without permission," said Chiaki, grabbing his arm. "So you're coming back with me."

The Darkloid Rider's response was simple. He shoved Chiaki back with so much force that he was sent went flying.

The Darkloid Rider had saved Chiaki's life by doing that because the Minotaur had almost beheaded him from behind.

"Chiaki-san!" Hanyuu cried.

"**Shit, I've been followed!" **the Darkloid Rider cursed. **"Hey Chiaki, transform and help me out."**

Chiaki didn't respond he had been knocked unconscious when the Darkloid Rider had shoved him away.

"**Fuck…" **the Darkloid Rider groaned. **"I screwed up."**

The Minotaur roared at the Darkloid Rider, ready to kill him in the name of its master.

The Darkloid Rider turned to his friends and said, **"Run,"**

"What?" Mion cried, "Kei-chan, what do you mean? You can't fight that thing!"

"**Yes I can,"** the Darkloid Rider said. **"Now do as I say and run!" ** The Darkloid Rider ordered.

"Let him do it," Rika said. "Right now we need to get Chiaki to safety. The Darkloid Rider can handle this."

Hanyuu looked at Rika in confusion but she complied.

Satoshi and Shion picked up Chiaki and began to carry him to safety. It was a bit difficult since he was so damn heavy.

"Kei-chan," Mion whispered not sure what to think of her boyfriend's shift in personality. He looked so much different in his current form but she could recognize his voice even if it was slightly distorted.

"**Mion, I'll be fine," **the Darkloid Rider assured her. **"Right now you have to call Shinichi and warn him about a man called Tsumtomu Miyazaki. Can you do that?"**

"Fine! But you better win or you'll shame the Gaming Club," Mion ordered her boyfriend.

"**That's**** my girl," **the Darkloid Rider approved while cracking his knuckles. **"Now leave everything to your soon to be number one subordinate!"**

The Minotaur roared once more challenging his foe. The Darkloid Rider entered a Sonozaki martial arts stance he had learned due to being killed by it millions of times.

"**All right, Bessie. At least try to put up a fight. I want my debut look good!"**

* * *

"He wants Keiichi because of his newly awakened powers," said Showa. "But he's not an Agito."

"Are you sure?" Regulus questioned.

"He was more like a Darkloid than a Rider," Showa argued, but he wasn't too sure.

"A Seed can be corrupted, either from forces within or without," Regulus told him. "Has your friend been infected or possessed by demonic forces in the past."

"Well…" Showa thought. Keiichi had been infected by the Hinamizawa Syndrome, but that was no longer a problem. Then he took G-Shock that one time.

"He, like everyone in Hinamizawa, is infected by the Hinamizawa Syndrome," said Sentinel. "A syndrome which is actually caused by demonic larvae that feeds on their negative emotions while amplifying them as well."

"Hmmm…" Regulus processed this information then came to an answer, "Ah yes. The village of Hinamizawa where there was a time loop. That makes sense."

"Wait, you know about that?" Showa questioned. He didn't think this creature would know about something like the Endless June.

"Of course. Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain's time loop had many higher beings watching. Time manipulation is dangerous; it is not a toy to be used to fix mistakes when something goes wrong. If she had made a single mistake the results would have been catastrophic!" Regulus lectured.

"I see what you mean," Sentinel agreed. The Doctor had warned him how manipulating time could lead to many apocolyptic scenarios.

"And how do you know so much about us? You even knew our names!" Showa continued his interrogation. He wasn't as accepting as his brother was at the Lord's view of time manipulation. He had reversed time to save lives.

"The Overlord is not so cruel to send his servants in blind," Regulus told him. "He is a god that watches over humanity and makes sure less benevolent deities do not interfere with the free will of humanity. The two of you are shining beacons of humanity's progress! How could the Overlord not have heard of you?"

"Then why hasn't the Overlord helped until now if he cares about humanity so much?" Showa accused.

"Free will," was Regulus's short answer.

"Nani?" Showa frowned.

Regulus explained, "Do you ever wonder why those two goddesses that follow you around never give you nothing more than blessings? It is because a millennia ago when the gods were closer to man, many abused their power and took the power of choice away from sentient beings. The Olympians are perfect examples. Anyway, the gods that had not gone mad with their power signed a pact of non-intervention that limited their control over the world thus weakening the gods that abused their powers allowing humans to regain free will. The power of free will then caused the demons and monsters that once terrorized humanity to fade into the shadows. Now the gods can only interact with the world with things like blessings, like Amaterasu and Tsukoyomi, or through agents such as myself as the Overlord does."

"Okay, knowing more about the celestial bureaucracy is interesting, but let's get back on track. What does a time loop have to do with Keiichi's Agito form?" Sentinel questioned.

"The Seeds of Agito are an embodiment of the power of evolution itself and they can transcend time and space! So great is their power!" Regulus announced dramatically. "And what is a vital rule of evolution?"

"Survival of the fittest," Sentinel answered. That was in Darwin's theory of evolution.

"Yes," said Regulus. "Think about it objectively. There has been countless times where Keiichi Maebara has been infected by Darkloid larvae, and countless times they unwittingly defeated a goddess, and that does not even factor in the damage his Seed must have undergone during the loop. Do you understand what I'm saying?" Regulus asked.

"So what you're saying is that Keiichi's Seed of Agito has confused the Darkloids for a superior life form, an apex predator in layman's terms, so it has evolved to imitate the power of a Darkloid?" Sentinel theorized.

"Exactly, Alan Smith," Regulus smiled happy to have an intellectual to talk to.

Then Showa's communicator buzzed. It was a message from Chiaki. He answered. "Chiaki what is it?" Showa asked.

"_Great, I finally got this thing to work! Shinichi, we found Keiichi!" _That wasn't Chiaki's voice, it was Mion's.

"Mion!" Showa gasped. "What are you doing with Chiaki's communicator?"

"_Chiaki is unconscious." _Mion explained. _"You see, Rika went missing so me and the rest of the Gaming Club plus Chiaki we went looking for her. We found her talking to the thing Kei-chan became. The Darkloid Rider she calls him."_

"Why is Chiaki unconscious? Did Keiichi do it?" Showa asked hoping it wasn't the case.

"_Yeah, but not on purpose! The Darkloid Rider was acting different then how you described. He was talking and everything! He saved Chiaki's life when he was almost crushed by a Minotaur. He then told us that he could handle things and to run and to warn you about a man named Tsumtomu Miyazaki."_

"Thanks a lot, Mion," Showa said thankfully. "I'll get there as soon as I can so just lay low and I'll handle things."

"What's happened now?" Sentinel groaned, expecting the worse.

"Keiichi is hunting Tsumtomu by himself. Even worse, Mion said that he's fighting a Minotaur!"

"Tsumtomu is a master magician," Regulus interjected. "Summoning is just one of his many talents."

"We need to get there and save Keiichi!" Showa shouted frantically. He was not going to allow his friends to be hurt again.

"No," Regulus disagreed. "We need to find Tsumtomu and kill him! He is the root of the infestation. This will only end when he dies."

"But my friends in danger!" Showa argued, ready to start another fight with the Lion Lord.

"Wait," Sentinel said, "Let's compromise. The three of us will go hunt down Tsumtomu, while the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS go and retrieve Keiichi."

"Fine," Showa conceded.

"Then there is no time to waste," Regulus roared. "Tsumtomu has made his move we must find him and end him!"

* * *

The Minotaur swung its axe wildly trying to hit the Darkloid Rider and was failing miserably as the Kaijin Rider jumped, flipped, and soared through the air like an acrobat.

"**Heh Heh Heh, gonna take more then that to hit me!" **the Darkloid Rider mocked his opponent. The Darkloid Rider then inspected the Minotaur. **"But it looks like I'm going to need some heavy artillery to deal with you!" **the Darkloid Rider then summoned his kanabo and went on the attack.

The Minotaur raised its axe to block but the Darkloid Rider then changed the course of his weapon in mid-swing, hitting the Minotaur on its right side with the kanabo's spikes drawing blood. The Minotaur roared in rage and pushed the Darkloid Rider back with a mighty swing of its axe.

In response the Darkloid Rider summoned another weapon. It was a giant black sword that resembled a cleaver. **"Time for you to meet your butcher!" **the Darkloid Rider proclaimed, swinging his cleaver sword at the Minotaur. However, the Minotaur then showed that it actually knew how to use its weapon by blocking all of the Darkloid Rider's swings. Sparks flew as the weapons connected repeatedly.

The Darkloid Rider backed away and began to re-strategize **"Okay it was stupid to try to outmuscle you," **The Darkloid Rider admitted. **"So I'll just out magic you!" **He summoned a black spiked Khakkara staff (a Buddhist monks staff) and slammed it into the ground causing its rings to chime and conjuring balls of blue fire to circle around the Darkloid Rider. The Minotaur, knowing what was happening was going to be bad for its health, charged the Darkloid Rider trying to stop him from firing his salvo. But the Darkloid Rider blocked its advance with his Khakkara. The impact of the two weapons clashing caused the Khakkara to chime again making it released a jet of blue flame into the Minotaur's face causing its fur to catch fire and forcing it to back away whilst trying to bat out the supernatural flames.

It didn't get the chance to. The Darkloid Rider then released the fireballs he was charging up. They all hit the Minotaur and exploded. The Minotaur fell to its knees, its body burnt by the supernatural fire.

The Darkloid Rider dispersed his Khakkara staff then got into a familiar stance, a stance to prepare for a Rider Kick.

The stag beetle horns on the Darkloid Rider split apart into six then black lighting surrounded his body while a black Symbol of Agito appeared beneath his feet. However, the symbol was unlike the standard insignia for the Rider known as Agito. It was twisted looking and had twisted spikes jutting out at random angles. The demonic Symbol of Agito was absorbed into the Darkloid Rider's body empowering him further. He then jumped into the air to execute a flying side kick as he shouted a familiar battle cry, **"Rider Kick!"**

It was a perfect hit as the kick sent the Minotaur skidding backwards. The Darkloid Rider's personal symbol appeared on the Minotaur's chest before the monster roared in agony as darkness flooded out of the Symbol of Agito, engulfing it as it screamed in pain. Finally**,** it exploded into black flames.

"**Now that is one cool Rider Kick," **The Darkloid Rider complimented himself. It was way more impressive than the one Shinichi had executed, in his opinion. He then saw, out of the corner of his eye, a Teleportal opened.

The NEO-NUMBERS had arrived.

"OK, what happened here?" Blue Beetle asked as he saw the signs of battle, and a fire about to fade in front of the Darkloid Rider.

"**You're too late. The party's over**," commented the Darkloid Rider.

"Is that really you, Keiichi?" Carmen questioned.

"**Kinda, although you should call me the 'Darkloid Rider**'," he answered.

"Appropriate, but now you'll have to come back with us," said Zero. This was not negotiable.

"**You know, you're all treating me like the enemy here and it's not really fair**," remarked the Darkloid Rider. **"What ever happened to 'innocent until proven guilty'?"**

"That doesn't exactly apply to this situation," Musician retorted.

"**Oh, I think it does. But I really can't go with you because there's someone I need to see about my condition**," said the Darkloid Rider. He quickly ran towards his bike and hopped on.

"Don't let him escape!" Zero ordered. The Darkloid Rider hit the gas, blinding the NEO-NUMBERS with a cloud of smoke to cover his escape. His engine roared and he took off, forming a dark portal which would take him to wherever he needed to go and he needed to find Tsumtomu.

He had questions and the man had all the answers.

"Well, well, well, looks like I just missed the sprout," a pleasant voice said from behind the NEO-NUMBERS. The NEO-NUMBERS turned around to see Tsumtomu Miyazaki behind them smiling pleasantly.

"Who are you?" Zero questioned. He didn't need more complications at the moment.

"Tsumtomu Miyazaki," he politely introduced himself. "Enchanted to meet you Shogo Kuso, Hana Nekozawa, Daichi Takashima, Yokoshima Ryuunosuke-Magi, Michiru Misami and Battler Ushiromiya." Tsumtomu looked around then said. "It looks like Chiaki Yukinojou couldn't make it." He sighed, "Ah well it doesn't matter. I'll just kill him later." The sociopath shrugged.

The NEO-NUMBERS eyes bugged out from under their masks. This man knew who they were?

"H-how do you know this stuff?" Blue Beetle stammered.

"Well many reasons. First of all I have been following you for awhile now, staking you out, waiting for you to change back to your civilian identities, memorizing your faces and going over public records," Tsumtomu explained. "Oh yes I can also read minds," he added as an afterthought.

"You're the murderer, aren't you?" Meta realized.

"Yes, yes I am," Tsumtomu casually admitted as if he was just confessing to stealing a cookie from a cookie jar.

"Why have you revealed yourself now? You've been avoiding us until now!" Musician challenged.

"Simple, it's a game of divide and conquer. You see, through my studies, I have come to the conclusion that I couldn't defeat you all at once while trying to achieve my objective. I was just about to come up with a plan to divide you all when you did my work for me."

"Yeah, well you still screwed up! There are six of us and only one of you sicko!" Carmen poked a hole through Tsumtomu's logic. "There's no way you beat all of us!"

"Make that seven," Slasher in his Slayer Mode proclaimed running up to his teammates side.

"Meh," Tsumtomu shrugged. "It still doesn't matter." Tsumtomu's creepily pleasant smile widened. "I'm not sure if you all are aware of what you really are. You are all outdated; you serve no purpose and accomplish nothing compared to Shinichi, Alan or Yuji. You're all strictly background players, secondary characters in a play. You're all mooks compared to your three other teammates. When was the last time you got an upgrade besides Yokoshima over there? Three years ago? You have all stagnated and you're all stuck at the same low weight class from when you started. When was the last time you made a real contribution to defeating your higher tier villains? The answer is _never_. All you ever do when the stakes are really high is destroy robots or something," Tsumtomu lectured cheerfully.

"SHUT UP!" Musician roared in rage. But on the inside he and the other NEO-NUMBERS wondered if Tsumtomu was right. Shinichi, Alan, and Yuji kept becoming more and more powerful and all of them stayed the same. Did they really matter?

"Enough!" Zero shouted, restoring order to his team. "What he says does not matter! What does matter is bringing him in!"

"HAHAHAHAHA!" Tsumtomu laughed. "I don't think you get it. The Sprout is tracing a false lead I planted into his head! You all cannot defeat me! And Shinichi anD Alan won't swoop in to save you!"

A golden belt with a blue gem in the center appeared around his waist and began to glow with power.

"Henshin!"

There was a bright flash of light which enveloped Tsumtomu, blinding the NEO-NUMBERS and prompting them to shield their eyes. Once the light had died, they focused their eyes on their enemy and were given the shock of their lives.

Tsumtomu Miyazaki had transformed into an evil version of Kamen Rider Agito. He looked similar to a normal Agito except for his colors. His armor was white instead of gold and his eyes were blue instead of red. The stone in the center of his chest was blue and his two horns were already split, representing that he had mastered his powers.

"Now let the fun begin! Or do I mean carnage? I always get the two mixed up!" Evil Agito exclaimed happily.

The two parties clashed violently with battlecries. It was seven against one and the odds were in their favor…right?

* * *

The Darkloid Rider drove his sentient cicada-bike until he stopped at a random clearing. He dismounted and shouted. **"Tsumtomu I know you're here! Now come out and face me!" **No answer, but that was whena giant summoning circle appeared near the Darkloid Darkloid Rider instantly realized what was happening. **"Dammit! He tricked me! Our link must not be completely gone!"**

Then the summoned beast appeared. It was gigantic, easily seventy feet tall. It had purple fur covering its body with a long lizard-like tail jutting out of its spine. The monster stood on two legs with giant gorilla like arms and yellow claws acting as fingers. Its face was lizard-like as well with a mouth filled with jagged yellow teeth, its eyes were red and it had ram horns growing out of the back of its head. This creature was the Behemoth.

"**Oh Shit," **the Darkloid Rider gulped, then he immediately regained his composure. **"Heh, my first Kaiju fight on my first day on the job. It must be Christmas." **The Darkloid Rider smirked as his second fight as a hero began.

* * *

Hell had come to Shishibone City. All throughout the city portals opened from both the ground and the sky as an army of monsters emerged. They came from all over mythology. There were trolls, ogres, and goblins, and Minotaurs like the ones the Darkloid Rider had fought. Along with undead Spartan soldiers were three-headed hellhounds like Cerberus and Grecian Chimeras made from the combinations of every animal imaginable. There were also lizard-men, bug-men, beast-men, and a frost giant from Norse mythology. Roaring viciously were five European dragons, five Chinese dragons, along with a legion of undead kung fu zombies. There were youkai as well; kamataichi, oni, kitsune and so many more. Crawling on the ground was a dozen flaming house-sized salamanders, and worst of all an army of devils from the actual Hell had been summoned to wreck havoc.

All off these monsters may have come from different sources but they wanted one thing, to destroy Shishibone City and kill everyone in it.

Tsumtomu's murders actually served a second purpose then to amuse himself. All the victims were sacrifices to create a summoning array to summon this horde of monsters the act as a distraction and kill people. _That_ was really important in Tsumtomu's in book.

Shinichi, Alan and Regulus were about to have a really bad day.

* * *

"ALERT! ALERT!" Sheila shouted in alarm.

"Woah there, girl," said AI-Shin as he floated to the large computer which housed Sheila. "What's wrong?"

"There has been a large emergence of creatures in Shishibone City!" she reported as she brought the images being captured by satellite.

"Holy shit! Doc Magi! Doc Washam, you guys have to see this!"

Instantly, the two scientists were in the main hall and staring at the screen with fright. Washam asked, "Where are the NEO-NUMBERS?"

"Currently, they are confronting a threat," said Sheila as she pulled up another image of the NEO-NUMBERS battling the evil Agito.

"Is that another Rider?" Dr. Magi questioned. "What are Alan and Shinichi doing?"

* * *

All of the NEO-NUMBERS had entered their strongest forms barring Yokoshima who's strongest form was the Blue Beetle. Zero was in Fighter Form, Slasher as mentioned before was in Slayer Form, Arachnea was in Venom Form, Daichi was in Rock-Metal Form, Carmen was in Mirage Form, and Meta was in Blast Form.

Meta started things off as his chestpiece opened up and he fired a barrage of missiles from his body. The weapons of mass destruction suddenly stopped as Evil Agito had used his telekinesis to do so. The missiles were then sent flying back towards the NEO-NUMBERS who scrambled to dodge.

"Nice shooting, Tex!" Musician yelled sarcastically at Meta.

"Hey, he redirected them with telekinesis!" Meta defended. Meta prepared to activate his acceleration only for the ground below him to rip itself apart in a telekinetic burst thus ruining his footing and sending him flying, straight into Evil Agito's sword. Meta was impaled on the Evil Agito's blade, gripping the blade in an attempt to push himself off it. However, Evil Agito would have none of that as the blade he wielded released lightning to fry Meta from within. Meta screamed as he was being electrocuted before he hung limp on the blade.

Evil Agito kicked him off his blade and let him fall on his back. "One down," the Evil Agito sneered as he stabbed Meta through the chest for good measure.

"BATTLER!" several of the NEO-NUMBERS cried out the name of their friend and comrade. Musician's fists were clenched tightly.

Evil Agito was suddenly body-slammed by Slasher. This would have sent any other person flying but Evil Agito was far from normal. He _caught_ Slasher in a grapple with pure strength and skill.

"I'm not done yet!" Slasher roared, managing to get his sword arm free to swing the Onigari no Ryuou at Evil Agito only for the evil Rider to create a Shield of Agito to block. Evil Agito then picked Slasher up and threw him at a flying Zero who was about to shoot at him, knocking Zero out of the air and causing the two Riders to become stuck together.

Before the two could even start an argument, Evil Agito ran up to them, sword in hand, ready to finish the job only for the two to disappear.

"An illusion," Evil Agito immediately deduced. He then looked at Carmen who was being guarded by Arachnea. "Well now I know who to kill next." Evil Agito snickered, motioning to the unmoving Meta.

"You bastard!" Musician yelled, charging Agito with his guitar-axe

Zero instantly realized what Agito was planning. "No, Daichi! He's baiting you!"

It was too late as Musician's temper had gotten the better of him. Evil Agito's symbol appeared and infused itself into Agito's sword, which ignited into flames. After that Evil Agito simply side-stepped Musician and then sliced Musician with his sword. Musician's armor now sported a cut across the abdominal area as blood began to spill out. That was only the beginning as the final effects of Evil Agito's attack finally kicked in as he spontaneously combusted. He screamed as he was engulfed in flames but he soon turned silent as he fell to the ground, his body charred black.

'_Two down,'_ Evil Agito thought. Then a thought struck him. Where was the Blue Beetle?

He didn't like the answer he got. Blue Beetle had been using this time to create and charge a ridiculous amount of weaponry that were sprouting from his body. Gripped in his hands was the B3 Gun, equipped to his left and right legs respectively were a missile launcher and Gatling gun, and finally mounted on his shoulders were his signature rail guns.

Blue Beetle fired, shouting, "END OF THE WOLD, MOTHER FUCKER!-!-!"

Evil Agito couldn't telekinetically deflect so many weapons at once

"Oh, fudge," Evil Agito pseudo-swore before being hit by the salvo.

"OH YEAH! Who's the man?" Blue Beetle cheered. "Dai, you've been avenged."

"Wow that was great Yokoshima!" Carmen agreed cheerfully. Part of her was still upset about both Daichi and Battler's deaths, but once they finished this creep off they would return their friends' bodies to the Hive to be taken care of.

Arachnea was about to go over to her lover when she saw something flying towards Carmen. "Michiru get out of the way!" she yelled. She pushed Carmen out of the way of the unknown projectile. It turned out to be a spear with an Agito motif. It impaled Arachnea straight through the heart. Arachnea instantly left the land of the living that very moment.

"HANA!" Carmen screamed.

The remaining NEO-NUMBERS then looked over to where Evil Agito's corpse should have been. They saw Evil Agito standing though parts of his armor were chipped and blackened.

"That was rather… lackluster," he commented nonchalantly as if he was talking about a bad TV show.

"HANA! HANA!" Carmen cried, shaking her lover's still form. She was devastated when she received no response. Enraged, Carmen glared at Evil Agito and screamed, "I'LL KILL YOU!" She immediately created an army of clones that randomly circled around Evil Agito, getting ready for the kill.

"I'll kill you slowly and painfully, you son of a bitch," Carmen hissed as all traces of optimism and cheerfulness was gone from her voice. Her voice was cold and dead like her best friend.

"Sorry, that won't do," Evil Agito apologized. His hand shot forward and he grabbed a random Carmen among the clones around the neck in a vice grip. He ended up grabbing the real one.

"H-how did you know?" Carmen managed to wheeze out.

"How stupid do you think I am?" Evil Agito asked insulted as his other hand glowed with light and then he impaled her with it. Carmen only managed to gurgle blood before she joined Arachnea

Then all of a sudden the three remaining NEO-NUMBERS; Zero, Slasher, and Blue Beetle all grabbed Evil Agito by the neck planning to strangle him. "Die!" all three Kamen Riders cried.

Evil Agito showed his disapproval by releasing a powerful blast of telekinetic energy, blasting the three of them backwards and sending them to the ground.

Evil Agito walked over to Slasher, planning to kill him first, an Agito-themed axe forming in his hands. Slasher got up and sprayed acid everywhere to allow himself to escape.

Evil Agito shrugged, "Oh well I'll just kill one of the others then."

Slasher couldn't let that slide and ran straight at Agito, chainsaw in one hand, and Onigari no Ryuou in the other. He fell into Evil Agito's trap perfectly. Evil Agito moved so quickly he blurred from sight and caught Slasher by his wrists then applied some more pressure and _broke_ them.

Slasher skidded back, dropping his sword while his chainsaw arm was useless.

Evil Agito started to finish the job. He got into the Rider Kick stance as the Symbol of Agito appeared beneath his feet empowering him. He leapt into the air and performed a flying side kick, hitting Slasher in the chest. A rather ominous cracking noise came from Slasher body. He fell to the ground never again to enter this fight.

Zero and Blue Beetle hit Evil Agito with a barrage of missiles and stingers that caused his armor to erupt with sparks.

Evil Agito turned towards the two remaining NEO-NUMBERS who were flying in the as he said, "See? You're only proving my point. You are just B-listers. You can't even fight me directly." Evil Agito didn't allow them to reply because he raised his hands and fired lightning bolts from them, hitting Zero causing him to crash. Evil Agito didn't give him a chance to get up. He simply summoned an axe and swung it into Zero's back.

"All that's left is you, Blue Beetle," Agito told him warmly. That seriously creeped Blue Beetle out. Right now Blue Beetle was scared. Very scared. All of his teammates were down, probably dead. What was he going to do?

Wait he had one last option: Run away. Blue Beetle decided he needed to find Shinichi and Alan and warn him about the evil Rider. He began his retreat as he flew away.

Evil Agito didn't like that. In a flash of light Agito's ride was summoned. It was the white hover board known as the Murder Tornador. Evil Agito hopped and began to pursue Blue Beetle. Blue Beetle fired everything he could muster at Evil Agito but the Murder Tornador dodged every laser and every bullet. Agito was rapidly closing in on Blue Beetle. Blue Beetle created a more powerful jetpack and summoned his rocket fist to increase his speed.

Evil Agito was prepared for that. All of a sudden the Symbol of Agito appeared on the front of the Murder Tornador empowering the hover board. After that, it fired Evil Agito off it like a meteor. Evil Agito came flying at Blue Beetle like a streak of light before hitting him like a meteor. Blue Beetle crashed and burned while Evil Agito landed perfectly on the ground.

"Phew," Agito sighed stretching, "That wasn't so tough. But better make sure they're really dead. I have an image to maintain."

Agito checked everyone one of the NEO-NUMBERS bodies for a pulse.

There was none.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This chapter that you see here was written by The Zogg and edited as well as approved by Kamen Rider Chrome. Now, I am well aware that some of you might be against this chapter either due to the content or hostility towards the writer, but I myself had taken the time to try to get to know The Zogg instead of allowing my emotions to take over.**

**The Zogg: This is how I write; cold, pragmatic, and intelligently. My villains do not make stupid mistakes. They are smart they have brains and they use them. A story is driven by its villains a great villain creates an even greater villain. Also in this arc I've been trying to give minor characters larger roles. I think I succeeded with Rika and Mion, but tell me if I'm wrong. **


	130. The Legacy of Cain Part 74

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 74: The War of Evolution**

**Written By: The Zogg**

**February 1989**

Keiichi was on his way back to Hinamizawa with Mion's birthday present in hand. He'd been working a part-time job so he could afford it. It was a locked. It may not be extravagant, but it was something he thought was special. As he walked by an alley, he did not notice he was being watched.

Keiichi was suddenly grabbed from behind with an arm around his neck and a knife pressed against his back. "Give me all your money!" the robber shouted. Keiichi struggled but felt the blade of the knife pressed against his side. "Don't try anything stupid! Give me your money!" While struggling, Keiichi had dropped the box with the locket inside. "Hey, I'll take this instead." He let go of Keiichi to grab the box but Keiichi pushed him away.

"You can take my cash, but not this!" Keiichi shouted.

"You stupid fucker!" the mugger shouted in agitation as he struck.

* * *

Keiichi was struggling to walk, his hand on the wall to support himself as he pressed a hand against his bleeding stomach. The guy had actually stabbed him and now he was bleeding to death. He managed to save the locket though but now he wouldn't be able to give it to Mion on her birthday.

"Mion…" he let out before falling down to his knees weakly.

* * *

**March 1989**

"Well, that's that," Evil Agito cheerfully said. "Now to go find the sprout. I wonder if he beat the Behemoth. Oh, I sure hope so that would mean he would have more potential than I thought!"

Evil Agito hopped onto the Murder Tornador to go find his quarry, the hover-board taking off fast through the sky as it carried its master towards his intended target.

* * *

The Behemoth was attempting to play a game of whack-a-mole with the Darkloid Rider as the Kaiju was smashing its fists into the ground hoping the smash the dark Rider who drove like a madman to avoid the minor earthquakes the Behemoth made with each punch.

The Darkloid Rider knew close range combat against the Behemoth was suicide so he needed to attack from a distance and he had just the weapon to do it.

The Darkloid Rider looked at his Cicada-Bike and asked,** "Can you take the wheel for a while Aibou?"**

The Cicada-Bike screeched in agreement.

"**Okay then. Let's do it!" **the Darkloid Rider exclaimed as he removed his hands from the throttle and the Cicada-Bike then began to drive itself, effortlessly dodging the Behemoth's maelstrom of blows quickly, proving itself a better driver than its master.

"**Kikikikiki," **the Cicada-Bike snickered.

"**Oh, rub it in, why don't you?" **the Darkloid Rider grumbled as his hands turned into biological looking blasters. His blaster hands then fired a pressurized stream of acid at the Behemoth's right hand causing it to scream in pain as its skin and fur melted.

The Behemoth's response to this was to attack faster. It attacked so fast now its blows created sonic booms along with the previous earthquakes. The stakes were now higher but the demonic duo persevered as the Cicada-Bike did impossible stunts that would make any Kamen Rider proud as it dodged the mach speed assault of the Behemoth while the Darkloid Rider fired his acid busters, each shot hitting & taking a piece of the Behemoth's life. However, the Behemoth stood strong.

"**KIkikikikiki," **the Cicada-Bike said.

"**I know, Aibou. We need a new strategy!" **the Darkloid Rider growled as his buster guns returned to normal.

"**Kikikikikiki," **the Cicada bike told him.

"**You have a plan?" **the Darkloid Rider asked, **"What is it?"**

The Cicada-Bike's answer was to buck like a horse, throwing the Darkloid Rider at the Behemoth.

"**I HATE YOUUUUUUUU!" **the Darkloid Rider yelled until he landed on the Behemoth's right arm, his claws digging into the monster's flesh so as to not fall off. **"Okay I just dislike you now." **The Darkloid Rider amended, now understanding his bike's plan.

The Behemoth then slammed its left arm into its right one, hoping to hit the Darkloid Rider but ended up hurting itself. Luckily the Darkloid Rider managed to scuttle up the Behemoth's right arm, getting out of the way just in time.

"**This thing's insane!" **the Darkloid Rider shouted as he finished climbing up the Behemoth's body before standing on its head.

The Darkloid Rider's arms then bulged and became more muscular as spikes sprouted from his knuckles and his claws became bigger. His Thunder Gauntlets crackled with dark lighting. **"Time for some electro shock therapy," **the Darkloid Rider quipped. He began to punch the Behemoth's head repeatedly, again, again, and again, with each punch releasing a bolt of black lighting into the Behemoth's head and traveling down to its brain.

The Behemoth roared wildly again as if asking the heavens for aid. The heavens answered. A magical meteor fell from the sky, about to land on the Behemoth itself and by proxy the Darkloid Rider.

"**I think I gave it too much brain damage," **the Darkloid Rider gulped seeing his million year life flash before his eyes.

The Cicada-Bike _flew_ by the Darkloid Rider with an insectoid claw outstretched, grabbing the Darkloid Rider, saving his life.

The Darkloid Rider looked over his bike in awe, except the fact it wasn't a motorbike anymore, it was a hoverboard now. The Cicada-Bikes back wheel had retracted it self into the Cicada-Bike's abdomen while the abdomen lowered allowing its rocket boosters to extend to full length. The cicada wings which had previously just been decoration had become real wings allowing the Cicada-Bike to fly. Finally, the front wheel had split in two becoming a pair of rather sharp looking claws which had caught the Darkloid Rider. The head stayed the same though, its antenna still acting as handlebars. The transformed bike then plopped its master onto its back who righted himself and took hold of the handlebars.

"**Since when could you do this?" **the Darkloid Rider asked in shock.

"**Kikikikiki," **was his hover bikes cheeky response.

"**What do you mean always?" **the Darkloid Rider growled, **"Why didn't you do this before? It would have made everything easier!"**

"**Kikikikiki," **it told him.

"**Because I didn't name you?" **the Darkloid frowned; his bike was right. It was unfair for it to not have a name after all it had done. All the other Kamen Riders' bikes had names and this bike needed a name way more then the other bikes. It was a living being, it was wrong for it to be nameless.

The Behemoth stirred. Not even a meteor could kill it, though the Behemoth was badly injured.

However, for some reason, he did not know the Darkloid Rider wasn't worried.

The Darkloid Rider looked at his bike and said, **"All right Zakider! Let's do this!" **The newly named Zakider screeched in approval as they prepared their new finishing move.

The Darkloid Rider's personal Agito symbol appeared in front of Zakider then changed into a more angular, lethal form. The Symbol of Agito merged with Zakider while the Darkloid Rider's horns split. The demonic then let out a feral roar at the same time becoming a bolt of pure darkness that flew straight at the Behemoth. The two shouted at one, **"Zakider Typhoon!"**

The Behemoth crossed its arms to block the blow.

It wasn't enough.

The Zakider Typhoon gored straight through the Behemoth's arms and then through the rest of the monstrosity. The demonic duo landed gracefully on the ground behind the Behemoth, Zakider back in Bike Mode.

Meanwhile, the darkness then burst out of the hole the Zakider Typhoon had made, consuming the Behemoth before it exploded into black flames.

"**Well, that takes cares of that, Zakider." **The Darkloid Rider congratulated his bike.

"**Kikikikikikiki," **Zakider chattered in agreement.

The Darkloid Rider then sighed, **"And I'm also back to square one. What should we do now?"**

The Darkloid Rider then saw an explosion coming from the direction of Shishibone City.

"**Well that answers that. Let's go Aibou!" **the Darkloid Rider said.

Zakider complied, opening a dark portal to Shishibone City, which the two drove through.

Meanwhile, Sentinel, Showa and Regulus were dealing with the situation in Shishibone City.

"KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!" With a single stroke of his blade, Showa in his Hinamizawa Guardian Form had just obliterated a European dragon. The four others, not wanting to die like their comrade in arms, immediately positioned themselves near highly populated buildings. Then they breathed fire at Showa who quickly dodged their attack.

"Since when are mooks supposed to be smart!-?" Showa shouted as he used Shunpo to accelerate his speed so as not to get hit by the flames. He was glad for the extra lessons that St. George was putting him through as they were slowly paying off. But even with his spiritual techniques, he still couldn't afford to use a big move as he could accidentally hurt innocent people. That was when the lizard-men decided to attack him.

"What the hell man!-?" Showa yelled in confusion. Since when did monsters use tactics? Now he had to dodge the European dragons' fire and fight the lizardmen at close range all at the same time.

"EMERALD SLASH!" Sentinel shouted as he swung the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, performing a similar attack to take out a Chinese dragon. The Chinese dragons mimicked their European counterparts' plan, coiling around buildings then shooting bolts of magical lighting at Sentinel. He tried to capture them with a lasso he made with his power ring, but the serpentine dragons coiled out of the way like snakes. Sentinel was now forced into the same situation his brother was in. That was when the flying bug-men began to swarm him.

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" Sentinel yelped. It was becoming increasingly obvious that everything Tsumtomu had summoned was magical in nature.

Meanwhile, Regulus, a close range fighter, was having much better luck. The army of ghost Spartans attempted to charge him but they were blown back by Regulus' sonic roar and quickly sliced to pieces by the Lord's magic blade. Once they were all vanquished he turned his attention to the beast-men. He started by erecting a massive blade of light from his sword, beheading the alpha male, ironically a lion-man. Once he was down, Regulus began to slaughter the leaderless pack.

Suddenly, an iceberg was thrown at Regulus who, in an amazing feat of swordsmanship, cut it in two before it even hit him. Regulus turned his head to look at his attacker. It was the Frost Giant who was attempting to start a blizzard.

Regulus groaned. His life was never easy.

Meanwhile, Sentinel found a simple but effective solution to his bug problem. He trapped them in an energy bubble with him then flew straight into the ground at full speed, squashing them. Now free of his bug problem, Sentinel ran across the street with his super speed and ran up the building the Chinese dragons had captured before beheading each of them with the Kusanagi from behind.

He then went to aid his brother, flying at full speed towards the European dragons before he beheaded all four of them with the Kusanagi. They never knew what hit them. This gave Showa the chance he needed to finish off the lizard-men. He quickly swung his blade in a circular motion, killing all the lizard-men.

Then two of them then looked across the street to see the Chimeras gathering their forces for a charge.

"There's still a lot more to deal with," commented Showa.

"Well, then we have to wipe them out in one fell swoop," said Bazel. "You what this means. It's Xros Fusion time."

Sentinel nodded and said to Showa, "You ready?"

"Always," he answered.

"Xros Fusion!" Sentinel called and Bazel's beam swallowed up Showa. Kusanagi glowed as Showa became energy and fused with the sword. In a flash, the Kusanagi no Tsurugu was fused with Kamen Rider Showa Hinamizawa Guardian to form a massive golden broadsword that was as tall as he was with a guard resembling a six pointed star that had a sword grip equipped in the very centre. Taking hold of the weapon, he called, "Gold Guardian Sword!" Raising it up, Sentinel glared at the monsters before bringing it down. "SOLAR FLASH!"

There was a golden blast of energy that followed when the sword struck the ground. The blast of energy tore through the ground, wiping out any and all of the Chimeras in its path. Once the attack was executed, Showa was de-fused from the Kusanagi no Tsurugi.

"Man, I will never get used to that," said Showa as his body shuddered from the tingling sensation of the Xros Fusion.

* * *

Back in the Hive's infirmary, Battler suddenly shot up, awake, gasping with eyes wide with fright. His hands went to his chest, lifting up his shirt to check for a sword wound, only to find none.

"I'm…I'm alive," said Battler, wiping the cold sweat from his brow. "I'm alive."

"Honk! Honk blarg!" Junior was by his bedside, staring at him worriedly.

"Hey Junior," Battler rubbed his alien son's head. He found himself sitting in one of the beds in the Hive's infirmary. He recalled what had happened earlier. "OK, I know I was dead."

"You were," Dr. Washam confirmed and Battler shrieked as the large man had just appeared out of nowhere. How a guy like that could sneak up on him was a mystery, especially considering his own enhanced senses.

"What happened?" Battler questioned.

"You were all dead," said Dr. Washam.

"We were?" Dr. Washam nodded. "So, if I was dead, how come I'm alive now?"

"You should thank your Spark Core for that," said Dr. Washam. "That sphere in your waist was what resurrected you and put your body into self-repair mode."

"Self-repair?" Battler repeated.

"The Spark Core would use the energy stored within to fix up your body and revive you, but it still needs a charge to jump start the process," Dr. Washam explained. "Once Sheila reported that you were all down, and that your enemy had gone, Dr. Magi and I collected your bodies and brought them here."

Battler saw that the rest of his teammates weren't around. "Where are they?"

"They recovered shortly before you did," said Dr. Magi. "Now they're in the main hall watching Shinichi and Alan fight against a horde of demons."

"Wait, what?"

* * *

"We should be helping them!" Yokoshima insisted. Asmodeus was by his side. She'd been devastated when she sensed his death but was relieved when he came back to life. Displayed on the large screen was Shishibone City, which had become a warzone.

"And we can't, at least not yet," Daichi admonished.

"Why not?" Battler asked as he walked up to his teammates. He was relieved. They were alive.

"Our Spark Cores need time to recharge after reviving us," Hana answered. "So our armors are currently unavailable to us."

"In other words, we're useless," growled Daichi.

"At least you're alive," said Mika.

"Yeah," Leviathan agreed.

Lucifer stood close to Shogo, holding his hand. She just wanted to feel his hand, to know that he was alive. Learning that he had died had scared her to no end as her heart lumped up in her throat. Only upon learning that his Spark Core would resurrect him after a short time did she finally calm down, having waited for him to revive. Leviathan and Asmodeus both went through the same thing as well and none of them wanted to lose the men that they loved ever again.

* * *

Regulus was having trouble with the Frost Giant. Its cryokinetic abilities countered his light-based ones and there was no way he was fighting the thing in close range combat. He was religious not stupid. The best course of action would be to stall it and wait for Showa and Sentinel to back him up. Unfortunately, Showa was currently fighting the Youkai while Sentinel fought the Salamanders.

Regulus let out a sigh as he dodged a blast of ice energy, landing next to an upturned Sedan. Sadly the universe was rarely kind to Kaijin.

As Regulus prepared to send a burning blast of holy energy as the Frost Giant, they both turned and began looking around, the both of them having heard a child crying.

"Kaa-chan, Tou-san, where are you?" a little girl cried. Her parents had either been separated from her by the chaos, or dead. Regulus hoped it was the former.

The Frost Giant turned to the child and raised its foot, ready to crush her. It had been summoned with the promise of blood, but thanks to the annoying cat man he hadn't gotten to kill anything. So killing the crying child below it would be a small taste of the meal that it was eagerly waiting for.

Regulus' course of action was clear. He ran towards the girl and pushed her out of the way. However this left him ready to be crushed under the Frost Giant's foot, until an emerald shield appeared between him and the Frost Giant's foot, making the Frost Giant slip and fall. It was rather humorous in Regulas' opinion.

Sentinel flew down to speak to Regulus, "You risked you're life to save that girl."

"Yes," Regulus said like it was nothing.

"I didn't expect you to do that." Sentinel admitted.

"Why?" Regulus asked even more confused it was what a hero did.

"Well you always talked about your mission and how important it was. You seem really focused on accomplishing it. I thought you were the type of man who had a 'to make an omelet you have to break a few eggs' view."

"No, I do not have that view. I have a mission, but if I allow Tsumtomu to win in any way while I had the power to stop it, I would never consider my mission complete, even if the Overlord Himself told me I did so," Regulus revealed.

"Are all Lords like you in this world, Regulus?" Sentinel asked eagerly. He needed to know. This could completely change what everyone believed about Kaijin.

"It is a mixed bag." Regulus revealed, "Some are like me, others are more laidback, while others only care about completing the mission. There are many different personalities among my kind like in any society."

"I see," Sentinel said as he registered the information, "But you've been acting like the third type, unless you have a history with Tsumtomu?"

Regulus said nothing. It spoke volumes.

"You do have a history with Tsumtomu,"

"Let's just say he's the white whale to my Ahab," Regulus said sadly.

It should be noted that while the two of them were having this conversation, they were slaughtering the monsters like they were nothing.

That was until the Frost Giant got up. Sentinel and Regulus both looked up at the Frost Giant as they stood side by side.

"Want to finish this guy off together?" Sentinel asked nonchalantly.

"Gladly," Regulus agreed.

Sentinel raised his arm which Bazel was mounted onto and then looked at Regulus, "This might tickle a bit." The Lord just gave him a scrupulous look as Bazel's gem stone began to glow a bright red hue. "Xros Fusion!" Sentinel called out as Regulus merged with his power ring, the two fusing together until they made a golden gauntlet around Sentinel's hand with green energy lines running through it. "Gold Light of the Lion!"

Golden energy surged through the gauntlet. A small orb of golden energy appeared within the palm of the gauntlet which resembled a star, a growing star. Sentinel aimed the gauntlet at the Frost Giant and called out his new attack, "Lion Star Explosion!" The blast which flew from the gauntlet hit the Frost Giant, vaporizing it in an instant. The blast continued its path, destroying the rest of the Grecian monsters as well.

After the attack was executed, Regulus defused before clutching his head "That felt weird…" he commented.

"It always does the first few times." Sentinel assured him.

Showa wielded both his Showa-Blade and Higurashi no Yaiba as he dueled against a kama-itachi and ogre simultaneously. The body of an ice giant now lay dead on the street courtesy of Sentinel and Regulus. His back was turned towards the trolls coming for him but then a dark portal formed and a black shape shot out of it, hitting the troll in the face with the wheel of a bike. The troll went down and the rubber tires touched the ground and screeched to a halt.

Showa took down both monsters and turned to face the Darkloid Rider who threw a fist at him. Showa thought it was meant for him until the fist connected with the face of goblin standing behind him, caving in the monster's skull and sending it flying.

"**Watch your back,"** the Darkloid Rider advised.

"Kei?" Showa questioned. "Is that…is that you?"

"**Yes and no. Let's play 20 questions later. We have monsters to fight."**

* * *

The Gaming Club arrived next via Teleportal which Hanyuu had called for. They went to the screen and watched as the Darkloid Rider and Kamen Rider Showa were fighting, back-to-back, against the horde of monsters.

"It's Kei-chan!" Mion exclaimed.

"And Shin-kun!" added Rena.

"Together!" they said together.

* * *

The two Riders fought the monsters back to back, Showa with his swords and the Darkloid Rider with his Cleaver-Sword and Khakkhara staff. Showa cut down any Youkai on his side while the Darkloid Rider butchered the goblins with his blade and incinerated the trolls with the blue flame conjured by his Khakkhara staff.

"**This is taking too long," **the Darkloid Rider state.

"I agree," Showa said "I take it you have an idea to finish them all off at once?"

"**Oh yes," **the Darkloid Rider chuckled ominously, dispelling his sword and staff. Once unarmed, he mutated his arms into his Thunder Gauntlets. He then killed a troll with an electrified punch. **"You see what I'm getting at?"**

"Oh yeah!" Showa yelled excitedly as he banished his weapons. Electricity started charging in his hands as well.

The two Riders jumped into the air together and smashed their fists into the ground. The ground shook as it was torn apart by their electrical attack. "**Double Rider Smash!**" they both announced as they executed the attack, obliterating all the monsters caught in their destructive combined attack.

* * *

From the top of a building, Tsumtomu watched as the Darkloid Rider fought alongside Kamen Rider Showa. "I can't have that," he said. He concentrated as he projected his thoughts, "You belong to me. You are mine."

* * *

The Darkloid Rider's body stiffened as his eyes turned dark and he heard in his head, "_You belong to me. You are mine._ _Destroy the Kamen Rider. Destroy him_."

Showa was dealing with what was left of the monsters when all of a sudden the Darkloid Rider began to scream. Turning around, he saw that the Darkloid Rider had frozen up, clutching his head like he was having a seizure. "Keiichi!-?"

"**No!" **the Darkloid Rider screamed **"I…Won't…Let…You…Control…Me…Again!"**

* * *

"What's happening to Kei-chan!-?" Mion demanded.

* * *

"Damn it, Kei! What's wrong with you!-?" Showa questioned as he moved to help his friend.

Tsumtomu decided to make his presence known at this point as he stepped off the edge of the building and transformed in the middle of the fall before landing on the sidewalk, which cracked on impact.

Showa saw him and knew this Evil Agito was the enemy. He put two and two together. This man was Tsumtomu Miyazaki, the man behind all of this.

As if to confirm it, Regulus charged at Evil Agito, his face filled with rage while roaring, "TSUMTOMU!"

Evil Agito simply blocked the Lord's attack with his sword. "Oh Regulus, it's you," Evil Agito greeted the Lord cheerfully "Come to lose again?" he asked.

As the two archenemies battled Showa tried to help the Darkloid Rider.

"Keiichi, listen to me! You don't have to listen to him!" Showa yelled to his snarling friend. He'd actually been in Keiichi's position before; enslaved, controlled against his will, and made to do horrible things for a madman.

"He can't hear you," the mockery of Kamen Riders told him cheerfully while dueling Regulus. "He's falling under my control," Evil Agito added happily. "While I'll admit I didn't expect him to do this well or resist this persistently." Evil Agito scratched his chin "It must be because his mind is so expansive. It's like staring into an abyss."

"What do you mean?" Showa demanded, glaring.

"Don't lie, Shinichi Banabara," Evil Agito said. "Oh, I forgot. You lie all the time to your friends, along with Rika and Hanyuu. You've been keeping secrets from the Gaming Club for years! Like the Endless June and how their bond of friendship was so weak that they turned against one another and killed each other again, and again, and _again_."

Showa was now worried. Evil Agito somehow knew who he was and knew about the Endless June and was using it as blackmail against him. What could he do? Sentinel was busy with the monsters and Regulus was out of action. Wait, the answer was obvious: make him gloat.

"So, what made you so interested in Keiichi?" Showa questioned.

Evil Agito kicked Regulus away and explained, "Well, it was rather mundane. You see, Agito like me can sense one another. I saw him walking down the street, talked to him and then began to mentally nudge him in the right direction. It's a thing I do; helping wayward Agito."

"It's true," Regulus, growled, "He likes to track down young Agito and 'raise' them. But by raising them, he means that he twists their minds using mind control, turning them into monsters."

"My old friend is correct." Evil Agito confirmed "But this time was different. I have never seen such an amazing evolution! Different Agito have different abilities, like psychic powers or super strength and have differing physical appearances like a difference in color, plus the random Gills." Evil Agito was almost giggling at this point, "But when the Sprout transformed I had never seen such a miracle! I must find out his secret!"

Showa was very disturbed at this point. Someone thought a person corrupted by Darkloids was amazing?

"But enough talk. Now it is time to kill you!" Evil Agito announced cheerfully while moving on the offensive.

A weakened Showa found himself greatly outmatched.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS, the Gaming Club and their loved ones watched the battle in worry. At first they were excited to see Shinichi and Keiichi work together. But everything had taken a turn for the worse the Darkloid Rider had frozen up, the strange Kaijin that was helping them was injured, and Showa was losing to the evil Kamen Rider.

"Sheila, open the Teleportal," ordered Shogo.

"You can't," Dr. Magi argued. "You all can't transform right now."

"Well we can't just stand around here and watch!" snapped Daichi. "He's getting killed out there!"

"Daichi's right, Magi," agreed Dr. Washam. "But how will you be able to fight that thing?"

"Shin-chan has a way," said Mion. "But we need to get to him quick before he gets killed out there."

* * *

(_**Insert BGM: Riders United – KR Decade Movie OST**_)

Evil Agito used a telekinetic blast to send Showa flying, sending him crashing into the wall of a building. "Now, the finisher," he said as he went into a pose, his distorted symbol of Agito appearing under his feet. Suddenly, a green portal opened up in front of him before he was rammed by a jeep which ran him over.

"Taste my bumper, asshole!" Yokoshima laughed. He slammed on the brakes and stepped out of the jeep. The others started to exit the Teleportal, stepping over the Evil Agito before running towards Showa.

Showa felt himself being pulled up and when he focused his eyes he was looking straight at Rena's face. "Rena-chan!-?" He saw the rest of the Gaming Club and the NEO-NUMBERS present as well. "Minna!"

"Hey, Shin-chan," smiled Mion.

"What the hell are you guys doing here!-? It's dangerous!" he exclaimed. He also noticed the NEO-NUMBERS weren't in armor. "And why aren't you guys in armor?"

"Long story, but right now we can't transform," answered Daichi. "We'll explain later!"

The Evil Agito laughed as he stood back up. "Is this your backup? They're weak, and they're absolutely powerless."

"Shut up, asshole!" Mion snapped. "We may not be impressive right now, but Shin-chan here has the power to share his power with us!" She turned to Showa. "Do it, Shin-chan, and that's an order!"

Showa wanted to argue but there was no time. Reluctantly, he obeyed.

"If you want to help, then here's some help for you!" shouted Showa as he activated his power. "Let's Form Ride: EVERYOBODY!" Spheres of light shot out from his Spark Core and flew towards his friends. "Minna…HENSHIN!"

"You'd think I'd let you!" Evil Agito shouted as he began firing balls of light at Showa's friends faster than the spheres from his Spark Core. They would kill his friends at the speed they were going. Suddenly, a wall of light appeared, blocking Evil Agito's attack,

"No, but I will!" Regulus shouted, having created the shield. The spheres of light hit Showa's friends, sinking into their chests, changing them in flashes of light.

Covering his eyes from the blinding light, Evil Agito cursed under his breath for allowing this one small setback. As the light faded, Evil Agito lowered his arm and saw that the people before him had all taken on forms of the legendary Kamen Riders of the past.

Stretching her arms out and then performing a kata that was common within the Sonozaki family, Mion quickly got into a stance with Shion performing a similar kata and ending it in a stance next to her sister. Together, the two of them had taken on the forms of the Double Riders, Kamen Rider Ichigo and Nigo respectively.

"Using the skill and courage of the first Rider, I am Kamen Rider…Ichigo!" Mion shouted as she took Ichigo's infamous pose.

"Using the strength and undying determination of the second, I am Kamen Rider Nigo!" Shion shouted as well, enacting Nigo's pose with accuracy.

Cracking his knuckles before performing a few boxing techniques, Satoshi then took a stance next to his younger sister who also looked herself over with a big smile on her face. The two of them then both performed their katas which then ended with them taking the respective poses of the Riders whom they had assumed the guises of.

"Endowed with the twenty-six secret techniques of the third, I have become Kamen Rider V3!" Satoshi declared, causing Shion to look at him approvingly.

"Armed with the genius mind and Cassette Arm of the fourth, I am Riderman!" exclaimed Satoko who stood next to Satoshi/V3 with her hands on her hips. '_Or would that be Riderwoman in my case?_'

As for Rika and Hanyuu, the two of them looked their bodies over and then at each other and nodded approvingly of their new forms. Hanyuu wouldn't originally have needed this form to fight but she had really always wanted to try fighting as a Rider alongside the NEO-NUMBERS at least once on a mission. Performing a kata that had been passed down by her family and one she had taught to Rika as well, Hanyuu and the Priestess of the Furude Shrine both took the poses of the two green Riders respectively.

"Using the power and righteous fury of the fourteenth Rider, I am Kamen Rider ZO!" Rika stated as she took ZO's stance.

"Using the skill and abilities granted to me by the fifteenth Rider, I have become Kamen Rider J!" Hanyuu shouted as she too took her assumed Riders' pose.

Rena found herself admiring her friends and then looked herself over and smiled at how her body looked in the suit and armor that she wore. Her mind was instantly flooded with the knowledge and powers that this Rider had and knew that this form would aid her well in the upcoming battle.

"Using the weapons and cunning of the tenth, I have become Kamen Rider ZX-kun!" Rena cheered as she performed a female version of ZX's pose and adding 'kun' at the end of her Rider name. Hanyuu and the rest of the Gaming Club just looked at her for a second and then shrugged their shoulders. It was typical Rena after all.

The NEO-NUMBERS had also been turned into Legendary Riders themselves.

"Whoa, now this is what I call a rush," Daichi said to himself as he looked his body over. He had heard of this ability which Shinichi possessed but had never seen it in action before. He had to admit that it was cool and that he liked the feeling of a legendary Rider's power. Facing Evil Agito, he declared, "Using the power and flying abilities of the eighth, I have become Skyrider!"

"Not bad, Dai," Yokoshima commented as he also looked himself over. He could feel the electricity flowing through his body and it made his skin tingle to no end. '_This is so totally cool!_' He then took on his new pose for this form and shouted, "Using the electric power and strength of the seventh, I have become Kamen Rider Stronger!" Electricity crackled around his body and fists, causing sparks to fly off around him.

Shogo admired his new Rider form and could feel the power and information coursing through his mind and body. '_Impressive. So this is what being able to become a legendary Rider feels like_,' he thought to himself as he gave a salute and then took a stance. "The determination and martial arts skill of the ninth Rider flows within me. Now prepare for your end for I have become Kamen Rider Super-1!"

For Chiaki, he wondered what his predecessor would think of him if he saw him use the legendary power of the Rider and make it into something even bigger than he normally was supposed to be. '_Hmm…not bad_.' He then looked at Evil Agito and curled his clawed fingers as he got into a crouch and glared at Evil Agito. Hanyuu/J just looked at Chiaki in his legendary Rider form with hearts in her eyes. "The feral power and aggressive spirit of the sixth Rider shall put an end to you, Tsumtomu. For the time being, you may call me Kamen Rider…Amazon!" He then noticed the others giving him an expectant look. "Oh no, I am not doing that weird 'Gigigi' cheer even if it were to save my life."

Hana and Michiru looked at one another with looks of admiration and Michiru just stood behind Hana and slung her arms around her neck. "Ne, Hana-chan, maybe after the battle is over I can help you out of that suit?" She traced a finger under Hana's armored chin, causing the Goth to blush behind her mask.

"Michiru, this is serious!" Hana snapped in frustration. Though, she too wanted to have a little time later to strip Michiru out of her new armor and suit.

"I know, I know," Michiru said childishly as she waved her hand at her. They both then turned around and glared at Evil Agito and took their respective battle stances.

"Using the power of eleventh Rider, Black Sun, I am now Kamen Rider BLACK!" Hana proclaimed. Michiru took a somewhat girlier stance next to her and performed her own kata as well.

"Using the forms and skills and the twelfth Rider, I am the Prince of the Sun, Kamen Rider BLACK…RX!" She then tapped her finger to her chin. "Or should that be 'Princess of the Sun'?"

"Oi, Michiru!" Hana snapped, making Michiru/RX get her head back in the game.

Battler himself was amazed at this new form. He had taken his time read up on the Riders of legend and admired them for the heroics and their dedication to justice. As such, he knew that this form would not fail him in the upcoming battle. Removing the stick-weapon from his belt and extending it into is rod mode, he twirled it around before resting it behind his back, taking his own stance.

"With the weapons and spirit of justice that the fifth Rider has granted me, I shall help my friends end your reign of darkness here and now as the Rider known as X-Rider…as Kamen Rider X!" Battler shouted as he twirled the Ridol Stick again, preparing for battle. He wouldn't lose a second time. None of them would.

The Gaming Club and the NEO-NUMBERS then stood together as Riders and stared down Evil Agito, determination burning bright in their eyes and justice raging like an out of control flame within their united hearts.

"Tsumtomu Miyazaki, you're now facing the combined might of the Legendary Kamen Riders," Showa told him as he stepped forward, pointing his finger at his opponent. "It's over for you now." He then held out his left arm, focusing his will and resummoning the Higurashi no Yaiba back to his hand.

* * *

Evil Agito was being overwhelmed by the Kamen Riders as they hit him, blow after blow. Ichigo and Nigo struck with a Double Rider Kick as V3 followed up with his V3 Return Kick. Sparks flew off his armor as he stumbled backwards. Turning around to confront the ones that had hurt him he soon found Riderman bashing him across the face with her Swing Arm. ZO and J struck him in the chest with a Double Rider Punch and ZX used her Cross Shurikens and Impact Bombs on him.

Super-1 (with the Electro Hands) and Stronger struck him with electrical karate chops, causing sparks to fly off his armor as he grunted in pain. He had felt worse but with so many Riders attacking him at once, the pain was starting to become unbearable. Amazon slashed at him with his claws and he shoved him away. Stumbling backwards again, he looked up as he heard someone yell, "SUPER DAIZETSUDAN!", only to see Amazon come down on him with a powerful chop from his head to his midsection, tearing sparks and bits of blood off of his armor and suit. Regaining his bearings, he summoned his sword and swung only to be blocked by X and RX, leaving him opened for an uppercut from BLACK that hit him in the jaw, sending him flying.

"SKY KICK!" Skyrider shouted, hitting him in the gut and sending him crashing back to the ground, exploding instantly on impact.

"Hahahaha!" Stronger/Yokoshima laughed, "No way he's alive after _that_!"

Everyone glared at him; he had just tempted fate.

(_**End BGM: Riders United**_)

Then Evil Agito emerged from his crater, beaten and broken but alive. "Well that was quite the ordeal," he sighed and looked towards the NEO-NUMBERS. "I killed you, and you got better! You do know that people die when they are killed?" he scolded them. Evil Agito then shrugged. "Oh well, I'll just have to be more thorough this time. Maybe throw you into a wood chipper…" he pondered, trying to figure out the most efficient means to kill them.

"This guy is sick!" RX/Michiru gaped, ready to barf.

"Now to start fixing my mistakes." Evil Agito shouted, "Chou Henshin!"

Evil Agito than began to transform. His white armor gained a metallic sheen which covered his whole body like plate mail. His new armor was far more angular, now making him resemble a 'White Specter of Death' with its new streamlined bladed form. His shoulder pads pointed backwards, sprouting sword-like blades from them. Wings shaped like swords sprouted from his back. His helmet changed as well, his six horns growing longer and more angular. His insectoid blue eyes merging together into a V-shaped visor while the rest of his helmet grew white bladed armor.

Evil Agito had entered Rapture Form.

"That is so not good," BLACK/Hana understated.

Evil Agito suddenly blurred, moving at the speed of light. He grabbed the Darkloid Rider and began to fly away.

"Kei-chan!" Ichigo/Mion shouted.

"So you need a hostage now? I thought you were going to take care of us," Skyrider/Daichi mocked.

"I am," Evil Agito reassured him "But I am no fool. I know I cannot defeat all of you at once. So like I did before I shall divide and conquer."

"What do you mean by that!-?" Ichigo/Mion yelled.

"Simple, you can either save the Sprout or the city," Evil Agito told her cryptically.

"Well, that's an easy choice," said Showa. "We've taken care of all your monsters. There's just you."

"You've only dealt with the first summoning, not the second summoning," he told them.

"What second summoning?" V3/Satoshi wondered.

"It's simple. I came prepared. In case the first wave of monsters wasn't sufficient for my needs I prepared another summoning of monsters just in case. This time it'll be Horrors. But you finished my monsters off too quickly so I stalled you by gloating." Everyone stared at him. "What? Did you think that I'm stupid enough to reveal all my plans because you asked? I've been in the business for a long time. I know better than that!" Evil Agito said in an insulted tone.

"You're insane!" Sentinel shouted in outrage as he landed next to the Riders.

Evil Agito gave him a thumbs-up as he flew away, the Darkloid Rider as his prize.

"Oh, no you don't!" Sentinel took off, flying after the Evil Agito with Showa following close behind.

"Guys, you try and deal with the next wave of monsters! Alan and I will get Keiichi back!" Showa transmitted to them with his com-link.

"Alan, Shin-chan, you guys better save Kei-chan," Ichigo/Mion warned. She turned to address the rest of the Riders, "Come on, guys! We've got a city to save!"

J/Hanyuu stood over the downed Regulus. Regulus looked up at her and gasped, "You are Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain." He then tried to stand up to bow. Evil Agito had given him a thrashing.

Hanyuu then returned to her mortal form and replied, "And you are the El-Lord of Light, Panthera Regulus, servant of the Overlord."

"It is an honor, Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain-sama," Regulus said still struggling to bow.

"You can call me Hanyuu, Regulus-san," Hanyuu told him.

"I am not worthy, Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain-sama," Regulus said sadly.

"I order you to call me Hanyuu, Regulus-san," Hanyuu commanded.

"You don't understand. I truly am not worthy."

"What do you mean?" Hanyuu asked, confused. Lords were sticklers for the rules she had ordered him to call her by her shortened name.

"While I hold the title of El-Lord I am not worthy of it. I only gained it through luck and bloodshed."

"Can you tell your tale to me, Regulus-san?" Hanyuu asked.

"Yes Hainiryun Ieasomuru Jieda Kekkain-sama. It started years ago when Tsumtomu first transformed into an Agito. With his evolution the Overlord was allowed to send his agents to eliminate them, the Panthera Tribe to be exact."

"Your tribe," Hanyuu said.

"Yes, I was part of the first assault. However as you can guess it ended in failure."

"Continue your tale, Regulus-san."

"As I said before, we were slaughtered and I was the only one left alive…" Regulus trailed off as if afraid to finish. He still finished anyway, "Because I ran."

"You ran?" Hanyuu parroted in confusion. A Lord never ran. They would fight to the death for the Overlord.

"I did," Regulus, confirmed, "After that tragedy I swore that I would end Tsumtomu's evil with my own hands! It never came to pass; Tsumtomu would always escape or kill the Lords pursuing him. With me as the only survivor. Every. Single. Time. Then he began "training" other Agito." Regulus stopped talking, ashamed at what he and his brethren did.

"Tell me what your kind did," Hanyuu ordered even though she knew that she wouldn't like the answer.

"There are no words to describe what Tsumtomu did to his fellow Agito!" Regulus told her angrily. "They were all too far gone. We had to kill them." His voice became filled with guilt.

"I see," there was no emotion in Hanyuu's voice.

"Our crusade continued," Regulus said, it was clear that he was talking to himself now filled with guilt, "For twenty-five years the Lords have fought Tsumtomu and lost. Everyone important to me died. Eventually, Tsumtomu successfully killed the El-Lord of Flame. This led to the Overlord to begin a promotion system. We could become more powerful based on merit. I became the El-Lord of Light because of distinguished service."

"I see," Hanyuu replied in understanding. It was only practical that the Overlord strengthen his troops so that they could confront the enemy head on and on even ground.

Regulus then began to laugh at himself. "Distinguished service! Hah! I only got my position because everyone more competent than I died! Besides, I'm a Kaijin! We don't get happy endings! All we do is die in explosions!"

By this point everyone was staring at Regulus in shock. They had all heard his speech and they couldn't believe that they hadn't even notice him before. He definitely stood out. A Kaijin helping a Kamen Rider. How could they miss that?

"Wow," was all X/Battler could say. That was some pretty heavy stuff.

"There is no need to worry anymore, Regulus. Showa and Sentinel shall stop Tsumtomu and we shall stop the Horrors. You can rest now," Hanyuu tried to comfort him.

"NO!" Regulus roared, struggling to stand, "You don't understand! Tsumtomu isn't like any of your other foes! He doesn't gloat, and he doesn't have an ego! He! Just! Kills! People! Those two aren't ready to face that kind of evil! They need help! I must support them! If I don't help I will never forgive myself, and not because I failed the Overlord but because I failed myself!" Regulus declared passionately.

Hanyuu frowned. As Regulus said earlier, this was the Overlord's jurisdiction. She didn't have much power here and she and everyone else here realized that Regulus had just as much a place in this battle as they did. But Regulus was wounded and she wouldn't let him run off to his death. Wait; there was one thing she could do.

Hanyuu then put her hand on Regulus' head, letting purple energy wash over him, healing him. "That is all I can give you Regulus. I am sorry," She apologized.

Regulus stood fully healed, "It was more than enough, Hanyuu-sama," Regulus assured her.

"Okay, Regulus!" Ichigo/Mion announced, "For you're conviction I hereby declare you a member of the Gaming Club!"

"What?" Regulus said in shock. "I am a part of this…Gaming Club?"

"Of course," Ichigo/Mion confirmed, "You have convinced me that even my number one subordinate, his brother, and my boyfriend need help defeating this bastard and you're the only man for the job."

"I…have? I am?"

"Also I have one last order for you, newbie!" Ichigo/Mion announced.

"What is it?" Regulus asked. For some reason he was happy about this strange new situation.

"Make sure everyone comes back alive, including you!"

"Of course, President!" Regulus agreed. But then the shadows began to rise up around them as the Horrors began to enter the world of man. "But can I trust you to deal with this infestation?" Regulus asked wryly.

"Do you know who you're talking to? We can handle a little negativity! Now go!"

"As you command!" Regulus shouted before transforming into a bolt of light, chasing after Showa and Sentinel.

The Gaming Club and the NEO-NUMBERS turned to face the Horrors.

"Just another segment to the daily grind," Amazon/Chiaki said.

The fight for the city was on.

* * *

Showa and Sentinel were fighting Horrors. How did they get into this situation when they were supposed to be finding Tsumtomu? The answer was simple. They couldn't. The original plan was for Sentinel to use his super vision to find the madman but that plan failed because Sentinel couldn't see him. He most likely used a spell to cloak himself from the Green Lantern's enhanced vision. This was annoying Sentinel. His weaknesses had never been exploited so easily by his opponents before.

If he didn't know any better, he would assume that Tsumtomu had probably been watching all of them for quite some time so as to learn about all of their weaknesses, all of their secrets. But that meant that if someone like Tsumtomu needed to know all of that kind of info then it would have taken him years to do so on his own. Just how long had he been watching them?

Showa was slaying the Horrors with the Higurashi no Yaiba which proved to be a very effective weapon. Sentinel, not wanting to risk getting their blood on him, was blasting them with a Gatling gun he had made with his power ring. Normally the two of them could easily wipe out the Horrors, but for every Horror they killed a hundred more took its place. Normally Horrors couldn't enter the world in this many numbers, but because of the earlier monster attack and the death and misery they caused, entering the world of man was now a simple task for these embodiments of pure evil.

It was all going according to Tsumtomu's plan.

"This sucks!" Showa shouted angrily, hacking away at the Horrors "At this rate that bastard will win!"

"Do you think I don't know that?" Sentinel shouted back.

As the brothers argued back and forth while killing their share of Horrors, a sudden wave of light washed over the dark demons, killing them all.

There was only one man in the vicinity that could fire an energy blast like that.

"Regulus!" Showa and Sentinel shouted.

"And here I thought you forgot I existed," Regulus deadpanned. "I take it you've had no luck locating Tsumtomu?"

"Yeah," Showa admitted sadly, "What about you? Did the Overlord give you any divine revelation, or something?"

"No, but I know someone that can find Keiichi." Regulus said happily.

"Who?" Sentinel asked.

"**Kikikikikikikikiki!" **Zakider announced its presence by running over a few Horrors.

"The bike?" Showa asked, even more confused.

"Yes, Keiichi Maebara's mount is a sentient being and seems to possess a link to its master," Regulus informed him.

"**Kikikikikikikikiki!" **Zakider confirmed, then drove off to Tsumtomu's location.

"Follow that bike!" Sentinel shouted, flying after it.

"Thanks for the help, Regulus," Showa said thankfully.

"It's nothing. Us Gaming Club members need to look out for each other."

"NANI!-?" Showa shouted in shock.

* * *

As the three heroes made their way towards him, following Zakider, Tsumtomu watched from his lair as he finished chaining Keiichi up to a wall. He knew that those three would be the ones to follow him. After having spent such a long time studying them, he had finally come up with a plan to acquire his latest Agito. Now it was only a matter of time and nothing was going to stop him. Nothing.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, this is the second chapter and now our heroes are on the pursuit. Will they get him? Will they rescue Keiichi? Will everyone hate what's going to happen? Who knows, just stay tuned for the third and final installment of this story.**


	131. The Legacy of Cain Part 75

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 75: The Next Step of Evolution**

**By: The Zogg**

Coming to a stop at the location where Keiichi was supposedly being held, the Rider, the Superhero, the Kaijin, and the bike ended up staring at an unassuming warehouse.

"Tsumtomu's hiding here?" Showa said in disbelief. He thought that someone that was giving them so much trouble would've picked a more dramatic place for a base. Instead, it was the cliché.

"What, you were expecting Dracula's castle or something?" questioned Sentinel.

"It fits his MO." Regulus said.

"**Kikikikiki," **Zakider chittered in agreement as it sensed its master was within.

Sentinel looked the warehouse over with his X-Ray vision but got nothing. "I really can't see anything in there," he said sadly. Tsumtomu had most likely hidden his base with magic. He hated feeling useless but magic was one of the few things that he couldn't fight against without having some sort of problem. But he wasn't going to let it stop him.

"Well, we have no choice," Showa sadly said. "We have to go into the lion's den. If we don't stop Tsumtomu he'll get away with Keiichi and the Horrors won't stop spawning."

"Then let's go. But be careful, we are entering Tsumtomu's territory so he will have the advantage," Regulus warned them. Sentinel and Showa nodded while Zakider chirped in agreement. Regulus then grabbed hold of the door handle and lifted the warehouse door up, granting them entry. This was a little too easy.

They entered the warehouse to find…nothing.

"Nothing!" Showa growled

That was when a barrage of energy beams erupted from the ground, causing the four to scramble, each of them trying to dodge the oncoming attack.

Zakider wasn't very lucky. It was hit and sent flying as its wheels were damaged. **"KIKIKIKIIIII!" **it shrieked in pain.

"BUG-BIKE!" Showa yelled in horror.

Then everyone heard Evil Agito's voice, "_Hmmmm, I only got one of you. I must be slipping…_" Evil Agito Rapture Form flew out of one of the holes he made from his assault.

"Tsumtomu!" the three remaining heroes shouted in rage.

"I am me," Evil Agito greeted them "Now it is time for our final battle. The stakes are high. Is there no better time for a final battle?"

"Where's Keiichi!-?" Showa demanded.

"He's safe…for the moment," Evil Agito told him.

"Tsumtomu, you're finished!" Sentinel shouted.

"Alan Smith, enchanted to meet you." Evil Agito said pleasantly "But I am afraid you won't be joining our little brawl."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You are very strong, but you have so many weaknesses," Evil Agito continued like Sentinel never threatened him. "Magic for example, a weakness I have exploited. There is also that strange green rock. Sadly, I couldn't find any."

Sentinel was thankful that Kryptonite didn't naturally exist in this universe. Of course, that didn't mean that past organizations such as GIN-SHOCKER, X-SHOCKER and the Dark Hatred Society couldn't find a way to get their hands on some. Or even worse, if Shiro had somehow gained access to more of it like the amount he had possessed.

"But you have a far more deadlier weakness, Alan Smith. I have watched your fights on the television and spoken to some of the more intelligent members of your fan club, then killed them after I have discovered your greatest weakness," he told him nonchalantly.

"What is that?" Sentinel growled, his hatred for Tsumtomu growing a hundredfold. Thanks to the Smith Charm he had a rather large fan club. The news that they were all dead was mind blowing and Tsumtomu was the kind of monster who was proud of his atrocities. He probably wasn't lying.

"You can't hit girls!" Evil Agiro shouted giddily as a new summoning circle appeared and five new monsters were summoned.

Alan gulped at the sight of them all. They were all sexy women.

The first was a succubus with long black hair, red eyes, bat wings, razor sharp claws and talons and an outfit that left NOTHING to the imagination.

The second was an Amazon, wearing only a chainmail bikini to cover he curvaceous body and armed with a broad sword.

The third was a Valkyrie, wearing a more complete set of armor but that just made her a more elegant beauty with her long blond hair, blue eyes, and angelic wings. She twirled her weapon of choice, a spear, around for a brief second before slamming tha butt-end on the ground.

The fourth was a Dryad. She had pale green skin and green vine like hair. She only wore a few choice leaves to preserve her modesty.

The fifth and final woman was a Tiger-Woman. She wore nothing with only her orange striped fur preserving her modesty. She was armed with an axe.

"GIRLS! I can't fight girls!" Sentinel shrieked. Even Showa had a problem fighting women but he was nowhere as weak as Alan was when a woman was his opponent. It just depended on the situation.

"Exactly and your sexism will be your downfall," Evil Agito told him with a hint of false disapproval. He turned and walked past each monster woman, cupping their chins in his hands as he passed them, causing them to smile, moan and blush at the sensation of his touch. Finally, turning back to the sexy monster squad, "Girls, kill him!" Evil Agito ordered.

"Of course, Master Tsumtomu," the Succubus said, her voice filled with lust directed at her master.

"I thank you for this sacrifice," the Dryad said sadistically.

"Yes, killing him will be quite enjoyable," the Valkyrie agreed.

"He will make a fine pelt on my wall!" the Tiger-Woman announced.

"YES! WE SHALL MAIM HIM! BUTCHER HIM! DISMEMBER HIM!" the Amazon shrieked insanely.

"No, he will not fight you!" Regulus disagreed "I shall be the one to make them face judgment!"

"No, old friend. You, Shinichi, and I shall fight in a different location," Evil Agito said. He punched the ground, causing it to collapse causing Regulus to fall. Showa tried to fly up to help his brother but Evil Agito tackled him with a spear tackle, causing him to fall into the pit with his companion.

Sentinel turned to face the warrior-women worried. "You don't have to work for a monster like him," Sentinel told them. It was a tried and true tactic; convince poor manipulated women to turn to the side of good.

"Uhh, Partner-" Bazel began worried.

"What is it Bazel? Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Let me finish! You see I can sense an aura around those women and it's just like Tsumtomu, pure evil. I don't think the Smith Charm is going to work. I think there're willingly working for him."

"The wristband's right," the Dryad confirmed Bazel's suspicions.

"I find you very unattractive," the succubus admitted, which was strange as a succubus would screw anything.

"I JUST WANT TO KILL THINGS!" The Amazon shrieked, swinging her sword like a mad-woman.

"The good in him is repulsive!" the Valkyrie sneered.

"Enough talking! We shall kill him and eat his corpse!" the Tiger-Woman snarled and lunged at him and not in a good way.

Sentinel brought up his arm to block and was unpleasantly surprised to see that the Tiger-Woman's fangs bit through his armor and through his Kryptonian skin.

Then he was slugged in the face by the Amazon, giving him a bloody nose.

Once the other three warrior women started attacking, Sentinel knew things were going to go badly for him.

* * *

Showa and Regulus landed in a giant cavern Tsumtomu had dug out to act as his base. It was filled to the brim with Tsumtomu's victims.

Showa felt like he needed to barf. This was nauseating as he could smell their rotting flesh even through his faceplate. The sight was enough to give him nightmares if he wasn't yet desensitized by all the violence he'd witnessed and caused since the day GIN-SHOCKER took him.

Regulus merely stood up and growled. He had dealt with Tsumtomu enough to be desensitized by such carnage.

"OK, you're the expert on this guy," said Showa. "Do you know what we should expect?"

"Expect to die," Regulus answered.

"Well," Showa huffed. "That's helpful," he muttered sarcastically. It wasn't the first time he had to face ultimate evil to save a friend.

They both looked around the cavern trying to find Tsumtomu. They found nothing.

"Where is he?" Showa demanded angrily.

Then something slammed into Showa's back, causing him to shout out in intense pain. "ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" he shouted in torment. He was then punched in the chest, sending him flying into a pile of dead bodies.

"Tsumtomu!" Regulus roared, "Show yourself!"

"Fine," Evil Agito complied, stepping out of the shadows. He admired the sword in Showa's hand. He admitted, "The Higurashi no Yaiba is a fine blade." He added, "But it is not without equal."

"What?" Showa questioned, wondering what Evil Agito meant.

"Be careful, Shinichi," Regulus warned him "You are about to see the reason why my blade was able to compete with the Kusanagi."

A sword appeared in Evil Agito's hand. It was a broad sword, and was large for its size. It was colored a satin white color in its entirety with the exception of ten black gems that ran up and down the center of the blade. "Meet the Decalogue!" Evil Agito announced ominously.

Before any more Questions could be asked Evil Agito flew towards Showa, the Decalogue raised. Showa used Shunpo to dodge but Evil Agito was waiting for him and slashed at him. "What!-?" Showa shouted in shock. How did he get ahead of him? Before Showa could meet his doom Regulus turned into light, moving at said element's speed to block Evil Agito's blow.

"Tsumtomu manipulates light! He can move at its speed!" Regulus shouted

"Then we'll just double team him!" Showa declared as he rushed at Evil Agito and joined the two mortal enemies' sword fight. Regulus and Evil Agito were superior swordsmen due to years of dueling each other meaning they knew each other's fighting styles by heart. However, Showa's support was turning the tide. For the first time Evil Agito was being pushed back. Regulus' blade successfully cut Evil Agito, making sparks fly. He recoiled in pain like a vampire being touched by sunlight.

"Why did that hurt him so much?" Showa asked while cutting Evil Agito across the chest, wounding him even more.

"A Lord's weapon is designed specifically to kill any and all Agito," Regulus informed him while attacking Evil Agito with a flurry of stabs, making the madman hiss in pain.

"So it's like his Kryptonite?"

"That is an accurate description." Regulus conceded

"Ha, then this will be easy!"

Regulus glared at him. Showa had just tempted fate.

"Mel Force!" Evil Agito shouted holding, Decalogue in a defensive stance. A gale of wind kicked up blowing the two heroes away.

Showa and Regulus struggled to regain their balance when Evil Agito revealed another new move "Silfarion!" Evil Agito moved faster than ever before and before Showa and Regulus realized it they were covered in cuts as sparks burst from their armors.

"What the hell?" Showa gasped in pain. Each attack felt like he was being dipped in acid because of the Decalogue's anti-demon capabilities.

"It is called the Decalogue for a reason. It has ten different forms of attack."

"Okay, then I'll just switch forms." Showa decided as he began to call upon the Sword of Ascalon. He didn't get a chance to. Evil Agito swooped in and slammed something into Showa's chest. As Showa tried to switch forms, nothing happened. "NANI?"

"I have sealed you, Shinichi," Evil Agito pleasantly informed him. "Now you can't change forms."

Regulus took this chance to fire a barrage of light swords at Evil Agito forcing him to dodge, allowing Showa the chance to use a couple of new techniques that St. George had taught him.

"Masenko!" (Devil Flash) Showa shouted as he brought his hands above his head and then pushed them forward, firing a blast of demonic power at Evil Agito, finally hitting him and blasting him into the wall.

The strange duo waited for the madman to emerge knowing he wasn't dead. Evil Agito attacked, but not the way they expected. "Gravity Core!" the two heroes were frozen by a sudden increase in gravity. Evil Agito emerged from the wall and slashed Regulus across the chest "Explosion!" As the attack was called, Regulus was engulfed in an explosion, injuring him.

Showa took this chance to fire off another new attack "Kienzan! (Energy Circle Razor)!" Showa swung the Higurashi no Yaiba, the sacred sword releasing a disk of energy that could cut through _anything. _Evil Agito's answer to this problem was simple: use more power. His visor glowed white and an inferno of light was unleashed from it. The beam engulfed Kienzan and continued towards Showa who used Shunpo to dodge. He was glad he did as the light ray vaporized everything in its path.

Regulus used this as a distraction to unleash a sonic roar, disorienting Evil Agito. The Lord then turned into a beam of light and slammed into him sending him flying. Showa decided that this was the perfect chance to use one of his finishers. He slid his hand along the flat side of his sword's blade, causing it to glow gold, before shouting out, "KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!" He swung the Higurashi no Yaiba, charged with incalculable amounts of power, as he fired a wave of gold power at his target. Evil Agito couldn't dodge in time and Showa was confident in the attack's power.

He should learn to never underestimate his opponent or to overestimate his own power by now.

Evil Agito was ready. "Rune Save!" he shouted and the Decalogue _cut_ the 'Kin no Higurashi Zan' in half.

"What. The. Hell?" was all Showa could say to that impossibility.

"Rune Save," Evil Agito said stroking the Decalogue. "The form that can cut what cannot be cut."

"I thought you didn't gloat?" Showa quipped.

"I don't," Evil Agito, countered, "I stall."

Before Showa could even speak a giant Symbol of Agito appeared behind him. It fused into his body, immobilizing him. Evil Agito then fired bolts of lightning, frying Showa. He was a step away from victory.

That was until Regulus recovered and cut off one of his wings.

"ARRGGGHHH!" Evil Agito cried in pain. It was extremely satisfying to hear.

Regulus ran over to Showa to help him. "You okay?" he asked.

"As okay as I can be in a situation like this," Showa groaned.

"Good, because I have an idea." Regulus then told Showa the plan with a whisper.

"That's crazy!" Showa said, "But crazy's all we got! So let's do it!"

"That's enough plotting over there!" Evil Agito shouted firing more Agito symbol energy blasts. Showa and Regulus dodged with Shunpo and Light Dash respectively. Regulus attacked first, swinging his blade down to slice Evil Agito in two. Evil Agito blocked but unlike every other time he and Regulus crossed blades he was pushed back.

"What!" the madman gaped, he looked at Regulus' sword and discovered that it wasn't Ad Astra. It was the _Higurashi no Yaiba!_

That was when Showa attacked, slicing Evil Agito with Regulus' sword, Ad into his side, making blood spill.

Evil Agito understood their plan. "I see. So you gave the more powerful weapon to the weaker but more skilled ally. While the more powerful Kamen Rider uses the weaker blade, but that blade was made specifically to hurt _me_."

"So you figured it out," Regulus began.

"But it doesn't matter," Showa continued.

"Because together! We are more powerful than you!" the two finished as one.

Kamen Rider and Lord worked together with their swapped swords, pushing Evil Agito's back with Showa's power and Regulus' skill. This assault reached its conclusion when they both kicked Evil Agito away and assumed a similar stance, the stance for a Rider Kick!

"HYAH!" the two shouted together as they both performed a flying side kick forcing Evil Agito back, sparks erupting from his chest.

The two heroes knew that their assault wasn't enough to kill him. So they had another finishing move ready. The Higurashi no Yaiba in Regulus' hand glowed with his light, while Ad Astra in Showa's hand surged with his Youki and Reiryoku energy combination. They attacked at once. "OI-RYAAAAH!" the two heroes attacked as one once more, their blades slicing across Evil Agito's front, creating an X-shaped scar across his chest.

The two gave each other's swords back, giving each other a thumbs-up as well. Showa and Regulus then attacked once more, Evil Agito blocking their swords with the Decalogue but the Decalogue cracked.

"Looks like your sword isn't as great as you thought it was," Showa smirked.

Evil Agito was still calm. Showa didn't like that. "It's not breaking. It's splitting in two." Evil Agito explained. Showa began to worry. "Into Blue Crimson!" The Decalogue then split into two swords, releasing a blast of fire and ice, blasting Regulus back and, for some reason, weakening Showa. "This form of the Decalogue was the one that was most famous for slaying demons!" Evil Agito shouted, slashing Showa across the chest, creating an X shaped scar across Showa's chest much like his own. However, due to Blue Crimson's anti-demon attributes the damage done was tripled!

Showa screamed in pain, his torment could be heard throughout the caverns. He might be ¼ demon, but the Blue Crimson could still cause agonizing pain despite the amount of demon's blood which ran through his veins.

* * *

The Darkloid Rider was in another chamber, his arms and legs fused into a nearby wall with magic chains trapping him for good measure. His eyes were blank but they lit up when he heard Showa scream.

"**Shinichi…" **he groaned he then shrugged **"It doesn't matter. They can't beat Tsumtomu." **

"_That's bullshit!" _another voice called out.

"**Huh?"**

The Darkloid Rider was then greeted by his other self; Keiichi Maebara _"I can't believe you're giving up!"_

"**Well I am! Deal with it!" **the Darkloid Rider growled, **"Shinichi and Alan can't win against him! He's the smartest, most evil thing they have ever faced! He's taken everything into account! And if he somehow hasn't, he just adapts! Nothing will make a difference…"**

"_I can't believe I'm hearing this from you!" _Keiichi shouted at his counterpart. _"Aren't you supposed to be some sort of badass ultra version of me created from a million years of shit and the power of evolution itself? I refuse to believe that this quitter is my evolution! I refuse to believe you're me! Where is the badass that beat time itself? That gave hope to a poor little girl and a freaking goddess with words alone. You didn't-we didn't have those powers back then and we still won! Now you-we have all this and we're going to do nothing!"_

"**I've reached the end of my evolution," **the Darkloid Rider said pessimistically **"All I am is a mutant. A mistake. An abomination. I never was an evolution to begin with."**

"_Did you decide that or did Tsumtomu?" _Keiichi questioned.

"**What…?" **

"_Think about it. Tsumtomu is able to get into people's heads both literally and figuratively. He hijacked our minds to make us dance to his tune; he made us follow a false lead. I'd bet my baseball bat that he can read peoples mind. That's how he's been able to be three steps ahead of everyone! He's been slowly worming his way into everyone's mind in a quiet and subtle manner. That's why he knows everything about us!" _was Keiichi's rousing speech.

"**Even if that is true, it still doesn't matter, Tsumtomu is still too powerful and we have reached the end of our evolution."**

"_I still call bullshit! What makes you think that we've reached the end of our evolution? Because we haven't! No one decides what our limit is. If there isn't a door we'll just make one! If there's no road to follow we'll just make our own. No one decides our limit! Not Shinichi! Not Alan! And especially not Tsumtomu! There is no limit for us! If we put our mind to it we could surpass even them! But that doesn't matter right now! What does matter is taking our first step of evolution by saving Shinichi's arrogant ass!" _Keiichi smirked _"Besides, we have one big advantage."_

"**What do you…?" **the Darkloid Rider all of a suddenly stopped his protests and gave his equivalent to a smirk **"A Magician of Words indeed… Let's do it!"**

"_Wait, there's still one more thing," _Keiichi told his other self.

"**And that is?"**

Keiichi held his hand out to the Darkloid Rider _"My power," _he offered.

"**Are you sure? Letting me absorb you would mean you'd be lost forever."**

"_No it won't," _Keiichi, countered, _"It will be just like Rika-chan. So what if it'll hurt a bit to see the truth. Saving our friends will be worth it!"_

"**Very well! Let's take the second step of our evolution!" **the Darkloid Rider declared dramatically.

"_Yes, the second step of our evolution," _Keiichi agreed as his astral formed walked into the Darkloid Rider and the two became one.

The Darkloid Rider's two horns became six.

"_**Let's do it!" **_Two souls became one.

* * *

Showa and Regulus were losing, badly.

With the arrival of Blue Crimson the two began to lose ground. As with the Frost Giant, Regulus' powers were worthless and the Decalogue's anti-demon properties were ripping Showa apart. Showa's mask was cracked showing his face and blood flowed from his wounds, especially the X-shaped one, while Regulus' cloak was gone, his mane was fried, his plate mail was cracked, and he appeared to be suffering from frostbite.

Evil Agito let out a telekinetic burst, blasting a charging Regulus away, then grabbed Showa by the neck before lifting him up. The Decalogue was back in its base form, ready to kill him.

(_**Insert Song: No X Limit – by: Ami**_)

"_**Rider Kick!"**_

For some reason Evil Agito couldn't see the attack coming until it broke his last wing off.

"So you got out," Evil Agito said happily as he dropped Showa back down to the ground, the Rider coughing as he took in a much needed breath.

"Keiichi!" Showa shouted happily while Regulus smiled.

"_**That's my name!" **_the Darkloid Rider declared dramatically. He turned to look at his friend. _**"Shinichi, you look like shit and you've made a strange new friend." **_

"Yeah," Showa sighed, "Anyway my new friend is Regulus, and I wouldn't be alive without him."

"_**Nice to meet you," **_The Darkloid Rider greeted the Lord.

"A pleasure to meet you," Regulus returned the greeting.

"Great," Showa laughed "Now that it's three against one this bastard doesn't stand a chance!"

"Wait!" Regulus interrupted "I shall go save Alan Smith. If my suspicions are correct he will need help."

"Yeah, he does," Showa admitted that his brother did need help. However, the Darkloid Rider was still green to his knowledge.

"_**Go save Alan's sexist ass lion guy, I've got a plan to deal with Tsumtomu," **_the Darkloid Rider stated sinisterly.

Showa was indecisive about this turn of events.

"_**Shinichi, don't you trust your friends?" **_the Darkloid Rider asked sarcastically.

Showa caved, "Alright Regulus, go save my idiot of a brother."

"Finally!" Regulus remarked as he turned into a bolt of light and flew away to save Sentinel's ass.

"This is going to be so much fun!" Evil Agito giggled.

"Wait, shouldn't you be having a breakdown right now? It's standard villain protocol," Showa stated.

"Please, I'm not that cliché." Evil Agito explained, "You see this world has two kinds of people, those that see a glass as half full, and those who see it as half empty." The madman admitted proudly, "I am the first."

"_**It's true. Tsumtomu is incapable of feeling negative emotions. It's what makes him so dangerous," **_the Darkloid Rider explained. _**"Now cover me!" **_The Darkloid Rider summoned his cleaver blade and attacked Evil Agito.

"Fine," Showa agreed as he went on the offensive as well, his attacks working just as well as before against Evil Agito which was just about average. The Darkloid Rider on the other hand was going to town on Evil Agito, dodging his every attack, blocking what he couldn't perfectly despite the difference of power, and even landing some blows, causing Evil Agito to resemble a sparkler. This was strange even though the Darkloid Rider had all six horns active, a sign that he was beyond his full power, shouldn't have been enough to compete with the fully evolved Agito's power.

After the Darkloid Rider landed a rather vicious blow on Evil Agito, Showa had to know as he asked, "How are you doing that?"

"_**Tsumtomu created a psychic link with me. I'm simply exploiting it to read his mind so I know everything he's going to do. With you taking the pressure off me I can keep up," **_the Darkloid Rider explained.

"You've been reading my mind?" Evil Agito pondered, honestly shocked. "Anyone that has ever tried before has gone insane!"

"I wonder why?" Showa deadpanned.

"_**Simple, half of my mind is as screwed up as yours because the Hinamizawa Syndrome made me lose it during a couple billion loops. I'm used to insanity so I can counter your sick mind!" **_the Darkloid Rider explained. _**"Now before you can find a way around that…" **_the Darkloid Rider created a portal _**"Shinichi! Jump in with me!" **_the Darkloid Rider ordered.

"Got it!" Showa complied jumping in as well.

The tide turned further to the heroes favor as the Darkloid Rider randomly opened dark portals for himself and Showa to attack from. Tsumtomu couldn't react in time. The Darkloid Rider and Showa were in a pocket dimension where the madman's mind couldn't reach. He was slashed, bashed, blasted, and subjected to multiple kinds of injuries. This continued until Tsumtomu was punched rather hard in the face from a Double Rider Punch. The two Riders took their chance for victory.

The Darkloid Rider summoned his kanabo as the Symbol of Agito appeared under his feet then fused with his kanabo, causing it to grow to a gigantic size. The Darkloid Rider then swung his chosen instrument of death at Evil Agito shouting _**"Kanabo Crash!" **_The attack hit, sending Evil Agito flying into the air and straight into Showa's attack.

"Explosive Ryuusei Punch!" Showa's fist was engulfed in flames before it smashed into Evil Agito, causing another massive explosion.

"Did we get him?" Showa asked the Darkloid Rider. He wasn't taking any chances.

"…_**I can't sense him anymore." **_The Darkloid Rider answered.

"Million Suns!" Evil Agito roared. He wasn't dead.

Light washed over the cavern consuming everything. Showa was badly burnt; his armor now pure black and the revealed parts of his face began to burn.

The Darkloid Rider had it worse; darkness was weak to light after all and so he screamed with incredible agony. He had never felt such pain before.

"Keiichi!" Showa, using shunpo, went over to his friend to save him.

It was all part of Evil Agito's plan.

"Sacrifar!" Showa looked at Evil Agito in shock and before he could do anything Evil Agito_ ripped his sword arm off_!"

Showa screams of pain joined the Darkloid Rider's.

(_**End Song: No X Limit**_)

* * *

Sentinel's fight was going just as badly as his friends was. His armor looked like scrap metal, he hadn't bled so much since before becoming part Kryptonian, his face had been rearranged in a manner that made him look like the creature from the black lagoon, and he was pretty sure he was missing a chunk of flesh. The Tiger-Woman had been serious about eating him. Their mystically enhanced abilities allowed them to do him harm despite his invulnerability.

The Succubus was a deadly opponent as she was able to drain life energy from Sentinel. She did manage to steal a kiss but only for a moment as he spun himself free from her grasp. That was when vines, courtesy of the Dryad, came shooting out of the ground to wrap around him, constricting his movements, while targeting his ring to suck the energy from the device. However, the vines were immediately burnt by Sentinel's heat vision, which caused the Dryad to scream in agony.

He eventually had the idea of using his power ring to make a bubble shield. However, his ring was slowly losing power as he tried to keep the shield from breaking under the pressure it was taking as Evil Agito's summoned monster girls were beating away at his bubble shield, especially the Amazon.

"_Ring energy at 13% and dropping," _the ring announced unhelpfully.

"Partner, you have got to fight back!" Bazel shouted as he didn't want Sentinel to die.

"_10 %."_

"But I can't hit girls." Sentinel stood by his upbringing.

"_8%."_

"Look partner, in this day in age lots of women see that belief as extremely rude!" Bazel tried to convince his partner.

"_6%."_

"I! Can't! Hit! Girls!"

"_4%."_

The Amazon, Succubus, Valkyrie, Tiger-Woman and Dryad were overwhelming Sentinel due to his refusal to hit women. However, help would soon arrive as a portal opened and five figures came rushing out.

Nozomu howled and tackled into the Tiger-Woman, sending both of them tumbling along the ground. Yami was already attacking the Succubus with her hair which turned into sharp blades. Conda was instantly upon the Amazon, punching her across the face as Amora fired a bolt of magical energy at the Valkyrie, sending her flying. Bishie, of course, had just sent the Dryad staggering with her Vine Whips.

Conda and Amora helped Alan up as they frowned at him in disapproval, shaking their heads at him. "What a humiliating sight," said Amora as she rubbed his cheek. With her magic, she began to heal him of his injuries. His armor and costume were also being restored.

"I thought you were better than that," Conda chided.

"Sorry, girls," Sentinel shrugged. "You know I can't fight girls. It's not in my nature."

"Well, don't worry, dear," Amora smiled. "We'll handle these harlots for you."

Conda cracked her knuckles, "It'll be good exercise." Sentinel watched the two girls engage the Amazon and Valkyrie. Conda dodged the Amazon's sword to kick her hard in the stomach, causing her to double over. She used her whip to ensnare the Amazon's sword and tear it out of her hand before depositing into her own. Smiling sadistically, she looked to the Amazon who gulped. "Come here and let me punish you!" Conda laughed as she lashed out with her whip, causing the Amazon to cry out as she was being tortured.

Conda declared in mid-laughter, "Kneel before your queen, harlot!"

The Valkyrie was trying to spear Amora who weaved around her thrusts. She fired her magic bolts which the Valkyrie dodged but she followed up with a spinning kick that knocked the winged woman to the side. Flipping her golden hair, she sneered at her opponent who was slowly getting up to her feet. Using two bolts of magic, she turned the Valkyrie's wings to stone to weigh her down and her spear into a snake which hissed at her, scaring her into dropping her transmuted weapon.

Amora mocked her, "I am a Goddess. You are a mere Valkyrie. Did you really think you ever stood a chance?"

Yami was definitely giving the Succubus a hard time as she used her transformation power to give herself wings by altering her hair. She even sported claws. The Succubus scowled as Golden Darkness mimicked her and shrieked as she tried to slash her with her talons. However, Yami blocked with her claws and turned her entire leg into a sword before kicking at her. The blade cut across the Succubus' stomach, spilling blood. The wings on Yami's head weren't just for show and flight either as she slashed at the Succubus with the razor-shard wings. The Succubus shrieked as her scant clothing was torn apart. She smacked Yami across the face and used her claws to tear up the blonde's black clothes. She mocked, "I wonder how a little girl like you can satisfy a man when I have these!" She cupped her breasts for emphasis.

"I don't like ecchi people like you," Yami shot back as she bashed her skull against the Succubus' face, sending her crashing to the floor. "And for the record, Alan likes me this way."

The Tiger-Woman snarled at the Wolf-Girl who growled back. Nozomu was dressed in her Nightclaw costume. It was something she had made so she could patrol the streets at night as a vigilante. Plus, she thought it was appropriate. The Tiger-Woman, being a feline, and Nozomu, being a canine, were both natural enemies.

Roaring and howling, the two engaged and rolled along the floor, clawing and biting at each other. "Alan is my husband!" Nozomu declared as she clawed the Tiger-Woman across the cheek. "I will not let you lay a claw on him."

The battle between the Dryad and Bishie was being done with both of them standing far from each other and trying to strike each other down with their respective vines. "Alan's so good with plants! How can you be so mean to him?" Bishie questioned furiously.

"Because he's a sexist weakling who isn't willing to hurt us girls!" the Dryad shot back.

"Well that just means he's a gentleman that isn't willing to stoop to that level!" Bishie retorted.

The Dryad was about to retort when a sword suddenly pierced her back and protruded out her chest, with light emitting from the blade causing her to burn to death.

"But I can!" Regulus announced as he continued his assault. He released his light aura, exorcizing the Succubus as she screamed in pain. He then fired a blast of energy at the Valkerie, vaporizing her. He finally killed the Amazon and the Tiger-Woman at the same time by snapping his feline counterpart's neck while beheading the Amazon.

Conda, Amora, Yami, Nozomu and Bishie stared at this lion-man who'd just killed their opponents with ease. Regulus ignored them as he turned to Sentinel and asked sarcastically "Are you okay?"

"I'm alright," Sentinel assured the Lord.

"They were rather weak. You could have ended this fight instantly!" Regulus pointed out.

"Sorry, it's how I was raised," Sentinel apologized.

"How would your parents feel if they learnt you died because of that belief they instilled in you?" Regulus asked the question no one else dared to ask.

Sentinel walked up to Regulus, "I am so fucking sick of people calling me sexist. If not fighting women is sexist, fine! But I wanna hear the pro woman-beating stand you have on the matter. You know why I don't hit women? Because my father taught me to NEVER do that. And do you know why he taught me that? Because his WHOLE CHILDHOOD he saw abuse towards women. The closest thing he ever had to a mother DIED because she was BEATEN TO DEATH BY HER HUSBAND. So go ahead. Tell me it's OK to beat women. I will end you."

"I'm sorry," Regulus apologized. He really should've bothered to learn more of his allies.

"Well next time don't talk about things you have no fucking idea about," Sentinel growled.

"But, still, to die for such a belief..."

"Just forget it," Sentinel cut him off, frowning. He demanded, "Why did you leave Shinichi?"

"Keiichi Maebara escaped captivity and formulated a plan to defeat Tsumtomu. You needed aid so I went to assist you. I was wise to do so." He looked to the girls, "But it seemed like it was unnecessary. Of course if they hadn't arrived…"

"Okay fine, I get it. Now how was the fight going?"

They heard Showa and the Darkloid Rider's cries of pain.

"Badly," Regulus deadpanned.

"We have to save them!" Sentinel shouted frantically as he jumped into the hole.

"You think I don't know that?-!" Regulus shouted, jumping in after him.

The girls stood at the entrance of the hole and shared looks.

"Think we should go after them?" Bishie asked.

Yami's response was a negative, "We should let them handle this. I'm sure Alan can handle himself."

"In the meantime, we should help the others with their own demon problems," said Amora as she formed a portal. "Coming, ladies?"

* * *

Evil Agito was now surrounded by an aura of light, fire, electricity, and was letting off telekinetic explosions. The Decalogue had reversed colors, the gems were now pure white and the rest of the blade was black.

However that all took a back seat to the fact that Evil Agito was _beating Showa to death with his own right arm!_

The Darkloid Rider was unconscious. His body smoking from the light of a Million Suns and his ribcage caved in from being hit by the side of Sarcifar's blade.

"W-What?" Showa managed to moan.

"The ninth form of the Decalogue, Sacrifar. It gives me unimaginable power in exchange for a piece of my life. I will congratulate you on forcing me to use it." The scary thing was that Evil Agito wasn't being sarcastic. He was perfectly honest.

"Now to kill you," he said bringing Sacrifar down to finish the job. Showa scrunched his eyes shut and waited for the incoming strike but then noticed that the hit never came. Opening his eyes, he saw Evil Agito lower his sword and noticed him looking at something on the ground next to his feet. It was the Higurashi no Yaiba. "Hmm, I know of a better way to kill you," he said as he picked the sword up but was given a shock when the sacred sword rejected him, flinging itself into an opposing wall. "Peh, no matter. I can still kill you with my own blade." He then raised his sword once more, "Now, say sayonara, Shinichi Banabara!"

"Guess again…asshole!" Showa shouted as he rolled out of the way, grabbing his right arm in the process. Backing away after getting up, he held his severed arm up to the stump that was his shoulder and placed the arm against it, allowing his nanites to shoot out mechanical tendrils to slowly reconnect the severed limb.

"Why do you wish to prolong your suffering further?" Evil Agito asked pessimistically. "It will only get worse." He gripped the hilt of the Sacrifar tightly and slowly made his way towards Showa.

Showa just glared at Evil Agito, "No one takes my sword and tries to use it on me," he growled. He then thought of something. "Tell me, Tsumtomu. Up until when did you keep on studying us?"

Was this some sort of trick question?

"Do your really need to know?" He got no answer. "Fine," he sighed. "I kept a close vigil on all of you up until about a month ago. After you injured the sprout, I knew that I had all the data I needed. Though, I do have to wonder what it was that made you decide to fight again. I had heard that you quit being a hero." Showa just smiled. Perfect.

"Well then, that means you never had the time to include this into your plans!" Showa shouted as he thrusted his left arm into the air. "Come to my hand, Ascalon!" In an instant, a brilliant flash of light appeared between the two Riders, revealing the sword of legend. Grabbing onto it within his hand, Showa then willed the sword to fill his body with its triple energy mix, speeding up his healing factor.

(_**Insert Song: We Are Xros Heart**_)

Evil Agito looked on with a slight bit of shock which quickly faded. So he possessed another powerful sword. It was of no threat to him though.

"I see, so you possess the legendary sword that can supposedly slay any dragon. But what good will it do you in this fight?"

"Correction, it can slay any dragon and any being whose heart and soul are clouded with evil," Showa said, correcting Evil Agito. "And now, bring order to chaos, St. George!" Showa stabbed the blade into the sky and swished it around, creating the circle of light above his head, before pulling the sword down, shattering the circle. In an instant, an energy dragon soared out of the shattered circle and then engulfed Showa's body, transforming him into Ascalon Form. At the same time, the seal which Evil Agito had placed into Showa's chest was ejected and burned to ash in mid-air.

"Impossible," Evil Agito whisper quietly to himself. This was definitely not going completely to plan.

"Now, it's high time I kicked you ass! Makankosappo!" Showa-Ascalon shouted as he fired the demonic energy blast from his right fingertips. Using the Sacrifar, Evil Agito deflected the shot back at Showa who quickly vanished by using shunpo.

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you?" Evil Agito asked aloud. He then turned and blocked a sword slash to his back with the Sacrifar and then struck out with energy-like claws and slashed Showa across the chest. Sparks flew from Showa's armor but he didn't even grunt from the strike. "Okay, that was impressive."

"Oh, then you're going to love this. Shakkahou!" Showa formed a powerful fireball in his left hand and fired it at Evil Agito who quickly moved out of the way by using his light speed movement with the fireball exploding on the spot where he once stood. "Damn, missed him!"

"You should really work on that aim of yours!" Evil Agito shouted as he swung the Sacrifar, deciding to imitate one of Showa's attacks and use it against him. "Kin no Sacrifar Zan!" Dual energy blades flew from the sword as he swung it down but Showa would not fall so easily.

"Guess again, dirt bag!" Showa shouted. He needed to hurry as he was quickly running low on time. He could only keep Ascalon Form up for about five minutes before it canceled out so he needed to make his next few attacks count. "**Ryuga Daichikudaku!**" Showa swung the Ascalon, sending a black and bluish-white energy dragon straight for the dual attack. The dragon engulfed the attack and kept on going, slamming into and engulfing Evil Agito as well.

"AAAARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!-!-!"

Showa used Shunpo to move away from the explosion which occurred from the contact and came to a stop. Looking to his left, he noticed the Higurashi no Yaiba still stuck in the wall. Raising his left hand while hanging onto the Ascalon with his right, "Higurashi no Yaiba, come to my hand!"

In an instant, the sword flew straight into his hand. While he couldn't dual-wield both of their energies while in Ascalon Form, it didn't mean he couldn't use both swords at the same time. All he would have to do is focus the light part of his triple energy through the Higurashi no Yaiba.

As Showa prepared for the next round, Evil Agito descended from the dust cloud and landed on the ground before swinging the Sacrifar, sending a huge energy wave right at Showa.

"Uh-oh!" Using his dual Dragon Coat (the dual cape on his back) he summoned his energy wings and erected them in front of him, using them as a shield to protect himself from harm.

(_**End Song: We Are Xros Heart**_)

Evil Agito would not let up just yet though as he kept firing wave after wave, driving Showa back against a wall. As powerful as he was in Ascalon Form, he was still learning to master it. Perhaps summoning the form was a mistake on his part. Evil Agito then formed a huge ball of energy above his head and then, with a flick of his wrist, flung it at Showa who just gaped at the sheer size of the energy ball.

"Oh shit!"

That was when Sentinel and Regulus landed and saw the sight. "SHINICHI!" Sentinel cried in horror. He constructed a massive cannon, mounted on his shoulder and took aim, charging up his makeshift weapon. With the energy ball in his crosshairs, he fired a blast of emerald energy which slammed into the energy ball, canceling it out.

Showa let out a sigh and then fell to one knee, using the Ascalon to keep his balance. His body was close to the time limit so, acting quickly, he released the form change and reverted back to his default mode. The sword of Ascalon also transformed from its ascended state and into a more battle ready claymore-styled broadsword. Concentrating on the sword, it then shifted forms to that of Showa's spirit sword which he had acquired in his training with St. George.

"What manner of weapon is that?" Regulus asked.

"That's the sword of Ascalon," Sentinel told him. "Shinichi hasn't mastered it yet but if he summoned it then this battle must be getting really bad."

"That's the fabled sword of Ascalon?" Regulus asked which Sentinel answered with a nod. "Will wonders never cease to amaze me?" Regulus stated. Evil Agito looked at his current set of opponents and knew that things were slowly beginning to fall out of his favor.

"_Time to change priorities'," _Evil Agito decided. He snapped his fingers. Symbols of Agito appeared all around Sentinel that glowed with power.

"Oh shit!" Sentinel used his power ring to make a shield as the Symbols of Agito exploded. There was a series of strong explosions and despite the power he put behind the shield, his defense was shattered and he was swallowed up by the explosions.

Sentinel feel to the ground, scorched black and unmoving.

"Al-Alan…" Showa managed to choke out, his body still recovering from the use of Ascalon Form and from the remnants of the injuries he had received earlier.

Regulus flew towards Sentinel and saw the state of his body and saw red. He was not going to let Tsumtomu get away with this. "TSUMTOMU-!-!-!" he roared, his aura of light brighter than ever before, Ad Astra shining like a star. He looked like an avenging angel.

Evil Agito slashed him in across the chest. Blood was spilled. "Our friendship is over." Regulus fell to the ground unmoving.

Evil Agito turned to Sentinel. "I better make sure he's dead," Evil Agito had decided. He walked over to Sentinel, Sacrifar in hand, ready to finish the job.

Hearing those words Regulus got up. His body was leaking energy and a halo had appeared above his head, a sign that a Lord was dying. _"Sorry. It doesn't look like I can keep my promise."_ Regulus then tackled Evil Agito to the ground. Evil Agito tried to push him off but Regulus had poured his dying will into his dying body, giving him strength beyond even what Sentinel had as he stared Evil Agito in the eyes and said, "Most Kaijin die in explosions. I DIE IN A SUPERNOVA!"

Regulus exploded with the power of a supernova, engulfing Evil Agito. For some mysterious reason, Showa, Sentinel and the Darkloid Rider were spared. Maybe the Overlord did watch over them.

Evil Agito, however, was charred black, his limbs bending ways they weren't supposed to, and his armor was smelted.

"If he's alive after that he's immortal," Showa managed to whisper as he stood…barely.

"_**URRGGGG," **_the Darkloid Rider groaned, regaining consciousness. _**"What the hell happened?"**_

"A sacrifice," was Showa's sad response.

Evil Agito got up again, his limbs resetting themselves as he stood up again. Evil Agito was _alive_!

"No way," Showa gasped.

"A brave sacrifice, old friend, but it wasn't enough," Evil Agito said with what could be sorrow. Maybe he saw Regulus as a friend in his own sick and twisted way.

The Darkloid Rider looked around, hoping Zakider was okay. He saw his bike damaged but alive. Good. Regulus' sacrifice hadn't hurt him either. The Darkloid Rider then glared at Evil Agito who was still standing strong. Wait, did his knees just buckle? That was when the Darkloid realized that all of Evil Agito's limbs were broken and his internal organs were paste…how did he know this? Of course his link with Tsumtomu was still there!

"_**Shinichi, we can win!" **_the Darkloid Rider proclaimed.

"What! But I only have enough power left for only one Rider Kick."

"_**So do I,"**_ was the Darkloid Rider's confident response.

Showa realized what he was getting at. "Double Rider Kick!"

"_**Double Rider Kick!"**_

"You know I can hear you." Evil Agito said "But I will admit it is interesting. I still have the final form of the Decalogue and you have your last gamble." The two heroes knew Evil Agito was smiling ferally underneath his mask. "Let's do it!"

The three Riders stood in their respective stances for their finishing moves. Showa and the Darkloid Rider and whatever the final form of the Decalogue was for Evil Agito.

* * *

Sentinel was alive and had regained consciousness but the explosions had rendered him blind and deaf and too weak to stand. But he had to fight. He needed a weapon. He was currently too weak to fight without a weapon. He reached his right hand out searching for the Kusanagi and his hand found a sword.

* * *

Showa, the Darkloid Rider, and Evil Agito were putting everything they had into their final attacks.

* * *

Sentinel stood up, but he didn't know which way to go

'_Run to the left,' _he heard.

Sentinel complied.

* * *

Evil Agito finished charging his attack, "You're too late! The Tenth Sword: R-argh!" Evil Agito coughed up blood. Sentinel was behind him. He had just cut off Evil Agito's left arm, but not with the Kusanagi but with _Ad Astra—_Regulus' sword! A weapon made specifically for killing Agito. Sentinel then kicked Evil Agito, sending him flying.

"Your day is about to get VERY bad," snarled Sentinel. He punched Evil Agito in the face, cracking the helmet. "That was for calling me sexist!" He delivered a powerful kick to the villain's crotch, shattering the armor, causing Evil Agito to double over and grab his shattered pelvis. "That's for sending girls to attack me!" He grabbed Evil Agito by the leg before slamming him into the ground. "That was for trying to kill me!" He then stomped on Evil Agito's head, causing the helmet to crack. "That was for putting my friends and family in danger!"

Sentinel then grabbed Evil Agito before flying straight up. Once he reached about a mile up, he shot down. He and Evil Agito slammed into the ground, leaving a massive crater.

Sentinel's armor disappeared, causing Alan to stumble. He was still clutching Ad Astra in his hand. "And that was for Regulus. Shinichi, do you have the C3? It's time to lock this bastard away!" Despite him being a villain, and a danger to everyone, Alan refused to kill Tsumtomu. To Alan, that was the easy way out. He'd rather make the scum of the universe face the music. And if anyone deserved the title of "scum of the universe", it was Tsumtomu.

"Alan, look out!" shouted Showa. Evil Agito was charging at Alan from behind but Alan dropped to his knees and thrust Ad Astra backwards, straight into Evil Agito's chest.

"No second chances. I'm that sort of man," spoke Alan.

The two heroic Riders took their chance as Alan rolled out of their way.

"**DOUBLE RIDER KICK!"**

Both attacks hit perfectly. Evil Agito fell to the ground with a sickening crack sound echoing around the crater.

Showa and the Darkloid Rider collapsed on their backs, all out of power.

'_Please be dead, please be dead, please be dead!' _was all they could think.

Evil Agito stood up again alive, his mask broken to reveal the madman's smiling face.

"No…fucking…way," Showa gasped.

Evil Agito began to laugh, "HAHAHAHAHAHA! This is HILAROUS!"

Showa and the Darkloid Rider prepared to face their deaths with dignity.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Hoisted with my own petards!" Evil Agito laughed insanely. The Darkloid Rider's Symbol of Agito appeared on his destroyed chest plate. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! It is just so funny; I lost due to my own stupidity! I underestimated Regulus and he saves you from beyond the grave. I lost because I failed to fully study all of your latent potential! I lost because of Keiichi's link with me!" His body began to burn with black fire, the Decalogue falling to the ground as he continued to laugh whilst slowly being burnt alive.

"No," spoke Alan as he forced himself up. "You lost because you underestimated _us_. You think you planned for everything? That I was just gonna lie down and die because you sic some demon girls on me? You think Shinichi or Keiichi or Regulus was ever just going to stop and let you win? Of course they wouldn't and neither would I. You're not a genius, or a fighter, or even a super-villain. Hell, even when it comes to crazy people I've faced much worse than you. You're just a mad dog born in the form of the man. And you need to be PUT. DOWN!"

Alan punctuated the last word as he delivered a final blow to Tsumtomu's face, a head-butt, causing the villain's body to burst into dust. Showa and the Darkloid Rider fell unconscious at this point, reverting to their human forms, relieved that Tsumtomu Miyazaki was finally dead.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS, the Gaming Club, and Alan's girls were fighting an unending wave of Horrors, they were about to be overwhelmed when the Horrors disappeared.

"Guess they won," said X/Battler.

* * *

Keiichi was in bed but slowly regaining consciousness. Groaning, his eyes fluttered open and he stared up at an unfamiliar ceiling. "Ugh…where am I…?" He sat up and rubbed his eyes. He hissed in pain and noticed that he was in a hospital robe with bandages all over his body.

He heard the door open and looked to see Mion who stared at him, gaping. "Mion?" he questioned and she immediately ran towards him before jumping at him to wrap her arms tightly around him. "Ah, Mion!" he cried.

"You're alive! You're alive!" she shouted.

"Yeah, I'm alive," Keiichi laughed as Mion removed himself from her. "How long was I out?"

"Almost a week," she answered. His eyes widened. Keiichi then remembered the battle and Tsumtomu's death.

"Hey, what about Shinichi and Alan?" he asked.

"Oh, they woke up days ago," Mion said.

* * *

In the canyon outside the Hive, stabbed into the ground next to the spot where Tsuchi-Gnol's gravestone stood, was Ad Astra. In front of the sword was a gravestone with Regulus' name on it and a short message. The message read, "Regulus, Lord of Lions. He was as noble as the lion, with the appearance of a monster, but a heart of a true hero. He was also a member of the Gaming Club and he will not be forgotten." Flowers had been placed on the spot as well.

Yuji stood in front of the gravestone and sword with Alan and Shinichi. "Sorry I wasn't here for you, guys," Yuji apologized. "But Auntie B had us called away to play some kind of game."

"It's alright," said Shinichi. "You didn't know."

"I wish I could've met him," Yuji remarked as he offered his condolences. "Sounded like a real cool cat."

"We only got to know him for a short time, though," sighed Alan. "And he still left a huge impact on our lives."

"So, what about that Tsumtomu guy?" asked Yuji.

"Dead, and I hope he stays dead," said Alan. He had a theory about why Tsumotumo had chosen to attack when he did during Yuji's absence. He didn't want to risk facing all of them. It didn't make a difference, though. He still got defeated.

Yuji asked, "So, Keiichi's a Rider now, huh? What will he call himself?"

* * *

"So, since you're a Rider now, what will you call yourself?" Mion asked her boyfriend.

"Alter…" he answered softly. The word just popped into his head, "Kamen Rider Alter."

* * *

Later that night, in the Hive, Shinichi saw Alan walking down the hallway, clearly angry judging by the expression on his face and the mood he was giving off.

"What's the matter?" Shinichi asked worriedly.

"Tsumtomu wasn't lying," Alan, growled, "I just finished checking. The Shishibone City Sentinel Fan Club has the proud membership number of zero."

"Yes, it's true," a dark voice said.

"Huh, Rika-chan?" Shinichi wondered why she never used her adult voice anymore.

"No, Keiichi," the new Kamen Rider corrected while walking out of the shadows.

"Whoa didn't notice you there," Shinichi said. "Wait, how did you sneak by me?"

"Billions of years of practice," Keiichi told him.

"Nani?"

"Look guy's lets stop beating around the bush: I remember the Endless June."

"The Seed of Agito was what let you remember it, wasn't it?" Alan asked.

"Yep, now that I'm fully awake I can remember each cycle of that shit fest," Keiichi admitted.

"So that' why you were able to fight so well." Alan realized "If you've regained all of your memories, that just means that you have regained all the skills you have gained in the loops."

"Yeah, that was why I was able to fight so well. You remember how I fought, Shinichi? I used the Sonozaki clan's style. I know it so well because it was literally beaten into me." Keiichi then let out a mirthless laugh.

Shinichi cringed. Keiichi was able to fight so well because his own girlfriend and her sister had killed him millions of times.

"Anyway, first of all; Alan are you okay?" Keiichi questioned.

"Well besides the obvious, yeah," Alan answered. "Why?"

"Did you read Tsumtomu's mind?"

"Just his surface thoughts." He'd been blind and deaf and needed a way to keep track of his opponent so he used his psychic senses in place of his sight and hearing. He managed to recover his two senses after the battle.

"Good, so you won't go insane. That's a relief," Keiichi said.

"What do you mean?" Alan questioned.

Shinichi was the one who explained, "Tsumtomu said anyone who has ever read his mind has gone insane. I don't think he was lying. If you had gone deeper into his deranged mind, you would've gone nuts."

Alan shuddered, he didn't want to imagine what could happen if he became insane as Tsumtomu.

"Okay enough of the pity party," Keiichi interjected. "What I want to know is when the Gaming Club is going to know the truth?"

"You mean about the Endless June?" Shinichi asked. To be perfectly honest he, Rika, and Hanyuu never planned to tell them. It could destroy them.

"They deserve to know, Shinichi," Keiichi stated in his dark voice. "But I won't tell them unless absolutely necessary. They deserve to know the truth from either you, Rika, or Hanyuu, aka Oyashiro-sama."

"What are you trying to say?" Shinichi asked.

Keiichi sighed sadly. "I'm not the same Keiichi Maebara anymore. I'm like Rika-chan now. Actually I might be worse then Rika-chan. She was only a victim of the Endless June; I was both the victim and the villain… It hurts… a lot."

"I see…" Shinichi wasn't sure what to feel about that.

"But I won't let that get in the way of our friendship. I might be a cynical asshole now but that won't stop us from being friends." Keiichi held out his hand, "I, the new Keiichi Maebara also known as Kamen Rider Alter ask to be friends with Shinichi Banabara also known as Kamen Rider Showa."

Shinichi shook his hand, "I'm happy to be friends with you, Keiichi."

Keiichi smiled. "Hey I just noticed something. Our names sound very similar Shinichi Banabara, Keiichi Maebara. You weren't trying to take my place back in the beginning, were you?" he joked.

Shinichi and Keiichi both laughed. They couldn't help it. The joke may have been bad, but after the attack of Tsumtomu Miyazaki laughter felt good.

* * *

In the cavern, where Tsumtomu was defeated and killed, a haunting and evil laughter could be heard, "_Hahahahahahahaha…_" Was it Tsumtomu's spirit or was it just the wind? Who knows? Only time would tell…

* * *

**The Zogg: Well that ends that. It was an honor working with Chrome though we had our differences. He was an idealist and I am a cynic. So we butted heads a couple of times but Chrome was a major help, I think my writing and grammar evolved because of his help. Also sorry for not including Yuji, Bushido, but I couldn't grasp his character. I'm a pragmatist and Yuji would have changed to reflect that. He can blow up a planet and controls giant monsters. I wouldn't have had much of a plot if I used him. On one last note if someone needs to know Kamen Rider Alter's abilities and personality PM me so I can help.**

**OMAKE CORNER**

"You know, I saw you kick that guy's butt and I was impressed," said Keiichi.

"Well, you should be," smiled Alan. "Especially since I was both blind and deaf at the time."

"Wait, what?" Keiichi blinked. "Blind…and deaf? You? For real?"

"Yup!" Alan grinned.

"So…"

"How did I do it? I've got psychic powers, Keiichi. It seems like everybody keeps forgetting that."

"So, you didn't really hear what he said or saw him but you were reading his thoughts?"

"He's like an open book and he says what's on his mind. It wasn't _that_ hard. Couldn't tell he was on fire though. I was just getting sick of hearing him talk."


	132. The Legacy of Cain Part 76

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 76: Batty For Burgers**

"Hey, Pops, Dr. Washam, what are you guys working on?" asked Yokoshima as he entered the lab with Misato.

"Oh, you're both just in time to see!" Dr. Magi smiled. "Washam, show them!"

"It's a powered exo-suit," stated Dr. Washam, showing off the humanoid machine which stood 10 feet tall. It was a bright yellow machine that had hydraulics on nearly every limb, hinting at the amount of power that it held. The torso was bulky, likely due to needing a human pilot as well as extra protection for the torso. The head was round with a large pair of bright blue eyes. The limbs were much simpler, but ended in wheels. The ones on the hands opened up like crab claws while the ones on the feet were horizontal and lying flat on the ground so the machine could walk.

"You see, the 'Power Wrestler' here is a powered exo-suit that needs to be operated by a pilot. It can be controlled remotely but it works better with a pilot," explained Dr. Magi.

"Cool…" Yokoshima's eyes were wide with admiration.

"It's very impressive, Daddy, but what's the point of this thing?" Misato asked. "I mean sure it might have its uses but we've all got super powers or enhancements of our own."

"Misato, we never said the Power Wrestler was meant for you," said Dr. Washam.

"Then who?" Yokoshima asked.

* * *

Standing in front of the monitor within the meeting hall, Shinichi stood before a small group of people. He had contacted his friends, the members of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club and asked them to come to the Hive as he had an important announcement to make.

"Let me start by saying thank you all for coming," he began. "Also, I would like to apologize too."

His friends shared confused looks.

"What are you apologizing for, Shin-kun?" Rena asked.

Pressing his index fingers together, he admitted, "Well, all this time I've been keeping you away from the dangerous part of my life and pushing you all away as well. That was wrong of me. So, I asked the others if you could all help out."

"Help out?" Satoshi asked.

"Since we're all going to be on a lot of field missions, we're going to need a crew to support us," said Shinichi. He announced, "Congratulations, you're now part of the NEO-NUMBERS!"

The Gaming Club just looked at him with a set of confused looks on their faces for a moment. After taking a moment to let the news sink in, Mion's reaction was to step forward and punch Shinichi's arm.

"Hey, what was that for!-?" Shinichi yelled, rubbing his cybernetic arm.

"For waiting so goddamn long to ask, stupid!" Mion snapped. She then smiled, "But thanks for finally thinking for once."

"Mion's right," agreed Shion. "You know how useless we felt, didn't you? I mean back before you had your team we were the ones supporting you but then you just pushed us aside."

"I didn't mean to," he defended. "It's just that things got really dangerous."

"Of course they got dangerous," said Mion. "But that didn't mean we didn't want to help you guys out. You never gave us a chance to."

Rena hugged Shinichi. "So, what do you want us to do?"

Shinichi took a sheet of paper out from his back pocket and read from it. "Well, we're going to need someone for monitor duty." He said to Satoshi, "Satoshi, that'll be your job."

"Me?" Satoshi asked.

"You'll work with Sheila, and become our extras eyes and ears. You'll be able to watch our backs right here while we're on the field and help coordinate us on missions," said Shinichi. "And Rena-chan, you'll have an important job since you're going to be the main pilot for the Power Wrestler."

"What's the Power Wrestler?" Rena asked.

"It's some new weapon that Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi made that they say would be perfect for you. Right now I'm still questioning Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam's decision for asking you to do that," said Shinichi. His gaze went towards Mion and Shion. "Mion, you're the Head of the Sonozaki Clan, which allows you access to an information network which covers the village of Hinamizawa, the town of Okinomiya and the city of Shishibone." Mion had told him that her family was a yakuza group. Everyone knew that. But they weren't criminals. They were just rough at times. "So, you'll be able to provide us information of things we need to check out."

"Heh, finally you found me useful, Shin-chan," grinned Mion boastfully.

"Shion, you'll be helping Michiru and Hana out in the infirmary. They'll train you to be a medic," Shinichi continued.

"You can count on my tender loving care," smiled Shion with a suggestive grin and tone. "Satoshi-kun knows I'm good." She addressed her boyfriend, "Don't you, Satoshi-kun?" she added as she began to run the tip of her finger up and down his chest, causing the blond boy to blush.

"OK," Shinichi said as he did his best to get Shion to stop her sexual teasing of Satoshi in front of the others, "Rika-chan also has an important job too; research."

"Research?" Rika asked.

"Research on the supernatural and paranormal," said Shinichi. Rika had lived through the Endless June repeatedly and must've accumulated a lot of knowledge through reading. She would be useful. Heck, the Furude Shrine had material which had helped during the fight against the Darkloid Generals years ago.

"Very well, I understand," Rika said with a smile. She was glad to be able to help the others in some way, even if it was a small job such as research. At least she would be useful to them.

"Oh, and what about me?" Satoko asked with an excited tone.

"Satoko-chan, you have knowledge in making traps, so I've assigned you to help Sheila design training scenarios for us," said Shinichi. This earned him a very big grin from the young blonde trickster.

"Oh hohoho!" Satoko laughed, holding the back of her hand to her mouth like a snobbish stuck-up girl would do. "Leave everything to me, Shinichi-san!"

"Hey, what about Kei-chan and Hanyuu-chan?" Mion asked.

"Hanyuu's still in the roster. Ever since Keiichi's transformation, he'll be with us and going on missions whenever necessary. He'll also be joining us for training when he's not busy with classes or other activities. The faster he learns to master his Darkloid Rider form and powers, the longer he'll last on missions," said Shinichi. "Oh, and one more thing." He summoned his Spark Core and belt. "A gift for you all. This might tingle a little." Orbs of light came out of his Spark Core, hovering over each of his friends and his little sister. The orbs above Mion and Shion, Rena, Satoshi, Satoko and Rika contained the emblems of six of the Legendary Riders. With a single gesture of his hand, the orbs shot into their chests.

"Shin-chan, what did you just do?" Mion questioned as they all felt a tingle running up their spines; the symbols of the Rider whose power they had just been given glowing on both the center of their chests and foreheads. For Mion, it was Ichigo. For Shion, it was Nigo. For Satoshi, it was V3. For Satoko, it was Riderman. For Rika, it was ZO. Finally for Rena, it was ZX.

"I just gave you all the power to protect yourselves in case I'm not around," said Shinichi. "Call it insurance." He then said, "Now, you can all go home. Except for you, Rena-chan. Come with me."

* * *

"Wow, you really want me to pilot this thing?" Rena asked as she admired the Power Wrestler. '_Kawaii_~' she thought as she looked it over. She wanted to take it home. Shinichi had taken her up to the lab to see the Power Wrestler for herself.

"Well, yes," said Dr. Magi. "According to our intel, you have the stamina required to pilot the Power Wrestler."

"Power Wrestler?" Rena repeated. She didn't like that name. "I was thinking the name 'Boxer-kun' would be better."

"Boxer…kun?" Dr. Washam repeated bemusedly while scratching his finger against the side of his head. He'd heard of this Rena girl, and had met her before, but they never actually interacted all that much.

"The hands look like boxing gloves!" she said, putting up her fists to emphasize.

"…Well, no matter what the name is, the point is that we want you to try it out," said Dr. Magi.

"I'm ready!" Rena beamed as she sat in the open cockpit.

"How did she get in there so quickly?" Dr. Washam asked, shocked as she had been standing right in front of him no more than a second earlier.

"That's Rena for you," smiled Shinichi.

"Now that she's inside it's time we tested the machine," said Dr. Magi. "So, Rena-san, you better strap yourself in!"

Rena was secured by belts wrapped around her waist and shoulders. "Rena's ready!" She found the button to close the cockpit and the torso and head closed around her. "_Cozy!_"

"Are you sure about this, Magi?" Shinichi questioned.

"Honestly, no. But she's the only one with the stamina to do it based on the data we've collected," said Dr. Magi.

Shinichi was still worried.

* * *

"Alright, Rena-san, let's start things slow," said Dr. Magi as he, Dr. Washam, Shinichi and Rena inside the Power Wrestler (Boxer-kun) stood outside in the canyon. "You already know how to make the suit walk, let's see you make it run."

"_OK!_" Rena answered, making the Power Wrestler salute. "_Rena and Boxer-kun are ready!_"

"Nothing too strenuous, just a single lap around the canyon!" Dr. Magi said.

That was Rena's cue and she was off, the Power Wrestler running fast with her controlling the machine. "_THIS IS SO MUCH FUN!_"

* * *

Once the Hinamizawa Gaming Club was fully drafted into the NEO-NUMBERS, the old base under Dr. Irie's clinic was reinstated to be made into a subsidiary command centre. Equipment was upgraded and a Teleportal station was also set up near the monitoring station. The Power Wrestler was also being kept down there. Despite being used as a base by the NEO-NUMBERS before the Hive was built, it never did receive an official name and everyone agreed that the Hive II would not be such a good name. It was Mion who'd decided to name their new base 'The Basement'. They would be supporting the NEO-NUMBERS right here in Hinamizawa. Mion, of course, was team leader as well as information gatherer with Shion as their medic. Satoshi became the team's strategist and coordinator with Satoko devising training scenarios for them. Rika was their researcher. Keiichi, Rena and Hanyuu, of course, were their field agents. Finally, AI-Shin was made part of the team as well. According to Mion, they needed a mascot.

Dr. Irie even made uniforms for them but was unfortunately rejected. He was still made the team's head medical officer. He was going to be needed in case they were injured and needed to be treated.

The Basement's surveillance system was linked to the Hive's satellite, linking it to the Hive as well. This meant that Sheila could also connect herself to their computers as well.

Satoshi, sat at the monitors, watching out for trouble when he noticed something happening in Shishibone. "Sheila, what's going on?"

"_There seems to be a disturbance at the local supermarket_," she informed. "_I will attempt to get an inside view by hacking their surveillance system._" The picture changed to show Satoshi multiple views inside the supermarket from multiple angles until he caught sight of what was causing the disturbance.

"OK, what the hell is that?" the blonde boy questioned.

"_Possibly a form of mutation_," Sheila assumed. "_Should I contact any of our operatives within the area?_"

"Who are the ones closest?" he asked.

"_Michiru and Hana_."

"Then send them in, and tell them to be quick."

"_Affirmative, and I would like to say that you're doing a very good job, Satoshi_."

* * *

People fled from the supermarket as some kind of monster was attacking it.

Well, it was attacking the food at least. The monster was humanoid in appearance and was wearing dirty overalls. He had fat arms and short stubby legs. He had no hair and had small eyes but a big mouth with large and sharp teeth. Right now he was devouring everything in sight.

He grabbed the food in his hands and stuffed them into his mouth, packaging and all. The creature, which was once human, could do nothing but eat, and eat and eat. Grabbing canned foods from a shelf, he stuffed them whole into his mouth, chewing the metal cans without difficulty. Going towards the frozen foods section, he grabbed packaged beef and chicken before eating them. He made a mess as bits of food fell from his mouth to the floor and to his clothes but he paid no mind to it.

Spotting a cowering young man who worked in the supermarket, the creature stared at him before licking his lips. He opened his mouth wide and his tongue shot out like a chameleon's grabbing onto the guy's leg before dragging him towards his mouth. The man screamed as he was slowly being pulled into the hungry monster's drooling jaws.

Suddenly, lasers came out of nowhere and hit the hungry beast, forcing it to release its captive. The young man got up and fled, running past a woman in armor.

It was Arachnea, in Venom Form, and she was here to stop this. "I can see that you're hungry," she said. "I know a place that serves three square meals a day."

"Hun…ger…" the creature growled.

"Hunger?" she repeated.

"HUNGER!" he roared as he lunged towards her, mouth stretched to impossible size and exposing his teeth. He wanted to eat her but that would not be allowed as he went right through her like she was some kind of ghost. Bewildered, he looked around for his prey only for a scythe and chain to come flying at him. The chain wrapped around his body, pinning his arms to his sides as the scythe stabbed into the ground to secure him. On the other end of the chain was Kamen Rider Carmen in Mirage Form as she giggled.

"Not very smart, is he, Hana-chan?" questioned Carmen as Arachnea stood next to her.

"Not really," admitted Arachnea. The creature's long tongue shot towards them but Arachnea fired her Venom Lasers, paralyzing the organ which went limp on the floor. "Let's take him to the Vault." She took out her C3 and activated it. The hungry creature was digitized and absorbed into the C3 device before a card with him trapped inside shot out. She read the name on the Containment Card. "Hunger."

"Straight to the point," agreed Carmen. She called, "Satoshi-kun, we're all done here. Can you get Sheila to activate a Teleportal please."

"_You know, you could always call Sheila straight away_," answered Satoshi.

"Aw…but I wanted to hear your voice once in a while," Carmen pouted.

"Michiru, don't flirt with our operator," Arachnea scolded as a Teleportal formed.

"But he's so cute."

"Be that as it may, if you keep it up then it'll make Shion mad," Arachnea warned. "And I doubt you'd want to make her mad."

"What's to be mad about? She could always join in!" Carmen chirped. "Hey, you could also join in Hana-chan. Then the three of us could have fun with Satoshi-kun all night long!" Carmen began to think of all the things they could do to tease the young man. Her, Hana and Shion…oh it would be such a night. "Or it could be the other way around and he could dominate us~" she suggested while wiggling her eyebrows behind her helmet. "You do like to be dominated sometimes, right, Hana-chan?"

Arachnea blushed under her helmet at the thought and grabbed Carmen by her helmet and dragged her into the Teleportal. "Come on, let's go home." She was going to need a cold shower to get the sudden dirty thoughts out of her head. '_Damn that Shinichi. He's turning us all into perverts!_'

After a brief stop at the Hive, they took the Teleportal again to the Vault where a specialized cell was ready for Hunger. He would be fed three meals a day and only three meals a day.

* * *

Burget Batz was a new fast food restaurant which had opened in Okinomiya. On its opening day, it'd managed to attract plenty of customers. To accommodate them, they even set up tables and chairs outside. It had become quite popular and it appeared that the place was going to enjoy quite a lucrative future in the days to come.

It was also open 24 hours.

One night, an overweight young man in his twenties was walking out of the restaurant with a bag full of burgers. He was eating one when he heard a shriek. Shrugging it off as the wind, he continued on his way home. However, he would not be getting home as a huge, winged figure suddenly swooped down and grabbed him.

His bag was dropped, spilling out the rest of his burgers and fries.

* * *

"So, did you hear about Chie-sensei getting married?" Mion questioned as she sat with Keiichi, Rena and Shinichi in the university's courtyard.

"Really?" Shinichi asked. This was news to him. Rumiko Chie was their teacher back in the Hinamizawa School, the only teacher in fact who was in charge of teaching all the students in the small, one-classroom school. She was a very nice woman, young and attractive too, whose favorite food was curry.

"Wow, that's so great," Rena beamed, happy for their old teacher. "Who's she marrying?"

"You know that 'Gold Sushi' place in Okinomiya?" Mion questioned. It was a popular curry restaurant in the town nearest to Hinamizawa.

"We've eaten there a few times," Shinichi admitted. "It's great curry." Yokoshima had recommended the place.

"Well, Chie-sensei went there for the first time a few months ago and had a plate of curry rice," Mion continued. "She immediately fell in love with it and she fell in love with the chef. She even went so far to ask him to marry her!"

"Pretty bold," said Shinichi. "What's his name?"

"I think his name was…Genta Kin."

"Guess that explains the restaurant's name," Shinichi commented. "So, when's the wedding?"

"In a couple of months," said Mion. "They wanted to have a traditional wedding so I recommended the Furude Shrine. Rika-chan agreed to it."

"Ah, another wedding," Rena sighed. She leaned against her boyfriend's shoulder, imagining their own wedding. "Chie-sensei would look so beautiful."

"Hey, speaking of weddings, what about you two?" Keiichi asked Rena and Shinichi. "You both live together so you're practically married. You just need to make it official." The couple blushed.

"Well…I just need to find the right time…" Shinichi confessed.

"Married…to Shin-kun?" Rena wiggled where she sat, blushing, "Hau~! Hau~!"

Mion laughed, "Same old Rena!" Even though they were in their twenties, they never really stopped being kids in their hearts.

* * *

In the high school in Okinomiya, the midterm results had just been posted up for the students to see. Rika, Satoko and Hanyuu checked their names. The three girls had gotten 5th, 12th and 10th place respectively.

"Next time, Rika, I'm going to beat you," Satoko challenged.

"We shall see, Satoko," Rika replied.

Hanyuu frowned at her results but shrugged. She could always do better next time. It wasn't the end of the world. Of course among the names up on the list was one Nobito Nobi. He was a boy with poor academic skills who got very bad grades in school. It was a miracle that he even managed to get into high school with such poor grades as he'd barely passed the entrance exam.

Entering high school, the schoolwork had become really demanding. He was, unfortunately, quite lazy and unable to apply himself to his schoolwork. He would sleep in class and at home he preferred to take a nap instead of studying. These habits would affect his grades and he always ended up being in last place.

Not this time though. In a dramatic twist, Nobito's grades had suddenly improved and he'd jumped from last place all the way to 2nd place.

"Yes!" Nobito pumped his fist. In his other hand was a burger and he took a bite out of it. "They were right!"

* * *

After the final bell rang, Satoko, Hanyuu and Rika walked along with their school friends, Sayoko and Yukari. "Hey, have you guys ever been to that Burger Batz place?" Natsumi asked the Hinamizawans.

"Burget Batz?" parroted Hanyuu.

"It's a new fast food restaurant which opened like a month ago and it's really popular," Sayoko explained. "I've heard that the food is great."

"Fast food often is, but it's not very healthy either," Rika argued.

"Well, it's OK once in a while," Satoko reasoned.

"Plus I heard that a lot of kids from school who eat there, the ones who get really bad test scores, have been improving since they started eating there," Natsumi added. "I mean look at that Nobito Nobi guy. I remember seeing his name at the bottom of the list but now he's at the top!"

"He might've studied," shrugged Rika.

"Nobi? No way! I've known him since elementary school and he always got 0 for his tests!" snorted Natsumi. "There's gotta be something else here and he's also been eating nothing but those burgers from Burger Batz for lunch before the midterm."

"He must've put on some extra pounds because of his new diet," Rika assumed.

"Well…yeah, he has but he's also gotten smarter too if his midterm results are any indication," Natsumi retorted. "So, I wanna see if it's true or just bogus."

Satoko whispered to Rika, "Maybe we should check this out. What's the harm?"

Rika nodded. This did seem odd, but burgers that made the people who ate them smarter? That seemed oddly farfetched but Rika had lived through several lifetimes already and the past five years had been a rollercoaster of weirdness.

"I am feeling a little hungry," Rika added. "OK, we'll go! Nipah!"

"Are you sure about this, Rika?" Hanyuu asked. Rika took hold of her hand and gave Hanyuu a fierce expression. "O…Okay…"

* * *

Burger Batz was a small fast food restaurant with a bat on the right side of the sign. The bat was eating a burger and once inside the girls realized that the place's popularity was no joke.

"That's one heck of a line," Satoko said as she and her friends stood at the back of the line with a dozen people standing in front of them. Satoko recognized a few from class and around school and they were ordering burgers that were on the menu, along with fries.

"So, does this place only serve burgers?" Rika questioned.

"Well, they even got nuggets and fried chicken," answered Natsumi. "But the burgers are their most popular item on the menu!"

Rika focused her eyes on the menu items displayed on the signs hanging behind the counter and cashier. "Batty Burger, Special Batty Burger, Batty Cheeseburger…" Rika read. She looked at the prices too and they were lower than the ones from any fast food place she'd ever been to.

"I'll go and save us a seat," said Hanyuu.

"Do you want anything?" asked Natsumi.

"Just…I dunno…surprise me?"

* * *

The four girls were seated at a table with their orders. They each got a basic Batty Burger with a side of fries and soda. The burgers did look delicious, with thick and juicy meat patties, lettuce, onions, tomatoes and cucumbers in them. The buns were all sesame seed too. The fries they got were all crinkle cuts that also looked delicious.

"Itadakimasu!" Natsumi clapped her hands together before picking up her burger and taking a bite. Instantly, the burger's flavor exploded inside her mouth once the meat touched her taste buds. "So…GOOD!" She took another bite.

Sayoko was enjoying her burger as well, but fortunately not as enthusiastically as Natsumi who was making a mess. Figuring that the burgers were normal, except for being tasty, Hanyuu, Rika and Satoko took a bite out of theirs as well.

* * *

The five girls left the restaurant, with Natsumi and Sayoko headed for the other direction to where they lived.

"That was a really great burger," Satoko said before belching. "Excuse me," she blushed.

"Yes, it was!" Hanyuu agreed. "The first bite was just amazing and the following bites just made it better!"

"I'm gonna take Nii-nii and Nee-nee over here for a meal someday," added Satoko.

Rika still looked uncertain about Burger Batz. The food was great and all but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was abnormal about the place. A lot of the customers were overweight but that was probably due to too much eating and not enough exercise. Maybe she was looking too deeply into this.

* * *

When Rika and Hanyuu got home, they went up to their shared room to do homework. Hanyuu hated math homework. She just couldn't figure it out without help. Rika, of course, had no trouble with math. However, it would be different this evening.

"Hanyuu, need any help?" Rika asked from her desk. She didn't get a reply and swiveled around on her chair. "Hanyuu?"

"I…I know the answers!" Hanyuu exclaimed as she began writing the solutions to the problems furiously. She finished the first and went to another one, "I know this one too!" She started writing quickly to answer the question.

"Slow down, Hanyuu, or you're going to make a mistake," chided Rika.

"I'm not gonna make a mistake!" Hanyuu showed her notebook to Rika. "Take a look!"

Rika took it and stared at the problems which Hanyuu had answered. Her eyes widened as she looked at the steps Hanyuu had taken. She nodded in approval, "I guess you've been paying attention in class."

"Yeah, the answers are like in my head and when I look at the questions I know how to answer them!" Hanyuu beamed happily.

"Well, keep up the good work," Rika encouraged. Of course Rika considered the possibility of Hanyuu being able to do math homework without help was just a coincidence, but hearing how it was rumored that eating at Burger Batz made you smarter, she was becoming suspicious about the place.

* * *

Natsumi's parents weren't at home so she went to get some food for dinner. She went into Burger Batz and stood in line like before, making her order and walking out with a paper bag filled with her food. Meanwhile, she was being watched as were the other patrons exiting the restaurant.

* * *

Rika went to call Mion. She would probably know something. Picking up the phone, she dialed the number for the Sonozakis' mansion and listened at the ringtone for a few moments before someone picked up. "Moshi moshi, is Mion there?"

"_Oh, hello Rika-chan_." That was Mion and Shion's mother, Akane. "_Sorry, but Mion isn't here. She's at Keiichi-kun's place right now._"

"Oh, sorry for disturbing you then. Arigatou. Ja ne." Rika hung up and then dialed Keiichi's place. Since his parents were still overseas he would still be home alone.

* * *

"Best…ever…" Mion moaned. Keiichi put his arms around Mion, embracing her. Both of them were panting, with faces flushed, and bodies covered in sweat.

Keiichi chuckled, "You say that every time we do this."

"Well, this is the first time in weeks!" she exclaimed. Being Head of the Sonozaki Clan, having to run the family business, and school took a lot of her time, not to mention being leader of their newly formed team to support the NEO-NUMBERS, didn't leave Mion much free time to herself and Keiichi, and her boyfriend would either be in training with the NEO-NUMBERS to help him control his powers better or practicing with the University's baseball team.

Mion sighed and cuddled with her boyfriend. Just these moments, being alone together, were the best.

**Ring…Ring…Ring…**

"Hey, Mion?" Keiichi asked.

"Yeah…?" she asked.

**Ring…Ring…Ring…**

"I think that's my phone," he said.

"Just let the answering machine get it," she said, not bothering to get up.

"Sorry, but maybe it's important," Keiichi gently pushed Mion off him and she frowned. "Sorry!" He quickly bent over to grab his shorts, giving Mion a good look at his rear as he slid them back on before heading down to get the phone.

Mion lay on her back, staring at the ceiling. She was going to need to give her parents a call, telling them she needed to spend the night at Keiichi's. She heard footsteps and looked to the door to see Keiichi coming back in. "Couldn't keep away from me?" she teased.

"It's Rika, and she needs to talk to you," Keiichi said.

* * *

"_This better be important, Rika-chan_," grumbled Mion.

"Did I interrupt you and Keiichi?" Rika smirked as she held the receiver to her ear. She turned serious and asked, "Mion, do you know anything about the Burger Batz place?"

"_Oh, you want to ask about that? I sold the land to them months ago to build their restaurant_," said Mion.

"Really…"

"_They seemed pretty legit and they paid good money too_," said Mion. "_And the land was unused anyway so it might as well be put to some use_."

"So, do you have any information on the buyers, like contact information?" Rika questioned.

Mion asked, "_Rika-chan, what is this about?_"

"I just have a bad feeling about that place, a weird feeling," Rika admitted. Rika never ignored her instincts and wasn't about to start now.

"_OK, if you're sure. You can come over tomorrow to get it from me after school_," said Mion.

"Arigato, Mion," Rika smiled. "Oh, and have fun with Keiichi," she added before hanging up just as Mion was about to yell at her in embarrassment. Rika turned and was eyeball to eyeball with AI-Shin. "Oh, hello Shin."

"_I couldn't help but overhear your conversation_," the mechanical eyeball said. "_You were asking about a place called Burger Batz._"

"Yes, and I keep getting weird feelings from it," said Rika.

"You went there?" he questioned.

"Yes, and so did Satoko and Hanyuu."

"_And Hanyuu-chan didn't sense anything?"_

"Well, no, but I can't ignore my gut instinct," said Rika.

AI-Shin considered Rika's words. Possessing Shinichi's personality and some of his memories, he was just like Shinichi except he didn't have a humanoid body. He did have an effective spherical body which gave him telekinetic abilities, plus a really wicked laser.

"_How about I go stake out the place for you?"_ AI-Shin volunteered.

"You'd do that? Really?"

"_Anything for my cute sisters!"_ AI-Shin said. If he had a mouth, he'd be smiling.

* * *

AI-Shin flew towards Okinomiya, keeping out of sight as he kept his eyeball on Burger Batz. It was opened 24 hours and customers who didn't want to eat in ordered and exited the building with their food. "Yeesh, these guys seriously need to sign up for Weight Watches or go to Fat Camp." He'd never seen so many overweight people before and it was a disturbing trend. Obesity was not attractive, not at all.

Suddenly, AI-Shin's audio receptors picked up a sound, like wings flapping, very _large_ wings flapping.

"What is that?" he asked. He looked on ahead and saw something in the darkness swoop down and grab a customer, an extremely obese one, and take him into the air as he screamed, dropping his food. "_Hello! Jackpot!_" And with that the mechanical sphere took off after the flying creature in the night's sky. "_Hey, let go of that tub of lard, you!_"

The creature either didn't hear him or just ignored him, but AI-Shin wasn't about to give up. He focused his eye and saw that the creature was humanoid, in shape and size, with talons and bat wings. He couldn't see its face but its victim looked positively terrified. He couldn't risk using his laser since he might miss.

"_Alright, time to go CANNONBALL!_" AI-Shin shot himself through the air at breakneck speed and slammed himself into the creature's spine. It shrieked in pain as it released its prey who began to plummet down to the ground. AI-Shin quickly used his telekinesis to safely lower him to the ground before looking up to see the creature had vanished. "_OK, that was weird_." He looked to the young fat man he'd just saved and gave a nod before flying off. He needed to report this to Rika and fast.

He also needed to have Sheila monitor the area around Burger Batz. He only saw one bat creature, but there were possibly more of them lurking around.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, here's the first part of a short arc which I hope you will enjoy as it puts the Gaming Club in the spotlight this time. Now, the conclusion is in the next chapter and please be generous with the reviews.**


	133. The Legacy of Cain Part 77

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 77: Closing Sale**

"A giant bat creature? Are you sure?" Rika asked as she held the communicator up to her mouth.

"_Yeah, that's what I saw! A big, freaking, bat creature!_" AI-Shin cried from the other end. "_I'm sticking around until morning in case that thing shows up again to grab more people! Oh, and __I'm__ sending the images I've captured to Sheila for analysis so we can identify what the heck it was_."

"Yes, you do that," nodded Rika. "Rika, over and out." A giant bat creature? That was odd, but not as odd as the things that Rika herself had experienced, both during and after the accursed Endless June.

"Was it a demon?" Rika asked herself. That was indeed a possibility. It could've been a Darkloid but since the Yamata no Orochi had been defeated, the Darkloids should've died out. Then again, that was what they thought years ago when the Dark Being which had spawned the Darkloids had been defeated and sealed by Shinichi. They seemed to find a way to survive and exist.

She remembered the DALEKs too. They were Darkloids inside metal casings equipped like tanks and with incredibly deadly firepower. They had survived too. Shinichi had found one that was put on display by an eccentric millionaire (now deceased). Alan had also encountered a handful of them who tried to create a new army but he'd defeated them as well.

Those DALEKs were a creation of Shiro. She really didn't like remembering the guy. He wore Shinichi's face, killed their friends, and tried to kill her and Hanyuu. When he came back, it was like a nightmare, and he wasn't the same either when he came back. He'd become smarter, always one step ahead of everyone, with complex plans which enabled him to reach his goals despite being defeated. He had even started his own organization, using what remained of GIN-SHOCKER and X-SHOCKER to create his army. However, in the end, despite reaching his goal of reviving the Yamata no Orochi, he'd been defeated again and this time Rika hoped she never saw him again.

He, however, did leave a legacy nonetheless. The DALEKs and Cybermen still existed. She wished hopefully that they were gone for good but when had anything in her life had ever been definite?

Hanyuu came downstairs, smiling happily. She had just completed her homework and was coming down to watch some TV before dinner. "Hey, Rika! Guess what? I finished my homework!" She noticed Rika's expression. "Rika?"

"Hanyuu," Rika spoke, using her more mature voice which gave Hanyuu chills. It was the voice of a mature woman, years older, but Rika was definitely ancient after the Endless June which had accumulated and become years, maybe even centuries, for her. "There's something strange about Burgers Batz-"

"Hey, speaking of Burger Batz, how about we order some burgers?" Hanyuu suggested. Burger Batz had a home delivery service. "We can just call them and-"

"Hanyuu!" Rika snapped, cutting her ancestor off. "Don't you feel odd after eating there?"

"No," Hanyuu answered.

"You were able to do your math homework on your own. You never could before," Rika pointed out.

"So you think the burgers made me smarter?" Hanyuu questioned skeptically.

Rika knew that sounded silly, but she had a creepy feeling when she was there. Even the cashiers were odd. They didn't smile as they took orders and were very stern and monotonous, like they just wanted to get it all done without a fuss.

"Just stay clear of Burger Batz," said Rika.

"Why?" Hanyuu asked.

The door opened and Shiori returned with groceries, and Sho. "Tadaima!" she greeted. Sho was holding onto his mother's hand. He was already 2 years and 2 months old now and could already speak.

"Onee-chan!" Sho let go of his mother's hand and ran to Rika to hug her around the legs. Rika smiled at her younger brother. Though they weren't related by blood, he considered her his sister.

Rika picked up her little brother. "And hello to you too, Sho!" She asked Shiori, "How was shopping?"

"Well, I got all the stuff I need to make curry for tonight. Oh, and Tatsuyoshi-kun will be coming back in an hour so we can have dinner together. Could you take Sho-chan up to his room for his nap?"

"Of course, Shiori-mama," said Rika as she carried Sho upstairs. Shinichi's old room had been converted into Sho's. Shinichi didn't mind. It was better than just leaving the room empty since he started living with Rena.

* * *

AI-Shin kept a vigil eye on Burger Batz all night, watching as patrons entered and exited the restaurant. There was no sight of the strange bat creature he'd seen before for hours but he wasn't about to give up and go home. He did learn how popular the place was with the long queues. It wasn't an exaggeration either. People who ate in the restaurant lined up and got more burgers to chow down on, even taking bags full home. It was kinda disgusting as he spotted one of them, a woman, who was extremely obese and her gut hung out her clothes.

He did notice something else odd, though. The workers didn't seem to be taking any breaks. Turning on his cloaking system, he went to get a closer look. He waited for the door to open and slipped inside. He was going to perform a scan of the place before leaving. He just hoped he wasn't caught.

* * *

The next day, Rika woke up waiting for AI-Shin. She sat in the living room, worried, until the door opened up and the sphere came floating in.

"_Rika-chan, I got some great news!_" announced AI-Shin. He asked, "_Hey, where's Hanyuu-chan?_"

* * *

Meanwhile, Hanyuu and Chiaki were on a date and she suggested they have a meal at Burger Batz. After standing in line for another half an hour, Hanyuu made her order which made Chiaki grimace. She had in fact ordered three Special Batty Burgers with cheese. Special Batty Burgers had three patties, fish, beef and chicken, with cheese in between the patties, lettuce, tomatoes, and onions with their special sauce. They even came with a side order of fries each.

Chiaki watched as she took a bite out of her burger, savoring the taste as she enjoyed herself. He wasn't very hungry so he'd ordered a Batty Cheese Burger with fries and a soda. "Isn't that a bit much?"

"But they're so good~" she moaned. "I mean they taste so great. We had them yesterday and I was able to do my homework without help! Rika thinks there's something funny about the burgers."

Chiaki looked around at the rest of the patrons and they were grossly overweight in his opinion. He also saw them reading while they ate. He'd seen this place open weeks ago but had never gone in until now. He wasn't a fan of fast food. There was just too much grease in it.

* * *

"She went out to see Chiaki," said Rika. "So, what's the news?"

"_The employees are all androids!_" he reported. He projected a holographic image of the staff and continued, "_I used my cloaking system and went in to run a scan and I found out they were androids!_"

"Androids working in a fast food restaurant?" Rika asked. "Why?"

"_That's what I was trying to find out, so I went in the kitchen to see how they prepared the food. They don't grill the burgers but shallow fry them instead on a big pan_," he said.

Rika didn't think that was odd. It was probably a standard way for them to cook their burgers. "So?" The androids were weird enough though and would justify a deeper investigation but AI-Shin still had more information.

"_It's the oil they used! I ran a scan on it and analyzed it! Whatever it is, it isn't made on Earth!_"

Rika's eyes widened at that bit of information. "Not made on Earth?" she repeated. "You mean…"

"_Yeah, it's alien! And I know what it is! It's Krillitane Oil!_"

* * *

Chiaki and Hanyuu both left the restaurant with the larger man suggesting, "How about next time we order a salad or something? If you eat like that all the time, you'll just end up becoming overweight like some of the customers I saw."

"Oh, don't worry, Chiaki-san," Hanyuu waved off his concern. "I won't become addicted."

"Well, those people were and they looked very unhealthy. I don't want you to gain any unnecessary weight," he said.

Hanyuu smiled. Chiaki was just so sweet to be so concerned about her.

* * *

"How do you know it's alien?" she asked.

"_It seems that I have a built-in alien database_," said AI-Shin in surprise, like he never knew he had such a feature. "_Of course it makes sense since this body of mine was designed and built by Prof. Takada._"

"Could you get back to your alien theory?" she questioned impatiently.

"_Oh, right! Krillitanes! Let's see…_" AI-Shin dug into his alien database and projected a holographic image of a Krillitane. "_Here you go!_" The creature that Rika was staring at was horrifying. "_Yeah, he's one ugly specimen, isn't he?_" It had a humanoid shape but there was nothing human about it. Bat-like wings jutted from its back and it had four fingers tipped with black claws and three toes with black claws on their tips as well. The face was elongated with black lips and sharp, yellowish teeth, huge nostrils and terrifying eyes. It also had pointed ears. Rika thought she was looking at some kind of devil, but AI-Shin claimed this was an alien.

AI-Shin began his explanation, "A composite species, the Krillitanes developed and evolved by conquering other species from other planets and taking physical attributes from them and assimilating them to their own. At one time in history, they resembled humans only with longer necks. Currently, this is their present shape."

"That was probably the bat creature you saw last night," said Rika.

"_Yeah, and I think I know why it grabbed that fatty_," said AI-Shin. "_It was looking for food_."

"Then all those customers are just a potential food source for it." It was starting to make sense. The Krillitanes were using Burger Batz as a front, serving their Krillitane oil soaked food to humans, fattening them up, and then when they were good and ready they would be snatched up to become food. "What about how the food is making people smarter?"

"Oh, the Krillitane oil acts like a sort of 'lubricating agent' for the human brain. It's supposed to increase intelligence and accelerate thought processes by a very significant factor," AI-Shin explained.

"And the patrons were mostly young adults who have to face exams," Rika continued. "By eating the food there, they become smarter and since they'll be facing tests and exams they don't want to fail so they'll keep on eating the food."

"_And become pigs for the Krillitane's next meal_," AI-Shin finished.

There was silence between them before the doorbell rang, causing the two of them to jump. Shiori was upstairs in the master bedroom doing some work and Sho was still asleep. Kasai had gone out earlier to perform his duties as a bodyguard of the Sonozaki Clan.

Rika went to the door and opened it to see Mion with an envelope in her hand. "Hello, Rika-chan!" Rika grabbed her hand and pulled her in before slamming the door shut.

"OW! My nose!" they heard from the other side of the door and Rika opened it up to see Keiichi rubbing his nose. "Rika-chan…" he groaned.

"Sorry, I didn't see you there," she said as she grabbed his hand and pulled him in as well. "It's good that you're here though. I just learnt something disturbing."

* * *

The manager of Burger Batz sat up in his office on the restaurant's upper floor. He was looking at security footage from the previous night and spotted something peculiar on the recording. "So, it looks like we've got a spy." He turned on the intercom and spoke, "Close the store for 30 minutes. We're having an emergency meeting." He stared down at his waste basket and added, "Oh, and can someone please come and take out the garbage?"

The waste basket contained bones, large bones…

…Human bones.

* * *

"Aliens? You're telling me that the people that bought the land are aliens and they're running a fast food business that makes kid smarter?" Mion asked, skeptical at the claim. Of course, she stayed to listen to Rika's claim. Even if the story was unbelievable, Rika would never make up such a tall tale without a good reason.

Rika was looking at the contents of the envelope which had the name and picture of the buyer as well as contact information and a copy of the invoice. "So, this man, this Koumori-san, came and asked if he could buy that piece of land in Okinomiya to build his restaurant."

"Yeah, he came with cash," said Mion. "I didn't think anything odd about it at first and from what I hear his restaurant has become pretty popular. I've even had some with Kei-chan."

"And did you notice anything weird afterwards?" Rika questioned.

"Well, I could concentrate much better while studying," said Mion.

"_It's the Krillitane oil they use to cook their food. It's in the burgers and fries_," said AI-Shin.

"And Shin here stopped a Krillitane from grabbing its next meal," Rika added. "They're fattening us up for food."

"It makes sense once you think about it. They start a fast food business with delicious burgers and people come and eat them coincidentally when it's close to exam time. They find themselves growing smarter and their results improve so they go and eat more and more, becoming addicted until they gain weight," said Keiichi.

"_Then grab their cattle off the street,_" AI-Shin finished. "_That's what humans are to them, cattle._"

"Well, then it's settled then!" said Rika. "We have to go and stop them!"

"You mean just storm the place and attack in broad daylight?" Mion questioned.

"No," Rika shook her head. "We're going to wait until it's nighttime and sneak in through the back."

* * *

"Hanyuu-chan, are you sure you want to eat there again?" Chiaki asked. It was lunch and Hanyuu craved for more burgers and fries from Burger Batz.

"But they're just so good~" she moaned.

"How about we just head over to Angel Mort?" he suggested. "You like the cream puffs, remember?"

Hanyuu frowned, considering his words and quickly changed her mind, "Right, cream puffs! I mean if I eat too much greasy food I might get fat!"

* * *

"Tadaima!" Hanyuu greeted cheerfully as she entered the house. She took off her shoes and put on her slippers as she went in to see Rika, Keiichi and Mion in the living room. "Ah, Mion-san and Keiichi-san are here too!"

"Oh, hey, Hanyuu-chan," Keiichi said as he saw her. Hanyuu went and sat down on the couch.

"Hanyuu, can I ask you something?" Rika asked.

"Sure."

"What's 40,987 times 5,679?"

"232,765,173," Hanyuu answered instantly, causing Keiichi and Mion to gawk at her. She had just answered a complex math problem in a matter of seconds, without the need for paper and pencil. Not to be rude or anything or to insult Hanyuu's intelligence, but that was not exactly possible for her.

"You ate at Burger Batz again," Rika concluded. Hanyuu looked down sheepishly. "Hanyuu, I told you not to!"

"I know, but the burgers were just so good!" Hanyuu answered. "I don't know why, but I just want to eat more and more!"

"_There's a reason for that_," said AI-Shin who hovered over the group. "_You got a few minutes?_"

"You should, because this is going to blow your mind," said Keiichi.

* * *

It was after midnight when they made their move. Hanyuu had called Chiaki for help and once he got all the information he was more than eager to help. However, he still had some concerns about all this.

"Aliens? Shouldn't you call Alan for this?" Chiaki asked as he drove the pickup truck with his four passengers. Rika was sitting in the back with Keiichi and Mion while Hanyuu sat shotgun next to him.

"I think we can handle it," said Mion confidently. "I mean if worst comes to worst we'll have a fight on our hands. But don't forget that Shin-chan gave us power."

"To protect yourselves, not to go looking for trouble," Chiaki argued.

"We want to protect Okinomiya, Chiaki-san," said Hanyuu. "That's the reason Shinichi gave them the power."

Chiaki sighed, "OK…but when it becomes too much I'm calling for backup." She kissed his cheek.

The pickup truck stopped across the street from Burger Batz. However, tonight it was closed. Normally, it wasn't closed since it was opened 24 hours and with a staff of androids that didn't need to sleep the place could stay open for 24 hours each day, every day.

So, why was it closed tonight?

"I don't like this," Rika murmured. It was too quiet and the only source of light was the streetlamps.

"Well, maybe they decided to take the night off," said Mion.

"If they were normal people, but androids don't need nights off," Rika countered.

"Androids do need maintenance regularly to make sure they work properly," stated Chiaki.

Rika pondered this and decided, "Let's move." They were dressed in black, perfect for nighttime, and quietly snuck out of the pickup truck. Hanyuu and Chiaki would wait for them.

They entered through the back and Mion showed that she could pick a lock. They gained access and turned on their flashlights as they went further in.

"OK, this place gives me the creeps," Mion shivered as they stood in the kitchen.

"It all looks pretty standard to me," said Keiichi as he went towards the closet and opened it up before yelling out loud.

"What is it?" Rika shone her flashlight at Keiichi and saw him sitting on the floor, pointing at something.

"Rats," Mion said. She picked up a plastic, vacuum sealed, packet with a rat inside. "Dozens of vacuum-sealed rats."

"Not exactly normal, is it?" Rika asked.

"Oh, I think I'm going to be sick…" Keiichi turned green, covering his mouth, as his mind reached a disturbing conclusion.

"Relax," said Rika. "Shin told me that the burgers are made with beef, chicken and fish. No rat meat at all. I should know. I had one."

"What a relief," sighed Keiichi. "But why are there rats?"

"A snack," Rika concluded. "I mean they are giant bat-like aliens so maybe rats are just part of their diet."

"Like people," Mion grimaced as she took a photograph.

Rika spotted several white barrels and went over to them. She inspected them and uncapped one of the barrels and took a whiff. She poked her finger inside the barrel and took it out to look and some sticky, yellow and oily substance. "This is the oil," she said as she wiped off the substance with a napkin.

"Hey, do you guys wonder where they put all those androids when they're not using them?" Keiichi asked. He pointed to a door marked 'basement'. "Think we should go down there?"

"Might as well," Rika shrugged. "Open the door."

* * *

Hanyuu was checking her watch and fidgeting in her seat. "They're fine," Chiaki said next to her.

"How do you know?" she asked. He tapped a button on his dashboard and it flipped over to reveal a screen with pictures of Keiichi, Mion and Rika on it with their vitals displayed next to their respective pictures. "It's a bio-monitor. It helps us to check on each other's vitals. Since they're wearing their communicators, we can keep track and monitor their vitals." He pointed to the green bars next to each picture, "According to these bars, they're fine."

Hanyuu looked relieved but she still kept her eye on the building. Suddenly, the pickup truck shook as if something had just landed on top of the roof.

"What was that?" Chiaki asked. Suddenly, the thing on the roof bent down and looked straight at them from the other side of the windshield, causing them to scream.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

"_Well, this sucks_," said AI-Shin as he floated around the Basement. He looked at the monitors. It was late so Satoshi wasn't sitting at his assigned post. "_I'm the one who found evidence that something fishy is going on but then they just leave me behind_."

He continued to watch the screens and then he saw that Chiaki and Hanyuu were in trouble. "_Uh-oh. They look like they need help_." He looked to the Teleportal and then glanced at the Power Wrestler. "_Time to slip into something more comfortable_."

* * *

"I never really liked basements," stated Keiichi as he, Rika and Mion walked down the steps. "Did you know that?"

"Dark and scary with footsteps above your head?" Mion supplied.

"Plus it's just so dark even with the lights on."

They reached the basement floor and shone their flashlights around. Rika then saw the employees all standing up against the wall. "Found them," she said. She then heard something above her and shone her flashlight at the ceiling and gasped.

Keiichi and Mion also saw what she was looking at and had to resist the urge to scream. Hanging upside down from the ceiling, their wings wrapped around like cloaks as they slept, were the aliens that were known as Krillitanes and they looked just like giant, monstrous bats.

"OK, we can confirm that we have aliens," said Keiichi in a hushed tone. "Now, let's just go back upstairs and get out of here." They ran for the stairs and exited the basement as quickly as they could. Slamming the door shut behind them, they heard the shrieks and screeches of the Krillitanes.

"I think they just woke up!" Mion yelled.

"Barricade the door!" Rika ordered.

"That will not work," they heard and the lights suddenly came on. Standing in the middle of the kitchen with them was a man in a black suit, white shirt and black tie. He looked like he was in his 40's with slicked back, graying hair and wrinkles around his eyes. He was also smiling at them and not in a very pleasant way.

"Koumori-san," Rika identified.

"Ah, so you know who I am," Koumori smiled. "Oh, and Sonozaki-san, what a pleasant surprise to see you visiting my restaurant. Of course, you could've waited when we were opened."

"Well, consider this a surprise inspection," Mion retorted.

"OK, Koumori, we know what you are," Keiichi pointed at him.

"Do you, now?" Koumori sighed. "Well, then that just means I need to get rid of you. We can't have any witnesses, can we?"

"If you're going to kill us, then tell us why?" Rika questioned. She knew why, or at least had a theory based on what AI-Shin had said, but they needed confirmation from the source.

"You mean why did we go into the fast food business?" Koumori pocketed his hands. "Food, of course. You see, when my family and I came to this planet looking for food, we first started by hunting down cattle. Sheep, pigs, goats, cows, you name it. But what was really delicious was human flesh. Unfortunately, you humans are not as fast and juicy as we'd like. But when we learnt about the popularity of fast food, we decided to exploit for our own purposes. We also found a use for our oil. We cook the food with it and serve it to you humans. Of course the oil has a splendid effect of making you humans smarter, and more addicted to our food, making you want more and more until you're nice and plump and juicy." Koumori licked his lips.

The basement door flew open and the Krillitanes all came out, one by one, scaling the wall and ceiling as they surrounded the trio.

"Meet my family," Koumori introduced. "They would love to have you for dinner. Oh, and about your friends, they're currently occupied."

Rika smirked, "Oh, so you sent one of your family members after them?" Koumori cocked an eyebrow. "I think you should prepare for a funeral then."

* * *

Meanwhile, the Krillitane attacking Hanyuu and Chiaki was about to learn that it should've picked its targets wisely. It was screeching at them, shaking the truck back and forth and pounding on the glass windshield.

"OK, this is getting ridiculous," muttered Chiaki. He and Hanyuu had been startled at first but now they were just irritated. He was about to open the door and teach the Krillitane a lesson when a Teleportal appeared in front of them. "Hm, reinforcements."

"But who's coming?" Hanyuu asked.

That was when they heard a familiar voice yelling, "_BANZAI!-!-!_" as a large figure came running out. It then swung its arm and knocked the Krillitane right off the hood of the truck.

It was the Power Wrestler and it was moving on its own without a pilot.

They did recognize the voice and gawked, "Shin!-?"

"_That's my name, don't wear it out_," AI-Shin saluted. "_So, this is what it feels like to have arms, huh?_" He flexed his new mechanical arms. "_Cool! Oh, and these legs are great!_" He looked at the Krillitane, "_Oh, it looks like tall, dark and ugly is getting back up_."

Hanyuu and Chiaki exited the pickup truck and looked at the alien with narrowed eyes. The goddess of Hinamizawa clenched her fists as she summoned up the power which had been given to her by Shinichi. "Henshin!" In a flash of red and green, she was transformed and wearing the armor of Kamen Rider J.

"Henshin!" called out Slasher as he also transformed. The Krillitane shrieked and lunged at them, only for Slasher to catch its wrists and knee it in the gut. He then spun around and around and tossed the Krillitane onto the street. J/Hanyuu was immediately on the attack, armed with the Onigari no Ryuou. She slashed at the monster repeatedly, spilling its alien blood onto the street. Realizing it needed assistance, it spread its wings to escape, only to be grabbed by the Power Wrestler.

"_You're not going anywhere_!" AI-Shin said as he held tightly to the Krillitane. "_Hanyuu-chan, it's all yours_."

J/Hanyuu jogged over to him and pointed her C3 at the Krillitane. It scanned the creature before digitizing it and absorbing it into the device which spat out a containment card.

AI-Shin dusted off his hands and said, "_Well, that's that. Now what?_"

"We wait for the others," said J/Hanyuu.

* * *

"It looks like you guys want to fight," Mion punched her palm. Keiichi stood at her side, ready to back her up.

"Do you really think you can fight us?" Koumori mocked, but he was feeling quite unsure at the moment. He'd seen faux confidence but these three humans didn't seem to show any fear.

Mion performed a familiar pose as she called out, "Hen…shin!" The Typhoon Belt appeared around her waist, the fan spinning as it released the energy needed for her to transform.

"Henshin!" Keiichi called as his own transformation belt appeared around his waist and he morphed into his dark-armored form known as Kamen Rider Alter, aka the Darkloid Rider.

"Henshin," said Rika as she transformed as well, her eyes glowing red as her body glowed with green energy, the energy turning into armor which encased her body.

Koumori was taken aback by this, not expecting the transformation at all. He did, however, expect the punch he received from Kamen Rider ZO as she slammed her fist into his face, sending him flying out of the kitchen and into the dining area to crash atop a table.

Koumori wiped the blood off his lip and shrieked as he changed, turning back into his true Krillitane form. He spread his wings and lunged towards ZO/Rika who ducked under him. She spun around to face him as he shrieked at her and rushed at her to slash with his claws. She blocked with his forearms but he was able to hit her chest, sending her staggering. He then jumped and tried to kick her in the head but she caught his ankle and spun him around and around and around before throwing him out through the glass door which shattered on impact.

She looked over her shoulder to check on Mion and Keiichi. Seeing as they were doing fine on their own, she dashed out of the restaurant to take care of her own opponent.

Ichigo/Mion, using her martial arts skills, dodged the Krillitane's swipes and strikes before retaliating with her own. She used an uppercut on one and then followed up with a roundhouse kick to knock one of them into the barrels. The one that Rika had uncapped dropped and spilled the Krillitane oil onto the floor which then touched the Krillitane that had been knocked into the barrels. It reacted instantly, screaming as it scrambled to its feet as if it had just touched acid.

This gave Ichigo/Mion an idea. She lifted up a barrel over her head and shouted, "Hey, look at what I got!" The Krillitanes stared at her. "That's right!" She tossed it. "Kei-chan, now!"

Alter reacted and his wrist blades came out before he sliced the barrel open, the contents spilling out and dousing the Krillitanes, causing them to scream in pain as they were being burnt by their own oil.

* * *

Koumori was picking glass shards out of his skin as ZO/Rika strode towards him. He swiped at her with his claws but she countered with right hook that slammed into his face. She followed up with a powerful kick to the ribs, sending the alien tumbling.

She remembered what Shinichi had told her. She was to capture the alien but if they continued to resist then she'd have no choice but to kill them. Koumori spread his wings again and took off into the air as ZO/Rika looked up. He then came down at her in a nosedive to dive bomb her. He was about to hit her but a giant green palm came down between them and caught the Krillitane in its grip. ZO/Rika looked up to see J/Hanyuu using Kamen Rider J's Jumbo Formation with Slasher sitting on her shoulder.

"I got this one, Rika," said J/Hanyuu.

ZO/Rika smiled and then spotted the Power Wrestler with its arms crossed leaning against the pickup truck. "_Yo, Rika!_" AI-Shin waved.

She sighed and shook her head.

* * *

Burger Batz was closed down and the entire supply of Krillitane oil they had stored inside was confiscated and taken to the Hive along with the androids. The android staff was used by the Krillitanes to cook and serve customers since Koumori was the only one among them able to assume human form. They also used the androids to cook using the Krillitane oil because the substance was now toxic to them.

As for the Krillitanes themselves, they were currently locked up in the Vault. They were too dangerous to let loose on Earth since they had eaten quite a few people. To them humans were just cattle so letting them free was a big no-no.

The reason the Krillitanes had come to Earth looking for food was because their feeding planet had been destroyed. Koumori didn't elaborate after that, but he did say that whatever had destroyed their feeding planet would be coming for Earth soon. He'd laughed as he was dragged back to his cell.

* * *

Chiaki and Hanyuu stopped in front of the old Burger Batz building which had a 'For Sale' sign in front of it. "You know, for a bunch of man-eating aliens, they made some really great burgers."

"Well, let's just hope the next people who buy this place don't try to take over the world or something," Chiaki joked before he drove ahead.

* * *

Meanwhile, a Burger Batz restaurant was opening up in New York City. The sign shone brightly, attracting customers to come in and dine.

The restaurant's motto was: "You'll Go Absolutely Batty For Our Burgers".

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Whaddya guys think? Again, the Krillitanes are from Doctor Who and and again I have Toku Warrior to thank for editing and proofreading for me.**


	134. The Legacy of Cain Part 78

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 78: Shadows of Death**

"AT LONG LAST! THE BLUE SCARAB IS MINE!" Harious gloated as he now possessed Yokoshima's Scarab. All Harious had to do was lure Blue Beetle into a trap. Once he stepped into a magic circle, he was transported to Harious' lair. There, Harious performed the extraction with the use of a spell and it had been quite a painful process.

Now Yokoshima was lying on the floor in pain as Harious sneered at him. The Rat Goblins laughed as they stared at Yokoshima's pathetic sight. One of them even went so far as to kick him while he was down.

Harious stepped towards Yokoshima and questioned, "So, do you have any last words, whelp?" Harious had been waiting for this moment for a long time, the moment where he would possess the Blue Scarab. It had taken him months but now the power was his. Of course he could spend a few moments to gloat before he assimilated the Blue Scarab to himself.

"Well, I just have one thing to ask…" Yokoshima uttered.

"Oh, and what is that?" Harious replied, not caring what Yokoshima had to say.

"Have you met my wife?" Yokoshima grinned.

Harious' expression was priceless, especially after Asmodeus appeared out of nowhere and kicked him right in the face. The Blue Scarab dropped to the floor and scurried about as the Rat Goblins tried to catch him.

"Damn you, you annoying harlot!" Harious shouted and then he noticed the Rat Goblins doing their best to recapture the Blue Scarab. "Stop wasting time and get the Scarab! And be sure to kill the intruder as well!" Harious ordered, a hand on his broken and bleeding nose.

Asmodeus helped her husband up and asked, "Are you OK, honey?"

"Now that you're here, babe," Yokoshima smiled. "Now, to get my little friend back! Blitz Henshin!" His Spark Core glowed as he transformed into Kamen Rider Armadillo. It had been quite some time since he used this form. Suddenly, the heavy portions of his armor detached and shot out in every direction, knocking down several unfortunate Rat Goblins. The Blitz Cannon folded up and rested on his shoulders, aimed forwards. "Hey, Harious! I Might be an idiot, but even I know that you should only gloat after you've won!" He aimed his cannons and fired at Harious. The sorcerer conjured a shield but the impact and explosion still pushed him backwards.

Meanwhile, Asmodeus had summoned her energy blade and was zipping all around the room, killing Rat Goblins with ease. They were ugly and slow, unlike herself who was cute and fast.

Armadillo couldn't help but get a little aroused when he saw her like this but he focused his attention on the Blue Scarab who was coming towards him. "Over here, little buddy!" he called. The Blue Scarab clicked its mandibles and ran towards him. Rat Goblins tried to grab it but Armadillo fired his Blitz Cannons at them, blowing them to pieces.

Harious snarled and began to chant a spell only to feel the tip of Asmodeus' energy blade against his throat. "Say one more word and I'll slit your throat," she threatened. He glared at her hatefully as she smirked. "And I'm really hoping that you'll say something."

Armadillo collected the Blue Scarab and it rested on his shoulder. "Were you scared, little buddy?" The Blue Scarab shook its head as Armadillo patted it on the head.

"Are we done here?" Asmodeus asked, just barely looking away from Harious and over to her husband.

"Yeah, we are," smiled Armadillo. He took out his C3. "Now, it's time we dealt with this guy-" The C3 was snatched out of his hand by Steel Cap. "Hey, give that back!"

Harious, taking advantage of the distraction shoved Asmodeus backwards and disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Hey!" she snapped.

Armadillo was wrestling Steel Cap for the C3 when the Blue Scarab bit the Rat Goblin's wrist, forcing him to drop it as he cried out, "OW!" He too vanished as the C3 clattered to the ground. He picked up his C3 and walked over to Asmodeus.

"He got away," Asmodeus frowned. Armadillo wasn't upset as he deactivated his armor..

"You came to save me. I think that's good enough for now," said Yokoshima. "And I have a feeling he'll be back."

"And we'll get him for sure," said Asmodeus.

"Now, just one more thing," said Yokoshima as he let the Blue Scarab crawl under his shirt and get on his back. He went stiff before trembling, gritting his teeth in pain as the Blue Scarab entered his body to latch onto his spine and initiate the interface. Asmodeus held onto him as he was about to collapse.

"So, is it OK?" she asked.

"Yeah," he answered, groaning. "He's back home."

"Seriously, why you would share your body with that thing I do not know," said Asmodeus, shaking her head.

"Hey, he's my wingman, my little buddy, my sidekick," he said.

"I thought _I_ was your sidekick," Asmodeus frowned.

"You're more," he smiled, kissing her. "You're my wife, my lover, my bed mate."

Asmodeus giggled before she vanished with him in a burst of gold butterflies. If anything, Yokoshima would need a few hours rest to recover from the pain of re-assimilating with the Blue Scarab. Then, once he was good as new, he would properly thank Asmodeus for her help.

* * *

Shinichi stopped in front of the boarding house that Alan, his harem and family called home. Dismounting from his bike, he entered the grounds and spotted Alan playing with Celine and Alice. The two little girls were bouncing up and down upon a green trampoline that was composed of green energy.

Alan looked up, keeping the trampoline tangible as he greeted, "Hey, Shinichi."

"Hey yourself," said Shinichi. "Hey, girls."

"Mau! Mau!" Celine waved as she was happily bouncing.

"Hi, Onii-chan!" Alice waved.

Shinichi spotted Lockheed on the roof staring at him and he gave the dragon a salute. Walking over to Alan, he stood next to his brother to watch. "So, this is what you use your ring for when you're not fighting."

"That's right," nodded Alan.

"Kinda wasteful if you ask me," said Bazel.

"Since when is making my daughters smile a wasteful use of my ring?" Alan asked.

"Since you put it that way…" Bazel didn't want to argue and went quiet.

Alice then leapt off the trampoline and towards Shinichi who caught her as he spun around before putting her down gently on the ground. "Whoa there!"

Alan smiled. On their first meeting, Shinichi and Alice, formerly known as Chaos Doll, had been enemies. On their second encounter, Shinichi had hated Alice for she reminded him of Dr. Gebok and even tried to kill her. However, afterwards, Shinichi accepted Alice as family. Despite Shinichi being her daddy's brother, he was more like her big brother than an uncle.

"MAU!" Celine launched herself towards Alan like a missile and he caught her swiftly.

"Now, now, Celine," Alan scolded as he tapped her nose. "That's dangerous."

"Mau…" she pouted in his arms.

Alan put her down and made the trampoline disappear.

"So, is Rena-chan here? She did tell me she was coming over," said Shinichi.

"She's upstairs with Nozomu," said Alan.

* * *

"Oh, he's just so adorable that I want to take him home!" Rena squealed as she picked up Adam. As a baby, he could not control his transformation so his wolf features were present 24/7. It was only through the aid of a perception filter that not everyone noticed his tail and ears.

"He's mine," said Nozomu firmly, reminding Rena that it was her son and she couldn't just take him home whenever she felt like it.

"I'm just so jealous, that's all," Rena admitted as she gave Adam back to Nozomu. The little baby was held gently in his mother's arms and snuggled up to her. "Aw~"

"Why don't you and Shinichi have a child?" Nozomu suggested.

"We've talked about it, but it's not the right time yet," said Rena. "I mean we need to graduate from school, get jobs, and then we can afford to have a baby."

"He's having a baby with Satan, isn't he?" Nozomu questioned. This made Rena sigh.

"…That wasn't exactly planned, but he's taking responsibility nonetheless," Rena smiled. "At least I know if I ever do get pregnant he'll be there for me."

"Yes, and Alan's working so hard to take care of all of us that I get worried he might exhaust himself," Nozomu admitted.

"But he has all of you to help," Rena smiled.

"Yes, but Lala tried to build a Nanny Robot to help but we vetoed the idea," Nozomu told her. The reason was that Lala's inventions had a habit of backfiring or going out of control, or have a glitch or bug in them. They didn't want to risk it accidentally hurting the children.

"I'm just so amazed that the boy I used to babysit turned out to become such a great father," Rena smiled. "He has so many responsibilities but makes time for all of you."

"That's why we love him," said Nozomu. "But he still needs to go whenever he's called. It doesn't help that Alan is pushing himself at being a hero too. With super-villain attacks on the rise, who knows what will happen next."

"Luckily, he has all of us," Rena smiled.

"Yes, you're right," Nozomu smiled. Adam suddenly started crying. "Oh, it looks like he needs a change."

"Can I help?" Rena offered. She wanted to learn as much as she could about taking care of babies for when the day finally came when she had one of her own.

* * *

"So, how's the new team?" Alan asked as they were headed to Nozomu's room.

"Oh, they're doing fine and I've been training them at using the Rider powers I gave them," said Shinichi. Suddenly, Shinichi's wrist com-link began to beep. "I have to take this." He answered, "Yes, Sheila?"

"_You have a call from Inspector Mamoru Akasaka_," Sheila replied.

"Patch him through," said Shinichi. "Hello?"

"_Finally!_" Akasaka's voice was heard. "_I've been trying to reach you guys for 15 minutes!_"

"Hello, Inspector," greeted Shinichi.

"_Is Alan there with you?_" Akasaka asked. Mamoru Akasaka was an inspector in Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. He had come into contact with Shinichi in 1986 during the whole Panther Claw incident. On occasion, he would call for help from Shinichi and his team when he had to deal with peculiar cases. He's also gone to Alan for assistance as well, like during the case of the serial killings performed by a rogue Grim Reaper.

"I'm here," said Alan. "What's up?"

"_Listen, I need some help with a case and I need it fast. How fast can you __two__ get to Tokyo?_" Akasaka asked.

Alan smirked, "Faster than a speeding bullet."

Shinichi rolled his eyes.

* * *

It didn't take long for Rena, Lala, Shinichi and Alan to arrive in Tokyo via the Teleportal system. Lala was accompanying Alan to offer her expertise while Rena insisted to come along with Shinichi to act as his backup. Since she was now the proud owner of the powers of Kamen Rider ZX, she could now hold her own against any enemy that came their way, granted that they weren't too powerful like Shiro or the Yamata no Orochi had been.

"We're going to be heading to the police station to see Inspector Akasaka," said Shinichi.

"Why can't we come?" Lala asked.

"Because Inspector Akasaka was expecting just me and Shinichi," said Alan. "He'll probably get annoyed when he finds out you came along."

"Can you girls take care of yourselves while we're gone?" Shinichi asked.

"Sure, Shin-kun," Rena smiled.

"And watch Lala too," Alan cautioned. "OK?"

"I'm not a child, Alan," Lala frowned. Alan hugged her.

"Just worried about you, OK?" he said and she nodded, hugging him back.

The two left the girls to their own devices as they headed to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department building.

* * *

Arriving at the building, they saw Inspector Akasaka waiting for them. "Good, you're both here. Come with me," he said as he led them into the building, handing them visitor passes as well. Once inside his office, they sat down.

"So, what's this about?" Shinichi asked. "You sounded pretty urgent."

"While investigating the disappearance of some Toudai (Tokyo University Students), we found this," said Inspector Akasaka as he put a video camera and a videotape on the table.

"What is it?" Alan questioned. Inspector Akasaka picked up the tape and popped it into the VCR.

"Just watch," instructed Akasaka as the video began to play.

"_Oh god, they got him! They got Taro! They got everyone! Please, if anyone gets this, listen! If you want to live stay in the light! STAY IN THE LIGHT! OH MY GOD, THEY'RE HERE!"_

The camera was dropped as the female student ran from some kind of shadow chasing after her. The camera continued to roll as her screams were heard before they went silent.

Inspector Akasaka stopped the tape.

"OK, that was freaky," said Shinichi.

"Where was this?" Alan asked.

"In the mountains outside of Tokyo where they were last seen," said Inspector Akasaka.

Alan was thinking, '_It can't be Shiro's Vashta Nerada. They vanished when Gnol was destroyed_.' Of course by that logic Shiro's Darkloid-piloted DALEKs shouldn't even exist anymore, and yet they managed to survive. '_Could these things be the real thing?_'

"So, care to give me a clue on what we're dealing with?" Inspector Akasaka asked.

"Sounds like Vashta Nerada," answered Alan.

"Vashta Nerada?" Akasaka cocked an eyebrow upon hearing that term, unfamiliar with it.

"Basically they're microscopic organisms. A large group of them together looks like a massive shadow. They're tiny, mean, and hungry," Alan explained. "They're also known as the 'Piranhas of the Air' since they can strip the flesh right off their victims' bones in seconds."

A long time ago, Mamoru Akasaka wouldn't have believed it, but since he met Rika he'd learnt to always have an open mind and believe in the impossible, even if it didn't always make sense.

Alan added, "But I've done scans before. I don't know how I could have missed them."

"You might be a superman, but you're not omnipotent, Alan," said Shinichi.

Alan sighed, "I can scan the whole world in under an hour but somehow, things keep slipping through."

Akasaka said, "Well, now that you're here at least we have an idea of what's going on. Any idea on how to get rid of these things? Sounds like a job for an exterminator, but I doubt they're equipped for something of this magnitude."

"We managed to synthesize a poison that will work on them," said Shinichi. "We can use that to deal with your little pest problem."

* * *

Both Shinichi and Alan left the building together with a lot of questions on their minds.

"I wonder how they got all the way out here," Alan murmured.

"Well, whatever the reason we can figure it out once we get rid of them," said Shinichi as he prepared to call the Hive to transport some equipment.

"Alan!" Lala waved as she and Rena stood in front of them.

"Have you girls been waiting for us?" he asked.

"Well, did you both really think you could just leave us?" Rena asked, hands to her hips. "We came to help so we're going to help."

"So, what's going on?" Lala asked.

* * *

Rena rode behind Shinichi on his nanite-generated Showa-Ride while Lala rode behind Alan on his green motorbike construct as they headed towards the mountains. They were going into dangerous territory. Alan and Shinichi had explained to the girls about what they could possibly be dealing with. What troubled them were the last few things Inspector Akasaka had told them.

* * *

"_We never found any bodies or bones. Just the camera and their equipment."_

* * *

'_Vashta Nerada always leave the bones behind, unless they need them for something_,' Alan though. The microscopic organisms shared a hive mind which gave them human level intelligence and Shiro's demonic variation was smarter. He recalled how the Vashta Nerada had reanimated the skeletons and grimaced. That was probably why the police weren't able to find the bodies.

Alan looked at the sky. It was evening and the sun was beginning to set. Vashta Nerada loved the dark. It was how they could hunt without being spotted and in the darkness they couldn't be seen until it was too late. However, Alan could at least scan for life forms.

They entered the forest in the mountains and stopped at a spot. According to Akasaka, this was where they'd found the video camera. This was the last place the female student holding the camera was seen alive.

"Listen. Do you hear that?" Alan asked.

The others tried to listen for something, but the forest was silent.

"I don't hear anything," said Shinichi.

"Yes, it's quiet. Too quiet for a forest," said Alan. "There should be animal sounds. Crickets chirping at least, maybe birds and small rodents. A forest should be full of life but there's nothing here and I don't like it." He ordered as he dematerialized his bike, "Suit up. We're going to need to protect ourselves."

Shinichi nodded as his armor appeared over his body. Rena also transformed, donning Kamen Rider ZX's suit. Lala also activated a force field generator that would keep herself safe. She wore it as a bracelet on her left wrist.

"So, what are we looking for?" Showa asked as they began trekking through the forest.

"A nest," was Alan's simple answer as he shone his ring around the area. "Be careful of shadows that cast nothing," he warned.

"And remember to count the shadows too," added Showa.

"It's going to get dark soon so we should be out of here before that and resume in the morning," Alan said, looking up to see the sun through the foliage. "I think we got about a couple more hours of daylight left, give or take."

"But for all we know, those things could be surrounding us already," ZX/Rena stated.

"Don't worry, Rena," Lala chirped. "We're well protected from those nasty bugs."

Showa received a call on his com-link, "Showa here."

"_I've locked onto your position. Prepare to accept your equipment_," said Sheila. A Teleportal formed and they saw a large figure come walking out. It was the Power Wrestler, aka Boxer-kun.

"BOXER-KUN!" Rena/ZX smiled as she saw the exo-suit.

"_Hi, guys!_" said AI-Shin from within the Power Wrestler. "_Sheila sent me to deliver this_." He put a metal tank down in front of them. It had leather straps on it to secure to a human body and attached to it was a hose with a gun-like nozzle.

"Is this all?" Showa asked as he picked up the tank and strapped it on, buckling the straps to secure them.

"_That's all we got for now_," said AI-Shin. "_So conserve it. I gotta go…_" He turned to the Teleportal but stopped at the entrance and spoke, "_Unless you'll let me stay…_"

"We can handle things here," said Alan. "Thanks for the delivery."

"_Yeah, whatever,"_ muttered AI-Shin before he marched back into the Teleportal which disappeared seconds later.

"OK, we've suited up and geared up," said Showa as he held the hose with both hands. "Let's move."

Alan looked up and frowned, "Remember, in and out as fast as we can. This is just a recon mission until we can be certain with what we're dealing with."

He actually hoped it wasn't Vashta Nerada. Lala and Rena's fleshless skeletons were the last things he wanted to see in his life. He had already lost Jade and he would be damned if he lost another woman that he loved.

* * *

Alan was holding the map of the area as he led their group and, after about twenty minutes of searching, they found a cave in front of them. A cave was dark, very dark, and seemed like the perfect place for the Vashta Nerada to thrive. They stopped at a spot where, according to Akasaka, the students' camping gear was found. The camping equipment had all been taken for evidence so it was just an empty clearing.

Alan could only think sadly of the lives that were lost here since they did not know about the danger which lurked in the dark.

"Let's keep moving," said Alan.

"Are we going to go in the cave?" Showa pointed.

"Darkest place in the forest, day or night," Alan stated. "And the Vashta Nerada thrive in the dark."

"I was afraid you were going to say something like that," Showa sighed. He didn't particularly like big dark places when he couldn't see his enemies. And he wasn't even able to detect any signs of life energy coming from within the cave either. So, that meant that either there were no Vashta Nerada or that they had evolved beyond being able to being detected by both normal and spiritual means.

* * *

Alan shone the way with his power ring while Lala was holding a flashlight. The visors of the helmets worn by Shinichi and Rena allowed them to see in the dark so they didn't need flashlights. They continued to explore deeper and deeper into the cave until they reached a dead end.

"OK, it's a dead end," said Showa. Alan wasn't convinced and he used his Sonic Screwdriver to perform a scan before using his X-Ray vision.

"Dead end?" Alan asked as he rapped the wall with his knuckles. It made a hollow, metal sound.

"Okay, are rock walls supposed to sound like metal plates?" Rena asked curiously.

"Not a real wall," said Alan. "And what's not a wall…is a door." He used his enhanced vision and saw a gap which he took a hold of with his fingers. With his incredible strength, he pushed the wall apart to reveal a hidden chamber. "Heh," smirked Alan. "Open sesame."

"You could've used your Sonic Screwdriver to open it," said Showa.

"Couldn't, it was deadlocked," answered Alan, which troubled him further.

The chamber had metal walls, which meant it was artificially made, with lights. There was also computer equipment. There are also seemed to be a glass wall which separated them from another room.

"What is this place?" ZX/Rena asked.

"I can get our answers," said Showa as he went over to a computer. He put his hand on the computer, activating it and bringing up files. He read the information and frowned. "It's a breeding station," said Showa as he looked around the facility. "It seems that Shiro's been experimenting with both his own Vashta Nerada and the local species, crossbreeding them."

"Crossbreeding?" ZX/Rena questioned.

"You know how killer bees were bred, right? African bees crossbred with the native honeybees in America. As a result the Africanized Honey Bees were born."

Alan frowned, "Joy, even deadlier killer shadows." He let out a sigh, "What I don't get is how could Shiro do all this? He's nowhere near being an actual criminal mastermind."

"Not a criminal mastermind?" Showa retorted skeptically. "Are you kidding? What about his plan to resurrect the Yamata no Orochi? And his plans that gave us trouble? Did you forget about those?"

"OK, he's a super genius consumed by megalomania but not exactly a _true_ criminal mastermind. What I mean is that the plans we found had someone else's signature on them. Someone I haven't come up against before. Shiro was just a pawn. So, the question remains..."

Showa finished, "Who is the King?"

Alan didn't like the feeling he got from this place, "OK, it's time we left." He looked to Rena and his eyes widened. "Rena…"

"What?" ZX/Rena asked. He pointed down and she looked down.

She had two shadows.

"They're here," Alan frowned. Fortunately, the armor protected Rena but Vashta Nerada were known to rip through durable material to get to their prey, shredding it with their tiny teeth. However, Rider armor was more durable than conventional fabrics.

"I got this!" Showa aimed the tank's nozzle and fired at Rena's shadows. As soon as the liquid solution touched them, one of the shadows vanished. "Alright, still got them."

Alan's ears picked up movement and he said, "Not yet."

Skeletons, surrounded by dark shadows, walked into the hidden facility. The skeletons were clothed and Alan knew who these skeletons belonged too. He clenched his fists and confronted them.

He spoke to them, "OK, I know what you are and I know you can understand me. So, I want you to listen and listen good. I want you to let these skeletons go so we can give them a proper burial. Shiro's gone so you don't have to follow his instructions anymore. You can do whatever you want, but you can't live here on Earth. You're just too dangerous and too close to the local population. So, I want to offer you all a deal. I'll fly you all to planets that are not inhabited by any sentient life form so you can all live your lives in peace."

The skeleton creatures, manipulated by the Vashta Nerada, stared blankly at Alan.

"Well?" Alan asked.

The skeletons collapsed as a dark mass hovered over them. He stared at the dark, shadowy mass, knowing that it was the Vashta Nerada. The dark mass covered the lights, shrouding the room in darkness.

"What does that mean?" Lala asked.

Alan just gulped. "It means we run," was Alan's instant answer.

* * *

Having special armor and energy shields was a good thing for the group since none of them wanted to be the Vashta Nerada's next meal. However, it didn't stop the dark mass from pursuing them as they exited the facility. Immediately, Alan sealed the door shut but it was only a matter of time before the Vashta Nerada seeped through the cracks.

Showa stared at his hose and frowned. "Not enough." He asked, "Alan, can't you use your ring on them?"

"I could, but there's too many of them and I don't think those are the only ones in the forest!" Alan answered.

"What makes you say that?" ZX/Rena asked.

"The skeletons standing in front of us," was the simple answer he gave.

A pair of skeletons, clothed, stood at the entrance of the cave, blocking the group's exit. Taking aim, Showa fired the contents of his hose at them. The skeletons were soaked but the Vashta Nerada hovered over their former puppets.

"Damn, the crossbreeding must make them immune to that vaccine," Alan realized. "It just drives them off, but it doesn't kill them!"

"Better than nothing!" Showa shouted as they slipped under the dark mass which continued to pursue them. It was getting darker by the minute and they were in a dark forest where the Vashta Nerada could be anywhere.

Alan stared down at his ring. He could generate some kind of green flame to burn the Vashta Nerada, but he would probably only be able to take out a large portion of them but not all of them.

"We can't let them live," was Alan's final answer. These crossbred Vashta Nerada were intelligent and aggressive. He'd given the Vashta Nerada a chance to live someplace else with no sentient life but their hostile actions had proven that they wanted to stay and feed. It won't be just a bunch of unlucky campers either. Once there was enough of them they would spread all over the city, devouring anyone and anything with meat on them. Then, they would spread all over the world once their numbers have increased.

A world of bones and shadows would be the end result.

Setting his resolve, Alan took out his 'Thinking Fez' and put it on his head. Whipping out his Sonic Screwdriver, he twirled it around and gripped it before pointing to the pink-haired princess. "Lala!"

"Hai!" Lala saluted.

"I'm gonna need something from your 'toy chest'," said Alan, referring to her collection of inventions. "And..." he trailed off before pausing.

"And what?" Showa asked. "Why are you looking at me like _that_?"

* * *

Shinichi frowned as he stood in the middle of a clearing. "I should've known..." he murmured.

Alan had needed bait and Shinichi had been volunteered. Since they were the only sources of meat in the immediate area, the Vashta Nerada would be instantly drawn to them. He wasn't even in his armor either. He needed to be exposed to draw the Vashta Nerada like how bees were drawn to honey.

His skin, hair and clothes were also soaked with the vaccine. Alan had sprayed Shinichi with it earlier. That would keep the Vashta Nerada from getting too close but they would still hover around, waiting for him to dry to become their next meal.

The vaccine was still toxic to them, but nor fatal anymore. It just drove them away.

He kept his eyes opened fully, waiting for the Vashta Nerada to emerge from the darkness. A battery-powered lamp stood next to Shinichi, giving him enough light so he could see the Vashta Nerada as they came. They were like a mass of living darkness, a sentient shadow, and the light would help him see them unless they hid inside another shadow.

"Alan, you better hurry up," Shinichi muttered impatiently..

Meanwhile, behind a bush a distance away, Alan was working on some contraption as Lala observed him. Rena's attention was on Shinichi. They weren't very far and she could see him as she rubbed her hands together nervously.

"Will this take any longer?" Rena asked.

"I can't rush things, Rena," said Alan as he used his Sonic Screwdriver to put the machine together. "This takes time and precision. Sure, I could use my super speed and get it done quickly, but what's the fun in that?"

"You call me standing here as killer shadow bait and you taking your damn sweet time fun!-?" Shinichi shouted, having heard Alan's latest comment with his enhanced hearing. "You are so getting a butt kicking when this is over, Otouto!" He also added, "And that fez does not make you look clever at all! It makes you look like a dork!"

"Hmph, fezzes are dorky. They're cool," Alan insisted.

"In your fucking dreams!"

Rena frowned but she was confident that Alan had a solution and so was Lala. He was wearing his Thinking Fez, which he only wore when he decided to be clever and figure out a solution that did not involve him using his fists.

"Shinichi, do not dis the fez," Alan shot back at him just loud enough for him to hear but not the Vashta Nerada. Rena and Lala looked at the arguing brothers and sighed.

Shinichi tapped his foot and crossed his arms, drumming his fingers against his arm. "Well, where are you? Aren't you hungry? I'm right here!" Out of the corner of his eye he could see some dark mass beginning to emerge from behind a tree. "I know Shiro made you, and if you're smart you're going to stop eating. The more you eat, the more you'll be marked as a threat, and your existence will be threatened." The darkness was beginning to grow but the naked eye wouldn't be able to see it. However, Shinichi's eyes had been augmented and enhanced so he could see the mass of Vashta Nerada as they came.

The Vashta Nerada were not stupid as they hovered around him. He was soaked in the poison which could kill them before but as they were now they would only fall sick to it but still manage to recover. However, they still didn't like it.

There was more meat and it was nearby. They moved away from Shinichi to find more meat to sate their hunger, to help them multiply.

"Alan!" Shinichi shouted. "Now!"

Alan, from where he sat, yelled out, "GERONIMO!" and threw the switch.

* * *

"So, are they dead?" Shinichi jogged over to them and Rena hugged him, relieved that he was safe.

"Every one of them within a 100 mile radius," said Alan, grinning. "Unless of course they wore tiny little head phones."

"OK, take off the hat because you look stupid and crazy when you wear it," Shinichi stated.

"Don't dis the fez," warned Alan again as he removed his hat.

"Bro, that hat is ridiculous and it makes you look like a mook." Alan quirked his eyebrow as a vein popped up on his temple.

"Shinichi, I just said to not dis the fez, twice. I am cool and if I wear a fez then it is cool as well."

"Please, as if some European snob hat is cool." That was the last straw for Alan.

"That's it, time to teach you to respect the fez!" Alan shouted as he put Shinichi in a headlock.

Shinichi struggled a bit but soon put Alan in his own headlock by using his nanites to stretch his arms and put them around his brother's own head. Alan was holding back just enough so that he wouldn't kill Shinichi but Shinichi wasn't as weak as he used to be when compared to Alan. The two brothers did this for a few moments until both Lala and Rena pinched their cheeks and gave them a scolding look. It was a look that made the two titans of power back down in fear from their respected lovers.

"So, what is that thing?" Shinichi asked, referring to the machine which stood in the middle of their circle, while he readjusted his shirt collar. It looked like a toaster with the slots covered with bars and it had blinking lights inside.

"A Mega Sonic Bug Zapper," was Alan's response.

"A bug zapper," Shinichi repeated.

"A _Mega Sonic_ Bug Zapper," Alan emphasized on the 'Mega Sonic' part. "It makes their tiny little heads explode." He then frowned, "But, it came at a cost." He held up his Sonic Screwdriver, which was completely fried from the looks of it, blackened around the tip and the crystal was cracked. "Had to use this to really boost the power. It couldn't take much more before it got fried," he said with a sigh.

"Don't worry, Alan," Lala smiled, hugging him. "I'll make you another one."

"Right, well let's get back to the cave and wait for everyone so we can take care of that Breeding Station," said Alan.

* * *

When they arrived, they discovered the entire breeding station had been completely stripped bare. The computers were gone as well as the metal walls, lights and equipment. The glass wall separating the room was also gone.

It just looked like an empty chamber in a cave.

"B-but how?" Rena questioned, confused.

"It's been completely stripped bare. Someone didn't want any evidence to be left behind here," said Shinichi.

"But who?" Lala asked.

Alan had an idea but he did not answer. It was just speculation and he didn't have any concrete evidence but he had a feeling it had to be them.

The Religion of Crime.

* * *

The following day, before returning home, Alan had gone to meet with Inspector Akasaka to give his report.

"So, no evidence at all?" Akasaka asked after Alan gave him his full report on the situation.

"Nothing but the skeletons. Everything else was cleaned out. The place was stripped completely bare so all that's left is an empty cave. Whoever owned that breeding station didn't want anyone to find anything," said Alan.

"Well, at least we can send the bodies back to their families, once we've identified the remains," Akasaka sighed. "Thanks."

"You called me to help you do a job and I did. And you're welcome." He was glad to be able to help and it was worth it if it meant being able to save a lot of people in the long run. He just wished he could have been there to save the campers before the Vashta Nerada had gotten to them.

* * *

**Later...**

"And done! The Sonic Screwdriver Mark II is ready!" Lala announced as she held up the new Sonic Screwdriver. It looked different from his previous one. The cylindrical metal tube black with green accents and the tip could be extended by sliding it up with his thumb. The crystal on the tip was still green and it still had the Phillip's screwdriver head on the other end, which was capped this time.

The couple had returned home with Shinichi and Rena going back to their own apartment. Lala, knowing how upset Alan was about losing his precious Sonic Screwdriver, immediately went to work building a new one for him. It took her only a few hours to make a new one. She still had the plans but decided to make a few modifications to it.

"Thanks, Lala," Alan smiled as he accepted the sonic device. The girl had offered to rebuild his Sonic Screwdriver and he really couldn't refuse Lala's help. She had been the one to allow some of her inventions to be taken apart so the parts could be used to make the Mega Sonic Bug Zapper. He gave Lala a kiss in gratitude. "Now to test this baby out." He looked at Lala and developed a slightly perverted grin on his face. She was wearing Peke right now. Extending the Sonic Screwdriver's tip, he pointed it at the pink-haired girl and deactivated Peke's clothing function, stripping Lala of her clothes.

"Hahahaha!" Bazel laughed. "That's it, Partner!"

"Ara, Alan, why'd you do that for?" she asked him sweetly. Lala wasn't embarrassed to walk around the house in her birthday suit and she had done so plenty of times before and it was bound to happen again a lot more in the future.

He pointed the Sonic Screwdriver at the door, locking it, then swept Lala off her feet.

"Alan?" she questioned.

"I'm about to thank you properly. Oh, and the room's soundproofed so scream as much as you want," he said as he gently lay her on the floor.

A moment later, the room would be filled with the sounds of pleasurable moans from a pink-haired princess.

"Oh, Alan~!"

"That's right. Just say my name..."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And one more adventure added to the books. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it. The Vashta Nerada, aka the Shadows that Melt the Flesh & Piranhas of the Air is one of the scariest Doctor Who monsters. I think they rank as much as the Weeping Angels. Anyway, expect the heavy action continues in the next chapter!**


	135. The Legacy of Cain Part 79

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 79: The Message**

"THIS…IS SO…FUCKING…GAY!" Yuri yelled at the top of his lungs as he stood on a cliff in the canyon. Below, Shinichi and Shego were watching him with the former looking perplexed.

"What's his problem?" Shinichi asked.

"He's homesick, obviously," Shego answered.

"Oh," Shinichi nodded. "That makes sense."

Nearby, sitting on a blanket and having a picnic, was Yuri's family.

Brandon commented after taking a bite out of an apple, "Dad gets like this whenever he's off his world for too long. Then he goes into shit-fits."

Shego responded, "I'm surprised he hasn't killed anyone out of sheer madness yet."

Anastasia smiled, "That just shows he has great control." She was cradling her new baby Anita in her arms. She'd just been born a month ago and it had been quite an interesting experience for her. It all began one night when her water had broken.

* * *

_It was on the 13th May 1989 when Anita Fudo was born..._

_"This must be karma!" Anastasia cried as she was going through child birth._

_"Push, you beautiful slut!" Yuri cried. "You're almost there! Push so you can let go of my fucking hand already!"_

_"Yuri-san, you need to keep calm!" Dr. Irie tried to placate_

_"Then trade places with me, Four-Eyes!" he roared._

_"Oh, shut up and bear with it!" Hana snapped. "What you're going through isn't nearly as bad as what she's going through."_

_"BELIEVE ME, I GET IT!"_

_"Ugh! AGH! WHY DOES THIS HURT SO MUCH!" Anastasia cried._

_"I see the head!" Irie declared._

_"Just keep breathing," Michiru instructed as she went through the motions, "Like this!"_

_Anastasia __glowered at her and__ growled, "If you don't shut up right now I am going to jam my hand down your throat!"_

_"That's my girl!" Yuri laughed before screaming, "YEOW!"_

_"YOU DID THIS TO ME!" Anastasia roared. "ARGH! ARGH!"_

_And then..."WAAAAAAAHHHHH!"_

_"I got her," Dr. Irie claimed, "I got her."_

_Anastasia panted, "Let me...let me see her..."_

_"And that makes 3," Yuri smiled. He was shaking his hand to relieve the pain __while being pleased with Anastasia at the same time__._

_"When I was a Witch, I never felt such great pain." Anastasia held onto the baby who was wrapped in a bundle. "Or great happiness. I felt joy in inflicting pain and terror, but nothing quite like this."_

_"Shego said similar stuff," Yuri nodded._

_Anastasia started crying as she held her baby close before looking up to Yuri, "She's part of me, part of us."_

_"And that's a very frightening thought," Hana quipped_

_"So, what will you name her?" Michiru asked._

_Yuri grinned, "Anita. I can already tell she's gonna look just like her mama."_

_Yuji poked his head through the infirmary door __after all the screaming had finally died down and looked at everyone in the room__. "Did Yuri finish screaming like a bitch?"_

_"FUCK YOU!" __Yuri shouted, his veins popping out on his forehead__._

* * *

Kikyo argued, "Control and Yuri do not belong in the same sentence."

"But it shows that Yuri really misses his family back home," Hana-hime smiled.

"At least he has you all," said Shinichi. "And I'm sure Yuji's handling it a whole lot better than Yuri is."

* * *

"THIS FUCKING SUCKS!" Yuji roared at the top of his lungs as he stood on top of his apartment building.

He sounded angry. Actually, it was much more than that.

Yuji was homesick.

Don't get him wrong. This world wasn't all bad. No world was completely terrible. The problem was that it wasn't his home. The technology was primitive compared to what he was used to back home and he was used to living in a futuristic city with futuristic conveniences. He may have learnt to adapt himself in this world which was in the 20th century while he was born in the 22nd Century. People were still using gasoline for their cars here.

"YOU DAMN BARRIER!-? WHO SET YOU UP!-? WHY DO YOU INSIST ON TRAPPING US HERE!-?" he roared.

"Father?" he heard and Yuji turned to see Wendy standing not too far from him with an inquisitive look on her face.

"Oh, Wendy," Yuji said, looking embarrassed. "How long were you there?"

"Not long," Wendy smiled. She asked, "Do you really hate this world so much?"

"No, just homesick," Yuji corrected.

"Your real home," she realized. Yuji nodded. "Neo Domino City, right?"

"That's right," Yuji nodded. "I haven't seen my parents, my aunts or my uncles since I got married to Misato." That had been Featherine's wedding present for Yuji, to have his whole family attend his wedding.

"That was a long time ago, wasn't it?" Wendy asked.

"It was, a really long time," Yuji nodded. "I don't even know what's going on. They could be in trouble and I wouldn't be there to help them."

"I'm sure they can handle things without you," Wendy said.

"Yeah, I'm sure. But I just want some news from them. Maybe a message," Yuji sighed.

The two heard the tapping of feet and turned to see Maria running up to them with Scrappy scuttling alongside her and her Dragonair, Rune, hanging from her neck like a boa constrictor. She panted, hands to her knees. While Witches were powerful magic users, that didn't mean they had incredible stamina. Yuji thought he should start training Maria a little more physically soon.

"Maria, what's wrong?" Yuji asked urgently.

"Papa! Come see! TV! The news!" she exclaimed between pants.

* * *

_"As you can see, we are flying over what appears to be a recently discovered set of crop circles resembling the Nazca Lines in Southern Peru. There you can see a hummingbird, a spider, a lizard, an orca, a monkey, a large humanoid shape and a condor. But there's one last image that is very detailed."_

The camera zoomed on the image.

_"It appears to resemble a dragon."_

Yuji's eyes widened and he let out, "The Crimson Dragon." It was the symbol of the Crimson Dragon, etched into the earth. And not just that. The other crop circles seemed to resemble the images of the Earthbound Gods.

"What does it mean?" Misato asked.

"It means that someone from back home has managed to find their way here," said Yuji, frowning. From the way he said that, it didn't sound like he was particularly happy about this recent development.

"That's great, right?" Lina asked.

"It's not great if it involves the Earthbounds," Yuji said. He had to call the others. They needed to know about this.

* * *

**Music – "Strategy Conference: Yugioh 5D's"**

As Team 5D's was affiliated with the NEO-NUMBERS, they too were allowed to use the conference table in the main hall. Yuji had called the rest of Team 5D's. Yuri was already at the Hive at the time. Jin had been flying around in Ireland while Kai had been surfing in Okinawa. Yuki had been inNew Jersey. She had moved in with Rhea and stayed with the girl since last Valentine's Day. Rhea was also in attendance.

Since this was an extremely serious matter, Yuji and Yuri's harems were also in attendance.

"OK, earlier, this was shown on TV," Yuji said. He requested, "Sheila, could you bring up the image?"

_"Certainly,"_ Sheila said as the image was brought up.

Yuki recognized the Crimson Dragon, "What is that doing here?"

"Forget about that, check out what's around it," Yuri said, pointing at the crop circles depicting the Earthbound Gods.

"These were found in Southern England only recently," Yuji said.

"OK, what's so important about some drawings in a field?" Jin asked curiously.

"Don't you see, man?" Kai questioned. "Crop circles are a message."

"They look more like the Nazca Lines, actually," Shego frowned. Running around the world had its benefits since she could recognize such images. "But those are only found in the Peruvian Desert."

"Yuji, what significance do these images hold?" Kikyo asked.

"The Earthbound Gods are ancient devils who thrive on death," Yuji began, "Feeding on souls in order to accumulate power. Their goal was to make the Earth a place of complete Death and Darkness. Anastasia would be right at home in a world like that."

Anastasia sounding insulted, remarked, "Hey!"

"I said 'would', so it's theoretical," Yuji tried to defend. "Besides, there are some conditions."

"I'm guessing some of these conditions are bad," Lilith assumed. "Like sacrifice of innocent souls kind of bad?"

"Well first off, you have to be dead in order to use the Earthbound Gods," Yuri grinned.

"Zombies? Uber gross," Kai recoiled as he stuck out his tongue. He never liked zombie movies. The undead were just not to his liking, especially with bloody flesh exposed and worms and maggots crawling all over them.

"Oh don't be such a baby," Anastasia scoffed.

"When a subject is dead, an Earthbound God shall imbue them with their dark energy," Yuki stated, "Allowing them a second chance at undead life under the Earthbound's control. Also, the Earthbound Immortal needs to absorb souls in order to achieve a solid form. At least that's how it was when they were used as Duel Monsters."

"How many souls are we talking about here?" Rhea asked. She needed an exact number, or at least a rough estimate.

"The actual amount is unknown, but it's an incredible quantity," Yuki frowned. "It could be thousands, or millions." Any quantity of innocent souls was bad. It would mean the end of countless lives if these beings were ever summoned. "And it's believed that the more souls they absorb, the stronger they can become. But we don't know that to be true or not."

"How do you know so much about such creatures?" Anastasia asked. "Have you confronted these beings before?"

"Oh, not us. The original Team 5D's did and they kicked those Gods back to the underworld where they belonged," Yuri grinned. He always loved those stories.

"But now it seems someone in this world knows about these Earthbound God things. Someone from your home world?" Jin asked Yuki, Yuri and Yuji.

"Yes, but we're currently blocked from our world at this moment so that should impossible," Yuji frowned. He didn't sound too sure, though.

_"That is not entirely true,"_ Sheila interjected.

"What do you mean, Sheila?" Yuji asked.

_"It is highly possible that whoever who possesses knowledge of these entities known as the Earthbound Gods may have in fact come to this world before the barrier was erected,"_ Sheila theorized.

"It makes sense. It is possible for someone from our world to get here before the barrier came up," Yuji reasoned, "But to have that kind of technology and calculate everything so precisely... They'd have to be a real genius."

"And if a 'genius' is putting their hands into a cookie jar like the Earthbound Gods, then this world won't have long to live," Yuri remarked.

"So what's the plan? We go in and find this guy and pound his face in or what?" Kai asked.

"No," Yuji frowned.

"No?"

"So what's the plan then?" Sora asked.

"It'll be just me, Yuki and Yuri," Yuji said.

"WHAT?" everyone gaped.

"You're just going to leave us behind?" Stella questioned

"You can't be serious!" Shego snapped.

"Wouldn't we be an asset for a mission like this?" Kikyo questioned.

"Yuki?" Rhea looked to the Ice Manakyte.

Yuji blew a loud whistle to quiet everyone down.

"The three of us know the stories, so we have the most knowledge of what we're dealing with," Yuji supported, "And these things can feed on live souls as well. We take a group out and we might as well turn around, bend over and get fucked. Also, the ones who were used by the Earthbound Gods were all duelists. And dueling is right up our alley." Yuki nodded while Yuri grinned manically.

"But, Yuji…" Misato began to protest.

"This isn't up for debate. We're the ones who know the most about the Earthbound Gods," Yuji insisted.

"But you lack the experience of facing them," Anastasia countered.

"Yuji, let us come," Melanie begged, "We can help. You'll need the backup."

Yuji's eyes narrowed, shifting between his peers before he turned his back to them. "Yuri, Yuki, prep up and get ready. We'll leave in 2 hours." And he left the room. However, Misato noticed Yuji trembling as he walked away.

* * *

Two hours later, Yuji, Yuki and Yuri were packed and ready with their respective D-Wheels. Despite the protests and arguments with their loves ones, the three Fudo's had resolved to do this mission by themselves. They had the skills and the cards, but they lacked the experience of facing the Earthbound Gods.

The crop circles were an obvious message for them. The images of the Earthbound Gods were surrounding the Crimson Dragon, which meant that it was a message for them specifically; the descendants of the Signers who'd defeated the Earthbound Gods before.

"We don't have the Signer Dragons. Do you think we stand a chance?" Yuki inquired.

"We do," Yuji nodded, "Besides, this may not be even be a duel. I've been wrong before."

"Yeah, we might be facing the Earthbound Gods themselves, and we can Transcend," Yuri grinned confidently. Well, almost confidently. He wore a manic grin but it was more like a mask to hide what he was actually feeling. "And we got these." He held up GaoTyranno's Gao Jewel in his hand, the violet gemstone shining in his hand.

Misato, Anastasia and Rhea came down to the garage.

"You can't stop us, Misato," Yuji declared.

"We're not," Misato denied. "We're here to see you off on behalf of everybody." She kissed her husband. "Be careful out there." She was worried for him ever since she saw the trembling in his shoulders.

"Don't worry, I will," Yuji nodded.

"Are you scared?" Misato asked.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't," he admitted. He'd heard horror stories about the Earthbound Gods, of what they could do, and what they had done.

"You'll be fine," she said reassuringly. "This can't be worse than the Orochi, right?"

"It just might be," said Yuji. "But we'll fight it all the same." He looked and saw Yuki and Rhea kissing but when he looked to Yuri and Anastasia he scolded, "Yuri, now's not the time!"

Anastasia was stretched along the seat of Yuri's D-Wheel with Yuri on top of her and making out. "What? No time for a quickie?" he asked.

"NO!" Yuki and Yuji shouted in unison.

"You're no fun," Yuri scowled as he helped Anastasia off his D-Wheel. "I'll be back and we can party like two crazy kids in love."

"Looking forward to it, lover," Anastasia grinned, licking her lips.

"Sheila," Yuji called. "Open a Teleportal for those coordinates I gave you."

_"Affirmative. Locked onto coordinates. Activating Teleportal,"_ said Sheila. The portal opened, swirling green with a glowing tunnel within. _"Have a nice day."_

"Hopefully," Yuji muttered as he pulled the visor over his eyes.

"Ike!" Yuri cheered as they raced straight into the tunnel.

"Anyone else got a bad feeling about this?" Rhea asked

"Darling, you just voiced out what we were all thinking," Anastasia remarked.

"Yuji, be careful," Misato whispered.

* * *

In an undisclosed location, there was a tunnel made of stone with flaming torches lining the walls. The walls were decorated with drawings depicting the Earthbound Gods and the Signer Dragons in a heated battle for supremacy with the fate of the world in the balance. It was like a story with the pictures telling it scene-by-scene. However, the end of the story was different from what had originally occurred. In these drawing it showed the Earthbound Gods had become victorious, the Signer Dragons slain, and the Crimson Dragon itself defeated and surrounded by the Earthbound Gods who were taunting it.

The tunnel led to a large chamber with the statues of the Earthbound Gods standing tall over individual thrones. Uru the Spider, Aslla Piscu the Hummingbird, Cusillu the Monkey, Ccarayhua the Lizard, Ccapac Apu the Giant, Chacu Challhua the Orca and finally Wiraqocha Rasca the Condor. The thrones and statues were arranged in a semi-circle and in each throne sat a cloaked and hooded figure. Their dark clothes were decorated with the markings of their respective Earthbound God; red for Uru, orange for Aslla Piscu, yellow for Cusillu, green for Ccarayhua, blue for Ccapac Apu, indigo for Chacu Challhua and violet for Wiraqocha Rasca.

Kneeling before them was someone dressed in dark robes as well and on his back, arranged in a circle, were drawings of the Nazca Lines which had contained the sealed Earthbound Gods for 5,000 years from their world.

"Have you sent the message, priest?" the one who sat under the statue of Uru the Spider asked.

"Yes, I have, Lord Uru," the dark priest before them responded.

"And they will come, for certain?" the one who sat under the statue of Ccarayhua asked, who sounded female. The slender build hidden by the dark cloak was evidence enough.

"They will. They cannot ignore this," the priest confirmed.

"Good, then we must prepare for their arrival," the one who sat under the statue of Wiraqocha Rasca said. "The children of the Signers will help us become stronger, become whole, with their very souls."

* * *

"OK, why did Sheila drop us off near an English village?" Yuri asked.

"It was the closest populated area to the crop circle phenomenon," Yuki informed. "You know, where they were found."

"If anyone knows anything, then this is a good place to start," Yuji said. "Come on, let's go find a pub."

"For a drink?" Yuri asked eagerly.

"For information. Now, get off your D-Wheels and roll them next to you. We don't wanna make too much noise," Yuji informed.

* * *

The village of Woodsworth was a peaceful community. The people here normally worked in their own family's trade. They didn't normally get visitors but whenever they did there were always polite.

Well, they used to be. As Yuji, Yuri and Yuki entered the village, they noticed how it was quiet. Yuki looked up and saw people closing their windows and drawing their curtains quickly at the sight of them.

"OK, friendly town," Yuri remarked sarcastically.

"We're strangers so they have a right to be wary," Yuki reasoned.

"Well, hopefully the people at the pub will be much friendlier," Yuji wished.

"I wouldn't bet on it, bro. I wouldn't bet on it," Yuri countered.

The village's local pub-the village's only pub-was called the 'Thirsty Mule'. Inside, patrons would share drinks and exchange stories', bragging about whatever it was that was on the subject. Sitting at a table, alone, was an attractive young man who could be mistaken for a woman due to his androgynous appearance. He had wild and vibrant blood red hair with matching red-rimmed glasses. He also wore a red overcoat over a white dress shirt, brown vest, black pants and red boots. He was having a drink while reading the local paper.

A drunk came onto his table and asked, "Say…you pretty lass…how's about you and I share a drink?"

The man rolled his eyes before grimacing in disgust, pinching his nose. "Sorry, but I'm male. And even if I swing that way (_which I do_), I have higher standards." Looking out the window, he spotted a familiar face and smiled. "Like that!" He shoved the drunkard aside and went straight for the door.

"Well, this is the place," Yuji nodded. "Now let's go-"

"YUJI~!" the redhead flew out the door and crashed into Yuji, nearly knocking him to the ground. He held the Manakyte tightly in a loving embrace. "Oh, how I missed you!"

"Grell Sutcliffe!-?" Yuji gaped. He hadn't seen him since that time they were inLondon.

"Onii-sama, who is this?" Yuki asked. "And why is he hugging you like that?"

"Grell! Get off, dammit," Yuji growled as he shoved Grell off. "You know I'm straight! Plus I'm married, for fuck's sake!"

"Oh, but don't you remember that passionate kiss we shared?" Grell reminded, smiling sultrily. His cheeks were flushed as he put his hands on the side of his face, wiggling back and forth. "Our lips were joined and there was so much heat and chemistry between us!"

Yuki and Yuri both looked to Yuji for an explanation. Yuki had her right eyebrow cocked while Yuri was grinning, wanting to know the full details.

"A kiss?" Yuki asked.

"You kissed a guy!" Yuri almost laughed.

Yuji growled and cracked his brother over the head. "It was strictly business! And I was Yui at the time!"

"But even though your body was female, I still enjoyed it!" Grell declared. "Our hearts were beating rapidly together!" he let out melodramatically.

"Please someone shut him up…" Yuji begged. It hadn't been his proudest moment and he rather not be reminded. Alan and Shinichi had the decency to not mention it since.

"What kind of business would require you to kiss this man?" Yuki asked. She looked back to Grell, "Speaking of which, who are _you_?"

"Grell Sutcliffe of the British Grim Reaper Dispatch Society," Grell bowed. "It's a pleasure to meet you all." He smiled at Yuji, "And a pleasure to see you again as well."

"Oh by the Crimson Dragon!" Yuri chortled. "I can't wait to tell everyone back home about this!"

"First: the guys and I needed info from Grell," Yuji answered Yuki. He then turned to Yuri and warned in a deep and threatening tone, "Second: if you say anything, Yuri, I will beat your face in so bad that even worms wouldn't wanna look at you."

"Maybe we should all go inside for a round of drinks? My treat!" Grell invited.

* * *

Back in the pub, the four sat at the table together. Yuji sat far from Grell with his sister and brother between them.

"So, how do you know our brother, Sutcliffe-san?" Yuki asked politely.

"We met in London. At the time I was on assignment for the Society. There was an inconsistency between the numbers of deaths and souls being collected at the time," Grell recalled.

"And then you ended up in Japan," Yuji added. "Alan told me about it."

"If he told you then you know of the rogue Grim Reaper Kyoko who murdered people and stole their souls to prolong her own lifespan," Grell explained. "But that wasn't the only time I was in the Land of the Rising Sun." Grell took a sip of beer.

"Where else were you?" Yuji inquired.

"Oh, I was in Kyoto cutting up some metal men," he shrugged.

"Cybermen," Yuji concluded.

"Yes, and they were strange indeed. The human bodies were dead but not the brains. I had to rectify the situation," Grell remembered. "And I even did some shopping before the Yamata no Orochi appeared. I must say it was indeed an amazing sight, a massive knight in shining armor facing a dragon like the old fairy tales." He let out a sigh afterwards. "I was also in Shishibone City last February."

Yuji could only think of one thing that would require Grell's attention and stated, "The Weeping Angels."

"Oh, we prefer to call them the 'Lonely Assassins'," Grell replied. "Those things really make things complicated for the records department. We Grim Reaper hold the records of when people are born and when they're supposed to die, so it was really frustrating to change all that information. Imagine having to list someone who was born in 1956 as dead in 1912."

"I'm guessing you're also in this village on business," Yuki assumed. "Reaper business."

"Yes, and it's the reason why everybody in the pub is staring at us," Grell added. "Lots of funny stuff has been going on."

"And not the funny ha-ha kind," Yuri added.

"Not in the slightest."

"OK, so what's been going on that spooks locals enough to stay indoors?" Yuji asked.

"It all started when those crop circles were discovered last week," said Grell. "Many people came to see them but people are saying that those markings are unnatural and are a bad omen. Also, people claim that those pictures come alive at night."

"Anything else?" Yuji prompted.

"If you wish to know more then you must come with me to the local hospital," Grell invited.

* * *

Grell, Yuji, Yuki and Yuri entered the hospital. The red-haired Grim Reaper was leading them up the stairs towards a ward. "It's right here," Grell said as he pushed the door open. Inside were two rows of bed, each with a person sleeping, each on life support. They were in comas.

"All of them are in comas," Yuki observed.

"The doctor here is a drinking buddy of mine," Grell said. "And let me tell you, when he's drunk he can't keep his mouth shut! Always flapping his lips and giving away sensitive information."

"So, what can you tell us?" Yuji asked.

"Oh, I'm not a doctor, but I can tell you this…" Grell went up and whispered to Yuji, "All these poor people are suffering from soul deprivation."

"I thought so," Yuji frowned. This was the work of the Earthbound Gods after all.

"Now, since I've given you information, it's time for you to give me information in return. And don't deny it. It's the only reason you'd be here in the first place," Grell grinned.

"I suspect this situation is the work of old enemies of our family," Yuji answered. "They're called Earthbound Gods."

"They don't ring a bell," Grell denied, tapping his chin. He'd never heard of such beings before and he'd been around since the last century.

"That's because they're not from this world," Yuji frowned, "They're from ours and they don't belong here."

Yuri grinned, "We're here to send those bitches back to hell!"

* * *

The eyes of the statues over the thrones glowed and the priest stared up at his seven masters.

"Masters, what is it?" he asked.

"They are here," the being whom sat under the spider statue said. "Perfect."

* * *

"Well, at least we know we're starting on the right track," Yuji said.

Suddenly, panicked screaming was heard outside the ward. Grell and the Fudo's ran out to see what all the commotion about. Going down the stairs, they saw what was going on in the lobby.

**Music – "Enemy Attack: Yugioh 5D's"**

It was a monster with black skin. It was humanoid in appearance and stood on two legs with long claws. Two pairs of spider-like legs were attached to its shoulder blades. It also had eight glowing red eyes covering its face. On its chest was a glowing red outline of a spider, like the one from the Nazca Lines.

It was attacking staff and patients alike, spitting out balls of webbing which coated the helpless people in cocoons. It clicked its mandibles, scraping its claws along the floor as its eyes rotated in different directions, looking for new prey.

The creature was a Familiar of Uru the Spider.

Yuki pointed, "That mark..."

"Looks like they've saved us the trouble," Yuri grinned.

Yuji's eyes narrowed, "Spider... Earthbound God Uru!"

The Spider Familiar heard the name and all its eyes stared at Yuji. It clicked its mandibles together and scraped its claws together. It reared its head back and shot a ball of wet webbing directly at Yuji.

Drawing the Red Queen, and enveloping it in fire, he swung it down and incinerated the ball of webbing. With his other hand, he slung his belt on and charged at the monster. It struck at Yuji who ducked and stabbed his Red Queen into its chest. The Spider Familiar howled as the Red Queen was stuck in its chest as Yuji took out his Rider Pass and pressed a button on his belt.

"Henshin!"

He swiped the pass across the buckle.

**"ZERO FORM!"**

Once his armor was formed, the claws unfolded. He reached towards his Red Queen and drew it out from the Spider Familiar.

"Visiting hours are over!" Liger Zero roared. He tackled into the Spider Familiar and carried it outside of the hospital where they had more space to fight.

"Come on!" Yuri yelled as he ran after his brother. "I ain't missing this!"

"Oh, now this is exciting!" said Grell as he went to follow. 'And I thought this was going to be a boring assignment but now it's going to be a festival of DEATH!'

Outside, Liger Zero slashed at the Spider Familiar repeatedly, cutting into its body as black blood splashed about. This creature was surprisingly resilient. But this was getting annoying. He revved the Red Queen's engine and spun, slashing into the Familiar with flames and steel. The Spider Familiar howled in pain and hissed before jumping backwards and making some distance between itself and Liger Zero. Its eyes glowed and it fired a series of energy beams simultaneously at the white-clad Rider. A beam hit his hand, knocking the Red Queen out of his grip, and he was bombarded with explosions erupting all around him.

Yuki, Yuri and Grell all saw this happening and Yuri growled. Nobody was allowed to beat up his brother but him. Slinging on a similar belt, he ran towards the battle as he called out, "Henshin!" swiping his Rider Pass across the buckle, causing it to emit an eerie violet light upon its activation.

**"GENO FORM!"**

The Spider Familiar continued to fire its optical lasers at Liger Zero while it should've been watching its surroundings. Kamen Rider Geno's fist met with the Spider Familiar's chin, knocking its head up to fire its beams skywards instead. He then buried his other fist into the creature's stomach, directly in the centre of the symbol, and the force of the punch blasted him across through the air.

"Oi, Yuji!" Geno called. "Are you just going to let yourself get beaten? Where's the guy who beat Gnol Gnauh?"

Liger Zero recovered and rotated his shoulders. He picked up the Red Queen and also the blue button, he advanced on the Spider Familiar as it was starting to recover.

The pass was swiped and scanned by the belt.

**"JAGER FORM!"**

His white armor was replaced with blue armor plating and the ionic boosters propelled him at high speeds. The Spider Familiar saw this and fired its optical lasers, only to miss as Liger Jäger zigzagged to avoid being hit. Once in range he slashed the Spider Familiar with the Red Queen, the blade ripping sparks and dark blood from the creature. He unleashed a furious flurry of strikes, not giving the Spider Familiar a chance to retaliate.

"Time to finish this," Geno grinned as he swiped the pass across his belt.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

He threw back his head and roared, smashing his tail down against the ground with enough force to crack it. He then jumped up and pulled his knees to his chest as he performed a rolling attack, his tail glowing.

Liger Jäger, hearing the 'full charge' announcement, saw a glowing ball of violet energy falling from the sky. Staggering the Spider Familiar with one last strike, he retreated to avoid what was coming next.

Geno reached his target and his tail bashed into the Spider Familiar's head with immense force. The blow was followed by an explosion. Geno casually walked from the flames. Once the flames subsided, the Spider Familiar came stumbling out before falling facedown. Slowly, the creature's inhuman features changed and he reverted back into the form of a man in a jacket and blue jeans with grey hair and a beard. There was a mark on the back of his hand resembling a spider but it faded away as a spider crawled away from the body. The spider then fell belly up with its legs pointed up before it faded into black smoke.

**End Music**

Yuki inspected the man's body. "He's hurt," she said. She could hear sirens. "Sounds like the police are coming." She said to her brothers, "You two should find someplace to hide and change back." She helped the man back up to his feet. He was unconscious, but Yuki could manage on her own.

"Take care of things here, sis," Geno saluted before he fled. Liger Jäger then ran away, making a blue blur.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: And we have the beginning to another arc. It appears that the Earthbound Gods have wormed their way into Showa's world and are gunning for the children of their most hated enemies. Lord only knows where things may lead from here.**


	136. The Legacy of Cain Part 80

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 80: The Madness**

After the commotion, where witnesses reported the fight but fortunately did not witness Yuji and Yuri's transformation, the group decided they should stay in the village. They found an inn with vacancies and rented two rooms, with two members of their group taking one.

Yuji and Yuri were sharing a room, leaving Yuki to share a room with Grell.

"I wanted to room with Yuji!" Grell whined as he bit on his sleeve in agitation.

"That's the reason why Onii-sama won't room with you," Yuki pointed out. It seemed that Grell admired Yuji in a romantic way. Unfortunately, Yuji did not reciprocate. It was Yuji's fault, though. If he hadn't turned into Yui and kissed Grell then the Grim Reaper wouldn't have behaved like this.

Meanwhile, Yuji was pacing back and forth with Yuri lying on the bed with his hands behind the back of his head. "Stop pacing. You're gonna dig a trench in my brain," Yuri complained.

Yuji ignored his brother. He was thinking about the Familiar he'd fought. It had been a human, corrupted and mutated into a monster. Upon its defeat, the unfortunate victim reverted back to human form. This was almost like the time his father Yusei and his uncle Jack had faced against duelists controlled by the spider mark.

It was the mark of Uru, the Earthbound God of Spiders.

"The Earthbound Gods are trying to revive themselves fully and they need souls. Lots of souls," said Yuji. The comatose patients in the hospital ward were proof of that and Grell had confirmed. "But this village doesn't have enough souls to do that."

"Maybe this is just the first stop," Yuri suggested. "A light snack before the main course. Heck, it's what I would do if I was anything like them."

Yuji ignored Yuri's last comment. "They're going to need a large city," he calculated. "But why did they manifest here? And why send us a message?"

"Revenge, obviously," Yuri scoffed, "Mom, Dad and the others beat them, and beat them good, so now they want payback."

"But why come all the way to this world?" Yuji asked.

"Who knows?" Yuri shrugged. "But we're here now and, like the Signers, we'll send them back to the abyss where they belong." It was a fight that he was looking forward to. He was getting edgy without being able to return to his real home and he wanted to vent his frustrations out on something. He was stretching out his arms and legs as he gave out a yawn, "For now let's just sleep. We can always continue in the morning."

Yuji rarely agreed with his twin brother but this was one of those times when one of Yuri's suggestions made sense. Besides, Yuji was tired and he was going to need to be at full strength to continue their investigation tomorrow.

As Yuji got into bed and pulled the covers over himself, several small figures were making their way towards the inn. They scaled the wall and were headed for the windows.

* * *

Back in Yuki and Grell's room, the two were having a conversation. "If you're a Grim Reaper, where's your scythe?"

"This is it!" Grell announced as he pulled his trusty chainsaw out of nowhere. Yuki blinked.

"A chainsaw…is called a Death Scythe?" That didn't make sense, really. In her imagination, a scythe was a long and curved blade with a long shaft.

"Oh, a Death Scythe is just the general term we use to describe our tools," Grell clarified. "And I had mine custom made, you see. You can't believe how much paperwork I had to fill out to have this baby approved!"

"If it's custom made, then does that mean no two Reapers have the same weapons?" Yuki inquired.

"Well, there are the traditionalists who prefer to be old-fashioned and stick to scythes, but I'm one of those who prefer something unique. There's also one of us who uses a lawnmower as his Death Scythe," Grell explained.

"…A lawnmower?" Now he had to making stuff up. How could one even begin to use a lawnmower as a Death Scythe?

"As long as it can reap souls it doesn't really matter what it looks like, darling," Grell smiled.

Suddenly, the two heard a crash. It sounded like glass being smashed.

"What in the world was that?-!" Grell shrieked, the sound of a crash and smashing glass scaring the daylights out of him.

"That sounded like it came nearby," Yuki gasped, "Come on!"

Yuki and Grell exited their room and heard the noise coming from the room across the hall, Yuri and Yuji's room.

"GET OFF ME!" that sounded like Yuri. "GET YOUR STINKING PAWS OFF ME!"

"We have to get inside!" Yuki drew her Desert Eagles.

"Allow me," Grell volunteered as he revved up his Death Scythe. "Let the party of DEATH begin!"

In the blink of an eye the door was sawed to pieces and Grell entered, declaring, "Yuji, your lovely Grell is here!" He screamed as a monkey landed on his face. "ARGH! Get this filthy creature off me!" He grabbed it and tossed it to the wall.

There were monkeys all over the room, howling, screeching, and making a general nuisance of themselves. One of them was on Yuri's head and pulling at his hair. Yuji, at the time, was trying to grab a monkey that was crawling all over his body and biting him. He danced around as it got under his shirt and was scratching at his body. He grabbed its tail and tossed it away.

The monkeys laughed like lunatics, bouncing around. They simply goaded the brothers on, taunting them some more before going on the attack again.

Of course they were not normal monkeys. They were black, with glowing yellow eyes and on their bellies was the Nazca Line drawing representing the monkey.

These were the Familiars of the Earthbound God, Cusillu.

Yuri yanked off the monkey on his head and tossed it to the ground but then several more monkeys jumped him and pushed him to the ground, scratching and clawing at him as he tried to fight them off. Yuji came and kicked them off his brother's body.

"Don't move!" Yuki yelled as she took aim and fired her Desert Eagles. The bullets hit the Monkey Familiars, freezing them in blocks of ice. This startled the rest and, seeing as Yuki had her guns aimed to kill, the surviving Monkey Familiars fled, making their escape through the window they had shattered.

Yuri got up to the window and yelled, "YEAH, YOU BETTER RUN YOU STINKING PRIMATES!"

SPLAT!

Something brown, wet, smooshy and smelly hit his face. He went rigid. He put his hand to his face and wiped the stuff off.

"The fuck?-!" Yuri shouted as he looked down at the brown remnants on his hand and then turned back to the others in the room. "Guys, please tell me that wasn't what I think it was," said Yuri in an even voice.

"We can't," Yuji shook his head, backing away in disgust.

Yuri's eyes gained an insane look of fury as he declared, "Alright! No monkey makes a monkey out of Yuri Fudo and gets away with it! Come on! It's monkey hunting season!" He stormed out the door.

"We better follow him before he causes even more damage," Yuji beckoned.

"You mean those filthy monkeys, right?" Grell questioned.

"Grell, you don't know my brother. He's dangerous when he's normal (_if that were even possible_), but now he's pissed. If he had his way this place would be a crater," said Yuji as he put on his jacket and followed after Yuri with Yuki in tow. Grell followed after them, wanting to see the show. They passed by the innkeeper and Yuji said, "We'll pay for the damages later," before exiting the inn and following Yuri's trail.

* * *

Kamen Rider Geno (Geno Form) roared as he swiped at the Monkey Familiars. Their size made them targets too small to hit and they were agile, making it almost impossible to hit. Of course that didn't mean he didn't try at all.

"Come on, you little bastards!" Geno roared as he put his foot down, crushing a Monkey Familiar under his boot. "You mess with me, you get the claws!" He swiped his Saber Claws, slicing a Monkey Familiar to pieces but they kept popping up like weeds. "Just how many of you pests are there!-?"

Yuji, Yuki and Grell came to see Geno fighting in the middle of the village's park. At least there were no witnesses.

"Well, at least he hasn't tried to use his charged particle cannon on them," Yuji sighed.

"I'm guessing that would be bad," Grell assumed.

"Indeed, but the targets are small and we're in a populated area," Yuki reminded.

"Since when has that ever stopped him?" Yuji asked rhetorically. He slung on his belt. "Excuse me. This is going to need precision. Henshin!"

**"SCHNEIDER FORM!"**

"Ooh~, nice!" Grell admired the orange-armored Liger Schneider who dashed towards combat. "Wait for me you sexy beast~!" Grell followed as he brandished his Death Scythe.

Yuki shook her head but went ahead with her Desert Eagles. Once she saw her targets she fired. Monkey Familiars leaping in midair were frozen solid and when they crashed they shattered to pieces. Grell was doing his share as he sang a morbid song while cutting the Monkey Familiars down with his chainsaw. He also made sure they never got close. One did manage to grab onto the hem of his overcoat and in his fury he decapitated them.

The headless bodies twitched and went still before evaporating into dark smoke.

Liger Schneider's Vi-Blades swung through the air as he swiped his arms, cutting the Monkey Familiars to pieces. He was here not just for them but to keep an eye on his brother. He was close to snapping and when Yuri was close to snapping everyone suffered the consequences.

As far as Yuri was concerned this was not a battle. This was pest control which, when applied to someone like Yuri, usually meant extermination.

"DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, YOU LITTLE FUCKING BASTARDS!" Geno roared as he smashed his tail repeatedly upon several Monkey Familiars who were probably already dead from the first blow. He was letting off steam from when he had feces thrown in his face. He'd never been so humiliated in his life.

And those who humiliated him tended to have their lifespan cut short.

The surviving Monkey Familiars leapt and bounced away, yowling and howling before turning to face the two Riders, their sister and the Grim Reaper. They grinned, revealing their sharp teeth and then they started to pile onto each other.

"OK, what are they doing? Having a sick monkey orgy?" Geno asked as he stared. Liger Schneider kept his eyes on the phenomenon, ready for just about anything.

The pile of Monkey Familiars began to merge together and reform into a humanoid form with a long tail. It was covered in dark fur with long arms and fingers. The arms reached down to the ground with the creature's knees bent. Its tail was as long as it was tall and its monkey-like face looked ferocious.

The Monkey Familiars had merged into a human-sized form and as it beat its chest with its fists, it let loose a howl that made the air quake.

"Now this is more like it!" Geno grinned.

"Yuri, this is no time for playing games," said Liger Schneider but he was ignored as Geno charged at the Monkey Familiar. "Why do I even bother telling him no?" he asked himself.

Geno took a swipe at the Monkey Familiar with his Saber Claws only for it to leap up to dodge. It landed on its tail which had become spring-like. It stuck its tongue at Geno and blew a raspberry, taunting him. Growling, Geno charged but was smacked in the face by the Monkey Familiar's hand when its arm stretched, knocking Geno to the ground.

Liger Schneider attacked the Monkey Familiar from the side and it jumped backwards to avoid him. Liger Schneider jumped after him and threw his fist down and his Vi-Blade went through the spring. The Monkey Familiar gasped and then received a punch from Geno.

"Stand aside, boys," Yuki called as she took aim at the Monkey Familiar and fired. Ice bullets hit it and froze portions of the Monkey Familiar, the bullets' impacts causing it pain.

"Time to finish this," Liger Schneider said as he swiped his Pass across his belt.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

Tossing the Pass away, which Grell caught, Liger Schneider charged at the Monkey Familiar with his Vi-Blades were all extended forward. It leapt into the air but Liger Schneider followed as he roared, **"BUSTER…SLASH!"**

The Monkey Familiar was hit and it exploded, its remains evaporating into black smoke as Yuji landed once his armor deactivated itself.

Yuji dusted off his hands. "OK, that monkey would be a servant to Cusillu, the Monkey Earthbound God."

Grell was soon by Yuji's side with his Rider Pass in hand. "Here you go handsome~!" Grell said, causing Yuji to blanch a bit at the close contact that the Grim Reaper was giving him.

"Y-yeah…thanks," Yuji replied in a slightly quizzical voice as he took his pass and stuffed it in his pocket.

"But why did Cusillu send them?" Yuki asked.

"Probably just to mess with us," Yuji guessed as he moved away from Grell. "Now we know for sure that we're their targets. That message was for us after all."

"Where do I send a reply?" Yuri asked eagerly with a maniacal look in his eyes.

"First we need to go back to the inn and get some rest," Yuji said.

* * *

"There they are, officer! They're the ones who destroyed one of my rooms! And a door!" the innkeeper cried accusingly as Yuji and the others returned. There was a police car and an officer in front of the inn.

"Let me do the talking," Yuji volunteered.

"So, you're the ones," the uniformed officer identified. "I'm Officer Lewis of Woodsworth PD. Are you all new in town?"

"Yes, we came earlier," Yuji nodded. "What seems to be the problem?"

"Oh, Mr. Lark is just complaining about the noise earlier. Claimed you destroyed a window, tore up a room, and cut a door to pieces."

The Fudo's glanced at Grell who was guilty for the last part.

"Actually, there's a good reason for that," Yuji said, "You see, my brother frequently suffers from night terrors."

"Night terrors?" Officer Lewis cocked an eyebrow, skeptical.

"Yes, very violent ones and he also has a sleepwalking problem so when he gets a night terror things break all the time," said Yuji.

"And you brought him all the way here?" Officer Lewis prodded.

"We thought a change of scenery would be good," Yuji answered.

"Are you tourists?" Officer Lewis asked.

"Just here to visit after we heard about the crop circles," Yuji nodded.

Officer Lewis groaned. "Again with those bloody crop circles! Do you know what I think they are? Marks of vandalism! Oh, sure the field doesn't belong to anybody but people are wasting time over some pictures like that! There are better things to do around here than stand around ogling those things!" said Officer Lewis.

"But you have to admit they attract tourists to your lovely little village," Yuji argued.

"They've been attracting nothing but trouble! Some people are even claiming they're cursed and the cause of all the comas around here," Officer Lewis grumbled. "I don't believe in curses, but I do believe something odd is going around here."

"Yes, indeed," Yuji agreed.

"I heard a monster attacked the hospital! A monster!" Officer Lewis let out. "Don't get me started on monsters! I moved here to stay away from monsters! I was in London when that dragon appeared and those saltshaker robots too! Now monsters in this town! It looks like nowhere is safe anymore in this world."

"I have to agree with you on that," Yuji nodded.

"Officer, what about my inn?" the innkeeper asked.

"Oh, yes, the inn," Officer Lewis remembered.

"I'll pay for the damages," promised Yuji. "Just add it to my bill."

"But what about your room? There are no more vacancies," inquired Officer Lewis.

"We can arrange something."

* * *

"OK, so all four of us in a small room," said Yuri.

"I vote to sleep in the same bed with Yuji!" Grell raised his hand!

"Denied!" Yuji crossed his arms in an X. "Yuri and I'll take the floor. We have sleeping bags."

"Yuuujiiii~!" Grell whined, causing the others to look at the pair with estranged looks. Yuri looked to his sister and leaned in to whisper into her ear.

"How much you wanna bet that Mr. Creepy there tries to sneak into bro's sleeping bag in the middle of the night?" He made sure to keep his voice low enough to where Yuji wouldn't be able to hear them.

Yuki just gave him a blank stare, "No need to bet. It's probably bound to happen if this keeps up."

* * *

"First immortality...then the bitches," Yuri grinned in his sleep as he lay dreaming.

Yuki and Grell were fast asleep as Yuji stared at the ceiling with his hands behind his head. He had spent so much time here in this world; it was like he was starting to forget what his true home was like. Of course he would never forget his home world, but there was a sense of longing in his heart that he couldn't ignore. There were good people here, people that were his friends and people that he loved. Some of his lovers he'd met came from this world, and Misato was one of them; his beautiful wife. He dated her on a whim at first but then it bloomed into love and they even had a child together.

Thinking of his family already made him lonely, but he was on a mission. The Earthbound Gods had wandered into this world and they wanted payback for what Yuji's parents had done to them. That meant that this world is in serious danger. It was Misato's world, Yuna's world, Maria's world, Sora's world and Shizuko's world. He'd be damned if he let anything happen to them.

"I must be getting soft," Yuji sighed to himself, "Soft like a marshmallow. Misato's boobs are like marshmallows. Big, soft, squishy marshmallows I can sink my teeth into..." he started drooling as he imagined his sensual feast. "Misato..."

* * *

Back in the coma ward, something was lurking in the shadows. Actually, a lot of things were lurking in the shadows. A nurse on duty had a flashlight on and was checking the ward. When she saw that nothing was wrong she turned only to let out a cry of fright which was immediately muffled.

* * *

The morning wakeup call came in the form of a rooster crowing. It was loud and noisy and it made Yuji shoot up from his lying down position. "I'm up! I'm up!" he yelled out. He yawned, smacking his lips. He looked out the window. "Morning already?"

Yuri was in the neighboring sleeping bag, a trail of drool flowing from his mouth. Yuji stretched and got up to see Yuki still asleep. He looked to the bed with Grell in it only to see the Grim Reaper gone.

"Oh, Yuji…" Grell purred from behind him. "How's about a good morning kiss?" he asked, puckering his lips. The very sight nearly made Yuji vomit on the spot.

"No way," he groaned as he shoved Grell away and exited the room to get some breakfast.

"I love it when they play hard to get," Grell giggled as he followed after him.

* * *

The inn had a dining area and Yuji ordered a standard breakfast set of toast, baked beans, sunny-side up eggs, a side of bacon and a cup of coffee. As he sat down to enjoy his breakfast, Grell planted himself in the chair across from him, batting his eyes at him.

Yuji sighed. Grell seemed not only attracted to him, but obsessed with him. If Yuji could go back in time and change things, it would be when he became Yui and kissed Grell for information.

"Grell, please…that was business," Yuji told him slowly.

"But I remembered tongue," Grell grinned, exposing his shark-like teeth. "Oh, come on! Is it so bad to be with me?"

"I'm straight," Yuji reminded. "I only made myself a girl so it was more bearable."

"If you could turn yourself into a girl, then you could make me one too, right?" Grell asked. "All my life I've been cursed to be beautiful but never to be in the right body! I'm like a woman trapped in a man's body!"

"Sorry, but I left my bullets and gun at home," Yuji sighed, "And even if I did bring them I doubt they would work on someone like you since I've only tested them on myself and Alan for a bet. That shit was hilarious." Yuji remembered that bet fondly and how much he had antagonized Alan about it for the whole week. Though, the small visit from Misato during that time was also something he hadn't expected but he did enjoy it.

"Really, do tell?" Grell asked as he listened in. Yuji just gave him a serious look.

"Anyway, I've got enough shit on my mind without you constantly hitting on me. Pretty soon I'm gonna be facing down evil gods who got a grudge against my parents and I know exactly what they're gonna say." He mocked, "_Oh, we're the Earthbound Gods and we're gonna take over this world because Yusei and his friends fucked us up in our world_." He added, "Also, I have a loving family and good friends. And if anything happens (_aka you_) I'd lose all credibility with them, my wife and especially my kids who look up to me. Not to mention I haven't been home in like HOW MANY FUCKING YEARS!" He slumped forward, his forehead banging the table as he mumbled, "I don't even know what my family is doing or if they're alright..."

Now, Grell was a lot of things, a bloodthirsty killer being among them, but even he could be sympathetic to Yuji's plight. "Oh, you poor baby. You're homesick."

"That's a rather blunt understatement, Grell," Yuji retorted.

"It can't be all bad, right? You said so yourself. You have a wife, children and people who love you in this world. Isn't it true that home is where the heart is?"

"I know what I said. I...I just don't want to forget where I came from," he sighed, "Besides, there's someone I wanted to kill recently and not having my chance has made me somewhat agitated."

"This someone must've really made you angry," Grell assumed.

Yuji remembered the things Shiro had done to Shizuko and gritted his teeth. "Yes, he did horrible things and he died before I could make him pay."

Grell leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. Yuji seemed to have a lot of emotional trouble and this whole matter with the Earthbound Gods seemed to be reminding the Manakyte about his home world. Grell wished he could help him but the Grim Reaper Dispatch Society didn't have any methods for traveling to other worlds so Yuji was essentially stuck here.

He then blinked when he heard Yuji chuckling. "What's so funny?"

"These Earthbounds have given me the perfect excuse to cut loose," Yuji chuckled with a manic grin. "It's no problem... I can just kill them. It's easy, since I have killed before; since _we've_ killed before. We've killed so much that it's almost become second nature! Yes, we can kill these so-called Gods. And if they revive, then we can kill them again... And again...And again...And again...And again!"

Grell was taken aback by this. While he himself had done horrible and despicable things in the past, hearing such things coming from Yuji's mouth was just strange. This wasn't how Yuji was supposed to behave. Sure, Grell had witnessed the worst in humanity and had participated but Yuji wasn't human.

And Yuji didn't seem at all stable at the moment.

The door to the inn opened up and the innkeeper welcomed his latest guest. "Welcome to my inn, sir. Is there anything you'd like?"

The man removed his sunglasses, revealing pure green eyes which glowed. He hissed and shot a forked tongue at the innkeeper, causing him to recoil in fright. "It's the devil! Monster!" he shouted.

"And that's my cue!" Yuji grinned as he finished the rest of his breakfast and coffee in a single gulp to confront the next creature who would be unfortunate enough to suffer his wrath. The green-eyed, fork-tongue man saw Yuji approaching. "I guess one of your masters sent you, right? And after me too?" He spread his arms. "Well, here I am! So why don't you shed that disguise and show me what you really look like?"

The man exposed his sharp teeth as his skin became dark and scaly. His clothes vanished as he changed, assuming the form of a humanoid reptile with the image of the Nazca Line lizard on his belly. Bending its knees, it sprung towards Yuji with jaws open and claws ready to rip the Manakyte to shreds.

Yuji's response was to raise his leg and hit the creature in the jaw with the heel of his boot. He then used a straight punch to throw it out the inn.

"Hey, innkeeper! If we get rid of this thing for you do we get a discount?" Yuji asked.

"No!" the innkeeper shouted.

Yuji shrugged, "Well, it was worth a shot!" He ran out to confront the Lizard Familiar. It saw him and hissed. It clawed at Yuji and he caught its wrist before he head-butted its face. He then drove his fist into its stomach, causing it to double over. The Lizard Familiar staggered and then started to run.

"You're not running anywhere!" Yuji shouted as he got on his D-Wheel, started the engine, and went in pursuit of the Lizard Familiar. He already had his belt on and as the engine roared whilst racing along the road, he called out, "Henshin!"

Meanwhile, a hummingbird flew through the open door as the innkeeper tried to catch his breath. The hummingbird hovered in front of him. "Shoo! Shoo!" he said, swatting the hummingbird away. It tilted its head and then shot towards the man's forehead, stabbing its needle-thin beak into his forehead.

* * *

**Music – "Die, Motherfucker, Die!" by Dope**

The Lizard Familiar ran, spooking villagers, as Liger Zero was in hot pursuit. The Lizard Familiar spun around and shot its long, prehensile tongue at Liger Zero who caught the appendage in his hand. The Lizard Familiar gawked for a mere moment at seeing his tongue getting caught within Liger Zero's grasp. Yuji then sped up, past the Lizard Familiar, and the monster was dragged helplessly behind him, its body scarping along the ground as Liger Zero accelerated even faster.

"Time to find someplace open to beat you up!" Liger Zero grinned, "Next stop, the park!"

* * *

Yuki and Yuri were shocked awake by a commotion. Running out the door and running down the stairs, with Yuri stumbling on the last step, they saw Grell fighting and his opponent was a humanoid hummingbird.

"Help, he's trying to suck me and not in the way I like!" Grell shouted as he tried to hold the Hummingbird Familiar's beak off. The creature's tongue flicked towards Grell who grimaced in disgust. "Don't just stand there gawking! Help me out here!"

"This is yours," said Yuki, shoving his brother forward.

"OK, OK," Yuri grumbled.

"Lance!" Yuri called as he summoned his lance through his blood and skewered the Hummingbird Familiar. The Familiar screeched as it flew backwards, the lance sliding out of its wound. He sighed and smiled, "Many thanks, sweetheart!"

Lance took on her human form and hugged Yuri cutely, "No problem, Yuri-sama!" Then, with a peck to his cheek, she then turned into blood and receded back into Yuri's body.

"Now to deal with you, you overgrown chicken. Henshin!"

**"GENO FORM!"**

Roaring like a maniac, Geno grabbed the Hummingbird Familiar with his Saber Claws and hauled him out the door. Grell was panting, his heart racing, and he muttered about, "Never eating chicken again."

Outside, Geno threw the Hummingbird Familiar into the air and it hovered in place. It had wings in place of arms and it had a sharp beak. As a Familiar of Aslla Piscu, it possessed its masters evil will just the same.

Shooting towards Geno like a jet, it tried to run the Rider through only to feel Geno's tail bash against its skull. Flopping on the ground, it cried out in pain as Geno brought his tail down repeatedly on its body.

* * *

In the park, Liger Zero had thrown the Lizard Familiar against a tree. It recovered, launching itself at him again. Liger Zero blocked its claws with his own and with a cross slash sent it staggering with black blood spilling the ground. It swung its tail at him next and he caught it under his arm before spinning around and around. Cruelly, he cut off its tail with his free set of claws, sending it tumbling. He then jumped and landed on top of the creature. It tried to throw Liger Zero off but he wouldn't let it.

He started stabbing the creature's chest repeatedly with his Zero Claws as he started laughing to himself, "Die...Die...Die...Die! Die, motherfucker! Die, motherfucker! DIE!" Behind his visor, the whites of his eyes appeared to have black veins crawling through them, though they inched their way around his eyes slowly, but Yuji was too fixated at eviscerating the creature as he continued clawing at his opponent with manic glee.

Suddenly, Liger Zero heard a loud bellow and was hit by what felt like a speeding bus, knocking him off the Lizard Familiar. He landed on his feet, skidding backwards along the grass as he looked up at his opponent. The Lizard Familiar rose back up, its wounds healed, and standing next to it was a large, broad humanoid figure with arms and legs as thick as tree trunks with a single eye set in its chest since it had no head. Under the eye was the Nazca Line drawing depicting a giant.

This was a Familiar of the Earthbound God Ccapac Apu. Pounding its chest like a gorilla, the Giant Familiar charged with the Lizard Familiar riding on its broad shoulders.

"Oh, this oughta be good," Liger Zero grinned as he switched armors.

**"PANZER FORM!"**

His armor changed and let out a loud battle cry.

* * *

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

Geno roared as he unleashed his attack; a full beam of charged particles fired from his chest at the fleeing Hummingbird Familiar.

"How's about some Mongolian Barbeque, motherfucker?-!" Geno shouted as the beam slammed right into the Hummingbird Familiar.

**End Music**

The innkeeper dropped to the ground, injured but alive. Yuki was quickly at the poor man's side, checking his vitals.

"He's fine," Yuki said. "But we should take him to the hospital."

Yuri's armor vanished as he said to her, "You take care of that." He looked around, wondering where Yuji was. "Now then, let's go find my brother," Yuri smiled. Suddenly, the ground shook with explosions echoing through the air. "I'm not the only one who felt and heard that, right?"

"You go check that out with Grell," said Yuki as she started to help the innkeeper to the hospital for treatment.

* * *

Liger Panzer's cannons were smoking. In front of him was a smoking crater where the two defeated Familiar lay. The Giant Familiar began to shrink as smoke rose from its body, reverting him back to human form. As for the Lizard Familiar, it had reverted back to human form as well, being that of a woman. A lizard crawled out of the woman's mouth and started to escape only for Liger Panzer to stomp on it, crushing it under his boot.

Yuri and Grell both arrived and the Grim Reaper checked his record book. "Hm…Emily Stanson and Robert Clyde. They're not due to die today." He shut his book, confirming that the two people were still alive.

Yuri approached Liger Panzer and remarked, "You must've really been pissed to go Panzer on them." He put his hand on his brother's shoulder and recoiled from the heat. "You better change back, you're starting to overheat." The siren of a police car was heard, "And we should go before we have to answer some questions."

Yuji's armor shattered away as he gave his brother a look, "Since when do you care about the law?"

"Hey, I don't feel like spending my night in a jail cell. Now, come on. We can let someone else handle these two here."

* * *

They regrouped back at the inn. Yuki had brought the innkeeper to the hospital and the man was immediately admitted into the coma ward. The two people who Yuji had defeated earlier had also been admitted to the hospital. They were running out of room and beds right now since more and more people were turning up unconscious in this village, and the ones who had recently had been turned into monsters by the Earthbound Gods.

"OK, we need to think," said Yuji as he paced back and forth. "The Earthbound Gods or a servant of theirs must have a base set up somewhere. But where?"

"That's what we don't know," Yuri agreed, frowning. He hated not knowing anything almost as much as he hated being away from his own family.

"ARGH!" Yuji pounded his skull. "I can't think! I just can't fucking think!" He punched a hole in the wall. He noticed the others looking at him and saw Yuki opening her mouth but he cut her off. "I know!" he snapped. "I'll pay for that later!"

"Onii-sama, you need to calm down," Yuki advised, rubbing his shoulders, "All this anger isn't healthy."

"Yuki, how can you be so calm?" he asked. "We haven't seen Mom and Dad in months, we're stuck in a world centuries in its past, and we're facing the Earthbound Gods without the full power of the Crimson Dragon."

"It's because that no matter how hopeless the situation is that only the best possible outcome can be achieved," said Yuki. It sounded naïve, but Yuki had faith that they could beat this new threat.

"I think I know how these Earthbound Gods are stealing souls," Grell spoke up, "Those creatures that were people, remember? I think that when they're changed their souls are taken away at the same time. What you've been fighting are soulless shells."

"And those monkeys?" Yuri asked, scowling.

"Soul carriers," Grell theorized. "Follow them and they'll lead us right to where the boss is."

"Well, if that's the only lead we got, we wait until tonight," Yuji planned.

"But if those monkeys throw their shit at me again, I can't be held responsible for my actions," Yuri warned.

* * *

When the moon went down and the population of the village slept, Yuji, Yuri, Yuki and Grell were wide awake. They were waiting for their leads to appear. It was getting late, though. Half past midnight to be exact.

And then they heard a noise.

"Is that…a whale?" Yuri asked.

"I don't hear anyone wailing," Grell said, cupping his ear.

"Not that sort of wail," Yuji frowned. "Come on!"

They exited the inn and saw whales flying in the air. It was unnatural and even more so for the whales carried the image of the whale from the Nazca Lines. These flying whales were the Familiars of Earthbound God Chacu Challhua

"Not monkeys, but still a lead!" Yuji yelled. "Come on!"

"Wait!" Yuki shouted. "Look!" She pointed at the people who were stepping out of their homes like they were in a trance. Guests in the inn were also stepping out.

Meanwhile, in the hospital, the comatose patients were also rising from their beds.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Yuji has begun to show signs of instability. What could this mean? Where are the soulless vessels going? And will Yuri get smacked with monkey scat again? Find out next time.**


	137. The Legacy of Cain Part 81

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 81: Rise of the Fallen Gods**

"Did somebody order zombies?" Yuri asked. Of course, with the way the people looked as they walked towards the unknown, it gave his statement some credit.

"It's the whale's song," Yuji realized, "It's controlling everybody."

"It's probably a trap," Yuri said. He could care less though even if it was. If it led him to a good fight where he could vent his frustrations then so be it.

"Do we have a choice?" Yuki asked. The sleepwalking zombies could be their only lead to solving this mystery.

* * *

The villagers were walking into the cemetery. At night it was creepy, with tombstones standing in the ground on top of where departed loved ones lay. The villagers were being led by the Whale Familiars. At the same time, Monkey Familiars were dancing around them, howling and cackling loudly. Spiders, lizards and snakes were crawling all over the tombstones too and on the cemetery grounds.

Yuki, Yuri, Yuji and Grell poked their heads out, one by one, from behind the statue of an angel. The cemetery itself stood behind a church and that was where the people were all going.

"A church," Yuji murmured. Why was it always churches?

"Looks like a church congregation," Yuki said.

"Or a cult meeting," Grell added.

"Let's go," Yuri grinned.

"Yuri, try not to go crazy, yet," Yuji advised.

"I'm not the only one you should be worried about," he returned.

Yuji was perplexed by Yuri's response but he just chalked it up to his brother talking crazy again. Right now they needed to focus on the villagers who were in danger of being turned into soulless husks and the Familiars which presented a clear danger to them.

* * *

The villagers all stood outside a church as a figure addressed them from in front of the holy building. However, he had perverted its purpose. The mysterious priest stood before the congregation of sleepwalking villagers with the Earthbound Familiars all around him.

"My people," said the priest to them all, addressing the crowd as if they could hear him, and in a way they could. "My masters have asked me to invite you here for a very special ritual so I wish to thank you for coming here on such short notice. But now that you're all here, it is time for you to make a donation." He raised his arm into the sky. "Look upon the sky!"

In the sky were the Nazca Line drawings representing Uru the Spider, Aslla Piscu the Hummingbird, Cusillu the Monkey, Ccarayhua the Lizard, Ccapac Apu the Giant, Chacu Challhua the Orca and finally Wiraqocha Rasca the Condor.

"Now open your hearts and give your souls to them!" the priest commanded.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The priest gasped as he heard the gunshots and looked around for the source. His eyes then fell upon Yuki who had her Desert Eagles out.

"Consider this little party of yours over," Yuji declared.

"Ah, so the Children of the Crimson Dragon have revealed themselves," the priest declared. "My villagers, these are the infidels who oppose our masters!"

"You know, if there's one thing I really hate, it's cults!" Yuji growled.

Instantly, darkness enveloped the villagers, one by one, mutating their forms to become Earthbound Familiars. The soulless creatures looked upon the intruders with fury and contempt as the priest made a hasty retreat.

"He's getting away!" Yuri shouted.

"We have bigger problems right now!" Yuki exclaimed.

"Right," Yuji agreed, slinging on his belt. "So we better finish this quick! Henshin!"

**"JAGER FORM!"**

"Oh, fine!" Yuri spat. "Henshin!"

**"FURY FORM!"**

"Let the Festival of DEATH begin!" Grell exclaimed happily, brandishing his chainsaw Death Scythe.

"Yes, let the festivities begin!" Yuji roared.

* * *

The priest had fled into a tomb and walked down its steps towards a chamber of coffins. Then he opened up a secret entrance in the back of the chamber which led him to another flight of stairs. He rushed down them too, into the corridor and exiting into the chamber where his masters all sat.

"My masters, I am here!" said the priest.

"And we've got you!" The priest spun around and a fist connected with his face, knocking him unconscious. With the priest knocked out, Yuri jumped onto the throne which stood in front of the Orca Statue.

"Now we've got you!" Yuri shouted as he grabbed the figure by his cloak. The hood fell backwards and Yuri's jaw dropped. The others gawked. "What the hell is this shit!-?"

"Hold on," Yuji said as he went to the throne of the Spider Earthbound God and pulled down the hood. "They're mannequins." He went to the Hummingbird Throne and pulled down the hood of the figure too. "They're all dummies!"

All the mannequins had their hoods down.

"OK, I'm confused," Grell groaned. "Aren't these the hosts of these Earthbound God thing?" he asked.

"They were supposed to be," Yuki muttered. "Unless…" Her eyes widened and she turned her gaze towards the priest who was glowing with power. The drawings on the back of his robe were glowing as well as he rose up to his feet. He threw his head back and laughed.

"**YOU FOOLS! DID YOU REALLY THINK THAT THOSE DUMMIES WERE US!-?**" the priest spoke in seven simultaneous voices.

"We were kinda thinking that to be honest," Yuji admitted.

The priest of the Earthbound Gods tossed his hood back and the Fudo's and Grell gaped at him.

It was Officer Lewis.

"OK, I didn't expect this," Yuri commented.

"It's always the ones you least expect," Grell retorted.

"So, the Earthbound Gods have chosen you as their host," Yuji concluded.

"**The Masters live within me, all of them. Their spirits all resonate with mine, surviving within me, becoming stronger within me**," Officer Lewis said. "**And now they will revive within me!**"

"Officer Lewis," Yuri implored, "Think about what you're doing? What about your life?"

"**I have no life! My family is dead! Killed by those blasted DALEKs!**" Officer Lewis snapped, his eyes blazing with rainbow colored-light. During the DALEK invasion, he'd been out with his family and they were shot dead by those machine creatures. Since then he'd lost the will to live. He went out drinking, never reporting for work, and just lived in despair.

One day he wanted to commit suicide but knew his family would not approve wherever they were watching him from. So, he decided to move away, far away from the place which held such horrid memories. He moved to the village of Woodsworth and became a police officer here, starting a new life.

Then a week ago he'd discovered the crop circles. All he did was stumble upon them and that was when the Earthbound Gods entered his body. They had been weakened, but with his help they would become stronger. They spoke to him through his own mind, giving him instructions.

This entire hidden chamber itself had been constructed within a week through the use of elemental magic granted to Officer Lewis by the Earthbound Gods. Since then he'd been collecting souls. They had promised him that he would be reunited with his family.

**"Now, it is time for the masters to awaken!"** Officer Lewis yelled as his body started to glow. His body began to convulse and expand until his body bloated up like a balloon; his body glowing with rainbow colored light, beams shooting out of every orifice on his body.

"TAKE COVER!" Yuji yelled as he activated his blue ring.

**-BOOM!-**

Officer Lewis' remains were staining the entire chamber. Bits of him were scattered all over, making for a gruesome sight. Yuji, Yuki and Grell were unstained, as a blue bubble had enveloped them.

"OK, is it just me or I am the only one getting covered by gross stuff all the time?" Yuri remarked, referring to the blood that stained his clothes. "First monkey shit and now dead man's blood!"

"Guess it isn't your lucky day," Yuji joked. Yuri just shot him a glare.

"Oh, shut up!" Yuri shouted.

"Look!" Yuki pointed up.

Grell and the siblings looked up to see the mass of colored lights swirling around each other, colliding with each other as they bounced around the room.

"Something tells me those lights aren't supposed to be pretty," Yuri frowned.

The seven lights then shot into the statues of the Earthbound Gods. Seconds passed before the statues developed colored cracks, spreading throughout the statues before exploding and forcing Yuji and the others to cover their eyes. The smoke cleared and they all gaped at what they saw.

What stood before them were seven figures, standing tall and pitch black in coloration. However, they each had unique features to them.

The being in the center had eight, glowing-red eyes encompassing his head with two in front, with mandibles on the sides of his mouth that bore jagged fangs. He was muscular and had two pairs of spider legs sprouting from his back that were tipped with three-pronged claws. His own hands were tipped with sharp claws and his forearms were covered in matching pitch-black carapace armor; as well as his chest, legs and feet, and rocking a six-pack. His body was riddled with glowing-red lines. On his left forearm was the Mark of the Spider.

The second was the tallest of the seven, standing at a staggering 10 feet. He was also pitch-black and his head was spherical in shape with a singular, glowing-blue eye in the center. Like the Spider, this giant was covered in a pattern of blue lines and he appeared to be nothing but bulky muscle with arms and legs as thick as trees. The Mark of the Giant glowed brightly on his own left arm.

The third was six feet tall, female in form and slender with an hourglass figure that many women would kill for and a bust that would put many to shame as she was rocking a set of F-Cups. She was pitch black, like her brothers, and had glowing green lines patterning her elegant body as her essentials were clothed modestly. Her ears were fin-like and she had long and flowing green hair with glowing green, reptilian eyes. To top it off, a tail swished back and forth behind her. On her left forearm was the Mark of the Lizard.

The second female creature was also slender with proportions that matched her sister, though with an E-Cup bust. She had a set of wings that was draped down her back like a cape and a helmet that was reminiscent of a hummingbird, her orange eyes glowing within the bird-like helm. Her hands and feet were equipped with a set of wicked-looking talons. On her left arm was the Mark of the Hummingbird.

The next creature was an anthropomorphic whale, a small but sharp fin on his head with two along the sides of his lower jaw while his eyes had an indigo glow to them. A large dorsal fin decorated his back as he was hunched over, his weight supported by thick legs. His belly was indigo as were the markings on his body and tail. His left arm bore the Mark of the Orca.

The sixth monster was skinny, real skinny, as we're his arms and legs as he was the only one crouching. His black body was tattooed with neon yellow lines and a rolled up tail grew from his rear. He was snickering like a lunatic with his big head and ears as his glowing yellow eyes were squinted. His left arm bore the Mark of the Monkey.

The final monster stood tall and proud, arms folded across his chest as his avian wings were folded over his chest and draped down like a cloak. His beak was long and sharp as his eyes were beady and violet, though you could see the pure rage in them. Like the Hummingbird, his hands and feet were armed with wicked talons and his build was muscular and his markings glowed proudly.

"This doesn't look good," Grell blinked.

"Spider of Wrath!" the spider monster roared as he flared his back legs out. **"Jibakushin (Earthbound God) Uru!"**

"Sloth..." the giant said slowly before beating his chest and roaring, **"Jibakushin...CCAPAC APU!"**

The reptilian female licked her claws and glared at her prey, "Lizard of Lust; **Jibakushin Ccarayhua~!**"

"Hummingbird of Envy," the bird girl almost whispered as she glared at Yuki specifically, **"Jibakushin...Aslla Piscu..."**

The monkey cackled as he hopped in place, "Monkey of Greeeed! **Jibakushin Cusillu!**"

"The Whale of Gluttony," the whale proclaimed, **"Jibakushin Chacu Challhua!"**

The male avian unfurled his wings to reveal the Mark of the Condor glowing proudly n his chest and called out, "And I am the Condor of Pride! **JIBAKUSHIN...WIRAQOCHA RASCA!**"

**"WE ARE THE EARTHBOUND GODS,"** the seven monsters chorused, **"AND WE SHALL HAVE OUR REVENGE!"**

Yuji just looked at the seven gods before him and gulped. "Fuckberries," he cursed.

"They should be gigantic," Grell recalled. "You said they were enormous."

"An incomplete revival," Yuki stated.

"Which means they aren't at full power," Yuri grinned.

"But they still got us outnumbered and possibly outmatched," Yuji cautioned.

"Look! Look! I smell Signers!" Cusillu alerted as he hopped around his comrades and pointed to the Fudo's.

"No...mark," Ccapac Apu corrected as he pointed toward them, for they did not bear the same marks.

"You're right," Chacu Challhua nodded.

"These are the children of our most hated enemies!" Uru declared, "The damned Fudo's!"

"It matters not," Wiraqocha Rasca scoffed, "For they cannot stop us."

"Wanna bet, you turkey bastard!" Yuri challenged. "Henshin!"

**"GENO FORM!"**

Yuri had changed into his armor and decided to go straight for the kill.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

"Now die!" Kamen Rider Geno declared as he fired a charged particle blast that flew straight at the Earthbound Gods.

Chacu Challhua got in the front and smirked, "I'll take care of this!" And he opened his mouth wide as the blast was absorbed into him.

"What the fuck?-!" Geno gawked.

Chacu Challhua then lowered his head, revealing a blowhole. The blast he'd absorbed was fired back at the Fudo's and Grell, only to be deflected by a dome of golden particles. "Hnn? So, you managed to block it then..."

The dome was erected by Yuji, in his Kaizer Form as he stood in front of the others. He'd created the dome barrier using the particles emitted by the Energy Charger pack on his back.

"What...that?" Ccapac Apu asked.

"Something new," Ccarayhua smirked, "I don't remember the Signers using armor. But it looks so cute~!"

"Don't let your guard down," Kaizer Liger advised, "Give 'em everything you've got!" He dashed toward the Gods, making them scatter as the battle had begun.

Yuki closed her eyes as she was engulfed in a miniature blizzard, encasing her in an ice-cast sculpture of her body before the surfaces began to crack and shattered completely to reveal her Transcended stage of evolution. Her arms and hands were encased in deep blue ice that ended in sharp claws, as well as her thighs that were covered in ice, her knees sporting spike-shaped icicles, and legs as her feet now sported talons of ice. She now sported a long, prehensile tail with a five-pronged ice tip, her shoulders were protected by polygonal pads of ice, as well as her breasts and crotch, and a triangular ice-made crown adorned her head. Her eyes glowed brightly and she sported sharp wings of ice.

She was met be Aslla Piscu who flew straight at her as she threw a punch that was blocked by Yuki. "Why...?" she whispered. Yuki looked at her questioningly. "Why are you so beautiful...?"

"What are you saying?" Yuki demanded.

Aslla Piscu growled before screaming, "WHY IS EVERYONE SO BEAUTIFUL?" She then blurred out of sight, hitting Yuki from every angle as she moved with blinding speed. "I am the Hummingbird. So what do you think that means? I'll tell you; it means I am the fastest of the Earthbound Gods!"

Yuki frowned and flapped her wings, whipping up a blizzard as this made Aslla Piscu cease her attack from the cold as Yuki began retaliating, swiping at the evil God with her ice claws. "You're not the only one with speed..."

Geno found himself between Ccarayhua and Cusillu, the Monkey Jibakushin attacking with wild speed as he punched and kicked at Geno as the Rider blocked the assault.

"That the best you've got, stupid monkey?" Geno taunted as he swiped at him with his Saber Claws, blinking as Cusillu leapt back and was struck from behind by the Lizard Jibakushin. Cusillu then stretched his arms out at Geno, wrapping the Rider up and squeezing. He screeched and lifted Geno as he slammed him down and started cackling. "Dammit..."

"Don't rough him up too badly, Cusillu," Ccarayhua requested as she licked her lips, "I want to have fun with him too~"

"Heeheehee! Then I'll tenderize him for you!" Cusillu declared. His arms unwound from Geno's body and held his arms out, unleashing rapid kicks that pounded his chest like a jackhammer.

"TAKE THIS!" Grell yelled as he swung his chainsaw upon Chacu Challhua. The Death Scythe was a Grim Reaper's weapon with mystical properties, used to reap souls while judging them. Now, Grell was using it as a weapon to hack at the Earthbound God.

Unfortunately, the Death Scythe was unable to do any damage against Chacu Challhua's tough , but there was no damage done against him. The Earthbound God swatted Grell away by spinning his body and swinging his tail in Grell's direction, knocking the redhead violently against the wall, nearly knocking off his glasses at the same time.

"Ow…Ow…" Grell groaned. He fixed his glasses and looked to see Chacu Challhua coming at him at ramming speed. Shrieking, Grell leapt out of the way as the Orca Earthbound God smashed a hole through the wall. He withdrew his head and turned around to face Grell. Opening his mouth, he sucked in a huge breath of air and lowered his head. He fired a burst of pressurized water from his blowhole at Grell, sending him flying across the chamber to hit the wall again.

Grell slid down to the floor, spitting water out of his mouth. "OK, no more Ms. Nice Reaper!" He got up and gripped his chainsaw. His clothes, his lovely clothes, were all soaked up. "Time for you to see my pure fury, fatass!"

Roaring, Chacu Challhua charged at Grell with his mouth wide open. He then swallowed the redhead in a single gulp. He licked his lips in satisfaction and patted his stomach.

Only, a sound was coming out of his stomach. And he started to cry in agony.

Grell was inside, and hacking at Chacu Challhua's vulnerable stomach from within. "I bet you hate that, don't you? Not the first time I've been swallowed, darling!"

Kaizer Liger was surrounded by Uru and Ccapac Apu, the Giant and Spider eyeing their prey.

"Hn, so we finally meet, Yuji Fudo," Uru sneered, "We've watched you grow since the day you were born."

"So?" Kaizer Liger glared.

Uru pointed at him, "You get to live a happy life while we sit in the darkness?-! I don't fucking think so!"

"Yusei...Fudo..." Ccapac Apu muttered. Yuji looked back to him as he started beating his chest and roared, "KILL...YUSEI FUDO!"

Uru snickered, "Oh yeah, Apu really hates Yusei. And since you look exactly like him..."

Ccapac Apu blurred out of sight, catching Yuji off guard as he was knocked from the side by the Giant's massive arm and sent flying to the wall, his thrusters firing to keep him from crashing into the wall.

"What the hell...? How can that big guy be so fast?" Kaizer Liger frowned.

"Apu may be the slowest, but he's no slouch," Uru grinned.

Apu dashed toward Kaizer Liger and threw another punch, dodged by the Liger Rider as he brought an axe kick down on the Giant. But he felt nothing as he grabbed Kaizer Liger's leg and slammed him down on the ground, making a small crater with the Rider's body.

"Save some for me," Uru called as he charged, launching spider threads from his fingers as they ensnared Yuji's arms. Ccapac Apu let Kaizer Liger go as he was pulled toward Uru and was fed a powerful kick to the sternum. "Face it, Yuji, you can't beat us," Uru taunted. He blinked when Kaizer Liger grabbed his leg and aimed his hand at Uru, the canon in his hand charging.

"You talk too much," Kaizer Liger said. And he unleashed a blast of golden charged particle energy in Uru's face.

Meanwhile, Geno was switching strategies and switching forms as well.

**"FURY FORM!"**

His Geno Form armor vanished and was replaced by a new alternate set which immediately latched onto his body. The black bodysuit remained the same but now with light purple armor on the arms, thighs, legs, gloves, boots, and an armored tail that swished behind him. The helmet was black with two pairs of light purple jaws over the eyes, with silver fangs. On his back was a pack with two devices that were equipped with three blades each. The chest armor was also light purple and had the head of a tyrannosaurus with silver fangs and red eyes. His elbows and knees were equipped with red nodes, much like the Liger Zero.

Roaring in fury and rage, Geno Fury spun in place and his tail smashed into the Lizard Jibakushin's face, sending her flying into the remains of her statue. Glaring hotly at the Monkey Jibakushin, Geno Fury let loose a roar as he lunged only for the mischievous Monkey Jibakushin to leap out of the way.

That was what Geno Fury was hoping for as he launched his Buster Claws, the metal appendages stretching and the blades spread out, catching the Monkey Jibakushin in midair. Cusillu tried to struggle but Geno Fury kept his grip on the Earthbound God.

"Now, let's try this again," Geno Fury snarled. Ccarayhua was coming at him from behind but the female Lizard Jibakushin wouldn't be getting to him at the moment as Chacu Challhua threw up in her direction, blowing her away with bile and Grell, who hit her, and sent them tumbling. The Orca Earthbound God's insides were on fire due to Grell's Death Scythe.

"Never eat anything that will fight back," Grell teased. He then saw the Lizard Jibakushin standing up. He admired her form, which was nice and curvy, but he was more interested in males instead. He heard the Earthbound God Chacu Challhua inhale behind him and ducked under a claw swipe from Ccarayhua. She received a face full of water from her ally's water spout and was smashed against the wall.

Back with Yuki and Aslla Piscu, the two were clashing in the air. The female Hummingbird Jibakushin seemed to hate the idea of another being more beautiful than she was and saw Yuki as an abomination for daring to be more beautiful than she.

Beating her wings rapidly, Aslla Piscu unleashed sonic waves to disorient and damage her enemies. They hit Yuki, cracking her ice armor and causing her to cry out and cover her ears. This had the unfortunate effect of forcing the others in the chamber to do the same, with an exception of Wiraqocha Rasca. Shooting like a dart towards Yuki, Aslla Piscu aimed for the kill only for Yuki to dodge at the last second. The Hummingbird of Envy managed to stop herself from crashing and spun around in time to receive a blizzard from Yuki, a blizzard filled with sharp and deadly icicles.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

His particle beam cannon was charged up and primed. He aimed at the struggling Monkey Jibakushin and grinned in an insane manner as he sang, "Monkey See, Monkey Do, Monkey Dead just like you!"

He fired and the beam hit Cusillu, causing him to cry out in pain. Geno Fury released him and sent him flying straight into the wall. He crashed and there was an explosion which made him grin in satisfaction. "Now, where is that scaly bitch?" He turned and saw Ccarayhua lunging at him, tackling him down. She straddled him and began clawing at him. "Oh, mounting me, huh? You should wait for me to buy you dinner!" he joked as she slashed at him.

"When I'm through with you, you will become my pleasure slave and nothing more!" she shrieked.

"Sorry, but that honor belongs to Ana-chan and Shego," Geno Fury said as his Buster Claws stretched out and grabbed her arms before lifting her up. He then tossed her up and gripped his pass. "And next up!"

**"BREAKER FORM!"**

His armor changed again, becoming blood red. Assault rifles were mounted on his waist, with chainsaws under the barrels, and he sported a large backpack which allowed him limited flight. On his forearms were shields which hid a pair of pincer-like claws. His gloves were also equipped with sharp claws. Finally, his helmet gained a new accessory in the form of a blade-like horn as his blue eyes glowed viciously. On his chest was still the Charged Particle Cannon which took the form of a ferocious saurian's head.

He aimed his pincers at Ccarayhua and shot them at her, the claws attached to his arm-mounted shields by cables as the claws latched onto his prey like grappling hooks. He then pulled her towards him as his horn folded forward and his thruster kicked in, sending him flying towards her and impaling his horn into her midsection, causing her to shriek.

"Not the sort of penetration you were looking for, were you?" he taunted. "Oh, hold up!" The shield on his left shoulder detached as the pincer-like X-Breaker sprung out. The shield was still connected to his body by a metal arm and the X-Breaker grabbed the Monkey Jibakushin's tail. He howled in pain and fury as Geno Breaker repeatedly bashed him on the floor. Meanwhile, Ccarayhua opened her mouth and released poison gas in Geno Breaker's face, hoping it would incapacitate him. Unfortunately, while he did release her, it was only so he could bash her away with his tail. He then tossed up Cusillu and rose into the air with his thrusters, kicking him straight into the remains of one of the statues.

At the same time, Kaizer Liger was slashing at Uru furiously with his Vi-Blades, preventing the Spider Jibakushin from defending itself. When the Giant known as Ccapac Apu came charging at him. Kaizer Liger dodged by flying upwards to avoid the bear hug Ccapac Apu wanted to give him. Kaizer Liger then launched himself at Ccapac Apu's back with his legs stretched out in front of him, the claws on his boots glowing as he executed a Rider Drop Kick that slammed the Jibakushin in the back with explosive force. The force of the kick propelled Ccapac Apu towards Uru, pinning the Spider Jibakushin under his enormous comrade's weight, his body flat on the ground.

"Oh, darling Yuji! A little help here!" Grell called as he dodged Chacu Challhua's water spout attack. Sighing, he flew across the room and tackled into the Orca Jibakushin, knocking him off his feet to land on his side where he struggled to get back to his feet.

Wiraqocha Rasca slowly began to grow impatient. He watched as his comrades fought against the children of the Signers and yet being unable to defeat them. They were taking far too long and he didn't like waiting for results.

There was an old saying: If you want something done right; you have to do it yourself.

"ENOUGH!" he roared, commanding his fellow Earthbound Gods to stop. "IF YOU CANNOT DEFEAT THEM, THEN I SHALL BE THE ONE TO DESTROY THE DESCENDANTS!"

The other Earthbound Gods wanted to protest but at the moment Wiraqocha Rasca was their undisputed leader. Reluctantly, they withdrew, giving him glares as the Condor Jibakushin of Pride stepped forward arrogantly. He challenged, "You all may come at me at once, but I promise you that the end result will be your destruction."

"FUCK YOU,TURKEYBOY!" Geno Breaker roared as he glided towards Wiraqocha Rasca.

"Yuri, wait!" Kaizer Liger called, but he was too late as Geno went ahead of them.

Wiraqocha Rasca merely took a step before zipping past Geno Breaker and stopping several feet from Kaizer Liger, Yuki and Grell; the three gasping as Yuri froze in place and blood gushed from different places of his body with his armor shattering and collapsing onto the floor.

"Weak," Wiraqocha Rasca spat.

"YURI!" Kaizer Liger called as he tried to get to his brother when Wiraqocha Rasca fed him a punch to the face.

The Condor Jibakushin then punched Yuki in the gut and kicked Grell, sending them flying as they crashed into the wall. "These descendants are weak! Nothing like the Signers!" Kaizer Liger doubled over and was stomped on by Wiraqocha Rasca, the Jibakushin repeatedly stomping his foot into Kaizer Liger's back until the black armor finally shattered into shards of gold. "These pests are a waste of our time," he spat. He then heard his stomach growling, as well as the stomach of the other Earthbound Gods. "It appears we need sustenance. We need more souls to achieve our complete power."

"What about them?" Uru pointed to the Fudo's and Grell.

Wiraqocha Rasca looked down and huffed, "These children stand no chance against us. They are nothing." He stepped off Yuji and walked to his comrades. "Come, let us leave this place and seek a new home where we can dominate this pathetic world!" And with that, the Earthbound Gods began to glow with their respective colors and began to fly, reaching the ceiling and bursting through as rocks began to fall.

Yuji lifted his torso, struggling to reach the com-link in his watch as he groaned, "Sheila…need…evac." Unable to keep himself up, Yuji then collapsed and fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: Heroes are down. Villains rise. Shit's gonna hit the fan. Hope you've been keeping up so far, because things are gonna get messy.**


	138. The Legacy of Cain Part 82

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 82: Down With the Sickness**

Dr. Washam was monitoring Yuji, Yuki and Yuri's vitals on screen. Their pictures were on the screen with their vital statistics displayed in bars next to them, and right now those statistics were dangerously in the red. He also heard emergency communications from Yuji through Sheila.

_"Sheila…need…evac."_

"Sheila, prepare an emergency Teleportal," Dr. Washam ordered. He then called through the com-link, "Misato, Michiru, Hana, Shion, you're all needed."

* * *

The Teleportal opened up in the underground chamber, letting Carmen, Arachnea, Misato and Shion enter the area. Shion gasped at all the damage but what really shocked her was the state Yuri, Yuki, Yuji and Grell were in.

"Yuji!" Misato cried as she immediately went to her husband's side. "Yuji, I'm here. Can you hear me?"

"We have to carry them back to base," Arachnea said as she lifted Yuri up and carried him over her shoulder with Carmen carrying Yuki bridal style. Misato lifted up her husband as Shion grabbed Grell's arms, dragging him back towards the Teleportal. That wasn't the way to move a wounded individual, but Shion wasn't exactly strong enough to do anything else. "This place looks like it's about to collapse. Come on!"

Misato and Carmen didn't need to be told twice as they ran into the Teleportal with Arachnea following after them. As soon as the Teleportal vanished, the entire chamber collapsed.

* * *

**Music - "Dark Signers"**

Seven colors, like a rainbow, flew through skies over Peru as they reached the vast flatland that was the Nazca Lines. The seven lights died down to reveal the Earthbound Gods, hovering over the area.

"So, these horrid seals exist here as well," Wiraqocha Rasca spat.

"So, what are we doing here?" Uru asked.

"We will erect a home for us as we collect souls for our nourishment," Rasca replied.

"So we're just gonna stay here?" Chacu Challhua questioned.

"Our minions will do our work."

"Hungry…" Ccapac Apu groaned as he held his gut. At his side was Ccarayhua as she rubbed his belly soothingly.

"There, there," she cooed as she comforted the giant. "We'll eat soon."

"So, what are waiting for?" Aslla Piscu asked.

Wiraqocha Rasca gave no reply as he outstretched a hand down toward the earth as he focused his energy. Earth, stone and dirt rose into the air in the form of a tornado with the Earthbound Gods manipulating the elements to create something befitting their status. The Nazca Lines were slowly being drawn into the spiral, vanishing from the ground. Once the process was completed, the tornado faded to reveal a tall spiral structure of stone, decorated by the Nazca Lines. At the very top were seven statues, each representing one of the Earthbound Gods.

Ccapac Apu pointed to the tower and identified, "Home…"

"That's right," Ccarayhua nodded, "That's our home."

"Then let's go check out the décor!" Cusillu howled as he flew down to the tower, followed by his siblings.

Uru stopped to notice Wiraqocha Rasca looking out to the distance. "Something wrong?"

The Condor frowned as he kept his gaze trained on the horizon. "Something tells me I should have killed that descendant when I had the chance," he muttered.

"Can't be helped," Uru shrugged. "But he will let others know of our existence, and that will spread fear throughout their ranks. They have no chance of defeating us. Not like last time."

Wiraqocha Rasca faced Uru with a glare, "They have no chance in Earth, Heaven or Hell."

**End Music**

* * *

Yuki, Yuji, Yuri and Grell weren't in any immediate danger. As injured as they were, they were perfectly fine after receiving treatment in the Hive's infirmary. Anastasia and Rhea were immediately contacted to see Yuri and Yuki. Shego had decided to tag along with the former Witch of Terror, leaving the kids with Hana-hime and Kikyo.

"Oh, my poor Yuri," Anastasia sighed. "What kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into this time?"

"Why haven't they woken up yet?" Rhea asked.

"They're just resting," Michiru said reassuringly.

"Tell me who did this," Rhea demanded.

"You'll only get yourself killed if you tried to go after them," Shego frowned. "I mean look at what happened to them."

Hana was checking Grell. He wasn't breathing, but his heart was still beating. She then remembered what she'd been told of this man. He was a Grim Reaper so his biology would be different. He was able to survive a blow from an Earthbound God without being killed. That meant his body was quite resistant to damage. Still, he had needed treatment for his injuries. They couldn't call anyone for him, though. There just wasn't any contact information on him.

Misato sat by Yuji's bed, scowling. She felt helpless, powerless, and she hated herself for it. She'd grown too accustomed to a peaceful life and was paying for it. Sure, she loved her family. She loved Yuji, and Yuna, which was why she hadn't gone back to her old ways. But now it was time for her to become #04 again. Her transformation may have changed but she could still kick butt like the rest of them.

Dr. Washam was checking Yuji, Yuri, Yuki and Grell's charts. Their injuries weren't too severe and they would be fine.

* * *

"OK, guys," Shinichi called, "This is what's happening in Peru right now." He tapped a button to show the Nazca Lines, only now there was something in their place. There was a spiral tower standing in the middle of the desert. As for the Nazca Lines themselves, they had become part of the structure as wall decoration. "The satellite got this image just recently and Sheila thought it was important for us to know."

"What is that thing?" Yokoshima questioned.

"Apparently, Yuji's mission did yield results and he ran into some trouble. Right now we have an enemy we know absolutely nothing about with unknown plans. What we do know is that those plans can't be good."

"These guys beat up Yuji, Yuki and Yuri, right?" Shogo asked. "Just how strong are they?"

"They could be quite powerful, but we can't be sure until Yuji or any of them wake up to give us a full report," Shinichi sighed.

"So we're practically in the dark," Alan frowned.

"I might be able to shed some light on the subject," Misato called as she came into the main hall. She looked determined and she had that look on her face.

"Do you have something to share, Misato?" Shinichi asked.

"Yuji once told me a story about the Nazca Lines from his world." She explained, "Long ago, the Crimson Dragon was at war against the King of the Underworld. On the Crimson Dragon's side were the Signer Dragons and on the King of the Underworld's side were the Earthbound Gods."

"Earthbound…Gods?" Yokoshima repeated.

"Creatures so powerful, that only the Signer Dragons could oppose them," Misato nodded. "There are seven of them and each of them with enough power to tear this world apart." She continued, "They were sealed away in the Nazca Lines but then they revived and took possession of dead humans to become their hosts and servants. Yuji's parents and their team, the original Team 5D's, dueled against the Earthbound Gods and their servants before defeating them for good."

"OK, so if these Earthbound Gods are gone for good, then what is this?" Daichi pointed to the monitor.

"It could be this world's version of the Earthbound Gods," Misato suggested, unsure. "But whatever they are they were able to beat Yuji up so badly that he's in the infirmary right now." Michiru put her hand on Misato's shoulder to comfort her.

"OK, so we got an old legend as reference, but no new information on the enemy right now," Shinichi frowned.

"Why don't we just launch an attack with everyone we got?" Daichi asked.

"We need more information," Shinichi argued. "If we go in there half-cocked people will get killed."

"So, your plan is to sit around and do nothing?" Daichi shot back.

"No," Shinichi shook his head. "We'll need to do some recon to gather information on the enemy."

The elevator door opened and Yuri, Yuki, Rhea and Anastasia stepped out.

"You want info? You got info," Yuri grinned.

* * *

Grell suddenly shot out of bed and declared, "Your life ends here!" with a loud cheer. He then sobered up and found that he was in a bed in an unfamiliar place. "What is this place?" He swung his legs out of bed, his bare feet touching the cold, metal floor. "Ah!" he shrieked, withdrawing his feet. Finding his boots at the foot of the bed, he grabbed them and put them on before stepping off the bed. "Much better."

That was when Dr. Magi entered and saw Grell up and about. "Oh, you're awake."

"Oh, good day fine sir," Grell greeted politely, grinning while adjusting his glasses. Dr. Magi wasn't exactly attractive to him but Grell wasn't rude. "Could you tell me where I am?"

"You're at the Hive," Dr. Magi answered.

"Hive?" Grell pictured a bee hive.

"It's our base and you're in our infirmary. I'm Dr. Magi by the way," he introduced. "And what's your name?"

"I'm Grell Sutcliffe, a Grim Reaper," Grell introduced himself. She spotted Yuji lying in a bed, still unconscious. "Oh my!"

"Yuji still hasn't woken up yet," Dr. Magi sighed. "His sister and brother on the other hand have recovered and are currently in the conference area."

* * *

**Music - "Strategy Conference"**

Yuri had plugged a wire into his belt with the other end plugged into the computer. He brought up the picture files to show to the others, displaying the seven Earthbound Gods in their humanoid forms.

"And here they are for your viewing pleasure!" Yuri announced. "From first to last we have Uru the spider, Aslla Piscu the hummingbird, Ccarayhua the lizard, Ccapac Apu the giant, Chacu Challhua the orca, Cusillu the annoying, fucking monkey from hell and finally Wiraqocha Rasca the condor. These are the Seven Earthbound Gods!"

The NUMBERS could all see the creatures themselves and were briefly reminded of Darkloids but they were unlike anything they had ever seen before.

"How strong are they?" Alan asked.

"We are lucky to be alive right now," Yuki frowned, still feeling a little sore from the blow she'd received from Wiraqocha Rasca. "If they wanted to, they could've killed us."

"So, what do they want?" Shinichi asked.

"Souls," Yuri said. "It's their main source of nourishment. You might wanna send for help for that village they were hiding in because everyone is now just a soulless zombie and turned into Familiars. That's how they collect souls, or at least it's one of their methods."

"I'm almost afraid to ask, but why do they need souls?" Yokoshima inquired.

"To reach their full strength," Yuki answered. "What you see now is not them at the peak of their power. Our parents have witnessed for themselves the true might of the Earthbound Gods and they're nothing to scoff at."

"So, they're like Yamata no Orochi bad," Shinichi concluded.

"Think of it like this," Yuri chided, "You have seven little Earthbound Gods that are as strong as Gnol when he had all his powers. What do you get when they are complete?"

"I'm afraid to ask," Yokoshima gulped. He had a feeling that Yuri was gonna say something he really would not wanna hear at this time. "Some kind of Godzilla-looking thing…?"

Yuri chuckled before he slammed a hand on the table and snapped, "SEVEN FUCKING OROCHIS THAT ARE MORE THAN CAPABLE OF RAPING THIS PLANET AND OTHER SYSTEMS A HUNDRED TIMES OVER!"

"I knew I wasn't gonna like it," Yokoshima slumped

Shinichi asked, "And how many casualties can we expect as they are now?"

"Remember how those DALEKs and Cybermen fucked upKyoto?" Yuri asked.

Shinichi replied, "Vividly."

"Picture _that_ except with soulless meat bags in any location on Earth," Yuri frowned.

Yokoshima uttered in despair, "A zombie apocalypse..."

Yuri started growling, "Not to mention that damned monkey! I have NEVER been humiliated in all my life! The next time I find that sonovabitch I am going to make him pay DEARLY for making a mockery of me!" The Monkey Familiars had thrown their shit in his face and he was still trying to get the smell out. Oh, and Cusillu would pay dearly for making a monkey out of Yuri "Geno" Fudo.

"Well, it's a good thing we have Susano-O with us and…what's with that face?" Yokoshima asked as Alan frowned.

"That Susano-O trick was a one-time deal," Alan informed the group. "The fight against the Yamata no Otochi was the only time we could use Divine Xros Fusion."

"But didn't you hear Yuri? SEVEN Orochis! The power of SEVEN Orochis!" Yokoshima argued.

"Only after they've devoured enough souls, and they haven't done that yet," Daichi reasoned. "I admit that we can't waste time right now, but going in there blind would be suicide too."

"I'm going to contact Jin and Kai too," said Yuki. "They'd want to hear this."

"Hey, the power of the Crimson Dragon was inherited by you guys, right?" Misato questioned both her brother-in-law and sister-in-law.

"Well, we _indirectly_ inherited," Yuri clarified. "We...can't exactly call on it on our own."

"Why not?" she questioned further. "I mean it's in your blood, right?"

"We've tried..." Yuki paused, "But our prayers weren't answered."

"I think it's some dire need bullshit or something like that," Yuri frowned.

"I think evil gods from your home world would count," Bazel stated.

"Well, if you recall, we're kind of separated from our God at the moment because of some GODDAMN BARRIER THAT WAS PUT UP BY SOME ANONYMOUS ASSHOLE WHO THINKS HE'S HOT SHIT!" Yuri snapped as he heaved as Shego and Anastasia were at his side at once. He felt his blood boiling and he'd be ready to explode at any second now.

"He's been under a lot of pressure," Shego said sympathetically.

"Really? I thought he was like this by default," Bazel scoffed.

"Keep talking, you little ornament," Yuri growled, "And I'll melt you down into ore!"

Alan said, "Bazel, shut up." He addressed Yuri, "And Yuri, sorry about Bazel. I've been trying to get him to shut up for years."

Yuri's left eyebrow twitched as the veins in his head started to pop to the surface. "I so need a drink," Yuri sighed in defeat. Sometimes, he just couldn't handle the craziness of the world.

* * *

"Oh, poor Yuji~" Grell fretted as he loomed over Yuji's unconscious form.

"Sutcliffe-san, would you mind standing back?" Hana requested. "You're standing too close to the patient. He needs his rest."

"And who are you to tell me what to do?" he demanded, glaring at her.

She glared back at him and said, "His nurse, and you're a guest in this base so you should behave like one."

"But what am I supposed to do?" he whined.

"Go home," she ordered. Grell was fine so there was no need for him to stay.

"How rude!" Grell huffed.

Hana looked down at the fire Manakyte and gently placed her hand on his, a look of sadness on her face. '_Oh Yuji…_' Hana thought, '_What kind of mess have you gotten yourself into now?_'

Dr. Washam approached and asked, "Any improvements?"

"He's still unconscious," Hana reported.

"Well, keep monitoring him for now, Hana," Dr. Washam said. As Hana and Dr. Washam turned their backs, black smoke came out of Yuji's nostrils and mouth.

* * *

"Oh, look," the Hummingbird Jibakushin cooed as she looked out the window. There was a helicopter flying nearby. "We have visitors."

"If you find any men, hand them to me," the lustful Lizard Jibakushin requested, licking her lips. The Earthbound Gods had started adopting human forms. It was a way for them to conserve their energy while they were not fighting. It was also good camouflage if they ever wanted to walk unnoticed among the humans in their habitats. In the place where their Spiral Tower stood, there were no humans for miles.

The two female Earthbound Gods had adopted human forms resembling their former hosts/servants. For Aslla Piscu, she now looked like Carly Nagisa and was dressed in a short-sleeved white blouse with a black, pleated skirt that only went down to mid-thigh. She wore thigh high stockings held up by a garter belt and on her feet were black trainers. Over her eyes she wore a stylish pair of glasses much like Grell. She also wore a black necktie.

Ccarayhua's human form resembled the model, Misty Lola. Her vanity made her think that the female human's beauty would be perfect for her and her seductive ways. She was dressed in a body hugging green sleeveless qipao with high slits on both sides which reached up to her hips to show off her long legs. She also wore knee high leather boots and a stylized gold dragon decorated her dress, wrapping around her body. No human male would be able to resist her.

"Hey, Apu, you wanna take care of that?" Chacu Challhua asked. He had taken on the appearance of his former host, Bomber. He remembered feeding off the souls of those dead villagers. It was sweet while it lasted until Crow Hogan came in and put a hole in him.

Ccapac Apu was just sitting there, his head low before he looked up and stood. He was still the tallest of his siblings, and had short blue hair, pale skin and wore a horizontal visor over his eyes. He was dressed in denim clothing and the people in the helicopter spotted him as he walked out into the light.

The crew in the helicopter, meanwhile, were questioning themselves about the man who'd just exited the tower. They went for a closer look.

It was a fatal mistake and the last they would ever make. In a feat of incredible power, Ccapac Apu jumped a hundred feet into the air, something no normal man should be able to do. The crew in the helicopter gasped, gaping at him as he appeared before them. With a roar, he drew back his fist and smashed it into the helicopter's cockpit. He grabbed hold of the pilot and ripped him out of the seat before letting him go to plunge to the ground below. The two others, a reporter and cameraman, stared at the man standing on the helicopter in terror as he grinned at them. He then grabbed hold of the spinning rotor and reversed its rotation, damaging it as he broke the blades.

The two men inside the helicopter screamed as their vehicle plummeted to the ground. It crashed violently to the ground. There was smoke rising from the wreckage as Ccapac Apu left the wreck before it exploded seconds later. He was still holding the broken off helicopter blades in his hands and thought they might make good decorations.

Leaning against the entrance of the Spiral Tower's entrance was Cusillu, who too had adopted a human form like his brothers and sisters. He looked like a child, aged 13, with messy blonde hair and big ears. He was dressed in a tie-dyed t-shirt of various clashing colors and a pair of denim pants that reached down to his knees. On his feet he wore flip-flops. "Had fun, big guy?" the Monkey Earthbound God asked.

"Souvenirs," was Ccapac Apu's simple answer as he walked past Cusilllu.

"Aw…he killed them," Ccarayhua pouted. She had wanted to have fun with those men and drain their souls during climax.

"They are more men in the world, sister," Aslla Piscu said, but a part of her was happy to see her prettier and sexier sister upset. She couldn't help it. She represented envy and part of being envious was to enjoy the pain of those she envied.

"Hm, you're right, Piscu," Ccarayhua agreed. With her looks she could have any man she wanted. "What place has the most men who would want to play with me?"

Aslla Piscu scowled and crossed her arms but then Ccarayhua looped her arms around her sister and whispered into her ear, "Oh, don't get so upset. We can share. There are plenty of men to go around and maybe we can keep some as pets for our amusement."

"Can I have…the best looking ones?" Aslla Piscu moaned as her reptilian sister groped her breasts.

"Yes…" Ccarayhua hissed.

* * *

"Doc…" Yuji weakly called.

"What is it, son?" Washam as he hurried to Yuji's sighed. He noticed how Yuji's breathing was labored, his chest heaving up and down as if he was trying to breathe normally.

"I don't…feel so good," the Manakyte groaned as he started tossing his head from side to side. He then coughed up a spurt of blood, alarming the doctor as Yuji started choking on his own blood (which appeared to have some kind of black chunks).

Washam said, "Hold on Yuji." To figure out what was wrong Washam needed to take a blood sample. "I'm going to need a blood sample." He asked Hana and Michiru, "Hold him down, please."

The girls came to Yuji's sides, holding his arms and legs as he started struggling. "Hana-chan, look…" Michiru paled. They saw the skin of Yuji's face, tearing slowly like cuts as black blood started seeping out as Yuji's groans turned to cries of pain, more cuts appearing on parts of his body as his skin was being covered by the dirtied blood.

"What's…happening?" Hana trembled, afraid for what was happening to Yuji.

"He's…mutating," Washam realized.

Dr. Washam was right as the black blood that layered Yuji's skin started to thicken and harden, becoming hard like organic armor. The blood started moving, covering his body in blackness.

"Run…" Yuji pleaded as his eyes turned completely black.

* * *

Jin and Kai arrived shortly after being contacted. As members of Team 5D's they had a right to know about what was going on.

"I knew you should've brought me along," Jin pouted, frowning with his arms crossed.

"I don't think it would've made a difference," Yuri shrugged.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" the Wind Manakyte demanded.

"You don't know these guys, Jin. None of you do. The only difference your presence would make is that you'd both be lying in hospital beds with the rest of-" Yuri suddenly paused.

"What?" Kai questioned.

Yuki and Yuri's heads shot up and they said at the same time, "Something's wrong with Yuji." The two ran for the elevator.

"Come on!" Shinichi ordered as the rest followed. They all squeezed themselves into the elevator and pushed the button that lead up to the medical floor. Once they reached the floor, sounds of crashes and breaking could be heard as everyone looked to the corridor.

"I'm not the only one who heard that, right?" Yokoshima asked nervously as everyone exited.

Shinichi asked, "Sheila, what's going on?"

_"It appears there's some trouble going on in the infirmary,"_ Sheila identified.

"That's where Yuji and the others are!" Misato gasped as she started running.

"Hey, wait up!" Shinichi called as he gave chase.

"Anyone getting déjà vu?" Yokoshima groaned.

The NEO-NUMBERS, Alan, Misato, Shego, Anastasia and Team 5D's ran down the corridor to find Hana, Michiru and Washam running toward them.

"What happened?" Shinichi asked.

"Déjà vu," Hana heaved as she tried to catch her breath.

"I knew it," Yokoshima slumped.

"Where's Yuji?" Misato demanded.

"Misa-chan…" Michiru sniffled.

"You guys are not going to like this," Washam frowned.

Before he could explain, a footstep were heard as they all turned to the shadowed hallway, lights blinking and sparks flying from damaged lights as they readied themselves. More footsteps sounded as whatever was in the darkness was coming closer and closer. But what they saw was something they all gawked at. The being was Yuji, but he had changed dramatically.

**Music - "Down With the Sickness" by Disturbed**

He was covered in thick layers of blackened and grayed armor that covered his body, with wave-like blades coming off the ends of his forearms and reaching back past his elbows, as his arms had more muscle to them as well, and each of his knuckles had solid bumps growing off them. His fingers and toes ended in obsidian claw-like nails and they looked as sharp as blades. On his armored forearms were small holes that exhaled wisps of black, purple-tinted gas that slowly covered the air around Yuji. What was left of his previous visage was his still-human face, but there were no sign of his lively eyes as they were completely black like a pit of emptiness.

"What...the fuck...?" Daichi stammered. Just what the hell was he looking at?

Shinichi asked, "Yuji...?"

Yuji tilted his head when he heard Shinichi's voice, quizzically as if he was some kind of child. With the way his eyes were right now, it sent chills down everyone's spines.

Shinichi took a careful step forward.

Daichi questioned, "Shinichi, what are you doing?"

Shinichi spoke, "Yuji, are you in there? Can you hear me?" Shinichi got his answer when Yuji reared back his fist and threw a punch, with Shinichi jumping back as the changed man had left a hole in the floor where Shinichi stood.

"Doesn't look like it," Yokoshima squeaked.

Alan scanned Yuji with his Sonic Screwdriver and checked his device and realized, to his horror, "Parasitic mutation."

Yuji flexed the fist he used, staring at his hand with a constant, emotionless expression. He then looked to the group and simply said, "Run." Before they could comprehend what he meant, Yuji vanished from sight in a blur of speed as Daichi was kicked in the chest and sent flying into the corridor's wall.

Shinichi ordered, "Neutralize him!" as his armor formed over his body. He made the first move as did Alan as they both dashed over and grabbed Yuji's arms.

Alan grunted as he called to his friend, "Yuji, get a hold of yourself!"

Yuji looked at the Lantern emotionlessly as spikes erupted from his arm that made Alan let go out of shock. It seemed that this mutation had afforded Yuji new abilities, but there was no doubt in Alan's mind that this mutation came with heavy costs. He then turned to Shinichi and whispered, "Can't stop..." and rammed Showa into the wall which caved in on him slightly.

A long, mechanical arm which ended in a pair of clamps shot towards Yuji and grabbed his waist, lifting him off the floor. The manipulator arm was connected to Blue Beetle's right arm as he stared at his brother-in-law with a degree of fear.

"Hold him!" Misato ordered as she stepped forward. "Yuji! Yuji, it's me! Yuji!"

Yuji roared and used his claws to break free from the manipulator arm, slicing it to pieces. He landed and loomed over Misato who stared up at him. She wasn't afraid though. She couldn't be afraid of the man she loved. The others, of course, were scared for her.

"They tell me…to fight," Yuji stated. "To consume…"

"Who?" she asked softly, "Who is telling you to fight?"

"The…Verz," Yuji identified.

Misato reached towards Yuji but recoiled in fright when he unleashed a roar so loud, the air itself trembled along with the corridor.

Washam shouted, "Misato, get away from him now!" as he pulled her away. They watched as Yuji was gripping his head in pain. More black blood crept from the armor around his collarbone as it covered his neck and head, solidifying into an organic helm that had no face but had four holes arranged in a diamond pattern that allowed Yuji to breathe.

"He's still changing," Alan said as they could only watch.

"Changing into what?" Showa demanded. "And how could we not see this coming?"

"You're seriously asking that now, after all we've been through?"

"Good point," Showa replied as he focused on Yuji. His ahoge were twitching like angry. Yuji's condition seemed so alien yet familiar at the same. Suddenly, it struck him. This was just like Keiichi's evolution into the Darkloid Rider. This was the same feeling he got whenever he was near a Darkloid, the living cause of the Hinamizawa Syndrome.

"He's been infected," Showa murmured.

"OK, that's it!" Musician exclaimed as he glared at Yuji. He didn't appreciate being knocked into the corridor's wall. He was about to do something painful so he warned everyone, "Cover your ears and brace yourselves!" He took a deep breath and SCREAMED! His scream was an incredible blast of sonic power which caused the corridor to vibrate as it passed through the air, hitting Yuji with great intensity.

Yuji howled in pain as he covered his ears while his armor reacted. Since it was made from his blood, it started to break down and drip to the ground while liquid-like tendrils flailed wildly about around him.

They had discovered his weakness but it didn't stop the creature which was once Yuji Fudo from escaping. In order to escape from the sound, he struck the wall with all his might and it literally exploded. Dust and smoke filled the corridor, blinding everyone. Alan blew the dust and smoke away to see a hole in the corridor's wall.

"He's outside!" Alan shouted. "Come on, let's go!" He ran into the hole followed by Showa.

* * *

Outside in the canyon, Yuji tossed his head back and roared. The reason why was that he was being confronted by GaoLiger who stared at his possessed master in worry. Suddenly, paper cranes swarmed around Yuji, prompting him to swat at them with his clawed hands.

"YUJI!" Showa's voice boomed, "LET US HELP YOU!"

Yuji's response was to get on his hands and feet like a beast and unleash a roar as multiple tendrils shot out of his back and went everywhere. GaoLiger recoiled from the suddenness of the attack and Alan quickly evaded. Showa barely dodged as the spikes covering the tendrils nearly tore through his armor. The ground around Yuji, however, was torn to shreds and itty-bitty pieces of paper littered around Yuji as the paper cranes had been caught in the middle of the attack.

The spiked tendrils retracted into Yuji's back and a shadow loomed over him. Looking up, he saw GaoLiger's paw coming down on him. He didn't move to dodge but caught the paw instead. All of a sudden, the muscles on his arms expanded and he lifted GaoLiger off the ground. He spun the beast around and around and around.

"Drop the cat, Yuji!" Showa shouted and Yuji tossed GaoLiger at him. "Not like that!" he shouted as he jumped out of the way before he got crushed by GaoLiger.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," said Alan as he charged at Yuji who saw him coming. He threw his fists forward and his arm stretched to impossible lengths, like they were made of rubber. Alan dodged the attack by sidestepping and shot towards Yuji with the speed of a lightning bolt.

Recalling how Daichi had managed to drive Yuji away earlier, Alan had deduced that sonic waves were a weakness to him. One foot away from Yuji, he fished out his Sonic Screwdriver and pointed the blue crystal tip at him and held the button down. The sonic waves came out, causing Yuji great pain as he covered his ears and roared. Alan pressed on the assault, trying to knock Yuji out with the Sonic Screwdriver. While it was causing Yuji great pain as the tendrils of his organic armor flailed around in the middle of his agonizing torture, it would not cause physical injury.

Yuji's arms became covered in thick, dark armor, becoming hammer-like in appearance. He threw a fist at Alan but he caught it. The force still caused Alan's body to shake and tremble. The other arm shot out and smacked the Sonic Screwdriver out of his grip, sending the cylindrical device flying into the air. He then struck with a punch.

The punch to the stunned Lantern's face flung him through the air to hit the face of the cliff, leaving an imprint of Alan on the surface. It didn't hurt much, but the punch was powerful considering he was off guard.

"OK, my turn," Showa said as he formed his Great Fists only to be suddenly frozen in ice. "What?" he gaped. "YUKI!"

"He's one of our own," said Yuki as she stepped towards Yuji with Yuri, Jin and Kai. "We take care of our own."

"Let me out of here!" Showa shouted. "YUKI! YUKI!"

The four members of Team 5D's surrounded their now corrupted leader. Of course it wasn't Yuji's fault that he was like this. Something had infected him and they needed to cure him. First, of course, they needed to subdue him.

Attacking all at once, Kai and Jin used their elements to get close to Yuji. Blades of winds and bolts of lightning hit but they were either absorbed or ineffective against Yuji who buried his fists into their guts, tossing them back. The shadow under Yuji's feet expanded and dark chains shot up, wrapping tightly around him. Yuri was responsible for this. Creeping up Yuji's legs was Never Melt Ice, courtesy of Yuki.

**End Music**

"Let this keep you safe," Yuki muttered with regret as Yuji was encased completely in ice. "This will hold him."

"Got that right," Yuri agreed.

"Anyone wanna tell me what happened?" Kai asked.

"Get a look at that," Jin pointed as all eyes were on Yuji. They saw the armor liquefy and slowly recede into Yuji's body as cracks formed around him from all the movement. "What's happening?"

"This thing is breaking through," Yuri growled, "But nothing breaks through my sister's Never Melt Ice."

"But now we know another weakness," Yuki stated, "This virus cannot endure extreme cold." They watched as the blood was completely gone and Yuji's original form was left in the ice. "He's OK now. We need to get him out before he dies in there." She snapped her fingers and ice shattered with the chains as Yuji fell face-first.

"Upsy-daisy," Jin chided as he and Kai helped him up. "Would ya look at that? Not a scratch on him after all that ruckus."

"Can't say the same for the Hive," Kai said as he stared at the damaged base.

Yuki gazed back at Showa who stared at her in irritation before she snapped her fingers which made the ice melt off him. He took off his helmet, put it under his arm and strode over towards them. "You know, a simple 'stop' would've been enough," he told her.

"I was afraid you might not have heard me," Yuki said.

Shinichi looked to Yuji with worry as Alan came over, Sonic Screwdriver in hand. She almost thought the device was some kind of weapon but she relaxed as he said, "Just calm down. I only need to perform a scan on him." He held the button down and the cylindrical sonic device buzzed as a green light scanned Yuji. The psychic interface told Alan all he needed to know. "The parasite is dormant, at least for now," he concluded. "But we need Dr. Washam's test to actually know what we're dealing with."

"It looked like some kind of mutated form of the Hinamizawa Syndrome," Shinichi stated. "We'll need to call Dr. Irie too. He's the only expert I know." There was Miyo Takano, but she had selective amnesia and no longer remembered anything about Hinamizawa or the disease.

* * *

Yuji was carried back to the infirmary and strapped down to a bed. He was at the moment being sedated. Dr. Washam was in the lab examining Yuji's blood sample.

"I'm sorry I missed all the action," Grell apologized.

"And just where the hell were you?" Alan questioned.

"I was exploring this place," he said. "It's a bit too hi-tech but it works."

"You shouldn't have walked around unsupervised," Shinichi scolded but he didn't care what Grell did. He was harmless and none of his concern at the moment. He was more concerned about what was happening to Yuji.

Alan listed, "Enhanced healing factor, accelerated regeneration, and the ability to create weapons from his body."

"Hey, that sounds like you, Shinichi," Bazel quipped.

"Don't forget Yokoshima," Shinichi reminded.

That was true. Shinichi's ability to make weapons from his body was granted to him due to his nanites. As for Yokoshima, his own ability to make weapons was attributed to the Blue Scarab in his body. Was something similar happening to Yuji? He'd called Dr. Irie earlier and asked him about the Hinamizawa Syndrome from the notes Miyo Takano had left behind. What Yuji had gone through was undocumented.

Normally, those infected by the Hinamizawa Syndrome were hosts to a parasite. It was only realized that the parasites were the larval form of Darkloids which fed on the negative emotions of their hosts while at the same time magnifying those feelings and causing emotional and psychological imbalance. Of course the larvae's maturity depended on the host's state of mind. If they could remain calm, the parasite would remain dormant. Of course once matured they would come out of their hosts and become a Darkling while continuing to feed from their hosts via a psychic link until they evolved into Darkloids.

Dr. Irie had created a serum that could combat against the parasite, though. That was what Shinichi had used against the Vashta Nerada, a new form of Darkloid larvae that Shiro had spawned. However, it was unknown as to how the serum would work on Yuji's case.

"This is just like the time that Orochi of Darkness, Yami-Gnol, poisoned him," said Shinichi. "But he fought it then and he can fight this now."

"Are you sure?" Alan asked.

"I am. He absolutely has to pull through." Back when he'd gone rogue, Yuji always had his back and made sure he stayed on the right path, never going too far, and stopping him from making terrible decisions. Alan may not have agreed with Yuji's methods but in the end things had turned out alright. They had to do extra work in ARMOR as punishment though, but it was a small price to pay for justice and closure.

Misato was staring at her husband and biting her knuckles until they bled. Shinichi looked to her. A long time ago he'd killed her, twice. When she came back he'd attacked her, thinking she was still an enemy. But Yuji had stopped him and explained things. He had not trusted her but he'd trusted Yuji. Now, Misato was not as insane as he remembered. Yuji had changed her.

"He'll be fine," Shinichi said to Misato, putting a hand on her shoulder as a sign of reassurance. She suddenly grabbed him and pulled him into a hug, burying her face into his chest as she started to cry in frustration. He stiffened, startled by this. He'd never been so close to Misato before so this was indeed a shock for him.

Sheila's voice rang through the speaker in the infirmary, _"Dr. Washam has called you all to the lab."_

"That's our cue," said Alan. "Shinichi?"

"I'll stay," he answered.

"No, let me," Yuki volunteered. "I'll be able to stop him if anything happens."

"OK," Shinichi agreed. "How about you, Misato?"

"Dad wants us to see something," Misato said. If it could help Yuji, then it was something extremely important.

* * *

Team 5D's (minus Yuki & Yuji) and the NEO-NUMBERS were assembled in the lab.

"I think it's better for you to see for yourself," Dr. Washam said as he gestured to the microscope. Shinichi went and looked through and then he recoiled in shock. "See?"

"What?" Yokoshima asked.

"That was not a normal Hinamizawa Syndrome parasite!" Shinichi exclaimed. Curious, Yokoshima peered through the microscope. He jumped back in shock.

"Teeth! Big and sharp teeth!" Yokoshima exclaimed, pointing frantically. "And eyes! Lots of eyes!"

Dr. Washam put the image up on the computer monitor to show the parasites swimming in Yuji's blood sample. They looked like maggots, covered in red eyes and also possessing mouths with razor sharp teeth.

"This is a regular sample," Dr. Washam said, bringing up a picture file of a normal Hinamizawa Syndrome parasite, aka Darkloid larvae, which looked like a worm. It seemed tame compared to the one from Yuji's blood sample.

"Great," Daichi remarked sarcastically, "Not only do we have to deal with a bunch of evil gods who will destroy the Earth, now we have to worry about Yuji mutating into some kind of monster."

Misato was immediately in his face, grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him down to look her in the eyes.

"Daichi, if you don't have anything positive to say, please shut up," she glared. Daichi gulped as he noticed the murderous intent in her eyes and decided to keep his trap shut while she was still in the room.

"Still, ya think someone would notice somethin' like this," Jin frowned with crossed arms.

"You clearly never been sick before," Kai quipped.

"But what could cause this to happen now?" Shogo asked.

"I think I know," Anastasia stepped up. "Think of what Monsieur Yuji has been through on this world," she suggested as she counted, "Fighting Darkloids, me, the Orochi, Gnol who was a primary source for the disease; whose blood was even spilt by Yuji, exposure to Yami-Gnol's venom, not to mention the amount of time he's spent living in this world and giving this mutation time to develop without anyone even realizing. All these factors could very well be linked to his new change."

"So why did it happen now?" Yokoshima asked.

"The Earthbound Gods," Shinichi answered.

"These little buggers must've been pissed when their host got his ass handed to them," Yuri muttered as he observed the parasite through the microscope.

Misato questioned, "Is there a way to cure him?" Dr. Washam shook his head, which was not good. "Dad?"

"I'm sorry, Misato, but the parasite's become part of him, mutating his DNA. Even if we did kill them, he's already been infected at a genetic level," said Dr. Washam. "The best we can do now is to stabilize him and keep him sedated."

"So we just put him in a coma?" Shinichi glared. It was just like Satoshi and all those others that Dr. Irie had kept in the clinic. He understood the dangers of the Hinamizawa Syndrome and how the victims would harm others before ultimately killing themselves. They should've already advanced beyond the need to sedate anyone anymore.

"Shinichi, right now Yuji's too dangerous," Alan said.

Shinichi argued, "We were too, Alan. But that didn't stop people from trying to help us."

"Hey, how about you try calling Hanyuu?" Yokoshima asked.

"Even she couldn't get rid of the Hinamizawa Syndrome, Yokoshima," Shinichi denied. Hanyuu had told him that those who had become violent due to the Hinamizawa Syndrome in the past were put down. Even after she'd been sacrificed and ascended they still sacrificed the ones who had fallen victim to the syndrome. They lived in less barbaric times now but Hanyuu still couldn't cure people of the disease as it had become a part of them.

Shinichi felt utterly useless now. Yuji would have a solution. After Lina had died a second time, Yuji had stuck by him through thick and thin while he hunted down Gebok. Even before that Yuji had been there for him, helping him overcome Anastasia's possession and corruption of his mind. It was Yuji whom he often went to for guidance and advice.

An idea suddenly sparked in his mind and he reached into his pocket to pull out a gold butterfly brooch. It was a gift from Satan, who was now staying in the Kuwadorian for the rest of her pregnancy. The brooch was his ticket to the Meta-World in order to visit her.

"I'm going to be gone for a bit," Shinichi said. "I'll be back as soon as I can." He squeezed the brooch and in a flash of golden butterflies he was gone.

* * *

"I've been expecting you." There sat Beatrice, the Endless Witch, sitting in the garden under an umbrella with cookies and tea. "Take a seat."

Shinichi took a seat across from the Endless Witch. Under normal circumstances, he would've commented on her beauty. She definitely was a beautiful woman and definitely did not look over 1,000 years old.

"Are you here to see Satan?" asked Beatrice. "She has been looking forward to a visit from you." Shinichi had visited every day, to just sit by Satan and talk with her about his day and even look after her. But not today.

"Something's happened to Yuji," Shinichi said.

The smile on Beatrice's face faded as she answered, "I know."

"You know?" he questioned. "You mean you know what Yuji's going through right now?"

"Yes," she answered neutrally.

"So why the hell haven't you tried to help!-?" Shinichi exploded. "You're the Golden Witch, the Endless Witch! Yuji's supposed to be a member of your family now and you should be helping him but here you are having tea and cookies like nothing's wrong!"

The air became thick as Beatrice rose to her feet. Her eyes narrowed, becoming cold. Shinichi felt chilly. He had just yelled at a powerful being but right now he wasn't going to back down.

"Shinichi Banabara," she said, her eyes boring into his soul. He may have fought impossible odds but she was not one of his enemies. "Do not take that tone with me lest you wish to make an enemy out of me."

At that moment, the Endless Sorcerer Battler came and saw the scene. He knew whenever Beatrice was angry she would use magic on the one who had pissed her off. Battler remembered being on the receiving end of her anger.

"Beato, wait!" ES-Battler called. Beatrice saw her husband, the man she loved, and she slowly calmed down. She put her pipe to her lips and sighed.

Shinichi saw ES-Battler, in a white suit over a red shirt, black tie, and wearing a black cloak with a golden one-winged eagle on it. "Battler?" What was he doing here.

"Hi," ES-Battler said. "This is actually the first time we've met, sorry."

"But I know you," Shinichi insisted.

"You know one of me," ES-Battler corrected.

"One of you?" He then understood. "You're an alternate version."

"Bingo!" ES-Battler grinned. "And I would like to say congratulations for being the one to win Satan's heart!"

"Husband," Beatrice addressed.

"Oh, right." ES-Battler asked, "So, what's this about?"

"My friend, Yuji, he's in trouble and Beatrice won't help," Shinichi accused.

"Beato?" ES-Battler asked. "Is this true?"

"It's not a matter of me not wanting to help," she answered. "I _can't_ help."

"And why is that?"

"Because, despite all my power, I cannot violate Fate & Destiny," she said. "There are things even I can't do and I can't interfere in Yuji's destiny, not even if I wanted to."

"Screw Fate and Destiny!" Shinichi snapped. He was angry right now and Beatrice was close to punishing him for being so disrespectful towards her.

"If you insist of being rude, I suggest you leave," Beatrice demanded.

"Wait, who else can I go to for help, then?" Shinichi asked.

"The Witch of the Theatre, Featherine Augustus Aurora," Beatrice answered. "She seems to favor Yuji, but if she hasn't done anything, that means even she can't help you."

Shinichi gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. Coming here was a waste of time.

"I can't cure Yuji," Beatrice frowned. "At least I can't cure his body, but his mind is a different matter."

Shinichi stared up at Beatrice who smiled as she handed him something important. It looked like a wrapped up piece of candy.

"Candy?" he questioned.

"Cure," she corrected. "Now, be off with you! I'll tell Satan you were here."

"I'll come visit again, I promise," Shinichi said before vanishing in a flash, leaving fading gold butterflies in his place.

"I can see why Satan likes him," ES-Battler remarked. "He wasn't afraid to piss you off since his friend is in danger. That takes a lot of guts."

"Indeed," Beatrice nodded. She rubbed her belly. She felt envious of Satan. "Battler, have you ever thought of having children?"

* * *

In a flash of gold, Shinichi reappeared in the Hive.

"So, what did she say?" Misato asked.

"She can't cure Yuji," Shinichi sighed. "But she did give me this." He showed the piece of candy in colored wrapping.

"A piece of candy?" Alan asked.

"It won't help with his body but it'll help with Yuji's mind," Shinichi said. He didn't trust Beatrice, but Yuji trusted the Endless Witch and Shinichi trusted Yuji. So he would believe in the Endless Witch who believed in Yuji.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: And shit hits the fan. Yuji has been infected by a new strain of the Himazawa Syndrome, which I have dubbed "The Verz Virus." The powers displayed in this chapter are based off the Prototype game, and is owned by Activision. What will become of Yuji, as this new virus clearly doesn't follow the pattern of its parent strain? Find out next time.**

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, Yuji's gonna be alright now. But, let's not forget about the Earthbound Gods, shall we? Once Yuji recovers, it's time to declare war on those gods and show them why they shouldn't mess with Earth.**

**OMAKE**

**Sexy Dynamites!**

On a beach inBrazil, both Ccarayhua and Aslla Piscu were relaxing. The glasses wearing one was drinking orange soda while reading a book written by a writer named Shiori Banabara. It was a shame that they'd have to wipe out humanity. It was quite a good read. She was dressed in a string bikini that left very little to the imagination and was reclined on a beach chair.

Ccarayhua, on the other hand, was lying on a blanket and sunbathing. She was wearing a green sling bikini and had sunglasses on. As a lizard, and being coldblooded, she absolutely enjoyed the sun. However, there was another reason for her to be here, and with her sister.

Ccarayhua knew about human lust and was well aware of the obvious sex appeal her human form possessed. It was why she had selected her former host's/servant's form. She liked the way men gazed at her with lustful thoughts.

Several men walked past and couldn't help but notice her. One came up to her and she smiled.

Perfect.

"Aslla," Ccarayhua said as she got up and stretched, "I'm going to be a bit busy for a few hours. Will you be alright?"

Aslla Piscu simply shrugged and Ccarayhua smiled as she followed the men behind several rocks at the beach.

2 hours later, Ccarayhua returned and lay on the blanket, smiling in satisfaction while licking her lips.

"So, how were they?" Aslla Piscu asked, still reading.

"I think they should've lasted longer," Ccarayhua said.

Behind the rocks were the dried up husks of the men. They were nothing more than skin and bones after what Ccarayhua did to them. Oh, she had fun with them first before sucking up their souls.

"Next time I'll let you join, Aslla," Ccarayhua offered, smiling.


	139. The Legacy of Cain Part 83

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN  
**

**Part 83: The Final Confrontation Against the Earthbound Gods**

"My brothers and sisters," spoke Wiraqocha Rasca as he stood in a circle with the other Earthbound Gods. He had taken on a human form and it was the form of Rex Goodwin, but with his own alterations. He looked like someone in his mid-forties with a stern expression and violet eyes. His hair was long and silver and he wore a black turtleneck with the Nazca Lines' condor drawn in the centre. He also wore black slacks and brown boots. Over this he wore a black blazer. "The Signers had defeated us not once, but twice. But in this world we need not fear from them."

The chamber they were in was dark, and lit only by the fire in the centre. They stood on their personal symbols which represented them and standing behind them were the statues just like in the chamber from their previous base.

"Because the Signers do not exist in this realm! We only have their children who are weak!"

"Actually, Wiraqocha, I have been doing some research," spoke Uru. His human form resembled that of Rex Goodwin's brother, Rudger Goodwin, with his muscular build and dressed in a black buttoned up shirt with matching cargo pants and military boots. He also wore fingerless gloves and he wore his blonde hair spiked up with the rest flowing down his back. The spider Earthbound God had collected information from various sources, mostly from the demons of this realm. He manipulated the flames to take shape and the rest of the Earthbounds were looking at the Yamata no Orochi.

"An eight-headed dragon?" Chacu Challhua asked.

"Months ago, this demon had risen and would've destroyed the Earth if it were not for this other being who opposed it." Great Thunder God Susano-O appeared in the fire as well. "The eight-headed dragon, the Yamata no Orochi, was defeated swiftly."

"So, we need to be careful of this guy then," said Cusillu.

"This creature was only one, but we are seven," said Wiraqocha Rasca.

* * *

The potion in candy form had been given to Yuji. Now, they needed to wait for results. In the meantime, everyone was down in the main hall. Everyone, except for Misato who was up in the infirmary, watching over Yuji.

In the meantime, it was time to strategize about how to deal with the Earthbound Gods.

"Yuji's stable for now," said Dr. Washam, "But there's no telling when he will awaken."

"In the meantime we need to form a plan of attack," said Shinichi as the screen showed the Earthbound Gods' Spiral Tower. "They've set up their base out in the open, making it easier to find."

"Unless of course they use magic to render it invisible when we do get there," Alan argued.

"That is a possibility," agreed Shinichi.

"I hate magic," murmured Daichi.

"You hate a lot of things Dai," Yokoshima commented.

"They won't try to be invisible," stated Yuki with absolute certainty. "They want us to come find them so they can kill us and take our souls."

"That sounds pretty bad," Michiru gulped. She'd died before and on more than one occasion. She didn't want to go through the pain of death ever again.

"With Yuji down, maybe Shinichi and Partner can perform a Xros Fusion with just you guys," Bazel suggested. "I mean these Earthbound Gods aren't at full strength. We should just go, combine, and go gangster on them."

"And I do have Ascalon…" Shinichi began.

"Which you have yet to master," Alan finished, causing Shinichi to sigh. "While you can use it for about five minutes and while you do have access to a whole new repertoire of spirit and demon techniques, you would be a serious disadvantage once you reached your time limit. Not to mention that you might not have enough strength left to use your Higurashi Guardian form if you use Ascalon."

Shinichi put his hands against the main console. "Dammit…" The last time they ever felt this helpless and powerless was when dealing with Shiro Juuyon and now it was happening again. The last time of course they were dealing with demons, androids and cyborgs, but now they were dealing with dark gods.

"Look, we won't do much just standing around here," said Kai. "We have to do something and do something quick."

"Carelessness would only lead to casualties," Hana stated.

"So is wasting time!" he shot back at the Tarantula Cyborg, his eyes sparking. He was worried, very worried, and scared. He was scared for Rika, his girlfriend, who would be caught up in all this.

"Yuri, Yuki, any weaknesses of these guys we can exploit?" Shinichi asked. "Your parents beat them so aren't there any helpful tips."

"They were beaten in duels," Yuki countered. "But this is different. Now the Earthbound Gods are playing by a whole new set of rules."

"Yeah, but we know the rules too," said Yuri as he punched his palm. "We go in and hit them with everything we got!" He took out GaoTyranno's gem as it glowed.

"_Me want to fight!_" GaoTyranno growled enthusiastically.

"I'll go and do some recon," Shinichi volunteered, causing everyone to gape at him. "I'll be in Guardian Jet Mode and using Zennin's invisibility trick. Don't worry, I'll be fine."

* * *

(_**Insert Song: Stay and Drown - By: Finger Eleven**_)

In the skies of Peru, a Teleportal opened up and an invisible, human-sized jet flew out before it closed. In his Guardian Jet Mode, Showa was fast and, using Zennin's invisibility technique, he'd be undetected. He spotted the Spiral Tower and went in for a closer look to collect information.

"OK, little guys. Do your things." Paper cranes flew from his body. He was sending only a handful of them as a swarm would only attract too much attention. He looked down to the ground surrounding the Spiral Tower and saw Earthbound Familiars (Jibakushin no Tsukaima) patrolling like sentries. Even the air was thick with them as a dark cloud seemed to spiral around the top of the tower. He spotted small, hummingbird-like creatures flying about alongside whale-like creatures. They sported the Earthbound Gods' Dark Marks on their bodies. Crawling all over the surface of the Spiral Tower were Spider, Lizard and Monkey Familiars while Giant Familiars stood guard around the perimeter of the Tower like sentries.

'_The air is thick with unholy miasma_,' stated St. George. '_These Pagan Gods are indeed evil._'

Showa agreed with St. George's assessment and grimaced at the thought of these seven entities reaching full power through the absorption of living souls. Just one Yamata no Orochi had been bad enough but at full strength each of them could be just as powerful, if not more, as the eight-headed serpent itself. Lives had been lost in the process which led to the Yamata no Orochi's revival and Shinichi was not going to allow it to happen again.

He wasn't going to allow genocide.

He almost hit an Orca Familiar but he avoided by moving to the side. He scanned the area, scanning the cloud, and looked at the statues standing near the windows at the very top floor of the Spiral Tower uneasily. If these Earthbound Gods wanted the souls of humans, why haven't they started? Were they waiting for something? He knew how important preparation was but according to Yuki and Yuri they had already claimed souls from an English village. So what was stopping them from setting out separately and collecting souls from different cities, one at a time.

That was when one of his paper cranes returned with a shocking message, one that made Showa fear for the Earth since months ago.

(_**End Song: Stay and Drown**_)

* * *

Showa burst out of the Teleportal, armor vanishing, as he shouted, "AN ECLIPSE!"

"Say what now?" Yokoshima wondered aloud.

"Deep breaths, Shinichi," Michiru said.

"The…Earthbound Gods…are waiting for the next eclipse!" he shouted. "Once the eclipse begins their tower can act as a soul vacuum and take all the human souls in one go!"

* * *

Shinichi went up to the infirmary to see Yuji. Seeing him, lying unconscious in bed, alone, he went and grabbed a chair to sit down upon. "Normally, I wouldn't be freaking out like this. I mean we've saved the world before." He could list the times they had. "Before you and I even met, we saved the world from the Dark Being, from GIN-SHOCKER and the DHS. Then X-SHOCKER showed up and you helped me by defeating Gebok once and for all. Before that, though, you helped me fight Panther Claw. After Shiro and Gnol came into the picture you still helped us even though this wasn't your world and we all beat the Yamata no Orochi together…" He leaned back, staring at the ceiling. "And I thought the Yamata no Orochi was bad but I guess he was just the tip of the iceberg…" He sighed, "Funny how things turn up, huh? We think we faced pure and ultimate evil and then something else comes along to overshadow it." He looked at Yuji, "Please…wake up soon…"

The Earthbound Gods were a threat from Yuji's world so maybe Yuji's powers would work against them. It was only bad luck that he got infected by a mutated strain of the Hinamizawa Syndrome and ended up mutating into some kind of Manakyte-Darkloid hybrid. It was just as bad, maybe even worse, than Keiichi's own mutation into a Darkloid-based Rider.

This world really was corrupting everyone he held dear and yet he wanted to save it.

He heard footsteps and turned his head to see Misato coming into the infirmary. He gave her an unenergetic greeting, "Hey."

"How is he?" she asked. She had just gone out for a minute to use the bathroom. Besides that she had not left Yuji's side.

"I ain't a doctor, but I think he's in some kind of coma," Shinichi said before jokingly adding, "That, or he's a heavy sleeper."

"He's been through a lot," Misato stated, "I won't be surprised if he sleeps for days." Misato put her hand on Shinichi, which was a gentle gesture of reassurance. In the past, when they had been enemies, it would've been seen as a hostile gesture. Not anymore.

Back in 1985, Misato and Shinichi hadn't reunited under the best of circumstances. She had kidnapped his girlfriend, Rena. Then there was that time when she was murdering people in Ibaraki, which led to their next confrontation, which eventually concluded with her death. Anastasia had revived her, of course, to serve as one of her Soldiers of Terror.

Then in 1987, she met Yuji Fudo and in battle they had flirted with each other and started a relationship, one which they hid from the others. It was only in London in the same year when Shinichi found out about their affair. Shinichi had reacted with disbelief considering how crazy she had been before and he was justified in his hatred and distrust of her. However, overtime, and with Yuji's support, he'd started to trust her.

In fact, Misato and Shinichi had reconciled and become friends. The others, after learning of Misato's return to the mortal realm and her reformation, had reacted with disbelief as well but eventually came to accept her as well.

Yuji was important to the two of them and had helped them out along the way. Now it was their turn to do the same.

"You know, back when I had my time powers, I could just reverse time and undo all the damage to make sure no lives were lost," Shinichi said as he stared at the back of his hand. "But all this time I think I've been using it as an excuse. I was careless and things got damaged while people lost their lives, but as long as I had my power to 'Return to the Past' I could undo all the destruction and death, even erase the cause so that it would never repeat itself." He clenched his fist tightly. "But that's no longer an option anymore."

* * *

_In the mind of Yuji Fudo was himself and a new occupant. It was the mutated Hinamizawa Syndrome parasite, but in spiritual form. It had taken the appearance of a little girl who was pitch black, naked, and with a twin tails hair style. Her red eyes were glowing in the dark of what was now her room that existed in Yuji's subconsciousness._

"_So, this is what you look like," Yuji addressed._

"_I just took a form that would you would find comfortable," she shrugged, "You have so many girls around you all the time, so I figured this would be best." Her assumption was correct as a female form would put Yuji at ease._

"_So, you're bonded with me," he stated._

_The Hinamizawa Syndrome nodded, "Yeah."_

"_And you're supposed to be the Hinamizawa Syndrome?"_

"_Not anymore," she denied, "I began changing when I entered you." Yuji just scratched his head at hearing that. Changing? Well, if it could happen with Keiichi and his Seed of Agito due to Darkloid confrontations then why not for him and the Hinamizawa Syndrome?_

"_OK, so what do you want?" Yuji asked._

"_I want to live," she stated, "And I'm not the Hinamizawa Syndrome anymore. It's 'Verz'."_

"_Right, Verz," he nodded, "So why did we attack the others?"_

"_I...I was afraid," she admitted, "I thought we would be hurt if we stayed there any longer so I needed to take control."_

"_Carl is my father-in-law," Yuji reminded, "He was just trying to figure out what was going on."_

"_I'm still remembering people you interact with," she slumped. "But at least I know about your family, and I really like them!"_

'_She's like a kid,' Yuji realized._

"_Well, I'm technically a few years old," she reasoned._

"_Right, mind-reading," he nodded. They were in his subconscious so his thoughts would be obviously transmitted to any other entity inhabiting it with him. "So, you're a new strain of the disease."_

"_I'm Verz," she nodded, "But you can call me anything else if you want."_

_Yuji took a second to think before he came up with a name. "How about Veronica?"_

_The newly-dubbed Veronica smiled, "I like that._"

* * *

Meanwhile, back out in the real world, Shinichi and Misato were still talking about Yuji.

"You remember last March?" Shinichi asked.

Misato replied, "You mean when Satan was kidnapped by those RoC guys who wanted to turn your baby into a weapon? How can I forget?" Shinichi had been considered GIN-SHOCKER's ultimate weapon and his actions after abandoning the organization had confirmed how powerful he was. So, members of the Religion of Crime had kidnapped Satan and planned to keep her until her baby was born before taking her child to be made into a weapon like Shinichi.. Of course, they had not planned things thorough.

"I thought I was furious, but Yuji was like a volcano when he tore the place up looking for Satan-chan," Shinichi smiled. Yuji had not killed them, but he had left an impression. Those Religion of Crime members, instead of facing a lifetime of imprisonment, decided to just end their own lives with poison.

"I think he's more like the sun. He brings hope for a new day," Misato said as she looked to Yuji and gasped as he was starting to wake up. "Shinichi, look."

Misato and Shinichi watched as Yuji's eyes opened and rose from his sleep as he took a minute to stretch and yawn. "Hey," Yuji greeted, "How long was I out?"

"YUJI!" Misato cried as she glomped her husband and began kissing him all over. "You're alright! Oh, thank God, you're alright!"

"Yeah, I'm OK," he nodded as he held her close. "Falling off a bed does nothing to me now." He looked to Shinichi, "I need gummy bears."

"I'll drop by the kitchen to go get them," said Shinichi as he headed for the door. He stopped at the doorway and said over his shoulder, "Good to have you back."

"Good to _be_ back," he nodded.

* * *

"I say we plant explosives and bomb the place," Shogo suggested.

"OK, Sho, you're starting to freak me out," stated Yokoshima. "You're acting like Saisen back in the day. You know, whenever he acts all 'blowy-uppy'."

"And who's to say bombs _can _kill them?" Daichi asked.

"We could use something nuclear and atomic," Shogo recommended.

"Nobody is going to use any atomic or nuclear explosive devices," spoke up Alan.

"And it's not like we have any in storage," added Dr. Magi.

"But we have the parts," argued Shogo. "We can build one. We have the technology."

"Dude, you just quoted from the '6 Million Dollar Man'," Yokoshima pointed out.

"No bombs, no explosive devices," Alan stated. "That's final."

"Oh, and who are you to tell us what to do?" Shogo stepped up to glare at him.

"The guy who can break you in half if you don't get out of my face," Alan threatened as he shoved Shogo back. He would've flown backwards if it he hadn't turned off his super-strength.

"Whoa, guys," said Michiru as she got between them. "Let's not kill each other. That's what the enemy wants."

Shogo snorted, "Oh, like you're such an expert, Ms. Pink!"

"Children, please!" Dr. Magi begged. "We can't be arguing at this crucial moment."

"Yeah, Partner," said Bazel. "Chill out."

"It's just...I hate it when there's nothing I can do," said Alan. He was referring to Yuji's condition.

"If you're worried about Yuji, he's stable," Hana informed him.

"Not cured, though. He's gonna have those things inside of him," Alan grimaced.

Hana had to agree with that assessment.

"Dr. Magi, what about the satellite?" Daichi asked. "Does it have any weapons like a laser cannon?"

"The satellite was never weaponized. It was meant to be used for global surveilance only," frowned Dr. Magi.

Daichi grumbled, "Well that's just great."

Alan approached Team 5D's who were discussing something amongst themselves. He didn't use his super-hearing to eavesdrop on them. He wasn't that rude. "So, any ideas on how to deal with these Earthbound Gods?"

"We were thinking of the direct approach, which didn't work out so well," said Yuri.

"Aren't you super-strong?" Kai asked.

"Well according from what I've learnt, these guys are demons. They're magical creatures and there are seven of them. I might be able to deal with a few of them, but not all at once," said Alan.

"Never knew you to be so afraid," commented Jin.

"I'm not," Alan denied. "I've just got too much to live for so I can't throw my life away so recklessly." He had loved ones living in this world and he couldn't leave them behind.

"Hey, I know the feeling," Yuri agreed. "Which is why we need to beat these guys before the next planetary alignment. According to Sheila, the alignment is in a couple of days."

"So we don't have much time then," Alan frowned. At least the Earthbound Gods weren't going around killing people at this moment in time.

The elevator doors opened up and Yuji stepped out with Shinichi and Misato. "So, what did I miss?" All eyes were on him. "Come on guys, give me the 411!" he grinned. In his hand was a bag of gummy bears.

"It's like they've never seen a spontaneous recovery," Misato commented to Shinichi.

"So, don't keep me in the dark, what's the deal?" Yuji asked as he ate another gummy bear.

"Why are you eating gummy bears?" Shogo asked.

"Need to take in more sugar than normal since Veronica also feeds on the nutrients I ingest," he replied as he continued eating. "And by the way." He bopped Shogo over the head. "That was for snapping at Michiru."

"Who's Veronica?" Yokoshima asked.

"The Verz Virus," he clarified.

"Verz?" everyone repeated.

"Remember when I changed?" They nodded. "That was Veronica basically saying 'Hi'."

"Veronica?" Alan asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah," Yuji nodded.

Everyone shared looks of worry, concern, even Daichi who twirled his index finger next to his temple while gesturing to Yuji. Alan, of course, said, "But your mutation was caused by the Hinamizawa Syndrome parasite inside of you mutating. So, this 'Veronica' is the parasite after mutating and gaining sentience."

"In short, Yuji has a Darkloid inside him," Shinichi finished.

"WHAT!-?" Yokoshima jumped in shock, gawking and gaping while pointing at Yuji. "Darkloid!-?"

"I guess you could put it that way," Yuji shrugged.

"You tried to kill us!" Yokoshima freaked out, "AGAIN!"

"Correction, that was Veronica taking control to defend us," Yuji stated, "She thought my body was being threatened and as a result, _she _was being threatened, and transformed my body in order to fight back."

"In short, a defense mechanism," Shinichi summarized.

"You're acting pretty calm about this," observed Daichi. "I thought you hated Darkloids."

"I'm going to make an exception with this one," Shinichi shrugged. It wasn't like he could get rid of this 'Veronica' and Yuji seemed pretty protective of the entity, despite Shinichi's own objections. Besides, maybe Yuji could develop a symbiotic relationship with this entity.

"Veronica is bonded to my DNA," Yuji reminded. "We're stuck with each other for life." He popped another gummy bear into his mouth. "Yummy...orange." He asked again, "So, what's new? Shinichi told me about a planetary alignment that the Earthbound Gods are planning to use."

"No, first you need to tell us what the fuck happened to you exactly," Daichi denied, while demanding answers. Yuji glared but relented nonetheless. They did deserve an explanation after he went berserk on them like that.

"Ever since I've been here I've been exposed repeatedly to Darklings and Darkloids, who are in essense the cause of the Hinamizawa Syndrome," Yuji answered. He listed, "There was Gnol Gnauh when he splashed his blood on me while we fought, then I got bitten by Yami Gnol whose venom was a watered down version of the Syndrome." He added under his breath, "That was no fun at all." He finished, "And finally...there's Anastasia."

"With all that exposure, you couldn't help but develop this mutation," Alan concluded.

"Precisely," confirmed Yuji. "But now I can control it." He demonstrated by forming one of his claws.

"And yet another one of my friends has become part Darkloid," Shinichi sighed. As if Keiichi wasn't bad enough. "The darkness in this world must have affected you."

"Could be worse; I could be part Gebok," Yuji joked.

"Now don't you even joke about _that_," Shinichi glared.

* * *

"I'm bored...so bored...so very bored..." Cusillu whined as he hung upside down from the monkey bars by his legs. The monkey bars were something he'd installed in his floor. Each of the Earthbound Gods had their own floor, with their own aesthetics. Cusillu's entire floor looked like a jungle, an actual jungle.

Wiraqocha Rasca's plan was to drain the souls of all the living creatures on Earth in one fell swoop and that would take place during the planetary alignment which would take place in just three more days. Just three more days until the planets were all aligned and in the optimum position so that the ritual could be conducted. Personally, Cusillu thought that their eldest brother's plan was a waste of time. The fastest way was to go out there, send their Familiars, and start harvesting souls as fast as they could. However, Wiraqocha Rasca had final say which Cusillu hated him for. He was like Chacu Challhua, the glutton. Cusillu was greedy. He wanted more and more and more things.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Yuji's apartment, Maria and Wendy were playing Duel Monsters on the kitchen table. They hadn't heard from their father yet and it worried them. They knew something was wrong when they didn't hear any news. They knew the adults would sometimes keep them in the dark about these things. They were being treated like children.

"Do you get the feeling that Papa is in trouble?" Maria asked as she drew a card.

"Sometimes," Wendy answered. "And sometimes I feel as if the adults purposely keeps things for us too. They know something is wrong. They're just not telling us."

* * *

Back in the Hive, Yuji was standing in the middle of the holographic training chamber with Dr. Washam, Shinichi, Alan and Misato observing him from the control room.

"OK, Yuji," Washam spoke into the microphone, "We're going to run some tests and study your new abilities. Are you ready?"

Yuji looked up and gave them a thumbs-up with a confident smile.

"He seems confident," stated Shinichi. He stared at his wrist-mounted communicator, worried. He'd contacted his friends in Hinamizawa and told them about the oncoming threat, warning them to be careful. He didn't want to see them die ever again.

Correction: he didn't want to see _anyone _die ever again.

The screen showed Dr. Washam a list of training options. Nodding, he selected one called "Armed Forces".

The environment around Yuji rippled and shifted as the holographic technology did its work and he found himself in the middle of an army base, surrounded by armed soldiers who were pointing machine guns at him and tanks taking aim, their barrels locked onto him.

"Is this it?" he asked. He shrugged as he cracked his knuckles, "Well...if that's the case then bring it!"

The army attacked.

Bullets were fired as Yuji conjured an organic shield on his left arm, deflecting the bullets as they bounced off his defense. However, a tank round blew his shield apart, pushing him back as he started running. His armor active, Yuji's arms morphed into his Hammer Fists and he made a jump before dropping down on the tank as it exploded from the single hit. Their guns aimed, the soldiers fired on Yuji as he got under the tank and lifted it above his head and tossed the wreckage at his targets, hearing screams as they were flattened. A rocket was coming his way and Yuji defended himself by reforming his right arm into a wicked blade, turning to his target and dashing forward as he cut him in half. More soldiers surrounded him and he reformed his arms into blade-like claws, cutting down foes around him as he sliced them to pieces. Missiles rained down on Yuji, making him roll away and he looked up to see a chopper trained on him. His right arm morphing again, it became slender and his claws were fixed in a pointed motion. He reared his arm back and let his arm fly as it stuck onto the chopper and he went with it as he was pulled into the air. Yuji then formed a Hammer Fist for his left arm and gave the chopper a good punch to make a hole in the side. The helicopter was spinning out of control before it came down with a crash and exploded, blinding the observers before Yuji walked out of the flaming wreckage in full armor and without a scratch.

"What's my time?" he asked.

Sheila reported, "_Simulation completed in 1 minute and 45 seconds_."

"Oh well, this change is still new," he shrugged.

"_You mean you could've gone faster?_" Shinichi questioned in disbelief.

"I wish," he sighed, "I was feeling a bit sluggish since I just got out of bed."

Misato, meanwhile, was breathing hard as her heart drummed in her chest. She was also perspiring. Watching Yuji in action had gotten her slightly hot and bothered. "Are you OK, Misato?" Dr. Washam asked.

"I'm fine, Dad," said Misato. She spoke into the microphone as her voice came out the chamber's speakers, _"Yuji, how about I examine you a bit in the infirmary, __alone__..."_

He chuckled to himself and muttered, "I know where this is going..."

"_That can wait, Yuji. Now we want to assess how you do against an opponent in a one-on-one confrontation,"_ said Alan.

"Cock-blocker!"

"_I heard that. Sheila, conjure up Master-14._"

Yuji was suddenly bombarded by red energy blasts. Ducking behind an upturned tank, he took a peak to see who it was. It was Master-14, Shiro Juuyon's combat form and he was blasting at him with his arm-mounted cannon.

"For the record, you were supposed to hear that, Alan!" Yuji then grinned as he started running, "AND IT LOOKS LIKE CHRISTMAS CAME EARLY FOR ME!" He lunged at Master-14 and speared him in the gut, the two rolling along the floor as Yuji's Hammer Fists formed. He started pounding the Master's face in, not letting up as the area boomed from his punches.

With his attention on Master-14's face, he did not notice his opponent's chest open up to reveal a hidden cannon. It fired, blasting Yuji into the air. Master-14 got back to his feet and rubbed his face before flying into the air to search for his prey. This simulated opponent, made using hard light holographic technology, was designed to fight like Master-14. Spotting Yuji on the ground he took aim and fired a continuous series of blasts from his cannon.

Yuji looked up and grimaced as he started running before he jumped and started gliding as he evaded the rain of laser fire which left craters everywhere. "Oh shit, I'm gliding!" He turned and formed his Whip Fist as he lashed out at Master-14 and caught him in the chest. "GET DOWN HERE!" A strong pull brought the Master back down to Earth.

Master-14 grinned as he was dragged through the air towards Yuji and summoned the Oathbreaker. Once he was close enough, he slashed at Yuji with his sword. The blade touched Yuji's arm and completely sliced it right off, releasing Master-14.

Up in the control room, Misato shrieked after seeing this, "That thing cut off his arm! What kind of simulation is this!-?"

"A very high level one," Dr. Washam said as he checked the system. The holographic simulator was meant to be realistic, but not _that _realistic.

Shinichi checked the machine using his nanites and found out the reason, "The higher the level, the higher the risk of physical injury." The danger level was at Level 13.

"Who came up with that!-?" Misato questioned before she glared at the machine. "Sheila, was it you?"

"_I simply created a simulation which would match up to Yuji's statistics in order to assess him_," said Sheila. She didn't sound too apologetic.

"So, his arm getting cut off was part of the plan?" Misato accused. She got no response. "Sheila? Sheila!"

Yuji stared at the stump of his his severed arm. Then, much to his shock and the shock to those watching, the severed limb melted down into a dark, blood-like substance which flew through the air, entering Yuji's back, before a new arm grew out from the stump. He stared at his newly regrown arm and flexed his fingers in wonder and amazement. "Wow..."

"He grew back his own arm!" Shinichi shouted, pointing. He repeated, "He grew back his own arm!"

"We know," Alan grumbled, annoyed. "We all saw it, so don't keep screaming in my ear."

"But he freaking grew back his own freaking arm!"

Meanwhile...

"I will have you kneel and call me MASTER!" Master-14 roared.

"Listen, the only thing you're a master of is a lamb's left nut," Yuji retorted as he formed his blade. "So yeah, you're the master of a lamb's left nut." The two started slashing and hacking at each other as cuts were made on their armors. However, Yuji's armor was regenerating while Master-14's wasn't.

Noticing the punishment he was taking, Master-14 roared out a command, "DALEKS! CYBERMEN! ATTACK!"

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" The DALEKs rolled onto the battlefield, aiming their guns.

"**Delete. Delete. Delete.**" The Cybermen also marched into the battle zone with their blasters aimed.

Master-14's army was assembled and ready to take down Yuji. "FIRE!" The DALEKs and Cybermen started blasting at Yuji as commanded.

Shinichi looked to Alan whose arms were crossed. "Isn't that a bit much?" he asked. The simulation was at Level 13, a pretty high and dangerous one. If Yuji hadn't had the ability to regenerate he would've been stuck with only one arm or outfitted with a cybernetic substitute.

Alan regarded his brother and asked, "Don't you have faith in him? Just watch. Besides, this is just a simulation. The only thing that will break are hard light holographic projections."

"He got his arm cut off a few minutes ago, remember?" Shinichi reminded.

"It grew back, didn't it?" Alan retorted, ending the discussion.

Yuji only grinned as he formed his Claws and started tearing through DALEKS and Cybermen like gift wrapping paper. Unfortunately, more appeared and Yuji was getting annoyed. As he was surrounded, Yuji doubled over slightly and let out a roar as tendrils exploded out of his body, piercing everything around him and exploding as Master-14 was left without an army.

The mutated Manakyte stood up and grinned, "Back to square one." He then lifted his arm and stabbed his Claws into the ground, the floor shaking as giant spikes erupted and made Swiss cheese out of Master-14. "Too slow, pussy."

Alan saw Misato's reaction to the carnage and simply said, "Take a cold shower."

"Good idea," she grinned as she spoke into the mic. "Yuji, shower! Now!"

"_On my way, babe!"_ Yuji beamed as he ran for the exit as the projections broke down.

As Yuji and Misato left at the same time, Alan and Shinichi both looked at each other. "Are we ready?" the cyborg asked the Green Lantern.

"Right now, we have to be," answered Alan. "Call the others. We're going to need everyone for this."

Shinichi nodded. Last year they had saved the world and now over five months later they were going to do it again. This time it would be different. This time no more lives were going to be lost.

* * *

In order to face the Earthbound Gods and prevent this latest crisis, Shinichi had summoned their allies to the Hive. Team 5D's was already present in the Hive. The Stakes of Purgatory appeared to lend a hand. Only six of them were present as Satan wasn't fit for duty due to being pregnant. Also in attendance was the Hinamizawa Gaming Club whom had received the Legendary Riders powers from Shinichi. Members of Alan, Yuri and Yuji's harems were also present in the main hall. Rhea, Yuki's own girlfriend, stood in attendance in her Jersey Devil costume.

Shinichi stood before everyone, with the huge monitor behind him displaying the Spiral Tower. "Not too long ago, which was near the end of 1988 last year, we faced the Yamata no Orochi to save the Earth. Now, once again, we must band together to save the world from the Earthbound Gods. According to Yuri, at full power, each of them will be as strong as the Yamata no Orochi at the peak of its power." He paused, gauging their reactions. "I understand that some of you might be frightened so I won't force you to fight, but we're the only ones with the power to stop this crisis. The whole world is at risk and it needs to be saved. These Earthbound Gods want to take our souls and destroy our world where we live, where our friends live, where our families live, but are we gonna let them? Fuck no! Hell no! This is our world and they don't belong in it! We can't let them do whatever they want with it!" Shinichi continued. "So, once again, together, we will fight and defeat this threat just like how we defeated the Yamata no Orochi!"

Everyone cheered as he finished his speech.

"Yay, Shin-kun!" Rena cheered.

"Tell it like it is, Shin-chan!" Mion yelled.

"Testify! Testify!" Yokoshima chanted.

"He's really good at giving speeches, isn't he?" Shizuko asked Yuji who smiled with approval.

* * *

The Teleportal was set on the coordinates for the Spiral Tower's location. Once they arrived they would begin their attack and draw the Earthbound Gods out. One by one, everyone stepped into the Teleportal. They were this world's only hope.

Shinichi and Rena held hands. This would be another battle he would drag his friends into and he couldn't help but feel worried. He caressed her face and the two shared a brief kiss before walking hand-in-hand together to face danger.

"It looks like we're off to save the world again," Yuji said to his Power Animals through their respective Gao Jewels.

"_Actually…_" GaoPhoenix's Gao Jewel moved towards Yuki. "_I think I'd rather fight alongside your sister._"

"Yuki?" Yuji questioned.

"Me?" Yuki asked, pointing to herself.

"_I'm thinking what I really need is a female master_," said GaoPhoenix. She addressed Yuji, "N_o offense._"

"None taken," shrugged Yuji, "But it was a nice run while it lasted, though."

Yuki was holding GaoPhoenix's jewel as a Gao Dagger appeared in her other hand.

"Are you sure you want me?" Yuki asked. "I'm an ice user, while you're a fire user."

_"I didn't choose you for your element,"_ said GaoPhoenix. _"I chose you for your love and devotion to your brothers."_

Yuki smiled and slotted GaoPhoenix's jewel into the Gao Dagger. The blade suddenly burst with flames which swirled around Yuki. Grell stepped back to watch the spectacle from a safe distance.

Inside the vortex of fire, Yuki's clothes were incinerated but then they were replaced by black, skin tight bodysuit which covered her from the neck all the way down to her feet. The flames then formed red boots that reached up to her knees which were covered by gold pads and matching gloves which reached her elbows. Her torso was next as the flames formed a red vest with gold trim and a golden drawing of a phoenix on the chest. A belt with a gold buckle wrapped around her waist and a red miniskirt that was mid-thigh length hung from her hips, with slits on the side. Finally, the flames formed a helmet over her head which was modelled after a phoenix, red with a golden beak. The blue visor that covered her eyes was held in the beak. Her lower face was left exposed but not for long as a silver faceplate slid into place.

The flames dispersed and Grell admired Yuki's new look. "Oh, I'm so jealous!" The black, red and gold really looked great on the female Manakyte.

"Looking good, Yuki," Yuji complimented.

"Thank you, Onii-sama," Yuki smiled, blushing. She asked GaoPhoenix about the costume, "What exactly is _this_ for?"

"_Well, you need to look good when saving the world_," reasoned GaoPhoenix.

"I have to agree," said the Jersey Devil, smiling as she looked at Yuki in approval. Yuki blushed under her helmet.

Grell shouldered his chainsaw and said, with his pose, "Let's give them a taste of DEATH!"

* * *

The entire group, a ragtag army of people with the same goal, stood in the desert with the Earthbound Gods' Spiral Tower standing in the distance. Shinichi looked to the members of the Gaming Club, the first group of friends he'd ever made since that fateful day in Hinamizawa in 1984. Had it really been 5 years since Rena had found him, given him a new life and a sense of purpose. He felt a sense of guilt for dragging them here and he wanted to apologize, but this was what they wanted. They wanted to fight alongside him, which was why he'd given them the powers of the Legendary Riders.

The twins had become Kamen Rider Ichigo and Nigo with Satoshi wearing V3's armor. Satoko was clad in Riderman's suit as Rika wore ZO's. Rena was donned in the armor of ZX. Keiichi had also transformed into his Darkloid Rider form, eager to fight with everyone. Hanyuu was also given Rider armor in the form of J to match Rika's.

They all looked determined. They wanted to fight to save the world.

Shinichi smiled and slipped his helmet onto his head before securing it with his faceplate.

* * *

"It looks like we have intruders coming," Wiraqocha Rasca said as the enemy approached.

"Looks like they're trying to be heroes," smirked Uru. "Such nonsense to think they can stand up to us. Let's send a welcoming committee to greet them."

* * *

The group stopped a distance away from the Spiral Tower. Standing in front of them and in their way was an army of Familiars, all eager to fight for their masters.

"Looks like we have to go through them to get to the Earthbound Gods," said Alan.

"Looks like it," agreed Liger Zero.

"Then let's tear right through them!" Geno roared.

The two groups stood still before making their move as they charged right at each other. The battle had just begun.

The battle itself could only be compared to the one that had taken place in Hinamizawa years ago when GIN-SHOCKER fought against the combined forces of the Kamen Riders.

The Familiars, while powerful in numbers and loyal to their masters, were like mindless beasts in battle, following only basic instincts. Right now, their instincts were telling them to kill. The Riders were the first to engage them with Ichigo/Mion and Nigo/Shion in the lead. Like the Double Riders whose powers they possessed, the twins fought side-by-side and back-to-back, taking down any Familiar which came at them. Meanwhile,V3/Satoshi had just given a Lizard Familiar an uppercut before jumping up to do a backflip to avoid being crushed by a Giant Familiar. He landed a kick to the back of the beast's head, sending it crashing to the ground.

Up in the air, Hummingbird Familiars were fighting against Zero who was just as fast as they were in his Fighter Form. He bombarded them with his missiles and they erupted with explosions. A few managed to tear sparks off his armor and do some damage but they met their end when he drove his drill into them. His drill was also used to conjure a tornado which sucked up the hummingbird monsters before tearing them to shreds.

Back on the ground, Alter was like an animal as he tore through the Familiars with his Cleaver Sword. Nearby was Riderman/Satoko who was using martial arts skills while armed with the Power Arm. The crescent-shaped blade claw tore through a Monkey Familiar with ease before she was almost knocked through the air by an Orca Familiar. Orca Familiars started to drop from the sky like torpedoes in an attempt to crush their enemies.

Arachnea (Venom Form) and Carmen (Mirage Form), armed with their respective scythe weapons, fought against the Familiars of Assla Piscu and Ccarayhua. The Hummingbird Familiars tried to stab at them with their beaks while the Lizard Familiars were trying to claw and bite at them. A Lizard Familiar managed to hit Carmen with its tail and knocked her to the ground only to quickly meet its own end when Arachnea's wrist claws dug into its chest. A Spider Familiar jumped at them but was knocked out of the air by a sonic blast courtesy of Musician.

Blue Beetle was battling against a Giant Familiar, causing it to stagger as he used a series of kicks while he was equipped with a chainsaw on his left leg and a spiked shin-guard on his right leg. He was also equipped with a hammer on his left hand and a claw on his right arm. Jumping up he knocked a Giant Familiar down with his spike-equipped leg before slashing at a Monkey Familiar. He then smashed the Monkey Familiar to the ground with crushing force using his hammer.

Meta, in Blast Form, activated his wrist blade which glowed with energy. Adding his super-enhanced strength and speed into his strikes, he easily sliced through the Familiar horde. Monkeys, Spiders, and Lizards fell under his might. Meta was also making sure everyone was alright and keeping them in touch using a telepathic network. His senses also kept him alert of his surroundings as well.

The Familiars appeared to disappear in the form of dark smoke, meaning they weren't humans possessed by the power of the Earthbound Gods. They didn't need humans to help manifest their servants any longer.

Showa was in Kage Form and was fighting alongside ZX/Rena as they fought like ninjas. ZX/Rena tossed Cross Shurikens at Hummingbird Familiars, tearing them to shreds with explosions. The Impact Bombs on her knees were also effective as she threw them at the Giant Familiars, causing them to drop on their backs. Showa attached a chain to his Dai-Shuriken before letting it fly, using his weapon as a flail. He suddenly threw ZX/Rena and himself out of the way as an Orca Familiar almost crushed them.

J/Hanyuu had not left ZO/Rika's side since the beginning of the battle and while the heiress of the Furude Clan was using the green Rider's combat capabilities, J/Hanyuu assisted her by showing them the true fury of a goddess. She wielded the Onigari no Ryuou expertly, just like she had centuries ago as Hainiryun. Slasher, of course, stood close by protectively as he spat glue in the eyes of the Familiars before hacking them to pieces with his chainsaws.

The Stakes of Purgatory were zipping through the battlefield, armed with their ability of flight, super-speed and energy blades. Lucifer supported Zero as she cut down the Hummingbird Familiars. One nearly hit her but she dispersed in the form of golden butterflies before reforming and stabbing the creature in the back. Combining with Lucifer, the Wasp Rider turned into his green-armored Pride Form and took down Familiars at blinding speed.

Lucifer's sisters, Leviathan and Asmodeus, were helping their own lovers as well.

The verdette furiously slashed at Lizard Familiars while Musician was using his Cricket Guitar to hack them to pieces. Hearing their furious yells, it was obvious to see that they shared many things in common. Asmodeus was laughing as she avoided the Monkey Familiars before putting them down. A Giant Familiar made a grab for the blonde only for it to get a face full of missiles from Blue Beetle.

"Leave my wife alone!" he snapped. He wasn't shy to admit this girl was his wife and Asmodeus appreciated the gesture.

Jin and Kai were creating quite the storm, literally. Kai unleashed bolts of lightning from his hands, zapping Familiars to death while Jin used blades of pressurised wind to cut them to pieces. An Orca Familiar dropped nearby and they looked up to see the one responsible to be Alan himself. He wasn't alone, though. Anastasia, with her yellow power ring, was building constructs resembling weapons of torture. She had just killed a Lizard Familiar by trapping it in a iron maiden construct before beheading several Hummingbird and Monkey Familiars in guillotines.

Shego unleashed her green plasma flames at the Familiars while Kikyo shot them down with her sacred arrows. Amora herself was using magic to slay the creatures and next to her was Lala who was armed with a laser gun which shrunk the Familiars and contained them in cubes. She beamed at the success of her invention. Nozomu, in her true form, used her claws to battle the Lizard Familiars and was successful in driving them back with Shizuko and Stella's aid. Conda grabbed a Monkey Familiar by the tail and slammed it to the ground. She cracked her whip and lashed it out the Familiars. Sora as well, in her Sky Panther form, was dropping explosives to carpet bomb the Familiars. Hummingbird Familiars flew at her to stop her but Megan suddenly appeared and used telekinesis to drive them backwards. Asura used her fire power on the horde of Familiars and watched them burn with utmost glee.

Melanie the Dark Lady and Phoebe the Archmage were also casting their own collection of destructive spells as Reina the Killer Queen used her spiked whip to put down her monstrous enemies, laughing as they were slain by her. She really did enjoy it as much as her species would indicate. She then backhanded a Lizard Familiar across the face and snapped the neck of a Monkey Familiar.

Yami was fighting using her transformation ability to turn her limbs and hair into bladed weapons. Even her hair was a lethal weapon. Earlier, her daughter Alice had insisted on coming along. She had said no to her request, quite firmly in fact.

Sticking close together were Yuki and Rhea. The female Manakyte of Ice, now partnered with GaoPhoenix, wielded the Gao Dagger expertly as Rhea fought the Familiar with a spear with an electrified spear tip. She ran a Monkey Familiar through, from the throat and out the mouth before withdrawing to smash her foot into a Lizard Familiar. Yuki, of course, was using flames for the first time as Gao Phoenix's power was channeled through her Gao Dagger. With several quick swings she slashed the Familiars with whips of fire that forced them back painfully.

Yuki's Pokegirl, the Frostwyrm named Crystal was freezing Familiars solid with her ice powers before smashing them to pieces. She looked to Yuki who nodded at her in approval before beaming to pursue more death and destruction of Familiars.

They fought with all their might. However, despite their best efforts, it didn't seem like the army of Familiars was decreasing in numbers.

Musician cursed loudly, "Dammit, there's just no end to these things!" He was gunning them down using his Heavy Metal Vulcan attack but it seemed like two or three would just appear to replace one which had been vanquished.

"Allow me!" Showa (Kage Form) shouted as he conjured up an army of clones as he jumped into the air. Together, they executed a series of flying kicks, destroying a good number of Familiar before disappearing, leaving only the original Showa. He cursed loudly as new Familiars replaced the vanquished one. "This is just bullshit!"

"Took the words right out of my fucking mouth!" Musician exclaimed as he played a guitar solo of death, gunning down the endless horde of Familiar with his Heavy Metal Vulcan.

Showa grimaced and switched forms, becoming Showa Higurashi Form as he wielded the Higurashi no Yaiba. He took off with his wings and slashed at the Familiars. He looked towards the Spiral Tower which was heavily guarded. These Familiars were just in their way and stalling them for their masters. It was a good thing that the planetary alignment was in only a few days. If they stopped these so-called gods now then the world was saved.

Sentinel blew a hole into the chest of a Giant Familiar with a single punch before grabbing Lizard and Monkey Familiars with an energy bubble which shrunk and crushed them. He took to the air, armed with a green energy sword construct and Kusanagi no Tsurugi as he dual-wielded them, cutting down the numbers of the flying Familiars. The Orca Familiars opened their mouths and fired streams of pressurised water at him. He countered with his ring, sending rockets at them which exploded on impact and blew them to pieces.

"**JAGER FORM! FULL CHARGE!**"

"**Strike...Laser...Claw!" **Liger Jager roared as he became a blue blur which tore apart the ground based Familiars.

"**SCHNEIDER FORM! FULL CHARGE!"**

Switching from blue to orange, he executed his next finisher, **"Buster...Slash!" **His Vi-Blades tore through another set of Familiars in his way.

"**PANZER FORM! FULL CHARGE!"**

"**Burning...Big...Bang!**" he roared as he unleashed his payload, blowing up Familairs to smithereens. He'd probably taken out more than a hundred of them by now, both on the ground and in the air. The screaming and burning bodies of the Familiars as they crashed to the ground was proof of that.

Yuri Fudo was in his Kamen Rider Geno armor and tearing the opposition to shreds. Once he saw a group in his line of sight, he grinned and swiped his pass across his belt.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

After briefly charging up his particle beam cannon, he aimed and fired the destructive energy beam that vaporised all those that stood in its path. Many were blown away by the explosion caused by the attack as Geno cackled. "I LOVE THE SMELL OF DESTRUCTION IN THE MORNING!"

"Well I love the smell of DEATH in the morning!" Grell added as his chainsaw was stained with the bloods of the Familiars. They may not be living beings in the traditional sense, but Grell didn't care. He got to kill and kill and kill as much as he wanted without consequences.

* * *

"Look at them fight and fight and fight," snorted Chacu Challhua. "How...pointless."

"They just don't understand that we can create more Familiars to replace the fallen ones. They are simply wasting too much time and energy," added Uru.

Ccapac Apu, however, was watching with different thoughts in mind. He wanted to go out there to fight and kill, but their eldest brother, Wiraqocha Rasca, had forbidden his involvement. His fingers flexed repeatedly as he watched his Giant Familiars having fun without him. "No...fair..." he uttered slowly.

"Relax, Brother, our time will come," Uru grinned.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The beginning of what has to be the biggest battle of their lives. Only this time their friends and families are active participants in this fight. Will the Earthbound Gods prevail? Not likely since our heroes are on the case. BTW, this chapter was written by me and Kamen Rider Bushido so please read and review, and tell us what you think.**


	140. The Legacy of Cain Part 84

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN  
**

**Part 84: Overcoming Wrath, Envy and Greed **

"Shin, Alan, Yuri, Yuki, on me!" Liger Zero called. "Time to take the fight to these assholes!"

Yuki nodded and looked to Rhea, "Stay with Crystal. She'll protect you." She nodded and Yuki went to join her brother.

"Go, Shin-kun," ZX/Rena said. "We'll handle things here." She emphasized her statement by tossing an Impact Bomb over her shoulder which exploded and blew up an Orca Familiar when it landed in its mouth.

Showa nodded and flew over to join the group who would enter the enemy's stronghold. He had to believe that the others would make it without them. They had already cleared the way so now it was time to get into the Spiral Tower and take out the Earthbound Gods.

"I CALL DIBS ON THE PRIMATE!" Geno demanded as he ignited his thrusters and flew for his comrades.

"I'll be back," Sentinel assured Conda as he flew to meet the others. "How are we gonna do this?"

"Bust in and kick faces in," Yuji simplified. "They don't know about you guys so your powers should at least keep them on their toes. And I've got a little surprise of my own. Now let's move!"

A Giant Familiar stood guard at the entrance of the Spiral Tower. He spotted them coming and growled. "OUTTA THE WAY!" Sentinel shouted as he punched the Giant Familiar skyward to gain access.

* * *

"And they come like lambs to the slaughter," Wiraqocha Rasca cited. He turned to his siblings and ordered, "Give them the appropriate death they so righteously wish for!" And with that, the other six Earthbound Gods vanished in blurs of speed. He stepped out and looked to the darkening sky. "It's almost time..."

* * *

They entered the tower and entered a corridor which was illuminated by red light. At the end of the corridor was a door, emblazoned with the Dark Mark of the Spider Earthbound God.

Yuri put his hand on the door and opened it with a push before they entered and immediately Showa regretted it.

"I hate cobwebs!" Showa complained as he pulled a cobweb that was stuck to his visor. There were were so many cobwebs. Even the floor felt sticky. It felt like he was stepping in gum, repeatedly.

"Looks like this tower is configured into floor levels for each of the Gods," Sentinel theorized.

"Good observation." The intruders looked up to see Uru in his monstrous spider-like form, hanging upside-down on a line of webbing as he descended upon them. "My brothers and sisters await on the upper levels, but don't think you'll be able to fight them. For you see, aside from Rasca I am the strongest Earthbound God!"

Showa whispered to Yuki, "It seems like someone thinks highly of themselves."

"He speaks the truth," Yuki assured, "According to the stories from Father, Uru was indeed one the stronger Earthbound Gods."

"And it looks like someone has been paying attention during story time," Uru chuckled. He pointed to Liger Zero, "I believe we have some unfinished business, boy. You may not be your father, but killing his son will be the next best thing to gratification!"

"Well, then I'll be happy to oblige when I kick your ass," Liger Zero grinned as he inserted his X card into the Rider Pass..

"Looks like the bug is holding a grudge," stated Showa. He was no stranger to grudges, both his own and those against him. It seemed that Uru hated Yuji's father and those who shared his blood were also a target of his wrath and hatred. Yuji was the most convenient target since he was a spitting image of his father. The only thing different about them would be the lack of criminal marks on Yuji's face and the color of his highlights which were red instead of yellow.

"Yuki, is it alright for Yuji to go up against this Earthbound God on his own?" Sentinel asked. "Considering what happened the last time..."

"They caught us by surprise and had us outnumbered," she interrupted. "Not this time, though. This time we're ready."

"It's do or die time," said Liger Zero as he held the Liger Pass above his head. He took a deep breath and shouted, "CHOU HENSHIN!" before slamming the pass between the jaws of his Liger Belt.

**INSERT SONG: SUPERNOVA (KAMEN RIDER KIVA OST)**

"**KAIZER FORM!**" the belt declared as it released a burst of bright golden light which blinded everyone around them, even forcing Uru to shield his eyes. Shards of gold and black spun around Yuji like a tornado and bonded to his body. Once the light dimmed, Liger stood in Kaizer Form-Kaizer Liger.

Uru didn't seem impressed, "This form? You're going to use this form?" He remembered how easily Wiraqocha Rasca had defeated Yuji when the Manakyte had used this armor. He wasn't intimidated.

Suddenly, the ion boosters on Kaizer Liger's lower legs burst to life, propelling him at Mach speed towards Uru. His fist buried itself into Uru's face and sent him flying through the air as his webline stretched before snapping as the arachnoid creature was sent tumbling along the sticky floor.

"For a bug like you, this is all I need," said Kaizer Liger confidently. He crossed his arms and the Schneider Vi-Blades folded outwards intimidatingly.

Uru got back to his feet, his mandibles clicking together angrily as he brandished his claws. He sprinted towards Kaizer Liger who did the same and the two forces clashes explosively as the Earthbound God's claws slashed against Kaizer Liger's armor and the the Rider's blades slashed across the Earthbound God's chest.

"My Dad defeated you before, so that means I'll be able to do the same," Kaizer Liger growled.

"At least your father didn't need to hide behind a suit of armor to face me!" Uru snarled right back.

"You got your ass kicked in a fucking card game! I'm going to kick your ass for real you fucking arachnid! Allow me to demonstrate!"

**POW! **

A punch across Uru's face spun him around so his back was facing Kaizer Liger before the Rider planted one in his lower back, driving him away. The Spider Earthbound God landed back on his feet and brandished his claws as the Rider got back in a fighting stance. Lunging, the Earthbound God fired a wad of webbing directly into Kaizer Liger's visor, blinding him before he closed the distance and slashed him across the chest, once, twice, three times! Again and again and not just with the claws of his hands but with the spider-like legs jutting from his back. Leaping up, he performed a back flip and his heel connected with Kaizer Liger's chin, sending him staggering.

Flames surrounded the webbing on Kaizer Liger's face and burnt it away. Growling at his opponent's dirty tactic, Kaizer Liger roared.

"Meet my kids!" shouted Uru as he threw his arm forward and sent hundreds of tiny spiders flying towards Kaizer Liger. The spiders stuck to his armor before exploding, causing sparks to erupt from his chest plate. Leaping up, Uru spun around and smashed his foot against Kaizer Liger's helmet, sending him staggering. He proceeded to land a series of kicks against the Manakyte's armored form. Catching his leg, Kaizer Liger picked him up before slamming him to the floor. He then spun around and around and around before hurling Uru through the air.

In midair, Uru's head spun and he fired lasers in all directions, the beams darting through the air as they curved and flew towards Kaizer Liger.

Kaizer Liger brandished his Vi-Blades and swung his arms around. They blurred as the lasers were deflected, bouncing off the blades and hitting everything but him. Once the laser barrage was over, Kaizer Liger looked at his Vi-Blades which were cracked before they broke to pieces and lay scattered on the floor.

Uru lunged at Kaizer Liger and performed a feint, drawing back his arm to strike with the spider legs on his back, driving Kaizer Liger back.

"Your armor may look impressive, but I'm going to tear it open like a tin can and eat up your juicy insides!" claimed Uru as his mandibles clicked.

"Keep dreaming, because you're going to starve tonight!" Kaizer Liger shouted as his Red Queen appeared in his right hand. He swung his sword, the flames around the blade igniting and swung it across Uru's chest. The gash was cauterized instantly but the Spider Earthbound God felt incredible pain. Kaizer Liger pointed the flaming sword at his arachnid opponent and said, "Your toast." A lion's roar was heard as he drew his Gao Dagger, GaoLiger's gem glowing in the hilt as he dual-wielded both weapons. Another roar was heard and the dagger's blade lengthened to the size of a proper sword's blade. "OK, now this is gonna be sweet!" He crossed his blades and dashed forwards, closing the gap between himself and Uru.

He slashed with his two swords, forcing Uru on the defensive as he fought back with his claws. Sparks flew and a another shriek was heard as the Red Queen's flames burnt the Spider God and sent him scrambling backwards.

The red markings decorating Uru's body glowed as he cupped his clawed hands in front of him. He formed a sphere of red energy which charged up and he launched it at Kaizer Liger. He saw the sphere coming too fast for him to block so he spread his wing and flew up, the sphere flying harmlessly under him.

"HAH!" Uru laughed as Kaizer Liger's wings were caught in the webs above their heads. "You're trapped!" He then fired his optical lasers and the beams curved through the air before striking Kaizer Liger. He was helpless and unable to block or avoid the assault as the lasers hit.

Gritting his teeth, Kaizer Liger enveloped his body in flames which reached his wings and burnt the webs, freeing his wings. Activating his Jäger Thrusters, he flew towards Uru to strike him down but the Spider Earthbound God spun around and batted him away with his arms and spider legs. Kaizer Liger tumbled through the air and landed on his feet.

Uru glared at the two swords in Kaizer Liger's hands and thought, '_Those need to go_.' That armor was also a problem. He needed to get that suit off Yuji so he could get to the delicious flesh and bodily fluids. He wanted to sink his fangs into Yuji and make him die a slow and painful death as he was slowly being devoured by Uru and his pet spiders.

Kaizer Liger suddenly threw the Red Queen through the air towards Uru but the Earthbound God caught it by the blade between his hands. "Is that all you-"

It all happened in a flash as Kaizer Liger closed the distance and struck with the Gao Sword, the blade connecting with a stunned Uru's body as he was launched into the air.

Kaizer Liger leapt skyward, catching the falling Red Queen in midair. The blade ignited as Kaizer Liger spiralled through the air and hit the falling Uru with his blades, hammering him down to crash straight to the floor.

"YATTA!" Showa cheered.

"Heh, that bug was dead the moment this fight began," Yuri smirked.

Sentinel didn't make a comment and simply continued to watch.

Kaizer Liger landed and strode towards the dust cloud where Uru had fallen. As he got closer, a black hand shot out and grabbed the buckle of his belt. The spider-like limbs on Uru's back also struck fast as they hit Kaizer Liger's wrists and the claws caught the swords before Uru tore the belt right off Yuji's waist.

**END SONG: SUPERNOVA**

The armor shattered off Yuji as Uru held the Liger Belt in his hand. He then punched Yuji in the stomach, putting him down as he fell to his knees.

"You're pathetic without your armor!" mocked Uru as he tossed the Liger Belt and swords aside. "Now, time for you to suffer a defeat that you have never experienced before!"

"BURNING...DRAGON!-!-!" Yuji roared as he immediately assumed Transcended Form and threw a fist at Uru, power brimming from him with every intention of wiping that smug look off the arachnoid's face. However, the Spider Eartybound God saw the attack coming and, with his claws, tore Yuji's right arm completely off, blood splashing everywhere.

"YOU LOSE!" Uru declared as he went for the kill, aiming for the Manakyte's throat with his fangs as he dove forward.

"I STILL HAVE ANOTHER FUCKING ARM, STUPID!" Yuji roared and he smashed his fist straight into Uru's stomach. Time seemed to freeze as the Earthbound God's body stiffened.

Yuji's fist was buried deep into Uru's gut. It was buried literally in the Earthbound God's stomach as flames of immense power surrounded him. "So, what were you saying before? I couldn't hear you over the sound of the hole I made in your stomach," Yuji grinned.

"How...?" Uru uttered, shocked and confused. "How could...how could you...?"

"I've been kicking ass long before I got my armor," said Transcended Yuji, "And I've been squashing bugs even longer. Now, let me put this in terms you can understand," Yuji frowned. "I'm about to blow my load all over your insides."

Uru froze, not understanding what he meant, "What...the fu-"

"No homo." And Yuji unleashed a blast of flames that shot through Uru's body as he was engulfed in fire, incinerated and reduced to ashes.

Yuji reverted back to normal and stared at the stump of his arm. It melted into blood and slithered its way to the source (Yuji) and was absorbed into his body as a new arm was grown in place of the old one from the bone up to his skin.

"I am never going to get used to that," Yuji mumbled.

Veronica's voice rang in his mind, '_It's not that hard to get used to it. It's what you are now, a regenerator.'_

"Yeah, doesn't sound right."

'_At least you're not one of those demonic ones that can sprout full bodies from even their severed fingers.'_

A door baring he hummingbird Dark Signer Mark suddenly materialized in front of Yuji. Meanwhile, his friends had just caught up with him. They had witnessed the entire fight, though, and seen his victory.

"Where did that door come from?" Showa asked.

"It just appeared after I beat Uru," said Yuji. Yuki walked over and picked up Yuji's belt before returning it to her brother. "Thank you."

"Well, I guess there's no point in sticking around this place anymore," said Yuri as he put his hand against the door and gave it a push. It gave way, swinging inwards to reveal a flight of spiralling stairs. "Stairs?"

"This _is _a tower," stated Sentinel.

"Which means there's nowhere else to go but up," Yuji declared. "Now don't bitch and start climbing, Yuri."

"Yeah, yeah," Yuri grumbled as they started their trek.

* * *

Meanwhile, back outside, Misato was being cornered by several Spider Familiars. Brandishing her blood red rapiers, she charged at them only for them to suddenly and inexplicably turn into dust right before her eyes. "Huh?" She tilted her head in confusion.

"Where did the eight-legged freaks go?" asked Lilith.

Misato smiled knowingly as she stared at the Spiral Tower. Without looking, she stabbed a Lizard Familiar sneaking up behind her. "Come on girls," Misato said. "We got some cleaning up to do out here."

* * *

They came upon the next floor after exiting the spiral staircase, the door vanishing once they've exited. The latest floor's interior was just _impossible_. They were inside the Spiral Tower but they were seeing the endless blue sky with clouds floating above them. They were standing on a floor with yellow tiles.

"OK, this is just weird," Showa commented.

"It's just bigger on the inside," Sentinel shrugged. He'd seen this kind of thing plenty of times before. "The outside is just on the inside, that's all?"

"And how does that make sense, exactly?" Yuri questioned.

Yuki walked over to the edge and whistled. "We're a _long _way up." Sentinel flew up and flew down to see that their circular platform was a semi-sphere which sat at the top of a tall column, a _very _tall column.

"This platform's on a very tall column," he reported.

"So, who's fighting this time?" Showa asked.

"_I will select my opponent!_" A dark, winged shape shot upwards before landing onto the floor. She revealed herself as Assla Piscu and she glared at them, but she glared at Yuki the worst. She hated how the female Fudo was more beautiful than her and she hated how well Yuki filled out her new outfit. "You!" she pointed at Yuki. "You're my opponent!"

"OK then," Yuki shrugged as she put her helmet back on. She felt her brothers put their hands on her shoulders.

"Give them hell, Ice Girl," Yuri encouraged.

"And end this as fast as you can," Yuji added.

Yuki gave a nod and approached Assla Piscu. She drew out her Gao Dagger and held it in a reverse grip. Assla Piscu cocked an eyebrow at this.

"A knife? You brought a _knife_?" Assla Piscu snorted and spread her wings. "This will be over quickly."

"Not a knife," said Yuki. "A friend." The Gao Jewel held within the weapon shone brightly.

Assla Piscu hated hearing that smug tone in her opponent's voice. She also hated how Yuki could still look so beautiful even while masking her face with her helmet. Letting loose a yell, she swiped at Yuki with her talons but was intercepted by the Gao Dagger. Suddenly, she felt a fist smash against her ribs painfully and sent staggering back, staring at Yuki who had her fist pointed forward. Yuki then did a 'come here' gesture with her hand and got into a stance.

"Is that all?" Yuki asked.

Yelling in outrage, Assla Piscu dashed towards Yuki who put her Gao Dagger back into its holster. Reaching behind her back, she waited for her opponent to come close enough and brought out her twin Desert Eagles. She pointed them forward and said, "Meet the girls," and pulled the triggers.

Now, normally firearms wouldn't be affective against a god but the Earthbound Gods were not true gods. They were not holy beings, but they were still worshiped like gods. This gave them a bit of a god complex so they would scoff at guns.

However, Yuki's guns known together as 'The Girls' but separately as 'Jane' and 'Bonnie', were no normal Desert Eagles and the ammunition she had chosen for them were not the usual rounds. She had been looking forward to her rematch with Assla Piscu that she loaded the guns with some special ammunition.

She pulled the triggers. They were two loud bangs as they released their contents and Assla Piscu was hit in the chest. Once they came in contact...

**F-SHOOOM!-!-!**

Assla Piscu screamed as flames suddenly enveloped her. She tried to put out the incendiary flames as Yuki went on the attack. Yuki slammed the barrel of Jane across her face, sending her staggering and then followed up with 1-2 combo of kicks, that sent the bird-like being reeling. The boys continued to watch as Yuki was dominating the fight as Assla Piscu desperately tried to put out the flames.

Spreading her wings, Assla Piscu took off and flew into the sky, spiralling around to shake off the flames. She looked slightly burnt but very, very mad as she gritted her teeth and breathed heavily, hissing through her teeth.

"You...YOU BITCH!" She flapped her wings forward and unleashed a flurry of feathers that soared at Yuki like arrows, darting through the air to strike her down. However, being an Ice Manakyte, Yuki had the power to counter the Earthbound's powers and as a gun-woman, she had the ability to shoot them out of the sky with incredibly accuracy.

Her trigger fingers squeezed rapidly, moving in all directions as she shot down the rain of death while her own ice arrows took off, hitting the feather arrows, both sets of arrows cancelling each other out. The sky seemed to shine as the ice arrows shattered into ice crystals that rained down around Yuki, sparkling, as her guns released rapid bangs as they released their contents.

Assla Piscu stopped her assault and gripped her fists tight. She wanted those guns! They were more worthy in her hands than the spawn of Signers'. She immediately decided to use her speed which she had thought would be a waste to use on such mortal opponents, but for someone like Yuki it would show the runt who was the more powerful one.

She blurred out of sight at the speed of Shunpo and appeared in front of Yuki. Yuki fired her Desert Eagles, this time explosive rounds which went boom but Assla Piscu avoided them with ease. She slashed at Yuki with her talons, ripping sparks instead of fabric but she couldn't complain. Another swipe disarmed Yuki's right hand, ridding her of Jane, while another one rid her of Bonnie. Both guns lay on the floor as their mistress was sent reeling by her opponent's swipes.

Yuki reached for her Gao Dagger but found herself at the edge of the platform. Assla Piscu then landed a kick into Yuki's stomach, sending her off the edge.

"YUKI!" Yuji yelled as he ran to her sister only for Assla Piscu to appear in front of him.

"No interference from the spectators!" she said as she drove him back with a punch.

Sentinel had his arms crossed. He didn't make a move to save Yuki. In fact, he was smiling, as if he knew something was about to happen.

As Yuki began to plummet from Assla Piscu's Sky Tower, GaoPhoenix's Gao Jewel began to shine. The flames from the jewel burst and enveloped Yuki's form before finally dispersing, revealing gold armor with a red core on the chest, gauntets equipped with talons and wings framing her visor. The wings on her back spread out, unleashing flames and she shot back up.

Assla Piscu expected Yuki to go splat but then saw a figure coming back up, fast. She narrowly dodged the flying tackle from Yuki who'd just returned to the battle, more equipped and feeling quite angry.

"Wow, she looks awesome!" Showa admired.

"How...how dare you...!-!-!" Assla Piscu screeched. "HOW DARE YOU LOOK MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN I!"

"Shut up," said Yuki as she formed a new weapon, a bow, and took aim. She fired a rapid flurry of energy arrows at the advancing Earthbound God. Assla Piscu weaved around to dodge the arrows but one hit her shoulder, causing her to screech. She was distracted, which allowed Yuki to land a blow, smashing her foot into Assla Piscu's face.

Assla Piscu was sent sailing back but she managed to stop with aid of her wings. "You...you bitch!" She struck and slapped Yuki across the face, leaving scratch marks on her helmet. Yuki, offended, returned the favor and slapped Assla Piscu across the face as well. The two then began exchanging smacks and slaps, shouting and cursing coming from their mouths.

"Wow, a midair cat fight," Showa stared.

"It's only a cat fight if hair pulling and clothes ripping is included," Sentinel said. "This is just a basic slap fight."

"Whatever you call it, I'm still enjoying it," said Bazel. "Would be so much better if they were in swimsuits and mud, though..." he murmurred.

"BITCH SLAP HER, SISTER!" Yuri cheered, encouraging his sister. "BITCH SLAP HER GOOD!"

"Yuri, don't encourage this," Yuji scolded as he shook his head but deep down he was thinking the same thing.

A blow from Assla Piscu broke the glass of Yuki's visor. Ripping it off her head and discarding the head gear, she covered her right fist in ice and smashed it right between the eyes of Assla Piscu, disorienting her. She then gripped her opponent's shoulders and knee her in the gut before grabbing her head and kneeing her in the face, causing her body to snap backwards. Looking for her Desert Eagles, Yuki swooped down and grabbed them off the floor and looked up to shoot her opponent.

But Assla Piscu was gone.

"Looking for me?" a sickeningly sweet voice spoke behind Yuki and she whirled around before she sprinted backwards, gaining some distance as she fired. This time shrapnel rounds, bullets which shattered upon being fired, were launched through the air but Assla Piscu sidestepped them and they flew right past her.

"Come on, Yuki! Come on!" Showa cheered. "She's not so tough!"

Assla Piscu seethed, her blood boiling as she heard the cheers and Yuki smirked. "What are you smirking at?" demanded the Hummingbird God.

"You know, I might be losing, but unlike you I have people supporting me," said Yuki as she glanced at her brothers and friends. "And people who love me." She thought back to Rhea and Crystal. The former was a girl she'd fallen for and the latter was her first and only Pokegirl. "Where are your loved ones?"

"I don't need anyone cheering me on!" Assla Piscu snapped.

"So why are you so angry? You represent envy, so you want what everyone has that you don't, but in the end you'll only end up totally alone. You might win against me and I might lose, but by the end of the day you're left all alone with nobody to love and nobody to love you back," Yuki said.

"Is there a point to your babbling?" Assla Piscu questioned.

"Just buying some extra time so I can do _this_." Yuki summoned up the power within her and assumed her Transcended Form.

**INSERT SONG: INNOCENT TRAP (KAMEN RIDER KIVA OST)**

A blizzard suddenly occurred, nearly blowing Assla Piscu away as the temperature dramatically dropped. Yuki was instantly encased in ice, resembling a beautiful ice sculpture before the layer of ice enveloping her body shattered as sharp draconic wings spread out. The blizzard died to reveal Yuki's Transcended Form. Her arms and hands were encased in deep blue ice armor that ended in sharp claws, as well as her thighs that were covered in ice, her knees sporting spike-shaped icicles, as her feet now sported talons of ice. She now sported a long, prehensile tail with a five-pronged ice tip, her shoulders were protected by polygonal pads of ice, as well as her breasts and crotch. Her eyes glowed brightly and she sported sharp wings of ice. The slight alteration to her form was the phoenix-like helm upon her head.

Assla Piscu could only stare at Yuki and she looked absolutely furious at the beautiful Manakyte who stood before her. While she could tolerate the beauty of her sister Ccarayhua, the sight of the daughter of Signers before her made her blood boil and see red.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Overcome with jealousy, an enraged Assla Piscu spread her wings and moved at blinding speed, blurring from sight. However, this time she was about to meet her match.

"You're not the only one with the advantage of speed now!" claimed Yuki as she blurred out of sight. The others watched as two blurs collided in the air, causing a sound resembling the crashing of thunder as they slammed into each other, repeatedly. Sentinel's eyes moved in all directions as he tracked their movements.

Meanwhile, Assla Piscu and Yuki were clashing with all their mights, the Earthbound God's markings glowing brightly as she put more power into her strikes. Yuki too was giving it her all as she stopped holding back, her own talons leaving marks on her opponent's body. Assla Piscu launched a roundhouse kick to Yuki only to be countered with a roundhouse kick from Yuki as well.

Shrieking, Assla Piscu unleashed a furious flurry of rapid spear strikes with Yuki trying to block with her hands. Several of Assla Piscu's strikes managed to penetrate Yuki's defences, leaving damage but nothing too major and nothing that would debilitate the female Manakyte.

Spinning around, Yuki hit Assla Piscu across the face with the five-pronged tip of her tail before striking the avian monster with rapid tail thrusts. Batting the tail away, Assla Piscu went for the kill as she fired her feather arrows with Yuki countering with her ice arrows as well.

"They look evenly matched," said Showa as he managed to track them.

"Almost," added Sentinel. "But I have a feeling bird girl has some tricks up her sleeve."

"They always do," agreed Yuji.

Shifting back to melee combat, Assla Piscu pulled a handful of feathers from her wings and turned them into a pair of war fans, one in each hand. Yuki also conjured her own armament, which was a long pole arm with a dragon claw-like trident head. Sparks flew as the weapons connected, with Yuki dancing and twirling and Assla Piscu doing the same, typhoon winds and blizzards impacting violently with each connected blow.

A storm was brewing now, with the two female fighters locked in mortal combat. One a pure-hearted being of ice, the other a god-like creature of envy of jealousy.

Assla Piscu twirled around and with her war fans she disarmed Yuki. She went to slice her throat open when Yuki immediately drew her Gao Dagger which was still holstered at her hip. The sharp edge of the fan connected with the blade of the Gao Dagger as GaoPhoenix's Gao Jewel glowed. Flames enveloped the blade and Yuki immediately understood as she lashed out with her weapon, the flames shifting from hot red to cold blue as a whip of fire crashed against Assla Piscu's right war fan, covering it in ice. Another lashing of the blue fire whip shattered the brittle weapon, leaving Assla Piscu with only one.

"No more games!" Assla Piscu flew backwards to make some distance before flying upwards, higher and higher until she was almost a 100 feet from where Yuki hovered. Spreading her wings, her orange marking glowed as an aura radiated from her body before taking shape into the image of her true form. The Earthbound God Assla Piscu tossed her head back and shrieked before diving towards Yuki at breakneck speed. She was like a missile, piercing the air with a loud shrill whistling noise with her wings pressed tightly against her back to make her more aerodynamic.

She crashed right into Yuki, with enough force to shatter ice but Yuki's ice was not easily melted nor easily broken, unless she willed it. Aiming for the Sky Tower's platform, Assla Piscu released Yuki and sent her crashing violently onto the floor, the impact loosening several tiles and sending them flying, a few sliding off the edge and plummeting to the endless abyss below.

Assla Piscu rose up back into the air and watched as the dust cleared to reveal Yuki, wearing her tattered Gao suit and lying in a crater with blood trickling down the side of her head.

"Yuki!" Yuji shouted to his sister.

"I win..." Assla Piscu said. "I WIN! THE BITCH IS DEAD AND I WIN!" She threw her head back and laughed victoriously. However, her victory was short lived as suddenly her wings became stiff. "What?"

Ice crystal were forming on her wings, much to her shock and confusion. "Wha-what's going on!-?"

Assla Piscu screamed as her wings were flash frozen before they broke to pieces, sending her plummeting back to the platform. She landed on the floor with a violent crash as tiles were broken loose from the impact. What remained of her wings lay broken and covered in ice on the floor surrounding her and she only had the stumps upon her shoulder blades.

**END SONG: INNOCENT TRAP**

"My...my magnificent wings..." Assla Piscue uttered miserably. Her wings were gone, shattered completely as she was on her hands and knees. Standing several feet in front of her was Yuki with her arms crossed and looking quite proud of herself. "You...you should be dead...DEAD!"

The female Manakyte didn't offer a response as she turned her back to return to her brothers and friends.

"No...this isn't over..." Assla Piscu trembled as she rose to her feet. She brandished her talons. "THIS ISN'T OVER!" Charging at Yuki from behind, Assla Piscu shrieked with fury.

Spinning around on her heels, Yuki drew her two Desert Eagles and took aim.

"Twin Arctic Dragons," she whispered.

Yuki pulled both Bonnie and Jane's triggers together and unleashed bursts of pure ice energy from them. The twin beams morphed, becoming a pair of serpentine oriental dragons which merged, swirling together, forming a massive roaring dragon.

The attack connected with the charging Aslla Piscu, enveloping her, before dying a moment later.

There was a mist caused by Yuki's attack and when it cleared they saw Assla Piscu stuck in mid-charge, frozen in ice.

Assla Piscu was now frozen solid, standing on the platform with a look of shock and horror frozen on her face as she looked like a statue completely made of ice.

Yuki strode over and tapped the frozen Earthbound God with the tip of her finger. Cracks began to spread all over her now frozen body before she burst to pieces.

Materializing before them was another door which was emblazoned with the Dark Signer Mark of the monkey. Yuri narrowed his eyes. He knew who this door belonged too. You didn't need to be a rocket scientist to figure it out. He kicked the door open, revealing the spiral staircase.

"Going up?" Yuri pointed.

"You look eager," observed Showa.

"Oh, I am, I am. Because the next guy is mine," Yuri grinned maliciously.

"So glad someone is enjoying themselves," said Bazel. "Eh, Partner?"

* * *

The Hummingbird Familiars, both big and small, were shooting towards the army of heroes to impale them when they suddenly crashed violently to the ground. They frantically flapped their wings, trying to fly, while making gurgling noises as the Dark Marks on their bodies faded. Instantaneously, they exploded into dust.

"OK, that's weird," Rhea said while scratching her cowl-covered head.

Crystal picked up a small Hummingbird Familiar and watched as it turned into dust, the particles falling through her fingers like sand. "I don't think we have anything to worry about."

Rhea the Jersey Devil gazed at the battlefield at the remaining Familiars. "Just some more cannon fodder to take care of."

"Oh, but I have a feeling their numbers will become quite thin," said Crystal as she aimed her hands skywards and fired a beam of freezing energy at a Whale Familiar. It was frozen solid and it crashed down to the ground, shattering to pieces while flattening many of its fellow Familiars under its weight.

* * *

They found themselves next inside a jungle. "I doubt I'll ever get used to this," stated Showa.

"Your future self says that too," Sentinel told his brother. "A lot."

Showa rolled his eyes. How his older self would be able to handle these sort of things was probably due to amount of exposure he had over the years. Of course, he avoided asking Alan anything specific about his future. He didn't want to cause some kind of destructive paradox.

Not that the timeline wasn't already messed up as it was.

"OK, I'm guessing this is Cusillu's floor," guessed Yuji. Yuri grinned. He was looking forward to this very much. He and the others heard cackling and looked around. It was Sentinel who spotted the Monkey Earthbound God sitting on a branch of a tree, eating bananas.

"So, you got past Assla Piscu," said Cusillu as he ate his banana. "Not bad."

Yuri's eyes narrowed as a dark aura radiated off his body. He remembered having monkey shit thrown in his face. Such an act against him was disgusting and disgraceful and he wasn't about to let it stand. He gripped his Rider Pass tightly as his belt appeared around his waist, materializing out of darkness at his command. The others watched him, knowing he wanted to fight and allowed him to step forward as he swiped his Rider Pass across his belt.

"**GENO FORM!"**

Cusillu watched as the armor appeared, covering Yuri's body as he transformed and once he was done, he let loose a roar of rage, anger, and promised victory.

"You're mine, monkey!" roared Geno.

"Catch me if you can, you stupid lizard!" Cusillu taunted as he threw the banana peel at Geno's face and took off, laughing like a loon.

Kamen Rider Geno was chasing after the cackling and howling Cusillu who was jumping from tree to tree, swinging on vines. The saurian Rider was tearing trees apart to make a path for him. He hated this monkey and wanted to kill him, stuff him with cotton, and then give him to his daughter as a present.

He was sure little Anita would love her new stuffed toy.

Once he was close enough he jumped and clawed at the branch, causing Cusillu to fall. Once both were on the ground, Geno began his assault, hitting Cusillu with a series of brutal punches and kicks. It was a one sided battle as it appeared Geno had the upper hand while Cusillu looked helpless and unable to defend himself or launch an effective counter strategy.

He used his Saber Claws too on the Jibakushin, tearing gashes into his body and he stumbled back in terror.

"Heh, you made a monkey out of me, so now it's time you paid the price," said Geno as he swiped his Rider Pass across his belt.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Geno roared as he fired his charged particle beam at Cusillu and the Monkey Earthbound God screamed, "AH! YOU GOT ME!" There was an explosion and Geno grinned only for his smile to fade once the smoke cleared. "...Is what I would say if it actually did." He winded up his right arm and threw it, the limb stretching to impossible length as it hit Geno and sent him flying, crashing through several trees. "My turn!" laughed Cusillu as he bounced after Geno.

"Fucking...monkey..." groaned Geno as he rubbed his head. He picked himself up from the wooden splinters and activated his targeting system. "Where are you, you little piece of shit?"

**Bonk!**

"Huh?" Geno saw a coconut roll next to his feet. He picked it up. "A coconut?"

**Bonk! Bonk!**

Two more coconuts hit him and he turned to see coconut trees with Monkey Familiars on them. They were holding coconuts which they started to hurl at him, bombarding him with the hard fruit. He was more annoyed than hurt but he really, really hated to be treated this way.

Suddenly, a fist attached to a spring smashed against his head, sending him staggering. He looked to see Cusillu sitting in a lotus position while balancing himself on his tail. His arms now resembled springs, with his right arm retracting.

"You're seriously starting to annoy me!" snarled Geno.

"What's the matter? Don't like coconuts?" Cusillu mocked. "They're actually good for you, and good for ammo."

Geno caught a coconut and crushed it in his hand. He had veins pulsating across his forehead as his right eye twitched. Cusillu, of course, ignored the anger being directed at him as he casually unpeeled a banana.

"So, what's the deal? Why do you look like a negative version of Fudo?" Cusillu asked.

"**FURY FORM!"**

Changing his armor, Geno Fury lashed out with the Buster Claws which shot towards Cusillu like harpoons. Cusillu turned his tail into a spring and hopped to safety, the Buster Claws striking the earth instead.

"STAND STILL!" Geno Fury roared furiously. He was pelted again by Monkey Familiars as they chucked coconuts and him and he became annoyed. "CUT THAT OUT, DAMMIT!" He lashed out with his Buster Claws and they spun like drills. They impaled a couple of Monkey Familiars. The blades then spread out like claws and spun, becoming buzz saws this time as he hacked the Monkey Familiars to pieces.

Cussilu stood behind Geno Fury, hands on his shoulders. "You've got quite the temper. Lighten up." Geno Fury whirled around and launched his Buster Claws at Cussilu again and only hit air. Looking up, he spotted Cussilu hanging in the air.

Suddenly, Cusillu's hands expanded and became huge and they came down on Geno Fury. They came too fast and the saurian Rider was flattened to the ground. His Buster Claws were damaged by the blow as Cusiilu took his hands of Geno and they restored to normal.

"Had enough?" Cusillu asked.

"Heh, is that all you got?" Geno Fury scoffed. "My grandmother hits harder than you."

"We'll see about that!" Suddenly. Cussilu sprouted two additional arms from his sides and he began to throw a barrage of punches at Geno Fury. Losing use of his Buster Claws which could serve as shield generators, Yuri decided to fall back on his naturally born skill: his manipulation of darkness.

He punched the ground and his shadow expanded before shooting upwards and around him, forming a dome of complete blackness. Cussilu's punches slammed against the barrier and bounced off. Undeterred, the Monkey Earthbound God enlarged his fists and smashed them down upon the dark bubble shield, shattering it to pieces. However, Geno Fury was missing.

Cusillu howled as a blade shot out from his chest and he was lifted up. He turned his head to see Geno Breaker standing behind him, his horn on his back.

"Hi," Geno Breaker grinned as he swiped his Pass across his belt. "Bye-bye."

"**FULL CHARGE!**"

His Charged Particle Beam Cannon began charging up and with Cusillu in point blank range, there was no question of how much damage this was going to cause the Earthbound God.

"See ya later, sucker!" Geno Breaker laughed as he fired his Charged Particle Beam, the recoil pushing him back as Cusiilu was hit and obliterated on impact as his body broke to pieces and into atoms. The beam went on, destroying trees and forming a long trench once Geno Breaker killed it.

"And one more god down," said Geno Breaker as he turned only to be hit with a punch across his face. "Huh?"

Cussilu stood right in front of him, and he wasn't alone. Hanging from the trees, coming out of the bushes, even popping their heads out of the ground were duplicates of the Earthbound God. They were not Familiars. They were all identical.

"There's more of you?" he gawked, annoyed.

"We are one, but we are many!" Cusillu and his legion called out as one.

"Well...BRING IT!" Geno Breaker accepted the challenge as he activated his X-Breakers. "This will mean I get to kill you again, and again, and again!"

The Cussilu clones all leapt at him and he launched his X-Breakers, beheading two. Some came at him from the side only to be clawed in half. They were coming at him in an endless wave, all focused on killing him. Slamming his foot to the ground, spikes of darkness shot out of the ground and impaled the monkeys, killing them instantly as they turned to dust.

"Come on, you dumb monkey! Is that all you got!" Geno Breaker roared.

**SPLAT!**

A thick, brown, gooey substance dripped from his faceplate.

"Alright, you're dead," Geno Breaker said in a low monotone.

It was a tone that promised death.

The Cusillu legion began throwing exploding coconuts at Geno Breaker who protected himself with E-Shields generated by his X-Breakers. Like a raging beast, he tore the Cusillus apart, one by one. Pieces which turned to dust went flying into the air.

While he was tearing them apart, he knew the real one was somewhere. This just annoyed him immensely. He hated an opponent who wouldn't fight him in person. It was just so insulting.

But this was also a chance to test a couple of new modifications he'd done to his armor.

"Hey, if you're watching! Check this out!" He pressed a blue button on his belt, which had just been newly installed. "Henshin!" He swiped his Rider Pass across it.

"**HYDRA FORM!"**

His Breaker Form armor detached and broke to pieces before reconfiguring as it changed color from blood red, to indigo blue. The new armor then slammed back onto Yuri's body, bonding to the bodysuit as the new system went online. His armor was still saurian in appearance, sporting the tail and claws with the dinosaur-head cannon on his chest. However, this form came with some brand new accessories. For instance, the tip of the tail was equipped with a three-pronged claw which could function as a drill. He also had plasma cannons mounted on his back. Also, the reason this form was called Geno Hydra was due to the extra heads mounted on each forearm. The head on his right arm contained a concealed Gatling gun while the left had a buzz-saw in it.

Roaring, Geno Hydra went on the attack as he charged at the monkey legion. His tail and claws went into action as he lashed out, the tail claw glowing as it ripped monkey after monkey to shreds. He found several targets in his sights and locked onto them before his plasma cannons moved up and pointed forward while locking onto his shoulders. He bent his knees, the tip of his tail digging into the ground and fired high intensity plasma blasts at the monkeys. Wanting to test more of his weapons, his Gatling gun rotated as he took aim and fired, energy bullets spraying out rapidly and shredding Cusillu clones and trees in the process.

Yuji, Yuri, Showa and Sentinel had followed the carnage to see Geno Hydra in action.

"So, that's the new form he was talking about," Yuji admired.

"Great, now I'm worried about him and terrified of him," Showa muttered. Deep down, of course, he was impressed by this new form's combat capabilities.

Bending his knees, Geno Hydra then took off running, his energy shield around him as he went to locate his true adversary. He was around here somewhere and he was going to find that annoying little monkey.

He stopped at the edge of the jungle and saw a waterfall and sitting in a lotus position under the waterfall were three Cusillus. The monkey in the middle had its hands covering its mouth, the monkey to its right had its hands covering its ears, and finally the monkey to the left of the middle one had its hands covering its eyes.

"Hear no evil."

"Speak no evil."

"See no evil."

"I'm not the one for this philosophical crap," said Geno Hydra as he aimed his weapons at the three monkeys. "OK, either one of you is the real one, or all three of you are fake. Either way, I get to blast you to bits. But before that, tell me where's the real one at?"

The 'Three Wise Monkeys' pointed up together and Geno Hydra cocked an eyebrow before looking up.

**STOMP!**

A giant monkey's foot had just come down and stomped right on top of Geno Hydra.

The large foot was attached to a long leg, which was attached to Cusillu who was high up in the air.

"And that is that," said Cusillu. "Now, for the others."

"**DESTROYER FORM!"**

"Huh?"

**INSERT SONG: POWER TO TEARER (KAMEN RIDER OOO PUTOTYRA THEME)**

Cusillu felt something under his foot trying to get back up. He stood shakily on his enlarged foot before he tripped and fell, falling down against the waterfall as he let out a scream. He fell into the lake under the waterfall with a splash. Poking his head out of the water, he stared at the figure who stood in the middle of his huge footprint.

The figure was humanoid in appearance and wore dark armor with blood red accents on the gauntlets, boots and chest area as well as the steel-plated segmented tail which hung behind him. He also had maple leaf-shaped dorsal plates along his spines. He didn't seem to be equipped with any weapons but he did sport sharp metal claws at his fingertips. He also had claws which pointed up on the toes of his boots. The red accents were glowing as well. Turning around to face Cusillu, the Monkey Earthbound no longer saw a dinosaur's head attached to the chest, but there was a ferocious saurian face decorating it, with glowing red eyes and glaring intensely at him. The visor remained changed only in color, with it resembling a pair of sharp jaws.

Clenching his fists, Kamen Rider Geno Destroyer let loose a roar that caused the air and ground to tremble. It was deafening and the Three Wise Monkeys covered their ears at the same time as did Cusillu. Cusillu's eyes, however, widened in horror as the dark aura surrounding Geno Destroyer took on the shape of a towering beast with incredible power housed in its body.

"Y-y-you think you scare me?" Cusillu questioned, shivering. Geno Destroyer didn't answer and glared at him silently, unnerving the Monkey Earthbound God. Instantly, he summoned duplicates and Familiars and sent them to attack Geno Destroyer.

The response he got was an instant counter attack as Geno Destroyer's shadow expanded and chains of darkness shot out, binding Cusillu's duplicates and Familiars before crushing them to dust. Clicking his claws together, he strode towards Cusillu who attacked him, howling while throwing a punch.

Geno Destroyer caught his wrist and responded with a punch to the Monkey Earthbound God's face, sending him flying as his arm that was in Geno Destroyer's grip stretched. He snapped back and got another punch in the face, sending him flying back before he snapped back for a third blow. He was finally released and he received a roundhouse kick to the face, the claws cutting a gash across his face and sending him staggering.

Cusillu scowled and lashed out with his tail like a whip, only for Geno Destroyer to conjure a whip of darkness and counter each of the Earthbound God's lashes, the whips cracking through the air before Geno Destroyer's whip ensnared the Earthbound God's throat.

"Time we finished this," said Geno Destroyer as he vanished into his shadow before rising up from Cusillu's shadow. He buried his claws into the Monkey Earthbound God's gut and twisted them, causing Cusillu to scream in pain. "Pussy," sneered Geno Destroyer as he withdrew his claws and drove Cusillu back with the sole of his boot.

Geno Destroyer stomped his chains of darkness shot up, surrounding Cusillu and then bound him in place. The Earthbound God attempted to struggle free, but the chains would not break.

Geno Destroyer said in a very cold voice, "This is for all the shit you put me through." He pushed the button on his belt to initiate his finishing move.

"**CHARGE AND UP!"**

The dorsal plates on Geno Destroyer's back glowed as they began to collected particles in the air, accelerating them as the glow of his armor's red accents intensified. The eyes on his chest plate also burned bright as Geno Destroyer thrust his arms forward and cupped his clawed hands together. A sphere of charged particles began to form between his two hands as Cusillu watched in horror. He tried to struggle free from the shadow chains but the more he struggled, the more they tightened around him.

"_Charged.._." began Geno Destroyer.

"Wait! Wait! I'm sorry about the shit I pulled! I'm sorry!" Cusillu apologized furiously.

"..._Particle_..."

"I'll give you anything! Anything and everything! Money! Power! Women!"

"_...Beam..._"

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME! I AM A GOD! A SERVANT OF THE KING OF THE UNDERWORLD! YOU CANNOT DESTROY ME!"

"**.**_**..CANNON-!-!-!**_"

**END SONG: POWER TO THE TEARER**

* * *

When Yuji, Yuki, Showa and Sentinel arrived, they saw Yuri standing in front of one of the largest craters they had ever seen. The water fall and water were all gone, completely levelled by the power of Yuri's Destroyer Class Charged Particle Beam Cannon. However, it did come at a cost. Hanging in his left hand was his damaged Geno Belt. His Rider Pass, however, managed to survive.

"I guess I really need to do more work on that new form," said Yuri as he stared at his belt. The buckle was melted and looked completely fried.

A new door materialized before the group, sporting the Dark Signer Mark of the lizard. It opened to reveal the next flight of stairs for them.

"Well, let's not stand around here," said Sentinel. "Onwards and upwards."

* * *

The Monkey Familiars, who'd been cackling and howling suddenly began to screech and shriek in pain. One-by-one they exploded into dust, leaving no other traces of them. An annoyed Shego let out a sigh of relief as she straightened out her dark hair. "Well, that's taken care of.."

"But you sure tore into them when they messed up your hair," said Anastasia. "By the way, Shego, you have a bit of a smudge on your face."

Shego rubbed the smudge away. She looked at the Spirtal Tower and smiled. Whatever Yuri was doing in there, he was doing something right.

"Come on, girls," said Kikyo as she shot a Lizard Familiar in the head with her sniper rifle. "This is no time to rest and relax. We have more of these fiends to vanquish."

Shego nodded in agreement and so did Anastasia.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now, I liked this chap. Originally, the fights in the tower took up more than 40 pages so I needed to cut it in half. Now, as you can see, Yuji, Yuki and Yuri showed off their combat prowess. It was Yuri's fight which was the most fun for me as it displayed more forms for his Geno Armor. Hydra Form and Destroyer Forms were just the best. Oh, and Destroyer was based on the Death Saurer which was also based on Godzilla, hence its appearance. I was going for the least armed form when I created Destroyer Form since Frieza from DBZ didn't have much on him in his final form, save for a frightening presence and overwhelming power...until Goku beat the crap out of him.**


	141. The Legacy of Cain Part 85

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 85: Confronting Lust, Sloth and Gluttony**

Exiting the staircase and door,they arrived to the next floor, which looked like a hall of mirrors. It looked endless, with mirrors hanging in the air. "OK, who are we up against this time?" Showa asked as he looked forward to another fight.

"Red, orange and yellow," Sentinel listed. "If we follow the color spectrum in order, then this would be green."

"Actually, the mark on the door can tell you who you're fighting too," Yuri deadpanned. "It's Ccarayhua."

"_How right you are!_" a female voice boomed as Ccarayhua's human face appeared in every mirror.

"Is that Misty Lola?" Yuki asked.

"Who?" Showa questioned, unfamiliar with the name.

"She's a model from our world," Yuki explained. "And the previous host or Ccarayhua, the Lizard Earthbound God."

"So she took the form of her previous host then," Alan said.

"_Well, it would be such a waste not to use it_," Ccarayhua smiled. "_I mean just look at this body and face! She was such a lovely woman that I just had to steal her looks!_"

Showa couldn't help but admit to himself that Ccarayhua was an attractive woman, but he also reminded himself that she was the enemy.

"If the enemy's green, then that means it's my turn," Sentinel began to step forward only for Showa to put his hand against his brother's chest. "Shinichi?"

"She's mine," said Showa. He hadn't had his chance and he was currently wearing green too in his Higurashi Form armor. "Let me at her."

"Be careful, Shin," Yuji cautioned.

Showa didn't give him a smug look but he did give a nod to acknowledge that he'd heard him. He looked to Alan who gave him a nod of approval as well before he stepped forward to face his opponent in the hall of mirrors.

'_OK, it's not like I don't know what this kind of setup is supposed to be. She's hiding among the mirrors so that I don't strike the real one and since this is her floor she's got home field advantage_,' thought Showa. He was constructing a plan to fight against Ccarayhua when he heard her voice.

"_So, why do you wear a mask? Do you look ugly under it?_" she questioned.

Her voice was echoing all over the hall and he could see her everywhere. Trying to seek out an enemy, that was hiding among mirrors, was like looking for a needle in a haystack. Very confusing and very frustrating. However, she was still present and if the mirrors were reflecting her image that meant that she was somewhere here.

"I got my reasons to wear a mask," he answered. '_Just keep talking...keep talking until I find you._' He wasn't rushing in and was taking careful steps. He saw her posing in the mirrors.

"_So, what do you think of how I look?"_ she asked him, running her hands up and down her body. That dress she wore was tight, showing off every inch of her delicious curves, and the high slits exposed her slender legs. She was definitely any man's dream woman who would inhabit their wet dreams.

"You're beautiful, I'll give you that," he admitted. "Sadly, I'm not at all attracted to you." It took more than physical beauty to get his attention and affection.

He suddenly felt a hand brush against his neck and spun around with his sword to strike only to see a mirror. "OK, that was creepy," he muttered.

Then it started. A black and green blur suddenly shot towards Showa and struck him across the chest with sharp claws. Sparks flew as he spun in place before he fell to his knees. He'd felt that strike and put his hand against his chest which now sported scratch marks. He finally realized that Ccarayhua could attack him at anytime but she was playing a game with him.

Getting back up, he scanned the mirrors to see her posing in the mirrors again. Gripping his sword tight, he was ready for her. He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to face a mirror before he was struck in the back. Spinning around he swung and his sword smashed a mirror and he glass dropped at his feet. He looked around for his opponent who attacked out of his line of vision, making it difficult for him to locate her.

"_Breaking a mirror means 7 years bad luck_," she taunted. _"Let me demonstrate!"_

Sparks flew as he was being hit repeatedly and he was slowly becoming fed up with this. She was using a hit and run tactic, which was both cowardly but affective. She was hiding among the mirrors, like a chameleon hiding out in the open by camouflaging itself to match its environment. He scowled at the mirrors and dropped his sword.

"_Giving up?_" Ccarayhua asked mockingly.

"Just going for a change of clothes!" he shot back. "Strike from the shadows, Zennin!" He switched to his black-clad ninja-like Kage Form. In the blink of an eye he multiplied himself. If these mirrors were hiding Ccarayhua, then they all had to go. "Break them all!"

They leapt into action and smashed the mirrors one by one. The sound of glass shattering was heard as pieces of broken mirror. Even if it meant 7 years worth of bad luck for each, it wasn't like he believed in such superstition.

The hall was finally clear of mirrors, all but one which showed Ccarayhua's reflection. He strode over to it as his clones vanished.

"_Breaking my mirrors was a really bad idea,_" Ccarayhua said as she pointed at him. "Let me show you." She snapped her fingers and the broken glass shards levitated into the air before pointing their sharp tips at him.

"Uh-oh," he let out before he made a mad dash towards the lone mirror and dove forward, only to enter the glass surface as if it were water which rippled when he slipped in.

Showa landed in a dark room and scanned around with his night-vision active. He spotted Ccarayhua in her true, lizard-like form and charged at her. He kicked but she sidestepped and clawed at him only for him to teleport and hit her in the back of her head. She started to slash and swipe at him but he continued to duck and dodge her attempts before he found an opening and buried his fist into her stomach, blasting her across the dark space.

Ccarayhua hissed and got back to her feet. "I _was _going to keep you as a pet, but now it's obvious that you need discipline!" She blurred from sight and smashed her tail across his face, sending him flying. She then grabbed his foot with her tail and pulled him up to face her, hanging upside down. She then used her claws and slashed him over and over and over again, enjoying his grunts of pain as sparks flew from his body. She stared at his Spark Core with interest.

"Hm, I should take a souvenir," she hissed as she grabbed hold of it and tried to tug it out of his belt. He began to grunt painfully at her attempt. "I see this is precious! Makes me want it MORE!" With a mighty tug, she tore it right out of his belt as blood also spilled on her. She admired the jewel, while still holding her prey, who was bleeding from the cavity below his abdomen.

"Hey...Ccarayhua..." he said.

"What?" she questioned, her eyes focused on the Spark Core.

"It's a fake," he said bluntly before vanishing from her grip along with the Spark Core.

"WHAT?" she gaped.

"HEADS UP, BITCH!" She heard and she turned to see Showa in Oni Form with a flaming Oni Kanabo jump at her out of nowhere and bash her skull with the weapon, causing her to howl as she was sent flying painfully.

Ccarayhua spat out some teeth and looked at the demonic Rider furiously, "HOW!-?"

"Stayed invisible when I came in with my clone. Then changed once your attention was elsewhere," he explained.

"You're still no match for me!" she spat as she got up and and clicked her sharp teeth together. She shot her tongue out at him and he was hit as the tongue thrust and retracted at lightning speed, hitting him repeatedly and painfully. He was disarmed and forced on the defensive. He conjured a tornado which pushed her tongue back and then he launched himself at her, carried by the wind as he summoned his Oni Claws.

"Oi...RYAH!" he roared as he raised his arms above his head and spun in place before attacking. He buried his claws into her stomach and continued spinning like a drill, causing her to grunt painfully. He withdrew them and stepped back as Ccarayhua fell to her hands and knees. She looked almost pitiful at this moment as she changed to her human form.

She looked at him, pleading, as she begged, "...Help me..."

Showa just looked at her in disgust. She may be beautiful, but she was a creature with a black heart. The only mercy he could give her was a quick and painless death.

Suddenly, her tail shot out at him like a snake and constricted around his neck. He cursed, "Dammit!" He'd gotten distracted and paid the price. Standing back up, Ccarahua grinned as she looked him in the eye.

"Fool," she mocked as her claws were revealed. "Time to gut you like a fish." She licked her lips. She was going to tear that armor off him piece by piece.

"Don't think so!" he shot back as his horns crackled with electricity. His entire body lit up with electricity which Ccarayhua felt as she was being zapped by his power.

She was forced to release him and he slashed her across the face. She gasped and felt the injury. "You...ruined...MY FACE!" she roared.

Showa knew how vain women got whenever their beauty was marred and this demonic lizard-like goddess was no different as she assumed her true form but this time she towered over him, standing at 15 feet tall. "YOU'RE MINE!" She collected energy into her mouth, green energy, and fired a burst of it in a way which reminded Showa of Godzilla's own Atomic Breath. He countered with his own fire breath as flames burst out of his mouth plate, colliding with the green energy that was coming at him.

Ccarayhua felt her victory was assured. There was no way this little insect would be her match. She was Ccarayhua, the Jibakushin of Lust! She would not be defeated by an insignificant worm again!

"Guardian...HENSHIN!" Showa called as his body flashed gold and the green energy enveloped him. Ccarayhua continued with her attack and then finally stopped when she met no resistance.

"Stupid human," she scoffed. She was in for a surprise of her life as she was hit from behind by blade-shaped missiles which exploded on impact. Spinning around, she saw that it was Showa in his gold Guardian Jet Mode.

**INSERT SONG: TIME JUDGED ALL (KAMEN RIDER OOO OST)**

"Heads up, you scaly bitch!" he shouted as he picked up speed and changed back to his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. Ccarayhua opened her mouth to fire another blast only for paper cranes to stuff her mouth and clog up her throat. "GUARDIAN..FORCE...STRIKE!" he called. "OI...RYAAAAAH!" he roared as he executed his flying drop kick, his legs enveloped in gold energy. He struck her right in the head. The paper cranes in her mouth exploded at the same time the attack hit. Her head blew up before he landed on the ground. Turning back, he watched as the Earthbound God's headless body toppled over before lying dead on the floor.

**END SONG: TIME JUDGED ALL**

Showa panted as he landed on his knees, his armor vanishing in a flash of gold as he changed back to his default form. Showa stared at the headless corpse for a moment before getting back to his feet. He turned his back to the corpse to find his way back to the others and the exit.

Turning his back to Ccarayhua's corpse was a big mistake as he would soon realize it...

**SWOOOSH!**

**STAB!**

"AAARGGGHHH!-!-!"

...Now.

Ccarayhua's tail had shot towards Showa back and impaled him from the back to the front. He hung from the tail's tip as he tried to pry himself off before being repeatedly bashed against the floor. The tail then tossed him straight up into the air before it slammed down on him, sending him crashing to the floor. He bounced and tumbled, blood staining the floor, before he laid on the ground with a gaping wound in his chest.

Ccarayhua's body began to twitch and spasm before something inside started to tear its way out of the body. It tore the skin away and it revealed itself to be Ccarayhua herself, human-sized, and completely healed. She stepped out from the large corpse as it began to melt into an inky black fluid.

"...How...?" Showa uttered as his nanites slowly began to heal his body, sealing up the wound as he weakly climbed back to his feet.

"Reptiles shed their skin, and some lizards can regrow body parts," she explained. "I did both at the same time." She ran her hand over her curvy body before placing her hands to her hips. "Did you really think it'd be that easy to kill me?"

Showa roared as he constructed his Great Sword and swung it down only for Ccarayhua to catch the large blade with one hand. "Still haven't learnt your lesson, have you?"

"All I've learnt is that I have to keep killing you until you stay dead!" he spat as he formed a Great Fist with his other hand and threw it at Ccarayhua who caught it as well.

"You're funny," she said before her tongue shot out and collided with his face, sending him flying while knocking his helmet off. "Maybe I should keep you around as a pet," she said as she strode towards him, her hips swaying back and forth along with her tail.

As she got closer she saw Shinichi slowly starting to push himself back up. As he turned to face her, Ccarayhua stopped in mid stride as she got a good look at his face. '_K-kawaii~_' she purred inwardly. To her, Shinichi wasn't just cute, he was a woman's dream as his body seemed to be flooded with charm and manliness. '_He will make a great pet once I'm done with him. Oh, the things I will show him. The things I will teach him. Oh I can't wait!_'

Shinichi wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and got back to his feet. He then heard a voice in his head, '_Lad, what are you doing?_'

"St. George, I'm out of power and she can't be killed," answered Shinichi.

'_Blast it, lad! Have you forgotten your training?_' questioned St. George. 'Y_ou haven't shown this wench your true power! She's already pushed you near your limits so I advise you to show her your true limits right now!_'

The Sword of Ascalon appeared in Shinichi's hand, causing her to scoff at the weapon and what she assumed was futile resistance. "Is that all?" she asked. "A flimsy old sword?"

**INSERT SONG: Alive A Life (Kamen Rider Ryuki OST)**

"No, not at all," Shinichi smiled as he focused on the Youki and Reiryoku within his body. He stabbed the sword forward and cut a circle of light in the air before calling out, "Bring order to the chaos, St. George!" He ran straight into the circle which shattered, releasing a burst of blinding light. Ccarayhua hissed as she shielded her eyes and finally shrieked as she felt a blade cut her across the torso.

"Gotcha," said Showa as he stood in his draconic Ascalon Form armor. He knew he only had five minutes at most in this form so he needed to finish this fast. Ccarahua shot her tongue out at him but he used Shunpo to dodge and slice her tongue in half, causing her to shriek as she withdrew what remained near him.

"Kienzan!" Showa shouted as the Ascalon was covered in glowing red and black energy. With a powerful swing, he threw the destructive energy disc at Ccarayhua who rolled to the side only to find a fist instantly slammed right into her face courtesy of Showa using shunpo to close the gap.

Roaring like a dragon, he slashed at Ccarayhua who caught his sword between her hands but then he focused his Youki and Reiryoku through the blade, igniting it and causing her to burn her hands. He slashed her repeatedly across the body, sending her staggering. She swung her tail at him and he jumped back before glaring daggers at her.

Ccarayhua was trembling. Something was different with her opponent now. How had he become so powerful and so quick? She shook her head and focused her eyes on him. She opened her mouth and prepared to blast him to smithereens.

"Let's see you eat this, ya bitch! Makankosappo!" Showa shouted as he fired his spiraling demon energy beam at Ccarayhua. The reptilian Goddess jumped out of the way again, only to find Showa flying above her. Then, fusing his Dragon's Cloak together, he formed a massive energy dragon tail and bashed her into the ground with a loud thud.

Floating backwards and landing down on the ground, he noticed Ccarayhua get back up and open her mouth once more. This time, she would kill him for sure.

Showa took a deep breath as he gripped the Ascalon tightly with both hands. He raised the sword above his head as he said, "Ryuga..." The black and bluish-white energy began to envelop the sword, taking the shape of an ethereal dragon.

Ccarayhua fired her energy attack which shot through the air as a green beam of death flew straight towards Showa.

"DAICHIKUDAKU!" Showa finished and he swung the Ascalon down, sending the dragon to collide with Ccarayhua's energy blast. The two attacks collided with explosive force before there was a blinding explosion of green, black and white light.

**END SONG: ALIVE A LIFE**

* * *

Sentinel, Yuki, Yuri and Yuji all saw the bright flash and wondered what had happened. Thinking the worst, they ran towards the source of the flash.

* * *

Shinichi stood, supporting himself on the Ascalon which was pointed down to the ground. Ccarayhua stood before him, in human form, with her clothes ruined and wounds visible on her bare skin.

She glared at him as her Dark Mark glowed on her arm before glowing green cracks spread all over her body. She slowly advanced on him, with a desire to kill, as her skin began to darken while the cracks continued to spread.

"Y-you...you dare to...defy me?" Ccarayhua choked out as her body slowly crumbled away, bit by bit.

"Sorry (_pant_)...but I've never been known to take orders from bossy women...well, maybe except from (_pant, pant_)...my own mother," Shinichi said with a bit of a smile. As she finally got close enough to try to strike him, Ccarayhua's legs gave out, causing her to fall to the ground.

Acting out on instinct, Shinichi caught her with one arm and held her there. While she may have been an enemy, she was still a woman. Looking up into his eyes, Ccarayhua once again felt a pang in her black heart. She let a small smile cross her lips as her skin started to become even darker.

"I...wonder. If by some chance...had we met under...different circumstances...would there have been something between us?"

"Who knows?" Shinichi replied. "All I can say is, if you had decided to try to live a peaceful life instead of trying to kill off humanity...then maybe we could have been friends at the very least. I mean, you are beautiful so there's no telling what could have happened. But with a dark heart and rotten core...I doubt it. I prefer women who don't want to kill me or my friends."

'_K...k...kawaii..._' she thought again. Why, in all her life, was it that when she finally fell for someone, it was on her deathbed and in the arms of the man that killed her? Reaching her hand up, "Tell me, what is your name?"

"My name is...Shinichi Banabara. I'm also known as Kamen Rider Showa, the hero of this world." With a smile on her face, her fingers touched his face right before she crumbled into dust at his feet.

A moment after that, Shinichi fell backwards and landed on his back, spread eagle, before closing his eyes.

* * *

_Shinichi found himself lying naked in a four poster canopy bed with soft sheets and wearing nothing but his birthday suit. He wasn't alone, however. Rena, Shawna and Satan were with him, naked just like him and caressing him with their bodies. This was Heaven as he laid back to relax and enjoy himself..._

* * *

...Before he was shocked awake, screaming, by a blast of cold air. He shot up instantly and stared at his comrades, his friends and brother, all standing around him with Yuki being the one responsible for his rude awakening.

"What?" he asked irately.

"We were worried about you when we found you lying unconscious like that," said Sentinel, "But when you started talking in your sleep-"

"Talking in my sleep?"

"Yes, talking in your sleep."

"'Oh, Rena! Yes, that's it! Shawna, that feels great! Satan, do that again! Again'!" Yuri repeated what Shinichi had said out loud while sleeping, causing the cyborg's face to go red in both anger and embarrassment.

"Was firing cold air at me absolutely necessary?" Shinichi questioned.

"It was that or fire," said Yuji. "So, what happened?"

"I blew up her head but she shed her skin and almost killed me." He pointed to the hole in the front of his shirt which was also present on the back. "See? Straight through. Good thing she didn't hit my heart or I'd be a goner."

"And then?" Sentinel prompted.

"Went Ascalon, used a sure-kill attack and passed out," Shinichi answered. "I think I would've been asleep for days if it weren't for Yuki's wake-up call." He wasn't going to tell them of the single tender moment he had given Ccarayhua though. A woman, if an evil one, deserved at least one last happy moment before she died. At least that was what he thought.

"No time to rest now, brother," said Alan as the next door materialized. It depicted the silhouette of a large humanoid. Yuji's eyes narrowed as he easily identified it It was the Dark Mark representing The Giant, which was an obvious clue for their next opponent. It swung open, revealing the next flight of stairs.

Yuki, seeing her brother's expression, knew that he would want to take this foe on his own, in honor of their father and Uncle Kiryu.

* * *

Back outside, the Hinamizawa Gaming Club were fighting against the Lizard Familiars. Using a combination of the Sonozaki Clan martial arts and his weapons, Alter managed to defeat several of the Lizard Familiars. At the same time, Ichigo/Mion and Nigo/Mion were taking down Familiars with synchronized combination attacks.

Meanwhile, the Houjou siblings were also working together. Satoshi, as V3, used V3's Centrifugal Kick while Satoko as Riderman was gunning them down. Rika as ZO was using hand-to-hand combat skills against the monster, knocking them swiftly to the ground. As for Hanyuu, she found it felt really good to be large and in charge as Kamen Rider J as she simply flattened the Familiars under her feet.

ZX/Rena was fighting alone as she used the Cross Shurikens on the Lizard Familiars. However, the ones vanquished would often be replaced. They lunged at her, claws and teeth ready to tear her to shreds and she cried out before they burst into dust.

The rest of the Lizard Familiars also burst into dust, despite not taking any lethal blows.

"What the hell?" Alter questioned as J/Hanyuu shrunk back down. "What happened?"

"I think we have Shinichi to thank," said ZO/Rika. She had a feeling her adopted older brother had something to do with this.

* * *

"I'm really starting to get tired of those stairs," Yuri grumbled as he exited with the others. "Give me an elevator or just teleport us for Crimson Dragon's sake!"

"OK, now where are we?" Shinichi asked as he and the others looked around. The look on the Fudos' faces was of horror and recognition. They stood in the middle of a city in ruins, with the sky covered by dark clouds. There was nobody in sight.

"It's Satellite," uttered Yuji. He knelt and picked up a teddy bear. "A destroyed Satellite." Buildings were wrecked all around them, with pieces missing and broken windows as rubble laid on the ground. The street lamps flickered as well.

Suddenly, the ground shook. Rubble bounced as a loud THUD was heard followed by another and another in increasing frequency.

"Looks like the welcoming committee has just arrived," said Yuji as he dropped the teddy bear to face his next opponent. Just like his title, Ccapac Apu appeared as a giant. In this place he was 40 feet tall and looked every bit as menacing as before. Yuji knew of this Earthbound God from his father's stories. It had resurrected and possessed his father's old friend Kiryu and forced the two to duel to the death. Ccapac Apu's defeat at the hands of Yusei Fudo had left the gigantic Earthbound God bitter with revenge and he wanted a chance to pay Yusei back. However, defeating and killing the son of the Signer who had defeated him was the next best thing.

"Looks like they're going big," said Shinichi as Yuji stepped forward. He could feel the giant Earthbound God's piercing gaze targeting him and he could already guess the thoughts that were running through the titan's mind.

He wanted Yusei Fudo dead, but he was willing to do the next best thing and kill the son of the man who'd defeated him.

"**SON OF YUSEI FUDO!**" Ccapac Apu bellowed, the air shaking with each explosive syllable.

"Yeah, that's me," Yuji answered, grinning confidently. "You got a problem with me?"

Ccapac Apu's response was to put his hands around a tall building, tear it out of the ground, and raise it over his head.

"I'm guessing that's a yes," said Yuji as Ccapac Apu brought the building down on Yuji like a club. Yuji didn't move from his spot as the building crashed down upon him, kicking up dust and rubble.

Ccapac Apu roared in victory, raising his fists into the air, "**I HAVE DEFEATED THE SON OF YUSEI FUDO!**"

However, Shinichi, Sentinel, Yuri and Yuki weren't panicking. This was just the beginning.

Suddenly, a black shape emerged, smashing through the building before standing upon it. It was Yuji Fudo, and he had his arms coated with dark organic armor with his fingers turned into claws. Ccapac Apu stared down at him in shock.

"Is that it? MY TURN THEN!" Yuji leapt incredibly high in a single bound and formed his Hammer Fist before smashing it into Ccapac Apu's face, sending him toppling over in shock.

"You know, this is starting to look like the fight between David and Goliath," said Sentinel.

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall," Shinichi quoted.

Ccapac Apu managed to slowly, but steadily, climb back to his feet. Glaring down at Yuji, he raised his foot and tried to stomp Yuji flat. However, Yuji's blue ring shone and he erected a barrier around himself that prevented Ccapac Apu from doing that. It would appear that Yuji's hope wasn't something so weak as to be crushed under the strain of Ccapac Apu's raw power and it wasn't the only advantage Yuji had.

"EAT THIS!" Yuji's other fist dug into the ground and instantly black, barbed tendrils shot out of the ground and pierced Ccapac Apu's foot. He howled in pain and stepped away from Yuji.

"You know, you're just too big a target right now that this will be too easy for me," Yuji smirked. "How about you pick on somebody your own size?"

Ccapac Apu's single eye narrowed as he glared at Yuji. Considering his enemy's words, which made sense even to his slow mind, his mass began to decrease as he slowly began to shrink down. They all witnessed as the goliath made himself smaller and smaller until he stopped at 7 foot tall. He was still bigger than Yuji, of course, but he was no longer such a huge target anymore.

"Realized you can't beat me like that now?" Yuji grinned behind his faceless mask. "Then come on!"

Both Yuji and Ccapac Apu blurred out of sight, the two punching each other all over the place as their punches let out shockwaves everywhere as Sentinel and the others watched. Despite Apu's size, the Earthbound Giant was indeed fast and his punches packed a hefty bite. A combination of speed and power that was like no other. Yuji then conjured a shield from his left hand to block a punch before it shattered. He then conjured his Hammer Fists and jumped up before dropping down fast before Ccapac Apu had a chance to block, the Giant getting pounded over the head with the massive fist as they both fell and dust kicked up to cover them.

"Yuji's really beating the crap out of that guy," said Shinichi.

"He has every reason to, considering what Ccapac Apu did to our Uncle Kiryu," said Yuki. She knew the stories.

"So, it's personal," Sentinel noted.

"In a matter of speaking, yes," Yuki confirmed.

"Come on, Yuji! I wanna see you rip that asshole a new one!" Yuri yelled.

Ccapac Apu brought a fist down which Yuji caught, contorting his body to swing a kick that caught the side of the Earthbound's head as he fell over. Yuji then grabbed Ccapac Apu's leg and tossed him, forming his Whip Fist and lashing out to catch the God's leg and pulling down as he slammed Ccapac Apu down on the ground.

"This is for messing with Uncle Kiryu's head!" Yuji shouted as he raised Ccapac Apu up and slammed him to the ground again. Swinging around, he added, "This is for all the souls you took away!" He smashed Ccapac Apu through a building before pulling him back. "And this is for the pain you put my dad through when you forced him to duel Uncle Kiryu!" He slingshot Ccapac Apu skyward before launching himself into the air. Once in range he began furiously hacking and slashing at Ccapac Apu with his Blade Claws, causing him to scream loudly as his dark blood with spilt before he went crashing down with Yuji landing a short distance away.

Yuji then stabbed his claws into the ground, erecting the Ground Spikes as they pierced through Ccapac Apu and the Giant cried out in pain. "You see, big guy, you're not dealing with your average Fudo," Yuji taunted. "Thanks to living on this world for a while, I've gone through some changes. Changes that would cause some to consider me an abomination. But hey, I'm still getting used to it..." He then fell to his knees and started coughing until he regurgitated blood. "OK...spoke to soon..."

"Yuji!" Shinichi cried.

"What the fuck? Apu barely landed a hit!" Yuri snapped.

"Look," Yuki pointed.

**INSERT SONG: TAGIRU CHIKARA (DIGIMON XROS WARS OST)**

They watched as Yuji started building proportionate mass on his body and growing slowly in size. He was clawing at the sides of his neck, creating gashes that spewed a black gas from the gill-like slits. Horns grew from the corners of his forehead and jutted forward. Also, his back started tearing vertically as large, bat-like wings burst out from the "wounds" and a spiny tail grew from his tail bone. Also, his mask started to elongate, becoming more reptilian in appearance as it gained eye cavities, showing Yuji's now glowing red eyes and forming a set of jaws filled with crocodilian teeth as he let out a roar.

"He was still in the process of mutating," Alan realized.

'_I'm sorry, I should have warned you,'_ Veronica apologized.

"**For that, you get no victory candy, Veronica,"** Yuji gurgled as he spat some more blood.

'_Aw...'_

Yuji stood up, still standing upright as he examined himself, spotting the tail that carried a trident-like appendage at the tip. **"OK, that's pretty cool... Wish I had a mirror to see everything else."** He held his throat, **"Whoa...I sound funny. I think I need a Ricola"** Yuji then looked to the others and called out, "**Hey! Anything different about me?**"

"You look scary cool, Yuji," admitted Shinichi. "Really nightmarish scary cool. Like a bat straight out of hell." If this is what a mutated form of the Hinamizawa Syndrome could do for someone like Yuji, well it was a good thing it was Yuji. Anybody else might not have even survived the transformation. As far as Shinichi was concerned, though, this was the unheard of but recently discovered Level 6 of the Hinamizawa Syndrome, a completely demonic transformation.

"Very dark," Yuki admitted before blushing, "I like it."

"Fuck, I should try doing something like that," Yuri grinned.

"I like the wings, but the tail and horns are a bit too much," Sentinel criticised.

"You...are not...Yusei...Fudo..." Ccapac Apu slowly stated.

"**Of course not, I'm something else entirely. Something brand new,"** Yuji said as he expanded his wings, **"Call me...VERZ! VULCAN!"**

Roaring, Ccapac Apu threw a punch at Verz Vulcan to crush him but the transformed Manakyte caught his fist with minimal effort, though the force of it did cause a crater to form beneath Verz Vulcan's feet. When Ccapac Apu tried to withdraw his fist, he found out he couldn't. Apu tried to punch him in the face with the other fist but it stopped cold as it hit the masked face with enough force to shatter a mountain.

It had no effect on him though.

"**That tickles,**" Verz Vulcan chuckled. He then jumped and double kicked Ccapac Apu away as he gathered black and red energy in his hands. **"Shinha Kou Ken!"** And he thrust forward, launching the blasts as they all hit the Earthbound God. Verz Vulcan then focused his power, the magnitude of his energy shattering the earth beneath him as rock and metal were blown away.

"**OIYAAAH!"** he roared as he smashed Apu's face in, more cracks in the earth spreading behind the Giant as Verz Vulcan continued punching Apu. An uppercut launched the Earthbound God as Verz Vulcan brought his tail forward. A black and red ball of energy formed on the larger blade as he took aim at Apu's flying body.

"**HELL FLARE!"**

The attack was fired and the blast was immense in volume as it was launched and engulfed Ccapac Apu as he roared in agony and anger. Before he was consumed by the attack, Apu reared his head back and fired a burst of blue energy from his singular eye, dispersing the Hell Flare as he returned to Verz Vulcan in a quick burst of speed.

"**Look at you; blasted, beaten, and still kicking,"** Verz Vulcan taunted, **"I guess you **_**are **_**stronger than Uru after all."**

"No one...stronger...than Apu," Ccapac Apu declared.

"**Then prove it,"** Verz Vulcan challenged.

And he did.

Ccapac Apu roared as his body began to expand. To hell with fighting fair! If he was to crush Yuji Fudo and have his revenge on Yusei Fudo, he would need to use all his power. Slowly but sure he began to gain weight, height and girth as he continued to tower over Verz Vulcan. The Manakyte, however, just watched impassively as Ccapac Apu continued to grow and grow and grow until he reached his previous height of forty feet.

And he was still growing. That was not the limit of expansion as he was getting bigger and bigger before he stopped and stood at 100 feet tall.

"**APU...IS...STRONGEST!-!-!" **he roared and the shockwave caused by the declaration caused not only the air to tremble, but the buildings as well.

The volume of his roar nearly caused Alan and Shinichi's eardrums to explode.

Raising his foot, the Daikaiju-sized Earthbound God brought it down on Verz Vulcan who swiftly flew off to avoid being flattened. Ccapac Apu raised his foot, revealing a huge and deep footprint. Glaring at Verz Vulcan, he started to give chase, each footstep he made causing the ground to shake.

"**Is this it?**" Verz Vulcan questioned as Ccapac Apu reached to grab him only for Verz Vulcan to avoid the Earthbound God's grip with ease. "**All you've done so far is make yourself bigger, fatter and slower!**" He avoided another swat. "**Seriously, if this is all you can do you better reevaluate your exact power level because all I see is a big, slow, fat oaf!**"

Roaring with rage, he brought his hand down and broke a building to pieces. However, he missed Verz Vulcan. His markings glowing, he began to form a blue energy ball in front of his singular eye. It began to glow brighter and brighter as it was charged with his energy. Taking his eyes off Verz Vulcan, he looked down at his friends who were standing on the ground below.

Realizing where he was aiming, Verz Vulcan swooped down towards the line of fire and began to charge his own attack. He pointed his tail forward, the largest blade of the trident aimed at Ccapac Apu as a ball of black and red fire formed at the tip. But that was not the only place a fireball was beginning to form. The same orb of energy began taking shape at the tip of his horns, while he pointed his arms forwards, his fingers curled into claws as spheres of black and red flames formed in them. Finally, an orb of the same obsidian and crimson flames was forming in his mouth.

A blue blast of intensely charged energy flew from the front of the Giant's eye, piercing the air and blowing away the nearby buildings as it rushed towards Verz Vulcan. At the same time, Verz Vulcan launched his own attack, roaring like a beast as he screamed, "**HELL FLARE X5!**"

The five streams of flames flew and spiralled through the air, spiralling as they joined together to form a literally roaring blast of high intense, black and red flames that momentarily took the form of a dragon before crashing into Ccapac Apu's own energy blast.

The two blasts met in the middle but now it was becoming a battle of wills as Ccapac Apu was pushing more force into his blast with Verz Vulcan doing the same. He'd been hovering over the ground but was being pushed as his feet met the ground. He dug his feet and heels into the ground to prevent himself from being pushed back but he was still struggling.

Despite this new power giving him an advantage earlier, it was still all brand new to him and he was lacking the experience that would've been beneficial in a battle like this.

He gritted his teeth as he was beginning to strain against Ccapac Apu but then he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking over his right shoulder, he saw that it was Shinichi, smiling at him. He felt Shinichi put his other hand on his shoulder. Two hands then wrapped around his right wrist and Verz Vulcan could see Sentinel standing at his side, keeping him steady. He felt a pair of hands on his left shoulder and looked to see that it was Yuki and Yuri was also holding onto his left wrist, keeping his arm steady.

"Together, Onii-sama," said Yuki. "Together, there is no way we can lose!"

Verz Vulcan nodded and then concentrated as he put more power behind his Hell Flare attack. He wasn't alone, he was never alone. He had everyone by his side, inside and out, and they would stand at his side to face any opponent together.

"**HELL...FLARE...X10!"**

Yuji and the others focused their energies and fired another blast, plowing through the attack as it traveled toward Ccapac Apu. It proved stronger than the Giant's attack as it was pushed back and dissipated, with Apu watching as his enemies' own attack finallysmashed into his face, resulting in a huge explosion which leveled everything in sight.

**END SONG: TAGIRU CHIKARA**

* * *

The Giant Familiars had just merged into a gigantic creature and grappled against J/Hanyuu with everyone standing back to watch. Suddenly, the Giant Familiar just turned to dust and J/Hanyuu was only holding air. She was perplexed. This had been happening all over the battlefield, with different Familiars just disappearing and turning to dust. All that remained were the Whale Familiars leisurely floating in the air.

"This can only mean one thing," said Asura.

"What's that?" questioned Sora.

"Yuji's kicking butt," Lilith smiled.

* * *

The entire artificial city had been leveled but some of the rubble began to swell as Sentinel managed to dig his way free. He coughed and looked around for the others. He spotted Shinichi's hand under some rubble and grabbed hold before pulling him free. Shinichi coughed as the air was thick with dust. "Did we get him?"

"I think so," said Sentinel as he scanned the area for Yuji, Yuki and Yuri. He finally spotted them, with Verz Vulcan holding his wings over his brother and sister like shields. He had shielded them from the explosion.

"Guess we..." Shinichi began only to pause as his eyes widened in horror. He would've finished his statement with the word 'won' if not for the fact that there was a large figure standing not too far from them.

Verz Vulcan's eyes narrowed as he glared at it.

Despite all their efforts, Ccapac Apu was standing, alive and prepared to kill them. The entire city was leveled and yet he managed to survie.

Or did he?

All they could see through the dust cloud was his silhouette but as the dust cloud slowly began to subside, they saw the Giant's body with a large gaping hole right through its head where its eye used to be. The blue glow of his markings had dimmed and his body was barely holding up. The arms were the first to fall as they crashed to the ground, bursting into black dust particles. Cracks formed along the neck before the head toppled over and crashed before breaking apart into dust. Finally, the knees buckled as the rest of the body crumbled down to dust, leaving nothing more of the titanic beast.

"**That's...how you do it...bitches,"** Verz Vulcan grinned. His armor began shapeshifting again until it liquified and receded back into his body, leaving Yuji back in his original form.

The door to the next floor, which depicted the whale Dark Mark appeared before them before opening up to reveal the spiral staircase. Yuji smiled at his brother, sister and friends and held up his hand while holding out five fingers to say, "Five down," he then did a peace sign as he added, "Two more to go."

"Let's do this then!" Shinichi said as they went through the door which closed behind them as they climbed the stairs to the next floor.

* * *

The next floor looked like an island in the middle of an ocean. The island was quite small with a handful of palm trees and a sandy beach. The ocean itself stretched far and wide, an infinite body of water as far as the eye could see.

"So, who's our next opponent?" Shinichi asked. He didn't know much about the Earthbound Gods but so far he could guess. "Wait, one of them is a whale and that door had a whale on it, so..."

"It's Chacu Challhua," Yuji finished as he spotted a large shape jump out of the water followed by water shooting into the air. "And he's coming right here."

Shinichi spotted a big, black fin above the water as it sliced through towards them before the owner of the fin jumped high into the air with a large splash. Seawater rained down on them as Chacu Challhua made his dramatic appearance, landing on the island's beach with a loud thud.

"I am the great Earthbound God, Chacu Challhua of Gluttony!" Chacu Challhua declared. "Now, who will be my opponent?"

"This is mine, guys," said Sentinel as he stepped forward.

"So, a volunteer," Chacu Challhua grinned with his big mouth. "So, let us begin-"

**POW!**

He never got to finish his sentence as Sentinel punched him and sent him flying skyward before landing in the water with a splash. He flicked his wrist.

"Wasn't that a bit rude?" Bazel asked.

"You shouldn't spare manners for bad guys, Bazel," Sentinel said to his armband. There was a another splash as Chacu Challhua leapt out of the water and landed on the beach again.

"I WASN'T FINISHED!" the indigo-marked Earthbound God shouted. "NOW WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TO DO THAT TO ME!-?"

"Alan Smith, aka the Sentinel," Sentinel introduced himself. "And I aim to misbehave." Yuji rolled his eyes at the catchphrase. He suddenly rushed at the Earthbound God for another punch but this time Chacu Challhua was ready for him.

"GET IN MY BELLY!" Chacu Challhua opened his big mouth and sucked Sentinel right in before snapping his jaws shut. He licked his lips and rubbed his belly in satisfaction and said, "Now that was de...licious!" He belched afterwards.

"It ate him!" Shinichi shouted.

"So, who's next?" Chacu Challhua asked.

* * *

Indeed, Sentinel was now an inhabitant of Chahy Challhua and soon he would be digested and his power made part of the Orca Earthbound God of Gluttony. Sentinel picked up what looked like a bicycle wheel which was covered in slime and couldn't help but remark, "It's like the inside of a shark's belly in here." He heard hissing and looked down to see the stomach acid beginning to melt the wheel down. "And I'm guessing this is not the time to start admiring."

"You got a plan, Partner?" Bazel asked.

"Wish I had my fez with me," he told his armband, "But I think I know just how we can get out of this one." He took out his Sonic Screwdriver. "Now, time to give this big aquatic mammal some indigestion."

* * *

"Alright, now who's next?" Chacu Challhua asked again.

"I'm next," Shinichi volunteered.

"No, let _me _fight," Yuji offered.

"You have to save your strength for the last one, which I assume is the boss," Showa argued. "Trust me, I can do this. I just have to get him to spit Alan out."

Chacu Challhua pounded his belly. "Well? Who's next on the menu?"

"That'll be me, and I'm going to give you heartburn," said Showa as he transformed into Showa Oni Form via his elemental tornado.

"ALRIGHT! NOW GET IN MY-!" Chacu Challhua suddenly paused.

**INSERT SONG: SUPERMAN THEME**

"What?" Shinichi asked as Chacu Challhua doubled over while holding his stomach and groaned.

"Ugh...my stomach..." he uttered. His stomach was trembling. "I...feel...sick..." His cheeks puffed up as he began to look green in the face before he opened his mouth and threw up.

"EEEWWW!" Shinichi jumped back.

"Whale chunks, nice..." Yuri murmured sarcastically and in disgust.

"It looks like he spat Alan out too," Yuki added.

In the pool of vomit was Sentinel and he was standing back up. "Not exactly the way I wanted to escape," he said.

"Better than out the other way," Bazel stated.

"True," Sentinel agreed.

Chacu Challhua was on his knees, holding his stomach as he demanded weakly, "What...did you do...to me...?"

Sentinel's answer was to take out his Sonic Screwdriver and show it to him. "I guess your stomach doesn't agree with my sonic device," Sentinel grinned.

Now Chacu Challhua was mad. Opening his mouth, he sucked in air before he bent over and pointed his blowhole at Alan. He fired a pressurised stream of water which pushed Sentinel off the island and sent him flying towards the water. "THAT'S IT! I'M GOING TO RIP YOU TO SHREDS!" He jumped into the water with a loud splash and moved like a torpedo to meet with Sentinel and kill him.

"And they're off," said Yuji as he looked through a pair of binoculars.

Sentinel stopped and hovered over the water. As he looked around for his opponent, he could swear that he could hear the theme for 'Jaws' play. Meanwhile, a black fin cut through the water before there was a huge splash right next to him. There was Chacu Challhua and with a roar the Orca Earthbound God slammed his tail into the back of Sentinel's head, sending him crashing into the water. He followed and grabbed Sentinel by the ankle to drag him down to the ocean's depths. Sentinel gritted his teeth and tried to shake himself loose but Chacu Challhua kept a firm grip on him. Finally, the Orca Earthbound God released Sentinel.

'_You're in my territory now,_' thought Chacu Challhua. He saw Sentinel aim his ring at him and added, '_Not this time!_' Clicking his teeth, he unleashed sonic waves through the water which hit Sentinel at full force. Sentine's eyes widened as he covered his ears, trying to block out the pain-inducing sounds. Grinning, Chacu Challhua shot at Sentinel like a torpedo and rammed into him, sending him crashing into several rocks. Despite his size, Chacu Challhua was incredibly fast and even faster in his home environment.

Sentinel was being bashed by Chacu Challhua's torpedo fast rammings, being hit from all sides as the Earthbound God disoriented him with sonic waves. He took out his Sonic Screwdriver but it was knocked out of his hand by another hard impact.

'_Now you're nice and tender!_' Chacu Challhua thought with glee as he opened his mouth to swallow Sentinel whole. He bit down but his jaw was stuck open as Sentinel took a grip of his upper jaw with his hands, pushing up, as he pushed down on his lower jaw with his feet.

His eyes glowed red as he glared straight at Chacu Challhua's throat, '_Let's see you handle some heartburn!_'

He fired his heat vision down Chacu Challhua's throat and the Orca Earthbound God, unprepared for this, felt his organs being burnt from the inside out. He screamed, shooting Sentinel out of his mouth as he shot up towards the surface of the sea with Sentinel grabbing onto his tail to be pulled up.

There was a splash as Chacu Challhua shot upwards, screaming as smoke came out of his throat. He hovered over the surface of the water as Sentinel hovered across from him with his arms crossed.

"You...!" Chacu Challhua scowled before inhaling and then shooting a blast of water from his blowhole which was blocked by a green bubble shield. Chacu Challhua once again shot at Sentinel like a torpedo and rammed the bubble shield, causing it to crack from the impact. He then reared back and planted his fist into the shield, shattering it as his knuckles connected with Sentinel's face. Sentinel retaliated with a punch that knocked Chacu Challhua to the side but he returned the favor by burying his fist into Sentinel's stomach, causing him to double over. He flipped his body forward and smashed the flat side of his tail down on Sentinel's head, sending him back to the water with a huge splash. He followed into the water to pursue his prey once more.

Seconds later, there was a tall tower of water as both Sentinel and Chacu Challhua splashed upwards, exchanging bone shattering blows. Sentinel's fist collided with his snout, sending Chacu Challhua tumbling backwards through the air.

Clenching his fist, the ring glowing brightly, he took aim and fired a barrage of energy blasts at Chacu Challhua who was ready for him this time.

"BON APPETIT!"

Sentinel fired energy blast after energy blast at Chacu Challhua who opened his mouth to swallow them before firing the energy back from his blowhole. Sentinel had to dodge or be hit by his own reflected attacks. He scowled at his opponent, who seemed to grin at him mockingly.

"You can't defeat me! It's pointless to fire energy at me! I feed on it then I send it back at you!" Chacu Challhua bellowed. "You're finished!"

Sentinel scowled and slammed his fists together, causing Bazel to yell happily, "Alright! Now Bazel is in the house!" This time both his hands were glowing with emerald energy along with his eyes which blazed like flames. Taking aim, he fired an intense burst of emerald energy straight towards Chacu Challhua. He swallowed it down his gullet as usual, but Sentinel wasn't going to let him expel the power. He constructed a cork of green energy and plugged Chacu Challhua's blowhole. He also fired the heat vision beams into the Orca Earthbound God's eyes, blinding him and causing him to lose concentration as his body began to bulge and bloat like a balloon taking in too much water.

Suddenly, he exploded and Sentinel lowered his arms as he watched Chacu Challhua's remains fall into the water to sink.

"Alright, he did it!" Shinichi cheered.

"No...not yet..." Yuji frowned.

Sentinel noticed something odd as the water under him began to swirl around like a whirlpool. Suddenly, tendrils of water shot upwards and surrounded him. The tendrils all lashed out like whips at him which he blocked with his arms. He could feel the magic coursing through them, and it felt like they were almost alive. Meanwhile, the swirling water took the shape of a large pair of jaws which shot at him. Using his super speed, he dodged and avoided the water jaws which wouldn't been bad news for him.

"_What's the matter...?_" the water spoke as it joined together and took shape, reforming into Chacu Challhua. "Scared of a little water?"

"You regenerated," Sentinel observed.

"Water's my element, and you can't eliminate water," Chacu Challhua said. "Now, where were we?" He waved his hand and formed duplicates out of water to fight alongside him. The Mizu Bunshin (water clones) shot at Sentinel like torpedoes. Sentinel was pushed back with each impact he took as the Mizu Bunshin all crashed into him. They would reform and resume their assault again, always managing to keep up with his speed.

He summoned the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and rocketed high into the air but the whale Mizu Bunshin all followed after him. He put the base of the Kusanagi's blade against his power ring. He'd seen Makai Knights do this before and decided to try it himself. Focusing on the ring, sword and Bazel, he concentrated their power and augmented the weapon with his own energy. He drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi back along the ring as green flames surrounded the sword.

Once he was done with his preparation, he struck. The whale Mizu Bunshin turned into steam as the blazing Kusanagi no Tsurugi hit them. Chacu Challhua saw Sentinel destroying his water clones and did not like him. Standing on the water, he sprayed a jet of pressuriszed water at Sentinel as bigger jets of water flew from the ocean and flew straight at Sentinel. The water jets all swirled together and swelled into an immense burst of aquatic power. The attack smashed into Sentinel, shattering the chest portion of his Bazel Armor, sending him plummeting to the water. Chacu Challhua grinned and swam over to position himself under Sentinel to gobble him all up.

However, Sentinel wasn't defeated yet. In fact he had a plan. According to what he'd seen, Chacu Challhua would absorb energy attacks through his mouth and fire them back through his blowhole. Also, he could regenerate and liquify his body. That was another huge advantage.

He was going to have to use _that_.

He grabbed Chacu Challhua's upper jaw and swung himself onto the evil god's back. Taking a grip of his dorsal fin in one hand, he reared back his other fist.

"EAT THIS!" Sentinel roared as he plugged up Chacu Challhua's blowhole with his fist.

"WHAT! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!-?" Chacu Challhua bellowed as he tried to shake Sentinel off. "DON'T PUT YOUR HAND IN THERE!"

"You like to absorb energy, right? Well let's see how you like THIS!" Sentinel's body glowed with golden light. "TASTE QUANTUM POWER!"

"I CAN'T TASTE ANYTHING THROUGH THERE!" Chacu Challhua shouted back as he began to bloat up like a balloon with yellow light flashing out of his mouth as he screamed, "NOOOOOOO-!-!-!"

**BOOOOOM!-!-!**

**END SONG: SUPERMAN THEME**

He went pop like a big balloon.

However, Sentinel's Quantum Power was a double-edged sword as it harmed him as much as it harmed his opponent. Once he expelled it, he felt himself drained to the point of death. Fortunately, it never came to that. But the move was still a risky one, not to mention lethal as well.

Alan was sinking under the water, his Bazel Armor and costume vanishing as his street clothes replaced them. He was also unconscious as he slowly sank to the bottom, if there was a bottom.

"PARTNER! PARTNER!" Bazel yelled to wake him up. "OPEN YOUR EYES! PARTNER!"

Alan didn't respond and continued to sink, or he would've if a hand in a black glove hadn't grabbed hold of his wrist.

* * *

"Do you see them?" Yuki asked over his shoulder as Yuji was looking through his binoculars.

"No, not yet..." Yuji answered and then he spotted them. "I see them!" There was Shinichi, in the form of Kamen Rider X, and he was swimming back to shore with Alan.

Shinichi pulled Alan up to the beach and laid him on the sand. He did chest compressions and Alan coughed as water spilled out of his mouth. Slowly sitting up, he asked, "I sure hope it was Yuki who gave me mouth-to-mouth."

"Heh, he's fine if he can crack jokes," remarked Yuri.

"How are you feeling?" Shinichi asked.

"A little drained, but I'll be good after a few hours under the sun," Alan answered.

"Is he gonna regenerate?" Shinichi questioned.

"Not after what I did to him," Alan stated confidently. "I didn't just turn him into steam. I completely vaporised him. I couldn't risk him coming back, so I destroyed him on a cellular level. But my Quantum Powers are kind of a double edged sword. It's unstable. I'm not sure how much help I'll be in the coming fights."

"Then you should sit the next one out," said Yuji.

The final door revealed itself to them and it bore the Dark Mark of the condor. It also radiated with a malevolent miasma as violet flames covered it.

"This is it, the Big Boss himself," said Yuji as he put his hand on the door. This was it. After they defeated Wiraqocha Rasca, the Earth would be saved.

"Maybe you should sit this one out and rest," Shinichi suggested. "You look tired."

"Thanks for the concern, but I can handle it," said Yuji confidently.

"Just remember that when you're in trouble we'll be nearby to help," Shinichi reminded. "Ain't that right, guys?"

* * *

Wiraqocha Rasca sensed another one of his siblings had perished and gave off a sigh, "Once again they've failed me. It's so hard to depend on family these days." He stared at the flames which gave him a view of Yuji and his group standing before the last door. "It's time I welcomed them."

* * *

Meanwhile, back outside, the rest of our heroes were enjoying the current reprieve. The horde of Familiars had ended, leaving them to only stare at the Spiral Tower. It had all happened so strangely. The Familiars had just turned to dust. It had started with the spiders, followed by the hummingbirds, after that the monkeys, then the lizards, which were proceeded by the giants and finally the whales. There were no more of the monstrous Familairs to fight.

"How do you think they're doing?" Mion asked.

"Right now I got no clue," said Keiichi.

"I hope Shin-kun and Alan are OK," said Rena.

"So do I," agreed Lala.

"Those two are strong, and with Yuji and his brother and sister with them they can survive anything," said Amora.

"Especially since they have Yuji with them," claimed Misato.

"Really?" Anastasia cocked an eyebrow as she argued, "I would believe my Yuri should be the one that is responsible for their survival."

"That nut? In what universe?" Daichi retorted. Anastasia glared at him, ring and eyes glowing yellow as she projected an aura of fear.

"Let's not fight with each other after fighting a horde," pleaded Yokoshima. He was tired and hungry. All he wanted to do was go home, eat something, then curl up in bed with his wife.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And the second set of fights within the Spiral Tower. The last door, of course, leads straight to the big bad. Will they be able to beat him? Track record says yes, but it's never an easy thing for heroes to do. Next, the intense conclusion to the Earthbound Gods arc.**


	142. The Legacy of Cain Part 86

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN  
**

**Part 86: Wings of Pride**

Wiraqocha continued to watch the flames as he awaited for their arrival. It was only a matter of time until they arrived. He was of course expecting them to arrive very shortly.

From the fire he could see everything that had occurred in the Spiral Tower, including the demise of his brothers and sisters. He didn't look angry, but instead disappointed at how weak they were. Still, they served their purpose to the best of their abilities.

"Heh, their weakness makes me wonder if I should even bother reviving them at all," Wiraqocha said to himself.

The door to his floor appeared before him and swung open and he heard the sound of footsteps running up towards him. He pocketed his hands and waited. His patience was soon rewarded by their presence and he looked upon all five warriors who had defeated his siblings.

He scrutinized the Fudos first. Yuji was a spitting image of his father, save for the color of the streaks in his hair which were red instead of gold. However, he possessed that same courage, that same resolve, and that same take charge attitude of his father. He glanced towards Yuki who looked like her mother, except for her snow white hair. She was calm, cool and collected but she was like her mother with a hidden inner fire that made her a force to be reckoned with. His sister, Assla Piscu, had learnt that the hard way and perished at her hands. He began to think of how he could turn her into his personal concubine after this was all over. It would just be another way to screw Yusei Fudo over. He then looked over at Yuri. Compared to Yuji, Yuri Fudo was something else. Unlike Yuji he was much quicker to anger with a loose hold on his emotions. Then again, Cusillu's antics could make anyone angry and he was so deserving of Yuri Fudo's wrath. He, however, couldn't ignore what he'd seen. Yuri Fudo was definitely a dangerous individual, especially with his siblings.

The two with them, however, were not descendants of Yusei and Aki Fudo. Shinichi Banabara was definitely someone to watch out for as he had an arsenal of different combat forms, weapons and powers, able to hold his own against Ccarayhua and resist her advances while soundly defeating her despite her power to regenerate. He wondered what the source of his powers was. Speaking of power, the fifth member of this group was Alan Smith, aka the Sentinel. Wiraqocha Rasca had witnessed for himself the power that Alan Smith possessed and what he'd demonstrated was merely a fraction of his true power. He had also seen how Alan had defeated Chacu Challhua who could reform his body after being blown to pieces by turning into water. Alan had defeated him by obliterating his molecules.

"Welcome to the top floor," Wiraqocha Rasca greeted them. "To be honest I never expected you all to make it this far." He wore a smug look on his face. He knew that they didn't have any strength left to take him on but he enjoyed the amusement of them thinking that they still had a chance.

"Can it!" Shinichi ordered. "We're here to take you down." He stepped forward only for Yuji to pull him back.

"I see Yuji Fudo is eager to fight me again," smiled Wiraqocha Rasca. "Is this revenge for how I trounced you earlier?"

"That, and to make sure that you stay dead," said Yuji as he clenched his fists, black armor already forming around his hands as his claws began to form. Wiraqocha noticed this and knew that this power was different from the ones Yuji had previously used against him in their last battle. He made a mental note, remembering to be careful of this new armor that Yuji could summon.

Wiraqocha Rasca spoke up, "Tell me the truth, Yuji Fudo. You've been having trouble going home, haven't you?" Yuji stared at him. "Some kind of barrier, right? Well, we managed to cross over. Who's to say that the way for you to go home isn't there anymore? Just let me live and I'll lead you straight to it."

Yuji nodded and said, "I did wonder about that. You're not from here and yet you managed to sneak your way over here without us noticing."

"Exactly, all seven of us managed to pass through the barrier between our worlds and I can show you the way. So, how about it? Go back and be reunited with your family. In exchange, you will leave me be. I mean this isn't your world, it's never been your world and it will never be your world. Why should you care about what happens to it? Just go back and all your worries will be behind you."

Yuji scowled and retorted, "Well, here's a problem. Your stupid ass is causing trouble for my friends and family in this world. I've got a wife, hot babes and adorable daughters that were born here (minus Wendy). Having their souls taken is not something I condone so, since you're the last asshole we've gotta snuff out, you better doll yourself up for a night on the town because I'm about to take you on a ballroom blitz." He flexed his armored claws as he gave Wiraqocha a death glare.

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow and repeated, "'Take you on a ballroom blitz'? Seriously?"

"Besides, you can't really prove that you came through the barrier. You might've arrived shortly before it was erected and remained dormant until now," Alan argued. That was just a theory, but a more plausible one. Yuki and Shinichi nodded in agreement. It was the most plausible theory but, then again, Wiraqocha could also be telling them the truth.

"Hey, let's can the small talk and roast us a chicken for dinner already!" Yuri shouted as his energy began to spike up.

"Yuri-nii-san, let Onii-sama handle this one," Yuki advised while she placed a hand on his shoulder. Yuri just glared at her.

"Hey, why should I? We all deserve a chance to have a go at this guy!" Yuri retorted. Yuki just responded by staring at him coldly as her hand became cold to the touch.

"Because...I said so." Yuri just looked at her and blinked before he settled down.

Letting out a sigh, "Fine." He then looked over to Yuji, "Yo, bro, leave some for me, will ya?"

"I'll think about it," Yuji replied with a smirk.

Wiraqocha Rasca stared at all of them, but his eyes were focused on Yuji, "Well, it looks like you've made your choice."

Yuji yelled, "Damn right I have!" His energy spiked up as his body began to become covered in a mix of red and black flames. "It's payback time ya bastard!"

Wiraqocha Rasca sighed in disappointment, "How unfortunate. Well, guess it's time I departed. Farewell."

Wiraqocha Rasca's violet markings appeared over his body as he assumed his monstrous birdman form. Spreading his wings, which nearly blew them off their feet, he took and smashed through the ceiling. Hovering over the hole he'd made, he said, "Oh, and for your information, the tower is set to self destruct in about a minute. Farewell." The hole sealed up as Wiraqocha took off.

"Hey, come back here ya turkey!" Yuri roared in rage.

"Like stone walls are gonna stop us!" Shinichi shouted as he formed his Great Fists and slammed them against the walls. However, the walls were able to withstand the force of his punches. "What!-? Come on!"

Alan tried to punch their way out and wasn't able to blast a hole free for them, "Well, that didn't work!" He then used his ring to construct a giant jack hammer and drill to bust their way free. "I hate magic, a lot!" he complained as he went to work on trying to break the wall down.

"You know, I normally say not to panic, but..." Shinichi started screaming as he bashed his fists against the walls to find a way free. Since they couldn't communicate to the outside world, they were stuck.

As they all did their best to knock a hole in the wall, Yuji and Yuri pounding it with their fists and Yuki switching between her Gao Dagger and ice powers, the five of them soon stopped once they heard a small beeping noise.

**BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...BEEP**

"What in the hell is that noise?" Shinichi asked. Looking around, Yuki raised her head and noticed a small floating sphere of energy with a set of red colored numbers counting down to zero. It looked similar to a time bomb, except it was made of flowing energy, which meant that it was magical in nature.

"That can't be good," Yuki said.

"What's not good?" Yuji asked and they all followed her line of sight and noticed the countdown as it was only seven seconds away from hitting zero. "Oh, I am so gonna-"

* * *

Outside, the others waited for their return when all of a sudden the tower exploded, blowing them away. Rena went tumbling along the ground before rolling to a stop; her transformation as Kamen Rider ZX canceling out in the process. Groaning, and coughing up sand and dust, she stared at the smoking rubble which had once been the Spiral Tower.

Staring at the rubble, Rena's eyes widened in horror at the implication as tears began to form, screaming out his name, "SHINICHI!-!-!"

"Yuji...YUJI!" Misato cried out.

"No, Yuri!" yelled Anastasia.

"Mistress/Yuki!" Crystal and Rhea cried out.

"ALAN!" members of Alan's harem also screamed.

That was not the worst part, however. Wiraqocha Rasca was now hovering over them. His markings then glowed as his body expanded, bursting in size before morphing into his true form as the Earthbound God, Wiraqocha Rasca, the condor. His own Geoglyph was also glowing in response to his emergence.

"Oh for the love of God, who summoned this asshole?-!" Daichi shouted in irritation.

"**FOOLS!**" Wiraqocha Rasca's voice boomed, "**YOU SOUGHT TO STOP ME BUT MORTALS LIKE YOU HAVE NO CHANCE AGAINST A GOD!**"

"Yeah, like we've never heard that before," Daichi murmured.

"**NOW WITNESS AS THE HUMAN RACE BECOMES EXTINCT!**" Wiraqocha Rasca declared as the other six Geoglyphs representing his fallen brothers and sisters glowed. A magic circle formed on the very Earth as blue flames erupted from it.

Rising from the dark blue flames was the most hideous monster they had ever come across, and they had seen some pretty freaky things in their lifetime.

The Composite Kaiju possessed features of all seven Earthbound Gods. It possessed Uru's legs and from the waist up to the neck it possessed Ccapac Apu's body. It possessed four arms. The upper pair belonged to Cusillu while the pair below them belonged to Ccarayhua. On its back were Aslla Piscu and Wiraqocha Rasca's wings, the latter's wings positioned over the former, with Chacu Challhua's fins along the spine. The head, of course, belonged to Wiraqocha Rasca and let loose a roar.

"OK, is anybody having a bad flashback from when we fought the Yamata no Orochi?" Yokoshima asked out of the blue.

"Now's not the time for jokes," said Daichi as he eyed the massive creature, but he was thinking along the same lines too.

"It's just another day at the office," Hana deadpanned.

"If this is another day at the office then I'd like to put in for a vacation now, please," Battler added as this was just too much for the moment.

* * *

The army of heroes were attacking the Earthbound Chimera with all their might, but sadly they weren't doing any good against it. Blue Beetle let loose a volley of gatling gun and cannon blast fire while Meta opened his knee compartments and let his missiles fly, hitting the Chimera in the chest, causing it to stagger backwards a bit but not by much. The Chimera opened its mouth and let loose a blast of energy at them, striking the ground before them and sending them all flying through the air. Hanyuu, in the form of Kamen Rider J, accessed J's Jumbo Formation but found that she was still dwarfed by the Chimera. Be that as it was, she went on to slam her huge armor covered fists into its legs and got a kick to the front as a reward for her efforts. Hitting the ground hard, her transformation canceling out, Hanyuu went rolling along the ground. Scooping her up in his arm, Slasher quickly got her to safety so that she could rest before rejoining the others in battle.

Zero, in his Fighter Form, flew through the air and fired stinger missiles one after another against the Chimera's head but did little damage. "Oh come on!" he shouted but then grunted in pain as the Chimera swatted him out of the sky with one of its upper arms.

Musician, in Rock-Metal Form, and Carmen and Arachnea (in their Mirage and Venom Forms respectively), slashed with their weapons against its legs but all that did was cause it to raise said leg and strike at them with a backhand, knocking them away.

Mion/Ichigo, looking at the others behind her, pointed at the Chimera and shouted, "Everyone, All Rider Kick, NOW!" The others, those who were still in transformation, nodded and jumped up as they flew at the Chimera with their combined Rider Kicks, the group attack slamming into its chest and sending it stumbling backwards a few feet.

It did take damage from their attacks, but it just shrugged off its injuries which slowly healed. Not only did it share physical attributes of the Earthbound Gods, but their abilities as well. However, it was not about to waste the full range of its power on these worthless insects.

Gawking at the sight of the Chimera still being able to move after taking a huge assault of Rider Kicks all at once, "Oh, that is so not fair!" Satoko/Riderman (_Riderwoman_) shouted as she stomped her foot on the ground.

Inside, Wiraqocha Rasca was controlling the Chimera's movements and was seeing through its eyes. He saw Jin and Kai, also Manakytes, but despite changing into their Transcended Forms, their elemental attacks felt like mere bug bites. Using Chacu Challhya's power, he shot at them with jets of water, sending them dropping to the ground.

The Earthbound Chimera did not just serve as a weapon, it was also a replacement for the Spiral Tower when the eclipse occurred. Once the eclipse took place, the souls of every living human being on this world would be devoured, giving Wiraqocha Rasca the power to evolve into a being equal-no greater-in power to his master the King of the Underworld.

And the eclipse was happening right now, just as planned, despite being days early.

The Chimera looked up at the sky and within the beast's body, Wiraqocha Rasca smiled in triumph. It was now time for the souls of the entire human race to be sucked out of their human shells. With that power he would become a new god and even revive his fallen breathren.

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, the warriors who had banded together to stop the Earthbound Gods could only stare up at the sky in despair.

"**NOW! COME TO ME, SOULS OF HUMANITY!**" Wiraqocha Rasca commanded as the Chimera threw its head back to accept over 6 billion human souls to give the Condor God the power to ascend to true godhood.

However, what happened next would shock not only him, but the others as well. Up within the eclipse, glowing bright red, was the symbol of the Crimson Dragon. This stunned Wiraqocha as the other Manakytes stared at their glowing markings.

Meanwhile, back at the boarding house in Shishibone City, Daiki's Manakyte mark was glowing. Also, at the same time, Wendy's own Manakyte marking was glowing.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a dragon made of flames-not covered in them but actually made of flames-flew out of nowhere and crashed into the Chimera with explosive force, sending it reeling. It stared up at the fire dragon, identifying it as the Crimson Dragon.

"No...no, it's impossible! It's impossible!" shouted Wiraqocha Rasca in denial.

The Crimson Dragon then crashed down to the ground, creating a flaming symbol of the great dragon god before five figures could be seen standing it it.

"Haven't you heard?" Alan smiled. "We do the impossible."

* * *

**Moments Earlier...**

_They should have been dead but, for the strangest reason, none of them were feeling any pain. Taking it as a turn of strange events, Shinichi cracked an eye open and looked around, "OK...shouldn't we be blown up or something?"_

_Yuji's eyes narrowed and he looked at the flame in the centre of the room._

_It was frozen. _

_Yuki and Yuri were frozen as well. He waved his hand in front of their eyes._

_No response._

"_Someone stopped time," Alan concluded as he saw the same phenomenon and began scanning with his Sonic Screwdriver. Alan and Yuji both looked over at Shinichi with judging looks in their eyes._

"_Hey, it wasn't me," said Shinichi as he raised up his hands in front of him. "I can't control time anymore, remember?"_

"_It was us."_

_Hearing the sounds of the echoing voices, Alan, Yuji and Shinichi began looking around for the source until, in flashes of light, three inhumanly beautiful women appeared before them. They were Amaterasu the Sun Goddess, Tsukuyomi the Moon Goddess, and finally Featherine Augustus Aurora._

"_Susano-O-dono!" Amaterasu exclaimed as she glomped Alan as she usually did, betraying the image of a goddess she regularly portrayed to her worshippers. She buried his face between her breasts and held him tightly in her loving embrace. Alan just flailed his arms, trying to get her to let go so that he could breath._

"_Hey," Shinichi greeted Tsukuyomi who stared back at him._

"_Good to see you haven't been killed," she said. He smiled at her, causing her to blush and look away, "Not like I was worried or anything."_

'_Tsundere...' thought Shinichi with amusement. She was cute though and Satan used to behave the same way before...well... 'Wait, don't think of her in that way, idiot! She's a Goddess and she might be able to read your mind!'_

"_Featherine?" Yuji uttered in confusion, "Not that you're not a sight for sore eyes, but why are you here?"_

"_To make sure this story ends happily," said Featherine as she handed Yuji her ink brush. "Right now the eclipse is about to happen ahead of schedule. When that happens, Wiraqocha Rasca wins. That is why we stopped time to delay that but we can't do anymore."_

"_Like what Regulus told us back during our fight with Tsumtomu, you can only grant blessings but not directly interfere," Alan said as he finally removed his head from Amaterasu's breasts, catching a much needed breath of fresh air. "If you did interfere in a more direct way, there could be consequences for your actions."_

"_Correct, Alan Smith," Featherine said with a nod._

"_If you're the Witch of the Theatre, couldn't you just undo all this?" asked Yuji._

"_Weren't you just listening?" Tsukuyomi berated. "We are not allowed to directly interfere."_

"_Besides, I can't alter events which have already occurred, but I can move things in any direction I want," said Featherine. "Yuji, you have to stop Wiraqocha Rasca. He has summoned the power of his siblings and is too powerful now. As it is, the rest of your friends that are currently outside the tower ruins will soon fall to his might."_

"_With the power he has now, it'll take the Crimson Dragon to stop him," Yuji said and Featherine smiled at him like she had a secret she wasn't about to share. "What?"_

"_Oh, I was just wondering if you're familiar with the expression 'God lives within us all'," Featherine said._

"_Susano-O-dono, take out your Kusanagi," said Amaterasu and he did. She kissed the tips of her index and middle fingers before putting them on the blade, allowing it to shine brightly with a golden light. Smiling, she planted a kiss on Alan's lips and said, "You owe me a date for this favor."_

_Tsukuyomi didn't kiss her fingers but instead asked for the Ascalon which Shinichi presented. She slid her palm along the flat side of the blade, blessing it as it glowed with a soft silver light. She told him, "You owe me." Shinichi nodded with a smile._

"_Alright, let the curtain rise and the final battle for the souls of all humanity begin," Featherine said with a bright smile. "Good luck boys, we'll be watching!"_

* * *

**Present Time...**

"Yuki, Yuri, leave this to us," said Yuji as he raised the enchanted ink brush of Featherine Augustus Aurora up in the air, the tip glowing as he drew a circle above his head. The circle formed into the emblem of the Crimson Dragon. His own Liger Belt resonated with the symbol which swept down over his body, donning him in his Kaizer Form armor. However, the symbol positioned itself over his heart and attached itself to his chest.

Crimson flames erupted from him, changing his armor from black to bright crimson with golden accents. Even his wings had changed in color, becoming the color of flames and the colors also shifted to resemble a living flame. The ink brush had also changed, turning into a spear with a red shaft and the spearhead was jagged and held within a dragon's maw at the tip of the shaft.

"Kamen Rider Kaiser Liger - Crimson Mode!" Yuji shouted as he stood there in all his glory in his new form.

Alan raised the Kusanagi no Tsurugi as well, drawing a circle of light above his head which was as bright as the sun before armor fell and enveloped his body. He now wore a human-sized suit of armor resembling his Divine Xros Fusion form of Great Thunder God Susano-O, expect that it was now gold instead of silver. On his chest was the symbol of the sun. However, the armor lacked the wings. Instead, it sported a black cape with gold lining. The cape also sported the symbol of the sun on. Bazel was changed into his Divine Form as the gauntlet on Alan's left arm. He was now gauntlet-like and red in color, the gem green and now positioned over the top of Alan's hand and glowing with a bright green light while Alan's hand was covered in armor with clawed fingertips. A gold crest extended from the sides and resembled the arms of a bow with curved horn-like tips

"The God of Thunder and guardian of the weak, Susano-O - Solar Mode!" Alan shouted out loud as his body radiated with bright light like that of the sun itself.

Shinichi cut a circle of light over his head and it shone upon him to don him in the armor of Ascalon. His midnight black body suit gained silver star cluster sparkles all over it and his red-on-black armor shifted to a silver color with cobalt blue trimming. The glowing red and black energy of his Dragon's Cloak also changed into a more shimmering silver and gold color as his eye lenses turned blue in color and the front of his helmet gained a Crescent Moon emblem on the snout of his helm's Dragon Maw. The Eclipse symbol on his chest also shifted to that of a crescent moon as well.

"Kamen Rider Showa, Knight of Ascalon - Lunar Mode!" Shinichi shouted as his Ascalon Knight Mode took on a variant form which glimmered like moonlight.

Their friends, lovers and allies all witnessed the stunning transformation.

"And they yet again gain new upgrades," sighed Daichi.

"Shin-kun's so sparkly," admired Rena childishly. The stars on Shinichi's new armor were sparkling.

"And once again my #1 subordinate shows off," Mion grinned.

"Go, Alan!" Lala cheered.

"He sure looks like a king," admired Conda.

"No, a god," amended Amora. Not even Thor could look that good in armor.

"Come on," said Crimson Liger. "Let's get wild!"

"Onwards and upwards!" added Solar Sentinel.

"Ikuze!" finished Lunar Showa.

The three warriors, donned in divine armaments, shot into the air to engage the Chimera and stop the threat of the Earthbound Gods once and for all. It was only the three of them against Wiraqocha Rasca who was hiding within the body of the Earthbound Chimera.

"Is this all?" Wiraqocha Rasca mocked. For the first time, he summoned his Familiars. They were all duplicates of him as they manifested around the Chimera. They lacked his signature markings, however, but bore his Mark on their hearts. They surrounded the Chimera and then launched themselves at the trio coming towards their master. "If you think that a few shiny new pieces of armor will help you then you are sorely mistaken."

"Just fucking cannon fodder!" shouted Lunar Showa as the Condor Familiars flew at them in order to hinder their advancement. His Ascalon shone and he swung, unleashing a series of crescent energy blades through the air. Shooting like a rocket at the Condor Familiar, he began cutting them down, sending them plummeting to the ground. His foot shot forward, hitting one in the chest before he sliced its head off. Thrusting forward, he shish-kebabed two of the Familiars on his blade and they turned to black dust.

"He's getting desperate," said Solar Sentinel as he drove his fist into one of the Condors and blew it to pieces. "And that's a good thing!" Spinning in place, he was like spinning top of death as he held the Kusanagi out and cut through the Condor Familiars with ease. Those out of range of his sword burst into flames as his heat vision hit them.

Crimson Liger was cutting through the Condor Familiars with both claw and spear, his eyes focused on the true enemy. The Chimera tried to swat Crimson Liger out of the air, the Monkey Arms stretching but Solar Sentinel sliced off the arm, causing the Chimera to roar.

"We'll make a path for you!" Solar Sentinel told Crimson Liger.

"A path to where?" Crimson Liger questioned as he backhanded a Condor Familiar in its beaked face without turning around.

"To the belly of the beast," said Lunar Showa.

"Bazel?" Sentinel asked his partner who was on his left arm. "Ready?"

"Ready!" Bazel shouted as his gem glowed. Smiling, Solar Sentinel clenched his fist. He flew straight at Wiraqocha, his fist pointed forward with Lunar Showa following, in a flying kick stance.

"**SOLAR BOOSTER! HI-YAH" **Bazel burst into flames, with fire as hot as the sun, and Solar Sentinel's fist connected with the target spot.

"**ASCALON RIDER KICK! OI-RYAH!" **Lunar Showa's attack, which was a flying kick where he was enveloped in a flaming aura in the shape of a dragon, smashed into the target at the same time as Solar Sentinel's own attack.

Solar Sentinel's punch and Lunar Showa's kick blasted a hole right in the middle of the Chimera's body. "Hurry!" Solar Sentinel shouted. "He's inside and waiting for you!"

Needing no other prompting, Crimson Liger flew into the hole to face his opponent. The hole closed soon after.

(_**Insert Song: Run Around - By: Jasan Radford**_}

"Now what?" Lunar Showa asked and Solar Sentinel watched Earthbound Familiars were starting to appear, all seven kinds. "Looks like we won't be bored after all." Of course now the Familiars resembled the Earthbound Gods who'd originally spawned, appearing humanoid, but lacking the same markings and also appearing in a horde.

Two roars and a bird-like screech were heard and the two turned to see GaoLiger, GaoTyranno and GaoPhoenix joining the battle, the former two landing and flattening several Familiars in a single go. The saurian Power Animal leapt and, with a roar, aimed his drill-tipped tail at the Chimera. The drill caused damage as it struck, prompting the Daikaiju to swat him away. GaoLiger immediately pounced and swiped his claws across the beast. At the same time, GaoPhoenix launched flaming arrows from her wings and they exploded against the beast.

Standing not too far from the battle that was taking place were Yuri and Yuki, holding their Gao Daggers which they had used to summon the Power Animals. Yuki was also holding her brother's Gao Dagger which held GaoLiger's Gao Jewel.

Lunar Showa and Solar Sentinel's ears then picked up the sound of numerous warcries and spotted their friends joining them to fight against the Familiars. The brothers nodded to each other, brandishing their respective weapons, and engaged the enemy forces.

The Hinamizawa Gaming Club, in Rider form, were putting down Familiars one at a time with the aid of the Stakes of Purgatory. Not too far away were the harems of Alan, Yuji and Yuri, each member using their respective powers and expertise to fight back against the oncoming horde of monsters. These Familiars had in fact appeared to kill them, but were facing resistance instead.

The Seven Stakes of Purgatory were in their demonic stake forms, small and fast, and were killing Familiars at lightning speed, their sleek and sharp forms avoiding capture as they went for the kill.

Lala was shooting with her laser gun but was nearly attacked from behind by a Whale Familiar if Yami and Nozomu hadn't dealt with it. "Ah, Yami-chan! Nozomu-chan!" Lala smiled.

"Watch your back, Princess," Yami advised before dashing off with her blades. Nozomu gave Lala a nod as she dashed off in the opposite direction, putting down Familiars with her claws.

Solar Sentinel dropped down, stabbing the Kusanagi no Tsurugi into the ground as he called out, "**SOLAR FLARE!**" He unleashed a burst of energy which incinerated the Familiars but leaving his allies untouched.

"Now that's just amazing," Conca complimented as she backhanded a Lizard Familiar coming up behind her.

"Rider Double Kick!" Mion and Shion, as the Double Riders, called out as they executed the attack which knocked down a Giant Familiar. At the same time, Satoko/Riderman was gunning Spider Familiars down with the Machinegun Arm.

"**GETSUGA TENSHOU!**" Lunar Showa roared as he swung his Sword of Ascalon in an arch, sending a crescent wave of dark energy which obliterated quite a significant number of Familiars. Turning around, he saw ZX/Rena facing trouble as she was surrounded by Hummingbird Familiars. Vanishing in a blur, he used Shunpo in combination with the Sword of Ascalon to blow them away, reappearing next to ZX/Rena. "You OK?"

"I am now," ZX/Rena replied before she took hold of her Cross Shurikens and threw them towards Lunar Showa. They flew past his head and stuck into the heads of a Lizard and Monkey Familiar before exploding, taking both monsters out. Lunar Showa stared at his girlfriend who did a peace sign and smiled at her.

_**(End Song: Run Around)**_

* * *

Once inside the belly of the beast, Crimson Liger floated within the Chimera's body, facing against Wiraqocha Rasca himself. "This is the end of the line for you, birdbrain," said Crimson Liger.

(_**Insert Song: "First Bite" by More Than a Thousand**_)

"No...it...is...NOT!" Screaming in rage, Wiraqocha attacked with a furious flurry of violet energy balls but Crimson Liger folded his wings in front of his body to shield himself before charging towards Wiraqocha. Brandishing the Crimson Dragon Spear, he unfolded his wings and slashed at Wiraqocha who ducked out of the way before using a clawed uppercut on Crimson Liger. The red-colored Rider caught Wiraqocha by the wrist and spun around and around before tossing him upwards.

"**FIST...OF THE...BEAST KING!**" Clenching his free hand into a fist, Crimson Liger concentrated his energy which took the form of a roaring liger's face, GaoLiger's face to be exact and threw a punch as the energy attack crashed into Wiraqocha and exploded. Flying out of the smoke cloud, Wiraqocha unleashed a furious series of kicks which were blocked by Crimson Liger.

"**SHOURYUUKEN!**" This time Crimson Liger executed an uppercut enveloped in the aura of a crimson dragon, knocking Wiraqocha Rasca upwards. Once more, the Jager Thrusters sent him flying after his opponent as his Red Queen was enveloped in a cold, blue aura.

"This is for Yuki!" Crimson Liger roared as he slashed at Wiraqocha, cutting a gash across his chest which froze over with ice. Lightning arched all over the Red Queen's blade as he unleashed another strike which electrocuted Wiraqocha, "This is for Kai!" He then spun himself around and around, launching vacuum blades which drove Wiraqocha backwards, "This is for Jin!" Rocks suddenly materialized around Crimson Liger and with a flick of his wrist sent them flying like cannonballs to strike the Earthbound God, forcing him on the defensive.

Roaring, Wiraqocha unleashed a beam of violet energy at Crimson Liger who put out his hand and fired a blast of darkness, cancelling out his opponent's attack.

"That was for Yuri," he continued, "And this is for Wendy!" Spiralling around him was a dragon made of wind and it surged towards Wiraqocha, crashing into him violently.

Wiraqocha panted as he stared at Crimson Liger, both with rage and confusion. Not too long ago he'd completely overpowered Yuji, but today it seemed that the wretched son of Yuji Fudo had gained new strength and power. That was unacceptable to him. How could a mortal be a match for him, a god? How!-?

Crimson Liger gripped the Crimson Dragon Spear tightly. He aimed and hurled the spear which shot through the air before piercing Wiraqocha through the chest. The force of the spear strike propelled him backwards and into the wall before he blasted outward. Crimson Liger pursued, flying out of the hole.

(_**Fade and Pause Song**_)

* * *

Wiraqocha Rasca was seen blasting out of the Chimera with Crimson Liger in hot pursuit. With the absence of Wiraqocha Rasca, the Earthbound Chimera let loose a roar as it started going berserk.

"Looks like without its master riding inside, it's gone crazy," observed Solar Sentinel as he gripped his sword horizontally.

"Let's put it out of its misery then," suggested Lunar Showa as he held his sword vertically.

The image of a sun appeared behind Solar Sentinel as the Kusanagi no Tsurugi glowed gold while the image of the moon appeared behind Lunar Showa as the Sword of Ascalon glowed silver. They crossed their swords together as the sun and the moon behind them overlapped each other.

The two brothers, blessed by goddesses, unleashed one of their most powerful joint attacks.

"**Hissatsu...ECLIPSE END!"**

The attack, in the form of a shining Solar Eclipse, rushed forwards and slammed into the Chimera, the force of the attack actually tearing the creature to shreds in a violent explosion of light.

* * *

**(_Unfade and Continue Song: "First Bite"_)**

Crimson Liger had pursued Wiraqocha Rasca all the way to the other side of the world, locked in battle. They exchanged furious blows in midair before crashing explosively into a snow-covered mountain in the Himalayas in Tibet.

The two natural opposing forces dug their way out of the snow, glaring at each other. They then launched themselves at each other. Armed with the Crimson Dragon Spear once more, Crimson Liger thrust but missed as Wiraqocha ducked. His fist collided with the Liger Belt, cracking the buckle. However, Crimson Liger managed to recover quickly and swung his spear in the arch, slashing it across the Dark Signer Mark on Wiraqocha's arm.

The change was instantaneous as Yuji's armor vanished and Wiraqocha was forced back to his human form in confusion. "What...what is this!-?" the Condor Earthbound God demanded. "What did you do!-?"

"Featherine's gift," said Yuji as the spear returned to becoming a brush. "Just one hit on the right spot seals off your power. Now, you're just as weak as a normal human."

Trembling in rage as he stood in the corrupted mirror form of Rex Godwin, Wiraqocha launched himself at Yuji and punched him across the face.

Wiraqocha Rasca cursed as he continued hitting Yuji with brutal punches, "First the Crimson Dragon, then the Signer Dragons, and then the Signers themselves! Now you had to get in the way!"

Yuji retaliated with his own punch that hit Wiraqocha in the stomach, the force of the punch causing the evil god to vomit blood.

Yuji shouted, "And I'll do it all over again!"

Wiraqocha backhanded Yuji across the face, the force of the blow leaving a lovely bruise on Yuji's cheek. He then tackled into Yuji, sending both of them tumbling along the snow. Wiraqocha straddled Yuji, grabbing his collars and slammed his head down against the ground repeatedly.

Wiraqocha Rasca screamed, "All this for a world that isn't yours!-?"

Yuji kicked Wiraqocha off him and knocked him on his back as he stood back up with Wiraqocha climbing back to his feet.

Yuji replied, "I told you before. I got friends and family here. I'm not just fighting for this world, I'm fighting for them."

Wiraqocha threw a fist at him but Yuji ducked and used an uppercut that sent Wiraqocha stumbling back. He grabbed him by his own jacket and head-butted him in the face, sending him reeling with a bloody nose.

In their current forms, without power, they were fighting on even ground.

Yuji proceeded to execute a combo of punches, hitting all of Wiraqocha's vital spots. A right hook, left hook, right jab and then a backhand that momentarily stunned the leader and eldest of the Earthbound Gods.

Wiracqocha ducked another punch to use an uppercut on Yuji too, knocking loose some teeth. He then grabbed Yuji's hair and slammed his knee against his face, tossing him back by the force of the knee strike. Tackling Yuji to the ground, he put his hands around his throat and started to strangle him, squeezing the life out of him.

"Die...Die...DIE!-!-!" roared Wiraqocha as he strangled Yuji while bashing his head against the snow covered ground. "DIE, SON OF YUSEI FUDO!-!-!" Yuji tried to pry him loose but that attempt only made Wiraqocha tighten his grip around Yuji's throat. Grabbing a handful of snow, Yuji threw it straight into Wiraqocha's face, stinging his eyes and knocked the Earthbound God off him.

Getting back up, Yuji launched himself at Wiraqocha, driving him back with a flying kick. Landing, he followed up with a hook kick to the head that sent him reeling. Finally, he used one hell of a haymaker...

**POW!**

...Which landed right between Wiraqocha's eyes. Standing shakily, with a bloody and broken nose and blood dribbling from his mouth, and bruised all over, he glared at Yuji.

"Know this, Yuji Fudo, this is not the last time that we Earthbound Gods will rise. We rose once before and we shall do so again," Wiraqocha vowed. "I will be back, and next time...I. WILL. KILL. YOU!" With a dark and sinister grin, he gave Yuji the finger before toppling backwards in a dead faint.

Yuji watched as Wiraqocha's body turned black all over with his purple markings fading to dark as he turned to dust. Yuji panted and stumbled backwards before landing on his back, breathing heavily as his chest rose and fell.

"Mom...Dad...I did it...I did it!" he let out, laughing, before passing out.

(_**End Song: "First Bite"**_)

* * *

A week later, Shinichi, Yuji and Alan were playing pool in the Hive's recreation room.

"So, the Liger Belt's damaged beyond repair then?" Shinichi asked as he positioned his pool cue on the white ball. He took the shot and sent all the other balls scattering.

"Yeah," said Yuji, sighing. The buckle had been cracked but it could still be fixed. However, it was only after his fight that the real damage had taken place. He added, "The belt couldn't take much more of the Crimson Dragon's power and just exploded."

After his battle with Wiraqocha, which had ended with him victorious, he'd been found passed out in the snow in the Himalayas. He'd been recovered and put in bed in the infirmary to recuperate. In that time he'd been cared for by sexy nurses (Misato, Michiru and Hana) and he didn't want to leave. But he knew that all good things must come to an end.

"Well, you made it once so you can always make it again," said Alan. "Lala and I could help you out too. She's great with machines and I am clever."

Yuji shook his head despite being grateful for the offer. He would rebuild the belt but he doubted he would ever need to use it again. He had a new power now. The belt, however, would go to someone else. Maybe to one of his kids in the future.

Yuji took his position at the corner of the table and pointed his cue stick on the white ball. "OK, 8-ball, corner pocket."

* * *

**The Bleed, the place between universes…**

"Was allowing the Crimson Dragon entrance to the Designate S-1 wise? It could have unwanted attention," spoke one figure.

"It was necessary to our plans that the Fudo child survived. For now at least," responded a second, female figure. "Universe designate S-1 is still safe from the Dark One, for now. However, the time is fast approaching where our former best will devour all, dooming an entire omniverse to extinction."

"And to fight the Dark One? We will need an army."

"And an army we will have. An army of solar powered warriors throughout time and space. But the one who will lead this army, he is not yet ready. But he will need to be…soon."

The two figures were staring at a screen that had an image of Alan Smith.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: OK, so this ends the threat of the Earthbound Gods. I wanna thank Toku Warrior and Kamen Rider Bushido for all their help whenever I needed someone. Oh, and the final bout between Wiraqocha Rasca and Yuji was based on the fight in the final episode of Kamen Rider Kuuga.**


	143. The Legacy of Cain Part 87

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 87: Path to Power Phase 2  
**

**By: Kamen Rider Chrome and Toku Warrior**

"What we have here Dai is one seriously overdone human," Yokoshima said, trying to make light of the situation but failing miserably. Both of them were leaning over the unfortunate remains of the late chef of a restaurant. You didn't have to be a coroner to tell what the cause of death was.

Daichi and Yokoshima had been in the area when they noticed the smoke coming out from behind a restaurant. It was late so the place was closed. They went in, expecting to put out the fire but found something disturbing instead as they came across an oven with someone inside.

The body was charred badly on one side. A good portion of the torso and one side of the face was completely burnt, covered with soot and ash and God knows what else. The other side looked like as if someone had hit him hard in the head with a lead pipe. Daichi pulled the body out of the oven, which was still hot from a previous fire, and turned it over to give it a thorough examination. They couldn't remove their eyes from each flake of burnt, crisp skin that fell off the corpse when disturbed.

"It's so weird. Someone completely shoved half the body in and roasted him. The question is why?" Yokoshima muttered. Daichi then noticed something strange about the body. There was something lodged deep in his throat. He pried the mouth open before reaching his hand inside.

"Dude, what are you doing? Yokoshima questioned. Daichi ignored him as he pulled something out. It was a small spherical object no bigger than a marble.

"What the hell is this?" Daichi muttered. He jumped as the thing glow before showing a hologram of some cartoon version of the Mad Hatter from "Alice in Wonderland".

"_Congratulation! If you are watching this, then you are one of the cyborgs of the NEO-NUMBERS. We do apologize for leaving the device in this manner but we wanted something to catch you folks' eyes_," the hologram stated.

"Huh!-?" Yokoshima let out in confusion. Whoever wanted to give them this message was willing to murder someone just so they could find it.

Daichi shushed him as the hologram continued, "_First of all, my master would like to thank you. Now you're probably wondering what they're thanking you for. Well they're thanking your little group in killing the rogue Shiro Juuyon and the thief Tsumtomu_." The Mad Hatter laughed as their eyes widened. "_Oh yes, Shiro Juuyon was working for him. However, he'd gotten too greedy and power hungry for his own good and my master was half-tempted to destroy him for overstepping his bounds and not knowing his place. However, the master predicted he would destroy himself and wouldn't you know it he did!_"

The Mad Hatter continued, "_Now as for Tsumtomu. Apparently he had stolen a spell book from my master. To add insult he tried sending two of those corrupted Agito of his to attack my master. Of course that assassination attempt ended REALLY badly for those weaker Agito. My master would have killed Tsumtomu himself, but he proved to be quite slippery when he wanted to be. But once more you took care of them, and we were able to reclaim that piece of property from where he was hiding it. So once you have our thanks for that_."

"You're... welcome?" Yokoshima said, feeling conflicted as hell.

"_But now for the bad news... You see due to these series of events the boss decided that you lot have been upgraded from an annoyance to a threat_," the Mad Hatter stated with mock sadness.

"Oh great. Let me guess, you're going to send a death-squad against us," Daichi said, rolling his eyes.

"_And before you say something like sending death-squad against you, our answer is no_."

This time it was Daichi's turn to say "Huh?"

"_We know that you Riders are quite hard to kill as it were, but my master is a firm believer in the expression 'there's more than one way to skin a cat'. You probably already know that saying thanks to Shiro Juuyon's methods of destroying the sealing stones_." The Mad Hatter laughed again causing the two cyborgs to glare darkly at it.

"_Anywho, don't bother expecting any of the conventional methods from us, and prepare yourselves for a living hel_l." The Mad Hatter cackled before the device shutdown and the hologram vanished.

* * *

Within the Hive base, located inside the gym, Shinichi sat on a mat in the lotus position. He was once again preparing to have another training session with St. George and, if he knew the knight as well as he thought, it was going to be a tough one. It had only been a week since the battle with the Earthbound Gods and most of Team 5D's was still recovering. The remaining members and the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS were out on their own separate missions so Shinichi was going to take this time to train in the use of his Youki and Reiryoku. If his battle against the Earthbound Gods and Tsumtomu had taught him anything, it was that he needed to train harder and master his latent abilities soon. He just couldn't shake the feeling that something big was coming, and soon.

Closing his eyes and taking deep breathes while counting backwards from ten, he slowly faded into his subconscious, making his way towards his mindscape.

* * *

The city of Ibaraki; a city much bigger than Shishibone and with a lot more people, but that meant it also had a lot more crime at times. As cars drove by along the street and people went about their daily lives, a man looked at a bank from across the street, his body hidden within the shadows of the alleyway that he was hiding in. Pulling a black ski mask out of his pocket and sliding over his head, he then pulled a gun out of his pocket and checked the barrel to make sure that he had enough bullets. Snapping the barrel shut and then grabbing a sack next to his feet, he waited for the coast to be clear before his made his way towards the bank. As he prepared to make his move, he popped a small blue pill with the marking of a 'G' on it into his mouth. After waiting a few seconds, his muscles began to bulge as did his veins, his blood letting off a blue glow as it flowed through his popping veins. His eyes snapped wide open, his irises glowing an intense blue hue as he smiled.

"Alright, it's show time," he whispered to himself.

* * *

_Standing within the canyon from his first big training session, Shinichi stood there in his spiritual training outfit while holding his spirit sword, the weapon propped up and resting against his shoulder. Standing in front of Shinichi was none other than St. George but Shinichi also noticed that none of the other Tsukumogami, Kuro or Shinji were around._

"_Hey, where's everyone else?" Shinichi asked._

"_Shinji wanted to play so Gokuaku is looking after him. Zennin and Yabuki are keeping an eye on Gokuaku so as to make sure that he doesn't corrupt the poor lad's mind and Kuro is just laying under a tree somewhere, reading another one of your mothers…books." Shinichi could easily tell that the draconic knight didn't really care for the type of material that his mother wrote about in her novels. But who was he to complain? He partnered himself with a perverted master so wouldn't that mean that St. George also had a bit of a deviant side in him as well?_

"_I see," replied Shinichi as he relaxed his body, allowing his Youki and Reiryoku to start flowing from within. "So, what's on today's training menu?"_

"_They are," St. George simply replied as he pointed behind Shinichi. The young Rider turned to look behind him and nearly face faulted at the sight of the fourteen Showa Era Riders standing behind him. He just couldn't believe it. His next set of opponents would be the legendary Riders themselves._

"_You have got to be kidding me!" Shinichi snapped. "I can't fight them! They're my sempai!"_

"_You're going to fight them so just deal with it!" St. George snapped right back at him. Shinichi just glared at him and then sighed._

"_Fine. So, what's the lesson for this exercise?"_

"_The lesson for today is to be able to use your Youki and Reiryoku as extensions of your own body, like a sixth sense," St. George said as he led Shinichi into the main area of the canyon._

"_You mean like detecting my enemy when I can't see them? Like what they taught us back in GIN-SHOCKER?"_

"_Similar in practicality but this allows you to feel out your opponents' aura from vast distances. The more you can master this technique, the faster you can react to their attacks." Shinichi had to admit that this would come in handy. It would have been really useful in that battle against Tsumtomu considering the bastard could move at light speed._

_St. George, taking Shinichi's silence as his cue, used Shunpo to arrive at the top of the cliff that overlooked the canyon. Shinichi then turned around and closed his eyes, extending his senses out beyond him, flooding his senses with his Youki and Reiryoku at the same time. For the first few moments, he could only see darkness as the Legendary Riders began to run circles around him. But, after a few moments had passed, he began to pick up on tiny traces of energy coming from all around him. It was as if he could see tiny specks of reiatsu coming off of the Riders as they encircled him. Readying his sword, he prepared himself for the oncoming attack._

_They came right at him. The first to attack were Ichigo and Nigo who struck with a Double Rider Punch. Sensing their advance, he jumped to the side to avoid them. He then picked up another energy signature and raised his sword to parry X's Ridol Stick. He then elbowed him in the face and stepped back to make some distance. He picked up another energy signature nearby which was coming from above and dodge-rolled before he was hit by Skyrider's drop kick. Getting up to his feet, he tried to keep track of all the Riders around him. He could pick up on them one at a time as they attacked as their energy signatures fluctuated when they immediately took action to attack him._

_Meanwhile, St. George continued to watch as Shinichi continued to dodge, parry and counter all of the attacks thrown at him. _

"_He's a quick study." St. George turned to see that Kuro had joined him on the cliff._

"_Finished your book?" St. George questioned._

_Kuro ignored him and looked down at the training session below. "You do realize that with his enhanced hearing he can hear them coming."_

"_So, what do you propose?"_

"_Disable his ability to use his hearing," Kuro recommended._

_ZX used his Impact Bombs and they exploded near Shinichi, deafening him. "ARGH! Dammit!" he cursed._

"_Looks like ZX just took care of that for us," St. George deadpanned as he continued to watch._

* * *

In Ibaraki, the former Mrs. Ryuugu was standing in line at the bank waiting for her turn. She checked her watch and sighed. She really needed to make this deposit and she didn't have much time to waste. A fashion designer by trade, she wore a stylish white short-sleeved blouse and knee-length blue skirt. She also wore a sunhat on her head.

Years ago, she had divorced her husband and married another man (Akihito). It had created a rift between her and her daughter, resulting in her daughter never wanting anything to do with her ever again. At the time, Rena's mother had also been having an affair with the same man she'd divorced her husband to marry. The marriage, however, did not last and they divorced with her second husband gaining custody of their son and moving away to Paris without her.

Rena's mother had been alone since then but she couldn't bring herself to call her first ex-husband or Rena. So much had happened and so much time had passed and she doubted that her daughter would want anything to do with her ever again.

Of course, that didn't mean she hadn't been keeping herself up to date with her daughter's life. She'd hired a private investigator to gather information and learnt that her daughter had found a young man to love, a young man she was currently living with in Shishibone City. She was happy for Rena but she still didn't have the courage to see her daughter who probably still harbored hatred towards her.

"Ma'am, I can help you over here," a teller called out to her.

"Oh, thank you." As she made her way to the teller, she heard shouting coming from outside. "What on earth?"

Suddenly, the door of the bank opened and a man with a huge muscular build, with bulging blue veins on his arms and manic eyes, came charging in with a gun. He was in a black t-shirt and blue jeans with a ski mask on. He shot into the air, causing everyone in the bank to freeze. "GET ON THE GROUND, MOTHER FUCKERS! GET ON THE FUCKING GROUND!" The security guard tried to intervene but was shot dead. "NOBODY TRY TO BE A HERO! NOBODY!" He went to the tellers and warned them, "AND DON'T TRY TO TURN ON THE SILENT ALARM OR I'LL KILL EVERYONE HERE!"

Everyone did as instructed, getting on the ground and covering their heads with their hands. A few of the people let out muffled cries of terror and a woman was doing her best to console her crying daughter in his arms. The robber then moved up to the counter and stopped right next to the cowering form of the former Mrs. Ryuugu who had a look of fright in her eyes.

Slapping the empty bags on the counter, the robber placed the muzzle of the gun against the temple of the female teller's head, the woman crying out of fear. "Okay ya stupid bitch, listen up! I want you to empty out all of the drawers and safes here and stuff all of the money into these bags! YOU GOT THAT?-!" The teller nodded as she took the bags and opened up all of the drawers, slowly emptying their contents into the bags. The robber kept a close eye on her, making sure that no one tripped any silent alarm. He didn't want to have to deal with the cops.

* * *

_Shinichi groaned in pain as he shook his head out, trying to rid himself of the ringing in his ears. That blast bomb had done a number on him and it would be a few minutes before his hearing returned to normal. "Man, that hurt," he said to himself, only he couldn't really hear himself talk either. Looking around, he noticed that the Legendary Riders were waiting for him to make the next move but then he noticed that one of them was missing. "Huh, wait a second. Where's RX?"_

_Closing his eyes and focusing on the energies around him, he quickly turned around and parried a slash to his face as Biorider appeared behind him. That would explain where RX went and now the other Riders continued their attack on Shinichi. While he couldn't hear them coming, he could still try and feel them out._

"_Ack!" Shinichi grunted as he suddenly got an elbow to the side of the head, courtesy of V3 who had quickly jumped into the air and landed next to Shinichi, not giving the young man any time to react. Not being able to hear your opponent made it really hard to fight them._

_As the fight continued, St. George and Kuro looked on and noticed that, despite having gone def temporarily, Shinichi could still fight back somewhat. He was able to block the more lethal blows but still had a hard time reacting to the quick strikes. St. George noticed this and quickly realized why._

_After watching the battle for about thirty minutes, "This is taking too long," Kuro stated. St. George nodded in agreement. They needed to speed up the process of getting Shinichi to learn how to fully read and track a beings aura._

"_It seems he's switching between feeling them out and watching them closely," St. George replied and then he noticed Kuro taking on the form of BLACK 13, summoning one of his energy blades. "What do you think you're doing, Sir Kuro?"_

"_Just going to go give that fool a gentle nudge in the right direction," was all he said before he jumped off the cliff and rushed at Shinichi. The other Riders saw BLACK 13 coming and moved out of the way. Shinichi wondered why they all moved away and looked over to his left. The only thing he ever saw was BLACK 13's energy blade slashing him across the face, or more precisely, his eyes._

"_Arrrrrgggghhhhhh!-!-!" Shinichi screamed in pain as he put his hand over his now useless eyes. He tended to notice that any damage he took while training in his mindscape couldn't be healed by his nanites until the training session was over. "DAMN IT! I'm gonna kill whoever just did that!" Shinichi howled in a mixture of agony and rage. 'Damn, now I can't see either. How am I supposed to—' he began to think until he suddenly began to sense the energy around him growing exponentially. "Oh, this so fucking sucks!"_

_His work done, BLACK 13 then leapt back into the air and came back down next to St. George before reverting back to his human form. The draconic knight looked at him and nodded, acknowledging what Kuro had done to help in Shinichi's progress._

* * *

As the teller continued to fill the bags with money, the robber looked down at the woman next to his feet and smiled a lecherous smile. The effects of the G-Shock were not only amplifying his senses and physical attributes but it made him an even hungrier beast for something else that he seemed to love. The woman, even in her mid forties, still looked young and seemed to have the body of a fashion model. Grabbing her by her hair, he lifted her up, causing her to yelp out in pain.

"Hey there, sexy. What's your name?" he asked her with a perverted look in his eyes. The woman recognized this look but she was just too terrified to fight back.

"R-R-R-Risa…Risa Kagome," she answered in a weak and intimidated tone. The man licked his lips in anticipation. He loved it when a woman cowered before him. It gave him a sense of dominance over people. He loved it even more when he dominated a woman in bed.

"Well, guess what, Risa-chan? You get to help me take all of this money back to my place." She didn't like that thought one bit. "And once we're there, I'm gonna fuck your brains out until you can't live without getting fucked and dominated by me," he added on as he traced the tip of the guns' muzzle around her breasts, pressing it hard against her blouse covered nipples. He then licked the nape of her neck and around her ears, enjoying the terrified moan he was getting from her. It only served to arouse him even more. Luckily, his attention was so focused on Risa that one of the tellers quickly pressed the button for the silent alarm, making sure not to get caught in the process.

* * *

Back in the Hive, the alarm system started to go off, causing both Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam to jump up, being startled by the sound. The two of them fixed their glasses and shuffled their papers before heading towards the monitor.

"Sheila, what's going on?" Dr. Washam asked.

"_I've detected a silent alarm coming from a bank. The location is in the city of Ibaraki_," she told them. "J_ust one moment and I'll access the surveilance cameras_." After a moment, they could easily see what was taking place at the bank. They could see the terrified looks in the faces of the people and the tellers and also how the Robber was treating his current hostage. "_Oh dear, this is not good._"

"While the police should normally handle something like this, something tells me that it would be in everyone's best interest if we send one of the Riders," Dr. Magi stated.

"Agreed, but who? Hana and Michiru are on a mission in Osaka while Daichi and Yokoshima are still out, looking over the case of that murder," Dr. Washam said as he knew that nearly all of the NEO-NUMBERS were out of the base for the time being. "Plus Battler is currently on assignment with Chiaki and Keiichi in Hong Kong and Shogo is attending a meeting with the Sonozaki clan."

"Not to mention and both Alan, Yuji and Team 5D's have their own missions at the moment as well," Magi added.

"_Well, we still have one operative here on Hive grounds,_" Sheila reminded them. The two scientists looked up at the monitor where her avatar appeared. "_Don't forget, Shinichi is currently in the gym, training himself in his subconscious._"

As if acting on impulse, "Sheila, contact Shinichi. Wake him up and have him head up here on the double," Dr. Magi ordered.

"_Affirmative, sir."_

* * *

_With a resounding thud, Shinichi was thrown hard into the stone wall of the canyon. Landing on his knees, Shinichi tried his best to feel out the energy of the Riders but he was having a hard time focusing. 'Damn it!' he cursed to himself mentally. This was not getting any easier. He couldn't hear them. He couldn't see them. How in the hell were you supposed to fight an opponent when you couldn't hear or see them. As he thought about how he was going to fight back, the bangs that dangled over his face began to move slightly, as if the movement of the wind had caused them to move. But that couldn't be right. The wind was coming from behind him so why did it feel like another wind was coming from the left?_

_He got his answer as he ducked backwards; feeling the sole of a boot just barely grazing the tip of his nose as it went passed his face and collided with the canyon wall behind him. Shinichi thought what that meant and then smirked. He still had a way to fight back. But it wouldn't help him forever. He needed to be able to fully predict where his opponents were coming from. He remembered how Alan could tell where Tsumtomu was during their battle after becoming temporarily deaf and blind by relying on his psychic powers. That was something that Shinichi didn't really have. So how was he going to track them down? He had been following their energy signatures but the moment he lost his sight his whole mind became clouded with energy._

"_Damn, just how can I fight back if I can't make sense of all of this energy?-!" he shouted out in frustration. Knowing that he needed to remain calm, he slowed his breathing while he tried to come up with a plan. It was when he began to calm his mind that he noticed that the energy signatures were starting to form a pattern. "Huh, wait…is that…well I'll be a SHOCKER grunt's uncle," Shinichi said to himself. He remembered what St. George had told him what the training was about. He was supposed to be able to feel out his opponent's energy. This meant there would be times when he might not be able to see of hear his opponent. Maybe being blind and def was a blessing in disguise._

_Standing back up, he relaxed his body as he let the energy flood his mind. He could see various colors with his minds eye and soon noticed all the colors melded into separate shapes. Focusing more on the energy around him, he noticed that the shapes were actually the Riders and every other living thing around him. It all made sense to him now. To be a better fighter, one had to become one with his surroundings and feel out any oncoming danger, sensing the aura of life itself. To do so, he just needed to relax and calm himself. Over the course of today's training, Shinichi had learned something important which was something that every great warrior knew. To be victorious, sight and sound are meaningless. He just needed to remain calm and obtain his own serene state of mind._

_He could see it all now. It had been almost an hour since the battle began and he had gone def after only a few minutes into it and then blind. But now he had obtained a serene state of mind. With it, he could easily sense and track all of his opponents. Holding his sword out before him, Shinichi's body erupted in a combined force of Youki and Reiryoku, the force of the erupting energy knocking the Riders off their feet._

"_Amazing," Nigo commented. "I had no idea he was this far along already."_

"_It just goes to show that this boy is truly destined to be a great warrior one day," BLACK added. X-Rider stood up and summoned his Ridol Stick, twirling the weapon around._

"_Well then, let's see just how good he's become!" X-Rider shouted as he rushed at Shinichi, bringing his Ridol Stick down on top of him._

_Shinichi quickly sensed the energy coming at him and swung his spirit sword upwards, blocking the strike. Focusing on the energy before him, he could sense the familiarity of Kamen Rider X. Smiling, he pushed back with his sword before retaliating with a roundhouse kick to X's side, sending him flying over into Amazon, the two Riders hitting the ground hard._

_Ichigo and Nigo looked at them and then over at Shinichi and then back at one another and nodded. "Ikuzo!" Ichigo shouted which Nigo nodded to in agreement. The two of them jumped up and come down upon Shinichi with their legs stretched out._

"_**RIDER…DOUBLE KICK!**" they shouted in unison but Shinichi countered by releasing his energy._

"_Ryuga…Daichikudaku!"_

_The energy dragon slash collided with the two double Riders, sending them flying into the canyon wall. Kuro whistled in admiration while St. George gave the young Rider a complimenting nod. This is what he wanted Shinichi to learn; to learn to not rely on sight and sound alone and to learn to feel out his opponents._

* * *

Materializing in the form of a hologram within the gym, Sheila floated over to Shinichi and noticed that he was still deep within his training. Accessing his com-link, she sent a high-pitched buzzing noise into his ears, causing his face to contort to the sound.

* * *

_Just as he was about to take down Roborider and ZX, Shinichi fell to the ground, holding his head in intense pain. St. George, Kuro and the Riders also looked around, hearing the noise and they knew that the time for training was over. Looking over at Shinichi, St. George nodded as he ended the training. Almost instantly, Shinichi regained his sight and hearing. Looking up, he saw the Riders looking at him and then over at St. George. Looking up at the knight himself, he got the feeling that he was being called back to reality._

"_It seems we will have to cut today's training a bit short, lad," St. George told him. "But do know that you have progressed at a rate that even I did not predict."_

"_I understand," Shinichi said with a smile while nodding. "And, thank you." With that, Shinichi closed his eyes as he blacked out, returning to reality._

* * *

Slowly opening his eyes while taking his com-link out of his ear, Shinichi shook his head to clear out the ringing in his ears. Looking up, he noticed the holographic body of Sheila standing there before him.

"Jeez Sheila, you sure know how to get a guy's attention," he snapped sarcastically. "So, what's the situation?"

"_I apologize Shinichi but_ _there appears to be a bank robbery in progress in Ibaraki_," the AI reported. "_Both Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam have requested your presence in the meeting hall_."

"Very well," he sighed. "Tell them that I'm on my way."

"_Affirmative._"

* * *

Exiting the elevator and coming up to the meeting hall, Shinichi noticed both Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam looking up at the monitor before them, watching the bank robbery in progress. Turning to see him walking over to them, Dr. Magi greeted Shinichi as he began to go over the latest crime.

"Ah, Shinichi, so good of you to make it," Dr. Magi said.

"No problem, Doc. So, what's going on with this robbery?"

"Nothing too out of the norm but we have this…feeling that there's something abnormal about it," Dr. Washam said as he took off his glasses and cleaned them before placing them back over his eyes.

"I see," replied Shinichi before looking up at the monitor himself. As he looked it over he saw the woman in the man's grasp and gave her a scrutinizing look. She seemed very familiar. His eyes widened as he began to place the resemblance. She looked almost exactly like Rena, just somewhat older.

"It can't be." Magi and Washam looked at Shinichi with curiosity in their eyes.

"What is it, Shinichi?" Dr. Washam asked.

"That woman looks exactly like Rena-chan," he replied.

He then thought back to the day when he was still living in Hinamizawa and had been talking with Mr. Ryuugu. He had shown Shinichi some old family photos (that Rena had not destroyed) and one had a young Rena being held in her mother's arms. He also noticed how much the two of them looked alike. But it couldn't be. That just couldn't be…

"I'll be back in a sec." And with that, Shinichi ran to the Hive living quarters and grabbed a trunk from underneath his bed. Opening it up, he pulled out his spare Black Skull costume and slipped it on before heading back to the meeting hall.

"Alright Sheila, open up a Teleportal, now!" Shinichi commanded as he strapped on his helm-like mask.

"_Affirmative,_" she replied as she opened up a portal.

Black Skull, after giving them a salute, ran into the portal and headed for the Ibaraki Bank; the Teleportal closing right behind him.

* * *

As the teller finished filling up the bags with all the money that she had access to, she placed them on the counter and backed away. The robber looked at the bags while keeping his gun pressed against Risa's left breast, just above her heart. While he wanted to bang her brains out, he wouldn't hesitate to kill her right on the spot. Looking through the bags, he smiled and then closed them back up. As he prepared to take them and run with his hostage, a swirling vortex of bright green energy appeared behind him. The bank robber cocked an eyebrow and, out of curiosity, went closer to inspect it. "WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT?"

**WHAM! **

A huge, metal-plated, fist came shooting out of the portal, hitting the bank robber in the face and sending him flying into the wall. Black Skull then stepped out of the Teleportal which vanished behind him.

"OK, now that I got your undivided attention, you should know better than to rob a bank and treat women like sex toys. So, I'm going to have to ask you to give back all the money that you were about to steal." The robber pushed himself up and let out an enraged roar. "Alright then, we can either do this the easy way, or the hard way. Your call, tough guy," said Black Skull.

"WAAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH!" the bank robber roared, tearing off his shirt to reveal his bulging muscles and pulsating blue veins. Black Skull instantly recognized the blue veins and glowing eyes, not to mention the over-bulging muscles. This man was using G-Shock.

"Hard way then! Bring it!"

'_Shinichi, remember your training_,' St. George reminded him as Black Skull prepared to take this guy down.

'_No need to tell me twice_,' Black Skull responded to him as he side-stepped a punch to his face and crouched down, knocking the robber off of his feet with a sweep kick.

In his current form, Black Skull wasn't using his full power. He still, however, could access the power of his nanites. He spreads his arms to the side, metal plating covering them and morphing as they took shape. His right arm was now equipped with a hook where his hand was and he had a large shovel claw in place of his left hand. The nanites began covering his legs now, covering them from the knees down in heavy armor plating, becoming thick, blocky boots with tank threads on his feet.

The Tank Legs activated and he dashed towards the bank robber, bashing him in the chest with his Shovel Claw, sending him crashing against the wall. The bank robber groaned in pain from the impact but recovered quickly as he began his charge again. Shinichi backed away and launched his hook, the item connected to a cable. He swung and the cable wrapped around the bank robber's waist.

"HYAH!" Black Skull threw his Hook Arm up and smashed the bank robber's head against the ceiling. He then spun around and smashed him into the wall once more.

"Surrender, or else you're gonna end up needing a hospital instead of a jail cell," Black Skull warned.

"N-never...n...never...," the robber repeated as his body began to let off a blue glow, quickly going through a series of convulsions. "NEVER!-!-! I'LL NEVER SURRENDER!"

Black Skull gaped at the sight of the mans sudden transformation and then looked back at the people within the bank. His hearing then instantly picked up on the sirens of the police cars coming to a stop in front of the building. As he began to think, something else was going on with the bank robber. He was trembling, and sweating profusely. The glow of his eyes and veins were also intensifying.

The color of his skin was changing from normal to a copper-like sheen as his nails sharpened into claws, his ears growing pointed as the front of his face extended, his teeth sharpening. The hostages who were in the bank could only gawk in horror as the bank robber transformed into something straight out of a horror movie.

He had just turned into a wolf-man with copper skin and not just in the color. His skin was now made out of copper. The bank robber, now transformed, threw his head back and broke free of the cable binding him, much to Black Skull's surprise.

Black Skull could only stare at the broken cable and then back at the wolf-man, "OK, this can't be good." This wasn't normal either. G-Shock was derived from the stabilizing formula which allowed their bodies to accept and adapt to their cybernetic implants. It wasn't some kind of mutagenic agent. As the robber now gone Kaijin threw his head back and howled, Black Skull looked back at the people in the bank. '_Gotta get these people outta here._' Transforming his Hook Arm into his Great Sword, he looked at everyone behind him and then pointed over to the door. "All of you, get out of here, now! I'll hold him off so hurry and run while you still can!"

The people in the bank didn't need to be told twice as they ran for their lives. The only person who couldn't move was Risa who was too scared to even move. No, she wasn't scared, she was absolutely terrified. Black Skull looked at her and noticed the fear in her eyes and then looked back at the Kaijin.

"K-k...kill...kill...," the man now gone Kaijin began to mutter in a gruff tone.

"Huh, what was that? I couldn't quite make out that last part, Wolf-man," Black Skull chortled, trying to buy the people time. He then looked back down to Risa, "Oi, get off your ass and run for it already!"

"H-huh?" was all she could say in response. Suddenly, she cried out, "Watch out!"

Black Skull turned his attention towards the copper-skinned wolf-man and was slashed across the chest, the claws cutting the fabric of his rib-patterned jacket. Black Skull stumbled backwards as the wolf-man lunged at him again, causing Black Skull to dodge to the side. However, his mask's chinstrap was cut and he had scratch marks dangerously close to his throat. The wolf-man then tackled Black Skull against the wall, knocking his mask right off his head.

A pair of twin ahoge bounced free as Black Skull's head and face were exposed. Risa, taking a good look at the man behind the mask, gasped at the sight. She knew who this man was. But how could he be here? What was he even doing here, fighting such a monster? Slowly getting up on her knees, she wanted to say something but the words just wouldn't come out. Then it hit her. Her daughter, her Reina...no, she went by Rena now. Her daughter was involved with a man that fought monsters. Why would she live such a dangerous lifestyle? What kind of person was this man, this...Shinichi Banabara, to put her beloved daughter into such danger? If they both survived this day, she was going to give him one hell of an ear full, that she was most assuredly certain.

(_**Insert Song: ENDLESS PLAY - By: Astronauts**_)

Shinichi, reacting quickly as the Kaijin leaned in to bite his face off, raised both his legs and used his feet to drive the wolf-man backwards to give him some breathing space. He then summoned his Spark Core and called out, "Henshin!" His body went through the transformation as his body gained armor and his helmet with the X-crest separating the visor appearing upon his head, the striped faceplate locking it in place. Jumping up, he executed a reverse roundhouse kick that smashed against the side of the wolf-man's face, sending him crashing against the teller counters.

"Y-y-you! You're the Kamen Rider?-!" Risa shouted out in both shock and utter astonishment. Well, now she knew one reason why her daughter was able to live a lifestyle filled with monsters. Her lover was one of the Kamen Riders that she had heard about on the news.

Showa instantly assessed the situation as he scanned his opponent. "So, his body's made of copper now." He knew just the form to use to take him down. He clapped both his hands together, causing sparks to fly, before he called out, "Let's Ride..."

The wolf-man howled and went to attack, brandishing his claws in a lethal manner.

"...Stronger!" Showa finished as the claws came into contact but his body unleashed a burst of electrical power which threw the wolf Kaijin backwards. Once the electrical power receded, Showa now wore the armor of Kamen Rider Stronger, sporting red armor upon his torso that was emblazoned with an S on the chest, a black bodysuit, white gloves and boots, and a helmet with green eyes and a horn that resembled a rhinoceros beetle.

The wolf-man shook his head and glared up at Showa-Stronger who strode towards him. The wolf-man then rushed at him and swung at him with his claws only for his attack to be blocked before receiving a punch to the gut instead. An electrical shock flowed through his body, sending him stumbling back in pain. He made a grab for Showa's head but this was a bad idea as a bolt of electricity flew off the horn, hitting the Kaijin in the face, causing him to howl in pain as he was forced to remove his hands from Showa-Stronger.

Showa-Stronger realized that the wolf-man's copper body was conductive, thus he could be harmed by electricity. He also knew something else that could harm him as well but the wolf-man got smart and grabbed Risa, holding her in front of him as a human shield.

This made Showa-Stronger freeze on the spot and clench his fists at the cowardly tactic. The wolf-man sniffed Risa. He could smell her fear and he enjoyed it and began to lick the side of her neck and face. She trembled in the monster's grasp, staring at Showa-Stronger, her eyes begging him to help her. However, how could he use Kamen Rider Stronger's attack without harming the hostage? He then got an idea and he hoped that it would work. He would have to time it perfectly though so as not to get Risa caught in the line of fire. Looking around, he then looked up and noticed an overhead fan. '_Perfect, I can use that to my advantage,_' he though and then made a fake swipe into the air.

The Wolf-man moved backwards while looking up, thinking that Showa was aiming for the fan but he quickly got a rude awakening at the sudden surprise attack as Showa shifted forms. "Let's Ride: Biorider!" In a flash of blue light, Showa transformed from his Stronger form into RX's Biorider form and quickly liquefied his body before moving as fast as his liquid body could move. Slamming into the Wolf-man's body, he got the Kaijin to release his grip on Risa, allowing Showa-Biorider to get her away from the Kaijin and over towards the bank doors as he took a solid form once more. "You need to get out of here, now!"

"I understand, but you and I will need to have a talk some time...Banabara Shinichi-san." Showa looked at her in surprise, gaping behind his helmet. How in the hell did she know who he was? Maybe she was keeping tabs on Rena and she learned of him as being Rena's boyfriend? Oh well, he could think about it later.

"Fine, we'll talk later. But, for the moment, you need to get out of here!" Risa nodded and left, leaving Showa alone with the Wolf-man Kaijin. Showa then returned to his default form and cracked his knuckles. "Finally, some room to move around in here now that I don't have to worry about innocent bystanders," he said nonchalantly before striking a pose. "Now, besides electricity, copper also has a low heating point. So, Let's Ride: Super-1!"

The transformation was instantaneous as he took on the form of the silver Rider designed for space exploration. He then held his arms out before him and shouted out, "Hot & Cold Hands!"

The Wolf-man Kaijin stared at him with rage in his eyes as he looked at Showa's green colored gloves. "Pheh, new suit, new gloves...so what?-! You're still nothing but a scrawny bug!" the Kaijin roared as he lunged for Showa-Super-1 but the Rider side-stepped him and then performed a back kick, hitting the Kaijin dead center in the middle of his spin and sending him right into a trashcan.

"Never judge a book by its cover, mutt-face," Showa joked. The Wolf-man roared as he got up and lunged for Showa again but this time the Rider punched the Kaijin right in the face with his Cold Hand, hittingr him dead smack in the maw while also firing his cryogenic sprayer right in his face. "I think it's time you chilled out for a bit. Hyah!" Showa let his Hot Hand fly right into the Kaijin's chest and pressed him up against the wall, holding him there while increasing the heat upon the center of his body.

"Aaaarrrrrggggghhhhh!" the Wolf-man screamed in pain. Showa then used his Cold Hand and began to spray his cryogenic spray upon the Kaijin's chest. He then let another stream of flames burst forth from his Hot Hand, heating up the Wolf-man's body to unbearable levels before cooling him off with his Cold Hand again. He repeated the process over a dozen more times until the Wolf-man's body began to crack.

"Well, time to wrap this up," Showa said as the Wolf-man dropped to his knees in pain, completely disoriented from the constant attack of Showa's Hot & Cold Hands. Showa then reverted back to his default form and began to feed power from his Spark Core into his right fist. "Lights out, wolfy. Rider Punch!"

Showa let his fist soar, hitting the Kaijin dead in the center of his chest. The Wolf-man fell backwards before exploding in a ball of blue fire. After a moment the sprinklers came to life, showering the bank with water to put out the fire. As the fire died down, Showa saw the unconscious form of the bank robber lying there.

(_**End Song: ENDLESS PLAY**_)

'_Might be best if I let the cops take it from here,_' he thought as he could sense the cops coming up to the building. He let his mind wonder around the surrounding area to search for any signs of Risa's aura and found her not to far away. '_Well, guess I should have that talk now._' Without even shouting out the transformation call, Showa assumed the form of Biorider once more and slipped through the cracks of the floor and headed for the alleyway on the side of the building.

* * *

Risa wasn't too far away. The police came and took witness statements while Shinichi stood in the crowd surrounding the bank. He kept his eyes on Risa. He just knew he needed to talk to her and he would get the chance as soon as the police completed their job. After waiting for about fifteen minutes, Shinichi stood over next to a city bench and waited as he saw Risa come out of the crowd with a shocked look on her face. This had not been one of her better days. Looking around, she soon noticed Shinichi standing there, waving her over.

"There you are," she said as she walked over to him. "I thought that you would have left by now."

"Couldn't leave just yet," he replied. "You said you wanted to talk so we might as well talk." He looked around and noticed that the area was still filled with police and other possible eavesdroppers. Placing a hand gently on her shoulder, he said, "Come on, it's still early in the afternoon so why don't we discuss this over a bite to eat?"

Risa smiled and nodded. "After the hell that I just went through, I think a nice meal is just what I need to calm my rattled nerves." Shinichi just chuckled at the sight. She reminded him so much of how Rena used to act back when she first learned that he was Showa. It had taken all of his friends some time to get used to the fact that monsters actually existed. Heading over to a small cafe, they sat down and placed their order. After receiving their drinks, a latte for Risa and a cup of green tea for Shinichi, Risa looked at the young man and gave him a judging look.

"What?" he asked, feeling like he was on trial.

"Oh nothing," she said dismissively. "I'm just glad that my daughter at least found a man that can look after her in this harsh world."

"Believe me, Risa-san, Rena-chan can look after herself. But I still look after her even if she doesn't always need me to do so. I'm just overprotective of the people that I care about." Risa smiled at that. She was glad that Shinichi cared that much about her daughter. She didn't question how he knew her name. Her husband probably told him since her daughter would rather much forget about her.

"So, tell me, how did you and Reina meet and how did you become a Kamen Rider?" Shinichi knew that she was going to get straight to the point. While he didn't want to lie to her, he also didn't want to fully scare her off. So, he decided to give her the abridged version of his story.

"Well, you see, it starts like this..."

* * *

Shinichi had told Risa how 5 years ago he and Rena had first met, how she'd found him lying unconscious in the rain and took him back home, how he started living with Rena. That was the night he became part of Rena's family.

5 years ago he had nothing, not even his memories. All he had was his name, but he had Rena and their friends and that was all that mattered.

"I sure you know what happened between me and my family," said Risa, referring to Retsu Ryuugu and Rena and how she'd divorced him so she could marry her co-worker, Akihito.

"I do," admitted Shinichi. It was during one of his talks with the man when he advised/warned Shinichi never to hurt Rena. He knew he was still hurt by what Risa did and so was Rena. He wondered why Rena's mother would do such a thing, but now he had his chance to ask her herself.

"So, what do you think of me?" she asked.

"I think the most important thing here is what you think about yourself," he replied. Risa blinked. She had not expected that. In fact, she expected him to be angry at her for what she'd done and he had a right to do so.

"I…I…" she didn't know what to say.

"I can't judge you, Risa-san. You only followed your heart but were led astray. What's important here is if you regret what you did," he added.

"I do," she confessed. "My marriage with Akihito didn't last and he divorced me and took my child and I realized the pain I put Reina and Retsu through. But…I couldn't face them after what I did."

"Often, the hardest thing a person can do is to forgive themselves before asking for forgiveness," Shinichi said. He had experienced that himself. He was coming to terms with his past but he still had the memories to deal with.

People make mistakes. People weren't perfect. Once they realized this, they could start to recover and heal.

Risa took his words to heart. Had she forgiven herself? That was a no since she hadn't seen her 1st ex-husband and daughter in so many years. The divorce had not been easy on Rena, who not only abandoned the name Risa had given her, but Rena hated her as well.

"_I hate you! I hate you! You're dead to me! I hope you die!"_ Rena had screamed at her.

Still, Risa wanted to know how they were doing and had hired a private investigator. She'd learnt that Retsu and Rena had moved back to Hinamizawa. She'd also learnt that in 1984 her daughter had started dating someone and she was sitting across from him now.

She just never expected to find out that he was a Kamen Rider. Oh, she had heard of them but due to how fantastic they sounded she thought they were just an urban legend until proof emerged on the news. She couldn't deny their existence then and afterwards so many things had happened which just didn't make sense in a normal worldview.

Monsters from their very nightmares were real and they were dangerous, but heroes were real as well and they would fight the monsters to protect them.

Shinichi looked at Risa closely and noted where Rena got her good looks from. Seeing how well Risa looked in her forties, he had nothing to fear about Rena's beauty fading. He wasn't shallow, but he had to admit that his girlfriend's mother was hot! There were some wrinkles due to age but they did not make any difference.

"You know, it's not too late to ask for forgiveness," said Shinichi.

"I don't think I have the courage to face them, not after what I did," Risa confessed.

"Believe me, I know how scary Rena-chan can get when she's angry," Shinichi commented. "If she knew I was here talking to you and not trying to kill you she'd flip."

"She definitely got that temper from me," said Risa, amused.

Shinichi remembered how angry Rena could get, either at him or for him. When she learnt about the abuse he'd experienced under GIN-SHOCKER she wanted to march out the door and find Gebok herself for putting him through all that hell but he managed to dissuade her. Gebok had been his responsibility, nobody else's.

"If you realize your mistakes then you can make amends," said Shinichi. "Believe me, I've made my fair share of mistakes." His actions during the end of 1987 which he believed had been in everybody's best interest had hurt them greatly. He'd abandoned his loved ones so he could get his revenge on Gebok once and for all. He'd left Rena for nearly two months, alone, without any contact.

"It's easier said than done," frowned Risa sadly. That was true. Owning up to one's mistakes was one thing, but to go to the people who you had hurt with those mistakes was quite difficult.

"At least you do acknowledge your mistakes. You're better than that old woman who claims to be my grandmother." The memory of Natsumi, Shotaro Banabara's mother, was something he'd rather forget. The only consolation was that none of her blood ran through his veins and it was fortunate that the man who was his father was not as horrible as she was.

"Your grandmother?" Risa asked.

"Ugh, a very horrible and bitter old crone. She contacted me even after I said I never wanted to have anything to do with her but I gave her a chance. It definitely ranks as one of the worst afternoons I've ever spent with a single person."

"What happened?"

"She wanted to adopt me and tried to bribe me with my inheritance. The only condition was for me to abandon Kaa-chan." Shinichi rolled his eyes. As if he would abandon his mother for money. "She really didn't do so well in convincing me though. She couldn't go five minutes without demonizing my Kaa-chan." Shiori may not be considered an ideal person by Natsumi Banabara's standards, but she was still Shinichi's mother. "I knew she was a lost cause and it was a waste of time to convince her otherwise so I gave her a pretty big shock." Shinichi had told Natsumi that he wasn't her grandson by blood since Shiori had conceived him via artificial insemination, approved by Shotaro. "Then I threatened her that if she did anything against me or my Kaa-chan that she'd pay the consequences."

He'd enjoyed showing her his middle finger in a 'FUCK YOU' gesture and telling her off. He'd been tempted at the time to punch her in the face as well but had controlled himself. He was better than that. He wouldn't strike an old woman who would probably die from a punch from him.

Not that he wouldn't be doing a service for the world if he got rid of one unpleasant person and Natsumi Banabara was a _very_ unpleasant person. Always so overly critical and not hiding her disapproval of Shiori Banabara. Occupation aside, Shiori was a wonderful person. She was Shinichi's birth mother who'd spent over a decade trying to find him, praying for his return, nearly spending her entire fortune in order to locate him. She cared more for him than her own money.

"You really do care about your family," said Risa.

"I care about all my loved ones," he confirmed. "They're the reason I'm the person I am now."

"They're the reason you're a Rider then," Risa assumed.

Now that was a difficult assumption to confirm. True, he did become a Kamen Rider to protect his friends and family, but it wasn't like he ever asked for his body to be remodelled in such a way. In GIN-SHOCKER he'd only been a weapon but after escaping that hellhole following the death of his first love he'd rebuilt his life in Hinamizawa. His amnesia at the time, of course, was a contributing factor but as his memories began returning, the feeling of regret, guilt and self-loathing began to emerge as well. His friends would say that he shouldn't live in the past and whatever he had done was not his fault but it didn't make any difference to Shinichi. It was still he who'd caused all that death and destruction in the past despite GIN-SHOCKER controlling him at the time.

After a long pause, Shinichi answered, "...Yes." He switched the topic back to what actually mattered, "Listen, Risa-san, if you want I can help you and Rena-chan to reconcile."

Risa blinked, "You'd do that?"

Shininichi winked, "Consider me your middle man." He knew he was risking a lot for doing this and putting his relationship with Rena on the line, but if there was anyone who deserved a second chance now it was Risa. He would bridge the gap between the mother and daughter and help them mend their fences.

"Oh, thank you!" Risa exclaimed, grateful that she could have a chance to be reunited with her daughter. She'd missed Rena deeply.

"However..." Now Shinichi's tone had turned dark and threatening, his eyes narrowed dangerously as he looked Risa straight in the eye, "If you hurt Rena-chan again then there are no more chances. This is the only chance you get so you can't mess it up." He picked up the menu and looked over the items before cheerfully speaking, "So, what do you want to have? I think I'd have the club sandwiches."

Risa was disturbed and surprised at how quickly Shinichi's attitude could shift from threatening to cheerful in an instant. "I think I'll have the omu-rice."

Shinichi smiled and called the waiter to take their order. They would then get to know each other better.

* * *

"_You're playing with fire, boy! You're playing with fire!" That was Gokuaku's honest opinion on the situation._

"_Look, I got this, Gokuaku. All I have to do is to get them to slowly reconcile," said Shinichi. He had returned to his mindscape after his meal with Risa. They knew about what he was planning and they had objections towards it._

"_You're saying it like it's a simple thing," said Zennin._

"_It's not like it won't be a challenge," Shinichi admitted. "It's never easy doing the right thing but if Risa-san wants to make amends then I think I should help her. She's still Rena-chan's mother."_

"_From what I heard, that woman was dishonorable," stated Yabuki. "She laid with another man while she already had a husband and became pregnant as well. She then abandoned her husband and daughter. It's fitting that her second husband would leave her as well. That is what is called divine retribution, or karma."_

_Shinichi glared at the samurai spirit of the Higurashi no Yaiba. However, he still had a problem named Rena. There was absolutely no way she would agree to see her mother. Rena was still holding a grudge. _

_Shinichi squatted down in front of Shinji who was coloring pictures in a coloring book. "Shinji, do you think Rena-chan should be with her mama again?"_

_Shinji looked up at his older self and said, "Rena-neechan's mother was a bad lady." Shinichi frowned as the other spirits grinned. "But now she's trying to be good. You should try." Shinichi smiled and ruffled his hair._

"_Logically, there is a possibility that this endeavor is doomed to fail," Kuro put in his two cents. _

"_Some things are just worth the risk," Shinichi told his logical side._

"_Like the Oni said, lad, you are playing with fire," St. George parroted the spirit of the Oni no Hone._

"_Come on you guys, you could at least give me some encouragement here," Shinichi complained. The others looked at him and then shook their heads. "Oh, come on you bunch of chickens!"_

_St. George let out a sigh, "I tend to forget that your stubbornness for battle also applies to your logic when it concerns family."_

"_Whatever," Shinichi said as he left his mindscape and went to the Hive after receiving a summons from Dr. Magi._

_As Shinichi returned back to the Hive to talk with Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam about what had occurred at the bank, the Tsukumogami were also preparing for the talk as they wanted to know what Shinichi was going to be dealing with next. As they listened in though, St. George and Yabuki looked back towards where the canyon was located as they heard a low rumbling sound._

_St. George scanned with the location of the sound's source with his mind and narrowed his eyes. 'This presence...it is familiar.' He felt the presence give off a hint of energy and his eyes widened. What was HE doing there?_

* * *

Meanwhile, Dr. Magi was performing analysis on a blood sample that Michiru had managed to acquire for him. She had taken the blood sample from that man who'd transformed into a copper-skinned werewolf. After Shinichi's report earlier, Dr. Magi knew that gathering information would be vital so he'd sent Michiru out to collect a sample.

The man was presently in the hospital with police guards standing outside the room he was contained in. Though he needed medical treatment after the physical trauma he'd experience he was still a dangerous criminal. Michiru had managed to get inside by posing as a nurse and using her powers of illusion to trick the guards into letting her in. She used a syringe to collect the blood sample and left to deliver the sample to Dr. Magi.

What Dr. Magi was seeing through his analysis made his expression turn quite grim. "It's G-Shock," he recognized. G-Shock was a drug that was made from the same formula used to stabilize the NUMBERS' cybernetics and to prevent their bodies from rejecting the implants which would lead to physical degeneration. When consumed by normal humans, the formula was like a performance enhancing drug, like 'super steroids'. The side effects, however, made the drug dangerous as it caused mental and emotional instability.

Shinichi had learnt of the drug's existence when he discovered that Keiichi had been taking it. He then learnt that it'd been made and distributed by Shiro Juuyon and Omega Scorpio. Shiro, of course, had betrayed Omega Scorpio and used him as a shield to prevent himself from being destroyed before fleeing the scene. However, while Shinichi had stopped Shiro's plans that time, it seemed the formula for G-Shock had fallen into the hands of another. Not only that, but the formula itself had been altered which caused those taking the drug to eventually mutate into monsters like Shinichi had informed him.

Dr. Magi had to isolate that element which would cause the mutation. He had a feeling they would need a cure for this.

He had a feeling that this was only the beginning.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And Rena's mother makes her first appearance in the series. Those who watch Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni should know her significance to Rena's life. The woman betrayed her and her father but now she seeks to make amends but doesn't know how. So, Shinichi decides to help. Will this blow up in his face? We'll see. BTW, I couldn't find any material for her name, so Toku Warrior and I gave her the name 'Risa Kagome'.**

**TOKU WARRIOR: Hey guys, it seems that a new type of enemy is starting to emerge but what could it mean? Plus, now Shinichi has a new trick under his belt so let's hope he learns to use it properly. And who is this "HE" that's got St. George so worried? And it also seems that the Religion of Crime is starting to make their move. This can't be good. Like Chrome said, we couldn't find any material for her name so we had to craft an identity for Rena's mother. But hey, if anyone knows the actual name either be it used in one of the games or even a spin-off manga, drop us a line so we can fix it. Well, look forward to more adventures for Shinichi and company as this series continues.**


	144. The Legacy of Cain Part 88

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 88: Seeing Red**

A robbery had taken place at a bank in Shishibone City. Two masked and armed gunman were fleeing the scene in a van with their bags full of money. The tall and skinny one was driving while the short and fat one was sitting on the passenger side counting the money.

"We'll be set for life, huh, aniki?" the driver grinned.

"We sure will, buddy," the passenger smiled in agreement. In the corner of his eye, he saw a black blur. "Huh?"

The driver screamed and the passenger looked ahead to see a man in a black trench coat standing in their path. They couldn't swerve away in time.

They didn't have to.

The man in black thrust his leg forward and the van was sent flipping over his head. The two bank robbers screamed, clutching at each other, as the van went flying before crashing down on its roof behind the man in black.

"Buddy? Buddy!-?" the masked passenger said as he shook the driver up. There was blood since he was injured but he was still breathing. He needed medical attention.

Suddenly, the passenger side door was torn off its hinges and the bank robber sitting there was dragged out of the wreck before being pinned painfully against its side.

"You criminal scum make me sick," the man in black snarled, his eyes glowing red behind his dark glasses.

"Please! Please, let me go! My buddy needs help!" the bank robber begged.

"Oh, I'll help him and you by putting you both our of your misery," he threatened. The cops soon arrived at the seen, surrounding the man in black and the van. "So, they _finally _showed up."

A cop with a megaphone shouted, "Release the suspect and step away from the van!"

The man in black snorted and released the suspect and stepped away from the van, towards the cops. For a while now, the cops could only stand on the sidelines as superpowered individuals caused havoc and chaos in their city. However, no longer would they stand idly by as they let some freak take the law into their own hands.

"Stop! Stand back!" the cop shouted but the man in black didn't obey. The cop was desperate and ordered, "Fire at will!"

Gunshots rang through the air as bullets impacted the man, only to bounce off, flattened, as they littered the ground. The cops had exhausted all their ammunition as the man in black grinned.

"Sorry, my name ain't 'Will'," he said before he dashed forward and tossed one of the police cars into the air.

His name was not Will, it was Alan Smith.

"You guys are absolutely useless! You always show up when it's too late! I think what this city really needs is a new sheriff and I'm just the guy to do it!" Alan proclaimed. "It's time for some new management, people! From now on I'm in charge of this city!" He fired his heat vision at the side of a building, burning the symbol of the Green Lantern Corps with a stylized 'S' inside the logo.

'S' for Sentinel.

He was the most powerful man on Earth and could do anything he wanted, have anything he wanted, and nobody could stop him.

Or, so he believed. However, this was not Alan's normal self. He had been corrupted, and the source of the corruption was a bracelet around his right wrist which was decorated with a red stone.

It was red Kryptonite, a mineral which caused emotional and psychological changes to Kryptonians and with his Kryptonian DNA he was susceptible to it.

But how did he get it?

* * *

**Several Days Earlier…**

Walking down the sidewalk while holding her daughter's hand, Yami and Alice were on the hunt for something special. Father's Day was only a couple of days away and Alice wanted to get something special for her daddy. It had to be something that would last a long time and something that showed him how much she loved him.

"So, what did you want to get your father?" Yami asked as they rounded a corner.

"I saw this really pretty bracelet inside a jewelry store the last time we took a walk. I think Daddy would like it," said Alice. She then spotted the store and pointed while smiling. "There it is, Mommy!"

"Okay then, let's go inside."

Coming up to the store, they went inside and began looking around. Yami, while not one to want to make herself look fancy with jewelry, did have to admit that some of the items inside the glass cases were exquisitely beautiful. Alice, on the other hand, already knew which accessory that she wanted to get and it only took her a few moments to find it.

"There it is, Mommy," Alice said as she dragged Yami over to the case. The jeweler behind the case, noticing them walk over, stopped what he was doing to attend to them.

"May I be of assistance, ladies?" he asked politely.

"Yes, may we please see that bracelet there, please?" Yami asked.

"Most certainly, madam." The jeweler opened the display case and removed the bracelet and handed it to Yami for her and Alice to look at. The bracelet itself was small but it had a small clasp that allowed it to be opened so that it could fit on almost any size wrist. The sides of it had small carvings etched into the gold and the center had a small red stone encased in it with four small claw-like clasps holding it in, tight.

Yami had to admit that this bracelet would be a nice gift for Alan so she looked back at the jeweler and gave him an small inquisitive look.

"How much would this bracelet be?"

"Oh that, it's worth approximately twenty thousand yen, madam." Yami nearly sweat dropped at the amount and looked down at Alice to see her give her a puppy dog look. It was a look that not many could pull off but it was one that Lala was a master off. Most likely, Alice must have learned it from her in her spare time.

Alice then put her fingertip to her mouth to add in a bit of cuteness and that sealed the deal. Sighing in defeat, Yami took out her credit card and handed it to the jeweler. She had a separate account set up for her thanks to Alan, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam so she would have access to her own set of funds. Her old days as an assassin paid her well and she was able to get the three of them to trade some of her rare gem stones and convert them into monetary funds which were then transferred to her new account. It sure came in handy sometimes when she wanted to get something for herself, Alice or Alan.

"We'll take it."

"Excellent!" the jeweler exclaimed. "For an extra five thousand yen I could have it inscribed and giftwrapped for you." Yami thought about it and nodded her head. "Very well then. What should then inscription say?"

"To the world's best father," Alice chirped in. Yami nodded in agreement and the jeweler smiled.

"Alright, it should only take a few minutes."

Yami nodded and took Alice to look around the store some more. After only about five minutes the bracelet was ready as the jeweler called them back over. Handing over her credit card, the jeweler charged the purchase and then placed the gift wrapped box into a bag with a smile.

"Well then, I hope you ladies have a nice day. And do remember, come back again anytime if there is any problem with your purchase. We have a five year warranty for all maintenance for all items purchased."

"We will, and thank you," Yami replied as she left with Alice. As the jeweler watched their retreating backs, a sinister grin appeared on his face as a wicked gleam could be seen in his eyes.

'_Heh, now let's see what happens when the Lantern gives into his inner darkness._'

* * *

**Father's Day at night - Watanagashi Festival in Hinamizawa**

As the sun was slowly setting, the people of Hinamizawa were setting their cotton balls into the river so that their sins would drift away. While Shinichi stood down at one end of the river with his parents, brother, Rena and her father and with Yuji and his current family at another end of the river, Alan was with his family, letting their cotton balls drift away. To Alan, it gave him a sense of inner peace, as if he really did send his sins away. If it were only that easy though. His sins would stay with him for the rest of his life.

As they watched the cotton balls drift away, Alan looked to see Shinichi and Sho giving Kasai a gift for Father's Day and then noticed Yuji receiving a gift from his children as well. Alan wondered what it would be like to get a gift on this kind of holiday when he suddenly felt a tug on both sides of his pants. Looking down, he noticed Alice and Celine staring at him fondly, each one with a present in their hands. He then felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Daiki standing there with a gift of his own.

"You guys...what's this all about?" Alan asked.

"Well, it is Father's Day and you are our father...in one way or another, so we wanted to get you something to show you how much you mean to us," Daiki told him.

"...Daiki..." Alan said until he attention was drawn back down to the girls with Celine tugging on his pant leg. "What is it, Celine?"

"Mau, mau!" she cheered happily as she handed Alan her gift. Unwrapping it, he found a transparent plastic box with a white and pink rose encased within it. Wrapped around it was a name tag and it stated 'Krypton'. The rose, the Krypton, was a type a of rose that he had never seen before and it just reminded him of some of the plants that Superman had once shown him back in his Fortress of Solitude back in his home timeline.

Smiling while ruffling her hair, he said, "Thanks, Celine. I love it."

"Mau!"

"Here ya go, Dad," Daiki said as he handed Alan his gift. Opening the box, it was small stone sculpture of Sentinel and Alan's Green Lantern form standing side by side. "I made it myself." Daiki had used his geokinetic abilities to shape the rock. However, he didn't get it right on the first try and had several failed attempts before finally perfecting the statue and having it look the way he wanted.

"Thank you, Daiki," Alan said as he wrapped his arm around his son's shoulder, giving him a one-arm hug. "It looks terrific." This brought a smile to Daiki's face. Alan was always there for him so he had wanted to do something nice for him in return.

Alan then looked over at Alice and saw Yami standing next to her. "Here you go, Daddy. Mommy and I picked this out together." Alan took the box and unwrapped it before opening it up. He nearly dropped the box as he saw the gold bracelet set inside it. Taking it out, he looked it over and then noticed the message inscribed on the inside of it. As he traced his fingers over it, his thumb slid over the red gem, the stone letting off just a small faint glow that no one really noticed. Alice, seeing the shocked look in her father's eyes, asked, "Daddy, what's wrong? Is there something wrong with it? Don't you like it?"

"No, no. It's just...it's just that it's really pretty." He knelt down and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Thank you, sweetie."

"You're welcome, Daddy!" Alice beamed. Alan opened the bracelet and slipped it on. As he closed the clasp, he could have sworn he began to feel a small wave of some strange set of emotions wash over him. But it had passed almost as soon as it had come. Shrugging his shoulders, he let the feeling go. He just wanted to enjoy the rest of the festival with his family.

* * *

On the night after they returned from Hinamizawa, while in bed with Conda, Alan was quite aggressive with her that at the end of it he left her a catatonic mess on the futon. Her whole body was covered in sweat and bodily fluids and she even had a few welts on her ass from Alan spanking her somewhat hard. Her hands were tied behind her back with her own whip and she had a dazed and blank look on her face, her eyes glazed over from the extreme sexual romp that she and her lover had that night.

She couldn't remember the last time Alan had violated her so much, ravaging her and dominating her for hours on end all night long. She loved to be the dominant one but even she got off on being dominated once in a while. Her body was also covered in small lash marks, as if she had been tied up completely and left at Alan's mercy. Oh, she recovered and cited it as the best sex she ever had but that was only the beginning.

"Dear god, I wish every night was like that~" she purred as she hugged herself and began playing with herself as well, becoming instantly horny from the memory.

* * *

The following day at school, he was rude to the teachers, much to their shock. They had not expected such behavior from him. He'd been quite the model student since he enrolled.

When he was trying to get bullies to stop picking on a kid, he'd grabbed the lead bully and held him by his ankles outside the 3rd story window. It was a very far drop and the lead bully had soiled himself.

"You know, I really hate bullies. They never pick on anyone there own size," Alan chortled as the bully cried like a baby, wailing for his mommy to help him.

He had been quite disrespectful towards the teachers or anyone of higher authority. To him, he was a much better teacher and thought that he could a much better job at teaching these students better than the adults could. One teacher, a woman with a pretty big bust size, threw a piece of chalk at him to wake him up during class and he retaliated by talking that same chalk and throwing it right back at her, the little white stick dropping down her shirt and getting stuck between her breasts.

"Hah! Bullseye!" Alan shouted as the teacher stormed out to go to the washroom and dig the chalk out of her bra.

* * *

During lunch break, he took Megan to the sports supply shed and had sex with her. She agreed, but was quite reluctant. He, however, managed to persuade the Martian girl.

Later, she tried scanning his mind, only to see a red haze. That made her feel concerned about Alan's well being.

* * *

After school, he left to pick Alice up from school. Unlike Daiki who opted to go to school in Hinamizawa, Alice was enrolled in a local elementary school in the city. When he saw some boy push his daughter down he just lost his cool.

In the blink of an eye, he had hauled the boy up by his collar and shaking him angrily with the boy looking both shocked and frightened.

"You little insect! You would dare you hurt my little Alice like that?-! How about I push you off the monkey bars or from the top of the jungle gym? Would you think it's funny then?-!"

"Daddy, please! I'm alright!" Alice shouted while pulling on his arm.

Alan let out a sigh and left with his daughter while the boy was too scared to even cry. The boy was probably scarred for life.

* * *

Later that night, while going on patrol, he spotted a pair of men chasing a woman into an alley. He went and beat the two men within an inch of their life and even asked if the woman would reward him. He wasn't about to force himself on her, however.

As the woman left with a somewhat startled look on her face, Black Skull landed on the ground behind Alan and looked to his left, noticing the state that the two men were in.

"Jeez, bro, don't you think you went a little too far that time?" Black Skull asked only to receive a glare from Alan in return. "What? Alan just flipped him the bird and took off, leaving Black Skull there to scratch his helmet covered head in confusion. "Man, what's his problem?"

* * *

It just got worse the following day as he went to school, out of uniform, and was mouthing off about the school needing to be under new management. Megan and a few of his friends just stared at him in utter shock and silence. Alan never acted this way.

As school let out and Alan headed off to pick up Alice and Daiki from their own schools, Megan headed towards the boarding house to discuss what had been taking place with Alan the past couple of days. When she got there, she was surprised to see Shinichi already there and they were all talking about Alan.

"Oh, hey Meg, how's it going?" Shinichi asked.

"Pretty strange really," she replied.

"Let me guess, Alan's been acting like an ass, right?" Megan nodded. "Figures."

"You know, Alan's been acting like this ever since the day after Father's Day," Amora stated.

"Hmm..." Shinichi groaned as he tapped his chin. "Is there anything that sticks out? Did he eat something weird? Did he try a new drink? Did he get some fancy new duds from some strange place?" That last part caused Yami to think of a possible reason.

"Well, Alice and I did buy Alan a nice bracelet from a jewelry store a few days before Father's Day as a gift."

"Do you have a picture of him wearing it or even have it here in the house?" Shinichi asked. Lala nodded as she took a picture off of a shelf and handed it to him, pointing to the bracelet in question. Using his enhanced vision, he looked it over and saw the stone in the center. '_Uh-oh_,' he thought to himself as a possible idea came to mind.

"Did you think of something, Shinichi?" Conda asked him as she saw the look on his face.

"Well, I'm not 100% sure, but Alan did mention something similar around the time when he and I got those nanites injected into our bodies, giving us some of our new powers," he told her. '_I just hope this isn't what I think it is._'

That was when Momo, Lala's sister, came down with her portable television, "Take a look!" She turned the TV to the news to show a news report.

It was Alan, on the news, and instead of protecting the city he was attacking the police. He was also dressed in black instead of his regular Green Lantern uniform. He was in black jeans, a black shirt, a black trenchcoat, black gloves and black boots with black sunglasses covering his eyes. It seemed that he was not recognised which was odd considering his silver hair would've stuck out but Shinichi wasn't worried about that.

He was worried about the fact that Alan was using his powers in the wrong way. The police had no way of defending themselves from someone with Alan's power.

But Shinichi knew just how to stop his rogue brother. He just needed to make a few calls.

* * *

"ALAN! ALAN, COME DOWN HERE!"

Alan looked down and saw Black Skull, aka his brother Shinichi, standing on the street with the setting sun behind his back. Humoring him, Alan hovered down and landed, crossing his arms.

"So, my big brother's come to talk some sense into me," Alan mocked.

Black Skull stared at his brother's attire. Everything about it was wrong and he had to comment, "Black is so not your color."

"Well, it works for you and I kind of think it looks good on me. I also lost that stupid cape and went with the trench coat. Trench coats are cool, you know," said Alan.

"And why hasn't Bazel tried to speak some sense into you?" asked Shinichi.

Alan lifted up his arm which had Bazel strapped around it. However, there seemed to be something covering the red gem. It was like a sheet of metal had been welded onto it.

"He wouldn't shut up, so I made him shut up," was Alan's reply.

Shinichi realized how bad this had become and got into a fighting stance. Alan snorted dismissively.

"Do you really think you can hurt me?" Alan asked.

"I can, with these," Shinichi answered as he reached behind his back and drew the Higurashi no Yaiba and Sword of Ascalon. "Time for some tough love, Otouto."

Alan drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi . "I'm stronger than you."

"But I've been getting stronger myself," Shinichi retorted simply. 's lessons had paid off but he never thought that he would need to use all he'd learned to subdue his brother.

"Let's see about that!" Alan moved with super speed and struck the spot where Shinichi stood, only for Shinichi to dodge at lightning speed. The force of the punch caused a crater to form.

Shinichi shot towards Alan, grasping his swords tight and swung, only to meet with Alan's own sacred sword, causing sparks to fly as they collided. The two brothers then began to move, clashing as they blurred out of sight in moments, reappearing in different spots while locked in combat.

Alan nearly sliced off Shinichi's arm but the cyborg parried the Lantern's strike with the Sword of Ascalon before driving Alan back with a kick. Twisting through the air, he tried to land a strike but Alan used the Kusanagi to block and then pushed Shinichi back. He landed and saw Alan coming down at him with an overhead strike.

Alan brought hi sword down, almost hitting Shinichi if he didn't use Shunpo to get out of the way. The ground, however, took heavy damage from the strike.

Putting both swords away, Shinichi raised his hands and formed disks of energy above his head. "Kienzan!" he called as he threw the Reiryoku disks at Alan.

"Frisbees?" Alan snorted as he flew to avoid them only for the disks to make a turn and follow him. "Damn!"

"They're like homing missiles," Shinichi said. "They'll follow you to the ends of the Earth until they strike you down!"

Alan growled and turned to face the disks and formed a shield that they bounced off from. The disks went skyward but then shifted their course as they turned in the air to fly at Alan at incredible speed.

"TO HELL WITH THIS!" Angry, Alan formed a pair of giant hands and grabbed the energy disks, crushing them. He turned around and his face met a giant metal fist that sent him flying through the air to crash into a building.

Flexing his Great Fists, he then changed them to form his Great Axes, the blades glowing green as he concentrated on them. Alan came flying at him like a raging missile and Shinichi crossed the axes together to shield himself, only for his armaments to shatter from Alan's punch which met his face, cracking the mask he wore. He knew Alan was still holding back, if only a little. The blow would've killed him if it hadn't been for his metal plated skull.

Shinichi slowly climbed back to his feet. His mask was damaged and pieces of it were falling off. Alan hovered before him, his feet not touching the ground, as if it was beneath him to walk the same ground as humans.

"Well, I don't need this anymore," said Shinichi as he undid his chinstrap and removed his mask.

Alan's eyes widened slightly in surprise at the appearance Shinichi now had.

Shinichi had taken off his mask and revealed that he had spiked up silver hair with his bangs still hanging in front of his forehead. The sclera of his eyes were pitch black while the irises were silver with narrow, vertical, slit-like pupils.

It was his demon form, the one he had not been able to access for months, but enhanced with his newly awakened Youki and Reiryoku abilities.

"Like my new look?" Shinichi asked as he brandished both swords.

"You're still a loser."

"You know, I wonder what Alice would think if she could see you now," Shinichi said.

Alan's eyes widened before narrowing, glowing red, "How dare you!"

'_Good, he still cares,'_ thought Shinichi victoriously. That meant his brother was still in there somewhere.

He could still be saved.

Shinichi dodged an angry heat ray that nearly singed his sleeve. Focusing his Reiryoku into the Higurashi no Yaiba, the sword gained a new look as the blade glowed and expanded, becoming a huge glowing Zanbato. Using Shunpo, he blurred out of sight and, once in range, he swung at Alan, only for him to catch the blade's edge.

"Is that all?" Alan sneered as he began to squeeze the energy blade, causing cracks to appear on it.

"Not even close!" said Shinichi as he opened his jacket and a swarm of paper cranes burst out, blinding Alan. He incinerated them with his heat vision but then he had lost his focus on Shinichi who used Shunpo to slip behind him and put his hand against Alan's back.

Immediately, Shinichi called on the power of his nanites, his eyes glowing white as circuitry lines marked his face around the eyes. The same circuitry lines appeared on his arm which then spread out over his fingers and over Alan's exposed back.

"The same nanites that gave you power are the same ones that gave me mine!" Shinichi shouted. "And if they're machines, I can turn them off!" Suddenly, Alan blurred out of sight and stood behind Shinichi.

"Nice try," said Alan as he pulled his right arm back and punched.. The force of the punch sent Shinichi flying before he hit a wall. Alan flicked his wrist. He could've killed Shinichi, but that would've ended his fun too soon.

Shinichi groaned. Fortunately for him his body was made out of tougher stuff. He had almost shutdown the nanites which had made Alan part Kryptonian. He was about to reprogram them to temporarily disable Alan's powers. Unfortunately, Alan was quick to catch on.

'_Time for Plan B_,' he thought. He moved, running at blinding speed.

"You're not running away from me!" Alan blurred in hot pursuit.

Two black streaks were running along the street, clashing. Alan was using his fists while Shinichi was using his swords and defending himself from Alan's furious attacks.

Putting some distance between them, Shinichi turned his arms into energy cannons as Alan aimed his ring at Shinichi, conjuring shoulder-mounted cannons on his own. The cannons fired, and the explosion nearly blew them off their feet. They flew out from the smoke cloud to clash again, their limbs moving in a blur as they exchanged a flurry of furious strikes.

Alan quickly disappeared and then reappeared, kicking Shinichi in the back and sending him hurtling away. Charging up his ring, he fired a powerful blast at his older brother, hoping it would take him out of the fight for good.

Looking to see the incoming energy blast, "Oh shit!" Shinichi shouted. He held his hands out, preparing to fire a powered up version of the Masenko, when his bangs grew out a few inches, taking on the form of a pair of horns, while his irises became gold in color. A red and black ball of destructive and unknown energy then formed and fired off like a tachyon-styled energy blast, colliding with the emerald energy blast, canceling it out. After that, he returned to his current demon form as his irises went back to their silver color and his bangs returned to their normal length. "O-kay, what in the hell did I just do?" Shinichi questioned himself. He was soon brought back to reality when Alan appeared right in front of him.

"Did you just shoot a Cero?" Alan asked him.

"What in the hell is a Cero?" Shinichi didn't even get a reply as Alan suddenly grabbed hold of his jacket and shot forward, smashing through a building, and then through another building and another, and another, leaving large gaping holes in them. Alan finally found a building marked 'CONDEMNED' and smashed into it with explosive force.

As soon as that happened, the entire building collapsed right on top of them but Alan managed to get out before he was buried alive. Shinichi, however, wasn't as lucky.

* * *

Shinichi was buried under rubble and Alan turned his back to it before flying away. Minutes later, the pile of rubble began to swell as Shinichi dug himself free. He then felt a pair of hands grip his gloved one and he looked up to a surprising sight.

"You?"

* * *

Alan was wondering what else he could do to past the time when he spotted Shinichi standing on the street below. Hovering down, he cracked his knuckles and grinned, "I thought you were buried under rubble." This was good. Now he could have fun beating Shinichi up all over again.

"If you think that'd stop me then you don't know me as well as you think," Shinichi retorted.

"Back for more? Or are you just a masochist?" Alan asked. "Oh, whatever. It's no skin off my nose. I'll just pound you to the ground again."

Shinichi drew his swords and charged at Alan who just crossed his arms. The cyborg slashed only for his opponent to dodge and send him flying with a punch. Shinichi landed roughly a distance away but recovered quickly. He looked up and saw Alan holding a bus above his head before throwing it down to crush Shinichi. The bus landed on Shinichi who grunted in pain as he was pinned beneath it but he managed to push the bus off himself to get back to his feet. However, he wouldn't be standing for long as Alan pummeled him with a furious serious of punches which blurred as his fists shot out at blinding speeds. An uppercut sent Shinichi skywards and Alan used his super speed and ability to fly to reach Shinichi before sending him crashing violently to the ground with an axe kick that caused the ground to shake due to the explosive force of the impact.

Shinichi was lying in a crater, on his back, coughing as Alan stood over him. Alan stepped on his chest and glared down at him mockingly.

"Any last words?" Alan asked as he aimed his ring. One charged shot of his power ring would be enough to blast Shinichi's head of his shoulders.

"Just a few," answered Shinichi. "How does it feel to have all that power and to use it without any consequences?"

Alan cocked an eyebrow, "Is that a trick question?"

"Just humor me. I'm gonna die anyway so what's the harm of telling me?"

Alan thought about it but kept his eyes on Shinichi as he told him, "Oh, all this power I have is just so...intoxicating. I mean I got more power in my pinkie than you can even imagine. I can do what I want, when I want, and there's nobody in this world who can stop me. Not even _you_. Even Yuji can't stop me and even if he's strong he won't be a match for me when I stop holding back. Nothing else matters."

"Not even your family?" Shinichi asked. Alan glared at him and pushed his foot down harder on his chest.

"Did you really think you could stop me?" Alan questioned. Shinichi let out a snort and snicker. "What's so funny?"

"You are," Shinichi answered. He may have been beaten black and blue but he could still make jokes. "You brag about having all these powers, that you can see all, hear all, and that you can read minds…but you never even figured out I was stalling."

Alan cocked an eyebrow.

"And I'm sorry," added Shinichi as he opened his right hand to reveal a box which he flipped open, revealing the Kryptonite ring inside. Alan's eyes widened in realization but he was too late as he began to succumb to the radiation. He stumbled away from Shinichi, backing away to put as much distance between him and the rock but failing as Shinichi stood up and walked towards him.

"You're...making...a big...mistake...!" Alan growled as he struggled to stay conscious despite the pain he was feeling.

"Sorry, bro, but I gotta do what I gotta do," said Shinichi. "And this isn't all I brought."

Suddenly, gold shackles locked his wrists and ankles together. Standing twenty feet behind Shinichi was none other than Amora and she was chanting a spell. She apologized, "I'm sorry, Alan. But this is for your own good."

"You..." Alan snarled.

"I didn't think I could get my hands on Kryptonite before so I called for some help. Magic, the other thing you can't defend yourself against," Shinichi said.

"You…you think this…will stop me…?" Alan questioned, gritting his teeth in pain.

"That's why I brought back up," Shinichi snapped his fingers. Suddenly, black chains shot out of the shadows, binding Alan. This was followed by ice which crept up his legs. Finally, blue energy ropes shot out and tied around Alan. Immobilized by Yuri, Yuki and Yuji respectively, he was stuck in place.

"This won't hold me for long..." Alan growled as he struggled.

Closing the box and putting it away, Shinichi went and grabbed Alan's wrist. He looked at the bracelet and knew what he had to do. He took out Alan's Sonic Screwdriver from his pocket and pointed it down on the red stone on the bracelet.

"That only works for me!" Alan shouted, mocking Shinichi for his stupidity.

"I know that, but you seem to forget that I'm a technopath and that I can override the biometric control that responds to your DNA," Shinichi responded, knowing fully well how a biometric control functioned. "But I won't need to do that because the biometric control allows it to be used by those who share the same DNA, and last time I checked we had the same father." He pushed the button down and the crystal tip glowed as it released a buzzing sound.

Alan's eyes widened as Shinichi used the Sonic Screwdriver to loosen the red stone which then dropped to the ground. Once it was laying there, he scooped it up into his hand and backed away from Alan.

Alan suddenly felt drained.

"You can let him go now," said Shinichi as the shadow chains, Never Melt Ice and blue energy ropes disappeared. Shinichi had saved his brother.

* * *

Alan was sitting on the roof of the boarding house, just staring at the moon. After recovering from the ordeal, he immediately went to apologize to everyone he'd offended while under the influence of red Kryptonite. He still remembered all the things he did and said and the guilt weighed heavily upon him. He was forgiven, but he still had to make up for his behavior.

He had not gone to pick up Alice and Daiki earlier, which prompted Conda and Yami to pick the two children up themselves. He would need to explain himself to his adopted son and daughter as to why he didn't pick them up on time. He just wasn't sure where to begin. Daiki would understand, but if he told Alice the truth then she'd be devastated since her gift had caused all this.

He would need to keep this whole thing a secret from her.

"Crap..." he uttered, feeling sick to his stomach. He then heard footsteps and he knew who it was as Shinichi sat down next to him.

"How are you feeling?" Shinichi asked.

"Like crap," Alan admitted. "I can't believe I did all those things."

"Yeah, but it did happen and the scary thing is was that it took just one tiny red rock to turn you into a raging sociopath," said Shinichi.

"I was drugged, and it felt so good..."

"Drugs generally do that. Makes you forget your pain and the consequences."

"You know, it was pretty clever of you to plan the whole thing out," complimented Alan.

"I have a computer for a brain, Alan. Literally. It'd be a shame to let it go to waste. I just wish I don't have to do something like that again," replied Shinichi.

"Meaning...?"

"I manipulated you during the whole fight, made you think you were winning to drop your guard. Doesn't that sound like someone we know?" Shinichi questioned.

Alan knew where Shinichi was getting at. "Shinichi, you're nothing like Shiro."

"He was cloned from me, Alan. The only difference is that he was evil or at the very least threw all morals out the window to achieve his objectives. That's what I did. I can understand why I did it, to have the power to take someone like you down, and it kinda scared me," Shinichi admitted.

Alan told him, "You took down an evil me that wasn't thinking clearly. You're not some kind of diabolical evil genius with megalomaniacal ambitions. You're my big brother and you did what you did to save your little brother from himself."

Shinichi smiled, his self-loathing and fear diminishing slightly. "So, when you had that rock on you, how did you feel?"

"Didn't you ask me this before?" Alan asked.

"You were kinda evil back then so I want an answer from you now," Shinichi insisted.

Alan confessed, "Like I could do anything I wanted. I felt like I was a god on Earth and that nobody could stop me. I didn't think consequences were important anymore and I could do anything I wanted with my power."

"So, you were high on power and that made you arrogant," Shinichi summarised.

"Yes, yes I was," said Alan. Shinichi held up Alan's Sonic Screwdriver to him.

"This is yours," said Shinichi.

"I don't know if I deserve to hold it," said Alan. "Or wear this ring," he added, staring at his power ring. He'd abused and misused it.

Shinichi flicked his brother in the forehead. "Hey!" Alan exclaimed.

"Remember when you said to me not to always get so emo or gloomy about the bad stuff I did that were beyond my control?" Shinichi asked. "Time for you to do the same."

Alan smiled, "We're quite a pair, aren't we? We've walked the path of darkness and light."

"We're in the middle. We're twilight and dusk," Shinichi added. "You know, as evil as you were, you still got pissed when I mentioned Alice."

"I didn't want her to be ashamed of me and under the influence of that red rock I just lost it," said Alan. He then got knocked forward a bit as Shinichi slapped him on the back.

"Well, how about we call it a night? Besides, your girls want to show you how much they missed the real you." Alan blushed at the insinuation as they got up but stopped as he thought of something that was nagging him at the back of his mind.

"By the way, where did you get that Kryptonite from?"

Shinichi hesitantly answered, "A...friend gave it to me."

* * *

_Shinichi was buried under rubble and he turned his back to it before flying away. Minutes later, the pile of rubble began to swell as Shinichi dug himself free. He then felt a pair of hands grip his gloved one and he looked up to a surprising sight._

"_You?"_

"_Surprised?" the bluenette grinned. She was wearing a maid outfit with short, puffy sleeves and a short pleated skirt that stopped at mid thigh with knee high socks and an apron tied to her waist. She also wore the maid's cap on her head. The cat ears and tail were unmistakable. _

_It was Aoneko, another one of Shiro's Bakeneko Kunoichi._

_She helped him to his feet and he blinked at her as she brushed the rubble off his jacket._

"_How are you feeling?" she asked._

"_Sore," he said. _

"_But you're still going after him even when you know he'll kill you," said Aoneko. _

"_I have to," he said._

"_Well, you're going to need this," said Aoneko as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a lead box. Shinichi blinked and she opened it to reveal its glowing green contents._

"_How did you get this?" Shinichi asked._

"_Oh, some guy in a top hat gave it to me to give to you. He told me you might need it.," said Aoneko._

'_Topper-san...?' Shinichi thought, confused. He was still suspicious, which made Aoneko sigh._

"_Look, I may never forgive you for what you did to Juuyon-sama and I could just as easily walk away with this without a care in the world, but I know what he did for Momoneko and I thought it was kind of him to do something like that for her despite the trouble we all caused you. So, consider this as a way of me returning the favor," she replied._

* * *

It was midnight as Aoneko stood in front of Topper's Pawn Shop. Steeling herself and her resolve, she knocked on the door three times. On the third knock the door slowly creaked open, hitting the bell to make it jingle.

"Enter," she heard and she walked in. Suddenly, candles lit up all around her.

Topper came out of the backroom with a smile on his face. "So, you managed to do as I asked," he said.

"Well, we had a deal and I upheld my end of the bargain," said Aoneko as she put her hands to her hips. "So, you promised you'd tell me something important."

Topper always upheld his end of the bargain and said, "The one whom you love will be reborn."

That news made Aoneko the happiest that she'd ever been.

"When?" she asked.

"You'll know," he said. "When he is reborn you will all sense him due to your connection with him."

"Thank you," bowed Aoneko. That was the best news she'd heard in months. She couldn't wait to tell the others. It was sad about what she heard about what had happened to Kineko but she was sure that one day she'd be free and recover once she heard the news.

What she didn't know was that Topper always had two ends to a deal. While the one she loved was going to be reborn, Topper himself had other things in mind with the payment he took from Shiro in order for him to be reborn. As Aoneko left, Topper pulled out a small gem that held something valuable in it.

"Now, what to do with you?" Topper said to himself. He knew that this world had seen enough of Shiro but he also knew that his payment would be vital for something else sometime down the road.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And that's the chapter known as Seeing Red. Despite Alan not being recognized, it's only a matter of time before there are irreversible repercussions to what happened here. **

**On another note, during the Pre-Crisis era in DC, red Kryptonite had a different effect on Superman each time he was exposed to it. So, here are some omakes to illustrate.**

* * *

**Omake 1: Dollman**

As soon as Alan put the bracelet on, he suddenly found himself 5 inches tall and powerless with Alice staring at him.

Alan later found himself wearing a doll's dress and having a tea party with his daughter. He just hoped Shinichi never saw this. He'd never let Alan live this down.

* * *

**Omake 2: Antman**

When Shinichi was called to the boarding house due to an emergency, he thought that something bad had happened to Alan. When he arrived, and seen what had happened, he dropped on his back and laughed.

"I'm so glad one of us thinks this is funny," grumbled Alan sarcastically. He now had the head of an ant.

* * *

**Omake 3: Giantman**

Alan was standing in the middle of the city, as tall as a skycraper, with curious people taking pictures of him from below. He spotted the Guardian Jet coming and Showa transformed to Hinamizawa Guardin Form before landing on his brother's shoulder.

"Did Lala do this?" Showa asked.

"No, it wasn't her this time," sighed Alan. "It was red Kryptonite."

"Red Kryptonite?"

"I'll explain later. Could you help get me out of the city?"

"Can't you just fly?" Showa asked.

"I can't," Alan shook his head. "And don't get me started on my ring. It won't fit me anymore."

Showa rubbed his chin, "Hm..."

Showa took the ring and put it on, his armor turning green with the Green Lantern Corps emblem on his chest. He formed a net and carried Alan out from the city to someplace safe where he could go back to normal.

Until then he would need to sleep out in the canyon.

* * *

**Omake 4: Super Oldman **

The van was fleeing the scene of the bank robbery as Alan arrived, trying to chase it down, but he was now the age of 70 and walking with a cane.

"Get back here you! Criminals these days! No respect!" complained Old Alan.

* * *

**Omake 5: The Superbeard **

"I think you need a shave," said Shinichi.

Alan was sitting on the chair with a beard that reached down and stretched out across the floor. "Ya think?" he snapped.

* * *

**Omake 6: Super Invisibleman **

The van fleeing from the police suddenly rammed into some sort of invisible barrier. The police caught up to them and captured them with the bank robbers who were confused and weirded out by what had occured.

What had happened was that Alan had been rendered invisible by the new bracelet Alice gave him. He was going to have fun with this.


	145. The Legacy of Cain Part 89

"**The heavens call…The earth cries out…The crowd roars…All calling on me to strike back against evil. Now listen up, villains! I am the champion of justice: Kamen Rider Stronger!" **

**IN MEMORY OF SHIGERU ARAKI**

**(February 9th 1949-April 14th 2012)**

* * *

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 89: Howls of the Past**

Shinichi was down in the Hive's underground training chamber in his training clothes. He was barehanded but filled with concentration. "Sheila, begin the simulation," Shinichi ordered. He had already selected the scenario he wanted so all Sheila had to do was activate it and monitor him.

"_Affirmative. Beginning simulation in 3...2...1...0_."

The entire room dissolved and was replaced by a battlefield. It was a ruined city with burning buildings and the ground burnt brown. There were no signs of life, except for the enemies standing in front of him. He had set the holo-chamber, aka Danger Room, to allow him to fight hard light constructs of enemy Kaijin. This time, he was fighting against the enemies of Kamen Rider Stronger.

Facing him now were the high ranking officers of the Delza Army which had been formed by General Shadow.

**Staff Officer Steel **wore a suit of grey plate armor with tubes that went from his chest all the way to his back. He wore a helmet with a long and sharp pair of bull horns on it.

**Division Commander Wild Eagle **was a humanoid eagle who wore a red tunic over a red bodysuit with black gloves and boots. A yellow cross was on his chest. He was armed with a sword and a shield emblazoned with the Delza Army insignia.

**Doctor Kate **was a plumed cockscomb monster with a head that resembled the flower. Her slender body was in a red bodysuit and she wore a green cape with an upturned collar. Her weapon of choice was a staff with plumed cockscomb on the end that shot out poisonous liquid.

**Major Skull **wore a red military uniform and an eyepatch over his left eye. As his name indicated, he had a fully exposed human skull with bits of black hair on the side. His weapon of choice was a scythe, which implied relations with the Grim Reaper.

**Baron Rock** wore white pants from the waist down. His entire body was made of brown rock and his entire right fist was a huge rock for bashing. He wore a black cape which hung from his neck down to his waist.

**General Wolf** was a werewolf with round metal framing going over his head and dressed in a white military uniform. Hanging from his right breast pocket were medals. He wore black gloves and boots and was armed with a rapier.

**Commanding Officer Black **wore bulky grey plate armor that was bolted on. He had stitched on his swollen blue head and five thin protrusions at the top.

**Snake Woman **was a female snake humanoid with a scaly green body and a tail. Her left hand was a snake's head and she was armed with a whip. A red cape hung from her neck and she had buffalo horns on her head

**Marshal Machine** was a cyborg with dried, mummified skin and metal bands around his forearms. The right side of his chest was mechanical and he wore a golden head ornament on his head shaped like an inverted 'T'.

**Commander Jijaku** was a dark armored figure with magnet bars on his gauntlets. His red helmet had a magnet mounted on it as well. His weapon was a bar with 'N' on one end and 'S' on the other.

**Armored Knight** wore bronze samurai armor with a matching helmet and facemask. The helmet had a red plume on top and he had a blue cape. He was armed with a rapier instead of a katana though.

Shinichi took a deep breath and began to recite Stronger's introduction, "The heavens call…The earth cries out…The crowd roars…All calling on me to strike back against evil. Now listen up, villains! I am the champion of justice: Kamen Rider Stronger!"

He first transformed into Showa with a cry of, "Henshin!" Once in armor he called forth Kamen Rider Stronger's power, striking the hero's pose as he called out, "Let's Ride: Stronger!" As he transformed, the enemy monsters attacked and he charged right at them.

"_**ELECTRO...FIRE!-!-!"**_

* * *

Shinichi was riding in a horse-drawn carriage and sitting between Shawna and Rena. Alexander was sitting across from them and the driver was none other than Chris. Princess Shawna had invited the couple over for a reason, which she called a surprise. She did not elaborate more than that.

The carriage stopped and Shawna smiled, saying, "We're here."

"Where's here, exactly?" Shinichi asked as Alexander opened the door and let them out, starting with the princess before Shinichi and Rena. The large bodyguard was the last to exit as he stood behind the group, arms crossed. However, he was poised and ready to protect the princess at a moment's notice.

"The manor of the late Duke Dogma," Chris answered, causing Shinichi's eyes to widen. Duke Dogma had been a noble of Genovia. However, he had higher ambitions and wanted the throne. Thus, the duke had formed an alliance with the Cybermen. However, once his usefulness had ended, the Cybermen had ended their arrangement by heartlessly 'deleting' Duke Dogma. It hadn't been a pretty sight either.

"Since Duke Dogma didn't have any next of kin, or any kin who would admit to having relations with him after his actions, my father thought that his land should be given to someone more worthy," explained Shawna. Shinichi caught the look she was giving him and he pointed to himself.

"Me?" he asked and she nodded.

"My father thought that it was fitting that Duke Dogma's land and home went to you as you protected Genovia when he'd condemned it."

"Wow, it's so beautiful!" Rena beamed. Duke Dogma's manor house was indeed beautiful. It was a large grey-bricked castle-like building with three storeys surrounded by an iron fence and with a golden gate in front.

Chris, who held a key, unlocked the gate and let the three of them enter before following them inside with Alexander.

The front doors of the manor house were then pushed open and they went in. Shinichi looked around. "This seems a bit much, Shawna-chan," he said honestly. "I'm not saying I don't like it, but are you sure I should be given this place?"

"Sir Shinichi," said Chris. "You are a knight of Genovia, a title of nobility and a noble title does mean that you shall receive land, even from a fallen noble. You are also aware how disrespectful it is to reject a gift from His Majesty."

"I'm not rejecting it," Shinichi argued. "I'm just saying..." He wasn't sure what he should say. He scratched his head in irritation and confusion, "Man...I dunno what to do here..."

"Consider this a gift for your services to the crown and leave it at that," smiled Shawna. "Now, come Ms. Rena and Sir Shinichi, I think it's best that we have some tea out in the garden."

Shinichi smiled as they followed her outside to the garden. While it wasn't exactly him in a sense, the house did seem big enough to house a nice sized family. And if he ever got to the point where he had children with Rena then they could use the extra room. If anything, maybe Satan would enjoy it as well and it would give Rena more scenery to use in her paintings. So, even if it wasn't his style, if it would hold his ever growing family, then he could get used to it. Of course, some severe interior decorating would be in order first before any of them moved in. He didn't want anything of Duke Dogma's to remain in the house.

* * *

The manor had a wide and beautiful garden. No doubt Duke Dogma paid his gardeners well to do their job in maintaining the plants. However, with him now gone the plants would be maintained only by nature itself. Still, the flower bushes looked beautiful.

A round table and three chairs had been set with refreshments on the table. There was a plate of cookies and tea cups set down in front of each of the chairs.

"There's something I wanted to show you," Rena said as she took out her artist's portfolio.

"Oh, what is it?" Shawna asked, looking forward to the surprise that Rena had hidden in her portfolio. Shinichi himself was curious.

"Just some artwork I've done for a picture book I'm working on," smiled Rena. The picture book was something she'd been working on in secret. Shinichi had asked her to show him what she'd done so far but she'd been adamant about keeping her work a secret. Now, she was going to show it to her boyfriend and co-girlfriend.

On each sheet of paper were pictures that had been beautifully drawn by Rena. The story they depicted was one that Shinichi was familiar with.

"Is that me?" Shinichi asked and Rena nodded. The first page was of Rena carrying Shinichi on her back. The next page showed Shinichi waking up in Rena's home. It was Shinichi's story that Rena had drawn but she was doing a retelling of it in her point of view.

"The first book will be about how a strange young boy found his destiny and decided to be a hero," Rena smiled at Shinichi. "Shiori-san helped me to get in touch with her publisher. Once I have the story written down and all the drawings ready, it will be published. But first I need my professor's approval."

Shinichi wrapped his arms around Rena and smiled, eyes closed. "Thank you," he whispered.

"Ms. Rena, you're a very talented artist," praised Shawna, genuinely impressed by Rena's artwork. Of course she already knew since she stayed with them that one semester in Shishibone.

"Arigatou, Shawna-chan," Rena smiled, accepting the praise. She offered, "If you want, I can paint a portrait of both you and Shin-kun."

* * *

Rena had taken out her painting supplies. She set her canvas on the easel and had her paints ready. She wanted to paint Shawna as she sat in the garden with Shinichi standing at the princess' side.

Rena was a little jealous of Shawna's royal status and her beauty, but both girls had forged a bond of friendship over the love they shared for one person: Shinichi. Shinichi had befriended Shawna during her visit to Japan. Back then, the DHS had been active and attempting to gain the sacred orbs of Hinamizawa. Shawna had possessed the Orb of Wisdom and Shinichi had gone to retrieve it before the DHS did. However, the DHS' soldiers had appeared and attacked the princess with Shinichi appearing to defend her. The princess, seeing Shinichi as a samurai, had taken him back to her hotel room to recover.

Since then, Shawna had fallen in love with Shinichi but had been reluctant to pursue her feelings since it would mean breaking Rena's heart and she considered the girl her friend. Her father, of course, wanted Shinichi to marry his daughter since the young man possessed the qualities worthy of someone to stand at his daughter's side. Shinichi had protested, citing his dark past, but this further affirmed the king's decision since Shinichi was trying to make up for his wrongdoings.

And now, Shinichi had accepted Shawna's feelings for him. Rena was happy to share the love they had and Shawna was as well. The princess didn't even have any intentions of stealing Shinichi away. They could actually share him as polygamy was legal in Genovia.

* * *

When Shinichi noticed that Shawna and Rena were frozen, he knew something was wrong. Also, everything but him was rendered in black and white like an old photograph. "What's going on?" he mumbled. He knew he wasn't the one doing this. If his time manipulation powers had returned he would know and right now he knew this was definitely not his doing. He could just tell that someone else was doing this.

As he began to move around to try and look for clues, he was suddenly surprised when swirling clouds of black smoke appeared all around him. After a few seconds, he found himself surrounded by strange looking beings. They were covered in black baggy suits with light armor on the torso, forearms and lower legs and they had their heads covered in full face masks, each one resembling a faceless demon with small silver horns on the top. They also had a sash wrapped around their waists that seemed to have star-like cluster designs on them and each one of the beings held a sort of weapon in their hands. The weapons ranged from swords to spears to hand-held kunai daggers.

"Great, I try to take a day off and this shit still finds a way to ruin my good day," Shinichi groaned as the beings attacked all at once. He punched his fists together and glowing circuitry lines appeared along his arms. Spreading his arms, metal armor began to coat his forearms. His right was equipped with a drill as his left arm was equipped with a shovel claw, both weapons taking the place of his hands.

One of the demon warriors came at him with its spear and tried to impale him but Shinichi, using his Shovel Claw, blocked the attack and knocked the weapon out of its hands before retaliating with his Drill Arm, burrowing the weapon into its chest. In an instant, the creature backed away while holding its injured chest before exploding in a cloud of black smoke.

"Wow, that's new," Shinichi said before ducking as he barely missed getting his head sliced off from a slash by one of the creatures behind him. "Hey, didn't your mother ever tell you not to play with sharp objects!-?" He used his Shovel Claw and delivered a powerful uppercut into its chin, sending it skyward. "You could put someone's eye out that way!" he shouted as he jumped up and, forming a variant of his Great Boots but with axe blades on the back of the heels, he struck down onto the rising creature with a literal axe kick, killing it instantly while cleaving it in half.

Landing back down on the ground, he recalled his weaponry as he caught a fist holding a kunai in his left hand and twisted the arm behind the creature's back. Then, using his free hand, he reformed the Drill Arm and slammed it into the creature's head from behind, drilling a hole through. Dropping the body, he recalled the Drill Arm once more as he used both hands to catch a sword coming down on him in a vertical slash while twisting his body a bit to knock another attacking creature away with a side kick. Then, tearing the sword away from the other creature, he swing the sword to decapitate a third creature coming up behind him before tossing the sword away.

He then jumped up and performed a roundhouse kick on the swordless creature but it ducked while trying to catch his descending body in a sweep kick. Luckily, Shinichi came down on his hands and kicked outwards, striking it in the head and knocking it backwards. Quickly forming the Hook Arm on his right arm and then the Drill Arm in place of the hook, forming the Drill Extender combination, he swung out with the drill bit on a tether, taking out the remaining creatures in one fell swoop. With the last of them dispersing in exploding black clouds, he recalled the Drill Extender and relaxed, taking a deep breath. Looking around, he glared as he could tell that it wasn't over just yet.

Shinichi shouted, "OK, I don't know what's going on here, but whoever it is that's doing this, you better appear right now!" He was not in a good mood. Having his friends threatened often put him in a bad mood.

"**I'm right here, Rider**," a dark and malevolent voice with an equally dark and malevolent presence made itself known. Turning to his left, Shinichi saw a dark figure coming towards him. Shinichi's eyes narrowed. The figure was demonic, with a lean yet muscular build and sharp spikes which curved upwards from its chest and shoulders. His entire right arm was covered in silver, organic armor with long claws on his hands and curved spikes along the forearms. He sported a silver skeletal mask with sharp teeth for a face and he possessed several horns crowning his head.

Shinichi thought this was a Darkloid, but it didn't have the same feel as one. The aura was still dark and evil, and yet it wasn't one of those dark demons he was familiar with.

"You're the one who did this?" Shinichi questioned, demanding answers from this creature.

"**Yes, but I didn't freeze time. I simply changed the flow of time so right now we're moving at a faster time flow**," the demon explained. "**And I must say that you are impressive. You defeated my Darkstars with little effort.**"

"What are you after?" Shinichi was getting straight to the point and in no mood for games. His patience was already near its limit with this creature's actions against him.

"**You should know the answer to that, Rider. I did this so I could fight you.**" In a flash he moved to strike but Shinichi was able to block his blow before shoving the demon back with a kick to his gut. Getting into a stance, he prepared to use his nanites again until the demon raised his hand and pointed at him.

"**Summon your armor here, Rider**," the demon commanded. "**And I mean the armor ****granted to you by the Sword**** of Ascalon. Don't worry about any time limit here. You can fight to your heart's content**."

"Why exactly do you want to fight me?" Shinichi demanded once more. If he was fighting an opponent, he would much rather have a reason besides senseless fighting. "And why do you want me to use Ascalon?"

"**Because **_**they **_**tell me I should**," the demon answered. "**And because your Knight-like Ascalon Form is currently your most powerful ****transformation ****to date. That's why.**" Boy, did this guy have no idea. It was not the weapon that made the man. Any of his forms could outdo the other. It all just depended on the situation.

"_They_?" Who were 'they'? Seriously, were demons coming out the wazoo to challenge him and his friends after they had defeated the Yamata no Orochi? They had defeated a giant, eight-headed, demon dragon. That should've sent out a perfectly clear message that they were not to be messed with. Anyone who did were either too stupid or just asking to have their asses kicked.

"**The voices cry out for me to destroy you, to destroy the Rider,**" the demon said. Shinichi was silent and the demon understood. "**Oh, I see. You humans are creatures that need a reason for fighting.**" He looked towards Shawna and Rena before swinging his armored arm. A pair of twin demonic spikes flew towards the girls. Shinichi rushed to grab them but they slipped through his fingers. He watched in horror as they continued their trajectory, only to stop as suddenly as they appeared. One of the spikes floated in front of Shawna's face while the other floated in front of Rena.

"What's going on?" Shinichi asked himself.

"**Those spikes are part of my body, so I can will them to move within our flow of time or otherwise,**" explained the demon. "**Right now**** those spikes**** are slowly making their way towards your women and it's only a matter of time before they pierce their targets**."

"Damn you!" Shinichi cursed. This demon was holding his loved ones hostage in order to fight him. That was enough to make him lose his temper.

"**But, if you want to save them, then you must defeat **_**us**_," the demon finished.

"Us?" Shinichi repeated. Was there another demon lurking in the shadows? He got his answer as the demon split himself in two, as a duplicate walked right out of the original, standing side-by-side. "Oh, that's what you meant," Shinichi realized.

He'd already drawn his weapon, the Sword of Ascalon, and was ready for battle. The twin demons swung their arms in an arch, bringing forth a gust of wind. Shinichi closed his eyes and shielded his face. Moments later, when he opened his eyes, he found himself no longer standing in the manor's garden but an abandoned village.

And not just any village. It was Hinamizawa. There was no living soul in the village and the sky was dark. No moon, no stars, just darkness.

Standing before him was one of the twin demons, but he wasn't sure if it was the original or the duplicate. What he did know was that he would have to fight this fiend.

The demon informed him, "**Now, this is the place where you will be sentenced to death.**"

"Why did you pick this place?" Shinichi questioned, demanding answers.

"**I wasn't the one who chose this place**," the demon countered. "**It was chosen by the fluctuations in your heart. This place holds special meaning to you, doesn't it?**"

"It doesn't matter where we are," said Shinichi as he pointed his sword at the demon, "But this isn't where I'm going to die. It's where you're going to meet your end."

"**Then summon your armor**," commanded the demon. "**Transform and accept your imminent demise at my hands**."

(**Music - Awe for She: Guilty Gear - Dizzy Theme**)

"Bring order to the chaos, Saint George!" Shinichi did, but not because the demon told him to. He did it to save the two women he loved. Raising the Sword of Ascalon, he stabbed the air and cut a circle of light above his head. As the light shone down on him, the energy dragon shot out of the light, reforming into his Ascalon Armor which bonded to his body.

Both warriors immediately clashed and the force of the impact created a shockwave which caused the entire village to shatter around them, leaving a single floating plateau on which to battle upon with broken pieces of earth and buildings floating around them. The demon grabbed hold of the Sword of Ascalon as he got behind Showa, grabbing hold of his other arm in a restraining manner.

At such close contact, Showa could literally feel the darkness and evil Ki coming off his demonic opponent in waves. He could see dark shadows manifesting behind the demon, possessing demonic faces that seemed to taunt him, feeling utter delight at the prospect of his defeat.

"**You let your guard down too easily when the life of someone you love is on the line**," the demon chortled in a tone of sadistic glee. "**Letting your anger towards us cloud your judgement and actions, I'm surprised that you were able to survive this long in a world that is filled with such deadly beings**."

Showa scowled behind his helmet. This demon sure loved to hear himself talk. '_Just keep talking, chuckles. Just keep pushing my buttons and see what I do when I shove my sword right up your ass and roast you._'

Drawing strength from both the sword and his mixture of energies, Showa broke free and swung at the demon, his sword blocked by the demon's armored arm, sparks flying off on contact before the demon threw the Sword of Ascalon out of Showa's hands as he drove him back with a punch. The Sword of Ascalon went spinning in the air before dropping down. However, before it could fall back into its wielders hands, it froze in midair.

The one responsible for this was the demon as he had waved his arm in the circle to freeze the sword in time.

"I see," Showa realized. "You can control space-time." He could admire this demon's abilities, if he wasn't trying to kill him. Now Showa was unarmed and would need to rely on his bare hands to defeat this creature.

The demon lunged forward and swung its claws down to take Showa's head off, but suddenly a white gloved fist came out of nowhere and knocked the demon out of the air, surprising Showa.

It was Kamen Rider Stronger, in the flesh.

"Stronger-sempai?" Showa asked as Stronger stepped closer towards him. "What are you doing here?"

Stronger gave Showa an encouraging pat on the shoulder as his armor faded to reveal the face of Shigeru Jo. Shigeru Jo gave Showa a smile before fading away from sight.

'_Strange, where did Stronger-sempai come from?_' Showa thought to himself.

'_He helped you through our doing, lad_,' St. George explained.

'_Huh? Your doing_?'

'_Yup, you bet'cha!_' Gokuaku shouted with enthusiasm.

'_Shinichi, the Riders are watching your battle and wanted to help. Especially Stronger_,' Zennin replied with a tone of honesty.

'_Really?_' Showa asked them, amazed that the Legendary Riders were watching the current battle.

'_Yes_," Yabuki answered. '_And Stronger did not want you to lose a person that you love dearly. He did not want you to go through such a troublesome road like the one he had to venture down. So we gave him a bit of our power so that he could break through the corporeal boundary and aid you for that one brief moment. Now, use the time he has bought you and use it well_.'

Showa nodded in understanding. He would not let his sempai nor his friends down. Looking over at the demon, he vowed to win this fight and save both Rena and Shawna. He vowed this to himself and his sempai, especially to Stronger.

The demon was recovering, wondering what had hit him. Once he recovered, he dashed towards Showa and swung its claw at him but he ducked before executing a series of punches which the demon easily blocked before hitting Showa in the stomach. He followed up with roundhouse kick that Showa blocked but the force of the attack drove him back. The demon then continued its assault with a tornado kick and several swings which Showa blocked. He then grabbed Showa and lifted him up before tossing him into the air. The demon then leapt up and and slammed Showa to the ground with his armored claw.

Standing over the Rider, the demon proceeded to slash Showa repeatedly, ripping sparks off his chest before bringing his arm down on him. The force shattered the plateau and sent them plummeting down before landing together on what appeared to be long fragment from a stretch of road. The demon brought its claw down again but Showa grabbed hold of it before sticking the claws into the ground. He then drove his fist into the demon and sent the demonic fiend flipping through the air. Showa jumped and landed with his back on the demon, grabbing its armored arm and waving it in a circle, freeing his sword. He leapt high into the air and grabbed hold of the sword. Focusing his energy into his blade, which unleashed a dragon's roar, it became enveloped in silver flames. He brought down his sword and bisected the demon straight down the middle as he howled before exploding.

(**End Song**)

* * *

Shinichi was transported out of the demon's pocket dimension and back in the time-frozen garden. He watched as the spike floating in front of Shawna vanished but he also noticed that the spike floating in front of Rena was much closer than before.

"Just one more left," Shinichi whispered. "But at this rate, it won't be much longer until it hits her."

"**That's right**."

Shinichi saw the demon standing a distance away from him. He'd only defeated the duplicate. Now, it was the original's turn. The demon raised his armored arm and with a swing sent a gust of wind towards Shinichi. He shielded himself from the gust as he was once more transported to another one of the demon's pocket dimensions.

Now they stood in a wide open area surrounded by tall rock formation with sharp peaks. The rock formations standing around them formed a natural arena. Dark auras seem to surround the rock formations like clouds, but the clouds had eyes and they were polluted with negative emotions.

Stone columns rose up under Shinichi and the demon, lifting them both up high into the air as the demon monologued, "**Centuries ago, my demonic brethren were cut down in arenas such as this one. Now, this is where you will die, Kamen Rider!**"

(**Music - Blue Water Blue Sky: Guilty Gear - May's Theme - English Ver**)

"That's where you're wrong," countered Shinichi. "This is where you'll be destroyed! Bring order to the chaos, Saint George!" He leapt off the column and summoned his Ascalon Armor, cutting a circle of light above his head to let it shine upon him to don him in the suit. The demon, taking offense to his earlier words, leapt off his column and joined Showa on the arena floor, clashing violently as sparks flew from the demon's claw meeting with the Sword of Ascalon's blade. Swinging his arm, the demon sent multiple dark energy blasts towards Showa. Acting quickly, Showa used the Dragon Cloak to deflect the energy blasts, sending them crashing against the rock formations instead.

"Makankosappo!" Showa shot out his demon slaying energy spiral at the demon who dodged to the side and countered with a blast of his own. "Whoa!"

Showa, using the Dragon Cloak, flew up into the air to try and evade the demon's energy blast attack. Bringing the sword up above his head, the Sword of Ascalon's blade instantly crystallized and resembled silvery diamonds.

"Try this. Kongosouha (_Adamant Barrage_)!" Swinging the Ascalon downward while gripping it in both hands, he let a barrage of diamond-like shards fly from his sword, the attack hitting the demon and ripping blood and sparks off of his body.

"**Gwah!-!-!**" the demon grunted loudly as he hit the ground hard. Showa hovered in his spot in the air before standing on the air with the aid of his Reiryoku. Looking up at the Rider with much hate in his eyes, the demon gathered an immense amount of Youki into the area in front of his mouth, forming a glowing black and violet energy ball. "**Revenge Death Ball!**"

Firing the ball at incredible speed, the attack flew at Showa who just stood there on the air and held the Sword of Ascalon before him. "Sorry, I already got one of those so you can have it back. Bakuryuuha (_Backlash Wav_e)!" Swinging the sword, Showa created an energy vortex in the form of a twister which slammed into the energy ball. The ball was deflected back at the demon but at double the power as Showa's own energy was mixed into it. The demon jumped out of the way as the blast slammed into the ground below his column, destroying most of the land below. The two warriors then landed back on their opposing columns as they stared one another down.

The techniques Shinichi had just demonstrated were a result of his training under St. George. Under the spirit's guidance, he was unlocking new abilities and more powerful attacks. If he had these techniques before, he could've destroyed GIN-SHOCKER, the DHS and the Dark Being all on his own. Maybe he could have even destroyed the Yamata no Orochi. However, he stopped thinking about what might've been and focused on the here and now. Rena's life was on the line if he didn't vanquish this demon right now.

The demon watched as Showa stood tall and proud with the Sword of Ascalon in his grasp. He glared hatefully at the warrior standing before him. He heard the whispers in the air as he remarked, "**Do you hear that, Rider? The voices cry out for your death!**"

Showa watched as the dark auras surrounding the rock formations around them took on vaguely humanoid shapes. He could hear their whispers in the wind as they chanted, "_Die, Rider! Die, Rider! Die, Rider!_" repeatedly. The dark aura creatures flew around Showa and he could feel a cold clammy feeling as well as their hatred aimed towards him as they glared at him. They wanted him to die for ending their lives. They formed human faces, faces of people Shinichi had killed when he had once been an (unwilling) member of GIN-SHOCKER. Those faces brought up troubling memories and the guilt he felt with them.

The dark auras then flew towards the demon, fusing together to form a scimitar made of dark steel with spikes around the handguard. It dropped into the demon's left hand and he pointed it threateningly at Showa.

Dashing towards the Rider, the demon swung at him, his strike parried but he followed up by slashing his claw at Showa who managed to deflect the blow and slash at the demon's chest. The demon jumped back before lunging at Showa with a kick and then landing on his feet to spin around to slash with his claw. He slashed with his sword and sparks flew as both blades made contact. Showa drove him back and leapt to strike him down only for the demon to kick him skyward.

Showa grabbed hold of one of the columns but the demon cut the column down with his sword, sending falling. He landed safely on his feet as the demon rushed towards him, sending bursts of dark energy flying at him using his dark sword. Showa countered, sliding down two of the blasts and deflecting the last with his Dragon Cloak.

Suddenly, the demon teleported and would've decapitated him if Showa hadn't evaded. Turning to face his opponent, Showa stood his ground as he charged towards him with an overhead strike meant to cleave him in. However, the demon's sword strike was blocked not just by Showa, but by St. George as well as he suddenly appeared in spirit form. At that moment time seemed to freeze for the demon, allowing St. George to speak to Shinichi.

"St. George?" Showa asked.

"_Shinichi, this creature here is no normal demon. It is the physical manifestation of the spirits of those you have slain in the past who seek vengeance upon you,_" St. George explained. "_But at his core he is Zagi, an evil demon that Sir George defeated centuries ago, a creature capable of manipulating space-time_."

"A space-time demon?" Showa questioned.

"_When he was first slain, his spirit was weakened but it gained power overtime by devouring and assimilating the souls of those filled with resentment and the feelings of those souls becomes his feelings as well,_" Sr. George explained.

"So, every being I have ever killed, their souls and emotions make up this body," Showa concluded. "Even...the innocent ones."

"_Yes, and they've unfortunately died with feelings of hatred towards you_," St. George said. "_This twisted their souls, turning them into evil spirits, but they did not have the power to manifest physically until they fused with Zagi._"

Showa considered St. George's words. Zagi's existence was caused by Shinichi. Zagi represented the sins he'd committed under GIN-SHOCKER and the lives he'd taken while under Gebok's control. It was not just them, though. Even after leaving GIN-SHOCKER he'd slain the Darklings and Darkloids and later the Cyborg Mutants sent to attack him.

"So, how am I supposed to defeat him?" Showa asked.

"_Through purification,_" answered St. George. "_Zagi is a wicked demon made up of the dark souls. Only through purifying those souls shall he be defeated._"

"I understand," Showa nodded. He knew what he had to do. Time resumed and Showa kicked Zagi, twice. The first was a back kick in the stomach, driving him back, while the second was a reverse roundhouse which sent him spinning through the air before falling to the ground. Showa switched weapons as he replaced the Sword of Ascalon with the Higurashi no Yaiba. Zagi, seeing this, sent the column he'd cut down earlier crashing down on Showa. However, the Rider managed to evade the falling column. Zagi then levitated the other column into the air and brought it down on Showa like a club, prompting him to hold of it off. Zagi leapt upon the column and stabbed his sword into it, causing it to explode and sending both himself and Showa flying into the air.

In a flash of gold light, Showa had switched from his knight-like Ascalon Form, to his samurai-like Hinamizawa Guardian Form. Landing, he dropped to one knee due to the pain he was feeling and glared at Zagi who came charging at him. The Cho Sai-Shuriken on his back separated into a dozen blades called the Kunai Missiles which pointed towards Zagi before shooting straight towards him. However, they were unable to slow him down as he parried the Kunai Missiles away, smacking them aside with his sword.

But Zagi failed to pay attention as Showa held the Higurashi no Yaiba up and then swung it down, letting out a powerful slash that covered the area before him in the form of a slashing energy claw. "Kaze no Kizu (_Wind Scar_)!" Jumping up, Zagi dodged the attack and came down upon Showa. Once in range, Zagi brought his sword down on Showa, who blocked with the Higurashi no Yaiba. Zagi's clawed hand wrapped around his throat, squeezing the life out of the Rider as he tried to pull the demon's hand off.

An image of Rena flashed in his mind, reminding him why he was fighting this battle. She'd believed in him since the first day they met and he was not about to fail her again. Recovering his resolve, he pulled the hand off his throat and shoved him back as he said, "Let's go for a ride, asshole!" In a flash of gold light he'd transformed into his Guardian Jet Mode. Zagi was stunned and he let out a scream as the Guardian Jet rammed into him and took him skyward. Zagi hung on for dear life as he screamed. The Guardian Jet then pointed downwards and began to perform a nosedive with Zagi shouting for him to stop. Showa ignored him and continued to accelerate, spinning like a corkscrew at the same time to make his opponent dizzy.

Before hitting the ground, Showa said, "This is where you get off," and with the power of Gokuaku he sent out an electrical shock that forced Zagi to release his grip on the Guardian Jet and plummet to the ground. He flailed in the air as Showa switched back to his Hinamizawa Guardian Form and performed a dropkick which slammed into Zagi, "Sky Drop Kick!" Showa's kick smashed the demon violently into the ground. The explosive force of the attack created a shockwave and a crater with Zagi lying on the ground and Showa standing over him.

Showa stepped back as Zagi rose up, staggering, before charging at him. Showa focused energy into the Higurashi no Yaiba, causing the spikes on the edge to pop out as he swung.

"Higurashi Whip Slash!" he called out. The sword extended and became like a barbed whip as he lashed at Zagi with it, causing him to scream. He warped away and reappeared in a different spot nearby. It was a blind spot and Zagi took advantage of this as he charged, aiming for the kill. He swung for Showa to decapitate him only for the Rider to turn and catch him in his sights.

The Kunai Missiles from earlier flew into Zagi's back, impaling him. This stunned the demon long enough for Showa and he thrust forward with the Higurashi no Yaiba. The tip of the blade connected with Zagi's chest before the entire blade went through, sticking out the demon's back, causing Zagi to start choking on his own blood. Showa withdrew his blade and stepped back from Zagi who grunted as dark blood spilled from the wound.

"**Listen well and remember my words, Kamen Rider**. **As long as you walk this path, you will never know a moment's peace!**" swore Zagi. "**NEVER!**"

Shinichi's helmet vanished and he said, "I don't care! This is the path I've chosen to walk a long time ago!" He may have given up before, but he wasn't about to again. He knew the risks were too great if he ever abandoned this path and so he wasn't about to make a decision like that ever again. "If evil comes for me, I will face it! But if evil comes after my friends, I will cut it down without hesitation! That is the path I've chosen! The path as this world's guardian!" His armor glowed with a purifying light and Zagi screamed as his entire body burst into black smoke. The dark aura remained but it soon vanished, unable to withstand the light emanating from Showa's armor.

**(End Song)**

* * *

Shinichi returned to the garden and reached out to grab hold of the spike floating in front of Rena. It disappeared in his hand, vanishing like its master. Shinichi reached towards Rena, his armor vanishing, as he gently caressed her face. This girl meant so much to him that he would fight for her, kill for her, and die for her. That was how important she was to him.

Before time resumed, he went back and took his place next to Shawna, posing for the painting. They would be none the wiser as to what had transpired earlier. Only he would remember the events which had taken place while they were frozen in time. But little did he know that this demon was only a taste of things to come as another storm began to brew on the horizon. He would soon find himself fighting an adversary that would put the girls he loved in danger like never before.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: **This chapter was based on episode 11 of "**Makai Senki Garo**" entitled "**Howl**". This chapter was written in the memory Shigeru Araki (February 9th 1949-April 14th 2012) who played Kamen Rider Stronger. Hence, the appearance of the Delza Army's high officers and also Shigeru Jo himself. He will be missed. Also, this chapter was also edited and detailed by Toku Warrior who's been a great help.

**TOKU WARRIOR**: Hey guys, Shigeru Araki will be greatly missed. He had one of the best outfits of the Showa Era Riders. Anyway, it looks like Shinichi just can't catch a break. Even in Genovia. But now he has land and a new home. What could he do with it? Well, his family is always getting bigger, what with Satan being pregnant, so it could come in handy. And, in case some of you were wondering why the Inuyasha techniques were used, Ascalon Form itself and the training that St. George puts Shinichi through will have a mixture of DB-Z-GT, Bleach and Inuyasha techniques. While the Bleach and DBZ moves are more Shinichi exclusive due to his now increasing amount of Youki and Reiryoku, the Inuyasha moves are more sword based techniques that he's learned and only Ascalon, Higurashi and Higurashi Guardian can use them. They'll be seen a few more times down the road and, don't worry, no other techniques from other series besides the three mentioned will be used for attack ideas for Shinichi...unless Chrome wants it that way.


	146. The Legacy of Cain Part 90

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 90: Exodus of the DALEKs**

Alan, Green Lantern of Showa no Sekai (unofficially) and also known as the hero "Sentinel" was flying in the sky, travelling all around the world. This was one of his planetary sweeps which he performed weekly. His flight speed allowed him to be done within a few hours and his ring allowed him to run a thorough scan of the planet.

As he entered American airspace, nothing wrong seemed to be happening, until he flew over Washington D.C. His ring began to blink violently.

"OK, why is it doing that?" asked Bazel, the sentient mystical armband that Alan wore (but could not remove) on his left forearm.

"Ring?" Alan asked. "What do you got for me?"

"Detecting advanced technology," reported the ring.

"As in way too advanced for this era?" Alan asked. The only people who had access to that kind of technology on this world had been GIN-SHOCKER, DHS and X-SHOCKER. The Hive also had advanced technology which they had gained from ARMOR. There was also the Vault, a prison which was designed to keep in powerful and dangerous criminals.

He flew in for a closer look and ran a scan over the area. "OK, now we're onto something."

It was NASA.

* * *

Alan returned to the boarding house, not making a sound as he snuck in through the window. The night provided good cover and it was a good thing that he made no sound as he flew back into his room. Suddenly, he heard a shout.

"WELCOME HOME, DADDY!"

And then another.

"MAU!"

The Green Lantern was ambushed and tackled to the ground. He struggled and then began to laugh. The lights came on and Alan was lying on the floor with Alice and Celine tickling him.

"Tickles (haha!)! My (hahahah!) only (hahahhaha!) weakness!" Alan cried out, laughing, as his daughters showed him no mercy.

"Oi…" Daiki yawned. "Do you really need to do this now? It's late."

"Daiki's right," said Alan as he stood up with a daughter under each arm. "It's _way_ past your bedtime, young ladies." He looked to the clock. It was a quarter until midnight.

"But tomorrow's Sunday!" argued Alice. "We can stay up late!"

"But if you stay up late and sleep in tomorrow, you'll miss most of a sunny, sunny Sunday," Alan retorted. "Now, I'm gonna carry you both to bed and tuck you both in."

"Mau? Mau?" asked Celine.

"Can you tell us a bedtime story, Daddy?" Alice asked.

Alan shrugged, "…I dunno…"

"Please~?" Alice begged, eyes big and shining like those of a puppy dog's.

"Meh, sure," Alan nodded. "Why not? But promise you'll go to sleep, OK?"

"Mau!"

"OK!" Alice beamed.

Daiki let his adopted father and sister's walk past him. He respected the man. Seeing him in action, plus watching him deal with such a crazy family as its head, helped Daiki to see Alan as the man for what he truly was; Alan was a father and a hero.

Daiki yawned and went back to his own room for bed. He needed to wake up early to do some Earthbending training. Alan had learnt of the style and told Daiki about it. While Alan lacked the ability to manipulate earth, rock and dirt like Daiki, he at least new the moves which resembled the Hung Gar style of Kung Fu which featured heavily root stances and strong punches and kicks. He was to stand firm like a mountain and be strong both offensively and defensively.

To him it was just a fancy way of throwing rocks, but Daiki loved learning new ways to fight and he could always utilize the style without throwing rocks with his powers so there was no harm of learning the style and it was not a waste of time.

* * *

Alan closed the door to his daughter's room and yawned. He was still troubled about his discovery in NASA. There was something in there that didn't belong.

Alan was thinking, '_My ring picked up advanced alien technology._' He had heard rumors that America was experimenting with and reverse engineering alien technology they had gained from crash sites. Oh, he knew about Area 51 and how they horded alien technology which they found. That was back in his own home world. However, would it be the same here? Then there was NASA. Could NASA have discovered alien technology and was experimenting with it while trying to reverse engineer it in order to advance their own space program?

He would need to check things out personally but he didn't know if he should go at it alone.

He opened the door to his room and turned on the lights.

Speaking of things that didn't belong, Lala was in his room lying in his futon. She was wearing a pink nightie and had been waiting for him. However, she had fallen asleep while waiting for him. He noticed an envelope inside her hand.

He quietly knelt down and took the envelope in his hand. He carefully tore it open and reached inside for its contents only to find a blank white card. However, he still smiled as he saw it.. He grabbed his wallet and slid the blank card in before slipping into the futon and spooning Lala against him.

He was going to need a good night's rest for tomorrow. Using his ring, he switched off the light and went to sleep with his beloved pink-haired princess.

* * *

The next morning, Alan went to the Hive. He was going to need some help for this mission. Going along with him were Lala and Amora. He needed Lala for her intelligence and genius as he needed Amora for her magic and charm. They were going to recruit some helpers and Alan knew a couple that came to mind.

Earlier, Alan had sent Alice and Celine off to the park with Yami and Bishie. Daiki was going on a job with Conda which would lead to a long training session with the Amazonian. Nozomu was taking care of Adam but she wouldn't be alone as Saku had dropped by again to pay his little sister and nephew a visit. The older Okami Yokai had moved into the city to be close by. He knew better than to antagonize Alan since the Corpsman could literally send him flying to the moon with only a flick of his finger.

Momo and Nana, on the other hand, were hanging out with some friends they had made in school. It was on April that they had enrolled in the same school that Alan attended. Since Nozomu would still need to go school, she left Adam in the care of Hana and Michiru. The two female cyborgs were only happy to help. Sometimes she would let Rena babysit their young cub. Their landlady would volunteer to help as well.

The Teleportal activated and Alan, Lala and Amora stepped through and into the Hive's main hall. The main hall contained the conference table where they held their meetings and the main control room which contained the base's main computer.

"_Welcome and good morning, Alan Smith, Lala Satalin Deviluke and Amora_," greeted Sheila as her avatar appeared on the main computer screen and smiled at them. Sheila was the Hive's AI and she possessed the ability to control and maintain everything in the base. Originally, she was an AI for a tank which Yokoshima had forged a special bond with, becoming attached to her, and then becoming devastated when her tank body had been scrapped. Her AI, however, had been saved and installed in the Hive's computer.

"And good morning to you too, Sheila," said Alan. "Did you do something with your looks?"

"_I have been experimenting with different appearances for my avatar_," Sheila answered. "_Do I look alright?_"

"You look fine," he told her and Amora elbowed him in the ribs. He didn't feel pain but he did feel it and knew why she had done it. "Can't I admire a pretty AI?"

"It's your flirting that gets you into trouble," the goddess warned. "If you flirt anymore she might try to come home with us."

"_And Sheila's __**my**__ girl!_" added AI-Shin as he floated over to them, glaring at Alan. He looked to Sheila and whistled, "_And girl, you look fine!_"

"Only because Sheila's avatar resembles an older looking Rena in her 30's," Alan deadpanned.

"_Her __**current**__ avatar. Remember, she can make herself look like anyone she wants_." AI-Shin asked Sheila, "_Isn't that right, babe?_"

"_Affirmative_," Sheila smiled.

"_So, what brings you over to Rider central_?" AI-Shin asked.

"We need a couple of people for an assignment. I just want to know if Daichi and Yokoshima are available right now," said Alan.

"_They are in the training room as we speak_," said Sheila. "_May I show you the real-time footage?_"

"Go ahead," Alan said and Sheila pulled up the footage up on the main screen.

* * *

"Say uncle, Dai! Say uncle! Say it!" Yokoshima yelled as he had Daichi restrained in a headlock.

"No way, asshole!" Daichi shouted as he tried to struggle free. The two men were locked in combat, wearing nothing but shorts as they were wrestling. They were in the middle of the ring and standing outside the ring were their respective lovers. The blonde with her hair in twin tails was Asmodeus, Stake of Lust. The girl with green hair was Leviathan, Stake of Envy.

"Come on, Daichi! Show that idiot who's the better fighter!" encouraged Leviathan.

"Hey, Yoko-kun's not an idiot!" Asmodeus shot back.

"Right," Leviathan smirked, "He's just _slow_."

"You take that back, meanie!" Asmodeus shouted at her older sister.

"Or you'll do what? Cry?" Leviathan taunted.

Asmodeus shouted, "Move over, boys! Levi-nee and I have to settle an argument!"

"Huh?" Yokoshima blinked and loosened his hold on Daichi. The two young men stood up as the two women entered the ring, stripping off their uniform jackets, vests, neckties and blouses to reveal the sleeveless leotards they wore underneath. They even removed their boots and skirts, showing off more of their lean and slender forms.

"I'm always sick and tired of your teasing, Levi-nee," Asmodeus glared. "You're just jealous that I got married first and now Satan-nee is having a baby." She mocked, "Feel left out?"

"Unfortunately, I'm dating a man afraid of commitment!" Leviathan shot back.

"Hey!" Daichi cried.

"She's got you there, dude," snickered Yokoshima, only to be backhanded by Daichi in response.

"I just ain't ready yet!" Daichi snapped.

"When will you be ready then?" Leviathan shouted.

"I…I don't know! But I know it's not now!" Daichi exclaimed.

"Not good enough, Daichi Takashima," Leviathan objected. "Now here's the deal! I beat my little sister and then you and I get married right now!"

"WHAT!-?"

"You heard me!"

"I can't agree to that!"

"I'm not giving you a choice!"

* * *

Alan, Lala and Amora were watching the spectacle with Amora smiling, "I like that girl. She knows how to take charge." Conda would agree with her. "She knows what she wants and will do anything to get it."

"Doesn't Daichi have that other girl named Mika?" Lala asked.

"Actually, she's coming right now," Alan pointed.

* * *

"What's all the commotion about?" Mika asked. She'd just been exercising with the gym equipment when she heard the argument start up.

"Levi wants us to get married if she beats her sister!" Daichi shouted.

Mika shrugged, "I don't see a problem with that."

"What!-?" he cried.

"I mean I think she's been waiting for you to pop the question for a while now," Mika told him. "I mean her youngest sister got married before she did and she's not getting any younger."

"Not getting any younger?" he repeated incredulously. "She hasn't aged a day since I met her!"

"That's not the point!" Mika and Leviathan shouted at him at the same time.

"Well, what about Alan? He hasn't married any of his girls yet, and he has like five!" Daichi argued.

* * *

"Oh, sure. Bring _me_ into this," Alan groaned. He corrected, "And it's SEVEN now!"

"_That's a lucky number_," AI-Shin remarked.

"He is right," Amora agreed. She turned to Alan and asked, "When will we get married?"

"Once I'm legally an adult," he told her and smiled at Lala, "I promise."

* * *

"Now don't use him as an excuse! He's not legally an adult yet!" Leviathan spat. "So, I win and we get hitched! We just need to fill out a form to get a marriage license. Problem solved!"

"Oh, or you can get married in a chapel in Las Vegas," Yokoshima suggested.

"Stop trying to help!" Daichi yelled at him.

"That's not a bad idea," Leviathan smirked.

Daichi groaned, face in his hands, "Why me…?"

"It ain't so bad," said Yokoshima. "Marriage life is great." He smiled at widely, "Isn't that right, honey?"

"Yes, my darling! Chu!" Asmodeus blew him a kiss. Yokoshima caught the kiss.

Just seeing that infuriated Leviathan. "OK, little sister! It's game on!"

"Bring it on, old maid!" Asmodeus shot back.

"Fight!" Mika declared.

"I should've packed popcorn for this!" grinned Yokoshima as he threw his arms into the air.

"I…fucking…hate my life," grumbled Daichi.

* * *

Alan explained, "Ever since we had that run in with Henshaw I've been using my ring do periodic scans of the planet's surface and upper atmosphere to look for anything too advanced and last night it picked up something." He used his ring to project an image of NASA.

"The National Aeronautics and Space Administration?" Daichi questioned.

"What's that?" Mika asked.

"Oh, it's the United States' space program," said Daichi in a dismissive tone. "They sent the first man, Neil Armstrong, to the moon."

"The moon landing is an interesting subject and all, but that's not what I'm here to talk you about," said Alan sternly. "Now, because I was curious I went in to give the place a thorough scan with my X-Ray vision. They're working on a brand new shuttle but there's nothing quite right about it. He projected the image of the shuttle with his ring, and it looked more advanced than anything this world could ever come up with at this time, not without _assistance. _"It's the 1980's, going into the 1990's and NASA suddenly has the capability of creating a ship capable of interstellar travel? Some things are not adding up."

"So, you want to break in and get some answers," Daichi concluded.

"I want to know what they're working on and what kind of technology they're using," said Alan. "I just have a gut feeling there's something sinister about all this."

"They're just making a spaceship," argued Yokoshima.

"It's way beyond its time," Alan retorted. "So, I'm asking for you guys to help."

"Why us? I mean not to undermine our abilities or anything but you seem capable of doing this on your own," Daichi questioned.

"I might run into some trouble and I could use backup," Alan answered.

"You mean 'distractions'," Daichi retorted.

"Daichi, don't be such a grumpy guss," Yokoshima admonished. "Sure we'll help, Alan."

"Great," Alan smiled. "Now, here's the plan."

* * *

"Hello, we're here for the tour," Alan spoke up as he stood in front of NASA's security booth.

"Are you with the school tour?" the security guard asked. "Because they have a tour scheduled for this afternoon."

"Oh, we just missed our bus earlier but we managed to hitch a ride here," said Alan. He took out a blank card from his wallet and showed it to the security guard. "See? Everything's right there. I'm an official tour guide."

The security guard scrutinized Alan, "Aren't you a little young to be a tour guide?"

Alan smiled, "I get that a lot."

"OK, you're clear," the security guard said as he handed the card back to Alan. "You can go through."

Daichi was amazed as security let them through, "I can't believe that worked."

Alan smiled, "I've always wanted to tour NASA."

"How did you do that?" Yokoshima asked.

Alan flashed the card to him. "_Psychic_ paper. Makes people see what I want them to see and according to this I'm your official tour guide."

"So you've got all an access pass to anywhere?" Daichi asked. "Why haven't you used it before?"

"Because I got it only last night," winked Alan. "A friend must've sent it to me, knowing I would need it someday. That day is today. Now, time's a wasting and we don't got all day! Onwards!"

The group entered NASA's space centre, pretending to be part of a tour group from a local high school. However, they weren't here to take pictures and admire everything on display. They were here to investigate the place. Alan was suspicious and when he felt suspicious he got curious and needed to know all the answers to the questions running across his mind.

The main question was: What was NASA hiding?

Something about NASA possessing advanced interstellar travel technology just didn't sit right with the Green Lantern, especially since they shouldn't have that kind of technology at this time. The only explanation was that NASA was either receiving advanced technology by a mysterious benefactor who wanted to gain something or that NASA was cannibalizing alien technology and reverse engineering it to develop their spacecrafts. Of course, it would be considered a '**TOP SECRET**' project and maybe Alan was just overreacting.

Alan snorted, '_Yeah right_.'

"Guys, Lala, Amora and I are gonna check out some stuff," said Alan. "Can you take care of yourselves?"

"Oh, sure. Leave me to babysit Yokoshima," Daichi replied cynically.

"OK, thanks!" Alan grabbed his two girlfriends and ran off.

"Hey, Dai! Take a picture of us in front of this rocket!" Yokoshima called out.

* * *

Alan, Lala and Amora were sneaking down into the space centre's lower levels. They were as quite as mice, not making a sound, as they made their way down the dark corridor. There were no guards in sight...

"Halt!"

...Damn.

"Hey, you shouldn't be down here!" a guard shouted but he suddenly fell asleep after Amora cast a spell and blew gold dust that entered his nostrils, knocking him out.

"Thanks," Alan said, kissing the Sorceress before approaching the unconscious guard. He flipped him over onto his front and felt around in the back of his neck. His ring was detecting advanced technology on him. It had detected advanced technology everywhere in this place and he needed to be sure why.

He whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver and pushed the tip up with his thumb. Pointing down and holding down the device's button, he scanned the back of the man's neck. "Oh, very clever." He peeled off a layer of fake skin, exposing a circular disk with a red blinking light on it.

"That looks like a mind-control chip," Lala said.

"Yes, indeed," Alan agreed. "And what does it look like to you?"

Swirling away from the dot of red light were eight snakes.

"OROCHI," Lala gasped.

"OROCHI," Alan repeated. "It looks like we're dealing with the remnants of Shiro's army again."

"But why would they be in NASA?" Amora asked.

"It's the same reason NASA's building a space shuttle capable of interstellar flight, which is what I'm going to find out!"

* * *

"**ONE OF THE SLAVES HAS BEEN NEU-TRA-LIZED!"**

"**BRING UP THE SE-CU-RI-TY FOOTAGE! IM-ME-DIATE-LY! IM-ME-DIATE-LY!"**

"**IN-TRU-DERS HAVE EN-TERED NASA! EX-TER-MIN-ATE THEM!"**

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

"**AC-TI-VATE ALL SLAVE U-NITS IM-ME-DIATE-LY!"**

* * *

"OK, whatever we're looking for is right behind this door," said Alan. "Are you girls, ready?"

Lala and Amora nodded.

He pointed his Sonic Screwdriver at the door but it did not open. "Damn, it's deadlocked."

"Let me try," volunteered Lala as she took out her cellphone. She pulled away a wire from the phone and attached it to the exist panel on the side. Pressing a button, the cellphone flashed with several sets of numbers before it flashed the words "**ACCESS GRANTED**".

The door slid open and Alan smiled, "I love you."

"I love you too," Lala smiled at him.

"Not to interrupt this tender moment, but the door's open and we need to go in," Amora pointed.

They entered and the door closed behind them. They walked down a tunnel which led them to a large, dimly lit chamber. However, there was enough light to show what was hiding inside, in the dark, just waiting for them.

Lala gasped as Amora's eyes narrowed. The corner of Alan's lips, however, quirked up like he'd just won something or passed a really hard test.

"I knew it," Alan smiled. "I knew. We've got DALEKs hiding right under NASA."

The DALEKs were cybernetic creatures built by Shiro based on plans he'd received from his benefactors, the same ones who'd revived him after he'd been destroyed before by Shinichi. His Spark Core had survived and gotten implanted inside a bio-android body, letting him live again. For months Shiro had been a pain in the neck for the heroes and he became an even bigger threat when he revealed his plans to them. The DALEKs were initially robots programmed to kill humans. However, they lacked that little something to truly make them into efficient killers. They lacked hatred, hatred which Shiro latter provided for them after absorbing Gnol and stealing his ability to create Darkloids. Inside each of the DALEK machines was a cycloptic, cephalopod Darkloid made out of their master's hatred.

The DALEKs may not look threatening in terms of their appearance. They were shaped like salt shakers and the appendages looked like a toilet plunger and an egg whisk. That would be the first and last mistake people would ever make. The suction cup on its right arm had enough vacuum power to crush a man's skull and the egg whisk was a laser gun that shoots lethal death rays which can kill with a single shot. Despite their appearance, stairs would not stop them. They were equipped with anti-gravity technology, allowing them to levitate and fly. Their armor was also bulletproof, made out of a titanium alloy. For added protection, they've surrounded themselves with a forcefield that could stop bullets.

Of course, these were cheap knockoffs to the real DALEKs that Alan had personally seen when he'd been a child. However, that didn't make them any less dangerous. Primitive, compared to their alien counterparts, but no less deadly or destructive.

The DALEKs they found were all bronze in color and had black domes. Instead of the standard suction cup arm, they sported claw-like manipulator arms instead.

"OK, they haven't seen us," Alan whispered. "Amora, take Lala out of here before..." One of the DALEKs turned to look at them. "...They see us."

The DALEKs turned their heads and spotted them. They began screaming, "**IN-TRU-DERS! EX-TER-MIN-ATE THEM!**"

"Don't do that!" Alan shouted. "We surrender!"

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**"

The DALEKs fired their death rays but they were deflected by the green energy bubble that Alan's ring had projected.

"As I was saying: don't do that because you'll just be wasting energy," Alan finished. The DALEKs backed away. "Now, I want answers and I want them now. My question is, how the hell can you still survive without Shiro?"

He got his answer: **"THEY SUR-VIVED THROUGH ME!" **The voice was deep and menacing, with a slight female quality to it.

A spotlight shone down, revealing the owner of the voice. Alan, Lala and Amora stood shocked at what they were seeing. Suspended inside a large glass tube filled with a clear liquid was the DALEK Queen, a huge, dark-skinned, multi-tentacled horror that could only be envisioned within Lovecraft's own nightmares. It was almost three times the size of a regular Dalek Darkloid. The creature's single, red, demonic eye stared at Alan. Sitting atop the tube was a DALEK dome equipped with the indicator lightbulbs and the eyestalk with the eyepiece's centre glowing bright blue as it glared upon Alan. It was flanked from all sides by panels of metal which were dotted by spheres like the lower half of a DALEK's casing.

"What is that thing?" Lala questioned.

"One last 'fuck you' from Shiro," Alan stated.

"**ALL HAIL THE DA-LEK QUEEN!**" the DALEKs cheered.

"How can something like you possibly exist?" he asked. For all Alan knew, once the being which had spawned Darklings and Darkloids was gone, its spawn would vanish. It had happened once before when the Dark Being had been defeated and should've happened after the Yamata no Orochi, an eight-headed Darkloid in dragon form had been defeated. However, these DALEKs which Shiro had created and implanted with organic Darkloid cores should be dead, leaving only the mindless machines which were their casings. He first thought it was the casings and force fields protecting them from oblivion, but there was more to it.

His brain finally came up with the answer. The Dark Being had been able to spawn Darkloids, a trait shared by Gnol and later gained by Shiro. Gnol, being part of the original Yamata no Orochi, had been spawned by the Dark Being but then became independent after being sealed and then released, his connection to the Dark Being severed.

That could only mean that after Shiro had created the DALEK Queen, he then severed the link which would cause her destruction if he was ever destroyed, making her a completely independent being at the same level as both the Orochi and the Dark Being. A new source for the Darkloids but now the Darkloids would wear metal armor and become DALEKs, a fusion of both demonic power and scientific genius.

"**I E-XIST BY THE WILL OF OUR CRE-A-TOR!**" the DALEK Queen boomed, "**AND IT IS THROUGH ME THE DA-LEKS CON-TI-NUE TO E-XIST!**"

The DALEK Queen dropped an egg which fell into a hole at the bottom of her tube. The egg would then travelled under the floor and go towards the incubation chamber where it would hatch into a new Dalek Darkloid which would then be implanted inside a DALEK casing. DALEK casings may possess the programming and mind of a DALEK, but the Dalek Darkloids were the true heart of the creature, possessing nothing but hatred for the human race and the desire to kill them as well as those that would oppose the DALEKs.

"I see now," Alan realized. "This is like a hive and as the queen of the hive it's your job to make sure the hive continues to thrive. You lay eggs to make more workers and soldiers."

"You sound impressed," Amora remarked.

"Impressed," he admitted before frowning, "and horrified at the same time."

"**WE WERE CRE-A-TED TO SUR-VIVE! TO AL-WAYS SUR-VIVE!**" the DALEK Queen argued.

"So, why are you hiding down here in NASA's basement?" Amora asked.

"Amora, the answer's pretty simple," said Alan. He listed, "Mind-controlled drones, interstellar space travel technology, a shuttle being built." He concluded, "The answer's pretty obvious. They're trying to leave the planet."

"**IT IS THE LO-GI-CAL COURSE OF AC-TION FOR US,"** justified the DALEK Queen.** "OUR E-XIS-TENCE IS THREA-TENED AND THUS WE RE-QUIRE A HOME WHICH IS SAFE FOR US**."

"After all you've done? You and I both know it won't just end with that, _Your Majesty_," said Alan as he paced back and forth. "You and the rest of these demons were created and programmed with only one goal and purpose: to exterminate all human life. You shouldn't be allowed to live! You don't deserve to live! You should be destroyed!"

"**DO NOT SHOW DIS-RE-SPECT!**" the Queen's DALEK Guards commanded. **"PRAISE HER! WOR-SHIP HER!"**

"I might date goddesses, but I will not praise one, especially a fake one," Alan growled as he glared right into the DALEK's single eye.. "You all should be wiped out of this universe!" The DALEK backed away.

The DALEK Queen glared. "**WHAT RIGHT DO YOU HAVE TO JUDGE US? WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO DE-CIDE WE SHOULD NOT E-XIST? WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO DE-CIDE OUR EX-TINC-TION?**" the DALEK Queen demanded.

"Answer this question, and be honest." Alan asked, "If I let you leave, would you not pose a threat to the universe? Would you promise to never kill another living sentient being and punish those that did? Would you see other species as your equal?"

"**OF COURSE NOT."**

"There's your answer." Alan aimed his ring at the DALEK Queen, charging it up. He also projected a force field around himself, Lala and Amora to protect them from the huge explosion which would occur.

"**KILL US AND **_**THEY **_**WILL DIE**."

"My friends can handle themselves," Alan said confidently.

"**I WAS NOT RE-FER-RING TO YOUR COM-RADES**," the DALEK Queen amended.

"If not my comrades then..." Alan paused and his eyes widened. "The NASA staff!"

* * *

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

"WHAT THE HELL!-?"

"OH SHIT! WHERE THE HELL DID THEY COME FROM!-?"

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

**ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!**

Daichi, Yokoshima, Asmodeus and Leviathan were taking cover from the DALEKs and the people under their control. The NASA staff were armed with DALEK guns themselves, modified into handguns.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE THEM! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

"Remind me to kill Alan later for this," Daichi growled. As a cyborg he knew he could survive being shot at by one of those things, but those death rays could really hurt despite the protecting their armor granted them.

"He did want us to distract them," argued Yokoshima, "And we agreed, knowing the risk."

"Yokoshima, if I die here and you live, I swear I am going to haunt you as a ghost," Daichi swore. He called, "Rock-Metal Henshin!"

"Henshin!" Yokoshima called.

* * *

"**THE MIND CON-TROL CHIPS KEEP THEM OBE-DI-ENT, GREEN LAN-TERN**," the DALEK Queen informed him. "**THEY CAN AL-SO BE USED FOR E-XE-CUTION**."

"So, it comes down to letting you escape and save the staff, while possibly dooming the rest of the universe, or kill you now to protect the world but the staff dies with you," Alan realized.

"**SO, WHICH WILL IT BE? WOULD YOU DES-TROY US AND END THE LIVES OF IN-NO-CENTS IN THE PRO-CESS? WILL YOU ONCE AGAIN BE RE-SPON-SI-BLE FOR THE END OF HUMAN LIVES?**" the Queen asked.

* * *

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" a DALEK cried as it fired on Asmodeus. She screamed as she was zapped and she fell onto the floor.

"ASMO-CHAN!" Blue Beetle shouted and he fired his railguns at the DALEK, destroying it. He rushed towards his wife, kneeling down to pick her up and cradle her. "You'll be OK, I promise."

"Of course I will," Asmodeus smiled weakly as she gazed up at him. "I'm immortal. I just need some rest." She vanished in a flash of gold butterflies which fluttered into the air and faded before his eyes.

"She's not dead. She's not dead. She's not dead," Blue Beetle chanted. His eyes glowed bright red and he roared as he glared hatefully at the DALEKs and their mind controlled minions. "BUT YOU WILL BE!" he roared.

* * *

"If I let you leave, you'll only come back stronger than ever," Alan argued, glaring at the DALEK Queen for her audacity to give him such a hard choice to make.

"**BUT IF YOU DO NOT AL-LOW US TO LEAVE, ALL OUR SLAVES WILL BE E-XE-CU-TED!" **she replied. "**CHOOSE, LAN-TERN!**"

"Alan, you said it yourself that the DALEKs have the potential to be one of the greatest threats in the universe," said Amora. "Right now you can wipe them all out."

"And the people?" Alan questioned.

"That thing's lying!" Amora insisted.

"Are you sure? Because I'm not," said Alan. "I can't leave this to chance. I can't gamble innocent lives." He gave the DALEK Queen one last look and dashed off with Lala and Amora following.

The lead DALEK Guard commanded, "**PRE-PARE THE QUEEN FOR TRAN-SPORT! THE SHIP IS READY! WE WILL LAUNCH TO-NIGHT!**"

* * *

In his rage, Blue Beetle had destroyed the DALEKs but he was still being fired upon by the mind-controlled staff. He aimed his B3 Gun at them but before he could fire Alan appeared and he used his ring to project long energy arms with hands that grabbed hold of the slaves' DALEK guns.

"Goodnight, everybody," said Alan as he whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver and held the button down.

The effects were instantaneous as the control chips shorted out and the NASA staff members collapsed, screaming, as the chips malfunctioned and went dead. Lala went to check them and concluded, "They're alive."

"What's going now?" Musician asked.

"Mind control chips," said Alan. "But right now we have a launch to stop."

"**YOU WILL DO NO SUCH THING!**" a DALEKs rolled in and spoke to the group. "**YOU HAVE NEU-TRA-LIZED OUR SLAVES BUT YOU WILL NOT PRE-VENT THE LAUNCH!" **

"Oh yeah? And what other tricks do you have up your non-existent sleeves?" Alan challenged.

"**BOMBS!"**

The color drained from Alan's face. "Bombs?" Alan parroted.

"**BOMBS!"** the DALEK repeated. "**WE KNEW THAT YOU WOULD COME AND STOP US SO WE HAD PLAN-TED BOMBS IN THE NEAR-BY CI-TY! THEY HAVE BEEN SET TO DE-TO-NATE IN 5 MI-NUTES!**"

"Of all the rotten, dirty tricks," Musician growled.

"Shiro made them. What did you expect?" remarked Alan, feeling angry.

"**GLO-RY TO THE QUEEN! PRAISE HER! WOR-SHIP HER! WOR-SHIP!"**

**BOOM!**

The DALEK was blown up by Blue Beetle. "That thing was seriously getting on my nerves," he said. "Come on, let's get those bombs!"

* * *

The Teleportal opened up and a dejected group exited.

They had failed to prevent the DALEKs' escape. As soon as Alan had dealt with the mind control chips, a DALEK informed them that they had planted bombs all over the city of Washington D.C. Alan and his team were forced to find and disarm the explosives. The bombs had been easy to find as Alan used his ring and Sonic Screwdriver to scan the area.

They found all five bombs, and disarmed them all. However, within that time the DALEKs had launched. Alan had chased after the rocket which had started jettisoning unnecessary components as it was leaving the atmosphere before the DALEKs' shuttle shot off, warping into hyperspace, and out of Alan's reach.

* * *

When Yokoshima returned back to his apartment, he heard a pleasant voice greet him, "Okaeri, darling." The pillbug cyborg looked up to see his wife, Asmodeus, completely unharmed. It was like she hadn't been shot dead by a DALEK's death ray at all. She was in her uniform, with a frilly apron on, as she added, "I already ran the bath for you and I'm about to start dinner."

Yokoshima leapt forward and pulled her into an embrace, sobbing. She patted his back before rubbing his back up and down. "I'm not going anywhere," she whispered. "I'll be with you forever and ever."

Death would not part them. That was one of the benefits of being a Witch's Furniture. Releasing her from the hug, Yokoshima had nothing but a pleased smile on his face.

"Well then, I'm going to hop into the bath. Can I expect my beautiful wife to come join me in the next few minutes?" he asked her with a suggestive grin. Asmodeus just swatted his arm playfully while giggling.

"Oh alright. I'll be along in a few minutes."

Yokoshima gave her a quick kiss and headed for the bathroom. After getting undressed and washing up, he slipped into the tub of hot water and relaxed. As he looked at the water in the tub, his eyes began to glow again as his head and back began to ache. Holding his head, he soon noticed the area around his abdomen was also giving off a slightly painful sensation. After a few seconds had passed the pain then suddenly subsided just as fast as it had settled in.

Looking at his reflection in the water, he noticed the red glow in his eyes disappear as well. "What in the hell just happened to me?" he asked himself before turning his head to the sound of the door opening, Asmodeus walking in with nothing but a towel on. '_Meh, whatever. I'll worry about it later_.'

* * *

Lala later found Alan sitting alone in the boarding house's kitchen, drinking a bottle of soda. "Why aren't you in bed?" she asked.

"I can't sleep. Keep thinking about what happened," he said. "I failed." Lala put a comforting hand on his back.

"But you saved the city and all those people," smiled Lala. "That has to count for something, right?"

"I should've stopped them. I just hope I never have to make a decision like that ever again." Lala hugged him from behind.

"They're gone now," she told him.

"But they'll be back. I know they'll be back, and they'll be more developed and evolved, and stronger than ever," he replied.

"It won't matter, because you'll still stop them. You've stopped them before."

Alan smiled as he kissed Lala on the forehead, "Thanks, Princess." There was a very important reason why Alan kept Lala at his side. It wasn't because she was a princess, a genius or pretty. It was because he couldn't do half the things he did without her by his side.

She was his princess, his beloved, his heart and his anchor all rolled into one. She was the woman who kept him grounded, to see things clearly, and to always do the right thing.

She was the one who'd convinced him to be a hero again after he'd given up years ago. Even if he failed or lost, she was there for him. Whenever he was down, she'd be there to help pick him back up. She was the source of his new resolve.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so the DALEKs are gone, meaning they will no longer trouble Earth or our heroes again...Yeah right! You know that they'll appear again, but not in this story but in the future! Of course this will be the last you'll see of the DALEKs, for now that is. Well, hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I did writing it. Just be sure to read and review. Tune in next time for another exciting adventure of KRxGL**


	147. The Legacy of Cain Part 91

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 91: Silver Nemesis**

"**The Cyber Master's body has been completed."**

"**We still require a compatible brain."**

"**Is the subject ready?"**

"**The subject is ready."**

"**Then proceed."**

"No! Please! Please no! No, don't do this to me! No! Noooooo!-!-!"

"**Conversion has failed. Subject has been deleted."**

"**Dispose of the remains. We will try again tomorrow. All hail the Cyber Master."**

"**All hail the Cyber Master."**

* * *

Yuji, on the White Blaze, was on his way to Detroit, Michigan. He'd received a call from Yuki who's been living with Rhea while in this world. Rhea and Yuki had been investigating a series of disappearances and Yuji came to mind for the need of help. Besides, Yuji was one of the few people Rhea actually liked. It was either him or Yuri, and Rhea would rather put her trust in the saner brother who was not likely to cause massive collateral damage.

'_What's Detroit like, Daddy?_' Veronica asked. Veronica was a mental manifestation born within Yuji's subconscious and the sentience of the Verz Virus which now ran through Yuji's veins. The Verz Virus (named by Yuji himself) was in fact a mutated strain of the Hinamizawa Syndrome but Yuji not only tamed it, but was able to learn how to use it to add to his own arsenal of super-human and draconic abilities.

"Cold winters, moderate snowfall and cold nights," Yuji summarized a little grumpily.

'_You hate the cold. I don't like it either,'_ Veronica agreed.

"But Yuki would feel right at home," Yuji added. "By the way, there any chance of her or Yuri getting infected?"

'_Maybe, but I wouldn't know,'_ Veronica shrugged, _'I evolved because of you. __What are the chances they'll develop similar mutations?'_

"Guess it depends on their level of exposure to the Hinamizawa Syndrome," Yuji reasoned. "I was exposed to it like an all-you-can-eat buffet. Yuki and Yuri have only fought Darkloids here and there and then there was Yami-Gnol, but Yuri never took any damage from that fight..."

'_I guess anything can happen,'_ Veronica gave in.

"Pretty much," Yuji agreed as they entered Detroit. He gently patted his jacket pocket. Maria had given him an omamori (protective charm) for good luck. A ringtone ("Feel the Same" by Yu Takahashi & Nana Yanagisawa) went off in his helmet, signalling an incoming call from Yuki, and he pressed a button on the outside to pick up. "Talk to me," he prompted.

"_Are you within the city limits yet?_" Yuki asked her brother.

"Just got in a couple of miles ago," said Yuji. "So, care to give me directions on where I should meet you girls?"

"_Just follow my D-Wheel's signal on your tracking system_," Yuki told her brother. "_You can't miss it._"

A map of Detroit appeared on Yuji's HUD and a blip representing his sister's D-Wheel blinked before his eyes.

Yuki had changed a lot since she ended up living in this world. She used to be introverted, saying only a few words in a while, and projecting a type of 'Ice Queen' presence to the people around her. Only her family knew the real her. Here, she had made good friends and even found herself a girlfriend. Sure, her girlfriend wore a cape and cowl and went out at night fighting crime, but that was what made Rhea interesting. Yuji had learnt of Rhea's existence when Shinichi had gone after the fabled creature known as the Jersey Devil, suspecting it to be a creation of Gebok's. He ended up meeting the costumed crusader whose name was also the "Jersey Devil" (JD for short). Yuki had met Rhea when she came to Japan to track down the Acid-Man. Rhea would soon learn of her parents' involvement with GIN-SHOCKER which led to their deaths. The two girls became close and formed a relationship.

There was also her Pokégirl, Crystal the Frostwyrm, who was deeply loyal to Yuki and revealing her true nature to Rhea was amusing for the Frostwyrm as the girl was shocked during their first meeting. She did like the human girl and was as adorable as a puppy, since Crystal was several inches taller than both Yuki and Rhea.

Yuji had pulled up to a parking lot of the Roma Cafe where he spotted Yuki's D-Wheel and parked next to hers. Going inside, he found Rhea and Yuki sitting at a booth as Rhea signaled him with a wave. He noticed a third party member; a taller woman with long, flowing white hair, a shade of ice-blue skin with sharp facial features that gave her an intimidating appearance and cold, ice-blue eyes. She had an exceptionally large chest as well, bigger than both Yuki and Rhea. But Yuji recognized her scent and knew that it was Crystal.

"Sup," Rhea greeted.

"Sorry I took so long," Yuji apologized.

Crystal frowned, "You kept the Mistress waiting, Lord Fudo."

"It's alright, Crystal," Yuki placated. "We should discuss the business at hand before anything else."

Yuji sat down, interlocking his fingers as he put his hands on the table. "So, you're asking me to help you girls with a missing persons case."

"Several missing persons to be exact," Rhea clarified. "Within the last month, a total of 15 people have gone missing without a trace. At least, those are the ones reported. The exact number is unknown."

"Know anything in common between them?" Yuji asked as a waitress came to take his order.

"Just that they were all male, from their late teens to mid-twenties, between the ages of 19 and 23. All of them were college students with high GPA's," Rhea told him. One of Rhea's contacts in the local police department who'd once worked in the JCPD (Jersey City Police Department) before being transferred here had given her the details. "I have all the files back at the hotel room."

"So, any ideas of why these boys were kidnapped?" Yuji asked.

"White slavery," Rhea theorized. "Maybe they were kidnapped by some homo-erotic sex-trafficking ring. Or maybe they were kidnapped to serve as free labor for some kind of illegal mining thing."

"Wouldn't be the first time," agreed Yuki. "But there's actually one other theory."

"Oh, those Cybermen things you mean," said Rhea. Unlike the DALEKs, the Cybermen incidents were actually more isolated, except whenever they were sent to kidnap compatible subjects for cyber-conversion. The Cybermen, built by Shiro, had originally been humans but they had their brains transplanted into metal suits of armor to become part of Shiro's army of cybernetic foot-soldiers. The last Yuji had seen of the Cybermen had been in Genovia last May.

"It's actually been awhile since I saw one of those things," stated Yuji. "I thought they were finished after we dealt with Shiro but then they revealed that they were in hiding and working on something without Shiro to give them orders."

"They are still autonomous, Onii-sama," said Yuki. "Without Shiro, they will only fall back on their basic programming."

The lights in the cafe started to flicker before going back to normal.

"Is something wrong with the lights?" Yuji asked.

"That has been happening a lot around the city lately," stated Rhea.

"Really?" Yuji was curious. "How often?"

"How often? Every night since I've been here," Rhea said. "I think there's something wrong with the main power grid. That's something the city should be concerned with."

The lights flickered again for a few more seconds before going back to normal.

* * *

"**The conversion has failed again. We need both a compatible body and a compatible mind. We also require more power."**

"**Send out the Cybermats. Have them seek out a new subject for capture and conversion."**

"**I obey."**

* * *

Yuji asked, "Any leads we can go on?"

Rhea informed him, "All the victims lived near the Destroit industrial area. You know, they have a lot of motor factories there. College students live there because of the cheap rent and also factory workers find it easy to commute from home to work. The victims' roommates reported them missing after a few days when they didn't return."

Yuki summarised, "Smart kids with low income."

"Not just smart kids. Some of them were members of sports team," Rhea added as she showed him photos. "This guy here played on the football team, and this one was a member of the track and field team."

"So, the victims were either very smart, or very athletic," Yuji concluded.

"The athletes were on sports scholarships, but to stay on those teams they needed to pull a solid 3.0 GPA or above," Rhea continued.

Yuji rubbed his chin, "Smart and strong victimes. Something about this is getting odd."

"Odd or not, we gotta stop what's happening here before it gets worse," Rhea stated firmly.

"And that's why we're all here," Yuji winked, "To get things done, and done right."

"...Right," Rhea blushed before looking away.

"Well then, let's get down to that factory area. This mystery won't solve itself," he prompted.

"But first, you're going to need a bath," said Rhea. "Driving all the way here, you must've worked up a sweat in all that leather."

"Leather's cool," Yuji argued. "But alright, shower time for me."

* * *

"Pretty nice hotel," Yuji admired as he, Rhea and Yuki entered. The costumed crusader handed the Fire Manakyte her room key.

"Take this and go up to our room while we clear things up at the desk," said Rhea. "Oh, and try not to make a mess, OK?"

"No promises," Yuji winked roguishly as he went to the elevator to go up to the girls' floor.

"Is it just me or do I suddenly feel hot?" Rhea asked Yuki.

"He has that effect on women," Yuki answered.

* * *

Yuji had just finished his shower and was drying his hair as he stepped out. He was standing in front of the mirror when he saw something zip by in the reflection. He spun around but saw nothing. The lights in the bathroom were flickering.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the lobby, Rhea overheard some people talking about a pest problem about 'silver rats'.

"Silver rats?" Yuki asked as she and Rhea were getting in the elevator.

"Yes, like when we asked those building superintendents. They were getting complaints too," Rhea said.

"I smelled no rats anywhere near here," Crystal frowned.

The lights in the elevator were flickering.

* * *

Yuji was just putting on the bathrobe, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. Again he saw something zip by out of the corner of his eye. He picked up his jacket, which he'd thrown over the armchair earlier while stripping before taking his shower and slowly walked around.

He saw it again but this time he was ready. He pounced like a lion, using his jacket as a net as he finally caught whatever it was that was in the room with him. "Gotcha!" the Manakyte cried in triumph.

Yuji had caught the creature with his jacket and wrapped it up tightly as it tried to struggle free. "OK, what the hell are you!" He reached inside his jacket and pulled out what appeared to a silverfish-like robot. It was covered in silver armor, with a segmented body, but it was missing the legs and antennae which belonged to silverfish. "You know, you're kinda cute. You remind me Scrappy." Suddenly, a plate in front of the metal creature's face slid open, revealing rows and rows of sharp, snapping teeth. Yuji cried out as the creature lunged for his face but he held it back. Sparks seemed to emanate as it snapped its teeth together in an attempt to bite him.

"You're definitely like Scrappy!" Yuji grunted. Scrappy, his daughter's pet Scraplet, possessed an array of sharp, spinning, buzzsaw-like teeth to shred the metal he loved to eat.

Yuki and Rhea returned to the hotel room to see Yuji fighting the thing. "Don't move!" Rhea grabbed a fire poker. "Now throw that thing!"

Yuji hurled the creature across the room and it landed on its back. Rhea immediately stabbed it through, sticking it to the carpeted floor.

Yuki helped her brother up. "Are you OK?" she asked.

"I'm fine," he said. "But what the heck is that thing?"

"I don't know," Rhea inspected. "But I think it's dead." The thing was sparking. "_Definitely_ dead."

Yuji knew he could've blasted the thing, but if he had he would've started a fire in the hotel room.

* * *

"**Cybermat Unit 14 has been deactivated."**

"**Pinpoint its last known location."**

"**I obey."**

* * *

After pulling the fire poker off it, Yuji sat down to inspect the creature. "So, any idea what is might be?" Rhea asked.

"I've never seen it before," Yuji admitted, unfamiliar with what he was looking out. However, it was the circular soulless eyes which he recognized.

They were like the eyes of the Cybermen. He remembered the first time he ever saw those things, with their blank faces, uniform appearances, and their creepy electronic voices. What was worse was that once someone had been fully cyber-converted, there was no way to reverse it. Shizuko had been the only one that had been saved from that fate.

Yuji didn't hate the Cybermen. He felt pity for them. They never asked to be converted. They became what they were because of Shiro's sick and twisted plans. He hated humans, but he found a way to use them nonetheless. He grabbed a few and ripped out their brains before transplanting them into those cold, metal shells he called soldiers. They even had their emotions removed just to turn them into unfeeling machines. It just sickened him that innocent people had been forced to become those things, whether they liked it or not.

"But I think I know who made it," said Yuji. "The Cybermen."

"So, those things really are here," Rhea sighed. "But what is that thing supposed to be?"

"Some kind of scout," Yuji stated. "And it was probably eating up the energy, which explains why the lights flickered."

"They eat electricity?" Rhea asked.

"Guess so," said Yuji.

"Hold on, that reminds me," Rhea recalled instantly. "Around the time those people went missing, power failures happened at the same time only for the power to be restored moments later."

"That's too much of a coincidence and I don't believe in them. I'm gonna grab my tools. I need to open this thing up. If it's a scout, it's gonna need to return to its masters so the return coordinates are going to be in its CPU."

* * *

With his tools, Yuji had taken the 'silver rat' apart to see what was inside. It was mostly mechanical, but the teeth made him think that the Cybermen had captured a small predator and converted it. The brain was still organic and connected to the CPU.

Yuji put the 'silver rat' back together and told the girls, "OK, girls. Tonight is when we solve this mystery."

"Do tell," Rhea said, smiling with interest.

"I, Yuji Fudo, son of Yusei Fudo, have just repaired and reprogrammed this little rascal. It'll help us find where it came from, literally. It'll lead us right to where its masters are," Yuji turned on the silver rat and let it loose. "Go on! Go home, little fella!"

The silver rat zipped out the door.

"Are you sure that's smart?" Yuki asked as Yuji grabbed his jacket.

"It's better than nothing. Suit up, girls!"

Rhea had gone to change into her costume and, minutes later, emerged in her Jersey Devil costume and was ready to go. The skin tight material really clung to her body like a second layer of skin. She pulled her cowl over her face and smiled. "Right behind you." She took the window instead of the door as the Fudos went out the door, following the silver rat.

* * *

Yuji and Yuki sped along the road, following the silver rat with their bikes' tracking systems. Speeding alongside them was Rhea, riding a sleek black motorbike she liked to call 'The Devil Cycle'.

"We're heading towards the industrial area," Yuji reported.

"I knew it," Rhea smiled under her helmet. Their bike helmets were equipped with com-links to allow communication while they were racing along the road at high speeds.

Entering the industrial area, there were factories from left to right. Of course, not all of them were in use. Some had to be shut down due to fatal accidents. Many people lost their jobs when those factories shut down but sometimes a factory would be started up again and workers would return, ready to work for minimum wage.

The silver rat entered a building which had not been used in years. 8 to be exact. After over a dozen accidents within the first 3 weeks of its operation, it had to be shut down. Some people even claimed that it was haunted as a few people would walk passed it, only to hear the sounds of screams and moans coming from within.

"And this is the place," said Yuji as he dismounted and removed his helmet. "Be careful, stick close, and prepare for anything," he cautioned.

"Relax," JD told him. "I've done this plenty of times."

"And we're not powerless little girls," added Yuki. Crystal was in her Pokeball that was strapped to Yuki's belt. With just a flick of her wrist, the Pokegirl would be released and ready for battle.

The trio cautiously entered the factory. As soon as they entered, the door behind them shut and they heard monotone electronic voices.

"**Intruder alert. Intruder alert. Delete. Delete."**

"I should've known," Yuji frowned as the metal footsteps were heard. That was the march of the Cybermen. The three huddled together, facing out, as they were surrounded by a group of Cybermen. There were only six of them but they had their arm blasters aimed and ready to fire.

A Cyberman had the silver rat in his hand. "**Who is the one that reprogrammed Cybermat Unit 14?**" it asked.

"That was me," Yuji confessed. '_So, a_ _'Cybermat, huh?'_ The Cybermen weren't very creative when it came to naming things. Always needs the word 'cyber' in their names.

The Cyberman, who was the Cyber Leader, resembled the rest of them except that it had a transparent window on its forehead which exposed the brain. The faceplate was also black. All the Cybermen looked the same, though. Silver-grey plate armor with the OROCHI symbol in the centre of their chests and helmets sporting blank expressions on their faceplates. The faceplates were simplistic, with circulars eyes which emitted blue light and a horizon line as the mouth which flashed each time the Cybermen spoke.

"**You are intelligent**," the Cyber Leader studied Yuji. "Y**ou are also physically strong. That is the only conclusion.**"

"Want me to prove it?" Yuji challenged.

"**You are compatible**," the Cyber Leader concluded. It ordered, **"Take this one."**

"**What of the females?" **a Cyberman inquired.

"**They are incompatible. Delete them."**

"Hold on! Wait!" Yuji shouted. "Don't hurt them and I'll go with you without a fight."

The Cyber Leader accepted**, "That is acceptable. You will accompany us."**

"Well, take me to your leader then." He was going to find out what the Cybermen had been up to since they came to Detroit. Holding up their hands, Yuji, Yuki and JD were escorted by the Cybermen. Yuji, however, couldn't help but make small talk with the heartless machine creatures.

"So, you hold yourself up in an abandoned automobiles factory, huh?" Yuji asked as they were escorted by the Cybermen while they went deeper and deeper into the factory.

"**It was necessary in order to complete our project,**" answered the Cyber Leader.

"And what is your project?" Yuji asked. He was gonna keep this thing talking to find out what was going on.

The Cyber Leader stood before a door and it slid open. "**Enter**," it ordered as Yuji, Yuki and Rhea were escorted into the room. The only lights that were available came from computer monitors but what really got Yuji's attention was what was lying under a bright overhead light.

Yuji's eyes widened as he saw lying on the vertically standing metal table was the body of Master-14, aka the Cyber Master. This was the form Shiro had first assumed in Kyoto to fight them before he evolved into Dark Emperor-14. It was the same silver-grey armor, with spiked up shoulders and clawed hands. In the centre of the chestplate was the OROCHI symbol which all the Cybermen wore. The arm-mounted cannon was also there but the face was missing.

"Shiro?" he asked.

"**Incorrect. This is the Cyber Master**," the Cyber Leader retorted.

"But he was destroyed," Yuji argued.

"**Yes, but we were able to rebuild his body,**" the Cyber Leader replied. "**However, the Cyber Master is incomplete. He requires a human inside to be converted. He requires a human inside to become him.**"

Yuji now knew their motives. "Oh, so that's why you've been kidnapping people. You didn't want more Cybermen. You wanted your leader back."

"**That is correct."**

"So what's the problem? Nobody's good enough?" Yuji taunted.

"**The previous subjects were only 50% compatible. Some were physically compatible but mentally incompatible. Some were mentally compatible but not physically compatible. You, however, Yuji Fudo, are compatible for physically and mentally."**

"**You will be converted," **a Cyberman said as he grabbed hold of Yuji's shoulder and zapped him. He was instantly neutralized as he fell unconscious.

"Yuji!" JD screamed.

"Onii-sama!" Yuki cried out.

"**Silence. You will bear witness to the rise of the Cyber Master,"** commanded the Cyber Leader.

The Cyber Master's shell opened up and Yuji was put inside. The shell closed up, locking him in. The Cyber Leader ordered, "**Begin conversion process phase 1: mental purge**."

"What are you doing to him!-?" Yuki shouted.

"**His mind will be purged to make space for the Cyber Master's mind,**" the Cyber Leader explained. **"Once mental purge has been completed, we will begin full cyber-conversion. Yuji Fudo will no longer exist. Only the Cyber Master will reign supreme."** He put his fist to his chest. "**All hail the Cyber Master**."

The other Cybermen repeated, "**All hail the Cyber Master**."

* * *

_Yuji stood in his subconscious and standing before him was none other than Shiro Juuyon. "Shiro?" he questioned._

"_Yes, and no," 'Shiro' answered. "I'm more of a backup copy. A sum of his memories. Call me Shiro-14."_

"_Oh, a backup file," Yuji translated. "OK, so what are you doing in my head?"_

"_Oh, the Cybermen want me to make this my home and purge your existence right out of here," said Shiro-14 nonchalantly. "Now, it's best that you don't struggle. That's what killed the others."_

"_Because they couldn't handle your insanity?" Yuji mocked._

"_Because they could not understand my genius and it burned their minds," Shiro-14 retorted. "But let's not argue because in a matter of seconds you will no longer be the master of this body."_

"_Actually, that's not going to be happening," said Yuji as his fist was ignited in flames. "I'm about to throw you out. This is my mind and I have the home field advantage."_

_Shiro-14 argued, "A home field advantage does have its benefits, but don't you know your history? A more advanced invading force always conquers the natives, each and every time." Metal armor began to materialize over his body, transforming him into Master-14. "Like when the Japanese invaded and occupied Malaya and Singapore during World War II or when the Germans invaded and occupied." His fingers became clawed as Veronica hid behind Yuji. "They had bigger and better weapons and that is why having a home field advantage won't matter here." The vicious looking faceplate slid into place as the eyes flashed._

"_NOW, DIE!" Master-14 aimed his cannon at Yuji and fired. Explosions erupted at the cannon blasts were unleashed with reckless abandon._

_Yuji, covered in flames, flew towards Master-14 and drew his arm back for a punch. He launched his fist but Master-14 caught it before slamming his own fist across Yuji's face, sending him flying and crashing to the ground. Yuji spat out blood and got up but was knocked to the ground by Master-14's fist._

"_Your body will be mine, your mind will be mine, and your power will be mine," boasted Master-14._

"_Over my dead body," Yuji spat as he got up._

"_It'll be my body soon!" Master-14 roared as he threw a punch which Yuji countered, their fists colliding with explosive force. Brutal blows were exchanged by the two of them as flesh slammed against metal. Still, Yuji did not feel pain from hitting Master-14 and Master-14 couldn't feel pain due to his armor. The metal menace grinned and kicked Yuji across the ground before aiming his cannon at the Manakyte._

"_This will be short and sweet," grinned Master-14 as he took aim and fired._

* * *

As the Cybermen were monitoring the conversion process, Yuki whispered into JD's ear, "We need to find a way to stop that machine. Any ideas?"

"I'm thinking, but Yuji might die," JD argued. She didn't know how this technology worked, but she could figure it out. It might take time, but one wrong move and Yuji could be killed.

The computer screens showed the progress of the mental purge as well as the progress of the Cyber Master's memories occupying Yuji's mind.

"**Once the Cyber Master has awakened, the world will be upgraded**," said the Cyber Leader. "**All hail the Cyber Master.**"

"**All hail the Cyber Master**."

JD whispered, "You know, for a bunch of emotionless machines, they are strangely devoted. Fanatical even."

"That's just how they were programmed," Yuki sighed. She just felt sad for them,

* * *

_**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**_

_Explosions erupted throughout Yuji's subconscious from Master-14's cannonfire._

"_FIRST I'M GONNA FUCKING KILL YOU! THEN I'M GOING TO CONVERT YOUR BITCHES INTO CYBERDOLLS FOR MY PLEASURE AND FUCK THEM TO DEATH!" Master-14 roared as he laughed maniacally._

_Master-14 saw a silhouette standing in it the smoke and grinned his toothy grin, "Oh, so you're still standing, huh?"_

"_What did you say?" Yuji growled._

"_What?" Master-14 blinked._

"_What did you say about my girls?" Yuji questioned, still growling as a flaming aura radiated from his body._

"_Oh, that part about me turning them into my cyberdoll bitches?" Master-14 asked._

"_Yes." In a flash Yuji was standing in front of Master-14. "You die now."_

_**POW!**_

_Master-14 went skidding back, reeling from the hit. He thought he was seeing doubles; triples, no, eight copies of Yuji in fact as they all stood together. Five of them were wearing the belts of Kamen Riders Faiz, Omega, Bushido, Liger and Mystic Knight Dragoon while three were without belts but one was wearing his Blue Lantern Ring._

"_WHAT THE FUCK?-!"_

"_Our mind, remember?" the Yuji wearing the Faiz Belt jeered._

"_We can do whatever the fuck we want here, Shiro," the Yuji with the Omega Belt grinned._

"_Even splitting our talents to eliminate you," the Yuji wearing the Bushido Belt declared._

"_We're gonna burn you," the Yuji wearing the Mystic Belt declared._

_The other three Yujis, including the one wearing the Liger Belt, pointed and shouted, "WE'RE GONNA GET WILD ON YOUR STUPID ASS!"_

"_To put it simply, Shiro Juuyon," the Ring-wearing Yuji stated calmly, "There is no hope for you."_

"_HENSHIN!" they all chorused_

"_FIRE WITHIN ME!" the Mystic-wearing Yuji called as he was engulfed in flames._

_The other Yujis went through their own transformations as they all stood before Master-14 with different personas._

_Kamen Rider Faiz: Blaster Form, the Champion of Orphenochs. He wore a red bodysuit with a red helmet that sported large yellow eyes. His silver armor was rounded with yellow lines travelling across the chest. Black lines likewise travelled across his suit. In his hand was a large weapon which had his phone and means of transformation attached to it_

_Kamen Rider Omega, the Fallen Hero. He wore black armor with golden streams on the legs and arms. The Omega symbol was on the chest and the shoulder guards that covered the upper arms for protection. A black coat appeared to be worn under the armor as well, judging from the high collar around his neck and the long length of black fabric with golden trimmings that hung from the waist to his ankles. The helmet was rounded with a semi-circular crown on top that was separated down the center. The faceplate and visor combo was red and shaped after the Omega symbol._

_Mystic Knight Dragoon: Survive Mode, the Magical Knight of the Flame. He was donned in a black bodysuit, but his chest armor was red and styled like a dragon's face with spikes coming from his shoulder. His face grille had turned gold with dragon whiskers rising from the emblem on his helmet. He didn't have his arm guard anymore, but a gun styled after a different dragon's head._

_Kamen Rider Bushido: Shogun Form, the Samurai of Redemption. He wore a black bodysuit underneath a gold do (torso armor) that covered his chest and ribs. He had gold, armored, haidate (thigh guards) covering his waist, front and back, gold kote (sleeve armor) protecting his forearms, gold suneate (greaves) covering his shins with three spikes protruding from them, white tekko (hand guards) covering his black gloves. Gold, broad, wing-like, shoulder pads covered his shoulders, with gold sode (shoulder flaps) underneath. On the front of the armored shoulders, the crest of the Six Samurai rested. He wore white armored boots and a gold kabuto (helmet) covered his head. The helmet was crowned by gold, antenna-like, horns. He also wore a white sleeveless haori over his armor. The haori was trimmed in gold with the crest of the Six Samurai on the back. He now wielded two katana instead of one._

_Transcended Yuji, the Volcanic Dragon Manakyte. He stood covered in molten rock armor that covered his arms, legs, sides, and lower torso. His hands now had claws, as well as his feet, and his shoulders had rounded, molten rock, pads that spewed flames, like torches. He had a pair of wings that were made of flames and his tail swished back and forth. His hair had hardened, like a make-shift helmet, and the horns were more pronounced. Lines of magma glowed brightly as they covered Yuji's body and he grew fangs. In the center of his chest was a diamond shaped core that glowed with a bright red and yellow aura, like lava. He was giving off a wave of heat that made the room feel like a sauna._

_Kamen Rider Liger: Kaizer Form, King of the Beasts. He was clad in a black bodysuit that was worn under a long black coat with a high collar and gold trimmings. His legs were covered black shin-high greaves with diamond-shaped golden knee pads and the greaves ended in boots that resembled Liger Zero's golden foot claws, and the thighs were covered by black armor as well. The sides of his lower legs had gold ion boosters that were similar to the Jäger Form's boosters but were small to fit proportions. His arms were covered by black gauntlets that ended in gold claws with ports located in the palms, while the forearms were equipped with the Schneider Form's Vi-Blades but were gold instead of blue and black armor encased his upper arms. The chest armor was black and in the center was a golden lion head with a spherical ruby in its jaws. The shoulders were black, and trimmed with gold triangular points. On his back was a pair of black wing-like extensions that were folded down to take up less space and connected between them was the Energy Form's Energy Charger, but was completely gold instead of orange. The helmet that covered his head was black, with the sides shaped like golden fangs and lining with the red visor that went over his eyes, and from the crown of his head extended a golden horn. From the back of his head flowed long and wavy golden hair that split into a twin tail hairstyle._

_Blue Lantern Yuji, the Harbinger of Hope. He now wore a black bodysuit with blue shin-high boots, white forearm-length gloves, a blue jacket that was part of the suit, covering his arms, shoulders, sides and back, as well as having a lifted collar. He also had blue gem-like pads on his knees, shoulders, and elbows. In the center of his chest was the symbol of the Blue Lantern Corps. His head was covered by a blue helmet that was similar to Yusei Fudo's D-Wheel helmet and a black opaque visor covered his eyes. _

_Verz Vulcan, Darkness Incarnate. He had gills on the side of his neck which spewed dark smoke and horns growing out of the corners of his forehead which pointed forwards. He sported a pair of large, leathery, bat-like wings and a long spiny tail with a trident-head at the tip. His neck was long and he wore a mask that looked reptilian with sharp teeth. He also sported wicked sharp claws. _

"_Oh, fuck me," Master-14 paled._

"_YOU ASKED FOR IT, ASSHOLE!" the Yujis roared. "IT'S RAPING TIME! LET'S GET WILD!"_

_The one who made the first move was none other than Verz Vulcan who buried his fists into the ground. Barbed tendrils shot out and struck Master-14 relentlessly as he tried to block and deflect them, but they were everywhere and hitting him with the speed of a striking serpent. Seeing an opening, the others attacked._

_Faiz and Dragoon, with their respective weapons, fired. Master-14 was bombarded by fireballs which sent him staggering back before he was driven backwards by a photon beam attack from Faiz's Faiz Blaster. _

"_One more for the road, bitch!" Faiz cried as he fired another blast that sent Master-14 airborne._

"_Me next!" Dragoon called as he whistled, an armored dragon flying down for the Knight to jump on his back as they flew after Master-14. Drawing a card, Dragoon fed it to the gun._

"_**FINAL VENT!"**_

_Dragoon jumped ahead as his dragon encased him in an aura of fire. **"DRAGON SOUL SMASH!"** the Mystic Knight called as he slammed into Master-14 with a power-packed punch that dropped him onto the ground._

_Getting up, Master-14 aimed his cannon at them only for Shogun Bushido to dash by and slice his cannon right off his arm. "You're not going anywhere," Shogun Bushido declared. He spun in place, cutting Master-14 across the chest as the force and speed of the attack created a vortex that was sucking Master-14 back. The Samurai Rider roared as he took another swing, his second strike cutting deeper into Master-14's armor as he was thrown upward. **"Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu Batou-jutsu: Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki!**_

_Transcended Yuji roared as he lunged and punched Master-14 right in the face with a flaming fist. **"VESUVIUS VULCAN!"** Transcended Yuji pelted Master-14 pelted him with magma-hot bullets. **"MAGMA MINE!"** he roared as he slammed a fist down, a geyser of flame erupting from beneath Master-14 as he cried out in agony. "Finally...**KRAKATOA CRUSHER!**" Transcended Yuji finished his assault with a punishing punch to the face that destroyed Master-14's jaw._

_Omega followed by slashing his Omega Stylanzer repeatedly across Master-14's chest, ripping off sparks and chunks of his armor. Each strike did heavy damage and Omega grabbed Master-14 and slammed him down, before stabbing the Stylanzer into his back and calling forth a bolt of gold lightning that struck down on the sword and electrocuted Master-14. The dark Rider swung his sword to release Master-14 and send him rolling away._

_Master-14 roared and threw a punch at Omega, only for blue ropes to bind his right arm, stopping him. Another rope bound his left arm, locking both arms together. He tried to struggle free. Standing in the distance was Blue Lantern Yuji who'd just used his ring to create the bindings._

"_Never said you could leave, Shiro," the Lantern quipped as he dashed forward and started punching repeatedly, pummeling the enemy with punch after punch before time stopped. Lantern Yuji's hand glowed with blue energy as he launched a final punch. **"SHINHA GOU SHOUSEN!"** The punch did major damage to Master-14 but BL-Yuji kept him still, his construct bindings still holding him. "NOW!"_

_Finally, Kaiser Liger dashed forward and called **"Heaven's Touch!"** as he got into Master-14's face and blasted him with his palm cannons. The golden Vi-Blades folded down as they glowed and started slashing Master-14 relentlessly with Kaizer Liger's direction. He then grabbed Master-14 by the shoulders, keeping him still as his red core began to glow. **"Crimson Blessing!"** he called as Master-14 was engulfed by the blast of crimson energy. He then jumped back and leapt into the air, his wings spread wide and proudly before he launched himself at Master-14 with a flying drop kick. The attack connected as his feet smashed into the mechanical madman's chest, shattering his armor with explosive force as he was unwillingly sent flying, tumbling through the air before crashing down to the ground._

_Shiro-14 struggled to pick himself up as glowing cracks began to spread all over his body. He glared at the Yujis and screamed in outrage, "DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU!" His body was now an unstable mess as it had taken far too much damage. _

"_AND NOW! THE FINISH!" the Yujis called as they gathered together. They put their hands out in front as a ball of rainbow-colored energy formed in front of them._

"_WHAT'S GOING ON?-!" Shiro-14 roared. "YOU ALL SHOULD NOT BE THIS POWERFUL!"_

_Their right fists began to glow as the King of Hearts Crest appeared and they all chanted. "Our spirits are aflame! If we feel the fire, there is nothing we cannot defeat! And now this hand of mine is burning red! It's loud roar tells me to grasp victory! ERUPTING! SEKIHA! TEN-KYO-KEN!" They all roared as the ball of power was fired at Shiro-14, the entity screaming in agony as he was slowly obliterated._

"_This...is not...how it was...supposed to end...!-!-!" Shiro-14 wailed as his entire body broke down into pixels and vanished right before the Yujis' eyes._

_The Yujis all stood together before fusing back into one single Yuji. "It's time to go home," he said as he closed his eyes. Opening his eyes, he saw a tunnel of light and made his way towards it._

* * *

The Cybermen were monitoring the progress as they downloaded their Cyber Master's memories into Yuji's brain. Yuji was trapped in the metal suit of armor, but Yuki and Rhea knew he was fighting. He would not fall so easily, not even in his own mind.

The computer screen flashed 'ERROR' repeatedly.

"**What is the meaning of this?" **the Cyber Leader demanded.

The Cyber Master's body stepped off the table and began to shake and tremble. The face plate split open, showing Yuji's face. "NO!" he screamed as he tore himself free from the cybernetic armor which collapsed after he landed on his feet. He turned to glare at the Cybermen who aimed their blasters at him. "I just killed your lord and master! What do you think you can do to me?"

"**Delete. Delete. Delete,**" the Cybermen chanted as they fired at Yuji Fudo.

"DELETE THIS!" Yuji roared. "GIRLS, NOW!"

Yuki and JD realized that was the signal and immediately went on the attack. JD took out several sharp boomerangs from her belt and hurled them at the Cybermen. The boomerangs embedded themselves into their chests. Not quite effective, until JD took out a switch and held a button down, electrocuting the Cybermen and causing them to short out. She ducked and took cover as lasers flew and took out her extendable battle staff.

Yuki had just released Crystal and both Tamer and Pokegirl attacked with arctic blizzards. The Cybermen, exposed to intense cold, began to become sluggish in their movements before finally freezing in blocks of ice.

"**You have destroyed the Cyber Master. You will be deleted,**" the Cyber Leader said as it aimed a hi-tech rifle at Yuji and began firing. The energy bolts went flying as Yuji ran at the Cyber Leader, weaving and zigzagging. He grabbed hold of the gun and punched the Cyber Leader across the face, sending it reeling.

"Alright, metal-head. Look at me. Look at your men. Now back to me. Back to your men. Back to me. I'm not your men. I'm flipping you off. Now where's your gun?" Yuji cocked the Cyber Leader's Cyber-Rifle. "Right here!" He fired a shot from the Cyber-Rifle which hit the Cyber Leader directly in the chest. The Cyber Leader was driven backwards by the violent shot and trembled as its body began to spark, the damage done.

However, the Cyber Leader was not about to be defeated like this. It made one last ditched effort to destroy Yuji and the girls, "**A-A-Activate...Cy-Cyber...Mines..**." With those words, the Cyber Leader self-destructed, sending pieces of itself and shrapnel flying in all directions.

Yuji, however, managed to catch the Cyber Leader's last words.

"GIRLS! WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE! RUN!"

* * *

The entire factory was now burning rubble with Yuki, Yuji and Rhea standing in front of it. Yuji's power had overwhelmed the Cybermen, destroying them in the instant. Completely assured of their own superiority, they didn't think they would be defeated.

It seemed that the Cybermen did keep a few emotions, arrogance being chief among them. The Cybermen's plan did explain a lot of things. The conversion process needed power, hence the periodic power failures and blackouts the city had experienced. The Cybermats had not just been used to scout and search for potential candidates to become the Cyber Master's new brain, but also used to drain power and send it to the Cybermen.

"I thought I lost you," said Yuki as she hugged her brother in relief.

"So, what happened when you were in there?" Rhea asked as she pulled down her cowl.

"The Cybermen needed a strong mind and strong body to convert into their replacement Cyber Master," Yuji began to explain. "Unfortunately for them, my mind proved to be too strong."

"It wasn't your mind," Yuki argued.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Yuji questioned his sister curiously.

"It wasn't your mind," she repeated. "If there's one thing a Cyberman can never truly understand, it's the strength of the human heart. That is why you were able to conquer Shiro and win your soul. That is the absolute truth."

"That's very deep and spiritual, Yuki," Yuji praised. "Come on, let's get the hell outta here. I need the rest after the bullshit I just went through."

As Yuji was the first to start walking, he didn't know his sister was smirking behind his back. "Yes, Onii-sama," she whispered, _"Rest..."_

"We're seriously going through with it?" Rhea asked, cheeks flushed.

"You agreed to it," Yuki reminded.

"Only because he's your family," she whispered back. "I wouldn't do it if it was anyone else..!"

"You'll be fine," Yuki reassured. "Come on." Yuki looped her arm around Rhea's and the Manakyte and Caped Crusader followed Yuji.

'_When I first started my career as a masked vigilante, I never thought I would ever find love, especially with a girl from another dimension who turned out to be a dragon in human form. I wonder what my parents would think. Knowing them, they would definitely approve. I'm happy, and that's the most important thing. That, and the sex is awesome. She also has Crystal, which make our nights really special and exciting. Kinky too. Now, I feel attracted to her brother. All I know is that if what I think was going to happen was indeed going to happen...It would forever be burned into my memories..._'

"Rhea?"

"Yes, Yuki?"

"You were narrating again."

"I was thinking out loud!-?"

* * *

"Bed...finally," Yuji sighed as he fell back on the huge bed. He was with the girls in the hotel room. "This is nice and comfy~"

"Onii-sama, can we talk?" Yuki called.

"What is it, sister?" he replied as he rose from the bed. He saw Rhea and Crystal shifting in their stances uncomfortably and their cheeks flushed. "What's the matter, you two?"

Rhea didn't answer, trying to avert Yuji's gaze as she was still nervous about the arrangement. Crystal was also blushing, but glaring down at her Mistress's brother.

"There's something important we wish to discuss," Yuki continued, "And while I know you need your rest after today, this is an important topic..."

"Well, since you put it that way... I'll listen," Yuji accepted, curious about what they wanted to discuss.

"You see, Crystal has finally become a Pokewoman recently; about a week ago," Yuki explained.

"Oh, well congrats, Crys," Yuji smiled.

"...Thank you," the Frostwyrm acknowledged.

"As a result, the three of us have been discussing about...having children," Yuki blushed.

Yuji started to put two and two together and looked to his sister, "This has to do with me, doesn't it?"

Yuki nodded and stood with her lovers, "We wish for you to father our children, Onii-sama."

Crystal spoke up, sputtering in her speech, "D-D-Do not misunderstand, my Lord...! I do this only for my mistress! This is in no way a sign of affection towards you! Understand?-!"

"Alright, alright," Yuji chuckled. "Rhea? What do you think of all this?"

"Well, Yuki and I talked about it...and having kids doesn't sound all that bad," Rhea admitted. "But, well, Yuki doesn't exactly have the right...equipment."

"And unfortunately, I'm out of magic bullets right now," Yuji added regretfully. "I guess we're doing this the old-fashioned way."

Yuki smiled gratefully to her brother, "You mean...?"

Yuji smiled, "I'll gladly help out." He was rewarded with a hug and passionate kiss from Yuki as Crystal looked on enviously. Rhea was a little envious as well, but Yuki and Yuji were family.

"Thank you, Onii-sama," Yuki smiled blissfully as she returned to the girls.

* * *

The following morning, Yuji woke up feeling absolutely refreshed. He was lying under the covers with all three girls with him. Yuki was on top with Rhea and Crystal flanking him. The girls looked completely content. Of course they also had bits of his dried up cum on them but they could always clean themselves up later. Spotting the clock on the wall, he saw that it was half past noon.

"Sometimes I love this life," Yuji sighed as he put his hands behind his head. He figured he could kick back and relax a little longer.

When they went to checkout, they learnt that there were complaints from all the noise they made the night before. The cleaning lady would of course notice the huge mess she would have to clean up as well.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And one more chapter down. Yuji VS the Cybermen. And unlike the DALEKs, this will be their final appearance in KRGL, period. They're all gone. Unless someone else starts to build them. What are the odds of that, though? Now, the lemon scene is just something I thought was a hot way to end the chapter. Some might be offended by the 'incest' here but it's all for the sake of creative writing. I apologize, however, to those who are offended by incest. To be honest I think it's unnatural, but this is just fiction so there's no real problem. Anyway, hope you guys can read and review and hopefully drop your comments.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: One of the funnest lemons I've ever done. I enjoyed writing it up, hope there are some guys out there who are as sick as I am so they could enjoy reading this.**

31


	148. The Legacy of Cain Part 92

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN **

**Part 92: Path to Power Phase 3  
**

**Written By: KR Chrome and Toku Warrior  
**

It was a couple of days since Shinichi and Rena came to visit Shawna. Shinichi had informed neither of the girls of what had happened at Duke Dogma's residence. He didn't want to scare them. Shinichi chose to remain to keep Shawna company and to make sure she was safe. He didn't want a demon like Zagi to come and ambush her again. Rena, however, had returned home. She had a report to do on a painting by Vincent Van Gogh and it needed to be finished before the deadline.

Shinichi was performing a kata with Shawna as his audience in the garden. In his hands was the Sword of Ascalon and he was wielding it like a pro. The sword dance was indeed something to admire as it was both fierce yet graceful at the same time. Those were the only words Shawna could use to describe what she was seeing. Once he was done, he sheathed the Sword of Ascalon and gave Shawna a bow.

"Sir Shinichi," Shawna spoke up.

"What is it, Shawna-chan?" he asked.

"Would you do me the honor of showing me the armor bestowed upon you by the Sword of Ascalon, the same armor you donned when you slew Dreigon?" she requested. It wasn't an impossible request but would he be permitted to do it.

'_Is it OK_?' Shinichi asked St. George in his mind.

'_I don't see why not. Though, for the sake of safety, you should ask her to stand back_,' St. George advised.

"OK, Shawna-chan," Shinichi smiled and the princess smiled as her request would be fulfilled. "Just take a few steps back. This is going to be a little intense."

He drew the Sword of Ascalon and thrust it into the air. He called, "Bring order to the chaos, St George!" He cut the ring of light and with the sword he moved the circle away from him. It dropped the pieces of the Ascalon Form armor which came together to form the suit which stood before Princess Shawna.

"Amazing," she admired the regal looking suit of draconic-themed armor as she got a close look at it. It was a bit ironic, though, the the armor used in the slaying of Dreigon the Cyber-Dragon was modeled after dragons. That didn't change the fact that the suit of armor was still majestic and awesome.

* * *

_Shinichi stood in the mindscape of his subconscious facing St. George. Gripped in his hand was the Seigi no Hogosha, a Zanpakutou-like blade which took on an elaborate sakabatou form, combining features of the Higurashi no Yaiba, Sword of Ascalon, Oni no Hone and Kage no Hoshi. He was also clad in his black leather training outfit._

"_You've passed the first two trials, lad," said St. George. "Now is your third."_

_Shouldering his sword, Shinichi asked, "So, who am I fighting this time? First you had me fight some enemies based on the memories of the Riders, then you had me fight the Riders themselves. So, who is this time?"_

"_Take a guess," a gruff voice said._

_Shinichi spun around and saw Gokuaku, Yabuki and Zennin looking at him. The green Oni was smiling as Yabuki's expression was neutral. It was hard to tell what expression Zennin was wearing since his face was bandaged. He was a ninja mummy after all._

"_You're my opponents," Shinichi concluded. It just made sense that his next opponents would be the ones who provided him the power to assume three of his strongest forms._

_Yabuki, spirit of the Higurashi no Yaiba (Cicada's Blade): The samurai. His power provided Shinichi the ability to wield the Higurashi no Yaiba which could slay demons with ease. His power took on the form of the Higurashi Armor, an emerald suit of armor modeled after a samurai with features of a cicada._

_Gokuaku, spirit of the Hone no Oni (Ogre's Bone): The ogre. His power provided Shinichi with the ability to wield the elements of fire, wind and lightning. It is also the physically strongest of the three forms. His power took on the form of the Oni Armor, a powerful suit of ogre-themed armor with a demonic skull-like helmet._

_Zennin, spirit of the Kage no Hoshi (Star of the Shadows): The ninja. His power enabled Shinichi to have access to the ninja arts. With his power Shinichi could create duplicates, turn invisible, teleport, and conjure a variety of ninja weapons. His power took on the form of the Kage Armor, a ninja-themed suit of armor more suited for stealth._

"_St. George asked us to be your next trial and it was our honor to accept," said Yabuki. _

"_I just wanted a chance to see how strong you've become," admitted Gokuaku._

"_I was bored," confessed Zennin._

"_So, how are we supposed to do this?" Shinichi asked. "One-on-one or three-on-one."_

"_To test your strength, it will be three VS one," St. George answered._

"_...That's what I thought," sighed Shinichi. He gripped his sword. "Alright, let's do this."_

_The Tsukumogami drew out their weapons, and also activated another power. It was a power they had received from Shinichi in exchange for their services._

"_Henshin!" the Tsukumogami of Hinamizawa's Treasures called and Shinichi's eyes widened. A swarm of cicadas of green light, a tornado of three elements, and shadows enveloped the Tsukumogami each._

_Yabuki, Gokuaku, and Zennin had donned the armors of Higurashi Form, Oni Form and Kage Form, respectively._

"_Oh...crap baskets," Shinichi cursed under his breath._

"_You mustn't curse," St. George chided. He gave his wielder and trainee an encouraging pat on the chest. "Best of luck."_

"_And don't worry, kiddo. The worst you'll get is a huge headache," said Gokuaku as he slammed the Oni Kanabo down, causing the ground to shake._

_(**Insert BGM: Battle Royale - KR Decade Movie OST**)_

"_That is so gonna be fun," said Shinichi as he got into a stance, his grip tightening around the Seigi no Hogosha's hilt as he dug in his heels. He stared his opponents down and decided to make the first move as he dashed towards them, kicking blades of grass into the air._

_The Tsukumogami also charged as well, running towards their chosen wielder. The first to close the gap was none other than Yabuki who drew his sword._

_**FLASH!**_

_**CLASH!**_

_Sparks flew in all directions as two swords connected violently, metal ringing against each other loudly. Shinichi eyes were narrowed as he locked blades at Yabuki whose face was hidden under the helmet. Breaking the lock, Yabuki thrust forward but Shinichi sidestepped the attack. He then kicked off the grass as Gokuaku nearly crushed him with the Oni Kanabo. The club left a huge crater on impact and Shinichi knew that it could've been him lying in a bloody heap. _

_The sounds of metal whistling through the air caught Shinichi's attention and he spun around, using his sword to deflect the kunai coming at him. The knives fell at his feet as Zennin suddenly appeared and tried to knock him out with a roundhouse kick. Shinichi blocked with his forearm and then the other one raised up to blocked Zennin's follow up kick. Zennin then performed a backflip, hitting Shinichi in the chin and sending him staggering._

_Shinichi spat out blood and rubbed his sore chin before staring down his opponents. St. George watched impassively. Just what was his student thinking?_

_Suddenly, Shinichi vanished from sight. He'd just used Shunpo. All of a sudden, sparks flew off the armored Tsukumogami before Shinichi reappeared behind them, his back facing them with his Seigi no Hogosha pointed down._

_He'd just used Shunpo to strike the three Tsukumogami at once. _

_Spinning around, he unleashed a fireball and shouted, "Shakkaho!" The explosion sent the three Tsukumogami flying in the air before they went tumbling along the grassy field. Kicking off the ground, Shinichi shot into the sky and swung his sword with a cry of, "Kongosouha!" The barrage of sharp diamond shards hit both Gokuaku and Zennin but Yabuki was able to deflect the assault with his skilled swordsmanship, swiftly swatting away the shards with his sword (try and say that three times fast)._

_Recovering, Gokuaku sent tornado blasts flying at Shinichi who stabbed his sword into the ground to keep himself from flying away, digging his heels into the ground firmly to gain a grip. When the winds died down, Shinichi cried as he was struck from behind by Zennin who used a bo staff. Taking hold of the Seigi no Hogosha, he swung at Zennin to disarm him but the ninja just vanished in a plume of black smoke which surrounded SHinichi. Blinded, Shinichi tried to seek out his opponents only to cry out as he was zapped by lightning. Wind blew the smoke away as Shinichi was down on one knee._

_St. George frowned in disappointment. After all this time and training, Shinichi should be able to handle fighting three of the Tsukumogami. But now it appeared that they were overpowering him. He then noticed something odd._

_The blade of the Seigi no Hogosha had turned pitch black._

"_**Getsuga...Tenshou (Moon Fang Heaven Piercer)**!"_

_Of course, it was the attack he'd learnt when he'd been blessed and given power by the Moon Goddess. A wave of black energy in the shape of a crescent was unleashed from the tip of the blade, tearing the ground apart as it traveled towards the three Tsukumogami with no hint of dispersing. The attack exploded, sending all three Tsukumogami flying into the air. Shinichi then went on the attack, using Shunpo to move at blinding speeds. His first target was Zennin whom he elbowed in the stomach so hard his body bent in half before the force of the blow sent him crashing to the ground. Moving towards Gokuaku, he had the Oni around the waist and staring at the ground before spinning like a corkscrew. The impact was violent as it caused the ground to tremor and a crater to form. Shinichi was on his feet while Gokuaku had his head stuck in the ground._

_Shinichi detected Yabuki's Reiryoku and spun around with the Seigi no Hogosha held in a reverse grip, parrying Yabuki's sword strike. Shinichi then drove Yabuki back with a kick before tossing his sword up. Yabuki followed the direction of the sword, looking up, only to realize his folly too late as Shinichi unleashed a barrage of punches at him. He then caught the Seigi no Hogosha and held the edge of the blade to Yabuki's throat, under his chin._

"_Game, Set & Match," Shinichi concluded, smiling._

"_Congratulations, you've completed Round One," Yabuki praised._

"_Thanks, I-" Shinichi paused as he realized what Yabuki had just said. "Wait, what?"_

"_Prepare for Round Two!" Yabuki shouted as his body released a blinding golden light. Shinichi backed away, shielding his eyes, screwing them shut. Meanwhile, Gokuaku and Zennin's body both glowed before turning into beams of light that flew towards Yabuki._

_As the light show faded, Shinichi opened his eyes and gawked openly at what he was seeing._

_It was his Hinamizawa Guardian Form._

_(**Switch BGM: Battle Royale to Last Battle - KR Decade Movie OST**)_

"_Oh-!" was all Shinichi managed to say before he was punched so hard he was sent soaring through the air. His voice carried on as he shouted, "...Shiiiiiiiiit-!-!-!" before crashing violently into the nearby mountain. Electricity crackled around H-Guardian's fist._

_Shinichi was lying inside a cave made when he crashed straight into the mountain, stunned by the electrical punch. He muttered, "I'm so glad this is all in my head." He was sure going to have a headache after this. Even if this was his subconscious, the pain still felt so real. He picked himself up and looked for the Seigi no Hogosha. "Where is it...? Where is it...?" he asked himself. He must've dropped the sword in flight. "Well, isn't this just great," he murmured sarcastically._

"_Are you going to stay in there or come out and fight?" H-Guardian called from outside the cave with a triple voice (the three voices of Zennin, Yabuki and Gokuaku as one)._

"_Well, can't stay here. Can't fail this trial," Shinichi resolved as he calmly exited the cave to see H-Guardian hovering in front of him and holding the Seigi no Hogosha!_

"_Your next trial is to defeat me and reclaim your sword," challenged H-Guardian._

"_You're just making this up as you go along, aren't ya?" Shinichi asked. H-Guardian shrugged. "Well, you might've taken my weapon, but I'm anything but unarmed." Shinichi jumped from the cave and activated his Great Fists. With a ferocious roared he slammed one of his thick armored, gigantic fists into H-Guardian. H-Guardian, however, caught the fist and spun around before tossing Shinichi to the ground. Circuitry lines spread across Shinichi's back before a pair of energy wings shot out, allowing Shinichi to hover in midair before shooting towards H-Guardian like a rocket._

_St. George had moved into position for a better look as he watched Shinichi and H-Guardian fighting in midair. Shinichi was using his Shovel Claw to wrench the Seigi no Hogosha free from H-Guardian's grip while also gripping his other wrist in his hand. The two struggled with each other but in the middle of their tug-o-war, H-Guardian's body ignited, causing Shinichi to cry out as he was burnt. Moving at the speed of wind. H-Guardian hit Shinichi in the stomach with a corkscrew punch and then used an electrified karate chop to the base of his neck which stunned him before sending him crashing to the ground._

"_Sorry about this, Shinichi," said H-Guardian apologetically as he took hold of the Cho Dai-Shuriken mounted on his back. "Better luck next time." He hurled the weapon which went spinning as it sliced through the air. It then broke apart, turning into a dozen individual blades known as Kunai Missiles which continued on their set trajectory._

_Shinichi saw them coming when all of a sudden thirteen familiar figures stood around him. A dome of energy surrounded Shinichi and the deflected the Kunai Missiles._

"_Sempai-tachi!" gasped Shinichi. The Legendary Riders had saved him, but then he realized what this meant. He'd failed the test. "I failed," he murmured._

"_No, you haven't," denied Kamen Rider V3._

"_Shinichi, don't you remember what we are?" Kamen Rider ZX asked._

"_We're your power, we're part of you," answered Kamen Rider X._

"_Shinichi, friend," said Amazon, doing the friendship sign with his hands, clasping his hands together with the pinkies held up._

"_And the Seigi no Hogosha is part of you, and will never leave you," said Ichigo. Shinichi's hand flashed with light as the Seigi no Hogosha appeared in it. "It never left you."_

"_So, it was just a clever trick," said Shinichi as he spotted H-Guardian standing in the distance. The Seigi no Hogosha in his hand shimmered, revealing it to be the Higurashi no Yaiba. "And I fell for it," he frowned._

"_You can make up for it right now," said BLACK RX as he glowed. The other Riders followed suit as well. They turned into spheres of light which merged with the Seigi no Hogosha._

"_NOW WIN!" the Riders' voices and spirits encouraged._

"_I'm not alone," Shinichi said. "Those before me who held the title of Kamen Rider are fighting alongside me!"_

_Shinichi charged towards H-Guardian who prepared his attack. "Kin...no..."_

"_Shin...Rider..."_

_The gap was closed and both were within range of each other._

"_HIGURASHI ZAN!"_

"_TAMASHII GIRI!"_

_Their cries were followed by a loud, violent and bright explosion._

* * *

_The dust cloud was thick and rubble littered around the dust cloud as St. George strode towards it. With a wave of his armored hand, the Tsukumogami of the Sword of Ascalon blew the dust cloud away to reveal standing in the crater H-Guardian._

_St. George sighed, "Well, it appears he'll need more training before he can participate in another trial." He noticed the absence of Shinichi's body. "I hope you hadn't accidentally destroyed him."_

_H-Guardian just chuckled. St. George wondered what was funny before the golden armor vanished to reveal Shinichi standing in the gold-armored Rider's place. "Gotcha! Had you fooled!" laughed Shinichi as he pointed his fingers at St. George like he was shooting pistols in the Genovian Tsukumogami's direction._

_St. George looked to Shinichi with approval. "So, you figured out the purpose of the trial."_

"_I am the master of my power, not the other way around," said Shinichi. "I wasn't supposed to beat the Tsukumogami. I was supposed to absorb them and make their powers mine as they are supposed to."_

_St. George nodded as that was the correct answer. Shinichi then banished the Seigi no Hogosha and walked over to St. George as Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki followed suit._

"_Now that was a good workout!" Gokuaku shouted as he stretched out his body._

"_Sure was," Shinichi agreed. "Well, I need to get back. I'm visiting Shawna-chan today and she was supposed to take me on a tour of the kingdom."_

_St. George nodded as he smiled behind his mask. "Then we shall end the training here for today. And please take good care of Sir George's-" St. George lifted his head up as did the other Tsukumogami and then looked back at Shinichi. "Lad, it seems that we have a bit of a problem going on back in the real world."_

"_Oh great, since when is that a surprise?" Shinichi complained with some sarcasm as he let his mind fade to black, preparing to wake up._

_(**End Song**)_

* * *

Upon opening his eyes, the first thing Shinichi could see was that he was in a low-lit room that looked like it was apart of some medieval castle. There were a ton of torture devices everywhere that would have made the ones back in Hinamizawa look like playthings. As he sat there he suddenly felt a body move and squirm around next to his.

"Shawna-chan, what's going and where the heck are we?" Shinichi asked her as he noticed that it was Princess Shawna that was next to him. He then noticed that they were both tied up and set upon a patch of straw. "And for that matter, why are we here?" The last thing he remembered was being back at his room in the royal palace with her. He had just started his meditation for his training and that usually left his body unguarded for the time. So Shawna had offered to stay by his side and keep an eye on him. She had always wanted to see how he trained with St. George and the others.

"Sir Shinichi!" Shawna looked at him with relief, "You are finally awake."

"Yeah, sorry about that," he apologized. "So, where are we?"

"Well, it seems that the whelp has finally decided to join us," a voice called out.

Shinichi looked up to see a gathering of people who wore a set of black and red cloaks over their bodies and with the hoods pulled up and over their heads so as to hide their faces. Such a cliche. A dark dungeon, bound by ropes that he could easily break and being held captive by idiots wearing cloaks and robes. Why couldn't the villains of today find a new outlet and come up with a new fashion sense? Why couldn't they think of something original and try something new?

"OK, start from the beginning. Why did you kidnap me and Shawna-chan?" asked Shinichi.

"Silence! You will not address the crown princess in such a way!" the leader of the hooded and cloaked cultists shouted.

"Hey, I'm not the jackass who tied her up and put her in a torture chamber! As for how I address her, she doesn't have a problem with it," Shinichi shrugged. "Do you, Shawna-chan?"

"No, I don't, Sir Shinichi," smiled Shawna.

"Your Highness, please do not associate yourself with this..." the leader began but was cut off.

"This _what_?" Shawna interrupted, eyes narrowed. She was royalty, born and raised to take the crown when her time came, and there was power behind her gaze. The way this cult leader was speaking showed that he had no respect for Shinichi. "This hero? Sir Shinichi has saved this country and you will show him respect."

"He does not deserve respect or Lord George's Sword of Ascalon!" argued the cult leader.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because...he's different," the cult leader answered, albeit hesitantly.

"Different?" Shawna repeated.

"Now I get it," Shinichi realized. "Shawna-chan, he's a racist. He just doesn't think I'm worthy because I'm not like you. I'm not racially 'pure'."

"Silence, whelp!" the cult leader shouted.

"Why don't you come closer and say that to my face if you're man enough?" Shinichi challenged. "Oh, and please lose the robes and hoods. The creepy cultist look went out of style centuries ago."

"It did?" Shawna asked.

"That's called playful banter," Shinichi explained.

"Your Highness," the cult leader spoke again, regaining his composure, "We are the Sacred Order of Ascalon and we were formed in the honor of your ancestor, Lord George."

Shinichi rolled his eyes. Cults always tried to make a mortal seem like they were a sort of divine messenger for god. Sir George had been a mortal knight who was able to slay a dragon. He may not have been mortal, but he'd still been just a man.

"If you honor my ancestor, then you will obey my orders. You will return us home and face judgment for your crimes!" Shawna commanded.

"Alas, we cannot, dear princess. Not until you claim your birthright," the cult leader said.

"My birthright?" Shawna questioned.

"The Sword of Ascalon is to be wielded by the descendant of Lord George, and you are his sole heir," the cult leader said.

"The Sword of Ascalon has already chosen its wielder," stated Shawna. "Sir Shinichi is its chosen wielder."

"He is not worthy! He must've used dark magic to take control of the sword! He stole your birthright and must be punished!" the cult leader claimed.

'_Shows what they know. They have no idea of the enchantments put upon the sword_,' St. George spoke in Shinichi's mind.

'_People can be so dumb,' _Shinichi told the Tsukumogami.

'_So true,' _agreed St. George.

"He has shown himself worthy through his actions in defending the crown not just once but many times before!" argued Shawna. "It is through his actions my father is still king and I am still alive!"

"He's bewitched you, Your Highness!" the cult leader pleaded desperately to convince Princess Shawna.

OK, now Shinichi had enough, "Oh, time out! Please, enough with this bullshit already!"

"You dare-!" the cult leader began angrily.

"I see what's going on here!" Shinichi interrupted.

"You do?" Shawna asked.

"Of course. The set up's pretty obvious. The Sword of Ascalon is a powerful artifact. I mean it's capable of slaying a dragon. These guys want that power, but they can't wield the Sword of Ascalon. They need a descendant of Sir George-"

"Lord George, infidel!" shouted the cult leader only to be ignored by Shinichi who continued.

"To wield the sword and use its power. That person is you. You get the power, sure, but then these guys are gonna use you as a puppet and manipulate the power through you to control the kingdom," Shinichi finished. "Am I warm or red hot?" Shinichi asked mockingly. The cult leader was trembling in rage.

'_Lad, take the Trials of Ascalon_,' suggested St. George.

'_What's that?_' Shinichi asked.

'_When Sir George first claimed the sword, he had to pass a series of trials in order to truly wield my awesome might_,' St. George explained.

"I demand to take the Trials of Ascalon!" Shinichi declared, stunning the cultists. Shawna, however, was confused.

"How could you know of the Trials of Ascalon!-?" gasped the cult leader.

"A friend of mine told me," Shinichi smiled. "I think it's in your rules, right? I mean, Sir George had to take the same series of trials to be worthy enough to wield the Sword of Ascalon. I bet you can't ignore this."

The Order of Ascalon huddled, discussing the matter. The outsider knew about the Trials of Ascalon. They didn't know the true details of the trials, but it was said that each trial was very difficult. They also knew that before Sir George, many others had gone through the trials and failed to claim the power of the sacred sword. This could be their chance to take it from the unworthy thief and give the Sword of Ascalon to the more deserving princess herself.

"Very well, you may take the Trials of Ascalon," the cult leader allowed as he approached the couple with a dagger. He cut them free. "Now, come with me."

"Stick close to me, Shawna-chan," whispered Shinichi.

Shinichi and Shawna were led to a large ornate mirror. "This mirror is a portal to the realm of spirits, the same realm where Lord George faced his own trials. In that realm you must find the golden Barankas fruit and bring it here as proof of accomplishing your trials."

"Sounds easy enough," smiled Shinichi in comprehension.

"You have one hour," the cult leader said as he turned the hour glass. "If you do not return with the Barankas fruit when all the sand reaches the bottom, you will relinquish the Sword of Ascalon to its rightful wielder."

"Wish me luck," Shinichi said. Shawna kissed his cheek and handed him her handkerchief.

"For good luck, my dear samurai," she said to him.

Shinichi smiled in amusement. He'd always be her 'Mr. Samurai'.

Shinichi stepped through the mirror portal and entered the realm of spirits. The Order of Ascalon hoped that he didn't pass the trials. That way he would wander in the spirit realm for eternity and stay out of their hair for good. However, that would be a very bad thing for them since Shinichi had friends who wouldn't hesitate to avenge him.

Ignorance is bliss, but it can also be a curse as it prevented people from being prepared for the worse and these guys should be prepared for the worse.

* * *

The portal brought Shinichi to the entrance of the forest and there seemed to be scarecrow standing in front of him with its hands covering its face. The scarecrow stood on stilts but aside from that it looked like the typical scarecrow, covered up in patched up rags with straw and wearing a raggedy hat that seemed stitched together. It even had hair made of feathers. The fact that it was covering its face with its hands reminded Shinichi of the Weeping Angels. Ignoring the scarecrow, he stepped forward.

"Halt!" he heard an elderly feminine voice call and Shinichi jumped back as the scarecrow removed its hands from its face. It was an old woman and she smiled as she got a good look at Shinichi, "My, you're a handsome little devil, aren't ya?"

"Uh...who are you, Obaa-san?" asked Shinichi respectfully.

She understood the term which meant 'granny' but in a respectful way and said, "I am Old Lady Tamra, and I guard the entrance to the Forest of Glen. I make sure nobody foolish enters."

"It's pretty dangerous in there, isn't it?" he asked.

"The Forest of Glen is full of traps that will be the end of those foolish to enter," Old Lady Tamra said. "Now, would you mind introducing yourself?"

"I am Shinichi Banabara," Shinichi answered. "A knight to the crown of Genovia and Princess Shawna's self-elected personal bodyguard."

"Boy, do not lie to this old woman," frowned Tamra. "That is not your true name."

"My true name?" Shinichi asked. He then realized what she meant. He confessed, "My birth name is Shinji Banabara."

"Yet you gave me a different name," said Old Lady Tamra. "Why is that?"

"Because..." Shinichi confessed. "It is the name of a boy who died so long ago. I can't use that name as it's the name of an innocent child and I'm anything but innocent."

"Not innocent? In what way?" Old Lady Tamra asked.

Shinichi, while he had already come to terms with his past, still had difficulties talking about those years he spent in GIN-SHOCKER. "I...I've spilt the blood of innocents," he confessed.

Old Lady Tamra studied his features and rubbed her chin. "Odd, you don't look like a cold-blooded killer."

"Looks can be deceiving, but I have their blood on my hands. I'm also cursed to carry these dreadful memories until my dying day," he told her.

Old Lady Tamra could sense the guilt coming from Shinichi. It was the guilt which came from someone who was trying to redeem themselves. The boy wasn't evil. He just made mistakes and was trying to make up for his crimes.

"You admit your faults then," said Old Lady Tamra. "Very well, you may pass, my boy."

"I can?" Shinichi asked.

"Yes, but if you want to enter you need to pay me," Old Lady Tamra said as she extended her hand. "Give me your most precious treasure."

His most precious treasure? Shinichi didn't have anything like that, except...He put his hand on his chest. The white Magatama he hid under his shirt was his most prized possession and Old Lady Tamra noticed this too.

"So, you do have a treasure. Let this old lady see," said Old Lady Tamra.

Shinichi sighed and took out the white Magatama and showed it to the old scarecrow. She admired it. Though its mystical properties were long gone, there was still a lingering aura of magic around it. She could identify it as one of two from the same set, two items drawn to one another.

To Shinichi, this was something he wore to represent his love for Rena. She wore the red Magatama. Of course, the two Magatama had caused them quite a lot of trouble, but in the end it made their bond stronger.

"This might be a treasure, but it's not something I will give away," said Shinichi.

"Sorry, but if you don't pay you can't enter," said Old Lady Tamra. Shinichi scowled. If he didn't pass this trial then he couldn't save Shawna. He'd be trapped here forever. He had to give him something valuable.

He knew what it was. He just hoped it worked.

He closed his eyes and reached deep inside the depths of his soul. Old Lady Tamra just watched as he stood there, fists clenched and face cast down. Had he already given up.

Then she sensed something as it began to appear and materialize within Shinichi's right hand. It was a sword of elaborate design and a sword she'd never seen before.

Shinichi had just materialized the Seigi no Hogosha.

"Take this instead! The sword that represents my soul!" he said, holding Seigi no Hogosha to Old Lady Tamra.

"You would give this old woman a weapon and not a piece of jewelry?" Old Lady Tamra frowned. "Are you willing to pay such high a price to pass this trial?"

"For the ones I love, I would sacrifice my life!" he shouted. Old Lady Tamra studied him and laughed. "What's so funny?" he asked. He felt insulted by her amused laughter.

"It's just been so long since I last saw that look!" Old Lady Tamra confessed. "I think it was a young lad, George was his name. He was such a handsome young man." She smiled, "Very well, you may pass."

"Thank you," said Shinichi.

"But tell me, why do you wish to venture into the Forest of Glen?" asked Old Lady Tamra.

"I am to find the Barankas fruit," he said.

"Then I pray for you and wish you luck," said Old Lady Tamra. "Oh, and keep the sword. You're going to be needing it."

"Arigato, Tamra-baasan," Shinichi bowed.

* * *

Shinichi walked further into the forest. The ground was littered with dead leaves like it was during autumn. The leaves made a crunching sound with each step he took. Old Lady Tamra had been nice enough to provide him with a scabbard for his sword which hung from his back. She might seem eccentric, but she meant well and was a nice enough person.

She had also told him some very important rules: "_In the Forest of Glen you must not run and you must not turn around. Always move forward. Obey these rules and you might survive._"

Shinichi suddenly stopped in his tracks and reached for his sword. He looked to a nearby tree and saw a figure coming out from behind it. He started to slide the steel blade out of the scabbard but then stopped as his eyes widened in surprise.

It was only Rena.

"Rena-chan?" Shinichi questioned as he released his grip on his sword. Rena walked towards him and smiled while caressing his face gently.

Suddenly, Rena morphed into a demonic creature with black skin stretched across a thin, skeletal frame, which sharp demonic horns, teeth and claws. A long segmented tail jutted from its rear and it had a pair of wings; one was bat-like and leathery while the other was bird-like and covered in feathers.

He recalled when the Evil Agito Tsumtomu had summoned these creatures.

It was a Horror!

As it lashed out to claw his face off, Shinichi drove it back with a kick and reached for his sword. The Horror went tumbling and snarled before others of its kind came and joined it, shooting straight out of the ground like weeds. The Horrors were all around him and he counted around two dozen of them, staring at him like a delicious piece of meat, with the urge to tear him to pieces and devour what was left.

"And so the real trial begins," Shinichi said as he drew the Seigi no Hogosha and gripped it tight before him. The Horrors all lunged towards him, driven by the urge to kill and eat.

(**Insert Song: ENDLESS PLAY**)

Using the sword he blocked a slash to his face while using the heel of his boot to block another slash, kicking the arm away from him. He then pushed the first attacking Horror away with the Seigi no Hogosha and then kicked it in the gut with a thrust kick, sending it to the ground. He had to remember to not let their blood get on him as it could kill him if it did.

He then charged at a Horror that came flying at him, jumping up and over the Kaijin and coming down, slicing it down the middle as he landed. He then used a set of handsprings to quickly move away as the Horror died on the spot, its blood spilling everywhere. "Man, that was close," Shinichi said to himself before he got sent to the ground by a swipe to the back of the head. Hitting the ground hard, he dropped the Seigi no Hogosha, the sword sliding across the ground and stopping next to the tree from earlier.

Looking up, he shouted, "Damn, that was a cheap shot!" The Horrors could care less though as five of them lunged for him, preparing to rip him to shreds. Shinichi just grinned, "Ya fuckers didn't think that the sword was the only weapon I had to fight demons with, did ya?" he asked in a cocky manner as he brought his hands above his head, white and black energy collecting in his palms. "Take this! Masenko!"

The powerful force of Reiryoku shot out and slammed into the five Horrors, vaporizing them on the spot. He then got back up with a flip before summoning the Seigi no Hogosha back to his hand. The remaining Horror all charged at him at once but Shinichi just held the sword before him, his body letting off a mixture of Youki and Reiryoku which rippled off his body in waves. Gripping the hilt of the sword tightly, "Sorry, but I'm sorta on a deadline here." Holding the sword up above his head, he then swung it outward, letting loose an energy slash attack that clawed into the ground. "Kaze no Kizu (Wind Scar)!"

The Horrors, seeing the incoming attack, did their best to evade but they were unable to avoid the attack that had the power to slay one hundred demons in a single stroke. The Kaze no Kizu continued onwards, taking out a bit of the forest along with the remaining Horrors. After a few seconds passed, and after not sensing any more dark energy coming from any possible threats, Shinichi sheathed his sword before dashing off, making his way to the next part of his trial.

(**END SONG**)

* * *

Shawna watched as the sand had filled one quarter of the bottom half of the hour glass. Staring at the device, she recalled the day she first met the boy who would claim her heart. Back then she called him 'Mr. Samurai'. She couldn't believe how childish she'd been. But, to her, Shinichi's behavior and mannerisms were what she considered to be those ideal to a samurai. He was brave, courageous, selfless and honorable.

One of the happiest moments in her life after meeting him had been when he extended his hand to her in friendship. Growing up, Shawna didn't have many friends. Since her mother's death her father kept her sheltered and never let her venture out of the palace for her safety. Her father could be so overprotective. She'd begged him to let her go visit Japan as an ambassador and he'd caved in to her demands. She was grateful for the chance to go to Japan as it allowed her to meet Shinichi and make friends.

As a princess, she had many suitors. However, none were worthy for her until her father had dueled Shinichi. Of, she knew Shinichi had been holding back. She knew the kind of power he possessed. He held back because he knew he could've harmed her father and he didn't want that.

The most shocking revelation had been his past. It was not something he could easily talk to anyone about. His past had been filled with blood, death and destruction. He'd been manipulated like marionettes on string. However, her father saw strength in his character as Shinichi could confess and show that he truly wished to make amends.

Shawna gazed went towards the Order of Ascalon. How dare they suggest that Shinichi was unworthy of the Sword of Ascalon. He'd protected the royal family since the day they met. He was more than worthy to wield the sword of her ancestor.

* * *

Shinichi continued on his journey and found himself at a crossroad in the path he was taking. Should he go left or go right?

"Maybe I should ask for directions," he muttered. However, who was he going to ask? There wasn't anyone else in this forest and he couldn't turn back. He was also on a deadline.

Suddenly, he found two girls standing at the apex of the crossroad. They were twins, judging by their appearance, and wore matching miniskirted red qipao that showed off their slender legs and hugged their bodies. Both girls had orange-red hair that reached down to the small of their backs. However, what really got his attention were the fox ears on their heads and the tails that sprouted from their ears.

They were fox-girls.

"Hello stranger," they said in unison, their tone sultry. "What brings you to the Forest of Glen?"

"Oh, I just came to find the Barankas fruit," he told the twin fox-girls. "So, do you mind pointing me in the right direction."

"Well, here's the thing," the twin fox-girls answered as one.

The fox-girl on the right path said, "One of us tells only truths."

The fox-girl on the left path said, "And the other only tells lies."

"This is the correct path," said the right fox-girl, indicating the path on the right.

"This is the correct path," repeated the left fox-girl, indicating the path on the left.

"Choose," they told him together.

Shinichi just stood there with a small confused look on his face. Choose? For all he knew they could both be lying. As he thought about his choices, weighing the pros and cons, the twin fox-girls looked him up and down and smiled.

"Oh, we got a cute traveler this time, didn't we, Lili?" the fox-girl on the right asked her sister.

"Oh yeah, he is definitely a hunk, Lulu," replied the fox-girl on the left.

The twins began to walk around Shinichi, inspecting him while he made his choice, and they were loving what they saw. They hoped that he chose wrong At least then they would be able to have some real fun with their new play toy. It had been a long time since the last visitor. They easily remembered Sir George but that man had outsmarted them and found the correct path. But they found Shinichi to be a lot cuter than George. Maybe he could provide them with strong children one day if they could get him to choose wrong.

Watching the girls as they took their correct spot by their original paths, Shinichi remembered some of the training he had received back during his time as an unwilling member of GIN-SHOCKER. _'Now, let's see. If I asked the one that lies if her path is correct, then she'd lie. But she could also lie about the one telling the truth as well. And the truth telling sister could agree by saying that her sister is lying,' _he thought. He then perked up as he got an idea._ 'Hmm, that could work.'_

"So, stranger, tell us," Lili requested of him.

"Which path do you choose?" asked Lulu.

"That depends. Which one of you tells lies then?" Shinichi asked.

"I do," the left fox-girl replied.

"Yes, she does," agreed the right fox-girl. "She's so bad sometimes."

Shinichi just groaned, "That's not so reassuring." He then continued with his plan, "So, is your path the correct path?" he asked Lulu.

"Yes, it is," she replied with a smile and in a sweet voice. Shinichi then looked over to Lili.

"Is she telling the truth?"

"Oh no, she is lying. My path is the correct path," Lili replied kindly. Shinichi just smirked.

"Then I choose left." Lili and Lulu just looked at him with a bit of a dumbfounded look on their faces.

"But she lies and I am the one that tells the truth," Lili stated. "So why would you choose her path over mine?"

"It's simple really," began Shinichi. "The one that really lies would say that she's the one that tells the truth while the one that says she lies also lies. And there is an old saying. Within every truth there is a hint of a lie but within every lie there is a hint of truth." The two sisters looked at him, sweat beginning to appear on their brows out of nervousness. "So, Lulu is actually telling the truth in that she lies but you, Lili, are lying as you don't tell the truth either. You both lie. So, I choose to go left."

In that instant, the path on the right began to degrade and collapse, leaving only the path on the left before him. He then looked back at the girls and noticed them smiling. "Well done, traveler. You chose correctly," Lili said as she and Lulu approached him. Leaning up on their tiptoes, they each gave him a peck on the cheek as a sign of good luck and as a reward for beating them at their own game.

"We wish you luck on the last part of the trial," Lulu added as well. "But be forewarned, you will need all your skill and wit to defeat the final challenge."

"I understand," he replied as he smiled and patted them on the heads. "And thanks for the tip." And with that, he began to walk down the path to confront the last part of the trial. Little did he know that this was going to be the hardest of them all.

* * *

Half the sand had already filled the bottom half of the hour glass. Shawna's gaze never left the object as she waited and prayed for her noble knight's return. Meanwhile, the Order of Ascalon were up to something. They didn't think Shinichi would be able to succeed in the trial and would be trapped forever. He wasn't Sir George so how could he?

* * *

"OK, this is the end of the path," Shinichi stopped as he stood at the end of the path he'd gone down. "Now, where is that fruit?" He looked around for any signs of the Barankas fruit. All the trees looked the same, with tall branches and completely naked without any leaves or fruit on them. He then saw what he was looking for in the distance. There was only one tree and hanging from one of its branches was a sphere-shaped fruit that let off a golden glow.

"That must be it," he said as he approached it. "Or...it could be a trap." He hesitated. He was on a deadline so he had no time to second guess. "OK, I'm gonna grab that fruit."

He stepped towards the tree but as soon as he was one metre away from it, a trap was sprung and Shinichi yelped as he was launched into the air before landing on the dry leaves on the ground.

"Ow..." he groaned as he picked himself up, picking leaves off his clothes. He looked up and saw that there was a metal box that was 216 cubic feet in size. Mounted on the four sides of the box which faced outwards were ivory statues of nude women. The box was mostly colored black with bronze accents.

"Where did that come from?" he asked himself as he rose to his feet. Suddenly, the top of the box sprung open and a mechanical dragon's head popped out. The dragon's head was followed by a long neck which extended from the box. Shinichi's ear could pick up the sound of clockwork from within the box.

"Who dares come for the Barankas fruit?" the mechanical dragon asked in a deep, intimidating voice.

Shinichi narrowed his eyes as he identified himself, "I am Shinji Banabara, a knight of Genovia who serves the royal family, and a Kamen Rider!"

"A knight of Genovia, you say?" the mechanical dragon asked as he looked Shinichi over. "Hm...you do seem to possess a powerful aura. I am Glen, the Guardian Dragon of the Forest of Glen and keeper of the Barankas fruit. State your business."

"I am here to claim the Barankas fruit as part of my trial," answered Shinichi.

"Ah..." Glen nodded as his head moved towards the Barankas fruit and plucked it from the tree. He showed it to Shinichi. "This Barankas fruit?" Shinichi reached for it but in a flash it vanished as Glen swallowed the fruit.

"Hey!" Shinichi shouted. "I needed that!"

"Many have tried and failed to claim the Barankas fruit, boy," said Glen. "But you are the first in so many centuries to make it this far. The last one was-"

"Sir George of Genovia," Shinichi finished. "I know. He took this trial so he could prove himself worthy of wielding the Sword of Ascalon." He took hold of his sword's hilt. "Look, I think I know where this is going. If I want the Barankas fruit that's hiding in your body, I have to beat you."

"That is correct," said Glen as he began to transform. Shinichi stepped back as the underside of Glen's box slid open and two pairs of mechanical legs came out, raising the mechanical dragon up into a standing position. The legs ended in hooves instead of clawed feet. A pair of sharp metal wings which looked like a blade array stretched from Glen's back along with a segmented mechanical tail that had a sharp gear at the tip which reminded Shinichi of a buzzsaw blade. Finally, the statues mounted on Glen's left and right sides came off, hanging from long, whip-like, mechanical limbs which stretched out from the sides. The statues snapped in half as clamp-like claws were revealed, snapping threateningly at Shinichi.

"Why can't the final stages of these trials ever be easy?" mumbled Shinichi.

"Let us begin."

And with that said, Glen struck as his claws shot towards Shinichi at high speeds. Shinichi drew his sword and deflected the initial attack but Glen continued to swing his claws at the Rider. Sparks flew as Shinichi retaliated against the ancient mechanical dragon.

Shinichi was all on his own now.

Glen lashed out at Shinichi again who jumped into the air to dodge. However, Glen found an opening and spun his body around to swing his tail at Shinichi. The buzzsaw-like gear at the tip spun and flew towards Shinichi to saw him in half. Shinichi shielded himself with the Seigi no Hogosha, sparks flying on contact as the buzzsaw gear ripped sparks upon contact before Shinichi was thrown to the ground painfully.

Glen opened his mouth and fired a silvery beam of energy at Shinichi who rolled away to dodge the attack. Glen's limbs came down and Shinichi cried out, "Shakkaho!" as he fired the ball of Reiryoku. The attack pushed him safely away from Glen's claws before the fireball exploded against Glen's body.

Shinichi rose to his feet and ducked under a claw which sliced down a tree behind him. He gritted his teeth as he stood his ground. He charged and thrust with his sword only to be smacked into the air. He landed, disarmed, and groaned in pain. He attempted to pick himself up only to freeze as he stared at the tip of his sword which was being held in Glen's claw.

"It's over," said Glen.

"No, it isn't," countered Shinichi. "You might have my sword, but that doesn't mean I'm helpless." He was defiant to the end.

"Why do you fight so hard? For power?" Glen questioned.

"No," Shinichi shook his head. "I fight so that I may return to those precious to me."

"To those precious to you?" repeated Glen, curious by Shinichi's claim.

"My friends and family," Shinichi clarified. "They are the people I fight for the most. I know that I've lost this match against you, Glen, but at least I know that when I return-if I return, I'll have people waiting for me with open arms. You, however, will only remain here, completely alone. No matter what the results right here are, I am the winner."

"I see," said Glen.

"But I haven't lost yet! I'm still gonna get that Barankas fruit from you!" shouted Shinichi. "Because if I don't, I can't go back to protect her!"

"You would risk your life to protect others?" the ancient dragon asked.

"Of course," Shinichi smiled as he put his fists up, "Because that is the reason we Kamen Riders exist in the first place!"

Glen studied Shinichi intently. He was a strange one. From the start of their meeting, the ancient automaton could sense that there was some demonic presence on Shinichi but it was minor. The boy was mostly human, but one who'd learned to master his physical and spiritual energy. He looked into his eyes. The boy was just a pup compared to an ancient being like himself, barely past his prime, and yet Glen could see that the boy had fought many, many battles. He was not some novice, but a combat veteran. How else could he have made it this far?

Glen considered his next actions and then did the following. First he told Shinichi, "You get one more chance to defeat me and claim the Barankas fruit." Glen tossed the Seigi no Hogosha into the air and Shinichi caught it in his hand. "But now I want to see the strength of your resolve. Fight me at your full power! Use all your strength to take the fruit from me!"

"Well, if that's how you want to play it then...," Shinichi said as he sheathed his sword and then, after performing his transformation pose. "Henshin! Let's Ride...BLACK 13!"

In an instant, Shinichi was covered in his BLACK 13 armor and he could feel Kuro's presence as he performed a kata. Summoning his curved crimson red energy blades from his forearms and ankles, BLACK 13 rushed at Glen and jumped into the air. Glen, in a counterattack, struck out at Shinichi with his tail, the gear at the tip spinning wildly as it came in for a strike against Shinichi's armor. But the Rider was much quicker as he used Shunpo and vanished from sight. Glen, confused, looked around to try and find Shinichi but was unable to locate him.

"OK brat, where did you go?" Glen asked in a demanding tone. BLACK 13 replied by coming down in a vertical drop slash, his blades slicing through some of Glen's armor, causing the armored Clockwork Dragon to let out a howl of pain. "Argh! Where the hell did you just come from?-!" Glen demanded but got a fist slammed right into his metal maw, sending him sprawling right into the Barankas tree that was behind him.

BLACK 13, flicking his wrist, retracted his blades and stood before Glen. "So, do you give up or should we go for round 3?" Glen, with a growl, answered by lashing out at him with his whip-like arms but BLACK 13 just evaded, once again jumping back and using Shunpo. "Well, if that's your answer then, Let's Ride: Showa Generation 1!" Shinichi's armor switched from its BLACK 13 mode to his first original default form that he had acquired after waking up in Hinamizawa all those years ago. "Ikuze!"

Showa ran at Glen and jumped over a tail bash strike, landing behind the dragon and ramming his elbow into the side of Glen's head. Glen retaliated though and wrapped his tail around Showa's waist, hoisting him up into the air and then slamming him into the ground repeatedly. With each impact, Showa let out a pained cry as his body was constantly slammed into the ground. As Glen turned Showa upside down, wanting to slam him into the ground head first, Showa reacted as he summoned his Showa-Blade and sliced off part of Glen's tail, causing him to fall to the ground with a loud thud.

"Resourceful little bug, aren't you?" Glen complimented as Showa moved around in a dizzy, trying to regain his bearings.

"Okay, someone make the room stop spinning," Showa groaned as he shook his head. Looking back at Glen, he spoke, "Okay, next stage. Let's Ride: Showa GX!" Showa's armor was instantly covered in a flash of light as his Generation 1 default armor swapped itself out with his second generation default armor. That of Showa GX; a form that he gained after accidentally swallowing the Orb of Courage back when the DHS was still up and about.

Re-summoning the Showa-Blade and also unsheathing the Seigi no Hogosha, he dual wielded both blades and ran at Glen who charged at Showa GX in return. Glen struck at Showa GX with his whips which the Rider parried with his swords. Wanting to end this bout quickly, Glen flew back and fired another blast of silver energy at Showa GX but the Rider reacted by retracting the Showa-Blade and then, using the combined force of his Youki and Reiryoku, struck back.

"Bakuryuuha!" Showa GX shouted as his sword attack absorbed Glen's attack and sent it right back at him, doubled in power as Showa GX added his own power into the mix.

Glen flew up high as the attack slammed into a row of trees, wiping them out and not leaving so much as a single piece of bark on the ground. Glen gaped at the amount of power that the attack had and swallowed a small gulp. He definitely had his hands full with this visitor.

'_Truly extraordinary_," Glen admired. '_I can't believe a boy his age could have such amazing power_.' Glen then looked over to the spot where Showa GX had originally been standing, only to notice the Rider now missing. "Huh, where did he go to this time?" Glen asked aloud and quickly got his answer as he heard Showa GX shouting from above him.

"Let's Ride: Showa Trinity!" Showa shouted as he now shifted into his most current default form that was granted to him by the use of his Trinity Spark Core.

"Oh no you don't!" Glen shouted as he fired more of his silver energy as Showa came down upon him. He then noticed Showa's body glowing as well as his Trinity Spark Core.

"TRINITY FORCE!" Showa shouted as he split himself into three; Showa Red, Showa Blue and Showa Green. The three Showa's used Shunpo at the same time, vanishing and then reappearing even higher in the air, before executing their combined attack.

"**TRINITY RIDER KICK!"**

The triplet Riders executed a drop kick each and smashed into Glen. The force of the combined attacks caused Glen to explode and pieces of him rained down onto the ground.

The three Showas recombined and Shinichi removed his helmet before walking towards Glen's head. He knelt down before the ancient dragon.

"So, may I have the Barankas fruit now please?" Shinichi asked.

"You have defeated me," Glen acknowledged. "As promised, the Barankas fruit." Glen opened his mouth wide, presenting the golden fruit to Shinichi who took it.

"Sorry about blowing you to pieces," Shinichi apologized.

"Oh, it's perfectly alright. I can pull myself back together in time." Glen laughed. "Now, you best return before time runs out for you."

"Right," Shinichi nodded and stood up to give Glen a bow. "Now, where's the exit?"

"I'd point you in the right direction, boy, but I don't seem to be able to on account that my limbs are all over the place," joked Glen. Shinichi waved goodbye to Glen as he went to find the exit but stopped as Glen called out to him, "Hey boy, wait a moment."

"Yes?" Shinichi asked. He then noticed a piece of Glen's Dragon-Mail armor hover up off the ground and over to the front of his body.

"Take this, as a gift from me to you," Glen said as the piece of armor glowed brightly and transformed into a clawed gauntlet that then placed itself on Shinichi's left arm. The gauntlet was made of dragon scale mail and had a golden tan color with five long claws that covered his fingers. Set within the center of the gauntlet was a blue gem which resembled a dragon's eye. "That Claw Shield has the power to protect you and can also create an energy bubble around you for as far as about fifteen feet in diameter. Use it wisely and it shall serve you well."

Shinichi just looked at the Claw Shield, mentally dubbing it the Shield of Glen, and smiled. Looking back at Glen, he said, "Thank you. I'll make sure to put it to good use."

* * *

All the sand was almost in the bottom half of the hour glass.

"He won't make it in time, Your Highness," the cult leader said. "Now, come and reclaim your birthright."

"There is still time," she insisted.

"What can he possibly do in several more seconds?" he asked.

The glass of the mirror rippled before Shinichi leapt out of it, stunning the cultists and Shawna. However, Shawna's reaction was more positive as she broke into a wide smile.

"Sir Shinichi!" she cried happily.

"Yo!" he saluted and then he presented the Barankas fruit to them. "Here's the fruit. This is it, right?"

"But...but how!-?" stammered the cult leader.

"I met the dragon, we had a bit of an argument, but when I asked for the fruit he was nice enough to let me have it," Shinichi fibbed.

"B-b-but that's impossible!" the cult leader protested. But the proof was right there in front of him.

"I guess nobody has ever tried asking for the fruit from Glen-san before," shrugged Shinichi. He returned his attention to Shawna and said, "Well, Shawna-hime, shall we go?"

The cult leader was outraged. It was...it was inconceivable! The outsider foreigner had passed the trial when he wasn't even Sir George's descendant. He must've cheated! Yes, he had to have somehow cheated!

Losing all semblance of composure, the cult leader roared out an order, "SEIZE THEM!"

Shinichi rolled his eyes and removed his hold on Shawna's hand to build the Burst Cannon over his chest. He aimed the weapon at the oncoming cultists, stopping them in their tracks. They were smart enough to recognize a cannon when they saw one, even if it was hi-tech looking.. "That's far enough, boys. I just had a really stressful day and all I want is to take the lovely Princess Shawna home and have a good night's rest. To be honest, I am _really _not in the mood for this bullshit right now." He added threateningly, "So, if you don't want to be sent to the hospital with every bone in your body broken, I suggest you allow us to leave before you really make me angry."

The leader of the Order of Ascalon sputtered angrily at being threatened, "Y-y-you dare!-?"

"Of course I dare. I'm just that daring," Shinichi retorted, smirking. "So, if any of you are smart, then you can leave us alone or one of you can try to stop us first."

The cult leader clenched his fists. He was going to have his wish even if he had to sell his soul to the devil to make sure everything was in its proper place, and the Sword of Ascalon was to be in the hands of St. George's descendant! And with the descendant under the Order of Ascalon's control, then Genovia could become the greatest nation in the world!

Desperately, the cult leader grabbed a nearby book and flipped it open. There was only one way now. He needed to kill the outsider! He chanted a spell as a dark aura surrounded the book and the mirror itself began to glow as well.

Suddenly, the Horrors Shinichi had encountered before burst out from the mirror. This startled the other cult members who stared at their leader in shock and horror.

"This is the only way for the Sword of Ascalon to wielded by its proper master! We must kill the outsider!" he shouted, clearly deranged. He'd been driven over the edge and had gone insane.

A pity.

The Horrors swarmed Shinichi and he summoned the Sword of Ascalon. However, before he could use the sword on the Horrors, it was swatted out of his hand and sent sliding across the floor. Shinichi still tried to fight them, though, as they clawed at him. He retaliated with his own weapons as the Order of Ascalon watched.

Shawna was terrified but as her eyes went towards the Sword of Ascalon which lay on the floor, she knew what she had to do. She went for it, grabbing hold of the hilt. Instantly, the Sword of Ascalon burst with power. The Horrors shrieked as they were hit by the power and backpedalled away from Shinichi as his eyes widened. He looked at Shawna and she had changed.

Shawna was clad in a black gown with black plate armor. The plate armor comprised of a chestplate with flaps of armor hanging from the sides down to her thighs. She also sported thick gauntlets and armored boots. The armor was decorated by glowing, blood red markings. Her eyes were not visible as they were covered by a black metal visor. In her hand was the Sword of Ascalon.

Letting out a battlecry, the normally sweet and gentle princess swung the Sword of Ascalon. The power within the sword was released and in a flash the Horrors were slain.

"Sugoi," Shinichi uttered in surprise and then he heard the leader of the Order of Ascalon laugh in triumph.

"It is done! Princess Shawna has claimed her birthright! Now nothing can stop us now!" he declared. Ascalon Shawna's eyes were locked on the cult leader who smiled. They now had what they were after and nothing could stop them now.

She strode towards him before she shocked him with a punch that knocked him to the ground. He was stunned, then he looked on in terror as Ascalon Shawna pointed the Sword of Ascalon's at his face.

"You have shown us great disrespect," she said coldly. "Now die." The rest of the cult were just too terrified to do anything, frozen in fear of this new Shawna. She swung the sword down to relieve the wretched man of his head but Shinichi caught her wrist, stopping her. "Release us," she commanded.

"Shawna-chan," Shinichi said in a stern yet gentle tone. "This isn't you."

"Don't you dare take that tone with us," she ordered. "Now release us so we may give this wretch the punishment he deserves."

"Shawna-chan, you don't have to kill him," he told her. "You don't have to spill his blood. He isn't worth it."

"Unhand us," she ordered but she couldn't remove his hand from her arm.

"Look at yourself in the mirror," he said. "This isn't you."

Ascalon Shawna looked at the mirror. She saw herself in her dark dress and armor and gasped as she stumbled back.

"Is this...is this...me?" she asked, trembling.

"It's the sword," he told her. "Now, just let go of the sword."

She did as the sword slipped out of her grip and landed on the ground with a clang. Shawna turned back to normal as the dark armor vanished from her and she collapsed in his arms.

The cult leader watched as his plan had failed. The madness from earlier only intensified. If the Horrors could not destroy this whelp, then he would just summon a more powerful demon.

A magic circle appeared on the floor as the demon rose up. It was ten feet tall and covered in thick armor with a skull-like head, and clawed hands. The spaulders were covered in spikes as were the gauntlets and greaves and it wielded a massive battle axe.

Shinichi sighed and gently placed Shawna upon the pile of straw from earlier. He picked up the Sword of Ascalon and glared at the creature.

His mood had not improved at all. These cultists, the trial, the Horrors and now this demon were just pushing him further and further towards the limits of his patience. He was angry, so angry. First they kidnapped him and Shawna and then they tried to force Shawna to do what they wanted without considering what she wanted. They were just selfish assholes that cared for nothing but what they wanted. In a way, these people reminded him of Gebok and GIN-SHOCKER who did not care who they had to hurt to achieve their goals.

"You know, I just about had enough of all this crap today," Shinichi growled as he summoned the armor of Ascalon without even using the traditional summoning words. His eye lenses flashed a blood curdling red as the demon rushed at him. "Time to die! Ryuuga Daichikudaku!"

Showa swung the Ascalon, releasing the energy dragon slash which carried on towards the demon. The demon, however, quickly dodged to the right, allowing the attack to take out the area behind it. Members of the Order of Ascalon, afraid for their lives, abandoned their leader and the few that were frozen in terror as they fled their base, without looking back.

As Showa locked onto the Youki of the demon, he turned to see the demon holding Shawna in its clawed hands, gently caressing her cheek as it eyed her hungrily. It wanted a flesh and blood mortal body that it could use to rule the world in. It needed a body of a person who had yet to stain their hands with the blood of man. And Shawna seemed like she would be a suitable..._host_.

"Damn you! You put her down right now or so help me I'll-" Showa shouted angrily but the demon looked at him and, with a flick of its hand, sent Showa flying into a wall with the combined force of its Youki and telekinesis.

"**You will be silent, child**," the demon said as it placed its hand over Shawna's face, preparing to possess her body and soul. "**This woman's body and soul now belong to me and I shall rule this world. I shall consume the souls of the innocent and rule as King of the Damned. None shall stand in my way. Not you, Not the spirit that grants you that form, And certainly not this descendant of Sir George.**"

The demon then began to let its essence flow into Shawna's body while it used its telekinesis to keep Showa's body pinned against the wall.

"No, stop!" Showa screamed but the demon wouldn't listen as it quickened the pace of its possession. "**I. SAID. STOP!-!-!**"

Showa's Ascalon Form erupted with a sudden burst of both Youki and Reiryoku but it also erupted with a third energy which it solely used on draconic beings. The demon, looking at Showa, gasped at the sight as Showa's armor changed, his eye lenses now a black color as they radiated with a violet colored aura.

His grip tightened on the Sword of Ascalon as something within him had finally awoken. His armor was also much different than it usually was when it was summoned. It was now a solid black color and the Sword of Ascalon had turned black as well with blood red runes appearing etched in the flat side of the blade. He then rushed at the demon, raising the sword as it was covered in an aura of draconic energy.

The demon that the cult leader had summoned raised its battleaxe and brought it down. The chamber shook as the sound of the impact echoed. However, the demon's attack had missed and Showa was standing on the axe without a care. He jumped and kicked the demon knight in the face, sending him skidding backwards to smash against the wall; forcing him to release his hold on Shawna which allowed Showa to take her in his arms and take her over to a nearby corner. Setting her down, he then jumped back up into the air as the demon knight slowly rose to its feet.

"**Flaming Armament!**" Showa commanded as he crossed his arms across his face before throwing them to the sides, coating his body in a flame-like aura. He looked menacing. The Sword of Ascalon was also enveloped in the flames whose heat could be felt by those in the chamber. It was like Showa had coated himself and the sword in a layer of hellfire

"**Getsuga...**" he said softly before yelling out, "**TENSHOU!**" He swung and the arch of flaming energy soared through the air and struck the demon knight, obliterating it in an instant. Now the leader of the Order of Ascalon realized that now he was in the presence of an entity beyond their comprehension and control.

Desperate, the leader of the Order of Ascalon attempted another summoning only for flames to envelop the book. He cried out as he was forced to drop the book due to the hot flames.

Showa advanced on the leader of the Order of Ascalon and targeted him. He grabbed him by his cloak and pulled him to look him dead in the eye. "**If you don't want me to kill you, then don't let me see you ever again. I don't even want to hear from you, understand?**" He tossed him to the ground and pointed the Sword of Ascalon at the rest of the Order of Ascalon's members who had been too scared to flee like their brethren had done so earlier. "**That same warning applies to all of you. If you're smart, if you wish to see the next morning sunrise, if you value your existence, you better make sure you don't do anything that catches my attention. I don't ever want to see you ever again, is that clear?" **He repeated loudly**, "IS THAT CLEAR?-!" **They nodded rapidly**. "This is the last and only warning I will ever give you."**

The leader of the Order of Ascalon looked at him in fear and stammered, "W-w-w-who...are y-y-you? You are not the...the boy that we tried to-" Showa quickly cut him off from saying anything further.

"**Do I look like the Halfling you tried to kill?**" Showa demanded. Halfling? What did he mean by Halfling? There was only one being in the entire world that ever called Shinichi that name and he was supposed to be dead. But it couldn't be, could it? "**I am Dreigon; Dragon of Dragons!**"

"But...that's impossible," the leader said in a tone of fright as he began to wet himself. "The boy slew you months ago. You can't be alive! You should be-" The leader was quickly silenced again as the Sword of Ascalon's blade was embedded into the wall next to his head. The leader gaped at the sight in shock and then looked at Showa's eyes...at Dreigon's eyes.

"**The Halfling did kill me. But my spirit will not die easily.**" He then looked over at Princess Shawna and then back at the leader. "**Know this, that girl's ancestor may have imprisoned me but this boy gave me the fight of a lifetime. I no longer hold any resentment towards the princess or her kin. I give my aid to this Halfling out of ****respect for him.**** What he cherishes and holds dear, I vow to defend when he cannot. So I will only say this one last time. Appear before me, the Halfling, the princess or any other member of their kin ****again ****and I will manifest my spirit myself and SWALLOW. YOUR. SOUL!-!-!**"

With that last order the leader and the remaining members of the Order of Ascalon fainted from fright. After relaxing his body, Dreigon looked over at Shawna before returning control of Shinichi's body back over to Shinichi himself.

In a flash of black and gold light, the armor vanished from Shinichi's body. He blinked as he saw the demon was gone. "Hm, I guess you guys are smart after all." He went to where he noticed Shawna was put down and called on his comlink, "Sheila, I'm gonna need a Teleportal for me and Shawna-chan." He picked her up and in a matter of seconds the Teleportal formed. He gave the Order of Ascalon one last look before walking into the Teleportal which vanished as soon as he was out of sight.

* * *

The Order of Ascalon, after regaining consciousness a few hours later, were relieved when he'd gone. They were lucky despite getting on Shinichi's bad side. He just didn't want to spill their blood in Shawna's presence. They knew they had just awoken something monstrous and they were just fortunate enough to escape its wrath. The leader, however, was not satisfied with this. There just had to be a way to gain control of the Sword of Ascalon.

He looked back down on his book and was amazed to see that the flames from earlier had not damaged it. In fact, the book was completely intact with no evidence of being burnt. Truly it was an amazing object as it was indestructible as it was protected by magic. He picked up the book of dark magic and flipped through the pages. He ignored the dark aura coming of it. The dark aura slowly took the form of tendrils but he still paid them no mind. His mind was more focused on finding a way for him to regain control of the situation.

Suddenly, the tendrils latched onto the cult leader's face, piercing his flesh, and he screamed as he was pulled into the book, his face pressed against the paper. He struggled to get free but he couldn't as he was slowly being sucked into the book itself with the members of the Order of Ascalon just staring in horror at what was happening. He struggled in desperation, but the leader of the Order of Ascalon was not strong enough to resist against the book's strength as the tendrils dragged him straight inside until he was no more. Not a trace of him was left..

The book let out a belching noise before it closed up and landed on the ground with a thud. The reason why he'd been devoured by the book was because the book was a tome of dark magic, one which required a blood sacrifice for using it. However, the leader of the Order of Ascalon had failed to offer a blood sacrifice and was taken instead.

He thought he could control forces beyond his understanding but he had paid for his hubris with his very life.

* * *

_Deep within Shinichi's subconscious, enraged roars could be heard from all around as Shinichi walked through the canyon, slowly coming up to a crater with a hook lip-styled cliff edge. Under the cliff edge was a small depression in the side which was then encased by a set of glowing blue, red and gold energy bars, each one over a hundred feet in height._

_Coming up to the makeshift cage, Shinichi stopped next to Saint George who was giving the prisoner inside a concerned look. Shinji was hiding behind Saint George's leg as Kuro stood over at the far left end with Gokuaku while Yabuki and Zennin stood at the far right end, all of the four Tsukumogami providing a bit of their energy to detain their latest...roommate._

_Looking inside the cage, "I don't believe it," Shinichi said with a mixture of surprise and anger. "How in the hell did you get inside my head? If I remember correctly, I killed you months ago."_

_Staring back at Shinichi was none other than Dreigon: Dragon of Dragons. His body was just as tall and big as it had been when he was cyber-converted into the Cyber-Dragon. But now he seemed to have his old organic body back. his body was pitch black in color with red spikes running up and down the middle of his back and tail. The tip of his tail was thin and whip-like and his wings were folded and compressed against his body. He had three ivory horns on his head with a small red ruby embedded in the center under the central horn. His eyes were a deep red color and he appeared to not be too pleased with his current accommodations._

"_**You should be more polite, Halfling**," Dreigon informed him. "**Lest you forget that it was I that gave you the power which was used to save your princess from harm**."_

"_Yeah, I have to wonder about that," Shinichi began as he glared at him. "Why did you save Shawna-chan? I thought you hated those who were descended from Sir George. And answer my first question as well!"_

_Dreigon had to admit the boy had balls to speak to him like that."**...Very well. Seeing as this is your mind, you make the rules. As such, I shall answer your questions.**" Dreigon then locked his eyes with Shinichi's lowering his head a bit to make a level gaze. "**First, I am in your head because, even though you destroyed my physical body, the Sword of Ascalon is able to draw in the powers of the dragons it slays. As such, when I died, I left a piece of my soul within the sword. I now reside within you. My power...is your power. Though, it is useless to you for the moment as long as I do not fight beside you. Now, as for the** **princess...**" he let out a sigh and then softened his gaze. "**I have come to respect that girl. I have seen how much you care for her and what she is willing to do for you. When she picked up the Sword of Ascalon, despite the high risk of losing her soul to the power of the sword in the process, I could see that she would throw away her own life to save yours just as you would do for both her and your other women.**"_

_Shinichi, Kuro, Shinji and the Tsukumogami all looked at him with a bit of look of shock on their faces. Dreigon wasn't kidding. He was being serious._

"_**Fear not, I no longer wish any harm on the girl or her kin. You...Halfling, are now my partner and I shall always protect whatever your heart holds dear. You need but humbly ask for my assistance...and it shall be yours. My claws...my draconian power...will be your weapons...when the time is right of course.**" Dreigon then looked over to Saint George and the other Tsukumogami. "**You four have done well to help him ****grow and**** reach this far. I trust that you will continue to do so**."_

"_Like we need you to tell us that, ya overgrown lizard!" Gokuaku shouted. Dreigon just let out a low growl, causing the Oni to clam up. Dreigon then looked back at Shinichi._

"_**So, just how long will I have to remain in here?**"_

"_Until I can be sure that you aren't a threat to anyone else in the mortal realm. Right now I don't trust you so I have to be sure that you won't take control of my body again like you did back there when we were facing the Order of Ascalon. Consider your situation right now as being on probation."_

"_Actually, the accurate term would be 'house arrest'," Kuro corrected._

"_In this case it's cave arrest," Shinichi retorted. He turned his attention back towards Dreigon. "So, are we clear?"_

_Dreigon nodded his head in acceptance though he didn't really care. He knew that Shinichi would come to accept him eventually. Following Shinichi as he walked away, the other Tsukumogami and the other two parts of his soul were wondering if it was a good idea to let Dreigon remain within Shinichi's mind._

"_Are you sure about this, Shinichi?" Yabuki asked._

"_I agree with the samurai," Kuro added. "Even I think that letting that...thing...stay here is nothing but trouble." Shinichi just let out a sigh._

_As they made their way back to the field of flowers, Shinichi remarked under his breath, "I am going to be one hell of a study for psychologists everywhere." His subconscious was like a playground for them as they could prick and prod at everything and anything they found in his brain and diagnose him with all sorts of mental conditions. He heard voices in his head, and they weren't products of an unstable psyche. His mind was literally teaming with life._

* * *

Topper walked into the empty torture chamber and picked up the book. As he dusted off the cover, he let out a sigh, "I guess he's never going to get his refund after all." He opened the book, flipping the pages until he came upon an interesting one. There was a picture of the Order of Ascalon's leader, his face contorted into an eternal expression of him screaming in terror, reaching out for help as dark tendrils were dragging him deep into an eternal abyss.

* * *

**KR CHROME: Some of the events here are based on episode 20 of the first season of Garo. Oh, and any techniques from DBZ, Inuyasha and Bleach belongs to their respective creators. I just use them because they're just so awesome and well I always love awesome to be honest. Oh, and Shawna's Ascalon Form is based on Saber Alter from Fate/Hollow Ataraxia. Oh, and Shinichi has gained two special items: the Shield of Glen and Barankas fruit.**

**TOKU WARRIOR: This was one heck of a test for Shinichi. Not only did he have to go through a trial to show that he was worthy of Ascalon, but he still had to fight the Order just to save Shawna. And, yup, Dreigon's back and he won't be going anywhere anytime soon. Why has he returned...can't say. It's a secret. But it just goes to show you that the Sword of Ascalon is much more than just a mere dragon slaying sword. And ya don't mess with Shinichi or his loved ones unless you want his Tsukumogami to come after you. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next one.**


	149. The Legacy of Cain Part 93

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 93: Crossed Wires**

Shinichi was standing in front of his friends from the Gaming Club. There was Rika, Hanyuu, Satoko, Satoshi, Rena, Mion, Shion and Keiichi. They were all down in the Danger Room, originally known as the holo-chamber, which was used by NEO-NUMBERS or anyone else who wanted to train within a lifelike and realistic holographic environment. The holographic projections were created using hard light technology so they could be physically touched.

"OK, today we'll be training your hand-eye coordination," began Shinichi. He walked over to where a pile of Gravity Hammers and Energy Swords were lying on the floor. He picked up a ball and showed it to them. "And to do that, we're playing Shocker Ball."

* * *

In the main hall, the NEO-NUMBERS were watching on the huge computer screen.

"Oh, great," Yokoshima groaned. "Who was the one who added Shocker Ball to the Danger Room's scenario list?"

"That would be Shogo. Remember, he's a fan of the game," Daichi told him.

"I'm not," huffed Yokoshima.

"That's because the bomb always detonated too close to you," Daichi stated, grinning.

"That's because you guys always kept sending it my way as it was about to explode!" Yokoshima shot back.

'_Which would help in explaining some of the brain damage you seem to have,_' Daichi thought with a smirk.

"Those bombs are supposed to explode _in _the goal!" Yokoshima continued ranting. "Why do they keep exploding my way? Seriously, why?"

* * *

"OK, this here is the Shocker Ball. Now, a normal Shocker Ball would explode since it's actually a bomb but since we don't want anyone to be truly hurt, we decided to use a bowling ball as a substitute," Shinichi began to explain.

"Why a bowling ball?" Satoko asked.

"Because a regulation Shocker Ball is approximately the same weight as a bowling ball," said Shinichi. "Now, the rules of the game are simple. It's like handball, except you also carry those weapons over there." Shinichi pointed at the pile of weapons. "You use those weapons to stop an opposing player, especially the one holding the Shocker Ball."

"That seems dangerous," Satoshi stated.

"That's why you'll be doing it in armor," Shinichi smiled. "Sides, the Energy Swords are set at a low setting to just stun you for a few seconds. They're about as painful as the stun guns we use. The Gravity Hammers are also programmed to repel players with a gravitational field. In armor, it's perfectly safe. Without armor, you'll need to stay in the hospital for physical trauma." He clapped his hands together, "OK, choose your teams! Keiichi and Mion, you're both team captains." He fished out a coin from his pocket. "Call it, heads or tails?"

"Heads!" Keiichi said.

"Tails!" Mion said.

Shinichi flipped the coin and caught it. "OK, it landed on heads! Keiichi picks first!"

* * *

Team Keiichi: Keiichi (Team Captain), Rena, Satoshi & Rika.

Team Mion: Mion (Team Mion), Shion, Satoko & Hanyuu

"OK, now the object is to drop the ball into the goals. The goal over there is Team Keiichi's goal and the other one is Team Mion's. When you drop the ball into the goal, the sparklers will go off, ending the round. The next round starts as soon as the ball returns in the centre," Shinichi explained. "OK, I'm gonna be up in the control room to observe things from a safe distance. Good luck!" He dashed for the elevator. However, he turned back around and ran to Rena to give her a kiss. "Good luck," he said to her before going back to ride the elevator.

Reaching the Danger Room controls, he spoke into the microphone which delivered his voice through the speakers, "OK, TRANSFORM AND PLAY BALL!" He blew the whistle to start the game.

* * *

Keiichi returned home and dragged himself up to his room so he could drop into bed, surrendering himself to sweet oblivion. The game of Shocker Ball had been the most intense sport he'd ever played. No wonder Shinichi needed them to be in Rider form to play it. The armor helped to protect their bodies and dull the pain. He was just glad it was over.

"I never want to play that game ever again," Keiichi groaned into his pillow. Now he could see why Yokoshima hated the game so much.

His sentient bike, the Zakider, was outside of the house, standing guard. It would not let anyone with bad intentions near his master's home and would probably ram and run over anybody who would attempt bodily harm on its Rider.

Zakider was a bit anxious. It and its master hadn't been able to see much action lately.

* * *

The first thing that Rika Furude noticed when she woke up was that she was staring at a familiar ceiling. Unfortunately, it was not a ceiling she'd been looking at for the past few years. She was also in a futon instead of a bed and when she sat up, she rubbed her blurry eyes.

It was her house, the one she'd lived in alone with Satoko after the loss of their parents, and lying next to her in the neighboring futon was none other than Satoko.

Only now Satoko was smaller, like she was. Rika stared at her small hands in shock and patted her chest to realize that she was no longer busty. Rika swiftly got out of her futon and ran towards the bathroom. She opened the door and went to the sink and gasped.

She was a little girl again, the same little girl who had to struggle for her life during the Endless June. "No, no, no!" she screamed in denial as she backed away. "Not again!" She ran out to where Satoko was still sleeping and shook her. "Satoko! Satoko, wake up!"

"Um...Nii-nii...five more minutes," the sleeping blonde uttered.

"Satoko, now's not the time to be asleep!" Rika grabbed the bottom of the futon and tugged it out from under Satoko, sending the blonde rolling out of bed and into the wall with a thud. Rika grimaced. She'd just hurt her friend in her panic.

"Ow..." Satoko groaned as she rubbed her sore head. "Why'd you do that?" She blinked as she saw Rika. "Huh, Rika? Why are you so small?"

"I'm not the only one," Rika said and Satoko gasped at what she meant when she stared at her small hands. They were the hands of a child, not a teenagers. Rika went and picked up a nearby hand mirror and put it in front of Satoko's face. "I'm young!"

"Young_er_," Rika emphasized the last syllable. '_Satoko remembers that she shouldn't be this age. That means something's up_,' the miko thought. "Hanyuu, what's going on?" she called. She got no reply. "Hanyuu? Hanyuu!"

Still no reply.

"Rika, what's going on?" Satoko asked, scared and confused. Rika went to the calendar to check the date. It was the near the end of June, **1983**.

"I think we've gone back in time," said Rika. "Satoko, get dressed! We're going to see if everyone else is OK!"

That was when the phone rang.

* * *

Rena Ryuugu noticed a couple of things when she first woke up. The first was that she was back in her old room, in the house she lived in that was located in Hinamizawa. She was also wearing an old set of pajamas she hadn't worn in years since she'd grown up into a beautiful young woman. Plus, Shinichi was not in bed with her.

And she didn't like the feeling of waking up alone without him cuddling with her. She'd grown used to having him near and waking up with her. In fact, they had lived like a married couple since entering college, living in an apartment together for the past three years. Rena got out of bed to check her mirror and was stunned at the face staring back at her. It was the face of a teenager and not that of a young woman. "What happened to me?" Had she gone back in time. She didn't like this. It just didn't feel right. "Shin-kun? Shin-kun, where are you?" she called out but got no answer. "Papa?-!" Still no answer. "Where is everybody?-!"

Rena needed to call someone and went downstairs to grab the phone. She picked up the receiver and dialed for a familiar number. Unfortunately, the voice on the other end informed her that the number didn't exist. She tried again and got the same message again. She tried a third time. Same result.

"What's going on...?" she whispered. Shiori Banabara's number was supposed to be listed, but she got an error message instead each time. She decided to call another number. She hoped that Hanyuu would know something.

* * *

"Hello?" answered Rika.

"_Oh, Rika-chan! Thank goodness!_" Rena replied from the other end.

"Rena, it's good to hear you're OK!" Rika said, relieved.

"_I don't think I'm OK! I'm-_"

"Younger, I know," Rika finished. "Look, I don't know what's going on but my guess is that we've been transported back in time to 1983 and are inhabiting the bodies of our past selves."

"_What do we do?_" Rena asked.

"First, you need to calm down," Rika instructed. "And next we need to call the others. I have a feeling the same thing has happened to them."

"_Hai...Oh, I tried to call Shiori-san and she didn't answer._"

"That's because she doesn't live in Hinamizawa yet," Rika explained. "Now, call up Keiichi and Mion. I'll call Shion. Tell them to meet up at the school."

"_OK,_" Rena said. "_Bye._"

Rika sighed. It looked like their friends were in for quite an adventure.

"Nii-nii..." uttered Satoko. "Does this mean that Nii-nii is-"

"If it's that time again, then he's probably in a coma down in Irie's clinic," Rika concluded. She put her hand on Satoko's shoulder as a sign of comfort. "Look, Satoko. Don't fall apart on me. We'll get through this, somehow. We'll get everyone together and figure something out."

* * *

Mion, Keiichi and Rena were at the school when Rika and Satoko arrived. They noticed that the entire village was covered in thick fog so it was hard to find their way through. They did manage to find their way to school to find their older friends who looked younger than the last time they saw them. Only Shion was absent. Of course it was because she lived in Okinomiya which was a bit further away. She would need a car to reach school in time.

Mion was back in her old clothes of a yellow t-shirt and blue jeans, Keiichi was in his red vest and green trousers, and Rena was in her white dress. Rika and Satoko had actually come in their school clothes but that didn't matter right now. What mattered was trying to figure out what was going on and what had happened to them.

What was odd was that while they'd been walking to the school, they hadn't seen anyone else. Even the school was empty and normally there'd be students already there.

Rena, however, hugged the two younger girls and cried with relief to see them, and to see them looking so young and cute. She had asked about Hanyuu, but Rika told her that Hanyuu wasn't with them either.

"Noticed anything odd?" Rika asked.

"Besides the fog?" Mion asked.

"I'm referring to the lack of other people," Rika clarified. "It's like the entire village is deserted with only us here, and we're back in our old bodies from 1983."

"It's like the clock went backwards," Rena finished. It felt strange to be in the body of a teenager after being so used to her grown up adult body.

"We need Shin-chan to help us figure this out," Mion frowned.

"That's the problem. None of us can reach him and we don't have our communicators," said Keiichi.

"Shinichi didn't turn up until 1984, and we don't have our communicators because they don't exist yet," said Rika.

"But if we've gone back in time, then where are all the people?" Satoko asked.

Rika, through one of her meetings with Bernkastel, had learnt about the Hinamizawa Disaster which had taken place each time Rika had died. Takano would use Rika's death as an excuse to kill all the villagers so that the Hinamizawa Syndrome wouldn't activate in all of them and spread. Rika was the 'Queen Carrier', or so Takano claimed, and her death would've triggered a mass activation which would've threatened Japan. Of course, all that was done so Takano could prove the validity of her grandfather's research. A fruitless act that caused nothing but pain to those involved.

The lack of life in the village unnerved Rika. It felt like the village had turned into a ghost town. It was just them, as always, now. Rika needed to figure something out and needed to trust in her friends to solve this mystery.

"Hey! Everyone!" The Hinamizawa Gaming Club heard and spotted Shion running towards them in her school uniform. She saw what the teenagers were wearing and frowned. "I didn't know it was Casual Friday," she joked.

"Nee-nee!" Satoko hugged her older sister figure.

"It's OK, Satoko-chan," Shion smiled as she comforted the young blonde. She noticed someone missing. "Where's Satoshi-kun?"

"We're in 1983," Rika answered, her more mature adult voice barely being noticeable in her tone. "Where do you think."

"Oh," Shion realized. He was in that underground ward down in Irie's Clinic. "Well, let's go!"

* * *

The walk to Dr. Irie's clinic was a bit unsettling and eerie. The fog just made things worse. They held hands as they navigated their way through the dense fog. It was so thick they could barely see anything clearly in front of them.

"I miss Shin-kun," said Rena.

"Be strong, Rena," Mion said to her best friend. "Don't fall apart on us now."

"I think I see the clinic," said Shion. The route was fortunately still familiar enough for them to follow. They saw the building, and some other things too.

There were jeeps and armored vans surrounding the clinic. There were also people standing around the clinic as well.

It was Takano's army, the Yamainu!

"Oh crap!" Keiichi cursed quietly as they stopped in their tracks. Soldiers armed with guns. That was not good. Keiichi only had a baseball bat while Mion's only weapon was the airsoft gun she carried. Shion always had that handy tazer with her as usual too.

Rika narrowed her eyes, getting a better look at the armed men. The uniforms they wore weren't the ones worn by Yamainu. They were more like black bodysuits with matching gloves and boots and masks over their heads. Her eyes went wide as she recognized the uniforms.

But that couldn't be possible, could it. It couldn't be them, right? But she was seeing them right in front of her.

GS-Soldiers, the footsoldiers of the organization GIN-SHOCKER.

'_OK, so it's 1983, we have an empty village and now GIN-SHOCKER is hanging around Irie's Clinic_.' She groaned to herself. '_I'm in another parallel world and my friends got dragged along with me._'

The GIN-SHOCKER soldiers being here could explain the missing villagers. But it didn't explain how Rika and her friends remained uncaptured. She didn't want to question their luck, though.

They hid away from the GS-Soldiers. The dense fog made them undetectable as they found some bushes and hid behind them.

"OK, those were GIN-SHOCKER troopers," Mion uttered in a hushed tone.

"Yeah, I remember," Keiichi replied. They had been captured by GIN-SHOCKER before so they were very familiar with the uniforms.

"What are they doing in the village?" Shion asked.

"Do you have to ask?" Rika responded.

"GIN-SHOCKER's the reason that everyone in the village is gone!" Rena gasped.

"That's right, but why haven't they caught us yet?" Rika questioned. They had been asleep, just sitting ducks for the GIN-SHOCKER soldiers to capture. Rika didn't want to question their fortune, but it seemed a bit too convenient for them to escape GIN-SHOCKER's detection.

"Hey, I found a few more here! A gang of kids!"

Until now that is.

"Crap!" Keiichi cursed. He tried to transform into Kamen Rider Alter but he couldn't. He remembered that he was back in his teenage body before the change took place. He decided to do the next best thing and gripped his baseball tight before smashing it against the GIN-SHOCKER soldier's head, knocking him down painfully. However, the others had already been alerted and surrounded the Gaming Club with rifles aimed at them and red dots glowing on their foreheads and hearts, targeting those vital spots.

"We surrender," Rika said as she raised her hands.

The Gaming Club were put in handcuffs and were searched for weapons. Rena had somehow managed to hide her cleaver in her dress. Mion's airsoft gun, Shion's tazer and Keiichi's baseball bat were also taken before they were shoved into the armored van.

"Where are you taking us?" Mion questioned.

"Oh, you'll see," said the GS-Soldier as the van's door was slammed shut.

"That does not sound pleasant," said Keiichi. They had been captured by GIN-SHOCKER and they knew that the organization had anything but good planned for them.

* * *

The trip was a long and quiet one as the van was taking them...somewhere. Satoko wondered if her brother might be there, but GIN-SHOCKER may not have much use for a coma patient unless he was converted into one of their cyborg soldiers. They had been told before that GIN-SHOCKER membership was not normally voluntary. They would kidnap their victims, brainwash them, then cybernetically and genetically alter them into living weapons.

Not a very pleasant fate. Death would be more merciful.

They shouldn't have anything to fear. They had been trained for situations like this. OK, they had been trained after gaining Rider powers, which they didn't have at present.

Crap, they were so screwed.

They didn't know how much time had passed while riding in the van but it felt like hours.

Along the way, they tried to discuss on what to do next, but without their Rider power or weapons, trying to fight heavily armed, cybernetically converted, soldiers didn't seem like much of a plan if they planned on surviving. Still, they couldn't let themselves be captured like this.

On the other hand, they might find out what had happened to the villagers.

The van slowed down before coming to a stop. They had arrived. Where, they didn't know, but if GIN-SHOCKER was involved it was far from pleasant. The van's door was opened and one of the armed soldiers commanded, "Get out! It's time to put you to work!"

The Gaming Club were roughly escorted out of the van to see that they had arrived at the quarry. This was the quarry where the final battle between the Riders and GIN-SHOCKER had taken place, but it wasn't a battlefield now. They could see the villagers and they were being put to work with armed GIN-SHOCKER soldiers as guards.

"Hey, we got more free labor!" a soldier called out.

"Give them their tools and point them to where they're supposed to go and what to do!" another soldier answered. It was impossible to tell them apart. They all looked the same as they were dressed alike.

A soldier shouted, "Guys! Guys! It's him! He's coming for an inspection!"

Now the Gaming Club watched as the GS-Soldiers became rigid and began to tremble.

"Today?-! I wasn't told about this!" a soldier retorted in shock. "Quickly, get everyone to stand in line! Hurry!"

"OK! You're the boss!" The soldier dashed off.

"What do you think's got them so freaked out?" Mion whispered to Shion.

"I don't know, Sis, but from the looks of things I doubt it's good," said Shion.

* * *

The GS-Soldiers were all lined up, standing straight in a row as their superior officer came for an inspection. His clothing comprised of a black leather coat that reached his knees with crimson shoulder pads. On the back of the coat was GIN-SHOCKER's emblem. Under the coat he wore a blood red turtleneck shirt with GIN-SHOCKER's emblem on his chest. He wore black pants and brown leather boots with a belt that had GIN-SHOCKER's emblem on his belt buckle. Worn on his hands were black leather gloves with XIII on the back. Pinned to his left sleeve was a black badge with XIII on it in silver. Over his eyes were blood red shades. His hair was a dark shade of blue which was parted down the middle with two strands sticking out of it like antennae.

The Gaming Club who were still standing near their van gaped at who had come.

It was Shinichi and he was dressed as the High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER.

"Iii! Iii! Iii!" the GIN-SHOCKER Soldiers chorused as they raised their arms.

He had his hands behind his back as he scrutinized the soldiers. He pointed to one and barked, "You! Straighten out your uniform!" He pointed to another, "And you, straighten your mask! You're soldiers of GIN-SHOCKER so you should show more discipline!" He went to one and the soldier began to sweat under his mask under the teenager's gaze. He then spotted the Gaming Club nearby. "Why haven't they been put to work?" he demanded but none of the soldiers answered. "Are you all deaf or just dumb?" He looked to one directly in the eye and demanded, "Report!"

"They arrived only 5 minutes ago, sir!" the GS-Soldier answered in a panic. "We were about to put them to work but we were informed that you would be performing an inspection!"

"Well, normally I wouldn't bother but the Great Leader demanded that I take a look at this place. How much of the mineral has been mined?"

"Several carts have been filled, sir," the soldier answered again.

"And you remember when we can stop mining, correct?" he asked.

"Until it's all gone, sir!" the GS-Soldiers answered in unison.

"Well, while I'm here I might as well inspect the new workers," sighed the High Commander. He strode over to the Gaming Club who were apprehensive at his appearance and the lack of recognition in his eyes. He gave them each a look and frowned at Rika and Satoko. "You're both a little too young to be working in the quarry. The kitchen would be a good place for you. Can either of you cook?" They didn't answer. "Well? Can't you talk?"

"Hey, leave them alone!" Mion shouted but she was backhanded by the High Commander. She was sent staggering.

"Hey, you didn't have to hit her!" shouted Keiichi but he was slapped painfully as well.

"Speak only when spoken to, especially to your superiors," warned the High Commander coldly. Keiichi glared at him but then went stiff as he felt cold steel on his throat. It had happened so fast and he hadn't seen it coming as a dagger was held to his throat, the sharp tip pressing against the skin and threatening to run him through. "I do appreciate courage though. However, what I do not appreciate is someone questioning my methods." He withdrew the dagger, allowing Keiichi to let out a breath of relief. He had been very close to death just now.

The High Commander gave the teenagers a good look before he said, "You look strong enough to work the tools." His eyes fell upon Rena and he gazed deeply into her blue eyes. He reached towards her, cupping her chin. "Girl, what is your name?" he asked.

"Rena Ryuugu," she answered weakly.

"I'm the High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER. You may call me...High Commander," he told her. He caressed her cheek with the back of his hand before turning his back to them. "Soldiers, put these children to work! However, bring Ms. Ryuugu to my trailer."

"Yes, sir!" the soldiers obeyed.

* * *

The High Commander's trailer was huge and was made of black metal. It was heavily armored and the door was emblazoned with the symbol of GIN-SHOCKER. Rena was separated from her friends and being escorted towards the High Commander's trailer. The soldiers knocked on the door and the High Commander inside said, "Enter."

"Girl, you are seriously lucky," said one of the soldiers as he unlocked Rena's handcuffs. "Not everyone is fortunate enough to get a private audience with the High Commander."

"Hey, remember the last girl he had with him? It was that princess right?" the other soldier asked.

Rena's eyes widened, '_Princess? They couldn't mean Shawna-chan, could they?_'

"Yeah, and it seems our High Commander isn't satisfied with just one girl," the other snickered. The door was opened and Rena stepped into the trailer before the door was closed behind her.

The trailer definitely looked nice with velvet lining the walls and a beautiful carpet on the floor. It looked like a hotel room fit for royalty. There was a bed, with a bathroom and a small kitchen with a mini fridge. There was also a couch and sitting on it was the High Commander and he was pouring a glass of wine into an empty glass. He put the bottle down on the table in front of the couch and stood up, carrying two glasses of wine.

"Would you like some wine, my dear?" he asked. Rena just stared at him with mixed feelings. He wore Shinichi's face, but he didn't act like the boy she loved. He acted much like how Shinichi had acted when he'd pretended to be GIN-SHOCKER's High Commander in order to destroy the organization from within. However, she wasn't sure if it was the case this time.

Rena took the glass from the High Commander and he took a sip. He offered his hand, an offer Rena politely took. However, she shouldn't have. He'd taken them prisoner.

"You have a nice trailer," she said.

"Well, my quarters back at headquarters are much better," he said. "But since I was ordered to inspect and supervise this project, I might as well make due with what I was given."

* * *

Keiichi was given a sledgehammer and breaking boulders with each swing. Next to him, Mion was doing shoveling. In the distance was Shion who was given a pickaxe to do her own work. Their wrists were still handcuffed and they had balls on chains shackled to their ankles to prevent their escape.

"What do you think that High Commander guy wants with Rena?" Keiichi whispered to Mion.

"I don't know," Mion answered. The High Commander looked like Shinichi. Heck, it was probably Shinichi too, only one who'd turned out differently than the one they knew. "I think we're in some kind of parallel world. Remember what those guys in ARMOR talked about."

"Yeah, the Multiverse," nodded Keiichi. "Parallel worlds are created with every decision different individuals make. Even the most minor of decisions can have huge impacts. It's like a ripple effect that spreads out in all directions."

"And we're in one where GIN-SHOCKER invaded our village and turned the villagers into slave labor," said Mion. Even the elderly were being forced to work. They couldn't survive in these conditions long. "And Shin-chan's their High Commander."

* * *

"Are you sure you don't recognize me?" Rena asked.

"I think I've heard that line being used by guys to pick up girls," the High Commander smirked. "Never heard it being used by a girl before."

Rena groaned. Shinichi didn't recognize her, but he had in fact just brought her into his trailer since she was pretty. He liked pretty things and bragged that he kept quite a collection back at headquarters.

"What do you want with me?" she asked.

"I think that's obvious," he said as he put down his glass of wine. "These jobs can be so boring and I can only cope with so much boredom. That's why I require some _entertainment_." He removed his gloves and his shades. Rena looked into his eyes.

'_The same eyes..._' she thought. This High Commander, a parallel version of her Shinichi, had the very same eyes.

* * *

Keiichi managed to shatter a rock apart, revealing pink crystals hidden inside. He was instructed to put the crystal into a cart before resuming his work. However, while he was forced to work, he was worried about Rena.

"I hope she's OK," said Mion.

"If he hurts her, I swear..." Keiichi growled.

"Kei-chan, don't try to be a hero here," said Mion. "Right now there's nothing we can do."

"I just hate being helpless," he confessed.

"So do I, but right now they hold all the cards." Mion didn't like giving up, but right now she couldn't find a solution. She needed time to plan, to think, and get them and the villagers free.

Just earlier they saw an old man drop dead from over exerting himself and his body was carried away to be dumped someplace else. They were slaves and they were to work until they die, given only enough food, water and rest to survive. Those who died would be easily disposed of. They also discovered that for entertainment, the guards would pit slaves against each other. It was cruel and immoral as they forced fellow villagers to fight for their amusement.

The two soldiers guarding them were having an animated conversation. "Hey, I saw the High Commander welcoming that girl into his trailer. You think she's gonna be added to his collection?"

'_Collection?_' Mion and Keiichi thought simultaneously.

"Oh, you know how he gets with pretty things. I mean he has that harem of women who serve him. Sure, they were kidnapped but he has this power to make them into his loyal sex slaves," the other guard replied.

'_Sex slaves?-!_' both Mion and Keiichi thought in shock. Shinichi would never do that, but they then realized this was not the same one they knew. It was Shinichi, but one who had completely fallen into the corruption of GIN-SHOCKER.

"I feel jealous of him!" the first guard said.

"Hey, you feel like challenging him for his job?" the other guard questioned.

"No way! That's suicide!"

* * *

Rena was stretched along the couch with the High Commander on top of her. He held her down by her shoulder with one hand and placed his other hand on the small of her back as he put his lips over hers in a kiss. Rena should've resisted, should've fought back and pushed him away, but instead she began to reciprocate the action and started kissing back.

'_This is not Shin-kun!_' her mind insisted.

Another side argued, '_But his kisses feel the same!_'

The former retorted, '_Of course they do! He looks like him! He is him! Of course his kisses would feel the same!_' Rena let out a gasp as he began kissing her neck.

The High Commander was enjoying himself. She would be a lot of fun to play with after some mental conditioning to be loyal only to him. She had soft skin, and she smelled nice too, and she was definitely responding well to his actions.

"Will you be mine?" he asked.

"I...I..." Rena's breasts were being fondled as he kissed her again. She then shoved him back off her, crossing her arms over her chest. "No!"

The High Commander dropped on his rear. "Ow..." he groaned. He looked at her and she stared back at him crossley with a blush on her face. He began to laugh in amusement. She had a strong will. It would be a fun challenge.

"I guess I was being too forward," he said as he stood up and straightened his clothes.

"What happened to you?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" he questioned.

"How could you work for an organization like GIN-SHOCKER after all they've done?" she demanded.

His eyes narrowed suspiciously, "And how would you know anything about GIN-SHOCKER, my dear?" GIN-SHOCKER was a secret organization, hidden in the shadows, and its existence was only heard within rumors and urban legends. They've been hiding their existence for years, maybe even decades, but there was always an information leak.

Rena covered up her question by adding, "I mean what are you doing with the villagers?"

"Obviously, they're slaves," he answered.

"And what would you need slaves for?" she questioned.

"Mining," he said. "You see this quarry contains something of great value to GIN-SHOCKER: Sakuradite."

"What's that?" she asked.

"Power," was his simple answer. "And your village just happens to be located near a deposit of the Sakuradite. We did have difficulties trying to get you villagers. There was this woman called Takano who had her own plans for your village and she even had soldiers to help her accomplish her plans. We took care of them."

"What will you use the Sakuradite for?" she asked.

"To take over the world in the name of the Great Leader and GIN-SHOCKER," he told her. "The world is a mess, Ms. Ryuugu. So many races and nationalities go into conflict with each other. But under one ruler, the world will be united, and peace will be assured...even if it is through force."

"So, you're going to help a madman become king of the world," she accused. She knew her Shinichi would not allow someone like the Great Leader of GIN-SHOCKER to rule everything.

And she was right.

"Oh, I did say the Great Leader will be in charge, but I never said it was going to be the one that's presently sitting on the throne," he smiled. "You see, Ms. Ryuugu. Sakuradite is power and its power I wish to use for myself and with that power I am going to overthrow the Great Leader, usurp his throne, and take my position as the new Great Leader!"

He took her wrist and pulled her to him.

"And I want you to be at my side with the rest of my women," he finished before kissing her again.

* * *

"I'm surprised that trailer hasn't begun to shake back and forth yet," a guard joked. "You know what I mean?"

"Ah, he must be taking things slow. You know how he operates. He's a smooth operator with a silver tongue. He'll talk them into it first, use the right words, tell them what they wanna hear, then bangs them until Jesus comes!" the other guard replied.

"OK, we seriously need to get Rena out of there," urged Keiichi.

Mion looked to the guards. "OK, but we need to distract the guards and grab those keys for our chains. We need a distraction." She said to Keiichi, "Kei-chan, how are your acting skills?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" he asked and Mion swiftly kicked him in the crotch. "Why...?" he asked in a high-pitched tone as he collapsed.

"Guards! Guards!" Mion shouted. "He's fallen ill! He needs help!"

The two guards shared looks and looked to see what was going on. Keiichi was groaning on the ground in pain. They checked up on him and while their attention was on Keiichi, she grabbed the ball chained to her and knocked out one of the guards with it. The other guard raised his weapon to shoot her but she lifted up her shirt, flashing him. He was stunned, giving Keiichi the opportunity to grab his legs and pull him to the ground. Mion raised the metal ball and dropped it on the GS-Soldier's face, knocking him out.

Mion pulled her shirt down and straightened it out. "OK, now that that's taken care of, it's time we get out of these chains." She searched the guard and found the keys. "And score!"

"Did you have to kick my crotch and flash them?" Keiichi questioned.

"Have you already forgotten the first rule of the Gaming Club, Kei-chan? Do everything you can to win," she told him. Keiichi just gave her a blank stare as Mion undid their cuffs and shackles. He should've known that she was going to say something like that.

* * *

Rena and the High Commander were on his bed now, embracing and kissing each other passionately. Rena found that she could not stop. There was just something about this version of her boyfriend that drew her to him like the one she loved. His charisma was just so irresistible. Maybe that was why he had such loyal followers.

Rena broke the kiss and said, "Aishiteru, Shin-kun." That phrase made the High Commander freeze and stare at her with wide eyes.

"What did you say?" he asked.

"Aishiteru," she repeated.

"And after that?"

"Shin-kun."

He screwed his eyes shut tightly and groaned as he shook his head back and forth. When his eyes opened, he was staring at Rena in confusion. "Rena...chan?"

"Shin-kun?" she asked.

He looked around, confused at their unfamiliar surroundings, and asked, "Where are we?" She suddenly pulled him into a tight hug.

"It's you! It's really you!" she cheered. She was stunned, confused, but most of all she was happy that the High Commander was really Shinichi. She released him and they both sat up together. He inspected his clothes and the GIN-SHOCKER badge he wore.

"OK, somebody has some explaining to do," he said, frowning.

"I'll explain later. But first we need to help the others," said Rena.

"The others are here?" he asked.

"Yes, now come on," Rena said as she took his hand and pulled him to the door. She opened the door and walked out with him but all of a sudden she was pulled away from Shinichi who was suddenly assaulted by Mion and Keiichi.

"Ow! Sonovabitch!"

Mion had knocked him down with the butt of a rifle before she and Keiichi started kicking him. The one who'd pulled Rena away was Shion. "Mii-chan! Keiichi-kun! Yamette!" Rena cried. "That's Shin-kun!"

That made her two friends stop their assault and stare at her in shock. "What?" they uttered in unison.

"Rena, he looks like him but he's not our Shinichi," said Shion.

"Actually...I am..." Shinichi groaned as he lay on the ground, bruised by the kicks. "And...in a lot of pain..."

Mion and Keiichi weren't sure but Rena was as she helped her boyfriend up. "Are you OK?"

"Cyborg, remember?" he grinned. He looked to Mion as he massaged his jaw.. "But still, did you have to hit me with that rifle like that?"

"Sorry," Mion apologized, shrugging. "You were evil."

"Remind me to pay you back someday," Shinichi grumbled. "So, what's going on?"

* * *

The Gaming Club explained to Shinichi what had occurred. How they had not only gone back in time but ended up in a parallel world in the bodies of their parallel selves.

"Wait, what happened to the rest of the guards?" Shinichi asked.

"Took care of them with this," said Satoko as she revealed a bottle of sleeping pills.

"You carry sleeping pills with you?" Shinichi asked. "Why?"

"Why not?" she asked with a shrug. "You never know when you might need them. I just knew I needed them and they were in my pocket."

"Satoko and I were put in charge of cooking. We made curry and Satoko put in several tablets into the curry. The soldiers came and ate first and now they're sleeping like babies," added Rika.

"And as for the rest, we freed the villagers and went to save Rena from being raped by you and becoming one of your sex slaves," concluded Mion.

"Rape? Sex slave?" Shinichi repeated incredulously.

"The guards were talking about you," Keiichi clarified.

"Oh, that makes sense," said Shinichi. "So, where's Satoshi?"

"We don't know. We think he might still be in the clinic," said Shion worriedly.

Shinichi got this look and his eyes widened as he spotted one of the GIN-SHOCKER soldiers, still conscious. He had a rifle aimed at them. Shinichi grabbed a rock and hurled it straight into the soldier's head. They heard the soldier shout and Shion gasped.

"Satoshi-kun!" she cried as she ran towards the fallen soldier.

"Shion, wait!" Mion cried after her sister. The Gaming Club chased after Shion who knelt at the GS-Soldier's side. She pulled off his mask to reveal that he was none other than Satoshi Houjou.

"Satoshi-kun!" she cried.

"Nii-nii!" Satoko exclaimed.

"Ow..." Satoshi groaned. "What hit me?" he asked. He looked at his gloved hands and down at the suit he was in. "What am I wearing?"

"Never mind that," Shion said as she and Satoko hugged him, relieved that he was OK.

"Now all we need to do is to find Hanyuu-chan," Shinichi frowned. "Then we can figure out what's going on here."

"I think I might know where she is," said Rika. "Come on. We're going back to the Furude Shrine."

* * *

The Saiguden (Ritual Equipment Toolshed) was the ritual toolshed behind the Furude Shrine. It contained the tools used for torture during the time when the Watangashi Festival was a bloody ritual instead of the more civilized and less violent version practiced in modern times. Inside the Saiguden was a statue of Oyashiro-sama, Hinamizawa's guardian deity.

The door was unlocked as Rika had the key and they entered. The fog hadn't disappeared yet but they chose to ignore it.

Rika faced the statue of Oyashiro-sama and walked over to it, putting her hand on it. "Hanyuu, are you there?"

At first there was no answer...but seconds later contact was made.

"_Rika? Rika, is that you?"_ Rika heard.

Rika was relieved to hear her friend's voice. "Hanyuu, are you in the statue?"

"_Hai! Let me out of here!"_ cried Hanyuu.

"She's in the statue," Rika said to everyone. "We need to get her out."

"Allow me," Shinichi volunteered as he focused all his strength into his fist. With a loud cry he unleashed a punch and his fist shot straight at the statue. There was a loud sound of impact as his fist met the statue and it cracked.

Now, normally Rena would be offended by an act of vandalism against Oyashiro-sama, but after learning the truth about the deity and everything else, she didn't get angry at how Shinichi was treating the statue representing the village's god.

The cracks spread and pieces of the statue fell of, forming a hole. Inside the statue, in spirit form, with her knees up against her chest was Hanyuu. She looked younger too, as young as she was back in 1983.

"Rika!" Hanyuu flew out. She saw everyone, "Minna!"

"She's a ghost," Satoshi pointed out.

"You all can see me!" she cheered happily.

"Hanyuu, do you know what's going on?" Rika asked.

"I don't know," Hanyuu admitted. "I woke up this morning and found myself trapped in the statue. I couldn't get out. I screamed but nobody came."

"We have to figure out what's going on," said Shinichi. "But let's get out of here. This place is giving me the creeps."

"Agreed," Keiichi said.

"Seconded. Let's get out of here," said Satoshi.

The Gaming Club left the Saiguden and Shinichi looked ahead to see a large number of glowing pairs of red eyes in the fog surrounding them. "Guys, we're not alone." His friends saw the red eyes too. They came closer and closer, revealing them to be the eyes of the villagers and they were carrying weapons.

"What's going on now!-?" Mion shouted.

"We need to run! And I mean we need to run, NOW!" Shinichi shouted as they ran from the villagers who began to chase them. The villagers had just formed a lynch mob and the Hinamizawa Gaming Club were the unfortunate lynchees.

"Kill them! Kill the sinners!"

"Hang them by their entrails!"

"Slit their throats and wrists!"

"Rip out their nails!"

"Bash them to death!"

"Fill them full of holes!"

The villagers were chanting such horrible things to them as they gave chase. It was like the entire world was against them.

"OK, seriously, this is messed up!" Keiichi shouted.

"Ya think?" retorted Shinichi. "Something isn't right! First we're in 1983, then there's GIN-SHOCKER, and now the villagers want to lynch us! You know what that adds up to?"

"Bad day?" Mion supplied.

"A _really _bad day!"

"This is like a bad dream!" cried out Rena. "It's a nightmare!" Tears were falling from her eyes as the villagers were chasing after them, murderous and relentless, with demonic eyes filled with murderous hate.

"A dream," Shinichi whispered. He looked to Satoshi. Why hadn't he noticed it before?

Shinichi stopped running, causing his friends to stare at him.

"Guys, run. I'll hold them off," Shinichi said.

"Shin-kun, no!" Rena protested. He kissed her deeply.

He heard the shouts demanding a blood sacrifice and death. "Now hurry!"

"Don't you dare die, Shin-chan!" Mion ordered as she took Rena's hand and dragged her along as they ran. Shinichi didn't answer and turned to face the villagers.

"I'm sorry," Shinichi whispered an apology. Seeing the mob coming closer, he spread his arms, surrendering himself to his fate. "OK, come and get me."

The bloodthirsty mob was instantly upon him as they reached him and struck him down before surrounding him in a circle. They took turns striking him with their weapons and tearing him to bloody pieces. Rena could only watch in horror as she screamed.

* * *

"NO! SHIN-KUN!" Rena screamed as she shot out of bed. Her eyes were wide with terror, her skin was damp with sweat, and her heart was racing. She checked her surroundings and found that she was in her and Shinichi's bedroom.

She pulled her knees up against her chest, hugging her legs as she began to cry. The nightmare had been frightening. She then felt a pair of arms wrap around her from behind her and was pulling into a hug.

"Are you OK?" Shinichi asked as he knelt behind his girlfriend.

"I had a bad dream," she confessed, sobbing. "It's nothing."

"Actually, it's not nothing," he said. "I had a bad dream too."

"What was it about?" she asked. He didn't look like he had a nightmare.

"I was the High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER and I was trying to seduce you into joining my harem," he confessed and Rena's eyes went wide with shock as she gasped and turned to look at him. "Then the villagers chased us and..."

"Killed you," she finished. "But how? How did we have the same dream?"

"Get back to sleep," he said. "We'll call the others and _explain _everything to them."

Rena wanted to ask more, to know what Shinichi knew, but he softly kissed her forehead and pulled her down to the bed with him, holding her close. She felt safe in his arms and slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, the Gaming Club met down in the Basement to talk about the shared nightmare they had. They all had identical accounts of every detail in their dreams, right until the end when Shinichi got 'killed' by the villagers.

Shinichi explained, "I think the reason we all had the same nightmare was because we all share a psychic link."

"A psychic link?" Mion repeated quizzically. The others shared her expression, wondering what Shinichi meant.

"You all got your Rider powers from me, which are still linked to me," he elaborated. "It's because of that link that you all were pulled into my dream. You were all sharing my dream."

"So technically what we went through was _your _fault?" Shion asked.

"I guess you could say that," he said. "Sorry."

"So, at the end, why did you sacrifice yourself?" Satoko asked.

"If it was a nightmare, then a huge enough shock would wake us all up. I realized it was my nightmare so my death would have a chain reaction, waking us all up from the shared nightmare," he told them.

"So, none of it was real?" Rika asked to be sure.

"None," Shinichi confirmed.

"But it really hurt when Mion kicked me in the balls!" Keiichi shouted.

"That was your mind simulating the sensation of pain," Shinichi explained. "It was imaginary pain in response to Mion's action."

"So, when did you realize it was all a dream?" Rika asked.

"I suspected it when Satoko here told me she put sleeping pills in the curry to knock out GS-Soldiers. That was when I realized something was up," he answered.

"Just from that?" Satoko asked. He nodded.

"It was far too convenient for you to have sleeping pills on hand when we needed them. I would expect laxatives or maybe even itching powder considering your nature as a prankster," Shinichi answered.

"They're _traps_, not pranks," she interjected.

"Either way, it was too convenient. My suspicions were finally confirmed and I knew it all wasn't real when I looked at Satoshi."

"Me?" Satoshi pointed to himself.

"I hit you with a rock but there was no bruise," Shinichi explained. "I knew then that while the dream could simulate pain, that no injury was present. That was what led to my conclusion. If I was the root, I had to be killed to wake you all up."

"You would've woken up anyway, right?" Shion asked. "You didn't have to kill yourself, right?"

"I...couldn't be sure," Shinichi said uncertainly. "We had a psychic link. If I had woken up before you all, I just don't know what might happen. I just have a feeling it might've been bad."

"So, do you often dream about being High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER and taking over the village with Rena at your side?" Keiichi asked.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Confused? Well, it should be. Again, just something I came up with through a basic idea and then it just wrote itself. Mainly the subject of dreams. Anyway, a few things need to be explained here. One is if that is what Shinichi often dreams about? That's for you to decide. Also, why was Hanyuu in the statue? Well, she is one of the strongest beings in that world so having her imprisoned would be a wise move for any conquerer since she might interfere.**

**And now an Omake/Alternate Scene:**

With the GIN-SHOCKER Soldiers dealt with, Keiichi and Mion were moving towards the High Commander's trailer to rescue Rena. They were armed with rifles and while they knew the High Commander would most likely kill them, they weren't about to let that fear stop them from saving their friend.

As they neared the armored trailer, they saw it shaking. Remembering what those two GS-Soldiers had conversed about before regarding the High Commander's habit of bedding women, they feared the worst. Their fears were confirmed as they could hear Rena screaming from the inside.

"OK, that's it!" Mion shouted. Her friend was being raped and they weren't about to let it continue. She threw the door open and charged in with Keiichi only for them both to freeze at the sight in front of them.

Sexual intercourse was taking place, but it was completely consensual. Both Rena and the High Commander (Shinichi), clad only in their birthday suits, were joined together with the former riding the latter vigorously. The High Commander was on his back with Rena bouncing up and down on top of him, her breasts being groped and fondled by her lover. Rena was screaming due to the intense pleasure and her tongue was hanging out of her drooling mouth. Keiichi's mouth was agape and he was gawking with a nose bleed. Mion, embarrassed and mortified, quickly covered her boyfriend's eyes and turned themselves both around before exiting the trailer.

Neither Rena nor the High Commander had noticed them. They were far too preoccupied with each other.


	150. The Legacy of Cain Part 94

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN  
**

**Part 94: The Shady Secrets of Spartan Academy**

Deep in the mountains of Nagano, surrounded by a beautiful forest of green, was the elite high school known as the Spartan Academy. It was a boarding school where students could enjoy comfortable living conditions as they studied in order to enter elite universities in the future and become productive members of society. However, the school hides a dark secret that outsiders do not know about.

The staff used harsh disciplinary methods to force their students to study. The students' entire three year life at the academy revolves around studying and nothing else. They study 15 hours a day, every day. They don't even get a break on the weekends. And they have exams twice a week. Wednesday is the mid-week exam and Saturday is the weekend exam.

Students who are enrolled in this school can never leave and are not allowed to go back home even during the holidays. During summer vacation they have summer school as well. They don't even get winter break or spring break. They just go to school. It is three years of hell for the students who are enrolled here and they count the days until they graduate and can leave this hell.

The school doesn't tolerate failure. The passing score, however, is 90%. Anything lower is met with swift and harsh punishment. The students, not seeing a way out, can do nothing but adhere to the demands of the faculty to study, study, study and to bring glory to the school as they enter A-list elite universities.

The school advertises and promises a 100% passing rate but to a frightening degree.

* * *

"Let me go! Let me go!" a female voice was heard inside a locked room. Peering inside, we can see who the unfortunate victim is. Meet Mayumi Takahashi. She hung upside down from the ceiling by her ankles by rope and had her hands tied behind her back. Her only garments on her were her flower-print panties.

Two teachers were administering discipline on her. The reason, she had scored an 83 on the midweek test. Since she got lower than the 90% minimum, she was being punished through humiliation. One of the teachers was tall and lanky with a bald head and buck teeth. His partner was broad and muscular with short and wild hair, looking like a gorilla. They were all staring lecherously at the helpless Mayumi who begged for them to release her.

The large teacher smacked her across the cheek and ordered her, "Shut up! You're going to take this punishment whether you like it or not!"

The lanky one added as he groped Mayumi, "How about we turn these breasts into pin cushions? That would teach you not to be so lazy!"

Mayumi screwed her eyes shut, ashamed at the punishment she was being given. This was cruel and perverted torture. Why hadn't anyone reported this?

Who would want to report such humiliating things. They were shamed into silence, allowing the teaching staff to do whatever they wanted.

The lanky teacher had picked up a pin and was about to put it in Mayumi's breasts when the door was knocked off its hinges, landing loudly onto the floor.

"Villains, stop what you're doing!" a voice from the dark doorway called.

"Who's there!-?" the lanky one demanded.

"If you continue, I promise you, justice won't ever forgive you!"

"Hey, who the hell do you think you are!-?" the large, gorilla-like teacher demanded. "You think you're so tough?"

"I don't think! I know!"

"Then show yourself!" the gorilla teacher slammed his bamboo sword on the ground threateningly.

"If that's what you want, then I'll do it!" A pair of blood red eyes glowed in the darkness, startling them, and then the figure stepped into the lit room starting with a blue boot and then another blue boot, which led up to a black bodysuit and matching armor over a strong form.

"What!-?" both teacher gaped.

"Kamen Rider Blue Beetle...sanjou!" Blue Beetle declared.

Mayumi's eyes widened, "Kamen Rider?"

Blue Beetle looked up to Mayumi and then covered his eyes quickly, "Oh god! Sorry, I didn't mean to look!"

The two teachers, seeing this, capitalized on the distraction and rushed at him. Blue Beetle saw them charge at him and he activated a new ability of his. His left boot became bigger and thicker and he raised it up before stomping the floor. At first it did nothing, until a giant energy projection of the boot appeared and slammed down on the two teacher, flattening them and knocking them unconscious.

Meanwhile, Mayumi was being cut down by a girl in a red and black uniform with blonde hair tied in twin tails. The blonde removed her red jacket and draped it over poor Mayumi's body. "Are you OK?" the blonde asked.

"I'm fine," Mayumi said. "Thanks." Her clothes were in the corner of the room. She'd been forced to strip before she was strung up earlier.

Blue Beetle, meanwhile, had his back facing Mayumi who was still naked and said, "Are you OK, miss?"

"I'm fine," Mayumi said, a blush on her cheek. It was too bad he couldn't talk to her face-to-face, but in her state of undress it would be way too embarrassing. "Did you say your name was 'Kamen Rider'?"

"Kamen Rider Blue Beetle!" he said, still not turning around. "Now, I'm off!" The blonde winked at Mayumi and took hold of Blue Beetle's hand before they vanished in a flash of gold.

Mayumi was still wearing the red jacket and she smiled with a blush. She had just been saved by a superhero.

* * *

**A WEEK EARLIER...**

"You want us to go and investigate a school?" Yokoshima blinked. He'd been summoned by Dr. Magi and Asmodeus had insisted on coming along to offer her assistance.

Dr. Magi brought up the image of the school. "It's called Spartan Academy, an elite boarding school in the mountains of Nagano. A pretty isolated place with a 100 percent passing rate and all the graduates becoming either productive members of society or entering the best colleges in Japan."

"I hear a 'but' coming along," Yokoshima said.

"The students are forced to study 15 hours a day, seven days a week. They don't get weekend breaks nor a break for holidays. Everyday, for three years, it's study, study, study for them. They don't even get to go home to their parents," Dr. Magi said.

"Not even for Christmas?" Yokoshima asked.

"Not even for Christmas," Dr. Magi confirmed.

Yokoshima's eyes narrowed as he clenched his fists. "Those...**sick** bastards." Christmas was a sacred time for friends and family to come together as members enjoy each other's company.

"Their spring, summer and winter breaks are replaced with only school and study," Dr. Magi finished.

"OK, what do you want us to do, Dr. Magi?" Yokoshima asked.

"You will enter the school as a transfer student and gather evidence. This school either needs to be shut down or have a change in management," said Dr. Magi

"Is that wise?" Asmodeus asked. "I'm not saying it's a bad idea but Yoko-kun is not the brightest light bulb out there." Asmodeus pointed out, knowing that he'd probably get on the teacher's bad side because of his grades, which would more than likely be less than satisfactory.

"True. Despite my best efforts in using cybernetics to improve his intelligence even I must admit he can be dimwitted at times," Dr Magi said nodding.

"You both do realize I'm standing right here, and that I can hear you, right?" Yokoshima asked, annoyed that they could so casually insult his intelligence in his presence.

Dr Magi ignored that statement as he said, "However I am proud to say that he is quite crafty and I strongly believe in his ability in this mission. That is if he is willing to accept it of course."

"I think I can handle it!" Yokoshima said with a smirk.

"In that case, can I come along? You know, to make sure Yoko-kun doesn't get lonely," said Asmodeus. "I'm not gonna pose as a student, though. I'll just use my stake form." She turned into her stake form which landed in Yokoshima's hand. It was quite compact and could be carried in Yokoshima's pocket.

"OK, Asmodeus can come along. But remember, Yokoshima. If you blow your cover than all your efforts would be wasted," Dr. Magi cautioned.

Yokoshima put on a grin and gave a two-fingered salute, "I won't let you down, Pops."

* * *

**Present Time...**

The two teachers that Blue Beetle had beaten earlier were reporting what had occurred to their principal. He was sitting in his chair with the back facing them as he listened to their report. He didn't care what they said about the girl. He knew they were perverted, but they were also very sadistic. That was the main reason why he had appointed them as the regular discipline teachers.

"He just appeared and beat us down in the blink of an eye, sir," said the lanky teacher.

"We're sorry, sir!" the gorilla-like teacher apologized.

"Sorry doesn't cut it! You failed at your job and let this interloper escape! And, as both of you know, this school doesn't accept failure lightly!" the principal said cruelly. He held a remote in his hand and pressed a button. This caused a trap door to open up under the feet of both men and they screamed as they fell into the pit. The trap door closed as the principal mused, "So, the Blue Beetle has infiltrated this school, probably as one of the students… excellent! That means all I have to do is to expose him and then capture him. "

The principal began laughing darkly but stopped as he heard both teachers screamed in agony "Oh good. It seems I haven't wasted money on the crocodile pit."

* * *

The next morning, in class, Mayumi was telling her classmates about the Kamen Rider who'd saved her from punishment. Listening with interest from his desk was a young boy dressed in the standard uniform with neatly combed brown hair and wearing thick coke bottle glasses (guess who?).

His name was Shima Magi and he'd enrolled as a transfer student last week. He looked a bit nerdy but the students had other things to worry about, like getting at least a 90 percent on their tests. Fortunately, Shima had no trouble catching up and was able to score a 90 percent on the last test with no problem.

He smiled at Mayumi, glad to hear that she was safe. The teacher came into the class and the students returned to their seats for the lesson.

* * *

When school ended, which was late at night, which left the students barely enough time to finish their homework and get a good night's rest, Shima Magi was sitting in his dorm room. He removed his glasses and messed up his hair to reveal that he was none other than Yokoshima Ryuunosuke Magi, aka Kamen Rider Blue Beetle. His grades were fortunately above the 90% line thanks to the Blue Scarab on his back. It was feeding all the information he needed to ace the tests.

"OK, last night I managed to catch two teachers going overboard when punishing a student," he said to himself. He unbuttoned his Gakuran (school jacket) and took out a demon-themed stake. He tossed it into the air and in a flash of gold the stake transformed into Asmodeus.

Asmodeus looped her arms around her husband's neck and gave him a kiss. "We got proof! Now we can shut this school down!"

"It's not enough yet, Asmo-chan," said Yokoshima. "We need to catch more of the teachers in the act. Even if we show this proof, it'll just get those two teachers in trouble but not enough for the entire school to be investigated by the proper authorities. We need more."

Asmodeus frowned. She really didn't like this school. It was just so boring. The only fun thing about this assignment was that she could be with her husband.

* * *

_Yokoshima's body glowed with light and he was superimposed with the bodies of his Armadillo, Armadillo Blitz, and Blue Beetle forms. He suddenly released a burst of blue light out from his body and the silhouette of a new armored suit holding a sword took his place._

* * *

Yokoshima shot up in his bed, eyes wide, startled. "Whoa...that was some funky dream." But what could it mean? He'd once heard that dreams had meaning from both Hana and Michiru. There was always something interesting to be gathered from dreams, like hidden messages and the like. Some even said that dreams could be visions of the future.

So, was the dream a product of his overactive imagination, or a vision of things to come in the near future?

Yokoshima relaxed and laid back down next to Asmodeus who was sharing the bed with him.

* * *

The days went by with Yokoshima keeping his eyes and ears opened. He paid close attention to the faculty, noting that some were looking at the female students lustfully and some looking ready to beat the shit out of the students too. Granted, some students may deserve a beating but nothing as severe as what he'd witnessed earlier. Yokoshima recalled using his hero alias to stop a teacher from beating the shit out of a male student with a metal pipe. Most of all, he noticed that all the faculty were looking around for someone, and he had a pretty good suspicion who that was.

Today, however, he wasn't out looking for information. Something huge was about to happen pretty soon and Yokoshima knew that he would be right in the middle of it.

The principal had called an assembly and all the students were standing in the auditorium with the faculty standing on a stage. This would be the first time Yokoshima would see the principal since he enrolled last week. When he saw the man walk up the stage and stand behind the podium, Yokoshima had to blink twice. He recognized that face even without the robe and the golden chain around his neck.

'_Harious?-! Seriously?_' he thought. That insane sorcerer was running this place? Why exactly would he want to run a school? Then he thought back to Mayumi's punishment and imagined other girls being put in the same position. Now he understood. Harious was just a depraved pervert who got off from stripping girls naked and torturing them for his sick pleasure.

"My students! I bring grave news! It appears that we have a breach of security!" Principal Harious spoke into the microphone as he addressed the student body. A screen behind him showed an image of Blue Beetle projected onto it. "The Blue Beetle has come to ruin this school and ruin your chances of entering the top universities of your dreams! He must be stopped! That is why I am offering a reward to anyone who catches him for me! You will receive the Stamp of Spartan!"

The Stamp of Spartan was a seal of passing from Spartan Academy and would guarantee them an early graduation and guaranteed entry into the universities of their dreams without having to pass the entrance exams.

Yokoshima folded his arms, not looking very pleased, especially when he heard students talking about finding out who the Blue Beetle was and exposing him so they could get the Stamp of Spartan. It disgusted him really.

'_Humans are naturally selfish beings, Yoko-kun_._ Beatrice-sama taught us that_,' Asmodeus spoke to him telepathically.

'_I know, Asmo-chan,_' frowned Yokoshima, '_I know_.' As long as they got something of high value in return, they would turn on each other.

One of the faculty members leaned towards Harious and whispered, "Boss, where are you going with this? I admit the incentive is good but shouldn't you be giving them more info? Hell even saying he has some kind of beetle on his back could be helpful in finding the guy."

"Simple. This is going to help me get to him much quicker," Harious whispered back with a dark smile.

* * *

With the Stamp of Spartan held as the reward for catching and exposing the Blue Beetle who hid in their midst, many of the students began to look around frantically for whoever he might be. However, Harious hadn't given them any information to help in their search. This would lead to students accusing one another of being the Blue Beetle and bringing them in without any evidence. They were tempted by the allure of the Stamp of Spartan and would do anything to get it and leave the school behind, even turn on one another for the sake of self-preservation.

Truly, it was the dark side of human behaviour. When given the chance to advance themselves, they would betray someone close to them if they felt they were a threat.

Several students were turned into the faculty as they were suspected to be the Blue Beetle. Of course, this was just their schoolmates attempt to get the Stamp of Spartan and get a free pass out of the school. The students who were turned in were those who were active in sports who would need to be strong to be a Kamen Rider. Since Harious never gave the students any information to help them identify the Blue Beetle, they just went with their own conclusions. The students who were turned in were brought to the school field, kicking and screaming, and tied to stakes to be displayed to the student body.

There were students in the crowd, proud of what they did, hoping they were right as to receive the Stamp of Spartan. However, quite a lot of students were appalled by the display but were too cowardly to speak against the administration due to fear of punishment.

"Thank you, students," Harious said as he stood with the rest of the faculty. "You have done well in bringing these suspects forward." The students who'd turned in their fellow schoolmates in seemed proud of what they had done. Mayumi, however, felt disgusted by their actions. Blue Beetle was their hope, but with the Stamp of Spartan being offered as a reward, they would turn in a possible hero just so they could escape this institution.

"However," Harious continued, "None of these students are the Blue Beetle! I should know! I've seen his face!"

Yokoshima grimaced. The students who had turned in their fellow schoolmates began to wonder why the principal had allowed this to happen, even offering up the Stamp of Satan, if he already knew the Blue Beetle's identity. They were about to find out.

"Beetle, I know you're there! If you don't want anything to happen to these students, step forward right now!" Harious challenged. "Well? Aren't you going to save them?" The teachers were armed with whips and bamboo swords, which would indeed hurt and leave marks on the students. Harious ordered, "You may begin."

The teachers cracked their whips and slapped their bamboo swords against their open palms in preparation for the following torture session. The tied up students were frightened and intimidated by the display and wished for someone to step forward and stop this. A student was lashed by a whip and cried out, his clothes tearing. Another student, a girl, was whacked by a bamboo sword and cried out in pain. Blows rained down on them and Yokoshima watched which clenched fists at the display of callous brutality.

He couldn't take it anymore. As he was about to step forward and confess to being the Blue Beetle to spare these students more lashings, all of a sudden, in a flash of gold, Asmodeus appeared. The boys, seeing her in her uniform, whistled in appreciation at the curvy blonde demoness.

Flying ahead, she created her energy blade to help free the students. However, one of the teachers moved with inhuman speed and was able to intercept her. He grabbed her from behind in a vice-like grip.

"Hey, lemme go you disgusting pig!" she shouted as she struggled. She tried to use her ability to teleport to break free but much to her surprise she found that she couldn't. '_Someone's stopping me from teleporting with magic!_' she realized.

Harious grinned. He knew how much the Blue Beetle cared for this girl and if she was here, so was he, and now that she was in danger the Blue Beetle would no doubt appear to save his beloved damsel-in-distress.

"Coward! Are you so afraid to reveal your true identity that you have to send your girlfriend to save these students? How pathetic!" Harious went over to Asmodeus with a dark grin as he raised his hand. She stared at the hand, trembling, and he grabbed the front of her uniform before tearing it open. Asmodeus cried as Yokoshima watched. The same hand, much to the student's surprise, was suddenly covered in electricity before he grabbed her head. Asmodeus screamed in agony as electricity coursed throughout her body "Beetle, will you show yourself now or must I kill her to prove a point?-!" Harious demanded. When he heard no answer, he decided to torture Asmodeus to death and listen to the screams of agony before death claimed her and silenced her.

At this point, Yokoshima really had enough.

"ENOUGH!"

All activities ceased at the shout and Harious grinned as he realized that he'd been able to bait and draw the Blue Beetle out, finally. The students parted as Yokoshima strode forward. Gone was the normally jovial expression he often wore. Now he wore an expression of anger. Watching his wife being tortured like that had made him angry. Walking closer, he took off his glasses and tossed them aside. It was amazing how a simple pair of spectacles could hide his identity so effectively.

Harious grinned as he saw Yokoshima step forward as he reveal himself. He was right all along. The bearer of the Blue Beetle armor had been among the students. Oh, he could've gone looking for Yokoshima himself,, but then again it was fun to have the students turn on each other to draw the Blue Beetle out.

With his target in sight, Harious turned to the faculty and said two words:

"Seize him!"

The teachers, at Harious' command, turned into their true forms. This startled the already frightened students who witnessed as the teachers transformed into a variety of monsters. There were armored Centaurs, scythe wielding Satyrs, and finally purple skin Incubi amongst Harious' Rat Goblins.

"I'm surprised you actually have a variety of demons with you this time," Yokoshima stated while eyeing each one with narrowed eyes. As frightening as their appearance was with their inhuman features, claws, hooves, horns and wings, the assembled demons didn't actually scare Yokoshima who regarded them the same way he would regard cannon fodder.

"Well I can't rely on just the Rat Goblins, now can I? I would be a pathetic magician if I relied on only one demon breed," Harious said calmly as if talking about the weather. The demons all laughed sinisterly as they began stomping towards him.

The teacher holding Asmodeus chuckled, looking forward to the slaughter which would take place, imagining that Yokoshima was going to get beaten within an inch of his life. He was unaware that Asmodeus had already recovered from her electrical shock. She quickly changed to her stake form, slipping from his grasp, and stabbed the man in the foot.

"GYAAH!" The man screeched, revealing his true form to be Harious' right hand rat, Steel Cap. He clutched his injured foot in pain as he hopped up and down on his good foot. Yokoshima, seeing this, smirked as he quickly changed into Blue Beetle.

The transformation was instantaneous, taking place in a matter of seconds as the Scarab activated along with his Spark Core. Armor plates spread across his body, fusing together, before finally forming his helmet which hid his face. The red eyes flashed, signalling the finished transformation. The demons, after witnessing this transformation, charged at Blue Beetle who casually looked to them.

He smiled. Stomping his left leg, he formed the Gatling gun attachment. The barrels rotated and unleashed their payload, gunning down several of the oncoming demons. Satyrs and Rat Goblins fell with ease but the sturdier Centaurs and the airborne Incubi would be an even bigger challenge.

Well, they would normally if they weren't facing an extraterrestrial weapon of war and the one wielding it. He formed the B3 Gun and aimed at the Centaurs. He fired a series of energized bursts from his firearm which caused the Centaurs to explode into bloody chunks.

He looked up at the Incubi and saw them coming at him with claws and shrieks of rage. He knew just how to take care of them. He formed his railgun cannons over his shoulders and fired beams at them, scattering them as they tried to avoid the shots. He then formed the Rocket Arm and took off, joining them in the air. He zipped around in the air, zigging and zagging as he struck the Incabae and then formed his Drill Leg to execute one of his favorite finishers.

"Rocket Drill Kick!"

He skewered several of the flying demons with the drill, destroying them before he landed on the ground. Flicking his left arm, he created a winch-like device that had a hook on it. He shot it at the demons and wrapped the cable around them, rounding them up. With a tug and swing, he used the tied up demons as a makeshift flail. He spun around and around and used his make-shift weapon to knock down any oncoming demon some of the demons. Retracting the cable, he formed claws on his opposite arm as he pulled them forward before slashing them down.

Meanwhile Asmodeus, still in her stake form, quickly went to each of the still tied up students, cutting their ropes with quick efficiency. With the last one freed she quickly reassumed her human form and exclaimed, "Don't just stand there like idiots! Get out of here!" The students quickly nodded before they ran away. Asmodeus then turned around to help her husband. Quickly reforming the energy blade, she easily slice two Satyrs' heads off before grabbing one of the heads and launching it towards an Incubus that was behind Blue Beetle causing him to grunt in pain. He whirled around and looked ready to kill her but gasped in pain as Blue Beetle pierced through his heart with his claw.

All the while Harious watched them with an air of anger. No matter what he did, no matter"Not this time." He created a fireball the size of a small boulder before launching it toward them. Asmodeus, seeing it, grabbed her husband and jumped away from the fireball which exploded, scattering flames all over the place.

Blue Beetle frowned as he saw Harious' demonic forces all screamed in agony as they were immolated by the mystic flames. Harious had heartlessly burnt them alive in an attempt to kill the Blue Beetle. "Oi! I may not have liked those bastards but weren't they your allies?-!" shouted Blue Beetle.

"Please, I just summoned them to be my minions. They are easily expendable and replaceable," Harious sneered. "But I must commend you. I consider myself a patient man thus far, but you have pushed my patience to its end. Now I'm going to have to deal with you myself."

"Oh yeah? We're not afraid of you!" Asmodeus boasted. She and Yokoshima had just taken out his minions. And with the remaining ones killed by his own hands, he was outnumbered.

"You should be," Harious said with a grin that was anything but comforting. He began to mutate, much to the shock of the students that remained and both Blue Beetle and Asmodeus.

Gold and red electricity crackled all over Harious' body as it bulged and grew in size and shape, taking on a monstrous demonic form. After a few seconds had passed, his transformation ended. Harious now stood there in the form of a demonic ram-like creature in front of all the students. He wore a black cloak with the hood down, his fur was grey and he had curved horns, pointed ears and sharp teeth. His chest seemed to look like an armored face. The second face, unlike the other did not change and appeared to be more of an optical illusion except for the green jewels that served as the eyes which seemed to have a life of their own. His armor-covered legs had become double jointed with his feet turning into hooves. His weapon was a golden, two-pronged, flat-edged sword-staff. Hanging from the chain on his neck was a stone with an inverted pentagram and 666 on it. The remaining students screamed at the sight as they quickly fled.

"What did you do to yourself?" Blue Beetle questioned as he saw his arch-nemesis now transformed and barely looking human in his current form.

"Like anyone who seeks power I have sold my soul for it, and I'm about to add your power to the collection," Harious said in a demonic voice, sounding almost like he was growling with each word he uttered.. "Say goodbye to your Scarab, Blue Beetle!" At this the eyes on Harious' chest glowed eerily before shooting out two energy bolts towards the Rider. Blue Beetle quickly created a shield to block but it was promptly destroyed by the bolts on impact. Blue Beetle screamed as the bolts pushed him backwards, sending him crashing into a wall with his suit both smoking & sparking from that attack.

"Yoko-kun!" Asmodeus screamed before glaring darkly at Harious "BASTARD!" She charged at Harious with her energy blade prepped to cleave his head from his shoulders but he quickly blocked the attack with his sword-staff before kicking her. Asmodeus gasped in pain as she was sent stumbling back, blood shooting out of her mouth as she hit the ground with a hard thud. Harious raised his weapon to stab her through the heart but was stopped by Blue Beetle who was using his Rocket Arm to launch himself forward to tackle Harious. The Rocket Arm slammed into Harious and sent the mad magician skidding backwards.

"Keep your perverted hands off of my wife, you ugly fucker!" Blue Beetle shouted as his Rocket Tackle drove them both towards a wall.

The demon sorcerer cackled as he used both arms to grab the Rider with both arms "BURN!" Blue Beetle screamed in agony as he could feel his armor beginning to melt. Harious cackled in demonic glee but screamed in agony as the Stake of Lust pierced one of his eyes, forcing Harious to let go of Blue Beetle as he stumbled backwards. Breaking free from the icky wound that had once been one of Harious' eyes, the Stake of Lust quickly changed back to Asmodeus as she checked on Blue Beetle whose armor look severely damaged.

"Yoko-kun! Are you okay?" Asmodeus asked in concern.

"Y-yea,." Blue Beetle groaned and, to both of their surprise, the armor broke apart revealing Yokoshima. "...But this is bad…" Without armor, he lacked protection and the abilities the armor granted him.

"Ahahaha! You see, even with the power of the Scarab, your power is not enough to defeat me!" Harious cackled.

Yokoshima growled as he glared at the man. Preparing to take Harious head on in just his human form, Ykoshima's vision suddenly blurred before everything he saw around him began to become covered in white.

* * *

"_What the...where am I? Am I experiencing that mind thing Shinichi sometime does with those guys in his head?" Yokoshima asked, looking around with a confused look on his face._

_There was a clicking noise causing him to turn around and scream, "AHH! GIANT BUG! GIANT BUG! PLEASE DON'T EAT ME!"_

_It was true. Standing before him was a giant scarab-like being. As terrifying as it appeared, it did not attack. It just stared at him. Yokoshima blinked with recognition. _

"_Wait, are you...? You're the Scarab on my back." The creature didn't say anything but nodded its head. Yokoshima just scratched his head in confusion. Seeing the Scarab there before him was confusing enough. But how was it able to nod its head like that when it was so big? Hell, how could a bug nod its head to begin with was beyond reason. Yokoshima stood there in complete shock as the Scarab opened its mandible; a faint blueish glow beginning to emanate from within it. "Err...what are you doing?"_

"_Giving you… a new power!" Yokoshima jumped as he heard the ethereal-sounding voice echo around him as the Scarab fired a beam of blue light from its mandible, the light engulfing Yokoshima's body._

* * *

"Well, I guess its time to rip that beetle out of you, but this time I'm going to make sure your spine comes out with it," Harious cackled as he raised his hand; his fingers becoming sharp claws. Suddenly the demon shrieked as Yokoshima's Spark Core glowed brightly before unleashing a powerful blast that sent the demon flying. Asmodeus gaped as Yokoshima got up and glared at the demon sorcerer, his body seemingly glowing with a new found type of energy that he had never used before.

"Harious, you think you're so bad, well let me show you what real power looks like!" declared Yokoshima. His Spark Core glowed as the Blue Scarab in his back began to form the armor. There was a burst of blue energy as lightning arched over his body. He raised his hand into the air as he screamed.

The light blinded Harious and when it subsided, Yokoshima stood in a new form.

Yokoshima wore a blue bodysuit with black on the legs. His gauntlets and boots were silver and his torso armor was black with the Blue Beetle symbol on his chest displayed proudly. His shoulders sported a short wing on each like those from a spacecraft and the beetle on his back was a shining sapphire color with the mandibles sticking out proudly. His helmet had changed too, sporting a longer pair of horns which were colored silver, a pair of red compound eyes, and a black faceplate decorated with yellow markings resembling fangs and antennae.

The energy from his Spark Core hit Asmodeus and she was transformed into her stake form, but then her stake form began to change shape as she became bigger and turned into an entirely different weapon which flew into Blue Beetle's right hand. She now resembled a sword with a metallic blue blade, gold edges, and a red centre. The hilt was also metallic blue with a paid of beetle wings on the pommel. The blade glowed with a blue aura. In this form she was known as the Cosmic Blitz Scaraber.

And Blue Beetle had transformed into Cosmic Beetle, a new evolution that had been granted to him by the Scarab. Clenching his fists tight, Cosmic Beetle bent his knees before throwing his arms into the air.

"**It's...COSMIC TIME...!-!-!" **Cosmic Beetle roared so loudly that everyone in the area had to cover their ears due to the high volume of his shout. "I'm Kamen Rider Cosmic Beetle! Time to blast off!"

(**Insert Song - Cosmic Mind: By Astronauts**)

Harious growled angrily, "So what if you have a new form. You're still weak compared to me!" With that said Harious raised his sword-staff, ready to shish-ka-bob Cosmic Beetle. With a loud roar, Harious charged at Cosmic Beetle as energy crackled around the bladed end of his staff, the demonic sorcerer bringing the weapon down in a vertical slash.

Cosmic Beetle drew the Scaraber just in time as he swung it up to block Harious' strike, the blades now locked in combat as their users pushed against one another. They exchanged a basic series of blows that became more and more rapid until Harious' sword-staff broke into pieces from the cosmic power coming forth from the Scaraber. Cosmic Beetle would have pressed on the attack, but he was thrown off balance as the ground beneath him liquefied.

'_Damn, nearly forgot that he was still a magic user_,' Cosmic Beetle thought as his feet began to sink into the thick fluid. Harious covered his fist in electricity before swinging it at him_. _Acting quickly, Cosmic Beetle blocked the swing with the Scaraber and then tore free of the viscous stone binding his legs with the beetle on his back activating as a jet pack equipped with thrusters, breaking him free and shooting him into the air. Using the sudden surprise to his advantage, Cosmic Beetle rammed the pointed edge of the Scaraber into Harious' chest, sending him flying backwards as sparks flew off of his body.

As Harious got back up from the attack, Cosmic Beetle raised the Scaraber and held it above his head; the blade glowing as it was infused with cosmic energy. Taking aim, Cosmic Beetle swung the Scaraber and sent the cosmic energy flying at Harious in the form of a cosmic energy blade. The attack hit and exploded, causing Harious to stumble backwards as Cosmic Beetle landed on solid ground once more.

"BASTARD!" Harious roared as he lunged at Cosmic Beetle, only to be repelled by a blue shield of energy. Focusing his energy into the Cosmic Blitz Scaraber, Cosmic Beetle rocketed towards the demonic sorcerer and struck him with an electrified slash. Harious screamed as he was electrocuted and sent flying through the air.

Stamping down his left foot, Cosmic Beetle conjured his Missile Launcher boot and fired. The missiles flew, but they had a little something extra. As they exploded, ice spikes sprouted from the ground and Harious was sent spinning through the air before he landed, frozen in ice.

Cosmic Beetle then focused a different power into his sword and flames erupted from it. He slashed, sending out whips of fire that broke Harious' ice prison. He lashed out again, striking Harious repeatedly with the red hot attack that made him scream in agony.

Enraged that the power he sought after was being used against him, Harious fired bolts of energy at Cosmic Beetle who charged at him, flying as blue fire burst from his back. Cosmic Beetle activated a special ability of his Blue Scarab and grabbed onto Harious as a blue portal formed, warping them away.

* * *

Harious gasped in shock as the portal actually drop them into what looked like outer space, with Earth floating in the background. 'I_ncredible, the power of the __S__carab is even stronger than I thought,_' Harious thought as he looked at Cosmic Beetle hatefully, _'And all that power is __in the hands of __that idiot__!__ I refuse to accept it!_'

Harious began to unleash a barrage of electricity, fire and chest eye blasts towards Cosmic Beetle to kill him like the bug he was. However, Cosmic Beetle just raised the Scaraber which was covered in a layer of blazing blue energy. He swung it and easily destroyed each of the attacks being used against him.

'_WHAT-!-?-!_' Harious thought in shock. However, Cosmic Beetle wasn't done.

"_**HISSATSU: COSMIC BLITZKRIEG!" **_Cosmic Beetle shouted as he spun around and swung the Cosmic Blitz Scaraber, sending out a blade of blue energy which struck Harious. The Demon Sorcerer howled as he exploded.

* * *

The portal opened once again as it dropped both Cosmic Beetle and Harious back on Earth, with the demon sorcerer restored to his human form and in tattered clothes.

"T-this cannot be," Harious grunted as Cosmic Beetle raised his C3.

"Harious, you are hereby under arrest." With that being said Harious was digitized and placed in a containment card. Cosmic Beetle quickly reverted back to Yokoshima and Asmodeus.

They stood silent for a moment before Yokoshima said, "WOW! What a rush!"

"Yeah, that was amazing!"

"Yeah, especially that portal thingy. Though how did that happen?"

"Maybe that little friend of yours gave you the ability to warp!" Asmodeus concluded. "Never mind that! We kicked major butt, Yoko-kun!" she exclaimed happily. Meanwhile, watching from behind a tree was Steel Cap who looked shocked as he witnessed his master, Harious, being defeated by the idiot (Yokoshima) and his harlot demoness (Asmodeus).

"Uh-oh," Steel Cap uttered as he slowly turned around and tried to sneak away but was stopped by Asmodeus who glared at him.

"And where do you think you...are going?" Asmodeus asked as she crossed her arms over her chest as her eyes bore into Steel Cap with a deadly gaze.

"Err, I know you're probably pissed because of the whole me grabbing you thing, but in the defense of both me and my kind, we never participated in that horrible perverted stuff those other demons like the incubi were doing."

"I'm sure," Asmodeus smiled. "That's why I'm letting you run."

"Really?" Steel Cap smiled hopefully.

"Yes, you have a 1 minute head start and 10 seconds have just passed," she added sweetly. His eyes widened. "Run," she added as she generated her energy sword and he dashed off to escape.

"Are you sure it's OK to let him go?" Yokoshima asked.

"He won't get far," said Asmodeus as she vanished in a flash of gold.

Yokoshima smiled but then he felt himself being lifted by the student body.

"We're free! We're free!"

"A normal school life has come for us!"

"We can finally go home!"

"And it's all thanks to this Kamen Rider!"

"Hip-hip! Hooray! Hip-hip! Hooray!"

Yokoshima was being given a hero's treatment as he was being tossed up and down by the liberated student body of Spartan Academy.

"This must be what it's like to feel important!" he remarked joyfully. "I like it!"

"Beetle-sama!" Yokoshima looked over to see Mayumi staring up at him with hearts in her eyes and a big blush on her face; her hands clasped together in front of her as she looked at him with a love-struck look in her eyes. "Sugoi...Beetle-sama."

"Eheheheheh...thanks, Mayumi-chan," Yokoshima said as he rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish grin on his face. This only cause Mayumi to look at him with heart-filled eyes with even more adoration than before.

"Beetle-sama...daisuki!" she screamed as she ran to hug him, only to get knocked to the ground by Asmodeus who delivered a chop to the side of Mayumi's neck, knocking her out cold.

"Hands off my husband, you hussy!"

Yokoshima stared and asked, "Was that really necessary?"

* * *

The students were returned home and Spartan Academy was shut down. A new principal would need to be appointed and new teachers hired. Also, the school would be going through an extreme reformation. While its previous method was able to produce elite students, it sucked the joy out of school and took away the students' freedom. The parents were outraged after hearing what their children had been put through despite being reassured by the school that the actions they performed had been for the students' own benefits.

After his mission, Yokoshima returned to base to submit his report. Dr. Magi later examined Yokoshima after his most recent, and most powerful, transformation yet.

Dr. Magi admitted, "The Blue Scarab is so mysterious. It knew when you needed that boost of cosmic energy."

"Yeah, the little guy in my back really came through," Yokoshima grinned.

"I'll say," Asmodeus agreed. "I'm starting to like having him living inside my Yoko-kun's body."

"Is this what you'd call 'moulting'?" Yokoshima asked. The footage of Blue Beetle's transformation into Cosmic Beetle was playing on a nearby monitor, recorded by their satellite.

"I'm even more shocked that Asmodeus here transformed into your new weapon," Dr. Magi added. "How does cosmic energy do that?"

"I thought you were a genius," said Asmodeus.

"I am, but this is beyond my field of expertise. You can ask me questions about cybernetics, robotics, genetics, biology or chemistry and I could answer your questions easily, but cosmic energy is something that is out of my reach," said Dr. Magi. He gave it some thought, "Maybe I could ask Alan or Yuji to see if they might know anything about cosmic energy."

"Well, Alan is a Green Lantern and Onii-sama is pretty smart and has traveled a lot with his MysticLiner so it's quite possible that they might know something about it," Asmodeus said as she also gave the topic some thought.

Yokoshima just stretched out his arms as he let out a relaxed sigh. "Well, we can worry about it later. For now," he grabbed Asmodeus by the hand and lifted her up as he got up as well, "how's about we go home and celebrate my earlier graduation from high school..._properly_?" He wiggled his eyebrows to help emphasize his suggestion. Asmodeus giggled as she gave him a seductive look before transporting the two of them back home in a burst of golden butterflies.

Dr. Magi just shook his head with a smile. He was never going to understand what is was that Asmodeus saw in his son but he was glad that she was with him.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so ends another chapter. Spartan Academy and Mayumi Takashi as well as the inspiration for this chapter came from Kekko Kamen. Originally, I wanted Yokoshima to meet the nude hero but then realized that may not work so I used the setting instead and also put Harious as the principal. Why? He sorta reminds me of Toenail of Satan. Dunno why, though. Just something crazy and Go Nagai has created some crazy things. Also, Yokoshima has gained access to his Cosmic Beetle form. This is going to be huge in the future. Also, it's based on Fourze Cosmic States. Just seemed like the time he should evolve. Harious is also captured. Guess Yokoshima didn't have the heart to kill him. Now I would like to give thanks to Warlord Xana and Toku Warrior for their help.  
**

**Now a Sexy and Funny Omake called "Catching Up"**

Asmodeus moaned and screamed as she was fucked in the bed she shared with Yokoshima. Her assailant was a curvaceous redhead with long hair that was tied at the base of her skull with a yellow ribbon. The woman was using a pseudo-phallus generated from her own aura and was ploughing away at the helpless Stake of Lust.

The girl's name was Aesha and she and Asmodeus shared quite the history. They used to be lovers but broke up when Asmodeus became interested in men. Asmodeus had run into her when she went out shopping for dinner while Yokoshima was at work. She had invited her old friend to her home and that was when Aesha had made her intentions clear.

Aesha had tracked Asmodeus down (stalked her) and was showing her what she'd been missing all this time. Asmodeus, powerless to resist her former lover, could only cry out. Aesha taunted her, "Soon, your lovey-dovey hubby is gonna see this and he'll abandon you! Then you'll be mine! All mine!"

"No! Don't let him see this!" Asmodeus pleaded.

"Well, how does it feel to be fucked by a woman, in the same bed you have sex, every night, with your husband?" Aesha taunted.

"We don't...we don't do it every night!" Asmodeus argued. "We do it every night and every morning!"

Aesha, angered, intensified her assault with piston-like thrusts. Soon, the door opened as Yokoshima returned from work, "Asmo-chan! Tadaima!"

Aesha thought her plan had worked. However, she realized too late when it had backfired on her.

"THREESOME!"

"What?-!" Aesha screamed as Yokoshima stripped before pouncing on them.

* * *

Aesha flew away on bat-like wings which were attached to her shoulder blades, cursing, "Dammit!" Her plan had been perfect. However, she had not counted on her former lover's husband to be some kind of idiotic deviant. Her hips and back were also hurting from when had roughly Yokoshima ploughed into her. He made her pussy sore too.


	151. The Legacy of Cain Part 95

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 95: Night Walkers**

* * *

"**The Prowling Cat"**

With the moon high up in the late night sky, its light shone down upon the form of Daichi, in his Rider form, who was pointing his Cricket Fork at the girl who stood in front of him. The intensity of his glare could not be hidden but the girl wasn't shaken as she stood firmly on the spot. She wasn't intimidated by him despite the sharp tip of the weapon being pointed at her. The girl,who looked no more than sixteen, was named Misao and Daichi had met her before.

* * *

_It was 1985 and Daichi was working in the animal shelter and taking care of the animals; a job he truly enjoyed. He cared little for humanity as a whole but he loved animals and would do what ever he could to protect them. As he was the front counter, checking the list of the remaining animals that needed either food, water or medicine for the day, the bell over the entrance rang, catching his attention._

_Looking up to the entrance, he noticed a woman walk in with her young daughter. With a small bow, he greeted them at the counter and learned that the daughter wanted to adopt a cat. Her name was Misao and she was twelve years old and seemed old enough and responsible enough to care for a cat and her mother vouched for her. But Daichi wanted to be completely sure._

"_Are you sure you understand that a cat is a living creature and it is going to be depending on you to take care of once you take it home?" Daichi asked the little girl with a small scrutinizing look in his eyes. He knew that most parents bought their kids a pet because it looked cute but, eventually, the animal would wind up at the shelter after it outgrew the cute phase._

_Misao just gave him her own scrutinizing look, "Look, I'm twelve, not six. I know the difference between a cute pet and a living creature." Daichi looked at her eyes and saw the unwavering determination in them. "I'm ready and willing to care for a cat. I've wanted a cat all my life. I've already promised that I would feed it and give it plenty of water and I would also keep track of its medical history as well."_

"_I can assure you," the mother spoke up, "my Misao is very responsible. She knows how to take better care of our home than I do."_

_Daichi just gave Misao a look and then walked from behind the counter and over to the door that led to the kennel around back._

"_Follow me."_

_Daichi took them to the back where the animals were kept and, after taking a good fifteen minutes of looking all of the animals over, the girl chose a kitten. The kitten, with the rest of its litter, had been abandoned and Daichi had found them left in a box on the side of the street. He took the kitten to the shelter and cared for them until they were healthy._

_Misao adopted a kitten with orange and brown fur in patches and named the kitten "Akiko". Daichi saw how happy she was and hopefully the kitten would enjoy a long and happy life under the care of Misao._

* * *

It was 4 years since that day and Daichi was playing his guitar in the park with his guitar case opened. Paper bills and coins were strewn messily inside the guitar case. The musician of the NEO-NUMBERS was busking and earning money while playing his guitar and singing. The audience he'd gathered seemed to be enjoying the music. Daichi checked his watch and let out a sigh. "That's all for today, folks. Please, be generous, and leave some cash for this poor musician." He wasn't really poor but he wasn't cheating anyone either. He was just trying to make an honest living.

Without being able to get any funds from ARMOR, and having three mouths to feed, which included Leviathan, Mika and himself, his job at the shelter didn't always cover all of their expenses. So he used his hobby as a musician to help them get by while Leviathan would sometimes bring food back with her from the Meta-World and Mika would work at a cafe as a waitress which helped out in paying a few of the bills as well. Together, the three of them always had food on the table and they usually had money to spare so that they could go out and enjoy themselves every other weekend.

Money was left for him as the crowd dispersed and Daichi knelt down to count his earnings. That was when he saw a pair of legs standing in front of him and looked up. "It's been a long time, hasn't it, Daichi-niichan."

Daichi stood up and looked at the girl. "Do I know you?"

She frowned, "Four years ago I adopted a kitten from you."

"Could you be more specific?" he asked.

"It's me! It's Misao! Mi-sa-o!"

Daichi eyes widened in recognition. "Ah, Misao! You've really grown!" Now he remembered who she was.

"I'm in high school now," she said, blushing.

"That's obvious," he nodded. "Anyway, I gotta go."

"Can't you play one song for me?" she asked. "Please~?"

Daichi cocked an eyebrow at her. "I don't normally do requests."

"Please~?"

Giving in, Daichi surrendered, "OK! OK! Don't do the puppy-dog-eyes!" He scowled. "Man, if anyone I knew heard I did this they might think I was getting soft!" He held his guitar and began strumming.

Misao just sat on a bench as she watched and listened to him play. It had been a long time since she last saw him and now, with her being older, she was starting to see him differently. More in that he was a compassionate person that cared for animals instead of a brash and rude jerk. Boy, did she have no idea that he was all of that and so much more.

* * *

Daichi and Misao were sitting on a bench later and enjoying crepes together. He'd noticed the bandages around her hands and arms from earlier but hadn't commented on them before. Now, he was wondering where she'd gotten those injuries, "Hey, what happened to your arms?"

"Oh, just fell off my bike," she said. Daichi could tell that she wasn't being truthful.

Finishing her crepe and then looking at her watch, she excused herself, "Sorry, Daichi-niichan, but I have to get going now." She got up and began to walk off in a bit of a hurry, as if she needed to be somewhere. "Bye-bye, I'll see you around," she said with a wink before leaving in a haste.

Daichi, not liking how she was avoiding his question earlier with her apparent lie, got up and began to follow her. '_Something isn't right here. I just know it_.'

* * *

Daichi learned the truth when he followed her home. She lived in an apartment with her mother; her parents having been divorced for a while now. Suspicious and concerned, he waited outside the building and spotted a dark figure leaping out from a window from one of the apartments on the upper floors.

"What is that?" Daichi wondered and he followed on his bike. It would seem that his earlier suspicions had been confirmed. Something strange was going on with Misao. The only problem would be the truth that he was about to learn and what he was going to have to do that would make him truly realize what it means to be a Kamen Rider and the definition that came with such a title.

* * *

After following the figure for over ten minutes, he found the dark figure eating someone in an alley. Blood dripped from its maw as the man's neck was ripped open. There were claw marks all over him and his clothes were torn up. The creature, from Daichi's vantage point, resembled some kind of humanoid feline with inhuman yellow eyes and a pair of long tails.

It was a creature known as a Nekomata, a twin-tailed cat demon.

Seeing the interruption, the Nekomata lunged at Daichi. He reacted quickly and swatted the Nekomata with his guitar case and sent it tumbling. It hissed and snarled at him as it stood on all fours.

With a shout of, "Henshin!" Daichi immediately transformed and blasted the creature with a sonic burst and it let out a loud MEOW of agony before fleeing. It jumped high into the air and disappeared along the rooftops, using the different heights of the surrounding buildings and the shadows that they casted to try and hide from the Cricket Rider.

* * *

Daichi spent days and nights hunting for the Nekomata and, after waiting patiently outside Misao's apartment every night for almost a week, he got his chance once more as the Nekomata reappeared. Following it, he soon cornered it in the park where he'd met Misao last and, even more surprising, Misao was there with the Nekomata. Seeing the Kamen Rider come up to them with his weapon at the ready, Misao quickly went to defend the Nekomata; the girl standing between him and the demon.

As Daichi gave the demon behind Misao a closer look, the demon wasn't a demon at all but Misao's mother. Misao's mother, of course, was standing behind her but there was an unnatural gleam coming from her yellow, cat-like eyes.

Misao's mother was the Nekomata.

"M-Misao...what's going on here? Why is your mother a Nekomata?" Musician asked. Misao looked at the Rider as her eyes widened. His voice, she recognized it.

"D...Daichi-niichan? You're a Kamen Rider?"

Daichi/Musician just gave her a simple nod before his hand tightened around the hilt of his Cricket Fork. Now wasn't the time to be soft. He needed to get to the bottom of this and now.

"Misao, start talking. What's up with your mother and how did she become a Nekomata?"

Misao lowered her head as her face developed a downcast look. Taking a deep breath, she began to explain what had happened to Daichi; what had happened to both her mother and her cat.

* * *

Weeks ago, Misao's cat Akiko had changed. When its tail had split in two, the Youki within the cat had burst out violently and Misao's mother had been in the house at the time. She'd been assaulted by the sudden blast of Youki. Akiko, overpowered by demonic instincts, killed Misao's mother.

Misao found Akiko on top of her dead mother but then she watched as her pet cat merged with her mother's corpse. The Nekomata had possessed her mother's dead body. With a body of a human, the Nekomata had gained intelligence, and bloodlust too. Misao ended up trapped by the demon who'd possessed her mother but there was nothing she could do. Each night, the Nekomata would go out and hunt with Misao sitting in her room, waiting for the creature which had once been her beloved pet and mother.

* * *

Misao wasn't about to let Daichi/Musician kill her mother, but the truth was that Misao's mother had been dead for weeks and the one standing behind her was just a demon who'd stolen her body.

"Daichi-niichan, please understand that I can't let you kill her. She may be a demon but she's both my mother and my pet cat, Akiko!" Misao stated as she stared Daichi down, tears forming in her eyes. She really liked Daichi and she didn't want to have to do this. But she loved her mother even more.

Letting out a sigh, "So that's how it's going to be, is it?"

Musician roughly shoved Misao aside to engage the demon who transformed and began to attack with her claws. Daichi retaliated as he transformed into his Rock-Metal Form and fought back with his Cricket Axe. Misao screamed for them to stop but neither Rider nor demon listened as sparks flew from their clash as they were locked in battle.

It only took one blow to finish it as Musician ducked under the Nekomata's swing and spun around to jab the head of the Cricket Axe into her back.

"Heavy Metal Vulcan," he called as he strummed the strings and fired a salvo of sonic bullets which tore through the Nekomata's body, splattering the ground with blood. The Nekomata groaned and collapsed onto her knees before Musician used the sharp blades of his weapon and decapitated the monster in front of Misao who screamed.

"NO! Kaasan! Akiko-chan!"

The Nekomata's head rolled along the ground and the body collapsed before disintegrating together. Daichi's armor vanished and he looked up at Misao who looked to him with hatred. Obviously, despite his intentions, she was never going to forgive him for what had happened. The demon had both been her mother and cat in one and, despite the number of lives it had taken and eaten, she could not hate it.

"Daichi...how...how could you? She was my mother...my Akiko...SHE WAS-"

"Gomen...Misao...but I didn't have any other choice," he told her sadly. "If she hadn't gone and killed all of those people then I would have just let her be. But, by killing and tasting human blood, human flesh...I had no other choice. She had to be stopped before more innocent people lost their lives."

"But that was my mother! She was innocent too and you just killed her!"

"Chigau!" Daichi snapped at her, causing her to recoil in shock. "The moment Akiko-chan became a demon and merged with your mother...that was the moment your mother died. She's been dead for a while now." He looked her in the eyes, his own eyes filled with sadness. "I'm sorry Misao, but there was no other way to help you mother except to destroy the demon. Someday...you'll understand." And, with that, Daichi turned and rode away on his bike, leaving Misao alone.

Last he heard she'd moved in with her father since her mother had 'disappeared'. There was no way she could tell anyone what had really happened. Once Daichi found out that she was safe and living with her father, he knew that he would never see her again.

And after what had happened, he was sure that she never wanted anything to do with him again.

* * *

Sitting in a chair next to a window in his own apartment, while Mika and Levi argued of where they would go out to for the evening, Daichi was lost in his own thoughts. He recalled something that Shinichi had once told him. And now he knew what it meant to be a Kamen Rider.

* * *

"**Nighttime is for the Dead"**

Within the town of Okinomiya, reports of people going missing and never being heard from again had been going on for the past two weeks. A few of the people who did go missing had been found dead, two of them mutilated beyond recognition. Wanting to put a stop to this heinous act once and for all, Dr. Washam dispatched both Hana and Michiru out to do reconnaissance to see if they could find the 'thing' responsible for the disappearances and deaths of the missing people.

It had taken then a few days but the two femme fatale's had been able to locate the source of the disappearances and murders. And it was something that ranked as a common occurrence for them in terms of enemies. Ever since that incident with the Yamata no Orochi, the different types of monster and demon sightings and related disappearances had begun to escalate on a very high scale. it wasn't uncommon for the NEO-NUMBERS and even Team 5D's to encounter a monster or demon enemy at least once a week. Even Alan was surprised by just how much their numbers were increasing. It was like a rising of monsters and demons.

Having chased their target for over an hour, Hana and Michiru stood inside a room inside an old abandoned warehouse with a demon standing before them. The demon had taken up residence within a corpse of a woman, dressed in a tattered black dress with completely black eyes that had cracks around them, like the skin had gone dry. Her hair was also a mess with her skin deathly pale.

Lying unconscious on the floor were two men and a girl. The two men were a detective and pharmacist and the girl was a high school student. The reason why these people were here was because the pharmacist had been accused of murder and the detective had chased him down. Desperate, the pharmacist had kidnapped a girl and was using her as a hostage while trying to convince the detective he had not killed anyone.

The girl had only been an innocent bystander in all this, exploring the abandoned warehouse due to a dare issued by her friends, when she suddenly became a hostage.

As for why they were unconscious, Hana had knocked them out with a bit of her venom secreted from her nails. They didn't need them to see what was happening, nor see the female Riders in armor.

The zombie standing before the two female Riders was suddenly engulfed in moths. When the insects dispersed, the zombie had changed. She appeared more alive as her pale skin literally glowed along with her hair which had turned bright pink. She had tribal markings tattooed along her arms and chest and also wore a single piece, strapless dress. Orbiting around her was a round rock which resembled the moon. It glowed with unearthly light.

Smirking, the zombie sent the moon-like sphere at the two female Riders, sending them scrambling before they were hit. Brandishing their weapons and summoning their armor, they attacked together but the zombie manipulated the sphere expertly as it was an extension of herself. It flew across the room to strike them but the female Rider duo deflected it with their respective weapons. It orbited around the woman and she smirked as spikes sprouted from it.

"Uh-oh," said Carmen as the sphere was sent flying at them again. They ducked and Arachnea swung her twin Spider Kamas at the zombie woman only to be blocked by a pair of insect-like wings which stretched from the zombie's back and bent to shield her before sending Arachnea staggering backwards.

"She's a tricky one," said Carmen and Arachnea agreed. The sphere needed to be taken care of first.

"Michiru, cast an illusion to confuse her," Arachnea whispered and Carmen nodded as she got the message. First she used the flowers mounted on her shoulders to bombard her undead opponent with a barrage of bullets and cast an illusion. A mist surrounded them and then Carmen seemingly multiplied. The zombie glared at them and sent the sphere flying to strike them down but it harmlessly passes through the illusions.

As the undead being was trying to locate them, Arachnea took the three unconscious people and got them outside of the warehouse, setting them down on a pallet covered in paper. Letting out a gentle sigh after setting them down, she looked them over to check them out for any injuries.

"This should be a safe enough distance," Arachnea said to herself. "Well, they don't appear to have any injuries that I can see..." Her attention was diverted back towards the warehouse as the sound of something big crashing into something made of metal echoed all throughout the place. '_I think I better get back in there before Michiru gets herself killed._'

Catching the sphere in her sights, the real Carmen eliminated the weapon with another barrage of shots only for the zombie to arch her back and scream in pain. She finally realized the truth.

Seeing Arachnea return to the battlefield, Carmen cried out, "Hana-chan, the sphere's the real body!"

That was all the Tarantula Rider needed to hear. With a slash of her Spider Kama, followed by another, the sphere was sliced to pieces. Carmen attacked the zombie at the same time and slashed her scythes in a cross-slash. The zombie opened up its mouth in a final scream as a swarm of moths burst out and the body turned to dust.

"And that's that," concluded Arachnea as she put her twin Spider Kamas away. "Come on, Michiru."

Upon making it back outside, Carmen looked over at the three people and worried for their safety. She didn't want to leave them here all alone in the middle of the night.

"What about them?" Carmen pointed to the unconscious people.

"They'll wake up in an hour and with that thing gone they'll be fine," said Arachnea.

* * *

"**A Bark in the Night"**

Within the sounds of the night sky, the sound of metal striking wood could be heard, as if someone was vigorously punching a tree. not only could sounds of punching be heard, but so could the sounds of battle cries and unnatural wailing. Coming over to a small homestead, the sight of Shogo fighting against a tree that was as tall as a three story house could be seen.

Now, one would ask why Kamen Rider Zero was attacking a tree with a combat knife. The answer was pretty simple, really. The tree was no tree at all. It was a demon in disguise. The branches were tipped with claws and it had menacing eyes covering its bark.

The tree belonged to an elderly couple who lived in Hinamizawa. They were a nice old couple, but they had lost their son in an accident decades ago. Long before half of the villages residents were even born. All they had left of him was a seed which they had planted and it had grown into a tree after many years.

And after years of care, when the tree had fully grown, it spoke to them:

"_Give me flesh, and blood, and you shall see your son again."_

The demon tree had demonstrated its power on a moonlit night as the rays passed through its branches and in their living room, they saw their son the way they had seen him last when they had dinner before he died.

Since then, the couple wanted to relive that moment and did as the tree told. They first started feeding it animals like rats which they killed and buried where the tree grew. It then then moved on to eating dogs and cats, but then its hunger grew. It craved for human flesh. The couple was initially appalled by this request but they missed their son so much and with that in mind decided to feed the tree what it wanted.

Since their tree looked so interesting, visitors from out of the village would stop to admire it. The couple invited these people to dinner, which would be their last meal.

They poisoned their guests and buried them under the tree, feeding it, all so they could see their son again.

And tonight, Shogo had appeared at their doorstep. He had just been passing through and they had invited him for dinner. Not one to reject a free meal nor be rude to his elders, Shogo agreed to the meal. Like their previous victims they had tried to poison him. Unfortunately, Shogo's body had gone through numerous modifications and he was immune to the poison they had given him.

And tonight just happened to be a night when the moon was shining down on the tree. However, the tree had not received any fresh meat since its last feeding and had come to life to attack Shogo. At the same time, an image of their son had appeared before the elderly couple as Shogo dodged the trees attempts to grab him. He then transformed to fight against the demonic tree.

Swatting Zero away, the tree lashed out with its limbs to try and ensnare the Wasp Rider who did his best to avoid all the grabby branches. But the demon tree was fast with its reach and had nearly come close to grabbing him a few times already.

'_Damn, this thing's fast,_' Zero complained in thought, not noticing a branch coming at him from the side.

Suddenly, there was a sound of sharp steel slicing through the air and one of the branches that was about to hit Zero fell to the ground. He spotted it out of the corner of his eye and in a flash of light it turned into his girlfriend, the Stake of Pride.

"Having problems, soldier boy?" Lucifer asked, grinning. She scoffed at his opponent. It was a tree, which she thought was just pathetic considering her pride.

"Not anymore," Zero grinned. "Now let's do this together!" He transformed again and he held Lucifer's hand. In a flash of light she combined with him and his armor turned green. He was in Emerald Pride Form.

He zipped through the air at high speed, dodging the branches. Using Lucifer's ability as a Stake of Purgatory and servant of Lady Beatrice, the former Golden Witch, he formed twin blades of emerald green light on his arms and began cutting away at the branches. They regenerated but he was still hurting the creature, faster than what its regenerative properties allowed it to keep up with.

The elderly couple were panicking though as the projection of their son was beginning to melt. They loudly begged for Zero to stop what he was doing, but he shouted at them, "Your son's already gone! It's time to let him go!"

Their son had died decades ago, during World War II. They were devastated by the news. He'd been shot through the head. His items were returned to his family with the tree's seed among them. Maybe the demon had come from a demonic tree, or maybe their sadness had summoned a demon which had possessed the seed. Irregardless, the demon tree allowed them to see their son, over and over, as long as they provided it with a meal.

"I'm...I'm sorry, but we just miss our son too much!" the old man shouted out with a pained look in his eyes.

"Please...please forgive us. We had no other choice," the old woman added as she and her husband lowered their heads in regret.

The branches wrapped around Zero but he broke free. He put his hand over the Stake of Pride which was mounted on his wrist and it charged up with energy. He had scanned the tree for weaknesses and knew just where to hit.

"**By the power of our pride, it is time for you to feel our sting!**" Zero and Lucifer shouted in unison.

Avoiding the branches which came his way, he struck the targeted spot and the entire tree received the power he'd charged his Stake of Pride.

The demonic tree let out a howl before it exploded, sending pieces of wood flying. The projection of the couple's son vanished as well.

Shogo landed as he returned to human form and watched sympathetically as the couple cried over their loss. He would've offered his condolences, if he hadn't found skeletons buried in the ground where he stood. He cast the couple a sad look and turned away before leaving with Lucifer floating at his side.

"Shouldn't you arrest them for murder?" she asked. She too had seen the skeletons. There could be more.

"I'll let the police handle it," said Shogo. "I just want to rest."

"Come on, I know a shortcut," said Lucifer as she took hold of his hand. In a flash of gold they disappeared.

Long after the two had left, the old couple had one last supper together, reminiscing about their son, before drinking sake...which they had laced with the same poison they had used on their previous victims.

* * *

After returning to the Hive, Hana and Michiru both took a nice hot shower, the two girls having a little fun time with one another. After getting out, drying off and changing clothes, the two of them went down to the cafeteria only to see Daichi there eating an early breakfast. And the look on his face was that of someone who was in a foul and depressed mood. Of course, Daichi was always in some kind of funk but his friends knew when it was something that wasn't normally a part of his usual personality flaws.

"Hey, Daichi, you don't look so good," Michiru said as she leaned over to get a good look at his face. "Are you not feeling well?"

Daichi just shot her a glare, "I feel fine. It's just this past week that's been shitty." Hana gave him a look as took a seat next to him.

"Was it your recent mission?" Hana asked, causing Daichi to flinch a bit as he poked his food. She had hit the nail on the head. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"I'd...rather not. Besides, it's no one's business," he shot off, the last part sounding more Daichi-like. Hana just sighed and smiled. Daichi had his own way of hiding his pain. In that respect, he was a lot more like Shinichi than he ever wanted to admit. "And you guys? What about your mission?"

"Oh it was a piece of cake!" Michiru beamed as she leaned against Daichi, patting his head.

"Will you get off?-!" Daichi bellowed. "All those bananas you eat are making you-eep!" Hana had a small dagger held next to his throat.

"First, we defeated a demon that was killing people," Hana started. "And second, don't you dare finish that sentence. We women are very sensitive about our weight," she threatened him, causing him to gulp as he lightly nodded in understanding.

Walking into the cafeteria with Lucifer walking alongside him, her arms wrapped around his right arm, Shogo looked over to see the sight of Michiru leaning up against Daichi with Hana holding a dagger against his throat. Both of them let out a sigh as they moved forward.

Shogo cleared his throat, "Er-hem." This made the others look up at him. He spoke, "Okay, we just got done fighting against a demon possessed tree which was weird enough."

"So why are you holding a dagger to the dickhead's throat, Hana-chan?" Lucifer asked, finishing Shogo's question for him.

"Long or short version?" Hana asked.

Lucifer and Shogo just had to ask.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER DICTIONARY:**

**_Kamen Rider_: A Hero of Justice. They are heroes that travel a road with no known end. They fight the battles that others can't and protect the innocent. They are willing to sacrifice their own happiness to ensure that the smiles and bright futures of the lives that they save will continue on. Even at the cost of being hated by those that they save in the process.**

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And we got three adventures for you in one chapter! Three! How do you like them. Again, I'd like to thank Toku Warrior for editing, and also the series Garo for these scenarios. Shogo and Daichi's are from Season 2 (Makai Senki) and Hana and Michiru's situation was from Season 1.**


	152. The Legacy of Cain Part 96

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 96: No Laughing Matter**

One night, a couple on a date at night were enjoying each other's company when all of a sudden a clown popped up in front of them. He wore white makeup on his face with black rings around his eyes, blood red lips, and a bright red nose. He wore a checkered black and white suit with a matching bowtie and on his head was a bowler hat.

He took his hat off to the couple and bowed before reaching behind his back and pulling out a pair of demonic looking puppets, performing ventriloquism for them.

"Hey, what do you do when your date goes sour?" the red demon puppet asked the black demon puppet.

"I chuck it in the trash!" the black demon puppet answered.

"Hey, why did the lawyer go to hell?" red asked black.

"Do you have to ask?"

"So, a horse goes into a bar and the bartender asks him 'why the long face'?" red asked black again.

"Knock-knock," red started, ignoring the last joke he just asked before black could answer.

"Who's there?"

"Sock."

"Sock who?"

The red puppet headbutts the black puppet.

"Sock you!"

Moments after this, the couple began to laugh. The clown's grin turned sinister as his eyes glowed and he opened his mouth. The couple continued laughing as white smoke with their faces in them flowed out of their noses and mouths and into the clown's mouth. He gulped and swallowed as the couple fell to the ground.

* * *

Battler Ushiromiya and Chiaki Yukinojou were both walking down the hallway towards the elevator. They had just spent a few hours working out at the gym but now it was time to head home.

"So, what are your plans this weekend?" Battler asked the much larger cyborg.

"I have a date," Chiaki answered.

"Now that's nice," Battler grinned.

"Yes, it's been awhile since Hanyuu and I have spent any time together," Chiaki remarked. Ever since the Religion of Crime began to up the ante, they didn't get to have much time with one another. "How about you?"

"I'm thinking of taking Junior out to the zoo," said Battler.

That prompted Chiaki to say, "But isn't he..."

"I know, but with a good disguise I can fool anyone," said Battler confidently. Chiaki just shook his head while looking ahead.

"I doubt throwing a hoodie and a cap on him would hide the fact that he's an alien," Chiaki stated his opinion.

"You'd be surprised," said Battler as he pressed the button for the elevator. "But I asked Dr. Magi a favor a few weeks ago and it should be ready by now."

"Should be, huh?" Chiaki cocked an eyebrow. "And what favor did you ask of him?

"You let me worry about my outing with Junior, and you just worry about your date with Hanyuu," Battler patted his fellow cyborg on the arm.

"Actually, it won't be just me and Hanyuu," said Chiaki. "It's a double-date."

"Oh, who's the other couple?" Battler asked, interested.

"Rika and Kai," Chiaki answered.

"That lightning dragon guy?" Battler asked. "He seems cool."

"He's a surfer," Chiaki said as the elevator door opened. "I think being cool is part of the job description."

"I wouldn't know," Battler shrugged as he and Chiaki entered the elevator and he pushed the button for the ground floor. "Never surfed before in my life."

"Does this have anything to do with your irrational fear of moving vehicles?" Chiaki questioned, amused.

Battler just gave him a hurt glare, "If you must know, I've gotten over that little hangup," he frowned. "As for the surfing thing, I never got the chance."

"You should take your girlfriend to the beach," Chiaki suggested.

Battler's grin turned perverted. He actually liked that idea since it would mean seeing Beato in a bikini. All that delicious flesh exposed and wearing only enough fabric that left little to the imagination. He could already see it now. The image was so vivid that he was already starting to salivate at the daydream in his mind.

"We're here," said Chiaki as he shook Battler out of his daydream by patting him on the back. "See you later," he said as he exited the elevator with Battler, the latter stumbling out a bit while still returning from his daydream. Using the Teleportal, they both returned to their respective homes.

* * *

"_And in today's news, a couple was found dead in Shishibone City in the park this morning. According to the police, the victims didn't seem to have any signs of injury and cause of death is still undetermined. However, both victims sported disturbing grins_," the news reporter reported.

"That sounds so scary," frowned Shiori as she watched the news with her husband. Little Sho was sitting in her lap, being fed by her. He was already over 2 years old and was looking quite adorable.

"Yes, and the last part too," said Kasai as he added his opinion. "The world isn't a safe place anymore."

"Has it ever been safe?" she asked. "I mean it's not like how it was when we were children. We didn't have super-villains, monsters, demons or megalomaniacs running around."

"None that we knew of," said Kasai.

"Onii-chan will beat all the bad guys!" said Sho. "So Mama doesn't have to be scared!" He was already talking pretty well.

"Yes, your brother will beat all the bad guys," she agreed.

Kasai smiled, seeing his son thinking so highly of his big brother. Another thought then came to mind, causing him to look over to Shiori. "So, I hear the girls are going on a date today," said Kasai. While not blood-related to the Furude girls, he was becoming more and more like a father to them, albeit slightly overprotective with that shotgun of his. Since Sho was born, Kasai had to keep his gun cabinet locked and the key hidden. He didn't want his son to have an accident. He, however, did plan on giving Sho lessons on how to use a gun once he was older.

Rika and Hanyuu were coming downstairs, dressed in their best for the date. "OK, we're going now!"

"Just be careful, girls," Shiori advised. "There's some freaky stuff going on."

"What else is new, Shiori-mama?" Rika asked. "We'll be back by dinner. Bye!"

"Bye!"

The two girls went out the door, leaving their foster parents alone with their foster baby brother.

"Say, how about I call Shinji and Rena-chan to pick up Sho-chan so you and I can have some alone time, Tatsuyoshi-kun?" Shiori grinned suggestively, making Kasai blush and cough uncomfortably.

"I...don't see why not," he said. He and Shiori were really in love but hadn't had much time to be alone together since Sho was born. However, it was fortunate they had people to babysit him while they had their alone time.

Shiori finished feeding Sho and planted him on the couch. Smiling, she said, "Well, that settles it! I hope they aren't too busy!"

Kasai watched Shiori go to make the phone call and then he looked at his son who looked back up at him. Smiling, he gently ruffled his son's hair. He once imagined having something like this with Akane Sonozaki, but she hadn't felt the same way. He had the chance to get married and raise a family with Shiori. The woman was a bit eccentric, but she was passionate too, and Kasai wasn't at all offended by what she did to make a living. She wrote adult romance novels, nothing wrong with that. The only people he knew that were offended by her works were the more traditionally conservative elders of the city.

Shiori had made friends with a lot of the women in the village. She often gave them advice on how to light the spark of passion back into their marriages. Her books were actually good study material as she knew her way around the bedroom and knew just how a woman and man could get off.

When he'd married Shiori all those years ago, he hadn't known what to expect, but he was happy now. It did take some adjusting since he lived in Shiori's house. He didn't make as much money as she did but he did make a lot for being a bodyguard of the Sonozaki Clan. They did have issues with money just like any couple, like who would pay for the bills and such. He was the man of the house, after all. He should have some say in how things were run. However, Shiori was a very independent woman. The good thing was that she was willing to compromise as long as the compromises were fair.

Kasai picked his son up and put him on his lap. "You know, Sho. If you're anything like your brother and mother, you won't have any problems with romance."

"Romance?" the almost 3-year old asked, not understanding what his father meant.

"You'll understand when you're older," said Kasai with a small chuckle. Sho was reaching up to his shades and the bodyguard chuckled as he removed them and put them on his son's face. "And I think when you're older, we should get you your own pair of shades. Women love a man in shades."

"But sometimes women also love to see their men's eyes once in awhile," said Shiori as she hugged her husband from behind and kissed his cheek.

"True," Kasai agreed before turning his head to kiss his wife on the lips. Breaking the kiss, he said, "So, what did they say?"

"Shinji and Rena-chan said that they would be here within the hour," she replied and then gave him a sultry look. "So, how do you want to spend the evening...Tatsuyoshi-kun~?" she asked him in a seductive purr, loud enough for him to hear but not enough for Sho to pick up on.

* * *

"And we're done!" said Battler as he put the final touches on his son's disguise.

"Honk!" Junior declared. He was in a grey hoodie with a red baseball cap and jean shorts. However, he still obviously looked alien.

"OK, now that I see it, I can't see it working," Battler sweatdropped. He hated it when the others were right.

The door to Battler's quarters slid open and Dr. Magi came in. "Hello, Battler. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, but no matter what I put on Junior he still looks alien," Battler pointed out as Junior took the cap off his head and started chewing on the brim. "How does Alan do this?"

"You mean Celine and Adam?" asked Dr. Magi. "Well, it helps that Celine looks very near-human and that Adam has a natural perception filter that keeps the attention off his ears and tail. Not sure how a perception filter would help on something so obvious as Junior's appearance."

"How about that holo-disguise projector thing I asked you to work on?" Battler asked.

"Ah, I got it right here," said Dr. Magi as he showed it to Battler.

"It looks like a dog collar," Battler deadpanned. "If you're suggesting..."

"Oh, it's the only thing I could make that Junior isn't likely to chew off," said Dr. Magi. He handed it to Battler. "Here, you put it on him. Everytime I get too close he tries to bite me."

"Yeah, he does that," Battler agreed. In fact, Battler and Ange were the only people that Junior wouldn't bite. He knelt down in front of Junior and showed him the collar. "See this, Junior? It's gonna help you blend in."

"Blarg?" he asked. Battler put the collar on Junior's neck and buckled it. He pushed a button on the collar and suddenly Junior's alien form was replaced with that of a little red-haired boy with blue eyes like Battler.

"Hey, it worked!" Battler grinned.

"Honk! Honk blarg!" cheered Junior, which made Battler sweatdrop.

"Unfortunately, holograms can't disguise voices," Dr. Magu frowned.

Battler picked up Junior and said, "Ah, that's alright. I'll just say Junior's 'special'."

"Hey, have you told your parents about your secret yet?" Dr. Magi asked.

Battler sighed, "I haven't actually had the chance to bring it up. How do you bring in the fact that I'm a cyborg with a child because I got impregnated by an alien into conversation?" Battler asked.

"...I see your point," Dr. Magi nodded. "Your little sister handled the truth well enough."

"She's just a kid," Battler shrugged. "Plus she's OK with Junior."

"Ah, the innocence of youth," mused Dr. Magi. How he missed the days of his own youth sometimes. "Well, have fun you two."

"Honk!" Junior waved as Battler and he walked out of the room together.

"I sure hope nothing bad happens while they're out," Dr. Magi muttered.

* * *

"You know, things have become quite serious in the city lately," said Kai as he, Rika, Hanyuu and Chiaki rode the bus together to Shishibone City. Sometimes, just taking the scenic route was nice. Plus, they weren't in much of a hurry to get to their destination.

"Tell me about it," Rika frowned. "Too much crime and death."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," said Kai.

"That's OK," she smiled at him. "I'm just glad we get to go out today." She didn't want to jinx it, but she hoped that nothing bad would happen to them on their date. She needed a break from all the fighting.

"We're gonna have so much fun, Rika," beamed Hanyuu.

"That's a given," remarked Rika. "We _are _going to an amusement park, Hanyuu."

"Yes, that's right!" Hanyuu giggled. She leaned against Chiaki who was sitting next to her. "But I think what makes going to the amusement park fun is because of the people you go with."

"Hey, dude, I've been meaning to ask," say Kai. "Why do you wear that mask and hat all the time?"

"It's how I normally dress," said Chiaki.

"Doesn't it, I dunno, make you look suspicious?" Kai questioned.

"Kai-san, don't be rude!" Hanyuu frowned.

"It's OK, Hanyuu-chan," Chiaki told her. "And I'm used to it. I am quite large and I do make an imposing figure."

"Well, yeah," Kai agreed. "But shouldn't you at least take off that scarf covering your face once in a while?"

"Hanyuu-chan doesn't seem to mind," said Chiaki.

"No, I don't," agreed Hanyuu.

"Well, suit yourself," Kai shrugged. "Live life free, that's what I always say."

* * *

Battler had Junior sitting on his shoulders. So far, the disguise was holding up. They were at the zoo and passing by the elephants which Junior found amazing. Of course, it was hard to tell what he was saying through words. There was still the language barrier and Alan's ring couldn't translate, making Junior the only other alien besides Celine whose language couldn't be translated. Though, Celine's speech could just be a form of baby babble. Amazingly enough, Celine hadn't grown or aged in the past few years. According to Alan, Celine's species supposedly aged at a much slower rate than humans.

Junior spotted the lions and pointed to them, crying out, "Honk!" The lions reminded him of GaoLiger which lived back at the canyon. The large, bio-mechanical beast could often be seen sleeping on a cliff overlooking the canyon.

"Yeah, lions are cool," he said. He loved going to the zoo as a kid, and as he got older he still enjoyed coming to this place just to admire the animals. Then his parents had Ange and she was brought along too.

Now, he was sharing these moments with his son. Battler had a camera, so why not take a few pictures while they were here?

* * *

The double-date group entered the amusement park. Looking around, they could see over a couple hundred people having fun while walking around, enjoying the rides and playing the games. In the distance, within the very center of the park, was where the Ferris wheel was located and a ride on the Ferris wheel was a common and unwritten rule as a 'must ride' for any date.

As they walked through the entrance, they took in the sights and the sounds and the smells of the park. Children laughing, adults and teenagers talking and the smell of wonderful delicious amusement park food flooded the entire vicinity.

"I remember the last time we came here," said Rika.

"Oh, what happened?" Kai asked, interested.

"An enemy attacked us," she said.

"Even on your days off, huh?" Kai asked. "Must've sucked."

"It did, but we were able to deal with it."

Wanting to change the subject, Hanyuu got in front of Rika and Kai and began to jump up and down a bit like a little child. For all the power she had and her actual age, she really did just behave like a typical school girl.

"Come on, guys!" Hanyuu exclaimed. "Let's go on some rides!" She grabbed Chiaki's hand and went on ahead.

"She really should act her age," Rika frowned. Kai took her hand.

"Come on, since we're all here, let's act like kids," Kai grinned. Rika couldn't help but smile back as she and Kai walked together to catch up with Hanyuu and Chiaki.

Meanwhile, a clown was giving balloons out to kids when the group went by him. His eyes were cast upon Rika and he licked his blood red lips.

* * *

Junior and Battler had stopped for some ice cream and were sitting together on a bench. He had gotten some great pictures and Junior was really well behaved. Sure, he got weird looks for randomly going 'blarg' and 'honk' but Battler paid them no mind. The disguise was still working and he was just happy his son was enjoying himself. Of course, he knew that sooner or later he was going to have to break the news to his parents. He just hoped he had a really good explanation. He hoped they wouldn't freak out, but considering what Junior was and how he was conceived, that wouldn't be very likely.

* * *

"Au, au, au," Hanyuu said in a whimper as she stared up, wide-eyed at the roller coaster. "Rika, are you sure about this?" It was becoming obvious that Hanyuu wasn't a fan of big and fast moving rides.

"It's best we go with the roller coaster first before anything else, especially food," said Rika. "We don't want anyone to suddenly lose their lunch and ruin things for themselves later on."

"But it's so scary!" Hanyuu whined.

"Hanyuu, you've faced the scariest things this world and beyond has to offer and a roller coaster still scares _you_?" Rika asked in disbelief.

"That's different! I could use my powers those times! I can't use them here!" argued Hanyuu. She remembered what it was like on roller coasters. They were scary and they made her feel nauseous too.

"Oh, stop being such a baby," Rika chortled. Chiaki just put a hand on Hanyuu's shoulder to calm her down.

"It's alright, Hanyuu," said Chiaki. "We can go on a different ride, like the spinning teacups."

"Yes, that would be nice," Hanyuu smiled, relieved.

"Scaredy cat," Rika teased. "Come on, Kai."

"Right behind you, Rika!" Kai followed as they both lined up for the ride.

"So, let's go to the spinning teacups," Chiaki said and Hanyuu nodded. As much as she wanted to have fun, going on a rollercoaster travelling at almost 90 miles per hour was not exactly her idea of fun. Of, sure, Hanyuu had faced off against cybernetic monsters and demons without fear, but there were just some things she just wasn't ready for, and a roller coaster was one of them.

* * *

Hours passed with both couples having fun on their double-date. They tried out all the rides they could, with Hanyuu avoiding the most intense ones which Rika had no problem going on. Kai actually liked how Rika bravely faced these things without hesitation. Of course, Rika had stopped being afraid for a long, long time. Dying several times over did that to some people.

Hanyuu did give the Pendulum a try. At least that seemed safe to her as they sat in a cabin for four people. The ride swung back and forth, gaining more speed and Hanyuu could actually feel the G-force as they descended before rising back into the air. She screwed her eyes shut, crying out in excitement.

"Finally, a ride that doesn't scare you to death, Hanyuu," Rika deadpanned with a smile.

* * *

The next ride was the drop tower. It was an incredibly high metal column with seats surrounding the base. Guests would ride in the seats, buckling themselves in safely, as the circle of seats rose up to the very top. Then, they would plummet to the ground at high speeds. Just looking _up _at the drop tower made Hanyuu feel nauseous.

"Come on," said Rika as she pulled Kai along. "Let's get on."

"We'll sit this one out," said Hanyuu as Rika and Kai were getting themselves strapped in. She apologized to Chiaki, "I'm sorry for keeping you from having fun."

"It's alright," he told her as they walked over and sat down on a nearby bench so that they could wait for Rika and Kai. "I'm fine as long as you're with me." And he wasn't lying. He enjoyed every moment that he got to spend with her. He wouldn't trade a simple act of just being able to sit with her for anything else in the world. That was because, to him, she was his world.

Hanyuu blushed. "Hey, remember the day we met?"

"Of course," said Chiaki."I got lost in the forest and was starving. You found me and shared your food with me. You didn't know who I was. You only saw someone who needed help."

"Yeah, I didn't even know you were a member of GIN-SHOCKER back then," she said.

"If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be here today," he told her. "Because of you, Shinichi didn't end up killing me again and you convinced him to give me a chance. It's all because of you that I can have a near normal life such as this. So, thank you."

"No problem," smiled Hanyuuu. They both watched as Rika and Kai as well as the other park guests that were strapped into their seats went higher and higher and higher to the top of the 300 foot tall tower. Once it was there, it stopped so they could could admire the scenery from way up high. Then, all of a sudden, the seats all plummeted to the ground at high speed. Rika and Kai cried out in joy as they did.

* * *

The next ride they went on was called the Octopus since it was in the shape of the creature itself. It was basically a spinning ride with cars situated at the end of each of the octopus' tentacles. The group took their seats and got on, strapping themselves in before their seats rose up and they went spinning.

Chiaki, as he looked at the image of the octopus and then at all the girls that seemed to be on the ride, mentally sighed to himself. '_I'm sure glad that Yokoshima, Shinichi and Daichi aren't here. They'd probably make a sick joke out of this moment_.'

* * *

They took a break for lunch and sat in the amusement park's cafe. "You know, we should check out the arcade," Kai suggested as he dug into a burger.

"That's a good idea," beamed Hanyuu.

"You just don't want to go on anymore of the scary rides," Rika teased her best friend and sister.

Hanyuu chuckled, rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment before taking a bite out of her hotdog. Their seat was by the window and Rika looked out to see the creepy crown from earlier doing a pantomime. However, while the clown was entertaining people, she could somehow feel him looking straight at her. She dismissed the feeling. Maybe she was just feeling paranoid.

"Rika, are you OK?" Hanyuu asked, causing Rika to shake her head and take herself out of her stupor.

"It's nothing," Rika said. "Just looking at that clown out there." She pointed. Hanyuu and the others looked to where she was pointing.

"What clown?" Kai asked. Rika looked back in confusion and then turned back around and blinked. The clown was gone.

"Strange, I could've sworn..." Rika shook her head. "My eyes must be playing tricks on me."

"You know, how about we go to the Funhouse?" Hanyuu suggested.

"Why not the Haunted House?" Rika countered. Hanyuu shivered. Rika just shook her head, "Should have expected that reaction."

"A funhouse would be great," said Kai.

* * *

The Funhouse was a huge mansion-like building with a clown's face forming the entrance. From one perspective it was amusing, from another it was both disturbing and creepy. The mouth of the clown was where the entrance was and the carpet leading up to it was like the clown's tongue.

"This is supposed to be the _Fun_house, right?" Hanyuu asked. The clown face creeped her out. Now she understood why a lot of people were so scared of them. The entrance looked like a clown ready to gobble them all up.

"It'll be better inside," said Chiaki as he took her hand. "Now, let's go in."

"After you," said Kai as he allowed Rika to enter before he followed. Chiaki and Hanyuu went in after.

The clown from earlier had stopped in front of the Funhouse and was grinning widely before he went inside.

* * *

The first part of the Funhouse was a hallway of mirrors which distorted the images reflected upon them. On one mirror, Hanyuu looked short and fat while another made Rika look skinny. A few more mirrors just made their reflections look sillier and sillier, with both girls sharing laughs. Chiaki and Kai also looked at their ridiculous reflections and were amused.

At the end of the mirror-lined hallway was a slide which led into a ball pit. The slide was quite steep but the ball pit was filled with balls of various colors. One by one, they went down the slide and went into the ball pit, causing balls to 'splash' up into the air. They 'swam' in the ball pit, laughing like mad.

They waded through the ball pit to the other end and got out to continue onwards. The hallway after the ball pit caused the girls to cry out as they held down their skirts. The floor had air jets which would randomly blow upwards, flipping the girls' skirts and giving the two men with them a free view of what they wore underneath.

Exiting the hallway, which Rika vehemently declared she would never venture into again, they came across the maze of mirrors.

"Well, this should be the end of the Funhouse," said Kai. "Let's go in and have some fun."

"Just stay together so we don't get lost. Mazes are tricky enough, but mirror mazes are way worse," said Rika. She saw Hanyuu and Chiaki tightly holding each other's hands.

The group of four ventured into the maze. Rika thought she saw something out of the corner of her eye and turned her head only to see her own reflection. What she thought she saw hadn't been any of their reflections. _'I can't believe I'm getting freaked out over this_,' she thought.

As she went on ahead with the others, the creepy clown was following them. However, he wasn't casting a reflection on the mirrors. He was in the mirrors!

* * *

"So, left or right?" Kai asked as they came upon an intersection.

"Chiaki-san and I will go left," decided Hanyuu.

"Then that means Kai and I will go right," said Rika. "First one to the exit, wins," Rika challenged.

Hanyuu smiled, "Oh, I'm so going to win and loser has to buy cream puffs."

"If you win I'll buy you the whole store," Rika countered. She took Kai's hand. "Come on, Kai!"

Hanyuu and Chiaki watched as Kai and Rika went down the right. Once they were out of sight, she turned towards Chiaki and reached up to remove his scarf.

"Hanyuu, what are you doing?" he asked.

"Getting myself a kiss," she said as she held his scarf. Getting up on the tips of her toes, she pressed her lips against his.

Chiaki didn't dare deny her as he reciprocated the kiss. He could taste the small hinted flavour of her lip balm. '_Hmm...strawberry_.'

* * *

Junior was at the petting zoo with Battler. Of course, taking a carnivorous alien baby to a petting zoo may not be such a good idea. That was why he was keeping an eye on him. He knew his son had a habit of biting things. He even saw Junior attack and eat a squirrel once but that was a long time ago. They didn't want an incident to happen on their outing.

* * *

As Kai and Rika were navigating their way through the mirror maze, Rika couldn't help but feel a sort of chill running up her spine. She looked over her shoulder. There was nobody there, but she had the distinct feeling that someone was following her and breathing down her neck.

"Hey, Rika!" Kai called to her attention. "Look at that!" Rika looked to where he was pointing and saw a few people unconscious in front of them. She went to check on them with him. She frowned when she found no pulse on any of them.

"They're dead." The disturbing part was the rictus grin they all wore on their dead faces, like they had literally died laughing.

"I think we should get out of here," said Rika. Suddenly, the clown appeared in the mirror behind her.

"Rika, behind you!" Kai pointed and Rika spun around and screamed as the clown's arms shot out and grabbed her. Kai grabbed onto the arms, pulling them out before they could pull Rika in. "Leggo of my girlfriend, you creep!"

Suddenly, there was the sound of a chainsaw and in a flash Chiaki sawed the clown's arms off. The clown screamed but no sound came out of his mouth as he retreated into the mirror. The clown's arms fell to the floor, wagging about like a severed lizard's tail before they stopped moving.

"OK, what the hell just happened?" Kai asked. "Rika, are you OK?"

"I'm fine," she said as she massaged her shoulders. "Thanks."

"Hey, no problem," smiled Kai. "But what was that?" he asked.

"Evil," was Rika and Hanyuu's immediate response.

"Then we better get out of here and fast," said Chiaki.

"Hey, we can beat that creep, right?" Kai asked.

"Not here where it has a homefield advantage," argued Chiaki.

"Chiaki's right, and I don't want any of us to end up like those people," Rika pointed to the bodies.

"How did they die?" Chiaki asked.

"They had their life literally sucked out of them," Hanyuu said after examining the bodies. "Now, let's find the exit and find it fast." She called on her communicator, "Hello, Sheila. This is Hanyuu. Can you activate a Teleportal?" She got nothing but static. "Sheila? Sheila, please respond!" Nothing but static.

"I'm guessing we're screwed," frowned Kai.

"Not unless we find the exit first," said Rika. "Hanyuu, can't you teleport us out of here?"

Hanyuu shook her head, "I can't. If I could I would have but that demon's formed a barrier preventing me from teleporting."

"Great," Rika murmured sarcastically. This demon seemed to have covered it bases.

"Hey, Rika," said Hanyuu.

"Yes, Hanyuu?" asked Rika.

"Is it just me, or are you getting shorter?" Hanyuu asked.

"I'm not the only one," said Rika as she saw everyone was starting to look shorter. She looked down and realized they were sinking into the floor. She let out, "Oh shit!" The floor swallowed them all up in a flash. This was followed by a psychotic laugh.

* * *

"And stay out!" a guard shouted as he threw both Battler and Junior out of the zoo. "That goes double for your crazy kid!"

"Hey, he's just special! Not crazy!" Battler snapped defensively.

"Same difference!" the guard snorted a dismissal before walking off.

"Honk?" Junior asked.

"Junior, what am I gonna do with you?" Battler shook his head. As he got back up to his feet and took Junior's hand, the two of them began to walk away. Suddenly, Battler's enhanced hearing picked up the sound of trouble, and it was coming from inside the zoo!

"Oh great, what else could go wrong today?" Battler groaned sarcastically.

* * *

"OK, I am starting to get tired of all these traps!" growled Rika in annoyance. "Why do bad guys always need traps?" She was in a dark room. "OK, whoever and whatever you are, show yourself right now!"

She got her wish.

The clown revealed himself as a spotlight shone upon him. He smiled at Rika and reached behind his back before pulling out his demonic puppets.

"What time is it?" the red demon puppet asked.

"It's joke time!" the black one answered.

Rika slid her hand over her face and groaned, "Great, a psychopathic clown with a twisted sense of humor is going to try and make me laugh."

She just knew it was going to be one of _those _days.

* * *

Battler and Junior (he couldn't leave the alien kid alone) rushed back inside the zoo and saw people fleeing from something. Using his cybernetically enhanced vision, he focused his eyes on what was causing the chaos and grimaced.

It was an animal, but nothing he'd ever seen before.

It overall had the build of a buffalo, but covered in greenish-brown scales with a tail which looked like something that came from an alligator. Its head was the weirdest thing he'd seen today as it resembled a guillotine with the statue of a naked woman mounted in front. The zoo's guards were trying to subdue the creature but they were cut down as the blade of the demonic beast's headpiece was launched. Blood went flying as heads literally went rolling. The blade was then pulled back by a chain which tethered it to the headpiece.

"So much for a quiet day," murmured Battler. He told Junior, "Junior, go and hide until I tell you to come out."

"Honk, blarg!" The disguised alien went dashing off to somewhere safe.

"And now it begins," Battler frowned as the Guillotine-headed bull demon beast spotted him and came charging at him. "Henshin!"

* * *

The clown went through his entire routine, even performing physical acts of comedy. However, Rika was not laughing as she crossed her arms and scowled in annoyance.

"Where are my friends?" she asked. This was getting ridiculous. Why didn't this clown just kill her and get it over with instead of torturing her with dumb comedy? She actually made a conclusion earlier about how this clown killed. The fact that he was trying so hard to make her laugh just proved it. The only way he could suck the life out of her was by making her laugh.

Unfortunately for the clown, she was not in the laughing mood. Her brows were furrowed, her arms were crossed, and her smile was turned upside down.

"Where are my friends?" she asked again. The clown stopped his ridiculous performance to stare at her dumbly. "What? Are you just as stupid as you look?" She reached inside her purse and took out five ofuda talismans which she fanned out. If she was facing a demon, then there was just one way to deal with it. She threw the ofuda at the clown and he gasped before he reached behind his back and pulled out a hand fan which he used to blow the fans away. He then took out long balloons and made balloon animals with them. Rika scowled in annoyance as she reached inside her purse and pulled out a metal bar.

She pressed a button on it and it extended, becoming a khakkara staff. She slammed the bottom end of the khakkara to the floor, making the rings chime together before charging. The clown took out a pair of metal drumsticks and blocked Rika's blow with them. She thrust with the khakkara but the clown was able to divert the direction of her strike with ease. He tapped her on the back and she swung around as he hopped away. He then began hopping up and down, repeatedly, like he was on a pogo stick. He then launched his arms towards her which stretched like rubber. He grabbed her by the sides and she shouted, "Hey, hands off!" The clown grinned as it started tickling her. "Stop it! Hey! Stop!" she shouted as she tried to hold in her laughter. She knew if she did laugh, then it was all over for her.

As the clown licked his lips, looking forward to the meal he was about to get from Rika, he was suddenly hit out of nowhere. An electrified foot smashed into his face and sent him flying across the dark room. Rika was released and she landed on her knees, panting. She saw a hand being offered to her and looked up to see it was Kai. "Hey, Rika."

"Kai," she smiled as she took his hand and he helped her up. "How did you find me?"

"Hanyuu found you," said Kai as he gestured to Chiaki and Hanyuu. "Now, what are we dealing with here?"

"A demon that looks like a clown," she said.

The clown flipped back to his feet. He then pulled out a deck of cards in his hands. Taking a half of the deck in each hand, he fanned the cards out and then tossed them. The cards sliced through the air towards them but Kai used his powers to zap the cards, burning them to a crisp.

"Any other tricks, fool?" Kai taunted.

The clown tapped his chin in thought then snapped his fingers as his nose lit up. He made another balloon animal, a dog this time, and put it on the ground. He petted it and stepped back as the balloon dog grew to many times its original size and grew teeth. It barked and roared at the teens who stared back at it. The balloon dog lunged for them but Chiaki ran at it with his chainsaws. He slashed and the balloon dog exploded. He continued his charge towards the clown and swung but his chainsaw was blocked by a red and white striped cane with a hook at the end. It was a candy cane and he was holding one in each hand.

Chiaki swiped with his chainsaws but the clown parried with his twin candy canes, grinning from ear-to-ear. This annoyed the Termite Cyborg as he went to slice the clown's head off but clown hooked one of his candy canes around Chiaki's left chainsaw and spun him around to face away from him. He then hooked the other around Chiaki's neck and pulled hard against it.

"Chiaki-san!" Hanyuu cried out as Chiaki was trapped.

"I got this one!" said Kai as he formed a lightning spear.

"You'll hit Chiaki-san!" Hanyuu yelled.

"I won't," Kai said confidently and he hurled the lightning spear. It flew and before hitting Chiaki it curved and struck the clown instead. He let out a silent scream as he released Chiaki who stumbled forward. "Here's a second helping, Bozo!" Kai hurled another lightning spear but the clown was ready as he opened up an umbrella and shielded himself with it. "What?-!" The electricity fizzled and the clown grinned as he closed up his umbrella. He then lunged for Kai but was blocked by a barrier courtesy of Hanyuu before getting swatted across the face with her khakkara staff.

The clown massaged his face and took off his bowler hat. He reached inside and pulled out a khakkara staff which resembled Rika's, except it was a candy cane. He twirled it around expertly and jabbed it at Rika. Rika's right eyebrow twitched in annoyance.

She darted forward, performing thrusts and jabs but the clown dodged them all before he retaliated with his owns series of thrusts and jabs which Rika was forced to block before she was disarmed. The clown was about to hit her when Chiaki tackled into him. The clown stumbled back and examined Chiaki's weapon of choice, which were the chainsaws that had taken the place of his hands. The clown reached behind his back and took out a pair of chainsaws which he began to juggle before gripping them tightly.

"I really don't like clowns right now," frowned Rika as she watched Chiaki and the clown engage in combat. Sparks flew as the chainsaws crashed against each other violently. It seemed like the clown could mimic their weapons and fighting styles and he was a match for Chiaki.

As the clown went for a decapitating blow for Chiaki's neck, a blast of telekinesis shoved him violently away. Kai then called on a storm and struck the clown repeatedly with bolts of lightning.

"He might be able to mimic us, but he can't fight all of us at once," said Rika.

The clown stood back up with gritted his teeth as he scowled. He wanted to make them laugh before but now he wanted to kill them and eat their souls the violent way. His stomach began to bloat as he began to grow, his human form tearing at the seams as they watched the clown transform into his true demonic form. Finally, the clown exploded and standing in its place was a black sphere. The black sphere then began to crack before shattering completely, revealing a truly hideous sight.

It was a fat demon, ten feet tall, with short legs with feet that had talons. Its spindly arms were long and striped and its body was covered in polka dots. He wore a tattered, frilly collar and a jester's hat with bells at the ends. It face was flabby with fat with messy red hair and a red nose on the tip of its long and pointed nose. It had sharp and yellow teeth framed by blood red lips and a tongue was hanging out of its mouth.

"Whoa, somebody called a plastic surgeon," Kai chortled as he tried his best to hold in his lunch. "Urg, I think I'm gonna be sick."

"Look like it's time," said Rika. "Henshin!"

Hanyuu nodded, "Henshin!"

Chiaki agreed, "Henshin!"

Kai watched the three transform into Rider form as he surrounded himself in arches of lightning. The demon attacked, rolling like a ball as it came at them at high speed. they jumped out of the way but the ball changed course and was coming towards ZO (Rika). She let it come, pulled back her fist, and when it got close she punched it into the air. J (Hanyuu) was waiting as she hung in the air and kicked the ball to the ground, sending it bouncing.

Kai formed a spear of lightning and hurled it at the clown demon. It screamed as it was zapped before it received a punch to the stomach from ZO. However, its fat proved useful as it absorbed the blow. It let out its tongue to ensnare the female Rider, only for Slasher to cut it right off. The clown demon screamed and brought its large palms down on Slasher but ZO and J caught the wrists and started to spin the demon around and around and around, before tossing it away. It went rolling and got back to its feet. It grinned and launched a series of polkadotted cannon balls at them from its mouth, prompting them to dodge as the cannon balls exploded. The explosions through the four into the air.

The clown demon laughed as they landed in a pile. Now it had four souls to choose from. The one it'd targeted had an ancient soul, but so did the other girl. The two men would make a nice little appetizer. All it needed to do was to make them laugh and they were all its food.

Suddenly, the girls in almost identical green armored suits launched themselves at the clown demon. ZO was armed with her khakkara while J was armed with the Onigari no Ryuou. ZO jammed her khakkara into the demon clown's stomach and she let loose the energy she had into it, zapping the demon as J slashed the demon repeatedly. The demon swatted them away and moved to kill them but was trapped in a cage of electricity.

"You're not getting out of that one," said Kai as he used his Manakyte powers on the demon.

"It's time we finished this," said J as she ran her fingers up the blade of the Onigari no Ryuou. It glowed with red energy. With a swing, she launched the energy at the clown demon and it let loose a howl as it was vanquished, exploding into confetti.

This placed the four of them outside of the Funhouse, with Rika, Hanyuu and Chiaki out of their armor.

"OK, I think we should go now," said Rika. "I've had enough of Funhouses to last me a lifetime."

"Agreed," her companions nodded.

They did, however, get on one last ride. No date was complete without a ride on the Ferris wheel.

* * *

Kamen Rider Meta dodged the Demon Beast's blade as it was launched at him and stayed in the air and out of range. He fired his machine gun fingers at the creature but the bullets could not penetrate its thick hide. Roaring, it fired its blade again and Meta dodged. The blade hit and cut in half a bench instead.

Landing back on the ground, Meta unleashed a blast of fire at the beast but it just ran right through the fire and rammed into Meta, sending him tumbling. The Demon Beast then jumped into the air and tried to crush Meta by stomping on him only for its forelegs to be caught by Meta. He got up and tossed the Demon Beast into the air. Using his super speed and flight powers, he chased after it and used a kick to smash it back to the ground, sending it skidding as tiles were torn out of the ground.

"OK, time we finished this," said Meta as he hooked his Blast Driver and attached it to his Spark Core. In a flash he was transformed to Blast Mode. The Demon Beast got up and launched its blade at him again but he sidestepped and used his energy-edged arm-sword to cut the chain in half. The blade went flying and embedded itself to the ground. With blinding speed, Meta struck, slashing repeatedly at the Demon Beast's hide before jumping into the air. He performed his attack, finishing the Demon Beast off with a dropkick that caused it to explode.

"And that's that," Meta concluded. "Now to find Junior." He ran off, "Hey, Junior! Junior!"

* * *

Chiaki went back to the Hive to see Battler sighing. "What's wrong with you?" he asked the redhead.

"Got kicked out of the zoo when Junior tried to bite a chicken's head off," said Battler. "How was your day?"

"Same old, same old," said Chiaki.

"And it was going so well too," Battler sighed.

"You at least had fun, right?" Chiaki asked.

"Yeah, you're right," smiled Battler. "Up until that point we did have fun. Of course, now we're both banned."

"Bummer," Chiaki sympathized.

"So, what was your day like?" Battler asked with interest.

"It's a long story," said Chiaki. And with that said he told Battler about the day he, Kai, Rika and Hanyuu had at the amusement park.

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Wrote this in three hours. Had a brainstorm. Now it's gone. Whaddya think? Anyway, the clown and bull are both from Garo, the former from the first season and the latter from Garo: Red Requim. Please, drop a comment or review. Anyone else got ideas to offer? Please, holla!**

**Post-Credit Omake: Scolding Imouto-san**

Coming home from the Hive, Battler let out a depressed sigh. He had left Friday afternoon to be with his son for the weekend and now it was late Monday afternoon. How could his perfect weekend with his son have gone so wrong? It was all going so perfectly until the petting zoo. Now they were both banned for life. Then again, on hindsight, taking a carnivorous alien life form to a petting zoo with small animals was not the best of ideas.

"Onii-chan!" Battler looked up to the stairs to see his little sister, Ange, come running down to greet him. He was hardly ever home for more than a few days at a time before getting called out on a mission and she missed her big brother. "Okaeri nasai!" She tackled into him and gave him a big hug.

"Tadaima, Ange-chan," Battle said as he ruffled her hair a bit while returning the hug before setting her down. "How was school?"

"Oh, it was nice. I got an 'A' on my quiz today," she replied brightly. She loved to show off to him.

"Congratulations," he praised her. She then smiled at him.

"And how was your weekend with Junior? You said that you were going to take him to the zoo, right?" Battler stiffened and gulped. "But Mama and Papa said that the news said there was a monster attack at the zoo and that a Kamen Rider defeated it. Was it you?"

"Well...yeah, there was a monster attack and I did defeat it...so...heheheh." Ange just looked at him strangely. He was definitely acting weird, even for him.

"Onii-chan," Ange said, giving him a more serious tone. "You and Junior did have a good time, right? You didn't do anything stupid?" Battler gulped.

"W-well, we were having a good time...until...,"

"Onii-chan...what did you do?" Battler could see that look in her eyes. It was the same look that Beato gave him when he screwed up and she would drill him for answers. Had she been teaching Ange that same look? "Onii-chan...I'm waiting for an answer."

"Well, you see, Ange-chan...it was all going so well until...until we got to the petting zoo." He saw Ange just stare at him with a blank stare.

* * *

Outside the house was nothing but peace and quiet. Or, it would have been if the voice of a young girl didn't just shatter that silence.

"BAKA!-!-!"

* * *

"Baka, baka, baka!" Ange shouted loudly as she clenched her big brother's shirt by the collar and shook him violently. For a girl so small, she was definitely strong. There were few people that could scare Battler and Ange was one of them. Just her angrily calling him an idiot made him drop to the floor on his butt. "What were you thinking?-! You know you can't take Junior around little animals! Did you take one too many hits to the head or something?-!"

"G-gomen...Ange-chan...I forgot...," Battler begged in forgiveness. Unfortunately, like Beato, Ange wasn't always so merciful.

"Forgot? How could you forget?-!" she screamed as she shook him violently. "You're his father so you shouldn't have forgotten something so serious when it concerns your son!"

"Ange-chan, please...matte," Battler begged.

"No excuses!" Ange screamed as she began to grab his cheeks and pinch them hard, torturing her older brother as best she could. Being a cyborg made that part hard but she found a few ways to get around it.

"Iieeeeeeeeeeee!-!-!"


	153. The Legacy of Cain Part 97

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 97: When Evil Comes A'knockin'**

"Please, Daddy."

"No."

"Please, Daddy."

"No."

"_Please~"_

Alan sighed as he turned and looked Epsilon Alice in the eye. They were both in the hallway of the Hive. Alice had a training session with Yami earlier and when she heard he'd come by, she went to ask him something important.

She asked if she could be his sidekick.

And his answer?

"No." It was the same one each time she'd begged.

"But why not?" she whined. "Come on, Daddy! You know I can fight!"

Alan shook his head and told her, "You're still too young, And change back. You know that transformation consumes energy, young lady."

Epsilon Alice fumed, puffed up her cheeks and turned away from him before stomping off. Shinichi was in the hallway and managed to catch a bit of the argument.

Shinichi remarked, "Teenagers, huh?"

Alan rubbed his temples, "I like it better when she's just a little girl."

"That's parenthood for you, Alan. You gotta know how to handle them once they've grown up," said Shinichi. "And it's not just the fact she wants you to see her as an equal. Soon she's gonna go out and find a boyfriend." Shinichi added with a shrug, "Or a girlfriend."

Alan quickly retorted, "She's too young to start dating."

"She won't stay a kid forever, Alan," Shinichi told him. "She's growing up, and with that transformation she can grow up fast."

"Maybe physically, but not mentally. I just...I just want her safe," said Alan. "Is that too much to ask? She's my child."

"I bet Pops was thinking the same thing before the ring chose you," Shinichi replied.

Alan remarked, "My dad was used to it by the time I was chosen. My brother Alex picked a fight with just about everyone. And you'd be shocked at the trouble Leon got himself into."

"Since Alice is your daughter, do you think it'll be any different?" Shinichi asked. "She looks up to you. When she grows up she'll want to be a hero just like you. Even if she's young, I think she already understands the risks more than anyone her age."

"Trust me Shinichi..." Alan was quiet as he looked at his ring. "No one understands the risks until you see the consequences."

Suddenly, Shinichi's communicator began to beep rapidly. He responded instantly, "What is it?"

"_Shinichi, it appears that Daichi is having difficulties and requires assistance_," Sheila reported.

"Say no more, Sheila. We're on our way," said Shinichi. "Alan, Daichi needs help. Are you in?"

Alan smiled, "I'm in."

* * *

Just recently, Daichi got himself a part-time job at a zoo. All he had to do was feed the animals. However, today wasn't going to be a usual work day. In fact, it was turning out to be one heck of an unusual one.

He didn't know when it started exactly as he just got done feeding the camels, but when he heard people screaming followed by the sight of them running, he knew that there was trouble.

He was right when he saw an elephant going on a rampage. However, it appeared to have grown organic armor and it had extra tusks with spikes on its spine. It had been mutated.

Now, Daichi was an adamant animal lover. That was the reason he took the job at the animal shelter and now here at the zoo. It was also why he wanted to become a veterinarian someday. He wanted to care for animals.

Now, someone was going around mutating them. He drew out his Cricket Fork and levelled it at the elephant before releasing a pulse of sonic energy to disorient the beast. "Sorry about this," he said sincerely before sending a concussive blast which knocked the poor creature out, causing it to collapse on the ground.

Daichi shouldered his weapon as he put on his armor and went to find the source of the disturbance. He found the source, alright. He just needed to follow the trail of carnage left behind.

He found them, standing in front of him. It was a man with a muscular build dressed in a sleeveless black duster. He didn't wear a shirt, revealing his chiseled pectorals and six-pack abs. He wore baggy black pants and combat boots. His arms were like a gorilla's and he had pointed ears. He was bald and he had narrowed, cat-like eyes. His face appeared to have been tattooed with tiger stripes with leopard spots on his arms which he had crossed in front of his chest. Hanging from his neck was a pendant shaped like a lion's head. Standing alongside him were humanoid animals which seemed more ferocious than in their natural state.

"OK, who are you?" demanded Musician as he levelled his Cricket Fork at the guy. He had a feeling this guy was responsible for all this.

"I am the King of Evolution, call me Evo-King," the man introduced himself. "As for my reasons for being here, I am here to free my subjects from this accursed prison."

"You mean this zoo, right?" Musician asked.

"It's a prison, a place where they are caged against their will," argued Evo-King gruffly. "But what is worse is that they are made spectacles to be ogled at for the entertainment of humans. No longer. It's time for all beasts great and small to be at the top of the food chain and for humans to return to the bottom where they belong!"

Musician tapped his Cricket Fork on the floor and said, "Well, I agree that humans can be assholes. But then again the animals of this zoo are also being protected. They may be in captivity, but they are also being cared for. In a way this is sanctuary for them and the only way their species can continue to survive."

"How upsetting," growled Evo-King. He snapped his fingers and ordered, "ATTACK!"

"Now I know I should've stayed in bed," grumbled Musician.

* * *

Showa and Sentinel came to the zoo and saw the carnage. There were dead bodies lying on the ground with blood splattered everywhere. They also saw Musician confronting a horde of mutated animals.

"He's not fighting back like he usually does," said Sentinel.

"Dai's a big softie for animals," said Showa. "Come on, let's give him a hand."

"I'm gonna go and capture the man responsible," Sentinel volunteered before dashing ahead.

Showa rolled his eyes and activated his wings before flying towards the battle. He found Musician holding off a mutated bear and he executed a dropkick to knock the beast down.

"What the hell are you doing here?," Musician demanded critically. "I don't need help! I have it under control!"

"Doesn't seem like it. And stop complaining. Just be glad we even bothered to come," Showa retorted as he formed his Tank Legs and Great Fists. "Now, how about you and I do some animal control?"

"Just don't hurt them too badly," cautioned Musician. "They're just innocent animals."

"I'll make sure to give them love taps then," joked Showa as he engaged the mutated beasts with Musician doing the same.

Sentinel confronted Evo-King who said as he saw him, "So, the Sentinel has come. The Evo-King should feel honored."

"So, you're a king?" scoffed Sentinel. "Do you expect me to bow?"

"I expect you to DIE!" Evo-King roared as his body mutated. Sentinel watched as he gained three-times his own height and size as he turned himself into a large humanoid cat with stripes and spots all over his fiery red fur. Of course his mutation didn't just end there as a mouth with razor-sharp, shark-like teeth opened up on his chest. From the base of his neck, a pair of tendrils snaked out and they whipped about. His claws were also sharp and menacing, looking like they were ready to tear Sentinel apart.

With a roar, the mutated Evo-King lunged for Sentinel who dodged. Dust and rubble flew from the impact. The Evo-King lashed out with his tentacles only for them to be swatted away by Sentinel's fist. Jumping up to an impressive height, Sentinel smashed his fist against Evo-King's face, sending him skidding backwards.

Evo-King picked himself up but was knocked down again by energy projections resembling musical staves. He growled and looked to see Musician (Rock-Metal Form) and Showa standing next to Sentinel.

"The animals?" Sentinel asked.

"Cured," was Showa's answer. "When I touched one, my nanites reacted. It seems this guy used nanites to mutate himself into what he is now and he infected the animals with them. Of course, I managed to remove and kill those nanites with my own."

"Can you do the same for this guy?" Sentinel asked.

"You bet I can," said Showa.

Roaring, Evo-King fired a beam of blood red energy from his chest mouth. However, it would not hit its target.

"Shield of Glen!" Showa called as he summoned the shield that Glen had given to him as a gift. He erected a dome of energy around himself, Sentinel and Musician to protect them. He spoke, "Daichi, Sentinel, take him down."

"With pleasure!" said Musician as he dome dropped and both he and Sentinel attacked. Sentinel struck with punches with stunned Evo-King as Musician kept him off balance with the sonic waves he was unleashing with his guitar. Meanwhile, Showa had formed his Burst Cannon and was charging it up for one blast.

"I just need to time this right," Showa murmured as he waited for an opening, drumming his fingers upon the grips of his Burst Cannon. " Wait for it...wait for it...NOW!" He fired, the beam flying through the air before colliding with Evo-King's face, knocking him on his back. "HAH! HEADSHOT!" Showa cheered before he ran to where Evo-King had landed.

"Now, watch me work," said Showa as he put his hands on Evo-King's body and turned him back to normal as he shrunk down back into human form, bare of any clothes. However, Shinichi frowned and Sentinel noticed this.

"What?" Sentinel asked his brother.

"The nanites have fused with his cells after so long," Shinichi said dejectedly. "I can't remove them."

"Well, we can at least lock him up for disturbing the peace, murder, reckless endangerment, and animal cruelty," said Musician as he held his C3. Pointing it at Evo-King, he pressed the button which digitized the villain and stored him in a containment card.

* * *

Most inmates in the Vault wore collars which prevented them from accessing their powers. That was one of the many security precautions set by ARMOR when they built this facility. A security collar was automatically put on the prisoner once they were sealed inside a containment card before being rematerialized.

As Alan, Shinichi and Daichi walked past the cells to put Evo-King in one, several of the inmates leered angrily at them. These were people who they had captured personally, like Roger Stevenson and Licehirb. Shinichi had glanced at one of the cells which contained Million's head but paid no more attention to it once it was out of his sight.

Sliding the card into a panel on the outside of an empty cell, Alan entered the code to release Evo-King from the card and into the cell. They watched as Evo-King was fully rematerialized into flesh and blood with a power inhibitor collar on to keep him in line.

"Well, now that we have that settled, I think it's time we go," said Daichi. He didn't want to stick around for all the dirty looks and neither did Shinichi.

As Shinichi and Daichi were walking away, the former noticed that Alan hadn't moved. "Hey, are you coming?"

"There's something I gotta do first," said Alan. "You both go on ahead."

Shinichi shrugged and followed Daichi out to the Vault's exit. Once the two of them were gone, Alan went to stand in front of a certain cell. It was the cell where Kineko was being kept. She was still being kept on cryo-stasis as punishment for her crimes. He thought the punishment was appropriate since she had begged for death afterwards. He would not let her have it so her punishment was to live in suspended animation.

He'd visited her at least once a month, every month, and reflected on the motives behind her actions. This young woman had fallen in love with a monster and her devotion for him had only driven her mad with vengeance. She blamed Alan for Shiro Juuyon's death and wanted him to pay. That was why she'd poisoned him and made him hallucinate. Since Alan was responsible for the death of the man she loved, he would also be responsible for the death of his own loved ones.

He gave another sigh and turned away. In a few years Kineko would be freed, but until then this was where she would stay.

* * *

As Alan made his way home by flying through the air, he kept an ever constant vigil on the city below him. Even if a good majority of the super villains that had been surfacing the past year were now locked up in the Vault, there were still a few on the loose. Plus, from what the NEO-NUMBERS had been telling him, there had also been a sudden increase in the amount of malevolent demons appearing in the human realm. It was an occurrence that did not bode well with him. When demons were involved, it never got pretty.

As he looked at the setting sun in the distance, he began to think about his girls. Having to be stuck on a world with technology that was primitive in comparison to what they were normally used to must be hard on them but not a single one of them complained. He really wanted to make it up to them one day. If only he could figure out what was causing the barrier that was blocking travel between this world and all the other worlds.

"Oi, Susano-O-dono!" Alan turned his head and looked down at a rooftop to see none other than Amaterasu, the Goddess of the Sun.

Flying low and landing on the roof, Alan smiled as he saw the beautiful goddess stand before him. Sure, she was a foot taller than he was but that just made her even more beautiful.

"Amaterasu, it's been awhile," Alan replied kindly as he walked up to her. "What brings you to the mortal realm?" Amaterasu just leaned over, her eyes filled with a mischievous gleam. Alan saw that look and figured that something was up.

"Susano-O-dono, do you remember your promise to me?" she asked him as she stroked his cheek with her forefinger. Alan blushed at her touch.

"Which promise would that be?" he asked in return, trying to remember which promise she was talking about.

Amaterasu just took his chin within her fingers, placing her forehead against his, her warmth flooding him body. Just standing before her, even with the slightest touch, made him feel like he was full of energy.

Locking her eyes with his, she told him, "I'm talking about the promise you made me back during that battle with those Earthbound Gods. Remember? You owe me and so I made you promise to take me out on a date." Alan's eyes widened as realization dawned on him. It was that promise. "Well, I've come to collect."

Alan thought about it. He knew that his girls wouldn't really mind and none of the other higher beings could really do anything about it as she wasn't really interfering with any mortal affairs. And he did owe her. She had given him the Kusanagi and had given him plenty of blessings during the most intense battles when he needed the extra power. So why not take the beautiful goddess out on a date? She deserved it after all she had done for him. She was partly the reason why they had been able to defeat the Yamata no Orochi.

"Well, you're right when you say I do owe you," he began. "So, name the time and place and you got yourself a date."

This made Amaterasu bounce up and down on her feet with joy. "Yatta!" she shouted as she hugged Alan and then kissed him deeply. Alan was a bit shocked at the sudden kiss but it wasn't the first time she had kissed him. Breaking the kiss, she said, "This Saturday, nine o'clock AM in front of the fountain located in the center of the park. We're going to spend the whole day together!" Amaterasu gave Alan another quick kiss to the lips before backing up and, with a simple wave and, "Until then, ja ne, Susano-O-dono," she was gone in a flash of golden sunlight.

Alan just stood there with a goofy grin on his face. It wasn't every day that he got to go on a date with a goddess...well, he had Amora but she was different, she lived with him. But with Amaterasu, this was a new experience. After taking a moment to let the recent encounter settle into his head, he then took off back into the air and off towards his boarding house. It was still Thursday so he had a couple of days to get ready. If Amaterasu was as bouncy and excitable on a date as she was during her rare visits then he was going to be in for one heck of a day.

"Well, well, well, looks like you got a hot date with a goddess, quite literally in fact," commented Bazel proudly.

"Yeah," Alan replied. "I wonder what she'd want to do, though." He and Amaterasu had not interacted much, but he knew that as a goddess she'd been keeping a close eye on him as she believed him to be Susano-O reborn. Alan had his doubts about her claim. He did manage to come up with a logical explanation for how he could be Susano-O.

"Just be yourself and have fun," Bazel said. "Isn't that how it is with the other girls?"

"Yeah," Alan frowned in thought. "I just hope the girls don't get too excited over the news."

"Oh, knowing them, the house might come down," joked Bazel.

"That's true enough," Alan frowned in thought. "Well, I better pick out my best outfit and plan my date."

"Why bother planning? Isn't it more fun to be spontaneous?" Bazel questioned.

"So that _everything _can run smoothly," said Alan. "And considering the stuff I've heard from the others I better be ready for demonic interference."

"Right, because random demons are still coming for you because you beat the Yamata no Orochi and they want the recognition."

* * *

After getting home, Alan had explained everything to his girls and, while they were happy for him in being able to repay his debt he owed to Amaterasu, they feared that she might end up becoming another victim of the Smith Charm. And they had enough competition with one another already. Adding one more woman to the mix would just make it even harder for them. But they did not voice this complaint. They told Alan to go and have a good time but to also keep his guard up.

So, Thursday ended and Friday came. However, while Alan was hoping for a day when he didn't have to do any superheroics, something was occurring in Okinomiya.

* * *

Hogack came to Earth to fight its mighty warriors. A tall, muscle bound figure, he had green fur covering his body with yellow coloration on his forearms and tail. He was naked from the waist up, wearing tight black pants and boots. He also wore bracelets on his wrists, ten in total with five on each wrist, which jingled every time he moved. Hogack had slightly pointed ears and he wore a headband around his head. His hair was straight, colored green and yellow like his fur, and long enough to reach his waist. Gripped in his hand was a laser whip.

He'd arrived by crashing in the middle of the street in his space pod. Due to the amount of damage his crash-landing had caused, the police had responded and tried to subdue him. However, Hogack made short work of the police as their bullets couldn't harm him. He stood on an upturned car, declaring, "Is there nobody mighty enough to stand against me?" He heard the sound of a vehicle moving nearby and the loud roar of its engine. He turned and saw a pickup truck. "Ah, more brave ones."

Kamen Rider Slasher was riding on the roof of the pickup truck with the driver being none other than Hanyuu. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?" she asked her boyfriend as she poked her head out the window. He gave no answer but a nod. "OK! If you're sure!" She slammed her foot on the brakes and Slasher was launched, activating his chainsaws as he flew towards Hogack.

The chainsaws hit, but they connected with Hogack's laser whip. Sparks flew as the chainsaws tried to cut through only to do nothing but make it rain more sparks.

"So, finally, a worthy opponent!" Hogack acknowledged as he looked Kamen Rider Slasher in the eyes. "Tell me, what is your name?"

Slasher gave no answer and drove Hogack back with a kick to the stomach. He then performed a football tackle, knocking Hogack off his feet and sending him crashing into a nearby wall. Slasher waited and watched as Hogack walked out of the wall, unfazed, as he dusted himself off. "You're a strong one. You'd make a perfect addition to my fighting ring."

"Fighting ring?" Slasher asked.

"So, you do talk," grinned Hogack.

"You said something about a fighting ring," Slasher said.

"Oh, I'm a recruiter of sorts. I go from planet to planet, challenging their strongest warriors, and once they've proved themselves, I defeat them and bring them with me to become members of my fighting ring. You'd be a great gladiator, fighting for glory."

"You mean fighting meaninglessly for the entertainment of others," Slasher scoffed. "What you're proposing is no better than slavery."

"Well, why should I pay for fine warriors when I can get them for free?" asked Hogack rhetorically. "And if they still refuse, I have ways of making them agree to my demands." He looked to see Hanyuu standing near the pickup truck. "Hm, so you have a woman, and she's a pretty one too. The horns also make her look exotic."

Hanyuu frowned. And yet another person could see her horns. Slasher stood in front of her, shielding her from Hogack's gaze.

"I would hate to see anything happen to such a pretty little thing," said Hogack. "I mean girls without any scars always sell for a high price."

That threat just made Slasher want to lock this alien up for life. He lunged and swung only for the whip to wrap around his arm before he was thrown across the street. Hogack withdrew his whip and lashed it out at a nearby car. He tug it towards him and then swung it upwards before bringing it down on Slasher. The Rider shoved the car off of himself and glared at Hogack.

"Now, time for me to take you-"

**WHAM!**

Hogack was cut off by a giant hand slamming down on him. Slasher saw the impressive gigantic form of Kamen Rider J on one knee with her palm down on top of Hogack.

"I think you just squashed him," said Slasher.

"I DOUBT THAT," said J as her voice boomed. "MAYBE I BROKE A FEW BONES." She lifted her hand to see Hogack lying in an imprint of his own body. However, he was still conscious as he picked himself up.

"Well, this is a surprise," he admitted as he saw Kamen Rider J. "A gigantic spectacle. Many would pay for someone like you."

"She's not for sale. Nobody is," Slasher said. "And right now you're no match for either of us."

"Don't be too sure," said Hogack as he removed one of his bracelets and pocketed it. He removed another one and did the same. He then shot towards Slasher with blinding speed and with a single punch he knocked him into the air.

"CHIAKI-SAN!" cried out J as she caught her boyfriend. She brought her fist down but this time Hogack wasn't flattened as he caught the gigantic fist.

"You were so strong before, but now you're weaker than me," said Hogack as he held her fist back. J wondered what was going on. "Surprised? Confused? Or a bit of both?" Hogack questioned. "Well, I'll answer your question. I'm just so damn strong that I'm afraid if I fought at full strength I'd instantly kill anyone I fought, and a quick victory is just too boring. Also, I might accidentally kill the ones I want to recruit. That's why I made myself power limiters, ten in total. They restrict my true power. Right now I'm at 20 percent my full power since I removed two bracelets. Earlier, I had all but 5 percent of my total strength sealed. So, do the math." Despite his size, he was able to lift J off her feet and then flipped her so she landed face up on the ground. He then jumped onto her chest and strode up to her masked face. "So, how did a backwater place like Earth manage to come up with beings like you?"

He was suddenly thrown off J by a giant green boot which kicked him and sent him flying through the air. J's red eyes focused on Sentinel as he hovered down. "Hey," he greeted. J shrunk down to human size. Sentinel helped the pseudo-Rider up to her feet. "Are you OK?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she answered. "Alan, listen, that guy uses power limiters."

"I know, I heard," he said. "You better take Chiaki someplace safe and sound while I deal with this guy."

"He might be stronger than you," said J.

Sentinel grinned. "We'll see about that." He then blurred from sight.

Hogack wondered what had hit him when he saw a man in green and black with a cape standing in front of him. "Ah, and here we have another fine specimen."

Sentinel cocked his eyebrow, "Dude, are you coming onto me?"

"Just admiring the choices this rock has to offer. So many potential gladiators and slaves," said Hogack.

"Ah, so you're a slave trader," Sentinel realized. "That explains a lot."

"My name's Hogack. And who are you?"

Sentinel whipped out his Psychic Paper and flashed it in his face, "This should tell me who I am."

"'Sentinel, the man who aims to misbehave'," Hogack read. Sentinel put away the Psychic Paper.

"Exactly," said Sentinel as he punched Hogack in the face, sending him staggering. Hogack shook off the effects of the blow and took out his whip and cracked it. Sentinel took out his own weapon, the Sonic Screwdriver.

"Is that a sonic probe?" Hogack identified. He scoffed, "It's harmless!"

"Not in my hands," said Sentinel as he pushed the tip up and aimed his Sonic Screwdriver at Hogack. He held down the button and the light on the tip shone as it released a buzzing noise. This deactivated Hogack's whip as it malfunctioned and sparked, forcing him to drop his weapon. "See?"

Hogack fumed and began to remove two more of his bracelets, not bothering to pocket them as they dropped to the floor. He charged at Sentinel and threw his fist in the Lantern's face, only to be blocked by a shield of green energy. The shield then grew hands which balled into fists before hitting Hogack with a repetitive barrage of punches. Sentinel didn't let up for a complete minute before changing the construct into a chain which wrapped around Hogack.

"You think this chain will hold me?" Hogack scoffed as he began to struggle, attempting to break free, but Sentinel's willpower was strong as he strengthened the chain. He gave the chain a tug, pulling Hogack to him before he kicked him upwards. Gripping the chain tight, he spun Hogack around and around, and around before releasing him into the air.

Bending his knees, Sentinel shot into the air and slammed his skull into Hogack's back with enough force to shatter a human's spine. This still hurt as Hogack released an agonized scream before Sentinel grabbed him with a fist of green energy which held Hogack tightly.

"Now, don't resist," said Sentinel as he held the C3 to Hogack's face. "It won't hurt, but the first few seconds are going to tingle." He digitized Hogack, sealing him up in a containment card which popped out of the device. Taking it into his hand, he tossed it to Slasher who caught it. "Take that back to the Vault."

* * *

It was finally Saturday, and with the sun slowly rising in the morning sky, Alan only had a few hours to get dressed and ready for his date with Amaterasu. He just knew he was going to enjoy it and he vowed to make it as memorable for her as possible. He wanted her to have the time of her life on their date.

* * *

Flying over to a building near the park in Shishibone City, he landed on the rooftop and went down the top stairs, making his way to the ground floor. Exiting the building, he made his way over to the park but stopped at a flower cart and bought a small bouquet of flowers which was a mixture of roses, tulips and sunflowers. Continuing on to the park, he made his way towards the center where the fountain was located and, after coming to a stop, he looked around for Amaterasu but found no sight of her.

Looking at his watch, he spoke, "Hmm...I'm a few minutes early." He then smiled as he remembered a cardinal rule that his dad had taught him about dating. Always arrive early for the date. You are to never make a lady wait. '_Well, at least I followed the rule that Dad set,_' he thought to himself and then raised his arm to look at Bazel. "Okay, Bazel, remember, you promised that you would behave today and not ruin the date."

"Right, right, I remember," Bazel chided a bit. "Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut unless something bad happens. Now, stop talking to your arm out in public. You want to cause a scene for yourself?"

Alan just gave Bazel a glare while a small sweatdrop appeared next to his forehead. Since when did Bazel get so mature about these things? Maybe because if he screwed up this date for Alan and Amaterasu that the Green Lantern would definitely find a way to make him regret it.

Alan then looked himself over again to make sure he was properly dressed. he didn't go all out as he wanted to keep it simple yet still proper. He had on a pair of black slacks and black shoes and he wore a white long sleeved buttoned up shirt. He still wore his power ring, just in case he needed to use its powers. He highly doubted it though. He pitied the poor soul that tried to ruin his date with Amaterasu today.

As Alan waited, he looked at his watch again and noticed that it was only another minute until nine o'clock. Looking up at the sky, his attention was soon brought back to reality as a pair of arms wrapped themselves around his body while a pair of soft mounds pressed themselves against his back.

"Ohayo, Susano-O-dono~," Amaterasu purred into his ear with a slightly husky voice. Her breath made him shudder in anticipation as the sound of her voice made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

Turning around to greet her, "And good morning to you too, Amaterasu." He was completely stunned at how she looked.

Her complexion was as vibrant as always and her long flowing blonde hair was set in curls for their date. She wore a small black choker around her neck with a small sun pendant set in the center and a pair of star shaped earrings made out of gold. She also wore a white and yellow dress with frilled edges around the shoulders, leaving her arms bare. The dress stopped just around mid-thigh, frilled at the ends as well, with a white belt strapped around her waist. Slung over her shoulder was a white purse with a sunflower design on its sides and around her wrists were gold bracelets with emerald green stones embedded into them. She also wore a pair of white high heels that strapped themselves around her ankles. Alan just stared at her. She was completely beautiful, a goddess among men. Well, she was _literally _a goddess among men.

Alan, remembering his upbringing, lifted up his hand to present her with the bouquet. "Here, these are for you."

Amaterasu blushed as she took the flowers, "Susano-O-dono...," she sniffed, taking in the alluring aroma of the bouquet.

"A lovely bouquet for an even lovelier lady," Alan added, earning himself a bright smile. Holding the flowers before her, the bouquet then vanished in a flash of gold sunlight.

"Thank you, Susano-O-dono. I shall put these someplace safe once I return to my realm this evening."

Watching her smile and seeing her so happy gave Alan a sense of joy and inner peace. He just loved to see a pretty woman smile. He loved it even more when he was the cause of that smile which came from him performing a simple and honest gesture.

Extending his hand out for her to take, he politely said, "Well, I made some plans for the date but, if you have anything in mind or any place you'd like to go to then, by all means milady, you need but ask."

Amaterasu thought about it for a moment and then came up with an idea. "Well, there are a few things I want to try out today."

"Then, by all means, let's get started." He then waved his free hand, "Well then, after you, milady."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, pretty short but this opens up for what's coming next, which is Alan's date with Amaterasu. I know you guys are all looking forward to that. Oh, and this was finished with the help of Toku Warrior. Oh, and I also used some of the villains which were discussed before.**


	154. The Legacy of Cain Part 98

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 98: The Sun and Lantern's Date**

"You know, you keep calling me Susano-O," said Alan.

"That's because you are," Amaterasu said. He shook his head.

"No, what I'm saying is I don't remember doing any of that in the past," he clarified.

"Then you could be a reincarnation," she theorized..

"Amaterasu," he spoke evenly. "I'm from a whole different universe, a different timeline, and reincarnation only works within a universe and it cannot pass through the barrier between dimensions. If Susano-O had been reincarnated, he would've been reborn as someone born in this universe."

Amaterasu seemed saddened by that explanation, "But, you look so much like him."

"Which can only mean one other thing: time travel," he said.

"Time travel?" Amaterasu repeated, blinking.

"I think the Susano-O you know is me from the future," said Alan. "A friend of mine, called 'The Doctor', sometimes has that problem. He meets people in the wrong order, and sometimes in reverse order. Your past is my future, as he would say."

Amaterasu nodded her head in understanding. She may be blonde and pretty but she was a lot more than just a pretty face. It was something that Alan believe was a part of all women. Every woman was smart, pretty or not. Looks didn't matter when it came to brain power.

As they continued to walk down the sidewalk, Amaterasu looked up to see the sight of a Ferris wheel in the distance. The sight of it made her smile and made her decide on her first choice of fun for the day. Grabbing Alan by his hand, she pulled him along, forcing him to follow her. "Hurry, Susano-O-dono! This way!"

Alan made sure not to trip as he tried to keep up with the boundless energy of the Goddess of the Sun. "Hey, slow down, Amaterasu! Where are we going?"

The blonde beauty didn't need to answer as she came to a stop at the entrance of the amusement park (the same one that Rika and Hanyuu had gone to on their double date the weekend before), with Alan stopping next to her. His back heaved up and down as he slowly caught his breath. While an excursion like that wouldn't have normally tired him out, it was just completely unexpected and out of the blue.

"Here we are!" Amaterasu shouted with a beaming smile. She had always wanted to go to an amusement park but she was always so busy with her duties as a goddess. Today was a day off for her and she was going to enjoy it to the fullest.

Alan looked up and smiled as well. An amusement park was always a good idea for a first date. He just hoped that it would go undisturbed for the time being.

"I see," Alan said, taking Amaterasu's hand in his. "Well then, let's go and have some fun." Amaterasu smiled brightly as she let Alan lead her into the park, the young Green Lantern being a gentleman by paying for the both of them.

* * *

Standing in front of a game booth, Alan watched as Amaterasu was playing a game of Ball Toss. The objective: get the ball into the red hole to win a prize. Of course, Alan had paid for her and he was enjoying the sight of her having fun. This fun-loving side of his Goddess of the Sun just seemed to fit her so nicely. He couldn't imagine her acting any other way.

Taking aim, Amaterasu threw the ball hard but quickly ducked as the ball bounced off the wall and zoomed over the top of her head, the small and fast object careening with the head of a clown behind her.

"Oops!" she exclaimed as the fallen clown was helped up by Alan, the painted entertainer rubbing the sore spot on his head. "Oh my, I'm so sorry about that!"

"Nah, it's fine, Miss," the clown said as he shook the dizzies out of his head. "I've taken worse hits from small children. Besides, it was an accident. Just...aim better next time." The clown then kept on walking while still holding his now aching head.

Amaterasu's head drooped a bit as a frown appeared on her face. Alan was quick to her side and place a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, Amaterasu, it was nothing but an accident," Alan reassured her, making her smile. He then looked back at the Ball Toss game and got an idea. Slapping a few more bills of yen on the countertop, "One more try, please," he asked the game vendor.

The vendor took the money and gave Alan a set of three balls. Leaving two of them on the counter, Alan took careful aim and, controlling his strength, swung and let the ball fly. The bells went off as the ball went right through the red hole. Alan then took the other two balls and like with the first one tossed each one through the red hole.

"And we have a winner!" the vendor shouted. "Well, go ahead and claim your prize."

Alan turned to Amaterasu and motioned for her to come over. "Well, go ahead, Amaterasu. Pick whichever prize you want."

Amaterasu smiled as she looked at all the prizes before finding the one she wanted. "That one, please!" she pointed; the vendor removing her chosen prize. Handing it over to her, Amaterasu squeezed her newly acquired prize, a golden teddy bear that was half the size of Alan and with a golden sun image sewed into its stomach.

Completely happy and content with her prize, Amaterasu then leaned down a bit and kissed Alan on the cheek, the show of affection earning him a few embarrassing cat calls and kissy sounds from the other patrons. Alan just ignored them as he placed his hand on his kissed cheek, enjoying the sensation of affection he was receiving from Amaterasu.

* * *

The rest of the day at the amusement park had been fun for the two of them. After playing a few more games, Amaterasu had somehow gotten Alan to go on the ride, 'The Tunnel of Love', with her. It allowed her a chance to truly show him just how much of a good kisser she really was. And, boy, did he ever enjoy the attention.

After spending a few hours at the amusement park, they headed towards the Ferris Wheel. Getting into one of the enclosed carriages, the two of them sat next to each other. Amaterasu clung onto Alan's arm as she looked out from the carriage window, taking in the view. While she could fly and levitate under her own power, to be able to see the view of the land from a Ferris Wheel carriage was just a breathtaking experience. As she looked back at Alan, she noticed a small yet worried expression on his face. He seemed to be thinking about something. Maybe he was thinking about her. She wanted to know so much more about him. to share his pain and shoulder any burden that he might have.

And there was a question Amaterasu had been meaning to ask Alan for a long time now. She never had the chance but now that they were both alone, maybe it was time she satisfied her curiosity. All she knew of Alan was from what she'd witnessed, and through their sparse interactions. Since this was not yet the Susano-O she knew, it was time for her to get to know him all over again.

"Susano-O-dono," she began.

"Amaterasu, you can just call me 'Alan'," he said to her.

"Alright, Alan-dono-"

"And don't add '-dono' either. Makes it sound weird and I'm not royalty," he said honestly. "Just Alan would be fine."

"That's just so...informal and disrespectful after all you've done," said Amaterasu.

"My friends and family call me by my first name, and you're not excluded," said Alan.

"Alright, Alan," she said, calling him by his first name.

"So, what did you want to ask me?"

"What inspired you to become a hero in the first place?" she asked.

"That's actually pretty easy," said Alan. "You see, I'm named after Alan Scott, a Green Lantern from my home universe. I practically worshipped him since he represented everything I thought what made up a true hero. Of course, he wasn't the only one. Everyone in my family is a hero too. I guess with so many positive influences, why shouldn't I be a hero."

"So, you were just following in your family's footsteps," she summarised.

"That's partly the reason, but there's also another man who shows me that another type of hero also exists. He's called 'The Doctor'. The first time I saw him, he just appeared out of nowhere to save the world and then he just vanished. I meet him from time to time, even asked if I could travel with him, but he told me I just wasn't ready."

"Must've been upsetting," she commented.

"Oh, he was right. I mean I was just a kid when I met him and his adventures were just too dangerous for me. Of course, my chance to really become a hero came when I received this." He pointed to his ring. "It's my Green Lantern power ring and it chose me, seeing me worthy to join the Green Lantern Corps." He proceeded to explain what it meant to be a Green Lantern and what the Green Lantern Corps stood for.

"Sugoi," she said, amazed.

"Yeah, it is amazing," said Alan. "But it wasn't all good..." He trailed off.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Just remember something painful, that's all," said Alan as he looked away. He remembered Jade's death which was the beginning of everything that went wrong with his life.

"Well, you don't have to tell me then," said Amaterasu.

"No, you should know," said Alan, a firm expression on his face. "If you're going to be dating me, you at least need to know the truth." And so, he told Amaterasu about Parallax, about how he allowed the entity to possess him after losing the woman he loved, about how he had tried to destroy and recreate the universe in his own image, and then the realization of what he'd become before he sacrificed himself to fix everything. And then he told her about how he'd been trying to redeem himself since then.

* * *

After the amusement park, the couple walked back down the sidewalk until they came across the local movie theater. Remembering something that Lucy had once told him, he looked over to Amaterasu and took her hand.

"Hey, wanna see a movie?" he asked her which she nodded to in reply. "Okay then, you got any preferences?"

Amaterasu looked at the displayed movie posters for a few moments until she noticed a few posters that were used to show images from one of the imported movies they had playing in the theater. Pointing to the poster after reading the title, she suggested, "How about this one?"

Alan looked at the poster and read the title which was written in a mix of hiragana and katakana. "Back to the Future: Part II? You wanna see this movie?" he asked her, confused with her choice.

"But of course," she said as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Why?"

"Because, the title reminds me of you," she said as she tapped the poster on the part where the title was located. Taking a closer look, Alan then got the hint.

'_Duh, I'm from the future and an alternate universe. So it's obvious she wants to watch a movie based on time travel_,' he mentally said to himself as he smacked the palm of his hand gently against the side of his head. "Alright then, Back to the Future 2 it is."

Paying for their tickets, Alan then went to the concession stand and got them a big bucket of popcorn and a couple of sodas before entering the viewing room of the theater where the film was being shown.

During the film, Alan made minor calls of error as well as accuracy towards the movie's portrayal of time travel but made sure not to say anything that would spoil the movie for Amaterasu. Heck, he had watched all three movies over a hundred times each so he knew each one by heart, line for line.

Amaterasu just watched the movie in wonder as she had never really seen one before. She had never even been into a theater either so this was definitely a first for her. And the special effects in the movie made it amazing to watch. She really loved a lot of the humor and how the characters interacted with one another. Of course, her favorite scene was when Biff got nailed by horse manure for a second time while driving his car. And to see romance blossom between Marty's parents made her swoon. She looked over at Alan and blushed. She wanted a relationship with him that was similar to what he had with his other girls. She didn't care if he had other women in his life already. She just wanted to be with him. But the laws of the higher beings would prevent that. No god or goddess was allowed to couple with a mortal in the human realm. That was the rule. It was considered as a form of interference with the humans and their current way of life. The only way around this rule was if she were to denounce her inherited godhood and have herself be demoted to that of a demi-goddess. It would be a choice that she would have to think long and hard on.

* * *

Elsewhere, floating in space on a golden chariot that was attached to a pair of purple colored horses with fiery manes, the Greek God Apollo looked at the sight of the sun that floated in its space within its sustained solar system. He looked at the sun with a distant look of fondness and adornment, his eyes glazed with a look of longing in them. He missed her. The one being he had ever truly loved. His Goddess of the Sun, Amaterasu. While it was his job to raise the sun for the Earth, it was hers to make sure that the Sun would forever shower the planet with its life-giving rays of warmth.

They had been a couple once, a long time ago. Back in the days of old when Christianity was still new and many of the old ways were still obliged. Though, after a long time of courtship, Amaterasu left him, saying that he was too controlling of her. That had happened during the Dark Ages of human history. His sadness during that time had caused a pretty massive eclipse to take place. Since then, he made sure that no other man, God or mortal, would be allowed to have her. If he couldn't not have her then no one else could either.

But, he had been hearing rumors among the other gods that Amaterasu had begun to fancy a new man as of late. Someone who resembled the man who had caused her heart to waver from him in the days of the Yamata no Orochi. That damned Susano-O. It was his fault that she had left him. He had been nothing but kind to her and had shown her that there were other men who were obviously better than the Greek God of the Sun. Amaterasu spent the next century deciding what to do while keeping to herself. Then, all of a sudden, she came to him one day and ended their millennia-long relationship.

It burned him up inside. He wanted to be able to go back and kill that damned Susano-O for taking the love of his immortal life away. She was his! No one else's but his and his alone! No other man had a right to be with her but him!

Gripping the reigns of his chariot tightly, a small tear slid down his cheek. "My dear, sweet, Amaterasu. Why? Why did you leave me? What does this...this..._mortal_ possess that I do not?" he asked aloud to no one in particular. Depressed and deep within his own thoughts, he would have never suspected anyone to disturb him.

"Oh dear, does the poor little Sun God of Greece miss his little Sun Goddess that much?" a cooing voiced asked in a slightly malevolent tone.

Apollo turned around to see the form of a strange looking being. The being wore a black robe-like cloak over its body with gold trim on the sides and within the center, forming a slew of different patterns. Within the being's white right hand was a long halberd, the shaft pink in color. Near the top of the shaft was a golden ornament band with runes etched into it. The top of the halberd had a golden ring with the symbol of Virgo within its center; the ring connected to a curved golden blade on one side. The other side had a set of feather-like blade edges protruding out like a wing and a blue sapphire gem was situated just below the ring.

The being's head was covered in overlapping curls of long pink hair which ended with two bangs flowing down the side of its head and over her robes. The bangs covered most of the being's face but left an opening for her bright red eyes which were surrounded by a golden eye mask. The lower half of the being's face was also visible and was as pale as the white makeup of a Geisha Girl; its lips touched with a deep ruby red lipstick.

Judging by the sound of the beings voice and the slightly visible slender figure hidden underneath the robes, he knew that this being was female.

"You dare to speak to a god that way...demon?-!" Apollo demanded. The being was a woman but he could sense the presence of Youki emitting from her body.

"Aye, that I do...boya," the female demon chided. "And this demon has a name." Twirling around and then flying a bit closer, "I am known as the Priestess Virgo. And I have come to deliver to you a message."

"I, Apollo, God of the Sun, have no desire to hear any words to be uttered from the mouth from a piece of low level filth such as you, wench!" Apollo snorted angrily, enraged that a demon would grace his noble presence.

"Oh, even if it concerns your dear little Amaterasu?" Apollo's eyes widened, the demon known as Priestess Virgo now gaining his attention.

"Amaterasu?" he asked. "Out with it, wench! Tell me what has become of my beautiful Sun Angel! Speak now before I burn you where you stand!" Apollo ordered.

Furrowing her brow under her hair, "Well, since you asked so _nicely_...here." With a wave of her halberd, she projected the image of the date taking place between Amaterasu and Alan Smith. Apollo's eyes widened in shock as his purple skin paled a bit. The scenes he was being shown were the more romantic and intimate scenes that had taken place between Alan and Amaterasu.

Apollo clenched his fists as she saw HIS Amaterasu kissing Alan vigorously on the boat that went through the 'Tunnel of Love'. Just the sight of seeing another man claim the lips of his beloved sun angel made his blood boil. Virgo just smiled at the sight. She was getting the reaction that she had wanted.

"No more, Virgo! Show me no more!" Apollo demanded and, with a wave of her halberd, the images vanished. He was mad. No, not mad. He was furious. He felt like he could go supernova at any moment. His eyes fixed into an enraged glare, he looked back at Virgo, "Tell me, does this _mortal_ have a name?"

"Yes," Virgo said with a smile. "His name is Alan Smith. And he's currently the most powerful being on Earth. And, it seems that he's gained both the blessings and the heart of the Sun Goddess, Amaterasu." Virgo then floated around Apollo in circles. "Oh, what to do? She's on a date with him on Earth right now and who knows what nasty, dirty and lewd things he'll make her do. And it isn't right for a Goddess to couple with a mortal man. The consequences would be her dismissal as a Goddess. She could be turned into a demi-goddess. Worse, a mortal herself even."

"Then," Apollo began, "what do you propose I do?"

Bingo. Virgo had achieved her goal.

"Simple...kill Alan Smith and claim what is rightfully yours," Virgo instructed him. Apollo seemed hesitant for a brief moment but Virgo was quick with her wit as she knew one last piece of information that would seal the Green Lantern's fate. "Oh, and for the record, she refers to him as 'Susano-O-dono'. She believes him to be the descendant of the original Susano-O."

That clinched it for Apollo. His body erupted in a blazing fire as he roared loudly that all the many realms of heaven could hear him.

"Susano-O! So he wishes to hurt me again!" Apollo roared.

"Yes, he does, milord. But I can show you where he is. I can show you what he is weak against." Apollo looked at Virgo who just smiled.

"Show me."

* * *

Once the movie was over, the couple headed down the sidewalk once more. It was already getting a bit late in the afternoon and they had yet to eat anything. Sure, they munched on popcorn while watching the movie but that was just a snack.

Alan remembered the sight of seeing Amaterasu enjoying the movie so much and he she seemed to love seeing Marty's parents getting back together. Alan made a mental note to find more movies like that in the future. He just loved to see the sun goddess smile and bounce up and down on her feet like a giddy school girl.

As they turned the corner to the local bank of Shishibone City, Alan noticed a small Italian-styled restaurant out of the corner of his eye.

"Hey, Amaterasu?" he asked, causing her to look at him. "How about a meal at an Italian restaurant?"

"Oh, that sounds nice. I always loved Italian food," she replied as he guided her across the crosswalk and to the restaurant.

Once inside, they were greeted by a waiter who took them to a small booth for two. As they sat down, Alan and Amaterasu looked over to see a few people playing classic Italian music on a set of instruments ranging from a cello to a violin. The music helped to set the atmosphere for the patrons who were either dinning as a family or as a couple. Alan could see a lot of the patrons were guys who had brought their girlfriends with them out on a date. Italian restaurants were a classic and well loved dating tradition and were used for those who couldn't quite afford a nice French restaurant. French cuisine, of course, was quite pricey.

Taking a few minutes to look over the menus, the two of them finally decided on their order with Alan getting spaghetti with meatballs and Amaterasu getting fettuccine alfredo with chicken mixed in. As they waited for their meals to arrive, the two of them spent a bit more time learning about one another. Alan told her about some of his earlier adventures that he had gone on after arriving in Shinichi's world before Amaterasu had begun to notice him. At the same time, Amaterasu talked about some of her past with Alan, mostly how she and Tsukuyomi were always getting love letters from other gods and even a few goddesses. She did decide to leave out a few stories concerning her last boyfriend, figuring that talking about her ex was not a good thing to do on a date. Alan had only mentioned Jade as she was connected with the darker part of his past. The stories about his encounters with the rest of his girls would be told at a later time though.

* * *

Standing before a waterfall within the celestial realm of the Elysian Fields, Apollo stood there with Priestess Virgo who was showing him ways of defeating Alan. And he was impressed. This boy, who resembled Susano-O, while as powerful as a god, was riddled with weaknesses. He could not tolerate magic, he refused to hit a woman and he would give his life to protect someone he loves. These were things Apollo could use to his advantage. But first, he'd need to pay Hephaestus a visit and to talk to the forger of the weapons of the gods about a certain sword.

* * *

The food came and as they were enjoying their meal, Alan told the goddess about his situation, namely that he hadn't seen his family back home for a couple of years now.

"If you miss your family back home, why don't you go back to visit them?" Amaterasu asked.

"Because I'm stuck in this universe, indefinitely," he told her, frowning.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

"No, it's fine. It's OK. At least I'm not stuck here on my own, plus I got the girls...and Shinichi," he told her.

"Is he really your brother?" Amaterasu questioned. "You both look so different from each other."

"I take after our dad while he takes after his mother," said Alan.

"No wonder you're both so different," she noticed.

"Yeah, and he annoys the hell out of me, but you know what they say. You can choose your friends but you can't choose your family," he said with a sigh, "Unfortunately."

After they finished their meal, Amaterasu and Alan continued their date by walking down to the shopping arcade to see what was for sale that day. While having seen many things over the millennia, she had yet to venture into any kind of human retail area. Which meant that she had never gone shopping before in her whole life. But she quickly began to develop the instincts of a modern day girl as she began to eye everything in the windows. From dresses to shoes to jewelry, Amaterasu just couldn't stop dragging Alan from one window to the next.

'_It's universal_,' thought Alan. '_Girls love to shop, goddesses included_.'

Entering a clothing store, Amaterasu immediately began to browse the racks as she took a few dresses and linens of different colors and designs and then bounded off towards the changing room. Alan just sat in a chair, waiting for Amaterasu to finish. He made sure to convert a lot of his stored away funds to the currency of the current timeline after discovering that he was stuck in Shinichi's world. Doing that, he had enough funds to last him a few years, give or take. Plus he did the occasional odd job here and there when he wasn't going to school. Even Conda, Amora and Bishie had gotten part-time jobs to help out while Yami did her occasional bounty hunting. Nozomu would still go to class, leaving Adam in the care of their landlord or a local daycare. Sometimes, Lala would volunteer to babysit. Momo and Nana had to make sure though that Lala didn't try any of her inventions out on Adam.

As Alan thought about his girls, Amaterasu looked herself over in the mirror. Smiling a devilish grin, she opened the curtain a bit and poked her head out.

"Oh Alan, could you come here for a moment, please?" Amaterasu called out to him.

Getting up, he said, "Coming." Once he made it over to her, "So, what's wrong? Did you find a dress that you like?"

"You tell me," she cooed seductively as she opened the curtain wide, showing him the sight of his life...so far. There, standing before him, was a barely clothed Amaterasu who was wearing nothing but a pair of black silk lingerie with see-through area close to the nipple area of her bra. Her legs were covered in fishnet stockings that stopped at mid thigh and were strapped to her panties with garter belts. She struck a seductive pose. "So, what do you think? Does this sight please you, Alan~?" she purred as she placed her arms behind her head while kneeling down, pushing her breasts out which the bra was barely able to contain at that point in time.

Alan's nose began to bleed as dirty thoughts began to enter his mind. Damn that Shinichi! Hanging around with the perverted younger version of his older brother had warped his mind somewhat. Amaterasu looked at him and smirked. She had gotten her desired reaction. But she wondered just how far she could push it.

"Oh, Alan~," she cooed, turning around to show him her shapely rear. "I've been a bad little goddess. I think I deserve a spanking~"

At that, Alan fell back as the blood burst from his nose. Hitting the floor, swirly circles were in his eyes as he almost lost consciousness. Amaterasu just giggled as she got back up and closed the curtain, getting dressed back into the dress she had worn for their date but after removing the lingerie first. After grabbing the garments she wanted, she knelt down next to Alan and patted his cheek, waking him up.

"Did we have a good dream?" she asked with a smile while blushing. Alan just nodded his head as she helped him up. Going to the checkout counter, Alan paid for her new dresses and the set of lingerie that she had worn earlier. She wanted to use it on him again real soon when they consummated their relationship.

* * *

After they finished shopping, they headed back towards the park. The sun was already starting to set in the sky which meant that night would soon be upon them. Alan and Amaterasu both walked side by side, each of them carrying a few bags. Like any other girl, Amaterasu seemed to be a natural born shopper. It was something that Alan was going to have to remember for future dates. As they made it to the fountain, Amaterasu turned and faced Alan as he placed her shopping bags next to her.

"I had a really great time today, Alan," Amaterasu said as she blushed.

"So did I," he replied in kind. It had been awhile since he had been able to enjoy a date without any interruptions. "Maybe we could go out again sometime?" he proposed.

Smiling brightly, "I'd like that very much."

Leaning towards one another for a goodnight kiss, they both looked up to the sky as a portal of red and orange energy formed up above them.

* * *

"Onwards, to battle!" Apollo shouted as his Sun Horses raced towards the mortal world. He would kill Alan Smith and reclaim his woman. This he swore on his honor as a God of the Sun.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And as Murphy's Law stated "What Can Go Wrong, Will Go Wrong". It looks like something's coming? Amaterasu's ex? Well, if you wanna know, be sure to read the concluding chapter...NEXT TIME! Toku Warrior helped with some of the details. Pls, be sure to read and review. Oh, and Virgo is based on the same character from KR Fourze.**


	155. The Legacy of Cain Part 99

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 99: Apollo's Wrath**

Out of the portal shot a golden chariot that was being drawn by two purple horses with fiery golden manes. Riding in the chariot was a man with golden colored skin who wore bronze armor and padding over a white Greek-styled outfit. On his head was a helmet with the Greek symbol of the sun in its center.

The color drained from the Sun Goddess' face as she recognized the chariot and the driver. "Oh no...not him. Please, anyone but him."

"What's wrong?" Alan asked. "Do you know the guy who's driving that thing?"

"He's..." she began until they both heard a loud booming voice coming from the man riding in the chariot.

"ALAN SMITH! I HAVE COME TO KILL YOU AND TO TAKE BACK MY WOMAN!" Apollo declared as his chariot came to a stop on the ground.

As Apollo got out of his chariot, Virgo watched on from a distance, a smile on her face. Everything was going according to plan.

"Alan Smith, I demand that you pay for touching a woman who does not belong to you!"

Alan just looked at him with a confused expression on his face. "Um...okay...who are you and what are you talking about?"

"Apollo!" Amaterasu snapped at the Greek Sun God. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I am here to kill this mortal for dirtying your mind and to take you back to the higher realm. You belong with me, not some puny little insect such as this mortal!" That last line angered Alan. He hated it when a guy tried to force a woman to love him.

"No, Apollo, you and I are not a couple anymore. I ended that centuries ago," Amaterasu said with her hands on her hips. "And besides, I'm in love with Alan now. How I live my life has nothing to do with you."

"But Amaterasu, if you choose to couple with this mortal, then you'll be stripped of your godhood! You would be demoted into a demi-goddess! Worse, you could be made into a mortal even!"

Alan looked over at Amaterasu whose head sunk between her shoulders. "Amaterasu, is that true? Would you lose your godhood if you stayed with me?" All he got was a simple nod. "I see. I guess there's only one choice to make then."

"Alan...?" Amaterasu asked slowly, her eyes widening a bit in shock. Alan then marched over towards Apollo while he transformed into Sentinel. Apollo just glared at him.

"Alright Apollo, here's the deal. You and me, right here, right now. Anything goes except for fighting dirty."

"And what are the terms for the victor..._mortal_?" Apollo asked. He already knew that he was going to kill Alan Smith but he was going to play along. It wasn't everyday that a mortal challenged a god.

"Easy, you win and you get Amaterasu. If I win, she gets to make whatever choice she wants, no questions asked. Deal?" Apollo just smiled.

"Deal," Apollo said as he withdrew the sword he had gone and gotten from Hephaestus. Amaterasu gawked in surprise at the sight of the sword.

"Is that...is that...Excalibur?-!" she exclaimed. Sentinel's eyes widened and he groaned.

'_Oh great, another sword of legend that has a good chance of being able to hurt me_,' he groaned inwardly as he readied the Kusanagi.

"And now...DIE!-!-!" Apollo shouted as he charged at Alan, the Excalibur held out to his side.

It was a good thing that nobody else but them were present at the park at the moment. It seemed pretty convenient for someone who needed to conceal his identity but Sentinel wasn't complaining. Using his power ring and Bazel simultaneously, Sentinel constructed a huge shield to block Apollo's swing. However, Excalibur was known as the 'Sword of Promised Victory' for a reason. The blade of Excalibur struck the shield and there was an explosion of power as it shattered. Apollo grinned, feeling his victory was assured.

The smoke cleared as Sentinel grimaced, now donned in the Armor of Bazel. Fighting a god in a populated city wasn't exactly a good thing at the moment. The reputation of superheroes in this world was already on thin ice. Since that report of him going on a rampage due to Red Kryptonite, which fortunately didn't have anyone identifying who he was, he made sure to be careful of collateral damage.

"Time to go onwards and upwards!" said Sentinel. Looking up, he shot into the sky like a rocket with Apollo laughing.

"Look at him run!" He boasted to Amaterasu, "See, my Sun Angel? He is a coward."

Amaterasu crossed her arms and scowled as she answered, "You have no idea what you're talking about, Apollo. And if you look, he hasn't run. He is still there."

"Not for much longer. Wait here, my dear. When this is over, I'm going to show you how you deserve to be treated," said Apollo before he took to the skies as well, leaving a trail of flames as Amaterasu could only watch. She clasped her hands together and silently prayed.

Meanwhile, Sentinel was waiting for Apollo to show up. "You think he's going to come up here to fight you?" asked Bazel.

"I made sure I was out in the open, didn't I?" replied Sentinel. "Just wait for it." He dodged as a fireball shaped like a miniature sun soared past his head. "Hah! There he is!"

"So, we will fight in the sky," stated Apollo.

"I figured fighting on the ground with the mortals would be beneath you," Sentinel replied.

"You're not like any mortal," studied Apollo.

"Oh, I'm a rare breed. One of a kind," answered Sentinel as he grinned cheekily.

"Well, consider this day to be the day where your kind will go extinct," declared Apollo as he brandished Excalibur.

"If we're going to be fighting with legendary swords, I might as well oblige!" said Sentinel as he pointed the Kusanagi at him. "Apollo, meet the Kusanagi! Japan's equivalent to the legendary Excalibur!"

"How does a mortal like you become worthy to wield _that_?" Apollo asked incredulously.

"I was gonna ask how a douche like you got your hands on the Excalibur," retorted Sentinel. "No way that sword will find someone like you worthy for it."

"I am a god!" Apollo shot back.

"Doesn't mean a damn thing, really," Sentinel remarked bluntly which irritated Apollo. How could this mortal, who was not a normal mortal, not be impressed. "It just means you got divine blood. It doesn't have anything to do with worthiness, in my opinion."

"My blood makes me superior, and Excalibur itself was forged by divinity! Only a divine hand can truly wield it!" Apollo boasted.

"And there we go. The typical holier-than-thou attitude your kind generally display," said Sentinel. "You must feel so superior."

"Because I am!" Apollo snapped.

"And yet the people stopped worshipping the Greek pantheon a long time ago," Sentinel argued, riling Apollo up further. Apollo dashed towards Sentinel with a decapitating blow but Sentinel swung the Kusanagi out to parry the strike.

"You will fall at my feet, mortal!" shouted Apollo.

"You know, you're not the first," Sentinel told Apollo.

"What?" Apollo demanded.

"You're not the first," Sentinel repeated. "God, I mean. You're not the first god I've ever fought. I managed to stand up to Thor when I was younger and survived. So, you don't really impress me all that much." He had fought against Thor for Amora's sake years ago.

"You fought...Thor?" Apollo asked.

"That's right," Sentinel admitted. "Oh, and by the way, I'm about to punch you in the face."

"What?" Apollo gawked before he was kicked in the stomach violently, causing him to grunt in pain. "You said you were going to punch my face!"

"You calling me a liar?" Sentinel threw an uppercut that knocked Apollo backwards. The Sun God shook off the effects of the punch and scowled. How dare this mortal hit his face?

He slid his fingers up along the flat side of Excalibur's blade, enveloping it in mana-based flames, before shooting towards Sentinel at incredible speed. Sentinel saw the move coming and blocked with the Kusanagi and sparks exploded from the violent impact. Apollo withdrew and swung again with Sentinel parrying the strike, and he followed up with a forward thrust that Sentinel evaded. Sentinel went on the assault next, his blade slicing through the air, but Apollo blocked with the Excalibur.

The sound of metal violently clashing against metal rang through the air and could be heard from the ground. Amaterasu just knew that Alan would be able to hold his own against the Sun God Apollo.

Meanwhile, Virgo wasn't at all pleased with this development. "What is he doing? He should've defeated him by now."

Apollo threw a punch that hit Sentinel in the face, knocking him backwards before charging with a decapitating strike. Sentinel ducked and kicked both his feet upwards, slamming them into Apollo's chin. Flipping back to an upright position, he smashed his forehead painfully against Apollo's.

Sentinel recoiled, massaging his sore forehead, but he watched as Apollo screamed in pain. No matter how powerful a god claimed to be, they were not always immune to pain.

Apollo growled as he stared at Sentinel with extreme hatred, already beginning to lose his composure. He focused his power into the Excalibur and a sphere in the shape of the sun but the size of a basketball formed at the tip. With a swing, he sent the sun sphere flying towards the Green Lantern. Sentinel dodged but the sun sphere did a U-turn and was flying towards his back. Sentinel realized this and grimaced as the sun sphere would not stop until it hit him. He flew, fleeing from the sun sphere as it continued to pursue him. He used his ring and conjured a weapon-the Faiz Blaster-and turned with it gripped in his hand. He took aim and fired, the shots detonating the sun sphere prematurely.

Sentinel thought he was in the clear when he suddenly felt a searing hot pain in his back. Apollo had just slashed him from behind, slicing off his cape, and leaving a gash in the back of his armor.

"Partner!" Bazel shouted.

"I'm fine, Bazel," Sentinel hissed. He turned and blocked another swing but was sent sliding backwards in the air. Apollo then summoned a dozen sun spheres around him, each the size of a bowling ball, as the basketball sized one bounced at the tip of Excalibur.

"With Excalibur, my victory is assured," boasted Apollo arrogantly. "Surrender, and I won't have to slay you where you stand."

"We're floating in midair," Sentinel corrected in a deadpan voice which would do his mother proud. Apollo gritted his teeth.

"STOP TALKING!" Apollo roared as he flung the sun spheres towards Sentinel. However, he didn't dodge this time as he raised his hand and stopped the spheres in mid-flight. They froze, in front of Sentinel, leaving Apollo to gape.

"You know, I was on a nice date with Amaterasu until you showed up. You're an annoying pest and I know how to deal with pests," He formed a massive baseball bat with his ring and called, "Batter up!" He swung, hitting the sun spheres, and sending them back towards Apollo.

Down on the ground, Amaterasu witnessed several explosions, over a dozen, lightning up the sky as their booms were clearly heard.

Back in the air, Sentinel was watching the smoke cloud. Even if Apollo was immortal, that didn't mean he could hurt the arrogant prick enough to force him to withdraw. Sure enough, as the smoke blew away, Apollo was still there. However, his armor seemed to have taken some significant damage.

"You...BASTARD!" roared Apollo in outrage.

"And there it is! Divine fury!" Sentinel pointed.

"RAAAAAGH!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi had monitor duty at the Hive. He was actually watching the action on the big screen. Sheila asked, "Aren't you going to intervene?"

"Alan seems to be handling it alright," said Shinichi. "Don't worry, Sheila. He'll be fine. It's not like this guy is really much of a threat to Alan."

"_You have confidence in Alan,"_ Sheila observed.

"He's my little brother," Shinichi answered. "What kind of older brother would I be if I didn't trust him."

"_But as his older brother, shouldn't you assist him?"_ Sheila questioned.

"When things get really bad, I will. But only when things get really bad," he promised.

* * *

"GO!" Alan commanded as he sent green energy constructs in the shape of a Gouram and Agito Tornader flying towards Apollo like missiles. They weren't very effective as they were shattered with a single strike from Apollo's Excalibur. Sentinel followed up by constructing a dragon which wrapped its serpentine body around Apollo's body, binding him tightly. However, Apollo freed himself by creating an explosion, destroying the construct as well.

Green lightning arched all over the Kusanagi as flames enveloped the Excalibur. The two warriors, one superhuman and the other divine, swung their blades. Sharp steel connected and the energies created an explosion that flung both of them through the air in opposite directions.

Righting himself, Apollo sent an arch of fire towards Sentinel who put it out with a single swing of the Kusanagi. However, the intense heat still lingered in the air around him.

"Partner, you said you beat Thor, right?" asked Bazel.

"Not...exactly," said Sentinel. "I actually just stood up to the guy. I didn't really beat him in a fight." The fact was that Thor had beaten Alan to a bloody pulp but Alan simply refused to yield which earned him the Thunder God's respect. "He relented because I wouldn't give up." For someone he cared for, he would never give up.

He eyed Apollo. He didn't seem winded at all. Then again, exhaustion was probably a foreign concept to deities. They didn't really need to eat, sleep, or drink. They simply enjoyed such things as a luxury instead of a necessity.

Apollo, however, was slowly losing his patience. His opponent was just too stubborn to either give up or die. He'd never confronted a mortal such as this. Where did this Alan Smith come from? No matter. He would defeat the upstart and prove himself worthy in Amaterasu's eyes.

However, if Apollo was intelligent he would've realized that no matter what he did, nothing he could do would change Amaterasu's opinion of Alan Smith. She had watched Alan from the beginning since she thought he was Susano-O and saw that he used his powers not for his own selfish benefit, but for the benefit of others. She also found it touching that Alan loved the women in his harem and didn't just treat them as a notch on his bedpost like Apollo had. Oh, while they had been together, Apollo would sleep with other women. Sure, Alan did the same but he loved the girls.

Also, Alan was just so good with children, adopting them to be part of his family. His daughters were just so cute and adorable and they loved him as much as he loved them. The one named Alice had once been a weapon and yet Alan took her in and treated her like a daughter in spite of his brother's objections.

Amaterasu had been watching Alan even before he took hold of the Kusanagi. It was only after the sword had fallen into his hands was when she was able to speak to him. Only Susano-O could wield the Kusanagi and the fact that the sword accepted Alan without any problem was proof that Alan truly was Susano-O, or will be according to his explanation.

She should've known it was time travel. That would explain why he didn't recognize her at first. She thought that it had been reincarnation, when it fact it hadn't.

Apollo put away the Excalibur as he raised his arms into the air. He was forming a sun sphere but this was bigger than the ones he had conjured, and was becoming bigger and bigger. Seeing this, Sentinel put away the Kusanagi and cupped his hands together before holding them to the side as he began forming a green sphere that was charging with energy. Energy crackled from the sphere as his body ignited with green flames which had lighter green lightning bolts all around him. His hair was beginning to spike up as well.

The sun sphere Apollo had formed was now ten times the size of a standard basketball and he determined that it was ready. With a toss of his arms, he hurled it towards Sentinel. The Green Lantern's response was to throw his arms forward, hands still cupped and aimed at the sphere as he fired a stream of emerald energy. The stream and sphere collided violently but no explosion followed. It seemed the two energy attacks were locked in a struggle of supremacy.

Virgo gritted her teeth. She'd been worried and annoyed at first since Apollo seemed to be playing with his opponent, but now that Apollo had conjured up the huge sun sphere, she knew that he was serious with his decision to kill Alan Smith. His death would be beneficial to her plans. For them to succeed, the champion who'd slain and defeated the Yamata no Orochi needed to be dealt with, lethally.

Bazel's gem began to shine as well as he also began to supplement the beam's power with his own. "Push, Partner! Just keep pushing!" Sentinel didn't answer. He was pushing all his willpower into the blast, veins visible across his forehead as his face was flushed with exertion.

Green lightning crackled and arched all over Alan's body as the two energy attacks caused the two fighters to slowly get pushed back in the air. Apollo gritted his teeth as he dug into the last remnants of his energy reserves and began to pool them into his sun sphere, making it even bigger.

"You puny, insignificant insect! Did you truly think that you could overpower me?-! Me, Apollo! God of the Sun!" Apollo roared as he began to grin, his attack pushing down on Alan's to where the sun sphere was no more than ten feet away from the Green Lantern.

"Apollo! Stop this right now!" Amaterasu shouted at him. She did not want to see Alan get killed over her. Her usual quiet and cheery demeanor was slowly starting to fade as it was being replaced with rage towards Apollo. If he hurt Alan, she would be sure to make that bastard pay.

"Oh, shut up, woman!" Apollo roared back at her. "You obviously have no idea what is good for you. That is why you shall be mine. I know what's best for you. Always have and always will."

That clinched it for Alan as he began to dig deep into his own energy reserves. He wouldn't dare use his quantum energy for this fight as there was no telling what would happen. But he needed some way to refocus his mind. After pooling in as much energy he could, he looked at his power ring and got an idea. Looking back at Apollo, he let a small grin cross his face which the Sun God noticed.

"What are you smiling about, mortal?-! You're about to die by my hands!" As he continued to look at Alan, both he, Amaterasu and even Virgo began to hear Alan mutter an all too familiar oath that was synonymous with all Green Lanterns.

"In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight. Let all who worship evil's might, beware my power..." Alan then opened his eyes wide as he shouted out the final verse, "GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!-!-!"

In a blast of power, the energy beam that Alan was firing from his hands then erupted from his entire body, the blast consuming the sun sphere and continuing on towards Apollo.

"W-W-WHAT?-!-!" Apollo screamed as the blast slammed into him, forcing him to scream out loud in agony; the blast carrying him through the sky and out into space.

After a moment passed, Alan let up on the blast as the energy subsided. Slowly, he hovered back down to the ground. Falling to his knees in exhaustion, he turned around at the feeling of someone kneeling down next to him while placing their arms on his shoulders. Looking up, he could see the beautiful face of Amaterasu looking back at him but she seemed to have tears in her eyes. But they were tears of joy as she was glad that he was just alive.

"Oh Alan...I'm so...so relieved that you're alright," she sputtered while sobbing a bit. Alan just raised his hand, using a finger to wipe away her tears.

"Hey, I told you that..._pant_...I'd beat 'em," he said while slightly out of breath. As they looked at one another, they were suddenly shaken out of their loving stare at the sound of something plummeting to the earth, the falling object hitting the ground hard and forming a huge crater. "What the hell?"

Staring at the crater, Alan was shocked to see Apollo slowly crawl out of the hole his body had made. He didn't look very good though. He actually looked pretty banged up as his armor was nearly shattered, his hair was a mess and he seemed to be covered in bruises. He had no idea that gods could actually bruise. Well, at least he learned something new today.

"...you...damn you...you arrogant...MORTA-OOMPH!" Apollo began to shout until he was kicked in the chin by none other than Amaterasu. Falling back down into the center of the crater, Apollo looked up at the edge while rubbing his chin, only to see an enraged sun goddess aiming her own sun sphere at him. And she wasn't holding back on the power. Her eyes locked onto his in the form of a lifeless death glare. "Sun Angel...you wouldn't...you couldn't...you-"

"Oh, be quiet and listen!" Amaterasu shouted at him, causing Apollo to clam up. "I. Love. Alan Smith. If you ever try to get between us ever again then I swear that you'll never get to bed another woman ever. Again!"

"Amaterasu, that's enough!" Alan shouted out to her. Amaterasu looked back to see Alan wobbling over to her side. Taking his time, Alan made it to her but fell forward, causing the sun goddess to disperse her formed sun sphere so that she could catch her beloved Susano-O.

"Alan, what do you think you're doing?"

"Amaterasu, listen, don't be mad at him," Alan said as he looked down at Apollo who just gaped back at him. "In a way, we're sorta similar."

"Us? Similar? Explain," Apollo asked in a weak voice.

"Even if you slept with other women behind Amaterasu's back when you were together, you still treated her as if she were the one true goddess, right?" Apollo nodded his head. "I see, so we both would do what is necessary to defend and protect the women that love."

Alan, using the last of his remaining energy, floated out of Amaterasu's arms and down towards Apollo. Landing in the crater, he extended his hand out to help the Sun God up.

"Alan..." Amaterasu spoke softly. He always was a kind person, even if the one he was being kind to didn't deserve such kindness.

"Apollo, listen, Amaterasu no longer wishes to be with you. And she seems to have taken a liking to me and, I have to admit, I like her a lot as well. I'm willing to give my life for her at a moments notice if I have to but I don't want to be your enemy." Alan was being his genuine self. he'd rather be Apollo's friend than his enemy. "If you can get over her and move on, you might find someone who truly completes you. There are a lot of different types of goddesses out there who probably have had an eye on you for some time now."

"Do you really believe that?" Apollo asked, giving him a questionable look. Alan just nodded while smiling.

"Yeah, I do. As they say, there's someone for everyone out there. You just have to be willing to go out and look for that person. Who knows, she could be someone you know. So, what do you say?" he asked as he reached his hand out a bit further. "Friends?"

Apollo gave him a suspicious look and then looked back up to Amaterasu who just nodded, agreeing with Alan.

"If you ever dare hurt Amaterasu in any way that would break her heart, then your head is mine. Are we clear?" Apollo wasn't asking. It was an order.

"Sure thing," Alan replied. Apollo smirked as he grabbed onto Alan's hand, allowing the Lantern to help him up.

"Well, I guess having a mortal such as yourself as a friend wouldn't be so bad."

Amaterasu just shook her head. Apollo just couldn't let go of that superiority streak within him. not for one second. But, at least he wasn't trying to kill Alan anymore.

Looking at the both of them, "Well, I should be going. I need to get Excalibur here back to Hephaestus before sun sets or he'll have my head on a pike." He turned around and jumped out of the crater, taking Alan with him and setting him on the ground before flying back over to his chariot. "Well, I look forward to the next time we meet, Green Lantern...Alan Smith." And with a shout of, "Hiyah!" he whipped the reigns of his chariot to make his horses run back up into the sky, the God of the Sun vanishing in a flash of golden sunlight.

As Apollo left Alan and Amaterasu behind, Virgo was floating nearby, biting her fingernails. She had been so close. She and her brethren had at least three major obstacles to get out of the way if their plans were going to succeed but that Sun God just had to go soft on her at the last second. She just hoped that her brother, Priest Leo, would have better luck with his assignment.

* * *

After having his body bathed in artificial sunlight which was supplied by Amaterasu, who used her powers of the sun to energize and heal him, Alan escorted the Sun Goddess back to the fountain where her shopping bags were located. Alan looked at her and smiled. Despite having to fight against one of Amaterasu's old boyfriends, Alan had really enjoyed his date with her.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around sometime?" Alan asked her.

He then got a really good shock as Amaterasu leaned down, placing her hands on the sides of his face, before claiming his lips with her own. Moaning and kissing him vigorously, she slipped her tongue into his mouth, really shocking him. But he soon returned the passionate kiss in favor, using his own tongue as well. After a few moments, the two of them reluctantly broke the passionate kiss, their cheeks flushed with a red blush.

"Maybe sooner than you think, my beloved Susano-O," Amaterasu said in a seductive tone.

"Ya know, last time I checked, tongue wasn't supposed to be used on the first date," Alan chided playfully. He didn't mind one bit though.

"As far as I'm concerned, that rule doesn't apply." She then smiled seductively as she pulled him closer to her body. "Maybe another one for the road?"

Before he could even begin to make a reply, Alan's ear picked up a familiar sound, which was a mix of a warp and a wheeze. "Hey, Amaterasu, do you want to meet someone special?"

* * *

"It's...a blue box," she said simply as she stared at the blue police box. It was 6 feet tall with two doors in the front and windows. Above the doors was a sign that read "Police Public Call Box" and there was a light on the box's roof.

"It's not just any blue box," Alan grinned as he stepped over to it. He rapped his knuckles against it. Stepping back, he watched as the door opened up and a familiar face popped up.

"Are those the muffins I ordered?" he asked. Amaterasu studied him. He was a young man, looking like someone in his thirties, wearing a dress shirt, navy blue trousers held up by suspenders and black boots. He had long, dark hair that was combed over to the side, a large chin and green eyes.

"Hello, Doctor," grinned Alan.

"Alan Smith! Come here!" the Doctor cried out as he gave the Green Lantern a hug.

"Alan, who's this?" Amaterasu asked.

"Oh, Amaterasu, this is the Doctor," said Alan.

"Doctor who?"

The Doctor chuckled, "I never get tired of that."

"What brings you here, Doctor?" asked Alan.

"Oh, I detected a massive amount of energy around here and I decided to investigate. Since you're here though, I suppose it's already been dealt with."

"I was... a bit involved."

"I'm sure you were, my boy," the Doctor smiled. "Now, you said this young lady is Amaterasu? Isn't that the Sun Goddess from Japanese mythology?"

"Well, as you can see she isn't a myth," said Alan.

"Indeed, and quite lovely. Is that the work of that 'Smith Charm' I've heard so much about?"

"Smith Charm?" Amaterasu questioned while tilting her head in a cute yet confused fashion.

"Doctor..." Alan said warningly.

"OK, now that I realized nothing is wrong, I suppose I should go," said the Doctor.

"Wait," Alan halted him. "Doctor, Amaterasu and I are on a date. Do you mind if you give us both a ride?"

"Ah, a pair of lovebirds wanting to travel with me?" the Doctor smiled.

"Just one trip, and nothing more," said Alan.

"One trip," agreed the Doctor. "Well, hop on in!" the Doctor cheered as he went back into the police box.

"Come on, Amaterasu," said Alan. "Let's go."

"But it's so small," she said, examining the box. She wasn't exactly impressed. "It'll be cramped with all of us jammed inside." She wouldn't mind being in a tight space with Alan, but only with Alan.

"Oh, you'd be surprised of how roomy it is," said Alan before he went into the police box.

Amaterasu sighed and went in after him. Moments later, she cried out, "It's bigger on the inside!"

"Welcome to the TARDIS."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now, this is the end of the date , but not the end of the romance. Again, the idea for the scenarios were a blend of mine and Toku Warrior. I was the one who decided to bring in Apollo and he added in Excalibur. Hopefully, the romance and the action scenes complemented each other. Well, that's one date down. The sun goddess gets her date oh and even gets the chance to go on a trip in the TARDIS. The 11th Doctor makes a cameo here like he has done before.**


	156. The Legacy of Cain Part 100

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 100: Setting the Date**

Kabukicho had its fair share of gang violence, but this was just something else. Standing in the middle of the street outside of one of the many hostess clubs, which now had a broken mirror, was Kamen Rider Carmen. She was facing off against a woman with deep brown eyes and short black cropped hair. Her clothing of choice was a Chinese hostess outfit which seemed to be alive as it wrapped around her but strands of it were writhing in the air.

Michiru had actually come to investigate the mysterious deaths of some very powerful men who'd come to visit Kabukicho to entertain themselves when she finally found the culprit. It was this woman, Hitula, who was an assassin for hire. What made her good at her job was her special ability.

She could manipulate shadows. The street lamps were shining around them as the Rider and assassin faced off. This was not the first time they had met. They had met before when Carmen used to be part of GIN-SHOCKER. They had been after the same target, a politician who'd become a threat to GIN-SHOCKER's plans. However, someone else wanted the man dead and had paid a lot of money for her services.

Carmen was armed with her energy scythes as Hitula held no weapons. The woman's eyes narrowed and she took a single step.

That was when it started. Shadows suddenly shot at Carmen like a tidal wave, forming wicked and sharp implements as they came in range. Using her superior speed, she dodged, weaving and twisting her body around to avoid being hit. Sparks flew as she blocked a saw made of shadow before she pushed it back and jumped, landing on a street lamp.

"Didn't think I'd see you again, Mantis," said Hitula, smiling. "You know, that offer still stands. With you and me together, we can make a fortune."

"Sorry, but I'm not an assassin anymore," said Carmen as she stood on a street lamp. "But I know you, Hitula-san. You're not a bad person."

"What makes you say that?" Hitula asked.

"Because you refused to kill that politician in front of his daughter," Carmen reminded.

Hitula's eyes widened before narrowing. "Don't remind me," she growled. That job had been worth millions and she just had a moment of weakness. She let out a sigh, "Doesn't matter, though. He still died."

"Yes, he did," frowned Carmen. It was a bomb which had done him in, one rigged by Parasite. Just a harmless toy but then it went boom. The politician and his daughter had died instantly.

Hitula decided that it was time to retreat, She covered herself in shadows and vanished from Carmen's sight. "I'll see you again, old friend," she said as she created a storm of flower petals before fleeing the scene as well.

* * *

"Double Rider Punch!" Ichigo (Mion) and Nigo (Shion) called in unison as they struck with a combined attack, aiming straight for Shinichi. However, the unarmored Rider simply raised his left arm as they came close to hitting him.

"Shield of Glen," he called, summoning the shield onto his left arm. He then concentrated on the gemstone within its center, generating a dome of red and pink energy which repelled the twin pseudo-Riders. Both Ichigo and Nigo went tumbling after their fists connected with the dome, doing no damage, as the barrier flung them away.

"Almost got me there," Shinichi acknowledged before he ducked from a spiked ball which sailed over his head from behind. He grabbed the cord and looked to Riderman (Satoko) who was glaring at him from under her helmet. "Good, aim for my blindside," he complimented before he gave the cord a hard tug, dragging Satoko through the air before kneeing her in the gut. She doubled over as Shinichi released the cord and backhanded her in the back of her head with his shield-covered arm, knocking her down. V3 (Satoshi) attacked next, dashing towards Shinichi and executing a furious barrage of punches which Shinichi dodged effortlessly. He caught V3's fist and looked the Rider in his green eyes. "You haven't mastered all of his 26 secrets yet, Satoshi. If you had, you probably would be more of a challenge." V3 scowled under his helmet and wrenched his arm free before spinning on his heel to execute a reverse roundhouse. Shinichi was hit and sent skidding across the floor. Grinning, V3 leapt and drew his arm back to punch Shinichi in the head. He raised the Shield of Glen and V3's gloved fist collided with the shield, making a loud clanging sound on impact.

Sensing an attack from his right flank, Shinichi grabbed V3's wrist and tossed him into the air before kicking him, sending him tumbling through the air and into the charging twin Riders.

"You guys are strong, I admit that, since I've seen you fight alongside me," stated Shinichi as he used the Shield of Glen to catch a bombardment of bullets from Riderman's Machine Gun Arm. Once she stopped firing, he opened his hand to drop the bullets. "But sooner or later your good luck might run out. That is why-" He used Shunpo to get behind Satoko who gasped as he grabbed her shoulder with his right hand and pressed the claws of the Shield of Glen against her back. "You need to take this seriously and treat me like an enemy." He balled his fist and hit her in the back, sending her flying into the wall. They groaned as they got back to their feet.

"OK, time out, Shin-chan," said Mion as she removed her helmet. "How come Kei-chan, Rena, Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan are not here?"

Shinichi answered, "Rena has to look after Sho, Keiichi has to get a physical examination from Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam to make sure the development of his powers won't harm his body. As for Hanyuu-chan and Rika-chan, they're both on dates." He concluded, "Now, if you'll excuse me, there's something I need to do." With that, he turned around and walked away, the Shield of Glen dispersing from his left arm and returning to the pocket dimension that it was stored in.

"So, does that mean today's training is over?" Mion asked hopefully.

"Hardly," said Shinichi as he snapped his fingers and the door opened to let AI-Shin in the Power Wrestler. "He'll be your opponent." He addressed AI-Shin, "Try not to be too hard on them but not too easy on them either."

AI-Shin pounded his fists together, "_Gotcha, bro!_"

Shinichi exited the training chamber, leaving his friends to the mercy of an AI in a powered exoskeleton.

"I can't believe we have to do this on a weekend," grumbled Mion as she put on her helmet.

"Tell me about it," agreed Shion.

* * *

People were fleeing in a panic as a crazed madman in a red, flame-patterned jumpsuit was attacking them with flame blasts generated by his hands. He had shaved head with a tattoo around his head that looked like a band of fire. He also wore a nose ring and three earrings on his left ear.

"BURN! EVERYTHING BURNS! YOU WILL ALL BECOME SACRIFICES FOR LORD CTHUGHA!" the madman, a meta-human criminal calling himself Pyrofear, cackled insanely. He spotted a fire truck nearby with the firefighters attempting to put out a flaming building. His face twisted into a scowl as he roared, "HOW DARE YOU PUT OUT THE SACRED FLAMES OF LORD CTHUGHA! YOU ALL WILL BURN!" He shot a fireball at the firefighters who would not be able to escape in time.

Suddenly, a blue blur zipped down and blocked the fireball, causing it to fizzle out.

"Sorry, but as a civil servant I cannot allow you to do that, matchstick," said Blue Beetle heroically. He added mentally, '_I should write that down._'

"YOU DARE STOP ME? I AM A SERVANT OF LORD CTHUGHA! I WILL NOT BE-!"

"OK, first of all, do you need to scream?" Blue Beetle cut him off. "And secondly, you do realize Cthugha is just a fictional deity from the Cthulhu Mythos, right?"

"BLASPHEMY!" Pyrofear roared in outrage as he conjured a dragon of fire from his hands. "YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR WORDS WITH YOUR LIFE AS I BURN YOU TO CINDERS AND PRESENT YOUR REMAINS TO LORD CTHUGHA!"

"About that," Blue Beetle said as he conjured his B3 Gun and took aim. "That's not on my list of things to do." Pyrofear sent the fire dragon towards Blue Beetle. "Time to put you out!" He fired his B3 Gun and unleashed a powerful jet of pressurised water at the fire dragon, putting it out. The jet continued on and hit Pyrofear which caused him to howl as steam rose from his overheated body.

"Water beats fire!" Blue Beetle gloated when he suddenly heard a beeping in his ear. "Beetle here."

"_Yoko-kun, are you busy?_" Asmodeus called.

"Oh, just another day at work, honey. I'm just about to wrap things up anyway," answered Blue Beetle as he continued to drench Pyrofear. "So, why are you calling?"

"_Well, Onii-sama's birthday is coming up soon and I need help in getting him a present,"_ said Asmodeus. _"It's so hard to shop for someone who lives in a futuristic metropolis."_

"Why don't you make him something like that sweater you made me?" Blue Beetle suggested.

"_That's actually my backup plan incase I can't find anything,"_ said Asmodeus. _"I'll keep thinking. Love you."_

"Love you too," Blue Beetle said before the call ended. Pyrofear was boiling mad right now as he was being drenched and the steam was getting thick around them. "OK, something isn't right here," he said as he stopped shooting.

"FOOL! DO YOU REALLY THINK THE FLAMES OF CTHUGHA CAN BE PUT OUT BY MERE WATER!-?" roared Pyrofear. "I AM LORD CTHUGHA'S VESSEL AND YOU ARE JUST AN INSIGNIFICANT INSECT!" No longer was he wet as the heat of his body dried himself up.

"OK, new plan!" realized Blue Beetle as Pyrofear covered himself in fire and flew towards Blue Beetle like a ferocious phoenix. However, he was not hit as someone caught Pyrofear's shoulders and held him back.

"You know, you really should use that new form you got, Beetle," said Showa (Oni Form) as he held Pyrofear back. Using his elemental powers he was absorbing the flames that Pyrofear was generating.

"Isn't that a bit overkill?" Blue Beetle asked. Showa gave him a look that said, 'Don't argue with me! Just do it!'

Showa formed a tornado that tossed Pyrofear skyward as Blue Beetle prepared to go Cosmic. However, the Scarab wasn't responding. "Well?" Showa asked. "What are you waiting for?"

"It looks like the suit doesn't think I should go Cosmic," said Blue Beetle as Pyrofear floated in the air, his body enveloped in flames. He shot at them like a raging fireball but Showa used a right hook that knocked him to the other side of the street. "Guess I gotta do this old school then!" He flew into the air as Showa watched.

"Now, what is he up to?" thought Showa out loud.

Pyrofear was getting back up when he heard, "Hey, Pyrofear! Eat a ROCKET PUNCH!" He gaped as he saw Blue Beetle coming at him at high speed before the Rocket Arm smashed into him, breaking his jaw as he was sent spiralling in place. He then landed on the ground, knocked out. "HAH! See? If there really was a Cthugha that wouldn't have worked!" Blue Beetle laughed tauntingly. Showa patted his shoulder. "Huh?"

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Showa held up his C3.

"Oh, right," Blue Beetle nodded as he took out his C3 and pointed it at the unconscious Pyrofear. The villain was digitized and stored inside a containment card, ready for transport to the Vault.

"Sheila, send a Teleportal for pickup," Showa called. "We got another one for the Vault."

* * *

Metal sliced through the air as sparks rained down to the floor. Two brothers were locked in combat, wielding swords of legends, which had twice slain the beasts that they had vanquished before.

Wielding the Kusanagi no Tsurugi was Alan Smith and wielding the Sword of Ascalon was Shinichi Banabara. The former was clad in his original Green Lantern uniform before he took up the title "Sentinel" and Shinichi was dressed in the training clothes he'd worn within his mindscape several times before.

While Alan possessed superior superhuman strength and could've easily dominated his brother in this fight in a matter of seconds, he chose not to use this advantage in a friendly spar against his brother. Shinichi was doing the same. This was a duel of pure skill. No powers.

Sparks exploded as their swords clashed against each other. The two were practically wielding swords equivalent to the Excalibur of Arthurian Legend.

Shinichi spun on his heel and kicked Alan in the stomach, sending him staggering. The Lantern recovered as he parried a thrust to his chest and thrust forward with his sword, the edge close to Shinichi's throat.

"I got you," Alan smirked.

"I got you too," Shinichi countered as he gestured with his eyes. Alan looked down to see the tip of Shinichi's sword near his family jewels.

"You do realize if you ever hurt _that _you'll be signing your death warrant, right?" Alan reminded.

"Right," Shinichi sighed as he withdrew his sword and sheathed it before sending it away. "Draw?"

"Draw," Alan agreed as he put the Kusanagi away. He checked the time on his watch. "I gotta go now. See you later."

"Yeah, I gotta be somewhere too," Shinichi said as he and Alan made their way to the elevator.

* * *

"And he has a nice and stable heartbeat. Well, your baby looks good and healthy," reported Dr. Magi.

"Of course he is," smiled Shinichi. "I'm the dad."

"Who fainted after he heard the news?" said Satan, looking amused. She was lying on a bed in a hospital gown. An ultrasound machine was set nearby and both Shinichi and Satan were gazing at the image.

"Hey, I wasn't prepared," he defended himself but he still smiled as he gently rubbed Satan's tummy. It was swelled and quite noticeably too since she was 6 ½ months pregnant. He would visit her frequently at the Kuwadorian, to spend a few hours with her and keep her company.

"Well, the baby should be born in about 2 ½ months without any complications," said Dr. Magi. He remembered the previous examination he'd performed, confirming the baby's gender. It was a boy, meaning they were going to have a son.

Satan's pregnancy hadn't been easy for the both of them. Satan had to suffer the pains of carrying a child and Shinichi had to suffer her mood swings. He still remembered when she had thrown a teacup at him for giving her the wrong brand.

Satan gasped, "I just felt him kick!"

"My little boy's got my strength!" Shinichi grinned proudly.

"Just be sure that Satan does everything here on this list until the baby is born so there won't be any complications," said Dr. Magi while he was writing down in a notepad. "And Shinichi, you should spend as much time as possible with Satan at this time."

"Roger," Shinichi saluted.

* * *

Since discovering that his Guardian Jet Mode allowed Shinichi to fly into space, Shinichi would often use this form so he could admire the blue planet which he'd sworn to protect. That, and race with Alan to see who was the fastest between the two of them.

The Guardian Jet flew towards the moon. Admiring it from Earth was one thing, but to see it up close was another. When Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon in 1969, it became a historic moment that would be remembered for all time.

Showa never ever ventured to the dark side of the moon. He always flew over the light side. When he looked down, he spotted a figure waving at him. The figure was a familiar female and she was standing in front of the remains of the X-SHOCKER moonbase.

"Tsukuyomi?" Showa asked himself as he flew in for a closer look, changing into his Hinamizawa Guardian Form before landing in front of her. While conversation in an airless environment would be impossible without special equipment, magic could be used to circumvent such conventional rules. Which would explain how Tsukuyomi would be able to talk to Showa right here on the moon.

She didn't speak up at first as her eyes were directed to the ground and not him. She had a hint of pink on her pale cheeks and she was constantly fidgeting with her hands, which Showa thought was cute. While in armor, his expressions were not exposed due to the helmet which masked his face. "So, why did you wave me down here?" he finally asked since Tsukuyomi wasn't initiating the conversation anytime soon.

"There's something I want to ask you," she said.

"OK, so what is it?" he asked. If Tsukuyomi wanted to talk with him, it was alright. He'd never avoided a conversation with a pretty girl before. Of course, there were some exceptions to that.

Tsukuyomi rubbed her hands together as she tried to form words, "...Well, you see, my sister went on a date with your brother...so I was thinking...if maybe...you and I..."

Showa smiled in amusement, '_So cute._' It was obvious what her intention was. "You want me to take you out on a date, right?"

She blurted out, "Consider it an honor that a goddess like me is even considering going on a date with a mortal like you!"

"Tsukuyomi-chan, you know I'm not a simple mortal," he told her..

"Yes, that's right," she admitted. No simple mortal could confront demons like the Yamata no Orochi and hope to even survive. "So..."

"Moon Goddess Tsukuyomi, would you like to go on a date with me?" he asked.

* * *

Tsukuyomi had set up a time and place. Shinichi was to meet her at the fountain in Shishibone City's central park. It wasn't too far from his apartment and he had a vehicle which could take him there. He did, however, have to tell Rena about his weekend plans. While Rena hated the idea of some other woman trying to steal him away, she was willing to share if the others did too. It was an awkward arrangement, but it was working. He was engaged to a princess (Shawna) and had a baby coming.

Shinichi had yet to tell Rena about his periodic meetings with Risa. He wanted to help them reconcile but considering Rena's history with her mother, he had his doubts. Still, he was not going to give up until he got them back together and for Rena to once again acknowledge her mother. But for now, he had a date to get to.

He arrived at the park and spotted Tsukuyomi sitting on the rim of the fountain. The moon goddess was dressed in a midnight blue kimono with a star pattern all over it. Around her waist was an obi sash which was a shade darker than her kimono. The kimono contrasted with her fair complexion and she was drawing attention from guys. While she wasn't as well-endowed as her sister, Tsukuyomi had her own charm.

Tsukuyomi spotted Shinichi coming, dressed in a blue, buttoned down shirt and blue jeans, and frowned as he approached. She stood up and told him, "You're late."

"What?" he uttered in surprise.

"I told you to meet me at 11. It's 11.10. You're ten minutes late," she scolded. "I almost thought you stood me up."

"Why would I wanna stand up such a lovely lady?" he asked as he handed her a bouquet of flowers. She blushed as she saw them. "Now, come on. It's time to go." Taking her hand, gently, he asked, "Where do you wanna go first?"

Tsukuyomi thought back to when Amaterasu told her about her date with Alan and how much fun she had. The Moon Goddess decided to use her sister's date as an example.

"We should go and see a movie," she said.

"Movie it is," said Shinichi as he handed Tsukuyomi a helmet. She put it on and got in the sidecar. "Well, ikuze." He revved the engine, which growled before the bike went roaring towards the movie theatre.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so we start the date with Tsukuyomi and Shinichi, which will continue in the next chapter. Well, hopefully you enjoyed this. I did. Now, please read and review. Now, what to expect next time? Romance and Funnies, and action. Oh, and a secret. Soap Opera stuff. Just stay tuned, everyone.**


	157. The Legacy of Cain Part 101

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 101: Moonlite Date & Secrets Unveiled**

"Hm, it looks like they're playing old samurai films today," said Shinichi as he read the movie listing and looked at the posters. "7 Samurai, Kagemusha, Ran, Yojimbo." They were all films directed by Akira Kurosawa. "Hey, Tsukuyomi. What do you wanna watch?"

"This one," said Tsukuyomi as she pointed to a poster which had the the title of the movie written across it. It was playing today.

"The Legend of Kaguya-hime," Shinichi read. "OK, then. Let's watch it."

* * *

Shinichi and Tsukuyomi sat in the theatre, watching the movie. It was such a beautiful tale. It was about how a childless bamboo cutter found a baby inside a shining bamboo stalk. Taking the child home, he and his wife adopted her and named her 'Kaguya-hime'. As the girl grew up, she became a beautiful woman who attracted many suitors. However, she would not accept anyone and would send the suitors off with an impossible quest each. Three tried to deceive her, one died, and another gave up since the tasks she had assigned them were all impossible ones.

Then Emperor Mikado of Japan proposed to her after falling in love with her beauty. She could not accept his proposal, but at the very least she had not sent him on an impossible quest. She stayed in touch with him, though.

Kaguya-hime was actually from the moon and each time she saw the full moon she would shed a tear. She revealed to her parents that she had come from the moon and soon she would return. The Emperor, hearing about this, posted guards to make sure that never happened but a celestial entourage came and blinded them. With a tearful farewell, Kaguya-hime left Earth to return to the Moon Capital with the entourage as she was fated to be.

* * *

Shinichi and Tsukuyomi exited the theatre and she saw that he was dabbing his eyes with a handkerchief. She asked, "Are you crying?"

"It's just so sad, that's all," said Shinichi. "She had to leave the family she had grown up with on Earth and the man who loved her because she had no choice."

"We can't fight destiny," sighed Tsukuyomi.

"I don't believe that," said Shinichi. His expression turned stern. "We can create our own destiny. Destiny is just a result of the choices we made. I became a Rider because I wanted to protect my friends. When I learnt the truth about who and what I really was, I was freaked. I thought that was my destiny. Of course I shouldn't have believed Gebok at the time since half the things he spouts is a lie, but it just made sense. It was only after I was reunited with my mother that I knew for a fact that I wasn't some weapon he grew in his lab. I knew what my destiny was from the start. I was to be a hero."

Tsukuyomi smiled at hearing his speech. She knew he was a hero and believed that he always would be. To her, he was destined to do many great things within his lifetime and he was nowhere near the end of it yet.

"I've actually seen all that you've done," Tsukuyomi admitted. "You've fought so many battles. And it was your hero's heart that first drew me to you. I saw a bit of hope aspiring from a dark beginning when I noticed you for the first time."

"Only because I have to. Without hope and without faith in that I can move forward, then I wouldn't have a future. I fight and I'll keep fighting so that others can also have a future," said Shinichi. Turning his serious look into a light smile he said, "Now, how about we go someplace for lunch?"

* * *

"Are you serious?" Tsukuyomi questioned as they stepped into the restaurant. It was known as the Cutie Bunny because the waitresses were all dressed as maids with bunny ears on their heads.

"It's a great place with a nice atmosphere and great food," he justified. "Plus I thought you would like it. I mean, you know how bunnies and the moon are connected."

Tsukuyomi sighed as she and Shinichi took their seats. She could understand that reason, but it would appear that Shinichi also liked coming here because the waitresses were attractive young women. She looked at all the waitresses and then at herself and began to make comparisons. She then noticed Shinichi looking at her and only her, causing her to stop making such comparisons for the moment and to enjoy his company. Taking the menus that their waitress handed them, Tsukuyomi looked at the lunch menu as did Shinichi. "Order whatever you want. It's my treat," he said.

Tsukuyomi looked at the waitresses who flirted with the customers for tips. Men were just staring at them like drooling idiots. It was nauseating. She looked to Shinichi who smiled at her expectantly. "What?"

"That kimono looks great on you," he said. "Reminds me of the one you wore when you were at that beach last year."

Tsukuyomi blushed and stammered, "T-t-thank you."

A waitress came and Shinichi ordered a plate of curry rice and Tsukuyomi ordered omu-rice. The waitress recommended, "Would you like the 'Lovey-Dovey Juice Glass'?"

"Sure," said Shinichi, smiling.

* * *

The Lovey-Dovey Juice Glass was a tall cylindrical glass with two straws in it filled with mixed fruit punch. The straws were twisted around each other, pointing at the couple.

"Well, let's drink," said Shinichi as he took hold of one straw end between his lips and Tsukuyomi took hold of the other. There was a flash and Tsukuyimi gasped as she recoiled, causing the glass to tip over and spill all over her kimono.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" the waitress apologized. "You see, every time someone orders a Lovey-Dovey Glass, we take a picture of the couple for them for free!" Tsukuyomi just glared at the girl, making the waitress cower a bit.

"It's alright," said Shinichi as he handed Tsukuyomi a napkin.

"We could get it dry-cleaned for you," the waitress offered.

"Then what will I wear?" Tsukuyomi asked.

* * *

Tsukuyomi scowled, red in the face. "You are enjoying this, aren't you?" Shinichi wore a grin on his face. She was a wearing a pink variation of the uniform with a white bodice around her stomach and the frilly skirt reaching down to mid-thigh. Also, to top off the look, she was was wearing the bunny ears. "And why do I have to wear the ears?-!"

"It's the shop's policy," said the bunny maid waitress, whose name was actually Usagi (no kidding). "All girls who wear the uniform must wear the ears!"

"But I don't even work here!" she snapped.

"You should," Shinichi recommended. "You look good in it."

Tsukuyomi blushed and scowled as she turned away from him, "Urusai!"

Shinichi just chuckled lightly while smiling. '_Heh, total tsundere._'

* * *

"It's not so bad," said Shinichi as he and Tsukuyomi left the cafe. "They gave us a free meal."

"This is just humiliating," murmured Tsukuyomi as she put the plastic bag with her kimono in it inside the sidecar. She was a Moon Goddess, not some girly-girl. She was still dressed in the uniform which had been given to her but she'd taken off the bunny ears.

"Well, you actually do look great in what you're wearing now," he said to her honestly. "Could I take a picture~?"

"Try it and die," she threatened, her eyes glowing white, making him recoil. "Come on, I think you and I both know what we have to do about this."

* * *

**Shishibone Department Store**

Tsukuyomi wanted to get new clothes and get out of the ones she was in. Shinichi still insisted that she wear it for the rest of their date but she was adamant about her decision. She needed to get out of the frilly abomination and into some decent clothes.

Shinichi waited as Tsukuyomi picked out a few outfits. However, one dress caught her attention and she took it with her into the changing room.

Tsukuyomi looked herself over in the sundress which was aqua blue in color and twirled around in it. She admired herself in the mirror. While she didn't have her sister's figure and assets, Tsukuyomi had a slender figure and flawless fair skin. However, she was often compared to her more beautiful sister who always got attention while Tsukuyomi was ignored. The Moon Goddess grew up as a tomboy and dedicated herself to practicing her swordsmanship.

Tsukuyomi shook her head and removed the sundress and grabbed another outfit. She wanted to see which would look the best on her.

* * *

Shinichi exited the Department Store, disappointed that Tsukuyomi was no longer wearing the maid outfit. It was just so cute on her. She was now wearing a tank top with a denim skirt that reached down to above her knees. She also got herself shoes to go with her new outfit. It was tomboyish, but Shinichi couldn't help but think that the look worked well for her.

He still wanted to see Tsukuyomi model swimsuits. Summer break was coming and he and his friends were planning on going to the beach soon. He could invite Tsukuyomi and Shawna along, even Satan after the baby was born.

"Now these clothes feel great," said Tsukuyomi. "Aren't they?"

"Not bad," Shinichi admired. "Not bad at all."

"Well, we saw a movie, had lunch, and went shopping. What's next?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"Have you ever done karaoke before?"

* * *

Located within what appeared to be a ruined temple, its location unknown, Virgo was standing before a glowing ball of light that showed her the date taking place between Shinichi and Tsukiyomi. She watched in jealousy as the tomboyish Moon Goddess was courted by the heroic Rider. Virgo's last assignment had ended in failure. Her assignment was to get rid of the Green Lantern, Alan Smith, so that he would not be able to interfere with her master's plans. She had been able to fool Apollo into doing her dirty work for her but the young Lantern was not only able to match the Sun God but was able to gain his friendship as well.

Her fellow priests, Scorpio, Leo and Cancer, had all laughed at her for her failure and it made her so angry to be humiliated like that. She had wanted to please her master so much but she had been unable to provide her master with a victory. It wouldn't be long before all their plans fell into place but they needed the heroes of earth distracted when they moved into the final phase of the master plan.

"Damn that little mortal," Virgo growled as she bit down on her thumb. Seeing Shinichi make the Moon Goddess smile so easily, it made her sick. It made her even more sick at seeing Tsukuyomi falling for him like a common mortal woman. "I should be the one that those mortals love and give sonnets to. I should be praised for my beauty, not that little tomboy of a goddess!"

"Careful, sister. Jealousy is an ugly human trait that you should not allow yourself to fall into." Virgo turned around at the sound of the voice. Standing behind her was considered the most powerful of the four demon priests. Physically anyway.

"Oh, it's just you, Leo," Virgo said with a emotionless sigh.

Leo was a very broad-looking being who wore a similar pair of black robes with golden ornate trim like Virgo did. From the outer sides of his robe, his arms stuck out; each forearm covered in white gauntlet-like armor with golden etched ornate drawings. His fingers were all covered with long white claws and his head had a wild grey lion's mane sprouting from the back of his head. His face was covered by a bone-white set of jaws with lions teeth, a grey skinned chin and a golden crest forehead with a blue gem and slanted red eyes. He was, however, without a sceptre or temple staff like the other priests. He preferred using his body as his main weapon of choice.

"My sister, does your inaptitude and unsuccessful actions against our master's last target make you so...distraught with human jealousy?" Leo asked. He cared for his siblings but loved his master more. To him, loyalty to their master was life and that the master's orders were absolute.

"No, brother. I know that our master will give me a chance to redeem myself. The master is always forgiving and allowing of a chance at redemption should we prove worthy of it."

"Then what is it? What troubles you?"

"That does!" Virgo pointed to the glowing ball of light which showed the date between the Cicada Rider and Moon Goddess. Leo looked at the scene within the glowing ball and then at his little sister before chuckling slightly. "What's so damn funny, brother?-!"

"Nothing, sister," Leo responded as he came closer and then looked at the date playing before them. "But you need not worry much longer. Our master has given our next task to me for completion."

"Oh, and the task? Whatever task our master has requested of you, I know you shall succeed where I failed. You are the best of us four." Leo nodded as he accepted his little sister's compliments. He then raised his hand and placed it within the glowing ball of light, positioning his hand around the image of Shinichi before crushing the head of the Rider in the image within his hand.

"The task given unto me...is the death of the mortal that the Goddess of the Moon has fallen for," Leo said in a low growl. "Our master commands, so as it is...so it shall be. Today, the hero known as Kamen Rider Showa...will die."

* * *

Shinichi paid for his and Tsukuyomi time before they were shown the room for their little karaoke party. The charge also included refreshments. The door closed behind them and Tsukuyomi took a moment to look at the room. There was a couch, with a glass table, a television connected to a karaoke machine, and a pair of microphones connected to said machine. Shinichi picked up the karaoke song list and flipped the pages to see which songs they could sing. He wanted to hear Tsukuyomi's singing voice.

"So, how do I do this?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"Well, it's easy," said Shinichi. "You see all you gotta do is program the song code into the machine and when the music and video play you just sing along with the lyrics," he instructed.

"Sounds easy enough," she replied.

"So, what do you want to sing?" he asked.

Tsukuyomi scanned the list and made her selection. She took hold of the microphone and waited for the music to start.

Cue music.

Tsukuyomi held the mic close to her as she sung a slow song with a soft melody. She moved and twirled a bit during certain parts to add emphasis on the meaning of the lyrics when they came up and she had such great lung control that Shinichi just watched, almost breathless. He just couldn't stop looking at her as she sang and, after a few minutes, she ended the final verse of the song with a light hum as she closed her eyes. Once the song ended, she took slow breaths, her heart beating fast within her chest. she had never sung in front of anyone before, not even her own sister.

Shinichi applauded after Tsukuyomi finished singing and whistled. "Yeah! Encore! Encore!" he cheered. The Moon Goddess blushed before sitting down. "That was great."

"Stop it," she murmured but her demand seemed less forceful. She was embarrassed. Never having sung in front of anyone before and now getting complimented for it just made her heart race. If it was her sister or fellow Gods then maybe she would be less embarrassed but this was the man she had fallen for. If their date kept going on this pace, she didn't know how it would end. Did she even want it to?

"Hey, no need to be bashful," he told her. "It's just the two of us and this is just for fun."

Tsukuyomi picked up her soda and took a sip to quench her thirst and to cool down a bit. She looked to Shinichi who was still smiling at her.

Shinichi picked up the microphone and announced, "Well, let's rock!"

Shinichi looked through the list and found a nice steady rock-n-roll song. Making his selection and waiting for the music, he held the mic up to his mouth and began to sing with passion in his voice. He would clutch his other hand into a fist over his heart during certain parts and added extra deep emphasis to the areas of the song that showed deep feeling in the lyrics and rhythm.

Tsukuyomi just watched on, her face flushed with pink as she watched Shinichi sing his heart out to the song. She had seen a similar passion in him before whenever he fought or did something with his friends. But the passion she got from his aura when he sang, it was entirely different. It was exciting. It was as if he was releasing all of his pent up emotions in the form of music. Now she knew why Daichi liked playing his guitar so much. It was a form of stress therapy to him. And it seemed that Shinichi had a similar stress release by singing.

Tsukuyomi was actually enjoying herself while singing karaoke. She couldn't believe how fun it was to sing the songs of others. It didn't matter if she was good or bad at it. Shinichi wasn't a bad singer either but the songs he chose were used in the title sequences for popular television shows, mostly the superhero genre. He was just lucky the rock song he chose came from a TV show.

Upon finishing his song, Shinichi heard the sound of applause and looked to see a slightly blushing Tsukuyomi clapping. Rubbing his head sheepishly, he then held out his hand, helping her up, before handing her the spare mic.

"OK, Tsukuyomi. It's time we did a duet!" he said.

"I don't know..." she said hesitantly.

"Are you scared?" he challenged.

Tsukuyomi's face turned slightly red as she gave Shinichi a glare. "Just give me the damn microphone!"

The music played and the pair began to sing a very popular song. They both sang passionately as they stayed in sync with one another. They each moved, twirled and bobbed their bodies around to the music. The song itself was a mix of rock and rap which had only become a popular mix in Japan just recently. As the song ended, Shinichi put his arm around Tsukuyomi's waist, pulling her close and they leaned forward, striking the final chord of their song. As it ended, they both panted a bit, slightly out of breath.

Catching their breaths, they gazed at each other. They then leaned towards each other for a kiss when someone knocked on their door. "Excuse me, but your time is almost up." The pair jumped apart, blushing a bit.

"I guess we should go," said Shinichi.

"Yes...yes..." she agreed, trying to calm her drumming heart.

* * *

The two exited the karaoke box together. Shinichi checked his watch and nodded. "OK, and now, I think it's time for dinner," said Shinichi.

"What do you have planned?" asked Tsukuyomi.

"Well, I was planning on a sushi restaurant, but it has a strict dress code," he answered. "I think I should've planned this better,"

"Actually, I have an idea. Pull over at the park."

* * *

"OK, do I have to ask how you set this up?" Shinichi asked as he saw the picnic spread.

"I'm a goddess," said Tsukuyomi. They were having a picnic dinner under the stars. It was such a nice night to be eating indoors.

* * *

Watching their date from the unknown temple, Leo raised his hand, the clawed appendage glowing with a black, red and blue aura. "Soldiers, arise and do the bidding that our master has commanded of us!"

In a rise of black colored mist, the forms of shadowy figures surrounded Leo.

The Priest then pointed to the image of Shinichi and Tsukuyomi and order, "Go, warm him up for me. But lay not a hand on the Moon Goddess. The master has special plans for her and, as such, must be unharmed until our master deems her pain and suffering an absolute."

The mist covered shadow figures bowed before Priest Leo before vanishing into thin air. Leo kept watch until he was commanded to partake in the battle.

* * *

The romantic atmosphere of the starlight picnic brought the Moon Goddess to lean up against Shinichi's shoulder, a blush spreading across her face. Shinichi just wrapped his arm around her shoulders, holding her close while trying to keep her warm. It was such a beautiful night. He knew that Rena was okay with Tsukuyomi joining their sisterhood but Shinichi still needed to let both Shawna and Satan know as well. Shawna probably wouldn't mind but Satan might be a little bit harder to deal with when considering the addition of a new woman to their group.

Shinichi let the thought of explaining things to Shawna and Satan go for now as he looked down at Tsukuyomi who looked back up at him. The moonlight reflected off of her skin, giving her an elegant glow. It was just too tempting for the two of them as they slowly leaned into one another, their eyes slowly closing. But, before they could claim one another's lips, a mist of black smoke suddenly erupted around them, encompassing them and flowing around them as if it were alive.

"What the heck?" Shinichi questioned in irritation. Before he could voice anymore complaints, the black mist solidified as it took on the forms of about a dozen or so black clad ninja-like warriors. Shinichi recognised these creatures from the time he'd been in Genovia. They were known as Darkstars and they had been summoned by the demon named Zagi. Had Zagi returned? Did it really matter? Not in the slightest. What did matter was defeating them all and making them pay for interrupting their date.

(**Insert Song: Double-Action Strike Form - KR Den-O OST**)

"Need help?" offered Tsukuyomi. Shinichi opened his mouth to protest but then remembered who this woman was. She was the legendary goddess of the moon, Tsukuyomi. She was more powerful than she appeared. She might appear to be a young slender girl but she was centuries old with great power.

"Sure," accepted Shinichi. "Tsuki-chan, let's give them Hell."

Tsukuyomi blushed at the new nickname and nodded before summoning her sword as Shinichi summoned his Shield of Glen and the Higurashi no Yaiba. He wouldn't need to transform to fight these Darkstars anyway.

He rushed forward, using Shunpo to close the gap between himself and the Darkstars. They swung at him but he deflected their swords with the Shield of Glen before swinging his own sword in a diagonal slash, sending them to the ground. He ducked before he was hit from behind and performed a sweep kick before leaping up into the air. He swung and conjured energy in the shape of paper cranes which hit the Darkstars like missiles.

Meanwhile, Tsukuyomi was with her own katana and taking down Darkstars one at a time. She locked blades with one but was able to break away to slash it across the stomach. She spun and slashed one across the chest and then another one was run through the head. She withdrew her sword and spun the blade in a circle before dashing across the field to land several successive hits on the Darkstars.

Shinichi used a scissor kick which was boosted by the Tank Legs and he smashed two Darkstars to the ground. He then sped along the ground, his sword slicing through Darkstars in his way before coming to a halt. He turned his Tank Legs into the Great Boot Spring Version and launched himself into the air before coming down to flatten Darkstars under his giant feet. An elbow connected with a Darkstar's face before he jumped and did a backflip.

"Shakkaho!" he called as he thrust his left hand at them and fired the energy ball which soared through the air. It exploded and sent the Darkstars flying. Focusing Youki into his index and middle finger next, he fired off his next attack, "Makankosappo!" The energy beam drilled through a line of the Darkstars.

Tsukuyomi was surrounded but she wasn't intimidated by the numbers. With a grin she spun in a circle, blade held out and she struck, knocking the Darkstars down dead with a single blow. She watched as Shinichi used the Higurashi no Yaiba as a whip, the blade becoming flexible as its length increased, while he lashed it at the Darkstars. The blade returned to normal and vanished before he turned his right arm into the Hook Arm. He launched the hook and cable at some Darkstars, bound them together and reeled them in to receive a Shakkaho at close range. The explosion was massive as the bound Darkstars were eliminated in an instant.

He was a capable fighter, even without his armor. That was mainly because of the training and conditioning forced upon him by the organization which had held him against his will. Of course, he turned his curse into his weapon, using his 'gifts' to help those in need. It was one of his more admirable qualities.

(**END SONG**)

With the last of the Darkstars defeated, Shinichi banished the Shield of Glen while Tsukuyomi banished her katana. Walking over to Shinichi, Tsukuyomi placed her hand on his arm.

"Are you ok?" she asked him with a small blush.

"Yeah, I'm fine. If anything, that didn't even rate as a warm up," Shinichi replied with a smile. "Now, I think we were in the middle of having a date."

"You're right," she replied.

But, before anything more could be said or done, a glowing blue sphere of energy, the size of a small car, fell from the sky and crashed into the ground before them. The force of the sphere hitting the ground caused an explosion which sent the two of them flying away from each other.

Getting up slowly, Shinichi looked over to see Tsukuyomi already picking herself up. He then looked over at the smoking crater, only to see the smoke blown away by a strange force of energy. With the smoke gone, a weird looking being jumped up from the crater and landed on the ground between them. What Shinichi saw was a lion-looking monster that wore black robes with ornate gold trim. What Tsukuyomi saw was something from her past that she thought that she'd never see again.

Looking over at Tsukuyomi, "Goddess of the Moon, I can only say that it is a pleasure to see you once more. Do know that making you suffer will be a treat of the highest quality that I can partake in." The lion-looking monster then looked over to Shinichi, "And Kamen Rider Showa. One of the mortal's three most powerful protectors." The being let out a snort. "I am afraid that you do not do the title of 'hero' justice...boy."

Shinichi's right eyebrow twitched at the insult. "Excuse me? Did you just insult me, lion man?"

"Shinichi, be quiet!" Tsukuyomi ordered quickly. "You have no idea who it is that you're picking a fight with!" Tsukuyomi then looked at the robe-clad lion monster. "Priest Leo...I must say that I am a bit surprised to see you here in the mortal realm after all these centuries."

"I would suppose so," Leo agreed. "After all, it was you who banished my master from this realm. You locked the master away within the Lunar Stone within the now forbidden temple on the dark side of the moon. But do know that, for all of the foul wrong doings you have done our master, you shall be..._quaintly_ educated in the lesson to follow due to your folly."

Shinichi just looked at the two of them and blinked with a dumbfounded look on his face. He had no idea what was going on and he didn't like being kept in the dark about things that included the girls he liked.

"Um...excuse me...am I missing something here?" Shinichi asked as he raised his hand a bit to get their attention.

Leo just gave him a small glare. "I would ask you to be quiet, boy. The adults are having a small discussion that a mere fledgling like yourself has no place in."

Shinichi's eyebrow twitched again. Leo really was insulting him. Balling his fist and shaking it at Leo, "Hey, listen here ya stupid lion guy, I don't really like party crashers! Especially ones who interrupt a really nice date that involves a really beautiful girl like Tsuki-chan!"

"Shinichi, shut up!" Tsukuyomi snapped. "I thought I told you not to pick a fight with Leo! He's completely different from the likes of Shiro, Gnol and Dreigon!"

"Gomen, Tsuki-chan, but the fight's been picked," Shinichi retorted as he formed his Great Fists. Looking at Leo, "Okay kitty cat, it's time to say bye-bye."

With a roar, Shinichi used Shunpo to close the gap between himself and Leo, cocking his right Great Fist back. Leo just let out a sigh, "Very well. I was ordered to eliminate you anyway."

Shinichi struck with his Great Fist but was surprised at the sudden sight of Leo catching the fist in his clawed hand with ease. Even more surprising was the fact that Leo didn't even flinch or budge in the slightest. It was as if he hadn't even felt the attack just now. Leo shoved the Great Fist away before sending out a wave of Youki that sent Shinichi flying back into a tree, breaking it in half.

"Shinichi!" Tsukuyomi called out with worry. "Leo, you dare hurt the mortal that I have chosen to claim as my lover?-!" Tsukuyomi then paused as she thought about her sudden outburst. '_Did I just actually say that?_'

Leo ignored her as he watched Shinichi push the broken tree off of his body, slowly pushing himself up. Besides the slight sensation of the ringing in his ears, Shinichi didn't even have a scratch on him. He glared at Leo with rage filled eyes as he swung his arms around before taking his transformation stance.

(**Insert Song - Roots of the King - KR Kiva OST**)

"Henshin!" Shinichi shouted as he transformed into Kamen Rider Showa, Trinity Form. Creating his Great Fists once more, he looked over at Leo who seemed to acknowledge Showa as a challenge. "Alright, Leo! Round two!"

"Very well then. I shall allow you to entertain me for awhile before I hand you your inevitable end," Leo retorted as he took hold of his robes and pulled them off of his body, revealing his ripped and muscular armored body.

The skin of his body was an alabaster grey color that was clad in gunmetal grey armor. His forearms, chest, back and shoulders were covered in bone-white armor and a golden belt was fastened around his waist. He had four bone-white sashes hanging down from the belt, each sash covering either the sides of his legs, his lower front and his rear. The center of his chest, his knees, the front of his hips and the sides of his belt each had a single blue orb set within them, each orb surrounded with a golden border. the orbs connected to to each other with a blue and red energy line, forming the pattern of the Leo Constellation. His ankles and the sides of his shoulder armor had golden armor guards and his feets had sharp gold claws at the tips. Located on the left chest plate was a strange black-colored symbol. The symbol of the Moon Demon.

Leo flexed his claws and stretched out his body, relaxing his muscles. The robe was more than just for decoration. It acted as a limiter for the priests. Once removed, a demon priest could use his or her powers to their fullest.

"Now then, I ask that you do not disappoint me, boy," Leo goaded Showa.

Not one to disappoint, Showa used Shunpo once more, moving even faster than before. Closing the gap instantly, Showa smashed his Great Fist into Leo's chest. Expecting to see Leo flying backwards from the hit, Showa got the shock of his life as he noticed his Great Fist shatter to pieces from the impact. Standing there in utter dumbfounded shock, Showa didn't even sense the incoming attack until it hit him in the face. Leo retaliated by smacking Showa in the face with his clawed hand, ripping sparks off of the Rider's helmet as he sent him flying across the ground. Tsukuyomi watched and was about to intervene when Leo held up his hand.

"Do not interfere, Goddess of the Moon," Leo warned her. "This is a battle between two men. Between two warriors. As such, you have no place here except for that of a witness." Looking over at Showa who pushed himself up, his hand holding his head while trying to regain his bearings, Leo just slowly walked towards him. "I must commend you, boy. There are few who can say that they have received an attack from me and lived. Especially since I am now at my full power."

"I-if that...was your best hit..." Showa began as he shook his head to clear out the dizzies, "...then you had best quit while you're still standing."

"Oh, silly me," Leo said as he came to a stop. "I'm so used to using my restrained strength that my attack was not at full power."

Showa just gaped at him from behind his helmet. "...what?"

"It is as I have said. That strike I used on you just a moment ago is what you mortals would call...a love tap."

A love tap? Was Leo serious? If that was a love tap then Showa didn't want to know what his real punch was like. Seeing that Leo was a real threat, Showa decided that he needed to up the anti.

"Alright, since we seem to be going all out...Bring down the thunder, Gokuaku!" Showa was engulfed in a tornado of wind, fire and lightning as both Leo and Tsukuyomi watched with different reactions. Tsukuyomi was worried while Leo just stared at the elemental tornado impassively. The tornado was dispersed violently and Showa stood in his Oni Form, and armed with his Oni Kanabo.

"Alright, time to smash you up!" Showa declared as he literally ran like the wind. Closing the distance between them, Showa swung his Oni Kanabo to crush Leo only for the demon to hold his kanabo back with a single hand. Showa gaped a bit under his helmet before drawing his weapon back and enveloping it in flames, jabbing Leo in the chest as he tried again. He didn't even flinch! Growing angry, he focused electricity and it surged through the Oni Kanabo. Sparks flew of Leo's armor as he was driven backwards. Showa then unleashed a stream of fire from his mouth as lightning lanced from his horns. The lightning coiled around the fire and struck Leo. There was an explosion on impact and Showa watched, looking satisfied. But then he sensed Leo's presence and as the smoke and fire cleared, Leo stood unscathed despite his body emitting smoke from the attack.

"I think it's my turn," said Leo and in the blink of an eye he was in front of Showa. He grabbed the Rider's horns and kneed his stomach before tossing him to the ground. Leo threw his fist down to crush Showa's head but he rolled out of the way before the blow would connect. Leo drove his fist into the ground instead, creating a crater due to the impact which made the ground shake.

Showa threw his Oni Kanabo at Leo who smacked it away. At that moment, Showa charged with a fist enveloped in flames. "Volcano Punch!" he called as he smashed his fist against Leo's face only for Leo tilt his head to the side. The lion demon priest shoved Showa back who retaliated with another attack, "Lightning Spear!" The spear of yellow lightning lanced through the air but Leo was able to dodge before charging at Showa.

Deciding to arm himself, Showa's forearms were covered by the Oni Claws which shone like polished steel, reflecting the light of the moon off each claw's surface, which were sharp to a lethal degree. Showa jumped to avoid another blow and made some distance between himself and Leo.

"Claws, huh?" Leo regarded. "Very well." His hands glowed with cosmic energy which covered his forearms before dispersing to reveal a pair of gauntlets with sharp, three foot long, blades on each which acted as claws. "Now, shall we continue?"

The two combatants were locked in deadly combat once more as they lashed out with their claws. Sparks flew violently with each brutal strike as claws struck their target. Leo, however, didn't seem to feel Showa's attempts but Showa felt pain from each strike he received, leaving cuts along his armor. Leo drove him back violently with a kick and a single upward slash sent the Oni-themed Rider tumbling across the ground.

Showa picked himself back up and covered his claws in lightning and fire before rushing towards Leo for a sure-kill attack. He stabbed his claws forward but they were caught in Leo's grab. He shattered the claws, Showa gaping in stunned disbelief that he was being outdone by a demon, and then used an uppercut to send Showa flying, with sparks being ripped off his armor at the same time.

"_Quick, switch with me!_" Zennin exclaimed in Showa's mind and he nodded.

"Strike from the shadows, Zennin!" Showa commanded as his body was covered in shadows which formed his ninja-like Kage Form armor. He then performed the clone technique with a cry of, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" and created an army of duplicates armed with various ninja weapons. The army of ninja Kamen Riders then charged at the lion demon to subdue him. They hurled kunai and shuriken at him but they bounced off his armor without leaving a mark on him.

However, Leo wasn't about to let them get close enough to even touch him. He took in a deep breath and unleashed a roar which created a massive shockwave. Tsukuyomi had to cover her ears from the massive sound as the air vibrated. The duplicates were sent flying by the shockwave before they were all destroyed in an instant leaving none of them in sight.

Leo looked around for the real Showa. "Where are you hiding, boy?"

"Looking for me?" Showa asked.

Leo was struck in the back by the Higurashi no Yaiba, the blade trying to dig into his flesh through the armor, but it could not penetrate. Turning lazily around, he regarded Showa who was in his green, samurai-like Higurashi Form.

"Hyah!" Showa thrust his arm forward and released a swarm of paper cranes to blind and distract Leo as he swatted at them. "Higurashi Zan!" Showa unleashed his next attack, the crescent energy blade hitting Leo at point blank range. Showa was thrown backwards from the force of the attack but Leo was still standing. He rushed at Showa and disarmed him before slashing him repeatedly. Showa staggered back before taking to the air to dodge another slash.

"He's so strong," studied Showa as he watched Leo who stared back at him. He'd battled against strong opponents before and despite having difficulties at first he still managed to defeat them. "I guess I need to use my finisher." He summoned the power of all three Hinamizawa Treasures and in a flash of gold light he was in his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. Leo watched with interest at what Showa was about to do next.

"Cho Dai-Shuriken!" Showa shouted as he pulled his six-pointed shuriken from his back and hurled it at Leo. Leo expected to easily deflect the weapon but just as it was about to hit it split apart into a dozen separate blades which zipped through the air like the Seven Sisters of Purgatory in their stake forms. They slashed at Leo, hitting him from every angle, moving too fast for him to swat away. This, however, was simply a setup for Showa's real attack.

He came down, executing a drop kick with fire, lightning and wind surrounding his feet, rocketing towards Leo like a meteor. "Guardian Force Strike!" His feet connected with Leo's chest as the twelve blades impaled Leo's back. A massive explosion followed and Tsukuyomi was nearly blown away.

Had Shinichi been able to defeat Leo? She couldn't tell with the smoke in the way, but then she sensed a massive amount of Youki and the smoke cleared to reveal what had really happened.

(**END SONG**)

Leo was holding Showa (Trinity Form) up by his scarf, hanging the Rider by his neck as he struggled to break free, kicking at Leo who was holding him. Showa was helpless and completely at his mercy.

"Is this your champion, Moon Goddess? If so than he is simply pathetic," said Leo with a hint of disdain. He released Showa's scarf and then hit him in the stomach with his fist, sending the Rider flying across the ground, the force of the blow knocking him out of his transformation as he went tumbling before stopping on his back.

Tsukuyomi gritted her teeth and gripped her katana as she looked at Shinichi. He was hurt and it would take time for him to recover.

"Matte..." both Leo and Tsukuyomi heard. They watched as Shinichi flipped his body onto his front and forced himself back up onto his hands and knees before pushing himself back up onto his feet. He was injured, with bruises on his body but the injuries he sustained were beginning to heal. It was all thanks to the nanites which coursed throughout his body.

"You still want to fight, boy?" questioned Leo, mildly interested at this development, but only mildly. It seemed that, despite being a mortal, he was quite durable. Then again, being a cyborg meant he was more durable than normal humans.

"Hey, Mion says I'm sometimes a bit too stupid or stubborn to understand when I gotta quit," Shinichi said with a smirk. "Guess this is one of those times."

"So, you would continue to fight and risk your life for the Moon Goddess?" asked Leo.

"You don't need to ask since it's so obvious," Shinichi answered. "I'm Kamen Rider Showa, and if there's one thing I can say I'm really good at, it's protecting my loved ones!"

"Oh really?" Leo asked, slightly interested. "Then show me what else you can do that allows you to protect your loved ones. Show me a power that can allow you to protect the Moon Goddess."

"Don't regret what you just asked for, kitty cat." Shinichi wasn't going to disappoint Leo, that was for sure. While he was still mastering the final uses of his last resort form, he was well versed enough to where he could use it to protect Tsukuyomi.

(**Insert Song - POWER to TEARER - KR OOO OST**)

Raising his hand above his head, "Come to my hand, Ascalon!" In a flash of black and gold light, the Sword of Ascalon appeared above Shinichi, the cicada cyborg grasping it within his hand. Leo stared at one of the legendary swords of old with only slight interest. While Ascalon was powerful in its own right, if one could not master its true potential properly then it was nothing more than a mere butter knife to someone of Leo's calibur. "Bring Order to Chaos, St. George!" Shinichi shouted as he swished the tip of the blade in the air, creating a golden circle of light. Piercing the sword into the circle, the circle of light shattered away as the form of a golden energy dragon shot out into the air before coming back down, separating into armor pieces which formed onto Shinichi's body. In a flash of gold and black light, Shinichi was instantly replaced by Kamen Rider Showa: Ascalon Form.

Leo stared at Showa's latest form and nodded in approval. The demon priest preferred armor that was styled by honorable culture and Ascalon Form was as close to looking like a knight as a Rider could get. Raising his own arms, his gauntlet claws were covered in cosmic energy, transforming from sleek looking claws to serrated-style claws with golden armor segments on the back ends, acting like mini-shields.

"I must admit that this form is most impressive," Leo complemented Showa before becoming serious. "But unless you have mastered that sword's true potential, then you will fail just like before."

"We'll see about that. Shield of Glen!" In an instant, Showa's left forearm was covered by the Shield of Glen which then took a more draconic form. It was covered in jagged scales with golden curved blades "Okay, final round. Ready?-!" Showa shouted as he rushed at Leo who rushed at him in return.

"Go!" Leo shouted back as his serrated claws came into contact with the Sword of Ascalon, the blades locked in a stalemate with sparks flying everywhere.

Leo pumped more of his Youki into his blades while Shinichi infused both his Youki and Reiryoku into the Ascalon. Ascalon was strong, probably his strongest form for the moment, and it seemed to be giving him an extra needed edge against Leo. But it would seem that he still wasn't strong enough as Leo pushed him away with his serrated claws before disappearing in the blink of an eye. Showa looked around for him before he suddenly cried out in pain due to Leo slashing his serrated claws against his back, ripping off sparks in the process.

"OK, if that's how you wanna play it! Fine!" Showa used Shunpo and in response Leo used his super-speed. The two blurred as they exchanged blows, with Tsukuyomi able to follow their movements. They were moving at lightning speed, too fast for the naked eye to see. Their connecting blows caused loud booms to ring in the air, echoing before the next one followed.

For the two combatants, they were moving so fast that in their perception time seemed to have slowed down around them. To Showa, using Shunpo was as close as he could get to using anything similar to his temporal displacement ability which had granted him similar speed.

Leo fought back by clasping his hands together, combining the serrated claws into a singular serrated blade of energy which he then swung at the dragon knight-themed Rider. Showa reacted in accordance by using Shunpo to get behind Leo as the energy slash gouged a huge gash into the earth before them, destroying anything for a good quarter of a mile. Showa gaped at the destructive power but remembered that he needed to end this fight quickly. Normally, he could now use Ascalon Form for about fifteen minutes at most but, due to his weakened state, he would probably only last another couple of minutes before his body would finally give out from exhaustion.

Lashing out with the Ascalon, Showa fired off a dragon-shaped Kienzan disc at Leo. The normally fatal decapitating energy disc hit Leo in the back but all it managed to do was irritate the demon priest. Leo swung his arm out, backhanding Showa in the face and sending him to the ground. Shaking his head out, Showa looked up in time to see Leo's fist coming down on him. Using Shunpo again, he got out of the way before he began to accelerate even faster while concentrating his focus onto his chest plate.

His dragon head chest plate then began to bulge out as it turned into a literal metallic dragon's head with its maw wide open. Powering it up, a ball of black and red energy began to form within it as Showa got behind Leo with the aid of Shunpo. Leo turned around in time to see the the firing of the attack right in his face.

"Ryuuki...Cannon! Fire!" Showa shouted as the cannon fired a Cero-styled energy blast at point-blank range. With the confirmation of the hit, the attack let off a huge explosion which sent Showa flying through the air before he landed on the ground. Keeping an eye on the smoke, Showa began to pray that that attack would have seriously hurt Leo, big time. '_Please be dead! Please be dead! Please be dead!_'

Unfortunately, Showa didn't get a good answer to his prayers as the smoke cleared. Leo stood there but he seemed to be breathing a bit heavily now. And his armor looked cracked in a couple of places while the bone-white sashes were completely gone. Well, at least he managed to hurt Leo. But that wasn't the only thing he had managed to do.

"You...you...YOU LITTLE INSECT!-!-!" Leo vanished even before Showa could begin to register what had just happened. Leo then reappeared in front of Showa and drove his fist into the Rider's gut, knocking the wind right out of him. "You dare cause harm to a high priest of Master Tsukimajai?-! You shall pay for your insolence!"

"Would that be cash or credit?" Showa coughed out in pain.

Leo's red eyes began to glow crimson red as he grabbed Showa by the head, using his other hand to knock the Sword of Ascalon out of Showa's right hand. Holding Showa up before him, he then began to drive his fist repeatedly into the Rider's armored stomach. Again and again and again and again. Tsukuyomi looked on with tears streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't bare to see Shinichi going through such torture any longer. Screw the rules of the Gods. The man she loved was being beaten to death by a demon priest. It was her duty to stop that from happening.

"Leo! Stop it, you're killing him!" Tsukuyomi cried out. But Leo would not listen as he raised Showa up a bit more before driving the back of his head into the ground, causing the earth below them to crack. "Leo, I'm warning you! Stop now or I will make you stop!"

"DIE! DIE! DIE! YOU DIE...NOW!-!" Leo roared as he raised his other hand into the air while holding Showa down. He was going to end this now as he brought his fist down, only to be caught completely by surprise when Showa shot his hand out, catching Leo's fist. "N-nani?-!"

Tsukuyomi watched as Showa looked at Leo and, without even giving off the slightest hint of even trying, sent Leo staggering backwards after firing a Cero right into the demon priest's face from his mouth plate. Leo held his face, shaking away the pain before looking over at Showa. Both Leo and Tsukuyomi noticed Showa slowly get up as his armor turned pitch black as his eye lenses turned blood red. The trim on his armor also turned blood red as his normally bluish-white Dragon's Cloak turned into a set of blackish-red energy wings. The now darker Showa-Ascalon looked at Leo and then over to Tsukuyomi.

The energy he was giving off was similar to Shinichi's but it held another familiar presence. A presence she had only felt once before. Showa slowly walked towards Leo as the Sword of Ascalon floated back into his hand, the Shield of Glen turning black as well as an extra set of curved blades formed, all four golden blades turning blood red in color.

"_**You dare to hurt the Halfling, demon?**_" the darker Showa-Ascalon asked Leo.

"W-who are you? You are not the same boy as before," Leo said as he began to back away. This energy he was sensing from Showa, it was something different, something ancient.

"_**I, my dear demon priest, am the one being that you should not have pissed off. I am the other half of the Sword of Ascalon. I am the one that protects the Halfling when he can no longer fight his own battles. I protect what he protects. I love what he loves. I respect him, therefore...I aid him in his greatest times of need,**_" the dark voice told Leo as his body crackled with black and red arcing electricity.

"You...it can't be," Tsukuyomi said in disbelief. "Shinichi...he killed you back in Genovia."

"_**Yes, you presume correctly, Goddess of the Moon. It is I, Dreigon, Dragon of Dragons,**_" Dreigon said before looking back at Leo. "_**And you...youngling...you are going to pay for hurting **__**my**__** Halfling!**_" Holding the Sword of Ascalon up above his head, "_**Here, have a taste of our power! Getsuga...Tenshou!**_"

Slashing the sword down in a downward diagonal slash, the blackish-red energy slash shot towards Leo with blinding speed, hitting the demon priest head on and sending him flying. Leo, after hitting the ground hard, got back up and dusted himself off. "A word of advice, old one. To truly kill me, you need to get by my aura."

Dreigon's spirit smirked at that bit of info. "_**Is that right, then maybe if I pump in all three energies into this attack**_," he said as he mixed Shinichi's Reiryoku and Youki with his own Ryuyouki. "_**Now, for the Halfling's ultimate dragon slaying technique! Ryuuga Daichikudaku!**_"

This time, Dreigon lashed out with a backhanded horizontal slash, sending the dragon-shaped energy slash at Leo who used his super-speed to move out of the way. Or so he thought. Using his sheer force of will, Dreigon caused the dragon slash to move and follow after Leo.

"WH-WHAT?-!" Leo shouted as he was once again hit by the powerful attack, his remaining outer armor getting disintegrated by it. Hitting the ground with a loud thud, Leo pushed himself up and looked to see both Dreigon and Tsukuyomi walking towards him. "How...how can this be?"

"You hurt my chosen warrior," Tsukuyomi began. "You hurt the man I love."

"_**For that, you will pay by forfeiting your very life, youngling,**_" Dreigon ended.

(**END SONG**)

As Leo slowly got up, he suddenly heard a ringing in his ears. Lifting his head up, he answered, '_S-sister...why do you call at such a bad time?_'

'_To save your sorry butt,_' the youngest of the 4 demon priests, Scorpio ,scolded him. '_Besides, the master has seen this new threat and has come up with a counterplan. Retreat for now. And do not worry, you will receive no punishment for this failure_.'

Leo growled out in humiliation as his body was suddenly covered in bluish light, the light forming into a ball of energy. Shooting up into the sky, the ball then suddenly vanished from sight.

Dreigon scoffed and shoulder Ascalon, "_**What a coward**_." He noticed the Moon Goddess studying him intently. "_**What?**_"

"Shinichi defeated you, so how can you still exist?" she asked with suspicion.

"_**The Sword of Ascalon is more than just a weapon as it doesn't just kill dragons, my dear**_," said Dreigon. "_**It seals up a dragon's spirit so that the wielder may use their power as their own. I am, unfortunately, bound to the boy's soul after he slew my physical form**_."

"Is he aware of your presence?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"_**Yes, but the others are not so I would appreciate it if you did not breathe a word of my continued existence to them.**__** They wouldn't understand and I practically saved his life so you owe me that much**_," said Dreigon.

Tsukuyomi considered Dreigon's words. While they were true, she assumed the reason he'd bothered to save Shinichi's life was in order to protect his own existence. But he was right. She did owe him. "Very well."

* * *

When Shinichi awoke, he found himself lying on his back with his head on Tsukuyomi's lap. "What happened?"

"You fell asleep," she told him.

"I kinda remembered being attacked," he said. "Some kind of lion-man-demon-thing jumped us." He looked at the night's sky. "The sun is a star, right?"

"Yes," she confirmed.

"And the planets of the Sol System revolve around it."

"That's right.. What's your point?"

"So many stars out there," he said. "How many systems do you think are out there with intelligent life?"

"You wish to go into space?" she questioned.

"Yes, because I'm a bit jealous of Alan. His ring lets him go into space," he told her.

"Your jet form lets you do the same," she reminded.

"Yeah, but I've never gone further than the moon," he admitted. "I mean how far can I really go?" He saw a shooting star. "Damn, I wanted to make a wish."

"What did you want to wish for?" she asked.

"For my time powers to come back." She knew why. He always relied on that power to save lives. If anyone died he could just reverse time and bring them back. However, without them, he now had to watch people die. Kyoto had been the worse. So many people had died there. "I want to change the past but Alan gave me a lecture about fixed points in time."

Tsukuyomi nodded in agreement with Alan's lecture. It was never a good idea to try and change the past. She then noticed Shinichi looking at her, his eyes having a confused but satisfied look in them.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" Tsukuyomi blushed.

"Well, I guess I must be a nice guy if I rate a lap pillow from you," Shinichi replied while laughing.

Tsukuyomi blushed a bit more but, instead of scowling at him, she just smiled while gently slapping him on his forehead, playfully. "Oh, shut up."

* * *

After seeing Tsukuyomi off, Shinichi headed back home to his apartment. Pulling into the parking garage and dismounting his bike, he was about to head for the front of the building when he noticed a familiar face.

"Risa-san? What are you doing here?" Shinichi asked, seeing Risa Kagome standing there.

"Shinichi-san, I was wondering if maybe you could give me some advice," she said as she walked over to him. Shinichi tucked his helmet under his arm as he headed over to her as well.

"Well, I don't know if I'll be of any help at the moment but, sure, ask away."

Risa smiled at him with a thankful look in her eyes. "Arigato, Shinichi-san." She then presented him with a small black book. "I was looking through some of the notes I kept while keeping track of Reina over the past few years and I remembered that her father has yet to remarry."

"Okay, so...what, you wanna date him again or something?" Risa blushed at the thought and Shinichi noticed that he probably hit the nail on the head with that one.

"H-hai. You see, I never did stop loving Retsu-san but...well..."

"Your heart fell for another man which you now regret," Shinichi concluded. "While I think it's a good idea to make amends and reforge old ties, you might want to do that at a slow pace. And it's best to make sure that Rena doesn't find out about it just yet."

"True. I guess you still haven't said anything to her about speaking wi-,"

**THUD!**

Shinichi and Risa turned their head to the sound of the thud to see none other than Rena standing there with a brown grocery bag now lying in front of her feet. Shinichi began to sweat as Risa looked at her daughter with a startled look in her eyes. They weren't supposed to see one another yet as Shinichi had yet to try and warm Rena up to the idea of at least hearing her mother out. Rena looked at the sight of her mother, the one person she hated more than anything else in existence, and her blood began to boil. She also noticed how her mother and Shinichi had been talking to each other as if they were good friends. She felt hurt. She felt sad. But even worse...she felt betrayed. Betrayed by the man she loved.

"...Reina...th-," she began until she saw Rena looking at her with malice in her eyes.

Shinichi looked back and forth between them, a sweat drop appearing next to his forehead. His cybernetic heart thundered loudly in his chest as shivers went up and down his metal-plated spine. This wasn't supposed to happen. Not yet. It was just too soon.

'_You're fucked now, boy_,' Gokuaku chided off from within Shinichi's head.

Rubbing his head nervously, Shinichi looked at Rena and felt like he just wanted to run as far away as possible. "Um...well...uh...Surprise! It's your mother!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Let me start by saying that trust takes time to build but in an instant can be broken. Anyway, good news is that Tsukuyomi had fun. Bad news, Rena discovers Shinichi and her mother have been meeting in secret. With her history, well, she'll need time to cool down. A lot of time. A LOT of time.**


	158. The Legacy of Cain Part 102

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 102: Demonic Counterattack**

Shinichi and Risa were standing in front of his bike after escaping Rena's wrath. "That could've gone a lot better," Shinichi sighed, leaning against his bike as he rubbed his temples.

"I'm sorry," Risa apologized, regretting what had occurred. "This is all my fault. I shouldn't have come. Now look at what happened. Because of me she hates you too."

Shinichi looked at her, noticing the tears coming from her eyes, and sighed with a smile. Reaching up and placing a hand on her shoulder, he reassured her that everything would be alright.

"It's not your fault, and believe me this isn't the worst thing I've done to her. She'll cool down...eventually." Shinichi dismissed. "So, would you like me to take you to the train station?"

"That would be nice," said Risa as she dried her tears. And it was starting out as a good night too.

"Well, hop on in," Shinichi offered as he handed her his extra helmet.

* * *

Shinichi stopped the bike at the train station and let Risa off. "Thank you for the ride, Shinichi-san."

"No problem," he said. "Just try to get yourself home safely."

"But where are you going to sleep?" Risa asked.

"I know someone in the city. I can crash at their place for the night. Don't worry about me," Shinichi told her.

"But what about Reina?" Risa asked.

"Again, like I said, don't worry about me," he repeated. "Now go home." Risa watched as Shinichi sped away.

* * *

Shinichi was having a mental conversation as he drove towards his destination.

'_Are you not going to the Hive? You have a room there_,' questioned Kuro.

"I could, but I need some relationship advice which I doubt anyone in the Hive can give," answered Shinichi. Nobody else had to deal with this problem.

'_I told you that you were playing with fire, boy_,' said Gokuaku.

"I know. You don't have to keep reminding me," grumbled Shinichi. It was annoying when someone said 'I told you so' while rubbing his mistakes in his face.

'_Be that as it may, lad, you were still warned and now one of your ladies is angered with you_,' St. George added, lecturing Shinichi.

'_He's right, Shinichi_,' Zennin said. '_We know everything that you think and we could all see that your plan had tons of holes in it from the start_.'

"You guys do know that, instead of trying telling me that I was going to get burned, you could have actually helped me, right?" Shinichi asked them all. All he got was silence. "Guys?"

'_What, and make matters even worse? Sorry kid, even if we live in your head, we're not gonna risk getting our asses burned because of your ideas_,' Gokuaku retorted.

Everything then went quiet. Shinichi just shook his head and groaned in frustration. Some help they were. They were just spirits and yet they feared a mortal. Well...Shinichi knew that their feared was based on solid fact. Even he feared Rena when she got mad. As strong as he was, he knew better than to try and face her when she was pissed off, especially if she was pissed at him.

Suddenly, Shinichi's danger senses went to high alert and he swerved to the side, but his reaction wasn't fast enough as the sudden explosion blew him away. He was knocked off his bike and sent skidding across the road as his bike did the same.

"WHAT THE HELL JUST HIT ME!-?" Shinichi shouted and he looked up and froze. His enhanced sight got a good look at it. It was humanoid in build and covered from head to toe in silver-grey armor. "Cyberman?" he uttered. Weren't they all gone? Then he noticed something else about the Cyberman. It had on bronze flaps of armor hanging from its waist to form a sort of skirt and each flap had hemispheres on them, with the same hemispheres on the bronze shins. Those were like the same hemispheres a DALEK wore on its skirt. It was hovering in the air with anti-gravity generators built into the soles of its feet which slowly deactivated as it went down to land on the the ground.

The Cyberman-with-DALEK-features was armed with a cannon on its right arm, which resembled an oversized DALEK gunstick. As for the eyes, they looked like the eyepieces that rested at the tip of a DALEK's eyestalk. The dome was transparent with bubbling clear liquid, revealing the brain cradled inside.

**"You are Kamen Rider Showa,"** the Cyberman spoke in a mix of a DALEK's and Cyberman's voice. It was an electronic monotone but high-pitched as well. "**You will be eliminated**." It aimed its cannon at him. **"ELIMINATE!"**

The ray of certain death flew out from the cannon and almost hit Shinichi. If he hadn't used Shunpo, he knew he would've perished. The blast made a crater where he had been and he gulped.

"What the hell are you!-?" Shinichi demanded, not that he cared really, as he summoned the Shield of Glen.

"**This unit is known as 'Cyber-Dalek'**," answered the robotic life form. "**And you will be ELIMINATED!**" It fired again but the Shield of Glen's energy barrier blocked the attack, absorbing the death ray which would've killed Shinichi in an instant.

"Is it too much to ask...for me...to get...A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP?-!" Shinichi snapped angrily. The Cyber-Dalek continued to fire, attempting to break the barrier, as Shinichi tried to keep it up. He roared and made the barrier expand outwards, pushing the Cyber-Dalek as it was driven back. Shinichi dashed towards the Cyber-Dalek, dropping the barrier at the same time, and smashed his gauntlet-covered fist into its face, knocking it to the ground. He then followed up with a downward punch for its head when it caught his fist. He screamed as he was being electrocuted so he tore his fist free and watched as the Cyber-Dalek climb back to its feet.

"**Scanning. Target Kamen Rider Showa is experiencing fatigue and increased heart rate**," the Cyber-Dalek reported.

"Well that's what happens when you rattle someone's nerves you hunk of junk!" Shinichi snapped. He had already fought for his life once already. He did not feel like doing it again.

"**Irrelevant. You will be elimina-**"

**BOOM!**

There was a flash of green light followed by a massive explosion as the Cyber-Dalek was blown to pieces right before his eyes. Shinichi looked up and spotted Alan coming in for a landing. "Good evening," Alan said, smiling.

"You seem chipper," said Shinichi.

"Oh, you know me," Alan grinned. "I managed to ace my finals."

"Good for you," Shinichi deadpanned. He looked at all the scattered pieces of Cyber-Dalek that now littered the road. "This is going to be a bitch to clean up." He looked to the head and went over to it. He picked it up and stared at the brain in the now cracked dome. "Well, I know we don't have to worry about this thing any longer."

"What was it?" Alan asked.

"A freaky Cyberman and DALEK hybrid," Shinichi answered when all of a sudden as a pair of eyes opened up in the middle of the exposed brain. "WHAT-ACK!" The glass shattered as a pair of tentacles lashed out and the slimy appendages wrapped tightly around his neck. "Get it off! It's choking me! Get it off!" Alan reacted quickly and used his heat vision, cooking the brain creature to death. It fell, smoking, and smelling like cooked meat.

"What...what...WHAT THE FUCKING HELL WAS THAT!-?" shouted Shinichi.

Alan knelt and picked up the creature in both hands. "Interesting..." Shinichi grimaced in disgust at Alan actually touching it.

"You know what?-! _You _can take it back to the Hive! I...I just had a long night! Oh, and while you're at it, take my bike back for repairs too! I! Need! Rest!" He used his nanites to construct him his hover-bike before shooting down the road. "GOOD NIGHT!"

"Hey, isn't your place in the other direction?" Alan asked but his brother was long gone to hear him. "OK, something's up with him." Alan inspected the now dead creature in his hand. "And someone's either genetically engineering these things or mutating brains. Either way, this is really freaky." He added, "But I wonder what's up with him tonight." Using his ring, he gathered the parts and put the mutated brain inside of a construct of a net. He was going to drop these things off at the Hive and then check on Rena. He had a gut feeling that there was trouble in paradise.

* * *

Yuji opened the door. "Hey, Shin. Whassup?"

Shinichi asked, "Can I crash here? Rena kinda threw me out."

Yuji permitted, "OK. Come on in. Oh, and watch the vomit by the kitchen. Starscream (the Garchomp) ate a rat after chasing it down outside."

* * *

Yuji listened to what had happened as he gave Shinichi a sympathetic ear. Once Shinichi was done, he gave his two cents, "Well, you knew the plan might go south and bite you in the ass. You just didn't know how hard."

Shinichi agreed, "Well, she didn't tell me to go to hell and rot. That has to mean something."

Yuji said optimistically, "At least all she did was kick you out. She's probably cooling off right now."

"Yeah..." Shinichi questioned, "Do you think I messed up and went beyond the line?"

Yuji answered honestly, "As far as I'm concerned, I think you opened up a wound that was meant to stay closed. Had the same feeling when I went through that Black Mercy episode I told you about."

Shinichi sighed, "I know that, I just thought since Risa-san felt remorse then maybe Rena would forgive her."

Yuji said encouragingly, "Well, at least you tried. We can only give our best, even if it doesn't work out."

Shinichi justified, "Well, I reunited with my mom, and I thought I could help Rena-chan do the same." He smacked his forehead, "Oh, man! How did things turn out so bad!"

Yuji placated him, "Calm down. Remember, Rena's not you. She's got a grudge streak the size of an Egyptian God."

Shinichi said, "Tell me about it. Did you know she changed her name because her birth name was given by her mother? I think that was a huge enough clue. I suck."

Yuji shrugged, "No point in crying over spilled milk, right? Since you're here, take a load off and chill. Ease that mind of yours with some Red Daemon ramen, watch some shows, do whatever. Just don't go into my room. Oh, and watch out for Rune. She's still in her hugging phase."

Shinichi nodded, "Right, and thanks."

Yuji smiled, "Hey, no problem. What are friends for? But hey, you owe me."

* * *

Alan stood in front of the apartment and pressed the doorbell. "Hello, Rena? It's Alan. Are you home?" He didn't hear a reply but he did hear footsteps. He heard the lock being undone and the door opened. He saw Rena and he grimaced.

Her eyes were red and puffy, with moisture coming from tears. She had a tissue in hand to dry her eyes but the tissue was soaked. "Oh, Alan. Good evening."

"Rena, what happened?" Alan asked.

"I...I don't feel like talking about it..." she answered. "Sorry, I must look terrible."

Alan dismissed her claim, "No, you look gorgeous." He offered, "How about I make you some tea? I may be a bad cook but I'm pretty sure I can heat up water."

Rena wiped her eyes dry again and invited him, "Sure, come on in." Alan stepped through the threshold and she closed the door.

* * *

While having tea, which served to calm Rena's nerves, she described what had happened earlier to Alan. She'd seen her boyfriend and ex-mother conversing so pleasantly like old friends. Rena had told Shinichi what her ex-mother had done so it just didn't make sense as to how they could hold a conversation like that. What she did know was that the sight of the woman opened old wounds and the dam broke open. She became consumed by rage and anger which was not only targeted at Risa, but also towards Shinichi for betraying her. She didn't remember what the two tried to say, but she did yell at them a lot, and said very unkind things.

Alan asked, "Well, did you let Shinichi explain his side of the story? I mean, you know him, even when his head is up his ass his heart's always in the right place."

Rena replied, "I...I got so angry! I saw them together and...I thought the worst!" She cried, "I drove him away!"

Alan, recalling Shinichi's earlier behavior, said, "He's pretty upset too. But you know him, it'll all blow over eventually. He can be quite forgiving to the people he cares about."

"That's what I love about him," Rena admitted. It was Shinichi's kind nature. "But why...why was he with _her_?"

"That's something you'll need to ask him yourself," said Alan, giving her the only answer he could.

"But he should've understood! I told him how that woman betrayed me and Dad!" said Rena.

"Well, he may not really understand that kind of betrayal," reasoned Alan.

* * *

Bazel asked, "You're going to try and fix this, aren't ya?"

Alan answered, "My brother's an idiot but he means well and can take care of himself. My sister-in-law...she can get pretty fragile at times. And there's a plus side. I get to drag him back to Rena again.

"Are you sure this isn't meddling?" Bazel asked.

"It may be, but not even my idiot older brother is allowed to make my big sister cry," Alan answered.

"Remember, Alan," Bazel said, "Shinichi isn't as weak as he used to be. Besides, you should probably hear him out first before trying to drag him back. For now, just let them have their space. Give it a few days and then talk to him about it."

Alan just looked at Bazel with a quirked eyebrow. "You've been hanging around me way too long, ya know that?" He then let out a sigh as he rose into the air and flew home. "But, you know, you're probably right. I should wait a couple of days and then go hear what he has to say."

"Sounds like a plan to me, partner," Bazel said as he and Alan went home.

* * *

"So, let me see if I got this right," began Misato. She was sitting at the kitchen table with Shinichi who was eating a cup of extra spicy curry instant noodles. "You got kicked out of your own apartment, by your own girlfriend."

Shinichi slurped up the noodle and answer, "Uh-huh."

"Because she saw you with her mother."

"Yeah, that's right."

"Whom she hates with a murderous passion."

"That's an exaggeration. It's not exactly murderous passion. More like 'you're dead to me' or 'I wish you were dead'."

"That's murderous passion."

"...Now that I heard myself say it, I guess that sounds about right."

"And you've been meeting with her mother, whom she hates, periodically, for the past few weeks, since June."

"Affirmative."

"In an attempt to get them to reconcile, while at the same time going behind her back to do it."

"You know, the more I hear you talk about this, the more I'm starting to think it was a bad idea."

"Actually, the bad idea was talking with her outside your apartment while Rena was out grocery shopping."

"In my defence, Risa-san should've called before coming over. But she was afraid Rena would've picked up."

"Then she would've known not to come, considering she's there."

"And I didn't know Rena was going grocery shopping, which is dumb since she usually does the grocery shopping around that time...Fuck."

"Shinichi, what exactly were you trying to accomplish with this? Did you even have a plan?"

"I was going to tell Rena-chan I met her mother, then maybe ease her into the idea of talking to her again."

"Obviously it didn't turn out that way."

"Nope. And now Rena-chan knows I know Risa-san, which means I don't have to hide it from her. Now I gotta think of a new plan which involves Rena-chan speaking to me again so I could speak with her about speaking with Risa-san."

"I can't believe I finally have the chance to say this, but Shinichi, you're an idiot."

"I know. The voices in my head keep saying the same thing."

"Shinichi, did you really think your plan was going to work?"

"Well, look at us. I mean you kidnapped my girlfriend, I killed you, and now we're friends."

"Only because Yuji stopped us from killing each other. Oh, I see. You thought that if you could stop Rena from trying to murder her mother you could get them to reconcile."

"Yes."

"I repeat, you're an idiot."

"Hey!"

"Even if I did kidnap your girlfriend and threaten to kill, but at the time I was insane. I mean you killed me, twice. I have more reasons to hate you."

"And yet we're friends now"

"My point is that your plans had holes from the beginning. You should've told Rena you met her mother and be done with it."

"Then I wouldn't have gotten to know her."

"And you wouldn't have gotten kicked out of your apartment."

"...Touche." Shinichi finished the cup of noodles and asked. "Got anymore?"

Misato glanced at the ten empty noodle cups which were sitting on the table next to Shinichi and cocked an eyebrow. "Haven't you had enough?"

"I need relief, but I can't get drunk. What do you want me to do?"

"Man up," she said with a scowl. "And talk to her after she cools down."

* * *

**3 Days Later - Genovia**

Princess Shawna sat in front of the grand piano of her palace's music room, her fingers dancing across the keys as she played a piece written by a famous composer from long ago. Present, while watching and listening to her play was Shinichi Banabara who'd come to visit her.

Shawna was practicing for an upcoming contest. This was her talent and she'd won many competitions with her skill and talent, moving the hearts of people with her piano playing. Shinichi was just so amazed by her passion that he couldn't even move.

However, her mind was elsewhere. Rena had called, informing Shawna of her and Shinichi's current situation. Apparently, Shinichi had gone behind her back and met with her estranged mother, whom Rena had disowned and considered dead to her. Shinichi, however, had the great idea of meeting and speaking with the woman she hated more than Dr. Gebok. Rena and Shinichi hadn't spoken with each other in days.

Of course, Shinichi had tried calling her, but she never returned his phone calls. He even went back to the apartment, but she wasn't there. The reason was she'd been out having drinks with Mion and Shion. And during another time Rena had gone out shopping with the twins again. He couldn't even find her at the university campus. It seemed that she was good at evading him. Did she not want to talk to him, or did she still need her space?

Alan had tried to help them mend fences too. Unfortunately, his attempts were even less successful than Shinichi's attempts to getting Rena alone to talk to her. It was almost as frustrating as hunting Shinichi down two years ago for two months.

Shawna finished and Shinichi applauded.

* * *

Alan was pacing back and forth in his room with a whiteboard and drawings of his brother and sister-in-law. He was trying to figure out how to get them together and resolve this situation. It didn't seem like Shinichi was the problem. It seemed like some otherwordly force was trying to keep Rena and Shinichi separate.

"I just don't get it, Lala, Amora," Alan said to the pink-haired princess with an IQ higher than his own and the Enchantress who sat in his room, watching him. "What exactly is causing them to not meet to resolve?"

"Maybe she just needs space, my dear," Amora suggested.

"I know Rena. Believe me, she's been my babysitter and she helped raise me half the time. I know how she thinks," Alan said confidently. "But I've been trying to get them to meet in the same place, at the same time, but right as they're about to, something happens that separates them. It doesn't make sense."

Lala suggested, "This could be an elaborate plot to separate Shinichi and Rena."

"Be reasonable, Lala. What villain would profit from their relationship breaking down?" Amora asked.

"No, hear me out. Shinichi is a Smith in all but name. Who is the one who's his anchor?" Lala asked. "It's Rena. If he and Rena separate, what will happen?"

Alan's eyes widened as he paled, "Oh...crap."

"And I think we're all well aware of how much power he's gained up until now," said Lala.

"He does have that princess, and not to mention the demon girl who's carrying his child," Amora pointed out.

"No, Lala has a point. When I lost Jade I flipped out," Alan said. "If Shinichi loses Rena, he's not going to be as mentally or emotionally stable."

"Since when has he been stable?" Amora snorted. "He has over a dozen voices in his head. He's a textbook schizophrenic."

"Oh...I need to think. I need a drink," said Alan as he started to have a panic attack.

* * *

"Thanks," said Alan before downing the glass of lemonade.

"That'll be 100 yen, please," said Alice cutely as she held her hand out.

"Mau!" Celine mimicked. The two girls had set up a lemonade stand in front of the boarding house.

Alan smiled and put a 100 yen coin into his bio-android daughter's hand, and another in Celine's.

"One more glass, please," he requested.

"Coming right up!" Alice picked up the pitcher as Celine held the glass, allowing the blonde to pour the beverage into the glass. Celine held the glass up to Alan who drank it down.

"Daddy, are you OK?" Alice asked.

"It's about Shinichi and Rena," said Alan.

"Is something the matter with Onii-chan and Onee-chan?" Alice asked.

"You're too young to understand," said Alan as he turned his head away.

"Well, what about now?" Alice voice changed, and Alan sighed before he turned to see Alice in her teenage Epsilon Mode.

"Must you?" Alan asked.

"When I'm in this form I have the intelligence and maturity proportionate to it."

"Yeah, that's debatable," Alan murmured.

"What?" Epsilon Alice decided to get to the point, "It sounds like both of them have hit a rough patch because one of them chose to be an idiot. I assume it's Shinichi."

"Yes," Alan confirmed.

"And they aren't talking to each other, are they?" Epsilon Alice continued.

"Not without a lack of trying, no," Alan replied.

"Conda-san did say communication is important," said Epsilon Alice.

"Alice, her definition of healthy communication is when she and the person she's debating with fight with fists and not words," Alan pointed out. "Believe me. I've been in enough chokeholds to understand that."

"Didn't she and Shinichi patch things up?" Epsilon Alice reminded. "And wasn't it your idea."

"A great idea, which had some undesirable repercussions on my part," Alan clarified.

"Well, Daddy. You're smart. If you have to, just lock them up in a jail cell all night and see what happens," Epsilon Alice encouraged. "Preferably without sharp weapons."

"Can you change back and become a cute little girl again?" pleaded Alan.

"Hey, I'm going to officially be like this in a few years. You might as well learn to get used to a teenage daughter when the opportunity presents itself," said Epsilon Alice before reverting back to her child form. "More lemonade, Daddy?" she offered sweetly. "Only 100 yen a glass."

"No, I'm good. Have fun with your lemonade stand." He picked up Celine, "Sunflower, promise me when you become a teenager you won't be so difficult."

Mau stared at him and smiled sweetly, waving, "Mau!"

Alan glanced at his ring and swore, "When we can get back to Oa, I'm gonna have Celine's language uploaded to the database so I can understand her."

* * *

Sylvia and Shinichi were sparring out in the courtyard and she managed to knock him to the ground before pinning him down with the tip of her rapier pointed at his throat.

"That's the 4th time I've beaten you today," said Sylvia. "Your form is sloppy. You're distracted."

Shinichi just glared at her before lowering his gaze. Sylvia removed the tip of her rapier from his throat, sheathing her sword before lending Shinichi her hand, helping him up to his feet. Looking him over, she was right in seeing how distracted he was.

"If I may be so bold to ask, what has you so distracted that you can't even fight me properly?" she asked as they walked over and sat down at a small table that had a couple glasses of tea waiting for them. "I don't recall ever being able to beat you so badly before and that's saying something as I never beat you."

Shinichi just looked at her in thought. "Sylvia..." He then had an idea. Maybe getting the perspective of an honorable warrior like Sylvia might help him in thinking up a way to apologize to Rena. "Hey Sylvia, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, we are practically family seeing you are now engaged to my little cousin," she answered with a small smile. Shinichi just gulped and then began to go over all that had happened to him for the past few weeks, not leaving anything out. He wanted her honest opinion.

* * *

Located with the realm of the Gods and sitting on a cushion within her room, Tsukuyomi was watching everything that was happening with Shinichi through a mirror that was set before her. It's reflective surface shimmered and rippled like the surface of water as it displayed the scene of Shinichi talking with Sylvia. Of course, Tsukuyomi was well aware of what had transpired between him and Rena right after their date and now, Shinichi was completely confused and lost at having hurt someone he loved.

Tsukuyomi herself knew that what Shinichi was trying to do was probably a good thing but it was rough with hidden dangers and, if he made one mistake, it would blow up in his face. Which it did in the end. She wanted to help fix the rift forming between Shinichi and Rena as she loved Shinichi just as much as the other girls but she also knew that this was something that he needed to do on his own. She would just need to make sure that she asked her sister, Amaterasu, to help in keeping Alan and the others from making matters worse by forcing them to be with one another. Everything in the universe had its own balance and pace and trying to force it to your own pace of getting things done was never a good idea.

"That stupid idiot," Tsukuyomi chided quietly. "He just had to go and piss off the main anchor of his heart."

(LIN BREAK)

Watching everything from their hidden temple located on the dark sid eof the moon, the four demon priests known as Leo, Virgo, Scorpio and Cancer all watched Shinichi carefully through a ball of energy. Clad in identical black robes with golden ornate trim, Scorpio looked like a humanoid scorpion with white and black dreadlocks and black, claw-like fingers. Her forearms were covered in bone-white gauntlets that had small blue gems on the sides. Each gauntlet had a stinger-like spike at the end near the elbow and at the tip of the claw-like overhand of her handguard. She had beady red eyes and a stinger dangled down from her dreadlock-like hair like a small thin ponytail. Her upper face was covered by a golden mask and the top of her head was shaped like a big scorpion. The tips of her bone-white boots also had long curved stinger-like spikes that pointed upwards for about six inches.

Cancer also wore similar robes but had a red, armored body like that of a crab. His head had a crab shell top and a single red visor instead of eyes that was thin and had a strip which went down the center of his face. His mouthplate was modeled after a crab's mouth and colored a mixture of silver and ocean blue. His left hand was like that of a giant crab claw while his right hand looked like that of a man's which was armored. Even his boots looked like they were made from a crab's armored shell.

"Sister, your spell to keep the Moon Goddesses champion in complete disarray seems to be working perfectly," Cancer said as he looked at Virgo. Virgo just let out a small haughty chuckle.

"Thank you, Otoutou. I do try." Scorpio looked at what was taking place and tilted her head a bit out of confusion.

"I don't get it," Scorpio said as she scratched her head. "What does keeping the Moon Goddess' chosen champion separated from that girl have to do with weakening him?"

Virgo just let out an exasperated sigh. "My dear, sweet imoutou-chan...you have never experienced love before so allow me to educate you." She then showed them all a separate image which showed Shinichi and Rena standing next to one another. "You see, this is Kamen Rider Showa's true love. His greatest love. She was there for him before that princess, demon and Moon Goddess ever entered his life. As such, she's the anchor to his heart and the stability of his world. By splitting them apart, we weaken his resolve and the foundation of his strength. He'll be so distracted in trying to patch up his relationship with her that he won't even be able to stop us once we make our move."

"For this, I wish to take him on once more," Leo said in a demanding tone. Virgo just shook her finger and tsked him.

"Now, now, Onii-sama. You remember what happened the last time you fought. Besides, I need your power in helping to take out that little bitch of a tomboy Goddess," Virgo said before looking at Scorpio. "Scorpio-chan, you go and fight Showa for now. Keep him busy while the three of us deal with the Moon Goddess."

"Hai, Onee-sama," Scorpio said before allowing her body to be covered in a glowing ball of red energy.

As Scorpio left to deal with Shinichi, Virgo surrounded herself and her brothers in a glowing ball of pink energy, transporting them to the realm of the Gods. They knew that Tsukuyomi would be too focused on Shinichi and his current predicament so now was the perfect time to strike.

* * *

"You know, there's an expression here in Genovia," began Sylvia. "If a horse comes running straight at you, don't stand in its path," she said.

"What does that mean?" Shinichi asked.

"If it seems like a bad idea, it probably is," she translated, "In other words, you're an idiot."

Shinichi groaned, "I know...I know...people have been telling me that for days."

"In hindsight, you should've seen Rena's reaction coming," she told him. "Have you tried to explain yourself?"

"I've been trying for days, but she's either out or I just can't get in touch with her in person. It's like the universe is against me."

"That sounds terrible."

"It sucks."

"So, is that why you're here in the palace?" she asked.

"I crashed at Satie-chan's place yesterday," said Shinichi.

"Satie?" Sylvia cocked an eyebrow.

"Satan-chan. I've been calling her Satie-chan since she let me," said Shinichi. "It's an adorable nickname. But I had to leave."

"Why?" she asked.

"Her mother wanted to play a game which involves my body parts being rearranged in interesting positions," said Shinichi. "I don't care what Yuji says, but that woman is nuts."

Sylvia couldn't help but chuckle softly at Shinichi's expression as he talked about Lady Beatrice like she was some estranged and creepy witch. Shinichi looked at her and, after thinking about it himself, he too started to laugh.

"I will say this for you though, Shinichi. You did not do wrong in trying to get them to reconcile with one another." Shinichi looked at Sylvia and smiled. "While on one hand, it is a mistake to do so, it is also the most logical and sensible thing a person like you can do. Being a fellow warrior of honor myself and also a woman, I can see things from both points of view on this matter."

"Thank you Sylvia, I really needed the advice." He then picked up a small rock on the ground and tossed it through the air. "So, what do I do now?"

"That, my dear soon-to-be cousin-in-law, is up to you to decide." Shinichi nodded in understanding and, after thinking about it, stood up and took out his practice rapier.

"Okay, rematch time. Loser has to do any one thing that the winner wants," Shinichi suggested as he unsheathed his rapier. Sylvia wore a determined smirk on her face as she too got up and unsheathed her rapier as well.

"I accept your challenge, Sir Banabara!"

**BOOM!**

Shinichi and Sylvia were both thrown to the ground by the shockwave from the explosion which suddenly erupted from behind them. Pushing themselves up and looking towards the source of the explosion, Shinichi and Sylvia both noticed the remnants of a red energy ball fading away, leaving the form of a scorpion-looking demon cald in a black robe with gold orante trimming standing before them.

(**Insert BGM - Shutsugen Zodiarts - KR Fourze OST**)

'_Oh great, not another demon. Why can't I go at least one week without having to fight these things_?' Shinichi complained inwardly as he got up, extending his hand to help Sylvia up as well. "Hey, buddy, sorry to have to do this seeing as you just got here, but I'm gonna have to ask you to leave."

"Sorry, can't do that...human. I am here to pick up where my big brother, Leo, left off," the scorpion demon said snidely as it removed its robe, revealing a slender yet armored hourglass body underneath. "I am Scorpio, the youngest of the four Demon Priests of the Moon Demon, the Almighty Tsukimajai!"

Scorpio's body was covered in a black bodysuit-like skin with silver-grey armor on her shoulders, collar, hips and thighs; each of the armor segments etched with white loop-like lines. She had black armored knees that jutted out like spikes and white knee-high boots with silver armor covering the middle of the boots. Her shoulder armor also had stinger-like spikes sticking out from the sides and the lower front corners also had blue gems set within them. Her chest, central abdomen and lower front were covered in bone-white armor plating with a gold oval on the top of her breast line; a violet gem within its center and five smaller blue gems running down her center. Each of the blue gems was connected with a glowing blue energy stream, forming the pattern of the Scorpio Zodiac.

Shinichi just let out a sigh as he re-sheathed his rapier and handed it to Sylvia. "Hold this." If this demoness wanted a fight, she was going to get it. It'd been a rough few days and he needed a way to release his frustration. He cracked his knuckles and neck. "So, if there's four of you, which includes you and Leo, who else do I have to look out for? Libra? Aquarius? Gemini? I'm getting a constellation theme here."

"My brother warned me that you would make jokes and quips. I will be laughing, of course, over your grave," said Scorpio.

"Sylvia, go," Shinichi said. "This is my fight."

"No," Sylvia protested.

"No?" he parroted.

"No," she repeated. "I'm fighting alongside you, whether you like it or not."

Shinichi, knowing he wouldn't win the argument, gave in. "Fine. But watch your back." He then looked at Scorpio and struck his transformation pose, "Guardian Henshin," Shinichi said as he transformed. In a flash he was transformed, donned in his gold Hinamizawa Guardian armor. Scorpio snapped her fingers and summoned half a dozen Darkstars before charging at Kamen Rider Showa.

(**Switch BGM 'Shutsugen Zodiarts' to BGM 'Hakai Shin' - KR Fourze OST**)

Sylvia drew her rapier and closed the gap between herself and the Darkstars. As for Showa, he was armed with the Higurashi no Yaiba. He swung but Scorpio blocked the attack with her gauntlet. She instantly retaliated with a series of kicks which caused sparks to fly with each strike. She followed up by disarming Showa with a roundhouse before spinning around to land a back kick which knocked him backwards.

Showa grunted as the force of the blow went through his armor. He then cried as he was hit with Scorpio's elbow, the spike near it ripping spikes from his chestplate.

Meanwhile, the Darkstars were learning why Sylvia was given so many gold medals and blue ribbons at all her fencing tournaments. She was swift and fierce, reading their obviously inferior attack pattern with a sharp and calculating mind before countering with her own movements.

Blocking a horizontal slash, Sylvia parried with a slash of her own, catching a Darkstar in the face, blinding it. She then leaned backwards as another slash zipped over her where her head had been. Leaning back up, she blocked a backhand with her left arm, entangling the opposing arm with her own before twirling the Darkstar around and kicking out, catching it in the crotch. The Darkstar fell to its knees in pain as Sylvia ducked and spun around to avoid getting hacked to pieces, parrying the slashes with sword slashes of her own as she evaded the Darkstars.

Coming to a stop and holding her rapier up to her face, the sunlight glistening off of the blade, as she positioned her left arm behind her back, she took a stance and prepared herself for more.

"Heh...I must say, for cannon fodder, you do have decent attacks. But still...," she began before rushing forward. In a matter of seconds she came to a stop behind them, lowering her blade before looking back. "...you lack discipline in your style. As such, you are no match for me." With the small metallic click that came from sheathing her rapier, the Darkstars all fell to the ground with their bodies erupting in sparks before exploding into black dust. With a smile on her face from her victory, she then looked on to see Showa having a bit of a hard time against Scorpio. '_Hang on Shinichi. This demoness is no match for a fighter of your caliber_.'

(**End BGM**)

* * *

Watching the fight from within her room, Tsukuyomi fumed at the sight of another one of the demon priests of Tsukimajai gunning after the mortal she had come to love. Clenching her fists to her kimono, she watched on in anticipation, unaware of the apparent danger that was about to befall her.

Watching her from the dark shadows of the columns and stone pillars that were erected in her room, two pairs of red eyes and a single glowing thin eye looked at the Moon Goddess with malicious intent. Slowly emerging from their shadow hiding spots, the three priests held up their hands, gathering energy. It wouldn't be enough to kill a God but it was strong enough to get their attention.

As she watched the fight taking place in Genovia, Tsukuyomi suddenly snapped her head up in attention as she sensed the gathering of demonic energy coming from behind her. Vanishing from her cushion and reappearing next to her mirror, she escaped the attack as three red energy blasts impacted with her silk cushion, ripping it to shreds. Looking at her attacks, she instantly recognized the three of them.

"Virgo! Leo! Cancer! What are you doing here in my domain?-! Hell, for that matter, how did you even access the realm of the Gods?-!" Tsukuyomi demanded of them. Virgo laughed with a merry tone in her voice as Leo just grunted while Cancer lightly chuckled.

"Ara, ara, the Moon Goddess is all mad," Virgo chided playfully as she tossed away her robe.

"True, true. So how's about we turn that frown into a unbearable shape of pain, fear and suffering?-!" Cancer shouted as he threw away his robe as well.

"Remember, don't kill her...yet. The master wants her alive just enough to be able to look into her eyes as she watches the death of her beloved mortal lover," Leo reminded them as he too removed his robe.

Tsukuyomi looked at the ever familiar form of Leo as he summoned his claws on his gauntlets. She then eyed Cancer and Virgo, noting that their powers had suddenly skyrocketed. It was as Leo had said before, their robes acted as limiters to their powers. Once removed, their powers were released at their full capacity.

Tsukuyomi carefully eyed each of them. Cancer's body mostly resembled a bluish-purple under-skin that was covered in red crab-shell armor. His back and hips had crab leg-like appendages jutting out and his chest, forearms, waistline and abdominal sides each had a set of silver gems embedded in them that were connected by a glowing red track line, creating the mark of the constellation, Cancer.

Virgo herself had a very womanly physique as she possessed very generous curves and stronger, slender legs clad in black bodysuit-like skin. White angel wings sprouted from her back while her lower legs, forearms and shoulders were covered in crimson red armor. Her slightly bulgy shoulder pads also had tuffs of feathers sticking out from the edges. Her hands and knees had golden ornate bands on them with blue gems embedded within them. Around her hip was a red belt that connected to a slightly tight red bodice with a ornate gold chest piece that accentuated her breast line. Hanging down past her hips and over her legs was a pair of red sashes, giving her a sexy and seductive look. Embedded within her shoulder armor, wings, hips and abdominal sides were more blue gems that connected with the ones on her hands and knees and with the one set within her halberd. The lines began to glow red, creating the sign of the constellation, Virgo.

Tsukuyomi just took a proper lady stance and gave the three priests a stern glare. "So, you think that even with your full power, the three of you can match a Goddess of my caliber, do you?" Tsukuyomi summoned her katana and held it up next to her head as she took a batojutsu stance with her right hand gripping the hilt and her left being set behind the pommel. She then wore a look of confusion when she heard the three of them starting to laugh once more. "What's so funny?"

"Oh, we know better than to take on a goddess head on. You see, gods can't be killed by normal means. But they can still die," Virgo started as she held up her halberd, the gems within it beginning to glow.

"You just have to know how to get around the rules," Leo added as he prepared to charge her.

"Yup, so prepare to say lights out, Missy. Cuz were gonna cut you up real good~!" Cancer finished. "Chou Youma Shinsei!"

Cancer was suddenly engulfed with huge amounts of youki as his body transformed. After a few seconds, he stood before Tsukuyomi with his main body now held within a giant crab-like body with huge claws and armored legs that each had silver gems embedded within them. One claw was bigger than the other. In addition to the claws, he also sported an extra pair of arms with sharp black fingers

"Uh-oh, this can't be good," Tsukuyomi said as her blade began to glow with the color of moon light.

Cancer just snickered evilly. "Tell me, toots. Have you ever danced with the devil underneath the pale moonlight?"

"Shut up and fight already!" Tsukuyomi ordered as she raised her sword and prepared to lash out with a moonlight energy slash. But Virgo would not let her get off so lucky.

"Sorry, my little flat-chested harlot, but this is where the fun ends!" Virgo shouted as she raised her halberd up high, energy crackling all around it. "_**Machna Fiet Sien Zog Djhanya!**_" Shouting out an ancient spell from an unknown language, Virgo's halberd sent out an energy beam that struck Tsukuyomi, causing the Moon Goddess to scream out in intense pain.

"Ahhhh!-!-!-" Falling to her knees, Tsukuyomi dropped her katana, her body smoking from the last attack. What amazed even more than the fact that it had hurt her was the fact that she now felt almost completely drained. Looking at her hand and trying to summon some of her powers, she was shocked when she got nothing. "W-what's going on here?" Looking over at Virgo who was now holding a glowing sphere of energy within her left hand. "What did you just do to me?-!"

"Hahahahaha," Virgo laughed loudly as she absorbed the energy into her halberd. "Let's just say that Master Tsukimajai gave me a spell that I can use to steal a god's powers from them. It's the most surefire way to weaken them enough so that they can be killed."

"What's that supposed...to...mean?" Tsukuyomi managed to get out as she stood up slowly.

"It means," Leo began as he rushed at her with his claws fully extended.

"That it's time to say sayonara, moon bitch!" Cancer finished as he too rushed at her. Tsukuyomi watched on in horror as she was suddenly powerless to fight off those who could not normally hurt her.

* * *

(**Insert BGM - Escape from Reality - KR OOO OST 2**)

Showa jumped back as Scorpio brought her leg down in the form of an axe kick, just barely avoiding the lethal strike. Showa then struck back as he formed his Great Sword with his right arm while extending the claws of his Shield of Glen to their full length. He then swung the Great Sword in a horizontal slash, clipping Scorpio across the gut and knocking her backwards. But the demoness would not fall to such low level attacks as she launched her stinger from the back of her head at Showa, causing him to deflect it with the Shield of Glen.

"Damn you! Fight like a man!" Scorpio shouted angrily, charging at him and kicking at him wildly.

Showa banished his Great Sword and formed his Great Fist, slamming the big metal fist into Scorpio's face and sending her flying through the air on crashing down onto the table that Showa and Sylvia were sitting at earlier. He then banished the Great Fist and summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba back to his hand.

Scorpio, not one to be bested easily, got up quickly and began to kick at Showa again. Showa ducked under each kick and side-stepped a few strikes here and there while making sure to avoid her stinger. Stepping to his left, Showa soon found himself catching an elbow stinger to the chest, ripping off sparks as he grunted. He then got sent back to the ground from a thrust kick to the gut but he quickly got back to his by rolling around, swinging the Higurashi no Yaiba in an upwards slash, catching the demoness right up the middle.

"GAH!-!-!" Scorpio screamed as she was sent to the ground with sparks being ripped from her body.

Showa then stood up and prepared himself as Scorpio also slowly stood up. Arching the Higurashi no Yaiba back, "Higurashi Zan!" he shouted as he launched his attack. The glowing demon vanquishing blade sent out blades of energy as it let out the sound of a thousand cicada's singing. The energy blades struck Scorpio continuously in the chest, sending her sprawling onto the ground in pain. "Alright, time to wrap this up," Showa said as he raised the Higurashi no Yaiba above his head, flooding it with his Youki and Reiryoku. The blade began to glow in shades of black and red as Scorpio pushed herself up onto her knees. "This is the end for you, demon bitch! Getsuga Tenshou!"

Showa unleashed the black and red energy slash upon Scorpio who screamed and howled in agony as her body was consumed by the energy slash. Within seconds, an explosion erupted with the accompaniment of Scorpio crying out in intense pain. Standing there, breathing heavily, Showa looked on as did Sylvia, both of them watching the black smoke cloud slowly dissipate. They wouldn't wait long though at the cloud was suddenly dispersed By an enormous amount of Youki. The scorched and smoking form of Scorpio could be seen slowly standing and trembling with rage as her body began to glow in a mix of red and white, her energy growing at an exponential rate.

"Oh shit, this is so not good," Showa quipped sardonically as Scorpio's body suddenly erupted with energy, her Youki pooling out in a flooding tidal waves that could easily drown all normal low level life within a fraction of a second.

(**End BGM**)

"Chou...Youma...Shinsei!"

From the waist down, Scorpio's body had changed into that of a giant scorpion, with eight legs covered in brown and gold armor with sharp tips and a long tail with a stinger at the tip which promised a deadly end for those who ended up stung by it. Her gauntlets had also become bigger, resembling the claws of the animal her form was based on.

"Guess this is round two," Showa reasoned as he stared at Scorpio's new towering form. She lashed out with her tail but he dodged before he was pierced by the stinger at the end. He looked to see Sylvia with her rapier, looking like she wanted to take on this new Scorpio. "Hey, get out of here!"

"No, I will not!" she objected. "By my code as a swordswoman, I shall never flee from battle without a valid reason!"

"How about survival?" Showa argued loudly as he rolled from another sting. "Dammit!" He dashed towards Sylvia with Scorpio chasing after him. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" he shouted and he summoned three clones to distract the Demon Priestess.

"Shinichi?" she asked as he came towards her with his hand drawn back. "What are you doing?"

"Giving you a little protection and power boost!" he answered as the symbol of RX glowed in his palm. "Let's Form Ride...RX!" He punctuated with planting his palm to Sylvia's lower abdomen, forming RX's belt. The energy then spread over her body, changing her clothes to RX's armor. Finally, the helmet encased her head and the eyes flashed red, signalling the finishing transformation.

"What...what is this...?" Sylvia asked as she looked at her now gloved hands.

"Sylvia, from now on until the end of this fight you are now the Princess of the Sun!" he told her.

* * *

Rena was making dinner as she let out a sigh. She looked at her apartment. It felt so empty without Shinichi around. It had been three days since that night and the memory was still as vivid as ever.

Now that Rena had calmed down, she started to think clearly on why her boyfriend had been with her ex-mother. It never did occur to her that he'd been trying to get them to reconcile. All she saw was betrayal and in her anger she'd lashed out, chasing them away before any of them could explain anything to her.

And now Rena missed him. She remembered when they'd met five years ago. He'd been so innocent without his memories, but then he developed a fun loving, cheerful, yet perverted personality after hanging out with Keiichi. She really wasn't upset when he was acting perverted. He wasn't one of those callous perverts and he had a sort of code of honor. He wasn't the type to peep on girls in the changing room or the bath. He did, however, find gym clothes and bathing suits quite stimulating.

Then they learnt of his secret identity, how he was a Kamen Rider who'd been fighting the dark demons known as Darkloids. She at first felt betrayed since he kept such a big secret to himself but once he explained everything, she forgave him. They then questioned how Shinichi could've gotten the powers in the first place.

The answer had not been a positive one. At a young age, a day before his sixth birthday, Shinichi had been kidnapped by Gebok. And then he'd been forced to become a weapon against his will. Dr. Gebok cut him open, replaced his organs with cybernetic equivalents, ran wires and circuitry along his nervous system, and stole his humanity from him by sealing away his memories and emotions. Shinichi had lived for a decade in such a state. He'd been used and abused in horrifying ways, made to kill without his consent, and his hands had been stained in blood by the actions they had commanded him to take. He'd even been made to kill his own comrades.

The act of accidentally killing his first love had been the last straw. He escaped, fleeing from his pursuers, and somehow ending up in Hinamizawa for her to find. A lot had happened since then. GIN-SHOCKER first, coupled with the regular Darkloid attacks, DHS with their Demon Beasts, joining ARMOR, befriending a princess, saving the world from a giant robot stationed on the moon, and finally Shinichi defeating Gebok for good after his last confrontation with the mad scientist during the end of a revenge quest which lasted for almost two months.

And for five years, she'd dated a super-powered cyborg who'd protected and saved the world, and nobody would ever know.

As Rena poured hot water into a cup of instant ramen, she didn't feel like cooking anything elaborate since she was alone, she heard a knock at the door. "Coming!" she answered as she put down the hot kettle. She ran for the door, hoping that it was Shinichi. As she swung the door open, a bloody and wounded individual fell into her arms, their clothes tattered and stained in blood. She recognised the individual instantly and her eyes widened in shock.

"Tsukuyomi-san!"

* * *

(**Insert Song - Supernova - KR Kiva OST**)

Dust and dirt flew into the air in a cloud as Scorpio struck with one of her claws. Both Riders had dodged but now were confronted with a much more powerful version of their opponent. Showa's eyes glowed as he performed a scan to try and find a weakness that they could exploit.

Scorpio, now donned in this Demon Supernova form, seemed to have grown in power and size. It was like she'd just unsealed her true power and was fighting without restraint. Removing her robes had enabled her to fight at her full strength while in her humanoid form. This form was in an entire;y different weight class.

Sylvia jumped, learning that while donned in the armor of the Prince of the Sun, all her physical abilities were enhanced beyond her natural limits. She crossed the distance, landing on one of the claws before running up to slash at Scorpio's head. It was blocked when the tail was put in the way and Scorpio threw Shawna's cousin into the air before whipping her to the ground. She then raised her legs to skewer Sylvia but she was suddenly bombarded by a barrage of fireballs. Showa was using the power of Gokuaku and sending Scorpio staggering with each fireball.

"STOP IT!" Scorpio roared as her eyes glowed and she fired a crimson laser beam that flew towards Showa. He dodged using Shunpo and swung the Higurashi no Yaiba. The blade extended and was being used as a whip but Scorpio countered with her tail, deflecting Showa's lashes. She then fired another laser beam which hit him in the chest. Sparks erupted from his chest as he felt an explosion of pain, causing him to scream. Scorpio dashed towards him and grasped him in her right claw, squeezing tightly. He struggled to free himself, but the Scorpion Demon Priest tightened her vice-like grip.

Scorpio held Showa close to her face and said, "I've seen what you look like under your mask. I have to admit that you are quite cute. No wonder she went for you."

Showa would've rolled his eyes if he wasn't in so much pain. And yet another villainess was hitting on him. The last time it'd been Ccarayhua. He should be flattered, but it was hard when the woman who was hitting on him had a face like _that_! Not to say he was shallow, but he just wasn't attracted to this woman.

"Now, time for her to have two of you to love!" cackled Scorpio as she squeezed, her claw threatening to cut him in two. Suddenly, her laugh turned into a shrill shriek and she dropped Showa on the ground. He saw what had been the cause and saw that Sylvia had just used the Revolcane to sever Scorpio's tail.

"MY TAIL!" Scorpio screehed before turning her angry, red eyes on Sylvia. "YOU BITCH! YOU CUT OFF MY TAIL!" Her eyes glowed and she fired lasers rapidly at her, only for Sylvia to jump backwards. Scorpio continued her assault and hit Sylvia in the leg, causing her to drop on one knee. "DIE!" Scorpio roared as she opened her claws and brought them down to sever Sylvia's head from her neck.

"LET'S RIDE: AMAZON! STRONGER! SUPER-1!"

"Electro Fire!" Electricity surged through the ground before exploding under Scorpio, knocking her off her feet and onto her side as she screamed. Her legs flailed about as she tried to get back up. Sylvia's eyes widened and she looked to see who'd saved her. She saw three Riders standing alongside Showa. One was clad in red and black with a helmet modeled after a bettle, another was mostly green with red stripes with the resemblance of a reptilian, and finally one clad in silver and black with fringes on his gloves and a wasp-themed helmet.

"Kamen Rider Stronger!"

"A...MA...ZON!"

"Kamen Rider...Super-1"

The three Legendary Riders struck their respective poses before going on the attack. Scorpio had just gotten back to her feet and was turning her body to confront the three new fighters. Amazon was the first to attack, letting out a cry of, "Gii! Gii gii"!" before executing his signature attack, "Dai Setsudan!" He swung his right arm down and he performed a downward cut along Scorpio's body, causing damage as his claws sliced down her body.

"Stronger Electro Kick!" shouted Stronger as his body burst with electrical power and he executed a flying sidekick, his foot connecting with Scorpio's face with enough force to send her staggering backwards. The electricity momentarily numbed her but she recovered in record time. She made a motion to move but stopped. She felt a chill and looked down to see Super-1 covering her body in ice with his cryogenic sprayer. He then aimed his flamethrower and released a gout of flame directly in her face. She struck with her claw but he performed a backwards somersault to dodge.

"Minna, hissatsu!" Showa called as the three Riders stood alongside him. Sylvia's armor vanished as an orb of energy flew towards Showa and reformed into RX. In a flash, Showa, Stronger, Amazon, Super-1 and RX were joined by BLACK, Biorider, Roborider, X and Skyrider. He lacked his full collection of Kamen Riders, but that was because the powers of Ichigo, Nigo, V3, Riderman, ZX, ZO, and J had gone to his friends. Showa Kage, Showa Higurashi and Showa Oni also joined the Riders.

"IKUZE!" Showa commanded before jumping into the air. Scorpio watched as they gained altitude before performing forward flips. They then performed flying sidekicks together, shooting at her at the same time.

"ALL RIDER KICK!" Showa shouted.

Scorpio fired a series of lasers but it was no use before she was hit by the combined finisher of the Kamen Riders. There was an explosion as Sylvia was nearly blown away by the fireball which resulted. Showa landed in front of her, stumbling a bit before standing upright. "There," he concluded. Sylvia stared at him and then back at the circle of fire surrounding the scorched area.

(**End Song**)

Standing in the circle of fire was Scorpio. She was back in her humanoid form and while she had survived, she was still injured from the All Rider Kick as she was holding her right arm and had trouble standing. Her eyes glared at Shinichi hatefully, swearing vengence, before she vanished from sight.

"That can't be good," Shinichi quipped as his armor vanished.

Shawna and her father were rushing down to the courtyard together, accompanied by guards.

"What happened?" King Edward questioned, demanding an explanation.

Shinichi was about to answer when his communicator rang.

* * *

Shinichi hadn't thought about using the Teleportal system. Instead he'd just crossed distances in his Guardian Jet Mode at a speed that broke the sound barrier. He had to get their fast so he didn't stop for anything. The news had been grave enough to warrant his reaction. He finally reached Japan, zeroining in on Shishibone City, and targetting his apartment complex. Before he crashed he assumed his Hinamizawa Guardian Form and landed outside the door. He stumbled as his armor disappeared and he reached for the door, which was unlocked. He swung it open and he saw Alan and Amora tending to an injured Tsukuyomi. The furniture had been moved aside to make up space for the futon where the Moon Goddess lay, bandages wrapped around her wounds. The Enchantress was casting a spell to accelerate her healing.

"What happened?" Shinichi demanded.

"Not sure," said Alan. "Rena called me, panicking. She said something happened to Tsukuyomi so I brought Amora along to see if she could do anything. When we got here, Rena was stripping Tsukuyomi to treat her wounds. Right now, Amora is casting a healing spell."

Shinichi looked as pale as Tsukuyomi did. "Where's Rena?" he asked.

"She went to the bathroom," said Alan. "She said she needed to grab more bandages."

"She's taking awhile though," said Bazel. "It's been like five minutes."

"I should get her," Shinichi volunteered. This was a chance to talk to Rena again. He went to the bathroom and swung the door open. "Rena?"

Rena wasn't there.

* * *

Shinichi had Alan pinned up against the wall, holding him up roughly by his jacket collar, as he shouted, "You were here and she disappeared?-!" While normally Alan could break Shinichi's grip on him, not only was Shinichi clad with the mystical Shield of Glen, he was radiating with suffocating amounts of Reiatsu which flooded the room. It was interfering with Alan's access to his powers and Amora felt chills.

"Shinichi, let him go!" Amora ordered. He ignored her. They didn't have time for this. Rena was missing and they had an injured goddess to tend to. However, when Shinichi felt overcome with rage, not much could break him out of it.

That was until the door was thrown open and a blue beam shot through the air, curving to hit Alan and Shinichi. The calming blue glow seemed to effect Shinichi as he let go of Alan as Alan felt himself being empowered by it. He recognised it instantly.

The power of Hope.

"You know, this seems oddly familiar," said Yuji as he entered the apartment, his Blue Lantern power ring of Hope shining. He wasn't alone, though. Lilith, Asura, Melanie and Phoebe were standing right behind him..

"Well, if it isn't Yuji Fudo. What brings you over with your entourage?" Amora asked.

"The girls sensed a high level of demonic energy radiating from this area so they convinced me to come and investigate. Misato would've come if Yuna wasn't in one of her moods," Yuji answered. "So, what's going on? Oh, and Shinichi, good to see you back."

"I would say the same if Rena hadn't gone missing," Shinichi said with a frown.

"How did she go missing?" Yuji asked.

"She went to the bathroom for a moment," said Amora. "But she just vanished, without us noticing."

Yuji stood there, folding his arms while tapping his chin. "Hmm, that is definitely strange. You'd figure that either you or Alan would have sensed anyone else entering Shin's apartment," he said to Amora who agreed.

"Yes, we should have. But there are even other forms of magic that can prevent detection," Amora reminded him.

Shinichi, depressed and still somewhat angry with what had just taken place, fell to his butt and sat next to Tsukuyomi, brushing a few strands of her hair from her face. He began to wonder, just what in the hell would have enough power to injure a goddess like this? Who could have doe this to her? Did this being also take Rena as well? He then thought back to his battle with Scorpio. She had mentioned that she was picking up where Leo left off. And he did notice that Leo and Scorpio though badly of Tsukuyomi. He even recalled Alan telling him of his fight with Apollo and how Apollo had mentioned being goaded into fighting him by the demon priestess, Virgo.

Virgo, Leo and Scorpio...who were they and what were their intentions? Scorpio had mentioned one more demon priest but had not given a name. Was that priest responsible for what had happened to Tsukuyomi and for Rena's sudden disappearance? His brow furrowing, Shinichi developed a dark look in his eyes as he got up. Yuji and Alan watched him as he walked towards the room he shared with Rena.

"Hey, Shin? You okay man?" Yuji asked.

"I'll be fine," Shinichi replied in a near emotionless voice. The tone sent shivers up and down the spines of some of the girls in the room. Shinichi was not usually this angry but, for the moment, he had every right to be.

"What are you going to do?" Alan asked him, knowing he'd have to keep an eye on his idiot big brother and make sure he didn't go on another revenge quest.

"I just need to have a talk with a couple of the voices in my head. I'll be back soon," Shinichi said as he closed the door behind him. As he sat on the floor next to his bed, sitting in a lotus position, his mind race with enraged thoughts. Whoever had hurt Tsukuyomi and taken Rena was going to suffer. That, he knew for sure.

* * *

On the dark side of the moon, a slowly degrading temple suddenly became covered in unholy lights of black and orange flames, the structure of the temple slowly regaining its former glorious appeal. Within the dark hallways and passed the pillars, torches began to light up as the four demon priests made their way to the sacred alter which was made of a strange black gold. And by black gold, it was as rare and malleable as gold but solid black in color. Resting above it was a crest of a completely dark star that looked like it was in the form of an eclipse.

Stopping in front of the altar, Leo, Virgo, Scorpio (who was now fully healed) and Cancer all got on one knee as a being slowly made their forward from the shadows of the alter. Looking up at their master, the four demon priests were suddenly to their feet as they prepared to receive their master's next set of orders.

"What is it that you wish of us, Lord Tsukimajai?" Leo asked. Tsukumajai, still concealed by the shadows, lifted up a feminine and human looking hand to silence him.

"Be patient, my loyal priest. I can tell that you wish to have another go at this...Kamen Rider Showa," Tsukimajai said in a female voice. Stepping forward into the light, she added, "And rest assured, this host of mine has given me insight unto how you can fully exact your revenge upon him.

There, standing before a now snickering group of demon priests was a young woman clad in a black sleeveless dress with a black leather bodice with red trim, the dress having a long single slit up the right side to allow her legs free movement. She wore elbow length fingerless gloves and a pair of leather six-inch high heels with spikes jutting out from the forward toe. Her skin was as pale as moonlight, her slender arms, neck and face covered in strange rune-like markings. Around her neck was a small black choker with a small moon pendant colored silver set in the center. Her hair was bouncy and brown in color but had onsets of black and silver streaks running through it. Her sclerae were pitch black and her irises were gold in color.

There, standing before the demon priests, smiling evilly and laughing with them as their final plans began to go into motion, was none other than...Rena.


	159. The Legacy of Cain Part 103

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 103: Serene Darkness**

Shinichi was sitting in his and Rena's bedroom, in front of the bed. He was in deep meditation as he entered his subconscious.

* * *

"_Rena-chan's been kidnapped and it's all my fault!" Shinichi shouted. He stood among the Tsukumogami. "I should've been at her side! I should have!"_

"_Lad, there were supernatural forces preventing you from being with her," argued St. George._

"_I could've tried harder! But instead I ran away!" Shinichi exclaimed before dropping down on his rear. "Seriously, I just wanted Rena-chan and her mom to reconcile. Despite her mistakes, Risa-san is still Rena-chan's mother. That can't change."_

"_Shinichi, now's not the time to be moping around," said Gokuaku. "Now's the time to save her."_

"_Where do I look?" Shinichi questioned in frustration, glaring at the green-skinned Oni. "How am I supposed to find her?"_

_Zennin answered, "You can find her, through your bond."_

"_My bond?" Shinichi asked. Zennin knelt and put his hand against Shinichi's heart._

"_The bond you hold right here."_

* * *

In the real world, Shinichi was holding the white Magatama he owned in his hand. It was one of two Magatama, with Rena possessing the red one. The two were connected and while the magic surrounding them was long gone as they had caused him and his friend a ton of trouble in a day, the connection was still there.

"Come on, Rena. Come on...where are you...?"

But it was no use. Whatever or whoever had taken Rena was blocking their link between their Magatama. Clutching his white Magatama within his hand tightly, Shinichi reentered his mindscape. While the Tsukumogami were right in that he and Rena shared a bond, it seemed that he would need a lot more power to track her down. And who knew one individual that dwelled within his mind that could give him that power.

* * *

"What do you think he's doing in there?" Yuji asked as he and Alan stood in front of the door.

"I dunno, but I'm more worried about Rena," said Alan. "I asked Sheila to find her using her communicator, but either she's out of range, which is unlikely, or it's been destroyed."

As they thought about all the possibilities, they looked down at the sound of Tsukuyomi crying out from a supposed nightmare. Kneeling next to her, Yuji took a damp cloth from a small bowl of water that was set on the coffee table, rung it out and placed it on her forehead. With her powers and godhood almost having been fully stripped from her by force, the pain was wreaking havoc on her body.

"Man, whatever did this to her must have been one hell of a badass," Yuji commented as he got back up.

"Whadda ya mean?" Alan asked.

"Think about it, beloved," Amora began. "Tsukuyomi is a goddess, and gods are not that easily hurt unless they fight a being that is nearly as strong or on par with their own power."

"Plus it's not easy to kill a god," Yuji added.

"Wait, isn't it impossible to kill a god? They are immortal after all," Alan queried. Yuji wagged his finger while shaking his head.

"Nope, not true. While it is normally inconceivable to kill one, it can be done. You just need to think outside the box and get passed all those damn rules." Alan and the others took a seat as Yuji began to explain the way of how one could kill a god. "For instance, you can kill a god with the blood from a Golden Hind and with the Dagger of Damocles. Then there are some forbidden spells and incantations which a high level magic user can cast to temporarily siphon off a god's powers to weaken them, making them practically mortal."

"Well, seeing as the Golden Hind's are no longer living in this reality," Amora stated, "and the Dagger of Democles is located within a different dimension during this point in time..."

"That leaves us with option three," finished Alan. "It was magic."

Alan really didn't like magic. After gaining the powers and abilities of Superman, he also gained all of his apparent weaknesses and magic was a big one next to Kryptonite.

* * *

_Back within his mindscape, Shinichi walked down a small pathway along the canyon walls, making it to the bottom level before continuing onwards. After a few moments, he came up to a cave that had strange bars of energy erected in front of it. From with the cave, attuning his hearing, he could easily pick up the sounds of low growls._

_Clenching his fists and furrowing his brow, "Dreigon! I know you're still in there!" He waited for a moment but got no response. "Listen, someone or something has attacked Tsuki-chan and now Rena-chan has gone missing! Not to mention I was attacked earlier by another one of those damn demon priests! Now I know that I blacked out during my fight with Leo and when I woke up he was gone. I'm guessing you had something to do with it!"_

_Waiting for a few seconds, he finally got a response as Dreigon appeared behind his cage's bars, looking down at Shinichi with tired eyes._

"_**Must you shout, Halfling? I was enjoying my nap,**" Dreigon complained._

"_Shut up! I need your power more than ever right now to find Rena-chan! Now, since you're living here, it's high time that you started paying rent so pay up!" Shinichi demanded. Dreigon just glared at him and lowered his head to meet Shinichi at eye level._

"_**Stupid little Halfling, you shall not receive one ounce of my help this time**."_

"_What?-!"_

"_**Think about it,**" Dreigon began as he raised his head back up. "**This is something that I am not needed for. You have the power, skill and ability to do so on your own. So stop relying on us all the time to get you out of problems that you can easily handle on your own.**"_

"_Why you fucking sonova-"_

"_**SILENCE BOY!**" Dreigon roared. "**Must I explain everything to you?-!**"_

"_What do you mean?" Shinichi asked, controlling his anger._

"_**Have you already forgotten all that you've learned from the training that the knight has put you through? Through the training, you have learned more about your inner strength and how to bring forth your untapped powers. You have learned to control them and have nearly mastered them. But, even more so, you have learned to do one thing that can truly aid you in finding both the ones who took one of your women and injured you lovely little moon goddess.**"_

_Shinichi stood there and thought about it for a moment. What did he learn from St. George's training that would help him increase his chances of locating Rena? What was it?_

"_**Oh, for the love of...you've bedded that girl so many times that you've left significant amounts of residual Reiryoku all over her body. Enough for you...**"_

"_To track!" Shinichi finished as he got Dreigon's hint. Looking up at the dragon, "Thanks Dreigon, I owe you one."_

"_**Just give those demons hell and we'll call it even**."_

_Shinichi nodded as he left his mindscape. As Dreigon went back into his cave, St. George and the other Tsukumogami looked on. They had heard the whole conversation and found themselves agreeing with Dreigon. This was something that Shinichi needed to do on his own. When it was time to fight the demons, then they would help, but for now, he should rely on his own power in tracking Rena down, and on the strength of his friends to help him out. After all, friends should always be there for one another, even if it was to just tell them the obvious and point them in the right direction. That was what Dreigon had done for Shinichi. And now he had Alan and Yuji to help him out in making those demon priests pay._

* * *

Alan and Yuji currently began to discuss some of the ways on tracking down the demon priests. With Rena M.I.A. and Tsukuyomi down and out for at least a few days until she replenished her energy, they knew that Shinichi was going to be on edge. They might not go after Satan, not with Beatrice around but that didn't mean that they wouldn't go after Shawna.

"Okay, so we should send some of the others to guard Shawna until we find these bastards and make them pay. We don't want Shin to lose anymore of his girls right now," Yuji said as they came up with their plan.

"Agreed," Alan replied. "He's unstable enough as it is with Rena missing and Tsukuyomi injured. And I don't think that they'd be stupid enough to go after Satan. Not while she's still under Lady Beatrice's constant care."

"Got that right. These guys have already fucked up bad by messing with some of Shinichi's girls. By pissing him off, they've pissed us off," declared Yuji who was just as angry as Shinichi and Alan.

As they continued to plan and talk about what they wanted to do, Shinichi's bedroom door swung open and both Alan and Yuji jumped back as Shinichi exclaimed, "I know where she is!"

* * *

"The moon? They're on the _moon_?" Yuji asked.

"How did you manage to come to that conclusion?" Alan questioned.

"Never mind how!" Shinichi snapped. "Are both your rings fully charged?" He was referring to Alan and Yuji's power rings. Alan sported the ring of the Green Lantern Corps while Yuji wore the ring of the Blue Lantern Corps.

"They are," Alan confirmed.

"Come on," said Shinichi as he assumed his Hinamizawa Guardian Form without using the usual command, "We have a date with some demon priests."

"Beloved," Amora began, "Be careful. These demon priests must have a master to whom they serve, someone powerful."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Alan as green energy swept over his body to don him in his uniform. She kissed him deeply, giving him her blessing.

Asura, Lilith, Melanie and Phoebe were all crowding around Yuji, wishing him good luck with kisses. They didn't want to lose him.

"Let's move," said Showa as he slid open the balcony door and jumped, transforming into his Guardian Jet Mode before blasting off skyward. Alan and Yuji, the latter in his Blue Lantern uniform, took off after the Rider who was leading the way.

Amora sat by Tsukuyomi, taking her hand in hers.

* * *

Tsukimajai was admiring her new body in the mirror. "Hm...very slender..." she said as she ran her hands up and down body, "And big in all the right places too." She fondled her breasts, "And so much negative emotion in her heart as well." She then drove deeper into Rena's mind and heart and found images of Shinichi. "Hmm...for a mortal, he's not bad looking. And it seems that he's the cause of your current negative feelings. I wonder if I can...enhance such negative emotions and use them against him? The thought of the look on his face as the body of his beloved woman taking his life. Ah, such a priceless moment it would be indeed."

* * *

Making it to the moon, Showa reached out his senses to lock onto any remaining Reiryoku that lingered from Rena's body. After a few seconds, he got a hit. The source of the residual Reiryoku...it was coming from the dark side of the moon. Looking back to Alan, '_There on the dark side of the moon!_' he told him, using their blood link. Alan then relayed the message to Yuji who nodded as they followed Showa.

* * *

Standing on a stone balcony from the highest floor of the temple, Leo and Scorpio looked at the stars and then at the sun. While they were only four, they had other siblings out there that were once former priests to their master...well, mistress now. Of the twelve of their group, the four of them were the only ones who remained loyal to Tsukimajai. The others either reformed or went out on their own to cause trouble. Last they heard, many of them were imprisoned while only two had sided with the forces of good.

It was a problem that Leo himself would rectify once the time came. He swore it. He would reunite his broken family of demon priests and the twelve of them would serve Tsukimajai faithfully once more.

"Onii-sama! Look!" Scorpio shouted as she pointed up to the sky above them. There, coming towards them at a fast rate of speed, was Kamen Rider Showa in his Guardian Jet form.

Leo growled for a moment as Showa entered the field of energy that gave the temple of atmosphere similar to that of Earth's. Seeing as Tsukimajai's current host was human, she would need an atmosphere suitable for her host to survive until she could move about on her own.

The Guardian Jet flew over the temple, announcing his presence instantly before coming in for a landing. The jet transformed, becoming more human-shaped by the seconds, before Showa planted his feet on the floor. "Where's my girlfriend?" he demanded.

Leo and Scorpio only looked at on another and then laughed loudly. As they laughed, the sound of the laughter grew as both Virgo and Cancer joined them. Shinichi looked at them and, guessing by their appearances, they were the two remaining priests.

"Silly pathetic mortal. Do you think you can demand answers from us, boy?" scoffed Leo. "You're all alone and there's four of us."

Showa just smiled under his helmet. "Man, you must have sucked at math in school, because I'm not alone," said Showa as two spheres of light, one green and one blue landed to his left and right. The spheres then faded away, revealing the glowing figures of the Green Lantern Alan Smith and the Blue Lantern Yuji Fudo.

"Ah, a Green Lantern and a Blue Lantern," Cancer said snidely. "I thought they all went extinct centuries ago."

"Onee-sama, I'm going to guess that it was the Green Lantern that you failed to get the Sun God Apollo to kill, correct?" Scorpio asked as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Yes, that would be him," Virgo replied and then she looked at Yuji. "Ara, ara, why is it that you heroes are so good looking? I makes me want to shackle you to my wall and tame you, bending you to my will."

Yuji and Alan gagged at the remark. "Jeez lady, aren't we the kinky little demon dominatrix?" Yuji quipped. "Sorry, but we'll be taking Rena back now."

"I don't think so," Leo countered. "Four of us and three of you. You obviously can already tell that we won't return the girl. Tsukimajai needs her as a host until she can siphon off the last of Tsukuyomi's life energy. Until then, we can't let her go."

"Sorry, but I'm gonna have to take my girlfriend back now!" Showa exclaimed. He then noticed Leo and Virgo step forward, the priestess presenting her halberd as Leo brandished his claws.

'_...ichi...Sh...chi...HALFLING! Answer me already!_' Shinichi's head snapped up.

'_Huh, Dreigon? What is it?_'

'_Remember, use YOUR power for this match. Show them why you are not someone who should be trifled with. As a Rider, you are strong. But as a man, you are stronger_,' Dreigon told him, giving Shinichi some moral encouragement.

'_The lizard's right, boy. Show those bastards why they can't mess with you_,' Gokuaku cheered him on.

'_Make them pay for harming Rena and Tsukuyomi_,' Zennin added.

'_And show them why evil should fear the Kamen Riders_,' Yabuki added as well.

'_Use what we've taught you and your skills as a warrior and you will not fail. Remember, keep your mind calm and focused on what must be done_,' St. George reminded.

Showa smiled under his helmet. '_Thanks you guys_.' Raising his hands, Showa first removed the mouthplate and then the helm of the helmet, dropping them to the floor. His eyes glaring as the sclerae turned pitch black and his pupils slitted and irises were gold in color; his hair becoming slightly more pointed as it turned silver, Shinichi held out his right hand and focused on it. In a flash of black and red light, the Seigi no Hogosha appeared in his hand.

A blade, representing his soul, his ideals and his purpose.

Leo looked on with an impressed look in his eyes. It seemed that the boy wanted to fight him with skill and honor. It was a sentiment that he could understand. Virgo, sensing her older brother's warrior spirit flaring up, decided to join him.

"I see. So you have finally decided to show me that warriors spirit of yours? Very well then. I will no longer hold back," Leo said with a eerily elated tone.

"I'll be fighting in this match too," Virgo said. "I could use the exercise and I'd like to make him into a possible love slave should Mistress Tsukimajai permit it."

"Sorry, but two-on-one isn't kinda fair," Yuji said as he stepped forward but jumped back as Scorpio's stinger slashed the ground in front of him. "Whoa!"

"Sorry, but I'll be your opponent, Manakyte," Scorpio said as she began to head towards another entrance to the temple.

Alan looked at Cancer and let out a sigh. '_Well, at least I don't have to fight the women of their group._' Locking eyes with Cancer, "I guess that just leaves us then."

"I don't mind at all," Cancer chided evilly. "It'll give me something to help warm myself up on for when we take on your brother later."

(**Insert BGM - Kamen Rider Aqua - Movie Taisen Mega Max OST**)

The two opposing groups locked eyes with their opponents and, after a few seconds passed, the battles began. Alan flew off towards one entrance with Cancer in hot pursuit as Yuji flew off after Scorpio. This left Shinichi all alone against Leo and Virgo.

Leo ran at Shinichi who ran right back, the two of them lashing out at one another with their weapons. Shinichi blocked a slash to his chest with the Seigi no Hogosha, pushing Leo's claws away before ducking and using Shunpo to gain some distance as he dodged a strike to his head from Virgo's halberd.

"My, aren't we the fast one," Virgo commented.

"Heh, lady, you have no idea," Shinichi replied as he charged back at them for another go. Their weapons clashed as steel met against steel. Virgo swung her halberd for a decapitating strike but he ducked before spinning around to jab Leo in the gut and send him skidding back.

(**End BGM**)

* * *

Scorpio was attacking Yuji with her signature style, in other words using a series of powerful kicks. The spikes on the tip of her feet also added damage and her nature as a scorpion demon meant that it would be a bad idea for Yuji to be struck by one of those spikes without protection. Fortunately, the protective blue aura surrounding Yuji was a good defense against the debilitating effects of Scorpio's kicks.

He dodged a kick and punched Scorpio in the chest, sending her skidding backwards. He then enveloped his hands with flames, which turned blue, before executing a series of punches, launching the fireballs at her. Scorpio countered, standing on her hands and spreading her legs in a split to spin like a top and deflecting the blue fireballs.

While her true form was not as attractive as her sister Virgo's. Scorpio did have a human form, one that she felt was aesthetically pleasing with soft and fair skin, curves in all the right places, and hair that was smooth and soft. Looking at the Blue Lantern, she had to admit that he was quite attractive. "You know, if you'd like, I could keep you around as a pet."

"Sorry, but I've already got a place I enjoy," said Yuji as he formed a whip of blue fire and struck. The whip missed but it did slice a pillar in half. Scorpip ran up to Yuji before caressing his cheek with one of her fingers.

"Really? I could show you things you couldn't possibly imagine," she said before doing a backflip and hitting his jaw with the heel of her foot. "Don't knock it until you try it," she said.

"I...think I'll pass," said Yuji with discomfort as he reached inside his jacket and pulled out Featherine's brush. In a flash it extended and changed, turning into the Crimson Dragon Spear. The blade was inflamed and Scorpio took a second to admire the weapon.

"Very beautiful," she complimented.

He twirled the weapon expertly and started jabbing at Scorpio at lightning speed. Now she was in trouble as she tried to dodge, demonstrating fancy footwork, but the Manakyte wasn't giving her any openings to exploit. Yuji's eyes flashed. "THERE!" he shouted before striking and sparks flew as the blade connected, ripping sparks across Scorpio's chest and sending her tumbling.

"BASTARD!" Scorpio roared. She fired lasers from her eyes at Yuji who deflected with his Crimson Dragon Spear. Leaping up, he turned the spear back into a brush and his right hand changed into the Verz Claw. One strike from that claw tore more sparks off Scorpio's armor. He then changed the claw into the Hammer Fist and sent the scorpion demon priestess flying with a straight haymaker to the stomach, her body bending in half as she went airborne.

* * *

Alan was learning how irritating Cancer was. Not only was he unable to break the crab demon priest's shell, but the crustacean just wouldn't shut up! He just kept making bad jokes and horrible puns.

"You must be green with envy because of my superiority!" laughed Cancer. "Aw, don't be sad. Your friend has it covered because he's blue!" Cancer was hit with another blast from the power ring but he simply rubbed at the spot. "I've heard legends, and all about you, but you're not really impressing me," Cancer continued. "How boring!" He swung his claw, shooting crescent-shaped blades of red energy towards Alan, hitting him in the chest. "And so weak too!"

Alan got up and punched Cancer in the face with enough force to send him flying, hitting a wall and making a crater. However, he jumped out of the crater, unharmed.

"What is that armor made of?" Bazel asked.

"I don't know, but it and his voice are really getting on my nerves," Alan stated. He rushed at the Cancer demon priest for a punch only for his wrist to be caught by Cancer's pincers.

"I got you!" gloated Cancer. He noticed Alan's grin. "What are you smiling at?" He then realized his folly too late. "Uh-oh."

"Gotcha!" Alan's eyes glowed as he gave Cancer a hit with his heat vision. While it did not penetrate his armor, it was starting to heat him up from the inside out.

"HOT! HOT! HOT!" Cancer screamed and tried to let go only for Alan to keep his pincers on him. "LEMME GO! LEMME GO!" he continued to scream.

"You scream like a girl!" said Alan as he stopped before taking in a deep breath and literally blowing Cancer away. Cancer went tumbling. Recovering, he stood back up.

"You...you...WINDBAG!" shouted Cancer furiously.

"Hey, I'm not the one who can't stop talking," Alan shrugged. He then drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. "Now, I think it's time we went for another round or two."

* * *

Shinichi avoided what could've been a painful and lethal slash as Leo's claws dug gouges into a statue of Tsukimajai, marring the face with scars.

"You fool! Do you know what you've just done?-! You've made me deface the statue which portrays the image of our great master!" Leo shouted.

"I did? Oh, sorry about that. Ya know it's so hard to find good real estate on the moon these day with such eye catching decor." Using his Reiryoku to keep himself stuck to the wall and out of Leo's reach, Showa quickly jumped to the other side of the room as Leo jumped at him, slashing with his serrated claws and gouging claw marks into the solid stone that made up the temple. "Jeez, Leo. You ever see a manicurist about those things?"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!"

"Does kitty wanna play?" taunted Shinichi in a baby voice. He stuck his tongue out at Leo, further taunting the lion demon who lunged at him, which was just what he wanted. "Shakkaho!" The explosion blew Shinichi backwards but Leo received the brunt of the damage.

Enraged, Leo unleashed a roar which hit the unmasked Rider like a battering him, sending him flying and crashing through a wall. He landed, groaning, and looked up to see Virgo about to swing her halberd down on him. He blocked with the Seigi no Hogosha and pushed her away before getting back to his feet. She flew at him and struck with her halberd in a spin, knocking him backwards before lunging to aim a blow to his head. He blocked with the Seigi no Hogosha, parrying the blow before jabbing the blade at her to drive her back. In retaliation, she sent him skidding backwards with a wave of pink energy generated by her flapping wings.

"OK, take this!" he shouted as he focused electricity into the sword before thrusting it into the ground. The electricity surged through the ground towards Virgo but she avoided with a flap of her wings, hovering high off the ground. Raising his sword, he swung, "Kin no Higurashi Zan!" However, Virgo was able to avoid the attack before firing a beam of pink energy that hit him square in the chest. He was knocked off his feet but he managed to regain his equilibrium and land on his feet before receiving a strike in the back from Leo. He was spun around unwillingly before being hit with several slashes that left scars all over his chest armor. A blast of pink-tinted wind sent Shinichi soaring before tumbling across the ground.

Shinichi was on his hands and knees, panting, as he heard in his head, '_Lad, what are you doing?-! You're going to be killed!'_

"They're...just too strong!" Shinichi shouted back as he got up on one knee.

'_You've fought against odds like these before, boy!_' said Gokuaku. '_Remember all your past battles, all your past victories!_'

'_Remember what you're fighting for_,' Yabuki added.

Shinichi remembered. He was fighting so he could see the face of his beloved girlfriend as she smiled. Virgo and Leo fired their attacks as Shinichi punched the ground with the fist encased by the Shield of Glen. A dome shield erected itself around him, protecting him from the combo attack. He then stood up, glaring at the demon priest siblings with his eyes glowing with a gold shine.

* * *

Using his strength, Alan slammed his fist into Cancer's gut, knocking him right into a statue of Tsukimajai. Watching as the Crab-based demon fell on his back, he smiled as the statue toppled over and landed on top of Cancer, pinning him down.

"Now that's what I call a crab cake...great, now I sound like my brother." He then saw Scorpio being thrown through the air before landing on her back next to Cancer. Yuji followed after, landing on his feet next to Alan.

"Yo, what's up?" asked Yuji.

"Just fine," said Alan.

Cancer was pulling himself free from under the statue and climbed to his feet as Scorpio did the same.

"You...you...YOU!-!-!" Cancer shouted, pointing at Alan.

"Wow, he's mad," observed Yuji.

"Yeah, and completely speechless too," added Alan.

Scorpio was back on her feet as well and staring at Yuji with hatred, "You know...I wanted you as a pet at first, but now all I want to do is beat you within an inch of your life then ride you until you flat line!"

"She apparently has issues," quipped Alan.

"Yeah...can that be considered necrophilia?" Yuji asked, disturbed by the image.

"Only if she keeps riding you _after _you flat line."

The two demons then shouted, in unison, as their Youki and cosmic energy skyrocketed, "CHOU YOUMA SHINSEI!" In an explosion of energy, the two transformed into their much larger and stronger Demon Supernova forms.

"Looks like they're up for another round," said Alan as he summoned the Armor of Bazel. He took out the Sonic Screwdriver and performed a scan on their enemies. "Hm...looks like they've released all the Youki and cosmic energy they possess." He put the sonic device away. "Good to know," he noted.

Yuji roared as he changed, assuming his dark and draconic Verz Vulcan form, with vicious claws, teeth capable of tearing steel like flesh, and wings that truly made him a fearsome sight.

Alan had the Kusanagi no Tsurugi gripped tightly in his hand and he was ready for this round of the battle. Of course, due to being in the vicinity of Yuji's own power ring, which was still covering the transformed Manakyte in its blue aura, Alan's own body was wrapped in a green aura which radiated off him like flames as his eyes glowed bright green.

A Blue Lantern's ring, while in the proximity of a Green Lantern's ring, would be able to access 100 percent of its capabilities. In exchange, a Green Lantern's ring would be supercharged as well. This was a partnership of two lights of the emotional spectrum: Will and Hope.

Of course, they were not going to using their rings, for most of this fight.

"**LET'S GO!**" Verz Vulcan roared as he took off, engaging Scorpio with pure ferocity as Alan was left to confront the transformed Cancer.

"Any last words?" Cancer asked, looking forward to tearing Alan apart.

"Just a few," said Alan and he created green energy constructs such as cannons on his shoulders, missile launchers on his chest, and a big ass gun in his free hand. Taking aim, he said, "Are you feeling lucky, punk?" This questioned was answered as Cancer was bombarded by pure, green firepower.

Scorpio struck but hit nothing but air as Verz Vulcan blurred from sight. She screamed as she was slashed across the face by the his claws and then knocked back by a kick to her jaw. She stumbled a bit and fired a series of lasers which curved through the air, hitting Yuji. However, he had cacooned himself with his wings and when he spread them out, he was just fine.

"Take this!" Verz Vulcan roared as he crashed to the ground and buried his fist into the floor. Cracks spread under Scorpio and all of a sudden she was struck by sharp tendrils which bound her legs and impaled her body painfully.

"AAAHHHH!" she shrieked painfully. The tendrils wrapped over her body, constricting her movements and crushing her.

The smoke cleared and Cancer stood proudly, laughing, "Hahahah! You're going to need more than that! Nothing you can do can break this shell!"

"I don't know about that," shrugged Alan as he used his X-Ray vision before grinning. Cancer didn't notice and swung his claw down on Alan who jumped back. Cancer continued to swing, strike after strike, but Alan kept hopping backwards to avoid the giant crustacean's attack. Alan leapt upwards and stayed in the air before pointing the Kusanagi no Tsurugi at Cancer. The flaming green aura around his body was covering the blade which crackled with energy. He shot towards Cancer who brought up one of his claws to defend himself, only for it to fall as Alan easily sliced through the armor and the flesh. The claw crashed and Cancer howled in pain. "My claw! My claw!" he shouted in agony. The stump was smoking as well. "Hot! Hot!"

"Guess your shell is penetrable after all," quipped Alan. "And now, for my next trick!" He constructed a giant crab hammer. Cancer seemed to flinch at the sight. "I see you know what this is!" He put away the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and gripped the shaft tight. "Get ready, everyone, because it's time for crab chowder!" He caught himself, remarking, "OK, I need to seriously stop hanging out with Shinichi for awhile."

Cancer wasn't intimidated, no he wasn't. Even if he was shaking so much. He was not going to be reminded how his siblings used to taunt him with crab hammers in his youth, how they joked about wanting to boil him in hot water, and crack him open for the juicy white bits. He was not trembling, he wasn't...why won't his body stop shaking?-!

"HAMMER TIME!" Alan shouted as he brought his hammer up over his head and jumped, swinging down on Cancer who tried to defend himself with his remaining claw but it was shattered by the hammer. He tried to grab Alan with his other arms but they couldn't reach him as he continued to bash Cancer's skull with it.

"Stop! Stop hammering me!" Cancer shouted as he tried to shake Alan off.

"How about this?" Alan answered as he turned the crab hammer into a jackhammer and started assaulting Cancer with it.

"THAT'S EVEN WORSE!"

Back with Yuji and Scorpio, she had managed to free herself but her wounds still needed time to heal. She lashed with her tail only for him to whip it away with his own. She then swung her claws at him only for him to catch them in his.

"Why...how...can you be...so strong!-?" Scorpio shouted in frustration.

"Figure it out for yourself!" he answered before picking her up and smashing her flat to the floor. She lashed out with her tail that he caught and he spun her in the air. He looked to see Alan and Cancer and grinned before shouting, "HEADS UP!" He tossed Scorpio, screaming, towards them and Alan saw her coming in the middle of breaking open Cancer's shell. He leapt off and Cancer was crushed under his sister's weight.

"ACK!" Cancer shouted. "GET OFF ME, FATASS!"

Alan and Verz Vulcan took a moment to admire the two anthropoid demons struggling to free themselves.

"_In brightest day, in blackest night_," Alan began.

Verz Vulcan reverted to Yuji and also began reciting, "_In fearful day day, in raging night_."

"_No evil shall escape my sight/With strong hearts full, our souls ignite,_

_Let those who worship evil's might/When all seems lost in the War of Light,_

_Beware my power.../Look to the stars..."_

With each verse, they power grew, their rings resonating with each other.

Cancer and Scorpio managed to untangle themselves as they reverted back to their regular forms, only to tremble at the sight of Alan and Yuji, glowing with green & blue light.

"What...what are they doing...?" Scorpio asked.

"Who cares what they're doing! We have to stop that damn light show!" shouted Cancer.

But it was already too late for them.

"_**GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!**__**/**__**FOR HOPE BURNS BRIGHT!**_"

There was a bright explosion of of green and blue light...and then...

..._silence_.

* * *

'_Halfling, I no longer sense __the enhanced feeling of __Reiatsu from those two priests but I feel those of your comrades. It's faint since they seem drained, but alive_,' Dreigon reported.

'_And the two priests?_' Shinichi asked.

'_...just barely. Their energy is even more faint than those of your comrades._'

"Then I guess it's time I stopped holding back," said Shinichi.

"What are you mumbling about?" Virgo demanded impatiently.

"Just wondering what I should put on your tombstone," said Shinichi and Virgo was taken aback by this. Recovering, and outraged by Shinichi's audacity, she fired a beam of pink energy at him, only to miss as it literally passed through him like he was a ghost.

She'd only hit his afterimage. She saw him coming at her from her peripheral vision and brought her halberd up to attack, but he cut the shaft in half and the edge of his sword cut across the chest, spilling her blood. She stumbled back and looked up only to be staring at his open palm.

"I want answers, but I only need one of you alive," he said before reciting:

"_In darkest night, in brightest day,_

_No evil shall stand in my way,_

_For those who follow evil's path_

_Behold my power...**BEWARE MY WRATH!**"_

Virgo received a faceful of pure Youki and Reiryoku in a single, silver blast which tore apart the ground and made the air shake as she was completely engulfed. Leo, startled, was blown away by the blast and had to dig his claws into the floor so he wouldn't be sent soaring. When the blast subsided, the smoke clearing, Leo could see a trench that scarred the floor. There, lying before Shinichi's feet, unconscious, was the prone form of Virgo. Her body was lying in a pool of her own blood and most of her feathers now littered the floor around them.

Leo froze and was paralyzed when he felt the tip of Shinichi's sword pressed against his throat. The lion demon started to wonder to himself if this was the boy who he'd overpowered before. He was different now, more ruthless.

"Where's Rena?" he asked.

And then he heard, "Right behind you." Shinichi turned and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Rena-chan?"


	160. The Legacy of Cain Part 104

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 104: The Lunar Demon **

Resting in the futon, Tsukuyomi tossed and turned constantly as if she was suffering from a nightmare. Amora kept Tsukuyomi's hand in hers as she tried to comfort her. She had promised Alan and the others that she would protect her while they were out and she would make sure to keep that promise.

'_Don't worry, little goddess_,' Amora thought to herself. '_Shinichi is no pushover. I've seen him fight many times and I can attest to his strength. He will get Rena back and take revenge against those that have hurt you_.'

As she sat there next to Tsukuyomi, Amora raised her head at the sound of a knock at the door. Looking back at Tsukuyomi, Amora got up to answer the door, only to feel relief at the sight of Hanyuu standing there in the doorway.

"Hey, Sheila contacted me about the current situation so I came to help out," Hanyuu said as she entered the apartment.

"We appreciate it," Amore replied as she led Hanyuu into the living room.

The goddess looked over to see both Phoebe and Melanie sitting on either side of Tsukuyomi while Lilith entered with another bowl of water and Asura following behind her with a fresh set of small clean towels to use to keep Tsukuyomi's fever down.

Hanyuu looked at the sight of pain on her fellow goddess' face and cringed with anger. How dare someone do this to another goddess. Especially one that had feelings for her adoptive older brother. She really hoped that Shinichi made them suffer for this. What was worse was that Rena had been abducted as well, which meant their suffering would be multiplied as as a result.

"How long has she been like this?" Hanyuu asked as she knelt down next to Tsukuyomi, holding her hands above her body as she began to summon some of her power to try and heal some of Tsukuyomi's injuries.

"Almost the entire time since Rena first brought her inside," Asura replied after having learned what had happened from Alan.

"Speaking of Rena, did they locate her yet?"

"Yes, Shinichi traced her signal to the moon," Amora replied as she knelt next to Hanyuu to assist her.

The moon? Why was it always something that resembled a graveyard with demon priests was beyond her. All Hanyuu cared about was helping her friends. As she started to poor some of her own Reiryoku into Tsukuyomi, they were all startled by a sudden voice calling out from behind them. A very familiar voice.

"Ah, minna, what are you all doing here?" Everyone in the room turned around to see the form of Rena standing behind them.

"Rena-san!" Hanyuu cried out as she leapt to her feet before going to hug the girl but Amora held the lavender-haired goddess back. "What? Let me go!"

"Rena, how did you get free?" asked Amora, a suspicious edge in her voice. Shinichi had sensed that Rena was on the moon, so how was she here, talking to them?

As Rena prepared to answer them, they all looked over at the sound of Tsukuyomi stirring as she finally began to awaken from her bout with unconsciousness. Slowly opening her eyes, Tsukuyomi looked around to see a lot of familiar faces looking back at her with happy, worried and tear-filled eyes.

"W...where am...I?" she asked as she slowly pushed herself up, both Asura and Phoebe keeping their hands on her shoulders to keep her steady.

"You're in Shinichi and Rena's apartment," Melanie informed her.

"I see."

"Tsukuyomi, do you remember what happened to you? Who was it that attacked you?" Amora asked as Rena stepped closer.

As she tried to shake the dizzies out of her head, Tsukuyomi looked up at Rena and could suddenly feel the intense amount of Youki coming off of her body in waves. And not just Youki, but her stolen lunar energy as well. Squinting her eyes and glaring at Rena, she gasped as she saw the true form that was hidden within her.

"It...it can't be," Tsukuyomi studdered. "I sealed you away. You shouldn't be free!"

The rest of the girls looked at Tsukuyomi in shock but were surprised even more at the sound of Rena laughing. And by laughing, I mean maniacal, demonic, inhuman laughter.

"**Hehehehehehehe...HAHAHAHAHAHA!**" Everyone looked at Rena as her form changed to that of what she had looked like back at the temple. "**So good of you to remember me, Tomboy-sama!**" Tsukimajai shouted as she used her powers to send everyone in the room flying into the walls, restraining them with manacles made of dark cosmic energy which locked around their wrists and ankles, preventing their interference.

Tsukimajai then began to stalk towards Tsukuyomi who tried to back away. The moon goddess knew that, in her weakened state, she was no match for the demon goddess of the dark side of the moon.

"Tsukimajai...I should have known that it was you who sent Virgo, Leo and Scorpio to distract everyone while you broke free from the seal," Tsukuyomi claimed as she backed right into the couch. "What I want to know is, how in the hell did you get free? There was no way you could have broken that seal on your own."

"**Ah, yes, that lovely lunar seal you placed on me. I had my demon priests, Pisces and Sagittarius, combine their powers with that of Aries to set me free. It cost them their lives but it was for the good cause of setting me free**," Tsukimajai told her as she grabbed Tsukuyomi by her hair and yanked her up hard, causing Tsukuyomi to scream in pain. "**I would have had more help but you and your lot of other gods and goddesses imprisoned Libra and Gemini while Capricorn went into hiding. I couldnt' find Taurus which means he's probably already dead and Aquarius decided to switch sides and become a good little priestess instead. So I had to work with what I had available to me.**"

Tsukuyomi glared at her and spat in her face. "You...monster. This is why the other gods denied you the right of your godhood in the first place! You have more anger and hatred than any other evil god or goddess to have ever lived. It's no wonder why you couldn't even find yourself any friends. You killed them all."

"**Meh, maybe so. But now I'm going to take the last of your powers away and steal your life force**," Tsukimajai said. "**And as for this girl, she'll become my new body so that I can have a human form. If anything, I might give that boyfriend of hers, the man you love, a good couple of spins before I slit his throat before your eyes**."

"**I THINK NOT!-!-!**" Amora shouted in anger as she used her magic to remove herself from the wall, shattering the dark manacles binding her. "I...will not permit you to harm another hair on her head!"

Looking at Amora, Tsukimajai then noticed Hanyuu freeing herself as well. Letting out a sigh, "**Sorry, but no party crashers aloud for this momentous occasion**." With a wave of her hand and while letting out a shrill cackle, Tsukimajai teleported away with Tsukuyomi as her hostage.

"No!" Hanyuu shouted but was too late as they were gone within an instant.

As the other girls were finally free of their shackles, the room was suddenly filled with bright sunlight. In a matter of seconds, Amaterasu appeared, the sunlight dimming away. Having heard of her sister being injured, she came running but now found her nowhere to be seen. She did, however, sense the lingering effects of intense amounts of Youki in the air.

Looking at the girls before her, "Okay, where is my little sister?"

"You're too late, Amaterasu. Your sister was taken," said Hanyuu dejectedly.

* * *

'_Halfling, I no longer sense __the enhanced feeling of __Reiatsu from those two priests but I feel those of your comrades. It's faint since they seem drained, but alive_,' Dreigon reported.

'_And the two priests?_' Shinichi asked.

'_...just barely. Their energy is even more faint than those of your comrades._'

"Then I guess it's time I stopped holding back," said Shinichi.

"What are you mumbling about?" Virgo demanded impatiently.

"Just wondering what I should put on your tombstone," said Shinichi and Virgo was taken aback by this. Recovering, and outraged by Shinichi's audacity, she fired a beam of pink energy at him, only to miss as it literally passed through him like he was a ghost.

She'd only hit his afterimage. She saw him coming at her from her peripheral vision and brought her halberd up to attack, but he cut the shaft in half and the edge of his sword cut across the chest, spilling her blood. She stumbled back and looked up only to be staring at his open palm.

"I want answers, but I only need one of you alive," he said before reciting:

"_In darkest night, in brightest day,_

_No evil shall stand in my way,_

_For those who follow evil's path_

_Behold my power...**BEWARE MY WRATH!**"_

Virgo received a faceful of pure Youki and Reiryoku in a single, silver blast which tore apart the ground and made the air shake as she was completely engulfed. Leo, startled, was blown away by the blast and had to dig his claws into the floor so he wouldn't be sent soaring. When the blast subsided, the smoke clearing, Leo could see a trench that scarred the floor. There, lying before Shinichi's feet, unconscious, was the prone form of Virgo. Her body was lying in a pool of her own blood and most of her feathers now littered the floor around them.

Leo froze and was paralyzed when he felt the tip of Shinichi's sword pressed against his throat. The lion demon started to wonder to himself if this was the boy who he'd overpowered before. He was different now, more ruthless.

"Where's Rena?" he asked.

And then he heard, "Right behind you." Shinichi turned and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Rena-chan?"

There, standing before both Shinichi and Leo was Rena but she was not Rena. She was Tsukimajai who had possessed Rena's body. As Shinichi looked at Rena in her new outfit, he noticed a small pentagram of light forming behind her. As the pentagram materialized, he quickly saw Tsukuyomi, battered and bloody, shackled to it.

"Tsuki-chan!" Shinichi shouted as he saw the state she was in.

"Sh-Shinichi..." Tsukuyomi gasped in painful breathes before crying out in agony as her body was suddenly enveloped with dark demonic electricity, the pain from her previous injuries being intensified to even higher levels.

"Tsuki-chan!" Shinichi then looked at Rena and noticed her eyes glowing red. Shinichi couldn't believe it. Rena was hurting one of her friends. And even more alarming, she was giving off dangerous amounts of Youki. "Rena-chan, what do you think you're doing?-! Stop it! You'll kill her!"

"**That's the whole idea, Shinichi,**" Rena-Tsukimajai said darkly as she snapped her fingers, sending more pain coursing throughout Tsukuyomi's body.

"YAMEROU!-!-!" Shinichi screamed he ran over to Rena, grabbing her by the shoulders; trying to shake her back to reality. "Fight it, Rena! This isn't you! You're being con-Gah!" Shinichi was sent flying across the floor by Rena who had slammed her fist right into his gut, and I mean into it.

Shinichi hit the far wall and slid down to the floor. A puddle of his own blood formed under him but he was able to bear the pain. He knew his nanites would have him patched up within moments. But for now, he had to try and get through to Rena.

Rena-Tsukimajai, looking over at her two fallen priests, just smiled softly. "**Leo, take Virgo and go find Scorpio and Cancer. Get them out of here until I summon you once more**."

"But...Mi-" Leo began until he noticed the cold look in her eyes. Swallowing his pride, "As you command, my Mistress Tsukimajai!" Leo then took his sister and vanished as he went to locate his other two siblings.

"Get out..." Shinichi groaned as he struggled to stand up, a hand against the wall as his injuries were healing. "Get...the Hell...out of my girlfriend!"

"**Mmm...sorry, no can do. I quite like it in here. She has so much anger and pent up negative emotions that it just makes it so hard to leave**."

"Please, I'm begging you. She's just a girl; a powerless, normal human girl. If you want a host body, choose someone else, but not her. Anybody but her," Shinichi pleaded.

As Shinichi tried to get Tsukimajai to release Rena's body, a golden light, similar to sunshine, appeared on the other side of the room, dimming to allow both Hanyuu and Amaterasu to appear. Tsukimajai, seeing the new pests, simply waved her hand and erected a barrier around her, Tsukuyomi and Shinichi. She would not allow anyone to interfere with her.

"You little hussy! Unhand my Imoutou this instant!" Amaterasu ordered in a very threatening tone. Both her and Hanyuu's bodies began to glow as their godly powers began to ripple off of their bodies in waves. Yuji and Alan soon arrived and noticed the scene before them and stood back. They knew better than to get in the way of an angry goddess, much less two of them.

"**Sorry, but this is between the three of us**," Tsukimajai replied coldly. "**I owe this little tomboy of a bitch after what she did to me.**" Rena-Tsukimajai's eyes narrowed into a glare as she recalled her last encounter with Tsukuyomi. "**The bitch defeated me after I tried to kill all the other gods and goddesses associated with the moon and then she sealed me away for all eternity! For that, she will suffer! I will take away her power and then I will take the man she loves away from her as well. Then, and only then, after she has suffered enough, will I end her pathetic little existence that she calls a life!**"

Tsukumajai then looked back at Tsukuyomi and got an idea. To her it was interesting, but she would need to goad Shinichi into getting close to her. Turning around and slowly walking towards Tsukuyomi, she suddenly stopped as she felt a gust of wind blew past her.

* * *

Looking around herself, Rena only noticed pure darkness. It was overwhelming to her as she sat on the ground, holding her knees to her chest as she tried to figure out how she got there. The last thing she could remember was going to the bathroom to get some more towels to use on Tsukuyomi when she was suddenly covered in a veil of red and pink light. After that, it all just went black. The next thing she knew was that she was were she was now and she had no idea how to get back home.

"Where am I? Where is everyone? And what is this place?" She asked aloud, a bit of fear ringing in her voice.

"_Hehehehehe...afraid, are we?_" a feminine voice called out from the darkness. Rena's head shot up, turning to each side as she began to look around for the source of the voice.

"W-who's there? Who are you and why am I here?" Rean asked as she got up and began to move about.

"_Oh, don't even bother looking for me,_" the voice said. "_You'll never find me unless I want you to. As for where you are, don't you recognize the utter blackness of your own heart when you see it?_"

"W-what? What is that supposed to mean?" Rena asked.

She got her answer as the dark void that she was in was suddenly filled with the images of all her dark thoughts and her most unholy of sins. She could see some of her past lives where she had killed her friends and others where they killed her. She could hear her inner demons as some of her more dark memories of how she resented Shinichi for a short time for lying to her about hiding things. She could see some of her darker moments where she had thoughts of killing the other girls as they flirted with him. And then she saw her most recent thoughts as she began to have twisted and dark ideas of going after and killing her mother for making her boyfriend betray her.

Deep down, she still loathed her mother and she didn't know if she could ever forgive her. The images then vanished, being replaced by a figure that resembled herself but wearing a somewhat revealing black dress and leather bodice. This version of her also had dark tribal tattoo lines all along her skin and she was giving off a very dark aura.

"It can't be. Is that...is that me?" Rena asked the other her who just gave her a evil and cocky smile.

"_Heh, I got to admit that this body of yours has a nice feel to it. Very curvy. And so very soft~_" the other Rena said. She then disappeared from Rena's sight, reappearing right behind her, looping her arms around Rena from behind and holding her close. "_My name is Tsukimajai. For the time being, I am going to be in possession of your body._"

"Possession?" Rena questioned.

"_Yes, you see, I'm a demon god who was sealed away a long time ago. And, even if I'm almost fully revived, I still need a host body to move around in until my revival is complete. And you fit the bill due to your dark and malicious heart._"

Rena shook her head, "No! You're wrong! I'm not evil and my heart is not dark! So...so just...get away from me!"

"_Sorry sugar, but no can do. I like this body, and I think that boyfriend of yours does too_." Tsukimajai then showed Rena the current events taking place and it showed Rena-Tsukimajai having a standoff with Shinichi in his armor, minus his helmet. "_I must admit, he is quite the hunk. I was going to kill him for loving that moon goddess but, after seeing that face and how he fought off my priests...oh, the things I want to do with him! He'll make such an exquisite lover and ruler of the new world I wish to make_."

"No!" Rena protested. "There's no way Shin-kun would agree to something like that! He'll fight you!"

"_Oh, are you sure you want him to fight back_?" Rena looked at her with confused eyes. "_Think about it. You are his girlfriend and yet you let him sleep around with other women. And deep down, you hate that. You hate it how he dotes on them, tells them pretty words and fights for them. You hate how he sleeps with them and makes them feel like they're the only ones he cares about._" Rena looked at her and then back at the image of Shinichi before her. Tsukimajai then projected images of Shawna, Satan and Tsukuyomi, the images of the three girls floating next to the image of Shinichi. "_You say that you're fine with it. That he requires a lot of love, more than what you alone could ever hope to give him. But we both know that you're just lying to yourself._"

"N-no...you're wrong...that's not true...I...I..."

"_Oh, must you keep lying to yourself, child. You __and I__ know the truth. __Deep down you want to keep him all to yourself, like one of your treasures, to be yours and yours alone.__ You never wanted to share him in the first place. He is YOUR boyfriend. You had him first. Not that demoness, nor the princess or that moon bitch. YOU!_"

"But...but...I just...I..." Rena was in tears now. Deep down, part of what Tsukimajai was saying was true. For a long time, she resented the other girls for how Shinichi would always fight for them and how she felt a little left out. He was hers first. She had found him and taken him in. Didn't she deserve him more?

"_Don't you get it? He has gained the blessings of that moon goddess and is now wooing her to make your little group of harem bitches even bigger. Not to mention he knocked up the demon stake and is engaged to the princess_." Tsukimajai's words stung. Rena did feel left out. She hated how none of those true tender moments were not happening with her. "_You are his first girlfriend since he became Shinichi. Since he left his past as BLACK 13 of GIN-SHOCKER behind. You should be the one he woos everyday! You should be the one he is engaged to! It should be you that is carrying his child right now! Isn't that right?-!_"

Tears streamed down Rena's cheeks as she listened to Tsukimajai. Was she truly right? Could she be right? Did Rena, deep down, want the other girls out of the picture.

"_Accept me, Rena Ryuugu. Take me into you wholeheartedly and we can become one. With you and I as one being, one in the same in mind, body and soul, we would have the power to get rid of those eyesores. Shinichi would belong to us and us only. We could help him find his true calling. To rule this world. Think about it. With his brain and his techincal know-how, he could make this world into a better place. And we could rule alongside him as his queen. Isn't that what you want? To have Shinichi Banabara all to yourself?-!_"

"I...I want..."

"_ISN'T IT?-!_"

Rena just kept on looking at the images of the other girls and Shinichi and began to think on how simple their life was when it was just the two of them. To make him happier, she let him lay with Satan and Shawna during Shawna's birthday. She gave him more girls to love. As she remembered those past events, she also began to remember all of the good times that she had with the girls. They had formed a sisterhood and promised to share Shinichi evenly. Of course, now with Tsukuyomi involved they would have to redo their rules somewhat to include her but she knew that they could still have fun.

She would always have fun cooking with Satan and she loved going out with Shawna to shop around at the department stores. And the group sex that they had with Shinichi was even more amazing than she could have ever imagined. By allowing Shinichi to have a small harem instead of a single relationship, she had gained something that she had truly never had before with the other girls of the Gaming Club. She had what she could consider sisters. A real family that lived together and loved one another equally. Heck, there were times when the girls would want to have fun with just each other and force Shinichi to watch, just to tease him. And the group dates were always fun. He treated them evenly and loved them the same as he would love them separately.

Looking at the images of Satan, Shawna and Tsukuyomi, she didn't see three individual girls trying to steal her boyfriend from her. No. She saw three girls that she considered sisters, considered family, who all shared the same man. And she would have it any other way. To change that, to try and force them away, would ruin that happy life that she had now. It was Shinichi that brought them together. He created her new family for her after she allowed him to explore a life with them as well. Shinichi gave her a life she could have never dreamed of having.

Rena was looking forward to the birth of Satan's child. And she would look forward to any kids that Shinichi had with Shawna and probably Tsukuyomi as well. She was looking forward in helping them raise those kids as they would help her raise her own. Looking at the image of Shinichi, she just smiled and began to relax. Shinichi had a natural habit of being able to create a family out of nothing and, to him, family was everything. Is that why he had been secretly meeting her mother behind her back? Did he want to try to involve her in Rena's life? Maybe he saw something in her that Rena herself didn't.

Shinichi had once told her about the time he and his family went to visit Shiori's family. At first, the woman had refused after receiving the letter but Shinichi managed to convince her mother to return home and reconcile with her father. If it wasn't for Shinichi, Shiori might've regretted not going and seeing her father after a long, long time. It might've been the last time they could see each other.

Her resolve strengthened and renewed, Rena grabbed Tsukimajai's arms and threw her off her body. "_Huh, what do you think you're doing? Don't you want him all to yourself?_"

"Iie! Shin-kun is mine. And he belongs to the other girls as well. Because of letting him have other girls, Shin-kun has given me something that I haven't had for a very long time."

"_Che...and what is that?_" Tsukimajai asked.

"Kazoku desu!" Tsukimajai just stared at her in disbelief. "I have a family now because of letting Shin-kun have other women. I have sisters that I love as if they were my real family. And I wouldn't have it any other way!" She then looked back at Shinichi's image as well as those of the girls. "Just you wait. OUR Shin-kun will rip you out of me and defeat you like he's done with every other enemy that he's faced. And then we'll all go home and talk...and kiss...and forgive one another." Tsukimajai, to say she was stunned was an understatement. She was completely shocked beyond all imagination. But Rena's next statement would make her really double back in disbelief. "And not only that, but when we get home and have reconciled...we'll have...one...big...ORGY!" Tsukimajai was sent flying back as the force within Rena's mind sent her flying across the floor. "Now prepare to die when our Shin-kun wins!"

The whole area around them went black as they both faded away.

* * *

Tsukimajai was shaken back to reality. To not be able to get her host to willingly submit like she had planned did not sit well with her. Oh well, if she couldn't get Rena to cooperate, then maybe she could try mind games to get Shinichi to side with her instead.

Shinichi stood between Tsukimajai and Tsukuyomi with the Seigi no Hogosha pointed at her. "Not one more step," he warned.

"**Please, you won't do anything to harm this body**," retorted Tsukimajai. "**She's your precious lover.**"

"I know, and I know she's screaming inside there, in agony, trapped in her own body by you. I'm gonna free her, one way or another, and if it comes to _that_, then so be it. Then after that I will kill myself so we can both be together," Shinichi told her.

"**Such bravado for a boy your age,**" Tsukimajai quipped. "**I like that. That's why I have an offer that I'd like you to hear**."

"I might be a boy by your standards, but I've seen and done so much over the years. I have the blood of hundreds on my hands, I've been controlled and enslaved, used as a pawn for an organization's schemes. I've killed comrades, friends, lovers and my worst enemies. You'll just be one more I'll add to the list," he said to her coldly. Reiryoku and Youki were surrounding the blade of the Seigi no Hogosha.

"**Like I said, I like what I see. Which is why I wish to give you an offer**."

"You have nothing to offer me that I would ever want!" Shinichi screamed, his injuries almost healed.

"**We'll see about that. I have two things that you could truly want. That I know that, deep down to your very core...that you...**_**desire**_"

"Shin, don't listen to a thing she says! It's all bullshut!" Yuji shouted but Alan stopped him from stepping forward to interfere. "Alan?"

"Trust him to make the right decision," advised Alan. "Just trust him." His eyes narrowed. "Trust him."

"For the last time, you have noth-oomph!"

Shinichi got the shock of his life as Tsukimajai had used the demonic version of Shunpo, known as Sonido, to get right in front of him. In an instant, she had mashed the lips of her host body against his lips, kissing him passionately as she slipped her tongue into his mouth. While Shinichi had kissed Rena many times before, this kiss...it just felt...strange. It felt alien to him. And even worse...it felt very wrong.

His mind then began to fade as his vision went black.

* * *

"Wake up, Shinichi-kun. Wake up."

Shinichi's eyes fluttered open and he was staring up at Rena's face. "Rena...chan?" He sat up and yawned, "I...I had a strange dream." His vision focused and he looked around, "...And I must still be dreaming." The room they were in was huge and he was lying in a four poster canopy bed with silk sheets. He noticed that Rena was wearing Tsukimajai's clothes, but her eyes were the beautiful and brilliant blue he knew well. He checked himself too and found himself dressed in his clothes as the High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER.

He was clad in a black leather coat that reached his knees with crimson shoulder pads. Under the coat he wore a blood red turtleneck shirt. He wore black pants and brown leather boots with a belt that had gold buckle. Worn on his hands were black leather gloves with XIII on the back.

"Why am I wearing _this_?" he asked. She took his hand.

"Come with me," she said as she led him to the balcony. He stood at the balcony and looked out at the clear blue skies and the silver skycrapers.

"What is this?" he questioned.

"Utopia, or to be more precise Shin-Hinamizawa City," she told him.

"Hinamizawa?" he uttered, gaping. "Our home village?"

"Not a village anymore, Shinichi-kun," said Rena. "And all thanks to you."

"How?" he asked.

"You used your intelligence and created a new golden age," she said. "And with the help of Genovia and the advanced knowledge in your head, you rebuilt Hinamizawa. Shishibone and Okinomiya have been absorbed into it too."

She went towards the door of their bedroom with Shinichi still taking in all the sights. She pushed the door open. "Come on. We're going out."

* * *

Shinichi rode inside the limousine with their chauffeur driving them. All around he could see the people, dressed the same. They were all wearing black jumpsuits with XIII on the fronts and backs.

"Why is everyone dressed the same?" he asked.

"Individuality has been wiped out," she said. "Everyone has to conform."

"Individuality? But doesn't that mean even free will is gone?" he looked to her. "Wait...this is a dream, isn't it?"

Rena grinned as she revealed herself as Tsukimajai. "**An elaborate illusion. Whaddya think?**"

"Nice to look at, but I've been through something like this. Read my journal," he told her.

"**It's a dream now, but it can turn into reality**," Tsukimajai leaned in close, whispering into his ear. "**You've fought so much, haven't you? Doesn't it get tiring? Don't you wish that there was no more evil to fight?**"

"Well...yeah," he confessed.

"**No free will means no crime,**" Tsukimajai told him. "**Nobody gets hurt. No senseless violence or death. And with your knowledge, the world can become a better place**."

"But this is just too advanced," he argued. "It's not our time yet."

"**Says who? ARMOR? The father who was never there for you**?" Tsukimajai rebutted. "**He had all the power in his possession, and yet he did not lift a finger to save you from GIN-SHOCKER.**"

"It was because the world needed me," he said. "It needed someone to protect it, to save it."

"**But didn't you need saving as a child**?" she asked. "**Your **_**father **_**left you to suffer and chose the world over his own son. Just imagine how many tears your mother shed, wondering where you were. He could've come and saved you, world be damned. What kind of father abandons their child to be tortured?**"

Shinichi looked out at all the people. Despite the uniform clothing, they seemed content and happy as well. The streets were clean, and there was no poverty.

"**Bad things happen because good people do nothing when bad people do abything**," she said. "**But with you and I in control, we can eliminate all the bad people, like the bad people who hurt you. It'll be a world of eternal peace and prosperity**."

"Eternal peace...and prosperity..." he repeated.

"**No more hunger or poverty. No more deaths because of disease or war. People can live longer. Isn't that what a hero is supposed to do? Isn't a hero supposed to make the world better? You have the power, all you have to do is...**_**accept me.**_"

The car suddenly stopped to a screeching halt and Tsukimajai shouted, "**HEY!**"

"Sorry, but as Gokuaku would say, that's a lot of bullshit," said the chaeffeur who removed his cap to reveal the face of St. George.

In an instant, the car faded out of existence, leaving Tsukimajai and Shinichi to stare at the knightly visage of St. George. The rest of the Utopian paradise disappeared as well, leaving a gawking Tsukimajai to look at St. George with hate filled eyes.

"**You dare?-!**" she screamed but soon found herself and Shinichi surrounded by a wall of fire, lightning and wind. The wall itself then turned into black mist as the sound of singing cicada's could be heard coming from within it. In a flash, the wall dispersed, leaving Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki standing there next to St. George.

"Just so you know, little bitch," Gokuaku started.

"The boy is never alone in his struggles," Zennin finished.

"Even if Warren-dono left Shinichi at the hands of Gebok and GIN-SHOCKER, he knew that his son would grow into the man he is today because of his faith in him," Yabuki added. "And we too believe in his power."

"**Pheh, so, four little Tsukumogami appear to try and stop me?**"

"And not just them! Minna!"

Appearing in a flash, one by one, were the Legendary Kamen Riders.

Tsukimajai then turned and looked at Shinichi. "**Shinichi, you can make the world a better place. I can help you. I can show you the way. So, please, accept me into your life.**"

"Shinichi, we Riders fight for justice and to protect the innocent," began Ichigo. "But what is justice without free will?"

"He's right, Onii-chan!" Shinichi turned to see both Shinji and Kuro standing there as well.

"Remember, Shinichi, a true Rider fights for the people and not to gain anything in return but to see them smile," Kuro told him. "What this demon whore wants is nothing more than to control the power that you possess. She probably realizes that she might not be able to kill you with all that power at your fingertips so she wants to control it instead."

"It's true that bad things happen when good people refuse to do anything. But even so, the friends and comrades you've made, they've always stood by you," said Nigo.

"We Riders are no strangers to tragedy," said V3. "But we still fight in the memory of those who've fallen."

"And for those who still live as well," said Super-1.

Tsukimajai glared at all of them angrily. "You...damn you all! Just because of the Legendary Kamen Riders, your sins, your innocence and your entrusted treasures say justice is about free will doesn't mean that they know what's best for these people! But you do, don't you Shin-"

"_**SILENCE, ,YOU FILTHY LITTLE DEMON WHORE!-!-!**_" Everyone there, including Tsukimajai and Shinichi, turned around to see none other than the full towering form of Dreigon, Dragon of Dragons, standing there as well; smoke slowly flowing from his nostrils.

Looking at the dragon before her, Tsukimajai began to tremble. Since when did a hero allow a dragon of darkness to reside within him?

"**A...A...A DRAGON?-!**" Tsukimajai screamed. "**YOU ACTUALLY HAVE A FUCKING DRAGON LIVING IN YOUR HEAD?-!**"

"Yeah, he wasn't actually a welcomed addition but he's actually grown on me over the past couple of months," Shinichi replied before looking back at Dreigon.

"_**Halfling, remember my words from this point on...give your all to protect those that you love, even your life if necessary! This little whore of a demon, she knows nothing of the real you. I have seen your past and your present. I know what has made you a hero and it is not your tragedy with GIN-SHOCKER or the fact that your father left you to their cruel mercy**_." Dreigon then raised his head high and proud. "_**You are a hero because you are you. An honorable and noble warrior who sees the good in people, even the bad ones, and tries to bring that to the surface. You are a hero because those around you depend on you. They see you as the star that lights the darkest parts of their lives. Halfling, you are a hero because you are you...SHINICHI BANABARA!**_"

Kuro, Shinji, the Riders and the Tsukumogami all cheered in unison, agreeing with him as they tried to make Shinichi realize who he truly was. The hero of his world.

Shinichi, clenching his fists, smiled at them all and nodded his head. "Thanks you guys. I need to hear that."

* * *

Tsukimajai was thrown off of Shinichi and into her own barrier, the barrier itself falling to pieces as the demon goddess slowly stood back up. As Shinichi blinked his eyes a couple of times, he steeled his resolve as he banished the Seigi no Hogosha and summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba.

"**You...damn you...Just who in the hell do you think you are?-!**" Tsukimajai demanded of him. Shinichi smiled and then thought of a saying that an old friend of his used to say whenever he was asked that very same question. He then thought of his own response to the very same question.

"Tourisugari no Seigi no Yuusha da! Oboetoke!" Shinichi shouted as he held the Higurashi no Yaiba at the ready. But, before he even attacked, he quickly noticed Tsukimajai beginning to laugh loudly.

"**Hehehehe...HAHAHAHAHA! You little fool! Don't you even realize that I've been stalling you this whole time?-! What an idiot the moon goddess chose as her lover! HAHAHAHA!**" Tsukimajai chided as she continued to laugh.

"Stalling? For what?" Alan asked as he and the others gathered next to Shinichi. They soon got their answer as the glowing pentagram shattered, dropping a now nearly lifeless Tsukuyomi to the floor.

Shinichi, seeing the even paler Tsukuyomi hitting the floor like a lifeless body, ran to her side as did the others. "TSUKI-CHAN!"

"Tsukuyomi-chan!" Amaterasu screamed as she knelt next to her fallen little sister. Shinichi cradled her battered and now nearly lifeless body in his arms, rocking her gently.

"You...you bitch!" Yuji shouted as he glared at Tsukimajai. "What did you do to her?-!"

"**Heh, that pentagram was meant to siphon off the last of her remaining godly energy and lunar powers. She's slowly dying and the only way to save her is to kill me. But to do that, you would have to kill this body. Can any of you do that?**"

Shinichi, gently handing Tsukuyomi over to Amaterasu who quickly began to try and infuse her own energy into her little sister, got up to his feet and glared at Tsukimajai with all the hate that he could muster from deep within his soul.

"Grr..._**Tsukimajai~**_!" Shinichi growled out angrily. He was completely at the end of his rope now. No one hurt one of his girls and got away with it. Many have and paid the consequences. And that rule now applied to Tsukuyomi as well.

Tsukimajai, pleased with the results of her newfound powers, created glowing white energy blades that encased her arms but left her hands free to be used as well. Her dress then reformed a bit as another slit appeared on the opposite side of the dress. She wanted as much free movement as possible for what she would call Shinichi's last stand.

(**Insert BGM - Kamen Rider Eternal - KR Double Movie OST**)

"I can hear Rena-chan screaming from within you! She would rather die than be apart of you! So I'm going to set her free, even if it means having to kill her with my own two hands!"

Shinichi rushed at Tsukimajai as his helmet reformed around his head, making him Kamen Rider Showa once more. He brought the Higurashi no Yaiba up and then slashed at Tsukimajai who just used Sonido to move around Showa, slashing him across the back as she reappeared behind him. Showa didn't even let out a grunt of pain. He was too enraged to care for pain. All he wanted was to free Rena and to kill Tsukimajai.

Using Shunpo, he kept up with Tsukimajai's Sonido but the demon goddess proved to be much faster as she slashed Showa across the chest plate, sending him to the floor. Showa quickly rebounded and he used a backflip to get back to his feet before rushing at her again. He used a diagonal slash, forcing Tsukimajai to block. Even if it was Rena's body, she was inconceivably strong due to Tsukimajai possessing her body. The demon goddess kicked Showa in the gut but that gave him the edge he needed as he swung the Higurashi no Yaiba once more, clipping her right arm a bit.

"**Argh! Damn you! What kind of sword is that?-!**" Tsukimajai screamed as her bleeding cut let off a strange steam. Showa stared at her steaming cut and then at the Higurashi no Yaiba and realized what he had just done.

'_Duh! Demons slaying sword!_' he thought to himself. The Higurashi no Yaiba would be the perfect weapon to use on her. But even with it, her power was greater than most of the demons he had slain with it. It would need a kick if it was going to do some major damage.

'_Lad, can you hear me?_' St. George called out.

'_Yeah, what's up?_'

'_The Barankas fruit. Cover the blade of the Higurashi no Yaiba with some of its juice_,' St. George suggested. '_If you do that, you can increase is purifying powers and might even be able to separate Tsukimajai from Lady Rena's body_.'

'_The Barankas fruit! Of course_,' Shinichi mentally kicked himself as he summoned the Shield of Glen and then used it to summon the Barankas fruit. He then sliced the fruit in half, its juice soaking the blade of the Higurashi no Yaiba. '_Thanks for the reminder_.'

Tsukimajai stared at the sword and at the strange fruit that was now on the floor. What would compel Showa to summon forth a piece of fruit and to soak his sword's blade with its juices? It was beyond her reasoning.

Showa then readied the Higurashi no Yaiba again as he rushed at Tsukimajai. As the battle continued, Tsukuyomi opened her eyes and watched the battle. If she was going to die, then she wanted her final moments to be that of seeing Shinichi wiping the floor with Tsukimajai. Showa slashed the Higurashi no Yaiba in a horizontal slash, a bit of the juice being flung from its blade and touching Rena-Tsukimajai's skin. The demon goddess hissed in pain from the juice and then looked at the Higurashi no Yaiba. Now she understood why Showa had doused the blade with that juice. He wanted to amplify its powers. Well, she would not give him the chance to use the blade on her.

Using her Sonido, she accelerated her speed to where Showa couldn't even keep track of her.

"Damn you, would you just sit still and die already?-!" Showa shouted as he slashed at an area where Tsukimajai had only been seconds earlier. "Damn it! I'll never hit her if I can't catch he-o-kay, why didn't I think of that sooner?"

Showa, keeping his eyes on Tsukimajai as best he could, held out his left hand and concentrated on Rena's body. He just hoped and prayed that Tsukimajai overlooked that one aspect about Rena's body when she possessed her. As his hand began to glow, Tsukimajai gaped as her host body began to slow down until it came to a complete stop.

"**W-what's...going...on here? Why...c-can't I...move?-!**"

'_Yes, it worked!_' thought Showa triumphantly. He then dashed at the demon goddess and with a swing of his sword, slashed her straight down the middle. However, instead of slicing her in half, she screamed as the dark energy around her exploded and left Rena's body in a swarm, the girl falling forward only to be caught in Showa's arms. "I got you," he whispered.

(**End BGM**)

The dark energy took the form of a cloud with a melevolent demonic visage. It was Tsukimajai and it was pissed. "**HOW?**" it demanded with a loud and booming voice.

"A part of me has always been within Rena-chan," Showa answered. "You see, I gave her one of the legendary Rider powers that I normally use so that she can protect herself from my enemies when I'm not around. The powers of Kamen Rider ZX. I just focused on that power and willed it to paralyze her body."

"**Damn you...heh, it doesn't matter. I absorbed enough of the moon goddess' energy to regain my corporeal form!**" The black energy cloud then exploded before condensing into a solid mass. After a few seconds, it emerged with a body that looked slender and black with gold and silver metal bars and plates on its shoulders. Around its waist was a silver belt with a golden orb on the back of it. Flowing from its shoulders was a long black cape with gold lining the inside of it. Its face had metal bands sticking out from the sides of the head with two curved devil-like horns on the side, the face itself resembling Rena's face with black lips, ruby red eyes and doll white skin. "**Ah, yes, it feels so good to have my body back! Though, I must admit that I like my new face, don't you...Shinichi-kun?**"

Showa stared Tsukimajai down and then found himself joined by Alan and Yuji. "Alan, Yuji this is my fight."

"We know," understood Alan.

"Doesn't mean we can't help out," added Yuji.

"There's one way you can," said Showa as he lifted Rena up bridal style and passed her over to his brother. "Protect her," he instructed. He looked to both of them as he added, "Protect all of them. I have a demon to slay." Alan and Yuji were hesitant but they understood that this was Shinichi's battle to fight. Alan carried Rena over to where Tsukuyomi lay and gently placed her down on the floor.

Showa stepped forward as he spoke, "First you took her body, and now you take her face?"

"**What can I say? It's a good look for me**," said Tsukimajai. She looked to Showa's friends. "**Hm...they do seem lonely**."

"Don't you dare!" Showa shouted as Tsukimajai snapped her fingers, summoning a small army of Darkstars who charged at the bystanders. "NO!" He went to stop them but Tsukimajai used Sonido to stand in his way.

"**Your opponent is me, Rider**," said Tsukimajai as she threw a punch at him. Her fist slammed into the Shield of Glen and the force of the blow hitting the shield drove both of them backwards.

The Darkstars were surrounding the rest of the group. Alan and Yuji stood up to face them and so did Hanyuu whose eyes glowed red.

"Looks like we get to play again," Yuji cracked his knuckles.

"Looks like it," agreed Alan. "Hanyuu?"

"They hurt Rena-san and Tsukuyomi-san," said Hanyuu, her voice deep and scary like Rika's sometimes. "They must pay."

"Amaterasu?"

"I'll keep my sister and Rena protected," the Sun Goddess informed him.

"Good to hear," he smiled as he held his fists up in a boxing stance.

* * *

Shiori was putting Sho to bed when she heard a knock at the door. "I'm coming, I'm coming." She went downstairs and to the foyer. "Who is it?" She looked through the peephole and saw a woman whom she recognised. She opened the door. "Hello."

"Hello, you don't know me but I'm-"

"Risa Kagome-san," Shiori finished. "You're Rena's mother." Shiori had her arms crossed and she didn't look amused.

"Guess you heard about me," Risa realized.

"A few things, mostly from your husband and daughter. Your husband showed me a picture of you, the only one he had after Rena destroyed the others," said Shiori.

Risa sighed. She knew she wasn't welcomed.

"Did you know because of you my son and his girlfriend broke up?" Shiori questioned.

Risa sighed, "I assure you that wasn't my intention."

"Of course, because I know that Shinji was only trying to help," said Shiori.

"Shinji? Oh, you mean Shinichi," replied Risa.

"It's what he calls himself now, but I still call him the name I gave him," Shiori replied.

"I still call my daughter 'Reina'," said Risa. "Guess we have something in common."

"Come inside," Shiori invited. "We have lots to talk about."

Risa wasn't sure if she wanted to enter the threshold. She looked to Shiori whose expression was neutral. She decided that maybe she should get to know Shiori. She needed someone to talk to about this situation.

* * *

While Yuji, Hanyuu and Alan were fighting off the army of Darkstars, Amaterasu was tending to her sister and Rena. At the same time, Showa was fighting against Tsukimajai, whose weapon was a large, crescent-shaped blade with a grip in the centre of the back. It also doubled as a boomerang and it had a sharp edge.

Sparks flew as Showa and Tsukimajai clashed with their weapons. At first, Showa had been on the offensive but the moon demon was able to turn the tables on him quickly.

"**DIE!**" she roared as she hurled her weapon at Showa. It missed him as he ducked but the moon demon flicked her wrist to make the weapon curve through the air and strike him across the chest. He grunted and stumbled before seeing the weapon coming for a second hit but he wasn't about to let it. Taking hold of the Cho Dai-Shuriken, he hurled it at the blade and sparks flew as they ground against each other. the Cho Dai-Shuriken was spinning rapidly, scratching sparks off Tsukimajai's weapon before both weapons bounced off each other. Showa caught his Cho Dai-Shuriken and Tsukimajai caught her weapon, tighteing her hold on the grip.

"**Well, I guess it's going to take longer before my Tsukimarang can taste your blood,**" she remarked. She glanced to the others who were distracted and his eyes widened in realization, "**But not hers!**"

"Don't you dare!" Showa warned but she vanished using Sonido. "Matte!" He used Shunpo to catch up with her.

Meanwhile, Rena had recovered and was sitting up to see the battle and Tsukuyomi not looking in good shape. Amaterasu had filled her in on everything that had happened. Suddenly, Tsukimajai stood over them.

"**Out of my way**," she said to Amaterasu before kicking the sun goddess away. Tsukuyomi was still weak and unconscious and with the others distracted was easy prey. "**Time to die, moon goddess!**"

"NO!" Rena threw herself on top of Tsukuyomi protectively as the Tsukimarang came down. Blood splattered to the floor. Rena, who'd kept her eyes screwed shut, wondered why the blow hadn't landed. She looked and saw Shinichi standing in front of her with his back facing her. Her eyes widened as she saw the blood dripping on the floor beneath him due to the Tsukimarang penetrating his armor and digging into his skin to injure him. Tsukimajai sneered and withdew hew blade as Showa dropped to his knees from the wound, his armor reverting back to its Trinity Form default configuration.

"SHIN-KUN!" Rena screamed.

He turned his head slightly, "Are you...OK?" She nodded. He nodded back. "Good..." He struggled to his feet, picking himself up as his nanites repaired the damage. He turned to glare at Tsukimajai. "You...you were going to kill them..." The eyes of his helmet glowed.

"Yes, and I would've gotten away with it if you hadn't stood in the way," Tsukimajai said. "It's a pity. I would've loved to have you on my side. But it is as you humans say, there are plenty fish in the sea. Maybe in a few hundred years I'd find someone worthy who's more agreeable."

Showa roared as he released his Youki and Reiryoku in explosive waves, blowing Tsukimajai away. This had the effect of also blowing the remaining Darkstars away as well, causing them to burst into black dust as a result.

Tsukuyomi opened her eyes and saw Showa, she saw him stand up against Tsukimajai for her and everyone. "Shin...Shinichi..." she uttered softly but he heard her and was at her side with Rena.

"Hey, how are you holding up?" he asked as he gently took her hand.

"A little tired," said Tsukuyomi, smiling slightly. "Listen, Shinichi. Tsukimajai is a demon I sealed away a long time ago. Now she has nearly all of my power. Nearly, but not all of it."

"Don't talk, you should rest," he advised.

"Listen...she has almost all of my power, but I can still grant you one last miracle," she said as her body glowed, both her life force and remaining power becoming one. "Now, take it."

"I can't," he protested.

"Take it and give that bitch what she deserves," ordered Tsukuyomi as her power and life force flowed into Showa.

Tsukimajai was getting back to her feet and trembling in rage. "**That's it...**" She saw red. "**Everyone dies, right here!**" She prepared to unleash a devastating attack, that was until she saw Showa charge at her.

(**Insert Song - Extreme Dream - By: Labor Day**)

"Strike from the Shadows! Zennin! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Showa changed into Kage Form and created three duplicates. Two of the duplicates then changed as well.

"Bring down the Thunder! Gokuaku!"

"Sing! Yabuki!"

The two Showas changed into Oni Form and Higurashi Form, controlled by the consciousness of their respective Tsukumogami. The remaining Kage Form duplicate was under the control of Zennin. That left only one to change.

"Bring Order to the Chaos!" Showa called, summoning the Sword of Ascalon, "ST. GEORGE!" His body was shining with bright moonlight as the circle of light above him shattered to reveal a dragon which donned him in his Ascalon Form Armor. With the power and blessing of the moon goddess, though, he'd transformed into Ascalon Lunar Form.

"Minna, Ikuzo!" Showa ordered. Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki obeyed, brandishing their respective weapons as they charged at the moon demon.

Fighting together as a team of one, Showa and his Tsukumagami took turns in attacking Tsukimajai. The first to get his licks in was Gokuaku who bashed her in the face with the Oni Kanabo. He followed up with another swing that made a cracking noise as it slammed against the side of her head. Jabbing his Oni Kanabo into her gut, he tossed her up and then blasted her away with another swing like he was hitting a baseball. She went sliding backwards across the floor before hitting a pillar to make it crack.

"**Damn...YOU!**" Tsukimajai gripped her Tsukimarang and hurled it at Gokuaku only for a ball of shadow energy to collide with the Tsukimajarang and bounce it right back at her. She caught it and just in time as she used it to block a strike from Zennin's Kage Ninjato. He slashed again, sparks flying as she parried the attack. She swung at him to slice his head off but he vanished before reappearing, standing on the flat side of the Tsukimarang. He then jumped, doing a backflip while hitting her in the chin with his foot, sending her staggering back.

"Kunai Kage Bunshin!" he called as he hurled a handful of Kunai which then multiplied. Tsukimajai screamed as she used her Tsukimajai to deflect the Kunai storm, not realizing something important.

"Higurashi Zan!"

**BOOM!**

The attack hit her in the back and she was sent spinning through the air before landing on her back. There stood Yabuki, with the Higurashi no Yaiba gripped in his hands and glowing even after unleashing its attack.

The Tsukumogami each had a personal reason for this fight. For Gokuaku, he loved the chance to fight a strong opponent and assert his dominance. For Zennin, it was a chance for him to go out and stretch his legs. As for Yabuki, this gave him a chance to rid the universe of another great evil as was his purpose. But even more so, the Tsukumogami had each come to accept the girls who'd entered Shinichi's life, considering them members of his family. Now, Tsukuyomi had been included as well and they would fight for her like Shinichi would.

"**DIE, TRASH!**" Tsukimajai roared as she hurled the Tsukimarang, which struck the Tsukumogami each in the chest and sending them sprawling. She caught her weapon and saw Showa coming at her using Shunpo. She countered with her own speed, sparks flying as they clashed once more. Showa's body now radiated with the power of Tsukuyomi and he felt like he could take on anyone. Now, he was focused on taking down Tsukimajai for good. She went for a diagonal slash which was blocked by the Shield of Glen. She was pushed back but not before she fired a beam of dark energy at Showa, which he deflected, the beam bending at an angle to hit the ceiling. He charged once more, missing as she used Sonido to get to his blindside but he knew she would and he parried with the Sword of Ascalon.

"**You know, we could've had a nice life together, you and I, but I see now that you side with the moon goddess,**" said Tsukimajai.

"I always side with the right side," said Showa.

"**Or, at the very least, what you perceive as right,**" she retorted. "**You would go to any lengths for revenge, wouldn't you?**"

"Yes, that's right," Showa confirmed. "Which is why, to avenge Tsuki-chan, I am going to kill you."

"**She tried, but failed, and had me sealed away. What chance do you have of doing what a god failed to do? No matter what powers you have, a mortal is still a mortal,**" Tsukimajai told him.

"And yet I'm still standing here, alive, in front of you, opposing you," he responded. "What does that say about you?"

Tsukimajai's answer was to fire a crescent shaped blast of energy at Showa but her attack was repelled by the three Tsukumogami as they appeared to defend their wielder.

"I think it's time we did what we did in your head," said Gokuaku and in a flash he, Zennin and Yabuki combined, becoming a copy of Showa in his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. Tsukimajai's eyes widened before she was hit by their attack, "**KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!**" The attack struck, explosively, sending Tsukimajai flying.

"Now!" Showa ordered. "**Getsuga...TENSHOU!**"

"**KAZE NO KIZU!**"

Showa and H-Guardian swung and unleashed their attacks, hitting an airborne Tsukimajai. She was hit, and a violent explosion followed. There was so much power in those two attacks, that it was impossible for anybody to survive.

When the smoke cleared, Tsukimajai was revealed to have protected herself with a barrier of dark energy which shattered after its use to reveal that she had not been harmed by the attack.

"**Almost...but not good enough**," she said and in a flash she struck H-Guardian. This caused the fused form of the Tsukumogami to burst into gold dust since the attack had been meant to be fatal. Turning her eyes towards Showa, she stabbed at his chest, sending him staggering as sparks burst from the contact spot. She followed up with several more vicious swings that were too fast for him to counter or dodge. Spinning on her heel, she used a swift and brutal diagonal slash to send him flying across the room and crashing into a column.

'_Halfling, you're being pummeled_,' said Dreigon

"I know that," Showa retorted sharply. "I was in the neighborhood."

'_If you can make jokes, then I'm sure you're alright,_' said Dreigon. '_I might have a suggestion that will work._'

"Go on," Showa allowed.

'_How good are you at summoning?_' Dreigon asked. '_And I don't just mean summoning the Legendary Riders to aid you, but summoning a beast to aid you._'

"Never done it before," Showa answered as he rose back to his feet. "Am I about to get a quick lesson from you?"

'_Not just from him, lad_,' said St. George.

"What do I have to do?" Showa asked as Tsukimajai was coming towards him. However, a green blast of energy sent her crashing into a nearby wall.

"You know, it's a bit rude to leave your guests unentertained," Alan remarked as he had his ring aimed at Tsukimajai. Tsukimajai climbed out of the hole only to be sent flying by Yuji's fist. He unleashed a barrage of fireballs that hit the moon demon before flying at her with a flaming fist drawn back. He hit her in the stomach and sent her tumbling along the floor.

"OK, think we bought Shin some time?" Yuji asked before he was hit by a dark energy blast. Before Alan could reply, he too was hit and sent crashing through a column.

"**I didn't forget my promise about everyone dying right now**," snarled Tsukimajai.

Meanwhile, Showa had the Sword of Ascalon pointed to the ground and cutting a circle of light in the floor. The circle released a bright light and Showa felt something rise from under him.

Alan and Yuji were blasting Tsukimajai with their rings but instead of taking damage she formed a black hole. At the same time a black hole opened up behind Yuji and Alan, blasting them in the back with their own attacks.

"Crap! Feels like fighting Gaap!" shouted Yuji as he nursed his back. Tsukimajai emerged from the black hole and grabbed Yuji by the hair before punching him hard in the stomach. She went to punch a hole in his face next but Alan was gripping her wrist tightly.

"**Unhand me**," she ordered as she zapped Alan with dark demonic electricity. However, instead of releasing her, he tightened his grip.

"Not gonna...do...that!" he shouted. "Can't...make me!"

"**Then I'll try harder!**" She ripped her arm from his grip and fired a blast into his stomach that sent him crashing through the ceiling. At the same time she head-butted Yuji painfully before using a roundhouse kick to knock him to the ground. "**Stay down**," she ordered as she pointed at him and then went to look at Showa only to receive a hoof in the face that sent her sliding along the floor.

Rena's eyes widened as she saw the creature which had attacked Tsukimajai. It was a warhorse, clad in black and silver armor, and riding on it was Showa.

"Shin-kun..." she uttered with sparkling eyes as she admired him. He really did look like a knight on a noble steed.

Tsukimajai was enraged. "**Did I...just get kicked...by a fucking horse!-?**"

It was Dark Thunder, the horse from the Genovian Royal Stables which he had bonded with and ridden once before. But now Dark Thunder was clad in shining silver armor that made him look like the legendary Qilin of myth.

Showa was still armed with the Sword of Ascalon, which had lengthened and changed its shape. It had turned into a Zanbatou (horse slaying sword), with a long and broad blade that was as long as he was tall, decorated with the same runes as the Sword of Ascalon's normal form.

"Hey, he's not just any fucking horse! He's _my _fucking horse!" Showa answered. He snapped the reins and shouted, "HYAH!" Dark Thunder galloped towards Tsukimajai with Showa's Shunpo speed and closed the gap in less than a second. Showa swung for her head but she blocked with the Tsukimarang which was thrown out of her hands. The Sword of Ascalon was then pointed at her face.

"On hindsight, I think staying in your prison might've been better. You'd lived longer," Showa said coldly.

"**And on hindsight, you shouldn't talk too much,**" argued Tsukimajai as her entire body body exploded with dark Youki and cosmic energy. Showa and Dark Thunders stumbled back as Tsukimajai assumed a new form. From the waist down she had the body of a horse with black scales covering its body. She also wielded a pair of smaller versions of her main weapon, each gripped in a different hand.

"Now, we're on even ground," grinned Tsukimajai before galloping towards Showa and Dark Thunder at Sonido speed. Seeing her coming, Showa snapped the reins and had Dark Thunder dashing towards Tsukimajai, using enhanced Shunpo. At their speed now, it was like time had stopped all around them. While the Ascalon Zanbatou seemed heavy and wielding it would make the user seem clumsy, that would only be the case if the one using the weapon was an untrained idiot. However, while Shinichi could be an idiot at times, he was anything but untrained.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! Those sounds rang through the large chamber as the two were locked in mortal combat. Tsukimajai energized both her weapons and slashed at Showa but he blocked with the Shield of Glen. Meanwhile, the Ascalon Zanbatou was glowing and charged to unleash its attack.

"_KONGOSOSHA!_" With a strong swipe, he unleashed a barrage of sharp diamonds which forced Tsukimajai backwards, screaming as the diamond's cut into her armor and skin. He scraped the tip of the Ascalon Zanbatou against the floor and watched as she watched Tsukimajai charge herself with dark power.

'_Get ready, Lad_,' said St. George in his mind. '_It's time to show this demonic wench how easily her power can turn on her._'

Tsukimajai fired a beam of pure dark Youki at Showa who stood in its path. Then, he gripped the Ascalon Zanbatou tightly and countered with a move prepared for this, calling out as he swung, "_BAKURYUHA!_" Using the power of his own Youki and unleashing the Kaze no Kizu, he sent Tsukimajai's attack flying straight back at her. Her eyes widened as her own attack crashed into her, resulting in an explosion that shook the chamber.

Showa commaded Dark Thunder to move towards Tsukimajai. He found her kneeling in a crater, back in her humanoid form. He pointed the Ascalon Zanbatou at her threateningly, "It's over now. You've lost."

"**No..." **she denied, grinning and laughing**, "No...it's not over...**" She suddenly took hold of the Ascalon Zanbatou, "**Because now I can take Tsukuyomi's remaining power from **_**you**_**!**" Tsukimajai began to drain Showa's energy and he was unable to pull the Sword of Ascalon away from her grip. "**Ah...yes...the power..**." She was absorbing it, more and more, it felt so good...

...Was it starting to hurt?

"**What...what is happening...?**" Tsukimajai uttered as she released the Sword of Ascalon. She felt like something inside her was blowing up. She trembled, in pain. "**What...what's going on!-?**"

"Your body can't handle that energy," said Showa as he dismounted from Dark Thunder.

"**That can't be! It's the same power as mine!**" she snapped.

"Everyone has their limit," he said, "And it looks like you've found yours."

"**B-but...that's not possible! I have the ability to absorb all forms of lunar energy!**" she screamed, only to get pushed back by Showa; the Sword of Ascalon reverting back to its normal state when used in Knight Mode.

"Guess again," Showa said as he caught a punch from Tsukimajai. "This Ascalon armor is infused with the last of Tsuki-chan's powers and life force. As well as her dying wish! There's no way you can absorb all of that!"

He then tossed her arm away before punching her in the face. He then lifted the Sword of Ascalon into the air, the whole sword turning jet black with purple starlight glowing within it.

"**Meidou...ZANGETSUHA!-!-!**"

Hitting the demon with such force, a literal gateway to hell was formed. It resembled a black hole and it was starting to suck her in but she dug her heels to the ground. "**No...No...I WON'T BE DEFEATED BY A MERE MORTAL!**"

Showa thrust the Sword of Ascalon into the floor and jumped up before executing a drop kick aimed at Tsukimajai. She saw the attack coming but the vacuum force of the gateway prevented her from moving out of the way.

"**Ascalon Tsukuyomi EXTREME!**"

Showa's first kick connected, followed by another, and another, as he performed a bicycle kick with his body covered in energy in the form of a silvery moon dragon. One last violent double kick caused Tsukimajai to be sent flying, screaming, into the gateway, cursing Shinichi's name as she was sucked inside.

The gateway, after receiving her, blinked out of existence.

**(END SONG)**

Shinichi dropped to his hands and knees, panting, as his armor disappeared. He then remembered something important. "Tsuki-chan!" Climbing back to his feet, rejuvenated by the feeling of urgency, he ran to where Tsukuyomi lay. The others stood around her as he shouted, "Let me through!" He knelt at her side and took her hand, telling her, "I did it...I beat her."

"I know..." Tsukuyomi replied weakly.

(**Insert Song - Cyclone Effect (Acoustic Version) - By: Labor Day**)

"You'll be alright," he said. She looked to Amaterasu whose expression was grave. "She'll be alright, right?"

"I'm sorry, Shinichi," Amaterasu apologized. "But my sister gave what was left of her energy and life force to you to defeat Tsukimajai." His eyes widened at the implication of her words. "She's dying."

"No..." he denied. "No, she isn't! She won't!" The pain of loss was too great, and he'd felt it so many times. He'd lost Lina, but she came back. However, Tsukuyomi may not come back if she died. "Don't die, Tsuki-chan!" Tears were falling from his eyes. "Don't you dare die!"

He'd lost and gained so much, but he preferred not to lose anything at all. He didn't want to lose this goddess who he had developed feelings for, not as they were starting to get to know each other.

"We were just starting to get to know each other," he said, tears dripping to the floor. "You and I. We had our lives ahead of us, didn't we?"

"Funny how life works, huh? Even gods like us can die," she said.

"Not today," he swore. "Not today...not after all we've been through already..." He closed his eyes. If there was anyway to save her, let there be one now.

**(End Song)**

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Now, I know some of you will be out for my head. I can't blame you, though. If it helps, the conclusion is coming soon.**


	161. The Legacy of Cain Part 105

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 105: Pandemonium**

The door was opened. Two figures entered. The lights were turned on, revealing the identity of both figures.

"Home sweet home," said Shinichi as he and Rena stood in the threshold of their apartment together. After all they had went through, it was good to be home together, their home. Rena suddenly hugged him. "Rena-chan?"

"I missed you," she said, sobbing. For 3 days they had been separated. "Why didn't you ever call?"

"I did. I tried," he said. "I even went to see you but I could never find you. Even when I wanted to come back, something was stopping me." Virgo had used her magic to subtly influence their behavior. He put his arms around her. "I missed you so much."

They were together now, that was important.

"Shin-kun, are we still together?" Rena asked, eyes watering as she gazed up at him. Shinichi's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Of course we are! Why wouldn't we be?" he asked.

"Because...we had a fight," she said.

"You were possessed," he argued.

"No, I mean when I saw you with..._her_," she clarified.

"Oh...Oh!" he gasped. Now he got it.

"I mean, I thought we had broken up," she continued. "We might as well be after I practically threw you out. Besides, it's not like you'll have any problems with love. You got Satan-chan, Shawna-chan and now Tsuki-chan. They're all so special...and I'm so plain."

Shinichi cupped her chin, "You're not plain. You're the one who gives me the strength to fight for what's right." She was the first real human contact he had after escaping GIN-SHOCKER. The one who was in his heart, the one he loved the most.

"So why did you see my mother?" she asked. She actually had an idea but she wanted to hear it from him.

"Because, I just wanted to see you both reconcile," said Shinichi. He got to know Risa, and she did seem regretful. She wanted to make things right but could never make the first move. He had tried to help her, but Rena had bad timing to appear while he'd been talking to Risa. "She's not a bad person, Rena."

"She betrayed me and dad!" Rena snapped.

"And she regrets it," he continued.

"But she abandoned me and daddy for that other man," Rena frowned. "How can I forgive her for that?"

"Because she's your mother, and she's making an effort to make things right," he said. He could actually understand where Risa was coming from. He had done a lot in his past as well, things not easily forgiven, but he was trying to make amends, even now. There were people like Roger Stevenson out there who had lost a lot because of GIN-SHOCKER whom blamed Shinichi for many atrocities. Shinichi couldn't fault them for feeling that way.

As for Rena, she was conflicted. What her mother did to her and her father was unforgivable. Not only did she have an affair, but she was even flaunting it in front of Rena. The divorce had caused her father to stop working, and then form a relationship with a horrible woman before he learnt that she'd only been after what was left of their money. Rena blamed her mother for putting her father through that.

Rena had sworn that she would never forgive Risa. She'd hurt them, her loved ones, her family, in the worst way possible. She had betrayed her vows to be faithful to Retsu Ryuugu. Such a betrayal was unforgivable in Rena's eyes.

And yet, while angered by her ex-mother's infidelity, she did not mind sharing Shinichi with others. An ironic twist, but simply because the other girls knew Rena's claim. She was the first to win his heart, the one he loved the most.

And because he loved her so much, he was trying to help her, and it was by reuniting her with her mother.

Now, Rena wondered if it were possible? Could she do it? Shinichi believed she could, but she needed to be prepared for when it was time for them to meet. He needed her to be accustomed to the idea before agreeing to it. That had been the plan, before Rena had caught him talking to Risa.

Shinichi said, "Look, Rena-chan, I know you hate her. I can't blame you for feeling angry for what she did, trust me, but she wants to make amends. You could at least listen to what she has to say without getting violent. You owe her that much."

Rena wanted to say that she didn't owe her ex-mother anything, but the way Shinichi was looking at her, devoid of the usual mirth, was making her hold her tongue. Rena made a pouty face as she tried to think of an excuse that would help her get out of having to talk with her mother. But she also knew Shinichi very well which meant he had probably thought of all of the excuses Rena would ever think of and would have created counter excuses for hers.

After a moment of trying to think of a way out of it, she sighed in defeat. She knew that Shinichi was only looking out for her best interest and he must have thought that reuniting her with her estranged mother was a good idea. "I'll try," Rena promised. Shinichi kissed her softly.

"Come on. It's time for a bath and then to bed."

A sly smile appeared on Rena's face. It was a smile Shinichi knew all too well.

"Ne, Shin-kun, it's been awhile. How about we play 'Sink or Swim' again?" she asked him in a husky and kinky voice. Sink or Swim was their bathtub game where they would make out like mad in the tub and then screw each other like rabbits in bed, still soaking wet. Sometimes, they wouldn't even leave the bathroom and would just end up doing it on the bathroom floor.

Shinichi's face broke into a grin that was threatening to split his face as it went from ear-to-ear. Sink or Swim was his favorite game by far. It was a game where there were no losers. Just winners, very satisfied winners who got what they wanted. One thing was to be confirmed though, nobody would be clean after.

And he didn't just play sex games with Rena. He played them with Satan and Shawna too, except they were more like roleplaying. With Satan, he played 'Devil's Advocate' where Satan would act like a Succubus and screw him all night long as if she were trying to steal his soul. With Shawna, he played 'Damsel in Distress'. He would save her from an imaginary dragon and the grateful princess would allow him to screw her wildly in bed as a reward, both of them making sword, sheath and cave references with each thrust. There was also a variant to the Damsel in Distress game to where sometimes the dragon lived in her 'cave' and he used his 'sword' to slay it from within the cave.

He was looking forward to making up a sex game he and Tsukuyomi could have fun with. But for now, he was focused on his Rena.

"Can you wear that little yellow bikini?" he requested, the naughty grin on his not disappearing yet.

* * *

**DAYS LATER: A WATERPARK IN SHISHIBONE CITY**

The Shishibone City waterpark was an outdoor facility with half a dozen pools of different sizes and water rides for whole wet and wild fun. It was here where we find Shinichi Banabara and Alan Smith waiting by the side of a pool.

Alan was wearing a pair of green swimming trunks which had his Corps symbol on the right leg. Without a shirt on, Alan's body was proudly displayed and so were his muscles. This made girls who walked by swoon slightly and giggled with flushed cheeks at the cute and hunky foreigner. He checked his watch, waiting.

His brother, on the other hand, was relaxing in a poolside chair, wearing a pair of hawaiian print swimming trunks in green and white. He had a straw hat on his head and sunglasses as he laid back with his hands behind his head and soaking up the sunlight like his brother whose Kryptonian powers needed the necessary rays of sunlight to function at 100 percent.

"Just relax, Alan," said Shinichi. "Chill...Chillax."

"I'm just wondering what's taking the girls so long," said Alan.

Shinichi pulled down his sunglasses and gave his brother a look as he said, "Are you seriously wondering that now?"

Alan flushed and retorted, "You'll get skin cancer like that!"

"Jokes on you! I can't get cancer!" Shinichi countered.

Alan rolled his eyes. "You know, it's a good thing you found a way to save her when you did."

"Yeah, me too, but I had some help."

"The voices in your head?"

"The voices in my head."

* * *

'_Shinichi, can you hear me?' Yabuki asked._

"_I don't have time to talk right now," Shinichi whispered._

'_But this is important. Remember how the Higurashi no Yaiba and Sword of Ascalon have been blessed? Some of her energy still remains on the swords. You can use them to save her. It's not much, but, if you can combine those remaining energies with what's left of the Barankas fruit...then maybe...'_

"_Really?" Shinichi asked hopefully._

'_Yes, but the chances are slim and the window is closing soon. You better hurry! A__long with the Barankas _f_ruit, your body is still infused with what remains of her life force as well. Put that into the swords and then send it all back to her body!__'_

_Shinichi nodded and let go of Tsukuyomi's hand. He then summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba and Sword of Ascalon._

"_What are you doing!-?" Amaterasu asked._

"_Hopefully, something that can save her," Shinichi answered as he crossed the blades and then gently placed them over Tsukuyomi's chest. "Yabuki, I sure hope this plan of yours works." He then had her take a bite from one of the halves of the Barankas Fruit before dousing the blades with its remaining juice. Then, placing his hands on top of hers, he began to pour in what remained of her life force into the swords while also secretly mixing in a bit of his own. He would be damned if he didn't try everything he could to save her life._

_He just prayed that it worked._

* * *

Tsukuyomi had miraculously recovered. Though, the first few seconds when they thought it hadn't worked had been depressing and heartbreaking, when she'd opened her eyes, Shinichi had been elated. He'd just hugged her, relieved to see her alive. She returned the hug too but when she realized that others were watching, she blushed, pushed Shinichi away, and chased him around the moon temple for embarrassing her like that with such a public display of affection.

Just like a typical tsundere.

"I'm just glad she's alive," he remarked.

"Really? Even as she was trying to kill you with that statue head," Alan retorted.

"She wouldn't have killed me. The world can't live without me," Shinichi boasted.

"Oh, give me a break," huffed Alan.

"Alan~"

Alan turned when he heard his voice being called and his eyes bugged out. Amaterasu was running towards him, her golden hair tied up in a ponytail, but that was not what got his attention. She was wearing a white bikini with thin spaghetti straps and sunflowers on it. The cups for the bikini top were triangles while the bottoms had ties on the side to keep them on. As she ran, her breasts bounced and this caused a few men to stare at the goddess. This in turn caused them to not pay attention to what they were doing, resulting in them bumping into things, dropping whatever it was they were holding, or falling into a pool.

The Sun Goddess glomped the Green Lantern, pulling him into a hug where his head ended up nestled between her breasts. This got guys who were all admiring Amaterasu to glare at him in jealousy. They were wondering how he could get such a bombshell babe.

Amaterasu stepped back, showing off her bikini, "Well, how do I look?"

"Great!" Alan complimented. "But I didn't see you try it on before."

"Oh, it's just something I got while shopping with my sister. Speaking of which...Tsukuyomi-chan! Come on and show Shinichi-dono what you're wearing!"

Tsukuyomi was walking over in her own bathing suit. While not as daring as Amaterasu, it did get her some attention. She was wearing a halter-style bikini top with matching bikini boyshorts. She was blushing a bit from the way Shinichi was staring at her.

And then his thoughts became dirty as he imagined himself pinning her up against lockers with her top pulled up to reveal her breasts and him sucking on them while fucking her.

**SPLASH!**

"Hey!" Alan shouted as Shinichi just ran into the pool and dove in. "The sign says no diving!" Alan pointed.

Shinichi's head came out of the water as he answered, "Sorry! Just felt like it!" He was actually trying to hide the fact he was getting a boner.

"You were looking at these, weren't you?" Amaterasu teased as she cupped her breasts and jiggled them for him.

"No!" Shinichi denied and looked to Tsukuyomi, blushing a bit. He submerged a bit, blowing bubbles with his nose.

Amaterasu turned her attention to Alan and suggested, "In times of need, I may be used as a floatation device."

"Noted," agreed Alan.

Tsukuyomi took a ladder and climbed into the pool with Shinichi. She swam over to him and asked, "So, how did you like my suit?"

"The suit suits you," he smiled.

* * *

"It's simple," said Shinichi. "You just get into the slide, lie down on it, then let go and let the water carry you."

This was Tsukuyomi's first time on a waterslide and while the slide was enclosed it was also very high up. There was just something about sliding down a high and slippery surface at high speeds outside her control that unnerved the Moon Goddess slightly, not like she'd admit it. They were standing in line and her turn was next.

"And this is safe? You're positive it's safe?" she asked.

"It's enclosed, Tsuki-chan," Shinichi pointed out. "It's perfectly safe."

"Good," said Tsukuyomi as she glanced at the water slide to the left that was not enclosed. It was a really long slide down and people could get thrown off if they were unlucky. Did mortals really consider this fun? Then again, who was she to talk? She loved to fight since it got the heart racing and adrenaline pumping. Maybe this was the way regular mortals achieved the same euphoria.

"OK, I'm doing it!" Tsukuyomi stepped forward and followed the instructions before going down the slide. She let out a scream as she went down it, not just dropping in a straight line, but the slide curved to the right before going straight down, then to the right, and going in a circle before going down a straight line again, before she exited and splashed into the pool.

Tsukuyomi burst out of the water, exhilarated and swam out of the way. She waited and sure enough Shinichi exited as well.

* * *

Alan was standing on the water park's highest diving board. He looked down below. So far nobody had dared to jump from this height.

Well, he was about to set a record.

"Gambarre, Alan!" Amaterasu waved, her arm movements making her breasts bounce. Alan waved back before he jumped off the diving board. He aligned his body straight down, arms pointing to the water and he became aerodynamic. He then plummeted and landed in the water with a splash.

Now, water might be a liquid, but hitting it from that height at that speed could still feel painful.

* * *

"You know, I should get Rena-chan and I one of these," said Shinichi as he sat in the hot tub with Alan, Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu. "Install one in the bathroom."

"You don't have the space," Alan pointed out. "And also, you're renting the place. You don't own your apartment."

"Right..." Shinichi nodded. "OK, first buy a house and then get a hot tub installed so Rena-chan, I and company can use it together."

"You could always go to a bathhouse and ask to use the unisex baths," Alan said.

"Yeah, but I'm talking about something private and romantic," Shinichi countered. "I know, I'll buy a hot tub and install it in MY mansion in Genovia!" He mused, "I like the sound of that. My mansion. It just rolls off the tongue. _My _mansion. _My _mansion."

"I get it, OK?" Alan interupted. "I know, you got that Duke Dogma's mansion. By the way, how's the renovation and redecorating coming along?"

"Smooth like Tsuki-chan's skin," Shinichi said, causing the girl to blush as he put his arm around her and pulled her close.

"Shinichi..." she warned but she really didn't mind it.

"Maybe not just a hot tub," said Shinichi. "Maybe I can see if there's a natural hot spring in Genovia! Then I can claim ownership and build my own outdoor bath!"

"Ah, an onsen!" Amaterasu clapped her hands together. "We should go and visit one and stay for the weekend!"

"Yes," Alan nodded, "But not just the two of us, though. Everyone."

"Everyone? As in everyone, everyone?" Amaterasu asked.

"The girls want to get to know you," said Alan. "You did help us but to them you're just an acquaintance. I think a weekend trip would be a good chance for us all to bond."

"Bow-chicka-bow-wow!" Shinichi uttered. Alan splashed his face with water.

"What does that mean?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"It's a tune from pornographic movies," Alan answered. Tsukuyomi glared at Shinichi for uttering something perverted.

"To be fair, Alan provided the opening for it," said Shinichi.

Alan thought about what he'd said earlier and what word could've set Shinichi off before splashing him again.

* * *

Shinichi and Tsukuyomi were sitting on a raft together as they drifted along the lazy river, with Tsukuyomi sitting against Shinichi chest with his arms draped around her.

"This is great, huh?" Shinichi asked.

"So, do you always take your dates to a water park?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"Anywhere that's fun, and I believe you're having fun, or am I wrong?" he asked.

"No," Tsukuyomi sighed. "You're not wrong." She put her arm around his head and pulled him down for a kiss. It was a brief thing, but enough to get the point across. "I owe you so much."

"No you don't."

"I do. You saved my life."

"Yeah, but you gave me the ability to save your life. So, technically, you saved yourself. You don't owe me anything," he answered.

Tsukuyomi expression turned sly, "_Really_?"

"Well...how about you buy the hot tub?" he suggested. She splashed him with a handful of water. "Hey!" he sputtered.

"You're such a jerk!" she huffed.

"Tsuki-chan?"

* * *

Walking around what was left of the temple of Tsukimajai, Leo looked around at all the destruction. Showa and his allies had destroyed most of the temple, leaving only a few rooms left untouched. One such room was the where all the living sacrifices would have been originally kept in the old days. It left Leo with a nostalgic feeling. Turning around, he left the sacrificial dwelling quarters and walked back down to what remained of the throne room of the temple. Stepping inside the room, he noticed the battered and nearly lifeless bodies of his siblings.

Scorpio and Cancer had limbs missing, Cancer's head almost looking like it was blown clean off. Virgo's body was charred and almost unrecognizable. Out of the four of them, he was still able to fight but he did not dare go out alone. As much as he wanted to avenge his siblings and his Mistress, he knew it was suicide to do so at his current power level.

His anger reaching a boiling point, he slammed his fist down onto a stone slab, shattering it to pieces. "Damn that mortal!" Looking at his siblings, "Brother...sisters...if I had the power to avenge you all then I would go down to that miserable little mud-ball of a planet and kill Kamen Rider Showa myself. Him and his allies!" He then looked down as a downcast look appeared on his face. "But...to go after them now would be suicide. Even though I would gladly die to avenge the three of you...to avenge our Mistress...I...I can't do this alone!"

* * *

Walking down the sidewalk within the shopping district of Shishibone City, Yuji and Misato were currently having a little discussion while Misato pushed Yuna along in her stroller. Seeing as he hadn't gone on an outing with his wife and daughter for a while now, Yuji thought it would be a good idea to be able to spend some quality time with just the two of them.

"Ya know, I think Shin and Al are starting to turn out more like me," Yuji said as they rounded a corner, heading towards the park.

"And how would that be possible?" Misato asked. Before Yuji answered, they came up to the fountain and looked around, noticing the remnants of Shinichi's past battle with Leo still being cleaned up. "You know, it's times like this that I wish that perverted idiot still had access to his temporal abilities."

"You and me both," Yuji replied as they sat down at a bench, Misato taking Yuna out of her stroller while Yuji got her bottle out of the bag attached to the back of the stroller. They had been slowly trying to ween her off of her bottle and onto a sippy cup but it seemed that it would still take a while before that would even prove to be successful.

As she fed Yuna, Misato looked back at Yuji. "So, you said that Alan and Shinichi are slowly becoming like you? How so?"

"Oh, that? Well, they're getting bigger harems now if you look at it and it won't be long now until they both settle down with one of them soon," Yuji replied as he watched Misato feed Yuna. The formula within the bottle was a special one which had been created by Dr. Washam and meant especially for Yuna. While it had all the basic nutrients a regular baby would need and looked like milk, it contained a few traces of Yuji's blood so as to satisfy her more vampiric requirements. "Heck, Shin is already engaged with Shawna and has a baby on the way with Satie. And Alan, for all the kids he has, doesn't even have a wife yet...well, legalized anyway. I guess you could count him being married to Nozomu as she presents herself as his wife and refers to him as her husband a lot now."

"Well, it's only natural seeing as she still has that mentality of a schoolgirl," Misato said as she stopped feeding Yuna, handing Yuji the bottle so he could put it away. "Though, she has seemed to mature a lot lately. More so than most of his other girls at some point."

"Yeah, you got a point there, babe."

"Speaking of those two and their girls, did Shinichi and Rena ever patch things up about her mother issues?" Misato asked. She knew that Risa was still a sore subject with Rena which was why none of them mentioned that name around her.

"To a point. While she's forgiven Shin for what he did, she's still a bit against the idea. Though she does realize that he had nothing more than the best intentions for both her and her mother," Yuji said as he looked up at the sky. It was such a beautiful and peaceful day. He wished days like this would last forever sometimes but then he knew better than to hope for that at this current time.

"Well, they are family. And families should always try and get along." Yuji just looked at her and shook his head.

"That's where you're wrong, babe," Yuji replied. This confused Misato as she gave him a confused look.

"Oh, how so?"

"Because, just because you're blood doesn't make you a member of the family. That's something that has to be earned." Misato looked at him. That was a pretty deep and wise remark. "Just because she's Rena's mother doesn't make her a member of Rena's family. She'll have to earn the right to be considered family by Rena and, from the looks of it, that's going to take a long time."

The both then looked at the sky and thought about that. Family...blood didn't matter. It was the bonds that people forged and the right earned over time that truly created the meaning of family, not blood. Blood only connected you on a biological level. It was the feelings of a connection that truly gave meaning to the term 'family'.

* * *

The double-dating group comprised of a cyborg, his brother, and two goddesses were taking a break from all the fun with lunch. None of them actually brought any lunch along, but that wasn't much of a problem.

There was an area with a series of stands that sold food and beverages.

Tsukuyomi had gotten herself a bowl of pork ramen while her sister got herself curry rice. Their gazes were locked on the brothers who had a pile of food on their plates. Alan had a three double cheeseburgers with a pile of fries. Shinichi, on the other hand, got himself a plate of fried chicken which looked like he had every piece of a single cut up, breaded, spiced and deep fried. He also had curly fries. For drinks, they had ice cold soda.

"I'm not sure that's a healthy meal,' said Tsukuyomi.

"Not a problem," said Shinichi. "Most of my organs are cybernetic."

"And I have an enhanced metabolism due to my Kryptonian DNA," Alan added before popping a fry into his mouth.

"So, neither of us can get fat," Shinichi finished as he took a bite out of his chicken after dipping it in ketchup. He wiped some of the sauce on his lip off with a napkin. "I think I remember the twins resenting me for that fact. I can eat anything I want and not gain weight."

"Alright, I need to say something here," said Amaterasu. "Actually, a question. How are you both brothers?"

"His dad donated sperm and my mom used it to conceive me," said Shinichi. "It's why we don't look alike. I take more after my mother."

"Shinichi's conception is what experts call an ontological paradox," added Alan. "See, my dad didn't know Shinichi here was his son until he saw the DNA analysis. He then went back in time, donated his sperm, and it's like Shinichi said."

Tsukuyomi didn't understand and asked, "Pardon?"

Alan explained the best he could, "Time isn't exactly a linear progression of cause and effect. It's...actually pretty complicated. But time is like...a wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey ball...of stuff."

Tsukuyomi gave him a blank look and looked to Shinichi who shrugged.

"OK, it's like how Amaterasu can know me but I didn't know her when I first met her. Her past self met my future self. Hence, she knows me as Susano-O because I am going to be Susano-O...in the past. Her past, and my future," Alan continued. He asked, "Do you understand?"

Tsukuyomi groaned, rubbing her temples, "Shouldn't have asked."

* * *

Within the park, not far from where Yuji and Misato were located, a ball of swirling blue energy appeared out of nowhere and landed on the ground. In a brilliant flash of light, the ball disappeared, leaving a being standing in its place. The being had a feminine looking body with black skin and blue flowing water pattern all along her body. The top of her bust, which was being pushed up a bit by her black torso armor, was nearly as blue as the water patterns on the rest of her body. Her body had gold armor plating and bands wrapped around her wrists, upper arms and right knee.

Her right knee was heavily reinforced in gold armor and she had gold shoulder plates with black rounded ends at the bottom. There were two black sashes that were set at the sides of her hips with gold trim and another sash in front with a water flow pattern on it and a silver gem at the bottom. The top of her torso armor raised around her neck in a slight black high-collar, the torso armor itself and the top of her bust line trimmed in gold. Her wrist armor, shoulder armor, right knee armor and even her lower abdomen had a set of silver gems embedded within them too, each one slightly glowing. Her head, while mostly black, was framed by a golden facial helm that had a gold visor over her eyes. Her long, aquamarine hair was kept up in a ponytail and ended in the form of flowing water.

Within her left hand, she held a small black book while her right hand held a cord that was attached to a small clay urn with black markings on it; the urn slung over her right shoulder.

Looking around, she could feel both the negative and positive flow of energy and human emotions within the air. It was one of the reasons why she was dubbed the most gentle of the Demon Priests. Her ability to feel both the positive and negative spectrums made her respect both, making her stick to the side lines and only fighting when she had no other choice.

"Now, let's see," the priestess said as she tapped her chin. "I can sense the energy of the Sun and Moon Goddesses around here as well as a very powerful Manakyte. Hmm...also, someone who can use quantum-based energy and...another being with temporal abilities. Interesting."

She then went on her way, heading towards the closest of the energies that she could detect. She knew that her 'old' master had been defeated by a mortal but she never heard who it was that took Tsukimajai out. So she would have to do some investigating.

* * *

"OK, how can you decide when you can and when you can't alter a timeline?" Tsukuyomi asked. Alan had just told her about ARMOR, the organization which he and Shinichi were affiliated with.

"It depends on certain conditions. Events are either fixed points or in flux. Events in flux are events that can be changed, but as a result the timeline diverges. It's harmless to the timeline. Now fixed points in time are events that must always happen in history. Like the Titanic sinking, or what happened in Pompeii, even World War I and World War II. Horrible things happened, but these events shape human history, helps them develop. These fixed points cannot be altered or else...well...the universe will be a total wreck," Alan explained.

"Even the tiniest of changes?" Amaterasu asked.

"A pebble thrown in the water makes a ripple, a ripple that goes far," said Shinichi.

"It's the reason why we can't always go back in time and change things," said Alan, sighing. He recalled Jade's death and how he tried to make things right by changing things only to make things worse.

"We need to make sacrifices," Shinichi agreed. He remembered how he had to send his past self back to the point in time minutes before he was kidnapped.

* * *

Within the temple on the moon, Leo stood before his siblings. They all looked like they wouldn't last much longer. Kneeling down next to them, he placed a hand on Virgo and Scorpio's shoulders while looking at Cancer.

"My family...I am sorry for not having the proper strength to avenge our humiliating defeat," said Leo in a somber tone. He then felt a hand place itself on his, causing him to look and see that the hand belonged to Virgo. "Dear sister, you mustn't exert yourself."

"O-Onii...sama..." Virgo groaned out in pain, "...there is a way...t-to get...re...venge."

Leo looked at her in surprise until he felt the hands of Scorpio and Cancer place themselves on his shoulders. "A way to get revenge," Leo said as he thought about some ways until one became clear within his mind. Knowing Virgo, it was the one she was hinting at. "Sister, you cannot mean the forbidden technique?" Virgo nodded. "But that...would kill us all. None of us would survive after the process and the use of the technique is irreversible!"

"We know...Onii-sama," Scorpio replied weakly. "B-but...it's the only way to pay them back for what...they did to...us. For what they did to...Tsukimajai-sama."

"Leo-nii-sama," Cancer said as he tightened his grip on his big brother's shoulders. "We have failed our Mistress and have failed in our mission to kill those mortals. So please...grant us our dying wish."

Leo looked at them all, "Otoutou...Imoutou-tachi...I'd do anything for you! You know that!"

"Then take our lives. Absorb our powers and kill the Rider and his allies," said Scorpio.

"Kill the Rider...and the Lanterns," Virgo added weakly.

"Rider...Lanterns...kill...them..." Cancer said as Leo raised his hands. He understood what it was they wanted and, as their older brother, would carry out their final wish.

"Yes, we shall have our revenge. And with your lives, " he said as he gathered them together and held them against his body. "They will die!-!-!-"

The four siblings screamed out in agony as their bodies glowed with power, red and black energy crackling all around them as their bodies began to glow, slowly forming a single body of light.

* * *

Daichi and Yokoshima exited the elevator into the Hive's main hall, arguing about something.

"For the last time, Yokoshima. Water polo is not played while riding horses," said Daichi.

"Well, they could. I mean just add horses," said Yokoshima.

"That's the most ridiculous thing I heard from you," Daichi deadpanned, "Today."

The alarm blared as Sheila cried, "_ALERT! ALERT! DEMONIC ENERGY DETECTED! WARNING! POSSIBLE HOSTILE ELEMENT!_"

"There goes my weekend," mumbled Daichi.

* * *

Sho was sitting in Rena's lap. The toddler really did love her a lot and Shiori loved having the girl around. Right now, Rena had come over to Shiori's house to talk. Apparently, while a battle was taking place on the moon, Risa had come over for a visit.

"So...you talked?" Rena asked wearily.

"We did, and some sake was involved, but not enough to make us tipsy," said Shiori. "Helped to get us relaxed and be more open."

"How open?" Rena asked. For Shiori, speaking openly about their sex lives was as open as they could get.

"She basically apologized for causing you and Shinji to break up," began Shiori.

"But we didn't..." Rena paused. "Guess I can see how she got that idea after I threw him out."

"You felt angry and betrayed," Shiori told her. "At the time you couldn't control your feelings. Be glad you didn't do anything worse."

Rena had thought of grabbing her kitchen knife and using it on Risa, but dismissed the thought once the woman was out of sight. "So, what happened?"

"She talked about the affair, the divorce, her losing her child to her now ex-husband..." Shiori answered.

"Wait, what?" Rena blinked.

"Oh, you didn't know? She's divorced and her ex-husband got her baby and moved to Paris," Shiori said.

"Shin-kun didn't tell me about that..." whispered Rena. Then again, she hadn't been interested in talking about her mother after being taken back home via Alan's power ring. Shinichi had been exhausted so she and Shinichi rode inside a green energy bubble and carried to their apartment. No words were said between Shinichi and Rena but his actions in saving her from Tsukimajai said plenty about his devotion to her, and it was romantic that he'd be willing to kill himself along with her so neither of them would suffer. Like Romeo and Juliet.

* * *

Sitting on a bench near the fountain, Yuji and Misato continued to hold a conversation on various topics while Yuna took a nap in her stroller. They were so engrossed in their conversation that the sudden sound of screaming from all of the people around them made them both jump up in shock.

"What in the heck is going on?" Misato asked as she quickly grabbed the stroller, wanting to protect her baby.

"I have no...wait, is that a...no it can't be?" Misato followed Yuji's gaze and noticed the feminine looking demon walking towards them. "Oh great, it's another one of those demon priests!"

The Demon Priestess, hearing Yuji refer to her, came to a stop in front of him and Misato, looking at them curiously. She eyed the infant in the stroller and could easily sense that the child wasn't entirely human. She could also tell the same about Yuji and Misato.

"Ho, so you know about the Demon Priests?" the priestess asked. "And this energy, so you would be the powerful Manakyte that I sensed earlier upon my arrival?"

"Yeah, I'm a Manakyte. And you're about to join your fellow priests if you think I'm gonna let you run wild!"

"I see. Well, sorry to disappoint you but I'm not here for a fight. I'm just investigating," the priestess told them.

Yuji and Misato gave the priestess a confused stare with Misato tilting her head to the side a bit. A demon priestess was here, in her demon form, walking about in broad daylight, and she wasn't looking for a fight. What was the world coming to?

"You...aren't here to fight me?" Yuji asked, earning a small giggle from the priestess.

"Oh, dear heavens, no." She looked around and noticed that all of the people had left the park already. "Oops, looks like I forgot that demons walking around in their true form is still a taboo in the present timeline." With a wave of her hand, she was covered in flowing blue energy that streamed over her body like water. In a matter of seconds, her demon form was replaced with a more human looking form, albeit a very sexy and gorgeous looking human form. "There we go, this should do for now."

"What...who...huh?" Yuji studdard as he looked at the now very lovely young woman standing before them. While she still had the urn slung over her right shoulder and the book held firmly within her left hand, she gave Yuji and Misato a smile and then looked at Yuna, giving the toddler a small wave.

Now in human form, the priestess had smooth looking skin like that of any normal human female and long aquamarine blue hair which she kept in a set of twin tails. Her body was clad in very revealing white robes that didn't leave much to the imagination. Her slender and shapely legs were bare, with only a pair of white boots on her feet. The top of her robes, which were sleeveless, fastened around the back of her neck while leaving her very well sized breasts enough room to where they actually almost looked like they were about to pop out.

Her arms had white rob cloth that went up to her under arms and were then attached to the main robes via some thin leather straps. The same straps wrapped around her chest, squeezing her breasts a bit, and connected to a small latch around her back. She also wore a small gold necklace with a red ruby in the center and her eyes were an indigo blue color which held a gentle, serene look to them.

"Wow, now that's what I call going with the flow," Misato said, trying her best to make a pun.

"Thank you. I happen to like this look as I was born around the time of the Romans and Greeks," the priestess said as she looked at her butt. "Though, does this get-up make my butt look big?"

"No, more like it almost lets your breasts fall out," Misato stated, causing the priestess to look at her chest and blush with a small smile. "So, if you're not here to fight, then what are you here for? And do you have a name?"

"Oh my, how rude of me. My name is Aquarius and I am mostly known as the Witness of Time," Aquarius replied.

"Witness of Time?" Yuji asked, having finally gotten over not being able to speak due to how beautiful Aquarius looked in her human form.

"Yes, I can freely travel through time to witness events and record them. Sort of my calling as I love history. Of course, I follow the golden rule as in not doing anything that would change the past. I do use knowledge from the future though to help guide my course of actions here in the present though."

"Really? That does sound somewhat interesting," replied Misato.

"It is...most of the time. It's been getting rather boring lately as a lot of the future timelines for this world have been frozen in an apparent flux and I can't go any further than at most...oh, I want to say...two...three hundred years into the future. And that's if I push it really hard. Any more and I'll wind up in limbo without any energy for about a year."

"Wow, that's gotta suck," Yuji replied and then realized something. "You said you can't go further than a few centuries in time, right?" Aquarius nodded. "Maybe that has something to do with the barrier that's stopping travel between this world and the others worlds of the Multiverse."

"It's a possibility," Aquarius agreed. "I'm not entirely sure how but, whatever is causing it is well beyond my perception of energy and power. I have no idea what or who could have enough power to do such a thing."

Yuji and Misato both thought about that, tapping their chins in perfect synchronicity as they thought about the topic. Aquarius, seeing the serious looks on their faces, decided to change the subject.

"Well, as to why I'm here, I'm looking for the one who killed Tsukimajai." She then looked at Yuji, "Was it you, Sir Manakyte?"

"Nope, sorry but it wasn't ME. I was there with a front row seat though to see the bi- harlot get what was coming to her," Yuji said, catching himself from cursing in front of Yuna. He didn't want her first word to be a dirty word as he knew his parents, if that ever happened, would not let him hear the end of it.

"Was it the one with control over quantum energy that I can sense a good distance away?"

"You mean Alan? No, like me, he got a front row seat," replied Yuji.

"Aquarius-san, the one you're looking for is Shinichi. He's the one who defeated Tsukimajai. You aren't here to take revenge on him, are you?" Misato asked with some concern.

"Oh, no I would never. I'm actually glad she's gone," Aquarius admitted. "You could say she was a spoiled child that threw fits when she never got her way. Plus she would torture us whenever she was upset. Part of the main reason why I left and chose my current path. I just want to thank this Shinichi for taking her out."

Yuji smiled at that. At least there was one Demon Priest with a good head on their shoulders. He didn't know if she could be fully trusted but she did seem sincere enough. Though, what they didn't know was that the past had an ugly habit of coming back and biting them in the ass one last time before staying buried.

* * *

With the sun slowly starting to set, Shinichi and the others walked out of the water park and on towards the city park.. Shinichi wore a pair of faded blue jeans and a green t-shirt with a bag slung over his shoulder, holding all their wet bathing suits in individual plastic bags. Alan himself wore a pair of jean shorts with a black shirt that had a gold stripe going across the chest in a horizontal line. Tsukuyomi wore the same outfit she had gotten from the department store when she had gone on a date with Shinichi and Amaterasu the same when she had gone on her date with Alan.

"Well, that was fun," said Shinichi as he walked next to Tsukuyomi. "Tsuki-chan, did you enjoy yourself?"

"Mn, I did," she replied with a small smile. "I really loved that water slide."

"Yeah, that was fun to ride," Amaterasu agreed.

"You just loved it because you rode down with Alan, straddling him the whole entire way down," Shinichi quipped, wiggling his eyebrows.

Alan just groaned as he face palmed himself. "You really aren't going to let me live that down, are you?"

Shinichi just smiled at him. It was a smile Alan knew all too well. "Well, there's that with the water slide and then the part where you actually used Ama-chan's breasts like they were water floaties and then the part where you lost your trunks after doing that swan dive off the diving board-"

"Okay! Okay! Shut up already!" Alan shouted with a bright red blush on his cheeks. Alan wondered if he could use his psychic powers to erase that memory from Shinichi's mind, but that would be pointless as his brother would've found a way to back up the memory in his subconscious. Amaterasu just smiled at the memories while Tsukuyomi chuckled lightly at the Lantern's embarrassment.

Shinichi continued to chuckle when his antennae hair suddenly went straight and zigzag. "Oh, crap! My danger sense is tingling!"

Alan and the others tensed up. They knew to never doubt the ahoge on top of Shinichi's head by now as they were always right. Leaping out of nowhere were the darkly clad ninja-like minions known as Darkstars.

"Oh, here we go again," Shinichi muttered in annoyance. "Alan, are you up to do some ring slinging right now?"

Alan's ring glowed, "Whaddya think?" He scanned the Darkstars. "OK, I'm counting about 25."

"Well, then let's make this fun. The one who beats up the most wins and the loser has to pay for dinner," Shinichi challenged.

"Oh, you are so on," Alan agreed.

"And you'll let me play with your Sonic Screwdriver if you lose," Shinichi added.

"Yeah...no, I don't think so. Dinner is a good enough bet," Alan replied as he changed into his Green Lantern suit. Shinichi went through a similar change as he donned his training outfit and summoned the Seigi no Hogosha. For the Darkstars, he wouldn't need his Rider powers. They were just cannon fodder, like the GS-Soldiers.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" Shinichi shouted as he swung, releasing a crescent-shaped wave of dark energy which threw half a dozen Darkstars into the air, destroying them at the same time. "And I got a six point lead on you!" Shinichi grinned before dashing off.

"I am not paying for your dinner, ever!" Alan snapped as he backhanded a Darkstar. "Bazel, let's do this!"

"Right on!" Bazel agreed.

Alan used his ring and formed the heavy artillery. Mounted on his shoulders were box-shaped missile launchers which opened up and released their payload. The missiles were homing missiles and locked on the Darkstars.

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

"There's 11 for me!" Alan cheered.

"What? No fair!" Shinichi complained as he was locked in a sword fight with a couple of Darkstars before jumping up and crushing them under his Great Boots. "That makes 9!"

Five more Darkstars remained and they threw kunai and shuriken at the brothers, but they bounced off the energy shields formed by them. Shinichi's eyes flashed, the irises turning gold for a second. He put his index and middle finger against his forehead, charging up a Makankosappo.

"Oh, this is gonna hurt," Alan said as he lowered the shield.

"Makankosappo!" Shinichi fired off the demon slaying shot, piercing two of the five remaining Darkstar's, taking them out.

"Hey, mind if I try that?" Alan asked as he raised his fingers to his head, collecting energy at the tips with the aid of his ring. "Makankosappo...Sentinel version!" Alan then fired off his own green energy version of Shinichi's Makankosappo, piercing two more Darkstar's.

"Hey, make up your own special techniques!" snapped Shinichi.

"Mimicry is a form of flattery, Big Bro," Alan punched his arm playfully. "I did learn from you, after all."

They both looked at the final Darkstar who began to tremble in fear. Alana and Shinichi looked at one another and then at the Darkstar and smiled.

"Oh, and it looks like we have ourselves a tie-breaker," stated Shinichi when, out of nowhere, twenty-nine more Darkstar's appeared next to the lone one. "What, oh come on! They're not playing fair!" Shinichi complained.

"Do they ever?" Alan asked in a sardonic tone as he formed the Faiz Blaster and let loose a beam of energy, taking ten of them out in one shot. "Yeah, who's in the lead now?"

"Bite me!" Shinichi shouted as he raised the Seigi no Hogosha and slashed it down in a vertical slash. "Kaze no Kizu!"

The claw slash shaped strike hit the Darkstars, also taking out ten of them. "Even again."

Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu just watched the battle, both of them sighing. Tsukuyomi, watching Shinichi enjoying himself, smiled a bit.

Tsukuyomi rolled her eyes, "Boys, they're such simple idiots."

"Maybe so, but these two are out simple idiots," Amaterasu said with a beaming smile.

"What did you say?-!" Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi both looked at Alan who was glaring daggers at Shinichi.

"I said that if I win, then you can't ever put that stupid fez on anymore!" Shinichi shot back as he kicked one Darkstar in the crotch before firing off a Kienzan at another two.

"Shinchi, I've said it before and I will say it again...DO. NOT. INSULT. THE. FEZ!"

"Fezes are not cool anymore! They weren't even cool when they were in style! The only people who wear fezzes have no sense of fashion!" Shinichi argued as he back kicked a Darkstar in the chest.

"It's my 'Thinking Fez'!" Alan shouted as he lassoed and crushed three Darkstars.

"And that just confirms my 'not cool' comment. Points to me," Shinichi said as he performed a backflip before releasing two Shakkahos, blasting a pair of Darkstars to pieces.

As they were getting down to the final lot of them, even more Darkstars appeared, now ranging near one hundred.

"Grr...that's it! No more mister nice Rider!" Shinichi shouted as a dark sphere of energy formed in front of his mouth and within his hands. In an instant, he fired off the dark Cero and the double Bala, taking out around twenty of them, only to get the shock of his life as even more appeared. "Ah...fuckberries!"

"Looks like we're going into Bonus Survival Mode!" said Alan as he performed a ninja hand seal. "Oh, and Shinichi, prepare yourself because after this, I'm going to make you wear a fez, corny shades and a bowtie, because I'm going to win!" He shouted, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

It was a rarely used technique, but Alan did find it useful from time to time. In an explosion of smoke, Alan multiplied. He made five clones, each eager to win this little contest.

"Didn't I tell you to stop copying me?" Shinichi asked as he ran three more Darkstars through.

"Who do you think taught me this trick?"

"Me in the future?"

"Nope, it was Dad." Alan replied. "So, I'm not copying you. I'm copying him."

"Great, now Pops is ripping me-" Shinichi began to complain until a familiar voice shouted out from above them.

"CANNONBALL!-!-!" Alan, Shinichi and the girls looked up to see none other than Armadillo come falling down on a group of Darkstars in his Wrecking Ball Mode, squashing them flat. Armadillo unrolled himself, stretched, then turned back into a ball and called out to his teammate. "Hey, Dai! Hole in One!"

"Best idea you've had all day!" Musician said as he used his Cricket Fork like a golf club and, with a well placed hit, whacked Armadillo as hard as he could, sending him rolling along like a giant bowling ball. Armadillo ran over around thirty Darkstars before coming to a stop near Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu. "And who says that golf is a dull game?"

"Not me!"Armadillo shouted back.

Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu just looked at the spectacle and began to laugh.

"Hey, nice Strike," Shinichi commented. "Care to go for a Spare?" Armadillo nodded before returning to Wrecking Ball Mode. Alan then got behind him and, with a well strengthened kick, sent Armadillo into even more of the Darkstars.

Unrolling himself, Armadillo joined Musician before the two of them ran to join Shinichi and Alan. The four heroes then turned around to hear the sounds of more Darkstars appearing, now increasing the number of them up past three hundred.

"What the hell?" Musician complained.

"We have to find the main body," Alan theorized. If we destroy the main body, then we'll destroy the whole group."

"That's like finding a needle in a fucking haystack," whined Musician. He would much rather be home with Leviathan and Mika right now than fighting a never ending horde of demons.

"Like we got a choice right now?" Shinichi retorted as he prepared for another round.

As the four heroes prepared for the onslaught to commence, the Darkstars all suddenly stopped in their tracks. Shinichi and the others noticed this and saw the Darkstars looking behind the gathered group of heroes.

"Huh, why did they stop?" Armadillo asked.

"Mostly because of us." Everyone turned around to see Yuji and Misato, who was pushing Yuna's stroller, walking up to them. But they weren't alone. They had the company of a young and very attractive looking woman walking alongside them.

"Hey, Yuji. What are you doing here?" Shinichi asked. "And who's the new girl?"

Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu looked at the two of them and then at the girl with them, giving her suspicious stares. The girl looked at them in return and smiled while nodding at them. She let out a bit of her energy and both the goddesses gaped in reflex.

"What the...another one?" Amaterasu asked in surprise.

"Yeah, but don't worry," Yuji replied, trying to calm the two goddesses down. "She's on our side."

"Well, who is she?" Alan asked.

He soon got his answer as the Darkstars all began to back away slowly. They were afraid of this girl and for very good reason. The girl walked forward and stopped in front of Shinichi and Alan, bowing to them politely.

"How do you do? I am Aquarius, one of the Demon Priests that left Tsukimajai and decided to live on the path of good."

Shinichi and Alan gaped at her. A good demon priestess? Well, they shouldn't be surprised. Not all demons were evil, blood thirsty beings of destruction. Hell, they both had demon blood running through their veins. OK...not a good example considering what they had done in the past, but still, not all demonic beings were monsters of mass destruction.

Aquarius then looked over at the Darkstars and glared at them. "My, my, what do we have here? A bunch of lowly little pieces of fodder that wanted to try and avenge a spoiled little demon god like Tsukmajai?" Aquarius then took on her true form before holding out her hand. "In the name of the ones that defend the light, be gone, creatures of the darkest evil!"

In a blast of white energy, Aquarius sent out an energy wave that encompassed the whole area around them, obliterating the Darkstars until there were none left. With the immediate threat neutralized, Aquarius returned to her human form and turned to face Shinichi.

"Wow, that was...well, I just can't put it into words," Shinichi said honestly.

"Tell me about it," agreed Alan. "Thanks for helping us."

"You're most welcome," Aquarius smiled. "Now, which of you is Shinichi?"

"That would be me," Shinichi said as he raised his hand a bit. He was then shocked when Aquarius gave him an even more deep and polite bow. "Hey, you don't-"

"Thank you so much for getting rid of Tsukimajai!"

"Wait, you're a priestess of that monster," Tsukuyomi chortled as she stepped forward. "So why are you glad that she's dead?"

"Because she was a selfish cow that abused us and tortured us whenever she did not get her way. Besides my four siblings that continued to serve her until her death, she had three of my other siblings sacrifice their lives so that she could break the seal," Aquarius explained. "And then two more of my siblings are serving eternal life sentences in Tartarus for mass genocide in her name. Only myself, Capricorn and Taurus are left with Capricorn having gone into self-exile to train himself to be a better person."

"I see," Amaterasu said as she also stepped forward. "And Taurus, what about him?" Amaterasu remembered all twelve of the priests and knew that not all of them were completely evil. Taurus, like Aquarius, was mostly a gentle soul who only did what Tsukimajai ordered because she told him what he wanted to hear.

"Believe it or not, but Taurus actually gave up being a priest and now he runs a divine day care for the offspring of gods, goddesses, demi-gods and even demon gods and goddesses. He's also going to be getting married next year."

"Oh really?" Amaterasu asked excitedly. She loved wedding and hoped to probably get an invitation. "To who?"

"To the Goddess, Athena," Aquarius said with a smile. She respected Athena as she treated Taurus the way he should have been treated. And that was with love and kindness. It was, after all, how he always wanted to be treated. Heck, it was Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love, who set them up on their first date.

Tsukuyomi was also surprised. Taurus wasn't the brightest of the priests but he was a gentle giant. He had even refused to kill a demi-goddess once because she looked completely defenseless. It was against his code to strike a woman, which made many women respect him for that. Mostly, it was just against his nature to be mean to a woman, period.

"I'm impressed that he got himself a girlfriend that a lot of gods have been trying to date for years," Tsukuyomi interjected.

"I know, isn't it great?" Aquarius asked happily which Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu nodded to in reply.

While the three girls talked, Shinichi and the guys just stared at them while Misato took out Yuna's bottle and fed her once more.

"Dudes, did we just get-" Yokoshima began.

"Yes, you idiot," Daiichi responded. "They completely forgot about us."

* * *

On the dark side of the moon, Tsukimajai's temple was suddenly caught in a fiery explosion as the stone structure was demolished from the inside-out. As the fiery plume burned, a ball of glowing hot white energy flew off and headed towards the earth.

* * *

As the girls continued to have their girl talk, Shinichi and the guys leaned up against the wall; the Riders, Green Lantern and Shinichi having reverted back to normal. As fun as it was watching them talk, it was starting to get late. Alan looked at his watch and then back to Amaterasu. He had promised the other girls that he would be back by seven o'clock and it was already 6:30.

"Hey girls," Alan called out to them, causing them to look at him. "I really hate to break this up, be we are on a bit of a schedule." He went on by tapping his watch to get the point across.

"Oh dear, it's true. We do need to get back home before the meeting begins," Amaterasu said absent mindedly. "Come, Tsukuyomi-chan, we should be going."

"Yeah, you're right," Tsukuyomi agreed but then looked towards Aquarius. "Promise to stay in touch?"

"Of course!" Aquarius chirped brightly.

As the group began to go their separate ways, Shinichi's ahoge began to stiffen again; the action not going unnoticed by Alan.

"Oh, not again," Alan complained as he face-palmed.

"Hey, it should be me that's complaining," quipped Shinichi. "I'm psychically wired to sense danger! People now think my hair gets an erection!"

Before Alan could make a retort, a glowing hot white ball of energy slammed into the ground before them. As the smoke rose into the are, they all noticed that the reality around them was starting to warp.

"Oh shit!" Yuji cursed on accident. Yuna was still present but it was an honest slip of the tongue. "Misato, get Yuna out of here, now!"

"Right!" Misato shouted as she took Yuna and the stroller and, with her demonic strength, jumped from building to building as the reality around Yuji and the others completely warped, the area apparently now covered in a big black dome of celestial energy.

* * *

The trapped heroes, goddesses and demon priestess looked around. They were surrounded by buildings of Japanese traditional design. However, that wasn't the only thing that told them that something was weird. The sky was black, with stars, but not just stars. Galaxies, nebulas, moons and planets were all hovering up in the pitch black sky.

"OK, we're in ancient Edo. Or a very realistic replica," Alan said as he studied their surroundings. "Now, let's see where we really are." He took out his Sonic Screwdriver and began to scan, earning a curious look from Tsukuyomi.

"What is that?" she asked, pointing at the device.

"It's called a Sonic Screwdriver, little sister," Amaterasu told her.

"A what?" Tsukuyomi asked. "A screwdriver?"

"_Sonic_ Screwdriver," Alan clarified. "It's a screwdriver, and it's sonic. It does stuff."

"Stuff?"

"Yes, better than doing nothing, it does stuff."

"OK, what stuff can it do that can tell us where we are?" she asked, hands to her hip.

"Subspace pocket dimension," Alan said, putting away the device. "And see those constellations? Recognize any of them?"

Shinichi looked and recognized them. "OK, there's Cancer, Virgo, Scorpius..." His eyes widened in realization, "...And Leo." He paused, "OK, I think it's become pretty obvious who set this up!" The stars which formed those constellations were pulsing.

"Oh great, don't tell me it's those four again?" Yuji complained. "Didn't they learn last time not to fuck with us?"

"Yuji, when we leave villains alive after beating the crap out of them, most of the time they don't miraculously repent to mend their ways. They just swear revenge," Shinichi said.

"Obviously! But don't they have a life?" Yuji huffed. He had better things to do. He had planned to be with his wife and daughter. That was more important than beating up some bad guys. Granted, he enjoyed it, but not as much as being a husband and parent.

As they continued to argue, Yokoshima looked ahead at the glowing ball of hot white energy and saw that it was starting to disappear. And from within, he noticed the shadowy silhouette of a lone figure standing there.

"Um...guys, I think we got a problem here!" Yokoshima shouted, getting their attention. The glowing white ball of energy then exploded outwards, sending them all to the ground. "O-kay, that was unpleasant."

"Oh will you just shut up already?" Daiichi groaned as he pushed himself up.

Everyone else also got back to their feet and looked at the being before them. Its right arm was in the form of a giant red crab claw with a crab shell shoulder to act like armor. Its left arm resembled that of a giant white and black scorpion claw with a scorpion's tail stinger jutting out from its shoulder. On its back was a pair of white wings with blue gems embedded within them. And the legs, torso and head...were that of none other than Leo. He looked like some kind of mutant Manticore creature now from the looks of it.

"RAAAAAAAA!-!-!" the mutated Leo roared as he threw his head back. His body pulsated with intense cosmic energy and Youki.

"Leo, is that...you?" Aquarius asked her older brother. "What have you done to yourself?" Leo looked at his little sister and growled in a low feral tone.

"_**Well, well, if it isn't the traitor. Our little sister, Aquarius,**_" Leo growled. "_**And it's not Leo anymore. I have become an amalgam of power, as such I am reborn. I am now AMALGUS and now you will all die!**_"

Aquarius looked him up and down and gasped at the sight. She knew what he had done.

"Onii-sama, you performed the forbidden technique, didn't you?-!" she asked him accusingly.

"_**Yes, it was Virgo's idea. And what a wonderful feeling it is. To turn oneself into a Manticore class demon and to have this kind of power...it's exhilarating!**_"

"Onii-sama, what have you done?-! You know that technique was forbidden for a reason!" Aquarius shouted at him, tears in her eyes.

"_**Virgo, Cancer, Scorpio and I have finally merged into our ultimate state so that we could kill this Rider and his allies!**_" Amalgus roared angrily as he pointed at Shinichi, Alan and Yuji.

"You fool! A merger of this sort will only allow you to live for a short period of time! Don't you know that?-!" Amalgus looked at his little sister and spat at the ground.

"_**Imoutou, we have been sworn to Tsukimajai until death. So when we die, I'll take these mortals with us!**_" Amalgus shouted before looking at Shinichi and the others.

"No, Onii-sama!"

"_**Ready to die, Riders?-!**_"

Shinichi looked at Amalgus and then at Alan, Yuji, Daiichi and Yokoshima. They all nodded before taking their ready stances.

"Let me tell you something, Amalgus," Shinichi started as he moved his arms around, Daiichi and Yokoshima performing similar movements. "Revenge isn't worth dying for."

"_**Revenge is all I have left! Now...DIE!-!-!**_"

With that, Amalgus aimed his crab and scorpion claws at them and opened them up, forming balls of energy within them. He then fired off twin beams of energy at the heroes while Tsukuyomi, Amaterasu and Aquarius got out of the way. Aquarius, as much as she loved her brother, knew that she could not help him anymore. Her older brother was dead now, or would be once his life span ran out.

"Oh fuckberries!" Yuji shouted as they all dodged. "Everyone, transform now!"

The others nodded as he transformed, becoming Verz Vulcan. Alan summoned his Bazel battle armor and became Sentinel while, with the unison shout of, "Henshin!", Shinichi, Yokoshima and Daiichi transformed into Kamen Rider's Showa, Blue Beetle and Musician respectively.

Showa punched the ground with the Shield of Glen and formed the energy barrier to shield themselves from Amalgus' attack.

"Riders," said Showa as he drew the Higurashi no Yaiba and Sword of Ascalon, dual-wielding both swords. "On my mark!"

"Mark!" Musician and Blue Beetle answered.

"ATTACK!"

* * *

"Not good, this is not good," Misato murmured. She'd seen her husband and the others just disappear into thin air. Also, Yuna was crying and she was trying to soothe her baby daughter. "It's going to be OK, Yuna. Your father's tough. He'll be OK." Under her breath she vowed, "Shinichi, if you let my husband get killed I'm going to rip out your Spark Core and make you choke on it!"

It was times like this that she wished she could fight, but being a mother was now a fulltime gig for her. "OK, what would Yuji do at a time like this?" The answer came to her. "Call his Auntie B. Now, how do I do that?" While she had met Beatrice, the Golden Witch/Endless Witch, Misato hadn't exactly gotten the rights to summoning her. She wasn't the Witch's favorite adopted nephew. She did adore Yuna, though. Then again, Beatrice had a soft spot for children.

* * *

Amalgus rushed at them with his wings carrying. Sentinel and Verz Vulcan attacked, letting green energy and dark flames fly, but they didn't even singe him. Spinning, he knocked them aside with his wings. Blue Beetle executed a Rocket Drill Kick, aimed right for Amalgus but he flapped his wings and sent the Rider off course, causing him to land drill first to the ground. Musician and Showa attacked, swinging their weapons, but Amalgus grabbed their throats, tossing Musician aside before slamming Showa to the ground. He dragged the Rider along the ground as he carried him along before taking him high into the void of space.

"_**It's all your fault!**_" Amalgus accused.

"Hey, you started things!" Showa spat back, keeping the claw from crushing his windpipe. "I just decided to finish things!"

"_**You killed our mistress!**_" Amalgus roared.

"And she was possessing my girlfriend!" Showa argued. "And threatening the women I love! She deserved whatever she got!"

Roaring, Amalgus flew into the nearest building. There was an explosive impact before the tower collapsed, sending debris and rubble flying into the air.

A draconic roar was heard as two figures burst out from the rubble, circling each other, leaking with killing intent. "Just give this up and you'll live longer!" shouted Showa, who had ascended into his Ascalon form, as he swung at Amalgus who parried with his crab claw.

"_**Didn't you hear?-! I no longer have much time to live! If I am going to die soon, so be it, but I'm taking you with me straight to Hell!**_"

A Hammer Fist from Verz Vulcan knock him towards Sentinel who formed a huge fist before smashing it into Amalgus. Blue Beetle was waiting, with a giant right boot. He performed a downward heel kick, sending Amalgus crashing to the ground below. As he picked himself up, he was assaulted by Musician's sonic attack. He roared, firing an energy blast but Musician was ready as he used his Cricket Fork to deflect it, sending it crashing into another building, causing it to explode and crumble.

Showa dropped to the ground with Verz Vulcan and the Verz-enhanced Manakyte roared as he lunged, rolling himself into a ball and spinning like a wheel. He slashed Amalgus repeatedly with his trident-tipped tail. Amalgus shielded himself with his claws before letting loose a shockwave-inducing roar to blow them away.

"_**Damn you...DAMN YOU TO HELL!**_" Amalgus roared as he spread his wings and flapped them, blasting them with a wave of energy.

"Now! BAKURYUHA!" Showa shouted as he unleashed the Kaze no Kizu, absorbing the energy wave and reflecting it back towards Amalgus. He was lifted into the air with Blue Beetle waiting for him.

"B3 Gun, check! Gatling gun, check! Missile launcher, check!" Blue Beetle prepped up. "FRAGGING TIME!" Blue Beetle fired upon Amalgus and he was covered in smoke from all the blasts he was taking.

"You know, for a moment I was worried," said Bazel. "I mean he combined with the other three demon priests. Shouldn't he be stronger?"

"Yeah," Sentinel agreed. He looked through the smoke and his eyes widened as he saw Amalgus glowing. He took out his Sonic Screwdriver and performed a scan. "Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh?" Musician parroted. "What does 'uh-oh' mean?"

"The stick told you bad news, didn't it?" Showa questioned.

"I think I know why he won't be living long," said Sentinel. "All that cosmic energy and Youki in him, plus the fusion is unstable too. He's about to go critical."

Blue Beetle asked, "Going critical?"

"A meltdown," said Sentinel as he used his ring to confirm the readings his Sonic Screwdriver picked up. "A massive one, which is going to take out this subspace pocket dimension along with us."

'_Diabolical_,' said St. George in Showa's head. '_He plans to destroy us with himself in the process._'

"_**Should we just bail?"**_ Verz Vulcan asked Alan._**"I mean, our rings should do the trick and warp us outta here."**_

"And I can use my Cosmic Beetle Form to make a warp portal," said Blue Beetle.

"Not that easy, Yuji, Yokoshima," said Sentinel, frowning. "This whole space is magically deadlocked. Nobody gets in or out. I sometimes _really _hate magic."

"_**RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!-!-!**_" Amalgus roared. He didn't look all too happy.

"_**Right, time to get stupid then,"**_ Verz Vulcan nodded._** "Misato is gonna be so pissed when she finds out..." **_

"Do something stupid, crazy, or super smart! I don't care!" said Showa as his Dragon Cloak opened. "Just do something to get us out of here alive!" He took off and engaged Amalgus in the air.

Yuji turned to his friends, _**"OK, once I give the signal, put up as much shielding around us as you can."**_ Blue Beetle could create a shield to generate an energy barrier, Musician could do the same with soundwaves, and Alan had his ring.

"And the signal is...?" Musician prompted.

"_**You'll know,"**_ he said as he took to the sky, catching up to Showa and Amalgus.

Amalgus knocked the Sword of Ascalon out of Showa's grip. The sword hovered and returned to Showa's hand in time to parry a blow from Amalgus' claw. The combined demon priest leaned in, breathing hot breath against Showa's faceplate and the chosen warrior of St. George began to sweat.

"Two words: breath mints!" Showa quipped. That made Amalgus roar in his face. That was another thing about the Rider that disgusted him. The quips!

**SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!**

Amalgus roared as he was struck in the back by Verz Vulcan, sending feathers flying. The transformed Manakyte then spun and then lashed out with his tail, which wrapped around Amalgus' neck. He then spun around, and around, and around, before tossing the demon straight down to the ground, sending him crashing into a building.

"OK!" Blue Beetle punched his palm. "OK, Scarab! Time to go Cosmic!" He rushed towards the fallen Amalgus and in a flash of cosmic energy he was transformed. "COSMIC TIME!" He was armed with the Cosmic Blitz Scaraber, this time without Asmodeus. He focused his energy into the sword as Amalgus was getting up.

"COSMIC BLITZKRIEG!"

The attack struck and there was an explosion which swallowed Amalgus up and spat him out, leaving his body covered in scorch marks, his feathers gone, and with very significant damage to his armored body. He went tumbling before landing facedown. He trembled as he struggled to pick himself up but the Sword of Ascalon was pointed at him threateningly by Showa.

"Stay down," Showa ordered.

'_No, this was not how it was supposed to end_,' thought Amalgus. He had absorbed his siblings, fused with them, becoming one with them. He was not supposed to lose. He should be the victor here, not some mortals who got lucky to possess such great power. He then let out a roar of outrage as he summoned up what remained of his power for a last ditch effort in eliminating all his foes.

"_**CHOU...YOUMA...SHINSEI-!-!-!**_" Amalgus roared as he transformed, Youki and cosmic energy erupting from his body. The energy released blew Showa backwards as Amalgus changed, becoming quadrupedal. He now looked like a giant, armored lion like the constellation he was based on, but with some enhancements. He had flesh and armor-tearing claws and teeth with a scorpion's tail tipped with a venomous stinger, crab armor covering his body in segments for protection and also a pair of angelic wings on his back. He now looked like an actual Manticore and was just as vicious as the mythical beast.

"Yuji, can you turn into an armored dragon-horse thing?" Showa asked as Amalgus snarled at them. His body was glowing and they could feel the heat radiating from him. "Man, is it getting hot in here or is it just me?" If only he could wipe the sweat of his brow, but he was covered in armor from helm to boot.

Sentinel reported, "OK! That transformation thing is making him going critical sooner!"

Verz Vulcan had arrived, growling in dismay,_** "Great, he's bigger. Make my life easier for what I'm gonna pull, why dontcha?"**_

"What are you gonna do?" Showa asked before receiving a tail smack that sent flying down towards the others.

'_Probably the stupidest shit I have ever done in my life,'_ he told himself. "_**V? Baby girl, can you hear me?**_"

'_Yes,'_ Veronica replied. _'I know what you're thinking. We could die.'_

"_**You trust me?"**_ he asked.

'_Yes.'_

"_**Then trust in the others to back us up."**_ Verz Vulcan let out a roar as his body began to expand and grow, becoming larger and quickly matching Amalgus in size, and even becoming larger than the monster. The enlarged Verz Vulcan was now more than twice the size of Amalgus and he roared as he dogpiled the monster, its wings covering them both before encasing them in a hardened shell._** "THOSE SHIELDS WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL RIGHT NOW, PLEASE! GIVE'EM EVERYTHING YOU GOT!"**_

"SHIELD OF GLEN!" Showa fired a beam which formed a sphere around Verv Vulcan and Amalgus.

Musician assumed Rock-Metal Form. "OK, let's do this!" He strummed the guitar and put a layer of sound energy into the shape of a sphere around Showa's.

"My turn!" Blue Beetle volunteered as he formed a pair of cannons and fired, generating another layer of shielding.

"And the coup de grace," said Sentinel as he used his ring to create another final barrier, creating their four-layered shielding around Yuji and Amalgus.

"_**Yeah, this is going to hurt so much,"**_ Yuji told himself.

The shielded shell which contained Amalgus erupted with a violent boom, the shockwave penetrating the barrier as the warriors felt its force which knocked them off their feet as the shell erupted and shattered soon after. Black, orange and red flames flared in the sky as Showa and the others could only watch with widened eyes of shock. Yuji had just shielded them all, using his own body as a protective shell.

* * *

The group suddenly found themselves back in the real world. They were all fine, save for one.

Misato had watched them reappear, but when she saw her husband she let out a scream of horror, "YUJI!" Yuji was lying on his back, with grievous wounds and his clothes turned into burnt and tattered rags. She ran towards her husband but her path was blocked by Aquarius. "Get out of my way!"

"Calm yourself," Aquarius said as she transformed into her demon priestess form, summoning forth mystical water that flowed out from her vase-shaped shoulders. The water flowed towards Yuji, covering his body, glowing slightly. She then pulled the water back into the vases and stepped back. "He's healed."

Yuji groaned and sat up, "OK...did I just get a bath?" Shinichi pulled him into an affectionate headlock. "Hey!"

"You're one crazy SOB, you know that?" Shinichi laughed.

"That's why we make such good friends," Yuji grinned back. "We're all a bunch of crazy SOB's."

"I'd rather not be lumped into the same group as you," scoffed Daichi.

"But Dai, didn't you swallow the Orb of Power?" Yokoshima asked. Daichi ignored him.

Shinichi was pulled off Yuji by Misato who glared at her husband for worrying her so. She was going to have words with him and wanted to know what had occurred, but not right now. She was relieved to see he was alive.

"So, was this double date too exciting for you two?" Alan asked the goddesses.

"Alan, there's a reason why we both wanted to go out with you," said Amaterasu, her tone sombre.

"Why don't I like the sound of this?" Alan asked.

"The goddesses have to follow some very strict rules," explained Aquarius. "These rules also apply to relationships which they may forge with mortals."

"Yeah," Tsukuyomi confirmed. "We went out with you both to help us make a very important decision."

* * *

The five heroes waited back at the Hive after being asked to do so by the two goddesses who left them with Aquarius going along with the two of them as well. Before they left, Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi had told both Alan and Shinichi to gather their respective lovers as it would concern them as well. Now they were starting to get really nervous. It was close to midnight and neither of them had returned yet.

Shinichi, who leaned up against one of the computer terminals, crossed his arms while he was deep in thought. Rena and Shawna, who was summoned from Genovia, stood on either side of him while Satan, who was granted temporary leave from the Meta-World, stood in front of him. Alan himself sat down in a chair at one of the tables with Amora, Conda, Bishie and Lala sitting on the table itself while Nozomu sat next to Alan with Adam asleep in her arms. Celine and Alice were asleep in Alan's spare quarters there at the Hive with Daisuke watching over them.

As they all waited impatiently, Yuji pacing back and forth and quickly annoying Misato for his non-stop pacing, a glowing wall of light appeared within the center of the room. The wall of light quickly faded away, leaving the forms of Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu standing there with the Demon Priestess, Aquarius, standing in front of them.

"There you go, you two," Aquarius said as she turned to face the two of them. "I have brought you back to the mortal realm as requested." She then bowed as her body was slowly covered in a blue swirling ball of light. "I hope that your lives from this point forward are well worth the sacrifice that you have just made. Ja ne."

The group then watched as the glowing ball of blue light disappeared in a flash. Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu then looked at one another and smiled before turning to look at the gathered heroes and their collected harems.

"So, what happened?" Yuji asked as Alan and Shinichi walked up next to him.

"Yeah, why did you have us wait here? Is there something wrong?" Shinichi asked as well.

Tsukuyomi just rolled her eyes while Amaterasu wore a somber smile. They both knew that none of them were going to like what they had just done but, to the two of them, the sacrifice that they just made was most definitely worth it. Shinichi and the others noticed the two of them smiling. He then jumped back as Alan was suddenly attacked by Amaterasu who happily glomped him, sending the young Green Lantern to the ground with his face buried between her breasts. Shinichi and the others just stood there laughing as Alan tried to remove Amaterasu from him, the latter crooning into his ear with a husky tone. Shinichi then looked down to his right at feeling a tug on his shirt. He noticed a beautiful smile on Tsukuyomi's face. He then looked back at Amaterasu and then back at Tsukuyomi. Whatever they were going to tell them, it was going to be big.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Gonna end it here. What did the goddesses decide? Well, if you wanna know, you gotta keep reading. Sorry if this yanks your chain but it's how I roll. As if you didn't know this was my style. But trust me, you'd be definitely surprised of what will happen to the two goddesses. Also, this whole arc couldn't have been done without the help of Toku Warrior and Kamen Rider Bushido.  
**


	162. The Legacy of Cain Part 106

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 106: The Blue Comet**

"Yuji, have you been doing anything with your ring?" asked Shinichi.

"Not much. I have learnt that Yuna finds the blue glow soothing," said Yuji.

Shinichi put down a newspaper with a front page article and a colored photograph. Yuji read, "Blue Comet sighted in Shishibone skies. Experts are baffled. Is this a new superhero?"

"A buddy of mine from the Photography Club, Keima Shiraishi, has the most amazing luck with photographs. One night he was out on a date when he said he saw a blue streak of light. He took the picture and got it developed," Shinichi explained. "And there's a vague human shape in the blue glow."

"Hm," Yuji let out in interest. "Imagine that."

"And there's only one guy I know who glows blue like that when he flies. Now they're calling you the 'Blue Comet'."

"Blue Comet, huh? I like it," said Yuji with approval. "It's simple, clean, and straight to the point."

"You know people are gonna expect more after this, right? This won't be forgotten unless something bigger happens," said Shinichi.

"So, what do you expect me to do?" Yuji asked.

"With all the heat we've been getting from the media, especially from that asshole Mikogami, I think the appearance of a new hero who brings hope to the people is just what we need for good PR," Shinichi explained. "It can't be me or Alan. I mean we cause way too much collateral damage. People are even skeptical about trusting the name 'Kamen Rider'. So, maybe, just maybe, you can help turn things around." Shinichi grasped his hands, "Yuji Fudo, you are our only hope."

Yuji let out a laugh, breaking out into giggles as he tried to calm down. "I can't...believe you just Star Wars-ed me...! OK, OK I'm in...! Just need to remember not to go Verz out in public if I'm gonna do this. Things would go south in a really bad way."

"Yeah, don't wanna scare people," agreed Shinichi.

"Scare? Fuck that! I'd have an army on me in 2 seconds! I can't have that shit! And fighting back would make things worse."

Shinichi could agree with that. They were trying to present a positive image for superheroes. Even if the heat on the NEO-NUMBERS after the broadcast of that controversial footage had yet to completely die down. Their attempts to foster trust were working, but one bad move would cause all their efforts to fall apart.

"Well, 'Blue Comet', it's obvious what you have to do," said Shinichi.

* * *

"My kitty cat! Please, someone help me get her down!" a little girl pleaded. She then saw a blue glow and the Blue Comet picked up her white tabby with brown patches before landing in front of her. He wore a black bodysuit with blue shin-high boots, white forearm-length gloves, a blue jacket that was part of the suit, covering his arms, shoulders, sides and back, as well as having a lifted collar. He also had blue gem-like pads on his knees, shoulders, and elbows. In the center of his chest was the symbol of the Blue Lantern Corps. His head was covered by a blue helmet and a black opaque visor covered his eyes.

"Here you go," the Blue Comet handed the girl her cat back.

"Thanks, Mister. Who are you?" she asked.

"It's the Blue Comet," he answered before he went flying off, leaving a blue trail as he flew across the sky.

* * *

Bank robbers in ski masks were holding up a bank with guns held at the people inside.

"OK, nobody move! Or else!" the main robber ordered.

"Or else, what?" the bank robbers heard. They turned and saw floating in the doorway was the Blue Comet with his arms crossed.

"Shoot him!" The bank robbers fired but only managed to exhaust their ammunition as the bullets were stopped by the blue aura around his body.

"Oh, please," the Blue Comet scoffed, "After all that's been going on in the world you think a couple rounds can do anything to a guy like me? Seriously, it's like nobody pays attention to psycho madness that goes on at night. Anyway, I'd rather not fight since they're kids around. But if you want a few loose teeth, then say the word."

Desperate, one of the bank robbers grabbed a woman and held a switchblade to her throat. "Let us through or else this pretty lady is gonna need a plastic surgeon to fix what I'll do to her!" he threatened.

The Blue Comet sighed dejectedly, twirling the switchblade around his hand, "Humans these days, they never learn. Damn shame, really."

The bank robber stared at his empty hand, flabbergaster. "How-?-!" He got an answer in the form of a straight punch to the face that sent him across the room, crashing into the front desk and knocking him out cold and unconscious.

"I'm faster than you, genius," the blue warrior dead-panned. He turned to the other robbers and asked, "Wanna end up like him?"

* * *

The police responded to the alarm and had the bank surrounded when the bank robbers were shoved out one by one and the Blue Comet stepped out. He gave the local law enforcement a salute before flying off.

"Who was that?" one officer asked.

"Don't you read the news? It's the Blue Comet," another one answered.

* * *

One night, a young woman was heading home from a night of partying when she was being followed. She was then cornered and dragged into an alley by a man whose breath stunk of alcohol. He pushed her roughly onto the dirty ground, pinning her down. She tried to scream for help but he covered her mouth with one hand as he started to unbuckle his belt with the other. His intentions were quite clear.

He was blinded by a blue glow, radiating above him as the Blue Comet came hovering down. "Did it ever occur to you that you should just clean up and get yourself a girlfriend for this kind of shit? I mean, seriously, it's like guys like you just beg to get a beatdown from guys like me."

The would-be rapist was startled by the Blue Comet and Yuji took advantage of it to kick him off the woman and send him sprawling into some garbage. He then helped the woman up and asked, "Are you OK?"

"Yes, thank you," she said.

"Just doing my job, sweetheart," he said, smiling. "Now, go home and watch your back. Better yet, let me accompany you home." He looked to the drunk, "But first..."

A dark figure dropped down, startling the woman and sending her towards the Blue Comet. Blue Comet saw who it was and sighed, "Must you be so creepy?"

"It's my thing," said Black Skull. "Let me clean up here. You can accompany the young woman back home safely."

* * *

The drunk was tied up and planted in front of the Police Department with a note that read, "I'M A RAPIST".

Perched on the edge of the building and watching the man get what he deserves was Black Skull and he smiled with satisfaction. A blue glow was seen out of the corner of his eye and he asked, "So, did you manage to get her back home safely?"

"It's me, you know I always take care of women right," the Blue Comet replied.

"So, how do you like the new gig as a costumed vigilante?" Black Skull asked.

"Talking smack is probably the best part," he chuckled. "And everyone I deal with are a bunch of idiots! It's like they beg for this stuff!"

"Criminals are not the smartest bunch. Even in a city with heroes they think they can get away with anything," said Black Skull.

"They need to get a fucking clue then. I swear, none of them can even put up a fight properly," Blue Comet sighed. "There was this one guy who swore he was a boxer and I all I had to do was trip him up and he fell head-first into a trash can!"

Black Skull let out a laugh but all of a sudden Blue Comet disappeared in a flash of gold.

* * *

In a flash of gold, Blue Comet was deposited in a soft seat, sitting across from Beatrice who was enjoying tea and cookies.

"Ah, Yuji. So nice of you to drop by," said the Golden Witch.

"You were the one who brought me here," he retorted.

"Did I now?" Beatrice replied with a tilt of her head and an innocent look on her face. "Hm..." She put her pipe to her lips before blowing circles of smoke into the air.

Yuji's helmet disappeared since it was a construct made by his ring. "Were you feeling lonely, Auntie B?"

"Well, my husband is so busy being the new Game Master for another game, and most of my Stakes are busy with their love lives," frowned Beatrice. "I need someone to talk to."

He floated in midair, leaning back on nothing as he hovered close to the witch. "So, what's on your mind?"

"Just want to know about this new persona of yours, Mr. Blue Comet."

"Shin suggested it, and since I don't have much to do aside from family I just go about and...go about," he clarified.

"And making a name for yourself, I believe. That is a nice uniform. Very...stylish," she complimented.

"I was...influenced by my father," Yuji blushed. "I always watched him ride when I was a kid. Watching him race was always a rush for me and I always imagined myself riding next to him when I grew up. And I made that dream happen when I turned 16. Guess the image stuck with me."

"And now you're known as 'The Blue Comet'. A catchy moniker. Better than 'Blue Lantern' if you ask me," Beatrice stated her opinion.

"Titles, that's all they are," Yuji dismissed. "But you're right, 'Blue Comet' sounds badass. I wonder if anyone has started talking about me yet..."

"You're big news, Yuji," said Beatrice. "I won't be surprised if the whole world learns of you in the weeks to come."

"Well, I guess I'll have to wait until something serious happens," he sighed, "I haven't been under any pressure since the Earthbounds showed up."

* * *

Somewhere in California, a couple was making out in the backseat of a car, the action getting so hot and heavy that the windows were getting fogged up. Meanwhile, something was entering Earth's atmosphere and before long it made a trail of flame as it picked up speed, shooting across the sky.

The couple were already getting ready for some C-action when all of a sudden there was a loud explosion coming from behind their car.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!-?" The man cried, his jeans all the way down to his knees as his girlfriend's skirt was hiked.

"I...I dunno," she said, flushed. "Come on, let's go and check it out."

* * *

The couple found a deep, smoking crater 10 metres from where their car was parked. The girl, the more adventurous of the two, slid down the slope of the crater to see what it was.

"Mindy, are you sure you should go down there?" asked her boyfriend.

"Get down here, Josh! I found something!" said Mindy as she stared at the black rock which was sitting in the middle of the crater. "I think it's a meteorite!" The black space rock had glowing red veins, which seemed to seduce Mindy and she reached to touch the rock as Josh stood behind her. Her fingers slid along the red veins which slowly lost their shine after a few seconds.

"Mindy?" he asked as Mindy stood up. She then turned to face him, a sultry look in her eyes as she looped her arms around him. She then kissed him deeply.

* * *

**4 Days Later...**

"_Police are baffled by this case! The victims are reported to have had all their blood drained from their bodies, but they do not have any physical wounds on them!_" the news anchor reported. "_Could this be some sort of new epidemic? Are we in danger? Stay tuned for more details._"

"Huh, that's new," Yuji commented, an arm around his wife as they were watching TV. "Sounds like something you would do on a really bad day, Honey."

"But it's strange," Misato frowned, "No marks on the body? A vampire always leaves some kind of mark."

"Maybe this thing just feeds differently from your canonical Vampire," he suggested. He stared at the images on the TV, frowning, "Looks like I'm gonna have to investigate this thing firsthand then. Wish me luck?"

Misato smirked and darted forward, stealing a kiss and slipping him some tongue. "Always."

* * *

A woman clad in a little black dress with high heels was heading towards a nightclub to party. The bouncer, seeing her, grinned and let her inside. A pretty thing like her did not need to pay a cover charge or stand in line. She was always welcomed. The woman, in return, gave the bouncer a kiss on the cheek and whispered, "When you're on your break, come find me."

* * *

The bouncer was found in the bathroom, his brown skin dried like beef jerky and his mouth gaping wide with eyes opened all the way. He was lying on the floor. Aside from the unusual state of his body, there were no marks on his body.

* * *

It didn't take long for news about the latest victim to spread. Another one made the headlines. Who or what the killer was, remained a mystery, but this did give that annoying DJ Mikogami more fuel to add to the fire. Far too many 'unnatural' deaths had occurred and he didn't like it.

But now Yuji actually had an idea of where to prioritise his search. The victims' bodies were found where they died, each time, so just by triangulating their locations he had isolated an area for him to look.

The victims were all young men and women who enjoyed the nightlife. They lived either within walking or driving distance of the clubs they frequented.

He asked questions about the latest victim, and those who'd seen him said that they had witnessed him talking to some girl who had been all over him that night. He couldn't actually dismiss the information. In an investigation, every clue needed to be analysed to find the answers.

* * *

Blue Comet was performing a scan with his ring. If something was going to happen, he would know. His ring would alert him and...

"Non-human bio-signature detected. Species unidentified," the blue ring reported.

"Jackpot," grinned Blue Comet. He followed the signal and came upon a car. The passenger side door was open and in the driver's seat were the dried up remains of another unfortunate victim. "She couldn't have gotten far." He flashed his ring around and saw a woman walking away. "Hey, stop right there!" The woman then ran, much to Yuji's dismay. "Why do they always run?" He took to the air.

The woman looked over her shoulder. Nobody was following her. Good. She turned her head forward and then slammed into Blue Comet, sending her falling on her rear.

"OK, mind telling me why you're running from a murder scene?" Blue Comet asked. The woman glared at him, eyes glowing blood red. She gritted her teeth, which were stained in blood, and was snarling.

Yuji now understood why his ring told him that the bio-signature was non-human. The woman's body spasmed and he watched as her stomach began to bloat. Well, not bloat, exactly. More like something was trying to get out and stretching her stomach out with bulges that looked alive. She threw her head back and a tentacle slithered out of her throat. Yuji grimaced as he witnessed this spectacle, unsure of what he should do next. He could only watch.

The woman's stomach burst as red tentacles came shooting out, writhing in the air. She stumbled backwards as her head exploded and more tentacles came slithering out of the stump with her own blood. More and more of the body bloated before bursting open with tentacles squirming around in a dance of gore. The tentacles seemed to be soaking up the blood that was dripping from the woman's mutilated body and finally what remained of the woman had all been turned to minced meat as the creature stood proudly.

It was red and dripping; an immensity of pulsing, moving jelly; a scarlet blob with myriad tentacular trunks that waved and waved. There were suckers on the tips of the appendages, and these were opening and closing with a ghoulish lust... The thing was bloated and obscene; a headless, faceless, eyeless bulk with the ravenous maw and titanic talons of a star-born monster. The human blood on which it had fed revealed the hitherto invisible outlines of the feaster (Robert Bloch, "The Shambler from the Stars").

"Oh..." Yuji began as he looked upon the sight of the great Star Vampire, "That is so not kosher."

Meanwhile, standing under a lamppost on a sidewalk opposite the one Yuji was standing on, was the Infernal Merchant himself. "Hm...a Star Vampire. Haven't seen those in ages," he mused. "And a visible one too. Guess she has yet to digest all that blood she's engorged." His eyes were focused on the Blue Comet. "Yuji Fudo, how do you deal with a demonic being from outer space?"

The tentacles lashed out at Yuji who leapt backwards to evade their reach. He knew what those things did. They sucked the blood right out of their victims. With no visible marks on their bodies, he could only guess that the Star Vampire, in its human host, had invaded their bodies with its tentacles being shoved down their throats to suck their blood out. They had been choked and drained to death.

This wasn't a creature he could just capture and lock up in the Vault. This monster, with its unholy appearance, had to go. Just like Shiro.

"Right," said Yuji as he summoned the Red Queen into his hand. "Let's do this!" He dodged again, jumping to the side when a tentacle lashed out but another grabbed his ankle, dragging him towards its maw which opened and closed, famished for more blood. Gritting his teeth, Yuji's left hand became engulfed in flames. "Eat this!" he shouted as he shot a fireball into its maw. The creature let loose an unearthly shriek as it released Yuji, agonized by the pain. He then leapt into battle and swung, slashing brutally as he started to get its tentacular trunks, slicing them off with his Red Queen. Blood gushed from the stumps. Whether they were its blood, or the blood of its victim, he couldn't tell. He was glad though that the protective aura provided from his ring prevented him from being stained. The area around them, though, wasn't very lucky.

With its tentacles gone, the Star Vampire lashed out with its sharp talons. The arms moved, claws curled to grab or slash. It was hungry, it needed more blood to recover what it'd lost. Yuji could see that with it bleeding, its body was losing its color, almost becoming transparent. Was it only visible after feeding?

Well, Yuji wasn't about to let it go invisible and escape. He was going to finish it. Fishing out Featherine's brush, in a flash of magic it turned into the Crimson Dragon Spear. He twirled the spear in his left hand, letting it spin faster, and faster, and faster. He released it and it still spun from the tip of his index finger, appearing like a disk as it spun at high speed. Drawing the Red Queen back, he focused the energy of his Manakyte bloodline through it. "Oi...RYAH!" he shouted as he hit the Crimson Dragon Spear with the Red Queen, catapulting the makeshift spinning disk off towards its intended target. The flaming, spinning spear struck and the Star Vampire shrieked again as it was engulfed by the flames.

Topper watched, smirking. The Star Vampire was being burnt alive. He watched as it tried to crawl away, the flames licking up more and more of its grotesque body. It stopped moving, though, moments later, its strength and life sapped by the flames which burnt like hellfire.

"Well, that's the end of that," said Topper before taking his leave. He then whispered, "Brother Nyarlathotep, if you wish to cause chaos, think of something more creative than bringing a Star Vampire to this realm." He then vanished; in the blink of an eye he was gone.

* * *

"Seems to me you were facing a Star Vampire," said Beatrice.

"A Star Vampire?" Yuji repeated as he sat for tea and sweets with Beatrice. Sitting in the chair next to him was the physical embodiment of the Verz Virus inside of him, Veronica. In the normal world, she wouldn't have a physical form, only remaining inside Yuji's subconscious to experience the world through him. In the Meta-World, however, the laws and rules of the normal world did not apply. This was a realm of magic, where the word 'impossible' meant nothing.

To look more proper, Veronica wore a cute black and white gothic lolita outfit. The dress was black, long sleeved, with puffy shoulders. She also wore blue and violet striped stocking with black pumps on her feet. Her hair was still done up in the twintail hairstyle, only this time black ribbons were included as accessories.

"The most horrid of creatures. They bloat themselves up with blood, then bloat themselves up some more," said Beatrice, disgusted by the existence of such beings. "Always wanting more and more, not caring how much they take as long as they can have it."

"Well, it's a good thing I killed it before it got more victims," said Yuji. He was just glad that this world wouldn't have anymore problems with the Star Vampire anytime soon.

"Be glad it was a demon from the stars, and not one of the Great Old Ones, Outer Gods or Elder Gods," Beatrice cautioned. While many believed H.P. Lovecraft's stories to be of fiction, the truth was that the creatures he'd envisioned in his nightmares were all too real.

* * *

Hidden, near the site where the Star Vampire had originally landed, was a nest. And in that nest was a batch of eggs, which had soft shells covered in a layer of dried blood.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Note, I don't know much about the Star Vampires save for the basics. I dunno for sure if they even do lay eggs, but I decided to just put in a nest of eggs. However, they won't hatch anytime soon. Maybe a few decades, at least? There's a reason why they're so rare.**


	163. The Legacy of Cain Part 107

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 107: Hydes**

Good and Evil are opposing forces, but we humans are born with the potential for both. We can't help it. It's in our souls. It's also the capability to free will given to us by God that allows us to choose one from the other. However, no matter which side we choose, we are still potentially at risk to fall onto the other side. While we are leaning on one side of the fence, we can still be pulled towards the other. Spiritually, humans are not ultimately good or evil. We just are.

* * *

Shinichi stepped out his apartment and into the hallway. He spotted Tsukuyomi doing the same. "Oh, hey, Tsuki-chan." She was wearing a tanktop and a pair of bloomers. "Going out for a jog?"

"I'm dressed for it, aren't I?" Tsukuyomi retorted.

"Mind if we join you?" he asked. Rena stepped out in her jogging outfit too.

"Sure, why not?" Tsukuyomi shrugged.

"Ohayo, Tsuki-chan!" Rena beamed.

"So, where's your sister?" asked Shinichi.

"Where do you think?" Tsukuyomi questioned rhetorically.

"Ah..." Shinichi nodded, smiling in understanding.

* * *

"Oh, he's so adorable~!" cooed Amaterasu as she cradled little Adam. She was with Alan and Nozomu in the female wolf yokai's room.

* * *

The goddesses of the sun and moon had made themselves into demi-goddesses. It was a condition for them to remain on Earth and be with the men they had chosen. They couldn't be with them as full-fledged goddesses so the only other choice was to have part of their divinity removed. Now, the sisters were living in the same apartment complex as Shinichi and Rena, as their next door neighbors.

As Tsukuyomi, Rena and Shinichi went out for their morning jog, let us look at what was new in Shinichi and Rena's apartment. It appeared to be a painting, of a knight clad in draconic armor, riding a similarly armored war horse, with his sword drawn. The sky was dark but brightened by the moon which watched over the warrior.

* * *

Upon arriving back at the Hive with some assistance from Aquarius, Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu had been asked what they meant earlier when they said that their dates were to help them make a choice. Asking everyone there to take a seat, Amaterasu began to explain what the true purposes of the dates were and how their most recent decisions would affect the rest of their near immortal lives.

* * *

_Within the realm of the gods, Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi stood in the center of a glowing celestial field of energy which was surrounded by pillars and statues of all the gods, past and present. And standing in front of those statues were the current ruling gods and goddesses of the modern world. Sitting in a set of stands that were floating up and encircling the celestial field were other gods and goddesses who passed along their duties to newer gods while they went into retirement, happily keeping an eye on the human realm from afar and willing to step in at a moment's notice if the need ever arose._

_Standing around the two sister goddesses were other gods and goddesses such as Athena, Artemis, Zeus, Odin, Thor, Apollo, Buddha, Ra, Anubis and Ares. There were other gods as well but just too many to name. The one to step forward and begin the meeting was none other than Ra, the Sun God of Egypt with his human head covered in a golden helm that resembled an eagle. He wore standard Egyptian royalty garments and held a gold scepter in his hand that had small blue bands on it._

"_I, Ra, shall now bring this emergency meeting of the Celestial Court into order," Ra said as the other gods and goddesses remained quiet. Looking at Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu, he began the meeting. "Japanese Goddess of the Sun, Amaterasu, and Japanese Goddess of the Moon, Tsukuyomi, you have been asked to appear before the Celestial Court today on the charge of having romantic relations with two mortals."_

"_As you know, such relations are forbidden by our rules and are punishable by either complete mortalfication or…by death," Anubis added as he too stepped forward. He wore garments similar to Ra but his outfit was more black in color and he wore a black helm in the form of a jackal's head. Sheathed at his waist was a black Egyptian scimitar. "Before we decide upon your sentence, you are both granted the opportunity to defend your actions before the court." Anubis and Ra eyed them with serious and stern glares, waiting for them to reply. "Well? Have you no excuse for your actions?"_

"_No, Lord Anubis, we do not," Amaterasu said calmly. "My little sister and I have been watching the mortals, Shinichi Banabara and Alan Smith, for quite some time now. Years if you think about it."_

"_They have shown themselves to be great heroes and have made many sacrifices in order to protect the weak and the innocent," Tsukuyomi added._

_An orb of light appeared above them, growing into a ring which displayed images, showing all the gods and goddesses who they were talking about._

"_Ah, yes. These two," Ra stated as he looked at them. "The Green Lantern from an alternate universe that possesses control of the Quantum energy spectrum and the human/demon half-breed that is also a cyborg and possesses many powerful treasures which he uses to aid him in his battles."_

"_Kamen Rider Showa, a former agent of GIN-SHOCKER and deliverer of death for over ten years while serving them," Anubis added with some interest in his tone. He liked some of Shinichi's handiwork but was somewhat annoyed that he became softer than what he had been as BLACK 13. "He possesses powerful temporal abilities that were later sealed away by his doppelganger, Shiro Juuyon. He uses the Chou Dai-Shurikan, Oni no Hone, Higurashi no Yaiba and the Sword of Ascalon to access even more powerful forms."_

"_And then there's the being known as Sentinel," Ra began. "A truly noble warrior who uses one of the oldest artifacts of power, the Armband of Bazel, to grant him greater energy manipulation than he had previously had with that ring of his. He has also been infused with nanites to grant him even greater powers and is possibly the most powerful mortal human in this reality and, possibly, his own reality as well."_

_Turning to face Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, Anubis asked, "So, tell us. What is it about these mortals that would cause you to risk your very existence? Why would you go against the sacred rules that the old ones themselves put into place eons ago?" _

_Tsukuyomi stepped forward, "Because, they have shown us that there is still hope for humanity. With Shinichi, I have seen both his dark side and his good side. While he may still remain slightly mentally unstable, he is very kind and gentle to those around him and he loves humanity. He would give his life in order to protect them."_

"_And yet, he has given up once before," Athena stated from her place in front of her statue. Tsukuyomi just shot her a glare before calming herself and continuing._

"_That was because, at the time, he had hurt one of his friends with his great power. It drove him into a crossroads as he didn't know how to move forwards past that. And, yes, he did quit being a hero. But he found himself being dragged back into the role when the Cybermen attacked the kingdom of Genovia where one of his lovers resides. He then fought the newly awakened dragon, Dreigon, who was converted into a Cyber-Dragon. Upon death's door, the Sword of Ascalon chose him as its new user and gave him the power to defeat Dreigon." A small smile crossed her face. "He has also shown that he is slowly awakening the dormant abilities of his demon blood and his control over both Youki and Reiryoku."_

"_He has also allowed the spirit of the dragon to live within his mind as well," Ares added. "Could that cause a problem in the future? Dreigon, back in his heyday, was by far one of the most feared creatures to have ever existed. It was why the Christian God gave Sir George the Sword of Ascalon."_

"_A good point, brother," Artemis agreed. "Dreigon has shown that he can exert his will over Shinichi's at times and take control of his body. There's no telling what a being like Dreigon would do with such power."_

_Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu looked at one another. The fact that Dreigon was alive within Shinichi was news to Amaterasu but she noticed that Tsukuyomi showed no surprised reaction to it. It was also a known fact that no one else besides Shinichi and Tsukuyomi had originally known about that as well though Rena might now know after having been possessed by Tsukimajai for a short while._

"_I can guarantee you all that Dreigon no longer poses a threat to us," Tsukuyomi countered. "He has sworn his loyalty to Shinichi and will help him protect all the he loves and holds dear. Just as the other Tsukumogami would."_

_The gods and goddesses gave her a scrutinizing look._

"_For your sake, it had better remain that way, Moon Goddess," Zeus said with slight disdain in his tone. "Now, Amaterasu, do have any reasons for why you have shown romantic affections towards this outworlder, Alan Smith?"_

"_Hai, Zeus-sama," she replied. "Like Shinichi, Alan is very kind and gentle and would give his life in an instant to protect his friends and family. And, yes, like Shinichi, he has had his own brush with having gone dark for a time but he had help in coming back to his senses. In my past, his future self would appear to stop the Yamata no Orochi and it is at that moment that I fell in love with him. To see him again after so many centuries later…it brought great joy to my heart." She looked over to Apollo, "Sorry Apollo, no harm done I hope?"_

"_It's okay," Apollo replied with a smile._

_Ra stepped forward a bit more and glared at them. "Enough with all of the romantic melodrama talk! Do you two have any reasons as to why we should not eliminate you for breaking the sacred rules?"_

_Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu looked at one another and they were about to speak up when another female voice did for them._

"_Excuse me, milord. If I may interject for but a moment?" The gods and goddesses turned to see the demon priestess form of Aquarius standing there before her body was covered in shimmering water-like energy, transforming into her human form._

"_I see, an ex-member of Tsukimajai's court wishes to make a statement then?" Anubis asked. Aquarius nodded as she bowed politely. "Very well, you may proceed."_

"_Thank you, Lord Anubis." Aquarius then looked at all the gods and goddesses as she stood next to Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu. "My lords and ladies, please think of a time when you yourselves have meddled with mortals in a romantic light." They all began to erupt slightly in outrage until Aquarius silenced them. "Oh, come now. Everyone here has had their one night stands or decades' long love flings with mortals in the past. Especially you, Lord Zeus. Have you forgotten what your one night flings have brought the world?"_

"_Well, no, I haven't. But that's not the point here!" Zeus shot back while a small blush covered his face in embarrassment._

"_Oh, but I disagree. This is the point," Aquarius countered. "These two may have gone against the rules but rules should not be used to confine our hearts." She looked both Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi dead in the eyes. "I have met these mortals that have stolen their hearts and I, for one, can see no wrong in their wanting to love and be loved by them."_

"_But the rules…" Thor groaned, making his own protest._

"_Oh, enough with the rules thing already," Aquarius quipped. "We all know pretty darn well that this can and will happen eventually to most of us."_

"_Careful, little Witness of Time," Ra warned her. "You're treading on thin ice here."_

"_My apologies, milord. But what I say is true. They have given you good enough reasons why they should not have to be made into mortals or even executed. Please, I only ask that you all listen to their one single request and give it good thought."_

_All the gods and goddesses looked at one another and, after a few moments of deliberating, nodded and looked back at the two sisters and demon priestess._

"_Very well, we shall hear out their last request before we decide on the proper course of action," Odin said as he made his presence known. Looking at Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu directly, he asked, "Ladies, what is your request?"_

_Taking a deep breath, the two sisters looked at one another and smiled before facing their peers. In unison, "We, the goddesses of the Sun and Moon, hereby request to have our class of divinity denounced and to be demoted to demi-goddesses."_

_The gathering of gods and goddesses all looked at them with gaping faces. This was a serious and irreversible request. Once done, they would forever remain demi-gods. Only the first god could ever overrule such a request but he would only do so if he saw fit._

"_Do you two realize what it is that you are asking of us?" Athena asked, wanting them to be perfectly sure._

"_Hai!" they replied in unison._

_The gathered gods and goddesses looked at one another for a mere moment before Anubis looked back at them. "Please give us some time to deliberate your request."_

* * *

_After waiting for hours, the gods and goddesses all returned to finish the hearing. This time, only Ra took his place in the circle while the other Gods and Goddesses of the Celestial Court took their seats. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi both wrung their hands nervously while Aquarius began to sweat bullets. Taking a few deep breaths, Ra finally spoke up._

"_Goddess of the Sun, Amaterasu, and Goddess of the Moon, Tsukuyomi," he began before pausing for only a moment. "We of the Celestial Court and also the other members of the divine community have decided…to grant you your request." Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi jumped up and down with joy, Aquarius smiling for them. "But, even so, you shall still be required to attend one Celestial Court meeting every year and to make a yearly report of your lives on Earth."_

"_We understand, Lord Ra," Tsukuyomi said. "And thank you for your kindness"_

"_You are most welcome."_

* * *

After a jog, Shinichi went to his job in Topper's Pawn Shop. Considering how many times Shinichi had to take up 'vacations', it was a miracle that Topper hadn't fired him yet or had him replaced. The top-hat wearing man did, however, hire some extra help.

"Dragonsbane refers to any item, material or herb which specifically harm's a dragon. It can come in the form of a weapon or a poison. Dragonsbane was highly sought after due to its ability to surely kill dragons. However, Dragonsbane is highly rare in the modern era as actual dragons are," Shinichi read.

"Shinichi, I need you in the backroom," Topper called. "Let Amora take care of the counter."

Shinichi put down the book and looked to his blonde co-worker who dismissed him, "It's OK. Just go and help Mr. Top Hat." Nodding, Shinichi went into the backroom. Amora sighed as she stood at the counter. Topper's Pawn Shop was definitely an interesting place to work. The items here were all rare and valuable, most of them with mystical properties. The air was practically drenched in magical aura, though only the truly magically sensitive could sense it.

Amora had been working here for quite some time, earning her own money, as well as filling in for Shinichi whenever he would need to be away due to his responsibilities as a Rider. Topper did need the extra help and she really needed a job at the time so she applied for the job, with a resume, and was hired on the spot after a short interview.

The bell above the front door chimed, signalling the arrival of a customer. Amora put on her best smiled, greeting them, "Hello, welcome to Topper's Pawn Shop."

"Hey, Amora," smiled Yuji.

"So, are you here just to see Shinichi, or are you here to buy something?" asked Amora. Yuji browsed around the shop, looking at the items on display. The thing about pawn shops is that a person could find almost anything, and Topper had a very interesting collection of items up for sale/trade.

"Hey, a Magic 8-Ball," said Yuji as he looked at the item, but instead of an 8 it had a skull on it.

"It's actually a Magic Death Ball," Amora corrected. "Predicts when you're going to die."

Yuji looked to Amora oddly and asked, "Who would want to buy this thing?"

"Who knows, but the original owner wanted to part with it fast when a lot of his friends died after playing with that thing," said Amora.

"So, it doesn't predict future deaths," Yuji concluded. "It just curses people by telling them when they're going to die." He stared and added, "That sounds dangerous."

"Yeah, like the monkey's paw Mr. Liquer keeps in the back," said Amora. Yuji spotted the open book on the counter and curiously picked it up. He looked at the page and cocked an eyebrow. "Shinichi was reading that."

"Why would he be reading on 'Dragonsbane'?" Yuji questioned cautiously.

"Maybe he's planning on killing you and trying to find a weakness," Amora joked. "Manakytes are technically a breed of dragons, so does Dragonsbane work on you?"

"Considering this stuff is either in the form of some kind of weapon or poison, yeah," said Yuji. "If you shoot us in our human form we can still die if we don't see it coming. Stab us in the heart, blow us up, or whatever. If you catch us by surprise you can kill us. We just don't die that easily."

"Maybe he's just polishing up on his knowledge of dragons," said Amora. Shinichi exited the backroom. "Hey, look who just got here," she said to him.

"Oh, hey, Yuji," grinned Shinichi. "Looking for anything? Maybe a music box? A toy for Yuna? Something special for one of your ladies?"

"Now that you think of it..." Yuji found something in the display counter. There was a set of two beautiful earrings with rubies. "These would look great on Misato."

"Appropriate. Blood Ruby earrings that were worn by Countess Elizabeth Báthory de Ecsed," Shinichi identified.

Yuji blinked, "Wait, what? THE Elizabeth Bathory? Also known as..."

"The 'Blood Countess'," Shinichi finished. "That's right. The woman who believed she could preserve her youth and beauty by bathing herself in the blood of virgins. She killed hundreds of young girls so she could be young forever. These earrings were made using the blood of two of her victims."

Yuji stared at the Blood Rubies and asked, "And how did your boss get his hands on these again?"

"We don't really ask, to be honest," said Amora.

"We don't ask, he doesn't tell," said Shinichi. "Standard policy. Besides, it's not like he did anything illegal."

Yuji was still wary. He looked at the Blood Rubies. On one hand, they were beautiful. On the other hand, they were owned by a psychotic countess from the early 1600's who bathed in the blood of virgins to retain her youth. He stared at the price tag and gaped, "15,000,000 yen?-!"

"They are one of our most valuable items," said Amora. "Personally, I think they'd be worth way more."

"Of course! They should be in a museum!" Yuji argued. "I mean, if they're genuine!"

"Maybe they are, maybe they're not," Shinichi shrugged. "But that's the price Topper-san put on them."

"I doubt I have enough money to even buy one," Yuji sighed.

"How about you trade it for your blue ring?" Amora pointed. She'd heard how it had boosted Alan's ring's power. Maybe she could get it for him so he would always have an extra boost handy.

"Sorry, but no," Yuji denied. "I can't give you the ring."

"I know how it works. You have to die and the ring will go to the next worthy person," Amora answered.

Topper came out of the backroom next, holding up a glass case with an old antique doll inside. "Could I interest you in this doll?"

"PUT IT AWAY!" Shinichi screamed as he backpedalled away, earning gawking looks from Amora and Yuji.

"Dude, what is your deal?" Yuji exclaimed.

"Those _things _just creep me out," Shinichi trembled.

Amora deadpanned, "You can fight killer salt shakers without flinching but a little doll scares you?" That sounded lame.

"I was only a little kid when Kaa-chan took me to an old doll museum. There were so many of them..." Shinichi paled and shivered, "Their eyes...the eyes followed you around...always staring...never blinking..." He curled into a fetal position, rocking back and forth. "The eyes...the evil, evil eyes..."

Amora and Yuji sweat-dropped as Topper put the display case on the shelf before throwing a black cloth over it, shielding it from Shinichi's view. "There."

"Thanks, Boss," said Shinichi. He warned Amora and Yuji, "And don't you both tell anyone about this."

"Promise," Yuji swore. "So...got anything else to show me?"

* * *

Alice and Celine were enjoying themselves in an inflatable kiddie pool in the lawn, splashing at each other as they played in the water. Summer was a time for fun and with summer vacation that meant weeks of carefree fun until school started again. Alan was sitting at the veranda, watching his daughters play together in their swimsuits as they splashed around in the kiddie pool. Celine loved it, especially, being a plant. Alan was just relieved that Alice hadn't developed a case of hydrophobia since Shinichi had tried to drown her when she had been Chaos Doll. A phobia of water would've prevented her from having fun.

Daiki came and sat down next to Alan, who asked, "Not gonna join them?"

"Me? In a kiddie pool?" scoffed Daiki. "Kiddie pools are for babies."

"Yeah, good point," Alan noted. The kiddie pool was just too small, big enough only for two small children.

"Why don't we use the pool at the Hive? Or hang out at the lake in the canyon?" Daiki asked.

"Being there just reminds me I gotta work," Alan frowned. "Sides, what's wrong with relaxing at home during summer?" He gestured to Conda who was reclined on a lawn chair in a bikini, sunbathing with sunglasses over her eyes.

"I don't wanna relax, Dad!" Daiki complained. "I wanna have fun! We should head out to the beach! Or a water park! Better than just staying in the city!"

"There hasn't exactly been a good time," Alan frowned. There were a lot of new enemies popping up and Alan needed to be ready. He couldn't just go off and have a vacation while others were protecting the world.

"Come on, Dad! I mean you gotta admit you deserve some vacation time," Daiki pointed out. "Mom (Conda) told me that you came to this world for a vacation! Why not cash in on that vacation time!"

Alan considered Daiki's words. When was the last time Alan had any time to just relax. Still, he couldn't just take a vacation, could he?

"The others can handle it, Dad. The world isn't gonna end with you taking a few days' vacation," encouraged Daiki.

"Daiki, you should be careful about what you say," said Conda as she pulled her sunglasses off to look at her lover and adopted son. "But you do raise a good point. We should get out of the city and find a nice vacation spot."

Celine ran over to Alan, placing her hands on his leg. "Mau! Mau!" She pointed to her mouth and rubbed her stomach. "Mau!"

"We'll talk about this with the others later." He had a watermelon and he used his ring to cut it into slices. He handed a slice to Celine who began eating as she sat next to her father, smiling. "Want a slice?" Alan offered Daiki. Alice had grabbed a slice off the plate and was eating it.

"Don't forget me!" called Conda. Alan used his ring to hand Conda a slice of watermelon. "Thank you."

"So, we are gonna go on vacation?" Daiki asked hopefully.

"We'll see," said Alan.

* * *

It was late at night when things really got interesting. Two armored figures were chasing after a beast that had been responsible for several deaths. Tonight, they managed to catch it but it was getting away. The armored figures were Kamen Rider Alter and Black Skull.

"There he is!" the Darkloid Rider pointed as their quarry was climbing up the wall.

"You're not getting away!" Black Skull called as he activated his Drill Extender and fired, the drill missing as it dug into the surface of the wall. Their target had quickly scaled up and reached the roof. "Didn't I say you're not getting away!" Black Skull shouted as he withdrew his Drill Extender and jumped up with Alter in two.

The two landed on the roof and got a clear look at their enemy. It stood bipedal on two legs but hunched over with a large metallic growth coming out of its back, which was arsenic. The same growths were on its shoulders as well. It had extra, spider-like limbs stemming from the pure arsenic crystal growth on its back, each leg tipped with concentrated arsenic. The parts not covered in arsenic crystal were covered in hairs coated in arsenic dust.

"Remember, Keiichi," said Black Skull. "This guy might be on G-Shock but he's already killed 6 people."

"Mind letting me handle this, Shinichi?" Alter asked as he stepped forward.

"He's all yours," Black Skull permitted and Alter smirked before charging towards Arsenic Spider. The Hyde hissed and launched himself at Alter who countered with a punch to the creature's jaw, sending it tumbling along the rooftop. It got back to its feet and shot strands of arsenic-laced webbing at Alter who jumped. Black Skull dodged the webbing strands as well, which landed on the roof's surface. There was a sizzling hiss as the substance ate into the concrete.

Pounding his knuckles together, Alter performed a forward side flip and bashed his electrified fist into Arsenic Spider's chest, knocking it back and momentarily stunning it. The Darkloid Rider continued its attack but then Arsenic Spider's extra limbs curled around Alter and stabbed into his back. He cried out as he was being poisoned by the Arsenic. He broke free by kicking Arsenic Spider away and skidded along the rooftop. His shoulder blades were beginning to hurt but fortunately his armor had absorbed the damage.

"OK, let's see you try these!" Alter shouted as his wrist blades sprouted from his wrists and curved blades sprouted from his ankles. Dashing towards the Spider Hyde, Alter performed a series of kicks which allowed his blades to slash across Arsenic Spider's body. The spider legs came into play again but were sliced off by Alter's Blade Claws.

Withdrawing his blades, Alter waved his arms in a circle before using two simultaneous punches which knocked the monster backwards. Hissing, Arsenic Spider's shoulder growths opened up like mouths and fires pure liquid arsenic at Alter. He jumped high and performed a backflip before landing a distance from the liquid arsenic which ate into the rooftop floor.

Arsenic Spider hissed and leapt away, trying to escape.

"Oh, no you don't!" A portal formed and Zakider was summoned before it transformed into its hoverboard mode. Alter jumped up and the rockets propelled him after Arsenic Spider.

Arsenic Spider was fleeing but then it heard a sound like a jet engine and looked over to see Alter on Zakider flying towards him. Zakider's claws caught Arsenic Spider and it struggled to get loose. However, Alter's partner/vehicle wasn't about to let it go. It flailed about as Alter and Zakider took it to a higher altitude before dropping the creature. It screeched as it was plummeting to the street but it wasn't going to die so easily as it crashed to the ground. Momentarily disoriented by the fall, Arsenic Spider tried to flee only for Black Skull's fist to meet its face. The fist was encased in the Shield of Glen and literally packed a punch. Arsenic Spider was sent staggering backwards and Showa called, "Kei, he's all yours!"

Alter leapt off Zakider and performed a drop kick as he shouted, "ALTER...KICK!" His attack smashed into Arsenic Spider and there was an explosion. Arsenic Spider went tumbling as it was knocked out before landing faceup on the ground.

"Glad to see your training is paying off," said Black Skull.

"You know, you could've helped. This would've been done a lot faster," Alter returned.

"And miss the show? Besides, I knew you could handle it," Black Skull replied. "OK, now for the capture." Showa as used the C3 to digitize Arsenic Spider. "Come on, Kei. Let's get back to base and see to it that this guy gets cured."

Alter massaged his shoulders, "Yeah, and I'm gonna need some treatment."

"I'm sure Hana will be happy to help," Black Skull said as he called Sheila to open up a Teleportal for them.

"Yeah, and I've been wondering, how did she qualify to be a medic?" asked Alter as the Teleportal opened.

"She could make bandages out of her own webbing and her venom can be used as a painkiller," was Black Skull answer as they began to step through.

* * *

"That should do it," said Dr. Magi before throwing the needle away. The captured Hyde, now back in human form, had been injected with a serum to purge him of the G-Shock in his system. It was the only way to prevent them from changing into Hydes again. G-Shock won't effect them ever again.

"It's not over through," said Keiichi as he crossed his arms. "This stuff is still being sold on the streets."

"Even me destroying that factory didn't stop someone else from making it, modifying it to make monsters," added Shinichi.

"Well, Shiro was working for someone. He must've given them the formula," added Dr. Magi.

"The Religion of Crime," Shinichi frowned.

"And we still don't know what they're really after," frowned Keiichi.

"Doesn't matter what it is. We'll still stop them," said Shinichi.

"Yeah," Keiichi smiled. "We will." He'd been a victim of G-Shock once and he didn't want anyone to become a victim of the drug like he had been a year ago. But the drug was different as it could turn people into monsters that they had dubbed 'Hydes'. The name originated from the novel 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' and it really fit this new type of monster as they mutated from people who took an overdose of the performance enhancing and personality altering drug G-shock.

The first Hyde Shinichi had encountered had been the Copper Wolf and tonight Keiichi and Shinichi had apprehended another one named Arsenic Spider. This was all G-Shock's doing and they had to put a stop to it.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The first chapter of the new arc, known as the Hyde Arc. Some new characters will be introduced, however. It won't be very long, of course. So, without further ado, please enjoy this new arc with an open mind.**


	164. The Legacy of Cain Part 108

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 108: He Came From the Future**

Our chapter this time doesn't start in 1989. Nor does it start in the past. Our chapter this time begins in the future, the year **2365 **to be exact.

Standing on top of a building, three people were currently tinkering with a strange and futuristic looking machine. it had glowing circuitry lines running all over it with a small pedestal set in front of it. At the machine, a young man with tan skin and green hair styled in a spiky mohawk was working on some of the inner wiring's; his bio-mechanical arms transforming into different devices every few seconds whenever he needed a different tool. He also wore a pair of baggy cargo pants and a black muscle shirt and he had a tattoo of a phoenix on his left shoulder.

"Hey, Rook, be careful with those time circuits," the second person called from the pedestal. He wore a black bodysuit with metal plates on his lower legs, boots, forearms, hands and outer thighs. His chest plate seemed to be made of a strange metal as well and bore a strange mark on both sides of the chest plate. In the center of the chest plate was a red gemstone with a strange black-colored symbol within its center. His shoulder pads were half-rounded with gold trim and so were his knee pads. The base and back of his neck also had metal padding on them and his helmet appeared to be modeled after a Kabutomushi with red eye lenses and a silver mouth plate.

The sides of his helmet jutted upwards like horns as well and seemed to go up for about six inches. His belt seemed to have a segmented appearance with small strange pods attached to the sides. The center of the belt was shaped like sun burst with a set of claws emerging from it, clutching a red orb within their grasp.

Rook looked back at the armored individual and grinned, his bright blue eyes gleaming in the remaining sunlight as the sun began to slowly set.

"Oh, ease off already, boss," Rook quipped back in a happy yet sarcastic tone. "I'm not going to cross the time circuits again."

"You'd better not," the third person, a young girl, shot back. She had a very slender hourglass figure and wore a black leather outfit that only covered her sides and her ample sized breasts. Her lower front was covered in a type of black leather pantie bottom that had two set of white belts fastened to it by gold ring buckles, the two white belts wrapping around the black leather outfit that flayed out at the side of her hips. Her long slender legs, most of her front, shoulders and collar were bare as her arms were covered by white cloth that connected to the black leather suit via black leather mesh straps around the puffed out upper arm cloth.

She also had long thigh high black leggings that attached to white and black boots with high-collar ends at the top. The black leggings stopped at slightly under mid thigh and had a set of black leather straps that wrapped around her thighs and formed an X pattern. Sprouting from the back of her outfit was a long black tail that had a yellow bow attached at the end, the tail swaying back and forth a bit. Her hair was long and kept in a single ponytail that reached the back of her legs and was marine blue in color and her eyes were red like rubies.

Rook looked back at the girl and smiled. "Oh, come on, Diz. You know that that was an accident," Rook said with a sheepish look on his face.

"Yeah, right. Some accident. Last time you tampered with the time circuits, you nearly got my Aniki stuck in the past with a bunch of man eating dinosaurs!" Dizzy shouted as she puffed her cheeks.

As they argued, the armored man at the pedestal just sighed. '_Man, she can be overprotective. And Rook wonders why I don't have a girlfriend._' He then noticed Dizzy walking up to him. "What's up?"

"Here, the White Kakugane that you're trying to make might not be complete yet but you can still use your old original silver one," she told him while handing him a silver, hexagonal shaped medallion. The armored man took it and placed it at the side of his belt, allowing it to be held into place via magnetism.

"Always looking out for me, aren't ya, Diz?" Dizzy just smiled cutely. They weren't related by blood but he took her in years ago when she had no where else to go. So, to her, he was her big brother and would always support him.

"Yo, Eon! We got a problem!" Rook shouted as the machine began to come to life.

The armored man, momentarily known as Eon, stood up as the machine began to let off a humming sound. At the same time, a black being up in the clouds noticed what was going on.

"You idiot! I told you not to mess with the time circuits!" Eon shouted.

"But I didn't! The damn thing just turned on by itself!" Rook shot back.

**SCREEEE!-!-!**

The three of them looked up to see a long serpentine dragon-like creature come flying straight down at them. Rook and Dizzy gulped as Eon glared at the creature from behind his helmet.

"Damn it! This is so not the time for Dredge to show up!" Eon then noticed the machine begin to charge up the time laser, the long golden tip preparing to fire on him and Dizzy. Acting quickly, "Dizzy, take cover!" He shoved Dizzy aside as Dredge got within biting distance. At that moment, the machine shot a beam of temporal energy, striking the two of them and sending them up into the sky above them, the energy slamming into a suddenly appearing glowing blue rune.

After a few seconds, the machine powered down. Dizzy and Rook looked around for Eon but did not see him nor Dredge anywhere.

"No...Aniki," Dizzy began she Rook looked over the time circuits and the set date. But what he found freaked him the hell out. The time circuits were fried and there was no date set. Just where Eon and Dredge got sent to was now a complete mystery. And with no set course, there would be no way to find them.

"No, how can that be possible? You can't just time travel without a set date," Rook said to himself as Dizzy fell to her knee.

"...ANIKI!-!-!"

* * *

**1989**

Shinichi was standing in the middle of the canyon with Yuji watching nearby. He'd called his friend to supervise this training session. Summoning the Seigi no Hogosha, Shinichi gripped the sword and focused on his inner power. "OK...this time for sure..." His closed eyes snapped open as he yelled, "Burning...ARMAMENT!"

He could feel the flames coming out of him, enveloping him. He could feel the power, the heat...the heat...THE HEAT!

"I'M ON FIRE! I'M ON FIRE!"

He was suddenly sprayed with white foam, putting out the flames. Yuji had been carrying a fire extinguisher, which was a good thing. They didn't need Shinichi to become extra crispy.

Shinichi smiled gratefully, "Thanks for putting me out."

Yuji answered, "I just saw you set yourself on fire. I only did what came naturally. Word of advice: don't try that Burning Armament thing out of your armor. "

Shinichi nodded, "I know." He looked at his ruined clothes. "Dammit, I know I can't burn, but too bad for my clothes."

Yuji took out his brush and waved it, restoring Shinichi's clothes. Shinichi blinked, "You still have that?" It was the brush Featherine had given Yuji when they had fought the Earthbound Gods.

Yuji shrugged, "She never asked for it back."

"Wow, I have the Sword of Ascalon, you got a magic brush, and Alan has a Sonic Screwdriver. The only difference is I can't use mine stealthily."

Yuji countered, "A sword like that isn't meant for stealth. It's meant to be that big."

Shinichi shouted defensively, " I am not overcompensating for anything!"

Yuji raised his hands, placating the Rider, "Never said you were. Just saying that sword is supposed to big. Boy, defensive much?"

Shinichi apologized, "Sorry about that."

"Now, I think you should get ready," said Yuji. "You got another training session, right?"

"Yeah, I do."

* * *

Does in the holographic training chamber, Shinichi stood before Rika, Hanyuu and Rena. He had something he needed to do with them involving the Rider powers he'd given them. Concentrating, Shinichi drew out the power spheres from Rika, Hanyuu and Rena, pulling them back into his Spark Core.

"So, what does this mean?" Rika asked. "You're just going to take the powers away and leave us powerless?"

"Not all of you are powerless," Shinichi retorted, glancing at Hanyuu, "I just thought I'd let you have a chance with different powers." He summoned three spheres and shot them to the girls' chests. "Rena-chan, you now possess the power of Kamen Rider Amazon whose wild and free spirit matches your own. Rika-chan, you now possess the power of Kamen Rider X, which comes with his skills in wielding the Ridol. Finally, Hanyuu-chan, you now possess the electrifying powers of Kamen Rider Stronger."

"Amazon-chan, hm?" Rena thought about the implications. "I can live with that."

"So, I guess I get a weapon this time too," added Rika.

"I don't mind," said Hanyuu. "I'm going to miss turning into a giant, but I'm sure you have your reasons."

"Good," smiled Shinichi. "Now that we've taken care of that, I'd like to see you girls transform and practice."

"_Shinichi, you are required in the main hall,_" called Sheila.

"Oh, OK, Sheila," said Shinichi. He addressed the girls, "Transform and practice. Oh, and Shin here will be your sparring partner."

AI-Shin, in the Power Wrestler, marched over and put his fists against his hips. "_OK, ladies. Let's do this._"

* * *

"What's the situation?" asked Shinichi as he stepped towards the large computer console.

"_Another Hyde has been sighted on Shishibone University's campus_," Sheila reported. "A_ Teleportal has been opened. Should I summon the others_."

"No, I can handle this," said Shinichi. "What's it power level?"

"_High enough to warrant your default armor configuration_," Sheila answered.

"Showa it is," Shinichi rubbed his hands together. "Henshin!" His armor formed over his body. He then summoned the power of his nanites, covering himself in armor plates which shifted and changed shape, molding around his body to become an armored motorcycle with a protective canopy covering him. He'd actually seen the movie _Tron _and was inspired by the Light Cycles that he wanted to ride one himself. "Let's Ride!" He shot into the Teleportal, hoping to make it in time. A Hyde showing up meant a lot of bad things, mainly people getting hurt.

* * *

Floating at a very fast rate of acceleration, both Eon and Dredge were surrounded by a sea of stars, galaxies and energy. The light around them was bright as their bodies kept slamming against the walls of energy as they traveled through the time vortex.

"I just had to try and kill you today, didn't I?" Dredge complained. Eon just shook his head as he slammed into another energy wall.

"Oh will you...Ow...just...ow...shut...ow...up!"

* * *

Showa had arrived to confront the Hyde who was causing trouble in Shishibone but realized that this one was stronger than the ones he'd defeated before. He was thrown violently into the outdoor seats of the student café by the Rock Gorilla Hyde. The Hyde, a mutant created due to an overdose of a drug called G-Shock, was originally a member of the university's wrestling team. The member, Goro Satomi, had been their weakest member and had been delegated to being their towel boy. Not wanting to spend his whole time in the team as their towel boy, he purchased G-Shock to toughen himself up and had won several matches until the overdose turned him into this gorilla-like beast with literally stone skin.

Fortunately, there was a way to reverse the transformation by knocking them out with a finisher. They were strong enough to survive them, unless of course Shinichi ever used his much stronger forms which could prove fatal. He didn't want to go that far.

Getting up to his feet, Showa slammed his knuckles together to form his Great Fists and charged at the Rock Gorilla Hyde. He shot his fists forward to strike but the mutant Kaijin was able to catch his fists and grapple with him. The Rock Gorilla Hyde didn't just look strong, he was _strong_.

Showa gritted his teeth. He could really use some help right about now. Suddenly, the sky became dark as lightning bolts arched around the clouds. Looking up, both Showa and the Gorilla Hyde noticed a strange looking rune appear within the clouds, glowing a bright blue light. '_What…what the heck is that?_' Showa thought to himself as the lightning storm got even stronger.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning shot out of the glowing sky rune and came crashing down between Showa and the Gorilla Hyde, breaking the two apart as the explosion knocked them off their feet and sent them flying backwards. Another bolt of lightning shot across the sky, heading off towards another unknown location.

Slamming into the side of the university's main building, Showa fell to the ground on his hands and knees. Pushing himself up while shaking the dizzies out of his head, Showa looked to where the lightning bolt had struck with a bewildered look on his face to see a figure on his knees with electricity arching around his body. Showa took a good long look at the newcomer who was slowly standing up while holding his own head and gasped at the appearance of the stranger. He looked just like a Kamen Rider.

The Rider himself wore a black body suit with metal plates on his lower legs, boots, forearms, hands and outer thighs. His chestplate seemed to be made of a strange metal as well and bore a strange mark on both sides of the chestplate. In the center of the chestplate was a red gemstone with a strange black-colored symbol within its center. His shoulder pads were half-rounded with gold trim and so were his knee pads. The base and back of his neck also had metal padding on them and his helmet appeared to be modeled after a Kabutomushi with red eye lenses and a silver mouth plate. The sides of his helmet jutted upwards like horns as well and seemed to go up for about six inches. His belt seemed to have a segmented appearance with small strange pods attached to the sides. The center of the belt, what Showa perceived to be the buckle, was shaped like sun burst with a set of claws emerging from it, clutching a red orb within their grasp.

The new Rider shook his head as he stumbled around a bit in a groggy fashion before smacking the side of his head with his hand. "Ow…okay, now that hurt," the new Rider stated as he regained his senses. Looking around, he noticed that the buildings were much different than what he remembered and scratched his helmet covered head. "OK, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," he said to himself, quoting the infamous movie line.

The Rock Gorilla Hyde, having crashed through a wall that led into the university gymnasium, came stomping out while growling in anger. It looked over at Showa and then over at the interloper and roared in anger as it banged its fists against its chest.

"Huh? What the hell is that thing?" the new Rider asked aloud as the Rock Gorilla Hyde picked up a stone slab and threw it at him. "Whoa!" he reacted as he slapped his hands together and then, sliding his left hand over the metal padding on his right forearm, created a two foot long steel blade. "KYAH!" the Rider shouted as he sliced the slab in half and then got into a stance as he prepared to fight against the kaijin. "Alright, ya wanna fight King Kong? Then let's dance!"

(_**Insert Song: Shooting Star – By Everset**_)

Showa just watched with rapt attention as the Rock Gorilla Hyde ran straight for the unknown Rider, only for said Rider to use a form of green flame-like energy on his feet, propelling himself around the Gorilla Hyde at speeds that no normal human could ever dream of reaching. This Rider was far from normal as it would seem.

The Gorilla Hyde threw a backhand which the Rider blocked with his a roundhouse kick, knocking the rock-solid arm away, before continuing on with a forward roundhouse right into the Gorilla Hyde's face. It did little to phase the kaijin though as it stumbled back only a few feet before shaking its head and growling in anger. The Rider, noticing that regular methods wouldn't work on this monster, decided to kick it up a notch.

Using the strange green light on his feet again, the Rider sped forward and, after slapping his hands together and pressing his palms to his knee pad, slammed the transformed armored knee which now resembled a knee-shaped wrecking ball right into the Rock Gorilla Hyde's gut.

"That light, what is it?" Showa asked himself.

"_It is a form of flash step that mortals can use called 'Bringers Light'_," St. George told him.

"Bringers Light?" Showa questioned.

"_Correct. When a human whose mother is attacked by a Hollow while still pregnant and somehow survives to give birth to that human, they obtain a form of power which is left over from the Hollow attack. When this power is harnessed and the person trains in using it, it is known as Fullbring. The reiatsu of a Fullbringer depends on the strength of the Fullbringer themselves_." St. George watched the battle from within Showa's mind. "_And it would seem that this Rider has had vast experience in using Fullbring and its inherent abilities._"

Showa only nodded as he continued to watch the fight. The Gorilla had been driven back by the attack that the Rider had used just now and the Rider would not let the chance go to waste.

The Hyde grunted from the hit as the Rider reformed his knee pad back to normal before filling his arm blade with a strange type of energy, swinging the blade in an upward vertical slash. The slash chipped away a bit of the rocky layer of the kaijin's armored skin, causing it to grunt in pain, but the attack did nothing else.

"Man, what is this damn thing made of?-!" the Rider shouted but then got the surprise of his life when another Rider (Showa) came down upon the monster in the form of a drop kick, his whole right leg looking like a giant mechanical boot. Said boot then reformed to normal size as the Gorilla Hyde was sent staggering backward. "Hey, thanks for the assist," the Rider said as he swiped his left hand over his right forearm, reforming the blade back into the metal platting of his armor.

The Rider then slapped his hands together again and placed his palms onto the ground, sending energy along the ground towards the Gorilla Hyde. The Hyde began to move forward but soon noticed that the ground before it began to shift, shooting up towards it and confining its arms and legs. Roaring as it struggled to break free; the Gorilla Hyde looked at the two Riders and began to flex its muscles, slowly cracking the transmutated confines that held it at bay.

"Oh no you don't, Ape Face!" the unknown Rider shouted as he slapped his hands together once more, the motion gaining Showa's attention. He then pressed his palms to the ground and transmutated a big metal cannon from the ground that had a pair of glaring eyes and long blonde hair on the back of it. "Light's out!" The cannon came to life and fired a cannon shell into the Gorilla Hyde's face. The force of the blow caused the Hyde to roll its head around as its eyes had swirly patterns within them. "And now for the finale," the Rider stated as the strange energy, along with the Bringers Light and the sheer force of the Rider's reiatsu, collected at the sole of his right boot. But before he could even jump up into the air, Showa got in his way with his arms flailing out at his sides.

"Hey, hold up!" Showa shouted. "Don't do it!"

"What?" the Rider asked as he decharged his attack.

(_**End Song: Shooting Star**_)

"That creature is still a human being," Showa told him before moving over to the dazed Hyde. "Let me handle it from here." The Rock Gorilla Hyde's body had reverted back to its human form, the man slowly passing out from the process. Showa took out an injector gun and shot the guy with some serum.

"Okay, what did you just do?" the Rider asked as he transmutated the confines back into solid asphalt.

"I carry a serum with me that prevents the repetition of the mutation they've gone through," Showa explained.

"A serum?" the Rider asked. "Well, it's not alchemy but still cool none-the-less." He then noticed the serious look that Showa was giving him. Even if they were both wearing masks it was still easy to tell one's emotions from how a person carried themselves.

"Now, who are you?" Showa asked in an authoritative tone. It was more of a demand than a simple question.

"The name's Renkin. Kamen Rider Renkin," the Rider, known as Renkin, said as he gave Showa a small salute. He then looked around the area a bit more and really got the feeling that he was out of place. "So, where in the heck am I?" He then noticed a lot of the cars in the area and just how dated the buildings really looked and began to sweat bullets a bit. "Or, to be more precise, _when_ am I?"

"Shishibone City, or to be more specific, Shishibone University," replied Showa as he took Goro Satomi and placed him on a bench to sleep off the effects of the battle. Renkin just scratched his head at the mentioning of the city's name.

"Shishibone City?" he questioned which Showa nodded to in reply. "That can't be right."

"Why's that?" Showa asked.

"Because, that place hasn't existed in over eighty years," Renkin said as if he was stating a fact.

Showa developed a confused yet shocked look behind his helmet. "Wait, are you from the future? Are you even from this universe?"

"Depends…what year is it and what's the current threat?" Renkin asked as he placed his hands on his hips.

"It's 1989 and we're currently facing a threat known as the Hyde," replied Showa but he then noticed the shocked expression that Renkin was giving him.

"1989?-!-!-!" Renkin shouted.

"What, is this year important in some way?" Showa was curious. While one should never know what transpires in the future, if Renkin was indeed from the future than his knowledge would be invaluable to them.

"Um…no…not really…well, not yet anyway," Renkin stated in a hurried fashion. "I'm just so surprised that I got sent this far back in time." Renkin then kicked a pebble on the ground as he began to mumble to himself. "Stupid time storm. I told Rook not to mess with the time circuits, that they were still experimental, but _noooo_, the damn idiot just wouldn't listen!"

Showa looked at Renkin like he had just gone crazy and let out an exasperated sigh. "So, if you're from the future then what year are you from?"

"Oh, 2365," Renkin said in a deadpanned tone, as if it was common knowledge. Showa gawked at him. That was almost four hundred years in the future. Possibly even farther in time than when Yuji was from originally from. "And the Hyde, huh? Well, we don't have them anymore in my timeline as the G-Shock drug was completely destroyed, along with the formula. But it is listed that they did appear in 1989 but it was only for a _very_ short time."

Showa sighed in relief. That meant that they wouldn't have to fight these things for very long. He then gave Renkin another serious look. "Well, that's good to know but now I have one more question."

"And that is…"

"Name, rank and intention," Showa said bluntly.

Renkin just looked at him with a 'who', 'what' and 'where' look on his face. "Uh…'xcuse me? What are you, a military man or somethin'?"

"You could say that. Now answer the question."

"Well, just don't send me to the brig without supper. And like I said before, my name's Kamen Rider Renkin."

"I meant your real name."

"Sorry, no personal info on the first date," Renkin joked but soon noticed the death glare that Showa gave him from behind his mask. "Hey, take it easy man. It's just a simple joke." Renkin said in his own defense. "Look, I don't know you and you don't know me and we Rider's usually keep our identities secret for a reason. So, until I feel comfortable and not like an enemy, my mask stays on."

"Well, considering our current situation, I can't say I fully trust you," Showa said as he lifted his hand to his helmet. "So you're coming with me." He then pressed his fingers to his helmet. "Sheila, I need a Teleportal for me and my…_guest_."

In a matter of seconds, the swirling green vortex of energy known as the Teleportal came to life right in front of them. Renkin just looked at the portal and stared at it in fascination.

"A Teleportal, huh? I didn't know that these were still in use." He shrugged his shoulders. "Well, earlier time line means old tech is considered new tech."

Showa looked back at Renkin as he prepared to enter the Teleportal. "You coming?" It wasn't a request.

"Don't I even get to have a say in this?" Renkin complained.

"You're an unknown element for the moment so no, not really."

Renkin just shrugged his shoulders, "Guess that's a fair enough reason. But do I at least get something to eat? Time traveling kinda zapped a lot of my strength."

Showa nodded, "We have a mess hall back at the base. You can eat there after we're done questioning you."

"Fair enough," Renkin replied as he began to follow Showa into the Teleportal but stopped before entering. "Whoa, hold on just a sec." Renkin then looked around at the university and could see that it was pretty messed up from the whole battle with the Rock Gorilla Hyde. "I better fix this or we might have media trouble. And Kamen Riders get enough bad P.R. back in this time period."

Renkin then slapped his hands together and placed them against the ground. This time though, instead of just transmutating only a small area around him, Renkin worked his alchemy on the whole area of the university that had been damaged. After a few moments of bright glowing light, Showa looked at the university before him and gaped. Everything had been restored to pristine condition, or to how it looked before the fight had actually begun.

"There we go," Renkin said as he dusted off his hands. "How's that?"

"What…how…you did…huh?" Showa was at a loss for words. It wasn't magic and it wasn't done through the use of nanites. Just who was this guy?

"It's called alchemy. What, you never heard of it before?" Renkin asked. "And here I thought that my Rider name was a dead giveaway."

"I heard of alchemy, but that was proven to be a false science centuries ago," remarked Shinichi.

"Only because they never got it right," scoffed Renkin.

Showa just shook his head. He was starting to get a migraine from all the new things popping up in front of him recently. He really wished he could just lock himself in his room right now with Shawna, Rena, Tsukuyomi and Satan but that would have to wait.

"You know," Showa sighed, "Most Riders like to pick flashy names so I had just assumed that your name represented on how your suit was made."

"Nope, I'm an alchemist through and through. Back home I'm known as Kamen Rider Renkin, Kamen no Renkinjutsushi and the Ascended Alchemist."

Showa just shook his head some more. "Ahhh, never mind. Just come with me."

Renkin nodded and followed Showa into the Teleportal which would take them back to the Hive. How was he going to explain this to the others?

* * *

Meanwhile, a green jet was descending upon an island. As it neared the ground, the undercarriage of the jet allowed for a safe landing. Once it had landed, the entire jet vanished only to be replaced by a green platform which lowered to the ground.

"Alright people," said Alan. "We're finally here."

"MAU~!"

"THE BEACH! WE'RE AT THE BEACH!"

Celine and Alice were happily cheering as they ran on the sand, in their swimsuits. Celine wore a yellow one piece and Alice was dressed in a blue one piece school swimsuit.

Alan and his harem had just arrived to their vacation spot. It was an island in Okinawa which had not been developed and modernised, preserving its natural beauty. The sand was so white it could almost be mistaken for snow. The sky was bright blue with the sun shining down on them. It wasn't scorching hot, but a comfortable warmth which was satisfying.

They set down their stuff and got ready to have fun. The girls were all wearing bikinis. Lala wore a pink one which matched her hair. Momo and Nana wore a red and green one, respectively, Amora had on a black bikini, Conda wore a red/black bikini with a scale pattern, Megan was wearing a yellow bikini, Yami was wearing a black bikini, Bishie wore a bikini that looked like it was made of leaves and finally Nozomu, who was carrying Adam, wore a green two-piece. Alan and Daiki, the only males, were wearing swimming trunks. Alan's was green with his GL Corps symbol and Daiki wore a blue pair of trunks.

Daiki stretched, taking in a deep breath, and beamed, "Now this is a vacation!"

"Yeah, and don't forget who we have to thank for it," said Alan as he gestured over to Amaterasu who was kneeling in front of Celine and Alice who both hugged her. She was wearing the same swimsuit she had worn to the water park the other day.

"Thank you, Ama-neechan!" Alice beamed.

"Mau! Mau!" added Celine in agreement.

"Ah, aren't you both so sweet?" Amaterasu cooed. She already loved them like her own, but hoped she could have her own kids soon.

She had invited Tsukuyomi, but her sister didn't feel like going to the beach. The blonde demi-goddess knew, of course, that her sister just wanted to be close to her knight.

"Ama-chan!" Lala glomped the demi-goddess. "Thank you so much!"

"No need to thank me, Your Highness," said Amaterasu. "It's the least I could do."

"Come on, let's play some beach volleyball!" Megan called, holding the beach ball in her hands.

Alan stretched. They would be staying for one week in this place. They wouldn't need to worry about shelter or food. There was a beach house nearby, also owned by Amaterasu. Even a goddess needed breaks and she would come here to enjoy herself, in private. However, it got lonely too and her sister just wasn't the type to enjoy herself in the sun, not before meeting Shinichi, of course.

Nozomu was near the water and holding Adam close enough to get his feet wet. He recoiled a bit but then laughed as he started to splash the water a bit. Nozomu smiled. This was a family vacation and she didn't want her son to miss out on it. She had put him in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt.

Of course, Nozomu wasn't about to leave her baby unattended so she was going to stick close to her baby. She wasn't going to let him out of her sight. Nearby, Alice and Celine were starting to build a sandcastle. The other girls had also gotten into a friendly game of volleyball. Yami normally kept to herself but Lala encouraged her to join. Conda and Amora, however, would turn any friendly match into a competition and the Amazon Queen dragged her adopted son into the middle of it.

Alan walked over and sat down next to Nozomu who was playing with her son. Adam looked up at his father and smiled. Alan handed his baby boy a toy shovel to let him play in the sand as Nozomu leaned her head against his shoulder.

Alan remarked, "Amazing isn't it? I never expected to love being a father this much."

"Someone your age generally doesn't," said Nozomu. Alan was one of the better ones who took responsibility. Alan ruffled Adam's hair.

"Well, I'm not like most guys my age, Nozomu," said Alan. "With my family, having a sense of responsibility becomes second nature." He kissed her softly. "And thanks for sticking with me. I know it isn't easy to share me with the other girls."

"They've become like sisters to me," Nozomu admitted. "Has it really been two years?"

"Give or take a couple of months, but yeah," grinned Alan.

Nozomu looked at the beach volleyball game and asked, "Aren't you going to join?"

"I'm here to relax," said Alan. "I think sitting here with the mother of my firstborn son and my firstborn son is considered relaxing."

Nozomu blushed and nuzzled his neck.

"Daddy! Daddy!" Alice called. "Look at what me and Celine made!"

"Wow! That's one big sand castle!" Alan admired, surprised.

"We had Daiki-niichan help!" Alice pointed.

"I did not want to get into the middle of _that_," Daiki pointed to the intense volleyball match. "I love her, but Mom's nuts."

"If you put her up against Amora, yeah," Alan agreed. The Amazon Queen and the Enchantress always did love to try and one-up each other due to their rivalry. They both had a lot of pride due to their backgrounds and were very competitive with each other since the day they met.

* * *

Back in the Hive, Yuji was sitting at a console while talking to his adopted sisters, Mammon and Belphegor. They had come to visit him while he was away from the rest of his girls. The Stakes loved all of his women like family but even they wanted to spend a little alone time with their brother and just talk. But they weren't entirely alone though. Rena, Rika and Hanyuu were still there and were finally ready to return home after their training with AI-Shin for the last half hour.

"You girls didn't do too bad with the new powers that Shin gave ya, all things considered of course," Yuji complimented them.

"True," Rika replied. "But it will take some getting used to."

"_Opening Teleportal connection with Shishibone University_," Sheila alerted them. Yuji and the others smiled.

"Well, looks like our brother-in-law finished his mission," Belphegor said as she leaned back against an adjacent console.

The swirling vortex of green energy appeared, allowing two figures to exit from the other side. After a couple of seconds, the Teleportal vanished, leaving Showa to stand up and look at the others before him. He soon noticed though that he was getting some strange stares. Or, to be more precise, they were all staring at the new Kamen Rider standing behind him.

Rubbing the back of his head, "Yeah...we kinda got a problem."

* * *

Lying in a field of brunt grass, somewhere in Japan, the form of the serpentine dragon known as Dredge began to convulse as his body reshaped itself into a humanoid form. After a few moments, what was once a serpentine dragon was now a human who wore a black leather tank top and a black leather jacket and pants with black boots that exposed his toes. He had long slicked back black hair that reached the middle of his back which he kept back with a black headband.

His body was covered in scorch marks and smoke rose from his body as he groaned and tried to push himself up. As he tried to stand up, he suddenly heard the sound of footsteps surrounding him from all sides. Looking up, the last thing he saw was a group of people, each dressed differently, looking at him while a man who dressed like a mad priest held his hands up.

"W-who the hell...are you guys?" Dredge asked, coughing in pain.

One of the people before him bent down, kneeling next to him as he used a finger to lift his face up to look at him properly. Their eyes locked and Dredge could see the blackness in his eyes, in his soul.

"We, my dear traveler from the future...are your new masters."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: It appears we have a new character, and he's from the future. And he's not the only one apparently. Evil has come through the time vortex as well.**


	165. The Legacy of Cain Part 109

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 109: Initial Impressions**

"Nice place you got here," the new Rider admired. "A bit low-tech compared to where I'm from, but way beyond anything this era should be able to produce."

"We had help," said Showa. He turned to Yuji, Rena, Rika and Hanyuu. "Oh, hey Yuji, Belphegor, Mammon, Rena-chan, Rika-chan, Hanyuu."

"Shin, who's this guy?" Yuji asked, arms crossed.

"Just a new Rider who helped me deal with the Hyde," Showa answered. "And guess what? He knows alchemy! Isn't that awesome?"

"So? I know magic," retorted Yuji. "And how could you bring someone here without authorization?"

"But he helped me out," said Showa.

"Shin-kun, even so, you can't just trust people so easily," cautioned Rena.

"She's right," said the Kamen Rider.

"So, who are you?" Rika asked.

"Kamen Rider Renkin. But my friends just call me Eon," the Rider answered. "I'm from the future."

Yuji eyes widened. "The future? As in this world's future?"

"Well yeah. You make it sound like that's a bad thing," Renkin replied and then looked back at Showa. "So, you said you had a place where I could grab a small bite to eat, right?"

"Right, I did. It's the cafeteria. Follow me," said Showa only for Yuji to grab his arm.

"Excuse me," Yuji said to Renkin. "Do you mind if I spoke with my friend here in private?" Yuji didn't wait for an answer as he pulled Showa aside.

Some distance away, Showa removed his helmet and asked, "Yuji, what's your deal?"

"I should be saying that," retorted Yuji. "You don't know anything about this guy! Sure, he helped you but he could be a spy!"

"That crossed my mind, but I don't think he's a bad guy," Shinichi answered. "I'm a good judge of character. And he says he's from the future."

"It could be a lie! And why is that important?"

"Well, that means he knows time travel. Maybe he can help us get in contact with ARMOR again and find out what's keeping you stuck here and out of contact with them," Shinichi said. "He says he's from 2365..."

"2365!-?"

"2365, and I doubt what's keeping us from ARMOR would last that long," said Shinichi. He put his hand on Yuji's shoulder. "This might be a chance to send you and Alan back home."

Yuji thought about that. It was a possibility but they had priorities at the moment that were more important than going home. But, the thought of seeing his parents again, of showing them Yuna...it was very, very tempting. The two of them looked back at Renkin who detached a silver hexagonal medallion from the side of his belt and began to tinker with it for a few minutes.

With a heavy sigh, "Look Shin, you're practically family and that's saying something. You're like a little brother to me and I don't mind believing a lot of the impossible things you say." Yuji then glanced back at Renkin, "But until we get Alan to come and see what's up, it might be best to keep this guy on severe lockdown."

"Yuji, don't you think that's kinda harsh?"

"Maybe so, but we can't have him roaming around without some form of supervision," Yuji rebutted.

Shinichi tapped his chin for a second and then got an idea. "Hey, maybe we can get Tsuki-chan or Amaterasu to get in touch with Aquarius. She does time traveling as a Witness of Time so maybe she could give us some sort of verification?"

"Maybe...OK, talk to them and see if you can get in touch with Aquarius. But, until then, Mr. Alchemist there is under severe house arrest."

Shinichi frowned. He didn't want to lock up a potentially new friend, but Yuji had a point. He was just so happy to see another Rider, he forgot that they couldn't completely trust anyone. Also, it had been far too convenient for Renkin to appear just as Showa needed help.

"OK, but let me get him some food. I owe him that," said Shinichi. "I'll talk to him too."

Yuji watched his friend go. He glanced towards Renkin and narrowed his eyes. '_Who are you, really?_'

* * *

While Shinichi and Yuji had been talking, Renkin was busy playing Q and A with the girls as they were all a bottle of a million questions. Looking at them all, he was amazed that they all looked practically like he had seen them in the archives back in his own era.

"So...Renkin, right?" Mammon asked as she walked over to him. Renkin nodded his head in response. "You're an alchemist? So you can perform transmutations on things?"

"Yeah, kinda simple once you know the basics," Renkin replied with a chipper tone.

"And what's that thing in your hand?" Hanyuu asked as she too stepped forward, pointing to the hexagonal medallion.

"Oh this?" Renkin asked as he lifted it up. "It's called a Kakugane. It's a form of weapon that's created through alchemy and is one of the only things that can kill a homunculus."

"What's a homunculus?" Rena asked as she tilted her head.

"They're a form of artificial life form that is also created through alchemy. Kinda like the mortal version of demonic Furniture," Mammon informed her. She then looked back at Renkin. "So Renkin, or Eon...is that your real name?"

"Nah, Renkin is the Rider name and Eon is just my nickname. I have in me what you would call the Eon Gene which is a rare strand of the gene of immortality. That means that, someday, I'll end up being immortal...I think. I do know that I don't die easily but that's probably it. Anyway, that's where the name Eon comes from."

"And what's your real name?" Rika asked.

"Sorry kiddo," Renkin laughed. "But mother always said to never kiss and tell on a first date." Rika and the other girls blushed before Mammon and Belphegor started to laugh. Before Renkin could say anything else, he felt a hand on his shoulder and saw the unmasked form of Shinichi looking back at him. "So, what's the 411?"

"411?" Shinichi asked but then dismissed the notion. "Never mind, we need to talk."

"Sure," said Renkin.

"Follow me," said Shinichi as he headed to the elevator with Renkin following, joined up by Rena.

"Rena-chan?"

"I'm feeling a little hungry myself."

* * *

Meanwhile, Alan was watching Yami swim in the ocean. The girl had used her shapeshifting ability to assume the form of a beautiful mermaid. There was just something so majestic and entrancing about mermaids. Whatever the reason, he loved it when Yami leapt out of the water, making splashes as she arched her back before dropping back down into the water with another splash.

Alice was admiring her mother too. The young woman was just so cool the way she carried herself. Whenever she was angry she never expressed it with a monstrous expression of rage. She did, however, express it with sharp and stabbing weapons generated from her hair. Alice had that similarity to her mother as her blade wings could perform the same function.

Nearby, Bishie was soaking up sunlight as she lay on her front on a blanket. As a Grass-type Pokegirl, she loved to lay under the bright sun. It was part of her nature and most of all she got to spend time with her favorite Green Lantern. She would've done it in the nude if there weren't children present.

When the call came, Alan had to curse his misfortune.

"Can't you ignore that for once?" Amora asked, frowning.

"I can't, you know that," Alan said. _Something _just had to turn up.

* * *

In the cafeteria, Shinichi showed Renkin how to use the food materializer to prepare his meal. He and Rena had bowls of ramen with slices of pie for dessert.

Renkin sat down with his plate of food, a cheeseburger with fries, and reached up to remove his helmet. He revealed his face, which was youthful, and he had golden-blonde hair tied into a braid and three ahoge dangling from his head. He also had blue eyes and appeared caucasian.

"So, that's what you look like," said Shinichi. "Didn't think you were going to unmask yourself so soon."

"And how do you expect me to eat?" questioned Eon. "So, this food is real, right?"

"Yup. It materializes food through a process which shapes molecules into whatever we want. In this case, it's food," said Shinichi.

"So, this meat is fake," frowned Eon. He took a bite out of his burger. "Hm...not bad."

"It tastes like the real thing, doesn't it?" Shinichi asked.

"I've had better," Eon shrugged. "Still, this would save a lot of animals if you mass-produced it."

"We can't," said Shinichi. "This technology is way beyond this era's time. We only have it because ARMOR supplied it to us."

"So, Eon-san, what's the future like?" asked Rena.

"Sorry, no spoilers. Besides, you have a Green Lantern in this time for the moment and I don't want to get my butt thrown into the middle of the sun for spouting stuff that should be kept secret," Eon said as he took another bite of his burger. "I'll say this though, you'll look that young for many years to come, Ryuugu-chan."

Rena blushed and Shinichi frowned. "Thank you," she said.

"So, how did you end up in our time?" Shinichi asked.

"By a complete accident and my idiot friend messing with something he shouldn't have messed with." Eon then went on to explain what he, Rook and Dizzy had been doing in trying to repair a prototype time machine when the time circuits had come to life and zapped both him and Dredge into the past.

"Wait, you mean you weren't the only one sent back in time?" Shinichi asked. Now they would have not only the Hyde to deal with and the Religion of Crime but also this monster from the future.

"That's right," said Eon.

"How can you be sure he's in our time?" Rena asked.

"Because, with time travel, when it's initiated, has a set entrance and exit point that can't be changed unless an emergency energy channel is rechanneled into it to allow for the plotting of the course," Eon explained. He then noticed the confused look on her face and decided to dumb it down for her. "Basically, it's like an escalator: One way once it starts unless there's another power surge."

"Oh, I get it now," Rena replied cutely. Shinichi's left eyebrow twitched a bit.

"Yeah, so unless the time storm sent another wave of energy to halt our current course or to speed it up, Dredge and I are both basically stuck in your timeline. But just because we arrived in the same year doesn't mean we have to end up being dropped off in the exact same spot."

"Which would explain why you showed up alone and not together," Shinichi concluded.

"Bingo, now you're catching on."

Shinichi scratched his head in frustration, "You know, we thought that it'll be an easy matter of sending you back home to your time. I mean Alan knows the Doctor-"

"Wait, the Doctor? You mean the guy who travels around in a freakin police box from merry ol' England? That Doctor?" Renkin was a bit surprised. The Doctor had never returned after the Religion of Crime incident but history was always in flux and everything changed every day.

"Yeah, that's what Alan's told me but I never even met the guy," sighed Shinichi.

"Well, he could be helpful but without knowing the exact point in time that I was removed from, it'd be like shooting fish in the middle of the ocean with a BB Gun and hoping to hit a shark at 300 feet below the surface...during a hurricane."

"What about Aquarius-chan? Doesn't she know how to time travel as well, Shin-kun?" Rena asked.

"That was my suggestion too, but it's not like she's listed in the phonebook," Shinichi frowned.

"How about you ask Tsuki-chan for help?" Rena suggested.

"Yeah, you're right," smiled Shinichi.

As they continued to talk, Yuji and the other girls entered the door, Alan following close behind. He had been enjoying his vacation so much but the news of a new Rider from the future was an urgent enough reason to make the trek over to the Hive. He, however, had every intention of returning to his vacation. While the girls understood, they could get upset when he didn't spend enough time with them and the kids.

"Hey, Bro!" Shinichi waved. "I thought you were on vacation!"

"I was," Alan answered. "But it seems like at least once a week something happens."

Upon entering the cafeteria, the girls, Alan and Yuji were all able to see Eon's face while his helmet rested on the table next to his tray. Looking at him, Mammon blushed a bit and smiled.

"Well, at least we know that you're cute under that suit," she said, causing Yuji's right eyebrow to twitch in irritation.

"I'm Alan Smith," Alan introduced himself to Eon. "I am unfortunately the younger brother of the idiot who brought you here without authorization." He whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver and held down the button, the light at the tip glowing as it buzzed. Eon cocked an eyebrow at the device as Alan waved it up and down. "Yes, you have indeed come here through the time vortex. You have some artron energy on you due to being exposed to it" As the Sonic Screwdriver passed over his right arm, it began to emit a strange beeping noise. "Huh, that's strange. Says here that your arm isn't normal flesh and blood."

That was news to Shinichi. "Is it cybernetic?" he asked.

"Yeah, lost it in a battle a couple of years ago. My whole right arm is now made out of Bio Soul-Metal." Eon then passed his hands over his buckle which then shined, causing his suit to crackle in blue electric waves of energy before it disappeared, leaving him clad in a pair of black pants, black shirt, black long sleeved jacket and black boots. He took off his jacket and flexed his right arm. "Go ahead, give it a squeeze."

Mammon went and did just that. Placing her hands on his bicep, she gave it a squeeze and smiled. For being fake, it seemed like it was almost real. It imitated real human muscle tone and skin texture right down to a T. Yuji, seeing at how close Mammon was getting to the new guy, clenched his fists a bit and ground his teeth. He didn't like strange men getting close to his sisters.

* * *

The Teleportal opened, allowing Yokoshima and Asmodeus to step through together.

"Hey, Sheila!" Yokoshima greeted.

"_Hello, Yokoshima. And hello to you too, Asmodeus_," the AI greeted cheerfully.

"So, what's new?" Yokoshima asked. "Oh, hey Shin."

AI-Shin floated over in his spherical body and said, "_And welcome back. So, you came here for free food or to use the training room?_"

"Oh, Asmo-chan wants to use the pool," said Yokoshima. "Who am I to refuse. So, what's new?"

"_Oh, we just got a guy from the future who dropped by_," said AI-Shin.

"Really? From the future?" Yokoshima bugged. "Like 'The Terminator'?"

"_Well, I dunno about that_," said AI-Shin.

"Come on, Asmo-chan! Let's say hello to future-guy!" Yokoshima exclaimed. "Where is he?" he asked AI-Shin.

"_The cafeteria._"

* * *

"Well, my scan proves he did come through the vortex, but it can't verify from which point in time," said Alan as he put the Sonic Screwdriver away.

"There's more, though," Shinichi said. "An enemy of his did come through as well."

Alan's eyebrows furrowed. "Enemy?"

"Yeah," confirmed Eon. "His name is Dredge. He's a type of powerful Homunculus known as a Homunculoid. They got released into the human world via the Gate of Truth."

"How did they escape?" Alan asked. Eon averted his eyes. He knew but he didn't really want to say the whole truth.

"Let's just say...an alchemist back home tried to play god and paid the price for stepping into a forbidden territory that he didn't belong in."

Alan eyed Eon carefully. He wasn't being fully honest but it also seemed to be a touchy subject with him. For now, they would just have to gain his trust to the point where he would tell them the full story.

"Guess I got no choice but to stay..." Alan began.

"No, Alan. You go back and enjoy your week-long vacation," Shinichi countered.

Alan cocked an eyebrow, "This is kind of important."

"So is spending time with those girls," Shinichi said. "And let's face it, with all the stuff that's been happening, you haven't had much time to do that."

"And what about you?" Alan began to argue. "You need a vacation as much as I do, but you're still fighting."

"It's fine," said Shinichi. "And I'm telling you this as your older brother and as the younger brother you should listen to me."

Alan wanted to argue further until a beeping from his ring interupted. He activated the communicator and a hologram of Alice appeared. He asked, "What is it, Alice?" Now, Alice wouldn't normally call him unless it was important.

"_Auntie Momo brought a watermelon_," said Alice. Alan paled.

"I'm on my way," Alan said instantly.

"What's the big deal about a watermelon?" Yuji asked.

"If Momo was the one who brought it..." Alan trailed off before dashing off faster than a bullet train.

Eon just stared at the small trail of dust that was picked up from the floor as it settled back down. He let out a whistle before going back to eating the rest of his burger. He hadn't seen someone run that fast in a really long time. As he continued to eat, Mammon eyed the Kakugane that was attached to his belt. Sneaking her hand down slowly and carefully, she took hold of the kakugane and removed it from his belt.

"So...Eon...I'm just dying to know, what is your real name?" Mammon asked in a slight husky tone. A small blood vessel popped up on Yuji's forehead but this didn't go unnoticed by Shinichi and the others. Ever since he got the Verz Virus, he had been a lot quicker to anger, especially when it involved his family.

"Like I told the kid, I don't kiss and tell on the first date," Eon said as he finished his food and wiped his mouth with a napkin. As he got up and grabbed his jacket, he felt around for his Kakugane, wanting to perform a few adjustments to it, when he noticed it was gone. "Huh, hey, where's my Kakugane?" He looked around frantically until he heard a small giggle coming from Mammon. Looking up, he noticed the demoness of Greed holding it in her hands.

"Looking for this?" Mammon asked in a seductive voice.

"Hey, how in the...when did...give that back!"

"Only if you tell me your name. Besides, I love pretty and valuable looking things and this Kakugane has caught my eye."

"I'm warning you, give it back or..."

"Or you'll what...spank me, make me squeal in euphoric delight?" She then opened her blouse and stuck Eon's Kakugane between her breasts before floating up in the air. "Well, come on...future boy...come catch me if you can keep up. If you can catch me in under an hour then I'll happily return it to you."

With that, she was off, exiting the cafeteria, passing by Asmodeus and Yokoshima on the way out. Eon just stared at her retreating form and gawked. No girl had ever been _that_ forward with him before. He then looked up at Yuji who was giving him a death glare, his eyes almost literally on fire. Letting out a small gulp, he turned to face Shinichi.

"Um...care to help a fellow Rider out?" Eon asked, hoping for assistance.

"You're kinda on your own here," Shinichi grinned. Eon scowled and got up. If Mammon wanted to play "Cat & Mouse" then Eon would oblige her. He caught the way Yuji was glaring at him. He could understand the guy being suspicious of him, but the Manakyte looked like he wanted to murder the Rider from the future. What had he done to make Yuji dislike him so much?

* * *

"Momo, please don't summon anymore of your crazy plants. And Nana, if you wanted to help, don't summon a giant octopus to fight the alien watermelon," Alan lectured the twins.

While Alan had been away, Momo had summon some kind of alien watermelon which had been huge with tendrils. The watermelon then attacked the girls and started to strip them. Nana tried to help, summoning a giant octopus, but instead of fighting the watermelon, the octopus had tried to strip the girls naked as well, groping them at the same time. By the time Alan returned, Amora had used her magic to kill the perverted creatures so now there were alien watermelon pieces littering the beach along with a giant roasted octopus. Nana didn't mind, though. She'd only caught it before to stop it from molesting her when she'd encountered the giant alien octopus a long time ago. She thought she had it trained, though.

"So, are we going to eat it or something?" Conda asked. "It'd be a waste to just leave such a delicious octopus out like that."

* * *

Eon went to look for Mammon. She had to be in the Hive somewhere, hiding, teasing him. He looked over his shoulder. Yuji had volunteered to follow him. The alchemist could feel the glare trying to burrow into the back of his skull. He whirled around, returning Yuji's glare with his own. "OK, what is your deal?"

"Just making sure you don't do anything to my little sister," said Yuji in a threatening tone.

"I'm not going to hurt her!" swore Eon. "I'm just going to get my Kakugane back!" How, was the question. She had put it between her breasts so that meant he would need to put his hand there to get his precious Kakugane back. "Dammit, your friend Shinichi there is better company than you."

"He's nice to you only because you helped him, and even if he claims to be a good judge of character. I thought he'd be more cautious after all the shit he's been through," said Yuji. "And as far as I'm concerned, I don't know jack-shit about you, so I'm keeping an eye on you."

* * *

Alan and his family were eating the giant octopus which had been roasted. Those who didn't decided to eat the alien watermelon pieces after the creature had been smashed apart by Amora's magic. Nozomu didn't seem to mind eating as she chewed on a tentacle.

At the time they were eating, Alan told them about what was going on. After his explanation, Megan asked, "So, what are you doing here with us for?"

"Shinichi insisted I still continue with my vacation," Alan sighed. "Besides, he's got Yuji and if he does run into any trouble he'll call. Though, I doubt he'll call."

"He has gotten stronger," stated Amora.

"Yeah, and I bet it's getting to his head," added Conda. While she had forgiven Shinichi and started to get along with him again, she could not dismiss the Rider's ego. Alan wanted to argue in Shinichi's defence but no words came. Conda was right.

* * *

"Shin-kun, are you sure it was a good idea to let Yuji accompany Eon-san?" Rena asked worriedly.

"Come on, Rena-chan. You make it sound like Yuji wants to kill him or something." Shinichi retorted with a small laugh. Yuji didn't want to kill Eon. Did he?

"Hello, didn't you see the way that Onii-sama was glaring at him?" Belphegor chastised him while placing her hands to her hips.

"Now that you mention it, Onii-sama doesn't really like strange men flirting with us until he's gotten to know them," said Asmodeus.

"That explains how he warmed up to the idea of me and Satie-chan being together so easily," remarked Shinichi. They had gotten to know each other pretty well so Yuji wasn't at all troubled about Satan and Shinichi's relationship.

"You do treat her well," said Asmodeus smiling. Shinichi did make Satan happy even when she used to deny it. "Oh, I can't wait for her baby to be born!" she squealed.

"Neither can I," replied Shinichi in an almost squealing tone himself.

* * *

Walking down one of the corridors of the Hive, Eon and Yuji slowly checked through all the unused rooms, looking for any sight of Mammon. With her playing hard to get, it would probably be some time before they caught sight of her. As they looked, Yuji kept a close eye on Eon while thinking back to the way Mammon was acting around him.

'_Hmm...she was acting rather strange back in the cafeteria. But, then again, she's the Stake of Greed and she has always had an eye for objects that seemed to have worth. That includes anyone that she would see as a possible lover_,' he thought as Eon opened one of the doors and poked his head in. Yuji did the same but there was no sight of Mammon.

"Man, when that little sister of your plays 'hide-and-seek' she really knows how to hide," Eon groaned slightly. He then looked back at Yuji who gave him a small glare. "Say, Yuji...right?" Yuji nodded. "Can I ask you something?"

"As long as it has nothing to do with defiling my little sister," he stated emotionlessly as he continued searching.

"Dude, chill out about that already! Besides, no matter how hot she looks, and believe me she is pretty cute, there's no way I'd hit on a girl in the past."

The Fire Manakyte stopped and glared at the future Rider, "Oh, so now you're saying Mammon isn't good enough for you, is that it?"

Eon just let out a sigh, "Man, will you listen to yourself? You're not hearing what I'm trying to say. I'm referring to the fact that Mammon is from this time. I'm not. I come from nearly four hundred years in the future. There's no way a relationship could work out between us."

"And she's a demon that serves my Auntie B. She also lives in the Meta-World which is connected to any timeline, in any era. So it's not hard to say she couldn't just follow you to your own time if you ever do get back."

Eon tapped his chin. He had to admit that Yuji had him there. Sure, Mammon was cute. More than cute, she was a total babe. But he knew better than to voice such thoughts in front of the man who was close to roasting him and serving him as supper.

"Whatever, as I was going to ask though, is she always like this with every new person that shows up?"

"No, not really. For as long as I've known her, she's never had a boyfriend or girlfriend. Though, she is older than she looks and we are only family through what you could call a surrogate bond. But she's still family to me."

"I see."

They continued down the next corridor until they heard a familiar giggle. And Yuji would know that giggle anywhere. Suddenly, in a flash of golden butterflies, Mammon appeared before them for just a brief moment.

"Now, now, Onii-sama. It isn't fair for you to be helping him track me down." She then looked at Eon. "I want this game to be between just the two of us~"

Yuji nearly growled while Eon just sighed.

"Look, Mammon, what is it with you taking my Kakugane and forcing me to chase you?"

"As strange as it may seem right now, I have to agree with Eon on this one, Mammon. You've never acted like this before so why start now?"

"Because..." she gave Eon a seductive wink. "He's cute and, as far as I'm concerned, he's the Ultimate Treasure." She then disappeared in a flash of golden butterflies once more while she echoed out one last sentence. "Now hurry up. Catch me while there's still time left."

Eon and Yuji both looked at one another and sighed before continuing down the corridor. For another ten minutes they looked for her and they had searched nearly the entire base by now. Just where was she actually hiding out at anyway?

"Rune..." Eon said suddenly.

"Huh?"

"That's my real name. Rune Suller. Like I said earlier, Eon's just a nickname my friends call me. But seeing as you and I aren't exactly on the friend level at the moment, I guess my real name should suffice."

Yuji just stared and then looked ahead to see Mammon standing there, waving at them.

"There she is!" Yuji shouted.

"Come and get me...Houko...kun~!" Mammon said with another seductive wink.

"Darn it, Mammon, will you give me back my Kakugane already!" Rune shouted as he began to walk faster. "I really nee-" he suddenly stopped in his tracks as his body began to pulsate. In an instant he fell to his knees, his right hand clutching to the area of his chest, right above his heart. '_No, not here! Not now! This is so not a good time for IT to start waking up!_'

Yuji, seeing Rune collapse to his knees and shaking like a leaf, walked over to him and knelt to get a better look at him.

"Hey, you ok? You don't look so-Yeow!" Yuji shouted as he scooted back quickly. He had reached out his hand to touch Rune when, all of a sudden, he felt as if his life force was being drained by him.

"Onii-sama!" Mammon shouted as she ran over to see what was wrong. Seeing Rune trembling like that, she looked down at Yuji. "Onii-sama, what's wrong with him?"

"I don't know," he replied. "He suddenly fell! And, when I tried to touch him, it felt like his body was draining my life force right out of me."

Kneeling down next to him, Mammon looked Rune in the eyes and could see intense pain in them. She also noticed his blue eyes shifting from their blue color to a red color every few seconds before going back to blue. Placing a hand against his head, she could feel the cold, clammy sweat building up. And that wasn't the only thing she felt. She suddenly began to feel weak until Yuji pulled her away.

"Mammon, are you crazy, don't touch him!"

"But he's in pain!" she countered until they heard him speak up.

"P-please, my Kakugane...I need it to...to...keep IT...under con...trol," Rune said in a pained and raspy voice; his hand trying to reach for the Kakugane that Mammon had stuck between her breasts.

Yuji saw the desperate look in his eyes and, for once, felt a small amount of pity for him. Taking the Kakugane from Mammon, he handed it to Rune who in turn smiled a pained 'thank you' while clutching the Kakugane to his chest, silently rocking back and forth as if talking to himself.

'_Go back to sleep. Go back to sleep. Go back to sleep. Please, damn you, go back to sleep already!_' Rune repeated over and over in his mind. After a few moments, his chest stopped pounding. Smiling, he passed out and fell to the floor.

"Eon!" Mammon shouted as she caught him. To her surprise, she didn't feel weak anymore. Seeing the pained look on his face and his pale complexion, she looked back up at Yuji. "Onii-sama, we need to get him to the infirmary!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: It appears that Eon/Rune needs that Kakugane to live. Now, what happened to him? Why did he start to drain energy? Well, if you must know, the answers will come in the next chapter, I believe. Oh, and Eon/Rune/Kamen Rider Renkin is property of Toku Warrior.**


	166. The Legacy of Cain Part 110

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 110: Secret Horror**

**7 Hours Later...**

Within one of the beds located in the infirmary, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam were looking over a few X-Ray scans that they had taken of Rune's body while he laid in the bed. He was still unconscious so it made examining him a lot easier. Shinichi had made sure to keep all of the girls out, seeing as they had to get Rune out of his clothes and into an infirmary gown. When asked what had happened, Yuji only told them that he suddenly collapsed just before they could catch Mammon. He left out the part of him draining his life force as he himself wanted to get the answers straight from Rune first. There was something about the alchemist that he didn't like. He didn't really make a good first impression on him and, to make matters worse, Mammon was playfully flirting with him.

Standing behind Magi and Washam, the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS looked on. The other members had been brought in and were told of everything that had transpired. Shinichi had also called Alan, wanting to keep him up to date as well and Alan had said that Rune could be suffering from side effects from traveling through the time vortex without proper preparation.

"So, Docs. What's the verdict?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, the residual radiation from the time vortex has already worn off and it doesn't appear to be what's causing the young man's comatose condition," Magi replied.

"We also did some scans on his body and it's true that his entire right arm is made of a strange metal alloy that we have yet to come across," Washam added. "In fact, it's safe to say that the cybernetics, construction and functionality of the cybernetics and metal compounds of his right arm are far more advanced than anything that we currently have, even the cybernetics that ARMOR supplied us with for crafting your two arms, Shinichi."

"Really? That's pretty impressive," Shinichi said while letting out a whistle.

"Is there anything else we should know about?" Shogo asked.

"Yes, when we scanned the area around his heart, we were unable to get any clear look as to what was in there. It's as if our instruments are being blocked by some kind of energy," Magi said as he showed them the blurred and static scans of Rune's chest.

"So he has some kind of weird heart. I don't see anything strange with that. We all got cybernetic hearts. Hell, I even have two hearts," remarked Shogo casually.

"It could have something to do with that strange looking tattoo that's on his chest," Yokoshima stated.

"It's a possibility but we won't know for sure until he wakes up," Washam replied. He then looked at the group and noticed that someone was missing. "Strange, where's Yuji?"

They all looked around and noticed that the Manakyte was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Sitting in a chair next to Rune's bed, Yuji kept a close eye on their new 'house guest'. Looking at the small counter next to the bed, he eyed the silver Kakugane and then looked back at Rune. What was so special about that medallion and how did it stop the energy draining feeling he had sensed from Rune earlier? As he thought about that he raised his head at the sound of the door opening, surprised a bit to see Mammon standing there.

"Mammon, what are you doing here?"

"I just came to see how the newbie was doing," she replied as she entered. She then looked back at Yuji. "Onii-sama, you asked me earlier that you wanted to know something while we were bringing Eon here. What did you want to ask me?"

"First, his real name is Rune Suller. Told me so himself." Mammon looked at Rune and smiled a bit.

"That's a nice name. And it kinda fits him."

"Maybe. But the question I wanted to ask you was why you really started to flirt with him in the first place. You never take to a guy or girl this easily or this quickly. Not for as long as I've known you."

Mammon just placed her hands to her hips and sighed. "Onii-sama, honestly, he's cute and, as you know, I like cute things. So I just wanted to tease him a little. Besides, you all were grilling him with questions so I'd thought I'd be the nice one and help him have a little fun. Seriously, Onii-sama, you can be so overprotective sometimes."

"And I've earned the right to be when it concerns you girls," he shot back.

"Oh really? I didn't see you going all postal when my sisters flirted and then began dating Shinichi, Shogo, Yokoshima and Daiichi. Or even the fact that Leviathan and Satan are involved in harem relationships."

"That's because I know the guys well enough. I've spent time with them, hung out with them, fought alongside them for a few years now. But with this guy," he looked at Rune and narrowed his eyes, "There's just something about him that screams danger. Plus, when Alan asked him how the Homunculoids were set free in his time, he avoided most of the subject and told only a half truth. I could smell it coming off of him. He's hiding something."

"Everyone is entitled to their secrets. Maybe whatever caused the true release of those Homunculoids was so traumatic for him that he doesn't like to talk about it. Heck, you, Shinichi and Alan have more traumatic experiences than any of us could even begin to tally up."

Mammon then looked at Rune's sleeping face and then back at the Kakugane on the nightstand. She didn't know why, but taking that Kakugane just seemed like a good idea at the time. She didn't know that Rune actually needed it to stay in stable condition.

"Be that as it may, I still don't trust this guy," he insisted

"You don't even know him yet," Mammon huffed. She then let out a sigh. "Onii-sama, he's cute and he seems real nice. If anything, I'd like to get to know him a bit."

"You sure that's the girl in you talking and not the Greed in you? You did call him the 'Ultimate Treasure' and 'Houko-kun' earlier," Yuji stated. He then noticed the small glare she was giving him as a small blood vessel popped up on her forehead.

"Just because I'm the Stake of Greed doesn't mean I think with my lust for material possessions!"

"Oh please, he's an alchemist. Knowing that, you could have him make just about anything you could ever want! That's the only logical explanation I can come up with on why you're so hung up on him!" Yuji shot back.

"For your information, that's only a small reason why I'm interested in him. I'm mostly interested because he has a mysterious aura about him. It's as if he's an adventure rolled up in the form of a human. Why can't you just give him a chance and let me get to know him at least?"

"Because I don't trust him!" Yuji shouted. He then gaped at his sudden outburst and noticed the startled look on Mammon's face. Never in his life had he yelled at any of the girls like that before. He just wanted to look out for them. To protect them. Why couldn't Mammon understand that?

Mammon, clenching her fists, headed back towards the door but looked back at Yuji before exiting. "Onii-sama, you know, you're not always right about everything when it comes to the matters of attraction. Just remember that." And with that she left, the door closing behind her.

Yuji let out a sigh. Great, now he had made her mad and yelled at her. Looking at the door, he knew he was going to have to apologize to her later. Just not yet.

"Ya know, for what's it's worth, I find myself agreeing with you." Yuji looked over in surprise to see Rune sitting up and looking at him.

"When did you wake up? Wait, scratch that. You heard all of that?"

"I woke up around the part when you guys started to raise your voices," Rune said as popped his neck. "Gotta say though. I agree with your judgement. What older brother wouldn't want to look out for his little sister's well being?"

"You make that sound like you know the feeling," Yuji said in an exasperated tone.

"I do." Yuji looked at him. "You see, in my time, there was this girl that came from an alternate dimension-"

"A girl from another dimension?" Yuji asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey, don't give me that look. I studied history and I know you're not exactly from around here either. Yet, this is where you met your wife and kids," Rune stated.

"Good point. Continue."

"Anyway, she was from another dimension and got stuck in mine. She was being hunted down and a lot of people in this world that met her considered her a freak and an abomination. But I didn't. All I saw in her was a younger version of my past self in her. Someone looking for something to hold on to."

"And you took her in?"

"Yeah, seemed like the right thing to do. She's been with me ever since. She thinks of me as her older brother and is overprotective as hell. Heck, I can't even talk to another girl without her butting in and judging them. In her mind, there isn't a human woman in the world that's good enough for me."

"Sounds like a nice little sister. She got a name?"

"Dizzy. But Rook and I just usually call her Diz for short," Rune replied while smiling at the memories of his first encounter with his little sister. He then looked at Yuji and noticed the serious look on his face. "OK, now what did I do to piss you off?"

"You drained away a bit of mine and Mammon's life force earlier but stopped once I gave you back your Kakugane," Yuji told him. Rune's eyes widened. He had never wanted that to happen. "I told Mammon not to say anything about that part until I had a chance to ask you myself personally and in private."

"...I see."

"So, you wanna explain what actually happened back there or do I need to start digging?"

"You...are really a piece of work, you know that?" Yuji shot him a glare and was about to retort when Rune continued. "Yuji...do me a favor." Yuji just gave him a confused look. "What I'm about to tell you...no one else should know. Not even Mammon."

"...alright, start talking."

* * *

Exiting the infirmary so that Rune could rest a bit more, Yuji's face wore a serious yet surprised expression. He was right about his hunch about Rune. '_That guy...he is dangerous._' The images of the Kakugane came back to his mind. '_For now, I'll need to make sure that no one else takes that thing. If he loses it then there's no telling what could happen._'

Pocketing his hands, he felt his anger from earlier returning. Man, did his sisters know how to pick guys that tickled their fancies. Satan, Lucifer, Leviathan and Asmodeus had to choose cyborgs as lovers. For Satan, hers was his best friend and the guy was mostly human and part demon with over two dozen voices in his head and a real mental case at times.

And now Mammon, one of the few remaining Stakes who had yet to find love, was showing some small interesting in an Alchemist from the future who was possibly a real threat to all life around him. Yep, those girls sure knew how to pick 'em. He just knew that things were going to get a whole lot worse before they got better. And with Rune around, he just knew that his blood pressure was going to be boiling almost the whole entire time.

'_Man, I need to hit something. Wonder if they updated the Danger Room at all_,' Yuji thought as he headed towards the Danger Room.

* * *

Meanwhile, a couple was dealing with some trouble in Hinamizawa. Both Mion and Keiichi had gone after a burglar who'd broken into homes in Hinamizawa for the past few nights. The mistake he made was trying to break into Keiichi's house while he and Mion had been there. The green-haired clan head was definitely pissed when the guy just came in to try and steal anything valuable, even the paintings Keiichi's father had made.

As the two chased after the man, Keiichi's eyes narrowed in determination as he ran with superhuman speed. Mion was unable to catch up so she used the power of Kamen Rider Ichigo which Shinichi had given her and transformed so she could catch up to Keiichi. They chased the burglar straight into the forest and Keiichi was in front of him as Ichigo (Mion) made sure to stand behind the burglar.

"Nowhere to run," said Keiichi as he saw the man panting. "Now, come with us so we can deal with you in accordance to the law." He noticed that the man wasn't listening to him. "Well?"

The burglar removed his mask and then pulled something out of his pocket. It wasn't weapons, but a handful of glowing blue pills. Keiichi's eyes widened as the man tossed the pills into his mouth and swallowed them. "NO!" Maebara shouted as the man's veins bulged around his face as his eyes let out a blue glow.

He began to mutate and change, much to Ichigo's horror, into something completely inhuman. They should've been used to this by now.

The burglar had mutated, his clothing ripped apart as he changed into a muscular humanoid tiger. However, instead of fur, he was covered from head to toe in carbon stone. He had gouges along his body to represent stripes and sharp claws. He grinned with teeth that were shining like diamonds.

He had transformed into a Hyde known as Carbon Tiger. Carbon Tiger roared and lunged towards Keiichi only to be intercepted as Ichigo leapt and tackled the monster to the ground. She grabbed its arms and pulled them backwards, her knee against its spine. Looking up at Keiichi, she gave him a nod and he nodded back as he prepared to transform as well.

Roaring, Carbon Tiger bucked his body to force Ichigo off him. However, the female pseudo-Rider would not allow it. Unfortunately, her hold on him would not last very long as fire erupted from the stripe-like gouges on his body, throwing her off in surprise. Rising to its feet, Carbon Tiger grinned as it clicked its claws and lunged for her, claws ready to rip her to shreds. Unfortunately for him, he was once again intercepted as Kamen Rider Alter stood in his way and kicked him in the face, sending him tumbling.

"Kei-chan?" Ichigo asked as Alter helped her up.

"Come on, Mion," said Alter as he got into an offensive pose. "Let's send this kitty cat to the pound."

Ichigo rolled her eyes at the lame pun before going into an offensive stance as well. The two Riders then dashed towards their opponent to take him down. Carbon Tiger got up and flames erupted from his stripes again, coating his body. His body seemed to shine a bit as he just stood there, waiting for their attacks. The two Riders punched him but their attack had no effect on his diamond hard skin. Grinning, Carbon Tiger used a double uppercut, hitting both Riders in the chest and jaws with his paws, stunning them painfully. He then jumped and kicked both of them in the stomach, sending them flying backwards. They flipped through the air to land on their feet as Carbon Tiger decided to make a run for it.

"Come on!" Alter shouted as he summoned Zakider via a dark portal. He got on with Ichigo mounting behind him. The bike roared and zoomed after Carbon Tiger who was cutting down trees to clear his path of escape. Zakider dodged the trees, jumping over the ones which had fallen as it and its Riders chased after the monster.

"Damn, what is he made of?" Ichigo asked and Alter had scanned the trail of black soot Carbon Tiger had left behind.

"Carbon," Alter said. "When exposed to heat he became hard as diamond and he can generate heat to harden his body so that our attacks won't work on him."

Ichigo huffed, "Well, that sucks."

"Don't worry, Mion. I have a plan," said Alter confidently. "Just need to catch him first."

Carbon Tiger was almost at the edge of the forest and out into the main road when all of a sudden he was rammed in the back by Zakider's front wheel. The sentient bike ran him over, knocking him flat onto the ground facedown. Growling, Carbon Tiger rose up to deal with the Riders, only to see that the vehicle was unmanned.

"HYAH!" Carbon Tiger was hit by a huge cleaver-like sword and sent stumbling. He saw that it was Alter, who was armed and dangerous. Ichigo dashed forward and used a right hook that smashed into his face, causing him to stagger again. However, he was unharmed because of his hardened body. Grunting, Carbon Tiger opened his mouth and released a cloud of black soot to blind his enemies but through the cloud he saw a pair of crimson eyes glaring at him. Jumping through the mass of soot, Alter used a roundhouse kick that smashed into its head, loosening some teeth as Ichigo buried her fist as hard as she could into Carbon Tiger's stomach, sending him skidding backwards.

"So, what's the plan again?" Ichigo asked.

"Beat him up, and then give him the serum to make sure he doesn't change again," Alter answered. Carbon Tiger snarled and marched towards them only for his feet to get stuck in something sticky. Looking down, he saw that his feet had been caught in some kind of sticky goo. Then, suddenly, he heard the sound of chainsaws and suddenly struck as Slasher came and attacked, ripping sparks off his carbon body.

"Chiaki-san!" Ichigo cried. Of course, Chiaki lived in a small house (a cabin) in the forest and so if there was some kind of noise he would investigate.

Kamen Rider Slasher nodded in acknowledgement. Modeled after a termite, Slasher could produce and excrete a type of glue that could keep his enemies stuck. This same glue was used by him to put his house together.

Meanwhile, Carbon Tiger was trying to get himself un-stuck. He then produced fire from his stripes but Slasher interrupted the process by slashing him with his chainsaws, causing sparks to erupt on impact. The chainsaws were something Chiaki was proud of as they were his main weapons and could cut through almost any material. In fact, he'd once cut through a diamond with them. Of course, this was only due to the fact that the tips of the chainsaws' teeth were made of a very special material that allowed them to vibrate at a very ultra-high frequency, which allowed them to cut through almost anything that they came into contact with. And with the added rotations of the chainsaw bands, it made those bladed tips even more deadly.

He turned his hands back to normal and he grabbed Carbon Tiger by the head, yanking him free from the glue. "Now!" he shouted as he tossed Carbon Tiger into the air.

"TOH!" Ichigo yelled as she jumped and performed her attack, going into a flying sidekick stance. "RIDER KICK!" Her kick smashed into Carbon Tiger, causing him to roar out in agony as he was knocked through the air before falling to the ground. He picked himself up before receiving a fist to the face from Alter who then performed a 1-2 combo on him before hitting him with a tornado kick.

**SHING!**

The horns on Alter's helmet spread open like a fan, going from a pair of two horns into their six tipped horn set as the power of his Seed of Agito surged through his body. The symbol appeared under his feet, glowing the same color as his eyes before becoming a swirl of energy that was absorbed into his feet. He jumped, aiming for the Carbon Tiger Hyde, and attacked, perfectly executing a powerful drop kick that smashed into Carbon Tiger's chest. The emblem of Agito flashed briefly on Carbon Tiger's chest before dissipating as the monster was sent skidding backwards.

**KA-BOOM!**

There was an explosion just as Alter landed on one knee with one hand to the ground. He stared at the flames and smoke and watched, much to his surprise, as Carbon Tiger stumbled out. But his fears were unwarranted as Carbon Tiger collapsed, his change reversing itself as he reverted back to human form.

Mion changed back and cheered, "Kei-chan, you did it!"

"Yeah," admitted Alter as he changed back to human form as did Slasher. "Now, to make sure he doesn't change again." Chiaki stepped over and handed Keiichi an injector gun with a vial of the serum already loaded. "Thanks." Keiichi walked over to the defeated Hyde, knelt down, and used the injector gun to shoot the man with the serum. This would prevent the man from ever changing as well as curing his addiction to the G-Shock drug. "Come on, let's take this guy back to the village and call the police. He's still charged with burglary."

* * *

Shinichi had been watching the whole time from the Hive and smiled proudly. "Good job." The elevator opened up and he looked to see Yuji stepping out. "Hey, Yuji."

"Hey, I need to use the Danger Room. Mind monitoring me?" Yuji asked.

"Sure, no problem," said Shinichi.

* * *

The Danger Room was just another name for the Holographic Training Chamber. The chamber could generate virtual environments and enemies that were indistinguishable from the real thing. They even felt like the real thing. The technology was definitely very advanced as ARMOR had supplied them with it so they could train in real-life scenarios without the actual danger. Of course, that depended on the danger level which were between Level 1 which was the lowest to Level 13 which was the highest.

Up in the control & observation room, Shinichi sat at the console to monitor Yuji while the Manakyte stood in the middle of the empty Danger Room below. Speaking into the microphone, Shinichi asked, "Hey, Yuji. What's up with you and Eon anyway?"

Yuji grimaced and answered, "I don't wanna talk about it, Shin. Now, can you start the simulation or not?"

"Fine, but we're not going to go with Level 13 this time," said Shinichi as he turned up the dial. "Level 10 would do for a light workout, for you that is."

"Aw, you're no fun," Yuji retorted. Shinichi ignored the comment and brought up the list of scenarios on the screen. "Say, how about we do-"

"Not Shiro again," Shinichi cut him off. "You enjoy beating him up _way _too much."

"What can you expect? I missed out on doing it for real, plus this way I can do it over and over," Yuji answered.

Shinichi rolled his eyes and activated a scenario of his choosing. Yuji's environment changed as the virtual environment took its place. There was a volcano behind Yuji and the Manakyte was facing a monster from the database.

It was Lord Dorbick in his monstrous form, an enemy Yuji had fought before when he went to rescue Wendy.

"Alright, now we're talking!" Yuji grinned enthusiastically. "I wanted to see how much I can make this guy cry like a baby! Now I got my chance!"

* * *

Rune stayed in the infirmary. He knew he was being watched. That camera was watching him, making sure he didn't leave, and the AI made her presence known to him when she introduced herself to him. Then there was that metal ball who'd come floating into the room to stare at him before floating away. It didn't bother him much. Technology such as this was actually somewhat outdated with the exception of a couple of things but being cooped up in a hospital bed was starting to get on his nerves. While he wouldn't say it, the bit of life force energy that he had accidentally gotten from both Mammon and Yuji had completely restored his energy. Now he was just hungry again.

As he stayed in bed, recovering, the door opened and Mammon came in. His eyes narrowed slightly at the girl who'd nearly done the unforgivable with her earlier stunt, claiming it was a game, but his gaze softened as he saw the apologetic look in her eyes. She was holding a tray of food with her which she'd gotten from the cafeteria.

"Thought you might be hungry," she said as she carried the tray over to him. "It's nothing much. Just a beef bowl."

"I'll take it," he said as he reached for the bowl but Mammon didn't let him.

"Let me feed you," she insisted. Rune blinked. "Look, I don't know what I can do to make up for what I did, but I'm sorry for playing with your Kakugane. It was just so pretty and..."

"You should be more careful about the things you pick up to add to your collection," said Rune. "And it's fine. We're all OK." Mammon used a fork to pick up a piece of meat and blew on it a bit before holding it before his mouth.

"Say 'Ah'..."

"Ah..." she placed the meat in his mouth and then watched him chew. Smiling, she was satisfied that he wasn't mad at her. For her, it wasn't love, not yet. But she could feel a spark there. If her sisters had gotten a chance for love then she deserved one too. It wasn't love yet but she could feel the feeling of unrelenting attraction slowly welling up within her. She then noticed Rune looking at her. "You do know that if Yuji comes back in here and sees you doing this, he'll blow a gasket and whoop my ass, right?"

"Not if I don't teleport us both out of here first," Mammon replied with a small wink.

Teleportation? Rune thought about that. It gave him an idea.

"Hey, Mammon, you think after we're done here you could teleport me out into the open air?" he asked.

"Sure, but why?"

"No big deal really. I just want some actual room to stretch and exercise and I do that better outside than in a gym."

Mammon smiled and nodded. "Alright then. But let's finish eating first, 'kay?"

* * *

Meanwhile, in Ibaraki, Risa was heading back home after working so late. It was dark and scary, but fortunately her apartment was within walking distance so she didn't have anything to worry about. She also carried pepper spray in her purse and had taken classes in self-defense in case of anything.

She was looking forward to tomorrow as she was going to visit Rena and Shinichi's apartment for her very first real talk with her daughter in years. Shinichi said he would be there to act as both a referee and mediator so that, in case Rena got violent, he could keep her busy while Risa left.

"_Help...help...me.._." someone groaned.

Risa stopped in her steps and heard it.

"_Help me...please...help...I need...a doctor..._"

She saw someone slumped against a lamppost, and heard his groans of agony. He had a dirty green jacket with a white t-shirt, had a stubble with a black snowcap on, and wore blue jeans with worn out sneakers. Risa couldn't just ignore him, could she? He needed help and she was the only one around. He did seem like a homeless person, which just made her feel worse if she just left him. There was a clinic nearby. She could take him there. It was opened 24 hours anyway.

Risa went over towards the man and put her hand on his shoulder, comfortingly, "It's OK. I'm going to take you to a clinic."

The homeless man simply smiled up at her, but there was an evil glint in his eyes that she did not notice. She should've seen that he had something concealed in his hand.

* * *

Shinichi went to drink some coffee from a mug when the handle broke and the mug fell and shattered to the floor. He stared at the handle and grimaced, "Something's not right." This was a bad omen and he could already feel it in his bones.

* * *

Rena was at home preparing supper when the phone rang. She left the stove to pick up the phone. Putting the receiver to her ear, she answered, "Hello?"

Moments later, she dropped the receiver to the floor, her body stiff as she trembled, eyes wide with a horrified expression on her pale face.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, looks like Yuji and Rune have gotten off on the wrong foot. And now it seems that Yuji knows a dark secret about Rune. But what could that secret be? And who was that man that Risa was trying to help and the phone call that Rena got? Just what had happened?**

**TOKU WARRIOR: Yeah, Rune is my character who will star in his own series after the Hyde arc is said and done with. He's mostly based on Edward Elric from Fullmetal Alchemist but I added in a bit of Bleach and Busou Renkin for the character to give him a lot of flare. And now, what just happened at the end? Who knows. All I can say is that it won't be pretty.**


	167. The Legacy of Cain Part 111

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This chap is really dark, tragic and emotional.**

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 111: A Death in the Family**

When Shinichi returned home, he found Rena on her knees by the phone. She was trembling, her face was pale and she had tears flowing from her eyes. "Rena-chan!" He dashed towards her and got down on one knee, holding her shoulders. "Rena-chan, what's wrong?"

"It's...It's..." She couldn't continue as she buried her face into his shoulder, questioning, "Why...? Why...?"

* * *

Once Rena was calm enough to explain, she told Shinichi that the police had called her. They wanted her to come to Ibaraki to identify a body. They think it was Rena's mother.

"Risa...san...?" Shinichi gaped. "No, it can't be."

"Shin-kun, please tell me...please tell me she's alright..." said Rena. She had been getting herself ready to speak with her mother. She had just been waiting for the right time. She had it all planned out, but now it seemed like her plans had shattered before they could be implemented.

"Rena-chan, if the police called and told us to come to Ibaraki, we should," said Shinichi. "You should call your dad too."

"He knows," said Rena. "He probably knows already." She was drying her tears. "We...we should go."

"Yes," Shinichi nodded. "Your dad's gonna be picking us up, isn't he?"

"He said that for this we should all see her together," said Rena. "Shin-kun, hold me. Please, hold me," she pleaded. The girl looked so delicate and vulnerable now. He put his arms around her, comforting her.

Was this a sick joke? Only one way to find out.

* * *

It was a quiet and sombre drive to Ibaraki. It was also very late in the night, but they needed to do this. Retsu Ryuugu was at the wheel, an unreadable expression on his face. But he appeared very numb. Rena and Shinichi sat in the back, with the young woman sitting close to her boyfriend, an arm around her. Retsu looked through the rearview mirror. It was a good thing that Rena had Shinichi to comfort her. Retsu hadn't been able to comfort his daughter during the divorce. He'd just gone drinking to drown his depression as well as adding to it before moving back to Hinamizawa with her.

They arrived in the hospital. There was a police officer waiting for them at the entrance. Retsu parked the car and the three exited before going towards the officer.

"I'm her ex-husband," Retsu identified himself.

"Yes, Ryuugu-san," the officer nodded. "And these are...?"

"My daughter and her boyfriend," Retsu finished. "You asked us to come and identify the body, remember?"

"Yes, come with me," said the police officer. "She was found by a couple of hostesses on their way home and they called the police. When we found her, we did find your contact information in her purse. You were listed as family."

Retsu screwed his eyes shut and opened them to look ahead as the officer led them to the morgue. Rena was holding Shinichi's hand tightly. They entered the morgue and saw the body that was lying on the table. Retsu recognized it and broke down, crying. Rena's eyes were wide as she shook before screaming, "MOMMY!" Rena held her tightly as she buried her face into his chest, crying hysterically. Shinichi recognized Risa.

"What was the cause of death?" Shinichi asked the doctor who'd been examining Risa's body.

"She has several stab wounds in the stomach, but what killed her was a stab to the heart," the doctor told him. Shinichi gave Risa's body a closer look and noticed something peeking through her bangs.

"What's that on her forehead?" he asked. The doctor brushed Risa's bangs aside and Shinichi's eyes widened.

"We still don't know what it means," said the police officer. Shinichi did. He'd seen it so many times whenever Alan wore it.

Carved on her forehead was the symbol of the Green Lantern Corps.

* * *

Shinichi left Rena and Retsu to go to the bathroom in order to clear his head. So much was happening in one day which he needed to wrap his head around. First there was a new Rider, and now _this_.

Shinichi stood at the sink and splashed water onto his face. "Why...why Risa-san...?" He knew that his mother would need to know about the woman. They had met and he suspected his mother had tried to befriend her. But now Risa was gone and couldn't be brought back. Shinichi grasped the sink and glared at his reflection. "Why...couldn't I save her?"

'_You can't save everyone_,' Kuro spoke in his mind. 'N_o matter how hard you try, you can't save everyone._'

"I can't deal with voices in my head right now," Shinichi hissed. He was trying to politely tell Kuro to shut up. Why did this have to happen to Risa before she and Rena could properly reconcile? After talking with his girlfriend, she had become open to the idea to sit down and talk to Risa, maybe catch up and reforge their bond as mother and daughter. But it was impossible now. The bond could no longer be reforged as Risa now lay in the morgue, dead.

Who could've done this? Who could've carved that symbol into Risa's forehead and why? Was it a message? A message for Alan? Or was it a message for all of them? There were so many questions and no answers to any of them, or at least any Shinichi could think of.

One thing for sure, Shinichi was going to find who did this and bring them to justice. He activated his communicator and called, "Sheila, I need some info."

"_What do you need?_" Sheila asked. Shinichi gave her the details before leaving the bathroom.

* * *

Shinichi drove Retsu and Rena back to Hinamizawa the same night. It was already a quarter past 2. The father and daughter sat in the back, in grief, and coming to terms with what had happened. They would need a hold a funeral soon, and both Rena and Retsu needed grief counseling to get them through this. Shinichi would be there for Rena, of course. He would always be there when she needed him.

The car was stopped next to Retsu and Rena's house and parked there. Shinichi opened the door and helped Rena out as Retsu exited from the other side. Retsu went to open the front gate and then unlocked the front door so they could enter. Shinichi gave the man a worried look as he took Rena up to her room.

Rena sat on her bed, still numb and in shock from the discovery. She had cried so much that her eyes were dry now, but she wanted to cry some more. Shinichi sat next to her, putting an arm around her as she buried her face into his chest.

"...It's all _my _fault," Rena sobbed.

"Rena-chan, how can it be your fault?" he asked.

"I...I wished she was dead," Rena admitted. "A long time ago I wished she would just die and now it's happened. This happened because of...of me..." She choked a bit, "And now...now that she's gone...it hurts...And I never even got the chance to...chance...to talk to her..."

"It's not your fault," said Shinichi as he cupped her chin to tilt her head up to face him. "Listen to me, Rena-chan. It's not your fault."

"But...but I..."

"Someone did this to Risa-san, and we're going to find out who did this," said Shinichi. They had a supercomputer with an advanced AI. She could find information that would help them find the killer.

"But how?"

"Well, I've asked Sheila. She might have some leads for me to go on." He then looked at Rena and gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead. "Look, I'll ask two of the guys to stand guard by the house tonight while you try and get some sleep. In the meantime, I'll go see what Sheila has come up with."

Rena just nodded as she buried her face into his chest, crying again. Shinichi just held her close and rubbed her back. Whoever killed Risa was going to pay. He was going to make damn sure of it and he wasn't going to let anyone stop him.

* * *

"What do you mean similar murders have been occurring for months?" Shinichi questioned Sheila through his communicator.

"_I found records of the same symbol carved into the foreheads of victims in England, America, China, Germany, Russia..._" Sheila began to list as a holographic screen popped up from Shinichi's wrist-com to display corresponding pictures. They were the victims who bore the same symbol carved into their foreheads.

"How many?" Shinichi interrupted.

"_135 victims so far with 25 in Japan alone_," Sheila reported as the 25 pictures were shown, Risa's being the latest in the list of victims.

They had nothing in common, except for the symbols on their foreheads. The media had kept quiet about the symbols, it seemed. They did not want a copycat to be doing the same thing and causing the investigation to become more difficult, but there were so many victims. And those were the only ones which had been discovered.

"_Should I inform Alan Smith about this?_" Sheila asked.

"Do what you think is best," Shinichi told her. He began to think that it wouldn't be a good idea to leave Rena when she needed him the most. Suddenly, he heard the sound of glass shattering and went downstairs to find Retsu in the kitchen with glass strewn all over the floor, holding a bottle of beer. He had been drinking and the glass was pieces of a broken bottle.

"Retsu!" Shinichi shouted, walking carefully around the glass before taking the bottle of beer in Retsu's hand, ripping it out from his grasp.

"Give that back, you _bastard_!" Retsu slurred as he reached for the bottle, only for Shinichi to hold it out from his reach.

"I know you're in pain, but drinking won't solve a damn thing!" Shinichi shouted.

"You...you don't understand a damn...damn thing!" Retsu shouted, drunk, as he tried to punch Shinichi only for the cyborg to knock him out with a punch to the stomach. He caught Retsu as he slumped forward and sighed. He tossed the man over his shoulder and looked at the bottle of beer in his hand. He put it on the kitchen counter and used his nanites to turn his hand into a scoop to pick up the broken glass on the floor and pour them into a trash basket. He'd clean up later after putting Retsu to bed.

"Risa..." moaned Retsu. "Risa..."

"I know how you feel," Shinichi told him as put the man in his futon. The poor, poor man. He then went back to Rena's room. She needed him too. He entered to see her sitting on the bed, this time holding a picture frame in her hand. It was a picture of her mother, one her father had kept. She had destroyed all the others so it was the only one left. Tears dripped onto the glass. Shinichi sat next to her, putting an arm around her, and swore, "Rena-chan, I'm going to find out who did this. I promise you. They won't get away with this."

"Please stay with me, tonight," Rena pleaded and Shinichi agreed without a second thought. It was late now and she needed someone to be there for her. He would tell the others later.

* * *

The next morning, Shinichi went to the Hive. He hesitated in leaving Rena and her father alone but they at least had each other. However, he still didn't feel right about leaving them alone so he called his AI counterpart to keep an eye on them. He also had Sheila summon the others. They would need to hear the news as well. As this involved Rena, it involved everyone close to her.

Shinichi addressed everyone that was assembled, "There was a murder last night. The victim was Risa Kagome, Rena's biological mother." Blunt, but straight to the point. He had to to be clear on the reason why he'd called them all here. But before Shinichi could say anything else, the screen came to life.

It showed static, but it wasn't regular static. The pictures was scrambled but the sound was audible. There was a voice, monotonous and cold, but quite sinister in tone as it began, "_So, you've discovered the body, and in record time too_."

Shinichi's eyes narrowed as he demanded, "What do you know?" Who was this? "Sheila, trace the call!"

"_Don't bother, because you'll never find the source,_" the voice mocked. Shinichi gritted his teeth. "_Now, you're probably wondering why Risa Kagome was killed. It's really quite simple. It's because she was associated with you_."

"What?" Shinichi uttered.

"_We noticed that while you have experienced pain you've never experienced TRUE loss... well those of you whose names don't rhyme with Uji, Lan and Inichi. But then we noticed that you were trying to reconnect that girl with her mother, and we thought, since she's technically a greenhorn we should give her a taste of it. So thank you, Kamen Rider, for giving us a target_."

Shinichi tried to say something but his mouth flapped open with no words coming out.

"_Ahh, but we're not completely heartless_." The screen became clear as a mug shot was shown. "_This is the man that was hired to kill one Risa Kagome. So feel free to do whatever you want with this knowledge._"

The voice then cut off as the screen continued to show the image of the man who had killed Risa the night before. Shinichi clenched his fists so hard that his nanites had already begun to repair the damage he was doing to his own hands. The others all looked on with sadness and disbelief. Many of the members of the NEO-NUMBERS and Team 5D's bowed their heads for a moment of silence for the loss that one of their own was now going through.

As they mourned and prepared to plan on what to do with the man who had killed Risa, they all suddenly turned to the sound of the elevator door opening, the gathered heroes watching Mammon and Rune walk out and into the main hallway. Mammon had stayed by Rune's side all night and promised to take him outside today so he could train and stretch. Currently, she was laughing at a joke he had told her as they exited the elevator and entered the area of the main hall where the others were located.

"And that's when I said..." He stopped to see everyone looking at them. "O-kay, what's wrong? You all look like you've seen a ghost or something." He then noticed a dangerous look in Shinichi's eyes. "Hey man, you OK?"

"Wait, isn't he from the future?" Daiichi suddenly quipped.

"Yeah, you're right. If he's from the future, then he probably knew about what was going to happen to Risa-san," Yokoshima added, getting what Daiichi was starting to point out. Rune just looked at them with a confused look.

"Uh...who did the what now?" He didn't even have time to react until he noticed Shinichi appear right in front of him with the aid of Shunpo. Shinichi then picked him up by the scruff of his jacket and slammed him against the wall, holding him there. "Hey, man! What's your deal?-!"

"Start talking, Eon!" Shinichi shouted. "You're from the future so you should know about a lot of past events that are going to happen to us eventually, right?-!"

"Well yeah, it's part of my training as a Rider and novice time-traveler. But I don't see what this has to do with-"

"Quiet!" Shinichi ordered. "My girlfriend's mother was just killed last night. Friday, August 11, 1989. Her name was Risa Kagome. Was this event recorded in those records?"

Rune thought about it for a few moments, trying to recall all the information on the Riders and their lives during their era. His mind was like an ever expanding encyclopedia as he absorbed more knowledge and he had a perfect pictographic memory. After thinking about the name and the date his face suddenly paled as his eyes widened.

"August...11th...Friday night...ah fuck!-!-!" Rune shouted. Everyone else glared at him. So he did know.

"So, you knew?" Mion asked, her eyes littered with tears.

"Well...yeah...but I didn't know the exact date I was transported to and I was still kinda disoriented since the time storm-"

"No excuses!" Shinichi shouted, his grip tightening.

"Hey, back off, Shinichi!" Mammon ordered the Cicada cyborg. "Rune said he didn't remember straight away so there's no reason for you to be treating him like this!"

"No! He knew and he didn't say anything!" Shinichi shot back.

"That's it!" Rune shouted as he slapped his hands together. "Someone needs a timeout so that a proper explanation can get underway!" With that, he pressed the palms of his hands against the wall behind him, causing it to bulge before shooting out and slamming into Shinichi, pinning him to the floor. "Look, I'm sorry that I didn't say anything before but, honestly, my mind was still going a thousand miles a nanosecond. So I had no way of recalling the information without a few hours rest!" Rune then calmed down after taking a few short breaths. He then undid the transmutation, releasing Shinichi. "Look, Shinichi, I truly am sorry but there are some things that we just can't undo. I do promise that I will help make it up to you but you have to realize, for most of the day, I didn't know."

Everyone else in the room looked at him for a moment before, after what seemed like an eternity, finally calming down. Though, before anyone could speak another sentence, the Teleportal opened up, allowing Alan entrance to the Hive.

"OK, I just got a call that something's going on here," said Alan. "So, what's going on?"

Shinichi informed Alan, "Alan, Rena's mom is dead. She was murdered."

Alan was stunned by this. This he did not expect nor saw coming, "But...but that doesn't make any sense! I've met her while I was growing up! She can't be dead!" How much of time had been rewritten? How much had been altered? This wasn't supposed to happen but it had.

Shinichi added, "There's more, Alan. She had _your _symbol carved into her forehead."

Alan cried out in disbelief, "What? No way!"

Shinichi continued, "I'm not lying, and they've been other murders too. Sheila found a list with the bodies all having the same symbol carved into their foreheads."

"Not to mention that future boy here just confirmed that Risa died last night, with the exact date and everything," Daiichi added.

Alan just stared at them in complete silence. So many things from his timeline were starting to unravel and alter themselves the longer he and Yuji stayed in the past. First Shinichi goes on a rampage, then he obtains Ascalon, then Yuji gets the Verz Virus and then both Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi became demi-goddesses and now the Rider from the future. '_Just what the hell is going on here?_'

* * *

Funeral arrangements were already underway. Risa would be buried in the cemetery in Hinamizawa. Close friends were contacted to attend and pay their respects. Shawna, Satan and Tsukuyomi heard and offered their condolences.

Rena was still in mourning, with her only regret being that she'd blown her chances at reconciliation with her mother. Long ago, she might've entertained the idea of dancing on Risa's grave but no longer. Risa's body was claimed and would be cremated before her ashes would be buried at her grave.

For Shinichi, it just seemed so surreal. He'd met and befriended Risa and was trying to help her mend bridges with her daughter and Retsu. However, she'd just been murdered and Shinichi felt guilt at not seeing it coming and his inability to protect her.

Alan was troubled too as he'd just heard about the murders with the bodies marked with his symbol carved into the victims' foreheads, implicating him. Just who was it that was doing this and why? Was it a message for him?

* * *

While the others mourned and prepared for the funeral, Rune stayed at the base so as to not draw the wrath of Rena. He knew that, for the time being, he was walking on thin ice since he could have probably prevented Risa's death. So, to take his mind off of things, he trained himself outside in the canyon. The others might have preferred the Danger Room for the simulations it provided them, but Rune preferred the natural elements to work with when training. Of course, he wasn't alone though. He did have a small audience as he trained. Mostly just Mammon, AI-Shin and Doctors Magi and Washam.

And Rune trained the way he did best, by creating his opponents out of the earth around him using alchemy, crafting alchemic golems as his opponents.

"Alright, I could use a bit of a stress reliever after that little bombshell of info and grief," Rune said to himself as he pulled off the small red cross pendant from around his neck. "Yami no Hagane!" With the shout of that name, he activated his Fullbring as his pendant transformed into a red cross shaped sword that had a green snake with its body wrapped around the blade, guard and part of the hilt. (think of the symbol of FMA).

The alchemical golems, sensing that their target was ready, moved in for the kill. Rune crouched, preparing himself as he swung his sword around a bit.

"Alright, let's go!"

* * *

The first was the wake, which took place in the hall in the Furude Shrine. Hanyuu and Rika, the village mikos, would be the ones to perform the ceremony. Set in the front was Risa's open coffin as she lay within the white lining, dressed in a white kimono after her body was cleansed. A portrait of her was put up as well.

Guests were seated in the floor, dressed in black. The men dressed in black suits and the women in black dresses and kimonos. The closest relatives were seated in the front, meaning Rena, Retsu and Shinichi. Rena had recovered enough to leave her home but was still in grief. Rika and Hanyuu performed the ritual, chanting a section of the sutra.

Rena, Retsu and Shinichi rose up to offer their respects, taking turns as they offered incense three times into the incense urns. The guests did the same as well, offering their respects to the departed.

Once the sutra was completed, the guests began to leave, but not before giving the family their respects and offering money to pay for the funeral. The actual funeral would take place the following day. The deceased closest relative would need to stay and remain vigil over her and Rena elected herself. Shinichi volunteered as well.

Mion stepped over to Rena and said, "Remember, Rena. If you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here."

"Thank you, Mii-chan," Rena smiled at her friend's sympathy and kindness.

"Take care of her, Shin-chan," Mion advised the Rider.

"You know I will," promised Shinichi. He looked to Rena. In these times she needed him. While he wanted to hunt down the scum who killed Risa, he knew he could trust the others to find him. They had his picture. Sooner or later he was going to be caught.

* * *

The day after the wake, Rena and Shinichi left to prepare for the funeral and then the cremation that followed. After the ceremony, which involved Rika and Hanyuu chanting from the sutra, guests and relatives placed flowers inside of the coffin with the deceased. The coffin was then closed and carried down from the shrine to an elaborately decorated Hearse to be taken to the crematorium. They would follow and witness the cremation.

The cremation would need at least 2 hours to finish before the bones would be picked out of the ashes and put into a separate urn as the ashes. Rena and Retsu did this with Shinichi helping. He may not have been related to Risa, but he felt some responsibility for what had happened to her.

Risa's remains were then buried at a grave which had her portrait and name on it. As they prayed and said their final goodbyes, standing on a small hill just off in the distance, Rune watched and gave his own small prayer. For all the years he had been a Rider, this was the second time he could see himself partly responsible for the death of an innocent.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: A most tragic chapter, and well it's also bad since it also affects Rena and Shinichi. Rena, because she can never ever find closure and reconcile with her mother and also Shinichi because she died because he knew her, or so the mystery voice claimed. The funeral stuff was hard to write since I needed to do research but I think I did alright. Accuracy may be important but it depends mostly on the writer how they want to interpret things.**


	168. The Legacy of Cain Part 112

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 112: On The Hunt for a Killer**

**On the night Risa was murdered...**

Risa was stunned as she received a stab to the stomach and she stumbled backwards in shock. She put her hand on the injury and stared up at the man who came at her. He stabbed her again and she staggered backwards from the attack, covering the new wound as blood seeped between her fingers.

He went to stab her again but she grabbed his wrist to stop her. Unfortunately, with her wounds bleeding out she was losing strength and there was no one in sight to help her. He shoved her to the ground and stabbed her repeatedly without mercy before finishing her off with a stab to the heart.

Risa and her murderer were covered in blood and he wore a manic grin. "Hah...the bitch is dead..." He sounded happy with what he did.

"Did you do it?" a much larger gentleman asked as he approached the druggie who'd just killed Risa Kagome.

"Yeah, I did!" He pointed to the body, which had been stabbed repeatedly. "Now, where's the stuff?" A bottle with blue pills inside was tossed into his hands and he grinned. "Sweet!" He stared at the pills. "Ah...so beautiful..."

"You deserve it. Now, time to send a message." The large male took out a scalpel and knelt down, pressing the blade against Risa's forehead.

* * *

**Present Day...**

It was back to business as usual in the Hive after the funeral. They had a killer to hunt down and bring to justice. This time Rena wanted to get involved. This was personal. Someone had murdered her mother and they needed to pay.

Shinichi wanted to talk Rena out of it but when he thought about it, he'd be a hypocrite. Rena needed his help and he would give it. However, he was not about to let Rena go too far. She would be involved in the hunt and capture, and nothing more than that. He would support her.

* * *

"It feels strange to be in this town again," said Rena as she and Shinichi stepped out of the Teleportal and walked out of an alley together. "Of course you've been here a few times."

"To talk to Risa-san," said Shinichi. "I've been telling her about us."

"How much?" Rena asked.

"Just enough, and did you know she hired a private investigator to keep tabs on you and your father?"

"She did?" That was news to Rena.

"She still cared enough," Shinichi nodded. "Come on, let's go and ask some questions." He took out a photograph of their target. Sheila managed to find information on the guy so it wouldn't be too hard to find him. His name was Genjiro Saeki, he was 27 years old, was born on 3rd March 1962 in Ibaraki. He had a rap sheet filled with petty crimes which started out since junior high school. He'd been in and out of juvie and then in and out of prison for several accounts of petty crime such as robbing convenience stores, purse snatching and robbery. Now, he'd gone into murder. After much searching, they eventually caught him in the act. A security camera from a convenience store recorded him coming into the store and demanding money from the clerk at the counter. "Let's go and ask questions."

"We're like a couple of detectives, huh?" Rena asked.

"Yeah, we are," nodded Shinichi. "Rena-chan, are you up for this?"

"I am," she said. "Don't worry about me, Shin-kun."

"Are you sure? Because I know what it's like to go hunting for someone who hurt someone you care about," he said.

"Trust me," Rena smiled. "I'll be fine."

Shinichi wasn't entirely convinced but he shrugged. That was why he was here with her, to make sure Rena didn't go too far.

* * *

Shion and Satoko, meanwhile, were at Angel Mort and enjoying parfaits together. It was Shion's day off and she was using her employee discount to treat her adopted little sister. "So, Shin-chan and Rena are both looking for a killer, huh?" Shion asked with interest.

"Rika told me, and it does seem like something he'd do," said Satoko. "I mean remember two years ago?"

"How can I forget?" Shion sighed. "Whenever revenge is involved, he's right in the middle of it."

"Yeah," Satoko nodded. "Hopefully, he doesn't go missing for two months like he did last time." Satoko then saw Daichi come in and waved, "Daichi-san! Over here!"

Daichi glanced over and smiled a bit before walking over. He was carrying his guitar case as usual and set it down on the floor before sitting in the booth with the two girls. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"How about you?" Shion asked, interested.

"Well, I'm trying to make money by working at the zoo and playing my guitar," said Daichi.

"You should make a demo tape or something and get discovered," Satoko suggested.

"And sell out?" huffed Daichi. "No way! My music is my own! I don't want a record deal or become famous! I just wanna play!"

"But you're really good," insisted Satoko. "I mean how much money do you make just busking?"

"Plenty to keep my mouth fed, along with Mika and my cat's," said Daichi. Leviathan had her own place, the Kuwadorian, and she would invite him over at times. "There's nothing wrong with being a street performer. I'm independent, I follow my own schedule, and I play what I wanna play." A waitress came to get their order and Daichi ordered coffee with sugar cubes along with a sandwich.

* * *

"Well, we just learnt that the guy owes a lot of people a lot of money," said Shinichi. They had gone around Ibaraki, asking people about Genjiro, and found out the guy was in debt with a lot of people. A guy like that shouldn't be hard to find, but apparently Genjiro was slippery and good at hiding himself. He only came out whenever he needed extra cash or food. Shoplifting was one of the things mentioned in his rap sheet. His first offense which got him sent to juvie back when he'd been in middle school.

He and Rena had stopped at a restaurant for some lunch. They had spent two hours searching and gotten hungry along the way. They needed to feed themselves before continuing. He looked at Rena who seemed oddly quiet. She was holding the menu, but wasn't exactly looking at it. She was just staring off into space.

Risa's death had made her reevaluate her feelings for her mother. She spent years hating her but now, now she felt nothing but sadness and regret. She had severed her ties with her mother, disowning her, and even throwing away the name her mother had given her. She renamed herself 'Rena' as 'Reina' had been given by the mother who had betrayed and abandoned her and her father. She returned to Hinamizawa, to start over again, and get away from this place which held bad memories.

Her mother's infidelity and the subsequent divorce of her parents wasn't the only horrible event which had taken place here. Back in Junior High School, which she attended here, three boys tried to rape her and she fought back with a baseball bat. While she had inflicted bodily harm on them, it had been ruled out as self-defence and they didn't press charges as they had been in the wrong. However, Rena then went and shattered the windows of the school with her baseball bat. She was later hospitalized and then she and her father returned to Hinamizawa.

Rena had told Shinichi about this and his reaction had been predictable as he wanted to go and hunt down those boys who'd hurt her like that. She told him to just forget about it as she'd defended herself and those boys had gotten what they deserved. That placated him enough for him to drop the matter and Rena didn't want to dig up the past anymore.

Shinichi and Rena both had that in common. They both had painful pasts which they wanted to forget but their pasts would find a way to haunt them again. It was only a matter of time. Shinichi had the good fortune of being able to forget his past when they first met but his memories returned and with them came the pain and nightmares. Compared to Shinichi's tragic past, Rena's could be considered small. He had to suffer for ten whole years before fleeing from it. However, they never compared their pain with each other. Making light out of someone else's pain by comparison was just wrong. The best thing to do was to move on and look ahead to the future instead of looking back at the past.

Rena stared down at the photo of the lowlife who'd taken her mother's life. Why had he done it? According to the forensic report, Risa's body did not have any defensive wounds, meaning the killer had taken her by surprise. She was also stabbed repeatedly, while only a single stab would've sufficed. This man had enjoyed killing her mother. He hadn't even bothered to take her purse or money. He just killed her for the sake of killing, because he liked it. Grabbing a knife, she stabbed the photo angrily.

The hatred and anger, the need to make someone pay were feelings Shinichi was quite familiar with as he'd felt those feelings for the longest time. Gebok was his main target for his anger and hatred due to what the man had done to him and his family. When Lina had died again, Shinichi went rogue to hunt down Gebok. Alan had tried to stop him, actually he'd tried to help Shinichi come back to his senses and find another way. He understood them now. However, it was Yuji who'd encouraged him but at the same time he made sure that Shinichi did not go too far. Now, Shinichi was doing the same for Rena.

As long as he was here, Rena would not cross the line. He just hoped that when they finally caught Genjiro, that Rena could keep a clear head and do the right thing. But he knew Rena. She was an emotionally aggressive person by nature. Her reaction was predictable. She'd be violent and take her revenge on Genjiro for her mother's death.

* * *

There was panic and screaming in Okinomiya. Shion and Satoko responded immediately to the scene after receiving word from Satoshi who was monitoring things from the Basement.

"Where's Daichi-san?" asked Satoko. Suddenly, they saw saw Musician crashing just a few feet in front of them.

"Well, speak of the devil," Shion remarked just as someone landed behind them. Both turned around to see a LARGE muscular Sasquatch that seemed to have silver and brown rock fists and and a chain-mail of pebbles surrounding its chest. It roared angrily before the Cricket Fork was launched at it, hitting the Sasquatch and sending him reeling backwards. The Cricket Fork then returned to Musician who'd just picked himself off the ground.

Glaring, the annoyed Musician ordered the girls, "Well, don't just stand there gawking! Transform!"

"Oh, oh right! Sure!" Shion replied as she performed her transformation pose. "Rider...Henshin!"

Satoko did the same, summoning Riderman's helmet which she slipped onto her head, "Henshin!"

Their suits materialized, changing Shion Sonozaki into Kamen Rider Nigo and Satoko Houjou into Riderwoman.

"So, what the hell are we dealing with this time?" Nigo asked as she and Riderwoman stood alongside Musician.

Musician answered, "It used to be some gaijin crook named Shaun Rattigan but he took that new G-Shock and mutated into this creature made of boron."

"Boron?" Riderwoman asked. That sounded familiar.

"Yeah," confirmed Musician. "According to my helmet's scan that rocky stuff on it is made of bor-WATCH OUT!" Boron Sasquatch had just recovered and fired cosmic energy beams from his boron fists. The Cricket Rider had grabbed the two pseudo-Riders and jumped before they were hit. The part that was hit exploded and a trench now scarred the ground.

"And apparently he can shoot cosmic energy beams from his hands," Musician finished.

"Hey, monkey-boy!" Riderwoman taunted. "Take this!" She pointed her Casette Arm at the creature and called, "Machine Gun Arm!" It morphed into Machine Gun Mode and she fired a rapid spray of bullets at the monster, but all her bullets did was knock of the boron pebbles covering the Hyde's chest.

"Stop that, Satoko-chan," ordered Nigo. "You're only making it madder." Riderwoman grimaced, realizing her adopted older sister was right. Once the assault ceased, Boron Sasquatch started his counter attack, roaring like a mad beast as he charged at them. Nigo charged back, drawing her fist to execute a Rider Punch only to be smacked aside by Boron Sasquatch. She was sent tumbling painfully as Boron Sasquatch continued his charge.

"MOVE!" Musician grabbed Riderwoman's arm and dragged her to the side before Boron Sasquatch crushed them. The Hyde smashed headlong into a brick wall instead. It made a hole in the wall before coming back out, a little wobbly from the impact but still unharmed.

"OK, my turn!" Musician shouted as he lunged and jabbed his Cricket Fork into Boron Sasquatch's chest. The force of the strike knocked off the rest of the boron pebbles on his chest and as he was regenerating, Musician shouted, "NOW!"

Nigo rushed and began to deliver a series of punches and kicks to Boron Sasquatch, causing the monster to grunt painfully from each blow. It opened its mouth, gathering and charging up energy to kill Nigo but then the pseudo-Rider noticed and used an uppercut to snap his jaw shut and snap his head backwards. The cosmic energy caused his mouth to bulge and like vomit he opened his mouth and released it into the air.

"Well, that was close," said Nigo, relieved, as Boron Sasquatch reeled.

"OUT OF THE WAY!" Musician shouted and Nigo turned to see Musician and Riderwoman rush towards the Hyde.

"Drill Arm!" called Riderwoman as she activated her Casette Arm's Drill Mode and struck the beast in the chest at the same time as Musician. Boron Sasquatch howled in pain before grabbing the two Riders and tossing them into the air. Boron Sasquatch attempted to recover but with its weak spot now exposed it was time for the finisher. Nigo grabbed Boron Sasquatch by the waist and tossed him into the air.

"Rider Throw!" she called the move and then she leapt after the Hyde she'd tossed with a cry of, "Rider Jump!" Once in range, she executed her form's signature move, "RIDER KICK!" The attack struck Boron Sasquatch violently in the chest and shot him towards the ground. He went plummeting, screaming, before crashing. Within moments there was a loud explosion before Nigo landed dramatically on one knee.

"Well," said Nigo as she tossed her scarf tail over her shoulder, "That's over and done with."

* * *

Rena and Shinichi finally found their target. After hours of searching, they spotted the guy trying to steal a woman's purse. When he saw them coming, he ran without what he came for. He didn't want to get caught! He wanted money so he could get more of the blue stuff!

For a drug addict, Genjiro was fast. Unfortunately for him, Rena and Shinichi were catching up. He tried to lose them in a construction site but failed to realize that he just boxed himself in without anywhere to go.

"Stop right there!" Shinichi ordered. "You're coming with us!" Genjiro looked at them, his eyes glowing blue. "OK..." Shinichi recognized the glow. "That can't be good."

"It hurts…" Genjiro uttered as blue veins glowed visibly on his face.

"Huh?" Shinichi stared.

"Its hurts, my skin feels funny…" the druggie groaned before falling to his knees as he began to scream. It was loud like a shriek and sounded agonizing as both Rena and Showa witnessed the horribly disturbing transformation.

The two stood in shock as they witnessed Genjiro's convulsing and changing shape. Yellow-green fish-like scales were growing out of his skin skin and were covering his entire body. His eyes enlarged with purple slits for pupils. His face elongated as his teeth did the same while becoming razor sharp. His back arched over and a huge fin protruded from his spine, ripping through his outfit. A shark tail pierce through his pants, whipping around vigorously as his transformation finished revealing a shark-like, humanoid creature.

"Well that wasn't creepy," Shinichi remarked with a grimace as the creature whirled around and unleashed a blast of liquid towards them. "Oh shit! Henshin!" In a flash, Showa grabbed hold of Rena and pulled her out of the way from the blast of liquid which hit the wall behind them instead. Showa saw that the liquid was eating through the wall, causing it to steam and bubble while making a sizzling noise.

"Acid?" Showa thought out loud before his scanned and analysed the substance, identifying it and confirming it. "Yes, definitely acid."

Rena growled angrily as she glared at her mother's killer, "Do you really think changing into some shark creature will stop me?" She roared, "THINK AGAIN! A...MA...ZON!" Her eyes flashed as she transformed into Amazon Rider. Her teeth were gritted and her claws were displayed. She looked angry, and savage, and ready to tear the Acid Shark Hyde to shreds.

Snarling furiously, the Hyde lunged at Amazon to swipe at her but she easily dodged the sloppy attack and used a right hook that slammed into his snout. The blow stunned Acid Shark long enough for Amazon to headbutt it, jarring it even more. Frustrated, Acid Shark shook off the blow and charged at Amazon, opening his maw wide open to bite her head off.

"Oh, no you don't!" Showa shouted as he tackled the beast, sending both of them rolling along the ground with Showa grappling against the Hyde. He then pulled Acid Shark close and slammed his elbow into the Hyde's skull. He then grabbed it by the shoulders and pulled him close once more, ramming his knee into its gut a couple of times before he began to punch it repeatedly. The Hyde didn't take kindly to this as Acid Shark roared as it body began emitting acidic gas around himself, forcing Showa to release it as the gas was making him cough violently. While the mask was able to filter the gas' poisonous effects, the gas still caused mild discomfort when inhaled. Once freed, Chroline Shark spun and swiped Showa with his tail, knocking Showa to the ground.

"OK, now that is it!" Showa growled as he started to pick himself up. "No more Mister Nice Rider!" Amazon leapt past him. "Rena, wait!"

"STAY OUT OF THIS!" she screamed as she performed a jump kick that sent the Hyde staggering backwards. "This son of a bitch is all mine!" Her red eyes, filled with hate and the need for vengeance were glowing and she would not cease her assault until the Hyde was dead.

Showa was staring in shock and cursed himself for allowing Rena to come along. He should've known her emotions would make her more aggressive and ferocious, but he just thought that since this was a personal matter she had every right to pursue the one responsible for her mother's death.

Once he recovered, Acid Shark lunged for Amazon and brought down a clawed hand on her. She snickered and sidestepped the strike before swiping her claws across Acid Shark's face. She then followed up with a back kick and then she slashed him in the chest with her claws. She wanted to sink her teeth into the monster, a side-effect due to the armor's influence on her, but since pure acid was harmful she didn't dare. Acid Shark fired another blast of acidic liquid at her but she jumped into the air.

Acid Shark growled as he got back up and lunged for Amazon, throwing a punch at her face. Amazon stepped to the side while blocking the punch with her arm before grabbing it and, with a powerful push, broke Acid Shark's arm by bending it the wrong way, causing the bones to stick out of his skin. She then grabbed him by the head and slammed her own head into his in the form of a powerful headbutt. Acid Shark was still screaming in pain as he became dizzy from the headbutt, staggering back before falling to one knee.

Amazon's eyes were focused on her target. She knew what she had to do. The power flowed into her right arm as she raised it, focusing the energy into her claws as she executed Amazon's signature move. She bent her knees and leapt into the air, gaining altitude before dropping down to strike the final blow.

"DAI...SETSUDAN!" Amazon roared as she brought her claws down on her opponent, slicing through him brutally. "That...was for my mother...you bastard..." hissed Amazon under her breath as Acid Shark dropped to the ground on his back.

Showa watched as Acid Shark began to revert back to human form, but still very injured and covered in blood after what Amazon had done to him. Noticing her target was still alive, she grabbed what remained of his clothes and hauled him to look him in the face. She raised her claw to finish the job but Showa grabbed her wrist before she did something she'd regret.

"Rena-chan, it's over," he said.

"Let go! He deserves to die! He deserves it for what he did to my mommy!" Amazon shouted.

"I know how you feel, Rena-chan. I do," Showa said. "But vengeance...it's just not worth it. Besides, you're better than this."

"Am I...?" Amazon questioned.

"He deserves to be punished for his crimes, but not by you right now," Showa continued. "A lowlife like him isn't worth being killed by you." How ironic that Shinichi, who had once hunted down Gebok for revenge, was trying to talk Rena out of it.

Amazon got a good look at Genjiro and scowled in disgust. He looked so pitiful and weak, pathetic too. She let go of him and he lay there, defeated. "You're right, but killing him would've been enjoyable."

"That's what sets us apart from scum like him, Rena-chan," said Showa. "We _don't _enjoy killing. We do it because we have to." He whipped out his C3. "Come on, it's time we did this right."

* * *

Watching the events that had taken place on a monitor back at the Hive, Rune could easily see how distraught and enraged Rena was about the loss of her mother. Now he felt even worse. He just wished that there was something he could do to make things right. As he watched Showa and Amazon use the C3 on Genjiro, Rune also pulled up some pictures that they had of Risa. Looking at the images and then at Rena, he got an idea.

"Sheila, does Shinichi have any pictures of Rena when she was small stored in his personal database? Of her and her father back before her parents got divorced?" Rune asked, hoping that there was at least one.

"_I don't know, let me open up his files and see_," Sheila responded. After a few moments had passed, Sheila replied back to him. "_Well, it seems that he does. A couple anyway that show just her and her father._"

"Do you think it's possible for me to see them for just a moment? I might have an idea for a gift I can make Rena as an apology for not being able to warn her about Risa's untimely death."

"_I could, but I don't know how Shinichi would react to us going through his personal files on the Hive mainframe_."

"Ah, just tell him I hacked his files. This way, all the blame can fall on me and nothing bad will be directed at you," Rune replied with a grin. "And see if you can bring up Risa's address as well."

"_Very well, one moment please...okay, here are the photos. You only have 10 seconds though before I remove them from the monitor_." Rune nodded and looked at the photos of the younger Rena and her father. Luckily for him, he had a very good photographic memory so he could remember nearly everything he saw and read in near perfect detail.

After the time was up, Sheila removed the images from the monitor and then brought up Risa's home address. Her place was currently cordoned off from the public until her family had had a chance to go through everything. It was something that neither Rena nor Retsu had been able to draw up the courage to do just yet.

"_So, may I ask what you plan to do?_" Sheila asked, curious of Rune's intentions.

"Something that I hope will help cheer Rena up a bit but I need to be careful with how I proceed from here," Rune replied as he slipped his jacket on and then pulled out a pair of white gloves from his pants pockets. "Now, can I ask you to open a Teleportal for me to that address? I only need about 5-10 minutes and then I'll be right back. But don't tell anyone. This needs to be kept a secret until I've had a chance to do what I need to do."

"_As much as I shouldn't do this.._." Sheila said before she opened the Teleportal. "_You have 10 minutes. After that, I will not be able to keep myself from reporting your idea to Shinichi so you need to be back at the following coordinates within that allotted time. Do you understand?_"

"Perfectly," said Rune as he slipped his gloves on. With that, he memorized the coordinates and then jumped through the Teleportal.

* * *

In the small apartment complex located in Ibaraki, a green vortex opened up on the roof, allowing the form of Rue to exit. As the Teleportal vanished, Rune quickly set his watch and started the countdown. He only had ten minutes to get this done. Running through the roof door and down the stairs, he came to the floor where Risa's apartment was located and entered the hallway.

"Okay...apartment 3-B...where is it?" Rune asked himself quietly as he ran up and down the hallway until he spotted it near the end corner. "Ah-ha, there it is."

Touching the door knob with his hand, he jiggled it a bit and saw that it was locked tight. Looking from side to side, checking to make sure no one else was around, he removed the glove from his right hand and reformed the index finger of his Soul Bio-Metal hand into a key. Inserting it into the key slot, he unlocked the door, reforming his hand and putting the glove back on before entering.

"Okay, I got..." he looked at his watch, "7 minutes left. Not much time." He then began to walk around, making sure as to not disturb anything. "Okay, now if I were a photo album, where would I be?"

Looking around, he spent about 5 minutes looking for Risa's photo album. Preparing to give up, he was heading back towards the front door when he noticed her desk in the office in the other room. Going over to the desk and looking through the drawers, he finally found what he was looking for.

"Alright, jackpot!" Opening it up, he sorted through the album, looking at all the pictures. He noticed many of them contained images of her and her second husband and their young son. It wasn't until the last page that he saw nearly over a dozen images of her, Retsu and Reina. Looking for the best one, he grabbed the last one which depicted the three of them posing for a picture in front of a lake. "This'll have to do. Man, I just hope I'm doing the right thing." Looking at his watch, "Shit, 30 seconds!" With that, he closed the album and put it back in the drawer and made his way to the front door, opening it up, looking to make sure the cost was clear and then locking it before closing it. "Alright Sheila, I'm done!"

"_Affirmative. Now opening a Teleportal that will bring you back to the main hall._"

"Thanks, and see if you can get some unused metal alloy placed in my room as well, please."

"_Of course._"

With that, the Teleportal opened back up on the roof, Rune using his Bringers Light to hightail it up there and to enter the Teleportal.

* * *

Back at the Hive, Shinichi and Rena sat at the monitors and just stared at one another. They had been discussing the past events of the fight with Genjiro and how he would be kept in the Vault until they could decide what to do with him. As they talked, the Teleportal came to life, allowing Rune to return back to the Hive as he exited.

"Huh? Rune, what were you doing outside the Hive grounds?" Shinichi asked, giving him a small glare.

"Oh...um...went to the library to see if they had any books on alchemy. Wanted to see if that had anything that I hadn't read yet," Rune lied before he made a mad dash for the elevator.

"Chotto, Eon-san!" Rena called out but Rune just pushed the button, opening the door to the elevator before getting in.

"Sorry, can't talk now. Maybe later." With that, the doors closed as Rune was transported to the floor where his quarters were located.

Looking at the closed doors, "Well, that was rude!" Shinichi grunted loudly.

"Perhaps he does not wish to speak to me as he might think I hate him," Rena replied sadly. "I mean, you did say that he knew that my Mommy was going to die but had forgotten due to the effects of the time storm."

"Maybe, but that's no reason to ignore us and just run off like that," Shinichi chortled in irritation.

* * *

Back in his room, Rune began to draw up an image of what he was going to do when a knock came from his door. Turning as it opened, a small mechanoid came in, carrying a tray with a few pounds of metal scrap.

"An, thanks. Just what I needed." Rune then took the scraps as the mechanoid left the room.

Placing the metal scraps on the ground, he then focused on the images of Risa, Retsu and little Reina in his mind as he slapped his hands together. Then, placing them on the ground before the scraps, he sent a surge of alchemic energy over the metal, transforming it into something entirely different. Looking at his handy work, he then took the photo from his jacket and slid it into a slot at the base of the object.

"And now, for the final act."

* * *

Shinichi and Rena headed back to Shinichi's quarters within the Hive. He wanted to grab a couple of things before they went back to Hinamizawa to spend time with Retsu. Upon entering the room, they looked over at Shinichi's desk and noticed something on it. Walking up to inspect the object, both of them gasped as they could easily see a small metal figure of Risa and Retsu holding onto little Reina's hands, the figures mounted onto a metal base. Within the base, an old photo of the family that was taken in front of the lake was placed within it.

"Shin-kun...did you..." Rena asked as she admired the metal sculpture that stood almost two feet tall.

"No, I didn't." replied Shinichi and then he noticed a piece of paper at the bottom. "Hmm...there's a note here." Picking it up, he read it aloud. "Dear Rena, Sorry for not remembering about your mother's death until it was too late. I know that this isn't much but I wanted to give you something to at least remind you of the good times you had with her as a child. Your friend, Rune. A.K.A., Eon."

"...Eon-san...he made this for me using his alchemy?" Rena asked and then smiled. It was a nice gesture of him asking for forgiveness.

"It was a nice thing of him to do. But where did he get that picture from? Didn't you destroy all the ones your father had but one?"

"I did, but my mother took some...Eon-san...I see, he went to my mother's apartment and got this photo!"

"He did what?-! Has he no respect for-"

"Shin-kun, stop!" Rena told him sternly. "I...I don't mind. He did a good thing for me so going there to get this photo...before my father and I went there...it's okay. He did nothing wrong to do this for me so don't be mad at him."

Shinichi looked at her and then at the metal sculpture and then the photo. Letting out a sigh, he smiled softly. He knew Rena was right and he knew that Rune took a big risk in doing this. So he would let it slide. This time. He would just talk to Rune about it later when he had some time alone with him and so that he could also properly apologize for how he had been treating him the whole week.

* * *

Some time later, Rena went to her mother's grave. She knelt in front of the stone, offering incense and a prayer before whispering, "I forgive you," with a tear falling from her eye. "I forgive you, Mama," she repeated. "And...I'm so sorry..." Standing up with Shinichi at her side, the young woman left while holding his hand. Shinichi glanced at the grave, regretting what had happened to Risa but at least her soul would be at rest knowing her daughter had forgiven her.

Hours later, someone else stood at the grave. He tipped his top hat and placed down flowers and a bottle of sake in front of the grave.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The stuff with Risa's death and the aftermath were all done based on Snake Screamer's suggestion. Also, while originally I used Chlorine Shark, Acid Shark had a better ring to it. Toku Warrior helped with some of the scenes as well.**


	169. The Legacy of Cain Part 113

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 113: Snow Time Ride  
**

They were currently working on stopping the sales of G-Shock at the root. Someone had taken over the business since Shiro's fall and it was obvious he'd given the G-Shock formula to his bosses who assigned someone to continue with its production and distribution. The Religion of Crime seemed to be obsessed with doing whatever they could to give trouble to the heroes. Yuki reported that she and Rhea had been having problems with Hydes but the serum managed to change all those who used the drug to turn back and become immune to the drug's effects.

Rika and Hanyuu had been having some trouble in Okinomiya. Just some delinquents who got their hands on the drugs to try to make themselves tougher, more intimidating in town. With their newfound power they spread damage all over the town, grievously injuring anyone in their path. They turned into Hydes themselves but were instantly taken down by Rika and Hanyuu who'd used the power of Kamen Rider X and Kamen Rider Stronger.

* * *

Napalm Tortoise, a tortoise-like humanoid Kaijin with red skin that could fire napalm balls from its mouth was Kamen Rider X's opponent. He had thick scaly skin and and hard, rock-like shell. What remained of his human form was the spiky mohawk but he had become completely inhuman after taking enough of G-Shock. The female Rider had to leap into the air before she was blown up, the napalm balls blowing holes into the ground much to her chagrin.

Napalm Tortoise was just one of the Hydes she and Hanyuu (Stronger) were confronting. The other was Petroleum Squid whom Stronger was dealing with. Together, Napalm Tortoise and Petroleum Squid were spreading destruction all over Okinomiya. Napalm Tortoise could only create isolated explosions but Petroleum Squid's trail of petroleum allowed the fires to spread.

"OK, I need to get him to stop that!" said X as she drew her Ridol Stick and lunged, striking Napalm Tortoise in the snout. He swiped at her with his fist but his movements were slow and sluggish. X jabbed her Ridol into the Napalm Tortoise Hyde's chest, sending the monster reeling before withdrawing her weapon. She drew an X in the air before tossing her rod into the air, the ends glowing as it was suspended via anti-gravity. Leaping into the air, she grabbed hold of the rod and spun around and around on it before releasing her grip. She performed an X pose with her arms and legs spread eagle as she called out, "X...KICK!" She executed a flying kick and struck the Hyde, causing it to go tumbling before exploding, cancelling out its mutation and reverting it back to human form.

Stronger was fighting a Petroleum Squid which resembled a humanoid squid with dreadlocks and it was quite perverted too as it tried to grope her through her suit. She wouldn't allow it. Her body electrified and the Squid Hyde recoiled before she jumped and with an electrified punch sent it staggering painfully as its body was stunned by electricity.

The Squid Hyde fired a shot of petroleum at the ground and Stronger nearly slipped on the petroleum. Now she could not risk igniting it with her electricity but she knew what she could do. Dodging the tentacles as well as the petroleum shots, she made some distance to prepare her attack.

Performing the pose, Stronger jumped and executed her signature move, "STRONGER...DENJI KICK!" The electric-powered kick struck and zapped the Petroleum Squid Hyde. The electricity, combined with the petroleum, caused Petroleum Squid to ignite before exploding, reverting him back to human form painfully and forcefully.

X, aka Rika Furude, shouldered her Ridol Stick as Stronger, aka Hanyuu Furude stood next to her. "Come on, let's give them their cure." They took out their injector guns and strode over to their defeated opponents to administer the serum. The police would soon arrive so the two pseudo-Riders made tracks to find a place where they could change back without being seen.

* * *

"KYAA! I love the Kamen Riders!" Yukari squealed as there was a photo of the Kamen Riders in the newspaper. She, along with Sayoko, Rika and Satoko were hanging out in Angel Mort together. On the front page was a picture of Stronger and X as they fought against the Hydes from earlier.

Satoko gave her best friend a look as she drank her chocolate milkshake. Since Rika and Hanyuu had received the new Rider powers, they had been practicing in the Danger Room, fighting virtual representations of the Riders' respective enemies which were contained in the database.

"Well, it's too bad not everyone feels the same way," said Sayoko. "Mikogami went on another rant last night on his radio show."

"Again? It seems he doesn't quit," remarked Satoko, annoyed at the DJ who seemed to make it his life's mission to denounce and smear the reputation of the heroes in this world simply because they were unnatural. It all started since that video came out and everyone saw the NEO-NUMBERS at their worst but then the Riders decided to prove themselves as the heroes they truly were, no matter what their past affiliations were.

"He did make a good point by questioning the Riders' origins," said Sayoko. "I mean they just showed up out of nowhere. Who are they? Where did they come from? I'm curious too."

"Sayoko-chan, can't you just be happy that we have real superheroes like in manga?" whined Yukari.

"This isn't a manga. Besides, I can't help that these Riders are hiding something," said Sayoko.

"Because of the masks?" Rika questioned. She added, "I think they wear masks to hide their identities in order to protect those close to them. With what they do, the Riders are sure to attract negative attention and make enemies. It's an occupational hazard."

"Rika-chan, you're talking like you speak from experience," said Yukari.

"It's only logical," said Rika. She checked her watch and said, "I have to go, sorry."

"A date?" Yukari teased, causing Rika to blush. She quickly told them goodbye and left in a rush. "Satoko-chan, how about you? Got any boy you like?"

Satoko nearly choked on her milkshake when she heard the question. Blushing, the self-proclaimed Trap Master denied, "N-n-n-no! I don't have a crush on anybody!" An obvious lie if anyone were to observe closely but Yukari and Sayoko did not push. They just wanted to tease the blonde a little bit.

* * *

In his room within the Hive, Rune sat at his desk as he jotted down notes while looking up information in some books that he had borrowed from a library. Even if he was an expert alchemist, he still studied so as to learn new alchemical techniques. It was how he also knew so much about time travel. Even if he was a novice and only traveled through time twice before, he made sure to do his homework on the subject so that he wouldn't screw up.

It was science and with every experiment, there was room for success and error and, in his case, it was a 50/50 shot every time. The time machine that he had been repairing was one of his original prototypes that he wanted to test after repairing it so as to see if he could properly control time travel without doing so by pure accidental luck.

'_Hmm...Eastern documents state alchemy can be used as a source of healing by knowing how to channel the energy through certain pressure points and by also using the flow of energy of the earth itself_,' Rune stated in his mind as he read the book, jotting down what he read into his journal. '_Known as a form of ley line, meaning 'Way of the Dragon', this energy can have both positive and negative outcomes depending on how it's channeled and focused._'

As he continued his research, a knock came from his door but he was so engrossed in his studies that he didn't even hear it. After a few moments, the door opened, allowing a person to enter. The person was none other than Rena and she could see Rune working hard at his studies.

"Ano...Eon-san...can we talk?" He didn't even lift his head or reply. "Eon-san...are you even paying attention?" She walked over and looked over his shoulder and could see his hand moving faster than what a normal hand should be able to move as he wrote down his notes at near lightning speed. He was a fast reader so he had to be a fast writer as well. "Eon-san..." she said as she placed her hand on his shoulder. This time, she got a reaction.

"WAH!-!-!"

Rena stepped back out of shock as Rune leaned backwards out of being startled. He had leaned back so far that his chair fell out from under him, sending him crashing to the floor. Rena closed her eyes, wincing at the spectacle and then opened them as she heard Rune grown in slight pain.

"Eon-san! Daijoubu?-!" she asked in a panic as she kneeled down to help him up.

"Yeah. I'll live. You just scared the hell out of me, that's all," Rune replied as he rubbed his back and took a seat on his bed. Unlike the other members of the Hive, he was using a guest room so it wasn't as large as the other rooms. At most, it was the same size as a standard hotel room in most Japanese hotels.

"Gomen, I didn't mean to. But I did knock and, after I got no reply, I opened the door and tried to get your attention," Rena said as she apologized.

"Meh, think nothing of it. If anything, what you did was a nicer way of getting me to take my head out of my studies when compared to my little sister."

"You have a little sister?" Rena asked as she picked up his chair and took a seat.

"Well, sorta. Like I told Yuji, she's from a different dimension and, after she wound up in mine, I took her in and she's lived with me ever since. And she started to call me 'Aniki' and said that she was adopting me as her new big brother," Rune told her as he laughed at the memory.

"That's so sweet," replied Rena with a smile. Rune softened his gaze. It was nice to see a genuine smile on Rena's face again. "Oh, and before I forget, thank you for your gift. It helps me to remember the good times I had with my family when I was little."

"That's good," Rune responded while letting out a well held in sigh. "I didn't mean to overstep my bounds though by going to your mom's place and getting that picture."

"Iie, it's quite all right. In fact, I'm glad you did. It helped make the metal sculpture...more complete." Rena then looked at him with a hint of curiosity. "So, this sister, does she have a name?"

Rune smiled, "Yeah, her name is Dizzy but my friend Rook and I just call her Diz for short. She can also be a bit overprotective of me as well. Kinda reminds me of a slightly less violent female version of Yuji now that I think about it." This earned him a laugh from Rena. "Though, I like having her as a sister. In all sense of the word, she's the only family I got left now."

Now Rena was confused but she also noticed the sad look in his eyes.

"What about your mother and father? Or any of your other siblings?"

"Nope, just an only child. And I never had a dad. In fact, I have no biological father, whatsoever. Doctors think it has something to do with my Eon Gene," Rune told her. Even he wasn't sure how his mother had conceived him.

"And your mother?" She then noticed him wince at the mention of her. "Never mind, I can see the topic bothers you."

"No, it's ok. I want you to know. So that you'll understand why not being able to save your mother tears me up inside." Rena looked at him with concern. "You see, my mother...she too was murdered...by the Homunculoid Generator named Gawl. She was murdered right in front of my very eyes."

Rena's eyes widened at hearing that. She now realized what Rune had meant. He knew what it was like to lose his mother just like how she lost hers.

"Eon-san...I'm so..."

"Don't be sorry for me...because it's my fault that she died," Rune said solemnly.

"Eon-san, I don't understand. How can you be responsible?"

Rune looked at her. She needed to know the truth. None of the NEO-NUMBERS or their allies knew and, when he was asked, he avoided it. If he wanted them to trust him, then he had to be straight with them. And it would seem that Rena would be the best person to start with.

"Do you remember what I told you all back in the cafeteria last week? When Alan asked how the Homunculoids were set free by some idiot who treaded into God's territory." Rena nodded her head. Rune took a deep breath and spoke. "I...was that idiot."

Rena's eyes widened a bit as she gaped at him. Rune was the cause of the Homunculoids? She knew that many Riders started out as brainwashed members of the enemy organization and some made their own systems to combat already existing threats. But to hear that a Rider was the direct cause of the kaijin attacking his world...that was a first, even for her.

"But...why?" she asked.

"Because, as a scientist, I wanted more knowledge," Rune began. "I'm an alchemist and we spend most of our lives doing research and learning new ways of alchemy. But, even within alchemy, there are three main taboos which an alchemist must _never_ perform."

"And what are those?"

"One, an alchemist must never transmutate rock into gold or any other form of valuable resource. If you think about it, that can disrupt the entire economic standing and actually devalue the value of said object." Rena nodded as she understood what he was getting at. "Number two, an alchemist is never to perform human transmutation. Creating humans is God's job, not man's. Doing so can have disastrous consequences."

Rena could agree to that. While trying to revive a loved one was something that any person would do, sometimes it was best left alone and to let the deceased rest. "And the third taboo?"

"Never, ever, seek out the greatest truth by using alchemy. And by that, it means never call upon the Gate of Truth. Doing so could spell disaster for humanity." He then locked his eyes with hers. "And I did the third. I summoned the Gate. I wanted to know everything I could. I was so obsessed that I overlooked the warning signs and pushed forward. As a result, I released the Homunculoids by accident, the first being their leader...Gawl."

"Eon-san..."

"Alchemy has one basic law. It's called Equivalent Exchange. That means to obtain something, something else of equal or greater value must be lost. I just never could have imagined that the cost for my gaining the knowledge from the Gate...was my mother's very life!" said Rune with disdain in his voice. He loathed himself for what he had done and it was a sin that he could never wash clean of. Holding out his hands, "Rena, give me your hands for a sec. There's something I want you to see."

"Okay..." she replied as she held out her hands for him to take.

The moment he took her hands in his, her mind was instantly flooded with the events of the night he had summoned the Gate. She saw what he saw, she heard what he had heard. And then she saw IT. She saw Gawl, the Homunculoid Generator. The body of Rune's mother pinned beneath its clawed feet as it swallowed her soul. Rune then let go of her hands and waited for her to respond. After a few seconds, he could see tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm sorry if those images disturbed you, Rena. But I wanted someone to know and I felt that you deserved to know why I fight and why I truly did what I did to help cheer you up."

Rena looked at him and, after drying her tears, smiled.

"It's okay, Eon-san. And I'm sorry about what happened to your mother. I pray that you'll be able to make up for your sins one day and defeat Gawl. Don't give up and always do your best," she said as she pumped her fist a bit, trying to encourage him.

Rune just smiled a bit and laughed. "Thanks Rena. I needed to hear that."

* * *

Even though Risa's killer had been found and incarcerated, there was still one more mystery. Who'd carved the Green Lantern symbol into the woman's forehead? Since this phenomenon occurred in other places in the world, it couldn't have been Genjiro. This led to one conclusion, that the Religion of Crime had been hiring people all over the world to commit these murders and carve the symbol into their foreheads as a message for Alan. Sure, the detail about the symbols had yet to go public, but it was only a matter of time.

Alan was sitting on the couch in the boarding house's living room. Sitting in the middle, his lap was being used as a pillow by Celine and Alice who were on his right and left respectively. He gently stroked their hair. He really couldn't believe that Risa had been murdered. In his timeline he'd met her when he'd been a child. Was time in flux and thus being altered?

'_The longer I'm here, the more things are changing_,' thought Alan. He heard footsteps rushing down the steps and saw Lala coming to the living room. She looked panicked.

"Alan!" she cried and he shushed her, gesturing to Alice and Celine. "Sorry," she apologized quickly. "But you better come see what's going on outside."

Alan was curious but he couldn't get up without waking up his daughters. "Just tell me what's going on," he said impatiently.

"It's snowing."

"...What?"

"Well that came out of nowhere," said Bazel.

* * *

It was snowing, in the middle of summer. It first began as just a few flakes then the temperature started dropping and soon a blanket of snow was covering everything. According to the news, the phenomenon seemed isolated but was starting to spread. Its point of origin, with the aid of the Hive satellite, was soon discovered. It had started in the mountains in Hinamizawa.

Two Riders had already responded to the incident. Rika and Hanyuu were already on their way after putting on winter coats. Something was causing it to snow and while the younger kids were enjoying themselves, as they didn't care whether or not this was unnatural, the older generation seemed concerned. This was just too unnatural.

"Satoshi, are we close?" Rika spoke into her wrist-com. They were running up the steep mountain which had become covered in snow in a matter of hours.

"_You are about 100 metres away from the source_," Satoshi reported.

"That means we're getting close," said Rika.

"We better transform, Rika," said Hanyuu.

"Yes," Rika agreed. "Dai Henshin."

"Henshin."

* * *

In the Basement under Irie's clinic, Satoshi was at the computer monitoring Rika and Hanyuu's movements as well. A map of Hinamizawa on the screen showed their location and status. "OK, they've just transformed." He had a feeling that they might need backup. "Is there anyone else that can help them at the moment?"

"_Yokoshima_," Sheila supplied.

"Better than nobody," Satoshi remarked. "Rika, Hanyuu, this is Satoshi. I'm sending some backup in case you need it."

* * *

Kamen Rider X and Stronger found their target. Sitting in the distance was a humanoid eagle, male, with feathers covered in frost, possessing sharp talons and radiating with cold as he created a blizzard around himself. The reason as to why he was causing it to snow was unknown but he definitely needed to stop.

"Ready, Hanyuu?" X asked as she drew her Ridol Stick. Stronger nodded. "OK, on my mark we approach with caution."

The Hyde, Frost Hawk, however had sharp hearing. While he'd been meditating, it had created a blizzard. The first thing his blizzard did was alter the weather and make it snow, and it would continue to snow until everything was covered in it and everything froze. The snow would not stop and people would be stuck in a new ice age.

He was a meteorologist but after making an error was fired from his job. It was just one error and he had to lose his job. Well, he wasn't about to stand for it. He would make those who hurt him pay.

"You can come out now, children," said Frost Hawk as he cracked his eyes open. "I know you're there." He spotted them, coming. They were the Kamen Riders he'd heard so much about. "You've come to stop me, haven't you?"

"Well, it's supposed to be summer and winter isn't until a few more months," said X.

"Normally, but now I can make it winter whenever I want and I think summer should end early," he argued.

"That is not your decision to make," Stronger retorted.

"It is now," he said and he spread out his wings and attacked, shrieking.

"Hanyuu, move!" X shouted as she prepared herself.

Frost Hawk flew at her, talons outstretched. X tried to outrun the Hyde, but with her feet sinking into the snow and robbing her of her speed, Frost Hawk was able to reach her before she could escape. The Hyde's weight brought them both down and they tumbled down the slight incline, gathering snow, while fighting.

When they finally came to a halt, Frost Hawk had gained the upperhand. X managed to grab the Hyde's wrists as his taloned fingers descended towards her neck.

Stalemate ensued as X grappled with the Hyde but her resistance was weakening. The Hyde smirked to itself as he thought he was winning when all of a sudden X threw a punch into its face, sending the Frost Hawk Hyde reeling as X scrambled away and picked herself up.

"You should not have done that, my dear," Frost Hawk spoke. X tried to resist laughing as the Hyde's voice did not fit his appearance. It was so squeaky and high-pitched that he reminded her of a rubber duck or after someone inhaled helium. The Hyde noticed this, however, and fired his cryogenic spray at her. However, she was shielded by Blue Beetle who used his shield and Stronger struck with her own Electro Fire attack, zapping the avian Hyde in a surprise attack.

"Are you alright?" Blue Beetle asked X. His shield was covered in ice and shattered but his armor managed to recover from the loss.

"Yeah, but this guy is tough." X cautioned.

"Indeed." Frost Hawk confirmed. "I feel that it is my duty to warn you-"

"Dude, what's up with your voice?" Blue Beetle interrupted.

"My voice is none of your business!" Frost Hawk snapped.

"But it's so _squeaky_!"

"Shut up! Now, as I was saying, I fear that it is my duty to warn you that I am a dangerous foe, and I'm only giving you once chance to surrender."

"Surrender?-! Dude, are you blind? We have you surrounded and outnumbered three-to-one! We ain't gonna surrender!"

"I see, then I'm afraid I must get rough with you." At this he used his wings to conjure powerful gale force winds sending everyone flying backwards. When he stopped flapping, everyone crashed into the snow-covered ground.

"Ow... okay he is tough. But let's see how he like being blasted!" Blue Beetle shouted as he activated his B3 Gun and took aim. However, before he could even pull the trigger, Frost Hawk fired a blast of freezing helium from his mouth, encasing the weapon and Blue Beetle's arms. "HEY! That was my favorite gun you high-pitched squeaking voice cockbite!"

"Sir, while we are enemies, there are still ladies present. There is no need for such crude lang-" Frost Hawk was interrupted as he received an electrically charged two hit combo in the chest from Stronger causing him to grunt in pain as Blue Beetle flew forward and bashed his ice-encased gun on top of Frost Hawk's head.

Frost Hawk growled as he prepared for his counter-attack using his wings but X quickly changed her Ridol to its rope form and bound his arm and wings with it.

"Quick, Hanyuu! Use the Charge Up function!" X shouted.

Stronger nodded before she shouted, "CHARGE-UP!" The S on her chest spun as part of her armor turned silver. This Hyde was far too strong to handle with just a regular form so they needed to hit him with a powerful attack.

"Super Electro Big Wheel Kick!" Hanyuu shouted as she used the attack to electrocute the Hyde, causing him to scream before he exploded and reverted to his human form.

With the fight over and done with, Stronger returned to her default state while X took out the injector gun and injected the serum into the man's body. Blue Beetle, as he watched, shattered the ice encasing his arms and walked over to them, holding his B3 Gun up against his shoulder.

"Well, that's taken care of. So, now what?" Blue Beetle asked.

"We just wait for the ice to melt," said X. "Anyway, we need to head home now."

"Same here," said Blue Beetle. "Take care of yourselves now." He spread his wings and took off.

* * *

The man sat in his office, dressed in a red business suit and a fedora. He had broad shoulders with an elegant nose, china-white skin and hazel eyes. The man wasn't an average businessman. He was a drug lord and he was in it for the money. His name was Oh Yeun-Kyung.

Originally from Vietnam, he was contacted by the Religion of Crime months ago for a business proposition. He was given a formula and ordered to manufacture the drug known as G-Shock but with some modifications done to it. Oh Yeon-Kyung saw the money offered to him and like any greedy businessman took the job. He read the formula and the data on it and was impressed. A lot of people would want to get their hands on it and he could make money. He didn't care about what the buyers did with the drug. The Religion of Crime wanted it to be spread all over the world and with so many resources, Oh Yeon-Kyung was able to have the drug distributed and with more money coming in he could have secret labs and factories build to produce more of the drug, raking in millions.

Of course now his operation was being threatened by the heroes known as Kamen Riders and their allies. They had managed to synthesize a cure for the G-Shock drug, a serum to counter its effects. That would be bad for business and he didn't like it one bit.

He would need to stop them at any cost.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, this chap was just a filler, but nonetheless we get to see Hanyuu and Rika in action. They do great as X and Stronger.  
**


	170. The Legacy of Cain Part 114

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 114: High Stakes Battle**

"Wait, so Shinichi and your sister are going to be having a baby?" Rune asked. That was definitely news to him. Sure, he heard that Shinichi had relationships with other girls but he didn't know he'd already gotten one pregnant.

"That's right!" winked Mammon. "And that's why me and my sisters are gonna be shopping! We're gonna be holding a baby shower!"

"A little ironic," Rune remarked and Mammon responded by looking at him in confusion.

"Why is it ironic?" she asked.

"Well, you are the Stake of _Greed_. Giving gifts doesn't seem like your style. You're more like someone who would hoard gifts," he joked. Mammon pouted and puffed up her cheeks before turning away with a huff and stomping off. "Hey, I was just joking! Come on, don't get like that, Mammon!"

* * *

"I don't like it," said Yuji as Misato was feeding their baby.

"Can you elaborate?" the former cyborg questioned for clarification.

"The new guy," Yuji answered. "Rune, or Eon, or whatever he likes to be called. I don't like how he's hanging around Mammon."

"I think it's Mammon who likes to hang out with him, not the other way around," Misato countered.

"How would you know _that_?"

"She told me."

* * *

"So, what do you think about Rune?" asked Shinichi as he sat with Alan at the boarding house's veranda.

"What do I think?" Alan questioned. "I think his presence here is evidence that the timeline is changing even more."

"What makes you say that?" Shinichi asked.

"Because the older you never mentioned him before," Alan answered. With the timeline being altered even more than it should, Alan wasn't sure what to expect. "Look, being able to predict things because I knew about them is one thing, but a lot of stuff here just doesn't make sense."

"Which is why you didn't know about..."

"What happened to Risa? That's one of them," Alan sighed. "So, when is Satan due?"

Shinichi looked over to Satan who was sitting nearby with a hand on her swollen belly.

"A few more weeks," said Shinichi. Alice and Celine approached Satan and the Stake of Wrath allowed the bio-android and plant-girl to touch her belly. He looked to Alan and asked, "So, how do you balance everything out? I mean you gotta go to school and be a superhero and parent too."

"A lot of help," said Alan. "You just gotta know people. What, are you worried?"

"I'm happy about being a dad, ecstatic even, but I don't exactly have that many male role models if you recall," replied Shinichi. "What if I'm not the best dad?" Alan put a hand on his older brother's shoulder.

"You'll do great," said Alan.

"Ow!" Satan yelled and Shinichi was instantly at her side.

"Satie-chan, are you OK?" Shinichi asked quickly.

"Just fine. It's the baby. He's just kicking me very hard," smiled Satan. Shinichi let out a sigh of relief and Alan watched with a smile. Celine and Alice ran over to him.

"Daddy, where do babies come from?" Alice asked.

Alan was caught off guard by the question and stammered, "Ah...well...where do babies come from...? Well, you see, Alice...well..."

Alan was a lot like his dad. He could handle facing powerful super-villains, an eight-headed dragons, demons from the darkest pits of hell, but when it came to explaining the facts of life...epic fail. Shinichi, seeing this, couldn't help but allow himself to chuckle a little. However, more often than not, Alan always rose to the challenge and did his best to do something whenever he could.

Alan took a deep breath, composed himself, and started the explanation over, "Sweetie, when two people love each other very much...well..." Alan trailed off, thinking up the words. '_Now I get why Dad always ditched the facts of life speech on Mom..._'

He continued, "When a Mommy and Daddy love each other very much, they get together. They hold hands and close their eyes very tight...and they make a wish. A wish for something beautiful and miraculous. And if they're lucky, and wish hard enough...they get their wish."

Alice digested the words her daddy had told her then asked, "Did you wish for me, Daddy?" Alan was quiet for a moment. Alice didn't know much about her past unless she was in Epsilon Mode. He couldn't exactly tell her she had been a psychotic android that had tried to kill him and got ditched in the ocean by her "Onii-chan".

He let out a sigh, and answered, "Alice...I could never wish hard enough to get a daughter as wonderful, beautiful and perfect as you. But I tried...and I got you. My beautiful princess." He ruffled her head and she beamed up at him, blushing and giggling as she ran back into the house with Celine following.

"That was a very beautiful explanation," Shinichi commented.

"I have my moments," shrugged Alan. "Besides, I couldn't do what Dad would have done."

Shinichi asked, "What's that?"

"Ditch the issue on Yami. She'd just call me Ecchi and punch me. And Kryptonian or not, that hurts." Shinichi stared silently for a moment before breaking out in uncontrollable laughter.

"You can laugh now, but mark my words when it's your turn you're gonna need a way to get yourself out of it," Alan warned.

* * *

"_Whatever these 'superhumans' or 'Kamen Riders' are, they need to be brought in and made to explain themselves. With their abilities, they are a clear threat to our country's security! They claim that they are heroes, but you cannot deny the fact that so much death and destruction has occurred since they emerged!_" a politician ranted on television.

"Honestly, don't these people have anything else better to do?" grumbled Shiori as she handed the remote control to her youngest son. Sho was sitting on her lap as Tatsuyoshi sat next to her.

"People are scared," reasoned Tatsuyoshi.

"But they're blaming everything on Shinichi and his friends! If it weren't for them things would've gotten worse! Now we have politicians condemning them!" Shiori complained. "It was bad enough with Mikogami talking trash about them."

"Just think about something else, Shiori," advised Tatsuyoshi. "Like the new baby that's coming."

"Yeah, my new grandchild," smiled Shiori. "I always thought Rena would be the one to give birth to my first grandchild, but I can't really complain. Satan-chan's a nice girl. She's got a temper, but deep down she really loves Shinji."

"And the fact that she and Shinichi aren't married won't be a problem?" Tatsuyoshi asked.

"I'd love to see a wedding, but the whole marriage thing is just a piece of paper," said Shiori. "It's up to them what they want to do with their lives. They've grown up and saved the world so many times. All I can do is support them, unlike my father and my old mother-in-law. They're sure to raise a stink because they're just so darn traditional."

* * *

Rune was outside in the canyon, admiring the wildlife, namely the three Power Animals which called this spacious place their home. Soaring in the air was GaoPhoenix, napping on a cliff was GaoLiger and drinking water from the lake was GaoTyranno. As he watched the Power Animals live their lives peacefully within the canyon, he began to wonder about his own origins. He had no natural father so how did his mother become pregnant? It really bothered him at times. Letting out a sigh, he sat down and then laid back on the grass, resting his head on his arms while looking at the sky.

'_Man, it's so beautiful here_.' As he continued to watch the clouds roll by, his mind then drifted to another thought. '_That village, I wonder if I can probably find it and learn from the man himself,_' Rune thought as he sat up. "To learn from the father of modern alchemy. Man, now that'd be cool." Looking at one cloud that rolled by, he could have sworn it looked a little bit like Mammon. "Whoa, spooky. But, I guess that girl is really starting to grow on me. Heck, I'm at the point where I look forward to just being able to spend the day talking to her. Now, if I could only get that brother of hers to lighten up a bit." He then thought about that notion for a moment before grimacing. "Never mind. Yuji would probably want to kick my ass first before even giving me the time of day. Can't really blame him though."

"Honk!" Rune turned his head to see the little alien kid known as Junior running up to him with his father, Battler, not too far behind. "Honk, honk, blarg!"

"Well hey there, little guy," Rune replied as he patted Junior's head. Looking up at Battler, "Haven't had the chance to meet you yet."

"Likewise," replied Battler as he took a seat next to his son. "I'm Battler Ushiromiya. Also known as Kamen Rider Meta," he said as he held out his hand.

"Rune Suller, but my friends normally call me Eon. I'm also known as Kamen Rider Renkin," Rune replied while shaking Battler's hand. "And this little guy?"

"He's my son," Battler said as Junior sat in his lap. While Battler would never reveal the circumstances of Junior's birth to anyone, he was actually happy to be a father to an alien life form. The problem was breaking the news to his parents, which he had had yet to do.

"Now let me think," Rune said as he tapped his chin. "Battler...Battler...hmm...Kamen Rider Meta...ah, now I remember! You were an X-SHOCKER cyborg designed to be able to defeat BLACK 13 but he was able to get you to join his side instead."

Battler nodded. He had been told that their new house guest was from the future, even farther along in time than both Alan and Yuji. He had also been told on how he was an alchemist.

"Yeah, guess you would know that."

"And I'm gonna say that you haven't informed your parents yet on the little guy being your kid, right?" Battler shook his head. "Thought so. My advice, being a bit of an...oddball myself...bring a pillow for your dad and an ice pack."

"What? Why?"

"Sorry, no spoilers. But trust me, it's every man's dream to be a good dad. And a good father is always understanding of his son when he tells him something that isn't normally considered normal in the family," Rune told him while placing a hand on Battler's shoulder. "You just need to be confident and have faith that they'll be accepting of him. Show them your determination and how proud the kid makes you and it should work."

Battler nodded while smiling a bit. Everyone else had told him similar things and now the guy from the distant future was telling him to have faith as well. Maybe it was time to break the ice and tell his parents.

* * *

The Stakes entered the department store together. They had a very important mission and as always Lucifer was leading the way.

"OK, everyone, you know what we must do," began Lucifer as she spoke in a militaristic fashion. "Our mission here is to select and purchase gifts for Satan's baby shower. Remember, we are shopping for her and the baby."

"I kinda wish the baby was a girl," pouted Asmodeus.

"I kinda wish I was having a baby," added Leviathan enviously.

"Focus, Levi. This is about Satan-nee, not you," said Mammon, patting her older sister on the shoulder.

"Here are your lists," Lucifer said as she gave her sisters each a sheet of paper. "Purchase everything on that list according to the quantity. Don't worry about money because Beatrice-sama gave us enough money. She doesn't want us to mess up."

"Yay, I get to try the cakes!" beamed Beelzebub and her list was snatched away and switched with Belphegor's. "Onee-sama!" she whined.

"An oversight," Lucifer frowned. Letting Beelzebub choose cakes was a guaranteed disaster. She just could not control her sweet tooth sometimes. Better to let Belphegor choose the cakes. Sometimes she was lazy but when push comes to shove she was reliable. "OK, girls. Spread out!"

"Hai, Onee-sama!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Satoshi and Satoko were in the same department store. Rika's birthday was coming up, August 25, and they were trying to find a gift for her. As Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam also had jobs outside the Hive, they made money while also making investments and playing smart on the stock market. Satoko and Satoshi had also made money from their own part time jobs so they could splurge a little on their friend.

"OK, what do you get for a girl like Rika-chan?" Satoshi asked his little sister.

"Lingerie," Satoko deadpanned, causing Satoshi to blush at the imagery. She laughed and he scowled at her.

"Satoko-chan, that's not funny!"

"When was I kidding?" She continued to giggle. "I don't think it matters what we get her. I mean, as long as we remember her birthday it's cool."

"I remember when you bought her that magic set last year," recalled Satoshi. "How did that go?"

"Let's just say she's getting craftier at playing cards," Satoko answered. She found a mug with the phrase "Bestest Best Friend in the World" on it. "Now this might be a good gift."

"Well, maybe she'll like a teddy bear," Satoshi suggested.

"I still say you should get her lingerie, but then you might get beaten up by Nee-nee and Kai-san," Satoko stated.

* * *

Bullies did not just amuse themselves in school. During summer break they took the opportunity to amuse themselves outside of school by picking on kids.

One high school boy was an unfortunate victim. Called 'Bug Maniac' by everyone else, he wore coke-bottle glasses and had his hair in a light green bowl cut. He was always pushed around and considered a weirdo for his love of bugs. During the summer, he would try to catch beetles and cicadas for his collection. Sadly, one day, when he bought his collection to school, the bullies snatched his precious collection from him and destroyed it.

And now he had a chance to avenge himself as he confronted the bullies loitering outside a convenience store.

"Hey, look! It's the Bug Maniac!" one of the bullies jeered.

"Hey, give us your money! We're thirsty!" another demanded.

'Bug Maniac' grinned as he took a packet of blue pills out from his pocket. His eyes flashed blue as he stared at the bullies.

* * *

When Battler, Junior and Rune went back into the main hall, the alarm system went off. "What's going on?" He went to the computer. "Sheila, what's happening?"

"_A disturbance has been detected in Shishibone City,_" Sheila reported. "_Pinpointing location now._" A map appeared on the screen and she plotted the location before magnifying the image to see what was going on.

* * *

Two of the three bullies had been killed, their throats slit wide open. The third tried to scramble away, the stench of urine was thick as he'd just wet himself. The Bug Maniac had just turned himself into a monster and as a bug enthuthiast none was more appropriate than the form he'd assumed now. Covered in an iron exoskeleton, he sported spiked blades which protruded from his wrists. Flankings his jaws was a pair of stag beetle mandibles which clicked together. They were sharp, with saw-like edges, and looked like they were ready for the main event.

Iron Stag grabbed the bullied by his throat in his mandibles and then scissored his head off. He dropped the body and clicked his mandibles together before spreading his wings and taking off to find new targets.

* * *

As a woman was picking out something from the rack, something outside the window caught her attention. It wasn't the window washer, but a humanoid stag beetle. It grinned and waved at her. She froze and once the danger registered she let loose a scream. Glass shattered as Iron Stag crashed into the glass. He then used his spiked blades to tear the woman's clothing to shreds and leered at her half-naked body as only her underwear remained. She screamed some more, covering herself. The rest of the shoppers panicked and began to flee from the monster as it began its rampage.

As it went around, destroying everything in sight, while attacking young women and stripping them naked, he was suddenly struck from behind. Sparks flew on contact. Stopping for a moment, Iron Stag turned to see who'd dared to strike him.

"You know, we were hoping for a quiet day of shopping until you showed up. But now, you've just ruined it," said Lucifer. "Stakes of Purgatory, front and centre!" Her sisters appeared in flashes of gold as their clothes changed to their uniforms.

"Stake of Pride: Lucifer!"

"Stake of Ency: Leviathan!"

"Stake of Sloth: Belphegor!"

"Stake of Greed: Mammon!"

"Stake of Gluttony: Beelzebub!"

"Stake of Lust: Asmodeus!"

"Six Stakes of Purgatory! Sanjou!"

However, for the six demon girls, it just didn't feel the same without Satan. She was pregnant and thus could not participate in any rigorous activity.

Iron Stag only saw beautiful girls ready to be stripped. Lunging forward, he went to the closest one which was Lucifer. However, she ordered for them to scatter and they did, keeping themselves out of Iron Stag's reach.

"Take this!" Leviathan shouted as she kicked Iron Stag upside the head. He tried to grab her with his mandibles but she was just too fast for him. Darting forward, Mammon and Belphegor struck with their energy blades, ripping sparks off his stomach and sending him reeling.

Asmodeus greeted cheekily, "Hi~!" and started to attack with incredible speed, hacking and slashing with great abandon. Beelzebub also assisted and struck his head with her energy blade.

"It's a shame that Satan is missing out on this," said Lucifer. She then noticed that Iron Stag was sparking with arcs of lightning surrounding his body "Hm?"

Iron Stag roared and spread out his arms, unleashing a burst of electricity from his body. He zapped the Stakes closest to him and they went sprawling around him. He then picked up Beelzebub and like a pervert tore her blouse open. "Aaaah!" she screamed as he leered at her and went to grope her only to be kicked upside the head by Lucifer. He twirled around and spread out his wings. They began to vibrate and generate a lot of heat which turned his body red hot and smoking. He opened his mouth and shot out a fireball. Lucifer barely dodged the attack and her right sleeve was singed, but otherwise she was just fine.

Iron Stag's body cooled down and he clasped his hands together before raising his arms. Everything metal on the floor, namely the racks, rose up and he manipulated them to attack the Stakes. The girls dodged with their speed, teleporting to avoid the attacks, but were unable to get close enough to Iron Stag. He generated another electrical blast and zapped the girls again.

All the while they were fighting, he leered at their bodies, at their milky white thighs, at how their breasts bounced as they moved. Oh, he wanted to strip them naked and touch them, over and over, and never stop touching them.

Suddenly, a spiked ball shot through the air and slammed into Iron Stag violently, sending him reeling. The spiked ball was attached to a rope which retracted into a metal gauntlet. It was Riderwoman and standing next to her was her brother, Kamen Rider V3 (Satoshi).

"Nii-nii, ikuzo," said Riderwoman as she and V3 charged. Iron Stag unleashed a blast of electricity at the brother and sister.

"V3 Secret #10! Red Lamp Power!" declared V3 as he absorbed the electricity before sending it back at Iron Stag. Iron Stag absorbed the electricity but his body convulsed from the shock he received. V3 jumped and sent Iron Stag flying out the window with the V3 Screw Kick. Iron Stag opened up his carapace and spread his wings. However, his wings were then riddled with bullets. He started to plummet and looking up he saw Riderwoman following him down to the ground with V3. V3 grabbed hold of Riderwoman's arm and spun around before tossing her like a frisbee. She then struck Iron Stag with her Machine Gun Arm and sent him crashing to the ground below.

"Come on!" Lucifer prompted the girls to follow, which they did.

An imprint of his body formed where Iron Stag crash-landed. Climbing painfully up to his feet, he was forced face-first back into the ground as V3 and Riderwoman landed on top of him. Roaring in outrage, Iron Stag threw the sibling Riders off his back.

* * *

Watching everything take place on the monitor, Rune and Battler kept a close eye on the Hyde. Even with all the damage it was taking, it could still fight. If anything could be said about this Hyde, it was no pushover. As they watched, Sheila monitored the battle as well and tried to come up with the constructs of the Hyde's body.

"Sheila, anything yet?" Battler asked in anticipation.

"_Almost...done,_" she replied. "_The current Hyde appears to be made out of a strong metal alloy. From observation, it has the ability to generate electricity __and an electromagnetic field__, can absorb surrounding heat with its wings and fire it on the form of an intense fireball and it can withstand normally fatal blows_."

"What's your best guess on alloy composition?" Rune asked.

"_If I had to make a guess then I would say between Steel and Iron_," she replied. Rune just smirked and Battler noticed it.

"You got a plan, don't ya?" Battler asked the young alchemist. Rune didn't even bother answering as he looked up at an image of Sheila.

"Sheila, form a Teleportal. Meta and I will head out and provide extra back-up," said Rune as he slapped his hands together and held them over his waist, forming his belt.

"_Affirmative, and please try not to cause too much trouble, Rune. Technically, you are supposed to stay in the base_," Sheila reminded him.

"Meh, Dragon-boy can kick my ass for disobeying orders later. Right now, my little 'Treasure Chest' could use a little help from her 'Ultimate Treasure'. Henshin!" Rune shouted, the Omni-Sphere within the Claws of the Sun letting out a wave of alchemic energy as his body was covered in his Rider suit and soul-metal armor.

Battler quickly followed suit with a shout of, "Henshin!", transforming into Meta. Looking back up at Sheila, he instructed, "Sheila, please look after Junior while I'm gone."

"_Affirmative. See you all soon_."

With that, Renkin and Meta ran through the Teleportal, heading off to assist the Stakes and two pseudo-Riders.

* * *

The police had just arrived and exiting their cars, aimed their guns at the monster. They were aware of the Riders' heroic deeds and despite Mikogami's attempt to smear their name, they supported the masked heroes. The police fired on the Hyde but their bullets had no effect as they bounced off the creature's iron exoskeleton. Iron Stag pointed his arms at the gun and ripped them out of the officer's hands. He then pointed the guns at them, took aim, and fired.

The bullets flew along their lethal trajectory towards the unarmed officers and civilians when all of a sudden the bullets stopped in mid-flight and dropped to the ground. What had happened? This confused the Iron Stag Hyde before it got blasted in the face by an explosive fireball.

Standing in the distance was Kamen Rider Meta and he had his arms crossed. "V3! Ridergirl!" Meta called. "Finish that bug freak now!"

"Gotcha!" V3 nodded.

"And it's Rider_woman_!" Riderwoman corrected. "Drill Arm!" she called as her right arm changed into a drill. Darting forward, she struck with the drill to bore a hole in Iron Stag's exeokeleton. Sparks flew as she continued to push her drill through his chest but he grabbed her and tossed her into the air. V3 attacked with an impressive roundhouse kick, knocking Iron Stag backwards.

"OK, try this then!" Riderwoman shouted. "Blaster Arm!" Her right arm reconfigured and this time she was armed with a powerful energy cannon. She took aim, steadying her right arm with her left hand. "OK, take this!" She fired, the the cannon's recoil sending her sliding backwards. The blast struck Iron Stag explosively in the chest and knocked him painfully off his feet.

Iron Stag lay sprawled on the ground, smoking from his chest, but then it picked itself back up.

"Nothing seems to faze this guy!" Riderwoman hissed.

"Hold on," said V3 as he scanned the Iron Stay Hyde with his Matrix Eyes. He could see small hairline cracks appearing on the spot where Riderwoman had blasted him. Now was the opportunity to finish him off.

Electricity arched around his spiked blades and plunged them into the pavement, sending out a wave of electricity that shocked the police officers, bringing them to their knees in pain. "Stop it right now, you iron freak!" Iron Stag looked up to see Mammon coming down on top of him with her energy blade at the ready. A mistake on her part as the stag beetle mandibles in his mouth crackled with electricity, jolting upwards and striking her dead on. "Ahhhh!"

"Mammon-san!" Satoko shouted as she charged up her cannon once more. "You jerk! Now I'm really gonna-huh?" she spat until a wave of energy raced passed her along the ground and surged around the ground below Iron Stag. In an instant, the street reformed into a set of steel jaws with spikes which then slammed shut on Iron Stag.

"What in the..." Lucifer began until Renkin ran passed her and came to a stop next to Mammon. "Oh, now I see. Future boy came along with you," she said as she looked at Meta.

"Hey, it was his idea to come," Meta said in his defense.

Helping Mammon up, Renkin jumped back and landed next to the others, supporting Mammon as she caught her breath. Looking up at the alchemic Rider, Mammon smiled and nodded a 'thank you'. Setting her down, Renkin then took eight pods from his belt and placed them on the ground before him.

"What are you doing?" V3 asked out of curiosity.

"Sheila said its hide is similar to that of a mix of iron and steel," Renkin replied as he slapped his hands together before placing them on the pods. "But I bet it can't stand up to soul-metal as easily as it does to energy weapons. And besides, with that damage it took from Ridergirl's-"

"Riderwoman!" Riderwoman shot back.

"Whatever," quipped Renkin. "Anyway, with the damage it's already taken, a few good hits from these babies will take him out and send him to dreamland." With that, he let alchemic energy surge throughout the pods, creating a set of swords and lances decorated with ornate rune's made out of pure soul-metal. He handed three swords to Lucifer, Leviathan and Asmodeus and then handed three lances to Riderwoman, Belphagor and Beelzebub. He then constructed a set of soul-metal spiked knuckles and handed those to V3.

"Hey, what about us?" Meta asked as he pointed to Mammon and himself.

"Oh, I got your weapons right here," Renkin replied as he summoned his cross pendant and held it out. It was a small red cross made completely out of soul-metal. "Yami no Hagane!" In a flash of green reiatsu, Renkin activated his Fullbring and created his red cross sword which was crimson red with a green snake coil that wrapped around the blade, guard and hilt. "Here ya go," he said as he passed it to Meta.

"And me?" Mammon asked. Renkin responded by handing her his Kakugane. "What...but why? Don't you need this to-"

"Look, as long as it's not away from me for too long then I'll be just fine," Renkin said in a gentle voice, calming her down. "Now, to activate it, just focus your thoughts on it like you would your energy. The Kakugane will do the rest."

Iron Stag roared as he broke free from his prison. "Damn you..." he growled. "Damn you...damn you...damn you...GOD DAMN YOU!-!-!"

As Iron Stag roared at them, Mammon focused on the Kakugane in her hands. She could feel it connecting with her, modeling its innate powers to her will and specialty.

"Now, shout out 'Busou Renkin' and it'll activate," Renkin instructed. Mammon nodded and held the Kakugane out.

"Busou...Renkin!" In a flash, the Kakugane broke apart and reconfigured itself, forming metal braces that fastened onto her thighs. The other remaining metals then reformed into sharp and lethal looking scythes that were attached to metal arms that connected to the metal frames on Mammon's legs. Within seconds, the transmutation ended, granting the Stake of Greed a new weapon. She looked at it as did her sisters who smiled and nodded approvingly. "Valkyrie Skirt."

"What?" Lucifer asked.

"That's what just entered my mind. This weapon...it's called Valkyrie Skirt."

"OK, now I'm really jealous," grumbled Leviathan.

Iron Stag received a V3 punch, breaking one of its mandibles off. The Hyde retaliated by striking with his spiked blades but V3 held them off by catching his wrists. Satoshi was able to hold the arms at bay using V3's Special Hardened Muscles. Meta then attacked, executing a kidney punch which smashed into Iron Stag's side. With his super strength, Iron Stag went flying and tumbling along the floor. Meta bent his knees and fired his missiles which exploded against Iron Stag's body.

"OK, seriously, how tough is this guy?" Meta asked as he fired his machine gun fingers at Iron Stag. The bullets should do some damage but they weren't having any effect.

Iron Stag's eyes and body were glowing bright blue.

Sheila's voice rang through Riderwoman, Meta and V3's helmet, "_WARNING! WARNING! AN INCREASE IN BIOENERGY HAS JUST BEEN DETECTED! ENERGY LEVELS RISING!_"

"Satoko!" V3 shouted and she fired a net to trap Iron Stag. However, the heat radiating from his body burnt the net as it burst into flames.

"We better finish this," said Meta as he jumped along with V3.

"DOUBLE RIDER KICK!"

Their attack struck but they were repelled instead by Iron Stag. Landing on the ground, they looked to see electricity crackling all around its body as it bulged and morphed into a new form. The mandibles in its mouth were no longer there as a set of two curved and very sharp horns protrude from the top sides of its head. A third horn also protruded from the center top of its head and had three armored plates on it which crackled with blue electricity. Its shoulder turned black and bulged out into armor like shoulder pads as its wrists spikes turned into curved wrist blades. Its kneecaps extended out into three inch long spikes and it now had two silver metal orbs situated around its abdomen.

The center of its gut was now made of three joined armor plates and its finger and toes were now covered in armored claws.

Iron Stag glared at its enemies as it opened its carapace and spread out its wings while flying into the air, absorbing the surrounding heat. "Damn you all! I'm going to send every last one of you to hell!"

"Oh, that is so not good," Asmodeus groaned. The other Stakes just nodded.

As Iron Stag took in the surrounding heat from the air, the three joined armor plates on its gut opened up as his center head horn bent backwards from the middle, exposing a red lens. Renkin and Meta gaped at the sight and then jumped into the air.

"I don't think so, ya fucktard!" Renkin shouted as he used his alchemy to create his right arm blade. '_Man, I guess Yuji's vocabulary must be rubbing off on me_,' the thought as he then created an arm blade on his left arm as well while Meta wielded the Yami no Hagane.

"DOUBEL RIDER SLASH!-!-!" Meta and Renkin shouted as they brought the blades down which Iron Stag parried with its wrist blades.

"Fools! You cannot defeat me! I am the strongest creature of the bug kingdom!" Iron Stag roared as he opened his mouth and spewed flames onto their bodies.

Hitting the ground hard, Meta and Renkin laid there and looked up at Iron Stag. Placing his hand over his heart, Renkin was really contemplating on using his trump but soon noticed Lucifer and Asmodeus fly up and start taking off bits of Iron Stag's armor with their soul-metal blades. He then noticed the other Stakes and the pseudo-Riders joining them and Renkin smiled under his helmet.

"I think we're being outdone by a bunch of girls...minus Satoshi of course," Renkin joked as he got back up.

"Heh, yeah, we are. And I doubt Shinichi would ever let us live it down if we didn't put in a few good licks as well," Meta added with a laugh.

Jumping back up into the fray, they noticed Iron Stag swat away the Stakes and prepared to fire the gathered energy that had collected within his gut. As he took aim, Mammon flew up to him, the Valkyrie Skirt's blades moving on their own as she got close. Before Iron Stag could fire, he let out a howl of pain as the blades began to pierce the organic lens in his gut, causing it to glow brightly.

"No, you bitch! Look what you've done!" Iron Stag roared and Mammon just smirked.

"Sorry, but guys like you just don't know how to please a lady," Mammon chided in a sadistic tone. The tone itself sent shivers down Renkin's spine as he heard her talk.

As Iron Stag prepared to retaliate, he found his wrist blades and head horns, all three, cut off by the five remaining Stakes while V3 used his soul-metal spiked knuckles to tear his wings to shreds. Iron Stag fell back to the ground, landing on his feet. He looked over at the heroes to growl at them, only to get knocked upside the head by Riderwoman who used her soul-metal lance like a metal baseball bat. Iron Stag was sent reeling as he staggered to the side. Regaining his balance, he prepared to strike at Riderwoman but instead he got Meta slashing him across the chest with the Yami no Hagane.

Watching the fight, Renkin knew what had to be done. Looking over to Riderwoman, he instructed, "Get that serum ready." She nodded and then he looked at Mammon. "Yo, Mammon, six-way finisher!"

"Hai!" she replied as the rest of the Stakes gathered around her, Lucifer taking point. Renkin then slapped his hands together and then placed them along the ground, sending the alchemic energy to the Stakes. The energy in turn charged their weapons with power.

"Okay girls, let's do this!" Lucifer order.

"Hai, Onee-sama!" the other Stakes chorused. At that, they rushed at Iron Stag who had received a Double Rider Slash from Meta and V3. Seeing the girls coming in for the final blow, Meta and V3 jumped to opposite sides as the girls brought their weapons together.

"Now, bow down to the might and power of the Stakes of Purgatory!" the sisters all shouted in unison as they slammed their empowered weapons into Iron Stag, adding in their own Youki for good measure.

The girls then landed behind the kaijin, a good few feet away, as it fell to the ground. Its body then exploded in a ball of fiery energy that sent a shockwave throughout the area. After a few moments, the fire plume dispersed, leaving only the naked form of the Bug Maniac lying there in a scorched crater. Riderwoman ran over and injected the serum into him, making sure he could never become that monstrosity ever again.

"Phew, now that was fun!" Belphegor cheered as she raised her weapon. The Stakes and pseudo-Riders were then surprised when the soul-metal weapons reformed into Transmutation Pods and flew back onto Renkin's belt. "Aw, I really wanted to keep that too."

"Sorry, but maybe I'll see about crafting you girls some weapons some day in the future," Renkin told them as Meta handed over the Yami no Hagane which reformed into its pendent state. Renkin placed it on his belt and noticed Mammon walking over to him. "Ya know, you didn't do too bad for a novice user of the Kakugane."

"Arigato, Houko-kun!" Mammon beamed as she willed the Valkyrie Skirt to reform into its Kakugane state. She then handed it back to Renkin who placed it on his belt.

They all noticed the police coming over and they knew it was time to get going. Grabbing Riderwoman, V3, Meta and Renkin by the hands, the Stakes teleported them away from the scene. Of course, before going home, they made sure to grab their purchases that they had left behind in the store.

* * *

The next afternoon, Rune and Battler were sitting in the monitor room, talking about their previous battle that they had had against Iron Stag. It was the first real fight either of them had been in for a while now. Of course, Rune had gotten berated, again, by Shinichi, Alan and Yuji for disobeying orders and leaving the Hive base. But the Stakes quickly came to his defense, saying that he had helped them out. Upon hearing that, they let the subject go for the rest of the day.

"Man, I thought you were a goner when Yuji saw Mammon clinging to your arm yesterday," Battler said with a slight laugh.

Rune returned the laugh as well. "Yeah, but he has a right to be overprotective. The Stakes are his little sisters and he just wants what's best for them."

Battler gave him an inquisitive look. "So, you're saying that you're not going to push further with Mammon? I mean, you being from the future and her being from this timeline, it really would be hard to make it work."

"Heh, after yesterday, I'll take any ass whoopin' the Manakyte wants to give me," Rune declared, pointing to himself with his thumb. "That girl has definitely grown on me and I like her company. In all honesty, no girl has ever made me feel so excited before. She is definitely one of a kind."

"Oh really?"

Rune and Battler turned around at the sound of the voice and noticed Yuji standing there with Misato, Mammon and Alan standing next to him; Misato holding little Yuna in her arms. And Yuji had a look of death and sadistic rage in his eyes while he folded his arms over his chest. Rune gulped a bit as Battler just snickered at Rune's latest predicament.

"Awe, Houko-kun, I'm so glad you feel that way about me!" Mammon cooed as she flew over and looped her arms around his neck, pressing her breasts up against his chest. "And I've decided!"

"Decided what?" Misato asked.

"Rune Suller, from this day forward, you are MY treasure and I am YOUR woman." Mammon proved this by claiming his lips in a passionate kiss, much to both his and Yuji's surprise. And it was a full on kiss with tongue.

Rune's body just trembled at the sensation of the kiss. He had never been kissed like this before and he was definitely enjoying it. After a moment, Mammon broke the kiss and smiled at him with a seductive grin as she played with his braided ponytail. She had a dreamy look in her eyes and both of their faces were a bit pink with blush. Before Rune could say anything he suddenly felt like an angel of death was looking at him. Turning to look at the others, he could see the look in Yuji's eyes and the fire forming in his hand as a bit of his Verz armor formed.

"Ahahaha, let me guess...run...right?" Rune asked Yuji, rubbing the back of his head.

"...yup," was all Yuji uttered and it was enough for Rune who got up and bolted for the door as quickly as possible, using his Bringers Light to move him even faster. "GET BACK HERE AND BURN YOU SISTER STEALING SONOVABBITCH!-!-!" Yuji roared as he chased after Rune.

"Mommy! No I don't wanna die!" was all anyone heard from Rune as he ran for his life.

The others just laughed. It was nice to see Yuji show how much he wanted to protect his family but it was even funnier to see him go on a rampage on a man that one of his little sisters liked. They just hoped that he didn't actually kill Rune in the process.

"Shouldn't you go keep him from killing future boy?" Misato asked Alan.

"Ah! You nearly burned off my ponytail!" they heard Rune shout.

"Sorry 'bout that! Here, let me make it up to you by completely roasting your fucking ass!" they heard Yuji shout back.

Alan just smiled lightly while sweat drops appeared next to their heads. "Yeah...no. I'd rather live."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: What starts out as a normal day of shopping turns into a fight for their lives against a new Hyde. Well, next up, what happens next?**

**TOKU WARRIOR: Okay, it seems that Mammon has now claimed Rune as her lover but not if Yuji doesn't roast him alive first. For those wondering, only half of Rune's weapons and abilities have been seen so far. And for you Yuji lovers, don't worry, Rune will definitely suffer more at Yuji's hands as time goes on. Look forward to the next chapter.**


	171. The Legacy of Cain Part 115

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 115: Adapting to the Past**

In the canyon, which had no name since nobody had bothered to try naming it, Satoko Houjou was hanging out with Daichi Takashima and Yokoshima Ryuunosuke-Magi. The two were testing out a tank after performing maintenance on it. Daichi was sitting in the cockpit much to Yokoshima's annoyance. The wielder of the Blue Beetle powers had just lost a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors which would've earned him the chance to sit in the tank and play, I mean test the controls.

"You know, I've been curious about something," the blonde spoke as she sat atop one of the tank treads.

"Oh, what about?" Daichi asked as he looked over the controls and making sure everything was in working order.

Satoko replied, "Dr. Washam's a good guy, and Dr. Magi's a good guy. So does that mean that there were other good guys who were just working for GIN-SHOCKER because they were forced to or had no idea what they were signing up for?"

Yokoshima thought about her question and came up with an answer after recalling a few people, focusing on one, "Well...let's see...ah, there was this guy called Jacque La French. He was nice if not a bit weird with his ball puns.

"Yeah, I still think the guy was retarded," remarked Daichi, standing by his opinion.

"Then there was McDougall. His accent made him hard to understand at times," continued Yokoshima.

"At times? Try all the time!"

"And he had a very dangerous addiction."

"Was it G-Shock?" Satoko asked.

"No, grenades," Yokoshima answered.

"..." Satoko blinked, wondering how someone could get addicted to grenades.

"I liked the carrier pigeons. They were such nice creatures," Daichi said, glad that Dr. Hasuma had saved the remaining ones and given them a new home in the King's Terminal's zoo.

"Maybe to you," scoffed Yokoshima. "Those damn birds kept pecking at me whenever they saw me and sometimes they even dropped their shit on me," he complained.

"Well maybe if you hadn't thought their birdbath was a fancy toilet and used it, you wouldn't have gotten pecked in the first place. Ever thought of that?" Daichi retorted.

"A guy wakes up a little groggy with the need to wizz and because he did it in the wrong place he never hears the end of it," Yokoshima grumbled.

"So..." Satoko began, wanting to change the subject. "Was it just those guys?"

"Well... there was this one guy. He wasn't really evil, but he was more of a...complete douchebag," Daichi answered.

"Oh yeah, I nearly forgotten about Vic," Yokoshima added.

"Vic? Who's Vic?" Satoko asked. She'd never heard the NEO-NUMBERS mention a guy named Vic even once. Granted, they rarely spoke of their past. A lot of skeletons in their closets but sometimes they would talk about a few occurrences, at least the ones they were comfortable to speak about.

"Well, you see, back when we were in GIN-SHOCKER there was this really annoying guy who worked in communications. He was the one who took our calls and relayed our messages," Daichi began.

"He was extremely annoying. He had this stupid nasally voice and kept on calling everyone 'dude'," Yokoshima added.

"You're joking, right?" Satoko questioned. Why would GIN-SHOCKER have hired someone like that to be their communications officer? Wasn't there anyone more qualified and less annoying?

"Nope, and I remember it like it was yesterday. One time while we were out on the field, we would get on the radio like this," Daichi said as he turned on the tank's radio and tuned in to a dead GS frequency, the one which was directed to Vic as an example. "And then we would say, 'come in command! Come in command! This is #08 of the NUMBERS! Do you read me?' And then Vic would say-"

"_Hello, hello. Come in, hello_," a rather nasally sounding voice answered from the radio.

"Wow, that's a pretty good impression," said an impressed Yokoshima in amazement. "Can you do Arnold Schwarzenegger too?"

"That wasn't me," Daichi replied. He responded to the radio, cautiously, "Uh...hello? Who is this?"

"_Hello, come in #08. Can you hear me? Hello, try the veal. Hello."_

"What? Vic, is that you?" Daichi asked in shock.

"_Oh yeah, dude. It's me! What's goin' on, dude! What's up?"_

Yokoshima and Satoko watched as Daichi grimaced like he'd just drank some bad milk and facepalmed himself. Composing himself, he responded, "Oh, hey Vic. Didn't expect to talk to you again, in like...ever."

"_Hey, #08! How're you doing, dude? Long time no hear from here. Hey, I heard you died but it sounds like you're not six feet under. Did you turn traitor or defect or something? Wait, they mean the same thing, right?"_

Daichi finally remembered how annoying Vic was with this living reminder. He spoke, "Look, never mind that. The bigger question is-"

Yokoshima interrupted, "How the hell are you still around after GIN-SHOCKER fell? As far as we know all surviving members were captured and locked up. Your Cyborg Mutant form was a sloth and a really weak one too!"

"_Oh, that's easy dude. I was on vacation. Good thing too because I heard that the boss got KO'ed. Didn't wanna be around for that clusterfuck. Also, how I'm not caught, well it was easy because I was the one in charge of keeping the records. I just deleted mine and was home free!"_

"And yet you still answered to your old frequency," Daichi deadpanned, wondering how stupid Vic could be.

"_Need to make sure my peeps were out there! So, why did you call? Where are you dudes anyway_? _Mind if I come over?"_

"NO!" Daichi and Yokoshima answered, loudly, at the same time.

"_What was that?"_

"Sorry, Vic, but you're breaking up," said Yokoshima before he started making static noises to imply the connection was breaking up.

"_Dude, I know what fake radio static sounds like. I perfected the art. That's just insulting to me and my kids."_

"Wait, you have kids?" Daichi questioned, surprised at that revelation.

_"Nah, dude! I don't got kids. Old Vic's been through the snip and stitch."_

"What?"

_"If you know what I mean."_

"I don't wanna hear about that."

_"Winky-Blinky, the one eyed Sargeant's firing blanks."_

"This is weird."

_"If you get me."_

"Look-"

_"Via Con Dios of the Vas Deferens."_

"Yeah alright, enough, we get you," Daichi tried to make him stop.

_"I mean a vasectomy, dude," _Vic finished as if not hearing Daichi's statement._ "Well it's been nice talking to you dudes about stuff, but i gotta go. Hasta."_

The radio went dead. Everyone was silent for a moment before Daichi said, "Let us all agree to never speak of this again."

"Agreed," Yokoshima nodded.

"Wow, GIN-SHOCKER didn't have many standards, did they?" Satoko questioned.

"Pretty much," said Daichi as he finished up the checkup on the tank. He smiled at her, "Hey, Satoko. Wanna fire the cannon?"

* * *

"_Look! All I'm saying that these so-called heroes are just masked vigilantes who think they are above the law! They don't care about what happens to the innocent bystanders who get hurt in their fight! They just want to show off and-"_

"Sheila, please switch to something else," ordered Shinichi.

"_Affirmative_." Sheila switched to another radio channel which was playing Rock n' Roll.

"_Seriously, that guy is just long-winded_," said AI-Shin.

"Tell me about it. Each time he opens his mouth it's always about something against us," Shinichi replied in agreement.

"_So, did you see the footage?_" asked AI-Shin.

"I did, and Rune handled himself well with the others," said Shinichi. He added, chuckling, "And it was pretty funny when Yuji chased him all over the base the other day."

"_So, do you think he should join the team?_" AI-Shin questioned.

"I could ask him, but he's still trying to figure out a way to go back to his time," said Shinichi. "Where's that Doctor guy when you need him?"

"_Did you ever reach Aquarius?_" AI-Shin asked as he hovered in front of Shinichi's face.

"Nope. Alan and I had both had Amaterasu and Tsuki-chan try to get ahold of her but she's supposedly stuck bearing witness to some wacky events in time for some planet in the Andromeda Galaxy," Shinichi replied. "Though, when I had Tsuki-chan mention Rune's name she said Aquarius shouted over the other end of that glowing orb thing that she was using to talk."

"_Why did she shout?_" AI-Shin asked.

"Not entirely sure but Tsuki-chan said Aquarius sounded like a fan-girl about hearing that Kamen Rider Renkin was in her original timeline," stated Shinichi as he leaned back in the chair.

"_Guess the guy has a female fan-club just like you, Alan and Yuji._"

* * *

Stands were being set up for the summer festival in Shishibone City. Yes, it was almost that time again. Just another festival where people would dress up, head out, and enjoy themselves at a festival where cheap food and games were provided around a festive atmosphere.

"This weekend, huh?" Alan pondered as he watched the preparations.

"You should take everyone out for this," said Bazel.

"That was a no-brainer, Bazel," Alan responded. "But yeah, it's a good idea."

"Let's just hope-"

"_Don't_ jinx it," Alan warned. He just wanted one night where nothing happened. What happened at the department store had gotten all over the news. These Hyde things were getting more violent, more powerful, with normal people turning into monsters when they get addicted to the glowing blue pills.

Alan was trying to figure out who was distributing the new version of G-Shock. While the original worked like performance enhancers, this new formula mutated people. A serum would prevent them from ever turning again and eliminate the addiction, but that was a slow process. Like treating a symptom instead of the disease itself.

* * *

"So, how does one learn alchemy in your day and age?" Mammon asked. They weren't in the Hive. Mammon had taken Rune to the Kuwadorian, Beatrice's mansion in the Meta-World, where he discovered a parallel version of Battler known as the Endless Sorcerer also lived. He was rarely seen since he had duties.

"Well, there's all sorts of ways," Rune replied. He was sitting on a cushion with Mammon sitting next to him.

He was glad that Beatrice was much more accepting of him than Yuji was. The Manakyte had actually burnt a good portion of his long ponytail off so now, instead of reaching the middle of his back, it only stopped above his shoulder blades. Now he was contemplating on cutting all together and going for a new hairstyle. Of course, Beatrice had not been so accepting at first and had put him through a few of her games for over five hours and he nearly died each and every time until Mammon had finally gotten Beatrice to play nice. Of course, Beatrice did compliment him on being a skilled practitioner of the old and supposedly forgotten science known as alchemy.

"Well tell me then," she begged with a cute and pouty face while placing her index finger on his chin and making him focus his attention on her and her alone.

"Well, first and foremost is actually picking up a book and studying the subject," Rune explained. "After that, you need to learn and understand all the basic components of anything and everything you would ever transmutate. Of course, every alchemist has their own specialty when alchemy is concerned."

"I think I'm getting a migraine from just learning that much," Mammon complained as she massaged her temples. She then took a cookie off of a tray that was in front of them and popped it into her mouth. Rune just laughed.

"Guess studying long and hard isn't your forte, huh?" He then noticed the kinky look in her eye and the saucy grin she was giving him.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that. There is one certain '_long and hard_' thing I wouldn't mind studying," she said in a husky tone as she traced her finger down his chest. Before she could move her hand any lower though, Rune grabbed her hand and pulled it away.

"Whoa, slow down, babe," said Rune in a gentle tone. "Get your mind out of the gutter for now. Besides, we still have time to deepen our relationship before _that_ happens. And besides," he then put his hand on what remained of his ponytail. "I'd rather keep what hair I have left instead of letting Yuji turn me into a cueball Rider."

"Onii-sama no baka," she cursed quietly. "I still can't believe he would go so far."

"Meh, s'ok. He has his right to be overprotective of you and the girls. I'm just glad he was actually taking it easy on me though that could be because we were in the base and not outside."

"True," Mammon agreed. "And if you think Onii-sama is bad when a guy flirts with one of his little sisters, then you need to see some of the files on the other Manakytes that make up Team 5D's. Like Onii-sama's brother and sister, Yuri Fudo and Yuki Fudo." Rune thought about that. He would really have to do some homework when he got back. For all he knew about the Rider's of the past, he never did bother reading up on Yuri and Yuki. As they say, no time like the present. "So, besides the years of studying, how else does one learn and perform alchemy?"

"Well, the only other way to actually learn the greatest knowledge of alchemy is to open the Gate of Truth. But that is a big no-no. It's one of the three great taboos in alchemy."

"Why's that?" Mammon asked out of curiosity.

"Because, it comes with a high price," Rune replied with a very sad look on his face. "And I should know, I'm an idiot alchemist who defied the set rules and opened the gate."

"Houko-kun...why?"

"Why else? Knowledge. But it cost me a price so great that I would give anything to give the knowledge back if it'd give me back what I lost." Seeing the hurt in his eyes and the sullen look on his face, Mammon didn't push that part of the subject any further.

After a few quiet moments, she finally put on a smile and took his bio soul-metal hand in hers. "Ne, Houko-kun? Can you teach me alchemy?"

Rune looked at her in slight confusion. "You...wanna learn alchemy?"

"Of course. With you as my teacher I'm sure I can pick up the basics in no time flat," Mammon replied, reassuring him with a wink. Rune smiled at the compliment.

"Well, I don't know what your sisters and big brother would think but...ah, what the hell. Get some paper and black charcoal chalk and we can start your first lesson right here, right now."

* * *

"I want a baby," said Asmodeus as she and Yokoshima were having a meal in the Hive's cafeteria, causing the Pillbug Rider to choke on his food. He beat his chest and grabbed a glass of water to loosen whatever was stuck in his throat so it could slide down easier down his throat.

"Wha-wha-WHAT!-?" Yokoshima shouted.

"I want a baby," said Asmodeus as she patted her stomach. "I wanna have your baby."

"Wow...that came out of nowhere," Yokoshima remarked. "But why?"

"Well, babies are cute, and well Satan's going to have one and I thought maybe it's time we had a kid. We are married, Yoko-kun," she reasoned.

"Yeah, we are," smiled Yokoshima. He was the first of the NUMBERS to get hitched and married life had been treating him well. He made money making fireworks, the same fireworks about to be used in the summer festival that was coming up. He thought about Asmodeus' proposal to have a kid. There was some appeal to it.

* * *

"There we go, nice and easy," said Shinichi as he walked Satan into the apartment. "Let me help you take off your shoes."

"Shinichi..." Satan sighed, "Stop treating me like a porcelain doll."

"Can't help it," he told her. "You're carrying my baby and I don't want anything to happen to either of you." He kissed her cheek, making her blush. She had gotten used to his gestures of affection and gladly returned them. She had changed.

"Rena-chan, tadaima!" called Shinichi as he and Satan entered and then all of a sudden...

"SURPRISE!"

Confetti fell from the ceiling and a banner was unrolled. Everyone was also present in the apartment, everyone important that is.

"Wha-wha-what is this?" Satan stammered.

"Your baby shower," Shinichi smiled. "This party is all for you, babe."

* * *

Back at the Hive, Dr. Magi was looking over some X-rays of the cyborgs, evaluating their weekly physicals so as to make sure that they were in tip-top shape. He then came upon the X-rays he had of Rune. He really wanted a chance to study the mechanics of his right arm but it was his heart that had the scientist stumped. They were unable to get a clear picture of it with their most advanced x-ray equipment and those machines were supplied by ARMOR.

"It is an intriguing conundrum," Dr. Magi said to himself as he rubbed his chin while looking at the image. "If there were only some way to find out why the equipment can't scan his heart."

As the good doctor continued his work, the door to the lab opened up, allowing Rune to enter. He had figured that, while he was stuck in the past, he might as well as make sure he was medically sound for duty. Seeing Dr. Magi looking over the X-rays of his heart, Rune walked over to him and looked at the X-rays himself.

"What are ya lookin' at?" Rune asked, causing Dr. Magi to nearly jump out of his skin.

"Wah!" Turning around, he saw Rune giving him an apologetic look. "Oh, Suller-san, I didn't hear you come in."

"Sorry 'bout that," Rune apologized.

"It's okay. But why are you here? Weren't you supposed to spend the day with Mammon in the Meta-World?"

"I did, but it was almost time for Satan's baby shower so I had Mammon bring me back here so that she could go and get ready," he explained and then he looked at the X-ray. "So, about that X-ray..."

"Oh, this? This is the X-ray we took of you almost a week ago after you collapsed in the hallway," Magi explained. "Besides the scan of your right arm, which I must admit I want to study greatly, the scan of your heart is really puzzling."

"How so?"

"Well, just take a look," Magi said and Rune saw the blurred out image. It was like if there had been static interference with the x-ray machine during the scan of Rune's heart. "Strange, isn't it?"

"No, not really. Not for me anyway." He noticed the intrigued look that Magi was giving him. "Oh well, since it doesn't seem I'll be going home anytime soon, might as well keep you up to date on my medical history."

"I was going to suggest the exact same thing," Magi said as he led Rune over to an examination table. "We don't want another collapse incident to happen when you're in mid-battle now." Magi then sat in front of a computer that was next to the table and opened up the small file he had created for Rune. "Okay, ready when you are."

* * *

Shinichi was holding a clipboard and checking things off a list. "OK, let's see...we got baby clothes, diapers to last us a whole year, a year supply of baby formula, baby toys..."

"What are you doing?" Satan asked.

"Cataloging your baby shower gifts," Shinichi answered. "Sure, we got all this stuff for free but we still gotta organize it. It was a nice thing for the girls to do."

Satan stared at the pile of gifts. The baby shower had been quite an interesting experience for her. Too bad she would only have one once. She didn't feel like having another child and just one would be a lot of hassle. However, rubbing her belly, Satan wouldn't trade the child for anything. She just wished pregnancy didn't make her look like a beached whale.

Rena, watching, was deep down envious at the bond Satan and Shinichi had formed. She wanted a cute little baby too but she'd need to wait for the right time. Besides, she trusted Shinichi to propose to her first before going to that next stage for their relationship.

* * *

There wasn't much that Dr. Carl Washam could admit that he loved with all his heart. As a member of GIN-SHOCKER, he enjoyed the freedom in which he committed his crimes. As a former serial killer, he felt disgusted at the cruelty of humanity. They did horrible things to each other but claimed others were monsters while they themselves were monsters. However, after what had happened to Misato he realized that even if GIN-SHOCKER had supported his hobby and research, they cared little for his feelings. The day he'd adopted Misato had been the happiest moment in his life and to have her taken away had been devastating.

When he'd learnt that Misato had been revived, he was overjoyed. Not only that, but his Little Draculina had found someone to love. A lot had changed about her as well. For instance, she was no longer a cyborg and was now a mother.

Carl Washam simply adored his granddaughter. Yuna was just a sweet and beautiful little girl. However, her future was undetermined. In this world, mistrust and paranoia targeted towards superhumans had started to grow. Then again, normal humans regularly feared what was different and what they did not understand. That was just sad. It was the minority that could open their hearts and minds and not the majority. If only people could understand better more. That way, there would be no need for war.

Right now, Dr. Washam was studying the data on all the registered members of their team. The team, which originally started with the NEO-NUMBERS, had grown steadily and resulted in the creation of several sub-groups, like Team 5D's and the Hinamizawa Gaming Club, the latter being more or less reserved members who were being trained. Shinichi was in charge of their training. Alan and his harem too, despite not having a name for their team, were also on record. The data included personal information as well as their personal growths.

Shinichi and Yokoshima had both become stronger, especially Shinichi. What Dr. Washam could tell from both sets of data was that their growth and evolution was influenced by outside forces. Shinichi gained alternate forms, and a 'super mode' through channeling the power of the Three Legendary Treasures of Hinamizawa. Yokoshima gained the blue scarab, a form of alien artificial intelligence that not only granted him new powers and armor, but new potential. Dr. Washam also looked at Shogo's data and found that with Lucifer's power could access an Emerald Pride Form which relied on their partnership.

The ones who hadn't evolved or gained a new form in a while were Michiru, Hana, Daichi and Chiaki. But the scientist had a feeling that they'd get new powers pretty soon in the near future. It was a gut feeling, which was not exactly something a scientist should rely upon. A scientist relied on facts and data, but Dr. Washam was also human. Those kids had gone through a lot, and fought enemies which seemed to come out of nowhere, being more powerful than the previous batch. However, in the end, the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies fought and reigned victorious. Nonetheless, they still needed to prepare for anything. Speaking of preparing for anything, Dr. Washam brought up the data gained from Satan's last examination. Her baby was healthy and despite being a human-demon hybrid didn't seem to cause any complications to the mother. The predicted date of birth was coming soon, in a few more weeks time, give or take a few days.

* * *

"Well, this is Hinamizawa," said Shinichi as he brought Rune to his home. "The village where I made a new life for myself."

"It's very nice," said Rune as he looked around. Shinichi greeted the villagers as they walked by him and they greeted him back.

"Well, didn't want you to be cooped up in the base all the time," said Shinichi. "Plus my mother's been begging to meet you."

"Your mother is Shiori Banabara, right?" Rune asked. "Her books are really famous where I'm from."

"Really?" Shinichi grinned.

"Of course, a hundred years from now there was a ban and purge of pornographic material but it lasted for only half a century. Some of the items on the list were your mother's books and movies based on her books, as well as a few graphic novels," said Rune.

"She'd be really happy to hear that," Shinichi smiled.

"Yes, she would," Rune said. Though there would be some 'spoilers' that shouldn't be said, some information was harmless. "Just tell me, does he have to follow us?"

Hovering behind them, and cloaked, was AI-Shin. If one were to look carefully, they would be able to see his transparent outline. It took a keen eye to make out the details. "_She's my mother too_."

"She is?" Rune cocked an eyebrow.

"Shin there is basically an AI based on my memories. So, he's pretty much like my twin brother,"  
Shinichi explained.

"Except he's a _ball_," Rune finished.

"There is that, but he doesn't really mind it," said Shinichi.

"_I can get into a lot of places in this form, and since I can cloak myself-" _started AI-Shin.

"He's a bigger pervert than me," Shinichi interrupted.

Rune laughed while the scene of Shinichi supposedly arguing with an imaginary friend got some of the villagers staring at him. Seeing the small village and how close knit the villagers were, it reminded him of his birthplace back in his time. Everyone knew everyone and, even if he had to move around a lot, he always ended back up in that village. The villagers of his hometown always protected him and his mother. In fact, it was the village chief who suggested that his mother take him and run whenever a government body began to make its presence known in the other local villages.

The only reason the many governments came looking for him was because of his Eon Gene. They wanted to lock him up, cut him open and study him. They wanted to see how he could have been conceived when he had no natural father. He was a complete mystery to the world and there was a lot of times he preferred it to stay that way.

Shinichi and AI-Shin, noticing Rune staring off into the distance but not looking at anything in particular, quickly brought the alchemist back to reality.

"Hey, Rune, I've been wondering something," Shinichi said as they walked passed the water mill.

"Oh really? What is it?" asked Rune with some slight curiosity.

"Well, from what I've noticed, Yuji, Mammon, Rena-chan and Dr. Magi seem to know almost everything there is to know about you. Heck, from what Tsuki-chan told me, so does Aquarius,"

"Who's Aquarius?" Rune asked.

"_She's some ex-demon priestess who now works as this being known as a 'Witness of Time'_," AI-Shin answered.

"Witness of Time? Now where have I heard that name before?" Rune asked himself quietly as he tapped his chin.

Shinichi, not wanting to let the subject get changed again, restarted his previous question. "Anyways, what I was going to ask was if you were going to fill the rest of us in on your little backstory?"

"Maybe...when you're old enough, junior," Rune replied in a joking tone. AI-Shin laughed while Shinichi fumed. "I will say this though, your village here," Rune said, catching the duo's attention. "It reminds me so much of the small village where I was born."

"_Well, now we're getting somewhere_," stated AI-Shin. "_So, care to elaborate more for us?_"

"Well, I was born in a small village where it is said that the father of modern day alchemy once resided," Rune began. "The villagers were all alchemists and many of them specialized in just certain forms while others used alchemy for healing purposes."

"That's pretty cool," replied Shinichi with a smile. He had begun to like alchemy and learned from Rune earlier that he had begun teaching Mammon how to perform it. It would take time but Rune did say that she had the makings of becoming a pro in no time at all.

"Yeah, it is. I learned a lot of the craft from the villagers. It was also the place where I crafted my first Kakugane," replied Rune as he remembered some of his fondest memories. "Damn thing broke through after about a year so I made a second one."

"Speaking of Kakugane, I've seen some of the images of Mammon using yours to create that weapon she dubbed the 'Valkyrie Skirt'," said Shinichi as he thought back to the files the Hive recorded of the battle with Iron Stag. "You think you could make more for us to use? They could come in real handy in any upcoming battles."

"Uh, don't you already have enough weapons at your disposal, Mister Treasure User?" Rune asked in a sarcastic tone.

"Hey, I may have my treasures that I can use in battle but the others could use some extra weaponry," retorted Shinichi.

"Trust me, they could use some new weapons. But, unfortunately, Kakugane are not easy to create and the common use of the materials that I'd need to make them are not as widely available in this timeline," Rune told him in a small dejected tone. "If anything, I might be able to only craft one and that's if you guys were able to get the specific materials I'd need and if I was going to end up staying here for about another 2-4 months. The time it takes to make one depends on just how powerful the Kakugane is supposed to be plus its paired users power level. Not to mention which color Kakugane I would have to make."

"_There are different colors?_" AI-Shin asked.

"Yeah, there are," replied Rune. "Three to be precise. There's the standard issue Kakugane which is given a silver chrome color. The more powerful and dangerous Kakuganes are black. Black Kakuganes are a taboo in the field and are forbidden by the smaller governments of the world plus the United World Government."

"How come?" aske Shinichi.

"Because...well, let's just say that, if a Black Kakugane was misused, its power and user could destroy all of mankind."

Shinichi and AI-Shin looked at Rune with some slight shock. To believe that such small medallions which could create such amazing weaponry could be _that_ deadly to all of humanity. If anything, Shinichi was glad that there were no Black Kakugane in his timeline or else who knew what the Religion of Crime would do to get their hands on one.

"_And the third color?_" AI-Shin asked, remembering that Rune had said that there were three colors.

"Oh yeah, the last one is the White Kakugane which is the polar opposite of the Black Kakugane. It could possibly save all of mankind with its power alone."

"Really?" Shinichi asked with some admiration of the mentioned Kakugane.

"Uh-huh," replied Rune. "Alas, the secrets of the needed materials, time allotment, and the developmental procedures were all destroyed before I was even born. But I am in the process of rediscovering them from the ground up." Rune then thought of something. "Hey, hold the phone. I just remembered that if even they plans for the White Kakugane are lost in my time, they still exist in the older version of my home village in this time."

"Wait, if the documents for creating a White Kakugane might still exist in this time, then that means..." Shinichi started but was cut off by Rune.

"Oh yeah, most definitely! Tomorrow morning, I'm making a road trip to the village to see the Father of Modern alchemy!" Rune shouted as he raised his fists into the air.

Shinichi smiled while shaking his head. Apparently, Rune getting sent back in time was a blessing in disguise for the alchemic Rider was well. Not only did he finally get himself a girlfriend who would undoubtedly wait for his return when he finally got back to his home time, but he might have found a lead on the lost documents for recreating a lost alchemical weapon that he could use to finally win his own fight back home.

"_We're here,_" AI-Shin interrupted as the three of them arrived in front of the home where Shiori, Sho and Tatsuyoshi lived.

* * *

"So, what are swimsuits and lingerie back in your time like? How about sexy cosplay? How are my books enjoyed? Do I have like some kind of award honoring me?" Shiori quickly shot out questions one after another.

Rune was sitting in the same couch with Shiori, enjoying tea and snacks. While she had met time travelers and dimensional travelers, she had yet to meet a time traveler from this timeline's future. So, she wanted to know about the future, at least the parts that would not jeopardise the timeline with her knowing.

She just wanted inspiration for a book about the future and Rune seemed like a good source of ideas. If she was to make it as realistically as possible, he was the man for the job.

"Kaa-chan, you can't just go asking people questions like that!" Shinichi whined. Tatsuyoshi gave his stepson pats on the back to encourage him to endure.

"You know how your mother is," Tatsuyoshi said and Shinichi sighed. Oh, he did. On the weekends, Shiori even had Book Club meeting with the village women, which mostly involved talking about her books, sex and Shiori teaching the women how to write erotica and to make their fantasies become real.

Sho was sitting in his big brother's lap with a curious expression and oblivious smile.

* * *

"And this here is mine and Rena's special place," announced Shinichi.

"It's...a junkyard," said Rune politely. He wanted to say that it was a dump, literally, but he wouldn't want to be rude.

"Some might see that, but..." Shinichi put his hand on the minivan. "It's special to Rena and I." Whenever Shinichi or Rena got upset over something this was where they would hide, sometimes even together. It held special memories.

"Whatever you say," shrugged Rune. He then saw something interesting. "Hey, what's this?" He walked over to a pile of garbage. Something was poking out of it. It was a metal ball on a metal rod. Taking hold, he gave it a tug before pulling. The pile gave way and Rune fell on his rear. Shinichi let out a yelp as he saw what Rune was holding.

It was a DALEK's dome with broken indicator lights and hanging loosely from connecting wires were the neck rings, which were coming loose as the wires connecting them seem to have been stretched to near breaking point. "Woah!" Rune blinked. Now, while Rune had read about the DALEKs in the history books, he never saw one up close. Even if it was just the damaged head of a DALEK unit, it was still quite a find. It was damaged and dented, but with some repairs it could make a good souvenir.

"I wonder how this got here," said Rune.

"Well, we did have DALEKs attacking Hinamizawa," said Shinichi. "It must've crashed here."

"And came apart on impact only to be buried among garbage," concluded Rune. "Hey, wanna go looking for the rest of it?"

"The last thing I wanna do is to go looking for pieces of a DALEK. If I ever see another one of those things it'd be too soon," said Shinichi as he found a DALEK's plunger-tipped manipulator arm. Picking it up, he studied it. "Shiro really made some monsters. Ridiculous they may be, but even this silly old thing could kill." He tossed the manipulator arm over his shoulder but Rune caught it.

Shinichi pocketed his hands, his back facing a pile of garbage. "Well, this here is Rena's mountains of treasure, so-" He was cut off when all of a sudden a pair of metal arms shot out of a garbage pile and grabbed him in a headlock. He struggled, shouting, "WHAT THE HELL!-?"

"Shinichi!" Rune shouted, dropping the arm as the pile collapsed to reveal a Cyber-Dalek had been hiding in it. "What is that thing!"

"**You will be eliminated**," the Cyber-Dalek spoke, the transparent dome bubbling on the inside. It was trying to break Shinichi's neck.

"Oh...just...PISS OFF!" Shinichi roared as he brutally elbowed the Cyber-Dalek in the chest and sent it flying backwards into a pile of trash.

"OK, what the hell is _that_?" Rune asked as he helped Shinichi up.

"Some kind of freaky Cyberman and DALEK hybrid," Shinichi answered, massaging his throat. "God dammit."

The Cyber-Dalek got back to its feet and scanned both Shinichi and Rune. It focused its eyes on Rune, scanning him. As it scanned him, its sensors began to alert it to an unknown energy source which caused it to scan his life energy. What it got was not a type of energy flow that belonged to a normal human. Cyborgs and even half breed beings with human genetics as half of their make-up gave off some hints of standard life energy similar to humans but what it got off of Rune was anything but normal by human standards.

"**Target, Shinichi Banabara, sighted,**" the Cyber-Dalek stated before pointing to Rune. "**Unknown target is an abnormal human. New target is releasing a strange and uncataloged energy. Identify yourself, now**."

Shinichi and Rune looked back at one another in confusion. Pointing at the Cyber-Dalek while looking at Shinichi, "Um...what did it just call me?"

"I think he just called you a freak of humanity," replied Shinichi as he tried to wrap his head around what the Cyber-Dalek was talking about. '_Abnormal human? He has Fullbring abilities, this I know. And he can perform alchemy. Then there's that Eon Gene of his as well. But what's there about him that would make him abnormal?_'

Rune, looking at the Cyber-Dalek, just grinned as he cracked his back and rotated his arms. He flashed the Cyber-Dalek a death glare while grabbing his Kakugane from the side of his belt.

"Okay then, tin-man. Ya wanna call me names? Well then...prepare for the consequences!" Rune shouted as he held his Kakugane out in front of him. "Busou Renkin!"

(**Insert BGM - My Mind, Clear and Serene - G Gundam OST**)

In a flash of golden light, the kakugane separated and began to grow and transform into something entirely different. In his hand he now grasped onto a long silver handle that, at the pommel end, had a sharp tip that looked ornate in design. On the other end of the handle was a three-foot long arrowhead-like lance. The lance had a red long, stretched out, hexagonal base with two blue gems located at the two ends. On top of the base was an orange base that gave the midsection a type of biting teeth pattern. Holding his newly summoned weapon in his hand, he twirled it around a couple of times before getting into a stance, holding the lance in his right hand while stretching out his left arm forward, resting the blade on his left hand.

"Say hello to my Busou Renkin, the Sunlight Heart!" Rune shouted. Shinichi looked at the weapon and smiled before summoning the Higurashi no Yaiba.

The cyborg and alchemist double teamed the Cyber-Dalek as it tried to fend them off using its death ray blasts but the two heroes jumped from side to side as they used a combination of Shunpo and Bringers Light to avoid the shots.

"**Alert! Alert! Targets are moving at speeds that this unit cannot reach**," the Cyber-Dalek stated out loud as Shinichi used the Higurashi no Yaiba and slashed upwards, taking off its arms, while Rune used the Sunlight Heart in a lower horizontal slash to take out its legs. "**Warning! Warning! This unit will not survive such battle conditions. I repeat, this unit-**"

"Oh will you just shut up already?-!" Shinichi shouted as he slashed it across the chest, ripping off sparks as well as some of its armor.

Rune followed up by using his Sunlight Heart to help him polevault up and over to the Cyber-Dalek, kicking it dead-smack in the face and knocking it down to the ground. He then tossed the Sunlight Heart up into the air, "Shinichi, catch!"

Getting the hint, Shinichi jumped up and caught Rune's weapon before coming down on top of the Cyber-Dalek, the sharp point of the lance piercing right through its dome head. "And now to make sure it can't come back for round two," stated Shinichi as he stepped off of the now downed body of the Cyber-Dalek.

"Leave it to me," replied Rune as he slapped his hands together before placing them against the Cyber-Daleks body. "Time to rewire this tin-can and make it go boom!"

And Rune did just that as he used his alchemy to rewire the Cyber-Dalek. Its body began to short circuit, electrocuting the mutated brain inside as Shinichi grabbed it and hurled it up into the air where it quickly exploded.

(**End BGM**)

As Shinichi turned to thank Rune, he saw the alchemist using his alchemy to reshape the leftover parts of the Cyber-Dalek, the DALEK and the Cyberman into a piece of junkyard art.

"Hey, check it out," Rune said with a grin. "Old time retro!" The newly fused pieces actually resembled a metal sculpture of a Cyberman giving everyone the 'Peace' sign.

Looking at it, Shinichi just face-palmed himself. "Dude, that is just so wrong on so many levels."

"Hey, DALEKs and Cybermen are illegal to make in the future so this is as close as I've ever gotten to actually seeing one, so sue me," retorted Rune.

"I would, but I'd doubt I'd get anything from you except excuses," Shinichi shot back. The two of them looked at one another and then began to laugh.

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"So," Shinichi asked as he handed Rune back the Sunlight Heart which reverted back to its Kakugane form. "Why are they illegal to build in your time anyway?"

"Well, besides the attempted mass genocide that they were a part of in this timeline, they get banned about a hundred years before I was born because of some idiot terrorist," said Rune as he took a seat on a tire. "Moron thought he could control them but they got infected with a computer virus that freed them from his control so they turned him into their single Cyberman slave. Since then, the manufacture of DALEKs and Cybermen has been illegal on Earth and anyone caught making them can receive up to either ten life sentences in prison or get sent to the gallows."

"Wow, that bad, huh?" asked Shinichi as they got up and began to leave the junkyard.

"Yeah. So now we can only learn about them in the history books or when one of the ones Alan let escape decides to try its luck in conquering the Earth. And that never goes well for the DALEK."

"I'll bet," replied Shinichi as he looked at his watch. "Hey, Kaa-chan said she was going to make a home cooked meal tonight. You wanna join us? It'd probably be better than having to get all your meals from the Hive."

"Oh, God yes! I was getting tired of that stuff," Rune said thankfully. He didn't mind the Hive's food but it was starting to get old and a good old fashioned home cooked meal was something he hadn't had in a long time. Not since his own mother had died.

* * *

Located in an unknown facility, the sight of people wearing white lab coats was a common sight as they all went over their research and duties. A small group of them seemed to be huddled in front of a glowing tank-like tube, each one taking notes as they monitored the reactions of the specimen held within and discussing their theories.

'_Those voices...they've been going on, nonstop_,' the specimen thought. Upon closer look, the specimen was actually none other than Dredge.

Dredge, one of the great seven Homunculoid Generals from his time, was being observed and studied like a common lab rat. While Rune had been taken in by the good guys, Dredge ended up a prisoner of the organization known as the Religion of Crime. They knew he was from the future and wanted to know about what made him tick and how his abilities worked, and if they could be duplicated.

Dredge's accommodations were not up to the standards he felt he deserved. He was being kept suspended in a tank of fluid with wires attached to his body. The scientists observing him were recording the readings and analyzing them, keeping him unconscious the whole time. Or, at least they thought that he was unconscious.

'_These pathetic cattle. They think that this is going to hold me_,' Dredge thought to himself as ideas began to flow through his mind. The small alarms on the side of the tank went, alerting the scientists to another new reaction. '_These voices...they annoy me. They don't understand me. No one understands me! That is...except him._'

On of the scientists looked up and pointed out the fact that their 'specimens' hands were clenching while 'it' was smiling at the same time. This startled them. It meant that their 'lab rat' was awake and aware of what was being done to him. And this would not bode well for them at all.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open, irises glowing crimson red as he snarled, _"Eon..."_

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, this is just a chapter for some downtime and RnR. But at the end we see things are about to get serious. But, what if all this was in the RoC's plans to begin with? Well, who knows? Anyway, hopefully you guys will enjoy this chapter as well.**

**TOKU WARRIOR: Well, this was a nice little break for the heroes. Satan gets a baby shower, Mammon has Rune become her alchemy teacher, Shinichi takes Rune to visit his family and a small little fight near the end. And now we know what been going on with Dredge. What is he planning and what does it have to do with Rune? Like Chrome says, stay tuned and find out as this arc begins to wind down to a close with the final few chapters coming up.**


	172. The Legacy of Cain Part 116

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 116: The Final Test of Ascalon**

While eating dinner with Tsukuyomi, Amaterasu smiled as she looked at the portrait hanging on the wall. Her first date with Alan hadn't ended after he'd defeated Apollo. It had continued when the mysterious Doctor arrived in his blue box. At first she'd been stunned by the grandeur of the box's interior which was bigger on the inside. Then, to learn that the box was a time machine known as a TARDIS (Time and Relative Dimensions in Space) convinced her to go on a trip with Alan and the Doctor who had taken her and Alan to so many different places in the universe.

The Doctor had taken them to meet Leonardo Da Vinci and the Sun Goddess had this portrait painted by the artist himself. Then their next stop had been London in 1814 during the last of the Frost Fairs. Alan had taken her ice skating that day. Then the Doctor had taken them to watch an Elvis Concert when the King of Rock & Roll had been young.

While Amaterasu had lived for a long time, she had not had the freedom to see and experience many things. However, Alan and the Doctor had given her the opportunity to travel through time and space.

And it wasn't just stops in the past. The Doctor had even taken them to the future. They had travelled as far to the year 4025 AD to have the best burgers and fries in the universe. In that future, she saw not only humans and aliens but also youkai and gods mingle freely with each other. It seemed a lot would change in the future.

And their travels were not just limited to Earth. Amaterasu had been taken to other planets which were home to many different extraterrestrial species with different cultures. These alien beings could've been mistaken for youkai in the old days but the Sun Goddess knew better. She learnt how some of the species they had encountered also existed in Alan's home universe.

The language barrier had not become a problem as the TARDIS translated language for the passengers. Amaterasu had conversed with aliens who'd been quite friendly. They even stopped at an alien restaurant which served unusual yet delicious food served there for dinner, recommended by the Doctor himself.

But they had to return eventually and by the time they returned, she discovered that only a couple of hours had passed since they left despite their trip with the Doctor being much longer. She had spent almost two weeks travelling with Alan and the Doctor but only a couple of hours had passed since they left.

The TARDIS was such an amazing machine. She couldn't wait for another trip on the TARDIS with Alan and the Doctor. Next time, she was going to take her sister and Shinichi along to enjoy all the wonderful things the universe had to offer, both in the past and future.

"What are you smiling about?" asked Tsukuyomi.

"Oh, just thinking about you and Shinichi enjoying a little trip through time and space," answered Amaterasu.

Tsukuyomi blinked, "What? Excuse me?"

"Nothing," Amaterasu quickly added with a smile. _'But you and your boyfriend will see what I mean later, dear sister.'_

* * *

While in the Hive's cafeteria, Yokoshima sat down across from Shinichi and found him poking at his food, sighing with his head rested against his knuckles.

"What's your deal?" Yokoshima questioned.

Shinichi sighed before answering, "I think...I think I might have a problem, ego-wise I mean."

"Whaddya mean?"

"I just get the feeling that people think I'm so full of myself. And they're right. I just forget my limitations at times," Shinichi confessed.

Yokoshima nodded before replying, "Well, to be fair, you are one of the strongest guys here so it's only natural for you to believe that the stronger you are the more things you can do. You just forget about some of the details along the way."

Shinichi was surprised, "Wow...that's a really wise thing for you to say.

"Yeah, I have my moments," shrugged Yokoshima, praising himself for his moment of insight. Shinichi checked his watch before quickly finishing his meal. "You going somewhere?"

"Just got a session in the Danger Room with Eon," said Shinichi before he picked up his tray and left.

* * *

"Hey, Eon," said Showa as he and Renkin stood in the middle of the Danger Room, aka Holographic Training Chamber. "Do you know what I like about DALEKs?"

"What's that?" Renkin asked as their environment changed into a virtual one. They were in the middle of a desert and DALEKs were coming towards them.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!" **the DALEKs cried as they came closer.

Showa turned his arms into blasters and said, with a grin, "They're good for target practice!" He rushed at the DALEKs and began to blow them up, one by one. The program for the scenario would replace the fallen ones, giving Showa an infinite amount of enemies. As for their gunsticks, the lasers fired were not lethal deathrays, but they still stung and capable of stunning Showa.

**BLAM! BOOM!**

"Headshot, bitches!"

Showa summoned his Oni Form, Kage Form and Higurashi Form suits which then fused to form into the Guardian Jet. Jumping aboard, he zoomed towards the enemy. The Guardian Jet fired its ammo, decimating the enemy forces as Renkin used alchemy to fight them. He observed as Showa laid waste to the DALEKs and while this was just a simulation, it was very brutal.

"You really like to go nuts on these guys," Renkin commented as he managed to kick an approaching DALEK away while dodging laser fire.

"This is combat! You should be prepared to go all out!" Showa argued as he continued destroying the DALEKS with his Guardian Jet. The explosions decorated the whole area around them as the two Riders destroyed the DALEKs in a massive show of skill and firepower. To Showa, it was truly satisfying to see DALEK bits go flying, littering the ground around them.

* * *

"You know, watching you fight, I see you get a sense of satisfaction from killing those simulation DALEKs," said Rune as he and Shinichi exited the Danger Room together.

"They killed a lot of people, Eon," Shinichi said solemnly, recalling what the DALEKs had done in the past. "And even if they're gone now, I do enjoy being able to blow them up in a combat simulation."

"They do deserve to be destroyed," Rune agreed.

"It's not just that. I have to be ready for when they come back," Shinichi told him.

"You mean _if_ they come back, right?"

"If they're anything like their creator, they're relentless. They're out there, somewhere, biding their time, waiting for the perfect chance to strike. They were made that way," Shinichi said, gazing up at the ceiling in deep thought. Alan had told him of how the DALEKs had escaped Earth. They were probably colonizing an alien world and using it as a base to build an army before an eventual invasion in the future. He didn't know when, but it was only a matter of time before the DALEKs returned and invaded the Earth.

Until then, Shinichi would be ready for them. He wasn't going to let some talking trash cans mess up his planet.

* * *

Princess Shawna Fyona Francesca De Genovia had invited Shinichi Banabara and Rena Ryuugu to look at the former mansion of the late Duke Dogma. Since the duke had attempted treason and killed as a result, the mansion was made a reward for Shinichi. The only thing that needed to be done was to remove everything of Duke Dogma's and sell them with the money donated to charity. Also, some renovations may be needed, including some redecorating.

"So, everything that Dogma owned in there is gone, right?" Shinichi asked as he, Shawna and Rena stood in front of the empty mansion.

"Every last one. We sold all of his assets and gave the money away to charity," Shawna said.

"At least something good can come out of those things," Shinichi nodded. He really didn't want any of Dogma's personal effects inside the mansion. Something to do with auras and Feng Shui. "I think we're going to need to get a priest to bless the house."

"We could ask Rika-chan and Hanyuu-chan to bless the place too," Rena added.

"Is that really necessary?" Shawna asked.

"Considering my tendency to attract spirits, I don't want Dogma-teme's spirit to come back and haunt me," Shinichi said. The last thing he wanted was for the traitorous bastard's spirit to be harassing him and his girlfriends, especially Shawna. "So, is there anything else?"

"Well...there was an underground dungeon," Shawna grimaced. "My father received the report about it and was disgusted that Dogma would have one."

"I wonder what sick and depraved things he did down there," added Shinichi. "I guess we should do some renovations down there to make it a command centre. I'm going to need equipment to link this place with the Hive."

"Command centre?" Shawna repeated.

"We got a command centre under Dr. Irie's clinic in Hinamizawa," answered Rena.

"Hm, a command centre would be a splendid addition," smiled Shawna.

"So, not much renovating then," said Shinichi. "Is there anything else?"

"Well, since you will be moving in as the new lord of Dogma's estate, you will be required to host a party," said Shawna.

"Is that standard protocol?" Shinichi questioned. He didn't feel like mingling with snobbish nobles who turned their noses up at commoners. Before he met Shawna he'd been a commoner too, albeit an exceptional one who'd served the crown with loyalty not just as a knight but as a friend to Princess Shawna.

"Pretty much," Shawna confessed.

"Well, when in Genovia, do as the Genovians do, I guess," Shinichi shrugged.

"I suppose so," Rena smiled. She was thinking of wearing a beautiful dress Shinichi would love to see. Then when the party was over she, Shawna and Shinichi would have a long and sweaty threesome in Shinichi's new mansion. Oh the possibilities.

"Um, Ms. Rena, you are drooling," Shawna pointed out.

"Oh sorry about that," Rena apologized as she wiped her mouth with her handkerchief.

"Were you thinking something perverted, Rena-chan?" Shinichi grinned.

"May~be," Rena innocently answered.

"Well we could make it a reality back in our apartment after this visit. What do you say, Rena-chan?" Shinichi proposed.

"Could I come too?" Shawna asked.

"Sure!" Rena and Shinichi chirped. The more the merrier.

* * *

_Within Shinichi's subconscious, the Tsukumogami were having a meeting. They sat in a circle, regarding each other. The first of the Tsukumogami was Yabuki who was the spirit of the Higurashi no Yaiba who granted Shinichi the ability to use the sword with the skills of a samurai. Secondly, there was Gokuaku who was the spirit of the Oni no Hone who granted Shinichi great strength and elemental abilities. Thirdly, there was Zennin the spirit of the Kage no Hoshi who granted Shinichi the skills of a ninja to turn himself invisible, teleport and to blend in with the darkness. While he may lack the flashiness of Yabuki or the brute strength of Gokuaku, Zennin's abilities proved useful in missions requiring stealth and subterfuge. And finally, there was St. George, the spirit of the Sword of Ascalon and named after his former wielder, Sir George of Genovia._

_The four Tsukumogami had been discussing for quite some time, reviewing Shinichi's growth and development through his memories. Since the beginning of his career as a Kamen Rider, the young man had fought an assortment of foes, monsters who preyed on the innocent and villains who caused injustice. He used his abilities not to benefit himself, but for the benefit of others. He cared more for others than for himself. He had a huge enough heart to love more than one girl and he was a faithful knight of Genovia._

_Shinichi had also come to terms with his past, finding closure, and looking forward to the future, and was willing to face the challenges ahead. The Tsukumogami had been preparing Shinichi for this since St. George had arrived. All the tests and lessons had led up to this moment._

_It was time for Shinichi's final exam._

* * *

For the sake of meditation, Shinichi needed to be surrounded by nature. The palace gardens was the ideal place. He sat cross-legged and closed his eyes, his hands to his knees. He slowed his breathing and went into a relaxed state.

Shawna and Rena stood nearby, watching him carefully. "So, this is normal for him?" Shawna asked as she had never witnessed Shinichi meditate before.

"Yes, he does this regularly to enter his inner world," Rena informed Shawna having witnessed it a number of times before.

"Inner world?" Shawna questioned.

"It's a realm in his subconscious," Rena explained.

Shinichi cracked an eye open and chided, "Girls, this is actually much easier if you didn't talk while I was concentrating." The two girls blushed.

"Sorry, Shin-kun," Rena apologized.

"My apologies, Sir Shinichi," added Shawna.

"Apology accepted," Shinichi said before he resumed meditation.

* * *

_In his mindscape, Shinichi sat in the seiza position before the Hinamizawa no Tsukumogami and St. George. They were in a huge hall with tapestries on the wall and pillars in four corners. A statue of a dragon stood behind the Tsukumogami. Sitting near the walls on the left and right were the Legendary Riders, Kuro and Shinji, Shinichi's inner child sitting in his logical side's lap._

_St. George stood up and spoke, addressing Shinichi, "Shinichi Banabara, up until now you've not only satisfied my expectations, but exceeded them as well. Your strength and determination have allowed you to grow and develop in ways that not even I was able to predict. Indeed, I have chosen well when I selected you to be my wielder."_

"_The honor is all mine, St. George," Shinichi bowed his head. Impressing an ancient spirit was a huge deal. The Legendary Riders were also proud._

"_That is why today you will be taking your final test," continued St. George as Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki rose to their feet. "This test will fully determine if you are indeed ready for the road paved for you. Up until now, everything has only been training. Today, this is your final exam."_

_Drawing the Sword of Ascalon, St. George raised it with the tip pointing to the air and cut a circle of light. The light shone upon the spirit of the Sword of Ascalon before donning him in Showa's Ascalon Form armor, much to Shinichi's surprise. However, he should've expected this. Gokuaku, Zennin and Yabuki knew the same trick as well._

_Speaking of which, the three Hinamizawa no Tsukumogami became beings of light which fused together to form his other powerful form, Kamen Rider Showa Hinamizawa Guardian._

"_It's obvious what you must do," said St. George._

"_Yes," said Shinichi as he stood up and summoned his Zanpakuto, Seigi no Hogosha. The Legendary Riders, Kuro and Shinji vanished as the entire hall shattered, the pieces flying around them as rubble. What was left for them to stand on was a huge stone ring which floated above a city. The sky was dark, with the moon and stars shining and the lights of the buildings below also shone like stars._

"_Now, defend yourself!" St. George jumped and closed the gap between himself and Shinichi, swinging the Sword of Ascalon down on him, but Shinichi parried with Seigi no Hogosha. Meanwhile, H-Guardian was running along the rim of the ring with the Higurashi no Yaiba. Shinichi sensed him coming and quickly used Shunpo to vanish before he was struck. He stood on the other side of the ring, under his two opponents. The ring, as it floated spun in the air and for those unprepared they would've suffered vertigo and airsickness._

_Realizing their opponent's location, both St. George and H-Guardian moved onto the other side of the ring and clashed with Shinichi who was armed with only one weapon. However, he was able to hold them off despite his handicap. He had yet to use his other abilities in this fight._

_Sparks flew as metal clashed. Shinichi blocked St. George as he kicked H-Guardian in the stomach, driving him back. He then drove St. George back with a palm strike before spinning around to counter a swing from H-Guardian. He jumped to avoid St. George's slash and landed behind him to strike but the knight spun and parried Shinichi's blow._

_H-Guardian jumped over them and landed on Shinichi's other side. He thrust his sword at him but his attack was blocked by the Shield of Glen on his left arm. Shinichi shoved him back and banished the Shield of Glen to form the Great Sword from his left arm, the Seigi no Hogosha gripped tightly in his right hand._

_Now, sparks flew once more on the floating ring as Shinichi fought both H-Guardian and St. George with both his swords. He jumped up and landed a distance away from their position, forcing them to run after him. He was ready as he rose up one leg and spun in place, becoming a spinning top of death with his swords pointed outwards. He drove them back and stopped before he landed a blow on St. George and then another one on H-Guardian._

_Not to be deterred, the two spirits struck and Shinichi hissed as he was cut across the chest, tearing up his outfit. He ducked under another swing from H-Guardian before elbowing him in the faceplate. He then crossed both swords to block St. Ascalon. As H-Guardian rose up to strike him from behind, Shinichi raised his leg up and hit him in the stomach with a back kick, sending him reeling. He then pushed St. George away and performed a double slash attack which caused sparks to fly on impact._

_Shinichi looked and realized their ring was about to hit a building. Grimacing, Shinichi braced himself for impact._

_The violent crash of the ring against the building sent the three combatants flying before they went tumbling along the building's rooftop. It was the tallest structure in the city within Shinichi's mindscape. The floor of the rooftop was decorated with a painting of Rena, Shawna and Satan. It was overlooked by the moon which had Tsukuyomi's image, smiling down on him._

_Rising to their feet, the three of them shared looks. H-Guardian and St. Ascalon charged at Shinichi who, to their surprise, decided to disarm himself, relieving himself of his weapons. St. Ascalon was punched in the chest at the same time as H-Guardian was kicked in the stomach. Spinning around, Shinichi kicked St. Ascalon in the face and punched H-Guardian in the chest as well. Jumping up, he performed a split and kicked both spirits away before landing on his feet. St. Ascalon and H-Guardian regained their footing and decided to stop holding back this time._

"_Getsuga…TENSHOU!"_

"_Kin no…HIGURASHI ZAN!"_

_Both attacks flew at Shinichi and his eyes glowed, the sclera turning black and irises turning gold as his hair turned silver and spiked up. Raising his arms, hands pointed forward, he turned them into cannons and charged up a quick attack._

"_CERO!" he called and he fired two beams of Reiryoku at the two attacks, shattering them. The beams continued on their path towards the two spirits who dodged quickly. The beams continued onward and struck the neighboring building._

* * *

Back in the real world, Rena and Shawna were observing Shinichi as he meditated. He seemed to be in a real deep trance and deep in concentration. His expression did change every so often and they wondered what was going on through his head.

* * *

_Darting at the two spirits, Shinichi summoned his Seigi no Hogosha and swung at St. George, startling him. He then drove his knee into the spirit's gut and followed up with a chop to his sword arm, causing__ the knight__ to release the Sword of Ascalon. Smiling, Shinichi caught the sword and twirled it around before he turned and struck H-Guardian, but his blow was blocked by the Cho Dai-Shuriken __the guardian__ was using as a shield. He jumped back as H-Guardian created a half dozen duplicates and sent them charging at Shinichi._

_Now armed with his Seigi no Hogosha and the Sword of Ascalon, Shinichi felt that he had a bit more of an advantage than previously. Crossing both blades, he charged right back at the six H-Guardian clones and fought with all his might, striking them down with killing blows, and causing them to vanish in an instant as their bodies were simply constructs of energy given life but with little resistance._

"_My turn," said Shinichi as he twirled both swords confidently, dual-wielding them with ease. Then again, his background and upbringing allowed him to use any weapon that fell into his hands._

_St. George ran at Shinichi to retrieve his sword. The spirit ducked, bobbed and weaved around Shinichi's swings and used a palm strike to __Shinichi's__ chin to stun __the Cicada Cyborg__ before ripping his sword from Shinichi's grasp. __St. George__ was about to swing at Shinichi when the boy unleashed his own stunning attack._

"_SOLAR FLARE!"_

_The bright light blinded St. George and allowed Shinichi to make some distance between himself and his opponents. H-Guardian was also caught in the radius of the attack and was blinded as well._

"_AAAH! THE DAMN LIGHT IS TOO MUCH!" H-Guardian screamed as he covered his eyes. _

"_MY EYES! IT IS LIKE READING SHIORI'S BOOKS WHICH ARE TOO VULGAR FOR MY EYES!" George added as he covered his eyes. _

"_Hey, her books happen to be very entertaining!" H-Guardian argued. _

"_How could anyone like those books? They are too much for my mind to handle!" St. George shot back. _

"_Too much for you maybe, but a lot people like it," H-Guardian snorted. _

_Shinichi just looked on the argument in confusion with blinking eyes. His two opponents had been blinded and were now wasting time arguing about his mother's books. Yes it was true his mother's books were...too vulgar for some people to handle, but other people liked them. Her novels were awesome. Anyway, back to the fight._

_Using this chance to prepare his next attack, he placed both his index and middle finger against his forehead and began to charge up for the Makankosappo._

* * *

Back in the real world, Shinichi's intense look of concentration, made it look like he was constipated to the two girls with him.

"Is he alright?" Shawna asked.

"I think so," said Rena. "Or he really needs to go to the bathroom."

"Oh dear. I hope he doesn't do it during training," Shawna spoke softly so that she wouldn't interrupt Shinichi's meditation.

"Yeah that would be bad, but obviously he is concentrating on doing something," Rena whispered back.

"But what?" Shawna asked.

"Knowing Shin-kun, probably something cool," Rena shrugged.

* * *

"_MAKANKOSAPPO!"_

_Shinichi fired the drilling energy beam which shot straight towards H-Guardian. The gold armored warrior's sight returned to him just in time before he was struck, the beam boring right through his chest. This caused him to explode and separate back into Yabuki, Zennin and Gokuaku, the three Tsukumogami laying sprawled on the rooftop floor._

"_Three down," said Shinichi and then he blocked with the Shield of Glen when St. George swung at him, sparks flying as the blade met his gauntlet "One to go."_

"_Clever, to use the Solar Flare to buy you time to charge your attack," praised St. George._

"_I learnt through experience," Shinichi smiled as he withdrew his left hand to stab his sword at St. George. He sidestepped the attack and then blocked with his sword when Shinichi swung at him. "Now, time to go all out! Guardian Henshin!"_

_Beckoned by the call, Zennin, Yabuki and Gokuaku were covered in light before changing into the treasures that birthed them. The Higurashi no Yaiba, Kage no Hoshi and Oni no Hone flew towards Shinichi who was ready for them. Shinichi jumped backwards as the three treasures streaked through the air and slammed into him like meteors. In a flash of gold, he was transformed into Kamen Rider Showa Hinamizawa Guardian, with the Shield of Glen and armed with both the Seigi no Hogosha and Higurashi no Yaiba._

"_Kunai Missiles! Fire!" Showa commanded and the Cho Dai-Shuriken broke apart into twelve individual blades which shot towards St. George. Charging through, St. George batted the Kunai Missiles away with the Sword of Ascalon. Showa prepared himself as St. George charged up the sword and executed his signature more._

"_RYUGA DAICHIKUDAKU!"_

_The aura dragon roared viciously as it rushed towards Showa and he activated the Shield of Glen. He generated the protective dome but it shattered under the force of the Ryuga Daichikudaku, __throwing the Rider __into the air. Using Yabuki's power, he stayed aloft in the air, joined by St. George seconds later._

_Staring each other down, the two blurred and the sound of steel clashing echoed in the sky. They were too fast for the normal naked eye to see as they moved and clashed from one spot to another in the blink of an eye. Only the explosion of sparks coming from their clashing weapons was visible enough. The combatants themselves might as well be invisible by the speed they were moving at._

_A deep crater formed on the street below, dust and smoke rising into the air as they returned to normal speed. Showa tightened his grip on both his swords, the grips groaning from the pressure he was putting on them. His armor had suffered some damage, but it was negligible._

_St. George stood before him, not looking winded at all. However, his armor seemed to have taken some damage as well._

_St. George had to admit that in the past few months, Shinichi had impressed him. The boy had powerful determination and resolve, he had an indomitable spirit and strong will. He was briefly reminded of Sir George. _

_The only negative traits he could find were in his perverted nature and his obsession with revenge__,__ which he'd found through his memories. However, the boy still had the spirit of a protector, fighting to protect his loved ones and willing to destroy his enemies to keep them safe. Shinichi was also highly adaptable in battle and able to think on the fly while improvising in battle. He would use any advantage he had to win and claim victory._

_Banishing the Higurashi no Yaiba before clenching his fist, Showa's hand began to flare up and with a thrust of his hand he shot a fireball at St. George. It was swatted away with ease. Using Zennin's power, Showa multiplied and shot a barrage of fireballs at St. George. With the skill, reflexes and swiftness of a master swordsman, he batted away the attacks, sending them back to their originators. Showa crossed his blades to block an explosive fireball and was pushed back as each of his duplicates exploded._

_Thrusting his free hand again, he unleashed another technique he'd learn. Thousands upon thousands of paper cranes materialized and flew at St. George. They spread out, blocking his line of sight, spinning around him in a swarm. St. George's eyes narrowed at the swarm of paper cranes encircling him. It would be easy to incinerate them. He ran his hand against the flat side of his blade, covering it in energy that flared out like flames. He prepared to destroy the barrier around him, only for the paper cranes to scatter._

_No, not scatter. The paper cranes were flying straight back towards Showa__,__ who had the Higurashi no Yaiba raised. The spikes along the weapons__'__ sharp edge glowed as the paper cranes became energy and fused with the sword. St. George realized what Showa was doing and braced himself._

"_CHO KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!"_

_Showa performed a horizontal swing and the blade unleashed its payload in the form of a long and wide blade of golden energy aimed to cut through anything in its path, and it was aimed for St. George. This was the killing blow, the final strike to end the match._

_Or it would've been if St. George didn't have the Sword of Ascalon held tightly between both his hands and actually holding the energy blade off with it. He was visibly struggling though._

_Now, Shinichi had been accused of being reckless at times, diving into fights without so much as a plan at times and generally being a little bit too overconfident. However, he wasn't blind or ignorant. While he was the wielder of the Sword of Ascalon, St. George was the sword's actual spirit so he knew more about the sword than Shinichi did. All Shinichi had done so far was use power that St. George had allowed him to use._

_So, in terms of skill and knowledge regarding the legendary weapon, Shinichi didn't even come close to what St. George had. The fact that St. George hadn't revealed any more of the Ascalon's secrets was probably because he didn't trust Shinichi or that Shinichi wasn't ready yet._

_And Shinichi would rather think it was the latter. Still, he had to focus on pumping more power into his attack and break St. George's defences to land the strike. _

_St. George, realizing what Shinichi's plan was, focused his own Reiryoku into the Ascalon's blade to counter what was coming next. Both Reiryoku and Youki mixed together and the blade glowed with power._

_Suddenly, there was a huge explosion that rocked the imaginary city._

* * *

Back in the real world, Shinichi's body jerked backwards, surprising the two girls watching him.

"Should we wake him up?" Shawna asked, worried. Rena herself wasn't sure. Should they? Shinichi had told them not to wake him from his meditation but she was worried too. What if something was going on inside Shinichi's mind? What if he was in danger.

"No," Rena answered. She had faith in Shinichi. She always had faith in him.

* * *

_The explosion had made a smoking crater in the middle of the street and_ _St. George found Shinichi lying at the bottom of the crater. The Armor of Ascalon had been deactivated by the force of the explosion but only one of them was still standing. The spirit of the Sword of Ascalon strode over to Shinichi and pointed the blade's tip to his throat. "Sorry to say, lad, but you lose."_

_Shinichi stared up at St. George and grinned. "Did I?" he asked and St. George gave Shinichi a perplexed look. Suddenly, Shinichi poofed into smoke. St. George's eyes widened as the ground behind him exploded and Showa jumped out with both swords, the Higurashi no Yaiba and Seigi no Hogosha, crossed in front of his chest and struck. St. George spun around at that moment._

"_SPIRIT RAID & SHOWA TAMASHII GIRI!" He swung his swords outwards and unleashed his attack. First, aura versions of his three Treasure Forms appeared and struck St. George, sending him reeling. This was followed by the spectral figures of the Legendary Kamen Riders rushing at St. George and striking him with copies of the Higurashi no Yaiba. __Then the spiritual versions of the Showa and BLACK 13 struck at St. George with their own individual weapons.__ Finally, Shinichi rushed at St. George and stood before the injured spirit, with his blades crossed against St. George's neck. It would require only a single move to scissor St. George's head right off._

"_Game Over," Showa concluded with a victorious smile._

"_I should've known, lad," St. George said with some amusement. While he knew Shinichi's tricks since inhabiting his mind, even a combat veteran would have some trouble countering those tricks when their guard was down. It was a mistake on his part, a mistake that Shinichi cleverly took advantage of._

_Showa withdrew his blades and deactivated his armor, which turned into three colored beams of light that reformed into the Hinamizawa no Tsukumogami._

_"It looks like I passed. Victory is mine," Shinichi said but then he heard a soft chuckle come from St. George. "Hey, what's so funny?"_

_"Sorry to say this, lad. But I was not your last opponent." The ground began to shudder as the sounds of heavy footsteps made the ground shake. "Did you forget, there is still one last spirit in here that can assume a Treasure Form."_

_"Oh..."_

_**ROAR!-!-!**_

_"...shit." Turning around, Shinichi saw none other than Dreigon, Dragon of Dragons, standing there. "WHAT?-! You mean I have to fight him?-!"_

"_Consider this Part 2 of your final exam," St. George said as he raised his index and middle finger. "Good luck."_

"_This sucks..." groaned Shinichi._

_"__**Silence, Halfling and cease your whining!**__" Dreigon roared as his body morphed, being covered in a red and black glowing light. After a moment, standing in Dreigon's spot was Ascalon Form but not the usual Ascalon Form. No, it was Ascalon: Fury Mode. The Black Ascalon that had saved Shawna-Ascalon back during the Trials of Glen._

_Shinichi looked around and realized that St. George, Yabuki, Zennin and Gokuaku had disappeared, leaving him to face Dreigon on his own. After an intense fight against the four Tsukumogami, now he had to face the Dragon of Dragons in a dark reflection of his Ascalon Armor?_

_Well, exams were never meant to be too easy._

_Shinichi gripped his Seigi no Hogosha in both his hands. "Guess it's just you and me now, huh?" He summoned his default form, Showa Trinity, and stared Dreigon down. He got into a stance, preparing himself for the second part of his 'final exam'._

_"__**Wrong, Halfling. You are now going to face the **__**true**__** power of Ascalon**__," Dreigon informed him as he raised the dark Sword of Ascalon above his head, the runes on the blade glowing in an eerily blood red light._

"_True Power?" Showa echoed, wondering what Dreigon meant. _

_He was about to find out._

"_**Don't you remember what I told you when you first realized I was in your head?**__" Dreigon said as he began to twirl the Black Ascalon around, drawing a circle of blood red light._

_"About why you're in my head?" Showa scoffed in a mock-question. "Yeah, duh. The Sword of Ascalon has a secret ability to...to..." His masked eyes widened in realization and fright. "...ah...FUCK ME!" The Sword of Ascalon could seal the spirit of a slain dragon into itself. Which meant that Dreigon not only had his own power, but access to the power of other dragons that had fallen to the Sword of Ascalon._

_"__**If that's what you want!**__" Dreigon shouted as he stabbed the Black Ascalon into the circle, shattering it and summoning the spirits of all the Dragons the sword had slain over the course of its existence. "__**Ryuuga...TAMASHII GIRI!-!-!**__"_

_As Dreigon shot the souls of slain dragons of the past at Showa, St. George watched with interest from his perch above the battlefield. 'The true power of Ascalon is that the power of the dragon you slay is forever sealed into the blade, forever at the beck and call of its wielder,' St. George thought in remembrance. 'And I have been used to slay over hundreds of dragons.' Looking at Showa who dodged as best he could, 'How will you fight enemies that want a chance to kill the Ascalon's wielder, lad?'_

_The dragon spirits roared as they attacked Showa relentlessly. Claws and fangs were bared to rip him to shreds. He dodged them all, grateful for his enhanced reflexes and reaction time. The spirits didn't immediately vanish after the attack was unleashed though like his Showa Tamashii Giri. The dragon spirits remained, to attack him._

_Well, then he would just have to give them what they wanted._

_Showa quickly reacted and shouted, "SHIELD OF GLEN!"_

_He slammed his fist into the ground and generated a protective dome of energy that drove the dragons away. However, this was only temporary as the dragons circled around him, waiting for him to drop his defences._

"_**Halfling, will you just hide behind your shield or will you stand up to me?**__" taunted Dreigon loudly. Of course, Dreigon himself could admit that the Shield of Glen, crafted from one of Glen's scales was a powerful object. The dome itself was nigh unbreakable. Of course, it was limited to the will of the user and how much energy they had left. He knew that Shinichi had spent a large portion of his energy during his previous bouts. He was just surprised that the cyborg was able to do this while he should've been running on empty on both Reiryoku and Youki._

_Meanwhile, Showa eyed his surroundings. He had angry and hungry dragon spirits glaring down at him, circling around him, biding their time. Some tried to break the dome but found that even they could not break it. Showa remained on one knee, with his fist encased in the Shield of Glen touching the ground._

_However, he had a plan. He was pumping energy into the dome, more and more, with each second. He just had to do this just right._

_The dome started to crack and the dragons believed that it was weakening. However, the dome was also expanding as it was cracking. Dreigon's eyes widened and he took cover when the energy dome exploded, shattering to pieces and sending sharp fragments flying in all directions. The dragon spirits were bombarded as the fragments pierced their spectral bodies, slaying them once more._

* * *

Shinichi was grinning and Shawna and Rena wondered what was going on inside his mind to make him grin like that. It was a grin that he had on whenever he did something incredibly clever.

* * *

"_**Where are you, Halfling?**__" Dreigon questioned as he scanned the half-destroyed street. He was looking for his prey who had to be somewhere around here. He could almost taste him. "__**Running and hiding? How cowardly**__."_

"_Who's running?" Dreigon whirled around and intercepted a blow to his face. Sparks flew as their blades connected, steel meeting steel._

"_**Attacking from behind isn't very hero-like,**__" taunted Dreigon._

"_I'm not your average hero," Showa answered. Dreigon then noticed that the colored parts of Showa's suit were all green. His eyes widened in realization before he broke away and made some distance before he got shot. Looking up, he saw a red and blue Showa standing on a fire escape with their arms in the forms of energy blasters. This was Showa Trinity's special ability: Trinity Force. "And I'm not one to fight alone either. Let's Ride: RX!"_

_Showa Red shouted, "Let's Ride: Roborider!"_

_Showa Blue exclaimed, "Let's Ride: Biorider!"_

_The two additional Showas jumped down from the fire escape as they transformed along with Showa Green. They had adopted the three forms of RX and ready to fight. RX was armed with the Revolcane with Biorider armed with his Bio Blade. Roborider was the only one armed with a sidearm known as the Voltech Shooter._

"_Ikuze!" RX shouted as he charged while Biorider turned into liquid form and surged towards their target. Dreigon growled and charged back, clashing with RX as their swords met repeatedly through multiple swings. Biorider shot out in liquid form before solidifying as he swung down with his Bio Blade. Dreigon quickly sidestepped and then parried as the Bio Blade came at him from another angle. RX's foot connected with his stomach and sent him reeling._

_Roborider stood at his spot, his eyes and weapon trained on Dreigon. He was waiting for an opening._

_He got it._

_Squeezing the trigger, he fired the laser gun's payload and shot Dreigon twice in the chest, stunning him momentarily so RX and Biorider could land their strikes. Dreigon growled, and with the Sword of Ascalon __he__ retaliated._

"_**KAZE NO KIZU!**__"_

_The sudden attack blew the three Riders off their feet. They landed in a heap, aching from the force of the attack. They rose to their feet together as Dreigon strode towards them._

"_**Dividing your power into three isn't exactly a smart move in this case, Halfling,**__" stated Dreigon. "__**At any other time, it might've been effective. This, however, isn't one of those times.**__"_

"_Is it? Are you sure?" the three Riders replied simultaneously._

"_Let's Ride: Stronger!"_

"_Let's Ride: Super-1!"_

"_Let's Ride: ZX!"_

_ZX started the attack, using his holographic projectors to project duplicates of himself and his fellow Riders around Dreigon to confuse him. This tactic would be ineffective as he could sense the real ones out…wait? Why was the area flooded with Shinichi's Reiatsu?_

_Of course, by doing so, Shinichi could hide his presence. Smart move, but it was energy consuming as he was bleeding out his energy just to do it._

"_Focus Bombs!"_

_A pair of shuriken struck Dreigon in the chest before exploding an instant later. ZX had thrown it but which one was the real one._

"_Impact Bombs!"_

_Two more explosions threw him off balance._

"_Microchain!"_

_A chain wrapped around the Sword of Ascalon and Dreigon grinned as the real one had just exposed himself._

"_Electro Fire!"_

"_Electric Hands!"_

_Lightning travelled across the ground before reaching Dreigon, zapping him. Another series of electric bolts shot at him from one of the Super-1's._

_Dreigon could feel the electricity coursing through his body, but he wasn't without an escape route. He began to redirect the lightning and it flowed into the Sword of Ascalon, arching around the blade. Bringing the sword up with its tip pointed to the ground, he stabbed the blade halfway through. The instant he did, lightning bolts lanced out in all directions, hitting ZX, Super-1 and Stronger. ZX's holograms all vanished as he and his fellow Riders fell onto their backs painfully._

"_**Any more tricks?**__" Dreigon challenged. _

"_Just one," they answered in unison, despite groaning in pain._

"_Sing, Yabuki!"_

"_Strike from the shadows, Zennin!"_

"_Bring down the thunder, Gokuaku!"_

* * *

Rena and Shawna watched as Shinichi's body began to jerk in different directions, his eyes rapidly moving under his closed eyelids. His face also contorted into a myriad of expressions which one would associate with battle.

"Is his meditation meant to be this...strenuous?" Shawna asked tentatively.

"Normally, he just sits there," said Rena.

"I never knew meditation could be so strange," Shawna commented.

"I think this is normal considering who he is," said Rena.

* * *

"_HIGURASHI ZAN!"_

"_LIGHTNING SPEAR!"_

"_SHADOW BALL!"_

_Dreigon deflected Showa Higurashi and Showa Kage's attacks, batting them away. He then caught the Lightning Spear in his hand and caused it to fizzle._

"_VOLCANO PUNCH!"_

_Showa Oni launched himself at Dreigon with a fist enveloped in red hot flames. Dreigon counted with his own punch, their fists connecting and the force sending Showa Oni flying and crashing headlong into the nearest building._

_Showa Kage produced a dozen shadow clones and attacked, each landing blows on Dreigon but they weren't doing much damage as they should've and with a swing he blasted them backwards, the clones dispersing as the original went tumbling. Showa Kage landed on one knee and threw a pair shuriken which soon multiplied into hundreds._

_Meanwhile, Showa Higurashi was standing a distance away, __with__ the Higurashi no Yaiba turned into a bow. An arrow of emerald energy formed in his hand and he notched it before taking aim, his eyes aimed at Dreigon._

_Dreigon deflected the onslaught of shuriken, the weapons landing and covering the ground in a sea of sharp black metal. Suddenly, a green energy arrow struck his sword hand and knocked the Sword of Ascalon out of his grasp. Showa Oni, who'd just recovered, used a blast of wind to send the Sword of Ascalon into the grasp of Showa Kage who smiled under his helmet as he exclaimed, "I got it!"_

_Now that Dreigon had been disarmed, it was time to finish it._

"_NOW!" Showa Higurashi ordered as he jumped into the air, followed by Showa Oni and Showa Kage._

"_**Rider...TRIPLE KICK!**__"_

_Three simultaneous flying kicks connected with Dreigon's chest, the force shattering his armor with explosive force as he was engulfed in flames._

"_And that's that!" Showa dusted off his hands as he reverted to his default as he merged back to one. However, the flames weren't going out and something was rising out from it._

"_**That's that?**__" a voice parroted with a growl. "__**Oh, no it isn't, Halfling...**__"_

_With a flap of his wings, Dreigon revealed his true awesome form whilst dramatically putting out the flames. "Now...time for Part 3 of your exam!"_

"_This was a THREE parter!?" Showa screamed and then Dreigon opened up his maw to answer with a fireball. "OH, CRAP BASKETS!"_

* * *

Shawna and Rena jumped when Shinichi suddenly let loose a scream of fright before he turned quiet.

"Alright, I think we should wake him up," said a concerned Shawna as she reached out to Shinichi to shake him awake from his meditation.

"No!" Rena protested.

"But Ms. Rena!" Shawna began to argue.

"He's alright," Rena assured her. "Trust me, he's alright." But the question was, was she trying to convince Shawna or herself?

* * *

_The battle moved to a canyon, where the rest of the fight would continue. _

_Sh__owa__ actually stopped running once he realized there was literally nowhere he could escape to. His only choice was to fight._

_Since S__howa__ possessed the powers of Kamen Rider J, including his ability to assume gigantic size, many would assume that he would use that form more often. Considering the kind of strength and power a gigantic Rider possessed, it would be easy to defeat smaller, weaker enemies by just stomping on them. However, Shinichi never even considered using J in that manner. He'd rather fight his opponents on even ground, and at the same size. J was meant to use for situations where the opponent itself was far too big to handle at his normal size._

_And right now, Dreigon's true form definitely warranted the use of Kamen Rider J._

_Showa exhaled before he called out, "Let's Ride: J!" Showa transformed into Kamen Rider J in a flash of light before his body grew and became gigantic. _

_Now, as J, and armed with the Seigi no Hogosha which had also grown to giant size, the battle had reached an entirely new level. In the end, size did matter._

_However, Kamen Rider J still fell before Dreigon's awesome might, forcing Shinichi back into human form. It just wasn't enough._

"_**HALFLING, DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU COULD DEFEAT ME LIKE THAT!?**__" Dreigon bellowed. Shinichi gritted his teeth as he stood on shaky legs. He recalled how he'd fought Dreigon before, back when he'd been augmented with cybernetics by the Cybermen. But now, he could feel that Dreigon was much more powerful. Could it be that the Cybermen's upgrades had only suppressed Dreigon's true might? _

"_No, but I know what will!" He drew out the Sword of Ascalon then heard St. George's voice._

"_Lad, listen to me. With whatever energy you have left, you can only use Ascalon's power for less than three minutes!" St. George warned._

"_Well, then I just have to make each second count," Shinichi resolved as he raised the shining Sword of Ascalon above his head and cut a circle of light. "BRING ORDER TO THE CHAOS, ST. GEORGE!" The armor was summoned as it was donned upon his body as a dragon's roar was heard._

_Dreigon smiled as he stared down Showa Ascalon. _

* * *

Hours had actually passed in the real world and yet both Rena and Shawna stayed by Shinichi's side. They thought that his meditation would've ended hours ago, but it seemed like this session was an important one, hence the amount of time it was consuming.

"I bet he'll be really hungry once he wakes up," said Rena. "Shin-kun always has an appetite after every time he meditates."

"I'll send the order to the kitchen staff," agreed Shawna.

"Good idea. I can even make a dessert for Shin-kun," Rena grinned widely.

"Uh, but the staff would make the desserts," Shawna pointed out, not understanding Rena's meaning.

"Oh not that kind of dessert, Shawna-chan. The _other kind_ of dessert," Rena smiled shamelessly.

"Oh," Shawna blushed. "Can I help too?"

"Sure, why not? Threesomes are usually fun anyway!"

* * *

_Back in his subconscious, Showa fought with what little time he had left. He learnt that he could summon Dark Thunder here, albeit a mental facsimile from his own imagination. As a knight fighting a dragon, he needed a noble steed to complete the look._

_Showa rode on Dark Thunder and the armored stallion ran up the side of a building before stopping on its rooftop. Showa counted his time. He only had less than a minute left. "Now! Hyah!" Dark Thunder galloped along the rooftop and jumped, before landing on Dreigon's back. Dark Thunder ran along Dreigon's spike and once the horse reached the head, Showa banished his steed and stood upon Dreigon's head. He slid down between Dreigon's eyes to stand on his snout, and looked the Dragon of Dragon's in the eyes._

"_This is it!" Showa stabbed the Sword of Ascalon down. __The Sword of Ascalon connected with Dreigon's head but did nothing else but make a clanking sound. It didn't even pierce his tough hide. "Wha-gah!"_

_Showa's body convulsed as the Ascalon armor shattered and faded away. Dreigon, using the moment of power loss to his advantage, flung Shinichi up and then, with a thwack from his tail, sen__ding__ the young man straight into the ground below._

_Lying on the ground, panting and nearly out of strength, Shinichi watched as Dreigon opened his great maw which was filled to the brim with razor sharp teeth. With his maw open, he began to form the dark energy ball for one of his most powerful attacks._

"_**You disappoint me, Halfling,**__" Dreigon spoke as he took aim and let the power of his attack grow. "__**Let me tell you something about Dragons, boy. For a human, even a super-human, to defeat and kill a Dragon is pure luck. Our kind are considered to be the strongest of all beasts and celestial beast creatures to ever exist. When you think about it, the only thing that can truly kill a Dragon is another Dragon.**__"_

"_If that's true, then how come you could be killed by the Sword of Ascalon?" Shinichi questioned as he sat up, albeit in much pain._

"_**Foolish Halfling. Remember, the Sword of Ascalon was forged by Heaven and given to Sir George, himself. It is a blessed sword. So, I would have to correct my last statement in saying that besides a literal God or weapon blessed by a God, only a Dragon can kill another Dragon**__." The power of Dreigon's attack reached critical mass. "__**Sorry, Halfling, but this is the end of your exam**__."_

_Shinichi looked at the attack and then at the Sword of Ascalon still in his hand. True, in his mindscape, he could use its inner power but not its blessed power. He could use the dragonian energy stored within the sword on Dreigon or combine with another...wait! That's it!_

"_**And now...DRAGON BUSTER!-!-!**__" Dreigon fired the attack at Shinichi who, with the last of his strength, stood up and held the hilt of the Sword of Ascalon tight._

"_Not yet, ya overgrown lizard!" Shinichi shot back. "SHIELD OF GLEN!" The Shield reformed on Shinichi's arm once more. But now, this time, instead of pushing his on Reiryoku and Youki into the shield, he drew the shield's dragonian energy from it and pushed it into the Sword of Ascalon. Focusing his mind on the power of the Dragon Souls within the blade, Shinichi held the sword up and waited for the right moment._

'_Closer...closer...closer...NOW!'_

"_BAKURYUUHA!-!-!" Shinichi roared as he let out a swirling vortex of energy from the Ascalon, the energy twister colliding with Dreigon's Dragon Buster attack. _

_When both attacks collided, the Bakuryuuha absorbed the energy of the Dragon Buster, uniting both energies together. It then, like before, turned that energy against the enemy, in this case it was Dreigon who, at the moment in his true form, was much too large to dodge the redirected and enhanced attack at this distance._

'_Well, well, he finally got the hint,' Dreigon thought to himself as he was consumed by the enhanced Bakuryuuha. 'Not bad, Halfling. You've done me proud.'_

"_**GWAH!-!-!-!"**_

_**KABOOM!**_

_The entire canyon exploded from the force of the redirected attack. After a few moments passed, the dust settled and Shinichi, panting heavily, looked ahead, hoping to see Dreigon as least hurt badly. What he saw though surprised him even more. There, laying on the ground and smoking all over with scorch marks covering his body, was Dreigon. The Dragon of Dragons let out a muffled groan of pain but, instead of growling, he let out a content sigh._

"_Took ya long enough, ya runt," Gokuaku chortled with a big grin on his face._

"_Indeed," agreed Zenin. "We almost thought you weren't going to find a way to make it."_

"_You did have us worried, My Lord," added Yabuki._

_Shinichi just smiled as he dropped the Sword of Ascalon and fell onto his hands and knees. Panting heavily, he looked up to see St. George standing before him and with a glint of pride coming from his eyes._

"_Well done, lad," St. George congratulated him._

"_Does this...pant...does this mean I pass?" Shinichi asked, nearly out of breath._

"_**It sure does, Halfling**__," Dreigon replied as he raised his head up. "__**And, for a moment there, I thought you weren't going to actually understand my hints.**__"_

"_What can I say, I like to make it look showy," replied Shinichi with a big grin before falling to the ground, passing out from exhaustion._

_The four Tsukumogami and Dragon Spirit looked at one another, over to Shinichi and back to one another; each with a sweat drop on their foreheads._

"_Uh...I think we broke him," said Gokuaku._

"_**Ah, he'll be fine with a nice long rest**__," replied Dreigon as he used his tail and picked up Shinichi, placing the sleeping Rider on his back. "__**Well, I can still move but I think it might be best to send the Halfling here back home for now. We can have our graduation party once he's regained his strength.**__"_

"_Someone should go and inform Lady Rena and Lady Shawna to have the lad's body taken back to the palace for a good night's sleep," St. George suggested._

"_I'll go," offered Kuro. He had watched the whole fight and was impressed. Besides, it'd been a long time since he'd been out._

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And thus ends Shinichi's final exam. What new powers has he gained and will this power benefit him in the future. Also, what of Rune and Mammon's excursion? How will that go? For answer to these questions, tune into the next exciting chapter of Kamen Rider X Green Lantern. PS, GuyverGenesis (formerlu known as Toku Warrior) helped me with this chapter so he deserves a round of applause. Anyway, the ring bit is from Garo. Oh, and extra editing was done by Kamen Rider Goji.**


	173. The Legacy of Cain Part 117

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 117: Emergence of Evil; 2-On-1 Battle! Dark Secret Revealed **

After having just finished his workout with Shinichi, Rune had himself a shower and now sat in his quarters. Of course, he wasn't alone as, like every other day while he stayed at the Hive, Mammon was visiting him. She would come to see him every day so that she could learn alchemy from him. Of course, today was a bit different as when she opened the door to his quarters, she saw Rune nearly ecstatic and moving about his room like a kid would in a toy store. After getting him to sit down and tell her what had gotten him so hyped up, she gave him a stern look while folding her arms under her chest.

"So, you're going away for a bit?" Mammon asked.

"I wanna see the place which will eventually be my home in the future and meet the father of my era's alchemy himself," said Rune.

While he had learned a great deal about alchemy when he opened his Gate of Truth, there were still things he didn't know as a few alchemic techniques that the Father of Modern Alchemy created had been lost to time and not even the Gate of Truth told him what he wanted to know. So, to go see the man himself was his only chance of reviving the lost techniques. It was one of the few things about getting sent back in time that he was finding himself enjoying.

"On your own?" Mammon frowned.

She wanted to have another alchemy lesson today. One of the great things about having Rune as her teacher was that he was very..._hands on_ in his teachings. Yesterday's lesson had gone from learning the basics of making a proper transmutation circle to a full make-out session in Rune's bed. They had to make sure not to be too loud or else risk a chance of Yūji hearing them, barging in and tearing Rune to pieces.

"Actually, I can't really move all that freely around here without someone's supervision," said Rune with a sigh. "But this is something I really want to do."

"So, you basically need someone to tag along with you," Mammon concluded. "Why not ask Shinichi?"

"Can't," said Rune as he shook his head. "We ended our workout early seeing as he got a call from Shawna. Something about his mansion being almost done so she wanted him to go to Genovia to see if his new mansion meets his standards."

"That still surprises me," stated Mammon with a shake of her head. "We all thought that it was a miracle that he won Satan's heart, but he's the fiancé of a princess and he got his own mansion."

"Of course, from what I've learned, he earned that mansion because the late owner tried to overthrow the monarchy but got stabbed in the back," replied Rune.

"Never trust Cybermen. It never ends well," Mammon agreed. "So, who are you going to ask to tag along with you?" she asked him as he got up and began making a list of supplies he would need for such a trip.

"Actually, I was going to ask you," said Rune.

"Me?" Mammon pointed to herself.

"Sure. You want to learn how to perform alchemy like I do, so the best way is to meet the guy who founded the discipline," said Rune. "But there's one problem..." he mumbled.

"Onii-sama," Mammon realized.

"He still doesn't trust me all that much," said Rune. "Hell, he almost fried me during yesterday's workout."

Mammon nodded but then got an idea, "How about you ask him to come along!"

"Do you think that will work?" Rune asked. "I mean, if we even try to act cozy and he'll roast me."

"Oh, don't be such a wuss," Mammon chided.

Rune looked at her and saw she wasn't going to take no for an answers. '_Man, I had to fall for a girl, who I just can't say 'no' to_,' he thought and let out a sigh. "Alright babe, you win."

"Cool, I'll go ask him!" Mammon beamed.

As Mammon left, Rune began to look around his quarters for a few trinkets he had collected over the past month. They were mostly things he had created with alchemy and some spoils of battle against the Hyde's and the RoC. But, amongst those trinkets was something he needed. When he had been transported to this era, he had kept two things stashed in his pocket. One was a piece of paper with some alchemic equations based around Kakugane construction. He wanted to use that as a way to show the Father of Alchemy that he was a legit alchemist. The other thing was a futuristic PDA. He had never shown it to the Riders but it did keep records of many historical events within its memory banks. Rune would constantly check it daily to see just how much the timeline was being altered by the presence of Yūji, Alan and himself. After moving a few pieces of paper aside, he found his PDA set next to a book on ancient history.

"Ah-ha, there you are." As he was about to pick it up, he suddenly fell to his knees as he clutched his hand to his chest, above the area of his heart. "No, not now!" Rune groaned as his body began to go through a momentary seizure. After a moment had passed, the seizures stopped with Rune panting. "Damn…I don't think I'll last more than a month." His eyes narrowed as he knew that his time would come soon. "If I don't find a way to create the White Kakugane, then it'll be game over."

* * *

Walking into the cafeteria, Daichi and Shogo were going to get a bite to eat before going out on their rounds. Shogo would normally do some aerial recon while Daichi would take one of their regular vehicles and drive around the city. They did this in shifts with the others so as to try and keep an eye out for anything that looked like it dealt with the Hydes or the RoC. They had expected to be the only ones currently in the base but, instead of seeing an empty cafeteria, they saw Yūji sitting at a table, looking into a glass of soda.

"Hey, Yūji, what's up?" Daichi asked as he walked over to the table and took a seat. He then noticed the sad yet dark look in his eyes. "Uh-oh, what happened this time?" Daichi and the others knew this look. It was a look that he got when he was pissed.

"Mammon...she asked to go out on a trip with Rune," Yūji replied in an almost whispered tone. Shogo and Daichi looked at one another, over to Yūji and then back to each other.

Placing a comforting hand on Yūji's shoulder, Shogo spoke, "Okay, so Mammon wanted to go out on a date with Suller-kun and went for a walk in the city. It can't be that bad, can it? I mean, we all know that he would never hurt Mammon."

"Only because he knows Fudō here would rip him to shreds if he did," Daichi quipped. Yūji then crushed the glass in his hand, spilling his soda all over the table along with broken glass shards. He did not cut his hand on the glass though. His skin was tough. "Whoa, what I say?"

"He's not taking her out on a date in the city!" Yūji roared. "Mammon is going with him on a trip to fucking Ireland to see his old fucking village where he'll be born in way in the future!"

Shogo and Daichi looked at one another and sweat dropped. Now they knew why Yūji was pissed. If Rune had asked, Yūji would have said no. But if it was Mammon, then there would be no way he could deny her request, especially if she gave him her puppy dog eye look. It won him over every time.

"Mammon asked ya, huh?" Daichi asked. Yūji just nodded as his body shuddered.

"And why didn't you volunteer to chaperone them?" Shogo asked but he already knew. The relationship between Mammon and Rune was a well-known fact amongst the NEO-NUMBERS and Team 5D's. It had even given Shiori a few new ideas for some books to write as well.

"You think I want to see them suck face while they're in Ireland?" Yūji asked darkly.

"Dude, you'd roast future boy if that happened," Daichi commented as he got up and got a glass of water.

"Yeah, I could do that and I'd fucking enjoy it too," he replied coolly, as if he really wanted to do just that. "But...but..."

"You'd make Mammon cry as you would end up killing the man she's fallen in love with and she would probably hate you forever for it, right?" Shogo asked and Yūji nodded. "Honestly, I'm glad I'm an only child as I would have probably snapped a long time ago. I don't know how you do it sometimes."

"It's not as easy as you might think," frowned Yuji.

"Hey, you could have Sheila monitor them," Daichi suggested.

"Already thought of that and she won't let them out of her sight," Yūji replied. Rune and Mammon had gotten as far as to making out and feeling each other up but Yūji would be damned if he let some jerk from the future bed his sister without his consent.

With a heavy sigh, Yūji sat back down and let his head bang against the table. Today was just going to be one of those days. Sure, he knew Rune could fight and protect Mammon. He had tested Rune's strength personally to see just what his limits were. He just wasn't ready to give up another sister to a guy. Not yet.

"Argh! Why do all my sisters have to fall for fucking masked heroes?-!" Yūji shouted while pulling at his hair. Today was not going to be a good day.

"You know, I've been wondering what you have against Suller-kun," spoke Shogo. "I mean, you don't seem to have a problem with us dating your sisters." Shogo was referring about himself dating Lucifer and Daichi dating Leviathan.

"Plus, Shinichi knocked up one of them," Daichi added, referring to Satan whom Shinichi had gotten pregnant. She was due to give birth very soon.

"Not to mention Yokoshima's married to Asmodeus," Shogo finished. That was a huge surprise to the NUMBERS as he was the first among them to tie the knot and to a demoness. The marriage was also a pleasant surprise for the Stakes as their youngest sister was the first to be married.

"Well, that's because I've known you guys longer and I trust you. After all we've been through, how could I not?" Yūji answered. "But this guy...I just don't completely trust him." And he had every right to not fully trust Rune. Besides Dr. Magi, Yūji was the only other person who knew Rune's darkest secret.

* * *

Somewhere in the forest of Ireland, the swirling green vortex of energy of the Teleportal opened up, allowing Rune and Mammon to emerge and take their first steps on Irish soil. As the Teleportal closed, Rune took in a deep breath, inhaling the air of his homeland. And the air, compared to that of the future, was not as clean. With no fossil fuels or huge amounts of greenhouse gases flooding the air in his home era, the air was much crisper and cleaner than it was in this timeline. Looking over to Mammon, he easily noticed the bright smile on the young demoness' face.

"I'm so glad he let me go with you!" Mammon beamed as she carried a heavy backpack. As they looked at their surroundings, they could see that they had been dropped off in a woodland area with a small waterfall feeding a creek right off to the side of them. She was taking it all in. Beautiful.

"I almost thought he was going to come along. You know, to keep an eye on us," admitted Rune. Yuji just didn't trust him but he trusted Mammon to be able to take care of herself. Their relationship bothered the Flame Manakyte but there wasn't much he could do, besides kill Rune, and even he wouldn't cross that line.

"Oh, he trusts me and knows I can take care of myself. Besides, Onii-sama has trouble saying no to any of us," giggled Mammon.

"Yeah, sure he does," Rune groaned in a deadpan tone. "I bet he has Sheila keeping an eye on us." He looked up at the sky. He could almost picture the satellite looking down at them, spying on them, and watching their every move with scrutiny.

"Well, he just needs to stop being so overprotective of us all the time and stop being so suspicious of you," she said as she hooked her arm with his. "Well, shall we?" she asked, giving him one of her seductive winks.

"You have no idea how we big brothers view little sisters like you, do ya?" Mammon just ignored his question as she eyed the forest.

"You know, if we find a Leprechaun, maybe it'll lead us to a pot of gold," she said greedily. Rune looked at her and smiled. He had gotten used to her greedy ways and came to enjoy that smile of hers.

'_Note to self, tell the Leprechaun to run for the hills if we cross one_,' Rune told himself while chuckling.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ireland also had another visitor. However, she wasn't here to relax or see the sights. She was here on business and not the regular name was Nana Kohana and up until now she used to be a normal office lady. Every day it was the same. She would come to work at 9 then go home at 5, maybe hang out with a few friends at the bar. She even had a relationship with one of her co-workers. It seemed like life was good for her.

Or so she believed.

One day she learnt that the co-worker she was dating was having an affair. Not only that, because the company didn't want their reputation tarnished she was fired. Her co-worker and the bitch he was having an affair with were fired too, but it just wasn't fair. Why did she have to be fired when she did nothing wrong?

Looking for a new job wasn't easy and it was stressful and disappointing too. In order to get the edge off she turned to drugs. There was a new drug being sold on the streets called G-Shock and the high she got from it was unlike anything she'd ever felt. She felt more focused and confident than ever before. She didn't care about her ex-boyfriend or her old job. She could do anything she wanted. But then she saw him again, this time with another girl. Her rage which bubbled inside of her threatened to erupt and so to calm herself down she swallowed the entire bottle of G-Shock.

And what happened next would shock her soul.

She followed them back to their place, broke in, and killed them, and not in the usual way. She had fire pumping in her veins, literally, and when she saw them in bed, she just used her newfound power on them. Nothing was left of them but ash. Once Nana realized what she'd done, she ran away in horror. She needed to wrap her head around what had happened. What had she done? What had she become? That was when she was approached by someone. He knew what she'd become but instead of showing fear or disgust, he actually offered her a job and referred to her to a group called the RoC (Religion of Crime). She learned she wasn't the first to evolve because of G-Shock. Many others had ascended but had their evolution obstructed. Nana was special and would continue to grow stronger, with training.

With nobody to stop or hinder her, hew new powers grew and so did her control. Her new superiors felt that she was ready and so she was sent to capture an escaped specimen. She obeyed and went off, to Ireland where he was last spotted. During her mission, she wore a tight, form fitting black bodysuit with flame patterns running up and down the sides of her abdomen, arms and legs. She had a glock holstered to her left thigh and a set of strange looking darts set in a case on her segmented metal belt. She also wore black military boots and padded gloves with a communicator strapped to her right wrist. The zipper on the front of her suit was undone a bit, allowing some of her impressive cleavage to reveal itself. She also wore a pair of strange looking shades over her eyes which acted as a special location device; the shades built with a tracker that could lock onto the specimen's bio-trail.

Nana effortless bounded from tree branch to tree branch, making almost no sound as she tracked down her target. When she had been brought into the RoC, the man who had found her and taken care of her had taught her everything she needed to know and personally crafted her training regimen. And that training was paying off. She was already a skilled assassin for the RoC, but now she wanted to prove she was more than just an assassin. What was more important than proving herself to the RoC was proving herself to the man who gave her a new purpose in life. She would do anything and give anything for that man who had given her everything.

* * *

Moving through the woods, Rune followed a path that he had always used back when he was a kid and he was glad that the same path still existed almost 400 years in the past. It was a path that led to the village that he would be born in. They did run into a few obstacles along the way. Ironically, they actually had come across a Leprechaun but Rune was able to distract Mammon long enough for it to escape; the Leprechaun thanking Rune as he ran away. But he did leave behind a small gold doubloon for Mammon as a small parting gift.

"We're almost there, babe," Rune told Mammon who was still inspecting her newly acquired treasure.

"About time, too," she said as she put her doubloon in her backpack. "We've been hiking for over five hours already and my feet are starting to get soar."

"I did tell you not to pack so much stuff before we left," Rune scolded playfully. "And why did you have to walk when you could float?" Mammon just shot him a glare.

"My pack is full of tools for collecting treasure so everything I packed is essential. As for not floating, I didn't want to freak out the locals and get chased by an angry mob with torches and pitchforks," Mammon retorted. Rune just shook his head and laughed.

"That's my greedy demoness, always one step ahead of the game when it comes to treasure."

"Would you prefer me any other way?" she replied with a saucy look on her face.

"Maybe," replied Rune. "Though it requires you naked, strapped to a bed and covered in chocolate sauce and whipped cream with strawberries on top." Rune was starting to drool at his small fantasy as was Mammon.

"Hōko-kun, stop it, you're going to make me horny," she teased him as she glomped his arm.

"Since when are you not horny?" Rune shot back with a smile. He then found himself dragged into her embrace as she claimed his lips for a moment. Enjoying the kiss, they soon broke the pleasurable contact and Mammon looked at him with half-lidded eyes.

"The only time I'm not horny is when I'm either not with you or not thinking about you," she told him in a whisper before licking his lips. A moan was then enticed out of her as she squeaked at the same time from the sensation of Rune giving her butt cheek a light pinch. "Mō, Hōko-kun, you tease."

Rune just smiled and said, "Come on, we better hurry while we still have some daylight. These woods supposedly have wolves in this era and we wouldn't want to get caught by a hungry pack."

"Like we have to worry about wolves," scoffed Mammon and she displayed her energy blade. "I'm way more _deadly_."

"Be that as it may, I don't like to hurt innocent wildlife unless it's to stop them from taking my life," he told her. "Now, come on."

Mammon just nodded as she readjusted her backpack and followed Rune, taking his hand in hers as they walked. As they continued their hike, little did they know that they were being watched by many pairs of eyes. The owners of the eyes then popped their heads out from the leaves of the trees and bushes, revealing them all to be differently colored Fairies. In many old cultures, Fairies were known to be pranksters and tricksters but they were also seen as guardians of the forest. If they sensed that a traveler meant any harm to the forest or those living in the forest, they would cause mischief for said traveler. But if the traveler meant them no harm, they would look after them, secretly guiding them towards the right path of their intended destination. And, for the moment, these Fairies of the forest kept their eyes on the Demoness of Greed and the young alchemist from the future.

* * *

Inside a cave system hidden underneath the Irish forest where Rune and Mammon were visiting, Dredge was currently walking about, his eyes enabling him to see in the pitch dark blackness of the cave. As he walked around, he could hear the sound of bats from above, the scurrying of rats and the slithering of a few snakes. He could even hear the bugs around him crawling all across the cave floor and walls. It didn't bother him though. To him, this place was a paradise compared to the many rumored versions of Hell that he had heard so much about. It was even better than that black, dark prison of emptiness that he and the other Homunculoid Generals called home until Rune had stupidly opened up his Gate of Truth, giving them all the chance to escape into the human world.

"This place is actually quite…quant," Dredge said to himself. As he continued, he came across an underground lake that led over to a hole in the cave wall. "Hnn…what's this?"

Following the lake to the hole, he ducked under and entered, gaining access to a hidden chamber within the cave. Dredge let out a whistle as he saw all the stalagmites and stalactites which lined the other side of the hole, making it look like a gaping maw preparing to eat anyone who dared entered it whole. He continued to follow the lake which was now narrow, like an underground stream, until he came upon a set of stone steps. They actually looked like they had been carved by human hands long ago, having some of the sharp edges worn away with water and time.

"Interesting," he said as he climbed the stairs. As he reached the top, he came upon an actual stone door. "And the mystery continues."

Taking firm hold of the door, he opened it up with a single shove, giving him access to a hidden passageway. Before entering the passageway, Dredge extended one of his fingernails into a sharp claw and cut it along his free hand. Blood soon dripped out and hit the stone steps, seeping into the cracks. After a few moments, the cave floor at the bottom of the steps began to crack before a small platoon of over twenty Homunculoid grunts appeared.

Dredge smiled and pointed to two of them and commanded, "You two come with me. The rest of you, guard this entrance and kill anyone that dares try to get past you." The Homunculoid mooks all let out eerie grunts as Dredge was followed by two of them through the passageway.

As they walked down the hall, Dredge looked at the walls and could see what looked like alchemic equations and even some sketches and painting of the first transmutation symbols. But they were well over a few hundred years old. The images were in fact the first recorded records of ancient medieval alchemy. Dredge then noticed images of Chimeras and then something that looked like an image of a human but with a red dot making up the center of their chest where the heart should be. The red dot was more in the shape of a stone and Dredge instantly knew what it was: a Philosopher's Stone. That meant that the human-like creature was the first Homunculus.

"Okay, now things are starting to get really interesting," Dredge said quietly and noticed that they soon came up to another door, this one made out of stone as well. "Pheh, too easy." He tried to grab the stone but was soon sent staggering backwards as he was hit with alchemic energy. "What the hell!?" He then noticed the door glow with alchemic symbols. "I see; a transmutation barrier. Very clever…but not clever enough!" Dredge shouted as he reformed his fist into one that looked draconic in nature, his fist slamming into the door. The stone door shattered to pieces, falling down to the floor of the passageway, all around the feet of Dredge and his two grunts.

Once they entered into the room, they saw what appeared to be the inside of some kind of abandoned church. But this was no ordinary church. It wasn't even used for prayer to the Christian god. Not even a pagan deity. No, it was built for something so much more. Dredge looked around and noticed more symbols and alchemic equations inscribed all over the walls until his gaze hit the ceiling. What he noticed was an image of the supposed god of all alchemy, Hermes Trismegistus. A human-like figure dressed in white robed, golden adornments, a pope-like hat and holding up a strange gold sphere on his right index finger. Set behind the god…was the Gate of Truth. But what was even more astonishing was the small trinket that adorned the sash around his waist.

A Kakugane made of gold.

"Yes…YES!" Dredge shouted. "So the legends were true! This is where the modern era practice of alchemy is reborn! This is where the Kakugane was first created!" He developed a Grinch-like grin. "If I can figure out the process and return my findings to Lord Gawl, then nothing will be able to stop us from making the world ours!"

Dredge's laughter filled the abandoned church, passageway and even some parts of the cave. If he could gain the knowledge and power of the Kakugane, the Gold Kakugane, then nothing would be able to stop him or the Homunculoids in the future. Not even Kamen Rider Renkin.

* * *

As they came towards the end of the path, Rune noticed a plume of white smoke rising up above the tree line. And it was a type of smoke that could only come from a stone chimney. Mammon followed Rune up to the edge of the forest but he soon came to a stop and turned to face her.

"Hōko-kun, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Babe, I think it might be best if you changed into something a little more…common," Rune suggested. "Not dissing your style, but we don't want to give these people the wrong impression. Even in the future, they're still so very far behind on current events. Most likely, these people don't even know what rock-n-roll is let alone liking any form of music except for polka."

Mammon just nodded her head and used her magic to change her usual Stake attire to that of a pair of blue jeans, hiking boots and a red long sleeved shirt with some of the buttons on the top undone, giving her chest a small bit of fresh air. She even had her long hair all set in a ponytail and braided. Twirling around, she asked, "There, how's that?"

Rune just swallowed a gulp and blushed a bit. "Babe, why are you so hot?" Mammon just smiled at the compliment before standing next to him. "Well, here'a goes."

With that, Rune led her up to and into the village where he claimed the 'Father of Modern Alchemy' lived. It was just as Mammon expected to look. It was a small town surrounded by nature, almost isolated from the outside world. As they entered the village they noticed the looks they were getting from the villagers. They also noticed that these people were definitely not up to par on current technology. Heck, they could see some people still doing their laundry on a washboard inside a wooden bucket filled with water. The children of the village looked at them with wonder, having never truly set eyes on an outsider before.

As they continued towards the center of the village, Mammon looked towards the outskirts of the village and noticed a stone tower with a stained glass window far off in the distance, hidden behind the village and deep within the forest on the other side. Stopping in the middle of the village, they noticed that the villagers stopped paying attention to them as they went about their daily lives. While it did seem that the village was way behind the times, the couple did notice an old 50's Chevy pickup. It was red in color but covered in rust. They also saw wooden barrels used to hold liquids such as beer, wine and liquor.

"Well, hello there, strangers." Rune and Mammon turned to see an elderly gentleman wearing what looked like traditional Irish garbs and using a wooden walking stick to aid him with his balance. He had a long, thick grey beard and bushy eyebrows while he wore an old green Irish cap on his head. "I must say, this is the first time in over twenty years since we've had visitors to our small village. My name is Aedan Cabhan. I'm the elder of this small but humble village."

"It's nice to meet you, sir," Rune said as he extended his hand. Aedan took his hand and gave it a soft shake. "My name is Rune Suller. And this is my girlfriend, Mammon…"

"Purgare," Mammon added. "Mammon Purgare." She too extended her hand, Aedan taking it as well and giving it a gentle shake. "It's very nice to meet you, sir." She wore a sweet smile and then gave him a kind curtsey.

"Well, at least it's nice to see that some of today's youth from the outside world still have respect for their elders" Aedan replied. "So, please to do tell me, what brings you to our village?"

Mammon looked at Rune who looked back at her. Rune, taking a deep breath, looked Aedan the Elder in the eyes, doing his best to show the old man proper respect. "Well sir, you see, we're here to see Ferdia Cearnaigh." Upon hearing that name, Aedan gave Rune a scrutinizing glare. "Err…um…well, ya see…"

"What would you want with Mr. Cearnaigh?" Aedan the Elder asked sternly.

Before Rune could answer, he soon heard a small child let out a cry. He, Mammon and Aedan turned to see a little girl standing off to the distance, crying. Looking down, they noticed a small doll that had its head separated from its body. Not wanting to see a child cry, Rune walked over and knelt next to the girl, placing his hand on her head that was covered in chin length red hair, trying to placate her. The girl, tears still streaming down her cheeks, looked up at Rune and let out a sniffle. Aedan was about to walk over when he felt Mammon's hand on his arm. Looking up at her, he noticed her shake her head and then motioned for him to just keep watching. Everyone else was also watching as Rune consoled the little girl.

"Hey there, sweetie, what's the matter?" Rune asked her in a gentle and kind voice like any grownup would use with a small child.

"M-my dolly…it broke," the girl told him. "One moment, I was using my brush to brush her hair and then I must have brushed it too hard because…because…_waaaaaa_!" The little girl cried again and all Rune did was give her a gentle hug. The girl clung to his shirt, her tears creating a wet spot where his pocket was.

"Shh…shh, it's alright," Rune told her as he rubbed the back of her head. "What if I told you I could probably fix it?"

The girl stopped crying and looked up at him with tear-filled eyes. "Really, mister? You could do that?"

"I could give it a try," replied Rune.

He then reached down and picked up the doll and its head, inspecting them. The doll was quite old, probably made decades ago and was possibly a toy passed on down through her family. Looking it over completely, Rune placed the doll back down on the ground, its head right next to its shoulders. He then slapped his hands together before placing his palms on the ground next to the doll. Alchemic energy surged all around the doll as the people looked on in amazement, especially the little girl and Aedan the Elder. After a few seconds, the energy dispersed, leaving a newly restored doll there on the ground. Rune picked it up and held it before the girl who looked at him with wide eyes.

"There we go, good as new," Rune told her. The little girl poked the doll a couple of times before taking it from his hand and hugged it tightly in her little arms; a bright smile on her face.

"Thank you, mister!" the girl beamed as she then gave Rune a hug. Rune could hear all sorts of whispers coming from the villagers as could Mammon. "Hey mister, are you a friend of Old Man Ferdia?"

"No, not really," answered Rune.

"Then how come you can perform magic just like he can when you clap your hands?" She asked curiously.

Rune just smiled. So Ferdia did know how to use alchemy in this era. That would possibly make things a little bit easier for him. "Let's just say he and I had the same teacher…I think." The little girl just smiled some more before running over to her mother to show her the newly restored doll.

"That was sweet of you," said Mammon as she stood behind Rune.

"Yeah, I just can't stand seeing a little girl cry when I know I can do something about it," said Rune.

"Seems to me that you have that in common with Onii-sama," smiled Mammon.

As Rune stood up, Aedan the Elder approached him. "I don't believe it," said Aedan as he removed his cap and wiped his forehead of sweat. "You can do it too! You have the 'gift'!" Rune then explained that he could use alchemy just like Old Man Ferdia but left out how he gained the ability to use it without having to draw out the circles or that he was not even from their era. After explaining and clearing things up, Aedan the Elder just nodded and he stroked his beard between his fingers.

"I see, that's quite the tale there, lad," Aedan told him before he turned around and began to walk towards the edge of town. He then stopped and looked back at Rune. "Well, come with me. I'll take you to see Ferdia. He should be working in his study as we speak." He then looked at Mammon. "Lass, why don't you explore the village a bit? Once Mr. Cearnaigh has gotten acquainted with your boyfriend here, I'll then send for you. It's best that we don't overwhelm him with strangers all at once."

"Well, if it's for the best then I guess I have no choice," Mammon said before giving Rune a quick peck on the cheek. "Guess I'll see ya soon."

"Right, I'll have them come get you once the introductions are out of the way and I explain a few things to Old Man Ferdia," Rune told her before he followed Aedan the Elder to Ferdia's home and study. After watching them go, Mammon turned around and was about to head off when the mother of the little girl offered to hold onto her pack so that she could walk around without hindering her movement. Mammon thanked her, setting her pack next to the doorway of the woman's home, and headed on her way to explore the village.

* * *

Nana found herself standing in the middle of the forest surrounded by a pack of wolves. They looked vicious and hungry and she was on the menu. Unfortunately for them, they have just bitten off more than they could chew. If they knew better, they would realize that their supposed meal was more dangerous than they thought.

The Alpha of the pack lunged for her and Nana shot her hand towards it. A burst of flame shot out of the palm of her hand and hit the wolf, burning it. The rest of the pack upon seeing this, quickly fled while they left their Alpha to cook in the middle of the forest.

"Hmph," scoffed Nana. This was another gift she had gained from her G-Shock mutation. She could manifest her powers in human form but they paled in comparison to her abilities in her Hyde form. She felt a little hungry though and she glanced at the wolf she had just killed. She licked her lips and decided to indulge. Being a Hyde meant she had no inhibitions and just did what she wanted to satisfy whatever desires she had. With the power she possessed who could stop her?

The Fairies all watched the woman put out the fire of the burning wolf and remove the burnt fur and skin before going for the flesh and taking a bite.

* * *

While she waited for Rune to meet with Old Man Ferdia, Mammon was doing some exploring around the village. It was pretty nice and quiet and everyone had a strong community bond. It reminded her of Hinamizawa, except with a lot more redheads. In all honesty, she actually kind of liked it, the nice and calm setting of the village. It seemed like a nice place to settle down and raise a family, away from all the hustle, bustle and dangers of the big city. She then blushed the moment she realized that she had just thought about raising a family in a village like this. But it wasn't an impossible thought. If the barrier that kept ARMOR from reaching this world and kept Yūji and Alan trapped here was ever lifted, then she could go and live with Rune in his home era and still come back here to this world to visit Satan and Hiroyuki as well as the others. She was pretty sure that Asmodeus, Lucifer and Leviathan were going to stay here as well while Belphegor and Beelzebub stayed back in Meta-World with Lady Beatrice. And she could still go and visit Yūji whenever she wanted. Not to mention he could come visit her.

She couldn't remain his little sister forever. Four of her sisters had already found lovers and were in stable relationships…well, stable for them anyway. And she wanted the same thing with Rune. He made her feel excited and calm all at the same time. She knew that there was friction between him and Yūji but all big brothers were protective of their younger siblings. So it made sense. She just hoped that one day they would get along. She did plan to go and live with Rune once this whole RoC deal was done and dealt with as well as finding a way to remove the barrier. No offense to this world, but the Meta-World, despite being able to connect to any timeline, was also currently stuck to this timeline and couldn't access any era beyond it. And Mammon was starting to get itchy feet, wanting to go on an adventure of her own. Maybe with Rune one day.

"So, do you wanna go and explore the old abandoned church? There's supposed to be buried treasure there," said a young boy as Mammon passed by a group of kids. The mention of treasure piqued her interest all of a sudden. Looking back at the kids, she stayed put while continuing to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"No way. My mother told me to never go there! It's dangerous she says," another boy in the group said. "Plus it's said that the whole place is haunted by some big, evil spirit."

"Hah, coward! I'm not scared of an abandoned church! Or whatever curse that is lying there!" boasted another boy.

"Well, count me out. My life is way more precious than whatever treasure's down there."

Her interest fully piqued and her mind now set in full 'Treasure Hunter' mode, Mammon approached the group and smiled, "So, boys, tell me more about this abandoned church and buried treasure." It might be a rumor with no grain of truth but Mammon was still interested to see if she could find something there. Who knows, she might find something she could give to Rune as a gift. Or maybe some secret alchemy code or something. Whatever was there, treasure or not, it was at least worth investigating.

* * *

Within the abandoned church, Dredge began carving transmutation symbols onto the floor. He could sense human life closeby. _Very _closeby. That meant there was a human settlement nearby. And one of his favorite things to _eat_ was humans. Of course, if the village had any lovely young women, he would then have to indulge in his desert first before having dinner. And he was busy constructing a set of circles that, when activated together, would create a field of energy that would trap anything that stepped foot into the center. It could also neutralize all forms of Mana, Ki, Reiryoku and Yōki, yet still allow him to move freely within it himself. This was because the forest around them not only held humans but mystical beings as well. He had to wonder if there were any good looking Dryad's living in the forest. If there were, maybe he could get them to produce him some of their sweet _nectar_.

Dredge grinned as he finished his holding seals. He carved them on both the floor and ceiling. It was basically the alchemic version of what was known as a Devil's Trap, only this trapped _everything._ Now all he had to do was either go and lure some food towards him or just kick back and wait for delivery.

* * *

Standing next to a work table, Rune looked around the study of Old Man Ferdia and noticed so many notes, alchemic equations and transmutation circle patterns adorning the walls, floor and ceiling that he was starting to wonder how long the old man had been performing alchemy. Looking at the table, he noticed what appeared to be notes. Picking them up, he began to study them and noticed that what was written was actually a formula for crafting the standard silver Kakugane. Rune was definitely impressed and was about to look at another stack of notes until he heard a coughing sound come from behind him.

"Er-hem…" Rune turned around to see Aedan the Elder standing there with another old man who wore similar garbs to those of Aedan but he had no beard. He had a grey mustache and long grey hair tied back in a ponytail. What was strange though was that he was missing a leg, using a walking stick instead to help keep himself upright. "Excuse me young man, but please put those back on the table. They are notes for very important research and I doubt someone like yourself would be able to under-"

"These notes hold the alchemic equations and instructions on how to create a Kakugane," Rune replied instantly, surprising the old man.

"H-how did you know that?" Ferdia asked.

"You see Ferdia, it's like I said," Aedan told him. "This young lad possesses the same 'gift' that you do."

Old Man Ferdia moved closer over to Rune and looked him in the eyes. He then looked at the way he carried himself and noticed that he seemed to slouch ever so slightly on his right side, meaning there was a great weight there, greater than what was carried on the left. Taking out a small mallet from his work belt, he tapped it against Rune's elbow and actually got a metallic pang sound from it. Rune only smiled lightly. The old man was no fool. He had a missing leg and knew so much about alchemy. That meant he had done the same thing Rune had done, he had opened his own Gate of Truth.

"Elder, please let me have some privacy with my young guest for a few minutes," Ferdia requested.

"As you wish," Aedan the Elder said with a nod and turned, leaving the two along. The moment the door closed and when Ferdia was sure the Aedan was gone, he took the club handle of his cane and whacked Rune upside the head.

"OW!" Rune shouted. "Cripes gramps! What was that for!?"

"You stupid kid! Why in the world would you do such a stupid thing such as opening that damned Gate!?" Ferdia bellowed. "Don't you know it's nothing but trouble?"

"Yeah, I kinda figured that out after I opened the damned thing!" Rune shouted back. "Lemme guess, you opened it too which is why you know so much about alchemy. So tell me, what it cost ya, old man?"

"Take a look, lad," Ferdia said as he motioned to his remaining leg. He stood only on one leg and walking stick now.

"Guess my hunch was right." Rune did wonder why Ferdia didn't just make himself a new prosthetic leg. It wasn't like resources and materials were lacking. All he had to do was collect what he needed, clap, and fire off alchemical energy to transmute the material into a new prosthetic leg.

"And you, your arm, it's fake, isn't it? I heard that pang." Rune just looked away before he took off his jacket, setting it on a chair behind him. He then took out a knife and slice around the skin on his arm. Ferdia looked in shock for a moment until Rune peeled the skin back, showing him the bio-soul metal arm beneath the skin. "Extraordinary!" he said as he grabbed a magnifying glass and looked at the craftsmanship. He had never seen such a thing. "So, tell me lad, what was your motivation?" he asked as he continued to look at Rune's metal arm.

"It was…my mother," was all Rune said. Ferdia looked up at him and sighed. Reviving a loved one was a common motivator for performing taboo arts such as human transmutation. "She…was pretty sick and I remember coming across a few entries about the Gate of Truth. So, I opened it up to see if I could somehow find a cure for her illness."

"Yes, love is a powerful motivator," agreed Ferdia. "Especially if it's love for a family member. I should know."

"You too?" Rune asked.

"Yes…my daughter."

Ferdia took a seat in his chair as he began to go over his past with Rune. It seemed he finally found someone else besides himself that was stupid enough to seek out the Gate of Truth. It took him a few minutes, but he had soon filled Rune in on his past mistake of trying to bring his dead daughter back from the grave. She had died by drowning. He had been practicing alchemy for a few years by that time and figured he knew enough so he tried to revive her but what he brought back…it wasn't human. In the end, he reburied his daughter and killed the creature he had breathed life into. Rune felt sorry for him, placing his hand on the old man's shoulder, letting him know that he could sympathize with his pain.

"I'm sorry," said Rune sympathetically.

"Don't be lad. You had nothing to do with it. And I've moved on since then," said Ferdia. "I was just foolish and desperate."

Taking a small cloth and cleaning his glasses and wiping the tears from his eyes, Ferdia then asked Rune for his story. What he got though was not what he was expecting. Rune told him everything. His past, where he came from, how he got to this current timeline; all of it. He even told him about the dark secret that slept in his chest. And when he got to the Homunculoids, Ferdia could barely believe it. But the young man who had also opened the Gate and had a strange metal arm of such strange and wondrous design was not smiling. And he wasn't lying either. Strange, here they were, two men from two different eras, who'd made the same error for the same reason and paid the price for their mistakes.

"I see, and this Gawl broke out of the Gate, attack and killed your mother and consumed her soul?" Rune just nodded. "Such a sad twist of fate indeed, my boy. You have my deepest sympathies and my condolences," he said, placing a hand on Rune's shoulder this time as the young Rider fought back tears of his own. He didn't like bringing up the past. No good ever came from it. You couldn't change the past as alterations in the timeline could usually just cause the timeline to split, creating a new era in cross-time. It was actually what probably explained half of the alterations in his own future already. "Well then, onto new business then. Don't want to dwell on old and buried mistakes, do we?"

"Yeah, good advice," said Rune.

"So, you said you found some of my research in your era, studied it and went from there?" Rune nodded. "Remarkable," Ferdia complimented. "To think I'd meet such an impressive youth such as yourself before my time came. It is indeed a great gift."

"So, can you help me?"

"I believe I can," replied Ferdia. "But, while the creation of the standard Kakugane only takes a few weeks, you already can guess that creating this won't take as such a short amount of time." Rune nodded in understanding. Ferdia grabbed a set of notes from his table and then some blank pieces of paper and copied the notes to the blanks. After a few moments, he handed the new notes to Rune. "Here, this is the formula for creating the White Kakugane. If my calculations are correct and if the technology in your era is as advanced as you say it is, it should take you probably no more than a month to make."

"Thank you, Ferdia," Rune said as he folded the notes and put them in his jacket pocket before slipping said jacket back on. "This means a lot to…hey, what's that?" Rune walked over to a set of equations he saw written on a small blackboard and began to read them. What he understood made his eyes widen in both shock and fright. "Is…is this what I think it is?"

"Yes, the secret behind the creation of a new type of Kakugane," Ferdia informed. "But the equations are not finished and I am making this my last work." The old man then thought of something. "Tell me lad. Does anything from this area still exist in your time?"

"The 'Tree of Wisdom' still does," Rune replied. "It's a sacred landmark in my time. But why do you ask?" Ferdia just smiled.

"If and when you get back to your era, check the ground around the tree. Check it deeply. If I finish this, then I'll leave you the formula." Rune wore a big smile. "I might be able to finish this formula, but I lack the proper equipment and materials to create such a device. So, if I finish it, then consider it as my final gift and legacy to you, my dear alchemist from the future."

"Gramps, you're the best!" Rune shouted as he gave the old man a hug. He then let him go as he remembered something. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I came here with my girlfriend. She's interested in learning alchemy so I've been teaching her the basics. But I want her to learn from the master. So, whadda ya say? Think you could give her a few pointers, teach?"

Ferdia just smiled an old and soft smile. "Lad, I see a bright future for alchemy indeed when the young are so willing to learn." Rune ran to the door, telling Ferdia he would be back in a moment. After a moment had passed, Rune did return, but without Mammon. "Lad, what's wrong? Where is this girlfriend you were telling me about?"

"That's just it, gramps. They said she asked some of the local kids about some rumored buried treasure at the old church." Rune quickly noticed the look of fear that Ferdia had in his eyes. "Lemme guess, shouldn't go there, right?"

"Lad, if you want to see that lass of your alive again, then I suggest you go after her!" Ferdia warned him urgently. "That place is rumored to be cursed but a curse it is not."

"Why, what's there that could be so bad?"

"The very thing that all alchemists yearn for," he said eerily. "A Philosopher's Stone."

* * *

The kids were nice enough to give her directions to the old abandoned church which had been around for a long, long time. It was rumored to be older as the village itself. It was just a simple structure but it was inaccessible by people as many of the pathways were either gone or blocked. One of the old rumors said it was a place of worship which was why the villagers called it a church. Mammon wasn't exactly the religious type but she had to admit that the building had seen better days. It looked like it was once a very prestigious and well built church but now it was all rundown and abandoned. It hadn't been demolished either when the villagers built a new church on the other side of town. Guess the people here still respected the old church even if nobody visited it anymore. Not like they could though. Not a single villager had ever been able to find access to the old church but there were rumors that it was possibly connected to the underground cave system.

"Well, I won't find any treasure just by standing out here," said Mamon and so she approached it. Being a demon had its advantages as she flew over the obstacles and landed near the front double doors. She pushed the doors open but the hinges were so old that as soon as she gave it the slightest nudge, they gave way, and one of the old double doors crashed upon the floor, kicking up dust. "Oops," she said with a sweatdrop. She looked at the door lying in the middle of the floor then shrugged. "I'll fix it later." It'll only take some alchemy to fix it up. She entered and she looked around. Everything was covered in dust and cobwebs. It was even worse on the inside than on the outside. The windows were either cracked or broken, the benches were rotten now, and the floorboards just seemed so weak that they could give away and someone might fall.

Mammon, however, wasn't deterred. She scanned the place, looking for something that might hold some kind of treasure. But where? She proceeded to step forward and when her foot entered a circle she had not seen due to the darkness of the church, the trap was sprung. She let out a scream as she was forced to her knees by the shocking energy.

* * *

As Rune ran towards the path that lead towards the old church, he recalled what else Old Man Ferdia had told him. The old man was the only villager to have ever found his way into the church and it was where he learned about alchemy. It may have looked like a church but it was far from it. It was actually a vault built to look like a church so as to keep unsuspecting people from finding out what was truly being done and held there. The alchemists of old practiced their craft at that building and had found a way to create a Philosopher's Stone. But the price to create it was so great and its potential power so powerful that the ancient alchemists feared it. So they locked it away and created golems that would come to life and attack any and all intruders. Even alchemists. Ferdia had been able to get past the golems without being caught but the terrible secrets he learned made him fear that stone. He didn't learn it right away but after years of research he uncovered the truth.

Three hundred years earlier, there had been another village in the exact same spot where the current village resided. But, in less than a single night, all of its inhabitants had disappeared without a trace. And Ferdia had discovered why. The Philosopher's Stone. To create one, you need a human sacrifice. A lot of sacrifices. And so the ancient alchemists used the villagers as the raw material that they required. But they got more than what they bargained for as Ferdia deciphered the story that the images on the church walls told. All but one of the alchemists survived, the others having been taken by the Gate of Truth. After that, the sole surviving alchemist hid the stone inside the church, created the golems and left the story of what had happened on the walls. He had never been heard of again. That was, until Ferdia found a way into the church. And now he told Rune how to get in.

'_Damn it, babe! Of all the times to let your mind go into 'Treasure Hunting' mode!_' Rune thought as he came to the fork in the dirt path.

Taking the path on the right, he headed towards the cave systems that lay underground. He just hoped that he got there in time before those golems found Mammon. He knew she could fend for herself. That wasn't the problem. The golems were. It was said on the walls that they were crafted to rebuild themselves if they were ever destroyed. So, unless you smashed their core, they would keep coming back. Rune had to hurry. Even a demon could tire out if they fought a long battle.

* * *

"Let me out of here, you creep!" Mammon shouted at Dredge who just stood there and smirked at her. The moment she had stepped into the trap, Dredge had emerged from the shadows. Mammon easily recognized him from how Rune had described him but he seemed to be wearing a different outfit now. Possibly to help blend in with the current era and to not draw attention to himself. She also noticed what appeared to be mounds after mounds of rubble with shattered red stones on top. To the untrained eye, it all looked like piles of rocks but Mammon knew what they were. Golems. But it seemed that Dredge had destroyed them. The Homunculoid General stood before her wearing a loose black tank top, blue jeans with a black belt and black military boots, two wrist bands with spiked studs as well as a choker with spiked studs as well and a black headband the held back his long, slicked back black hair. He looked right at her with his bright red eyes.

She mentally cursed her curiosity but she just had to go and explore the old church located on the outskirts of the village. Since it began to fall into disrepair and no one had found a way to get to it, it had been abandoned in favor of building a new one. However, the old church was rumored to be the hiding place of an old treasure and being who and what she was, Mammon couldn't resist from going in and exploring.

However, luck was unfortunately not on her side. Having entered the church, she discovered that it was the hiding place of something else entirely. She'd found Dredge and even though she didn't know who he was he took offense to her intrusion. It didn't take long for him to incapacitate the Stake of Greed. It was only after getting a good look at him and hearing how he talked that she realized who she was dealing with.

Dredge knew more about Alchemy than Mammon, the later unsuspecting of the transmutation circles on the floor which now trapped her in an energy barrier which surrounded her body. Try as she might, she couldn't escape as it was a trap that used a strange type of alchemical symbol. The symbol itself glowed with energy so destroying it would be difficult unless the trapped person themselves knew alchemy, which Mammon had no idea how to use yet; being just a beginner at the practice.

While it was mostly a trap meant for either a regular human, wild animal or mystical creature, catching a demon was still something. Maybe selling her to the highest bidder as a demonic sex slave would land him a high profit. Dredge just paced back and forth while thinking of the many things he could do with the brunette demon and even he had to admit that she was really easy on the eyes. Maybe he would have a go at her for a couple of rounds before selling her off.

"Hey, asshole, I'm talking to you! I said to let me out of here!" Mammon shouted once more, pounding her fist against the energy barrier, only to recoil in pain from touching it. "Itai," she muttered as she rubbed her hand. Whatever type of spell this was, whatever type of alchemy this was, it wasn't allowing her to vanish in the form of golden butterflies. It was keeping her trapped in place.

"Now why would I want to let such a beautiful piece of ass go when I could have some _fun_ before selling you off to the highest bidder?" Dredge chortled in laughter as he spread his arms out wide. "Besides, I don't think my friends here would be all that happy if I just let you go," he said as a group of low-level Homunculoid grunts burst out from the ground and began to encircle the energy barrier, grunting loudly. "They like it when they get the chance to see one of us Generals have our way with a beautiful woman, bending them to our will and having them scream our names out _all night long_!"

"Gra! Gra! Gra!" the grunts cheered out as their leader just gave Mammon a lecherous grin. Dredge then walked over to the barrier and sneered at her with a perverted look in his eyes.

Dredge then snapped his fingers and Mammon's body was suddenly stiff as a board as alchemic energy surged throughout her entire body. "You see, I can enter and exit that barrier freely, without harm. And that energy I just sent throughout your body is meant to keep you paralyzed and from accessing your supernatural abilities. This way, I can fuck your brains out and bend you to my will for as long as I want without risking any chances of you attacking me." He proved his point as he slid his arm through the barrier easily and reached out with his hand. His hand began to squeeze and fondle her left breast, causing her to squeak at the sudden touch of one of her more sensitive areas.

"H-hentai! Release me this instant!" Mammon demanded. No man was allowed to touch her unless she deemed them worthy and only if the man was a treasured person, not just some lowly idiot like Dredge. The Homunculus smiled and rolled his thumb around the area where her nipple was before pinching it between his thumb and index finger. Mammon let out a startled moan as she blushed slightly. To believe that such a touch would actually make her body feel good, she would not believe it!

"Heh, your mouth says 'No, no' but your body is so much more honest." He grinned as he looked at her hips and how those pants hugged her body tightly, his eyes fully staring at her nether region. "I wonder how honest the mouth down there is." Dredge began to slip his other arm through the barrier as he began to fantasize on just how much of a good fuck she would be.

* * *

Making his way through the cave, Rune used his Fullbring abilities to move as fast as he could while forming a ball of light with his own reiatsu so that he could see. He quickly came upon the underground lake and noticed the hole in the cave wall. Moving fast, he ducked under the cave wall and continued to follow the underground stream until he came to the stone steps. Before reaching the steps, he stopped as the hair on the back of his neck began to rise, alerting him that danger was present. And he was right when the ground before him suddenly exploded into chunks of rock as ten Homunculoid grunts burst out from the cave floor.

(_**Insert Song: Are You Ready? – by: Devo – Might Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie OST**_)

"Great, it's the welcoming committee," Rune quipped. '_If these guys are here then that must mean…Dredge! That fucker must be here as well_.' He saw how the grunts were defending the stone steps which meant that Dredge was just beyond that point. Knowing that they weren't going to let him pass without defeating them, Rune glared at them as they began to rush him. "Get the fuck outta my way!"

Rune caught the fist of one grunt and pulled it towards him, bashing his head into the grunts, knocking it out. He then blocked a swipe with his right arm while kicking a third grunt in the gut, sending it skidding across the floor. He then pushed the arm of the second grunt away before decking it with a left hook, square in the jaw; its body spinning in the air before it hit the floor. He then kicked at the fourth grunt but the Homunculoid caught his foot. Rune just wagged his finger in a 'no-no' fashion before slamming a kick to its head with a roundhouse kick from his other foot. The moment Rune righted himself, he received to punches to the chest from two more grunts, knocking him to the ground but he got back to his feet and slapped his hands together before smacking them to the ground, creating spikes covered in alchemic energy, running the two of them as well as the other four downed grunts through.

One of the four remaining grunts charged at him a lashed out with a sword but Rune ducked and knocked its feet out from under it. "Have a nice trip," he began. The grunt hit the ground hard before Rune used alchemy to form a small blade on the back of the heel of his boot, bringing his foot down and stabbing the blade right between its eyes. "See ya next fall."

Looking at the remaining three grunts coming at him with weapons drawn, Rune moved back by using backflips. He jumped and performed a mid-air tornado flip, jumping over a sword slash before using his right arm to block another sword slash. Pushing that sword away, he slapped his hands together and then placed them against the chest of the grunt, electrocuting it with alchemic energy. Turning to face the last two grunts, Rune took a roundhouse to the face, the kick sending him to the ground. Looking up, he rolled out of the way as one tried to run him through with its sword, getting to his feet and then rushing the two grunts. He kicked the first one in the chest before propelling himself off of its body to land a second kick in the chest of the other grunt. He then formed the blade on his right arm and rammed it into the chest of the most recent grunt, killing it. He turned to take out the other grunt but noticed it hightailing it up the steps and through the passageway.

"Hey, get back here!" Rune shouted as he followed it, reforming the blade back into his arm.

The Homunculoid grunt ran for its life but, before it could reach the door at the end of the passageway, it found its path blocked by a stone wall coming up from the ground. Turning to look behind it, the last thing it ever saw was Rune's alchemic energy charged right fist ramming right into its face. His fist rammed right through the grunts head and connected with the stone wall he had made. The energy, even after his fist hit the wall, continued onward and struck the door, causing it to explode into hundreds of pieces, taking most of the surrounding wall with it.

(_**End Song**_)

* * *

**BOOM!**

The force of the powerful explosion blew apart the adjacent wall, leaving smoke and debris to flow through the air as a dust cloud formed before the now newly formed hole. In startled surprise, Dredge removed his hands from the barrier; a reaction that Mammon was thankful for. She couldn't stand his touch and glared at him with hate before looking over at the dust cloud. She soon noticed the shadowy silhouette of a figure appearing in the dust cloud and prayed that it was someone coming to rescue her.

"What the hell is going on?!" Dredge demanded but he got no answer. "I said I want to know who it is that thinks that they have the right to enter my domain! Now, answer me, intruder!"

"Oh, would you just shut your fucking mouth already!" a voice shouted out. The dust cloud settled and Dredge nearly did a double take at the sight of Rune standing there before him.

"Rune!" Mammon cried out happily.

"R-Rune, how did you find this place?!" Dredge demanded as his Homunculoid grunts encircled Rune, growling darkly. Rune just sighed and then smirked.

"Easy, fuck-face. I heard from the locals that my girl there came to this place to look for buried treasure." He then looked past Dredge and over at Mammon, "You ok, babe?" Mammon just nodded and smiled, relieved to see Rune.

'_Damn, of all the people I had to meet in this world it had to be him! _' Dredge thought to himself as his hands crackled with alchemic energy. Only the Generals of the Homunculus could use alchemy and he was a general. He would not lose to some human. "Listen to me, all of my Homunculoids, kill that sonovabitch right now!-!-!"

The Homunculoids all grunted in response as they instantly charged at Rune who just smirked as he removed his pendent from his neck and held it in his hands. "Heh, like I'd let you have the chance." He then held his arm out before him, his hand gripping his medallion tightly. "Hagane no Yami!" he shouted and, in a flash of green light, he activated his Fullbring. The pendent within his left hand instantly changed shape and grew into the form of a giant crimson red sword that was nearly four feet in length. From the hilt to nearly all the way up to the blade was a green snake ornament that coiled around the weapon. This was Rune's Fullbring.

With a swing of his sword, Rune knocked away all of the Homunculoid grunts, sending them flying right into the walls behind them. Ramming his sword's blade into the ground, he slipped off his jean vest and slapped his hands together before placing them onto his sword, filling it up with alchemic energy. Taking the sword back into his hand, he rolled his neck around and flexed out his arms.

(_**Insert Song: Hagane no Kokoro GokaiSilver**_)

Dredge looked at his grunts and noticed that they wouldn't be getting back up for a few moments. Letting out a snarl, he flexed his fingers, forming claws at the end, before lunging at Rune.

"You'll never leave this place alive, boy!"

"I should be saying the same thing to you, ya soulless bastard!" Rune shot back as used his sword to block a slash at his chest and pushed the claws away before lashing out with a slash of his own, forcing Dredge to jump backwards. Dredge, thinking he'd have a speed advantage, began to race around Rune who just watched him as he moved. "You think that's going to work on me?" In an instant green, soul-like, energy flickered around his feet, allowing him to reach high speeds that were not normally possible for humans.

"What the?!" Dredge chortled as jumped up into the air only to see Rune actually standing on the air, waiting for him.

"Did you forget that I can use all of the basic Fullbring techniques?" Rune asked him sarcastically as he brought down his sword, slamming it right into Dredge and sending him right into the floor below with a thunderous thud. "So using something as simple as Bringers Light is as easy as taking a nap, ya dumb ass!"

Rune then looked over at Mammon who was just watching him fight with an intense look in her eyes. It was as if she was gauging him and judging his worth. He could care less for the moment as he needed to try and get her out of here. Descending down to the ground, he was suddenly surrounded by the reawakened Homunculoids as they charged at him. Gritting his teeth as he dug his heels into the floor, he parried a claw slash from one grunt while propelling himself forward, slamming his fist right into the face of another grunt. He then thrust his sword forward and impaled the first grunt with his blade and then stabbed the blade into the ground. The instant the tip of the blade stuck into the ground, an alchemic circle appeared around it, sending alchemic energy up the blade and throughout the Homunculoids' body. The beast screamed in agony before its body exploded in flames and flying body parts.

As a few grunts backed away from the fight, Rune knocked one in the side of the head with a forward roundhouse before performing a second roundhouse, taking out a second grunt that was behind him. Coming to a stop, he rammed the back of his elbow into the face of a third grunt while kicking his foot up into the crotch of another grunt. The crotch-shot grunt held its sore and aching area with its hands as it fell to it knees.

"Oh, now that had to hurt," Mammon said quietly as she watched the fight continue.

As the rest of the grunts charged at Rune, the young alchemist slapped his hands together before placing his palms flat against the floor before him. In an instant, rock hard spikes, covered with alchemic energy, slammed into the charging grunts, impaling and killing them instantly. He then grabbed his sword and, filling it with some of his reiatsu, swung it around with another swing, sending the remainder of the grunts back into the walls behind them.

Looking back over at Mammon, he ran over to her and looked down, noticing the symbols etched into the floor. "Heh, this is child's play," he laughed as he stabbed the ground near the barrier with his sword every few seconds, carving different patterns in each spot that he stabbed. As he finished the last pattern, an explosion from the ground behind him erupted upwards as Dredge came flying out and morphed his hands into sickle-like blades.

Looking over at Rune, Dredge snarled as he bared his fangs and rushed towards him. "Get away from my meal!" Dredge shouted as he brought his sickle claws down upon Rune who was forced to block. Looking up at Dredge, Rune noticed the deep gash in the Homunculi's chest, indicating that his last attack had dealt some serious damage.

"Hey, you should really see a doctor about that cut," Rune quipped. "You wouldn't want it to get infected."

"SHUT UP!-!-!" Dredge yelled as he was able to tear Rune's sword out of his hands. This didn't stop Rune though as he slapped his hands together and then pressed them to Dredge's chest, the alchemic energy acting like a surge cannon, sending him careening through the hole in the wall that Rune had made earlier.

Rune just stood there with a cocky grin on his face as he watched as Dredge slowly made his way out of the hole. He also noticed that the few remaining Homunculoid grunts were also getting back up from their small bouts of unconsciousness and began flanking their leader, preparing to back him up. Rune just reached down and picked up his sword and then stuck it into the ground before whistling out to Dredge, catching his attention.

(_**End Song**_)

"Huh?"

"Hey, fugly!" Rune then slapped his hands together again, preparing to perform another alchemic trick. "How 'bout we let the lady have some fun as well?" And with that he pressed the palms of his hands to the ground, right onto one of the symbols which he had etched into the floor moments earlier with his sword.

The symbols glowed with crackling blue alchemic energy which resembled blue electricity as did the energy barrier. After a moment the barrier disappeared, allowing Mammon to finally move about. Stretching her arms out and rotating her shoulders, she looked over at Rune who was smiling at her. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah," she said but then her red eyes narrowed. "I am so going to enjoy cutting that guy up." Rune tossed her his sword. "Huh, what's this for?" She could make her own blade of energy. She didn't need an extra weapon.

"It's charged with alchemic energy. This way, you can actually kill those Homunculoids instead of just injuring them," he told her. He then slapped his hands together again and lowered them to the center of his abdomen, the energy forming a glowing red orb at the center of his waistline. In a matter of seconds, his Rider belt had formed with the alchemy pods attached to the segmented sides of his belt. The buckle looked like a golden sun with claws reaching out, clutching the red orb within their grasp. "Let's get this party started! Henshin!"

With the shouted of that word, Rune's body was covered in alchemic energy. After a few seconds had passed, the energy dissipated, leaving Kamen Rider Renkin in Rune's place. He then took his kakugane off of his belt and held it out before his body.

"Busou Renkin!" In a flash of golden light, the kakugane separated and began to grow and transform into something entirely different. In his hand he now grasped onto a long silver handle that, at the pommel end, had a sharp tip that looked ornate in design. On the other end of the handle was a three-foot long arrowhead-like lance. The lance had a red long, stretched out, hexagonal base with two blue gems located at the two ends. On top of the base was an orange base that gave the midsection a type of biting teeth pattern. Holding his newly summoned weapon in his hand, he twirled it around a couple of times before getting into a stance, holding the lance in his right hand while stretching out his left arm forward, resting the blade on his left hand. "Alright! Sunlight Heart, Ikouze!"

(_**Insert Song: Makka na Chikai**_)

Renkin, using Bringers Light, ran straight for Dredge while Mammon used Rune's Hagane no Yami to deal with the few remaining Homunculoid grunts. Flying in the air, Mammon came down with the Fullbring sword in a diagonal slash, taking out one grunt, before summoning her violet energy blade with her right arm to block a strike to her face. Mammon had to fight Dredge's Homunculoid mooks all by her lonesome as Renkin dealt with the primary threat. Still, while outnumbered, that didn't mean the brunette was outmatched. These were just mindless grunts after all whose only strength was in their numbers. Maybe an average human would be overwhelmed, but not her.

"I don't think so," she chortled as she pushed the clawed hand away from her and then swung the Hagane no Yami in an upward vertical slash, cleaving the grunt right up the middle. Looking at the remaining grunts, she did a 'come here' motion.

The remaining grunts lunged at her, coming down on top of her in a dog pile. But not for long as Mammon twirled the Hagane no Yami around, creating a twister of demonic and alchemic energy from the sword, slicing a few grunts to shreds in the process. Resting the tip of the blade against the ground, Mammon developed a sinister grin on her face. She was enjoying the bloodlust and carnage that she could now incur upon these Homunculoids and the high of the battle brought her nothing more than a great sense of heightened ecstacy. Looking at the remaining four grunts before her, she licked her lips as she flew straight at them with the Hagane no Yami right out in front.

They rushed her at once but couldn't touch her as she glided towards them and struck them with her energy sword. It was a blade made of Mana and as demonic being created by magic she was full of it. The closest grunt before her was decapitated by the Hagane no Yami. She then backflipped over a grunt coming at her from behind to plant her foot into the face of another grunt. Bounding off, she performed a spinning motion through the air and ran a grunt through with the Hagane no Yami. Withdrawing her sword she ducked a blow from a Homunculoid and slashed it across the chest with her energy blade before kicking it backwards.

The Homunculoids continued their assault like any mindless grunt. She scoffed. Even the Goat Butlers showed more skill in her opinion. Guess sparring with a group of them on occasion really helped her get used to fighting large groups. That, and helping out her Onii-sama and the others when they needed extra womanpower.

With an eager and sadistic grin, Mammon twirled around, hacking and slashing with her energy blade and Hagane no Yami. She even performed a split kick before rolling through the air to land a crushing heel kick onto another grunt. Bounding off, she caught a grunt's head between her calves and flipped forward onto her hands to toss it into the air and into its fellow grunts. She got back to her feet and attacked them as they came close.

"Alright, playtime's over," she declared and in a flash of gold turned into her demonic stake form. Flying through the air she impaled each of the grunts. Zipping and zooming, she was too small for them to catch and too fast for them to keep up with. She aimed for the vital areas as she was taught, going for the heart, the brain and the eyes. She also went through the throat as well. The ground was stained by the blood of the Homunculoids but they didn't die just yet. Still, her assault did manage to inflict damage upon them. Mammon returned to human form in a flash of gold light and finished them off with the Hagane no Yami. She watched as their bodies dropped before she flipped her long brown hair and grinned with a hand to her hip with the Hagane no Yami rested on her shoulder. She hovered a foot off the ground confidently with her legs close together. "And that's a wrap."

As Mammon had her fun with the grunts, Renkin and Dredge were currently having their own personal battle. Or to be more accurate, Dredge kept on trying to slash at Renkin who just kept on dodging all of Dredges' attacks.

"Oh, come on. My great-grandmother can move faster than that," Renkin quipped tauntingly at Dredge who had yet to land a hit on him. Dredge just glared at him angrily, his facial features contorting as he did his best to stay in control.

"You don't even have a great-grandmother, you fucking brat!" Dredge shouted out in anger. It cost him though as Renkin dug his heels into the floorboards and then, using his sheer force of will, commanded the Sunlight Heart to propel him right into Dredge, the lance piercing the Homunculi's chest. "ARGH!" Dredge coughed up black colored blood as he took hold of the Sunlight Heart's blade and formed a blade on the heel of his boot, slamming the weapon into Renkin's chest plate.

"Argh, damn it!" Renkin shouted as sparks were torn off of his armor, painfully. Releasing the Sunlight Heart's hilt, he skidding to a screeching halt while slapping his hands together. Dredge yanked the alchemical weapon out of his chest and looked over at Renkin, only to see a huge metal cannon staring him right back in the face. "HEADSHOT, MOTHERFUCKER!"

**BANG!**

The cannon released a powerful cannon ball made of metal and alchemic energy which slammed into Dredge's face with enough force to send him flying across the room and through a huge old cross in the background. Walking over and picking up his Sunlight Heart from where Dredge had dropped it, Renkin looked over his shoulder to see Mammon decapitating three of the four remaining grunts while laughing maniacally.

'_Man, that is one crazy chick_,' he thought to himself but then noticed he was admiring more than just the sight of her having fun with her battle. '_Correction, that is one hot and sexy crazy chick._' He looked on as Mammon impaled the final grunt with her energy blade, the tip coming out its back, before kicking it off. She then swung the Hagane no Yami in a lower horizontal cross slash, slicing its head in half. '_Ouch, that one just had to hurt._'

Panting and smiling maniacally, Mammon wiped a bit of sweat from her brow and then looked over at Renkin who had stopped to watch her fight. Giving him a lecherous smile she flew over to him, landing right next to him with a small hint of pink tinting her cheeks. As she landed, her outfit changed from the one she created before entering the village back to her usual uniform.

"Well, how'd I do?" she asked him, wanting to know how well she handled herself with a Fullbring weapon for the first time.

"Not bad. Could use a little more practice but, hey, for a first timer that was really impressive," he commented, earning himself a big smile from the Stake of Greed. They both then turned to see the area where Dredge had been blasted suddenly erupt in a flurry of energy and flying wood planks as Dredge himself emerged from his hole in the ground.

"You…you…YOU FUCKING SONOVABITCH!-!-!" Dredge roared as his body began to morph into the first stage of his true form, the form of a Homunculoid General. His clothes were torn to pieces as his body elongated itself into the form of a giant, green, draconic serpent. His maw was filled to the brim with razor sharp teeth, each one nearly a foot in lengthy, and his forehead was crowned with a red gem and a set of curved horns. "**I am going to kill you and present your head to Lord Gawl!**"

"Che, whatever," Renkin chastised as he readied his Sunlight Heart while Mammon got into a stance next to him, preparing the Hagane no Yami. "Did you forget what I did to you the last time you took on that form?" How could Dredge forget? Renkin had used his Sunlight Heart and sliced off a part of his tail during their last scuffle nearly a year prior and now Dredge wanted a bit of payback.

"**This time will be different, boy!**" Dredge roared as his red gem began to glow while he opened his maw wide, a black and red energy ball forming between his jaws. "**DIE!**"

Dredge let loose a powerful energy blast that was meant to kill the Rider and the demonic whore in one single shot. As the blast carried on through the building, Dredge then raised his head as he began to twirl the blast around, taking the whole building down. As the blast subsided, Dredge admired his handy work but then noticed both Renkin and Mammon reappear before him, but at a much farther distance this time.

"**Damn you, you little pest! Why won't you just die already?!**"

(**End Song**)

Suddenly, a fireball flew through the air and exploded in the spot between the two parties. All eyes turned towards the direction the fireball had come from and saw a woman with reddish brown hair in a ponytail, sunglasses, and dressed in a belly-baring turtleneck top. She also had on tight blue jeans and cowboy boots.

"Found you," Nana Kohana grinned. She had not only found Dredge, but also the Kamen Rider known as Renkin. She was told to bring them both in, but knew she was no match for an almost unknown Rider. Looking at Dredge, she saw that the Homunculoid had some power despite his injuries. She had a job to do and would accomplish it no matter what. Taking a pill from her pocket, she popped it into her mouth to activate the transformation. Actually, she didn't really need the drug to transform anymore, but it made things easier and gave her a boost.

"G-Shock!" Mammon identified. It was the drug that turned humans into monsters.

Nana threw her head back and roared as her skin turned fiery red with veins of magma. Her skin began to take on a stony texture as her hair was on fire. She spat out a gout of flame as her body began to mutate. Her fingers grew claws and she also grew a segmented reptilian tail with exhaust pipes on the tip, spewing flames. Her body became toned and muscular with ripped muscles. Her face stretched along with the skull, her teeth sharpening, as she took on a new reptilian shape. Her hair was no longer on fire but had turned into fire. The ground under her clawed feet was scorched due to the intense heat she was radiating, the fire enveloping her like an aura.

She was now the Lava Rex Hyde and with a roar she spewed flames from her snout. She also looked incredibly hungry.

"As if we didn't have enough problems already," Renkin frowned.

"Well, maybe they'll be too busy tearing each other apart to notice us," Mammon remarked. It seemed that she was right at first when Lava Rex rushed Dredge and used a shoulder tackle to knock him off his side. Dredge went tumbling but he recovered quickly as he flew back into the air.

"**YOU BITCH!**" roared Dredge as he fired an energy blast that Lava Rex countered with her own fire blast. Both blasts met and exploded, nearly blowing them all through the air. Slamming his palm onto the ground, Renkin created a shield to protect himself and Mammon as dust and debris flew in all directions.

"How about we just leave and let them destroy each other?" Mammon suggested. She wasn't the type to actually run from a fight but on the other hand she wasn't the type to ignore a chance for a 'tactical retreat' as two hostile elements turned on each other and clashed violently. Besides, this didn't look like a fight she wanted to get involved with at the moment.

* * *

Inside the Hive's game room, Yūji stood at the edge of the pool table, playing a game of pool with Alan who had dropped by to see how things were going. Alan, once he got there, saw the look on Yūji's face and knew that Rune had something to do with it. After finding out that Mammon had gone on an outing with the alchemic Rider, Alan himself couldn't find anything wrong with it. They two liked each other and enjoyed one another's company. And Rune respected Yūji enough to where he wouldn't do anything stupid until he and Yūji were on good enough terms. Alan himself didn't see anything wrong with Rune. He was a big help around the Hive. He helped Dr. Magi and Dr. Washum with their projects and he even helped Chiaki with fixing and even upgrading their vehicles. He even volunteered to babysit the kids as he really had nowhere else to go at the moment.

Yūji, eyeing the #2 ball carefully and lining up his shot, smacked the que ball right in the center. The white ball in turn slammed hard into the #2 ball, sending it right into the cornet pocket. "Alright, all that's left is the #8 ball and it'll be game, set and match," Yūji said with a grin as he began to line up a shot with the #8 ball.

"I still don't understand why you're so against the idea of Mammon dating Rune," Alan continued their conversation as he watched Yūji line up his shot. "Don't get me wrong, I have siblings as well and I'm always protective of them even if some of them are older than me. I just want to make sure that they find the right one."

"Eight ball, right corner pocket," Yūji announced before he smacked the que ball into the #8 ball. Unfortunately, the ball didn't go into the pocket and now Alan, who also only had to get the #8 ball to win began to line up his shot. "Okay, look Alan. I know what you and the others are trying to do and I get it. Yeah, Rune's a nice enough guy and he's got power to boot. And I know he would never in his wildest dreams ever consider hurting Mammon."

"Agreed," said Alan. "Any man that considers hurting one of your sisters has a serious death wish."

"But even so, I still don't trust him enough yet," continued Yūji. "I mean, yeah, he's from this world's future. That's great. He can even handle Mammon and her personality but…"

"Eight ball, left center pocket," Alan announced before taking his shot and making the hole, winning the game. He stood up and leaned against the table. "But, let me guess, he still has too many secrets that could prove to be a great threat to us or just to you."

"More like he's just really secretive," said Yūji as he too leaned against the pool table, sitting next to Alan. "I just want to absolutely sure that he's the right one for Mammon and not just a one night fling."

"Yūji, trust me, if he ever hurt Mammon or broke her heart, I'd hold him down for ya while you tore into him," Alan said as he placed a hand on Yūji's shoulder, trying to comfort his friend. Yūji looked at him and smiled while nodding.

"Thanks, bro."

Alan just gave him a thumbs up. "Hey, what are friends for?" Alan then got up and put away the que sticks. "Now come on. You said you had Sheila tracking them so let's go play 'Big Brother' for a bit and maybe even try to see if we can mess with Rune's head as well."

Yūji got up and grinned. "Now that sounds like a plan," he said as he followed Alan to the main hall.

* * *

**(**_**Insert Song: Day After Day – By: Haji's Kitchen**_**)**

"Come on," Mammon insisted promptly as she put her arms around Renkin. "Let's just go. Let these two freaks kill each other."

"No," answered Renkin and Mammon's eyes widened.

"No? No!?" Mammon exclaimed.

"I can't just leave," he told her. "The village and the villagers..."

"Oh," Mammon realized. The village was nearby and so were the innocent villagers who lived there. She looked at Lava Rex and Dredge who were still fighting each other violently then back to Renkin, knowing there this was going. There was a slight chance that either Dredge or Lava Rex might survive, and a very huge chance that either of them would hurt the villagers to get to Renkin. After all, the village was going to be Renkin's home in the future.

Lava Rex (Nana Kohana) was feeling incredibly exhilarated. She used to be the girl that got pushed around, now she had power, and she was enjoying it! She was enjoying it, a lot! She could get back to everyone who had ever wronged her and teach them a lesson. She could even teach this freak (pot calling the kettle black) a lesson for insulting her. He wasn't anything special in her opinion but orders were orders and she was going to accomplish this mission even if she had to kill this guy two times over. Her orders were to bring him alive but she could just bring back his lifeless corpse for them to study.

Dredge opened his maw and gathered energy for attack as did Lava Rex who gathered her excess body heat in the form of a fiery energy ball that was located in her maw. The two reptilian powerhouses then fired their attacks, both blasts colliding and blowing apart much of the woodland around them. Many of the Fairies that lived in the trees began to flee as the forest was slowly set ablaze. Renkin and Mammon looked around and saw the birds and the rest of the wildlife rune for their lives and Renkin gripped the hilt of the Sunlight Heart tightly in his hand, nearly crushing the hilt in his grip. Mammon noticed the rage her boyfriend was feeling and could see his red eye lenses begin to glow a bright red as was the God Sun Stone that was the center of his buckle. She watched as Lava Rex jumped up and grabbed Dredge by the back of his neck and then threw him down onto the ground. The force of the impact caused Dredge to revert back to his humanoid form as he rolled along the ground before slamming back first into a burning tree.

"Damn her," Renkin cursed under his breath. He looked back towards the village, worried for the villagers, and then looked back at Mammon. "Mammon, go back to the village and help the villagers evacuate from here as fast as you can. Then call the Hive and have them send some reinforcements."

"But what about you?" Mammon asked though she already knew the answer.

Renkin looked at Dredge as he got up and formed his hands into his sickle blades once more and charged at Lava Rex, parrying her claw strikes before kicking her in the gut, sending her skidding across the ground. "Dredge might be a dick and my enemy, but even he doesn't deserve to get killed by a Hyde." And with that, Renkin used his Bringer's Light to accelerate him into the heat of the battle, leaving Mammon to watch him before she took off back towards the village as fast as she could fly.

Lava Rex charged at Dredge and brought her arms down in a side striking club attack, forcing Dredge to block with his arms. She struck his arms again, knocking them up into the air and opening up his defenses, allowing her to slash at him with her fiery claws, burning a set of claw marks onto his chest and tearing his shirt to shreds. Dredge screamed in pain as his black blood dripped from his wound. Glaring at the Hyde, Dredge vowed to get her back for that one. As Lava Rex prepared to strike again, she was instantly struck by Renkin who came down with both his Sunlight Heart and Hagane no Yami in the form of a dual diagonal slash attack, ripping sparks and blood from her backside as she was knocked forward. Dredge looked at Renkin with a judging look before they both turned at the sound of Lava Rex letting out an irritated roar.

"Is there a reason why you're helping me?" Dredge asked.

Renkin turned the Sunlight Heart back into its Kakugane form and reattached it back to the side of his belt. "Well, if anyone is gonna roast your sorry ass, then it's gonna be me," Renkin boasted with what sounded like a cocky snicker. Dredge just grinned. He would only acknowledge Rune as his opponent and rival and would not let anyone else kill him except for himself or one of the other Generals. As such, he would be damned if someone besides Rune himself took his life. He would rather die quietly in his sleep than let that happen.

"Just remember, you die by my hands and no one else's," Dredge reminded as he turned his fingers into blades.

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend," said Renkin as he prepared the Hagane no Yami, filling it with both his reiatsu and some alchemic energy. "Now let's kick her ass!"

* * *

Gathering the villagers, Mammon helped them escape the village and make it toward the cove of the stream so that they would be out of harm's way. Once they were all there, she contacted the Hive to get them to send backup but it seemed that it wouldn't go over so easily. As Mammon talked to Yūji and Alan through the com-link, she kept her eyes on the battlefield and on the fire as it began to spread.

"What do you mean the Teleportal has a glitch!?" Mammon shouted into her com-link as she got the news.

"_Hey, the moment we saw the Hyde on the satellite feed, we were gonna open the portal and come help but it suddenly went haywire_," Alan said from the other side, back at the Hive.

"_Yeah, it's like something or someone doesn't want us to interfere with this battle_," added Yūji.

Mammon gritted her teeth in aggravation. "Well hurry up and fix the damn thing!"

"_Look, Mammon, I'll fly over there while the others try to fix the Teleportal_," Alan offered.

"Right, see ya in a few moments then. Mammon, out."

With the connection stopped, Alan transformed into his Sentinel persona and headed for the exit while Yūji went about trying to fix the Teleportal with Magi and Washum. Once the they got it working again, Yūji himself would go to join the fight.

* * *

Back at his lab, Oh Yeun-Kyung watched the scene of Lava Rex fighting both Dredge and Renkin, resting his chin on the back of his hands. The moment Nana had located and made contact with the Homunculoid, Oh Yeun-Kyung had his sources within the RoC set up a jamming signal to stop the Renegades from getting involved. He was ordered to bring back the Homunculoid but he also saw Renkin as a valuable test subject.

"Sir, Sentinel has just been spotted making his way towards Agent Kohana's location," one of his assistants told him.

"Then contact our friends on high to send a distraction!" Oh Yeun-Kyung ordered. "We cannot afford to lose the specimen!"

"Yes sir!"

* * *

Sentinel was flying, zooming like a rocket through the air. He actually passed by a commercial airplane and stopped to wave at a little boy who saw him. He loved to do that as the little boy tried to convince his parents of what he'd just seen. He had no time to waste, though. Yuji and the two doctors were fixing the Teleportal. While Yuji could've flown along with him, his technical expertise was needed more at the base.

As he was heading to Ireland, he realized that he was not alone in the air as two dozen flying figures were heading towards him. He recognized them instantly. They were those Demon Ninja Darkstars but there was something different about them. They were now clad in form-fitting black bodysuits and wore plated armor that reminded him of the armor of the Cybermen. Also, Darkstars originally couldn't fly but these could as they had wings and jetpacks. They also wielded spears, with glowing spearheads, which could not be good.

Once they spotted Sentinel, they opened fire, and the Lantern brought up a green shield to block their shots. He realized that they were sent to intercept and stall him. As much as he didn't want to waste time with these things, they weren't going to just let him pass.

"Guess there's no choice then," said Sentinel.

"They won't accept toll money will they, partner?" Bazel asked.

"No, definitely not," Sentinel frowned. And with that said, the sky turned into an aerial battlefield as Sentinel was forced to engage these cyber-enhanced Darkstars on his own.

* * *

Renkin hit the ground with a dull thud before quickly rolling to the side as Lava Rex tried to stomp down on his chest plate. As Lava Rex prepared to rush at the Rider, Dredge dropped kicked her in the back of the head, sending her tumbling forward into a tree trunk. The entire forest was on fire, the flames slowly making their way to the village. Dredge jumped back as Lava Rex lashed out with a fire covered fist, nearly taking a hit to the face. He returned the attack in kind, punching Lava Rex in the gut but soon found the Hyde holding onto his arm, his skin slowly starting to burn away.

"ARGH!-!-!" Dredge howled in pain. Lava Rex opened her maw and prepared to blow his head clean off when she received an elbow to the side of head, courtesy of Renkin. Lava Rex let go of Dredge who nursed his burnt arm, the skin slowly growing back as he began his slow process of self-regeneration. "Damn it! That fucking whore almost burnt my arm off!"

"You've been hurt worse," Renkin reminded as the two of them jumped to opposite sides so as to avoid a stream of flames that Lava Rex spewed from her mouth. "Remember that time in Paris when I impaled you on the Eiffel Tower?"

"Yeah, though that still doesn't count as a win," Dredge shouted as he ducked under a swing and then bashed the top of his head into Lava Rex's chin, snapping her head back. "You won because your so-called little sister shot at me with a bazooka!"

"Oh please, that so does count!" Renkin shot back as he slapped his hands together and placed them on the ground, forming a set of stone spikes that jut up and struck Lava Rex in the chest, ripping blood and sparks from her body. "But, that isn't the worst. How about that time that Bakeneko girl from the Yōkai brothel ripped off your nuts with her teeth?"

Dredge nearly did a double take and almost face-faulted. "How do you know about that!?"

"Oh, will the two of you just shut up and stand still so I can kill the both of you!?" Lava Rex shouted as she fired two streams of flames from her hands, striking both of and sending them to the ground, covered in flames.

Lava Rex jumped into the air and, forming a flaming tail from her rear, came down to the ground in the form of a spinning ball of fire, slamming right into Renkin as he got up. The hit caused sparks to erupt from his armor as he was sent flying through the air, crashing right into Dredge. Lava Rex then ran at the two of them and picked them up, their bodies burning from her touch and making the scream in pain. She then lifted up Dredge and dropped him, delivering a thrust kick to his midsection which sent him right into a boulder. She then head-butted Renkin, knocking him back, before enveloping her hand with flames. With a powerful right hook, she struck Renkin upside the head, shattering his helmet with one clean blow to the side. The hit sent him to the ground and blood trickled down the side of his temple from a cut he received from shard of his shattered helmet.

Pushing himself up, Rune jumped out of the way as Lava Rex fired more flames at him. Landing next to his Hagane no Yami, he slapped his hands together and placed them near his head, reforming his helmet. Picking up his Fullbring weapon, he looked to see Dredge slowly getting back to his feet. The two temporary allies looked at the Hyde and then at one another. There had to be something that they could do to take her down. That was when Dredge thought of something.

"Hey Rune, remember Brooklyn?" he asked with a grin.

Renkin took a moment to get the hint and nodded before the two of them charged at Lava Rex who charged right back at them. Slapping his left hand to one of the Transmutation Pods on his belt, Renkin summoned his gun-type weapon, the Trans Magnum. It looked similar to a high tech magnum with the symbol of the Sun god on both sides and colored red and gold. Taking aim, Renkin fired round after round at Lava Rex, distracting her and keeping her attention off of Dredge. Before she even knew what hit her, Lava Rex was knocked off of her feet by Dredge who then transformed his lower body into her serpentine tail and smacked her into the burning confines of the now demolished old church.

Taking a moment to catch their breath, Renkin looked at Dredge as he banished the Trans Magnum. "Nice idea with the 'Shoot and Smack' trick," he complimented. Dredge just wiped his nose with his thumb.

"Heh, you and Dizzy used it on me once. So, I thought it might work here," Dredge admitted.

"Good idea."

"**RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!-!-!**"

"What the fuck!?" both Renkin and Dredge shouted in unison as they heard Lava Rex let out a mighty roar. They noticed her emerge from the burning structure of the church, her body now covered in flames.

"You…you…**BURN IN THE PITS OF HELL!-!-!**" Lava Rex roared as the stone boulders from the church that now littered the ground began to converge upon her body. The boulders melted upon contact as her body became completely engulfed in flames. Her body grew in height and girth as she changed from a humanoid Dinosaur based Hyde to what was now a fully inflamed Tyrannosaurus Rex. This was Lava Rex's Tyranno Mode. It was a T-Rex with black magma-like skin with cracks which allowed lava to ooze out from her pores as her mouth and eyes were covered in flames.

"Oh fuck me," Renkin said as both he and Dredge began to back away. Renkin got the Hagane no Yami ready as Dredge covered some of his skin with his Serpent scales and turned his hands into their sickle blade form again.

"Uh…ok, that's new," said Dredge before he looked over to Renkin. "Got any ideas?"

"Just one," admitted Renkin. "Don't let it bite you."

"Yeah, kinda already had that in mind, genius," Dredge shot back. Lava Rex, in her Tyranno Mode, was now known as Lava Tyranno, and she glared at the Rider and Homunculoid and let out a powerful roar.

"**DIE!-!-!**"

Lava Tyranno ran at them with her maw agape, her flaming teeth wanting to tear into their flesh and rip them to shreds. She bashed Renkin with her head, sending him flying into a tree, said tree snapping in two from the impact. She then smacked Dredge with her flaming tail, destroying the rest of his clothes with her fire as he rolled along the ground. His body was soon covered in his original Homunculoid outfit, though he still had on the military boots. His skin was smudged from being constantly burnt and was red and scarred. He also had a few singes on some strands of his hair. Lava Tyranno let out another roar as she spewed molten lava from her mouth at the Homunculoid General; Dredge jumping up and over the Hyde and slashing it across the back. The moment he landed on the ground he got a tail smack upside the head, knocking him back down to the ground.

As Lava Tyranno turned to face Dredge, she was soon mounted by Renkin who jumped onto her back and began to ride her like a bucking bronco. Renkin held on for dear life as she tried to buck him off and Renkin was starting to get a serious case of hot pants as the Lava Tyranno's intense body heat to seep through his bodysuit. Not wanting him on her back any longer, she ran towards a stone wall from the church and slammed her backside into it, crushing Renkin between the wall and her body. Backing away, she then lunged for the Rider who defended himself with the Hagane no Yami. Lava Tyranno bit down hard on the Fullbring weapon and Renkin could hear the sound of it starting to crack. The bite force of Lava Tyranno was so strong that after a few seconds, she bit down so hard that her bite shattered the Hagane no Yami into hundreds of pieces.

Renkin and Dredge stared at the destroyed weapon in shock before they returned their attention back to the Hyde. Lava Tyranno lunged for Renkin again but this time the Rider used his Bringer's light to shoot him up into the air and grant him enough momentum to deliver a kick to the back of Lava Tyranno's head, sending her right into what remained of an ornate stone wall. Landing next to Dredge, the two watched as Lava Tyranno's body went limp for a few moments.

**(**_**End Song**_**)**

"Okay, no way in hell did one simple kick finish her off," Dredge stated in disbelief.

"Yeah, though, who knows, maybe we lucked out and she burned through all of her available energy reserves with that form." It was a possible and hopeful outcome but, alas, it would be one that would never come to pass as Lava Tyranno began to thrash her head and tail about as she let out feral roars and moans. It was as if she was in extreme pain.

As they watched her, she turned around and what they saw embedded on her forehead made them both nearly shit their pants. They then heard the sound of a metallic thunk on the ground and noticed a small container. Renkin went pale under his armor as Lava Tyranno's body began to glow a bluish-white color.

"Was that what I think it was?" Dredge asked, not wanting to believe it.

"Yeah," Renkin confirmed. "That was a Philosopher's Stone."

* * *

The flying Darkstars attacked Sentinel furiously and he responded in kind. Grabbing hold of a spear, he dragged a Darkstar to him and blasted a hole through it and watched it fall and vanish into dark smoke. The others, undeterred by the demise of one of their own, continued to attack. Two struck at Sentinel but their spears only ran through an afterimage. Sentinel had gotten behind them in a flash and grabbed them by their heads before bashing their heads together. Dark smoke slipped through his fingers as they vanished. He performed a backflip to dodge being driven through by spear from behind and killed four of them with his heat vision. The remaining ones still attacked and one of them got lucky and made a cut on his arm. He hissed. He hated how he was vulnerable to magic but fortunately these guys were also vulnerable to him. They attacked again and grabbing two spears he snapped their spearheads off then spun around to throw them at a couple of Darkstars, nailing them in their chest. They died, turning into smoke. Spinning back to face the ones who'd lost their spearheads, Sentinel used his breath to drive them back and then fired his ring at them, turning them into black smoke with well-aimed green energy blasts.

The others still continued to attack but had their numbers thinned systematically. Using his ring, he conjured the massive Blade Blade and an arch of lightning destroyed a few. Flying through the air as they gave chase, he conjured a multi-missile launcher on his back and sent his ammo flying. He watched in satisfaction as the projectiles hit their targets and exploded. Some of the Darkstars managed to survive but once Sentinel was done with them, he'd already cut their numbers to a mere six. He'd taken out a whole three-quarters of them since he started fighting back.

"OK," said Sentinel as he cracked his knuckles. "Try to keep up." Fast as lightning, he was kungfu fighting as he attacked the Darkstars and showed no mercy, not giving them any room to fight back. He'd practiced martial arts since he was young and it paid off. Oh, he wasn't as skilled as his Uncle Ryuki but he came pretty close. Punches, kicks, right hooks, left hooks. jabs, roundhouses and snap kicks all smashed into the Darkstars and they could not keep up as they were taken out. Only one remained and as Sentinel hovered in front of him, arms folded, he trembled and Sentinel held his hand out to the remaining Darkstar and _flicked _it in the forehead, knocking its head off its shoulders. The body and head turned to smoke.

"Well, that was easy," Sentinel remarked. He shouldn't have spoken too soon as his back exploded and he screamed as he was sent falling out of the sky. He tumbled for a while before regaining his equilibrium. He groaned, "What was that?" He scanned his surroundings then he spotted a squadron of futuristic jets coming towards him. He recognized their design quite well.

"Cyber Destroyers?" Of course he noticed some subtle differences. For one they were colored bronze with gold accents. They also had hemispheres along their surface. He scanned them using his X-Ray vision to confirm something and saw that they were piloted by mutated brain creatures which resembled cycloptic cephalopods. The squadron fired their missiles at Sentinel and lit up the sky with explosions.

* * *

While Mammon was evacuating the village from a savage battle that might spill into it, she occasionally looked over her shoulder. Rune was alone, fighting possibly two opponents on his own, without backup. She had no reason to worry as she had faith in his power, but she just couldn't help but worry about Rune. Rune was stuck in this era and unlike Alan and Yuji was all alone with nobody from his home here to comfort him. Oh, she didn't pity him but he didn't have many friends in this world. Shinichi did reach out to him and welcome him but Yuji just couldn't stop being suspicious of him. Still, Rune was determined to prove himself. She was first attracted to him because he was rare, an alchemist, and from the future. He was also a Kamen Rider, also a bonus, making him a true treasure in her eyes. But he was more than that. For the first time in her life she'd given her heart to someone.

"You're worried about him, aren't you?" Mammon turned to see a man with a walking stick and only one leg. She didn't know who he was but she answered his question nonetheless.

"Of course I do," Mammon said. "How could I not?"

"He won't lose," the old man said confidently. "The lad's too stubborn to let himself lose."

"How do you know that...?" Mammon asked.

"Because he still lives. Even after losing what was precious to him and even after learning the Truth, he is still alive," said the old man. "Reminds me of myself, really. So, I know that he definitely won't lose. Won't be much of an alchemist if he just gave up, am I right?"

"You're right, but he's no mere alchemist," Mammon told him. "He's a Kamen Rider."

"That means 'Masked Rider', doesn't it?" the old man questioned. "Well, then his title should be the Masked Alchemist."

Mammon considered it and smiled in approval. The Masked Alchemist. Not a bad title in her opinion.

* * *

Renkin and Dredge backed away slowly as Lava Tyranno's body began to shift and transform into a new battle form. Her body was surrounded by a bluish-white energy before the energy exploded outwards in the form of a bright light. Renkin and Dredge shielded their eyes, the light blinding them. After a few seconds passed, they lowered their arms to see the light had faded and so had Lava Tyranno. In her place was a new Lava Rex, Ascended Lava Rex. Her arms, neck, the front of her waist, the top of her breasts and thighs were a bluish-white color and her forearms, lower legs, knees and the sides of her waist were covered in a black and red magma-like armored skin. She had a reddish crotch guard and a red metal breast plate the fit her tightly, pushing her breasts up a bit. She had a long and powerful tail with a streak of fire going down the top of it and her fingers and toes were clad with razor sharp claws. Her shoulders had blackish-red Tyranno skulls covering them like shoulder armor and she also had a bit of a high collar. Her head had a blackish-red Tyranno Skull covering the top half of her head like a helmet but her face was bone white and very human. She did have fangs though and obsidian black lips. Her bone white skin also had scales covering her whole body but looked soft to the touch. Her whole body was filled with power. This was the power of a Hyde that was amplified with the Philosopher's Stone.

"Oh. My. God," Renkin said in a stiff tone.

"We are so boned," Dredge said, agreeing with Renkin's tone.

Ascended Lava Rex just smirked as she looked at her body, smiling with satisfaction. Whatever that stone was that had fused with her body, she liked the end result. She then eyed Renkin and Dredge and, in a blur of movement, was instantly behind them. The two temporary allies could barely even register her movement as, the moment they turned around, they found Ascended Lava Rex grabbing them by their faces, lifting them up and slamming them into the ground, skull first. She did this repeatedly, once again shattering Renkin's helmet. She then released her hold on Renkin, pinning him to the ground by slamming her foot into his chest.

The alchemic Rider let out a cry of pain that echoed throughout the forest as he coughed up blood. Ascended Lava Rex enjoyed the sounds of his agonized wailing; the sound giving her a form of euphoric feeling. As she kept Renkin pinned to the ground, she wrapped her hand around Dredge's throat, choking the life out of him. Dredge clawed away at her arm as he tried to free himself, his struggling giving Ascended Lava Rex an even greater power high as she licked her lips. She wanted to cause them more pain. She wanted them to bleed, scream, cry and beg for their lives. Their pain aroused her, it made her want to hurt them more. It was the ultimate high and she just couldn't get enough of it. She had finally found her calling in being the ultimate dominator of men. As a powerful beast of destruction. Now she would prove it by destroying these two men before her.

For Renkin, this was sure to be a logical paradox. How was he supposed to die now when he hadn't even been born yet? Simple: If he existed, he could be destroyed, and since he existed in this era, he could be killed. That was the truth of existence; if you were alive you could die.

Dredge, not liking where this was going, no longer saw a reason to hold his power back. This was the last resort and if he wanted to live to see another day, he would have to assume his 'true' form. "You…fucking…bitch!" Dredge shouted as he began to squeeze her wrist before finally wrenching himself free. Though, the moment he landed on the ground, Ascended Lava Rex swatted him aside with her tail, knocking him into a tree.

"Che, you no longer grant me any satisfaction," Ascended Lava Rex gloated before she lifted up her foot and slammed it into Renkin again, enticing another scream of pain and coughing up of blood. "Ah, but you, you arouse me so much. The sound of your voice as you scream in pain, it excites me," she said as she leaned down and got face-to-face with the unmasked Renkin. "To think that a boy from the future would be such a turn on~."

"Great…," Renkin coughed. "Just what I always wanted. A sadistic, sociopathic, homicidal, monster girl that wants to beat me up and fuck my brains out." He then looked over at Dredge and said, "Ya know…she kinda reminds me of that kinky General that hangs out with you…what was her name again?"

"You mean Levna?" Dredge asked.

"Yeah, her," Renkin said before Ascended Lava Rex began to choke him, getting another high of the sound of him trying to fight her grip and take in some fresh air. Dredge had to agree with Renkin though. Ascended Lava Rex was a lot like Levna. Out of the seven Homunculoid Generals, she was the dominatrix of the group.

Renkin gripped Ascended Lava Rex's arm tightly but was freaked out when she leaned down a bit more and licked his cheek with her tongue, lapping up some of his blood. Renkin sweat dropped at the action as her grip on his throat loosened while she savored the taste of his blood, licking her lips. Great, now she was becoming vampiric as well. With her grip loosened, Renkin slapped his hands together and pressed his palms against her chest, using the force of his alchemic energy to knock her off of him. Staggering to get up, he looked over and eyed his Sunlight Heart. He then heard a sadistic laugh come from Ascended Lava Rex and looked just in time to see her shoot a stream of flames at him. He jumped and rolled over to his Sunlight Heart, grasping it and then using Bringer's Light to get next to Dredge.

The two looked at one another and nodded, knowing what had to be done. Dredge was first as he summoned up all of his power. His humanoid and serpent dragon forms were powerful, but when both were properly mixed, he was even stronger than Renkin at his current level or power. The downside, it used up too much power and would leave him weak for nearly a month while he regained his strength. That is, unless Gawl would grant him an extra Soul Gem to act as a limiter for his power and allow him to use it whenever he wanted. But, for the moment, he would have to bite the proverbial bullet and use his true form. Letting out a roar, Dredge's body morphed into that of his human form as his body was a mix of skin and green scales. His arms grew gauntlets that were as tough as a dragon's hide and his nails became razor sharp talons. His serpentine tail grew out and he grew a pair of draconic wings with spikes at the tips and joints. His knees, elbows and shoulders also grew spikes and he also developed a set of razor sharp tusks from the sides of his jaw. Three horns sprouted out from his head and his long black hair became wild and turned red in color while his red eyes turned gold. His body was surrounded by a four-way aura field of fire, water, air and earth; the four main elements. This was Dredge's true form. He also grew in height from being normally 5'5" into a towering 7'3".

"Let's end this!" Dredge shouted; Renkin preparing to strike Ascended Lava Rex down but the Hyde just smirked and motioned for them to attack her.

"Well then, come on boys. Show me a good time."

Dredge couldn't take her attitude any longer and charged, shooting a stream of flames at her from his mouth but the attack did little to faze her. She countered by running at him and kneeing him in the gut. Getting knocked back, Dredge combined the powers of water and air and created an ice beam attack, firing it from his hands. The attack hit home and froze Ascended Lava Rex in a case of ice but the ice prison instantly melted from her immense body heat. Dredge then tried another trick and use geokinesis to make the ground jut up on her flank and tried to crush her body between the two stone slabs. Ascended Lava Rex jumped up into the air, escaping from being crushed and landing in front of Dredge and kneed him in the balls. Dredge went wide eyed as he held his crotch in pain, falling to his knees. Ascended Lava Rex grabbed him by his hair and made him look at her. Despite his transformation into his true form, he was already low on energy from the start. He had not yet eaten a decent meal and had not been able to replenish his energy reserves. If only he had eaten one or two people. Then he would have been able to wipe the floor with the bitch.

"Sorry, but you're just not my type," Ascended Lava Rex chortled as she prepared to decapitate the Homunculoid General that was kneeling before her in intense pain. "Now, to finish my mission and take your body back for testing. And don't worry about the Rider. I'll take very good care of my new _toy_."

"That's what you think, sister!"

Ascended Lava Rex looked to see Renkin rushing at her with the Sunlight Heart glowing with golden radiant energy it had gathered. Its light was bright as Renkin planned to run her through but Ascended Lava Rex had other ideas. Holding out her free hand that she was going to use to take Dredge's head, she caught the tip of the Sunlight Heart in her hand. Renkin looked at the feat with an alarmed look in his eyes. Her next action would also shock both him and Dredge. Using the power of the Philosopher's Stone, she sent out a powerful wave of energy, crumpling the Sunlight Heart before the wave hit Renkin and sent him soaring across the ground, slamming right into a tree; his Rider armor finally shattering from the constant abuse. His silver Kakugane had reformed from the destroyed Sunlight Heart and fell to the ground, its entire structure cracked and nearly damaged beyond repair.

"She…she destroyed his Kakugane," Dredge whispered quietly.

Ascended Lava Rex let out a snort and grinned at her victory. She had the specimen kneeling before her and had defeated the unknown Rider, destroying both of his weapons. Victory was hers. She had currently done what no other Hyde had been able to do. She had defeated a Kamen Rider, the enemy of the RoC. Rune, looking at his damaged Kakugane, looked on in shock. He couldn't believe his eyes. As he tried to get up, he began to feel a strange pulse emanate from within his body. He placed his hand over his heart, clutching at his shirt as he began to sweat heavily. And, for a moment, his cobalt blue eyes flashed red.

"Che, he was no fun either," Ascended Lava Rex jested before she looked back at Dredge. "Oh well, I can still take him back and hand him over to my boss. Who knows, maybe after they're done with him, they might make him into an obedient soldier and give him to me as a gift for my services to them? Even if my heart belongs to another, I could always use a _pet_."

"Actually…_cough_…I think you just fucked up big time," Dredge said with a cocky grin. Ascended Lava Rex was about to question him when the forest fire suddenly faded, as if the energy from it had been drained away. "And now, you've awakened a beast that not even my lord and master wants to fight."

Ascended Lava Rex began to wonder what he meant until they both looked at Rune whose body was convulsing. In a fit of rage, he ripped apart most of his shirt, considering it was already ruined from the previous fight. Only a single strap held it up, looping over the right side of his shoulder and chest. This left the skin of the rest of torso exposed, revealing the strange hexagonal tattoo with the letter V set within it to be seen by all who were present. Rune's muscles bulged slightly as his Caucasian skin tone became almost a reddish bronze color. His braided ponytail shredded the band that kept it tied back and his blonde hair developed a full spiky look, turning a radiant bluish-green color and seemed to radiate with energy. His blue eyes turned into a piercing blood red color. As he began to calm down and slowly stood up, his body began to let off a violet aura that connected with the surrounding plant life. In a matter of seconds, the plants, trees and flowers that were left untouched by the fire all withered and died; their life energy having now been absorbed by Rune. He was currently no longer human. He was something more. He…had become a Victor, Stage 1.

* * *

Dr. Magi, Dr. Washam and Yūji who'd been hard at work getting the Teleportal system back online had been alerted by Sheila who reported that a large and unknown source of energy had popped up on her scanner. Curious and slightly alarmed, the three men looked at the main computer screen. Sheila enlarged the image and it was focused on Rune, but he was no longer the same as before. He now bad reddish bronze skin with hair that was a radiant bluish green color.

"What happened to him?" Dr. Magi asked, as he had not known about this.

"It looks like some kind of special ability," said Dr. Washam.

Yūji's eyes were, however, focused on how the surrounding plant-life around Rune was withering and dying, as if having the life sucked out of them. And it all happened as soon as Rune changed into this form. Yūji wasn't an idiot. He knew this wasn't a mere coincidence. What he was seeing confirmed one thing: that Rune was a very dangerous being.

"Yeah, I'm not liking this at all," Yūji frowned. He'd been around long enough to know that plant life withering and a sudden transformation with a flare of power he could feel from his position weren't good signs. This was something very dangerous and Rune knew that. What Yūji was more concerned about was Mammon. Was she in the nearby area? "Sheila, can you find Mammon for me?"

"_Affirmative_," said Sheila and the screen showed Mammon standing with some villagers.

Yūji let out a sigh of relief when he saw this. She was safe. But still, he was concerned. He then asked, "Where's Alan? I sent him ahead. He should've been there by now."

"_Alan is currently en route only to end up in the middle of a skirmish_," said Sheila. "_He should be done by now_."

Yūji clenched his fists. A skirmish? That could only mean that their enemies did not want Alan to get involved, fully aware of how powerful he was. "Come on, Alan," Yūji begged. "Hurry the hell up."

* * *

As she covered the rear of the group of villagers, watching over them as they evacuated the village, Mammon's head shot up as she felt a sudden pain in her heart. She had already heard the echoes of screams, male screams, screams of agony. And they sounded very similar to Rune's. But it wasn't the sound of screams that now frightened her. No. She felt a dreadful pang in her heart, forcing her to look back towards the area where Rune was fighting.

"…Hōko-kun," she uttered softly.

* * *

**(**_**Insert Song: Across the Line – By: Linkin Park**_**)**

Ascended Lava Rex didn't seem all that concerned about Rune's present form. In fact, she didn't see what the big deal was. So, his skin and hair changed color. Was that supposed to frighten her? Scoffing, Ascending Lava Rex charged at Rune with a flaming fist and sent it flying to hit him. Rune only looked at her with a glare yet his eyes seemed to have a lifeless look to them. Easily evading the punch, Rune side-stepped to the left and then ducked as Ascended Lava Rex came to a stop and struck with a backhand, missing him. She then threw a downward punch with her other fist; Rune simply avoiding contact by rolling to the other side and quickly getting back to his feet. He moved with fluid motion as Ascended Lava Rex rushed at him and let loose a flurry of fiery punches that he easily avoided by dodging left and right, each punch barely missing him by an inch or two.

"Damn you!" Ascended Lava Rex shouted. "Stand still!" She turned and tried to swat him with her tail but Rune simply jumped up and over, landing right next to her and bashing the back of his fist into her face, breaking her nose and busting her lower lip. "Argh! You sonovabitch! I'll rip you to pieces!"

Ascended Lava Rex took a deep breath and then spewed a mix of flames and magma at Rune. The alchemy using warrior simply held his hand out as a bright red transmutation circle appeared underneath him before the ground before him rose up, defending him from the attack. A few seconds later, the stone wall shattered as Ascended Lava Rex burst right through it, forcing Rune to jump back. This did little to save him though as she grabbed him by his left arm and, with her enhanced abilities, melted his flesh and bones around the area where she had taken hold of him. While it hurt, Rune showed little expression of pain and only glared at her angrily.

"Hah, serves you right, you bas-AHHHHHHH!-!-!"

As she tried to gloat about taking his arm, Ascended Lava Rex soon found herself screaming in pain as her whole entire tail had been ripped off with his free hand. Then, in a feat of alchemic power, Rune absorbed her tail into his body, regrowing his lost arm. Flexing his fingers, he looked at Ascended Lava Rex who glared hatefully at him. She then charged at him again, both hands covered in fire as she prepared to rip him apart.

"I HATE YOU!-!-!" she roared until she was suddenly sent flying from a sudden slash attack that had come from Rune. Soaring through the air and hitting the ground hard, Ascended Lava Rex leaned up and noticed a nasty gash on her chest and it was bleeding pretty badly. Using her fire abilities, she cauterized her wound and then looked at Rune. And she then noticed that he now had a new Sunlight Heart held tightly in his hand but it was no longer a silver steel color but colored obsidian black instead.

The Sunlight Heart was a bit longer and a lot slimmer than before and the tip of its pommel had an ornate design which looked like the one that was made from Rune's standard Kakugane. The rest of the coloring was the same but the blade and shaft were black. This was the Sunlight Heart Mark II. It also now lacked the red sash that the Mark I possessed. Rune twirled it around and then ran at Ascended Lava Rex, striking the ground before her with enough power that her body was sent flying from the shockwave. As she landed on her feet, Ascended Lava Rex began to feel as if her body was slowly starting to get sluggish. She couldn't have burned through her energy reserves that fast. So what was sapping her of her power? As she looked at Rune, she noticed the same similar violet colored aura surrounding his body and noticed her own body giving off a similar aura. She then realized what was happening. Her energy, her life force, it was being drained by him. Just by being near him was enough for him to steal her power.

Meanwhile, Dredge was keeping his distance from Rune. He was already feeling the effects of the energy drain and was in no way interested of being drained until he was out of energy. Of course, to see Rune fight with no regard to his surroundings or to the life in the area, it was as if he was witnessing the birth of a completely different being entirely; one who only cared for battle and drained the energy of his opponent to feed his own insatiable hunger for power. In a way, he was what one could refer to as a new breed of Vampire. Only, he didn't need to drink blood to sustain himself. He only needed to drain you of your very life force. Dredge made sure to make a mental note of all of this for when they fought next time.

As the battle continued, Ascended Lava Rex tried to hit Rune with a snap kick but he blocked the kick with his Sunlight Heart before vanishing, re-appearing right behind her. Before she could even turn around, he had grabbed her from behind and began to drain even more of her life force at an even much faster rate and just through simple physical contact. Watching from above, Mammon saw what was going on and was shocked at what Rune was doing. He was never so ruthless in a fight with the Hyde before. And his new look made him look like a demon. And it frightened her a bit.

Ascended Lava Rex struggled to break free but soon found herself on the verge of passing out. She need to do something quick and so, using the entire mass of power granted to her by the Philosopher's Stone, she let loose a wave of power that knocked rune right off of her. She almost fell to her knees, her shoulders rising and falling rapidly as she tried to catch her breath. She couldn't understand where all this power he had was coming from. It made no sense! Enraged from being outdone by what was supposedly a normal human, she turned and prepared to use her ultimate technique, only to find Rune jamming his fist in between her breasts, grasping onto the Philosopher's Stone that rested inside her chest. Blood spurted everywhere as she let out a blood curdling scream. Rune only gave her a lifeless glare as, with one hard yank, he ripped the Philosopher's Stone out of her body. Looking at the blood covered stone in his hand, he then looked down as a convulsing Ascended Lava Rex whose body slowly returned back to its normal Hyde form.

Looking up at him, Lava Rex had a pleading look in her eyes. She didn't want to die. Not now. "Please…spare me," she begged but her pleas fell on deaf ears. Rune squeezed his hand around the stone, crushing it in his grip. He would not let another being in this era get ahold of a Philosopher's Stone. Leveling his gaze and staring Lava Rex right in the eyes, he held out the Sunlight Heart, an alchemic transmutation circle appearing before the tip. Lava Rex's eyes widened. "No, please, I beg of you, have mer-"

"Go to Hell," was all Rune said as he let loose a powerful and violent blast of alchemic energy from the lance, blasting Lava Rex with enough power to make her scream out bloody murder.

**(End Song)**

After a moment the blast subsided and, where Lava Rex once knelt, a now unconscious and nude Nana Kohana lay in the dirt. Mammon landed on the ground but just far enough away to not be affect by Rune's energy drain. She couldn't believe he would act so coldblooded towards someone begging for their lives. It just wasn't like him. This wasn't the man she had fallen in love with. Not by a longshot. She then noticed as he looked at her and she saw the lifeless look in his eyes.

"Hōko-kun, please, you have to be in there," she begged softly.

As Rune began to make his way towards her, he stopped at hearing the whirling noise of the Teleportal and looked to the side to see Yūji exit, stopping next to Mammon. He then looked up as the portal vanished, seeing Sentinel coming in for a landing. Seeing what had happened to Rune, Sentinel was a bit shocked to say the least. But Yūji was now acting very cautious. He saw what Rune had done via the satellite. That was why they went into overtime in fixing the Teleportal so as to get passed the jamming frequency.

"Mammon, what's going on? What happened to Eon?" Sentinel asked and then he looked over and saw Dredge. "And who's he?"

"That's Dredge," Mammon answered. Alan and Yūji looked at her and then at Dredge.

"So, that's the other guy that got brought here with Eon through the time storm," Sentinel concluded. He then noticed Rune looking down at Nana, holding out his hand and draining her of the rest of her life force. "Eon, stop! What do you think you're doing!?"

"Sorry, but Rune isn't home right now," said Dredge, gaining their attention. "Look over there on the ground," he said as she gestured to the side of them. There, they noticed the cracked and heavily damaged silver Kakugane. They then looked at the Sunlight Heart in Rune's hand. "The black Kakugane. It's what keeps him alive and takes the place of his heart. It's a long story so I won't go into it. But, fire girl there damaged his regular Kakugane so badly, that the black one finally woke up."

"So, you're saying that he was using his regular Kakugane to suppress the black one?" Sentinel asked. He then heard Nana choking from her life being drained and aimed his ring at Rune. "Eon, I said to stop! Right now!"

"I wouldn't do that," warned Dredge. "You'll only make him come after you."

"Fuck off!" Mammon shouted at him and then she looked at Rune. "Hōko-kun! Yamette!"

Rune's eyes began to shimmer a bit as he held his head, backing away from Nana. Sentinel used his ring to grab hold of her body, bringing her towards them before injecting her with the Hyde antidote. Rune groaned as he dropped the Sunlight Heart; the alchemic weapon reforming into the black Kakugane and returning to its place within his body. Seeing that calling out to him had some sort of effect, Yūji stepped forward.

"Rune, listen! You need to regain control!" he ordered. "You once said you wanted to prove to me that you deserved to be with Mammon! That you wanted to earn my respect! Well, fucking do it and regain control!"

Rune fell to his knees, screaming in pain before he finally passed out. Realizing that Rune could absorb energy, Sentinel looked around and noticed some boulders so, using his ring, he merged the boulders around Rune's body, creating a stone prison to cut Rune off from the energy of the outside and to make sure he couldn't siphon off energy from his ring. Lifting the stone prison up, Sentinel placed his finger to his ear and contacted Magi to open the Teleportal and to get a cell ready for Rune. While he was their friend and ally, at that moment, he was now a danger to them all.

"Will he be OK?" Mammon asked.

"I'm not sure," Sentinel answered. "I'm not familiar with alchemy or Kakugane's. They're not something I really studied."

As the portal formed, Mammon walked over and retrieved Rune's silver Kakugane, stuffing into her blouse. The three of them then looked at Dredge who returned to his humanoid form and began walking away. As he left, he waved and gave them a message. "Do me a favor, when the kid wakes up, tell him that I'll be coming after him soon. Until then…ciao." And, with that, Dredge used his remaining energy and vanished from sight. He wasn't a threat to them at the moment and knew better than to attack Yūji and Sentinel when they were still fresh and ready for a fight. That would just be suicidal.

* * *

Rune was moved safely to a secured cell in the Hive, away from any other living being. His life-energy draining ability was still in effect and that made him dangerous. The cell had a bed and a screen for him to communicate with the outside world but other than that there was really nothing else. He was pretty much isolated.

Meanwhile, up in the Main Hall, a worried Mammon was watching him on the large viewing screen. She was holding Rune's silver Kakugane as she watched him sleep, recovering from his ordeal earlier. He had been unconscious for a total of 3 hours now. Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam couldn't perform an examination on him as his body was still syphoning energy from his surroundings but a scan with Alan's Sonic Screwdriver showed that his vitals were doing alright.

"How long is he going to stay in there, Onii-sama?" Mammon asked.

"We don't know yet, Mammon," said Yuji. "Right now we have to keep him locked up for safety."

"But you're treating him like a prisoner," Mammon said. "It's not fair. He's not our enemy."

"I didn't say that, Mammon. I'm just saying it's best to be safe than sorry," said Yuji. Mammon held the silver Kakugane up against Yuji's chest and he took hold of it.

"I need to be alone," she told him before vanishing in a flash of gold. Yuji looked at the Kakugane in his hand. He sighed. He would hand it over to Dr. Magi for safe keeping.

"So, how's he doing?" asked Shinichi as he stood behind Yuji. He'd just heard about what happened to Rune. "His trip didn't pan out or something?"

"He ran into some trouble and lost control of himself," said Yuji. "Now Mammon's upset because we have Rune locked up."

"I think you're doing the right thing," said Shinichi. "Look, I like Eon, don't get me wrong. He's a nice guy but from what I've heard what happened turned him into some kind of living energy syphon and it's not safe to be around him until we find a way to fix his condition."

"So, what do you think we should do about Rune?" asked Yuji.

"We are going to find a way to help him while you," Shinichi pointed at Yuji, "Are going to go and offer Mammon a shoulder to cry on. She says she wants to be alone but right now she needs someone to comfort her."

"I could've figured that out," remarked Yuji.

"I'm sure you could," Shinichi shrugged. "Just recommending a course of action you should take to resolve this issue."

"Hey, look after him, alright?" requested Yuji. "I may not like or trust him 100%, but Mammon loves him and doesn't want anything to happen to him."

"He'll be monitored. Rest assured, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam are working on a solution for this problem," said Shinichi. "Now, go. Mammon needs you."

Yuji nodded and activated a mystical charm to transport him to the Kuwadorian. As soon as he left, Shinichi scrutinized Rune who was on the screen. "Why were you brought to this era?" he asked nobody in particular.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This chapter was brought to you by GuyverGenesis. And it's the longest chapter in the series ever. It's a record-breaker, I can tell you that. I hope you guys don't complain since GG and I went to a lot of trouble and effort to finish this. So, please read and review.**


	174. The Legacy of Cain Part 118

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 118: A Sweet Slice of Life Cake**

Alan and Lala were chasing after Celine. The little flower girl had gotten to the cola again and had become intoxicated. Daiki had been drinking it earlier and left it on the kitchen table where Celine could get to it. All she had to do was climb onto a chair and grab the bottle before downing what was left of the cool beverage without anyone noticing. Alan had just taken his eyes off Celine for a minute for this to happen.

"Celine, get back here!" Alan shouted after her. Sure, he could use his ring and super speed, but not out in the open like this when anyone could see him. They needed to catch Celine before her flowed exploded, dousing anyone nearby with her pollen. Her pollen was filled with Celine's love for Alan and anyone who got exposed to it would feel the same for Alan, in varying degree.

"She runs really fast, huh?" Lala asked, admiring in awe.

"Now's not the time to be admiring Celine's running speed, Lala!" Alan shot back. They saw Celine make a turn into the park. Rena was sitting on a bench with a sketchpad when she spotted Celine.

"Ah, Celine-chan," Rena beamed as Celine rubbed against her leg. Celine was just the most adorable creature she had ever seen, among other things. Then again, Rena listed a lot of things as cute, even things people normally wouldn't consider cute. Back in her younger days she would even attempt to kidnap Rika because she was cute. She even tried to do it to Hanyuu when she first laid eyes on the cute goddess. Fortunately, Rena had curbed her impulse to grab anything that was cute and bring it home.

"Rena!" Alan shouted.

"Ah, Alan," Rena smiled. "Are you playing tag with Celine-chan?"

"No, you have to-!" What Alan wanted to say came too late as Celine let out a cloud of pollen in Rena's face. "-Get away! Crap!" The cloud subsided, leaving Rena completely alright. Well, almost alright. A flower had sprouted on her head. It was a flower which marked her as a victim of Celine's pollen.

Lala went and picked up the drunk Celine who didn't resist. She was probably exhausted after the chase. "Alan, I got her," said Lala.

"That's great, Lala," smiled Alan. "Now let's go-" However, he was suddenly grabbed in a vice-like grip as Rena embraced him from behind tightly.

"ALAN, I'M GONNA TAKE YOU HOME!" Rena cried before throwing him over her shoulder and running off with Alan screaming for Rena to stop and put him down.

"Bye-bye!" Lala waved as she watched Rena leave a trail of dust behind her as she ran while carrying Alan. Lala knew Rena wouldn't do anything inappropriate to Alan. The Devilukian princess trusted the Hinamaizawan. "Come on, Celine-chan. Time to put you in bed for a nap."

"Mau~"

Thus, for the next half hour, Alan was at Rena's mercy. What happened in that time was anyone's guess but Alan refused to talk about it out of embarrassment.

* * *

It all started one morning. Alan Smith was in bed with his Pokegirl, the Ivywhore Bishie after a night of taming when all of a sudden the door burst open and Alice came rushing in wearing her pajamas. She looked panicked as she shouted, "DADDY! DADDY WAKE UP!" She shook him awake.

"What? What is it? Are we under attack?" Alan asked as he awoke. Groggily, Bishie followed.

"It's Celine-chan! Something happened!" Alice shouted.

Now, Alan was not one to ignore anything when any of his children were involved. Quickly activating his ring, he clothed himself in his uniform and followed Alice out. Bishie, who was only in her underwear, followed them out, worried about the flower girl she considered a daughter.

Alice and Celine shared a room down the hall and they would wake up together. This morning, Alice woke up not at the sight of her little sister's flower, but at the big green thing now lying in Celine's futon. It was oval-shaped, colored green and brown, with a moss-like layer.

"There it is!" Alice pointed. "When I woke up I saw that and Celine-chan was gone!"

"What is that thing?" Bishie questioned, never seeing something like it before.

Alan performed a scan with his ring, "It's...a cocoon...and Celine's inside."

"We have to get her out!" Alice exclaimed urgently and her bladed wings came out. She was going to cut her little sister free but Alan stopped her.

"No," objected Alan.

Alice was shocked by this. Wasn't Alan worried? "No!? But she's trapped!"

Alan countered, "She's not trapped, just sleeping. I don't know much about Celine's species, but everything my ring is telling me is saying that she's fine." He performed an additional scan with his Sonic Screwdriver for a 'second opinion'. "And my screwdriver says the same thing."

"Listen to him, Alice. It's never a good idea to disturb a cocoon," said Bazel in agreement.

Bishie asked, "So, what now? What will happen to her?"

Alan sighed and replied, "I don't know." He didn't have a solution, not yet anyway. "We'll just have to wait. Go get Momo. Maybe she knows something that can help."

Alice nodded, "OK!" and rushed out to get Momo. "Mome-neechan! Momo-neechan!"

"Not exactly what you expected when you got out of bed, huh, Partner?" Bazel asked.

"A wise man once told me that you can never expect everything in life, Bazel," Alan sighed. He put his hand against the cocoon. "Celine, come back soon." Not seeing her smiling in the morning was just odd. Celine was often the first to awake when the sun came up. It was because of her nature as a plant. She rose at the same time as the sun did.

* * *

Momo examined the cocoon with her phone's scanner. Crowded outside the door were the rest of the boarding house's residents who were curious and worried.

"So?" Alan asked as he did more scans with his power ring and Sonic Screwdriver. "What do you think?"

"She's alive, but she's in stasis," said Momo. "I can't really tell you more, I'm sorry." Celine was a mystery even to the plant expert. Her species was undocumented but Alan had a theory that Celine was like a cuckoo bird and when she'd taken on human form it had been because she'd imprinted on Alan.

Still, the theory did not explain the cocoon.

"So, we'll just have to wait and see, huh?" asked Alan. He felt a tug on his hand and looked down at Alice. He picked her up. "You're worried too, huh, honey?" Alice only replied with a nod. Her eyes were watering. "It'll be fine. She's just asleep in that thing so right now we need to protect the cocoon until she wakes up."

"She'll wake up?" Alice asked.

"She will," he replied.

"Then what happens?" she questioned.

"She'll likely change," he answered. Into what, he did not know.

* * *

One week later, Celine still remained in her cocoon. Alice, as her big sister, was worried. It just seemed strange to not hear or see the flower girl for so long. Bishie, Celine's mother figure, stayed with the cocoon, just waiting for Celine to emerge. Alan and Momo would frequently check up on the cocoon.

Lockheed, their pet dragon, stayed by the cocoon's side, guarding it. He was worried about the little flower girl too. To him, the cocoon was like a fragile and vulnerable egg that needed protecting and had been guarding it all week.

Everyone else in the house also did their part and kept watch. Celine was an important part in their lives, so pure and innocent with a smile that could brighten anyone's mood.

They told their landlady about it and since she had grown used to the oddness that had been going on, told them to take of things on their own. It wasn't like she didn't want to help. She just wasn't sure how.

Then, one day, Alice and Bishie noticed a crack on the cocoon as it started to shake. Alice immediately went to call her father to tell him about it.

* * *

Everyone was crowded around the door, leaving only Alan, Momo and Bishie surrounding the cocoon. The cracks spread out around the surface before pieces of the cocoon's shell began to fall off to reveal Celine with her eyes closed. Finally, Celine opened her eyes. She looked absolutely fine and not changed at all. She was as naked as a newborn though. At the sight of Alan, Bishie and Momo, she smiled.

"Celine..." Alan smiled. His flower child hadn't changed at all...

"Papa-mau!" Celine cried out. She looked to Bishie, "Mama-mau!"

This surprised them as they blinked, twice. Did Celine just use real words?

Celine then got out of the remains of her cocoon, by hovering into the air. On her back, flapping, was a pair of green, leaf-like wings. She looked like a fairy.

"Papa, ohayo-mau!" Celine cheered before flying into his arms.

Alice saw her sister and smiled. Now, Celine could fly as well. This was just perfect.

"You know, I never saw this coming," said Bazel.

"I think this is her way to adapt," Alan remarked.

"I think you're right," said Momo. "Since you can fly, Celine wanted to fly too, so she went through a metamorphosis to gain the ability to fly." It was just amazing.

"So, she evolved?" Bishie questioned. Momo nodded. Bishie beamed. Her daughter was so much like her! "Oh, Celine! You evolved!" She went and hugged Celine with Alan.

* * *

"So, that's why we didn't see or hear from her all week," Shinichi replied after hearing the story. Celine and Alice were flying together. "Now, she's like a fairy."

"This is just more proof that no matter what I've seen, the universe still finds a way to surprise me," said Alan.

Shinichi nodded and then he spotted Celine doing something. "Alan, her flower is glowing."

"What?" Alan focused on Celine. "Celine, what are you doing?" He got his answer a moment later.

"MAU!" Celine shouted as she fired a beam of green energy from her flower on her head which soared through the sky.

Shinichi exclaimed, "Whoa! Did she just shoot a laser out of her head!?"

"That was Solar Beam," Alan identified. Celine ran towards her and jumped up and down excitedly.

"Papa, did you see-mau? Did you see-mau?"Celine asked excitedly.

"Yes, I did," said Alan, smiling as she patted Celine's head.

* * *

"And that's how you make a kite," said Alan as he finished making the kite for Alice. "Here you go," he said as he handed the kite to his daughter.

"Thank you, Daddy!" Alice beamed.

"And another kite for Celine," said Alan as he handed the kite to Celine.

"Thank you-mau!" she smiled happily as she accepted the kite.

"And one for you too, Daiki," Alan handed a third kite to his adopted son. "OK, kids! Let's fly our kites!" he said cheerfully as he stood up.

* * *

Alan took his daughters and son to the nearby park to fly their kites. There was a nice strong wind to fly them and Alice managed to get her kite to fly high into the sky. "Daddy! Daddy! Look!" Alice pointed.

"That's really nice, Alice," Alan praised. He turned to see how Celine was doing only to see that she wasn't there. "Celine?" He looked around. "Celine, where are you!-?"

"Um, Dad, you might want to look up there," Daiki pointed.

"Papa-mau~! Mau~!"

Alan looked up and spotted Celine being carried up into the air by her kite.

"Excuse me," he said as he went to save his daughter.

* * *

After flying their kites, they were on their way home. It didn't seem like kite flying would be safe for Celine until she got bigger. She was a very light little girl. He shouldn't be worried since she could fly on her own now, but she was still his baby. Fortunately she was still able to enjoy the fun of flying a kite as long as she had Alan holding onto her.

Celine tugged on his sleeve and pointed to a vendor selling balloons. He might as well get some balloons and ice cream for his kids. Purchasing six balloons, he gave two to Alice, two to Daiki and two to Celine. He tied the strings holding the balloons around Celine's wrists, one on each, so they wouldn't float away. However, Celine began to float upwards so he caught her quickly before she was flown away by the balloons.

"Maybe just one balloon for you," he said.

"She's so small and light," said Daiki. "Will she ever get any bigger?"

"Believe it or not, she used to be bigger when she was younger," said Alan, referring to her carnivorous plant form. That was the problem with Celine. She was just too small and light. "How about we go get some ice cream?"

"Ice cream!" Alice cheered. "Ice cream! Ice cream!"

"Ice cream-mau!"

* * *

Alan came down the stairs, his eyes narrowed in a critical glare as he scanned his surroundings. He was looking for something, something important. He gave the couch a look and went towards it, a smile on his lips as he peered over the back.

"Found you!" Alan announced as he found Alice hiding behind the couch.

"Boo~! Daddy, you found me!" whined Alice with a pout and puffed up cheeks as he laughed. "You cheated! You used your powers! No X-Ray vision allowed!" she scolded, shaking her fist, but he wasn't intimidated. She just looked so cute when angry.

"Hey, I'm just that good at hide-and-seek!" he boasted while patting her head.. "Now, come on, let's go find your little sister!" He cupped his hand around his mouth, "Celine, we're going to find you!"

"Come on out, Celine-chan!"

* * *

"OK, now where is she?" Alan wondered as he and Alice went looking for Celine. He then blinked as he checked the hallway again. "Did we always have that potted plant there?" Alice shrugged.

"I don't know."

He walked over to it and gave the pot a tap and it shook a little. The pot had dirt and a familiar-looking flower in it surrounded by green leaves. He then scanned it with his X-Ray vision and declared, pointing, "Aha! Celine!"

Celine's head popped out of the dirt and she cheered, "I'm here-mau!"

"Celine, you're all dirty!" he scolded as he lifted Celine out from the pot of dirt. "Come on, young lady, we're going to take a bath!"

"Okay-mau~!"

"Yay, taking a bath with Daddy!"

* * *

Alan sat in the bath with both daughters after cleaning them up. The warm water was relaxing. Both girls just loved taking baths with their father. The two girls could bathe themselves, but would rather have their father bathe with them. They were were very affectionately attached to their parent and Alan was more than happy to bathe with them. These moments allowed them to bond closely as family.

* * *

Nozomu was rocking Adam back and forth, trying to soothe and calm him, but he just wouldn't stop crying. Right now it was time for his nap and yet he refused to go to sleep. Alan came into the room to see the distressed female Okami Youkai and asked, "Is everything OK?"

"No," she answered, her eyes still on her son. "It's time for his nap but he just can't fall asleep. I've tried singing to him and rocking him in my arms but he just wouldn't stop crying. I've already fed him, and changed him, but..."

"Give him to me," said Alan and Nozomu didn't question or hesitate as she handed Adam to his father. "OK, my little cub, let's see you cry while listening to this," he challenged as he used his ring to create a music box construct and began to sing as the soft music played:

_There little bird in the orange sky,_

_Over the silver peaks so high,_

_Where do you wander?_

_Where do you roam?_

_And when will you come home?_

_Oh when will you come home?_

_Oh little bird where will you fly?_

_Above the world as time passes by,_

_Can't I come with you?_

_Can't you just stay?_

_Or doesn't it work that way?_

_Or doesn't it work that way?_

_Oh little bird you're far away,_

_Perhaps somewhere it's night for us it's day,_

_So I shall stay,_

_And I shall not mourn,_

_And hope for the day you return,_

_And hope for the day you return._

Adam had stopped crying 2/3 into the lullaby as he slept in his father's arms. Alan smiled and gently put him down in his crib and said, "Sweet dreams, my little wolf cub." He turned to look at Nozomu who'd fallen asleep as well, sitting on the floor and leaning against the wall. "Guess my singing was a bit too effective," he chuckled. He went and unrolled the futon and picked up Nozomu to tuck her in, pulling the covers over her body. He then kissed her forehead and said softly, "And sweet dreams, Nozomu."

The lullaby was something that had been taught to him by the Doctor. The man, knowing that Alan had children, decided to teach him the lullaby which originated from his home planet of Gallifrey, hence the reference to an orange sky and silver mountains. Since then he'd used the lullaby while putting his children to bed. Alice and Celine pretty much begged him to sing it to them. Daiki, of course, refused to let himself be sung to sleep like a baby but nonetheless listened to the song whenever Alan sang it.

Oh, he could've easily calmed Adam with a little trick he'd learnt from the Doctor, but the lullaby seemed to work best. There was just something in the way Alan sang it that soothed the soul and calm the mind for sleep. He yawned a bit but fought against the desire to just lie next to Nozomu and cuddle with her for a nap.

As much as he loved being a hero, Alan considered being a father the best to thing to had ever happen in his life.

* * *

Within a cell located in the Hive, Rune was currently under lockdown as he was too dangerous to be exposed to anyone. It was because he was slowly going through the pre-stages of the Victorization process. And it was not a pleasant process, no it was not. The slow transformation into a Victor was causing him to unwillingly absorb life energy from all living organisms around him. Fortunately, the walls would prevent him from harming anyone accidentally but this didn't stop Mammon from pouting at not being able to be with the man she loved when he needed her comfort most. But, luckily, Shinichi and Dr. Magi had found a way to help him stay in touch with the outside world. He was able to see what was going on outside with AI-Shin's help. The AI encased in the robotic sphere would send images onto the large screen and also help him communicate with the others. It wasn't the best way Rune wanted to talk to people but, without anyway to repair his silver Kakugane or finish creating the white Kakugane back in his home era, he had little choice but to take what he could get while he was still human...in a sense.

Rune was watching Shinichi play with two little girls. One was blonde and wearing a black dress with short sleeves. She looked to be about eight years old. The other was much smaller, probably a toddler, with leaf green hair and a flower on her head. She wore a green t-shirt with a blue skirt. She also had what appeared to be green, leaf-like wings on her back. He hadn't seen them before.

"OK, girls, see if you catch them!" said Shinichi as he sent the paper cranes flying. The girls, armed with butterfly nets, started to chase the paper cranes as they flew around the canyon. AI-Shin projected Rune's image so Shinichi could speak with him face-to-face. "Oh, hey, Rune."

_"Never saw them before,"_ said Rune, referring to the little girls. _"Who are they?"_

"Alan's daughters," said Shinichi. "The blonde one is Alice, and the one with a flower on her head is Celine. He asked me to look after them while he's camping with Daiki."

Alan had taken Daiki to the forest near Hinamizawa for a camping trip. It might be close to civilization and thus defeating the purpose of 'roughing it', but the point was to allow them to bond in the great outdoors together.

Alan was teaching Daiki the essentials based on experience. It was Alan who'd taught Daiki how to pack his bag properly and make sure he had all the basic needs for a camping trip. Alan taught Daiki how to pitch a tent, how to collect water from the river to be used for drinking, and how to make a campfire. They even went fishing.

Alan was basically teaching Daiki basic survival skills in the forest, though Daiki claimed that he could take care of himself just fine. Still, the Earth Manakyte appreciated the lessons. Alan was like a father and big brother all rolled into one.

_"He must really trust you,"_ said Rune.

"We've been through a lot," Shinichi nodded. "Not to mention I do owe him. Besides, this is good practice for me."

_"Nice trick with the paper cranes,"_ admired Rune.

"Something I developed for a long time now," said Shinichi. "Good for offense, defence, recon, or in this case for fun." Celine and Alice managed to catch a few but there were still more flying about.

_"You put in a bit of your life energy to animate those paper cranes,"_ Rune concluded.

"That's how it works," Shinichi confirmed. "And that's not all!" He snapped his fingers and the paper cranes began to leave trails of glowing dust. "It's stardust. Something I asked Tsuki-chan for."

_"And she just gave it to you?"_

"Well, we had to negotiate," Shinichi shrugged.

Rune was curious about something and asked, _"So, where's Rena? Shouldn't you both be joined at the hip."_

"Rena-chan's out shopping with the twins, Mion and Shion," said Shinichi.

_"Well...aren't you concerned about them?"_ Rune asked.

"Of course, but I'm sure they're fine. If there's any trouble Sheila can call me," said Shinichi confidently. "Not to mention, I did lend them my powers." He asked, "Why? Is something important happening right now?"

Rune answered, _"Well, like you said, it's not something you need to be concerned about."_

Shinichi was suspicious and decided to check on the girls for a moment.

* * *

Kamen Rider Ichigo was sent flying before hitting a car's side, smashing the windows. She groaned and glared at the trio of Hydes who stood before her while Kamen Rider Nigo and Amazon went to help her up.

Ichigo (Mion), Nigo (Shion) and Rena (Amazon) were just out shopping for some new, sexy swimsuits for their beaus, not to mention find some new clothes that were on sale. Then, all of a sudden, these monsters came and attacked them out of the blue.

The first Hyde resembled a humanoid eel with deep blue skin that shone due to the layer of mucus which covered its body. It had a tail with a fin at the tip and webbed hands and feet. As it opened its mouth, slime dripped to the ground. Its slippery and slimy body actually prevented any blows from hitting it. From its build, it looked male. its name was Mucus Eel.

The second Hyde was slightly muscular, with a rodent-like appearance and sharp ears. It was covered in black fur with sharp claws. It also had sharp quills covering its shoulder, forearms, shins and back. Its name was Cyanide Porcupine and it had the ability to fire its poisonous quills at will. So many of the sharp quills already decorated the area when it'd tried to shoot at the female pseudo-Riders but its aim was off.

Finally, there was a bat-like Hyde which had its wings on its back with blood red membranes. Its body was pale white with visible red veins pumping blood and its eyes were blood red. It also had a mane of black hair on its head and its body was wrinkly from top to bottom. There was no fur covering its body, rendering a hideous creature with sharp, needle-like fangs for teeth. Its name was Plasma Bat. The 'plasma' in its name was for the plasma in human blood.

The three monsters had just ambushed the girls, forcing them to drop their shopping bags. Fortunately, the training they had done had increased their reflexed, allowing them to avoid injury and harm from the monsters' ambush. After accessing the situation, the three girls had assumed the Rider forms which had been assigned to them.

"Just who are these losers anyway?" Ichigo asked.

"It doesn't matter, Mii-chan," said Amazon. "We'll just have to beat them like Shinichi-kun taught us."

"Yes," said Nigo. "JUMP!" They leapt into the air, avoiding the poisonous quills coming at them. Landing a distance away, the three girls split up to engage the three Hydes, one-on-one.

Amazon roared as she slammed her fist into Cyanide Porcupine's snout, causing it to go reeling backwards in pain. She then followed up with a claw slash across his chest and then smashed her foot into its gut, sending it staggering back in pain. It swung its arm and shot its quills at her only for her to leap over them to smash her feet into its face.

Nigo was annoyed by Mucus Eel. Not only was it enjoying itself as it tripped her up with its slime on the ground, her blows did not seem to do any damage as her attacks just slipped off its slimy body harmlessly. '_There just has to be a way to beat this freak_,' she thought. She saw a fire hydrant and got an idea. Dodging a ball of mucus that Mucus Eel spat out at her (gross), she rushed towards the fire hydrant. Making sure Mucus Eel was in her line of sight, she shouted, "Hey, time to clean you up!" She opened the fire hydrant and water burst out, hitting Mucus Eel and drenching it to the bone. The Hyde was pushed backwards by the burst of water as its body was cleansed of its slime.

Closing the hydrant, Nigo reached into her pocket and pulled out her trusty tazer. As Mucus Eel opened its mouth for another attack, Niga shoved her tazer into its mouth and grinned under her helmet. "Stunning, isn't it?" She turned the device on. Mucus Eel screamed as he was being zapped and with its body drenched it could really feel the electricity flowing through its body.

Ichigo dodged a blood red energy beam which swept across the ground, leaving a gouge as she evaded from it. She glared up at Plasma Bat who remained in the air. "Damn, cheating coward," she grumbled. She jumped up, planting both feet on the wall behind her, then catapulted herself into the air. She twisted her body around and slammed her foot into the side of Plasma Bat's head with so much force that she blasted it to the ground, causing the Hyde to crash onto the top of a bench, smashing it to pieces.

"Monkey Attack!" Amazon cried as she performed a tackle attack that knocked Cyanide Porcupine onto its back. It got back up and charged at her again only for her to evade its strike before administering an uppercut into its jaw.

Nigo withdrew her slime-covered tazer from Mucus Eel's mouth and saw smoke rising from its throat and body which was now dry of slime. Smiling, she grabbed it by its armpits and shouted, "Rider Jump!" She leapt high into the air before hurling Mucus Eel hard to the ground with a shout of, "Rider Throw!" It crashed to the ground violently and she landed harmlessly on her feet.

Back with Ichigo, she charged at Plasma Bat while dodging its plasma breath attack. Ducking under a beam, she performed a slide by dropping her body to the ground. It was a move she'd learnt from playing baseball. Her feet knocked Plasma Bat off balance and he fell on its face before Ichigo got up and elbowed him in the spine, causing it to shriek.

Amazon decided to finish off her opponent and with a cry of, "Gii! Gii! Gii!" launched herself into the air and raised her right arm with the intent to kill. "Dai Setsudan!" she shouted as she came down on her opponent to strike it down with Amazon's Big Cut attack.

"Rider Punch!" Nigo shouted as she buried her fist into Mucus Eel's gut. This time the blow did not slide off harmlessly as she used her attack on it and she smiled. The force of the punch blasted it backwards and it went tumbling.

"Rider Kick!" Ichigo shouted as she performed a flying kick and sent Plasma Bat soaring before hitting a wall and bouncing off painfully with pieces of it being knocked off by the impact, raining down on the defeated Hyde's body.

All three Hydes exploded, their bodies changing back to human form as a result. Once the flames and smoke cleared, Amazon's eyes widened as she recognized the three men. It may have been years since that day, but she remembered it clearly. It all happened back in her old school in Ibaraki.

She had been lured by them to a sports equipment shed where they had tried to rape her. The memory caused her mind to be filled with anger at how they wanted to violate her. She remembered grabbing a baseball bat and using it to defend herself. Afterwards, everything was a blur, until she woke up in the hospital and heard what had happened. The three Ibaraki Boys had not pressed charges, too scared to say anything. It was after that incident that Rena and her father had moved back to Hinamizawa.

And now these three had grown up but had not forgotten what she'd done to them. They must've heard of the drug and wanting to get back at Rena decided to take G-Shock and turn themselves into monsters. What they had not counted on was Rena being a pseudo Kamen Rider.

* * *

Shinichi and Rune had witnessed the entire thing on the huge screen in the Hive's Main Hall. "What did I say? Nothing to worry about," Shinichi said proudly. The training paid off. The girls really did fill their roles as Kamen Riders quite well. Granted, the powers gave them knowledge to use the Riders' abilities, but they still needed training to properly use them.

_"They did have a good teacher,"_ Rune said to Shinichi. He then heard an odd wheezing and warping sound from behind him. _"Hey, do you hear that?"_

"Yeah," Shinichi said and he and Rune both turned to see a blue box materialize in the middle of the Main Hall. It blinked in and out of existing, making that wheezing and warping noise, before finally solidifying into existence. It was a tall, 6-foot tall, box that was painted blue with windows, a light on top, and had 'Police Public Call Box' written above the door.

The door opened and a man poked his head out and asked, "Hello. Could I trouble you for some tea and Jammy Dodgers, please? Oh, and also fish fingers and custards!" Rune and Shinichi shared the same look of disbelief as he stepped out of the box and fixed his bowtie. "By the way, I'm the Doctor."

* * *

"Hey, everyone! We're back!" Alan called after exiting the Teleportal with Daiki, dropping their camping gear on the floor at the same time.

"Okaeri nasai, Alan, Daiki," Shinichi greeted his half-brother and the Manakyte he'd adopted. "How was your camping trip, you two?"

"It was fun. Some demons tried to get famous by beating me in a fight," Alan told him.

"They didn't stand a chance," said Daiki, chest puffed proudly.

"I suppose against a Manakyte and superhero, they wouldn't," agreed Shinichi.

"So, anything interesting happen while we were away?" Alan asked Shinichi.

"Someone came for you," said Shinichi, "And he said the oddest things. First, he wanted fish sticks and custard."

"Fish sticks and custard?" Alan repeated. '_Does he mean fish fingers and custard?_'

"Fish sticks and custard," Shinichi echoed, sticking his tongue out in disgust. "When we gave him what he wanted, he commented on the fact that food replicator technology would not be available to the public until the late 29th century due to a worldwide food shortage."

Alan opened the note and asked, "Did he come in a big blue box?"

"Yeah, it just appeared out of nowhere, and he called himself-"

"The Doctor," Alan finished.

"Yeah, and now I know where you got your fashion sense from," Shinichi replied as if the Doctor's visit explained everything.

"Hey, fezzes are cool!" Alan defended.

"That's what he said about his bowtie, and both of you are wrong."

"That's just _your _opinion," Alan dismissed.

"I stand by my statement that fezzes are not cool, and neither are bowties unless you're in a tux," argued Shinichi.

Alan, deciding to ignore Shinichi's statement on bowties and fezzes being uncool, asked, "So, did he let you see the inside of the TARDIS?"

"Bigger on the inside box? Yeah," said Shinichi. "Eon wanted to see the inside too but as soon as I went in with the Doctor the door slammed shut before AI-Shin could enter and that thing spirited the both of us away."

"Yeah, she tends to do that," Alan agreed.

Shinichi asked suspiciously, "Are you sure you and this Doctor fella aren't related?"

"Why do you ask?" Alan questioned, though he knew the answer already.

"He finds trouble just as easily as you do! We were right in the middle of Pearl Harbour before it got bombed! It was lucky that we managed to escape!" Shinichi snapped.

"But wasn't it fun to be in the middle of a historic event?" Alan asked.

"When taken by surprise like that?" Shinichi asked rhetorically. "Then the box appeared in a bathhouse where we had to fight this female water demon that was sucking the life force out of the men who visit it. After several detours, he finally dropped me back at my apartment."

"Sounds like a typical trip with the Doctor," Alan noted.

"Oh, and he told me to give you this," said Shinichi as he dug into his pocket and took out a folded sheet of paper, a note. He handed it to Alan. "I tried to read it myself but it's not written in any language I know."

"That's because it was probably in some alien language," said Alan as he began reading.

"So, what does it say?" Shinichi asked curiously.

"It's just a simple message for me," answered Alan, causing Shinichi to frown in disappointment. "Nothing for you to worry about." He asked, "So, what do you think of the Doctor?"

"Don't you know anybody normal?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, what's the fun in that?" Alan grinned. '_Besides, you're one to talk. You're not exactly normal yourself._'

"Well, come on. Alice-chan and Celine-chan can't wait to see you again," said Shinichi as he turned his back to Alan and Daiki.

"Yeah, I miss my little angels," said Alan with a smile. He looked at the note again. Alan knew the Doctor hated "spoilers" and spilling the secrets of the future, but he was someone that truly believed in the power of Hope, something Alan had long since abandoned seeing Hope as something that was worthless without the Will to back it up.

The note was only one simple sentence: _You will make it through this_.

* * *

The Gaming Club had just concluded another one of their activities. This time it was an outdoor one, taking place in the forest. The game was paintball.

It had just concluded.

"And that is why stealth and the right camouflage is important even during a paintball fight," Shinichi concluded his lecture. He was wearing combat boots, camouflage cargos, and a black muscle shirt. He also had on a protective mask which was pulled up and was shouldering a paintball gun. On his chest he wore protective padding that was painted the color of camouflage. "Any questions?"

The Gaming Club was sitting before him, Mion and Shion sitting back to back. Satoko was lying on her back with Rika lying face-down over her stomach. Satoshi was propped with his ass in the air and Keiichi was on his knees. They were all covered in paint stains unlike Shinichi who didn't have a spot of paint on him. Only Rena and Hanyuu were absent from this activity, the latter because she was helping Chiaki out back at the Hive.

Satoshi raised his hand, "Can I…can I please get some ice…?" He'd been shot in the crotch, a dozen times.

"Walk it off, you damn sissy," huffed Shinichi. "Any other questions?

"Why aren't Hanyuu or Rena-san here for this torture?" Satoko asked.

"I told you; Rena-chan needs to watch Sho today and Chiaki and Hanyuu-chan have work at the Hive," he answered.

"Convenient excuse," muttered Rika. Shinichi just didn't want to shoot at his girlfriend. However, he didn't show any mercy shooting at them. He even used paint grenades. "Hanyuu..." she growled, annoyed that her faithful companion wasn't here to suffer with her.

"The only one here who did marginally well was Keiichi," Shinichi said, referring to the Agito among them. "He almost got me a few times."

"Well, he can predict your shots!" Shion yelled out.

"Now, Shion, don't get mad because others are obviously superior to you. Nobody likes a sore loser," reprimanded Shinichi. "Anyway, it's break time now. We can all eat." He pointed to the water cooler. "I got sandwiches and drinks in there to refresh you."

Suddenly, in a burst of gold butterflies, Lucifer appeared. She scowled, hands to her hips, and shouted, "YOU!"

"OK, why are you so pissed?" Shinichi asked as he backed away from the irate Stake of Pride.

"Satan's going into labor, that's why!" the leader and eldest of the Stakes of Purgatory exclaimed.

"What?" And then he exclaimed as it registered completely, "WHAT!-?"

"You heard me!" she snapped.

Shinichi yelled into his communicator, "Sheila, Teleportal! Now!" The swirling portal formed out of thin air and he leapt through it before it vanished from sight.

"…He does know I could've teleported him there along with me, right?" Lucifer asked.

"He tends to forget things when he panics," Mion shrugged.

* * *

Shinichi rushed out of the Teleportal and ran past Yokoshima, sending the Blue Scarab's holder spinning before slamming his palm onto the elevator button. "Come on! Come on!" he repeated impatiently as he jogged in place. When the elevator reached the ground floor, the door slid open and he went inside. He pressed the button to his desired floor and waited, which was quite the challenge considering why he needed to arrive quickly.

Satan was due and about to give birth.

He'd gotten the notice moments ago and had arrived as fast as he could. Satan needed him to be by her side. He just hoped he wasn't too late.

Once the elevator reached the medical floor and opened, he ran and burst into the room, crying out, "I'm here!" Dr. Magi was checking Satan as he came over. She had her legs spread out and getting prepared for delivery. "How is she?"

"Finally turned up, huh?" Satan asked as he went to her side and slid his hand into hers. She gave it a firm grip that nearly broke his hand which was amazing, considering it was a cybernetic hand made out of an extremely strong alloy.

"OK, OK, I'm sorry!" Shinichi apologized frantically.

"OK, she's ready to give birth," reported Dr. Magi. "Oh, and Shinichi, I'm going to need you to brace yourself. You too, Ms. Satan. This is going to be the worst pain imaginable. Now I need you to give me a push."

"Just get this kid out of MEEEEEE!-!-!" Satan screamed as she put a lot of effort into the push.

"Just breathe, Satie-chan," said Shinichi. "Everything is going to be al-OH MY HAND!"

"This is all your FAAAUUUUULLLLTTTTTTT!-!-!" she screamed as she gave another push, sweat beading on her forehead as she crushed Shinichi's hand. He was biting the knuckle on the other hand to stop himself from screaming and the pain was forcing him down to his knees again.

"I'm here for you!" he cried out. The pain was nothing compared to what she was probably going through. Michiru was wiping the sweat off Satan's forehead as Hana did the same for Shinichi as his face twisted into an expression of agony.

"Keep it up, Ms. Satan!" Dr. Magi encouraged. "I can already see the head! I just need you to give me one big push!"

Shinichi gulped and Hana gave him a bar of rubber for him to bite on as Satan pushed and crushed his cybernetic hand with all her might. She gritted her teeth, veins appearing on her neck and forehead as she put all her strength into the final push.

And then silence, followed by a loud wail, "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!-!-!"

Dr. Magi cut the umbilical cord and bundled the baby up inside a blue towel as he announced, "It's a boy!"

Michiru then added, "And Shinichi just passed out!"

"The pain must've been too much for him," remarked Satan. She smiled warmly as she looked at the father of her child softly, "Sissy." However, she still loved him all the same.

* * *

"Congratulations, buddy," said Yuji as he put an approving hand on Shinichi's shoulder. "You're a dad now."

"Yup," said Shinichi as he popped the 'p' at the end. After the delivery, Satan was moved to the infirmary to rest. Satan was currently cradling their newborn son. He had fallen asleep after his first feeding.

"So, how's the hand?" Yuji asked.

"Oh, Dr. Magi's gonna fix it up but I won't be able to use my fingers for a while," said Shinichi. "But the pain was worth it. I put Satan-chan through this kind of pain so I should go through similar pain for her sake. Share the pain as they say. It doesn't hurt anymore. I just don't have any feeling in my right hand right now."

"Sounds rough," said Yuji. He walked over to Satan and kissed her forehead. "Hey, Satie."

"Hello, Onii-sama," said Satan. "Meet your nephew."

Yuji looked at the cute little baby who had short silvery-white hair on his skull. Being asleep, his eyes were closed. "Hey, Shinichi. Get over here," Yuji beckoned and Shinichi did. "Look at this little guy. He's your son."

"Yeah," Shinichi admitted with a soft yet proud smile. "He is."

"So, got a name yet?" Yuji asked.

"I suggested 'Shiro' because of his hair color," said Satan which made Shinichi shake his head. "But since Shinichi didn't like it we decided that we'd name him 'Hiroyuki'." Naming their son after someone who had caused them trouble just didn't sit well.

"We'll call him 'Hiro' for short," added Shinichi. "It also sounds like the English word 'hero'."

Hiroyuki yawned, opening his mouth wide before opening up his eyes which were like Satan's. The irises were blood red. Satan gently stroked her child's cheek with her thumb.

Suddenly, in a burst of gold, Beatrice, Ronove, and Virgilia appeared in the infirmary.

"Good that you three could make it," Yuji welcomed.

"Oh, let me see him," said Beatrice as she strode over, shoving Shinichi rudely aside. Beatrice beamed brightly as she gazed at the baby, "Oh, he has his mother's eyes." She then looked at Shinichi then back at Satan, "Couldn't you have chosen someone better to father your child?"

"It wasn't planned, Beatrice-sama," said Satan. "But remember, we did meet because of you."

"Yes, a mistake I made because I was caught in the heat of the moment. As impressive as he is you could've found someone else better," said Beatrice.

"With your standards, Auntie B?" Yuji snorted. "They're way too high for anybody."

"Regardless, a new life has once again entered this world," Virgillia smiled as she approached, "And he will be welcomed unconditionally."

"There's something I need to make clear," Shinichi spoke up. "Since I'm quarter demon on my dad's side and Satan's a full demon. Does that make Hiroyuki ¾ demon?"

"Does it matter?" Virgilia asked.

"No, it doesn't," said Shinichi, shrugging. "But I just need to know what to expect."

"You're saying that like _you'd_ be raising him," Beatrice pointed with her pipe.

"Of course I am. I'm his dad," defended Shinichi.

"The child will grow up in Kuwadorian in the Meta-World," declared Beatrice.

"Beatrice-sama…" said Satan firmly.

"Oh, but you will be allowed to visit, occasionally," added Beatrice.

Shinichi's answer was simple: "No."

Beatrice's eyes narrowed, "No?"

Shinichi repeated, "No. I'm Hiroyuki's dad and I'm going to help raise him with Satan-chan. He's _our _son and he needs both of us."

"Shinichi Banabara, you do realize I can kill you right now if I so choose?" Beatrice warned.

"I know, and if you do I'll bring myself back to life, drag myself out of my grave, and help Satie-chan raise our kid the way we see fit. I don't care if you're an all powerful witch. I don't care about your Endless Magic. I don't even care if you're my mother-in-law. I'm going to help raise him and there's no way I'm going to let anybody stop me. And if you intend to do that, then we fight." He drew the Higurashi no Yaiba in a challenging gesture.

Beatrice's neutral expression twisted instantly as she smiled before cackling loudly. Shinichi just stared.

"You pass!" said Beatrice.

"Say what?" Shinichi blinked.

"Should've known she was screwing around," Yuji sighed, palming his face. "Sorry, Shin..."

"This was a test, wasn't it?" Shinichi asked.

"Pretty much. Auntie B loves to mess with people," said Yuji.

"I pretty much got that idea when she transported me and my team into a pocket dimension with a huge chessboard floor a few years back," said Shinichi.

"I was bored," Beatrice shrugged.

"Well, thanks for introducing me to Satie-chan," said Shinichi.

"Oh, it was my pleasure, really," said Beatrice proudly.

"She's not very modest, is she?" Shinichi asked Yuji.

"No, she definitely isn't," said Yuji. "You'll get used to it. You're family now."

"As long as she doesn't put me in the middle of a crazy game of Chess again I'm fine with having her around," said Shinichi. He then shivered in instant pain as nearly over half a dozen voices sounded off in his head. '_Oi, keep it down in there! You all are giving me a migraine!_' Shinichi threatened the Tsukumogami.

This didn't stop them much though as they all took on an astral form and appeared next to Shinichi, looking at his newborn son. Only Shinji stayed behind, pleased with just watching through Shinichi's eyes.

"_Well, at least we can say he shares our appearance_," Kuro stated neutrally.

"_Way to go, boya! I knew you had it in you_," Gokuaku praised him while slapping him on the back though his hand ended up going through him instead.

"_I'm sure he'll grow up to be a great person one day. ¼ human or not, he's as human as you two will raise him to be_," Yabuki said reassuringly while looking at Shinichi and then over at Satan.

"_Hey, with Shinichi here as his father, Satan as his mother, Alan and Yuji as his uncles and with the rest of these guys watching over him, I doubt anyone would want to try and mess with this kid,_" Zennin stated. And he was right. Heaven have mercy on anyone that threatened Shinichi's son because he (Shinichi) would have none.

St. George stood over next to Satan and gave Hiroyuki a judging look and then looked at Satan. "_I can sense his power already. He'll be a strong boy of whom you can be proud of, milady._" Satan smiled at his kind words and then St. George spoke to both her and Shinichi. "_I would like to request to be able to help train him in self defense...when he's old enough and with your permission of course._"

"We'll see. For now, I want him to have as normal a childhood as he possibly can," Shinichi said. As he placed his hand on top of his son's head, they all got a shock when another spirit looped his head over Shinichi's shoulder, holding onto his body. It was a miniature dragon, and one whose presence Shinichi had grown accustomed to.

"_Hey, it's a tiny you, Halfling_," Dreigon stated. "_I can already tell that he'll be a force to be reckoned with one day._"

"Shinichi, who's he?" Beatrice asked as she gave the chibi-dragon a strange look. Shinichi let out a sigh. He didn't want to have to explain Dreigon right now. Of course, the next sound they heard would make his heart stop.

"Where is he?-! Where's my newly born grandson?-!" The door to the room flew open and Shiori burst in and looked over at Satan to see her holding the infant in her arms. "There he is! Hello there cutie, I'm your Obaa-chan!" Shiori exclaimed with stars in her eyes. She finally had a grandchild that she could spoil alongside Sho. "Oh, Satan-chan, he has your eyes and Shinji's good looks."

"Well of course he does, would you expect anything less?" Satan asked rhetorically. It was their child after all.

"Kaa-chan, not so loud," Shinichi chided.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Shiori apologized. "It's just when I heard the news I couldn't wait to get here and see him."

"Kaa-chan, are you OK with our son being born out of wedlock?" Shinichi asked.

Shiori admitted, "Well, it would be preferable for you to be married, but it's just a piece of paper, isn't it? Besides, if we worried about every little thing we'd just worry ourselves to an early grave. Though, I had imagined you being married to Rena-chan and having a baby with her first."

"Things just happened," Shinichi shrugged.

"But I'm still happy for you both and you've given me such an adorable looking grandson," said Shiori. "So, what's his name?"

"Hiroyuki Furio Banabara." Shinichi saw Rena stand at the entrance and beckoned her over. "You can come over here too, Rena-chan."

Rena made her way over and stared at the baby. A part of her was jealous that Satan had conceived her boyfriend's child first but she wasn't resentful. If anything, it gave her something to look forward to when her turn came. And she was determined to be next.

"Rena, we've been friends for quite awhile now, and since we both love this idiot (Shinichi) very much and I know taking care of a baby will be too much for him, would you do me the honor of being my son's godmother?" Satan requested.

"Oh, Satan-chan," Rena said as tears formed in her eyes. "Of course I will!" She gave Satan a soft hug and then kissed Hiroyuki on his forehead and began to coo at him, making baby talk with the infant. Shinichi just shook his head and chuckled.

As if nothing could ruin the moment, the doors burst open again as everyone else on their team came into the room to see Shinichi's newborn son.

"Oi, one at a time, you guys!" Yuji shouted at them.

* * *

Satan's sisters came to see the baby together. Satan was holding the bundle containing her child as her sister's surrounded her.

"Aw~! He's so cute!" squealed Asmodeus.

"Oh~, I could just eat him up!" said Beelzebub.

"I'm jealous," remarked Leviathan.

"I want one too..." pouted Mammon.

"Hmph, my baby will be ten, no 100 times more cuter than yours!" boasted Lucifer.

Belphegor smiled and just admired how her sister had a child of her own, born out of love. Still, it must've been an exhausting process. She asked, "So, what was it like giving birth?"

* * *

Everyone had their chance to see the newborn Hiroyuki, congratulating both the Stake of Wrath and Cicada Cyborg on the birth of their son. Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu also gave them their blessing and a blessing from demi-goddesses was not something to be taken lightly. Before long, Satan succumbed to exhaustion and the baby needed to be put to bed as well after his first feeding.

Shinichi and Alan both stood nearby, watching over the two. Hiroyuki was in a bassinet and sleeping soundly.

"Was it like this when Adam was born?" Shinichi asked his brother.

"Well, when a baby is born, it's a huge deal. You should know that," answered Alan. "So, looking forward to being a dad?"

"Yeah, but I'm a bit freaked out about it," admitted Shinichi. "I'm responsible for him now and that's a pretty huge responsibility."

"Just remember that you're not alone in all this," Alan reminded. "You got your friends and family."

"Rena-chan's pretty much fallen in love with Hiroyuki," smiled Shinichi. "But I think part of her wishes that the baby was ours and not Satie-chan and mine."

"She'll love the baby like her own anyway," said Alan. "You know that."

"I know, and I also know she'd want me to give her a baby. Hell, if Shawna's dad finds out about this, which I know he will, he's gonna want me to marry her and help her produce an heir," Shinichi said.

"I can see that," Alan smiled. Shinichi gently brushed Hiroyuki's hair.

"Hey, Alan, the time we live in now is pretty dangerous, huh?" Shinichi asked.

"Any normal world? You're stuck on the brink of Nuclear Meltdown between the US and the Soviets. Us? We're even worse off. We got super villains, old grudges, and worst of all we've got no idea who's behind it. And you know the guy behind it is bigger and badder than anyone or anything we've ever gone up against. But you wanna know what makes all that worth it?"

"Family," Shinichi answered.

"Family," Alan confirmed.

"Well, speaking of family, now that Hiroyuki's been born, I'm going to do whatever it takes to keep this world safe for his sake, no matter what," Shinichi resolved. Alan nodded in approval. Shinichi was going to fight to make sure the world was safe for his child.

Satan opened her eyes, annoyed. "Trying to sleep here," she grumbled.

"Sorry, Satie-chan," Shinichi apologized before kissing her forehead. "Just get some rest."

"I will if you both shut up and leave," she ordered before closing her eyes. The two left the infirmary. Surveillance cameras and Sheila would be watching over her and the baby.

"For what it's worth, you'll make one hell of a dad," Alan predicted.

"Isn't that a 'spoiler'?" Shinichi asked, smirking. He knew that Alan shouldn't give any clues to the future.

Alan nodded, "It's a fact."

Shinichi smiled in appreciation, "That means a lot to me, coming from you, little brother."

"I'm pretty sure he and Adam will have a lot of fun playing together," Alan smiled as he looked forward to that.

"Maybe in a few more months. He's still just a newborn, Alan."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: You've all been waiting for this moment as long as I have, so here we have brought you the birth of Hiroyuki Furio Banabara, son of Shinichi Banabara and Satan of Wrath. This chapter is mainly slice of life, with all the zaniness that you've come to know my story for. Anyway, please read and review this chapter. Thank you very much for your support which has allowed me to continue until I've gotten this far. You guys are wonderful.**


	175. The Legacy of Cain Part 119

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 119: When Hydes Attack!**

Today was a great day, a grand day in fact. It was the day of Shinichi's housewarming party.

Months ago, Shinichi had saved Genovia from becoming turned into a new empire for the Cybermen. He had saved the royal family from an assassination planned by the wicked Count Dogma who had made an alliance with the Cybermen. However, the man was then betrayed by his allies. One should never trust machine-men who had no emotions. The Cybermen even found the remains of an ancient dragon and through cyber-conversion brought it back to life. That dragon's name was Dreigon DxD and Shinichi had defeated him with the power of the legendary Sword of Ascalon, once wielded by Sir George, who was Princess Shawna's ancestor from centuries ago. This, of course, added two new entities inside Shinichi's mindscape; Dreigon himself and the spirit of the Sword of Ascalon who'd named himself St. George in honor of his original wielder.

Since then, Shinichi had been training to master the powers of the Sword of Ascalon, awakening abilities granted to him by his mixed human and demon blood. Being a quarter demon due to his biological father Warren Smith, Shinichi had access to Youki demon energy. Shinichi also had access to his own Reiryoku spirit energy. Together, these energies could be used by Shinichi to execute incredibly powerful attacks and access to amazing abilities. Among these abilities was Shunpo, enabling him to achieve super speed. He also gained attacks such as Kienzan, Makankosappo, Kaze no Kizu, Bakuryuuha and Getsuga Tenshou. There was also a technique called the Ryuga Daichikudaku which was arguably his most powerful attack in Ascalon Form.

Shinichi was continuously trained and tested by St. George with the aid of his other Tsukumogami and the Riders which inhabited his subconscious. In the end, Shinichi had to face off against Dreigon DxD himself. He was victorious at the end of that and had received permission from Dreigon to access to his awesome power.

But that was then and this was now.

* * *

The nobility of Genovia had come to attend the housewarming party, which had turned out to become a formal social gathering. There were servers serving drinks and a long table covered in the country's finest dishes and a few Japanese favorites as well like the large platter of fresh sushi made from the freshest of ingredients. Shawna had asked the royal chef and cooks to prepare this smorgasbord for the party.

The royal family was also present, with Shawna hugging Shinichi when she saw him. Even King Edward gave Shinichi a big, strong hug. Shinichi was a national hero. He was the one who'd saved their kingdom from a madman and his mechanical allies as well as a nightmarish three-headed dragon bent on revenge. Before that, Shinichi had done many great things for Genovia which began the day he had met Princess Shawna.

Back then Shawna was so interested in Japan and its culture that she practically had to beg her overprotective father to let her visit the country. He relented, finally, as long as Shawna brought along Chris and Anthony as her bodyguards. At the time she had been wearing the Orb of Wisdom and targeted by the Dark Hatred Society as a result. Shinichi went to protect the orb but ended up injured by Porcupine Igor. Shawna took him back to her hotel to rest and called him 'Mr. Samurai' because of his armor. The only reason he was protecting her was because of the Orb of Wisdom but she became one of his friends as a result.

Then Shawna had invited Shinichi and his friends to her kingdom and Shinichi ended up fighting agents of the DHS who had attacked. King Edward, after seeing Shinichi's strength and resolve was so impressed that he wanted the young man to be engaged to Princess Shawna. Shinichi had tried to decline but the king insisted. The fact was that nobody had been worthy for his daughter's hand, not even the snob Sutherland who'd come to her birthday that one time. He'd brought a diamond encrusted dress as a gift but what made Shawna smile was not the extravagant gifts, but Shinichi's gift which was a custom Kamen Rider action figure modeled after himself.

Sutherland, humiliated, returned and used a device called a Gaia Memory to kidnap Princess Shawna. However, in his arrogance, he failed to consider that Shinichi would be more than a match for him. Sutherland was captured, stripped of his title, and locked up for kidnapping Shawna. He just couldn't accept that Shawna could love a 'commoner' like Shinichi.

Shinichi also became knighted along with Alan and Yuji for protecting the royal family and their guests during Shawna's following birthday party, fighting off the villains which had attacked. The title and position was one of great honor.

Shinichi's friends and family had all come to attend as the invitations extended to them. He didn't forget to invite his stepfather, mother and little brother. They deserved to be here too. They were all dressed in formal wear, with the men either in tuxedos and suits and the girls wearing beautiful dresses.

The former estate of Count Dogma had been seized by the king following the count's attempted coup and death. The property was then given to Shinichi. Everything within the property, including the mansion, now belonged to Shinichi Banabara. He was a knight of Genovia and deserved to live in luxury as a reward for his service to the crown. Not to mention, he was also the man that the princess was in love with. He was the man who would be king if he married Shawna and King Edward was only waiting to bless the union.

Despite Shinichi's earlier reluctance, Rena assured him that it was alright for him to love Shawna as well. Also, Genovia had a convenient law for nobles which allowed them to practice polygamy. He could marry Shawna, and also take Rena as a wife as well. Shawna and Rena were good friends too and they were willing to share Shinichi, as long as Shawna didn't try to steal Shinichi away from Rena. Satan and Tsukuyomi were also part of the equation as Shinichi loved them too, the former being the mother of his child.

During the party, as the orchestra played music, Shinichi danced with each of the girls. He first danced with Shawna before switching to Rena, then Satan and finally Tsukuyomi. The Moon Demi-Goddess, at first, was not comfortable with the idea of wearing any sort of formal gown but her sister Amaterasu had talked her into it. Speaking of the Sun Demi-Goddess, she was dancing with Alan. Amaterasu was a beautiful woman and many of the men, be they single or otherwise, couldn't help but be captivated by her beauty. They were practically comparing her beauty to a goddess. Oh, if only they knew the truth.

Satan's sisters came to the party too and Beelzebub had gone straight to the buffet table before piling her plate with food. The most beautiful thing on the buffet table was a tall five layer cake. They even had a chocolate fountain. Fine wine were being carried out by servers and served to the guests.

* * *

Shinichi was later seen standing out on the balcony, looking up at the stars and the moon in the sky. Aside from dancing with the girls, Shinichi had spent the evening mingling with members of the kingdom's nobility. Fortunately, not all of them were snobs but there were a few who he could tell still looked down upon him because he was not of noble birth. Unlike them, he had to earn his noble title through merit of action rather than merit of birth. The young men who were in their twenties were also envious that he was able to win the heart of Princess Shawna. They had been suitors for her before she finally made her choice.

"Shin-kun?" Shinichi turned as he heard his name being called and saw Rena coming onto the balcony. "What are you doing out here?"

"Oh, I just needed some space, that's all," said Shinichi. "Sorry for leaving you like that."

"It's fine," Rena smiled. She was just so beautiful, just like the day he'd met her five years ago. Back then she'd only been a schoolgirl who found a strange boy in the rain. She then took him home and took him in, introducing him to all her friends. She was the main reason he decided to use his powers to fight for good. The memory of her death before he executed a Return to the Past was still fresh in his mind and he was going to prevent it will all his might.

He never wanted to see anyone he loved hurt or killed. The pain would just be too much. He'd quit when he'd nearly killed an evolving Keiichi. The guilt of causing harm to his friends always made him feel discouraged, depressed and miserable.

The powers he had were the result of his blood, while additional abilities were given to him via artificial and mystical means. His armor and physical enhancements were the result of cybernetic augmentation done to him by Dr. Gebok and GIN-SHOCKER who wanted him to be a weapon. Then he'd gained powers from the Treasures of Hinamizawa, attaining new forms and abilities based on them and their Tsukumogami. With these powers, he'd fought GIN-SHOCKER and the Darkloids as well as any new enemy which emerged. He was not alone though. He always had his friends with him, backing him up every step of the way.

As unfortunate as it was to lose ten years of his life because of GIN-SHOCKER, he'd gained a lot after escaping from their clutches. He had friends, family, and a purpose. He was not going to disappoint any of them.

Back in Japan, they were currently dealing with a problem known as Hydes. They were Kaijin which had mutated from humans who overdosed on a drug called G-Shock. G-Shock was derived from a chemical formula originally used to stabilize the NUMBERS as their bodies were getting accustomed to their cybernetics so the process wouldn't be too painful. The formula was necessary so that their bodies would not reject their cybernetic implants. However, in non-cybernetic humans, G-Shock was like steroids. Aside from Dr. Gebok, the only other person who knew the formula had been Omega Scorpio but he was dead now. However, the formula for G-Shock had fallen into the hands of the Religion of Crime and they were producing and distributing the drug. Humans who took it gained strength but overtime their bodies would mutate into horrifying mutants called Hydes. The Riders would then have to fight these Hydes and defeat them before injecting them with an antidote which would cure them and prevent them from mutating ever again.

"You know, it's too bad that Eon couldn't come," remarked Shinichi.

"Yeah, it's too bad he has to be locked up," Rena said sadly. She glanced at Mammon who seemed depressed.

"Rena-chan," Shinichi began to change the subject. "Have you ever imagined that one day you'd be living in a big, luxurious mansion like this one?"

"Well, to be honest, I used to dream about being a princess and living in a castle," Rena admitted, "And meeting my prince. This comes really close." She hugged him.

Shinichi returned the embrace. He then felt a tug on his pants and looked down to see Celine.

"Hi-Mau!"

"Hey, Celine-chan." He picked up the flower girl. "How come you're so far from you dad?"

"Maybe she just wants to dance with you," Rena suggested jokingly as Celine beamed cutely.

Holding Celine reminded Shinichi that he himself was a father now. His responsibilities had only increased over the years. He first fought to protect only Hinamizawa but pretty soon he took on the responsibility of protecting the world. It was too much for one guy, but he had help from friends and allies. He also had a son now, whom he loved dearly.

Alan, in the meantime, was at a buffet table and watching as strangers were giving attention to his girls. He trusted the girls to politely decline offers to dance because they only wanted to dance with him. Alice too was at his side, just marveling at the place they were in.

"Daddy, will we have a big house like this someday?" Alice asked.

"Alice, when we can get back to my world, I'm going to show you how big the Smith house is," Alan promised. Yuji stopped by the buffer table with a chair and sat down with a glass of wine to unwind. "You seem tired," Alan observed.

"I danced with each of my girls tonight," Yuji said. "Including my sister, wife and daughters. So yeah, I'm a bit exhausted." He took a sip of wine.

"How's the wine?" Alan asked.

"Not bad, but I've had better stuff before in Auntie B's place," said Yuji. "It's way better."

"I'm sure," Alan smiled. "Can you believe this whole place now belongs to Shinichi?"

"What's not to believe? He pretty much deserves it," remarked Yuji. "Plus there's more room for him, Rena, Tsukuyomi, Satan and Hiro when they start living here."

"That's true," Alan agreed. "Still, I can't believe Shinichi invited Yuri."

"I can't believe Yuri's behaving himself," added Yuji in astonishment, "But I guess I got Ana to thank for that. It takes a woman like her to control a nut like my brother." Ana, or Anastasia, the former Witch of Terror had been their enemy. Now, she was one of their trusted allies. Still, Alan was unnerved with the fact she wielded a Sinestro Corps power ring. It did make sense, considering her former occupation.

Yuri, whom Shinichi still considered insane and dangerous, was also one of their allies. While Shinichi was hunting down the real Gebok following Lina's 2nd death, Yuri had supported Shinichi on his mission for revenge. While Yuri was chaotic, he was surprisingly reliable in a fight. Granted, he could get a little too extreme.

"People can surprise us in the most unexpected ways, Yuji," said Alan.

* * *

In the Hive, Rune was sitting on the floor of his bedroom/cell, sitting in a lotus position while he meditated. Through meditation, he had found at least some control over his Victorization, slowing it down a bit. As he kept himself in a state of pure calm, he was suddenly brought back to reality as he heard a beep. Opening his eyes, he looked over to the wall which was also a 2-way window that connected with part of Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam' lab. Looking through the window, Rune could see Dr. Magi standing there, waving him over. Luckily for the doc, the glass and metal wall allowed him to remain in close enough contact with Rune and not suffer from the life energy drain that came with the Victorization process.

"Hey, doc," Rune said in a somber tone. His face, which usually held a big grin and eyes full of life, was now a shadow of his former persona. "What's up?"

"Well Rune, I was performing some tests on your silver Kakugane after you let me borrow it and I may have found a way to perform at least some minor repairs to it," Dr. Magi said.

Rune's eyes instantly filled with life again as he developed a shocked look on his face. "Are you freaking serious?!" Dr. Magi nodded as he showed Rune the Kakugane.

"I analysed the materials that it's made out of and found out that we do have some of the same materials here at the base," Dr. Magi informed the young alchemist. "Albeit not much, but maybe just enough where you can perform a patch job that will be able to hold until we can find a way to send you home."

This was possibly the best news Rune had heard all day. Thinking quickly, Rune's mind went into full 'work' mode. "Okay, send someone to my quarters to retrieve the notes that I got from the village. After that, find all the material you can get and bring it here."

"And then what?" asked Dr. Magi. Rune just smiled.

"Then, I'm going to fix my Kakugane enough to where I can finally get out of this damn cell! Now, quickly while I can still move around and keep myself in a state of control!"

"R-right away!"

And with that, Magi was off to go gather Rune's notes and the required material's for the Kakugane's patch job. Rune sat back down and waited. While he couldn't fully fix his Kakugane without all of the necessary materials, he could at least fix it enough to half the Victorization process until he found a way back to his home era. As he thought of home, images and thoughts of Mammon suddenly entered his mind. Mammon. If he did find a way home then was there any guarantee that they'd see each other again? The timeline was always in a constant flux so there were never any sure possibilities.

'_I swear, I'll patch my Kakugane, go back home, finish the white Kakugane and then come back to ya, babe_,' Rune thought. If he was going to have a life with Mammon, then he wanted to make sure he could never be of any danger to her ever again. '_And there isn't a force in this world that's gonna stop me!_'

* * *

After the party, and after most of the guests had left, Shinichi invited all his friends to spend the night. The mansion had plenty of guest rooms. Actually, it was just a single floor which had only guest rooms, each with a bathroom.

* * *

Back in Japan, Oh Yeun-Kyung was quickly packing up. What money he had in cash form was put into a briefcase. He'd already purchased a plane ticket to take him out of the country. It just wasn't safe for him to continue doing business in Japan, not with the Kamen Riders ruining everything. If more and more of his customers got cured, then they wouldn't go back to him to buy more G-Shock. Sure, he could keep on distributing the drug but eventually he would be caught and Oh Yeun-Kyung never got caught. He never got caught in his homeland in Vietnam and he was not going to allow himself to be caught here in Japan. He heard that Korea sounded nice this time around.

Besides, he'd made plenty of money so until it all ran out he would live his life in luxury. He went to open the door when it was blasted open. He was sent flying backwards, his briefcase blown open, scattering yen notes in the air. Oh Yeun-Kyung laid on the ground, groaning in pain. He looked at the entrance and his eyes widened in terror.

"Mis...Mister...Black..." he uttered, trembling. An invisible force took hold of his collar and lifted him up into the air.

"Going somewhere, Mr. Oh Yeun-Kyung?" Mr. Black asked as he lit a cigarette.

"No, just, um...just going to make a cash deposit!" Oh Yeun-Kyung lied.

"You can't lie to me," Mr. Black retorted. "I know what you're thinking. You're thinking you could just leave and forget about the job we gave you. You're thinking that with all the money you've made, you can just go and retire out of country. You were thinking maybe you could take a permanent vacation in Korea." Oh Yeun-Kyung began to sweat profusely.

"Well, business has been bad and-URK!" His throat felt like it was being crushed.

"We are the ones who decide if your business has been going bad, Mr. Oh Yeun-Kyung. Don't ever forget that we were the ones who hired you. We only let you keep all the profit because we have no use for it," said Mr. Black before releasing his telekinetic hold on Oh Yeun-Kyung's throat. Any longer and he would've died.

"But the Kamen Riders are ruining my business! They made a cure! If it gets spread then nobody is going to buy this G-Shock here!" Oh Yeun-Kyung defended. "Even my men have been caught!"

"True, but your orders were to remain here and distribute the drug," reminded Mr. Black. "And if you try to leave, well, where you're going all that money won't mean a damn thing."

"So, what should I do?" Oh Yeun-Kyung asked.

"Keep on distributing the drug, make more Hydes, eliminate those Riders, and for God's sake change your pants," Mr. Black growled before dropping Oh Yeun-Kyung on the floor. Mr. Black vanished and Oh Yeun-Kyung began to breathe frantically. His heart drummed in his chest, his body was drenched in sweat, and he did need a change of pants. He picked up his fedora with a trembling hand and swallowed the saliva building up in his mouth.

Crossing the Religion of Crime was never a smart idea.

* * *

The Riders and their allies responded to all Hyde activity whenever it occured, defeating the Hydes and curing them with the serum. Of course their supply was rather limited but both Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam were producing as many fresh batches as they could. They did need supplies and they weren't cheap. Fortunately, aside from their duties in the Hive, both scientists did have occupations outside the walls.

* * *

Oh Yeun-Kyung had summoned all his dealers to their main headquarters. He had something to say to them.

"Men, business has been good and I'm very happy with your progress. However, with those damn Kamen Riders taking out our customers we need to do something about it. That's why I want you all to take those G-Shock pills and swallow them," Oh Yeun-Kyung told them. There were murmurs in the assembled dealers. Oh Yeun-Kyung had forbade his dealers from ever taking the drug because he didn't want them turned into Hydes then get themselves caught then lead the authorities to him. However, it was time for desperate measures. The Religion of Crime wanted the Riders eliminated and so they were going to do it with a mass Hyde assault.

"Just do what I say and you won't have to worry about anything again! Trust me! This will make sure we can make money without any interference," he promised. "With the power of G-Shock, we can become so powerful that not even the authorities can touch us!"

Cheers erupted from the army of dealers as Oh Yeun-Kyung spread his arms wide. He would also join in this fight. He didn't have much of a choice though. Fortunately, he kept the best stuff in his pocket for himself. It was a batch of G-Shock which would turn him into a god.

* * *

_"ALERT! ALERT! MULTIPLE HOSTILES DETECTED! ALERT! ALERT! MULTIPLE HOSTILES DETECTED!"_ Sheila shouted in alarm.

Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam went to see what was wrong. On the main computer, Sheila's picture was soon replaced by a map of Japan and then zoomed in specifically on Tokyo. There were multiple patches of red, which were red blips all bunched together, in different areas of Tokyo. There were multiple mass attacks happening in Japan's capital and all of them were Hydes as the satellite was transmitting the images live to the other screens.

"Dr. Magi, call everyone," said Dr. Washam. "We're going to need a whole lot of antidote."

* * *

The police were powerless against these monsters—known as Hydes—when they suddenly appeared in the city and started destroying everything in their sight. Witnesses who called them claimed that they had just changed from people into monsters. They weren't just attacking one area, but spread all over the city. Inspector Akasaka was at one of the attack sights, barking orders while trying to fight the creatures. Unfortunately, conventional firearms did nothing but slow them down.

Akasaka then saw something flying through the air and smiled. "Well, about damn time," he murmured.

Even the military, the JSDF, was summoned to deal with their threats and even if the soldiers stood a better chance with their weapons, the Hydes still wouldn't be stopped. One soldier was about to be mauled to death by a Tiger Hyde when said Hyde was sent flying by an uppercut.

"On your feet, soldier!" Sentinel barked before he flew at the horde of Hyde. They attacked like wild beasts, dog-piling the superhero, but he sent them flying by spinning like a tornado.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Gauntlet was watching the chaos unfold on a large monitor screen.

Faust, curious, inquired, "Just how was he able to assemble so many Hydes in such a short amount of time?" If it was just a matter of his dealers, there shouldn't be so many. It seemed abnormal for there to be so many in one city.

Black answered, "Oh, he was able to create this many by turning the drug into a gaseous form and spreading it through the air. It only affects those who've taken the drug though, forcing them to mutate while at the same time turning them into berserkers."

"I'm sure he was motivated to do so," said Faust, looking at Black knowingly.

"That I did, and also gave him the means to do so," said Black. He smirked as he saw all the chaos and destruction the Hydes were causing but then frowned as he saw the heroes arrive to stop it.

"Right on schedule," said their leader. Their enemies were just so predictable. It was like waving a bone in front of dog.

* * *

"RIDER DOUBLE KICK!" Ichigo and Nigo cried out as they executed their signature combination attack, hitting a Crab Hydes and sending it flying before it exploded and reverted to human form.

"DAI SETSUDAN!" Amazon roared as she performed the attack, slashing a Fox Hyde down the middle and watching it explode and change back to human form.

Alter was on Zakider and knocking Hydes down before he turned the vehicle back around. He leapt into the air and executed his own attack, hitting several Hydes with his Rider Kick. He remembered how a long time ago he'd tried the drug. To think he could've ended up like these people, completely consumed by the addictive power until they turned into monsters.

V3 and Riderwoman were back-to-back and taking down Hydes charging at them. Riderwoman used the Hook Arm to tie the Hydes up and smash them repeatedly into the ground, weakening them.

"V3 RETURN KICK!" V3 executed and the Hyde he hit was sent flying, hitting its fellows, before exploding and taking them out.

X was using the Ridol Whip and slashing at Hydes as Stronger zapped them with her electrical attacks. The two then leapt into the air to finish their opponents off.

"X KICK!"

"STRONGER DENJI KICK!"

Explosions erupted as Hydes were force-reverted back to human form.

* * *

Slasher used devastatingly strong punches, knocking out Hydes and changing them back to human form. Behind him, Musician was using sonic blasts to knock the Hydes down. The acrobatic duo, Carmen and Arachnea, were performing leaps and jumps and lashing out with their weapons. Shogo was in the air and his needles did their work, stunning and defeating Hydes. Blue Beetle and Meta were also back-to-back, fighting Hydes.

* * *

With Team 5D's, they were using elemental attacks to drive back and defeat the Hydes. The Seven Stakes of Purgatory were aiding Team 5D's as well and these girls proved that they didn't just have good looks. They were like roses, beautiful yet possessing sharp thorns.

* * *

Kamen Rider Showa was in the air in the form of Skyrider, performing aerial recon. He scanned the entire city from his vantage point before perching atop Tokyo Tower. "This is starting to become a pattern."

A scenario involving a large horde of monsters often led to a final confrontation with the mastermind. That meant the one responsible for distributing the G-Shock drug should be around, watching and waiting. However, with all the Hydes, Showa couldn't tell which was the boss.

He spotted Yuji and Team 5D's taking down Hydes in one section of the city before moving to another. He also spotted the NEO-NUMBERS and Pseudo-Riders doing the same elsewhere and approved of it. Defeated Hydes reverted back to human form and were given an injection of the antidote. However, with so many of them, they were going to run out pretty soon.

He noticed Sentinel landing next to him and asked, "Well?"

"I don't see anything that would look like the big boss of this syndicate," said Sentinel. "But you know what to look for, right?"

"It's normally the biggest and strongest of the bunch," Showa said as he continued to scan for any Hyde that seemed more powerful, setting apart from the rest. The Hydes were just destroying everything. "Found anything?"

"Well, some of the ones I defeated were dressed like high class drug dealers," said Sentinel. "And a few were..."

"Civilians," Showa finished. Sentinel nodded.

"Also, the air smells and tastes funny," Sentinel added.

"Smells and tastes funny...?" Showa asked and Sentinel whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver, pressing the button to make the light at the tip shine. He then got the information from the scan sent directly into his brain via the psychic interface. "Crap...I was right."

"What?" Showa asked.

"It's in the air," Sentinel informed his brother and that was when Showa remembered that the serum was nearly odorless and invisible in gaseous form. He looked down at the Hydes and Sentinel said, "That's why there are so many civillians among them. They took the drug..."

"And the gas accelerates the mutation but turns them into mindless berserkers," Showa finished, fists clenching tightly. "Then a machine is introducing the gas into the air."

"And if you find the machine..."

"I find the boss," said Showa. He called the base, "Dr. Magi, Dr. Washam, have Sheila perform a scan on the city for any strange technology or machinery. Alan figured out that the G-Shock is in the air. I know, its nearly odorless, which is why I need you to find anything that looks strange on Sheila's scans. Thank you. Showa, over and out."

"You think they'll be able to find something?" Sentinel asked.

"They should," said Showa. "Or you could do a scan with your ring."

"Good idea. Be back in a flash," said Sentinel before he took off at the speed of sound.

"Looks like I gotta head down there to give assistance," said Showa and he leapt off his perch, changing from his Skyrider form into his default and he confronted the Hydes aggressively. "OK, you druggies! Bring it on!"

* * *

Back at the Hive, Rune looked around as the alarms had gone off only a few minutes ago and he had heard Sheila announcing a loud alert. He knew what was going on. Being from the future, he did have some foreknowledge and today was supposed to be the day of the final battle against the Hydes. But he would be damned if he was going to be stuck in his cell for the whole battle. Reading over his notes, he then looked down at his Kakugane which was set in a small glass case filled with a strange liquid. It also had some wires set into it, providing an electric current. All around the glass case were symbols, the case having been set in the center of a big transmutation circle. Set next to the case where all the metal alloys he was going to need for the patch job.

"Ok, if I'm right, then this should be enough," Rune told himself as he placed his notes down. Taking a few deep breathes, he developed a determined look on his face as he slapped his hands together before placing both palms against the transmutation circle. "Alright, let's get this party started!"

Outside the room, the 2-sided window let out a mixed glow of many colors as Rune's cell was filled with an abundant amount of alchemic energy. Now it was only a matter of time to see if the patch job would work. Rune just prayed that Magi had given him the proper materials but he wasn't going to start doubting the good doctor now.

* * *

"HIGURASHI ZAN!"

Showa (Higurashi Form) swung the Higurashi no Yaiba and fired the energy blade which struck a line of Hydes, causing an explosion. As the blaze faded, he saw the knocked out Hydes had been reverted back to humans. Nodding in satisfaction, Showa went to take care of several more Hyde hordes in the area. The authorities would take care of the defeated Hydes. Although, a lot of antidote serum would be needed to prevent another transformation.

Some heavyweight Hydes decided it was a good idea to dogpile him and then beat him up as he desperately tried to defend himself as he was buried by the horde. However, they all howled as they were thrown in all directions by an elemental tornado. Within the tornado was Showa (Oni Form) with his fists raised into the air. His eyes flashed and flared with fury as he glared at them all. While he was aware that not all of them had become Hydes willingly, it didn't change the fact that they had taken a dangerous, and potentially lethal drug.

Spinning around in place, wind whipped around Showa to form a spiralling tower which grew and grew. Like a vacuum it sucked up the nearest Hydes. Add in fire and lightning and the tornado did greater damage to their mutated bodies. The lightning shocked them, the fire burned them, and the wind cut them. Once Showa stopped spinning, the tornado dissipated and the Hydes all landed around him in heaps. While not lethal, the damage was still significant enough to force their bodies to revert to human form. He didn't have to kill them, which was Showa was glad for.

Another horde came charging at the Rider and he summoned the very shadows to envelop him. Then, he multiplied, this time clad in black garb similar to the shinobi of ancient times. With his duplicates, Showa (Kage Form) leapt into the air and executed a flying side kick which smashed into the Hydes and sent them flying. The Hydes crashed and exploded, returning back to human form.

The Showa clones converged back into one and he returned to his default Showa Trinity Form. He looked around, seeing no Hydes. He saw only the cruel victims of G-Shock as they were lying unconscious around him.

Showa then called, "This is Showa calling everyone. I've just finished cleaning up here. How are you guys doing?"

* * *

"So fast? Damn!" Ichigo shouted. She and the Gaming Club were still taking down Hydes one at a time. "How did you do it?"

"_All it takes is training, hard work, cybernetic augmentations, and the aid of some legendary artifacts_," Showa answered.

"Cheater," Ichigo retorted.

"_Hey, it's not my fault that Lady Luck loves me when it comes to powerups. Must have something to do with being a main character._"

"Shin-kun, you're getting a big head again," Amazon warned him.

"_Ah, sorry, Rena-chan. Anyway, I'm gonna call the hospital to get some ambulances here to pick up these guys._ _Washam and Magi should be done working on all that serum once we're finished here._"

Showa then took off and went into the air to see if there was anymore trouble to be taken care of. With this many Hydes, the Big Bad had to be somewhere nearby. It was how these scenarios worked and Showa had learnt to predict things based on certain patterns.

He then picked up an emergency radio call, from Akasaka, "_We need backup! I repeat, we need backup! This thing is-IT JUST THREW TWO CARS INTO THE AIR! NOW IT'S BLOWING OUR CARS UP!_"

"Well, I know where I need to go," Showa said as he flew in the direction of the emergency. Knowing Alan and Yuji though, they might get there first.

* * *

When Showa got there he saw Sentinel standing in the middle of the street. Touching down, he approached his brother.

"OK, what happened?" Showa asked and Sentinel pointed. Showa saw cars, on fire, piled up on top of each other. He could see several cops lying on the street and he didn't have to be a doctor to tell that they were dead.

"What about Akasaka?" Shinichi asked.

"Saved him and a few officers," Sentinel answered. "He's got a broken arm but still alive."

"That's good," Showa said, relieved, but the officers that had died would be added to the list of the people he failed to saved. "So, what about the guy who did this?"

The question was answered as the pile of cars exploded, sending metal car parts, glass, and burning rubber flying in all directions, along with the bodies of the fallen officers. Showa stood behind Sentinel, using him as a shield.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Showa shouted and he noted Sentinel stiffening. Showa got out from behind Sentinel to get a good look at their enemy. Their enemy was standing in a circle of scrap metal and was glaring at them with immense hatred and arrogance.

The Hyde seemed different from the rest, like levels beyond the ones he'd defeated. Standing at 6 feet tall, the Hyde was male, judging by his masculine figure and resembled a dragon. It had grey scales and also wore black, scale-covered, armor. Hanging from the sides of his belt which had a small dragon skull as a buckle were flaps of armor. He also sported black armor plates on his shins and his feet had three toes each that were tipped with claws. His fingertips also had menacing claws and the armor coating his fingers and forearms somehow made him look even more menacing. The armored pads on his shoulders were also decorated to look like they had sharp teeth and eyes to appear almost skull-like. The chest-piece also had an almost skull-like quality, trimmed with blue and a crimson red stone was mounted in the centre. The head resembled a helmet with a mouth of sharp teeth surrounding the human-like mouth and a pair of red eyes gleamed menacingly. A blue stone was set between the eyes, emitting a nearly eerie glow. Mounted on the forehead was a wicked and curved horn. On the spots where the ears would be was a pair of bat-like wings. Overall, the Hyde's already menacing presence was amplified by his terrifying appearance.

The Hyde's name was Diablos Dragon and he was the last thing Showa would see before his demise.

"I was fighting him," Sentinel said. "I saw him killing police officers. I tried to stop him." His fists were clenched. "He's pretty strong."

"I can see that, and sense that," Showa answered. He patted Sentinel on the shoulder and said. "Tag me in. It's my turn."

Sentinel nodded and Showa charged at Diablos Dragon. He drew his right arm back, coating it with metal as his fist grew. With a shout of, "OI-RYAH!" he smashed his Great Fist against the Hyde...only for the Great Fist to break and shatter on impact. "Dude, seriously!?" The Hyde then knocked Showa into the air with a slap and sent him tumbling along the ground to stop at Sentinel's feet. "OK, he's pretty strong," Showa admitted. "Oh, and for the record...ow."

"I did warn you," Sentinel quipped before glaring back at Diablos Dragon. The strength it possessed, it was definitely far stronger than any of the recorded Hydes by far. Even the readings that Renkin had been able to give them from his fight with Lava-Rex, despite her being the strongest of the Hydes back then, were nowhere near the levels of strength and energy this Hyde possessed.

The 'mouths' on Diablos Dragon's shoulders opened and he fired bursts of blue flames at the two. Acting quickly, Sentinel formed a shield to block the flames as Showa got back up to his feet.

"Well, guess it's time I used my trump card," said Showa as he drew the Sword of Ascalon.

"Isn't that going overboard for a mutant created from drug use?" Sentinel questioned.

"Hey, no kill like overkill," Showa retorted, smirking. "Besides, you buried it and it's still moving around like nothing happened and it just bitch-slapped me like I was nothing to him," he added as he raised the Ascalon high into the air. "Now, drop the shield!" Sentinel did as asked and Showa called, "Bring Order to the Chaos...ST. GEORGE!" He rushed forward, stabbing the Sword of Ascalon in front of him and cutting the circle of light. He burst right through it, accompanied by a dragon's roar, and was clad in the Armor of Ascalon. Putting away the sword, he used Shunpo, crossing the distance in a flash to punch Diablos Dragon in the face. The Hyde stumbled backwards from the blow and growled in anger before he swiped at Showa who blocked with his gauntlet, a clanging sound ringing through the air.

"I suppose you're the Big Boss if you're able to give my friend trouble," Showa assumed before continued his assault and kicked at the Hyde who dodged by sidestepping. The Hyde retaliated with a punch before attempting to backhand Showa who ducked under the swing. Showa swung his fist but it was caught by the Diablos Hyde who sneered.

"Yes, that's true," answered Diablos Dragon as he went for a brutal 1-2 combo, Showa only managing to dodge the first punch but not the second.. "You Riders have been interfering in my business so I decided to have you eliminated." He blasted at Showa who dodged by running around to stand behind Diablos Dragon.

"By turning everyone who's taken G-Shock into Hydes by force!" accused Showa, glaring angrily at Diablos Dragon who spun around to catch his punch.

"They bought the drugs, they knew the consequences. It's not my fault they ignored the warnings of overdosing," Diablos Dragon dismissed and he began to squeeze Showa's fist, forcing him to his knees in pain.

'_Halfling, what are you doing!?_' demanded Dreigon. '_Finish him off, now!_'

"Slow and steady, Dreigon," Showa whispered. He then performed a sweep kick, knocking the Hyde onto his back and then he grabbed him by his ankles and tossed him into the air. He charged up his index and middle fingers and fired his attack, "Makankosappo!" He fired the spiralling energy beam at the Hyde but Diablos Dragon vanished from sight, leaving only an afterimage. "What!?"

"Shinichi, behind you!" Sentinel shouted and Diablos Dragon sent Showa flying, crashing into the building at the end of the street. "Oh, to hell with this!" He didn't care if Showa wanted to fight alone, they were all part of a team, dammit!

"Sentinel!" Sentinel heard and he turned to see the others coming to his location, running towards him. They stopped near him and spotted Diablos Dragon.

"So, that's the Boss, huh?" questioned Blue Beetle.

"That's right," Sentinel confirmed.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's rush him!" Ichigo ordered.

Suddenly, a fireball burst out of the building and exploded against Diablos Dragon. This was followed by Showa attacking him with a series of kicks. Diablos Dragon retaliated with his own punches and the two fighters continued to exchange blows furiously, each contact causing a loud and explosive noise on impact.

"I think Shin-kun's handling it well on his own," Amazon observed.

"Yeah, but just in case..." said Blue Comet as he summoned his Crimson Dragon Spear.

"Yes, just in case," Sentinel agreed, drawing the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. As powerful as Showa was, that didn't mean they would just leave him to fight alone. At the first sign of trouble they would intervene.

An elbow smashed against the Hyde's face followed up by a punch to his throat to stun him. Showa then sent him reeling with a knee strike to the chest before knocking him backwards with a flip kick. The combo was concluded by a punch straight into the Hyde's gut, with Showa's fist buried firmly into his stomach. However, Showa was now within range as the 'mouth' on the Hyde's chest opened and released an explosive burst of energy, violently throwing Showa into the air.

Showa stopped his involuntary flight by spreading his Dragon Cloak. '_Lad, summon the Shield of Glen to add some extra power to your attacks_,' St. George advised.

Smiling, Showa dive-bombed Diablos Dragon as he summoned the Shield of Glen to add in more power but his opponent also had his own tricks up his sleeves. A pair of large, leathery wings burst out of his back and Diablos Dragon took off towards Showa. Both fighters met in the middle and began to furiously and ferociously trade blows. The force behind each strike was enough to shatter bone into dust and yet neither side was letting up.

"OK, seriously, why are we standing around here for!?" Musician demanded. He didn't like standing around as a spectator. He preferred being involved in the action and bringing in the pain on their enemies.

"A duel is normally fought one on one," said Blue Comet. "Besides, Shinichi will ask for help when he needs it."

Musician gaped, "You do know who you're talking about, right?" He knew that Shinichi rarely ever asked for help. The guy was stubborn.

"I do," Blue Comet answered, "And you know I'm right, even if he rarely asks for help, he'll ask for it, eventually."

"Don't hold your breath."

"RARGH!"

"SOI-RYAH!"

Diablos Dragon's fist missed but Showa's didn't and he blasted Diablos Dragon to the ground, which shook on impact as pieces of the street flew in all directions. Showa landed and strode towards the crater he'd made with Diablos Dragon and knelt at the edge.

"Had enough?" Showa taunted. Diablos Dragon's eyes snapped open and he leapt out of the crater, landing behind Showa. "Of course not," he muttered and Showa spun around to leap at his opponent who then rocketed skyward. Spreading his Dragon Cloak, Showa shot into the air in hot pursuit. Diablos Dragon shot at Showa with burst of blue fire, only for his attacks to hit the energy barrier of the Shield of Glen. Accelerating, Showa reached Diablos Dragon who grabbed his throat. Diablos Dragon then smashed Showa against a building and began to drag him along the wall but Showa nailed him with an uppercut. Diablos Dragon recovered quickly and used a heel kick to send Showa crashing to the ground. Before impact, Showa fired a blast of energy from his hands to rocket him back up at Diablos Dragon to headbutt him in the face. Reeling, Diablos Dragon snarled and grabbed hold of Showa's neck in one hand and planted his foot into the Rider's stomach, before dragging him through the air to smash him into a office building, the explosive impact shattering all the windows.

Pinned to the wall, the 'mouths' on Diablos Dragon's shoulders opened up to deliver the killing blow only for Showa's eyes to flash as he ignited, enveloping his body in intense, red hot flames. Diablos Dragon was repelled by the flames and he shot a concentrated stream at Showa who countered with his own fiery stream. The two streams of fire met in the middle and caused an explosion that threw Diablos Dragon backwards. Showa shot out of the smoke and began to deliver a furious flurry of fatal flaming punches to the Diablos Dragon, hitting him in the face, stomach and gut repeatedly. The flurry of punches were so swift that they blurred but the sound of each blow rang through the air.

'_Damn, this fucker just won't stay down no matter how many times or how hard I hit 'em_,' Showa groaned inwardly as he delivered a Youki empowered punch to Diablos Dragon's face, knocking loose some of his teeth. He then finished up with an axe kick that blasted Diablos Dragon to the ground, hitting the street with explosive force, and digging a trench along its surface. Showa landed and ran towards his target, dodging a fire blast in mid run. He closed the distance and began to punch at Diablos Dragon who now could block all his punches with his forearms, sending his fists off target. Showa used a roundhouse kick, which was blocked and the Diablos Dragon sent him staggering backwards with a palm strike to the face. Growling in frustration, Showa lunged and began a furious combo of punches and kicks that the Diablos Dragon easily blocked with only his arms. Seeing an opening, Diablos Dragon jumped and performed a reverse roundhouse kick that sent Showa flying, hitting a wall violently to break off chunks from it. He landed in a heap and groaned.

"Is it just me...or is he getting stronger...?" Showa asked himself.

'_It's because he can predict your moves now, foolish Halfling!'_ Dreigon snapped angrily. '_You've been wasting too much time on this wretched creature instead of finishing him off!_'

"Just trying to tire him out before the finale," Showa argued, weakly.

'_Does he look tired?_' Dreigon questioned with annoyance dripping from his voice..

"No," said Showa in an annoyed tone. Dreigon enjoyed criticizing him, a lot.

'_Then stop wasting your time and end this fight, NOW!_' Dreigon DxD ordered. '_If this keeps up, you'll run out of the required amount of energy to keep the Armor of Ascalon active. So stop playing with your opponent and defeat him already! Or do I need to take over and do the job for you?_'

"The hell that I'm letting you drive!" Showa quipped. It was his body and he wasn't about to let Dreigon DxD get inside the driver's seat. He hated being controlled, ever since Gebok had done the same to him for a decade. He hated being like some kind of puppet on string.

'_Then fight already!_' Dreigon shot back. He knew Shinichi was capable of more. He was the boy who'd defeated him with the Sword of Ascalon on their first confrontation and as a novice.

"Alright, alright...fine. Better finish him off then," Showa concluded, recalling how he and Decade had to defeat the Great Leader years ago. They had used their most powerful forms at the time and executed a combination attack with their finishers.

'_Obviously,_' scoffed Dreigon.

Staring at Showa with a look of confusion on his draconic face, Diablos Dragon began to wonder if all the Riders were sane or had taken one too many hits to the head in their careers as heroes. "Just who in the hell are you talking to, boy?" Diablos Dragon demanded. "Could it be that all the hits I've delivered have knocked a few screws loose in that cyborg brain of yours?"

"Don't flatter yourself, fugly," Showa retorted. '_Note to self, stop talking to the voices in my head when out in public.'_ Doing so just made him look crazy. It had to be bad if even the villains were commenting on it.

Roaring, Diablos Dragon went to deliver a bone-crushing blow, only to be repelled by the Shield of Glen. Quick as a flash, Showa drew the Sword of Ascalon. He ran his fingers along the flat side of the blade, igniting it with the same red hot flames on his body. "Ascalon no Ken! Ikuze!" Showa charged at Diablos Dragon, a draconic aura surrounding him like a coat of energy. The draconic aura spread its wings and roared as Showa executed his attack.

"RYU-OH...NO...KAEN GIRI (Dragon King's Flame Slash)!" The flaming Sword of Ascalon slashed through Diablos Dragon and the Hyde's body went stiff as the sword's blade shattered the armor on contact and the hot blade sliced through his flesh. Diablos Dragon screamed and Showa turned his back to him before he collapsed, falling backwards before exploding.

Showa swung his sword as if flicking off imaginary blood from the blade and performed a motion as if he was sheathing back the Sword of Ascalon which vanished. He then started to walk away from the dissipating blaze and towards his friends when he suddenly tensed up.

His senses had just picked up an energy spike. He turned and saw the blaze growing, changing color to blue as it expanded, forming a tower of flames.

It was not over yet it seemed as the flames took the shape of a massive dragon and dark wings burst free, spreading wide. The size and wingspan were gigantic. Red eyes glowed within the flames and the fire was thrown in all directions to reveal what had become of the Diablos color scheme, same armor, but looking less humanoid, with a long segmented tail tipped with a claw. The legs had turned double jointed. The neck was long and thick with spikes around the collar and changings hanging from it. The face had lengthened, becoming more reptilian, with the horn set on his snout. The teeth were razor sharp and looked capable of tearing anyone, or anything, to shreds like the claws.

What made this worse for Showa was that he could feel his strength leaving him as the seconds passed. Suddenly, the gigantic Hyde roared and fired a barrage of energy blasts from its mouth. Explosions erupted all around Showa and his friends. They were all thrown into the air, screaming.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, things have taken a turn...sorry if this ended in a cliffhanger. However, the ending would make you guys satisfied. Anyway, I would like to thank GuyverGenesis for all his help with this and how he's always supported me. I also support him so it's a win-win situation. Quid pro quo.**


	176. The Legacy of Cain Part 120

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 120: Last Ditch Attack! Final Evolution!**

Renkin exited the Teleportal, he came across a scene of destruction. He saw EMT's and paramedics all around him, working on treating the injured on the spot before taking the wounded to the hospital for further treatment.

"I guess I missed the party," said Renkin with some measure of disappointment but on the other hand it seemed like the others didn't need his help after all. However, being a bit of a history buff, he knew that this wasn't all there was.

"**ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRR RRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH -!-!-!"**

That roar confirmed that Renkin was right. "Looks like they've gotten to _that_." He made his way towards the source of the roar. Suddenly, a Hyde hidden in an alleyway lunged out and tackled Renkin, sending both of them tumbling along the street. The Hyde resembled a humanoid fly and smelled of rotten eggs. That was the scent of sulfur.

"Man, you stink!" yelled Renkin as he kicked the Sulfur Fly Hyde off him. The Hyde hovered in midair, his wings beating rapidly. Renkin got a good look at him. The Sulfur Fly Hyde was humanoid, with a fly's head and large compound eyes. It had brown exoskeleton armor with barbs along the forearms and shins. The proboscis expanded and the Sulfur Fly Hyde spat a glob at Renkin, which he evaded. It was fortunate that he dodged because the glob was corroding the street as it sizzled and bubbled.

"Sulfuric acid," Renkin analyzed. He turned to look at the Sulfur Fly Hyde. "Dammit!" The Sulfur Fly Hyde performed a divebomb to knock Renkin down but he dodged the swoop and grabbed hold of the Hyde's left ankle. "Get over here!" Renkin shouted as he pulled the Hyde's leg and then smashed it violently to the ground. The Hyde was disoriented momentarily by the impact before hastily climbing back to its feet. It swung a fist at Renkin who blocked with his hand, slapping it away, but the Hyde followed up with another punch. Renkin grabbed hold of the fist and kneed the Hyde in the gut. The Hyde grabbed hold of Renkin's collar and prepared to spit in his faceplate but Renkin raised his foot and slammed it between the Hyde's leg.

The Sulfur Fly Hyde shrieked in pain as it released Renkin before being sent flying by a powerful kick to its chest. Renkin then used his Bringer's Light and rushed the Hyde before executing an uppercut that slammed into the Hyde's spine, sending it spinning through the air before landing clumsily on the ground.

"Look, I don't have time to deal with you," said Renkin. "I got friends I need to-" Renkin suddenly witnessed the Sulfur Hyde Fly break apart into a swarm of flies. "What!? Oh, come on!" The swarm attacked Renkin, slamming into him, and sending him staggering as sparks flew. The swarm continued to attack and Renkin's arm flailed about as he tried to swat the swarm away. "Get off! Get off!" The swarm of flies were annoying and spreading the odor of rotten eggs as well.

The swarm reconstituted into the Sulfur Hyde Fly and shot a glob of sulfuric acid directly in Renkin's chest. He cried out as he was hit and grunted in pain. The Hyde then kicked Renkin across the face and sent him falling to the ground.

Renkin clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. "OK, that's it. No more Mr. Nice Alchemist!" he got up, on one knee, and clapped his hands together. He then slammed his palms to the ground as electricity arched around him. Stone fists rose from the ground with the Fly Hyde in the between and opened up before clapping together, crushing the Fly Hyde between them. The hands sunk back into the ground as the Hyde stumbled in a daze, dizzy because of Renkin's attack. Renkin then closed the gap in the blink of an eye and threw a fist across its face. It tried to spit again but Renkin put a tight grip on the proboscis and landed punch after punch into the Hyde's gut, causing it to jump up with each hit. He then flipped it and slammed the Fly Hyde onto the ground with near earth-shaking force.

Renkin stepped back as the Hyde shakily picked itself up. Jumping up, Renkin performed a reverse roundhouse kick that smashed against the Hyde's head. It collapsed in a heap soon after, reverting back to human form once knocked out.

"Alright, now to get to the others," said Renkin as he ran to where he heard the roar. He just hoped he wasn't too late. He'd wasted too much time on the Sulfur Fly Hyde.

* * *

"Dammit," Renkin cursed as he saw the state everyone was in. Showa was lying flat on his back, his armor cracked and shattered in dozens of places while both the Higurashi no Yaiba and the Sword of Ascalon lay next to him. He looked up at the form of the gigantic Diablos Dragon Hyde and wondered where they all went wrong. Yuji and his team, Team 5D's, had all taken on their transcended forms and threw everything they had at the Daikaiju but all that did was piss it off even more. In retaliation, it fired its intense beam of energy at them, burying them under nearly half a ton of a pile of rubble. Showa knew that it would take more than that to kill the group of Manakytes but they would be down for a few moments. He then looked over at the Stakes of Purgatory. The seven sisters all lay there, bleeding from every orifice on their body and convulsing in pain.

Sentinel was no better as he struggled to get up. For all his strength, this Hyde was far stronger than any creature they had ever fought before with the exception of the Yamata no Orochi. Even Amora, Yami, Conda, Bishie, Megan, Nozomu, and Lala were down and possibly out for the remainder of the fight. Seeing his girls in such a bloody and battered state hurt his heart so much that he just wanted to let loose and break the first thing he saw. Unfortunately for him, the only thing he really wanted to break was about to wipe them all out. He then crawled over to Showa and laid next to him, the brothers looking up at their toughest adversary to date.

"Man, this…sucks," Sentinel spat out in rasps, trying to catch his breath.

"Y-you're…(_cough_)…telling me," Showa retorted, coughing up blood within his helmet.

The two of them then looked around and noticed that the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS, the Gaming Club and even Hanyuu were down and staring up at the Hyde. The Daikaiju looked down at them from its spot in the air and let out a low growl as it powered up another beam of energy within its moth, preparing to wipe them all out in one final blow. As they all prepared for the end, Yuji and the rest of the Manakytes emerging from their rubble tomb, they all noticed the ground around them take on a transparent Soul Metal form as it encased them in a dome. Looking over in front of them, both Yuji and Yuri who were finally back on their feet noticed Renkin kneeling down on the ground as he performed a transmutation on the ground around them, pouring everything he had left in him into the ground.

"Dude, what are you doing?-!" Yuji shouted at the alchemic Rider.

"Buying you guys a little time to come up with something so hurry your asses up already and think of a plan!" Renkin retorted back at Yuji.

It wasn't that simple though. The blast slammed into the Soul Metal dome and slowly began to break through it. "It's not gonna hold!" Yuri shouted as everyone else looked on. They all had energy to spare but none of them knew if they could do anything as they watched as the Soul Metal dome begin to break down. That was when Sentinel thought of something.

"Everyone, surround Renkin and place your hands on him, now!" Sentinel ordered.

"Why?" Alter asked.

"Because, we're going to transfer some of our energy into him to keep that barrier up as long as possible until we can think of a counter measure."

They all understood and a few members of the NEO-NUMBERS and Team 5D's stood next to Renkin, placing their hands on his back to give him some of their energy. Even Mammon, Beelzebub and Belphegor helped out while Lucifer, Asmodeus and Leviathan helped their respective lovers to their feet. As they all, with the exception for Showa, got back on their feet, the Soul Metal dome nearly shattered to pieces except for the portion in front of all of them.

"I can't keep this up much longer!" Renkin shouted as he began to spit up blood from his destroyed helmet. Mammon placed her hands on his shoulders and gave him a determined look. "Mammon-chan?"

"You have to keep it up as long as possible," she told him. "That's an order!." Renkin just nodded and then roared with rage as he transferred the last of his strength into the shield, the alchemic energy crackling all around them as he infused it with his reiatsu, increasing the power. "That's it Houko-kun (_Treasure-kun_), keep it up and don't stop!"

"I know that already so will someone either think of a plan or do something that will take that fucker down already!" Renkin shouted in aggravation.

Showa looked on as most of his friends did their best to help Renkin keep the barrier up while Alan, Yuji and Shogo stood there, formulating a last ditch battle plan. He felt totally helpless now. All that training he had undertaken was supposed to help him in times like this but not even the powers of Higurashi Guardian Form and Ascalon Form could stand up to the Diablos Dragon Hyde. Showa continued to watch through the shattered lenses of his helmet, doubt slowly creeping into his eyes.

'_Is this it? Is this all I can do in the end?_' he thought to himself. '_If so then what good am I?-!_' He slammed his fist onto the ground and then noticed that the Higurashi no Yaiba and the Sword of Ascalon were still by his side. "What else can I do?"

'_Giving up already, Halfling?_' a voice asked Showa from within his mind. Showa's eyes snapped open in recognition. He knew who this voice belonged to. It was Dreigon. But why would the dragon living inside his head talk to him at such a critical time. As Showa began to ponder why he suddenly noticed everything around him slow to a crawl, as if time had suddenly come to a stop.

'_Huh, what's this? What's going on?_' Showa asked as he instantly blacked out and found himself in his mindscape.

* * *

_Looking around at his mindscape, Shinichi noticed that everything seemed like it was under water. Holding his breath, he finally gave up and opened his mouth, only to discover that he didn't need to breathe. This was new to him and now he didn't know what to expect. As he floated around in the water he soon noticed the forms of Kuro, Shinji, Zennin, Yabuki and Gokuaku frozen solid in cases of transparent black ice._

"_What's going on? What happened to you guys?-!" Shinichi shouted out as he banged on the icy containers but they wouldn't shatter no matter how hard he hit them. "Come on, break already!"_

"_That won't work, lad," St. George said as he appeared next to him. Shinichi turned to see the draconic knight and smiled in relief. At least one of his Tsukumogami spirits was still free._

"_George, what's going on here? What happened to Yabuki and the others?"_

_St. George looked at his comrades and then back at Shinichi. "Their connection with you has been temporarily frozen. As such, they cannot move for a short while." Shinichi went wide eyed and then placed his hands on each case, easily feeling their energy seeping through the ice. They were still alive, in a sense._

"_But how come you're not frozen like them?"_

"_Do you take us for being easily broken, Halfling?" Dreigon said as he appeared behind St. George, his body far bigger than the rest of the Tsukumogami._

"_Dreigon?" Shinichi asked with a glare. They used to be enemies, but Shinichi was starting to begrudgingly accept Dreigon as an ally. Didn't mean he fully trusted the dragon though._

"_Please Halfling; do you really think such a weak mental barrier could keep me detained?" Dreigon scoffed__. Once an enemy, the dragon no longer wished to harm Shinichi but would rather help him if allowed to do so. Having been defeated by Shinichi before caused the dragon to develop great sense of respect for the Rider. As such, he thought it would be best that he help St. George in Shinichi's training but waited in silence as he watched Shinichi grow__from a mere Halfling into a more powerful and deserving warrior. _

_The draconic knight and the Dragon of Dragons looked at one another and then back at Shinichi who looked at them as well. Shinichi's eyes narrowed as he let his irritation get the best of him._

"_Alright ya fossil, it's pretty much obvious that I can't get rid of you no matter how hard I try," Shinichi spat, causing Dreigon to narrow his own eyes at the boy. "So, if you're going to live here in my head then I think it's best that you start paying rent!"_

_Dreigon just let out a low growl as he lowered his head to meet Shinichi at eye level. "You, Halfling, are still so blind that you have yet to realize that you have one last type of power at your disposal." Shinichi blinked at him in confusion as St. George let out a sigh. The knight knew this day would come but he never expected it would come so soon. "So, by all means, charge me rent. I'll gladly pay it by instructing you in the ways of harnessing the draconic power known as Ryuyouki."_

"_Well, it's about damn time then. Now, tell me how to use it," Shinichi demanded._

"_Not so fast, Halfling. If you wish to acquire and use the draconic power known as Ryuyouki then you too must pay a price."_

_Shinichi gaped, "Price? What price?-! Why should I have to pay a price when you're the one living inside my head?" He was about to counter with a whole lot more reasons when Dreigon snapped at him._

"_Silence Halfling! Do you not realize what it is that you are asking for?-!"_

_Shinichi looked at him with a dumbfounded look on his face. "Okay, what is that supposed to mean, ya old fossil?" Dreigon whipped his tail around and ensnared Shinichi, binding him tightly as he lifted himself up and brought Shinichi up to his eye level, which was pretty high up._

"_Call me a fossil one more time and I'll let that monstrosity blast you, whelp!" Dreigon threatened him, causing Shinichi to quickly clam up. "Now, the only reason you could truly use and adapt to the powers of the Tsukumogami and assume forms based on those powers is because you share something in common with them. With Zennin and Yabuki, you are loyal and a just warrior with human DNA as your main essence. With Gokuaku, you are strong but also arrogant and you also have a hint of demon within you as well."_

"_And St. George?" Shinichi asked._

"_I'm getting to him, Halfling!" Dreigon shouted, nearly causing Shinichi to go deaf._

"_Shinichi, with me, you possess a selfless and righteous soul and the true spirit of a knight just as I do and you too have the potential to become more than what you are now," St. George told him. Shinichi nodded at that, understanding what the draconic knight meant and then he looked back at Dreigon._

"_Okay, so with you...what, do I have anything in common with you?"_

"_Pheh, foolish Halfling, for us we have nothing in common except for our shared desire to become stronger and to protect what is dear to us. Unlike myself, you have a human and demonic heritage which connects you to Zennin, Gokuaku, Yabuki and St. George easily. But to fuse with me for the other half of Ascalon's power, you would need a hint of Draconian essence within your bloodline!"_

"_Okay, so give it to me then," Shinichi demanded in a deadpanned tone. Dreigon just gave him a stern look._

"_Halfling, do you understand what it is that you are asking of me? If I give you Draconian essence, you will no longer be you. You will no longer be as fully human as you are right now," Dreigon told him, causing Shinichi to go a bit wide eyed at that statement._

"_Lad, if Dreigon grants you his essence, then you'll ascend from being a mere halfling to what can be considered a Tri-breed. A being of three different origins," St. George added._

_Shinichi looked a bit downcasted at that thought. He wouldn't be nearly human anymore. He'd be something entirely different. Would the end truly justify the means if he went along with this?_

"_Do you understand now, Halfling? If you ascend into a Tri-Breed...into a Triling...then your very descendants would forever possess draconian blood within them, no matter how much that bloodline thins out over the generations. They will always possess the essence of dragon's blood within their very veins. Would you truly walk that path just to win a battle against an enemy such as this one that you are currently fighting right now?"_

_Shinichi thought about it for a few moments, remaining eerily quiet. He then looked up at Dreigon, his eyes filled with determination. "Ever since I became a Rider, I swore to fight and protect my friends and family, even at the cost of my life. I think sacrificing a portion of my humanity comes pretty close." He paused and steeled his resolve. This was a decision he could not take back but it would be worth it in the end. "Do it."_

_Dreigon smiled at this and St. George nodded in acknowledgement of Shinichi's new rate of growth. In the end, he may have made a choice to alter his future family history forever, but it would surely be worth it as long as they survived._

"_Very well, Halfling...no, I should be saying Triling now," Dreigon said as both his body and Shinichi's began to glow with a mix of violet and black energy. "Now, welcome to the family that we call...dragons. Welcome...my new little brother."_

* * *

Showa's eyes snapped open and the first thing he noticed was that his body felt a bit lighter, as if he was filled with a new sensation of strength and power. A power unlike any he had ever felt before. Standing up, he noticed that his armor was slowly reforming itself.

'_A word of advice, Shinichi. This new form is the second stage to Ascalon's true power. Unfortunately, due to your lack of experience in the ways of Ryuyouki, this new form will only last for five minutes at most. Use it and combine your powers with that of your fellows and strike that bastard down,_' Dreigon told him, encouraging him yet also letting him know of his new forms' limitations.

Shinichi nodded and then grabbed hold of the Ascalon, raising it high up into the air as his body began to rise via levitation. As he rose into the air, Yuji and Sentinel looked at him and wondered what in the world he was up to. Once he reached a high enough altitude the Diablos Dragon Hyde's energy blast smashed right through Renkin's Soul Metal barrier.

"Ah crap!" Daichi shouted.

"I'm sorry you guys, but that was the best I could do," Renkin apologized as the blast subsided. They all prepared for the end until they heard Rena call out from behind them.

"Hey, Shin-kun, what are you doing?" Rena called out to her boyfriend.

"The only thing I can do," Showa replied. "Everyone, prepare to combine the last of your remaining energy with my own." He then looked at Diablos Dragon and scowled at it from behind his restored helmet. '_Alright you sonovabitch, round two!_' Raising the Ascalon high above his head, the tip of the blade pointing straight for the sky, he called out his newest battle cry. "ARISE, DRAGON OF DRAGONS...DREIGON!-!-!"

(_**Insert Song: We Are Xros Heart! ver. X7**_)

Showa's body began to glow with a bright violet hue which then turned into a golden light as his body grew and extended outwards. The Diablos Dragon Hyde looked on as it awaited the new transformation. It wanted to kill its enemy after they realized that their final trump card would never kill it. Unfortunately, Showa nor the rest of the NEO-NUMBERS, Team 5D's and their allies knew the meaning of the word defeat. Hell, Yokoshima once proudly stated that he never even bothered to look it up in the dictionary.

The NEO-NUMBERS, Team 5D's, the Gaming Club and their allies watched on as Showa's glowing body began to transform, taking on a shining monstrous form. The light soon became so bright that they had to cover their eyes. During his transformation, his body quickly shifted to that of something that none of them could have ever imagined. His hands and feet became armored hands and with long sharp talon-like claws while armored wings sprouted from his back. A long armored tail sprouted from his rear and his neck lengthened as his head took on a more bestial form. After a moment the bright gold light died down and, once everyone uncovered their eyes, they all nearly crapped their pants. Showa was no longer Showa but a giant looking and heavily armored dragon that closely resembled a knightly looking Dreigon.

His body was covered in a mix of Soul Metal and Dragon Metal, giving him a look of a Dragon wearing Knight-like armor plating. His head was covered in a black and white helmet with a set of forward facing gold horns with the numeral XIII on the left side and the number 13 on the right side. His long neck was also covered in armor plating with a single gold spike jutting upwards from each plate. His wings were made of a mixture of Soul and Dragon Metal and had gold razor edge fans where the thin skin of the wings should be. His forelegs had shoulder armor and silver gauntlets with long, gold, sickle-like blades on them as did his hind legs. His chest plate bore the crest of the Eclipse on it with a red gem right in the center of it. His tail was also covered in segmented armor pieces with gold spikes on them and the tip ended in a curved golden blade which was the Sword of Ascalon itself that had two tachyon energy cannons on each side.

This new form of Showa, Kamen Rider Showa Ascalon: DxD Mode, a.k.a the Showa-Dragon, let out a mighty roar as he swayed his head back and forth, the force of his Youki, Reiryoku and Ryuyouki sending out a shockwave of energy that traveled through the air, causing the Diablos Dragon Hyde to nearly fall to the ground.

Looking up at the new form of her boyfriend, Rena just stared at him with that 'Take it home' look in her eyes. "Shin-kun...SUGOI!"

"Alright Shin-chan! Now that's what I call a power-up!" Mion cheered.

"Sweet Jesus! I didn't know that his Ascalon Form could do that!" Yuji shouted at the top of his lungs in surprise.

"Well, there is still a lot about that sword that we don't know about," Sentinel stated as he admired his older brother's new form. He knew that their father would be proud of Shinichi and that their Uncle Ryuki would say that there was now supposedly another dragon in the family.

"Is it me, or does Shinichi almost always pull these types of power-ups right out of his ass when we're in the last stretch of the final round of a fight?" Yokoshima asked. Everyone else just nodded, agreeing with his statement. "Yeah, I thought that was the case."

Looking down at his gathered friends, Showa-Dragon lowered his head and looked at them at their eye level. "_**Alright, everyone climb aboard! It's time we all combined our powers together and send this fucker packing with one huge blast!**_" Showa exclaimed in a dual voice that sounded like a mix of both Shinichi's and Dreigon's. Everyone else looked at him for a moment until Sentinel stepped forward.

"Well, ya heard the man, let's go!"

"Ya mean dragon, right?" Daichi question.

"Oh, will you shut up and get on?-!" Yuji shouted at him as he kicked Daichi in the ass, pushing him forward. Looking over at Sentinel, "Alan, you and me, front and center with Shinichi!"

"Right!"

All of the gathered heroes jumped high up into the air and landed on top of Showa-Dragon's body, each of them mainly situating themselves either on his neck or between his shoulder blades. As he prepared to to take flight, Showa looked and noticed that Renkin was still on the ground instead of with the others on top of his body.

"_**Hey Rune, hurry up and get on!**_" Showa-Dragon shouted but Renkin just shook his head.

"Sorry Shinichi, but this is your guy's time to shine. For now, I'll distract him and keep his attention solely fixed on me so that you guys can power up whatever last resort attack you can muster." Everyone gave him a stare and he just nodded his head. "Don't worry, while I may not have much reiatsu left, I can still out-transmutate his big ass," he responded, giving them a thumbs up. Showa-Dragon nodded as he understood what it was that Rune was trying to do for them.

"_**Alright, but you are forbidden to die. You got that?**_" Showa-Dragon asked in a demanding tone and Renkin just nodded. "_**Alright then, hang on tight you guys cuz this is gonna be a bumpy ride!**_" In that instant, Showa-Dragon used a variant version of Shunpo known as Sonido (Sound Ceremony) and moved his draconic body around as such amazing speeds that the Diablos Dragon Hyde couldn't even begin to keep up.

As Diablos Dragon tried to follow Showa-Dragon it was suddenly pelted by scores of alchemic cannon blasts. Looking down, it noticed Renkin kneeling down on the ground with his hands placed firmly on the floor. In front of him were over three dozen Renkin Blast Cannons and each one was constantly pelting its body with alchemic cannon blasts.

"Alright ya overgrown sonovabitch, dinner's ready so come get some!" Renkin shouted. Diablos Dragon would not disappoint as it fired volley after volley of azure energy blasts at the masked alchemist. "Hah, can't hit me!" Renkin boasted as he used his remaining reiatsu and pushed it into using bringer's light, propelling himself forward and side to side as fast as he could go. This only proved to annoy Diablos Dragon as it spread its wings out wide, allowing its golden thunder to collect and swirl around the two curved spike-horns on its front. In a burst of electrical energy it sent out a massive thunder strike, hitting the ground behind Renkin and sending him flying back first into a wall.

"Argh!" Renkin grunted loudly.

As Diablos Dragon kept its attention on Renkin, Showa-Dragon reappeared to the east of its flank and opened his maw as wide as it would go. Raising his tail up and aiming the twin-Tachyon cannons forward, he began to power up his Dragon Mode's most powerful attack.

"_**Guys, start pouring everything you got into my body. We're going to finish this as a team.**_" Everyone else nodded and placed their hands onto his body and began to pump in the last of the remaining energy into him. The sides of his neck and tail armor plating began to glow as runes representing the individual symbols of each member of the NEO-NUMBERS, Team 5Ds, the Gaming Club, Sentinel and his harem, six of the Seven Stakes of Purgatory and Hanyuu began to appear on the armor; each rune glowing a bright violet hue. Looking over at Renkin, '_Come on Rune, we just need another few seconds and then we can blast that bastard._'

As they powered up for the final strike, Renkin was just trying to stay alive. Jumping up and over volleys of golden energy blasts and golden lightning strikes, he used scores of Fullbring and alchemy combinations to keep his butt from taking a hit but he had come quite close to being taken out at least five times now in the past thirty seconds. Growing tired of the Rider, Diablos Dragon raised its head, charging a blast at full power and, after a few seconds, fired it at Renkin.

"Uh-oh," Renkin said to himself as he looked back. Trying to get away he soon found himself tripping over a boulder and skidding across the ground. Coming to a stop and looking up at the incoming blast, he screwed his eyes shut as he awaited his immediate demise.

"Think again, kid!" Renkin looked up as he suddenly found himself getting carried away from the blast zone, the full power blast striking where he had been only seconds before.

Looking up to see who his savior was, he was surprised to see a girl with shoulder length red hair which was styled in curls and wearing a red hat with a pink bow tied around the base. Her body was covered in a red dress with ended just above the knees. The dress had white frills at the end of the dress line and at the end of her wrist cuffs. She also wore black and pink stripped knee high stockings with pink shoes that had red bow-ties on top of them. Her dress was also opened on the left side, leaving a bit of her body bare and was only fastened by a bow that was situated at the side of her hip.

"Huh, who the heck are you?" Renkin questioned.

"The name's Gaap and I'm a servant of Beatrice-sama, the former Golden Witch," Gaap replied cutely with a wink.

"Gaap, huh? Well then, Gaap-chan, why did the Golden Witch send you to save me?"

"Call it a favor to Mammon over there," Gaap said as they looked over at Showa-Dragon to see Mammon and the others waving at them. "She's been a loyal follower and servant of Beatrice-sama for so long and she's seems to have taken a liking to you. So, Beatrice-sama decided to have me save your life."

"I see. Well then, mind taking us up a bit higher as I don't think we should be this low for what's about to happen next."

"You got it." Gaap then propelled herself higher up until they were high above the battlefield. As they came to a stop they both noticed Diablos Dragon charging up another attack and aiming right for them. "Do you think that monster has any idea of what's about to happen to it?"

"Nope, none what-so-ever," Renkin replied.

As the two of them watched and waited for the finale, Showa-Dragon lowered his head and tail just enough as he took final aim on Diablos Dragon. Yuji and Sentinel were situated on top of his head with their hands placed on his helmet and the Three Amigos gave one last glare at the Diablos Dragon Hyde before letting loose their final attack.

"This is for all the people that you've killed," Sentinel said, thinking of all the lives that had been lost due to the emergence of the Hyde.

"This is for all the families that have to carry on since you took away their loved ones," Yuji stated as he scowled. He could remember the crying faces of the people who had lost their families due to the Hyde. Their lives would never be the same.

"_**This is for those who have yet to come. So that they never have to bear witness to your kind ever again,**_" Showa-Dragon declared as the energy within his body reached maximum output. The others all shared similar sentiments as they pushed the last of their powers and feelings into the blast attack. "_**Ore no...ore-tachi no...hissatsu waza!**_"

"IKE!-!-!" everyone shouted in unison.

"_**TRUE...END!-!-!-!**_"

Letting everything go on the shoulders of their last attack, Showa-Dragon let his final attack soar through the air, the energy beam burning the molecules in the air itself as it went on its way towards the Diablos Dragon Hyde. Renkin and Gaap watched as the beam attack came into range and both prepared themselves for the massive shock wave that was sure to follow.

As it prepared to fire its own attack at the Rider and demon-girl, Diablos Dragon felt the air around its body warp and heat up immensely. Turing to its side to see what was causing the air to heat up so much, its eyes widened at the side of the violet, red and black colored energy beam coming straight towards it. It didn't even have time to react as the blast slammed into its body, vaporising it on the spot. The Hyde roared in agony as it met its demise at the hands of the heroes, its very existence fading to nothing but a memory now.

(_**End Song: We Are Xros Heart! ver. X7**_)

A few seconds later, after the blast subsided, Gaap and Renkin were knocked about by the massive shock wave but were otherwise fine. Looking down they both noticed the gigantic crater where the eruption of energy had slammed into the ground. Looking even deeper into the crater, they noticed the near-death body of the man who had turned himself into the Diablos Dragon Hyde.

As Gaap came to a landing, setting Renkin on the ground as her own feet touched the ground as well, they were instantly accompanied by Showa-Dragon who used sonido to move to their location. They all looked at the crater which was nearly a mile wide in diameter and nearly one hundred feet deep and they all were glad that Showa-Dragon was their ally and not their enemy. Hopping down from his perch atop Showa-Dragon's head, Yuji landed in the crater and took out his C3 and placed it above the man's body, absorbing him and turning him into a C3 card.

"Right where you belong," Yuji stated with satisfaction in his voice. He then jumped up and landed back on the outer rim of the crater and handed Sentinel the C3 card, the Green Lantern having turned back into his civilian form after using up nearly all of his energy. "We got 'em."

"And it's about damn time too," Daichi chided as he and the others disembarked Showa-Dragon and joined them all at the crater. As Showa-Dragon watched on he suddenly blacked out as his body turned into gold light and reverted back to human size. Hitting the ground with a thud, Showa's armor shattered away as the Ascalon and Higurashi no Yaiba, which was still intact and near a wall, both returned to their hiding places within both Hinamizawa and Genovia. Looking to see the unconscious form of Shinichi lying there on the ground, Rena ran over to him and lifted him up, holding him close.

"Shin-chan is just so full of surprises, isn't he?" Mion asked.

"Well, he's been one surprise after another since we met him five years ago, Onee," Shion smiled.

"And here you would think that he'd stop surprising us by now," Satoko added.

Rena just hugged the sleeping form of Shinichi close to her body and whispered into his ear, "You did it, Shin-kun. You saved the day again."

Alan, easily hearing her but not wanting to ruin the moment, only smiled as he and the others looked on. '_No, Rena, we did it. Like with the Yamata no Orochi, this victory was a team effort. It was just that Shinichi was the main instrument of our success_.'

"Shinichi always has a habit of pulling these sorts of things right out of nowhere when in deep trouble," stated Yokoshima, seeing a pattern as he stretched and put his hands behind the back of his head. "I mean there was the time he fought against the Great Leader of GIN-SHOCKER, and then when he turned into Higurashi Guardian Form and defeated them alongside the Legendary Riders and ARMOR. Then there was his final battle against Million."

"Yeah, yeah, we get it," Daichi whined. "He's a real lucky guy when it comes to miracles in the heat of battle." He let out a sigh and kicked a rock while looking at everyone. "So, can we go home now?"

* * *

Shinichi came to and slowly awoke, staring at a familiar ceiling and face. He knew where he was. He was in his room at his and Rena's apartment. Sitting up and letting out a yawn while stretching and cracking his back, he looked over and saw Rena sitting on the edge of their bed, a beautiful smile on her face.

"Well hello there, my beautiful angel," Shinichi greeted, causing her to blush. He then remembered that the last thing he saw was Yuji putting the Diablos Dragon Hyde's human form into a C3 card and that was it.

"So, how long was I out this time?" Shinichi asked.

"Two months," reported Rena.

"TWO MONTHS!-?" Shinichi shouted and Rena laughed.

"Relax, it's just been a little over a week," Rena said, laughing.

Shinichi frowned at her and crossed his arms, looking away, "That's not funny."

"Oh, relax! It's not like you never played a cruel trick on us before!" Rena smiled fondly at him and said, "You were amazing."

"I guess I was, but there's no way in hell I'm ever gonna use that ability, at least not in the near future," said Shinichi. "I mean, I don't feel like sleeping for over a week again. It gets really old." Rena hugged him and he smiled as he hugged her back.

* * *

Rune sat atop the Hive's rooftop which was the very top of the base's tower. Mammon sat at his side, leaning against him. He gazed at her and smiled at how peaceful she looked. Just two weeks ago Renkin had participated in what had to be one of the most intense battles in his life. Also, what made it serious was that it was something that he'd only learnt in history class. He had just become part of this world's history, playing a role in the defeat of the Diablos Dragon Hyde.

However, Rune still had Dredge to worry about. The dangerous Homunculoid was still at large and a danger to the people of this era. Rune needed to deal with him and get back home. As much as he would miss this era, it was not his home. He had people waiting for him back home. Unfortunately, he was getting too attached to the people here. It may be primitive compared to his own era but he actually enjoyed himself whilst living here. Meeting Mammon was the best part but sooner or later he was going to have to return home.

* * *

In the forest surrounding Mt. Fuji, Dredge was moving about after escaping from Renkin's last attack. For weeks now he had been licking his wounds and he saw on the news about the most recent battle with the Hyde. Now, walking through the woods, he allowed the flow of energy from the forest to enter his body, slowly regaining his strength. Leaning up against the tree, he looked up through the treeline, watching the clouds. And they looked very strange.

"Hnn...a storm's coming," he said to himself when the hair on his neck bristled and he began to sense a familiar energy. He had only sensed it once before but he knew it well. "Heh...hahahahaha, well is that is? Finally, it's almost time!"

Standing back upright, Dredge stretched out his body as his eyes glowed red; a sinister grin on his face. In an instant he dashed up out of the woods and began hopping from tree top to tree top. It was almost time. But time for what, exactly?

'_Heh, it's time I gave my dear Rune a going away present before I take my leave_,' Dredge thought to himself. '_Rune, this era will be your grave!_'

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: There's one more chapter to this Hyde Arc. I would like to thank GuyverGenesis (formerly known as Toku Warrior) for his help with this. He's been awesome since he spent his time to help me with this while he's busy with his own projects. He's a competent and dedicated, creative individual. I'm just glad to have him on my team. Therefore, he deserves respect and not scorn.**

**GUYVERGENESIS: It's been one heck of a ride. But now it's time to end it. This will be Rune's last round up for now and if you all thought the battle he had with Dredge before in Ireland was heavy, these two are gonna have an all out war before the day is through. Coming up, it's the final chapter of the Hyde Arc: "S**_**araba, Mirai no Rider**_**". Riders, Alchemy, Fullbring and Victorization and Homunculoids; it's gonna be good. Been real and stay tuned.**

18


	177. The Legacy of Cain Part 121

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 121: Saraba, Mirai no Rider**

It had been two weeks since the defeat of the Hydes and things had slowly gone back to normal, or what the Riders themselves considered normal. Alan had a bit more free time to spend with his daughters and girls as did Yūji. Yūri and Anastasia apparently went on some type of vacation and Team 5D's went back to traveling the world and taking in the sights. Shinichi and his girls spent time at his new mansion home in Genovia, playing with and fawning over little Hiroyuki. Lady Beatrice, Gaap and Shiori and her family would also go to visit the little tyke.

The rest of the NEO-NUMBERS now spent their days doing the normal stuff that they loved doing but they still kept their eyes peeled for any sign of trouble. Just because the Hydes were now gone didn't mean they could rest easy. There was still the Religion of Crime to worry about as well as Dredge who was still roaming the world, his whereabouts currently unknown. As the Riders had their own ways of spending their free time, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam spent most of their own time trying to see if they could either locate or create another temporal storm which would be able to take Rune home. It had been over two months now and the Alchemy-using Rider from the future was starting to get a little homesick. Plus, Rune and Magi had to perform daily check-ups on the silver Kakugane, doing what they could to maintain its structure. It was time consuming but it was worth it. They didn't want Rune to resume his Victorization process. Having to worry about the RoC was bad enough. They didn't want to have to lock away one of their friends just because of some transformation that made them into a living energy siphon.

With all but Rune, Mammon, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam, the rest of the members wouldn't be back at the base for at least a couple days unless they were called in to take action. Magi and Washam were currently in the lab but Rune was in his quarters, sound asleep as trying to mentally suppress his Victorization took a lot out of him. It didn't mean he was alone though.

* * *

Inside his quarters, Rune lay in his bed, wearing only a pair of black pants and a black muscle shirt. He was fast asleep as he lay on his back but he wasn't' alone under his covers. Lying and snuggling up next to him on his left side was Mammon who had her head resting on his chest. She wore a simple long sleeved button up white shirt, the top four buttons undone so as to expose a bit of her cleavage, and a pair of white bed shorts. Their relationship may not have gotten to the point of sex yet, but Mammon had started sleeping in the same bed with Rune after the battle with the Diablos Dragon Hyde. Mostly as she didn't want to be alone after that point. She had almost lost him during the battle with Dredge and Lava-Rex and she wasn't going to let that happen again. So, when she wasn't spending her time with her sisters, playing with her nephew or performing her duties for her mistress, Beatrice, she spent her time with Rune at the Hive.

As they slept, the digital clock on Rune's work table let off a small beeping noise as the alarm went off. Rune, hearing the sound, groaned as he used his right hand to rub his face and then turned his head to look at a still sleeping Mammon. Her mouthed held a small grin as she sighed in content, most likely in response to a pleasant dream.

'_I wish my dreams could be as pleasant as yours, babe_,' Rune thought as he leaned in a bit and gently kissed her on the forehead.

Unlike Mammon who was possibly having pleasant dreams about the two of them or her finding a lot of treasure, Rune's dreams had started to become dark, almost nightmare-like as his dreams were mostly filled with the same two things every time; his Renkin armor but completely shadowed in a black silhouette and shaped differently and, behind him, the ruins of the city of his era and the dead bodies of Rook and Dizzy. The other nightmare he would constantly have was himself in his Victor state, holding a lifeless Mammon in his arms as he screamed out at the universe as the ground lay littered with the corpses of the Riders and their allies. Standing behind him, laughing, was a big, bulky figure with glowing red eyes and carrying a long spear-like weapon, said figure squaring off with the form of Sentinel.

Oh how Rune wished he could get those images out of his head. Were they possibly the sign of things to come? Sure, being from the future gave him an edge on some of the upcoming events with foreknowledge, but Alan had told him not to reveal anything as he could create a time paradox if he told them something that shouldn't be known. It was why he never said anything much about the Hydes or Shinichi becoming a Triling. He knew that would happen but stayed quiet. History needed to play out on its own. But with forces like Yūji, Alan and himself present in this era for long periods of time, the very fabric of space-time was starting to warp and alter the future in more ways than one. When he finally gets home, if he even were to find a way home, would it be the same one he left behind?

'_Man, my life is so fucked up right now_,' he thought. He then looked at Mammon again as she nuzzled his chest and moaned lightly. '_But, no matter what happens, as long as I have her by my side, I'll get through anything that the universe wants to throw at me. I refuse to let another person important to me die._'

* * *

Sheila suddenly reported, _"Alert! Alert! Electrical temporal fluctuations detected!"_

Sheila, being an AI, had access to all the files stored on the computer. As said computer was programmed by ARMOR technicians, it was no surprise that she would be familiar with temporal energy signatures. After all, ARMOR was in charge of maintaining peace, justice and order in the Multiverse, including time and space.

"Sheila, show me a visual of the anomaly," Dr. Magi commanded.

"What are we seeing?" asked Dr. Washam.

"A 'time storm'," said Dr. Magi. A time storm had once captured Daichi, Yokoshima and Shogo before spiriting them away to the past. "And a very familiar signature." Weeks ago a time storm had also occurred, on the same day Rune had arrived. It only happened for a moment. Since then, Dr. Magi had Sheila keep herself alert for another anomaly. He smiled, "I think Rune would want to hear this."

"Yes, definitely," agreed Dr. Washam. He smiled. "The boy's ride home has finally arrived."

* * *

Rune needed to use the bathroom so he dislodged himself from Mammon's arms and went to the bathroom which had been built into the quarters. As he went to do his business, his mind wandered towards a conversation he had a week ago. It wasn't the usual conversation nor was it much talked about. What concerned him was the topic of it.

* * *

_ONE WEEK AGO..._

_Rune and Mammon had gone to visit Topper's Pawn Shop. It was where Shinichi worked part-time along with Amora, one of Alan's girlfriends. The place had a weird aura. Then again, when the items themselves were of mystical nature and questionable origin, all collected under one convenient roof, their auras tend to mix. It was as if the place was designed to draw customers in. Of course, it wasn't receiving dozens customers at a time, but those who came in always wanted something or wanted to get rid of something they had, even for a little money. They would come in and part with something for something else in exchange._

_Shinichi and Amora were doing some dusting, cleaning up the front of the shop. Their boss, Topper Liquer, was in the back checking on inventory. There was more stuff in the back, and much larger too, which couldn't be displayed up front but customers seemed to have this innate feeling that they could find what they were looking for in the back without even looking at it._

"_Oh, welcome to Topper's Pawn Shop," Shinichi greeted._

"_May we help you? Do you have items to relinquish? Do you wish to trade? Or do you wish to purchase something?" Amora asked._

_Mammon smiled, "Just came to browse, you know. Haven't shown __Hōko__-kun this place before."_

_Rune's eyes scanned the items for display. __Not much really caught his eye. Much of this stuff he had already seen in his own time though what he saw then may have simply been replicas. But even then, nothing really drew his attention. He was about to look up at the shelves behind Shinichi when a glint caught his eye.__ In the display case under the counter, he spotted a pocket watch which had odd markings carved onto the surface, but he recognized what those markings were and got a closer look at it._

"_Got your eye on something, hm?" Amora smiled._

"_That is a one of a kind item here," said Topper from behind Mammon and Rune, causing them to jump._

"_Where the heck did you come from!?" Rune cried out._

"_Sorry," Topper tipped his top hat. "I forget that I'm a very quiet person. People can barely notice me." He asked, "Shinichi, please take that item out."_

"_Yes, boss," said Shinichi as he knelt down, unlocked the display case and picked up the pocket watch by its chain. It dangled from his hand, swaying slightly from left to right and Rune's gaze followed as if in a hypnotic trance. It wasn't the pocket watch that got his attention. Mostly, what really got his attention was the alchemy array._

"_As I was saying," said Topper before he repeated, "It's a one of a kind item." He took the pocket watch in his hand. "And I don't mean the watch. It is these markings. Never been perfectly duplicated and done with expert hands. Can you believe it's over 50 years old? It's so shiny. Not a speck of rust or hint of age on it, as if preserved from the ravages of time."_

"_How did you get it?" Rune asked._

"_I can't discuss that, unfortunately. Client confidentiality," Topper said. "But I can be vague and ambiguous. A customer came and gave it to me in exchange for another item. That is all you need to know." He handed the pocket watch back to Shinichi. "So, is there anything in my shop that interests you? Just remember that if you can't pay me with money, there are other ways to pay me." There was a glint in his eyes when he mentioned 'other ways'. "Such as trading. Just trade me something of equal value and you can have whatever is in this shop, up here in the front," he pointed to the door to the backroom, "Or something from our collection in the back."_

"_The law of equivalent exchange," said Rune._

"_Pardon?" asked Topper._

"_That's the basic fundamental rule of alchemy," Rune added. "In order to obtain something important, something of equal value must be lost. That is the first rule of alchemy. In a way, that same rule applies to the normal exchange of goods in every form of civilization and economy. It's a basic fundamental building block of commerce."_

"_Ah, aren't we the bright one?" Topper mused._

"_Yeah, Rune here is a bit of an alchemy and science nut," said Shinichi, not wanting to go into full detail. _

_Topper smiled and looked back at Rune. "So, do you have anything you would gladly exchange for an item in the shop?" Topper asked, his smirk wide and his eyes gleaming. Rune could only eye the pocket watch. Something about it caught his attention. He didn't have a lot of things on him he could trade. And he definitely couldn't swap a Kakugane for the watch. That'd be bad for him in the long run. So, going through a mental list in his mind, he began to wonder if there was something he possessed that he could trade. But what could he trade? Did he really have anything of equal value on him?_

* * *

Rune heard a knock at the door after exiting the bathroom, bringing him back to reality. He glanced at Mammon and smiled at her sleeping face. She just looked so adorable. He went and opened the door and was surprised to see Yūji standing there in front of him.

"Fudō," said Rune. He and Yūji weren't exactly best friends but after all that had happened, they were on at least speaking terms.

"Hey, Rune," said Yūji. "Just came to see you." He looked over his shoulder to see Mammon sleeping and his eyes narrowed. "And Mammon."

"But mostly Mammon," said Rune. "Am I right?" Yūji nodded. "You should realize by now that I'd never do anything to hurt her."

"Yeah, I know," said Yūji, rubbing the back of his head. "It's just, well..." He didn't know what to say.

"I'd kill myself with a transmutation circle before I did anything to harm her," Rune swore.

"I know that, and I know you'd fight for her too," said Yūji. "Rune, look, the reason I give you a hard time is because of Mammon. I don't want to see her get hurt. It's just that you're from the future..."

"And?" Rune prompted.

"And one day you're going back," said Yūji. "And leave her, because that's where your home is."

"Don't you think I realize that?" asked Rune rhetorically. "Ever since I met her I've been dreading the day I'd have to leave her. I love her, no doubt, but my own world, my own time needs me. It needs its Rider. But right now I'm just stuck between a rock and a hard place. I'm having a dilemma. Should I go...?" He gazed towards Mammon, "Or should I stay...?" Mammon had made living in this era manageable. He didn't miss his home most of the time when with her.

"You're going to need to make a decision," concluded Yūji.

"Yeah," agreed Rune. "Besides, I got here once. It's not like I can't just come back, right?"

Yūji could mention that the Meta-World could connect Rune and Mammon even if they were centuries apart. It was like a nexus in time and space. However, he wasn't sure if they could keep in contact. The barrier that kept them out of contact with ARMOR may very well prevent Rune and Mammon from ever contacting each other once Rune returned and that would hurt the brunette deeply. Very deeply.

That was when Sheila called, "_Will all personnel please assemble in the Main Hall. We are having a meeting._"

"Looks like we gotta go," said Yūji. He saw Mammon stirring. She sat up, yawned cutely, and rubbed her eyes.

"...Mmm...Hōko-kun?" she said. "Come back to bed..."

"I'll give you a few minutes to get ready," said Yūji. "Don't be late, you two."

* * *

Bounding from rooftop to rooftop, Dredge slowly made his way across Japan. His target, Shishibone City. His purpose, to kill Rune before the temporal storm reached them. He wanted to end the war with the Alchemist Rider once and for all and present Rune's head on a pike to his lord and master once he got back to his original era.

"Just a little further," Dredge constantly chanted with a sadistic smirk on his face. The time for the end was drawing near.

* * *

The NEO-NUMBERS and Rune were in the Main Hall to see what Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam wanted to tell them. It was actually good news, for Rune. Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam told them that a time storm was forming and was fast approaching. Also, according to analysis, it shared the same energy signature as the time storm which had brought Rune to this era. This was good news for Rune. He was finally going to be returning home to where he belonged. Everyone was happy for him. Well, almost everyone.

"Are you serious?" Alan asked them. "Another temporal storm is about to take place?"

"Yes," confirmed Dr. Magi. "It's also giving off the same readings as the one that took place when Rune first appeared here."

"Then that means…" began Daichi.

"It means we can send Rune home," finished Dr. Washam.

Everyone gave out a few shouts of joy. They could finally help their friend get back home to his own era. Yokoshima and Shinichi even slapped Rune on the back, giving him their congratulations but Rune didn't seem so enthusiastic about the thought of leaving. He knew what was going to happen once he left and he wanted to stay there to be of help to them. There was no way he could just leave them to fend for themselves, knowing what was coming. He also couldn't just go because he didn't want to leave Mammon. However, he also had his own problems back home to take care of and he also didn't know just how much longer his silver Kakugane would last on just simple patch jobs. Sooner or later, it would fail and his Victorization would start right back up where it left off.

"Isn't this great, Rune?" said Alan. "We can send you back now."

"Yeah…great," Rune said quietly.

"Eon-san, you should be happy," suggested Rena. "This will be the first time we'll be able to send an ally back home. You should be glad that you can go back."

"Yeah, dude," said Daichi. "Besides, don't you have a best friend and a little sister to go protect from those Homunculoids? They must be waiting for you."

"Speaking of Homunculoids," Alan interjected. "We'll need to locate Dredge, and fast. It's best to send him back with Rune or destroy him before then as, once Rune leaves, it'll be hard to take him out. With the RoC after him as well, you can bet that Dredge is getting desperate too"

"You've got a point there," Shinichi said. They all thought about that for the moment until Rune turned to leave. "Hey, where are you going?"

"Oh, well, I thought that since this might be might last day in your era, I might as well as take in some of the sights and maybe get a souvenir," Rune said as he activated the Teleportal, setting the coordinates for Shishibone City. "I'll be back in a couple of hours. See ya guys later." And with that, Rune left the Hive to be alone with his thoughts. He had some thinking to do about what he had learned, and what he must do. Normally, he would have someone accompany him but he had already gained their trust with his actions. Besides, it wasn't like they couldn't monitor him with Sheila.

* * *

After arriving in Shishibone City, Rune walked around town, just taking in the sights for what could possibly be the last time. Soon, he was going home. Sheila's alert couldn't have come at a better time because he was starting to get attached to this era. He was sure going to miss it and the friends he'd made. 1989 wasn't so boring after all. Sure, it did not have the technological advancements which existed in his home era but there was just something here the future did not have.

Mammon.

'_Man, I just don't want to up and leave her, but if I don't go back then there'll be no one who can fight and defeat Gawl_,' Rune thought as he walked down the sidewalk.

It had already been two hours now and he was about ready to call for a Teleportal when he noticed Topper's Pawn Shop off in the distance. The day when Mammon took him in there came to his mind and he began to think of something he might be able to do. Sure, Mammon would be sad when he left but it didn't mean they wouldn't see each other again. Time, no matter how great a divider it was, could not stop the love two people shared from reaching one another. That was a fact. Deciding on what he wanted to do, he walked over to the pawn shop and went inside. Even if he was going back home, he could still leave a piece of himself here in this era.

* * *

Meanwhile, a party was being prepared for Rune. It was his 'Going Away Party' and it was going to be a surprise. He wasn't aware of it going on. Mammon, however, wasn't in the mood as she was wiping tears from her eyes. Rune was going to be leaving soon and she probably wouldn't be able to see him ever again. Of course, she was an immortal being. She could wait for him, but that would take a significantly long amount of time. Could she bear waiting for him that long? He was her precious Hōko-kun and she was going to have to give him up since he didn't belong in this era. She could even ask Beatrice to send her to him but the barrier was still up. It was still a problem.

When someone mentioned a party, her little sister Beelzebub asked if there was going to be a lot of food. Honestly, the drill-haired Stake of Gluttony's brains were probably in her stomach if all she could think about was food. Some of the others even mentioned of trying to find her a lover that was a chef. God's know that a lover like that would suit her just fine. She would be able to eat delicious food all the time and the chef would be happy to feed her.

"Is something wrong?" Rena asked as she found Mammon quietly standing in the corner while everyone was preparing the Hive's Main Hall for Rune's Going Away Party.

"He's leaving," said Mammon.

"Yes, isn't it great? He finally gets to go home," said Rena, smiling. She then added, her smile fading, "But that's not what you want, is it?"

"I...I don't want to be selfish," admitted Mammon as she put her right hand against her heart, "But, I don't want him to leave me. I want him to always stay with me because...because..." her voice cracked, "He's mine."

Rena put her arms around Mammon in a comforting embrace. She could understand what the Stake of Greed was going through. Back when Shinichi had left to hunt down X-SHOCKER and Gebok, she had been all alone, waiting for him to return, never knowing if he was ever going to come back. Rune would be going home, to his own time, and Mammon may not be able to see him again.

"I want to go with him, but I got family here," Mammon went on. "I can't just leave my sisters."

"Yes, but he's got family back where he's from and they're probably missing him too," replied Rena.

"It just isn't fair! Why is it that Satan, Leviathan, Asmodeus and Onee-sama (Lucifer) can keep the ones they love but I can't? Why can't I have this treasure?" Mammon demanded to know.

"I don't know, Mammon," said Rena as Mammon buried her face into her chest. "Life's just unfair sometimes." Rena knew that much. She knew that to be true. Her parents' divorce was just one of those unfair events that had happened in her life.

Yūji looked up and saw Rena comforting Mammon. He knew the cause of his little sister's current emotional condition was Rune and the possibility of him leaving. It was breaking her heart. It broke his heart to see Mammon like that. While he didn't like Rune that much, he saw the way he made Mammon feel and how he treated her. That alone made it easier to accept him overtime.

"Hey, Yūji," said Shinichi. "Do you mind helping Michiru and Hana finish the banner?" He saw Yūji watching Mammon and Rena. "What's wrong?"

"You know, a long time ago I wanted that Rune guy to just leave and never return," said Yūji. "But now since he's going to be leaving soon, I just want him to stick around so Mammon doesn't have to cry."

"Funny how life works, huh?" Shinichi questioned. "One moment you hate the guy, but then you get accustomed to his face, get used to his presence, and you get attached."

"I ain't attached," Yūji denied vehemently.

"Yeah, sure," retorted Shinichi sarcastically, not believing Yūji. "Mammon will be able to see Eon again."

"How can you be sure?" Yūji asked the Hinamizawan Rider.

"I'm not, but I have faith that after he leaves he'll come back and Mammon will be wearing the brightest smile ever that would rival Satie-chan's when she had Hiro-chan," Shinichi smiled. Yūji smiled back.

"Always faithful, huh?" Yūji asked, questioning Shinichi's optimism.

"Riders gotta have faith in each other, and gotta believe in each other, Yūji," said Shinichi.

"Yeah, you're right." Shinichi had a point. Kamen Riders were meant to trust and support one another and have faith in each other. It was why Yūji had helped Shinichi to hunt down Gebok. He knew that Shinichi just wanted to find some closure and had a very good reasons for the actions he took at that time.

"You know, when you stay in one place long enough you can get attached to it, especially to the people. You think Eon wormed his way into Mammon's heart, but I think she's also wormed his way into his as well," said Shinichi. He asked, "And didn't you notice the look on his face when heard that he could be going home? He didn't seem all that excited about the news."

"I guess it's true when they say 'home is where the heart is'," replied Yūji.

"There's no denying that," Shinichi agreed.

* * *

Exiting Topper's Pawn Shop, Rune walked down the sidewalk with a bit of a smile on his face. Looking to his hand, he admired the small box that was wrapped up with a red ribbon bow. Attached to it was a tag that said, 'To: Mammon. From: Hōko-kun'. He wanted to get her something special and this was it. It took about an hour of haggling but he and Topper had finally found a way for Rune to get Mammon her gift. He bartered his services in fixing up some of the stuff in the shop that was broken and needed repairs. Of course, this meant he had to use alchemy but the odd shop owner didn't seem that phased by the use of it. It was as if he had seen it used many times before. In any case, the bartering of his services to do repairs for Topper had enabled him to purchase his gift for Mammon and he just had to get back to the Hive and give it to her.

"I just know Mammon will love this," Rune said as he got close to the alleyway set between two buildings. He would use that as a place for Dr. Magi to connect the Teleportal to so that it wouldn't be seen by the public.

"Going somewhere, little alchemy boy?"

**(Insert BGM: Tsukasa's Decision – KR Decade: All Rider VS Dai-Shocker OST)**

Rune stopped in his tracks, recognizing the voice instantly. Looking up on top of the building before him stood Dredge and the Homunculoid General had a sinister grin plastered on his face. Rune, pocketing the gift box back into his jacket, glared at Dredge before developing a smirk of his own.

"Ya know, ever since Ireland, I was wondering when you were gonna rear your ugly mug," Rune quipped.

"Well, with that temporal storm on its way, I decided that I might as well drop in." And Dredge did just that as he leapt off of the roof and landed five feet away from Rune. The people in the area all gasped at the stunt that Dredge had just performed, surprised that he hadn't killed himself with that jump. It had to be a four storey drop, at least. "You know I can't let you say goodbye without giving you your gift first."

"Awe, so you do care about me," Rune said while he faked wiping away a tear. "And here I thought you just had some sort of weird hard on for me all this time. But to know you have feelings for me, I'm almost touched." Rune then developed a serious look at he leveled his gaze on Dredge. "_Almost_."

"Che, care about you? How absurd," Dredge chastised. "You could say that I _love _you. So much that only I can get you the perfect going away present!" Dredge flexed his fingers as his sickle-blade claws formed. Rune knew that a fight was about to break out so he took off his jacket and set it off to the side. He didn't want his gift to Mammon to get damaged.

"Oh yeah? And what gift did you get me ya slimy, scaly fucker?" Rune shot back as he used his alchemy to form his BSB (Bio-Soul Metal Blade).

"Your death!" Dredge shouted, lunging at Rune.

The people in the area, seeing the fight breaking out as the two opponents actually grew weapons from their own bodies, began to run for cover so that they wouldn't be involved in the ensuing battle. Dredge struck first as he slashed at Rune who side-stepped, Dredge's slash hitting the building wall and carving slash marks in solid stone. Rune then struck with a side kick to Dredge's gut, sending him skidding across the ground.

* * *

Back at the Hive, while the party preparations continued, Sheila was announcing, "_Alert! Alert! There is violent activity taking place in Shishibone City!_" Hearing that made every stop what they were doing.

"Wasn't Eon going there?" Shinichi asked and Yūji nodded. They, along with the others, went to the computer and watched the huge monitor screen as Sheila showed them what was going on. On the screen was Rune and he was fighting against Dredge.

"He's fighting Dredge!" Mammon shouted, recognizing the Homunculoid from the time she went to Ireland. Yūji's eyes narrowed at the name. Mammon had told him about what had happened, and what Dredge had tried to do to her. That put Dredge in the list of people the Manakyte wanted to kill.

"Let's go," Shinichi ordered. There were still civilians present even though they had taken cover. There was still a risk that they could get caught in the crossfire and get hurt. Shinichi would not allow that.

* * *

**(End BGM)**

**(Insert Song: Day After Day – By: Haji's Kitchen - 2012 Album)**

Gritting his teeth, Dredge let out a low growl before launching himself at Rune again, slashing at his head, trying to decapitate him. Rune ducked but then found Dredge ramming his knee into his face, sending Rune to the ground hard. Dredge the struck with an axe kick, a spike forming on the back of his heel as he brought his boot down. Rune rolled out of the way just in time as the spike dug into the spot where his head had been only seconds earlier. Rune rolled into a crouch and looked to see Dredge come at him again with another slash but Rune countered with his BSB, blocking the sickle blade before grabbing Dredge's other arm, keeping the deadly weapons away from his body. This did little to deter Dredge though as he opened his mouth, forming an energy ball that seemed very similar to a Cero.

'_Oh fuck!_' Rune thought as he slammed his feet into Dredge's gut to launch himself away from the Homunculoid who fired off his crimson colored energy blast just seconds after Rune dodged the hit. The blast attack clipped part of the building that Dredge had been standing on earlier, taking out a good portion of the roof. Rune, glaring at Dredge who just had a smirk on face, could only state, "Looks like someone learned a new trick."

"I'm a quick study!" Dredge retorted as both he and Rune charged at one another.

Their blades locked and sparks flew as they pushed against one another, trying to gain the advantage over the other. Dredge then fought back dirty, using a headbutt that caused Rune's head to snap back. Dredge then followed up by reforming one of his sickle blades into a hand, grabbing Rune by his hair and then flinging him across the street and into a public mailbox. The mailbox got crushed under the impact and Rune groaned as he picked himself back up, his BSB reforming into his right arm. As he shook the dizzies out of his head, he looked up to see Dredge appear right in front of him, grabbing him by the face and carrying him over and slamming him into the wall of a building, keeping him pinned there as he tried to crush Rune's skull.

"Come on, fight back already!" Dredge scolded. "Show me that power that you used to defeat that Hyde back in Ireland! Show it to me!"

Rune, struggling, grabbed Dredge's arm with his hands and tried to pry Dredge's hand off of his face. After a moment, Rune pulled the hand away but then he had to move his head to the side to avoid from getting a sickle stabbed into his head. "Whoa, too close for comfort." He then pulled Dredge forward, driving his knee into the Homunculoid's gut, knocking the wind out of him. "Next time, shut yer trap and fucking finish the job!" Rune shouted as he sent Dredge flying backwards from an uppercut that connected directly with the bottom of Dredge's lower jaw.

Rune, taking a moment to catch his breath, got into a stance as he noticed Dredge getting up, his other sickle blade reforming into a hand. "Please, you think this would be any fun if I just killed you out right?" Dredge asked in a gleeful tone. "Where's the fun in that? Why would I kill you quickly when I can torture you, cut you up and hear you scream and beg for mercy!?" Dredge's body began to bulge and turn green as scales began to form on his skin. "Now, stop fucking around and show me that power you used on the Hyde!"

"Go to hell, ya snaky bastard!" Rune shouted. "You know damn well that I won't allow myself to willingly use that power. It's too dangerous."

"Then…," Dredge began as he morphed from his human form to his Serpent Dragon Form. "I guess I'll just have to give you the proper motivation then, won't I!?" With that, he fired another crimson energy blast at Rune who slapped his hands together and pressed them to the ground, erecting a concrete shield to take the hit while he ran for cover. "Hiding? Are you actually serious? Where's all that bravado that you used to have, boy!?" Dredge said as he continued to fire his energy beam everywhere, causing massive destruction to the surrounding area.

"Not hiding!" Dredge looked to a smoke cloud that was behind him to see Rune emerge from it, coming at him with the Sunlight Heart aimed straight for his heart, its sash glowing as brightly as the sun. "Just needed to get your attention off of me so I could do this. Sunlight Crusher!"

Dredge smiled a toothy draconic grin as his body suddenly morphed into his hybrid form, the Dragon Slayer Form, catching the Sunlight Heart's pointed tip in his clawed hand. Rune gaped at how fast Dredge was now able to alter his transformations while the Homunculoid just smirked.

"Confused?" asked Dredge after seeing the surprised look on Rune's face. "Let me explain it to you then. Did you truly believe those idiot alchemists from centuries past created only one Philosopher's Stone?" Rune's eyes went wide at the realization. "Ah, I knew you'd catch on quickly." Dredge flicked his tail, smacking Rune down to the pavement below. "Ya see, after all the shit that went down at that temple a couple of weeks back, I waited and bided my time until you and those other goody-goodies weren't paying attention to that village. From there, I snuck back into what was left into the ruins and did a little…grave robbing."

"But…I crushed the Philosopher's Stone," Rune said as he got up, clenching the shaft of the Sunlight Heart tightly in his hand.

"You crushed _one _Philosopher's Stone," amended Dredge. "But I bet you didn't take the time to decipher those images on the walls of the temple during your last visit before we had to battle that Hyde. It didn't depict the story of the creation of one stone but _two_. And I found the second one, buried deep underground." Dredge landed on the ground, a few feet away from Rune who was powering up the Sunlight Heart for another go. "I added its power to my own. My strength surpasses yours now!"

"We'll see about that!" Rune roared as he rushed Dredge again. Dredge simply vanish from his spot, as if he had never been there to begin with. Trying to feel out his presence, Rune was knocked forward from an elbow strike to the back of his skull. Stumbling and falling to his knees, Rune rubbed the back of his head and looked back to see Dredge smiling at him. "You aren't the only one who ca-" Rune began before he found Dredge's clawed fist hitting him dead center, right in the face. Rune's head literally bounced off of the concrete and blood began to trickle from a cut to his forehead.

"If you don't hurry then I'll end up ruining that handsome face of yours," Dredge boasted. "And I doubt your slutty little demon whore would want you with a fucked up face." A cross vein popped up on Rune's head as he clenched his fists and glared at Dredge. "Oh, did I upset you?"

"No one…disrespects my girl like that!" Rune shouted as loud as he could. Filling his entire body with all the reiatsu he could muster, he charged at Dredge and tried to impale him with the Sunlight Heart once more. Again, though, Dredge caught the alchemical weapon by its pointed tip, holding it in place. "Damn you…"

As the battle came to a standstill, the swirling green vortex of the Teleportal opened up, allowing the NEO-NUMBERS and their gathered allies to emerge onto the battlefield. Rune and Dredge looked to see the newly arrived heroes and Dredge knew that it was time to end their little game.

**(END SONG)**

"I'm so going to miss these little get-togethers of ours, Rune," Dredge gloated as he pushed against the Sunlight Heart, an immense amount of energy beginning to build up in his palm. "But now comes the time where I help sire a new life. A new Destructor."

"What are you talking…wait," Rune noticed that Dredge was pushing his increasing energy into the Sunlight Heart. "No, Dredge don't do it! You don't know what you're doing!"

"Hōko-kun!" Mammon shouted and then she noticed the cracks starting to form all over the Sunlight Heart. The others noticed this too and began to worry.

"Let's get in there before-" Yūji began but he was cut off by Dredge.

"Say goodbye to your Kakugane!"

"NO!" shouted Rune as Dredge unleashed his built up energy onto the Sunlight Heart, shattering it completely.

The hundreds of thousands of pieces of the now destroyed Sunlight Heart littered the ground as Rune began to back away slowly, his eyes on what was once his greatest weapon. First Lava-Rex destroyed the Hagane no Yami and now Dredge had destroyed the Sunlight Heart. Everyone else gaped and many knew what was going to happen in the next few moments. Rune looked at Dredge and saw the smirk on the Homunculoid General's face as he began laughing hysterically. Rune's fist clenched, his teeth grinding together. He was going to make Dredge pay. Not wanting waste his time, he raised his arms and slapped his hands together. Kneeling down, he almost placed his palms against the ground when he felt a sudden and very familiar pounding pulse come from deep within his chest.

**BA-DUMP!**

**BA-DUMP!**

**BA-DUMP!**

Rune was down on his knees as he began to grip the area of his shirt that rested over his heart. It was happening and now, with the destruction of the silver Kakugane, there was no way to stop it. Rune's Victorization was starting back up. The Black Kakugane had awoken once more.

"Welcome to the family, Rune Suller," Dredge gloated. "Welcome to being what we call the Destructors, those who are destined to destroy everything that they touch."

**(Insert BGM: Kamen Rider Eternal – Kamen Rider Double Forever A to Z Movie OST)**

"You fucking sonovabitch!" Dredge turned to the accusing voice, only to get a violet colored mana blade stabbed right into his chest, courtesy of Mammon. "How dare you…how dare you destroy Hōko-kun's Kakugane!"

"Oh, shut up and lay down like the little bitch that you are!" Dredge ordered as he backhanded Mammon away from him.

He then found himself neck deep in enemies as the others attacked. Musician and Slasher struck at him with their weapons, Dredge using his tough hide to block Slasher's chainsaws and Musician's Guitar Axe, parrying them away before firing another crimson energy blast, sending both of them soaring across the battlefield. Amazon lunged at his unprotected back and grabbed hold, digging her claws into his shoulders and wrapping her legs around his waist. He thrashed about to shake her loose but she wouldn't let go. She tightened her hold and used the Jaguar Shock, biting into his neck. He roared, grabbed her and then threw her off with a chunk of his flesh still in her mouth. He began to heal his injuries but then he was lifted off the ground by Meta's telekinesis.

"Yokoshima, now!" Meta ordered and Blue Beetle nodded, aiming his blaster, his gatling gun, his missile launcher and railguns at the Homunculoid.

"Yippee-kay-yay, Motherfucker!" Blue Beetle shouted as he unleashed a salvo of firepower upon Dredge. The missiles hit first, followed by the bombardment of bullets and energy bursts. Finally, the railgun beams smashed into him. The resulting explosion covered Dredge in flames, smoke and dust. It cleared to show him unharmed. He broke himself free from Meta's grip by will alone and dropped down in front of the black cyborg. He backhanded Meta and then threw him into the air with an uppercut before knocking him straight into a wall with a haymaker. Dredge was fired upon by Blue Beetle again but he advanced on the blue-armored cyborg and kicked him hard between the legs before using a reverse roundhouse kick to send him tumbling painfully.

He next had to fend off Arachnea and Carmen who were in their Mirage and Venom forms, slashing at him with their weapons. Carmen was using her Kusarigama Mantis Scythes and Arachnea was using her venomous wrist claws. Dredge rolled around on his feet, bobbing and weaving before grabbing their weapons and pulling them towards him. He then let go of their weapons as he close lined both girls to the pavement and then smacked them across the street with his tail.

Showa (Oni Form) was next as he breathed fire upon Dredge. When that didn't work he attacked with lightning fired from his horns. That didn't do anything but slow Dredge down as he advanced on Showa. The Homunculoid shook off the attack and punched Showa repeatedly, sending him reeling. Showa assumed his Kage Form and teleported from Dredge to escape, replacing himself with a large piece of rubble that was smashed to pieces. Dredge was then hit by Showa and his Shadow Clones who executed Rider Kicks together but he swatted the clones away. They burst into smoke leaving the real Showa. He plunged a kunai into Dredge's throat but it was ineffective and Showa was backhanded.

Showa returned to his default state and called out, "Let's Ride: Super-1!" He changed, armed with the Hot & Cold Hands. He aimed the cryogenic sprayer and said, "Let's put you on ice!" He sprayed Dredge and the Homunculoid's movements became sluggish as he was frozen, covered in ice. Showa breathed a sigh of relief but that didn't last long as Dredge broke free and fired a beam of concussive force. Showa was forcefully reverted back to his default form and sent soaring but was caught by Blue Comet.

"Thanks," said Showa.

"No problem," replied Blue Comet.

"Now put me down."

"Gotcha."

After being put down, Showa teamed up with the Blue Comet, the two firing off a mix of Yūji's Blue Lantern energy and Showa's Makankosappo, the two attacks combining and hitting Dredge dead on. The Homunculoid got sent flying into a wall before falling forward. He would have far to fall as he found himself getting picked up by Sentinel who then lifted him up, his eyes glowing red. The Lantern did not appreciate anyone harming any of his friends.

"Ah, did I upset you when I shattered Rune's Kakugane? Don't worry, he still has that black one inside of him so he can still fight," Dredge gloated. Sentinel brought Dredge close to him and looked him right in the eyes. He was so tempted to use his heat vision to burn Dredge's eyes now.

"That's beside the point!" shouted Sentinel, his eyes glowing with rage. "You just took away the one thing that was keeping him human!" Rune, as volatile as he was, had already become a close and trusted ally of theirs.

"And?" Dredge asked nonchalantly.

"And? And!? We have no way of crafting a new one for him! Why would you do such a thing to him?" Sentinel demanded angrily.

"Che, because I can," spat Dredge. "Look at him; does he really look like someone that you'd want on your team now?"

**(END BGM)**

**(Insert Song: The Last Element - Digimon Franchise)**

Everyone looked over at Rune as his reiatsu began to cover his body in a fiery violet aura and blue electricity crackled all around him. His braided hair split apart, flowing freely in the wind as he slowly stood up. Dredge, taking the moment of distraction, slashed at Sentinel, forcing the Green Lantern to release him. Landing on the ground, he then fired off another energy blast at point blank range, sending Sentinel flying into a car. While it didn't hurt him much, the attack did catch him off guard. Looking back at Rune, Dredge could see the familiar changes that took place back in Ireland weeks before. Standing up slowly, Rune glared at Dredge as his energy began to go out of control, the ground below him being paved away by his emerging energy.

As his energy grew his eyes turned blood red as his skin went from Caucasian to reddish-bronze in color and his hair went from being blonde to a radiant teal-blue color. This was Rune in his Victor State. Looking at the others, he then locked eyes with Dredge and then vanished, leaving only a hinting trail of flickering green energy. Dredge, not surprised, looked behind himself to see Rune standing right next to him, back to back. Not wanting to get caught in Rune's energy absorption perimeter Showa, Blue Comet and Sentinel stood back. This was Rune's fight and he needed to finish it. But they would be there to back him up if he needed it.

"Ah, so you've finally awoken, eh…Victor?" Dredge asked in a sadistic tone. The next thing he knew was that he got sent flying across the street and through a building, courtesy of a backhand from Rune-Victor. As Dredge pulled himself up and moved back onto the street, he noticed the killing intent in Rune's eyes. The alchemist wasn't playing around anymore. Good, that meant he could stop playing around as well. "Nice to see that you got some bite to back up that bark of yours. But let's see just how long you'll last without absorbing life energy?"

Rune-Victor just used Bringer's Light, appearing right before Dredge but, instead of laying a hit on him, he got a face full of crimson red energy, sending him skyward with a pained grunt. Dredge, not wanting to let Rune have the chance to counter, jumped up and flew after him, spikes extending from the tops of his wrists and vibrating at high speeds and giving off a slight humming sound. Rune-Victor, seeing Dredge come at him, placed his hand over his heart while stopping himself in mid-air.

"Busō Renkin!" Rune-Victor shouted as he summoned forth the Black Kakugane in his chest, forging the Sunlight Heart Mark II. He then reformed his BSB and went on to counter Dredge in mid-air combat.

As their attacks struck, the force caused the air to shake with thunderous force, the shockwaves shattering the windows as the NEO-NUMBERS got the civilians away from the battlezone. Getting them out of the heat of battle was one thing, but they also didn't want anyone to fall victim to Rune-Victor's Life Drain. In the state he was in, the alchemist could kill them just by standing still. That was how potent and fatal his Life Drain was to other living things in close proximity to him. As the battle waged on, Rune-Victor and Dredge crashed into the ground, each one pushing against the other in a feat of strength. In his Victor State, Rune was much stronger, faster and a lot more durable, but the downside was that in this state he suffered from a heightened metabolism which was what the Life Drain ability took care of by feeding off the life force of other living beings to sustain him. If he could find a way to at least keep the Life Drain suppressed and to where his Victorized body didn't burn through his energy reserves then he'd be all set. Unfortunately, they had tested if his Renkin default form could block the Life Drain by setting a plant inside his cell with him at one point but it did little to impede it.

Pushing as hard as he could, Rune-Victor shoved Dredge back and struck with a snap kick, connecting with the side of Dredge's head, sending him to the ground. Rune-Victor then placed the tip of the Sunlight Heart against the ground, creating a transmutation circle that let off a violet glow. Stabbing the circle with his weapon, Rune-Victor then slashed the circle in half, releasing the stored energy within the circle at Dredge in the form of violet colored lightning. The attack struck, shocking Dredge and taking him to his knees as he howled in pain.

"Argh! Damn…you," Dredge groaned. "Heh, not bad. But…" He then disappeared and reappeared before Rune-Victor, smashing his head into Rune's with a vicious head-butt. "It'll take more than simple alchemy tricks to kill me at this level!" As he gloated, he then felt a hand wrap tightly around his wrist. "What the…?" Looking back at Rune-Victor, the alchemist wore a smirk as he began to drain away some of Dredge's power. Unfortunately, the second Philosopher's Stone within Dredge's body granted him some resistance to Rune's Life Drain ability so Rune didn't get much from him. "Grr….damn you, lemme go!" Dredge bellowed as he slammed his fist into Rune-Victor's face, snapping his head back. But the alchemist would not loosen his grip.

As the fight continued, the sky above the battlefield began to darken as strange clouds began to form. After a few moments, the clouds began to light up as strange violet colored lightning danced across the clouds, lighting up the sky. The temporal storm had arrived. Now it was only a matter of getting hit by the right lightning bolt. As the storm progressed in intensity, Dredge and Rune struck out with punches, each hitting the other in the side of the face, their fists sliding down the skin of their opponent. Dredge retaliated by bashing Rune-Victor upside the head with his tail, knocking him into a van, making an indent of his body. Dredge then flew up into the air and formed a ball of energy between his hands and fired it at Rune-Victor, burying his body into the ground. Rune was already exhausted from the previous beating and using Victor State while not absorbing energy from the surrounding life forms was making him weaker by the second. If he didn't do something soon, then it wouldn't matter if he got struck by time lightning or not.

Picking himself up, Rune-Victor jumped back in the air but Dredge appeared right next to him, lashing out with a wrist blade slash. The attack hit nothing but air as Rune-Victor's after image faded away. Dredge gaped before he got a dropkick right on the top of the head, sending him careening right into the same crater where Rune-Victor had been just a moment ago. As he got up, he saw Rune-Victor appear before him, punching him right across the face. Dredge returned the hit in kind, decking Rune-Victor across his face as well. They continued like that for a moment, each one just punching the other across the face until Rune-Victor faked a punch, making Dredge flinch in anticipation. Rune-Victor capitalized on this and batted Dredge into a wall with his Sunlight Heart , using it like a club. Not wanting to give Dredge a chance to catch his breath, Rune-Victor ran at him with the Sunlight Heart beginning to glow its radiant sunlight hue as Rune-Victor powered it up. Letting out a loud battle cry, Rune-Victor thrust the Sunlight Heart at Dredge, only for the Homunculoid to dodge and move forward a bit, placing his hand against Rune-Victor's stomach. Rune-Victor looked down to see a crimson energy ball being formed in Dredge's hand and against his stomach.

"Happy trails," Dredge quipped as he blasted Rune-Victor across the battlefield and into a pile of rubble.

**(End Song)**

Struggling, Rune-Victor pushed himself up but he could only sit up. The others watched and prepared to intervene as Dredge flew into the air and aimed his right hand at Rune-Victor, forming another crimson energy sphere. Looking down and trying to think of what to do, Rune-Victor spotted his Black Kakugane had returned to its dormant state. Picking it up, Rune-Victor gritted his teeth as he looked up at Dredge. The temporal storm was starting to worsen with each passing second and it was only a matter of time before it threw out a lightning bolt at someone.

'_Damn it…is this all I can do?_' Rune-Victor question himself. Even with his new Victor powers, despite not wanting them in the first place, they just weren't enough to stop Dredge. '_If…if only I could match him…match the power of that second Philosopher's Stone. But as long as that stone is in his body, he's nearly as half as powerful as Gawl._' Rune-Victor pushed himself to his feet and glared at Dredge.

"To the end of Rune Suller! To the end of Kamen Rider Renkin!" Dredge roared as he raised his right arm up, summoning up even more power into the crimson energy sphere. He wanted this attack to finish Rune off once and for all.

Rune-Victor, for a moment, began to have his life flash before his eyes. Images of his childhood, his mother, the Gate of Truth, meeting Rook and Dizzy, he could remember it all. Then he began to see flashes of the memories he had made in this current era. Shinichi, Yūji, Alan, the NEO-NUMBERS and Team 5D's. But, the one image that stuck in his mind the most, his most important memory and treasure…Mammon. Gripping the Black Kakugane tightly, he looked over at the others for a brief second and then back at Dredge.

'_Damn it…I want…power. I want more power,_' Rune-Victor began saying in his mind. As he began mentally stating what he wanted, his Kakugane began to glow a bit as did his hair. '_The power with which I can fly, fight and protect people. Even at the cost of my own life. My very humanity. If I must become a monster to protect the innocent then so be it! People are worth it._' He looked at Mammon. '_She's worth it._'

"Say goodbye!" Dredge gloated. "I love you Rune. So here's a gift from me to…what the!?"

The others looked at Rune like Dredge was. Rune-Victor, noticing that Dredge had halted his attack, saw that everyone was looking at him. Looking down, he noticed his Kakugane glowing brightly as his Orb of the Sun God appeared on his waist as his belt formed on its own. "What the…?" Rune-Victor then noticed the metal segments of the belt turn from silver to gold in color as did the outer buckle of his belt. The three claw-prongs turned crimson red as the Orb of the Sun God shifted from its red color to obsidian black; the symbol of the Victor, V1, glowing red at its core.

"Why did he summon his belt?" Sentinel asked.

"Beats me," replied Showa. "I just hope he has a plan."

As he looked at his Kakugane, Rune-Victor could suddenly begin to feel it pulse in his hand. It was responding to his pleas. He could even begin to hear a voice in his head. In a way, it sounded eerily similar to the guardian of the Gate of Truth. Which was strange. To Rune-Victor, all he heard was, '_You have shown you deserve this power. Now use it and win._' Rune-Victor looked at his belt and then at his Kakugane. He began to understand and then heard a voice in his head, a voice stating a phrase over and over.

"No, it can't be," Dredge whispered. "The Black Kakugane isn't supposed to have this kind of power."

Rune-Victor smirked and leveled his gaze on Dredge. Taking a firm stance, Rune-Victor shouted out, "Henshin!" as he transformed into his default Renkin form. "Alright then. Let's Busō Renkin…VICTOR MODE!" Everyone watched as a new transformation took place around Renkin.

The symbol of Renkin formed above him, glowing in the form of a red symbol, as a black transmutation circle with the V1 symbol in the center formed beneath him. The two symbols flowed up and down his body as his Renkin default armor transformed into a totally new set of armor. His bodysuit was now obsidian black in color with what looked like hexagonal indentations all along the bodysuit. His shoulder armor became slightly bulkier but formed a set of hexagon shields on the outer ends with the symbol V1 on the face of said shields, the armor black in color with gold trim. His gauntlets were also black in color with gold trim and he had a set of red orbs on the top of each gauntlet, each orb held in place by a set of three claw-prongs. The orbs were red in color and the prongs colored gold. His lower leg armor was like the rest of his armor, black with gold trim and V1 plastered on the sides of the calves and on his knee pads. The armor on the top of his hand also had the V1 symbol on it. His torso armor was black with gold trim as well and he had the symbol of Ouroboros plastered on his back armor with two spikes curving from the top of his chest plate and over his collar area, allowing a small black half-cloak with red lining to fall out and attach itself to the curved spikes via gold chains.

He also had a small high collar as well. The front of his torso armor also had three red orbs situated in the center, just below the chest plate but above the abdominal plate. His helmet was, like the rest of his armor, solid black in color with gold trim around the jawline and around the back of his helmet, a gold trim line leading up to and connecting with his red eye lenses. Instead of the singular horn which his default form had, this form had the curved center horn with a small red gem in the center and two plate horns jutting up from the sides of his helmet, framing his eye lenses. This was Kamen Rider Renkin in his Victor Form, the form's color scheme matching that of the Black Kakugane which reformed into the Sunlight Heart .

Everyone gaped at this new form of Renkin, including Dredge who dismissed his energy attack as he just stared at Renkin. Renkin looked his armor over in a single undamaged window and whistled in appreciation of the new look. He could also feel his strength returning and that, somehow, his body was no longer using its Life Drain ability. It seemed that this form acted as a seal for that ability until Rune could master it.

"Hōko-kun….sugoi!" Mammon complimented with a bit of drool escaping her mouth. Her boyfriend had just joined the ranks of the other Riders. That of those who could ascend into the second phase known simply as 'Form Shifting'.

Feeling his newfound power flowing through him, Renkin practiced a few kata's to test his reflexes and liked how fluid that new form was. It didn't even hinder his movement all that much either. Flexing his fingers and tightening his grip on his Sunlight Heart , Renkin-Victor jumped up and floated in front of Dredge. "Okay, fugly. Round 2 starts right now!"

"Bring it then," Dredge challenged. "Ready…"

"GO!" Renkin-Victor shouted as both he and Dredge rushed one another.

**(Insert Song: Just the Beginning – By: Kamen Rider GIRLS – KR Wizard Ed Theme)**

Dredge slashed at Renkin-Victor who blocked the attack with the Sunlight Heart before parrying and then disappearing before reappearing behind Dredge. Dredge looked behind to see Renkin-Victor just waving at him so, with lightning speed, he did a backhand slash, wanting to take Renkin-Victor's head in one swipe. All he got though was air as Renkin-Victor vanished. Trying to look around, he was suddenly sent straight into the ground below from an elbow strike to the top of his skull. Getting back up, he turned to get an uppercut from Renkin-Victor which knocked him right into a streetlight. Renkin-Victor then grabbed him by his tail before stomping his foot down on Dredge's back, pinning him down. Renkin-Victor's body surged with alchemic energy as he yanked and pulled and tugged on Dredge's tail, the Homunculoid grunting and screaming with each tug.

"Ow! Let me go! Let go!" Dredge order. "Stop pulling on my tail!"

"Oh, okay then," Renkin-Victor chided. "Then how about…_this_!?" With that, Renkin-Victor ripped Dredge's tail clean off and tossed it away.

"YAAAAAAAAAAAA!-!-!" Dredge howled in agony as blood spilled out from his wound. There was now a bleeding circular wound where his tail once occupied.

"Whoa! You know that had to hurt like hell," commented Blue Beetle.

"I bet it did," replied Blue Comet. "And the fucker deserves every bit of pain he gets."

"Guess he's really turning out to be that freak's pain in the ass," joked Showa. He was met with silence. _Very _awkward silence. "Geez, tough crowd..." he mumbled.

As Renkin-Victor stood there, Dredge pushed himself up and looked over to his now twitching tail that flailed about like a headless snake. He then glared at Renkin-Victor and, letting out a roar of ferocious intensity, he summoned up all the power he could from both his secondary Philosopher's Stone and the one that made up the very core of his being. His body was enveloped by a crimson red aura as his scales became more jagged and his features more twisted with rage. The others stood back as Renkin-Victor reformed the Sunlight Heart into its Kakugane form and set it on his belt. He then brought his arms to his sides while taking a power up gesture, letting out a roar of his own as his body was enveloped in a violet aura. Electric waves of blue, red and violet lightning crackled off of their bodies as their energies began to soak the entire battlefield. The battle of the Homunculoid General and the Victor was now going into overtime with Rune's acquisition of Renkin Victor Mode. And it was going to end with only one of the walking out…alive.

"You…YOU FUCKING SONOVABITCH!-!" Dredge roared as he flew at Renkin-Victor, his clawed fist cocked back and covered in crimson red energy. "That was my tail!"

"Oh quit your bitching!" Renkin-Victor shot back as he flew at Dredge as well, his own violet energy covered fist cocked back as well. "You can always grow it back!"

**BAM!**

Their fists connected, the resounding shock wave from the colliding attacks shattering what remained of the windows. The released power from both attacks also created a crater underneath the two combatants as all the surrounding debris as well as a few cars were sent flying through the air, crashing into buildings and other downed vehicles.

**BAM! BAM! BAM!**

They continued to throw punch after punch, either hitting the others fists or making a hit to their bodies. Dredge was already bleeding all over and Renkin-Victor's armor now sported dents and cracks all over it. This was their final battle and neither of them wanted to lose. They went from throwing fists to catching the other's hands, beginning a struggle to gain dominance over the other. As they fought, small pieces of rubble and scrap began to float off of the ground, as if the energy in the air was affecting the very battlefield. Dredge, after nearly a minute of grappling with Renkin-Victor, let go of one of Renkin's hands and snapped his head back with an uppercut, followed up by a clothesline that sent Renkin-Victor to the ground, hard. Dredge then raised his leg and dropped his foot down to try and stomp on Renkin's head but the Rider rolled away, placing his hands on the ground. As if on instinct, alchemic energy went from his body and into the ground, forming a pair of concrete hands that reached up and smashed Dredge in-between them.

"Ooo…that had to hurt," Sentinel winced.

"Is it me, or has this fight gone to their heads?" asked Lucifer. The others nodded in agreement. That is, all but Mammon. She was too busy keeping a close eye on the battle, drooling at the sight of Renkin's new form and wanting to rip him out of it after the battle was over. Too bad that it would never come to pass as the silver Kakugane was now destroyed.

As Renkin-Victor stood there, keeping his eyes locked on the stone hands, said hands suddenly exploded as Dredge let out a enraged roar. His wings spread wide, he took to the skies and powered up one of his crimson energy spheres, preparing to lay waste to the entire battlefield. He was tired of playing around. He had done so earlier so as to try and make Rune into a Destructor. And that cost him dearly. All his playing around had created a being that was more than what he could currently handle now

"**O-NO-RE!-!-!**" Dredge screamed at the top of his lungs as he prepared to fire his attack, the 'Crimson Revenge'. Taking aim, he prepared to shoot when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest, followed by a sudden drop in his power. Looking down to his front, he could see the Sunlight Heart piercing him and running him through. Looking behind him, he could see the secondary Philosopher's Stone stuck on its tip. Renkin-Victor had removed the Homunculoid's extra source of power. Coughing up blood, Dredge looked back at Renkin-Victor and, in a last ditch effort, grabbed hold of the Rider's helmet and crushed it in his grip, shattering it to pieces. Rune's tanned skin and radiant teal hair were now visible and the sealed Life Drain ability was now unleashed. "Damn you…cough…I'm going…going to…"

Rune just scowled as he sent a surge of energy into the plucked stone, shattering it. He then ripped his weapon out of Dredge and reformed it into its Kakugane state once more. There, floating before Dredge, Rune raised his hand and locked eyes with the Homunculoid.

"It's time…TO SLAP SOME SENSE INTO YOU!-!-!" And Rune did just that as he used his right hand to slap Dredge back and forth across both sides of his face, Dredge grunting and coughing with each hit. The others just gawked and some even laughed at the scene which went from serious to hilarious in a matter of seconds. He then stopped slapping Dredge as he formed a fist and, after blowing on his fist, and punched the freak right in the face, sending him straight into a downed car.

"Dude! He just bitch-slapped the shit outta Dredge!" Blue Beetle shouted as he laughed.

"I sure hope Sheila recorded that scene for posterity," replied Meta. "I'd love to watch it again."

"I think we all-WHOA!" Showa shouted as the Temporal Storm started to get worse as a bolt of temporal lightning had nearly hit him, missing him by a few feet. "Um…I think we need to get out of here," Showa suggested.

"We can't go yet," stated Mammon. "Hōko-kun needs to defeat Dredge first."

"I think he pretty much has this fight in the bag," replied Yūji.

And he was right. Dredge's power was withering back to what it was before he found that other Philosopher's Stone. In a few more moments, he'd be back to his old normal level of power. He had to find a way to get the upperhand. He just had to! But how? As he looked around, he began to notice that Rune was panting heavily. He finally understood. Because he hadn't drained any life force with his Life Drain ability earlier, Rune was using a new form and power half-cocked. While it worked as a temporary energy boost, the use of the new form was now taking its toll on him.

Dredge smirked. He may have found his one chance to win. "You know, Rune. For someone who claims to be a genius alchemist, you sure are dim."

"What's that supposed to mean, lizard breath?" Rune quipped. Sweat dripped from his nose and brow, plopping on the ground below. He was tired and, if he didn't take in some form of energy or nourishment soon, he was going to pass out from exhaustion.

"Awe, what's the matter?" Dredge gloated. "Running outta steam?"

"Wanna find-" Rune began until he suddenly fell to one knee. His energy levels just took a serious nose dive. Mammon and the others looked on in worry, knowing that Rune needed to take in energy fast if he was going to recover. '_Damn, I took too long to take him down. Must have let the power go to my head,_' Rune theorized.

**(Switch Song to BGM: My Mind, Clear and Serene – G Gundam OST)**

'_NOW!_' Dredge ran from his spot as he brandished his claws and surrounded them in crimson energy. He was going to take Rune's head before the Rider had a chance to drain him of what energy he had left in his body. "DIE!" Rune looked up and rolled to the side as best he could, avoiding a swipe to his head. Dredge pressed on with another swipe. And another. And another. He kept swiping and Rune kept dodging. "Just sit still, damn you! Sit still so I can cut your fucking head off!"

"Fuck you!" Rune shot back as he leapt backwards and landed on one knee again, almost out of breathe.

"Got ya!" Rune looked and saw Dredge just a few feet away from him. "Time to die, Rune! Your head is mine!" Rune then smirked. "What…"

"You first!" Rune shouted as a red transmutation circle began to glow on top of his right hand. His fist was then covered in a mix of crimson red and violet energy as he shot forth and struck with his own sure-kill technique. "**RIDER PUNCH!-!-!**"

The small half-cloak that hung from his back turned into glowing energy, nearly as bright as sunlight as it propelled him forward. His fist connected with Dredge's gut, digging its way through the Homunculoid's hide and flesh, all the way into his body as Dredge howled in pain and agony. Rune kept on pushing as the released energy of his Rider Punch filled the area. As he dug his punch further into Dredge's body, their eyes locked and, for a split second, a calm and peace came between the two. All old grudges had now been settled and laid to rest. Rune's fist then made contact with the core of Dredge's being. The Philosopher's Stone that made up his heart.

"Guess I'll see you in hell," said Dredge as his core was destroyed. A moment later, his body erupted in a massive explosion that enveloped the entire battlefield for up to several city blocks. Showa, acting quickly, activated the Shield of Glen to protect himself and the others from the explosion. Who knew that the death of a Homunculoid was so violent?

**(End Song)**

As the dust settled, Rune stood up straight and looked at the city. His final battle with Dredge had cause so much damage to the past. He should at least repair what he could. And he did just that as he simple placed his hands on the ground and, in a matter of moments, the area of the city was as good as new, minus the cars. Tired, sore and hungry, Rune just turned and looked at the others and smiled. The battle was over and now he just wanted to go back to the Hive and take a nice long nap…in his cell.

"Hōko-kun…sugoi," Mammon whispered. She began to move towards him when his smile faded, replaced with a frown.

"Mammon, don't!" Rune shouted, startling her.

"But, Hōko-kun…why? You won, so now we can go back"

"No babe, we can't," Rune said. "Only you can."

"But…" Mammon tried to reason.

"Mammon, look at me," Rune told her. "I'm a Victor now. And the silver Kakugane is destroyed." He looked at her with solemn eyes. "I…can't be near you anymore. I can't be near anyone anymore. If I get too close to anyone, I'll just end up killing them with my Life Drain ability."

"Hey, don't be such a downer," said Showa. "All we need to do is go back to that village in Ireland and have that old man you met make you a new one. Then you'll be good as new, right? I mean, the patch job on your original Kakugane worked before."

"It's not that simple, bro," said Rune. "With the tech this world has in this era, it'd take the old man anywhere from a month to a year to make one and that's if he can get all the needed material."

Rune looked back at Mammon and noticed tears slowly welling up in her eyes. As much as he loved her, he had to let her go. He didn't want to risk hurting her. He swore he wouldn't. He swore to himself and to Yūji that he'd never harm her. Mammon tried to move forward again but felt a hand on her shoulder, stopping her advance. Looking back, she saw Yūji shaking his head. Sure, he'd rather Rune stay to make her happy. But he knew that what Rune was about to do was the most sensible and responsible move someone like him, in his current condition, could make.

As Rune was about to say his goodbyes, the Temporal Storm hit its climax as a bolt of time lightning shot down and struck Rune where he stood. Seeing him get hit and instantly vanishing in the violet light, Mammon ran as she reached out, shouting out "HŌKO-KUN!-!-!" but it was too late. Just like that, Rune was gone. Sent to who knows where and who knows when. Time was fluid so it was possible he could have been sent anywhere on the planet, at any point in time. Her boyfriend now gone, Mammon fell to her knees in tears as she cried and cried. Yūji knelt down next to her and held her in his arms, consoling her as best he could while she cried into his shirt.

Looking up to the sky, Showa and the others noticed the dark clouds slowly disperse as the temporal storm passed. It may have only been a couple of months, but they would never forget their friend from the future. '_Farewell, Rune_,' Yūji said mentally. '_We may not have gotten along but, for what it's worth, it won't be the same without you. So long and I hope you find a way to reclaim your humanity one day. I really do._'

* * *

About an hour after getting back from where Rune had his last battle with Dredge in their era, many of the NEO-NUMBERS spent their time just sitting around, either going over the recent events or watching old videos of some of the fights Rune had participated in. The party decorations were taken down as well as there was no point to them now. As for Mammon, she had locked herself in Rune's old room and was crying into her pillow as she lay on the bed. She was miserable. Rune was gone now and she never even got the chance to say goodbye. The temporal storm had taken him before anything could be said. He was just gone, gone from her life. She didn't even have anything to remember him by.

There was a knock at her door and she yelled, "Go away!" However, the door was opened. Angrily, Mammon looked up and repeated, "Go away!" She threw her pillow at the intruder.

"Mammon, chill! It's me!" said Yūji.

"Oh…Onii-sama…" Mammon turned her eyes away from him. She didn't want him to see how red and wet they were from her crying. He sat down next to her. In his arms he held a scuffed up red jacket.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she lied. He didn't buy it though.

"You already miss him, huh?" he asked. She nodded. Yūji, feeling that Mammon should have something to remember Rune by, handing her the jacket. "Here."

Mammon eyed the jacket and recognized it. "Hōko-kun's jacket? Where-"

"Alan found it on the ground," replied Yūji. "Apparently, Rune took it off before his fight with Dredge." Mammon looked at it for a moment and then held it close to her body. She inhaled the scent that the jacket held. It was Rune's scent. As she hugged it close to her body, Yūji then handed her a small gift wrapped box. "Here, Alan also found this hidden in the inner pocket of Rune's jacket. There's a note on it."

Mammon took the box and read the note. "It's from Hōko-kun," she uttered. She opened the box and saw the pocket watch that was inside, the same one they had seen in Topper's Pawn Shop one week ago. "He bought it…he actually bought me a gift."

"I guess he did," Yūji said. "Maybe he wanted to give you something to remember him by." Yūji stayed to study her expression. She was crying again but this time she was crying tears of joy as she smiled and held the pocket watch to her chest like a precious treasure. "Remember, Mammon. We're all here for you. If you need to talk…"

She hugged him, burying her face into his chest, "Thank you, Onii-sama…"

"You're welcome, _Monmon_," Yūji said.

* * *

Nearly 400 years into the future, Rook and Dizzy were still tinkering with the Time Machine that had zapped Rune and Dredge away. It had been three hours since they last saw Rune and Dizzy was really starting to get worried about him. While Rook messed with the Time Circuits, Dizzy kept a close eye on some of the old news clippings and noticed a lot of changes had begun to show up. It nearly floored her when she saw a picture of Renkin in the past, fighting a Hyde alongside some of the Riders of old. At least they knew what era he got sent to. The question now was how to get him back home.

"Aniki," Dizzy said quietly when the sensors in Rune's lab began to go off. "Huh!?"

Rook, stepping away from the Time Machine, looked at the readings on the control panel and gaped. "It's a Temporal Storm. Just like the one that took Rune!"

"Where's it forming?" asked Dizzy.

"It's forming…right above us," said Rook.

* * *

Stepping out onto the roof, both Dizzy and Rook made it in time to see a bolt of temporal lightning strike the roof, leaving a smoking scorch mark and a smoking figure in its wake. As the smoke cleared, Rook and Dizzy's eyes widened as they saw Rune wearing a new form of Renkin armor and having radiant teal blue hair and bronze tanned skin. Dizzy, happy to see her older brother again, was about to run and hug him tightly when Rune yelled at her to stop.

"Diz, don't come any closer!" Rune shouted.

"But Aniki, why not? What's wrong?" Dizzy asked.

Rune was about to explain what had happened to him and why neither of them could get near him when six figures landed on top of the roof, surrounding him. One looked like a humanoid reptile with orange scaled skin and wearing golden armor with three silver claws on each gauntlet. His chest plate and helmet were silver in color and his helmet had a curved nose horn and two curved side horns. The next being had blue scaled skin and also looked like a humanoid reptile and also wore golden armor with a strange crest emblazoned on its chest plate. The third looked more like a demon that wore leather clothing with belt straps on his arms and legs with a mask covering the top half of his pale gray face and white hair. The fourth looked more like a knight in black armor with a flowing cape. The fifth looked like the fourth but with mostly white armor with red accents, a long flowing gray ponytail and bearing a shield with the hazard symbol on it. The sixth and final member of the beings looked like a cyborg wolf that was as big as a liger, possibly bigger, and had a set of silver aero-fins jutting out from its back with gold wing tip blades. The six beings then held up six glowing spheres that, when aimed at Rune, encased him in a dome of energy that sealed him away from the outside world.

"What in the hell!?" Rune gaped at the six figures. Were they some form of demons or Kaijin? As Rook and Dizzy were about to question the six beings, a strange tune could be heard from all over the sky. Looking up, the three of them noticed a strange rainbow colored portal rip open in the sky above them as train tracks appeared out of nowhere, followed by a strange, futuristic and high tech-looking bullet train. The train came to a stop near the roof, the train and tracks seemingly floating in mid-air. "Okay, I'll say it again. What in the hell!?"

As if answering his question, the door to one of the train cars opened up, allowing a man dressed in Showa Era clothing and with short, spiky auburn hair and cobalt blue eyes to exit the train. Walking over to the six figures, the man came to a stop next to the first one with the silver horned helmet. He gave Rune a judging gaze and then smiled. Looking at his six compatriots, then man spoke an order. "Wargreymon, Metalgarurumon, Magnamon, Beelzebumon, Dukemon, Alphamon…stand down but keep up the field."

"Roger!" the six beings, known as Digimon uttered as they obeyed their masters' order.

"Hey asshole!" The man looked back at Rune. "Yeah, that's right! I'm talking to you! Just who in the blue hell are you!?"

"Rune Suller, right?" the man asked.

"Yeah," replied Rune.

"Also known as Kamen Rider Renkin of Showa no Sekai's future era, correct?" the man asked as well.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Now Rune was getting confused. The man just smirked.

"Well then, Earth 295 of Universe 295 has been successfully accessed as the barrier does not exist in this era," the man said.

Rune just stared at the man as a sweat drop appeared next to his forehead. "Dude, you just made no sense, whatsoever."

"I guess not," the man replied. "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Carter Kisuke, a.k.a. Kamen Rider D-Xcel. And I'm here to make you an offer…Kamen Rider Renkin. No, Victor 1!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME:**** And so ends the Hyde Arc and Kamen Rider Renkin goes back to his home era. However, this doesn't mean he'll be gone forever. Mind you, you'll see him again. Also, I wanna give my thanks to GuyverGenesis (formerly known as Toku Warrior) for creating Renkin for this arc.**


	178. The Legacy of Cain Part 122

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 122: Special Weapon-The Obliterator**

One night, while everyone in Hinamizawa was sleeping, the silence of the night was disturbed by what sounded like metal footsteps. The footsteps were loud, echoing in the night. The owner's features were hidden by the blanket of night but what could be discerned from its features was a pair of cold blue eyes that shone in the dark.

The mysterious figure was making its way towards a familiar house where a brother and sister resided, namely Satoko Houjou and Satoshi Houjou. The siblings were fast asleep but their rest would soon be interrupted when all of a sudden…

**CRASH!**

The front door was smashed wide open.

Startled and alarmed, Satoko and Satoshi jumped out of their respective futons and cautiously went to investigate. What they saw was something they hadn't expected to see.

It was a Cyberman.

"**Sa…Sato…Satoko…Sato…shi…"** the Cyberman spoke, its voice cracked but still in monotone.

"What the…?" Satoshi uttered in confusion. How did the Cyberman know their names? What was it even doing here? As far as they knew, the Cybermen were gone. The others said so.

The Cyberman grabbed a piece of the broken door which had jagged edges, and tossed it at them. Satoshi ducked while pushing Satoko down before they got hit and were injured. Spotting a table, it grabbed it and raised it up before throwing it at the Houjou siblings. They dodged again and the table smashed against the wall, breaking to pieces.

They distanced themselves from the insane cyborg who seemed to be obsessed with killing them. It wasn't even giving them a chance to fight back.

The Cyberman threw a lamp and other objects at the siblings, forcing the two to dodge every thrown item.

"OK who do you think you are coming into this house and trying to kill us?-!" Satoshi demanded.

**"Don't pretend... you don't know... me!"** the Cyberman stated still in a monotone voice but its stance was quite hostile.

"We don't know you, you tin psychopath!" Satoko shouted.

**"I see... maybe this will... jog your memory. Remember... the... time... we...spent... together? Remember.. when... I...used...to...beat you kids up when you were in my care?**" the Cyberman said, slowly giving the siblings an idea of its true identity.

"Uncle Teppei?!" Satoshi shouted.

"But how did this happen?!" Satoko added.

"**A white-haired, red-eyed...bastard turned me into...this thing! That's how! This is all...your... fault!**" Cyberman Teppei shouted.

The siblings knew Teppei was talking about Shiro Juuyon. They just didn't expect Shiro to turn Teppei into one. Then again Shiro could convert anyone into a Cyberman. All he had to do was transplant the brain into a metal suit of cybernetic armor.

"You're one to talk!" Satoshi shot back as he dodged a swing from Cyberman Teppei, "You should be blaming yourself instead of others!"

"That's right!" Satoko agreed and smirked, "Besides the Kamen Riders were the ones who put you in jail again, not us."

"**That may be right...punks. So...I am here...to kill you and those...masked freaks for...letting this...happen!**" Cyberman Teppei roared. He swung his arms down on the siblings. They dodged the blows and have the ground splinter from impact.

"Sorry, Uncle Teppei, but we're not the weak kids you can push around and beat up anymore," Satoshi stated.

"This time we can fight back," Satoko explained.

**(INSERT SONG-Destiny's Play by Tetra-Fang)**

"Henshin!" The Houjou siblings called. Cyberman Teppei attacked, ignoring the flashing lights the Houjou siblings were covered in. Suddenly, Cyberman Teppei was punched in the chest by V3. The sibling's demented and converted uncle was sent stumbling back. Cyberman Teppei then received a flying kick to the face courtesy of Riderwoman.

"**What the hell?!**" Cybermen Teppei exclaimed. "**What are you?!**"

"I am Kamen Rider V3!" V3 posed.

"And I am Riderwoman!" Riderwoman posed.

"**Che, even if you have...some fancy suits, I can...still kill...you brats!**" Cyberman Teppei exclaimed as he charged at the two siblings, thinking he could take them.

Oh how wrong he was.

Cyberman Teppei charged forward only to be pelted by bullets from Riderwoman's Machine Gun Arm. Riderwoman then moved in to kick Cyberman Teppei in the chest, sending him staggering backwards.

The Cyberman made a move to punch the female Rider but she ducked, and got on her hands and knees. V3 ran up to his sister and used her back as a springboard. Leaping into the air, he smashed both his feet into Cyberman Teppei's face, sending the evil cyborg flying out of their house.

"**You little shits!**" Cyberman Teppei cursed as he got back up.

"That's what you get for underestimating us," Riderwoman smirked as she stood beside V3.

"Time to send you where you belong! To the junkyard!" V3 declared. The siblings Riders charged at Cyberman Teppei who swung clumsily at them. With her Power Arm, Riderwoman took swipes at the Cyberman, cutting chunks off his plate armor. V3 also assisted by knocking the Cyberman back with a vicious uppercut. Jumping up, Riderwoman used a reverse roundhouse that threatened to knock the Cyberman's metal head off.

"Let's finish this!" announced Riderwoman as she formed her Drill Arm and darted towards Cyberman Teppei. "THIS IS FOR WHAT YOU DID TO US!" She drove her Drill Arm into his chest, causing him to scream. Withdrawing her weapon, she spun away as Satoshi came down with his own finishing move.

"V3 KICK!"

His kick connected with Cyberman Teppei's body and sent it skidding backwards. He collapsed onto his knees, his body trembling and sparking all over before exploding into metal shrapnel.

**(END SONG)**

"He's...he's gone...he's finally gone..." said Riderwoman, in relief. They had once believed that he would be gone from their lives after being sent to prison, but then he somehow returned as a wreck of a Cyberman. Now, he was nothing more than pieces of scorched scrap metal. The only thing that remained intact was the head. The neighbours had come out and witnessed the Cyberman's destruction. No way a commotion like that could be ignored.

"We better go," said V3. No doubt one of the neighbours had called the police. The two pseudo-Riders needed to get away and hide somewhere before they could revert back to human form lest they be questioned.

Meanwhile, another entity had been watching the brother and sister. Hidden in the grass, and in the dark, nobody noticed the single glowing red eyes. Rising up on four spindly legs, the entity crawled away as there was nothing else of interest in the area to see.

* * *

Yuji yawned as he entered the bathroom to get himself ready for the day. As he entered the shower, he did not notice that something was watching him, its red eye focused on the centre of his forehead. It climbed up the shower head and was ready to pounce as he shampooed his hair. It bent its joins and prepared itself before leaping for him. Yuji ducked to grab his soap and his assailant went flying over, slamming into the wall. Yuji, not noticing the sound of metal striking the wall due to the sound of the shower, turned off the shower and dried his hair. He then proceeded to brush his teeth. Once he was done, he opened the medicine cabinet and grabbed the floss and mouthwash. Using the floss first then the mouthwash, he gargled and spat into the sink. He put the items away and closed the medicine cabinet only to see in the mirror, behind him, was a spider-like automaton preparing itself for a jump.

It jumped at him as he spun around. It managed to dig the tips of its legs into the skin of his face as he struggled to get the thing off. "Get off!". Yuji struggled with the creature as a spike came out of the underside of its body, spinning like a drill. His eyes crossed as they were focused on the drill that was aimed between his eyes. Its legs were trying to dig their way deeper into his head as he gripped it. "God...damn it...!" He finally managed to tear it off his face, scratching his skin.

He exited the bathroom in a haste and called out, "Scrappy, breakfast!" He tossed the mechanical spider into the air and their pet Scraplet, Scrappy, leapt and caught the creature in its mouth, chewing and eating up the menacing creature. Scrappy happily bounced up and down after receiving the delicious treat.

"There," he dusted off his hands. "That's better." He felt a draft and looked down at himself. His towel had fallen off. "Oh..." He wasn't alone either. Yuji realized he was giving all the girls a free show. Maria and Wendy's eyes were being covered by Misato to spare them the sight as they were still too young. "Uh...oops?"

* * *

**(INSERT SONG-Kamen Rider Kiva OST 23)**

"Ah...ahh...ahhh...pushing. Ahhh...hernia," Yokoshima grunted as he pushed a crate outside of the base. Battler stood nearby, watching.

"Battler!" Battler turned his head to see Washam looking at the spectacle in annoyance.

"Hey, Dr. Washam!" Battler greeted. "What's up?"

"What the hell are these crates doing outside the base?" Washam demanded.

"Don't ask me. He was doing this when I got here. I think Yokoshima's been pushing them all morning," Battler answered, pointing at the Pillbug Cyborg and bearer of the Blue Scarab.

"Yokoshima! What the hell are you doing?" Washam yelled at Yokoshima.

As he stopped pushing the crate to catch his breath, Yokoshima replied, "You told me to clean up the storage room, Dr. Washam."

"Yeah, but all these crates can't be just laying around outside," Washam retorted, gesturing to all the crates.

"Why not?"

"What do you mean why not? They're _outside_!"

"He's got a good point, Dr. Washam. These crates are waterproof. Who cares if they're outside?" Battler questioned.

Washam ignored him as he reminded Yokoshima, "I told you to organize the crates. I told you to stack them in rows, remember? I said that it's just like Tetris."

"Well I did stack them like in Tetris. But every time I made full row they didn't disappear like they were supposed to!" Yokoshima snapped.

"That's not how it works!" Washam snapped.

"Actually that's exactly how Tetris works. What, you haven't played the game before?" Battler questioned.

"This is real life, Battler!" Washam shouted in annoyance.

"The only way to win is not to play," Yokoshima quoted.

Battler suggested, "Hey, Yokoshima. Maybe you should try humming that Russian song from the game. That might make them disappear."

"Well that's worth a shot." Yokoshima said. he cleared before beginning to sing "Dee dee dee, dee dee dee, deedeedee, deedeedee... Deedeedee, deedeedee!"

"Stop that," Dr. Washam hissed.

"Deedeedee, deedeedee deedeedee, deedeedee deedeedee."

"Yokoshima," Dr. Washam said in a warning tone.

"Dee dee dee deedeedee dee dee dee! Dee Da Dai! Didon don dondondon... dondon!" Yokoshima continued.

"Yokoshima!" Dr. Washam snapped.

"Sorry..." Yokoshima apologized.

Dr. Washam spoke, "Okay now that we have that over with, let's deal with this little problem right now. We can't just leave everything from the storage room out in the middle of the canyon. Where are we going to put all this stuff?"

"Well, the storage room is empty," Yokoshima suggested.

Washam slapped his forehead "Uh! Okay, great. Let's put it all in there."

"And I'll get back to work!" Yokoshima sang, "Deedeedee deedeedee dee dee dee."

"YOKOSHIMA!"

"Sorry..."

"Well, if you guys don't mind, I'm gonna go and see Junior. Later!" Battler said before entering the base. "Hey, Junior!"

"Honk!"

**(END SONG)**

* * *

"Alan, Shinichi, thanks for coming on such short notice," said Inspector Akasaka as he welcomed Alan and Shinichi into the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. The young Lantern was wearing a visitor's pass.

"So, what is it about this time?" Alan asked. Whenever Inspector Akasaka would call them, it was always to help solve cases which were beyond what the department were used to dealing with.

"My guess is that it's something freaky as usual," commented Shinichi.

"Come with me," said Akasaka as he brought Alan and Shinichi into the coroner's office. "I don't normally do this, but since I've gotten some pretty weird cases, I know that I can only turn to you."

"So, what is it you want us to do?" Alan inquired.

Inspector Akasaka gestured towards the autopsy table where a body lay. Over the body was a sheet of cloth which covered everything but the feet. A tag was tied to one of the toes. "I want you to take a look at this body here."

"A murder?" Alan asked.

"Not exactly," said Inspector Akasaka. "He and two others were involved in a bank robbery the other day. The other two escaped but this one was killed at the crime scene. His weapon is stored in the evidence room right now but I can show it to you later."

Akasaka pulled the cloth down to reveal the man's face. He was pale, with sunken eyes. Of course what got Shinichi & Alan's attention were the piercings done on the sides of the head as well as the hole on the top.

"Damn, this looks like a bad piercing accident," commented Shinichi. "What happened to him?"

Alan asked, "And who was he?"

"Fingerprints and dental records identify him as Takuya Yagami," Akasaka said as he looked at the clipboard. "He was reported missing 5 weeks ago."

"5 weeks ago?" Alan asked. "Then he turns up at a bank robbery, holding it up with two others?"

"That doesn't seem normal," Shinichi added.

"It isn't normal," Akasaka said. "But there's something else." There was a tray covered by a sheet of cloth and Akasaka took off the cloth and Alan's eyes widened. "He was wearing this on his head." It was metal, saucer-shaped, with four spider-like legs sticking up in the air as it was lying on its back. A blood-stained spike stuck out of its body, pointing up like its legs.

"It's a Cyberdrone," Alan identified.

"So, both of you have seen one of these things before?" Akasaka questioned.

"Yes, a long time ago," Shinichi said.

Alan studied the dead Cyberdrone and after looking at the bloodstained legs and spikes said,, "This thing was attached to his head, the spike and legs going into his brain. It was controlling him, like a puppet." He saw the bullet hole, which had pierced the eye.

"Nice shot," admired Shinichi. It had gone clean through.

"It was. No matter how many times we shot at him, he wouldn't go down. It took a direct hit to the thing on his and he just died," Akasaka added. "I lost a lot of good men too."

"That means he'd been dead ever since this thing attached itself to him," Alan concluded. "He was reported missing for five weeks, right? That was how long he's been a puppet."

"Where did it come from?" Akasaka asked.

"Remember the DALEKs?" Alan asked and he saw Akasaka's eyes widen. The DALEKs, even though their worldwide attack had been short, still left plenty of people emotionally scarred and traumatized. They had appeared and attacked, following Shiro's orders to cause as much death and destruction as they possibly. The attack had been a distraction so Shiro could destroy another one of the sealing stones in Kyoto. It had been effective on another, planting the fear of DALEKs into the memory of the people who'd survived. The mention of the name 'DALEK' could bring up feelings of terror in the weak and strong-hearted alike. The name, however, brought nothing but anger, hatred and disgust to Alan. "Well, this thing was made by the same guy who built those things."

"You mean the person who made those _things _made this?" Akasaka asked and Alan nodded to confirm.

"Yeah, but he's supposed to be dead," Shinichi told him. Alan was visibly upset and angry too. He was a Green Lantern and his job was to protect the innocent. To see this happen to someone made him sick.

"Could I see the weapon?" Alan requested.

Akasaka took Shinichi and Alan to the evidence room and after signing in, the three of them found the section for recently acquired evidence. "Here it is," said Akasaka as he took down the box. Putting it down, Akasaka opened it up and took out a zip lock bag and handed it to Alan. Alan held it and his eyes widened as he examined it.

"I've seen this before," said Alan. It was a pistol with a barrel shaped like a DALEK gunstick. The only wielder. He took out his Sonic Screwdriver and pushed the tip up to increase its power. Akasaka cocked an eyebrow as he watched Alan hold the tube-shaped device over the bag, a green light shining on the tip as it made a faint buzzing sound.

"What is that?" Akasaka asked as he'd never seen Alan use the device before.

"Sonic Screwdriver," Shinichi answered. He noted Akasaka's skeptical look. "Yes, I know it doesn't look like a screwdriver but it's sonic and way beyond anything that can be built here on Earth, at this time"

"So, it's alien?" Akasaka asked.

"The screwdriver or the gun?" Shinichi questioned.

"Both," Akasaka clarified.

"Oh, both were built on Earth but the Sonic Screwdriver is made using alien technology," Shinichi answered. Lala had built the original for Alan, which got destroyed, but then Alan built a new one.

"The gun's advanced but it's not alien." Alan grimaced. "It's the same." It was still charged and could become dangerous. He then used his Sonic Screwdriver to permanently disable the gun. "Here, I disabled it for you. It will never fire again," informed Alan as he handed the bag back to Akasaka.

"So, the guy who built that spider-drone-"

"Cyberdrone," Alan interrupted, correcting the inspector.

"Right, so the guy who built that Cyberdrone and this gun is the same one who made those DALEK things?"

"Yeah, but he's dead," said Shinichi .

"How can you be sure?"

"We were there," Shinichi and Alan answered in unison.

"He got absorbed by a eight-headed dragon," Alan added. "Then I blew up the eight-headed dragon."

"Nothing could've survived that. Not even him," Shinichi added. "You can bet on that."

"So, the big question is, how did these things get here?" Alan asked. "And when did they start to turn people into Robomen?"

"Robomen?" Shinichi and Akasaka repeated.

"Oh, just something an old friend faced on an occasion or two," Alan replied. "This seems similar so I thought the name would be appropriate for them."

"Why Robomen?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, because these people were mentally converted into mindless puppets that only follow their programming, like robots. Hence, 'Robomen'," Alan explained.

"Strange, but it sounds straight to the point," the inspector nodded.

"Well you know us, strangeness is our speciality," Shinichi remarked.

* * *

Alan and Shinichi left together and the latter spoke, "The friend that you mentioned. It was the Doctor, wasn't it?

"Yes, and he's encountered Robomen before and if there are Robomen here than they are back," said Alan.

"Who?" Shinichi asked.

"Whenever there are Robomen, you can bet that the DALEKs are nearby," Alan told him.

* * *

After Yokoshima had returned the crates to the storage room, he and Battler were summoned by Dr. Magi. He needed them for a mission.

"Now, as you know, GIN-SHOCKER had warehouses hidden all over the world. It is where equipment and weaponry is stored away for safe keeping and later use. Since the organization was taken down, I've been taking advantage of the situation by getting replacement equipment from there," Dr. Magi explained.

"Wow, that explains how you can run this place so well without going bankrupt. That's a money saver," Battler commented, impressed.

"Yes, even though ARMOR did help build this base for us, GIN-SHOCKER technology should be compatible. If not, it could be modified to be compatible," Dr. Magi replied.

"So, you want us to go and get you some stuff, huh, Pops?" questioned Yokoshima. "Piece of cake."

"There's more. You see, I also want to send two others to keep an eye on the both of you," answered Dr. Magi.

"Keep an eye on us?" Battler asked, feeling slightly offended by the lack of trust. "What for?"

"Dr. Washam informed me that Yokoshima misunderstood his orders to clean up the storage room by taking out all the crates and leaving them out in the canyon," Dr. Magi answered.

"Anyone could make that mistake. Besides, how was I supposed to clean the storage room with all those boxes in the way?" argued Yokoshima.

"And what about me?" Battler asked.

"Well, you just watched and didn't help," said Dr. Magi.

"I was looking after Junior," Battler retorted. "Little guy needs my attention or he gets cranky!"

"Yes...cranky..." sighed Dr. Magi, knowing that a cranky Junior tended to bite people. "Still, you're going to need help." He handed the two a list. "Here's the list of things I want you to bring back."

"Damn!" Yokoshima exclaimed after reading it. "Wait, is that a decimal or comma?"

"A comma," Dr. Magi clarified.

"Damn!" Yokoshima repeated.

Battler read the list, "There's no way we can carry all that stuff back here ourselves, super strength or not."

"Which is why I said you'll need help and supervision. Fortunately, the twins were free and they were happy enough to help out," Dr. Magi informed them.

"Twins?" echoed Yokoshima and Battler in unison.

* * *

The Teleportal opened allowing Battler, Yokoshima and the twins to step out and stand in the middle of a jungle. "Where are we?"

"Somewhere near the warehouse," said Yokoshima.

"Couldn't he have opened the Teleportal _inside _the warehouse and save us the trouble?" Battler complained.

"The warehouse has a sort of disruption field around it preventing a Teleportal from opening inside. We can't get a lock on to the exact coordinates because of it but we can set coordinates nearby," Yokoshima explained.

"Hey, we're wasting time here," said Mion Sonozaki. "Dr. Magi did tell us he needs all the stuff on the list.

"Yes, and it wouldn't be nice to keep him waiting," agreed Shion Sonozaki.

"Right, let's go," Yokoshima said as he led the way.

"The warehouse is that way," Mion pointed to the opposite direction.

Yokoshima turned and walked in that direction, "Like I said, let's go."

"Why do I get the feeling this won't be an easy job?" mumbled Shion.

"I'm getting the same feeling, but I doubt it'd be _that _bad," said Mion.

It didn't take long for them to find the warehouse, which was camouflaged. "OK, if I remember correctly..." Yokoshima murmured as he entered the entry code on the keypad. "Aha! Open Sesame!"

The door opened for them.

"What was the code?" Battler asked.

"No way can I tell you that!" Yokoshima huffed defensively.

"Come on, I wanna see what's inside," said Mion eagerly. She had never seen a GIN-SHOCKER warehouse up-close or the inside of one before.

"Onee, you can be such a kid," Shion giggled. They entered and the door shut behind them, leaving them in total darkness.

"Wow, it's dark," said Battler.

"Don't worry. I'll find a light switch," said Yokoshima. He felt around and his hand landed on something soft.

"Hey!" Mion yelled.

**SLAP!**

"OK, that wasn't it," Yokoshima said as he felt around again and his hand landed on something soft again.

"Stop that!" Shion yelled as she smacked him.

**SLAP! **

The lights turned on. "Oh yeah, it was a clapper," Yokoshima realized. He saw that Shion, Mion and Battler were frozen, eyes wide. "What?" He blinked and drawled, "There's something horrible behind me, isn't there?" He turned and his eyes widened in horror as he stood face to face with a DALEK. Backing away in fright, he realized that they were standing in a room filled with DALEKs.

"DALEKS!" Battler aimed his gun hand at the DALEKs as Yokoshima's arms turned into energy blasters which he aimed at the mechanical menaces. They were ready to fight. However, the DALEKs weren't moving. They were just standing there, motionless. Their eyestalks were hanging along with their plunger and gunstick arms.

"OK, why are they just standing there?" asked Shion as she and her terrified twin hugged each other.

"Wait a minute," Yokoshima said as he scanned them. He was relieved when he discovered something from them. "Everyone, relax. They're just empty shells." He demonstrated by rapping one on the dome with his knuckle. It did not respond to it. "See?" He lightly shoved it back. No response.

"Empty...?" Battler cautiously poked one in the eye. It didn't react. "Empty..." he repeated as he breathed in relief.

"They don't even have active power cells," added Yokoshima.

Mion asked, terrified, as she demanded an explanation "But what the are these things doing here!?"

"My guess is Shiro must've found this place and used it for extra storage space," Yokoshima assumed. Looking closer, he noticed that the DALEK units were covered in a thin layer of dust. "Must've been here for months."

"How much extra space would he need?" Shion questioned. "Didn't he have like a giant pyramid-shaped base?"

"You can never have too much storage space. Ask my dad. He had to have an extra storage shed built just for his collection of cowboy movies he loves so much," said Battler.

"Come on, let's just go find whatever it is Dr. Magi wants and get away from these killer saltshakers of death," said Mion, uncomfortable at the sight of DALEKs. Even if Shiro's ultimate plan had failed, the plan to cement DALEKs as an object of fear in people had succeeded.

"The sooner we get home the better," said Shion, rubbing her arm. She just felt a chill as she looked at the DALEK units. These things had attacked Hinamizawa and attempted to exterminate all of the villagers. Shinichi had come in time to prevent that. They walked deeper into the warehouse, avoiding the DALEK units out of discomfort rather than fear.

"Let's split up," suggested Mion. "We can cover more ground that way and get Dr. Magi what he needs faster."

"Good idea," Yokoshima agreed.

"You still have to do the heavy lifting, though," Shion added. "Bye." The twins walked off.

"Women, huh?" Battler remarked, recalling his his mom and Beato would get him to carry their shopping bags.

"I hear ya," Yokoshima agreed. "Still, we are the men. We bring home the bacon and carry the heavy stuff."

* * *

Shion and Mion were navigating themselves through the vast warehouse together. This was their first ever equipment gathering mission since joining the heroes on a official capacity. There was a lot of stuff laying about and stacked boxes and crates. Also, a lot of blank DALEK units just standing motionless around like statues in a macabre art gallery.

"I would've thought Shiro Juuyon would've had a better way of organizing his things when he stored them," said Shion.

"He had more important things to think about, like wiping out the human race," Mion remarked. "I doubt storing them all neatly was the first thing on his mind."

"Still, they're kinda creepy when they stare at you, even if they're blanks," said Shion as she inspected one of the DALEK units. The lens in the centre of the eye wasn't glowing. She tapped its dome and Mion immediately pulled her away.

"What're you doing!?" Mion hissed. DALEKs were dangerous and the last thing Mion wanted to do was to provoke one.

"Oh relax, Onee. Like Yokoshima said, these things are blank and dead," said Shion, dismissing her sister's concern as she tapped the DALEK's dome again. "See? Dead as a doornail.

"Stop that! And since when has Yokoshima been 100 percent sure about anything?" Mion countered.

"…OK, I can see your point," admitted Shion after a short pause. Yokoshima wasn't exactly a reliable source. His intelligence had suffered a bit due to multiple concussions in the past as he was literally a human wrecking ball and was used to break down walls, a lot. "But ever since he got that new armor, he's been pretty badass."

"Being a badass doesn't equate to being smarter. And even if that was the case, let's just leave these sleeping DALEKs lie, OK?" Mion almost pleaded.

"Fine, I won't play with the robotic death machines," swore Shion, rolling her eyes. She looked back at the DALEK units and added, "Still, if Rena was here, she'd probably try to take one of these things home."

"Not probably. Definitely," Mion corrected. She noticed a metal orb on the floor and picked it up. Looking around, she spotted a DALEK missing a single hemisphere on its skirt.

"Looks like we got a souvenir," Shion smiled as Mion put the sphere into her backpack.

"We're just taking one," Mion said. "So don't get any ideas of taking anymore."

"Roger, Onee," Shion salluted.

* * *

"Man, if Shinichi's girlfriend was here, she would've taken one of those DALEKs as a souvenir," said Yokoshima.

"Are you sure about that? Even after all they did?" Battler asked.

"Battler, you do not know Rena like we do. She's got a weird concept of cute," Yokoshima said. "I mean, she thinks a junkyard is a 'mountain of treasure'!"

"OK, I'll take your word for it," said Battler, nodding. He wasn't about to argue about trivial things when there was work to be done. "So, which crate are we supposed to be looking for?" Battler asked. Yokoshima looked it up on a sheet of paper.

"GS-098G-XG-556," Yokoshima read.

"Geez, couldn't they just label this stuff with simple words?" said Battler with irritation as he looked around for the crate marked with that serial number.

"They just think putting a random combination of numbers and letters together would be-" Battler suddenly shushed him, which Yokoshima thought was rude. "Hey!"

"Do you hear something?" Battler asked.

"Sorry, but not all of us have your super-sensitive hearing, Battler," Yokoshima remarked. Battler put a finger to his lips and did a 'follow me' gesture. The Pillbug Cyborg followed the the redhead and they turned a corner before stopping.

It was another area filled with DALEKs, which were hopefully dead. However, one of them was not dead as it was moving.

"Crap..." groaned Battler.

**(INSERT SONG-Kamen Rider Kiva OST 19)**

The DALEK was different from the ones they had faced before. It was completely black with silver hemispheres decorating its skirt-like lower half. Instead of appendages in front, it had them attached to the sides. It had a pair of chain-guns for arms that looked extremely deadly. It also appeared heavily armored.

It was swiveling its head around, examining the DALEK units before coming across one which drew its interest. It glided closer as the centre of its chest opened up and a plunger extended. The plunger attached itself to the back of the immobile DALEK and began to siphon energy from its power cell.

"I think we should get out of here and report this," said Battler in a whisper.

"Right, good idea," said Yokoshima quietly as he stepped back but he slipped on a metal rod on the floor, causing him to trip and fall. Yokoshima shouted as he fell on his rear. The DALEK picked up the sound and its dome head swiveled around. It leveled its singular eye at them while removing its plunger.

"**TARGETS SIGHTED! OBLITERATE!" **the DALEK shouted.

Battler deadpanned, "Nice going, dumbass."

An energy cannon extended from its chest. It was big, badass, and capable of brutal destruction. Firing off, it let loose a barrage of lethal energy bullets from its chainguns as it also fired energy blasts from its cannon. The Special War DALEK, codenamed the 'Obliterator' was aiming to kill them. Battle and Yokoshima jumped and dodged the assault, doing their best not to get hit.

"What the hell?-!" Battler shouted. "Since when do DALEKs have machine guns and laser cannons?-!"

"I don't know but it's about to get sent to the scrapyard!" Yokoshima shouted as he transformed into the Blue Beetle, forming his own laser cannon with his arms. Taking aim and powering up his weapons, he glared at the DALEK. "Suck on this, ya evil metal bitch!"

**BOOM!**

Blue Beetle and Battle stared at the cloud of smoke and the sounds of metal hitting the floor. The two looked at one another, giving each other a high five until a new sound made them gape at the smoke cloud in fear.

**"TARGETS HAVE BECOME HOSTILE! TARGETS ARE NOW A LEVEL 4 THREAT! TARGETS SHALL NOW BE DEALT WITH!" **it shouted as it came out of the smoke cloud, its body only slightly singed from Blue Beetle's attack. **"OBLITERATE!"**

"What the fuck?-!-!-!" Blue Beetle screamed as he and Battler dodged more laser gunfire. "What is this thing on!? Steroids?-!"

**(END SONG)**

* * *

In another part of the warehouse not too far from Battler and Yokoshima's location, Mion and Shion heard the sound of laser fire. "Hey, what is that?" the younger twin asked.

"It sounds like trouble," said Mion, "Come on." She led the way.

"Shouldn't we be running away from gunfire?" Shion fearfully asked as she followed. She just hoped it wasn't an active DALEK here. Otherwise, she would be _really _scared.

Mion and Shion followed the sound of laser fire and found both Blue Beetle and Battler taking cover from something.

Mion asked, "Hey, what's going on?" She spotted what they were taking cover from. "Is that a DALEK!?"

"Never mind that right now!" Battler shouted "Everyone, hold hands and brace yourselves!" They didn't question or hesitate as they did as told before they were teleported away to safety.

* * *

"That's strange," said Dr. Magi. "It seems as though I've lost contact with them."

"Is something the matter, Dr. Magi?" Rika asked as she walked over with her boyfriend Kai. She and Kai had been using the training room for some sparring.

"It seems that I've lost contact with the team I sent to the warehouse," said Dr. Magi.

"Do you think something happened to them?" Kai questioned.

"Considering their luck, and statistics, they probably are," said Dr. Magi. He could be exaggerating, but numbers don't lie. "They probably need assistance."

"Then send us," Rika volunteered.

"If they're in trouble we should help them," agreed Kai.

"OK," Dr. Magi accepted. "I'm setting the coordinates for the warehouse."

* * *

As the warehouse was large, Battler had teleported himself, Mion, Shion and Blue Beetle to another area, as far away as possible from the Super DALEK trying to kill them.

"OK, we should be safe for now," said Battler as they hid behind several large containers.

"That was a DALEK! A living, moving, homicidal DALEK!" babbled Mion.

"We kinda got that while it was shooting at us!" Yokoshima shot back.

"Which it wouldn't have if you hadn't made so much noise!" Battler argued.

"Hey, I tripped, OK!?"

"OK, but why is it moving while the others aren't?" Shion asked.

"It looked like it was siphoning energy from the other inactive units," said Battler. "I don't know how long it's been active itself but long enough to drain almost every single DALEK here dry."

"So, why don't we just get out of here and bring backup?" Yokoshima asked.

"Why can't you guys just destroy it?" Mion asked.

"If we could, we would've," answered Yokoshima. "I blasted it but I didn't even make a dent. That thing seems to have been made to withstand anything and that's just its armor. It's armed to the teeth too." The chainguns and cannon were intimidating and deadly.

"It looked different too. Must be a new prototype or something," Battler added. The DALEK they had escaped from hadn't shared the standard design. Up until now, all the DALEKs had looked the same.

"I vote that we leave and lock this thing up in the warehouse permanently," recommended Mion. She really didn't want to face a DALEK.

"I thought you guys have been trained to fight DALEKs," Yokoshima pointed out.

"In the simulator, where it's safe, and the worst we have to worry about are just aches and pains!" Mion exclaimed. Battler shushed her.

"Keep it down," Battler scolded. "Now that it knows we're here it's going to come looking for us."

"It's the hunter and we're the prey," Yokoshima added.

"So, are we just going to hide?" Mion shot back.

"No, we're going to have to destroy it. It's too dangerous to leave it here alive. Who knows how long before it breaks out of this place and goes on a rampage?" Battler said. "But first, what do you girls know about DALEKs?"

"Well, they were built to kill humans," Shion answered.

"Their armor is bullet proof and they have a force field too for added protection," continued Mion.

"And their weak spot?" Battler asked.

"The eye!" the twins answered in unison.

"So, aimed for the aid and it's blind, but we still have to worry about weapons," said Yokoshima.

Now, here came Battler's 'flip the Chessboard' strategy which his mother had taught him. "Guys, I have a plan."

* * *

**(INSERT SONG-Kamen Rider Kiva OST 20)**

The Obliterator DALEK was seeking out its prey. Turning right into an aisle of crates and containers, it swiveled its head around, the pupil in its eyeball dialating as it focused to find and obliterate its targets.

"Hey ugly!" The Obliterator DALEK's head spun around 180 degrees and it spotted Yokoshima standing behind it. "Yoohoo! Over here!"

"**TARGET SIGHTED**!" the Obliterator DALEK screamed as it turned its body around. "**OBLITERATE!**" It began to fire its payload, a deadly salvo of energy bullets being expelled by the chainguns. Yokoshima screamed as he ran to the right with the DALEK in hot pursuit. "**CEASE RUNNING! CEASE RUNNING AND BE OBLITERATED!**"

"I'm not that stupid!" Yokoshima shouted as he dodged the chainguns. The energy cannon came into play and was fired. Yokoshima immediately laid flat on the floor as the energy burst flew over him, hitting and destroying several crates and containers in front of him. "Yikes!" He stood up and continued running, dodging the Obliterator DALEK as it continued to fire.

Once Yokoshima had led the Obliterator DALEK into an open area of the warehouse. Battler, standing atop a container, shouted, "NOW!"

Mion came out of hiding from between two containers and aimed a high tech gun at the DALEK's back. It resembled a rifle, but with a capsule-shaped container attached on top. She'd gotten it from one of the crates. "Hey, trashcan! Check me out!" The Obliterator DALEK spun its head around to look just in time as Mion pulled the trigger. The gun fired a sphere of blue goo which hit the DALEK's eyeball, blinding it.

"**VISION IMPAIRED! VISION IMPAIRED!**" the Obliterator DALEK screamed in what appeared to be panic as it started to fire its chainguns in random directions.

"PLEASE TELL ME THERE'S MORE TO THIS PLAN!?" Yokoshima hollered as he and Mion ducked for cover.

**(END SONG)**

**(INSERT SONG-Endless Play by Astronauts)**

The answer came in the form of Kamen Rider Nigo and Meta leaping off their perches and attacking the now blind Obliterator DALEK with a Double Rider Kick. The Obliterator DALEK was sent skidding out of control before it went crashing straight into a container.

"TAKE COVER!" Meta shouted as the container exploded.

**KA-BOOM! **

It had been a container filled filled with volatile explosives and the unstable contents had detonated when the DALEK smashed into them, consuming the DALEK in flames.

The four of them admired what they had done. They had stopped what had to be the most powerful DALEK they had ever seen.

"Yay, you killed it!" Yokoshima cheered but then he went pale as the DALEK came out of the smoke. "Oh hell, you didn't kill it!"

"You just had to jinx it," Meta grumbled. The blue goo in its eye was also gone now as the DALEK glared at them. Its force field had protected it from the blast but it had also been weakened as a result. The left chain guns were damaged, though.

"**OBLITERATE!**" it shouted as it fired its energy cannon and they leapt out of the way before they were killed.

* * *

Meanwhile, not too far away, a Teleportal opened up in front on the warehouse entrance. Rika entered the code and the entrance opened up for them. Going inside, they saw smoke rising into the air and the sound of laser fire as well as screaming.

"I guess Dr. Magi was right. They are in trouble," said Kai.

"Come on, let's go save their skins," said Rika as she donned Kamen Rider X's armor.

"Right behind you, Rika," Kai said.

* * *

Blue Beetle, Ichigo, Nigo and Meta were sent flying into the air by an explosion. They went sprawling all over the floor. The Obliterator DALEK studied their prone forms and compared their images to those in its memory banks. They were labeled as Kamen Riders and Kamen Riders were the enemy. Thus, enemies would be obliterated on the spot.

Training its cannon and charging it up the DALEK prepared to obliterate them with extreme prejudice. "**OBLITE-**"

A bolt of lightning struck the DALEK in the back, stunning it instantly as it went sliding forward, electricity crackling all over its body.

"Huh? Where did that come from?" Meta asked and he spotted Kai and Kamen Rider X.

"Rika-chan!" Nigo said in relief.

"Hey, dudes," Kai waved.

"Are you all OK?" Kamen Rider X asked.

"We're fine, for the most part. Still alive, definitely," said Meta.

"Is that a DALEK?" Kai asked. It didn't look like the ones they had found along the way.

"It may not look like the rest but it's just as nuts," said Blue Beetle. "It's been trying to kill us since we got here."

"Well, don't worry. I think I must've short-circuited it with my lightning," boasted Kai. With its force field weakened, there was no way for it to protect itself.

"**OBLITERATE!**"

**(END SONG)**

"Or not," Kai corrected as the Obliterator DALEK stood in the distance. It aimed its energy cannon and prepared to fire. However, when it tried, nothing came out. The cannon was just spewing out nothing.

"**WEAPONS MALFUNCTION! FIREPOWER IS INSUFFICIENT! FIREPOWER IS INSUFFICIENT!**"

"I think you damaged its weapon system," Kamen Rider X praised Kai.

"Yeah, that was so my plan," bragged Kai. Blue Beetle strode over to the Obliterator DALEK condescendingly.

"Look at you! Without your guns your nothing but a walking, talking trashcan! What are you gonna do now, huh? Huh?" He poked its eye. "Huh? What are ya gonna do now?"

"Yokoshima, I don't think it's a good idea to taunt the crazy killing machine," advised Ichigo.

"But it can't kill us now! How is it going to kill us without its weapons?" Blue Beetle questioned, mocking the Obliterator DALEK at the same time.

"**INITIATE SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE!**"

"Oh, _that_." Blue Beetle sweatdropped.

"**COMPLETE SELF-DESTRUCTION IN 30 SECONDS!**" If it was going to die, it was going to kill them as well.

"RUN!" X screamed.

"YOU DON'T NEED TO TELL ME TWICE!" Kai yelled.

* * *

"_Dr. Magi, open a Teleportal, NOW!_" Rika shouted from the other end.

"Alright!" Dr. Magi opened up the Teleportal. The instant he did, he saw them running for him, followed by an explosion. The explosion sent them flying out of the Teleportal, tumbling along the floor of the Hive's Main Hall. Dr. Magi closed the Teleportal after that and looked to see Mion, Shion, Rika, Kai, Yokoshima and Battler intact but spooked.

"So, what happened?" he asked. They gave him a very detailed report about what had happened. Dr. Magi listened and understood. "So, Shiro was using that warehouse to store his DALEKs and you came across a stronger and deadlier model."

"With BIG guns," Yokoshoma added for emphasis. "Very big and deadly guns of death!"

"Well, then it's a good thing that it's destroyed. It's a shame about the warehouse though. There was a lot of equipment there we could've used," lamented Dr. Magi. He looked at the satellite image to see a huge crater in place of the warehouse. "A shame."

* * *

**(INSERT SONG-Kamen Rider Kiva OST 22)**

"Hey, Alan. Don't you think it's there's been a lot of coincidences lately?" Shinichi asked. He and Alan were sitting in a booth in Angel Mort with Celine and Alice, having cake and milkshakes.

"You mean like Cyberdrones attaching themselves to people's heads and turning them into meat puppets?" questioned Alan.

"And not just that. I mean Satoko and Satoshi told me that they got attacked by their abusive uncle who'd come back as a deranged Cyberman, and just recently I heard from Dr. Magi that some of the others found a warehouse filled with DALEKs and a new model of DALEK unit with new weapons and armor," Shinichi added. "Then Yuji told me he got attacked by a Cyberdrone this morning while in the bathroom. Not to mention I've been attacked by..." He paused as he chose his words carefully around children. "...Cyberman and DALEK hybrids." He originally wanted to use the term 'bastard children of a Cyberman and DALEK.' "I mean, the one thing they have in common is _him _and we both know what happened to him."

Shiro Juuyon had once been a cyborg of GIN-SHOCKER, created to replace Shinichi. He had been destroyed but then revived as a bio-android by the Religion of Crime. He had attempted to revive the Yamata no Orochi, building DALEKs and Cybermen to act as his soldiers. He had been killed though, a victim of his own hubris. However, even without him, his creations were still able to act independently. The DALEKs had left Earth to become stronger elsewhere and the Cybermen had attempted to recreate their Cyber Master in Detroit. There had also been that Cybermen tomb but Shogo had blown it up.

"Shinichi, you and I both know more than anybody that in this line of work there are no such things as coincidences," said Alan grimly. He poked at his cake and repeated, "No such things as coincidences." It was no coincidence that they were still dealing with Shiro's legacy. Even when dead he still manages to be a menace. Alan let a out sigh as he added, "I miss the days when the worst I had to deal with was Black Hand putting me in a cliche death trap or Shark trying to eat me..."

**(END SONG)**

* * *

**(INSERT SONG-Kamen Rider Kiva OST 9)**

Meanwhile, in an undisclosed location, the words "**SPECIAL WAR DALEK...CODENAME: OBLITERATOR...HAS BEEN DESTROYED**" went across a monitor screen.

"**A shame. It would have been useful. At least I still have my other projects,**" a deep, distorted electronic voice spoke.

**(END SONG)**

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The Obliterator DALEK here is based on both the Special Weapons Dalek from "Remembrance of the Daleks" and Dalek STORM. Anyone, this is the first time the DALEKs and Cybermen have been featured in KRGL in awhile. I hope everyone was able to welcome their return. Also, mentions of Robomen. This is going to be quite significant in the future. You'll see. Anyway, Happy Halloween, guys! KR Goji helped me to edit this chapter. He was the one to add some of the songs here. KR Bushido also helped me by looking this over for me.**


	179. The Legacy of Cain Part 123

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 123: Eternal Winter**

Kintaro Mitsuhide was reading a book in his study when he heard a knock at his door. "Enter," he allowed and it opened to reveal his butler. "What is it?"

"Sir, there is someone here to see you. It's your sister," the butler informed him. Kintaro had only one sister. She was the one who defied their father and went out on her own to become a succesful adult novelist.

"Send her in," Kintaro ordered and the butler allowed Shiori entry into Kintaro's study. "Hello, Shiori," he greeted politely as he stood up. "What brings you here?"

"This isn't a social call, Kin-niisama. I actually came asking for your…for your…" She bit her lip and spat it out, "Help." Just saying it made her want to clean out her mouth with industrial strength mouthwash. However, for what she was attempting, she needed to swallow her pride and ask for help from the last person she would approach for it.

"You want my help?" Kintaro questioned. He knew he wasn't Shiori's favorite brother. After all, he took a lot after their father who'd driven Shiori away. "Why not ask Gintaro?"

"Because Gin-niisama doesn't have the same connections you do, which I need," Shiori admitted.

"Alright, now what do you need?" Kintaro asked, curious. If Shiori was desperate enough to come to him for help then he might as well give her a few minutes of his time. Despite not being on such good terms, they were still family.

"I want to start a campaign to support the Kamen Riders," Shiori told him causing his eyebrows to raise slightly.

"You must be joking, Shiori," remarked Kintaro. Like everyone in Japan, Kintaro knew about the Kamen Riders. They were big news on the radio and TV. They fought monsters which seemed more at home in an anime or manga, not real life.

"I'm serious, Kin-niisama," said Shiori. "The Riders are being persecuted on the media by that DJ Mikogami." She has had enough of hearing horrible things being said about her son and his friends. They were doing a lot of good for the world so they didn't deserve to be treated like some kind of criminal menace. In fact, the Riders had saved the world many times before.

"Even if I did say yes, you know that even I can't change public opinion." That video which was shown on TV showing the NEO-NUMBERS at their worst had really affected public opinion on them, though it was slowly and steadily improving. However, there were still those who believed that the Riders were a dangerous menace to society. "Plus Mikogami has devoted fans who hang on his every word," added Kintaro. "It would just be a waste of time and resources."

"But this could help you in the long run," suggested Shiori.

Kintaro blinked. "How so?"

"If you support the Riders whom have done so much for the world, it might help with your political career. You might even get a chance to become Prime Minister in the next election," Shiori explained. She knew what buttons to press when it concerned her eldest brother.

"Hm, you're probably right. Even if Mikogami has turned a fraction of the population against the Riders, I can't deny that they're also popular." He narrowed his eyes, "But how do I know this won't hurt me if this plan fails?"

"Because, if the Riders are a symbol and if they were as terrible as Mikogami had claimed them to be they would've attacked him in retaliation by now," Shiori said.

"True…" Kintaro nodded.

"So, do we have a deal?" Shiori questioned.

Kintaro's face scrunched up in thought and consideration. He could win support by supporting the Riders whom have done a lot of good despite the bad they did in the past. Shiori did have a point that they were popular among children who loved superheroes and the younger generation. Finding more pros than cons, he finally agreed, "Very well then. I'll lend my support in your Pro-Kamen Rider Campaign."

"Thank you, Kin-niisama."

"Just don't make me regret this," he warned her.

* * *

The time was now ripe for Felix Faust. As always he was clad in his trademark dark blue robes and cowl which identified him as a practitioner of the mystic arts. The robe was accessorised by gold bands around his wrists and forehead as well as a gold belt around his waist. Held within his hands was an ancient tome. He also had in his possession an ancient artifact of great power.

Months ago, Felix Faust had led an expedition. He, along with a group of RoC grunts rode dog-drawn sleds across the snow. There was something he was looking for. He had a map to guide him, an ancient sheet made out of animal hide, depicting a treasure that was not meant to be found. The map had on it a set of clues that needed to be deciphered from its language and even translated it had been a riddle to solve.

But hard work paid off and Faust finally found the ice cavern. With their flashlights they had entered the cavern and much to the shock of his subordinates they had found the bodies of many dead Vikings, frozen in ice, preserved by the cold. They had probably been here for centuries, overwhelmed by the cold. However, their faces were contorted in death masks of fear and terror and they looked like they had been trying to flee from something.

In the centre of the cavern's chamber, untouched by the ice, was a coffin. Despite the ages which had past it still shone as new as if it had just been made. Crimson and gold, and locked for all eternity. It was built to keep someone out, or keep something in. The coffin was an artifact known as the Casket of Ancient Winters and there was power inside. Faust had been pleased as he admired the Casket of Ancient Winters, the final resting place of the God of Blizzards, Iceon. But the time for admiration was over. It was time to conduct the ritual. The casket was sealed by an enchantment and so it needed a special key to undo the seal and Felix Faust had searched high and low in a long time span of time for the tome which contained the key to break the seal. It was an incantation designed to undo the seal upon the Casket of Ancient Winters.

Frost opened the tome to the specific page and read its text which was written in an ancient language. However, years of study had allowed him to understand and pronounce the text properly. Mistakes were not an option as one error could spell disaster. As soon as he finished reading the final line of text, the Casket of Ancient Winters emitted a glow which slowly faded. The seal had been undone.

Faust nodded and turned to the men in the chamber with him. "Open the casket," he ordered. These men, with Cyberdrones mounted on their heads, obeyed without question. Faust smiled in approval. These 'Robomen' as they were called did have their uses after all. What they lacked in individual intelligence, they made up for it as free labor to do all the grunt work. They didn't even complain or needed to be paid. They were just mindless slaves.

The six Robomen each grabbed hold of the Casket's lid and lifted. As soon as they did, a powerful blizzard burst from the Casket. Faust protected himself with a spell but the Robomen were not as lucky as they were hit with the gale of frost winds. They had been frozen instantly as the Cyberdrones died with them. A mist had formed around the Casket as a figure rose up. It spoke, in a deep voice, "Who here has disturbed my slumber?"

"It is I, Felix Faust, a simple sorcerer and your faithful servant," Faust introduced himself. "I was the one who awoke you, Lord Iceon."

* * *

Alan was headed home after he went out to do some shopping. He even bought a new manga for Celine and Daiki to enjoy. He suddenly sneezed and rubbed his nose. "That's weird...it felt chilly all of a sudden."

That was when snow began to fall, right in the middle of September.

* * *

Faust had finally revived the great Blizzard God Iceon. Using his lies and power of persuasion, the sorcerer was able to convince the Blizzard God that he wasn't the enemy. He told Iceon that humans had forgotten about him and worshipped technology. This did not sit well for Iceon, not in the least. He once lived in an era where he was worshipped and respected but now his existence had fallen into forgotten mythology.

Iceon was humanoid, to an extent. He was inhumanly tall, standing at ten feet and possessing an elegant yet imposing build. His garb resembled those worn by gladiators of ancient times and he had a stiletto (a dagger a long slender blade and needle-like point, primarily intended as a stabbing weapon) kept in a holster on his belt.

What was inhuman about him was his head which was that of a gorilla covered in snow white fur.

Wanting to see the present era for himself, Iceon disguised himself by mimicking a human teenager and decided to watch and learn. What he saw disgusted him to the core. It appeared that humans had forgotten their past and that Faust had been telling the truth, that humans had indeed become worshippers of technology. The Age of Gods had been forgotten.

Well, if that was the case than Iceon would remind them of the Age of Gods by himself!

He did not expect any opposition at all.

* * *

The canyon was hit by a sudden blizzard and the pool on top was frozen solid. The waterfall and lake nearby were also frozen. This was unfortunate as Daichi had been swimming with both Leviathan and Mika. Now the two girls felt chilly as they were wearing bikinis that didn't offer much protection in the cold.

"OK, I thought this canyon maintained a tropical climate all year round!" complained Leviathan as she shivered.

"Wait, where's Daichi?" Mika asked and the ice erupted. Climbing out of the frozen pool was Daichi and the girls gasped. "Daichi!"

"Dai!" Leviathan cried as she went and helped her boyfriend out.

"I...H-h-hate...I-i-ice...!" he stuttered. Even a Cyborg like him didn't like extremely low temperatures.

"Come on, we should get you inside before you catch your death of cold," Mika advised as she and Leviathan led him towards the roof exit.

* * *

Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam were checking the news all over the world and they all reported the same thing. Every continent on Earth was suffering from the strange and extreme weather which had hit every country and nation. Even countries that didn't get this kind of weather like Malaysia and Africa were affected.

"This is not your typical weather," said Dr. Magi.

"Do you think it's artificial? Man-made?" Dr. Washam asked.

"It wasn't caused by natural means, that's for sure," said Dr. Magi. "We better call everyone and figure out what's causing all this."

Before Washam could agree, they saw Mika and Leviathan helping Daichi out of the elevator, dragging him into the Main Hall and setting him down on a chair.

"Good Lord! What happened to him?" Dr. Washam asked as he went to check up on the cyborg. He noticed that he'd turned slightly blue due to exposure to the cold.

"We were swimming in the pool when the blizzard hit. Daichi was underwater so he got very chilly," answered Mika as she draped a blanket over Daichi.

"Will he be OK?" Leviathan asked.

"He should be OK. He was designed to survive harsh climates. However, I recommend you both to take him to the bath to get him warmed up before he catches frostbite or worse," advised Dr. Washam.

"Right!" the two girls agreed as they gently lifted Daichi up to get him to take a warm bath in order to get him nice and warm.

"We really need to call the others," said Dr. Washam to Dr. Magi. Dr. Magi couldn''t agree more.

* * *

"Snow! It's snowing!" Sho cheered as he was running out into the front lawn in winter clothes. He jumped into the snow and flipped onto his back, making snow angels. "Mama, look! It's snowing!"

Shiori stepped out, wearing a warm coat and held her hand out to catch snowflakes. There was snow falling but it wasn't even winter yet. It was the beginning of fall. Of course, she was smart enough to see that this was not some kind of joke. It really was snowing. Unfortunately, it was happening off season.

And on the news, she learnt it was happening all over the world. Nobody knew the cause of this phenomenon and even if her youngest child was having fun in the snow like all children his age. Well, it just didn't seem normal.

* * *

"This isn't natural," said Amora as she looked out the window. Down in the front lawn of the boarding house, Daiki, Celine and Alice were playing in the snow without a care. They had just built a snowman together and were now having an innocent snowball fight.

"Why? They seem to be having fun," said Lala.

"It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, Lala," warned Amora. There was a strange chill in the air, and not the type of chill associated with winter. This was unnatural, completely unnatural, and not some man-made aberration. The Norse Goddess had actually heard of such a phenomenon.

Alan had just returned and was swarmed by Lala and Celine upon his return. The Green Lantern knew from the get-go that the weather wasn't normal and not just because it was off-season. He was actually feeling chilly and considering his altered physiology due to the nanites rewriting his DNA, that was not possible anymore. The cold shouldn't effect him at all.

* * *

Maria and Wendy, a Witch and a Manakyte, could sense that things were not normal. Even Phoebe could tell. She was a magic-using Pokegirl so she could sense a sort of mystical quality effecting the weather. Manakytes were also closely linked to the elements.

Even Asura herself didn't like the weather and not because of her nature as a fire devil.

"Look baby, snow," Yūji beamed as he held his daughter, the two looking out the window. Yuna giggled in her father's arms as she patted the cold window.

"Something seems off about this," Misato frowned.

"You don't think I know that?" Yūji retorted as he looked to his wife. "It's like what, autumn or something? Hm, lost track... Anyway, I can tell this ain't natural, especially this level of snowfall."

It was getting hard for vehicles to move with the thick snow covering the roads. And even if there wasn't snow, the roads were slippery as they were covered in ice. Too dangerous for driving.

"Any idea of what's causing it, Papa?" Maria asked.

"In my experience, it's either magic, a demon, some idiot who screwed up a science project or, in the rarest case, all of the above," Yūji listed. "Doubting the last one though..."

"Or it's your sister and her Pokegirl just fooling around with their powers," Sora offered.

"Come on, you know Yuki," Yūji reprimanded, "She never screws around. And Crystal is ten times as serious. Nah, whatever's going on here is something freaky. And if there's many things I don't like, is freaky."

"Well then, that just means this whole world is in trouble, again," said Misato. She turned on the TV and the news was on each channel reporting the weather. "Well, at least there's no change in the North and South Poles."

"How can you tell? It's all ice and snow anyway," remarked Stella.

"Well, better call the others so we can figure out who's screwing around this time," Yūji suggested. Before Yuji could make the call, his communicator alerted him. It was a call from Dr. Magi, summoning him and the others to the Hive.

* * *

In Jersey City, Crystal, Yuki and Rhea were also witnessing snow falling and already covering the city in a white blanket. Yuki's eyes were narrowed. As an Ice Manakyte she instantly knew that this weather was unnatural. She also knew it was not man-made. No, it was caused by supernatural means.

"If things weren't so weird, I would actually enjoy this weather," Crystal frowned as she lay in bed.

"You know, your brother might blame you for this," said Rhea.

"Onii-sama knows I wouldn't do something like this. He's know I'm not capable of it. No, something or someone with a lot of power is doing all this," said Yuki.

* * *

In Paris, Yuri commented, "Wow, Christmas came early."

"This isn't natural, my dear husband," said Anastasia as she put Anita in warm clothes. "I also fear that this is just the tip of the iceberg."

"Hah! You made a cold joke!" Yuri laughed but then his expression turned serious. "But you're right, Ana. This ain't right and even if I love it when things go crazy and chaotic I just don't like it."

"Especially when it isn't you causing the chaos," Shego remarked.

"Damn right," Yuri agreed. "And if I was behind it, I would let everyone know too!"

"And how would that be?" Anastasia asked.

"He'd leave a huge sign in a flat plain of snow that would read _'I'm Yuri Fucking Fudo and I made the entire world snow. Thank me later, bitches.'_ and broadcast on every channel all over the world," Shego answered.

"Speaking of broadcast, it says here that every body of water in the world is frozen, even the ocean," said Kikyo as she checked the news. Lakes, ponds, rivers and all the Seven Seas had been covered in a thick sheet of ice.

"See, and it would take me forever to freeze all that shit," Yuri supported.

"What about your sister?" Anastasia questioned.

"She'd never do something like this because even she doesn't have the level of speed and power to do this and it's not her style," Yuri defended.

* * *

Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu were both concerned as well. So, they decided to call Alan over to inform him of what was going on. Shinichi and Rena, their neighbors, were called as well. Amora decided to tag along with Alan.

The demi-goddesses served their guests tea as they sat down together in the living room.

"So, what is this about?" Shinichi asked.

"Alan, do you remember what Lord Regulus told you about the gods of this world?" Tsukuyomi asked

"Well, he said there were many who abused their powers and that some of them signed a pact of non-intervention that limited their control over the world thus weakening the gods that abused their powers allowing humans to regain free will," Alan answered.

"Correct, but do you know what happened to those who didn't sign that pact?" Amaterasu questioned.

"No, I don't. What happened?" He was guessing that he wouldn't like the answer.

"Many of those who were against the pact were either killed or sealed away," Amaterasu said. "One of them was a god called Iceon."

"I've never heard of him," Alan said.

"He is an old god, from a culture that died out eons ago," Tsukuyomi said. "But that has not stopped Iceon who believed that the humans were nothing more than slaves. It was a tough battle but we were finally able to trap him in something called the Casket of Ancient Winters."

It was at this moment that Amora who'd been having drinking tea did a spit-take. She coughed and Rena rubbed her back.

"I take it you have heard of it," said Amaterasu, noting Amora's reaction.

"Well, yes and no. We have something like that back in my universe," Amora said, somewhat surprised that there was a version of the casket in this universe.

"Ano, how can you be sure this is caused by this Iceon?" asked Rena.

"Only he would be capable of this kind of devastation," answered Tsukuyomi, completely certain. "Someone must've found his tomb and freed him."

"OK, so this guy is tough by god standards. We get it. Is there anyway to defeat him?" Shinichi asked.

"First you need to find him, but since this unnatural winter is caused by him, his magical energy is saturated in the air. It will be like looking for a needle in a haystack," said Amaterasu.

"Well, fortunately for you, you have the Enchantress on your side," boasted Amora.

"Amora, you can find the source?" asked Alan.

"Oh, do you doubt me, my beloved Alan?" Amora asked.

"Have I ever?" Alan answered.

Shinichi got a call, summoning them to the Hive. He promptly said, "Flirt later, lovebirds. We have to go."

"What bad timing," Amora frowned.

* * *

Faust was impressed by the sheer devastation Iceon was causing on the Earth and it had only taken him a few hours to cover the world in snow. It wouldn't be long until a second Ice Age began.

"Lord Iceon, I would like to say that it is a splendid idea to start a second Ice Age," Frost praised as he knelt before Iceon.

"Covering the world in ice and snow is only the first part of my plan," Iceon clarified. He pointed his stiletto blade and shot a whitish beam that hit the ice-covered floor. Faust watched in fascination as humanoid creatures made of ice began to form, rising to full height. They looked thin and gangly, but they weren't fragile either. They weren't as brittle as they looked. Other ice beasts, non-humanoid in appearance, also arose.

"I have summoned you, my envoys for one simple task. Go forth and slay the foolish humans who've forgotten their gods and believes us to be nothing more than myths," Iceon commanded.

The creatures all bowed and answered in unison, "Your will be done, Lord Iceon," before they turned into snowflakes and scattered to the winds. They would spread all over the world and cause chaos and destruction in the name of their Lord Iceon.

* * *

Everyone summoned was assembled in the Hive's Main Hall to be briefed on the situation. They all knew that it had suddenly become winter when it was too early for a change in seasons. This was just some freak anomaly they needed to investigate and handle. They were after all Earth's mightiest heroes and they had dealt with other occurrences of various yet serious magnitude.

"We've managed to pinpoint the source of the anomaly," began Dr. Magi.

"Don't you mean _me _rather than we?" corrected Amora, smiling smugly.

"Right...Ms. Amora was able to pinpoint the source of he anomaly using her magic," admitted Dr. Magi as he corrected himself.

Alan went up to Amora and gave her a deep kiss. It didn't matter if everyone was watching. He wanted to show her his appreciation. "I love you, you beautiful goddess, you!" he told her.

"Thank you, Alan..." Amora purred, blushing. She was so glad she chose Alan over Thor. "Tell me how wonderful I am some more," she insisted.

"Oh, get a room, you two!" snapped Daichi in disgust and annoyance. This cold weather really wasn't what he had in mind. He wasn't enjoying it. Being frozen in the pool earlier had worsen his mood.

Suddenly, the alarms blared as Sheila alerted, "_Alert! Multiple hostile creatures have appeared! Alert! Multiple hostile creatures have appeared!_" Using the Hive Satellite's camera, she got real-time video footage showing beasts made of ice attacking populated cities.

"How many of you guessed this was going to happen?" Alan asked rhetorically. It seemed like another worldwide threat. It was starting to become a pattern for them.

"The source of this disturbance is intelligent and aware of our existence," said Amora. "We must make haste before this entire world becomes nothing more than a frozen wasteland. Not even the sun itself could or the hottest flames could melt this ice."

"She's right," agreed Amaterasu. "If I were a full goddess I could melt all the ice but I can only muster enough strength to melt just so much. If this entire planet becomes frozen, I doubt I could save it."

"Then we'll just have to go after the source and put a stop to it, won't we?" Alan said. "OK, Dr. Magi, send everyone out to handle the ice beasts. Shinichi, Yuji and I will take care of the anomaly."

"I'm coming with you," Amaterasu volunteered.

"Me too," seconded Tsukuyomi.

"As will I," added Amora.

"If Yuji's gonna fight something cold he's gonna need me," said Asura.

"Ice is my specialty," offered Yuki.

"Looks like your team has spoken," smiled Yuji.

"Guess I can't convince them not to come along," Alan shrugged.

"Dr. Magi, set the coordinates. We've got an Ice Age to stop," Shinichi said.

"Wait, so basically _we're _going to take care of the minions while you guys go after whatever or whoever it is that's causing all this?" Yokoshima asked.

"Yeah, pretty much," Yuji, Shinichi and Alan answered in unison.

"Just making sure," replied Yokoshima. It was a bit freaky how in sync the three were becoming. He was glad he wasn't going. Minions were easier to deal with than their masters.

"Be careful," Rena said as she gave Shinichi a kiss.

"Don't worry, Rena-chan. This isn't the first time we had to fight malevolent gods," Shinichi assured her.

"You shouldn't be cocky. Iceon is an entirely different entity," Tsukuyomi cautioned.

"That's what they all say," said Alan. "Now, as the Doctor would say, _Allons-y!_" Amaterasu smiled confidently. Alan was in high spirits for this mission.

Tsukuyomi assured Rena, "I'll make sure he comes home safe."

"Thank you, Tsuki-chan," smiled Rena.

Satan hugged Shinichi too and warned him, "You better not die and leave me a single mother, OK?"

"I won't die," he swore. "And you better not die either, Satie-chan. Same goes for you, Rena-chan."

"Girls, go out there and kick butt," Alan encouraged his harem.

"Girls, make me proud," Yuji said to his harem.

With the teams assigned, they were sent to different corners of the world which required priority. This left the main squad to stop this 2nd Ice Age at its source.

* * *

The individual teams were being sent all over the world, in every continent as the attacks were occurring everywhere at once. The ice beasts were numerous and came in many forms. Most commonly, they assumed the form of skeletal ice humanoids and some of the others were not human at all. There were ice wolves as big as cows and ice bears the size of elephants. There were even ice boars the size of bears. Whatever they were, their goal was to cause as much destruction as the second ice age consumed the Earth.

Kai, Rika, Hanyuu, Chiaki, Yokoshima and Daichi were sent to South America.

Jin no Kaze, Michiru, Hana, Battler, Satoko, and Rhea and were deployed to North America.

In Europe, Yuri, Anastasia and the members of his harem were fighting savagely and not showing an ounce of mercy to the cold-hearted ice creatures.

In Asia, Keiichi was sent with Mion, Shion, Rena, Shogo and Satoshi.

In Australia, the Seven Stakes of Purgatory were taking down the beasts efficiently and brutally.

In Africa, the members of Alan and Yuji's harems were working together to take down the creatures.

Oddly enough, Antarctica wasn't experiencing any hostile activity. Then again, it was the only one which was always freezing all year round.

* * *

"Hmm..." Iceon frowned in deep thought.

"What is it, Lord Iceon?" asked Faust.

"It appears that some oddly dressed gnats are destroying my envoys," answered Iceon. He had a connection with his envoys, being able to see through their eyes. Faust frowned as he knew whom Iceon was referring to. After all, in a crisis like this, what were the odds of them not interfering?

"Should we be concerned, My Lord?" Faust questioned.

"No, it is nothing to be concerned about, Faust," dismissed Iceon. "They may be able to destroy my envoys but as the world is now part of me they can simply regenerate. It won't matter how many times they are shattered. As long as this winter lasts, they will live forever," said Iceon before he began to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Faust asked.

"It would appear that I have some uninvited guests who've snuck into my domain. I wish to give them a proper _welcome_," said the Blizzard God menacingly.

* * *

"Kami-sama, it's fucking freezing," Shinichi uttered with a shiver as they found themselves in an ice cavern. As soon as they stepped foot in this place, he could already feel the extremely low temperatures effecting him. "I almost feel like my circuits and systems are gonna freeze."

"Well, what did you expect, a warm reception? The guy is called Iceon," remarked Yuji. "He's not gonna keep his place nice and toasty, even for us."

"Be quiet, you two," Tsukuyomi warned. "We don't want him to know we're here."

"I'm afraid that your warning came too late, Moon Goddess Tsukuyomi." Everyone spun around and saw Iceon. He looked annoyed as he glared and sneered at them.

"How did you know we were here?" Amaterasu inquired, though she knew the answer already.

"This is my domain, Sun Goddess Amaterasu," said Iceon. "I may have been sealed away in that casket for many, many winters, but my senses are still as sharp as they were eons ago. I can still sense when demons and gods are near." He then corrected himself in amusement, "Or should I say, _former _gods." He could sense it. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi had been demoted into demi-goddesses. In spite of their power, they were practically mortal.

Alan stepped forward, pointing his ring at Iceon and ordered, "By the authority granted to me by the Guardians of the Universe and the Green Lantern Corps, I hereby order you to cease and desist. Please return to your Casket to sleep eternally. If you do not comply, I will be forced to take extreme measures. This world just isn't big enough for you anymore."

Iceon just gawked before laughing, "Is he serious? Please, someone tell me if he's serious!" He continued to laugh but then his laughter was abruptly stopped as he was punched in jaw and sent flying into the ceiling.

"Alan?" Amora questioned.

"It's chilly, I'm freezing, and I think I'm starting to develop a cold," Alan listed the reasons for his annoyance.

Iceon crashed down before them, landing on his feet. He massaged his jaw and said, "Hm...that was a surprise. I didn't think mortals could possess such mighty strength. Tell me, boy. Are you of god's blood?"

"Oh, we're all full of surprises here," said Alan. "So, do I have to repeat myself or do we have to do this the hard way?" Iceon grinned became feral as his body blew up, filling out with thick muscles. His build was no longer that of a teenager, but ripped like an Olympic-class body builder. "Well..." Alan smacked his lips. "Hard way it is then." He mumbled, "Why do they always want to choose the hard way?" He snapped his fingers, "Time to turn up the heat, people!"

Alan was suddenly backhanded by Iceon. Despite his muscle mass the Blizzard God was inhumanly fast. The force of the blow sent Alan crashing into the nearest wall, leaving a human-shaped hole on impact.

"ALAN!" Amaterasu and Amora screamed.

"You ice block teme! Henshin!" Shinichi called out as he transformed. He charged at Iceon as his Oni armor formed in a tornado of fire, wind and lightning. Armed with the Shield of Glen, Higurashi no Yaiba and Oni Kanabo, he swung the mystically-charged weapons at Iceon's face. However, much to the Rider's shock, his attack was deflected by Iceon's stiletto. Iceon threw his fist at Showa to crush him but the Rider was able to block with the Shield of Glen. He was driven back several feet and his arm rattled from the impact.

Meanwhile, Amaterasu and Amora had gone to see if Alan was alright. They managed to get him out of the Alan-shaped hole he'd made and he shook his head left and right to get the ringing out.

"Are you alright?" Amora asked.

"I'm fine, with all things considered. Now I just have a headache to go along with my cold," Alan remarked. Amora smiled. If he could still make quips like then he was obviously fine.

"We need to find the Casket of Ancient Winters. Only then will we stand a chance of defeating him," said Amaterasu.

"In that case, the both of you should go further into the cavern to find it. I doubt he'll stray too far from it so it's probably someplace close," Alan instructed. "We'll handle ape-face." Both Amora and Amaterasu nodded.

Yuji rushed at Iceon, fists enveloped in flames shaped like dragon heads. He smashed a fist across the Blizzard God's face and knocked him backwards. Tsukuyomi and Asura attacked simultaneously with the demi-goddess slashing with her swords and the fire demon unleashing a burst of flame directly in his face. He put off the flames with his hand but then was kicked in the head. However, the blow had no effect on him and he grabbed hold of Showa's ankle. "Crap!" Showa screamed as he was brought down at the same time that Iceon brought his knee up.

Showa screamed as he felt like his back had been broken in two before he was tossed through the air. He went tumbling before hitting the wall. Fortunately, his Bio-Metal-plated spine wouldn't be broken so easily. Still, it hurt like hell. Iceon was immediately upon him and he stabbed his stiletto down on Showa's left arm where he wore the Shield of Glen. To his shock, his entire left arm was frozen over. "Now, I think it's best if you were disarmed." Iceon raised his foot to shatter Showa's arm into a million frozen pieces when he was struck by Yuki, Yuji and Asura who executed flying kicks together. He was driven back violently before being bombarded by a barrage of fireballs.

"Take that you Planet of the Apes rejects!" Yuji shouted as he and Asura attacked together. Yuki, along with Tsukuyomi, went to check up on him. "Are you OK?" the Ice Manakyte inquired.

"My fucking arm is frozen," Showa growled. "What the hell do you think!?"

"Sorry," Yuki apologized.

"Can you get the ice off?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"Yes, but it'll take a lot of power," said Showa as he raised his body heat to the point that it would melt the ice covering his left arm. "And I think you girls need to help Alan and the others," he said, gesturing with his head in the direction of the fight.

Iceon then counted and realized something, "I seem to be missing two others." He looked behind him. "Ah, so you sent them ahead to find my Casket."

"That's right, and there's no way you're getting to them!" said Alan as he took out his Sonic Screwdriver. Pressing the button, he activated it. The ice cavern trembled and began to collapse before a cave in concealed the tunnel behind them.

"Do you think this will stop me?" Iceon challenged.

"No, but it will delay you long enough to stop your plans. Plus, I know Amora. This is her realm of expertise," said Alan confidently.

* * *

"It appears our exit has been blocked," said Amaterasu.

"It won't matter," prompted Amora. "Come on, Alan is relying on us."

"He trusts you very much," observed Amaterasu.

"And I trust him to survive," Amora told the demi-goddess honestly. He's the reason she gave up her wicked ways after all.

Amaterasu continued to lead the way. Even if the cavern had a series of tunnels, it seemed like she was able to navigate easily. "Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"I can sense it," confirmed Amaterasu. "And I know Iceon's habit by heart. Destroying the Casket would destroy him so he'll likely keep it close where he can keep it safe and somewhere protected so nobody will get a chance of using it against him."

* * *

Yuji was knocked into the wall by a devastating punch, courtesy of a giant fist made of ice. Iceon had made it and used it on Yuji. He was upset because of the 'Planet of the Apes' insult Yuji had used. Asura and Yuki tried to attack him but they were shoved out of the way by Iceon. Yuji got up and Iceon grinned as he wrapped the lower half of his body with a tornado of snow and dove at Yuji who fired a plume of flame directly in Iceon's face who didn't seem as affected as before. He grabbed hold of Yuji's neck and lifted him up before pulling him over so they were almost nose-to-nose.

"What are you?" Iceon questioned. Yuji's response was to open his mouth and breathe fire into Iceon's face, harming his eyes. The Blizzard God screamed as he was forced to release the Manakyte.

A green anvil crashed down on Iceon's head and drove his body into the icy floor. The anvil then morphed into a jackhammer to drive him further and further down, causing the cavern to shake. Ice stalactites dropped down from the ceiling as the trembling continued before Iceon was driven all the way into the floor.

Alan banished the construct and said, "That should hold him for a while."

* * *

"There it is," said Amaterasu as she pointed at the Casket of Ancient Winters which was on the altar. There were steps leading up to it. She stepped forward but Amora held her back.

"We're not alone," said Amora and sure enough the guards stepped out of their hiding places. They were Vikings, long dead, but their bodies had been preserved by the cold. Their cold husks were now reanimated and being used by Iceon to guard his Casket of Ancient Winters. "And I was right." Because of the Casket's importance, Iceon would never leave it unguarded.

"They're undead, reanimated corpses," said Amaterasu.

"Then let's send them back to the grave," said Amora.

"Yes, these poor souls need to rest in peace," added Amaterasu sympathetically.

* * *

The floor exploded and both Asura and Yuki were grabbed by Iceon. He had his meaty arms around their tender bodies and he was crushing them. "It's a shame I would have to kill such lovely creatures, but you insects are threatening my plans." The two girls began to cry out in pain as the life was being squeezed out of them. Suddenly, Iceon was distracted as paper cranes flew at his face. "What is this!?" he demanded as he exhaled his ice breath, the paper cranes dropping and shattering on the floor. "What was that supposed to accomplish?" Iceon questioned and he looked ahead to see Yuji charging at him.

"Hey, monkey-face!" Yuji shouted. "Have a banana!" He tossed a blue banana and Iceon opened his mouth to retort only for it to enter his mouth and get stuck in his throat. Choking, he released Yuki and Asura who dove away. "Fire in the hole!"

**KA-BOOM!**

Iceon coughed as smoke rose from his throat. A red beam from the Shield of Glen hit his chest and enclosed him in an unbreakable bubble. It contained him as he tried to break free. The bubble was to keep him in place for what was coming next.

"And now, blue boost for the green ring!" added Alan as his body glowed green with an intense emerald aura thanks to the close proximity of Yuji's ring with his own. He punched forward and shot Iceon out of the cavern with a green blast of swirling energy. "And that is how it's done in my universe!"

"You ring-slingers are just huge showoffs, you know that?" Showa commented, arms crossed.

"Don't be a hater," Yuji quipped.

"So, is he dead?" Asura asked.

"No, he isn't," Alan frowned. "Ever tried killing a god? It's never easy."

"When has it ever been easy?" Showa remarked. "But at least he's out there." He looked to the caved in tunnel. "Hey, do you think they're OK?"

"My sister should be fine," said Tsukuyomi. "She may not seem like it, but she's a force to be reckoned with even as a demi-goddess."

"And don't underestimate Amora. She's been known to give the Mighty Thor a run for his money," added Alan.

* * *

Iceon was lying in the snow and he looked unconscious. However, that was only for a moment. His eyes snapped wide open and he sat up. His nostrils flared as he inhaled and exhaled rapidly. Veins were showing all over him as he began to grow in rage and anger.

"Mortal...**SCUM**!" he roared.

* * *

While hidden, Faust couldn't help but admire and be awed at Amora's mystical power. He had seen her in action but only in recordings. This was the first time he'd witnessed the blonde Enchantress in action before. Such passion, such fury, and such beauty. Amora, a goddess, was so beautiful and Faust couldn't help but keep gazing upon the sexy female clad in green.

Amaterasu was hurling spheres of solar plasma at the ice zombies as Amora eliminated them with bolts of magic. The reanimated Viking corpses never even stood a chance against their divine might. It would appear that Amora detested the undead while Amaterasu pitied them. Still, the two blondes were able to finish the job as the Casket's guards were dealt with.

"And now, to procure the Casket and put an end to this arctic nightmare," said Amora as she and Conda climbed up the steps to the altar.

* * *

Iceon was about to go back into the cavern to teach the filthy mortals a lesson. However, he heard a voice within his mind. It was Faust's, '_Lord Iceon, you must make haste! The goddesses with golden hair have dealt with your guys and attempting to use your Casket to imprison you once more!_'

"THAT I SHALL NOT ALLOW!" Iceon roared as he turned himself into a literal blizzard.

* * *

Back in the cavern, Showa asked, "So, shouldn't we get rid of the rocks here?" as he pointed at the ice and rocks piling up in front of the tunnel.

"Yeah, the girls might need to get out," Yuji agreed.

"You're right, let's get rid of this," said Alan as he prepared to lift up the ice and rocks with his ring. Suddenly, they were all blown into the walls by a blizzard which blasted the barrier apart, smashing it to pieces. "WHAT!?"

From within the blizzard, Iceon's face formed as he taunted, "_You mortal fools thought you could defeat me? I am a god! You re nothing! As for those treacherous goddesses, they will pay for their insolence!_" He then moved into the tunnel to reach Amora and Amaterasu in order to stop them from sealing him away.

Yuki, Tsukuyomi, Asura, Yuji, Alan and Showa were dropped back to the floor. Alan recovered and ordered, "Come on!" He used his super speed to get ahead of them, followed by Showa who used Shunpo to catch up. The others went after them, running or flying as fast as they could.

* * *

Iceon materialised and grabbed both Amaterasu and Amora by their throats. He lifted them up and looked them both in the eye. "You wenches and your friends have become quite the thorn in my side." He then smiled unpleasantly, "However, if you plead for forgiveness I might spare you so you may _serve _me." Amora's response was to spit him in the eye.

"Get bent," Amora spat in disgust. Iceon's expression contorted into fury as he started to crush her t hroatwhen all of a sudden the Kusanagi no Tsurugi was thrown, piercing his wrist. Roaring, he released Amora who gasped for air. Amaterasu was still in his grip but he released her too when a pair of katana pierced his other wrist, dropping the Sun Goddess.

"Keep your mitts off them you damn, dirty ape," Alan ordered as he quoted from a familiar movie.

"What he said," Tsukuyomi agreed. God or not, Iceon should not have touched her sister in such a manner.

"Why...?" questioned Iceon. "Why do you oppose me!?"

"What can we say? We're stubborn," shrugged Yuji.

"We're persistent and we don't understand the concept of surrender," added Yuki.

Showa drew out the Sword of Ascalon and declared, "And beating assholes like you is our job. Bring Order to the Chaos, St. George!" He cut a circle of light above his head and was donned in his draconic armor. "Minna, let't take him down!"

Yuji roared as he transformed into his Enlightened Manakyte Form. In this state he was taller, about 6'5", and had dark metallic blue scales and a bronze chest. He had soul-piercing blue eyes, and long horns curved back from out of his hair that was slightly longer. The claws on his hands and feet were long, sharp and blade-like. His tail was also long, and his bat-like wings had a great wingspan.

Asura and Yuki could only gaze at him with reddened cheeks. He appeared so majestic. He then summoned his Crimson Dragon Spear and spun the weapon around before gripping it tight within his hand.

Alan donned the Armor of Bazel, becoming the armored version of his Sentinel persona. He was more powerful, and he had Bazel aiding him. Speaking of Bazel, he'd been quiet the entire time but once his power had been envoked, he said, "Partner, let's put this monkey back on ice!"

Iceon roared and summoned his ice envoys to his side. The creatures reflected their master's fury and lunged at the heroes. Yuki, Tsukuyomi and Asura fought back, the female Manakyte drawing out her Gao Dagger with GaoPhoenix's Gao Jewel set in the guard. It ignited with phoenix flames and the ice creatures were annihilated with a single strike. She drew one of her Desert Eagles and spun in place like a figure skater, riddling them with bullets while missing her comrades.

Asura assumed her six-armed Majin form and with demonic fury lashed out with hellfire. Her main motivation for this was her dislike for the cold and Yuji's appreciation.

Tsukuyomi fought with one sword and performing Iaido which involved the rapid and smooth draw of her sword from its sheathe to slash at her opponent before sliding it back into its scabbard before repeating it again.

This left, Sentinel, Showa and Yuji to deal with Iceon personally. Fed up and outraged by these interfering gnat, Iceon assumed his true form. His body became even more muscular than before as spikes of ice protruded out of his shoulder blades. He now sported four faces on his head, one in the front, two on each side, and one in the back, giving him a 360 degree field of vision. Also, his entire left arm had turned into a sword made out of ice. He actually looked more menacing than before. He took a swipe at them but he missed and his sword arm came down to only break the floor. With a howl, he dashed at his opponents with the intent to kill.

Dodging his initial attack as Iceon swung his sword arm to cut them down, the Manakyte, the Lantern and Rider drove their fists into a different face. Iceon roared from his unmarred face but it shared the same fate as Sentinel drove his feet into it and sent Iceon crashing violently against the wall. Growling, Iceon picked himself up and charged at the heroes again, sending a blizzard at them with a swing of his sword. However, his attack was countered as Sentinel exhaled and blasted the blizzard back in Iceon's faces.

Yuji dashed forward, the blade of the Crimson Dragon Spear enveloped in flames. He struck and Iceon screamed from the intense heat. Showa leapt over Yuji and slashed Iceon across the chest before spinning in the air to kick the Blizzard God's head, sending him reeling. Sentinel caught him, wrapping his arms around Iceon's waist, then bent backwards to smash Iceon headfirst into the floor using a suplex hold. He then released Iceon and grabbed him by his ankle to toss him into the air. In midair, Iceon was struck repeatedly by slashes from his enemies' blades. Yuji was the first who sent him spinning in the air with the Crimson Dragon Spear, followed by Showa and Sentinel who slashed him repeatedly with their sacred swords before blasting him to the floor with simultaneous kicks to the chest. The ground and chamber shook on impact.

Recovering, Iceon drew his stiletto dagger but it was shot out of his hand by Yuki who smiled at him. Growling, he unleashed a blizzard to freeze them. However, it did no good against Yuji and Sentinel who smashed their fists into his front face. He swung with his sword arm but it was parried by Showa who actually shattered the ice sword with the Sword of Ascalon. Sentinel then punched him in the throat as Yuji elbowed him in the gut before the two sent him skyward with uppercuts. Jumping after him, they each grabbed an arm and flipped Iceon upside down and smashed him head first into the ground with immense force, causing the chamber to tremble again. Iceon picked himself up and growled as Showa stood before him.

"Hey, Iceon! How about we warm things up with a barbecue! Dragon Breath Cannon!" Showa's chestplate which was modeled after a dragon's head morphed into a real dragon's head and roared as it glared at Iceon. Opening its mouth to roar once more, it exhaled an intense stream of flames at the God of Blizzards, roasting him as he screamed in agony.

Faust, who'd watched in hiding while cloaking himself with magic, decided it was time to withdraw. Even he wasn't crazy enough to deal with this group on his own.

Yuji and Sentinel quickly grabbed and restrained Iceon as Amora and Amaterasu got the Casket of Ancient Winters ready. "Iceon, it's time for you to go back to sleep!"

"No...NOOOOOO!" Iceon roared as he struggled to free himself from the Manakyte and Green Lantern's grip.

"Hold him steady!" Showa said as he got into his stance. He then jumped into the air, an aura in the shape of a dragon surrounding him before he executed his finishing move.

"_ASCALON...RIDER...KICK...!_" The aura dragon around him roared as his body ignited with black and gold flames. Yuji and Alan, once they saw Showa was close, released Iceon who was struck directly in the chest. The wind was knocked out of him as he was blasted backwards and into the Casket of Ancient Winters. Amora put the lid of the casket on and Iceon screamed in outrage as he pounded on the inside. Amaterasu sealed the ancient object shut, trapping Iceon inside for all eternity as he returned to his slumber.

"Now, to put this thing someplace where nobody will ever find it," said Alan as his ring glowed. "Yuji, would you like to help?"

Yuji's blue ring glowed as he nodded. They shot beams at the Casket which they used to carry it out of the cavern. Once outside, they lifted off with their cargo before shooting into space.

Showa looked up and murmured, "Che, show offs," but with some amusement in his voice.

* * *

The others team were back at the Hive Queen after battling Iceon's envoys who suddenly melted. They knew the reason behind the phenomenon. They had succeeded and saved the world from a 2nd Ice Age.

"And so Chiaki had to wrestle an ice giant while Daichi was being eaten alive by an ice wolf," Yokoshima began to tell Asmodeus as the Teleportal opened, allowing Alan, Yuji, Yuki, Amaterasu, Amora, Tsukuyomi and Shinichi entry into the Main Hall. "Hey guys! Welcome back!"

"You're all here already?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, once the weather was back to normal we were called back," said Hana. "Seems you guys were able to stop all this."

"It was a team effort," smiled Yuji.

"I knew you did this often, but to actually do something was quite exhilarating," said Amaterasu.

Amora looped her arms around Alan's neck. She purred into his ear, "Now then, Alan. I expect you to show your gratitude and give me a proper reward for my aid."

"Only if Amaterasu gets to join," said Alan. Amora gave the demi-goddess a look and shrugged.

"Fine, it's always fun to have a three-way," Amora said.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME****'S A/N**

**Well, here's another chapter for the Heroes Fall Arc. Also, some basic information about Iceon: ****This god of blizzards takes the form of a teenage boy with the head of a gorilla. He is inhumanly tall and has an elegant build. His eyes are blue. His outfit is that of a gladiator carrying a stiletto. He is awakened by ****Faust****. He's angry that the humans have forgotten him and that the world has been covered by human technology. He begins freezing the earth, starting a new ice age the world over. He's unaware he is being manipulated by Faust. His true form has four faces****,****l****arge ice protrusions come out of his back, his right arm is a giant ice sword and an overly ****muscular ****body.**

**For a god, Iceon sure went down easy. However, he isn't the biggest threat of this arc. You'll see as you keep on reading. Sorry if there is no soundtrack for this chapter, but if you want to listen to music as you read, make sure to listen to music that fits the mood to enhance your experience. This is KR Chrome saying 'see ya later' and I hope for more support in the future for my stories. Also, give support to Showa & Vampire. Ciao!**


	180. The Legacy of Cain Part 124

**AUTHOR'S FOREWORD: As this is going to be a horror-themed chap, you might wanna put on some scary music to immerse yourself in the experience. Choose your own soundtrack, if you will. This might've also made a pretty good Halloween chapter too, come to think of it.**

* * *

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 124: White Terror**

The Religion of Crime had existed in Shinichi's world for a very long time. He just wasn't aware of the organization's existence until they decided to make their existence known. They seemed to be an organized crime group but they were so much more than that. So much more.

The Gauntlet was the ruling body of the Religion of Crime and originally had six members. However, Hank Henshaw, Dr. Gebok and Anastasia the Witch of Terror had been removed from the Gauntlet through tragic circumstances. Hence, the membership had dwindled to only three made up of their mysterious leader, Manchester Black and Felix Faust. They had yet to replenish their membership but the leader didn't seem to be concerned.

In the Gauntlet's meeting room, the remaining members of the group were watching a playback of Iceon's battle. Iceon had attempted to create a new ice age. However, the world's superheroes had responded and attacked him. He'd underestimated the mortals for even thinking of fighting him. That had cost him as he was defeated by their united strength.

All eyes were on Felix Faust who had planned on using Iceon for the Gauntlet's benefits, but had failed.

"Mr. Faust, do you care to explain yourself?" asked the Gauntlet's leader.

"I simply overestimated Iceon's abilities, sir," said Faust apologetically. The plan was to use Iceon to destroy their enemies and then reseal him once his job was done as the Gauntlet did not want a new ice age either. "I assumed he would be able to defeat them."

"Reminds me of what happened to Shiro Juuyon," remarked Mr. Black. Shiro Juuyon, a former subordinate, had attempted to unseal the Yamata no Orochi. The Gauntlet had allowed him a certain amount of autonomy to accomplish his plans. However, they did not intend for him to succeed. Shiro had merely been a distraction and if he ever overstepped his bounds then the Gauntlet would deal with him. His ultimate failure had been predicted.

"Yes, whom you threw away," Faust frowned. While a man of magic, he had to admit that Shiro's accomplishment had been nothing less than impressive in their own right. Properly motivated, the bio-android had worked hard an assisted the Gauntlet and Religion of Crime in advancing with their plans.

"He was garbage, trash, junk," Mr. Black argued. "Nothing more than a glorified automated doll."

"To you, maybe, but up until the end all of his plans were accomplished successfully," Faust defended. While Mr. Black and their leader had decided to forget about Shiro, considering him trash that was best swept under the rug (out of sight, out of mind), Felix Faust saw potential. The bio-android's ultimate plan had been practically foolproof but it had failed due to his hubris. Unlike them, Faust wasn't one to waste or disregard a possible advantage or commodity.

"He was just meant to distract them, Faust," reminded Mr. Black. He'd promised Shiro he would have a place at the Gauntlet's table. Sadly, that had been a lie to keep Shiro in line.

"Mr. Black is right. Shiro Juuyon was nothing but a distraction for our enemies and nothing more," said their leader. "However, his creations may still prove useful to us as his work has greatly benefited this organization."

"So, you agree that his contributions have benefited us," concluded Faust.

"Even so, I see no use of talking about Shiro Juuyon. He is simply part of the past and we need to look forward towards the future," said the leader. Faust, however, did not agree.

* * *

Rika Furude, the heiress of the Furude Clan, and head miko of the Furude Shrine was sitting in front of the Hive Queen's main computer in the Main Hall. She sat before the console with her head rested in her hand and yawning as she tried to keep her eyes open.

The young teenage girl who had fought against her Fate for centuries by repeating the Endless June was dressed in a white blouse and a pleated blue skirt. She also looked tired. It was quite late but she didn't feel like falling asleep. Right now, she was actually studying something on the computer screen. The main computer was made out of a set of consoles, each with an individual monitor, and the big main screen for large displays. The large screen was blank and so were the smaller screens linked to the individual consoles. Only the console Rika was seated before was activated.

Computers in the late 1980's weren't this advanced, but the technology used by the Hive was from ARMOR, an organization that was thousands of years more advance in terms of technology. They even had time travel and inter-dimensional travel at their fingertips, things that could only be conceived in science fiction. Of course, Rika's life had turned into a tale of science fiction the day they all met Shinichi, a cyborg and Kamen Rider, who fought against a terrorist organization which used cybernetic mutants.

The main screen turned on to show Sheila's face. Sheila was an Artificial Intelligence Program that ran the Hive. Her avatar resembled a young a beautiful adult woman with chin-length hair. "_Rika, you really must get some sleep. It is quite late._"

"I'm fine, Sheila," replied Rika. "I just (yawn) need to finish reading this file, that's all."

"_You should listen to Sheila, Rika-chan_," said AI-Shin as he hovered over to Rika. AI-Shin was another Artificial Intelligence Program. Instead of being housed in a computer, he was housed inside a floating, robotic sphere. Don't let its seemingly harmless appearance fool you. The was equipped with a built-in, high-powered laser weapon contained in the eye and the ability to levitate objects.

The AI, named AI-Shin, was based on Shinichi who was his template. His attitude and personality were the same as Shinichi's, but he was a different entity. Still, he treated Rika like Shinichi would, as his little sister.

"_She knows what she's talking about and you've been at this for hours_," added AI-Shin. He heard the elevator door open and spotted Kai, the Lightning Manakyte. "_Hey, your boyfriend's here and he's brought something for ya._"

"Here," Kai said as he brought Rika a cup of coffee.

"Thanks, I needed this," said Rika as she took a sip of the hot beverage.

"She needs sleep," AI-Shin argued with Kai. "Coffee isn't helping."

"Relax," said Kai. "It's just one small cup. It won't keep her up all night. It's just until she finished studying."

"And after what Mion and Shion faced, I have to be prepared," said Rika. On her console screen was an image of a DALEK. Not too long ago, Mion and Shion had gone on an assignment with Battler and Yokoshima. In the storage facility, not only had they found the inactive bodies of DALEKs, but also one very mean, destructive and deadly DALEK which had been armed to the teeth and set to kill them on sight. The Hive had records of all the enemies the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies had faced and kept them on file for reference. The DALEKs were just one of many listed.

The DALEKs had been built by Shiro and while originally purely machine creatures, he had modified them to include Darkloids within them to give them more 'personality'. What he did was focus intense hatred of the human race into the Darkloids and by putting them inside the DALEK casings he was giving them weapons to exterminate humanity.

The DALEKs had once attacked Hinamizawa and Rika was left helpless as they rounded up all the villagers and prepared for mass-extermination. It was only Shinichi's good timing which had saved them. The DALEKs should've been gone after Shiro Juuyon's own demise but that wasn't the end for the DALEKs.

The DALEKs, according to Alan, had taken over NASA and had built a ship to take them into space. Alan would not have let them escape but the DALEKs hadn't left him any choice as they had planted bombs in the nearby city. He saved the city, but by the time he was done finding and disarming the explosives, the DALEKs and their DALEK Queen had fled. Alan had no way of finding them now. They could return. Even before that the DALEKs had a plan. They had built a DALEK replicator device which used nanites to create fully formed DALEKs. Fortunately, Alan was able to put a stop to their plans and used the device against them.

The DALEKs were Shiro Juuyon's legacy and so were the Cybermen, which Rika had been studying too. Not too long ago Satoko and Satoshi had been attacked by a Cyberman which used to be their abusive Uncle Teppei. But even if the man had been a total bastard, it was just horrible to think that Shiro had transplanted living human brains into cold, cybernetic bodies and then wiped them of all emotions. They were like the DALEKs and loyal to Shiro's cause. Even after his demise they were still loyal. There had been an army left in cold storage and they had even tried to rebuild their creator. Their plans failed but they had almost succeeded.

And Shinichi had even told her that he'd encountered a Cyberman and DALEK hybrid, twice. Whoever had been responsible for Shiro's prior resurrection had to be responsible for this.

As the file also mentioned Shiro's involvement in the creation of the DALEKs, Rika briefly recalled the first time she even met Shiro Juuyon. Back then he'd been pretending to be Shinichi in order to kill the NEO-NUMBERS but both she and Hanyuu suspected he wasn't who he claimed to be. Once his cover was blown, Shiro had tried to kill them but Shinichi had arrived just in time to save them. He destroyed Shiro and they thought they had seen the last of him.

Just like Gebok though, he came back. He had a new body and new powers, not to mention new resources. He had allied him with the Orochi's Wrath in the form of Gnol Gnauh and aided him by unsealing his fragment then attempting to free the Yamata no Orochi. His plans had succeeded but he was ultimately destroyed when Gnol took over his body as Shiro had betrayed him and tried to usurp Gnol Gnauh's power and body for himself. He should've been destroyed along with Gnol Gnauh and the Yamata no Orochi when they had all combined their power to destroy the creature for good.

Shiro Juuyon was gone so there was no reason to be so worried about him, right? So what if his Cyberdrones had turned up and taking over people's bodies. That just meant someone else had taken control of the spider-like automatons.

So, why did Rika feel so anxious? Why did she have the strangest feeling that something horrible was going to happen soon?

Rika let out a yawn and rubbed her eyes.

"_Come on, you better go to bed and get some sleep. You got school in the morning_," said AI-Shin.

"Hai, hai..." Rika sighed. AI-Shin pulled the coffee cup from her. "I wasn't finished with that."

"_No more coffee tonight_. _You won't get a wink of sleep if you drink that_," AI-Shin scolded.

"I'll take her home," volunteered Kai.

"_Yeah, and it better be hers and not yours. I'm watching you_," AI-Shin warned Kai.

"Dude, for a flying metal ball, you act like her big brother," Kai remarked.

"In a way, he is," said Rika.

"Right, he's an AI based on your big bro. I know. I know."

* * *

Far outside of the nearest town or city was an abandoned mansion. It had broken windows, a roof needing new shingles, and paint chipping off its wall. The lawn was unkempt with grass and weeds growing tall and uncontrolled. The front gate creaked as the hinges were rusty. The steel fence topped with spikes seemed sturdy still. The building itself had been abandoned for almost forty years. Judging by its architecture, it was a western mansion and was home to foreign immigrants who'd come to live in Japan, at least for awhile.

Felix Faust approached the mansion, walking along the stone path leading from the front gate to the front door of the building. A long time ago it had been a majestic building, a castle to its masters with thick walls to protect itself. Now, it was just a building that was gathering dust inside and a victim to the harsh elements. With nobody to care for it, the mansion had fallen into disrepair.

The front door was ajar and made an eerie squeaking noise due to rusted hinges. Since it was unlocked, Felix Faust entered into the foyer with ease. He looked around. Thick layers of dust covered everything and there were cobwebs in the corners. It seemed the people won once owned this piece of property had vacated post haste. Still, he was meeting someone here.

He approached an old broken grandfather clock and turned the hands so that the hour hand would point at '1' and the minute hand would point at '4'. The grandfather clock and a section of the wall slid aside to reveal an elevator. Faust stepped inside and the elevator closed before descending.

The elevator took him down, deep underground before finally stopping. The door opened and he stepped out into a dimly lit room filled with scientific apparatuses. This was a laboratory, one which a mad scientist would be proud to call home, and Faust was looking for the mad scientist who at the moment was busy with a new experiment.

Scuttling about all over the laboratory were spider-like robots the size of a grown man's hand. Each of the robotic creatures had a single red eye and four legs. The tips of their legs were sharp and sturdy enough to penetrate a man's skull. The eye was capable of rotating, giving each of them a 360 degree field of vision and their bodies were shaped like saucers. They observed Faust as he walked further into the lab, in search of their master and creator. As they didn't immediately attack him, that meant that he was a guest and not an intruder.

* * *

The dark was a terrifying thing to many people. Not being able to see anything before you would cause the cold hand of terror to grip one's mind. One's eyes would dart around madly, trying to seek out a source of light. Sometimes, it was to seek out the enemy which was hidden in the dark, the enemy which was after you and out to kill you. One's imagination could create horrifying images that would leave one terrified in the dark. Something would tell them there was something in the dark, waiting to strike, and harm them. The feeling was just unsettling and completely terrifying.

The woman was locked in a room, kept in the dark for so long. However, she did not know how much time had passed. The only thing on her mind was the cold grip of terror that was slowly suffocating her very soul. She had been told that she'd been selected to test a new drug and that she would be paid handsomely. As she needed money, she did not hesitate and was taken to the facility. She had taken some pills but then things slowly went dark.

When she awoke, she thought she had gone blind, but the truth was that the room she had been locked in had no light at all. She felt around and there was a door but she couldn't get it open. She pounded on it until her hands bled and screamed until her throat went sore. However, no answer came.

The worst was she felt like someone was watching her, in the dark. She could not see them, but she knew they were there. She could hear voices, like breathing, and footsteps all around. Someone else was in the room with her only whoever they were did not answer. They were just watching her. She tried to feel around, but the room felt empty, like she was the only one around, but she knew someone was there! Someone was there with her!

She shouted for them to answer her, to make their presence known, but all she got was silence in return. She continued to shout, desperate for a response, and still no answer came. She continued to hear footsteps and breathing. She continued to feel a presence. Her thoughts began to race much like her heart. What did the other person want to do to her? All sorts of terrifying scenarios ran through her mind. Her body became cold, she trembled, and she started to scratch her arms and her neck. Her body felt itchy, like she was dirty, like there were things crawling all over her.

The presence, the itchiness, the dirtiness, plagued her mind. What did they want? Why was she here?

"_WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME!?"_

* * *

The female prisoner was being monitored on multiple screens with great scrutiny. Her behavior and reactions were being studied, recorded and analysed by an unknown individual who seemed to satisfy their sick pleasures with her torment.

"_WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME!?"_

"**Subject displays symptoms of paranoia such as**** fear,**** suspicion and ****anger**," her observer reported as he watched, his voice sounding deep and synthesised electronically. The cameras had night vision so the screens only displayed everything in a grainy green. Still, her actions could still be monitored and recorded. Her observer was in the shadows but what could still be seen of him was a red light and a pair of flashing lights on the side each time he spoke.

"Hello? Are you in here?" Faust asked as he entered the surveillance area and soon enough he found who he was looking for.

"**Yes, I am here, Faust."** The 'person' he was looking for came out of the shadows and was clearly revealed. They stood at six feet tall and covered in white armor. They wore a 'skirt' of silver hemispheres decorating individual panels that reached down to the floor, with the bottom being surrounded by a solid black material to act as its base. Their chest was box-shaped with two rods extending from it. The rod on the right was topped by a three-fingered mechanical claw while the rod on the left resembled a firearm of some kind. Silver rings, four in total, with studs on them, surrounded the neck like a collar and at the top was a white dome with two short cylindrical light bulbs on it. Extending from the front of the dome was a metal rod with a metal sphere at the tip. The sphere had a total of eight short fins around it. Directly behind the sphere were five black disks all set close together. The sphere glowed red in the centre with a narrow slit like an eye and under the base of the rod was XIV.

It was a D.A.L.E.K. and one of superior design.

"**I am here**," the White DALEK answered in a deep and intimidating voice without inflections between syllables. "**What do you want, Faust?**"

"I'm just here to check up on your experiment, that's all," Faust smiled.

"**The drug is working perfectly**," the White DALEK answered. "**Paranoia has begun to set in and increasing within the set parameters**. **Oh Yeon-Kyung really did well when he was able to synthesize this drug before his ****defeat**."

"He had good notes," Faust acknowledged. "But you're going to perfect the formula, aren't you?"

"**It's what you brought me here for**," said the White DALEK. "**Also, I would wish to...thank you for bringing me these specimens to assist me in my experiments.**"

"It is my pleasure. You do require them for your research."

In another section of the lab, there were people who were working machinery and lifting objects. Mainly grunt work as they served no other purpose. Some were armed, functioning as guards. These were the White DALEK's workers.

The White DALEK's workers weren't exactly willing. How would they have any choice of free will when they were being controlled? Mounted on each of their heads was a Cyberdrone with its sharp legs buried deep inside their brain, controlling them under the White DALEK's command. They were no longer human and were merely the Cyberdrones' own extensions. They were called Robomen.

They were also expendable. One of them suddenly collapsed and dropped dead on the floor. The Cyberdrone attached to his head removed itself, the sharp tips of its legs sliding out of the skull. The tips were stained with blood. Finally, it withdrew the spike which it had drilled into the top of the skull to secure itself before crawling towards the White DALEK. It crawled up the DALEK's body before resting itself on the dome.

"It seems you have another dead one," said Faust as he stood next to the White DALEK whose eyestalk looked down at the corpse.

"**It is simply garbage that must be disposed of**," said the White DALEK coldly as he aimed his DALEK Gunstick at the corpse. "**Total obliteration. Disintegrate**." The White DALEK fired and the body was disintegrated into nothingness as the laser caused its body to be eaten by blue flames until there was nothing left. The process had only taken seconds. "**I can always get more anyway. My Cyberdrones aren't all that picky when searching for hosts."**

"Indeed they aren't," said Faust. "So, any advances in the Cyber-Dalek project?"

The Cyber-Dalek was the result of painstaking and time-consuming research. It was the result of trying to make the perfect weapon. Visually resembling a Cyberman, it did possess the features of a DALEK such as the hemispheres and the DALEK gunstick, enlarged and mounted on the arm as a cannon. Also, it was the brain of the machine that was interesting. With use of genetic manipulation science, the brains of 'volunteers' were mutated into new life forms that were both intelligent and hostile. The prototypes that had been sent out, so far, had been destroyed but the data gained from them had been invaluable.

"**The data gained will be used to make them stronger and better,**" said the White DALEK. "**They will be perfect, like me**." The White DALEK had originally been the DALEK prototype built by Shiro Juuyon. It had been rebuilt and upgraded ever since, taking on its current form. "**But more will need to be sent to gather more data**."

"I was wondering why you sent Teppei out," said Faust.

"**He was obsolete but still useful. I sent him out to kill his niece and nephew. I didn't care if he was successful or not. I was fine with either outcome**," the White DALEK admitted. "**I was simply ridding myself of garbage, that is all**."

* * *

A trio of high school kids, boys from the nearest school, had just entered the property. They were doing it on a dare. There were three of them and they had bags filled with cans of spray paint. One of them even carried a camera. Their names were Masato, Takumi and Shuji. Their sempai had dared them to go and spray graffiti on the walls inside the abandoned mansion and they needed pictures as proof.

Shuji, the most cowardly of the three, asked, "Um, guys, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Are you scared?" taunted Masato. "Scared like a little chicken? Like a scaredy-cat?"

"Knock it off," ordered Takumi. He turned to Shuji and said, "Shuji, relax. All those stories you heard are just stories. This place isn't haunted. It's just abandoned."

"Yeah, the only scary thing about it is gonna be its ancient decor," added Masato jokingly.

"Well, if you're sure," said Shuji as he handled the camera. Masato and Takumi would be doing the graffiti while he recorded it all being done as proof. Then one of them would hold the camera when he added his own graffiti. He didn't want to be left out.

"Alright, let's do this," said Masato eagerly.

A Cyberdrone hidden in the grass spotted them and was transmitting the footage back to the laboratory where the White DALEK and Faust were watching.

* * *

"It appears you have intruders," said Felix Faust. "They seem like virgins."

"**How can you tell?**" asked the White DALEK.

"Only virgins would want to prove themselves like this," said Faust logically. "So, what will you be doing to them?"

"**This mansion is rumored to be haunted. Let's have some fun with them first."**

* * *

The three boys took out flashlights as they entered the mansion.

"Did we have to do this at night?" questioned Shuji. "Maybe we can come back in the day."

"The dare said we had to do this at night," said Takumi.

"Yeah, so stop whining like a sissy-pants coward," Masato admonished.

Suddenly, the three heard an unearthly scream, "_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!_" The sound of it caused them to jump in fright. Shuji nearly dropped his flashlight.

"Wha-wha-what was that!?" demanded Shuji, now freaked out.

"It was probably the wind," said Masato as he gulped. He was starting to sweat. "Yeah, it was the wind," he was trying to convince himself.

"Let's just get this over this," said Takumi anxiously, feeling uneasy.

Hidden Cyberdrones continued to watch, transmitting what they saw back to Faust and the White DALEK.

* * *

"Anything else up your sleeves?" Faust asked.

"**DALEKs don't have sleeves,**" said the White DALEK. "**How about you give it a try, Faust?**"

Felix Faust was above such childish games. However, he had nothing to do and nothing to lose. "Alright then," said Faust as he cracked his knuckles. It was time for him to work his magic.

* * *

The boys explored the mansion for a bit, taking pictures as they went. They were looking for a place to do their graffiti. A lot of the walls so they went upstairs to find a place to tag. As they reached the hallway where the bedrooms were, one of the doors at the end of the hall slowly creaked open. Takumi, Masato and Shuji froze as something began to exit. The thing was that it was exiting from the top of the door and crawling on the ceiling. It was human looking, but looking like a spider with long black hair. It then turned its head and stared at them, opening its mouth which spilled out with spiders.

The trio screamed as they began to ran away in the opposite direction.

"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT!?" Masato screamed.

"I don't know what it was!" Takumi shot back.

"Let's get out of here!" Shuji screamed.

They reached the stairs but at the bottom was a black mass covered with eyes. It was climbing up the stairs and looking straight at them. "GIVE...ME...YOUR...EYES!" the creature screamed at them.

* * *

"Looks like they've separated," said Faust.

"**Good, now the _real_ fun can begin. Let's pick them off one by one**," said the White DALEK with sadistic glee.

* * *

Shuji had run into the study. He had been separated from Takumi and Masato. He was soaked in cold sweat and breathing heavily. "I knew this was a bad idea," he panted. "I knew it! I knew it!" He heard something drop and turned his flashlight towards the source to see a book lying on the floor. "Oh shit." He went to open the door but it was locked! "No! No!" He felt a hand brush against his shoulder and turned to see nobody else in the study with him. "I have to get out of here!" He then heard something else and he raised his flashlight to the ceiling. He gawked as he saw disembodied arms hanging from the ceiling and the fingers were wiggling about. Shuji's eyes were wide as he fell to his knees in terror.

"No...no...no..." he repeated as he curled himself into a ball, trying to keep himself out of reach. He laid there in the fetal position, just thinking happy thought. Those thoughts would be his last. As a coward and sissy he was often picked on so he went along with all of this just so he could prove that he wasn't some kind of coward. However, now it seemed that in his effort to prove himself he was going to lose his life in the most horrific manner possible.

A Cyberdrone that had been watching him slowly approached him. Its eye was focused on his terrified expression, recording it so that it wouldn't be forgotten. Once it was done watching, it jumped up before hugging his face, muffling his screams which were slowly being silenced as it dug its leg into his head..

* * *

"**One down, two to go,**" said the White DALEK as Shuji was the first to fall.

* * *

"Takumi? Shuji? Guys?" questioned Masato frantically. He'd found himself in a child's playroom. Littering the floor were dusty old toys that had not been played with in years. The dolls sitting on the floor unsettled him the most. They were just so creepy and it was like they were staring at him and into his soul. He began to shiver as a chill ran up his spine. As the tough guy in the group, he could never admit that these sorts of things frightened him. That could ruin his reputation. "OK, I should get out of here." He turned towards the door but his left leg wouldn't move. Something had grabbed hold. He looked down and one of the dolls had a good hold on his ankle.

Freaking out, Masato tried to shake the doll off and he noticed the other dolls starting to rise and walk towards him. "No!" he shouted as the dolls leapt at him, holding onto his arms and legs. He lost his balance and fell on his back as the dolls continued to swarm him. He flailed about to toss them off but they only recovered to swarm him again. "Get off me!"

But the dolls would not get off him and Masato was getting even more and more terrified as the dolls just stared at him with those creepy, glassy, soulless eyes of theirs.

Hanging from the ceiling was a Cyberdrone and once in position it dropped and fell on Masato's face as it began the interfacing process with the screaming youth.

* * *

"And now all that's left is the third," said Faust as he continued to watch with the White DALEK. They watched as Takumi had gone into the kitchen.

* * *

Takumi didn't know where Masato and Shuji had gone, but he hoped they were safe in this weird place. Going to the front door wasn't an option. The thing at the stairs had moved itself to the front door. Takumi was trying to find the others and maybe even another way out.

The kitchen had everything like the cabinet filled with plates and kitchen knives in the wooden block holder. Nothing out of the ordinary here.

Nothing, but the breathing on his neck. Spinning around, Takumi saw a figure clad in white, with black hair that covered its face, dressed in white rags. It raised its arms towards him as he backed away in terror. He grabbed a kitchen knife and held it out in front of him at the creature.

"Stay back!" he shouted. The ghostly figure continued to approach him, ignoring his warning. "I said stay back!" he shouted as he threw the knife which went through the figure who continued to advance. He grabbed another knife and threw it, only for the same thing to happen. It came closer and closer towards him and his eyes darted towards the nearby window. Without a second thought, he ran for it and jumped through the window. He landed outside the mansion with a painful thud but he was finally outside.

He got up and limped towards the gate. Hope of escape as in front of him as he made his way towards freedom. However, just as he was a foot away from the gate, which was so close, a Cyberdrone launched itself from the long grass and clamped onto his face as he screamed out in horror.

* * *

"And then there were none," the White DALEK concluded as the final victim of the night was claimed.

Takumi, Shuji and Masato were never seen or heard from again. They had simply vanished without a trace. Nobody knew where they went or how they had gone missing. It was simply a mystery.

* * *

Takumi, Shuji and Masato were standing in a row with Cyberdrones mounted on their heads. Their faces were blank, betraying no emotion. The White DALEK scanned each of them and was satisfied before giving them their orders. Once their orders were issued, the three new Robomen set out to do their work under the watchful eye of the White DALEK and the Cyberdrones. He needed always slaves and if people were going to throw themselves at him and become his meat puppets then so be it.

Faust's magic was capable of summoning demons, creating horrifying illusions, and bringing to life inanimate objects. It kept up the illusion that the mansion was haunted, which either discouraged people from entering or encouraged them to come inside and explore. The White DALEK in his old life had experience with magic but no longer would he directly involve himself with magic. Only two things mattered to the intelligent killing machine: Research and Revenge, the two R's.

Standing several feet away from him were cardboard cutouts of Alan Smith, Shinichi Banabara, and Yuji Fudo. Raising its gunstick, the DALEK shouted the DALEK battlecry, "**EXTERMINATE!**" and fired three consecutive beams at the targets, destroying them utterly. He could not wait to use his weapon on the real thing. However, he would need to have patience. He had waited all this time so waiting a little more wouldn't hurt.

His DALEK programming, however, disagreed and there was the urge to kill, and kill, and kill. It took a massive amount of willpower for the WHITE Dalek not to be overwhelmed by the programming and just go to the surface to kill every human he could see; man, woman and child. Turning his gaze to the monitors, the White DALEK saw some 'new recruits' entering the mansion. If he could smile, the DALEK would, as his single eye glowed in anticipation whilst the Cyberdrones watched the clueless teenagers enter the mansion, unaware of the kind of danger that they were in.

"**Faust, we have more visitors. Let's give them a warm welcome."**

Time to add some fresh meat.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The names Takumi, Masato, Shuji are a homage to the main three Riders of Kamen Rider Faiz; Takumi Inui (Faiz), Masato Kusaka (Kaixa) and Shuji Mihara (Delta). Anyway, this is the first appearance of the White DALEK. However, it seems to be different from the DALEKs previously seen in the story. Anyway, this chapter focused to Science and Magic, two different disciplines, hence two different worlds, but they could cause equal amounts of terror.**


	181. The Legacy of Cain Part 125

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 125: The Reconstruction of the DALEKs**

Michiru and Hana had called Yuji to have an important talk with him. They had made an important decision and wanted him to hear it. They were meeting him in Angel Mort, the female cyborgs sitting across from the Manakyte in a booth.

"So, this is how you both honestly feel?" Yuji questioned after listening to their explanation.

"Yes, and while we do care about you, we realized that it was more platonic than anything romantic," said Hana.

"The sex was still fun, though," Michiru added, grinning.

"So, while we can still screw around, we'd rather not become part of your harem," Hana finished.

"OK…" Yuji sighed and then shrugged his shoulders. Michiru and Hana blinked then shared a look.

"I thought you'd be a little more upset," Michiru commented.

"Huh, what for?" Yuji asked.

"Well, we did reject you, in a sense," said Hana.

"Ah, no, I ain't upset. Besides, we can still be friends and even friends with benefits so I don't really mind," said Yuji.

"I see," Michiru accepted. "Well, in that case, do you mind if we asked you something?"

"Shoot."

"Would you mind walking me down the aisle when Hana-chan and I get married one day?" Michiru requested.

"I'd be honored," Yuji smiled.

"Thank you," Michiru smiled. Suddenly, their communicators began beeping.

"We're needed," said Hana.

"Yes, duty calls. See ya later, Yuji!"

"Bye, girls," Yuji said and the two girls stood up before exiting the shop together, arm in arm.

* * *

Shiori was working on a new novel while Sho played 'Cops and Robbers' with her husband outside. She sighed and smiled. Tatsuyoshi might look scary and intiidating, but he was a kind and gentle man who loved her and Sho and would do anything to protect their family. He may never be a replacement for Shotaro, but her late husband would've wanted her to move on.

Sho had strong male role models like Tatsuyoshi Kasai and her son Shinichi (Shinji) and he would grow up to be a wonderful young man with their guidance and develop a few quirks. Humans weren't perfect. They had flaws and quirks but that was what made them human.

As Shiori began another paragraph, the phone rang. She removed her glasses which hung from a string that looped around her neck so she wouldn't lose them. She only ever wore her glasses to read or write since she'd developed bad eyesight overtime and words just seemed blurry without them. Maybe she was getting old.

She picked up the phone and answered, "Hello, who is this?"

Tatsuyoshi and Sho heard a thud from inside the house and the man carried his son inside to see what was wrong. He spotted on her knees and trembling in terror. He put down Sho who immediately ran to his mother. "Mama? Mama, daijoubu?" Shiori quickly put her arms around Sho and hugged him. "Mama?"

"Shiori, what's wrong?" Tatsuyoshi asked and Shiori raised a trembling hand, pointing at the phone receiver lying on the floor. Tatsuyoshi picked it up and put it to his ear, only for his eyes to widen behind his shades.

A chant was being repeated, over and over, and it went like this: "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE.**"

* * *

Everyone was assembled in the Hive Queen and watching the news report on the big monitor screen in the Main Hall.

"_All over the world, people who answered their phones at directly today 2.14 pm have heard a haunting message. It has been months since the attack of those creatures called the DALEKs and they have left their mark on us and our minds. We can never forget all those who've died because of them and now we are being reminded of that horrible day because of these mysterious phone calls. Is it some kind of elaborate prank?_"

"OK, seriously what is going on?" Mion asked as she had received a phone call earlier. A pay phone had rung at 2:14 pm and when she answered she heard the chant. People on the streets who'd gotten their hands in the latest in mobile phone technology also received the same call and the same message.

It freaked everyone out because it reminded them of the dreadful day when the DALEKs attacked and even if the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies had stopped their attack, the DALEKs had already left their mark on humanity. The sight of a DALEK could make people quake with fear and even the word itself was banned from a number of schools.

"That's what I want to know," agreed Shinichi. He'd heard from his stepfather that Shiori had been so frightened by the call that she was paralyzed with fear. Shinichi didn't like it when his mother was frightened. If this was some kind of elaborate prank, it was not in good taste.

"It's a scare tactic," said Yuji with a frown. "Freak everyone out who has a fresh memory of that day with _that _chant. The person who's doing this is one sick bastard if they get off on this shit."

"And it's working too," Alan agreed. When the phone had rung at his place, Nozomu had been unfortunate enough to answer. When he found her, she'd been absolutely terrified. She remembered how the DALEKs had nearly killed Alan.

The DALEKs had scarred many people, adults and children alike. The murderous machines had done their part in carving themselves into the humanity's hearts as something to be feared. The new type of boogieman.

Dr. Magi commanded, "Sheila, play the recording."

"Affirmative," Sheila obeyed and played the recording as requested: "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE**."

They all knew what it was and remembered it quite clearly. How could they ever forget? How could anyone forget it?

"The DALEK battle chant," frowned Alan. It was pretty self-explanatory. Even in this universe DALEKs had become feared on Earth and now in space they were probably spreading that fear to other sentient beings. Worst of all, Alan couldn't stop them. Shiro had programmed the DALEKs to kill humans and strike fear into them. They had also evolved without his presence and had retreated into space to develop further without any interference. "At 2:14 pm. That translates to 1414 hours. 14...as in WHITE 14. As in Shiro Juuyon."

"Damn, it's like his ghost is haunting us," Daichi frowned, scratching his head in irritation.

"More like taunting us," added Hana, not liking this at all.

"This ain't cool, dudes," said Kai.

"Aye, you can say that again," spoke Jin.

"Sheila, can you trace the signal to its point of origin?" inquired Alan.

"_Negative_," Sheila answered. "_I apologize, Alan. However, the broadcasted signal appears to come from random places at the same time_."

"The person is covering his tracks by making it jump all over the place," Alan concluded. Checking out each of the places would be a waste of time and they could all just be red herrings.

"_Incoming transmission_," alerted Shiori and all heads snapped towards the main computer's direction. Now who would be calling them at this time?

The image was blurry mixed with static before clearing up with better resolution in order for them to see who was calling. Once the image was clear, their eyes widened as they saw who was calling them.

This had to be a joke, right? It was the only explanation. However, it was right there staring at them.

On their monitor was a White DALEK.

"I thought you said they all went away," said Shinichi.

"They did," Alan answered. They had left in a spaceship. He'd witnessed it for himself.

"**_Before we begin, I would like to inform you that tracing this signal back to its source will be impossible_**," the White DALEK informed them. "**_So don't bother trying to find me. It is useless._**"

"_That is correct_," answered Sheila, validating the White DALEK's claim. "_I cannot find the source of the transmission_."

"**_As if I were stupid enough to allow your inferior AI to find me_**," the White DALEK said.

"Hey, who are you calling inferior you stupid pepperpot!?" Yokoshima shouted, offended that someone would insult Sheila like that.

"**_It's been so long since I've seen your stupid faces_**," the White DALEK greeted rudely whilst ignoring Yokoshima. "**_I'm sure you've been enjoying yourselves since the day you ruined my plans but I have been waiting and preparing for this moment for a very long time_**."

"OK, do we know you?" Yuji asked. All DALEKs looked alike to him but this one seemed unique. It wasn't talking in that annoying high-pitched tone of its kind but the deep electronic voice was still annoying.

**_"I suppose I do look different from when we last met. However, you all haven't changed one bit. It's downright depressing_**," the White DALEK said in disappointment.

Alan's eyes narrowed. There was just something so familiar about that arrogant tone of voice. He looked at the DALEK, actually looked, and saw the XIV that was inscribed under the base of the eyestalk.

"Who are you?" Alan questioned, wanting to know. "Who are we addressing? Identify yourself now!"

"**_Haven't you guessed it yet? Then allow me to show you who I am as I tell you._**_**Look upon the face of VENGEANCE! Look upon the face of your DOOM!**_" There was a hiss as the DALEK's neck rings split down the middle and spread open to reveal the horror that was hidden inside. DALEKs were battle armor and shells for the horrendous Darkloid creatures within, the heart and soul of the DALEK, filled with hatred for the human race. They were expecting some sort of dark, brain-like, cycloptic creature with writhing tentacles but what they all saw made their eyes widen in recognition and shock.

"I thought so," said Alan.

There was a human head inside of the DALEK. Although, to call it human wouldn't be completely accurate. Half of its face was horribly scarred and it only had hair, which was greyish, on the right half of its head, the other half damaged and scarred horribly. The left eye was replaced by a mechanical eyeball that glowed red with hatred. The expression it wore was also filed with hate, with sharp teeth clenched tight. The head was attached with wires that were connected to the White DALEK armor, giving him control over weapons and mobility.

But despite all the damage, they recognized who it was.

It was Shiro Juuyon.

"But you were absorbed!" Shinichi shouted out. "Destroyed with the Orochi!'

"_And yet here I am, or what's left of me, no thanks to you!_" shouted DALEK Shiro. "_Now, I have returned so you will now be looking forward to death and destruction the likes you have never seen!_" He sneered at Yuji. "_And look, one of you is already trembling in-_"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Yuji laughed, throwing his head back, and pointing at the screen.

"_...Fear?_" Shiro finished in surprise. His eyes darted about, demanding an explanation, "_Is he laughing!? Why is he laughing!?_"

"Oh God! Oh my God!" Yuji continued to laugh hysterically. His sides hurt and he could barely breathe. "That has got to be the funniest shit I have ever seen!"

"_WHAT!?_" Shiro screamed. "_STOP LAUGHING, DAMN YOU!"_

"What are you gonna do, Mr. Trashcan!?" Yuji challenged, mocking Shiro. "Do my plumbing? Make me an omelette?"

Shiro shook with rage. "_I ORDER YOU TO STOP LAUGHING YOU STUPID LIZARD!_"

"Oh, look! Oscar the Grouch is mad!" Yuji continued to make fun of Shiro and his laughter was contagious.

"_STOP LAUGHING! STOP IT! STOP IT OR YOU WILL BE FUCKING EXTERMINATED!" _The neck rings closed up, concealing Shiro's head as he continued screaming,_ "__**EXTERMINATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**_" He fired his DALEK Gunstick and the screen turned to static. He'd just blown up his own camera.

"Well, that's one way to end an annoying phone call," remarked Yuji. Was it smart to goad Shiro like that when he'd become more unstable? Maybe not. But it was sure as hell fun.

Alan, however, did not share Yuji's humorous sentiment. Alan's thoughts were grim. This was a creature possessing both Shiro's genius and the mentality of a DALEK. It was a dangerous combination.. "I don't think we should underestimate Shiro, even if he's like this."

"Hey, why so serious, Alan?" Yuji asked.

"It's _Shiro_, fused with a _DALEK_," said Alan.

"I know. Funniest shit I've ever seen in my life," Yuji chuckled.

"You're forgetting how dangerous Shiro was before and now he's even more dangerous," Alan warned. "Also, the DALEKs may not have been much trouble to us, but they were still dangerous."

"Come on, Alan! He's just a head in a trashcan!" Yuji pointed out.

"Yuji's right. How much trouble could a head in a metal trash can be?" Yokoshima pointed out.

"It's because it's _his _head that we should be worried," Shinichi chimed in. "Remember how much trouble he gave us? It's not his power that makes him a dangerous opponent but his intelligence and resourcefulness."

Alan added in agreement, "Plus you're mixing a genocidal, xenophobic robot with an egotistical douche-bag. This can't end well for anybody."

Yuji frowned, "You just had to dampen my mood." To be honest, Yuji didn't want to be reminded of how Shiro had manipulated them and gotten one step ahead of them until the very end. "But, you're right, we can't underestimate Shiro." However, it was just so much fun and too irresistible to make fun of him now that he was a DALEK.

"But what happened to him?" Michiru asked. "Wasn't he absorbed by the Orochi?"

"I guess when the Orochi was destroyed, what remained of Shiro was expelled. Then someone picked up his head and hooked it up to a DALEK body that was in storage because they saw further use in him," Alan concluded.

Shinichi frowned. He had enough of enemies returning from the dead since Gebok kept coming back despite being defeated so many times. It was just so damn annoying.

"It all makes perfect sense now," said Alan. All eyes were on him, "The Cybermen tomb becoming active, those DALEKs in Nozomu's village, DALEKs taking over NASA, the Vashta Nerada breeding facility, not to mention those Cyberdrones converting people into zombified slaves. He was behind all of it."

"Yeah, but he's not really the one in charge, is he?" Yuji asked.

"The Religion of Crime revived Shiro once again, but this time as something incredibly dangerous, even more so than he was before," said Alan grimly.

"Why is it that it's people like him who always escape death?" Shinichi asked, requesting an explanation. Gebok coming back each time had been annoying now it was just getting frustrating. Rena took hold of his right hand and he looked to her. She smiled at him warmly and he smiled back.

Even if Shiro had come back from beyond the grave, that didn't mean they had anything to fear. They would just have to defeat him again.

Easy, right?

* * *

The computer that DALEK Shiro had used to call the Hive was now completely destroyed, a smoking pile of scrap and slag now with broken glass lying on the ground and melted bits littering in front of the White DALEK's bumper.

"Was that necessary?" questioned Faust.

"**SHUT UP!**" Due to his DALEK unit's programming, he was mentally a DALEK. Because of this, Shiro found it was challenging to overcome his desire to kill anything human. Fortunately, he knew who his enemies were and Faust was not one of them. "**Faust, why won't they just die...?**" DALEK Shiro growled angrily.

"They have only been lucky so far."

"**BUT IT'S NOT FAIR! HOW DID SOMEONE OF MY SUPERIORITY END UP GETTING KILLED TWICE BY THOSE MORONS!? I WANT REVENGE! RE-VENGE! RE-VENGE!**" DALEK Shiro screamed like a deranged maniac.

"Settle down, Shiro. No good can come out of an angry mind," Faust advised.

**"...You are correct," **the White DALEK answered, calming down.

"I warned you that exposing yourself right now may not have been the best idea. The mass phone call was good enough already. You should've stopped while you were ahead," Faust reminded and he regretted his last statement as DALEK Shiro glared at him.

"'**Stopped while I was ****_ahead'_****?**" DALEK Shiro repeated. "**Is that supposed to be amusing?**"

"Sorry," Faust apologized. "But don't forget it was I who found you all those months ago."

* * *

_Amongst the rubble left behind in the aftermath of the heroes' battle with the Orochi, Felix Faust had come looking for any remains, specifically the remains of one of the Religion of Crime's most dangerous agents. In spite of Manchester Black's insistence that Shiro had simply been a pawn, Felix Faust had been impressed. The successful planning, strategies and gambits composed and executed by Shiro had made him one of the most dangerous individuals on this world. Sadly, in the end, carelessness and hubris proved to be his undoing._

_Felix Faust had with him several low-level agents of the Religion of Crime to assist him in his search for anything that Shiro might've left behind. His sword was quite a prize and Felix Faust wanted it. Also, if there were any magical artifacts which had survived. The Pyramid Base had been blown to pieces but Felix knew that some magical artifacts could not be destroyed so easily._

_Felix Faust heard scuttling and turned towards the sound. He spotted a lone Cyberdrone on a piece of rubble with its single red eye staring at him. "Hm, so one of you survived." The Cyberdrone ran away. "Hey, get back here!" Felix chased after the Cyberdrone but stopped as it perched itself on a pile of rubble. "There's something under there, isn't there?" Felix Faust called to the agents, "Get over here! Clear away this rubble!"_

_The agents lifted up the rubble piece by piece and Felix Faust's eyes widened as he saw that lying on the ground. "Well, this is a surprise."_

* * *

"And I was the one who revived you..." Faust continued.

* * *

_The head of the bio-android had been damaged, but not severely so. It could still be repaired. However, there were no more spare bodies for Shiro Juuyon, except for one thing: the DALEK prototype that Shiro Juuyon had built and sent to the Religion of Crime as per instruction. Felix Faust had found it in storage and it had not been modified since. However, it was functional and still with the space inside to house a Darkloid within. This time, the space would be used to house Shiro's head. With the wires connected to the head, Felix Faust prepared to bring life to Shiro Juuyon once more. He was going to use magic to bring a machine back to life._

_Chanting in an ancient language, the sorcerer held out his hands which were pointed to the DALEK unit. Energy crackled along his fingers before shooting towards the machine. Electricity crackled all over it and as soon as it was over…nothing…_

_Felix Faust sighed. He knew it had been a shot in the dark but he didn't think it would've failed so badly. He turned his back to the DALEK, not noticing that the head inside the hollow part of the DALEK was beginning to stir and open its eyes. Also, the eyestalk began to move up with the iris glowing._

**_"Where…Am…I…?"_**

_Felix Faust turned slowly around to see Shiro's head and it was alive and talking. The voice did, however, come out electronic due to it being connected to the DALEK's vocal circuitry. The DALEK unit closed up as it screamed, "__**WHERE AM I!?**__"_

* * *

"**I remember that I wanted to kill you when I first saw you**," DALEK Shiro recalled.

"Indeed," recalled Faust. Having the deathray aimed at him was not something he would want to experiene again.

* * *

_The annoying, high-pitched scream was something Felix Faust could've done without. The DALEK's dome rotated to the left and then to the right before the eye focused on Felix Faust. "__**WHO ARE YOU!? EX-PLAIN! EX-PLAIN! EX-PLAIN OR BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**__" It pointed its deathray gunstick at Felix Faust._

_"Wait! Wait!" Felix Faust cried out. "It's me, Felix Faust. Shiro Juuyon, I brought you back to life!"_

_"__**SHI-RO…JUU…YON…**__" the DALEK repeated._

_"That is your name," Felix Faust clarified._

_"__**MY…NAME…SHI-RO JUU-YON,**__" the DALEK repeated again._

_"The damage must've caused some sort of amnesia," observed Felix Faust as he walked around the DALEK. It followed his movements with its eye._

_"__**NO…I RE-MEM-BER…" **__the DALEK said.__** "THEY…KILLED ME. YU-JI FU-DO, A-LAN SMITH, AND SHI-NI-CHI BA-NA-BA-RA…GREEN LAN-TERN AND...KAMEN...RIDERS...! **__It screamed, "__**THEY KILLED ME! THEY KILLED ME! THEY MUST BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!**__"_

_"And we will, my friend," said Faust. He realized that there had been a glitch. It seemed that Shiro now had the mentality of the DALEK. Must've been the DALEK unit's default programming. He just hoped Shiro Juuyon's genius remained intact._

* * *

DALEK Shiro's genius had indeed remained intact. However, due to the damage and trauma he'd received he had a few gaps in his memory. Still, it was nothing that he needed to be immediately concerned about.

"I must run now. I have another meeting with the rest of the Gauntlet," said Faust.

"**Only three of you remain**," DALEK Shiro reminded. "**I was promised a place at the table.**"

Indeed, Shiro had been promised a place but only as incentive and motivation for him to work hard for the Religion of Crime and the ruling council known as the Gauntlet. The leader never intended for Shiro to join in the first place. Mr. Black had simply lied to keep Shiro dreaming and working.

* * *

The meeting of the Gauntlet was adjourned and the members stood up to leave.

Manchester Black spoke to Felix Faust after the meeting, "I should warn you, Faust, that Shiro Juuyon is not to be completely trusted." Faust had told them what he'd done.

"I honestly doubt he'd betray me after I revived him," Faust retorted, dismissing Faust's warning.

"Tell that to the last two partners he had," Black remarked. "Oh, wait. They're both dead!" Shiro had used Omega Scorpio as a shield and then absorbed Gnol Gnauh. Of course, the last one had bitten him back in the ass as he was absorbed by the Yamata no Orochi.

"Again, I appreciate the concern, but it still remains that Shiro owes me for his revival," Faust said.

"You really don't get it, do you? What did you revive him as? A DALEK, right? Those things are programmed to kill humans. Add in the fact that he's already unstable, well I don't need to explain what might happen, do I?" Black said.

"Your fears are unfounded," Faust placated as he added confidently, "And I do have some insurance."

"Well, don't say I didn't warn you, Faust."

* * *

Meanwhile, in his underground lab, the White DALEK was performing some final checks on his latest project. If this worked, than his forces would be significantly bolstered. Even though his memory was corrupted, he still remembered plenty of what happened before his last demise. He remembered Kyoto, he remembered the Orochi, and he especially remembered Shinichi Banabara.

The original, the template, and the first man he truly hated.

* * *

**Many Months Ago...**

_It was nighttime and both Shinichi and Shiro were fighting using their respective swords. Shinichi was armed with the Higurashi no Yaiba while Shiro was wielding the Oathbreaker. Both seemed evenly matched it seemed as their swords clashed and sparks rained down around their feet. Locking blades, Shiro decided to start a conversation._

_Shiro began, "You know, you and I, we're a lot alike."_

_Shinichi denied, "No we're not! You're a killer! You're a monster!"_

_Shiro countered, "I'm also everything you could be and that scares you. Remember, my mind was copied from you. You could be so much more but you choose not to. Such wasted potential."_

_Shinichi retorted, "Becoming like you would mean losing my morals and humanity, and that's something I will never give up."_

_Shiro rebutted, "Morals are the first thing that are abandoned in war. All that matters is victory."_

_"Then why haven't you abandoned yours?" questioned Shinichi._

_"What? Abandoned what?" Shiro shot back._

_"The thing you said that I should've abandoned. Why haven't you abandoned your humanity?" Shinichi asked._

_"I have no humanity!" denied Shiro angrily._

_"Oh, I think you do," Shinichi said before breaking his sword free and making some distance between himself and Shiro._

* * *

DALEK Shiro scoffed, "**Shows what he knows. My human side has long since died thanks to them**."

* * *

Shinichi was looking down at Hiroyuki's who was sleeping in his crib. His son looked so peaceful as he slept. However, he couldn't help but think back to many months ago.

* * *

_Shinichi agreed, "You know, I think you're right. You and I are alike. You don't only have my memories, but you possess my humanity too."_

_Shiro growled, "Shut up..." _

_Ignoring him, Shinichi continued, "No, it's true. Those catgirls you made into your minions, they're more than just slaves to you. They're your companions. You feel lonely and loneliness is a human concept. You care about them too, and caring is a human concept as well. The thing is, you're more human that you care to believe."_

_Shiro yelled at Shinichi's audacity, "You...how dare you...!?"_

_Shinichi went on, "You might be a machine, but you still got a soul too. A soul copied from me, but corrupted nonetheless. You want to wipe out humanity and replace what remains with Cybermen because it's the only way you can truly kill your own humanity and still keep it at the same time. As much as you hate your human side, you can't discard it."_

* * *

Shinichi realized to his horror, '_He actually did it. He got rid of his humanity_.' A Shiro 'tainted' by humanity had still been dangerous but now he was a completely soulless machine. He was now a DALEK. That was even worse.

He looked at his sleeping son in concern and gently caressed his face. "I'm not gonna let that bastard hurt you." Shiro had also been influenced by Gebok and that man had thought that turning children into weapons had been acceptable. A DALEK Shiro Juuyon would think so as well.

* * *

Faust returned to the underground lab to see that DALEK Shiro had finished with his final preparations. For what, he did not know. He still watched with great interest as DALEK Shiro was working on the controls for a machine he just had constructed. The control console had switches and sphere-shaped interface on it that could only be worked by DALEK hands. DALEK Shiro's right appendage was the standard plunger while the left was the three-fingered claw.

Standing ten feet in front of DALEK Shiro and console was a chamber with double doors and walls which were horizontally striped in red. DALEK Shiro was operating the chamber via the console.

Faust wondered what the White DALEK was up to. DALEK Shiro had his Robomen slaves build this chamber and the console for months now. However, whenever Faust questioned him, DALEK Shiro would dodge the question. Maybe the DALEK did not want to brag before whatever he was working on was a success. It was best to brag and gloat after rather than before.

"**It is ready**," said the DALEK Shiro as he glided back from the console and turned to face Faust.

"What is?" Faust asked and he watched as the chamber began to glow with red electricity arcing around it.

"**The future**."

"What do you mean? What is going on?" Now Faust really wanted to know since the machine seemed to be something dangerous. DALEK Shiro's eyestalk then turned back to look at the chamber.

"**The birth of a new DALEK race of course**," the DALEK Shiro answered and the doors slid open. White fog clouds billowed out and Faust watched as something was coming out.

It was a DALEK, and one that had the same shape, size, design and stature as the White DALEK. After the first DALEK, three more DALEKs glided out one after another. The four DALEKs lined up in a row, facing both the White DALEK and Faust.

**"Behold, the recreation of the DALEKs! Behold the birth of the superior beings!" **DALEK Shiro declared.

They all looked the same, sporting the same telescopic manipulator arms with three-fingered claws on the right and gunstick on the left mounted on their chest-boxes. The only differences they had were in color. The one on the far left was red, the next was blue, the third was orange and the final one was green. The hemispheres decorating their skirts were silver.

"They are…colorful," Faust offered his opinion. Honestly, what could he say? They were DALEKs with colorful paint jobs. Nothing else seemed very significant.

"**These clones are color-coded in accordance to their roles**," the DALEK Shiro explained. "**Red is for Warrior, Blue is for Strategist, Orange is for Scientist and Green is for Geneticist**."

"Don't they need Darkloids inside them to function?" asked Faust, referring to DALEK Shiro's previous batch of DALEKs. Shiro had originally built completely mechanical DALEKs, but after absorbing Gnol Gnauh's power he had put Darkloids into each of his creations. It seemed that Shiro was going back to basics.

At least the ridiculous plunger-like appendage was replaced by a more intimidating claw-like apparatus.

"**Not these DALEKs. No, these are based on the original fully mechanical DALEKs. They do not need the organic components inside them. As for their programming, each of them is modeled after me but embodies a different aspects**," the DALEK Shiro explained.

"So, they've each adopted a trait from you and crafted said traits into their most dominant characteristics," Faust concluded. "The red one represents your warrior side, the blue one represents your ability to construct plans and strategies, while the orange one represents yours scientific side." He paused, "Though…why would you want a green Geneticist?" Shiro had originally disliked genetics. He'd mentioned that genetics was too messy.

"**Why not?**" was the response he got from the White DALEK. The truth was, Shiro may have considered the science of genetics as messy, he had been knowledgeable about it. He just never applied it.

"So, what does white symbolize?" Faust asked, regarding the White DALEK's coloring.

"**Is it not obvious? I am their master, their leader, the ****Supreme**."

"**ALL HAIL THE DALEK SUPREME! ALL HAIL THE DALEK SUPREME!**" the four new DALEKs cheered, raising their claw-tipped manipulator arms.

Faust's ears were ringing from the loud cheering. Once the cheering had ceased, he stated, "So, I can assume you will be creating more."

"**No**," the White DALEK answered in negative, surprising Faust. He elaborated, "**These four will be enough and I will construct more only as replacements. Too many would be difficult to control.**"

Now that was odd. DALEK Shiro should've arrogantly claimed that he could control the DALEKs he created but then Faust understood. These new DALEKs were clones of the White DALEK, each adopting a different aspect but they were basically the same being. The White DALEK did not want to be challenged. As the original, he was the most powerful, but could still be outmatched by an army of clones who wanted to usurp him.

DALEK Shiro gave each of the newly born DALEKs their assignments, delegating their duties, and sent them on their away. The Red Warrior DALEK would be supervising the Robomen, the Blue DALEK Strategist would be constructing plans and strategies, the Orange DALEK Scientist would be performing research and developing weapons and the Green DALEK Geneticist would be performing genetic experiments.

Faust watched them with a keen eye as DALEK Shiro delegated and gave each of the new DALEKs their new duties and responsibilities. "Now, this ought to be interesting," he said aloud. Still, he had been unnerved by their stares. They all looked like they wanted to kill him as dictated by their programming.

The machine activated again, surprising DALEK Shiro and Faust. "**What is happening?**" demanded DALEK Shiro as the chamber opened and _it_ came gliding out.

Faust blinked and if the White DALEK could he would've blinked as well.

A fifth DALEK had been produced by the DALEK construction machine. However, its coloring was...bright pink. And were those bow ribbons tied around its dome lights?

**"Oh my gosh! This place is so dull and dreary! Seriously, who did your interior decorating? Morticia Addams? Lame-o!**" the pink DALEK spoke effeminately.

Faust asked in amused interest, "You said these clones each embody an aspect of you. So, what does this one embody?"

"**And another thing, why are we underground? I need ventilation and sunlight or my fabulous, hot-pink paint job will be ruined because of the lack of fresh air and sun!**" the pink DALEK complained.

DALEK Shiro's response was to aim his gunstick at the pink _abomination _and fire. The pink DALEK was obliterated on the spot, becoming nothing but a memory and one that would soon be deleted.

**"ARGH!" **DALEK Shiro suddenly screamed.

"What's wrong?" Faust asked.

Recovering, DALEK Shiro swivelled his head so his eyestalk was staring at Faust. He spoke, sternly, **"This never happened**," before gliding away.

After a moment Faust went 'hm' and sighed, "I guess not everyone is comfortable with their feminine side after all."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so the White DALEK's identity is finally revealed. Then again, it was obvious from the start, wasn't it? Who else would be so sadistic and twisted?**


	182. The Legacy of Cain Part 126

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 126: The Priest's Curse**

The King Game was similar to Truth or Dare but with a different set of rules. Played with numbered slips of paper or chopsticks, with one marked with a crown or star to represent the 'King', a group of people will draw the lots at and whoever gets the lot marked 'King' is the King and thus can command the others to do whatever he/she wants. For example: the King can command #4 and #2 to kiss or #5 and #1 to slap each other. In the end, the King's orders are ABSOLUTE!

* * *

Shinichi, Satoshi, Keiichi, Mion, Shion, Satoko Rena, Rika and Hanyuu were seated around a table in Mion's home. In the centre of the table was a basket filled with folded slips of paper. They all wore intense looks of competition, except for Hanyuu who seemed nervous. Even while most of them were in college and the rest were in high school, it didn't stop the Gaming Club from assembling to have their usual club activities. You were never too old to have fun, right?

"OK, ready?" Mion began. "Take your lots now." They each took a folded slip of paper, each hoping the one marked 'King' so they could have absolute power over the others. "Now…"

"WHO'S THE KING?" they declared and they each unfolded their slips of paper to see if they were lucky.

"Yeah, I'm the King!" Keiichi declared as everyone groaned. Now he had the power to make them do anything he wanted. "OK, everyone from #1 to #8…burn all my embarrassing photographs!" ordered Keiichi.

"Noooooo!" wailed Mion and Rena.

"Keiichi-kun, please don't! You look so cute in those!" begged Rena.

"Sorry, but you know the rules. The King's orders are ABSOLUTE!" Keiichi laughed. Finally, he could put the past behind him. All those embarrassing costumes he had to wear; the bunny girl, the police woman, the sailor uniform, the school swimsuit. All of it would be forever erased.

It was good to be the King.

However, his victory would be short-lived.

"OK, ready…? WHO'S THE KING?"

* * *

"Damn it! Why does this keep happening to me!?" demanded Keiichi as he was in an Angel Mort costume. Mion had gotten the slip of paper marked 'King' and so commanded #4 to dress in an Angel Mort uniform. Keiichi was the unfortunate one to have gotten #4.

"You gotta admit you should've seen this coming after you made her burn those photos," said Shinichi. "Call it karma, dude."

"But how did she know I got #4?" demanded Keiichi.

"How indeed, Kei-chan?" Mion smirked and she winked at Shinichi who smiled back. Keiichi glared accusingly at Shinichi who whistled innocently.

"OK, let's start again," said Rena eagerly. She wanted to become King next. Oh, she had ideas of what to command her subjects to do.

"OK, ready...? WHO'S THE KING?"

* * *

"You all look so cute~!" beamed Rena as all her friends were dressed up in cute outfits. Using her power as King, she had ordered them to dress up as amusement park mascots.

"Seriously, Mion, how many costumes do you keep?" Shinichi asked as he was dressed in a dog costume.

Mion, who was dressed in a duck costume, answered, "I'm not telling you." She wondered, "But how did Rena know about them?"

"How do we explain how Rena does anything? She just does," said Shion.

"At least this isn't as embarrassing as what you put me in," Keiichi glared at Mion while dressed in a pig costume. Hanyuu was in a cat costume, Rika was in a mouse costume, Shion was in another duck costume, Satoshi was in a raccoon costume and Satoko was in a wolf costume.

"Alright, one more time!" Satoko announced.

"OK, ready…? WHO'S THE KING?"

* * *

Shinichi had become the King and had ordered #2 to slap #5 in the face. Mion and Shion had to obey as they were #2 and #5 respectively.

"Damn, I should've ordered a spanking!" frowned Shinichi. "Next time then."

"Pervert," the twins called him.

"You know it," he grinned, unabashed.

"OK, ready...? WHO'S THE KING?"

"Yes!" Satoko beamed. "OK, now what do I make who do...?" Her expression was devious, and outright scary as she looked contemplative. She snapped her fingers. "Ah, I got it!"

* * *

"OK, do I have to do this for much longer?" asked Satoshi as he was spinning hula-hoops around his waist. Satoko had ordered for #2 to spin hula-hoops and Satoshi just happened to be #2.

"Just a bit longer, Nii-nii," smiled Satoko as she held up a few more hula-hoops.

"Gambare, Satoshi-kun," cheered Shion.

* * *

The game continued for another half hour with several dares being performed as commanded by the King of each round. Rena and Shinichi had to kiss, Rika and Satoko had to perform 'I'm a Little Teapot', and Keiichi and Satoshi ended up dressed as ballerinas. While they each got a turn to embarrass their friends and be embarrassed in return, there were no hard feelings. After all, this was all in good fun.

And now the final round.

"OK, ready...? WHO'S THE KING!"

"YES!" Shinichi declared. He was the King again. "OK, I command for #1, #3 and #6 to strip down to their underwear!" The ones who got those numbers just happened to be Satoko, Mion and Shion.

"Alright, Shinichi!" Keiichi cheered.

"HENTAI!" they screamed at him.

"You can't disobey! The King's orders are ABSOLUTE!" declared Shinichi. "Now...STRIP!" he commanded, pointing at the three helpless girls. He laughed in a way that reminded them of when he'd become the High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER.

It was all in good fun, but that didn't mean sweet revenge couldn't be sought after later. Satoshi would need to have a few words with Shinichi later.

* * *

"Take this! And this! And this!" Gaap shouted, pummeling Showa from afar, throwing punches and kicks through various portals, striking him over and over. She was having fun until her right arm got stuck in a portal.

"What?!" she shouted, trying to figure out what was wrong until she looked at Showa. Her face paled in realization. He had caught her arm.

"Little thing about teleporters," he said smugly before yanking, pulling Gaap through her portal and right in front of him. "They get predictable." He then sent a knee into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her, before tossing her into the air and leaping after her, executing a Rider Kick. However, much to his surprise, she formed a portal in front of him and another behind him. He ended up kicking himself as his foot entered the portal in front of him and exited the portal behind him. The second portal vanished and reappeared over the ground and he landed with a crash as Gaap exited a portal nearby.

"You know, if I hadn't formed that portal, you would've got me," said Gaap as Showa recovered and stood back up. "You're pretty strong."

"I have to be," he said and he charged at her for a punch only to meet a barrier. Looking up, he saw Ronove standing between him and Gaap. "You're in my way."

"I'm sorry, but I simply can't let anymore harm come to Gaap-san. Beatrice-sama's orders," Ronove said with a calm smile.

"Then I guess we got a problem," Showa said as his armor changed. Showa had transformed into Super-1 and was busy pounding on Ronove's barrier with the Power Hands.

"You might as well give up, young man," said Ronove, "my defenses are not easily broken."

Showa ignored him as he kept punching, but stop when his last hit felt different. Smirking under his helmet, he leaped back and reverted back to his default form.

"Ah, so you see the futility of it?" asked Ronove.

"Nah, I just figured now's the time to go big," said Showa, as he punched his knuckles together, forming his gigantic and metal-plated Great Fists, "or go home." He jumped up and brought the fists down. Ronove didn't look concerned as he focused his barrier on the spot Showa would likely to hit. The Rider struck but he was promptly repulsed and sent flying backwards.

"Come now, sir. I'm a demon, not a fool," Ronove said with an amused smile and twinkle in his eye.

Showa studied his two opponents. The gentleman named Ronove could create barriers and repel his opponents with the same force that the barrier was hit with. Gaap on the other hand could conjure portals. There were two very tough opponents on their own, but together they were almost invincible. However, even the toughest opponent's strengths could be exploited. With that in mind, an idea formed in the Rider's mind.

"Hey, Gaap! I guess Ronove lucked out in the powers department! Compared to your portals, a barrier that absorbs and reflects attacks is way cooler," Showa shouted. Ronove smiled at the praise, even if it was in the midst of battle.

Gaap giggled. It seemed that Showa still wanted to play with her. "Cooler than me, huh? Let's see if you still think so after this move!" She formed a black portal in front of her and drove her fist through. An exit portal formed in front of Showa and her fist came shooting out.

"Gotcha!" He ducked under the punch and got behind the portal, forming his Burst Cannon on his chest. Taking aim, he fired a quick burst of energy from the cannon which flew into the portal.

"ARGH!" Ronove shouted as the energy burst slammed into his back. Gaap's first portal had allowed Showa to hit Ronove in the back.

"What!?" Gaap gaped.

"You're wondering what happened, huh?" Showa asked as he deactivated the Burst Cannon. "It's just logic. Your portals work two-ways, on both sides. If you can redirect the direction of your attack with your portal, then there's no reason I can't use the portals for the same thing!" Gaap's portals were two way and both sides were usable. So, if he fired into the back of the portal in front of him, then the shot would exit out of the other side of Gaap's other portal.

"Clever," Ronove complemented, "And resourceful."

"That was how I was trained," said Showa. "And now-"

"I think that's enough," interrupted Beatrice.

Showa looked to the Golden Witch and sighed. He deactivated his armor which vanished and nodded. After all, they had been sparing on her property. The Kuwadorian's lawn was quite spacious and so he had been sparing with Ronove and Gaap, loyal servants and companions to the Endless Witch/Golden Witch Beatrice.

Shinichi was in the Meta-World, a sort of magical pocket dimension. This was the place of residences for witches like Beatrice, Bernkastel and Lambdadelta. Also, there was the Endless Sorcerer Battler who was an alternate version of the Battler he knew. The Endless Witch and Sorcerer were both married. Said Endless Sorcerer still wasn't quite comfortable with being called a grandfather considering his youthful looks but that was one of the consequences as the Seven Stakes of Purgatory were Beatrice's daughters in a fashion.

"Sit down, rest, have some tea, and cookies," said Beatrice as she gestured to the garden table. She was seated with her husband the Endless Sorcerer Battler, and her mentor Virgilia. Also sitting with them was Satan and Yuji. The white-haired Stake of Wrath was cradling Hiroyuki in her arms, rocking him back and forth.

"OK, I will," said Shinichi as he went and sat down for tea and cookies. It would be rude to reject such a request as Beatrice was practically his mother-in-law and also a lethal mistake as she could use her magic to kill him, repeatedly.

Satan gently handed Hiroyuki to Shinichi who smiled down at his red-eyes son. "Hello there, Hiro-chan." The baby stared up at his father and then he began to wail "What!? What did I do!?"

"Idiot, hand him over," Satan took Hiroyuki from Shinichi and the instant the baby was in her arms he calmed down. "You must've held him wrong."

"Babies just seem to have it out for me," complained Shinichi, recalling the time he had to babysit baby Alan and the infant kept using his powers on him. Then there was Junior, who tried to bite a chunk out of his arm.

"Relax, Shin. Babies are like this sometime. Hiro just wants to be close to his mom, that's why," said Yuji. Shinichi gaze towards Satan and the sight of her holding Hiroyuki like that made him smile.

"Of course, with breasts like that, why wouldn't he want to be close to his mother?" Shinichi answered.

"Yes, that's something we can both agree on," ES-Battler agreed, laughing jovially. Satan and Beatrice glared at them, causing them to freeze. "I mean...well..."

"Hmph, men are such breast-hungry beasts," scoffed Beatrice. "Then again, I'm not surprised since they enjoy suckling on succulant breasts like calves." She cradled her breasts. "Husband, do you love my breasts?"

ES-Battler looked around to see everyone staring at him expectantly for his answer. "Well...they are amazing..." He rubbed his head in embarrassment.

"Indeed," Virgilia agreed. "Beatrice does have a beautiful bust and child-bearing hips not unlike young Satan."

"Are we seriously having this conversation?" Shinichi asked and Satan kicked his shin under the table. "Ow!" He turned to look at Satan who turned her nose up at him.

"Just go with it," said Yuji. "The topic of conversation here is always weird."

"Actually, this is pretty mild. Conversations with my mother are a little more risque," Shinichi said. Considering that Shiori was a novelist who wrote adult romance literature, there was no doubt about that.

"Your mother, has she written anything new?" Virgilia asked expectantly.

"Isn't she always?" Shinichi questioned rhetorically, suggesting an affirmative. "Ever since she and I reunited, she's been getting so much inspiration."

"Beatrice-sama, may I please go and put Hiroyuki in his crib?" Satan asked politely.

"Oh, sure. He must be tired," allowed Beatrice. "And Shinichi, please accompany Satan, alright?"

"Alright," said Shinichi as he and Satan walked into the Kuwadorian. He whispered, "OK, why are you so mad right now?"

"I'm _always _mad," said Satan unconvincingly, but her expression softened as she held her son to her, smiling down at his sleeping face.

"Always, huh?" retorted Shinichi skeptically. He then put his hand on her rear and made her gasp. "I doubt that." She blushed and growled at him.

Timidly, which was uncharacteristic for her, she asked Shinichi, "What do you think of my breasts?" They had grown in size since she'd given birth as she was producing breast milk.

"They're spectacular," he answered honestly. "They're the right size, soft as pillows, and just as smooth. No wonder Hiro-chan falls asleep on them after each feeding." Satan blushed and smiled at his compliment.

"I bet you say that to all the girls," she said.

"Just the ones who matter," he informed her. Satan smiled sultrily and then whispered into his ear. His eyes widened as his grin spread out.

"Really?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered before adding, "But not today." His hopes plummeted, making her laugh at his disappointed expression. At the same time, Hiroyuki giggled. "Aw...you're so cute, Hiro."

* * *

As night fell, the nocturnal elements of the city came out of hiding. It was at this time criminal scum prowled the streets to commit misdeeds upon the innocent. However, the ne'er do wells of Shishibone City did not have free reign. The city had its guardians, shrouded in darkness, hidden in the shadows to observe with vigil eyes.

Perched on the edge of a rooftop was the Black Skull, aka Shinichi Banabara. This was the persona he adorned to fight crime. Kamen Rider Showa was reserved only for demons and monsters. For lowly criminals, Black Skull was enough. The perch he was crouched upon gave him the perfect vantage point to scout for any criminal activity. He'd picked this spot due to its strategic location.

His ears picked up sound, a feminine scream. His job was never done. There was no rest for the wicked and thus there was none for him.

* * *

A young lady, petite yet well-endowed, was cornered in an alley. She was dressed quite provocatively but only because the night was hot and anything more would be far too uncomfortable. Plus, she was planning to go dancing. Unfortunately, the brunette had caught the attention of several young ruffians in their early twenties who upon seeing her wanted to have a good time, whether she was willing or not.

They had chased after her, catcalling and whistling as she ran. They were like wolves on a hunt for fresh meat and she was the helpless prey that they would ravish for hours and hours until they grew bored of her and discarded her like leftovers.

As she was forced into a dead end, the lecherous wolves began to close in on her. She screamed for help but would anybody come?

Someone did.

Dropping from the sky and landing in a crouch upon the floor of the alleyway was Shishibone's own Guardian of the Night. He looked up, his skull-styled mask protection his identity, as he glared at the street gang who stared back at him, surprised by his appearance. Standing up, he quipped, "So, is this a private party or can anybody join in?" He counted seven of them in the alley. This would be easy.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shishibone City's second known guardian was patrolling, flying through the air like a guardian angel. His emerald glow was something the citizens had grown accustomed to as he was a symbol of hope and justice. Well, the Blue Comet would more accurately represent hope but the green Sentinel would not argue with them. It was not his attention to correct them. He was a hero and he would do the right thing.

Scanning the city with his enhanced supervision, he spotted a black clad individual jumping down from his tall perch. He recognized him easily and decided to go and see what he was up to. It wasn't for himself, though. He had made a promise to someone special that he would always look out for the one clad in black. It was a promise he intended to keep.

* * *

Shinichi, aka the Black Skull was disturbed as the gangsters were laughing. Well, he was used to it since they would normally underestimate him. They felt that they had better odds with bigger numbers. He was just one man, after all. No, it was the laughter that came from them _and _their would-be victim. He decided to focus on his sensing ability, to detect their auras, and came to a frightening conclusion.

"Well, crap," he uttered and just like that the woman and the street gang showed their true colors as their appearances melted and morph into something inhuman.

They were donned in black baggy suits with light armor on the torso, forearms and lower legs and they had their heads covered in full face masks, each one resembling a faceless demon with small silver horns on the top. They also had a sash wrapped around each of their waists that seemed to have star-like cluster designs on them and each one of the beings held a sort of weapon in their hands. The weapons ranged from swords to spears to hand-held kunai daggers.

"Darkstars," he mumbled as he recognized them. The first time he'd seen them preceded a battle with a demon named Zagi. The Demon Priests of the Moon Demoness also employed them as foot soldiers. "And I thought I saw the last of you."

The Darkstar who'd disguised itself as a woman lunged for Black Skull's back but was subdued instantly as the green Sentinel dropped down from the sky and smashed it into the wall with a punch.

"Oh, hey Alan," said Shinichi to his younger half-brother.

"Need help?" Alan offered, smiling.

"If I said no, would you go away?" Shinichi returned.

Alan considered it, or looked like he was considering it, and answered, "Probably not."

"Well, I doubt I'd need help. There's just seven of them," said Shinichi.

And just like that, Murphy's Law decided to just turn the whole situation into a SNAFU. Swirling clouds of black smoke appeared all around them, filling up the alley as a small army of Darkstars suddenly had them cornered, forcing them back-to-back.

"And yet again I just jinxed myself," muttered Shinichi. "How many was that already?"

"Too many that I care to count," said Alan. "Well, the usual plan?"

"The usual plan," Shinichi repeated, agreeing to the suggestion. With that said, the two of them charged forward, rushing in opposite directions.

There was an explosions as Darkstars were blown out of the alley as Shinichi rushed out with the Burst Cannon mounted on his chest. "Always start with the big guns," he quipped as he banished the weapon built via the nanites injected into him. He summoned the Shield of Glen with a flick of his wrist, covering his left arm from the elbow down in the dragon-mail shield gauntlet. Flexing the fingers, he got ready for battle.

Meanwhile, back in the alley, Alan broke the Darkstars weapons with his ring. The Green Lantern power ring responded to his thoughts and imagination, creating solid constructs of green energy. It was an advance piece of technology forged by immortal blue dwarfs as peacekeeping tools. On Earth, it could very well be one of the most powerful weapons in existence.

And the ring was not his only weapon either. He moved, faster than a blink, and threw the Darkstars into the air with uppercuts. They went up, up, up, up, before they came crashing down. Alan felt no regret with using lethal force against these creatures. They were just mindless, demonic constructs made of dark energy. Of course, that also made them quite sturdy and since they were mindless they did not understand the concept of surrender.

He cracked his neck and knuckles, preparing for the next wave of attackers to come at him. The alleyway was narrow so their movements were limited. He, on the other hand, was not hindered by such limitations.

Back outside the alleyway, Shinichi had just turned his right arm into a massive sword with a blade that was as long as he was tall. With his constructed weapon, he swiped at the Darkstars. Bringing the sword down and forcing them to dodge, he left a gouge in the ground. Some tried to attack him from behind only to be repelled as he used the Shield of Glen to protect himself, sending them crashing against the wall. He smiled and turned his attention to the other Darkstars. They threw kunai at him and he deflected them with an energy shield. He then turned his right arm into an energy cannon and fired, sending them flying helplessly into the air. Jumping himself and reforming his Great Sword, he slashed at the demonic foot soldiers and sent them to oblivion.

A flash of green light within the alleyway told him that Alan had done cleaning up in there. "Showoff," he muttered before he caught a Darkstar's sword in his left hand without looking. He snapped the sword in half and kicked the demon backwards with a Great Boot, the huge armored foot causing damage on impact. That kick alone could shatter bone and the Darkstar went tumbling. It climbed back to its feet of course only to go down again when a green blast vaporised its head and the rest of its body.

Shinichi looked over his shoulder to see Alan, smiling at him. "I had it."

"I know," said Alan while casually backhanding a Darkstar. "Just being a good brother."

"Well, you're still my little brother," said Shinichi as he caught a Darkstar by its throat and snapped its neck. "You gotta listen to me."

Alan rolled his eyes. "How about we just take these guys out and then we talk about who listens to whom later?" he suggested as he jumped and performed a split kick.

"Good idea," said Shinichi as he caught a pair of spears coming at his face. He tore them from the Darkstars' grips, spun them around, then drove the spears into their chests, killing them with their own weapons as they turned into dissipating dark clouds.

The two were a great team. Alan had his ring and super powers while Shinichi had his cybernetic enhancements and enchanted weapons. The Black Skull had just stunned a few Darkstars by playing hopscotch with their heads before bounding off a wall and taking them down with a flying side kick, knocking them to the ground. They did not get back up and turned into black clouds which dissipated shortly after.

Alan was surrounded but he had a way to fix this. He spun around and around, accelerating his rotation, picking up speed as he formed a tornado. The tornado picked up the Darkstars surrounding him and they flailed helplessly as the tornado tore them apart. Alan stopped spinning and smiled as he tossed his cape over his shoulder. He dusted off his hands and looked around. "Well, that was easy."

"Yeah," said Shinichi with a frown. "_Too_ easy."

"You didn't just say that," Alan grimaced.

"I know I'm right," Shinichi retorted. With that said, once again Murphy's Law came into play.

After both Alan and Shinichi had destroyed the Darkstars, they heard applause. They turned their gaze to the source to saw a figure coming towards them. He was clad, completely in black. He wore a black cloak with gold trim that had its hood up and under the cloak he wore a black leather coat that was zipped up all the way to his neck. Under the coat he wore black pants and black boots. As he was clapping, the brothers could see that his left arm, from the elbow down was demonic in appearance, made of black and red flesh with golden runes tattooed onto the skin. The demonic hand's fingernails were black. His right arm remained normal, or so it appeared. His face was concealed, hidden from them by a black and white two-toned mask that covered everything except for his mouth and chin.

Shinichi and Alan did not like the looks of this guy. There was just something eerie and chilling about him and it wasn't just his appearance. It was his very aura and presence which was unnerving. It was like being in the presence of something that wasn't meant to exist as its shadow was cast over them.

"You are indeed as amazing as I've heard," praised the hooded masked man. "You were able to dispatch my Darkstars and display such teamwork and concentration. It's like you complement each other."

"OK, creepy guy, who are you?" demanded Shinichi.

"I have no name, but you may call me 'The Priest'," the man introduced himself. While polite, he didn't exactly make Shinichi and Alan feel relaxed. There was something not quite right with this guy.

"So, you summoned those things," Alan concluded.

"That is correct. I simply wanted to see, in person, if you two really are as good as I've heard. I am not disappointed." He paused. "However, it is quite inappropriate to call either of you heroes after all the horrible things you've done."

Alan and Shinichi flinched and thought at the same time, '_Does this guy...know...?_'

"What makes you say that we're not heroes?" demanded Alan.

"Because you're not. Oh, you fight evil and you save lives, but you ignore the real point. You're ignoring the Greater Good," the Priest said to them.

"The Greater Good?" Shinichi parroted.

"Do you really think you're doing any good by fighting your enemies? By protecting this world? You're not. You're simply part of the problem. This world, no this whole universe, is no longer in balance because you always try to fight whenever 'evil' appears. You seek to defeat 'evil' and not give it a chance," the Priest continued. "And even as you defeat one evil, another evil appears to take its place. The universe is sending you a message, sirs. Its demanding for balance."

"So what? You're saying this is all our fault?" Shinichi questioned furiously.

"Oh no. You're doing your part. _You _belong here," the Priest said to Shinichi. "Your half-brother on the other hand, doesn't, and his presence is polluting this world. Even now he's attempting to force his ideals on others by becoming a symbol of Truth & Justice." He addressed the Green Lantern,"Alan Smith, even you must admit that I speak the truth."

"Yeah right! What you're talking about is bullshit!" Alan retorted. He was lying, though. He had long suspected his presence was polluting the timeline.

"Oh, then you admit you did nothing wrong when you became Parallax?" the Priest questioned.

Alan tensed as he recalled that time and scowled with a warning, "Don't you dare go there..." How did this guy even know about that?

"And why not? Aren't you doing the same thing now by trying to force your idea of order and justice upon the world? Isn't that a self-deluded attempt to better it in the way you want even if someone doesn't want the same thing?"

"Don't let him get to you, little brother," Shinichi advised.

"And you, Shinji Banabara, are nothing but a childish whiner," the Priest said as he shifted his attention from Alan to Shinichi.

Shinichi snapped, ticked off by the criticism, "Who are you calling a whiner?-!"

"Shinichi, don't let him get to you," Alan repeated Shinichi's advice.

The Priest continued, "Yes, that is what you are: a whiner. You're quick to quit or rebel faster than anyone I've ever seen in your group of so-called heroes, and your reasons are rather weak. You lost your powers to General Nagazawa and quit, but you knew that ARMOR could have easily given you a new suit of ARMOR to replace the one you lost until you regained it. Oh, and you even went rogue because you lost your former lover to your nemesis. You said you were doing it for your friends, to protect them, but you still withheld vital information on the man which could have stopped his machinations sooner. Perhaps, you could've even stopped Shiro Juuyon from reviving the Yamata no Orochi in the first place."

Shinichi said nothing, but he trembled with anger as he glared at the Priest. How did this masked freak get his information? It wasn't like it was broadcasted for everyone to hear. He even knew about Alan, and he came from an alternate world.

"But the bit I find the most amusing, the most laughable, the most comical is that the second time you quit was because you hurt a friend. Oh, give me a fucking break! Compared to the all the deaths and destruction which happened in Kyoto, and all the horrible things you did as BLACK 13, that was the weakest reason of all for you to quit. Frankly speaking, he was nothing more than a berserker and you did the right thing by using lethal measures. Any of your superhero friends would've done the same thing but they wouldn't have given up. You, however, decided to throw a pity party and quit. Even the Cricket Rider, the one that holds hatred for humans put his emotion aside knowing that being a hero comes first. Frankly, you're just a pathetic boy who uses the various upgrades you've received to hide the fact that you are just a selfish little child."

"I'm not!" Shinichi snapped, denying the Priest's claims.

"Prove it then!" the Priest challenged. "Or can you only speak empty words?"

"If he's fighting you, so am I," Alan volunteered.

"Very well," the Priest accepted. "Let me properly arm myself then." All of sudden, a pair of magic circles appeared with the Priest standing in between them. The magic circle on his right was dark and purplish with the image of a dragon in the centre. The magic circle on his left was golden, also with the image of a dragon in the centre. The circles' inner and outer rings rotated, ancient runes inscribed in them. He reached into the circles and drew out his swords. They seemed like normal swords, but that was to the untrained eye. They were single-edged, with no guards but between set at the base of the blades, between them and their hilts, were Yin-Yang symbols. Also, the sword in his right hand had a silver blade while the one held in his left hand had a dark blade.

Shinichi and Alan could actually feel it. The swords were ancient and powerful artifacts. They prepared themselves for anything. "Let us dance," the Priest said coolly. He dashed at them with both swords and attacked, closing the distance in the blink of an eye. He spun in a circle and his blades nearly touched the two brothers who backed away.

"Magic swords," Alan frowned. Magic was one of his weaknesses.

"Are they just giving magic swords away?" Shinichi demanded. Shiro Juuyon got his hands on the Oathbreaker and now this masked freak got his hands on a couple of very cool looking swords. He had to admit that they were impressive looking but he couldn't admire them as they were being used against him and his brother.

"I found these blades and earned their use," stated the Priest. "And because of that, I can do _this_." He raised both his swords over his head and cut a pair of circles of light, which linked together before forming into a magical circle with a yin-yang symbol in the centre. The magic circle shone upon him. His armor appeared, falling upon his body, and augmenting him as he posed before both Alan and Shinichi. The right half of his armor was polished silver with gold trim while the left half was pitch black with blood red trim. The armor plating covered him from the neck all the way down to his toes. He sported a belt with the yin-yang symbol. His helmet resembled a wolf's head with a lion's mane and the horns of a dragon. His demonic left arm now looked more metallic than organic.

"Gaze upon them, the **Holy Talon** and **Death Fang**," proclaimed the now armored priest.

The two swords he held had also changed drastically. The sword in his right hand, known as the Holy Talon of Faldren, was forged from the talon of a Light Dragon. It had two edges and the blade was at three feet in length and it had strange markings on the middle and there were small gems on the middle as well in regular intervals and the base was surrounded by two strange serpent-like beasts that then covered the flat of the blade on either side. The hand guard was made in a way that the hand guard resembled bat-like wings, with two sharp prongs moving upward, there appeared to some sort of gem under a metal sheath on the middle of the guard and the handle was covered in a scale like pattern, like that of a snake or any reptile, and the handle was good for either a single or double handed grip. The end of the handle had another one of the serpent heads with it's jaws open and a beautiful gem that seemed to shimmer in different colors of the rainbow. The blade itself was made of a metal that seemed to glow with a silvery white light, mixed with gold tint. The hand grip was also made from pure gold…or something that resembled gold. And the handle itself seemed to be made out of another silvery metal inlaid with gold leaf.

The sword grasped in the armored Priest's right hand resembled the Holy Talon of Faldren, and could pass off as its twin. It was forged from the fang of a Chaos Dragon and known as the Death Fang of Chorvax. The blade was midnight black in the middle while the edges were blood red and there were gemstones in the middle of the blade and there were saw like teeth in the middle of the edges. There was a dragon head that gripped the base of the blade with two fang shaped prongs on the sides of the mouth. The hand guard had a wing design with spikes on the top of the hand-guard. The handle was long, showing that it could be wielded in the same way as the Holy Talon of Faldren, either in a single hand or both. The handgrip was in a scale-like pattern, but were blood red mixed with black and bone white. The pommel was a Dragon claw grasping a human skull that had the mouth open in a scream and had two gems for eyes and the middle of the hand guard had a blood red eye with a black slit in the eye and it was glowing in malevolent fire.

'_Lad_,' St. George spoke cautiously in Shinichi's mind. '_That armor and those swords...they're imbued with unholy and holy energies simultaneously._'

"At the same time?" Shinichi asked.

'_Yes, but such an amalgam of clashing energies should be impossible_,' spoke St. George.

"Not necessarily," said Shinichi, recalling Ichijyo Amakusa. The Vampangel could wield the power of light and darkness, elements considered good and evil respectively. He had met the guy a couple of times and Alan had told him about who and what Ichijyo was.

"Partner, I don't like the looks of this," said Bazel. "Be on your guard."

"You don't need to tell me twice," said Alan as he looked at Priest's armored form. "It just had to be magic," he complained under his breath. At least he had his ring fully charged for this fight.

The Priest made his move as he crossed the distance in a flash. Immediately, Alan threw himself into a roll to dodge the Priest as he came close but compared to the Agent of Order, the Green Lantern was too slow. Sparks flew as Alan blocked the two blades before the Priest withdrew his swords and sent a kick into Alan's gut. In spite of his invulnerability, Alan felt the pain from the blow and collapsed.

"Shocking, isn't it?" the Priest rhetorically asked in a calm yet mocking tone. He crossed both his swords and drew them back to strike Alan down only to spin around and block the Sword of Ascalon as it went for his neck. He held Shinichi back with the Death Fang of Chorvax as Alan got up and swung the Kusanagi at the Priest's unprotected flank. Steel met steel as the Kusanagi met with the Sword of Faldren.

"Two on one? Hardly seems fair," said the Priest. "Let's equal the odds."

Now, Shinichi was not a stranger to splitting oneself and making copies but he was surprised when Priest's two toned halves split down the middle before becoming whole themselves. the black-clad, Death Fang of Chorvax wielding Priest shoved Shinichi backwards with a punch while Alan had his hands full with the silver-clad, Holy Talon of Faldren wielding one. Sparks flew as the four swordsmen furiously battled it out for supremacy. Chorvax Priest rushed at Shinichi with his sword glowing with a dark red light. He thrust the sword forward but met with the barrier formed by the Shield of Glen and was pushed back. Shinichi then thrust his sword into the air and called, "Bring Order to the Chaos! St. George!"

Using a punch infused with his Kryptonian strength and the power of his ring, Alan drove Faldren Priest backwards before gripping the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and raising it into the air. "OK, if we're all going to fight in armor, then I might as well join the party!"

"Now you're talking, Partner!" shouted Bazel enthusiastically as the Armor of Bazel formed over Alan's body, changing him into the Sentinel. Shinichi was illuminated as pieces of armor fell upon his body. Showa was clad in his knight-like Ascalon Form armor.

"Ikuze," said Showa as Sentinel nodded. The two dashed towards their opponents who charged at well. White angel wings burst out of Faldren Priest's back as he took to the air with Sentinel shooting towards the sky to engage him. Sparks flew as the Death Fang of Chorvax and the Sword of Ascalon clashed violently, their wielders filled with the intent to kill.

"Shakkaho!" Showa shouted as he fired the energy ball which Chorvax Priest dodged. Chorvax Priest charged up his own attack as his horns glowed. Showa, seeing this, immediately evaded by using Shunpo, as the energy beam from the enemy horns flew harmlessly through the air. Landing a distance away, Showa pointed his fingers at Chorvax Priest as he fired his spiralled energy blast at him with a cry of, "Makankosappo!"

Chorvax Priest, seeing the beam coming, did not dodge as he raised the Death Fang of Chorvax. The energy attack, instead of being deflected, was absorbed by the Death Fang of Chorvax's blade. Showa was stunned as Chorvax Priest grinned. "A blade forged from the fang of a Chaos Dragon has the ability to absorb demonic energy, amplify it, and...SEND IT RIGHT BACK!" He swung and sent a amplified blast of Youki straight towards Showa. Holding his ground, the Rider thrust his left hand forward and formed the protective energy dome provided by the Shield of Glen. The energy splashed against the dome before dispersing. The dome dropped and Showa used Shunpo as Chorvax Priest blurred from sight. While they were unseen, the sound of their clash was still heard as the two were locked in combat. The sound echoed all around the area.

Sentinel fired his heat vision at Faldren Priest who dodged his attacks with ease. Frustrated, he fired multiple energy beams from his ring which pursued the silver-clad villain. However, once they were about to hit, he wrapped his wings around himself and spun in place, deflecting the beams. Unfurling his wings, the Priest swooped towards Sentinel with the Holy Talon of Faldren. Gripping the Kusanagi tight in both hands, he blocked the blow. The two swords shone and then repelled one another, driving both wielders back.

Faldren Priest raised his sword then spun it in a circle, creating shining afterimages of the blade. Then, with a forward thrust the after images flew towards Sentinel. He deflected all but one which cut into his shoulder, through the armor, and he gritted his teeth.

"The Holy Talon of Faldren is capable of cutting through any material with ease, no matter what form of enchantment augments it, even armor such as yours," boasted Faldren Priest. "It's no wonder this sword is so precious and valuable."

"You know, I'm getting tired of listening to you talk," said Alan. "So I'm going to shut you up." He formed a second blade with his ring and wielded it along with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He flew fast, like a rocket, shooting through the air and cutting across the distance before swinging at Faldren Priest. He blocked the green energy sword, which broke as expected, and parried the Kusanagi. However, Sentinel's right fist touched his stomach.

"Have a taste of GREEN WILLPOWER!" roared Sentinel as he unleashed all his ring's remaining energy in a single blast. The blast engulfed Faldren Priest. Once the blast subsided, Faldren Priest was unscathed. "Huh?"

"Almost got me, but your powers are useless against me in this form." said Priest. "And speaking of which, you're just a phony."

"A phony?" Sentinel repeated, shaken by how easily the Faldren Priest was able to shake off his attack.

"First, your Kryptonian abilities," said Faldren Priest. "You didn't earn them or born with them. You only got them because a super-villain was stupid enough to spill nanites on you. As for you emulating "The Doctor", well that's just you trying to delude yourself into thinking you're as great as he is, but you're still just a pathetic little boy."

Sentinel fired his ring at Faldren Priest only for his attacks to be absorbed. "Those attacks are just an annoyance to me. The big one was most impressive, but it was just a waste of time. Why don't you use your Quantum power, or are you afraid you might destroy the city if you lose control?"

Meanwhile, back on the ground, Chorvax Priest leapt away to evade from a swing that would've cleaved him in two. "Now, time to show you why the Death Fang of Chorvax is the ULTIMATE blade of darkness!"

He dashed towards Showa, thrusting his sword forward to stab Showa in the heart. Showa activated the Shield of Glen to defend himself only for Chorvax Priest to vanish from sight. His eyes went wide and he spun around to block an attack, only to discover that it was only an afterimage. Chorvax Priest had moved so fast and was now right behind Showa. Not fast enough to defend himself or dodge, Chorvax Priest stabbed him right in the back.

"ARGH!" Showa screamed as he was stabbed. Chorvax Priest withdrew his sword and kicked Showa away.

"All that power in your hands and yet it's nothing compared to me," mocked Chorvax Priest. "Now, it's time we ended this."

Sentinel and Faldren Priest were still fighting when Sentinel heard his brother's scream. "Shinichi!" he shouted.

"Partner, watch your flank!" shouted Bazel and Sentinel blocked a strike from Faldren Priest.

"You don't seem to realize the truth," said Faldren Priest.

"And what truth is that?" Sentinel asked.

"That all your efforts will eventually be in vain and destroy this world!" Faldren Priest snapped. He lectured, "You fight, and fight, and fight, but even if you defeat your enemies, they either come back stronger or something else fills the void they left behind. Each enemy stronger than the last! It never ends, does it?"

"We protect the world! That's what we do!" Sentinel shot back.

"You know what your greatest sin is?" Chorvax Priest asked Showa as he stood shakily. "You turn all your friends and loved ones into weapons."

"I never did that!" Showa denied. "I didn't turn them into weapons...I made them into heroes..."

"And even with eyes that can see far distances and notice the smallest of details, you are still blind," Faldren and Chorvax Priests both said to their opponents. "How sad. I pity you."

Showa and Sentinel gripped their weapons, trembling with rage as they prepared for their opponents' next move.

"It is time we ended this fight," Faldren Priest started.

"And bring about balance and order," Chorvax Priest finished.

Using the magic of their swords, the two Priests blinded their opponents for a minute, giving the Priests the opportunity to strike. With lightning speed, they placed their left hands onto the heroes' chest. The instant they did this, both Alan and Shinichi cried out in pain from the burning sensation as not even their armors could protect them.

Unable to endure the pain any further, Showa unleashed a burst of flames from the dragon head mounted on his chest to push Chorvax Priest back several feet. However, the damage was already done as Shinichi dropped to his knees as his armor shattered with the Sword of Ascalon lying at his side.

Meanwhile, Sentinel was going through the same pain, even after Faldren Priest had withdrawn his hand. He then knocked Sentinel to the ground, his Bazel Armor shattering before he crashed to the ground, making an imprint on impact as cracks spread out all around him. He had one hand on his chest as he felt like he was burning on the inside.

The two Priests became one again as the armor disappeared. They landed on the ground and looked at the defeated brothers. "This shall be the end for you and every other 'hero'. Only when you die will the poison of your existence be removed from this world."

The Priest vanished as both Shinichi and Alan lost consciousness.

* * *

Yuji, as the Blue Comet, was flying around the city. Earlier, he'd just foiled several break-ins, a mugging, and prevented a rape as well as attempted murder. It seemed like a good night for the blue-clad scion of Hope. That was when he looked down and spotted Alan and Shinichi, lying unconscious below. "What?" He went down to check on them. Scanning them, he saw that they were injured. "Guys!" he ran towards them. Suddenly, he heard something and he used his ring to bring up a barrier. Something slammed into it and he saw that it was a demonic disembodied arm with glowing yellow runes all over it. "What...the...?" The arm vanished into black smoke which began to surround Yuji. "OK, what the hell is going on here?"

"Looks like patience does beget rewards," Priest said as he appeared before Yuji, his demonic arm reattached. "Yuji Fudo, also known as the Blue Comet and formerly known as Kamen Rider Liger."

Yuji didn't know who this freak was, dressed like a Rare Hunter, and exuding some kind of creepy magical aura. However, he could already guess that whoever this guy was, he was responsible for Alan and Shinichi's conditions. "OK, what did you do to my friends?"

"I decided that they should be taken out of the equation to preserve balance," said the Priest, smiling at Yuji. "You're like the Green Lantern too. You don't belong in this world. None of you do."

"I already know I don't belong here," Yuji rebutted. "Only reason I'm here is because people I care about live here. So thanks for stating the obvious, dumbass. Now then, how do you wanna do this?"

"I will start by cleansing this world of your presence, virus," the Priest sneered as the magic circles were summoned and he drew the sealed states of his Holy Talon of Faldren and Death Fang of Chorvax.

"Oh, now that's a good trick," Yuji acknowledged, maintaining his barrier. "So, let's see what you can do, tough guy!"

The Priest dashed forward, swinging his swords while the Blue Comet blocked the blades with his forearms. While the blades hadn't cut his arms, the impacts from the Priest's power was surprising for the Lantern as he could feel his arms shake a little. Yuji gripped the Priest's wrists and reared his head back, coming in with a headbutt that made the Priest recoil before retaliating with a headbutt of his own. The second impact made both fighters recoil as they shook the ringing going through their brains.

"Shit, what's that skull of yours made of...?" Yuji groaned as he held his head steady. The Priest didn't give an answer as he charged for Yuji's vital areas, targeting the throat, heart, and forehead. His thrusts were fast, his arms a blur, as he alternated his strikes, stabbing at Yuji with furious determination and ferocious resolve. The Blue Lantern was able to follow his opponent's movements, evading each strike by mere inches. The Priest then did a backflip, his heel slamming into Yuji's jaw as he made some distance between himself and the Manakyte. "OK, you're good," Yuji affirmed, "I'll give ya that."

"I thank you for the compliment. However, that does not change the inevitable outcome of this bout," said the Priest as he spun his black sword in his hand. He was spinning it faster and faster, until it looked like a black disc. He then hurled it at Yuji, the blade spinning at breakneck speed as it sliced through the air straight at Yuji.

"FUCK...!" Yuji cried as he ducked the blade, looking back to see it changing course and returning. "Wonderful... Power check," he whispered.

"_Power levels at 89%_," his ring reported.

"Better conserve then," he nodded.

"The Blue Light of Hope," the Priest began. "I guess it chose wisely for you to be its wielder. No matter how unfair life turned out for you, you held onto the hope that it would be better." The Priest caught his returning sword. "But where was that hope when Rosa was dying in your arms? Where was that hope when your dear beloved Yumi died? Where was that hope when a child lost her mother? You see, no matter what you say or do, the truth is that your ring and all your powers, as impressive as they may be, are merely a crutch. Without them, you'd be nothing," the Priest mocked.

"Well, I've learned that shit happens," Yuji explained. "Yumi ended up dead cuz I was still a weak little kid. And I couldn't get my ring to work for a long time, so using it to save Rosa was no go. In a nutshell, you gotta take the good with the bad. There's never a straight line in life, so I might as well keep driving." He continued, "As for you, you're pretty interesting. I haven't run into many chaos beings during this career of mine."

"Chaos? You must be mistaken. While I do wield the Death Fang of Chorvax, I also wield the Holy Talon of Faldren. I never wield one without the other. Chaos and Order are the two most absolute forces of the universe, and only when united will there be balance. However, that is not true yet as there are elements denying the balance," said the Priest.

"I mean the whole Light and Darkness thing," Yuji clarified. "I think I've only met like...maybe five until you? You're probably the sixth."

"Well, then let make me the most memorable," said Priest as he raised his swords and cut two linked circles of light that became a magic circle. It shone upon him, donning him in his two-toned dragon armor, gripping the true forms of the Death Fang of Chorvax and Holy Talon of Faldren in his hand. "Hopefully, you'll prove more of a challenge than the Sentinel and the Rider."

"Oh, that is so awesome!" Yuji clapped as he hovered with his legs crossed. "I'm starting to like you, dude. But you hurt my buddies, so I can't let that shit slide..." Yuji whipped out Featherine's brush and twirled it around. It grew and extended, changing shape into the Crimson Dragon Spear. "Too bad this kinda clashes with my look."

"_Daddy, now's not the time for a fashion review,"_ Veronica called, _"That guy is coming back..."_

Lunging at Yuji, the spot he'd jumped from exploding from the force of the jump, the armored Priest swung downward at Yuji with Faldren. Yuji parried with the Crimson Dragon Spear only to be blinded by a sudden flash of light from the Holy Talon of Faldren.

"OK, that hurt a bit..." he groaned as he shook the spots out of his before getting kicked in the face and flying into a wall. "That hurt too..."

"Is this all you can muster? Is this the strength of the man who defeated the Witch of Terror & Wiraqocha Rasca?" the Priest questioned, seemingly unimpressed. "How shameful."

"To be fair, that wasn't even his real form," Yuji countered, "I think I would've had a harder time against the real thing. Secondly, I'm holding back cuz I don't feel like razing this town to the ground, genius. Oh, and I'm having too much fun to get serious. By the way...we're alone." The Priest looked around, seeing that Shinichi and Alan were nowhere in sight. Either they had regained consciousness and fled as they were still weakened from their bout with the Priest or they had been found and rescued by other parties. "Yeah...can you say 'distraction'? It sucks that a good fighter like you is working for guys like whoever you're hooked up with."

"I am simply fulfilling my duty and responsibility of bringing balance to the world," claimed the Priest as he crossed his swords. They ignited, golden flames enveloping the Holy Talon of Faldren and dark violet flames enveloping the Death Fang Chorvax. "When Chaos and Order collide, Balance is achieved!" He swung and arches of flames soared towards Yuji. "By the name of Chorvax and Faldren, may these flames purge this world of what corrupts it!" He didn't just sent a couple, but a complete flurry at the Manakyte.

"Shields to max..." Yuji muttered as he guarded himself against the furious flurry of flames. His ring responded to his hope and he hoped to survive and win this fight.

"That ring cannot protect you forever, Yuji Fudo!" the Priest spat as he continued his onslaught. "Not even your friends could stand up to me! What hope could you possibly have? Haven't you already lost everything?"

'_No, I haven't_,' thought Yuji in disagreement. He still had the girls, he still had his adopted daughters, and he had Misato and his daughter Yuna. He kept going because of them. In spite of all the horrible things which happened in his life that would've forced him to break down in despair, he held onto the hope that things would get better. Even if the world was a horrible place and turned against him, he would always be hopeful. That was what Rosa and Yumi would've wanted.

The Priest switched tactics and went with the direct approach, ceasing his attack. Closing the gap between himself and Yuji, he smashed the Manakyte's defence to pieces with his swords. Yuji counted and with a swing his spear's blade sliced off the Priest's left forearm. Dark blood splashed the ground they stood on as the arm went flying along with Chorvax.

"Looks like you've been _disarmed_," Yuji teased.

"_Daddy, that was in poor taste,_" Veronica told him.

Momentarily stunned, the Priest began to laugh. "'Disarmed'? Yes, indeed I have been disarmed. However, that does not mean I have been defeated quite yet, Yuji Fudo."

Suddenly, the arm that Yuji had cut off flew and struck Yuji in the chest with its palm. Yuji was sent skidding backwards, painfully. He had a coughing fit as the wind was knocked out of him. The disembodied arm then turned to smoke which joined with the stump of Priest's left arm, reforming into his demonic appendage. He flexed his fingers as he regained his arm. From a magical circle, he drew the Death Fang of Chorvax out again.

"Oh, right," Yuji remembered earlier. That disembodied arm had attacked him earlier. He should've seen it coming.

"Your carelessness and foolishness will be your downfall," the Priest claimed.

"Hey, Priest. You called me a virus, right?" Yuji questioned.

"Indeed, because your presence is polluting this world," the Priest answered.

Yuji's eyes turned dark as he growled, ferally, like a beast, "You haven't seen anything, _yet_...because I'm about to rock you...like a hurricane." With a roar, he caused blue flames to encircle him, rotating rapidly until the flames formed a funnel around himself. While those who did not know might assume this was a violent surrender via self-immolation, it was anything but.

The funnel rose into the air, becoming a pillar of flames that could touch the sky. The funnel was now a spinning tower of flames with Yuji at the very centre, the eye of this firestorm. The Priest watched as the pillar itself began to change. To think Yuji had this level of mastery with pyrokinesis. This had to be his most powerful move yet if he ever saw one. So intense was the heat, that the ground beneath Yuji's feet was melting.

The pillar of flames began to morph, taking a serpentine shape. The Priest could make out a reptilian head with horns and glowing white eyes. He also saw wings, and thin legs tipped with claws. He knew of Yuji's devotion to the Crimson Dragon, but to think he could replicate the shape out of his blue flames to form his own Azure Dragon.

The Priest prepared to defend himself as the Azure Dragon came at him. He ignited his mystical swords and prepared to counter this.

* * *

The entire fight and its outcome was being viewed in the Meta-World by Beatrice, ES-Battler, Lambdadelta and Bernkastel. It was the usual room for them, eight sided with a chair to each wall of the room. Only four of the chairs were occupied.

"Hah, that's my boy!" Beatrice cheered as the blue-flaming dragon completely devoured the Priest. It was the most brutal and amazing thing she had ever seen. It appeared her adopted nephew had once again saved the day.

"Now that was awesome!" agreed ES-Battler just as excitedly as Beatrice.

Lambdadelta bit her napkin, frustrated that she had lost a bet. However, Bernkastel remained impassive. She looked neither upset nor happy. Her only response to the events she had just witnessed was to simply drink her tea.

* * *

Yuji watched the flames intently as he suddenly felt a pain in his chest. He recalled that the Priest had struck him in the chest during the fight earlier. "OK, he got one good hit in," he muttered as he spat a bit of blood from his mouth. "I was right, that guy doesn't play games..." While it appeared that he'd defeated the Priest and driven him away with that Azure Dragon attack, he had a strong feeling that it wouldn't be the last he'd see the Priest and that he would see the masked man in black again in the near future. Guys as strong as him never stayed down for long, if at all. At best, Yuji had only temporarily driven the Priest away.

Thinking back to Shinichi and Alan, he hoped that the two of them had gotten away. They did not look like they were in any condition to fight. The burning sensation in his chest continued to bother him as he took off to return home.

* * *

Once Alan had gotten home, he lamented that the night had not gone so well for him. The young Lantern wasn't the type to accept failure and defeat quite easily. The Priest had been a frightening opponent. He'd practically dominated him and Shinichi. What more, he was still out there. A threat like that couldn't be allowed to roam free. Alan swore he would defeat the Priest next time and put him away in the Vault where he wouldn't threaten anyone again.

Alan suddenly hissed in pain as he felt a burning pain in his chest. He clenched the front of his shirt tightly. He dragged himself to the bathroom and lifted up his shirt as he faced the mirror. His eyes went wide as he saw strange black markings that were made up of runes, taking the shape of a spider, tattooed on his chest.

"What...is this...?" Alan questioned.

"It doesn't look good, Partner," said Bazel. "It doesn't look good at all."

"But what is it?"

* * *

"OK, did I get drunk and get myself some fucking weird ass tattoo?" wondered Yuji out loud as he saw the mark on his chest. Whatever it was, he knew he didn't have it before and it was at the exact spot where the Priest had struck him earlier.

Just by looking at it, he knew there was something wrong about it.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi was experiencing similar pain. Earlier, he and Alan had regained consciousness. They had discovered at the time that the Priest was fighting with Yuji. As neither out of them were in any condition to fight, they had reluctantly decided to withdraw and hope for the best while watching from a safe distance. Yuji was strong and could take care of himself. However, Shinichi couldn't help but be worried for his friend whom he had left to face the Priest by himself. Unfortunately, the injuries they had sustained fighting the Priest would only cause them to be a hindrance to Yuji. Fortunately, Yuji had been able to defeat the Priest and send him running.

The burning sensation in Shinichi's chest caused him to grunt in pain. Just what was causing it. Entering the bathroom, he took off his shirt and checked the mirror. When he checked in the mirror, he found that he too bore the same mark as Alan did on his chest. "What is this? What does this mean?" He didn't remember ever getting a tattoo and even if he did he wouldn't choose such a design.

St. George manifested in astral form as he spoke, '_I don't know, but it looks to me like the mark of a curse, Lad_,' said St. George.

"A curse? What kind of curse?" Shinichi questioned.

"_Death_."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: With the three most powerful heroes literally marked for death, it is only a matter of time until the final end. Will evil win? Will darkness triumph? Or will hope, truth, justice and light prevail?**

**Now, info on our new villain... "The Priest"**

**The Priest's identity is shrouded in mystery. He believes his mission is to bring balance and order to the universe filled with chaos. He wears a black cloak with gold trim and under this he wears a black, leather coat that is closed and reached down to his knees. He wears black pants and black boots. His entire left forearm appears demonic as it is made of black and red flesh with gold runes on the surface and black fingernail. His right arm remains normal. On his face he wears a two-toned black and white mask which covered all but his mouth and chin.**

**The Priest wields the DeathFang of Chorvax, an unholy blade forged from the fang of a demonic Chaos Dragon. He also wielded the Holy of Talon of Faldren, a sword which represented order. Unlike the Death Fang of Chorvax, the Holy Talon of Faldren was forged from the talon of a Light Dragon.**

**The Holy Talon of Faldren: It has two edges and the blade was at three feet in length and it had strange markings on the middle and there were small gems on the middle as well in regular intervals and the base was surrounded by two strange serpent-like beasts that then covered the flat of the blade on either side. The hand guard was made in a way that the hand guard resembled bat-like wings, with two sharp prongs moving upward, there appeared to some sort of gem under a metal sheath on the middle of the guard and the handle was covered in a scale like pattern, like that of a snake or any reptile, and the handle was good for either a single or double handed grip. The end of the handle had another one of the serpent heads with it's jaws open and a beautiful gem that seemed to shimmer in different colors of the rainbow. The blade itself was made of a metal that seemed to glow with a silvery white light, mixed with gold tint. The hand grip was also made from pure gold…or something that resembled gold. And the handle itself seemed to be made out of another silvery metal inlaid with gold leaf.**

**The Death Fang of Chorvax: The twin of the Sword of Faldren. The blade was midnight black in the middle while the edges were blood red and there were gemstones in the middle of the blade and there were saw like teeth in the middle of the edges. There was a dragon head that gripped the base of the blade with two fang shaped prongs on the sides of the mouth. The hand guard had a wing design with spikes on the top of the hand-guard. The handle was long, showing that it could be wielded in the same way as the Sword of Faldren, either in a single hand or both. The hand grip was in a scale-like pattern, but were blood red mixed with black and bone white. The pommel was a Dragon claw grasping a human skull that had the mouth open in a scream and had two gems for eyes and the middle of the hand guard had a blood red eye with a black slit in the eye and it was glowing in malevolent fire.**

**The Priest also has a special ability to mark his victims with a Cursed Seal of Destruction on their chest which will kill them within 100 days. However, the seal's effect will also accelerate if the marked victims use their special abilities which would fuel the seal, killing them faster. The Cursed Seal is invisible except to those possessing it and individuals who possess magical ability. Only the Priest has the ability to remove the Cursed Seal of Destruction.**

**Note: The swords' designs were based on Holy Talon and Death Fang from Freedom Guard. Credit goes to him for the creation of these amazing swords.**

25


	183. The Legacy of Cain Part 127

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 127: The Invasion of the Green Lantern Corps!?**

Jersey City originally had one hero protecting it, the Legendary Jersey Devil. The female vigilante was later joined by another that the media had started calling the 'Fantastic Phoenix Enforcer'. It was actually Yuki but since they had started calling her 'Phoenix Enforcer', she had adopted the name as her superhero identity. The name had officially stuck since then.

When Jersey Devil (Rhea) and Phoenix Enforcer (Yuki) arrived to the scene of the disturbance, they found that the police were sprawled on their backs in agony. The odd thing about the scene was that they had all turned grey like they had lost all their color.

Jersey Devil knelt down and gently picked up one of the cops. "Who did this? What happened?"

"Some…crazy…British…freak…" the officer groaned. "Calls himself…" He coughed before losing consciousness. The Jersey Devil gently let him down.

"Crazy British freak?" Phoenix Enforcer repeated.

"That is I!" The two heroines looked up and spotted, floating in the air, a man clad in a grey tailcoat with matching grey pants, shirt, bowtie, top hat and a monocle. He also had a handlebar moustache and was sipping from a cup of tea. In his other hand was a cane tipped with a grey stone. "EARL GREY!"

The two superheroines blinked.

"Earl…" began Jersey Devil.

"…Grey?" Phoenix Enforcer finished.

"Indeed I am, and now I shall finish with this city and turn everyone dull and grey!" Earl Grey tossed his teacup to the ground and it exploded. The heroines shielded their eyes and then saw Earl Grey escaping.

"He's getting away!" said Phoenix Enforcer.

"Not if I got anything to say about it," said Jersey Devil as she spread out her cape into wings and her jetpack activated. She flew after the villain as Phoenix Enforcer summoned her wings and followed after her.

"GaoPhoenix," said Phoenix Enforcer as she drew her Gao Dagger. "Are you ready?"

"_Always_," answered GaoPhoenix from the gem lodged in the dagger.

"What's this?" Earl Grey looked over his shoulder to see Jersey Devil pursuing him. "Well, my dear, it seems to me like you could use some teabags!" He reached into his pocket and spun around to toss the teabags at Jersey Devil. They exploded and she was blinded by tea powder. She coughed as some of it got into her mouth. She flew out of the cloud of tea powder and looked around for Earl Grey. "Where are you hiding?"

"Who's hiding?" questioned Earl Grey as he hovered above her. Suddenly, he ducked as a whip of fire swung over his head. "Hey, that's my favorite hat," he snapped angrily.

Phoenix Enforcer sheathed her dagger and collected ice energy into her hands. "Time for some _iced_ tea," she quipped. She fired an ice beam at Earl Grey and he used his cane to generate a shield of energy to block. However, Jersey Devil took this chance to hit him in the back with her battle staff, sending him falling. The two heroines landed as he picked himself up.

"Bravo, ladies. Bravo," he applauded. "But can you deal with my butlers?"

Earl Grey's henchmen were dressed as butlers and cracking their knuckles before they rushed at the heroines. Back to back, Jersey Devil and Phoenix Enforcer fought back as Earl Grey watched. He sat down on a nearby bench, poured himself a cup of tea, and sipped while holding the cup with his pinky out. "Ah, nothing beats watching a show with a nice cup of tea."

Jersey Devil knocked out the butlers while Phoenix Enforcer froze them to incapacitate them. They then focused their gaze towards Earl Grey who'd just finished his cup of tea.

"Well, looks like it's up to me then. If you want things done right you have to do it yourself," said Earl Grey as he picked up his cane and fired a grey beam. Phoenix Enforcer and Jersey Devil somersaulted out of the way. Reaching into her utility belt, Jersey Devil withdrew her boomerang and hurled it at Earl Grey. She knocked the cane out of his hand. "No!"

Phoenix Enforcer saw the cane fall and fired an ice beam, freezing it in a block of ice. Earl Grey removed his diamond edged monocle and tried to break his cane free. "No! My Power! I was going to make this city dull and grey like me!" Jersey Devil grabbed him by his collar and lifted him up before punching him in the face, knocking his hat off his head. Phoenix Enforcer then grabbed his arms and put them behind his back before using her ice powers to craft handcuffs.

"And we've caught the bad guy," finished Jersey Devil as she dusted off her hands. She noticed Phoenix Enforcer being silent and not in her usual way. "What's wrong?"

"Something's wrong..." said Yuki as she whispered, "...Onii-sama..."

* * *

Alan, Shinichi and Yuji were sitting together in the Meta-World, the octagonal tearoom to be exact with their shirts off. The Endless Witch Beatrice was examining their tattoos. Being a witch who'd lived for over 1,000 years in the Meta-World, she would have knowledge about the strange marks now adorning their chests. Although, Beatrice just might be using the markings as an excuse to ogle three fine male specimens.

The witch was studying the markings closely with a magnifying glass. The Priest had done this to them with a single touch. Shinichi had been told by St. George that it was a mark of death but they needed to be sure.

With a sigh and a frustrated growl, Beatrice stood up to full height and spun the magnifying glass in her hand, turning it back into her pipe. "I'm sorry, boys. But there's no way I can remove those Cursed Seals."

"But you're the Endless Witch, Auntie B!" Yuji exclaimed, shocked that there was something even she couldn't do. She always bragged about being the most powerful witch in existence, cackling about it all the time. She even made her husband acknowledge her talents.

"That I am, but the Priest here is no mere mage either," said Beatrice.

"So, what exactly can these Cursed Seals do?" Alan asked.

"They'll kill you," she said bluntly. "And kill you dead within 100 days."

"Well, you can just bring us back to life then," said Yuji. Endless Magic could do that and Beatrice shook her head.

"Not even my Endless Magic would be able to bring you back to life, I'm afraid," she told him. "And even if I could, I wouldn't be allowed to either." There were higher forces at work.

"This is bullshit!" Yuji snapped and he received a bonk on the head with Beatrice's pipe. "Ow!"

"Language!" she scolded.

"So, you can't remove them," said Shinichi.

"Not without killing you instantly. Those seals are made to kill you instantly if you attempt to remove them or try to tamper with them" she said with a snap of her fingers. "Just like that."

"There's more, isn't there?" Alan asked.

"Yes, the Cursed Seals' effects will also accelerate if you use your powers as well, shortening the days before your ultimate demise. So don't be surprised if you're down to just a handful of days if you use too much of your powers," said Beatrice.

Now this was what the Priest wanted to do. He wanted to teach them a lesson. He wanted them to despair as using their powers would kill them. They had always relied on their powers to protect innocents but now their powers would become their undoing.

"I can't let Rena see this rging," said Shinichi. "She'll ask questions."

"So, you're not freaking out about the 'die in 100 days' or the 'die faster if you use your powers' thing?" Yuji asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"If she sees it, she'll ask, and I can't lie to her. You don't wanna lie to her," Shinichi answered.

"Fortunately, the seals are only visible among those who possess them and those who wield magic," said Beatrice.

"Well, I guess that leaves me out then-"

"Tsukuyomi and Satan," Yuji and Alan supplied.

"Oh, right. Damn," Shinichi frowned.

Alan could already imagine how Amora would react if she saw the mark. She would hunt down the Priest who'd done this to him. He looked to Yuji who also looked depressed. A tattoo would be his end. Not exactly the end he envisioned.

"For now, I advise you three not to do anything strenuous until I find a solution that won't kill you. I might need Teacher or Featherine-sama for this," said Beatrice.

"Or better yet, we go and kill the fucking asshole who did this to us," Yuji countered. He got whacked in the head again. "Auntie B!"

"Language!" she scolded again.

"Sorry," Yuji apologized.

* * *

The three young men returned from the Meta-World, back where they started.

"Well, that wasn't much help," frowned Shinichi. He expected that someone as powerful as Beatrice could help them but she couldn't which was a let down. "Hey, Yuji, can't you conteact Featherine?"

"She calls me, not the other way around," said Yuji. "And even if I do call, she'll answer when she wants to answer."

"Well, that's just great," Shinichi said sarcastically.

Alan added, "For now, let's avoid distressing our loved ones."

Yuji slammed his fist into a wall angrily, leaving cracks on impact, "Dammit!" It wasn't fair. After all he'd done he was going to get his life taken away by a dumb cursed tattoo!? He had a family now, beautiful women who loved him, his wife, his daughters. Now he was going to be leaving them within 100 days or less. "I'm going to kill that muthafucker..." Yuji growled, swearing to exact pure revenge on the Priest.

"Normally, I wouldn't agree to murder..." started Alan. "But I think that we need to protect all our loved ones as well. If this Priest can mark us, he can mark the others and they wouldn't be able to stop him either."

"Yeah, you're right. But how do we find him?" Shinichi asked. They all fell silent as they realized that they had no clue when and where the Priest would resurface next. He was probably laying low for now. They could only hope that they could defeat him when he showed himself again. Then, maybe, they would find a way to destroy the Cursed Mark of Destruction on their bodies.

* * *

"**Nothing beats a clean base~!**" the Pink DALEK said in a sing-song voice as it was using a vacuum cleaner. Faust and DALEK Shiro were watching the pink 'abomination' do its work.

"Didn't you destroy it?" Faust asked DALEK Shiro as they both watched the Pink DALEK as it was performing chores.

"**I did**," said DALEK Shiro. "**However..."** his dome turned so that his eyestalk was pointed at the DALEK cloning chamber which had created his colorful clones, "**The machine had other ideas and rebuilt this one**."

"Your machine has a mind of its own?" Faust asked.

"**I set it on automatic to replace any of them when they get destroyed**," DALEK Shiro remarked. "**But I think the universe just likes to screw with me. Besides, if I can't exterminate it, I might as well put it to work**."

"As a maid," Faust added. The Pink DALEK was wearing an apron along with a maid's cap. The Pink DALEK then glided towards them. "Where did it get the apron and cap?"

"**In an old closet. He cleaned them up before putting them on**," answered DALEK Shiro.

"**Is there anything else you need cleaning up, Supreme One?**" the Pink DALEK asked DALEK Shiro.

"**The, um...there's some dusting that needs to be done over...**_**there**_**,**" the White DALEK pointed to the far left of the room.

"**Yes** **indeed, but I think I could clean up the mansion upstairs. So much dust and so many cobwebs. Not to mention the lawn needs mowing and everything**," the Pink DALEK said.

"**Don't touch the property!**" snapped the White DALEK. "**It's abandoned and it's supposed to be a mess! Cleaning it up would raise suspicion!**"

"**But-"**

"**Just go! Dust! Over there! Clean!**" DALEK Shiro ordered and the Pink DALEK glided away. DALEK Shiro's gunstick was trembling as he aimed it at the back of the Pink DALEK but then gave up as he hung his eyestalk. "**What's the use? The chamber would just make another one anyway...**" He then saw the Pink DALEK return. "**Didn't I send you away?**" he asked in annoyance.

"**You did, Supreme One, but remember how I told you I wanted to incorporate more positive reinforcement techniques in our review sessions?**" The Pink DALEK asked.

"**For the last time,**" DALEK Shiro groaned in annoyance, "**Me calling you a 'worthless turd' is not a review session!**"

"**And**," the Pink DALEK continued, "**Remember how you said any proposals had to be submitted in handwritten triplicate, with no less than one hundred pages?**"

"**Yes, which would take weeks to-**" DALEK Shiro trailed off with a sigh. "**You're finished, aren't you?**"

"**Only if calligraphy's okay**," the Pink DALEK replied as he showed his claw holding a dossier as thick as a textbook. "**And I dotted all the i's with hearts. Tee-hee-hee!**"

"**Must...resist...urge...to...exterminate...**" grunted DALEK Shiro as his gunstick trembled.

"I don't know which is more amusing," said Faust. "That such a DALEK exist or that it was derived from an aspect of your personality."

"**Don't remind me**," groaned DALEK Shiro. "**So, is there a point to your visit?**"

"Yes," said Faust. "Our leader told us that there is an event to occur soon."

"**What kind of event?**" DALEK Shiro asked curiously.

"He didn't say, but he did say that this will tip the scales for us."

"**Oooh. Tipping the scales huh? Does that mean we are going to bake something that involves scales for measurements of ingredients?**" the Pink DALEK inquired.

"Uh no, I am not talking about that," Faust corrected.

DALEK Shiro was muttering to himself, "**Why? Why me with this DALEK? Why did he have to exist?**" He wondered how such an aspect could have probably existed from within himself. It shouldn't be possible. However, the Pink DALEK's existence couldn't be denied and confirmed that within DALEK Shiro existed the potential to be like _that_. If he wasn't a DALEK he would probably have nightmares.

* * *

**Two Weeks Later...**

Today Alice would be spending the day with Yami. Alice was really starting to take after Yami as she also enjoyed baked goods like her adopted mother. Yami liked taiyaki while Alice found love in chocolate cornets. She even had a cute way of eating them. Whenever she bit into the thin end, chocolate cream would leak out the fat end and so Alice would lick the leaking chocolate before biting again into the thin end, repeating the process until she was done.

Their similarities didn't just end there. Yami and Alice were both artificial beings but they had different natures. Yami had been genetically engineered to become a living weapon and assassin. As for Alice, she was constructed as a bio-android in the image of Gebok's dead daughter. The purpose behind their creation had been evil but they had decided to live life not based on the circumstances of their birth. It was all thanks to Alan Smith.

Nozomu was looking after Adam at home. The tiny wolf yokai was under his protective mother's care and nothing would get past her in order to harm him. He was her most precious thing in the whole world, her greatest treasure. the sight of Adam also excited feelings from the other girls who also wanted a child with Alan.

Daiki was being trained by Amora again and this time the young Earth Manakyte's skills had improved significantly.

That left Alan to take care of Celine for the day so he decided to take Celine and Bishie out on a walk around town. The Ivywhore Pokegirl was happy enough to accept if it meant spending time with her beloved 'Tamer' and daughter.

As they took their walk, Alan carried Celine atop his shoulders as Bishie held his hand. With her human disguise she could blend in but her figure was impossible to hide which resulted in several men giving the extremely busty Pokegirl looks that were focused prominently on her massive mammaries.

"It feels great to be out here," said Bishie as she stretched, taking in a deep fresh of air. She looked up at the sun and smiled, "Fresh air and the sun is shining too." Being a plant-type, she loved sunshine.

"It sure does-mau!" Celine agreed. She was also a plant as well and enjoyed the sunshine. She was still physically and mentally a child even after her metamorphosis which gave her wings and the power of speech. Alan wondered if she'd ever grow out of it. Momo still didn't know much about Celine's physiology. It had been a huge surprise when she'd turned from a giant plant to a human-like infant who loved Alan dearly. Not to mention when she had another metamorphosis, which led to her gaining wings and human speech.

"Yeah, it's really peaceful," added Alan. Since he'd become one of Shishibone's superheroes, crime rates had dropped. That DJ Mikogami still said negative things about the Sentinel but Alan was proving that actions spoke louder than words.

Alan still hadn't told the girls about the Cursed Mark of Destruction but they were starting to suspect something, especially Amora. He was acting odd, in fact. He didn't even take off his shirt whenever they made love and not once had he let the girls in the bathroom to join him in the bath or shower. He didn't want to worry them and had been waiting for the Priest to reappear but so far it seemed like he was laying low and just waiting for Alan and the others to die.

He got a call on his ring. "Excuse me," he told Bishie and Celine. "Hello?"

"_Alan! Alan!_" Lala sounded frantic.

"What is it, Lala?" Alan asked.

"_Look at the TV!_" Lala cried.

Alan blinked. He, Bishie, and Celine were walking by a TV store as they spoke and something that would forever change the world was about to happen.

* * *

Meanwhile, Shinichi and Yuji were down in the Hive's garage doing some vehicle maintenance. The NEO-NUMBERS were all there for physical maintenance and Shinichi had just been checked out by Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam. As they were both scientists, and non-magical, they could not see the Cursed Mark of Destruction on his chest. Shinichi couldn't tell them without providing any proof and it would just cause them to worry and work on a problem with no solution, except to find the Priest. Two weeks earlier, Shinichi had asked Sheila to keep her eyes open for any new appearance on the Priest.

"Have you told anyone about your mark?" Shinichi asked Yuji as he was working on his D-Wheel. Shinichi was working on his own bike as well, not that he needed to, but it was still his bike nonetheless.

"Nope," said Yuji. "But I have a feeling Melanie feels something's wrong. Misato too."

"Misato's always been sharp," said Shinichi. "And I hate lying to Rena-chan."

Yuji cocked an eyebrow, "You've been lying to her."

"Yeah, but how can I tell her without worrying her?" he asked, sighing. "I mean even if I ask Rika-chan or Hanyuu-chan to help, they'll tell Rena too. I mean I dunno even if Tsuki-chan or Amaterasu-san can help with these seals."

"I know, it's a huge drag," Yuji scowled. "How long has it been since you used your powers?"

"Two weeks," Shinichi admitted. "Two long weeks," he grumbled.

"Well, I got my ring-"

"Lucky you," Shinichi interrupted.

Sheila called, "_You two should head up to the Main Hall. There is something you need to see._" She sounded very alarmed.

"OK, Sheila," said Shinichi as he and Yuji stopped what they were doing and headed up, wondering what was so important.

* * *

It was all over every television screen in Japan. Everyone was watching and wondering what it meant. The message was being repeated, over and over, to let it all sink in. On the screen was a man dressed in green robes with blue skin and tufts of white on the sides above his ears. He was sitting at a desk and had his hands folded in front of him.

"_Attention cattle of Earth_," spoke the man on the screen. "_I am Ganthet, Guardian of the Green Lantern Corps and their leader._"

"What the hell is this?" questioned Shinichi.

Daichi snarled, "Why didn't our satellite pick up on these guys before they landed?!"

"I don't know!" shouted Yokoshima. "Wait, did he say he was part of the Green Lantern Corps? Like Alan? So, doesn't that make him a good guy?"

"_Effective immediately, you all answer to a new ruler: __**Me**__._"

Chiaki looked at Yokoshima, "Does that answer your question?"

"_Now that our advance scout, the Sentinel, has charted a path for us, an act of supreme loyalty to his brothers for which we are eternally grateful…_"

"Bullshit!" barked Shinichi. "This is just like what happened when the GIN-SHOCKER footage got leaked! Someone is setting Alan up!"

"_The interstellar power of the Green Lantern Corps claims this world as our own, as we have done with thousands of planets before yours. In one short afternoon, my soldiers have captured the beachhead you call Shishibone City. Imagine what we will accomplish by the time this mudball orbits its sun seven more times._"

"These bastards are trying to take over the world…" growled Shogo. "Everyone, get ready to move out!"

"We can't!" Yokoshima cried out. "Our Teleportals are still down!"

"What!?" Shinichi shouted. "When!?"

"We had them shut down for maintenance," said Dr. Magi. "It'll be awhile before we can get them back online."

"Kuso!"

"Where is this broadcasting from?" Shinichi asked.

"We're working on it," said Dr. Magi as he and Dr. Washam were working tirelessly at trying to find where 'Ganthet' was broadcasting his message from. Sheila also lent her assistance and the Hive Satellite was scanning the entire planet.

"Almost..." Dr. Washam muttered as he typed furiously on the keyboard. "And... THERE!" Dr. Washam shouted. "I found where that bastard is!"

"And we've got a visual too!" said Dr. Magi.

There was a massive alien warship in the skies above Shishibone City and it was deploying what appeared to be flying tanks. The vehicles descended upon the city and once they had landed, that was when the destruction happened.

Buildings were destroyed by blasts of energy expelled by the tanks' energy cannons. The tanks weren't the only things deployed though. There were hundreds of them, clad in matching green body armor that bore the insignia of the Green Lantern Corps. They also wore helmets and covered their faces with black visors. They wielded rings that fired beams of green energy.

Buildings collapsed and people fled, screaming from the chaos and destruction. Not to mention, the authorities were powerless. The army was summoned but even their weapons were no match for the might of the GL Corps.

* * *

"_We command unimaginable power. Each of our soldiers is equipped with the most powerful weapon in the universe. We are the GREEN LANTERN CORPS! We are INVINCIBLE! There is no one who may challenge us. As of now, we place our brand upon you. Know it. It is the symbol by which the Green Lantern Corps shall be forever remembered by the human race._"

* * *

Having descended from his warship, Ganthet stood in the middle of a giant Green Lantern symbol that was scorched into the earth with green flames. His entire body was clad in a suit of formfitting green armor, covering every inch of his body in powerful metal that was forged to resemble a well-toned human body. The upper and arms and upper legs were colored a lighter shade of green, but still green. Extending from the torso armor were broad plates of armor. Flaps of armor also hung from the sides of his waist. On his chest was the symbol of the Green Lantern Corps.

**BEGIN MUSIC: SUPERMAN THEME (by John Williams)**

After the message, Alan had sent Bishie and Celine home. This was an emergency and they needed to be someplace safe. Lala had a force field generator so it should be able to keep the boarding house and all its residents safe in this moment of crisis. The invasion had yet to reach the area where the boarding house stood but it was only a matter of time before it spread from the city to the residential areas nearby.

"Partner, you have any idea what's going on?" asked Bazel but he got no response. "Partner?" He could feel his partner's anger.

Alan floated high up in the sky, his face contorted in anger. In a flash of green, he donned his uniform, his cape billowing behind him. With his supervision, he found exactly where Ganthet was, waiting for him. He then shot towards Ganthet like a green comet.

As he launched towards the impostor Guardian faster than a speeding bullet, he only uttered two words, "_Like Hell_."

* * *

"I'm going," said Shinichi as he went outside. He had the power to get to Alan quickly. As he was about to transform, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned and saw that it was Yuji. "Don't stop me."

"Have you forgotten about your fancy new tattoo?" Yuji whispered, pointing to Shinichi's chest.

Shinichi argued, "Alan's out there, practically alone. No matter how strong he is, he's my little brother. And in case you've forgotten, he's got the same tattoo."

"Which is why _I'm _going," said Yuji as blue light wrapped around his body, forming into his Blue Lantern uniform. "I don't think using my ring counts as me using my powers." He hovered on the spot and gave a salute before shooting off into the sky.

* * *

On his way to confront Ganthet, Sentinel saw the 'Green Lantern Corps' attacking innocents, killing anyone that got in their way. It was just horrific to see these people, pretending to be his fellow corpsmen, killing in their name. It made him sick. This was not what the Green Lantern Corps stood for.

These fake Green Lanterns were not only equipped with suits of power armor which allowed them to fly but also rings which fired green lasers. And that was just part of their arsenal. They even had mobile tanks which fired blasts of destructive green energy from their cannons. Even more so, mounted on the front of the tanks was the symbol of the Green Lantern Corps. To Alan, this was a huge insult as it was a great dishonor to the symbol that represented justice in the universe.

He shot at the 'Green Lantern Corps' and they saw him coming. They fired at him but he deflected their blasts before he crash-landed before them, sending them flying with the shockwave. They attacked and he fought back, sending them flying with powerful punches and kicks.

He heard a child cry and looked to see a little girl on her knees behind a car as one of the tanks was rolling towards her. Knocking away the Corpsman with a fist of green energy, he flew at the tank which was about to fire.

Sentinel tore the Green Lantern symbol off the tank's front and used it as a shield to defend himself from the energy blast, putting himself between it and the child behind him.

Meanwhile, Keima Shiraishi was taking pictures of the event and his camera lens was focused completely on the Sentinel. "Oh man, oh man!" he exclaimed as he took picture after picture. "Even if I die right now, at least the world will get to see the truth!"

The tank stopped firing and Sentinel dropped his makeshift shield before he smashed through the tank, taking out the drivers before throwing them to the ground. They groaned and were about to react and fire at him until he bashed their heads together, knocking them out.

Alan looked to the little girl and grimaced. He really couldn't fight and protect her at the same time. Fortunately, the decision was made for him as Keima dashed out of his hiding spot and picked up the child. Sentinel blinked but then smiled and nodded in approval. Keima nodded back as he carried the girl to safety. With the fake Green Lanterns' attention focused on Sentinel, they wouldn't care about anyone fleeing the scene.

Sentinel had scanned the army and discovered one thing. Only about 200 of them were real people, flesh and blood. The rest were just very realistic hard-light constructs. He didn't know where these people got this kind of power or technology but he had a suspicion.

The burning feeling in his chest caused him to hiss in pain. The Cursed Mark of Destruction was reacting again, reminding him of the dangers of using his powers. He ignored the pain and took off to take out the rest of the Corpsmen and their tanks.

* * *

Yuji, aka the Blue Comet, was firing at the Corpsman that were attacking him. As soon as he saw them, he knew they were just fakes. After all, if they were real Green Lanterns his ring would've boosted their powers just by being in close proximity. Hopefully, using his ring wouldn't jeopardize his health and cause the Cursed Seal to react, slowly killing him. Technically, he wasn't using his powers but the ring's power instead.

"C'mon you losers, give me all you got!" Yuji shouted, challenging them. They were mocking Lanterns just by existing, by going against what the Green Lanterns symbolised, and he was going to make them pay because of it.

The fake corps members charge toward him but screamed in pain as Yuji constructed a thick whip covered in spikes which he used on them to send them all flying in agony.

Three of them tried to shoot at him from a distance but the Blue Comet easily dodged their blasts and countered by forming a large ball of chain, the chain wrapping around their torsos tightly. "Nighty-night," the Blue Comet said as he sent blue electricity flowing through the chain to knock them out.

* * *

Life-threatening or not, Shinichi wasn't going to stand idly by and let Alan fight on his own. He was going to help his little brother out. So, with his powers he summoned the Tsukumogami and merged them to form the Showa Guardian Jet. He put on his Black Skull mask and rode atop the jet like a hoverboard before flying full speed towards the city.

Onece in Shishibone airspace, he was detected by the Green Lantern forces. They fired at him and he retaliated by firing kunai missiles at the Green Lantern Corpsman in his path as he screamed, "OUT OF MY WAY!"

"_Yeah, what he said!_" said AI-Shin who was attached to the Guardian Jet. AI-Shin began to fire blast after blast of laser fire at the fake GL Corpsmen, rapidly taking them down. One tried to get in close but got a face full of laser for their trouble. "_Boom! Headshot, bitch!_" shouted AI-Shin triumphantly. "_I AM SHINICHI BANABARA, AND YOU WILL FEAR MY LASER FACE!_"

"One: don't say my name! Two: don't get too excited! And three: don't use too much energy!" Black Skull advised as he flexed his fingers. The Shield of Glen was on, charged and ready. He hissed as the Cursed Mark was causing him pain but he ignored it with one single thought, '_Ignore it. Just focus on the fight._' Even if the seal was sapping him of his life, he would go down fighting.

More of the Corpsmen were coming at them from all sides. Seeing no other way out, he summoned paper cranes and sent them flying. The paper cranes struck the Corpsmen, exploding like bombs, and knocking them out of the air. Hopefully, their armored suits would protect them from the fall. It was very high up. Again, he felt a burning sensation on his chest which intensified but he ignored it in favor on focusing on fighting the Corpsmen, assisting his brother.

* * *

Daichi watched in agitation as he crossed his arms. He hated being on the sidelines and not being part of the action.

"I'm going," he said.

"But the Teleportal is down," reminded Yokoshima only for Daichi to flick his nose.

"You idiot, have you forgotten about your wife?" questioned Daichi rhetorically. Yokoshima blinked. Daichi put his palm over his face. "Leviathan, do you mind giving me a lift?" In a flash of gold, Leviathan appeared and smiled at her boyfriend.

"Certainly," said Leviathan and she wrapped her arms around him before vanishing in a flash of gold along with him.

"...Oh," Yokoshima realized. "Ano, Asmo-chan?" he called and she appeared.

"Here I am, Yoko-kun!" beamed Asmodeus.

"I'm going to need a lift and get to Shishibone fast," said Yokoshima.

"But Yoko-kun, can't you already fly? You got your Blue Beetle armor," Asmodeus informed him.

"...Oh, never mind then," Yokoshima replied, embarrassed by his absentmindedness again. "Guess I'll head out."

"It's fine," said Asmodeus as she took his hand. "I'll take you." She kissed his cheek before they vanished in a flash of gold together.

"Aren't you coming?" Shogo asked Chiaki after he called Lucifer.

"I'm going to help get the Teleportal back online," said Chiaki. "You go."

"Alright," said Shogo as Lucifer took his hand and they vanished in a flash of gold.

Zero, Blue Beetle and Musician would be in Shishibone fighting against members of the Green Lantern Corps. While their actions would not be seen in this chapter, one can always guess how well they did in defending the city. Between the Blue Beetle's firepower, Musician's sonic blasts and Zero's stingers, the Green Lantern Corps proved not to be a match against these three cyborgs.

* * *

All around Sentinel were the ruined wrecks of the tanks and the unconscious bodies of the Green Lantern Corpsmen he'd defeated. Kneeling over one, he whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver and flashed its light over one. He used it to remove the chestpiece and perform further scans on the power armor. "Thought so," he murmured, confirming his suspicions. It was Earth tech. Even if it was advanced, it was still Earth tech.

Suddenly, there was an explosion of green fire and Sentinel whirled around to look.

"What could've caused that?" Bazel wondered aloud. Sentinel was about to answer when his ring interrupted.

"_Life form detected,_" the ring reported.

"Is it hostile?"

"_Yes_," the ring confirmed.

Sentinel stood up and turned to face who the ring had detected. It was the man claiming to be Ganthet and he smiled before his helmet's faceplate closed to mask his face. The faceplate had thin slits for his mouth and eyes and possessed no other features, like the blank face of a Cyberman.

Sentinel glared at this man who claimed to be a Guardian of the Universe. For one thing he was too tall. Also, the Green Lantern Corps stood for peace and justice, not control and dominance. These people were fakes, impostors, and he was going to set things right.

Sentinel rose up in his Bazel armor, his cape billowing behind him with his face contorted in anger and outrage. Clenching his fists, he then shot towards Ganthet like a green rocket. Ganthet saw Sentinel charging towards him. But instead of showing panic, he just raised his hand and snapped his fingers. Appearing almost out of nowhere were GL Corps members who quickly moved in front of Ganthet to protect him from Sentinel. They unleashed a barrage of lasers at Sentinel who quickly formed a barrier that deflected the beams. opening two almost small holes in it he fired his own heat vision at them making the fake GL Corps members to scream in pain.

"It's bad enough you freaks try to frame me and make me look like some alien scout for some massive invasion, but besmirching my corps and the only good guardian I know, that's low." Sentinel growled "Oh and FYI, if you're going to impersonate, you're going to have to be MUCH shorter." He finally broke through the wave of the fake Corps members and delivered a punch to 'Ganthet', who screamed as he was sent flying backwards. However, the armor absorbed the force of the blow and protected him. It was good thing that the suit was calibrated to handle the Sentinel's strength. Sentinel took aim and fired a blast of emerald energy at Ganthet, which missed as Ganthet dodged it.

"Hah, you missed!" jeered the fake Ganthet, sounding like he was smirking under his helmet. "My turn! Let's see you handle this!" His shoulder guns popped out of the armor and extended before they fired burst of explosive green energy at Sentinel.

Seeing them coming, Sentinel drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and with a series of precise swings he was able to neutralize and absorb the energy from each of the bursts. This surprised Ganthet as he was not expecting the Sentinel to be able to absorb those burst.

"Nice trick, now check mine out," Sentinel shot back as he swung the sword, hitting Ganthet back with the energy he'd absorbed with the sword. Sentinel's ring glowed and he created several flying skulls with sharp teeth. They snapped their jaws and flew straight towards Ganthet. He raised his arm to fire but one of the skulls shot out a long tongue which wrapped around the arm. Ganthet struggled to free his arm but the gauntlet was ripped off with ease, exposing his arm. Before Ganthet could process what had happened, the other skulls rammed into him and exploded, blasting him backwards. He cried out in pain as he went tumbling.

Sentinel crushed the gauntlet and strode towards Ganthet who was trying to regain his bearings. Recovering quickly, Ganthet aimed his remaining gauntlet at Sentinel and fired a pillar of green flames at him.

To his shock, Sentinel walked through the flames, his face set in a sneer. When he reached him he raised his hand and grabbed Ganthet's gauntlet in a vice-like grip. Ganthet screamed in pain as he could hear his bones cracking with the gauntlet being crushed.

"Let me go! Let me go!" Ganthet shouted.

"If that's what you want," said Sentinel as he released Ganthet before blasting him into the air with an uppercut. He then used his speed to reach Ganthet in the air before landing a kick that smashed the armored man onto the ground. Ganthet flipped onto his back and saw Sentinel coming at him. The symbol on his chest glowed and he fired a burst of green energy that slammed into Sentinel before swallowing him up. The energy attack lasted for a few more seconds before stopping and Ganthet saw that Sentinel was no longer in sight. He climbed back to his feet and grinned.

"Hah, I beat him. I totally vaporised him," Ganthet claimed.

"Is that what you think?" Sentinel spoke behind Ganthet and the armored blue man spun around as Sentinel's hand shot out. His fingers penetrated the chestplate around the symbol as Sentinel told him, "You don't _deserve_ to wear this symbol!" He tore the symbol off, damaging the armor further as the area around the cavity crackled with electricity. Sentinel crushed the symbol in his hand and aimed his ring-wielding hand at Ganthet.

"In Brightest Day, In Blackest Night, no evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil's might, beware my power, Green Lantern's light," Sentinel recited. He spoke the oath with such strength and conviction and Ganthet could only stare at the ring which was inches in front of his face. With just a single though, Sentinel could blast his head right off his shoulders. Sentinel, however, withdrew his right hand and punched Ganthet with his left, knocking the helmet off his head. The helmet, now dented, rolled along the ground, Sentinel then kneed Ganthet in the stomach and caused him to double over in pain before collapsing onto his knees.

Whipping out his Sonic Screwdriver, he pointed it at the man's blue face and the paint ran down his face, revealing him as a Caucasian male and not a blue-skinned alien like the Guardians of the Universe. Then again, Sentinel knew he wasn't a Guardian when he first saw him on screen. He was the wrong height after all. Too tall.

* * *

Mr. Black had been watching from afar, a cigarette in hand. "Looks like I expected far too much after all. Time for me to pick up the slack."

* * *

"Look, there's their ship," said Black Skull as he found the warship.

"_Cool!_" said AI-Shin. "_Let's go in there, hook me up, and blow it to-_"

The warship suddenly exploded and the shockwave caused by its sudden destruction shattered the Guardian Jet, sending Black Skull falling out of the sky, hugging AI-Shin for dear life. However, the shockwave had knocked AI-Shin out and now the both of them were falling.

However, the timely save of a blue energy bubble prevented Black Skull from turning into street pizza. Shinichi took off his mask to see the Blue Comet (Yuji) looking at him disapprovingly.

"What? He's family," said Shinichi as he defended his actions.

Blue Comet shook his head, not knowing whether to be proud that his friend was ready to help his brother or berate him for doing something so reckless.

Yuji asked, "How are you feeling? Did your Cursed Mark react?"

"Yeah, but it's nothing I couldn't handle. I've felt worse," said Shinichi.

"Come on, I'm taking you back to the Hive," said Yuji as he grabbed Shinichi's arm. "You're going to need some rest and let Hana look at you."

"Hai...hai..." Shinichi mock-saluted.

* * *

Sentinel had defeated Ganthet. Despite the strength of the suit of power armor, it was no match for Alan's raw power. The suit was now wrecked beyond repair and Sentinel now had him at his mercy. "You! Did you do all this for money?" Ganther laughed. "What's so funny!?"

"You think we did this for the money!?" spat Ganthet. "You really think we'd go this far just because of money?" To be fair, they had been paid a large sum of money but that was just a small reason for them to do this.

"Then why?" Sentinel questioned.

"Freaks like you shouldn't be allowed to fly around free! You act like you own the place, like you're better than us! You got so much power and it's just a matter of time before you decide that you're so much better than us that you'd try to rule over us and nobody would be able to stop you!" Ganthet ranted. Sentinel frowned at this, knowing there was a kernel of truth to what the fake Ganthet was saying. Absolute power did corrupt absolutely. However, Alan had learnt his lesson in the past.

"Who put you up to this?" Sentinel questioned. Ganthet suddenly froze. "What's wrong?" The man posing as Ganthet then began to convulse violently as his eyes rolled up to the back of his head, blood seeping out of his nose and ears. His eyes had also turned bloodshot. "Hey! Hey!" He went rigid like a board for a moment before becoming limp like a noodle in Sentinel's grasp.

Sentinel heard footsteps and gently set Ganthet down. He turned and saw someone coming towards him. He looked like a middle-aged gentleman, Caucasian, with short black hair and grey eyes. He was holding a cigarette between his teeth. His clothing comprised of a suit of power armor that would protect his body and augment his strength. It was big and bulky, with black upper arms and upper legs. The rest of it was dark blue with the Union Jack symbol across his chest. He applauded.

"And the Sentinel finishes off his opponent for good," said the man. "Amazing."

"You did this," Sentinel accused. The man feigned ignorance.

"Did I? Do you have proof?" the man questioned.

"Not yet, but I'm sure going to get it after I beat you," threatened Sentinel.

The man snickered, "Oh really? You do realize that will paint you in the worst possible light. After all, who are they going to believe? The man with great power who killed his supposed superior or a beat up man saying he did it? But if you're serious, then by all means, boy, show me what you can do." He spat out his cigarette and crushed it beneath his boot before a blue helmet with a black visor that masked his face covered the man's head. "And the name's Black. Manchester Black."

The two charged at each other and drew their fists back for a punch. When they collided, there was a devastating boom as both sides made impact. Once the smoke had cleared, Sentinel stood along, standing in the middle of a wide crater. His opponent had literally vanished.

He knew that all this was only the beginning.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And thus beings and ends the Invasion of the Green Lantern Corps. What would this mean for Alan's future? Can Japan, or even the world for that matter, trust him now after this? Has the RoC's latest plan succeeded?**


	184. The Legacy of Cain Part 128

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 128: Aftermath of the Invasion**

On the Day of the Green Lantern Invasion, the Gaming Club was in Hinamizawa with their families when they learnt about it. Mion had called everyone to head to Shishibone to lend assistance. Unfortunately, roads to the city were closed because of the invasion. Not only that, the Teleportal system was down for maintenance on that day as well.

And that was not the only thing that happened. Both Satoko and Satoshi were confronted by the Priest. They didn't know who he was at first, until he bragged about being able to defeat Shinichi, Alan and Yuji, also known as the Big Three, three of the most powerful heroes the world had to offer. It resulted in Satoshi and Satoko transforming and fighting the Priest. However, no matter what they did he always had a way to evade or counter their moves. He didn't even use any weapons. All he had was skill and that was enough to overwhelm the siblings.

It wasn't just his skill that got to them. It was when he started talking and exposing their deepest, darkest secrets. The Priest seemed to be well-informed. He knew of Shinichi, Alan and Yuji's pasts, their secrets, and their regrets. Now, he was going to verbally expose another person's guilt.

"Would you like to hear a story?" the Priest asked as he ducked from V3's punch and avoided a kick, leaping back to gain some distance. "I think you'd enjoy it. It's something very close to home."

"Not in the mood," said V3 as he glared at the Priest. Riderwoman wasn't too far away either.

"Are you sure? You can actually identify with it. It's all about a family and how the world turned against them," said the Priest. He ducked under a punch and kicked V3 in the back, knocking him to the ground. V3 flipped to his feet and stood up, keeping his guard up as the Priest turned his back to him.

"It's a pity, really," the Priest continued with lament. "They were a happy family once. They had a beautiful daughter and a reliable son. They were what one might call the perfect family."

"And so?" V3 asked, not understanding the point Priest was trying to make. Sounded like a waste of time. It was like the Priest was just stalling with a random story.

"Patience," chided the Priest. "You know it's quite rude to interrupt a story, Satoshi. Oh yes. I know who you are. Who all of you are. Now where was I?" The Priest tried to remember his place. "Oh yes. Now I remember. At first they lived happily enough in their peaceful little village, but then something happened. A dam project that would have destroyed the village was taking place. So, you can imagine how most of the villagers were against it. They didn't care if the government would compensate them. They had their pride and they didn't want to be driven out of the village they called home."

The Hinamizawans knew this story well. It was when their village had banded together and fought the government and the dam project. They had won in the end.

"However, not all were against it, like the family I mentioned earlier," the Priest continued. "As you can imagine, this angered the rest of the villagers, labeling the entire family as traitors and thus treating them horribly even after the dam project was cancelled.

V3 was getting annoyed by the Priest who was telling them their family's story. He remembered how his and Satoko's parents had died and they ended up under the care of their relatives who abused them. They had left that life behind.

"How do you know all this?" V3 demanded.

The Priest continued the story, "Now, their treatment continued for a while. They then left to spend time as a family away from the village. This was also a way for the daughter to spend time and bond with her stepfather. He wasn't the children's first stepfather though. Their mother had divorced and remarried several times, changing their surname as a result; Hatake, Yoshizawa and then some. These marriages never lasted as the daughter could not get along with these men. The mother blamed the child for the ruined marriages. The daughter still didn't get along with her mother's latest husband but the son saw that the man was honestly making an effort to make them a family. Anyway, the trip brought them to a park. I think it was called…Shirakawa Park. There was a viewing platform there with a superb view of the swift currents."

V3 said nothing as he continued to glare at the Priest.

"But tragedy struck while the daughter was asleep in the car. The parents fell off the platform and into the river below. Neither of them survived since it was a long drop and the currents were quite violent. The daughter and son, orphaned, were left in the care of their horrible relatives," the Priest spoke.

V3 now knew for sure it was his family's tragic tale. The Priest hadn't finished just yet though.

"The orphaned son couldn't handle the abuse so he killed his aunt with a baseball bat. He ran, but then he fell into a coma because of his disease," the Priest continued. "Now, going back to the daughter, when she was asked what had happened to her parents, she told that they had fallen off a cliff. Now, how would she have known if she'd been asleep? Maybe she made a logical guess or maybe…"

"What are you saying…?" V3 questioned.

"Well, it's strange that she'd know the details despite being asleep. It might've been a good guess but it wasn't really a guess. She knew because she was there with them at the viewing platform. She lied about sleeping in the car," said the Priest.

Riderwoman looked uncomfortable as the Priest's eyes were locked on her.

"Did you know that LV5 of the Hinamizawa Syndrome actually manifests in two different ways? The first is when the person becomes increasingly and visibly violent, lashing out at everything. The second type of LV5 is when the person infected by it seems calm but is actually filled with hatred and suspicion as well as a good dose of paranoia. Now, imagine if that LV5 was mixed in with the stress of being persecuted and hated by their entire village as well as being blamed for her mother's failed marriages?"

V3 realized what the Priest was getting at and Riderwoman shivered.

She spoke, "Stop it…"

The Priest ignored Riderwoman's plea and said, "She thought that they took her to the viewing platform to kill so she instead decided to kill them first, pushing them off the platform!"

"YOU'RE LYING!" roared V3 as he attacked, punching at the Priest who easily caught his fist.

"Now, I understand if this story may hurt you, but it's the truth I learnt. How about you ask Dr. Kyousuke Irie. I bet he still has the files," said the Priest. He focused his gaze on Riderwoman, "And you, shouldn't you tell your brother the truth after all this time?"

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" Riderwoman screamed as she unloaded her Machinegun Arm on the Priest. He jumped backwards, dodging machine gun fire as the bullets flew past him. He summoned both his swords, the Death Fang of Chorvax and Holy Talon Faldren, and began to deflect the bullets.

"Are you angry because it is a lie? Or angry because I brought up something unsettling?" the Priest questioned. He dashed towards Riderwoman, dodging her bullets and was in range to cleave her with his swords when all of a sudden he was struck.

"Rider Kick!"

"Rider Punch!"

Ichigo and Nigo launched themselves, coming out of nowhere, and struck the Priest in the chest, sending him skidding backwards. The twins landed on their feet and checked on the Houjou siblings.

"Are you OK, Satoko-chan, Satoshi-kun?" Nigo asked.

"Yeah, I guess," said V3 as he glanced towards Riderwoman who seemed shaken. '_Satoko..._'

"OK, you two-toned mask wearing freak! There are rules here in Hinamizawa! Number 1 is that nobody beats up on my subordinates! That's my job!" Ichigo said, pointing at the Priest.

"Mion, be careful," V3 warned.

"I suggest you listen to your friend. It is unwise of you to provoke me," the Priest warned the Gaming Club Riders.

"Oi, don't get cocky you bastard! We obviously got you outnumbered!" Ichigo snapped. Alter, X, Amazon and Stronger were present as well. They might be Pseudo-Kamen Riders, but still Kamen Riders nonetheless.

This prompted the Priest to chuckle in amusement, angering Ichigo further. "What's so damn funny?"

"My dear, you've seen Riders fighting a horde of monsters. You've actually experienced it yourself. So, I find it quite amusing that you think that superior numbers would make a difference against-" He paused as he blurred out of sight, moving so fast that they couldn't see him. He ended up standing behind Ichigo in the blink of an eye. She froze as her body felt lighter and spun around. Blood splattered the ground as she saw that the Priest was holding on her right arm, which had been swiftly removed from her shoulder. He continued, "-someone with great speed and power at their disposal."

Once the pain registered, Ichigo screamed in agony as she dropped to the ground, clutching onto the bleeding stump.

"MION!" everyone screamed in horror. Alter and Nigo rushed forward to help but he intercepted them with both his swords in hand and ran them through the stomach. Both gasped in shock and pain as the Priest cut sideways, leaving nasty gashes in their sides. He sensed Amazon and X coming at his back. He spun around and swatted the two Riders away like flies.

Stronger stood trembling. Unlike the others she could feel and sense energy and the energy she was detecting from the Priest was completely out of this world. It was close to the Yamata no Orochi.

Before the Priest could inflict further harm on them, a Teleportal materialized. Stronger picked up X, V3 picked up Nigo, while an already healed Alter picked up a maimed Ichigo. While picking up Amazon, Riderwoman provided cover fire as she shot at the Priest with her Blaster Arm which didn't do much except slow him down as they ran into the Teleportal which would take them to the Hive. The Teleportal winked out of sight, leaving the Priest alone.

"The rats ran away, but it matters not, for soon our plan to save the world from poison will come," he quoted.

* * *

It was a good thing that the Teleportal system had came back online at that time or else they wouldn't have been saved. Doctor Magi and Doctor Washam were horrified at what happened to Mion and Shion and started treating them immediately. Keiichi's enhanced healing factor as an Agito managed to save him from mortal harm but Shion had lost a lot of blood. Fortunately, they got her to the Hive's medical wing as quickly as possible to be treated in the ICU along with Mion. Her body was stitched and bandaged up, sealing the wound. She would have a nasty scar though.

As for Mion, her entire right arm was gone, torn off by the Priest. Fortunately, Dr. Magi had several backup cybernetic prostheses that might be compatible with her. It took hours to attach the arm to her but Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam were able to attach the new arm to her body. She would need to take it easy for a week.

Rika was pissed off because they had fled from the fight. "Why did you summon a Teleportal, Satoshi!?" demanded Rika. "We could've beaten him but instead you made us run away!"

"Hey, didn't you see what he did!? He gutted Shion and maimed Mion! There was no way we could fight that guy and survive," Satoshi argued. He had called for assistance the moment he knew they were in over their heads. Rena, Keiichi, Satoko and Hanyuu watched the argument from afar with concern.

"But we still could've taken him down and then we could-" Rika continued to argue but Satoshi had heard enough.

"DAMMIT, RIKA!" Satoshi roared, causing Rika to swallow her words and take a step back in fear. "Listen to yourself! We're not stupid! We know we have to stop this guy but Mion and Shion were hurt! They could've been killed and so could we! We might have the power of Kamen Riders and their suits but we're still human! We got limits! Unlike Shinichi and the other NEO-NUMBERS we don't have Spark Cores. That means we only have one life! Just one! If we die, that's it! So, excuse me for prioritizing the safety of our friends!"

Dr. Magi stepped into the waiting room. He'd heard everything. "The patients are resting. You shouldn't be making so much noise."

"Are Shii-chan and Mii-chan gonna be OK?" Rena asked.

"They should be fine, but I want them to stay the night for observation and to get some rest. It's a good thing you got them here on time," said Dr. Magi.

"And what about Mion?" Keiichi asked.

"We replaced her right arm with a cybernetic one," informed Dr. Magi. "You're lucky we had one in stock. We had a lot of those made in case Shinichi ever lost another limb."

"So, will she be OK?" Keiichi asked in concern.

"We've done the hard part. The rest is up to her," answered Dr. Magi. From here on, Mion would need to cope with the fact that one of her limbs was artificial.

* * *

Mion looked down at the arm attached to the right side of her body. She knew it wasn't her natural arm as soon as she saw it. It may look the same but she knew that under the artificial layer of skin was a completely cybernetic limb.

"Hey, Mion," Shinichi said as he came into the infirmary. He'd heard what had happened earlier and freaked out. He was only relieved that none of them had died. Though, they had come close. The Priest was not someone to be trifled with. He saw that she was awake. Shion, on the other hand, was still asleep. She was probably resting due to the anesthesia. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm OK. Just kinda freaked out, that's all," she answered. She joked, "You know, you should've been here earlier. I tried to get a drink of water but I accidentally crushed the glass like it was nothing." She remembered how she had just held the glass but it broke in her grip. "Dr. Magi said he's going to recalibrate it later so I won't accidentally crush someone's hand when I shook hands with them."

"This is all my fault," said Shinichi regretfully, earning a cocked eyebrow from Mion. "I shouldn't have let you kept those powers and armor. I didn't just turn you guys into weapons. I made you all into targets and now this happened." Suddenly, Mion knocked him down with a punch. She had used her new arm and it was very strong.

"Ow!" Shinichi shouted. "What was that for!?" Mion rolled her eyes.

"Whoops, my bad. I meant to hit you with my human hand," Mion joked. "Seriously, Shin-chan. You can't blame yourself for every bad thing that happens. You'll just end up in an early grave with all that stress."

"But…"

"I knew this would happen."

Shinichi blinked in response. "Wait…you knew you were going to lose your arm?"

"Well, no, nothing _that_ specific. But we all knew the risks when we accepted these powers. You gave us these powers so we could protect ourselves," she told him.

"And I ended up turning you into targets," said Shinichi. "Now look at you."

"Shin-chan, we were targets to begin with since we met you, and we never regret it once. At least with these powers we have a chance to defend ourselves," said Mion. "And we were tired of seeing you take all the risks. I mean, we saw you in your coma after you lost all your limbs for goodness sakes!" She remembered that time. It had been horrible. Shinichi obsessive pursuit of revenge had caused him to nearly lose his life. "We wanted to fight by your side because we were tired of sitting on the sidelines. We wanted to help you like you've always helped us. So, don't blame yourself for this and that's an order from your Club President."

Shinichi shook his head and smiled nonetheless, "Hai, Buchou."

"Great, now I'm starving so you should get me something to eat from the cafeteria now, subordinate."

"Hai, Buchou." He paused, "Say, since you're the one with the mechanical arm, how about you and Satoko-chan switch Rider powers?"

"Not a chance," she told him. "This arm is like a battle scar, right? I think I'll be proud to keep it."

"I just hope you don't earn anymore scars," said Shinichi.

"So, how bad is it in Shishibone City?" asked Mion.

"Buildings can be rebuilt easy. However, the people's trust in Alan has fallen," Shinichi informed her.

"Damn it," Mion mumbled.

"I'm sure we'll recover, somehow," he said, but he didn't sound too sure.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the Hive, Satoshi was thinking about the things the Priest had said. Had Satoko been responsible for their parents' death? He couldn't believe it, but the Hinamizawa Syndrome could make a person do crazy things.

But he shouldn't believe anything some maniac said, right? He couldn't believe the Priest over his own sister. Satoko may have been infected by the syndrome like he had but she would never resort to murder, would she?

Satoko was still shaken, either out of fear or anger, or maybe even both. The Priest had been frightening and even maimed Mion, taking one of her arms. He was going to pay for what he did. He had opened old wounds and caused new ones.

Daichi spotted Satoshi in the hallway and approached him, saying, "Hey, I heard what happened. Are you OK?"

"Most of us are," said Satoshi.

"And Satoko?" Daichi questioned.

"Dr. Magi's checking on her right now," answered Satoshi. "That Priest guy really shook her up."

"I saw the footage," Daichi informed Satoshi.

"I know," Satoshi nodded. The surveillance cameras all over Hinamizawa recorded things and sent them to the satellite before sending them back to the bases.

"So, what's wrong?" Daichi asked.

Satoshi admitted, "I just learned something quite shocking and traumatic about her and I think it might be true. I'm just not sure how to handle it."

Daichi replied, "Hm, well I know I'm probably not the best guy to be saying this, but we've all got skeletons in the closet. Hell, your girlfriend comes from a family with a whole bunch of them."

"You've got me there," Satoshi said as he'd seen the Sonozaki's torture chamber himself when Shion had taken him down there.

"So, what's this about?" Daichi asked.

"It's family related," said Satoshi.

"So, what happened?" Daichi asked and Satoshi told Daichi what the Priest had told him. "Ah, I see…Well, in that case, you can't really blame her. She's suffered enough in her life with that bastard uncle of yours and you leaving her alone when you fell into a coma. I say just let it go. You two still got each other and your whole future ahead of you."

"But I went nuts because of the syndrome. Killed my aunt," argued Satoshi.

"You were provoked and it was probably out of self-defense," defended Daichi.

"And what about Satoko-chan and what happened with our parents?" asked Satoshi.

"Well, the Hinamizawa Syndrome does cause hallucinations so you can't always believe your own memories or what everyone else tells you," said Daichi.

"So, no answer then?" Satoshi sighed.

"I'd rather believe that Satoko never did anything wrong," said Daichi. "She's cunning and mischievous but she's no killer. You're not either. Trust me; I know for a fact what a killer is like." Daichi, when he'd been revived by GIN-SHOCKER, had gone to find his sister and killed her. "And if you ask me, I think whatever that Priest guy said to you is just pure bullshit."

"Thanks, Daichi. That means a lot to me," said Satoshi, smiling.

"Just take care of Satoko, OK?" Daichi advised. "She needs you."

"You're right. Oh, and thanks for listening."

"No problem."

* * *

**The Day after the Invasion...**

"Check these out!" Keima shouted as he spread out the photographs on the table. He was in a coffee shop on campus with the Photography Club and showing off the pictures he'd gotten on a day Japan would never forget.

"Sugoi!" exclaimed Fujiko as she looked at each photograph. "Keima-san, how did you get these?"

"That's what I want to know," said Shinichi as he picked up one particular photo. It was of Sentinel using a giant Green Lantern symbol to shield himself and a little girl. "You were there."

"Yeah, I was. Lucky, huh?" Keima grinned.

Shinichi frowned grimly, "You could've been killed. Even Araki was smart enough to head to the emergency shelter when it started."

"I know, it was reckless," said Keima. "But think about it guys! A picture speaks a thousand words! Everyone out there thinks the Sentinel's responsible for what happened but these pictures will tell a whole other story!"

"You plan on selling them to newspapers," Shinichi concluded.

"That's right! I prove Sentinel's a true hero and I get paid as a bonus! It's win-win!" Keima said.

"Ootori, what do you think?" Shinichi asked Ootori. She had passed up her graduate thesis and just waiting for the graduation ceremony. She was just sticking around to hang out with and advise her club members. She even had a job as a freelance photographer.

"Keima's got the right idea. We may not be reporters, but our pictures tell a different story each," said Ootori. She had her life saved by the Sentinel once before. Each of them have had their lives saved by the Sentinel at least once, either directly or indirectly.

Shinichi smiled and looked back at the photographs. These pictures would save the Sentinel's reputation for sure.

* * *

The city was still recovering as buildings were being rebuilt. Buildings that were far too damaged during the attack had to be torn down to be rebuilt from the ground up. Office buildings took the brunt of the attack, leaving many jobless and forcing them to find new jobs. The fake Corps member had vanished after the invasion. Alan knew that it was probably teleportation technology. Whoever was behind the invasion did not want to leave any evidence behind. Even the gathered pieces of the tanks Alan had destroyed vanished.

"Kinda looks like Kyoto after the Orochi thing," said Hana to Michiru as they walked along the sidewalk, watching as a nearby office building was being rebuilt. Across from it was a small ramen shop which had been destroyed as well. The family running it had been killed.

"We never saw it coming," said Michiru. "And we couldn't do anything." The Teleportal system had been down for maintenance that day and getting it back online had taken too much time. By the time it was back online, the invasion was over.

"It was like they were waiting for us," Hana said. "They were waiting for the right time to strike."

"It's a good thing this city has Alan, huh?" Michiru questioned.

"Yes," Hana agreed.

* * *

Shinichi and Rena's apartment building was one of the many residential areas that Alan had saved during the invasion. He'd prevented the tanks and fake GL Corpsman from advancing, taking them down with his super speed. Shinichi and Yuji had also taken down a few of the Corpsmen as well. At the time, Rena had been in Hinamizawa with the others and they couldn't enter the city because the roads had been blocked. Rena was only able to return after the invasion was over.

Rena didn't know about the Cursed Mark of Destruction and Shinichi hadn't found a way to tell her yet. How could he break the news to her without upsetting her? She'd be upset because he'd hidden such an important thing from her.

* * *

Yuji stared at the Cursed Mark of Destruction on his chest in the bathroom mirror. He traced the outline of the seal and grimaced. The Priest aimed to kill him with this mark because he deemed Yuji a threat. Yuji did not know how to feel about that. To be honest, Yuji would much rather not be branded by such an ugly mark, but the Priest did not care. He recognized Yuji's power and potential. He acknowledged Yuji as a powerful adversary, which was why he was branded with the Cursed Mark of Destruction.

He put his shirt back on. It was getting difficult to hide that he had the mark from the girls. Maria was pretty observant and while she did not know what was wrong with her Papa, she knew something was definitely wrong.

"Dammit, I hate this," he growled.

* * *

**One Week after the Invasion...**

One week ago the world had changed. One week ago the 'Green Lantern Corps' had invaded Earth. Fortunately, the Sentinel was able to drive back the invasion. Unfortunately, due to the Sentinel's affiliation with the Green Lantern Corps, the public's trust in him seemed to have fallen. The authorities had even been ordered to bring him in for questioning, to explain himself. DJ Mikogami was even having a field day with this. It was worse than that day the video of the NUMBERS attacking that military base and massacring the soldiers was shown on the news because the invasion happened only recently.

Keima's picture did bring back a bit of the public's trust in the Sentinel, but not a lot. There were still doubts about him and his involvement with the Green Lantern Corps' which had invaded. There was still a public outcry for the Sentinel to show himself and give a proper explanation. They didn't feel like they could trust him completely now but the parents of the little girl he'd saved were grateful to him.

However, Alan had other concerns.

It was also one week ago when Amora had gone missing.

The last time Alan had seen her was in the morning of the day the invasion had taken place. He saw her off at the door as she stepped out to go to work at Topper's Pawn Shop. When the invasion had occurred, he thought that she'd gone home but she never made it back. They waited but after awhile Alan went to look for her. He scanned the city using his eyes, ring and screwdriver. He even asked for Sheila to search for Amora.

No sign of her, dead or alive.

Hours then became days, culminating to a week with no sign of Amora.

She was just gone.

He hadn't slept much since and even if he was a superhuman he was still human. He still needed to rest lest he burnt himself out. But how could he stop and rest? Amora was missing. He needed to find her.

Alan hadn't stopped searching. He was using every item at his disposal to find her. Amora was mystical, so he decided to shake down the...darker parts of the criminal underworld. But so far, he'd come up empty. Someone had them scared. If he had any hope of finding Amora, he needed a lead, and soon.

"Where are you, Amora?" Alan questioned. "Where did you go? What happened to you?"

He recalled the day they had met. It seemed so long ago. She had been on the run from Asgard, a fugitive of her own home when she bumped into Alan. She thought he was cute and might be fun to play with. They spent some time together before Thor arrived for Amora. Alan had refused to hand Amora over to the Thunder God and swore to protect her. However, he had been gravely outmatched against Thor. Alan still refused to stay down and with that act of perseverance and selflessness gained both Amora's love and respect.

Thor had told him, "_Keep her out of trouble, boy_."

Alan had promised Thor, "_I will. And I'll keep her safe. Always_."

But now he'd broken that promise. It was like Jade all over again. He'd failed to protect Amora like he'd failed to protect Jade.

The door to his room opened and there stood Nozomu. She slowly entered, going down on her knees, and scooting over to where he sat before putting his arms around him. "Nozomu..." he murmured.

"It's not your fault," she said.

"I should've checked up on her. I should've made sure she was OK," he said.

"You couldn't have known."

"But I should have!" he snapped. He calmly repeated, "But I should have." He put his face in his hands.

* * *

The next day, Alan managed to drag himself out of bed and force himself to go to school but he still seemed so lifeless, depressed and miserable. Alice and Celine had tried to cheer him up after Amora went missing but even when he was smiling, he still felt torn up inside. Daiki tried to get through to him too but Alan was still wallowing in regret.

The Athletics Festival and School Cultural Festival were coming soon and while everyone was discussing on what to do, Alan just wasn't in the mood. Even if he was the Class Representative, he just didn't feel like participating in class more than he was required.

Megan finally had enough and dragged him out of class and smacked him across the face.

"Snap out of it!" she snapped as he stared at her. "And don't pretend you didn't feel that smack I just gave you! I know you did!"

"But..." Alan began.

"Look, blaming yourself for what happened to Amora isn't going to help anyone," she scolded. "And this is not the Alan Smith she fell in love with, am I right? The Alan Smith Amora fell in love with was a hero, the same hero who saved the city! Not some depressed emo teen who's close to cutting himself." She put her hands on his shoulders and rested her forehead on his chest. "Alan, we miss you."

"But I haven't gone anywhere..." he said.

"No, but you completely block us out," she said. "You've been doing this for a whole week and we know why, but you're not the only one who's worried about Amora. We've all been trying to find her in our own ways. Celine, Daiki, Alice and Adam are worried too." Though Adam was just an infant, even he could sense something wrong with Alan.

"She's right, Partner," said Bazel. "Pushing people back and forming a barrier around yourself isn't gonna help anyone, especially not Amora."

"Bazel, first time I've heard you spoke in a week," Alan remarked as he stared down at his armband. "Must be a record."

"It wasn't easy, but I found ways to occupy myself," said Bazel. "But Green Girl here is right. If you want to help Amora, you need to stop feeling sorry for yourself."

"Yeah," smiled Alan. "You're right."

"Now, how about we go back inside and have lunch with the others?" suggested Megan as she offered Alan her hand. He took it and they turned to the roof exit.

**BOOM!**

A sudden explosion threw the pair into the air before they went tumbling along the rooftop. "Not this again..." groaned Alan. He was so not in the mood to be attacked but at least now he had an excuse to take his anger out on someone. He got up and turned to face the newest super villain who'd come to attack him only for his eyes to widen in shock as his skin lost all color.

"...Amora...?"

It was Amora, but she had changed. She still looked the same, for the most part. The clothes she was wearing were distinctively different from what she normally wore. She was clad in a tight pair of black leather pants with laced up, high-heeled, blood red boots that reached her knees. She also wore a blood red halter top that accentuated her slender and voluptuous figure. Red bands adorned her forearms. Atop her head she wore a horned helm that seemed demonic. Also, the aura around her resembled flames and she was radiating with so much maliciousness that it could be felt by everyone in her presence, Her now red eyes were trained at Alan who looked at her with confusion and horror etched on his features.

She smiled, revealing fangs, and she fired a bolt of magic at Alan. He brought up a shield using his ring but it was shattered effortlessly by the bolt which pierced his chest.

"Alan!" Megan screamed as Alan fell to his knees.

"Today you will die," said Amora before cackling evilly.

"Amora...why...?" Alan was confused. What had happened to her? Had she been brainwashed? Was it mind control? Was she being possessed? Whatever the reason, he was going to save her. He stood up, despite the Megan's protests.

"Alan, don't move," Megan said. "You're hurt."

"It's just a flesh wound," he told Megan. "It's nothing."

"It went right through you!" she insisted.

"It's nothing...compared to what's happening to Amora," he said.

* * *

When the explosion was heard, the fire alarm rang. While most of the students began to evacuate, a group ran up to the roof where the explosion had come from. Leading the way was Lala followed by Yami and Nozomu as they ran up to the roof. Lala threw the door open and gasped as she saw Amora before Alan and Megan.

"Amora!" Lala cried out happily only for Yami to hold her back. "Yami-chan?"

"Look closely. That's not the Amora we know anymore," Yami warned.

Alan stood up to Amora, looking her in the eye. "Amora..." He smiled. She was back. He'd found her. Even if she looked demonic, she was still Amora. "Nice look," he said.

"Is this really the time?" Megan questioned. She couldn't get close because of the heat radiating off Amora's body.

Alan offered his hand to her and said, "Come on. Let's go home." Her response was to strike him across the face, sending him tumbling along the rooftop floor. As if he wasn't hurt enough already. However, this was nothing compared to the pain he felt when he thought he'd lost her. Amora advanced on Alan but was stopped as Megan pulled her back with telekinesis. Unamused, Amora broke free and with a wave of her hand sent Megan flying backwards to crash against the fence.

"Megan-chan!" Lala rushed to the Martian's side. "Are you OK?"

"Just sore," said Megan. "Get help, because Alan's trying to get himself killed."

Nozomu corrected, "No, he's trying to get through to her."

Alan continued to talk, "Remember when we first met? I mean you were trying to use me to protect you from Thor. I didn't hold it against you because we became friends." A blast of magic fire nearly singed Alan if he hadn't dodged it. "Then I asked you out and you said it was the happiest moment of your life."

Amora kicked Alan in the stomach, sending him skidding backwards. Alan got back up and went on, "Amora, I don't know what happened to you. I promise I'll help you, but only if you'll let me. So please." She snapped her fingers and a bolt of lightning struck Alan in the chest, knocking him down to the ground painfully.

"I don't think she's listening!" Bazel exclaimed.

"No, she hears me," Alan argued. "If she didn't hear me she would've killed me with that single bolt." He got up. "She's crying." With his super speed he ran up to Amora and gripped her wrists. She struggled to free herself from his grasp.

"Unhand me! Let go off me you filthy mortal!" Amora snapped.

"Amora, listen to me! I'm sorry! I'm sorry I couldn't protect you, but please let me save you here right now!" He then darted forward and pressed his lips against hers in a deep and passionate kiss. Amora's eyes widened in shock and while she wanted to bite his lips off and rid her of the foul taste in her mouth, something deep within her reacted differently and in a way Alan expected.

She kissed back.

Alan broke the kiss and looked into her eyes. "Amora?" He let go off her wrist.

"Alan...?" she uttered in confusion, feeling dizzy as she put a hand to her head. "What...happened...?"

"You're safe," he said as he caressed her face and hugged her. "Come on, everyone's waiting for you. They've missed you."

Amora smiled and walked with Alan back to the others. However, another party did not want things to end this way.

"_**YOU BELONG TO ME!**_" a demonic voice bellowed in Amora's mind and she screamed out. Alan was shocked as she clutched her head and screamed.

"Amora!" A fiery portal suddenly materialized behind Amora and tendrils of flames wrapped themselves around her, dragging her towards it. "No! Amora!" He grabbed hold of her hand and pulled.

Amora screamed as she was being pulled into the flaming portal, "Alan, save me! Alan!"

"Amora, don't let go! Just don't let go! Just hold on to my hand and don't let go!" he shouted. The others grabbed hold of Alan to help him save Amora as they pulled. However, a dark presence within the portal's other side would not let them rescue Amora. A giant, demonic hand lashed out and grabbed hold of Amora. "No! Let her go, dammit! Let her go!"

"_**FOOLISH, MORTAL! SHE IS MINE!**_" the demonic creature from the other side of the portal bellowed and Amora's hand slipped out of Alan's grasp. He and the others fell and could only watch helplessly as Amora was dragged into the portal.

"Amora!" He jumped for the portal but it closed. "No! No, damn you! Give her back!"He scanned the area with his Sonic Screwdriver. Nothing. There was nothing.

"Rargh!" Alan shouted as he slammed his fists on the floor.

He had failed her, again.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: One cannot appreciate success without failure, but what if the failure was so great that no amount of success would make you feel any better? Now, the real question is, can Amora be saved? You can bet Alan won't give up on her.**


	185. The Legacy of Cain Part 129

**Note: I'm using the 11th Incarnation of 'The Doctor' played by Matt Smith for this chapter. **

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 129: The Amora Rescue Party**

For one week Alan had been trying to look for Amora and just as he found her, she was yanked away from him. It was just so traumatic and since then Alan had kept to himself in his room, not coming out. He blamed himself for what happened to Amora. Even if everyone else told him that it wasn't his fault, he still felt like he could've done something, anything, to save her. Now she was lost, trapped in some hell dimension with a demon who was doing God knows what to her.

The look on her face when she'd pleaded for him to save her was something he would never, ever forget. He'd promised to protect her and just like Jade he'd lost her.

He'd asked for help from Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, requesting an audience with this universe's Asgardian Gods. However, the Asgardian Gods no longer cared for the affairs of mortals. That frustrated Alan but he didn't fault the two demi-goddesses. They had tried and he'd asked them too much. They had already given up part of their divinity to be with him and his brother.

Still, Alan was desperate, and he'd heard stories of an Infernal Merchant who would come to those in desperation to sign a contract with him. Alan wouldn't go as far as sell his soul but he would fight the Infernal Merchant for a chance to save Amora.

Alice opened the door to see her Daddy. With her was Celine. Holding hands, they entered. He was still sitting on the floor. Alice carefully put her arms around her father, hugging him. Alan looked at Alice who looked back at him.

"Daddy, I still think you're a hero," she told him.

Alice didn't care about his failures. She cared about how he would always be there for her and everyone in their family. She cared about her Daddy who had rescued her, time and again.

Alan allowed himself to smile and replied, "Thank, baby girl. That means a lot."

"Me too-Mau!" Celine added, hugging her Papa.

So young and innocent, these two little girls still had faith in him when he'd almost lost faith in himself. Amora needed him to save her and he wasn't doing anyone much good just by wallowing in self pity. Still, he needed a way to get to her.

* * *

Four days since then, Alan hadn't left the room except to grab something to eat or to use the bathroom. Other than that, he barely spoke a word to anyone. Everyone was worried, and that included Shinichi and Rena. It just pained them to see someone so strong reduced to a broken wreck. They had tried to speak to him but he just wasn't paying attention to them. All he could think about was Amora and how he could save her. He needed to figure out a way but the answers weren't coming to him. How could he save her when he didn't even know where to start looking for her?

Alan heard the sound; the simultaneous warping and wheezing which was the most beautiful sound in the universe. He then saw the legendary blue box slowly materializing in his room. The door opened and out came the Doctor.

"Hello!" He was wearing a straw hat and a necklace of flowers, "Or as the Hawaiians would say, aloha!"

"Oh, it's you, Doctor," said Alan, looking up. Normally, he'd be excited to see the man but with all that had happened, he couldn't even crack a smile.

"Alan," said the Doctor as he knelt by his side. "What's wrong?"

"It's a long story, Doctor."

"I always have time for a long story. Go ahead."

So, Alan told him, everything. The Doctor regretted not being there for the young Lantern when he needed him. He'd been through far too much, and lost someone he loved. Even losing one person was more than painful. It was agonizing.

"I promised her," said Alan. "I promised her."

"Yes, I know," said the Doctor as he gently hugged Alan. "You did your best."

"I should've done better! I had the power!" he cried out.

The Doctor then decided that he was going to help. He helped Alan up to his feet and took him into the TARDIS.

"I'm not in the mood for a trip, Doctor," said Alan. The Doctor was trying to cheer him up but Alan didn't feel like being cheered up. He needed a way to find Amora.

"You will for this trip," said the Doctor as he fiddled with the TARDIS controls. "Because you and I are going to go and find her."

Alan's eyes widened. "But how?" he asked. Alan had only caught a glimpse of the realm Amora had been dragged into it.

"We just need to trace her energy signature," said the Doctor as he whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver and with a flick of his wrist the claw at the tip extended and the light glowed green. "She's been here a long time, so everything she's owned and touch has to have a bit of her magical aura imprinted to it. We'll use that to find her whereabouts." He paused. "Hm…that's strange."

"What is?" Alan asked and the Doctor pointed his Sonic Screwdriver on him to get a reading. "Doctor?"

"It's you. You're saturated with her energy," said the Doctor and Alan blushed in embarrassment. He and Amora had a very passionate and intimate relationship. They made love whenever they could, performing physical acts of love quite frequently.

Alan looked uncomfortable when the Doctor mentioned that, "I'd rather not use the word 'saturated'…"

"Whatever the word you want to use, we can use that energy imprint to find Amora," said the Doctor. "Oh, I'm so glad I had that Infinity Fragment installed. It makes inter-dimensional travel a whole lot easier and smoother!" He fiddled with the controls some more and said with a wide grin, "_GERONIMO!_"

As the TARDIS was taking off, Megan entered Alan's room to call him, when she saw the blue box dematerializing.

"Huh?" Megan blinked. What had she just seen?

* * *

The TARDIS materialized in a not so friendly environment. It looked like how many people had pictured Hell to be like, a land of fire and brimstone. The mountains were all volcanoes and they were active as soot filled the air. The temperature was also extremely high, excruciatingly hot. Not exactly a place the Doctor would go to for a vacation.

"I'll stay in here," said the Doctor as he stood at the TARDIS console. He felt guilty about letting Alan go out on his own but he was needed in the TARDIS.

"Good idea," agreed Alan. While the Doctor was a great hero, he would be no match for the horrible creatures in this realm, especially the one that ruled this place without the right equipment. The TARDIS had told them that this place was known as Musphelheim, land of the fire demons. Amora had told her of the nine realms and Muspelheim was one of them. He also knew the name of this land's ruler, the Demon Lord Surtur. He was the one holding Amora captive and he was the one Alan would have to fight in order to save her.

"Here, take these," said the Doctor as he slipped a pair of horned-rimmed glasses over Alan's face. "They'll help me track you, and see what you see as well as hear what you hear. They also act as great communicators." Alan adjusted the glasses.

"Got it," said Alan.

"Now, just keeping the TARDIS parked here is taking up a massive amount of energy. It's like this place is rejecting her so she doesn't like it. That means you're on a deadline. Get back to the TARDIS as fast as you can or else she'll leave without you," warned the Doctor. He didn't want to leave Alan behind but if the TARDIS left there would be no way for them to get out of this hell dimension.

"Understood," answered Alan.

"Oh, and could you give me your Sonic Screwdriver?" the Doctor requested. Alan took it out and handed the device to the Doctor. The Doctor flashed his own Sonic Screwdriver over it and nodded before handing it back.

"What did you do?" Alan asked.

"Software upgrade," said the Doctor simply, smiling. "Now, off with you!"

* * *

"I came up here to call Alan down for dinner but when I got here I saw a big blue box vanish into thin air," said Megan.

Shinichi grimaced, "Did you say a big blue box?"

"Do you know what happened?" she asked.

"Oh, I know, and I know who he's with," said Shinichi. '_Alan, what have you gotten yourself into this time?_' he wondered.

* * *

"OK, ring charged, Sonic Screwdriver ready, and glasses set," said Alan as he smiled at the Doctor. "Like you used to say, Doctor: allons'y!"

"Haven't heard that in a while," said the Doctor as the TARDIS door opened and Alan stepped out into the great unknown.

As soon as Alan took a sniff of the air, he recoiled in disgust. "Rotten eggs...yeah, definitely sulfur." He took out his Sonic Screwdriver and closed his eyes. The Screwdriver had a psychic interface and it was set to find Amora. All he had to do was concentrate on Amora, focus on Amora. He had promised to save her and that was what he was going to do.

* * *

"So, he decided to go on some adventure alone?" Yuji questioned. Shinichi had stopped by the Dragon's Den garage, which was fortunately enough to not get wrecked during the invasion. Though, Yuji wasn't expecting any customers any time soon.

"Yes, and I think I know where he went," said Shinichi. "He's gone to save Amora."

"Well, there's no denying it this time," Yuji replied. "He's definitely your little brother."

"Yeah, I guess you're right, but at least he has that Doctor guy watching his back," Shinichi stated. However, he was still concerned.

* * *

Surtur sat sitting on his throne and through his conjured flames he could see Alan wandering in his realm. The demon Surtur was a gigantic figure, with blood red skin and yellow eyes with curved goat-like horns on his head. He had no hair. Instead he had flames crowning his head and pointed ears. He also had a large, muscular build and wore a black fur in the form of shorts, and a belt buckled by a demonic skull. He wore no footwear and had a lizard-like tail.

"**Ah, it seems that your paramour has come for you**," said Surtur as he looked to Amora who stood at his side. He gently caressed her cheek with his finger. He remembered when Felix Faust had summoned him, asking for his power, and in exchange Felix Faust had given him Amora as a gift. The girl resisted corruption at first but Surtur was able to 'persuade' the Enchantress to see things his way. She was now one of his loyal minions. However, it seemed her conditioning was not complete as she was still able to resist control, even for a little bit.

Surtur called forth his minions, the fire demons of Muspelheim. He commanded them to hunt down the intruder from Midgard and to deal with him accordingly. Those who brought his body to him would be rewarded greatly.

"**Now watch, my dear. Watch as your beloved is torn to pieces**," Surtur said with a sneer. Amora watched the flames as tears fell from her eyes.

'_Alan..._' she thought.

* * *

"You know, maybe coming here alone was not the best idea," thought Alan out loud with some regret. However, there was no backing out now. Amora was counting on him.

"And you're not alone, Partner," Bazel said. "You got me and the Doctor."

"That's true," said Alan. He touched the glasses and said, "Doctor, how's everything? Any hostiles nearby or around me?"

"_The scanner hasn't picked up anything yet but be on your guard, Alan_," said the Doctor.

"How about you?" asked Alan.

"_Oh, the TARDIS' force field and perception filter would be able to keep me safe, and I've got it cloaked too. Nobody will notice it,_" answered the Doctor. "_I'm just watching the gauges and timers to make sure she doesn't go flying off and leave you behind."_

"I trust you, Doctor. You won't leave me behind," Alan said.

"_Uh-oh,_" gulped the Doctor.

"Uh-oh?" Alan repeated. "Why did you just say 'uh-oh'? It's never goof when you say 'uh-oh'. Doctor? Doctor!?"

"_Scanner is picking up several non-friendly entities heading your way_," said the Doctor.

"Several? When you mean several what do you mean?"

"_An army_," the Doctor said. "_It looks like a hundred, give or take a few_."

"Well, I wasn't expecting this to be an easy trip in the first place," said Alan. "I'm gonna put the glasses away and fight so you won't be hearing from me for awhile." He removed the glasses and kept them inside Bazel's hyperspace storage space. He then drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and waited for the horde of fire demons to come. His enhanced vision went into telescopic mode and he spotted them. They were red skinned, bald, with pointed ears, and wearing garments made of some kind of animal fur. They also had slim prehensile tails and were wielding shields along with swords, spears and battle-axes. These were Surtur's offspring and while they did not share their sire's size or strength, they made up for it with ferocity.

"Well, it's party time," said Alan as he covered himself in a coat of green energy and charged at the horde who roared as they saw him and charged right back. 100 to 1 were not fair odds...for the fire demons.

* * *

"How could you let him go alone?" questioned Rena. Shinichi had told her and she was frantic. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi were present too.

"Hey, he didn't tell me what he was planning," Shinichi said.

"Seems like he was influenced by you," said Tsukuyomi. Shinichi was referring to the time he spent hunting down Gebok.

"I had backup," he reminded. "And Alan's not some helpless little baby, Rena. Heck, when he was a baby he wasn't even helpless."

"And he has the Doctor's aid," said Amaterasu. Still, if Alan had been a little patient, maybe Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi could've struck a deal with the Norse Gods. However, knowing Alan, he wasn't going to waste time and wait. He would go and rescue the people he loved, prepared or not, because he knew he longer he waited, the slimmer the chance that he might have to save them.

* * *

Despite their superior numbers, the fire demons learnt that they had underestimated the mortal from Midgard. He was no mere mortal in fact. Possessing strange magic and a mystical sword, he was a match for them in combat. He flipped through the air, striking the fire demons with his sword and dodging their strikes with fluid motion. He was powerful and quick, skillful and resourceful.

"HAH!" Alan aimed his ring and he created a stampede of animals to trample the fire demons. The surviving ones launched fireballs at Alan only for him to put them out with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He wasn't going to kill the fire demons, though. He was just going to knock them out. However, he was going to cause them a whole lot of pain.

**(INSERT SONG: ANYTHING GOES, KAMEN RIDER OOO SOUNDTRACK)**

Putting the Kusanagi no Tsurugi away, he formed claws like Wolverine and began slashing at the fire demons. He used his speed so he could land blows on them. Their blood was spilt as they were taken down. He fired bolts of green lightning, zapping the fire demons.

Next, he jumped into the air and used his ring to create clones of himself, all performing flying sidekicks on the horde. When he landed, he was dog-piled but he formed a construct of the Hulk around himself and sent them all flying with a roar. He pounded his fists, the shockwave causing more of the horde members to lose their footing.

Rising into the air, green flames burst from his body and took the form of a fire bird. He rushed into the horde, defeating even more of their numbers as he performed a flying tackle. They were knocked aside painfully, falling to the ground, incapacitated.

Finally, he rocketed into the air and covered his legs with a green energy drill, making short work of the remaining fire demons. He counted them and put on his glasses again.

Alan reported, "All taken care of, Doctor. Mind checking?"

**(END SONG)**

* * *

Surtur was not amused. He had just witnessed his army being beaten by a mere mortal. Well, this just made things a lot more interesting. He summoned his sword of flames and looked to Amora.

"**Looks like he's eager to be slain, my dear**," he said to her.

'_Alan doesn't know how to surrender. He'll never stop_,' Amora thought. She couldn't verbally answer since Surtur kept her silent. '_Alan…_'

* * *

Alan decided to continue his search in the air. He did have to hold his breath because of the horrendous smell of sulfur. He just hoped he didn't have to stay in Muspelheim any longer than he needed. The Sonic Screwdriver was picking up on Amora and he was getting closer. That also meant he was getting closer to who was holding her captive.

He was going to show Surtur what happened when he messed with a Smith. The realm was vast but at full speed Alan would be cover more ground and find Amora in mere seconds. The Cursed Mark reacted again but he ignored it in favor of focusing on Amora. "Where are you...?" he murmured and then his Sonic Screwdriver made a loud buzzing sound, a sound telling him that he was just above Amora, and her captor.

Alan landed, standing before Surtur who sat on his throne, Amora standing at his side.

"**So, you've come to my realm on your own. How brave, but also very foolish**," said Surtur.

Alan took off his glasses and put them away as he said, "Look, all I came here to do is to bring back Amora. I'll leave after that, I swear."

"**But she doesn't want to go back with you**," said Surtur before adressing Amora. "**Isn't that right, my dear?**"

"No, I would rather much stay with Lord Surtur," said Amora but she was thinking, '_No, it isn't true! Alan, save me!_'

"I know mind control when I see it, so I don't believe a word of it," denied Alan.

"**Are you sure you are not in denial?**" Surtur inquired.

"No, I'm perfectly sure that she's under some demonic mind control and you're the one responsible," said Alan.

"**Do you fear me, boy?**" Surtur asked.

"No," Alan answered.

"**Then why are you sweating?**" the Demon Lord asked.

"Well, I think it's because we're in a hell dimension where the temperature is too high for my comfort," Alan retorted. Surtur's eyes narrowed. This young man showed no ounce of fear or respect for him. "So, could you just give me Amora back and let us go home?"

"**I have a better idea**," said Surtur as he got off his throne. As Surtur rose to full height, Alan realized that he only came up to Surtur's kneecaps. The Demon Lord was tall, much taller than Alan. Bigger too, and much more ferocious. His flame sword appeared, gripped in his right hand.

"I think you should've known it would've come to this, Partner," Bazel said as the Kusanagi no Tsurugi appeared in Alan's hand.

"**LET US DUEL, ALAN SMITH!**" bellowed Surtur and he swung his flame sword at Alan. He jumped up to dodge but Surtur's fist sent him smashing back to the floor. The Demon Lord raised his foot to crush Alan but he deftly rolled out of the way before he was stomped.

Surtur swung at Alan who parried with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. Sparks flew as their weapons 12clashed violently and furiously. Surtur wanted to defeat Alan and crush his soul for daring to challenge him. Alan, however, was resolved in rescuing Amora who was watching the fight impassively. Deep down, however, she was calling out to him, cheering him on to win, to be victorious.

Alan was forced down on his knees as he tried to hold of Surtur's flame sword with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He was straining himself against the Demon Lord's might. As he used his super strength to resist, the Cursed Mark on his chest reacted and he felt the burning sensation in his chest, causing him to hiss in pain. Surtur then kicked Alan across the floor, sending him tumbling. His sword also flew from his grip and landed a distance away.

"Crap!" Alan cursed. He threw his ring hand forward and formed an arm which stressed along the floor, grabbing the sword. He pulled it to him and got back to his feet. He charged at Surtur only for a dark fireball to collided with his chest and explode, causing him to scream as he collapsed. He slowly picked himself up, gritting his teeth.

"**Hm, it appears that she wishes to join the party too,**" said Surtur as Amora hovered at his side. She grinned sadistically and cast a spell. A pillar of fire erupted from beneath Alan's feet, enveloping him. He screamed as he felt himself being burnt alive. The attack ceased and he dropped onto his knees, his body smoking from the fire. He coughed and hissed in pain but he wasn't about to give Surtur the satisfaction.

Amora hovered down to the floor and strode over to Alan. She then kicked him in the face, sending him sprawling on the floor. Surtur sat back on his throne to watch as his servant executed the traitor, making it a slow and agonizing process.

Alan got back up in time to receive a smack across the face from Amora. She then buried her fist into his stomach and blasted him into the air with a magic bolt. She flew up, grabbed his jacket and shocked him with lightning before dropping him to the floor.

Inside her own mind, Amora was trying to resist Surtur's control and regain control of her body, but the Demon Lord's hold was much too strong. So, she was forced to watch from her own point of view as her body assaulted Alan with extreme prejudice. Alan, however, would not fight back and Surtur knew this.

'_Alan, please! Defend yourself! Please, don't let me kill you!_' she cried in her mind.

Alan staggered backwards, holding his hand out to Amora, "Amora, I'm not going to fight you. I could never fight you." She shot another fireball at him and he blocked it with an energy shield but it shattered before exploding in his face. He still wouldn't fight back.

Surtur could only watch in disgust as Alan allowed himself to be abused by Amora. It was sad. He had power, enough power to stop and kill Amora, but he foolishly held back on it and allowed himself to be harmed. Did he really think he could save her? It was just absurd and asinine.

Alan was on his knees, injured, clothes damaged, as Amora stood over him with her palm aimed at his head.

"Now, die!" she exclaimed as she prepared to cast a lethal spell but quick as a flash, Alan got up and wrapped his arms around Amora in a hug. "What!? Unhand me!" She attempted to struggler from his grip. "Unhand me, I say! Release me!" she demanded to be released.

"No..." he told her. "I let you go once. I'm not letting you go again, ever again," he swore.

She called forth her magic and zapped him to force him to release her. However, the opposite occurred as he tightened his hold. He wasn't hurting her, though. His embrace was firm yet gentle. The last thing he would ever want to do was to hurt someone he loved. Even if they turned into his enemy, he would never raise a hand against them.

"Amora...please..." he pleaded. "Remember who you are, what we have, and what we mean to each other..." For love he was willing to give up his life for someone, for love he was willing to endure any pain any torture, and for love he was willing to face impossible odds.

Alan then looked into Amora's eyes and without so much as a warning kissed her deeply on the lips. He'd done this before and it had broken the spell. He was doing it again, in hope it would bring his Amora back to him.

Her eyes were screwed shut, face contorted into outrage, as she struggled to free himself from his grip. However, he would not let go. She slowly began to relax and put her arms around him as she returned the kiss.

Surtur watched, his eyes narrowing. Just what was the mortal thinking? There was no way that would...

"_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHH!_"

...Work?

Amora arched her back and screamed. She threw her head back as demonic hellfire burst from her eyes and mouth. This lasted only for a few moments before she collapsed in Alan's arms, back to normal, but still garbed in the clothes given to her by Surtur. Only now they had turned into her signature green and black. Alan smiled, relieved.

Surtur, however, was upset, disgusted and disappointed in this development. He wanted to see someone die, preferably Alan, but it looked like the Demon Lord would need to dirty his own hands. He rose up from his throne and re-summoned his flame sword.

"**Even though** **you've got the girl, that doesn't mean either of you will be leaving here alive**," said Surtur as he approached both Amora and Alan. It was regrettable too. He wanted to play with Amora before disposing of her.

"Actually, that means it does," said Alan as he slipped on his glasses and tapped the frame. "NOW, DOCTOR!" Alan shouted and he heard the sound of the TARDIS as it began to materialize around himself and Amora. Surtur watched as the blue box appeared before his eyes and roared as he struck it with his flame sword. However, no matter how many times he struck it, the object would not break. The TARDIS' shielding was just too strong.

Inside the TARDIS, Alan sat Amora down on a chair and secured her with a seatbelt before he went to the console to help the Doctor. "Need any help?" Alan offered.

"Flip that, spin that, jiggle that, press that, and pump that," Doctor pointed at various control mechanisms rapidly and Alan did as told. "Well, it's time to blow this joint! Geronimo!"

"Onwards and Upwards!" Alan added as the TARDIS began its exit out of Muspelheim.

Surtur watched angrily as the TARDIS vanished and roared out angrily, swearing vengeance, "**ALAN SMITH!**"

* * *

In the TARDIS, en route to Midgard, Alan spoke, "Well, now I can scratch "Pissed off a Devil King" off the list of weird shit I never thought I'd get to do."

"You keep a list of stuff like that?" the Doctor asked.

"Sure, don't you?" Alan asked. He went towards Amora. He used his Sonic Screwdriver to perform a scan on her but she reached up and closed her hand around it. "Amora?"

"Please don't hold that thing too close. I have a headache," she pleaded, groaning. He smiled.

"Of course," he said as he put the device away and gently embraced her. "Welcome back, Amora."

Amora hugged back and delicately said, "Hold me, Alan. Just hold me." Her ordeal had traumatized her and she needed to be comforted by the man she loved.

"Of course," he said and he carried Amora bridal style. "Doctor, which was to the bedrooms? I need to put Amora down on a bed for some cuddle time."

* * *

Alan gently lay Amora down on a bed and stroked her hair. She opened her eyes tiredly and looked at him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Like I just woke up from a nightmare," she answered as she tried to sit up but Alan gently protested.

"You need to rest. You've had a really rough time," he told her.

"And you haven't?" she retorted, cocking an eyebrow. She remembered everything she had done to him whilst under Surtur's control. "Are you alright?"

"Man of Steel, remember?" he said, grinning. She didn't seem to convinced. "I'll heal, Amora. Don't worry. You just rest up."

"Where are we?" Amora asked as she scanned her surroundings.

"We're in the Doctor's TARDIS," he answered.

"The Doctor? _The _Doctor? The time-traveler who inspired you?" she questioned, wanting confirmation. "The one who sealed Fenric, killed the Mara and is on the Black Guardian's death-list?"

"That's him, and he's the one who inspired me to use my brain before brawn," Alan shrugged. "It looks like we're going to be traveling with him for awhile."

"What about the others? They'll be worried," she said.

"Time machine, remember?" Alan reminded. "Even if it feels like weeks for us it would be like we've only been gone for a few hours to the others."

"If you're sure," said Amora and then she shivered. Alan lay down next to her.

"Need company?" he offered.

"Dreadfully so," she said. After such a traumatic experience, she needed some comforting, and Alan was willing. Moving closer, she kissed him he kissed her back, draping one arm around her, pulling her close.

* * *

Not having heard from Alan and Amora for over an hour, the Doctor went to check up on them. The Doctor seemed to have forgotten about knocking on doors and asking permission for entry when he entered the guest bedroom to see Alan and Amora in mid-coitus.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Sorry! I didn't mean too!" the Doctor frantically apologized as he covered his eyes. "I was not aware that you were busy! Carry on!" He rushed out, nearly missing the exit since he had his eyes covered.

"Well, that was awkward," said Amora as Alan blushed.

"Things are so gonna be awkward between us..." mumbled Alan. Amora traced her finger along the rim of the glasses.

"You know, you don't look too bad with glasses on. Maybe you should keep them."

"I guess," Alan adjusted the glasses. "They make me look smarter, don't they? Plus, I can use them to maintain my secret identity." The last part was a joke.

"As long as you don't wear that silly fez," she added.

"Hey, that fez is-!" she cut him off by rolling on top of him and kissing him deeply. Since she was a goddess and he was a superman, they had a lot of stamina.

* * *

**AUTHOR'S FOREWORD: Alan and Amora end up traveling with the Doctor for three weeks. In that time, they have a lot of fun running with the Doctor.**


	186. The Legacy of Cain Part 130

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 130: DALEKs In Wakanda**

"Hey, Shinichi," Yuji spoke up. He and Shinichi were sitting at the table in a bar in Shishibone City, having beer.

"Yeah?" Shinichi replied.

"Remember when were at that AI holding facility?" Yuji asked.

"Yeah, of course I do. I was there," Shinichi replied. That was where they found and recovered AI-Shin.

"You said that Gebok made those AI from you by stimulating different parts of your brain to gain different results," Yuji went on.

"I know the science, Yuji," said Shinichi, not wanting to be reminded of the torture he went through due to the process that fragmented his psyche so Gebok could perform his twisted experiments. "What's your point?"

"Shiro," Yuji answered. "What was he like the first time you met him?"

"He was my clone," Shinichi answered. "Gebok made him; gave him my face, my memories, and made him believe he was the real 'Shinji Banabara'. He was used to infiltrate our group while I was captured. Killed the NEO-NUMBERS too. I reversed all that." Shinichi looked Yuji in the eye, "Why did you bring all that up?"

"OK, what if Shiro's mind was actually one of those AI?" Yuji suggested. Shinichi blinked.

"You know, oddly enough, that makes a lot of sense. That would explain how he survived even after his Spark Core was destroyed," Shinichi realized. "I never really considered it."

"Because you didn't want to believe he was a dark reflection of you," Yuji surmised. "Yeah, I get that. Sometimes I want to deny Yuri's my brother. The guy's nuts."

"Really? Haven't noticed," remarked Shinichi sarcastically. "But he's mellowed out some since he and Anastasia had Anita." Yuri was Yuji's more violent and unstable brother but still an ally. Anastasia was his wife and had been their enemy. Anita was their daughter. Still unbelievable and scary, but true nonetheless.

Anastasia used to be the Witch of Terror and had been a source of grief for Yuji, Shinichi and Alan. In fact, she had even tried to defeat Alan and Shinichi by trapping them in their ideal dream worlds. She even brought Rosa back from the dead to serve as her minion and even brought back the fallen NUMBERS as her Soldiers of Terror. When Yuji had defeated her, all the Soldiers of Terror save for Misato and Lina were turned into bugs and put inside a bug jar. Misato and Lina, however, ended up as Yuji's Furniture as well as members of his family with the former becoming Yuji's wife and Lina becoming his adopted sister.

Yuri, however, used his abilities to revive Anastasia. Anastasia had lost her powers as the Witch of Terror and reformed. She even had her own yellow power ring which Alan recognized as the symbol of the Sinestro Corps which was powered by fear. There were issues of trust at first but they were resolved.

"Yeah, I still freak out a little whenever I'm left in a room alone with Anastasia," Yuji stated. Shinichi gave him a look. "What?"

"OK, you know how you feel creeped out because your brother's wife once tried to kill us?" Shinichi asked. "That's how I felt after you told me you've been having a secret relationship with Misato."

Misato had once been Shinichi's own teammate, a member of GIN-SHOCKER's NUMBERS. She had been killed by Shinichi, then revived to kill him, only to be revived again as one of Anastasia's Soldier of Terror. This would lead to her meeting Yuji and forming a romantic and sexual relationship with the Manakyte.

"Well, that's different!" defended Yuji. He didn't care about Misato's past. In his opinion, she wasn't that bad anymore. Shinichi wanted to argue that Misato had used Rena as bait in order to kill him once before, but decided against it. It was best to drop the subject before they got into an argument that would ruin their night.

"Alan should be here by now," said Shinichi, looking at the clock. For someone who could move faster than a speeding train he was sure slow. Shinichi had even given him notice about their meeting beforehand.

"Isn't he like 18? How will he get in the bar?" Yuji asked, wondering how Alan was going to get in. Minors weren't allowed entries into bars.

"He'll find a way. Trust me." Shinichi spotted Alan coming inside. "And there he is now."

"Sorry I'm late, guys," said Alan as he sat down. The legal drinking age in Japan was 20 and the bar prohibited anyone under the drinking age entry. However, the Green Lantern had with him a sheet of Psychic Paper which fooled the bartender as it looked like an ID that stated Alan was 21.

"So, what's new with you?" Shinichi asked curiously with genuine interest.

"Oh, you know. Went to a hell dimension, saved Amora, told her about the Cursed Mark of Destruction, then went traveling with the Doctor-"

Shinichi nearly choked on his drink. "Wait, back up! What was that?"

"Traveling with the Doctor?" Alan replied.

"No, before that!"

"Oh, you mean when I rescued Amora-"

"After that!" Shinichi prompted in annoyance.

"Oh, the part where I told Amora about our new tattoos. That's what you meant."

"So you just told Amora about the Cursed Seal of Destruction?" questioned Shinichi.

"Kind of hard not to while we were wrestling between the sheets in the TARDIS," Alan said. Amora had seen it when she had removed his shirt (ie: torn it off) and he had told her the truth. She became upset and wanted to hunt down the Priest and to demand for him to break the Cursed Mark. However, the Priest was a person who kept a low profile and off the radar.

"I told the girls too," admitted Yuji. He couldn't hide the fact from Misato, Melanie or his daughter Maria. They knew something was wrong so he just showed them the Cursed Mark of Destruction and fessed up.

"Didn't we all make a deal to keep the Cursed Marks a secret since we didn't want to worry them?" Shinichi reminded. "We made a pact."

"I think that this is the type of secret you have to share with your loved ones," said Alan. "Look, even if they won't be able to do anything, they will still want to be there for you and you can't push them away with secrets and lies," said Alan. Yuji nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, you're right about that," said Shinichi as he looked down his glass of beer. Rena, Tsukuyomi, Satan and Shawna deserved to know what was happening to him. "How do I tell them I have a tattoo that is slowly killing me each time I use my powers?" Shinichi asked them.

"That's something you need to figure out for yourself," said Yuji. "Just remember that they love you, and they'll be upset that you kept a big secret like this from them, but they'll understand why you did it."

"OK, but I'm gonna need Satan-chan and Tsuki-chan to confirm it since Rena-chan and Shawna-chan can't see the Cursed Mark," said Shinichi. He looked to Alan and asked, "So, whar's with the glasses?"

"Oh these?" Alan said as he adjusted his new eyewear. "Just something I decided to throw on. Whaddya think? Will people suspect that a foreigner in glasses is a superhero?"

"I think the mask was enough," remarked Yuji.

"The specs kinda make you look a little nerdy," said Shinichi to be honest.

"Well, I like them. Besides, they're a gift from the Doctor," Alan told them.

"Another gift, huh? Sonic Screwdriver plans, Psychic Paper, and now glasses that do what exactly?" Shinichi asked.

"Glasses that make me look _cool_," Alan said smoothly and Shinichi rolled his eyes.

"This from the guy who thinks a fez is cool," Shinichi retorted.

"Fezzes are cool, by default," Alan insisted.

"Just order a drink." Shinichi didn't feel like arguing over a pointless topic.

"And let's have some Russian Takoyaki for fun," Yuji suggested. It was a game involving a set of six takoyaki (octopus balls). Only one was filled with extra spicy mustard. The one who gets the spicy one loses. It was like a non-lethal version of Russian Roulette.

"I doubt it'll be fair," Shinichi scrutinized Alan.

"Why are you looking at me like _that_?" Alan asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Do you need to ask?" Shinichi spread his eyes wide with his fingers. "X-Ray vision, remember?"

"I won't cheat, Shinichi," Alan rolled his eyes. "I swear by my ring."

"OK, that's good enough for me," Shinichi nodded.

"Yo, barkeep, an order of Russian Takoyaki for me and my friends, please," ordered Yuji.

* * *

The recent meeting of the Gauntlet had ended and the members were dismissed. As Faust stood up, Manchester Black decided to speak to him.

"You're still working with Shiro, aren't you?" Black asked.

"So, what if I am?" Faust retorted.

Manchester Black replied, "I should warn you, Faust. Shiro Juuyon is not to be completely trusted. He's a treacherous backstabber by nature."

"I honestly doubt he'd betray me after I revived him," Faust retorted, dismissing Faust's warning.

"Tell that to the last two partners he had," Black remarked before he added, "Oh, wait. They're both **dead**!"

"Again, I appreciate the concern, but it still remains that Shiro owes me for his revival," Faust said.

"You really don't get it, do you? What did you revive him as? A DALEK, right? Those things are programmed to kill humans. Add in the fact that he's already unstable, well I don't have to draw a bloody picture for you, do I?" Black said.

"Your fears are unfounded," Faust insisted. "And I do have insurance."

"Well, don't say I didn't warn you, Faust. Just watch your back or you might get shot."

* * *

DALEK Shiro stood at a round table with his "Legion of DALEKs". Actually, it was just him and his DALEK clones; the Red Warrior, the Blue Strategist, the Orange Scientist, the Green Geneticist and much to his reluctance the Pink Janitor.

They raised their clawed arms and shouted, "**DALEKS ARE SUPREME! DALEKS CONQUER AND DESTROY! DALEKS CONQUER AND DESTROY!**"

"**Now, first order of business, what have all of you been working on?**" DALEK Shiro asked. The Green DALEK Geneticist raised his arm. "**Yes, Geneticist?**"

"**I have been working on an experiment based on work done by the super villain Bara and created a humanoid plant species known as the Vervoid. I have begun growing the first of a new species**," said the Geneticist.

"**That sounds promising**," said DALEK Shiro. "**Anything else**?"

"**Also, I have created the Pig Slave serum which would turn any human injected with it into a Pig Slave. They are all brawn, no brains, and completely obedient to us**," continued the Geneticist.

"**I think Pig Slaves are pointless. We already have the Robomen**," said the DALEK Scientist.

"**Yeah, and pigs are ugly and smell funny!**" complained the Pink DALEK Janitor.

"**We could always use them as cannon fodder**," suggested the Blue DALEK Strategist.

"**Indeed,**" DALEK Shiro agreed. "**Continue with your progress. Now, any suggestions for what we shall do this week?**"

"**I would like to suggest that we conquer the shopping malls and destroy bad fashion**," said the DALEK Janitor. The other DALEKs' eyestalks turned to look at him. "**Then while we're there let's go shopping**."

DALEK Shiro yelled, "**No, we shall not be going shopping! We are not going to just destroy horrid fashion! We will simply go and kill all the humans!**"

"**Can we just kill the humans with bad fashion sense first?**" the DALEK Janitor asked.

"**NO**!" DALEK Shiro shouted.

"**Are you sure? Because by killing the humans with terrible fashion sense it would help us live better without seeing those atrocities**," the DALEK Janitor continued.

"**FOR THE LAST TIME, NO!**" DALEK Shiro shouted, his gunstick trembling, aimed to exterminate the Pink DALEK Janitor on the spot.

"**Supreme One, I've made a new discovery!**" said the DALEK Scientist, shifting attention back to the meeting and not the Pink DALEK's potential execution.

"**You may speak,**" DALEK Shiro prompted.

"**With the Cyberdrones that were deployed all over the world, I've discovered an ore deposit of a mineral known as Vibranium**," reported the DALEK Scientist .

"**Explain**."

"**Vibranium possesses the ability to absorb all vibrations in the vicinity as well as kinetic energy directed at it. The energy absorbed is stored within the bonds between the molecules that make up the substance. As a result, the more energy Vibranium absorbs the tougher it becomes. There are limits to the capacity of the energy that can be stored but those limitations are currently unknown**," the DALEK Scientist explained. "**I suggest we mine the ore and use it to strengthen our armor.**"

"**An excellent proposal**," said DALEK Shiro. "**Where is this mine located?**"

"**In an African country known as Wakanda**," said the DALEK Scientist. "**With your permission I would like to lead an expedition to acquire the mineral for us**."

"**Excellent. That is very promising to hear my DALEK Scientist. You will take what forces you need and take that Vibranium by any means necessary!**" DALEK Shiro commanded.

**"Yes Supreme One!"** Orange DALEK Scientist saluted.

"**I would like to accompany the Scientist as well,"** volunteered the DALEK Strategist**. "He may require backup."**

"**Very well,"** DALEK Shiro allowed. **"Bring along some Robomen and arm yourselves. You may need it against the natives."**

"**YES, SUPREME ONE!"**

"**Oooh can I come too? Because I would totally get to test out my new umbrella, new lubricants, and my polishing cream for good first impressions. Nothing beats good first impressions than a sparkly shell!"** Pink DALEK volunteered.

**"AAAGH!"** DALEK Shiro screamed in agitation at the Pink Janitor's speech. It was like torture spending time with the Pink DALEK. He then groaned and grumbled, **"Sure go ahead. Just make sure you don't come back until the Scientist and Strategist finish with their mission."**

**"Okay Supreme One! Thanks!"** the DALEK Janitor cheered happily.

**"Don't mention it,"** DALEK Shiro grumbled. "**Seriously, don't mention it, **_**ever**_**.**" If it will get him a few days of peace and quiet from the Pink DALEK, he would take it.

* * *

The Orange DALEK, Blue DALEK, Pink DALEK and several Robomen arrived at their destination, managing to sneak their way into Wakanda with their superior DALEK technology. They had basically teleported in order to cross the great distances in a matter of seconds.

"**So…this is Wakanda,"** the Orange DALEK said as he scanned the area. **"It doesn't look very impressive to me."**

"**Stay focused, Scientist. We are on a mission,"** the Blue DALEK said. He turned to address their Robomen. **"Go, find the entrance of the mine then report back to us."**

The Robomen saluted and obeyed their orders in search of the entrance to the legendary nation of Wakanda. The Robomen were incapable of communicating verbally but the Cyberdrones attached to their heads could send data to the DALEKs.

The Robomen returned moments later and the Cyberdrones sent data to the two DALEKs.

"**Heavily guarded, you say?"** the Orange Scientist murmured.

"**That won't make a difference. We can exterminate the guards,"** argued the DALEK Strategist.

"**One wrong shot from our guns could cause the Vibranium to become volatile and unstable...then go BOOM!"** the Orange Scientist said. **"No, we need to try a different strategy."**

"**Then it's a good thing that Faust lent us some help,"** the Blue DALEK said, swiveling his head to look at the man accompanying them. He was hidden in the shadows

"**Just remember to keep your end of the bargain like you promised,"** the man said to the DALEKs.

"**Don't worry. Everything will go as planned,"** the DALEK Scientist assured him.

The Pink DALEK approached the man and opened up to reveal a steaming plate of cookies, **"Want to try some of my cookies? You can't exterminate things on an empty stomach, you know!"** The man just stared at the Pink DALEK with a cocked eyebrow and awkward expression.

"**Just ignore him. We all try to,"** said the DALEK Scientist.

"**Now, let's get started, shall we?"** said the DALEK Strategist.

"**Yes, let's say 'hi' to the natives,"** said the Pink DALEK exuberantly. The Strategist and Scientist glared at him.

"**No, we will not say 'hi' to the natives!"** the Orange Scientist snapped.

"**Well, it would be impolite if we didn't say 'hi' to them,"** the Pink DALEK argued.

"**We are DALEKs! We don't do polite! We EXTERMINATE!"** the Scientist yelled.

"**Fine, be that way, but that would just be plain rude,"** the Pink DALEK replied.

"**WHAT!?"** both the Strategist and Scientist yelled.

The man in the shadows sweat dropped as he watched the DALEKs' antics and argument.

"**Why did we bring him along?"** the Scientist asked the Strategist.

"**I think the Supreme One wanted to have a few days free of the pink abomination,"** said the Strategist. **"It's what I'd do."**

"**Of course it is. It's a strategy to rid himself of the most annoying of us."**

"Follow me," their mysterious ally prompted, leading the way. However, the trip would be a stressful one for most of them.

**"Are there yet?"** the Pink DALEK spoke up.

**"No,"** the Scientist answered.

5 minutes later...

**"Are we there yet?"** the Pink DALEK asked again.

**"No,"** the Strategist answered.

Another 5 minutes later...

**"How about now?"** the Pink DALEK asked again.

"NO WE ARE NOT AT OUR LOCATION YET!" the man with them snapped.

"**OK, OK, just asking. No need to get angry,"** the Pink DALEK said. The Scientist and Strategist were trembling hard. Resisting the urge to kill one of their own had not been this strong before.

* * *

Doctor Washam and Doctor Magi had summoned everyone over to the Hive to inform them of a strange signal that they had received from a place called Wakanda.

"Wakanda? Never heard of it," Yokoshima said.

"It's a country in Africa that prefers to be kept in secret and for good reason," Doctor Washam said.

"Why?" Michiru asked curiously

"It's because the country has a deposit of a valuable mineral known as-"

"Vibranium." Everyone turned their heads to Alan whose eyes were narrowed.

"Well yes," Dr. Magi nodded "It is a unique mineral that is able to absorb all vibrations in the vicinity as well as kinetic energy directed at it. The energy absorbed is stored within the bonds between the molecules that make up the substance."

"Huh?" Yokoshima said confused.

"He's saying that the more energy Vibranium absorbs the tougher it becomes," Daichi translated.

"OH!" Yokoshima responded loudly as he understood but then frowned. "Wait, if that's the case, then why haven't we known about it until now?"

"That's a valid question," agreed Hana.

Dr. Washam answered, "Because when it was found in the past the Wakandan ruler isolated their country to protect their resource. However-"

"He occasionally sold off small quantities of the ore and funded his country's education. Because of this, Wakanda is one of the world's most technologically advanced nations yet the most secretive as well as they refuse to share their technology," continued Alan.

"Correct again," Dr. Washam confirmed but he was annoyed at being interrupted by Alan who seemed to know just as much about Wakanda.

"If it's so secretive then how come you two know about it?" Michiru asked the scientists.

"Well, after I left GIN-SHOCKER, a friend of mine who was researching Vibranium came up to me and asked me to help him to search for a vein he expected to lie in-"

"Antarctica," Alan finished.

"WILL YOU LET ME FINISH!?" Dr. Washam snapped.

"Sorry," Alan apologized.

"You're forgiven," said Dr. Washam.

"Wait, can we go back to the signal you got?" Shinichi asked. "That is why you called us here, right?"

"Oh, yes. Of course," Dr. Magi as he tapped a few keys and brought up a map of Wakanda on screen with a blinking red dot on it. "We received the signal this morning. Now, we're not 100 percent sure yet, but it might be a distress signal. Then again, it could be nothing, but considering everything that's been going on and not to mention Shiro's return..."

Dr. Magi needn't say more as they all knew the danger if any villain, including Shiro, for their hands on the Vibranium.

"Right, well we better get going to check this out," said Yuji.

"About that, you won't be allowed to do much blasting or shooting," Dr. Washam told them.

"What? Why?"

"Well, it is because if Vibranium absorbs too much sonic and kinetic energy, it overloads, becomes unstable and explodes," said Dr. Washam.

"Wait… really?" Yokoshima asked, surprised

"It's true," Alan said, confirming Dr. Washam's theory, "Back in my world a company called Roxxon discovered an island full of Vibranium while they were illegally dumping toxic waste. They tried to mine it illegally by pretending to be part of the US military, but when their actions were discovered, Roxxon blew up the island to cover their tracks. The entire vein was destroyed when the Vibranium overloaded and detonated."

"Then I think it's a good idea that we send Yuki," Yuji said. "Because, let's face it, if the RoC or Shiro is involved then we need someone to freeze them instead of blowing shit up," said Yuji.

"Agreed," said Dr. Washam. "Of course she won't be going alone." Dr. Washam addressed three of the NEO-NUMBERS, "Chiaki, Hana and Michiru. You three will accompany Yuki to Wakanda to investigate."

"Roger," the three cyborgs saluted.

"Yuki, be careful out there," Yuji advised.

"Relax," Yuki smiled. "I can handle it." Yuki then went to prepare with the others before they left for Wakanda.

"Hana, Michiru, you be careful out there too," said Yuji with concern. He looked to Chiaki, "Protect them, OK?" He couldn't help but be worried.

"Don't worry about them, Yuji," said Shinichi. "They can take care of themselves."

"Shinichi's right," said Alan but then he glanced at Michiru for a moment. He was worried too. He had every right to be. What if they ran into the Priest? The Gaming Club had an unfortunate meeting with him and could've been killed. That guy did not play games and he always played for keeps.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Wakanda...**

"**Remarkable**," the DALEK Scientist said as he studied the purple mineral embedded in a shield that was mounted on the wall. "**So **_**this **_**is Vibranium. It's quite magnificent. I can't wait to work on this substance. I already have so many ideas for its application**."

"**Focus. Have you found the escapee yet?**" the Strategist asked.

"**Relax. The Robomen will find her soon enough**," the Scientist told the Strategist while still admiring the mineral, examining it carefully.

"**They better. Our ally won't let us enter the mines until we locate and capture her**," The Blue Strategist said. He must admit he was impressed with their current ally. Having men inside the Wakandan army unleash a powerful sleeping gas in the city to put the population asleep and then have Cyberdrones attack the remaining guards to convert them into Robomen before holding the royal family hostage in order to gain access to the mine. However, a member of said family had escaped.

**"Oh, how come?"** the Orange Scientist asked, eye focused on the Blue Strategist.

**"Well for one he doesn't trust us to keep our word when we get all the Vibranium from the mine,"** said the Blue Strategist.

**"Smart fellow. What is the other reason?"** the Orange Scientist asked

**"After all of them are gathered he is going to get rid of them by public execution then take the throne."**

"**Like the French Revolution. I like it. It's very DALEK**," the Scientist said with a snicker.

"**Yeah but isn't he worried about blood stains? Blood is so hard to get out**," the Pink DALEK said.

"**OH SHUT UP, JANITOR!**" the Pink DALEK's 'brothers' snapped in annoyance.

* * *

The Teleportal opened and a jeep drove out of it. Riding in the back were Hana and Michiru with Yuki riding shotgun and Chiaki behind the wheel. The jeep stopped and they surveyed their surroundings. They had landed somewhere inside a thick jungle.

"The signal came from here?" Michiru asked curiously. Yuki got out of the jeep with the others and the vehicle was cloaked.

"Yes, now keep your eyes open. We might run into some trouble," Yuki advised, pulling a device that was designed to track down their mysterious signal. Everyone nodded as they began their trek across the jungle. This went on for a while when the device began beeping.

"We're getting close," Yuki said.

Chiaki turned his head and his eyes widened.

"Guys, look," Chiaki said as he pointed at a direction. Everyone turned their heads and their eyes widened as they saw a young woman fighting against a couple of Robomen. They could tell because they had Cyberdrones attached to their heads. Suddenly, the device in Yuki's hand began beeping rapidly.

"I think we just found the source of our mystery signal," Hana said. She blinked as Yuki threw the device aside, Michiru catching it, before charging forward and delivering a jump kick, sending one of the Robomen flying backwards.

"Who are you?" the woman asked.

"Your backup," said Yuki. "Chiaki, take them out!"

Chiaki charged at the two Robomen. The Cyberdrones mounted on their heads fired lasers from their eyes but he ducked under them before he reached up and grabbed hold of them. He crushed the spider-like robots, killing them and their unwilling hosts which collapsed to the ground, dead.

"Two down," Michiru counted. "Not sure how many are still around."

"Just aim for those creepy spider things," said Hana. She looked to the woman. "Are you OK? Do you need medical attention?" She was holding up a medi-kit.

"I am uninjured," answered the young woman. "Although, I could've handled them on my own."

"Doesn't mean you have to," replied Hana. "What's your name?"

"Shuri," the woman answered. She was a beautiful African woman with a light chocolate skin tone. Her clothes comprised of a purple, off the shoulder garment that reached down to past her hips, a gold belt around her waist. She wore black skintight pants that reached down to her calves and sandals. She wore gold bracelets and a gold necklace with her black hair cut very short. She also wore gold hoop earrings.

"Shuri-san, can you tell us what happened?" Michiru asked. "And why were the Robomen after you?" Alan had been the one to name the unfortunately slaves of DALEK Shiro who were now nothing more than meat puppets to the Cyberdrones.

Shuri sighed, "They were after me became I am part the royal family of Wakanda."

Everyone blinked in surprise. They weren't expecting Shuri to be a princess but then again it made sense. These Robomen's masters must want to hold her as a hostage.

"But tell me how do you know about these 'Robomen'? What is their connection to the White Gorilla Cult?" Shuri questioned

"We know about the Robomen due to our work, but we know nothing of this White Gorilla Cult. Who are they?" Yuki questioned.

"My tribe's oldest enemies," said Shuri. "And they've allied themselves with the DALEKs." Even if the Wakandans had isolated themselves from most of the world, even they knew of the DALEK invasion from months ago, and how those mechanical creatures had killed so many people.

"It just had to be DALEKs," groaned Michiru.

"How many DALEKs?" Yuki asked.

"Three; a blue one, an orange one and a pink one," answered Shuri.

This made Yuki and the cyborgs blink. The orange one was odd enough but a _pink _DALEK?

"A _pink _DALEK. As in a DALEK that's actually _pink_?" Hana asked, just to be sure.

"Yes, and it had quite unusual behavior. It kept complimenting the drapes and decorations, though it did criticize some, and in a flamboyant manner," answered Shuri.

Michiru whispered to Hana, "Either Shiro's gone nuttier than before or it's a software glitch."

"How did you manage to get away?" Chiaki asked Shuri.

"I trained myself vigorously in many skills from birth, one of which was stealth." Shuri answered. Yuki raised an eyebrow in response. What would a princess need with stealth skills? She decided not to question it verbally. This was a different culture after all, with a whole different set of rules.

"I take it the DALEKs came for your Vibranium," Yuki assumed.

"That is what they wanted, yes," Shuri confirmed.

"So, why do they need you?" Hana asked.

"They know that trying to take Vibranium by force using thieir weapons would be too risky, so they allied themselves with the White Gorilla Cult in order to obtain it by holding the royal family hostage," Shuri said.

"So, that's how they're going to get the Vibranium," Chiaki understood. DALEKs were notoriously violent and aggressive, but they were still intelligent enough to understand the risks. They would rather use other life forms to gather dangerous minerals than to risk themselves.

"I've answered your questions now answer one of mine: what brings you here?" Shuri asked.

"That's simple. We're here to help," Yuki told her.

"Help?" Shuri repeated.

"Yes, we came after we managed to receive your signal," Yuki answered. "It was a distress beacon, wasn't it?"

Shuri was surprised. She had activated the beacon built into one of her bracelets she had been positive that the DALEKs would have done something to block it. _'Thank Bast for small miracles,'_ thought Shuri. "Then, who are you all?" Shuri asked.

"It's like I said earlier. We're the cavalry," Yuki said, giving Shuri a sincere smile. "And I promise, we will save your family."

* * *

Back at the palace, the DALEKs had learnt of what had happened to their search and capture party for Princess Shuri.

"**Two of our Robomen have been lost**," reported the Strategist.

"**What happened to them?**" questioned the Scientist.

"**Reviewing final moments recorded by the Cyberdrones. Sharing recordings," **answered the Strategist. Both accessed the final moments of the Cyberdrones prior to their deactivation. Everything that the Cyberdrones had seen or heard was saved in the database for the DALEKs' own access and they saw what had happened.

"**So, **_**they're**_** here**," the Scientist realized, seeing Yuki, Michiru, Hana and Chiaki in the last saved recording.

"**It was inevitable**," said the Strategist. "**I don't know how they caught wind of our plan but they will be dealt with**."

"**We must obtain the Vibranium immediately! Immediately!**" the Scientist insisted. The plan was to obtain the element and then refine it in order to make the DALEKs more powerful. With a coating of Vibranium on their shells they would be invincible.

"**Calm yourself. I am already devising a strategy**," said the DALEK Strategist. "**They will not know what hit them**." Gathering all the available data, he made calculations, taking all variables into account. They were the Legion of DALEKs and they would not fail in their mission. "**We will be victorious! DALEKs are supreme!**"

"**DALEKs are supreme!**" the Scientist repeated.

"**DALEKs are supreme!**" echoed the Strategist.

"**Yeah, DALEKs are supreme!**" parroted the Pink DALEK. The Blue Strategist and Orange Scientist stared as they saw the Pink DALEK had decorated himself with jewelry.

"**Why are you wearing jewelry?**" the Scientist questioned

"**I think the better question is: why shouldn't I be wearing jewelry?**" the Pink DALEK replied. The Scientist groaned in annoyance as the Blue DALEK rolled away.

"**Where are you going?**" the Orange Scientist asked.

"**I am going to inform our ally of what is going on. We do need meat shields after all**," the Strategist said, as he headed towards M'Baku. He was the man they were allied with and leader of the White Gorilla Cult. "**I am also deploying more Cyberdrones**."

* * *

M'Baku smiled sadistically as he looked at the prisoners in the cells, "Oh how the mighty have fallen. Your father allowed me to live as an act of mercy, and yet it turned towards your defeat when I found myself capable allies. Soon Wakanda will be free of technology and returns to its root, when we were proud warriors."

M'Baku was a large African male, standing at almost 8 feet tall with a wide muscular frame. He wore white gorilla skin all over his body, covering everything except for his face. The upper jaw and head of the gorilla formed a cowl over his head. He wore a green belt decorated by sharp animal fangs and a green loincloth. He also wore a necklace of small bones.

One of his prisoners glared at M'Baku as he retorted, "You speak of returning to the past, and yet your allies use technology as well. It is what is called irony, is it not?"

"The ends justify the means, T'Challa!" M'Baku snapped. He spotted the Blue DALEK gliding towards him. "And here comes one of them now."

"**M'Baku, we have learnt of the presence of several interlopers**," the Strategist reported.

"Interlopers? Are they enemies of yours?" questioned M'Baku.

"**Correc**_t_," the Blue DALEK confirmed. "**They will no doubt come to stop us and free your prisoners.**"

"Hah, let them come! I will crush their bones!" boasted M'Baku.

"**They are also bringing along Princess Shuri**," said the Blue DALEK.

"My sister!" T'Challa gasped.

"Ah, so they bring with them the princess! Wonderful!" M'Baku was pleased. "In that case let us give them a warm welcome."

* * *

They entered the city and Michiru said, "It's quiet, too quiet."

"They're all asleep," Hana examined one of the Wakandan citizens. "A sleeping agent was used. It was gaseous."

"Yes," Shuri confirmed. "It was too sudden and we were unprepared for the attack."

"Don't worry, Shuri-chan!" Michiru beamed, a fist to her chest. "You got us!"

"Just trust us," said Yuki. "We'll save your tribe and family."

"Thank you," Shuri said. While they had only just met, for some reason she had a strong feeling that she could trust them.

"Looks like we have company," Chiaki said. Everyone turned to see the Blue DALEK Strategist and behind him were Robomen wielding a variety of melee weapons. Shuri recognized them as members of the royal guards.

"No..." she uttered in horror. They had those horrible machines mounted on their heads.

"I'm sorry," Yuki apologized. Alan had told them that the Cyberdrones linked up directly with their host's brain, turning them into puppets. They were already dead as the process was irreversible and the brain had suffered too much damage because of the connection.

"At least, let us save their souls," said Shuri, silently praying for the brave men who served her family loyally and had given their lives for them and the tribe.

"Remember, aim for the things on their heads," said Hana.

"Gotcha, Hana-chan," smiled Michiru.

"Henshin!" the Riders transformed and Yuki drew her Gao Dagger, transforming into Phoenix Enforcer.

The Blue Strategist screamed, the pitch of his voice high, as he commanded, "**EXTERMINATE THEM!**"

The Robomen pointed their weapons before charging at the heroes.

"Yuki, you and Shuri go and rescue the hostages!" said Slasher as he fought, smashing a Cyberdrone with his fist, killing its Roboman host. "We can handle things here."

"Right." Yuki nodded as she and Shuri moved across the battlefield.

"**Oh no you don't!**" the Blue DALEK exclaimed as he took aim but screamed as Carmen grabbed a spear from her opponent and threw it at the Blue DALEK. The weapon knocked the gunstick loose, rendering it non-functional. "**No! My weapon is non-functioning!**"

"Take that you stupid trashcan!" shouted Carmen triumphantly. However, the gunstick was withdrawn into the chest box before a new weapon popped out.

"**INCINERATE!**" the Blue DALEK screamed as he fired stream of flame from the flamethrower attachment. Carmen ducked low, flattening her body to the ground. Arachnea leapt over several Robomen and slashed at the DALEK with her Spider Kamas, knocking it into a spin. The flames incinerated the Robomen and Cyberdrones instead.

"**DIZZY! I AM GETTING DIZZY!**" the Blue DALEK shouted.

"Hah, take that!" gloated Carmen as the DALEK slowly began to stop spinning. Realizing that he was outnumbered, the DALEK escaped via teleportation.

"It got away," hissed Arachnea.

"That doesn't matter," said Slasher. "The important thing is we drove it off."

* * *

"**Hurry, we require the Vibranium now!**" the Orange Scientist insisted as they stood in front of the mine. This mine had a huge quantity of Vibranium ore inside and the mineral needed to be taken now before their enemies interfered.

"**Relax. As long as we get a small but usable amount we can get out of here with our mission accomplished**," the Pink DALEK said.

"**Even so I wish to obtain it soon. The more we delay the higher the chances of our mission failing**," the Orange DALEK Scientist argued.

"**Oh... then shouldn't we warn M'Baku?**" the Pink DALEK asked

"**FORGET HIM! IF HE WANTS TO FIGHT THEM THEN LET HIM!"** the Orange DALEK snapped. "**ONLY THE VIBRANIUM MATTERS!**"

* * *

Yuki and Shuri had entered the royal family's palace and Shuri just entered a room which was the armory. She didn't offer an explanation, leaving Yuki to wait outside.

"Why are we stopping at an armory?" Yuki asked curiously.

"I need to grab something first. It might prove useful just in case." Shuri said as she opened the door revealing what she was now wearing. Yuki gave a whistle, liking what she saw.

Shuri now wore a skintight black bodysuit which hugged her slender and curvy figure but also showed off the muscles she had developed because of her training. The bodysuit was equipped with gloves that had sharp fingertips like claws. Hanging from her shoulders was a cape with a high upturned collar.

"Normally, I wouldn't be allowed to wear this unless I defeated the current Black Panther, but I think the circumstances at present call for it." Shuri slipped on the mask which had yellow eyes, pointed ears on top, and bearing the image of a panther.

The new Black Panther was born and Yuki smiled under her helmet with approval.

"Now let's go save my family, shall we?" Black Panther said the Phoenix Enforcer.

They ran through the palace until they reached the holding cells meant to hold prisoners. They stopped near one of the cells.

"Brother, are you alright?" T'Challa looked to see his sister wearing the Black Panther suit next to a woman in Phoenix armor. His eyes widened as he saw someone behind them.

"LOOK OUT!" Both whirled to see Man-Ape raised his fist, ready to punch them in the head. Both girls leapt aside to avoid the attack.

"I take it he's leader of the White Gorilla Cult?" Yuki asked Shuri who nodded. M'Baku did not look pleased at the sight of who he was fighting against.

"Women? I, M'Baku the Man-Ape must fight women!?" He felt insulted.

"Not just any women. The Black Panther and the Phoenix Enforcer!" said Shuri.

"Bah, you women do not scare me! I, who have slain the mighty White Gorilla and ate its flesh to gain its strength, shall crush you!" M'Baku boasted.

"You should be," Yuki said as she raised her Gao Dagger and Shuri raised her claws at the Man-Ape. "Because this woman here has slain powerful demonic beasts. What else have you done?"

Roaring, M'Baku threw his fist but Yuki countered by forming an ice wall. It shattered into pieces and shards hit M'Baku in the face, briefly distracting him. Leaping up, Shuri swung a kick into Man-Ape's face, knocking him backwards. Yuki followed up with a kick to Man-Ape's stomach, knocking him backwards but he recovered quickly and tackled into Yuki, knocking her against T'Challa's cell door.

Shuri had to dodge the Man-Ape's grasp as he boasted, "Once I become King, you shall become my concubine!" He licked his lips in anticipation. Shuri's body was gorgeous and excited great lust within him which in turn brought up feelings of disgust in the princess. Suddenly, the Man-Ape was knocked forward by a kick in the back and turned to see Yuki and a free T'Challa standing next to her. "How did you get free!?" demanded Man-Ape. Yuki pointed to the cell and he saw that she'd frozen the bars until they became brittle and broke T'Challa out.

"Shuri, let us show M'Baku the power of two Black Panthers!" said T'Challa and Shuri nodded before the siblings double-teamed on M'Baku.

"It's so nice when siblings share," Yuki approved as she watched M'Baku receive his just desserts.

* * *

M'Baku was defeated and tried by Wakandan law. The DALEKs who'd accompanied him, as expected, had abandoned him. The NEO-NUMBERS and Yuki were being honored as heroes by T'Challa and his sister. Their parents were also present to watch their son the king and their daughter the princess telling their people of the outsiders who'd come to their aid, not expecting any rewards in return.

There was a feast and celebration held for the heroes and Shuri sat next to her new friend Yuki. After the celebrations, they had to leave.

"I'll come and visit someday. I'll even bring Rhea," said Yuki as she stood by the jeep.

"But you mustn't leave empty-handed my friends," said Shuri.

"We don't need any more gifts, thank you," said Michiru.

"Are you sure?" Shuri smiled.

* * *

The jeep exited the Teleportal and the group returned, carrying a valuable gift with them.

"Shuri-chan was so grateful that she gave us a supply of Vibranium for our own use," said Michiru, smiling as Chiaki gently put the pile of Vibranium ore on the floor.

"Looks like we got more royal connections thanks to you guys," grinned Shinichi. "Good job."

"It was nothing," Hana said. Michiru spotted Alan walking into the room and walked towards him.

"Hey Alan... Did you know about the Black Panther?" Michiru asked

"Yes, but I didn't know if he existed in this world so I kept my mouth shut about it," Alan said.

Meanwhile Yuki sat in a chair, smiling a bit at the adventure, glad she was able to meet Shuri. '_Who knows, I might be able to become more than friends if I'm lucky,' _the Ice Manakyte thought to herself.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the DALEKs' underground base...**

"**Vibranium ore has been refined. Initiate Vibranium bonding!" **the DALEK Scientist began. While he hadn't acquired the quantity of Vibranium he wanted, he still got enough to please the Supreme One who already commissioned him to start on the project to bond their armor with the mineral.

He was at the controls of the DALEK construction chamber which had been modified to include an additional function. **"Vibranium bonding complete!"** The doors slid open and DALEK Shiro glided out. His armor now had a metallic sheen thanks to the Vibranium coat that was bonded to him.

"**Supreme One, you look incredible! Nice and shiny!"** the Pink DALEK praised.

This time DALEK Shiro could tolerate the Pink DALEK as he was much too happy with the result. He turned towards the other DALEKs and said, "Enter and be baptised with Vibranium!"

"**YES, SUPREME ONE!" **

As DALEK Shiro watched his DALEKs becoming coated with Vibranium, he let out a sinister chuckle, "One step closer to my goals."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The DALEKs now have bonded Vibranium to their armor. What will this mean for our heroes next?**** Also, a shoutout to Marvel Comics as we included Wakanda, Vibranium and the Black Panther. I'd like to thank the guys on the forum for their help on this chapter.**


	187. The Legacy of Cain Part 131

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 131: Fall of the Hive**

"**Hit me again!"**

**ZAP!**

"**Again!"**

**ZAP!**

"**Hah, I barely felt that! One more time!"**

**ZAP!**

"**What the hell is going on here!?" **DALEK Shiro demanded as he witnessed the Red DALEK Warrior being shot at by the Robomen and encouraging it.

"**Oh, Supreme One, sir!**" the Red DALEK greeted. "**What's up?**"

"**I should be asking you that. Now, I am going to ask again, what the hell is going on here!?**" DALEK Shiro didn't want any nonsense in his base and watching one of his DALEKs ordering the Robomen to shoot at him was considered nonsense.

"**Just testing out the new Vibranium coating, sir!**" the Red DALEK ordered. He pointed to the three Robomen armed with the DALEK rifles. "**I needed the Robomen to help me.**"

"**By shooting at you**," deadpanned DALEK Shiro.

"**Yes, sir! And it works! I barely felt those shots!**" DALEK Shiro glided over and extended his claw to grab hold of the Red DALEK's eyestalk. **"Sir!?"**

"**Listen here and listen good. If you have any plans of living any longer you will cease this ridiculous exercise. As for testing the Vibranium coating the Scientist has already done that**," warned DALEK Shiro. He released the Red DALEK. **"Am I clear?"**

"**Yes, Supreme One! You are! Crystal clear!**" the Red DALEK's eyestalk.

"**And you three!**" DALEK Shiro commanded the Robomen, "**Get back to work!**"

"We obey," the Robomen answered in monotone before marching off.

"**Remember what I said or else I will use you for target practice and not even that new Vibranium coating will save you**," threatened the DALEK Supreme before gliding away, leaving a terrified Red DALEK.

"**Hey, what's up?**" the Pink DALEK asked moments after the DALEK Supreme left.

"**The Supreme One threatened to kill me**," the Red DALEK answered.

"**So, business as usual**," the Pink DALEK stated.

"**I could've died!**"

"**Yeah, that would be horrible. I mean, you know the mess a destroyed DALEK leaves? It ain't pretty. Speaking of which, I've got work to do**," said the Pink DALEK before going off to do more cleaning.

* * *

As mentioned by DALEK Shiro, the DALEK Scientist had been performing some tests on the Vibranium. Also, he had discovered something else. There was a mine containing rare Sakuradite ore at the base of Mt. Fuji. That mineral could be processed and used as a powerful energy source that the DALEKs could utilise. He would need to send the Robomen to mine it and maybe even as the Geneticist if he could borrow the Pig Slaves he was planning to create.

In the midst of his thoughts, something caught the Blue DALEK's attention.

"**What is this? An incoming transmission?**" the DALEK Scientist questioned as he looked at the screen. Curious, he answered, "**Hello, who is this?**"

"_Hiya, name's Vic. That's V-I-C! So, I wanna place an order_," said the voice on the other end.

"**An order? What do you think this is?**" the DALEK Scientist questioned, annoyed and confused.

"_Isn't this Pizza Hut?_" Vic inquired.

"**No, this isn't Pizza Hut! Now, identify yourself and state your business!**" the DALEK Scientist snapped.

"_I already told you, dude! The name's Vic. That's spelled V-I-C. Vic! Anyway, as I was saying, I wanted to order a half-and-half beef and chicken pepperoni with extra cheese_-"

"**AND I JUST TOLD YOU THIS ISN'T PIZZA HUT!"**

"_I know, dude! You told me the first time! I'm not deaf!"_

"**HOW DID YOU GET ON THIS FREQUENCY!?**" the DALEK Scientist demanded.

"**I told you that I was ordering a pizza! Must've gotten a wrong number**," defended Vic.

"**HOW THE HELL DID YOU GET A WRONG NUMBER TO REACH THIS PLACE!?**" the DALEK Scientist shouted. There was another call. "**Now what?**" He answered, "**Hello?**"

"**Hello, is this NAMBLA Headquarters?**" another person asked.

"**WHAT!? NO YOU SICK PERVERT!**" the DALEK Scientist shouted as he hung up then returned to Vic. "**Are you still there, Vic?**"

"_Yeah, so, anyway, sorry about calling you, dude. You sounded busy_," apologized Vic.

"**Just don't ever call here again**," groaned the DALEK Scientist.

"**Roger will do! Sayonara and asta la vista!**"

DALEK Shiro glided over to the DALEK Scientist and asked, "**Who was that?**"

"**Wrong number**," the DALEK Scientist answered.

* * *

Down in his section of the laboratory, the DALEK Geneticist was performing immoral and unethical genetic experiments. However, since when did a DALEK ever cared about morals or ethics?

The DALEK Geneticist laughed wickedly as he stood before his latest creation which was within a tall glass tube. It was humanoid in shape but mostly resembled a plant. It sported a pink, head-like organ surrounded by petals and the body was covered in maple-like leaves. At the end of their arms were short septils which served as hands.

The creature was known as a Vervoid and was only one of many. Only a single one was needed to create an army as the maple-like leaves on its body could be planted in soil and grow into a new Vervoid instantly.

"**Soon, my Vervoid, soon**," the Green DALEK Geneticist snickered as he looked forward to all the chaos and mayhem the creature within the glass tube would cause. "**Soon you will have your chance to kill off the filthy humans**."

The DALEK Geneticist then turned his attention towards his newest test subject. Strapped down on a metal table was a human. Judging by his filthy clothes and unkempt appearance he was a homeless bum who'd entered the mansion hoping for shelter and a place to sleep. As instructed by the DALEK Geneticist , the Robomen had gone up and captured the man before dragging him down to the lab.

The man was confused and frightened. He made no noise as a gag was secured to prevent him from uttering a sound save for some muffled pleas. The DALEK Geneticist had performed a scan on him before determining he was perfect to test out his Pig Slave serum.

Taking the vial filled with the serum into his clawed hand, the manipulator arm withdrew into his body before being replaced by a syringe-like attachment. There was a cleat cylindrical chamber filled with the serum.

Looking down at his human lab rat, the DALEK Geneticist said, "**Now, relax. This won't hurt much.**" The telescopic arm extended and the needle pierced the skin and into a vein. The DALEK Geneticist then proceeded to inject the unfortunate bum with the Pig Slave serum, emptying the chamber of the syringe.

"**It will hurt **_**a lot**_," the Green DALEK laughed as the man convulsed in pain, releasing screams that were muffled by his gag. "**Yes! Yes! YES!**"

* * *

One night, Blue Beetle was flying in the air when he noticed something down below. In a military base, he spotted some suspicious activity. He narrowed his eyes and scanned the base using his telescopic vision.

He saw the source of the suspicious activity. They were Robomen, judging by the Cyberdrones mounted on their heads and standing in front of the entrance of one of the buildings on the base was a Red DALEK with a deep metallic hue and it was using a cutting tool to cut the door open.

Sprawled on the ground around them were dead soldiers who the DALEKs and Robomen had exterminated for trying to get in their way. Blue Beetle activated his stealth system and landed behind an adjacent building to get a good look at what they were doing. "I wonder what they're up to." Seeing all this; the military base being infiltrated and the dead soldiers reminded Blue Beetle of his past in GIN-SHOCKER. He wondered what it was these guys were looking for.

"**OK, men! Remember to grab as many nukes you can carry!**" the Red DALEK ordered. This particular military base actually stored nuclear devices that would soon be installed into nuclear warheads. It was why it needed all the extra security. However, that security meant nothing before the might of the DALEKs.

Blue Beetle grimaced, "Nukes, crap." There was no time to waste. He needed to stop them. He got out of his hiding spot and fired, destroying the Cyberdrones thus deactivating the Robomen. He aimed his blasters at the DALEK. "Freeze!"

"**AHA! Looks like I just caught myself a dirty blue!**" the Red DALEK Warrior shouted triumphantly as he looked at Blue Beetle.

"**Wait, what?" the Blue Beetle responded. **Did the talking trashcan just call him a 'dirty blue'?** "Isn't one of your brothers blue?**" He'd learnt from Michiru that DALEK Shiro had built at least one blue DALEK.

"**People can't choose who their family are even more than who they work with, not even DALEKs, even if said 'brother' wears the inferior color that is blue!"**

"Are you brain damaged? Can a DALEK get brain damaged?" Blue Beetle questioned.

"**HEY, THAT IS AN INSULT TO MY INTELLIGENCE!"** shouted the Red DALEK. Now properly angered, it turned to face Blue Beetle fully. **"Now, get ready to be EXTERMINATED with a capital E!"**

"Oh, yeah," scoffed Blue Beetle. "Like one DALEK is gonna be-Holy Crap!"

The Red DALEK Warrior roared as it sped towards Blue Beetle, tackling into the Rider with enough force to knock him off his feet. The DALEK's clawed manipulator arm then stretched out and grabbed onto Blue Beetle's ankle before lifting him up and bashing him repeatedly to the the ground before tossing him into the air. Retracting his appendages, the Red DALEKWarrior replaced them with a pair of chainguns which fired rapidly at Blue Beetle.

Blue Beetle activated his shield and blocked the rapidfire blasts as the DALEK kept screaming, "**OBLITERATE! ANNIHILATE! EXTERMINATE! OBLITERATE! ANNIHILATE! EXTERMINATE!**"

"Don't you saltshaker freaks ever shut up!" snapped Blue Beetle as he fired missiles at the Red DALEKWarrior , sending him flying. However, the DALEK recovered and hovered off the ground before shooting towards the sky. Blue Beetle activated his Gatling Leg and fired but the DALEK was able to dodge the bullets before ramming full speed, hitting Blue Beetle in the face with his dome. The DALEK then spun and smacked him to the ground with his guns before taking aim at the downed Riders. Blue Beetle called on his shield once more and generated a blue dome to block the rapid onslaught. However, his HUD was giving him readings and informing him that his shield was weakening with each shot it took.

The Red Warrior DALEK ceased firing and retracted the chainguns, replacing them with the standard DALEK firearm. Joining the tips together, the Red Warrior DALEK charged up a blast and fired a concentrated beam of destructive energy at the dome.

The blue energy dome shattered and Blue Beetle screamed as he was sent flying into the air.

"**HAH!**" the Red DALEK Warrior laughed triumphantly only to realize to his horror that the Blue Beetle was coming back down for his finisher. "**OH CRAP!**"

"ROCKET DRILL KICK!" Blue Beetle roared as he smashed into the Red DALEK. However, while his drill was making sparks fly, the Red DALEK didn't seem to be taking any damage. "What the fuck!?" The Red DALEK's force field activated, propelling Blue Beetle backwards. "What the heck are you made of!?"

"Vibranium!" the Red Warrior DALEK answered.

"**Wait, what? Vibranium!?**" Blue Beetle yelped and he flew around dodging a volley of laser death from the Red DALEK.

"**We've all got Vibranium bonded armor now! That means you can't hurt us!"** gloated the Red DALEK Warrior .

"Not as I am now," Blue Beetle began to argue, "But I still got another upgrade!" He called forth the power within him and in a flash of light he'd transformed into Cosmic Beetle.

**(Insert song-COSMIC MIND) **

The Rocket Arm had also changed into the Cosmic Blitz Scaraber. He rocketed towards the Red DALEK, shouting, "IT'S COSMIC TIME!"

The Red DALEK fired at Cosmic Beetle only for the lasers to be deflected by the Scaraber. Once in range, he slashed the Red DALEK across its chest, disarming it as the sword blade cut off its appendages. Sparks flew from the sockets in the chest box as the Red DALEK recoiled in pain. Smirking, Cosmic Beetle focused his power into the Scaraber and an energy claw tipped his sword. On his left arm, a pair of large scissors formed and he dashed forward as the DALEK recovered and replaced his destroyed weapons. The scissors cut off the eyestalk and the DALEK screamed.

"**I CAN'T SEE! I CAN'T SEE!" **the Red DALEK shrieked before it took another hit from the Scaraber. The Vibramium may go stronger with each blow it took, but even it had its limits. Already, cracks were starting to appear along the surface of the Red DALEK's casing.

A warp portal appeared behind the Red DALEK and Cosmic Beetle rocketed towards the DALEK. He then dragged the Red DALEK into the portal which took them to space. Releasing the DALEK, Cosmic Beetle focused power into his sword and called out his attack.

"**HISSATSU: COSMIC BLITZKRIEG!**"

He shot an energy blade at the Red DALEK and it exploded in outer space.

**(END SONG)**

* * *

The White DALEK Supreme (Shiro) let out a scream of agony. Because the clones from him, there was an empathic bond between them. Thus, the White DALEK would be able to feel their deaths through feedback and it was excruciatingly painful. The first time he'd felt it was when he'd destroyed the Pink DALEK for the first time.

Eye glowing red, the White DALEK activated its built-in teleportation system.

* * *

Yokoshima turned back to normal and dusted off his hands. "Now that's a good night's work." He called, "Sheila, can you open up a Teleportal? Please and thank you." The Teleportal opened on command behind him and he turned to enter.

DALEK Shiro appeared at the same time as the Teleportal. He stared at Yokoshima's unprotected back as he walked towards the Teleportal. Aiming his gunstick, DALEK Shiro fired a shot that hit the cyborg directly in the back, propelling him through the Teleportal with a scream.

Satisfied that he'd gotten his revenge for the Red DALEK, DALEK Shiro teleported back to his own base.

* * *

Asmodeus was panicking when she heard that her husband had gotten hurt and immediately teleported to the Hive. "What happened!?"

"He got shot in the back," said Dr. Magi with a frown. "The good news is that the Scarab is healing him."

"Can I see him?" she asked.

"Sure," permitted Dr. Magi and Asmodeus entered to see Yokoshima lying on his stomach.

"Yoku-kun..." she cooed softly as she rubbed his back. "Are you OK?"

"Well, besides being blindsided I'm not feeling too bad," he said. "I still feel pretty."

"Oh, you poor baby..." pouted Asmodeus and then she beamed brightly. "Oh, I know!" She performed a twirl and replaced her usual clothing with a nurse's outfit. "How about I give you some tender loving care."

Yokoshima smiled at his wife. "Honey, I love you."

* * *

"**I can't believe that idiot got killed, **_**again**_," DALEK Shiro murmured as he waiting in front of the construction chamber. "**Oh, who am I kidding? Of course he'd get killed again**." The Red DALEK may not be as annoying as the Pink one, but he still had a mental defect. The Orange DALEK seemed to be able to talk the Red one into testing whatever new prototype weapons he had developed, leading to his deaths.

The chamber glowed white with electricity sparking from it before the double doors slid open. White smoke billowed out as the Red DALEK was brought back. Upon their destruction, their memories would be transferred to him and those same memories would be returned upon their revival.

"**AND I WILL RIP YOU TO...what?**" The Red DALEK Warrior paused as he swivelled his head around. "**Did I die again? That's bullshit! I am so gonna go and kick their asses!**"

"**That's impossible since you lack the actual legs for kicking,"** DALEK Shiro pointed out.

"**I understand, Supreme One, but I still got my guns to turn them into SWISS CHEESE!"**

DALEK Shiro hung his eyestalk in disappointment. It seemed that this DALEK's intelligence had been substituted with aggression. He should've seen this coming.

Faust entered the base and he looked livid. "**Ah, Faust. What brings you over to my home tonight tonight?"**

"Don't play innocent, Shiro. Did you send one of your DALEKs out on a mission without informing me? And did you also leave and shoot one of the Riders in the back?" Faust questioned furiously.

"**So, what if I did?"** DALEK Shiro retorted.

"Shiro, whatever actions you decide to take need to be approved by me. So, tell me, why did you send your Red DALEK and Robomen to steal nuclear devices and didn't inform me?" Faust demanded.

"**I was bored and I forgot,"** DALEK Shiro admitted.

"You were bored and you forgot," Faust repeated and the eyestalk bobbed up and down to signify a nod.

"**Yes."**

"Honestly, Shiro, you need to remember that I brought you back to assist me," Faust reminded. "And in order for you to assist me, I can't have you going about doing whatever you want without permission. Remember that you answer to _me_."

"_Whatever you say, Faust,"_ said DALEK Shiro, unaware to Faust that he was thinking treacherous thoughts.

* * *

_DALEK Shiro looked up at Faust' back and aimed his gunstick at him. Faust heard the sound of the gunstick charging up and turned only to be blasted in the chest. His body was sent flying and he went tumbling. Fortunately, his robes were enchanted with magic to protect him. The impact and shot still hurt._

_DALEK Shiro glided towards Faust's body as the sorceror demanded, in a voice of confusion and wearing a look of betrayal, "...Why?"_

_"__**It is within my nature**__," said DALEK Shiro and he shot Faust in the face._

* * *

"What are you laughing for?" Faust asked, bringing DALEK Shiro back to reality.

"**I just thought of something hilarious**," answered DALEK Shiro, covering up his thoughts. Faust scrutinized the DALEK critically before turning and walking back to the elevator. The Blue Strategist glided up to his Supreme One.

"**He had no right to lecture you like that, Supreme One,"**the Blue DALEK Strategist said to the White DALEK Supreme.

**"Indeed. I was simply following my instincts to harm my enemies and making them suffer a great deal of pain. I think I held myself back well enough too if I do say so myself. I even held back from killing those who ruined me,"** said the White DALEK. **"Hm…maybe it is time we exterminate Faust," **he mused, the idea sounding very tempting.

"**If it pleases you, Supreme One, I recommend that we wait a bit longer before we exterminate him. He is still useful and it might lull him into a false sense of a security. Then, when his back is turned, we will exterminate him on the spot**."

The White DALEK Supreme gave the Blue DALEK Strategist a calculating look and was thinking, '_**It would appear that the Blue Strategist DALEK embodies my treacherous nature. I should keep my eye on him**_.'

* * *

Alan's school was a hub of activity for the following weeks. First there was the Sports Festival and Alan managed to awarded the trophy for MVP. It was quite an honor and Alan had earned it. Of course he did not win the events by using his powers. That would be cheating. He just used the most acceptable parameters when he performed for sports and still managed to get gold medals and points for each event.

Then there was the School Culture Festival and Alan's class decided to do a Haunted House Cafe. Their classmates would wear scary costumes and serve horror-themed dishes which were actually pretty normal and tasty. Spaghetti and Eyeballs was just spaghetti with jelly eyeballs and the 'blood sauce' was just sweet spaghetti sauce.

The reason Alan was focusing on all of this was to keep his mind off the bad publicity his alter-ego was receiving. Sure, the pictures Keima had sent to the newspapers helped to show people that he was still on their side, but they were still suspicious of him. They still thought he'd been a part of that Green Lantern Corps who attacked Shishibone City and that the only reason he'd saved the city was because he'd betrayed his own corps to protect humanity. An alien willing to betray his own kind wasn't exactly someone anyone would trust. They were afraid that the Sentinel would turn on humankind if he would so readily betray his fellow Green Lanterns.

Another reason was that his family didn't want him going off and using his powers to activate his Cursed Mark of Destruction. He was pretty much banned from using anything save for his ring and Sonic Screwdriver, which suited Alan just fine. Some of the ring's constructs could compensate for his super strength and heat vision anyway. He just loved being like Superman so much when using his Kryptonian-based abilities. They certainly insisted that he enjoyed his civilian life so he could not exhaust himself mentally and emotionally. They just wanted him to take a break after all that had happened like the Green Lantern Invasion as well as Amora's kidnapping and rescue.

Also, Sheila was looking out for the Priest as their eye in the sky using the Hive Satellite. The Cursed Mark of Destruction was a threat to Yuji, Alan and Shinichi's lives and wellbeing. If the Priest had marked them, he could remove those marks with some _persuasion_. Sheila had been given his description and she informed them that she would find the Priest. Even AI-Shin volunteered to subdue the Priest using his 'laser face'. If that didn't work he'd clobber the mask-wearing psycho using his Power Wrestler body.

* * *

Meanwhile, in DALEK Shiro's lair, he began to recall something from his past. He was remembering a device he'd made a long time ago, capable of storing infinite amounts of items and fusing those items together.

"**The Dark Xrosser, my greatest creation..." **DALEK Shiro sighed softly.

"Which was stolen from you," added Felix Faust.

"**Yes,"** replied DALEK Shiro. He was still sore about that fact. The Dark Xrosser was both his design and creation and he wanted it back.

"Maybe I could lend an assistance," a mysterious voice spoke and DALEK Shiro became alert as he aimed his gunstick at the intruder.

"Relax, Shiro," Faust said to his robotic partner. "It's just the Priest."

The Priest stepped out of the shadows and smiled as he looked at Faust and DALEK Shiro.

"**You said you could assist us**," said DALEK Shiro. "**How exactly? Explain yourself.**"

"Do you know where your enemies' base is located?" the Priest asked. "So do I."

"**Getting into the canyon is one thing but the building isn't gonna be easy. They updated their security**," DALEK Shiro informed.

"My dear DALEK, there isn't a security system that can keep me out," the Priest boasted.

"Well, since you're offering," said DALEK Shiro. "But what's the catch?"

"No catch. I simply want to balance things out for our side," said the Priest before vanishing from sight.

"I have chills running up my spine and I don't even have a spine," DALEK Shiro said to Faust.

* * *

Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam were busy working in the Hive's Main Hall, using Sheila's computer terminal. They were running analysis on new data for research when they were interrupted by the voice of an unauthorized person.

"So, this is your headquarters. I'm not really impressed. It's actually quite droll," said the Priest as he casually strode in with his hands behind his back.

"What the-!?" Washam exclaimed in shock. "How the hell did you get in here!?"

"I just walked through the front door," the Priest answered as if he was mocking Washam's intelligence. "Isn't that how people usually enter a building?"

"Not this building," frowned Dr. Magi. How did he even get past the Power Animals? "SHEILA, ACTIVATE DEFENSIVE PROTOCOLS!"

"_Acknowledged_," Sheila obeyed and laser turrets lowered from the ceiling. "_Target locked. Begin automatic firing sequence_," she said as she began firing. The intruder was hit with rapid laser fire. Smoke began to cover him, shielding him from sight.

"Did it work?" Dr. Magi asked as he couldn't see through the thick cloud of smoke. He got his answer when a long pair of arms shot out and grabbed them by their collars.

The Priest stepped out from the smoke cloud, completely unharmed, as he questioned rhetorically, "Did you both really think that such weapons would damage me?"

"What is it you want?" Washam snapped. The Priest dropped them.

"Do you know why people aim for the head when they kill zombies?" the Priest questioned. "It's because the best way to kill any creature is to destroy the brain, which is what I intend to do," he said. With a flick of his wrist he bound Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam in a magic circle, preventing their escape. "Luckily, for you that is, I don't intend to kill you just yet." He knelt down and slammed his palms flat upon the floor. Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi watched in horror as a layer of blood red material began to spread out on the floor before rapidly covering every inch of the lab. The crimson infection spread out further, covering the floors and the outside the Hive. It wasn't just affecting the building. Sheila was slowly being affected as well.

"_I…feel…__**funny…**_" Sheila spoke as her voice was slowly becoming distorted and sinister.

"This is not good," Dr. Washam gulped.

"_HEY, ASSHOLE! STAY AWAY FROM MY GIRLFRIEND!_" AI-Shin roared as he went to smash his spherical body into the Priest. The Priest caught him in mid-air.

"Pathetic," said the Priest in disgust before he threw AI-Shin so hard he hit the wall.

AI-Shin groaned. He glared at the Priest and then a blue sphere of light flew out of AI-Shin's sphere-droid body. The sphere-droid landed with a lifeless 'klank' on the floor as the ball of light entered the Power Wrestler that stood in the corner of the Main Hall. It came to life. It punched its knuckles together.

"_ASSHOLE, I WON'T SAY IT AGAIN!_" AI-Shin roared from within the Power Wrestler. The Priest, having done his job, dodged the Power Wrestler's punch.

"Are you a serious?" the Priest questioned and the AI-possessed Power Wrestler charged at the Priest with the intent to kill. He drew his swords and rushed at the Power Wrestler. It only took a few quick slashes to literally disarm the robot as well as remove its legs. The Power Wrestler toppled over and landed with a loud crash in front of the Priest before he stabbed it in the head. AI-Shin's consciousness returned back to his sphere-droid body.

"_Well, crap_," said AI-Shin.

"Go away," the Priest snapped his fingers, causing Dr. Washam, Dr. Magi and AI-Shin to be teleported out of the Main Hall. It was the Priest's doing as he didn't think they were worth killing. Actually, he had something else in mind for them.

As soon as Washam, Magi and AI-Shin were gone, a magic portal formed and Felix Faust stepped out of it followed by DALEK Shiro who hovered next to him. DALEK Shiro scanned the area and spotted the Priest standing at a corner with his arms crossed. DALEK Shiro glided towards the Priest and questioned, **"So, this place is under our complete control?"**

"Do you doubt my power?" the Priest retorted.

DALEK Shiro offered no answer as he glided over to the computer terminal. The eyestalk rolled up to stare at the screen. "**Program, respond.**"

**"Yes? Hihihihihi,"** giggled Sheila evilly.

"**Program, give me access to all your files**," DALEK Shiro ordered.

"_**Affirmative**_," Sheila obeyed. DALEK Shiro's clawed arm retracted and the standard manipulator arm with the plunger at the tip slid out. He pressed it down on the computer terminal and began to sift through the data. DALEK Shiro then found what he was looking for. The Dark Xrosser was here. They had not destroyed it. **"Excellent."**

The Priest and Faust, meanwhile, were having a conversation. "So, what's it like working with him?" the Priest asked, jabbing a thumb in DALEK Shiro's direction.

"It's interesting and I can hold an intelligent conversation with him," answered Faust. "However, when he gets mad-which is quite often-his voice can be quite grating."

"He's going somewhere now," said Priest and Faust turned to see DALEK Shiro making his way to the elevator. "What is he looking for exactly?"

"Something stolen from him," said Faust.

"His dignity?" Priest offered. Faust laughed. So, the Priest did know how to make jokes.

"In a matter of speaking..."

* * *

DALEK Shiro found his way to the laboratory and scanned it. He found the safe which kept the most volatile of objects. He glided towards it and instead of being delicate and opening the safe with the manipulator arm, he simply aimed his gunstick at the safe's door and blasted it to bits. Reaching inside, he claimed the Dark Xrosser.

* * *

DALEK Shiro glided out of the elevator carrying the Dark Xrosser. "**I got what I came for. Let's leave**."

"Understood," said the Priest. He then instructed, "Sheila, please activate your weapons and set them to kill anyone that tries to get inside."

"_**OH, CAN I? GOODIE!**_" Sheila giggled. "_**I CAN ALREADY SEE THE FLESH-BAGS SCREAMING IN AGONY AND CRYING OUT FOR MERCY AS THEIR BLOOD SPLATTERS EVERYWHERE! WHAT FUN!**_"

"You really corrupted their base's AI," Faust admired the Priest. Even his magic wasn't able to corrupt machines.

"_**So, should I use the thing that drains their blood or the one that rips their bones out from their bodies?**_**"** Sheila asked.

"Use your imagination," said the Priest with approval.

"_**THIS WILL BE FUN!**_**"**

"Indeed, my dear. It will be."

"**Order her to self destruct," **suggested DALEK Shiro.** "Instead of having her kill her allies, have her self-destruct. Trust me, their suffering will be worthwhile."**

"How about you just self-destruct?" the Priest ordered Sheila.

* * *

"Honk! Honk, blarg! Honk!" Junior called as he licked Dr. Magi's face. He and Dr. Washam were sprawled outside of the Hive but were slowly regaining consciousness. They were slowly recovering from a sense of nausea.

"What...happened...?" Dr. Magi asked.

"The last thing I recall was the..." Dr. Washam's eyes widened. "Intruder!" They had been teleported out of the Hive.

Suddenly, the entire Hive exploded right before their eyes. The entire building collapsed as a series of explosions detonated along its structure. The two scientists watched in horror as the Hive was destroyed right before their eyes. "No...NO!" Everything inside, including Sheila, had been destroyed.

"SHEILA!" AI-Shin screamed in horror. "NOOOOOO!"

Their enemies had just struck a critical blow to them. The Power Animals were also awakened by the explosion and could only watch helplessly as the building came down in smoke, rubble and flames.

The Priest had let them live so they could watch as their base was destroyed. This was going to upset and devastate the others. Fortunately, nobody else was in the base when it self-destructed. However, they had just lost their main headquarters and without ARMOR's resources, how were they going to rebuild?

What were they to do now?

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Things have turned from bad to worse now. With their main headquarters blown up, the balance of power have shifted further and not in the heroes' favor. What are they to do now? Will they be forced to relocate?**


	188. The Legacy of Cain Part 132

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 132: Digital Relocation**

The Hive had been destroyed by the enemy. They had reprogrammed Sheila and made her activate the Hive's self-destruct program. Everything they had inside was lost. Clearly, the enemy was trying to destroy them and they were starting with their main HQ.

Dr. Washam and Dr. Magi called the others, informing them what had happened. Amora, using magic, managed to transport the whole team to the canyon and they saw for themselves the pile of iron rubble which had been their base.

"NOOOOOOO! SHEILA!" Yokoshima screamed as he collapsed to his knees and cried. "THEY KILLED HER! THOSE ANIMALS KILLED HER!"

"Yokoshima, calm down," said Dr. Magi as he put his hand on his adopted son's back. "She's not dead."

"But she exploded! They have to pay! I will have my revenge!"

"Sheila made a backup of herself," Dr. Magi answered.

"She's-Wait, what?" Yokoshima blinked. Dr. Magi pointed to the sky.

"Sheila makes daily backups of herself every morning," Dr. Magi answered. "Then she uploads those backups into our satellite. She's watching over us right now."

"Are you sure?" Yokoshima asked.

_"Trust Doctor Magi, she's fine,_" said AI-Shin. Earlier, his reaction was like Yokoshima's until he realized that Sheila was still alive in the satellite.

"Call her," Dr. Magi suggested and Yokoshima nodded.

"OK, what the fuck exactly happened here?" Yūji demanded. When he got a call about an emergency, he rushed to the canyon as fast as he could to find the Hive completely demolished.

"While Magi and I were alone, an intruder came into the Hive. He didn't even trip the security system. It was like he just appeared out of nowhere," Dr. Washam explained.

"Must've used magic," said Alan. "Can you describe him?"

"I don't have to. It was the Priest," answered Washam.

Alan, Shinichi and Yūji knew the Priest well. He was the reason why their lives were at risk. His Cursed Seal of Destruction were the marks he'd left on them. Also, the Priest had even hurt Shinichi's friends, costing Mion her arm.

"So, he just showed up and blew up the base," said Shinichi as he looked at what remained of their headquarters. "Kinda seems random."

"He's chaos and order," said Yūji. "It might seem chaotic but he planned this from the beginning." He looked at the two scientists, "And he let you two live?"

"Hey, don't forget me!" piped AI-Shin.

"We woke up outside the base moments before it exploded," answered Dr. Magi.

"Then he wanted you to see," Yūji concluded. "And he wanted you to call us to let us see." He swore, eyes narrowed, as he punched his palm, "OK, it's official; the next time I see the fucker, I am going to murder him."

"We've lost a base, our equipment, and vehicles," said Chiaki, frowning sadly. Hanyuu took his hand and squeezed to comfort him.

"They're starting to consider us a legitimate threat so they wanted to weaken us," frowned Daichi as he crossed his arms. "This fucking blows."

"Well, at least we still have a backup base," said Michiru. "Remember the one we used back before the Hive?" She was referring to the one under Irie's Clinic. "We got equipment back there."

"And there might be a possibility this explosion didn't hit the basement," said Hana hopefully.

"It's worth a try," said Alan as he focused his eyes on the rubble. Amora stopped him.

"Alan, wait, what about-?"

"I'll be fine," he insisted. "I just have to make sure I don't strain myself." He used his X-Ray vision and scanned the rubble, looking under it. He nodded. "The storage basement is safe, just buried under a ton of rubble. The garage is a wreck though and everything in there's crushed. The underground Danger Room is destroyed, unfortunately."

"So, what are we gonna do with the mess here?" asked Shinichi.

"Yūji?" Alan smiled as he raised his right hand, the green ring glowing on his finger. Yūji nodded and raised his own right hand, the blue ring glowing on his finger.

"Oh, power rings," Shinichi deadpanned as he crossed his arms in envy, "Fucking ring-wielders."

Yūji and Alan fired beams of green and blue which covered the rubble and lifted it all up into the air before depositing it all a distance away. The foundation for the base was untouched and under the foundation was the basement.

"We'll come back to this some other time," said Yūji. "I think we should take the doctors someplace to rest."

"Pops can crash at my place," Yokoshima volunteered.

"And Carl can stay with me," Yūji volunteered. "I think Misato will be happy to have her dad staying."

"Hey, what about him?" Daichi gestured to Junior.

"I'll take him home," said Battler.

"What about your parents?" asked Shinichi.

"Oh, I managed to save up and find myself a job so I could afford my own place," said Battler. "Junior can stay with me."

"Well, there's nothing more we can do here right now," said Alan. "Come on, let's just get everyone settled before we plan our next move."

* * *

"You can stay here, Daddy, until you find a new place," said Misato as she invited her father inside the apartment.

"Thank you, My Little Draculina," Washam smiled.

"Now, sit down and get some rest," said Misato, gesturing to the couch. "After the day you had you'll need it."

"Yes, indeed," groaned Washam as he sat down on the couch. Scrappy scuttled up to him and looked at him with big purple eyes. "I had a bad day."

"I wouldn't call what happened a bad day, Carl," said Yuji. "You're lucky you survived."

"Yes, but still, the Hive was our home," sighed Washam. Misato hugged her father.

"We can rebuild it. You, however, can't be replaced," Misato said to her father.

"Thank you, Misato," smiled Carl gratefully.

"Just make yourself at home, Carl. Mi casa es su casa," Yuji told him.

* * *

"Well, Junior. Here's your new home," said Battler as he put Junior down. He had his own apartment now. It took some time to convince his parents he was responsible enough to live on his own. He would still need to visit home often since Ange would miss him.

"Honk! Honk, blarg!" Junior exclaimed as he started running around. He still hadn't told his parents about his secret job as a Kamen Rider or Junior. Only his fiancée Beato and his little sister Ange knew.

"Maybe I can convince Mom and Dad Junior's some exotic lizard," Battler murmured, contemplating on how to explain Junior. He looked at Junior who was running about. "No, they won't buy that." He shook his head before sitting down to clear his head, whilst trying to figure things out.

* * *

Dr. Magi went down to the Basement, the Pseudo-Riders' base in Hinamizawa. Dr. Irie welcomed the man and let him inside. There was a reason why Dr. Magi needed the computer. The Hive wasn't the only base connected to the satellite. The Basement was also connected to the Hive Satellite and if Sheila managed to back herself up prior to her data corruption, then other things might've been backed up, like the security footage from that day. The Hive Satellite would have footage of when the Priest came into the base.

Dr. Magi turned on the computer, connecting to the Hive Satellite, and bringing up the surveillance video files of that day. He watched the footage carefully and his eyes widened as he saw what had happened after he and Dr. Washam were expelled from the base.

"This can't be good," mumbled Dr. Magi as he saw DALEK Shiro and a man enter the base. He then witnessed as DALEK Shiro destroyed the safe to retrieve his Dark Xrosser. "Not good at all."

The Dark Xrossers secrets couldn't be unlocked and they didn't want to unlock it, not without unleashing Shiro's army which was sealed inside. Now, that army had returned to the hands of its master. Dr. Magi, of course, wondered who the man in robes with DALEK Shiro was. However, it was certain that he was part of the enemy group they were up against.

* * *

Daichi and Mika were playing a game of Go while chit-chatting. The girl from the past found the game fascinating and a good way to spend time with Daichi. He seemed relaxed and focused on the board.

"So, how are things coming along with the base?" Mika asked. She'd learnt that the Hive had been destroyed. She was just relieved that nobody had gotten hurt or killed.

"Slow, but we're getting there. The thing is we never bothered to updating it since we switched to the Hive. We pretty much just left it the way it is," said Daichi. A Teleportal had been included after the Pseudo-Kamen Riders became an official team but other than that the equipment had remained the same.

"It's a shame that the Hive was destroyed," Mika frowned sadly. "I'm going to miss the pool." She had fun swimming in the pool and playing with Daichi and Leviathan in the water.

"Yeah, me too. Hopefully once our connection to ARMOR has been restored we can rebuild the Hive," said Daichi.

"You really think they can?" asked Mika. She'd heard a lot about ARMOR.

"I don't see why not," shrugged Daichi. He grinned, "By the way, I win."

Mika's eyes widened as she examined the board and she grumbled, "I hate this game."

"How about best 2 out of 3?" Daichi challenged.

* * *

When Shinichi came to, he woke up and found himself lying on the ground with Yuji and Alan standing over him. "Good, you're up," said Alan.

"What happened?" Shinichi asked.

"What's the last thing you remember?" Yūji asked.

"Well, I was watching TV with Rena-chan when all of a sudden there was a flash of light and I ended up...wherever this is," said Shinichi as he scanned his surroundings. His eyes widened as he saw that the sky was dark but what made his eyes widen even more was that there were glowing 1's and 0's scrolling in the air. What more, the buildings were black and covered in white grid lines. Even the ground they were standing on. In fact, besides the sky which had 1's and 0's scrolling along instead of clouds, everything else was black and covered in white grid lines.

Shinichi put it eloquently when he said, "Where in the name of Oyashiro-sama are we?"

"Not in Kansas, obviously," remarked Yuji.

"That light you saw brought us all here," said Alan as he looked at their environment. "And everything here seems to be made of data."

"When you mean everything, you mean _everything_, as in everything including _us_," concluded Shinichi.

"Pretty much," said Yūji.

"Reminds me of that Tron movie I watched with the gang," said Shinichi. Tron was a movie made in 1982 that involved a man named Kevin Flynn being forcefully digitized and transported to Cyberspace. Alan remembered watching a video of that film together with Celine and Alice. "Only we're not wearing fancy, shiny spandex."

"Lack of futuristic fashion aside, how the fuck did we get here and who the fuck brought us here?" Yūji demanded. "I need to beat the fuck outta them."

"You've been saying 'fuck' a lot lately," Shinichi observed.

"I'm just really fucking ticked off!" Yuji shot back.

"Whoever they are, they must want us out of the way," Alan said.

* * *

"**We got them**," said the DALEK Scientist as he was looking at the computer monitor. "**My plan is absolutely flawless and in a matter of hours they will be deleted by whatever I've uploaded into that world**."

The Dark Xrosser was hooked up to the computer and within it was the remains of Shiro's army, thousands of them, ready to be uploaded into Cyberspace.

"**Now, to send them some playmates**," the Orange DALEK Scientist spoke sinisterly. "**Time to exterminate some rotten pests!**"

"**Whatcha doing~?**" a flamboyant voice asked.

"**Oh, dammit...**" groaned the DALEK Scientist as he turned his head around to glare at the Pink DALEK. The only reason they even kept him around was because he was good at keeping their underground base nice, clean and tidy. **"I'm busy!"**

**"Are you playing a video game?"** the Pink DALEK asked. **"I love video games!"**

**"No, this is work. Very important, yet enjoyable, work,"** the Orange DALEK said. **"Just go and do some dusting over there."**

**"Can't I watch?"**

**"No!"**

**"Pretty please? Please-please-please-please-please-please-please~?"**

**"Alright, fine! Just don't touch anything and don't bother me!"** The Orange DALEK Scientist focused his attention back to the screen. **"Now, where was I?"**

* * *

Alan said, "Well, there's nothing we can do just by standing here. Let's explore so we can figure out something.."

"So, you expect us to just go and explore an unknown and possibly hostile environment?" Yūji questioned.

"Yeah," Alan said.

"Well, I'm game," said Shinichi. "Are you coming, Yūji?"

"Yeah, fine," Yūji sighed. "We might even find a way out of this place so I can destroy the fucker responsible."

Shinichi and Alan watched with worried eyes as Yūji walked ahead of them. They could feel the aggression permeating from Yūji. He was beyond annoyed; he was downright pissed, and with everything that had happened lately he had every right to be. Inwardly, they hoped Yūji would be able to keep his anger under control. They had seen what he was capable of when angered, but something in the back of their minds told them what they had witnessed up to this point was just the tip of the iceberg.

* * *

**"Fools, there is no escape from my digitally synthetize environment. I am its creator so I am God!"** the DALEK Scientist gloated. He then began to enter several commands into the computer. The way the Dark Xrosser worked, it didn't digitize matter and store it inside of it. The device was simply connected to a hyperspace dimension allowing storage at an infinitely massive scale. It was just an empty void filled with everything that Shiro had stored in there, including spare DALEKs, Cybermen, Beastroids and Combatroids.

What the DALEK Scientist was doing was accessing the hyperspace pocket dimension using his computer, isolating the targets within, digitizing them before transferring them into the computer world he'd trapped the three heroes in.

**"First, Combatroids,"** said the DALEK Scientist with utmost glee. **"Oh, this will be fun."**He loved his job.

* * *

"Didn't we pass that building already?" Shinichi asked.

"How can you tell?" Yūji asked back. "Everything looks the same."

"Eidetic Memory," Shinichi answered as he tapped his temple. He did have a cybernetic brain after all. "I'm pretty sure we passed that building 3 times already."

"It's all redundant," said Alan. "This place here is just repeating the same cycle of data over and over. That's why it looks like we're walking in circles."

"Well, hopefully, something different happens to break the redundancy," said Shinichi.

All of a sudden, data began gathering around them, converging into humanoid shapes, and then solidifying into X-SHOCKER Combatroids. Alan, Yūji and Shinichi were surrounded and forced back to back.

"You just had to say _that_," Yūji grumbled at Shinichi.

"Sorry," Shinichi retorted. "I'll watch what I say _next_ time."

"Now I'm definitely sure whoever has us trapped here wants us out of the way," Alan frowned. "Guys, let's delete these freaks."

"Now you're talking," Yūji grinned, punching his palm.

They aimed their rings at the Combatroids, but nothing was happening. No glowing, no energy blasts, and no hard light constructs.

"What the hell?" Yūji examined his ring, except there was no ring. "My ring!"

"Crap," Alan cursed, realizing his power ring was missing as well. "It looks like whoever trapped us here and turned us into data has also prevented us from using our powers."

"Which means we're in deep shit," Shinichi gulped.

* * *

**"Indeed,"** the DALEK Scientist said as he gave the command for the Combatroids to attack.

* * *

"RUN!" Alan shouted as the Combatroids charged at them. Shinichi jumped and used a drop kick to knock two down as Alan and Yūji knocked a couple away before running from the Combatroids chasing after them.

"So, the plan is to run? Run where?" Yūji questioned loudly.

"I'm thinking!" Alan snapped back.

* * *

**"Let's put in some more old friends,"** the DALEK Scientist decided.

* * *

"Guys, I think we got some more company," Shinichi pointed. Yūji and Alan turned to look.

"Oh, hell no," Yūji scowled.

"Just what we need," stated Alan sarcastically.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

"**Delete. Delete. Delete. Delete.**"

An army of DALEKs and Cybermen were heading their way and had their weapons trained on the trio. They opened fire, prompting the three heroes to scramble.

"WHOA!" Shinichi shouted as he dodged the laser beams. "Okay, I'm REALLY starting to hate this place!"

DALEKs and Cybermen were firing at them with their lasers, shouting, "**Delete!**" and "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" together.

* * *

"This blows! We've got Combatroids, Cybermen and DALEKs on our asses and no powers!" Shinichi snapped as he kicked a box over. They were hiding inside one of the buildings. "We're as good as dead!"

"No, it's not that we don't have our powers," Yūji argued and Shinichi looked up at his friend.

"What do you mean?" Shinichi asked.

"What Yūji means is that it's not that we don't have our powers. It's just we can't access them," said Alan. "Isn't that right?"

"Yeah," confirmed Yūji. "We were converted into data, right down to our DNA."

"And DNA is data as well," Shinichi understood. "So, what does that mean?"

"It means that our powers aren't gone. The faggot who put us here put up a firewall in our minds preventing us from accessing the 'execution file' to let us access our powers," Yūji answered.

"And I bet your rings couldn't be converted into data because they're way too complex," assumed Shinichi.

"I don't even have my Sonic Screwdriver," Alan frowned. He'd checked his pockets. It wasn't there. "Alright, let's review. We're in a digital environment and we're made of data, which means someone rewrote us after digitizing us."

"That's a given," Yūji nodded as they turned a corner.

"But we're also sentient, which means we could rewrite our own program and regain our abilities, which sounds easy enough," said Alan.

"Only it isn't," Yūji frowned.

"No, it isn't. It's not impossible, but it won't be easy either," said Alan, contemplating his theory.

"So, why don't they just delete us?" Shinichi asked.

"Because if this is a game, then they want to watch us suffer," said Alan.

"We got enemies coming at us from all sides," added Shinichi. "Whoever brought us here wants us dead."

"And he wants to watch us squirm helplessly too, like a sadistic douchebag instead of just deleting us outright," continued Yūji. "Sadistic fuckers."

Alan went on, "Not to mention we've got Cybermen, DALEKs and Combatroids after us."

"X-SHOCKER troops and Shiro's army," Shinichi said promptly. His eyes widened. "Wait..."

* * *

_"Now, there's a matter of this," said Alan as he held the Dark Xrosser. They had recovered it before the Pyramid crashed. It still contained the ALPHA-01 AI. He scanned the device with the Sonic Screwdriver and got a reading, "And it doesn't just have the AI. The remnants of Shiro's army are in here."_

_"How many?" Yūji asked._

_"Thousands of them," said Alan. "Not sure of what though. They could be DALEK's, maybe spare Beastroids and Combatroids, maybe even Cybermen. Could also be all of the above."_

* * *

"Shiro's Dark Xrosser!" Shinichi remembered. "Shiro had the rest of his army stored inside the Dark Xrosser so he could literally carry it with them."

"You're right," Alan recalled and slapped his forehead repeatedly. "I'm so fucking thick! The Priest destroyed the base to cover his tracks! He was after the Dark Xrosser! With a destroyed base, we all would've thought the Dark Xrosser was destroyed in the blast!"

"So, the Priest has teamed up with Shiro," frowned Yūji. He growled in utter annoyance; these realizations only served to fuel his growing rage. "Yeah, those fuckers are dead after I'm done with them."

"And now we're trapped in an insane game with an army of homicidal machines after us without our powers and no way out," Shinichi paled.

"There is a way out," said Yūji. Alan and Shinichi looked to him. "This place has to have a core program which contains the source code. We find it and we find a way out of here."

"How are we supposed to find it then?" Shinichi asked.

"All roads lead to Rome," Alan quoted.

"Pardon?" Shinichi inquired, wanting to know what Alan meant.

"Remember the 1's and 0's in the sky? They were all scrolling in one direction. I think it's the data feeing the core program. We just follow those 1's and 0's, and we find the core program," said Alan.

"And our way home," Shinichi concluded. "But there's still the matter of everything here that moves trying to kill us."

"Too bad there aren't any vehicles here. We might stand a better chance of outrunning them," Yūji sighed.

Alan blinked and said, "Wait, say that again..."

"What?" Yūji cocked an eyebrow. "All I said was that I wished we had some vehicles here."

"Come on," Alan prompted. "Help me check this building out. There might be some vehicles laying around."

"What makes you say that?" Shinichi asked.

Yūji spoke, "Shin's right, you know. The chances of a sadistic bastard giving us even the slightest fighting chance is slim to-"

"Found it," Alan interrupted.

"Wait, what?" Yūji asked, blinking. "Seriously?"

"Gentlemen, we've just found our ride," Alan smiled.

"That's oddly convenient and suspicious," remarked Shinichi

"So, who wants to ride shotgun?" asked Alan as he jumped into the driver's seat.

* * *

The Combatroids, DALEKs and Cybermen were all searching the virtual city when all of a sudden a wall burst open. Speeding out of said wall was what appeared to be a convertible sports car. In the driver's seat was Alan and sitting shotgun was Yūji with Shinichi in the back. Their mechanical enemies took notice and began chasing them, firing at them. Alan, with his incredible driving skills, was able to dodge the lasers.

"I'm glad that we got a getaway car and all, but couldn't it have been a manlier color?" Shinichi asked. Their car was hot pink.

Alan shrugged, "Beggars can't be choosers." He swerved to the right, dodging more laser blasts.

"DALEKs at twelve o'clock!" Yūji pointed ahead and Alan floored the accelerator in response. He rammed into the DALEKs, sending them flying and they fell helplessly on their sides, bodies dented.

* * *

The Orange DALEK, seeing this, was confused and he said, "**What? I didn't add in any vehicles!**"

**"No, but I did,"** the Pink DALEK said. The Orange DALEK's head turned so his eye could glare at his pink 'brother'

**"What!? Why would you put something like that in my death game!?"** the Orange DALEK snapped.

**"Well, that building kinda looked dull and empty. It looked like it needed some stuff in it, so I put in an awesome pink sports car,"** said the Pink DALEK. The Orange DALEK trembled and growled in anger. **"Oh, relax. The car doesn't have any weapons. I made sure of that."**

**"In any case, I am going to send in a few more minions after them,"** said the Orange DALEK Scientist.

* * *

"Alan, stop right here," said Shinichi.

"Do you need to go or something?" Alan asked.

"What? No! I think I saw a warehouse storing weapons." Alan slowed the car down and Shinichi stepped out of the car. He went into the warehouse, checked it, and grinned. "Hello, my little friends!"

* * *

The Orange DALEK glared at the Pink DALEK who defended**, "Well, wouldn't it be boring if they didn't have a fighting chance?"**

**"That's the whole point! I didn't want to give them even a 1 percent chance!"** snapped the Orange DALEK. Not even the red one could be this stupid.

**"But wouldn't that be completely unfair?"** the Pink DALEK asked.

**"AGAIN, THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT!"**

* * *

Shinichi had grabbed three rifles, each with a barrel modeled after a DALEK gunstick.

"Kinda convenient," said Yūji suspiciously as he checked his weapon. "And are these things loaded?"

"I didn't check," said Shinichi. "But if all else fails we can just use them as clubs."

Alan dropped the roof so he could look at the sky. The 1's and 0's were picking up speed. "I think we're close," he said.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" DALEKs in the air shouted as they began firing.

"Oh, no you don't you hunks of junk!" Shinichi shouted as he shouldered his rifle and took aim. A laser shot out and hit one of the DALEKs, shooting it down. "Headshot, muthafucker!"

"OK, they work," said Yūji in approval as he took aim and fired as well. "Man, is it just me or is their aim just horrible?"

"Are you complaining?" Shinichi asked.

"Fuck no!" shouted Yūji as Alan turned a corner.

"They might be bad shots now but they're still more of them than us, a lot more," said Alan. "We need to get to the core program and get out of this place."

* * *

**"Core Program, huh?" **the Orange DALEK scoffed. **"We'll see about that."** He was going to send all of the monsters in that world to converge at the core program to defend it from the trio. The odds were like 1000 to 1. There was no logical way they could win and get out. Well, not alive anyway.

* * *

"There it is," Alan said he stopped the car near a cliff area that overlooked a crystal tower with a golden digital orb mounted on top with the 0's and 1's flying towards it. There appeared to be a network of wires within the clear crystal tower connecting the orb to the ground. The tower itself had stairs spiraling around its outside reaching to the top. That was the core program of this crazy digital world.

"Finally we can get out of this fucking place," Yūji said.

"I doubt it. If I were the bad guy I would gather every monster to guard the core like crazy." Alan told him. "And look right there, at the base."

"Damn, you're right." Yūji saw the army of mechanical monsters at the base of the tower, just waiting for them.

"Well what do you suggest then?" Shinichi asked.

"I think stealth and a distraction are in order here," Alan said with a smirk.

* * *

The Cybermen, DALEKs and Combatroids stood at the ready at the base of the core program's tower.

**"LOOK!"** a DALEK shouted as it saw the pink convertible car driving towards them at high speeds. **"TAR-GETS SIGH-TED!"**

**"EX-TER-MIN-ATE THEM! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

**"Delete them,"** the Cybermen intoned.

They aimed their weapons and fired at the pink convertible which promptly exploded.

**"Targets deleted,"** a Cyberman reported. A DALEK went to investigate the wreckage and turned to look at the army.

**"NE-GA-TIVE. THE TAR-GETS ARE NOT WITH-IN THIS VE-HI-CLE."**

Meanwhile, three DALEK units were gliding away unnoticed by the rest. The three units then stopped at the base of the tower where the stairs started.

"I can't believe this might actually work," one of them said in a whisper. "I can't believe we found these empty shells just lying around."

"Keep quiet, we don't want them to notice," the second replied began floating along the staircase when one of the Cybermen noticed them.

**"Halt,"** the Cyberman spoke as it approached the three DALEK units. **"You are not authorized to climb these stairs. Identify yourselves immediately."**

**"ERR, WE ARE U-NIT Y-12, U-NIT S-44 AND U-NIT A-68,"** the third fake DALEK said, "**AND WE HAVE GOOD REA-SON FOR CLIM-BING THESE STEPS**."

**"And what is that reason?"**

**"THE REA-SON IS, EHM..."** S-44 tried to think of something before saying, **"TO MAKE SURE THE IN-TRU-DERS AREN'T AL-REA-DY UP THERE! THEY HAVE AL-REA-DY TRICKED US WITH THE CAR DE-COY!"**

If it had eyes, the Cybermen would have stared at them suspiciously.

**"WE ARE WAS-TING TIME! WE WILL AN-GER MAS-TER SHI-RO IF WE AL-LOW THEM TO ES-CAPE!"** A-68 snapped angrily.

**"PER-HAPS HE IS ONE OF OUR TAR-GETS IN DIS-GUISE**!" Y-12 shouted. This caused the other DALEKS to look at the Cyberman.

The Cyberman turned its head and said, **"Wait-" **

**"EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

However, the Cyberman was shot and destroyed.

**"THE TAR-GET IS DES-TROYED BUT HIS COM-RADES MIGHT STILL BE A-ROUND DIS-GUISED AS ONE OF US!"** A-68 shouted. This caused all the mechanical creatures to look at one another.

**"RE-MOVE FACE-PLATE!"** a DALEK commanded a Cyberman.

**"No, let us check your casings," **the Cyberman demanded.

**"YOU DARE DE-NY THE OR-DERS OF THE DA-LEKS!?"** The DALEK shouted

They started fighting amongst themselves to find their targets who were probably disguised as one of them. Meanwhile A-68, Y-12 and S-44 began moving up the stairs.

"Thank God Shiro did not program them to be smart," said S-44 (Shinichi) in relief.

* * *

**"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?"** the Orange DALEK screeched, **"WHY ARE THEY FIGHTING AMONGST THEMSELVES!?"** The Cybermen, DALEKs and even the Combatroids were attacking each other. The Combatroids had only gotten involved when they were dragged into the argument. Now the DALEKs and Cybermen were trying to exterminate and delete each other. **"WHY AREN'T THEY FOCUSING ON OUR ENEMIES!?"**

**"And why are those three DALEKs so close to the core program?"** the Pink DALEK asked.

**"WHAT!?"** the Orange DALEK shouted as he shifted his head to look at the screen the Pink DALEK was focusing on.

**"IT'S THEM!"** the Orange DALEK shouted before shouting into the microphone **"ATTENTION ALL FORCES! THE TARGETS ARE HEADING UP TO THE CORE PROGRAM! MOBILIZE AND DESTROY THEM! STOP THEM BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!"**

* * *

At the top of the tower, the three heroes discarded their DALEK disguises. "OK, now what?" Yūji asked as he looked at the core program. "Think you can work this thing out, Alan?"

"I sure hope so," said Alan.

"Um, guys, the Cybermen and Combatroids are climbing up the stairs and the DALEKs are flying up here," Shinichi reported.

Alan touched the data core and recoiled his hand. "Whoa!" He blinked. "Yūji, Shinichi, I need you guys to touch the ball-and yes I know how that sounded."

"No arguments here," said Yūji as he put his hands on the orb as Shinichi and Alan did the same.

"Now what?" Shinichi asked.

"Just think about home and focus as much as you can on that thought," said Alan.

"Will that work?" Yūji asked.

"We're made of data, so our thoughts are made of data too. We're about to give this place a big old system crash," Alan grinned. "Now, concentrate!"

**"EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

**"Delete."**

However the Core Program unleashed a golden light that blinded the DALEKs, Cybermen and Combatroids. Once the light subsided, the machines saw that their targets were gone.

* * *

The Orange DALEK Scientist's computer shorted out before exploding, throwing him backwards.

**"AHHHH! GOD-DAMMIT!"**

* * *

**Shinichi & Rena's Apartment**

Earlier, Rena had been watching a romantic movie on TV. When she went to the kitchen to get more drinks and snacks during the commercial break, the TV had released a flash of light. Then, Shinichi was just gone. She panicked. She didn't know what to do or who to call. The police would be of no help as she really couldn't tell them the TV had kidnapped her boyfriend. Nobody would take her seriously. So, she just had to wait for a miracle.

Suddenly, the TV turned itself on and lit up like before. She jumped in surprised as she saw a humanoid wireframe appear on the couch and she smiled before her eyes went wide.

"Looks like I'm back," said Alan with a smile. "Oh, what are you doing here, Rena?" He then noticed his state of undress. "And why am I naked?"

"Wow...Baby Alan grew..." stated Rena, blushing like mad.

* * *

**Yuji's Apartment**

The same thing happened and Shinichi ended up materializing in Yūji's apartment in front of the TV. The girls had crowded around the now dead Cyberdrone waiting. "Good to be home!" He turned to look at the girls. "Or not...?" He then felt a bit chilly. "Why am I cold?" He realized he was nude. "Oh shit."

"Shinichi, put on some damn clothes!" Misato shouted as she covered Wendy and Maria's innocent eyes with her hands.

* * *

**Alan's Boarding House**

"YES, FREEDOM! EAT SHIT, CYBER-FUCKERS" Yūji cheered as he materialized in the real world. He suddenly found himself facing a multitude of blades pointed at him. "Woah! Woah! What the fuck, girl!?"

"Ecchi," Yami growled, covering Alice's eyes with her hands.

"Huh?" Yūji asked and then he looked down at himself. "Where are my clothes!?" The blades closed in on him. "Hm... Would it help at all if I said this was completely by accident?"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Disguising themselves as DALEKs? Well, that was done in the classic Doctor Who series, during the First Doctor's era. Anyway, hope you enjoyed reading this adventure as much as I did writing it.**


	189. The Legacy of Cain Part 133

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 133: Riders Wanted**

Shinichi was down in his command centre under his mansion in Genovia. He was sitting in front of a computer console hooked up to a large monitor screen. Hooked up to the computer console was a Teleportal generator which he'd just set up. The command centre still needed more work done but so far it was up and running with the basic essentials such as a connection with their communications network and Hive Satellite where Sheila's AI was living in.

"Sheila, is everything up and running?" Shinichi asked.

"_I've run all the calculations, Shinichi_," answered Sheila. "_Everything should be in working oder._"

"OK." said Shinichi. He called someone's comlink. "Yokoshima, are you there? How does everything look from your end?"

* * *

On the other side of the world in Hinamizawa, in front of the Irie Clinic, was Yokoshima. "Right, I'm here. Everything looks good for the test."

"_Now, this is to make sure the Teleportal works OK on both sides, so I will need you to catch the baseball I am going to throw into the Teleportal from my end. Can you do that?_"

"Sure, man," Yokoshima said.

* * *

"OK, here we go," said Shinichi. "Activating Teleportal in 3...2...1..." The swirling vortex burst to life. "OK, everything's working so far. We've got power..." The lights began to flicker. "OK, need to stabilize the power output." He got off his seat and picked up a baseball ."Yokoshima, do you see the Teleportal?"

* * *

"Yeah, I see it. It just looks a bit funny from my end," reported Yokoshima.

"_Funny in what way?_" asked Shinichi.

"I can't describe it exactly, but it's like _funny_," said Yokoshima.

"_But it's working, right?_"

"I guess." Yokoshima couldn't describe it, but it was making sounds like when his TV showed only static and it did flicker every few seconds. It was probably nothing to worry about, though.

* * *

"That's good enough for me. Now, get ready to catch the baseball!" Shinichi threw the baseball into the vortex and then he asked Yokoshima, "Did you get it?"

"_Yeah, but was the ball dirty when you threw it?_" Yokoshima asked.

"No, it was clean. Why?"

* * *

Yokoshima was holding the baseball, which was covered in some kind of black soot and smoking. "Well, it's covered in black stuff now and it smells like someone lit it on fire for a few seconds before putting it out."

"_Throw it back and let me see_," said Shinichi and Yokoshima did. He then heard, _"Wow, you're right. Just what is this stuff? Soot? How did soot get inside of the Teleportal? And why is it hot? The Teleportal must be producing heat. I think I need to run a few more tests before we can use this on real people. We don't want them fried extra crispy._"

"You could get Pops to help. He did design and build the original Teleportal," suggested Yokoshima.

"_Yeah, you're probably right. Seriously, never thought creating a short path between Point A and Point B would be so hard. Well, at least I got Sheila to help me out._"

"Yeah, Sheila's awesome," smiled Yokoshima.

"_Yokoshima, we've talked about this. Remember, you're married. You have a wife. You don't need to have a crush on an AI_ _anymore_. _Plus, I think she might be dating AI-Shin_," Shinichi informed him.

"I know that, but Sheila was the first woman I ever loved. It's not easy. You don't forget your first love."

* * *

Shinichi dug out his wallet and opened it to show a picture of Rena and he smiled. His true first love when he woke up in Hinamizawa 5 years ago was Rena and it would always be Rena. He pulled out his Magatama and looked at it. The twin belonged to Rena. It was something he had never taken off since they both got them.

"You're right about that," Shinichi whispered.

"_What was that?_" asked Yokoshima.

"Nothing, just gonna run some more calculations and recalibrate the system. Maybe it's just the energy output," Shinichi amended quickly.

While Lina was technically his real first love, back then he had been a different person. They had both moved on with their lives. He hoped Lina was living a good life, better than before. He had faith that Yuji could keep Lina safe. However, if Yuji ever died, would that mean Lina would die too? What about Misato and her baby? Would that rule apply to them as well? He couldn't take any chances. He and his friends had to defeat the Priest before time ran out for them. They all had lives now and they weren't going to lose them without a fight.

* * *

Shogo was in his car with Lucifer riding on the passenger side with him. She was dressed in a beautiful cocktail dress which matched her eyes with a plunging V-shaped neckline, a necklace and bracelets. Shogo was wearing his usual suit which he wore on duty as a bodyguard of the Sonozaki Clan. The two of them were headed to an Italian restaurant for dinner. He had gotten himself reservations and he was fortunately free to take her out.

Lucifer was relieved that she could have a night out with her beau. They hadn't been able to spend much time outside of work. He was always so busy with his duties to the Sonozaki Clan and to the NUMBERS. He always had some kind of assignment he needed to accomplish and that left him little time to take Lucifer out on a date. As for Lucifer, she also had her duties to perform for Beatrice and needed to ask permission before she could go on dates. Beatrice always placed a lot of responsibility on her as she was the eldest and leader of the Stakes of Purgatory.

While it was not within her title, Lucifer was envious of Satan. She had a child already, a cute little baby boy everyone called 'Hiro-chan'. His full name was Hiroyuki Furio Banabara and he was the son of Satan and Shinichi Banabara. The baby already showed magical potential as he once flew out of his crib. He was flying before he even learnt how to crawl. Beatrice had to suppress his flying abilities lest he get himself hurt. Magical babies could be a danger to themselves and others. Lucifer remembered when she and her sisters were left to babysit Hiroyuki. She never knew how troublesome it was to care for a baby until that happened. Satan actually had more experience looking after babies as she had babysat Shinichi's brother.

The sight of Hiroyuki made Leviathan want to have a baby with Daichi, which freaked the guy out. And if she knew Asmodeus, she and Yokoshima were probably picking out baby names before trying to make a baby themselves.

Lucifer glanced at Shogo and blushed at the thought of marrying him and raising a family together. Oh, she was also envious of Asmodeus, who was the first among them to get married. How did her two younger sisters get so lucky? One had a baby and the other was happily married. It seemed like the universe was conspiring against her.

Meanwhile, Shogo made sure that Lucifer didn't catch him checking his pocket. There was something special he had planned for tonight. Tonight was not going to be one of their usual dinner dates. In fact, tonight was going to outdo all the previous dates they had.

They arrived at the restaurant and handed his keys to the valet to park. They both entered the restaurant together and were taken to their table which had been reserved for them. The menus were given to them by their waiter who would return shortly to take their orders.

Shogo patted his pocket as the waiter returned to take their orders. Shogo ordered red wine, chilled, and also their appetizers, followed by their main course and dessert. The price of each menu item should've been outside his budget but Shogo had saved a lot of money from his job to afford dinner and the special surprise for Lucifer.

As the wine came, Shogo decided it was the right time to ask.

"Lucifer, the day I met you, were trying to kill me," Shogo spoke.

"That's right, Beatrice-sama set us up to fight," recalled Lucifer.

"Yeah, and I never could get you out of my mind, since then," he admitted.

"Same here," Lucifer smiled. "I mean, we went from fighting each other to this."

"Yes, and that's why I think it's time I did this." He got out of his seat and then knelt down on one knee, producing a velvet box. He opened it up to show her the ring with the ruby stone set in it. "Lucifer of Pride, will you marry me?"

Lucifer gaped as she saw the ring and then her eyes widened when she heard the words. All attention was on them and Lucifer's brain just shut down as she realized that this was really happening. This was really happening and it wasn't some dream!

"Say that...again...?" she requested, still shocked.

"Uh…will you marry me?" Shogo asked again, a little awkwardly.

"Yes," she uttered softly and then repeated, exuberantly, "Yes! Yes I will marry you!"

The rest of the restaurant's customers and staff all applauded as Shogo smiled and slipped the ring onto Lucifer's finger. He stood up with her and she kissed him deeply.

Lucifer would return home to Kuwadorian and tell all her sisters the great news. Well, actually, she bragged about it shamelessly, gloating about finally becoming a bride.

Leviathan swore she would catch the bouquet at the wedding. Then, she would force Daichi to marry her if she had to.

Beelzebub hoped the wedding cake would be huge.

* * *

Jessica Ushiromiya was heading up to her friend's apartment to study for a midterm together. The subject wasn't exactly the blonde's forte but her friend knew the material in an out. To Jessica, she was a lifesaver. She really needed to get a good grade and couldn't afford to fail. She rode the elevator up to the fifth floor and walked along the corridor to apartment 5-24. Adjusting her bag, Jessica raised her hand and knocked on the door. "Junko-san, it's Jessica. I'm here to study with you." She received no answer. "Junko-san, are you there?"

She suddenly heard a loud sound of plates crashing to the floor and then she heard her friend scream inside, "NO! STAY AWAY FROM ME! GET BACK!"

Jessica's eyes widened and she quickly rummaged through her bag for a key. It was a spare key her friend had given to her as she was always welcomed to hang out with her. She and Junko had been friends since the first day of Tokyo University. Her parents expected a lot from her too and studying in the top-ranking university in Japan met their expectations.

Jessica unlocked the door and threw it open, only to gasp at what she saw. Junko was lying on the floor, only in her towel, in a pool of blood and standing over her was her killer. He was clad in black armor and he wore a helmet with red eyes and antennae. Blood dripped from the blood-stained combat knife in his hand.

He turned to Jessica, giving her a heartless gaze, before running for the window.

"STOP!" Jessica shouted but the killer jumped out the closed window, shattering the glass. Jessica's eyes were focused on her friend's body, feeling horrible nausea, before she went to get the phone. She dialed for the police and held the receiver to her ear.

"Hello, I want to report a murder. It's my friend. I think she was killed by a Kamen Rider," Jessica said. She saw a black scarf clenched inside her friend's cold, dead hand and sobbed.

* * *

Lina Fudo was jogging around the city, wearing a pair of black bloomers and a white t-shirt along with white socks and tennis shoes. It was her way to stay in shape and she loved to run. There really wasn't much she could do besides going out to fight the forces of evil alongside her adopted brother Yuji Fudo. Funny how life worked out for her.

She'd been kidnapped by GIN-SHOCKER and locked up to be used in an experiment to stimulate emotions in BLACK 13. Then she got killed and then she got revived as an android, and then she died again, and then revived as Demon Furniture by the Witch of Terror, and now she belonged to Yuji Fudo. Oh, he didn't technically own her but she was family.

Her appearance had changed a lot. She originally looked like Rena, only with her hair a darker shade with green eyes. As an android she sported long pink hair but she could still assume her original appearance. She decided she liked her pink-haired look so she kept it and wore it in a ponytail.

As she jogged by the newspaper stand, she did a double-take and jogged backwards. She picked up the newspaper and scanned it.

"Wait, this can't be right," she murmured.

"Are you going to buy it?" the vendor asked.

"Oh, sorry," she said as she handed him some money and went to reading. "This can't be good."

* * *

**"Hmm, this is interesting," **DALEK Shiro mused as he was reading the newspaper. He was focused on the news story about a murder which had taken place and judging by the description given by the witness, it seemed that BLACK 13 was the one responsible**."This has the RoC written all over it," **DALEK Shiro concluded. He knew that Shinichi would not have done anything like murder a college student. It just wasn't in his nature.

The Pink DALEK agreed,** "Yeah, because Shinichi would never make a mess like that! Can you imagine how hard it is to get the blood stains out?"**

**"SHUT UP, JANITOR!"**

* * *

In a coffee shop in Tokyo, Battler, Alan, Shinichi, Yuji and Hana were sitting in a booth together. Battler had left Junior Beato's care. She said that Junior had grown on her and despite his grotesque appearance he was kind of cute in an alien kind of way. Shinichi was reading the newspaper and he trembled as he read what was in it. He crumpled it up and looked to Battler in anger.

"This is bullshit!" he shouted. There was no way Shinichi would do something like this, at least not anymore. BLACK 13 might've but not Shinichi Banabara. That was all in the past.

"Dude, I know that," said Battler, "But to Jessica and everyone who read this, they all think it's true." His cousin Jessica had described the killer as a male in black armor with red eyes on his helmet and antennae. Also, a red XIII on his right shoulder. That was BLACK 13 to the letter.

"They're using this to start a smear campaign on the Riders again," said Alan. "And it's only gonna get worse." In spite of the pictures Keima had sent to the newspapers, there was still a percentage of people who were still suspicious and distrustful of the Sentinel. There were even groups that denounced him. Nobody said being a hero was easy, but now it seemed like the whole country was turning against him. This news would turn the people against the Riders too.

"And Kaa-chan started that campaign to support Kamen Riders," said Shinichi. "This is gonna ruin her." He didn't really care so much about what happened to Kintaro, but this would affect his loved ones terribly.

"And it's not just this," said Hana. "There's news that Meta robbed a bank in another city and killed four guards."

"What!?" Battler cried out in shock.

"It's a dirty frame up, that's what it is," frowned Yuji. "A frame up targeted at those who carry the title Kamen Rider."

The door opened and the bell on top rang as Inspector Akasaka entered. Spotting the group, he went to their table. He took a seat and a waitress came asking for his order. He asked for his usual.

"Now... I suppose you are wondering why I called you all here today... well most of you." Akasaka said looking at Alan who shrugged.

"Let me guess; it has something to do with the recent sightings of Showa and Meta committing criminal activities?" Yuji questioned rhetorically.

"You do know we're being framed right?" Battler said.

"Of course I do, but I think you should know that this had been going on for a lot longer than you think," Akasaka told them.

"What do you mean?" Alan asked.

"Well a few weeks there were reports of a murder caused by a multi-bladed weapon, the same kind Arachnea uses. Then a couple of days after that there was another murder at a park and someone took a picture of the killer. The picture was blurry but it looked like some kind of cat-like being in white armor escaping the scene," Akasaka said. Hana blanched as she realized what Akasaka meant.

Yuji realized it too but just shook his head and scoffed, "Well, jokes on them. I haven't used the Liger System in almost a year."

"Yes, but do the public know that?" Akasaka questioned. Yuji may not have been seen as Liger for months but the public were unaware that he'd stopped using the armor. Yuji let out a sigh and shook his head.

"Wait, how do you know that we are innocent?" Hana asked.

"Simple if you had turned evil you would have threaten to kill me to keep your secret, or just murder me without warning," Akasaka said bluntly.

"So, you asked us to come here to help you catch the killer and clear the Riders' names," said Alan.

"Among other things," said Akasaka.

Shinichi watched the television in the coffee shop and pointed, "Hey, look! It's Kaa-chan!"

Shiori Banabara was giving a press conference. As the advocate for the Kamen Riders who started the campaign, people wanted an explanation following the news report of a Kamen Rider committing murder. By her side was her husband/bodyguard, Tatsuyoshi.

Shiori had to ask her brother, Kintaro, for support of her campaign and things had been running smoothly as public opinion on the Kamen Riders was mostly positive. However, with people like the DJ Mikogami smearing them on radio as well as this news report, it would appear her campaign would be suffering, along with herself and her reputation.

Kintaro even threatened to sue if she was unable to fix all this.

"She's been working hard to make sure people saw us as heroes, but now because of this," Shinichi slapped his hand on the newspaper, "People are attacking her. It's not fair!"

"When heroes get persecuted, their supporters are attacked as well," said Alan. "It's like there's no distinction between the two."

"Well, I ain't gonna stand for it," said Yuji. "Shiori-sensei's a great woman. Sure, she has an unconventional career, but that doesn't make her a bad person. She's fighting for a cause she believes in."

"_And remember, they have saved our lives so many, many times_," Shiori continued to speak on live television. "_We owe them our lives and I will always support them. The report of a Rider committing murder is preposterous! It makes no sense! Why would they do this after all this time? The only logical explanation is that it's some kind of imposter!_"

Suddenly, a needle struck the podium. It was one of Zero's stingers! It began to blink and beep rapidly. Tatsuyoshi grabbed onto Shiori and ran with her to take cover before the entire podium exploded.

"Gotta move!" said Shinichi quickly as he put money down on the table and rushed out of the coffee shop. His mother had just been attacked on live television.

"Come on," Alan prompted. "He's going to need backup."

"Are you sure?" Akasaka asked.

"Definitely," said Yuji.

* * *

'Zero' laughed maniacally as he fired rapidly at everyone and anyone he could see at the press conference which was taking place at a public park. "THAT'S IT! RUN AND REMEMBER THAT IT WAS THE KAMEN RIDERS THAT DID THIS TO YOU!"

He dodged as an energy blast nearly hit him and turned to spot Black Skull in the distance with his Burst Cannon armed and charged.

"Ah, it's the Black Skull. I've heard of you. Of what do I owe the pleasure of this meeting?" 'Zero' questioned.

"You can start by taking off the mask. You ain't fooling nobody," said Black Skull. Blue Comet, Sentinel, Meta and Arachnea were there with him. As soon as they showed up, the people around them were shouting insults at them. Sentinel's reputation had yet to recover fully and the news of Meta robbing a bank and killing four guards was still fresh in their minds.

"Guys, I can handle this," said Black Skull.

"We just wanted to-" Meta was interrupted as he was hit in the head with a rock. "OK, who threw that!?"

"This is most amusing," 'Zero' chuckled as he saw the heroes being threatened by the reporters and civilians, who seemed to forget that they could easily kill them. "But unfortunately I have to head home now. My favorite soap is about to start." 'Zero's wings beat and he took to the air.

"Hey, get back here!" shouted Black Skull but the reporters and civilians mobbed them. The reporters were demanding answers from them and the civilians were just yelling at them. "Dammit! Meta, teleport us!"

"Roger!" Meta obeyed and he teleported them all out of the mob.

Shiori and Tatsuyoshi were left to watch with Shiori feeling upset. This sure was going to harm her campaign and the support she had garnered for the Riders was sure to plummet.

* * *

"So, how have you been?" Carl asked.

"Good," Misato nodded.

"Been eating well?"

"Yup."

"And the baby?" he inquired.

"She's doing fine as you can see," smiled Misato.

"What about training?"

"Of course," she nodded. "I manage to find time, don't you know."

The two were in the apartment. The TV was on. Yuna was in Misato's arms and fast asleep. Suddenly, the program they were watching switched to an emergency news broadcast. It showed Shiori giving a public speech at a press conference in Tokyo, reasserting her support for the Kamen Riders when all of a sudden she was attacked by Kamen Rider Zero. It shocked Misato to see Zero act like that. Then the others appeared. However, the civilians and reporters got in the way. One of them even tossed a rock at Meta's head.

"OK, what's going on?" Misato demanded as she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

* * *

While in Tokyo, Shiori was staying in a hotel with Tatsuyoshi. Sho was back home with Rika and Hanyuu babysitting him. Shinichi arrived to see how his parents were doing.

"Kaa-chan, are you OK?" Shinichi asked as he hugged her. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"Not physically," said Shiori as she hugged him back. "Thanks to Tatsuyoshi-kun."

"Why did one of your friends attack us?" Tatsuyoshi asked.

"That was not Shogo," said Shinichi. "I'm positive. He never talks like that."

"Then it's someone in a very convincing costume who has functioning replicas of his weapons," said Tatsuyoshi.

"With all that's been happening, I don't doubt that," said Shinichi. He got a call on his comlink. "I have to take this." He answered, "What?"

_"Is Shiori-sensei OK!?" _asked Yokoshima frantically.

"Yes, she's fine," said Shinichi. "Excuse me, but I have to confirm Shogo's whereabouts."

_"Oh, well you can ask Sheila,"_ said Yokoshima.

"Thank you, I was about to do that," said Shinichi.

"_Oh, and I think that was an android_," Yokoshima theorized, "_Or a clone, or an android clone_."

"An android clone?" Shinichi cocked an eyebrow. "You mean 'duplicate', right?"

"_Duplicate, clone. Whatever. Didn't Shiro pull the same trick when he came back? And remember, Gebok had those androids to replace him each time we thought we killed him_," said Yokoshima.

"Touch'e," Shinichi accepted Yokoshima's argument. "Well, I don't really care what he is. I just want to stop him before he strikes again while wearing one of our faces."

"_Which might be sooner than you think_," said Yokoshima. "_Sheila just called, and she told me she's seeing me performing some unauthorized demolition. How can it be me when I'm here talking on the phone with you?_"

"The others should be on their way then," Shinichi said.

* * *

The 'Blue Beetle' cackled as he raised his arm, which was now in the form of a blade, and cut down a lamppost. It crashed down onto a car's roof, denting it severely while breaking the windows.

"Death and Destruction, two of my favorite hobbies," 'Blue Beetle' said to himself. Converting his arm into a sonic blaster, he fired a burst and shattered the windows of the buildings and cars within the vicinity.

He heard the roar of a motorcycle but shrugged it off, "Must be some random motorist or something..." he murmured but then he saw that it was Meta and he leapt over him as the black-clad Rider obviously tried to run him over.

"Nice try!" said the 'Blue Beetle' and then he realized he was surrounded by Arachnea, Sentinel and Blue Comet. "Ah, hello again."

The Meta pulled his bike over and glared, "Zip it, you phony. We're here to bring you in."

"So don't try anything funny," added Arachnea threateningly.

"Oh, and I thought you'd want to help me wreck this city," the 'Blue Beetle' sighed. "Because it's so much fun, guys. Don't you enjoy watching things explode, listening to people screaming?" He heard several police cruisers on their way. "Ah, and it sounds like the local authorities are coming."

The cars surrounded them and the officers got out of their cars, aiming their guns at the heroes.

"Look, it's fine, officer," said Meta. "We can handle this." However, he was suddenly shaken up when one of the officers shot him in the chest. "You shot me!"

"Cease and desist!" the lead officer commanded. "You're all under arrest for destruction of public property!"

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" Blue Comet snapped. "We're the good guys!" He pointed to the 'Blue Beetle'. "He's the bad guy!"

"I see you're all having issues with the authorities. I should go then," said the 'Blue Beetle' and he turned his legs to resemble those of a grasshopper's. He then launched himself into the air.

"Hey!" Sentinel shouted as he went to go after the Blue Beetle but a police helicopter got in the way. "Hey, out of my way!"

"Uh-oh, the media's coming!" Meta pointed out.

"We need to go," said the Sentinel. "Split up and meet back at the rendezvous point."

"What's the rendezvous point?" Meta questioned.

"I'll call and tell you! Now retreat!"

Nodding, Blue Comet and Sentinel flew in different directions as Meta sped away on his bike. Arachnea used a webline to swing away. The police entered their vehicles to pursue them.

* * *

The group rendezvoused on the hotel rooftop. They had not just let the suspect escape once, but twice. This did not look good for them, and now the police was after them. Hopefully, Akasaka would be able to clear things up.

"OK, seriously, why does he keep running away when we show up instead of fighting us?" Battler asked.

"Maybe because he knows that he doesn't stand a chance," Hana stated.

"Damn it," Yuji cursed. "He's just toying with us."

"Yes, and we're playing right into his hands making us all look like the villains," said Alan. Public opinion about him was still split in half and now the Riders were being affected.

"But they can't possibly believe we're bad guys, right? What about all the stuff we've done?" Battler questioned.

"It doesn't seem to matter, and whoever this copycat is he's using the media to turn the country against us. Pretty soon the world will be against us," said Shinichi.

"But the public can't be this gullible, right?" Battler asked.

"Battler, if it's on the news it has to be true," Shinichi quoted. "If this is reported on the news and the news says we're Public Enemy #1, people will believe it without question because of their credibility."

"That's usually how it works, unfortunately, and the ones who won't believe it are small percent of the population, a minority that won't affect the majority's opinion," agreed Alan.

"It's like our history doesn't matter," scowled Yuji. "This blows."

"Well, the best we can do is to make people see the truth," said Shinichi.

"How's your mom, doing?" asked Yuji.

"She's doing fine, for now at least," said Shinichi. "Which reminds me, I should go back and look after her. I don't want her getting attacked in her sleep."

"And what do you want us to do?" asked Battler.

"Search the city and find this guy because he causes more damage to it and our reputations," Shinichi ordered. He summoned several paper cranes and sent them off to do recon.

* * *

"Hmm, what should I do next?" a mysterious figure said to himself. Because he looked like a normal, average Joe, he was barely noticeable in a crowd and nobody was even paying attention to him. He just looked too plain to warrant any notice.

"How about I start a fire?" he suggested before he dismissed it, "Nah, too trivial." He continued, "A killing spree? No, that would be overdoing it. What I need to do is something fresh..." He then remembered something about an Ushiromiya living in the city. "I haven't tried kidnapping yet." His grin grew to malicious lengths. Yes, a kidnapping would be good. Plus, he'd have a hostage that would prevent the Riders from doing anything to him.

* * *

Jessica walked back out into her living room and grabbed her bag. She had bag under her eyes. She hadn't had a good night's sleep since Junko's death. Not to mention she was still in shock because she couldn't believe a Rider had done it.

"God, can't this get any worse." Jessica groaned.

"Oh dear, don't you know not to ask that question. It only brings bad luck," said a voice.

Jessica turned quickly. She had only a moment to see who was behind her. But as she turned, she could see what appeared to be Kamen Rider Musician moving fast towards her. Then a sharp pain hit her head and caused her to drop to the ground. Jessica had only moments of consciousness before she finally fainted.

'Musician' tossed her over his shoulder and began to leave, unaware that one of Shinichi's paper cranes had spotted him. It quickly headed back to Shinichi to report to him before it was too late..

* * *

'Musician' was jumping from rooftop to rooftop whilst carrying his hostage. Suddenly, a series of energy blasts exploded in front of him, forcing him to stop.

"Hmm, this is what, our third meeting?" 'Musician' questioned calmly as Black Skull hovered down on his hover board. It shrank and turned back into his feet before he landed in front of the fake Rider.

"OK, I don't know how you've been copying the Kamen Riders, but this needs to stop," said Black Skull.

"Or what?" the fake 'Musician' questioned.

"Or I'm going to _make _you stop," threatened Black Skull.

"But I have a hostage," claimed 'Musician' but then a webline shot out, grabbed Jessica, and pulled her away from Musician. Arachnea caught the unconscious girl gently in her arms.

"What hostage?" asked Black Skull rhetorically and he charged at 'Musician', throwing a punch at him. He was shocked as a third arm popped out of Musician's chest to catch the fist before hitting Black Skull with both his free hands.

"What the?" Black Skull uttered in confusion.

The fake Musician remarked, "There's more to me than meets the eye." Both his right and left hand formed into weapons, drill and sonic blaster respectively. He raised his right hand and unleashed powerful sonic blast.

Black Skull dodged the attack but his eyes widened as the fake Musician got in close and nearly turned him into a bloody mess when he raised his drill arm. He barely dodged it. Black Skull quickly retaliated by kicking him in the groin but grunted in pain. It was like kicking some REALLY hard metal alloy.

"Okay this is just getting annoying!" Black Skull snapped as he threw kicks and punches but his opponent was dodging them with ease. The fake Rider then headbutted Black Skull, making him stumble backwards.

"Now, you're mine!" the fake Rider roared as he was about to drive his drill into Black Skull only to hit a wall of muscle. It was Sentinel and he was standing between him and his target.

"Hello, and goodbye." Sentinel exhaled and blew the fake Rider backwards. The fake Musician screamed but changed as he transformed into Zero and began to fly away.

"Oh, no you don't!" Black Skull shouted as he transformed into Showa Higurashi Form and gave chase. Sentinel also joined in and so did Blue Comet and Meta.

"Sentinel, Comet, cut him off," Showa instructed. "Meta, you're with me!"

Sentinel and Blue Comet shot ahead, flying past the fake Zero. Using their rings, they made a net to catch him. Fake Zero quickly changed course and shot upwards like a rocket with Showa and Meta in hot pursuit.

"He's not getting away from me!" said Meta as he accelerated and with a quick burst of speed caught the fake Zero by his ankle. "Gotcha!" Fake Zero looked down at him and aimed his stinger-loaded gauntlets at him. "Oh shit!" Fake Zero filled him with needles and they exploded, sending Meta crashing onto the street below.

"Meta!" Showa shouted.

"_I'm OK!_" Meta responded via his comlink. "_Go_ _get that creep!_"

Meanwhile, Blue Comet and Sentinel were trying to grab hold of the fake Rider using large baseballs of blue and green energy. However, he was able to avoid capture with ease before shooting explosive needles at them. He then changed form and turned into Armadillo, curled himself into a ball, and dropped on top of Blue Comet, flattening him against a rooftop. Sentinel confronted him but he shape-shifted again and turned into BLACK 13 himself. Sentinel cocked an eyebrow but then smiled before charging at the shapeshifter who ducked under his punch. The shapeshifter retaliated with several strong kicks that Sentinel was able to block with his forearms. Catching a punch, Sentinel tossed the shapeshifter into the air and used a punch to send him flying across the rooftop. Using his speed, he made it to the other side before his soaring opponent did and prepared to hit him again but a flash of bright light blinded Sentinel. The fake Rider landed safely on his hands and feet and darted off. Blue Comet prepared to fire at him with his ring but the fake Rider dropped a grenade that rolled to his feet.

"Damn cockbite," Blue Comet cursed.

**BOOM!**

The entire rooftop was engulfed by an explosion and the shapeshifter leapt off and landed on the sidewalk below. He dusted his hands and was ready to escape into an alleyway when he was punched hard across the face. Showa stepped out of the alleyway and watched as the shape-shifter changed shape again, this time into an effeminate male with short, raven black hair, sunglasses, in a white shirt, long black pants and sandals. Showa grabbed him by his collar and lifted him up to his face.

"OK, who are you and who put you up to this!?" Showa demanded as he held the imposter up by his collar.

"The name's Kopy, and I don't divulge my clients' identities. I'm a professional," Kopy sneered. Showa slammed him against the wall.

"I'm not gonna ask again," Showa growled. He was pissed off that this guy had the audacity to use their image to commit crimes. He had also attacked Shiori's mother which was unforgivable. "Was it the Religion of Crime?"

"Well, now that you know, you won't be needing me anymore," spat Kopy.

"Don't get smart with me. I'm handing you over to the cops and telling them everything," Showa said to Kopy. This was sure to clear their names.

"Sorry, but that ain't part of the plan," Kopy told him.

"Well, too had," Showa smirked. "Because whatever you're planning is over."

"Actually, it's just the beginning," said Kopy. He flicked his wrist and produced a small hidden firearm. He raised it to his own temple and shot himself before Showa could react. The shapeshifter's body went rigid before becoming limp. Shocked, Showa dropped him and stared in confusion.

Suddenly, the silence was broken by the blaring sirens of police cruisers as they flashed their headlights at Showa. He turned to face the police officers who surrounded him. It didn't look good. Kopy's dead body was lying at his feet. To them, it looked like he had just committed cold-blooded murder.

"Freeze, put your hands up now!" the lead officer ordered. "You're under arrest for murder!"

"Wait, I-!" Showa stepped forward but he was shot by the officers. "Stop! This is a misunderstanding!" However, the officers weren't listening and continued to shoot at him. Seeing no alternative, lest he wanted his identity to be exposed, he shot upwards as the officers continued to fire at him.

* * *

It didn't take long for the news to report the event, stating that Kamen Rider Showa had killed a currently unidentified young male. The police gave their statements and there were pictures of the body being carried away in a body bag. The police had witnessed the whole thing.

Despite Jessica's claim that a Rider had rescued her, a Rider had kidnapped her as well. What little support Shiori had for her campaign was sure to turn their backs on her after this news got out. Hopefully, she would be able to survive the public backlash.

Now Kamen Rider Showa was wanted for murder.

* * *

"So, Kopy's become a martyr," Faust said as he watched the footage. Kopy's death had accomplished their ultimate goal, turning the public against the Kamen Riders and by extension their allies.

"Of course, he's going to be needed again," said Black.

"Nothing a little necromancy can't handle," stated Faust. "I'm going to need to retrieve his body, though."

"That'll be easy. After all, we've got people working on the inside..."

* * *

Meanwhile, DALEK Shiro was watching the news with glee, grinning inside his DALEK casing. His fellow DALEKs, minus the Pink Janitor, were watching with him.

**"Ah, poor Showa. If this keeps up he'll just turn into a 'No Showa'!"** DALEK Shiro laughed. The other DALEKs stared blankly at their Supreme One.

**"Did you just make joke, Supreme One?" t**he DALEK Scientist inquired.

**"I think that Janitor is unfortunately rubbing off on me,"** DALEK Shiro groaned.

**"Hey guys! Did anyone call me?" **the Pink DALEK Janitor asked as he approached his fellow DALEKs.

**"Uhh no," **DALEK Shiro denied. **"You should go clean up some...stuff...that's dirty...and in need of cleaning."**

"**But I already cleaned the place, three times," **the DALEK Janitor replied.

**"Then go cook food for the RoC! I don't care! Just go!" **DALEK Shiro snapped.

**"Fine, fine. Jeez, grouchy much?"** the Janitor DALEK sighed.

DALEK Shiro was trembling with rage along with his brethren while resisting the urge to exterminate the Pink DALEK.

The DALEK Janitor saw the news and exclaimed, **"Wow, it looks like the heroes are taking a lot of heat nowadays!"**

**"Yes, yes they are. Now go," **DALEK Shiro commanded in an attempt to get rid of the Pink DALEK.

**"Hey guys I just got an idea!**" the DALEK Janitor announced. Watching the heroes taking the heat just inspired him and gave him an idea that he would want to share with his brethren.

**"If I listen will you go away?" **DALEK Shiro asked.

**"Yep,"** the DALEK Janitor answered.

**"Then talk!"** DALEK Shiro ordered.

**"What if we go out there, meet the people-"** the DALEK Janitor began.

**"No," **the DALEK Scientist interrupted, already seeing that this was a bad idea.

**"Make ourselves look like superheroes-" **

**"No," **the DALEK Geneticist cut him off, but the Janitor continued.

**"And perform good deeds to earn the public's trust so that we can be one step closer to exterminating things!" **

**"YES!" **the DALEK Warrior agreed. **"That plan is so crazy it just might work!"** The other DALEKS gave him the look. **"What? It ****_is _****crazy enough to work, right?** **_Right?_**"

**"Thanks for agreeing with me," **the DALEK Janitor 'beamed'.

**"Shut up, dirtbag," **the DALEK Warrior retorted.

**"OK, clearly you guys are being stupid,"** DALEK Strategist told off his demented pink and red DALEK brothers. **"First off: We are DALEKs! As in 'Death & Annihilation Laser Extermination Killbots'! We don't do good deeds! It's not in our programming! Second off: The world is afraid of DALEKs. We wouldn't be able gain the public's trust like that; everyone will be too busy running and screaming! Finally, even if we do pull this off, the heroes would still attempt to stop us!" **

**"Well we could gain public trust and end up at a mayor's council," **DALEK Janitor argued. "**We could also dress up to look like superheroes and not yell 'EX-TER-MIN-ATE'. That way it can work!**"

**"Hmm, that sounds tempting now,"** the Blue DALEK Strategist said, earning glares from the White DALEK Supreme, Green Geneticist and Orange Scientist. He quickly changed his opinion and sternly said to the Janitor DALEK, **"Uh no that is out of the question!"** He didn't want to get exterminated by his superior and peers.

**"Come on, it is not like it's going to kill us!" **the DALEK Janitor pressed on. The other DALEKs aimed their gunsticks at the Pink DALEK. "**OK, fine! I can take a hint!"** the Pink DALEK huffed.** "If you'll excuse me, I got some pests upstairs to exterminate!" **The DALEK glided away. It actually didn't matter if he was destroyed on the spot. His memories would be saved in the Cloning Chamber and a new Pink DALEK would be build to replace him. It would be like he had never been destroyed. However, DALEK Shiro did not want to endure another painful feedback.

"Meeting adjourned. Everyone dismissed," DALEK Shiro concluded as he and other other DALEKs went off their separate ways to perform their duties.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And once again, the Riders face something that they cannot fight: Public Opinion. Now that Showa is being labeled as a criminal and wanted by police, it won't be long for the people to suspect the Riders and see them as enemies. Is this truly the RoC's plan? Have they finally won? No, they won't win as long as our heroes still live to fight another day. However, can they restore their reputation and clear their names? Keep on reading if you want to find out.**


	190. The Legacy of Cain Part 134

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 134: Threat of the Geneticist**

Kamen Rider Showa was wanted for murder. That was the biggest news in Japan now. Kamen Rider Showa had been caught red-handed, by the police, murdering a still yet unidentified male. While the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department was aware of Showa's actions against the Panther Claw organization some years ago, it would not stop them from bringing him to justice.

This latest bit of news gave DJ Mikogami more fuel to add to the fire as he criticised the Riders even more, creating a smear campaign that made the Riders look like Public Enemies #1. In fact, Showa committing murder was proof that the Riders' vigilantism had gone too far and needed to be stopped at any cost. At present, the Kamen Riders were now labeled as wanted fugitives and those harboring the Riders would receive heavy punishment. It was like that time Panther Claw had tried to turn the populace against Kamen Rider Showa, only this time it was working.

Inspector Akasaka was tasked with arresting Kamen Rider Showa and his accomplices. He knew that Kamen Rider Showa was innocent because he knew Shinichi personally but he also knew that Shinichi was willing to use lethal force against an enemy. The other police departments in Japan were also informed and given orders to arrest the Kamen Riders on sight and use lethal force if necessary. The Riders were dangerous vigilantes and needed to answer for their crimes.

Shiori was being affected by all this. She was being harassed on the phone by reporters wanting an interview and also by Kintaro who wanted her to take responsibility for implicating him in her disaster of a campaign. Fortunately, the villagers of Hinamizawa were protective of their own and would not allow any strangers suspected to be reporters or outsiders with malicious intent into the village. Sakura even called once to ask how Shiori was doing out of sympathy. As someone who'd been saved by the Kamen Riders, she couldn't believe that this was happening.

The sales of her books had also dropped and now former fans who believed the Riders were enemies were burning her books to make bonfires to burn dummies dressed up like the Kamen Riders. It was quite problematic for Shiori. She'd tried to help the Riders by rallying support only for it all to backfire so miserably.

Shiori didn't blame her son for this, though. She blamed the party responsible for framing him. Shinichi had not killed that man. He'd committed suicide. However, there was no evidence to back up that claim. The reason for it was simple as the firearm Kopy had used simply disintegrated after just one shot. Kopy's body had been taken by the police as evidence.

Rika and Hanyuu, Shiori's adopted daughters, were being treated harshly at school by their peers but they would not allow their adopted mother to be badmouthed for doing the right thing nor allow themselves to be bullied. They were Riders themselves and knew for a fact that none of the Kamen Riders were responsible for any sort of murder. Rika believed that Inspector Akasaka would find proof to absolve the Kamen Riders of any wrongdoing.

* * *

Shiori downed the cup of sake and let out a sigh. "How did things go wrong, Akane?" Shiori was in the Sonozaki Mansion and having sake with Akane.

"You were trying to do the right thing, and there are always risk when trying to do something like supporting masked heroes," Akane consoled, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"They've done so much to protect us and then some baka on the radio is badmouthing them mercilessly. I thought my campaign could help them but it just backfired..." groaned Shiori, putting her hands over her head. "My career is over..."

"Things will turn out OK in the end, somehow," encouraged Akane. "You can't just give up. I mean, you're doing all this for your children, after all." Shiori gasped.

"What do you mean, Akane?" Shiori asked nervously. Did Akane know her children were Kamen Riders? Well, technically Rika and Hanyuu were pseudo-Kamen Riders.

"Your children support the Riders too," Akane clarified. "You're showing them your support as well and that you believe in the Riders like they do."

"...Oh, that's what you meant," said Shiori, sounding relieved. Akane was a good friend. Shiori's presence wasn't entirely welcomed in Hinamizawa when she first moved to the village. The old-fashioned villagers thought that Shiori, being a writer of risque adult literature might become a corruptive element in their village but Akane was there to support Shiori's stay in the village. Shiori in return also gave advice to the women in the village who felt that their love/sex lives had become dull and boring. Shiori had all sorts of ideas to spice up the bedroom.

"Now, how about another cup?" Akane offered as she held up the bottle of sake.

"Just one more," said Shiori. "I can't let Tatsuyoshi-kun and Sho-chan see me looking tipsy." Akane filled her cup again. Sake and a good friend were comforting right now.

* * *

Faust had come to see the progress of DALEK Shiro's latest projects. Since the creation of the other DALEKs, DALEK Shiro had been able to delegate different responsibilities to each of them so he could focus more on his own personal projects.

In the past, Shiro had worked for the Gauntlet and given a set of plans to build the Cybermen and DALEKs and had focused so much time and resources on improving them. The machines were just so beautiful and perfect, and more importantly destructive; the perfect killing machines.

DALEK Shiro couldn't help but feel nostalgic as he watched some old video files.

"**Tell me, Faust. Do you know why I used to focus so much of my time on the DALEKs and Cybermen?" **asked DALEK Shiro.

"Why?" Faust asked, humoring DALEK Shiro but he was also curious as where this was going.

"**It's because they are deadly. They are able to do what they were created to do efficiently which is to kill humans. That is what inspired me to fuse them into the Cyber-Daleks. However, I have just gotten inspired on creating a deadlier type of mechanical soldier.**"

"Oh?" Faust sounded interested.

The White DALEK went towards the screen and flipped a switch. The screen showed what looked like a smooth and featureless humanoid figure made of white metal. The background showed that it was standing in the middle of some kind of canyon or valley.

"What is that?" Faust asked.

"**A Warrior Robot, or Warbot for short**," the DALEK Shiro answered. "**And it is my greatest and most deadliest creation yet.**"

Cyber-Daleks were sent after the Warbot who gazed at them impassively. In an instant, the Cyber-Daleks were destroyed by the Warbot who had not even moved from it spot. It had thrown darts that destroyed the Cyber-Daleks on the spot. Faust's eyes widened at what he'd witnessed.

"**See? Deadly. However, we have limited resources at the moment so we can only make one right now**," said DALEK Shiro. "**Nevertheless, the test was a success**."

"I'm reminded of Henshaw's Manhunters," Faust commented.

"**Well, my creation will be superior to the Manhunters, I guarantee it,"** claimed DALEK Shiro.

"What are the other DALEKs of your little legion working on?" Faust asked.

"**They're all working on their own little projects right now,"** said DALEK Shiro.

* * *

The DALEK Warrior was watching as the DALEK Geneticist's servants were moving a tub full of a glowing green slime. These were the new Pig Slaves, pig-headed humanoids dressed in green jumpsuits. With him was the DALEK Strategist .

"**Hey, do you have an idea of what he's doing?"** the Red Warrior asked his orange counterpart.

"**Who?"** the Scientist replied.

"**The Geneticist,"** the Warrior clarified. **"What do you think he's up to?"**

If the Strategist could shrug, it would've, but you can't shrug without shoulders. "**Who knows? Personally, I'd rather avoid him. He's kinda nuts."** The Green DALEK seemed to have inherited Shiro's insanity and since it was his most dominant personality, the Geneticist acted more like a mad scientist than the Scientist.

"**Not as nutty as the new guy,"** said the Warrior as he pointed at the latest DALEK produced by the Cloning Chamber. The new DALEK was purple and like them had Vibranium bonded armor. The Purple DALEK had been given the title DALEK Medic and would be the one to handle all medical issues that the DALEKs would have. Of course, there was something slightly off about the Purple DALEK.

Well, it wasn't slightly off. More like _really_ off.

He had two personalities in one body, with one being a total pacifist and the other being a megalomaniac. The DALEK functioned as their medic and insisted that they call him 'Doc'. The more insane, megalomaniacal, personality preferred to be called 'Omega' because he claimed that he was the end of everything. Also, the Purple DALEK's personalities could actually speak with each other, making it look like he was talking to himself.

Doc said, "**I really think that if we just sat down and talked, we could get them to agree to a peace**."

Omega argued, speaking in a deeper voice, "**_Well, I prefer if they would all rest in peace! Mwahahahahahaha!_**"

"**Must you always think of death and destruction, Omega? We're a medic. We can't just kill people**."

"**_I would prefer to be called 'The Doctor of Death, Doom and Gloom'! Bwahahahaha!"_**

Meanwhile, the Green Geneticist was watching as his creations followed his orders. "**Soon, the preparations will be complete and the fun can really start.**"

* * *

In the Basement, Shinichi and Dr. Magi were working on upgrading the computers together. Yokoshima was just watching as he really couldn't do anything to help. This wasn't exactly his area of expertise as he didn't understand much about computers.

"So, how are you holding up?" Dr. Magi asked.

"Well, let's see..." began Shinichi. "I'm wanted for murder, anyone associated with me is either an accomplice or accessory to the crime, and the police have an order to take me in either dead or alive. Not to mention Kaa-chan's getting harassed on the phone by either nosy reporters or her douchebag of a brother."

"So, pretty bad then," Dr. Magi frowned.

"Well, it's not rainbows and sunshine!" Shinichi snapped before apologizing as he massaged his temples, "Sorry, I'm sorry. I'm just stressed."

"Well, you would be since someone used your image to commit crimes," said Yokoshima.

"Your reputation means a lot to you, doesn't it?" Dr. Magi asked.

"It felt nice to be respected and not treated as a freak of science," Shinichi confessed, "But only the opinions of my friends really matter."

Dr. Magi put a consoling hand on Shinichi's shoulder, "Hey, we'll get through this. By the way, how is the progress you're having with setting up the new Teleportal system in your Genovian command centre?"

"Well, the baseballs I toss through aren't smoking anymore," Shinichi said, "But they still end up being covered by some mysterious black soot."

"Yeah, and I still don't understand how that happened," stated Yokoshima.

"I ran an analysis of the substance and discovered was a mixture of carbon and tar," Dr. Magi told Shinichi.

"How did tar and carbon get inside a Teleportal?" Yokoshima asked. Dr. Magi shrugged.

AI-Shin floated over and spoke, "_Hey, guys. Sheila wants to speak to you."_ His eye flashed and a holographic representation of Sheila's female avatar was shown. AI-Shin was linked up to the satellite too which meant he could directly communicate with Sheila and relay her messages to the others if the communications were down. Since Dr. Magi and Shinichi needed to turn off the computers.

"Hey, Sheila!" Yokoshima greeted.

"_Greetings, Yokoshima_," Sheila greeted back, smiling. "_And greetings to you too, Shinichi and Dr. Magi_."

"Hello, Sheila. What did you want to tell us?" asked Dr. Magi.

"_I've detected a transmission being sent to this frequency. It seems urgent," _Sheila reported.

"Ah, I see," Dr. Magi nodded. "I guess we need to postpone the upgrades for a bit. Turn on the computers, Yokoshima."

"Will do, Pops," Yokoshima obeyed and turned on the computers. The screens showed static and a picture forming in the main one.

"It looks like the transmission is coming through," said Dr. Magi.

"Can you tell where it's coming from?" Shinichi asked.

"No, and frankly I'm more concerned as to who it is how they could've found us," said Dr. Magi.

"Maybe whoever it is are friendly?" Yokoshima suggested, receiving deadpanned looks in response. "What? Not all mysterious transmission can be bad, right?" Before anyone could say anything, the transmission finally got through, revealing a green-armored DALEK on the screen. "Well, fuck."

"**_Greetings, inferior life-forms. You may call me the DALEK Geneticist, or Green Geneticist, or just Geneticist. It's very nice to finally meet you_**," the Green DALEK greeted.

"The feeling ain't mutual," Shinichi frowned. "How the hell did you manage to contact us?" demanded Shinichi.

"**_Well, you really should change your frequency. It was child's play to find it_**," the Green DALEK said. "**_Anyway, I have a challenge for you_**."

"What kind of challenge?" Shinichi questioned.

"**_It's a fun challenge! You see I've just created a new batch of mutagen and I wanted to test it out on a large population. Here's a demonstration so you can see what it does_**," the Green DALEK began before the picture changed to show a man locked up in a room. He seemed terrified and helpless. They didn't recognize him, though. A green gas then began to fill the room and the man coughed before he started to mutate before their very eyes. He screamed in agony as his DNA was being painfully rewritten and his body was transformed and mutated into something completely inhuman.

Everyone who was watching turned green with disgust and horror at what they were made to witness before the picture changed to show the Green DALEK once more.

"**_Yes, it's quite a sight, isn't it?"_** the Green Geneticist said proudly.

"You sicko," Shinichi growled. This Geneticist behaved like Dr. Gebok, completely immoral and without compassion.

"**_Anyway, I've filled my mutagenic gas into a bomb with a blast radius of about forty miles. I've put said bomb in Shishibone City and set it to release the gas into the air and turn everyone into horrific mutants, permanently_**."

"Why would you do something like that?" Shinichi demanded, feeling disturbed, but he knew the answer.

"**_Oh, for fun of course!"_** the Green Geneticist cackled. **_"And to give you a sporting chance, here's a map of Shishibone City!" _**The picture was replaced by a full map of Shishibone City with four red dots flashing. "**_The red dots you see are locations where the bomb could possibly be. Only one of them is the real dreal while the rest are decoys. Your job is to find the real one and disarm it before the timer counts down to zero_**." The image of the Green DALEK reappeared again, **_"Well, have fun!"_** The screen turned black.

"You know, I'm starting to _really_ miss Gebok," said Dr. Magi.

"Well, I don't," Shinichi frowned. "Come on, we have to find that bomb."

"We better tell the others too. With all those locations we need teams for this," said Yokoshima.

* * *

Keiichi, Satoko, Hanyuu, Chiaki, Daichi, Michiru, Shogo, Kaze no Jin, Yokoshima and Battler were available for this mission. Shinichi needed to stay behind with Dr. Magi to monitor and support them from base. There would be four teams and each team would be sent to different location on the map.

Keiichi, Battler and Jin were being sent to the warehouse district near the docks.

Hanyuu and Chiaki were being sent together to the botanical gardens.

Satoko, Daichi and Michiru were being sent down to the sewers.

Finally, Yokoshima and Shogo were being sent to an old abandoned factory.

"Wait, this all could just be a set of traps for us," stated Battler.

"You all know your assignment. Good luck, everyone," said Dr. Magi.

"Wait, this all could just be a trap for us," suggested Battler. "I mean, it's not the first time this has happened to us."

"Even so, we still can't have those bombs going off and harming innocent people," replied Dr. Magi. Battler relented. Dr. Magi was right. Trap or not, this was their job. Their duty.

* * *

**WAREHOUSE DISTRICT**

"_Found anything yet?_" Zero spoke to Meta through the comlink.

"Nothing yet. I haven't seen…wait, hold on," Meta said. He thought he just saw…pig people entering a building. He signaled for Jin and Alter to follow him and they entered the building. They hid behind several crates to see the Pig Slaves standing guard around the device suspected to be the mutagenic bomb. They never got a picture of it from the Geneticist but the device was a large sphere which had a panel mounted on it. The panel had a screen on it with numbers counting down. "I see the bomb, but it's being guarded." He felt a hand on his shoulder and nearly jumped out of his hiding spot. "Don't do that,' he hissed at Alter.

"Sorry," Alter apologized. He looked over Meta's shoulder. "So, is that the bomb?"

"Looks like it," said Meta.

Jin asked, "Are those guys in pig masks or are they actually...?"

"No, they're not masks," Meta grimaced. "I think they used to be people until the DALEKs altered them."

"Well, I guess there's no choice then," said Alter as he stood up. "Hold it right there!" Alter ordered and the Pig Slaves turned to glare at them. They all squealed savagely and charged at him. "OK, I know how this is supposed to go down!" Charging back at the Pig Slaves, Alter began to furiously fight back. While strong these Pig Slaves weren't exactly powerhouses nor were they exceptionally intelligent. They were just basic foot-soldiers. So, it was no surprise that Alter made short work out of them.

The Pig Slaves laid sprawled all around Alter as he dusted off his hands. "OK, we're clear."

"Good," said Jin but he was disappointed that he was unable to do anything but watch. However, Meta was still a bit wary. Security seemed a bit lax. Sure, the Pig Slaves would be too much for any normal human but the Geneticist should've known that these creatures would be no match for a fighter of Alter's caliber.

That was when Meta's sharp hearing made him realize that they were not alone. Also, he noticed the sound was coming closer. He turned and his eyes widened as he saw what it was.

Meanwhile, Alter and Jin were studying the bomb. "OK, got any ideas how to disarm it?" Alter asked the Wind Manakyte.

"Can't say I do," answered Jin honestly but then he heard a yell as Meta went soaring before crashing face-first into the bomb. He slid down its surface and landed on his back between Meta and Alter.

"Guys, we've got a problem," Meta grunted and both Alter and Jin turned to see a huge Pig Slave. It was a good eight feet tall, clad in a leather bodysuit with spiked shoulderpads. It was also armed with a massive hammer. This Pig Slave also had large tusks.

"Woah, that's a big pig!" Alter let out as Jin helped Meta up.

Letting loose a roar, the Pig Slave charged forward and tackled into Jin, sending him tumbling. It brought its hammer down on Meta, knocking him onto his knees and then hit Alter, knocking him back.

Alter grunted as he recovered before he began to attack with a combo of punches and kicks which it blocked with its forearms. It then landed a kick against Alter's chest, sending him flying. Meta charged ahead and punched the Pig Slave in the stomach, sending him skidding backwards.

Meanwhile, the bomb was still counting down. It wouldn't be long before it released its payload and everything within a forty mile radius would be infected and mutated.

However, the Pig Slave's back was wide open and Jin got behind it, forming a blade of wind before using said wind blade to behead the Pig Slave.

"Hah! Take that you uncut piece of ham!" Jin exclaimed.

"Good, now let's start disarming this thing," said Meta. He opened up the panel and studied the it. He looked perplexed. "Something's not right about this."

"Shouldn't you start disarming it?" Alter asked. Meta had received some training in disarming bombs. As a member of the NEO-NUMBERS, he had to be trained like they were in matters such as these.

"Don't rush me, this is delicate work," Meta retorted as he put his blade against the wires. "OK, was it supposed to be the blue wire or red wire? Blue or red?"

"The clock's ticking, lad!" Jin exclaimed.

"Ah, screw it! I'm going with my gut!" Meta cut the red wire. He looked at the countdown timer and it was speeding up. "CRAP! TAKE COVER!"

But as it reached zero, nothing happened.

"Shouldn't it be going 'boom'?" Jin asked.

"Congrats, Battler! You disarmed the bomb!" Alter praised. He then noticed that the Pig Slave's headless body had gotten back up. He was even more shocked when it ripped open its own suit to reveal a screen that had been grafted to its skin. "Ah, gross!"

"What the hell!?" Meta exclaimed. Then a picture appeared on the screen. It was the Green Geneticist DALEK.

"**_Surprised? I bet you weren't expecting this, huh?"_** the Green DALEK greeted. **_"Oh, and by the way, you haven't disarmed the real bomb. This was just a decoy."_**

"You mean to tell me we wasted our time on a fake!?" Jin cried in annoyance and anguish.

"**_Yeah, pretty much. Oh, and you all have one hour before your precious city turns into a freak show. Sayonara!" _**The Big Pig Slave's body then went up in flames. The carcasses of the other Pig Slaves also went up in flames, leaving no evidence of their existence behind.

"Well, let's just hope the others find the real bomb," said Alter.

"Let's go home, guys," said Meta. The disarming of the bomb had been stressful.

* * *

**SHISHIBONE CITY SEWER SYSTEM**

Meanwhile, Riderwoman, Musician and Carmen were down in the sewers looking for the bomb that was hidden down here.

"Why are we searching down here?" asked Riderwoman. She didn't like it down here. It smelled horrible. "This place is gross and it stinks!"

"Because the bastard could've hidden the bomb anywhere, including down here in the sewers," said Musician.

"So, we can't leave any stone unturned," added Carmen.

"Better get used to it, Satoko," Musician said to the Pseudo-Rider, "Because we'll end up having to do dirty work sooner or later." He then stopped.

"What?" Riderwoman asked only for Musician to shush her.

"I hear something,' said Musician. "Listen."

"I don't hear-" began Carmen but she was interupted by a rumbling sound. They all heard it.

"What was that?" Riderwoman asked cautiously. They looked behind them and were shocked to see something rise out of the dirty water. A gigantic alligator that seemed to have been mutated as it had a humanoid body, and had tubes attached to its head. Also, both its arms had been replaced with machine guns and a spiked ball was attached to the tip of its tail.

"I don't know whether to be scared or be impressed that they were able to fit that thing down here in the sewers," Carmen said.

The Gator Kaijin gave a monstrous roar and charged at them, firing rapidly with its machineguns. Musician changed into his Rock-Metal form and created a sound barrier to block the hailstorm of bullets. Riderwoman equipped herself with the swing arm, which gave her a spiked ball that was attached to her mechanical gauntlet via a cord. She launched the morning star at the Kaijin and hit one of its machineguns, damaging it and thus rendering it useless. The Kaijin stumbled back in pain. This allowed Carmen the advantage and she dashed forward to cut off the other machine gun with her scythes. Her blades sliced through the weapons, literally disarming the beast. The Gator Kaijin roared furiously and it opened its mouth wide. Its tongue shot out and wrapped around Carmen.

"Oh, nasty!" Carmen gagged as she was lifted up and being drawn into its mouth. However, Musician made the Kaijin release her by slicing off its tail with his Cricket Axe. Riderwoman then formed her Blaster Arm and took aim before firing a burst of energy straight into the Kaijin's mouth. Its head exploded and grey matter as well as pieces of its skull painted the walls before its body fell sideways in a dead heap. Normally, Musician would criticise the senseless slaughter of animals, but the creature ceased to matter after it was coverted into a mutated, cybernetic and abomination.

"Well, that's taken care," said Riderwoman. "Come on, let's find the bomb."

"I don't think we need to go far," Carmen pointed ahead. There was a giant sphere. "That's not exactly something one would normally find in a sewer, is it?"

"Mutant gators aren't normal either," commented Musician as he and Riderwoman approached it. Musician removed the access panel and began work on disarming it.

"Are you sure you can disarm it?" Riderwoman asked.

"It's complex but it's not something we haven't been trained to do before," he told her. "Just don't rush me." Riderwoman and Carmen hung back. He sweated under his helmet. One wrong move and things would become disastrous. He examined the wiring and paid attention to the clock. He could do this. "OK, done." Once he was done, however, another panel slid open to reveal a screen and on said screen was the green DALEK.

"**_DING-DONG! You guys just found my second decoy!" _**the Green DALEK declared.

"WHAT!?" the three Riders shouted.

"**_Oh, yes! It wouldn't be any fun if you'd found the real one so I made a whole bunch of them. Only one's real, though. By the way, you've got 45 minutes to go."_**

Musician buried his fist into the screen, destroying it angrily. "I'm really starting to hate that DALEK," he growled.

"You said it," Riderwoman agreed.

"Stupid, evil trashcans," grumbled Carmen as she crossed her arms in annoyance.

* * *

**SHISHIBONE BOTANICAL GARDENS**

Normally, visitors would come down to the botanical gardens to enjoy nature. However, Hanyuu and Chiaki were not interested in that. They were together in search for the bomb that was planted here. It wasn't hard to find as it wasn't difficult to notice a giant metal sphere standing in the middle of a grassy field surrounded by trees and bushes.

"Looks like we found it," smiled Hanyuu as she saw.

"Hanyuu, this seems too easy," said Chiaki suspiciously.

"You're right," Hanyuu agreed. The bomb wasn't even being guarded. Something like this should have some form of security, right?

"Be ready for anything," Chiaki cautioned.

Suddenly, Hanyuu let loose a high-pitched scream as something burst out of a bush and wrapped its arms around her in a merciless grip. As she struggled, she froze as a venomous thorn was pressed against her neck.

"Hanyuu!" Chiaki shouted as he watched her being held captive by what appeared to be a strange, plant-like humanoid creature. It had a green body covered in maple-like leaves, a face-like pink organ surrounded by petals, and short septils serving as hands at the end of its arms. It was one of the Geneticist DALEK's creations called a Vervoid.

The Vervoid said, "This is for my master." However, all of a sudden, the Vervoid was no more as it was blasted to pieces by an invisible force. Chiaki was nearly blown away as well. He witnessed as Hanyuu hovered above the ground, her eyes glowing red.

"**As if a plant could harm me**," she dismissed arrogantly.

The maple-like leaves that covered the Vervoid all landed in the soil and before long they started to grow roots and began to quickly grow into full-grown Vervoids. There were now a dozen of them and they were looking straight at Hanyuu and Chiaki with killing intent.

"Where did these things come from?" Chiaki asked.

"**It doesn't matter**," said Hanyuu, eyes gleaming a menacing red, "**We will destroy them all.**"

"Hanyuu, you're really starting to scare me," said Chiaki honestly. He transformed and activated his chainsaws. "It's weed-whacking time!"

* * *

**ABANDONED FACTORY**

The factory that Zero and Blue Beetle were searching had once been used in the production of cat food. However, due to negligence, many pet cats died due to lead poisoning. Because of that, the factory had to be closed down. Many people were laid off and the owners of the factory were sued by angry cat owners who'd lost their cats.

"Do you see anything?" Zero asked as he and Blue Beetle searched around.

"No, nothing bomb-like yet," said Blue Beetle and then he paused. "... Hey Shogo?"

"What?" Zero asked. "Did you find the bomb?"

"Can DALEKs and Cybermen crossbreed?" Blue Beetle asked/

"What the- of course _not_!" Zero retorted. Why did Blue Beetle have to ask such a random question at a time like this?

"Well, I don't think _they _were told that," Blue Beetle said as he pointed over Zero's shoulder. Zero turned to look and saw a bunch of Cyber-Daleks marching towards them.

"What the heck are those things!?" Zero questioned.

"**They are called Cyber-Daleks,"** Purple DALEK (Doc) answered as he hovered over the group. "**The latest fusion of DALEK and Cyberman superiority**." His tone sounded kind and informative before shifting into a more malicious and sinister tone (Omega), "**_And they will deliver you to your doom!_**"

"'Cyber-Dalek'? You do know combining two thing don't make them TWICE as scary," Blue Beetle taunted.

"**_Maybe not, but they are THREE times as deadly_**," the Purple DALEK taunted back.

"Damn! hadn't thought of that," Blue Beetle muttered as he snapped his fingers.

"This isn't time for bantering," Zero chided. It was time for fighting.

"**Targets sighted," t**he Cyber-Daleks intoned as they raised their arms which had cannons mounted on them, taking aim. "**Prepare to annihilate targets."**

"Annihilate this!" Zero fired his needles but instead of piercing the armor, they bounced off the Cyber-Daleks and laid scattered on the floor.

"**_Did you really think that would work? Pathetic!"_** the Omega laughed. **_"Now, my Cyber-Dalek army! Destroy them!"_**

"Wait for it..." Zero whispered as his stinger needles began to glow before exploding.

"**_ACK!"_** Omega screamed. "**_What happened!?"_** The Cyber-Daleks had been knocked off their feet by the explosion and the two Riders were nowhere to be seen.**_ "Fools! Get up and find them!"_**

Then he shifted into his friendlier personality (Doc), chiding his aggressive and evil personality, **"Now, now. You should use more positive forms of reinforcement, Omega"**

"**_I am! I will positively murder them!" _**the DALEK's evil personality (Omega) shot back as it emerged. **_"Search this factory! Find them! And annihilate them!" _**Omega commanded the Cyber-Daleks.

The Blue Beetle and Zero had fled deep into the factory. The Blue Beetle had made himself invisible with his armor. As for Zero, he had other means of escaping undetected.

"OK, we should be safe here," said Blue Beetle as he turned visible again. Standing on his shoulder was a miniature Zero.

"Coast is clear then," said Zero as he hopped off Blue Beetle's shoulder and glowed green before growing back to normal size. His Emerald Pride Form granted him the ability to alter his size. He couldn't turn himself gigantic but he could shrink himself to the size of the insect he was based on.

"OK, so we've got Cyber-Daleks crawling all over this place being led by a DALEK with a split personality," Zero summarised their situation.

"Not to mention we haven't found the bomb yet," said Blue Beetle.

"Well, with this much security, we shouldn't be too far," said Zero. "Come on, and stay stealthy." He shrank down and Blue Beetle made himself invisible.

"OK, this is just getting ridiculous!" Hanyuu shouted as the Vervoids had multiplied. "Everytime we kill one, a dozen more of these things just appear!"

"Just hold them back!" Slasher shouted as he began to disarm the explosive device. "OK, done!" The timer had gone out. "Yes! The bomb has been disarmed!"

"That's great and all," said Hanyuu as she used the Onigari no Ryuou on the Vervoids, "But we're still in a whole lot of trouble!" The Vervoids then stopped attacking them. "Huh?" The Vervoids turned their backs on both Hanyuu and Chiaki and started to walk away. "Hey, where are you going!?"

The screen displaying the timer then showed a picture of the Green DALEK as he spoke, "**_I told them to withdraw. Thank you for playing my game, though, but you've only disarmed a decoy!_**"

"A DECOY!?" Hanyuu shrieked.

**_"Yes, a decoy!_**_"_ the Green DALEK laughed. **_"Also, thanks for helping my Vervoids reproduce. I've been trying to find a way to make an army and now I've got one thanks to you."_** The screen then went black.

"This sucks..." Slasher frowned.

"Yeah. Things haven't been going too well for us lately," Hanyuu nodded. She and Rika have been receiving threatening and malicious notes at school lately.

* * *

Back at the factory, Zero and Blue Beetle had found the bomb. The bad news was that they were now under siege by Cyber-Daleks. Zero had to work fast at disarming it while Blue Beetle had to fend off the Cyber-Daleks by himself, which was much easier said than done.

"Is it done yet!?" Blue Beetle shouted as he blasted several Cyber-Daleks back.

"Just give me more time!" Zero shouted. "This is a delicate procedure!"

"Take as long as you need!" Blue Beetle shot back as he used his gun-mounted missile launcher and gatling gun in tandem with his handheld B3 Gun and unleashed their payload to take out over half of the Cyber-Daleks. "Hah, like shooting ducks in a barrel!" He was then shot in the chest. "ARGH!" He was knocked backwards but was otherwise fine.

"**_MWAHAHAHAHA! PREPARE TO BE EXTERMINATED!"_** shouted Omega as his gunstick smoked before switching to his friendlier personality.

"**And sorry for shooting while you weren't looking!**" Doc apologized.

"OK, now this is just getting ridiculous!" Blue Beetle shouted and he decided to finish off the Cyber-Daleks with his signature move. "Hyah!" He formed his arm-mounted rocket and shot skyward. He flew past that Purple DALEK and made him spin in midair before divebombing the Cyber-Daleks, forcing them to scramble. He formed another rocket and dove at them as a drill encased both his legs.

"DOUBLE ROCKET MEGA DRILL KICK!" Blue Beetle roared as he destroyed the Cyber-Daleks with a single blow. Landing on his feet, he pointed triumphantly at the Purple DALEK, "Hah! How's that, you stupid saltshaker?" There was a blinking, dotted outline of the DALEK where he was pointing. "Hey, where'd he go!?"

"He left between 'ROCKET' and 'MEGA'," stated Zero.

"He ran off in the middle of my awesome attack!?" gaped Blue Beetle.

"Pretty much. Oh, and I just finished disarming the bomb," said Zero.

"Well, all in a day's work for us, huh?" Blue Beetle grinned.

"Actually, now we need to carry this thing back home. It's disarmed but we can't leave it lying around where somebody will find it," said Zero.

"OK, but where are we gonna keep it?" Blue Beetle asked. He then remembered, "Hey, doesn't Shinichi's new mansion have a big ass dungeon he uses as a command centre?"

"And I'm sure he wouldn't mind us storing and dismantling this in his place," Zero agreed.

* * *

Shinichi's right eyebrow twitched as he saw that the disarmed bombs had been brought to his Genovian command centre. "Why did you bring them all down here?"

"Storage," Yokoshima answered.

"You can store them back at the basement of our old base!" snapped Shinichi. The base's main structure might've been destroyed along with everything inside but the basement was still intact. "Fine, just roll them over someplace. I'll take care of them. You can go home," he dismissed them. Once they began to leave, Shinichi went to inspect each of the bombs. "Why plant decoys?" he asked. "And why tell us their locations?" He suspected that the real bomb's location might not have been included but Sheila had not detected anything once the time was up.

Was there even really a mutagenic bomb? Was this just DALEK Shiro's attempt to play with them and laugh at them for wasting their time? He wasn't sure. What he was sure was that they'd be ready for anything.

Down in their own secret underground lair, DALEK Shiro was confronting the Geneticist about his latest plan involving the decoy bombs.

"**It seems your plan has failed,"** said DALEK Shiro to the DALEK Geneticist. **"They were able to disarm the bombs."**

"**True, but at least I have an army of Vervoids without needing to lift a claw," **said the Geneticist DALEK as his Vervoids stood behind him. **"As for the bombs, they were all decoys."**

"**Explain," **DALEK Shiro demanded.

"**That was my idea, Supreme One,"** said the Strategist. "**Each of the 'bombs' we planted is a trap of its own. The guards we planted so they could make the decoys look real. If our enemies had gotten killed that would've been a bonus**." He questioned, "**Now, what would they do after disarming the bombs?"**

DALEK Shiro answered, **"They would take them back to their base."**

**"Exactly,"** confirmed the Strategist.** "And do you know what is inside each of the decoys?"**

**"Not mutagen, I know that,"** said DALEK Shiro.

**"But something just as worse," **said the Strategist as a Cyberdrone scuttled up his body to rest on his dome.

* * *

Shinichi was asleep in his command centre, sitting in front of the computer console. He yawned as he slowly woke up and stretched. "Hm...must've dozed off..." he mumbled as he smacked his lips. He got off his chair and stretched. "I better head up to bed or Shawna-chan will kill me..." he uttered sleepily.

As he walked from his seat, something scuttled by. Alerted immediately, Shinichi's arms turned into energy blasters and he aimed at the direction of the scuttling. He blinked as he saw nothing there. "Must be rats..." he uttered. "With small...metal...feet..." He heard scuttling behind him and spun around, his blasters charging up. "Metal rats..." he muttered, eyes narrowed. Rats did not make that sound when they ran around. As he continued to seek out the cause of the scuttling noise, a glowing red dot appeared in the middle of his forehead.

Suddenly, a Cyberdrone lunged at his face, grabbing tight with its thin and sharp legs. Shinichi cried out as the Cyberdrone dug its legs into his face as he took hold of it. He tore it off, scratching his face, then tossed it to the ground. The Cyberdrone jumped back to its feet and scuttled away as Shinichi started blasting at it. It tried to flee but a shot knocked it into the air. Now vulnerable, Shinichi stretched his arm, activating the Great Fist, and caught the Cyberdrone to be crushed within his big, metal hand.

His arm and hand returned back to normal and he examined the remains. "Now, how did you get here?" he asked himself. His eyes widened and he rushed towards the back of the command centre where the decoy bombs were stored. He then saw gaping holes torn into the bombs' shells, and they looked like something had torn their way out.

"Oh...crap..." Shinichi cursed. He quickly went to the control console and saw Cyberdrones crawling all over it. The console sparks as the Cyberdrones were sabotaging it and the Teleportal system. "Hey! Get off!" He swatted the Cyberdrones away. They surrounded him and fired their lasers at him. Summoning the Shield of Glen, Shinichi defended himself from the lasers with an energy shield as he backed away. More and more Cyberdrones scuttled out of the shadows, surrounding him. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" Shinichi cursed. The decoy bombs were carrying these things inside of them! It was all a plot to have these Cyberdrones brought into his command centre like a Trojan Horse. Judging from the size of each bombs, they could all contains hundreds of these things...which would have probably started to infest the mansion.

"Shawna-chan! King Edward!" Shinichi realized in panic. They were staying over for the night!

The Cyberdrones continued to beat on the barrier with their lasers and Shinichi knew he had to take these things out quickly. He quickly used Shunpo, becoming a blur, and in an instant he scrapped all the Cyberdrones attacking him in the command centre.

"Shawna-chan!" Shinichi exclaimed as he rushed out of the command centre.

* * *

It was just as he feared as he saw Cyberdrones crawling all over the floor and walls. If that wasn't bad enough, they had also taken over the royal guards, turning them into Robomen. The Cyberdrones were perched on their heads and controlling the unfortunate guards like puppets. The Cyberdrones spotted him and fired their lasers as the Robomen went on the attack as well.

"I have no time for this!" Shinichi shouted. "Henshin! Trinity Force!" He transformed, in a flash of red, blue and green light, before separating into Showa Red, Showa Blue and Showa Green.

Showa Red attacked the Robomen and shouted to Showa Blue and Showa Green, "Go! I'll take care of things here! You go save the princess and king!" In a flash of elements he turned into Oni Form and took out more of the Cyberdrones with his lightning attacks.

"Right!" Showa Blue and Showa Green obeyed before running towards King Edward and Shawna's room. They ran down the hallway, destroying Cyberdrones in their way, before coming upon a three-way intersection in the hallway. One way led to Shawna's room while the other led to King Edward's.

"I'll go the the king's room! You go and save Shawna!" Showa Blue ordered.

Showa Green nodded and went to save Shawna, praying that he wasn't too late. The Cyberdrones had fully infested the mansion, taking over guards and turning them into zombie-like Robomen.

* * *

Showa Blue arrived in front of King Edward's room. The large double doors was literally crawling with Cyberdrones. Showa Green heard crashes and shouts from inside the bed chamber.

"Hold on, Your Majesty!" shouted Showa Green. He stepped back then ran at the door at full speed, performing a shoulder tackle to force the double doors open. He rolled along the floor and came to a stop and watched with wide eyes as King Edward stomped on the Cyberdrones.

"Oh, good evening, Shinichi," said King Edward as he grabbed a Cyberdrone and crushed it in his hands. "We seem to have a pest problem." He grabbed a pair of ornamental swords from his wall and tossed one to Showa Blue. "Mind helping me sort this out, my boy?"

"It's be an honor, Your Majesty," said Showa Blue. "Strike from the Shadows, Zennin!" He assumed his ninja-like form and created clones. King Edward, Showa Kage and his clones all starting to fight back against the swarm of Cyberdrones.

* * *

Showa Green heard a loud, feminine shriek and knew instantly that Shawna was in danger. He knocked on the door, "Shawna-chan! Shawna-chan!" He gritted his teeth then he tackled the door open. "Shawna-chan!"

"Sir Shinichi! Help me! Get them off me!" Shawna was pinned down on her bed, her nightgown torn, as Cyberdrones were crawling all over her. Showa Green saw the cuts on her exposed skin and it made him sick. One of them went for her face and he struck instantly, summoning the Higurashi no Yaiba to assumed Higurashi Form.

He flew towards Shawna and tossed away the Cyberdrones holding her down and the one trying to merge with her brain. He picked her up off her bed and held her close as the Cyberdrones all zeroed in on the pair, their red eyes glowing and charging up to fire.

"Shawna-chan, do you trust me?" Showa Higurashi asked.

"Always," she said.

Showa Higurashi nodded and then tossed Shawna into the air as the Cyberdrones attacked. He swung his Higurashi no Yaiba, slicing through their metal shells. One Cyberdrone jumped onto his face but he threw it off and stabbed it. Shawna remained suspended in the air only for a moment before she came down again with a shout. He caught her in his arms and hovered upwards as the Cyberdrones fired their lasers. He covered them with the Shield of Glen and then he flew out of the room. He put Shawna down once they were far down the hallway and watched as the Cyberdrones came at them.

"1,000 Crane Slash!" Showa Higurashi called as he swung the glowing Higurashi no Yaiba. The Cyberdrones were engulfed by the attack as 1,000 energy projections in the shape of paper cranes wiped them out.

"What's happening?" Shawna asked.

"It's an infestation of the worst kind," Showa Higurashi told Shawna.

"Infestation? How many?" she asked.

"Hundreds," he told her and she blanched.

"But how did they get in here?" Shawna asked. Showa Higurashi hung his head in shame. "Sir Shinichi? What's wrong?"

"The guys brought over decoy bombs they disarmed to be stored down here and I let them. I didn't know it was a trap until it was too late," said Showa Higurashi. "These Cyberdrones were in those decoys and I just let them walk right in here."

"Sir Shinichi," she consoled him. "It's not your fault. "You were tricked."

"I know, and I'm going to take care of this all, tonight!" he swore. He called Showa Oni and Showa Kage on his com-link, "Guys, I got Shawna-chan! Join back up! I got a plan!"

"What are you going to do?" Shawna asked.

"I'm going to give these things a target they can't resist," said Showa.

* * *

The Cyberdrones were still on the move, crawling over the bodies of dead guards in the hallway. That was when they were alerted by a loud shout, "HEY! CYBER-BUGS!" They all turned their uniform glare down the hallway and saw Shinichi. "COME AND GET ME!" He then ran to the right and the Cyberdrones pursued. They chased after him, firing their lasers, as they scuttled along the floor and walls to get to him. He, however, was much too fast for him. He then led them along, down a flight of stairs, and into the dungeon-his command centre.

"NOW!" Shinichi shouted and Shawna pressed the big activation button for the Teleportal. It came to life and Shinichi ran into the portal, pursued by the Cyberdrone swarm. He exited out, covered in Cyberdrones, feeling a lot more chilly than usual. Even the Cyberdrones was feeling it. That was because the coordinates for the Teleportal were set for the cold arctic. There was a blizzard and with temperatures at an extreme low, the Cyberdrones were unable to withstand it. The Cyberdrones then froze solid and the ones clutching to him just fell onto the snowy ground.

They had just chased Shinichi into a trap.

"Now that's how you exterminate a pest problem," Shinichi said before he turned back towards the Teleportal. He just hoped he had gotten them all. If not, then he'd just take care of the rest.

* * *

The Cyberdrone infestation was systematically and single-handedly neutralized by Shinichi. However, while Shinichi, Shawna and King Edward managed to survive their ordeal, the many guards on duty that night had tragically lost their lives. Some killed by the Cyberdrones which ambushed them, and others turned into Robomen which, sadly, needed to be put down as well.

Kamen Rider Showa had fulfilled his promise and dealt with the infestation in a single night. The Cyberdrones' remains were gathered up and dumped into a ravine. As for the dead guards, they were given an honorable burial for dying in the line of duty. Shinichi attended the funeral with Shawna and King Edward, honoring their sacrifice.

Shinichi, however, was upset. He'd failed to save these men but instead of blaming himself he knew _who _was to blame. He clenched his fists and swore that he would pay _them _back for this.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, that's the 13th Chapter of this Heroes Fall Arc. How did you like it? Shows the DALEKs deceptive nature and some of what they're working on. DALEK Shiro even has a Warbot ready. Maybe he'll deploy it to go after Shinichi or something? Who knows? In the meantime, you guys just need to read and review. Also, the new Purple DALEK is based on Doc from Red VS Blue. He has a split personality so the 'good' one is called 'Doc' and the evil one is called 'Omega'.**


	191. The Legacy of Cain Part 135

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 135: The Dragon is Slain**

Yūji slowly awoke to see his wife sleeping soundly next to him. He smiled to himself, knowing that marrying Misato was the best decision he'd ever made in his life. Despite all the chaos in his life, being with her was worth it. He looked around to see his other lovers; Asura sleeping on his left. The demon was a loner when he met her. It had taken time for him to know her before she had opened up to him, and he was happy that she did. She was one of the few people that could connect with him. Lying on top of him was Stella, his White Tigress. She was purring like a kitten as she rested on his chest. Despite her cuteness, she was fierce in battle. He looked over and saw Sora. She was a cyborg, modeled after a sphinx as she featured paws, a tail, and avian wings when transformed. Then there was Phoebe, another Pokégirl (an Archmage) whom loved Yūji to death. Then there was Lilith, the Succubus. She was the smallest of Yūji's lovers, but she garnered equal affection as she knew him quite intimately, as much as Asura did. Reina and Melanie were the odd ones of the bunch, a Killer Queen and Dark Lady. Shizuko was a dark-haired, dark-skinned, catgirl that came close to becoming a Cyberman. It was thanks to a quick surgery, and Yuji's support, that she was allowed a second chance at life.

Sneaking out of bed, letting the girls sleep a little longer, he made his way to the girls' room as he peered in to see them still sleeping. Wendy was a Wind Manakyte whom he saved from dying at the hands of Dorbick when her blood was being harvested for mutation experiments. Something in his gut told him that the case was never truly closed, as he had yet to know how Dorbick knew about Manakytes since they didn't exist in this world. Maria was his first 'daughter', whom he adopted after her mother's murder. He still regretted what had happened, but Yuji knew that he had to move on in order to take care of what was going on in his life here and now. Then there's his third daughter, Veronica, who was a sentient virus that had evolved into a new strain of the Hinamizawa Syndrome. She no longer considers herself a virus, seeing as how she can think and grow. And being bonded to Yuji's DNA had allowed her to see how the world worked through his eyes..

And sleeping in her crib was his first biological daughter, Yuna. He never imagined having a child with a woman, but he was glad he did. The little baby was an angel that was the product of Yuji and Misato's relationship, though she was quite different from your average infant. Like her mother, Yuna had vampiric qualities such as elongated fangs and she had a penchant for blood as well, aside from occasionally drinking milk. Yuji knew all his daughters were going to achieve great things, and he'd always be there to watch over them.

* * *

DALEKs were not known to be very moral with their experiments. They didn't have any morals, period. Whatever they did, the ultimate goal was to find a way to destroy their enemies in the most cruelest and efficient way possible. Their deathrays guaranteed both a quick yet painful death. Being zapped by something as powerful as a bolt of lightning was not painless at all.

Right now, the Orange DALEK Scientist, under the supervision of the DALEK Supreme (Shiro) with aid from the newly created Purple DALEK Medic, was conducting an experiment. Strapped to a chair was someone that they had grabbed off the street and he had a helmet strapped to his head. The helmet was connected to a machine via cables. Next to the unfortunate man was a blank DALEK unit also with cables connected to a machine. The blank DALEK resembled the original DALEK design that Shiro had originally built. The helmet was also connected to a machine to monitor the subject's vitals.

"**Subject's vitals are normal," **the Purple DALEK reported. **"And brainwave patterns are normal too."**

"**Excellent, prepare for transfer," **instructed the Orange DALEK as it went towards the machine and gripped the lever. **"Initiating transfer!"** The DALEK pulled the lever and the machine activated. The man's body jerked and convulsed as if he was being electrocuted. At the same time, the blank DALEK's dome lights were flashing repeatedly. The machine had a screen on it, displaying the percentage of the process' completion.

"**Transfer is at 50%...60%...65%..."** the Orange DALEK read.

"**Subject's vitals and brainwave patterns are failing!"** reported the Purple DALEK.

"**95%...100%!"** the Orange DALEK reset the lever.

The Purple, Orange and White DALEKs faced the blank DALEK whose eye lens began to shine. It swiveled its dome head to look at each and every one of them.

"**Identify yourself,"** DALEK Shiro commanded.

"**I am…a DALEK,"** the new DALEK introduced itself but then it started to act erratic.** "No…not DALEK! My name is…what is my name!? Who am I!? What am I!?"** It started to scream loudly, as if in agony, **"WHAT HAPPENED TO ME?! WHAT IS THIS!?"**

"**The experiment has failed**," the Orange Scientist concluded and he put his plunger-tipped manipulator arm onto the DALEK's chest to initiate immediate shutdown. The DALEK's eye went dark and the eyestalk hung lifelessly as it was deactivated.

The purpose of the experiment was to transfer the minds and consciousness of humans who'd been mentally conditioned and converted into DALEKs into blank DALEK units. Their intelligence and creativity would greatly benefit the DALEK cause and increase their strength. Their candidates were humans of exceptionally high intelligence. However, they had only reached failure with this experiment so far.

"**Find a new test subject**," ordered the White DALEK. "**And equip the body with a Cyberdrone. We can add it to the Robomen.**"

"**Yes, Supreme One,"** obeyed the two DALEKs.

"**Supreme One, might I suggest we round a bunch of humans up like cattle?"** the Purple DALEK asked.

"**Negative,"** said DALEK Shiro. He didn't want to draw too much attention to himself. **"Now, put a Cyberdrone on the body and resume the experiment with a new test subject."**

"**OK,"** said the Purple DALEK (Doc). He shifted to his megalomaniacal personality (Omega) as he added, **"A**_**nd once the army is complete, we will exterminate all our foes! Mwahahahahaha!"**_

* * *

The Bakeneko House brothel was busy as always. Like every night, it was a place where men could have their sexual fantasies come true and the men who visited this establishment always left satisfied before coming back wanting for more. The girls, all Bakeneko, were eager to please their clients with their warm and soft bodies, giving them the attention they craved, for a price. Even monster cats could be like regular housecats, craving attention while giving attention in return. The stage was also full of activity as girls danced, drawing the attention of the men who came for a good time. The bar had patrons, drinking, while being flirted with and fawned over by the girls who wanted them to pick them as their lady of the night. Cages also hung from the ceiling, with scantily clad catgirls dancing, shaking and gyrating to the music. Eyes were on them, drinking in their voluptuous bodies.

The brothel was located behind a special barrier which rendered it invisible to the outside world. Therefore, it was quite an exclusive establishment. The only way to gain entry was through the use of special charms. Said charms were distributed by the Bakeneko as they went around, looking for potential customers, handing out the charms to them and using their feminine wiles to persuade them.

It never failed.

The Bakeneko Kunoichi; Akaneko, Aoneko, Kineko, Midoneko and Momoneko originally worked in this brothel but had left long ago. This was where they had met their master whom they served loyally and he had also returned them to this place at the end phase of his master plan.

A new face would enter the brothel as the barrier allowed him entry with a mystical entry charm clenched in his hand. His name was Grayven and he was not of this world. To describe Grayven in one word was simple: Herculean. To be more detailed, he wore a skin-tight blue bodysuit that showed off his impressive physique. He stood at 7 feet tall with granite grey skin. Over this bodysuit he wore gold armor which covered his forearms in bands and his legs in boots that reached up to his knees. The armor on his body had short, wing-shaped shoulders attached to a vest-like chestpiece with a red, square-shaped stone in the centre. Around his waist was a belt with red stone set in it and hanging from the front and back were gold flaps. He also wore a simply gold crown which was a band that went around his forehead with a red stone in the centre. Another band went over his dark hair, extending from the stone in front to the back. There were additional extensions on the side of the crown to frame his face, ending at his strong, squared jaw. His eyes were devoid of any warmth but still radiated heat as they glowed. His gaze went to all the human men and females with cat ears. He may be an alien, but even he couldn't ignore all the females strutting about, tempting him with their movements.

Grayven found Black and Faust seated at a table and he went over to take a seat. He'd been summoned to discuss urgent matters with them.

"Welcome, Lord Grayven," Black greeted. "So, how do you like the establishment?"

Grayven answered, "It doesn't have as much variety as the other brothels in space."

Faust joked, "So, the oldest profession in the universe truly is the oldest profession in the universe."

"But I will bed at least one before I leave," added Grayven. He was here, so he might as well enjoy himself.

"But business before pleasure, mate," said Mr. Black. "Our leader has a job for you and considering your reputation I'm sure you won't be having any problem doing it."

"Discuss the details with me, then," prompted Grayven.

A waitress came and asked, "Would you gentlemen like to order anything?"

"It depend, love. Does it include you covered in whipped cream?" Black asked.

"It'll cost extra, darling," she winked. "So, anything? Or may I recommend something?"

So, over drinks the three men discussed the plan that would drive the heroes to the point of despair.

* * *

Yuji had spent two years living in this world dubbed 'Showa no Sekai' by ARMOR. In that time he had been involved in multiple conflicts and adventures. Before his current residence in this world, he'd lived in a world where technology was centuries more advanced and people's lives were centred around the game Duel Monsters. This world had its own version of the game called 'Magic and Wizards', but it just wasn't the same. All the game did was remind him of home and he would often feel homesick as he missed his parents, his uncles and his aunts as well as his cousins that were probably wondering how he was doing.

But it wasn't all that bad in this world. He'd found a girl who he made his wife and her name was Misato Kurushina. Oh, he knew about her past. She used to work for an organization called GIN-SHOCKER and was killed by his friend Shinichi. She then returned as a subordinate of Anastasia (his sister-in-law) and they had met when she had tried to kill him. They had some sexual tension and chemistry and following their first meeting started to meet in secret. Their relationship developed in secret with nobody else knowing. She would drink his blood, he would allow her, and they would have sex. Eventually, he faced Anastasia for Misato's freedom and he also learnt that she was pregnant at the time.

Yuji had to fight numerous times against power-mad conspirators, megalomaniacal androids, genocidal demons and mad scientists as well as demons, cybernetic mutants, cyborgs, androids and robots. He even helped a friend of his find some closure. It seemed like his life wouldn't be a peaceful one at all. At least it wasn't boring.

If there was at least one thing about being stuck in this world that made his stay worthwhile, it was his daughter Yuna. Oh, he couldn't wait to introduce her to his parents and the rest of the family.

"Good morning everyone," said Yuji as he greeted everyone in the living room. Everyone looked happy. Yuji wondered why. He went to the fridge and got himself a bottle of juice before pouring himself a glass. A glass of orange juice was always a good way for him to start the day. Yuji went over to see Misato with Yuna sitting in her lap. "And how's my little girl?" he asked before taking a sip of his juice.

"Papa," uttered Yuna. Yuji's eyes went wide and he spat out his orange juice before coughing. He stared at Yuna, bug-eyed.

"..._What!?_" Yuji gawked. Misato giggled.

"Papa! Papa!" Yuna bounced in her mother's lap as she held her little arms up to her father. "Papa!" Misato put her down and Yuna walked towards her father. Yuna had learnt how to walk months ago but now she had just said her first word. Yuji picked up Yuna who cheerfully cried, "Papa! Papa!"

"When did this happen?" asked Yuji.

"Oh, while I was feeding her as usual. Suddenly she just said 'papa'," said Misato. "They grow up so fast, don't they?"

"Yeah, they do," said Yuji proudly as he smiled softly at Yuna. "I'm gonna go call the guys."

She looked to Yuna and smiled, "Now, try to say 'mama'. Ma-ma."

"Ma...ma..." said Yuna slowly. "Mama!" Misato clapped.

"Good girl!"

"Mama! Papa! Mama! Papa!" Yuna cheered. Yuji smiled as he saw this.

* * *

In the boarding house, Shinichi was in Alan's room with Adam in his lap.

"Me...Me...Meat!" said Adam. "Meat!" Adam wasn't yet a year old and had already started talking. He hadn't started walking yet but he could already crawl very fast when chasing after Lockheed.

"You know, oddly enough, that being his first word doesn't exactly surprise me," said Shinichi as Adam chewed on Alan's sleeve.

"It really isn't that weird, huh?" Alan asked.

"The mother has an obsession with meat. He takes after her." Shinichi reminded. Nozomu was an Okami Youkai, hence a 's ring began to flash repeatedly. "What's your ring doing?"

"Looks like I got a call," said Alan and a green holographic image of Yuji appeared. "Hey, Yuji."

"_Hey, Alan! Is Shin there with you?_" asked Yuji.

"I'm right here, Yuji," said Shinichi. "So, what's up?"

"_Big news, guys! Yuna's said her first words!_" Yuji grinned.

"That's great," Alan said, smiling.

"Meaty!" Adam uttered.

Yuji blinked, "_Wait, was that Adam? Did he just say 'meaty'?_"

"Blame his mom," Shinichi remarked.

"_But isn't he like a few months younger than Yuna?_" asked Yuji.

"Well, maybe Okami Youkai develop faster than normal babies," suggested Shinichi.

"_Yuna __isn't __a normal baby_," Yuji reminded.

"Oh, right. Her parents are a human dragon and a vampire," Shinichi recalled.

"If it makes you feel any better, Adam hasn't started walking just yet," stated Alan. "And congratulations."

"_Yeah, I'm so proud,"_ grinned Yuji. "_I need to go get a camera and tape this!_"

"You do that," said Alan.

"Meat! Meat! Meat!" cried Adam insistently.

"Dude, I think he's hungry," Shinichi pointed out.

"Yeah, I know that," Alan retorted. "What was your first clue?"

* * *

In Jersey City, Rhea was checking herself in the mirror. Her stomach was slightly swollen, proof that she was pregnant. Crystal and Yuki too showed such signs. The reason for their pregnancy was that Yuji would occasionally come to visit Jersey City to help them out and when he did, well, you can guess what took place afterwards. They hadn't gotten pregnant after the intense orgy they had following the incident with the Cybermen, but that didn't mean Yuji had stopped trying. Whenever he came, he filled them up with his cum, and it seemed to be showing results.

"Fuck," Rhea cursed. "I can't go crime fighting looking like this." She rubbed her pregnant belly.

"I guess we have to take a vacation from that, huh?" Yuki remarked. "Intense battles won't be good for the babies."

"Fine by me," Crystal grinned as she lay on the couch. "I could use a break."

A flash of blue came from the window and Yuki opened it immediately, smiling as her brother was hovering outside. "Onii-sama!"

"Decided to drop by," Yūji smiled as he flew in. "And you all look great!"

"No thanks to you," Rhea remarked. "I'm all swelled up like a balloon because of you."

"Now, don't act like you didn't enjoy the process, Rhea-chan," teased Yuki.

"Only because you keep talking me into it," Rhea shot back.

"You were the one who wanted a baby," Yuki retorted.

"She's got you there," Yūji agreed.

"So, what brings you over?" Rhea asked.

"Wanted to check on my honeys," he answered as he kneeled by Crystal, stroking her belly tenderly. "Wish Mom were around so she could check you all out."

"We got Dr. Irie, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam to check them out, Onii-sama," said Yuki.

"And don't worry. They'll be strong," Crystal assured, "Because you are strong."

"So, why do you look so happy?" Rhea asked Yuji.

"Oh, Yuna just said her first word," Yuji grinned proudly.

"That's great news!" Yuki cheered and hugged him.

"I was totally blown away," Yuji remarked, "Just like Rhea was that time I-"

"I don't wanna hear it," Rhea interrupted as she covered her ears, "I'M NOT LISTENING! LALALALA!"

* * *

Dr. Magi, Dr. Washam, Shogo, Daichi, Yokoshima and Battler were down in the Basement in Hinamizawa discussing some technical issues. Sheila had been acting argumentative, defensive, and was pretty much in a bad mood for the past few days. This brought some concerns to the NEO-NUMBERS and scientist who depended on her.

Dr. Washam asked, "Do you think it's possible that when Sheila backed herself up that a bit of her data got corrupted? I mean this isn't exactly normal for her. She's been acting very strange lately."

"I don't know, Dr. Washam. I'm not an expert on magic. What do I look like, a Level 40 wizard or something?" Dr. Magi said

"I know one way you can fix the problem," said Shogo. "Let just ask Alan to go up there and see if he can reboot Sheila."

Dr. Washam raised an eyebrow, "Excuse me, 'reboot' her?"

"Yeah, dude," Daichi replied. "That's how you fix broken stuff. You turn her off and then you turn her back on again. She'll be fine."

"I don't think that'll work for her," Dr. Washam murmured.

"Uh, pardon me, it works great," Shogo seconded Daichi's suggested. "We've rebooted the TV, we've rebooted the toaster, we've rebooted the Teleportal..."

Daichi interjected, "Yeah, I still don't know if that thing has all the bugs worked out."

"We've even rebooted Yokoshima's armor once," Shogo finished. "Although that took a lot longer to come back online than we thought it would."

"It was dark and I got to hold my breath," Yokoshima added. "I'm pretty sure there were no side-effects."

"No," Dr. Washam interjected. "I mean I don't think it'll work because I don't think we should be near the satellite. She's not exactly in the best of moods."

"And where did you learn that rebooting things would fix everything?" Dr. Magi asked. He then took back his question, "Never mind, you don't need to answer."

"It seems to me like she's on her period," said Battler. All eyes were focused on him, "I mean, every time when Beato had her 'time of the month' she was incredibly unpleasant and was pretty much acting like a total bitch."

"So, our AI has PMS?" Dr. Magi questioned, feeling weird just saying it.

"Sounds like it, but don't take my word for it," said Battler. "You should give Sheila some alone time. When she's all calmed down, you'll know."

"I still say we should just reboot her," said Shogo.

That was when Sheila's voice came out of the computer, threatening, "_Don't even try it, buster._"

"Yeah, better not," said Battler. "You do not want to piss off a woman on her 'time of the month'. Trust me. I learnt that the hard way."

"Same here," said Yokoshima. "I mean, have you seen Asmo-chan during her time of the month? I have. It ain't pretty."

"See?" Battler patted Yokoshima's shoulder. "He knows what I'm talking about."

"Is this a unanimous decision?" asked Dr. Magi.

"Aye!"

"So it's unanimous. We'll just wait for the problem to solve itself," Dr. Magi concluded.

"Aye!"

"Or we can just run a diagnostic," suggested Dr. Washam.

"That works too," agreed Dr. Magi.

"_Excuse me, gentlemen. While you were discussing of what you wanted to do with me, I've detected an anomaly in the Earth's magnetic poles_," informed Sheila.

"What kind of anomaly?" Dr. Magi asked seriously.

"_The sort of anomaly that is slowly drawing the moon towards the Earth._"

This was alarming. "What?" uttered Dr. Magi.

"_Did you not hear me the first time?_" Sheila snapped irritably. "_I shall repeat myself then: the anomaly is slowly drawing the moon towards the Earth._"

* * *

Three beings had left Earth's atmosphere to investigate. There was Blue Beetle, whose armor was equipped with a life-support system for space travel. Flying alongside him were Yuji and Alan who were garbed in their Lantern uniforms and protected by their rings' unique energy fields. Alan was covered in a green aura as Yuji's aura was blue.

"Hey, what do I have to do to earn those fancy rings?" asked Blue Beetle.

"It's not something you earn, but something you are or have," said Alan. "For me, it was Willpower. Yuji's ring runs on Hope."

"Besides, why would you need a ring when you have that armor?" Yuji asked.

"I dunno, but Shinichi sometimes complains about your rings, how you show off and stuff," Blue Beetle remarked.

"Should we talk to him about that?" Yuji asked.

"Let him be jealous. Besides, it'll be good motivation for him," Alan replied. "OK, there's the moon."

"Looks so different up close," said Blue Beetle.

"_Catch a glimpse of Earth from the moon. It's spectacular_," said Shinichi whose voice was transmitted through their individual communication devices.

* * *

Shinichi was in his Genovia command centre, monitoring them. As he was patched through the Hive Satellite, he could actually spot them. Another monitor showed him what Yokoshima was seeing via his helmet's visor.

"I wish I could join you guys," said Shinichi.

"_Us too, but you know you can't use your powers unnecessarily now. The Mark of Destruction is still on you," _said Yuji.

"Which is why I wish I had your rings. I wouldn't really be using my powers if I did have them," answered Shinichi. "Anyway, Sheila says that the moon is getting too close to the Earth. Can you confirm?"

"_I can,_" said Alan. "A_nd she's right. The moon is 5000 kilometers closer to the Earth now and drawing closer_." The distance between the Earth and moon was supposed to be measured at 384,400 kilometres, which was 238855.086 miles. To have the distance lessen was strange and disturbing.

"_I'm guessing that's bad_," spoke Blue Beetle.

"Yeah, that's bad. Don't you read? The moon's own gravitational field will inflict drastic environmental changes upon the Earth," Shinichi informed them. "You guys need to figure out what's causing the Earth to pull the moon to it. Since Sheila says it has something to do with the magnetic poles, that's where you'll investigate next."

"_So, the North and South Poles?_" Blue Beetle questioned.

"Yes," said Shinichi.

"_Actually, Shinichi, there's something else here with u_s," said Alan. "_My ring's picking up a life form signature. It's humanoid, sapient and sentient_."

"Location?" Shinichi asked.

"_It's on the surface of the moon_._ We're gonna go check it out._"

"Be careful, little brother," Shinichi cautioned.

* * *

"So he does care," smiled Blue Beetle as he, Yuji and Alan were headed to the moon.

"What made you think he didn't?" Alan asked, curious, with an eyebrow cocked.

"Well, you argue a lot, sometimes you call him an idiot, and sometimes he calls you a by-the-books stiff and fuddy-duddy," Blue Beetle said.

"_Yokoshima, you were not supposed to mention all tha_t," Shinichi chided.

"We fight, we argue. We might be family but we have different points of view. Nonetheless, we care about each other," said Alan. "You must argue with Asmodeus sometimes."

"Yeah, we do, but we manage to patch things up with makeup sex," Blue Beetle said.

"I see something," Yuji pointed. They landed and saw standing in the barren, crater-filled, surface of the moon was a being who looked human but was anything but.

"_What does it look like?_" Shinichi asked.

"OK, he's wearing a skin-tight blue bodysuit and a physique that really fills it out. He's got some gold armor on his bodysuit. He's tall, I'm thinking at least 7 feet tall. He's got granite grey skin and red eyes. He kinda reminds me of someone," Alan described.

"Let's go say hi to the natives," Blue Beetle grinned but was held back by Yuji and Alan. "Hey!"

"Yokoshima, nobody lives on the moon. I don't care if you've seen it in a movie, but the fact of the matter is that _nobody _lives on the moon," Yuji told him.

"What about the time you fought that Moon Demon and her lackeys? And what about Tsukuyomi?" Blue Beetle questioned Yuji's logic.

"Those don't count," Yuji said in finality. Tsukuyomi used to be the Moon Goddess so where else would she have lived?

The two Lanterns and Blue Lantern landed before the being and stepped towards him.

"Let me do the talking. I'm trained in diplomatic relations," said Alan. He then recited, "Bah wheep granah wheep ninny bong," causing Yuji and Blue Beetle to almost face-fault due to how ridiculous it sounded.

"What was _that _supposed to be!?" Yuji questioned incredulously.

"The universal greeting," Alan told them. "I learnt it back in the Green Lantern Corps in my universe."

"And what makes you think it works in this universe?" Yuji questioned.

Alan shrugged, "Doesn't hurt to try."

"Why do I get the feeling that something bad is about to happen?" Blue Beetle asked.

"Could you identity yourself and what you're doing on the moon?" Alan asked politely. The being sneered at Alan and decided to humor him by giving him what he asked for.

"I am _Lord _Grayven, and I am the one who has altered your planet's magnetic poles thus drawing your precious moon towards it," the being said. He didn't even seem remorseful of what he had done.

"Well, that was easy," stated Blue Beetle. They now knew what was causing the moon to be drawn closer to Earth.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" Alan questioned furiously.

"I'm ridding the universe of the planet Earth," said Grayven uncaringly. "I'm just here on the moon to watch it happen up close."

"Wouldn't the crash and explosion kill you too?" Blue Beetle asked.

"A New God like me would never perish in such a blast, mortal," scoffed Graven arrogantly.

"Great, a super-powered psycho with a God Complex," muttered Yuji. "What else is new?"

"Fix it, now!" ordered Alan and he pointed his ring at Grayven, "By the authority given to me by the Guardians of the Universe and the Green Lantern Corps, I order you to restore Earth's magnetic poles and put the moon back into its proper orbit."

"I refuse," said Grayven arrogantly. "I do not recognize your authority as there hasn't been a Green Lantern Corps in this universe in a long, long time."

"Then we will make you comply," Alan cracked his knuckles. "Yuji, Beetle, it's time we showed this guy what happens when he messes with the Earth."

* * *

Shinichi could hear a fight breakout. He couldn't see what was going on though. Something was messing with the visuals being sent through to him via Blue Beetle's helmet.

"What's going on out there?" he demanded.

"_WE'RE DYING HERE!_" screamed Blue Beetle.

Shinichi deadpanned, "Well, fuck."

* * *

Grayven was proving to be a powerful opponent as he'd simply shrugged off Alan's strongest punch. It was like fighting Mongul and Major Force all over again. Grayven's face was simply pushed aside as he bent his head with Alan's fist buried in his cheek. Swiftly, Grayven backhanded Alan and sent him bounding along the lunar surface. His eyes glowing, he aimed for Blue Beetle and fired twin laser beams at him. Fortunately, Blue Beetle was able to avoid being blasted or worse when he performed a dodge-roll.

Blue fireballs exploded as they hit Grayven, repeatedly. Yuji was the one firing them. Normal fireballs wouldn't have worked in an oxygenless environment. Grayven didn't feel the heat or pain but he did feel annoyed. He closed the distance between himself and Yuji and punched him hard in the gut to send him flying. A shadow loomed over Grayven and he looked up to see a massive hand of green energy come crashing down, flattening him.

"Is he dead?" Blue Beetle asked and he watched as the hand was being lifted up by Grayven who had his knees bent and arms flexed to carry the weight of the green energy hand. "Guess not!"

Throwing the energy hand off, he pointed his hand at Alan and fired an Omega Energy beam. Alan ducked before he got hit. He did not want to get hit by that beam. He then cracked his knuckles and decided to stop holding back. Shooting at Grayven like a missile, he slammed into him with the force of a freight-train. However, Grayven was strong enough to endure the impact and only went skidding back by several feet, kicking up moondust.

"_Guys, Sheila's measuring the distance between the Earth and the Moon. It's now at 304,400 kilometres from the Earth! The moon's getting closer! And getting closer by the second!_" Shinichi informed them.

"We're wasting time fighting this guy!" Alan realized. "We need to focus on getting the moon back into orbit and fixing the Earth's magnetic poles!"

"But there's no way this guy is gonna let us fix the poles!" Blue Beetle shouted.

"I know a way," Yuji said. "Beetle, GL, fix the moon's position. Me and Grayven have to talk, _alone_." Like a blue blur, Yuji shot at Grayven and grabbed him around the waist. He then continued to fly, rocketing himself and Grayven back to Earth as the grey-skinned being tried to force Yuji to release him.

"Well, let's get to work," said Blue Beetle.

"Yuji, good luck," said Alan as he and Blue Beetle went to push the moon back into position as the Earth was drawing it in.

Yuji and Grayven crashed and sent birds flying into the air. Yuji had brought them both to an uninhabited island with mountains and a jungle with wildlife. The curious ones stayed to watch while those aware of the danger fled.

Grayven roared and kicked Yuji off him before rising to his feet. His eyes glowed and he fired energy beams at Yuji who dodged while bringing up a shield of blue energy. Yuji was going to keep Grayven busy while Alan and Blue Beetle worked on the moon. He had faith in them.

"You will be the first to fall. Once I kill you, I'm going up there and snap your friends' necks," swore Grayven angrily.

"Not if I kill you first," said Yuji as he formed his Verz Claws and his eyes glowed.

* * *

Shinichi monitored the screens. Yuji was on some uninhabited island in the pacific ocean while both Alan and Blue Beetle were up in space. He should be out there, helping them, but with his status as a fugitive and the Mark of Destruction eating away at his life, he could not take unnecessary risks. They had told him that he needed to treasure his life. Without the Hive's equipment, bringing him back from the dead would be impossible.

"Damn it," Shinichi cursed, fists clenched and trembling, as he was just forced to sit in his command centre and watch.

* * *

"Can't you use your ring to fix the magnetic poles?" asked Blue Beetle as he pressed his body against the surface of the moon to push it back as it was being pulled towards the Earth.

"No," Alan answered.

"How about your Sonic Screwdriver?" Blue Beetle questioned.

"It doesn't work like that," Alan replied.

"But you said it worked on anything!" yelled Blue Beetle.

"Not for this," Alan grunted. "Just keep pushing!" He was not about to let Earth's natural satellite become a permanent fixture on the planet, causing unimaginable harm and damage to it and its people. He was not going to fail the planet, not now.

* * *

Back on the island, Yuji and Grayven's battle was intense as they exchanged blows, intending to end each other's life. A powerful punch from Yuji managed to blast Grayven straight into the mountain. However, a victory dance would have to wait as the mountain rumbled and began to rise into the air. Grayven was actually carrying an entire mountain over his head as Yuji's eyes widened.

"Ho boy!" the Manakyte exclaimed.

"RARGH!" Grayven roared and hurled the mountain straight towards Yuji. The Lantern acted quickly by conjuring a giant buzzsaw that started cutting through the mountain, its two halves flying past Yuji as he remained unharmed.

"Hey! I got a question," Yuji called.

Grayvern found it odd to be asking questions in the middle of a fight. Still, he decided to entertain the Lantern. "What is it?"

"Why do guys like you always wanna fucking destroy the world, conquer it, or whatever? Seriously, there's no point to it and you don't even belong here," Yuji pointed out. "I mean, sure, I'm not exactly a native myself, but I had to adapt since I've been stuck here for a good while."

"You want an answer? You wish to know why I want to destroy this world? It's because I can!" Grayven answered.

"...OK, it's official," Yuji deadpanned with a sigh, "Supervillains are fucking stupid." He conjured a pair of spiked gauntlets and slammed his fists. "OK, fucker, let's dance!"

The two flew straight at each other, trading punches to the guts and faces as they each stood their ground. Yuji conjured a warhammer and slammed it against Grayven's face, the warlord shaking it off and backhanding Yuji in the face to send him flying. Grayven gave chase and grabbed hold of Yuji's ankle but Yuji blasted him in the face to force Grayven to release him. He then landed a kick to Grayven's face and kneed him in the chest. Enraged, Grayven slammed his palm into Yuji's chest and the force of the strike sent Yuji flying unwillingly.

* * *

Shinichi was watching the entire battle critically, observing each move, each swing, each punch, each kick, and each blow with intense eyes.

"That looked like it hurt," winced Shinichi. In a flash of gold, Satan appeared, with Hiroyuki in her arms. "Satie-chan?"

"So this is where you've been hiding," Satan frowned as she handed Hiroyuki to his father. "Here's your son."

"Huh?" Shinichi blinked in confusion, staring at Hiroyuki. Hiroyuki just blinked at him.

"You were supposed to spend time with him today," she reminded, hands to her hips. He slapped himself in the forehead, a gesture that made Hiroyuki giggle.

"I'm so sorry, Satie-chan," Shinichi apologized. "I just forgot. So much has been going on."

"Hey, is that Onii-sama?" Satan asked as she watched the screen.

"Yeah, he's kicking butt right now," said Shinichi.

"Who's he fighting?" Satan asked.

"Some alien trying to destroy the world. He calls himself Grayven. Pull up a chair. It's a long story."

* * *

Yuji was still flying before he finally regained balance and stopped. Looking around, he looked down and saw a city; New jersey. "Oh...fuck," he realized. This was where Rhea, Yuki and crystal lived. Not to mention a lot of people. He couldn't fight here and put the citizens' lives at stake.

"Something wrong?

Yuji winced to see Grayven floating across from him, arms crossed.

"Nope, I'm good," Yuji lied as he kept a straight face. "Catch me if you can, fucker!" And he took off like a speeding bullet, leaving Grayvern in his proverbial dust.

"A game of chase, eh," Grayvern smirked, "Might as well make some amusement."

Yuki was looking up when she saw Yuji take off into the distance, seeing that he was being followed by someone else. She had a bad feeling about this. "Onii-sama..."

"Gotta lead him towards an unpopulated area," Yuji murmured.

Grinning sadistically as an evil plan formed in his mind, Grayven conjured two discs of Omega Energy with his hands and tossed them at Yuji. He wanted the Manakyte to be cut into quarters and have his blood used as an ingredient for blood wine, his favorite beverage. Then, he would cook the Manakyte's meat and augment his strength through the ritual of devouring one's defeated enemies.

Yuji sensed something else following and turned his head over his shoulder as he saw the discs coming at him.

"Well, that's new," Yuji regarded and he concluded they were dangerous. "I better lose them!" Yuji flew into the woods of New Jersey as the discs followed and trees were sawed in half as they pursued him. The discs were like buzzsaws made of light and just as lethal as real buzzsaws. The trail of cut down trees was evidence of that.

"You can run, but you can't hide from death!" claimed Grayven. "You're mine!"

* * *

"Hey, that's my trick!" Shinichi shouted in outrage as he saw the energy discs. "That was my Kienzan! I should fucking sue!"

"Oh, relax," Satan said.

"That's ironic, coming from you," Shinichi retorted.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean," she glared, fists on her hips.

"That's the Satie-chan I love," Shinichi smiled. Why did she have to look so hot when angry?

* * *

'_OK, how to deal with those,'_ Yuji tried to contemplate as he was being chased. The discs seemed made of pure energy, their momentum was constant, and they could cut through anything. Those were some formidable weapons and they seemed to follow him everywhere. Everywhere... Yuji's eyes widened and grinned as he got an idea, stopping in midair and flying toward Grayvern, the Lantern zipping between the two discs and narrowly avoiding a deadly haircut as he went straight for Grayvern. Looking back, he grinned as the discs were still following him. He kept his eyes on Grayven as he could see him coming into view.

Grayven scoffed. As if he hadn't experienced seeing anyone perform _that _maneuver before. Take advantage of the homing discs' nature to pursue their targets, lead them to him, then dodge at the last second so that the discs owner would be cut apart instead. So many fools have tried that trick and failed.

Yuji grinned as he conjured his witchgun. It'd been awhile since he used it, but now was as good a time as any. twirling the gun, magic symbols flashed around Yuji as he chambered a bullet and fired. What came out of the gun was a giant, earthworm-like, dragon with a three lower jaws and a huge upper beak.

Yuji grinned as he said, **"Mimizu Ryū-Dan (Earthworm Dragon Bullet)!"**

The beast ended its jaws, devouring Grayvern before its head was torn off from this inside as Grayvern was covered in its juices. At the same time, Yuji shot at the energy discs and watched as they shattered and turned into nothingness.

"You...YOU!" growled Grayven in anger as he hovered in midair. He would not stand for this insult. He was Lord Grayven, one of the greatest warlords in the entire galaxy! And yet here he was being given trouble by an inferior lifeform on an inferior, primitive planet that had yet to make any noticeable advancements.

"What's wrong? Mad that I'm not dead?" sneered Yuji. "It's gonna take more than a couple love taps from you to kill me, Gray-Boy!"

"My name...IS LORD GRAYVEN!" roared Grayven. He then rushed at Yuji who met him to close the gap for them to clash violently and explosively.

Summoning his weapons, Yuji gripped the Gao Dagger containing GaoLiger's Gao Jewel and power in his left hand and slashed Grayven across the chest with it. When Grayven tried to retaliate, the butt of Crimson Dragon Spear was buried in his throat and he was painfully shoved backwards. Dual-wielding both weapons, Yuji proved that he was a master of both as he mercilessly and ruthlessly slashed at Grayven who was forced to bring his arms up to block. He did manage to see an opening and kicked Yuji in the chin, sending him tumbling through the air. Grayven flew at Yuji who managed to counter Grayven's strike with the Crimson Dragon Spear before kneeing him in the gut. Grayven struck back with a fist across Yuji's face and Yuji spun to plant his heel into Grayven's face. The two continued to violently trade blows. Each time a blow landed, it sounded like an explosive boom of thunder and they were happening in a series. It was like the collision of two forces of nature and neither was letting up until the other was eliminated and wiped off the face of this Earth. They were also moving so fast that they blurred all over the place.

* * *

"Yeah, you show him, Onii-sama!" Satan cheered as she watched Yuji fighting Grayven. "Show him who's boss!"

Shinichi's attention was split between watching Yuji VS Grayven, and watching Sentinel and Blue Beetle push the moon back into position, but the attractive force of Earth's magnetic poles was just too strong. That didn't mean they were going to give up, but this was definitely one of the hardest missions they had ever attempted to accomplish.

* * *

Yuji used whatever he had in his arsenal to fight against Grayven. Putting away the Gao Dagger and Crimson Dragon Spear, he pulled out the Red Queen and ignited it. Roaring loudly, he slashed at Grayven furiously with a series of brutal slashes. Grayven brought up his arms to block and then used a punch to disarm Yuji. Yuji conjured a fireball which exploded in Grayven's face, breaking them apart and spreading the gap between them. Concentrating, Yuji let out a roar as he exploded and was enveloped in a pillar of flames until a pair of demonic-looking arms erupted forth. A pair of magma-like wings flapped the flames away to reveal a towering dragon, covered in rock-like skin with red glowing lines in-between the cracks. The dragon had glowing yellow eyes that blazed like flames, menacing teeth, and a multitude of horns that resembled Yuji's hair but were actual horns instead of simple hair. His shoulders had crater like structures as flames danced out of them like giant torches. A long tail swished from side to side as the dragon let out a challenging roar that could be heard for miles as it rang through the air. Now in his Transcended Form, the Volcanic Dragon, he dwarfed Grayven.

Volcanic Dragon flew at Grayven and threw a punch. Grayven caught the fist and hurled his own fist into Volcanic Dragon's face, knocking him backwards. Grayven just saw a bigger target as he went and smashed into Volcanic Dragon with his fists and continued to punch him, over and over. Grayven then sent Volcanic Dragon crashing to the ground with an Omega Energy beam and watched as an explosion erupted on impact.

The smoke cleared to reveal a crater but Grayven seemed confused. Where was his opponent? Had he been vaporised by his Omega Energy? He landed to investigate but suddenly spiked tendrils shot out of the ground and bound him in place. The ground shook as a dark entity burst out, clad in dark, organic armor, with sharp claws, a trident-tipped tail, crocodilian teeth, bat-like wings and a dark draconic appearance with the horns of a demon. This was Yuji in his Verz Vulcan form.

"O**K, Veronica! Let's finish this guy off!**" roared Verz Vulcan.

'_OK, Daddy!'_ replied Veronica as Verz Vulcan opened his mouth.

"**HELL FLARE!**"

The fire stream smashed into Grayven and sent him skidding backwards, knocking down trees he hit. At the end, he stopped, leaving a smoking trench and a path of fallen trees. Verz Vulcan roared and rushed at him with his claws and went on the offensive again. He spun like a wheel and struck Grayven in the face with his tail before catching Grayven's punch in his jaws. He tossed Grayven up and used the Hammer Fist to perform an uppercut that sent him flying into the air. Verz Vulcan then soared after Grayven, following him. Grayven fired Omega Energy beams but Verz Vulcan dodged so fast he just blurred all over the place.

"**HELL FLARE X5!**" Verz Vulcan roared as he fired from his hands, mouth, tail and horns, hitting Grayven dead centre in the chest. Grayven snarled and in his outrage rushed at Verx Vulcan and shoulder-tackled him. He then grabbed his horns and kneed him in the throat before grabbing his tail and spinning around and around to toss him into the air. He followed up with a barrage of Omega Energy spheres which exploded against Verz Vulcan, forcing him back to human form.

Yuji used his ring to defend himself and then he blurred out of sight to appear in front of Grayven and punch him in the nose. Grayven howled in agony as his nose was broken, blood dripping from his nostrils.

* * *

"Did you see that, Hiro-chan? Did you see your Uncle Yuji kick butt?" Satan asked her baby who laughed as they watched the action.

Shinichi cocked an eyebrow and asked, "Should I be concerned about our son's delight to the violence happening onscreen?"

"Hey, it's genetic," Satan remarked nuzzling her son and Shinichi smiled. Satan really did love Hiroyuki. Still, he did not want his son to be exposed to so much violence at a young age.

* * *

Yuji and Grayven panted as they glared at each other. Yuji turned his head to the side and spat before wiping his lip. Grayven appeared to be sporting bruises and burns and Yuji had bruises too. However, it didn't seem to bother him all that much. Grayven, however, was bothered by this. He had been challenged before but his opponents in the past had never been able to last this long and even if they did his father would've finished them off. But this whelp was able to survive bone-shattering blows and avoid destruction by his Omega Energy with seemingly no effort.

Grayven was absolutely livid, and he looked like it too; his teeth were gritted, his eyes were glowing red, his nostrils were flaring, and his fists were clenched so tight that his nails dug into his palm. The bruises weren't the only mark Yuji had left him. His suit was stained and bits of his armor had broken off in the midst of their conflict.

Grayven would not let this insult stand. He would not allow anyone to make him look weak. He looked at Yuji then looked down at the Earth and grinned. He had been asked to do a lot of damage on Earth with the moon crashing against it, but what if he decided to speed things up and leave not a trace of the planet at all. He was definitely beyond angry as he couldn't even think straight anymore.

"Do you love this planet?" Grayven asked. Yuji blinked. That was an odd thing to ask.

"Well, yeah," Yuji answered. It was the most obvious thing to say when someone asked you if you loved your world.

"Good," Grayven grinned in a sadistic way. He raised his arms above his head and conjured a ball of crackling Omega Energy. Pumping more energy into it, he increased its size. In a matter of seconds it had gone from the size of a volleyball to one thousand times its original size.

"**NOW, WATCH AS YOUR PLANET DIES!"** roared Grayven as he hurled the massive Omega Energy ball down towards the Earth.

* * *

Satan and Shinichi nearly went deaf when they heard the explosion and almost blinded by the flash they witnessed from the screens. Hiroyuki suddenly cried as the floor under their feet shook. Satan gently embraced her son and rocked him to calm him down, cooing soothingly at him.

"What...the fuck...just happened...?" Shinichi questioned, shaken. "Sheila, can you give me a visual? Sheila, please respond!" He was beginning to panic. "Yuji, are you there? Yuji!"

* * *

The smoke cleared and what Grayven had done was revealed. Grayven's energy sphere had created a huge hole in the Earth's crust. It was deep and dark and possibly reaching into the centre of the Earth. It was a miracle that the entire planet hadn't been destroyed instantly.

"What did you do!?" demanded Yuji.

"I've hit this planet's core," grinned Grayven. He held up five fingers, "In five minutes, this rock and everything on it will become nothing but space dust."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Yuji growled as he powered up, transforming into his Enlightened Manakyte Form. In this state he was taller, about 6'5", and had dark metallic blue scales and a bronze chest. He had soul-piercing blue eyes, and long horns curved back from out of his hair that was slightly longer. The claws on his hands and feet were long, sharp and blade-like. His tail was also long, and his bat-like wings had a great wingspan. Grayven didn't look too impressed at _this _transformation. "Turns out you're just a punk bitch that doesn't wanna keep going and fight like a man!"

"What are you going to do?" dared Grayven. "Just face it, you're finished. Your whole planet is finished and your friends trying to move the moon back into position are finished as well."

"What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do?" Yuji repeated. "THIS!" He moved and shot at Grayven like a missile. He grabbed hold of Grayven, much to the warlord's surprise. Holding tight, he flew down towards the hole Grayven had made, dragging him along for the ride. They entered and the alien warlord screamed and shouted as Yuji fell deeper, deeper, and deeper into the Earth. They passed through the crust and were going straight towards the broken and damaged core.

"YOU FOOL! YOU'LL KILL US BOTH!" screamed Grayven but he was ignored as Yuji prepared to do what had to be done.

"LIKE I GIVE A SHIT, FUCKER!" Yūji roared back as he gripped the bastard tight. Grayvern wasn't going anywhere, and Yūji would make sure of that.

Meanwhile, Earth was starting to break apart as earthquakes shook every country. The people panicked, unaware of what was going on in the centre of the Earth.

"OK, Ring," Yūji muttered, "Couple more jobs and you're home free..."

* * *

Just then, those who knew Yūji were receiving a telepathic transmission broadcasted by his power ring.

"_Hey guys... It's me," _Yuji mentally called. _"Wow, it's getting hot... Anyway, shit's getting pretty crazy. This may suck some serious eggs, but I don't think I'll be walking away from this one. Before anybody says anything, lemme just say a few things... Fucking heat... OK, don't let these fuckers win. No matter what, we can't let these faggots win. We've worked too hard to keep the peace and these assholes have been fucking with us since Day One. No matter what it takes, we can't let these faggots win! Odds are, I won't be walking away from this one this time. But don't worry, you guys can definitely kick ass. I know that for a fact. Just never say die and don't stop fighting. Please... Well, see ya later...This is Yuji Fudo signing off."_

* * *

"NO!" Shinichi screamed, watching helplessly as Yuji made the ultimate sacrifice. "NO, YUJI!"

"ONII-SAMA!"

"Yuji, respond!" shouted Shinichi as he tried to desperately call his friend. "Dammit, Yuji! Answer me! Don't you fucking ignore me you damn lizard! Answer! Pick up! Say something, dammit!" But there was no answer from Yuji, as he was silenced, forever. Standing up, Shinichi put his arms around Hiroyuki and Satan, comforting them in their time of need. He hung his head in grief as he had just lost someone precious, again.

* * *

With Yuji's sacrifice and Grayven's death, the magnetic poles of the Earth returned back to normal and stabilized, enabling Blue Beetle and Alan to push the moon back to its proper orbit. Days later, a ceremony was held in order to honor the man who saved the world from the brink of destruction. A memorial service was held in honor of Yuji, his memory, and the sacrifice he had made. With no body, they buried instead the Gao Dagger, Red Queen and Crimson Dragon Spear which had been found near the place he'd died. Nobody knew how they got there but at least they had something of his to bury. The Blue Lantern ring, like all power rings, would select a new wielder as long as they were worthy and it did manage to choose someone. It flew and went to Stella the White Tigress. However, devastated and in grief because of Yuji's death, she could not accept the ring. So, she gave it up to be buried with his weapons.

For what Yuji had done, no simple gravestone would suffice. Such simplicity would be an insult considering the sacrifice he'd made. Therefore, a monument was built in his honor. Standing on the spot where his items were buried was a statue shaped like a majestic western dragon with its wings spread out proudly. Around its neck was a collar with the Blue Lantern insignia on it. Its horns were arranged to resemble Yuji's hair and it held within its claws was Yuji's gravestone which had a framed picture of himself embedded in the stone. Under the picture was his name, the date of his birth, the date of his death, and an inscription which read: "_Here Lies Yuji Fudo. Beloved Father, Brother & Friend. The Blue Dragon of Hope Now Spreads His Wings and Will Forever Watch Over Us._"

The seats before the monument were all filled as Yuji's family in this world, his friends, and his loved ones were all in attendance. They were all dressed in black in order to pay their respects to the dead and to honor the sacrifice made by one Yuji Fudo. Tears were shed for him as words were spoken in memory of this great man. It seemed appropriate to have the service held in the canyon with the Power Animals watching over them, especially GaoLiger who had chosen Yuji as his master. He had felt the lost connection when Yuji had died and roared in anguish.

It seemed so unfair that someone so young, who'd done so much, and who'd gained so much happiness had to die so soon, leaving behind his family and friends. However, Fate was rarely kind. In Yuji's case, this was the fate he'd chosen.

Shinichi Banabara and Alan Smith both spoke, the eldest taking his turn first.

"Yuji Fudo will be missed. He's been a friend, a brother, a father, and a mentor to many of us. He's always been there for us, to support us whenever we needed help. It is unfortunately tragic that his life ended before he had the chance to return to his home, but I think that he willingly sacrificed himself because this world had also become his home. Or maybe because this world was home to so many people that he loved dearly. What we do know is that Yuji has become a true hero in every sense of the world. As a hero he had heart, strength, and so much love that he was willing to give his own life up so that the everyone in this world could live," Shinichi said.

Alan took his turn to speak as well, "Sometimes Yuji could get on my nerves but I always knew I could count on me. He brought hope to so many people and I guess that's what earned him the blue ring and the responsibility of being a Blue Lantern. It is terrible that he died, and he will be missed, but he died as he lived, fighting to protect the ones he loved. It is unfortunate that we will be the only people who will know of his sacrifice, but that should be enough. Wherever he is, he will know that he will always be remembered and will be missed.

The others took turns to speak. Misato, Sora, Shizuko and Lina had spoken on how Yuji had saved them and Maria and Wendy had spoken about how he was the best father they had ever had. Yuna, who was in Misato's arms, could only utter, "Papa..." She did not understand what was going on as she was only a baby but Misato did and she cried while holding her and Yuji's child. Yuki couldn't utter a word, crying nonstop as Crystal and Rhea tried to comfort her. Yūji's four Pokégirls spoke of how good a Master he was to them and how they will never forget him.

"Now, let us end the ceremony by reciting his oath. Everyone, please rise," said Alan and everyone stood up to recite the following words:

"_In fearful day, in raging night_

_With strong hearts full, our souls ignite_

_When all seems lost in the War of Light_

_Look to the stars-For Hope Burns Bright!_"

GaoTyranno and GaoLiger threw their heads back and roared into the heaven as GaoPhoenix spread her wings out as she stood behind the monument, letting out a loud caw. This was the Power Animals' way of respecting the dead and Yuji had been like their own. This was followed by the NEO-NUMBERS who each took a rifle and fired a three-volley salute. Even if the Harbinger of Hope was gone, that didn't mean they should give up and be consumed by despair. Yuji's sacrifice had given the Earth another chance and his sacrifice would not be in vain as the ones who lived would continue to protect the world.

Unbeknownst to the others, Yuri and his group were watching from a distance. Although he didn't show it, his lovers could see how furious and outraged he was. While Yuri would always mess with his brother, he did love Yūji to death and silently swore that he would slaughter everyone responsible for his little brother's death. He would not stop until this injustice to himself, to his family, was rectified. There were some things he could tolerate, but this... This was unforgivable.

* * *

The Gauntlet all watched as Yuji saved the world, dragging Grayven with him into the core to kill the villain, and saving the world by restoring the Earth's core at the cost of his life.

"Well, that takes care of one of them, but there are still more of those Manakytes hanging about," remarked Black.

"Well, better him than the whole world getting destroyed by Grayven," said Faust.

"Grayven's plan would not have succeeded. Our plan made sure of it, and it has left Alan Smith even more broken than before," said the Gauntlet's leader. "Soon, it will be time to move towards our end game."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And here lies Yuji Fudo, one of the world's greatest heroes.**

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: This wasn't exactly easy for me. First time I actually killed a main character that I made. However, hopefully this helps moves things along.**


	192. The Legacy of Cain Part 136

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 136: Rise of the Elite**

Two weeks ago the planet had been saved from total obliteration. Either it would've exploded when the core was destroyed, or the moon would've crashed into it. Either way, it would've caused the death of billions. Many would remember it as the day the Earth was saved and few would remember it as a day a hero was lost as the Blue Comet gave his life to save billions.

Alan stood in the rain before Yuji's monument with a sombre look of melancholy on his face. He didn't even bother to carry an umbrella. The date of Yuji's birth and death were on the gravestone. Yuji had not been born in this world and yet he died in order to protect it.

Alan clenched his fist tightly, his nails digging into his skin and drawing blood. The crimson liquid dripped from his balled fists as Alan fought back another wave of tears. He had lost so many friends during his time as a Green Lantern. Most of all, he had lost Jade, the woman he loved more than life itself. After losing her, becoming Parallax and then reclaiming his humanity, he swore to never lose another comrade ever again. But now, with Yuji's death, he was no longer able to keep such a vow.

He had kept himself locked in his room for nearly two days and Conda and the rest of the girls just couldn't stand to see him in such pain. Shinichi wasn't faring so well either. The death of their closest friend had shaken them to the core. Along with Yuji, the three of them were possibly the most powerful individuals on the planet. And yet, with Yuji gone, they no longer saw themselves as powerful heroes. No, at this moment, they all saw one another for what they truly were.

Mortal.

"Yuji, you're the hero now. You're the one who saved the world, not me," whispered Alan. Alan may have stopped the moon from crashing into the Earth, but Yuji had been the one to prevent it from blowing up. Yuji had given up his life to do so, whilst killing Grayven in the process.

"Partner, it wasn't your fault," said Bazel.

"I still feel like crap, Bazel," said Alan. "And it still happened. I lost a friend again."

"You better get home, Partner," Bazel advised. "They'll get worried if you don't turn up for dinner again."

"Right..." Alan agreed and turned his back to the monument but not before looking over his shoulder as he softly said, "See ya later, Yuji."

* * *

Alan flew around not just to clear his head, but to also see what he was protecting and also what Yuji had saved. All this could've been lost two weeks ago if Yuji hadn't made the ultimate sacrifice. At the moment he wasn't flying over Japan as he would be spotted by helicopters flying about looking for him. Instead, he was flying in the airspace of the United States of America. He just had to make sure to keep out of sight from any patrolling aircrafts.

As he was soaring, his ring was picking up a communications frequency. "That's odd," he whispered as he stared at his ring. It was a repetition of a series of short beeps along with long beeps. "Dots and dashes. Sounds like Morse code." He deciphered the message. They were directions. "Well, I'm never the type to ignore a request." He then shot off, going at the speed of a rocket using his ring. He dared not use his own natural super speed. The Cursed Mark of Destruction would react again and he was in no mood to feel its burn.

The directions led Alan right in the middle of the Nevada Desert. As he landed, he scanned the area for his mysterious caller. "Come out now. There's no way you can hide from me."

"**Whoever said I was hiding?"** said a deep electronic voice. Alan saw the one coming towards him and his eyes narrowed as he recognized the white armored shell of the DALEK. The difference from the last time the Lantern saw this DALEK was at the time the latter's armored casing hadn't been so shiny.

"You've bonded your armor with Vibranium," stated Alan.

"**Perceptive as always, Alan Smith,"** said the DALEK Supreme, aka Shiro Juuyon. Alan's eyes glowed red and he aimed his glowing ring at the White DALEK.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blast you to smithereens right now," threatened Alan.

"**Because I didn't call you with the intent of killing you,"** said DALEK Shiro. **"See? I'm unarmed."** Both his appendages ended in three-fingered claws.

"DALEKs are _always_ armed," retorted Alan as he walked around DALEK Shiro, scanning him, as the dome rotated, the eyestalk following Alan. "But so am I and I bet I can draw faster than you."

"**Indeed. You have a superior reaction time,"** DALEK Shiro praised.

"So, if you didn't call me to kill me—which I'm sure is something you want to do considering our history—why did you call me over?" Alan asked as he scanned the area. "You're alone."

"**That's right, as you are," **said DALEK Shiro.

Alan couldn't believe he was alone with DALEK Shiro. This being had caused nothing but death and destruction since his activation. The first time he'd tried to kill off the NEO-NUMBERS but Shinichi had undone that. Then Shiro had gone and partnered up with Gnol to revive the Yamata no Orochi, killing off as many Kekkain as he could to break the seals. The plan hadn't gone exactly the way Shiro had wanted but he managed to revive the Yamata no Orochi nonetheless. Even now Kyoto was still under the process of rebuilding after all the things Shito had done. Then Shiro had built the DALEKs and Cybermen in this universe. Then there were those Robomen he created by having his Cyberdrones latching onto people's heads and drilling neuro-control spikes into their skulls. The machines Shiro had built had caused so much death, suffering and destruction so Alan had a good reason to be wary of the DALEK in front of him.

"**Still suspicious?"** DALEK Shiro questioned.

"Can't be too careful with DALEKs," Alan quoted from experience, "Especially DALEKs like _you_." Shiro just couldn't be trusted, ever.

"**Maybe looking me face-to-face will help you relax**," DALEK Shiro suggested. Alan then watched as the DALEK shell depressurized and the neck rings split apart down the middle, exposing Shiro's damaged head. The exposed cybernetic eye and scarring was evidence of the damage he'd taken following the Yamata no Orochi incident. "Admiring your handiwork?" Shiro asked, his voice sounding natural with the shell open. Alan just didn't like hearing his brother's voice coming from something so evil, twisted and deranged. It bothered him, it really did, and Alan didn't feel relaxed at all. He just continued to keep his guard up.

"You brought this on yourself, you know," Alan retorted as Shiro's condition was a result of his arrogance and evil actions. "Call it karma." He added mentally, '_Too bad you didn't stay dead. You deserve to go to Hell for what you've done._'

"I've learnt from my mistakes, Alan Smith," said Shiro.

"That's doubtful. If you had you would've stopped being evil and you wouldn't have called me here," said Alan.

"If I had called either Yuji Fudo or Shinichi Banabara, they would've blasted me before I could speak a word." He paused and then remembered, "Oh, I forgot! Yuji Fudo _died_!"

Alan gritted his teeth, biting his lip as he tried to hold back the urge to kill Shiro once and for all. And it wasn't as if it was a _very_ tempting idea. It would possibly be the one time Alan would relish the thought of killing someone. "OK, let's just cut to the chase, what do you want?" Alan demanded impatiently.

"How's life been treating you lately?" Shiro asked, grinning obnoxiously. Alan's right eye twitched in agitation.

"Well, I have the authorities in Japan wanting to arrest me and question me about an invasion by a FAKE Green Lantern Corps, lots of distrust and paranoia going along, and just recently the Kamen Riders have become wanted fugitives. Also, let's not forget how Shiori's been trying to gain support for them but a murder committed by my brother—which I know is impossible—has put a stop to that," Alan listed. He knew Shinichi had been framed. It was too obvious. Sadly, the police didn't see that. "On top of all that, one of my best friends is dead!"

"Seems like your life hasn't been easy," remarked DALEK Shiro. It sounded like he was gloating about Alan's misfortunes.

"Oh, yeah, and it's thanks to _your _organization," Alan spat. "The Religion of Crime; they were the ones who revived you before like they revived you now. Seems to me like they still have need for you."

"I have contributed to the organization," spoke DALEK Shiro.

"Oh, please! You can't fool me!" Alan scoffed. "People like them only revive something like you when you're useful, but your last 'great plan' failed miserably! In fact, I bet not all of them even care if you are revived right now and, considering you've been revived as a DALEK, I bet they didn't even bother making you a proper body," stated Alan and Shiro glared in response. Leaning in close, Alan asked, "So, tell me, which one of them brought you back to life?"

"That's none of your business!" DALEK Shiro hissed.

"Hm, it's strange that you called me here to talk but I'm the one doing the most talking. You said you want to say something to me. What is it then?" Alan prompted.

"How are they doing?" Shiro asked.

"Who?" Alan asked. "Be specific."

"_Them_, the ones in my memories…" Shiro spoke. "I see them sometimes but I don't know who they are."

"You remember them but you don't know who they are," Alan translated. "Could you please give me more information?"

"Cat ears…and tails…" Shiro answered softly.

Alan's eyes widened as he realized whom Shiro was referring to. It was the Bakeneko Kunoichi; Akaneko, Aoneko, Kineko, Midoneko and Momoneko. They were Shiro's team of catgirl ninjas that Shiro had recruited. However, they had become his companions and lovers as well. Could this soulless machine still be capable of love for them? No, DALEKs by default were incapable of such emotion. Then again, Shiro was no regular DALEK so he might be an exception. Still, Alan needed to make sure.

"They're doing fine," said Alan. Well, most of them were doing alright. Kineko was locked up in cryo-stasis for trying to make Alan go mad. She would be let out in a few more years. "What is the last thing you remember before you were absorbed into the Orochi?"

"I remember…letting them go…" Shiro recalled. "Why would I do something like that?" he questioned.

'_You did it because you loved them_ _and you didn't want them to see what you were turning into,_' Alan said in his mind. He wasn't sure if he should say it out loud. As a DALEK, Shiro was now unstable. Shocking news like that could cause him to turn aggressive, too aggressive.

Shiro had felt love and a bit of shame in his final moments. He had become more human as time went on and he didn't like it. So he sent the objects of his affection away before he resumed his original plan. However, would their presence back then change anything? Had they been there, would Gnol be able to takeover?

How had these catgirls affected Shiro? Considering whom his template was Shiro would have wanted a harem to satisfy his lust. He did seem the perverted type, and catgirls were just the sexiest creatures in human fiction. Geeks would fantasize about them. Maybe it was their idea of the perfect companion.

"Who knows what you were thinking?" Alan offered. "You have a twisted mind after all." Alan didn't want to give DALEK Shiro a reason for seeking them out. If they ever saw what had become of him, they'd be devastated.

"Like it matters," Shiro remarked dismissively. "Just residual memories that don't mean a thing." Alan wanted to retort that such memories were precious but held his tongue. "Thank you for that piece of information." DALEK Shiro turned to glide away, his casing closing up to conceal his true head.

Alan blinked, "Wait, that's it?"

"**I just needed to confirm something,"** said DALEK Shiro before he teleported away.

"I don't think I'll ever understand Daleks, in this or any other universe," Alan mumbled. He then took off but then he picked up something with his hearing. It sounded like trouble. He was needed and so he used his ring to clothe him in his uniform and mask. The crisis was on the other side of the world so he needed to be quick.

However, once he got there, he was already too late.

Pieces of scrap metal littered all over the ground. Red fluid spilled onto the ground from the broken domes of the Cyber-Daleks. They were all in broken pieces.

Sentinel finally noticed that he wasn't alone. He recognized Manchester Black, even if he wasn't in that power armor of his. He wore a black trench coat over a Union Jack t-shirt with blue jeans, black cargo pants and combat boots. There was also Obsidian. Sentinel hadn't seen him in a very long time and was surprised to see him in the presence of others. He was still dressed like the last time he'd seen him, in a completely black costume that covered him from head to toe and revealed nothing except his glowing white eyes. He had exchanged his cape for a cloak and had the hood up. The cloak was midnight colored and seemed to blend well with his appearance. Obsidian was Jade's brother and his name was Todd. However, he had changed much since his sister's death. Alan did not recognize the other people, though.

"Looks like you're late to the party, Mr. Sentinel," jeered Black as he lit a cigarette, his British accent thick and heavy. "You should've been here sooner."

"Who's your club, Black?" Sentinel asked.

"Oh, my team you mean? Allow me to introduce ourselves then. We are the Elite. You already know my charming self and Obsidian, but not my charming teammates. Their names are Menagerie, Coldcast, and The Hat."

Menagerie was perched on a lamppost. She was a slender female who looked like a demon with her scaly green skin. The only clothing she had resembled a one-piece swimsuit without the shoulder straps. It was also backless so that her wings could spread freely without obstruction. She also wore black, knee-high boots and green snakeskin, fingerless gloves. Her black hair was tied into a high ponytail. Her slightly pointed ears also had piercings. She also wore a serpent around her neck as a necklace.

Coldcast was muscular and broad-shouldered dark-skinned male of African descent dressed in a blue, double-breasted jacket with silver trim and matching pants. Around his waist was a black leather belt with a metal buckle. He also wore black boots. His black hair was in dreadlocks.

Finally, the Hat was dressed in a grey business suit with a white shirt but sans the tie. His grey hair was long and he had a calculating look with a sharp chin and nose. On his head was a fedora. He was also leaning against a katana sword like a cane. He appeared to be of Oriental descent.

"What are you doing here?" Sentinel demanded.

"Doing your job, it appears," boasted Black. "These horrible metal buggers just appeared and began attacking people. Fortunately, we came just in time to take care of the whole lot of 'em." Sentinel heard the citizens cheer and his eyes narrowed at Black and his Elite. Oh, he knew they were up to something, but the problem was he could not prove it. Manchester Black then levitated into the air, followed by the Hat, Coldcast, Obsidian and Menagerie.

"We should be off now. Villains to fight, people to protect, something you should be focusing now, right mate? How is your reputation in Japan?" Manchester Black asked. Sentinel gritted his teeth. "We'll talk over some tea, my good chap. Cheerio!" And they took off, still with the crowd cheering for them. Sentinel, after a few moments, also flew into the air, trailing a line of green light behind him through the air.

* * *

In the days that followed, the popularity of the Elite spread worldwide. The public loved them. However, Alan was bothered by their methods. You see, the Elite were using lethal force to get the job done and not just as a last resort. Lethal force was the only resort for them. True, the Riders did use lethal force against the monsters they fought but even so it was only when other methods had been exhausted and they were given no choice if capture was impossible. The Elite just didn't stop to capture the criminals. They just went straight to killing them. Oh, sure, lives were saved like when a group of terrorists had taken hostages and the Elite had responded, but still, Alan just didn't like the idea of vigilantes who went around killing.

Meanwhile, the media was painting the Elite as the world's greatest heroes. It was like the Riders and Sentinel didn't matter anymore. Oh, the true heroes didn't care so much about becoming famous or ending up as big news, but recently the only news about the Riders was bad news. Shinichi's alter ego, Kamen Rider Showa, was still wanted for murder and also the public still demanded for Sentinel to appear and explain himself to them.

"This bites," Alan frowned, reading the newspaper. The Elite were on the front page while Showa and his other Rider allies were on the Most Wanted List in another section of the newspaper. Ironically enough, the Blue Comet (Yuji) was also listed. After the sacrifice that Yuji gave to save the world, even his name didn't deserve such a smearing. He was sitting on top of a mountain in China. It was nice and peaceful and a good place for meditation exercises. But with all that was going on, it was getting harder to meditate.

"Well, what are you gonna do?" Bazel questioned. "Everyone loves these guys."

"Yeah, but it's all for the wrong reasons," replied Alan. "Heroes shouldn't resort to lethal measures unless they have no other choice. They should show more restraint."

"You mean like you?" Bazel questioned. "I hate to break it to you, Partner, but you can't force others to follow your ideals."

"I know, but people should learn from good examples, not worship murderers," Alan replied.

* * *

The Elite were currently relaxing and the place they were relaxing in was the Bakeneko House. Besides providing quality adult entertainment, they did have good drinks and they were seated in the VIP section where they had comfortable sofas and the working girls attending to them. Obsidian ignored them all, the Hat entertained them with his magic tricks, and Coldcast had two catgirls sitting in his lap, pampering him like he was some kind of king, and filling his glass when it was empty. As for Menagerie, she was downing another glass of wine and glaring at the men leering at her, mistaking her for a new working girl as they assumed that the place was trying to add more variety.

"To international fame and glory!" Manchester Black raised his glass with an arm around a brunette Bakeneko. "How do the Japanese say it? Oh yeah, KAMPAI!" He poured the alcoholic beverage down his throat.

"You're so great, Manchester-sama," the brunette catgirl praised as she filled his glass again.

"Oh, I'll show you how great I am later, darling," Manchester said smoothly. Coldcast rose from his seat, carrying the catgirls on his broad shoulders. "Oh, where are you off to?"

"Taking full advantage of tonight's entertainment," he said as he carried both girls upstairs.

"Disgusting," scoffed Menagerie.

"You know, you could try to have fun," said Hat as he pulled a kitten out of his hat and gave it to the catgirl he was entertaining.

"People who come to places like this are fucking perverts with a fetish," scoffed Menagerie. A catgirl she spotted dancing gave her a wink.

"The girls here do go both ways, my dear," said Manchester Black. "Why don't you have fun? Ya know, lighten up a bit and enjoy yourself for a change."

"Why don't you ask Obsidian that?" asked Menagerie.

"Oh, he just doesn't want to have fun and I don't think he knows how," shrugged Manchester Black. He then added telepathically, '_Also, I suspect he's gay_.' Menagerie laughed at the private joke.

"You two do know I can pick up on psychic communications, remember?" Obsidian said in a cold tone. Manchester Black just waved him away while Menagerie got up and took a seat on the arm of the sofa where Obsidian was sitting. "Go away."

"Oh, come now," Menagerie cooed in a seductive tone as she traced her finger along his cheek. "I got a fun idea. How about you and I go upstairs and create a little _fun_ of our own, hm?" Obsidian just pushed her hand away and took another drink of sake. "You really are a ball of fun, aren't ya?" she stated dryly.

"Hey, how about we bring some girls onboard Bunny and really have a party," suggested Hat.

"As fun as that might be, Hat my friend, I doubt Bunny will like it at all," Manchester Black told him.

The Elite's base of operations was a flying fortress dubbed 'Bunny'. However, the ship was shaped like a giant fish and not a rabbit. It was a wonder why it was named 'Bunny' in the first place. In actuality, Bunny wasn't really a ship in the traditional sense of the word. Rather, it was a colony of sentient, alien bacteria which the Elite had enslaved. The colony took on the shape of 'Bunny' to provide transport for the Elite and provide them with a fortress. It was also how the Elite was able to reach their destinations quickly and easily.

* * *

Topper's Pawn Shop was owned by Mr. Topper Liquer, an eccentric man in a top hat. His shop bought, sold and traded a variety of antiques and curios. If you were to bring in an item, Topper would appraise it, determine its price, then offer to either buy or trade for it with something which interested you or something equal in value. Originally, he had hired only Shinichi to help him but since Shinichi had to be elsewhere on occasion, Topper decided to hire more help and Amora came for the job. She was a natural in appraising items. Oh, she was aware that the items were magical. Shinichi did too. This place was full of magic.

At the moment, Alan had come for a visit just to see the two of them. He wanted to talk with them about the Elite's methods. It just seemed wrong to worship a bunch of killers as heroes but that was what the world was doing right now. Oh, sure, they managed to stop mercenaries in another country but they killed every last one of them. To Alan, it just seemed too extreme and he didn't like it. Not at all.

"You know, I don't exactly see the problem of using lethal force to take down criminals," said Shinichi as he stood behind the counter of his workplace, Topper's Pawn Shop, polishing the glass display of the counter.

"And these people are helping out the world," said Amora as she swept the floor. "This way, the criminals would think twice before committing crimes if they know they'll be getting the death sentence."

"That isn't the point," Alan retorted. "Superheroes aren't supposed to go around killing criminals because they can."

"We do," defended Shinichi. The Riders did resort to lethal force when fighting their enemies like the Darkloids, Cyborg Mutants, demons and every other evil being that came out of the woodwork.

"Yeah, but that's different," Alan argued. "You don't go killing criminals because you want to. You do it because you have to. And you only kill the monsters when there's no other choice."

"That's true," Shinichi agreed.

"And even when you had the chance to finish off Gebok, you didn't. You spared him so he could answer for his crimes," Alan continued. "The Elite are just spreading the message that killing is the _only _solution."

"Well, maybe you should show them how a real hero does things, huh?" suggested Shinichi.

"That's not a bad idea," Amora agreed. "Become a shining example of heroism."

"And in the meantime, while the Elite are out there, I suggest you don't go riding around in mask and armor," Alan cautioned his big brother. If these people were willing to use lethal force to punish criminals then Shinichi who was suspected of murder would be on their hit list too. What actually bothered Alan the most was that the Elite's leader, Manchester Black, was affiliated with the Religion of Crime. He didn't know in what capacity, but he was definitely affiliated with the organization. There just had to be another angle to all of this.

Topper came out from the back room and requested, "Excuse me, can anyone turn on the TV, please? The news is on."

Shinichi picked up the remote and asked, "You've got cable?"

"Of course. I watch international news too," answered Topper.

It was CNN and the top news story was that the Elite had just stopped a group of terrorists who'd taken over an airport. A female reporter was interviewing Manchester Black as his team, the Elite, stood in the background.

"_Mr. Black, people have often criticised that your methods are extreme and violent. What do you have to say?_" Emma Phine, the reporter, asked.

"_We're just doing our job_," said Black as he responded to the reporter's question. "_If they don't respect human life, they don't deserve to live. I mean, even the police have to resort to lethal force to prevent further casualties, right?_"

Emma Phine replied, "_Indeed, that is true. So, is there anything else you'd like to say to the viewers?_" Manchester smiled charmingly as he took her microphone and faced the camera.

"_Hey, Sentinel! Are you watching this? We're calling you out! If you're man enough, you'll come face us and we'll see who the mightiest heroes in the world are!"_ Manchester Black challenged.

"I have to go," said Alan as he grabbed his jacket and left the shop.

"Where is he off to?" Mr. Liquer asked.

"Answering a challenge," said Shinichi.

* * *

The people loved them, but the Elite still had places to go and villains to kill. However, just as Manchester Black and the Elite were about to leave, Sentinel appeared before them.

"I knew you'd show up," Black grinned. "My challenged riled you up, didn't it?"

There were news cameras and reporters watching as Sentinel stepped over to Black. His team was about to respond but he held up his hand to stop them from doing anything.

"You want to fight me?" Sentinel asked.

"We all do," Manchester Black grinned, gesturing to his team, the Elite. "We all want a piece of you. Five against One, whaddya say? I mean, that should be fair considering all the power you have."

"I accept," said Sentinel. Exciting chatter and murmurs were heard all around them. "So, where are we fighting?"

"THE FUCKING MOON!" Black announced, pointing towards the sky. He said to his team, "Come on lads, let's get on Bunny!"

"Bunny?" Sentinel cocked an eyebrow and he followed the Elite out. He looked up at the sky and saw a giant metallic fish floating over them. "What's _that_?"

"That's Bunny, our base and our ship," answered Black as a beam shot down from Bunny's underside and picked up the Elite. "Meet you on the moon, Sentinel."

Sentinel narrowed his eyes as he watched Bunny fly off. Bending his knees, he shot into the sky like a rocket, pursuing the massive flying fortress.

Emma Phine, the reporter from earlier, reported, "And it seems we have the showdown of the century! Sentinel, who is still under suspicion by the Japanese Government and the Elite are going to throw down. However, the fight will be taking place on the moon, therefore we won't be seeing it. That is unfortunate."

* * *

Actually, everyone would be able to see it. Their 'Epic Showdown' as it was being called was going to take place on the moon and broadcasted all over the world via Bunny. Sentinel landed on the moon with Bunny and it released its passengers. Normally, they would've died since the moon had no oxygen, but Bunny took care of that by spreading an oxygen bubble all around the moon.

Sentinel couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic. The last time he came to the moon, it was when it was about to crash into the Earth. Before that, he and his friends had to fight a Moon Demon and her lackeys. And before that, Sentinel had just wallowed in self pity on the moon when he thought he'd killed his brother.

"Before we fight, I want to know, why are you doing all this?" Sentinel asked.

"You want to know why I'm doing all this? Let me show you," said Manchester Black and he projected his memories to Sentinel.

* * *

_I didn't always have the rich lifestyle of a celebrity. My family was actually in the lower class and I had four older brothers. I was the unplanned fifth boy and just 'another mouth to feed' as my good for nothing father would call me. My mum died after giving birth to Vera, my little sister. Later on, my older brothers were either put in jail or killed because they hung out with the wrong crowd. It was just me and Vera, with our abusive drunk of a dad. Well, I decided that it was time we just leave him. We had taken too much abuse already and we were not going to take it anymore. But the old man caught wind of our plan and beat us. He beat Vera to death. That was when my powers activated and I killed the damn bastard. I didn't blow up his head or crush his heart, but I did make it look like he had a stroke. I called the police and then left. Vera would get a proper burial at least and would not have to live in this godforsaken world._

_I learnt from an early age that if you couldn't be given what you deserved, you took it. I used my powers to pick pockets and sometimes even influence them to give me money. I loved the freedom but I still missed Vera. I wished I could've saved her. If I had my powers before she was killed I could've saved her from our bastard of a dad. I always regretted that. But now that I did have power, I could make sure scum like that wouldn't be able to hurt anyone again. So, I trained, and practiced, and eventually I was picked up by M15 and that's how I found my team. We all had special powers so we decided to team up and become the Elite._

* * *

"And the Religion of Crime? How does that fit into things?" Sentinel questioned once the memories stopped playing.

Manchester Black lied, "Religion of Crime? I don't know who you're talking about. Never heard of them." Everyone on Earth was watching on the TV's so Black couldn't reveal he was a member of the RoC.

"I swear, by the time this is over, you're going to tell me everything I need to know," promised Sentinel.

"And I swear, after this, that the world will know who the real heroes are," said Manchester Black. "Places, everyone! It's going to be a party!" He snapped his fingers.

* * *

Everyone on Earth was glued to their screen and sitting at the edge of their seats as they witnessed the epic showdown that was about to take place. Alan's friends in Hinamizawa, Okinomiya and Shishibone were watching. Yuri and his family was watching in Paris and Yuki, Crystal and Rhea were watching in Jersey City.

* * *

The Elite rushed at Sentinel together and then they broke apart to attacking him different angles. Obsidian, the most motivated of the five, attacked Sentinel first. Using his shadow manipulation power, a claw of shadow shot out of the ground and straight for Sentinel. The claws were sharp and strong enough to cut through steel. Before the claw could touch Sentinel, of course, the Lantern smashed his fist into the ground and a wall of green energy blocked the attack.

Coldcast took advantage of the distraction Obsidian provided and wrapped his fists in electromagnetic energy. He flew at Sentinel, actually, flew using his electromagnetic powers. Sentinel heard him coming and tried to bring up a barrier to block but somehow his body was reacting slower than usual. With a smile, Coldcast slammed his fist across Sentinel's face and Sentinel felt a sting of electricity but then he was sent flying, repulsed by Coldcast's punch, even though it didn't feel like anything at all.

Menagerie was up next and flew straight at Sentinel. She didn't attack him directly but instead shot a couple demonic looking serpents from her arms that wrapped around Sentinel's throat and waist. Sentinel attempted to pull the serpents away but the Hat decided to use this opportunity to attack. He took off his hat, mumbled a few magic words like a magician, reached inside and pulled out a large saber. Once Sentinel was able to tear the serpents off him, the Hat slashed at him and even the green energy surrounding Sentinel wasn't enough to block the slash as it cut through his suit and spilled blood. That blade was made of magic, and powerful magic too as it was able to penetrate the protective aura of green energy surrounding Sentinel.

Obsidian and Coldcast stood side by side and fired blasts of dark and electromagnetic energy respectively. The two blasts slammed into Sentinel together, knocking him backwards. Obsidian then turned into his shadow form, sank into the moon's floor, and shot across it to reach Sentinel before rising up to stand before him.

"No wonder Jade died, you're so weak," Obsidian taunted. Sentinel punched at him but his fist just passed through him. Obsidian became tangible again and punched Sentinel across the face to send him staggering.

Menagerie shrieked and slashed at Sentinel but his skin was tough enough to protect him from her slashes. She then opened her palm and a whip shot out of it. It lashed out at Sentinel but he caught it in his grip. The Hat attacked again with his magically-laced sword and Sentinel yelled as he was forced to release Menagerie's whip. Coldcast kicked Sentinel and Obsidian caught him in a massive hand made of shadow before slamming him to the ground.

All this while, Manchester Black stood back and watched, grinning, as he lit another cigarette. "That's it lads. Make the bloody wanker your bitch."

Sentinel picked himself up as Bazel said, "Partner, they're seriously kicking your butt."

"I haven't noticed," muttered Sentinel sarcastically. Normally, he would be able to beat them. He was stronger, faster, and more powerful, but he was doing something that they weren't. He was holding back. He looked at Manchester Black and with a burst of speed rushed at him with a fist drawn but he was driven backwards by a telekinetic blast. Another blast drove him to the ground. He then felt himself being levitated and saw that it was Manchester Black holding him with his telekinesis. Sentinel tried to struggle free but it appeared that Black's telekinetic hold on him was much stronger. Of course, Sentinel could've broken free if he stopped holding back but Black wasn't about to allow the Lantern to do that.

"Sorry, Sentinel, but the room isn't big enough for you and us to share," said Manchester Black with mock regret. "Goodbye and goodnight."

Black focused on his power to crush Sentinel's heart and the Lantern looked like he was having a stroke. Black was stopping the flow of blood throughout Sentinel's body, preventing his vital organs from receiving blood and the oxygen that they carried. Even the brain wouldn't be able to receive any oxygen without the blood pumping through. Sentinel continued to struggle and much to the horror of all those watching on Earth, he died. He just stopped struggling and went limp.

And just like that, Sentinel was gone and Black dropped his body like a worthless bag of garbage.

"Well, that takes care of that," Manchester Black dusted off his hands. "Let's go, lads." He and the Elite turned back to board Bunny, leaving Sentinel's body lying there on the moon.

"Partner? Partner? PARTNER!?" Bazel shouted but Sentinel did not answer.

* * *

Sometime after the live broadcast, a horrified and enraged Shinichi called his friends to the Basement to talk about what the Elite had done to Alan. Rena had called him at work and told him about what she and everyone in the world had seen. Alan was dead and the Elite made it look like he had a stroke. Manchester Black claimed there was nothing he could've done and while asked why he didn't bring Sentinel's body back to Earth, Manchester Black claimed that Sentinel's body would be taken care of very soon. Everyone from Alan's boarding house was also outraged. Alice and Celine had cried when they saw that their father had died and their mother figures tried to desperately comfort them. Lala was devastated by the news as well and for the first time the pink-haired princess seemed lost. Conda and Amora were both swearing vengeance.

"How can we just let that go unpunished!?" argued Shinichi. "Those assholes killed him on live television!"

"Shinichi's right," agreed Amora furiously.

"I'm sorry, Shinichi, but it just looked like Mr. Black killed Alan in self-defence," said Dr. Magi. "You all saw what Alan nearly did."

"Yeah, he was kicking butt until that asshole gave Alan a stroke!" snapped Shinichi.

"Shinichi, you're already in trouble with the law," Dr. Magi warned. "If you go after the Elite, right now, without a real plan and just following your emotions, you'll cause irreparable damage to your mother's campaign."

Shinichi clenched his fists and punched the wall, cursing angrily.

"How can they get away with killing Alan on live television?" Shinichi demanded. "They murdered him and they didn't even care! How can they get away with it!? How!?"

"Because as far as the world knows, Alan is an alien and aliens don't have rights on Earth and there is no law about murder when the victim is an alien, unfortunately," said Dr. Magi. "And also, they can't say Black murdered Alan either when it looked like he had a heart attack."

"This is fucking bullshit!" Shinichi shouted. "First Yuji's dead and now Alan's gone!" He began to cry. "Why is everyone close to me dying or getting hurt!? Why!?" No one could offer an answer.

"I...I think it's best that I go up there and get his body," Yokoshima suggested.

"_Everyone, you all might want to see this,"_ said Sheila promptly. They all turned their attention to the screen and their eyes widened as Sheila was bringing them footage from the moon.

* * *

Sentinel was lying unconscious on the floor of the moon. But then his eyes snapped open, and both of them were red.

"Black..." he growled.

"Partner, you're alive!" Bazel shouted in relief. But there was something wrong, "Um, partner?" Something was wrong, so very wrong. Being part of Alan for awhile now, Bazel could tell if something was wrong with his partner. There was something different about him and it made Bazel feel uneasy. It was almost like that time when Alan had been under the influence of the Red Kryptonite. Sentinel turned his red eyes onto the Earth, narrowed them, then took off with the speed of a rocket.

He had some unfinished business to take care of.

* * *

Churches were holy places, places where people could find peace and maybe some direction when they feel lost on the path called life. It was a place where people could turn to the Lord and the Lord's Son to find comfort in their embrace. It was also a place where those who've sinned could confess their sins and seek forgiveness.

"Jade, you've finally been avenged," said Obsidian calmly as he sat on a bench in a church. With Alan's death, Obsidian finally found peace as he fulfilled his purpose. Now, he could find some peace knowing that Alan had gotten what he deserved. The man responsible for his sister's death was probably burning in Hell right now. Sure, it wasn't he who had killed Alan Smith but he had been involved in his death.

However, that was when Obsidian felt a familiar presence and spun around, eyes wide in shock. "YOU!" Obsidian shouted as he saw Sentinel standing at the church's door. "YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD!" Obsidian roared in fury and summoned all the shadows around him to attack Sentinel all at once. He didn't move from his spot but when the shadows were about to reach him, Sentinel drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and it shone with a light as bright as the sun, driving the shadows away. Obsidian glared.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH! GO TO HELL!" roared Obsidian as he rushed at Sentinel.

"Speak softly in the house of God,' whispered Sentinel as Obsidian came right at him. In the blink of an eye he closed the distance and punched Obsidian before he could retaliate or turn intangible. Obsidian crashed against the benches. Obsidian rose up and grunted and prepared to fire a blast of dark matter at Sentinel who decided to strike before Obsidian could unleash his attack. Moving faster than a bullet train, Sentinel attacked and the Kusanagi no Tsurugi cut through Obsidian and the man screamed as his entire body was engulfed in a green light and then faded to reveal Obsidian was no more.

"See you in Hell, Todd," concluded Sentinel coldly.

A priest and nun who'd witnessed what had occurred could only watch in horror as Sentinel gave them a scary look before he flew off.

* * *

Menagerie shrieked as she crashed and went tumbling along the beach in Rio, Brazil. She had just come to enjoy herself, with some Samba dancing, sunbathing and maybe get lucky with some beach boys. She had the ability to hide her grotesque form and assume a more human form with some kind of illusion ability. This ability could've been something she had developed after she was implanted with the symbiotic alien parasites or an ability she already had. Either way, she could avoid some irritating gawks that she regularly received because of her scales and wings.

Then the Sentinel showed up and told her he had killed the Hat and Obsidian.

Menagerie screamed as she was slashed across the chest by the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and in a flash of green light her body vanished, leaving nothing, as she just disappeared as her body was disintegrated, not leaving a single trace.

* * *

The Hat was enjoying himself in Kabukicho. He was in a Hostess Club and bragging about his life as a member of the famous Elite. They laughed at his jokes, hung on his every word, and drank wine he conjured. He was using his charisma to seduce them and he was looking forward to getting laid tonight. Of course, he would need to put his plans for the night on hold as a green hand made of energy grabbed hold of him and tossed him across the floor.

"Enjoying yourself, Mr. Hat?" Sentinel asked as he stood over the Hat menacingly. The Hat's eyes widened as he frantically picked himself up. He exhaled a blast of mystical flames at Sentinel but he dodged to avoid the flames. Patrons and staff of the Hostess Club fled in terror, screaming in panic, as the fight began.

The Hat wasn't as confident as he was on the moon before. Back then he had his team backing him up but now he was all alone. He could've called Black but Sentinel wasn't giving him any breathing room. The Hat breathed mystic flames to burn Alan but he easily sliced through the flames with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. The Hat drew a saber from his own hat and jumped up to counter Sentinel's slash. Sparks flew but the Kusanagi shattered the Hat's sword.

"Say hello to Obsidian for me," Sentinel said coldly. Finally, a blow on the Hat caused his entire body to vanish into nothing as his body was engulfed in green light which vaporised him.

"Black, you're next," swore Sentinel as he ran his hand along the Kusanagi's blade before exiting the Hostess Club. As soon as he was outside, a Teleportal opened up and Black Skull stepped out of it.

"Sentinel," he spoke evenly. "What have you done?"

"Oh, just giving them a taste of their own medicine," said Sentinel, a demonic gleam in his eyes. He pointed his sword threateningly at Black Skull. "Are you going to try and stop me?"

"This is wrong," said Black Skull firmly.

"That's funny, coming from you," scoffed Sentinel. "Makes you sound like a hypocrite."

"But this isn't who you are. You're not a killer," Black Skull argued.

"This is who I am now, the new me. Get used to it," said Sentinel and he walked towards Black Skull threateningly and stood nose-to-nose in front of him. "Do you have a problem with the new me?"

"Yes," Black Skull admitted honestly, "And you're in my personal space." Sentinel took a step back in response. "Are you gonna kill Coldcast and Black?"

"They tried to kill me. I might as well return the favor," said Sentinel as he levitated. "And don't try to stop me."

"Sentinel, listen to me. I've lost one brother already. I don't want to lose another," Black Skull said.

"Who do you think I'm doing this for?" Sentinel asked and without waiting for a response he took off at speeds that not even Black Skull could keep up with. Shinichi (Black Skull) sighed and groaned. Now he knew how Alan felt when he went rogue. He felt the stress, exasperation and frustration his brother had experienced at that time.

"This must be Karma," Black Skull muttered in disappointment. He couldn't stop Sentinel, not when he was like this, and he doubt anybody could. At least Alan was still alive. He didn't feel like attending another funeral. As he was about to leave, his danger senses picked up on something. He jumped back just in time to avoid being hit by something which caused an explosion. He landed, crouched and tried to find the source of the attack. He scanned the rooftops and saw a figure. Focusing his augmented eyes, he caught a glimpse of a white figure.

"Oh, no you don't!" Black Skull ran towards the building and scaled the wall quickly before pulling himself onto the rooftop. "Who are you!?" he demanded as the figure had their back turned. The figure turned around and Black Skull flinched. The figure had no face and Black Skull could already tell it wasn't human. "An android?" The android was smooth, featureless and made of some kind of white metal. It had no face but Black Skull could already tell it meant him harm. The earlier attack supported that fact.

The white android crossed his arms over his chest and produced darts between its fingers. It then swung its arms outwards, sending the darts flying at Black Skull. He leaned back to duck the oncoming darts and watched as they flew over him. They struck the adjacent building and exploded, causing rubble to drop to the ground below.

"Hey!" Black Skull straightened his body as the android charged at him. It jumped and performed a spin kick which he blocked. It then performed a combo of punches, forcing Black Skull on the defensive before ducking from a punch to perform a sweep kick to knock Black Skull onto his back. The android then threw its fist down to cave in Black Skull's face but the cyborg used the Shield of Glen to repel his opponent, sending it staggering.

Rising to his feet, Black Skull jumped and spun in the air to smash his Great Fists upon the android who then threw its darts. Black Skull was unable to dodge in time and the darts hit his arms. They exploded and Black Skull was knocked over the edge of the rooftop. Fortunately his arms had not been blown off as he grabbed hold of the edge and pulled himself back up onto the rooftop to engage his opponent some more.

The android seemed ready to engage but then it fled and Black Skull shouted, "Oh, no you don't!" and gave chase. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop, Black Skull was in pursuit of the mysterious android who tossed darts at him. Black Skull dodged and the darts exploded as they missed him. As the android leapt across the gap to the next building, Black Skull leapt after it and grabbed it by the waist. They went tumbling along the rooftop of the building they landed upon. The android shoved Black Skull back with its feet and as Black Skull rose to his feet, he noticed the dart pinned to his jacket.

"Oh, shit!" he shouted as he went to remove it but it was too late as it exploded and sent him tumbling off the roof but he managed to grab hold of the edge. Irritated and slightly sore, Black Skull climbed back up onto the rooftop to find that the android was nowhere to be seen. He looked over the edge to see if he could spot it but there was no sound of the faceless android.

"Where the fuck did he go!?" demanded Black Skull. He called, "Sheila, where did he go!?"

"_I am sorry. I am unable to track the android," _apologized Sheila.

"God Damn It!" Black Skull cursed. So much had been happening, so many stressful situations. It was like there was no rest for them. They had to fight, and fight, and fight. Then when things went wrong for them, the public began to turn their backs on them. It seemed like the appreciation they got was gone. It seemed like everyone had forgotten about the sacrifices they had made and the heroic acts they performed. It was like it didn't matter. He was framed and everyone was paying the price. And just recently, a close friend of his had died. Were things just going to keep on getting worse and worse?

Black Skull ordered, "Fuck! Just, open up a Teleportal. I want to go home."

"_Affirmative."_

* * *

It didn't take long for Black to learn the fate of Obsidian, Hat and Menagerie. He thought he had killed the Sentinel but he was just too stubborn to die. Now, Coldcast and Black were all that were left of the Elite. Witnesses were talking about how Sentinel had mercilessly killed the members of the Elite. Black and Coldcast would've remained in Bunny for safety but Sentinel had found their ship and destroyed it like how he'd destroyed their two were barely able to escape with their lives when it happened.

The two remaining members landed in the street in the middle of a city, sweating coldly. "What are we gonna do now, Chester?" asked Coldcast. "Menagerie is gone, so are Hat and Obsidian. We're next."

"Calm down, Nathan," said Manchester Black reassuringly. "We'll make it through this." Suddenly, a green and black blur came out of nowhere and grabbed a screaming Coldcast. "COLDCAST!" shouted Black.

"And then there was one," said Sentinel coldly as he landed in front of Manchester Black, arms folded across his chest.

"What did you do, you bastard!?" demanded Manchester Black furiously.

"Oh, your friend? I think he's currently orbiting the planet at Mach 7," smiled Sentinel. He cupped his right ear, "If you have super-hearing, you might hear a _pop _throughout the vacuum of space."

"You...YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Manchester Black roared and he focused his telekinesis onto Sentinel's heart. "DIE! DIE YOU SON OF A BITCH!" He watched in glee as Sentinel clutched his chest in pain as his heart was being crushed. "That's right, kid. Just give up. You might be super-strong with skin of steel but I bet that heart of yours is just as soft and squishy as the rest of ours." Sentinel was forced to his knees and finally he just let go and collapsed. "YES! I AM THE GREATEST!" declared Manchester Black as he raised his fists into the air in victory.

"Not yet," said Sentinel, shocking Manchester Black. He flipped back to his feet and rubbed his chest, "Ah, that hurt. Almost like a bad case of heartburn."

"But I crushed your heart! You should be dead!" shouted Manchester Black in protest.

"You really should check your facts," said Sentinel and he rushed forward only to meet Manchester Black's psychic wall.

"I'll just have to kill you again, won't I?" Black challenged.

"What the fucking point? All your friends are gone. Killing me won't bring them back!" argued Sentinel.

"IT'LL MAKE ME BLOODY FEEL BETTER!" snapped Manchester Black.

As the conflict started to escalate, news crew came on their vans to get everything on camera. This was live and news cameras were focused completely on the conflict and reporters were already reporting on what was going on and speculating why this was happening. They had all seen Sentinel die from a 'stroke' on the moon while fighting the Elite who had not claim responsibility for his death. However, it seemed that Sentinel had survived after all. Not only that, there were reports of Sentinel coldly killing off members of the Elite, vaporizing them into nothingness. That was a horrifying thought to many people who still believed in the Sentinel.

Sentinel was trapped by Manchester Black's telekinesis which was pressing against his brain, trying to crush it into pulp. Meanwhile, Sentinel was gripping Manchester Black's head tightly as his eyes glowed red.

"Heat vision?" sneered Manchester Black. "What are you going to do, roast me to death? That's not your style!"

"No," Alan answered and in a matter of moments Manchester Black started to feel funny. At first he thought it was just a migraine from over-exerting himself but then he slowly realized that he couldn't read Alan's thoughts. Also, he could also feel his grip on Alan's brain slipping.

"What...What!?" screamed Manchester Black as Sentinel shoved him backwards. "What did you do!?" He tried to push Sentinel back with a telekinetic blast but there was nothing. Nothing happened. He tried again. Still nothing. Furious, Black accused, "_What did you bloody do!_"

"I used X-Ray vision to see what was wrong in your brain and used my heat vision to cut out the abnormality. All I needed was a needle-thin beam," Sentinel explained, smiling as he pointed to both his eyes. "In other words, I just performed a quick brain surgery on you. Of course, that pretty much took away your powers."

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Manchester Black roared and he punched Sentinel in the face.

**CRACK!**

"ARGH! MY HAND!" howled Manchester Black as he fell to his knees, clutching his broken right hand.

Sentinel grabbed the back of Black's coat and told him, "You're going to answer for everything you've done, starting from now." He went over and grabbed Manchester Black's head and lifted him up. "I could crush your skull right now."

"No...this isn't you!" Manchester Black screamed in terror. "You ain't a cold-blooded killer!"

"No, but I'm starting to agree that your method have merit," said Sentinel. "All I have to do is squeeze your head and it'll be all over for you and it'll be so easy. Like smashing a grape." He tightened his grip as Manchester Black trembled. "It's scary, isn't it? Now you know how it feels to face death and look it in the eye and being powerless to do so. It doesn't feel so good when you're on the receiving end, is it?" Sentinel's grin turned frightening. "All I have to do is squeeze and you'll just be a memory." He paused and released Manchester Black who was gasping and pale from fright, "But I won't, because that would be too easy. Unlike you, I don't take the easy route."

"But you already killed my entire team!" shouted Manchester Black in accusation.

"Is that what you really think?" Sentinel smiled innocently. "It was a trick. They're all alive." He took out several containment cards and fanned them out to reveal the other members of the Elite trapped in them.

"But I saw you use your sword on them! They were vaporized!" shouted Black. He had seen the footage when the Gauntlet's leader had shown him what Sentinel had done and was anguished by the death of his teammates, how they were destroyed to the point where nothing else was left of them.

"Oh, you mean _this _sword?" asked Sentinel as he drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. "Oh, what you saw was just a spell to make it look like I destroyed them, but the light show was a cover so I could use the C3 on them. "It's over for the Elite."

Black gritted his teeth, furious and then he yelled, "You think this is over? Do you really think this is over!? If you do, then you're living in a **BLOODY DREAM WORLD!**"

Alan replied, "You know what, Black...? I wouldn't have it any other way. Dreams save us. Dreams lift us up and transform us. And on my soul, I swear...until my dream of a world where dignity, honor and justice becomes a reality we all share...I'll never stop fighting. Ever." Unable to resist him, Manchester Black was taken to the Vault to be processed and incarcerated.

* * *

The Elite were all locked up in the Vault and each were put in a cell. Alan stood in front of Manchester Black's cell. Alan hadn't killed any of the Elite. He just made it look like he had. Why? To scare them and even show the public that killing wasn't the only solution to solve a problem.

"I guess this is it for you, Black," smiled Alan as he looked at Manchester Black sitting in his cell.

"The Religion of Crime will get you, kid. They'll get you good, and you'll wish that you killed me and my buddies," swore Black.

"We'll see," Alan said and he turned away from Black. "And between you and me, if your little sister Vera could see you right now, she'd be disappointed in you." Black spat in response to Alan's words as the Green Lantern walked away.

* * *

Shinichi entered the interrogation room to see Obsidian in shackles and wearing a power inhibitor collar. "You're Obsidian, right?" he inquired.

Obsidian spoke as he looked up at him, "And you're Smith's brother. I know the older version of you."

Shinichi rolled his eyes. He wasn't that old yet. He said, "Yeah, I'm not him yet." He sat down and asked, "So, why did you do it?"

Obsidian replied, "You're really going to have to be more specific. Why did I save all those civilians? Why did I kill all those villains? Or why did I try and kill Smith?"

Shinichi stated, "I can already guess the answer for two of those questions, but not why you want to kill Alan. He didn't kill your sister."

Obsidian retorted, angrily, "It was _his _villain. Someone _he _pissed off enough to come after _him_. _He _wasn't there to save her. As far as I'm seeing, it's just as much _his _fault as the bastard that stuffed her into a fridge."

Shinichi pointed out, "She was your sister. You didn't protect her either. So it's as much as your fault as it is Alan's."

Obsidian argued, "I was out of the country. You know where Alan was? On the mainland stopping a robbery. At best, I can travel 5 miles through teleporting. Alan can hit warp speed with that ring of his. Who's more responsible?"

Shinichi questioned, "You want me to be honest?"

Obsidian scoffed, "Why bother? You're going to take your brother's side anyway."

"You'd be surprised. From what I can tell, three people are responsible for what happened: Alan was too late to save her, you were too far away to protect her, and Major Force was the one who killed her. If you ask me, you all share the blame."

Obsidian roared, "NO WE DON'T!" If he wasn't restrained then maybe Shinichi would've felt a bit threatened. "It was impossible for me to get to her, not _him_! It was _his _villain that snapped her neck! I lost my sister because of that monster and that bastard Smith!"

Shinichi suggested, "You could've stayed with her when Alan wasn't around. Considering he had enemies she would be a target. You could've stayed close to look after her."

Obsidian said, looking down, "She could look after herself. She always said I worried too much..."

Shinichi replied, "And Alan believed that too, didn't he? But it cost him something irreplaceable. It cost him the love of his life and it cost you your only sister."

Obsidian scoffed in disbelief, "Women throw themselves at him. I highly doubt someone with that many girlfriends views any woman is "irreplaceable"."

Shinichi explained, "He tried to remake the entire universe and nearly destroyed it because of her. If that isn't a sight that says that Jade meant a lot to him, I don't know what is. Even now she's still hold a place in his heart. I just wonder if you still have any love for her at all."

Obsidian tried to lunge for Shinichi, but the shackles kept him in place, "Don't you ever accuse me of not caring for my sister! She's the only one...she's the only one that could ever keep me balanced."

Shinichi spoke, "Obsidian, I've been where you are. 10 years of GIN-SHOCKER filled me with hate, grief and a need for revenge. GIN-SHOCKER didn't just hurt me but they hurt my family and my friends. They took away the first woman I ever loved but I was partly responsible for that and I carried the guilt with me for a long time. Then she came back and died again. I was angry, at myself for failing her, at Gebok for killing her, and at Alan for not supporting me when I wanted revenge. I know what it's like to need someone to blame when something you feel that you're partly responsible for happens. But I learnt that you can't honor the dead by killing someone and two wrongs don't make a right."

Obsidian shook his head, "You don't get it because you don't get how my powers work. The Shadowlands...its Darkness. Nothing but Darkness. Jennie...her Light kept it away. And that light was snuffed out, and now there's only darkness again."

Shinichi nodded, "Maybe I don't understand, but the light is still there, in your heart and memories. Right now all you can remember is how she died, but I think if you focused on how she lived, on how happy she was, and how much she loved you, you'll find that light again. I don't believe darkness is all you are, Obsidian. "

"Then you're as naive and stupid as Smith. Guards, I'd like to go back to my cell now."

Shinichi stood up and said, "Well, that's just a matter of opinion, but ask yourself this: is this what Jade would've wanted?" Shinichi left the interrogation room to let the guards take Obsidian back to his cell. Alan just watched Obsidian being dragged off sadly. He'd been standing outside the interrogation room, listening.

Obsidian warned as he was escorted by the guards, "They're coming for you, you know. All of them. This, everything you've been through? Not even the tip of the iceberg." Shinichi and Alan both watched him go.

Shinichi asked Alan, "Be honest with me, was I ever _that _frustrating?"

Alan retorted, "You're still frustrating, but not as much as you used to be. At least you haven't tried to kill me, yet."

Shinichi deadpanned, "I try to be nice and that's the thanks I get? Good grief."

Alan sighed, "I'm sorry. It's just... a lots been going on."

"I know how you feel, so don't worry. I'll forgive you for that remark... _this _time." He asked, "So, did you finish visiting that blonde catgirl?"

"Yes," said Alan.

"I still don't get why you care so much," said Shinichi.

"They're not as bad as you think," Alan told him. "Try to get to know them for a little while. You'll see what I mean."

"Well, your judgement of character has never been wrong before," Shinichi shrugged.

* * *

The Priest, Felix Faust and the Gauntlet's leader were watching the Elite's latest defeat on screen in their headquarters. It was not good for them. But at least the Riders were still enemies of the public, except for Sentinel. Recently Sentinel was able to gain some public support by giving a good moral message to people.

"This is disappointing," Faust frowned. "Mr. Black failed in his mission."

"Of course he did," the Priest grinned. "Fighting heroes with heroes? All that is, is a gimmick comic companies use for sales. It's time for the endgame, Faust. The leader of our other fraction, Sister Syn, has recovered the Spear of Destiny. Her and our forces are on their way here."

The leader of Religion of Crime stood up, stepping forward into the light. In respect, Faust and Priest kneeled before their leader.

He was a tall, muscular male with medium-light skin tone, strong, rugged features, broad shoulders and square jaw. He also had three pale scars across his face, brown eyes and long black hair pulled back. He wore a long lapel-less dark-blue coat with a red stripe on the edges. He also wore black gloves and boots.

"It's time we ended this once and for all. Life and Death. Sin and Virtue. Good and Evil. The final battle."

"All hail Cain! The first murderer! Prophet of Anti-Life! All hail our new god…VANDAL SAVAGE!"

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This is the end of the Heroes Fall Arc. Well, technically, only one Hero fell and it was Yuji. But the story isn't over, but we're in the home stretch at the moment. I do want to thank everyone who has stayed with us up until now. So, next is the Rise of Evil and here's a bit of a teaser for you:**

_**The Hand of Evil Corrupts**_

Savage caught Showa's fist. "An excellent attempt Number 13, but like everything else you "heroes" try to do, it's ultimately futile. Activate: Project Ragnarok."

Showa's armor vanished as Shinichi stood there, eyes dim. He replied in monotone, "Project Ragnarok: Activated. Voice recognition: Vandal Savage. The Legacy of Cain is Anti-Life."

Savage released Shinichi's hand. Shinichi stood up straight as his armor returned, but it wasn't his normal armor. No, this was his armor as BLACK 13. The fallen hero said only one phrase, "Anti-Life justifies my hate."

_**Worlds are Destroyed**_

Yukie Akasaka could only tremble in fear as she looked outside. The clear blue sky had turned blood red. Instead of clouds she saw a sea of infinite Earths colliding and exploding, dooming billions to extinction.

Yukie uttered, "Oh god, what's happening to the sky?! Look what they've done to the sky!"

Mamoru Akasaka questioned, "How can we stop this!?"

Yukie held her daughter close to her as tears fell from her eyes.

Yukie said, "Nobody can stop this. We're powerless against them. This is the end of the world."

_**Willpower breaks. **_

_**The Spirit of Mercy weeps. **_

_**And the face of Evil gloats, "We Win."**_

The Doctor cradled Alan's body. "No…it wasn't supposed to be like this…it wasn't supposed to be like this! Wake up Alan Smith! Do you hear me!? WAKE UP! You don't die here! You live a long happy life! We traveled together, just like you always wanted! You reunite me and Jenny! You marry her and have a daughter! You become the son I never had! Please Alan please…just wake up…" Tears streamed down the Doctor's eyes. "Please…"

"**THE LEGACY OF CAIN: RISE OF EVIL"**

**-Coming Soon-**


	193. The Legacy of Cain Part 137

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 137: Jailbreak/Project Ragnarok**

Momoneko was a female Bakeneko, but not just any Bakeneko. She was a cyborg, converted through the use of nanites introduced into her body via sexual intercourse. As a cyborg she was stronger, faster, more agile and more durable than any average Bakeneko. She also became part of a group called the Bakeneko Kunoichi, loyal to a man named Shiro Juuyon whom she loved very much. However, those days were over and she had moved on. She may not have a lover anymore but she wasn't lonely or unhappy.

Because she loved children, Momoneko worked at a daycare centre, looking after all the children. She loved them and they loved her. She was the kind-hearted, sweet and gentle Onee-chan that they looked up to. She made sure to keep the children occupied, entertained and well taken care of when their parents were too busy. Momoneko also had her own little brother. Actually, it was just a tiny android no bigger than a basketball that could be mistaken for a doll. He was called Chiro.

Chiro was in fact an AI designated as ALPHA-01. He was created by Dr. Gebok and then implanted inside Chaos Doll for safekeeping. Shiro managed to find him by hacking into Dr. Gebok's brain and ALPHA-01 became one of Shiro's tools in his desire for world domination. After Shiro's death, Momoneko had taken care of Chiro who became like a little brother to her. It was thanks to Alan that Chiro/ALPHA-01 was with her. She also kept Mr. Fluffy, the robot cat that Shiro had made.

Whenever Momoneko went to work, she always made sure to bring Chiro along with her. He would sit on her shoulder and she never let him out of her sight. She loved the children, but they could potentially hurt Chiro. She loved him and didn't want to lose him like she'd lost Chiro.

Momoneko still kept in contact with her fellow Bakeneko Kunoichi and was glad to hear that they have all moved on with their lives. Akaneko was working as a waitress in a restaurant in a Beast Youkai village in Hokkaido, Midoneko had achieved her dream as a professional dancer, and Aoneko was travelling. She had been sending back postcards telling them where she'd gone and Momoneko was happy that she and the others were moving on. It was just sad about what had happened to Kineko. She just couldn't move on. Among them, she felt as if she loved Shiro the most and his death completely broke her.

Momoneko still missed Shiro Juuyon. Sure, he had done horrible things but he did say that he had a dream where Youkai and humans could co-existence and become equals. However, his way involved the sacrifice of humans and their blood being spilt as the Yamata no Orochi was revived.

Momoneko sighed and pushed all thought and ideas of Shiro Juuyon away. She had kids to look after. According to the schedule, it was time for Song and Dance. Smiling, she went to sing and dance with the children as Chiro rode on her shoulder, smiling happily. He loved Song and Dance time.

* * *

DALEK Shiro was finally getting the respect and recognition he deserved. Finally, he was going to meet the leader of the Religion of Crime and Head of Gauntlet, the ruling council of the RoC. Sadly, said council had lost most of its members, with only Faust and the leader left. Gebok had been reduced to an immobile head and locked up in the Vault with Manchester Black also incarcerated in the same facility and the Witch of Terror Anastasia had reformed. As for Henshaw, he was MIA as he had been swept away by a Dimensional Rift, never to be seen or heard from again.

Accompanied by DALEK Troopers, who were Robomen equipped with armor, DALEK Shiro arrived at the Headquarters of the RoC to speak with the leader of the Gauntlet. The DALEK Troopers' uniforms were comprised of dark grey suits with black boots and gloves. They wore reinforced chestpieces and shoulder pads. Their helmets were modeled after DALEKs, sporting the eyestalk on top and the sides of the helmet resembled the panels on the DALEKs' lower halves, complete with hemispheres. Their firearms were DALEK Rifles, modified rifles with DALEK gunstick barrels. The helmet actually concealed the Cyberdrones which controlled the Robomen like puppets. The DALEK Troopers were expendable foot soldiers. They could always be replaced.

The Religion of Crime's Headquarters was apparently a skyscraper in Shishibone City. It was right there, in the middle of the city, and yet hidden in plain sight. Nobody suspected that this place was where the Religion of Crime called their home.

* * *

"Your guest has arrived, Faust," said Vandal Savage as he sat at the head of the Gauntlet's table. Faust was in his seat and the Priest had taken his seat as well. It seemed that he had been taken as a new member of the Gauntlet. As the entrance slid open, DALEK Shiro glided into the room. His DALEK Troopers marched alongside him, looking intimidating.

"**Thank you for inviting me, Savage-sama**," DALEK Shiro said. He would've bowed if he could but the DALEK unit just couldn't do that. Instead, his eyestalk moved downward to show respect. "**It is an honor**."

Savage folded his hands together, "It is an honor, isn't it? This is the first time we've spoken, face-to-face."

"**Yes it is,**" said DALEK Shiro humbly.

"I've read your file, Shiro Juuyon. Dr. Gebok originally made you a cyborg but after your humiliating defeat Manchester Black revived you as a bio-android. From there, you've actually become quite interesting. A real threat," Savage's silver tongue seemed to be working.

"**Thank you, Savage-sama."**

"Your plan to revive the Yamata no Orochi was almost a success," added Savage. "Sadly, for you, it failed."

"**Because of **_**them**_**,"** DALEK Shiro hissed.

"Yes, those _heroes_. But their days are numbered. They are fighting a losing battle," Savaga informed the DALEK. DALEK Shiro seemed surprised. He shouldn't be, but did Savage have a plan? "But let's talk about you. You once spoke of joining the Gauntlet."

"**I think my talents can become more beneficial as a member of the ruling body,**" said DALEK Shiro. Savage smiled. That was predictable. It was all in Shiro's file. He just craved for power and positions of great power.

"Indeed," said Savage. "What concerns me is your treacherous nature. According to your file you not only betrayed Omega Scorpio but also Gnol Gnauh, both who were your partners at a time."

"**I did what I did in order to further my plans and survive,**" DALEK Shiro defended.

"Justified, maybe, but it puts your loyalty into question," said Savage. He knew the type of individual Shiro was. He had his own agenda in all of this. "What is it you're after?"

"**The extermination of the human race**," said DALEK Shiro with full conviction. "**I want to drive them towards extinction**."

Savage told him, "Well Shiro, you're going to need to put your plans on hold. Because I can't allow you to annihilate humanity."

"**We can always keep 5 percent of the population as slaves,**" DALEK Shiro suggested. "**And besides, there's always the Youkai population. It's not like I'm threatening to destroy all life on Earth. Just the humans.**"

Savage frowned, "I don't believe you're listening. I said "No"." DALEK Shiro wanted to retort but for some reason he couldn't argue against Savage. The man before him had a frightening presence that could force others to submit, even the DALEK Supreme himself. He visibly recoiled before composing himself.

"**Yes...yes, **_**sir**_," obeyed DALEK Shiro. What was regularly called fear was considered a sense of self-preservation and DALEK Shiro correctly concluded that going against Vandal Savage would not be healthy for his continued existence.

"Then take your place at the table, Shiro Juuyon," Savage welcomed. "We have much to discuss. DALEK Shiro gingerly glided towards the table as the DALEK Troopers stood at the door. As he didn't need a seat or chair, he just stood at the spot Savage had given him at the table. "Gentlemen, let us begin."

"What is the agenda of today's meeting, Master Savage?" asked Faust. It seemed that Savage had a plan and Faust was eager to learn what the plan one. It had to be ingenious.

"Our next target will be this facility," said Savage as the image of the Vault was shown on a large screen before them. The Vault was a facility built by ARMOR in Showa no Sekai to contain super-powered criminals as standard prisons were not well-equipped to contain them. Prisoners also wore power-inhibitor collars to prevent them from using their powers to escape. Attempts to remove the collars would cause them to send an electrical pulse to knock out the inmates which would then be taken to solitary holding cells as punishment. Prisoners would stay in the Vault until they were properly rehabilitated.

The standard cells had bars made of electrical energy which would zap them painfully, preventing them from even thinking of escape. The inmates were all made up of criminals and villains that the NEO-NUMBERS, who were ARMOR agents, had defeated and captured. This included Dr. Gebok, or his brain at least.

Female and male inmates were kept separated in different wings. They did not want either sexes to be fraternizing with each other. It was also to enforce discipline on them. The only way they could see each other was in the courtyard with an electrified fence separating both sexes. Again, just another way to enforce discipline. They were aware that the inmates held negative feelings about being held in a place like this but they still needed to serve time. A normal court process wouldn't work for them so they had trials in the Vault to determine their punishments. They didn't have a jury but they did have lawyers to speak in defence or to prosecute the people brought to the Vault and after listening to the arguments would pass sentence. The judge was unbiased and his credentials checked out. He could not be corrupted.

The Vault was well-equipped with a library and also a medical centre. Even if they were criminals, they deserved the right to an education and the books they got provided them with something to medical centre was also there to help treat the wounded and the sick among the inmates, and even the guards who got into altercation with the inmates. The Vault also provided a psychologist and counselor to speak with the inmates based on their schedule in an attempt to rehabilitate them as well. He was there to be an ear for them to listen to and maybe even help them to see the light. Speaking of seeing the light, there were facilities for inmates with different religious faith to practice their beliefs. Maybe being close to their faiths could help them become better. However, not all the inmates wanted to better themselves and were just filling themselves with a lot of bitterness since the day they were brought to the Vault. It would just take one spark of opportunity before the entire place descended into chaos.

"**That's the Vault**," DALEK Shiro recognized. He remembered how he had broken in with Gnol Gnauh once before.

"Indeed, it is," Vandal Savage confirmed. "As I recall, you once broke into the facility."

"**Yes, in order to retrieve vital information from Dr. Gebok's brain**," confessed DALEK Shiro. "**The walls are thick but Gnol-may he rot in Hell-and I were able to break our way in. They've also enlisted guards from this world and they are armed. I can only assume that they've upgraded their security since then and made it almost impenetrable now,**" reported DALEK Shiro.

"Priest, what do you think? Can you penetrate this impenetrable fortress of a prison?" Savage asked.

"Master Savage, nothing is impenetrable. They said the Titanic was unsinkable and yet it sank. Those who think they are invincible are simply tempting fate and these people have tempted fate long enough," said the Priest.

"**So, we're breaking into the Vault?**" DALEK Shiro asked.

"You both," Savage said to the Priest and DALEK Shiro, "Are going to break into the Vault so you can break everyone there out."

"Those heroes won't ignore this," said Faust. "Once they learnt their precious prison has been broken into, they'll retaliate."

"I've fought this world's so-called heroes, and marked them," Priest reminded Faust. "It won't be a problem."

"And they'll be far too busy to realize something is wrong," Savage said, smiling sinisterly.

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the Vault...**

"Explain to me again why we're here and nobody else?" Shinichi asked.

"Everyone else is busy," said Alan. "Don't you remember? We received reports of RoC activity so the others went to investigate and put a stop to them."

"Don't you think it's a little too convenient that we received an anonymous tip about said activity?" Shinichi asked.

"Of course it was suspicious, but that doesn't mean it's not worth checking out. That just means we're the only ones available to check up on things here in the Vault," said Alan. Shinichi couldn't refute Alan's reasoning. While the information they got was from an anonymous source, it didn't mean it wasn't worth looking into. It could be their enemies setting up a trap or an actual lead. They couldn't be sure without a proper investigation first.

Alan and Shinichi were at the Vault to perform an inspection. As official members of ARMOR, field agents to be exact, they had higher rank than the guards and the prison's warden. However, they would still need to respect the warden's authority nonetheless. Shinichi actually welcomed this. Oh, sure, they got glared at by the inmates they had helped put behind bars but lately Shinichi just felt that all the constant battlers were getting to him.

Alan was feeling stressed as well. A lot had happened up until now. The Riders were still Japan's Most Wanted, people were still split between their opinion of Sentinel, and gas prices were going up. Shiori was still trying to run her campaign to support the Riders despite the negative publicity. The woman was persistent and stubborn, and Alan respected the woman for not giving up on her beliefs and stance on the Riders. She still received support by those who the Riders had protected for years. The village of Hinamizawa was pro-Rider as they had been saved many, many times by the mysterious masked heroes. The Riders also had support in Okinomiya, but in Shishibone and everywhere else well, things were pretty bad.

And there was also DJ Mikogami who kept fanning the flames as he continued to bash the Riders and Sentinel with his smear campaign. Protest groups had formed to demand that the 'freaks go home'. They were calling everyone who had special abilities 'freaks'. They wanted the aliens to leave. As the Student Body of Alan's school was also made up of aliens and Youkai, they didn't feel comfortable with all of this but at the moment there was nothing Alan could do but to prove that he was really a hero. Shinichi on the other hand had to avoid using his Rider armor and powers that would instantly have people recognize him as Kamen Rider Showa. He still fought crime, but as Black Skull.

The loss of the Hive meant the loss of their primary base of operations on this planet. Fortunately, the basement and storage area under the base had not been destroyed along with the spare equipment stored down there. Unfortunately, everything else, including the Danger Room, had been destroyed.. Now, they only had the auxiliary base called 'The Basement' that was under Dr. Irie's clinic and also Shinichi's command centre under his mansion in Genovia which was called 'The Dungeon'. Not exactly a welcoming name but it did fit as the command centre used to be a dungeon. Sheila, who'd been corrupted and made to destroy the Hive by activating the Self-Destruct sequence, fortunately made a backup of herself prior to that and was monitoring them from the Hive Satellite, which was still intact and functioning. This connected the Dungeon, Basement and everyone who was linked to the communications network. The Teleportal System in Shinichi's Dungeon was also up and running, and it wasn't covering things in black soot anymore.

If that wasn't enough, there was the Religion of Crime. Alan still didn't know who their members were and Manchester Black wasn't talking. Alan tried to use telepathy but something was blocking his way from extracting the info out of Black's head. He had impressive mental shields. Not even interrogations worked. As for Obsidian, Jade's brother, he gave Alan dirty looks. He still hated Alan and would never let go because he would always blame him for Jade's death.

Speaking of death, Yuji had also died. He had died as a hero by willingly sacrificing his life to save the world. While Alan and Yokoshima were trying to stop the moon from crashing into the Earth, Yuji had gone into the Earth's core and gave up his life to repair it when Grayven had destroyed it. He'd saved billions and only those closest to Yuji would know. Alan and Shinichi, as well as the others, went to check up on Yuji's family whenever they could. They were still in grief but they were starting to move on. They needed to be strong and honor what Yuji did. Crying wouldn't bring him back but it still hurt that he had left them all behind. They loved him and now he was gone. Yuna wouldn't be able to see her papa again either. It was just so heartbreaking but this was something that they couldn't change.

The one major issue that they still hadn't been able to find a solution to for two years was that Shinichi's universe was still blocked from ARMOR. The Doctor managed to break through but ended up stuck in this universe too. He'd tried to leave but his TARDIS could not penetrate the barrier. But it was a new universe to explore anyway so the Doctor decided to go traveling and drop by on occasion. Another issue was Shinichi's time powers, or lack of them. He still couldn't access them. It seemed that what Shiro had done to him was permanent. No more 'Return to the Past' or using Time Reversal to fix damage and save lives. This time death would not be cheated. But they would not give up. They couldn't afford to give up. If they surrendered then the RoC would win and that was something they would not allow.

It wasn't all bad though. Alan's time in this world did give him his own son. Adam was a cute baby Okami Yokai he had with Nozomu. Shinichi too had a son with Satan, a little boy named Hiroyuki. Yuji and Yuri's daughters, Anita and Yuna, had also been born in this world. So, these children gave them hope that things would get better. However, for them, things would be getting worse before they could even get better.

"So, I went to check up on Misato and the others the other day," Shinichi began as he walked with Alan along a long hallway.

"How are they doing?" Alan asked.

"I can tell that they're still upset over what happened, but they're starting to move on with their lives," said Shinichi as he sighed.

"It still hurts, I know," said Alan sympathetically, putting a hand on his brother's back.

"I still can't believe he's gone. We had that funeral for him, there's his grave, but there's no body..."

"He became one with the Earth, Shinichi. He became one with the Earth so he could save it," said Alan.

"But the world will never know how the Blue Comet gave his life to save everyone..." replied Shinichi.

"We know, and that's all that matters," Alan told him.

"But Yuna-chan won't grow up with her father at her side anymore," said Shinichi. He punched the wall hard, leaving a dent. "I should've been there! If it wasn't for this damned Cursed Mark! I could've used Ascalon and finished off that bastard before he blew up the core!"

"Shinichi, you know that using your powers will kill you," said Alan.

"So, how could you be out there and not me?" Shinichi retorted.

"Because I don't use all of my power," Alan argued. "I hold back because if I ever go all out I could end up killing people. Yes, the Cursed Mark still affects me but as long as I don't use too much power, I don't feel it affecting me. I don't feel the burning sensation against my heart."

"But I will," Shinichi frowned. What Alan said was true, out of the three of them Shinichi had the largest risk of dying because of the Cursed Mark, next to Yuji. Yuji had gone all out on Grayven, using whatever time he had remaining as the Cursed Mark was slowly killing him. They knew that the Cursed Mark was killing him but he still fought Grayven with everything he had. So, when Grayven destroyed the core, Yuji knew that the only choice he had was to give his life to save the Earth. It was better for him to die on his own terms than the Priest's terms.

* * *

In the Vault's central control room, three guards were monitoring the prison via the screens. The entire Vault's system was controlled and monitored from the central control room. Only specially trained guards were given monitor duty. They could see everything that was happening in the Vault, watching the inmates who were working in the kitchen and the laundry room. They even watched the inmates who were in the gymnasium pumping weights or just spending their time in the courtyard. Cells were also monitored. The only places that were not monitored were the bathrooms to give the inmates more privacy. They might be criminals serving a sentence but even they deserve their right to privacy. Besides, even if the cameras weren't watching, their collars could still be used to monitor them and if they broke any of the rules the collars would instantly incapacitate them. It was the collars that dissuaded the inmates from causing a riot. Once a riot started, the collars would subdue them immediately. The cells weren't just monitored from the control room, but also controlled. The electrical bars kept inmates in their cells when they were supposed to.

"You know, I wish we had cameras where the girls take showers," said Guard A.

"Heh, like the warden would allow that. He said those criminal bitches deserve 'privacy'," Guard B said, doing air quotes.

"We can't violate their rights, even if they are criminals. Plus if we did, we'd get canned or worst," said Guard C. "Plus this gig isn't so bad. We get to make sure these freaks don't get out of line."

The door slid open and Guard D who was carrying a tray of four coffee mugs said, "I brought coffee!"

"Finally, I need my caffeine," Guard B said as he took a mug and sipped it. He hissed, "Ah, too hot!"

"Well this is a fresh batch," reasoned Guard D as he put the tray down on a nearby table and picked up his own mug. Guard B and Guard A took their own mugs too. "So, what are you talking about."

"Oh, just that I wish we had cameras in the girls' shower room," said Guard A.

"Which is wrong," countered Guard C.

"Actually, I have this friend of a friend of mine who sells spy cameras," said Guard D. "He could hook you up."

"Sweet," grinned Guard A. "What's his name?"

"Well his name is-" He suddenly paused as three DALEKs teleported into the control room. "OH SHIT!"

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**"

**ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!**

* * *

The alarm in the Vault suddenly blared as the lights flashed red.

"This can't be good," Alan frowned.

"You got that right," Shinichi agreed.

"Come on, we better see what's going on!"

When the Vault's alarm was activated, the facility would immediately go into lockdown mode. Guards would immediately order and escort the inmates to return to their cells. The exits and entrances would also be sealed so nobody would be getting in or out.

* * *

Guard A, B and D had been killed by the three DALEKs. All the guards knew about these creatures that were created by a magalomaniacal madman and now three of them stood before Guard C. The dead guards were sprawled all over the floor while Guard C was trembling on the floor. He'd just activated the alarm too which the DALEKs noticed.

The Red DALEK Warrior reported to the White DALEK Supreme, **"It looks like this place is going into lockdown, sir!"**

"**Not for long," **said DALEK Shiro. **"Scientist, extract information!"**

"**I obey!" **said the DALEK Scientist as it approached the trembling Guard C. He extended his plunger arm and the cup touched the hapless guard's face as he flailed around, suffocating, as the cup began to expand and cover his entire head. The DALEK Scientist was extracting brain waves from the guard who slowly stopped struggling. Finally, he removed his plunger arm and let the guard fall dead on the floor, his skull crushed and his brain melted because of the lethal brainwave scan.

"**I have the codes!"** reported the DALEK Scientist.

"**Deactivate the cells, collars and lockdown,"** ordered DALEK Shiro.

"**I obey!" **said the DALEK Scientist as he used his plunger arm to interface with the control room's systems and thus accessing the Vault's systems.

"**Hey, when can we start killing more people, Supreme One?" **asked the Red DALEK eagerly.

"**Once I give the command," **said DALEK Shiro.

* * *

"What's going on?" Alan asked one of the guards as the inmates were being ordered back into their cells.

"Not sure yet, sir. The control room has been contacted but no response has been received," reported the guard. "For now the Vault is being put on lockdown and all the prisoners are being put back in their cells. That should bring us some relief."

"It's not gonna be _that _easy," said Shinichi as he scanned all the jail cells and he was right. All of a sudden the cells deactivated. "I really should stop jinxing myself." As for the collars, the green light which indicated that they were active turned red, meaning that they were no longer inhibiting the prisoner's abilities or capable of shocking them now. As soon as the prisoners realized this, they attacked the guards, tearing their weapons away from their grips and started using said weapons against them.

If that wasn't bad enough, the Vault's exits were being unsealed.

"It's a jailbreak!" Alan realized as the inmates started heading towards the exits. "Seal off the exits, we can't let them escape!"

"I'll find a manual override or something!" said Shinichi as he dashed off.

* * *

Manchester Black smiled as his cell and collar deactivated, "Well, it's about bloody time." If he knew his fellow Elite, they should be out and about now with nothing holding him back. However, sadly for him, his powers were now gone.

"**How are you doing, Mr. Black**?" said DALEK Shiro and Black blinked as he saw the White DALEK. "**It's been awhile, hasn't it**?"

"Yes it has,' said Black. "So, you're here to break me out?"

"**That's why we are here**," said DALEK Shiro.

"We?" Black repeated.

"**Now, from what I've heard your powers are gone**," DALEK Shiro reminded, causing Black to scowl. "**That is, however, easily fixed.**"

"How?" Black asked and DALEK Shiro produced a syringe attached to one of his telescopic arms. The syringe's chamber was filled with a serum.

"**This serum will return your powers to you and make you stronger**," promised DALEK Shiro.

"Oh yeah?" Manchester Black retorted suspiciously. "How do you know that won't kill me?"

"**You don't**," said DALEK Shiro. "**But Alan Smith is here and I bet you're eager for some payback**."

Black stared at the DALEK and at the syringe. He couldn't trust someone like DALEK Shiro so he refused, "I'd rather get my powers back at HQ if you don't mind."

"**Suit yourself**," DALEK Shiro mentally shrugged. "**But when you're knocked out and back in your cell, don't say I never offered to help.**" DALEK Shiro turned as Black went to meet up with his Elite.

* * *

Shinichi reached the control room and entered, only to see two DALEKs at the station with four dead guards sprawled on the floor.

"**It's him!**" the DALEK Warrior shouted. "**EXTERMINATE!**" He fired his deathray but Shinichi blocked it with his Shield of Glen. Activating his Great Fist, he punched the two DALEKs away and drove them back against the wall. He went towards the control room's console to reactivate the lockdown, the collars and cells.

"**I don't think so!**" the Red DALEK roared as he fired at the console, frying it. Shinichi cursed under his breath and glared at both DALEKs who had their weapons trained on him. He quickly exited the room and took cover as their deathrays flew out of the door.

"Damn it," Shinichi cursed. There was nothing more he could do here. "I have to help Alan and the guards," said Shinichi as he ran with the two DALEKs in hot pursuit behind him. He ducked and dodged their deathrays before finding the emergency exit and going downward to get to Alan.

* * *

As DALEK Shiro was heading up to the warden's office, he momentarily glanced at the cell containing Kineko who was in a cryo-stasis pod. He considered freeing her but then decided against it. She was unimportant. Even if he had memories of her, he didn't think they were anything he needed to worry about. She wasn't worth freeing at the moment. His primary objective now was exterminating the warden.

* * *

Guards were fighting against the inmates while blocking the exits and using their rifles to subdue them. The rifles were equipped with non-lethal rounds meant to stun and knock them out, but not kill them. Still, with the inmates able to access their special abilities, it wouldn't long before the guards were overwhelmed.

Alan was doing his best to subdue the inmates while aiding the guards. Suddenly, swirls of smoke rose up from the floor and took shape. Alan recognized them and gritted his teeth as the Demon Ninja Darkstars appears. The Darkstars started their attack, slaying the guards as blood spilt onto the floor, staining it in red.

"STOP!" roared Shinichi as he leapt over the railing and landed on the ground floor as Alan rocketed towards the Demon Ninja Darkstars. He knocked them down with his super-breath and landed on the floor. The Darkstars, armed and dangerous, looked at their target, wielding their mystically-infused weapons.

"I thought you went looking for the manual override," Alan said to Shinichi.

"I did; went up to the control room, but it's a wreck because of a couple of DALEKs."

"DALEKs?" Alan questioned.

Shinichi replied, "Yes, now come on, let's deal with these freaks so we can put those inmates back into their cells."

Alan nodded but if the Darkstars weren't bad enough, someone else had just entered the Vault and he was the last person Alan wanted to see.

"Hello again, Alan Smith and Shinichi Banabara," said the Priest coldly. He then rushed at Alan and attacked with his demonic hand. Alan caught his wrist but the Priest managed to force the Lantern to release him with a blast of demonic magic. Alan gritted his teeth in pain as he felt the burning sensation in his chest. The Cursed Mark was reacting again. It was happening to Shinichi as well.

"What the hell are _you _doing here?" Shinichi demanded.

"Just fixing a grave injustice," said the Priest. He summoned his two swords. "And you won't be stopping me."

"We'll see about that!" the brothers shouted in unison as they charged. Shinichi and Alan both attacked the Priest who wielded his two swords-Death Fang and Holy Talon. They were identical, save for color, but had similar origins. One was a sword forged from the fang of a dragon of darkness, while the other was forged from the talon of a dragon of light. Thus, a portion of power from each dragon lived on within a corresponding sword. They had a will of their own and could select their wielders. Priest turned out to be the first in their history to be able to wield both harmlessly. It should've been impossible due to their opposing natures, but the Priest prided himself for being the embodiment of balance. Wielding swords which were the antithesis of each other was an easy feat for him.

The Priest wasn't just an adept swordsman, he was also a highly skilled sorcerer. He fired blades of dark magic from Death Fang and pushed Shinichi back who blocked with the Shield of Glen. Alan attacked with Kusanagi but his strike was blocked by Holy Talon and a burst of light from the Holy Talon blinded Alan momentarily, allowing the Priest to slash him across the chest with Death Fang. He twirled his two dragon swords then crossed them together before raising them into the air. Dark and white lightning came down and struck Alan and Shinichi who screamed in pain as they received the attack.

Both the DALEK Warrior and DALEK Scientist came to see both Alan and Shinichi being overwhelmed by the Priest's power.

"**You know, it's moments like this that make life so meaningful**," said the DALEK Warrior.

"**I just hope he doesn't destroy their bodies. There's so much I want to learn when I dissect their corpses**," said the DALEK Scientist.

Alan and Shinichi fell to their knees as the former asked, "How come nobody else has arrived?" With the alarm triggered, Sheila would've sent out an alert to all their allies, telling them to come quickly. However, so far, none of them had arrived yet.

"You're wondering why you haven't received reinforcements yet, am I right?" asked the Priest, receiving glares from Alan and Shinichi. "It's simple, really. My DALEK friends have set up a jamming field encompassing this entire facility. As long as it is up, no messages can be transmitted or received." Alan and Shinichi's eyes widened at the implication. They were all alone here.

Shinichi gritted his teeth and roared as he charged at the Priest, "HENSHIN!" In a flash of gold light he was in his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. He was about to run the Priest through with his Higurashi no Yaiba only to fall to his knees and scream as he felt an intense burning sensation in his chest, like his heart was on fire. Under his armor, the Cursed Mark of Destruction was glowing and his screams intensified, "AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!"

"Shinichi!" Alan shouted as he ran to help his brother only to fall to the floor, suffering from the same infliction, clutching onto his chest as intense pain filled his entire nervous system. "GARGH! ARGH! AAAAHHHHH!"

The Priest smiled as the runes on his demonic arm glowed. All this time he could've killed them at anytime. The Cursed Mark of Destruction he had branded them with allowed him to torture or kill them at his leisure, leaving them completely powerless. He had them beaten from the start. However, he wanted to see them fall into despair as they realized that nothing they did would be able to stop him. He watched as Shinichi's armor shattered as he continued to scream while Alan's back arched as he screamed in agony from the Cursed Mark's activation.

"**They're down! Let's exterminate them!"** the DALEK Warrior said eagerly as he went down to kill Alan Smith and Shinichi Banabara.

"Hold your fire," objected the Priest.

"**But why!? I have the urge to kill! It's too much to resist!"** retorted the DALEK Warrior anxiously.

"I want them to live. I want them to live and realize that their efforts were useless. I want them to live and realize that their days as heroes are numbered," said the Priest cruelly.

* * *

While Alan and Shinichi were unconscious, the Priest and the DALEKs stood before the Vault's inmates and spoke, "Ladies and gentlemen, today is the day you will be set free. Now, follow me towards freedom."

"Hey, why should we go with you?" one of the inmates questioned.

The Priest answered, "Can't we monsters and masterminds work together, just this once, to achieve what we've always wanted?... An end to the age of superheroes. A full-on, no-bullshit **twilight of the gods**. How does that sound?"

Cheers of agreement erupted from all the inmates and Priest smiled. It was time to go.

* * *

Two DALEKs were standing on the roof of the mansion which stood upon the land where their hidden undergrond base was located.

"**Hey, Blue?**" asked the DALEK Janitor.

"**Yes, Janitor?**" replied the DALEK Strategist.

"**Have you ever wondered why we're here?**"

"**Now that you mention it, I do. I mean, in all this time, I believe that the only reason we exist is because we were created based on our template and because of him all we know is to destroy things all the time. I kind of wonder if there is more to life than just exterminating whatever comes our way. I kind of wonder. I kind of wonder if it's God's plan and if it's just humanity's destiny to be exterminated by us,**" said the DALEK Strategist.

"**What? I mean why are we here on the roof under the sun and not standing in the shade?**" the DALEK Janitor responded.

"**Our armor does gain power from solar exposure**," the DALEK Strategist explained. Their armor was design to convert solar power into electrical power. They still had an internal power source but it was always good to have a backup source in case of emergencies. "**If we didn't have any power we'd be shut down.**"

"**Oh, I forgot about that,**" replied the Pink DALEK. "**I'm just afraid the sun will ruin my awesome pink paintjob**."

"**I'm starting to wonder why I'm up here in the first place with you now**," the DALEK Strategist said. "**We're exposed out here. The enemy could spot us**."

"**Hey, do you think the Supreme One, Red and Orange succeeded in their mission?**" the DALEK Janitor asked.

* * *

When Alan and Shinichi managed to come to, they realized to their horror that every guard in the entire Vault was dead. They also found the warden dead inside of his office. The cause of death was instant electrocution. All the inmates, save for Kineko who was in her cryo-stasis pod and Gebok's brain, were gone. The entire Vault had been compromised and it was as silent as a ghost town. This, however, was only the beginning of the heroes' true downfall and the beginning of the villains' rise to victory.

Alan and Shinichi managed to contact the others and had them help collect the bodies then contact the families of the guards and warden who had died trying to guard the Vault. Some accepted that death was just part of life while others were not so forgiving in their grief, blaming Shinichi and Alan for their failure in saving their loved ones. The brothers accepted their rage and left with an apology, not expecting any forgiveness even if there was any. The Vault was abandoned. As for Kineko's cryo-stasis pod and Gebok's brain, both were being kept in Shinichi's command centre. Fortunately, the cryo-stasis pod ran on its own internal power source and would keep Kineko on ice indefinitely. Shinichi just put away Gebok's brain in a box. The fluid inside the glass dome would keep it preserved. It still felt odd to be looking at the brain of the man who'd ruined his life and tried to mess with him for years. He never wanted to have any contact with Gebok after his defeat.

This whole jailbreak had been planned. Priest was sent to occupy them while the DALEKs freed the inmates. The only reason Priest had to leave both Shinichi and Alan alive afterwards was to watch as they slowly realized their current position, that no matter how much power they had, that they would eventually fail. The death of those of those guards were on their heads as much as it was on Priest. They had failed to protect them, and such a failure was hard to recover from. It was like the aftermath of Yuji's fault all over again. Shinichi sat in his command centre, looking at the Vault's personnel file, marking all of them there on the day of the jailbreak as deceased. They had guards on vacation but as soon as they learnt what had happened to the rest they handed in their resignation and went to look for employment where there was no high risk of death.

* * *

Since the time Alan went to rescue Amora, he started wearing the glasses the Doctor had given him at school. The glasses were equipped with a perception filter. Even if he did wear a mask as Sentinel, there was a risk that someone could figure it out. With the perception filter, nobody would notice any similarities between him and Sentinel. Also, because of the perception filter, nobody at school had even commented on his new glasses. As far as his classmates remembered, he always had them. To Alan, the glasses were another convenient item to hide his secret identity.

Alan stood on the school roof, skipping class, as he leaned against the safety fence, looking out at the city. He just didn't feel like sitting in class today. He just kept thinking back to what had happened at the Vault. The Priest had all the cards the whole time and had used his advantage against them, incapacitating them without any effort. He didn't need to use his swords to kill them. All it took was single gesture and the Marks of Destruction would activate. The Priest had won before they even fought.

Alan just couldn't stop thinking about the warden and the guards who had died in the jailbreak. The Priest, the DALEKs and the inmates had killed them all. Only Shinichi and Alan were left alive, to remember what they had done, and to remember that they had failed to do their duty.

The Religion of Crime was trying to break them, and succeeding, showing them how futile their efforts were. No matter what they did, no matter how hard they fought, no matter how hard they tried to stop them, people would die. It was just like what Shiro had done in Kyoto by slaughtering the Kekkain Clan. The RoC held the power to do anything they wanted and not even Alan Smith could stop them.

"Alan?" a gentle voice spoke, a voice he recognized, the voice of the girl who had helped him step out of the darkness since Parallax.

"Lala," he replied as he turned to face her. She hated seeing him like this and went to embrace him. "Oh, Lala."

"Alan, I'm so sorry," she said sympathetically. She knew and understood the pain he was going through. He was supposed to be the hero, the one who saved people, but he failed in that duty. He failed and so many paid the price.

"I couldn't save them," he said, returning the embrace. "I tried, and failed, and I couldn't save them."

Lala didn't know what to say except to encourage him, "Don't give up, Alan."

"But they're winning," he said. It felt like the world was turning against him with the RoC in the forefront. "What am I supposed to do?"

"You just can't give up, Alan," she said. "There are people who still need you."

"Those guards and the warden needed me, but I couldn't do a thing," he said.

"It wasn't your fault. It was because of the Priest and the DALEKs. It's their fault, not yours," she corrected.

"I know, but I still could've found a way to stop them," he said. Lala continued to hold him, offering him comfort. He needed her right now, to tell him that everything was going to be OK.

* * *

Shinichi sat alone in his command centre. Whenever he felt depressed or felt like a failure, he had a habit of isolating himself from others and being alone with his thought. The first time he had done this was when his mother had gotten in an accident and he temporarily lost his abilities to reverse time. Since then it became his usual coping mechanism. He just couldn't stop going over what had happened. The Priest had broken into the Vault with the DALEKs and freed every super-powered criminal that they (the heroes) had ever captured. Now they were at large, free to commit crimes. According to Sheila, there hadn't been any reports of crimes being committed by the escaped super-villains but Shinichi knew it was only a matter of time before they struck. Now they had the Religion of Crime backing them up. Now the super-villains had real power.

There was just so much death and destruction surrounding Shinichi's life and it all started when GIN-SHOCKER got to him. They had turned him into a weapon and sent him out to kill and destroy. He had killed his comrades and his first love, and so many soldiers. Even after he was freed from GIN-SHOCKER, death and destruction still followed him. He had been forced to kill some of his revived ex-comrades. They hadn't given him a choice but he still wished there had been another way.

Then there was Shiro, who had returned from the dead, and death and destruction continued to plague Shinichi's life all because of his doppelganger. The Kekkain Clan had been slain by him and Shinichi had promised Yuna he would protect them. However, he couldn't keep his promise and so many members of her clan had died at Shiro's hands. It was just too much for Shinichi to bear but he still endured it.

They were heroes, and their job was to protect people and save lives. However, they couldn't even stop the Priest and the DALEKs from breaking into the Vault and free all the inmates. All their efforts had been for nothing.

Shinichi let out a sigh. He couldn't isolate himself for any longer. Even he craved comfort and human companionship. He was only human, and right now he felt that he needed to be around other people so he could cope with his feelings.

After what had happened, Shinichi took Rena to Genovia for a vacation. He just needed to go away for a few days and he needed Rena to come with him. Rena, knowing what had happened and how it was affecting him, went along to offer her support. Tsukuyomi and Satan also elected to follow to offer their support as well. Satan left Hiroyuki at the Kuwadorian under the care of Beatrice and Ronove. They would take good care of her son.

King Edward had also learnt what had happened. His daughter Shawna and Rena shared everything and it was through her that he learnt about what happened at the Vault. He had also learnt about how the Kamen Riders had now been labeled as wanted fugitives all because Shinichi was suspected of murder. It would explain why his daughter's fiance felt so depressed. He didn't believe that Shinichi would ever commit murder. It had to be some mistake. The boy might use lethal force against enemies but he was by no means a cold-blooded killer. The boy had dedicated himself to his role as a hero so a failure of such magnitude would weigh heavily on his heart. The King of Genovia decided to invite Shinichi and his lovers to the palace for dinner. It was to show Shinichi that he was always welcomed to his kingdom.

Shinichi graciously accepted the invitation and along with Rena, Satan and Tsukuyomi were dressed for their dinner party with the king. A carriage then took them to the palace where they were welcomed by the guards as well as Anthony and Chris. They were escorted into the palace and towards the royal dining hall where Shawna and King Edward were waiting for them. Princess Shawna went and gave Shinichi a comforting hug.

"I'm so sorry for what happened," she told him.

"It's fine, Shawna-chan. I'm OK," he lied.

"Come now, son," King Edward smiled. "Sit down, and fill your plate. Let us talk. I even have my best wine served for tonight."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," said Shinichi, nodding. They knew he needed time to heal. This wasn't the first time he was like this. He just needed time to heal and move on.

* * *

"**They looks so broken,"** said DALEK Shiro as he looked at Alan and Shinichi on the screen in the Gauntlet's meeting room. There was so much despair in their eyes.** "How wonderful."**

"You and the Priest have done well," Savage praised. "Well done, to the both of you."

"Thank you, Master," said the Priest.

"**So, what's next? Do we go and kill them?**" DALEK Shiro asked eagerly. He just loved the feeling he got from winning. he felt that victory was at hand. It would be so easy too. The Priest could kill them easily with the Cursed Mark of Destruction. All he had to do was just brand all their enemies with the Cursed Mark and it would be all over.

"The next step will be taken by me," said Vandal Savage as he stood up. He had planned this for a long time and now it was time to bring in some new recruits. It would be so easy. He was quite persuasive and the recruits he was going to get would follow him without any resistance.

* * *

As Shinichi was enjoying dinner with Satan, Shawna, Tsukuyomi, Rena and King Edward while participating in casual conversation with them, he received a call on his communicator. This caused the girls to groan, knowing what it meant.

"Can't you just call back?" Satan asked.

"It could be important," Shinichi said.

"It always is, but can't someone else handle it?" Rena questioned. She wanted Shinichi to rest and relax. After what had happened at the Vault he needed it.

"This won't take a second," said Shinichi. "Hello?"

"_Shinichi, I've detected hostile activity not too far from you,"_ reported Sheila.

The doors to the dining room burst open and a panicking guard yelled, "Monsters are attacking the night market, Your Majesty!"

* * *

The two creatures attacking the night market were Hydes. One was reptilian, resembling a human-sized cobra with purple scales and a muscular, humanoid upper body with black claws. The other Hyde was a humanoid equine with diamond-like skin and a long and sharp drill-like horn on its head. Their names were Toxic Cobra and Diamond Unicorn.

The two had appeared out of nowhere and began attacking the citizens of Genovia without mercy. Toxic Cobra spat a spray of corrosive venom which instantly killed anyone they hit. Diamond Unicorn shot beams of rainbow-colored energy from his horn, turning his unfortunate victims into diamond statues. He laughed as he did this, enjoying himself greatly.

Suddenly, the two Hydes were hit with blasts of energy which exploded against their chests and sent them tumbling, giving the surviving citizens a chance to escape. The two picked themselves back up to glare at the one who had dared to attack them.

"It's…you…" hissed Toxic Cobra angrily.

"The peasant!" identified Diamond Unicorn.

There stood Kamen Rider Showa with his arms in energy blaster form. He changed his arms back to normal and looked at both of the Hydes

"You must not know this, but Genovia is under _my _protection," said Showa.

"You don't protect anything! You just destroy!" snapped Toxic Cobra.

Showa blinked under his helmet. While the voice was distorted, he recognized it. "Stevenson?" Roger Stevenson was a soldier who had participated in an experiment to create a super-soldier for the American government. GIN-SHOCKER had caught wind of this and sent Shinichi to destroy the project, killing all the soldiers and scientists at the base. Roger Stevenson was the only survivor and he had sworn revenge. When he learnt who Shinichi was, he used the Cobra Memory to turn into the Cobra Dopant to get his revenge. He'd even tried to get to Shinichi through his loved ones.

"Peasant, have you any idea what you've cost me!?" shouted Diamond Unicorn. Now that was a voice Showa wish he could forget.

"…Sutherland…" groaned Showa. Stephan Sutherland was a young lord whom Shinichi had humiliated on Shawna's birthday once. While Sutherland had presented the princess with a beautiful diamond-encrusted gown, Shinichi had given her an action figure in his image. She had reacted most positively to Shinichi's gift than to Sutherland's. Then Sutherland managed to get his hands on the Unicorn Memory, gaining the means to become the Unicorn Dopant. He kidnapped Shawna to make her his bride but was defeated by Kamen Rider Showa.

Both these men had good reason to hate and want revenge against Shinichi, and they had both been defeated by him before. They had been locked up in the Vault for their crimes but had escaped during the jailbreak along with the other criminals.

"You should give up, if you know what's good for you. Surrender, and I may not have to hurt you," Showa commanded.

"We've heard about the Cursed Mark, peasant! You can't use your full power to defend youself lest you wish to die!" mocked Diamond Unicorn.

"Too bad for you, we're not so limited," said Toxic Cobra. "Come on out, boys!"

A dozen Cyber-Daleks marched out of their hiding places and stood with the two Hydes. Showa gritted his teeth as he saw how the odds had changed.

"Well, guess I should change the odds to my favor," said Showa as he snapped his fingers. "Trinity Force!" His body glowed and split into three identical bodies, with different colored armor; Showa Red, Showa Blue and Showa Green.

"I'll handle Sutherland," said Showa Red.

"I'll deal with Stevenson," said Showa Blue.

"Well, that just leaves me with the Cyber-Daleks," said Showa Green. Nodding to each other, the Showas then charged at their opponents to engage them in combat.

The Cyber-Daleks charged at Showa Green and began swinging at him but he dodged all their blows before retaliating with quick strikes of his own. He formed the Great Sword and Great Shield and used them to defend himself, blocking their attacks while slashing at them with his blade. Showa charged at Toxic Cobra and slipped under a spray of venom which would've been fatal if it hit. He got within range and kicked Toxic Cobra across the face before jumping up to dodge a tail swipe. He then formed the Great Boots and kicked Toxic Cobra, sending him sliding across the ground. Showa Red engaged Diamond Unicorn who tried to turn him into a diamond statue. However, Showa Red was far too quick for him and managed to dodge the rainbow beams before hitting him in the face with a Great Fist. At the same time, as they were using their powers, they felt the painful burning sensation of the Cursed Mark of Destruction upon their chests. They endured and ignored the pain so they could continue to fight.

The Cyber-Daleks aimed their palms at Showa Green and DALEK Gunsticks popped out. **"Annihilate!" **the Cyber-Daleks said together as they fired at Showa Green who blocked with the Great Shield. He turned his legs into a hoverboard and soared towards them as he blocked their shots before jumping up to hit them across their chests with the hoverboard, knocking them off their feet. While in midair, he turned his hands into energy cannons and fired at them repeatedly. Two of them were destroyed but the others managed to recover to resume attacking Showa Green.

Toxic Cobra kept spraying venom at Showa Blue who dodged his attacks. The Hyde wasn't making it any easier for the Rider as those venom shots kept him at a distance. Still, he needed to be able to get in close to defeat his opponent. As he performed a dodge-roll, he got an idea and smiled as he called on the power, "Let's Ride: Biorider!" His body glowed blue and a spray of venom was about to hit him, but it passed harmlessly through his body. As the glow died down, Showa Blue was shown in the form of the blue Biorider, armed with the Bio Blade. He turned his body into liquid and soared towards Toxic Cobra who couldn't hit him with his venom. Showa-Biorider solidified once he was within range and slashed Toxic Cobra across the chest with his Bio Blade.

Showa Red was punching Sutherland over and over with his Great Fists, not giving the spoilt brat a single opportunity to retaliate. Enraged, Sutherland backed away before charging at Showa Red with the speed of a running horns. He struck the Rider with his horn and then jumped up to kick him in the chest with his hooved feet, sending him skidding backwards. Sutherland then fired his Rainbow Beam to turn Showa into a diamond statue but missed as Showa leapt out of the way and part of the ground that was touched by the beam turned into diamond.

"I wonder how dear Princess Shawna will react to a statue of you made in diamond?" Diamond Unicorn questioned.

"I don't think very well," said Showa Red. This was bad. If he got hit he'd turn into a diamond statue. He already got turned into a gold statue once and that had not been a pleasant experience. He had to stop Diamond Unicorn from firing those beams. He got an idea and smiled and activated his Burst Cannon. "Spark Burst!" he called as he fired a burst of charged energy from the cannon, hitting Diamond Unicorn and sending him skidding backwards as the Hyde tried to resist the beam. When the attack stopped, Diamond Unicorn laughed.

"See? I am invincible!" Diamond Unicorn boasted.

"Let's Ride: Roborider! Voltech Shooter!" Showa Red assumed the form of Roborider and took aim, firing his Voltech Shooter at Diamond Unicorn. He fired at the horn and it was shot right off Diamond Unicorn's head.

"My horn! You shot off my horn! My beautiful horn!" Diamond Unicorn screamed in mortification and dismay. There was just a smoking stump instead of a long and beautiful horn. "That was my horn, you filthy peasant!"

"You were overcompensating. I should also remind you that I'm a Knight of Genovia, and you got stripped of your status, which makes you the peasant!" Showa Red shot back.

Diamond Unicorn charged at Showa Red but he was ready for him. As Diamond Unicorn went to kick him, Showa Red grabbed his leg and spun him around and around and around, as Diamond Unicorn screamed. At the same time, Showa Blue was doing the same thing as he spun Toxic Cobra by his tail. Toxic Venom screamed as he was being spun around and around before being tossed into the air. Showa Red did the same and tossed Diamond Unicorn into the air as well. The Red and Blue Showas then jumped into the air after their opponents. The Showa Red formed the Great Fists as Showa Blue formed the Great Boots.

"GREAT RIDER PUNCH!" shouted Showa Red as he smashed both his fists into Diamond Unicorn.

"GREAT RIDER KICK!" shouted Showa Blue as he slammed both his Great Boots into Toxic Cobra.

Both attacks struck with explosive force and the Hydes were sent crashing to the ground. Unable to maintain their transformations after sustaining so much damage, they reverted back to human form and fell unconscious.

Meanwhile, Showa Green changed as well, "Let's Ride: RX!" He assumed the form of Kamen Rider BLACK RX and summoned the Revolcane. Using the Revolcane's Beam Saber Mode, he ran a Cyber-Dalek through and withdrew the blade as it exploded before slashing at the rest. He leapt into the air and executed his finisher, his signature dropkick called the RX Kick. "RX KICK!" He smashed into one of the Cyber-Daleks, causing it to explode. Once he was done with that, reverted back to his Showa Green form to finish off the remaining Cyber-Daleks with slashes of his Great Sword, "GREAT RIDER SLASH!" The Cyber-Daleks and exploded together, producing a large fireball as Showa Green turned with his back facing the explosion, posing in a cool way.

The three Showas finally fused back together into one and he took a deep breath before exhaling. "Game Over," he concluded. He heard applause and turned to see a man standing in the distance. He was a tall, muscular male with medium-light skin tone, strong, rugged features, broad shoulders and square jaw. He also had three pale scars across his face, brown eyes and long black hair pulled back. He wore a long lapel-less dark-blue coat with a red stripe on the edges. He also wore black gloves and boots.

"That was a splendid show, my boy. It seems that Gebok really was able to create the ultimate cyborg," said the man.

Hearing this man speak Gebok's name made Showa tense up before asking, "Who are you?"

"Pardon me. My name is Vandal Savage andI want you to join the Religion of Crime," said Savage. Showa just looked at him like he was crazy.

"Sorry, but no," said Showa.

"That was no request, boy. It is an order. You will join. It is your destiny."

"I highly doubt that," retorted Showa. "There's no way I'll ever join your organization."

"I'm afraid that you won't have much of a choice in the matter. I have ways of persuading you to join my cause,," said Savage. Feeling threatened by Savage, that was when Showa attacked and he unleashed a flurry of punches at the man standing before him. However, none of his blows were hitting their mark as Savage dodged, bobbing and weaving, and all the while wearing a calm expression. He wasn't even countering any of Showa's moves. He just kept dodging, with that confident smile on his face, and his hands behind his back.

Feeling that this had gone far enough, Savage caught Showa's fist. "An excellent attempt Number 13, but like everything else you "heroes" try to do, it's ultimately futile. Activate: Project Ragnarok."

Showa's armor vanished as Shinichi stood there, eyes dim. He replied in monotone, "**Project Ragnarok: Activated. Voice recognition: Vandal Savage. The Legacy of Cain is Anti-Life.**"

Savage released Shinichi's hand. Shinichi stood up straight as his armor returned, but it wasn't his normal armor. No, this was his armor as BLACK 13. The fallen hero said only one phrase, "**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate**." The sky seemingly turned blood red at these words as Savage smiled with approval. By activating the Anti-Life Equation in one, he had activated it in the others as well.

* * *

Hana and Michiru who were working as part-time nurses in Irie's Clinic suddenly stopped what they were doing as their eyes glowed red.

"**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate**," they intoned.

"Hana-chan, Michiru-chan, there's something I need you to do for me," said Dr. Irie. They didn't respond. "Um...Hana-chan, Michiru-chan?" The two girls turned to look at him with their eyes glowing red. "Oh...no..." Dr. Irie knew this was bad.

* * *

Yokoshima was whistling as he was heading home to see his wife after a hard day at work. He even managed to afford to buy her a gift. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks, with eyes glowing red, as he said, "**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate**." He dropped the gift he had in hand.

* * *

Chiaki was doing wood carving in front of his house in the middle of the forest of surrounding Hinamizawa. He suddenly dropped what he was doing, his eyes glowing red, "**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate**," as he stood up and walked away.

* * *

Daichi was at the park playing his guitar, entertaining the people who'd come to listen to him olay. As he was strumming the strings, he suddenly heard a voice in his head and just stopped. He stood up, his audience curious and confused, as he looked at them with glowing red eyes, saying, "**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate.**"

* * *

Shogo was at the Sonozaki Estate, doing his job as one of the family's bodyguards. It was a job he took seriously since Shinichi helped him to get it many years ago. He was very loyal to Mion and her family and did well in protecting them. Suddenly, he felt a tug on his mind and he went stiff as his eyes closed. Slowly, his eyes opened, glowing with blood red light as he said, "**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate**."

* * *

Battler walked out of the apartment, leaving a confused Junior behind to 'honk' and 'blarg' at him. There was definitely something wrong as he appeared to be marching with red eyes and saying, "**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate**."

* * *

The cyborgs weren't the only ones affected. Misato was taking a shower when all of a sudden her eyes snapped open, glowing blood red, as she assumed her demonic form. She now wore silver shoulder pads that were shaped like folded bat wings covered by chains, a bra-like like blood-red chest plate that was outlined with black, and black leather panties with some red armor plating on the corners. The skirt she wore was composed of two red and four black drapes that were really revealing as the red tails framed her waist and the black tails surrounded her waist and framed her firm ass. Her legs were covered in black leather stockings that were topped with two belts on each stocking as they covered her thighs. Her arms were covered by black leather sleeves that went up to the lower half of her biceps, with silver bracelets and armored red gloves that were tipped with claws. Her feet were protected with two knee-high silver boots that were wrapped in chains and on her head was a headset that was shaped like yellow bat ears trimmed with red and a red ornament that was shaped like a bat's head.

"**Anti-Life Justifies My Hate."**

* * *

Vandal Savage smiled as he'd just received confirmation. The Anti-Life Equation had just activated in all of the former NUMBERS. Not even Misato, who had died and been revived as a demon could escape from it. This was perfect. They all knew what they had to do. They were now Savage's pawns and would do as he commanded.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The first chapter of the "Rise of Evil" arc in Legacy of Cain. Not only did Alan and Shinichi fail to stop a massive jailbreak, but also it seems that the Religion of Crime has taken control of the NEO-NUMBERS. Could things get any worse? According to Murphy's Law: "What can go wrong, will go wrong."**

**SHADOW ELEMENT 13: ****This is it. The final battle for the soul of Showa no Sekai begins. Evil stands revealed in the form of Vandal Savage. The villains gather and the heroes kneel under the banner of Anti-Life. This will without a doubt be the darkest arc we've worked on. So look forward to it!**

**PREVIEW FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER...**

"NOOOOO!" Alan screamed in horror as he helplessly witnessed the boarding house being destroyed right before his eyes. All that remained of the home he'd lived in on this world was a crater and nothing remained of the people who lived there. He fell to his knees, utterly devastated. "_Lala..."_ he uttered in despair. _"Alice...Celine..."_ He said their names, each and every one of them, _"...Adam...Daiki...Nozomu...Amora...Conda..."_ but even if he tried to call their names, _"...Yami...Megan...Bishie...Momo...Nana..."_ they would not answer.


	194. The Legacy of Cain Part 138

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 138: Supermen Assembled/The Dark Monitor**

"Ah…" smiled Manchester Black as he could feel his power flowing through his body again. Ever since Alan had performed a lobotomy on his brain and put him in that collar, Black had lost touch with his psychic abilities. But now, they had returned to him, and all thanks to a little drug called G-Shock. On normal humans, the drug would cause monstrous mutations. But on a natural-born metahuman like himself, it returned Black's powers and enhanced them. With a flick of his wrist, he telekinetically pulled a cigarette out of its box then used his other hand to levitate the lighter to him. He put the cigarette in his mouth and lit it up. He also missed the taste of tobacco. The Vault didn't allow smoking. "Sweet ambrosia…"

"So, what are we supposed to do now?" asked Obsidian. During the jailbreak, he had his chance to kill Alan Smith but the Priest would not allow it. He said that it was Savage's orders that the Sentinel was not killed, yet.

"Now," began Black as he sat down on a comfortable armchair in his private lounge, "We wait for further instructions."

"Works for me," said Hat as he produced a glass of wine and sat comfortably on the couch, joined by Menageries and Coldcast. Obsidian preferred to stand, with his arms crossed.

"So, we just do nothing?" Obsidian asked. This wasn't what he signed up for.

"Yes, until Mr. Savage gives the word," said Black as he blew smoke rings. "Besides, after being forced into that hell hole, I really want to have some fun before going back to work." He used his telekinesis to raise a bottle of wine to him. He popped the bottle and downed the alcoholic beverage down his throat. Obsidian scowled in disgust at his leader's hedonistic behavior. Obsidian had only one purpose, and that was to kill Alan Smith, but he was being denied that right.

He would just need to be patient and wait for further orders. Then, he would strike and get his revenge.

* * *

When Satoko went to visit Dr. Irie, she discovered him lying against the wall. "Irie-sensei!" she gasped as she ran over to him. She knelt by his side. "What happened...?"

"Satoko-chan...are you...an angel...?" he asked hopefully. Satoko rolled her eyes. Honestly, she knew he was interested in her since she was a kid but she really wasn't all that interested in him. He was cute, and smart, but she wasn't interested in him as a romantic partner. She helped him off his current position to sit him up against the wall.

"What happened?" she repeated.

"It was insane," said Dr. Irie. "Hana-chan and Michiru-chan just suddenly attacked me." Actually, all they did was shove him so hard that he was lying against the wall. He probably had some bruising. He was just fortunate that they hadn't killed him, being cyborgs and all.

Satoko's eyes widened. "_They_ did this?" She couldn't believe it. Sure, Hana and Michiru were fighters but it didn't seem like them to just attack Dr. Irie for no reason. "Can I use your phone?" she asked. She needed to inform the others that something was terribly wrong.

* * *

"He should've been back by now," said Rena worriedly as she checked her watch. Shinichi had gone to defuse the situation but that had been almost an hour ago. "He never takes this long."

"Unless the enemy he's fighting is strong," said Tsukuyomi.

"Then he should call for reinforcements," suggested Shawna.

"You don't really know Shin-kun that well, do you, Princess?" Satan questioned. "He rarely calls in for any backup and tries to take care of things on his own."

"But he's grown beyond that," Rena defended. "Hasn't he?"

"Old habits die hard, I'm afraid," said Satan.

"I'm going to call him," said Rena as she activated her communicator. "Shin-kun, please respond." She didn't receive a response. "Shin-kun?"

"What's wrong?" Shawna asked, concerned.

"He isn't responding," Rena replied, fearing the worse. "Why isn't he responding?"

At the same time, something pinned to the lapel of Satan's jacket began to vibrate. It was a golden butterfly brooch. It was a communications device that Beatrice had created for the Stakes of Purgatory in case they were separated. She put her index and middle finger against the brooch and said, "Hello?"

"_Yoko-kun hasn't come home yet and he isn't responding to his communicator!_" shouted a distraught Asmodeus. Now this was peculiar. If Yokoshima was ever running late he would call Asmodeus and he would never not respond to her calls.

Something was definitely wrong.

"Sheila, can you tell me where Shin-kun is?" Rena asked.

"_I can...hm...that's strange.._." said Sheila. "_It appears that I've lost his signal._"

And things were about to get worse.

* * *

Alan was just exiting the boarding house when all of a sudden his psychic danger sense alerted him of an attack. Activating his ring, he quickly formed a barrier to block and absorb the attack, which came in the form of an energy blast. Deactivating the barrier, he turned to see who had just attacked him and was surprised to see that it was his brother.

"Shinichi?" Alan answered. BLACK 13's response was to charge at the pseudo-Kryptonian and attack him with a flurry of furious kicks and punches. Alan blocked all the blows with his arms, using his speed to his advantage. "Shinichi, what are you doing!? Is this some kind of joke!?" BLACK 13 didn't answer and kicked Alan hard in the chest, sending him skidding backwards. BLACK 13 then performed Shunpo and grabbed Alan by the front of his shirt and punched him hard in the face, knocking him to the ground. He then grabbed hold of Alan's arm, restraining him. Alan tried to break free but Shinichi's grip was tight and solid.

"Shinichi, let me go!" Alan shouted. BLACK 13 still didn't answer. Instead, he gazed upon the boarding house. He raised his other arm and pointed his fist at the boarding house, collecting energy into his fist to charge up his attack. Alan's eyes widened in horror as he realized what BLACK 13 was attempting.

"Shinichi, no! Stop this! Don't do it!" Alan begged.

"Lucifer Cannon," uttered BLACK 13 as he fired the energy blast directly at the boarding house. Alan was restrained and he watched in horror as the Lucifer Cannon blast completely enveloped the boarding house.

"NOOOOO!" Alan screamed in horror as he helplessly witnessed the boarding house being destroyed right before his eyes. He broke free from BLACK 13's grip but he was too late. All that remained of the home he'd lived in on this world was a crater and nothing remained of the people who lived there. He fell to his knees, utterly devastated. "_Lala..."_ he uttered in despair. _"Alice...Celine..."_ He said their names, each and every one of them, _"...Adam...Daiki...Nozomu...Amora...Conda..."_ but even if he tried to call their names, _"...Yami...Megan...Bishie...Momo...Nana..."_ they would not answer.

They were gone, all of them. In a single instant he'd lost them all. They never saw it coming but he was right there and yet he still could not save them.

BLACK 13 stood behind him and Alan turned to glare at his brother with anger and hatred as he clenched his fists. Quantum energy began to collect in his fists as he rose up. They were gone, all of them. In a single instant he'd lost them all. They never saw it coming but he was right there and yet he still could not save them. All that mattered to him in this world had been taken away from him. It was just like when Jade had died and he had been unable to stop her murder. He'd lost everything again.

He couldn't think straight. When he looked at BLACK 13 he didn't see his brother anymore. He saw the monster who destroyed his family. Roaring, Alan rushed towards BLACK 13 and intended to end him with his Quantum Power. As BLACK 13 prepared to receive his attack, there was a bright flash of blinding light...followed by..._silence_.

* * *

The situation was severe as the NEO-NUMBERS had now become Vandal Savage's slaves. The Anti-Life Equation that had been implanted into their minds had been unlocked. All this time they had been sleeper agents and now they were going to be doing what they were programmed to do from the start.

The NEO-NUMBERS, now known as the Justifiers of Ragnarok, wore their usual armor in default form but with a black color-scheme and red visors. They looked dark and menacing, ready to perform horrible acts of violence in accordance to the Anti-Life Equation that had been implanted into their brains since the day they were brought to GIN-SHOCKER.

Savage could order them to destroy everything in their path, but he wanted to play with his toy soldiers for a bit. A devious smile came to his face and he called, "Shiro."

"**Yes, Savage-sama?" **asked the White DALEK.

"I want you to arrange a fight for my amusement," said Savage. "You told me that Shinichi Banabara had given powers to his friends from that village, correct?"

"**Yes, he did," **confirmed DALEK Shiro.

"Give them a call, and tell them that they're friends are in danger, and that they're at the quarry near the village," Savage instructed.

"**I obey, Savage-sama," **DALEK Shiro answered as he went to make a call.

Savage then used his own control on the NEO-NUMBERS to command them to wait for their 'friends'. Once they arrived, it would be a huge surprise and the party would begin.

* * *

Mion Sonozaki knew something was wrong when Shogo left his post without a word. According to the rest of the bodyguards who had seen him leave, he just left. Then, she had just gotten off the phone with Satoko who told her that Hana and Michiru suddenly went nuts and attacked Dr. Irie. If that wasn't bad enough, both Shinichi and Yokoshima had apparently gone off the radar.

"This can't be good," Mion frowned. Suddenly, her communicator went off and she answered, "Who is this?"

"_**Hello, is this the Hinamizawa Gaming Club? This a message to all of you," **_DALEK Shiro spoke,_** "Right now you must be wondering what has happened to your friends the NEO-NUMBERS. There's absolutely no reason to panic. OK, I lied. There is a big reason to panic. We have your friends. You want them back, then head down to the quarry near Hinamizawa. You know which one I'm talking about. I mean the one where the grand showdown between Kamen Rider and GIN-SHOCKER took place four years ago."**_ The call ended just like that and it wasn't just being transmitted to Mion's communicator. Every single one of the members of the Hinamizawa Gaming Club got the call.

Mion's blood ran cold and she called, "Okaa-sama, I'm heading out! I got an emergency!" She ran out of her mansion and grabbed her bicycle before peddling as fast as she could to meet up with the others at the quarry.

* * *

The quarry near Hinamizawa which was just behind the mountains. It was here that one of the most epic confrontations had taken place in 1985. This was where GIN-SHOCKER met its end after having a final battle against the Kamen Riders. Naturally, good triumphed over evil as the Kamen Riders were victorious. It seemed that history was going to be repeating itself once more.

Keiichi took his bike, the Zakider, towards the quarry. The others took their own bicycles to get there themselves. As for Rena, she used the Teleportal located in Shinichi's personal command centre under his Genovian mansion.

Rena arrived first, leaping out of the portal, followed by Keiichi on the Zakider as he came to a stop and dismounted.

"OK, so, where are they?" Keiichi asked, referring to the NEO-NUMBERS. "We were told to come right here."

"Yes," said Rena. "They should be here. That's what the message said."

"Unless it was a trap," Keiichi realized.

"**How perceptive,"** said DALEK Shiro as he hovered in the air above the two Pseudo Riders.

"Shiro Juuyon!" shouted Keiichi.

"**Ah, yes. It feels so good to be remembered,"** said DALEK Shiro cheerfully.

"Where are our friends?" Rena demanded.

"**Oh, your **_**friends**_**? Getting ready for you,"** said DALEK Shiro. He then spotted several others coming in the distance. "And here comes the rest of the cavalry."

Rika, Hanyuu, Satoko, Satoshi, Mion, and Shion arrived on their bicycles and quickly dismounted. Mion, as leader of their group, strode over, pointing at DALEK Shiro with one hand as she rested her other hand against her hip.

"OK, you floating trash can!" Mion began in a demanding voice, "Where are our friends? If you have them then I demand you let them go!"

"**DALEKs don't take orders from **_**inferior **_**lifeforms,"** retorted DALEK Shiro**. "But, I will tell you where your friends are,"** He then shouted,** "ATTACK!"**

And eight black figures leaped into the quarry from where they hid and landed on their feet. The Gaming Club could see that it was the NEO-NUMBERS, except that they were all clad in black armor.

"Why are they all in black?" Hanyuu asked.

"**Why don't you ask them? And while you're at it, ask Shinichi why he blew up the boarding house Alan Smith lives in with his girls?"** taunted DALEK Shiro. **"Oh, wait. Not Shinichi. BLACK 13. Justifier BLACK 13 to be exact!"** DALEK Shiro laughed.

"Shin-kun would never do something like that!" denied Rena.

"**Believe what you want, but right now they are completely under the control of the Religion of Crime. Now they're just puppets and all a puppet is good for is following commands,"** said DALEK Shiro. **"Let the games begin! I'd love to stay and watch but I got things to do! Enjoy!" **With that he teleported.

The Ragnarok Riders, also known as the Justifiers of Ragnarok, charged at the Gaming Club. They realized immediately that they would have to fight.

"Minna, henshin!" Mion ordered.

* * *

Savage sat in his chair, watching the big screen in front of him, while swirling a glass of well-aged red wine in hand. He smiled as he sat back and enjoyed the show.

"Now this is the kind of thing I live for," he mused before taking a sip of his wine.

* * *

"Are you awake?"

Alan's eyes fluttered open. His vision was blurry and unfocused but then everything became clearer after he blinked for a few moments.

"Rika?" he asked as he saw the young woman hovering over him.

"Not exactly," the woman answered. "I'm Bernkastel."

"Oh, _you_," Alan frowned. He had actually met her when Shinichi had gone rogue. She had told him that Shinichi's existence was threatening the world and the parallel worlds linked to it and tried to persuade Alan to kill him. "The last time we met you tried to talk me into killing Shinichi."

"Well, it seems you decided to do that on your own a moment ago," said Bernkastel as he rose up to his feet. He looked around. They were in a dark, infinite space and floating around them were blue crystal fragments. The crystals seemed to be tinted in red and he thought he saw one of the vanish.

"What is this place?" he asked.

"The Realm of Fragments," said Bernkastel. "Each of these fragments represents a parallel world. Some have happy endings, while some do not."

"And the world I was in was just one of many," he concluded.

"Yes," said Bernkastel, "And quite an entertaining fragment yet."

"Entertaining," he repeated, angrily. "You think it's _entertaining _as I watched as my entire family was killed before my-"

"They're not dead," she interrupted and Alan stumbled in his words.

"Wait, what?" he questioned.

"They're _not _dead," she repeated.

"They're not?" Alan parroted, almost pleading. "They're not dead?"

"No, they're not," said Bernkastel. "They're all safe, including your unborn child."

"What do you mean 'unborn child'?" Alan inquired. Was one of his girls pregnant. Who was it?

"The pink princess is with child. Your child," Bernkastel explained.

"Lulu..." whispered Alan, remembering the dream he had once under the influence of the Black Mercy. "Where are they now?"

"Safe and sound in the Meta-World. Gaap was able to transport them all safely before the blast hit the house," said Bernkastel. "I apologize that I wasn't able to save your home."

"A home means nothing without the people you love living with you," quoted Alan. "So, why did you bring me here? What about what's going on down in Shinichi's world?"

"You have a much more important mission right now," said Bernkastel. "Someone wants to meet you."

"Who?" questioned Alan.

"Someone besides me who has been monitoring your life," she said. They had sent her to make contact with Alan and bring him to them. "Let me take you to them."

"How can I trust you?" Alan asked suspiciously.

"You don't, but neither you nor I have the time to waste right now arguing and I doubt you'll figure a way out," she said. "Now, brace yourself." She snapped her fingers, activating her magic, and whisked both herself and Alan away from the Realm of Fragments.

* * *

Alan and Bernkastel were transported to a hi-tech command centre and Alan's eyes widened as he saw the humanoid beings walking about, all identical, but with some subtle differences in their appearance. They had rust-colored skin and bald with black beards. Their bald heads did sports strips of black hair on top and the sides. Their eyes were completely red. They also wore uniforms. Their uniforms were made up of a dark blue, almost black bodysuit, with a white vest and broad gold pauldrons. They also wore belts with gold belt buckles with the symbol for infinity in the centre and white flaps of fabric hung from the belt. They wore gold bands on their forearms and white boots.

Alan could see numerous screens mounted on multiple computer consoles. Each console had a total of six screens, each showing a different set of moving images. Alan couldn't help but be reminded of ARMOR and DORA when he saw this.

"Say hello to the Monitors," said Bernkastel.

"I thought they were just a myth," said Alan as he saw all the Monitors. He couldn't believe it. Was this the headquarters of the Monitors? It was said that the Monitors had been around since the birth of the Multiverse and had watched over it. However, there had not been any evidence of such a group of beings watching over the Multiverse. ARMOR, as far as Alan knew, was the only organization that was watching over the Multiverse but ARMOR was just an infant compared to the Monitors.

"As you can see they are no mere myth. In this Multiverse there is a Monitor for each universe. Alternate universes and parallel universes each have their own Monitor," said Bernkastel. "And when a new universe born, a new Monitor is appointed to watch over it."

"You mean they are like guardians, right," assumed Alan.

"Yes, and with their power they have guarded many universes from being invaded by outside forces by sealing them off," said Bernkastel.

"So, the reason we can't get contact ARMOR or leave is because of the Monitors?" asked Alan.

"That is correct. Right now the Monitors have been dealing with a threat to your brother's universe and in order to keep it safe it needed to be sealed off. Now, they require your help," said Bernkastel.

"Why now?" asked Alan.

"Who knows? Sometimes I don't understand how they work," answered Bernkastel. "Come, we are going to speak with the Monitor in charge of the world ARMOR has dubbed 'Showa no Sekai'." That was the codename for Shinichi's home universe. It was actually Ryuki's idea to give the Rider Worlds the name of the primary Rider protecting them for easy reference.

Bernkastel was greeted by the Monitors as she walked by them and she greeted them back, showing respect to these beings who were dedicated to a thankless job. Nobody outside knew of their existence but they did not care for recognition. They were simply performing their duties as they should. Watching over the Multiverse was a huge responsibility and they couldn't rest no matter what.

Bernkastel brought Alan towards one specific Monitor who was sitting in his chair and watching several important events being played out on the numerous screens of his console. He seemed to be watching the screens intently, scrutinizing them, with his arms crossed.

"Excuse me, Monitor-sama," Bernkastel spoke. "You have a visitor." The Monitor of Showa no Sekai stood up and turned to face both Bernkastel and Alan. He stood a head taller than Alan and didn't smile to greet them.

"So, you're finally here. Then we can begin," said the Monitor.

"Wait, I need to know why you brought me here," said Alan. The Monitor looked at Bernkastel and addressed her.

"Did you not tell him?" the Monitor asked the Witch of Miracles.

"I was thinking it'd be much better coming from you than from me," she said.

"So, what exactly am I needed for?" Alan asked. Bernkastel wouldn't have brought him to the Monitor's Headquarters without a reason. Even she didn't have the audacity to disrespect the oldest beings in the Multiverse and guardians of all existence and reality.

"We need you to help us fight the Dark Monitor," said the Monitor.

"Dark Monitor?" Alan asked. The Monitor nodded.

"Yes, you must defeat him, Alan Smith. He is the reason why we sealed off your brother's universe," said the Monitor.

"Yeah, Bernkastel told me what you did but I didn't know why," said Alan. "Thanks for telling me. Not to be rude, but why can't you fight this Dark Monitor? I mean,with your numbers you guys are practically an army. It would be so easy to defeat one guy, right?"

"The Dark Monitor is no simple threat that we can eradicate so easily, I'm afraid," admitted the Monitor. "He was the first and greatest of us all and we are just completely outclassed as his power dwarfs us."

"It'd be a slaughter," said Bernkastel. "That is why they need you."

While Alan had been raised to always help those in need, he still needed to consider their offer. However, with all that was happening, that didn't really leave Alan much time for consideration.

"I'll be happy to help you guys, but I need to know what's in it for me," said Alan.

"If you assist us, Alan Smith, we will give you access to the Bleed," spoke the Monitor.

"What's 'the Bleed'?" asked Alan.

"A bridge between universes," answered the Monitor. "The Dark Monitor wants access to it so he can invade other universes."

"So, I will be able to contact ARMOR," said Alan.

"The Bleed is more than just a bridge, Alan Smith. It's the lifeblood of the Multiverse itself. Consider the links between worlds as veins and the Bleed as the blood that runs through these veins. With the Bleed, a person can become God and create new universes."

"And restore lost ones," added Bernkastel.

"Yes, so many worlds have already been lost," said the Monitor.

"Why can't you use the Bleed yourselves to restore these lost worlds?" asked Alan.

"We have, but the Dark Monitor has been systematically destroying them each time we've attempted," said the Monitor.

"Why?" asked Alan.

"To weaken the barrier around the world you protect," said the Monitor. "Not many know this, but parallel worlds mirror each other in many ways with some minor or major differences. However, they are still linked. They network grows stronger with another link but if a link is destroyed the network grows weaker. We've been using energy from this link to empower the barrier but it's already beginning to grow weaker. Soon, it will be too weak to keep the Dark Monitor away," said the Monitor.

"But what's so special about my brother's world?" asked Alan.

"I cannot tell you, but it must not be lost. You must stop the Dark Monitor before it is too late, at all cost," said Monitor.

"Alright, I'll do it," said Alan. The Monitor nodded.

"Good. Now, come with me and allow me to introduce you to your team," said the Monitor as he led the way.

"My team?" Alan questioned as Bernkastel followed.

"Are you coming?" Bernkastel asked.

Alan followed after the Witch of Miracles and Showa no Sekai's Monitor. He was wondering who were in this team and if he could work with them. This would be their first time meeting each other and this was a huge mission. Saving the Multiverse was something that had only been attempted and succeeded by the select few.

They walked down a long hallway with immaculate walls, ceiling and floor. It looked like it was going forever until the Monitor stood in front of the door. "Your team is behind this door. They've been waiting for you."

"Waiting for me?" Alan asked.

"Yes, and until your arrival we've been keeping them entertained," said the Dark Monitor. The door slid open and Alan saw who his new teammates were. "Meet Captain Marvel, Captain Atom, Apollo and Power Ring," the Dark Monitor introduced.

Captain Marvel was someone familiar to Alan. He wore a red uniform with gold boots and armbands. A gold lightning bolt was on his chest and hanging from his neck by a golden rope was his collared white cape. Around his waist was a gold sash. He had short hair, a muscular frame and strong jaw, but Alan could see a light of innocence in his eyes. He possessed the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles and the speed of Mercury.

Captain Atom was another familiar face. Known also as Captain Nathaniel Adams, he was covered from head to toe in a special containment suit as his real body had been reduced to living atomic energy. If the suit was ever ruptured, his essence could be scattered. The suit that covered his body retained his shape of a muscular male with a short, military hairdo and a strong jaw. He also had red gloves. On his chest was the atomic symbol in red. At the moment, he was sitting on the couch reading comic books, He had a whole stack of them on the table next to the couch. He was performing pushups on the floor and counting, " 1005, 1006, 1007, 1008, 1009."

Apollo had long white hair and wore a white bodysuit with the upper portion colored gold. A white triangle was in the centre of his chest and in its centre was a gold circle. His powers were similar to Alan's Kryptonian abilities as they were solar-powered. He could absorb solar energy and convert super-strength, super-speed, flight, nigh-invulnerability and the ability to fire beams of beat vision from his eyes. He was currently meditating.

The fourth occupant of the room, who was leaning against the wall, was someone that Alan couldn't believe existed. It was himself, an alternate version of himself. He stood at the same height of Alan and had the same hair, but he was wearing something completely different and it seemed to radiate with some kind of dark intent. He wore a black bodysuit with green bands around his forearms and ankles. Over the black bodysuit he wore a reinforced green chestplate which seemed molded around his muscles with broad pauldrons and a high collar. A black cape with green lining hung from his back. His mask was also black and the eyes were green. The symbol of his chest was the emblem of the Green Lantern Corps, but was black with an X in the middle.

"Woah, looks like we're seeing double," said Bazel as he noticed the similarities.

"Everyone, gather around," said the Monitor. "This is your final teammate, Alan Smith." As they were called, the four men dropped what they were doing and approached the Dark Monitor, Alan and Bernkastel.

"So, _he's_ finally here," said Alan's lookalike, a sneer on his face. "About damn time."

Captain Marvel smiled as he shook Alan's hand, "It's such an honor. When I heard about who you were, I couldn't believe that I'm going to be on the same team as you, awesome!"

"Yeah, the feeling's mutual," Alan smiled. He knew that while Captain Marvel had the body of an adult, he was really just a child inside, literally.

Captain Atom saluted Alan, "Let me say that it will be an honor and privilege to work with you, sir."

"Yes, same to you," Alan saluted back. "And don't call me 'sir', alright? I'm not really your CO or anything."

Alan looked his doppelganger who scoffed before speaking rudely, "Can we get this show on the road, like in this century?" He was acting like he didn't want to be here. In fact, he really didn't want to be here but he had his reasons.

"And don't mind Power Ring. He's mean to _everybody_," said Captain Marvel.

"Bite me," Power Ring snapped. Captain Marvel rolled his eyes.

"I hope we can work well together," said Apollo as he held his hand out to Alan. "The fate of the Multiverse depends on the five of us."

Alan took Apollo's hand and shook it, "Yeah, no pressure at all."

"Hey, tell him about the time you fought the Sun God Apollo," Bazel said.

Apollo blinked. "You fought my namesake."

"Yeah, he was a real jerk. He was just jealous that Alan was dating his ex-girlfriend," said Bazel.

"Bazel, please shut up," Alan ordered.

"Cool, a talking bracelet!" Captain Marvel admired.

"Gentlemen, can we please have our attention on the matter at hand?" requested the Monitor. "As you all know, you have all been gathered from different corners of the Multiverse for a very important assignment."

"Yeah, we know," said Power Ring. "We're supposed to be saving the Multiverse from the Dark Monitor. Tell us something we don't know."

"Would you please stop interrupting?" requested Captain Atom.

"Make me, Army Boy," threatened Power Ring as his ring and eyes glowed.

"Power Ring, please behave yourself!" commanded the Monitor. "The sooner we have this briefing done the sooner you can go on your mission and the sooner you're done with your mission the sooner you can go home."

"Yeah, whatever," huffed Power Ring.

The Monitor cleared his throat and explained, "Now, where was I?"

"You started explaining to them why you had gathered them all," said Bernkastel.

"Ah, yes. You've all been gathered to become our strike force against the Dark Monitor," said the Monitor.

"Because you guys are too chicken-shit and useless to do it yourself," retorted Power Ring rudely. A green gag was shoved in his mouth.

"Thank you very much," said Apollo. "We've been trying to figure out a way to shut him up."

"My pleasure," smiled Alan. Power Ring ripped off and crushed the gag.

"Oh, you are so-!" he began.

"**ENOUGH!" **the Monitor roared, causing the supermen to flinch and freeze. "**Pointless infighting and antagonizing each other is a waste of time, time we do not have! You were all gathered because of your skills and you are all needed to work together to defeat the Dark Monitor! You will work together, and like it!**" His nostrils flared and his eyes glowed. "**Is that understood?**"

Bernkastel took over, "The Dark Monitor possesses god-like strength and durability, incredible reality warping powers, vast cosmic powers which include energy and matter manipulation, as well as a very dark and evil heart."

"Thank you, Bernkastel," the Monitor said. "He has been devouring many universes, leading towards the death of my brothers. Therefore, you five must stop him, no matter the cost."

Alan, Captain Marvel, Captain Atom and Apollo nodded, realizing the gravity and severity of the situation. Power Ring just rolled his eyes in an uncaring manner. He was just here to do a job, not care about it like some kind of bleeding heart.

The Monitor waved his hand and created a swirling vortex which resembled a Boom Tube. "This portal will take you where you need to go. Now, time is of the essence. Good Luck, Mighty Supermen."

Captain Marvel went in first, shouting, "Geronimo...!" He was followed by Apollo then Captain Atom and finally Power Ring. Alan was the only one left but he wasn't about to jump in yet.

"Hey, I got a question; if you've been watching, can you tell me who's in charge of the group causing trouble for me and my friends?" asked Alan.

"I will, once you return," said the Monitor. "Now go, your team needs you."

"Right, but you promise me an answer," said Alan.

Alan put on his uniform and became the Sentinel before entering the portal. Once Sentinel had left with the rest of the Supermen, Bernkastel decided to ask, "So, why didn't you tell him the world you watch over is a Keystone?"

"It makes no difference. It is the world he protects so the circumstances don't matter," said the Monitor. "When he returns, we shall tell him the identity of the one responsible for the crises the world I monitor is experiencing."

"So, while we wait for their return, how about some tea and snacks, Mister Monitor?" offered Bernkastel.

"As long as you don't invite Lambdadelta," the Monitor said. "She keeps calling me Monty for some asinine reason."

Bernkastel giggled.

* * *

The team found themselves brownish and crimson landscape. There were ruins and tomb strewn all over. This was the Monitor's Graveyard. Eventually, a universe would die and its corresponding Monitor would die as well. However, with each lost universe, new ones would be born. This was the final resting place of the Monitors whose guarded universes had been destroyed.

"It's...really..." Captain Marvel began, unsure of how to describe the landscape.

"Depressing," Power Ring supplied. He then proceeded to list synonyms, "Bleak, daunting, dejecting, disheartening, dismal, demotivating, dispiriting, dreary, gloomy..."

"Alright, we get it," Sentinel interrupted.

"Well, it's a graveyard," shrugged Power Ring, "How else would I describe it?"

"You know, he may look like you, but he acts like...well...a jerk," said Bazel.

"Yeah, I noticed it too," said Sentinel. He wondered what kind of universe Power Ring came from. "OK, what is with you? You've been abrasive the entire time."

"We've had to deal with him a lot longer by the time you showed up," Captain Atom said to Alan.

Power Ring stated, "I'm not going along with this out of the goodness of my heart. We were each promised the Ultimate Treasure. Ultimate means One. That's all I'm interested in. We're all rivals for that prize!"

"Is that true?" Sentinel asked. The Monitor had promised him The Bleed earlier.

"Yeah, we were all promised something," said Captain Marvel, "But what's more important right now is that we find this Dark Monitor and beat him."

"That is if we can find him," said Bazel.

"Well, if you people would just look, then you'll notice the dark and oppressive castle that's standing in the distance," remarked Power Ring as he pointed at said castle.

"Come on, let's get the move on," said Sentinel. He eyed Power Ring, keeping close watch on him. He could already tell that his lookalike was a flight risk.

"**THAT WON'T BE NECESSARY!"** a demonic voice boomed and soon their environment began to warp around them. The orange colored sky turned dark as galaxies could be seen floating above them.

Sentinel's eyes narrowed at the phenomenon as he realized what was going on, "He's been expecting us."

The castle in the distance also began to distort its shape, transforming into a large humanoid figure with the same rustic skin tones of the Monitors but with an emaciated and skeletal appearance, sporting an evil grin of sharp teeth and cold, soulless eyes which reflected the corrupt soul that dwelled within his vessel. His fingers sported long, and sharp nails. He appeared to be naked, save for a tattered purple cape that appeared to be made of some kind of organic substance, but did not sport any exposed genitalia. Perhaps he had altered his appearance with abilities so that he would not expose his genitalia or had them removed due to his insanity. Whatever the reason, his frightful appearance and gigantic size brought chills to Captain Marvel even though he possessed the Courage of Achilles.

This was Mandrakk the Dark Monitor, the entity eating entire universes to power himself and the primary objective of their mission. They had to defeat Mandrakk, no matter the cost.

"Well, come on! This just makes things easier!" Power Ring shouted as he flew straight at the gigantic Mandrakk.

"No, stop!" Sentinel shouted as he took off to save his foolish counterpart.

"Come on, men! It's go time!" Captain Atom ordered as he flew after Sentinel and Power Ring. Apollo followed without hesitation as Captain Marvel dashed his fears away to confront the giant Mandrakk.

"Here, have some of this!" Power Ring shouted as he used his green ring to generate a backpack which was connected to a myriad of heavy duty weapons. He launched missiles and laser beams at Mandrakk while laughing, "DIE! DIE! DIE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Damn...! He's crazy!" said Bazel as Sentinel watched Power Ring release an entire salvo of regenerating ammunition into Mandrakk's face. A normal entity would've definitely been harmed by such an attack. However, Mandrakk was beyond anything normal.

Power Ring panted as he spent all his weapons which faded away. As the smoke and dust cleared, his eyes widened as he saw that Mandrakk was unharmed and grinning.

"**BEGONE, INSECT,"** bellowed Mandrakk as he _flicked _Power Ring with his index finger and sent the screaming anti-hero flying. Captain Atom caught him in midair.

"You OK there, soldier?" asked Captain Atom. Power Ring struggled to get out of Captain Atom's hold.

"Let go of me, Soldier Boy!" snapped Power Ring. He felt humiliated, and that angered him. He gritted his teeth and aimed his ring at Mandrakk.

"We need to do this, altogether!" said Sentinel as he powered up his ring and Bazel. "On my mark! On three!"

"Is that 1, 2, 3 or just three?" Captain Marvel asked.

"THREE!" Sentinel shouted and he fired a beam of intense emerald energy from his hands which Power Ring also did. Apollo fired intense heat beams from his eyes as Captain Atom fired atomic beams from his hands. Captain Marvel pointed his hands at Mandrakk and fired bolts of lightning from them. The energy attacks traveled through the air, heading for Mandrakk, but he just waved his hands and caused the energy blasts to just fizzle out.

"Did he just cancel you guys out?" Bazel asked.

Mandrakk pointed his index finger at the supermen and fired a bolt of lightning which then spread out into an entire web of lightning. The attack was so fast it hit Captain Atom and Apollo. Captain Marvel, however, was able to hold back the lightning while Power Ring and Sentinel formed barriers which dispersed the lightning as it hit them. Mandrakk then stomped towards them and swatted the ring-wielders out of the sky like flies before grabbing hold of Captain Marvel in both his bony, skeletal hands.

"**YOU ARE BUT A CHILD AND I AM A TITAN. NOW, DIE YOU WORTHLESS LITTLE CHILD,"** said Mandrakk ruthlessly as he started to crush Captain Marvel who resisted with his super-strength. He gritted his teeth, veins appearing on his neck and temples as he exerted force to counter Mandrakk's squeezing.

Mandrakk howled as he was hit in the eyes by Captain Atom's atomic energy. While he was so focused on Captain Marvel, he was unable to bring up a defense. Captain Atom was joined by Apollo who swooped in and fired his heat vision at Mandrakk's hands, forcing him to release Captain Marvel.

"Thanks," smiled Captain Marvel.

"You're welcome, but I think we should make haste," said Apollo and Captain Marvel nodded as Mandrakk started to recover. The flew out of his reach and Mandrakk stomped after them, only for his foot to be caught in a green bear trap which clamped on his ankle. He tripped and fell upon the graveyard as Power Ring laughed.

"That's for flicking me you Cryptkeeper from Tales from the Crypt rip-off," Power Ring grinned. He then constructed a giant jackhammer and drove it into the Dark Monitor's back before jackhammering him into the ground, causing the ground to shake. Mandrakk tried to get up but green stakes pierced the back of his hands and legs, sticking him to the ground as Power Ring continued with his merciless assault. "DIE! DIE! GO INTO THE GROUND AND BE BURIED! THIS IS A GRAVEYARD, ISN'T IT!? HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"OK, I kinda find this one disturbingly frightening," said Bazel. Sentinel nodded in agreement at Bazel's assessment of Power Ring, reminded of Yuji's insane twin brother Yuri. "He's one twisted motherfucker."

Somewhere in Paris in Showa no Sekai, Yuri sneezed.

Power Ring stopped to admire his handiwork but as the dust cleared and settle, the single gigantic Dark Monitor had split himself into five individual Dark Monitors, each sporting the same demonic and skeletal emaciated form as well as purple capes. They each stood at six foot tall.

The five Dark Monitors; A, B, C, D, and E all flew at the five supermen to engage them separately. Sentinel nearly had his face scratched off as Dark Monitor A tried to use his claws on him. Apollo ended up fighting B, while Atom, Marvel and Power Ring fought C, D and E respectively.

Dark Monitor A fired a beam of dark energy at Sentinel who dodged. The demonic Monitor continued to fire a series of dark energy beams. Sentinel dodged with loop-de-loop before firing a beam to counter Dark Monitor A's beam, only for the dark beam to swallow it up before speeding towards Sentinel. He was hit by the beam's concussive force and sent crashing to theground, knocking down gravestones.

Dark Monitor B grinned as he and Apollo exchanged blows in midair. Apollo went for a right hook but Dark Monitor B caught his fist in his hand. His chest then opened up, much to Apollo's disgusted horror, before a fist flew out and smashed into Apollo's face. Dark Monitor B continued to punch the white-haired hero with his 'chest fist' before adding in his free fist to knock Apollo's face back and forth. Apollo was disoriented by the punches as Dark Monitor B released him before blasting him with a dark energy burst that sent him crashing to the ground. Using his reality warping powers, he conjured meteorites that rained down on Apollo. The ground was filled with explosions which left large craters.

Captain Atom fired his atomic rays at Dark Monitor C and he turned himself into smoke, leaving his body unharmed. He reformed and fired his own version of Captain Atom's atomic ray which Atom blocked with his hands. Dark Monitor C grinned as he pumped more volume into his blast. He then stopped and teleported, reappearing behind Captain Atom. He buried his fist into Captain Atom's spine then grabbed hold of his throat before behind him backwards over his shoulder. Dark Monitor C then carried Captain Atom into the air and dove to the ground with the atomic hero. The impact when they hit was so great, it knocked loose a few more gravestones. Dark Monitor spat at Captain Atom's fallen form and grabbed him by the front of his uniform.

"So, this is what the Monitors have sent against me. Sacrificial lambs," he mocked.

Captain Marvel was in trouble too as Dark Monitor D hurled the loose tombstones at him with what appeared to be telekinesis. Captain Marvel shattered the stones with his punches but then the fragments were starting to hit him like bullets. He put his forearms up to block them as Dark Monitor D collected the fragments of the tombstones and fused them together to form a ten-foot tall golem. Riding on the golem's back, Dark Monitor D commanded his construct to beat Captain Marvel to the ground. Captain Marvel was flattened by the golemn's fist and it lifted him up with its hands.

Dark Monitor D spoke, "You look like a grown man, but with the heart of a child." He snapped his fingers and instantly, in a flash of lightning, Captain Marvel reverted back to Billy Batson, a 12 year old boy who gained the power to become Captain Marvel.

"SHA-" Billy began to shout only for the Dark Monitor D to cover his mouth with his hand. He wiggled a finger disapprovingly.

"No shouting," scolded the Dark Monitor D as he prepared to fire a dark energy beam at Billy to blow his head off. However, he was knocked off his perch by a blast of green energy. Several more beams blasted the golem to pieces and Billy landed on his rear. He looked up and spotted Power Ring.

"Thanks," said Billy.

"Suit up, kid, or get out," Power Ring ordered before he was knocked out of the sky by Dark Monitor E. "OK, that's it!" Power Ring opened his mouth and fired a blast of emerald energy which came out in the form of destructive waves. The attack smashed into Dark Monitor E and he was disoriented. Power Ring then formed a giant hammer and smashed Dark Monitor E down to the ground and hammered him in like a nail.

"SHAZAM!" Billy shouted and a bolt of lightning changed him into Captain Marvel. "Alright, it still works here!" He zoomed at Dark Monitor D and hit him with a bolt of lightning. The Dark Monitor clone hissed then vanished before he was hit. "Huh?"

The other clones also vanished, becoming one to become the original Dark Monitor once more. "Now, this is where the fun and games end," he said and he snapped his fingers. The five supermen suddenly dropped out of the sky and onto their hands and knees, as if they were being pulled down by gravity. Of course, Mandrakk the Dark Monitor had reality warping abilities and do anything he wanted, within his own reason. So, increasing the gravity of this realm was not beyond his ability while leaving himself unaffected.

"Damn...fuck...fucking cheater!" shouted Power Ring as he struggled to pick himself up. "Asshole!"

"For once," grunted Apollo, "I agree."

Captain Atom tried to push himself back up to his feet but was pulled down by gravity and onto his hands and knees. "Come on...come on...you can do this...Atom..."

"I feel...heavy..." said Captain Marvel. Sentinel said nothing as the Dark Monitor grinned at them. He could destroy them at anytime. He was the destroyer of universes and by feeding on their energy and the Bleed, he was practically a god. However, those Monitors kept him from his rightful place, imprisoning him in this realm between realms known as the Monitor's Graveyard. But in time he would gain enough power and devour the Keystone world.

Dark Monitor approached Power Ring and said, "I sense much darkness and maliciousness in you. Why did the Monitors select you?"

"They needed the extra muscle," replied Power Ring, "And they offered me power; lots and lots of power."

"Well, if it's power you crave then I can give it to you," said Dark Monitor as he began to persuade Power Ring. "Did you know why I ended up like this?"

"Don't really care about your life story, bub," said Power Ring.

"The Monitors betrayed me. They turned their backs on me and betrayed me. So, if they weren't going support me then I decided to help myself to the power of the Multiverse. I mean, just look at what has happened. You're all beaten. Join me, and you won't share their fate," said Mandrakk. Power Ring looked at his allies who just looked at him. He considered Mandrakk's words. He had god-like reality warping powers. What chance did they have? And he liked his existence. He didn't want to be wiped out.

"Dark Monitor," Power Ring grinned. "You've got yourself a deal." With those words, Mandrakk released Power Ring from his gravitational field and Alan's doppelganger rose to his full height and shook hands with Mandrakk.

"You...you traitor!" Apollo shouted.

"How could you!?" cried out Captain Marvel.

"Deserter! You should be court-martialed!" snapped Captain Atom.

Sentinel said nothing, but Bazek did call Power Ring, "Scum sucking cockbite!"

"Hey, what can I say? I'm smart enough to join the winning side," smiled Power Ring. Mandrakk then approached Sentienl, who he sensed was the mightiest of them all.

"Tell me Sentinel...what shall we engrave upon your _**tombstone**_!?" the Dark Monitor asked as he got down on one knee in front of Sentinel to look him in the eye. How does it feel that all your efforts were for naught? In fact, doesn't it feel horrible?"

"Hey, screw you, you creepy, skinny, son of a bitch!" snapped Bazel. Dark Monitor ignored him and continued to taunt Sentinel. He made Sentinel listen to the screams of the people who needed him and Sentinel could hear every last one of them.

"There! Can you hear it Sentinel? So small, so far away! That's the sound of you failing everyone you promised to save!" the Dark Monitor taunted.

"I haven't failed yet, asshole!" Sentinel shot back. "The only failure is the failure of someone who gives up!"

"Then why don't you give up and cease this pointless resistance! Face it, you've lost and it's the fault of the Monitors who've sent you to your death!" added the Dark Monitor.

"No matter what, I won't give up. I won't ever surrender. There are people waiting for me and I made a promise and swore a vow that I will return to them," Sentinel shot back. "And nobody, not even you, is going to stop me!" Much to the Dark Monitor's surprise, he put both his hands against the Dark Monitor's chest and pushed him back with a burst of intense emerald energy. Bazel's gem began to shine.

"Partner, are you ready?" asked Bazel.

"Always," said Sentinel. He shot a glare at the Dark Monitor and shouted, "LET'S GO!"

"**XROS FUSION!" **The beam of power shot out and engulfed Captain Marvel before he vanished and Sentinel's body began to shine. Once the glowing died down, Sentinel stood wearing Marvel's uniform but in his colors. "Xros Fusion: Marvel Sentinel!" Marvel Sentinel dashed towards Dark Monitor and hit him with an electrified punch followed by a kick to the groin that sent him skyward. He then used his ring to form a giant baseball bat and also a huge round bomb. He lobbed the bomb and with a thwack of the bat sent it flying at the Dark Monitor and it exploded. "Release!" Marvel Sentinel commanded, splitting Sentinel and Marvel apart.

"Did we just...?" a bewildered Marvel began to ask.

"Yes, we did," said Sentinel. "Excuse me. Atom, you and me next!"

"Right!" Captain Atom prepared himself.

"**XROS FUSION!"**

Dark Monitor righted himself in the air but then all of a sudden a silver streak smashed into him from the right, then the left, the from above, below, the right, the left, and this went on for a full five minutes before it stopped and Dark Monitor spun in place, dizzy. He regained his balance and glared at the one who dared to strike him so.

"Xros Fusion: Atomic Sentinel!" It was Sentinel, but without his cape and sporting Captain Atom's symbol on his chest. He formed a ball of atomic energy in his hands and was about to throw it at Dark Monitor who prepared a defense. But as he was about to throw it, he moved at the speed of light and was right in front of him. "Tag, you're it," said Atomic Sentinel as he buried the ball of atomic energy into the Dark Monitor's stomach and it exploded. The corrupted Monitor shrieked as he plummeted to the ground at great speed, like a comet, and smashed into the ground with explosive force, sending dust and tombstones flying and forming a large crater, like a meteorite. The Xros Fusion cancelled out and both Sentinel and Atom shook hands.

"Thank you, Captain," smiled Sentinel.

"You're welcome, sir," said Atom as he saluted.

Sentinel rolled his eyes and took off after Dark Monitor as he shouted, "Apollo, you're up next! **XROS FUSION!**"

The Dark Monitor picked himself up but was assaulted by enemy fire. Glaring up, he saw the Sentinel, without his cape again, but with the upper part of his black uniform colored in gold and sporting Apollo's symbol. His silver hair was also noticeably longer. Flanking him were green construct resembling the Kiva Arrow and Faiz Blaster while grasped in his hands was a construct resembling the Blade Blade.

"FIRE!" Apollo Sentinel ordered and the Faiz Blaster fired a narrow energy beam which hit the Dark Monitor, forming a huge cone that immobilized him. The Kiva Arrow shot an arrow into the cone, causing it to spin like a drill and burrow painfully through the Dark Monitor's chest. Swinging the Blade Blade, he shot an arch of solar energy at Dark Monitor and he was hit with the power of the sun which exploded right in his face.

Apollo and Sentinel separated before landing on the ground together with Power Ring, Captain Atom and Captain Marvel. The smoke and dust cleared as Mandrakk's silhouette could be seen and he walked towards them, now showing some damage after the continuous assault he had just received.

Power Ring was stunned by this development and realized his folly, "Oh shit." Sentinel stood before him, arms crossed, "You are not gonna try and fuse me with you," Power Ring warned.

"Like I'd ever want you sharing a body with me for a second, you **traitor**," spat Sentinel in disgust. Using his ring he formed a flat gong-like construct which was decorated with the Green Lantern Corps' symbol. Chains shot out from it and bound Power Ring against it. he struggled to free himself but Sentinel wasn't about to let him. Sentinel then formed a pair of bachi (Japanese taiko drumsticks) which were topped with demonic skulls.

"Now, time for my drum solo," said Sentinel. After tapping the bachi together, he began to beat rapidly on the gong and the vibrations caused Power Ring to scream in pain. He kept up the drum beats before finishing off with a simultaneous smash of both bachi which caused the gong-like construct to explode with so much force that it sent Power Ring flying. Power Ring soared unwillingly across the graveyard, smashing tombstones to pieces along the way, until he was out of sight. "I knew those drum lessons would come in handy," Sentinel commented.

The Dark Monitor had enough of this and with his power formed a black hole in the sky that began sucking all matter in the area like a giant vacuum cleaner. He was going to destroy them with this and wipe them out of existence.

"Heh, sore loser," scoffed Bazel as he evaluated the Dark Monitor's desperate attempt to achieve victory.

"Yes," agreed Sentinel as he stood his ground along with the four other members of their team. "Everyone, dig in your heels and stand your ground! Don't let the black hole suck you in!"

"And then what?" shouted Marvel.

"On my mark!" Sentinel ordered and they understood. "Alright...MARK! FIRE!" Sentinel fired a beam of green energy from his hands and also shot Mandrakk with his heat vision. Apollo also fired his heat vision as Arom fired an atomic energy beam. Captain Marvel shot lightning at Mandrakk alongside his teammates.

"**FOOLS! UTTER FOOLS! THIS IS POINTLESS! YOU MAY HAVE INJURED ME BUT I AM A GOD! YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME!**" bellowed the Dark Monitor.

"That's what you think, asshole!" shouted Sentinel. "Cross your streams!" That did the trick as they crossed their energy attacks together, resulting in one beam of unstable power that hit Mandrakk with enough force to cause an explosion that threw him into the air, and right in front of the black hole he had made.

"**No! No! Nonononono! NOOOOOOOOO!**** This isn't over Sentinel! I await you where all things end! And I will return when you're at your weakest! Broken, beaten and**_** alone...!**_**" **Mandrakk screamed as he fell into the dark abyss of the void until there was only silence. The black hole imploded in on itself and winked out of existence.

"And that is how heroes do it, huh, Partner?" said Bazel.

"Yeah, and we didn't even have to use Kusanagi," said Sentinel. "Although..." Kusanagi had been forged by a goddess. It might've been able to do some harm to the Dark Monitor. Well, they would never know. The Dark Monitor was gone anyway.

Sentinel went and stood before one of the graveyard's massive tombstones. "What's on your mind, Sentinel?" asked Captain Marvel.

"Mandrakk asked what words would be on my tombstone." Sentinel used his heat vision to carve something into the massive stone. "Only these. Let them be a warning...to all that worships evil's might."

"OK, now that we beat that guy, how are we going to get-" Bazel began before they suddenly vanished.

* * *

"-back?" Bazel finished and found them back at the Monitor's HQ. He remarked, "Well, that was easy."

"Congratulations, gentlemen," said the Monitor of Showa no Sekai with Bernkastel next to him. There was also Lambdadelta, much to his annoyance.

"Looks like you won our bet, Monty," the blonde witch grinned. The Monitor grimaced at the disrespectful nickname. "They did pull through."

"Making a miracle happen," Bernkastel finished. "That's what heroes do." She smiled at Sentinel in approval.

"I'm sorry that Power Ring betrayed you," apologized the Monitor.

"He was a jerk," said Captain Marvel.

"Yeah, and I'm kinda questioning your choice about him," added Bazel.

"Bazel, don't be rude," scolded Sentinel. "So, what's next?"

"What comes next is that you are all returned to your home dimensions, especially you Alan Smith. You have a crisis to avert and a world to save," said the Monitor.

* * *

Power Ring was left alone in the graveyard and cursing angrily as he kicked a tombstone and smashed it to bits, "Damn! Damn! Damn! This is fucking bullshit!" He had joined the winning side, only to lose, and got himself knocked out by his goodie-two-shoes counterpart. Now he was left behind, thrown away and abandoned. He wanted to get back at Sentinel but there was no way for him to get out of his graveyard. "Now I'm stuck here!"

"_**You're not alone...Power Ring...**_" a familiar dark voice whispered in Power Ring's ear and he turned, eyes widening as he saw _he _had returned from _his _supposed demise, "._**..My apprentice...**_"

On the tombstone that Sentinel had carved earlier with his heat vision were the following words:

"**TO BE CONTINUED"**

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: **And that was the second chapter for the Rise of Evil Arc. I know, some of you might be confused and wonder what the point of this chapter was. Well, I think it was just explained that Alan needed to save the Multiverse. However, the ending there is ominous and you can bet that it isn't the last we'll see of Mandrakk and Power Ring. Credit for this chapter's idea goes to Shadow Element 13. Credit for writing and editing this chapter goes to me. Now, I sure hope you guys can be generous enough to give some very good reviews or constructive criticism. It helps me improve as a writer. No flames, of course. I like criticism but no flames. Those are just bad reviews with no grounds. Which is just sad and all.

* * *

**PREVIEW FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER...**

Yukie Akasaka could only tremble in fear as she looked outside. The clear blue sky had turned blood red. Instead of clouds she saw a sea of infinite Earths colliding and exploding, dooming billions to extinction.

Yukie uttered, "Oh god, what's happening to the sky?! Look what they've done to the sky!"

Mamoru Akasaka questioned, "How can we stop this!?"

Yukie held her daughter close to her as tears fell from her eyes.

Yukie said, "Nobody can stop this. We're powerless against them. This is the end of the world."

Miyuki then spotted something in the distance out the window. And spoke the words that would one day inspire hope for a better tomorrow.

Miyuki shouted, "Mama! Papa! LOOK! Up in the sky!"


	195. The Legacy of Cain Part 139

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 139: Rise of Cain/Heroes Homecoming**

Vandal Savage, a true human immortal, was sitting comfortably in his chair with a serene smile on his face. It was as if something good was about to happen. For so long he had waited for this day and now it had come. All he had to do was to be extremely patient. When you were immortal and sent back in time, patience is the only thing you could call your own. Savage was calm, collected, pragmatic and very ambitious. He felt that as an immortal he had the right to rule the world and as an immortal he could rule it forever. However, heroes like Alan Smith took exception to that.

Savage and Alan were in fact old enemies. Back in their native universe the two had battled many times. The teenage Green Lantern would often foil his plans but Savage would manage to get away to come up with a new scheme for world domination. In his and Alan's last epic battle, the Green Lantern had tossed Savage through a Dimensional Rift which was a gateway to other alternate universes. They were rare but they still existed. People who were picked up by them would disappear without a trace and end up deposited in an alternate universe similar to their own with either subtle or major differences. Sometimes the Dimensional Rifts could even deposit someone in the past or future of an alternate timeline or universe.

When Savage awakened after being sent flying through the rift, he found himself in an ancient yet very familiar setting. It was 50,000 BC on prehistoric Earth. When he realized this, he screamed as he lost his temper. However, screaming obscenities into the Heavens was not a solution so he decided to think of what he would do until the modern age of man. Traveling alone, he found his alternate past self as a mortal caveman. He'd heard of a theory that if one were to kill one's alternate self, the energy of said alternate self would be absorbed. The theory wasn't his true motive for killing his alternate past self. The world did not need two Vandal Savages.

So, Vandal Savage lived, survived, and waited. He just waited as time went by. He didn't age so he saw it all happen again before his eyes. He wasn't content with doing nothing so he did something. He saw civilizations rise and crumble one after another and in fact he himself had actually participated in these historical events himself, becoming a catalyst for a few major historical events. In history he was known by many aliases and had been the centre of several historical events.

His actions, of course, gained him the attention of the Witch of Terror, Anastasia. She took Savage as a lover and they spent many passionate nights together until she became pregnant with his child. The child born was a demonic abomination that would be known as the Dark Being...the progenitor of the Darkloid race. Still, time went on and Savage made use of his time productively. He made plans for himself to be implemented in the future.

Then, one day when he was travelling through Japan in its feudal age, he saw Alan Smith fighting the Yamata no Orochi. After all this time he finally saw the one who had sent him to this world again. He didn't interfere but he kept watching and saw the kind of power Alan possessed. He had become stronger, too strong in fact, and this was something Savage needed to counter when the time came.

After Alan left, Savage waited again as centuries passed. He fought in many wars like the American Revolution, the American Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Vietnam War...all because he was bored and as an immortal he was the perfect soldier. He could not be killed no matter what. These were all just things to do to pass the time. In his free time, he tried to build a machine that would manipulate the Dimensional Rifts and finally after much time and effort he was able to come into contact with a Multiversal organization of evil known as LEVIATHAN and they knew much about him. He was very famous. They decided to help him by providing him with technology and in exchange he would provide them with financial backing. As an immortal, he had accumulated much wealth and was the richest man alive. He could purchase entire empires if he wanted to.

Not long after making contact with LEVIATHAN, he met with another who had fallen through the Dimensional Rift. The man was known as Doctor William Gebok, a man who was an expert in genetics and cybernetics. He had founded the organization known as GIN-SHOCKER in his home universe out of revenge against the humans who had taken his family from him but he was defeated and he had no choice but to escape. However, his machine that sent him here had caused his body to suffer from severe physical degradation. So, Savage decided to help the man and transplant his brain into a mechanical life-support system which would then become part of Million. Together with Savage and LEVIATHAN's support, Million founded the new GIN-SHOCKER organization in Showa no Sekai. It was with their support he could build his army, genetically engineer his executives, and expand his organization. It was also through LEVIATHAN and Savage's support that Million could accomplish Project NUMBERS to create the ultimate weapon. Even after the fall of GIN-SHOCKER, Savage had helped Million to create X-SHOCKER. Savage had also used LEVIATHAN to bring many of Alan's enemies to Showa no Sekai. If he was going to defeat the heroic teen he was going to need help and subordinates. Inviting Million and Anastasia, he formed the Gauntlet whose membership comprised of himself as the leader with Faust, Black, Million, Anastasia and Henshaw taking their seats as part of his ruling body for the Religion of Crime known as the Gauntlet.

* * *

It was just too hard to believe that the NEO-NUMBERS had completely fallen under the control of the Religion of Crime. As much as Hanyuu and Rena didn't want to believe it, the truth was that now they would have to fight against the people they love. Unfortunately for them, the NEO-NUMBERS were not going to hold back against them. They were under the enemy's control and would obey without question, even if meant destroying those dear to them.

"Shin-kun! Shin-kun, please stop this!" Amazon (Rena) begged as she avoided BLACK 13's strikes. He had his crescent energy blades activated on his forearms and the back of lower legs. They were sharp and deadly, able to cut through almost anything, including flesh, bone and armor. Amazon was still susceptible to damage so she evaded from his attacks while trying to reason with him and reach out to the person she knew who was under that dark armor.

She found an opening and lashed out with her claws, causing sparks to fly as she slashed at him. Sadly, it had no effect and he punched her across the face, sending her tumbling. That blow hurt Amazon in more ways than one. Shinichi had never hit her like that before and it saddened her greatly to see him forced to take such an action. BLACK 13 stood over her and brought his leg down to slice her with his blade but she rolled out of the way and he cut into the ground instead. She got back to her feet and leapt to dodge his energy whips. She then lunged at BLACK 13, performing a flying tackle called the Monkey Attack which sent him stumbling. She then slashed at him repeatedly with her claws before kicking him across the face. He lashed out but he leapt over him and landed behind him to hit his back with a side kick. She then performed a roundhouse kick but he caught her foot. He tossed her up into the air by her foot and sent her spinning before he kicked her through the air, sending her flying.

It hurt Rena Ryuugu, not just physically, but emotionally too. The real Shinichi would have never harmed her like this.

* * *

The ground exploded as Stronger (Hanyuu) leapt into the air to dodge Slasher's fist. He was the biggest and physically strongest of the NEO-NUMBERS next to Shinichi. Unfortunately, his target was Stronger who was also his girlfriend, Hanyuu Furude. Sadly, in his current state under the control of the Anti-Life Equation, she was just a target to be killed. She could use her divine powers on Slasher, but she could risk killing him. However, he had no qualms against killing her.

"I'm sorry, Chiaki-san," she apologized before slapping the ground with both hands. "Electro Fire!" A surge of electricity travelled along the ground towards Slasher. He was zapped by the attack and knocked off his feet, his body twitching and spasming. "Chiaki-san..." Stronger uttered in regret. She watched him slowly rise up, his body still smoking, and looking at her with menacing red eyes. "Chiaki-san..." He sprayed an adhesive goo from the nozzle on his helmet and Stronger jumped away before it hit. He continued spray at her and she dodged again. He chased after her, spraying his adhesive and finally caught her right foot. She was stuck and he hit her violently with one of his chainsaws. Sparks flew from the contact and tears flew from her eyes as she was being hurt by the man she loved. He then kicked her hard, breaking her foot free from the adhesive and sending her rolling painfully on the ground. The goddess picked herself up, panting.

Even though Hanyuu was the embodiment of Hinamizawa's goddess, she was also flesh and blood at the moment and thus her body was mortal. Killing her would just force her back into her spiritual form. However, she did not want to go through such an agonizing process like death again. She wanted to live, and be with Chiaki, and raise a family with him.

It was time for some tough love!

* * *

Ichigo (Mion) was forced to dodge, jumping about like a grasshopper to avoid Zero's needles. "Damn it, Shogo! Get a hold of yourself! I order you to stop!" She didn't exactly expect that to work, but Zero was one of her bodyguards. He had to obey her. It was in his contract. "Goddammit!" He was in the air and out of her reach. She would have to risk using that attack to take him down and hopefully it could knock him back to his senses.

"OK, take this!" Ichigo shouted as she performed her signature move, leaping into the air towards Zero. "Rider Kick!" The flying sidekick hit its target and her foot slammed into Zero, knocking him out of the air. She landed in satisfaction but then she noticed the needles that had missed her were lying on the ground, and glowing. "Uh-oh!" she realized too late as the needles exploded and she went soaring into the air. Zero took advantage of this chance and hit Ichigo with a drop kick that sent her crashing painfully to the ground. "Ow..." she groaned. "That's it...you're fired..."

* * *

Nigo (Shion) ducked, and rolled to evade from Arachnea's Spider Kamas. The blades were sharp, attached to extendable shafts to further their reach, and Arachnea wielded them expertly in her hands. The blades were also coated with a paralyzing venom, which was Arachnea's specialty. She knew all about poisons and that was why her motif as a tarantula was perfect for her. Because of those weapons, Nigo had no way of getting close to execute a proper counter attack. She needed to find a way to disarm Arachnea so she could launch a proper offensive instead of being stuck on the defensive. She needed an opening to take advantage of.

"Come on, come on! I need an opening," she murmured. As one of the Spider Kamas came down she took her chance and jumped. She ran along the shafts, preventing Arachnea from raising her weapon and then jumped to smash her elbow into Arachnea's face, slightly disorienting her. She then used several right and left hooks before using a right cross and then a forward snap kick that sent her stumbling. Arachnea raised her weapons up high but this just gave Nigo the opening she needed.

"Rider Punch!" Nigo's red gloved right fist smashed into Arachnea's chest and sent her flying while disarming her. "Hah, how's that?"  
taunted Nigo but a webline from Arachnea hit Nigo on the chest and got stuck there. "Uh-oh," she let out before Arachnea tugged on the line and dragged Nigo through the air with her. "This suuuccckkks!" screamed Nigo. Arachnea landed on her feet and pulled Nigo towards her to punch him in the face. Nigo flew back but was pulled back with the webline and punched in the face again. Arachnea repeated this, turning Nigo into a human yo-yo. She then kicked Nigo hard and sent her flying back so far that the webline snapped and Nigo fell with a thud on the ground.

Nigo grunted as she picked herself back up, only to feel a sharp pain in her sides. The Spider Kamas had caught her and dug into her sides. The shafts retracted, pulling her towards Arachnea as her feet dragged helplessly along the ground. Nigo tried to resist but that just made the pain worse as the blades continued to dig through the armor. She finally broke free and turned to glare at Arachnea.

* * *

Riderwoman (Satoko) dodged a blast of sound from Musician's Cricket Fork which tore up the ground. She landed a distance away and fired her Machinegun Arm at him but he blocked the bullets with a shield of sound energy, and the bullets fell harmlessly at his feet as they bounced off. Concentrating, he fired another burst of sound and hit Riderwoman square in the chest, knocking her into the air before she crashed to the ground.

"Kuso..." Riderwoman cursed as Musician came running at her with his Cricket Fork. He brought it down to smash her head open but she rolled out of the way. She activated the Swing Arm and lashed out, the spiked ball at the end of the rope hitting Musician in the chest, sending him staggering back. She continued her assault, hitting him over and over, but he was eventually able to grab hold of the rope and dragged Riderwoman to him. He fired a blast of sound at point blank range, cracking her armor and sending her flying with a single toss. She went tumbling across the ground in pain.

* * *

X (Rika) was using the Ridol Stick to parry Carmen's scythe blades. The female Mantis Rider was fast and agile, able to recover quickly to launch another attack. She swung and swiped at X-Rider who was trying her best to fight back. However, Carmen was faster than her and had more experience, not to mention was willing to kill her. X really didn't want to kill the older girl but sadly Carmen wasn't giving her much of a choice in the matter.

Carmen then used her ability to cast illusions and surrounded X with copies of herself. Only one was real but X couldn't tell as they fired their flower-shaped shoulder guns at her at once. X tried to deflect the energy bullets but she couldn't tell where the real ones were coming from and fell to her knees after the cruel assault to be kicked upside the head by the real Carmen. She rose to her feet and thrust her Ridol Stick repeatedly at Carmen who jumped and dodged her attacks before the Mantis Rider planted her foot into X's chest and pushed her backwards before following up with a double slash from her scythes. Rika's weapon was cut into three pieces, rendered useless. She pressed the button of the handle and the broken stick turned into a rapier called the Ridol Whip and both of them engaged each other in combat again.

* * *

V3 (Satoshi) had to run from Armadillo who was rolling after him. It reminded him of that movie about the archaeologist who got chased by a large boulder and right now he felt like that man as Armadillo was chasing after him, leaving trenches in the ground. He was big, round, heavy and covered in spikes that could cause major physical damage if they hit him. V3 did not want to get hit by the Pillbug Rider. He didn't feel like being rolled over and pierced by those spikes. Armadillo unrolled himself and jumped into the air before pulling himself back up. V3 paused to see Armadillo coming down on him then leapt out of the way before he was flattened and made into swiss cheese by the spike-covered ball. Armadillo unrolled himself again and stomped towards V3 with his spiked maces.

"OK, you want to fight so much," V3 cracked his knuckles. "Here we go!" He charged and threw his fist into Armadillo's chest plate. "TAKE THIS!"

**CLANG!**

V3's arm vibrated from the force of the blow and the vibration traveled up his arm to his whole body as he felt his bones tingle. He tried again.

**CLANG!**

And again.

**CLANG!**

And repeatedly.

**CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!**

However, none of his punches did anything to Armadillo's thick armor. V3 backed away, flicking his wrists, wondering out loud, "Itai...What is that armor of yours made off?" The only reply he got was a spiked mace to his face. Fortunately, he wore a helmet so his face was unmarred. Unfortunately, he still got hit in the face with a spiked mace, which hurt! The other spiked mace was driven into V3's stomach and he doubled over before the spiked mace which hit his face was smashed down onto the back of his head, knocking him to the ground. Armadillo then flipped V3's body over with his foot so he faced up then crouched repeatedly over his body.

* * *

Meta possessed multiple talents at his disposal. That was how Gebok had made him. He was a living weapon armed with enhanced senses, super speed, super strength, super durability, psychic powers, shape-shifting, the ability to breathe fire, fly and breathe underwater. Not only that, but each finger of his right arm was a gun, he had missile launchers in his legs and his left arm had a hidden blade. Besides Showa, Meta was the most versatile of the Riders. Of course, so was Kamen Rider Alter (Keiichi).

Armed with his wrist blades called the Alter Claws, Alter slashed at Meta who countered with his left arm blade. Sparks flew as both combatants clashed. Alter brought both his Alter Claws down on Meta only to meet his psychic barrier. Meta pushed him away then shoved him several feet away with a powerful forward arm thrust.

Alter retracted his blades and conjured the Alter Bowgun. He pulled the trigger and fired bolts of energy at Meta who dodged by zigzagging at lightning speed. Meta then retaliated with his own machinegun hand, firing energy bullets which knocked Alter's weapon out of his hands. He leapt up and bent his knees, launching his missiles at the Rider. Alter performed a backflip, landing on his hands and vaulted backwards to avoid the missiles. Landing on his feet, he saw Meta coming at him and summoned his cleaver-like sword known as the Alter Blade.

Meta used his shape-shifting to change his hands into large blades resembling kitchen knives and the two of them clashed with their weapons violently. As their weapons were locked together, Meta kicked Alter in the stomach then disarmed him before slashing him across the chest before changing his hands back to normal. The two of them started to grapple in an attempt to overpower each other with brute force alone. Meta then breathed a stream of fire into Alter's face but he endured the pain before retaliating as he tossed Meta into the air before jumping up to knock him to the ground with an axe kick to the back of the neck. An attack like that would kill a normal person but Meta had received the same cybernetic augmentations and reinforcements as the others, meaning he couldn't be killed by such a lethal move. Meta rolled onto his back and flipped back onto his feet. He turned and threw a fist at Alter at the same time Alter did. Their fists connected to each other's faces in a cross-counter and both combatants broke apart as they skidded backwards in opposite directions. Meta's eyes glowed and he levitated the rocks around them before shooting them at Alter with a simple mental command. Alter conjured the Alter Khakkara and deflected the rocks coming at him with the staff. He then thrust the staff forward and a bolt of energy flew out, hitting Meta explosively in the chest.

Alter banished the staff and his hands shone with electrical energy as he charged at Meta who coated his own hands in glowing psychic energy. The two of them charged at each other and then performed their attacks. Meta hit Alter with Karate chops to the shoulders while Alter drove his electrified fingers into Meta's chestplate. There was an explosion as both of them broke apart.

* * *

"**This is great!" **said DALEK Shiro. **"They're destroying each other! Ooh, it's perfect!" **As Savage and DALEK Shiro continued to watch the show, Felix Faust entered and Savage grinned as he saw him carrying the item he requested. It was a spear, with a long golden shaft and a red spearhead that looked like it had been dipped in blood to possess such a bright red color.

"The Spear of Destiny, Master Savage," presented Faust. "It is ready." Savage took hold of the Spear of Destiny's shaft. It felt good in his hand. DALEK Shiro moved his gaze away from the screen to see the Spear of Destiny, examining it with his single eye.

"Excellent," smiled Savage. Soon all of his planning would come into fruition. "Thank you Faust," said Savage.

"You are welcome, Master," said Faust, bowing.

"And as your reward for your loyalty, I will allow you to play a special role in my grand scheme," said Savage.

"Really, Master?" questioned Faust. He suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest. He looked down and saw the Spear of Destiny buried in his chest. Savage withdrew the Spear of Destiny from Faust's chest with a wet squelching sound as blood splattered the carpet. Faust stumbled, bleeding out of his chest wound with blood dribbling from his mouth. "...Master...?"

"You've served me well, Felix Faust, but unfortunately I need to let you go," said Savage as he watched Felix Faust look at him pleadingly before the life left his eyes and his body dropped dead on the carpeted floor. His blood began to pool as he bled out.

"**WHAT THE FUCK!"** shouted DALEK Shiro in shock at the sight. **"Did you just kill one of your men!?"**

"Yes, indeed," said Savage. "And now to deal with you. I don't need a flight risk." He pointed the Spear of Destiny at DALEK Shiro and the spearhead glowed with red light as he prepared to use it on the DALEK.

"**TROOPERS, EXTERMINATE HIM!**" DALEK Shiro commanded his DALEK Troopers and they fired their guns at Vandal Savage. The man fell with the Spear of Destiny after being hit by a deathray. **"Haha...HAHAHAHAHAHA!"** DALEK Shiro laughed. **"YOU TALK A BIG GAME BUT YOU'RE STILL JUST A WEAK AND WORTHLESS MEATBAG! DALEKS RULE! DALEKS ARE SUPREME! DALEKS ARE-"**

"Are you quite finished?" Savage interrupted DALEK Shiro's premature celebration causing the Supreme DALEK to stop cold as the man rose up and dusted off his clothes.

"**That...THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! IMPOSSIBLE!"** shrieked DALEK Shiro.

"Really? Because I've seen plenty of people survive your supposed deathray." retorted Savage with a smug smile as he picked up the Spear of Destiny.

"**WHAT...WHAT ARE YOU!?"** DALEK Shiro shouted.

"Just an immortal, but soon I will be a god," Savage grinned sadistically. The DALEK Troopers fired upon Savage again but their weapons had no effect on the immortal man. He powered up his Spear of Destiny and shot a series of beams that struck the DALEK Troopers' helmets. They collapsed as the Cyberdrones on their heads were fried, killing them. He then eyed DALEK Shiro, "Now...where was I?" Realizing that remaining where he was would jeopardize his continued existence, DALEK Shiro teleported before Savage could hit him with the power of the Spear of Destiny. "And so he runs, just as I expected," said Savage with an audible sigh. It didn't matter though. He would get rid of DALEK Shiro eventually. He couldn't run forever but presently he wasn't exactly at the top of Savage's list of priorities anyway.

Savage casually walked over to the phone and picked it up before dialing for cleanup. He needed the carpet cleaned and the bodies disposed of. He admired the Spear of Destiny which just had its first taste of blood in a very long time. Soon, it would be drenched in the blood of Alan Smith. He looked forward to that. Shouldering his Spear of Destiny, he went towards the elevator, entered, and went down...leaving the bodies in the meeting room behind to be taken care of.

* * *

The Pseudo-Riders were beaten. It didn't matter if they had the powers of the Legendary Riders. In the end, the NEO-NUMBERS had the advantage because of their experience and superior training. Kamen Rider Alter was still able to stand up to their controlled friends but he was just one Rider against a team of well-trained super-cyborg soldiers.

And what happened next would definitely lower their chances of victory and demoralize them further. BLACK 13 pointed his hand at the Pseudo-Riders and their bodies glowed before their armors vanished and turned into energy which flew into BLACK 13's Spark Core.

"What happened?" Satoshi asked. "Where did our armor go?"

"He took them back," Rena realized. "Shin-kun took them back."

"They were his to begin with," Shion remarked. "Of course he could take them back. He could've taken them back at any moment."

"This was all just a game," Mion realized.

The Ragnarok Riders approached them with Alter the only one remaining to stand up against them. He gulped. He should be able to take them on his own, right? Deep down, he wasn't so sure, but he was going to still try though even if the odds weren't in his favor.

* * *

As the events of Savage's plan slowly began to unfold, and as the battle that was taking place at the Hinamizawa quarry took place, a small set of black storm clouds formed out in the distance near Tokyo. The black clouds swelled as thunder rumbled and violet and blue colored lightning streaked across the clouds. This happened for a few moments when, suddenly, a violet bolt of lightning shot out and struck the rooftop of one of the buildings in the city. Once the bolt hit and vanished, the black clouds dispersed, returning the sky to normal.

As smoke rose from the area of the rooftop that was struck, a figure shrouded by shadows and wearing dark clothing stoop up. Looking around, he began to feel out this world with his senses. But he was not alone for another, more feminine figure, rose up behind him.

"Well, looks like we're here," the woman spoke from her place in the shadows.

"Yeah," said the man. "And it seems we made it to the start of the party." As he looked around, his head snapped over to his right, picking up an energy signature that he had been looking for. "Found them!" He turned and looked to his female compatriot, saying "Mizuna-chan, stay here until I call for you." With that, the man's feet let off a green, flame-like energy as he suddenly moved at blinding speeds, practically vanishing from his spot. It was if he had used some form of Shunpo.

* * *

The underground chamber was located below the skyscraper that the Gauntlet used. This was a temple that also served as the Religion of Crime's primary headquarters. Savage stood upon a balcony, addressing all his loyal subordinates and the villains he had liberated and recruited. Upon seeing him, they all cheered, "VANDAL SAVAGE! VANDAL SAVAGE! VANDAL SAVAGE!"

"My people!" Savage spoke into his microphone, "You've all known what it's like to be humiliated and defeated by the so-called heroes of this world! But, mark my words, today this is all going to change!" They all cheered in response. "In my hand is the Spear of Destiny and with it we will claim our destiny!" The cheers grew louder and then Savage did something they had not expected as he stabbed himself in the heart with the Spear of Destiny, causing them all to gasp.

When Savage stabbed himself in the heart with the Spear of Destiny, the entire chamber was bathed in crimson light. Savage screamed in agony as he felt as if his body was being set aflame, his clothes being reduced to ash. As the light subsided, there stood Savage without his shirt and wearing the tattered of his trousers, leaving him barefoot. His chiseled, muscular form was left exposed, colored an almost bronze color. His eyes glowed as they radiated with unholy crimson flames. On his face, glowing crimson like the Spear of Destiny, was the Mark of Cain, which resembled a stylized U that was cut down the middle by a vertical slash, bleeding with red fire as Savage gritted his teeth and breathed heavily. Raising his Spear of Destiny into the air, he declared, "**THE AGE OF CAIN HAS BEGUN!**"

And the villains cheered boisterously.

* * *

Yukie Akasaka could only tremble in fear as she looked outside. The clear blue sky had turned blood red. Instead of clouds she saw a sea of infinite Earths colliding and exploding, dooming billions to extinction.

Yukie uttered, "Oh god, what's happening to the sky?!"

Mamoru Akasaka questioned, "How can we stop this!?"

Yukie held her daughter close to her as tears fell from her eyes.

Yukie said, "Nobody can stop this. We're powerless. This is the end of the world."

Miyuki then spotted something in the distance out the window. And spoke the words that would one day inspire hope for a better tomorrow.

Miyuki shouted, "Mama! Papa! LOOK! Up in the sky!" There she saw it, a shooting star that was colored bright green, shooting across the sky. She quickly closed her eyes and clasped her hands together, making a wish.

* * *

The Gaming Club could also see what was happening in the sky, but right now they had even more pressing matters to be concerned about. Rena and the others could only watch helplessly with their bodies racked with pain as their former friends fought Alter as a group. He didn't last long and was soon pinned with Armadillo, Zero and Musician holding him down and with Carmen, Meta, Slasher and Arachnea keeping their weapons trained on him. This only left BLACK 13 who slowly strode towards his 'former' friends, his eyes solely set on Rena as his crimson energy blade formed once more. With no strength left to physically defend herself and no Rider powers, Rena could only try to call out to him again; to try and bring back her Shin-kun.

"Shin-kun…please, don't do this," Rena begged but her pleas were falling on deaf ears. He either wouldn't listen to her or the Anti-Life Equation was still too strong to overcome. Whichever it was, it was no use as BLACK 13 raised his arm, blade held out, and ran at her. "Shin-kun, please!"

"**YAMERŌ!**" Alter screamed, being forced to watch as one of his dearest friends was about to meet her end at the hands of his other good friend.

As BLACK 13 got within striking range, he struck at her with his blade; Rena screwing her eyes shut as she awaited her end. After a moment, she noticed that she felt no searing hot pain except for the pain she felt from the previous battle. Slowly lowering her arms and opening her eyes, she was surprised to see that BLACK 13 had stopped his attack, but not of his own free will. No, she saw that someone had stepped in and stopped his attack. Someone new…yet familiar. The rest of the HRC also saw the backside of the person holding BLACK 13 at bay but they couldn't see his face as his back was facing them. But Alter was able to see him and he was shocked, confused, relieved and completely ecstatic all at once. BLACK 13 struggled to break his arm free of the newcomer's grip and prepared to thrust his boot into the interloper's gut when the mystery man reacted, pulling back his hand which held onto BLACK 13's arm and delivering a powerful head-butt to the Justifier which sent him reeling.

BLACK 13 staggered backwards for a few feet before regaining his equilibrium, shaking out his head as he glared at the mystery man from behind his helmet. The rest of the Ragnarok Riders released Alter, joining BLACK 13 as they prepared to take the newcomer out as a unified force of destruction. As they prepared to carry out their assault, Rena looked at the backside of her savior, wondering who he was.

"Who…?" she slowly began to ask. The man, hearing her, turned around and gave her a big smile. Rena and the rest of the HRC nearly gapped as an old ally had returned to join the fray of the past once more. "Eon-san!"

That's right. Back from the future and now standing between the Ragnarok Riders and the HRC was none other than Rune Suller, a.k.a. Kamen Rider Renkin. And he had a much different look to him now. His blonde hair, once long and kept in a braid, was now chin length and kept in a spiky hairstyle. He also no longer wore his black clothes and red jacket. He now wore a white buttoned up dress shirt with a black muscle shirt underneath it, a pair of black pants with neon blue and white trim line patterns around the knees, black high-cuff boots with silver buttons and blue neon trim; said boots stopping just above his calves. He also wore a black, unbuttoned jacket with silver buttons, lightly armored shoulders and the lower sides of the jacket set in a split-tail style with metal plating on the outer side of each tail. The jacket also had white trim patterns on the side and back and the collar rose up, protecting Rune's neck in the form of a semi-high high collar. On the right side of his lapel was the initials and symbol for a group known only as the U.G.S. and on the back of his jacket was his personal symbol, that of Kamen Rider Renkin which was the hexagonal pattern with the Seal of Ouroboros set within it. He also wore a thin black belt with a dual gold trimmed diamond shaped buckle and a pair of black gloves that had the symbol V1 emblazoned on the top sides of each gloves, representing the term 'Victor 1". Around his neck dangled his newly restored Hagane pendant.

"I don't believe it," Mion said in awe.

"But didn't he return to his own time?" Satoshi asked.

As Rune looked at his friends, the Ragnarok Riders charged at him but Rune just threw his arm out while snapping his fingers, instantly performing alchemy and summoning up a set of stone slabs and spikes from the ground, forcing the Ragnarok Riders to fall back while dodging the defense that the ground shot at them. While that kept them busy, Rune walked over and knelt next to Rena, placing a hand on her shoulder. Rena's eyes began to well up with tears. She was so devastated at possibly losing Shinichi that the sight of an old friend was solemn comfort at the moment.

"Eon-san…arigato," Rena choked out as she began to sob.

"Hey, come on now, don't cry," Rune soothed. "Didn't I promise that I'd come back to see you guys again one day?"

Rena nodded. "Yes, you did." Her expression then turned to one of despair. "But Shin-kun…the others…they…" Rune just patted her on the head to calm her down.

"Don't worry, I know what's going on," said Rune as he stood up.

"You do?" questioned Rika as she and the others made their way over to him.

"Yeah," confirmed Rune. "Mizuna-chan gave me the 4-1-1 on what's been going on."

"Mizuna-chan?" they all questioned in unison.

"You all know her better as the Demon Priestess of Time, Aquarius," amended Rune.

As if being summoned, in a flash of blue light, the Demon Priestess appeared next to Rune with her Book of Ages in one hand and the strap to her water jug in the other, said jug slung over her shoulder. "Did someone call for me?" she asked kindly.

"Aquarius-chan, it's so good to see you again," Rena said with a small smile. Aquarius transformed her body from her demon form to that of her human form, showing that she was as beautiful and chipper as ever.

"But I don't understand," said Mion. "I thought that the time storm that brought you here and then took you back was a complete fluke. And didn't Aquarius once say that she couldn't access the future of our world at any point after the end of this year?"

"I did say that but I also said I could probably go to about 200-300 years at best if I tried hard enough," Aquarius told her.

"But if that's the case, then how did you get Rune from his era and bring him back to ours? Hanyuu asked. "To get past the barrier and into his era, especially when he's from nearly 400 years in the future, that's gotta take a lot of power."

"Yeah, some serious power," Satoko added.

Rune just rubbed the back of his head. "Let's just say...she got a power boost from some new friends and leave it at that for now."

"We'll explain everything later," added Aquarius. "For the moment though, we have bigger problems.

Looking to her, Rune said, "Think you can use your Healing Water on them while I go take care of the others?"

"Shouldn't be a problem," Aquarius said with a bright smile.

"Thanks. And when you're done, go find Mammon and the others, whoever you can get, and bring them back here," Rune instructed. He then turned and faced the Ragnarok Riders as they destroyed the last of the slabs and spikes and then turned their gazes upon him. "And work fast, because I don't know if I can hold all eight of them off by myself for long."

Aquarius nodded and went to work, first using her superior speed to collect Alter, bringing him back to the group. After all the fighting he had done, he needed a good rest. She then went about opening her water jug. The moment the top popped off, a blue mist flowed out and washed over the HRC, slowly beginning the healing process. Aquarius would stay with them as they healed, just in case one of the Riders slipped past Rune.

* * *

Watching the newest set of events unfold, Cain slightly scowled at the sight of the alchemist from the future trying to foils his plans once more. It didn't matter though. Even if Rune did find a way to turn the Ragnarok Riders back to normal, none of them could stop the future that Cain himself was about to write. His endgame was now set in motion and nothing, not even one more Rider, could tip the balance of power from his favor.

"Worthless bug," Cain said quietly. "Whatever you accomplish will make no difference for, in the end, I will win."

* * *

**(**_**Insert Song: Switch On! – By: Anna Tsuchiya**_**)**

As Aquarius took care of the members of the HRC, Rune rushed into the charging force of the Justifies, instantly taking on his Victor form. Luckily, after returning to his own time, he had been able to gain a White Kakugane so as to counteract most of the Victorization process but he also trained in mastering the use of his Life Drain ability, now being able to turn it on and off at will. The first to launch an attack was Armadillo who struck at Rune with his spiked mace. Rune blocked the attack with his Bio-Soul Metal arm, parrying it away before delivering a powerful thrust kick into Armadillo's chest, knocking him right into Meta and Musician. Rune quickly ducked under a scythe slash from Carmen before performing a mid-air tornado twirl after jumping up to avoid a strike from Arachnea's Spider Kama's. Landing on his feet, he blocked a right hook from BLACK 13 before hitting Slasher in the knee with a kick, taking his leg out for the moment.

As he prepared to punch BLACK 13 in the face, he noticed Zero taking aim so, acting quickly, he grabbed BLACK 13 and pulled him in front of himself, using the Justifier as a human shield. BLACK 13 grunted as Zero fired his needles, the attack ripping sparks off of his armor. Shoving BLACK 13 to the ground, Rune then slapped his hands together before sliding his left hand over his right arm, forming his Bio-Soul Blade (BSB for short). Then, using a technique that Mammon had taught him once before, he formed a bluish-white mana blade, similar to the ones the Stakes could use, from his left arm. Running at the Riders who were still standing, Rune used his BSB to slash Zero across the chest while parrying Carmen's scythes with his mana blade. He then kicked Zero upside the head with a roundhouse, sending him to the ground. Turning around, he received a burst of sound waves right in the chest from Musician, sending him flying across the ground. Landing on his back, Rune performed a flip to right himself, landing on his feet. The moment he faced the Ragnarok Riders, he found himself blocking strike after strike of Arachnea's Spider Kamas. He was glad that he had took some time to train with them during his previous visit as it allowed him to memorize some of their attack patterns.

'_Man, these guys aren't playing around,_' Rune groaned inward.

He needed to slow them down some so, deciding to level the playing field a bit, he switched on his Life Drain ability before grabbing Arachnea's Spider Kama's. With a hard yank, he pulled her over to him and took hold of her wrist. Just being near him was enough that she began to fall to her knees. Not wanting to cause her any permanent damage, Rune kicked her away before rushing to meet the rest of them head on. Being right next to Rune, they all fell to their knees momentarily. After sapping away a bit of their energy and replenishing his own, Rune switched off his Life Drain ability before banishing his mana blade and reforming his BSB back into his arm. Slapping his hands together, he placed them above his waist as he summoned his Rider belt.

With a shout of "Henshin!" he transformed into Kamen Rider Renkin and then placed his hand over his heart. "Alright, how about we take it up one helluva notch?" After saying that, he summoned forth his Black Kakugane before shouting out "Busō Renkin! Victor Mode!" The symbol of Renkin formed above him, glowing in the form of a red symbol, as the black transmutation circle with the V1 symbol in the center formed beneath him. The two symbols flowed up and down his body as his Renkin default armor transformed into his Renkin Victor Mode armor (1). The HRC just stared in amazement. They had only seen the video files of Rune's Victor Armor when he battled Dredge months earlier but to see it used in person, it was even more powerful looking than what the video files had shown them.

"Eon-san…sugoi," whispered Rena.

"You can say that again," added Shion as she stood next to her sister.

"But I thought he couldn't control his Victor powers," said Satoko as she recalled what they were all told when Rune had gone Victor the first time back when the Lava Rex Hyde had attacked him back in Ireland.

"It looks like he's gone through some harsh training to master it," commented Hanyuu. Her body was no longer sore as Aquarius' Healing Water had done the trick. The moment Renkin shifted forms; Aquarius plugged her bottle back up and then vanished in a flash of blue light, heading off to perform her next task which was to gather as many allies as possible.

As the HRC watched the battle, Renkin's Black Kakugane transformed into the Sunlight Heart Mark II. With his weapon in hand, Renkin went on the attack as he used his weapon to block a slash from Slasher while hitting Carmen in the back with a sidekick, sending her right into Arachnea. Reforming his weapon back into its Kakugane Mode, he set it on his belt and rushed at Slasher. He didn't need to keep it in his body while in his Renkin Victor Form as the White Kakugane took over the job as it acted as his secondary heart during battle. Grabbing Slasher by his arms, he kneed him in the gut before backhanding him across the face, sending him to the ground. He then vanished from sight by using his Bringer's Light, reappearing behind Musician, Armadillo and Zero. The three turned around but were sent flying backwards as Renkin placed his alchemy charged hands against them, shocking them with alchemic energy. The three fell on top of Slasher, pinning him down in a dogpile.

Before Renkin could even make any form of a snappy remark, he was sent tumbling to the ground as he received a dual slash from both Meta and BLACK 13, the two having attacked him from behind and slashing his backside. Getting on one knee, Renkin just glared at the two as he placed his hands against the ground. In his Victor Rider form, he had no need to clap his hands together to perform alchemy as his body was still in its Victor state when in this form, which made him a living transmutation machine. With his hands on the ground, he created two transmutation symbols beneath BLACK 13 and Meta, trapping them in an Alchemy Trap.

"Next time, attack like a real man," Renkin quipped as he got up before he took a slash to the head from Arachnea's Spider Kamas. The venom struck his eye lenses but luckily, that's all it hit. The hit did make him stagger backwards for a few feet before he regained his balance. "Aren't nurses supposed to heal people, not hurt them?" Renkin griped as he blocked another slash with his arm. He had to act quickly as Carmen came at him from the side with her scythes. Getting an idea, he grabbed onto Arachnea's Spider Kamas again and, once more, yanked her over to him. He then grabbed Carmen's scythes and yanked her to him as well. "Here, you two should kiss and make up!" With that, he slammed the two girls into each other before sending them onto the forming pile on top of the four downed Riders. Looking over at BLACK 13 and Meta, he noticed them use their blades to make alterations in the Alchemy Traps, setting themselves free. "Damn, I knew I shouldn't have taught them that trick."

As he prepared to fight the two of them, he was a bit surprised when they ran and then jumped up and over him, landing next to their downed comrades. After a moment, the eight Riders were a team again and took their stances, preparing to go at Renkin as a team once more. Only this time, they would all attack at the same time instead of taking turns. Renkin sweat dropped as he saw this.

'_Great…I am so boned_," he thought as he stood his ground. He could already sense that Aquarius was no longer there, meaning she had gone to perform her next task so he needed to hold out as long as possible until backup arrived.

**(**_**Switch song to BGM: Riders United - All Rider VS Dai-Shocker OST**_**)**

The Justifiers all charged for Renkin but then all of a sudden a figure in green sent Meta flying with a powerful punch. In flashes of gold, five girls with energy blades struck Zero, Slasher, Armadillo and Musician, separating them from the group. Also, a very familiar young woman appeared out of thin air in a flash of silver light, wielding dual katanas, as she drove Arachnea and Carmen back.

Renkin smiled as he saw the Stakes of Purgatory, specifically the ones representing Pride, Greed, Wrath, Envy and Lust. As BLACK 13 came at him, another figure in dark armor appeared and spun on their heel to strike the black Rider across the chest with the Sword of Ascalon, sending him staggering backwards. Renkin blinked as he identified the mystery swordsman as none other than Princess Shawna herself. Shawna was clad in a black gown with black plate armor. The plate armor comprised of a chestplate with flaps of armor hanging from the sides down to her thighs. She also sported thick gauntlets and armored boots. The armor was decorated by glowing, blood red markings. Her eyes were not visible as they were covered by a black metal visor. In her hand was the Sword of Ascalon.

'_So, Shin was telling the truth after all_,' he thought.

"Good to see you back, Renkin," Sentinel said as he stood next to Renkin. "Did you just get here?"

"Yeah,' said Renkin. "Thanks to some mutual friends of ours from '_out of town_'."

Sentinel nodded, understanding whom Renkin was talking about. "Not exactly what you expected when you came back for a visit, huh?" asked Sentinel. "Excuse me for a second." Carmen lunged at them and Alan grabbed hold of her wrist. "I need to take care of something!"

"Hokō-kun!" Mammon beamed as she saw her beloved alchemist again.

"Yeah, I'm back," nodded Renkin. "Listen, we can continue this little reunion after we deal with _this_!"

"You got it," nodded Sentinel. "Everybody, pick a dance partner! It's go time!"

* * *

BLACK 13 and Renkin ran at one another, each attacking with a scissor kick before landing behind the other. BLACK 13 then struck first with a reverse roundhouse, a crimson energy blade emerging from his boot and slashed Renkin across his chest, sending sparks flying. Renkin staggered backwards a bit, his hand on his chest plate. Looking back at BLACK 13, he saw his mind-controlled friend leap up to hit with a drop kick, the attack landing dead square on Renkin's left shoulder, sending him to the ground. Pressing his advantage, BLACK 13 ran at Renkin and threw a left hook, determined to take Renkin's head with his attack. Renkin had other ideas as he grabbed BLACK 13 by the wrist as his body began to let off a violet aura.

"Sorry Shin, but you aren't leaving me any choice here," said Renkin as he began to drain more of BLACK 13's energy, bringing the Justifier to his knees. Renkin then bashed his helmet into BLACK 13's head, snapping the Justifiers head back before using his strength to lift him up before pulling him into a clothesline, sending him right to the ground. He canceled out his life drain technique as he reached down to pick BLACK 13 up by his head but got a kick to the side of his neck for his troubles.

Renkin rolled along the ground before righting himself, kneeling down on one knee as he summoned his BSB and mana blade once more. BLACK 13 followed Renkin's example and summoned his own crimson energy blades and charged Renkin who returned the charge in kind. Their blades clashed with one another as both Rider's parried the others attacks with expert skill. Sparks and mana erupted from the weapons with each clash and they managed to land a few hits on each other as well. Trying to run Renkin through, BLACK 13 attacked with a backhand slash which Renkin ducked, only to have to sidestep a frontal thrust from BLACK 13's other energy blade. Timing it right, Renkin grabbed hold of BLACK 13's offending arm, holding it tightly before bashing the side of his elbow into BLACK 13's face. The Justifier shook his head out, stomped on Renkin's foot in order to force the alchemist to release his arm and then struck with a uppercut slash, knocking Renkin back on his backside.

"Ah, damn it!" Renkin groaned loudly. "That hurt like hell." He looked up to see BLACK 13 raise his leg up to land an axe kick down onto his head but Renkin rolled out of the way while slapping his hands together and pressing them to the ground, causing the ground beneath BLACK 13's feet to crack and split. The cyborg jumped to one side and then looked back at Renkin, only to get another elbow bashed right into his face. And then another. And then another. And then another. Renkin was hitting BLACK 13 repeatedly with elbow bashes before he grabbed him by the back of his head and brought BLACK 13 down into a facebuster.

Cracks began to form on BLACK 13's helmet and the fight was starting to take its toll on him. Renkin threw a right hook but BLACK 13 dodged it just in before kicking Renkin in the side of the leg, bringing him down to his knee. He then bashed his armor covered kneepad into Renkin's face, causing cracks to form on his helmet as well. Renkin fell backward but then performed a hand spring to get himself back on his feet. He dodged another slash from BLACK 13's energy blades before grabbing him by his left shoulder. BLACK 13 retaliated by grabbing Renkin by his left shoulder. As they tried to get one another into a submission hold, Renkin decided to go for broke and forced BLACK 13 to face him before head-butting him again. The attack caused more cracks to appear as they both stumbled backwards in a daze. As they shook the dizzies out of their heads, they glared at one another.

Wanting to end this fight in one blow, Renkin raised his right fist, his entire forearm being covered in a mix of bluish-white, green and violet energy. He was pumping both his Reiatsu and his alchemic energy into his fist. BLACK 13 did the same as well but with his left arm as black, red and gold energy formed around his left forearm. Watching from the sidelines, Rena and the rest of the HRC could only pray that the fight didn't end with the death of a friend. Rena's eyes were locked onto the fight between Rune and Shinichi the entire time, not missing a single movement.

'_Shin-kun...Eon-san..._' Rena thought as she watched their battle.

Their eyes locked, both BLACK 13 and Renkin charged at one another. Once they got close enough they cocked their energy empowered fists back and, at the last second, let their fists fly. The two opposing punches connected with the opposing targets face as the energy from both punches was released, causing a shockwave to reverberate through the ground, bringing those who were grounded to their knees for a mere moment. Renkin and BLACK 13 hit the ground hard and with a loud thud. Pushing themselves up, they glared at one another when, suddenly, their helmets both shattered into hundreds of pieces. Rune had some blood trickling down from a cut on his cheek while Shinichi looked like he had seen better days as he sported a small black eye.

'_I've got to do something fast_,' Rune thought as he eyed the heavily panting Shinichi. The combination of a hard battle and the constant life energy drain that Rune performed on him had brought his energy levels down pretty low.

Rune was starting to run out of ideas when Shinichi formed another energy blade on his right arm and charged at him. Not wanting to get run through by his friend, Rune took a defensive stance as Shinichi closed the gap. If he had to, then he would drain Shinichi's energy to where he would be an inch of his life but only if he absolutely had no other choice. Just inches away from him, Shinichi struck his fist out a Rune, the alchemy using Rider preparing to use his last resort when all of a sudden...

"SHIN-KUN! YAMETTE!"

The moment those words were shouted at him Shinichi froze in mid punch. Rune looked in front of himself and was half-surprised to see Rena standing in front of him, her back facing him a she held her arms out as if trying to shield him. Her eyes, still filled with tears, also held a determined look in them. And not just determination but they were pleading with Shinichi as she locked her eyes with his; the tip of his crimson energy blade just an inch from her face.

"Shin-kun, yammette kudasai..." she pleaded desperately. This was not the Shinichi she fell in love with. The Shinichi she fell in love with was kind and gentle, who was willing to go up against all the monsters to protect his friends. The Shinichi she fell in love with wasn't a soulless machine or a weapon. The Shinichi she fell in love with wasn't a heartless monster. The Shinichi she fell in love with what not some madman's puppet. She reached into her collar and pulled out the red Magatama that hung from the cord around her neck. It matched the white one Shinichi always wore. "Remember...please...remember who you really are...and fight this...You're not someone's puppet anymore, so please...fight it!" He eyed her with hollow eyes and then at the Magatama. He pulled back his arm and reached up to touch the Magatama. He withdrew his hand and prepared to attack her again but found that he couldn't as his entire body just froze and trembled on the spot. Tears fell from his eyes as both his arms dropped to the sides and Rena smiled as she put her arms around him.

"Rena-chan..." he uttered as he put his arms around her, his armor shattering and the pieces vanishing into thin air.

"Okaeri, Shin-kun," Rena smiled, crying tears of joy. "Aishiteru," she whispered.

Rune smiled but then his eyes went towards the others still fighting. He spoke up, "I think we need to take care of the others too, like _now_."

* * *

Alan didn't really need to do much as Carmen tried to slash at him. However, her scythes did nothing against the protective green barrier surrounding his body. He just stood there and took whatever he did to him, hoping she would eventually tire out. He glanced at BLACK 13 and Renkin, hoping that his brother would go back to normal. Carmen attacked him while he was momentarily distracted but he caught her wrist. She tried to pull free from his grip but he was too strong for her.

Sentinel flew up into the sky with Carmen in his arms. The brainwashed Rider was struggling against his unbreakable grip. He used his super strength to rip off her helmet and quickly leaned in to kiss her. She struggled at first before calming down and reciprocating the attention. "A...Alan?" blinked Michiru.

Alan flashed her a smile, "Hey gorgeous. Sorry I was late."

Tears welled up in Michiru's eyes. "It's going to be all right, isn't it? Everything's going to be all right now..."

Alan merely kissed her again before responding, "You bet." He added, "Now, I think it's time we helped out Hana, don't you think?"

"Hana-chan!" Michiru gasped. "We need to help her!"

"On it," said Alan.

* * *

Tsukuyomi fought with her dual katanas as Aracnea attacked with her Spider Kamas. Sparks flew as their bladed weapons connected. Between the two of them, Tsukuyomi had centuries worth of experience in the art of kendo. She parried and blocked all of Arachnea's strikes before countering with her own slashes, hitting Arachnea in the chest and sending the Tarantula Cyborg staggering backwards. For a moment, Tsukuyomi looked at BLACK 13 and saw that he had miraculously recovered and returned to his senses.

Arachnea capitalized on her opponent being distracted and went to attack, only to pause as Carmen and several copies made with her illusion casting abilities, surrounded her. Carmen had returned to her normal color as Arachnea looked around, seemingly confused.

"Hana-chan, stop," said Carmen and the real one reached out to take hold of Arachnea's helmet before removing it. After tossing away Hana's helmet, Michiru removed her own before pressing her lips swiftly against Hana's.

"OK, what's going on?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"The key to getting them back to their senses is love," said Sentinel.

"Love?" Tsukuyomi cocked her eyebrow skeptically.

"It worked with Shinichi," Sentinel pointed out, "And it looks like it's working on them."

Michiru broke the kiss and hugged Hana whose eyes had returned back to normal. "What...what just happened...?" the Tarantula Cyborg asked in confusion.

"Long story short, you were controlled, but true love's kiss broke the spell," Sentinel summarised.

"I still can't believe that's all it took," remarked Tsukuyomi.

"Well, actually, it's just love," shrugged Sentinel. "Doesn't need to be a kiss, but it helps. Though, it's best to weaken the one being controlled first. That way, it's easier to get through to them while they're not at full strength."

* * *

"Black isn't your color, Shogo," said Lucifer as she confronted Zero while hovering in midair. She didn't like what was happening, not all. She didn't like the fact that someone was controlling her fiance like a puppet. It didn't sit well with the eldest of the Stakes at all. He shot his stingers at her but she dodged with teleportation before she slashed at his gauntlets. Using her speed, she cut his gauntlets to pieces, disarming him. He stumbled back in surprise as she held her mana blade under his chin, the tip close to his throat. She then displayed the ring she wore. "Do you see this? Remember that night in the restaurant when you proposed to me? Remember, soldier boy?"

Zero blinked under his helmet. His eyes focused on the ring and a familiar memory played out in his mind. He remembered how he got on one knee and proposed to her, giving her the ruby ring which matched her eyes. He clutched his helmet in pain then tore it off before grasping his head and gripping his short hair, growling, as his eyes shifted between their normal color and the crimson red of the Anti-Life Equation's influence.

Lucifer gently took his face in her hands and saw the pain and confusion. Smiling, she pulled him into a deep kiss.

* * *

Leviathan dodged the sound attacks coming at her from Musician's Cricket Fork. She rushed at him and swung at him but he used a sound blast aimed at the ground to propel himself upwards. While in midair, he swung his Cricket Fork to unleash several blast of sound at Leviathan, hitting her with the concussive force of his sonic blasts.

The green-haired Stake of Envy gritted her teeth as she endured the sonic attacks and glared at Musician. There had to be something that could help, there just had to be. She then remembered something and checked her pockets. She smiled. She still had it.

As Musician prepared another attack, Leviathan used teleportation to cross the distance in a flash of gold and kicked his helmet off his head. He dropped onto his back and Leviathan straddled him. In her hand was a weapon; a Walkman and a pair of headphones. She put the headphones on him and said, "This is _our _song," and she played it. Daichi's eyes widened as the song invaded his ears. "Remember, you sang this song to me. You, the big tough guy who has anger issues serenaded me. You even recorded the song so I could always listen to it whenever I wanted." Daichi's eyes began to soften as she saw his eyes staring back at her.

"Levi...?" he asked and she smiled as she caressed his cheek.

"Welcome back, Daichi," she smiled warmly.

* * *

"Yoko-kun, listen to me!" Asmodeus shouted as she evaded one of Armadillo's swings. "This isn't you! Someone is controlling you!" He thrust his mace at her and she side-stepped quickly. "Yoko-kun, please!" she begged, but he wasn't listening to a word he said. She was labeled as an enemy and there was nothing she could do...or was there?

Leaping over Armadillo as he tried to roll over her, she spun around to face him as he made a curve to run over her again. As a rolling ball, Armadillo was virtually unstoppable. Normally, a person rolling like he could would not be able to see or navigate but his armor had sensors, which became visual data to help him maneuver his body while in Wrecking Ball Mode.

The next part of her play required her to use her most potent weapon. It was something that Yokoshima would not resist. In a flash of gold, her clothes disappeared and she was left wearing nothing but a sexy set of lingerie, comprised of a black strapless bra, matching panties, and stockings with a garter belt. "Yoko-kun~" she purred as she posed provocatively.

As soon as this occurred, Armadillo involuntarily got out of his Wrecking Ball Mode and tripped, going tumbling along the quarry's rocky terrain. He went skidding a few feet and was on his back, rolling back and forth. Asmodeus pounced on him and ripped off his helmet, straddled him then grabbed his face to give him a French Kiss. '_Come on, Yoko-kun! Come on! You know you want this! Snap out of it!_' She broke the kiss and grabbed his hands to put them on her breasts. Her big, soft and ample breasts. "Come on, Yoko-kun! Remember!"

"Asmo...chan...?" he uttered and Asmodeus blinked. She looked down at him as he blushed. "What's going on? Why are you in your underwear? And where the heck are we?" Asmodeus got off him and re-donned her uniform as she helped him off.

"Sorry, Yoko-kun. It was the only way to bring you back," said Asmodeus. Attempting to seduce him into having sex in the middle of the battlefield was all she could come up with.

"Did I go somewhere?" he asked.

"Just someplace dark, but you're fine now," she told him, relieved.

* * *

Sparks flew as Satan slashed the Termite Cyborg across the chest. This attack was followed up by a series of stabs which forced Slasher to bring his arms up to block her assault. She broke through his defence with a kick that smashed into his faceplate and sent him skidding backwards. She glanced at BLACK 13 and gritted her teeth. Mammon ran past her and engaged Slasher herself as he used his chainsaws on her. Mammon ducked and dodged from his swipes before doing a backflip and hitting him in the jaw. She then followed up with several thrusts of her mana sword. Satan backed her up and slashed at Slasher too, keeping him on the defensive too.

Hanyuu watched and after seeing how Shinichi was brought back to his senses, decided to get Chiaki back the same way. Rena's love was the key of bringing Shinichi back, so the same should work for Chiaki.

As Slasher swung at Mammon and Satan for decapitating blows, he suddenly froze and was floating off the ground. Mammon and Satan could feel the power radiating from its source and looked to Hanyuu whose violet hair whipped about while her eyes glowed red.

"**Mind if I cut in, ladies?**" Hanyuu asked. Recognizing the horned girl as a superior being, both Stakes backed down as she approached Slasher. He tried to break free from her hold but she would not allow him.

"**Alright,**" she began, looking straight at him as she pulled him down so they could see eye to eye. She was still holding him in her godly hold and was not about to release him until she made things clear, "**You belong to me. You do not belong to anyone else. You are mine and nobody elses**," she told him straight up. She snapped her fingers and shattered his helmet. She ripped off his scarf and dropped it to the ground. She then caressed his face and said, "You are mine, and I am yours," before kissing him deeply.

* * *

Meta met his match in this black swordswoman who wielded the Sword of Ascalon like an expert. Princess Shawna had taken over for Keiichi who was now resting and recuperating with the other members of the Hinamizawa Rider Club. Still, he had his powers and would come out on top. He shoved her back with a telekinetic blast then fired his gun hand at her. At that instant, Aquarius intervened and lashed out with her multi-headed extendable whip which struck Meta across the chest.

"Do you require assistance?" Aquarius asked the dark armored princess.

"No, I am unharmed," said Shawna. Her armor had protected her. She didn't like how it was so dark but that was the form the Sword of Ascalon had chosen for her.

Meta gauged both his female opponents and then he transformed, assuming the form of a giant squid. His tentacles all shot towards Shawna and Aquarius, gripping their bodies and limbs tightly. The two of them tried to break free but his grip was too strong. If that wasn't bad enough, his tentacles were crawling in very inappropriate places.

"Let me go! No! Stop!" Shawna shrieked.

"Unhand me, you disgusting creature!" commanded Aquarius. The squid may or may not be enjoying himself but what he did now was definitely preventing both female fighters from attacking him. Of course, that was when...

"BATTLER USHIROMIYA!"

That shout suddenly caused Meta to turn back to normal, dropping the two female fighters he had attempted to violate. His eyes scanned the area for the source of that yell. His eyes stopped as a familiar figure, in a black blazer over a white blouse, pleated red skirt, black and red striped stockings, and black boots came stomping towards him. Her blonde hair hell down around her head like a curtain and her eyes burned with fire. In her arms was a reptilian alien child which Meta had given birth to. The girl did not look happy.

"HOW COULD YOU ABANDON YOUR SON YOU IDIOT!" she shouted as she punched the top of his helmet-covered head and sent him crashing face-first into the ground. Shawna blinked as she saw this young woman just take down Meta with a single punch.

"Excuse me?" asked Shawna as she sheathed the Sword of Ascalon.

"Hi, I'm Beato, this worthless idiot's fiance," said Beato as she put Junior down. "Thanks for all your help but could you let me handle this from here on? Oh, and do you mind watching Battler Junior? Thank you." Shawna nodded and watched as Beato picked Meta up by his collar and swiftly removed his helmet. He looked up at her in a daze with his red eyes. "Idiot, since when did you let someone control you like some kind of puppet?" Battler just stared at her but apparently there was recognition as the blood drained from his face. "You're way too strong for this kind of mental manipulation! Where's the guy who loved 'Flipping the Chessboard'?" she demanded.

Battler didn't answer and Beato proceeded to start slapping him, repeatedly. She slapped him with all her might, aching her hand but still leaving marks on his cheeks. She dropped in and his eyes returned back to their normal blue color as he held his sore cheeks.

"Beato...?" Battler asked.

"Honk!" Junior cried as he leapt into his father's lap.

Beato smiled and helped Battler up to his feet. Now with all the NEO-NUMBERS back to normal, it was time for Alan to reveal the identity of the mastermind behind all their problems.

* * *

Yūji opened his eyes, waking up to nothing but infinite white space. He looked down to see that he was naked and palmed his face.

"OK, this is officially the weirdest dream I have ever had," he said. "At least the beer party with chick-Alan and chick-Shin was funny!"

"Daddy...?"

Yūji turned to see his third, and youngest, daughter Veronica looking up to him. "Veronica?"

The black-skinned girl started tearing up and cried as she jumped into Yūji's arms. "Daddy!"

Yūji could only laugh as he caught Veronica, spinning around as the two shared some laughs. "Hey, baby! What're you doing here?!" He blinked and stopped, still holding Veronica as he looked around. "For that matter, what are _we_ doing here?"

"Is that anyway to thank someone for bringing you back?"

Yūji turned to the source of that familiar, arrogant voice, seeing Beatrice and Featherine standing before him. "Featherine! Auntie B!"

"It's nice to see you again," the Witch of the Theater smiled. "You did the right thing in saving the world."

Yūji took a moment or two to explore his memories. He remembered fighting Grayvern, hitting him with everything he had and then some. The Earth was getting close to exploding. He had grabbed the bastard and dragged down to the Earth's core.

"Oh, yeah...so I did die," Yūji realized. 3...2...1... "FUUUUUUUU-!" He could only scream in outrage as he his voice was carried through the eternal white space, the girls covering their ears.

Beatrice growled with irritation and whacked Yūji over the head with her pipe. "MUST YOU RAISE YOUR VOICE, FOOL! And a child is present!"

"Sorry, but I think you're forgetting the fact that I AM DEAD! My wife and kids are alone, and my girls! Some of them (literally) can't live without me!" Yūji fell to his knees and wallowed, "Misato...Maria... I left them. I left them and they're probably suffering right now... Fucking...dammit!"

"Actually, you're kind of right on the suffering part," said Featherine and she conjured a large, beautifully detailed vanity mirror. "Take a look."

"OK, what is Misato doing in her demon form? What's she doing wrecking stuff?" he questioned.

"She's not the only one," added Beatrice and with a wave of her hand she showed images of the NEO-NUMBERS committing acts of violence against their own friends.

"OK, what the hell!? How long was I gone!?" shouted Yuji.

"Not very long," answered Featherine.

"What the hell is going on!? Why are they acting this way!?" Yuji demanded.

"It's part of your enemy's endgame. Your _true _enemy. The one responsible for everything up until now," informed Beatrice.

"So what the hell!?" Yuji demanded to know.

"When they were taken by GIN-SHOCKER and made into cyborgs, a sort of hypnotic suggestion was implanted into their brain. They were made into sleeper agents. It only took the right set of codewords to activate them," said Featherine.

"But Misato ain't a cyborg," Yuji argued. "And wouldn't dying the first time get rid of it?"

"It would've, but it didn't. Whoever did this was quite thorough," stated Beatrice.

"OK, they're dead," Yūji growled, his eyes narrowed and growling, "Whoever pulled this shit on my wife and friends are so _fucking _dead!"

"You're in no position to make such a promise, Yūji Fudō."

All eyes turned to the source of the voice. What stood before them was a being clad in black armor, trimmed in gold. On his chest was a lion's face with red eyes and a red gem in the open mouth. Hanging off his shoulders was a black cape that was red underneath. The helmet was also black, modeled after a lion with blades of gold for a mane and a single visor that covered his face.

"OK, I'll bite," Yūji spoke, "Who are you?"

"My name is Kaizer, but who I am is unimportant," the armored man dismissed, his voice sounding almost mechanical, "What _is_ important is that you are still needed, Yūji Fudō."

"Not for nothing, dude, but I happen to be dead," Yūji deadpanned.

"Not for long," Kaizer corrected. With a snap of his fingers, two lights flashed and Yūji and Veronica's eyes widened. What stood before them were themselves; physical bodies that resembled them in every way. "You're speechless."

Yūji could only blink, "The fuck?"

"Why is there another me?" Veronica asked.

"These are your new physical bodies," the armored man stated. "All they need now are souls to inhabit them."

"So, how does this work?" said Yuji as he touched his body. In a flash he vanished and Veronica gasped.

"Daddy!" Veronica cried. Then the body began to move as the eyes opened. "Daddy?"

"Yeah, it's me, Veronica," said Yuji. He took in a deep breath and could feel the air going into his lungs. He could also feel his pulse and heartbeat. "I'm alive..." He jumped up and down, cheering, "I'M ALIVE!"

Kaizer gestured to Veronica next and she did the same. She put her hand against the body which resembled her and she felt her entire soul turn into energy which was absorbed into the new body. Opening her eyes, she flexed her fingers. "Well, this is new." She nearly fell but Yuji caught her.

"I forgot. You never really had a real physical body before," Kaizer said to Veronica. Even when she materialized in the Meta-World, the body she had wasn't made of flesh and blood, but solidified mana. "Oh, and there is something I forgot to give you, Yūji Fudo."

"What's that?" Yūji got his answer when the armored man acted, holding out his right hand as a ball of white light forming in his hand. He dashed forward and got into Yūji's face, alarming him as he shoved the ball into Yūji's chest as he fell back on his ass. "Dude! What the hell!?" He froze as he felt a surge of energy flow through him. It was like nothing he ever felt, but he somehow knew what the power was. "...Photon?"

"The power of space itself," Kaizer nodded, "I've already uploaded the knowledge of Photon into your brain. All it needed was your soul to be inserted first. You may not have your previous powers, but I've managed to reinstall your Manakyte abilities. All you needed was an element. Photon carries the attribute of Light, thus making you a Manakyte of Light now. Unfortunately, you and your daughter are no longer as tightly bonded by DNA as before, but she is capable of walking among humanity now. And her physical DNA now matches at best 57% of yours, though she resembles her 'mother' instead of you."

"I must ask," Veronica spoke up with a raised hand, "Why do this for us?"

"...Because I can," Kaizer answered. "You must hurry, Yūji Fudō. Time is of the essence."

"By the way," Beatrice smirked. "There's someone who's been wanting to see you for some time." She snapped her fingers and a flash of golden butterflies fluttered about before scattering and revealing a very familiar face, making Yūji's eyes widen. "I knew it; speechless!"

Yūji stepped forward cautiously, making his way to the person, unable to form a coherent thought as he looked at her before placing a hand against her cheek. Her skin was the same; same warmth, same color, same feeling. Her eyes were the same as before, her hair as long, colorful, and soft as it was before.

The woman was Rosa, Yūji's deceased fiancée, and she smiled, grasping Yūji's hand to keep his warmth against her face. "You're warmer than I remember, Yūji."

"Rosa... It's you," he stuttered, his voice shaky as tears threatened to escape from his eyes.

Rosa giggled as she wed his tears with a finger, "Men shouldn't cry, silly. You're better than that."

Still shaken, Yūji fell to his knees and hugged her legs. "You're here... You're really here..." His eyes widened as he had his ear against her stomach, feeling and hearing what he thought he felt and heard inside Rosa's belly. "Rosa...?"

Rosa smiled and nodded, "It's our baby, Yūji. Our baby." Their baby, which had died with Rosa, was alive too.

"Time is of the essence, Yuji Fudo" Kaizer cut in, "If you don't act now, the others will die! This cannot happen!"

Rising to his feet, Yūji nodded to Kaizer and took the hands of Rosa and his daughter. He looked to Featherine and Beatrice, grinning, "I'll see you guys later. You three have no idea how much I owe ya!" The three were engulfed in a bright flash of light.

"I do hope he makes it," Featherine spoke up.

"Yūji Fudō wields the power of Photon now," Kaizer reminded, "No opponent can defeat him if he can wield that power correctly."

* * *

Misato was in Shishibone in her demon form and people fled from her in a panic. The police tried to subdue her but she attacked them mercilessly, striking them down with her Blood Rapiers. That was when her fellow harem sisters appeared to put a stop to her rampage. She just stared at them with a hollow expression on her face.

They all knew something was wrong the moment Misato walked out of the apartment, ignoring Yuna's cries, in her demon form. Concerned, they followed her, but they did not expect her to go back to her old ways when she used to be psychotic and bloodthirsty. Shizuko was the only one absent as they confronted Misato, the dark catgirl staying back at the apartment to look after Maria, Wendy and little Yuna.

The Pokegirls were the first to attack Misato with their various powers. Stella slashed at Misato with her claws but missed before she was kneed hard in the midsection. Just as Misato was about to run her through. Reina the Killer Queen used her whip and Melanie the Dark Lady used her Energy Blade but they couldn't hit the much agile Misato who dodged their attempts to take her down. Misato then felt the presence of magic and turned around to see Phoebe preparing a spell but she needed time to cast. Lilith and Asura intercepted Misato as she rushed at Phoebe but the demonic girl still remembered her training from GIN-SHOCKER and knew how to deal with the two demonesses. Asura's fireballs hit only the road as Misato ducked and she headbutted Asura in the jaw. Lilith slashed at Misato but her claws were parried by Misato's rapiers before Misato jumped and slammed both her feet against her chest.

Lina attacked, assuming her Electric Butterfly form and shooting bolts of electricity from her hands. However, Misato dodged her attempt to subdue and rushed her, momentarily putting away her rapiers, before kneeing the pink-haired butterfly girl in the gut. She grabbed hold of Lina's antennae and kneed her repeatedly in the gut before releasing her. Lina punched at Misato who sidestepped and Lina cried out as she was slashed across the back by Misato's rapier. She turned and was kicked hard in the chest. Misato then attacked her with repeated forward thrusts and Lina put up an electrical barrier to defend herself. She then grabbed hold of Misato's blades to electrocute her but while her attack did have an effect, it did not last long as Misato jumped and kicked her in the chin and then kicked her upside the head with a roundhouse.

Phoebe cast her her spell and hit Misato dead centre in the chest with a Force Bolt. That should've instantly taken Misato out but all it did was tickle her. Misato looked up and spotted Sora the Sky Panther who dropped smoke bombs around her and covered the entire area in thick clouds of smoke, blinding Misato. However, she shifted her vision to thermal and saw all of her opponents present. She dashed at them and the sound of cries and violent blows could be heard. When the smoke cleared, Yuji's harem girls were all sprawled on the ground with Misato standing in the middle. She then threw her swords at Sora and her wings were hit, sending her plummeting before she crashed upon a car. With a flick of her hands, her Blood Rapiers flew out of Sora's damaged wings and returned to her hands.

As Misato prepared to leave to cause more damage, a pillar of light shot down from the sky. She shielded her eyes as she stepped back as the pillar shrank and reformed into a humanoid figure made of light. The girls, still conscious, watched as the being of light became someone they knew all too well. They couldn't believe what they were seeing. A groaning Sora's eyes widened and she uttered what they were all thinking.

"...Yuji?" Sora spoke.

"Did anybody miss me?" he asked, smiling roguishly. He was dressed in white jeans and a coat, a black vest covering his chest and black fingerless gloves covering his hands with black boots covering his feet. Strapped to his back was the Red Queen, the Roaring Dragon rested in its holster that was strapped to his right thigh, and his Blue Lantern Ring was on his finger.

"MASTER!" the Pokegirls cried with joy.

"I...can't believe it," Asura stuttered, trying to believe that her man had returned.

"I knew it! I knew you wouldn't stay dead for long!" Lilith cheered.

"You're back," said Lina, sounding relieved. Her adopted big brother had returned from the grave.

He eyed Misato, "And Misato, you've been a _very _bad girl. Now, how about we go home so we can figure out what's messing with you and fix it?" He really didn't want to fight Misato. He wanted to save her. She was in trouble and needed him to rescue her.

Misato said nothing as she rushed at Yuji, her husband simply sidestepping her thrusts with ease as she persisted in trying stab him. She showed no emotion as she attacked. It was time to test out his new skills... Yuji clenched his right fist as it began to glow a luminous white, calling out **"Photon Hand!"** as he thrust his hand forward and a ghostly white hand shot from Yuji's own hand, shooting into Misato's chest as she threw her head back and screamed, the hand pulling back as it pulled out a pitch-black orb in its grasp, before she collapsed in Yuji's free arm, his gaze softening as he spoke, "Welcome back, babe."

"...Yuji...?" she uttered as she saw him. Tears welled up in her eyes. "Is this some kind of dream...?" She didn't want to wake up if it was. If it were a dream and she woke up, he would just disappear. Her husband simply laughed a little before kissing her, Misato feeling the warmth from him as they made out; he was even warmer than the last time she felt his touch. "Oh, God...it really _is_ you...!" She started crying as she hugged him tightly, not wanting to let him go.

Clicks of guns cocking could be heard as several police officers had their guns trained on the group.

"FREEZE, FREAKS!" one of the officers ordered. They had survived Misato's rampage, called for backup and had seen the group as monsters that needed to be arrested.

"Oh, great..." Asura sighed. She wasn't in the mood for this.

"Now, now, officers," Yuji smiled as he stood with Misato in his grasp. "I'm sure we can settle this peacefully and without heads rolling. I'm back, so there's no need to worry."

"What is this guy talking about...?" one of the officers questioned.

"Oh, no uniform," he remembered. His ring glowed and the police covered their eyes from the flash of blue light that nearly blinded them, gasping as they saw the Blue Comet standing before them.

"Holy shit! The Blue Comet!"

"It's this kid?!"

"I'm actually close to my forties now," Yuji corrected. "I just look young for my age."

"Well, whoever you are, kid. You and these girls are coming with us downtown to the station to explain yourselves," the lead officer commanded.

"Master, look at the sky!" Stella pointed upwards as Phoebe just finished healing Sora. Yuji did and saw that the sky was blood red with infinite Earths now floating above their heads. The identical planets crashed into each other and exploded, turning into nothing but space debris. The sight of this scene freaked the officers out.

"It's not an illusion..." said Phoebe in wonder.

"I swear, the weirdest shit happens when I'm not around," he muttered to himself. He looked back to the cops. "OK, odds are you guys are just as confused as I am about what's going on. I just got brought back to life recently after keeping this planet from exploding. Yeah, that still sounds weird... Anyway, do you really think you guys should be wasting your time on us? Or would you rather protect the people of this city like you're sworn to? And FYI, this is _our_ home, too. So I'd appreciate it if you guys wouldn't act like a bunch of dicks and help me out, since I practically took a fucking bullet for the entire planet. I didn't come back to life just so I can watch this planet burn. So, I'm gonna find out what the fuck is going on. You're welcome to try and stop me, but I'll just kick all of your asses in five minutes or less. It's your call: catch a beatdown or help a guy out?"

The officers exchanged looks but then all of a sudden their eyes glowed red and they all aimed their guns at Yuji and his girls. They then pulled their triggers and opened fire on the group.

"**PHOTON BARRIER!"**

Bullets bounced off a dome of light that was protecting Yuji and the girls from harm.

"What is this...?" Asura gaped.

"Dunno how long this'll hold," Yuji said as he carried Misato in his arms, "So let's make tracks and get home." He then raised a hand and projected a set of three-bladed claws from his wrist and called, "Photon Claw!" He slashed ahead of him and open a tear in space as it became a swirling portal of lights and colors. "Everybody in!" The girls entered the portal, trusting their man, as they went one by one before Yuji and Misato were left.

"How... How did you come back?" she asked.

"Had some help," he winked before carrying her and jumping into the portal. The barrier and portal dissipated as the police were left alone among themselves.

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Let's see...Yuji comes back from the dead, the NEO-NUMBERS are freed from the Anti-Life Equation, and everyone's ready to take down Savage. However, the bad news is that Savage has gained the Spear of Destiny and has used it to become Cain. If that wasn't bad enough, the sky has turned freaky with multiple Earths colliding and destroying each other. Imagine how many people have perished when that happens. And it's just going to get worse. Why is this all happening? Can the heroes stop Cain and the Religion of Crime? Do they even stand a chance at victory?**

**(1) Read Legacy of Cain 121 to get a description of Victor Mode.**

**KR CHROME: I'd like to give credit when credit's due, so GuyverGenesis, thank you for your help. The scenes with Rune are awesome! And Yuji's return as well as new powers were all Kamen Rider Bushido's brainchild.**

**PREVIEW...**

The Warbot designed and built by DALEK Shiro was one of his greatest creations yet. During the prototype stage it was just a featureless figure that could generate destructive energy darts. He had ever tested the Warbot against Cybermen which resulted in success. On another field test, it had been sent to attack Shinichi.

At present, the Warbot was getting some bodywork down. It was receiving some new armor and features. It was currently lying on a metal table as the job was being done by machines under the watchful eye of the DALEK Scientist.

"**FUCK! FUCK!"** DALEK Shiro shouted as he appeared in the DALEK's underground base. **"FUCK!"**

"**What's wrong, Supreme One?"** asked the DALEK Scientist.

"**Scientist, what is the status of the Warbot?" **asked DALEK Shiro.

"**89.67%" **answered the DALEK Scientist.

"**Get it to 100% as soon as possible," **ordered DALEK Shiro. **"I'm going to need it soon."**

"**What's wrong, Supreme One?"** asked the concerned Purple DALEK, aka Doc. **"You look like you've seen a ghost."**

"**Let's just say that I almost got scrapped," **said DALEK Shiro in response. Cain/Savage had tried to destroy him and DALEK Shiro would not let it stand.

* * *

"10 years, Priest," began Showa . "I've already suffered for ten years when GIN-SHOCKER took me away from my family! I've also suffered when I had to watch my friends die, over and over, with their only hope of survival being my time powers! I've seen more people die than I should and I've experienced far more torment than anyone my age. But still...I still continued to fight and move forward...and I will save this village! Because this village gave me the hope and strength to become a Kamen Rider!"

"WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!?" the Priest roared.

"I'm a Kamen Rider! Remember that!" Showa shot back.

* * *

Cain and his followers stopped their attack as they and the people looked over to a tipped over bus. Standing on top of it was a group of young people. But these were no ordinary people. "We...are the Kamen Riders," Shogo said. The people all looked at them in disbelief and shock and some even began to point out knowing who some of them were. Looking at the people who had come to their defense, the Riders looked up at Cain and decided to follow through with their plan. "Alright, everyone ready?"

"Ready!" the Riders and Pseudo Riders shouted in unison.

"Alright then," said Shogo. "Let's..."

"HENSHIN!-!-!" they all shouted at the exact same time. In brilliant flashes of light and the sounds of armor forming, the people looked as the light died down to see that, where the young people had once stood, were now the Kamen Riders who had protected them for these past many years. They all began to cheer, jumping up and down as their heroes had come back to them.

"Roll call!" Zero ordered. "Zero!"

"Blue Beetle!"

"Arachnea!"

"Carmen!"

"Musician!"

"Slasher!"

"Meta!"

"Ichigo!"

"Nigo!"

"V3!"

"Riderwoman!"

"X!"

"Amazon!"

"Stronger!"

"Renkin!"

* * *

"SAVAGE!" Sentinel shouted before he landed before Cain. "It's over! Give up now and spare yourself a beating!"

"I think not, Smith!" spat Cain. "I've been waiting thousands of years for this day! This time, things will end differently."

"I agree," said Sentinel as he drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. "This will end with you and all your men back behind bars."

* * *

"PARTNER, LOOK OUT!"


	196. The Legacy of Cain Part 140

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 140: Heroes United/The Day Evil Won**

The Warbot designed and built by DALEK Shiro was one of his greatest creations yet. During the prototype stage it was just a featureless figure that could generate destructive energy darts. He had even tested the Warbot against Cybermen which resulted in success. On another field test, it had been sent to attack Shinichi but unable to do any significant damage. At present, the Warbot was getting some bodywork done. It was currently lying on a metal table and receiving some new armor and features. The job itself was being done by machines under the watchful eye of the DALEK Scientist.

"**FUCK! FUCK!"** DALEK Shiro shouted as he appeared in the DALEKs' underground base. **"FUCK!"**

"**What's wrong, Supreme One?"** asked the DALEK Scientist.

"**Scientist, what is the status of the Warbot?" **asked DALEK Shiro.

"**89.67%" **answered the DALEK Scientist.

"**Get it to 100% as soon as possible!" **ordered DALEK Shiro. **"I'm going to need it soon!"**

"**What's wrong, Supreme One?"** asked the concerned Purple DALEK, aka Doc. **"You look like you've seen a ghost."**

"**Let's just say that I almost got scrapped," **said DALEK Shiro in response. Cain/Savage had tried to destroy him and DALEK Shiro would not let it stand.

"**That does not sound good," **said Doc.

"**No, it doesn't. Now hurry up and get this Warbot ready!" **ordered DALEK Shiro.

"**I obey, Supreme One!" **said both the Scientist and Doc.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the Gauntlet's meeting room, the scene in Hinamizawa's quarry where the NEO-NUMBERS were freed from the Anti-Life Equation was being watched by Cain and the Priest.

"It appears that you have lost your toy soldiers, Master Cain," said the Priest.

"That is alright," said Cain. "It's not really a big deal. Just an obstacle that can be easily overcome."

"I see," nodded the Priest.

Cain pulled up a holographic image of a satellite currently orbiting the Earth. The satellite projected a radio waves which affected the human mind. It was why those police officers had attacked Yuji and his girls. They also had the Anti-Life Equation in their minds and the satellite had activated them. Not only that, it was spreading radio waves causing fear and paranoia amongst the people, forcing them to attack figures of authority. This was a contribution from Dr. Gebok and Shiro who had both researched the Hinamizawa Syndrome. The world would soon fall into chaos and Cain would stand at the very top watching the chaos he had created. People were already starting to freak out over what was happening to the sky. Why shouldn't Cain add a little more chaos into their already chaotic lives? Of course there still needed to be some measure of order amidst the chaos. The Cyber-Dalek, RoC agents and the super-villains and criminals freed from the Vault would act as his army of enforcers.

"Master Cain, I have a request to make," began the Priest.

"You may speak your request, Priest," Cain allowed.

"The village known as Hinamizawa, I wish to destroy it," said the Priest.

"And why do you wish to destroy the village?" asked Cain. Cain could actually think of several reasons. One of those reasons was that Hinamizawa was the home to Kamen Rider Showa and the place where he'd found his true calling. Destroying it would surely break him.

"The village is an aberration that should not be allowed to exist any longer. It was a nest of demons and doomed for destruction, a fate that should not have been avoidable. And yet it still stands. I will not allow such an aberration to continue its existence," swore the Priest.

"Very well," Cain allowed. "You may go and destroy the village."

"Thank you, Master Cain," said the Priest before he bowed. He would not be stopped and if Shinichi Banabara or his friends tried to stop him, then the Priest would deal with them personally. Cain smiled as he watched the Priest exit, a smile that spread into a toothy grin full of maliciousness.

* * *

The entire group relocated back to Shinichi's command centre, aka the Dungeon via Teleportal. Carl and Magi were already waiting for them there. With the NEO-NUMBERS snapped out of whatever mind-control was possessing them, now they had a chance to take down the Big Bad responsible for it.

"So, what's exactly is going on?" asked Dr. Magi.

"His name is Vandal Savage," Alan told them in the Dungeon, "he's a villain from my world, and he's the leader of the Religion of Crime." The Monitor had indeed given him what he needed to know. He learnt that the Vandal Savage in this universe was the same one he'd sent falling into the Dimensional Rift a long time ago. Back then he'd been a rookie Green Lantern and had taken out one of the worst super-villains in Earth history.

"I actually read about him in history," added Rune. "This is the day it all starts."

"What starts?" Shinichi asked.

"The Beginning of the End, is what it was called," Rune answered.

"But you're here, right?" asked Yokoshima. "That means we saved the world." He sounded hopeful, so full of faith. How naive.

"Time isn't exactly set in stone sometimes, Yokoshima. There are events that are supposed to happen which are fixed points in time, like the sinking of the Titanic or Kennedy's assassination. However, there are also events where time is in flux and the course of history of a timeline can be altered," Alan explained.

"So, is this a fixed point or a flux point in time?" Daichi questioned.

"Both," Alan answered. "On one hand we could win, according to Rune. But on the other hand..."

"We won't lose," interrupted Shinichi. "We _can't _lose. All this time we've been fighting to save the planet. We've fought GIN-SHOCKER, the Dark Hatred Society, the Darkloids, the OROCHI, the Earthbound Gods, the DALEKs, the Cybermen, and we even took down the Blizzard God. Yuji even saved the world from blowing up. This can't be the one enemy we can't beat."

"I know," agreed Alan, "But...Savage has been preparing himself for a long, long time. He's expecting us to retaliate and he's ready for us."

"So, are you scared?" Daichi asked. "Last time I checked your color's green, not yellow."

"No, I'm just cautious," said Alan. "Vandal Savage may not be as strong as me, but he's smart and he can't die."

"What do you mean he can't die?" Hanyuu asked.

"He's a true immortal," Alan said. "Believe me, the guy can survive a nuclear holocaust without a scratch on him and still outlive the rest of humanity. He can survive _anything_."

"So, this Savage guy has no weaknesses?" Mion asked.

"Not that I know of, but he's not a god. He can be locked up. He just won't die. That's the problem," Alan answered.

"OK, but if we take down Savage, we take down the entire Religion of Crime," said Shogo. "That should be it, right?"

"It won't be easy with all those super-villains following him," stated Alan. "He's got an army, he's got the Priest and DALEK Shiro, and he's got the entire world at the palm of his hands."

"He hasn't won yet," said Shinichi and Chiaki punched his palm in agreement.

"He took control of us. He has to pay," said the NEO-NUMBERS' largest man.

"Yeah, but I kinda wish we still had Yuji with us," said Michiru. They bowed their heads. The Stakes of Purgatory were still saddened by the loss of their Onii-sama.

But then all of a sudden there was a bright flash of light. They shielded their eyes and began to panic. Was it a surprise attack? An ambush? Had the enemy found them and come to take them out?

"Hey guys," smiled Yuji as he stood next to Misato. "Did you miss me?"

Everyone was speechless as they saw Yuji standing in the middle of the Dungeon with them. Their jaws had dropped. Michiru had actually fainted but Hana caught the dark-skinned Okinawan before she hit the floor.

Yokoshima raised up a trembling hand, his fingers quaking, and then pointed, "G-G-G-G-GHOST!"

"Sorry, Wrecking Ball," Misato retorted, "He ain't no ghost."

"But I did die," Yuji smiled. "Stopped by that grave you made for me. I have to say it was a really nice touch with the monument."

Shinichi and Alan both stepped forward, eyes wide. They inspected Yuji. Alan scanned him with his ring and Sonic Screwdriver simultaneously as Shinichi put his hands against Yuji's chest to check if he was really there, and not some kind of cruel hallucination. He felt a heartbeat.

"You're...really here..." uttered Shinichi in amazement.

"Yup," Yuji confirmed.

Suddenly, Satan, Mammon, Asmodeus, Lucifer and Leviathan all yelled, "ONII-SAMA!" and glomped the revived Manakyte, knocking him to the floor. "ONII-SAMA!" they cried again as they hugged him together, crushing him between them.

"Hey, girls," Yuji smiled as he hugged all five girls back. "How are my little sisters?" Belphegor and Beelzebub had learnt of his return earlier when he dropped Yuna, Wendy and Maria off at the Kuwadorian with the rest of the girls who needed to rest following their fight with Misato.

"How? When?" Shinichi demanded.

"Don't know how," said Misato. "He wouldn't say exactly, but as for the when it's while I was attacking the city." She didn't sound proud of it. "He appeared, out of light, like some kind of celestial angel."

"That's one way of putting it," a smiling Yuji said as he got up, the Stakes still hugging him, unwilling to let go as they were afraid he'd just disappear.

"Misato, are you OK?" Carl asked his daughter, still stunned by the fact that Yuji had returned.

"I'm fine, Daddy," Misato smiled. "Yuji saved me."

"I'm just glad you're back," Alan smiled at Yuji. Yuji nodded and then he looked at Rune. Yuji's eyes narrowed and then he walked over to the alchemist. The two men shared stern expressions as they looked each other in the eye.

"So you're back," said Yuji.

"And so have you, from the dead apparently," said Rune.

"Well," Yuji smiled as he extended a hand in greeting, "Glad to have you back. We're going to need everyone for this."

"I'm glad to be back,"said Rune as he took Yuji's hand. They squeezed each other's hands firmly before releasing their grip.

"Oh man, does Yuki know?" Shinichi asked Yuji.

"Oh, she knows," said Yuji, smiling. "She knows, but right now she, Rhea and Crystal are currently on maternity leave." None of them could fight as they were pregnant and fighting could endanger their babies. So they were out.

"Still, we're kinda low on manpower," Alan stated. "These are not the kind of odds we've faced before."

"_Excuse me_," spoke up Sheila, "_There is something I would like to report._"

"What is it, Sheila?" Shinichi asked the computer.

"_There have been fights breaking out all over the world. As I can tell the instigators all have red eyes_," Sheila said as she showed the footage.

"Yeah, the cops shooting at us had red eyes too," said Yuji.

"Wait, the cops were shooting at _you_?" Battler asked. "As in at you, at you?" Yuji nodded. "OK, that's not really normal, is it?"

"Well, they did surrounds us and wanted to arrest us for destruction of public property," said Misato. "Most of it being my fault, by the way."

"Misato, you were under some kind of freaky mind control. It wasn't your fault," said Yuji.

"Indeed, that is peculiar behavior," said Dr. Magi. "Everyone is fighting each other."

"Yeah, like what happened with Shin-kun and the others," said Rena.

"Yeah, you guys beat us up," Keiichi glared at the NEO-NUMBERS.

"Don't blame them, Keiichi. They were just under some kind of mind control," said Dr. Magi.

"Actually, it was more like a total reprogramming," said Shinichi. "Like a hidden program that was encrypted and implanted into our minds. When Savage said something, I just blacked out for a moment and when I woke up I couldn't control what I was doing. I was aware of what I was doing but I couldn't stop myself."

"Sounds like you were all made into sleeper agents," said Carl. "It must've been implanted into your brains back in GIN-SHOCKER."

"That still doesn't explain me," said Misato. "I died, twice, and the last time I died my bodied was destroyed." She glared at Shinichi. "In fact, I seem to recall being bisected by a big fucking shuriken!"

"It was Anastasia. Even if she doesn't remember her time as a member of Savage's inner circle after she was revived by Yuri, that doesn't change the fact that she was part of the ruling council of the Religion of Crime," said Alan. He had learnt a lot from the Monitor. "It's possible that when she revived you as one of her Furniture, the sleeper agent program was re-implanted into your brain."

Misato growled, "That...bitch!" She and Anastasia didn't get along very well, and so they kept out of each other's way whenever they could. Besides, Yuji and Yuri rarely interacted anyway, even though they were brothers.

"Now's not the time to be pointing fingers," advised Rune. "Now's the time we fight the main Big Bad." The others nodded and they were about to get back to preparing for the final battle when Rune let out a small shout of shock as he slapped his hand to the side of his head. "Damn!" Rune shouted.

"What? What's wrong?" Alan asked, a look of concern on his face.

Rune, seeing the panicked look on the faces of the others, just smiled sheepishly as he grabbed a small capsule from his jacket's inner pocket. "Oh, sorry, I just nearly forgot half of the main reason as to why I was sent back here to this era."

"Yeah, I've been wondering how you got back here when that time storm took you back home almost a month or so ago," Alan said as he leaned against one of the terminals with his arms folded across his chest. "How did you manage to get past the barrier surrounding this world anyway?"

"Like I said earlier," Rune began as he clicked the small switch-knob on top of the capsule and tossed it onto the table before them. "You and I have some familiar friends from out of town that decided to send me back. That is, after our respective bosses found a way to do so after talking with them."

"What do you mean 'our respective bosses?" Daichi asked, now a bit confused. He, along with the others, then looked at the capsule that Rune had tossed onto the table as it began to let off a buzzing noise before it exploded in a small cloud of gas. "What the hell!?"

There, on the table, was no longer the capsule but a small storage case with two metal locks on the front so as to keep the contents of the case from spilling out. Rune walked over, flipped open the locks and opened the lid of the case.

"Long story short, when I got back to my time, I met a guy named Carter Kisuke. He's also known as Kamen Rider D-Xcel and he works for the organization called the Ultra God Society, or U.G.S. for short," Rune explained. "He's one of their Time Train Riders and he came to see me after they (the U.G.S.) were alerted to the time storms that were taking place and, after hearing what I had been through, hired me on as one of their newest Rider members. They're actually very similar to ARMOR. They even had a White Kakugane in their possession which they gave to me to counteract the Black Kakugane in my chest."

"Which would explain why your Victorization seems to have halted," Yuji said as he noticed that Rune was not sapping their life energy like a black hole does with light and matter.

"Exactly," confirmed Rune as he took a cord and connected it to the terminal and accessed the video monitor. "After joining the U.G.S., I underwent some heavy training to start conditioning my body in order to control my Victor powers. And let's just say that it was no picnic."

"Must have been tough," said Shinichi as he watched Rune work.

"It was, until my boss was able to get our 'friends from out of town' to allow Aquarius to travel to my home era," said Rune as he motioned over to the Demon Priestess of Time. "Once she got there, and after the week long hero worship," Rune said with a small sweatdrop appearing next to his forehead, "she created a pseudo dimension of free flowing space-time for me to inhabit and where I could train for a whole year in the actual time of one whole week in my world." He finished making the connections and then went back to the case, removing a couple of small packages before turning on a small monitor that rested inside the case. It showed an image of both the logos for the U.G.S. and ARMOR which also displayed itself on the main monitor in the Dungeon. "After all that time, I was able to master both my Victor powers and my alchemy to what most of you all saw today."

"More like what you used on us if I recall," quipped Hana. Rune just shrugged his shoulders.

"I had to wear you guys out somehow so that Rena and the others could get through to you," Rune said in his defense. He then pushed a few buttons and brought up a playlist of videos. "Ah, there we go."

"Hōko-kun, what is it that you're doing, exactly?" Mammon asked as she held his arm and leaned up against him, watching him work out of curiosity.

"Well, after I got back and got hired by the U.G.S., my boss got in contact with Warren over at ARMOR and the two of them went about collecting video messages, letters, get well wishes, photos and even small gift basket treats for you all." He then looked at Alan, Yuji and Shinichi. "Oh, and you three, both Warren and Yusei send their congratulations on the birth of your three children." They all looked at him. "Yeah, sorry but I had to spill the beans on that one. You should have seen Warren's face when he asked me personally for all the info I had on the current situation. His exact words when I mentioned you two were 'them's my boys!'," he said as he pointed as Shinichi and Alan.

Picking up a box and holding it in his hand, Yuji asked, "So, all this stuff is for us? From our friends and family from our home worlds, timelines and even those at ARMOR?"

"Yatzee!" Rune said as he gave Yuji a thumbs up. The two of them, while they still didn't get along very well, were on civil terms due to Mammon. "Okay, you guys take some time to soak in the videos and gifts. Me, I'm just gonna sit back and watch you guys have a small bit of fun. Good lord knows you all could use a bit of a morale boost right about now."

Everyone smiled as Shinichi walked up to the case and selected the first video file which was titled 'Greetings from ARMOR'. He then looked back at Rune, seeing that both Mammon and Aquarius had taken seats on opposite sides of them. Mammon, despite being the Stake of Greed, was willing to share Rune with Aquarius after all she had done to help him. "Hey, Eon?" Rune looked at him and Shinichi smiled while giving him a nod. "Thanks.

"Don't mention it," Rune smiled before the video file began to play. It showed Warren with a huge smile on his face.

"_Alan, Shinichi, I'm so glad to be able to hear from you. I'm even more glad to hear that you boys are OK. But was there any real doubt? You boys are Smiths and Smiths are survivors. Anyway, Rune was able to tell us what you've been up to and let me just say how proud I am of you. You've met every challenge head on and came up on top. Oh, and he also told me that you guys have babies. Once we can see each other in person, I want to see my grandkids. The others want to see them too. Anyway, I just want to wish you all the best and good luck. Oh, excuse me. Ryuki wants to say something to the both of you_." Warren got up and then Ryuki sat down in front of the camera.

"_When we lost contact with Showa no Sekai, we were all worried sick. We tried everything. We even almost attempted to use an Infinity Fragment to tear a hole open to your world. That was mainly Warren's idea before he managed to calm down. Using an Infinity Fragment would've been disastrous due to their unstable and unpredictable nature. Anyway, back to the main point, I'm glad to hear that you are all OK. I'm also glad to hear that you've become fathers and that you've made a lot of new friends. Once connection between ARMOR and Shinichi's universe has been restored, I want to give those babies checkups. Oh, and one last thing: I want you all to be safe. We're all with you in spirit_." Ryuki put his fist against his chest. "_Heroes never fall, never give up, and never surrender_. _Alright, now Yusei-sensei and Aki-sensei wants to speak to Yuji._"

Aki and Yusei stood in front of the camera and both wore smiles on their faces. Yuji smiled as he saw both his parents for the first time in a very long time. "Mom. Dad."

"_Hey, son_," Yusei smiled. "_We miss you_."

"_And we miss Yuri, Yuki and all the other girls too_," added Aki. "_We hope you're nice and healthy_." Yuji couldn't help but sweatdrop. He wondered how they would react to the news that he'd died once.

"_Jack, Crow, the twins and the others were worried sick when we couldn't get into contact with you guys, but Rune here convinced us that you were all OK and handling things well there_," said Yusei. "_The Crimson Dragon must be watching over you. I'm just surprised that the Earthbound Gods were able to get to that universe. It should've been impossible_."

"_Still, it feels great to be able to send this message to you all. Yuki, I sure hope you're looking after your brothers. And Yuri, I hope you're behaving yourself. Please, I pray that you're behaving yourself. We cannot afford to have another lawsuit because of something you did to someone over there. We love you, but even so we cannot allow you to always act like your usual crazy self_," said Aki.

"Don't worry. Yuri's mellowed out for the most part since he got married and had a kid," said Yuji. He was aware that it was just a recording, but he couldn't help but say it.

"_Always remember that we're all rooting for you_," said Yusei encouragingly. "_May the Crimson Dragon always watch over you._"

"_Oh, and when you come back, I want to see little Anita and Yuna_," said Aki.

That was the end of the message.

"They've been trying to contact us all this time," Shinichi realized, feeling touched by how much his biological father had missed them.

"Dad always was sentimental," said Alan.

"Yup," nodded Rune. "And they were almost willing to tear a hole open in the Multiverse with an Infinity Fragment to do it."

"Thanks, Rune," Yuji said as he wiped the tears from his eyes.

"Don't mention. Now, let's focus on the matters at hand."

Suddenly, the alarms blared and the large screen on Shinichi's computer console and terminal showed them an image of Hinamizawa. Something was going on there, something that needed their attention.

"It's the village!" Hanyuu gasped.

"Sheila, what's going on?" asked Shinichi.

"_I've detected an unusual and massive energy spike within the area of the Onigafuchi Swamp_," reported Sheila. The Hinamizawans and NEO-NUMBERS all paled when they heard the news. Onigafuchi (demon possessing) Swamp was the location where the original Darkloid known as the Dark Being had been sealed in, and also where the Darklings and Darkloids were spawn from, beginning the legend of Hinamizawa being a village of demons. Centuries ago, before the name was changed, the village was known as Onigafuchi because of the legend of demons. Of course ever since Shinichi and the other Riders had defeated the Dark Being, the village didn't suffer from anymore demon attacks. However, the Darkloids reemerged after Gnol Gnauh was freed and now they existed in space in the form of the OROCHI DALEKs.

"Sheila, get me visual of the source of the energy spike," Sheila ordered.

"_Affirmative_," said Sheila and she showed the Priest performing a sort of mystical ritual, dressed in ornate robes and standing in the centre of a magical circle which was radiating with a lot of energy judging from the spike Sheila had detected.

"What is he doing?" Mion asked.

"I don't know, but whatever it is it can't be good and it has to be stopped," said Shinichi. "Sheila, open up a Teleportal for Onigafuchi Swamp. I'm taking down the Priest, once and for all."

"_Alone?_" Sheila questioned.

"Yes," Shinichi confirmed.

"Wait," Alan objected. "The Priest could kill you. He has you branded with the Cursed Mark and you could be incapacitated like last time." Shinichi frowned. The Priest had defeated them so easily before. He hated being reminded of that fact. "At least bring along some backup."

"Don't worry,' said Shinichi. "I got this. You just have to worry about Savage and-" The alarm blared again and this time Sheila was displaying Shishibone City. People were being dragged out of their homes and assembled in the middle of the city. "Now what?"

Alan's eyes were focused on the shirtless man holding the Spear of Destiny before his expression flashed with recognition. "It's Savage."

"That's Savage?" Yokoshima asked. "Not exactly how I pictured him."

"He's changed his looks, but I recognize him anywhere," Alan replied.

"_People of Shishibone City_," declared Cain. "_I am Cain, your new Lord and Master. Now, KNEEL!" _He commanded. The people were forced to their knees. _"Now, my first command to you all as your new Lord and Master is simple: bring forth the Kamen Riders and I may spare you to live the rest of your lives in service of my new empire._"

"OK, now _this _is happening," Daichi frowned.

"Seems like you guys are gonna be busy with that," said Shinichi. Rena went up to him and kissed him. "Rena-chan?"

"Be careful," said Rena.

"You too," said Shinichi.

"Sir Shinichi, please come back safely," Shawna requested.

"Don't die," said Tsukuyomi.

"And beat that prick," said Satan. Shinichi nodded.

"OK, let's move out," said Alan to the rest of the group. "We're going to Shishibone City."

"Actually, there's something else I need to take care of first," said Yuji. "I'll meet up with you guys, I swear. I just need to go somewhere to tie up some loose ends."

"Alright," said Shinichi. "Just don't die again."

"Same to you," smiled Yuji.

Shinichi produced the spheres containing his Rider powers and sent them towards the Gaming Club, returning the power to them. "You guys are gonna need those," Shinichi said.

"Alright!" Mion grinned.

"Rune, take care of them, OK?" Shinichi requested and the Alchemist Rider nodded.

"I promise," said Rune.

"Alright, people! Let's Ride!"

* * *

(1) The Warbot had received a major redesign. On its torso was a silver triangular chest-piece which was wrapped around its shoulders. On the stomach was a black plate. It appeared to be wearing silver gloves and boots. The outside of its legs were black like the inner-side of its upper arms. It also wore a helmet with a black stripe going down from the top to the tip of its nose and a horizontal line to act as its mouth. Its eyes looked evil, narrowed and triangular. Around its waist was a belt with the DALEKs' symbol-which resembled a frontal view of the eye- acting as the buckle. Also, it was marked by XIV on the left side of its chestpiece.

"**Excellent…"** DALEK Shiro approved as he admired the finished Warbot. Suddenly, the alarms blared. There was a perimeter breach. **"What is that?" **DALEK Shiro demanded. "**Pull up the visual from the exterior surveillance cameras on screen now! Now!**" The DALEK Legion all saw Yuji on the monitor screens. He was standing right at the gate.

"**OH MAN! OH MAN! HE'S FOUND US! WE ARE SO DEAD! DEAD! D-E-A-D: DEAD!" **the Pink DALEK shouted in panic. **"IT'S GAME OVER FOR US! REPENT! REPENT! THE END IS HERE!"**

"**SILENCE!"** Shiro, the White DALEK Supreme ordered loudly as he shot the Pink DALEK with a stun ray. "**This is a golden opportunity, my DALEKs!**"

"**Indeed,"** agreed the Blue Strategist. **"Now he's on our turf. We have the homefield advantage."**

"**Prepare the DALEK Troopers, the Pig Slaves and the Vervoids for battle!"** DALEK Shiro commanded. **"Strategist, you will assist me in composing a strategy to deal with the Manakyte!"**

"**I obey, Supreme One!" **the Blue Strategist DALEK said, raising his clawed arm up.** "DALEKs are supreme!"**

The other DALEKs chorused, "**DALEKS ARE SUPREME!**"

* * *

Yuji stood before the old abandoned mansion and murmured, "So, this is where you've been hiding you psychotic son of a bitch." He pushed the rusty old gate open. It creaked and he entered the property. That was when he was suddenly ambushed when the Cyberdrones hidden in the tall unkempt grass leapt at him. Yuji responded quickly, his fists encased in light as he shot at the Cyberdrones jumping at him with energy bolts. He could see the red of their eyes as they hid in the grass before catapulting themselves at him. Their undersides also opened to free their drills which they would use to either turn him into a Roboman or lethally wound him.

Yuji performed a flip, his feet trailing energy in an arch. This energy arch lashed out, destroying the Cyberdrones as they exploded. Cyberdrones still continued to leap at him and he launched energy bolts with jabs of his fist, blowing them up. He realized that there were a lot more where they came from as they kept popping out to attack him. He could end up being overwhelmed by these mechanical spider-droids.

Fortunately, Yuji had some form of backup as he zipped open his backpack and shouted, "Scrappy, sic em!" Like a cannonball, Scrappy launched out of the bag and opened his mouth wide, his razor sharp teeth spinning not unlike the blades of a blender and making a sound similar to a buzzsaw. As soon as Scrappy caught his first Cyberdrone, he promptly devoured it as his teeth dismantled the robotic spider with ease before he spat out the organic rodent brain. Grinning, Scrappy proceeded to attack the Cyberdrones viciously. He dodged their laser eyes and struck with his sharp forelegs like a praying mantis, stabbing through their metal shells to bring them to his mouth.

"Good boy," said Yuji. He and Maria had once argued over what Scrappy's supposed gender was. As a machine he was supposed to be genderless. Yuji settled on Scrappy being a boy. That did not stop Maria and Wendy from playing dressup with the critter, putting him in dressed. He did look adorable...until his face split open as he opened his mouth and exposed his teeth.

The Cyberdrones now identified Scrappy as a threat and shifted their attention to him. Unfortunately, despite outnumbering Scrappy, they were no match for his speed and ferocity. Yuji was also exploding Cyberdrones with energy bolts. In desperation, the Cyberdrones all lined up and linked up together to form a gigantic, robotic, centipede-like form. Unfortunately, that did not do much for them except make them a much easier target for Yuji to destroy.

Lightning flashed in the sky followed by the sound of thunder before it started to rain.

"Of course," muttered Yuji. "A visit to a haunted house is never complete without it being a _dark and stormy night_." He opened his backpack and called, "Come on back, Scrappy." Scrappy obeyed and leapt back into the backpack. Yuji went up to the door and pushed it open. It make a creaking sound because of the rusted hinges. "Of course," he murmured and went inside. As soon as he stepped foot into the foyer, the door behind him slammed shut. Scrappy nearly jumped out of his backpack.

"Hm, kinda looks like the haunted house thing I did with my class for the School Festival," Yuji stated after he looked around. The mansion was creepy looking but he'd seen scarier. "Well, time to look around and explore my host's abode."

And that was when they came at him. The Pig Slaves came out of hiding, baring their sharp fangs at him as they lunged for him. They came at him savagely. Mindless creatures mutated from innocent humans, there was no hope of the process being reversed at the moment. Therefore, Yuji had no choice but take the next course of action.

He activated his Energy Claws and began to eviscerate and disembowel the Pig Slaves. Blood and flesh splashed along the floor as the claws tore into the squealing Pig Slaves. Yuji's clothes were also stained and the Pig Slaves still kept coming at him until they were no more but torn pieces of flesh on the floor which was stained by their blood.

The next wave of the attack came in the form of the Vervoids and Yuji simply dealt with them like any plant-like creature he had dealt with in the past. Only this time he used energy bolts to vaporise them.

The final wave came as DALEK Troopers marched towards him and they fired their modified DALEK rifles at him. They chanted, in monotone, "Exterminate. Exterminate. Exterminate. Exterminate**.**" These were also poor souls that the DALEKs had taken control of, turning them into mindless puppets whose only purpose was to serve their DALEK Masters. Yuji dodged the death rays, knowing how much they hurt. He used his speed to his advantage as he avoided their shots and used his claws to disarm them, literally. They didn't seem to react to the pain of having their arms sliced off. They still continued to chant like mindless zombies. The Cyberdrones which were concealed under the helmets on their heads, once they realized they were unarmed, fired their red laser beams in an attempt to overwhelm and vanquish the Manakyte. He swung his arms and launched energy beams which blew up the helmets and hit the Cyberdrones, killing them along with their hosts.

"Well, I guess that's that," said Yuji as he dusted off his hands once they turned back to normal. "OK, I took out mutant pork, walking weeds and zombies. Seems like a normal night for me." After dealing with the Pig Slaves, Vervoids and DALEK Troopers, the floor underneath Yuji's feet suddenly gave way and he fell into the darkness. "TRAP DOOR!? OH...SHIT!"

* * *

As he exited the Teleportal, Shinichi spotted the Priest in the air with a magic circle hanging above him. He was generating a lot of power, enough power to destroy the village. He was dressed in ceremonial black robes with gold runic symbols. His hood was up, the usual way he wore it.

"Not on my watch!" Shinichi shouted as he made his Showa-Ride speed up. The Priest spotted him and with his power summoned the Darkstars to get in the Riders away. "Get outta my way!" Rocketing forward, he ran the Darkstars over and knocked them away. He whipped his vehicle around, smashing Darkstars away with its rear. Darkstars hurled explosive shuriken at him and sent Shinichi flying into the air as his Showa-Ride vanished, the metal reforming into his Great Boots. He landed and flattened several Darkstars with his Great Boots. He kicked several Darkstars away before undoing his Great Boots and landing on his proper feet.

He raised his right hand above his head and summoned energy to form a disk. "Kienzan!" he called and he hurled the disk at the Darkstars beheading and bisecting the creatures which turned to smoke. Darkstars charged at him but they were knocked off their feet by Shinichi as he formed his Great Fists and slapped them together. Meanwhile, the Kienzan disk was still flying, killing all the Darkstars in its path before the disk returned to Shinichi and he banished it. The remaining Darkstars charged at him but they were quickly dealt with as Shinichi formed the Burst Cannon and fired a charged energy blast which wiped them out.

Shinichi felt the burning pain in his chest as the Mark of Destruction reacted to his use of power but he wasn't giving up. He formed his energy wings and shot into the air towards the Priest. Generating more speed, he slammed into the Priest who was taken by surprise, knocking him out of the air to crash to the ground. Shinichi reabsorbed the Showa-Ride into his body as he landed on the ground to face the Priest who was picking himself back up.

Shinichi stood across from the Priest near the swamp. This was whereone of the most epic battles had taken place. This was where the Dark Being had been defeated and sealed away, for good. The Priest had come to Hinamizawa in order to destroy the village and Shinichi had arrived to stop him.

"Have you come to stop me?" the Priest questioned.

"Why else would I be here?" retorted Shinichi.

"I have seen many, many worlds like this one, and in each of those worlds, this village has never survived beyond the June of the year 1983," the Priest said.

"So, what's your point?" Shinichi questioned.

"This village's survival is an aberration to the cycle of fate and destiny and I wish to remedy that," said the Priest. "I will see that it is wiped out like it was meant to be 6 years ago!"

"That's crazy! All those people! All those lives!" Shinichi snapped.

"Sacrifices are needed for the sake of balance," the Priest retorted.

"No, this isn't about balance anymore. It was _never _about balance for you. You're just insane. If something doesn't fit into your perfect world view, it should be destroyed. That's how you operate," Shinichi argued.

"Your words mean nothing," said the Priest.

"Then let's have our swords do the talking for us," Shinichi challenged as he summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba and Sword of Ascalon.

"Very well, I accept your challenge and see to it that your resolve is crushed at my superior power and weapons," the Priest said as he removed his elaborate ceremonial robes, tossing it away to reveal what he wore underneath. It was an elaborate suit of leather armor decorated by ancient runes in great detail. The belt sported the yin-yang symbol as a buckle. His demonic arm was completely exposed, looking as menacing as ever. His hair was long and wild like a lion's mane. He now looked more like a warrior than a priest.

Conjuring the magic circles, he summoned the Death Fang of Chorvax and drew it out of its circle with his demonic hand as he drew out the summoned Holy Talon of Faldren from its circle with his normal hand.

Shinichi recalled what those swords were and what they could do. They were ancient, mystical artifacts of great power much like his Treasures of Hinamizawa and the Sword of Ascalon.

The two fighters stared each other down. Shinichi's eyes narrowed as he called upon his Reiryoku and Youki as well as his Ryuyouki. His eyes changed as his irises turned black and his pupils became thin, silver slits. The Priest casually went into a stance, gazing back at Shinichi. He wasn't regarding Shinichi in the same way as before.

With a mutual battle cry, the two of them charged at each other.

"I'm gonna make you pay for taking Mion's arm by taking yours you son of a bitch!" Shinichi roared before he called out, "Henshin!" He assumed his Showa Trinity Form and summoned the Higurashi no Yaiba. Sparks flew as their blades clashed. The Priest parried with both his swords crossed, catching Showa's Higurashi no Yaiba between them. He moved his arm in a circular motion, bringing Showa's sword down and drew back both his swords to slash Showa across the chest, sending sparks flying as he cut deep into the armor. Showa gritted his teeth and thrust with the Sword of Ascalon, but the sacred sword of Genovia was parried before hitting its mark. Banishing the Sword of Ascalon, Showa focused on the Higurashi no Yaiba.

"Sing, Yabuki!" In a flash of green light complemented by the song of cicadas, Showa flew at the Priest in his Higurashi Form armor. He slashed rapidly at the Priest with the Higurashi no Yaiba, causing sparks to fly as the Priest parried. Backing away to make some distance, he swung his sword again as the blade extended into a whip-like form which he lashed at the Priest who attempted to block the assault. Returning the Higurashi no Yaiba to its regular length and rigidness, he launched his attack. "Higurashi Zan!" The crescent blade of emerald energy soared towards the Priest but was shattered by Death Fang. Showa continued launching a series of Higurashi Zan attacks which were shattered effortlessly by the Priest each time.

"Your efforts are in vain!" the Priest shouted.

"I'm not done yet! Bring Down the Thunder, Gokuaku!" shouted Showa as he switched to his second Treasure Form. Rushing at the Priest in a tornado of fire, wind and lightning, the Priest was hit with the full force of the elemental charge as Showa tackled into him. The tornado violently dispersed in all directions as Showa stood in his Oni Form.

"Lightning Spear!" Showa roared as he launched the attack at the Priest who deflected it with Holy Talon. He enveloped his right fist in flames and his left fist in wind. "Volcano Punch!" He struck with his inflamed fist which struck the Priest across the chest. "Tornado Drill!" His left fist flew into the Priest's stomach and launched him backwards but he stabbed his swords into the ground, leaving gouges as he slowed down before planting his feet back on the ground.

"Good effort, but you have yet to leave a scratch on me," boasted the Priest as he didn't look injured at all.

"I still have another! Strike from the Shadows, Zennin!" He turned into his ninja-like form and jumped into the air as he created multiple clones. They launched themselves at the Priest who destroyed each and every one of the clones with his swords. His swings were swift and deadly as he landed lethal blows to destroy the clones coming at him, each and every one of them.

"Are you simply going to waste my time?" demanded the Priest. "Because if that is your goal then you are becoming a pest!"

"HYAH!" the surviving clones all performed flying side kicks aimed for the Priest. He destroyed them all within seconds but then he realized that the real one was missing until he received a blow in the back that sent staggering forwards. He spun around to see Showa return to visibility. He'd used this form's ability to turn invisible and was preparing an attack. He threw a weighted chain which bound around the Priest's two swords. Digging his feet into the ground, he tugged hard on the chain and disarmed the Priest, relieving him of his two swords.

"Shadow Ball!" With the Shadow Ball gripped in his hand, Showa teleported to close the distance and rammed it at the Priest who was able to catch the Shadow Ball in his demonic hand. Showa continued to pump Youki into the Shadow Ball as the Priest pumped his own energy into his demonic hand to hold off the Shadow Ball as it began to grind against his palm.

The Priest had come to wipe Hinamizawa off the face of the Earth, which was something Showa wanted to prevent. This place was precious to him and something worth protecting. The Priest saw Hinamizawa as an abnormality in his balanced worldview that should've been erased when it was destined to many years ago. He'd witnessed the Great Hinamizawa Disaster so many times in so many worlds, but to see it prevented in this world was a violation of his idea of the natural order of things. It wasn't consistent and he had come to fix the inconsistency by destroying Hinamizawa and killing the villagers in the process.

Showa wasn't about to let him. This village became his home when he first awoke in it five years ago. This was the place where he rebuilt his life, finding new friends, reconciling with old friends, and finding a new purpose.

The Shadow Ball, after reaching maximum capacity, erupted and the explosion tossed both Showa and the Priest through the air as it sent them flying backwards. They went tumbling in midair before landing on their feet. Showa flicked his right hand repeatedly as the shockwave had nearly torn his hand off his wrist.

* * *

Yuji recovered and he found himself inside an underground chamber and all around him stood DALEKs. He immediately got to his feet, ready to defend himself. However, he noticed that they weren't moving nor were they responding to his presence. In Yuji's experience, DALEKs normally didn't behave that way. Because of their programming they would automatically attack intruders on sight and he was definitely an intruder. The chamber wasn't well lit but it wasn't a problem for Yuji and his Manalyte eyes. Standing up, he checked on the closest DALEK. He lightly tapped its dome.

Tap! Tap!

He expected it to start screaming, "**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**" and shoot at him, joined by other DALEKs in their psychotic chant, but it didn't even move or look at him. In fact, it looked dead.

* * *

"**Supreme One, Yuji Fudo is down in the DALEK storage area!" **the Strategist DALEK reported.

"**Activate them,"** ordered DALEK Shiro.

"**But Supreme One, the ones down in the storage area are uncontrollably insane," **argued the Scientist DALEK.

"**Good, because if you give something crazy enough firepower, it can be incredibly dangerous and destructive," **said DALEK Shiro. **"Now, activate them."**

"**I obey," **replied the Scientist DALEK as he went to activate all the dormant units.

* * *

"Yokoshima mentioned being in this kind of situation before," said Yuji as he inspected the DALEK closely. He then turned the dome head a bit to the side. "Not everyday I get to see a DALEK up close without being shot at."

That was when the DALEK's dome head began to move back into its original position, all on its own, making a heavy grinding noise as it rotated so that its eyestalk was facing Yuji. Yuji began to sweatdrop.

"This can't be good," he mumbled as the eyeball's lense began to light up. It wasn't the only DALEK whose eye was glowing. The other DALEK units' eyes were starting to glow as well. "This is _definitely _not good."

"**EX-EX-EX-EX-EX-EX-!" **one DALEK spoke, stuttering.

"**EX-EX-EX-EX-EX-EX-EX-!" **the other DALEKs chorused, repeating.

Yuji began to back away as the DALEKs focused their eyes on him.

"**EX...TER...MIN..."** the DALEK Yuji had originally inspected began to speak.

"Don't say it," Yuji begged.

"**...ATE."**

"You said it."

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

"**IN-TRU-DER! E-MER-GEN-CY! E-MER-GEN-CY! EX-TER-MIN-ATE THE IN-TRU-DER!"**

"I hate it when they fucking say that!" growled Yuji as he used his ring to provide cover for him from the DALEKs' gunfire. "Hey, trash cans! Wanna see my pet?" Yuji opened his backpack and Scrappy leapt out. "Sic em, boy!" Scrappy grinned as he saw the DALEKs and then opened his mouth wide, his teeth spinning like the blades of a blender before lunging to enjoy this buffet.

* * *

"**All units offline**," reported the DALEK Strategist .

"_**What!? That's impossible!" **_Omega shouted. _**"How could he defeat the superior power and might of the DALEKs!?"**_

"**He fed them to his pet," **answered the DALEK Strategist. There was an awkward pause shared among them.

"**Well, guess it's time for me to welcome our guest,"** said DALEK Shiro. **"Stay here and await further orders."**

"**We obey!"**

"**Supreme One, once you're done, could you collect that creature Yuji Fudo has brought along with him? I wish to study it," **requested the DALEK Scientist.

"**I'll bring its pieces to you, at the very least," **promised DALEK Shiro before he went off to confront the Manakyte.

* * *

Scrappy was finished with the DALEKs before returning to Yuji's backpack. Yuji smiled as he patted the backpack. "Good boy." He admired Scrappy's handiwork. Once the DALEKs recognized Scrappy as a threat they had tried shooting at him but he was too small and too quick for them to target so easily and ended up shooting each other. Scrappy also ate a few as well. Yuji then heard the sound a DALEK made when it glided and prepared to fight another one. He then spotted the DALEK as he came into view, already recognizing it from the white battle armor it wore.

"Shiro..." Yuji growled.

"**You know, you look good for someone who took a bath in the Earth's molten core. How was it down there, exactly?"** asked DALEK Shiro.

"Hot, but I got used to it," said Yuji. "But now, I'm here to give you the ending you deserve." He punched his palm threateningly. "Time to finish you off for good and send you to the junkyard."

"**Did you know that the Pig Slaves and DALEK Troopers used to be people?"** DALEK Shiro asked.

"Yeah, until you fucked them up and turned them into your mindless slaves," Yuji spat.

"**Well, that's quite right. You see, humanity only has one real use in this world and it is to serve me in any capacity I wish. Also, I realized that just wiping out the human race isn't very productive."**

"So you just turn them into slaves," remarked Yuji angrily.

"**Yes, to do what I don't want to do so I won't have to waste my time and soil my claws to do any dirty work when I don't have to,"** said DALEK Shiro. **"But of course there are some individuals who can contribute to the DALEK cause."**

"Like allies?" Yuji questioned.

"**No, more like converts,"** corrected DALEK Shiro.** "Each and every DALEKs stored down here used to be a person."** Yuji's eyes widened. **"Oh, I didn't do it like when I created the Cybermen. No brain transplants whatsoever. What I did was transfer their individual minds and consciousnesses into the DALEKs. However, there seemed to be some disagreement between their minds and the DALEK programming so they all went insane."**

"So you just dumped them down here in the dark?" Yuji growled. "Out of sight, out of mind, huh?"

"**We store them down here until we can fix them and use them,"** DALEK Shiro corrected. **"It's wiser to store them than it is to destroy them."**

"You took away innocent people and jammed their minds into these mechanical saltshakers, drove them insane, put them to sleep, lock them down here, and you have the nerve to brag about it?" snarled Yuji.

"**I'm a DALEK, it's what I do,"** said DALEK Shiro nonchalantly.

"You know, I used to hate you a lot, but now I think it's gone beyond hatred now," Yuji glared.

"**The feeling's mutual. Do you know why I hate you so much?"** DALEK Shiro questioned.

"I think my dashing good looks have something to do with it. Then there's the fact that I don't look like a walking trashcan," Yuji quipped.

"**You're always so smug. Always so smart,"** DALEK Shiro growled. **"Well, that won't help you now!"** He screamed, pointing his gunstick at Yuji. **"EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

A blue shield formed in front of Yuji, blocking the death ray. He then formed his Photon Claw with his left hand and a Photon Blade on his right. The claw was a manifestation of solidified light particles that Yuji formed in the shape of a clawed gauntlet, while the Photon Blade was solidified into an unbreakable blade that could cut through almost any material. Dashing forward, he went charging at the White DALEK who continued to fire death rays at Yuji, only for the Light Manakyte to dodge. Once Yuji closed the gap between them, he slashed DALEK Shiro across the chest, slicing off his appendages.

"**MY ARMS!"** DALEK Shiro screamed "**YOU FILTHY LIZARD, YOU CUT MY ARMS OFF!**". A kick from Yuji sent the White DALEK spinning out of control. The DALEK then regained its footing and aimed its midsection at Yuji. A new pair of appendages popped out of his chest box. The right one was the standard plunger while the other was a cylindrical tube. Unafraid, Yuji charged but received a face full of poison gas, causing him to cough. The White DALEK then grabbed hold of Yuji's face with the plunger. **"Now…YOU DIE!"** The White DALEK began to suck the air out of Yuji's lungs, cutting off his air supply and crushing his skull. Yuji struggled to free himself before he blasted DALEK Shiro backwards with a concentrated ball of energy. The White DALEK screamed in agony as the front of his armor was scorched.

Yuji was gasping for air and glared at the White DALEK whose arms retracted and were replaced with new gunsticks. They were tubes with fins near the nozzle. They fired, rapidly expelling capsulated energy bullets at Yuji. He performed a dodge roll and then slammed his fist into the floor and called out, **"Photon Pillar!"**, erecting four pillars of light that surrounded DALEK Shiro in a trap.

"**RELEASE ME! RELEASE ME!"** DALEK Shiro screamed.

"Time to take out the trash," said Yuji as he prepared to destroy DALEK Shiro and wipe him out of existence. The black spheres decorating the DALEK's skirt-like base popped out and hovered around him before erecting an energy field that repelled the pillars as the White DALEK floated safely to the ground. "OK, now you're just fucking cheating..."

"**I'm a villain! The Bad Guy! I'm **_**supposed **_**to cheat!"** argued DALEK Shiro loudly. The spheres then flew at Yuji like cannonballs and he bobbed and weaved his body to avoid being hit. He saw them crackle, with electricity arcing around them, so it was a bad idea for him to be caught. The spheres returned to DALEK Shiro and set themselves back into the skirt-like base.

"So, you had enough?" Yuji questioned.

"**No**," answered DALEK Shiro. "**I think it's time for a field test.**"

"A field test for what?" Yuji questioned and he got his answer as he watched DALEK Shiro begin to transform. The bottom half of his armor split down the middle and raised up to attach themselves to the edge of the upper half, revealing a pair of sturdy looking legs which hovered off the ground. The legs were mainly white with black feet. Panels on the sides of the chest box lifted up and a pair of arms slid out. These arms seemed more flexible and sported a three-fingered claw each. The appendages on the chest slid back inside and were covered by hemispheric shutters. Finally, his eyestalk retracted into the dome.

Yuji was now looking at a DALEK with a humanoid form. "OK…this is new," he admitted, blinking.

The centre of the neck rings parted and retracted to reveal DALEK Shiro's face. **"So, are you scared now?"**

"Dude, you got breasts," Yuji pointed at the shutters on the chest box.

"**THESE ARE NOT BREASTS!"** DALEK Shiro snapped. **"THEY'RE JUST SHUTTERS!"** Now he just wanted to shut Yuji up. So, much to Yuji's surprise, the hemisphere between DALEK Shiro's legs opened up and a gunstick slid out. The presence of the gunstick in that spot was pretty vulgar and suggestive.

"OK, that is so wrong!" said Yuji and DALEK Shiro thrust his hips forward, firing at Yuji. "SO WRONG! SO VERY WRONG!" Yuji screamed as he ducked to avoid being hit.

"**I AM SO GOING TO BLOW YOU AWAY WITH MY LOAD!"** DALEK Shiro cackled as he fired his pelvic gunstick continuously.

"THAT IS SO WRONG!"

"**AND HAVE ANOTHER TASTE OF MY BALLS!" **The spheres detached and went flying.

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THE FUCK YOU'RE SAYING!?" Yuji screamed as he had to dodge the spheres and DALEK Shiro's death ray. "SERIOUSLY, WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU, BESIDES THE OBVIOUS!?"

DALEK Shiro didn't answer but instead continued his assault. The spheres smashed into the floor, causing it to explode. Fortunately, Yuji was able to avoid getting crushed by the spheres. They seemed to home in on him, which wasn't good. They flew at him from all directions and he formed another blue barrier. The spheres slammed into it and Yuji's body trembled from the impact as the spheres bounced off and then flew back to return to DALEK Shiro.

"**Once this form has been perfected, I think I'll upgrade my legion so they can transform too," **said DALEK Shiro while he admired his claws. Yuji dropped his barrier and lunged at DALEK Shiro.

"Upgrade this!"

**POW**!

Yuji's fist smashed against DALEK Shiro's head and Yuji was amused as he saw Shiro's head spin in place. He stopped his head from spinning by holding it in place and glared at Yuji. His codpiece opened up against and the gunstick slid out. The spheres on his chest also opened to reveal additional firearms. He began shooting rapidly at Yuji who started dodging and firing back. Explosions erupted all around them as their shots missed.

* * *

The DALEK Legion watched as their Supreme One was battling Yuji. The Pink DALEK was cheering and waving actual pompoms.

"**Where did you get those?**" Doc asked.

"**Oh, I made them,"** said the Pink DALEK. **"I just had a feeling I would be able to use them and I was right!"**

"**Strategically, our Supreme One does have an advantage, but considering who our enemy is, it would be wise to support him," **said the Blue Strategist.

"**Yeah! Let's go help our Supreme One and kick some keisters!"** shouted the Red Warrior.

"**Yes, I want to pay Yuji Fudo back for destroying my beautiful creations**," snickered the Green Geneticist menacingly.

"**I'm coming too! You'll need medical attention**," the Doc said as he followed before menacingly adding as Omega, _"__**And I wish to introduce Yuji Fudo to the Doctor of Doom! Mwahahahhaa!**__"_

"**I'll just stay here and watch, guys**," said the Pink DALEK.

"**Yeah you do that**," the Blue Strategist deadpanned. It was better for the pink one to stay behind and not interfere with their great plans.

"**Go and Fight On, Home Team!**" he continued to cheer.

* * *

The entire chamber was being destroyed by Yuji and DALEK Shiro's battle. Fire and lasers went flying all over. Yuji could try going all out but he might bring the whole place down on him. Even if it did take out DALEK Shiro in the process, Yuji didn't feel like being buried under tons of rocks.

Suddenly, Yuji was blasted by an energy beam and sent crashing into the wall. DALEK Shiro turned to see his DALEK Legion come rolling towards him.

"**What are you all doing here?**" DALEK Shiro questioned.

"**Supreme One, considering the advantage, it would be best that we all fought alongside you as support. It is more tactically sound**," said the Blue Strategist.

"**Plus we were bored with watching! We wanted to participate!**" added the Red Warrior.

"**And you?**" DALEK Shiro asked the Purple DALEK.

"**I'm just here in case they need a medic,**" Doc said before his personality shifted into his more violent Omega personality who proclaimed, _"__**AND EXTERMINATE OUR ENEMIES!**__"_

"It doesn't matter how much backup you bring, Shiro," Yuji told him. "A trash can is still just a trash can."

"**Well then**," DALEK Shiro said as he took out his Dark Xrosser. "**What about a BIG trash can?**"

"Oh, Hell No!"

"**DARK XROS FUSION!" **announced DALEK Shiro as he activated the Dark Xrosser. The dark beam of light engulfed his DALEK legion and began to fuse them all together.

Yuji watched as a dark figure formed from the fusion of the DALEK Legion, minus DALEK Shiro. What would emerge would be something big, bad and destructive.

"**EXTERMINATE!**" the gestalt boomed.

"Well, this is just fucking great," muttered Yuji as he saw the result of the Dark Xros Fusion. "A DALEK Megazord."

It was a pretty apt assessment as the Red, Blue, Purple, Orange and Green DALEKs had all formed into a giant robot with each forming a piece of the body. The main torso and head were made up of the purple DALEK while the Red and Blue DALEKs were side by side as its legs. The torso sported the skirt-like covering hanging from its waist. The Green and Orange DALEK formed arms with claw-like hands attached to the base of their bodies and their domes formed the shoulders, with their eyes pointed in the same directions. As ridiculous as it appeared, it also appeared very deadly.

It opened its clawed hands and DALEK gun-shaped cannons came out from the palms. They fired burst of energy that erupted and sent Yuji flying. Meanwhile, DALEK Shiro reverted to his default form and glided away, leaving Yuji in his legion's capable hands.

"**EXTERMINATE! DESTROY! OBLITERATE! ANNIHILATE!"** the DALEK Gestalt boomed and bellowed. It charged at Yuji who jumped back to avoid its swing which smashed a crater into the floor. **"EXTERMINATE! DESTROY! OBLITERATE! ANNIHILATE!"**

"Sorry, but I ain't doing any of the above!" Yuji protested. He cupped his hands together and a sphere of light began to form as the DALEK Gestalt rushed at him with a roar. It swung down at him but a barrier of photonic energy repelled the Gestalt, sending it reeling backwards. After it recovered, it began to pound on the barrier as Yuji continued to concentrate on an attack he knew that could destroy this hulking metal gestalt for good.

"**EXTERMINATE! DESTROY! OBLITERATE! ANNIHILATE!" **the DALEK Gestalt chanted as it continued its attempt to break the barrier. Yuji, however, was ready as the sphere of energy in his hands had grown to the size of a basketball. He dropped the barrier and the DALEK Gestalt tripped when it swung, right at Yuji who then drove the energy ball into the DALEK Gestalt's chest.

"**PHOTON BUSTER!"** Yuji roared and he fired the photonic energy blast right _through _the DALEK Gestalt. The beam kept flying, blasting through the ceiling and right out into the sky. Yuji stepped backwards to admire his handiwork and saw a large gaping hole in the DALEK Gestalt's torso. He gave its leg a kick and it fell backwards before exploding. Shrapnel flew everywhere, getting stuck on every surface within its radius. Yuji was spared the onslaught of shrapnel with his Photon Barrier and they just bounced right off.

After Yuji had destroyed the DALEK Gestalt and went in search of the Supreme DALEK Shiro. DALEK Shiro had escaped Yuji but he knew that the walking trashcan was still within the area. As much as Shiro valued self-preservation, he was too arrogant to run away from a fight he was sure he would win. The only times he ever withdrew from a fight was when it was part of his plan or when someone he cared for was hurt. However, DALEK Shiro lacked what little humanity he once had and was now just a twisted shadow of his former self. Yuji could almost pity him if he didn't hate him so much,

Finding a familiar shape up ahead, Yuji grinned as he rushed towards it. He found that it was DALEK Shiro's shell but when he got close he found that it was opened, and empty.

"What…?" Yuji questioned. He checked it again and then realized what had happened and cursed, "Damn, he got away again."

"**Um...excuse me...?"** Yuji whirled around and spotted a DALEK in pink armor. He held his hand out at it, ready to blast it to oblivion. **"Sorry! Sorry! Please don't kill me!"** begged the DALEK as it raised its appendages to surrender. Yuji blinked. He'd never met a DALEK begging for its life before. Yuji put down his arm and looked at it.

"OK, do you know what happened to Shiro?" asked Yuji.

"**Actually, no. They never let me in on their plans sometimes,"** said the Pink DALEK.

"OK, well, I guess I'll go now," Yuji replied.

"**Can I come with you?"** the Pink DALEK Janitor asked Yuji.

**Yuji paused, "...Come with me? What for?"**

"**Well, there's really nothing else I can do here anymore," **said the Pink DALEK.** "Look, I even have a resume here." **He held out several sheets of paper, all stapled together.

Yuji blinked and took the papers. "You have a resume?"

"**That's right!"** the Pink DALEK said cheerfully. **"I feel that it is always important to have references when applying for a new job."**

"So, you haven't killed anyone, ever?" Yuji assumed.

"**Oh, no! I haven't used my blaster to kill anything except for pesky little pests! Mostly, I just do the cleaning since I function as the housekeeper around here,"** explained the Pink DALEK. He felt like Yuji was giving him an interview.

"So, tell me, do you have the urge to kill me right now?" asked Yuji carefully.

"**No,"** answered the Pink DALEK. **"Not in the least. Oh, sure, I'm upset that you killed my brothers but they brought it on themselves. Also, they were mostly just jerks to me. I only pretended to have killing urges to fit in with them."** He then hung his eye stalk as he sighed. **"I'm gonna miss Doc though. He was nice to me, even if the other guy living in his head was a crazy jerk."**

Yuji considered his next course of action. It was a crazy thought. This was a DALEK for goodness sake and the image of one was normally synonymous with death and destruction. However, he couldn't help but pity the Pink DALEK standing before him, looking so lost and pathetic, with nowhere else to go. Besides, Yuji had read through the resume. A DALEK who bothered to fill out a resume was a rare find.

"OK, I guess you can come along. But, I recommend you stay clear from my friends until I explain things to them," said Yuji.

"**Alright! Oh, and just so you know, I love kids so if you need a babysitter..."**

"That's good to know," said Yuji.

"**Seriously if you have babies that need changing diapers, I am your bot! I even know some great showtunes!"** the Pink DALEK beamed.

"Er...let me talk to my friends and family first to clear things up before I talk to them about that," Yuji sweatdropped.

"**Oh and I can totally rock them gently despite my clawed appendages. They won't even be scratched once I am done rocking them. I promise you that!"** Pink DALEK added.

"Um, let's not get ahead of ourselves," Yuji sweatdropped further.

"**Oh and I can totally tutor your kids if you want. I can teach them how to be fashionable and trendy!" **

"OK I seriously think you should stop now," Yuji persuaded. "Let's just get out of here."

"**OK!"** the Pink DALEK cheered. **"If you want, I can be your team's mascot and cheerleader! I know how to raise morale!"**

"Yeah I need to really think about that," Yuji doubted. "By the way, what do I call you? You got a name?"

"**Well, I'm the Janitor. Sometimes they just yell at me and call me names. But, I think I want to be called 'Pinkie',"** said the Pink DALEK.

"...Pinkie?" Yuji repeated after a moment's pause. "_Pinkie_, seriously?" Yuji wasn't sure what to think of the name, but for now he was going to drop the Pink DALEK off where he could be safe. He decided to drop him off at the Kuwadorian. He just hoped the girls didn't freak out.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Onigfuchi Swamp, the fight between Showa and the Priest continued. Both of them clashed violently, with the intention of victory. For Showa, he needed to win to save the village. Priest wanted to win so he could end the village.

"You can't defeat me, Shinichi Banabara," taunted the Priest as his swords returned to him. "You can never beat me, and the more you use your powers, the less time you have to live."

"Well, then I better use all the time I still got and take you down," Showa shot back. "Kamen Rider Power! Spark Core Make Up!" His Spark Core released a blinding flash of light which blinded the Priest. The glow subsided and the figure was revealed to be wearing a black trench coat with teal lining over matching teal armor. The skintight pants were black with teal knee-pads and bands around the ankles, decorated by red crystal. The boots had yellow tips on the toes. The sleeves were tight as well, hugging his arms, with blue wrist bands decorated with red crystals and the gloves had yellow fingers. He wore teal pauldrons, which were trimmed yellow. The helmet he wore was teal with a silver faceplate, yellow eyes, and a three-pronged headpiece attached to the brow with a matching crystal at the base. Hanging from his neck was a yellow scarf with two long tails that reached down to his knees.

(2) "Oyashiro-Trap Form!" shouted Showa as he posed in his new form. This was the form he gained in the other Hinamizawa, with the help of Oyashiro Rika's Magical Hoe and Trap Satoko's Magical Mallet. While he could no longer access the weapons, he could still access their power which remained with him since that day. Also, speaking of weapons, this form did allow him access to the objects contained in the Furude Clan's Saiguden and their power. He rushed at the Priest and threw a punch at him but the Priest dodged only to barely evade a roundhouse kick. Showa's scarf tails stretched out and extended before shooting towards the Priest to bind him. He jumped and with slashes of his sword turned the scarf tails into ribbons. Showa didn't withdraw, however, as he summoned by magic various instruments of torture and harm which he sent flying at the Priest. Once again the Priest used his swords to break the flying weapons apart. An iron maiden rose up to trap the Priest as it enclosed around him to pierce him with the sharp spikes lining its interior but he broke free easily. Showa closed the gap while wielding a rake and slashed at the Priest only for his weapon to be knocked away. It was replaced by a scythe and the Priest would've been turned a head shorter if he hadn't blocked with his Holy Talon.

The Priest sent Showa flying with a kick and he went splashing into the murky water of the Onigafuchi Swamp. The Priest chased after his opponent and dove into the water. He spotted Showa swimming up to the surface and followed. The both of them emerged from the water, floating on the surface, trading blows. The Priest kicked Showa upwards and slashed him repeatedly with his swords before performing another kick that sent him flying. The Priest then threw Death Fang at the airborne Showa but he managed to catch the sword between his feet before throwing it back at the Priest. The Priest managed to catch Death Fang to deflect a spear threw at him. Showa touched down on land as the Priest caught up to him. Showa slapped the ground and beams of energy shot out from under the Priest's feet but he expertly avoided them before closing the gap between himself and the Rider. The two of them fought with Priest swinging and Showa blocking and dodging his opponent's moves while wielding an axe and spiked mace.

"Weren't you listening?" the Priest questioned, irritated by Showa's persistence. "My Cursed Mark is slowly eating away at your life force. The more you try to fight me, the less likely you'll survive." He swiftly disarmed Showa and crossed his swords across Showa's neck.

(3) "Better to go down fighting than to go down as a coward," retorted Showa before calling forth another power. "Slay all the Demons Before Me! Onigari no Ryuou!" he commanded and his body exploded with violet light. Priest was thrown back by the discharge of energy. As the glow faded, Showa's armor had changed again. The torso armor was black with a purple chestplate and black spaulders trimmed in purple. The gauntlets were also purple along with the armored boots. The black bodysuit appeared to have scales all over it. The chestplate also possessed a draconic design on it, resembling the face of a dragon with three horns, like it was wearing a crown. Violet armor hung from the front, back and sides of the belt as flaps, reaching only mid thigh. Finally, the helmet now sported a red visor over the eyes and horns on the sides resembling Hanyuu's. Showa's antennae were still on his brow. He was also wielding the Onigari no Ryuou, a sword with jutte-like prongs along its blade. This was Ryuou Form, a form he'd used once years ago. Showa attacked the Priest with his demon-slaying blade as the Priest fought back with his dragon swords. Sparks flew as their weapons clashed furiously. Showa wasn't letting up on the attack and the Priest was actually finding himself being challenged by this mere Rider.

As they locked blades, Showa vowed, "You're not destroying this village! I made a vow to protect it and I'm never breaking that vow! Guardian Henshin!" His armor glowed gold and he changed once more, assuming his Hinamizawa Guardian Form. "I am Kamen Rider Showa, the Protector and Guardian of the village of Hinamizawa!" He charged at the Priest and swung the Higurashi no Yaiba at him. The Priest sidestepped the swing and then parried the follow up swing with his swords. However, the force of the swing caused the Priest's arms to vibrate before Showa spun around and swung again. This time he managed to disarm the Priest, relieving him of his mystic swords as he sent them flying. Showa thrust his sword forward but the Priest caught the blade between his palms and then disarmed Showa too. He threw a punch at Showa who did the same but the Rider's reach was longer as he struck the Priest first across the face, hard.

"This is a cursed village! It should've been destroyed long ago!" the Priest snapped as he threw a right hook that sent Showa reeling.

"No, this village isn't cursed," Showa argued as he hit the Priest with a backfist across the face. "This is a village of new beginnings. This is a village of hope. This is a village where a person can make a new life for themselves."

"You fool!" the Priest jumped up to execute a flying kick but Showa jumped up to counter with his own flying side kick.

"Rider...KICK!" The powered kicks smashed into each other and sent both combatants tumbling along the ground. Showa summoned the Sword of Ascalon and declared, "Now..let me show you the power hope can bring! Bring Order to the Chaos... ST. GEORGE!" He raised his legendary weapon above his head and cut a circle of light above him. It shone on him as a dragon roared and then appeared to don him in his Ascalon Form armor. He was also wielding the Higurashi no Yaiba, clenched in his left hand with his left forearm adorned in the Shield of Glen. Gripping his mystic swords, the Priest did the same as he cut two circles of light above him with his two swords, the circles becoming one to form a magic circle which shone upon him to form his armor piece by piece as the suit augmented his power.

Now donned in their respective suits of armor, the Priest and Showa (Ascalon Form) exchanged blows more furiously. Each time their blades connected, a shockwave was caused that shook their battlefield. The ground beneath their feet formed a crater because of the force of their clash. Sparks flew as their respective swords repeatedly made contact. As the Priest tried to run Showa through, he activated the Shield of Glen to form a barrier but the Priest managed to shatter his defences, prompting Showa to dodge using Shunpo. The Priest showed that he too could move at superhuman speeds and he and Showa clashed like lightning. The naked eye wouldn't be able to catch their movements and in a blink a hundred blows had been exchanged and in a minute thousands of blows which would've worn down any sword were exchanged.

All the while, the Cursed Mark of Destruction on Showa's chest burned more intensely. He ignored it since he needed to focus on beating the Priest, here and now. The flaps of armor which hung from the sides of his belt glowed and fused together, lengthening to form a reptilian tail. Spinning around, he bashed the tail into the Priest, sending him skidding backwards.

"You...little!" the Priest cursed.

The combatants took to the air, Showa using his Dragon Cloak as wings as the Priest summoned his own draconic wings. The two of them clashed more furiously with their blades. When they broke apart, Showa fired his Dragon Breath Cannon attack at the Priest who shielded himself with his own magic. Rushing forward, performing Shunpo, Showa grabbed the Priest from behind and dove head first towards the ground. They crashed with explosive force and as the smoke cleared they stood in the centre of the crater. Showa was panting, still clutching his weapons, smoke rising from his armor. However, the Priest didn't look like he had even broken a sweat. He didn't look like he was exerting himself at all.

"I must commend you. You're lasting much longer than in our previous bout, even whilst enduring the effects of the Cursed Mark of Destruction," complimented the Priest. "Therefore, you deserve to watch me perform my ultimate spell.."

Showa prepared for what he expected to be some kind of super attack, but the Priest simply sheathed his swords into the crossed scabbards mounted on his back. He then raised his armored demonic arm into the air and fired a beam that was both orange and black, peppered with white sparkles. The beam hit the sky and spread and Showa watched as their entire environment changed.

The Priest had used his magic to create a world of twilight and dawn. The sky was orange with the sun looking like it was either in the middle of rising or setting as the moon hung in the sky. It was a world that wasn't reality. This was the Priest's own reality; a realm that was neither day nor night. They were also standing in a field of silver sand, each grain shining like stars.

The two warriors stared each other down. The Higurashi no Yaiba and Sword of Ascalon were ready and still in pristine condition, but the Shield of Glen had cracks all over its surface. It seemed even Dragon Mail couldn't stand up to the Holy Talon and Death Fang for long, but it could still endure. It had to endure.

"This is my 'Realm of In Between', where everything is in perfect balance," boasted the Priest. "This is where my power is at its peak. You should be honored to die in such a place." He bent his knees and flew at Showa who rushed right back at the Priest. The Priest drew his swords and swung them as Showa countered with his own swords. The swords met and the clashing sound they made rang through the air.

Showa's Shield of Glen suddenly shattered, along with the Higurashi no Yaiba and Sword of Ascalon. He only had their hilts as the blades were now in pieces. With the destruction of the Sword of Ascalon, the Armor of Ascalon vanished from his body, reverting Showa back to his default Showa Trinity Form. He collapsed to his knees, drained. Priest sneered down at Showa and resheathed both his swords before grabbing hold of Showa's scarf to haul him up. He held his demonic hand out in front of Showa's chest, palm open.

"See? This is what following your ideals will lead you. You're trapped in a duty that you never asked for and shackled into service for all eternity. Yet you still foolishly believe you can escape such a scenario," the Priest told Showa outright.

"Well, that's the difference between you and I! Even if my ideals will lead to an early death, I won't have any regrets because I'll die knowing that I did the right thing. I fight to protect the people I love. That isn't a foolish ideal. You just gave up your duty because you're all alone!" Showa retorted.

"Well, then let's see whose ideals are stronger. Die," said Priest and the runes on his demonic arm glowed. Showa screamed in agony as the Cursed Mark of Destruction burned not only his chest, but his whole body. "You see, your time was up the moment you chose to confront me. I could always have the Cursed Mark destroy you with its magic, or I could activate it and kill you right now."

"Even…if you…kill me…doesn't mean…you'll win…"

"Actually, it does. Your demise here assures my victory and proves that I am right!" the Priest shot back as he was about to strip the last ounce of life out of Shinichi Banabara. Showa fell to his knees and clutched his chest with one hand with the other hand on the ground, screaming in pain. The burning sensation upon his chest was intense, far more intense than when the Priest had activated back at the Vault. The Priest grinned as he slowly killed Showa with the Mark of Destruction. It would be over in a matter of moments. He was going to take it slow and enjoy every second of his enemy's torment.

"Feel _that_?" the Priest spoke. "You do, don't you? _That's _what utter defeat and despair feels like! You never had a chance to begin with! Remember back at the Vault? I defeated you and your brother the same way and now I will kill you with the Cursed Mark of Destruction I've branded you with! Face it! This is the end for Hinamizawa! Too bad you won't be alive to watch it burn!"

Showa could not respond. His entire body felt like it was on fire. It was agonizing but he was not going allow this pain defeat him nor was he going to allow the Priest to destroy him. Enduring the pain, he climbed back to his feet, fists clenched and teeth gritted. This act made the Priest stumble in surprise. In all his experience, nobody had ever stood up under the lethal torture of the Cursed Mark of Destruction.

"What are you doing!? Fall! Fall!" the Priest commanded but Showa continued to endure.

"10 years, Priest," began Showa . "I've already suffered for ten years when GIN-SHOCKER took me away from my family! I've also suffered when I had to watch my friends die, over and over, with their only hope of survival being my time powers! I've seen more people die than I should and I've experienced far more torment than anyone my age. But still...I still continued to fight and move forward...and I will save this village! Because this village gave me the hope and strength to become a Kamen Rider!"

"WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!?" the Priest roared.

"I'm a Kamen Rider! Kamen Rider Showa! Guardian of Hinamizawa! Remember that!" Showa shot back.

"You...You...YOU INSOLENT WORM! KNOW YOUR PLACE AND JUST DIE!"

Suddenly..._SHING!_

The Priest screamed in pain and staggered backwards, stumbling on his feet. Showa was shocked as he saw that the Holy Talon's blade was now lodged in the Priest's arm. How could that have happened? The Holy Talon then glowed and slid out of the Priest's arm before flying towards Showa. He caught the sword's hilt, gripping it in his armored hand. Suddenly, his Ascalon Form armor reformed, restored, and glowing with a holy aura.

"Huh?" Showa was confused.

"_Greetings, young Rider_," spoke a disembodied voice.

"You're the voice of the sword, aren't you?" Showa asked, staring at Holy Talon.

"_You're quite perceptive, young man_," said Holy Talon, confirming Showa's suspicion.

"Well, I've had several sentient weapons speak to me over the years," Showa shrugged. "So, why did you just attack your master?" Showa looked at the Priest who was holding his demonic arm in agony.

"_Because he'd lost his way_," said Holy Talon. "_I was actually hoping that he would change back to who he once was. I believed that one day he would walk down the right path again, but it appears my faith was misplaced_. _He even went so far as to claim the Death Fang, my total antithesis, and my voice was no longer heard by him. He became corrupt without realizing it, obsessed with his idea of a balanced world._"

Holy Talon continued his tale of how he knew the Priest from the beginning. He'd been a young man with strong ideals who tried to create Utopia, but failed. He'd been given a task and duty he'd never asked for but had tried to accomplish nonetheless. However, the more power he gained, the more power he sought, and the more power corrupted him. The Priest gaining the Death Fang had showed Holy Talon that the Priest was an exceptional person, but he was still overtaken by the darkness of the Chaos Dragon Chorvax's sword and the darkness within his very soul.

However, Holy Talon had been observing the young man the Priest had been battling. He was so much like the Priest in the past, and had so much power as well as potential. He also had a dark history and he shouldered all his burdens, blaming himself for the misfortunes which fell upon others without hesitation. He was honorable, courageous and selfless. He had a few quirks, though, and some idiosyncrasies, but nobody was perfect not even the Priest despite claiming he'd gained perfect balance.

"_Please, young man. Please do what you must," _pleaded Holy Talon.

"I will," swore Showa. He watched as Priest drew Death Fang and charged at him with an enraged roar.

"RETURN MY SWORD TO ME!" the Priest roared as he swung Death Fang and Showa swung Holy Talon. Both swords collided and shattered in an explosion of steel and shrapnel. The Priest was thrown backwards and sent tumbling as Showa held the hilt of Holy Talon.

"_Thank you,"_ said Holy Talon as his hilt glowed and turned into gold dust, vanishing into thin air. The environment returned back to normal. As for the Priest, he stared in horror at the remains of Death Fang, now a useless hilt, which then vanished as it turned into black dust.

"No...No...NO...!" the Priest screamed in horror and disbelief as his armor vanished. He couldn't believe it. His most powerful weapons were now gone. His eyes focused on Showa, hatred, madness, and rage reflected in them. "You..._you_...!"

Shinichi's armor disappeared as he looked at the Priest with pity in his eyes. The Priest then started to laugh.

"It doesn't matter if you have defeated me...you'll die...YOU'LL STILL DIE!" the Priest shouted.

"I don't know about that," said Shinichi opened up his jacket and pulled up his shirt, revealing to the Priest that the Cursed Mark of Destruction was gone. The Priest's eyes widened in shock.

"How can it be!? Nothing can remove the Cursed Mark except...the Holy Talon! It broke the curse!" the Priest exclaimed.

"That's right," said Shinichi as he cracked his knuckles. He then punched the Priest across the face, knocking his mask right off. Another punch in the Priest's face broke his nose. "Now it looks like you've run out of tricks. It's over." Shinichi heard the Priest scream. "Now don't be such a crybaby," chided Shinichi but then he slowly noticed that the screams were screams of agony.

The Priest screamed as his demonic arm began to radiate a dark miasma that enveloped him. The demonic arm's flesh then started to creep up his human skin like some kind of malignant tumor, but at an accelerated rate. Shinichi could only watch in horror as the Priest started to change. His clothes started to tear in places as his body grew in size whilst he transformed into something completely inhuman.

The Priest's demonic arm was a result of him grafting the flesh of an Ancient Demon Lord known as Gyanon onto his forearm. Now the arm itself was taking over the Priest. Why now, though? Had the Holy Talon been keeping the demonic power at bay all this time?

The transformation was complete as a demon with blood red skin stood in the Priest's place. It was tall, with its lower body serpent-like and lined with multiple legs and a pronged tip at the end of its tail. The upper body was broad and powerful with an exposed ribcage that acted as armor. Spikes protruded from the shoulders and forearms and a pair of wing-like flaps hung from the demon's shoulder blades. The demon's face was skull like with horns that curved outwards to the sides and with wild black hair hanging from its head. The creature's yellow eyes were filled with fire as it stared down at Shinichi. This demon was practically the embodiment of Gyanon itself. It was of an immense height and length and Shinichi was on his last leg.

"Oh shit," Shinichi cursed as Gyanon fired a blast of demonic energy from his mouth at Shinichi, sending him flying. He flipped through the air and went tumbling along the ground.

"Ow..." moaned Shinichi. Things weren't looking good for him.

'_Lad, are you alright?_' Shinichi heard in his mind.

"St. George?" replied Shinichi. "You're still here? But the Sword of Ascalon was destroyed!"

'_The Sword of Ascalon is just an object, but its spirit-me-lives on within you, along with its power_,' said St. George. The pieces of the Sword of Ascalon joined together, fusing, before becoming whole once again.

Yabuki's voice added, '_The same goes for the Higurashi no Yaiba. Those weapons, as long as their spirits live within you, can never be destroyed.'_

Shinichi smiled and got back to his feet, gripping the Sword of Ascalon tightly in his hands. A light glowed on his left forearm and the Shield of Glen was restored as well. The weapon was just as much a part of him as his armor.

The Embodiment of Gyanon unleashed another blast of energy, this time in a continuous stream, at Shinichi. However, the stone in the Shield of Glen glowed and a dome erected itself around Shinichi to defend him from the attack.

Shinichi concentrated power into the Sword of Ascalon and the blade turned pitch black, covered by stars. His eyes snapping open, he swung his sword downward and shouted, "MEIDO…ZANGETSUHA!"

A sphere of darkness decorated by stars hit the Embodiment of Gyanon dead centre in the chest. It then formed a black hole and the demon roared as its body was being painfully sucked inside. Shinichi watched as the demon's body was being compacted and crushed as it was being sucked into the vacuum within its chest. It glared at Shinichi who stared right back and before long the demon was completely sucked inside the dark vortex which left nothing of it left.

Well, almost nothing. Shinichi picked up the Priest's yin-yang mask and gave out a sigh. He put it in his jacket and rose steadily on his feet. "OK, time to help the others."

* * *

In Shishibone City, as Cain stood there with the rest of the RoC flanking him, his soldiers keeping their weapons trained on the populace before them, he looked at the people with a lack of patience in his eyes. He had given these mortals plenty of enough time to bring forth the Kamen Riders who had gone into hiding with the destruction of their base. However, despite the smear campaign which was designed to turn the people against the Riders, they still had supporters left who believed in them. Not wanting to wait anymore, he gave them all his final warning.

"This is your last chance," Cain warned. "Either you hand the Riders over or I will order the slaughter of every last person here. Man, woman and child alike."

The people below all looked around as the Riders, who were hidden amongst the crowd, watched as Cain threatened the people to force them into handing the Riders over. Of course, the people here did not know who the Riders really were and Cain knew this. This was all a plot to get them to expose themselves. If Cain was threatening the people with death, then they might not have any other choice but to surrender. Shinichi and Yuji had yet to return from their missions so what else could they do?

Looking at them all, Cain's patience was at its end. "Reveal them, now!" he ordered.

As the Riders looked at one another and prepared to reveal themselves, they soon noticed a person stepping forward. A obese man, looking no older than 20, taking a stand against Cain. With him was another man in his twenties and an elderly man in his fifties, both skinny like twigs.

"You want the Kamen Riders? Then you got 'em," the obese man stated. Jutting his thumb at himself, "I am the Termite Rider!"

"And I'm the Cricket Rider!" the skinny young man proclaimed next to him.

"A-a-and I am the Pillbug Rider!" the older man chorused, joining in. More people also joined them as well, taking their stand against them as well.

"You can call me the Spider Rider!" a Japanese woman in her thirties stated, her hands on her hips.

"And I am the Blue Beetle!" another man shouted.

"I'm Kamen Rider Liger!"

"I'm the Cicada Rider!"

"And I'm the Mantis Rider!"

"I'm a Rider too! I'm a Rider! I'm a Rider!" the people began to chorus, standing up for the heroes that they had once forsaken due to their belief in the media. They wanted to show their heroes that they would defend them this time.

(4) The Riders all looked at the people in shock. This was totally unexpected. The people were stepping forward, claiming to be Kamen Riders, to protect them. It was like their faith had been restored as they realized who the true enemy was and who their true protectors were.

"What are they doing?" Yokoshima questioned in confusion.

"They're pulling a Spartacus," said Shogo in amazement.

"I don't believe it," Hana said in surprise. The people were actually trying to save them this time around.

"Incredible," said Mion and Shion in unison.

Rena looked at Rune who was smiling at the sight unfolding before them and asked, "Did you know this was going to happen?" Rune just smiled.

"Not a clue," Rune replied. "This is totally new."

Looking at all the people defending the Riders, Cain had finally seen enough. Holding out his hand, he summoned forth his energy, preparing to give these humans the fate they so richly deserved.

"Fine then...destroy them all!" Cain ordered. With that, his soldiers began to surround the people as he and the RoC began to let loose blasts of energy at the populace. The people backed away in fear as they were about to be destroyed for taking a final stand. But, for their bravery, they would be rewarded with the one thing they never expected.

"Hold it right there!"

Cain and his followers stopped their attack as they and the people looked over to a bus. Standing on top of it was a group of young people. But these were no ordinary people. "We...are the Kamen Riders," Shogo said. The people all looked at them in disbelief and shock and some even began to point out knowing who some of them were. Looking at the people who had come to their defense, the Riders looked up at Cain and decided to follow through with their plan. "Alright, everyone ready?"

"Ready!" the Riders and Pseudo Riders shouted in unison.

"Alright then," said Shogo. "Let's..."

"HENSHIN!" they all shouted at the exact same time. In brilliant flashes of light and the sounds of armor forming, the people looked as the light died down to see that, where the young people had once stood, were now the Kamen Riders who had protected them for these past many years. They all began to cheer, jumping up and down as their heroes had come back to them.

"Roll call!" Zero ordered. "Zero!"

"Blue Beetle!"

"Arachnea!"

"Carmen!"

"Musician!"

"Slasher!"

"Meta!"

"Ichigo!"

"Nigo!"

"V3!"

"Riderwoman!"

"X!"

"Amazon!"

"Stronger!"

"Renkin!"

Striking their own unique poses for a brief second, the Riders then got serious. "This time you've gone too far, Cain!" Zero declared. Looking down, they noticed one of the lieutenants come forth with an army of soldiers behind them.

"Alright Riders, come here," he demanded with a wave of his finger while readying his sword. The Riders looked at one another and nodded.

"Alright, let's clean house! Riders...attack!" Zero ordered which the others shouted out 'hai' in response as they leapt off the bus and began confronting the soldiers. Cain could only watch with a scowl as the Riders began fighting against his forces but then he spotted someone coming and his scowl deepened. The familiar green glow. Oh, how he despised it.

"SAVAGE!" Sentinel shouted before he landed before Cain. "It's over! Give up now and spare yourself a beating!"

"I think not, Smith!" spat Cain. "I've been waiting thousands of years for this day! This time, things will end differently."

"I agree," said Sentinel as he drew the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. "This will end with you and all your men back behind bars."

"Well, before we fight, I think Black would like a few words with you," said Cain and Sentinel's eyes widened as he was lifted up before being smashed to the ground. He was levitated again and turned around to face Manchester Black in his power armor.

"Rematch, Green Loser!" Black announced as he fired a telekinetic burst that shot Sentinel into the air. Levitating into the air, Black shot at Sentinel with his rocket boots, ready to end the caped hero for the humiliation he had to endure. Sentinel righted himself and guarded himself against a barrage of telekinetic burst. Using his super speed, he drove his knee into Black's chest, the force shattering his chestpiece. Grabbing his opponent by the arm, Sentinel dragged Black down to the ground at blinding speed and smashed him to the ground with enough force to make a crater. Everyone who witnessed this backed away from Sentinel who trained his eyes at Cain.

"Now, where were we?" Sentinel asked as he pointed his sword at Cain who grinned. Cain then lunged at Sentinel with a roar and brought down the Spear of Destiny, thrusting downwards on Sentinel's head. He dodged, sidestepping the attack and the crimson spearhead of the Spear of Destiny stabbed into the ground. Its power was released as the concrete ground was split in half by green energy as it shook. Withdrawing the Spear of Destiny. Cain parried a blow from Sentinel's Kusanagi.

"Partner, that spear he has is really bloodthirsty," cautioned Bazel. "Can you feel it?"

"Yeah, I feel it," said Sentinel. "And I think so does the Kusanagi."

"We can only win if we get that spear away from him," said Bazel. "Ready?" Sentinel nodded.

"Ready," said Sentinel. "Now!" He rushed Cain and swung the Kusanagi with his super speed. However, Cain was able to match his speed now and was parrying all of Sentinel's blows with ease. He blocked a swing meant to decapitate him, a thrust aimed for his heart, and also a slice to take his legs off him. Sparks flew as their weapons clashed and Sentinel still kept on the offensive.

"After all this time, this is all you've got?" taunted Cain. "No wonder Jade died." The memory of Jade's death still haunted him but Sentinel he wasn't going to let Cain get to him with words. "And she wasn't the only one you failed to save, was she?" he continued, "All those people in Kyoto, the Kekkain Clan. They're all dead. Why? Because you couldn't protect them. You couldn't even stop the Yamata no Orochi from rising from its prison. Oh, you destroyed it, but you couldn't stop its resurrection, could you? And people died then too."

Sentinel gritted his teeth as Cain began his offensive, using his words to taunt and mock the Lantern for his failures. It was true. Many had died because he hadn't been able to save them, but Sentinel did not use his failures as an excuse to stop.

"But the thing that is worse than a failure is a traitor," said Cain as he parried another strike. "How did it feel to have all that power and using it to destroy everything you once protected? How did it feel to become Parallax?" As Sentinel faltered, Cain capitalized on this chance and swung his Spear of Destiny upwards, catching the blade of the Kusanagi, and knocking it out of Sentinel's grip. The sword went up and Sentinel by reflex looked up.

"PARTNER, LOOK OUT!" Bazel warned but it came too late. Those who cared for and supported Sentinel could only watch with absolute horror and distress as Alan was impaled through and through. A hero, thought to be invincible, invulnerable, and with so much power had just been defeated and murdered right before their eyes by an evil madman who had not only tormented him with the memory of the deaths he could not prevent, the lives he could not save, and the death and destruction which had happened, but who'd also mocked him for his ideals and resolve. None were more horrified than Rena who remembered bouncing Alan on her knee when he was just a baby but now he was stained with his own blood which was dripping from his wounds.

Cain merely sneered. "And so falls this world's greatest hero..." He kicked Alan off the Spear of Destiny and let him fall and his uniform vanished in a haze of green light.

That was when the TARDIS chose to materialize, making its signature warping and wheezing sound. The door opened and the Doctor ran out, his face pale as he saw Alan's body lying in a pool of his own blood. "No!" he uttered loudly before running over and dropping to his knees. He gently picked up Alan, scooping him in his arms. "Alan! Alan!" The Doctor cradled Alan's body. "No…it wasn't supposed to be like this…it wasn't supposed to be like this! Wake up Alan Smith! Do you hear me!? WAKE UP! You don't die here! You live a long happy life! We traveled together, just like you always wanted! You reunite me and Jenny! You marry her and have a daughter! You become the son I never had! Please Alan please…just wake up…" Tears streamed down the Doctor's eyes. "Please…"

"Doctor...?" Alan spoke hoarsely as he stared up at his hero's face. Blood dribbled from the corners of his mouth.

"Yes, it's me..." said the Doctor.

"Doctor...tell them...please tell them all..._you are not alone_..." Those were Alan's last words before he breathed his last.

"ALAN!" Bazel screamed.

The ring spoke, "_GREEN LANTERN 2814 DECEASED. SCANNING SECTOR 2814 FOR SUITABLE REPLACEMENT_." Alan's ring slipped off his finger and rose up into the air. However, just as it was about to shoot into the sky, Cain snatched it out of the air.

"I don't think so," he said as he crushed the ring in his hand and ground it to dust which was blown into the wind as he opened his palm. Now, his victory was secured. "I win." He raised the Spear of Destiny and the villains all cheered.

_**Willpower had been broken. **_

_**The Spirit of Mercy wept. **_

_**And the Face of Evil gloated: "We win."**_

**(1) The Warbot's new design is based on Bio Hunter Silva from **_**Choudenshi Bioman**_

**(2) Oyashiro-Trap Form debuted in **_**Magical Hinamizawa (Kira Kira!)**_

**(3) Ryuou Form debuted in **_**Kamen Rider X Kamen Rider Showa & Rayonix: Movie War Multiverse**_

**(4) And the big reveal of the Riders and the 'Spartacus' thing were inspired from Power Rangers in Space. This scene was written by GuyverGenesis**_**  
**_


	197. The Legacy of Cain Part 141

**THE LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 141: The Month of Darkness/The Light at the End**

"PARTNER, LOOK OUT!" Bazel warned but it came too late. Those who cared for and supported Sentinel could only watch with absolute horror and distress as Alan was impaled through and through. A hero, thought to be invincible, invulnerable, and with so much power had just been defeated and murdered right before their eyes by an evil madman who had not only tormented him with the memory of the deaths he could not prevent, the lives he could not save, and the death and destruction which had happened, but who'd also mocked him for his ideals and resolve. None were more horrified than Rena who remembered bouncing Alan on her knee when he was just a baby but now he was stained with his own blood which was dripping from his wounds.

Cain merely sneered. "And so falls this world's greatest hero..." He kicked Alan off the Spear of Destiny and let him fall and his uniform vanished in a haze of green light.

That was when the TARDIS chose to materialize, making its signature warping and wheezing sound. The door opened and the Doctor ran out, his face pale as he saw Alan's body lying in a pool of his own blood. "No!" he uttered loudly before running over and dropping to his knees. He gently picked up Alan, scooping him in his arms. "Alan! Alan!" The Doctor cradled Alan's body. "No…it wasn't supposed to be like this…it wasn't supposed to be like this! Wake up Alan Smith! Do you hear me!? WAKE UP! You don't die here! You live a long happy life! We traveled together, just like you always wanted! You reunite me and Jenny! You marry her and have a daughter! You become the son I never had! Please Alan please…just wake up…" Tears streamed down the Doctor's eyes. "Please…"

"Doctor...?" Alan spoke hoarsely as he stared up at his hero's face. Blood dribbled from his mouth.

"Yes, it's me..." said the Doctor.

"Doctor...tell them...please tell them all...you are not alone..." Those were Alan's last words before he breathed his last.

"ALAN!" Bazel screamed.

The ring spoke, "_GREEN LANTERN 2814 DECEASED. SCANNING SECTOR 2814 FOR SUITABLE REPLACEMENT_." Alan's ring slipped off his finger and rose up into the air. However, just as it was about to shoot into the sky, Cain snatched it out of the air.

"I don't think so," he said as he crushed the ring in his hand and ground it to dust which was blown into the wind as he opened his palm. Now, his victory was secured. "I win." He raised the Spear of Destiny and the villains all cheered.

The Battle between Good and Evil had ended. Evil had won.

**ONE MONTH LATER...**

Shinichi was sitting in his command centre, his eyes glued on all the screens around him. He was watching the world as Sheila transmitted the images to him via satellite. However, Shinichi's mind was not focused on the task at hand. Rather, he was focused on what had happened a month ago.

"Why did I get my friend back only to lose my brother in the same day?" Shinichi asked.

Cain now controlled half the world's population, with his influence steadily growing. His domination of the Earth had taken only mere moments. Hinamizawa and Genovia had become some of the last bastions of freedom against the war of Anti-Life. With Alan Smith dead, Cain stood unopposed as not even Shinichi, Yūji or Rune were capable of doing any lasting damage against the First Murderer. With Anti-Life at its peak, the majority of the world now shared the will of Cain. Any damage done to Cain, would be dealt to all those under the thrall of Anti-Life.

Shinichi and Yūji had arrived too late and learnt that Alan had died, murdered by Cain. In a rage, the both of them attacked but Cain was able to deflect their attacks with ease. When he told them that Anti-Life connected him to the people and that any harm that came to him would affect them, they had thought the First Murderer was bluffing, until he cut open his own palm. Those under the thrall of Anti-Life sported the same wounds and the two young heroes realized that Cain had told them the truth.

And then the crowd that Cain had gathered turned on them, all with red eyes. Cain had used them to attack the Riders who had no choice but escape. They were just innocent civilians being controlled like puppets as Cain pulled the strings. The Doctor had opened the door to the TARDIS and told them to get in before they fled from Cain and his army.

Heroes like the Kamen Riders and their allies were labeled as 'terrorists' and 'criminals' to be destroyed on sight. Their identities had become public to the entire world. Cain had made sure to broadcast the entire event onto every television set on the world. It was also revealed that the DJ Mikogami who had been denouncing the Riders and their allies had been an agent for the Religion of Crime from the very start and his job was to turn the people against the Riders. While there had been obstacles in the plan, Mikogami had been able to plant the seeds of doubt and mistrust into the people's hearts. However, once Cain rose to power, the people were defending the Riders instead, realizing that they were true heroes and not the villains that Mikogami had painted them as. Sadly, it was too late.

The small resistance pockets communicated through newspapers, delivered by The Doctor, now trapped in this point in time. Bazel had absorbed Alan's body into himself, preserving him. They still had a memorial service for Alan's death. As for Bazel, he had become unresponsive since Alan's demise. The Doctor kept Bazel as the others allowed him to in order to protect the precious cargo held within.

It was a bit strange that Cain hadn't bothered trying to attack Hinamizawa, but maybe that was because it was defended by Hanyuu and the Gaming Club. The goddess did not like the idea of the immortal man posing as a god but currently the power she had could kill him and wipe out over half the world's population. His hold on the world was strong and brute force was not the way to go at it. However, within the month, they had been systematically taking down Religion of Crime bases in an attempt to cripple Cain's power structure. Unfortunately, those attempts had been in vain. For every base the heroes took down, four more would pop up somewhere else.

But that did not mean the forces of good would give up or surrender. They still flew their flag proudly. The United Resistance Army's flag was green bearing the Green Lantern symbol in the centre and within the Green Lantern symbol was the crest of the Blue Lantern Corps. The combined crest was flanked by two dragons. The flag was meant to represent the Will to fight and Hope for a better tomorrow. Even if Evil had won, that did not mean Good could not rise up and challenge them.

Everyone had taken up roles in the fight against Anti-Life. Hana, Michiru, Dr. Irie and Mizuna worked as the medics and healers for the United Resistance Army. Princess Shawna herself had decided to practice her swordplay with her cousin Sylvia so she'd be combat ready. Some decided to be frontline fighters while others decided to strike from the shadows.

As Shinichi continued to contemplate the events of the last month, one of his screens displayed an incoming call. Someone from the outside was trying to communicate with them. Sheila was in charge of screening their calls and to cut them off if they were using an unknown frequency. However, this was a very familiar frequency, one known to them.

"Put it through," said Shinichi. There was no face on the screen but there was a symbol that Shinichi recognized instantly: XIV and 'Voice Only' displayed under the symbol.

"_It's been a long time, hasn't it? A month, right?"_

Shinichi growled, "Shiro..." This was the last person he wanted to hear from.

"_You don't sound too happy to hear from me. Aren't we family?"_

"You're no family of mine!" Shinichi snapped.

"_Ah, and so angry..."_

"What do you want? Come to gloat on your master's behalf? It's a bit late, isn't it? Been a whole month."

"_If you're talking about that bastard Savage, you can forget it. He's no master of mine. I'm my own master."_

"What do you mean?" Shinichi asked curiously.

"_Bastard tried to scrap me the first chance he got and I want payback. I want us to join forces."_

"Us? Join up with you!?" Shinichi scoffed. "Forget it!" Shinichi personally thought that Shiro got what he deserved and that he had it coming for being a treacherous bastard. It was just his devil's luck that kept him alive all this time.

"_Cain has an army. What do you got? You're just a ragtag group of rebels from what I can tell. Barely big enough to make a dent in his operations."_

"We've dealt with armies before, remember?" Shinichi retorted.

"_Yes, but I have an army too,"_ said Shiro. "_So, here's what I propose._ _We have a common enemy. Might as well work together to deal with him I mean, there is that saying: 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'._"

"There's also another saying: 'Keep your friends close and your enemies closer'," countered Shinichi.

"_...So I'm guessing that's a no."_

"Siding with the lesser of two evils is still siding with evil. Besides, we don't need help from you, and accepting help from you will be an insult to Alan's memory and what he stood for."

"_So, you'd refuse help from me out of principle? How selfish."_

"It's called being smart. Do you think we can trust you after all you've done? After all the lives you took? After all the misery you caused?"

"_They trust __**you**__, don't they?"_

"DON'T YOU DARE COMPARE MYSELF TO YOU!" Shinichi snapped as he roared at the screen.

"_Tell me, is it me you're angry at or yourself for failing him and the rest of the world?" _With that said, Shiro cut off the call. Shinichi glared at the screen which displayed the symbol. He hung up and put his face in his hands.

He looked at the blank screen and stared at his reflection. His hair was spiked up and silver, exposing his XIII scar. Additionally, his irises were black with red, slit-like pupils like the eyes of a reptile. Ever since the day Alan had died, Shinichi had adopted this form, which was from the blood of Warren Smith which flowed through his veins and the blood of being a Triling as he also possessed the blood of dragons.

"Shinichi," said Alice as she entered. She was in her adult Epsilon Mode. No longer was she the little girl who was happy and cheerful. Ever since her daddy's death, Alice had permanently assumed her Epsilon Mode. The death of Alan had forced her to grow up and Shinichi knew she was looking for a way to avenge him. The cold eyes she had were a sign that she had thrown away her childish identity. "Everyone is waiting."

"I'm coming," said Shinichi as he got up and turned away from the terminal. He glanced at Alice and he recalled what had happened a month earlier. Alan's family had been saved and transported to the Meta-World when Justifier BLACK 13 had destroyed the boarding house. Mion's aunt who was the landlady was also saved. Right now, they were staying in the Genovian Palace and being treated as guests.

Alice had asked about her father, and where he was, and it broke Shinichi's heart to break the news to them all. He remembered the devastated looks on their faces. Some had even screamed curses in anguish. Yami had put her arms around Alice in comfort while Bishie did the same for Celine. Nozomu had sobbed, holding Adam. Lala, however, had hugged him as she knew that he was hurting as much as they were. She did not blame him for Alan's death. None of them did. They knew that he hadn't wanted Alan to die. Still, it didn't make things easier. Alice's drastic transformation from a sweet little girl to a cold adult was just one of those changes. She didn't even smile anymore. However, that didn't mean she wasn't caring. He'd seen how she cared for the younger children. She would protect them as he had in life because he had died in order to protect the world. She still had a kind heart but without Alan there was just nothing to smile about. He did hear her swear that she was going to kill Cain for killing her beloved daddy. The anger and rage she was projecting reminded him of himself. He understood what she felt but he also knew that revenge was not the answer. It took him a long time to learn that. He would avenge Alan but he wasn't going to kill Cain to satisfy his revenge. He would do things the right way and save the world like Alan wanted.

Amaterasu had offered her condolences as well and wished there had been something she could do to help. However, as a demi-goddess her influence was limited and the gods did not meddle in the affairs of men since the end of the Age of Gods. Tsukuyomi, on the other hand, decided to assist the United Resistance Army in any capacity, even as a frontline soldier.

Shinichi thought of his friends who all got dragged into this. Five years ago they were just students in school, playing games and hanging out after school, and just enjoying their youth. Then demons had to show up, and then GIN-SHOCKER had to rear its ugly head, and the good times just had to end in order to fight against evil. He never wanted his friends to get involved. He was the Kamen Rider, the sole warrior, but they learnt the truth and wanted to support him. At first he was happy about the fact that he wouldn't be fighting alone but then he realized that they would be put at risk as well. Now five years since then the friends he had made in Hinamizawa had joined their United Resistance Army. They each had roles and talents to contribute to the effort to take down Cain and the Religion of Crime.

As Shinichi walked along the hallway, he gazed out a window to the courtyard to see the soldiers training and performing drills. From the distance he could spot GaoPhoenix flying overhead. The Power Animals were also assisting, protecting the resistance pockets. They were a good deterrent, driving away Cain's forces as well. GaoTyranno himself was staying in the mountains of Hinamizawa, watching over the city. As for GaoLiger, he remained at the canyon. While the base was gone the storage area was still in use and GaoLiger was needed to protect it from any thieves. The location was compromised so anyone could show up and steal their supplies which were stored in the underground storage basement.

Genovia had yet to fall under the thrall of Anti-Life. Maybe it was divine intervention. Maybe their goddess was truly watching over them. Or maybe Cain didn't think Genovia was a significant threat. He had taken over the governments of the world and their armies. It would only take one command for him to turn Genovia into a deserted wasteland. Cain just enjoyed watching them squirm like a sadistic prick. It incensed Shinichi so much that he wanted to just chop his head off with a well-aimed Kienzan but assassinating Cain now while everyone was connected to him via Anti-Life would be disastrous and kill the people they were supposed to protect. There was no such thing as acceptable losses. They could not sacrifice over half the world's population to kill Cain. But Cain was an immortal. He could not be killed and with the Spear of Destiny he was unstoppable.

Shinichi reached into his pocket and opened up his wallet to take out a picture taken when Alan was just a little kid. To think that baby who had tormented him would grow up and inspire people to rise up. Shinichi was proud of his little brother but right now he wished that Alan was with them.

"It shouldn't have been you," whispered Shinichi before putting the picture away. He couldn't waste time. The others were waiting for him.

One of the chambers in the palace had been converted into a conference room. Everyone was waiting for him and for good reason. He was one of the leaders of the United Resistance Army. It was a responsibility that was thrust upon him as he was nominated and as much as he wanted to deny the position, he couldn't. The United Resistance Army needed leaders. Fortunately, Shinichi wasn't alone in this. He came to the conference room and the guards posted greeted him before opening the door. He entered and was greeted by familiar faces. Sitting at the table were Princess Shawna, Mion, Yūji, Rune, Yuri, Lucifer, and Lala. They each represented the separate groups which made up parts of the United Resistance Army. He sat down with them at the round table and addressed them. Shawna represented Genovia who supported the United Resistance Army against Cain. Mion represented the Hinamizawa Kamen Riders as well as Hinamizawa, Yūji and Yuri represented Team 5D's and their respective Battle Harems. Finally, there was Lala who represented Alan's Battle Harem. She was the leader now since Alan's death. While she seemed a bit of a ditz and an absent-minded airhead, she was also the eldest daughter of King Gid Lucione Deviluke and could be serious when the situation required it to be. In fact, along with Rune, Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam, she was in charge of developing weapons they could use against Cain. She needed to take command since Alan's death and had matured, and was dressed properly. Rune was a Rider from the future and did not represent a group in the United Resistance Army but he was still an important ally as he represented the future of this world. And with what info he had on events, his intel was valuable among the allies, despite that even he wasn't allowed to reveal everything lest he wanted to create a paradox. Plus, being an alchemist, he was practically the official 'handyman' of the United Resistance Army and usually worked on fixing what was broken and improving what needed improvement. Lucifer too was important as she represented the Stakes of Purgatory.

They were all leaders of the United Resistance Army but Shinichi was given the rank of High Commander. Therefore, he was in command of this meeting. The others would assist and advise him of what decisions they would make, offer suggestions and vote on a next plan to attack Cain. While it was time consuming, order was necessary after the establishment of the United Resistance Army and this committee needed to run things properly and smoothly so they could fight against Cain. Even though Cain had won and defeated them, that did not mean they were just going to give up. They may have failed to save the world from his domination, but that did not mean they would stop fighting to free it. They were alternatively known as Freedom Fighters because they were fighting to free the world from Cain's control.

"Alright, let us begin," said Shinichi.

* * *

Alan was floating, he was floating in a place he did not know and did not know how much time had passed. Just where was he? Was it Hell? Was it Heaven? All he could see all around was just an empty void and souls flying past him as they moved on. However, Alan was still floating endlessly, trapped in the middle, unable to do anything. He did not know much time had gone by. His perception of time had seemingly vanished since he found himself here, just floating like a leaf floating along a current.

He remembered his death all too well. Cain had run him through and that was the end. He had moments to pass a message to the Doctor before he breathed his last. He did not know what happened next but he assumed that the others had decided to avenge him and battle Cain. He could only assume that his lovers and his daughters were all devastated and miserable following his death. It saddened him to be parted from them and he wanted to go back to them. Yūji had done it, so why couldn't he? However, no such opportunity came and so here Alan floated aimlessly with other souls who were stuck in what appeared to be Purgatory or Limbo.

Alan closed his eyes to sleep. There was nothing else he could do. However, his rest would be interrupted by a sudden jerk. He felt something caught onto the back of his jacket and jerk him backwards.

"What in the hell!?" he cried out as he tried to grab what had caught to the back of his jacket. There was another sharp jerk and he yelped as he was yanked upwards! Now where was he going now!?

* * *

Standing by the river was a woman who could pass off as the Supermodel Queen of Goths. She had a slender and curvy appearance and clad entirely in black. She wore a black spaghetti strap tank top with matching cut off shorts and cowboy boots. Hanging from her neck was a necklace with an ankh hanging from the chain. Her hair was dark and wavy, reaching past her shoulders. Her eyes were black and she wore black lipstick. Her skin, however, was snow white and contrasted against her black clothes. In her hand was a fishing rod and she was tugging on it as her hook caught something. Her line went taught as whatever she had caught on the other end was trying to shake itself loose.

"No way! I'm not letting you go!" she shouted as she gave another tug. "I don't care how strong you are! I didn't spend all this time fishing for you just to let you go!" She pulled and with one last tug she managed to pull out the 'fish' she had caught. There was a huge splash and she let out a grin before shouting,"EUREKA!" She started to reel in her catch and finally she managed to drag it onto dry land. "And I caught myself a big one!"

The one lying on the ground next to her was no fish but Alan Smith himself. He was soaked to the bone, dressed in blue jeans, a black t-shirt and a green jacket with his GL symbol on the left side. His silver hair was soaked and he was spitting out water.

"What the hell!?" he shouted.

"Oh, you're not in Hell. Not yet anyway," the woman said as she offered Alan her hand. "Hiya." Alan looked at the offered hand suspiciously before getting up to his feet. He was soaked. "You look like you could use some dry clothes."

"Thank you for stating the obvious," he retorted. She snapped her fingers and in an instant he was dry. "Magic," he assumed.

"Sure, let's call it that," she said.

Alan scanned the place he was in now. He was in a dark and dank cavern and there was a river, a river he'd apparently been in. "What is this place?"

"Well, it has many names but you can call it Purgatory," said the gothic woman. "As for where I fished you out of, it's the River Styx."

"I was in the River Styx?" he asked.

"Honey, you've been swimming in there for a while," she told him.

"OK, and who are you?" he asked.

"You mean you don't remember me?" she asked.

"Actually, if I did I wouldn't have asked," he retorted. "Again, who are you?"

"I was there when you were born. Then again, you were just a baby so of course you can't remember me. But I know your dear old dad," she said.

"You knew Dad?" Alan asked. "Are you one of the women he's slept with?"

"That's personal, kid," she said. "But if you want to know who I am, I'm Death."

Alan blinked once, twice and then three times.

"You're Death? As in the Grim Reaper? The actual Angel of Death?" he asked before snorting. He pocketed his hands, "You actually expect me to believe that?"

"Skeptical, huh?" she questioned. "Well, maybe you'll believe me once I convince you."

"OK, fine, convince me," he challenged.

"How about we talk over a cup of coffee?" she offered as she put on a jacket. "My treat."

* * *

Shinichi left the conference room after the meeting. It was the same thing, with a lot of deliberating, debating and discussion. Various suggestions were put on the table, considered and rejected as they argued over their next course of action. Again, Yuri put out the suggestion to launch a full frontal assault to take down Cain. He was immortal and even if they wounded him he wouldn't be killed. Nobody had to die. However, it was pointed out that any wounds inflicted on Cain would be inflicted on those controlled by the Anti-Life Equation. Even if lethal measures would not work on Cain, whatever he felt would be felt by his slaves and they would receive the same injuries. Unlike Cain, they would not be able to recover from lethal wounds like he could. And a direct confrontation with the immortal First Murderer was suicide. There were no such thing as acceptable losses in this war.

Yuri didn't care since he wanted Cain taken out. He insisted that the people under Cain's control could not be saved and that they shouldn't bother trying to save them. If they were to die in order to defeat Cain, then so be it. Fortunately, Yūji was able to shut Yuri up. Another suggestion was to stop the Anti-Life Equation's control entirely. They knew that it was being transmitted via satellite but it was heavily guarded. Also, destroying it wouldn't fix anything as those under the effects of Anti-Life would remain under its control permanently. They needed to reverse the Anti-Life Equation and restore everyone to normal.

The meeting continued and once more it was agreed that they needed to try to cripple Cain's by taking out the RoC bases which had popped up. He had them all set up all over the world since he took control. It ended with a unanimous decision to strike at these bases and maybe slow down Cain's complete takeover of the world.

"Hey, Shin. Wait up," said Yūji as he caught up with the silver-haired youth.

"The meeting's been adjourned, Yūji. You can go back to your family to spend time with them before the next strike," Shinichi told him.

"Sir Shinichi, we just have some concerns," said Shawna.

"What kind of concerns?" Shinichi asked as he turned to face her, Yūji and Mion.

"We're concerned about _you_," said Mion, leader of the Hinamizawa Rider Club. She was Kamen Rider Ichigo after Shinichi had bestowed the powers of the first Rider to her.

"Ever since this whole thing began, you haven't been the same," said Shawna and she wasn't just referring to his appearance.

"And we barely see you except for these meetings," added Mion.

"I've just been very busy," said Shinichi and Yūji stepped forward to see bags under Shinichi's eyes. The young cyborg turned his eyes away.

"You haven't been sleeping well, have you?" Yūji asked.

"Like I said, I've been busy," said Shinichi. "You guys should head back and tell the others what we've decided to do."

"And what about the new look?" Mion questioned.

"What about my look?" Shinichi asked.

"It's not your natural appearance," answered Shawna. She missed the way Shinichi normally appeared but now he had silver hair that was spiked up and draconic eyes.

"It was a necessary change," said Shinichi. "Now, if you'll excuse me, there's someplace I need to be." He turned and walked away.

"He still blames himself," sighed Yūji as he watched Shinichi leave.

"But why? It wasn't his fault," said Shawna. "Cain was the one who killed Alan."

"Alan was his little brother," said Mion. "Even if they didn't always get along they were still family. So, he feels responsible for Alan's death. It's why he took it upon himself to look after Alan's harem and kids."

"Do they blame him for what happened?" Shawna asked.

"None of them do, and they forgave him, but he hasn't forgiven himself. I don't think he will until Cain is taken down," said Yūji. They really couldn't have Shinichi burden himself with all this but it was his nature to be responsible.

"Well, I better head back to Hinamizawa," said Mion. "Tell everyone about our next plan of attack."

"It's not exactly new," said Yūji. "Just hit Cain's bases but then four more pop up to take their place. At this rate it'll never be over."

"But we can't give up now. The whole world is counting on us," said Princess Shawna. Yūji smiled. The girl was filled with hope as they should be. As long as they held onto hope, there was a chance for them to take the world back from Cain.

* * *

Shinichi went to visit the nursery. There were cribs set up for each of the babies, four in total with two set up on one side of the room and another two set up opposite them. Each crib was occupied by a different baby, fast asleep as they were taking naps. This was where they put Adam, Hiroyuki, Anita and Yuna to sleep. Their parents would be picking them up soon.

Also present in the nursery were a Bakeneko girl named Momoneko, her 'little brother' Chiro and the DALEK called Pinkie. Out of the three, He was an odd sight for anyone. When Yūji first introduced Pinkie to the others, they either reacted by screaming or started aiming their weapons at the Pink DALEK, or both. They didn't have very good memories of the saltshaker-shaped killing machines but Yūji vouched for Pinkie and told them that he was a friendly DALEK. Despite suspicion and scrutiny, Pinkie proved himself. He wasn't at all like the other DALEKs they faced. He never screamed 'EXTERMINATE'. All he did was do the cleaning and watch the babies. He seemed to love kids too.

Momoneko was someone they rescued when the Anti-Life Equation started taking over Shishibone's citizens. She had been found fleeing from a gang of RoC thugs who had perverted intentions for her. She ended up being rescued by Yuji and Pinkie who learnt that she was in danger. They took care of the thugs and took her back to Genovia. Chiro had been riding in her backpack so he ended up brought along too.

Momoneko immediately volunteered to help look after the babies in the Genovian Palace. She revealed that she loved children because she worked at a daycare centre. She was kind, gentle and very maternal and simply loved the adorable little babies. She didn't play favorites with them but she seemed to care a lot about little Hiroyuki for some reason.

"Ah, Shinichi-san," greeted Momoneko. Her presence didn't bother Shinichi even though she used to be loyal to Shiro Juuyon. He trusted her with the babies, including his and Alan's sons.

"**Oh, you're here**," said Pinkie. "**We just fed them and now they're taking their nap.**" Pinkie was the weirdest DALEK Shinichi ever seen. He had ribbons tied around his dome lights, wore a maid's cap on top, and had on an apron which covered the entire front of his 'skirt'. Momoneko was dressed as a maid as well but the black dress, apron and cap looked better on her. What he was wary of was little Chiro who sat on her left shoulder. He had bad memories of Shiro when he had inhabited that little body, terrorizing him that one time.

"Thank you, Pinkie, Momoneko-san," said Shinichi. It had taken him almost a week to get used to the Pink DALEK's presence. It took longer for the others. In fact, It took over two weeks before Yokoshima could stand being in the same room with Pinkie.

"**No problem,**" said Pinkie. "**Now, I'll be back. I'm just going to pick up some fresh diapers.**" The DALEK rolled away and Shinichi stepped aside to let him by. It was still weird to be on friendly terms with a DALEK after all the death Pinkie's kind had caused, but that was mostly Shiro's fault. According to Pinkie's memories, which they had pulled up for reference, the Pink DALEK had never killed a single person, at all.

"Were they any trouble?" Shinichi asked as he went over to Hiroyuki's crib to check up on him. He smiled as he gazed at his son's sleeping face.

"Nothing I couldn't handle," said Momoneko.

"Do you mind leaving me alone with them for a bit?" Shinichi requested.

"Sure, no problem," said Momoneko. "I needed the break anyway. Call me if you need anything." She then left the nursery. Once she was gone, he went over to check on Adam and the baby Wolf Youkai was asleep as well. The smile on Shinichi's face faded. Adam would only know of his father through stories but never know the man himself. "I'm so sorry," he apologized softly.

"It wasn't your fault."

Shinichi gasped and spun around, his arms already taking the form of energy blasters which he aimed at the intruder, only to see that it was Amaterasu.

"Don't sneak up on me like that," he hissed before returning his arms back to normal. "I could've shot you."

"Why do you insist on blaming yourself?" Amaterasu asked. He knew what she was referring to.

"Because he was my little brother, my responsibility, and I failed him," Shinichi retorted. He had this conversation before.

"It was Cain who killed him," said Amaterasu.

"I know that, but if I hadn't been preoccupied with Priest or ended the fight sooner, I might've been able to help him," said Shinichi.

"You shouldn't worry about what-ifs," Amaterasu advised.

"You're right," said Shinichi. "I should focus on beating Cain and saving the world." He walked past her and asked, "Will you be sticking around long?"

"Of course," said Amaterasu.

"I'm heading back to Hinamizawa," said Shinichi. He exited. Moments later, Pinkie returned with fresh diapers.

"**Are they still sleeping?**" he asked.

"Yes," said Amaterasu. "I must say you've been a great help looking after the babies."

"**I did have help, but** **I'm just glad I got this chance**," said the Pink DALEK happily. "**Not many DALEKs are allowed near kids, you know.**"

"Well, with all things considered, that's understandable," said Amaterasu. DALEKs were killing machines after all. That was what they were programmed to be but Pinkie was the odd one out, apparently.

"**I know. Some of them still look at me and expect me to go nuts and start shooting**," said the Pink DALEK sadly. **"It doesn't make things any easier but I understand why they feel that way."**

"Well, if you ask me, your contribution to the cause is appreciated," said Amaterasu.

"**That really makes me feel happy**," said the Pink DALEK.

* * *

Hinamizawa was defended by Hanyuu. She had set up a barrier around the village that prevented the enemy from entering. Actually, it mainly tricked their senses and deterred them. However, Hanyuu's power wasn't finite. Fortunately, she had aid from the Kekkain Clan who had come from Kyoto to assist. Yuna had come, with what remained of her clan, after The Day Evil Won. They helped to set up warding seals around the village to prevent those with ill will from entering the village and keep the villagers safe. Speaking of the villagers, they had too learnt that some of their own were Kamen Riders. Keiichi's family had freaked out and the twins parents wanted to know how long they had been involved with this. Rena's father nearly had a heart attack. Still, they were adults now and had decided to fight.

Shinichi visited his home and his mother hugged him. "Welcome home," she said and he returned the embrace. It had been two weeks since his last visit. He'd been kept busy leading the United Resistance Army.

"Onii-chan's home!" said Sho as he ran over and hugged his big brother's legs. Shinichi picked up his little brother and gave him a hug. On his visits home, he returned to his natural appearance.

"Where's Hanyuu-chan and Rika-chan?" Shinichi asked.

"A council meeting with the Kekkain Clan," said Shiori. Ever since this whole thing began, Hanyuu and Rika had stopped going to school. "Tatsuyoshi-kun is looking after them along with Shogo." Always the faithful and protective stepfather.

"And who's guarding you?" Shinichi asked.

"Welcome home, Shin-kun," said Rena and he looked up at the top of the stairs to see his beloved. Floating behind her was AI-Shin. Shinichi smiled as she walked down and they hugged. "So, anything new?"

"We're planning to hit a few more of Cain's bases," said Shinichi. "Other than that, nothing else."

She checked his eyes. "You look exhausted."

"Well, haven't had time to sleep," he said but Rena wouldn't have that and dragged him to the living room and made him sit down on the couch.

"You should rest. Let the others handle it," said Rena. Rena had been one of the people most devastated by Alan's death but she had grieved long enough and decided to help in the resistance effort, being one of the Riders who guarded Hinamizawa.

"I...I dunno..." said Shinichi. He wanted to sleep but he couldn't. He had to keep working, he had to organize everything. It was his responsibility to save the world now.

Shiori looked at her eldest son sadly. This was not the life she wanted for him. She wanted him to grow up happily, go to school, make friends, fall in love and raise a family. Well, he was at least able to make friends and fall in love but he never got to grow up happily as he spent ten years trapped in an organization that used him as a weapon. Now, her son was leading a resistance movement against a madman who had taken over the world. She had witnessed Alan's death on TV and had become distraught. The young man had become like a son to her. She looked at her youngest son who went over to sit close to his big brother. She understood that Shinichi was fighting because he wanted Sho to have the life he would've had if he had never been kidnapped.

* * *

Alan sat across from the woman who claimed that she was Death in a big white room. It was bright, with the walls painted white, with nothing but a coffee table, two chairs, a couch and empty picture frames that hung on the walls.

"How do you like your coffee?" Death asked.

Alan took a sip and grimaced. "Bitter."

"Just the way I like it," she said as she took a sip. "Nothing but the natural bitterness of coffee. I take it as it is." She put down her cup. "Now, where were we?"

"You wanted to convince me that you're Death," reminded Alan.

"Well, yes," said Death, "But let's talk about you, Alan Smith. You've had quite an interesting life." As soon as she said that, moving pictures filled the frames hanging on the walls, each showing images from Alan's life and the events he was involved with. "Quite a colorful life for someone your age. Most of them don't even do this much."

"Well, I was born different," said Alan as he took another sip. "OK, could I have some sugar?" A cup of sugar appeared in front of Alan and he picked up two cubes before mixing them into his coffee to dissolve them.

"In life you were such a hero," admired Death. "You've saved quite a few lives, and failed to save a few as well."

Alan sighed. He hated being reminded of his failures.

"You even failed to save _her_," said Death and pictures of Jade filled up the picture frames. Alan let out a sad and depressed sigh. While he had moved on since Jade's death, the memory still haunted him.

"What do you want with me?" Alan asked curtly.

"I'm here to offer you a choice, Alan Smith," said Death. "At the moment, you are at a crossroads. What happens next is your choice."

"What are my options?" Alan asked carefully.

"Well, on one hand you could just go into the light so you can pass on and find peace, or..." She traced the rimmed of her coffee cup as she trailed off.

"Or?" he prompted.

"Or you could go back and fight against the evil forces who've taken over the world," she added. She took another sip. "The choice is yours but whatever you choose it has to be what you _really _want." Alan just smiled at her. The answer was pretty obvious.

* * *

Battler Ushiromiya was a young man who had been kidnapped by Gebok and turned into a cyborg. Ever since his rescue, he became a member of the NEO-NUMBERS as one of their comrades. At first, he didn't believe he'd been turned into a cyborg. He wanted to deny it at first but he couldn't deny the abilities these had. While as a member of the NEO-NUMBERS he had his fair share of adventures and misadventures. On one such misadventure he had ended up getting impregnated with an alien embryo and given birth to an alien baby he named Junior. Junior, of course, adored his parents and Battler couldn't help but care for the little reptilian alien.

Originally, only Ange and Beato knew about him being a Kamen Rider, but after he had revealed his identity one month ago, he had to explain to his family about why he had to keep it a secret from them. Speaking of his family, the entire Ushiromiya Clan was moved to Rokkenjima for their own safety. It just wasn't safe for them at the moment. He would check up on them to make sure they were doing alright.

His explanation about being a superhero in secret had taken hours but the explanation about Junior had taken much longer as his parents had fainted at the revelation. Fortunately, he had Beato back him up. She helped him to explain the situation. It did explain why he insisted of moving out. He couldn't really keep his identity a secret if he remained living under the same roof as his parents.

Now, there was just another shocking surprise. Not long after Cain had assumed control of the world, Yūji revealed that Rosa had returned from the dead. Rosa's siblings could not believe it but the proof was there when Rosa revealed that she was who she was. Maria was overjoyed and she shared a tearful reunion with her mama who she'd missed for years. Not only that, Rosa was apparently pregnant with Yūji's child. Maria was going to have a new baby sister.

Battler's life had really been flipped about since he became a cyborg. Would he want a normal life after this was over? Possibly. For now, though, the red-haired Ushiromiya needed to fight.

* * *

"Is this really what you want?" Death asked Alan as they stood in front of the door. Alan had made his decision. "Because after this there's no turning back."

"I've made my choice and this is what I really want," said Alan.

"Most souls would want to rest after all the conflict they've been in life," Death pointed out.

"I'll rest when I'm dead," Alan retorted.

"You are dead," Death reminded.

"You know what I mean," said Alan. "Now, open the door."

Death sighed and muttered about, "Stubborn Smiths," before opening the door.

Alan nodded and said, "Thanks," before stepping through. The door closed and Death crossed her arms.

"Let's hope you don't regret it," she said.

* * *

"OK, where am I?" Alan asked as he scanned his surroundings. He was in a dark cavern. "Damn, she tricked me."

"_Did she?"_

Alan's eyes widened as he recognized the voice and the owner of the voice stepped forward. Rust-colored skin, demonic with a skeletal and emaciated appearance. The same purple mantle hung from his shoulders as he grinned menacingly at Alan with red eyes.

"Mandrakk," Alan frowned at the sight of the Dark Monitor. "I thought this might've been too easy."

"Welcome to 'The Place Where Stories End', which is the place where your story will end," Mandrakk declared.

"Wow, did you come up with that yourself?" retorted Alan cynically, mocking him. Mandrakk scowled but then his lips turned up into a disturbing grin.

"By the way, there's someone here to see you," said Mandrakk. Alan cocked an eyebrow. "He wants to say hello."

"Who?" Alan was hit with a green blast of energy and sent sailing, hitting a wall with a loud crash. He coughed a bit and focused his eyes on whoever had attacked him. He then saw that it was Power Ring. "You again..." he groaned. Power Ring, an analog of himself but evil instead of good.

"What's up, bitch," said Power Ring as he smiled. His eyes were red and as he smiled, Alan could see that he had fangs. "You left me behind. Abandoned me."

"You kinda brought that on yourself when you betrayed us and decided to join up with Skeletor," retorted Alan.

"Whatever man, now we're gonna wipe you out of existence," said Power Ring.

"Oh yeah? You and what army?" Alan challenged and Power Ring snapped his fingers. The sound of flapping wings could be heard and in a matter of moments the cavern was filled with demonic beings. They were humanoid in shape, sporting sharp talons on their hands and feet. Long, spade tipped tails hung from their rears and as skinny as they were they could still snap a man in half with their bare hands. The wings they sported were covered in black feathers. They also had no faces. What should be a face with a nose, eyes, and mouth were just smooth surfaces on their heads. "I really shouldn't have said that," Alan grimaced.

"Meet our Scavengers," said Mandrakk. "They reside in this realm and we took control of them. So now they serve us."

"TEAR HIM TO SHREDS, BOYS!" Power Ring ordered and the Scavengers all spread their wings and attacked, coming at Alan with the intent to kill as ordered by their masters.

"And now to earn my life back!" exclaimed Alan as he got ready to fight. "GERONIMO!" And he dashed towards the Scavengers with fists balled and eyes glowing. As expected, while Alan did not have his ring he could still fight. He still had his Kryptonian powers and literally blew the Scavengers away with his Super Breath. Those that tried to grab him were knocked away with his fists. One tried to slash his face but he caught its wrist and nailed it in the gut with a brutal punch that blew a hole into its stomach. He then tossed the carcass away and let loose his heatray from his eyes, frying the Scavengers. As for Power Ring and Mandrakk, they stood at the sidelines and watched. While Alan was strong, there was no way he could fight these many Scavengers and hope to win. Eventually, he would be overwhelmed and the two villains would finish him off.

However, their assumption was incorrect as one by one the Scavengers fell and turned to dust as Alan killed them. He really was a one man army, with an arsenal of abilities. He wasn't just trained to use his powers. He didn't entirely rely on them. He also possessed training in hand-to-hand and CQC techniques which he took advantage of in this fight against the horde of Scavengers. Their corpses piled up on the cave's floor before turning to dust which littered the floor. Mandrakk's fists clenched as he saw Alan was actually beating the horde. This would not do at all. He gave Power Ring a telepathic command, which the young man obeyed before taking off to take Alan down.

Alan was just about to finish off the last of the Scavengers when he was caught in a giant net. He looked and saw Power Ring coming at him with a massive green fist. "EAT FIST!" shouted Power Ring before he bashed the green fist into Alan, sending him crashing against the wall. Alan recovered and dodged Power Ring's next attack. The evil ring-wielder generated a pair of guns and fired energy bullets at Alan, forcing him to dodge. Alan gritted his teeth and flew fast, getting behind Power Ring to nail him in the back but Mandrakk took hold of the back of Alan's head.

"Forgot about me, boy?" Mandrakk sneered and he plummeted to the ground before slamming Alan face first into the cavern's floor. "Do you feel that, boy?" Mandrakk questioned he slammed Alan's face into the floor again. "The humiliation? The utter despair? The utter hopelessness?" With each question, Mandrakk smashed Alan's face into the floor. He gripped Alan's hair and pulled him up painfully. "I told you Alan Smith. Here we are, at the place where all stories die. And you are at your weakest. Broken. Beaten. _ALONE_. Mandrakk is the end of all things, Alan Smith. You are no different." He held his other clawed hand under Alan's throat in preparation of ripping his throat out. "Now, your blood will stain this place. Now, die again, Alan Smith!"

Power Ring smiled, watching expectantly as Alan got what was coming to him. Oh, this would be so sweet. Mandrakk grinned, his claws touching Alan's skin. He prepared to land the killing blow but all of a sudden he was thrown off Alan by a blast of green energy. Mandrakk was stunned as he went tumbling and he looked up to glare at Power Ring. "TRAITOR!" the Dark Monitor accused.

"It wasn't me, I swear!" denied Power Ring and he was knocked out of the air by another emerald blast. He crashed against the wall so hard that the stalactites nearly dropped from the ceiling.

Alan slowly began to recover as he heard a mysterious yet familiar, feminine voice, "What the hell are you doing Alan!?"

"What...it can't be..." Alan uttered in disbelief and he looked up to see, much to his surprise, someone he did not expect to see. "Jade...?" She was as beautiful as he remembered, with bright emerald skin and matching green hair. She wore a white sleeveless bodysuit which had green accents and dark green boots. On her arms she wore dark green gloves that reached up to her elbows. Finally, displayed on her chest was the symbol of the Starheart. This was Jade, his first love and the one he'd failed all those years ago. She'd been murdered by Major Force. But how could she be here? How was this possible?

Mandrakk rose to his feet and went to attack Jade but she blasted him with a barrage of emerald energy from her hands. She shouted at Alan, "The man I love wouldn't lose to some freak!"

Was this a cruel illusion? Was this the Black Mercy again? He couldn't tell. It seemed so real right now. "Jade...is it really you?" He wanted it to be real and not some kind of sick joke composed by Mandrakk and Power Ring. Just seeing her alive again made him happy and he didn't want this to be a cruel illusion.

Jade grabbed Alan by his collar and pulled him into a deep kiss. Alan gasped but slowly returned the gesture as he returned the kiss. It was the same taste and the same feeling that he would never forget. Jade pulled away and smiled. "Does that feel real enough for you, cowboy?" Alan smiled and nodded. He didn't have time to question as Power Ring came at him. Alan pivoted and backhanded his evil double, knocking him back.

"I suppose you're aware of the situation then," said Alan as Mandrakk summoned more Scavengers, reviving the ones Alan had killed.

"You wanna go back and these creeps are in your way," Jade summarised. "I get that." She cracked her knuckles, "Let's take them down."

Alan wanted to say something, something he hadn't been able to say to her before, "...Jade, for what it's worth, I'm sorry about-" She interrupted him by putting her fingers against his lips.

"Let's talk after we beat these freaks, OK?" she said with a wink.

"Hey, stop flirting!" Power Ring snapped.

"Do you really think the two of you can make a difference?" sneered Mandrakk. "No matter how many of my Scavengers you defeat, I can still make more. There are only two of you and I have an army."

Jade smiled in a way that meant that she actually had a plan and Alan noticed this. She said, "You ain't the only ones with an army." She put her index finger and thumb in her mouth and blew a whistle. Suddenly, a massive onslaught followed as green blasts decimated the newly revived Scavengers in one fell swoop, shocking Power Ring, Mandrakk and most of all Alan. "I didn't come alone," said Jade as the Fallen Lanterns appeared. Alan's eyes widened as he recognized each and every one of them. These were the Green Lanterns who'd died as they fell in battle and labeled as KIA. These were the Green Lanterns who had given their lives in the name of the Corps. They weren't the only ones to arrive. Alan saw Captain Marvel, Captain Atom, and Apollo, the men he'd teamed up with to fight against Mandrakk before. How could they be here? "Alan, meet the cavalry."

Abin Sur, Hal Jordan's predecessor landed before Alan and shook his hand. "It's an honor to meet you."

"Indeed," said Appa Ali Apsa, a dead Guardian. "It is an honor to meet a young man who's done so much. You've done the Corps proud."

"But how...?" Alan realized the answered. "Death," he whispered. She was the one who set this up.

Meanwhile, the Sentinels of the Multiverse and Fallen Lanterns were engaged in brutal combat with the Scavengers. It was violent and the cavern shook. Mandrakk was absolutely livid as his plan for revenge was ruined in a matter of moments. Was this his fate? Was he meant to lose?

NO! He would not accept that!

"Now, Alan Smith, I think you're currently missing something," said Apa Ali Apsa as he took Alan's hand and then he slipped on a new Green Lantern power ring onto his finger. Alan gaped at his new ring.

"A new ring," uttered Alan.

"Yes, and now I must bid you farewell..." said Apa Ali Apsa as he began to fade away.

"Wait!" Alan shouted, but Apa Ali Apsa had vanished from his eyes. "What happened...?"

"Forging that ring used up all the energy he had. He could not remain so he returned to where he should be. He only had enough energy to give the ring to you," said Abin Sur. Alan stared at the ring. Apa Ali Apsa had just given Alan a gift, another chance. He was not going to waste it. Smiling, he looked up at the battle and Jade smiled as she recognized that look.

Alan shouted, "All right guys...LET'S LIGHT 'EM UP!" In a flash of green, the Sentinel was back and he joined his fellow Fallen Lanterns in one of the most epic battles he'd ever experienced. Power Ring had met his end shortly after the arrival of the Fallen Lanterns as he was fried and the Scavengers were falling. Mandrakk, despite his boasts, was being overwhelmed. His powers were not as infinite as he thought and he was losing badly against the combined forces of the Fallen Lanterns and Sentinels of the Multiverse. However, the final blow would not come from any of them but from the man he'd wanted to destroy and wipe out of existence.

"In brightest day, in blackest night," Alan began.

"No evil shall escape my sight," the Fallen Lanterns chorused. "Let all who worship evil's might, beware our power..." The Fallen Lantern's energy transferred to Alan's ring much to Mandrakk's horror.

"No...this cannot be...I AM A GOD!" Mandrakk roared in denial.

"GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!" Alan roared along with the other Lanterns as he formed a massive stake and plunged it into Mandrakk. The sharp point pierced the Dark Monitor's body and stuck him to the wall of the cavern. He roared, raged and waged by the indignity of it all. How!? How could he have been defeated, again!? How was this _**possible**_!?

"How...could you...defeat me...?" Mandrakk questioned, demanding to know how an omnipotent being such as himself could be defeated.

"You wanna know why I won Mandrakk? It's because no matter how dark the night, no evil escapes my sight. So, how does it feel to have something big and hard penetrate your body?" gloated Alan but then he paused once he realized what he'd just said and groaned. "Crap...I really have been hanging around my brother for too long." He palmed his face as he realized that he'd just said something Shinichi would've said in this situation. Something that could be misinterpreted. "I am never gonna hear the end of it if Shinichi hears about this. Note to self: I must not repeat that line in the future when I return to the living world."

He released Mandrakk and the Dark Monitor's body fell to the floor. He was dead.

"Umm, Alan. What was up with that line?" Jade asked. "It sounded really awkward."

"Blame my stupid brother,' said Alan. He smiled, "You know, I should introduce you to him, again. He hasn't met you yet."

"That sounds nice," Jade smiled and he caressed her face. "Alan...?"

"You're here," he whispered, tears falling from his eyes as he hugged her. "You're really here..." If this was a dream, he did not want to wake up.

"Alan," Jade spoke seriously, "Your mission isn't over yet. You have to go back."

"Why can't I stay here with you?" he asked.

"Because they need you, Alan," said Jade and she kissed him. "Don't worry, though. You'll see me again."

Alan nodded. He had chosen this path. Everyone needed him and it was time for him to go back. He gave Jade one final kiss and then he walked away, fading from her sight.

"Are you really just going to let him go like that?" Death asked and Jade gasped as she turned to face the pale woman. Death smiled at Jade. Oh, she had plans for her.

* * *

Lala Satalin Deviluke was taking a bath. She just sighed. There was just so much work to be done and so little time to do it. She was tired, but she needed to keep going. Suddenly, something caught her eye. It was a violet light and it was surrounding a ring similar to Alan's. "What...?"

The glowing violet ring spoke to Lala, "_Lala Satalin Deviluke of Planet Deviluke. You possess great love in your heart._" She reached out to the glowing ring, unable to resist its allure. It was calling out to her, offering itself to her, and she was accepting it. The ring slipped onto her finger and the Devilukian Princess began to recite:

"For hearts long lost and full of fright,

For those alone in blackest night,

Accept our ring and join our fight,

Love conquers all-with VIOLET LIGHT!"

With that said, she was enveloped in violet light.

"_Welcome to the Star Sapphire Corps."_

* * *

In the TARDIS, the Anti-Life Equation was displayed on a whiteboard screen as the Doctor stared at it:

**loneliness + alienation + fear + despair + self-worth ÷ mockery ÷ condemnation ÷ misunderstanding × guilt × shame × failure × judgment n=y where y=hope and n=folly, love=lies, life=death, self=dark side**

He had been working at it all month, trying to find a way to counter it, when the answer suddenly came to him. He now wore a manic grin as the answer came to him. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" he cheered. "This is perfect! Alright!" It took him a long time but he finally figured it all out. He knew how to beat the Anti-Life Equation! It was time to tell everyone what he'd just discovered. They just might win this! Then another signal came up on his scanner screen and he identified it. His grin just widened, "Oh...you beauty!"

* * *

Mammon appeared in a burst of gold in the Genovian command centre. "Hōko-kun ?" she asked, looking for her lover.

"Over here," said Rune as he was doing something at Shinichi's terminal. He was under the terminal, with a flashlight holstered to headband, working on some wiring and circuitry.

"What are you doing?" Mammon asked.

"Me? Just doing some maintenance and making upgrades," he said. "It won't take very long."

"Did Shinichi ask you to do this?" Mammon asked.

"Yeah," answered Rune. "He kinda asked me since he went home to visit his family." He asked, "So, what's up?"

"You've been here a month," she said.

"Yeah."

"And you're from the future."

"That's right."

"Do you know how all this is going to end?" she asked. Rune stopped what he was doing to get up and look her straight in the eye.

"I do," said Rune.

Mammon nodded, accepting Rune's answer, which was good enough for her. The look in his eyes and the fact that his future was not ruled by Cain gave her hope that they were going to win. He came back to make sure everything was going to be OK and she had faith in him. He was the man from this world's future, who used alchemy with a Rider System to fight monster, and proof that everything was going to be OK. He went back under the terminal to do more work.

"Hey, Hōko-kun ?"

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Do you want to make a baby, our own little treasure?" she asked and she heard a thump.

"Ow! What!?" he exclaimed, rubbing his head. She giggled but stopped when they saw two paper cranes entering the Dungeon. They flew over to the two of them and unfolded to reveal a message that would change everything. Mammon smiled and looked to see Rune smiling as well.

"It's time," said Rune. "Let's make history, Mammon."

* * *

Cain sat in his throne, dressed in a black jacket that was zipped to his neck, with matching pants and brown boots. He held his Spear of Destiny like a scepter as if he was a king looking down upon his subjects. His plans were heading to the final phase and the Anti-Life Equation would spread out to everyone on Earth. They would become extensions of himself and they would no longer pose a threat to him, not like they could. For a whole month they had struggled but they would ultimately fail. He watched all the screens but the one of them caught his attention. He grinned.

"So, it looks like they're trying it again," said Cain as he saw the heroes coming towards his Headquarters. He had an army of villains to command and an army of soldiers, all innocent people under the control of the Anti-Life Equation. They would not dare to attack innocents. Cain had already won so all this struggling was pointless. Cain had only allowed them to act as 'Freedom Fighters' because he enjoyed watching them squirm and struggle but now it was time to crush them. It was only convenient that they had come to him to seal their fate.

However, what he expected to be a victory would soon turn into something else entirely. All his screens which showed him the outside world showed him the face of a man who wore a bowtie. "_Hello, Savage!_"

"Doctor..." Cain frowned. "What do you want? Is this another pointless warning of yours?" The Doctor had been periodically contacting Cain, warning him that his reign would end one day. Cain hardly took the Doctor's warning seriously. It was just an empty threat as Cain didn't see any proof that he would lose.

"_Oh, I just wanted to say hello! Also, guess where I am?_" the Doctor said. "_Come on, figure it out. Where could I be? You're a clever little caveman, aren't ya? Have you guessed it?" _The Doctor stepped back and Cain's eyes widened in realization._ "That's right! I'm on your satellite, the one that's broadcasting your Anti-Life Equation all over the world!_"

"What do you think you are you doing!?" demanded Cain.

"_Oh, well, it did take me a month but I managed to analyze your fancy little Anti-Life Equation, then I broke it, rearranged it, and reversed its message! As we speak everyone you put under your control is starting to wake up_," explained the Doctor. Cain trembled with rage but then the Doctor said something else,_ "Also, if I were you, I'd look up in the sky!"_

Cain cocked an eyebrow and all of a sudden the wall exploded. His eyes widened as he saw the figure standing in the hole which had just been blasted into his wall. "No...it cannot be!" Cain exclaimed in disbelief.

Alan walked out of the hole he made in the wall, stretching his arms. "Huh, guess being dead made me more rusty than I thought..."

"_Oh, hello, Alan!"_ the Doctor waved. _"So, you came back from the dead, huh? I guess miracles do happen!"_

Alan smiled, "Doctor."

"But this...this can't be!" sputtered Cain. "It's impossible!"

"As you can see I'm pretty good at doing the impossible. It's a Smith thing," Alan smiled. "And according to the Doctor, your grip and influence on the world is rapidly weakening." He pointed at Cain, "It's over, _Cain_. You had your victory but now it's time we took the planet back."

"But how are you still alive!? I MURDERED YOU! This is impossible!"

Alan answered, "Apparently you haven't learned after all these centuries, Savage. I go beyond the impossible! And with everyone else, I have to hold myself back. Afraid I might hurt someone. Afraid I might kill someone...Afraid I might like it. But this is a different story. You're immortal. You can take everything I can throw at you, can't you big man? What we have here is a rare opportunity for me to cut loose, and show you just how powerful I really am." He got into a combat ready stance, "Let's go."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, this is our penultimate chapter. It's been one long and crazy ride but we finally got to this point. It's amazing that I was able to finish this but I had help, a lot of help. Now, the conclusion of this story will be up soon so just be patient and we will deliver it to you before you guys start feeling anxious.**


	198. The Legacy of Cain Part 142

**LEGACY OF CAIN**

**Part 142: Heroes Rise/In Brightest Day**

Shinichi and the United Resistance Army were marching towards Cain's Headquarters. The Doctor had sent them the message and the plan. It was time to strike now. It was time to end the nightmare. Cain's forces stood at the front of his Headquarters, ready to confront the army of heroes which was quite small in comparison. The United Resistance Army was outnumbered as Cain's army were made up of RoC agents, super-villains, Cyber-Daleks and also several innocent people under the control of the Anti-Life Equation. This battle would be unlike anything they had ever been involved in.

OK, they have saved the world before but this would be their biggest battle ever. A lot more was at stake here. This was an evil which had existed for thousands of years who had manipulated events to this very point. This evil was responsible for almost everything they had ever faced and now it was time to end it all.

* * *

"Doctor..." Cain frowned. "What do you want?

"_Oh, I just wanted to say hello! Also, guess where I am?_" the Doctor said. "_Come on, figure it out. Where could I be? You're a clever little caveman, aren't ya? Have you guessed it?" _The Doctor stepped back and Cain's eyes widened in realization._ "That's right! I'm on your satellite, the one that's broadcasting your Anti-Life Equation all over the world!_"

"What do you think you are you doing!?" demanded Cain.

"_Oh, well, while it did take me a month but I managed to analyze your fancy little Anti-Life Equation, then I broke it, rearranged it, and reversed its message! As we speak everyone you put under control is starting to wake up_," explained the Doctor. Cain trembled with rage but then the Doctor said something else,_ "Also, if I were you, I'd look up in the sky!"_

Cain cocked an eyebrow and all of a sudden the wall exploded. His eyes widened as he saw the figure standing in the hole which had just been blasted into his wall. "No...it cannot be!" Cain exclaimed in disbelief.

Alan walked out of the hole he made in the wall, stretching his arm. "Huh, guess being dead made me more rusty than I thought..."

"_Oh, hello, Alan!"_ the Doctor waved. _"So, you came back from the dead, huh? I guess miracles do happen!"_

Alan smiled, "Doctor."

"But this...this can't be!" sputtered Cain. "It's impossible!"

"As you can see I'm pretty good at doing the impossible. It's a Smith thing," Alan smiled. "And according to the Doctor, your grip and influence on the world is rapidly weakening." He pointed at Cain, "It's over, _Cain_. You had your victory but now it's time we took the planet back."

"But how are you still alive!? I MURDERED YOU! This is impossible!"

Alan answered, "Apparently you haven't learned after all these centuries, Savage. I go beyond the impossible! And with everyone else, I have to hold myself back. Afraid I might hurt someone. Afraid I might kill someone...Afraid I might like it. But this is a different story. You're immortal. You can take everything I can throw at you, can't you big man? What we have here is a rare opportunity for me to cut loose, and show you just how powerful I really am. Let's go."

* * *

Up on the Satellite, the Doctor was there but he was not alone. There was his TARDIS, of course, and both Yūji and Lala. The Doctor had found a way to reverse the Anti-Life Equation but there were two vital pieces to make this work, namely the power rings owned by Yūji and Lala. To fight this equation, it required a sufficient amount of love and hope being channeled and both Yūji and Lala had that in spades.

"Thank you, and thank you," said the Doctor as he'd used the rings to send out a message of Hope and Love: "**YOU ARE NOT ALONE**".

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

The battle was fierce as the heroes fought against Cain's armies. Many of them were innocent people under the control of Anti-Life while a large number of them were RoC agents. There were also super-criminals and Cyber-Daleks included just to round up this army. The United Resistance Army outnumbered and potentially outmatched but that didn't mean they were going to give up. However, the tides of battle would soon change.

The Anti-Life soldiers dropped their weapons, looking dazed and confused as to what they were doing and where they were. They soon realized they were in danger as heroes and villains were fighting around them. They began to panic and Showa knew that something had happened. However, as soon as these people were freed from the control of the Anti-Life Equation, a third party descended upon them.

An RoC Soldier was shot dead by a death ray which fried his insides and the man responsible for it was armed with a pair of DALEK guns modified to become pistols. He was clad in a white bodysuit and wore a combination of black and silver armor. He sported red eyes that gleamed with evil. While he seemed like a stranger, the XIV across the left side of his chestpiece was a telltale sign. It could only be one man.

"Shiro..." Showa growled. He only knew one person who could wear silver, white and black and still be a total douchebag. He wasn't alone either as he held up his Dark Xrosser, which meant more bad news. From a burst of darkness originating from the Dark Xrosser, DALEKs, Combatroids, Beastroids (Rhinos and Lizardmen) and Cybermen appeared en masse, all under his command.

Shiro gave them one simple order, "Destroy them all." Shiro attended to wipe out all his enemies in one fell swoop. The Cybermen and DALEKs obeyed blasted at everything and everyone indiscriminately, chorusing their signature battle cries.

"**EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"**

"**Delete. Delete. Delete."**

"Protect the civilians and get them out of here!" Showa ordered as he went to confront Shiro. It was time to end this. Psyonic got in his way but Showa knocked down Psyonic with a punch of his Great Fists. When Psyonic recovered to attack Showa with a telekinetic blast, a kick to the back of his head courtesy of Satan caused him to violently faceplant into the ground.

Laser fire began to fly everywhere as the DALEKs and Cybermen targeted everyone Shiro considered an enemy which was pretty much everyone else on the battlefield. RoC Soldiers dropped like flies as the DALEKs' deathrays hit them, illuminating their bodies to reveal their skeletons. The Cybermen's lethal lasers also made them fall dead. As this was happening, the confused and frightened civilians were being led away by the Gaming Club as the others fought back.

Carmen (Mirage Form) used her Kusarigama Mantis Scythes and bound several Lizardmen Beastroids and Combatroids together. She tightened the chain and they were cut in half. Slasher was using his chainsaws to engage the Rhino Beastroids. While more heavily armored they were no match for his chainsaws. Blue Beetle used his electrified sword to stun and short-circuit the Beastroids. One got a lucky hit in Blue Beetle's back but its head was taken off by Musician with his Cricket Axe.

"Take them out!" Zero ordered as he unleashed his Wasp Missiles. They exploded as they hit their targets.

* * *

Meanwhile, Obsidian was rushing towards Cain's office. For the entire month, Obsidian didn't know what to do with himself. Alan Smith was dead and he should be happy, but then as time went by he felt empty. His entire purpose had been taken away from him by Cain and now there was nothing left but to serve the man who had taken over the world. There was news of a resistance group that was trying to challenge Cain but it was pointless. Cain had won. They should just give up and surrender themselves to Cain's will. Right now survival should be their only priority, not some feeble attempt to resist against the First Murderer. He had power and his plan had succeeded. It had taken the man thousands of years of planning and now he ruled the world and there was nobody who could stop him. Alan's allies were simply putting up a futile attempt at resistance but they would soon fall. Cain's influence was steadily spreading and it was only a matter of time before the entire world followed his will.

But now things had changed drastically.

"He's here!" He could practically sense it. Abandoning the Elite, Obsidian was going straight to finish Alan off and this time the Green Lantern would not be able to come back. As he turned a corner, he froze. His eyes went wide as he saw someone standing in his way.

"It...can't be..." uttered Obsidian in disbelief.

"Hello, Todd," Jade smiled. "Did you miss me?"

This was a trick! It had to be! Jade was dead! Alan had let her die! But there was no denying it as Obsidian was looking at his sister, who was alive. "How are you here...?" he asked. He couldn't believe but there she was, standing before him, radiant as ever. "Jennifer...you died..."

"I got better," she said. He stepped back, shaking his head in denial.

"No, this isn't true! This is not true! He let you die! HE LET YOU DIE!" Jade slowly and carefully approached her brother and caressed his face.

"Todd, what happened to you? What happened to my big brother?" she asked as stared into his eyes sadly.

"Oh, Jenny..." he said with a trembling voice. "Why...why did you leave me...?" Jade wrapped her arms around her brother in order to comfort him. This was the first step in healing his mind and his soul. They broke the embrace and Obsidian heard footsteps approaching. He and Jade and turned to look down the hallway and saw Black leading the rest of the Elite towards Cain's office.

"Hey, Obsidian," greeted Black. "Did you come all this way to help the boss?" He then spotted Jade, "And who's this green bird?"

"My sister," Obsidian growled defensively.

"Sister? Thought your sister was dead," said Black in confusion.

"Todd," said Jade. "What will you do now?"

"I think it's time for me to redeem myself and do the right thing," said Obsidian and Jade smiled.

"Oi, what are you talking about?" questioned Black. He got his answer as the shadows at Jade and Obsidian's feet extended and a huge fist came flying out. Black blocked with telekinesis. Realizing this was an attack and that Obsidian had turned against them, the Elite charged. Coldcast charged his electro-magnetically charged fists while Hat summoned his flaming sword and Menagerie soared at them.

"Let's go!" Jade said as she and her brother charged at the Elite. She targeted Menagerie and Hat while Obsidian battled against Coldcast and Black.

* * *

Alan and Cain were locked in deadly combat. The Spear of Destiny clashed with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and it appeared that both men were evenly matched. Both had immense strength at their disposal, tenacity, and the desire to win above all else.

"Face it, Savage! It's over!" said Alan as he parried Cain's strikes. "Your hold on this world is gone! Everyone you have taken control of is now free and they see the truth! Your reign ends here!"

"So do yourself a favor and just give up!" said Bazel in agreement. He was the happiest when Alan returned and came back to life. He'd been keeping his body preserved within him through suspended animation. It just wouldn't do for him to just rot away.

"This isn't over, Smith!" roared Cain as he went to run Alan through like he had a month ago but a shield of green energy blocked the spear. Alan then pushed Cain back with the barrier which sprang Cain away.

"Hey, Cain! Watch this!" Alan shouted and he created nine duplicates of himself made of green energy. He snapped his fingers and the nine duplicates transformed. The first one took the form of Gouram, a massive mechanical stag beetle while another took on the form of a giant Kabuto Zecter. Both beetle-like construct rushed towards Cain and smashed into him, pinning him to the wall. With his strength he shattered the constructs. A third construct took the form of Agito's Machine Tornador in its hoverboard-like Slider Mode. Alan hopped on and rocketed towards Cain. Cain prepared to shoot him down but all his blasts missed and destroyed parts of his office. The thrusters blew Cain away as Alan maneuvered around the office, dodging Cain. He smirked and then hopped off the construct to slash Cain across the chest, his sword cutting a huge gash upon the immortal who stumbled back. He hissed and snarled at Alan who was jumping into the air, followed by a fourth construct in the shape of a Chinese dragon. Alan performed a flying sidekick, the speed and force of the attack accelerated by a blast of the dragon's flaming breath. Cain raised up his arm to block but was sent flying by the flaming flying kick.

"Hurts, doesn't it?" Alan mocked as he stood up. "Despite your immortality, you can still bleed."

Cain roared and fired a blast but another Alan duplicate took the blast. It didn't shatter but morphed into the Blade Blade. Alan gripped it and swung ut down along with the Kusanagi, sending a wave of electrifying energy flying towards Cain that caused him to scream once it connected, his body smoking and suffering from electrical burns as a result.

Alan ran through the list, "OK, I did Kuuga, Agito, Kabuto, Ryuki and just now I did Blade. What's next?" Cain was recovering. "Savage, how about a drum solo!" The sixth Alan clone changed into a gong and pinned itself to Cain's chest. He tried to rip it off but Alan was too fast for him and he began to bang on the drum with taiko drumsticks, causing Cain to scream as the soundwaves rippled through his body, shaking up his insides. He then banished the drumsticks and thrust his Kusanagi into the centre of the gong. It shattered and the explosive force threw Cain into the air. This was followed by another one of Alan's duplicates taking the form of a bullet train to knock Cain back to the ground. "That was Hibiki and Den-O. Two more," Alan countered. Another duplicate took the form of the Kiva Arrow and Alan put away his sword to hold the weapon. He drew the arrow back and it was aimed at Cain. Cain charged at Alan but the arrow struck and went through Cain's heart. On any other being, it would've been fatal but it was just a minor wound on him. Finally, the last energy duplicate became the Faiz Blaster and Alan fired a drill that immobilized Cain.

"And this is your exit," said Alan as he fired a massive burst of energy from the Faiz Blaster into the energy drill digging into Cain's chest.

* * *

Meanwhile, the heroes outside were fighting two enemy forces at once. The heroes were systematically taking down the super-villains who were being captured by the same Riders who'd captured them before and once they were down they were sealed up in containment cards with the C3. One by one they were being captured. The Vault may not be up and running but Genovia had a dungeon and the heroes had power-suppression collars available. Their mechanical opponents, however, were not going to get the same courtesy as the heroes didn't hold back and scrapped them.

Yūji's Pokegirls were using their powers without restraint against the RoC forces. At the same time, Sora was flying in the air and swooping down to knock them down. When she took to the air, she dodged the DALEKs firing at her and dropped explosives to take out those psychotic pepperpots. Asura used her pyrokinesis while Lillith used her claws. Shizuko, like Yūji's Tigress, was using her claws and agility to great efficiency. In the air, Zero was joined by Lina, aka Electric Butterfly, who was zapping the enemy forces with lightning.

"Bow Down Before Me!" declared Conda proudly as she knocked down RoC soldiers with her whip. A Cyberman tried to shoot her from behind but was blown up by Amora.

"Watch your back!" Amora advised before throwing destructive spells at their enemies.

"I owe you," said Conda.

"Repay me by surviving," Amora shot back.

Yuri and his harem were, for the most part, doing a lot of damage on the RoC forces and traumatizing them at the same time. He, along with Anastasia, were the scariest couple and as Anastasia was wielding a yellow power ring that fed on fear, she had a lot of power. Shego was launching green flames from her hands as Kikyo shot down RoC soldiers with non-lethal rounds. Even if they did deserve death Yuri and his battle harem could not kill them. They could at least cripple and traumatize them.

"Time to show them real terror!" said Yuri as he put on his Geno Belt. "Henshin!"

"**DESTROYER FORM!**"

"No kill like overkill," Yuri, aka Kamen Rider Geno Destroyer said. The RoC soldiers could not damage his armor but he could still hurt them. He bashed them with his tail and slashed with his claws. He was prohibited from using his particle beam cannon due to its immensely destructive nature. DALEKs and Cybermen fired at him but were torn to shreds. The Combatroids tried to attack him at close-ranged but also met the same fate.

Bishie was using her Vine Whips and Razor Leaves against the RoC army but her plant-type attacks were ineffective against the machines. Fortunately, Blue Beetle helped her by blasting them to pieces with his railguns. That was when Harious and Pyrofear attacked the Blue Beetle, wanting revenge for their individual defeats and incarcerations. However, Blue Beetle wasn't about to make it easy for them. Harious slung devastating spells as Pyrofear shot fireballs at him but he was able to avoid them. That was when Asmodeus came in and kicked Pyrofear in the face before bounding off to stand next to her hubby. She wasn't the only Stake of Purgatory aiding their respective loves. Leviathan was watching Musician's back while Lucifer was in the air with Zero, attacking with her mana blade. Mammon herself was putting the alchemy she'd learnt to use against their enemies. Harious roared and tried to strike Blue Beetle down with a magic bolt but he formed a shield that deflected it. Asmodeus then kicked the sorcerer in the face, knocking him back. He then received a spiked ball to the gut courtesy of Blue Beetle who used a morning star. He dropped to his knees and cursed before collapsing.

Renkin was performing alchemy and sent a wave of rock towards several Cyber-Daleks. A few DALEKs tried to blast at him but their shots were blocked by a wall of stone. He spotted a few RoC Soldiers trying to escape. He was not about to allow that. "Stop right there!" He slammed the ground with his palms and generated an alchemic array. The energy from the array traveled across the ground and surrounded the fleeing soldiers before they were trapped in a cage of stone. "Don't go too far," he said before moving on to continue fighting. He couldn't wait to tell everyone back home how he'd become part of history. This was a major event in this era which had been recorded in the history books and he was part of it. A Cyberman took a swing at him but it missed and he placed his hand against its chest. One alchemic array later and it was shattered to pieces as if it was made out of glass. He formed his BSB Sword and ran a line of Combatroids through like a shish kebab. He then raised his blade, slicing their upper bodies in half before kicking their exploding bodies away.

Several DALEKs were taken out by lightning attacks from Kai and Stronger. Cybermen fired at them but were blasted away by a burst of wind attacks courtesy of Kaze no Jin X was confronting RoC Soldiers and knocking them down with her Ridol Stick and Amazon savagely attacked with slashes. A few RoC Soldiers took the G-Shock pills to assume Hyde forms and became monsters. This made them durable and so the heroes had to use more force against them. Combatroids could also be seen fighting against the RoC Soldiers and winning against them only for both sides to be thrown into the air by magic energy bolts from Amora. Misato was using her rapiers and running through the Combatroids before kicking them off to resume her ruthless assault on the rest of them. Several RoC Soldiers had the unfortunate luck of running into her and she drained their blood. Not enough to kill, but enough to make sure they wouldn't be getting back up anytime soon.

"Rider Double Kick!" Nigo and Ichigo shouted as they attacked the Hydes with flying kicks, sending them flying. Landing on the ground, they fought back-to-back. Not far from them was V3 along with his sister Riderwoman. The former was knocking down opponents but one lucky shot knocked him off his feet. Fortunately, Riderwoman was there to help him and retaliate, lashing out with her Hook Arm. A Cyberman managed to catch her hook and tried to electrocute her but V3 used a karate chop to severe the line. He then destroyed the Cyberman with a flying kick, sending it flying as it exploded.

"Thanks, Nii-nii," Riderwoman said to her big brother. V3 acknowledged her thanks with a nod before they entered the fray once more.

Alice was brutal as her wings sliced apart the mechanical menaces around her. Her father had taught her to never harm a fellow human but machines were fair game. They were destroyed with blasts of dark flames from her hands. She was almost jumped by one of the super-villains but she knocked him out with a roundhouse kick. She was not some weak little girl, not anymore. She had the body of a young adult and the spirit of an avenging angel. Cyber-Daleks shot at her but she blocked with her wings before stretching her wings at high speeds to pierce their heads. Aiding her were Yami and Nozomu who used their respective claws against their foes. Nozomu's big brother Saku wasn't too far behind as he used his martial arts skills to incapacitate and subdue the opposing forces.

Carmen was knocked down by a Cyberman's punch and three DALEKs prepared to fire at her but needles pierced their heads and exploded. Looking up, she spotted Zero giving her a salute before he flew by. "Thanks, Shogo." She spotted Arachnea fighting Hunger but she was able to subdue the monster with her webbing. She also saw Slasher chop off Bara's arms with his chainsaws before Stronger sent him flying with a Stronger Electro Kick. Renkin used his alchemy to fuse the mechanical soldiers together into helpless and powerless hunks of junk before they self-destructed.

Suddenly, Arachnea paused as she spotted three very familiar faces. "The Grimes..." she murmured in venomous disgust. The Grimes Siblings. They were a trio of career criminals from the same family and their names were Frederick, Isaac and Camille. Frederick was the oldest, Isaac was the middle child and Camille was the youngest of the siblings. They had came to Japan to make themselves famous and kidnapped Mion and the heiress of a rival family member as part of their plans. However, their plans were thwarted by Arachnea, Slasher and Blue Beetle (when he was known as Kamen Rider Armadillo). They were among the villains sent to the Vault but were later broken out of the Vault by Shiro and the Priest.

"Looks like it's time for a rematch," said Blue Beetle as he faced the Grimes with Arachnea and Slasher. They then charged at the Grimes who lashed out with their abilities. In another part of the battlefield, Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu were side-by-side. The demi-goddess of the sun fired bursts of solar energy to incapacitate the enemy as Tsukuyomi subdued them with her swords. She sliced apart the machines but made sure to use the blunt side of her blade on the humans and meta-humans. Hydes, however, required more force to take down. And even the normal human members of the RoC received a boost from G-Shock even if they didn't mutate yet.

"Hyah!" Alter shouted as he performed a Rider Kick, taking out Cybermen which exploded. He was almost shot from behind by DALEKs but they were picked up by Meta's telekinesis and then tossed into Cyber-Daleks. Cybermen and Cyber-Daleks could be seen grappling with each other, blasting at each other, destroying each other. The DALEKs ended both of them as they were shooting indiscriminately, uncaring of the losses their own side was gathering. A huge burst of emerald energy was seen shooting out of Cain's office and the monster himself was blasted out. He was sent crashing into three separate buildings which were all lined up.

"What?" Showa questioned. He recognized that emerald energy. "Could it be...?" Meanwhile, the DALEKs and Cybermen were taking out Cain's forces. Shiro's army were decimating the Cyber-Daleks and RoC Soldiers. At the same time, they were trying to kill the heroes and super-villains aligned with Cain. Shiro was just aiming to kill them all. Speaking of Shiro, he was engaged in combat with Showa.

Shiro fired at Showa who blocked his deathrays with the Shield of Glen. He was in his Hinamizawa Guardian armor as Shawna was wielding the Sword of Ascalon. Realizing his guns wouldn't work, Shiro put them away and generated energy blades from his wrists. Their weapons clashed as Showa stared Shiro down.

"This is the end!" Shiro swore.

"I agree!" Showa shot back, "For you, that is!" Showa kicked Shiro backwards and he went skidding. The android sneered and got ready to shoot Showa when the TARDIS suddenly materialized between them. The door opened and allowed both Yūji and Lala to step out into the middle of the battlefield.

"Are we late to the party?" Yūji asked. He noticed Shiro. "Who's this cracker?"

"It's Shiro," Shinichi answered. "He's got a new body."

"Not much of an improvement," Yūji remarked as he studied Shiro's new body. Shiro fired at them with his DALEK Pistols but his shots were blocked by a blue energy shield generated by Yūji's ring. "Definitely not much of an improvement," asserted Yūji.

"Do you mind taking care of things here?" Showa asked as he gazed up. "There's something I need to check out." He transformed into his Guardian Jet Mode and took off.

"Get back here!" roared Shiro as he aimed his DALEK Pistols to shoot Showa down only to be hit by a Photon Punch that sent him sprawling.

"Now, where were _we_?" Yūji cracked his knuckles. Shiro had a lot to answer for and Yuji was going to be the one to give him what he deserved.

* * *

Cain had crashed into an abandoned warehouse and was fighting against Alan alone. Their fight spilled out as they crashed through the wall together and went tumbling. Both were disarmed as their weapons flew out of their hands and began to fight barehanded, smashing fists against each other. They then started to grapple. Cain was a foot taller, more muscular, and had a more imposing aura but Alan's emerald aura of willpower was a match. Suddenly Cain was attacked from behind as a dozen Kunai Missiles hit him in the back. Alan knew what was coming and shoved Cain backwards just in time for Showa to smash into him with the Guardian Force Strike. The flying dropkick caused an explosion and Showa leapt away from the fireball to land next to his brother.

"This must be becoming a trend for us," Showa remarked. "I thought you were dead."

"For a while I was," replied Alan. "So, how have you been?"

"I could be better. You?"

"My body feels stiff," Alan rotated his shoulders and cracked his neck from side to side.

"It happens when you're dead. Something called rigor mortis."

The two of them then looked to the fire and smoke that were a result of Showa's last attack. Alan picked up his Kusanagi and waited as Cain walked out of the flames, unharmed. He'd lost his jacket but that was all he lost. He called on the Spear of Destiny, and pulled the weapon to his hand. Showa got ready and drew the Higurashi no Yaiba.

"Do you really think one Lantern and one Rider will be enough to beat me?" Cain questioned mockingly.

"Let's find out," said Alan and with that both he and his brother charged at Cain. Showa attacked by extending his sword into a whip and lashing out at Cain who parried with the Spear of Destiny. Sentinel drove his sword forward but Cain dodged the strike. Showa rushed at Cain and both brothers attacked relentlessly.

* * *

The Unicorn Hyde (Lord Sutherland) was no match for the armored Princess Shawna. She wielded the Sword of Ascalon as a pro and his diamond-like body was still unable to withstand her attack despite his apparent invulnerability. She was also aided by Tsukuyomi and her two katanas as they easily defeated the arrogant prick, reverting him back to human form with a unified violent blow. Musician (Rock-Metal Form) had just defeated and captured Licehirb before moving on to the next group of villains while Zero (Emerald Pride Form) had just subdued the Acid Man with Stinger Bolts fired from his fists. The two then saw two very familiar people charging at them. Actually, it was Argus H and riding on his back was Dr. Sanji. The two Riders recognized the pair whom they had met at the Tomb of the Cybermen. Were they here to help?

"GET THEM, ARGUS!" Dr. Sanji commanded as Argus H fired explosive ice shells at the two Riders. They dodged and got out of the way.

Apparently, they were on the side of the Religion of Crime. Musician strummed his guitar and fired a burst of sound that knocked Dr. Sanji off his creation. The scientist went tumbling as Musician ran after him. As for Argus H, he attacked Zero who dodged.

"I can't believe we even saved you!" shouted Zero.

"Nothing personal, but these are our orders!" said Argus H as he fired at Zero. Zero dodged and retaliated with a Stinger Bolt. Meanwhile, Musician had just beaten Dr. Sanji. All the guy had were tanks of gas which the Cricket Rider knew were filled with nothing but poisonous gasses. It was just easy to knock the guy out with a single blow. He looked to see Zero paralyse Argus H with a potent Stinger Bolt.

"And we've got our duties too, sorry," Zero apologized insincerely. He then went to assist Lucifer who seemed to be in trouble. She was battling both Combatroids and Cybermen when he came to back her up. He actually shrank down to slip past the circle the mechanical menaces had made around his fiancée before changing back to his normal size.

"I can take care of myself," she said as she slashed a Combatroid across the chest as Zero fired his Stinger Bolts.

"I know, but it doesn't mean I can't help," he said. The two of them worked together as they fought back-to-back. Zero grabbed her arm and tossed her up to kick a Cyberman down before she tossed him up so he could fire his energy stingers down on them. He landed next to her as they continued fighting.

"Hey, you know something?" Zero asked.

"What?" Lucifer asked.

"I'm not usually impulsive, but considering the situation, I was thinking," he ducked a Combatroids swing and hit it with a Stinger Bolt. "Let's get married."

"_Married_!? You mean right _now_!?" Lucifer asked, shocked as she sliced a Combatroid in half. "Is _now _really the best time?" It hadn't exactly been long since Shogo proposed to her.

"Sure, and even if isn't fancy, you can at least brag to your sisters that you had a very _unique _wedding ceremony," said Zero.

Lucifer, in the midst of battle, considered Zero's words. Maybe it was the adrenaline, but what he said made a lot of sense. This was an opportunity to have a wedding unlike any other. "OK, but who's gonna marry us?" Zero scanned the battlefield and spotted X. She was the Head Miko of Hinamizawa.

"Rika, marry us!" Zero shouted.

"I'm a bit busy!" X shouted as she was in the midst of fighting.

Zero frowned and then spotted Stronger. "Hanyuu, can you marry us?"

Stronger blinked under her helmet as she backhanded a DALEK. "Alright!" She kicked a RoC Cyber-Dalek down with an electrified kick. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today, in the middle of battle, to join these two in holy matrimony!" She jumped back and landed to unleash an Electro Fire attack.

"Lucifer of Pride, do you want to take me as your husband?" asked Zero as he held her hand while shooting his Stinger Bolts.

"I do!" she answered as she swung her mana blade, slicing half a Combatroid's head off before kicking it away to explode and take a few of its kind with it. "And do you take me as your wife?" she asked.

"Of course. Do you even need to ask?" he replied.

"As Guardian Deity of Hinamizawa, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss-" Stronger was interrupted by Cyber-Daleks firing at her and she had to use her goddess powers to throw them into the air using telekinesis. "You may kiss-" She was interrupted again as a DALEK shot at her but she used her power to bend the beam and send it back to blow the DALEK up. "OH, FOR GOODNESS SAKES! JUST KISS!" she shouted in frustration.

Zero and Lucifer smiled at each other and the Wasp Rider's mouthplate opened so they could press their lips together. Musician, who'd heard the exchange, could only groan.

"Once this gets out I'm never gonna hear the end of it," Musician muttered, knowing that Leviathan was going to complain that she hadn't gotten married yet.

Yūji stared down the new Shiro Juuyon who boasted, "My armor has been bonded with Vibranium and it runs on Sakuradite. This is an improvement from my last few bodies. There is no way you can defeat me." He aimed his DALEK Pistols at Yūji. "This is where you die again, Yūji Fudo. And when you and every one of my enemies are gone, I'll stand on top and dance upon your graves. So just die now and stay dead."

"Right, right, the same speech," Yūji rolled his eyes. "Seriously, can't you come up with some original material? You keep talking about how superior you are but we keep beating your ass, every single time."

"Well, right now, I still have my army," retorted Shiro. "It's a shame. I offered Shinichi my assistance and he rejected it."

"Geez, I wonder why?" Yūji rolled his eyes. "Do you honestly believe after all you've done we'd ever want your help? As soon as Cain and his goons are gone, you'd turn on us. That's just how you were programmed."

"Enough talk! Die!" He fired at Yūji who brought up his Photon Barriers before blasting Shiro's guns to pieces with Photon-charged energy blasts. Scowling, Shiro charged at Yūji with his energy blades as Yūji countered with his Photon Blades. The two of them glared at each other as they clashed. They hated each other and were intent on killing each other. One shall stand and one shall fall. Yūji sent Shiro flying and he went tumbling. He generated energy darts and threw them at Yūji. Yūji swatted them out of the air and they exploded. Desperate, Shiro used his Dark Xrosser, aimed at a DALEK.

"**Dark Xros Fusion!**" he called and the DALEK was absorbed before being fused with Shiro. He gained a giant cannon on his right arm which had plating decorated by hemispheres. He charged up the cannon and fired at Yūji. There was an explosion and as the smoke and dust cleared, Yūji was gone. "Yatta! I vaporised him!" Shiro cheered.

"Did you?" Yūji asked from behind Shiro and the android yelled in shock before backing away from Yūji in fear. The Manakyte slashed and Shiro raised his DALEK Cannon to defend himself but it was torn to shreds by Yūji's Photon Claw. "Are you gonna run again, you pussy?" Yūji taunted. Shiro backed away. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Shizuko and got an idea. He threw his energy darts at Yūji's feet and they exploded. Using the smoke cloud as cover, Shiro darted towards Shizuko. Yūji stepped out of the smoke unharmed but heard a scream. He looked and saw something that made his blood run cold. Shiro was holding Shizuko hostage. He had his arm around her neck and holding one of his explosive darts near her head. "Shizuko!" shouted Yūji.

"Don't fucking move, Yūji Fudo!" Shiro threatened. "Or she'll become a head shorter!"

"Shiro, don't you fucking dare..." Yūji growled as his eyes glowed.

"Ah, ah, ah," Shiro warned. "You misfire and you'll be the one to kill her, and you don't want that, do you?"

"Yūji...help me..." Shizuko uttered but choked as Shiro squeezed her neck harder.

"Shut up, slut!" Shiro snapped. "All that mouth is good for is sucking cock! Did you convince Yūji to let you join him by spreading your legs to him, whore?" Yūji grew angry which each word Shiro spoke to her but he couldn't risk her life. If he moved, Shiro would kill her. Everyone else was too busy fighting to notice this confrontation. Shiro grinned and looked at Yūji, taunting him, "Looks like I'm holding all the cards. Now, if you want to save your little pussy whore, I want you to kill yourself. Slit your own throat, blow yourself up, or just rip out your own heart. I don't care how but you're going to die right here, and right now!"

Yūji gritted his teeth and looked to Shizuko who pleaded to him to save her. However, she did not want him to die for her sake. "Yūji..." she uttered.

"That's right, Yūji Fudo. Save her. Kill yourself and save her," urged Shiro. "Do it, Fudo. Do it. Do it."

But what happened next would shock both Yūji and Shizuko. All of a sudden, Shiro's head exploded. Shizuko screamed as the arm holding her went limp and released her. The shrapnel miraculously missed her and she ran towards Yūji's arms. They both watched as Shiro's body dropped to its knees then collapsed to the ground. It twitched for a few moments before going dead. The one who had killed him and saved Shizuko was none other than a Pink DALEK wearing ribbons and an apron.

"**NOBODY HURTS MY FRIENDS!"** yelled Pinkie.

"Pinkie, what are you doing here?" Yūji asked while comforting a terrified Shizuko.

"**Oh, just taking out the trash,**" said Pinkie. He scanned the battlezone, "**Wow, you guys are really making a big mess here.**"

"This wasn't exactly on purpose," Yuji defended. Pinkie scanned the area around Shiro's body and spotted the Dark Xrosser. He picked it up with his telescopic manipulator arm before gliding over to Yuji, handing the device over to him.

"**I think you know what to do with this,**" Pinkie said. Yūji stared at the device and knew exactly what to do. He tossed it into the air and then pointed his index finger up at it. He fired a beam of Photon energy and hit the Dark Xrosser and vaporized it.

Meanwhile, the heroes were being overwhelmed by their enemies. There were just too many of them. Musician was cornered by the DALEKs who had their gunsticks aimed at him. They had just destroyed his Guitar Axe. Fortunately, he could still use his sonic scream, shattering their dome lights. They fired at him and he was forced to his knees by them. **"EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!" **They were going to fire again, and this time it was going to be lethal. At the same time, Slasher and Blue Beetle were grappling with Cybermen. Also, Carmen and Arachnea were surrounded by a circle of DALEKs who were aiming for the kill. The Hinamizawan Riders were also being pinned down by Beastroids and Combatroids.

Suddenly, the remaining enemy Beastroids, Combatroids, DALEKs and Cybermen that Shiro had brought along with him self-destructed. The Cybermen screamed as their heads blew up and the DALEKs exploded, leaving only their smoking bottom halves. It was just so unexpected that the heroic Riders were not sure what just happened.

Blue Beetle blinked and so eloquently asked, "OK, what the heck just happened?" Slasher could only shrug.

"I ain't complaining," said Musician.

Yuji had witnessed all of Shiro's soldiers suddenly explode and concluded that they had all been connected to the Dark Xrosser. Shiro wanted a way to control them effectively but once the device itself was destroyed, the Cybermen, Beastroids, Combatroids and DALEKs all exploded.

"Guess that solves one problem," Yuji smiled.

Pinkie bobbed his eyestalk in agreement but then he spotted Shiro's headless body starting to move. "Yuji, watch out behind you!" Pinkie warned. Shiro's headless body suddenly stood up on its feet as the chestplate opened up to reveal his _real _head planted in the chest cavity. He looked enraged, he looked pissed, and he looked absolutely insane with rage.

Yuji yelled in annoyance, "Oh, come on! Why won't you just stay dead already!?"

"_**THAT'S IT! I'VE HAD IT! EVERYONE DIES! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!**_" Shiro screamed as his fingers transformed into miniature DALEK gunsticks. He took aim to fire at all who had slighted him and dared to oppose him. He would have his revenge as they all paid for his humiliation. He started to charge up his finger guns when Yuji fired a Photon Buster directly at him, exploding his body to pieces. Shiro's disembodied head rolled over to stop at Yuji's feet and glared up at the Manakyte, uttering hatefully, "I…fucking…hate you!"

"I know," said Yuji and he fired a Photon energy blast that vaporized Shiro's head, putting an end to him for good. "And that's another pest exterminated."

Lala was using her Star Sapphire ring against the enemy. Her ring functioned similarly to the power rings wielded by Alan and Yūji as she could create energy constructs. It also had its own unique abilities like Yūji's. While Yūji's ring could boost a Green Lantern's power, Lala's ring could encase a target in a crystal prison. Said crystal was manifested using the power of love which Lala possessed in spades. Her Star Sapphire uniform was also very eye catching. It was a violet, sleeveless leotard which was skin tight and accentuated her curvy figure. The V-neck-like dipped low to just below her rib cage, revealing a generous amount of cleavage. Her arms were clad in gloves which reached up to her elbows and she also had matching thigh-high boots with stiletto heels. Finally, on her head was a tiara.

Leviathan, who saw what Lala was wearing, couldn't help but be jealous as it was her nature. Asmodeus on the other hand was impressed as Lala was trapping the RoC members in crystal. Their containment cards were limited so it was convenient of Lala to trap the villains so they could be transported later for proper incarceration. The new Star Sapphire scanned the battlefield. It seemed that they were winning. Despite being outnumbered, the villains were no match for them. The sudden self-destruction of the DALEKs and Cybermen had been surprising but she had seen the Pink DALEK allied with them kill Shiro by exploding his head.

Amazon jumped and dodged the Tattooed Man's attack and then lunged at him. She smashed both her feet into his chest, sending him reeling. He tried to strike her down with an axe generated from his tattoos but she grabbed his wrist and used a Judo throw to flip him over her shoulder. He recovered and tried to flatten her with a massive war hammer but she struck him with a knife strike to the throat. He recoiled in pain from the strike. Fortunately, the G-Shock drug made his skin stronger as the claws would've slit his throat. She then followed up with a drop kick to his chest that knocked him onto his back. Finally, she straddled him and punched him repeatedly before nailing him between the eyes with her knuckles, knocking him out.

A serpentine tail smashed into her and threw her off the Tattooed Man. She went tumbling and saw that it was Venom Cobra (Roger Stevenson). He attacked with a spray of venom which she dodged. He opened his mouth again and lunged to take a bite out of her but she bent her body backwards and raised her leg to catch his stomach with her foot. She grabbed his arms and tossed him onto his back. He started to get up to attack her again but a multi-headed whip bounded him. Renkin then punched Venom Cobra across the face. Aquarius released him and allowed Rena to finish him off with an Amazon Kick.

"Hey, Lala!" Yūji called as he joined him in the air. "Listen, I'm going off to see if Alan and Shin needs help. Can you take things from here?"

"Sure!" beamed the rookie Star Sapphire.

"Rune, take care my sisters!" Yuji called to Renkin. Renkin gave him a nod and a thumbs-up. The Blue Comet took off to find and help Alan and Shinichi. Lala put her hand against her stomach. She had a baby in her womb. She really shouldn't be fighting, but as long as she kept out of danger she should be alright. Scanning the battlefield, she could see that everyone had everything taken care of so she touched down in front of the TARDIS and entered the doors to see the Doctor working.

"How's everything going out there?" the Doctor asked as he stood at the console.

"We're winning," smiled Lala. "I'm just here to..."

"Yes, I know, the baby," the Doctor smiled and offered the girl a seat. "You really shouldn't be out there while with a baby even if you have that ring. It can't protect you from everything."

"We Devilukians are much stronger and more durable than humans, Doctor," defended Lala.

"Yes, indeed, but well you can never be too careful," said the Doctor as he pulled out a stethoscope and put it against Lala's stomach. "Alright, still good and still healthy."

"Doctor, what about everything else?" Lala asked. "Did our message really negate the Anti-Life Equation?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded. "Everyone who has been under its control is waking up and taking down the RoC forces all over the world. Savage's hold on the world is gone now. Now all that's left is defeating Savage."

* * *

Jade managed to defeat Hat and Menagerie as both of them were knocked out on the floor. Looking up, she saw her brother had just defeated Coldcast and was now facing Black on his own.

"How...how could you betray us?" Black demanded as he used his telekinesis to shield himself from Obsidian's attacks. "Why?"

"Because my sister is back," said Obsidian.

"Your sister? The one who died? You're bloody mad! That tart just looks like your sister!" Black shouted but then his own shadow rose up behind him and put him in a chokehold.

"Don't you dare talk about my sister like that!" Obsidian snapped. He really didn't like anyone insulting Jade. He started to choke Black but Jade put her hand on her brother's shoulders. He looked at her and saw her shake her head in disapproval. She didn't want him to kill. He released Black and then kicked him upside the head to knock him out.

"Todd..." Jade said in a berating tone.

"What? He's still alive, isn't he?"

* * *

"KIN NO HIGURASHI ZAN!" shouted Showa as he launched the attack at Cain. The grounds was torn apart as the energy tore through it to reach Cain only to be negated by the Spear of Destiny. Cain rushed at Showa but was blocked by Sentinel's energy shield. He was then thrown back by a punch from Showa who used his left fist, the Shield of Glen repelling the first murderer.

"Just what is this asshole made of?" Showa asked his brother.

"Flesh and blood, same as us, but as long as he has that Spear he's way more powerful than he was before," said Sentinel. He was clad in his Bazel Combat Armor and wielding the Kusanagi no Tsurugi.

"So, all we gotta do is get that Spear of Destiny thing away from him, destroy it, and we can beat him?" Showa asked.

"Yeah," nodded Sentinel. "You up for it, Big Brother?"

"Who do you think I am, Little Brother?"

"Is there a point to this babble?" Cain sneered and he launched spears of red energy at them. The two brother dodged out of the way as the spears nearly hit them. They closed the distance and swung their swords which Cain blocked with his Spear of Destiny.

"I made a huge mistake in letting you people live for so long," Cain said as he parried their blows with the Spear of Destiny, sparks flying as their weapons connected. "I should've killed you all when I had the chance!"

"Well, maybe you should've wiped us out in the last month?" Showa challenged. "Too bad, though. It would've been easy. But you just decided to sit on your chair and watch us like we were beneath you." Showa added, "Doesn't seem like a smart plan now, does it?" He then received a call from Sheila and smiled. "And some more good news."

"What?" Cain narrowed his eyes.

"Your armies have been defeated, Cain. All over the world people are rising up against them. Your reign over this world is over," Showa told him. "You're now the Immortal King of Nothing." Cain roared and lashed out, throwing the two brothers back with an arc of red energy. It was painful, but not more than Cain's failure to control the world.

"It's over, Cain," said Sentinel. "Now throw down your weapon and surrender. I'll make sure you get a nice comfortable cell that you can stay in for your lifelong sentence."

"No, it isn't..." said Cain. "Even if this world won't be under my control, other worlds are ripe for the picking. I just need to find a new world, start over, and become king there."

"You're insane," Showa said.

"It's the Spear of Destiny," Sentinel concluded. "All that power has completely eroded his mind. All he can think about is power and dominating others. His true desire is to rule all and expand his control, no matter the cost. It's why he killed Faust. He needed Faust's blood to activate the Spear's power. Isn't that right, Savage? The blood of one of your most loyal men. He trusted you and then you just stabbed him in the back."

"Faust served his purpose," said Cain without an ounce of remorse. "Thanks to him the power of the Spear of Destiny is mine."

"You're wrong, Cain," countered Sentinel. "You don't control the Spear of Destiny. It controls _you_. It's like the saying: 'absolute power corrupts absolutely'."

"YOU LITTLE BASTARDS!" Cain roared as he went to attack then, unleashing a barrage of energy blasts from his spear but they were then deflected by a blue energy shield. Suddenly, photon energy blasts rained down on Cain and he put up his arms to shield himself. Sentinel and Showa looked up to see Blue Comet coming down for a landing.

"Hey, guys," Yūji grinned. "Am I late for the party?"

"You're just in time," smiled Showa.

"Well, if this is a party, I should suit up," said Yūji. "Photon Change!" He was enveloped in a bright flash of light and once it faded away, Yūji had changed. "Photon Knight!" The suit he wore now consisted of deep blue armor which covered his torso, forearms, gloves, shins and feet. On his shoulders were rounded pads and the chestpiece held a glowing core that sat in the centre. His upper arms and thighs were bare of armor but they glowed with bright neon blue light. His helmet was deep blue with an inverted triangle-shaped ruby glowing on his forehead. The faceplate was featureless, save for a pair of narrow blue eyes which had a swirling galaxy in the irises if one were to examine them closely. He brandished the Crimson Dragon Spear proudly, the weapon shining as he focused his power into it.

"Sugoi!" Showa looked his transformed friend up and down. "Now that's some cool armor, dude!" Yūji, a.k.a Photon Knight, acknowledged the compliment with a nod. Sentinel cocked an eyebrow but smiled. The suit really did fit Yūji well.

"Three or three hundred, it won't matter to me! You'll still fall and I, Cain, will stand upon your corpses as I rebuild my kingdom!" declared Cain.

"Is he OK?" Photon Knight as the Lantern and Rider.

"Spear made him go cuckoo," said Showa as he twirled his finger next to his head.

"DON'T YOU DARE IGNORE ME!" He fired a massive blast of crimson energy at them but they put up their shields to protect themselves.

"He's lost control of the Anti-Life Equation so he's no longer connected to everyone on Earth," said Sentinel.

"Translation: No More Holding Back!" Photon Knight charged at Cain with the two brothers following him. He slashed at Cain who deflected with the Spear of Destiny but Cain was hit from behind by Showa's Higurashi no Yaiba. He backhanded Showa but was hit across the face by Sentinel's fist. The three heroes were working together as a team, striking at Cain at once. With a roar, he repelled them, but they didn't go very far.

'_Lad, Princess Shawna is giving you control of the sword again_,' said St. George

'_So, show this immortal your true power, Triling_,' urged Dreigon DxD.

"Right, but first," said Showa before he summoned the Legendary Riders, representing the Rider powers he possessed. However, as he had given the power of seven of those Riders to his in the Gaming Club , the only ones he had were Super-1, Skyrider, ZX, BLACK, RX, Roborider, Biorider, ZO and J. **"ALL RIDER KICK!"** They all jumped and attacked Cain, smashing into him with their signature Rider Kicks. Cain was pushed back by each blow but the last one came from Showa whose foot smashed into his chest and sent him flying into the air. Cain went tumbling along the ground as Showa landed on his feet in a crouched position. The Legendary Riders vanished as Sentinel and Photon stood at his side.

Showa summoned the Sword of Ascalon and called out, "Bring Order to the Chaos... !" He cut a line of light above him and a dragon came down to equip him in his Ascalon Form armor. He then summoned forth his power and called out, "ULTIMATE SPIRIT RAID!" With a single swing, he sent out aura versions of his Treasure Forms. First Showa Higurashi slashed Cain with the Higurashi no Yaiba, followed by Showa Oni who bashed Cain with the Oni Kanabo and then Showa Kage hit Cain with several Kunai. It didn't end there, though. Showa Oyashiro-Trap also hit Cain by smashing him with his mallet before Showa Ryuou slashed Cain repeatedly with the Onigari no Ryuou. Finally, Showa Hinamiza in Jet Guardian Mode rocketed towards Cain and slammed straight into his stomach, knocking his back.

Cain recovered, his injuries healing at an alarming rate. At this rate, they wouldn't be able to defeat him. They needed to get rid of that Spear of Destiny. After that, it should be easy to defeat Cain. The three of them separated and attacked in a triangle formation, striking at Cain from three different angles. Sentinel took the front, Showa took the left and Photon Knight took the right. Cain deflected Showa's swing and buried the blunt end of his spear into Photon Knight but the Knight grabbed hold of the shaft. Cain couldn't pull away and was struck by Sentinel. In his rage, Cain unleashed a burst of energy to repel his enemies. His eyes were flaming and the symbol on his face radiated with power matching his rage.

"**KAZE NO KIZU!"** Showa called as he swung his Sword of Ascalon.

"**PHOTON SLASH!"** Photon Knight called, using the Crimson Dragon as a foci to unleash it.

Both their attacks flew towards Cain but he shattered them with a single thrust of his Spear of Destiny. Sentinel charged at Cain and slashed again, sparks flying as Cain parried with the Spear of Destiny. Showa and Photon Knight both hung back to charge their respective attacks. The latter had his hands cupped in front of his chest while the former his his chestplate took the form of a dragon's head which protruded outwards, mounted on his armor, with its maw open. Energy began to charge within the dragon head's maw as the Knight began to glow. Meanwhile, Sentinel and Cain were still engaged in the middle of their Epic Clash of the Titans and neither one was letting up.

"ALAN, MOVE!" Photon Knight shouted and Sentinel broke away from Cain who was right within Photon Knight's sight and range. "TAKE THIS, ASSHOLE! _**PHOTON BEAM OF DESTRUCTION!**_" He fired an intense beam of photon energy which had the power of 1000 suns. In an instant, Cain summoned his barrier field to block but he was being pushed back as the crimson barrier was beginning to crack. His eyes went wide and he poured more power into his barrier. However, it would not be enough.

"_**EL DRAGO CERO!**_" Showa roared as he fired a crimson Cero blast from his chest-mounted dragon head. Cain roared as the second blast shattered the barrier explosively. Along with the Photon Stream of Destruction, the El Drago Cero violently smashed into him. He felt the searing burn of 1000 suns as the two attacks continued to damage and ruin his body. Eventually, Photon Knight had to stop but the damage was done as Cain's skin was blackened.

"_**HYDRA STRIKE!"**_ Sentinel called and he thrust the Kusanagi no Tsurugi forward, generating a multiple snakes, eight in total, connected to the blade of the legendary sword. Each snake struck Cain with the speed of a bullet and exploded against him. Unable to defend himself, Cain was hit each and every time before he fell onto his hands and knees in agony. He could endure a lot of pain but this was pain beyond anything he had ever felt in his long life. Still, he began to heal rapidly. Fortunately, this was enough time for them to defeat him for good. Sentinel used his ring and formed a lasso which he used to snatch the Spear of Destiny away from Cain.

"MY SPEAR!" Cain roared as his weapon was taken from him.

"No more!" Sentinel shouted as he tossed the Spear of Destiny into the air. "Guys, destroy it!"

"_**GETSUGA TENSHO!"**_

"_**PHOTON BUSTER!"**_

The concentrated energy attacks hit the Spear of Destiny simultaneously and shattered the object through and through. Instead of pieces, the weapon had been reduced to mere dust that was scattered by the wind. Cain screamed as his power left him and he began to turn back to normal. Now, Vandal Savage remained, on his hands and knees, with his teeth gritted and eyes burning in anger. He rose up to his feet, ignoring the pain of his injuries as he charged towards Sentinel who just stood there as the Immortal Man came at him. Savage threw a punch into Sentinel's face which proved ineffective. Sentinel then gripped Savage's fist and gave his wrist a twist, forcing him to his knees.

"It's over, Savage," said Sentinel and he brought his fist down, knocking Savage down and out.

"Wow, one punch," said Showa as Sentinel dusted off his hands. Showa actually wanted to use the Meidou Zangetsuha on Savage as punishment but his brother's way was just as affective.

"Bazel, if you'll please," Sentinel spoke to his armband.

"With pleasure, Partner," said Bazel and he fired a beam which absorbed Savage, storing him inside Bazel. "He's not gonna be getting out of me."

"Thanks," said Sentinel and he walked over to his two friends.

"We did it," said Photon Knight.

"We did," confirmed Sentinel.

"It's over," said Showa.

"It is."

Showa then jumped up and threw his arms into the air, cheering, "YATTA!"

* * *

Back at the massive battlefield, RoC Soldiers and the super-villains were all captured after being defeated and subdued. The heroes were exhausted, sustained some injuries, but were victorious, before changing back to normal. Rune soon noticed something and his eyes widened as he realized what it was.

"Look up at the sky!" Renkin shouted and everyone did to see the sky turning back to normal. No longer were they seeing a red sky with multiple duplicates of Earth smashing into each other. What they saw instead were blue skies and white clouds as well as the bright sun.

"They did it," uttered Mion in relief. "They really did it."

"Shin-kun, Yuji and Alan won! They won!" Rena grabbed Rika and hugged her, jumping up and down. She then started hugging whoever she could get her hands on. This included Satan, Tsukuyomi and Shawna.

Amaterasu looked up at the sun as Tsukuyomi put her hand on her sister's shoulder. "They did it again," said the former Moon Goddess.

"I had no doubts," said Amaterasu, smiling proudly.

"Well, then it goes without saying that it's time to plant this!" said Yokoshima as he planted the flag right in the ground. The pole was two metres tall and flying in the wind was the flag of the **United Resistance Army**.

* * *

Shinichi, Alan and Yūji turned had just turned back to normal when Alan spotted Jade and Obsidian. The brother and sister landed and Shinichi stepped forward only to be held back by Alan.

"I think it's OK," said Alan. Shinichi looked uncertain but nodded as he trusted his brother's judgment. He still kept his guard up as Obsidian stepped forward to face Alan as Alan stared back into his face.

"I may never forgive you for not being able to save Jennifer's life before," began Obsidian, "But I will offer my apology for blaming you for the whole thing."

"Todd says he's sorry," Jade translated.

"Really?" asked Alan then he addressed Obsidian, "Must've hurt to say that."

"Believe me. Jennifer had to force me to do it," Obsidian replied.

"So, who's this?" Yūji asked Alan.

"This is Jade," Alan introduced.

"But didn't you say she was dead?" Shinichi questioned.

"So was I," said Alan.

"And me," added Yūji.

"Ah, OK," Shinichi shrugged. "Nice to meet you, Jade-san."

Jade studied Shinichi and commented, "He does look different without the moustache and beard."

Shinichi yelled at Alan, "Hey! You told me growing that mustache was a bad idea!"

Alan said, "It was. You looked like a sleazy porn director."

Shinichi exclaimed indignantly, "Sleazy!?"

Jade giggled in amusement to see them argue like this but then Shinichi wrapped his arms around Alan.

"I missed you, Little Brother," Shinichi said.

Alan smiled, "I missed you too, Shin."

"Aw, ain't this sweet?" grinned Yūji.

"So, what happened to Savage?" asked Obsidian. "Where is he?"

"In here," Alan tapped on Bazel's jewel. "And he's not gonna be coming out anytime soon."

"Keep him in there," said Obsidian. Alan smiled and then spotted something flying towards them location. It was female, blonde, dressed in black and had wings made of blades.

"Daddy!" Alice cheered as she jumped towards her father then shrunk back to her child form. He caught his little angel and spun around with her in his arms. "You're back!"

"Yes, Alice. I'm back," smiled Alan, "And I'm not going anywhere."

"And who's this cutie?" Jade asked.

"Wow, you're green and pretty!" Alice said to Jade as she pointed at her.

"Alice, it's rude to point," Alan scolded. "And Jade, to answer your question, this is my little girl Alice. Alice, meet Jade."

"She's adorable~" cooed Jade. "So, how did she end up being your daughter?"

"It's a long story. I'll tell you on the way back."

"PAPA-MAU~!"

**Glomp!**

Next it was Celine who'd nose-dived so she could glomp her papa's face.

"And this is Celine," said Alan.

"Mau~" Celine cooed.

"Aw~ she's so cute!" Jade said.

"ALAN!"

Alan, knowing what was coming, placed Alice and Celine down as he prepared himself. A pink and violet blur slammed into him and knocked him to the ground. Dust was kicked up as a result. Jade assumed it was an attack when Shinichi put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry," said Shinichi. "This is normal."

Lala was on top of Alan and tears dripped from her eyes as she looked down at him. "Lala..." Alan uttered as he reached up and gently wiped the tears away before caressing her face.

"You...you stupid..." she sobbed against his chest. "Thank goodness...thank goodness..."

Alan smiled as he introduced, "Lala, meet Jade. Jade, meet Lala."

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so ends the battle against the Religion of Crime. The Legacy of Cain Saga is now over. Fortunately, there's still the epilogue left. That will conclude this whole thing and give you a happy ending. Therefore, I hope you've enjoyed this ride but it is soon coming to an end.**


	199. Epilogue: A New Decade

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: After almost three years, we've finally gotten to this point. Which is the end. Of course, there's news of a following series called Kamen Rider X Green Lantern: Annihilation Wave. However, I'm going to be taking a break from the KRxGL timeline to focus on my other stories and also give some people a break from this. The followup story will come. You just gotta be patient. Anyway, I just want to say thank you to all the people who have stuck around until now so now you're rewarded with this epilogue which resolves several issues for good and put them to rest. Oh, and if you want to go back to reading the previous chapters but you don't know where to begin, here's a list you can refer to:**

**LIST OF STORY ARCS FOR LEGACY OF CAIN SAGA**

**Prologue: Evil Never Dies**

**It Begins: ****Parts 1-22**

**Fragments of the Orochi: ****Parts 23-40**

**Revival of the Orochi: ****Parts 41-64**

**Ascalon: ****Parts 65-72**

**Evolution of Keiichi: ****Parts 73-75**

**The Earthbound Gods: ****Parts 76-86**

**Amazing Tales: ****Parts 87-96**

**The Moon Demon: ****Parts 97-106**

**Hydes: ****Parts 107-121**

**Heroes Fall: ****Parts 122-136**

**Rise of Evil: ****Parts 137-142**

**Epilogue: A New Decade**

**Now, without further ado, the epilogue**

* * *

**EPILOGUE: A NEW DECADE**

The year was **1990 **in Showa no Sekai. It was a brand new decade. In the weeks that followed since Savage's defeat, the world was recovering from the short 'Age of Cain'. Fortunately, the heroes who saved the world were helping the people recover and rebuild. Monuments built in Cain's image were taken down. The people of the world did not need any reminders of the one month they had suffered under Cain's rule.

Right after Cain had been defeated, ARMOR was finally able to get through and contact the young heroes who'd saved Showa no Sekai. Warren and Ryuki came to congratulate them on their victory while taking in all of the villains to be locked up in their own specialized prison while the Vault needed to be rebuilt and re-staffed. Many lives were still lost though. Many had died. Still, they had won. It wasn't a perfect victory but it was better than being ruled by an immortal madman. Speaking of Savage, he was currently sentenced to a life sentence in ARMOR's prison called the 42 along with the rest of his surviving followers. Kineko was also released to ARMOR and given psychiatric help. Warren didn't agree with freezing the girl in cryo-stasis but understood why his son had to do it. Now, she would at least get the help she needed.

It was a whole new world. The identities of the heroes involved in the fight against Cain were public knowledge now and they couldn't walk the street without being recognized. Sure, there were still a number of people who were wary of such powerful beings living among them but the majority of the world's population was grateful to them for saving them and the world. Shinichi, Alan and Yūji gained the most hero worship as their final battle against Cain had been broadcasted all over the world by Sheila herself. She wanted everyone to know that Cain had been defeated and that he'd been beaten by a Lantern, a Rider and a Knight. Still, the heroes all needed good publicity and help maintaining a good image and relations. That was why they had been assigned a PR agent.

The issue of Shinichi's temporal manipulation powers had also been resolved. ARMOR was able to use their advanced science to restore Shinichi's ability to manipulate time. While it was unfortunate that these abilities couldn't have been restored sooner as many lives had been lost, at least Shinichi now had the power to restore the lives lost in the future. He was still limited to the 24 hour window of opportunity when it came to his Return to the Past ability, but it was better than nothing.

"So much for secret identities, huh?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, it was gonna happen sooner or later," said Alan.

"But it's just annoying. I've been getting hundreds of marriage offers for weeks," said Shinichi. "Mostly from kings who want me to marry their daughters."

"Rena didn't appreciate that, did she?" Alan asked.

"No, she did not," said Shinichi. "Hey, do you ever wonder how Yūji's doing?"

"I suppose he went back home, relaxing," said Alan. Yūji and his entire family had returned to their homeworld universe but not without a few parting words with the friends he'd made in this world. He'd also taken Pinkie the DALEK with him. In Yūji's world, Pinkie would be right at home and not suffer persecution for being a DALEK. "Like we all are. Crime has been pretty low."

"What can you expect when most of them are locked up?" asked Shinichi.

"Doesn't mean no new criminals are gonna show up," Alan retorted. "No matter how peaceful a world is, there'll always be crime."

"I can't believe that they're stupid enough to commit crime with us looking after things," said Shinichi. "They must think we're too busy to worry about the little things, huh?"

"It goes to show that they still think that they can get away with anything," Alan shrugged. "I asked my dad about the criminal mind. He says that some criminals just feel self-entitled to everything and think they're invincible, or something like that."

"Until they get caught," added Shinichi.

"So, how are things going between Rena and her mom?" Alan asked. Like Jade and Rosa, Rena's mother Risa had also been revived. The circumstances behind her revival were mysterious but Rena wasn't complaining. It was probably just divine intervention of some sort like how Yūji, Alan, Jade and Rosa had been revived. A higher power must've heard her and brought her mother back for her.

"They're doing great," said Shinichi. "They've managed to sit down and talk, and they're getting along." He remembered how Rena had been so happy to see her mother again.

"It's good that Rena's forgiven her," Alan smiled. He didn't like seeing Rena feeling guilt over how she had rejected Risa's earlier offer to reconcile. When Risa had been murdered she knew it was too late and had broken down.

"No more awkward moments," Shinichi said in relief. He remembered when he'd tried to help mother and daughter reconcile, with the entire thing backfiring in his face. Risa's death, however, had made Rena regret not giving Risa another chance but right now they were repairing their relationship. "Still, it was funny to see Retsu faint." Rena's dad almost had a heart attack when he thought his ex-wife's ghost had come back to haunt him.

"There's still the issue about her grave," Alan stated.

"Not a problem," Shinichi shrugged.

"And _mine_," Alan added.

"Again, not a problem," Shinichi repeated. "But seriously, do you really want us to get rid of it? It's a great monument."

"Right, because _everyone _wants to see their own grave," Alan remarked sarcastically as he rolled his eyes.

"So, are you gonna be going to the wedding?" Yūji had invited the two of them to his wedding. He and Rosa were going to get married, as they should have before she got murdered.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Alan smiled.

* * *

On the day of the wedding, as Kinzo Ushiromiya had passed away, it was Krauss' responsibility as the eldest of Kinzo's children to give his youngest sister away. It wasn't everyday you got to give away your youngest sister at her wedding, especially if said sister had recently been revived from the dead. It was a small ceremony, attended only by friends and family, taking place in the chapel on Rokkenjima. Rosa looked beautiful, dressed in her wedding dress. It was the one she wanted to wear at her wedding.

Yūji stood at the altar and smiled as he saw Rosa being led down the aisle by Krass. For Rosa Ushiromiya, this was a dream come true. It was even more so for Yūji Fudō who'd dreamed of this day since he fell in love with Rosa. Once Rosa was at the altar, Krauss let her go to join the rest of the Ushiromiya Clan to watch the ceremony.

"Alright," began Featherine Augustus Aurora, "Now, since these two have been waiting years to get married, I think that we should just skip everything, pronounce them man and wife, let them kiss and be done with it. However, personal feelings aside, this is their wedding day so we need to make this right. So, the bride and bridegroom have vows they wish to recite to each other."

"Where is that thing..." Yūji muttered as he went through his pocket, pulling out a paper as he scanned what he wrote. This threw everyone off guard as they watched Yūji scanning his writing, some of them wondering if Yūji was ever alright in the head. "OK," he nodded before pocketing the paper. "Rosa, I will admit; I am idiot. I go off fighting like I'm gonna win, which I do most of the time, I talk smack a lot, I make jokes, and there are times where I oversleep (because of certain people). But that doesn't, and will never, affect how I feel about you. When we first met after I got your purse back from that dude I drop-kicked upside the head, and laid eyes on you, I thought I'd fallen in love all over again. You were a real sight for these sore eyes at the time, and the time we shared together was some of the best times in my crazy life. To be honest, I was a little worried before you learned that I wasn't exactly single, but you had an open mind and that helped to ease my mind and you even got along with Asura; which was odd since Asura rarely gets along with anyone she meets."

"At least he's honest," Asura nodded.

"Moving on, I know Maria isn't really of my blood," Yūji added, "but that didn't stop me from taking care of her while you were away and we've grown a lot closer over the last couple years. I'm glad you're back with us so you can enjoy those times too."

"And the orgies!" Yuri howled from the back, "Don't forget about them orgies!"

"Shut the fuck up, Yuri!" Yūji snapped. Yuri only laughed before getting swatted up the head by Shego and Kikyo. "OK...where was I?"

Rosa supplied, "You mentioned something about enjoying the time we can spend together in the future."

"Right then," Yūji nodded, "Bottom line is I can't stress enough how glad I am to have you back in my life, in Maria's life. Hell, in _all _our lives. And I'll be damned if I screw up again."

"Now, Ms. Rosa Ushiromiya will recite her vows," said Featherine.

"Yūji, when we first met I had my doubts about you. I wanted a husband desperately and was afraid that Maria might scare you off. Instead, Maria drew us closer together. You love both of us and we love you. That when when I knew you were the one. It was unfortunate that I was taken away from you so soon and so was our unborn child. However, a miracle has brought us back together and I'm glad that you never stopped loving me even after all this time. I am eternally grateful that you took care of Maria while I was gone, and found happiness as well. I wish to be part of that happiness too, if it isn't too late. I want us to be a family, like we should've been years ago," Rosa recited.

"Time to make out now, right?" Misato beamed, "I wanna see some tongue too!"

"Agreed, I think we've kept all the guests waiting," said Featherine. "Now, do you, Yūji Fudō take Rosa Ushiromiya as your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do," Yūji answered.

"And do you, Rosa Ushiromiya, take Yūji Fudō to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do," Rosa replied, smiling. She couldn't believe this was happening as they exchanged their wedding rings.

Featherine announced, smiling, "I now pronounce you Husband and Wife! You may now kiss!"

"UU~! UU~! Mama and Papa are married!" Maria cheered.

Yūji grinned as he took Rosa and tipped her with a twirl, kissing her as Misato started cheering like a fangirl as she finally got what she wanted and happy that her husband got what _he _wanted. What happened next would probably be the worst idea ever, of all time. Rosa threw the bouquet. She really should've remembered that most of the female guests had superpowers. With that said, if you put superpowered girls at a wedding and a bouquet was tossed, it was a formula for disaster. And chaos soon erupted as all the girls started screaming as they fought over the bouquet.

Leviathan and Mammon were in the lead, screaming, "Mine, Mine, Mine, Mine!" Only Beelzebub didn't go after the bouquet. Her eyes were on the wedding cake instead. The chapel had to be rebuilt soon after... Fortunately, they had an alchemist (Rune) present to repair all the damages. The wedding party took place in the mansion.

Meanwhile, Alan was outside with the Doctor while everyone was inside enjoying themselves. This was where they were going to part ways. The TARDIS stood behind the Doctor as Alan faced the man who'd inspired him to be a hero who used his brains more than brawn.

"So, I guess this is it then," Alan said.

"Yeah, it is," said the Doctor as he opened the door to the TARDIS.

"You know, while I was dying the last time, you mentioned something about 'Jenny'," Alan spoke. "What was that about."

"Oh, spoilers," the Doctor grinned. "Just spoilers. That's all I'm going to say."

"Of course," Alan smiled. "The web of time, right?"

"Oh, come here! You've made me so proud!" the Doctor hugged Alan. "Brilliant, brilliant Alan Smith! Always brilliant like a shining star!" He broke the embrace and went into the TARDIS but stood at the doorway.

"Take care of yourself, Doctor," said Alan and the Doctor saluted before he closed the door. Alan watched as the TARDIS made its wheezing and warping noise as it began to dematerialize before his eyes. Finally, it was gone, not leaving a single trace of itself behind. Alan was about to go back inside the mansion to join the party when he heard the warping and wheezing noise again. He turned and saw the TARDIS re-materializing before his eyes. "That was quick," he remarked. The TARDIS stood before him again now and the door opened. This time, a different man stepped out, dressed in a blue suit with white pinstripes, a white dress shirt, red tie, and wearing trainers on his feet. He had big bright eyes and short un-styled brown hair with sideburns.

"Alan Smith!" said the man, the 10th Incarnation of the Doctor, "Ready for that trip I promised you?"

Alan wore a huge smile. The 11th Doctor had just left and now the 10th Doctor was asking him to come along on an adventure. He looked back at the mansion and then at the TARDIS.

"You know there's a wedding party going on, right?" Alan asked as he pointed at the mansion.

"Really?" asked the Doctor. "Do they have bananas? You should always bring a banana to a party."

"How about we go in and check," suggested Alan.

"Well, who am I to reject such a gracious invitation?" asked the Doctor. "Allons-y!"

"Allons-y!" Alan repeated.

* * *

Weeks later, there was a bank robbery in Tokyo and said robber was fleeing the scene. He was equipped with some kind of hi-tech gear, capable of firing energy bolts from his fingers. There was no way the police could stop him.

Meanwhile, looking down at the robber from a nearby rooftop were Kamen Rider Showa, Blue Comet and Sentinel.

"They never learn, do they?" Showa asked as Sentinel and Blue Comet smiled in response.

"Of course not, but maybe _this _will drive the point home," replied Sentinel. Assembled behind them was every member of the United Resistance Army, ready to strike.

"He is so gonna freak out when he sees us," Blue Comet grinned.

"Let's Ride!" Showa commanded.

**-THE END-**

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: It's finally finished. Kamen Rider X Green Lantern is now officially over. However, that isn't the end of the story. This is just one of the stories within this universe that is completed. I would like to give credit to Shadow Element 13 for his character Alan Smith and Kamen Rider Bushido for his character Yūji Fudo in their assistance. Kamen Rider Goji also gets credit for helping out with edits and conflicts within the story itself. Other individuals deserve credit as well but are not mentioned by name due to various reasons. **


End file.
